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Eid in the Square celebrations return to Trafalgar Square

Mukesh Ambani to bid for UK’s high street chain Boots

‘2024, MODI ONCE MORE’ Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi received a grand welcome by the diaspora in Germany, on his three-nation Europe trip.

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Supermarkets rationing cooking oil; hospitality sector takes a hit

PM Modi at the Community Reception in Copenhagen, Denmark on May 03, 2022.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi received a grand welcome from Indian community members in Berlin, Germany chanting '2024, Modi Once More', as he arrived to address a community event in the city.

"I'm fortunate that I received an opportunity to meet the children of 'Maa Bharti' in Germany. “It feels great to meet all of you. Many of you've come here, to Berlin, from different cities in Germany,” said the

Prime Minister.

Reportedly, women dressed in traditional nine-yard Paithani sarees, from Maharashtra performed the traditional lezim dance at the iconic Brandenburg Gate to welcome PM Modi. A ‘dholtasha’ troupe from Ramanbaug, Pune played traditional drums, and a person dressed as Chhatrapati Shivaji joined the celebrations.

Shefali Saxena As a consequence of the shortages caused by the Ukraine war, supermarkets, including Tesco, Morrisons and Waitrose, have restricted the number of bottles shoppers can buy to ensure there are enough to go around. Ukraine has been unable to export 10m tonnes of sunflower seed (4m tonnes of sunflower oil) during the crisis. This has inevitably hit the already pandemic-hit hospitality sector.

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AsianVoiceNews

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7 - 13 May 2022

with Keith Vaz

SANJIV PATEL Keynote speaker, mentor, educator and life coach Sanjiv is a Multi Award-Winning Leader, TED Speaker and Associate Fellow of Warwick Business School (WBS). His interests lie in developing human potential and recently featured on Fox News, Market Watch and CBS. Sanjiv is a "Thought Leader" who combines his life and business experiences. As Co-Chair of the WBS Global Mentoring Programme, he set about building bridges and challenging the status quo, to help build global communities. His awards include the Most Influential British Indian Leader in 2018 and the first-ever Alumni recipient of a CORE Award from WBS in 2019. Sanjiv recently took on the challenge of Chairing the European Region on the WBS Global Alumni Advisory Board to further develop and strengthen the global alumni community.

With over 30 years of experience under his belt, Sanjiv has been an advisor to business leaders and has led several projects. Through “Sanjiv Speaks”, he continues to help individuals and organisations navigate their paths, helping them unlock their potential.

1) Which place, or city or country do you most feel at home in?

My heart will always be India, but Leicester has always been home. The challenging environment of my childhood as an immigrant, helped build my resilience.

Thanks to my guru HH Pramukh Swami Maharaj’s regular visits since my earliest childhood and his inspiration to stay connected to my Indian heritage, values and culture, I feel I have the best of both.

2) What are your proudest achievements?

Being the longest serving Chair of Warwick Business School’s Global Mentoring Programme, I’ve been able to oversee its development into a truly global offering. The success of which allowed me to develop a Global strategy for connecting over 50,000 alums across the world.

As part of this, I am honoured to have been appointed on the Global Alumni Board as Chair of Europe to not only champion Mentoring but also help build a much larger global community. This role also means I have a seat on Warwick Business School’s Main Advisory Board, helping to shape the future at the highest level.

3) What inspires you?

One thing I’ve learnt is that joy and inspiration can be found all around us.

The beauty of nature to the sound of laughter. However, for me, joy comes from making a difference to others. My compass has always been “In the Joy of others lies our own, in the progress of others rests our own” – a message from my guru and mentor HH Pramukh Swami Maharaj who always walked the talk and inspired us to do the same. The more I’ve walked this path, with every instance I’ve found a deeper meaning to ‘joy’.

4) What has been biggest obstacle in your career?

My biggest obstacle has been my limiting belief as a child that “Success can only come if you conform to the world around you”. But over time I realised that that being true to my authentic self was the best way to understand my natural strengths and values, in whichever way I

could leaving aside any labels or pigeonholes.

5) Who has been the biggest influence on your career to date?

The biggest influence for me in my career has been a man I grew to call a good friend, an experienced industry captain and champion of the underdog, Peter Summerfield. His belief in me and support for my ideas, helped me gain confidence in being my authentic self in the world of business and academia.

6) What is the best aspect about your current role?

The best aspect of launching and founding Sanjiv Speaks is that I get to live everyday feeling fulfilled. The little anecdotes and stories I hear about the difference it has made in people’s lives brings a smile to my face. Watching the light bulbs switch on, during the course of a talk, workshop or bootcamp gives me real joy.

7) And the worst?

The fact that we just have 24 hours in a day. Anyone who knows me, knows I lead with the heart. This usually means, I say ‘yes’ when someone reaches out, then have to figure out how to fit that in!

8) What are your long term goals?

In the long term, I’d like to publish books on personal development, that can help individuals at whatever stage they are in their personal or professional journeys. I’d also like to develop a team of experts to deliver my models and frameworks to a larger audience globally.

9) If you were Prime Minister, what one aspect would you change?

I would introduce the concept of ‘Mentoring’ as a core part of the education system from the youngest age. Just imagine, teaching the young minds to look out for and support someone less experienced or able than themselves.

This sets the tone for a supportive and collaborative society that shapes lives in a positive way rather than doggy dog.

10) If you were marooned on a desert island, which historical figure would you like to spend your time with and why.

That’s easy. It would be my guru HH Pramukh Swami Maharaj. This is a leader who was able to consistently lead and serve for the greater good. He led by FINANCIAL A SERVICES example. He nurtured the PROTECTION MORTGAGES development of the whole Life Insurance Residential person. He could engage Critical Illness Buy to Let with young and old meanIncome Protection Remortgages ingfully. He was a visionary who was able to oversee multiple projects, manage Please conta act: the challenges and obstacles and still remain calm Dinesh S Shonchhatra through the storms and Mortgage Ad dviser free of any burden. I’d love Call: 020 8424 C 4 8686 / 07956 810647 to hear and learn how he was able to lead in so many ways yet remain joyful and 77 High Street, Wealdston ne, Harrow, HA3 5DQ stress free throughout. mortgage@majorestate.co om ~ majorestate.com

Marriage age will be raised to 18 in England and Wales Until now, girls and boys aged 16 and 17 could get married as long as they had parental consent, now, the minimum age for marriage in England and Wales has been raised from 16 to 18 years, making it illegal for anyone facilitating underage marriages. A bill that will raise the minimum legal age is set to go on the statute book within days.

Pauline Latham, the Conservative MP for Mid

Derbyshire proposed the law that will not only make it illegal for those younger than 18 to marry in England and Wales, but it will also make it a criminal offence to arrange the marriage of someone that

young.

Figures from 2018, showed that 147 people aged 16 or 17 were legally married — making up only 0.06 per cent of marriages that took place in England and Wales that year. A joint report by the Home Office and the Foreign Office found that 363 cases in 2019 — amounting to 27 per cent of all forced weddings — involved people younger than 18.

Men can get pregnant, midwifery students told Students who are pursuing a £9,000-a-year course at Edinburgh Napier University were being taught that biological men could get pregnant and trans men could give birth even if they had a penis. Midwifery students uncovered the errors during a module which used woke language such as “birthing people”.

Trainee midwives were given detailed instructions

on how to treat a male-tofemale trans person during childbirth in a universitymade coursebook.

The book’s introduction stated: “It is important to note that while most times the birthing person will have female genitalia, you may be caring for a pregnant or birthing person who is transitive turning from male to female and may still have external male genitalia.”

The book was first leaked to the Reduxx website, which also included special instructions for people with prostate glands, which are exclusive to biological men, who may feel particular “discomfort”.

Elaine Miller, a fellow of the Chartered Society of Physiotherapy, expressed disbelief and said, “It is not possible for a male person to get pregnant.”

Priti Patel was given free tickets to a James Bond premiere Michael Ellis, a Cabinet Office minister, informed MPs on the Commons standards committee that Priti Patel accepted the tickets from the Jamaican tourist board in her ministerial role, rather than as an MP. Ellis and Mark Spencer, leaders of the Commons, defended how ministers can choose whether to declare benefits they receive as an MP or as part of their government job.

Spencer told the com-

mittee: “I think it’s fairly obvious that she was invited then as the home secretary.

The fact we know about that is because it was logged, registered, and is now in the public domain — that demonstrates that the system worked.”

On February 9, Home Office records published showed that Patel went to the red carpet event for No Time to Die on September 28, 2021.

Ellis added: “It’s def-

initely something to look at, in terms of the timeliness of the publication.

My starting point is, though ... that the actual declaration takes place, even if it’s not viewable by the public at that moment.”

Only 5.8 per cent of all crime reported to the police As the rate of offences that led to a charge fell to a record low, only one in 16 crime suspects were taken to court last year.

According to Home Office figures, suspects were charged or ordered to appear in court for 274,421 offences last year, only 5.8 per cent of all crime was reported to the police.

It is considered as the lowest rate since records began six years ago and was

down from 7.5 per cent in a year.

Meanwhile, the number of sex crimes logged by police in England and Wales hit another record high and the most common reason for a case being closed was no suspect was identified.

Also, in more than a quarter of cases, the victim showed disinterest in further action.

With only 1.3 per cent of 67,125 offences recorded by

police in 2021 leading to prosecution, the lowest charging rate continues to be for rape.

Yvette Cooper MP, Labour’s shadow home secretary, said: “These figures show the grim truth that crime is going up and prosecutions and community penalties are going down.

Under the Conservatives, more criminals are getting away with it and more victims are being let down.”

IS British-born terrorist jailed for life 38-year-old Islam convert and a British-born terrorist Alexanda Kotey, originally from Paddington, west London, has been jailed for life in the US for his role in the torture and killing of Western hostages in Syria.

He was one of four so-called Islamic State militants nicknamed 'The Beatles' by their captives due to their English accents.

A number of hostages that were murdered in the mid-2010s were carried out

by the group including ringleader Mohammed Emwazi, known as Jihadi John, El Shafee Elsheikh, and Kotey.

Kotey's charges were in relation to the killing of US journalists James Foley and Steven Sotloff and US aid workers Peter Kassig and Kayla Mueller.

Kotey admitted to killing four hostages, US journalists James Foley and Steven Sotloff and US aid workers Peter Kassig and Kayla

Mueller by inflicting torture, including waterboarding and electric shocks with a stun gun.

Kotey showed no emotion when Judge Thomas Selby Ellis handed a life term at Alexandria District Court, Virginia, for each of the eight counts that he previously pleaded guilty to, which are due to run concurrently.

Other Westerners including Britons Alan Henning and David Haines were also killed by Islamic State.

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Poverty in a first world country Britain has always been generous and tolerant towards accommodating new people and giving them a second chance or new opportunity to restart their lives. But as the popular saying goes - you cannot do charity with borrowed money, and the current economic situation is an example of the massive failure by the UK government to safeguard its own people.

On Tuesday morning, on ITV’s Good Morning Britain, Prime Minister Boris Johnson was slammed for raising the introduction of free travel for the over-60s in response to a 77year-old London pensioner’s cost of living struggles.

ITV Good Morning Britain’s Susanna Reid referenced 77year-old Elsie, who has been forced to eat one meal a day because of the rising costs and ride the bus all day long, in order to avoid paying for heating for her home.

The 77-year-old’s energy bills have increased from £17 a month to £85 a month, costing her an extra £800 a year, which she cannot afford. But the Prime Minister attempted to defend the Government’s response to surging energy bills after hearing the plight of Elsie.

Poverty in a first world country (or in fact anywhere in the world) like Britain is not justifiable, especially in the 21st century.

The Guardian wrote living standards are set to fall at their fastest rate since records began in the mid-1950s. Last month, the Office for Budget Responsibility predicted that real household incomes will fall by 2.2%, this year, as energy and food prices increase but wages fail to keep pace with rising bills.

The impact will not be felt equally. For some, it will barely register. For other families, it will mean difficult decisions about what to cut back on. For others still, it will be profound, stretching precarious budgets in which there is already no give, forcing impossible choices between essentials such as putting food on the table and keeping the heating on, and sharpening the fear of the unexpected outlay that can trigger a debt spiral from which there is no escape. One estimate suggests lower-income households will face a drop in income of £1300 this year.

The Big Issue pointed out up to 14.5 million people were in poverty before the pandemic, according to the UK Government when taking housing costs into account – that’s one in every four or five people. However, with income falls projected at 6 per cent for the poorest quarter of households, the latest analysis by the Resolution Foundation predicts that 1.3mn more people will be plunged into absolute poverty by 2023. Including the 700,000 who fell into poverty during the pandemic, that’s around 16.5 million people.

The income poverty varies from community to community among Asians- Bangladeshis (65%), Pakistanis (55%) and black Africans (45%) have the highest rates; black Caribbeans (30%), Indians (25%), white Other (25%) and white British (20%) have the lowest rates.

The Independent in an exclusive article recently wrote that The Treasury has withheld financial support during the cost of living crisis in the belief that households will be able to use their savings to weather the storm, Whitehall insiders have reportedly told the newspaper.

Money people didn’t spend while locked down at home during the pandemic was cited in discussions between Chancellor Rishi Sunak and his team as a key reason to limit further government funding, sources have said.

On one hand, the government wants Britons to take care of 150,000 refugees coming from Ukraine by providing homes for free. While the Syrian, Iraqi or Afghan refugees did not have the privilege of such hospitality, Britain cannot deny that it has been built brick by brick since the Second World War, by the community of refugees and immigrants, who were once brought in from what we call Commonwealth countries today. In exchange for a warm home, food and job, the communities worked very hard to make Britain strong nationally and internationally.

The cost of living issue is real and as the local elections are near, it is imperative the government takes a notice of the help needed.

The anatomy of misogyny It has been a depressing week in the UK parliament. MP Neil Parish resigned (after prolonged thinking) and got away by saying “sorry” for a “moment of madness” for watching porn in The House of Commons. But, Deputy Party Leader for Labour, Angela Rayner was casually accused of ‘distracting’ Boris Johnson by crossing her legs in parliament by The Mail on Sunday. The newspaper compared Rayner to Sharon Stone in reference to the infamous leg-crossing scene in Basic Instinct.

What’s more depressing is that Rayner revealed she “begged the publication not to publish it”. While PM Boris Johnson expressed dissent over this remark made at Rayner, he did not deter from saying that he disagrees with Angela Rayner on almost every political issue.

When the fight is about a woman’s dignity, political wars can be avoided by someone as big in stature as a prime minister. It seems it’s easy to watch porn in the parliament and get away with it by saying sorry, than being dragged into mud politics and misogyny and having to continually prove that a short dress or skirt doesn’t imply an intent to seduce someone.

Rayner was born working class, and she was a young sin-

gle mother who has risen to one of the most prominent jobs in British politics. She’s 42, Parish is in his mid-60s. The former has a long career ahead of her, the latter won’t be affected much by what has happened.

Yes, there are more women in the UK parliament and government than ever before – making up about one-third of the total 650 members, there are 454 women and 963 men in the House of Commons and House of Lords. British politics may boast of diversity, but can it boast about upholding the dignity of women politicians?

A Twitter influencer with 1.3mn followers in India recently shared his two cents on the reports of women leaving the workforce. He wrote, “A lot is being made of the 20 million women disappearing from the Indian workforce in the last 5 years. The fact is women in the workforce have been steadily decreasing in India. Reason: As family income grows women choose to care for the family as there is no compulsion to work.” In her Op-Ed in New Statesman, Angela Rayner wrote, “As women, we sometimes try to brush aside the sexism we face.” The elephant in the room is whether Britain is trying enough to make sure this doesn’t happen again or not.

PM Modi's Europe visit is significant and crucial India, especially Prime Minister Narendra Modi, is playing an increasingly major role in bringing world peace. The timing of Prime Minister Modi's three-nation European visit is significant.

The European countries have been viewing India critically for not taking an aggressive stand against Russia in the Ukraine war.

Modi's visit to Germany, Denmark and France comes with diplomatic and strategic quotients. India's foreign secretary Vinay Mohan Kwatra said that the PM will “exchange perspectives” on the Ukraine issue, apart from the structure and strengthening the bilateral partnership. Modi said, “My visit to Europe comes at a time when the region faces many challenges and choices.

Through my engagements, I intend to strengthen the spirit of cooperation with our European partners, who are important companions in India’s quest for peace and prosperity.”

Modi met German Chancellor Olaf Scholz in Berlin on Monday, followed by his visit to Copenhagen to meet Danish PM Mette Frederiksen and participate in the Second India-Nordic Summit with Prime Ministers of Denmark, Norway, Sweden, Finland, and Iceland. “The Summit will focus on subjects like post-pandemic economic recovery, climate change, innovation and technology, renewable energy, the evolving global security scenario and India-Nordic cooperation in the Arctic region,” the Prime Minister said. In Germany, PM Modi co-chaired the IndiaGermany Inter-Governmental Consultations (IGC) along with Chancellor Scholz. IGC is a unique biennial format which India conducts only with Germany. Standing as one of India’s most important partners in Europe, Berlin and New Delhi share deep bilateral relations, one of the reasons being Germany’s key role in the European Union.

Equations between the countries haven’t been the same since the Ukraine-Russia war broke out in February this year.

India has been non-committal and has repeatedly called for “cessation of hostilities” and “diplomacy and dialogue” as the path to resolution of the crisis. However, the nations - especially NATO allies - have called out New Delhi for not condemning Russian aggression. Germany, which holds the G-7 Presidency, has invit-

ed India to the G-7 outreach summit in June. The G-7 think that they will be able to change the attitude of India towards Russia.

The PM's visit to Copenhagen is an opportunity to shape new elements of partnership in the field of skill development, shipping, agro-technology, and mobility, according to Kwatra. While this is PM Modi’s first visit to Denmark, it is his third summitlevel interaction with PM Mette Frederiksen. The two premiers will also interact with the Indian and Danish business leaders under the auspices of the India-Denmark Business forum. On Modi’s itinerary is also a meeting with the Danish Queen Margrethe II, who would also host an official dinner for PM Modi. PM Modi's visit to Paris will be a congratulatory call as well as a diplomatic one as the French President Emmanuel Macron has won the tough re-election recently. Modi is scheduled to make a brief stopover in the country, for a meeting with Macron on the way back to India. The Modi-Macron meeting will set the tone for the next phase of the India-France Strategic Partnership. “President Macron and I will share assessments on various regional and global issues and will take stock of ongoing bilateral cooperation. “It is my firm belief that two countries that share such similar vision and values for the global order, must work in close cooperation with each other,” PM Modi said. With the country holding the Presidency of the European Union this year, the conversation with France becomes imperative.

Traditionally, the countries have shared strong ties based on a Strategic Partnership, with defence and security cooperation, robust economic partnership, space cooperation, and civil nuclear cooperation. They are increasingly engaged in new areas of cooperation. The current visit in the backdrop of the Ukraine conflict is necessary because it gives the two leaders an opportunity to exchange notes – Modi and Macron are among the few world leaders who have maintained open channels of communication with Russian President Putin and Ukrainian President Zelenskyy. Other topics on agenda are Beijing’s increasing expansionist aims in the Indo-Pacific, delivery of Rafale aircraft and defence cooperation between the countries.

Thought for the week Every child comes with the message that God is not yet discouraged of man. - Rabindranath Tagore

Political Sketchbook Alpesh Patel

“India and the UN – Some Good Things” India's UN Security Council membership and votes have attracted a lot of attention lately. However, that's not the full extent of the country's relationship with the United Nations. India also has a strong heritage relationship with the UN, having submitted many sites for UNESCO consideration.

This soft global power of India lies in its tourism and heritage. When combined with its diaspora and global icons like Mahatma Gandhi, it allows the country a certain amount of latitude in international situations.

India has 40 UNESCO heritage sites comprising a mix of stunning temples, architecture, and natural wonders. Let's look at some of these places of cultural and historical significance.

1. Taj Mahal, Agra Often hailed as the "Jewel of Muslim Art in India", this incredible piece of Mughal architecture is instantly recognised worldwide. By the time the Mughals (descendants of the Mongols) has built the Taj, they saw themselves as Indian. It was built on a haveli of Hindu ruler Raja Jai Singh.

Completed in 1653, emperor Shah Jahan built the Taj Mahal as a monument to his wife, Mumtaj Mahal.

2. Bodh Gaya, Bihar Bodh Gaya is home to the holy Bodhi Tree, where Mahatma Buddha achieved enlightenment.

Furthermore, it is the site of the famous Mahabodhi Temple, which was established around 250 BCE. The present-day Mahabodhi Temple Complex contains the Vajrasana alongside six other sacred sights.

3. Khajuraho, Madhya Pradesh Khajuraho is recognised for its spectacular Hindu and Jain Temples. The figures and sculptures are excellent examples of Nagara style symbolism. Built under the Chandella dynasty between 950 and 1050 CE, the site holds 85 Temples across 20 sq km, including the famous Kandariya temple.

4. Ajanta Caves, Maharashtra The Ajanta Caves were one of India's first World Heritage sites. These incredible caves date back to the 2nd century BCE and contain 31 rock-cut Buddhist sculptures, cave monuments and paintings.

The Ajanta Caves were built during two separate periods. Firstly during the Satavahana Dynasty of 230 BCE to 220 CE; second, during the Vakataka period.

Historians suggest that Ajanta art marks the birth of Indian Classical Art. 5. Hampi, Karnataka The ruins of Hampi are a stunning collection of heritage sites that serve as a reminder of the beautiful Dravidian art and architectural styles. The Virupaksha Temple — which is still intact — is an important religious centre for Hindus.

The other attractions at the site referred to as the "Group of Monuments at Hampi" include Ganesa, the Krisha temple complex, Narasimha, the Hemakuta group of temples, and many more.

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Coronavirus infection rates continue to fall in Greater Manchester boroughs According to the latest data from the UK Health Security Agency, coronavirus infection rates in Greater Manchester continue to fall and are now below the national average. In the region, Stockport continues to have the highest coronavirus infection rate but in the last seven days, it saw its rate go down by 34 per cent.

Rochdale borough witnessed the lowest decline where cases

are down by 13 per cent. The lowest infection rate is in Manchester, where the rate is

Firm slapped with hefty fine after man loses finger in factory accident Azura Soft Furnishings UK Ltd (ASF) has been slapped with a hefty fine after a worker lost a finger in an industrial accident at a factory in Oldham. The worker underwent a 10-hour operation to try and save his middle finger but doctors ruled that it needed to be amputated.

While he worked for Azura Soft Furnishings UK Ltd (ASF) in the town, his hand got caught in a piece of machinery in November 2018. The firm was prosecuted by the Health and

Safety Executive (HSE) and has now been fined. HSE handed a caution to the company director Tariq Majid.

The worker was one of 19 warehouse staff based at the firm's premises on Highfield Industrial Estate in the town centre, Minshull Street Crown Court heard.

The tragic incident has had a devastating effect on the victim's life and continues to do so years later.

ASF was fined £13,600 and ordered to pay costs of £17,260 to the HSE.

Leicester's Parminder Nagra stars in epic new ITV thriller Leicester’s Parminder Nagra to act in her own four-part crime thriller DI Ray, which is written by Line of Duty star Maya Sondhi.

Parminder will be seen in the title role of Detective Inspector Rachita Ray, a Leicester-born cop who has just been promoted to the homicide team. However, when her first case is deemed a ‘culturally specific homicide’, Rachita fears she only got the job due to her Indian heritage.

“Rachita’s thing is that she’s part of a whole generation of people born and brought up in the UK who see themselves as British.

I’m British but you still have those stumbling blocks.

With Rachita, she also has to work twice as hard to be recognised for the work she does,” said Parminder.

Jed Mercurio, the head honcho behind the BBC’s mega-successful Line of Duty has produced the show. Parminder believes that the series will do a lot for representation of Asian women, women in their 40s - and for the Leicester accent.

“I didn’t have to worry about how I sounded – I could literally just lean into my Leicester accent. In other roles, I have to do RP and I don’t think my accent is ever on TV, other than [Match Of The Day’s] Gary Lineker,” she said.

126.7 cases per 100,000 people.

In the week which ended on April 25, a total of 4,232 people tested positive for coronavirus across Greater Manchester.

A total of 422 patients were admitted to Greater Manchester NHS hospitals with Covid-19 in the week

ending on April 24 which was 270 fewer than the week before, a fall of 178 per cent.

On Tuesday, April 26, covid patients occupied 17 Mechanical Ventilation (MV) beds in Greater Manchester NHS hospitals.

A total of 52 people died within 28 days of a positive Covid test across Greater Manchester, which is 16 fewer than the week before, in the week ending April 25.

Man who plunged 200ft near Dove Stone takes his first steps A hiker who suffered serious injuries and had to have his leg reattached after plunging 200ft from a rock formation has astounded medics by taking his first steps.

Avid walker and exrestaurant business manager Imran Choudhury, from Oldham, was out hiking alone near Dove Stone, in the Peak District, last February as part of his training to climb Mount Kilimanjaro later that year.

Imran Choudhury who suffered serious injuries after plunging 200ft from a rock formation, had to have his leg reattached, astounded medics by walking again.

Last February, as

part of his training to climb Mount Kilimanjaro later that year, avid walker and ex-restaurant business Imran manager Choudhury, from Oldham, was out hiking alone near Dove Stone, in the Peak District. During his walk, he asked some ramblers to take his photo on a rock formation, however, while he was posing, he fainted

and fell 60m onto the scrubland below. The fall left him with serious injuries including a fractured skull while his right leg was left hanging on by just its skin.

After a 14-month rehabilitation process, Mr Choudhury has released new footage where he praised medical teams as he took his first unaided steps since the accident.

Suspect Waqas Banaras still on the run, police appeals West Midlands Police have released the third appeal as they hunt a suspect Waqas Banaras who is from Birmingham and has connections to Solihull, who has been on the run for 11 weeks. Police have urged the public not to approach him.

A new appeal issued by West Midlands Police today read: "We are still appealing for information to find Waqas Banaras who is wanted on suspicion of a serious wounding after a woman was attacked with a stick. Banaras from Balsall Heath, Birmingham, is also wanted on suspicion of coercive control and threats to kill."

The force added that the 26-year-old also has

links to Solihull, Hall Green, Acocks Green and Lozells.

He even has connections further afield in Leeds and Milton Keynes. Officers wrote: "If you see him, please do not approach him, but call us on 999 instead. If you have any other information that could help us find him, please contact us quoting 20/196055/22."

On February 10, police issued the first appeal. 78 days ago, the force posted on Twitter: "Waqas Banaras is wanted on suspicion of a serious wounding after a woman was attacked with a stick. Have you seen him?" officers issued a second plea on March 21 saying they were "urgently" appealing for information.

in brief MAN CITY FANS' UNHAPPY WITH 'RESIDENTS PARKING' PLAN Manchester City fans are not happy with the plans of introducing a huge new residential parking scheme around the Etihad, who say many of the streets included are on industrial estates and business parks where no one lives.

During the match days, many City supporters park on the roads in and around Briscoe Lane and Lord Street North, which are largely surrounded by commercial properties or bordered by green space. However, as per the council's new proposal, these streets would be restricted along with residential ones. Kevin Parker, secretary of the Manchester City Official Supporters Club, said: "A scheme that protects the parking spaces of residents we would understand, but if they are changing the restrictions around areas that are not residential, in areas that are commercial or industrial, for no good reason that would seem to be unfair." Though parking restrictions are available on many of the housing estates around the Etihad, the council is planning to create a new allencompassing Eastlands scheme.

FINAL REPORT INTO CHILD SEXUAL EXPLOITATION IN OLDHAM 'DUE BEFORE END OF JUNE' The independent review which was first commissioned in November 2019 by the council and safeguarding board is investigating the effectiveness of multiagency responses to child sexual exploitation (CSE) in Oldham and is being carried out by Malcolm Newsam, a former commissioner for social care in Rotherham, and Gary Ridgway, a former Detective Superintendent of Cambridgeshire Police.

The mayor of Greater Manchester Andy Burnham had pledged that the review team would reveal their findings at the end of January this year, but it got delayed and now Mr Burnham has revealed that the final report would be more robust and is now due to be published 'before the end of June'. "We have throughout March and April undertaken a full review of all relevant records held by Greater Manchester Police and cross-checked these against the evidence we have received from elsewhere. This piece of work is nearing completion. I would anticipate if all this proceeds as planned the fair process letters should be dispatched before the end of May which will allow for publication before the end of June." said Mr Newsam.

POLICE APPEALS FOR HELP IN TRACING OLDHAM MAN

Under the aegis of India@75, a special book commemorating the life & teachings of Sri Guru Nanak Dev Ji was presented to the Ramgarhia Sikh Council UK

by CGI Birmingham on their 50th Anniversary celebrations & 299th Birth Anniversary of Maharaja Jassa Singh Ramgarhiaji

Police have launched an appeal for help in tracing the whereabouts of Blplop Dey, 24, who hails from Oldham and who was released from prison in October 2021 after previously being jailed for drug offences in December 2020. He is wanted on recall to prison. It is believed that he has links to the Coldhurst and Westwood areas of Oldham.

In a statement, GMP said: “We are appealing for your help to trace Biplop Dey from Oldham. Dey (11/08/97) is wanted on recall to prison. He was released in October 2021 after being jailed for drug offences in December 2020.” “He is known to have links to the Coldhurst and Westwood areas of Oldham. Anyone with information about Biplop Dey's whereabouts should contact police via call or text message on 07393145239 or the independent charity - Crimestoppers, anonymously, on 0800 555 111.”

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Supermarkets rationing cooking oil; hospitality sector takes a hit small business is on its knees struggling for are asking ourselves daily. We hope that there Continued from page 1 “The latest supermarket data from Kantar staff. Add to this the NI and minimum wage will be an imminent correction, at the very least once things (hopefully) stashows shoppers have been stockpiling cook- increase which means our costs bilise in Ukraine. Until then, we ing oil because of concerns about the shortage go up yet again. As a small busihave had to increase prices and of sunflower oil caused by the Russia-Ukraine ness owner, we are trying but not maintain trust with customers by really sure how much longer we war,” The Guardian reported. constantly communicating the For the unaware, Ukraine and Russia can carry on with one new nail quality of our ingredients and account for about 60% of world production being driven into our coffin every freshness. However, part of the of sunflower oil, so the disruption to exports day,” she added.

Aadit Shankar of Atcha UK increased cost we have to absorb caused by the war has resulted in a supply – that is to say, it’s harder than told us, “Yes. The shock. Millions of tonnes of sunever to make money in the food price of cooking oil, flower oil are earmarked for forAadit Shankar business.” including sunflower eign buyers are trapped in Ukraine, In a chain reaction, it is being said that the oil, has more than doubled – triggering a scramble to source and we use oil for cooking cost-of-living crisis will spark a new age of alternative vegetable oils, of which many of our rice bowl dishes. food shortages & empty wallets – and is the there are not enough to go around.

Though prices started to biggest threat to PM’s Government.

Media reports suggest that the increase in January, the most The crisis will also impact India. This year, situation is acute in the UK as most dramatic increase has been in India will end up spending about $20bn of its sunflower oil comes from the past few weeks. The issue is (£16bn) on importing cooking oil, double of Mandira Sarkar Ukraine. Before the crisis, sunflowthat the same has happened to what it spent two years ago, the BBC reported. er oil represented about a fifth of The diaspora knows that cooking oil is an the cooking oil market by value in UK super- obvious alternatives, such as rapeseed and markets and 44% by volume, according to the vegetable oils. And cooking oil is crucial to integral part of the Indian diet. So much so Indian cookery. We can’t use butter or ghee as that India is the world's second-largest condata firm NielsenIQ. Mandira Sarkar of Mandira’s Kitchen told that would make our vegan dishes no longer sumer and the largest importer of vegetable Asian Voice, “Yes it is having a serious effect completely plant-based. Olive oil isn’t great oils. Some 56% of its requirements are imported from more than seven countries. on our business as we use sunflower oil in a either, as it’s too strong a taste.

