Gone nuts?

Doda that saw the land of
opportunities - US circa Feb 2023

After checking off all the major boxes in life, you may think you've got it all sorted. But, wait a minute!! 

Well, in case anyone is wondering, what has gotten into my brain this time...I am talking about the showstopper, the mighty, the grumbly, the cutest WALNUT DODA!! The king of Indian sweets.

I visited India this February, and let me tell you, there's nothing quite like being with family, enjoying home-cooked food, and having everything taken care of while you lounge in bed, not worrying baout doing the laundry or dishes. But amidst all the good things, let's talk about the star of today's blog—Walnut Doda. Yass! 

Gurgaon, Sec 23 -
The Mecca of Doda's

First things first, let's talk about the walnuts in this glorious mess. They're like mischievous little imps that have found their home in the Kingdom of Doda, adding an unexpected crunch to every bite. These walnuts have seen things, my friends! As you take your first mouthwatering bite, prepare yourself for a symphony of flavors that will leave your taste buds wondering if they've stumbled upon a SpaceX spacecraft. The melting sweetness of the Doda will hit you like a killer standup comedy show, with a twist of nuttiness that' might make you question your sanity. 😇

It's truly a flavor rollercoaster, and you won't care about low-carb diets or anything else like this in this physical world with impossible realms of reality. 👀

Google image of Walnut Doda

Next time, you are in Gurgaon, splurge in the madness of walnut Doda (its only available during the winter months, but plain doda is worth trying too). It's an extra-terrestrial experience (If I ever had one, this would be it), at least for me. You can thank me later.  Ok, Bye!

Winning a J1 waiver on Fulbright!

Published on medium.com - Winning a J1 visa waiver on Fulbright

In this blog, I will describe my experience applying for a waiver of the J1 visa. Since you're here, I'm assuming you're seeking the waiver because you previously held a J1 visa or now have one while participating in a "student exchange program" in the United States. I'll give some helpful links, timeframes, and pointers to help you succeed in this difficult endeavor. 

Here we go:

Waiver Application Process (stepwise in a nutshell)

Step 0: Affidavit and Biodata attestation

Step 1: Getting a 'No Objection' clearance from your home country (also called as NORI - No obligation to return to India)*

Step 2: Mail your petition (DS3035) forms and supporting documents to Department of State (DOS) Waiver division (St. Louis, MO)

Step 3: Your embassy in United States (in Washington, D.C) sends their 'No Objection Statement' to DOS (in Washington, D.C) directly.

Step 4: Online update in DS 3035 portal that all your documents have been received. 

Step 5: DOS favorable recommendation update online.

Step 6: FINAL approval from the USCIS.

*Info: I am an Indian national, and my waiver ground was "No objection," thus my procedure would be as follows. In addition, I was in a third nation at the time of this procedure (i.e. neither in the US nor in India). Also, I had received federal funding (Fulbright fellowship).

Step 0: Biodata and Affidavit attestation 

Start date : Nov 05, 2019

1. Prepare Biodata and Affidavit forms, sign it and get it notarized from a local notary officer at your place.
• Please note, Indian embassy has a sample Biodata and Affidavit form on their website. You can use that and re-write it in a WORD document should you need more space to fill in details.
• Please make sure the affidavits are notarized first before you seek attestation.
2. Send the notarized Biodata and Affidavit for attestation (along with supporting documents) to your nearest Indian embassy. You need to prepare 4 copies of each.
• Due to Covid-19, WALK-IN services are currently suspended. Please send requisite document by mail along with all supporting documents listed below
• Notarized copies of passport, legal status, address proof, J1-visa stamps, educational certificates (for verification of Bio-data).
• Miscellaneous form  
• Attestation fee in the form of Cashier's check/Money order
• Return shipping envelope. 
• Please do not send original Passport. 

