It's has been reported that approvals for L-1 visas, on which Indian software companies rely to send their most skilled professionals on assignments to the United States, were 28% lower at 25,898 in 2011, data from an independent public policy think tank based in the US show. On the other hand, such visa approvals rose by 15% for applicants from the rest of the world, leading to concerns that India is singled out for attention.

"This shows an enormous gap in visas issued as well as approval/denial rates between posts in India and the rest of the world, raising policy questions as to whether this great disparity is the result of a conscious policy at US posts in India," the National Foundation for American Policy wrote in its report.

About 25,000-35,000 Indians travel to the US every year to work on assignments for software companies. Up to 40% of work permits are usually under the L1 category meant for professionals with specialised skills such as project management.

India's $70-billion IT services sector is facing increased scrutiny from US immigration officials. Not only this, US has also doubled visa fees under the H1 and L1 categories.

As per media reports, the number of L-1 visas granted to Indian employees for working in US, has declined significantly by 28 per cent in 2011 from 2010, says a American study by National Foundation for American Policy.

The data was obtained from the US Department of State and shows that the number of L-1 visas for Indian nationals went down from 35,896 in 2010 to 25,898 in 2011, a drop of almost 10,000 visas. In contrast L-1 visas issued to employees from other countries rose by 15 per cent.