AV 10th June 2023

D I A S P O R A S T A N D S B Y O D I S H A T R A I N T R A G E D Y V I C T I M S

Indian diaspora group in the UK raises funds for the Odisha train tragedy victims as PM Sunak, King Charles III and UK politicians extend condolences.

Subhasini Naicker

The Indian diaspora in the UK has been deeply affected and triggered by t h e u n f o r t u n a t e t r a i n t r a g e d y i n Odisha, India. While PM Sunak and K i n g C h a r l e s I I I w h o h a v e a l w a y s stood by India during tough times, h a v e e x p r e s s e d t h e i r c o n c e r n a n d c o n d o l e n c e s f o r t h e v i c t i m s a n d survivors. In an initiative to extend monetary help to the victims, Friends of India Society International (FISI)

U K h a s l a u n c h e d a " G o F u n d M e " fundraiser to support the families of victims impacted by one of India’s w o r s t r a i l w a y d i s a s t e r s i n O d i s h a ( E a s t e r n I n d i a ) I t h a s a l r e a d y generated over £4,700 in donations within hours of being set up.

Continued on page 25

According to a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed by the Bar Council of India ( B C I ) a n d i t s e q u i v a l e n t s i n E n g l a n d a n d Wales, the English and Welsh legal services markets are available to Indian lawyers and law firms, subject to some limitations. The MoU was signed on June 5

The MoU comes in the wake of the BCI's d e c i s i o n t o a l l o w t h e e n t r y o f f o r e i g n l a w y e r s a n d l a w f i r m s i n t o I n d i a o n a reciprocity basis The agreement clarified the conditions under which Indian lawyers will be allowed to practise in the United Kingdom.

Continued on page 23

"Arbitrating Indo-UK Commercial Disputes" conference held in London

Indian MP wins Sikh of the Year Award in the UK

Breaking barriers and making history

Indian-origin Dev Shah wins 2023 Scripps National Spelling Bee

Indian lawyers can now practice any law in the UK

to the martyrdom of Guru Arjan Dev

Priyanka, her mother hang out with Salma Hayek

with Keith Vaz GA N E SH K U PPA L A

Ganesh Kuppala h ad a background in accounting and auditing from St X avier's School, Mumbai In his role as a senio r manager at Deloitte Zaheerabad Ind ia L imited , Ganesh w as responsible fo r Accounts, Auditing and Tax analysis He was also responsible fo r develop ing Tax related p rocesses and initiativ es at th e co mpany In his prev io us role as a senior analyst at Deloitte India, Ganesh w as responsible for Tax analysis and the develop ment of Tax related initiativ es Ganesh also consultant engaged in corpo rate f inance and p roject management

Ganesh has also been known to be a keynote speaker at several corporate events and has mediated conflicts and issues in disciplinar y cases Ganesh has started his own business and is currently a senior manager at Deloitte United Kingdom In his previous job, He was also known as a motivational speaker and mentor to various industries He regularly gives training and workshops on various accounting and f inancial reports He enjoys giving presentations on leadership, change management, human resources, f inancial reports, budgets, risk management, and more Ganesh is also a team leader with more than 15 years of experience in the f ield of team management and leadership

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

London - I lived in various places across the world in last 15 in years - USA, Middle East and India to name few, However I fee London as Home - London is pure magic

O n e o f t h e w o r l d ’ s m o s t v i s i t e d c i t i e s , London has something for ever yone: from histor y and culture to f ine food and exceedingly good times

2) What are your proudest achievements?

One of the proudest achievements is appearing in #Who wants to be a millionaire # ( Indian version ) in 2014 , I have cleared a 6 rounds of selection process to get there and in the Fastest f inger f irst I hold t h e r e c o rd o f o n e o f t h e f a s t e s t o f a l l answered 3 question in 11 sec - then played 10 question on the Hot seat - I feel proud of this achieving

3) What inspires you?

I grew up as orphan struggling for 1 meal a day - so ever y child who sees great future despite of odds that they are facing is my inspiration - When I work in the various community activities across the globe I f ind so many people with so less and they still have strong hope for bright tomorrow - that inspires me a lot and it relates to me as well as I had real tough times as orphan kid and had ver y rough childhood, still I managed to pave my way though from small village in India to where I am today and travelled world and led various positions in various big organisations - it’s quite a journey and that journey inspires me to keep going

4) What has been biggest obstacle in your career?

get audiences many for ever yone - but key thing to pick in the Tax career is the challenge of being up target audience and being relevant is the key challenge as well as o p p o r t u n i t y a n d i n m y o t h e r r o l e s a s Motivational speaker the biggest obstacle is to get the acceptance from audience, once one can get audiences conf idence then the message will be well taken so its key for any speaker to win audience in f irst few mins

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

All the leaders that I worked with are the

Ethnic minority parents worried about children’s experience in schools

R e se a rch on p a re n t s fr om m i n o r i t y e t h n i c b a ckg r ou n ds a n d t he i r e x pe r ie n ce s w it h sc h oo li n g i n

Ire lan d has highlighted the n eed for cult urally inclusive e d u c a t i on a n d t h e ch a lle n g e s t h a t t e a c h e r s m a y face in t his re gard

r i e n c e s , p e r s p e c t i v e s , a n d expectations of parents from m i n o r i t y e t h n i c b a c kgrounds is also essential in p r o m o t i n g a c o l l a b o r a t i v e r e l a t i o n s h i p b e t w e e n p a rents, teachers, and schools

biggest influence in my career - but I need to mention one person that is not from the corporate world but from my personnel life that is my grandmother - when I was a kid, she taught me the importance values in career and that helped me a lot in building my career

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

As a Motivational speaker and Mentormy key goal is to give the right direction to audience that listens to me, Values is my top priority and I always tr y to teach the same and also giving back to community is one more important aspect I tr y to spread in all my talks and I love doing this as it helps to build better worlds for all of us "

7) And the worst?

Honestly I don’t anything to categorize as worst - because I truly love what I do in various roles I play in a day of my life be it Senior manager in my day job, or helping kids and younger generation as motivational speaker and doing charity events and helping community as Rotarian and community leader - I love ever y I do - so there's nothing that I can mention as worst

8) What are your long-term goals?

My long terms goal is to inspire many kids/younger generation to achieve their full potential - I can see from my own experiences it’s ver y diff icult path specially for under privileged society - I grew up in India as orphan and spent 25+ years of my life to build and create space for me - I want to help people like to make the journey a bit easier for them - Please wish me the best so I can impact lives

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

"I will focus on 2 major things on which I believe the countr y is build and prospered:

1 Creating the best possible Education and Eco system for younger generations - as that the future, in today’s fast pacing DIGI world its super important to be future ready - so I will focus on that as prime minister

2 one more most important thing is Health and wellbeing, when the countr y can be rest assured on the health the individual performance would improve and that in t u r n h e l p s g r o w t h o f t h e countr y ”

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

I w o u l d l o v e t o s p e n d time with A P J Abdul Kalam (was an Indian aerospace scie n t i s t a n d s t a t e s m a n w h o ser ved as the 11th president of India from 2002 to 2007)despite of achieving so much in life he was so deep rooted and spent all his life for the people around him and for his countr y - it’s incredible journey that he had and I w o u l d l o v e t o s p e n d t i m e with him and learn from his WISDOM

T h e f i n d i n g s o f t h e research shed light on the i m p o r t a n c e o f p r o v i d i n g adequate training and support to teachers in intercultural education Enhancing teacher training programs to address intercultural competence and effective strategies for fostering inclusivity can help teachers navigate the complexities of diverse classrooms more effectively Understanding the expe-

By actively involving parents in the educational process and valuing their insights, schools can work towards c r e a t i n g a n e n v i r o n m e n t that respects and reflects the diverse cultural identities of their students

T h e r e s e a r c h p r o v i d e s v a l u a b l e i n s i g h t s i n t o t h e challenges and opportunit i e s o f c r e a t i n g c u l t u r a l l y inclusive learning environments To effectively implement culturally responsive p e d a g o g y, s c h o o l l e a d e r s

and teachers need the nece s s a r y c o m p e t e n c i e s a n d t r a i n i n g By i n c o r p o r a t i n g s t u d e n t s ' c u l t u r a l b a c kgrounds into the teaching and learning process, teachers can create a more meaningful and relevant educational experience for their s t u d e n t s T h i s a p p r o a c h h e l p s s t u d e n t s fe e l s e e n , heard , and valued , and it fosters a sense of belonging a n d e n g a g e m e n t i n t h e classroom

P r o fe s s i o n a l d e v e l o pment programs and ongoing support can help educators d e v e l o p t h e k n o w l e d g e , skills, and attitudes needed to understand and address the diverse needs of their students

Family racially abused and attacked during picnic

A fter a fam ily exp erienced a distressing incident during a picnic in the Black Country, four ind ividu als h ave been apprehend ed A ccording to the police, the v ictims were subjected to racial abuse and attacked by armed thu gs

The incident occurred at Doe Bank Park in Pheasey, Walsall, on Sunday, May 28

The four arrested individuals, aged 38, 39, 55, and 58, are currently in custody for interrogation, suspected of a s s a u l t L a w e n fo r c e m e n t off icials have urged the pub-

lic to refrain from sharing a video of the disturbance on social media, emphasizing that doing so could impede the ongoing investigation

L o c a l r e s i d e n t s h a v e been advised to remain calm amidst the unsettling incident Chief Superintendent P h i l D o l b y, r e p r e s e n t i n g

Walsall LPA, assured, "This i n v e s t i g a t i o n i s c u r r e n t l y under way, and the arrests m a d e m a r k a s u b s t a n t i a l progress in our inquiries "

D o l b y a c k n o w l e d g e d t h e distress caused within the

community, as the victims involved were a family simply enjoying a picnic

"We'll continue to have reassurance patrols in the area and remain keen for anyone with mobile footage w h i c h c a n s u p p o r t o u r investigation to contact us We're aware of a distressing video of the attack being shared on social media and we'd ask ever yone to please not share this content”, a spokesperson for the force w a s q u o t e d a s s a y i n g b y Birmingham Live

Rishi Sunak eager to cut tax by 2p before general election

R is h i Su n ak i s e ag e r to imp lement a reduction of 2p in income tax o r Natio nal I ns u ra nc e b efo re t h e upcom ing general election T h e o bjec tiv e b ehi nd th is proposed m ove is twofold: to i n ce nti v i s e w o r k an d secu re v oter sup port

A c c o r d i n g t o r e p o r t s , the Prime Minister is enthusiastic about entering the a n t i c i p a t e d 2 0 2 4 e l e c t i o n w i t h a p l e d g e t o p u r s u e m o r e e x t e n s i v e t a x c u t s This aligns with his previous commitment to such reductions, which he made during h i s l e a d e r s h i p c a m p a i g n Ho w e v e r, t h e i m m e d i a t e focus is fulf illing the f ive pledges, particularly the goal of halving inflation by yearend

A s s e n io r m e m b e r s o f the Conser vative Party exert p r e s s u r e o n t h e P r i m e

S o u r c e T w t t e r

Minister for tax cuts during the autumn season, the government is assessing the feasibility of substantial reductions in light of concerning updates on persistent inflation Sunak specif ically aims for a two-pence decrease in the basic rate of income tax, or a corresponding reduction in National Insurance

Despite a decline from 10 1 percent to 8 7 percent, Bank of England Governor

A n d r e w B a i l e y h a s c a utioned that the inflation rate i s d e c r e a s i n g a t a s l o w e r p a c e t h a n a n t i c i p a t e d Previously, Sunak had proposed a one pence reduction in income tax for 2024, aiming to lower the 20 percent rate to 19 percent However, t h i s m e a s u r e w a s a b a ndoned by Jeremy Hunt in late 2022, following a turbulent mini-budget during Liz Truss' premiership

During the Conser vative Party leadership contest last s u m m e r, Su n a k m a d e a c o m m i t m e n t t o r e d u c e income tax to 16 percent by t h e e n d o f t h e d e c a d e Ho w e v e r, t h e e s t e e m e d Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) think tank cautioned that implementing such a tax cut would result in an additional cost of £19 billion annually

Islam convert jailed over terrorism plot

Matthew King, a 19-year-old Bri ti sh teenag er, has been sentenced to a m inim um o f six years in jail for terro rism offenses Detectives believ e that he was p otentially just hou rs away fro m launching an attack on police or soldiers King, wh o conv erted to Islam d uring the Cov id-19 lo ckdo w n, quic kly becam e ra d i ca li z ed by c on s u m i ng

extrem ist materi al o n th e internet

He c o n d u c t e d s u r v e i llance of militar y barracks a n d a p o l i c e s t a t i o n a n d posted a disturbing image online with a caption indicating his intention to target l a w e n fo r c e m e n t o f f i c e r s

C o m m a n d e r D o m i n i c Murphy, the head of London police's Counter Terrorism

C o m m a n d , r e v e a l e d t h a t King had also expressed a desire to torture and kill a US or British soldier When a s ke d i f t h e p o l i c e h a d arrested him just in time,

C o m m a n d e r Mu r p h y agreed

King pleaded guilty to planning terrorist acts and received a life sentence at London's Old Bailey

Where is justice for those wronged in the Post Office scandal?

When Idi Amin’s expulsion hit the Asian community living in Uganda, many migrated to Britain, with hopes of a new and safer life They started the journey of Britain’s corner shops, as we know them today, and worked doubly hard to make ends meet Their children came to share the responsibilities after school Similarly, many Asian families were found to run subpost offices diligently for years

As story goes, former Home Secretary Priti Patel’s father Sushil established a chain of newsagents as well as ran a subpost office In 2022, the South Asian Heritage month was supported by Post Office because a survey suggested, there are over 7,000 independent Postmasters, out of which 1,300 completed the survey Almost one in three (29%) described their ethnic group as Indian, 6% described it as Pakistani, 1% Bangladeshi, 8% any other Asian background and 1% a mixed White and Asian background

As the campaigners take charge of voicing against one of the greatest injustices in history, South China Morning Post pointed out how Britain’s Post Office prosecutors are tasked with investigating sub-postmasters in a notorious miscarriage of justice involving a faulty IT system used a racial slur to classify black workers, according to documents obtained by campaigners

The Post Office Horizon scandal, which has been described as “the most widespread miscarriage of justice in UK history”, saw hundreds of innocent postmasters convicted

The information came to light through a Freedom of Information (FOI) request obtained by Eleanor Shaikh, a supporter of the more than 700 branch managers who were prosecuted between 1999 and 2015 on theft, fraud and false accounting charges

A new scheme to compensate the sub-postmasters who exposed the Post Office Horizon Scandal from the 1990s was opened in March 2023

The sub-postmasters who took the first High Court legal action against the Post Office agreed a settlement worth £43

million plus legal costs in 2019

However, much of the money from the settlement was taken up by the associated costs of funding their landmark case They were also ineligible for the Historical Shortfall Scheme that was created to compensate others who were affected by Post Office and Horizon

Dan Neidle, founder of Tax Policy Associates, in a recent article in The Times pointed out- after years spent fighting false accusations of fraud, sub-postmasters can finally apply for compensation over the Horizon IT scandal, but how much should they receive, having lost their jobs, had their assets seized, reputations shredded, marriages and livelihoods destroyed, and in some cases, even gone to prison?

There are eight key problems associated with the claiming process, as pointed out by Dan in The Times article

First it forces sub-postmasters (many of whom are in their 70s and 80s) to go through a complex legal process

Second, it makes it less likely sub-postmasters will seek legal advice when they complete the form

Third, the form fails to make it clear that sub-postmasters could claim for damage to their reputation

Fourth, the form omits any option for sub-postmasters to claim punitive damages

F i f t h , t h e P o s t O f f i c e p r e s s u r e s s u b - p o s t m a s t e r s i n t o silence, to stop them discussing their settlement offers

Sixth, the Post Office tries every possible argument to minimise pay-outs

Seventh, it provides only a token amount to cover a lawyer reviewing the settlement; and Eighth, the Post Office makes no attempt to compensate the claimants for tax "

D a n f u r t h e r a d d e d , “ T h e P o s t O f f i c e ’ s c o m p e n s a t i o n scheme isn’t fit for purpose and has become just one more entry in the sordid list of its failures and obfuscations And the compensation process itself is a scandal, and those responsible for it should face consequences as well ”

Signs of improvement in Indo-Nepal relations

India and Nepal share a unique relationship of friendship and cooperation characterised by open borders and deep-rooted people-to-people contacts, kinship and culture The four-day visit by Nepal PM Pushpa Kamal Dahal 'Prachanda' has given an opportunity for Delhi to cement the relationship with that country Nepal's location between India and China has turned it into an arena of geopolitical rivalries Amid treacherous domestic politics, Prachanda has decided that his future in office is better served by at least making friends with Delhi than Beijing The real substance of the relationship, however, is economic cooperation, particularly in the hydro-power sector and in the land-locked country's access to markets abroad through India and in the people-to-people relationship The two sides have signed a number of agreements under which India will buy 10,000 MW of electricity from Nepal in the coming year This follows changes that Nepal has made to bring its hydro-power policies in line with Delhi's new rule of not purchasing electricity from a project which has Chinese involvement A transit agreement to help Nepal trade via India's inland waterways and other connectivity agreements were also signed during the visit

Though India’s relationship with the West seems to have grown stronger, the relationship between India and Nepal has soured over the years With Nepal moving closer to China, t h i s h a s d e e p l y w o r r i e d t h e I n d i a n s e c u r i t y a g e n c i e s

Therefore, in this context, the visit of Prachanda to India – his first since assuming office in December last year – marks the resilience of the relationship between the two countries and underscores the importance given by both sides to adding further momentum to bilateral partnership There are signs of a

diplomatic shift in Kathmandu, which was earlier seen as being favourable to China

Though Prachanda, who heads the Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist Centre), was earlier perceived as being proChina, he is now widely expected to assure India that he is amenable to aligning with it to contain the influence of China He has been on record, saying that he wants to do something significant in the bilateral relationship with India Clearly, he now wants to be seen as a friend to India, shedding the image of a revolutionary who used to dub both the United States and India as imperialist forces Hope the relationship between two age-old neighbours will significantly improve post his visit

Meanwhile, the year 2023 has proven to be a turning point as India's GDP surges, solidifying its position as a front runner in the global economic race India's economy expanded by 6 1 per cent in the Q4 of the fiscal year 2022-23, leading to an annual growth rate of 7 2 per cent The growth rate during the January-March period surpassed the 4 5 per cent expansion witnessed in the previous quarter of October-December 2022-23 India's overall 7 2% GDP growth was fuelled by the strong performance in the services sector and robust consumption, solidifying India s position as one of the world s fastest expanding and major economies One notable factor contributing to India's growth is the increase in imports of capital goods, which surged by almost 20 per cent in FY23 compared to the previous year India is now the fifth-largest economy in the world due to its strong economic foundations, thriving domestic demand, careful financial management, high saving rates, and favourable demographic trends

Opposition vs Modi: Is India ready for 2024 election?

Congress leader Rahul Gandhi during his US visit criticised PM Modi and his government while courting the IndianAmerican community and praising them for their strong work ethic Rahul visited Stanford University in California, National Press Club in Washington DC and Javits Center in New York At another diaspora event, people referenced his Bharat Jodo march as they raised calls to unite India

Though the Indian diaspora might not have turned up in thousands like they do for PM Modi, volunteers from the Indian Overseas Congress were able to draw enough attendees at his events The goal of his trip was to connect, interact and start a new dialogue with a variety of people, institutions, and media, including the Indian diaspora that is expanding in the United States and other nations Gandhi s extreme Leftism also serves the interests of America and Europe, much like his attack on India's democratic credentials has gained legitimacy in the West

The main architect of Rahul Gandhi’s foreign visits and interactions has been Satyanarayan Gangaram Pitroda, popularly known as Sam Pitroda Pitroda, the head of the AICC s overseas chapters and a former engineer who now works in policymaking in the US, was Rajiv Gandhi's go-to man on India's modernisation and computerisation initiative in the 1980s Recently, Pitroda, chairperson of the Indian Overseas Congress denounced allegations against his visit They termed them as a "misinformation campaign" to tarnish the visit

Thought for the week

In March this year, Rahul visited the UK during which his remarks alleging that the structures of Indian democracy are being attacked in a "full-scale assault" caused a commotion at home His comments sparked a political brawl with the BJP accusing him of defaming India overseas The Congress retaliated against the government by highlighting occasions where PM Modi had brought up domestic issues while visiting abroad Rahul's trip comes weeks ahead of PM Modi's scheduled US visit later this month

Rahul Gandhi appears to have put together a coalition of organisations that are both anti-BJP and anti-India His ‘allies’ are not just the ones looking to uproot the BJP but are antithetical to the very idea of India Gandhi was recently disqualified from Parliament over a defamation case related to criticism of Modi surname

As for Narendra Modi, after nine years of his rule, India's economy has risen from being the tenth largest in 2014 to the fifth largest in terms of GDP, which may help the government win re-election in 2024

Despite several achievements, issues like demonetisation, agriculture reform legislation, China policy, the current Odisha train accident will haunt the Modi government The treatment of religious minorities and journalists, as well as the singling out of opposition lawmakers have drawn harsh criticism of Modi's administration

However, the real question being raised all around is about how Rahul Gandhi finances his elaborate foreign trips?

If people are doubting how far you can go, go so far that you can’t hear them anymore.

