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Newsmakers of the Week FEBRUARY 21, 2025 | The Indian Eye 28

RO KHANNA DR. SRINIVAS VENUGOPAL

Congressman urges “humane” Professor honored by University

deportations, balanced trade of Vermont

he University of Vermont
(UVM) Grossman School
Tof Business (GSB) recently
appointed Dr. Srinivas Venugopal
as Inaugural Donald and Gabrielle
McCree Endowed Professor of Busi-
ness. He joined UVM in 2016 and
was promoted to Associate Profes-
sor with tenure in 2022. In 2024, he
was named the Academic Director of
the Sustainable Innovation MBA (SI-
MBA) program.
“The recognition inspires me
to continue serving the Grossman
School of Business and this venerable
university with renewed vigor. More
specifically, it inspires me to bolster
my research and teaching efforts
aimed at demonstrating how businesses can create wealth and widespread
societal well-being. Thank you so much for this honor.” With these words, Dr.
Srinivas Venugopal concluded his acceptance of the inaugural Donald and
Gabrielle McCree Endowed Professor of Business.
The University of Vermont (UVM) Grossman School of Business (GSB)
invested Dr. Srinivas Venugopal in this prestigious position on January 31,
2025. The investiture was led by Grossman School of Business Dean Sanjay
Sharma, with remarks by UVM President Patricia Prelock, and the generous
donor of the position, UVM alum Don McCree ’83. This appointment to an
endowed position for Dr. Srinivas Venugopal is among the highest academic
honors the University of Vermont can bestow on a faculty member.
Dr. Srinivas Venugopal received his Bachelor of Science in Electrical and
head of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to the United States, US Electronic Engineering from Anna University in India in 2005. Prior to pur-
Congressman Ro Khanna spoke on key issues likely to be discussed be- suing an academic career, he was leading a technology-based social venture
Atween PM Modi and President Donald Trump, including immigration in Tamil Nadu, India, focused on delivering education services to low income,
and trade. rural region consumers. Dr. Venugopal is also the founder of a non-profit
Khanna stressed the importance of “humane treatment” during depor- called “Diya”, which provides supplementary education in the urban slums
tation processes, stressing that those being deported should be treated with of Chennai, India – a social enterprise he continues to lead to this day. He
“appropriate dignity.” completed his MBA and Ph.D. in Marketing at the University of Illinois at
When asked if the deportation of Indian immigrants allegedly living ille- Urbana-Champaign.
gally in the US will be discussed during PM Modi-President Trump’s meeting,
Khanna said, “I am sure immigration will be discussed. My view is that when To read more about Indian diaspora and Global Indians, log on to and follow
deportations take place, they need to take place humanely where those being our website www.TheIndianEYE.com
deported are treated with appropriate dignity, not harassed or treated in in-
humane conditions.”
“And of course, the people coming to the United States need to follow the
law and come legally. So, that’s what I hope will get resolved,” Khanna added.
On trade, Khanna pointed out that one of the issues “corroding” US rela-
tions with China, Europe, and Canada is the large trade deficit, where the US
buys more than it sells. Khanna emphasised that for the US-India relationship
to strengthen, India should commit to purchasing as much from the US as the
US buys from India.
Khanna said, “America has a trade balance with India, one of the things
that has corroded our relationship with China is a massive trade deficit where
China is selling us all of these products and not buying our products. The same
thing with Europe. We have a trade deficit with them. We have a trade deficit
even with Canada. We need a balanced trade relationship. So, I think what’s
important with India is that they commit to buying as much from the United
States as we buy from them.”
The matter pertains to the deportation of over 100 Indian nationals. A
US Air Force plane carrying Indian citizens who allegedly illegally migrated
to the US arrived in Punjab’s Amritsar on February 5.

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