“As mentioned, the price of cooking oil Indians mainly cook with palm, soybean lot of our dishes. We have started investigating but so far not really found anything suit- has increased by more than 100%, not just due and sunflower oils. For palm oil, the country able as Vegetable oil contains soya (allergen) to the shortage but also due to rising delivery imports 90% of its requirement from and ghee is not really suitable for our vegan costs across the board. Whilst the overall Indonesia and Malaysia. Nearly half of that dishes. Moreover, if you change the oil then input proportion of oil into each dish is rela- comes from Indonesia alone.

If this was not enough, half of India's sunour frozen dishes will have incorrect labelling tively low, the rises here come amidst sharp price increases in most other food ingredi- flower oil requirements come from Russia so that’s not really the best solution.”

Every month cooking oil cost accounts for ents. The overall result is a significant hit to and Ukraine, which account for 80% of global about 5% (roughly) for Sarkar, which accord- profitability, as we cannot fully pass on cost exports. The war in Ukraine is likely to lead to pressures to our customers.” a 25% cut in supplies of sunflower oil in the ing to her, is quite high.

Talking about the aftermath of the high next fiscal year, according to a report. Palm “It is getting increasingly difficult to run a hospitality business. In addition to the above cost of living in the hospitality sector, Aadit oil inventories in Malaysia, the second-largest reasons, we have had Brexit so virtually every said, “It’s a tough question - and one that we producer, are also tight.

Shailesh Vara MP’s response to being put on Russia’s banned list British MPs were wearing sanctions as a “badge of honour” on Wednesday after Moscow banned nearly 300 from entering Russia in retaliatory action over the UK’s response to the invasion of Ukraine.

The Russian foreign ministry said it was taking action against 287 members of the House of Commons in response to sanctions against Russian politicians, though its list contained numerous former MPs. A statement accused the Conservative and Labour members of “whipping up of Russophobic hysteria”.

Foreign minister Sergei Lavrov’s department announced the move in response to the UK sanctioning 386 members of the Duma, the lower house of the Russian parliament, last month.

Following the announcement by Russia’s Foreign Ministry to ban 287 present and former members of the House of Commons, Shailesh Vara MP, who is on the list, said: “I wasn't planning a visit to Russia but being put on their banned list will not deter me from speaking out against Russia's illegal invasion of Ukraine and its barbaric war crimes.

The UK will continue to lead the way in its support for Ukraine, both with military equipment and humanitarian aid."

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Requires: RESIDENT RELIGIOUS WORKER To perform all the ceremonies, give pravachans, participate in festivals and cultural activities. Should have ability to get on with Colleagues, Committee Members & Devotees.

Salary + accommodation & other amenities comes to £1600, PM. Please send your application to Mrs Saroj Mittal (General Secretary) 07859057598 at the above address by 5th June 2022.

BBC Breakfast host confused Boris Becker with Johnson, tells viewers ‘just spent his first night in prison’

Naga Munchetty confused two very famous men called Boris during Saturday morning’s edition of BBC Breakfast where she made a very unfortunate slip-up.

On Friday afternoon, tennis star Boris Becker was jailed after hiding £2.5million worth of assets and loans to avoid paying debts.

Six-time Grand Slam champion

was found guilty of four charges under the Insolvency Act. However, when discussing the news on Saturday morning, BBC Breakfast host Munchetty mistook him for Prime Minister Boris Johnson.

The host began: ‘Three-times Wimbledon champion Boris Johnson has just spent his first night in prison. He was sentenced to two-and-a-half years for hiding assets to avoid paying debts.’

Many viewers quickly picked up on the very unfortunate error. One shared on Twitter: ‘What a slip!

BBC’s @TVNaga01 claims Boris Johnson just spent his first night in prison.’

Overseas nurses barred from profession for failing in language exams Researchers claim that thousands of qualified nurses that are recruited by the NHS from overseas end up working in unskilled jobs because of unnecessarily difficult language tests.

Many native English speakers are unable to pass the language exams that are needed to register with the Nursing and Midwifery Council.

Salford university surveyed 857 of which more than 600 had British citizenship, which includes English tests, 79 per cent had lived

in the UK for over a decade and 17 held master’s degrees in nursing.

However, they are unable to practise as nurses because they could not pass OET or IELTS language exams, despite in some cases having an NHS employer to vouch for their language skills.

Jini Joy, 43, who came to the UK from India in 2007, works as an assistant practitioner at an NHS trust. “We are doing almost exactly the same job as the nurses but for lower pay. It’s not fair,” she said.

in brief DOMESTIC ABUSE SURVIVORS DENIED LEGAL AID A study has claimed that thousands of domestic abuse survivors in the UK have been “forced to continue living under the shadow of their abusers” since access to legal aid was scaled back 10 years ago.

It is believed that roughly 34,000 people have been denied access to orders to help remove attackers from the family home or prevent them from returning. The Legal Aid, Sentencing, and Punishment of Offenders Act has introduced 10 years ago in May 2012, and sought to impose capital and income limits for applicants for civil legal aid. A decade later, the Commons library was asked to review its impact where it was found that between 2010-11 and 2020-21, spending on civil legal aid for domestic abuse cases had fallen by 37 per cent.

PORN PROBE: NEIL PARISH MP DECIDES TO RESIGN Neil Parish, who has represented Tiverton and Honiton in Devon since 2010, has told the BBC that he will be resigning as an MP after admitting to him watching pornography twice in Parliament. He said it had been a “moment of madness”. He admitted that the first time was accidental after looking at a tractor website but the second time, in the House of Commons, he deliberately watched it. On Friday, the Conservative Party suspended him over the allegations. Two female colleagues claimed they saw him looking at adult content on his phone while they were sitting near him.

Mr Parish said what he did "was absolutely totally wrong", adding: "I will have to live with this for the rest of my life. I made a huge terrible mistake and I'm here to tell the world."

ROADSIDE NOISE CAMERAS TO CATCH ROWDY DRIVERS The transport secretary Grant Shapps announced that he has plans to deploy noise cameras to catch “rowdy drivers” and declared that he wants to “banish the boy racer”. Considering the impact on residents from motorists revving engines and using illegal exhausts, the transport secretary has invited MPs to participate in a £300,000 trial of innovative noise cameras competition to find the noisiest streets in England and Wales, where four areas will be chosen. Though police have the power to fine drivers who flout noise rules but they struggle to gather evidence. Noise cameras will be able to provide real-time reports to police which could result in more targeted enforcement.

The trial will be led by a collaboration between professional services firms Atkins and Jacobs.

DISGRACED EX-MAYOR TO FIGHT ELECTIONS AGAINST LABOUR Lutfur Rahman who was banned from standing for five years after an election court found him guilty of electoral fraud, will be standing again in Tower Hamlets, as this year, the ban has expired. Ahead of the local elections that are going to take place on May 5, one of many residents in east London borough, Stacy Green said, “Who knows who to vote for in Tower Hamlets. I don’t understand what happened in the past, but I know it was dodgy.” In 2015, the council was plagued by scandal after the former mayor Lutfur Rahman was thrown out of the office and banned from standing for five years.

Labour’s John Biggs is his main rival, who has been mayor since 2015 when the local election result the previous year was declared void and rerun after Mr Rahman was accused of corrupt and illegal practices.

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Honourable Prime Minister of India,

Shri Narendra Modi It is an honour to have received a letter of appreciation from the Honourable Prime Minister of India, Shri Narendra Modi who has extended his felicitation on the occasion of the golden jubilee of 'Gujarat Samachar' to the entire publishing house, editorial team and community. The PM has also congratulated us on our endurance, despite several adverse circumstances and appreciated that Gujarat Samachar has acted as a lighthouse in the area of journalism, language literature and culture for Britain's Gujarati diaspora.

GUJARAT SAMACHAR@50

BEGINNING OF A NEW ERA D e a r r e a d e r s, wr i t e r s, a d v e r t i se r s , su p p o r t e r s , w e l l -wi s h e r s a nd a l l m y teammates, I am most grateful to you for your support, to help us reach and successfully accomplish this glorious benchmark journey of Gujarat Samachar. Gujarat Samachar will celebrate its Golden Jubilee on 05th May, 2022 and on this occasion, I express my sincere gratitude to all of you from the bottom of my heart.

Hon'ble Appa Saheb Pant, a distinguish diplomat launched the first edition of Gujarat Samachar on May 5, 1972. Appa Saheb, also known as Raj Rishi, was the son of the Raja of Aundh, a princely state in Maharashtra who was a true Gandhian and based on its principle of trusteeship, who had handed over the kingdom to the Prajamandal, people of his state in 1924. Appa Saheb worked as the Officer in Charge of the missions of Tibet and Bhutan and Sikkim, and earlier as High Commissioner to Kenya and United Kingdom and Ambassador to Indonesia, Norway, Egypt and Italy.

Gujarat Samachar was founded by five persons of which 3 were Gujaratis and 2 were Punjabis (Pranlal Sheth,

Kusumben Shah, Nalinkant Pandya, Balwant Singh Kapoor and Yuddh Vir). In 1976 the publication was acquired by ABPL. As time progressed, 'New Life' was launched which subsequently metamorphosed to 'Asian Voice.'

We have always strived to serve our readers by providing reliable and useful news, special features, special magazines as per the needs of modern time, reaching to the community and supporting their voice through various campaigns.

We are growing and expanding our roots deeper than before. New team members are joining our walkway of ‘Seva Yagna’ & ‘Gyan Yagna’. As we step in our 51st year, a new era begins for us. We welcome and anticipate your continuing support and warmth for the future of Gujarat Samachar and Asian Voice. We are people’s newspaper and we reflect your voice. We invite you to write to us with yo ur views and c riticisms if any to cb.patel@ abplgro up.co m. I once again express my sincere gratitude to you all.

Yours, C. B. Patel Editor-in-chief

Join the Celebration Honourable Chief Minister of Gujarat

Shri Bhupendra Patel

Our Celebrations are incomplete without your blessings and good wishes We welcome you to share in your photo or video, with a short message to shrijit.rajan@abplgroup.com It will be appropriately published in our newsweeklies and also posted on our social media platforms. Join the celebration to help us treasure the memories of this grand success.

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Grand online birth anniversary celebrations of Lord Mahavir from London Every year Lord Mahavir's birth anniversary (Mahavir Janma Kalyanak) celebrations are organised

by Jain All Party Organisation and Institute of Jainology which represent 32 organisations of the Jain religion in the UK. This year's online celebration was organised on 24 April 2022. The event was broadcast and celebrated by devotees worldwide.

Amit Lathia

Ashwin Mehta

Shri Mehool Sanghrajka, MBE who is the Managing Director of the organisation said, "Lord Mahavir's message is to be compassionate with all living beings as our lives are interconnected with each other. In this time of pandemic and the COP26 summit, the message is very meaningful. In the coming years, with refer-

ence to the programs organised for the conservation of the environment, we intend to organise this program at Westminster's Palace."

Gareth Thomas, who is the Chairman of Jain All Party Group and MP for Westminster, said in Dr Natubhai Shah Prof Kanti V Mardia his welcome video message, "this group has served the society by provides them with ample leadership organising several projects befitting and travel opportunities." the Jain community members and Every year as a part of Mahavir senior citizens". While Harrow Janma Kalyanak celebrations the (East) MP Padmashree Bob organisation honours the members Blackman said that, "the principle of the society for their special contriof compassion practised by Jain's is butions with awards. This year 'The very important and useful in the One Jain Young Person's Award' was current age". presented to Shri Amit Lathiya and At the beginning of the pro'The One Jain Excellence In gram, The Jain Student Association Community Service Award' was preaffiliated with 'One Jain' presented sented to Shri Ashwin Mehta. their future plans that included 'Lifetime Achievement Awards' establishing societies in the were presented to Late Dr Natubhai Universities and organising various Shah (MBE) and Professor Kanti events on a grand scale. Niraj Shah Maradiya for providing vital social from the British army said that "If services to the Jain community.

Jains join the army, it does not mean ABPL Group congratulates all the they have to compromise on their award winners. principles and lifestyle. In fact, it

Man guilty of selling jewellery containing endangered elephant hair A man has been convicted of the illegal sale of gold jewellery containing hair from African elephants following a Met investigation.

Maharaj Sivasundram, 40 (16.2.1982) of 32 Malden Fields, Bushey, was found guilty on Friday, 29 April at Harrow Crown Court of seven counts of offering the sale of products containing specimens derived from endangered species.

He was fined £8,400, required to pay costs of £3,500 and a surcharge of £170 In 2017, detectives discovered a shop in Wembley was advertising gold jewellery, including rings and bangles, containing elephant hair, for sale.

Enquiries were carried out to ascertain whether the establishment had ever legally imported elephant hair

jewellery, but no permits had ever been issued.

Officers carried out a search warrant at the premises on 15 May 2018. A large quantity of gold jewellery containing black fibres was seized. At this time Sivasundram was not arrested but was later interviewed under caution.

Forensic tests conducted by the Science & Advice for Scottish Agriculture (SASA) Laboratory on sam-

ples of the jewellery detected DNA from African elephants. Baby bangles offered for sale at the venue were labelled as ‘elephant hair’ Detective Constable Sarah Bailey, from the Met’s Wildlife Crime Unit, said: “There are legal requirements surrounding the sale of specimens derived from protected or endangered species, requirements which had not been met in this case”.

“African elephants continue to be poached, activity which partners globally are trying to prevent, so it is incredibly worrying that illegal derivatives from elephants have appeared for sale in London”.

“We will continue to identify and prosecute those profiting in London from the illegal trade of endangered species from around the world.”

Don't pretend to be someone else.

Rohit Vadhwana

D

on't pretend to be someone else.

Everyone has a role model to follow.

But it has to be for inspiration, not imitation. A colleague in the office getting fast promotion due to superb selling skills should not lead you to believe that you will be successful by changing your department from finance to sales. Don't follow anyone blindly. Sometimes as an easy formula for quick success, we are misguided to follow or imitate someone. Everyone has his/her own inherent personality and character.

If you try to change it and emulate someone else, it is an assured shortcut toward disaster. Don't ever try to do that, even for the sake of the biggest bonanza on the prize. Someone wearing a slim fit suit, and looking handsome, should not lead you to believe that the same style will fit you well too. Anyone speaking in a particular manner and accent should not steer you to presume it would be best for you to use the same. Even if advised or asked, think twice before initiating such imitation.

It is of utmost importance that you remain what you are. Never try to pretend to be someone else. Even in the situation when you are impressed with someone by his/her skill or personality, never copy. The rule of 'fake it till you make it', is absolutely misleading, and it actually misleads you, not others. Trying to imbibe someone else's fashion and persona is not advisable.

Because you would lose originality. Plus, whatever you pretend to be has no solid substance behind it. The whole exercise turns out to be a hollow act that no one likes. Having said that, learning a new skill like someone else is not at all a problem. Rather one should be always open to accepting knowledge from others, whatever good they can impart. But it should be developed into a rock sound base, not just a thin surface.

Otherwise, it becomes like applying a layer of makeup, which we know will come off by the end of the day.

So, whatever is not permanent, is only an accessory and can serve a limited purpose. Remember, the substance is different and difficult to achieve. It's not an easy formula to have a quick fix to repair shortcomings. To build permanent mastery, one has to be oneself. Whatever best you want to achieve in life can come only through determination, hard work and patience, not by imbibing others. So, never try to be someone else, just be yourself.

(Expressed opinions are personal)

Indian manufacturing giant’s partnership with UK university A ceremonial plaque has been unveiled at a renovated former school building to mark the first phase of the opening of a groundbreaking business innovation centre in India in a partnership between Birmingham City University (UK) and India’s motorbike and cycle manufacturing giant Hero Group.

Delegates from both organisations gathered to unveil the plaque at the centre in the State of Punjab, which is aimed at driving innovation, creating new businesses and promoting entrepreneurship across the State. Known as the Munjal Birmingham Centre for Innovation and Entrepreneurship (MBCIE), the initiative will provide a place for individuals to take new business ideas, for existing organisations to grow their businesses and for entrepreneurs to collaborate.

The project has seen a former school and teacher training facility converted to serve as a bespoke space providing state-of-the-art facilities, access to expertise and collaborative opportunities for businesses academics and entrepreneurs. Featuring high-tech equipment including 3D printers, Augmented Reality and Virtual Reality tools, the facility aims to meet the needs of changing industries, providing a competitive advantage and new ways of thinking to underpin economic growth in the region and beyond.

MBCIE will serve as an Indian counterpart to Birmingham City University’s new STEAMhouse facility, which places the arts at the heart of the traditional technical sub-

jects of science, technology, engineering and maths to create a STEAM curriculum. Acting as a trade bridge to supporting entrepreneurs and businesses in both countries in providing a soft platform for market testing and for collaboration, the joint initiative is among the first of its kind between the UK and India.

MBCIE’s opening saw masterclasses being given to those living and working in Punjab to allow people to develop new skills and hone existing ones to boost ingenuity and creativity in the business sector.

Birmingham City University hopes to be able to run its accredited degree courses from the facility in the future, offering undergraduate students the opportunity to study an array of STEAM-focused courses.

Professor Julian Beer, Deputy ViceChancellor (Research, Innovation and Enterprise), at Birmingham City University, said: “Nearly two years ago we set out on an ambitious journey with Hero Group and the Munjal Foundation to establish a centre that would allow businesses to grow and creativity to breed in the thriving State of Punjab.

“It is with great pleasure that we are now able to see the transformation of this building into a significant facility, and the welcoming of the first businesses that will be able to access the facilities and the professional development courses our University will be offering.

“These are the first steps in what we hope will be a long and fruitful relationship

as we work hard to make our ambitions to offer STEAM-related degrees in Punjab a reality.”

The plaque was unveiled during a special visit from a Birmingham City University delegation to Punjab, made up of ViceChancellor Professor Philip Plowden, Deputy Vice-Chancellor Professor Julian Beer, Deputy Vice-Chancellor Professor Peter Francis, Assistant Director Bernard Curren, and Senior Development Manager – India Partnerships Makhan Singh.

Punjab is home to around 50,000 Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises spread across

clusters like Ludhiana, Amritsar, Jalandhar, Mohali, Patiala, Mandi and Gobindgarh.

Many such of these SMEs are reasonably successful and managed by third and fourth generation entrepreneurs, however many of these organisations face technological and innovation-related challenges.

The MBCIE aims to bridge this gap and provide a platform to bring organisations together to develop opportunities to discuss and develop ideas, scale-up, revisit business models and perform research and development, with the aim of boosting growth and business development.

Britain's flagship Covid lab dealing with spiralling costs The Rosalind Franklin Laboratory, once hailed as the key to Britain’s fight against Covid-19, with its cutting-edge technology, is dealing with spiralling costs and issues around test processing.

It was believed that the RFL will play a key role in response to Covid-19 and future epidemics, carrying out 300,000 tests a day, but in reality, the lab was typically processing just 11,500, analysis suggests.

The project was announced as a flagship for the new UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA), in November 2020. The UKHSA succeeded Public Health England as the body responsible for protecting the public from infectious diseases and oversees Covid testing in Britain.

However, the project opened six months

late facing a string of issues with equipment, staff and construction, with barely 20 per cent of its touted capacity being reached. It was due to open in January 2021 with the first of its processing lines but it was not until 13 July that the laboratory was formally opened, with just a single line running. The former senior scientist said, according to internal figures from June 2021, its total budget was set at £588m, but by May that year, £500m had already been committed with costs “spiralling”. However, the UKHSA has said the estimated expenditure to March this year stands at £426m.

According to the Treasury insider and a consultant that was involved in reviewing the lab’s future said government officials have no idea as to how much has been spent on the project.

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Leicester’s new community shop brings a ray of hope for ethnic minorities Kartik Kavi On 6th April a new social supermarket opened its doors in Leicester.

Community Shop Leicester, which will support around 750 members, will offer surplus food and household products from major brands and retailers all at deeply discounted prices. Whilst there may not be a wide range of products available, the products are in-date and of the same quality you would find in a supermarket.

The store, which is one of nine across the UK, is free and open to people who live locally, receive welfare support, and are motivated to make a positive change in their lives.

The revenue raised from in-store sales is reinvested back into the local area via its Community Hub, where members can access personal development support, with

Council, who provided the premises for the supermarket at a peppercorn rent. The site, which is in an ethnically diverse area, was specifically chosen because of the deprivation of the local people and the lack of other support in the area.

While the most obvious benefit of the shop is self-apparent, it prevents wasting of surplus food and products whilst helping people who may be struggling financially sessions including everything from cookery clubs and home budgeting, to interview skills and business courses.

The store also features a Community Kitchen that serves delicious low-cost meals, with kids eating free every day, as well as a multi-purpose community space.

The store has been supported by several stakeholders including Leicester City

Care home Covid policy ruled unlawful by High Court Judges ruled against the government’s policy of discharging Covid-infected patients into care homes. They termed it as unlawful as tens and thousands died in care homes during the pandemic.

Two women, Cathay Gardner and Fay Harris, who lost their fathers after they were moved to a care home have defeated the government over the care home Covid policies that were released in March and April 2020.

They have partially succeeded in claims against the Health Secretary and Public

Health England.

Thousands of patients were moved from hospital wards into care at the beginning of the pandemic as health chiefs feared an influx of intensive care cases. However, later it was found out that many of them “seeded” infections into care homes which led to deaths.

According to a Public Health England study, it was found that 97 out of 5,882 care home outbreaks in England were “due to hospital associated seeding” that led to 286 deaths.

Farouk brothers found guilty of murder Two brothers Ridhwaan Farouk,19, and Mohammed Farouk,21, have been convicted of murdering 20-year-old Amin Talea around 9 pm on October 1 last year.

Injured Mr Talea sought help from two strangers and one of the men called 999.

Surgeons tried their best but the bleeding was irreparable and Mr Talea died in the early hours of October 2 at Queen Elizabeth hospital.

Ridhwaan Farouk and Mohammed Farouk caught a taxi from Risborough House in Turves Green to Overbury Road.

They waited until Mr Talea appeared and

then they emerged from the side of a building attacking Mr Talea outside his flat in Longfellow Road.

DHSC and PHE broke law by failing to protect hospital patient The High Court has ruled that the Department of Health and Social Care and Public Health England broke the law by failing to protect hospital patients who were discharged into care homes without being tested for Covid. When the government sent thousands of patients into care homes without coronavirus tests, more than 20,000 elderly and disabled care home residents died after contracting Covid-19 between March and June 2020.

Judges said care home covid policies that were set out in March and April 2020 were “irrational” as they failed to advise those asymptomatic patients who had not been tested before being admitted to a care home should be quarantined for 14 days.

The judicial review was brought forward by Dr Cathy Gardner and Fay Harris, who lost their fathers to covid after they were moved to care homes.

PM’s ministerial adviser clears Sunak in the investigation into family’s tax affairs As per the report by the cabinet’s ethics adviser, Lord Geidt, Rishi Sunak has been cleared of breaching the ministerial code over his wife’s tax affairs.

Amid accusations that he had failed to be transparent about the non-domicile tax status of his wife Akshata Murty, the chancellor asked the adviser on ministerial interests to look into his case. She has since said she will voluntarily pay the tax.

In advice to the prime minister, Lord

Geidt wrote: “I advise that the requirements of the ministerial code have been adhered to by the chancellor and that he has been assiduous in meeting his obligations and in engaging with this investigation.

“In reaching these judgments, I am confined to the question of conflicts of interest and the requirements of the ministerial code. My role does not touch on any wider question of the merits of such interests or arrangements.”

reduce their cost of shopping, spending a day with the members of the Community Shop highlighted other upsides.

One member pointed out, “I can now afford to be healthy as previously I could only afford to buy stuff from the reduced shelves and these never had fresh fruit and vegetables”.

Another said “ With the local cafes being too expensive, it is the only place in the area where we can meet up and have chat. I have bumped into people who I have not seen in years.” She also adde,d “Forme, this place is more than a shop, it is a place that brings the community together.”

A disabled member told us, as a result of the shop opening locally, she was no longer reliant on her son to get her shopping which

has allowed her to be more independent.

These positive sentiments were reflected by local Councillor Vijay Riyat who said, “Given the recent rise in the cost of living, the Community Shop provides an essential service by ensuring families have access to food and household products at an affordable price.”

He went on to say, “Providing free meals to children is another important part of the community shop, especially as around 30%40% of children in the city live in poverty.”

With the country in a cost-of-living catastrophe, and a government which admits things will get worse yet refuses to take significant measures, it may be up to local councils, charities and businesses to work together and find innovative solutions to offset the damages of this crisis.

The Community Shop embodies this by providing a fresh, unique approach to tackling problems locally as a community. If the early success of this enterprise continues there will be an appetite for more stores to open up across the country. Furthermore, given that economic pressures on individuals aren't likely to ease any time soon, we could see more innovative community-based ventures, where the main motive isn't profit but the benefit of society, popping up near us.

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7 - 13 May 2022

NHS on slippery slope to obviation Our NHS, introduced by Labour at the end of WW2, was once an envy of the Western world, one of the very few nations that would provide free healthcare from birth to death to its citizens without obligation to pay!

When first introduced, the aim of NHS was to use it sparingly, more or less in emergencies that would not put NHS under pressure. It worked well for a long time until our needs and attitude changed, making NHS the first stop rather than the last one for our medical needs.

To compound the problem, our newly qualified doctors are reluctant to join NHS, instead preferring to work in private practice or move overseas to Canada, the USA, New Zealand and Australia where working conditions and financial rewards are better, as well as a sub-tropical climate that we all love.

According to a recent survey, it is much more difficult to book an appointment with a GP in this country than in most Western nations, many works on a different strategy, like having medical insurance, paying first and claiming later that works wonder in countries like France, Germany, the USA and many more, treatment available on-demand rather than to wait months, even years, as is the case here. Mental health is most affected, many youngsters commit suicide due to a lack of care and treatment.

Our politicians and public are reluctant to change, set in their old, outdated ways that are particularly unfair to the elderly, as many pass away while waiting for the surgery. It would be cost-effective and will reduce waiting time under NHS if we are allowed to go private, NHS paying the basic cost of treatment under NHS and patients paying the difference, thus benefiting everyone.

It costs a fortune for NHS to train, to qualify as a doctor. So make it compulsory to work for NHS for some time, say five years before they are allowed to leave, thus repaying some of the cost to the public purse, taxpayer!

Bhupendra M. Gandhi

International Workers' Day International Workers' Day, which was celebrated on May 1, is celebrated every year all over the world, has its origins in the labour union movement. It is also known as Labour Day in most countries like India. The day is a celebration of labourers around the world. The day has its origins in the labour union movement, specifically the eight-hour day movement. Popularly known as May Day in India, the day is observed in countries such as India, Cuba and China, among other countries. Labour Day, May Day or International Workers' Day commemorates past labour struggles against workers’ rights violations, including lengthy workdays and weeks, poor conditions and child labour.

Jubel D'Cruz, Mumbai, India

Are you a fault finder?

In this world, we often come across people who are superb at finding faults everywhere. They can comfortably criticise their own friends and relatives, the government & its policies, prevailing weather, colleagues in the office, food and ambience in a restaurant, stage performance of an artist, any article published in a newspaper and so on and so forth. In fact, they are so proficient in this art that they disapprove of everyone and everything. One can easily judge that they often criticise things without any genuine reason and try to pretend as if they themselves excel in every walk of life.

At times, criticism reflects jealousy of that person.

Instead of finding own faults and shortcomings, someone can derive satisfaction in criticising others. In fact, when we judge or criticise another person, it says less about that person but says more about our own need to be critical.

Thus criticism is an indirect form of flattering oneself.

People are mostly unaware that a person’s disapproval spoils their self-image and results in the downfall of selfconfidence. Finally, it can even ruin personal relationships and bondage forever.

It is commonly said that one should criticise privately and appreciate publicly. But at times people behave conversely, criticising publicly and ignoring others’ admiration altogether. Positive and constructive criticism can assist people in improving their behaviour. Criticism must be designed like a sandwich, starting with appreciation, followed by shortcomings and ending with suggestions for improvement.

Bharat Shah Harrow

Milestone birthday I enjoyed reading the feature on Rupanjana Dutta about her life journey, richness of experience and inspiring thoughts and values. It would be great to have a glimpse of the inner lives of other AV team members.

H Pankhania UK

Worried Britons are still creatures of password habit Despite over 27 million Britons admitting they worry about losing money to online fraud, three-quarters (75%) of the nation could be putting their finances and savings at risk by using the same password for their online banking as other online accounts, increasing the risk of bank account fraud.

Staggeringly, there are more than 40 billion records of personal information captured from consumers globally, according to cyber security experts, F-Secure.

The new study, which delves into Britons’ password habits, also found that one in 10 people have had their online banking hacked. Yet, in a strange twist of contradiction, almost 80% of people won’t change their passwords even when they’ve been notified that an account has been compromised.

The disconnect between worry and risk has been revealed in the latest research released today, which shows that lax password habits continue to be commonplace. When it comes to password hygiene more broadly, more than a third[1] still use the same password, or variations of it, for several protected accounts and Gen-Z are the worst creatures of habit with 41% keeping to the same password.

Security experts at F-Secure are urging the British public to improve their password habits this World Password Day (5th May) as cybercriminals exploit weak passwords for theft and identity fraud.

Further findings in the research, also revealed that since the pandemic, the number of online accounts Britons now have has almost doubled - going from 18 to 32. This growth is likely to have been accelerated by the pace of digitalisation over the past two years when many analogue services migrated online. The research also revealed that rather than use a password manager that allows users to store, generate and manage their passwords, 42% of Britons say they simply memorise passwords, whilst a quarter keep a note of them online, on their phone or written down on paper.

Priti Patel ‘must consult young Londoners’ over Dame Cressida Dick’s replacement Priti Patel ‘must conment process sult young Londoners’ will involve over Dame Cressida people from Dick’s replacementTo black, Asian restore faith in and minority Scotland Yard, justice ethnic commucampaigners have nities who have written to Priti Patel experienced Priti Patel demanding young policing, and people and ethnic minorities that their views will be conare consulted over Dame sidered and valued.

Cressida Dick’s replacement “There are many comas Commissioner. munity groups in London who work with young peoNina Champion, repreple on issues around policsenting 170 grassroots ing who could be engaged in organisations, wrote in a designing a process in which joint open letter: “In light of they would have some this, we would like a commeaningful input.” mitment that the recruit-

Girl, 10, critical after four-car crash on M4 near Heathrow On Sunday, a 10-year-old girl suffered grievous injuries and is in critical condition after a huge crash brought the M4 near Heathrow to a standstill. Around 1:35 pm, police, fire and National Highways traffic officers arrived at the scene and the westbound route was blocked to allow the air ambulance to land.On Monday, Hillingdon Police informed that the girl remained in a critical condition while two adults remained in hospital “with less serious injuries”. The incident caused delays stretching back onto the M25. For now, no arrests have been made.

Any witnesses yet to speak with police or anyone with dashcam footage, pls call 101 refs 3666/01 MAY.

Woman assaulted in Oxford by a group of men A woman in her 30s was walking by Oxford Retail Park on Ambassador Avenue on Friday 18 March and around 9 pm, she asked the men to turn down the music in their car. Soon, the group of men attacked her causing an injury to her eye and a chipped tooth. For further treatment, she was taken to the hospital and was later discharged.Meanwhile, Thames Valley Police have released images of three men who they believe may have "vital information" about the assault.Investigating officer PC Czachur said: "We would like to appeal to anybody who recognises the men in these images to please get in touch as we believe they may have information in connection with this incident".

