India, Sept. 24 -- Many countries have started to view the Trump administration's anti-immigration policies - the hike in the H-1B visa fee is just one of them - as an opportunity. Financial Times has reported that the UK government plans to waive visa fees to attract top talent, including scientists, academicians, and digital experts, to the country to drive its economy. Beijing was early to spot the change in sentiment in the US, and started wooing talent, a lot of them of Chinese origin, to shift to China, promising not just a waiver of visa fee, but competitive pay and comparable research ecosystems. The rise of a vindictive State-backed conservative culture on US universities seems to have prodded many liberal academicians to explore opportunities in Europe. The decline in foreign students in US campuses - including a 45% year-on-year fall in Indian students - needs to be seen against this backdrop. It is clear that the America First policies of the Trump administration are beginning to pinch - and not where they were expected to. The visa regime is just one factor in attracting top talent across disciplines. More is needed, including a well-developed research ecosystem, legacy departments, faculty, and, most importantly, a liberal work and living environment . The US, a country built by immigrants, offered all this for the past 80 years at least, attracting talent from Europe and Asia. But the alternatives need not be restricted to the UK and China. India too has an opportunity in this churn. It can look beyond the H-1B mess and work to build a research and academic ecosystem that attracts the finest minds, especially the young who may be rattled by the current discourse in the US. Indian states could build special education zones (SEZs) with the best infrastructure for learning and research, invite top universities from across the world to set up campuses, and attract researchers and academicians - and not just of Indian origin. That would require significant investments by both government and the private sector, and a commitment to protect and nurture academic freedom. Is India up to it?...