Political Sketchbook

Alpesh Patel

Michele Ruiz

The Fear of AI and the End of Civilisation

The Prime Minister met with leaders in Artificial Intelligence a few days ago Leaders in AI claim it will destroy mankind You may think of Einstein’s warning about the nuclear bomb he h e l p e d c r e a t e R e g u l a t i o n w e a r e t o l d i s t h e a n s w e r W e industrial revolution is what will kill humanity and the climate change it caused

Imagine AI so powerful it knows everything – omniscient

The internet made this possible Now image AI so powerful it can do anything – omnipotence Robotics makes this possible (think Tesla self-driving cars)

What do you call something omniscient and omnipotent? Well humanity traditionally called it ‘God’

One day, someone asks it how to create the biggest weapon Someone else asks it to construct it It’s not a nuclear explosion, but similar It’s the big bang And the cycle begins again What infinite universes begin again, in a few million years, one of them has a civilisation which creates AI and repeat

Of course to Hindus, this is not new

For now, in this world – let me tell you how my firm is leading the way and how our company has been using AI in financial services

We have been harnessing the power of AI, such as Chat GPT, to enhance our customer experiences, offering personalized, data-driven, and on-demand investment information

Let's look at a recent ChatGPT experiment to ensure we have covered all the bases on top of our usual analysis We asked it "Using the plugins, what do you see as the prospects for Nvidia stock "

"Based on the recent SEC filings and earnings call transcripts for Nvidia (NVDA), here are some key points that might influence the future prospects of the stock:

Financial Performance: Nvidia's recent financial reports indicate a strong performance The company s revenue and net income have been growing consistently This positive sign could increase the stock's value if the trend continues

Earnings Call Insights: During the recent earnings call, the management expressed optimism about the company's future p r o s p e c t s T h e y h i g h l i g h t e d t h e s t r o n g d e m a n d f o r t h e i r products and the potential growth opportunities in the AI and data center markets

In the latest earnings call transcript for Nvidia, the following points were mentioned that could be seen as warnings or potential challenges for the company's future:

S u p p l y C o n s t r a i n t s : T h e c o m p a n y m e n t i o n e d t h a t i t continues to face supply constraints and is working to manage the situation This could impact the company's ability to meet demand and affect its revenue

Regulatory Approvals: Nvidia's planned acquisition of Arm is still pending regulatory approvals The outcome of this situation could have significant implications for Nvidia's future growth strategy

Competitive Landscape: The company acknowledged the competitive landscape in the AI and gaming markets While Nvidia is currently a leader in these areas, the dynamics of the industry could change

D e p e n d e n c e o n C e r t a i n M a r k e t s : N v i d i a s s t r o n g performance is currently driven by gaming and data center market growth Any slowdown in these markets could impact the company s financial performance

ChatGPT:

"Here's a summary of the information I found: So cial Media Sentim ent:

There's a generally positive sentiment towards NVIDIA on social media platforms like Twitter and Reddit Many users are optimistic about the company s future prospects, especially given its strong position in the growing fields of AI and gaming

Here's a specific comment from StockTwits, a social media platform for investors and traders:

"Like I said here after their earnings call, �������� ���� ������ ������ �������� ���� ������������! $NVDA posts just "okay" results but then "projects" a strong outlook, and Bam, the stock rips to the point where it now needs to grow at 35% + minimum ������ for years to generate a positive return

������, (26th May, Friday afternoon) at EOD, $NVDA files an updated shelf registration ���� �������� $10BN of stock ����"

This user expresses a somewhat skeptical view of NVIDIA's s t o c k p e r f o r m a n c e , s u g g e s t i n g t h a t t h e c o m p a n y ' s s t r o n g outlook projections drive the stock price up but that the company will need to maintain a high growth rate to generate a positive return The user also mentions that NVIDIA has filed an updated shelf registration to sell $10 billion of stock, which could potentially dilute the stock's value ”

For now, we use AI, until they ban it

Police keeping an open mind in the Bournemouth beach deaths

Dorset P olice is keeping an " open mind" regard ing the ci rcu mstanc es surro unding t h e t rag ic d e ath s o f a teenag e boy and a 1 2-yearo l d g i r l w h o w ere p u ll ed f ro m t h e se a ne ar Bournemo uth Th e v ictims, id entified as Joe A bbess, 17, f ro m S o u th a m p to n , a nd S u n na h K h an, 1 2, f ro m B u c ki ng h a m s h i re, w e re b oth p ro no unc ed d ead in h ospital following th e incid ent t h at o c cu r red o n Wednesday

The family of Joe Abbess has described him as "a fabu l o u s y o u n g m a n , " w h i l e S u n n a h K h a n ' s m o t h e r , Stephanie Williams, took to Twitter to pay tribute to her b e a u t i f u l d a u g h t e r T h e investigation into the incid e n t i s o n g o i n g a s t h e a u t h o r i t i e s s e e k t o d e t e rm i n e t h e e x a c t c i r c u ms t a n c e s s u r r o u n d i n g t h e tragic event

Authorities are currently

e x p l o r i n g v a r i o u s f a c t o r s that may have contributed to the incident, including weather conditions and the state of the water However, speculations that the pair had jumped from the pier h a v e b e e n d i s m i s s e d F o l l o w i n g t h e i n c i d e n t , D o r s e t P o l i c e i m p o u n d e d the Dorset Belle sightseeing boat It has been clarified that this action was just one of several lines of inquiry b e i n g p u r s u e d a s p a r t o f their investigation into the incident

NHS offers Polio “catch-up” jab for east London kids

S o u r c e T w i t e r

A t l e a s t 2 0 0 p e o p l e a t t e n d e d t h e f u n e r a l f o r S u n n a h K h a n a t H i g h W y c o m b e M o s q u e i n h e r h o m e t o w n i n B u c k i n g h a m s h i r e , o n Saturday The incident took place amidst a busy day at the beach during the halft e r m p e r i o d , i n v o l v i n g a group of 10 swimmers

According to the latest updates, an inquest opening at Dorset Coroner's Court heard of a "suggestion" that a riptide had led to the pair’s drowning

Are Britons getting over their love for curry?

T he British fondness for curry d ates back m any centuries, well befo re the flo urishing of the late 1970s t h at w i tne s se d t h e s h a rp i nc re as e o f curry restaurants in every tow n and city G o i ng o u t f o r a c urry, ac co m pani ed b y na an b rea d became a Frid ay night trad ition th at extended well into the 1990s and 20 00s H o w e v e r , i n r e c e n t years, the traditional British c u r r y h o u s e h a s f a c e d a decline, and this decline is p a r t i c u l a r l y e v i d e n t i n B i r m i n g h a m ' s B a l t i T r i a n g l e O n c e b u s t l i n g with numerous Balti restaur a n t s , t h e a r e a n o w o n l y boasts four remaining establishments This decline in popularity and the continu-

ously reducing number of curry houses reflects a shift in dining preferences and an evolving culinary landscape Estimates regarding the n u m b e r o f I n d i a n r e s t a urants in the UK, predomin a n t l y o w n e d b y t h e B a n g l a d e s h i c o m m u n i t y , vary and are subject to conf l i c t i n g f i g u r e s H o w e v e r , m o s t s o u r c e s i n d i c a t e a decline from approximately 1 2 , 0 0 0 e s t a b l i s h m e n t s i n 2011 to around 8,000 at pre-

A Call for Humanity

Mahavir Vruddhashram functions under the auspices of Mahavir Kalyan and Vikas Trust. Shri Madhavlal Purohit, President of this charity organisation will be travelling to the UK from 15-7-2023 till 30-7-2023.

During his visit, he is looking forward to meeting elderly people and parents in order to seek their blessings and guidance in learning from their life experiences. He is willing to meet and interact with generous donors, philanthropists, charity organisations and social groups.

We humbly request our Indian brothers and sisters settled in the UK to spare a few minutes for this noble cause.

For further information contact:

President Shri Madhavlal Purohit

Mahavir Oldage Home, Nr. Resthouse, Bilimora (West) Ta. Gandevi, Dist. Navsari. Gujarat (INDIA) 396321

M: + 91 99256 73021 ⌡ O: + 91 2634 285121

Email: madhavlal.purohit@gmail.com

Website: www.mahaviroldagehouse.com

Parents in east London are b ei ng st ro ng ly ad v i s ed to ensure that th ei r chi ld ren receive co mplete p rotection against polio and m easles Th e appeal to parents in east L o n d o n e m p h as i ze s t h e im p ortance o f v acc inatio n as a p rev en ti v e m ea su r e against th ese d iseases and h i g h l ig h ts th e p o te nt ia l tr ag i c c o ns e qu en ce s th a t can arise if ch ild ren remain unprotected

The recent alert regardi n g p o l i o i n e a s t L o n d o n comes as a result of detecting traces of the virus in sewage last year In response to this finding, an NHS vaccine "catch-up" program has been initiated for children between the ages of one and

1 1 w h o m a y h a v e m i s s e d t h e i r s c h e d u l e d v a c c i n ations These catch-up vaccinations are being administered at primary schools, GP s u r g e r i e s , a n d c o m m u n i t y centres

The program additionall y c o v e r s v a c c i n e s f o r m u m p s a n d r u b e l l a I t i s being implemented across eight local authority areasT o w e r H a m l e t s , H a c k n e y , The City, Newham, Barking

a n d D a g e n h a m , W a l t h a m

F o r e s t , R e d b r i d g e , a n d

H a v e r i n g A c c o r d i n g t o

r e c e n t N H S d a t a , o n e i n

four children in east London have not received all their required vaccinations by the age of five This figure falls s i g n i f i c a n t l y b e l o w t h e W o r l d H e a l t h Organization's target of 95% coverage

The situation is of concern as the UK has reported cases of a circulating form of polio, which, although rare, can potentially lead to paralysis in individuals who are n o t f u l l y i m m u n i z e d I n addition to polio, cases of measles have also been on the rise in London, with 33 confirmed reports this year

Diaspora support for Indian Hockey team

Th e Indian Hockey team is currently in th e U K to parti c i p ate in th e FI H P ro League m atches held at the L e e Va ll ey H o ck ey an d Tennis C entre in London

S o u r c e T w t t e r

s e n t T h e y o u n g e r g e n e r a t i o n s o f r e s t a u r a n t o w n e r s are choosing not to i n h e r i t t h e i r f a m i l y businesses, resulting in a decline in succession Additionally, the post-Brexit period has seen a reduct i o n i n u n s k i l l e d l a b o u r a v a i l a b i l i t y , worsening the labour shortage issue faced by the industry

While the decline of traditional curry houses may be observed, it is worth noting t h a t t h e B r i t i s h l o v e f o r c u r r y h a s n o t d i m i n i s h e d entirely The culinary scene h a s d i v e r s i f i e d , w i t h t h e e m e r g e n c e o f n e w d i n i n g options such as regional and m o d e r n I n d i a n c u i s i n e , fusion concepts, and street food-inspired outlets

During their visit, the team h a d th e o p p o rt u ni ty to attend a speci al rec eptio n hosted by the Indian High C ommission in L ond on A t the gathering, members o f the Indian d iasp ora showed their suppo rt and enthusiasm fo r th e team by ch anting 'Chak De Ind ia, ' a popular phrase associ ated with Indian hockey

D u r i n g t h e r e c e p t i o n , t h e t e a m , l e d b y c a p t a i n H a r m a n p r e e t S i n g h , engaged with hockey enthus i a s t s a n d s h a r e d i n s i g h t s i n t o t h e i r s t r o n g c a m araderie and team spirit Such interactions provide a platform for the players to conn e c t w i t h f a n s , e x c h a n g e e x p e r i e n c e s , a n d f o s t e r a s e n s e o f u n i t y a n d p r i d e within the Indian community residing in the UK

During the event, an inconversation segment took

place with several members o f t h e 2 0 - m e m b e r I n d i a n Hockey squad The discussion was coordinated by the I n d i a n D e p u t y H i g h Commissioner to the UK, Sujit Ghosh, who highlighte d t h e d i v e r s e s k i l l s a n d e x p e r t i s e o f t h e d i f f e r e n t players Indian goalkeeper P R Sreejesh, who received accol a d e s , e m p h a s i z e d t h e team's ability to represent a harmonious blend of cultures from different regions o f I n d i a O t h e r p l a y e r s s h a r e d i n s i g h t s a b o u t t h e significance of maintaining

a positive mindset regardless of the match outcome T h e c o a c h o f t h e I n d i a n H o c k e y t e a m p r a i s e d t h e u n i q u e s t y l e a n d i d e n t i t y that the team embodies

The Indian Hockey team h a s u p c o m i n g m a t c h e s scheduled on June 2 against Belgium and June 3 against G r e a t B r i t a i n a t t h e L e e Valley Hockey and Tennis Centre in London Ahead of these matches, the team has e x t e n d e d a n i n v i t a t i o n t o the Indian diaspora fans to join them and provide their support and cheer from the stands

Young Britons at risk of exploitation this summer

Barnardo 's, the UK 's largest ch ild ren's charity, h as raised co n ce rns a bo u t a r ec o rd num ber o f children being at risk of sexual and crim inal exp l o i tat io n d u r in g t h e su mmer du e to the ongoing co s t o f l i v i ng c ri si s Accord ing to th eir p oll, six in 1 0 parents are strugg ling to afford activ ities such as cl u bs , o u ti ng s, o r tak i ng time off w ork during th e sixweek scho ol break

With more than 5 million children aged 11-17 in England and Wales, experts b e l i e v e t h a t a s i g n i f i c a n t number of them are now at a higher risk of exploitation d u e t o t h e l a c k o f a d u l t s u p e r v i s i o n a n d i n c r e a s e d

vulnerability online or in the o u t s i d e w o r l d F r o n t l i n e workers at Barnardo's have highlighted how the cost-ofliving crisis is pushing famil i e s i n t o p o v e r t y , m a k i n g children more susceptible to t h e i n f l u e n c e o f c r i m i n a l

gangs

A c c o r d i n g t o a r e c e n t survey involving 1,191 parents and 729 children aged 11 to 17, alarming findings h a v e e m e r g e d r e g a r d i n g their concerns during the holiday period The survey r e v e a l e d t h a t o n e i n 1 0 respondents expressed worr i e s a b o u t e n c o u n t e r i n g criminal gangs in their local area Additionally, the same proportion of respondents

e x p r e s s e d c o n c e r n s a b o u t n o t h a v i n g a c c e s s t o s a f e places in their neighbourhood during the summer

The closure of 760 youth centres since 2010 and the s u b s t a n t i a l r e d u c t i o n i n c o u n c i l e x p e n d i t u r e o n youth services have significantly impacted the availa b i l i t y o f s a f e s p a c e s a n d s u p p o r t i v e p r o g r a m s f o r young people The lack of

funding in some areas, with councils admitting zero alloc a t i o n t o y o u t h s e r v i c e s , e x a c e r b a t e s t h e p r o b l e m

The survey highlights that more than half of the child r e n s u r v e y e d e x p r e s s e d c o n c e r n s a b o u t b o r e d o m and having nothing to do d u r i n g t h e s u m m e r h o l i -

days

The increased reliance on online activities during the summer holidays raises concerns about the potent i a l r i s k s a n d d a n g e r s o f e x p l o i t a t i o n T h e s u r v e y f o u n d t h a t s e v e n i n 1 0 y o u n g s t e r s e x p e c t e d t o spend more time on their c o m p u t e r s a n d a l m o s t 1 0 children

Joe Abbess Sunnah Khan

Indian Senior Men’s Hockey team at the Indian High Commission in London

Report seeks to bring down re-offending while plugging labour shortages

S u p p o r t f ro m t h e R a nd al Ch ar i ta bl e F ou ndation has helped e na b le a ma j o r r ep o rt w h i c h i s c al li n g f o r 50,000 prison leavers to p lug th e current labo ur sh ortage

The new report by t h i n k t a n k T h e C e n t r e for Social Justice (CSJ) h i g h l i g h t s t h a t B r i t a i n w o u l d s a v e b i l l i o n s o f p o u n d s o f t a x p a y e r money and plug many of its more than one million job vacancies if it doubled down on efforts t o g e t p r i s o n e r s i n t o work when they leave jail

T h e L e i c e s t e r s h i r ebased Foundation collaborated with the CSJ to bring forward the report, which highlights that, of the nearl y 5 0 , 0 0 0 p e o p l e l e a v i n g prisons in the UK each year, only three in ten have a job six months later

Those who struggle to find work are at serious risk of reoffending, which perpetuates the cycle of crime that blights so many families and communities

Dr (Prof) Nik Kotecha

OBE DL, Founder of the R a n d a l C h a r i t a b l e F o u n d a t i o n , s a i d : “ I ’ m immensely proud that our p a r t n e r s h i p w i t h t h e C S J h a s l e d t o t h i s g r o u n db r e a k i n g r e p o r t , w h i c h i s n o w b e i n g c o n s i d e r e d b y the Justice Minister

“If enacted, it will go further and faster towards addressing the staggering £18 billion annual cost of r e o f f e n d i n g , a s r e s e a r c h s h o w s t h a t b e i n g i n employment is proven to h e l p b r e a k t h e c y c l e o f crime

“Plugging labour shortages will also provide enormous benefits to the econo m y , a s t h e C h a n c e l l o r l a b e l l e d e m p l o y e e s h o r tages as a major threat to e c o n o m i c g r o w t h i n h i s most recent Budget

T h e g o v e r n m e n t w i l l now consider recommen-

“I am an adopted Brummie”- Birmingham’s first British Indian Lord Mayor Chaman Lal

“I am an ado pted Bru mmie, and I never thou ght that one day I wo uld becom e the L ord M ayor of my ado pted city”, Councillor C ham an Lal said on taking charg e as Bi rm ingham ’ s first British Indian L ord Mayor

A member of the Ravidassia community of British Sikhs, he was born in the village of Pakhowal in Hoshiarpur before moving to the UK He has served as a local councillor for many years, representing the Soho and Jewellery Quarter Ward Chaman Lal is affiliated with the Labour Party and was first elected as a councillor in 1994 In the most recent local elections, he was reelected to continue his role

His father, Sardar Harnam Singh Banga, was a British Indian army officer who served in the Italian campaign during World War II and migrated to E n g l a n d i n 1 9 5 4 a n d s e t t l e d i n

Birmingham, where he worked in various industries, including British Steel Chaman Lal came to England with his mother, Sardarni Jai Kaur, to join his father in 1964

He has been living in Birmingham ever since and is an alum of Wattville Secondary Modern School He further attended evening classes at Sandwell and Matthew Boulton Colleges His entrepreneurial spirit led him to establish his own electronics business and other ventures over the years He married Vidya Wati in 1971, and together they have three daughters and two sons He has actively participated in various social justice campaigns aimed at combating inequality and discrimination Over the past 29 years, he has served on numerous committees within the local council, including his role as a cabinet advisor for major transport projects More recently, he has held the position of Chair of the Sustainability and Transport Overview and Scrutiny Committee

dations including releasing more prisoners on licence to take up jobs and greater access to vocational qualifications, according to The Times newspaper P r i s o n s M i n i s t e r Damian Hinds wrote in a f o r e w o r d f o r t h e t h i n ktank's report: “There are over a million vacancies in the UK So, there has never been a better opportunity for businesses to unlock the potential in our prisons

“Getting more prisoners into work really is a w i n - w i n i t w i l l c u t c r i m e b y r e d u c i n g r e o ff e n d i n g a n d g r o w o u r economy to the benefit of us all ”

As well as wider releases for employment purposes, the report goes on to call for better education in t h e U K ' s p r i s o n s y s t e m , more digital technology, a wider range of vocational qualifications and earlier access to student loans

Policy Director of the CSJ, Joe Shalam, added: “If implemented, our recommendations would represent a major step forward Because while the need to restore control and order in our prisons remains an urgent priority, the power of these measures is that they are focused on restoring something altogether more profound Hope ”

Hackney police arrests man for racial aggravation

A 25 -y ear-old man ha s b een a p p r e he n d e d b y t h e M e t r o po l i t a n P ol i ce in H a ck n e y fo l l o wi n g a n a ll eged assaul t on a passerb y The man also ma de racist comme nts

The incident took place on Stoke Newington High Street on Saturday (June 3) around 12:30 pm After being alerted by a member of the p u b l i c , p o l i c e o f f i c e r s responded to the report and were informed that the man had targeted someone on the s t r e e t w h i l e m a k i n g a n t isemitic remarks

Subsequently, the police

l o c a t e d a n d a r r e s t e d t h e individual on suspicion of racially aggravated assault

However, the situation escalated as the man also reportedly assaulted the officers, damaged a police van, and subsequently faced additional arrests for these offenses

He is currently in custody, and the police are treating the incident as a hate crime

This occurrence follows another incident on May 7, where a man was arrested for a l l e g e d l y d i r e c t i n g a n t isemitic slurs at a Jewish passer-by on Ravensdale Road in Hackney

Dr (Prof) Nik Kotecha OBE DL Founder of the Randal Charitable Foundation

Cllr Chaman Lal

It’s time for Hindus to unite: Madhavpriyadas Ji Swami

S a dg u ru S h a s tr i Sh r e e

M ad ha vpr iy ad as j i S wa mi , th e head of Gurukul Parivar an d t he S w a m i n a r a y an G ur u k ul ,

A h m e da b a d b e li e v e s t h a t

Sanatan roots help us to m aintain uni ty an d integrity in our fami ly, communi ty and world

It’ s tim e for Hindu Dharma f ollowers to unite otherwi se there will be a b ig loss to thi s ancie nt and n ob le religion

Swami Shri is on the UK’s spiritual tour from 29 May to 30 July 2023 Till 10 June 2023 from 6 pm to 8 pm, he will be delivering Sahajanand Vyakhyanmala

a t S h r e e K u t c h S a t s a n g S w a m i n a r a y a n T e m p l e , Kenton, Harrow In a special talk at the Kenton Mandir, he said, “Unity is the main pillar of Hindu Dharma, and this blend of Unity in Diversity cannot be seen in any other religion in the World This diversity is just like a Garden having a variety of F l o w e r s , a l l h a v i n g d i f f e r e n t c o l o u r s , f r a g r a n c e s a n d s i z e s but having the same vision and goal It’s like the flow of rivers, they originate from different

Navnat Vanik

places and flow on different paths but get united in the Sea

T h e s a m e i s w i t h H i n d u D h a r m a , t h e r e a r e v a r i o u s Panth but they are united with one Param Tatva Every Hindu should know who they are ”

Talking about the Ancient Gurukul education, Swami Shri added, “It was the most successful way of educating society That’s why Bharat (India) was the Golden Sparrow at that t i m e O u r G u r u k u l s w e r e w o r l d - f a m o u s T o d a y p e o p l e w o r l d w i d e s e l e c t O x f o r d , C a m b r i d g e o r H a r v a r d U n i v e r s i t i e s a n d i n a n c i e n t t i m e s t h e y u s e d t o g o t o

Takshshila and Nalanda uni-

Association

UK and Jain Student Association UK to host University and Careers Fair 2023

N av nat V a ni k As so c i at io n U K and Jain S tu dent Association UK are hosting their Universi ty and Careers F air 202 3 T he event will take place o n Satu rday 1st Ju ly 2023 from 11 00 am to 4 00 pm at Navnat Centre, P rinting H ouse Lane, Hayes, UB3 1AR

The event will shed light on b o t h t h e t r a d i t i o n a l a n d u n c o n v e n t i o n a l c a r e e r p a t h s , providing support to prospective university students in embracing alternative pathways to push the boundaries of the information traditionally available at schools It will feature approximately 25 s t a l l s r e p r e s e n t i n g o v e r 5 0 professional career opportunities a n d t a l k s c o v e r i n g U C A S a p p l i c a t i o n s , a p p r e n t i c e s h i p s , entrepreneurship, etc

This is a great opportunity to e x p l o r e a r a n g e o f f u t u r e education and career paths and can help people connect with individuals at different stages in

ENDANGERED ORCHID IN UK FOR THE FIRST TIME

versities They were not religious universities even then the pillars were established on the values of Dharma, panth and Spirituality The whole concept of Gurukul education was for the betterment of the whole world ” M a d h a v p r i y a d a s J i s a i d ,

“The Gurukul system is versatile and progressive The three main pillars of the ancient education system were: Absolute faith in the Param Satta, respect and affection between GuruShishya and the most important part were, the Gurus were not selling the education, they were d i s t r i b u t i n g t h e e d u c a t i o n There was very much concern and care about Mother Nature We used to worship trees in the C h a i t n y a S w a r o o p T h e W e s t e r n w o r l d d i d n ’ t u n d e rstand this and now all are facing Global warming The ancient G u r u k u l e d u c a t i o n w a s f o r e a r n i n g a n d l e a r n i n g m o r a l s and duties The Guru-Shishya relationship was a lifelong relationship ” Talking about family values,

he said, “To respect elders and worship women are some of the rare values we have Language is the glue of bonding and the true definition of any culture The y o u n g g e n e r a t i o n m u s t b e t a u g h t a b o u t f a m i l y u n i t y , affection, and mutual growth If a language is in danger, there is a direct threat to the culture

Give the knowledge of the best essence of Hindu Sanskriti in English to the young generation so that they could remain connected with their roots For this, we need mass awakening on the world level ”

He further added, “I want to say to the people of the UK, you a r e e a r n i n g f r o m y o u r Karmabhumi, excess facilities and benefits but don’t misuse y o u r r i g h t A l w a y s u s e y o u r earnings for good work In the s a m e w a y , B h a r a t i s y o u r Matrubhumi Your roots, bond and affection must be maintained The young generation should get rid of any kind of addiction They must unders t a n d t h e S u p r e m e T a t v a o f Hindu Dharma ”

Europe Din and Bal-Balika Din celebrated at Neasden Temple

A species of endangered orchid has bloomed in the United Kingdom for the very first time The orchid scientifically known as Dendrophylax lindenii and commonly referred to as the Florida Ghost Orchid in the United States and Cuba, has recently flourished at the Royal Botanic Gardens located in Kew, a region in south-west London Having been transported from Chicago just two weeks prior, the orchid bud was showcased at the prestigious Chelsea Flower Show before being brought to Kew Professor Mike Fay a senior research leader at RBG Kew hailed the flowering of this orchid in the UK as a remarkable "positive conservation story "

PM’S PLAN SHOULD LEAD THE MIGRATION TO FALL BELOW 10,000

their careers While the event is d i r e c t e d t o w a r d s e c o n d a r y school students and parents in t h e p r o c e s s o f c o n s i d e r i n g u n i v e r s i t y a p p l i c a t i o n s a l o n g with university students looking for guidance on entering the job market for the first time, the event is open to all

Public demand brings back the popular Pilot Careers Live North event

Followi ng pub lic demand , the p o p u la r P i l o t C a r e e r s L i ve North even t is b ack The even t w ill be held on Saturday, 8 July b etwe en 10 am and 4 pm a t C on cord e C onf eren ce C ent re, M a n c h e s t e r a n d w i l l o f f e r a chan ce to explore care ers i n the a viati on i ndus try It will give insight into how i t a l l w

education and learning options, find places to train, and more T h i s e v e n t i s s u p p o r t e d b y B r i t i s h A i r w a y s , E a s y J e t a n d