•

Kapil Dudakia

Kapil’s KHICHADI

Priti Patel Wins the Day Finally on 27th April 2022 the ‘Nationality and Borders Bill’ passed all the stages of parliamentary process. This was one huge slap on the face of the Labour Party and those on the left who used every trick in the book to undermine the nation. Priti Patel has been attacked time and again. Politicians, the media, and some national organisations all conspired to make a coordinated effort to damage Priti at any cost. For most of them, lying and misrepresenting information has now become a way of life. They care not for the nation, only for their own failed ideological alliances.

The process of the Bill started in July 2021. And against all odds, Priti has managed to get this through Parliament in less than a year. Now that is some achievement.

So what is this all about I hear you ask? Well simply put, Priti wanted to sort out our immigration processes by giving greater clarity on what it means to have a British border. If you want to come to this country legally, then all doors are open. However, if you circumvent legislation and wish to come here illegally by using loopholes in international law, then from now on, it will be harder. As far as I can ascertain, the vast majority of the sane British public also want exactly this, support for legal immigration but to be tough on the illegals.

The most obvious flagrant violations have been migrants crossing the English Channel from France.

These migrants come across several safe nations to the shores of France. From there they board small boats by paying traffickers large amounts of money (I wonder where they get the money from?) to come to the UK. And then they claim asylum because they are being persecuted! How can they be persecuted in France? Or the any number of EU nations that they crossed safely?

These are liars, and those who support such illegality are morally corrupt. The legislation now gives our border forces powers to remove the illegals to a processing centre outside of the UK (Rwanda is being considered currently). Of course, the EU nations could have processed them, but they all turned a blind eye. In fact, these EU nations actively assisted the illegals to get to the UK. Now what does that tell us about them?

The other part of the legislation looks into nationality. The main element of this is to introduce compulsory voter identification. In essence, everyone who is legally allowed to vote will have to show their identification before they are allowed to cast their vote. For some reason the Labour Party and other opposition politicians went berserk. It seems they are very happy for voter malpractice to continue. Maybe they feel they have most to gain from voter fraud. In most democratic nations, there is always a need to present your identification documents before you are allowed to vote, so frankly it is a mystery as to why some politicians fear this legislation.

We have seen unprecedented racist attacks on Tory MPs of colour. Most of these attacks have been from Labour MPs and the compromised media. The cabal of the ideological left has been working overtime to support extremists and organisations that support terrorist. These are the same people who are anti-Israel. They are now anti-India and anti-Hindu. So when you get ready to vote, please be careful where you put that cross. Don’t vote for those who wish to harm you, your faith, your heritage and your nation. Lest anyone has forgotten, it has been Labour MPs, Labour Councillors and Labour members who have actively sided with Pakistan to steal the whole of Jammu and Kashmir from India. The movie, ‘The Kashmir Files’, exposed the truth. And even then, we witnessed Labour politicians casting doubt on the story of the victims who suffered a genocide at the hands of Islamists. For how long will people ignore the truth and vote for those who conspire against us?

We are grateful to all letter writers for more and more versatile letters well within word limit. Please keep contributing as always. If you are new, then write to Shefali at shefali.saxena@abplgroup.com

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India retains focus on Europe

Ruchi Ghanashyam Mrs. Ruchi Ghanashyam is the former High Commissioner of India to the UK. With a career in Indian Foreign Service for over 38 years, she has been posted in many countries including South Africa, Ghana, before arriving in the UK. She was only the second woman High Commissioner to the UK since India’s independence and during her tenure, she witnessed a number of significant developments in the UK-India relations. @RuchiGhanashyam The visit of the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen to New Delhi on 24-25 April, came soon after the ‘historic’ visit of UK PM Boris Johnson to India. It will contribute to strengthening the partnership between India and the European Union by deepening bilateral cooperation with a focus on upholding the rules-based global order, supporting economic recovery, fighting climate change and charting the digital transition.

In wide-ranging talks with PM Narendra Modi, the two agreed to establish a joint Trade and Technology Council to tackle key trade, economic and technology challenges, and advance cooperation in these areas.

They also agreed to resume negotiations for an EU-India Free Trade Agreement and to start talks on an Investment Protection Agreement and an Agreement on Geographical Indications. The first round of negotiations will take place in June.

Both sides are looking to conclude negotiations on a comprehensive trade and investment agreements before the beginning of electoral cycles in 2024. The European Investment Bank (EIB), which is the lending arm of the EU, intends to double its annual investments in India from the current level of about €500 million in the next two years.

Both India and the European Union are committed to combating climate change and the transition to a more sustainable and green future. Cooperation to reach ambitious decarbonisation targets, with more intense joint efforts on solar energy and green hydrogen in particular were in focus. President von der Leyen visited the headquarters of the International Solar Alliance, one of India's flagship initiatives to fight climate change and the Energy and Resources Institute (TERI). She also met with CEOs from Indian and European energy companies.

Speaking at the opening of Raisina Dialogue 2022, she focussed on current developments, including post-Covid-19 pandemic situation, clean energy and digital transitions, China and the Ukraine war and its global impact. Raisina Dialogue is India’s flagship conference on geopolitics and geoeconomics, which has grown over the years as a key global conference on international

affairs.

Shortly after this incoming visit, PM Modi began his official visit to Germany, Denmark and France on 02-04 May 2022. In Berlin, he Co-chaired the sixth edition of the biennial India-Germany InterGovernmental Consultations (IGC) with the German Chancellor, Olof Schulz. Coming soon after India and Germany commemorated 70 years of establishment of diplomatic relations in 2021, the visit provided the opportunity to deepen ties across a number of areas, with the participation of relevant ministers from both sides. Having coordinated and attended the second IGC in Berlin in 2013 as the Joint Secretary (Europe West), which witnessed the signing of the first document to support India’s Green Energy Corridor, it is good to see Germany being the first outgoing destination this year for PM Modi.

Denmark was the second stop on the itinerary of the PM. The official visit at the invitation of the Prime Minister of Denmark provided the opportunity for the 2nd IndiaNordic Summit hosted by Denmark. The Green Strategic Partnership agreed upon after a virtual summit between the two prime ministers in September 2020, was the first arrangement of its kind between India and Denmark. It focuses on renewable energy, sustainability and green growth including wind energy and water management. It has a five-year action plan. A review of its progress and ways to further expand cooperation were on the agenda during this visit.

At the 2nd India-Nordic Summit, where interactions are with all the Nordic country leaders, individually and together at the Summit, climate change and renewable energy would figure prominently with other important subjects. The Nordic countries, Iceland, Norway, Sweden, Finland, and host Denmark, are all renowned for their commitment to sustainable development. This summit too will focus on Green Partnership and sustainable development among other areas. I was a part of the delegation of the 1st India-Nordic Summit that took place in 2018 in Stockholm. Apart from the USA, this format of Nordic Summits is only held in India.

The brief stopover in Paris on 04 May 2022, is the perfect opportunity to greet the newly re-elected French President, Emmanuel Macron as India and France celebrate 75 years of diplomatic relations this year. This engagement can only strengthen the existing strategic partnership between India and France while enhancing cooperation on the green and sustainable agenda.

As temperatures soar across India, reaching record-high levels in several places, there are worries about the impact of climate change on life and economic activity in India. The scorching sun that is burning the plains of north India, will have a negative impact on the health of the people, while adversely affecting agriculture. From the European perspective, a move to cleaner sources of energy will help reduce India’s dependence on oil imports including from Russia. For India, which according to the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), is amongst the countries expected to be worst affected by the impacts of the climate crisis, Europe can be an ideal partner in dealing with the challenge of climate change.

We failed to protect care homes during lockdown Dr Sunetra Gupta, a theoretical epidemiologist at the University of Oxford said that during the lockdown if the vulnerable population would have protected rather than restricting everyone’s freedoms, people would have been in a better position today.

“It is curious that many who persist in their belief that focused protection of the vulnerable population during the pandemic was unworkable do not find their imaginations stretched by the possibility that the same intervention might have worked at the

level of the entire population.”

She believes that communitywide interventions did very little to alter the natural course of the pandemic and served only to delay the inevitable in countries such as China (once hailed as a paragon of infection control) where it was possible to seal the borders at the outset.

Acting premier of British Virgin Islands unhappy by direct rule advice The acting premier of the British Virgin Islands Natalio Wheatley has rejected a recommendation that the UK can take direct control of the territory after his predecessor Andrew Fahie, 51, was detained in Miami over an alleged conspiracy to import a controlled substance and money laundering in an operation led by the Drug Enforcement Agency (DEA).

The territory’s director of ports, Oleanvine Maynard, was also arrested.

Following an inquiry into corruption in

the territory, which was led by retired judge Sir Gary Hickinbottom, found that the people of the British Virgin Islands have been “badly served” by its government.

In a statement, the acting premier Natalio Wheatley expressed concern and said, “What this would mean in real terms is that there would be no more elected representatives who represent the people of the districts and the territory in the House of Assembly where laws are made for our society.”

Asylum seekers are suing Priti Patel Two asylum seekers, an Eritrean man who arrived in February and an Iranian who came in March, in the UK in the back of lorries have instructed lawyers to trigger a legal challenge against the Home Secretary Priti Patel. Due to new Home Office Plans, both are fearing that they will be removed from Britain and will be sent to Rwanda.

The policy, signed off by Priti Patel and hailed by Prime Minister Boris Johnson, specifies that asylum seekers who will arrive by small boat across the Channel would be flown with a one-way ticket to Rwanda.

The Government says the move will save

hundreds of people from trafficking.

Both men have sought anonymity during court proceedings, as they fear retribution if they were to return home.

Drug dealer who ran empire from his home, arrested 25-year-old Mohammed Arslan Ali who sold heroin and cracks cocaine to users between Birmingham and Worcestershire via the ‘Shak Line’ has been detained. Cops arrested him in a dawn raid after he was caught running his criminal empire from his family home.

While he was caught, he was wearing a dressing gown and was desperately trying to scratch the number off his SIM card which

he had used to run the drug operation.

He had sent out bulk marketing messages to more than 100 customers from the phone, boasting about having high-quality drugs to sell, detectives discovered. Ali admitted that he supplied drugs between April 25 and November 4 last year. He has been awarded a five-year sentence at Birmingham Crown Court.

Two men arrested on suspicion of smuggling people into the UK Police officers arrested a 50-year-old man at a commercial yard in Gravesend, Kent, and a second man,28, at Greenfields in Oswestry, Shropshire, on suspicion of smuggling people into the UK in horseboxes after a raid in Kent. Police seized multiple mobile phones and a vehicle.

According to the investigators, separate concealments were built into the vehicles to hide individuals to allow them to cross the border illegally. National Crime Agency (NCA) investigators questioned both men, suspected of belonging to an organised

gang, who have been released on bail.

Branch commander Lydia Bloomfield said: “Our investigation is focused on an organised crime group that we suspect has been smuggling both people and drugs into the UK by using concealments in horseboxes and heavy goods vehicles.”

“Tackling people smuggling remains a priority for the NCA and we are currently leading more than 60 investigations into organised immigration crime. These investigations involve some of the highest harm, highest threat crime groups.”

Sarah Everard vigil: Met Police to challenge High Court ruling The Metropolitan Police is planning to seek another bid to challenge the High Court’s ruling over the Sarah Everard vigil. In the month of March, judges Lord Justice Warby and Mr Justice Holgate, ruled that officers breached the rights of organisers Reclaim These Streets (RTS) with its handling of the event.

In a statement, the force said: "This appeal is not about the policing of the vigil itself, but about the decisions and communications with Reclaim

These Streets ahead of the planned event last March."

RTS had proposed a socially distanced vigil for murdered Sarah on Clapham Common, south London.

Following the 33-yearold’s killing at the hands of serving Met police officer Wayne Couzens, thousands of men and women gathered to pay their respects.

RTS criticised the Met for “spending more taxpayer money to continue to fight us in court”.

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SCRUTATOR’S Padma awardee evicted from his govt-allotted house Odissi dance exponent Guru Mayadhar Raut, a 90-year-old Padma Shri awardee, was having lunch at his government-allotted bungalow in Delhi when a team of officials came knocking on his door to evict him. The nonagenarian was apparently not even allowed 10 minutes to finish his meal and was "pushed out" of the Asian Games Village accommodation, his daughter Madhurima claimed, recounting the events when she was visiting her father. She said she went "numb" seeing the events unfold. "I was in tears.

My father is 90 years old. He has asthma, high blood pressure and poor eye sight," Madhurima said. “My father could not have his lunch and he was pushed out of the house. We asked for 10 minutes just so that he could have his meal, but we were told we cannot be granted even two minutes for that," she alleged. Videos and photographs of the eviction proceedings surfaced on social media in which a frail Raut could be seen outside the bungalow walking with a stick, his Padma Shri citation among other possessions lying on the road. (Agency) Woman cop saves an elderly woman from Kutch desert

Varsha Parmar, a newly recruited constable with Rapar police station in Kutch district made everybody proud with her humane act. Seeing an 86-year-old woman lying unconscious in the arid desert of Kutch, the constable didn’t wait for orders but voluntarily lifted the old woman on her shoulders and carried her for five km to safety! A video of her selfless act went viral on social media, prompting senior officials to honour her valour and recommend her name for an award. “I did it for humanity and had no intention of becoming famous,” she said. “I thought that the elderly woman needed some help and it’s my duty as a cop to help the society. I saw that she was not in a position to walk and since there was no possibility of getting any transport, I did what I thought was the only best solution - lift her on my shoulder and take her safety as fast as I can,” said Varsha. The incident happened when three elderly women had gone to pray at a temple. After darshan, while returning one woman fainted because of sunstroke. A passerby who witnessed the incident shared the information. When Varsha heard about it, she rushed to the spot with a water bottle and thereafter lifted the woman and took her to safety. (The Times of India) Seer denied entry to Taj Mahal over ‘brahmdand’

Ayodhya-based seer Jagadguru Paramhans Das and his disciples were denied entry into the Taj Mahal as the seer was carrying an iron ‘brahmdand’ (an ancient weapon carried by Hindu seers).

Security personnel at the monument flagged the ‘brahmdand’ as "an item not allowed inside the Taj Mahal, which is a high-security zone". The seer was asked to deposit it outside. However, he returned from the site instead. After his return, his supporters created a ruckus. “This is an insult to the entire saint community. The building is an ancient Shiva temple, known as ‘Tejo Mahal’ and not Taj Mahal. Why are seers being discriminated against in

this manner?” said Nagendra Maharaj, a seer from Mathura. He claimed that he was also stopped from entering the monument a few years ago as he was wearing “kesariya” (saffron) clothes. Hindu Mahasabha activists jumped into the controversy and staged a protest at the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) office.

They made an attempt to burn the organisation’s effigy but were stopped by police. Meanwhile, activists of another right-wing group protested over the denial of entry to the Ayodhya seer by reaching the monument wearing saffron clothes.

(Agency) New-born rescued from sewage drain A newborn girl abandoned in a sewage drain in Bharada village of Dhrangadhra taluka in Surendranagar district miraculously survived after she was rescued from the drain. The infant, which looked less than 48-hours-old, was first taken to a primary health centre in the village from where she was shifted to the sub-district hospital in Dhrangadhra. Dr Ramesh Bajania, a paediatrician at the government hospital said, “The infant was found abandoned in dirty water and some of that water had also entered her nose. This poses as a risk factor for the newborn child, though the infant actually survived because of the blistering heat. There were bruises on her body but now she is stable and will be kept under observation for seven days.”

According to Dr Bajania, the infant will be given postnatal care by other new mothers, and, if required, they will request somebody for breastfeeding her too. The police, meanwhile, started hunting for the parents of the girl child.

Image of Kebab seller wins food photo contest Photograph of a street food vendor working at a smoke-covered oven by Debdatta Chakraborty has won a major food photography award. Debdatta was named as the overall winner of Pink Lady Food Photographer of the Year 2022 for an image titled Kebabiyana, which was taken in Srinagar, Kashmir. The photographer took the picture on a busy street at night, as vendors fired up charcoal ovens to prepare wazwan kebabs and other street food. "In today's world, more than ever, we feel the need for comfort, for love," says awards founder and director Caroline Kenyon. "There is so much to reassure us here - the beautifully captured billowing embrace of the smoke, the golden light, the subject's expression as he prepares the food for sharing. "Sparks fly from the skewers, whose roasting we can almost smell. We imagine the warm, delicious aroma. This image, gentle but powerful,

nourishes our soul." Debdatta's image was selected from thousands of entries submitted from more than 60 countries across the world. (Agency) Bhupen Khakhar painting sold for £1.88 mn

A painting by Vadodara based artist, late Bhupen Khakhar, was recently sold for £1.88 million in a global auction. Titled ‘The Banyan Tree’, the oil on canvas painting made by Khakhar in 1994, was auctioned by Christie’s auction house on March 23 this year. The work shows some people resting and conversing with each other under the banyan trees in the backdrop of hills. “Khakhar’s artworks have always been recognized across the country and also globally. But over the last few years, his paintings are being sold in record figures. In fact, £1.88 million is the highest amount for which Khakhar’s painting has ever been sold,” said Hitesh Rana of Sarjan Art Gallery. Earlier this month, a painting ‘Draupadi Vastraharan’ made by legendary artist Raja Ravi Varma too was sold for £2.1 million in an online auction. Khakhar was a self taught artist who moved from Mumbai to Vadodara in 1962 when he was in his thirties. (The Times of India) Jawan airlifted to help him get home for wedding The BSF flew a special helicopter sortie to airlift a jawan deployed at a remote post along the Line of Control (LoC) in Jammu & Kashmir so that he could get home, about 2,500 km away in Odisha, in time for his wedding. Posted at a high-altitude post in the Machil sector along the LoC, 30-year-old Constable Narayana Behera’s wedding is scheduled to take place on May 2, a senior Border Security Force officer said. As the LoC post is snowbound and its road link with the Kashmir Valley is currently inaccessible, a military air sortie is the only available mode of transportation for troops deployed at these locations, he said.

The parents of the jawan recently got in touch with his unit commanders, expressing apprehension that their son might not be able to make it for his wedding. They were worried as all the arrangements had been made for the said date, the officer said. The matter was brought to the knowledge of BSF Inspector General (Kashmir frontier) Raja Babu Singh. He ordered that a Cheetah

helicopter of the force stationed in Srinagar should airlift Behera immediately, he said. The helicopter picked up Behera and brought him to Srinagar. He is now on the way to his home in Adipur village of Odisha. (Agency) Former Hizb man now preaching peace Sheikh Mudasir was attracted to the ideology of Pakistan backed banned Hizbul Mujahideen terrorist group while he was schoolboy in the early 2000s. Then he got carried away by the separatist ideology which, in his words, was “metastasising like a cancer” in the Valley. He dropped out of school, became a hardcore stone thrower during protests in his native Old Baramulla town of north Kashmir and worked for the terrorist group as an “overground” activist, and served time in jail thrice. Now, Mudasir, 35, is almost bedridden with a growing brain tumour and little money or help for the expensive surgery that can save his life. And yet, until doctors advised him not to move about, he never tired of going to madrassas in his hometown to counsel youngsters, especially orphans, against enlisting in terrorist groups operating in J&K. He used to dig out nuggets from his own experience to tell them about the futility of taking up arms. “Don’t ruin your lives like I did,” he exhorted them. He has been threatened by Lashkar-eTaiba for his effort to wean kids away from militancy. “They can shoot me. So what? I am dying anyway,” he says, vowing to keep spreading Allah’s message of peace. (Agency) Woman gives birth in ambulance as elephant blocks road A 24-year-old tribal woman delivered a

baby in an ambulance as a wild elephant blocked a ghat road in Tamil Nadu's Erode district. According to health officials, the woman developed labour pain and her relatives put her in the ambulance to take her to hospital. But she could not make it, as the elephant came out of the forest and stood in the middle of a ghat road. The driver of the ambulance stopped the vehicle and waited for more than half-anhour, but the animal did not move.

Meanwhile, the woman developed pain and the team in the ambulance helped the woman give birth. She delivered a baby boy. After a few minutes, the animal left the spot, and the health officials admitted the woman and the baby to a rural health centre. Their health is satisfactory, said the officials. (Agency)

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in brief CRACKDOWN ON TERRORISTS RADICALISING PRISONERS BEHIND BARS Justice Secretary Dominic Raab has announced the crackdown after a report published by Jonathan Hall QC discovered that extremists behind the bars have been using Sharia courts to deliver punishments such as flogging. As part of the crackdown, a team will be set up that will identify 'influential and charismatic terrorists' before moving them to one of three separation centres to stop radicalisation that is taking behind the bars. Mr Raab said, “I don't want any racism or anti-Islam behaviour inside prisons but our prison officers do the most incredible job. I will stand full square behind them but more than that - because warm words are not enough - we're providing them money, so we can target the real troublemakers, we have the facilities - we've got 28 separation centre places and we're only using nine at the moment.

The team that assesses terrorists will cost £1.2 million. More £6 million will be invested into 'close supervision centres' so they can hold not just the most physically violent prisoners, but terrorists as well.

DENTISTS QUITTING NHS IN LARGE NUMBERS

According to the latest NHS figures, more than 2,000 dentists have quit NHS last year across England, leaving millions of people struggling to get checkups or have toothaches fixed. In England, the number of dentists providing NHS care fell from 23,733 at the end of 2020 to 21,544 at the end of January this year. The figures have been obtained by the Association of Dental Groups (ADG) under freedom of information laws.

As per the ADG, the NHS now has the smallest number of dentists it has had for a decade, which represents major chains of surgeries. Due to the limited access to NHS dental care, people in some areas are forced to wait three years for an appointment

MET COUNTERTERRORISM OFFICER SOUGHT SEX WITH TEENAGER A Metropolitan Police counterterrorism officer Francois Olwage, 52, has been jailed for five and a half years for arranging to meet a 13year-old girl for sex. He was convicted of three offences of grooming a person he had met on the Lycos online chat forum whom he believed to be a 13-year-old girl. Olwage had been chatting with an undercover police officer using the username of Smile Bear, before moving to WhatsApp with the name Caitlin, Winchester crown court heard. The trial was told that after two weeks of explicit sexual conversations in October 2021, Olwage, of Stevenage, decided to meet the “girl”, who told him she lived in Basingstoke. Two undercover officers arrested him at a McDonald’s in the town as he was about to buy a McFlurry ice cream to take to his meeting with “Caitlin”. Officers found two condoms and erectile dysfunction tablets in his bag. Olwage, who was suspended on his arrest, remains a serving officer until a misconduct hearing on May 31.

889th Birth anniversary of Lord Basaveshwara celebrated in London Floral Tributes paid to The Chief Architect of The Indian Constitution DR B.R.Ambedkar

The 889th Birth Anniversary of Lord Basaveshwara was celebrated in London, and floral tributes were paid to Dr B.R.Ambedkar at the Basaveshwara statue in London by the Indian High Commissioner to the UK, Her Excellency Smt Gaitri Issar Kumar.

The Lambeth Basaveshwara Foundation of the United Kingdom

Indian takeaway 'riddled with cockroaches' fined Kaival Ashokbhai Patel, who owns Taste of Gujarat in Ealing Road, Brent, was fined almost £40,000 after food hygiene inspectors found cockroach infestation in the kitchen, as well as issues with food being stored incorrectly at room temperature.

The place had no running hot water, which meant staff could not wash their hands or equipment properly, environmental health officers found.

Food hygiene inspectors found evidence of 12 serious food safety breaches, and due to poor hygiene, the shop was forced to close on three occasions between 2014 and 2020.

In April 2021, the busi-

ness closed again and was only allowed to reopen after it had demonstrated it had decontaminated the shop and made clear hygiene improvements. But, owing to its poor record, Mr Patel was summoned to court where he pleaded guilty to all charges.

For each offence, a judge ordered him to pay £2,933, as well as prosecution costs of £3,888 and a victim surcharge of £190. The total fine of £39,274 is the highest handed out for food hygiene violations in Brent.

A prohibition order was also issued, which will prevent Mr Patel from managing a food business until 2025.

10 million Brits hosting street parties Between the 2nd and 5th of June, it’s estimated that there will be 10 million Brits hosting street parties organised across the UK, according to Country Living.

Experts at A-Plan Insurance have revealed their top tips to throw a Jubilee Street Party. It’s no surprise to see how huge an occasion this is! Not only is this a great celebration of the Queen’s 70-year reign, but it’s also a welcome opportunity to reconnect with our community after Covid. A spokesperson for A-Plan Insurance said, “The Queen’s Jubilee is to celebrate her 70 years of service. Her Majesty The Queen is extremely well respected by many and is well-loved for her oath to duty, love of the people and even her sense of humour.

Millions of people want to

Yew Tree, St Edward’s Church, Stow-on-the-Wold

celebrate this milestone with her and we want to ensure that people are aware of the guidelines before throwing their party. We look forward

Are you celebrating the Queen’s Jubilee?

If you are celebrating the Queen’s Jubilee to mark 70 years of the British monarch on June 2 within the community, please let us know your story. Write to us at shefali.saxena@abplgroup. com and share how you, your organisation or your group is planning to mark this occasion to honour the Queen.

Deadline 20th, May 2022 to this huge, worldwide celebration.”

As Patron of The Queen’s Green Canopy, HRH Prince of Wales also announced the nationwide network of seventy Ancient Woodlands and seventy Ancient Trees, dedicated to Her Majesty in celebration of the Platinum Jubilee.

organized the event.

The Lambeth Basaveshwara Foundation has adopted a practice to jointly celebrate Lord Basaveshwara and Dr B.R.Ambedkar because of the conceptual relationship between the two great men after The Honourable Prime Minister of India Shri Narendra Modi unveiled the statue of Lord Basaveshwara and the Museum of Dr B.R.Ambedkar of the same day, 14th November 2015.

Swindon trader defrauded customer out of £3,000 Nikesh Mehta, founder of Old Town-based Wiltshire Trading Academy, a financial trader from Swindon has admitted making misleading statements to make money after a man was tricked into completing a training course.

He had appeared at Swindon Crown Court on Friday (February 4) where he pleaded guilty to one count of fraud by false representation.

Reportedly, Mehta admitted to making misleading and false statements which attracted £3,000 in investment.

A media report said, “The court was told how Mehta, formerly of Haydon Wick but now of Eastwood Close in Frome, Somerset, had made false statements, which included that his academy won awards and was regulated by the Financial Conduct Authority, to persuade people to sign up, at a cost of £3,000.”

The fraud reportedly took place between May 1, 2017, and

December 31, 2019, according to the charge.

Despite the guilty plea, the 41year-old was not sentenced on Friday, with both prosecutor Alec Small and defence advocate Charley Pattison saying an adjournment was needed.

Ms Pattison told the court: “This has been going on for such a long time Mr Mehta is anxious to see an end to it.”

But Recorder David Chidgey replied: “Mr Mehta’s desire for closure is quite a long way down the list of priorities for the court.”

The former Greendown School pupil has been released on unconditional bail.

Rabindra Jayanti 2022 Bengal Heritage Foundation (BHF) will be hosting an event to mark Rabindra Jayanti, in remembrance of Rabindranath Tagore’s birth anniversary on Friday 6th May 2022 at 6 pm at Nehru Centre, London.

This year, the foundation will explore Tagore’s journey of Indian Independence through his literary pursuits; and a ‘Shadharon Meye’ dancedrama performance by the UK based BHF artists.

Trainee pharmacist illegally gave out Class A drug Adnan Arshad, 29, lied to land a job as a pharmacist by pretending he passed his exams - before dispensing methadone to customers. He worked at the Pearl Pharmacy in Rochdale between November 2017 and April 2019, during which he unlawfully dispensed the Class A drug.

Minshull Street Crown Court

heard that to become a registered pharmacist, students must undergo training to obtain a master's in Pharmacy degree, with 12 months of pre-registration training and then they must pass the GPhC examination.

Arshad, of Mere Street, was handed 12 months imprisonment which was suspended for two years.

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Using art to fuel activism for women’s rights Shefali Saxena Science Gallery Bengaluru's upcoming exhibition season PSYCHE that will explore the human mind and the complexities of thinking and feeling. The 45-day exhibition will be showcased from 01 April to 15 May 2022 and is developed in collaboration with National Institute of Mental Health and Neuro Sciences (NIMHANS), The Wellbeing Project and Museum Dr Guislain, Ghent.

Curated by the Science Gallery Bengaluru team, PSYCHE brings together philosophers, neuroscientists, artists, psychologists, filmmakers, sociologists, writers and performers.

Shaped with the advice of a multidisciplinary panel of scholars - Richard Wingate, Sanjeev Jain, Ulrike Kluge and Vikram Patel, and curatorial advisors - Jill Bennett, Marius Kwint, Natasha Ginwala and Ruth Garde, the exhibition will feature 10 exhibits, 6 films and 40+ live programmes including workshops, masterclasses and public lectures.

Created by artist Eugenie Lee who has been living with chronic pain from endometriosis and adenomyosis, it visually explores artist Eugenie Lee’s illness and visceral pain against the backdrop of an objective pain assessment tool.

Speaking to Asian Voice, Dr Jahnavi Phalkey said, ““Psyche” is our fifth exhibition season and our third that is entirely online.

The pandemic forced us to reconsider our

Jahnavi Phalkey

Eugenie Lee

mode of engagement and opened the digital universe to my team and I. It was also during the pandemic that we confronted the relentless isolation, dread, and grief among our audience as we conducted our last exhibition season, “Contagion.” “Psyche” grew out of that recognition of our own vulnerabilities and that, especially, of our young adult audience members. We address it within the broader idea of a “living exhibition” that we are developing at Science Gallery Bengaluru.

With it, we grant our visitors as many entryways as possible to the self-same purpose and message – be it through games, films,

exhibits, talks, or masterclasses and workshops. The mind and sentience are perhaps the most intriguing characteristics we attribute to ourselves as human beings. It is an idea we might return to again and again in our programming.

We have, for example, an exhibit by Eugenie Lee on pain and the female body called the McGill Questionnaire. Her exhibit extends, what was a personal experience of pain that was addressed incompletely by medical diagnosis, into a larger comment on the inadequacy of a medical system that takes the male human body as the “universal body;” and, therefore, a system in which maladies of the female body are more likely to be misdiagnosed compared to ones of the male body."

Eugenie Lee told the newsweekly, "The installation, McGill Pain Questionnaire, was driven by my desire to shine a light on the silent resilience of women’s collective pain experiences which have been dismissed for too long. It is my form of activism for women’s rights and of stating that persistent pelvic pain, like Endometriosis and Adenomyosis, are as valid and real, and our experiences are as worthy of care and attention from the medical system, as any other form of chronic illness."

Consensus reached on protection of women, adolescents, girls, and marginalised communities The Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office and Morgan McArdle said on Friday that sustained and inclusive economic growth can only be realised when all women, adolescents and girls have their full human rights respected, protected and fulfilled, including comprehensive sexual and reproductive health and rights. The human rights of women, adolescents and girls in all their diversity include the right to have control over, and to decide freely on all matters related to their sexuality. This comes as a part of

UK’s explanation of position at the adoption of the 55th session of Commission on Population and Development outcome document.

In a speech, they mentioned, “We welcome the commitments in the resolution to: - Inclusive and equitable quality education for girls; - To ensuring universal access to sexual and reproductive health and reproductive rights; - To increased and sustained investment

-

in measures to empower women, girls, and youth and to provide an enabling environment for the full realisation of their human rights; To ensure gender-responsive implementation of climate action; To prevent and eliminate sexual and gender based violence; And to scale up efforts to accelerate the transition of women from informal to formal employment, including access to decent work, equal pay for equal work and social protection policies.

Three month limit for three HRT products to ensure continued access The government has issued Serious Shortage Protocols (SSPs) to limit dispensing to 3 months’ supply for three HRT products to ensure continued access. Urgent action is being taken to ensure women across the UK will be able to more reliably access HRT products, as the Health and Social Care Secretary Sajid Javid issues Serious Shortage Protocols (SSPs) to limit the dispensing of 3 HRT products to 3 months’ supply.

