Published: 07 Feb 2025, 8:44 PM Prime Minister Narendra Modi, slated to visit the United States this month to meet President Donald Trump, is also likely to meet Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk, still the world's wealthiest man and now chief of the newly-formed US department of government efficiency (DOGE). However, no official confirmation on the meeting is available as yet. Advance reports indicate that Musk is likely to advocate for a level playing field for his electric cars. He may also seek early regulatory approval to begin operations for affordable satellite internet service Starlink in India, along with boosting collaboration with the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO). With good reason, perhaps. Last year, Musk had delayed, and then indefinitely postponed, his planned India visit as he faced "the moment of truth" when Tesla announced its quarterly results amid negative growth in China and massive global layoffs. “Unfortunately, very heavy Tesla obligations require that the visit to India be delayed. But I do very much look forward to visiting (India) later this year," Musk had posted on X, the social media platform he owns, in April 2024. Those obligations have just got heavier. In a report published on 5 February, the New York Times reported that Tesla’s sales in Germany had seen a massive drop of 59 per cent in January this year, as Musk exhorted German voters to support a right-wing nationalist party in the country’s general election, chastising them for focusing too much on “past guilt” for Nazi-era crimes. The Nazi salute