Ryanair Event organisers, Pilot Career News, are committed to Equality, Diversity & Inclusion and are encouraging delegates from Black, Asian & Minority Ethnic (BAME) communities to attend For tickets and more information visit www pilotcareerslive com

Europe Din and Bal-Balika

Din were celebrated at Neasden Temple on 4 June 2023 His Holiness Mahant Swami Maharaj is recuperating well and performed morning aarti, engrossed in the darshan and watched the evening Sabha programme for Europe Din

According to internal Home Office modelling illegal migration would need to decrease significantly to below 10 000 per year in order for Rishi Sunak s proposed legislation to have any effect on illegal boat crossings The Illegal Migration Bill aims to grant the government extensive powers to automatically reject, detain, and remove asylum seekers who enter the UK unlawfully The assumption underlying the preparations for the asylum law overhaul is that the combination of the new measures and the policy of deporting illegal migrants to Rwanda will result in annual arrivals dropping below 10,000 within the next three years This figure is considered the maximum number that Home Office officials believe the government can manage while implementing the controversial new measures It represents an 80% reduction in annual crossings compared to the previous year during which Border Force detected over 54 000 illegal migrants entering the UK with approximately 45 000 arriving via small boats So far this year more than 7 600 individuals have arrived illegally marking a decrease of only 20% compared to the same period last year

FREQUENCY OF OUTOF-WORK YOUNG ADULTS WITH ILLNESS DOUBLES

A c c o rd i ng t o t h eT im es , A m ar Bh id é, th e d ir ec t o r w h o wa s remo ved f ro m the bo ard of the S c o tt is h M o rt ga ge I nv es t me nt Trust in March, has accused the company of misleading shareholders H e lo dged a co mplaint with th e Financial Conduct A uthority (F C A ), c l ai mi ng t h a t S c o t ti s h Mo rtgage misrepresented the main caus e o f his disagreement with the board and failed to address his conc erns abou t the appo intment o f new board members Bhidé, aged 67, is a former McKinsey management consultant and professor of internationa l b u s i n e s s H e j o i n e d t h e

Scottish Mortgage board in 2020, reportedly based on the endorsement of Prof Sir John Kay, a distinguished academic and outgo-

ing board member His dismissal from the board of the FTSE 100 company came after he publicly expressed his concerns, including a l l e g a t i o n s t h a t c h a i r w o m a n Fiona McBain lacked independence McBain, aged 62, announced her intention to step down after t h e a n n u a l m e e t i n g i n J u n e , marking the end of her 14-year t e n u r e A d d i t i o n a l l y , a n o t h e r non-executive member left the board, while two new members were appointed Scottish Mortgage Investment T r u s t i s a w i d e l y r e c o g n i z e d investment trust that offers retail investors an opportunity to invest in technology-driven businesses, i n c l u d i n g t h o s e l i s t e d a n d

According to research conducted by the Resolution Foundation think tank the number of 18 to 24-year-olds facing economic inactivity due to ill health has almost doubled in the past decade The majority of these young individuals are experiencing difficulties in education with four out of five having qualifications at the GCSE level or below The think tank, which received funding from the Health Foundation charity, described this trend as a "worrying" development that has largely gone unnoticed While overall levels of worklessness among young people remain low, there has been a significant increase in the number of young individuals who are unable to work due to ill health In 2012, the number stood at 94,000, but it rose to 185 000 in 2022 This represents a near doubling of the figure over the past decade The report also highlights that almost one in four young people who are not at work are inactive due to ill health, compared to less than one in ten in 2012

Sadguru Shastri Shree Madhavpriyadasji

Shareholders being misled by Scottish mortgage firm, claims fired director

Junior doctors strike action

Use services wisely, urges NHS

Th e 7 2- h o u r w a lk o ut by j u ni o r d o cto r s a cr os s th e capital will start at 7 am on Wednesday 14 June u ntil 7 am on S aturd ay 17 June

The NHS in London will prioritise urgent and emergency care d u r i n g t h e u p c o m i n g i n d u s t r i a l action planned by junior doctors who are members of the British Medical Association (BMA)

Junior doctors make up almost 50% of the NHS workforce, and while the NHS in London has prepared extensively, significant disruption to services is expected during this time

In order to ensure that safe care continues to be available for those with urgent and life-threatening healthcare needs, the NHS will prioritise emergency care, and patients should prepare for longer waits for non-urgent care along with some planned appointments and operations to be rescheduled to a later date People should continue to attend hospital appointments unless they are contacted by their local NHS and informed otherwise NHS 111 online remains the best first port of call for people with urgent medical or dental care needs, where a trained adviser will provide advice and the best care pathway

It is therefore vital that people use hospital emergency services a p p r o p r i a t e l y t o e n s u r e c a r e i s

available to patients who need it most

GP practices will continue to be open during the junior doctor strike People can also get health advice from local pharmacists who have the right clinical training to s u p p o r t w i t h a r a n g e o f n o n -

u r g e n t c o n d i t i o n s a n d s i g n p o s t patients to a GP or A&E where necessary

N o a p p o i n t m e n t i s n e e d e d with local NHS pharmacy teams, who offer a fast and convenient service and if needed can speak to patients in the privacy of an onsite consultation room

Ketan Agravat, Pharmacist at Pearl Chemist, Wandsworth said, “We encourage the community to come forward for pharmacist support for any health issues that are of concern, especially during this period of industrial action when other services are likely to be busier than usual

“We are able to recommend the right treatment for a range of common conditions, such as tummy t r o u b l e s , a c h e s a n d p a i n s , s k i n rashes, period pains and migraines

“Furthermore, many pharmacies are open right through the week Monday to Saturday, sometimes Sundays, with no appointments needed

“If you ’ re feeling unwell, don’t w a i t f o r y o u r s y m p t o m s t o g e t worse For expert advice, talk to your local pharmacist ”

Dr Prem Sh arma OBE at a conference o n p eace, with a sp ecial focus on Ukraine, held on 18 TH M ay in the Ho uses of Parliament opened the conference by saying , “If w e want peace in Ukraine and in th e world , lead ers have to

f r o m p e r s o n a l e x p e r iences in Ukraine, Afghanistan and Iran, while others reflected more broadly on multiple factors linked to peace The conference had a dual focus: a broad perspective on peace in the post-Covid-19 and post-Ukraine conflict era and a sharp focus on the situation in Ukraine Hearers were moved by stories of suffering and courage and challenged to grapple with the m u l t i p l e r e s p o n s e s n e e d e d , i n c l u d i n g e d u c a t i o n , w o m e n ’ s e m p o w e r m e n t , t a c k l i n g c l i m a t e change and dealing with poverty and hunger

International speakers joined online and in person Dr Imbenzi George, an expert in global peace o p e r a t i o n s , w a s m o v e d b y t h e speakers’ stories to tear up his prepared speech and urge all of us to

‘become part of the story’ of peace

Ramu Damodaran and Philip Laird joined by video to urge the vital p l a c e o f e d u c a t i o n a n d u n d e rs t a n d i n g i n s t r i v i n g f o r p e a c e “ 2023 is a year of reckoning,” said Rajendra Shende, climate change expert, also on video “Global peace is on thin ice, and the ice is melting fast ” Our relationship to nature has to change: it is vitally connected to peace Svitlana Morenets, a Ukrainian journalist, reflected critically on prospects for peace in Ukraine, while Azadeh Zabeti, an Iranian lawyer, gave a chilling picture of the situation of women in Iran and the regime’s threat to peace, similar to Shukria Rezaei’s appeal for women in Afghanistan

P r o f e s s o r Y i n s h a n T a n g o f Henley Business School explained t h e u n i q u e W o r l d P e a c e I n d e x d e v e l o p e d b y t h e M a g n a C a r t a F o u n d a t i o n , w h i l e P r o f e s s o r

Richard Li-Hua, EICC President,

showed how innovation is the key t o a c h i e v i n g p e a c e i n t o d a y ’ s w o r l d D r L u c y L u , P r o v o s t o f Ardent University, coordinated the group of women speakers

“A laudable effort for world peace There is so much to learn a n d d o , ” c o m m e n t e d S u b h a s h Thakrar,

V i c e P r e s i d e n t , L o n d o n C h a m b e r o f C o m m e r c e a n d Industry

“I really loved the presentat i o n s o f t h e y o u n g p e o p l e a n d w o m e n , ” R a m G i d o o m a l C B E , Chairman, SADP

“Many leaders seek their own glory and want to be greater than others,” said Dr Sharma “They need to learn that true greatness is service of others And all of us have to change, as we understand what causes conflict and learn to be peacebuilders Ultimately, peace b e g i n s w i t h e a c h o f u s , b e i n g changed from the inside ”

“If we want peace in Ukraine and in the world, leaders have to change”

Dr Prem Sharma listens to Katherine Fletcher MP

London needs migrants, suggests Sadiq Khan

L ond on Mayor Sad iq Khan

h as expressed h is belief that t h e c ap i ta l re qu i re s a n i n cr eas ed nu m b er o f m igrants and adv ocates for t h e a u th o ri ty to p e rm i t m o re ind iv id uals to co m e and work in th e city

Speaking to Channel 4 News, he said: “I’ve no hesit a t i o n i n s a y i n g w e n e e d more migrants in London”, a d d i n g t h a t t h e r e w a s a shortage of skills and labour

W h i l e a c k n o w l e d g i n g t h e perspectives of those who advocate for reduced immig r a t i o n t o t h e U K , K h a n emphasized that he respects such opinions However, he also asserted that a higher l e v e l o f m i g r a t i o n w o u l d contribute to the growth of London's economy

Mayor Sadiq Khan highlighted the challenges faced by the construction industry due to an aging workforce and the departure of work-

Probe launched into racist threats against Humza Yousaf

Sadiq Khan

ers from EU countries He cited these circumstances as e v i d e n c e s u p p o r t i n g t h e n e c e s s i t y f o r " s e n s i b l e migration " Furthermore, he s u g g e s t e d t h a t i f o t h e r regions in the country pref e r r e d r e d u c e d m i g r a t i o n , London should be granted the autonomy to pursue its own migration policies

H e s a i d : “ D e v o l v e t o cities like London the powers to have a regional shortage occupation list so I can be in charge of deciding how many people come into London to help our economy ”

Rishi Sunak to propose

UK’s prominent role in AI regulations to Biden

D ur in g his upcoming meetin g wit h US Pre side nt Joe

B ide n in Wa shington, Rishi Sunak inte nds to propose his pl an for t he UK t o take a pr ominent role in e sta blishing inte rnat iona l regula tions for ar tificial intel ligen ce (AI) This mov e follows a recent wa rn ing by 35 0 infl uen tia l figures from the AI sector, who expressed concerns that AI coul d pose a threa t on par with nuclea r war and pand e mics, p ot en t ial l y en da nge ring humanity

M r S u n a k i s a c t i v e l y pursuing efforts to position his government at the forefront of addressing AI-related issues on the global stage

During the G7 summit in Japan in May, he advocated for the implementation of global "guardrails" to effectively monitor advanced AI and safeguard society, economics, and national security from potential threats

I n c l u d i n g A I i n t h e N a t i o n a l R i s k R e g i s t e r would signify its classification as a matter that the gove r n m e n t a c t i v e l y p r e p a r e s contingency plans for, similar to how it addresses other potential risks such as floodi n g , p a n d e m i c s , t e r r o r i s t attacks, and nuclear weapon

Are you rising in your career or growing?

Rohit

Vadhwana

Police are cu rrently inv estig at in g rac i s t t h re ats and abusiv e messages that have been directed at Scotland's F i rs t M i ni s ter , Hu m za Y o u sa f T h e i nv e st ig ati o n was initiated following an i nqu i ry by T h e S c o ts m an newspaper into the v ideosharing platform BitChute

The inquiry revealed an increase in abusive content s p e c i f i c a l l y t a r g e t i n g H u m z a Y o u s a f , w h i c h i n c l u d e d v i d e o s f r o m a white nationalist broadcaste r b a s e d i n t h e U n i t e d States Mr Yousaf expressed t h a t h e e x p e c t e d p r o m p t action to remove the "vile" content Subsequently, the police launched an investigation after receiving a comp l a i n t f r o m h i s o f f i c e , a s reported by the newspaper The First Minister expressed that he is used to being the

recipient of online abuse in public service

"I know that the overwhelming majority of people in Scotland want to live i n a c o u n t r y w h e r e a l l minority groups are not just protected but accepted for who they are – and as First Minister, I’m determined to use the office to help build a country where all of our citizens live a life free from h a t r e d , Y o u s a f t o l d T h e Scotsman

Soaking in the sun

Ofte n we misint erp ret the ter m ca re er growth as a rise in care er If you a re empl oye d in a compa ny and ge tting promotions a t reg ula r inte rva ls, it's a rise in you r ca re er It ce rta inly is e xp ecte d to be co uple d with a pa y hike as we ll In most cases, it is a mea su reme nt of succe ss in your care er It is a r ecognition o f your tale nt and ha rd wo rk It sho ws your ca pabilit y as a pr ofe ssional

But what happens when you have risen to a certain level, and there are not many roles above it? Till the time there is any vacancy above, you do not get a rise in rank again However, your pay may increase with time, b u t g e t t i n g a p r o m o t i o n m i g h t n o t b e p o s s i b l e However, if you see your current position, and analyse it from the aspects of stretched responsibility, the o p p o r t u n i t y t o p a r t i c i p a t e i n i m p o r t a n t m e e t i n g s , respect for your views and a position where you can guide and train your juniors, they may add positively to your experience and skill They would fuel your career growth, even though there would be no change in designation

Just moving up is not a measurement of success in a career There is less space at the top of the mountain, so unless someone vacates, you can't set foot there It is understandable. Therefore, after a certain level in your career, it is better to evaluate your career from other relevant parameters as well If your relationship with the employee and colleagues is cordial, your views are taken seriously, you are welcomed in important meetings, there are opportunities to learn new things and you have the freedom to make decisions reasonably independently, they count for growth They count for success They add to your career profile and serve as a base for any future opportunity

strikes

It is worth noting that the most recent version of the risk register, published in 2020, does not explicitly list AI as a standalone risk b u t d o e s m a k e i n c i d e n t a l references to it However, advocating for the formal inclusion of AI on the register would signify the recognition of its potential impact and the need for proactive measures to address associated risks

A c c o r d i n g t o a W h i t e h a l l s o u r c e , t h e U K government's White Paper on AI, released in March, is r e g a r d e d a s b e i n g m o r e practical and future-oriented compared to similar publications from the US or EU The source further stated that ministers and officials a r e a c t i v e l y e n g a g e d i n developing the subsequent m e a s u r e s f o r e f f e c t i v e l y a d d r e s s i n g t h e c h a l l e n g e s and opportunities presented by AI technology

Family first: Amrik Singh Insan, Santosh Kaur Insan, Simerpreet Kaur Insan, Gursimer Singh Insan and Gurdeep Singh Insan during a family picnic and walk in the Runnymede Riverside near Egham, UK

Delay in NHS staffing shortage fix

Health lead ers have expressed concerns that the NHS is unable to red uce waiting lists due to the d elayed release of a workforce strategy aim ed at add ressing staffing sh ortag es The strategy, which was sch ed uled to be published last year, has faced repeated d elays

The ongoing delay has led to extended waiting times as the NHS grapples with an exodus of demoralized doctors and nurses,

Prince Harry presents evidence against MGN

P ri nce Harry, th e D uke of S ussex, went to a U K cou rt o n Tu esday for his lawsuit a ga i ns t B ri t ai n 's Mi r ro r Grou p Newspapers ( MGN) H e claims th at th e tabloid p u b li s h e r ga th er ed i n f o rm at i o n u nl aw fu ll y D uring th e heari ng, Harry criticized the tabloid press " I t w a s a d o w n w a r d spiral, whereby the tabloids w o u l d c o n s t a n t l y t r y a n d coax me, a 'damaged' young man, into doing something

stupid that would make a good story and sell lots of newspapers," Harry said in a statement released Tuesday as he appeared in London s High Court

MGN's lawyer, Andrew G r e e n , a s k e d H a r r y a b o u t t h e t a b l o i d a r t i c l e s mentioned in his lawsuit and h o w t h e i n f o r m a t i o n w a s obtained Green argued that s o m e o f t h e s t o r i e s w e r e already public knowledge

The suit involving Prince

Harry and other claimants a l l e d g e t h a t j o u r n a l i s t s working for MGN unlawfully g a t h e r e d i n f o r m a t i o n , i n c l u d i n g b y h a c k i n g i n t o v o i c e m a i l s , t o p u b l i s h 2 0 7 newspaper articles between 1991 and 2011 Out of these a r t i c l e s , 3 3 s p e c i f i c a l l y reference Prince Harry He is the first senior member of B r i t a i n ' s r o y a l f a m i l y t o a p p e a r i n a c o u r t t o g i v e t e s t i m o n y a n d f a c e c r o s s -

resulting in hospitals relying heavily on international recruitment The 15-year plan, expected to receive funding of £1 billion, includes the doubling of medical school and nursing training places However, it has yet to be finalized due to ongoing negotiations with the Treasury over funding

In a letter to the Prime Minister, 40 health organizations have demanded the immediate publication of the plan, emphasizing that the staffing crisis will worsen and it will become impossible to tackle the record waiting lists, which currently stand at 7 3 million England currently has 112,000 NHS vacancies, including 43,000 nursing positions

For those who are driven by hikes and jumps, it is important to understand that spread and width are also important Growth might not always be vertical but come as horizontal If you are getting frustrated because of a lack of promotion in your current assignment, check if it is because of a lack of opportunities above there or for any other reason Provided that you deserve, and promotion is not coming for the reason of nonavailability of higher positions, examine if you are getting horizontal growth In that case, you don't need to be frustrated Wait for an appropriate time or opportunity when you can use all your learning experiences that are acquired during this period

(Expressed opinions are personal)

Climate Solutions course in Hindi by the University of Edinburgh

T h e C li m a te Chang e Institute at th e U ni v er si ty o f E d i nbu r g h h a s introd uced its inaug u ral o p e n- ac ce s s course in Hindi, in co l la bo ra ti o n w i th th e C o ns u la te General of Ind ia in Edinburgh , Scotland

T h e c o u r s e , n a m e d

Climate Solutions, is now available in English, Hindi, and Arabic It offers specialized versions tailored to the U n i t e d K i n g d o m , I n d i a , Egypt, and the United Arab Emirates Esteemed climate c h a n g e e x p e r t s , i n c l u d i n g

P r o f e s s o r D a v e R e a y , t h e Executive Director of the Edinburgh Climate Change Institute (ECCI), have contributed to the design and delivery of the course, as stated by the university

The recently launched

C l i m a t e S o l u t i o n s : I n d i a

(Hindi) course focuses on t h e s c i e n c e , i m p a c t s , a n d solutions of climate change s p e c i f i c a l l y i n I n d i a T h i s course serves as a valuable r e s o u r c e f o r n u m e r o u s H i n d i - s p e a k i n g s t u d e n t s and educators in India and worldwide The University o f E d i n b u r g h h i g h l i g h t e d the crucial role played by the collaboration between t h e g o v e r n m e n t o f I n d i a and the university in bringing forth this Hindi course Expert translators have been involved in the meticulous curation of the content to ensure its accuracy and effectiveness

Humza Yousaf

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak with President Joe Biden

Indian Council of Arbitration holds the second edition of "Arbitrating Indo-UK Commercial Disputes" conference in London

The Indian Council of Arbit rat ion (ICA ) in part nership w it h Federation of Indian C ha mb e rs o f C om m er c e & I n d us t r y ( F IC C I) h el d t he s e c on d e di t i on o f

" A rb it ra t i n g I n d o- U K C o mm e rc ia l D i s pu t e s" co n fe r en c e in L o n do n on Monday Buil ding on the success of t he previous edit ion, t his conference aimed t o provide val uabl e insights into the resol ut ion of commercial disputes betw een India and the U K

D i s t i n g u i s h e d g u e s t s a n d e m i n e n t speakers from the legal and arbitration c o m m u n i t i e s g r a c e d t h e o c c a s i o n t o share their expertise and shed light on various aspects of the arbitration process The conference provided significant platf o r m f o r e x c h a n g e a n d c o l l a b o r a t i o n between legal professionals, policymakers, and experts in the field

J u s t i c e H i m a K o h l i , J u d g e o f t h e Supreme Court of India, while delivering the keynote address at the conference provided insights into the challenges and o p p o r t u n i t i e s o f a r b i t r a t i n g I n d o - U K commercial disputes and emphasised on the fact that judiciary was actively working for an impartial and fair ADR system F u r t h e r e n r i c h i n g t h e d i s c u s s i o n ,

Arjun Ram Meghwal, the Union Minister for Law and Justice, Government of India, in his special address told how under the leadership of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, the legal reforms in India have reached far He explained that they not only catered to investors' comfort level but also eased the burden on courts aiming to promote India globally as an arbitration hub “I am sure various reforms undertaken by the Indian Government, including in the field of dispute resolution, will further act as incentive for

investors and a stimulus for increasing cooperation in various sectors and take India-UK relations to new heights,” he said

He further added that the India-UK relations, especially in the areas of trade and commerce, were bound to grow further in the years to come, since the found a t i o n w a s l a i d w i t h t h e l a u n c h o f Roadmap 2030 between the two sides

H a r i s h S a l v e K C , m e m b e r o f t h e B l a c k s t o n e C h a m b e r s a n d f o r m e r

Solicitor General, shared his expertise and insights during his address at the conference, and said, the journey has begun and it was time for all the stakeholders to come together and make India the next hub of arbitration, like London

Sujit Ghosh, Deputy High Commis-

sioner of India to the UK, emphasised the i m p o r t a n c e o f s t r e n g t h e n i n g b i l a t e r a l arbitration ties between India and the UK

The conference commenced with a welcome remarks from Arun Chawla, Director General of the Indian Council of A r b i t r a t i o n , w h o s a i d t h a t I n d i a - U K ' s business environment called for a robust dispute resolution tool

Concluding the event, Geeta Luthra, Vice President of the Indian Council of Arbitration and Senior Advocate of the Supreme Court of India, extended her vote of thanks

Chief Justice of India Hon Dr Justice DY Chandrachud joined a panel discussion moderated by Harish Salve KC to talk about laws Constitutions and the digital era Also on the panel were Lord Justice Dingemans Rt Hon Lord Thomas of Cwmgiedd, Sir Jeffrey Jowell KCMG KC & India s Solicitor General Tushar Mehta It was held at the Treasury building, The Inner Temple

The event was kickstarted by a short speech by HE Vikram Doraiswami, the High Commissioner of India to the UK

On display for the guests, in a separate room at the venue, were the admission/enrolment records of Mahatma Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru, Shyamji Krishna Verma, Liaquat Ali Khan and Khushwant Singh

Hon’ble Minister of Law and Justice Shri Arjun Ram Meghwal had a meeting with Lord Chancellor and Secretary of State for Justice Alex Chalk KC MP and discussed India-UK cooperation in the field of law and justice on June 6

Arjun Ram Meghwal, the Union Minister for Law and Justice, Government of India, addressing audience

The moderator and panellists

Gandhiji’s admission record

HE Vikram Doraiswami, the Indian High Commissioner to the UK

Hon ble Minister of Law and Justice Shri Arjun Ram Meghwal visited Ambedkar Museum in London

UK Parliament celebrates Dhruv Chhatralia BEM’s 400th public talk on Hanuman Chalisa

The paid subscribers of Asian Voice will receive a copy of our special magazine “SATPURUSH- Mahant Swami Maharaj” along with their newsweekly

To buy additional copies of the magazine call: 020 7749 4080

Are dogs really a man’s best friend?

Perh aps dog s m ay be o ur best friends, but th e qu estio n is, are we the human beings do gs ’ best friends as well? Fro m the incid ents we read in newspapers, practically every week, m akes m e wo nd er!