In response to concerns regarding longer prescribing cycles putting pressure on the availability of some HRT products, the government has made the decision to issue SSPs to three products in high demand to ensure women are able to access the HRT they need.

Women who have a prescription for more than three months but are only able to access three months’ supply will not have to pay an additional prescription charge. This means women will not incur any additional costs. Imposing a three month limit will mean more women are able to access the medication they want. Any woman who is worried about access to HRT or is unable to access HRT should speak to her GP. This follows the recent appointment of Vaccine Taskforce Director General Madelaine McTernan to spearhead a new HRT Supply Taskforce, applying lessons learned from the successful procurement seen during the Covid vaccination programme to identify ways to support the HRT supply chain ensuring it can meet both short and long term demand. The move will save time for patients as well as pharmacists and prescribers who are working tirelessly to tackle the covid backlog.

Health and Social Care Secretary Sajid Javid said: “I want to reassure women I have listened to their concerns and will not hesitate to take decisive action to ensure they can access the HRT they need.

“We will leave no stone unturned in our national mission to boost supply of HRT – and this next step will ensure women across the UK will be able to reliably access this vital medication and maintain this lifeline for millions who need it.”

Demand for HRT has dramatically risen with a 38% increase in the number of prescription items over the last seven years as there is greater awareness around the menopause and GPs are more confident in prescribing. Supplies of the vast majority of HRT products, including alternatives to those affected, currently remain available.

The SSPs, which are set to expire on Friday 29 July 2022, allow community pharmacists to supply the three specified HRT products according to the protocol rather than the written prescription, without needing to seek authorisation from the prescriber. This will even out distribution of in demand for products such as Oestrogels which have recently experienced issues due to rising demand. Pharmacists are expected to use their professional judgement when deciding to apply the SSP and patients must be consulted.

This prepayment certificate will mean women can access HRT on a month by month basis if need be , easing pressure on supply, while keeping the cost of HRT low. This system will be implemented from April 2023.

This forms part of the wider government agenda to reduce the gender health gap and increase support for menopausal and peri-menopausal women. In the recent call for evidence to inform the upcoming Women’s Health Strategy, menopause was the third most selected topic that respondents picked for inclusion in the plan, with 48% of respondents selecting this as a priority. This is in line with the government's commitment to tackle health disparities and support everyone to live healthier, happier lives.

Menopause will be a key priority in the first government-led Women’s Health Strategy for England. The UK wide Menopause Taskforce will also consider the role of education and training, workplace policies and peer groups for menopausal women can play in supporting women through what can be a mentally and physically challenging time.

in brief REFORMED NATIONAL CLINICAL IMPACT AWARDS OPEN FOR APPLICATIONS

High-performing consultant level doctors, dentists and academic GPs in England and Wales can apply for the national Clinical Impact Awards from today (Thursday 27 April). Applicants will benefit from a newly reformed awards scheme, which better reflects the modern NHS workforce while remaining relevant to the increasingly varied roles doctors undertake.

This year’s renamed national Clinical Impact Awards have been reformed to make them more accessible, inclusive and fair – particularly for under-represented groups such as women and people from ethnic minority backgrounds – ensuring the scheme continues to reward national impact and incentivise excellence across the NHS. Data from the previous Clinical Excellence Awards scheme shows that while 38% of consultants are women, they held just over 21% of awards as of January 2020.

This is despite having an equal chance of receiving an award when they apply – with a success rate of nearly 36% for both men and women. There are also disparities among ethnic minority groups – 39% of consultants are from an ethnic minority background but received 30% of new awards last year.

Ensuring the full human rights of all women and girls are respected Chris Carter, Head of Human Development, at the 55th session of the Commission on Population and Development said, “We all know that sustained and inclusive economic growth can only be realised when all women, adolescents and girls have their full human rights respected, protected and fulfilled, including comprehensive sexual and reproductive rights. The human rights of women, adolescents and girls in all their diversity include the right to have control over and to decide freely and responsibly on all matters related to their sexuality, free of coercion, discrimination and violence.

We must do more to ensure that these rights are protected, particularly in humanitarian contexts and for those who are most marginalised and face multiple and intersecting forms of discrimination.

“There is still such a long way to go to achieve this.

There are 121 million pregnancies annually that are unintended according to UNFPAs most recent report. Most of these unintended pregnancies end in abortion, and 45% of all these abortions are unsafe – many tragically leading to death.

And we are going in the wrong direction. The situation is compounded by the

rise of anti-gender movements, the devastating impact of the pandemic and other legal, economic, and social barriers that women, adolescents, and girls are facing, including global conflict, which further limit access to contraception, safe abortion and health services.

“Member States must act now to ensure women, adolescents and girls around the world can access quality and comprehensive sexual and reproductive services, including safe abortion, key to unlocking their agency and potential and contributing to sustainable economic growth.

Member States should also prioritise strengthening health systems, committing to Universal Health coverage and exploring the use of innovative delivery models like telemedicine to improve access to and to achieve the full realisation of sexual and reproductive health and rights.

The right to inclusive, equitable and quality education is equally central to achieving more sustainable development.

“We cannot say often enough that education improves women and girl’s lifetime earnings, helps with poverty alleviation, and brings economic benefits to households.”

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Remembering VK Krishna Menon Dr. Rashi Soin: A Mini Dental Empire

Some thoughts on his legacy on his 126th birthday – Tuesday 3 May 2022 Dr Cyriac Maprayil – Director, V K Krishna Menon Institute

Sunetra Senior Rashi is the founder of York House Dental Practice and Weybridge Dental Care based in Surrey.

An entrepreneurial medic, the successful dentist is as luminous as the smiles that she creates. Providing an expert range of treatments, from essential dental care to accommodating for urgent appointments and the option of cosmetic work, the friendly dentist offers stellar customer-service alongside the adept odontology. Honing an underrepresented soft skill in dentistry then, Rashi has grown a consummate, unique enterprise. She dispels the overly clinical stereotype of dentists to establish a foundation of gentle encouragement instead. “We

pride ourselves on empathy, offering a caring approach, above all, to customers. We especially value an amiable chair-side manner. Additionally, round-the-clock attention is offered, keeping the business open to emergencies and admitting impromptu patients. For regular clients, we are emotionally invested and want what’s best for them in the long-run. We do risk assessments and regular checkups, working with the individual. We rely on an intimate feedback system that allows patients to voice requests and concerns. We’ll always provide reassurance and give sensitive advice.”

Indeed, health is holistic. Going beyond the physical, well-being is achieved when considering every aspect of the constitution of happiness, including the emotional. Here, Rashi continued: “In terms of the local area, I wanted to introduce dental practice that would offer cosmetic surgery as well as conventional dental service. People want to look as well as feel good. Common needs range from alleviation of pain to wanting a brighter smile. Our ethos of kind professionalism has been so well-received that we’ve had clients drive down from the North to see us! Although the patients had moved, we continue to enjoy a strong rapport.” Rashi’s warm dentistry further emphasises prevention to generally increase the numbers of shiny healthy teeth. “I love helping people feel better. When I was growing up, there was no awareness of preventive care. If you’re good with patient, they’ll be enthusiastic with their hygiene too. It’s important to brush both regularly and properly for example! I recommend a light circular motion across, and in-between, the teeth with an electric toothbrush. You should brush at least twice a day but not aggressively; rather effectively. If you brush too hard, you risk receding gums which are not reversible!

Another tip is leaving toothpaste on before spitting out and rinsing. If you let it sit, you make the most of the beneficial fluoride. As a general rule, of course, limit sugars. Although I have noticed an independent move towards maintaining physical health over the last few years.”

Rashi is hands-on and positive in business too. “You’ve got to be proactive. The pandemic, for example, was challenging. But we read up on what we needed to do, from essential disinfection techniques to keeping abreast with the latest official medical advice and having diehard dedication. I was similarly strategic when growing into a second company. I also meditate, taking plenty of time to introspect and negotiate the magnitude of what’s ahead. After you conquer it the first time, expanding becomes easier.”

Finally, Rashi endorses contributing communally to relieve stress. As the owner of a demanding proliferating business, the diligent dentist loves helping those vulnerable around her.

She gives talks at schools and nurs-

DR. RASHI SOIN

an aesthetic awareness. You are building a person’s presentation, looking at them also from the outside. You are key in self-esteem. There is vision behind smile design, including which colours would suit etc. It’s important to have both functional and bright bold teeth!

W

hat are the most common problems that you encounter?

eries to raise dental awareness as well as donating money to urgent international causes such as Ukrainian refugees currently fleeing Russia. This work is internally edifying. One feels benignly validated by doing the same for those who need it. Such is the mechanism of being innately social beings. “Everyone needs support,” the dentist concluded. “I gain so much from having a loving familial unit.”

And so, Rashi not only highlights the importance of deep personal care, but also genuine connection in developing at large. Aptitude may drive society, but compassion ultimately enhances it.

W

hat does it take to Run a successful Dental Practice?

Working as part of a team, leadership skills and expert experience. If you provide quality care all else will follow. My parents are from the medical community and taught me good work ethic, service towards the community and wellbeing and empathy.

W

hat draws you Personally to the practice of Dentistry?

Patient care, communication and creativity. Growing up, I had a creative flair which could be channelled through dentistry. With teeth, you are dealing with pearly whites. From contouring and anatomy, you must have

A cohort of patients across different ages come to us with pain. This includes bleeding and swollen gums and generally gum disease as well as the need for implants such as missing teeth. Then there are regular checkups. Then there’s a notable number of patients with cosmetic issues e.g., chipped and broken teeth and lost fillings. We are a family practice too so we see a lot of children too.

"Take plenty of time to introspect and negotiate the magnitude of what’s ahead. After you conquer it the first time, expanding business becomes easier"

F

inally, what has been a highlight moment with your dental practices?

Being on a prime-time advert for Sensodyne in India! My dad was so proud: I was speaking in Hindi.

W: https://www.yorkhousedentalpractice.co.uk/ https://www.weybridge-dentalcare.co.uk

Indians of all ages recall with pride the titanic achievements, domestic and international, of the First Government of Independent India.

In their capacity as architects of the admirable doctrine of moral, as opposed to physical force, Nehru and Menon played a crucial role in getting the two power blocs, capitalist and communist, to recognise that the alternative to peaceful coexistence and negotiations to sort out the thorny problems, would be a nuclear war. Nehru was never a Communist, nor was Krishna Menon.

Nevertheless, they were defiantly anti-imperialist, even if it meant offending the USSR and the USA. They refused to align themselves with either bloc, much to the annoyance of America and the Soviet Union. As a result, the newly independent republics of Asia and Africa remained non-aligned, winning the respect of both superpowers in their efforts to foster and preserve world peace.

As a result, the nonaligned movement came into existence. From its inception, the movement opposed the development of military blocs and attempts by the major powers to compartmentalise the world into spheres of influence. Unfortunately, the non-aligned movement is no longer able to negotiate as impartial outsiders, leaving the UN with even more responsibility to negotiate proactively in the face of crises like the present one centred around Ukraine and Russia.

Prior to his role in Nehru's Government, Menon was India's unofficial Ambassador to Britain – he was the leader of the opposition to the continu-

ing British rule of India. In this role, he educated British public opinion and won over many influential British politicians across the political parties and other decision-makers to his cause. His creation, the India League, was a powerful weapon in India's propaganda war against British Imperialist rule. According to Prime Minister James Callaghan, Menon was "the embodiment of the movement within Britain for India's freedom". Along with his campaign for Indian independence as an elected councillor in the Borough of St Pancras, Menon worked selflessly and tirelessly to bring about social and economic justice.

In recognition of his distinguished services, he received the Freedom of the Borough.

After independence, Nehru and Krishna Menon embraced social democracy, which they believed – with its emphasis on public and private ownership – would help create a more equitable India. The commanding heights of the economy were controlled by the Government, although private enterprise was encouraged. Krishna Menon's contribution to the Commonwealth was finding a solution to ensure India’s status as a Republic free of allegiance to the Crown.

English Heritage has marked Krishna Menon’s time in the UK with the unveiling of a Blue Plaque at his former London home in Highgate.

Aligheri founder says Clerkenwell feels like London’s best-kept secret Rosh Mahtani, the founder of the coveted Alighieri Jewellery brand, talks about her love for Clerkenwell where she has been living for two years and she mentions it as “London’s best secret”. She finds it tranquil and really green where she hears birds chirping in the morning despite living in the centre of London.

“I love Terroni’s Italian deli on Clerkenwell Road.

It’s my go-to after work for the best pasta. Catalyst on Gray’s Inn Road is also a

great cafe for shakshuka eggs in the morning and natural wines in the evening. The Pig and Butcher on Liverpool Road are one of my favourite spots for Sunday Roast. Last but not least, there’s Noble Rot Lamb’s Conduit as a special treat for champagne and oysters.”

She adores Sir John Soane’s Museum as it inspires her. She also enjoys going to the weekend market in Camden Passage in Angel.

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A special Eid after a long haul E

id al-Fitr was celebrated on 2/3 May, and Eid in the Square will be celebrated in Trafalgar Square the following weekend.

There's plenty for everyone to get stuck into, including:

u Live performances from Baha Yetkin Sufi Ensemble, Nafees Ifran & Qalandar Qawwali Band, Dur Dur Band, Star Children's Choir and spoken word poet Hussain Manawer. u A Naughty Boy Kitchen pop-up serving British/Pakistani fusion dishes. u Sketch comedy from The Halalians. u Family-friendly activities include calligraphy, storytelling, mehndi, face painting, and drama and poetry workshops. u Sports activities include Muslim Girls Fencing and Sisterhood FC.

A second event was held at Edgbaston Stadium in the city and saw 2,000 people attend prayers, and later take part in games such as miniature golf, cricket coaching and laser clay pigeon shooting.

Elsewhere in the country, Blackburn Rovers became the first football club in the UK to host Eid celebrations, inviting 3,000 people to pray on the pitch.

Eid in the Square celebrations return to Trafalgar Square The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, has announced that Eid in the Square returns to the capital on Saturday 7 May. The celebration that follows the end of Ramadan returns for its 17th year to showcase the very best Islamic inspired art, culture and comedy with contemporary and traditional performances on the main stage alongside a feast of food stalls from across the world lining the square.

The family-friendly event will run from noon until 6 pm and will be host-

There will be a range of family-friendly activities including calligraphy, storytelling, mehndi, face paint-

The Conservative Muslim Forum hosts historic Iftar Reception with party chairman Oliver Dowden MP u Colourful Eid carnival costumes courtesy of Alif New Beginnings.

On Monday 2 May, meanwhile, the London Eye will be illuminated with a crescent moonlight display at 7.45 pm, to mark Eid al-Fitr.

Millions of Muslims gathered in mosques, parks, community centres and football pitches across the UK to take part in Eid Al-Fitr celebrations on Monday.

The occasion marks the end of Ramadan, the ninth month in the Islamic calendar which sees Muslims fast every day from dawn until dusk.

In England, almost 30,000 worshippers descended on Small Heath Park in Birmingham from 6 am to take part in Eid prayers.

Saleem Ahmed, project manager for Eid in the Park, commented: “Eid is a joyous occasion, where Muslims come together to celebrate, spend time with family and worship as a community.

“It is a relief to have such an important celebration return to some normality after such a long time.”

On 25th April 2022, the Conservative party hosted it's first ever iftar reception at it's headquarters in London. The iftar reception was organised by the Chairman of the Conservative Muslim Forum (CMF), Hashim Bhatti.

Hashim said ' this was an historic event and something that was long overdue. The chairman and his team have shown a real willingness to engage and to work together on issues that matter to the Muslim community'.

Meanwhile, the Chairman of the Conservative party, Oliver Dowden MP, thanked the Muslim community for their contributions especially during Ramadan where Muslims donate over £130m to charities worldwide. He expressed his commitment to working with the CMF and wished the Muslim community a spiritual final days ahead of Eid celebrations.

The Chairman also outlined the Conservative Party’s commitment to stamp out

Islamophobia from society, as well as his plans to welcome more Muslims into public life.

This follows the opening of the

"Tonight thousands of Londoners from all walks of life came together at the heart of our city for a Ramadan Iftar. And doesn't Trafalgar Square look beautiful! Here in London - we embrace and celebrate our diversity," Mayor of London Sadiq Khan tweeted.

Conservative Party’s new headquarters in Leeds, helping to access reach in the north of the country.

Lord Sheikh also spoke on the evening as the President of CMF and commented that he was proud of Boris Johnson's leadership in delivering Brexit, the vaccination rollout and standing with Ukraine.

The evening started and closed with Quran recitations from Squadron Leader Imam Ali Omar of the Armed Forces.

In attendance were various MP's, party activists, friends groups and dignitaries.

ed by award-winning actor and BBC Asian Network presenter Mistah Islah and broadcaster and author Mehreen Baig.

Londoners and visitors to the Square can enjoy an afternoon of live performances on stage from Baha Yetkin Sufi Ensemble, Nafees Ifran & Qalandar Qawwali Band, Dur Dur Band, Star Children’s Choir and spoken word poet Hussain Manawer.

Award-winning music producer Naughty Boy will present his Naughty Boy Kitchen pop-up serving signature dishes fusing his British upbringing and Pakistani heritage. Comedy sketch show favourites, ‘The Halalians’ will be live on stage and Alif New Beginnings will be bringing colourful Eid carnival costumes to the Square.

ing, and drama and poetry workshops, as well as a variety of sports activities including Muslim Girls Fencing and Sisterhood FC. Ahead of the celebrations, and in partnership with Eid in the Square, for the first time ever the Lastminute.com London Eye will be illuminated to mark Eid ul Fitr. It will be lit up with a special crescent moonlight display on Monday from 7.25 pm.

Due to the impact of the

Covid-19 restrictions, it will be the first time that Eid in the Square celebrations has taken place in Trafalgar Square since 2019.

The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, said: “I’m so excited to be bringing Eid in the Square back to London after two years away.

Celebrating the end of Ramadan with Londoners and visitors from all backgrounds demonstrates again how diversity is London’s greatest strength.

“We’ve got a fantastic line-up of entertainment for all the family to enjoy, showcasing the hugely positive cultural impact that Muslim communities have on our city and beyond. In London, we don’t just tolerate our diversity, we celebrate it.”

Tufail Hussain, Director of Islamic Relief UK said: “Islamic Relief UK are delighted to be the proud partner of this year’s Eid in the Square. We look forward to seeing all communities in London coming together to celebrate this special occasion, which marks the end of the holy month of Ramadan.

“Families will gather together to enjoy food stalls, entertainment and fun activities and will also be able to support Islamic Relief UK with its life-saving work across the world.

“We would especially like to thank the Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan and his office for organising what will be a very special and memorable event for all communities to enjoy.”

Asad Mahmood, Manager, Strategy & Operations at Wahed Invest, said: “We're really excited to celebrate Eid in the Square with everyone. It's great to celebrate this Eid after a month of fasting and being grateful for what we have.'

Raj Baddhan, CEO of Lyca Media said: “Lyca Radio & Lyca Gold are thrilled to be a part of this year’s Eid In Trafalgar Square event, which is expected to be a huge celebration after a two-year hiatus. We’re delighted to be collaborating with the Mayor of London to celebrate Eid.”

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in brief TOWER HAMLETS RESIDENTS REFUSE FEE HIKE Residents of an east London tower block, Tower hamlets have decided that they will not pay increased service fees, citing poor conditions of flats. Meanwhile, tenants of Charles Dickens House, in Bethnal Green, are planning to strike against the price hikes from 1 May. Residents said issues such as mould, rubbish not being collected and a collapsed ceiling have been reported for months, yet no action has been taken. Tower Hamlets Community Housing (THCH) has claimed that the hike in service fees is not for profit but matches the costs of the service given. But, residents said they have not been provided with enough services for their flats and it doesn't justify the price hike by THCH, which manages Charles Dickens House.

Service fee has been increased to 116 per cent in THCH housing, according to the documents seen by the Local Democracy Reporting Service (LDRS).

UNIONS CRITICISING 'IRRESPONSIBLE' JOBCUT PLANS Civil service unions are criticising the UK Health Security Agency for cutting its headcount by 40 per cent and has been dubbed “irresponsible” by public-health experts. Led by a former deputy chief medical officer, Dr Jenny Harries, as part of the government’s Covid response, UKHSA was launched last year to bring together parts of the former Public Health England, NHS Test and Trace and the Joint Biosecurity Centre.

Jawad Raza, a national officer at the public sector leaders’ union the FDA said,“Staff morale is indeed very low and this process isn’t being handled well, experienced staff are now looking to move elsewhere". The Department of Health and Social Care has not confirmed staffing reduction plans but has acknowledged that numbers are being reduced.

UNION TO LAUNCH HIGH COURT CHALLENGE AGAINST HOME OFFICE RWANDA PLANS The civil service's biggest union, which is part of joint action with charities Detention Action and Care4Calais, believe Priti Patek has failed to set out a legal basis for sending asylum seekers to east Africa for processing. The union has launched a High Court challenge to the government’s plans to dispatch some asylum seekers who arrive in the UK on one-way tickets to Rwanda for their claims to be “processed”.

PCS said officials at the Home Office are unaware of the legal basis for the proposed policy they are expected to implement and home secretary Priti Patel has failed to provide answers. Hours before the start of the Easter Bank Holiday weekend, Patel announced Rwanda's plans as part of a £120m “migration and economic development partnership” with the East African nation.

CALL TO SUPPORT STRESSED GPS The Rebuild General Practice campaign group said four in five GPs have been stressed, anxious or depressed in the last year calling for action to be taken to alleviate burnout among family doctors. The campaign group has warned that with significant numbers of family doctors feeling the strain, there is a "workforce emergency". As per the survey of 1,400 British GPs, due to “unmanageable workloads”, about half (51%) have seen staff leave their surgery over the last five years. Dr Rachel Ward, from the Rebuild General Practice campaign, said: “This is a crisis for GPs and an emergency for patients. Years of underfunding and neglect has severely damaged general practice, leaving us with a skeleton staff across Great Britain and no plan for filling the gaps, meanwhile, patient appointments are at an all-time high."

PPE fraud probe: Homes and offices raided A special unit of the National Crime Agency has been secretly investigating PPE fraud allegations for about a year where police have raided homes and offices in London and the Isle of Man as part of a criminal investigation into the supply of government personal protective equipment at the start of the pandemic.

In a series of discreet and coordinated raids, officers seized financial documents and electronic devices but made no arrests.

In early 2020, controversy dogged the huge demand for PPE as the government struggled to find enough clothing and masks to

protect health and other key workers at the height of the pandemic.

The IoM police said, "The Isle of Man Constabulary, in support of an ongoing NCA investigation, executed search warrants at four addresses in the Isle of Man. No arrests were made."

Impact of Islamist groups on prisoners, warns report As per the independent report on the prison service, Britain's prisons have failed to recognise the dangers of Islamist "gang-type activity" and its impact. The report also states that the authorities have underestimated the same for too long now.

The landmark review on "Terrorism in Prisons" said groups of prisoners follow and had adopted

"an anti-state Islamist stance" that condones or encourages violence towards non-Muslim prisoners, prison officers and the general public, for the last 15 years.

The review was commissioned following a 2019 attack near London Bridge in which Usman Khan, a convicted Islamist militant who had been released early from prison, killed two people.

Rape victims dismissed as liars and time wasters by police Leaked findings from an academic-led inquiry commissioned by the Home Office have revealed that police rape investigators dismiss women as liars and time-wasters.

According to some political sources, some police officers who investigate allegations of rape and sexual assault believe that a significant number of reports are false and feel frustrated that some victims are “wasting” their time.

Under Operation

Soteria, police officers were interviewed and case files were examined in three forces in England where they discovered that some detectives described minor discrepancies or inconsistencies as “false”, which failed to understand how trauma can affect evidence given by victims.

A Home Office spokesman said that Operation Soteria is “still in progress and a full evaluation will be conducted at the appropriate time."

Mum jailed over son's asthma attack death The mother of seven-yearold Hakeem Hussain who was found dead in a freezing garden in Birmingham in November 2017 after an asthma attack,

child cruelty.

The trial heard Hakeem died alone and "gasping for air" in the garden of the property where his mother was staying. Her drug

has been jailed for 20 years.

A court heard Laura Heath had prioritised her drug addiction over caring for him.

Coventry Crown Court convicted the 40-year-old of manslaughter by gross negligence and had also admitted four counts of

addiction got worse which led to his death. The jurors heard that she had repurposed one of his inhalers as a makeshift crack pipe. On the night Hakeem died, Heath had smoked heroin before passing out in the same bed as him.

Stop referring to inmates as residents, jail staff told Fearing that “woke” language is damaging public confidence in the criminal justice system, Dominic Raab, the justice secretary, has sent a new style guide to prison governors and officers ordering them to stop referring to inmates as residents, and clients or service users. The guide also instructs them not to use the word “room” when referring to cells.

Those released from jail should not be referred to as “service-users” or “clients” but “prison leavers, people leaving prison, people resettling in the community and ex-offenders”.

In a bid to help the prisoners to get on with life after being behind bars, former HMP Five Wells governor John McLaughlin would call prisoners "residents", while Jo Farrar, who heads up the prison service, used the term when talking about giving more support to inmates so they can keep ties with family.

Asked Raab if he agrees with the use of such language during his visit, Raab said he was interested in the practical steps that could reduce reoffending rather than “theological” debates.

One in four GP appointments last less than five minutes, says report Patients are not only finding it difficult to see a doctor but nearly one in four GP appointments last less than five minutes, as per the data recorded by the NHS. For the first time, the NHS has started recording the average length of GP appointments in England, publishing last month’s data.

According to the data, of 20.6 million appointments, 4.6 million lasted between one and five minutes, 5.5 million were between six and ten minutes, and four million were between 11 and 15 minutes.

GPs have previously warned that appointments of less than ten minutes are not fit for purpose because they do not provide time to assess patients properly.

The data also revealed that the number of fully qualified full-time GPs working in the NHS had fallen by nearly 2 per cent in a year.

Jeremy Hunt, a former health secretary said: “You’re 25 per cent less likely to die if you have the same doctor over a long period of time. And we can do that within the structures that we currently have.”

Government must increase pay to solve care sector staff crisis The Migration Advisory Committee believes that easing immigration rules for care staff will not solve the sector’s workforce crisis unless the government immediately introduces a fully funded minimum rate of pay of £10.50 an hour for care workers in England.

In December, the

Government spends £27million on spin doctors In order to pay for government spin doctors in a single Whitehall department last year, taxpayers footed a £27million bill. Defending the government spending, minister Nigel Adams insisted that the bulging budget reflected the “extraordinary national and global events” like ad campaigns during the pandemic. However, campaigners declared the

spending a colossal waste.

Labour’s shadow chief secretary to the Treasury Pat McFadden said: “£27million is an awful lot of spin doctors.

Of course, governments have to communicate, but surely the priority is to get as much help as possible to people trying to cope with the costof-living crisis rather than such a huge increase in delivering government messaging.”

committee urged ministers to add social care staff to the list of occupations that have preferential access to the UK. This will allow employers to recruit workers with lower salaries and educational qualifications than the mainstream immigration routes allow in order to address acute staffing shortages.

The government acted on these recommendations in February however, the MAC has now said that the changes should be made permanent.

“The only thing that can fundamentally change the workforce crisis in social care is paying workers more . . .unless that’s addressed, frankly nothing else will do the job,” said Brian Bell, an economics professor at King’s College London and the committee’s chair.

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Dear Financial Voice Reader,

Alpesh Patel OBE

If The Markets Will Keep Falling – Which Stocks Did Well Last Time?

There's a lot of talk about the market's falling substantially. Some people such as Grantham, Jeremy Grantham, who said that the S and P could fall 50% from the peak peaks.

Let's test a hypothesis between the 1st of October, 2007, and the 1st of March, 2009, also known as the financial crisis, the S and P 500 fell over 50%.

The German Dax fell also 50% as did, for instance, the Indian stock market. This is just to say that those falls were coincidentally all 50%, despite the fact that those countries are quite different from each other and their listings are very different from each other.

The NASDAQ fell nearly 50%. It was about 47% down.

And the footsie 100 fell 41%, barely any solace.

The Chinese 50 index fell 57%. My point being, if during those falling markets, you were thinking, there will be some geography you could hide in - you would be mistaken, which then begs the next question.

Well, actually, why don't we test? Did any of those companies actually rise in that period? Well, let's start off with the S and P 500 of the 500 companies on that today.

The only ones which are still, in the S&p500 and which were up - well, there's 12 companies.

Netflix. I'm not sure a lot of people will want to get into Netflix right now, but Netflix was up 70% during the paradigm mentioned from 2007 to 2009 AutoZone, Illumina, Advance Auto Parts, Ross Stores. You could argue in a recession people not having much money meant Ross Stores would do well. Edwards Life Sciences, Walmart, again, consumer company, where you'd expect people who are on a budget to go to. Gilead Sciences, MasterCard, Church & Dwight, O'Reilly Automotive and Tyler Technologies. You can see there were three automotive companies. Again, let's have a look at if these companies have something about them, which is peculiar to them doing well. Well, it doesn't matter how they did back then. To some extent, let's just have a look. If they have good fundamentals right now, based on my value, growth income algorithm, the following have a seven, eight or nine.

They are AutoZone and MasterCard. You might say, well, you’re too stringent. Tell me about some sixes. Okay.

Advance Auto Parts and Ross Stores.

Walmart is a six. So is Gilead Life Sciences. So is Church and Dwight Company. I'm not going to go below six because I tend not to.Well, what about then a measure of valuation?

Just add an extra column on there. And also maybe give us some extra information about their cash flows. For instance, something that you particularly think will be important.

Well, let's do that. Let's add those two numbers and see of the companies that I mentioned what happens. Do any of them have a price earnings growth ratio below one?

Well, yes. Advance Auto Parts does currently, so does Walmart. So to Gilead Sciences and Tyler Technologies is pretty much at one.

What about cash return on capital invested? CROCI. Anything impressive?

Remember, I look at this metric because I'm looking for companies which are in the top quarter by cash return on capital invested the amount of cash they generate, because they tend to be the ones which can very often outperform over the long-term. Well, AutoZone has a 36% cash return on capital invested in; Advance Auto Parts is 11%. Ross Stores is 12% Edwards Life Sciences, 20% and Giliad is 18.

Conclusion Now many companies survived the market falls of 20079. If that happens again, we will have to be mindful of what happened, be picky in our stocks, sometimes be willing to hold cash, and other times hold through the falls too.

Euro falls to five-year low against dollar The euro fell to a five-year low against the dollar, falling below $1.06. Russia has acted on its longstanding threat to cut gas supplies to countries that don’t pay in roubles – starting with Poland and Bulgaria. Poland and Bulgaria say this amounts to breach of contract, as the contracts stipulate payments in euros, which causes natural gas prices to continue to climb on wholesale markets.

The British wholesale gas contract for immediate delivery has climbed nearly 14% to 146.50 pence per therm. The Dutch futures contract for winter delivery, the European benchmark, rose 20% earlier and is now about 8% ahead at €106 per megawatt hour. Prices are about six times higher than they were a year ago. Ursula von der Leyen, the European Commission president, accused Russia of trying to use gas as “an instrument of blackmail”. She said Gazprom’s action was “unjustified and unacceptable” and that it showed Russia was an unreliable gas supplier. He says, “We are prepared for this scenario. We are in close contact with all member states. We have been working to ensure alternative deliveries and the best possible storage levels across the EU”. Gazprom confirms that they have completely suspended gas supplies to Bulgargaz (Bulgaria) and PGNiG (Poland) due to non-payment in roubles.