#Tip 1: "Cashier's Check/Money Order should be drawn in favor of CONSULATE GENERAL OF INDIA, [STATE NAME]" No blank check/money order will be accepted by the consulate. ICWF charges for miscellaneous services are $2.00 per application. 

You have now got the attested biodata and affidavit from the Indian embassy and are ready to submit your application package to three departments in India: 

1. MHRD
2. Passport office
3. Home State Department

Step 1: Getting a 'No Objection' clearance from your home country

This step actually consists of 4 sub tasks

Task 1.1: Getting NORI from MHRD

• Create profile at www.nori.ac.in 
• Upload documents online
• Affidavit (notarized and attested by embassy)
• Bio-data (notarized and attested by embassy)
• Bachelors Degree, Masters Degree and Doctorate degree (if applicable)
• J-1 visa with a simple clarification letter explaining why you are seeking a waiver (merged into the same pdf)
• Passport First and Last Page
• Cover letter

#Tip 2: This is the simplest and quickest stage in the entire procedure. You may follow your case online once it has been submitted. The status will display "In Process" until a decision is made, and you'll be able to get your first NORI in about a month.

Task 1.2: Getting NORI from Regional Passport Office

Similar to step 1.1, following documents should be submitted:

• Affidavit (notarized and attested by embassy)
• Bio-data (notarized and attested by embassy)
• Bachelors Degree, Masters Degree and Doctorate degree (if applicable)
• J-1 visa page with a simple clarification letter 
• Passport First and Last Page
• Current immigration status and associated documents
• Cover letter

Please send the application package, which includes all the above-mentioned documents, to your Regional Passport officer by mail or in-person. This phase might take anywhere between 4 and 6 weeks. A police officer may visit your home mentioned in the Affidavit for verification. Following this step, you will get the NORI through email. They also send emails directly to the Indian Consulate in your state.

#Tip 3:  Submitting the documents in person weighs more than submitting via mail. However, it's completely fine to send by mail as well. My advice is to have someone from your family follow-up with them on a regular basis. This significantly increases your chances of obtaining NORI sooner than usual.   

Task 1.3: Getting NORI from Home State Department

This is most often the rate-limiting step, or the slowest step. Make sure you continue to follow it with them.

Again, send the following document to the Home State Department - NORI division:

• Affidavit (notarized and attested by embassy)
• Bio-data (notarized and attested by embassy)
• Bachelors Degree, Masters Degree and Doctorate degree (if applicable)
• J-1 visa page with a simple clarification letter 
• Passport First and Last Page
• Current immigration status and associated documents
• Cover letter

In this step, once you send the documents, it is first attested by a Deputy Secretary and you're provided with a reference number. Then, the Home Department sends out a letter to the following offices:

1. Controller of Examination of your University (not your college)
2. SB-CID (Special Branch CID) for NORI verification clearance

The most interesting part is the visit from Special Branch-CID. The individual will come to the home address you listed in your affidavit/Biodata to confirm that it is indeed the address of your parents. He will request several identification documents, such as ration cards and utility bills. Make sure you offer them Tea and snacks :) 

He may also ask for an undertaking from your parents that they don't have any problem you living in US as long as you will not abandon them. 

Once this is done, keep in touch with them since that person is required to send his report to his boss, who is the one who signs your letter and forwards it to his clerk for return to the Home Department. 

The NORI letter will be mailed to you, or you can request that it be emailed to you.

#Tip 4: Following up with the officials at every step is a great idea and will save you a lot of time.

Task 1.4: Finally, getting a No Objection Statement from Indian Embassy in Washington, D.C.

Once, you have all the 3 copies of NORI, send this out to your nearest Indian embassy (who prepared Biodata and Affidavit for you) to obtain one consolidated NOC. 