Humans are greedy animals, and they would not hesitate to exploit any one, which includes dogs, their best friends! No matter how many laws we pass to protect dogs, it has no effect on a tiny minority of people whose cruelty knows no bounds

The rogue breeders are the worse They have no morals, no qualms, would sell a puppy that has just been born, snatching it from the comfort of her mother As such dogs are not vaccinated; they would die even before it has seen the light of the day, sold to the highest bidders, no matter how unfit they may be to look after them

As we say dog is not just for Christmas, it is a life-long commitment that few people, especially youngsters could adhere to, to take them for walks, feed them and look after them as we look after our children

The attacks by vicious dogs on innocent people, in parks, open spaces and even on footpaths and in homes are on the increase, many results in painful injury and even deaths, especially if the victims are young children or defenceless elderly people

It is a golden rule to muzzle dogs when taking them out for a walk or if children are in the same house without adults It is not cruel but safe for both dogs and people at large Laws are lenient and most are flouted, breeding dangerous dogs like Pit Bull Terrier, Japanese Tosa and Fila Brasileiro These dogs are mainly bred for fighting that was once a popular entertainment Thankfully it is banned now but such illegal events are too common and too popular to make these laws ineffective Educating children from young age could be more effective than passing laws few respects

Bhupendra M Gand hi

Can we trust robots?

I am excited and depressed in equal measure at the news that Artificial Intelligence is set to figure prominently in our lives Robots, we are told, will not only help us in various ways but also expose us to the danger of them taking over and destroying us

When this topic first surfaced years ago we scoffed at the expressed anxieties and remarked that all one had to do, if a robot became aggressive, was to pull out the plug and stun it into immobility Now experts are saying that robots will be able to override the plugpulling and still manage to wreak havoc That is a frightening thought!

Ash Gupta

AI and cricket

It is said A rtificial intelligence is g oing to replace human jobs and is futu re of the world C an yo u Imag ine 11 robots a side playing IPL cricket m atch? Or man vs robots m atch? The day is no t far With robo ts serving you in hotels and bank, writing po etry with em otio ns too is not a distant dream But let us und erstand technology is a double-edged sword

New technology also brings with it unimaginable dangers The mistake is we believe we have understood it completely Atom bombs Dynamites and Drones are used to fight wars So, can AI create improved weapons leading to more war and crimes? Freedom without discipline is country without defence

On 23 May 2023 Dh ruv Ch hatralia BE M gave h is h is toric 400th tal k on the Hanu man C halisa at the Hou se of C omm ons of the UK Parliament Th is histo ric event al so celebrated 12 years since Dhru v C hh atral ia BEM gave his first p ublic talk in 2011 T h e o c c as io n f e at u r ed a n i ns p ir at io na l t al k b y Dh r u v Chh atralia o n "T he Sec rets of Suc cess in Career Management ac cording to th e Hanuman C halisa"

The event was hosted by Padma Shri Bob Blackman MP and was attended by Sir Graham Brady MP (Chairman of the 1922 Committee), the presidents or chairpersons of over 30 national Indian organisations, members, community leaders from eight different religious backgrounds, members of the media, and other dignitaries

Reema Jadeja then led the audience to chant powerful siddha mantras to the Hindu deities for the first time at the British Parliament This was followed by a minute’s silence when all those present reflected on how Bapu was the epitome of grace, valour, wisdom, kindness and compassion He was the embodiment of what an evolved being should be- empowered yet selfless with humility

R i d d h i V y a s i n s i g h t f u l l y s p o k e a b o u t h o w I n d i a n spirituality, religion and tradition has a balanced attitude towards the entire process of worshiping, and is the only place in the world where the Supreme Power is worshiped in the female form as JagadAmba She explained how Devi Puja depicts the long course of spiritual evolution in the life of the sadhaka (seeker) and shows the way in which the Divine Mother leads the soul to the ultimate victory Lakshmi Kaul then gave a wonderful talk about how the plan of Durga SaptaShati (the scripture dealing with Devi Worship) finds its source in the Ratri Sukta, mantras from the Rig Veda in devotion to the Goddess of Night, which was revealed by Sage Bharadwaja S h e s a i d t h a t t h e e l o q u e n c e o f t h e s p i r i t u a l d e p i c t i o n s expressed in these earliest revelations is boundless Vishal Jobanputra gave an inspirational discourse about the process of Shakti Puja Jay Jobanputra then spoke beautifully about the meaning of Maa Saraswati in modern times and the importance of preserving wisdom, knowledge, art and music t h a t m a k e s u s i m m o r t a l H e s a i d t h a t S a r a s w a t i i n h e r symbolism is connected to the moon, the poetic face of the Devi Jay Jobanputra narrated how Saraswati plays the veena, symbolising not just music but the celestial vibratory energy that reverberates behind time and space, and contains the book of inner wisdom and the mala as the Shakti of mantra He explained how the Devi rides the swan of elegant movement, or the peacock that shiws an unbounded creativity arising from a unitary inner vision Lord Gadhia closed the hugely successful evening by inspiring the audience about the importance of spreading the spiritual message of Diwali and what it means in contemporary times He spoke about his wonderful experiences of celebrating Diwali in Kenya and the UK, and how important it is that timetested ancient yet modern cultural and spiritual values are preserved and protected in society

Kapil D udakia

Letter for the King

His Majesty The King

Buckingham P alace

Londo n SW1A 1AA

Open Letter

Sir,

The United Kingdom witnessed a unique event on 6th May 2023 It was of course the day of your coronation to become King Charles III of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms

One month on, I believe it would be helpful to add to your in-tray a matter of utmost importance One that can, and will, define your tenure as our King, and your legacy

I believe it is time for you to champion a ‘Truth, Reconciliation and Reparation Commission’ Indeed, a Royal Commission

Britain had invaded many nations across the globe over centuries We the victims of such invasions know our lived truth A truth that has been passed through generations To this day, the truth has never come out There is an imperial narrative created by successive British governments to tell a false story of imperial benevolence I believe it is time for Britain to take a lead in bringing out the truth, in correcting this false narrative, and to set in motion the path for reconciliation, restoration, and recognition

Increasingly, this truth is coming out but in an uncoordinated and often unverified way It has, and will, continue to confuse the true history which is what we should all aspire to secure There is a danger that this mixture of truth, contaminated with half-truths and lies, will create a toxic atmosphere in our nation, and in other nations also

It is time for acceptance of historical truths We cannot aspire for good race relations; equality and equity; institutional integrity and unity, if the very fundamentals of truth and justice have been compromised I would ask you Sir, to command your government to set up a Truth and Reconciliation Royal Commission Such a commission should be empowered to investigate every aspect of Britain’s past and to put on record the true narrative Restitution and repatriation (without which, there can never be a positive and productive future), compensation (this can take many forms), satisfaction (victims of British invasions should feel that there has been justice), and rehabilitation

The task for the Royal Commission will be significant I would therefore suggest it starts with the ‘Jewel in the Crown’ of the British Raj, India (i e the Indian sub-continent)

Our nation is passing through one of its most crucial phases and this has coincided with your role as our King At this most crucial time in our history, it is time to own our past so we may forge a future that is reconciled with past burdens

On June 5th, 1947, the US Secretary of State George Marshall outlined the "Marshall Plan" to rebuild Western Europe post World War II The Europe of today was founded on that momentous day Similarly, today you also have a choice to instigate the biggest reconciliation exercise ever attempted in the history of humanity Sir, you have the opportunity to lead the nation on a path fit for the 21st Century A path that is empowered by knowing the truth so that as a people we do not fall foul of our human inadequacies and exploit others for our benefit The shame of the ‘Doctrine of Discovery’ in all its manifestations, and its ramification to date, must be acknowledged And the vestiges of that abhorrent practice must be corrected

I leave the matter in your hands knowing that I have done my duty as a concerned citizen I am always available should you require any further clarification or input

Thank you

Covid inquiry to bring up difficult questions for Boris Johnson

The U K inquiry into the nation's pandemic respo nse, chaired by Heather Hallett, has put forward 150 questions to Prim e Minister Boris Joh nson These questions aim to g ather d etailed information abo ut the g overnment's efforts in tackling the C ovid-1 9 ep idemic, indicating the co mprehensive scop e of th e inquiry The questions are also d irected at Rishi S unak, th e then C hancellor of the Exch equer As Chancellor of the Exchequer, S

s u p p o r t b u s i n e s s e s a n d i n d i v i d u a l s during the crisis The questions likely probe into the decision-making process, effectiveness, and potential shortcomings of these economic policies

Johnson will have to explain his stance on not attending a number of Cobra meetings that were organized to discuss the escalating pandemic, while concerns about the global spread of Sars-CoV-2 and Covid-19 were growing He will also have to address his decision to not implement a lockdown, going against the advisory from SAGE

and holding a personal meeting with Evening Standard proprietor Evgeny Lebedev on 19 March

Rishi Sunak will have to face the d i s c o m f o r t o f a n s w e r i n g q u e s t i o n s related to the Eat Out to Help Out scheme It was a UK government initiative introduced in August 2020 to support the struggling hospitality industry d u r i n g t h e C o v i d - 1 9 p a n d e m i c

However, there were subsequent concerns that the scheme may have contributed to an increase in Covid-19 cases during the autumn of 2020

Ethnic minorities most affected by long-term pollution in the UK

A new s tudy by researc hers a t t he U n i v e r s i t y of S t

A ndrews sugges ts that ethn i c m i n o r i ti e s a n d n on -

U K- b o r n i n d i v i d ua l s a r e m or e af f e c te d b y hi g h e r e xpos ure to ai r poll ution t ha n t he re s t of th e U K populati on

Exposure to air pollution has been shown to be a major reason behind poor h e a l t h o u t c o m e s , m o s t l y r e l a t e d t o c a r d i o v a s c u l a r a n d r e s p i r a t o r y s y s t e m s E t h n i c i n e q u a l i t i e s i n health and environmental exposures have also been shown to exist in society

T h e r e s e a r c h , l e d b y Mary Abed Al Ahad, from the University’s School of Geography and Sustainable Development, investigated t h e a s s o c i a t i o n b e t w e e n

A ccord ing to official fig ures, I n d i a w a s th e le ad i n g nationality of foreign w orkers granted w ork visas in the U K in the year leading up to M arch A pp roxim ately o ne in th ree m igrants granted a British work visa during that p e ri o d w ere o f I nd i an n ati o na li ty Oth e r s i g ni fic an t g ro u p s in c lu d e d A m er ic an s , F i li p i no s , N i g eri a ns , an d Zim babweans

long-term exposure to air p o l l u t i o n a n d p o o r s e l freported health in the UK

It sought to find out if people from different ethnic b a c k g r o u n d s a n d t h o s e b o r n o u t s i d e t h e U K a r e more affected by air pollution than the rest

The research used data f r o m t h e U n d e r s t a n d i n g Society: The UK Household Longitudinal Study, which asked around 68,000 adults about their health over a p e r i o d o f 1 1 y e a r s R e s e a r c h e r s a l s o u s e d detailed information about air pollution in the areas where the participants lived

The results showed that higher levels of certain air pollutants were linked to worse health overall This w a s m o s t l y b e c a u s e o f

Prof Arif Ahmed warns against threats to free speech

w h e r e p e o p l e l i v e d , n o t because of changes in pollution over time

The study also found t h a t p e o p l e f r o m I n d i a n , Pakistani/ Bangladeshi, and B l a c k / A f r i c a n / C a r i b b e a n b a c k g r o u n d s t e n d e d t o report worse health if they were exposed to higher levels of air pollution compared to white British people People born outside the UK also had worse health when they were exposed to m o r e a i r p o l l u t i o n c o mpared to those who were born in the UK T h e f i n d i n g s f o l l o w f r o m r e s e a r c h c o n d u c t e d by Ms Abed Al Ahad last year on the link between l i v i n g i n m o r e p o l l u t e d a r e a s a n d m e n t a l w e l lbeing

Pr ofessor Ari f Ah me d, the ne wl y ap poi nte d d i re ctor f or fr eed om of spe ech and a ca demi c fre ed om at the Of fice f or Stude nts (O fS), ha s hi ghl ight ed th e urge nt th reat s to f ree spe ech and a ca demi c f ree dom in unive rsiti es Prof Ahmed, a philosop h y p r o f e s s o r a t t h e University of Cambridge, w i l l b e r e s p o n s i b l e f o r investigating breaches of t h e F r e e d o m o f S p e e c h Act He aims to advocate for all views and assures that his role is not intende d t o p r o m o t e c u l t u r a l c o n f l i c t o r e n d o r s e t h e government's views

His appointment was a n n o u n c e d b y t h e Department for Education (DfE) in 2021 as part of the

H i g h e r E d u c a t i o n (Freedom of Speech) bill

The bill, which became a law on May 11, includes a n e w c o m p l a i n t s s c h e m e that may impose sanctions on universities that do not uphold freedom of speech w i t h i n t h e l e g a l f r a m ework

A c c o r d i n g t o P r o f

India leads foreign groups with UK work visa

December, there were 2 55 million employees from outs i d e t h e E u r o p e a n U n i o n (EU) in Britain, outnumbering EU-born employees by 220,000 This marked the first time since 2010 that n o n - E U e m p l o y e e s s u rpassed EU-born employees

A h m e d , p o t e n t i a l failures in upholdi n g f r e e d o m o f s p e e c h c o u l d i n c l u d e a c t i o n s like implementing biased training for staff and students a n d d i s c i p l i n i n g lecturers based on their social media activity

The details of t h e c o m p l a i n t s s c h e m e a r e s t i l l b e i n g finalized, and the government is developing regulations to implement the bill

The OfS, as an independ e n t r e g u l a t o r o f h i g h e r education in England, is e x p e c t e d t o o v e r s e e t h e administration of the bill, and Prof Ahmed will join its board as a member

The data also revealed a shift in the composition of the overseas workforce in t h e U K A s o f p r e v i o u s

In 2020, when the UK exited the freedom of movement rules for EU citizens, there were 2 3 million employees from the EU and 1 9 million

from outside the EU

T h e h o s p i t a l i t y s e c t o r e x p e r i e n c e d a s i g n i f i c a n t influx of non-EU workers, w i t h 7 4 0 , 0 7 5 w o r k v i s a s issued compared to 46,457 for EU citizens In terms of British citizenship applications, migrants from nonEU countries accounted for more than three-fourths of t h e t o t a l 2 0 0 , 3 6 2 a p p l i c ations in the year leading to M a r c h , w h i l e E U c i t i z e n s

made up just 23 percent of the applications P r i m e M i n i s t e r R i s h i Sunak has expressed a commitment to reducing legal immigration levels but has not provided specific details on his border control plans R e c e n t d a t a h a s s h o w n r e c o r d n e t m i g r a t i o n t o Britain, prompting concerns a b o u t t h e i m p a c t o n t h e l a b o u r m a r k e t a n d p u b l i c services

Prof Arif Ahmed

Tribute to the martyrdom of Guru Arjan Dev

Asian Voice and Gujarat Samachar hosted an exclusive Zoom event

t o h o n o u r t h e m e m o r y o f G u r u A r j a n D e v j i o n M a y 2 3 , 2 0 2 3 ( T u e s d a y ) a s p a r t o f t h e g o l d e n j u b i l e e c e l e b r a t i o n s M a n y prominent Sikh individuals and organisations participated in the event

T h e m o d e r a t o r o f t h e e v e n t w a s S a h e l i E n f i e l d C E O , K r i s h n a P u j a r a . Mayaben Deepak enthralled the participants with a melodious musical programme. Narinder S. Mudhar conducted Ardas during the event.

Kri s hna Puj ara s a i d , “ G u r u Arjan Dev is one of the greatest Sikh gurus who took over the leadership from his father Guru Ram Das He was born on 15 April 1563 in Goindval, Punjab, India He was the youngest son of Bhai Jetha, who later became Guru Ram Das, and Mata Bhani He was the fifth of the tenth Sikh Gurus in total and the first of the two Gurus who were martyred f o r t h e i r f a i t h H e b u i l t S r i Harmandir Sahib Gurudwara, at Amritsar so that all Sikhs can practice their religion freely He e x p a n d e d t h e h o l y p l a c e s c o m m e r c i a l l y a n d b e c a m e t h e f i r s t G u r u t o s e r v e a s b o t h temporal and spiritual head of Sikhs ” Lo rd R a m i R a n ge r , C B E , C h a i r m a n o f t h e B r i t i s h - S i k h A s s o c i a t i o n , s a i d , " G u r u A r j a n D e v w a s t h e f i r s t m a r t y r t o u p h o l d r e l i g i o u s f r e e d o m i n India As the fifth guru and one of t h e m o s t a c c o m p l i s h e d a n d brilliant religious leaders, he gave so much for the development of Sikhism in its formative years He gave us the Guru Granth Sahib, which every Sikh cherishes and reads every day It contained the t e a c h i n g s o f H i n d u a n d S i k h religions and taught us how to c o - e x i s t w i t h t h e b e l i e v e r s o f o t h e r f a i t h w i t h o u t a n y animosity He also gave us the G o l d e n T e m p l e i n A m r i t s a r , where 100,000 people feed every day, regardless of race, religion or culture; anybody can come and have a free meal You can all see t h a t t h e h i s t o r y o f S i k h s a n d Hindus intertwine; you cannot talk about one history without the other because with all the other things Sikhs and Hindus suffered together at the hands of t h e M u g h a l e m p e r o r a n d J a h a n g i r w h o t o r t u r e d G u r u Arjan Dev ” H e a d d e d , “ G u r u j i ' s popularity was causing a lot of concern among mullahs because he was rejecting certain things in their religion For example, the S i k h r e l i g i o n , l i k e m o s t o t h e r r e l i g i o n s , h a s e q u a l i t y f o r women, which is not the case a m o n g M u s l i m s S o m u l l a h s c o m p l a i n e d t h a t t h i s g u y w a s challenging those principles So G u r u j i w a s c a l l e d b y M u s l i m leaders and told that his best solution is to convert to Islam He was tortured and made to sit on a hot plate After the fifth day, his body was in pain and full of blisters and they threw him in a river After that, he never came out of the river and they could never find him ”

“There, our tradition started w i t h M i r i P i r i ( t e m p o r a l a n d spiritual authority) Guru Gobind S i n g h s a i d d i v e r s i t y m u s t b e a c c e p t e d , r e s p e c t e d a n d

defended And because diversity is strength, today in the United Kingdom people from different countries live harmoniously here

search of knowledge He went to n o r t h , e a s t , s o u t h , a n d w e s t When he was on these trips, he interacted with learned people

to a guru who brought them up spiritually and they learned the art of warfare, the art of fighting, a n d a s o l d i e r w h o i s n o t constrained by religious beliefs and is not bound by ethics while fighting for a good cause, ” he said T r u s t e e o f a B r e n t S i k h Centre, N arinder S Mudhar said, " T h e m a i n t h i n g a b o u t Gurupurub, guru means teacher, and our supreme Guru is God And our gurus were on par with God, and that is how we recount them So our Guru Arjan in line with the whole group of 10 gurus

torture, he was able to write Guru Granth Sahib While compiling G u r u G r a n t h S a h i b , h e c a m e across a lot of contributions that c o u l d b e i n c l u d e d T h e G u r u Granth Sahib has contributions from Hindu and Islamic scholars a n d m a n y o t h e r n a m e s w e r e mentioned And when selecting those, one really needs to be a h i g h - c a l i b r e s c h o l a r t o k n o w what can work or what not ” Ko k i la b en Pa t el , M a n a g i n g Editor of Gujarat Samachar, said, “The Martyrdom Day of Arjan Devji holds great historical and cultural significance for Sikhism He faced unbearable persecution for opposing the conversion and also endured severe torture for his faith He was born on 15 April 1563 in Goindwal, Punjab; Guru A r j a n D e v j i w a s t h e s o n o f R a m d a s j i , t h e f o u r t h G u r u o f Sikhism, and Mata Bhaniji He became the fifth Guru in 1581 after the death of his father The foundation stone of Harmandir S a h i b , c o m m o n l y k n o w n a s Golden Temple of Amritsar, was laid by Guru Arjan Devji in 1588 O n 2 4 M a y 1 6 0 6 , G u r u A r j a n Devji was imprisoned and taken to Lahore on the orders of the M u g h a l E m p e r o r J a h a n g i r H e w a s a l s o s u b j e c t e d t o excruciating torture to convert b u t G u r u j i r e f u s e d a n d w a s o r d e r e d t o b e e x e c u t e d a n d Guruji's family was handed over t o M u r t u z a K h a n G u r u d e v j i ' s m a r t y r d o m i s c e l e b r a t e d b y drinking cold rose milk, sharbat and lassi everywhere in Punjab

Let us remember Arjan Devji's m a r t y r d o m a n d p a y o u r respects ”

P e o p l e f r o m I n d i a , P a k i s t a n ,

B a n g l a d e s h , S r i L a n k a , t h e Caribbean, etc make this country so strong,” he said

D r On kar Sa hota, Labour

P a r t y p o l i t i c i a n , s a i d , " T h e martyrdom of Guru Arjun Dev was on June 16, 1606 But it is celebrated every year in the lunar month All the ten gurus can be c o n s i d e r e d a s 1 0 f l o w e r s i n a bunch with the same fragrance Or they can be considered as a necklace with 10 beads on the same thread ”

“

G u r u N a n a k w a s b o r n i n

1469 And it was the time when the Mughals have invaded India for the first time Guru Nanak h i m s e l f w a s t h e s e c o n d m o s t travelled person by foot in the h i s t o r y o f m a n k i n d H e u n d e r t o o k j o u r n e y s t o e v e r y nook and corner of the world in

a n d g a i n e d k n o w l e d g e f r o m them And in the last 17 years of his life, he lived in a town called K a t a r p u r w h i c h i s n o w i n Pakistan I’m making this point because the thought process and writings will become important f o r G u r u A r j a n H e d i d n o t become a guru just by chance He was chosen by his father Guru Ramdas Guru Arjan Dev was the third and youngest son of Guru R a m d e v H e b e c a m e g u r u because the fourth guru decided that he had the qualities to be the guru and can carry the message of good knowledge,” he added Onkar Sahota said, “if you look at the Indian tradition, the first part in the growth of any individual is to select a good guru and grow spiritually And if you look at the Mahabharata, you'll see that the king's children went

had a special contribution that has already been described and mentioned, and explained in an excellent way Guru Arjan Dev Ji, was at such a high moral ground with the Waheguru (god), that t h o s e w h o f o l l o w h i m e s c a p e reincarnation, or, in that word, the whole purpose of our lives, according to the Guru Granth Sahib ”

“The message is this: when we are going through our life and w e c o m e a c r o s s d i f f i c u l t i e s , rather than saying, Oh God, what the hell have I done wrong? Why a m I b e i n g s u b j e c t e d t o s u c h tortures? Why am I so poor, why am I not rich? Why did I fail the exam? Instead of cursing faith, accept what God has given, he a d d e d M u d h a r s a i d , “ T o understand how great our Guru Arjan Dev despite suffering the

Group editor of Asian Voice and Gujarat Samachar, Mahesh Liloriya said, “Guru Arjan Dev’s m a r t y r d o m h o l d s i m m e n s e s i g n i f i c a n c e f o r a l l o f u s H i s sacrifice symbolises the resilience and unwavering commitment to Sikh principles which includes e q u a l i t y , s o c i a l j u s t i c e a n d religious freedom Like all gurus before him, Shri Guru Arjan Dev J i t a u g h t t h e m e s s a g e o f c o m p a s s i o n , l o v e , d e d i c a t i o n , hard work and the worship of o n e G o d , t h e c o m m i t m e n t o f peace and harmony for all the peoples around world On the b e h a l f o f A s i a n c o m m u n i t i e s leading newspapers Asian Voice a n d G u j a r a t S a m a c h a r , I p a y tribute to Shri Guru Arjun Dev Ji, a v i s i o n a r y s c h o l a r , p o e t a n d philosopher Inspired from Guru A r j u n D e v J i , o u r m e d i a organisation has completed its 50 y e a r s I i m p l o r e S a n a t a n a Dharma followers, especially the e s t e e m e d S i k h c o m m u n i t y , t o join the Seva yagna and Gyan yagna missions begun by Mr CB Patel

