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Wednesday, September 30, 2020

US Presidential Elections: Effect of Modi-Trump Relationship on Voters

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Vanshita Banuana
Vanshita Banuana
North America

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Vanshita Banuana

Article Title

US Presidential Elections: Effect of Modi-Trump Relationship on Voters

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Global Views 360

Publication Date

September 30, 2020

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President Trump and Prime Minister Modi in India-US bilateral meeting

President Trump and Prime Minister Modi in India-US bilateral meeting | Source: Twitter

With the US Presidential Elections scheduled to happen in just over a month, an important voter pool is emerging into the limelight for both contesting parties. The Indian American diaspora, one of the largest Asian American populations and a large pool of potential voters, currently stands at a crossroads. They face a choice that has been brought about by their unique connection to two men: Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and American President Donald Trump.

President Trump in India during Namaste Trump | Source: Twitter

Both have a lot in common, and both have definitely tried to capitalise on that. Trump and Modi have held rallies in each other’s country, which has influenced voters in both countries and drawn out massive crowds. An estimated 50,000 Indians gathered in Houston in September 2019 to attend Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s “Howdy Modi” rally, reportedly the largest-ever gathering of a foreign political leader in the USA. Trump received the gift of a crowd over twice as large as that at Modi’s Namaste Trump rally in Gujarat in February 2020.

Indian American voters have historically tended to vote for the Democratic Party: as recently as the 2016 elections, a large majority voted for Hillary Clinton. While that may remain true for the younger voters, the older generation seems to be leaning more to the right, as events in the homeland have led to majoritarian and communal support for the authoritarian PM Modi.  Al Mason, who works with the Trump Victory Indian American Finance Committee, claimed to have conducted an analysis of voter sentiments in the states of Michigan, Texas, Virginia and Pennsylvania. According to him, a “mass exodus” can be expected: hundreds of thousands of Indian American potential voters switching sides to favour Trump.

The worsening and brutal situation in Kashmir, increasingly polarised religious tensions between Hindus and Muslims, as well as increase in lynchings against Dalits and other oppressed castes is becoming an important driving force for Indian diaspora in deciding who to vote for. Trump’s Islamophobic and anti-China sentiments may be striking a cord with the Indian American diaspora, since most of them are uppercaste, affluent Hindus— mirroring the political majority in India. Additionally, at least some Indian Americans are surely misconstruing Democrats’ criticism of Modi’s policies as a criticism of India— especially when it comes from Indian American members of the House of Representatives— leading them to feel defensive towards both.

Indian American Trump supporters are rallying strongly behind him, with organisations such as The Texas India Forum and Hindus4Trump claim to possess a large pool of funds and members geared towards making Trump 2020 a reality.

On the other hand, concerns regarding visas and green cards seem to be diminishing among the Indian diaspora already settled in America, despite the mounting pressure from Trump’s largely white and Christian base to keep cracking down on immigration. Indian origin supporters of Trump, in India as well as the USA, seem convinced that the visa reforms will eventually work out in their favour. It isn’t hard to see that given the massive amount of support Trump receives from (and provides to) white supremacists, it would actually be in the best interests of Indian Americans to not vote for him.

Biden’s recent decision to choose Kamala Harris as his running mate for Vice President could prove to be an important aspect for Indian American voters. Harris is of South Indian ancestry from her mother’s side, and being one of the first South Asian women to be on the ticket for a position of major power has the potential to influence voters who want to see more representation on the political stage. You can read more in our deep dive on Kamala Harris, including her views and policies regarding India, here at Kamala Harris: A Look At Joe Biden’s Running Mate.

In response to Harris becoming running mate and the praise it received from Indians, Trump released a commercial showing him and Modi together, and applauding the support Trump receives from Indian Americans. Democrats are also ramping up their efforts and releasing targeted advertisements in multiple languages. Biden and his senior advisors addressed the community on August 15, Indian Independence Day; a month before that the Democratic National Committee Chairman addressed a virtual gathering of 800 Indian American prospective voters along with a former ambassador to India.

While there are quite a few who support one but denounce the other, the similarities between Modi and Trump lead to a general trend of supporting one invariably leading to support for the other, and vice-versa. Both Democrats and Republicans recognise the precarious position that Indians all over the world, including in the United States, are in right now; opinions are shifting and solidifying, and performance of this particular demographic in the upcoming election could very well surprise the community itself.

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February 4, 2021 4:46 PM

Plant- Microbial fuel cell: Generating electricity from green, living plants

Humans are capable of discovering and creating great things with the help of science and one such impressive discovery is that green, living plants can generate electricity. It may seem unbelievable, but not impossible.

One must be wondering how this technology works. Well, the answer is quite simple; photosynthesis. Plants excrete organic matter into the soil as a result of photosynthesis. Only some of the organic matter is used by plants and the rest is released in the soil. This released organic matter is broken down by bacteria. In the breakdown process, electrons are released as a waste product. Since the movement of electrons produces electricity, these electrons, which are of no use to the plant, can be harvested. The best part about this innovation is that the plants from which energy is being generated are not affected in any way.

This idea was first put into use by a Dutch start-up called Plant-e. This company was launched in September 2009 and is successful in launching and selling many environment- friendly products like DIY kits to the public for experimentation purposes and modular systems which could be easily installed on green roofs for abundant electricity production. Plant-e is involved in various projects, within The Netherlands, like automatic lighting systems in gardens and many more.

This technology works with the plants which thrive in moist soils and where the water is present in abundance. Therefore marshlands, paddy fields and deltas are some of the most suitable places for setting up plant batteries as a huge amount of water is present in those areas. Hence, the use of this technology is limited to certain geographic areas containing moist soils and cannot be used in arid regions. It may, however, promote the growth of more trees and plants which will gradually reverse the malicious effects of global warming.

Another obstacle in widespread adoption of this technology in today’s time is the high cost of installation of the system. The initial adopters of this technology are those who are attracted by the efficiency and eco-friendly nature of the plant batteries and willing to pay a premium for it.

The concept of plant batteries can be further taken into rural areas where most of the population still does not have access to adequate electricity. It is estimated that plant-MFC technology can cover upto 20% of European Union’s primary future electricity needs. Also, plants are almost 100% efficient at converting photons from sunlight into electrons which indicates a bright future for this technology. However, more research needs to be done in this field.

Another innovation in the field of green electricity is using algae , which often grows in ponds and rivers, for generating electricity. The basic concept which explains the working is similar to the way plants are able to produce electricity; photosynthesis.

Various other ventures in the field of renewable energy also include vegetable batteries, meaning, electric power generated from fruits and vegetables like lemons, tomatoes and potatoes, have been investigated. According to experiments, at least 3 to 4 vegetables are required just to light a small LED bulb. Moreover, it leads to poisoning of the vegetables and those food products need to be thrown away, without being useful for consumption purposes. It is therefore not a viable option for energy production.

Plant based electricity generation is still an evolving technology which has immense potential for producing energy in an environmentally sustainable way. It will realise full potential when the installation cost is attractive enough for the farmers to prefer it over the electricity grids or fossil fuel based personal electricity generator sets.

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