India consul general speaks out on outsourcing,misconceptions

   Passports and visas are only part of the job for India's consul general in Houston,Skand Ranjan Tayal.He's also been a cheerleader for beeter business ties between the United States and India,and he has been in the middle of the national debate over the outsourcing of American jobs to India.

The U.S Department of Labor earlier this month realesed a report stating that moving jobs overseas accounted for less than 2 percent of job losses in the United States.Tayal says this shows offshoring is not as detrimental to the U.S.job market as it seems.

Tayal,52,who is married with three children,will spend one more year in Houstan before movig on to his next posting.His last assingment was as consul general in Johannesburg,South Africa,and he hopes to become an ambassador in a neighboring country of India.He recetly spoke with Chronicle reporter Anjali Athavaley.