Johnson promises 11,000 jobs for Indians across UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson during his first visit to India announced a deal worth £1 billion that will create as many as 11,000 jobs for Indians across the UK. Johnson said in India “I see vast possibilities for what our two great nations can achieve together. From next-generation 5G telecoms and AI to new partnerships in health research and renewable energy – the UK and India are leading the world. Our powerhouse partnership is delivering

jobs, growth and opportunities for our people, and it will only go from strengthto-strength in the coming years.”

Companies that will hire employees as part of UK-India commercial deal per UK High (as Commission statement) include Switch Mobility, Mastek, Firstsource, Tech Mahindra, Mphasis, Prodapt, Bharat Forge – Tevva Motors, Jupiter Lifeline Hospitals Ltd. and TVS Motors.

Apart from this, companies like Byju’s have chosen the UK to be their first global innovation hub, creating 55 jobs with a £15mn investment. Tata Chemicals has announced a £20mn investment to expand UK operations, creating 30 jobs. Apollo Tyres has committed £5mn investment to open a digital innovation hub in the UK, creating 25 jobs. Microlabs, an Indian Pharmaceuticals company is investing

Boris Johnson

£10mn to expand in the UK. Other companies that will invest in the UK include, LTI, TVS Supply Chain Solutions, Leverage Edu, Goqii, Property Share, Xelpmoc, HyperXchange, Lepton Software, Gayam Motor Works, Searce, Manras Technologies, Forest Essentials, Start-up Voyager and Qure AI Technologies.

Johnson plans to give BoE insists banks for quick recovery from outages renters right to buy homes at discount price Prime Minister Boris Johnson is considering a plan to offer rented houses to 2.5 million tenants at discounted prices through the Right to Buy scheme similar to the one which was launched in the 1980s by Margaret Thatcher. It could help a generation of first-time buyers locked out of the housing market because of rocketing prices get on the property ladder.

A government source said, "the Prime Minister has got very excited about this. It could be hugely significant. In many ways it is a direct replica of the great Maggie idea of ‘buy your own council flat’.

The plans to help "generation rent" come ahead of local elections on May 5 this week. With the current Right to Buy scheme, council tenants a can buy their home at a discount of up to £116,200 in London and £87,200 in the rest of England.

They need to have lived in their property for three to five years to qualify for a 35% discount.

It was originally introduced by Margaret Thatcher through the Housing Act 1980. You’ll usually have to repay some or all of your discount if you sell your home within five years, or all of it within the first year. Any similar scheme for Housing Association tenants would still need to be created and passed into law, and that can be a lengthy process.

Millions of renters face hurdles getting on the property ladder, including sky high house prices. Higher house prices are a problem because it means you need to save even more for a deposit to be in a position to buy. A new scheme recently launched helping homebuyers get on the ladder with a 5% deposit.

Company insolvencies highest since 2012 Insolvencies fell sharply during the coronavirus pandemic, when 1.7 million businesses were propped up by 80 billion pounds ($99.9 billion) in government-backed loans and there was a ban on many court proceedings to force businesses into liquidation.

Many firms have especially come under more pressure since the government stopped providing new pandemic loans in May 2021 and as protection from court proceedings has been phased out over the past six months.

Company insolvencies in England and Wales actually rose to their highest since 2012 in the first three months of this year following the end of emergency Covid support measures, while individual insolvencies were the highest since 2018.

A total of 4,896 companies became insolvent in the first quarter of this year, up from 4,615 in the last quarter of 2021 and double the number a year earlier according to government figures. “Voluntary” liquidations - where creditors and companies reach a deal outside court - hit the highest since records began in 1960 but compulsory liquidations stayed below pre-pandemic levels.

Company insolvencies are also likely to rise further in coming months due to surging operating costs and the recent removal of the last pandemic-related court protections. In fact, personal insolvencies are also on the increase. The number of individual insolvencies in England and Wales was 14% higher than a year earlier at 32,305, equivalent to 0.24% of adults and the highest number since the final quarter of 2018.

Britain's Office for National Statistics has said that 23% of households had reported they were finding it harder to pay their bills than a year ago, up from 17% in November.

The Bank of England has been rolling out new requirements on so-called operational resilience which required banks to spell out by the end of last month how quickly they could recover from an outage.

Banks now have until the end of March 2025 to prove they can recover within these time periods.

The BoE has said that Britain's banks must speed up their recovery from outages which disrupt service for customers to avoid undermining public confidence in the financial sector.

According to David Bailey, BoE executive director for banks supervision, “however, while clear progress has been made, there is still distance to travel to a point where firms across the sector reach the level of operational resilience we expect to see. This has been highlighted by a variety of operational outages still occurring frequently, such as payment outages, app and website failures, and incidents at third party providers.” However, according to him, the range of “impact tolerances” or the amount of time which banks say they would need to recover from an outage 'seems surprisingly wide'.

Therefore, as we go about our supervisory reviews in the coming year, our teams will be pushing firms to justify their judgments and we will undertake more detailed comparisons across peer groups.”

Number of available jobs in UK exceed 1mn In August 2021 the number of available jobs in the UK exceeded one million, the highest figure on record.

Termed by many as ‘The Great Resignation’, the employment environment is changing, with resignations close to all-time highs.

Workers seem to have more bargaining power than they have had for years and employers offering low wages or poor conditions are struggling to fill positions.”

Issues such as “burnout, workload, poor culture, and lack of flexibility”, mixed in with the long-term effects following returning to work after the pandemic, have caused many employees to think again about their existing roles. When organisations have experienced multiple resignations and failed to hire replacements, but with no reduction in workload, existing employ-

ees are all the more likely to resign in numbers.

Numerous companies are now using third-party vendors to plug the resulting staffing gap, particularly where operational resilience is a priority. A recent survey finds that the rise of thirdparty vendors has made resourcing easier.

Customers use the Confirmation platform to free up manual, time consuming tasks in order for teams to focus on more meaningful tasks.

Companies offering a hybrid model are less likely to be affected by attrition, with 28 per cent of workers saying that flexible working policies are encouraging them to stay in their current job. An August 2021 Gartner report stated that by going back to an office-centric model a company could lose up to 39 per cent of its workforce.

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Mukesh Ambani to bid for UK’s high street chain Boots Mukesh Ambani's Reliance Industries is now working on the potential bid for UK's high street chain Boots with US buyout firm Apollo Global Management. Earlier this year, the Walgreens Boots Alliance announced a review of the Boots business and reportedly put the company up for sale.

UK high street chain Boots - which has more than 2,200 pharmacies, health and beauty stores in the UK - could be valued at as much as £6 bn ($7.5bn).

The future of the 173-year-

Reliance and Apollo would own stakes in Boots, although it was not clear whether they would be equal partners in the Mukesh Ambani business.

The Ambani old Boots business has family already own assets been in question for in the UK worth tens of months. millions of pounds. In Amani’s deal would see 2019, Reliance Brands Boots expand into India, Limited, which is owned by Southeast Asia and the Ambani, bought the toy Middle East as well as retailer Hamleys for an growing the business in the undisclosed sum. Last year, UK. Under the plan, Reliance Industries bought

the historic British country club Stoke Park for £57 m.

India has recently seen a rise in online pharmacy retailers and this potential deal would enable Reliance to fast-track its entry into the sector. But as big online retailers like Walmart and Amazon sell everything, retailers offering more specific ranges have struggled to get a foothold in the massive Indian market. It will also be interesting to see how Reliance positions itself in the pharmacy and wellness business abroad.

India’s Hero Cycles to launch e-cycle assembly line in Manchester Hero International (HIT), a part of India’s Hero Motors Company (HMC), announced plans to add a new e-cycle assembly line within its manufacturing facility in Manchester which will produce high-end, IoT enabled electric cycles and push bikes for customers in the UK and EU. The new assembly line in Trafford Park Manchester forms part of a £150mn group wide investment and is expected to be operational

by August 2022 and produce

50,000 bikes over three years and scale up to a capacity of 30,000 bikes annually. Jobs will also be created by the development in Manchester. E-cycles have emerged as a preferred choice of personal mobility which is sustainable, agile and cost-efficient across the UK and EU. The new assembly line is part of Hero Cycles’ Global Design Centre (HGD) in Manchester. It will produce smart bikes that understand the user with the help of advanced

Govt plans to raise £2.1 bn from LIC IPO The LIC’s initial public offering (IPO) size will have a price band of Rs 902 to Rs 949, resulting in the issue size being between £2 and 2.1 billion, depending on the final price, making it India's largest IPO even after being scaled down due to adverse market conditions.

Policyholders will be eligible for a Rs 60 discount on the issue price while employees and other retail investors will get a value of Rs 45, sources said after the insurance board approved the details. The discount works out to just below 10%, for which an enabling provision was included when the government amended the Life Insurance Corporation Act. The IPO will open on May 2 for anchor investors. It will be open for public subscription between May 4 and May 9.

The 221.3 million shares being offered represent 3.5% of the total capital base of the corporation that is being divested by the government. Of this, 22.1 million shares (10% of the issue size) are reserved for policyholders while 15,00,000 shares are reserved for employees. Of the remaining shares, 50% are reserved for qualified institutional buyers, and retail (35%) and non-institutional investors (15%).

Of the portion reserved for QIBs, 60% is for anchor investors, indicating that the anchor book will be around £630 million only - smaller than the £830 million anchor book in the case of Paytm IPO. The issue price values the corporation at £60 billion at the upper end and £57 billion at the lower end of price band. This is around 1.1 times the corporation’s embedded value of £54 billion as of September.

technologies such as IoT and Google services integration along with industryleading anti-theft systems and advanced telematics.

Pankaj Munjal, Chairman, and Managing Director, HMC, said: “We are excited to expand our capabilities in Manchester to locally produce technologically advanced cycles and e-cycles that are extremely efficient, low-carbon personal

mobility solutions. Our new facility will enhance the cost competitiveness of our products in the UK and the European region, making them more affordable; it will boost local innovation and exports from the UK.”

Tata owned Air India now plans to buy Malaysia’s AirAsia In what will be its first M& A under new owner Tata Sons, Air India has proposed to buy low cost carrier AirAsia India, according to an application with the Competition Commission of India (CCI). The move will see Malaysia’s AirAsia exiting the airline venture nine years after it entered India with high hopes.

Air India will buy AirAsia’s 16.33% stake in the airline venture for £13.9 million. The remaining stake of 83.67% in AirAsia India is already held by Tata Sons. According to the shareholders’ agreement between AirAsia and Tata Sons, the latter can acquire the former’s stake 16.33% in the India unit directly or through an affiliate. Since Air India is now an affiliate of Tatas, the purchase of AirAsia’s stake has been routed through it, sources said.

The CCI application is the first step by Tata Sons to integrate its aviation business, which also includes low-cost carrier Air India Express. The proposed acquisition of AirAsia India by Air India “will not lead to any change in the competitive landscape or cause any appreciable adverse effect on competition in India”, read the CCI application.

The Tata Sons airline brands including Air India, AirAsia India and Vistara (which is a joint venture with Singapore Airlines) - have a domestic market share of 25%, while IndiGo remains the market leader in India with a share of almost 54%.

Emami acquires Dermicool from Reckitt for £43.2 mn Kolkata-based packaged goods firm Emami Ltd has acquired the Dermicool brand from Reckitt Benckiser Healthcare for a total consideration of £43.2 million, it said in a regulatory filing.

The move will help Emami, which sells Navratna Cool Talc to further strengthen its presence in the prickly heat and cool talcum powder category, considering that

Dermicool has a 20% market share in the highgrowth, low-penetrated talcum powder category.

Following the deal, Emami is set to become the market leader in the niche category and help realise

synergetic and cost optimization benefits, it said. Emami’s core business strategies is to grow through the inorganic route.

The company considers acquisitions that not only add value and synergy with its current line of businesses, but offer opportunities for the organization to be present in categories which have high-growth potential, it said.

Double Barrelled Deal

Suresh Vagjiani, Sow & Reap Properties Ltd

Currently, we are analysing a deal which has the double benefit of a healthy discount and is located in a growth area.

We expect to see a growth of about 7 years back to back for this location. The property is a freehold and consists of commercial and uppers. The breakup value of this site is about 20% higher than the purchase price.

There are two commercial units and three residential units. One of the commercial units will be empty on completion. All the others are occupied, generating a yield of 6%.

The aim would be to vacate the remaining commercial unit and convert the whole of downstairs to residential, as the street is primarily a residential street, and actually the commercial units there stick out like a sore thumb. It’s not in keeping with the area. Not that this will have a bearing on the ability of being able to gain permission. Even if there was opposition this change could not be refused, as it’s set by Central rather than local government.

Gaining a discount on a deal is always a good thing; however, if one is looking to keep the asset for a long period, it’s important to see where this area is going over the next five to ten years. This may have a greater bearing on the investment rather than the initial one off incoming discount.

Conversely, if the area were to drop then the initial discount could even be eroded over time.

This is not unheard of though is more applicable to higher value central London properties rather than those at the bottom end of the market which these are.

Rain or shine these are more likely to hold their value than those on the higher end of the scale. We have also dug very deep into this location, and we are convinced this is perhaps going to be one of the strongest locations in London. Time will tell.

The structure of the deal is we will be ‘separating’ the residential and commercial units to take advantage of the cheaper rates for the resi component. We would look to do them all on five year fixed rates in order to insulate the deal from the expected future rate rises.

Changing the commercial to residential will help with the financing. Lenders are averse to lending to residentials above commercial units. Many point blank refuse, and some rely upon valuers comments, which by nature are subjective and whimsical.

Several months ago we had a case for a remortgage which was refused above a commercial by one valuer, much to the annoyance of the client; yet it was accepted by another valuer.

As this property isn’t exactly on High St Kensington, it would be better from this angle to have the whole block residential.

Under Class E, commercial units can be interchangeable, meaning they can switch within a wide band of uses without the need of planning approval. This could even mean the premises potentially could be an office by day and a café in the evenings.

This deal is priced competitively at £750K and is currently seeking a buyer. Do get in touch if it strikes a chord with you.

Tata Steel to stop buying coal from Russia Tata Steel, the largest Indian importer of Russian coal this year, will stop buying the commodity in a sign that Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine has made it more perilous to do so. Tata Steel pointed to “uncertainties” over the supply of Russian coal, of which India had stepped up purchases before the war as rival shipments of Australian coal were becoming too expensive, according to traders.

The move by Tata, which uses coal for steelmaking, is significant because it underscores the challenge of mitigating shortages that have already disrupted India’s power

supply. India relies on coal for 70 per cent of its electricity generation and coal stockpiles at power producers have fallen to almost half their average levels for this time of year.

Just over 20 coal-fired power plants have been forced into maintenance, data from India’s Central Electricity Authority show, as a shortage is compounded by an unseasonal heatwave. Tata Steel imported 617,000 tonnes of Russian coal in the first three months of the year, according to data, taking delivery of 246,000 tonnes last month. These orders were made before the invasion of Ukraine.

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in brief

Powerful Buddhist clergy wants Lanka PM to quit COLOMBO: Staging a protest against the Sri Lankan government for not making way for an interim government, the country’s powerful Buddhist clergy has threatened to issue a diktat against the government led by President Gotabaya Rajapaksa.

The island nation has been hit by protests since April 9 after the government’s coffers dried up and the nation failed to make vital imports. Since then, the prices of essential items have shot up with fuel, medicines and electricity in short supply.

The Buddhist clergy has joined civil society and trade bodies to demand that power be handed over to an interim government. The clergy has now decided to come out to press for the resignation of Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa. As many as 1,000 monks will stage a protest march demanding the

government to act according to their letter addressed to President Gotabaya Rajapaksa dated April 4.

Gotabaya extends invitation President Gotabaya Rajapaksa has extended an invitation to form an all-party government comprising all political parties represented in parliament to address the unprecedented economic crisis. He made the offer during a discussion with party leaders and representatives who are now operating independently in parliament, president’s media division said in a statement. However, it was not clear if incumbent PM Mahinda Rajapaksa, the eldest brother of the President, will resign to form the all-party government.

Workers go on nationwide strike Millions of workers staged a

INDIAN UN PEACEMAKERS IN SUDAN HONOURED

crippling strike last week, adding to pressure on President Gotabaya and his ruling family to quit. Last week's nationwide strike was the first time the entire country had been brought to a standstill since the demonstrations began, with both state and private sector employees taking part. Public transport was stopped, teachers were absent from schools while shops and offices closed, police and regional officials said.

Across the nation, vegetable markets were closed, while tea plantations, a main export earner, were also shut, residents and local media said. Tens of thousands of workers in the country’s free trade zones came out of their factories and staged protests. Most banks were

closed while a few provided reduced hours of service.

India offers additional aid India has offered Lanka an additional $500 million to help it to import fuel while it is in an advanced stage of discussion with IMF for a bailout package.

The fresh $500 million additional support by India to Colombo is over and above $ 1.5 billion of credit line offered by India earlier.

India responded with an additional $500 million for the time being as against Colombo’s request for $ 1 billion, but China cited difficulties in supporting the country.

Cash-starved Pakistan to get $8 bn Saudi aid ISLAMABAD: Saudi Arabia has agreed to provide cash-starved Pakistan with a “sizeable package” of around $8 billion aid to bolster dwindling forex reserves and revive its ailing economy.

Pakistan has faced growing economic challenges, with high inflation, sliding forex reserves, a widening current account deficit and a depreciating currency.

Pakistan secured the deal during the visit of PM Shehbaz Sharif to Saudi Arabia. The financial package includes dou-

rolling over of the existing $4.2 billion facilities, the News paper r e p o r t e d .

“However, technical details are being worked out and it will take a couple of weeks to get all documents Shehbaz Sharif & Mohammed bin Salman ready,” the report said. bling of the oil financing faciliPakistan had proposed douty, additional money either bling the oil facility from $1.2 through deposits or Sukuks and billion to $2.4 billion and Saudi

Hindu leader tortured during Iftar party in Bangladesh DHAKA: Nearly six months after a controversy erupted following incidents of attacks on the Durga Puja pandals, a prominent Hindu leader was brutally tortured during the Iftar party recently.

According to a report, the incident occurred in Bangladesh’s South Chittagong over an invitation to an Iftar party. The report said that Jitendra Kanti Guha, vice-president of Chittagong South of the Bangladesh Hindu, Buddhist, Christian Oikya Parishad, was reportedly tied to a tree and then beaten at Haidgaon Union in Patia Upazila of Chattogram.

The leader was then shifted to a nearby hospital where he is currently undergoing treatment. As per the media report, the incident occurred when an Iftar party was going on at Gauchia Community Centre. The event was organised by the Haidgaon Union Awami League.

It is learned that the organiser did not invite Union Parishad (UP) chairman BM Jasim, which resulted in the controversy. While reacting to the incident, Shahidul Islam Zulu, the joint convener of the Haidgaon Union Awami

League (UAL), said that Jasim was not invited as he had recently joined the ruling Awami League.

Jasim alleged Guha of collecting huge money from people in the name of jobs and houses. According to Zulu, Jasim came to the venue with at least 40 people and started abusing different people who were present at the party. He also abused Mahmudul Haque Hafez, convener of the Union Awami League. While a heated argument was going on, a former member, Inderjit Leo, started beating Guha. Subsequently, other people who came with Jasim tied Guha to a tree and beat him until blood started oozing from his body.

Arabia agreed to it. It was also agreed that the existing deposits of $3 billion would be rolled over for an extended period of up to June 2023, according to an official.

“Pakistan and Saudi Arabia discussed an additional package of over $2 billion either through deposits or Sukuk and it is likely that more money will be provided to Islamabad,” the report said, adding that the size of the total package will be determined when the additional money is finalised.

Nepal bans import of luxury items to avert forex crisis Kathmandu: Nepal banned imported liquor, playing cards and nearly a dozen other “nonessential” goods to address the country’s widening trade deficit and declining foreign currency reserves, officials said. Falling remittances and tourism earnings, combined with a blowout budget deficit, have severely dented Nepal's fiscal position during the Covid-19 pandemic. The central bank has said reserves are only sufficient to cover just over six months of imports, down from 10 months in mid-2021.

A commerce ministry directive announced prohibitions on the import of several items including diamonds, large televisions, expensive mobile phones and tobacco until July. “This is a short-term measure taken to prevent the economic condition of the country from going bad,” ministry joint secretary

Narayan Prasad Regmi said. The ban also forbids imports of toys and playing cards.

Rising prices for oil have added to pressure on Nepal’s foreign reserves.

So to conserve fuel, information minister Gyanendra Karki announced that the government would reduce the work week from five-and-a-half days to five.

Nepal’s trade deficit rose by nearly 34.5% on-year to $9. 35 billion in mid-March, while forex reserves have fallen below $10 billion. Petroleum tops its list of imports, with Nepal spending $1. 54 billion between July last year to March 2022. The import ban is aimed at pre-empting the situation now faced by regional neighbour Sri Lanka, which is enduring its worst economic crisis in decades after running out of foreign exchange to pay for imports.

Singapore hangs Indian origin on drug charge SINGAPORE: A mentally disabled Indian-origin Malaysian man was hanged in Singapore last week, his family said, after losing a long legal battle and despite a storm of appeals for clemency.

Nagaenthran Dharmalingam was arrested in 2009 for trafficking a small amount of heroin into the city-state, which has some of the world’s toughest drugs laws, and handed a death sentence the following year.

The plan to hang him sparked widespread criticism, with the

UN, EU and UK billionaire Richard Branson among those condemning it. Nagaenthran was arrested aged 21 as he tried to

enter Singapore with heroin weighing about 43 grams - equivalent to about three tablespoons. Supporters say he has an IQ of 69, a level recognised as disability, and was coerced into committing the crime. But authorities have defended his conviction, saying legal rulings found he knew what he was doing at the time of the offence.

Over 1,100 Indian peacekeepers serving with the UN Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) were awarded UN medals, honouring them for their exceptional service in the strife-torn African country. The UNMISS “peacekeepers don’t ‘just’ protect civilians, some 1,160 troops from India in South Sudan also rehabilitate roads and give medical treatment to humans & animals. For that they deserve UN medals,” the UNMISS tweeted. The Indian peacekeepers currently serving in the country were honoured with UN medals “for their outstanding work”, including protecting civilians, performing engineering assignments and providing health services to people, a news report posted on the UNMISS website said.

PAK PM'S SON TAKES OATH AS PUNJAB CM The son of Pakistan’s PM Shehbaz Sharif took charge of Punjab province, the country’s most politically important region, further bolstering the dynasty’s grip on power. Nepotism and cronyism are deeply entrenched in the nation, with power mostly shared between two families - the Sharifs and the Bhuttos - for much of Pakistan’s history. It comes weeks after cricketerturned-politician Imran Khan was ousted from power in a no-confidence vote when the usually feuding families formed an opposition coalition. Hamza Sharif took over as CM of Punjab - the country’s richest, most populous and politically influential province after weeks of deadlock. The region’s governor and a Khan loyalist refused to swear in the new chief, elected by the provincial assembly, forcing Lahore HC to step in.

BLASPHEMY LAW AGAINST IMRAN, 150 OTHERS A case under blasphemy law was registered against Pakistan’s ousted PM Imran Khan and 150 others, including some members of his former cabinet, in connection with the hounding of PM Shehbaz Sharif and his delegation at Masjid-e-Nabwi in Saudi Arabia, officials said. Videos posted on social media showed some Pakistani pilgrims shouting ‘chor’ (thief) and ‘gaddar’ (traitor) as soon as Sharif and members of his delegation arrived at the Prophet’s Mosque in Medina.

Medina police claim to have arrested five Pakistanis involved in the sloganeering.

Meanwhile, Punjab police registered an FIR against Imran Khan and 150 others. The case has been registered in Faisalabad on the complaint of resident Naeem Bhatti on the charges of desecration of the mosque, hooliganism and hurting religious sentiments, they said.

BILAWAL TAKES OATH AS PAK FOREIGN MINISTER Former PM Benazir Bhutto’s son and Pakistan Peoples Party chairman Bilawal Bhutto Zardari took oath as foreign minister in PM Shehbaz Sharif’s cabinet, which also has Hina Rabbani Khar as the minister of state for foreign affairs. PresidentArif Alvi administered the oath in the presence of the PM Sharif at a ceremony that was attended by cabinet members and senior politicians, including the 33-year-old Bilawal’s father and former president Asif Ali Zardari and younger sister Aseefa. Aseefa described her brother as the country’s youngest foreign minister in a post on Twitter.

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in brief 50 KILLED, 21 INJURED IN KABUL MOSQUE BLAST A powerful explosion killed more than 50 worshippers after Friday prayers at a Kabul mosque, its leader said, amid a series of attacks on civilian targets in Afghanistan during the holy month of Ramadan. The blast hit the Khalifa Sahib Mosque in the west of the capital, said Besmullah Habib, deputy spokesman for interior ministry, who said the official confirmed death toll was 10. The source of explosion was not immediately known and no one has claimed responsibility for the blast. The attack came as worshippers at the Sunni mosque gathered after Friday prayers for a congregation known as Zikr - an act of religious remembrance. Sayed Fazil Agha, the head of the mosque, said someone they believed was a suicide bomber joined them in the ceremony and detonated explosives.

KAMALA HARRIS TESTS POSITIVE FOR COVID US Vice President Kamala Harris has tested positive for Covid-19, the White House said, becoming the latest top official in Washington to contract the coronavirus. A spokesperson for the vice president said in a statement that Harris had not been in close contact with President Joe Biden or his wife Jill Biden “due to their respective recent travel schedules”. Earlier this month, top US cabinet members and key lawmakers, including House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, also tested positive for Covid. Several White House aides and Harris’s husband, Douglas Emhoff, have also contracted the virus in recent weeks. But Biden, who tests regularly for Covid, has not been infected despite the outbreaks in US political circles, the White House has said.

BRITISH VIRGIN ISLANDS PREMIER HELD OVER DRUG TRAFFICKING British Virgin Islands Premier Andrew Fahie was arrested in Miami on allegations that he was trying to help a presumed drug trafficking organisation smuggle thousands of kilos of Colombian cocaine through the UK territory and into the US. The director of the British Virgin Islands’ ports, Oleanvine Pickering Maynard, and her son were also arrested, as per the criminal complaint issued by the US district court of southern Florida. As per the complaint, Fahie agreed to provide protection for drug shipments in exchange for 12% of the profits. The first proposed shipment of 3,000 kg would have earned him some $7.8 million.

MINERS STOP RAMAPHOSA'S MAY DAY SPEECH South African President Cyril Ramaphosa abandoned his Workers' Day speech in the northwestern city of Rustenburg on Sunday when striking mineworkers stormed the stage.

The workers employed by Sibanye-Stillwater mine are demanding a wage increase of 1,000 rand (63 US dollars) per month instead of the 850 rand (54 US dollars) being offered by the mine. Ramaphosa was booed as he started his address with a call for the striking workers and other members of the Congress of South African Trade Unions to calm down and listen to what he had to say. "We have heard that you want your 1,000 rand. We will deal with that matter," Ramaphosa told the protesting workers.

DEATH THREAT TO ISRAELI PM’S FAMILY The family of Israeli PM Naftali Bennett has received a death threat and bullet in the mail for the second time this week, the police said.

According to an Israeli official, the target of the threats was Bennett’s 17-year-old son. Officials have not said who might be behind the threats. Bennett, who leads a small nationalist party, has come under heavy criticism from Israeli hardliners who accuse him of abandoning his ideology. Tensions have been heightened with the Palestinians recently following a series of deadly Palestinian attacks in Israeli cities, Israeli military raids in the occupied West Bank and clashes between Palestinians and Israeli police at a sensitive Jerusalem holy site.

Indian-origin appointed as CIA’s 1st tech chief America's CIA (Central Intelligence Agency) has picked Indian-origin IT professional Nand Mulchandani as its first chief technology officer (CTO).

The CIA said that as the CTO, Mulchandani will ensure the agency is leveraging cuttingedge innovations and scanning the horizon for tomorrow’s innovations to further the agency’s mission.

“Since my confirmation, I have prioritised focusing on technology and the new CTO position is a very important part of that effort. I am delighted Nand has joined our team and will bring his extensive experience to this crucial new role,” said CIA director William J Burns.

According to his LinkedIn profile, Mulchandani went to Bluebells School International

Department of Defence’s artificial intelligence centre.

He has been a serial entrepreneur and was CEO of several successful startups, including Oblix (acquired by Oracle), Determina (acquired by VMware), Nand Mulchandani OpenDNS (acquired in Delhi and went on to study

by Cisco) and ScaleXtreme in some of the world’s top insti(acquired by Citrix). tutes. He holds a bachelor’s In his LinkedIn post, degree in Computer Science Mulchandani said technology is and Math from Cornell, a eating the world, and “there is degree of Master of Science in no question around the impact Management from Stanford it is having on human intelliand a degree of Master in gence gathering (HU- MINT), Public Administration from which is surprisingly at the core Harvard. of almost all the other types of Prior to joining the CIA, intelligence that is collected Mulchandani served as the and processed”.

CTO and acting director of the “This impact is so signifi-

cant to the CIA’s mission that director Burns made the focus on technology one of his top priorities. Creating this new role and having it report directly to him is a clear signal that he’s serious about driving this change. I couldn’t be a luckier person to get this job and am excited to continue my journey in public service with the CIA,” he said.

Speaking about his appointment, Mulchandani said, “I am honoured to join CIA in this role and look forward to working with the Agency's incredible team of technologists and domain experts who already deliver world-class intelligence and capabilities to help build a comprehensive technology strategy that delivers exciting capabilities working closely with industry and partners.”

Sardar Patel statue unveiled in Ontario Suresh and Bhavna Patel ONTARIO: Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel's statue was unveiled in front of Sanatan Mandir and culture centre at Ontario on the occasion of the 62nd Gujarat Day. Ajay Bisaria, the High Commissioner Of India, Ottawa and main unveiling donors Vidya Food Inc.’s family and Smt Kamuben Cimanbhai and family performed the unveiling.

This is a fitting tribute and honour to the first Deputy Prime Minister and Home Minister of Independent India who by his skill merged more than 560

princely states in union of India.

The function started by Indian traditional dances by different groups - mostly by second and third generation Indo-Canadian girls who are keeping our rich culture and heritage alive in Canada. Many dignitaries from federal, provincial and municipal govt and other dignitaries were present on the occasion.

More than 600 devotees and Indo-Canadians were in attendance to show their respect to Sardar Patel. Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi's video message was followed by message from Chief Minister of

Gujarat and Mayor of city of Markham were displayed on the big screen. There were speeches by dignitaries and Sanatan Mandir’s committee members who spoke about life and contribution of Sardar Patel.

Prime Minister Modi said the statue of Sardar Patel will become a symbol of the relationship between India and Canada.

Conveying his greetings on Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav and Gujarat Day, he said Indians might live anywhere in the world for any number of generations but their Indian-ness and loyalty towards India never diminishes.

Musk may fire Twitter’s Vijaya Gadde SAN FRANCISCO: Tesla CEO Elon Musk could fire Twitter’s legal head Vijaya Gadde once he takes over, reports said.

“Gadde, who earned $17 million last year as Twitter’s top legal counsel, could be on the chopping block as Musk is reportedly planning to slash jobs and reduce executive pay as he looks to secure financing for his Twitter bid,” the report said.

Nevertheless, Gadde will get a severance package worth $12. 5 million that includes

Twitter shares.

The 48-year-old Gadde reportedly broke down in tears when addressing colleagues about the future of Twitter last week. Musk also tweeted a meme that painted her as oblivious to a “liberal bias” at Twitter as she was seen appearing on Joe Rogan’s podcast ‘The Joe Rogan Experience’ in 2019 with former Twitter CEO Jack Dorsey. The world’s richest man openly criticised Gadde for suspending the account of

New York Post that wrote an exclusive article about Hunter Biden’s laptop during the run-up to the 2020 US presidential elections.