Following supporting documents must be send to them:

1. Filled miscellaneous form 
2. Money order of $20 in favor of "Consulate General of India, [State name]"  and $2 towards "Consulate General of India (ICWF)"
3. Three NORI clearances from MHRD, RPO and Home department of state in India you belong to – self attested
4. Passport copy – self attested
5. Copies of all DS-2019 – self attested
6. Copy of J1 visa – self attested
7. Case number and barcode page from Department of State (USA)

#Tip 5: While you're waiting for all of the NORIs, make sure you have two sets of $25-35 US postal stamps on hand. I bought it on eBay.com. You may also ask a friend or family member who resides in the United States to mail it to you. The next step will explain why you need this. Note: Because this may take some time, it is best to complete it before moving on to step 2. 

Step 2: Mailing your petition (DS-3035) forms and supporting documents to Department of State (DOS) Waiver division (St. Louis)

You have to send the following documents to Department of State and  I will list down the steps below:

1. Fill out DS 3035 form online at https://j1visawaiverrecommendation.state.gov/
2. Submit it and an application package will be generated. This form will only be considered submitted truly when its physical copy is sent to the DoS address mentioned below:
   

Department of State J-1 waiver

P.O. Box 979037

1005 Convention Plaza

St. Louis, MO 63101 - 1200

This application package has a page "Statement of Reason" where you need to explain in 200 words or less why are you seeking a waiver.

#Tip 6: This is a place where you must be completely honest and genuine about your reason for seeking the waiver. You should explain how working in this nation will benefit both the United States and yourself. For instance: I was going to work in a National Laboratory, and I wrote that the type of research I will be performing will enhance US R&D and the economy, as well as provide jobs and employment opportunities for its citizens.  

You need to send following documents along with ds-3035 application package:

1. DS 3035 application package
2. Statement of Reason
3. DS-2019 (all copies)
4. Two self addressed STAMPED legal-size envelopes.
5. Processing fee of USD 120. If you are outside the United States, you may pay the fee with a bank international money order or a foreign draft from an institution in the United States. It must be in U.S. currency and payable to the U.S. Department of State. I went to a local bank and they issued a draft from their US subsidiary. On the back of the draft, write down your waiver case number, your full name, your date of birth, place of birth and social security number (if applicable).

Assemble these documents and send to DoS address mentioned above.

#Tip 7: Make sure your case number and country/region of last residence is written on any documentation submitted, as well as on the outside envelope of ALL future correspondence with the Waiver Review office.

The DoS takes an average of 4 weeks to update this online and you can check the status here https://j1visawaiverrecommendation.state.gov/

Info: The current pandemic has slowed regular processing times, and some have reported waiting up to 8 weeks for papers to upload and display online.

Step 3: Your embassy in United States (in Washington, D.C) sends their 'No Objection Statement' to DOS

Now that you have clearances from all 3 Government departments in India, go to your nearest Indian High Commission for the next steps. Here’s how it works:

1. You submit the clearances you obtained from the 3 departments in Step 1 along with some supporting documents like passport copies, J-1 visa copy, DS-2019 etc.
2. The Indian High Commission in your country issues a No-objection letter to you
3. They forward the same to the Indian High Commission in Washington D.C. with other supporting documents* that you provided by Registered Post. It can take a few weeks or days to reach them (depending upon what service you chose to send it).
4. The High Commission in Washington D.C. forwards the No Objection Letter received with an additional cover letter addressed to the DoS waiver division citing your petition number.

#TIP 8: *Make sure you send the BARCODE page obtained from your DS-3035 package to the Indian high commission in D.C. 

Info: 

• DoS recognizes No Objection letter only if it arrives from the embassy of your home country in the US.
• Make sure your application packet is received by DoS and is updated online (Step 2 completed) before the No objection letter from the embassy reaches them.

Step 4: Online update in DS 3035 portal that all your documents have been received. 

Once DoS receives all the documents in your application packet (sent to the St. Louis address) and the No Objection statement from your embassy, the online update timeline can vary anywhere between 1 to 60 days (documented timelines, sometimes it can take longer if your case is not straight forward or you need multiple waivers).

