4 Indian Americans to be in Biden’s AANHPI Advisory Commission

HI INDIA NEWS DESK

WASHINGTON, DC-Indian Americans Ajay Jain Bhutoria, Kamal Kalsi, Sonal Shah and Smita Shah are amongst 23 leaders who are to be appointed as commissioners to President Biden’s Advisory Commission on Asian Americans, Native Hawaiians and Pacific Islanders. Biden announced the intent on Monday. The Commission is intended to advise the President on advancing equity and opportunity for Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander (AANHPI) community. The commission would also be advising the president on policies to address anti-Asian xenophobia, ways to build capacity in AANHPI communities through federal grantmaking and policies to address the intersectional barriers that AANHPI women, LGBTQ+ people, and people with disabilities face.

The Indian American candidates are all high achievers. Bhutoria is a Silicon Valley technology executive, community leader, speaker, and author. Dr Kalsi is an emergency medicine physician from New Jersey and has served in the Army for 20 years. He was awarded a Bronze Star medal for his work taking care of hundreds of combat casualties on the front lines in Afghanistan.

Sonal Shah, a social impact and innovation leader is the founding president of The Asian American Foundation (TAAF). She also served as Deputy Assistant to then President Obama and created the White House Office of Social Innovation and Civic Participation.

Smita N Shah is an engineer, entrepreneur, and civic leader serving as president and CEO of Chicago-based SPAAN Tech, Inc, a multi-disciplinary firm with expertise in public and private infrastructure projects including transportation, aviation, and facilities.