Several hundred Indian workers on Sunday staged a demonstration outside the White House in support of President Donald Trump’s controversial merit-based immigration policy proposal. The demonstrators – highly-skilled workers from across the United States – urged the president to eliminate the green card backlog, PTI reported.

They sought to secure permanent residency in the US. “We are with President Trump for taking initiative towards a merit-based immigration system,” Krishna Bansal, national policy and political director of the Republican Hindu Coalition, said while addressing those gathered. “That will bring prosperity and fast economic growth of the US.”

The organisation is believed to be collaborating with the White House to develop a comprehensive bill on immigration.

On January 14, Trump had said he wants only those who can help America become “strong and great again” to immigrate, reiterating his call for a merit-based immigration system. “No more lotteries! America First,” the president had said on Twitter.

The H-1B visa system, which is currently based on lottery, allows 65,000 visas for the general category and 20,000 more for those who have a master’s degree from an accredited institute in the US.

On January 12, Trump had said a merit-based system would allow only people with a “great track record” to enter the country.