#Tip 9: Although there is no tracking for when your documents were received by US DOS, you can track when your bank's cheque was cashed. This gives you an idea that your documents have been received and are being processed.

#Tip 10: Meanwhile if you have any questions, you can send your query to 212ewaiver@state.gov

#Tip 11: All J waiver inquiries should refer to only one case per e-mail and must include the following:

• Case number
• Last name
• First name
• Date of birth
• Basis under which you are applying for a waiver, and
• A brief explanation of your inquiry

Important info:

Because I was a Fulbright student and had received federal funds, I got a "Request for Information" from the Department of State through letter after 4 months of processing. I was requested to respond 2 questions by FAX:

1. No. of days spent in my home country (After J1 visa)
2. Reason of seeking a waiver

I responded quickly (the same day), but they take an absurdly lengthy time to update every step in their system. As a result, it took them two weeks to update their response to my FAX. Within a few weeks of this stage, they put out a request for "SPONSOR VIEWS" - the most difficult step of the entire journey.

Sponsor views - means they have sent out my application to request recommendation from the program's sponsor. It's ECA (Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs). ECA is the nodal agency responsible for fostering cordial, peaceful ties between Americans and people from other nations via intellectual, cultural, athletic, and professional exchanges, as well as public-private collaborations. So their entire goal is to allow the exchange student to return to their home country and distribute the training and learning he or she gained in the United States. I was terrified at this stage because I anticipated it not to offer me a favorable recommendation because I was requesting a waiver from their 2-year home presence requirement. I had to wait for another 5 months, which was a stressful time. I was not very positive at this stage, but all I could think about was why they were taking so long. Just get it done and set me free from this entire WAITING game. But, see the next step!!

Step 5: DOS favorable recommendation update online.

There was not a single day in the whole 13 months that I did not access the waiver website to check on the progress of my case.

However, on the holy day of December 15, I was delighted to learn that the DoS had given me a favorable recommendation. I was exhilarated.

You will receive a letter from DoS in the mail in one of your self-addressed stamped envelopes indicating that DoS has given you a favorable recommendation and that everything from their end has been completed. In the second self-addressed stamped envelope, they also send their recommendation to USCIS and issue you an i-797 C Notice of Action. This i-797 letter includes a Case number, which you can use to follow the status of your case.

My timeline

It is now up to USCIS to grant you FINAL permission.

Step 6: FINAL approval from the USCIS

It's not finished yet. While the Department of State is responsible for reviewing and approving your waiver petition, the final decision is still in the hands of USCIS. In most situations, USCIS will accept the advice of the DoS and give you the waiver. However, in some exceptional circumstances, such as hardship or persecution, USCIS will hold the case and request a non-USCIS advisory opinion, which can take several months. You can check the status at https://egov.uscis.gov/casestatus/landing.do

After approximately 2 weeks since DOS's favorable recommendation, USCIS gave me a favorable recommendation with an i-612 approval letter, which I got within the next two weeks. Yay!!!

End date : Jan 06, 2019

So, the final step is to wait for the i-612 approval letter before proceeding to apply for an H1B visa. However, I no longer needed that because I had already obtained an O1 - A visa (which does not require a J1 waiver) and was in the United States by the time my J1 waiver was issued. Still, if you intend to change your status to that of an immigrant type in the future, you will require the waiver.

That's all. It was a 14 months journey! someone has rightly said, "Patience is a virtue"

Shoot me any questions you might have in the comments sections. You may also want to join this Facebook group "J1 visa waiver" where we share and discuss various questions from applicants currently going through the same process. 

Some Useful links:

• https://www.cgisf.gov.in/page/nori-no-obligation-to-return-to-india/
• http://www.nori.ac.in/
• For Affidavit and Biodata forms
• For Miscellaneous Form
• DS-3035 
• USCIS case status
• Buy US Postal stamps on ebay
• Buy Legal size envelope on Amazon

Long time, no see?