Jyotsnaben Sh ah, Consulting editor of Gujarat Samachar, said “As as a part of the golden Jubilee celebration of Gujarat Samachar has arranged different type of i n s p i r i n g a n d e m p o w e r i n g e v e n t s A s G u r u A r j a n D e v J i s t a t e d t h a t f o r a l l c a s t e s a n d creeds from whichever direction t h e y g o , s a m e f o o t s t e p i s f o l l o w e d b y A B P L g r o u p a n d c e l e b r a t e d a l l t h e g r e a t p e r s o n a l i t i e s w h o h a s contributed to build our society ”

Lord Rami Ranger, CBE

Dr Onkar Sahota AM Narinder S Mudhar

Krishna Pujara Kokila Patel

Maya Deepak

CB Patel Mahesh Liloriya Jyotsnaben Shah

Indian MP wins Sikh of the Year Award in the UK

Rupanjana Dutta

V i k r a m j i t S i n g h S a h n e y , Indian MP from Rajya Sabha

( U p p e r H o u s e , I n d i a n Parliament) was presented with the Sikh of the Year award by The Sikh Forum

I n t e r n a t i o n a l a t t h e O l d H a l l , L i n c o l n ’ s I n n o n Monday 5 June, as they also celebrated the coronation of King Charles III

P r e s e n t a s C h i e f G u e s t w a s , H E V i k r a m D o r a i s w a m i , t h e H i g h Commissioner of India to the UK along with Sir Mark R o w l e y Q P M , Commissioner of Met Police and Lord John Stevens

Receiving the award, Mr Sahney said, “It is my proud p r i v i l e g e t o h a v e r e c e i v e d this prestigious Sikh of the Year award for my humble contribution to the society, e s p e c i a l l y i n t h e t i m e s o f Covid and changing social

political spectrum “I also take this opportunity to congratulate everyone on the coronation of King Charles III As Prince Charles came to Amritsar, h e v i s i t e d t h e G o l d e n Temple I remember Prince C h a r l e s p r e s i d e d o v e r a Saragarhi Polo Cup tournament in London in 2009 And he allowed for the first time all the Sikh polo players to wear turbans instead of mandatory helmets The late

Queen Elizabeth II went to only one holy place in India, when she visited in 1997 and that was Sri Darbar Sahib (or G o l d e n T e m p l e ) T h e English nation has given due respect and recognition to 9 0 , 0 0 0 S i k h s o l d i e r s w h o m a r t y r e d i n t w o W o r l d Wars

T h e r e a r e s e v e r a l P u n j a b i m e m b e r s i n b o t h H o u s e o f C o m m o n s a n d L o r d s T o d a y a l l o f t h e m hosted a lunch, and I am also

Taj welcomes Delhi’s House of Ming to London

p r i v i l e g e d t o a t t e n d p r oc e e d i n g s o f t h e H o u s e o f Lords ”

H e c o n g r a t u l a t e d Britain for its Indian-origin Prime Minister with roots in Punjab

He also urged to put all S i k h a r t i f a c t s , o t h e r w i s e scattered across at different places, to be brought under one museum, with the help of the British government, so that people can admire them

Applauding the work of Mr Sahney, the Indian High Commissioner, HE Vikram Doraiswami, said, “I am with you in recognising the work Vikramjit Singh Sahney’s has done, in the truest spirit of seva, in the highest conditions of a community that is known for its service and its capacity to be there at any and all time of need, wherever in the world ”

Easing the cost-of-living crisis with Food Drop drive

T h e D i w a l i F o u n d a t i o n , based in the UK, organizes t h e a n n u a l D i w a l i B a s k e t Brigade (DBB) drive to distribute food hampers to families from diverse faiths and backgrounds in time for the D i w a l i f e s t i v a l T h i s y e a r , recognizing the cost-of-living crisis, DBB considered it crucial to assist people across

the UK and donated 300 bags filled with food and toiletries in Birmingham, Manchester, and London last month

T h e D B B M a y F o o d D r o p w a s o r g a n i z e d i n response to data from the Trussell Trust, a network of food banks across the UK, w h i c h r e v e a l e d a g r o w i n g number of people relying on

food banks DBB felt a sense of duty to help those in need a n d c o l l a b o r a t e d w i t h i t s c h a r i t y p a r t n e r s t o d e t e rmine the specific items that w o u l d b e m o s t u s e f u l t o r e c i p i e n t s B a s e d o n t h e i r f e e d b a c k , t h e f o u n d a t i o n donated various dried food items, juices, and toiletries to provide support

The globally acclai med House of Min g res taurant, hous ed wi thin St James ’ Court, A Taj Hotel has recently opene d its doors to din ers in Lond on , serv ing authen tic Sichuan and Ca ntones e cuis ine The me nu, whi ch is exte nsi ve i s afforda ble yet clas sy

Mehrnavaz Avari, Area Director, UK & General Manager, Taj 51 Buckingham Gate, Suites and Residences and St James’ Court, A Taj Hotel, London said “We are delighted to welcome House of Ming to the Taj Hotels in London, and we are excited for the restaurant to make its mark into the London food scene with unrivaled Sichuan and Cantonese cuisine matched with astonishingly beautiful interiors ”

The restaurant opens under the direction of Food and Beverage Manager Asif Bajwa, experienced Executive Chef Sujoy Gupta and Hong Kong born Head Chef, Dickson Leung The menu is inspired by the

leading elements and ingredients influenced from the original House of Ming restaurant in New Delhi with culinary additions specific to London

In addition to the magnificent food menu, House of Ming has an excellent selection of beverages from around the world House of Ming has its own dedicated Tea Sommelier, as well as a unique tea trolley offering a wide variety of Chinese white tea, green tea, black tea and oolong tea

VIkramjit Singh Sahney MP receiving the award from Lord Stevens, Ranjit Singh OBE, President of The Sikh Forum International and HE Vikram Doraiswami as Sir Mark Rowley looks on

Breaking barriers and making history

Anusha Singh

T he Law Society of England and Wales is an autonomous g ov erning o rg anisatio n for s o l ic i to rs i n En g la nd an d W al es , th e o p e rat i o ns o f w hich are driven by the collective interests and needs o f it s m e m bers Rec ent ly, L ubna Shuja made h istory w hen she became the first A sian, first Mu slim, and seventh fem ale p resid ent of th e o r g an is a ti o n It h a s no w been 1 00 years since th e first w oman qualified as a solicitor in England and Wales

The 178th person to take the President’s chair, Lubna b e c a m e a m e m b e r o f t h e Law Society in 2013 and has been representing the intere s t s o f l a w p r a c t i t i o n e r s since then She qualified as a s o l i c i t o r i n 1 9 9 2 a n d h a s h e l d t h e f o r t a s t h e s o l e practitioner at Legal Swan Solicitor, a law firm she set up in 2007 She specialises i n p r o f e s s i o n a l d i s c i p l i n e a n d r e g u l a t i o n , a n d s h e adeptly navigates the intricacies of this field She’s an expert in handling matters related to family law, conveyancing, personal injury claims, wills, probate, and litigation

Asian Voice reached out to Lubna and chronicled her journey, experiences, future plans, and achievements

AV: Your appointment as the President of the Law Society was historic. How does your appointment, according to you affect women and South Asians in the field of law?

A s t h e f i r s t A s i a n , Muslim, and seventh female p r e s i d e n t o f t h e L a w Society, the historical significance of my appointment indicates that although the legal sector has traditionally lacked diversity and inclus i o n , w e a r e s e e i n g r e a l p r o g r e s s i n t h e s e c t o r However, there is still more to do before we achieve parity in the field It is for this r e a s o n t h a t p r o m o t i n g d i v e r s i t y , s o c i a l m o b i l i t y , and social inclusion is a priority for my presidency

There is no doubt that women, South Asians, and p e o p l e f r o m u n d e r r e p r es e n t e d b a c k g r o u n d s a r e reshaping the legal space

We are influencing the way the law develops and providing important insight into t h e s o l i c i t o r p r o f e s s i o n I

hope my presidency illumin a t e s t h e i m p o r t a n t r o l e t h a t w o m e n a n d S o u t h Asian solicitors play in the legal sector and pushes the p r o f e s s i o n t o c o n t i n u e improving diversity

I also hope that my presi d e n c y u l t i m a t e l y e n c o u ra g e s w o m e n a n d S o u t h Asians to join the profession and tackle any barriers they m a y f a c e w h e n p r a c t i s i n g law

AV: What are some problems you have faced personally and have seen the diaspora, especially the women face in the law profession over the years? What can be done to tackle the problems that still exist?

Despite the number of inspiring people in law, it has been challenging to find a role model who shares my background and lived experiences The lack of Asian and Muslim female mentors has been alarming since I b e g a n p r a c t i s i n g l a w a n d continues to be a problem f o r m a n y n e w l y q u a l i f i e d and junior solicitors in the diaspora

To provide practitioners i n t h e d i a s p o r a w i t h r o l e models who can guide their legal journeys, it is critical that we work on improving d i v e r s i t y , s o c i a l m o b i l i t y , and social inclusion in the profession We must better understand the barriers that f i r m s a n d b u s i n e s s e s f a c e when trying to reach and promote diverse candidates I d e n t i f y i n g t h e c h a l l e n g e s facing those seeking to enter a n d p r o g r e s s t h r o u g h t h e sector is also important I have prioritised these efforts in the Law Society’s work and continue to encourage the promotion of diversity and inclusion in the field

By improving diversity, we can ensure that the next g e n e r a t i o n o f A s i a n a n d M u s l i m f e m a l e s o l i c i t o r s have role models to choose from AV: With your election, what were some of the aims you set for yourself to achieve in your presidency and what steps have you taken to tick them off in the past six months?

As president of the Law Society, it is my job to support solicitors uphold the rule of law, and promote

‘Hear My Voice’: Diaspora stories that shaped the cultural fabric of Newham

access to justice for all

Since my appointment, I have focused on strengthening the justice system so that it provides a level playing field for everyone, regardless o f t h e i r b a c k g r o u n d o r means As the UK’s justice system nears the verge of collapse, I have pushed the government to invest in the s y s t e m t o i m p r o v e c o u r t infrastructure, mitigate case delays, and fund legal aid for society’s most vulnerable

I have also committed my presidency to promote the profession internationally, such as opening India’s legal services sector to UK firms – which was achieved i n m y p r e s i d e n t i a l t e r m Protecting the mental wellbeing of solicitors is very important to me, and the L a w S o c i e t y h a s p r o v i d e d helpful guidance, networks, webinars, and research to s u p p o r t p r a c t i t i o n e r s a n d create a healthy, supportive workplace culture

AV: Immigration and housing issues have been discussed much in the past two weeks

What is your outlook, as a solicitor, on these matters? What are some major problems in the country that need to be addressed?

The cost-of-living crisis and rising interest rates have m e a n t t h a t m o r e f a m i l i e s a r e s t r u g g l i n g w i t h t h e i r h o u s i n g c o s t s T h i s h a s i n c r e a s e d e v i c t i o n s a n d exacerbated the homelessness crisis in the UK Access to housing legal aid is vital

It can make the difference between people keeping or losing their homes The Law S o c i e t y h a s c a l l e d o n t h e g o v e r n m e n t t o i n c r e a s e funding for housing legal aid

so that society’s most vulnerable can access legal help to stay in their homes

I m m i g r a t i o n h a s a l s o been a hot topic for solicit o r s , a s t h e g o v e r n m e n t ’ s Illegal Migration Bill entails a clear and serious breach of international law The rule of law is the idea that governments must respect and obey domestic and international laws The rule of law and justice are at the heart of Britain’s identity and this immigration policy betrays British values by undermining the global rules-based o r d e r a n d d a m a g i n g t h e UK’s standing in the international community AV: What advice would you give to the young aspiring lawyers in the South Asian community, who want to follow in your footsteps?

M y a d v i c e t o a s p i r i n g lawyers in the South Asian c o m m u n i t y w o u l d b e t o dream big and pursue a legal career that best suits you Find role models who resonate with you and reach out to them for guidance and mentorship Do not be discouraged if you feel like you do not immediately fit in The profession has made strides to improve its inclusivity and there is an urgent movement to support those who are traditionally underr e p r e s e n t e d i n l a w Although there is still much to be done to achieve true p a r i t y , I h a v e s e e n r e a l progress in diversity in the sector during my time as a s o l i c i t o r S u p p o r t o n e another – only then can we create a profession where e v e r y o n e f e e l s v a l u e d , respected, and safe

Join Shaina NC’s 'Walk For A Cause' at the Taj

F as h i o n D es i g ne r, p o li tic ia n and s o ci a l w o r ker , Sh aina NC ’ s ‘ Walk For A Cause’ is being organised at T aj 51 Bu c ki ng h am G at e Su ites and Residences o n T h u rs d a y 1 5 J u n e 2 0 2 3 , from 5-7 p m

It is an exclusive showcase of ensembles curated especially for the cause of s u p p o r t i n g t h e V C a r e F o u n d a t i o n , M u k u l M a d h a v F o u n d a t i o n , International Breast Cancer Genome Project, and the R o y a l F r e e C h a r i t y b y

S h a i n a N C a t T a j , The Chambers S p e a k i n g a b o u t t h e e v e n t , S h a l i n i

G r o v e r , D i r e c t o r o f

S a l e s a t T a j , s a i d ,

“This is part of a coll e c t i o n o f e x c l u s i v e

R e n d e z v o u s e v e n t s curated by the Taj for t h e i r C h a m b e r s m e m b e r s , d i s t i nguished guests, and f r i e n d s o f t h e T a j

The evening will consist of an interactive s a r e e d r a p i n g

New h am H eri t ag e Month , which started in 2020, has been providing a p latform to showcase and celebrate the stories of the d iaspo ra throug h variou s m ed iu m s s u c h as fi lm s, o nli n e r ec o rd s , c ra ft ac ti v i ti es , and ta lk s T h e ann u al h e ri tag e fes ti v al o rg a ni se d by Ne w h am Co unci l has retu rned thi s year with the th em e ‘Our Creativ e New ham ’ N e w h a m H e r i t a g e M o n t h 2 0 2 3 c o m m e n c e d with its opening ceremony on June 1 and features a diverse range of events celebrating t h e h i s t o r y o f t h e diaspora, the queer community, culture, a r t s , a n d m o r e Among these events, ' H e a r M y V o i c e ' took place on June 2 The event aimed to narrate the stories of the S o u t h A s i a n d i a s p o r a i n Newham, focusing on their journey from their countries o f o r i g i n t o m a k i n g Newham their new home The event highlighted how t h e y e m b r a c e d t h e i r n e w s u r r o u n d i n g s b y i n f u s i n g art, culture, and traditions from their own heritage It served as a platform to recognize and appreciate the contributions of the South Asian diaspora in shaping t h e c u l t u r a l f a b r i c o f Newham

Farzana Hakim, author and host of ‘Hear My Voice’ talked to Asian Voice about the event and the import a n c e o f r e p r e s e n t i n g t h e stories of the diaspora

a n d p r e j u d i c e a l o n g t h e way ”

“These residents needed a celebration and my project g a v e t h e m t h a t s e n s e o f b e i n g a p p r e c i a t e d o u t s i d e the four walls of their own homes”, Hakim added Farzana strongly advises taking pride in one ’ s heritage and believes t h a t n o o n e s h o u l d e v e r s h y a w a y f r o m t h e culture they grew up in Currently, s h e i s c o l l e c t i n g s t o r i e s f o r Newham’s ‘South A s i a n H e r i t a g e M o n t h ’ w h i c h runs from July- August this year Her focus is on representing the stories of the A f g h a n i c o m m u n i t y a n d b r i n g i n g t h e i r v o i c e s a n d stories to the forefront

“I’m hoping to expand the ‘Hear My Voice’ brand a n d t a k e i t f u r t h e r T h e S o u t h A s i a n d i a s p o r a h a s been working hard and has played a significant part in Britain’s history These stor i e s s h o u l d b e w r i t t e n , r e c o r d e d , a r c h i v e d a n d never forgotten”, she added about her future plans for ’Hear My Voice’

S i n c e i t s i n a u g u r a l i n 2020, the festival has represented South Asian voices t h r o u g h e v e n t s s u c h a s

d e m o n s t r a t i o n , w h e r e b y guests can experience the elegance of these custom b e s p o k e p i e c e s w i t h a n o p p o r t u n i t y t o p r e - o r d e r some special collections ”

Walk For A Cause

Date: Thursday 15 June 2023 T ime: 5 pm to 7 pm

Venue: Edwardian I, Taj 51 Buckingham Gate Suites and Residences, SW1E 6AF

Her need to give women a voice and use the art of writing as a tool of empowerment led to the start of ‘Hear My Voice’ as a writing workshop, which has now g r o w n i n t o a p l a t f o r m w h e r e p e o p l e c a n s h a r e their stories “I know fantastic people from the South Asian Diaspora in Newhamw o m e n w h o h a v e b e e n h o u s e w i v e s s i n c e t h e d a y they arrived in the country from as early as the 60s or 70s, and they have colourful and diverse stories hidden i n s i d e t h e m I w a n t e d t o open up these stories and make these women heard”, Hakim said H a k i m t a k e s p r i d e i n sharing not only the wellknown stories of the diaspora but also researching and recording the ones that one wouldn’t normally go looking out for “This project was different because it set out to engage the voiceless h i d d e n r e s i d e n t s , w h o i n their own little families have been heroes and have raised children and made a good life for themselves overcomi n g s t r u g g l e s l i k e r a c i s m ,

" D e s i g n s T h a t T r a v e l , " which delved into the history of Newham and South Asian sailors who worked on steam-powered liners in the 1900s This initiative aimed to uncover and share the stories of these individuals and their contributions

A n o t h e r n o t e w o r t h y p r o j e c t i n v o l v e d E l l i e Burkett, Shofa Miah, and a g r o u p o f B a n g l a d e s h i w o m e n w h o s h o w c a s e d embroidered pieces that had travelled from Bangladesh to Newham They organized p r a c t i c a l w o r k s h o p s t o teach the embroidery techn i q u e s t h e y h a d l e a r n e d , sharing their cultural heri t a g e a n d c r a f t s m a n s h i p with others

A p a r t f r o m ‘ H e a r M y Voice’, the 2023 edition of t h e f e s t i v a l a l s o h o s t e d a c u l t u r a l e x t r a v a g a n z a f e aturing Bharatnatyam and a DJ set with live percussive p e r f o r m a n c e , c a l l e d ‘ C u l t u r a l N e w h a m : C e l e b r a t i n g S o u t h A s i a n Dance & Music’ The event took place on June 3 and was organized by the Malayalee A s s o c i a t i o n o f t h e U K

Farzana Hakim

Lubna Shuja

Sir Sikander Hayat Khan - The forgotten statesman who opposed the partition

princely state of Patiala between 1930 and 1940 and later also served as an advisor to the Nawab of Bhopal Sir Sikander was educated in India where he attended the Oriental Collegiate High School in Aligarh and later the Aligarh Muslim University, whose founder Sir Syed Ahmed Khan was a close friend of his father He was briefly educated in England where he attended King's College

Early Career:

Multilingualism of India presented at the House of Lords

A t an immensely interesting event at the House of Lords o f th e B ri ti s h P arl ia m en t re ce nt ly, 1 8 l ang u ag e s o f India including Nepali w ere p resented and hi g hli gh ted marking th e World Day for C u l tu ra l D iv ers i ty f o r Dialog ue and Develo pment

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

Almost a century ago, at a time when for a South Asian commoner, it was virtually impossible to become a Head of State or the Head of a Government, directly under British rule, there existed an individual who would go on to

His first great exposure came in the First World War where he served initially as a recruitment officer and later saw action in the rank of an Honorary officer He eventually reached the rank of a Captain and was awarded the MBE(Mil.) for his services in the First World War and the Third Anglo-Afghan War This phase was followed by the phase of being an Industrialist during which he worked in Tea, Railways and Banking to name a few He was hugely successful, and his cultured manner, charisma, knowledge and capabilities soon started getting recognition in the Organisational and Government level This included being initially head of Attock District Board and then being elected to the Punjab Legislative Council He also held a judicial rank as an Honorary Magistrate

The Great Rise

become both and many more things, at least one more of those feats was also a first for an Indian This individual was not born into nobility, but his self-made father was eventually ennobled at the beginning of the Edwardian era, and he would go on to become a Soldier, an Industrialist, a Cricket Administrator, a Senior Banker and a Politician Statesman who served both as the Acting Governor of United Punjab twice between 19321934 and also as the first Prime Minister of United Punjab between 1937-1942 This person later became famous as Sir Sikander Hayat Khan, and he was one of the staunch supporters of a United Punjab which during his tenure was governed by Hindus, Muslims and Sikhs and which according to him was not to be divided on communal lines and was to be united and administered and managed by Punjabis

Family and Early Life:

Captain The Hon'ble Nawabzada Sir Sikander Hayat Khan, KBE was born on the 5th of June 1892 into the family of Nawab Muhammad Hayat Khan, CSI, a judge who had started his life as an Orderly and went on to serve in many important positions which included roles in Police, Administration and Judiciary The Nawab was also an author whose book, "Afghanistan and its Inhabitants" became a much soughtafter piece of literature post its translation into English by Henry Priestley of the Indian Civil Service Sir Sikander Hayat Khan's elder brother Nawab Sir Liaqat Hayat Khan, KCSI went on to serve as the Prime Minister of the

The great rise happened on him becoming the Acting Governor of Punjab twice. He served close to seven months during this tenure In 1933 he became the first Indian to head the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) in which position he served till 1935 He was also the Acting Deputy Governor of the RBI for a brief period In the mid 1930's he took up the leadership of the Unionist Party which mainly represented the interests of the landed gentry of Punjab and had a secular outlook to an extent Soon in a landslide victory he became the Premier of British Punjab, a position which he held till the end of 1942. His political career saw many ups and downs and included a pact with Jinnah which did not survive for long after his death Though he believed in the existence of a semi-autonomous Muslim-Majority area within the Indian Federation, but he was against the division of both India and Punjab During the second World War he not only supported the War Efforts but also visited the battle fronts in Egypt, while dressed in his military attire, to motivate the Punjabi soldiers serving there He also met Churchill with whom he would often share his dream of the transition of the Indian Empire into an Autonomous Federation

The End:

A respected leader with a wide portfolio of leadership roles executed during his lifetime met a strange demise on the night of Christmas 1942 after executing the responsibilities of marrying off three of his children earlier that day Sir Sikander died an Indian though his children later opted to migrate to Pakistan Because of his attitude against the partition, he was greatly forgotten in Pakistan where his grave today lies in neglect and amidst all the chaos he was also forgotten in India where at one point of time he was at one point of time one of the highest-ranking office holders

Th e pro gram was organised b y S a ns kr u ti C e ntr e f o r C ultural Excellence in association wi th the A ll P arty P a rli am ent ary G ro u p ( A P P G ) on M o d er n Languages supported by the C h a rte red In s ti tu te o f Linguists Parliamentary host Rt

H o n B a r o n e s s G a r d e n o f

Frognal spoke on the signifi c a n c e o f l a n g u a g e s a n d commended the organisers for conceiving and presenting such meaningful content Poems, mostly self-

a u t h o r e d b y t h e d i a s p o r a members in the UK, were p r e s e n t e d i n S a n s k r i t , A s s a m e s e , B e n g a l i , D o g r i ,

G u j a r a t i , H i n d i , K a n n a d a , Kashmiri, Konkani, Maithili, Malayalam, Marathi, Odiya, Punjabi, Sindhi, Telugu and Nepali Rare scripts such as T a k r i , S h a r d a , a n d M i t h i l a k s h a r w e r e h i g hl i g h t e d F o u n d e r o f

Sanskruti Centre Ragasudha

V i n j a m u r i s p o k e a b o u t endangered languages, and t h e d e c l i n i n g T a i K h a m t i l a n g u a g e o f A r u n a c h a l

