Nikki Haley arrives in Chandigarh, meets Sukhbir Badal

Chandigarh, Nov 14 (IANS) South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley arrived in Chandigarh and met Punjab Deputy Chief Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal on Thursday evening.

During the meeting, Haley told Badal that South Carolina would support Punjab in establishing aero-space, pharma-sector, tourism and agro-processing industries.

She highlighted how South Carolina had been able to create new jobs in aerospace and hospitality sectors.

“Our success rate in skill training is as much as 93 percent and we would be glad to assist Punjab in this field also,” she said.

Badal said that Punjab and South Carolina could explore areas of mutual benefit and work together.

Haley, whose father’s family used to live in Verka suburb of Amritsar till the early 60s before migrating to the United States, will go to Amritsar Friday. She will offer prayers at the holiest of Sikh shrines, Harmandar Sahib, popularly known as Golden Temple, Saturday.

Haley was re-elected governor of South Carolina recently.

This is Haley’s first visit to her family’s home state in nearly four decades. Born in 1972, Nikki had last visited Amritsar as a two-year old. Her father Ajit Singh Randhawa used to live in Verka.

Expressing her delight at coming back to Punjab, Haley said: “The last time I came here was when I was two years old. I am looking forward to the visit to the Darbar Sahib (Golden Temple).”

Haley is on a 10-day trip to India where she is visiting New Delhi, Mumbai, Chandigarh and Amritsar to seek investment for her state.

In Amritsar, she will visit the Golden Temple and Jallianwala Bagh Nov 15. She will also visit the Guru Nanak Dev University and meet students there. She will be meeting her relatives also.

Relatives of Nikki Haley, who was Nimrata Randhawa before her marriage, had celebrated in Verka when she became South Carolina governor for the first time in Nov 2010.

She became the first Indian-American woman to become governor of a state in the US.