Beautiful Colorado!

      Been a long time. I remember back in college, anytime I was given a deadline, I would have this sudden urge to write something down, and that's how I ended up having over 100 blog entries. It's not the same anymore. Does this imply that I am no longer bound by deadlines? That can't possibly be true. It's simply that I've stopped writing on a regular basis, which isn't good. This is one of my happy place, and I was just going over some of my previous entries. What I wrote made me giggle. It was also a wonderful flashback of memories. I'm not great at remembering things until I'm reminded of them, so writing blogs is probably a good way for me to jot down events/stories from my life. You know, I've been writing here since 2008! Oh my goodness! :) 

That's me! 

     Anyway, I'm doing great and am at a place where I've always wanted to be :) I'm doing some amazing research while taking in the grandeur of Colorado's rugged mountains. I gained weight (as usual) :P. I had a knee (sports) injury in 2019, but I've recovered (almost). I'm more excited on weekdays and Mondays in general than on Saturdays :D I still adore food, music, and everything else life has to offer..! :)

Absolutely gorgeous Tulips I clicked in NYC

P.S: My favorite cartoon Show "South Park" was based out of Colorado. What else do you need :D

Rebuttal to Pakistani scholar's biased article

Recently, two Pakistani scholars published an article in the Fulbright group on Facebook (an international group where Fulbrighters from across the globe participate). No point in guessing how biased and dispirited article that was. It was merely a medium to spread the false propaganda and a plea for attention. Initially, I thought of ignoring it, but then I happened to share it with a long-time friend of mine, Prabhat. He came up with the idea of writing a rebuttal, and I eagerly jumped on board. However, due to a busy schedule, I couldn't contribute much, only a little. Thus, I want to give credits to Prabhat for articulating such a nicely written article. We shared it on the Fulbright group and it welcomed a chain of comments, thoughts and of course criticism. But I am happy that we could convey our point of views. Now it's up to people to make any opinion, for now, we have given them another side of the coin. Here's the link:

http://theindiaeternal.blogspot.com/

How to treat interns?

Disclaimer: This post is for the non-intern junta. One who has never done any internship under a mentor. Cuz I am the mentor and I am badass!

So, I was talking to a friend. He is a 2^nd year Ph.D. student. He got an intern from one of the IIT's in India. I met both of them and we naturally bonded over coffee. I was telling them how I have mentored four B. Tech's, 3 M. Tech's, and even two PhD's (when I was still a Ph.D. student). I shared my experience with them. Later, when the intern left and only both of us (mentors) were left, we talked the real shit. My friend, let's give him a name, Joey, was like, "I have asked him to write a paper and that it would be good for both of them since he is here only for 3-4 months and then he could write a paper and then I will, of course, guide him and we could have a paper in 6 months’ time, blah blah blah". When I chatted with “The intern”, let's call him Chandler, he sounded so serious and told me that he will do everything he's been asked to.

I was like, hmm, that is ambitious. I know the tricks of the game pretty well. I told him, he would not do it. Because a) He wanted to do an MBA (lol, isn’t that enough?), and b) He is a 3^rd year B. Tech. Both these reasons are enough to let me not give further explanations. I have had so many friends all this while and I know for sure, I have not seen a serious B. Tech student in a long time. They are there but one in say 30. So getting that one is really difficult and fortunate. In addition, with the above two reasons, I know he is not the one. I am no way demeaning Chandler, but you know it is that thing; you are not serious in your bachelors. I was not even, rather I should say, forward-looking individual.

So, today when I had a chat with Joey, he told me that Chandler is not writing the paper. And I was like, Really? (Sounding surprised yet I was not).

