Desi Talk

www.desitalk.com – that’s all you need to know INDIA 10 IMMIGRATION November 21, 2025 Trump Tariff Rollback Offers Relief For Indian Farmers I ndian agricultural exporters are among the win- ners from U.S. President Donald Trump’s exemption of dozens of food items from his reciprocal tariffs regime, which some analysts say could help to revive lost demand. Trump on Friday, November 14, removed tariffs he had imposed on more than 200 food products, including beef, as consumer concerns mount over rising U.S. grocery prices. Unlike EU and Vietnamese suppliers facing 15–20% duties, Indian exporters of tea, coffee, spices and cashew nuts were hit harder after Trump doubled tariffs to as high as 50% on imports of certain Indian goods, includ- ing a punitive 25% levy from the end of August on India’s Russian oil purchases. Ajay Sahai, director general of the Federation of Indian Export Organisations (FIEO), says that between $2.5 bil- lion and $3 billion of exports will benefit from the tariff exemptions. POSITIVE SIGNAL FOR WIDER TRADE TALKS “This order opens space for premium, speciality and value-added products,” he said. “Exporters who shift towards higher-value segments will be better protected from price pressures and can tap rising consumer de- mand.” Officials involved in trade and farm export policy said the exemptions are also a positive signal for ongoing U.S.–India trade talks and could ease export pressure trig- gered by this year’s tariff increases. Exports of Indian goods to the U.S. fell nearly 12% year on year in September to $5.43 billion after tariffs were raised. Indian farm exports, estimated to account for $5.7 billion of the country’s $87 billion of exports to the U.S. in 2024, were among those hit. “The move benefits Indian farmers and exporters of tea, coffee, cashew and fruits and vegetables,” a senior official involved in Indian farm export policy said on condition of anonymity. Ajay Srivastava, founder of the Global Trade Research Initiative lobby group, said India’s U.S.-bound farm exports – focused on a few high-value spices and niche products – would register limited gains given its weak presence in key exempt items such as tomatoes, citrus fruits, melons, bananas and fruit juices. “The tariff shift would marginally strengthen India’s position in spices and niche horticulture and help revive some lost U.S. demand after the tariff hikes,” Srivastava added. Latin American, African and ASEAN suppliers are likely to make larger gains, he said, adding that it was not immediately clear whether Indian exports will be exempt from 25% reciprocal tariffs or full 50% tariffs. Exporters, however, fear that other factors will keep potential gains in check, pointing to high freight costs, strong competition fromVietnam and Indonesia and tougher U.S. quality requirements. “Tariff relief is important, but market recovery also depends on logistics and our ability to match prices,” one exporter said.. -Reuters By Manoj Kumar and Mayank Bhardwaj U.S. Visas Can Be Denied For Obesity, Cancer And Diabetes, Rubio Says T he Trump administration directed visa officers to consider obesity - and other chronic health condi- tions such as heart disease, cancer and diabetes - as reasons to deny foreigners visas to the United States. Secretary of State Marco Rubio told U.S. consulates and embassies around the world about the changes in a Nov. 6 cable, according to a copy obtained and verified by TheWashington Post. The move broadens current medical screening beyond contagious diseases and gives visa officers new justification to reject applicants, in the Trump administration’s latest effort to curb the flow of immigration. “You must consider an applicant’s health,” said the State Department cable, which was reported earlier by KFF Health News. “Certain medical conditions - includ- ing, but not limited to, cardiovascular diseases, respira- tory diseases, cancers, diabetes, metabolic diseases, neurological diseases, and mental health conditions - can require hundreds of thousands of dollars’ worth of care.” The cable then suggests that consulates consider obesity in determining whether to grant visas, mention- ing that it can cause sleep apnea, high blood pressure and clinical depression. The cable was drafted by the agency’s political leader- ship and did not go through normal channels for review - which typically includes input from career staff, ac- cording to a senior State Department official who spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to talk to the media. “This guidance gives consular officers wide discretion to deny both immigrant and nonimmigrant visas based on common health conditions that, by themselves, have never been treated as disqualifying,” said Vic Goel, an im- migration attorney in Reston, Virginia. Anna Kelly, aWhite House spokeswoman, said in a statement that “for 100 years, State Department policy has included an authority to deny visa applicants who would pose a financial burden to taxpayers, such as individuals who were seeking publicly-funded health care in the U.S. and could further drain health care resources from American citizens. “President Trump’s Administration is finally fully enforcing this policy, and putting Americans first.” She added that “low-level bureaucrats may have run autopen Joe Biden’s administration, but under President Trump, directives come from the top - not whiny deep staters who complain to TheWashington Post.” About 16 percent of adults worldwide qualified as obese in 2022, according to theWorld Health Organiza- tion. And 14 percent had diabetes in 2022. The State Department’s guidance also directs visa officers to consider applicants ineligible to enter the U.S. for several new reasons, including whether they are past retirement age, how many dependents - children or elderly parents - they have, and whether any dependents have “special needs” or disabilities, the cable said. Rubio issued the directive under the “public charge” rule, which denies visas and green cards to immigrants expected to be heavy users of social welfare programs or be institutionalized. Critics of the new directive point out that the Trump administration is relying on the idea that having a medical condition creates a financial burden on the U.S. “While health has always been one of several statu- tory factors consular officers may consider in a public charge determination, prior practice was narrow and tied to specific findings, for example, conditions that would likely result in institutionalization at government expense,” said Goel, the immigration attorney. “Here, the cable directs officers to consider a broad list of chronic and common medical conditions explicitly tying them to the potential cost of care over an applicant’s expected lifespan.” The State Department directive applies to both tem- porary visa holders, such as H-1B visa holders, as well as immigrants seeking permanent residence in the U.S. for work and family-related reasons. Certain humanitarian visa applicants, such as refu- gees, are excluded, although the Trump administration has ended or is ending many of those programs. The new directive is the latest example of the Trump administration’s tougher stance on legal immigration, including travel bans and the cancellation of certain humanitarian immigration programs. Steven Heller, an immigration attorney in the United Kingdom who has worked as a U.S. immigration officer, said U.S. consular officers typically have significant dis- cretion to deny visas based on their interpretation of the rules. He noted that the directive gives visa officers “more reasons not to have to issue a visa.” The State Department directive appears to go beyond the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s techni- cal guidance on medical criteria for immigrants to the U.S., which include a tuberculosis and syphilis test and disclosure of drug abuse or addiction as well as vaccina- tion records. The guidance also asks visa officers to make their own assessments of how much someone’s medical conditions might cost the U.S. “Does the applicant have adequate financial resources to cover the costs of such care over his entire expected lifespan without seeking public cash assistance or long- term institutionalization at government expense?” the cable says. A diplomat who received last week’s cable, and also spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to talk to the media, said State Depart- ment leadership has been very active in finding new ways to deny foreigners entry into the U.S. or just slow down the system. -TheWashington Post By Lauren Kaori Gurley, Hannah Natanson PHOTO:SPUTNIK/ALEXANDER KAZAKOV/POOLVIA REUTERS A worker lays out freshly plucked tea leaves for the withering process inside a tea manufacturing unit at a tea estate in Tinsukia, Assam, India, July 24, 2025.