Creating history for a minority ethnic community that comprises just one per cent of the US population, five Indian Americans took oath as members of the Congress.
52 year-old Kamala Harris whose mother was from India was sworn in as the Senator from California by the outgoing US Vice President Joe Biden.
She is the first Indian American to have ever served in the Senate. She is one of the seven new Senators to have taken office in the new Congress.
A few hours later, four Indian Americans were sworn in as the members of the House of Representatives, including Congressman Ami Bera, who has been re-elected for the third consecutive term.
The other three are Raja Krishnamoorthi, Rohit “Ro” Khanna from California and Pramila Jayapal from Washington state for the House of Representatives.