P r a d e s h , w o r k o f N G O s such as Tai Khamti Heritage and Literature Society on l a n g u a g e p r e s e r v a t i o n A n age-old rhyme Koh-aui-Koh translated into English by C h o w K a l i n g n a M a n n o i , and a Meitei poem by Leina M o i r a n g t h e m w e r e a l s o i n c l u d e d i n t h e b o o k l e t Ram aneeyam - Th e Beau ty of Expression brought out on the occasion

The love of the mother language brought together diverse people who presented their expressions- doct o r s , w r i t e r s , C o u n c i l l o r s , university educators, members of the British armed f o r c e s , C h a r t e r e d Accountants, artists, and IT professionals

D r N a n d i t a S a h u , Attache (Hindi and Culture) from the High Commission of India has given concluding remarks In attendance w e r e P r o f T e r r y L a m b (Professor of Languages at t h e U n i v e r s i t y o f W e s t m i n s t e r ) a n d P h i l i p H a r d i n g - E s c h ( S e c r e t a r i a t ,

APPG- Modern Languages)

Guru Vandana to celebrate spiritual gurus of India

Ar t i s ti c D i r e c to r R a k es h J os h i i s hos t i n g G u ru Vandana on 2 July 2 02 3, which will be presented by R ag a J y ot i a t Q u ee n Elizabeth H all, South Bank Centre London

G u r u V a n d a n a i s a unique musical offering to the spiritual gurus of India in the form of devotional songs, music, hymns, poetry and dance On the eve of

Guru Poornima, a celebration of spiritual and academic gurus, we mark 150 y e a r s s i n c e t h e b i r t h o f

M a h a y o g i - M a h a r s h i S r i

Aurobindo The event will a l s o b e c e l e b r a t i n g S h r i

R a n g A v d h o o t M a h a r a j ’ s

1 2 5 t h B i r t h A n n i v e r s a r y , who wrote Dattbavani & Shri Guruleelamrut T h e c o n c e r t w i l l

i n c l u d e a d i v i n e r a g abased ensemble of tradi-

tional Indian and Western instruments such as Sitar,

V e e n a , S a n t o o r , M o h a n V e e n a , B a n s u r i , T a b l a , M r i d a n g a m , P a k h a w a j , T a n p u r a , H a r m o n i u m , Violin, Viola, Cello, Harp and Piano There shall be I n d i a n c h o r a l c o m p o s itions from ancient sculpt u r e i n c l u d i n g V e d i c h y m n s , a n d r e v e r e melodies accompanied by renowned musicians

It will include songs of D i v i n e L i g h t ( B h a k t i Sangeet) by Rakesh Joshi, a l i f e l o n g d e v o t e e o f T h e Mother and Sri Aurobindo accompanied by talented choir singers of Bharatiya V r u n d G a a n a n d r e n o w n e d m u s i c i a n s There will be an Indian dance based on the theme of the epic mystic poem ‘SAVITRI’ written by Sri Aurobindo The dance is c h o r e o g r a p h e d b y U s h a Raghavan

W i t h T h e M o t h e r ' s b l e s s i n g s , t h i s m u s i c a l tribute will take place on Sunday, 2nd July on the eve of Guru Poornima: An e v e n i n g t o e n g a g e a n d

immerse in soulful music

The evening is supported by Sri Aurobindo Trust, London and local devotees o f S h r i R a n g A v d h o o t Parivar, London

Abhiroop Sengupta

Ramaneeyam book release at the House of Lords

Baroness Garden rendering opening words

“Reading the newspaper is a cherished part of my routine” - says an avid reader of Asian Voice

and the other in year 8, they continue to speak Gujarati at home

My elder son, Rishi achieved an impressive Grade A in the Gujarati GCSE exam and my younger son, Darsh also attends a Gujarati class on a weekly basis, where he is one of the top students in his class Furthermore, my older son remains dedicated to his Gujarati language skills by reading the Gujarati newspaper every week In fact, he goes a step further by writing and reading an article in Gujarati Their commitment to preserving and enhancing their Gujarati language abilities is truly commendable

Airport for the direct Air India flight from London to Ahmedabad

The newspaper actively raises awareness and supports initiatives that have a positive impact on the community I always make it a point to give all my old newspapers to the salon where my husband goes for his haircut, which is run by his Gujarati friend This way, people waiting at the parlour can have something to read and enjoy the newspaper during their waiting time

I was born and raised in Patan, Gujarat, a city situated on the banks of the Sarasvati River and renowned for its architectural marvels such as the 'Rani Ki Vav' and the Patola ‘Rani Ki Vav' is enlisted as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in India and its motif adorns the reverse side of the current ₹100 note Patola, on the other hand, is a type of double ikat woven silk sari, and it is known for its exquisite craftsmanship and high price A small piece of Patola is currently on exhibition at the Natural History Museum in London

I was born into a highly educated family, which bestowed upon me a strong educational and moral framework right from the start My mother is a retired teacher, who devoted her career to shaping young minds through education

On the other hand, my father worked as an agricultural officer, bringing his expertise and knowledge to support and enhance agricultural practices Their respective professions have had a profound impact on my upbringing, instilling in me a strong value for education and a deep appreciation for the importance of agriculture

Growing up in Gujarat exposed me to its vibrant culture and illustrious heritage, leaving an indelible mark on my identity and fostering profound gratitude for my origins

Having completed my primary and secondary education in Patan, I was privileged to be recognized as one of the top students and a favourite of my teachers I successfully completed my Bachelors

with an electrical engineering degree from Modasa While I aspired to pursue further studies, certain personal circumstances prevented me from doing so

I began my professional career as a lecturer in a polytechnic college, imparting knowledge to eager students Subsequently, I worked as a junior Electrical engineer at GEB, gaining valuable experience in my field For a few years, I worked as an Electrical Engineer and I honed my skills through various job roles I met my husband, Shailesh and we got married Shailesh has also completed a Bachelor's in Engineering Currently, I am employed as an administrator and customer representative, utilizing my skills in these roles My husband works at an IT company

I have been fortunate to have made numerous friends during my school and university years, and our bonds have remained strong over time Some of my friends have relocated and settled in different states within India or even in other countries Despite the physical distance, we have managed to stay connected through regular conversations via phone or social media I truly enjoy engaging in conversations with my friends and relatives, whether they are in India or scattered across the globe

Whenever I visit India, I make it a point to meet up with my friends and spend quality time with them It's always a cherished experience to reunite with them, catch up on each other's lives, and create new memories together Driven by a desire for personal and professional growth, I made a life-changing decision to move to the United Kingdom Seeking better opportunities and a promising career, I

embarked on a journey to establish myself in a new country This transition required resilience, adaptability, and a willingness to embrace change

Upon arriving in the UK, I found myself missing my native place, Gujarat One day, while visiting a local shop, I came across the weekly edition of Gujarat Samachar/Asian Voice newspaper I was pleasantly surprised to find a Gujarati newspaper in the UK and felt excited to read it Without hesitation, I purchased the newspaper and delved into its contents I appreciated the equal importance given to each section, covering various types of news for Britain, Gujarat, India, Asia, Europe, and the world The newspaper provided detailed and comprehensive coverage of a wide range of topics Impressed by its quality, I decided to subscribe to the yearly edition, ensuring that I would receive the newspaper weekly at my home With a simple phone call, I subscribed to the Gujarat Samachar newspaper for a year, and since then, I have been renewing my subscription every year until now I have been a subscriber of the Gujarat Samachar weekly newspaper for over 17 years Even in the 21st century, I prefer to read the paper copy of the newspaper Imagine how delightful it would be if the daily edition of Gujarat Samachar were published in the UK as well

The Gujarat Samachar/Asian Voice newspaper in the UK provides me with extensive knowledge about the news in Great Britain, including new rules, regulations, and updates It also covers news about Gujarat, India, Asia, Europe, and around the world One of the best things about the newspaper was the flexibility it offered

If I happened to miss any news on TV, I could catch up by reading it at my own convenience

The Asian Voice newspaper is a highly beneficial resource for young people It enables them to learn about Asian culture, and festivals, and gain updates on a wide range of topics from Gujarat, India, Asia, Britain, Europe, and around the world By engaging with this newspaper, young readers can broaden their horizons, develop cultural understanding, and stay informed about important global issues I would like to share my past experience with Gujarat Samachar When I was living in Gujarat, I used to read the Gujarati newspaper daily and it became a cherished part of my routine I eagerly awaited the arrival of the newspaper every day, and it was always a joy to receive it from the paper boy at our doorstep I made it a habit to read the newspaper before starting my daily activities, as it kept me informed about the latest happenings On the rare occasion when the newspaper didn't arrive or was delayed, I would eagerly wait for its arrival, feeling a sense of anticipation I vividly remember one incident when the newspaper was delivered to our home, my sister and I rushed to grab it In our excitement, we accidentally tore the newspaper from the middle Such was our enthusiasm for reading Gujarat Samachar We always prioritise speaking Gujarati at home, even while living in the UK It has been a constant practice for our family to converse in Gujarati within the household Consequently, when my sons were born, they naturally learned Gujarati as their mother tongue Even now, with one son in A-level

Another benefit of subscribing to the Gujarat Samachar/Asian Voice newspaper is that it includes additional publications at no extra cost, such as the Diwali Magazine, Business Magazine, Calendar, and various other magazines This provides readers with a diverse range of content beyond the regular news sections

One aspect that particularly stands out about these newspapers is the dedication to running many campaigns that benefit the Indian/Asian community, especially the Gujarati community A notable example is the campaign for the direct Air India flight from London to Ahmedabad Previously, efforts were made to establish this route, and the current focus is on the relocation of the Air India flight from Gatwick Airport to Heathrow

Personally, I strongly believe that as Gujarati parents, it is crucial to ensure that our children learn Gujarati, enabling them to read, write, speak, and understand our mother tongue There are numerous benefits to this One significant advantage is that when our children visit Gujarat, they can effortlessly communicate with our people and fully enjoy their trip By having a command of Gujarati, they can connect with their roots, engage in meaningful conversations, and immerse themselves in the vibrant culture of Gujarat

It fosters a sense of belonging and enables them to form deeper connections with our community and heritage I a lways re member Pramukh Swa mi Ma har aj's most impa ctf ul sentences, whi ch a re a s follo ws: “Bhasha Jase to Sanskar Jase ” , which translates to- “ If we lose our language, we will also lose our culture and our values ”

Asha Patel

My name is Asha and I am thrilled to have an opportunity to share a bit about myself. I believe that our personal stories shape who we are, I am excited to reflect on my journey so far. Throughout my life, I have encountered various experiences that have moulded my character and influenced my aspirations.

A film pays tribute to the deep humanity of the medical staff battling with limited resources

Shefali Saxena

W h e n th e ge ri a tr ic w ar d i n a s ma ll Y orkshire ho spital i s threatened wi th closu re, the h osp ital decides to fight back by galvanizing the local community: th ey invite a news crew to film th eir p reparatio ns fo r a co ncert in honou r of th e ho spital’ s most distinguished nurse Alleluj ah celebrates the sp irit o f the elderly patients whi lst paying tribute to the deep h umanity of th e medical s taff battling with limited resou rces and ever-gro wing demand

We speak to the film’s newcomer Bally G i l l w h o f e a t u r e s a l o n g s i d e J e n n i f e r Saunders (Absolutely Fabulous) and is supported by Judi Dench (Notes on A Scandal, I r i s ) , D e r e k J a c o b i ( I C l a u d i u s , F r a s i e r ) , D a v i d B r a d l e y ( H a r r y P o t t e r , G a m e o f Thrones), Russell Tovey (The History Boys) and Julia McKenzie (Cranford, Marple)

This is a significant film with a sensitive yet relatable subject for contemporary times How much do you relate to its script?

Allelujah tries to give a voice to the statistics that you hear about in the news, whether that’s patients, medical professionals, junior doctors, and anyone who works in a hospital It’s a film that really looks into what’s happening in our healthcare service and the strains and constraints it’s under And more specifically, our elderly generation Old age is inevitable, we’ll all need to use this service at some point in our lives Personally, I think this film asks the question, what state’s it going to be in when I need it?

Please tell us a bit about your role.

I play Dr Valentine He’s a young doctor from India who has an outsider's point of view on the NHS The film really feels like a diary entry from his perspective He loves the old and can be quite idealistic about the levels of care he wants to provide for his patients He represents youthful passion and exuberance of wanting to help people, and through the course of the film, you see how that shifts and changes because of a lack of support and resources I also think my character in this film shows the difference in cultural values and the importance of the way different countries treat the elderly

Why do you think the South Asian diaspora will relate to it?

It’s a good question I don’t know if they will But I suppose I represent the South Asian experience that many doctors, nurses, and medical professionals experience coming from India and working in this country which is becoming more and more prevalent I feel immensely proud to be representing them in this way, and for them to have

Do utmost to expunge abhorrent behaviour and deal with offenders appropriately

Ar se na l ar e assist ing the police wit h a p r o be in t o a n t i -S e mi t i c co m m e n t s s e n t i n t he A s h bu r t o n A r m y 's

Wha tsApp group Ashbur ton Arm y is n o w fa c i n g a cc u sa t io n s t h a t a n t iSe mitic message s wer e sen t on the ir Wha tsApp gr oup

According to The Guardian, the m e s s a g e s l a r g e l y f o c u s o n t h e Holocaust but also comprise IsraelPalestine conspiracy theories, Jewish practice related to circumcision and Tottenham’s reputation as a Jewish club

I n a s t a t e m e n t , J o n a t h a n M e t l i s s , C h a i r m a n o f A c t i o n A g a i n s t D i s c r i m i n a t i o n

an integral voice within this film There is a lack of that experience being shown in British cinema/TV today, so I feel very fortunate that it is representative and a true reflection of what actually happens

Do you think the film will be incredibly cathartic for NHS workers?

I don’t know about cathartic but we went to the general annual meeting of the British Geriatrics Society last year to promote the film and honestly, the reaction was incredible The film is a mixture of dark comedy and very serious issues interwoven beautifully by Alan Bennett and Heidi Thomas Some of the geriatricians and medical professionals at the meeting actually found the more serious c o n v e r s a t i o n s - p a r t i c u l a r l y t h e s c e n e s between Jennifer Saunder’s character Sister Gilpin and me - more relatable and funnier than some of the comedy that had been written into the film It was relatable; they’re familiar conversations that they are having on a daily basis

What is your takeaway about the elderly and the health care staff through this film?

Personally, the old are often forgotten about It feels like when you reach a certain age, you have nothing left to offer to society and are shifted to a corner of some medical ward to die Maybe that’s harsh, but it was something that we personally went through as a family, with my grandma earlier this year going through the system In terms of the NHS, they are doing their best with what they’ve been given We can go into the nittygritty details of what’s happening, but essentially everyone who works in the NHS is d o i n g a n i n c r e d i b l e j o b w i t h w h a t l i t t l e they’ve been given Did this film change you personally in any way?

Yes, I did I got to work with an incredible cast and crew, including so many British icons It’s my first ever feature film where I’ve got to play one of the lead characters, hopefully, the first of many! But more importantly, It made me appreciate my own family, especially the senior members I had an interviewer say that after he watched the film he rang his grandma immediately after, which really connected with me

Manchester to host Halal trade show exhibition

F ol lo wi n g t he s u c c e s s of H a la l E x p o L on d on ; H a l al E x p o M a n c he s te r i s e q ui p pe d t o c a p ti v a te t he H al a l Tr a de I n d us t ry , b ot h n a ti o n al l y an d g lo ba l ly ; taking plac e on the 14 and 15 J uly 2023, at T he O l d T ra f f or d St a di u m, hom e of M anc hester United

The event is designed to congregate some of the world’s leading Halal suppliers, b u y e r s , m a n u f a c t u r e r s , c o n s u m e r s a n d professionals and will showcase significant products and services available within the H a l a l i n d u s t r y a l o n g w i t h a s e r i e s o f s e m i n a r s a n d w o r k s h o p s w i t h g l o b a l l y r e c o g n i s e d s p e a k e r s / a m b a s s a d o r s T h e event explores all avenues of Halal including food, clothing, art, financial advice, marital s e r v i c e s , h o u s i n g , b e a u t y , e d u c a t i o n a l r e s o u r c e s , l e i s u r e , t r a v e l , i m p o r t i n g / exporting, charity, and much more Halal Expo is partnering with a number o f r e p u t a b l e o r g a n i s a t i o n s a n d h a s

entrusted The Amir Khan Foundation as their official charity partner Founder and trustee of the foundation, two-time world boxing champion Amir Khan, said, “I’m thrilled to have the Amir Khan Foundation as the official charity partner of the Halal Expo in Manchester and London The spirit o f e n t e r p r i s e s h o w n b y M u s l i m entrepreneurs has strengthened the halal e c o n o m y t o b e c o m e o n e o f t h e m o s t lucrative markets across the globe ” The UK Halal market is currently estimated at over £3 billion

“ H a l a l E x p o M a n c h e s t e r i s a n o p p o r t u n i t y f o r H a l a l b u s i n e s s e s a n d m a i n s t r e a m b r a n d s t o s h o w c a s e t h e i r commitment to diversity and inclusivity

We are delighted to receive recognition and support from The Department of Business and Trade for the event”, said Aatif Majid, Founder & CEO of Halal Expo London & Manchester

T h e a n t i - S e m i t i c s e n t i m e n t s a r e communicated in words, songs, memes and cartoons, with dozens of messages having b e e n s e n t S o m e t a r g e t a l l J e w s , t h o u g h several are aimed at one Jewish fan who had been part of the group The screenshots seen by The Guardian show that at no point did an administrator delete the offending posts, remonstrate with the perpetrators or remove those responsible from the group

“We are aware of the historic messages o n a p r i v a t e W h a t s A p p g r o u p a n d w e s t r o n g l y c o n d e m n t h e a b u s i v e a n d discriminatory language being used We are liaising with the police on the matter," they said in a statement to the Guardian

“Our ongoing action shows that abusive and discriminatory behaviour will not be t o l e r a t e d a t A r s e n a l O u r i n c l u s i o n p r o g r a m m e s d e s i g n e d f o r o u r l o c a l community aim to support education on the topics of abuse and discrimination, while our global platforms will continue to give a voice a n d b r i n g f o c u s t o m a t t e r s o f e q u a l i t y , diversity and inclusion

" W e w i l l a l s o c o n t i n u e t o c a m p a i g n alongside our supporters’ groups, including o u r n e w J e w i s h G o o n e r s g r o u p a n d t h e J e w i s h c o m m u n i t y , t o c e l e b r a t e a n d champion our diverse family with the aim of ensuring everyone feels welcome at Arsenal ”

(AAD) said, “AAD notes w i t h d i s g u s t a n d condemns the harrowing anti-Semitic posts sent in the Whats App group of t h e A s h b u r t o n A r m y , a p r o m i n e n t f a n o r g a n i s a t i o n t o w h i c h Arsenal FC have given assistance These i n c l u d e I s r a e l - P a l e s t i n e c o n s p i r a c y t h e o r i e s , J e w i s h p r a c t i c e r e l a t e d t o circumcision and Tottenham’s reputation as a Jewish club

“And so it goes on There is a trend here following the anti-Semitic attack on Jewish supporter Katie Price at the Cally pub at the time of the North London derby against Tottenham in January At the heart of this atmosphere of anti-Semitism, AAD believes, is the continuing chanting by Tottenham supporters of the “Y“ word referring to Yid”, which encourages and acts as a catalyst in the football world for anti-Semitic behaviour

“ O n t h e p o s i t i v e s i d e , A r s e n a l h a v e unreservedly condemned the Katie Price incident and recently banned five fans for three years over Jew hate incidents online or in the Arsenal stadium The club is liaising with the police over these latest Ashburton army anti-Semitic posts The launch of the Jewish Gooners Supporters Club is also seen as a positive step It is acknowledged that Arsenal FC generally have a good track r e c o r d i n c o m b a t t i n g a n d a d d r e s s i n g a n t i - S e m i t i c b e h a v i o u r f r o m t h e i r supporters and at the Emirates

“AAD again calls on the relevant football authorities, clubs, the police and politicians t o d o t h e i r u t m o s t t o e x p u n g e t h i s a b h o r r e n t b e h a v i o u r a n d d e a l w i t h t h e offenders appropriately ”

Jonathan Metliss

Dear Financia

Voice Reader Alpesh Patel OBE

Buy more nVid ia , sel l out? More Mi croso ft, Apple, Ama zon? Why i s the D ow down th is y ea r? Is th e 32% th e Nasdaq is up the n pe ak? W hich othe r stocks look good ? Serv iceNow? How about non-tech stocks be ne fi tting from AI li ke Chi potle ? Wha t's i n y our pension? All t hese in my SIPP

Oh, and Disney? Forget about it? Or keep as a quasiquality company? Can Tesla bang on about AI and resume upwards?

And what do Goldman Sachs, Barclays, UBS, Credit Suisse say about these companies? Buy, sell, hold?

I’ve been doing a weekly stock market update which is becoming so popular that I am adding about 100 new subscribers daily on YouTube and a thousand a day on T i k T o k – y o u c a n f i n d i t a l l o n www alpeshpatel com/links

A t l e a s t A I c o u l d c u t t h r o u g h t h e r e a m s o f c o n t r a d i c t o r y c o m m e n t o n w h a t t h e d e b t c e i l i n g a g r e e m e n t m e a n s f o r t h e m a r k e t s H e r e i s w h a t

ChatGPT4 Plus with Web access said:

"The initial market reaction to the deal was positive, with Wall Street futures rising and the cost of insuring against exposure to a U S debt default falling However, some investors remain cautious given the proposed s p e n d i n g c u t s a n d t h e p o t e n t i a l i m p a c t o n U S economic growth

Defense stocks, cyclical sectors, and energy stocks are among those expected to benefit from the deal, particularly those sectors that have lagged behind during the negotiations

Yet, concerns remain about potential volatility in U S government bonds as the Treasury is expected to quickly refill its empty coffers with bond issuance once t h e d e b t c e i l i n g i s r a i s e d , p o t e n t i a l l y r e m o v i n g hundreds of billions of dollars from the market "

T he Gr eat Inve stme nt Sha ke-Up: Why Tr adi tio na l

Stra tegi es No Longer Work

M e d i a d a r l i n g a n d m u l t i - b i l l i o n d o l l a r f u n d m a n a g e r C a t h i e W o o d m i s s e d n V i d i a i n h e r t e c h portfolio Doh!

