WASHINGTON: President George W. Bush has named two Indian Americans as commissioners to his Advisory Commission on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders, according to news reports.

According to a White House statement, the two are Dr. Akshay Desai from Florida and Joseph Melookaran from Kansas.

The two, whose appointments are subject to Senate confirmation, were among the 14 people named to the President’s Advisory Commission.

Vice President Richard Cheney presided over a ceremony at the White House last week to announce the appointments as Bush was not in the capital.

Dr. Desai, who specializes in geriatric care, is a member of the Pinellas County Medical Society, the Florida Medical Association and the American Medical Association. He received medical degrees from Government Medical College in Surat, Gujarat, and from the University of Illinois College of Medicine.

Melookaran is president of JMA Information Technology, which provides technology-outsourcing services for government agencies such as the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Department of Agriculture.

(Compiled from news dispatches by Charles Isaac)