 

                                                                    

Collecting wastewater/sludge from inside IIT Kharagpur campus
with my favorite intern

P.S: With my experience in the field, the best way to get work done with the interns is to work with them. Show them how it is done, like actually doing experiments and analyses. I think it would be unfair to expect them to write a whole paper on their own, you have to do that. You should motivate them by giving some perks. I have taken them out for treats or given them due authorship in papers. Even though they have walked away now to do different things in their lives, we still connect through social networking sites and laugh on all good things that happened. I really want to thank them, for if they were not there, my 5 years of Ph.D. would not have been this much fun. Thanks, peeps J

In the name of God!

         From the last couple of years, the practice of mob lynching in India has come into the limelight. Every month, we read the newspaper or watch in the TV news channels that a mob of people attacked some individual for his/her act of crime, beating him mercilessly so much that it killed him. I am sure we all remember how a man in Guwahati was tied to a pole, ripping off his clothes and beaten up in full public view so much that he died. Then, there was news about a woman, who was beaten up naked by a group of men. In 2015, a mob of (Hindu) villagers attacked an old Muslim man for suspicion of slaughtering a cow! Holy cow! He died. Just yesterday, there was news about a young man from Jharkhand, who was forced by a mob of people to chant religious slogans. He was beaten up so much that he died due to cardiac arrest. This is not normal; can I call it murder? Mob lynching is a crime. It is illegal and wrong to take the law in your hand. 

What have we come to become now? What is with all this frustration and anger? Who gives these men the authority to beat the shit out of a person ultimately killing them? Isn’t that too much?

        I have a few questions in my mind that just bothers me. These will help me put things in a perspective.

1. Who are these men?
2. Why does not anyone stop them before it gets worse?
3. What the police in the region is doing when these acts take place?
4. Don’t these men have any fear of the outcome? Do they have any pillars of support?
5. Why is the government not taking any action to prevent such acts?

          The lynching is always followed by some political reactions where one party blames the other and this vicious circle keeps on growing. The sad part is when the political parties start gaining political mileage from the incident. If I were the person in power, I would call up a meeting and try to find some foolproof solution to this problem so that next time if anyone tries something like this, think 100 times before. Well, I really do not believe that the government in power is supporting all this. However, if they do not take any action or prefer to stay away, they are in some way definitely encouraging it. I mean, if such news can agitate a normal person like me, why not the government (who has power) does nothing. Is there something that I am missing and do not understand? Is it all a part of some big political agenda?

The Long Night

Many of us waited for this long night to unfold. Naturally, all fans went berserk seeing this episode. I am sure none of us predicted it to go down like that, beat for beat.

If anyone ever imagined how the end would look like, it would be either the Dragon queen or Jon or someone else but Arya. But, it was her! All her training with the many-faced god makes sense now. Also, the words of the Melisandre (Red woman) were to the point. The epic third episode of Game of Thrones ‘eighth season saw Jon Snow, Daenerys Targaryen and the rest of our still-living heroes face off with the Night King and his army of dead in the Battle of Winterfell. It was one hell of a fight in the cold night.

But the end, The end, um, I am kind of still trying to come to terms of it. His army of the dead was guarding him, right? I am sure they are really good at whatever they do. How the hell Arya emerged in the thick of the night right before the Night King got a chance to kill Bran? You know, Arya just jumped in with a Valyrian dagger in her hand to defend her brother, Bran, who was apparently waiting for this moment to come. Duh! For a moment, it felt to me that, this is it. Arya will kill him, but on the very next moment, before she could realize anything, the blue-eyed monster caught Arya by the throat in midair. All hope seems to be lost at that very moment. But, next, badass Arya just dropped the dagger from her hand and caught it from the other hand, plunged the pointy end forward into the Night King's gut. No points in guessing, what it would have done to the monster!! We all know that by now.

Is the night king really dead now? I mean I know she killed him with a Valyrian steel but if Jon can come back to life again, can he too? And someone please explain to me what and how Arya did what she did?


Valar Morghulis! All men must die. Also, what is dead may never die, but as it turned out in the climactic final moments of the episode, what is undead may very much die. But wait, wasn’t it something like dead's thing to...rise from the undead??