The world of investing is constantly evolving, and strategies that worked in the past may not necessarily bring success in today's dynamic market

The rise of new asset classes, global economic uncertainties, and advanced technology such as AI has shifted the landscape, revealing cracks in traditional investment strategies Fund managers are not only slow to adapt, but pretty useless at beating a simple index

In this post, I'll discuss why these strategies may not b e a s e f f e c t i v e a n d h i g h l i g h t t h e b e n e f i t s o f a multifaceted approach to investing

Th e Cha llenges wit h T radi ti ona l Inve st me nt Stra teg ies

Traditional investment strategies often focus on a single aspect, such as value or growth While these approaches have their merits, they can fall short in today's complex financial landscape

For instance, purely value-based strategies may o v e r l o o k g r o w t h p o t e n t i a l , w h i l e g r o w t h - f o c u s e d strategies might ignore fair valuation This narrow view can lead to missed opportunities and increased risks

A Mul tif aceted Approa ch to Investi ng

In contrast to traditional strategies, I advocate for a multifaceted approach to investing, one that considers value, growth, income, cash flow, momentum, and p r i c e s t a t i s t i c s , a n d n o w h a v i n g A I c h e c k y o u r homework too

This approach provides a more comprehensive picture of an investment

Valu e: Ensures you're not overpaying for an asset

Growth: Identifies companies that have the potential for expansion

Income: Highlights investments that can provide a steady income stream

Ca sh Flow: Gives an indication of a company's financial health

Momentum: Helps ride the wave of positively trending assets

Pri ce Sta tistics: Offers additional insight into market sentiment and potential trends

W hy Thi s Ap proach Works

This multifaceted approach offers a more balanced v i e w o f a n i n v e s t m e n t , e n a b l i n g b e t t e r d e c i s i o nm a k i n g B y c o n s i d e r i n g m u l t i p l e f a c t o r s , y o u c a n i d e n t i f y i n v e s t m e n t s t h a t o f f e r v a l u e a n d g r o w t h p o t e n t i a l , g e n e r a t e i n c o m e , d e m o n s t r a t e p o s i t i v e momentum, and show strong cash flow – all essential elements for long-term success in the market

I've been promoting this approach for over two decades, since my first Financial Times column

C o m e m e e t m e a t t h e F i n a n c i a l T i m e s / I n v e s t o r s

C h r o n i c l e F u t u r e o f P r i v a t e I n v e s t i n g C o n f e r e n c e :

Britons risk missing out on £130mn in energy bills support

If Br i ti sh h o u s eh o l d s o n prepaym ent meters do not red e em g o v er nm e nt vouchers before they expire in a m o n th s t im e, th e y co u ld m i ss o u t o n u p to £13 0m of sup port fo r their energy bills

The energy bills support scheme, which runs until 30 June, entitles all households to discounts of up to £400 on their bills While those on direct debits and smart prepayment meters received the payments automatically, those on analogue prepay

d e v i c e s h a d t o t a k e t h e i r vouchers to a post office or PayPoint vendor to have the cash credited to their meter

A c c o r d i n g t o t h e government, only 83% of the vouchers, worth either £66 or £67, have been claimed

Brussels wants UK to join pact to ease postBrexit car tariff risk

Senior o fficials in Bru ssels are sug gesting th at the UK sh o u l d be co m e p art o f a p an- E u ro p e an a g re em e nt on good s trad e to limit the d am a g e c au s ed by p o s tBre xi t ta ri ff s t o i ts c ar ind ustry, instead of seeking a d elay in their intro duction

As per the rules of origin" terms outlined in their p o s t - B r e x i t t r a d i n g a g r e em e n t , e l e c t r i c v e h i c l e s transported between the UK and the EU will require at least 45% of their parts to be s o u r c e d f r o m w i t h i n t h e two regions from January next year, or face 10% tariffs

The limit increases to 60% for batteries, which constitute a significant portion of an EV's value and are still m a i n l y i m p o r t e d f r o m C h i n a , S o u t h K o r e a , o r Japan

L o n d o n i s r e q u e s t i n g t h e E U t o p o s t p o n e t h e i n t r o d u c t i o n o f t h e l e v y until 2027, a move support-

ed by UK and EU car manuf a c t u r e r s w h o h a v e c a ut i o n e d t h a t t h e y w i l l b e unable to comply with the " r u l e s o f o r i g i n " s t a r t i n g next year due to the lack of battery production capacity in Europe The commission views the upcoming shift in rules of origin requirements as a means to encourage EU car manufacturers to invest in battery production facilities in the region, partially at t h e e x p e n s e o f t h e U K industry, which has had diff i c u l t y a t t r a c t i n g i n v e s tment in the sector While the UK's membership in PEM could eventually assist European car manu f a c t u r e r s a s s i g n a t o r y n a t i o n s l i k e N o r w a y a n d Turkey establish a domestic EV battery manufacturing industry, trade experts cautioned that it would do little in the short term to address the UK-EU tariff issue since there is still a need to import batteries from Asia

UK has abundant supply of geothermal energy

A rec en t re p o rt h a s rev e al ed th at th e to w n s and cities in the UK that re qui re the m os t inv estme nt are si tuate d abo v e are as w i th th e g r ea tes t po ten tial fo r g e oth e rm al energy As part of the g overn m en t's l ev ell i ng - u p agenda, a network of undergro und geothermal plants is being proposed to tap into th i s u nt ap p ed e ner g y so urce Accord ing to an academ ic study com missioned by No 1 0, these areas are ap pro ximately three tim es mo re lik ely to be ric h i n geo therm al energy Research conducted by the University of Durham has revealed that the local a u t h o r i t y a r e a s t h a t a r e most in need of levelling up, s u c h a s R e d c a r a n d Cleveland, Middlesbrough, E a s t L i n d s e y , H a r t l e p o o l , N o r t h u m b e r l a n d , a n d Bassetlaw, are also rich in g e o t h e r m a l p o t e n t i a l

d

i t i o n a l l y , o t h e r a r e a s

o u t o f t h e 1 1 6 m v o u c h e r s i s s u e d b y suppliers, with a total value of £780m Data showed that London had the lowest rate of r e d e m p t i o n f o r t h e sixth month in a row, w i t h m o r e t h a n 6 5 0 , 0 0 0 v o u c h e r s s t i l l unused at the end of March

S i n c e t h e l a u n c h o f t h e scheme last autumn, data has consistently shown that b e t w e e n a f i f t h a n d a q u a r t e r o f t h e p r e p a y v o u c h e r s h a v e b e e n l e f t

unredeemed

The prepay scheme is a c o m p o n e n t o f a b r o a d e r e f f o r t t o a s s i s t B r i t i s h citizens with their energy expenses in the aftermath of R u s s i a ' s i n c u r s i o n i n t o Ukraine, which caused a rise in wholesale gas prices that was reflected in domestic bills However, this support will not be available during t h e u p c o m i n g w i n t e r , indicating that consumers are unlikely to experience significant relief despite the recent decrease in prices

US govt fines BA for failure to pay refund for cancelled flights

T h e U S g o v ern m en t sa i d th a t Bri ti s h

Airways has been fined $1 1m (£ 878, 000 ) by th e U S go v ernm ent as i t failed to p ay refu nds fo r ca nc el le d f li g h ts during the p and em ic

The U S Department of T ran sp or tat i o n s ai d th e ai rl in e h ad no t p r ov i d ed " ti m el y re fu n d s to passeng ers" for aband oned or resch ed uled flights to and from the co untry

It said it had received more than 1,200 complaints a b o u t t h e a i r l i n e B A rejected the claims, saying it h a d " a c t e d l a w f u l l y a t a l l t i m e s " A c c o r d i n g t o t h e transport department, from March to November 2020, B A ' s w e b s i t e i n s t r u c t e d consumers to contact the carrier by phone to discuss r e f u n d o p t i o n s , i n c l u d i n g for flights the carrier had c a n c e l l e d o r s i g n i f i c a n t l y changed

H o w e v e r , c o n s u m e r s were unable to get through to customer service agents when calling the carrier for several months during this period because BA failed to m a i n t a i n a d e q u a t e functionality of its customer service phone lines , it said "There was also no way to submit a refund request t h r o u g h t h e c a r r i e r ' s website during this period," t h e d e p a r t m e n t s a i d I t added that from March to November 2020, misleading i n f o r m a t i o n o n B A ' s website had led consumers t o i n a d v e r t e n t l y r e q u e s t travel vouchers instead of refunds

UK supermarkets cut diesel prices by 7p per litre

that are well-suited for producing geothermal heat and e l e c t r i c i t y i n c l u d e N e w c a s t l e u p o n T y n e , North East Derbyshire, the E a s t R i d i n g o f Y o r k s h i r e , and Nottingham

Theoretically, the UK has an abundant supply of geothermal energy trapped u n d e r g r o u n d t h a t c o u l d potentially heat every home f o r a c e n t u r y E v e n w i t h conservative estimates that c o n s i d e r c o m m e r c i a l a n d l o g i s t i c a l l i m i t a t i o n s , geothermal energy has the p o t e n t i a l t o s i g n i f i c a n t l y reduce the UK's reliance on i m p o r t e d f o s s i l f u e l s a n d instead rely solely on the North Sea for its gas supply

A c co r d i ng to th e R A C , supermarkets have red uced the price of d iesel by more than 7p per litre since the UK's co mpetition watch dog warned it would inv estigate retail executiv es reg ard ing unnecessary h igh forecou rt prices The motoring group disc o v e r e d t h a t t h e a v e r a g e d i e s e l p r i c e d e c r e a s e d b y

7 44 p per litre, from 151 02p to 143 58p, in the past two w e e k s a f t e r t h e C o m p e t i t i o n a n d M a r k e t s Authority (CMA) expressed concern that retailers were e a r n i n g " s u s t a i n e d h i g h e r margins" from diesel sales

After the CMA pledged last month to "get to the bottom" of higher-than-anticipated diesel pump prices, supermarkets hastened the p a c e o f t h e i r d i e s e l p r i c e r e d u c t i o n s , w h i c h h a d lagged behind the decline in e n e r g y m a r k e t s i n r e c e n t months

However, the motoring g r o u p c l a i m e d t h a t l a r g e r e t a i l e r s , i n c l u d i n g s u p e rmarkets, could reduce average diesel prices by a further 6p per litre to 137p and still m a i n t a i n a p r o f i t m a r g i n higher than the long-term average of 7p per litre

Under the scheme, all households were eligible for u p t o £ 4 0 0 i n s u p p o r t , which cost the government £11 5bn However, this support will not be available during the upcoming wint e r , i n d i c a t i n g t h a t c o nsumers are unlikely to exper i e n c e s i g n i f i c a n t r e l i e f despite the recent decrease in prices

India’s GDP rise 6.1% in Q4, 7.2% in FY23, beats estimates

India's GDP g row th in th e J anu ary to M arch q ua rter e xc ee d ed e xp e ct ati o ns because of good results in t h e a g ri c ul tu ra l, s e rv i c e, c o ns tr u ct i on , an d m anu f ac tu r in g s ec to rs , r ai s in g th e c o un try 's p ro jected total growth for 20 22–23 to 7 2% from th e p revious estim ate of 7%

D a t a r e l e a s e d b y t h e N a t i o n a l S t a t i s t i c a l O f f i c e

The best of both worlds

( N S O ) s h o w e d g r o w t h i n J a n u a r y t o M a r c h - t h e fourth quarter of the 202223 fiscal - was at 6 1%, higher than the upwardly revised 4 5% in the previous quarter T h e m o s t r e c e n t f u l lyear forecast for 2022–2023 i s g r e a t e r t h a n p r i o r p r o j e c t i o n s f r o m t h e Reserve Bank of India (RBI), the International Monetary F u n d , t h e W o r l d B a n k ,

r a t i n g s a g e n c i e s , a n d investment banks This h a s a l l o w e d I n d i a t o maintain its title as the m a j o r e c o n o m y w i t h the fastest rate of growth In 2021-22, GDP growth was at 9 1% largely helped by a low b a s e a f t e r t h e r e c o r d contraction in the previous y e a r d u e t o t h e C o v i d - 1 9 pandemic The growth was propelled by a robust farm

sector, which grew 5 5% in t h e M a r c h q u a r t e r compared to 4 7% in the p r e v i o u s t h r e e m o n t h p e r i o d w h i l e t h e s e r v i c e s sector rose 6 9% in JanuaryMarch, compared to 6 1% expansion earlier

Tata subsidiary to set up lithium-ion battery plant in Gujarat

The Tata G rou p will set up a lit hium-ion c ell manu fac tur ing fac ility in G ujara t thr ough it s su bs id i ar y , at a c o st o f £1 3 billio n The plant will h ave an in i t i al c ap ac it y o f 2 0G W h , acco rding to go vt sou rces

Agratas Energy Storage S o l u t i o n s P r i v a t e L i m i t e d i n k e d a n M o U w i t h t h e state government as part of the new electronics policy The MoU will set the tone for setting up a gigafactory d e d i c a t e d t o l i t h i u m - i o n m a n u f a c t u r i n g h e r e T h e establishment of the factory a l i g n s w i t h t h e s t a t e ’ s ambitious goal of achieving 50% carbon emission free

e n e r g y a n d 1 0 0 % E V adoption by 2030 T h e p l a n t w i l l h e l p generate direct and indirect e m p l o y m e n t f o r s o m e 1 3 , 0 0 0 i n d i v i d u a l s T h e MoU was signed by Vijay Nehra, secretary of science and technology, Government o f G u j a r a t , a n d R a k e s h Ranjan, the CEO of Agratas Energy The plant will help r e d u c e G u j a r a t ’ s dependence on China and K o r e a , w h i c h c u r r e n t l y supply battery cells to India

India's manufacturing activity hits 31-month high

I n d i a ' s m a n u fa c t u r i n g a ctivity r ema ined r obust in M ay a nd rose to a 31-mon th h ig h on t he ba ck o f fir m d e m a n d , i m pr ov e m e n t i n supply chains and str onge r i n c r e a s e in n e w o r d e r s , a ccor ding t o a sur vey T h e m a n u f a c t u r i n g sector has shown the highest improvement since October 2020, according to the S&P Global India Manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI), which increased from

57 2 in April to 58 7 in May

The 50-point mark separates expansion from contraction The survey is compiled from responses to questionnaires

Air India to have 70 new aircraft by March: CEO

Ai r Indi a -now ba ck with f ounder T ata Group - ha s bee n p ut on t he fa st t rack t o r a p i d e xp a ns i o n T h e a ir line will induct 19 widebod y and 50 narr ow-bo dy a ir cra ft by ne xt March To f u e l t h i s g r o w t h , AI i s h iri ng 550 ca bi n cr ew and 5 0 p i l o t s e v e r y m o nt h Inducting new pla ne s will h elp the a irl ine resolve one o f t he bi g g est g ro use o f c u st o m e r s - d i l a p i d a t e d ca bi n of the old fle et - and s p r e a d i t s i nt e r na t i o na l n e t w o r k w i t h N o r t h Amer ica a nd Europe being t h e p r i o r i t y a r e a s T h e a i r l i n e h a d r e ce nt l y o r d e r e d 4 7 0 a i r cr a f t , i nclud ing 70 wid e bodi es

“We will be inducting 19 new wide body aircraft by the end of next March (Once that happens) from m i d - 2 0 2 4 , w e w i l l s t a r t s e n d i n g o u r 4 0 e x i s t i n g wide body (27 Boeing 787s and 13 B777s) for complete r e f u r b i s h m e n t T h e i r i n t e r i o r s w i l l b e completely

t h e s e p l a n e s w i l l g e t e v e r y t h i n g b r a n d n e w f r o m s e a t s t o i n f l i g h t e n t e r t a i n m e n t ( I F E ) a n d onboard Wifi as part of our $ 4 0 0 m i l l i o n u p g r a d e project By mid-2025, all our twin aisles will have a b s o l u t e l y n e w c a b i n p r o d u c t , ” A I M D - C E O Campbell Wilson said The new wide bodies being inducted this fiscal, s t a r t i n g w i t h t h e A i r b u s

A350s, will have onboard WiFi While 17 of the 19 twin aisles will be used for a u g m e n t i n g f l e e t , A I h a s r e c e n t l y s t a r t e d t a l k s f o r inducting two more B777s so that it can retire two wide bodies

The narrow body fleet m a k e o v e r w i l l b e f a s t e r w i t h a m a j o r i t y o f A I group ’ s full service single a i s l e s g e t t i n g f a c e l i f t b y next September “We are going to induct 50 single a i s l e s t h i s f i s c a l B y September 2024, 75-80% of our full-service single aisles will be brand new, ” he said

s e n t t o p u r c h a s i n g managers in a panel of a r o u n d 4 0 0 manufacturers The manufacturing s e c t o r h a s i m p r o v e d since the lifting of curbs imposed to prevent the s p r e a d o f t h e coronavirus The sector g r e w 4 5 % i n t h e f o u r t h q u a r t e r o f 2 0 2 2 – 2 0 2 3 , following a 1 4% contraction in the third quarter, as per recent data

T h e s u r v e y r e s u l t s showed that a surge in sales paved the way for stronger i n c r e a s e s i n p r o d u c t i o n , employment and quantities of purchases With supply chain conditions improving further, companies noted a r e c o r d a c c u m u l a t i o n i n input inventories, it said O u t o f t h e f i v e P M I s u b c o m p o n e n t s , s t o c k s o f p u r c h a s e s s h o w e d n o t a b l e v i g o u r , i n c r e a s i n g a t a n unprecedented pace in May

Suresh Vagjiani, Sow & Reap Properties Ltd

R ecently we h ave h ad so me cas es wh ereb y do ing a mortgage in a limited co mp any was either not p ossible given time restrictio ns, o r sligh tly more on the exp ensive side

Buying in a limited company is more cumbersome than buying in a personal name, as it adds another layer of due diligence to the process This therefore becomes prohibitive when there is a time restriction to the deal, for example in the case of an auction purchase

The rates for limited companies also tend to be more expensive, I’m unsure as to the reason why, as the debt is generally always personally guaranteed by the borrower regardless of the vehicle used for the purchase

A cheaper option is extracting equity on a residential basis Contrary to popular opinion regardless of from which one of the above three places the debt is taken, one is personally liable for it

Despite this point some, regardless of the extra cost, find some form of emotional comfort taking debt from a BTL property rather than their residential

The ideal situation would be to take the funds at the cheapest rate and have the tax saving benefit of owning the asset in a corporate wrapper

There is actually a way of getting the best from both worlds, through an instrument known as a trust Very simply put, a trust is when one party holds an asset on behalf and for the benefit of another party This law stems from the 12th century Disputes over land and estates arose when the crusaders came back from fighting the holy wars and tried to claim their estates back from those who were supposed to look after them Hence trust law was born

H e r e o n e i s h o l d i n g i t o n b e h a l f o f a l i m i t e d company

It is of course advisable to get proper advice, as each situation is unique, and doing this may impact another aspect of your estate Currently, we are in the process of setting several deals up in this manner, for each one we will be taking the appropriate advice

T r u s t i s s o m e t h i n g w h i c h i s u s e d a l o t i n l i f e assurance When the policy is placed in trust, it has two benefits One is the sum assured is paid out immediately on death, without the need to go through probate The other is it sits outside of one ’ s estate Given this, it is surprising how many are not set up in this manner and therefore expose themselves to unnecessary hurdles There are many nuances to this subject, and advice not only needs to be taken on the set up but also the structure ideally needs to be regularly reviewed

Sandesara brothers, wanted in India, doing flourishing business in Nigeria

Th e Sa nd e s a ra b r ot he rs who were wanted in I ndi a fo r “ o n e o f t he b i gg e s t ec o n om i c s c a ms i n th e country” , have establi shed on e o f t he la rg e s t independent oil company in Ni g er i a Th e s el e ct i on of th e f i r m ow n ed b y th e brothers' family, who I ndi a has des ignated as fugitives, to dig wells for the project is me r el y th e m os t re c e n t illustration of how Nigeri a has s erved as the brothers ' s af e h av e n, e ff e c t i ve l y s hi e ld i n g t he m f rom problems back home Modi

g ov er n m en t ha s a c c u s ed the tycoons of abs conding a f te r de f ra u di n g pub l i c b a n ks o f m ore t ha n $ 1 7 billion Nigeria has refused India’ s request to extradite them

The Sandesara brothers, two Gujarati businessmen who left India in 2017, claim t h e y w e r e v i c t i m s o f p o l i t i c a l p e r s e c u t i o n b u t d e n y d e f r a u d i n g t h e i r l e n d e r s T h e b r o t h e r s e n t e r e d t h e N i g e r i a n o i l sector about 20 years ago when they were awarded two onshore licences in the

delta, but due to issues in I n d i a , t h e y h a v e t u r n e d t h e i r a t t e n t i o n t o L a g o s T h e y e v e n a p p l i e d f o r N i g e r i a n c i t i z e n s h i p , according to CBI which is probing the fraud case

According to a letter released by the Organised C r i m e a n d C o r r u p t i o n R e p o r t i n g P r o j e c t , t h e African country declined to arrest them four years ago o n t h e g r o u n d s t h a t t h e I n d i a n a c c u s a t i o n s

"appeared to be political in nature "

In India, the brothers’

private jet, swanky cars and s t a r - s t u d d e d p a r t i e s a t a 6 0 , 0 0 0 - s q u a r e - f e e t farmhouse in Ampad village i n G u j a r a t , r o u t i n e l y provided fodder for tabloids a n d s o c i a l m e d i a s i t e s , according to news outlet F r o m a s a n c t u a r y o n L a g o s ’ s u p s c a l e V i c t o r i a Island, one of their Nigerian c o m p a n i e s h a s c o n t i n u e d t h a t g l i t z y t r a d i t i o n , sponsoring annual Diwali c e l e b r a t i o n s t h a t a r e t h e t a l k o f t h e c i t y ’ s s m a l l I n d i a n c o m m u n i t y , e v e n flying in Bollywood singers

Apple aims to open three more stores in India

Appl e i s working o n p lans to expand and revi tali se its retail chain, aiming to p ush deeper into Chi na and o th er parts of A s i a w h i l e o ver h a ul i ng establi sh ed lo cati ons i n th e US and Europe

T h r o u g h 2 0 2 7 , t h e iPhone maker is discussing o p e n i n g 1 5 n e w s t o r e s a c r o s s t h e A s i a - P a c i f i c r e g i o n , f i v e l o c a t i o n s i n

Europe and the Middle East, and four additional outlets i n t h e U S a n d C a n a d a , a c c o r d i n g t o p e o p l e w i t h k n o w l e d g e o f t h e deliberations In total, the c o m p a n y i s p r o p o s i n g 5 3 n e w , r e l o c a t e d o r remodelled stores over four y e a r s T h e m o s t n o t a b l e new stores under discussion or in development include

three sites in India

T h e i d e a i s t o b u i l d

A p p l e ’ s b r a n d i n g r o w t h m a r k e t s , s u c h a s I n d i a , while also giving consumers i n t h e U S a n d E u r o p e a better experience For 2025, Apple is discussing opening its third store in India in the Borivli suburb of Mumbai

It is also proposing opening its fourth India location in

0

2

2 6 I t w o u l d b e t h e second one in New Delhi, s i t u a t e d a t t h e D L F Promenade mall That store could become the secondlargest for Apple in India, a f t e r t h e B K C s i t e t h a t d e b u t e d i n M u m b a i i n April In 2027, Apple aims to add a fifth Indian outpost, a l o c a t i o n i n W o r l i i n Mumbai

Former Pak PM Khan faces military trial for May 9 violence

I SLAM ABAD: Pakis tan’s defence minister Khawaja Asif sa id former PM Imr an Khan may b e tried in a military court for his all eged involv ement in the Ma y 9 incidents in which mil it ary a nd st ate instal lat ions were atta ck ed by his party worke rs Express Tribune newspaper quoted Asif as saying that it was a possibility if evidence of his i n v o l v e m e n t s u r f a c e d i n t h e coming days He also confirmed that no case had been registered against the PTI chief so far in c o n n e c t i o n w i t h t h e M a y 9 attacks His remarks came days a f t e r i n t e r i o r m i n i s t e r R a n a Sanaullah said that Khan will be tried in a military court as the former PM was the “architect” of

the May 9 incidents

K h a n , m e a n w h i l e , a c c u s e d the military and its intelligence

a g e n c y o f o p e n l y t r y i n g t o destroy his party saying he has

LeT leader who trained 26/11 terrorists dies in Pak jail

I SLA M A BA D: Authorities have c on f i r m e d th a t J a m a a t - u dD a w a ( J uD ) l e a d e r a n d L a s h k a r - e - T ai b a ( L e T) f oundin g mem ber Ab dul Sala m B hu t ta v i , w h o t r a i n e d terrorists for the 26/11 Mumba i t e r r or i s t a tt a c k s , w a s f ou n d dea d i nside his pris on c ell i n Shei khupura town of Punja b provinc e A u t h o r i t i e s c l a i m e d t h a t t h e J u D l e a d e r ’ s d e a t h h a d occurred due to cardiac arrest last week “It was a severe heart attack and it caused sudden death on the spot in a prison c e l l , ” a w e l l - p l a c e d s o u r c e confirmed His funeral prayers w e r e h e l d a t L e T ’ s headquarters in Muridke, near Lahore Bhuttavi (78) was believed to be a key figure responsible for indoctrination of LeT terrorists a n d i t s a f f i l i a t e d o u t f i t s H e , however, was not sentenced for

m a s t e r m i n d i n g t h e 2 0 0 8 M u m b a i a t t a c k s P r i o r t o a deadline of September 2020 for P a k i s t a n t o a v o i d b e i n g b l a c k l i s t e d b y t h e F i n a n c i a l A c t i o n T a s k F o r c e ( a n i n t e r n a t i o n a l f i n a n c i a l watchdog) for failing to curtail " t e r r o r f i n a n c i n g , " a c o u r t i n Pakistan had sentenced him to p r i s o n t i m e a l o n g w i t h t w o other JuD leaders, Malik Zafar Iqbal and Hafiz Abdul Rehman M a k k i E a c h o f t h e m w e r e handed more than 16 years in jail to be served concurrently The men were considered to be close associates of LeT founder Hafiz Saeed Bhuttavi was described as the interim leader of the group during the brief periods when Saeed was arrested following the Mumbai attacks, and running its network of seminaries In mid2002, Bhuttavi was in charge of e s t a b l i s h i n g a n L e T organisational base in Lahore

