Earlier this month, Obama nominated Dr. Vivek Hallegere Murthy, the Indian-American head of a doctors group that promotes his signature healthcare law, to be the next US surgeon general, also known as "America's doctor".

Last month Obama tapped Kerala University physics graduate Arun M. Kumar to lead the trade promotion arm of the Commerce Department, charged with helping American companies succeed in markets around the world.

Other recent nominees include Gargee Ghosh, director of policy analysis and financing (PAF) at the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, as a member of his Global Development Council, and actor Kal Penn of "The Namesake" fame to his Committee on the Arts and Humanities.