“Suspending the Twitter account of a major news organisation for publishing a truthful story was obviously incredibly inappropriate,” Musk had said in a tweet. Responding to online criticism directed at Gadde, another top Twitter executive defended her and accused Musk of “misogyny”.

Suu Kyi handed 5-year jail term for graft NAYPYIDAW: A court in military-ruled Myanmar convicted the country’s former leader Aung San Suu Kyi of corruption and sentenced her to five years in prison in the first of several corruption cases against her. Suu Kyi, who was ousted by an army takeover last year, had denied the allegation that she had accepted $600,000 and seven gold bars in 2017-18 given to her as a bribe by a top political colleague.

Her supporters and independent legal experts consider her prosecution an unjust move to discredit Suu Kyi and legitimise the military’s seizure of power while keeping the 76-yearold elected leader from returning to an active role in politics. She has already

Aung San Suu Kyi

been sentenced to six years’ imprisonment in other cases and faces 10 more corruption charges. The maximum punishment under the Anti-Corruption Act is 15 years in prison and a fine. Convictions in the other cases could bring sentences of more than 100 years in prison in total.

News of the verdict came from a legal official

who asked not to be identified because he is not authorised to release such information. Suu Kyi’s trial in the capital, Naypyitaw, was closed to the media, diplomats and spectators, and her lawyers were barred from speaking to the press. Under a previous junta regime, Suu Kyi spent long spells under house arrest.

Indians, the Prime Minister said, work with full dedication and integrity for the country, and carry their democratic values and sense of duty with them.

Beijing closing schools to prevent further Covid spread BEIJING: Beijing is closing all city schools in a further tightening of Covid-19 restrictions, as China’s capital seeks to prevent a wider outbreak. The city of 21 million has already ordered three rounds of mass testing this week. Earlier, the city’s Education Bureau ordered all schools to end classes and said it hadn’t determined when they would resume. It also wasn’t clear whether schools would be able to offer classes online or allow students facing crucial exams to return to class.

Beijing announced 50 new cases bringing its total in the latest wave of infections to around 150. Students make up more than 30% of total cases, with clusters linked to six schools and two kindergartens in Chaoyang. Also, residents of two housing compounds in Beijing’s Chaoyang district were ordered to stay inside and some clinics and businesses shut down.

Beijing has moved more swiftly than many Chinese cities to impose curbs while case numbers remain low and the scale of the outbreak is still manageable. The goal is to avoid the sort of sweeping measures imposed on Shanghai, where the highly transmissible omicron variant has torn through the city of 25 million. Restrictions confining many Shanghai residents to their homes are now in their fourth week and all schools have been online since last month. The National Health Commission reported 11,285 new cases across mainland China, most of them asymptomatic and majority in Shanghai, where 47 deaths were reported.

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China to allow return of some Indian students China has started the process to facilitate the return of Indian students to China on a “needassessed basis” by asking India to submit a list of students who really need to rejoin their classes there. More than 20,000 Indian students, who came back to India two years ago because of Covid, have been waiting for China’s approval to return.

Foreign minister S Jaishankar had requested his counterpart in a meeting last month to allow the Indian students to return. The Chinese foreign ministry said it is prepared the return of “some” Indian students.

“China understands that the

number of Indian students is so large that it takes some time for the Indian side to collect the information. We have shared with the Indian sides the procedures and experience of other countries' students returning to China,” said the spokesperson. Indian students wanting to return to China

should provide the n e c e s s a r y by information filling up a Google Form on the mission's website by May 8, the Indian embassy in Beijing said in a press release.

“Following the meeting of External Affairs Minister of India, Dr S Jaishankar with the State Councillor and Foreign Minister of China, Wang Yi, the Chinese side has expressed its willingness to consider facilitating the return of Indian students to China on a need-assessed basis,”

the Indian embassy said in a statement.

Asked about the timeline to permit the return of students, the Chinese spokesperson said the Chinese embassy in India and existing channels will work to facilitate and offer convenience to the students. To another question whether China has provided any criteria to India to select students to return, he said, “I don't have the information about the specifics you asked but I am sure these details will be sorted out through through communication existing channels including the embassy so that we will actually deliver the good news. ”

ED seizes £550 mn in Xiaomi assets over ‘illegal’ remittances The Enforcement Directorate (ED) announced it had seized more than £550 million in assets from the Indian subsidiary of Chinese smartphone maker Xiaomi, saying it had made illegal remittances to foreign entities and shown them as royalty payments.

The agency said it had seized the sum from the bank accounts of Xiaomi Technology India Pvt. Ltd, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Xiaomi Inc., under the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA), 1999.

It said the subsidiary had been making remittances to three foreign entities - one of which was a Xiaomi entity - “on the instructions” of its Chinese parent. The ED has been probing the electronics company since February over alleged forex violations. It had

also questioned Xiaomi’s Global Vice President Manu Kumar Jain on April 13. Jain was earlier Xiaomi’s India head.

A Xiaomi spokesperson said in a statement: “As a brand committed to India, all our operations are firmly compliant with local laws and regulations.”

“We have studied the order from government authorities carefully. We believe our royalty payments and statements to the bank are all legit and truthful,” the statement said.

The ED statement read:

“The company started its operations in India in 2014 and started remitting the money from 2015. The company has remitted foreign currency equivalent to £555.12 million to three foreign based entities which include one Xiaomi group entity in the guise of royalty.

Such huge amounts in the name of royalties were remitted on the instructions of their Chinese parent group entities.

The amount remitted to other two US based unrelated entities was also for the ultimate benefit of the Xiaomi group entities.”

“Xiaomi India procures completely manufactured mobile sets and other products from the manufacturers in India. Xiaomi India has not availed any service from the three foreign based entities to whom such amounts have been

transferred. Under the cover of various unrelated documentary façade created amongst the group entities, the company remitted this amount in the guise of royalty abroad which constitutes a violation of Section 4 of the FEMA. The Company also provided misleading information to the banks while remitting the money abroad,” the agency’s statement said.

The Xiaomi statement said: “These royalty payments that Xiaomi India made were for the in-licensed technologies and IPs used in our Indian version products. It is a legitimate commercial arrangement for Xiaomi India to make such royalty payments. However, we are committed to working closely with government authorities to clarify any misunderstandings.”

41% rise in India's Covid cases, ‘Hindu Mahapanchayat’ stopped, organiser among 10 detained no rise in deaths India reported over 22,200 fresh Covid-19 cases during the week (April 25-May 1), up more than 41% from the previous week's tally of nearly 15,800. Last week, cases had seen a 96% surge over the preceding seven days. Delhi, Haryana and UP accounted for 68% of all new cases in the week.

Deaths from the virus were not rising in tandem with the increase in cases. While data from a few states was awaited, the week's Covid toll is expected to be around 30. Last week, 29 new deaths were reported while the toll was 27 in the preceding seven days.

These figures do not include fatalities from earlier months that were added to the tally during this period.

However, during the week, fresh cases registered a rise in 20 states/Union territories, indicating that infections were continuing to spread in the country. On the positive side, the numbers were still relatively low and most of the states reporting a rise in infections continued to clock less than 1,000 new cases per week.

Delhi continued to lead other states in the number of cases reported. The capital logged 9,684 fresh cases during the week, an 53% rise from the previous week’s count of 6,326.

While Delhi accounted for 43% of all new cases detected in the country during the period, data suggests the spike in the capital was slowing down. In the previous week, cases had spiked by 174%. The National Capital Region remained the epicentre of fresh Covid cases. Weekly cases were on the rise in both Haryana and Uttar Pradesh, where most NCR cities are situated.

Haryana clocked 3,695 new cases, up 61% from 2,296 in the previous week while UP’s tally was 1,736, a rise of 36% from 1,278 in the preceding seven days. Kerala continued to report more than 2,000 cases in the week but the rise in infections was clearly slowing down.

The proposed “Hindu Mahapanchayat” at Dada Jalalpur village near Roorkee in Haridwar district was stopped and its supposed organiser, Swami Anand Swaroop, was put under preventive detention in the morning while trying to enter the village and start the event. Several others accompanying him were also detained.

Police detained around 10 people and prevented several others from attending the event. Among them was Swami Dineshanand Bharti, state convener of Kali Sena who was also supposedly one of the organisers of the conclave. Bharti, along with six of his supporters, was detained while trying to enter the village to prepare for the event.

This comes a day after the Supreme Court alerted the Uttarakhand government against a proposed conclave in Roorkee, to be held on lines of the controversial Haridwar Dharam Sansad held in December last year. The local administration also assured that the event won’t be allowed and deployed a heavy police force. Section 144 of CrPC was also clamped in the area.

Anand Swaroop, who heads the “Kali Sena”, had recently called for a “Hindu Mahapanchayat” at Dada Jalalpur village in retaliation to a communal clash that took place in the village on April 16, when stones were allegedly pelted at a Hanuman Jayanti procession.

Swaroop wanted a conclave on the lines of the Haridwar Dharam Sansad held last year -which drew nationwide outrage for hate speeches made against the minority community -to “discuss the stone pelting event”. Notably, Swaroop had recently urged chief minister Pushkar Singh Dhami not to allow “non-Hindus” on the Char Dham route to preserve the “religious sanctity” of the area.

in brief INDIA TO OPEN ITS MISSION IN LITHUANIA The Indian government has approved the opening of a new Indian mission in Lithuania this year. The decision comes at a time when the Baltic nation is facing an unofficial trade embargo by Beijing for not following the One China policy. “Opening of Indian mission in Lithuania will help expand India’s diplomatic footprint, deepen political relations and strategic cooperation, enable growth of bilateral trade, facilitate stronger people-to-people contacts, allow for more sustained political outreach in multilateral fora and help garner support for India’s foreign policy objectives,” said the ministry of external affairs in a statement.

UP TOPS DOMESTIC VIOLENCE CASES Uttar Pradesh topped the chart of domestic violence cases against women by registering 65,481 complaints so far, the Centre told the Supreme Court. The Centre submitted the data received from states before a bench of Justices U U Lalit, S R Bhat and P S Narasimha. The affidavit revealed that Rajasthan with 38,381 cases and Andhra Pradesh with 37,876 cases came second and third. Kerala has registered 20,826 cases, followed by MP 16,384; Maharashtra 16,168; Assam 12,739; Karnataka 11,407; West Bengal 9,858; Punjab 8,215 and Haryana 7,715 cases under DV Act. Giving an overall perspective of implementation of DV Act provisions, Justice Bhat said, “As per information received from states and UTs, a total of 2,95,601 complaints/ litigations have been registered under PWDV Act, whereas number of courts to deal with these cases are reported to be 6,289. There are 807 shelter homes and over 700 one stop centres to take care of women affected by violence and distress.”

DGCA DE-REGISTERS FOUR JUMBO JETS OF AI The DGCA has de-registered four nearly three-decade-old Boeing 747 jumbo jets of Air India. If AI wants to use these aircraft again for commercial flights, they will have to undergo a return-to-service programme for re-registration, a DGCA official said.

Given the age of these planes and shortage of spares, it remains to be seen if AI brings them back to service. The President, Vice President and Prime Minister used to fly these jumbo jets on medium-to-long haul flights. However, they were replaced by two refurbished B777s inducted as dedicated VVIP aircraft about two years ago. The first B747, named Emperor Ashoka, had joined the AI fleet in 1971. With the 747s, AI under JRD Tata had set new levels of inflight luxury. It introduced a new ‘Palace in the Sky’ livery for this aircraft.

POLICE CLEARANCE FOR ADMISSION Islamic seminary Darul Uloom Deoband has decided to share documents of aspiring students with the local intelligence unit for “verification and an in-depth scrutiny of their antecedents” before giving them admission. The seminary will also make other aspects of its admission process more stringent, guidelines issued by the officiating vice-chancellor of the seminary, Abdul Khaliq Madrasi, said. The move, as per those familiar with the matter, came about as the seminary has often come under criticism for “harbouring suspicious elements”. Deoband-based cleric and founder of Jamiat Dawatul-Muslimeen, Maulana Ishaq Gora, said, “It is a very important decision. The seminary has been targeted by communal forces for the past several years. Verification of students by local intelligence will help thwart baseless allegations.”

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Gujarat, Maharashtra celebrate foundation day Gujarat and Maharashtra celebrated their foundation day on Sunday, May 1, with President Ram Nath Kovind and Prime Minister Narendra Modi extending greetings to people of the two states on the occasion.

On this day in 1960, the former state of Bombay was bifurcated on a linguistic basis and the states of Gujarat and Maharashtra came into being.

Kovind said Gujarat, the land of Mahatma Gandhi and Sardar Patel is among the leading states of the country on the parameters of development. He also extended his greetings to the people of Maharashtra, saying great personalities like Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj, Mahatma Phule and Babasaheb have enriched the state and India with their contributions.

Modi lauded the accomplishments of the two states in diverse fields. "On Gujarat's Foundation Day, my greetings to the people of Gujarat. Inspired by the ideals of Mahatma Gandhi, Sardar Patel and several other greats, the people of Gujarat are widely admired for their diverse accomplishments," Modi, who hails from Gujarat, said in a tweet.

In another tweet, Modi extended wishes to the people of Maharashtra on Maharashtra Day. "This state has made phenomenal contributions to national progress. The people of the state have excelled in diverse fields. I pray for the prosper-

ity of the people of Maharashtra," he said.

Gujarat Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel and Union Home Minister Amit Shah greeted people on the state's foundation day. Patel inaugurated a Regional Science Centre in Patan, some 130 km from Ahmedabad. It is one of the four regional science centres established in Gujarat to promote a scientific temperament among the people, especially children, an official release said.

Shah, who hails from Gujarat, greeted people of the state. “The hardworking people of Gujarat who have imbibed thoughts of Gandhiji and Sardar Patel have given new direction and speed to the development of India. The BJP government under (Prime Minister) Modiji is committed towards the overall development of Gujarat," he tweeted.

In Mumbai, Maharashtra Governor Bhagat Singh Koshyari said the state is all set to become a trillion-dollar economy and it will be the first in the country to do so. Koshyari addressed an event at the Shivaji Park in Mumbai's Dadar area where he unfurled the national flag.

Chief Minister Uddhav

PM Modi for early release of undertrial prisoners Prime minister Narendra Modi pitched for speedy release of 350,000 undertrial prisoners languishing in jails for years and requested the chief ministers and chief justices of high courts to resolve this issue on priority.

“Sensitivity of people is linked to speedy justice and this should never be forgotten. In India, approximately 350,000 prisoners are undertrials, most of whom are either commoners or are from poor families,” Modi said at the 11th Conference of CMs and Chief Justices. “Every district should have a committee headed by the district judge to examine each of these cases and wherever possible release them on bail. I am appealing to all CMs and HC CJs to give priority to this issue while taking into account human sensitivities and without compromising the legal requirements.”

India’s top law officer KK Venugopal had echoed similar sentiments and said, “As much as 76% of inmates are undertrials, which is the highest in 25 years. These are poor people, Dalits, poverty-stricken people who are unable to furnish bail bonds and continue to rot in jails for years without their cases being taken up. Something drastic has to be done to remedy the situation and find an effective antidote to this deep malady that afflicts our judicial system.”

Modi said he has appointed a committee to explore the possibility of enacting laws, the text of which could be understood easily by common citizens. “Many countries are making laws in two versions, one in the legal language and the other in a language citizens could understand. This way the common man does not have to reach out to a court or legal expert to understand what the law is. We are also studying a similar model for enactment of laws in India: one version in legal language and the other in a language familiar to the people. Both should be passed simultaneously by the state assemblies and Parliament.” Both the PM and CJI NV Ramana were on the same page on conducting court proceedings in a language accessible to the litigants.

Thackeray was also present on the occasion and the two, who have in the past criticised each other on various issues, were seen exchanging greetings. Uddhav Thackeray paid tributes to 105 martyrs of the Samyukta (unified) Maharashtra movement on the occasion of the state's foundation day. The CM along with his wife Rashmi Thackeray and minister-son Aaditya Thackeray visited the Hutatma Chowk (martyrs' memorial) in south Mumbai to pay homage to the martyrs.

Gujarat is BJP’s lab for experiments in governance: Nadda BJP president J P Nadda during his one-day to Gujarat said that the state is a “laboratory” for his party for matters pertaining to governance and party organization. “Gujarat is a laboratory of governance and party organization (for the BJP).

We will implement this model across the country. As a party chief, it is also my responsibility to take this model ahead,” he told reporters at the state BJP HQ. In a surprise move, which created ripples across the political spectrum, the BJP high command had replaced ex-CM Vijay Rupani and his entire cabinet with a new set of minis-

ters led by first-time MLA Bhupendra Patel as the CM in September last year.

Nadda said this “experiment” was part of the BJP’s strategy. Last year, national leaders had said that this “experiment” is expected to be replicated by the BJP in other parts of the country as well.

“See, it’s a laboratory.

Otherwise, which party would have dared to do that (replace the entire cabinet).

It was part of our strategy and it cannot be discussed in public. Let us decide what experiment is needed for what purpose,” said Nadda when asked about the reason for Rupani cabinet’s exit in September 2021.

Successful “experiments” to develop the party and make it a “medium of change” were carried out in Gujarat when Narendra Modi was a party officebearer and later the chief minister, he added. “Modi ji created a development model in Gujarat. At the national level, we are now seeing the reflection of that experiment,” said Nadda.

Later, addressing party office bearers from taluka level to state level, MLAs and MPs in Ahmedabad, the party chief said PM Modi’s politics based on development has given a tough fight to the politics based on caste, community, region and dynasty.

India Property Spotlight: Services for NRI Ltd Services for NRI is a leading provider of Indian Regulatory Services to all Non-Resident Indians (NRIs) and Overseas Citizen of India (OCIs) in UK. They are based out of Harrow office to serve the NRI community.

They are organizing the 12th India Property Mela in Wembley on 7th & 8th May 2022 (Saturday & Sunday).

Event will showcase Developers from leading Indian cities like Mumbai, Gujarat, Pune, Delhi, Punjab, Chennai Hyderabad & Bengaluru. Entry to the

event is Free. www.indiapropertymela.co.uk At event there will also be a Legal specialist Indian Lawyer to answer all queries pertaining to Land & Property matters in India.

Event is based at Wembley International hotel, Wembley Park, HA9 0NH. Mihir Shah, Director @ Services for NRI Ltd states that our mission is to be a world class global services provider to NRIs and OCIs. We have a

two-fold objective: first, to be the preferred provider of various regulatory services for target customer segments.

The second objective is to provide prompt service at all levels to our clients.

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in brief

SOUTH INDIA

TN college dean removed after controversial oath

Karnataka to set up task force to curb hate speeches

Madurai: The Dean of the government medical college in Tamil Nadu's Madurai has been transferred and put on "compulsory wait" for allowing first-year students to take a controversial oath in Sanskrit instead of the traditional Hippocratic Oath. The state's health authorities said that medical students had taken the English translation of the Sanskrit oath "Charak Shapath" during their induction ceremony last week. The Dean claimed that the students took the oath on their own.

Reacting to the incident, BJP leader Narayanan Thirupathy claimed that the decision of removing the Dean is a political move.

"Hippocratic oath is a westernised way of taking the pledge. NMC recommended the old Indian way of medicine (Maharshi Charak Shapath). Unnecessary politics should be avoided." he said.

"The Centre said it's optional. Why should you suspend Dean?

DMK has always loved the westernised model," he added. State health authorities, however, said that the Dean, A Rathinavel, should have been careful in this "sensitive issue".

"His claim that medicos chose to do this on their own is unacceptable. Even the medical commission says medicos will not be forced to take oath in Sanskrit," it said. Tamil Nadu Health Minister has ordered the Director of Medical Education in the state to initiate a probe.

HUBBALLI: Karnataka chief minister Basavaraj Bommai said that the state will soon set up a task force to control hate speech as per the instructions of the Supreme Court.

Bommai said hate speech is on the rise all over the country, especially on social media platforms.

Last week, the Supreme Court turned the heat on Uttarakhand and Basavaraj Bommai Himachal Pradesh to take “corrective measures” against communal hate at “dharma sansad” events and asked them to take steps to stop hate crimes by taking preventive and punitive measures.

The Supreme Court has directed all state governments to form special task forces to prevent hate crimes and “procure intelligence reports about the people who are likely to commit such crimes or who are involved in spreading hate speeches, provocative statements, and fake news”.

The court had held that it was the “duty of the central as well as the state governments to take steps to curb and stop the dissemination of irresponsible and explosive messages, videos, and other material on various social media platforms which have a tendency to incite mob violence and lynching of any kind.” Any failure on the part of the authorities would be viewed as an “act of deliberate negligence and/or misconduct”, the apex court said. Bommai did not set any deadline for setting up the special task force.

PUNJAB

Patiala clash: Key accused arrested; Centre keeping watch PATIALA: Even as the police arrested Shiv Sena leader Barjinder Singh Parwana, the main accused in the Patiala violence, government sources said the Centre is keeping a close watch on the situation in Punjab.

In Patiala, IG Mukhwinder Singh Chhina said that Parwana was arrested from Mohali. Shiv Sena district president Shankar Bhardwaj, an aide of Sena leader Harish Singla and Gaggi Pandit, who posted hate messages on social media, were arrested too. In all, nine accused have been nabbed so far.

Parwana is one of the masterminds of the clashes, the police said. “He is accused of provoking Sikh radicals.

Parwana is named in four FIRs. Known for provocative speeches on social media, he was on the Intelligence watchlist,” said a

senior official.

3 top cops transferred, 3 held A day after the clash, the government transferred top three police officers of district and ordered temporary suspension of mobile internet services in the district.

The state government moved out Patiala SSP Nanak Singh, IGP Rakesh Agrawal and SP of Patiala city Harpal Singh.

As per CMO’s office, Mukhwinder Singh Chinna was appointed as the new Patiala IGP, while Deepak Parik and Wazir Singh were posted as SSP and SP of Patiala, respectively. Chinna later said “one person has received a bullet injury, but the bullet has not been extracted as doctors claim it may prove fatal”. Police said a probe is on to identify who shot the man.

Earlier, curfew was clamped

after four people received injuries during the clashes over an “anti-Khalistan march” in Patiala, hurling stones at each other. Police opened fire in the air to bring the situation under control. The clash took place outside the Kali Mata temple after Singla’s group had begun the “Khalistan Murdabad

March” from the nearby Arya Samaj Chowk. Some Sikh activists who had initially gathered at Dukh Niwaran Sahib Gurdwara, marched towards the temple, a few of them seen brandishing swords.

Near the temple, the two groups came face to face and hurled stones at each other, police said.

ED says Kolkata cops forged court order

saying it was a sensitive issue.

The case pertains to an audio tape of a conversation purportedly between an ED official and a Kolkata businessman which surfaced last April. The tape’s content

At least 11 people were killed after a temple chariot came in contact with a live electric wire in Tamil Nadu’s Thanjavur district. The electrocution took place near Kalimedu as the district was celebrating the Chariot festival. Fourteen people are under treatment at the Tanjore Medical College Hospital with minor injuries and two are critical. The 94th anniversary of the Upper Gurupuja was celebrated last week in the Kalimedu area when revelers were pulling the chariot by a rope. Eleven people were electrocuted after the chariot touched the high voltage power line. People said that there was water in the area when the chariot was being towed. Cars and chariots were used to carry images of Hindu gods on festival days when many devotees pull the cart.

YEDIYURAPPA DENIES LEADER CHANGE BUZZ Amid a fresh round of speculation about leadership change in Karnataka ahead of Union Home Minister Amit Shah's visit, state BJP strongman BS Yediyurappa dismissed it, saying Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai was doing a "good job." Shah is scheduled to take part in several events including the valedictory function of 'Khelo India' University Games in Karnataka's Shivamogga. "He (Shah) is coming, I will be meeting him. He will try to know about the political situation in the state. As state elections are ahead, the Prime Minister and Amit Shah have decided to give priority to Karnataka. He is likely to give suggestions on reaching the 150 seats target that we have set for the next assembly polls," Yediyurappa told reporters.

PUNJAB TO START HOME DELIVERY OF WHEAT FLOUR

WEST BENGAL

NEW DELHI: In a move that could further escalate tension between the Centre and West Bengal government, the Delhi Police, which reports to the ministry of home affairs, is learnt to have filed an FIR on a complaint by the Enforcement Directorate alleging that the Kolkata police officials fabricated and tampered with a court order to “mislead” its joint director, Kapil Raj, on giving a voice sample without “consent”.

The ED’s complaint alleged that the text of the order of a chief judicial magistrate did not mention the word “consent” so that the officer believed he had to abide by court order and give his sample. The FIR was apparently filed on April 20.

However, the Delhi Police brass did not elaborate on the subject

11 ELECTROCUTED DURING TN CHARIOT PROCESSION

claimed payoffs in a coal smuggling case - being probed

by ED - to Mamata Banerjee’s nephew, Abhishek Banerjee.

Abhishek later filed a case with the Kolkata police in this regard subsequent to which the

Kolkata police moved to take the joint director’s voice sample to match it with that of the audio tape.

Kolkata cops sent the court order to ED on several occasions through various channels even as the ED obtained the order copy directly from the court as well.

The order obtained from the court apparently had the consent clause as per norms but the one sent by Kolkata police did not, an official claimed. A Kolkata police official apparently claimed to ED informally that it was a clerical error. The ED officer in question, Kapil Raj, is supervising the probes in the coal and cattle smuggling cases in which Abhishek’s role is under the scanner.

The Punjab cabinet, led by Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann, has approved the home delivery of wheat flour to 15.4 million beneficiaries. The beneficiaries will start getting the flour from October 1. The decision will put an additional burden of £67 million on the state exchequer for grinding the wheat and delivering it to the beneficiaries at their doorstep. Till now, wheat was given to beneficiaries under the National Food Security Act scheme every three months and the expense was £182.5 million. The beneficiaries will now get 5 kg of flour per month. The cabinet also decided on the finer details for starting the recruitment of 26,454 people in the government sector. This decision was taken in the first meeting and all departments were asked to identify the vacancies. An approval of the cabinet was also taken on the amnesty scheme for private transporters announced by CM Mann a few days back.

AMIT SHAH ON 3-DAY WEST BENGAL VISIT Union Home Minister Amit Shah will embark on a three-day visit to West Bengal starting May 4 with an aim to strengthen the BJP in the state. On May 4, 5, and 6, Shah will attend party-related programs in West Bengal. Besides this, he will also attend a BSF program there. Shah`s visit holds importance as West Bengal BJP units need proper guidance about the working style of the party. West Bengal BJP Vice President Soumitra Khan, party Vice President Dilip Ghosh, and National Secretary Anupam Hazra have already appealed to the Central Government to give directions to strengthen the West Bengal BJP unit.

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I-T authority orders PM Modi for removing Armed Forces Act from entire North East seizure of Choksi’s assets The Centre is working “speedily” towards revoking the contentious Armed Forces (Special Powers) Act from the entire northeast in acknowledgment of a 75% decline in militant violence in the region over the past eight years, PM Narendra Modi said during a whistle-stop tour of Assam that saw him inaugurate seven cancer hospitals and lay the foundation for another seven.

“AFSPA was first revoked in Tripura and then in Meghalaya,” Modi said at a “peace, unity and development rally” in Karbi Anglong’s Diphu, around 249km from Guwahati. “Due to the proper control of the situation, the AFSPA has been removed from most parts of the state (Assam). We are trying to withdraw it from the remaining parts too. The Act is also in force in some areas of Nagaland and Manipur. We intend to revoke it completely."

The trigger for the latest campaign to withdraw the legislation, which vests extraordinary powers on the armed forces to search, arrest and shoot anyone on suspicion of militant activity, was the botched Army special forces operation in Nagaland in December last that led to 14 civilian deaths.

Modi said the inclusion of several outfits from Karbi Anglong in the peace and development process since last year was indicative of the Centre’s roadmap for the region.

Karbi Anglong is among three hill districts of Assam with a majority tribal population.

The 2020 Bodo Accord opened the door to permanent peace.

Similarly, in Tripura, NLFT has taken steps towards peace. The twoand-half-decade-old Bru-Reang (crisis) has also been solved,” the PM said.

Ethnic conflict had forced the

Bru-Reang tribe to flee Mizoram and live in relief camps across Tripura for years before a peace accord happened. The Centre and the Assam government have since signed a memorandum of settlement with six Karbi militant outfits.

On the initiative to resolve interstate border disputes festering for decades, PM Modi said solutions were being sought in the spirit of Sabka Saath Sabka Vikas. “The agreement reached between Assam and Meghalaya will encourage resolution of other disputes and give an impetus to the development process.” The PM laid the foundation of a veterinary college (Diphu), a degree college (West Karbi Anglong) and an agricultural college (Kolonga, West Karbi Anglong). “These projects worth more than £50 million will create new opportunities for skill development and employment in the region,” he said.

Mehul Choksi

The income-tax adjudication authority has passed a confiscation order under the amended Prohibition of Benami Property Transactions Act on immovable properties spread over 100 acres (worth over £7 million) in Igatpuri that belonged to fugitive diamond merchant Mehul Choksi. Such an order for immovable property is unheard of and sources in the I-T department could not recall a similar one in recent years. I-T officials will now be taking these 50 land parcels in their possession for auction. The act was amended in 2016 and the I-T department

attached the Igatpuri properties in 2020.

Choksi is an absconding accused in the Punjab National Bank (PNB) fraud case and no one turned up to challenge the IT action, which helped the authority to conclude the entire process in a record time of two years. The land parcels were purchased in the name of Nashik Multi Services SEZ Ltd in Mundegaon Village in Igatpuri, Nashik district, and the payment was made through Choksi’s company Gitanjali Gems. The CBI and ED are investigating Choksi along with his firm for defrauding £620 million from PNB through fraudulent letter of undertaking. The directorate of income-tax (investigation), Mumbai wing, is investigating him for tax evasion and under the Prohibition of Benami Property Transactions Act.

India to launch e-commerce network to take on Amazon, Walmart India will launch an open network for digital commerce (ONDC) as the government tries to end the dominance of US companies Amazon.com and Walmart in the fast-growing e-commerce market, a government document showed.

The launch of the platform comes after India's antitrust body raided domestic sellers of Amazon and some of Walmart's Flipkart following accusations of competi-

tion law violations. Indian retailers, key supporters of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, have long contended that Amazon and Flipkart's platforms benefit a few big sellers, via predatory pricing, though the companies say they comply with all Indian laws.

The government's so-called ONDC platform will allow buyers and sellers to connect and transact with each other online, no

matter what other application they use. It will be soft-launched before being expanded, the trade ministry said.

The government document said that two large multinational players controlled more than half of the country's e-commerce trade, limiting access to the market, giving preferential treatment to some sellers and squeezing supplier margins. It did not name

the companies.

Amazon and Flipkart did not immediately respond to requests for comment on ONDC. The document said India's ONDC plan aimed to onboard 30 million sellers and 10 million merchants online. The plan is to cover at least 100 cities and towns by August.

It would focus on apps in local languages for both buyers and

sellers, with a special emphasis on small merchants and rural consumers, the document said about the project. The government said it had already received support from retailers and venture capital firms. Lenders such as the State Bank of India (SBI.NS), ICICI Bank (ICBK.NS) and Bank of Baroda (BOB.NS) have already committed total investments of $33.26 million into ONDC.

‘2024, MODI ONCE MORE’ Continued From Page 1 Ashutosh and Manya Mishra were among the diaspora children who were waiting for the prime minister at Hotel Adlon Kempinski along with the elders of the community. Listening to Ashutosh singing a patriotic song, the Prime Minister praised the boy’s talent with a “Shaabash” (bravo). Manya presented the Prime Minister with a portrait. The PM took a picture with Manya and also signed the portrait, engaging in fun banter with the child looking up to her icon.

