<div>An American business group will be in India next month to meet investors keen to take up projects that come with a promise of US residence permit.</div><div> </div><div>The Ashcroft Sullivan Economic Development Centers (ASEDC) and The Jha Group (TJG) have formed a partnership to bring investment and economic opportunities to India under the EB-5 program.</div><div> </div><div>Overseen by the US Citizenship & Immigration Services (USCIS), the US Immigrant Investor Program (EB-5) provides foreign nationals the opportunity to become residents in the US for a period of two years upon making an investment of $1 million, or $500,000 in a designated Targeted Employment Area, in a new commercial enterprise.</div><div> </div><div>The new joint venture, known as Ashcroft Sullivan Jha, will hold its initial launch in India. It will set up offices in the country and educate investors about the opportunities available to them through the EB program.</div><div> </div><div>The Jha Group is headed by its founders Vibhuti Jha and Satish Jha. They lead a group of professionals with experience in banking, finance, media, international business, technology and entrepreneurship.</div><div> </div><div>"We are thrilled to be partnering with the Jha Group to bring economic opportunities to India. Vibhuti and Satish are leaders in their field and have deep roots in this emerging economy," Mike Sullivan, principal at Ashcroft Sullivan Economic Development Center, said in a statement.</div><div> </div><div>"They have been at the forefront of driving Indo-US relations since they came to the United States and will be a valuable partner to us in their home country," Sullivan added.</div><div> </div><div>Sullivan along with partners Joe Fitzpatrick and Brett Griffith, accompanied by the Jha founders, will be in India in late June for meetings and presentations in Delhi, Mumbai and Dubai.</div><div> </div><div>"Over the past decades people of Indian origin have flourished and taken pride in contributing with their technical knowledge and entrepreneurial skills in the US ecosystem and TJG is proud to partner with ASEDC to contribute in achieving the laudable objective of EB5," said TJG chairman Satish Jha.</div><div> </div><div>Vibhuti Jha has been an integral part of Indo-US relations since the early 90s, the group said in its statement. In his role as a senior executive with American Express Bank International, Vibhuti pioneered the development of investment/deposit programs for expatriate Indians living in the US to invest in India through the bank.</div><div> </div><div>Satish Jha served as an adviser to Dr Manmohan Singh at The South Commission in Geneva.</div><div> </div><div>As federally designated regional centers, ASEDC aims to create new jobs in the Mid Atlantic and New England regions, expanding economic productivity and help foreign entrepreneurs obtain permanent residency for themselves and their families.</div><div> </div><div>The ASEDC is led by the former US attorney general John Ashcroft, former head of the Department of Justice David Ayers, and former deputy director of alcohol, tobacco, and firearms Michael Sullivan.</div><div> </div><div>(BW Online Bureau)</div>