Jamshedpur: JMM's Baharagora MLA Kunal Sarangi is among eight politicians from the country selected for the prestigious International Visitor Leadership Program (IVLP) in the US from October 20.

The 35-year-old MLA, a BTech from NIT Jamshedpur and an MBA from Lancaster University (UK), is the first in Jharkhand's history to be selected for IVLP and is the only from eastern region states in the group of eight.

"I am looking forward to the global exposure and learning how one of the oldest democracies work. I will certainly try to take the relevant positives and figure out opportunities to implement them in locally. I thank the people of Baharagora, my party chief Hemant Soren, party workers and friends for their support and good wishes," said Kunal, who had pursued a leadership development programme at Harvard University.

IVLP is a professional exchange programme funded by the US department of state's bureau of educational and cultural affairs to offer current and emerging international leaders an opportunity to experience the richness and diversity of the American political, economic, social and cultural life through carefully designed exchanges.

Participants are nominated by the staff at US Embassies. The programme will also emphasise on the vitality of the Indo-American community as well as the US constitutional guarantees protecting civil liberties and freedom of religion for immigrants.

Some of the illustrious politicians who have been part of the IVLP since it began in 1952 include former Prime Ministers Atal Bihari Vajpayee and Indira Gandhi, Union ministers Arun Jaitley and Dharmendra Pradhan.