During his address, PM Modi said that today's India wants the country's progress, and sang praises of Indians. “When I speak about millions of Indians, it includes not only the people who live there but also those who live here,” he said.

PM Modi arrived in Berlin in the morning on the first leg of his three-nation Europe trip that will also take him to Denmark and France. The visit comes amid the Ukraine crisis, which has united much of Europe against Russia.

The Indian business delegation was led by Sanjiv Bajaj, PresidentDesignate, CII Chairman and Managing Director, Bajaj Finserv.

Baba N Kalyani, C K Birla, Puneet Chhatwal, Salil Singhal, Sumant Sinha, Dinesh Khara, C P Gurnani and Deepak Bagla were part of the Indian delegation.

The German business delegation included representatives of Siemens, BASF, Bosch, Volkswagen, GFT Technologies Schaeffler and Deutsche Bank.

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar too participated in the meeting.

“The people of India ended the

politically unstable atmosphere of the last three decades by pressing a button. After 30 years a full majority government was elected in 2014 and the people of India made the government stronger in 2019,” PM Modi said.

“We are celebrating 75 years of independence this year. I am the first Prime Minister who was born in independent India. The peak on which India would be at the time it celebrates 100 years of independence, India is strongly taking step after step and walking swiftly toward that goal,” he added.

World feeling pain of Ukraine war: PM Modi PM Modi explained India's stand on the Ukraine war and Russia to German Chancellor Olaf Scholz. India’s qualified and nuanced position meant Modi did not join Scholz in condemning what the Germans described as “unlawful and unprovoked aggression against Ukraine by Russian forces’’ even as the two leaders in a joint statement expressed serious concern about the ongoing humanitarian crisis in Ukraine and “unequivocally condemned” civilian deaths. In the presence of Modi, Scholz appealed to Russian President Vladimir Putin to “stop

this war, stop senseless killings and withdraw forces.”

A total of nine agreements were signed by the two parties, including one at the level of the leaders for green and sustainable development. Modi called it an article of faith for India and Scholz committed 10 billion euros to support India’s green growth plans.

“We believe nobody is going to win this war. All will suffer losses,” said PM Modi, adding India favours peace as it is very worried about the humanitarian impact of the crisis.

“Because of the turmoil, oil prices have skyrocketed. The world is facing a scarcity of food grains and fertilisers. Every family in the world is feeling the pain but the impact will be worse on poor and developing countries. We have sent humanitarian assistance to Ukraine and we are also helping friendly countries with grain export, oil supply and financial assistance,’’ said Modi, who is on a 3-day visit to Europe, which remains in ferment because of Russia’s actions in Ukraine.

With its attack on Ukraine, Russia has called into question fundamental principles of international law, Scholz said in his press statement, and that “it is all the more important to emphasise the impor-

tance of a rule-based order in the world, especially with a view to other regions of the world such as the Indo-Pacific region”. He said Germany is just as united with India here as it is “in defending the rule of law and democracy worldwide”.

The joint statement said Modi and Scholz discussed the destabilising effect of the conflict in Ukraine and its broader regional and global implications.

Modi invited to G7 summit Scholz has invited PM Modi as a special guest to the G7 leaders’ summit next month, as part of efforts to woo New Delhi away from its longstanding alliance with Russia. Germany, which holds the rotating G7 presidency, has also invited the leaders of Indonesia, South Africa and Senegal to the meeting, which will take place in the luxury resort of Schloss Elmau in the Bavarian Alps at the end of June.

Scholz’s spokesman, Steffen Hebestreit, announced the expanded guest list for the summit ahead of a joint German-Indian cabinet meeting in Berlin. The two governments signed a series of bilateral agreements focused on sustainable development that will provide India with €10bn in aid by 2030 to boost the use of clean energy. After their talks, Scholz described India as a “central partner for Germany in Asia, in terms of the economy, defence and climate policy”.

Scholz said the current heatwave in India, which has pushed temperatures to more than 45C in places, “shows that climate change, and our efforts to stop it, is a huge global issue where we have to work closely together”.

Modi arrived in Copenhagen from Germany. Before leaving Berlin, the Prime Minister tweeted that his visit to Germany was “productive”. Thanking the German government for their hospitality, the PM stated, “The talks with (Olaf) Scholz were extensive and so were the Inter-Governmental Consultations. I got a great opportunity to interact with business and the Indian community leaders.”

Modi reaches Denmark PM Modi on Tuesday met his Danish counterpart Mette Frederiksen and the two leaders held talks on subjects expected to range from issues of mutual interest to boosting the bilateral relationship. An auditorium full of delegates sang India’s national anthem to welcome Modi.

The Prime Minister’s visit aimed to “provide an opportunity to review the progress in our unique and 'Green Strategic Partnership' with Denmark, as well as other aspects of our bilateral relations. This partnership was translated into a result-oriented five-year action plan during Prime Minister Frederiksen's India visit in October 2021.”

Modi will also meet Queen Margrethe II. He will also attend the India-Denmark Business Roundtable and interact with the Indian community in Denmark.

Over 200 Danish companies in India are actively engaged in taking forward “Make in India”, Jal Jeevan Mission, Digital India and other key national missions. More than 60 Indian companies in Denmark, mainly in the IT sector, are further cementing bilateral business-tobusiness ties. Denmark is home to an Indian community of 16,000 people.

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Music and Dance Competitions for Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav With an objective of acknowledging and appreciating the young cultural ambassadors based in the UK, nationwide Dance and Music Competitions in three streams, Vocal (Carnatic and Hindustani), Classical Dances (Bharatanatyam, Kathak, and Kuchipudi), and Instrumentals (String and Percussion) are being held for those aged between 15-22 years and are residents in the UK.Organised comprehensively for the first time, the unique initiative is undertaken jointly by Sanskruti Centre for Cultural Excellence and Indian Council for Cultural Relations marking Azadi Ka Amrit Mahotsav year.

Those eligible must electronically send their videos of the renditions for a maximum 8 minutes duration in landscape mode observing the following requirements.

Carnatic Vocal must include raagam,keertana and swarakalpana elements. Only Tambura shruti to be used.

Hindustani Vocal must include aalaap, raag, vistaar and taans, bandish is to be in madhya laya or drut laya. Only electronic Tanpura and electronic Tabla to be used. No other melodic support instruments are allowed.

Abhiroop Sengupta

For Dance- Nritya/Nrutyam pieces to be sent (including pure dance and expression).

Semi-classical or light music pieces will not be accepted. The renditions should be recorded for the sole purpose and possession of competitions and must not be shared on social media or anywhere else. The decision of the judges’ panel shall be final.The last date for sending the files of recorded renditions, through wetransfer or the appropriate transfer is 8th May 2022. Files, along with the full name of the performer, age and name of the Guru/Institution and details of the rendition must be sent to akam.competitions@gmail.com before this deadline.

Campaign to topple statue of slaver Sir Robert Geffrye to get boost from launch of stinging pamphlet Hackney-based historian Steve Cushion spoke at the launch of his pamphlet Sir Robert Geffrye and the Business of Slavery at 6.15 pm on Thursday, 28 April at the Unity Meeting House on Newington Green, London N16.

The press launch was the latest event in the campaign to get the trustees of the Museum of the Home to take down the statue of slaver Sir Robert Geffrye from its plinth above the main door of the museum’s key building.

Facing a series of protests outside the museum, and criticism from a host of antiracists and academics, the trustees have so far acknowledged the need to “move the statue to less prominent space, where we can better tell the full story” of his role in the slave-trade, but have shown little sign of acting on it.

Cushion’s pamphlet takes on many of the arguments directed against the campaign, such as the claim that Geffrye’s involvement in the slave trade was as a ‘passive’ investor in Royal Africa and the East India companies. Cushion shows that Geffrye was very much an active participant in directing the operations of both companies.

Cushion also shows that Geffrye’s life cannot be compartmentalised with some of it tainted by the slave trade and another with

The Great Grand Merchant Prince

the Worshipful Company of Ironmongers.

Cushion’s work shows that there was a clear crossover between both spheres of Geffrye’s life.

Cushion’s essay also follows Geffrye’s rise through the ranks of London’s elite as he negotiated the commonwealth, the restoration and the ‘glorious revolution’ of 1688. Cushion also puts Geffrye’s charitable works into the context of the period and exposes them as less than altruistic. Finally, Cushion looks at recent biographies written on Geffrye’s life. They have all ignored or drastically downplayed Geffrye’s role as a slaver, and all have been on sale in the Museum of the Homes’ bookshop.

Cushion will introduce his pamphlet in an event that will the first in a series of meetings around the work. It has been endorsed by Diane Abbott MP, Windrush campaigner Patrick Vernon OBE, Weyman Bennett (co-convenor of Stand Up To Racism), and Kevin Courtney – the joint general secretary of the National Education Union. It has also been commended by historians Marcus Rediker (author of The Slave Ship: A Human History), Paddy Doherty (author of Blood and Bronze: The British Empire and the sack of Benin) and Louise Raw (author Striking a Light – The Bryant and May Matchwomen and their place in History).

Abhiroop Sengupta is a Kolkata based entrepreneur, fencer, amateur historian and writer. Also a devoted Freemason and Rotarian, he spends most of his free time researching about varied subjects, especially those which he feels did not get their deserved due in the course of history.

T

he human mind has always craved puzzles and challenges. It could range from a board game to an inventor's dilemma, but nothing has probably intrigued one's mind more than an undeciphered language. Over the last two centuries, a lot of these languages and civilizations have spoken to us one by one but one civilization which to this day remains a mystery is none but the Indus valley/Saraswati civilization of the Indian subcontinent.

Since the accounts of the explorer James Lewis and the subsequent contribution of stalwarts like Alexander Cunningham, Rakhal Das Banerji, John Marshal, Pandit Madhav Sarup Vats and Rao Bahadur Kashinath Narayan Dikshit, the Indus Valley Civilization is now known to all and its excellent town planning, architecture style and trade relationships have also been studied and understood to a great extent. But one thing that alludes to everyone's attempt is the language which can be found on the innumerable seals found in the various archaeological sites. The main reason was the lack of a comparative text or a bilingual seal, just like the Rosetta stone which helped decode the Egyptian

Pop singer Tarsame Singh Saini aka Taz from Stereo Nation passes away at 54

London-based Indian singer Tarsame Singh Saini, popularly known as Taz, passed away on April 29, aged 54. The singer from Stereo Nation was suffering from hernia for the last two years and breathed his last in London. Taz went into a coma recently and his health started deteriorating last month.

Taz started his career with cross-cultural assistant director, Cassia Thakkar.

Asian music in the 80s.

Lotus Beauty invites us into Reita’s The singer debuted with salon where clients can wax lyrical the song Hit the Deck and about their day’s tiny successes or have shot to fame after that. their struggles massaged, plucked or Taz also went by the name tweezed away. But with honest truths Johnny Zee and is known and sharp-witted barbs high among the for songs like Nachenge treatments on offer, will the power of Saari Raat, Gallan Goriyan community be enough to raise the and Pyaar Ho Gaya. spirits of everyone who passes through He was the lead singer the salon doors? of the band Stereo Nation Satinder Chohan makes her Hampstead debut. which was formed in the Previous credits include Zameen (Kali Theatre), 90s. He also lent his voice Kabaddi Kabaddi Kabaddi (Pursued By A Bear/Kali to films such as Koi Mil Theatre), Half of Me and Made in India (Tamasha).

Gaya, Tum Bin and, Artistic Director of Tamasha, Pooja Ghai directs recently, Gallan Goriyan her first production at Hampstead. A former from Batla House with Associate of Theatre Royal Stratford East, previous Dhwani Bhanushali. credits include Lions and Tigers (Globe Theatre), On March 23 last Approaching Empty (Tamasha, Kiln Theatre, Live month, the official page of Theatre), Rapunzel, Counting Stars and The House of Taz' band Stereo Nation in Between (all Stratford East). shared an update about

Hampstead theatre releases rehearsal images for the world premiere of Satinder Chohan's Lotus Beauty Rehearsal images have been released for the world premiere of Satinder Chohan’s new play, Lotus Beauty. Directed by Pooja Ghai, Lotus Beauty will run at Hampstead Downstairs, in association with Tamasha Theatre Company, from 13 May until 18 June 2022.

Lotus Beauty follows the intertwined lives of five multigenerational women. The cast features Anshula Bain (Tartuffe, Birmingham Rep; (This Isn't) A True Story, Almeida Theatre); Souad Faress (The Archers, BBC; Game of Thrones, HBO), Zainab Hasan (The Welkin, National Theatre; Shakespeare Trilogy, Donmar Warehouse), Ulrika Krishnamurti (Pink Sari Revolution, Curve Theatre/Belgrade Theatre/West Yorkshire Playhouse; Made in India, Tamasha Theatre Company), Kiran Landa (Line of Duty, BBC; Extinct, Theatre Royal Stratford East).

Ghai will be joined by designer, Rosa Maggiora; lighting director, Matt Haskins; sound designers, The Ringham Brothers; dialect coach Gurkiran Kaur and

hieroglyphs. But is there a Rosetta seal?

The author of this article thinks there is one.

The British Museum holds many secrets and treasures and one such item is an Indus Valley seal of glazed white steatite which was surprisingly found in Ur, modern-day Iraq. With a museum number of '120228', what makes the seal interesting is the fact that it ends with two 'Jar' shaped symbols, the same symbol which is also probably the most frequently used among all the Indus script symbols.

The double usage of the 'Jar' sign has been speculated as an attempt to spell a foreign word and this got the author of this article thinking if the so-called foreign word can be guessed rightly and if rightly done, the signs with their respective pronunciations can be applied to other seals to see if they make sense and then reverse engineer the process with a little help of artificial intelligence and maybe quantum computing.

The author thinks that the foreign word written using Indus Valley symbols in this particular seal is "Enbilulu", and the reasons are many. Firstly, Enbilulu was the brother of "Nanna", the Mesopotamian god of the moon, who was also associated with cattle and the seal features a bull whose horns form a perfect moon-like crescent in spite of the head is tilted downwards. Secondly, the city of Ur was a major cult centre of the god Nanna. Thirdly, Enbilulu himself was the god of rivers, irrigation and farming which might again explain the bull representation. Lastly, the suffix "Lu" is still used for many words in both Dravidian and Devnagari languages to this day. Thus if the interpretation of the author is correct then the jar-shaped symbol can simply be translated as 'Lu'.

Thus it can only be hoped that in the days to come, and with the assistance of artificial intelligence and quantum computing the old civilization speaks back to us again with some amazing stories to tell.

improvement in his health. A note shared by the account read, “Dear All, Taz Sir is no longer in a coma, He’s showing improvements every day.

The family has thanked everyone for their support and prayers during this difficult time. When there is more positive news, The family will let us all know.

Thanks again for your postive thoughts.”

Singer Bally Sagoo shared a picture with Taz on Twitter and wrote, "RIP brother @tazstereonation You will truly be missed."

Amaal Mallik also shared his condolences on Twitter. Singer Jay Sean condoled his death on Instagram. Resharing an Instagram post, he wrote, “So sad to hear about the passing of this legend. You touched so many lives and continue to as your music lives on. May you rest in peace brother.”

Adnan Sami also tweeted, "Can’t believe it!! Extremely Saddened and Shocked… May he Rest in Peace…"

Filmmaker Gurinder Chadha shared a throwback picture with Taz and wrote, "Heartbroken to hear that a pioneer of the British Asian music scene has just left us. You cannot underestimate my excitement on first hearing #HitTheDeck. By #jonnyZee then @tazstereonation pure Br’Asian pop fusion. for all the joy you gave me Taz. God Bless you @tazstereonation."

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insufficient and excessive sleep duration was associated with impaired cognitive performance, such as processing speed, visual attention, memory and problemsolving skills. Seven hours of sleep per night was the optimal amount of sleep for cognitive performance, but also for good mental health, with people experiencing more symptoms of anxiety and depression and worse overall wellbeing if they reported

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sleeping for longer or shorter durations.

The team says one possible reason for the association between insufficient sleep and cognitive decline may be due to the disruption of slow-wave - deep sleep.

Disruption to this type of sleep has been shown to have a close link with memory consolidation as well as the build-up of amyloid - a key protein which, when it misfiles, can cause ‘tangles’

in the brain characteristic of some forms of dementia.

The research team also found a link between the amount of sleep and differences in the structure of brain regions involved in cognitive processing and memory, again with greater changes associated with greater than or less than seven hours of sleep.

Professor Jianfeng Feng from Fudan University in China said, “While we can't say conclusively that too little or too much sleep causes cognitive problems, our analysis looking at individuals over a longer period of time appears to support this idea. But the reasons why older people have poorer sleep appear to be complex, influenced by a combination of our genetic makeup and the structure of our brains.”

10 natural ways to Cultivate these habits to manage weight from balance your hormones a young age

Childhood obesity is a major concern these days, with the World Health Organisation (WHO) citing that obesity has nearly tripled since 1975. The United Nations agency noted that the prevalence of overweight and obesity among children and adolescents aged five to 19 has seen a dramatic rise from just four per cent in 1975 to over 18 per cent in 2016.

Childhood obesity can lead to several health problems in adulthood from diabetes, and high blood pressure to high cholesterol. It also affects a child’s mental health. Celebrity Fitness Expert Yasmin Karachiwala feels it is important for parents to provide their children with a balanced lifestyle.

Karachiwala shares her holistic tips on how to keep a check on your weight right from a young age.

Inculcate Healthy Snacking: Make sure you train yourself to reach for snacks that keep you satiated for longer intervals. A study published by researchers at the University of Leeds found that snacking on almonds mid-morning as compared to crackers of equivalent energy or water of equivalent weight, resulted in a lower overall hunger drive and suppressed unconscious desire to consume high-fat foods.

Workout for at least 30 minutes every day: It is important, especially for kids, to play any sport or keep your body active for 45-60 minutes every day. Young adults can either hit the gym or perform simple home workouts. Even a simple stroll would suffice. The idea is to walk at least 10,000 steps daily.

Avoid packaged foods: Packaged foods are most likely to contain a large percentage of preservatives which means more calories. While such foods are often delicious, they are not the best option health-wise. An ideal meal is a mix of all colours of foods which will lead to your holistic growth and gives your body sufficient energy to keep you healthy and active.

7 - 13 May 2022

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Seven hours of sleep is optimal in middle, old age Seven hours of sleep is the ideal amount of sleep for people in their middle age and upwards according to researchers from the University of Cambridge and Fudan University, who also associated too little or too much sleep with poorer cognitive performance and mental health.

In the research published in Nature Aging, scientists from the UK and China examined data from nearly 500,000 adults aged 38-73 years from the UK Biobank. Participants were asked about their sleeping patterns, mental health and well-being, and took part in a series of cognitive tests.

Brain imaging and genetic data were available for almost 40,000 of the study participants.

The team analysed these data and found that both

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Hormonal imbalance is a common occurrence and experienced by both men and women on various occasions like puberty, menstruation, pregnancy, childbirth, breastfeeding, etc.

Hormonal imbalance can cause bloating, fatigue, irritability, hair loss, palpitations, mood swings, uncontrolled blood sugar levels and trouble in concentrating.

Ayurveda expert Dr. Dixa Bhavsar talked about the importance of hormonal imbalance in our overall well-being and all the functions of the body and mind. She says it is important to have our hormones balanced for healthy digestion, optimum energy, regular periods, sound sleep, glowing skin, strong hair and a peaceful mind.

According to Dr Bhavsar, we see a lot of diseases manifesting in our mind and body these days due to imbalance caused by stress, sedentary lifestyle, wrong food habits, sleeping during the day, staying awake until late, worrying often, and more.

Her top 10 tips include: Circadian rhythm fasting: Waking up early, having breakfast post sunrise, dinner before sunset and going to bed early.

• Managing stress: The best way to quicken your healing journey is to ensure your stress levels remain in check.

• Fixing your meal timings: Having your breakfast, lunch and dinner at the same time can make a big difference.

• Having sound sleep: The best way to balance hormones, improve metabolism, optimum liver detox, glowing skin and more is to sleep well. The best time to go to bed is by 10 pm.

7-8 hours of sleep from 10 to 6 is best for optimum health.

• Exercising regularly: Regular movement keeps your blood circulation optimum which helps you maintain optimum nutrition.

• Meditating frequently: Meditation can help you keep calm and aid in balancing hormones.

• Seed cycling: Seed cycling is the practice of eating specific seeds in the two main phases of your menstrual cycle (follicular and luteal) to help promote the healthy balance of estrogen in the first half of your menstrual cycle and the progesterone in the second half.

Eating mindfully without guilt Optimum Nutrition: Vitamin deficiency is responsible for weakness, anemia, hair fall, mood swings, etc.

Using healthy cookware “Hormonal balance is very easy to maintain if only you understand your body, learn to listen to it and feed it accordingly. Peace of mind also plays an important role in bringing hormonal balance. For that, it’s very important to manage your stress.”

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Early self-awareness of autism might lead to better life quality: Study

According to a finding of new study, published in the journal Autism, individuals who learn they are autistic at a younger age can have a heightened quality of life and sense of well-being in adulthood.

The research also found that telling a child that they are autistic at a younger age empowers them by providing access to support and a foundation for self-understanding that helps them thrive later in life.

Researchers, for the first time, directly investigated whether learning if one is autistic at a younger age is associated with better adult outcomes. Many autistic people, particularly females, ethnic/racial minorities, and people with limited resources, are diagnosed years after the characteristics are first noticed.

The study was carried out by a team of autistic and non-autistic students and academic researchers.

Around 78 autistic university students were surveyed, sharing how they found out they were autistic and how they felt about their diagnosis.

One of the coauthors, Dr. Steven Kapp, lecturer in Psychology at the University of Portsmouth, was diagnosed with and informed of his autism at the age of 13. He said, “Students who learned they were autistic when they were younger felt happier about their lives than people who were diagnosed at an older age. Our study shows that it is probably best to tell people they are autistic as soon as possible in a balanced, personal, and developmentally appropriate way. Learning one is autistic can be empowering because it helps people understand themselves and also helps them connect with other people like them.”

He added, “Learning about autism at an older

age is associated with more positive emotions about a diagnosis - especially relief. This finding makes sense, although emotional reactions are often very complex and unique to each person there has been a lot of emerging research showing that relief is a common response to an autism diagnosis in adulthood.”

The study suggests that parents should not wait for children to become adults to tell them they are autistic.

Findings also suggest that parents should tell their children they are autistic in ways that help them understand and feel good about who they are. One participant said, “I would tell my child that autism is a different way of thinking, that it can be challenging and beautiful and powerful and exhausting and impactful, that autistic people deserve to be themselves, to be proud of their identity, and have supports that help them meet their needs.”

Co-lead author of the study, Bella Kofner, 24, who was diagnosed with autism at the age of three and informed of her autism at the age of 10, said, “This is the first study, to our knowledge, to demonstrate that learning at a young age that one is autistic may have positive impacts on emotional health among autistic university students. Hopefully, this finding may begin to address concerns parents have about when to talk to their child about autism.”

She added, “When the conversation begins is particularly important.

Our findings suggest that learning at a younger age that one is autistic can help autistic people develop self-understanding and access support, providing the foundations for well-being in adulthood.”

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7 - 13 May 2022

Akshaye Khanna onboard drama-thriller ‘Drishyam 2’

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ollywood actor Akshaye Khanna has joined the cast of the Hindi remake of Mohanlal-starrer ‘Drishyam 2’, which features Ajay Devgn and Tabu in the lead roles. Tabu took to Instagram over the weekend to share the news of Akshaye joining the cast of the drama thriller.

Sharing a picture of herself with Akshaye, Tabu wrote, “Delighted to have a gem of an actor on board for #Drishyam2 Akshaye Khanna #TrulyTalented.” In the photo, Akshaye is looking intensely into the camera while Tabu is smiling at it.

As Tabu shared the photo, Farah Khan commented on it, “Lovvvv himmmm.”

The original, featuring Southern Superstar Mohanlal, was loved by the audience and went on to become a hit.

Not a lot of details are known about the Hindi remake.

The first part of the crime-thriller, ‘Drishyam', was directed by the late filmmaker Nishikant Kamat. It featured Ajay Devgn, Tabu and Shriya Saran in lead roles. Ishita Dutta and Mrunal Jadhav played the role of Devgn and Saran’s daughters. It was a remake of the 2013 Malayalam movie ‘Drishyam’ which featured Mohanlal in the lead role.

‘Drishyam 2’ is being helmed by filmmaker Abhishek Pathak. It will have Devgn reprising his role of Vijay Salgoankar. Tabu, who started filming for the movie earlier this week, will return as Inspector General of Police – Meera Deshmukh.

The film is produced by Bhushan Kumar, Kumar Mangat Pathak, Abhishek Pathak, Krishan Kumar and co-produced by Sanjeev Joshi, Aditya Chowksey and Shiv Chanana

Alia consoles BFF Akansha Ranjan Kapoor at her Mehendi function A

lia Bhatt’s bridesmaid and best friend Akansha Ranjan Kapoor treated fans to some adorable photos. In a brand new set of pictures, Akansha appears to be having the time of her life at Alia’s Mehendi function. However, in the same set of photos, she also sobbed uncontrollably as she was swept up in emotion.

Akansha shared the photos on Instagram with a caption that read, “The (de)escalation of ARK’s emotions at every wedding, ever.” As soon as she shared the pictures, fans flooded the comments section and praised their bond. “Friendships like these> entire world,” a comment read. Another fan wrote, “I want what u and Alia have.” The post also received comments from celebrities. Huma Qureshi, Athiya Shetty, Vaani Kapoor and others posted heart emojis expressing their love for Akansha and Alia.

Alia married Ranbir Kapoor on April 14 in a private ceremony, only attended by their friends and family members. “Today, surrounded by our family and friends, at home … in our favourite spot – the balcony we’ve spent the last 5 years of our relationship – we got married. With so much already behind us, we can’t wait to build more memories together … memories that are full of love, laughter, comfortable silences, movie nights, silly fights, wine delights and Chinese bites.

Thank you for all the love and light during this very momentous time in our lives. It has made this moment all the more special. Love, Ranbir and Alia,” Alia wrote in an Instagram post.

Alia and Ranbir returned to work soon after their wedding. Currently, Alia is busy shooting for ‘Rocky Aur Rani Ki Prem Kahani’, which also stars Ranveer Singh, Dharmendra, Jaya Bachchan and Shabana Azmi. The film is directed by Karan Johar. Ranbir, on the other hand, is shooting for ‘Animal’. Directed by Sandeep Reddy Vanga, the film also stars Rashmika Mandanna.

Anushka lends a saree to Faf du Plessis’ wife Imari A

ctor Anushka Sharma and her cricketerhusband Virat Kohli recently attended the wedding celebrations of cricketer Glenn Maxwell and his pharmacist wife Vini Raman.

They were also joined by other cricketers and their families including South African cricket star Faf du Plessis and his wife Imari.

As the latter two shared pictures from the wedding party, eagleeyed fans noticed something familiar about her outfit. While Plessis wore a red kurta and white pyjama, Imari was seen in a green and golden Chanderi saree.

While her followers all complimented her for her traditional dress, some even commented on how the saree is much similar to what Anushka once wore to an event in 2018. Anushka wore the same green Chanderi saree when she was

felicitated with the Smita Patil Award at the 34th edition of the Priyadarshini Academy Global Awards in Mumbai.

“From where you get this saree it's Anushka,” wrote a fan of the actor in the comments section of Imari's post. “Waitt isn't that Anushka Sharma's saree,” wrote another. “Saree from Anushka,” another notice.

Imari, later, put an end to all speculation and confirmed that she did indeed borrow the saree from Anushka. She wrote, “Thank you for sharing your birthday and your saree with me.” Both Anushka and Imari celebrate their birthdays on May 1.

Anushka and Virat got married in 2017 in Italy's Lake Como. They welcomed their daughter Vamika in January last year.

Anushka will be seen next in ‘Chakda Express’, produced by her Clean Slate Filmz. This will mark her first acting project since 2018.

Bachchan pens note to Ajay Devgn praising ‘Runway 34’ A

jay Devgn recently took to his social media accounts to share a handwritten note he received from veteran actor Amitabh Bachchan. He revealed he was emotional after reading the note of praise. Bachchan, who also starred alongside him in his recent aviation drama ‘Runway 34’, called it an “absolute honour” to be directed by Ajay in the film.

Ajay tweeted a picture of Amitabh’s note and wrote, “When the illustrious Amitabh Bachchan stars in your directorial venture, it is an honour that is hard to express in words. And when he uses his heartfelt words in a handwritten note it stirs emotions that are a heady mix of gratitude & satisfaction. Thank you Amit ji! #Runway34.”

Dated April 29, the letter carried the names of Amitabh Bachchan and Jaya Bachchan, as well as a logo in the shape of B for his last name. Amitabh wrote in the letter, “Ajay! Ajay!

Ajay! An absolute honour to be a part of ’34’ and to be the recipient of a magnificent director’s gift. Your work is superior. The way you have put everything together is simply marvellous. They say it’s your best — but I know that there shall be many more ‘bests’. Congratulations.”

Ajay posted another note from Amitabh, writing, “And,

Amity ended his message with these words.” The letter read, “PS: Your expressions and your performance in the cockpit were true genius.”

Runway 34 is inspired by a true incident from 2015 when a Doha to Kochi flight had a narrow escape after facing difficulties to land at the airport due to bad weather and low visibility. It revolves around Ajay's character Captain Vikrant Khanna, a flying prodigy, while Rakul Preet Singh portrays his co-pilot Tanya Albuquerque.

Amitabh Bachchan plays the investigating officer Narayan Vedant in the case. Ajay has not only acted in the film but also directed and produced the project.

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Deepika, the honourable juror

Pankaj Tripathi remembers Irrfan on his death anniversary

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eepika Padukone will represent India at 75th Cannes Film Festival as one of the jury members. Last week, Cannes Film Festival revealed the Jury President and the competition member jury who will select the winners of this year’s Palme d’Or honors and Bollywood diva Deepika is a part of it.

Deepika, who made her red carpet debut at the Cannes Film Festival in 2017, shared the news with her fans and followers by sharing her picture with the images of other jury members including Oscar winning filmmaker Asghar Farhadi, Jeff Nichols, Rebecca Hall, Noomi Rapace, Jasmine Trinca, Ladj Ly and Joachim Trier. French actor Vincent Lindon will be the president of the jury.

The Cannes Film Festival will begin on May 17 and the jury will announce this year’s winners at a gala ceremony in Cannes on May 28.

Among the highlights in the competition this year are David Cronenberg’s dystopian sci-fi drama ‘Crimes of the Future’, starring Lea Seydoux, Kristen Stewart and Viggo Mortensen.

Mystery thriller ‘Decision to Leave’ from South Korean’s Park Chanwook (Old boy) and ‘Showing Up from First Cow filmmaker Kelly Reichardt, starring Michelle Williams are among others.

Priyanka attends Vir Das’ LA show, calls him 'inspiring'

A

ctor Priyanka Chopra and friends attended Vir Das’ stand-up show in Los Angeles last week. She took to Instagram to share a bunch of pictures from her day out and even shared an encouraging message for Vir. The pictures show the actress waiting in a green room backstage for Vir to join her after the show. She is seen wearing an orange-yellow jacket and wearing her hair in a half-tie top knot.

“What a day! With Awesome friends watching an awesome friend do what he does best! @virdas you are so brave and so inspiring to me! Not to mention had me in tears laughing!! Thx for having us! Also love having u in La @pearlthusi come back soon! @cavanaughjames are u finally moving too? Love you too @divya_jyoti,” she captioned her post.

Vir replied to her post and wrote, “Thank you for coming! Thank you for opening all the doors for the rest of us. And thank you for always being awesome and cool and funny! I admire you so much.” In her post, Priyanka also shared a video of Vir opening the show, which was organised by Netflix Is A Joke.

After the show, Vir also shared a post on Instagram to mark the occasion. “Biggest comedy festival in the world, to have this crowd, and this ovation in this room, what a privilege! On a night when every major comedian I’m a fan of is performing, Thank you @netflixisajoke and Los Angeles for the love!”

A

ctor Pankaj Tripathi remembered late actor Irrfan Khan last week on his death anniversary. Tripathi was a student of Delhi’s National School of Drama’s (NSD) 2004 batch, while Khan graduated from the school in 1984.

Irrfan passed away on April 29, 2020, after fighting a twoyear battle with a neuroendocrine tumour.

Irrfan Khan has left behind a legacy of exemplary movies. Not only has he earned a name for his exemplary work in the Hindi film industry, he also worked in Oscarwinning films such as ‘Life of Pi’, ‘The Amazing Spiderman’, and ‘Inferno’ among others.

In a video, Pankaj is seen sitting inside NSD. He says, “Every actor from our generation, almost every actor, has been inspired by Irrfan. I get emotional every time I'm asked to talk about him. I'm not able to talk a lot about him. Be it for craft, intellect, on screen and off-screen behaviour, how to view acting, he has inspired everyone immensely. When he acted, it made us take note of how he did it. He was breaking the formula. I have only watched Irrfan sir's films. In total I have watched 50-60 Hindi films.”

When Irrfan died in 2020, NSD condoled his demise and said in a statement, “Not only the National School of Drama has lost one of its meritorious members, Irrfan’s demise is a big loss to the Indian art and cinema fraternity.

Salman bonds with kids at Jacqueline’s charity event

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ctor Salman Khan had quite the interaction with children present at an event for Jacqueline Fernandez’s charitable foundation, and the videos are beyond adorable.

Salman was in attendance at the You Only Live Once YOLO first anniversary party recently and took to the stage to address the guests at the event.

Rohit Shetty announces movie on Mumbai top cop Rakesh Maria

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ilmmaker Rohit Shetty and Reliance Entertainment announced their collaboration to produce a biopic on Mumbai’s former commissioner of police Rakesh Maria. The upcoming feature film will be based on the experiences of Maria and his career. Shetty said he feels honoured to bring the real-life cop’s brave and fearless journey to the screen.

He wrote in a statement, “Rakesh Maria: The man who stared terror in the face for 36 years! His incredible journey spans all the way from the 1993 blasts in Mumbai, the underworld menace, to the 26/11 Mumbai terror attacks in 2008. Feel truly honored to be bringing this real-life super cop’s brave & fearless journey to the screen.”

The news, shared on his social media handles, garnered a lot of love from his fans and friends. Ranveer Singh hailed the project and called it “class”. Makers are yet to finalise the cast, director and title for the film.

Meanwhile, Maria shared his excitement to re-live his

journey through the movie. He said, “It is exciting to relive the journey, especially when piloted by a brilliant director like Rohit Shetty. More than the nostalgia, it’s also a valuable opportunity to place before the people the extraordinary work of the Mumbai Police when facing tough challenges and working against all odds.”

Maria, an IPS officer from the 1981 batch, cracked the 1993 Bombay serial blasts case as the Deputy Commissioner of Police (Traffic). He later served as DCP (Crime), Joint Commissioner of Police (Crime) and was appointed the Commissioner of Mumbai Police in 2014.

Maria also solved the 2003 Gateway of India and Zaveri Bazaar twin blasts case. He was also given the responsibility of investigating the 26/11 Mumbai attacks in 2008 and interrogated Ajmal Kasab, the only terrorist captured alive. In 2015, he was promoted to the Director-General of Home Guards.

Maria retired in 2017.

The foundation shared a video montage of Salman’s appearance at the event on their Instagram account, with the caption, “Love and kindness are never wasted. They always make a difference.” In the clip, Jackie was seen showing the actor around and introducing him to the children. The actor appears to have a brief conversation with the kids as they ate their meals, and appeared to be very interested in what they were saying. Salman also kissed a little girl on her forehead as he prepared to leave.

He waved them goodbye, before stopping for a second to extend his hands toward another child for a handshake.

Fans fell in love with Salman's interaction with the young children, and several of them commented, “This is so cute!!!” Some others wrote for Salman, "Man with a Golden Heart." Others wrote "Bhaijaan" adding heart emojis. A fan commented, "He always loved children," while another wrote, "The kindest." Meanwhile, several fans were happy to see Salman with Jacqueline, with whom he had worked in the 2014 film 'Kick'. One wrote, "They look so perfect together.”

Many extended best wishes to Jacqueline for her foundation, with one writing, "I pray that your foundation will get more and more success."

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7 - 13 May 2022

Malayalam actress Mythili ties the knot with architect Sambath M

alayalam actor Mythili tied the knot with architect Sambath in a ceremony held at the Guruvayur Sree Krishna Temple on April 28.

For the early morning wedding ceremony, Mythili was seen draped in a traditional golden and white bridal saree called kasavu while the groom, Sambath, was seen in a traditional mundu paired with a crisp white shirt. The couple is also seen wearing tulsi leaf garlands around their necks and holding lotus flower bouquets in their hands.

Glimpses of the couple’s intimate wedding at the temple can be seen in a video that has been uploaded on Instagram by the actor’s make-up artist.

Dhanush to play a politician in Sekhar Kammula's film?

On the work front, Mythili made her feature film debut ‘Paleri Manikyam: Oru Pathirakolapathakathinte Katha’, a murder mystery, along with Mammootty, directed by filmmaker Ranjith. She’ll be next seen in the movie titled ‘Chattambi’. She is also a trained classical dancer. Before joining films, Mythili has hosted TV show ‘Gaanasallapam’. She has featured in films like ‘Kerala Cafe’, ‘God Say’, ‘Cross Road’, ‘Sinjar’, ‘Oru Kaatil Oru Paykappal’ and ‘Mera Naam Shaji’ more recently.

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amil cinema's powerhouse performer Dhanush has already made his mark in Bollywood and the actor is all set to debut in Hollywood with 'The Gray Man', directed by 'The Avengers' makers Russo Brothers.

The first look of Dhanush alongside Chris Evans and Ryan Gosling from 'The Gray Man' was released recently and became viral.

Meanwhile, Dhanush is also going to step into the Tollywood arena. He is currently shooting for 'Vaathi' directed by Venky Atluri, which marks his first direct Telugu film. Dhanush has also signed a Telugu project with acclaimed director Sekhar Kammula. Now, the latest we hear is that Dhanush will play a politician in Sekhar Kammula's film.

Sekhar Kammula is a talented filmmaker, who won the National Award for

Best Debut Film of a Director with his first film 'Dollar Dreams' itself. He has directed movies like 'Leader', 'Fidaa' and 'Love Story'. Notably, 'Leader' is a political drama film, which marked Rana Daggubati's acting debut. Though the film didn't do well at the box office, it gained high appreciation from the critics.

Now, Sekhar stated in a recent interview that he is planning to make a sequel to his political film 'Leader'. Reports are suggesting that Dhanush's project Sekhar Kammula will be the second instalment of 'Leader'. Sekhar Kammula had already revealed that his film with Dhanush will be a thrilling one. An official confirmation is awaited.

Suriya to bankroll Bollywood remake of ‘Soorarai Pottru’ A

ctor Suriya sought the blessings and support of his fans recently as the remake of his hit film ‘Soorarai Pottru’ went on the floor. The film will be bankrolled by his home production 2D Entertainment and will star Bollywood star Akshay Kumar in the lead. Sharing pictures with Akshay, Suriya tweeted, “A new beginning… need all your love and blessings!!”

Earlier in the day, Akshay had also announced the beginning of the filming of the project, which is yet to be titled. “With the auspicious coconut-breaking and a small prayer in our heart, we begin the filming of our yet untitled film which is about dreams and the power of it. In case you’ll have any title suggestions, do share and of course your best wishes,” he wrote on his Twitter page.

‘Soorarai Pottru’ director Sudha Kongara

* Schedule is subject to change

will also helm its Hindi remake. She had written the film based on Captain GR Gopinath’s fascinating entrepreneurial journey, who democratized air travel by introducing low-cost airline services.

The film was released directly on Amazon Prime Video in 2020 owing to the pandemic. The movie garnered unanimously positive responses from the critics and audience alike. The Hindi remake, however, will be a theatrical release.

Actor-producer Vijay Babu faces sexual assault, abuse allegations

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Malayalam actor has reportedly filed a police complaint against actor-producer Vijay Babu for alleged rape, and sexual and physical abuse.

The actor’s statement has been shared on a Facebook page ‘Women Against Sexual Harassment. The statement came a day after Babu dismissed all allegations against him and also named the complainant in a Facebook Live session. He called himself “the real victim” in the case.

Reports reveal the actor alleged in a complaint with the Kochi police that Babu had sexually abused her several times promising

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roles in his films. She alleged that she was physically and sexually assaulted between March and April this year. She said that he gained her trust by advising her about her career as she was new to the industry, but used it to exploit her.

“I have known him for a few years in the industry and had worked together with him for a movie. Through this time, he gained my trust by being friendly and advising me as I was a newcomer in the film industry with no proper guidance. He behaved like my saviour for my personal and professional problems but under the guise has sexually exploited me,” she wrote.

MON 9 MAY - FRI 13 MAY 2022 6:00 Alakh Na Ajwala 9:00 SHUBH PRABHAT 9:30 SUR PRABHAT 15:00 RASOI SHOW 17:30 SHRIMAD BHAGWAT MAHAPURAN 18:00 DESHI BEATS 18:30 SURI 19:00 BHAKT GORA KUMBHAR 19:30 MARU MAN MOHI GAYU 20:00 RASHI RIKSHAWALI 20:30 MOTI BAA NI NANI VAHU 21:00 SORATHNI MRS SINGHAM 21:30 GEETA

SATURDAY 7 MAY 2022 6:00 Chundadi Odhu Ne Sajan Sambhre 9:00 SHUBH PRABHAT 9:30 SUR PRABHAT 15:00 RASOI SHOW 17:30 SHRIMAD BHAGWAT MAHAPURAN 18:00 DESHI BEATS 18:30 SURI 19:00 BHAKT GORA KUMBHAR 19:30 MARU MAN MOHI GAYU 20:00 RASHI RIKSHAWALI 20:30 MOTI BAA NI NANI VAHU 21:00 SORATHNI MRS SINGHAM 21:30 GEETA SUNDAY 8 MAY 2022 9:00 SHUBH PRABHAT 9:30 SUR PRABHAT 12:00 Chori Na Fera Char 15:00 RASHI RIKSHAWALI 16:30 MOTI BAA NI NANI VAHU 18:00 DESHI BEATS 18:30 MARU MAN MOHI GAYU 20:00 RASHI RIKSHAWALI 20:30 MOTI BAA NI NANI VAHU 21:00 SORATHNI MRS SINGHAM 21:30 GEETA 21:30 SASURAL SIMAR KA 2

* Schedule is subject to change

MON 9 MAY - FRI 13 MAY 2022 16:30 RASOI SHOW DESI FLAVOURS 17:30 CHHUTA CHHEDA 18:00 SASURAL SIMAR KA 18:30 TU AASHIQUI 19:00 THE GREAT INDIAN GLOBAL KITCHEN (SEASON 2) 19:50 BHAGYA KA LIKHA 20:00 SWARAN GHAR 20:30 KAWACH MAMTA KA 21:00 AJNABI BANE HUMSAFAR

SATURDAY 7 MAY 2022 16:30 RASOI SHOW - DESI FLAVOURS 17:30 SASURAL SIMAR KA 19:00 THE GREAT INDIAN GLOBAL KITCHEN (SEASON 2) 19:30 BHAGYA KA LIKHA 20:00 COMEDY NIGHTS WITH KAPIL 21:00 AJNABI BANE HUMSAFAR 21:30 SASURAL SIMAR KA 2 SUNDAY 8 MAY 2022 16:30 RASOI SHOW - DESI FLAVOURS 17:30 SWARAN GHAR 19:00 THE ANUPAM KHER SHOW SEASON 1 20:00 COMEDY NIGHTS WITH KAPIL 21:00 COMEDY NIGHTS WITH KAPIL

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7 - 13 May 2022

Satyajit Ray's 101st birth anniversary: fans gather at his house

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ans commemorated legendary filmmaker Satyajit Ray’s 101st birth anniversary on May 2 by visiting his house after a gap of two years. His son, Sandip Ray, spoke to a media and said, “Today, baba has completed 101 years.

Usually, people start coming over to pay their tributes to him in the morning on his birthday. But last two years, we didn’t allow anyone in our house because of the pandemic. We are old-school people who believe in physical activities rather than online.”

“So, this year, with the situation a little better, we have allowed people to come and pay their respects to baba on his special day. However, we are not allowing anyone inside the house as a precautionary measure because of Covid. So, we have organised the

whole thing in our garden to avoid crowding. People started to come in from 7 am and it will continue till 1.30 am if not more,” said Sandip Ray. When asked if he watches any of his father’s films today, Sandip said, “No way. The whole day is spent attending to people. And since this is happening after a gap, there are even more people to attend to. So, I am not left with any time to watch any of baba’s films.”

On the occasion, Sandip’s wife, Satyajit’s daughter-in-law cooks all the dishes loved by the iconic filmmaker - including Yuchi, aloor dom, arhar dal, and doi.

Benedict Cumberbatch believes SRK would be ideal for MCU

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ctor Benedict Cumberbatch’s ‘Doctor Strange: In The Multiverse of Madness' is set to hit the theatres this week. The actor, in a virtual roundtable interview for the movie, spoke about his connection with India.

He said it goes back to his teenage years.

Cumberbatch took a gap year after his school to travel to Darjeeling to teach English at a Tibetan monastery, fondly remembers his six-month-long stay in India. He said, “I love your country, I love your culture and cultures. It feels like I was there almost a lifetime ago, in my late teens for six months of teaching, exploring and travelling as well.

I’d love to have an excuse to come back and if that’s to interact with the first Indian superhero, bring it on.”

When asked which Indian movie actor he believes can be a part of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, the London-born actor asked for opinions and when suggested the names of Shah Rukh Khan and Hrithik Roshan,

he said Khan is great.

Cumberbatch also said he is aware of the popularity of 'Doctor Strange' films enjoy in India and hopes to deliver another entertainer with the muchawaited sequel.

“It’s very exciting to know the level of anticipation there is with presales. I’m hugely grateful to my fans in India for supporting me throughout my career. I hope (this film also does well), but I’m not taking anything for granted, Cumberbatch said. The only reason these films are watched is that we try to better them every time during the making of them individually… We are working tirelessly for it to be a success globally,” he added.

‘Doctor Strange: In the Multiverse of Madness’ is directed by Sam Raimi and also stars Elizabeth Olsen, Chiwetel Ejiofor, Benedict Wong, Xochitl Gomez, Michael Stuhlbarg, and Rachel McAdams.

Natasha Poonawalla brings Indian glamour at Met Gala 2022

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ndian socialite and businesswoman Natasha Poonawalla brought the Indian representation to the Met Gala 2022 red carpet and won over the desi internet.

The entrepreneur nailed the 'Gilded Glamour' theme for the night while also bringing in a touch of Indian elegance by wearing a saree with a bustier and ornate jewellery. Indian acedesigner Sabyasachi Mukherjee designed her golden saree and the jewels, whereas the bustier came from the house of Schiaparelli. The infusion of desi glamour and the American-inspired theme instantly made Natasha one of the

best-dressed celebrities of the night.

Walking against the wave was BritishPakistani actor and musician Riz Ahmed, who was styled by Julie Ragolia, arrived at the event in a silk shirt and undershirt topped off with an understated Cartier necklace.

Speaking with Vogue, Riz said, “This is a homage to the immigrant workers who kept the Gilded Age going.” This year’s theme especially played into the opulence of the era with gala invitations giving specific instructions that the event is ‘white tie’, the even more formal counterpart of black tie.

AMAZON PRIME VIDEO BETS BIG Doubles down on content investments in India. To launch over 40 new titles across series and movies in Hindi, Tamil and Telugu in the next 2 years. Forays into original movies; announces new multi-year licensing deals and co-productions with major Indian film studios

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xpands Prime Video’s Marketplace offering with the launch of Transactional Video-On-Demand (TVOD) Movie Rental Service in India. The TVOD Service will enable early rental access to the latest Indian and International movies; and in addition, offer a rich catalogue of popular movies from around the world on a transactional (per-movie) basis. Prime Video’s customer footprint is set to expand further as the TVOD Rental Service will be available to all Prime members as well as anyone who is not yet a Prime member.

Unveiling its biggest slate to date in India, at its maiden Prime Video Presents India showcase event in Mumbai, Amazon Prime Video has announced over 40 new titles, in Hindi, Tamil and Telugu, across original series, original movies and coproductions that it plans to launch over the next 24 months.

Dialling up its strategy of bringing the best and latest movies to consumers across languages, Prime Video announced new multi-year licensing deals and coproductions with some of India’s biggest and most successful studios. Prime video also announced its foray into original movie production in India with films in Hindi and Telugu, to be released directly on the service.

Prime Video aims to be a home for talent. It is working with a wide set of diverse creators with unique, cinematic voices from across the country. Almost 70% of the new upcoming titles will feature new talent - both in front of and behind the camera.

Elaborating on the expansive content slate announced today, Aparna Purohit, head of India originals, Amazon Prime Video said, “Our mission has been to tell compelling, authentic and rooted stories that not just connect with audiences in India but resonate with audiences across the world. We feel humbled that the characters of our shows and films have inspired new archetypes, blazed a new trail, and in fact, become a part of the cultural zeitgeist. As we move forward, we are excited to partner with some of the most prolific creators to bring forth powerful stories across different formats, genres and languages for our customers. We are confident that our upcoming slate of shows and films will transcend all barriers of language, nationality or formats.”

"Maja Maa" and "Aye Watan... Mere Watan" (Hindi) and "Ammu" (Tamil) are part of the 'Amazon Original Movies' section.

Hindi titles in the Prime Video 'Scripted Original Series' include Reema Kagti's "Dahaad" fronted by Sonakshi Sinha; Ishwak Singh-Rasika Dugal-starrer "Adhura"; Vikramaditya Motwane's "Jubilee" led by Prosenjit Chatterjee, Aditi Rao Hyadri, Aparshakti Khurana, Wamiqa Gabbi; "Bambai Meri Jaan", featuring Kay Kay Menon, Kritika Kamra, Avinash Tiwary, Amyra Dastur; Dharmatic Entertainment's "Call Me Bae" and Annu Kapoor-headlined "Crash Course".

The line-up of the shows also features titles in other Indian languages. They include Telugu series "Dhootha", which marks Naga Chaitanya's digital debut, and a number of Tamil series such as Arya's OTT debut "The Village", Pushkar and Gayatricreated "Suzhal – The Vortex", "Vadhandhi: The Fable of Velonie" and "Sweet Kaaram Coffee".

Other 'Scripted Original Series' titles in Hindi are Raj Babbar, Ratna Pathak Shah-starrer "Happy Family Conditions Apply", "Jee Karda" featuring Tamannaah, Tanya Maniktala's "PI Meena", and "Shehar – Lakhot".

The slate also includes the already-announced "Ram Setu", a film starring Akshay Kumar; Shetty's series "Indian Police Force", featuring Sidharth Malhotra, and multistarrer series "Hush Hush".

The trailer of "Modern Love Mumbai", the first of the three localised Indian adaptations of the acclaimed international series, was also released.

With "Farzi" and "Gulkanda Tales", creators Raj and DK further cement their ties with Prime Video. The duo's flagship project "The Family Man" will soon return for its season three.

Other hit series set to return at the streamer include "Breathe: Into The Shadows", "Four More Shots Please!", "Made in Heaven", "Mirzapur", "Mumbai Diaries", "Paatal Lok", "Comicstaan" and "Panchayat".

Kangana Ranaut's debut production "Tiku Weds Sheru", a film starring Nawazuddin Siddiqui and Avneet Kaur, was listed as a 'Special Collaboration' by the streamer.

The 'Unscripted Original Series' section features reality documentary "This is AP Dhillon" on the life of the titular Punjabi singer-composer, "Cinema...

Marte Dum Tak" from Vasan Bala, Patrick Graham's "Dancing on The Grave" and "India Love Project".

Prime Video also announced its licensing association with four major Indian production banners: Ajay Devgn FFilms, Yash Raj Films, Dharma Productions, and Excel Media and Entertainment.

Under the deal, the platform will be home for the movies released by these banners post their theatrical release.

These titles include Shah Rukh Khan's "Pathaan", Salman Khan-led "Tiger 3", Akshay's "Prithviraj", Ranveer Singh's "Jayeshbhai Jordaar", Ranbir Kapoor's "Shamshera", Johar's directorial venture "Rocky Aur Rani Ki Prem Kahaani", Devgn's "Bholaa" and Farhan Akhtar's "Jee Lee Zara".

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Gujarat Titans winning run continues Gujarat Titans extended their dominance at the top of the table with a six-wicket win over Royal Challengers Bangalore in the Indian Premier League here on Saturday and inched closer towards clinching a playoff spot in their inception year. After failing multiple times, Virat Kohli finally came out out of a prolonged slump in form by registering his first IPL 50 in 14 matches, including nine this season, as Royal Challengers Bangalore posted a challenging 170 for six. In reply, Rahul Tewatia (43 not out) and David Miller (39 not out) did the job for GT after the table toppers were struggling at 95 for four in the 13th over.

With 16 points which has been the magic mark, Titans are well on course towards a top-two finish at the end of league stage.

Comeback by Knight Riders Kolkata Knight Riders beat Rajasthan Royals by seven wickets to stage a comeback after five consecutive defeats in this IPL. The purple brigade made two changes to the playing XI, trying out their fifth opening pair of the season. Although KKR lost both openers Baba Indrajit and Aaron Finch inside the Powerplay, the good work done by their bowlers to restrict RR to a belowpar 152/5, after Shreyas Iyer won the toss and put the opposition in, helped them to get 158/3 in 19.1 overs at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on Monday. RR’s heroes in their last match against KKR – Jos Buttler, who got 103 off 60 balls and Yuzvendra Chahal, who claimed a fifer – came a cropper, which made a big difference to their fortunes.

LSG take a step towards play-offs Unheralded Uttar Pradesh leftarm pacer Mohsin Khan put up an exceptional bowling performance as Lucknow Super Giants beat Delhi Capitals by six runs on Sunday, thereby taking a giant stride towards qualifying for the IPL play-offs. It was skipper KL Rahul’s 77 off 51 balls and newly promoted Deepak Hooda’s 52 off 34 balls that propelled LSG to an imposing 195 for 3 despite stuttering towards the end of the innings. In reply, Mohsin (4/16 in 4 overs)

got breakthroughs exactly when things seemed to spiral out of control as Delhi Capitals finally managed 189 for 7 in the end. LSG now have 14 points from 10 games and another win out of the remaining four games would seal a play-off spot for them considering 16 being the magic number in most years.

Gaikwad, Conway set up CSK’s 13-run win Ruturaj Gaikwad and Devon Conway’s effortless six-hitting exhibition was well complemented by a four-wicket haul from Mukesh Choudhary as Chennai Super Kings notched up a 13-run win over Sunrisers Hyderabad in an IPL match here on Sunday.

Gaikwad (99 off 57 balls) and Conway (85 not out off 55) put SRH’s attack to the sword, notching up a scintillating 182-run partnership, the highest opening stand of the season, as CSK posted an imposing 202 for two after being invited to bat. In reply, SRH fell short, reaching 189 for 6 in 20 overs despite late heroics from Nicholas Pooran (64 not out) and a 47-run innings by skipper Kane Williamson at the top.

Comfortable win for DC Delhi Capitals made rough weather of an easy chase due to a middle order collapse before recording a comfortable four-wicket victory over a lacklustre Kolkata Knight Riders on Thursday, keeping their IPL playoff qualification hopes alive. Chasing an easy target of 147, DC were 84 for five and 113 for six at various stages of the innings before Rovman Powell (33 not out) once again displayed his big-hitting prowess to

Dhoni back at helm as Jadeja quits as CSK captain Ravindra Jadeja’s dismal stint as Chennai Super Kings captain came to a halt a day before the team’s ninth game against Sunrisers Hyderabad. The allrounder, who took over as CSK skipper, stepped down after discussions with MS Dhoni, coach Stephen Fleming and the management. CSK MS Dhoni & Ravindra Jadeja informed in a October/November and not worry statement that Jadeja has too much about captaincy. But relinquished his post and Dhoni will take over as the captain. according to sources, it doesn’t mean that Jadeja wouldn’t be One understands that Jadeja’s considered for captaincy again dip in form was a cause of concern next season if Dhoni decides to for the management and it was hang up his boots. “There’s no decided that the all-rounder point preempting what’s going to should continue as a player. This happen a year down the line. For season, Jadeja has managed only now it’s important Jadeja returns 112 runs so far at an average of 22. to form,” a source said.

40, which is his lowest in the last The issue was handled in a very few years. Even with the ball, he dignified manner by Fleming, has only got five wickets so far and Dhoni and Jadeja himself with the an economy-rate of 8.19 is way Saurashtra man being absolutely higher than his career IPL career normal outwardly about the IPL economy rate of 7.64. decision. During the eight games CSK, after six defeats, are in a that Jadeja was in charge, it was tight corner and it will be a miracle often seen that Dhoni was doing if they make the Play-offs this the captaincy. But it didn’t season. In such a situation, the necessarily mean that Jadeja feeling was to give Jadeja the wasn’t given captaincy freedom to play his game ahead of responsibilities at all. the T20 World Cup in

get DC past the target with an over to spare.

The hero of the win was certainly Kuldeep Yadav, with a game-changing 4 for 14 when KKR batted. While DC with 10 points are placed sixth, KKR remained at third from the bottom. Defending a total of 146 wasn’t easy but Umesh Yadav (3/24) did try his best as he started brilliantly with a diving return catch off the very first delivery of the DC innings to sent Prithvi Shaw (0) back.

Parag, bowlers take RR to victory Riyan Parag smashed an unbeaten halfcentury before the bowling unit lived up to its reputation to hand Rajasthan Royals a 29-run win over Royal Challengers Bangalore on Tuesday. Parag (56 not out off 31 balls) single-handedly took his side to 144 for 8 with his unbeaten half-century, which is his highest score in IPL. He struck three boundaries and four sixes during his knock.

But RCB’s chase never got going as RR bowlers, led by young Kuldeep Sen (4/20), Ravichandran Ashwin (3/17) and Prasidh Krishna (2/23), bundled out RR for 115 in 19.3 overs. Opening the innings on the back of two consecutive first-ball ducks, Virat Kohli started on a cagey note but lit up the stadium and raised hopes of his fans when he struck two back-to-back boundaries of Trent Boult to start his innings. But as it has been happening in the tournament, Kohli flopped once again when a Prasidh Krishna bouncer got the better of him in the next over.

IPL points table TEAM GT LSG RR SRH RCB DC PBKS KKR CSK MI

M 9 10 10 9 10 9 10 9 9 9

W 8 7 6 5 5 4 4 4 3 1

L 1 3 4 4 5 5 6 5 6 8

P NRR 16 +0.377 14 +0.397 12 +0.340 10 +0.471 10 -0.558 8 +0.587 8 -0.060 8 +0.470 6 -0.407 2 -1.836

in brief STOKES SUCCEEDS ROOT AS ENGLAND TEST CAPTAIN Ben Stokes was appointed as captain of England’s Test cricket team, taking on the high pressure role just a few months after returning from a long spell away from the game to protect his mental health. The all-rounder was the only credible option to replace Joe Root, who quit his position - which he had held for five years - two weeks ago with England having only won one of its last 17 Test matches. It is the first big decision by Rob Key, the former England batsman who was recently hired as managing director of men’s cricket in England in a turbulent period for the national team that is currently without a head coach. Key said he was sure Stokes was ready to shoulder the burden of the captaincy despite missing most of 2021 to focus on his well-being and also recover from two finger operations. It could mean Stokes plays fewer one-day and Twenty20 internationals, though. “It’s just something we’ve got to do we’ve got to manage that load, we have to prioritize at times where we think he needs to be playing. At the moment, that’s going to be Test cricket,” Key said. “I don’t think we have to overthink this. We have to make sure he is in a good frame of mind, his body is in good shape, and then we can plan accordingly. ” While announcing Stokes’ new role, Key also said veteran fast bowlers James Anderson and Stuart Broad - the top two wicket-takers in England’s test history - would also be available again after being controversially left out of the recent West Indies tour. England plays Test series against New Zealand and South Africa this summer, and also completes the series against India that was cut short last year by Covid, with India 2-1 ahead with one test remaining. “Before it got announced I was doing this job, I rang them up and said, ‘In my opinion you’re both available for selection,’” Key said of the 35-year-old Broad and the 39-yearold Anderson. “Ben Stokes was very clear on the fact that he wants Jimmy and Broady to come back in. It will purely be done on what’s the best XI to win that first test match.”

SRK’s Knight Riders & MLC to build cricket ‘LIVID’ SINDHU SETTLES stadium in Los Angeles FOR BRONZE Shah Rukh Khan’s The Knight Riders Group, which owns IPL team Kolkata Knight Riders and CPL team Trinbago Knight Riders, will build a world-class cricket stadium in Los Angeles in partnership with Major League Cricket (MLC) in the USA. MLC in partnership with the Knight Riders Group and the City of Irvine, announced the approval of an exclusive negotiating agreement (ENA) to move forward with lease negotiations and design approvals to build a cricket venue on a 15-acre parcel at Great Park in Los Angeles. The development would see a multimillion dollar investment, with internationally renowned architects HKS set to design the iconic stadium in the Greater Los Angeles metropolitan area.

KRG is a founding investor in MLC, which will be the first professional T20 cricket championship,

featuring top players from around the globe and US' domestic cricketers, in the United States, and is sanctioned by USA Cricket.

KRG is owned by Shah Rukh Khan, actor Juhi Chawla and her spouse Jay Mehta. In a statement, Khan said, “Our investment in MLC in America, is based on our belief in the exciting future of cricket in the USA and is well aligned to our strategy of establishing Knight Riders as a global brand in T20 cricket. Plans to build a world class cricket stadium in the greater Los Angeles area is exciting for us and MLC. This will no doubt have a transformational impact on one of the world’s most iconic metropolitan areas. ”

PV Sindhu failed in her bid to change the colour of the medal at the Badminton Asia Championships as she lost 21-13, 19-21, 16-21 to Akane Yamaguchi of Japan in the semifinals in Manila. Her previous medal was also a bronze at Gimcheon in 2014. The Indian was in cruise mode after winning the first game easily and she even led in the second at 14-12. However, the Indian lost her focus at this juncture as she was penalised a point for delay. A rattled Sindhu argued with the umpire. It appeared that Sindhu was not at fault. Sindhu was heard saying, “She was not ready sir, how can I serve?

I was ready. ” But the umpire was in no mood to listen. Sindhu even called the tournament referee and told him that Yamaguchi was not ready to receive the serve. “Sir, I was ready.

How can I serve when she is still shaking her leg and getting ready,” she told him. But the referee did not provide any relief and Sindhu was penalised a point. Expectedly, Yamaguchi won the next point and soon caught up with the Indian at 15-15 before winning the game with some deft work at the net. Yamaguchi started the decider with a 3-0 lead and made it 11-7 at the mandatory change of courts.

Though Sindhu tried hard and won some points, Yamaguchi clearly had the momentum.

She made some splendid retrieves and played hard tosses to dominate the Indian.

“The umpire told me you are taking too much time. And even the opponent wasn’t ready at that point. But the umpire suddenly gave her the point. It was really unfair,” Sindhu told Badminton Asia, later.