Qatar PM and Taliban chief hold secret Afghan talks

WA S H I N GT O N: T h is m o nth , th e Q ata ri p rime minister met in secret with the Taliban s u p re m e l ea d er to d iscu ss easing tension w ith the outside world , acco rd ing to a sou rc e b ri ef ed o n th e c o nv ers a ti o n T h i s enco unter appeared to indicate a new op enness on the p art of the A fg han g overnment to talk about meth ods to break their isolation

T h e m e e t i n g b e t w e e n H a i b a t u l l a h A k h u n z a d a a n d Q a t a r i P M M o h a m m e d b i n Abdulrahman al Thani on May 12 in Kandahar is the first one that is known to have taken p l a c e b e t w e e n t h e s e c r e t i v e

T a l i b a n l e a d e r a n d a f o r e i g n leader U S P r e s i d e n t J o e B i d e n ’ s administration was briefed on the talks and is “coordinating on issues discussed” by the pair, i n c l u d i n g f u r t h e r i n g d i a l o g u e w i t h t h e T a l i b a n , s a i d t h e

in brief

INDIAN ORIGIN STUDENT SHOT DEAD IN US

e-Insaf (PTI) party, but his comm e n t s i n a n i n t e r v i e w a t h i s L a h o r e h o m e w e r e t h e m o s t blunt yet

w h i c h h a s c r i t i c i s e d T a l i b a n r e s t r i c t i o n s o n w o m e n w h i l e u s i n g t i e s w i t h t h e I s l a m i s t movement to push for deeper engagement with Kabul

The Taliban has been put under pressure from the US to allow girls to go to school, allow women to return to their jobs, and allow Afghans who are not Taliban members to serve in g o v e r n m e n t T h e s o u r c e ’ s c o m m e n t s s u g g e s t e d t h a t W a s h i n g t o n s u p p o r t e d e l e v a t i n g w h a t h a v e b e e n unproductive lower-level talks in the hope of a breakthrough that could end the world’s only b a n s o f t h e i r k i n d a n d e a s e h u m a n i t a r i a n a n d f i n a n c i a l crises

“ no doubt” he will be tried in a military court and thrown in jail

Khan has hinted previously at the military’s hand in a crackdown on his Pakistan Tehreek-

Nine more PTI members det ained N i n e m o r e P T I m e m b e r s who allegedly participated in the May 9 attacks on military sites were detained and given to the army for prosecution under the Pakistan Army Act With these arrests, the number of PTI members to be tried under the Army Act and the Official Secrets Act has exceeded 50 “On the orders o f t h e a n t i - t e r r o r i s m c o u r t s , nine suspects belonging to PTI w e r e h a n d e d t o t h e P a k i s t a n army for their trial,” a court official said

Pak inflation soars to record 38%, surpassing Lanka's

I S L A M A B A D : Th e Sh e h b a z Sharif gove rnment in Pakist an is facin g a difficul t sit ua tion as the coun try is un wil ling t o meet the condition s se t b y the IMF, which coul d l ead to a default on it s sovere ign deb t if the finan cing progra mme expires at the en d of June

A d d i t i o n a l l y , P a k i s t a n i s experiencing its highest inflation rate on record since 1957, which puts further pressure on the government In fact, Pakistan now has the highest inflation rate in Asia, surpassing Sri Lanka, with a rate of 38% in May 2023 Lanka's inflation rate has decreased to 25 2% after Pakistan overtook it in April 2023

Despite Pakistan's historical

reliance on support from the US in the past and now China, and its attempts to compare itself with India, the inflation rate in India is currently at 4 7%, the lowest it has been since October 2 0 2 1 A d d i t i o n a l l y , t h e f o o d inflation rate in India is just 3 8% In contrast, Pakistan's food inflation rate has increased to 48 7% in May, up from 48 1% in April T h e n e g o t i a t i o n s b e t w e e n the Pak government and the IMF have become more complicated a f t e r t h e I M F m i s s i o n c h i e f , N a t h a n P o r t e r , e x p r e s s e d h i s hope that the ongoing political c r i s i s i n P a k i s t a n w o u l d b e resolved in accordance with the country's Constitution and the rule of law

Pak to hold polls in Oct, says defence minister

I SL A M AB A D : P ak is ta n g ene ra l elections wil l be hel d w ith out any d el a y i n O c t o b e r t h is y e ar , de f en c e mi nis t er K h a w aj a A s if h as s aid, dis p ell ing s pe cu la tion abou t a p os sibl e p os tponement in p o l l s P o l it ic a l e xp er t s f ir m l y believe that o nly f ree, fair and timely general el ectio ns can bring back desperately- needed pol itical stability in Pakistan, w hich is als o fac ing a severe econo mic crisis T h e o p p o s i t i o n P a k i s t a n Tehreek-e-Insaf party led by ousted PM Imran Khan had expressed a p p r e h e n s i o n s t h a t t h e r u l i n g coalition may delay the general

elections

“The assemblies will complete their five-year term in August and polls will take place within the next 60 days Elections will be held on time,” Asif said When asked what he meant by “ on time”, he replied: “In October Elections will take place in October without any delay,” Express Tribune quoted him as saying The government has repeatedly opposed holding snap polls or holding polls for the n a t i o n a l a n d p r o v i n c i a l l e g i s l atures separately, citing a lack of security, funds and fresh census results

A 21- year-old Indian-origin student was shot dead by unidentified assailants in Philadelphia a media report said Jude Chacko hailing from Kerala’s Kollam district was gunned down while he was returning from work His parents migrated to the US more than 30 years ago Chacko a student who also worked part-time was attacked by two men during a robbery attempt, the report said citing police officials This is the second such incident reported this year in which an Indian-origin student was targetted and killed in the US In April this year Saiesh Veera a 24-year-old student from Andhra Pradesh, was shot dead by unknown men at a fuel station in Ohio

INDIAN AMERICAN TO RUN FOR COMMISSIONER

Taral Patel, a 29-year-old Indian-American policy expert has announced his candidacy to serve as Fort Bend County commissioner for precinct 3 in 2024 in the US state of Texas Patel took to Twitter to announce his candidacy Patel is running as a candidate of the Democratic Party for the seat He recently completed his service at the White House, where he served in the office of White House liaison He is the son of Indian immigrants who came to the US in the 1980s, working in various small businesses while attending Texas Southern University and University of Houston

US, SAUDI URGE TRUCE IN SUDAN AS FIGHTING GOES ON

Saudi Arabia and the US urged Sudan s warring parties to agree to and effectively implement a new ceasefire as fighting showed no signs of abating in the northeastern African nation Sudan descended into chaos after fighting broke out in mid-April between the military led by Gen AbdelFattah Burhan, and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces, commanded by Gen Mohammed Hamdan Dagalo Saudi Arabia and the US mediation efforts, were dealt a blow when the military announced it would no longer participate in the ceasefire talks

AIRLINE CHECKING PASSENGERS’ WEIGHT BEFORE BOARDING

New Zealand s national airline is asking passengers to step on the scales before they board international flights Air New Zealand says it wants to weigh 10 000 passengers during a month long survey so pilots can better know the weight and balance of their planes before takeoff But the numbers from the scales won’t be flashing up for all to see There will be no visible display anywhere, the airline promised, and the weigh-in data will remain anonymous even to airline staff We weigh everything that goes on the aircraftfrom the cargo to the meals onboard, to the luggage in the hold, said Alastair James, a load control improvement specialist for the airline

Cash-strapped Bangladesh shuts power plant as heatwave hits

DHA K A : Cash-strapped Banglad esh

s h u t i ts b i g g es t p o w e r p lan t o n

M ond ay because it was unable to affo rd the coal to fuel it, as a swelt eri ng h e atw a v e c rea tes su r g i ng e lec tr i ci ty d em a nd T h e 1 , 3 20 -

m e g aw att g o v er nm e nt- ru n P ay ra

Po wer Plant in so uthern Banglad esh had alread y slashed produ ction last m onth du e to fu el shortages, but it w as forced to go a step furth er on

M o n d ay , m an ag e r S h ah A b d u l

M aw la said “Due to th e coal shortage, the plant cam e to a co mplete shu tdo wn, ” Mawla said Banglad esh

is strug gling against a d epreciating

c u rre nc y, w i th f o rei g n e xc h ang e reserv es slum ping from $46 billio n in J anuary last year to $3 0 billion at the end of April this year

T h e o f f i c i a l i n f l a t i o n r a t e i s

a r o u n d 9 9 % , b u t i n d e p e n d e n t economists say the real figure is substantially higher

The country has faced nationwide blackouts of up to five hours a day in recent weeks as a heatwave s w e e p s a c r o s s t h e c o u n t r y

Bangladesh recorded a temperature of 41 1 ° C on Monday, with the gov-

ernment closing primary schools Power grid company of Bangladesh spokesman ABM Badruddoza Khan said the country had experienced “ 2,500 MW shortage of electricity in t h e n a t i o n a l g r i d ” , c o m p a r e d t o

2,200 MW a day earlier, with daily demand 16,000 MW Minister for power Nasrul Hamid said he hoped to normalise the situation within 10 to 15 days

Imran Khan

AJAY BANGA TAKES OVER CHARGE

in brief Indian-American Dev Shah wins 2023 Scripps National Spelling Bee

Indian American Ajay Banga last week took over as the President of the World Bank, making him the first person of colour to head either of the two global financial institutions, the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund “Join us in welcoming Ajay Banga as the new President of the World Bank Group We are committed to creating a world free from poverty on a livable planet,” the World Bank said in a tweet

TWO FEMALE IRAN JOURNALISTS FACE TRIAL

A Revolutionary Court in Iran began the trial of a female journalist on charges linked to her coverage of a Kurdish-Iranian woman whose death in custody last year sparked months of unrest, her husband said on Twitter Mahsa Amini s death while held by the morality police for allegedly violating Iran’s strict dress code unleashed a wave of mass anti-government protests for months posing one of the boldest challenges to the country s clerical leaders in decades A photo taken by Niloofar Hamedi for the pro-reform Sharq daily showing Amini’s parents hugging each other in a Tehran hospital where their daughter was lying in a coma was the first sign to the world that all was not well with 22-year-old Amini Hamedi along with another female journalist, Elaheh Mohammadi who went on trial, face several charges including “colluding with hostile powers for their coverage of Amini s death

BLAST IN LEBANON KILLS 5 PALESTINIAN MILITANTS

Five militants from the Popular Front for the Liberation of Palestine-General Command were reportedly killed in an explosion close to Lebanon's border with Syria The group claimed responsibility for the bombing, but security authorities contested their version of events A PFLP-GC statement said five of its members were killed in an Israeli air strike on a site controlled by the group near the border The group’s spokesman said an Israeli strike on the Lebanese town of Qusaya had killed five members including fighters and wounded 10 However, according to a Palestinian security source and a Lebanese security source, the explosives and ammunition that the PFLP-GC members were transferring when they exploded, killing them

KENYAN POLICE ACCUSED OF KILLING 12 PEOPLE

Kenyan police were involved in the killing of 12 people, including two children during violent opposition demonstrations in March, two rights groups said, denouncing a lack of accountability In Kenya, extrajudicial executions are common and there are few instances of police being held accountable for their actions Human Rights Watch (HRW) and Amnesty International said they documented 12 deaths during three days of anti-government protests called by veteran opposition leader Raila Odinga over a cost-of-living crisis and last year's disputed election They said they had corroborated 12 killings in interviews with family members and witnesses While some of the victims were involved in the protest most of the 12 were bystanders passersby or people in their homes and business premises

WHY VENICE’S CANAL TURNED GREEN

For days, Venetians have wondered what caused a swath of their city s famous Grand Canal to turn green Now the authorities had an answer: Test samples of the water confirmed that the canal’s bright new hue was caused by fluorescein a chemical often used to find leaks during underwater construction

Now Italian officials are investigating how the chemical got into the canal

F L ORID A : Dev Sh ah , an Indiano ri g i n bo y, em e rg e d a s th e winner of th e prestigious 2023 Scripps Natio nal Sp elling Bee

F o u rte en- y ear -o l d D e v w h o hails from Florida, took h ome a ca s h p ri z e o f $ 50 , 0 0 0 b y correctly sp elling the 1 1- letter word "p samm ophile "

T h i s v i c t o r y m a r k s D e v ’ s t h i r d p a r t i c i p a t i o n i n t h e competition, having previously taken part in 2019 and 2021 He is the 27th Indian Ameican to have held the title

T h e w i n n i n g w o r d , " p s a m m o p h i l e , " r e f e r s t o a n organism that thrives in sandy a r e a s A c c o r d i n g t o a r e p o r t , d u r i n g t h e c o m p e t i t i o n , D e v demonstrated his knowledge of the word's root, explaining that " p s a m m o " c o m e s f r o m t h e

G r e e k w o r d f o r s a n d , w h i l e "phile" means love in Greek The report added that his parents were visibly emotional as they joined him on stage to celebrate this achievement

T h e S c r i p p s N a t i o n a l Spelling Bee attracted 11 million

c o n t e s t a n t s f r o m a r o u n d t h e world, and Dev emerged as one o f t h e 1 1 f i n a l i s t s , s t a t e d t h e report Balu Natarajan was the first Indian American to win the S p e l l i n g B e e N a t a r a j a n a l s o b e c a m e t h e f i r s t c h i l d o f i m m i g r a n t s t o w i n S c r i p p s National Spelling Bee in 1985 R a g e s h r e e R a m a c h a n d r a n followed by winning in 1988

N u p u L a l a ’ s w i n 1 9 9 9 received a lot of notoriety when the documentary, ‘Spellbound’ w a s r e l e a s e d f o l l o w i n g t h e

China drills 10,000metre deep hole into Earth’s crust

B E I J I N G : C hi n a , a s th e s e c on d- l a rg e s t economy in the world, pushes the boundari es of what is possible above and below the surface of the E arth Chi nes e sci entis ts have started digging a 10, 000 metre (32, 808 foot) hole into the earth's crus t

Drilling for what is set to be China’s deepest ever borehole began in the country’s oil-rich Xinjiang region, according to the official Xinhua news agency According to the study, the slender shaft will pierce over ten continental strata, or layers of rock, before reaching the cretaceous system in the Earth's crust, which contains rock that is about 145 million years old

“ T h e c o n s t r u c t i o n d i f f i c u l t y o f t h e drilling project can be compared to a big truck driving on two thin steel cables,” Sun J i n s h e n g , a s c i e n t i s t a t t h e C h i n e s e Academy of Engineering, said President Xi Jinping has called for greater progress in deep earth exploration Such work can identify mineral and energy resources and help assess the risks of environmental disasters, such as earthquakes and volcano eruptions

The Russian Kola Superdeep Borehole, which took 20 years to drill to a depth of 12,262 metres in 1989, remains the deepest artificial hole on Earth

Nine detained Indian sailors released by Libyan rebel group

T R I P O L I : A Li b y a n re b e l gr oup h as released nine I ndi an sailors it had detained in January near Lib ya's Janzour area The sailors were part of a crew on the ship MAYA 1, beari ng a Cameroon flag, whi ch was grounded near the said area after it experienced techni cal issues

A l o c a l a r m e d g r o u p k n o w n a s A z

Zawiya, based close to Al Maya Port in Zawia city, conducted a raid on the ship, which was operated by the Greek firm Redwings Shipping SA The squad eventually captured the crew of the sailors The release of the sailors, almost five months after their detention, is attributed to the efforts of two key individualsTabassum Mansoor, Principal of the Indian I n t e r n a t i o n a l S c h o o l i n B e n g h a z i , a n d Ngulkham Jathom Gangte, the Ambassador of India to Tunisia Ambassador Gangte said despite prior efforts from Tripoli, the government was u n a b l e t o s a v e t h e t r a p p e d c r e w H e claimed that once Mansoor got involved, things moved along more quickly

j o u r n e y o f t h e s p e l l i n g b e e c o n t e s t a n t s G e o r g e T h a m p y took home the title in 2000, Pratyush Buddiga in 2002, and

A n u r a g K a s h y a p i n 2 0 0 5

Sameer Mishra’s win in 2008

s t a r t e d a s p r e e o f I n d i a n

A m e r i c a n s d o m i n a t i n g t h e c o m p e t i t i o n f o r 1 2 y e a r s

straight Zaila Avant-garde, the first African American participant, won the 2021 edition, breaking t h e 1 2 - y e a r r e c o r d I n 2 0 2 2 , H a r i n i L o g a n w o n t h e c o m p e t i t i o n , s t a r t i n g a n o t h e r l e g o f I n d i a n - A m e r i c a n s winning the spelling bee

Couple mobilises help to fight hunger in the US

T EX A S: Ra j Asav a a nd his wife A rad hana (An na ) cr eat ed a mov emen t - Hun gerM it aowhich suppor ted t he Nort h Texa s Food Bank a nd t he Feed in g A merica ne twork of food bank s in an e ffor t to bring a tte nt ion an d include the In dian Amer ica n community in t he figh t aga inst hunge r

“

H u n g e r M i t a o i s a v o l u n t e e r - d r i v e n grassroots movement Since its launch in 2017, it has played a significant role in raising a w a r e n e s s a b o u t h u n g e r i n t h e U S , i m p r o v i n g c o m m u n i t y e n g a g e m e n t , a n d channeling resources and contributions from the Indian American community to fight hunger,” says Asava Five years ago, this m o v e m e n t h a s g r o w n t o i n c l u d e m a n y American communities and provided the Feeding American network of food banks with more than 50 million meals

“ H u n g e r M i t a o i s a s m u c h a b o u t eradicating hunger as it is about unifying the fragmented efforts of our community and focusing it on the humanitarian cause of hunger,” Anna Asava says In the spirit of ‘give where you live’ the couple, who recently received lifetime achievement medals from

US President Joe Biden, is now reaching out to the 4 million strong Indian diaspora in the US to join in the mission to ensure that no one goes hungry across their adopted land Raj Asava, a senior executive for several s i g n i f i c a n t U S f i r m s , r e t i r e d f r o m h i s position as Perot Systems' chief strategy officer in 2010 “I was struck by the shocking r e a l i t y o f h u n g e r i n o u r o w n neighbourhoods of Plano and Collin county The realisation that many children in the s c h o o l s y s t e m f a c e d h u n g e r o v e r t h e w e e k e n d s l e f t m e s t u n n e d I t w a s inconceivable that such a visible and affluent c o u n t y a n d c o u n t r y c o u l d h a v e h i d d e n hunger within its borders,” Asava recollects

India-origin named chair of Harvard’s global health dept

N E W Y O RK : Mumba i-born Vik ra m Pate l, a we ll-known re sear cher a nd men tal hea lt h e xper t, will be the ne xt chair of the Har var d Me dica l School’s depa rtme nt of g lobal hea lt h a n d so c ia l m e d i ci n e Pa t e l, w h o i s t he Pe rshing Square Professor of G lobal Hea lt h a t t h e s ch o o l’ s Bl a v a t n ik I n s t it ut e , w i ll a ssume cha rge on Sept ember 1, a ccord ing t o a n officia l a nnoun ce men t

Patel, whose work focused on the burden of mental health problems across the life course, their association with social disa d v a n t a g e , a n d t h e u s e o f c o m m u n i t y resources for their prevention and treatment, will succeed Paul Farmer, who led the

d e p a r t m e n t u n t i l h i s d e a t h i n F e b r u a r y 2022 “Vikram is both a worthy successor and uniquely prepared to carry the torch,” said George Daley, dean of the Harvard Medical School, in a letter to the community announcing the appointment His appointment comes at a time of increasing awaren e s s o f a g r o w i n g m e n t a l h e a l t h c r i s i s around the world, Daley noted

“I am deeply honoured to serve as the chair of the department,” Patel said “I am motivated by the potential of this role at this critical juncture in the long and storied history of a department committed to the goal of health equity in this country and globally,” Patel added

Uganda president defends strict anti-LGBTQ+ law

K A M P A L A : U ga n d a n pr e s i de n t Y owe r i M us eveni s aid "nob ody will move us" and that the ha rsh rul es have been of ficiall y s igne ddes pite internat ional condemnation from the l i k es of U S P r es id e nt J oe B id e n E a rl ie r , Uganda a pproved one of t he s tric test ant iLGBTQ+ l aws in the wor ld to punis h what the president of the nation c ons ider s "dis oriente d " LG B T+ i n di vi du a l s w ho a t t em pt t o rec ruit others

Museveni also said LGBTQ+ people who "violently grab some children" and then "rape them and so on and so forth" will face the death penalty Museveni made the remarks as he defended the law which sparked outrage across the world after it was passed recently

More than 340 Ugandan MPs voted to p a s s t h e l a w O n l y o n e v

LGBTQ+ people living in the country said that they already felt unsafe before the new law was passed In response to the new legislation, US President and others have vowed to stop providing aid to Uganda and to impose additional penalties

The version of the bill signed by Museveni doesn't criminalize those who identify as LGBTQ+, which had been a key concern for some rights campaigners, who condemned an earlier draft of the legislation

However, Uganda already forbade homosexuality acts Anyone found guilty will be sentenced to life in prison under the new law The new legislation also specifies that some offenders will now be subject to the death penalty The law also imposes a 20-year prison sentence for "promoting" homosexuality

Raj Asava and his wife Aradhana (Anna)

Dev Shah

India, Nepal sign 7 pacts, launch 6 projects

E fforts to enhance energy

a n d c on n e c ti v i ty t i e s domi nated the agenda of P M N ar e n dr a Mo di ’ s m eet in g w ith hi s vi si ti ng N e p al c oun t er p ar t P K D ahal Prachanda that saw t he t wo c ou nt r i es s i g n s e v e n a g re e me n t s a n d l a un c h s i x pr oj e c ts , i nc ludi ng inauguration of new railway servic es M o d i a s s u r e d Prachanda that India will w o r k t o t a k e t h e relationship to Himalayan h e i g h t s a n d r e s o l v e t h e boundary dispute between India and Nepal in the same s p i r i t A m o n g t h e highlights of the summit m e e t i n g w a s a r e v i s e d transit agreement that will a l l o w N e p a l a c c e s s t o I n d i a ’ s i n l a n d w a t e r w a y s for the first time India also acceded to Nepal’s proposal t o e x p o r t p o w e r t o Bangladesh through Indian territory, while announcing i t w i l l r a m p u p i t s o w n

power import from Nepal to 10,000 MW in the next

10 years Nepal currently exports 450 MW to India

T h e N e p a l P M u r g e d PM Modi to address the dispute over the Kalapani t e r r i t o r y i n U t t a r a k h a n d t h r o u g h t h e e s t a b l i s h e d m e c h a n i s m o f f o r e i g n s e c r e t a r y - l e v e l t a l k s

Following India’s own 2019 r e v i s e d m a p , N e p a l h a d issued a new political map in 2020 claiming territory under India’s control and a s k i n g I n d i a n s o l d i e r s t o withdraw, a move India saw a s a u n i l a t e r a l a c t n o t b a c k e d b y a n y h i s t o r i c a l

fact or evidence

T h e s e r e l a t i o n s ( w i t h India) stand on the solid f o u n d a t i o n b u i l t , o n t h e o n e h a n d , b y t h e r i c h tradition of civilisational, c u l t u r a l s o c i o - e c o n o m i c linkages and, on the other, by the two countries’ firm commitment to the timet e s t e d p r i n c i p l e s o f sovereign equality, mutual respect, understanding and c o o p e r a t i o n , ’ ’ s a i d P r a c h a n d a i n h i s m e d i a remarks after the meeting, a d d i n g I n d i a ’ s c o n t i n u e d s u p p o r t a n d g o o d w i l l r e m a i n e d i m p o r t a n t f o r Nepal

M o d i s a i d I n d i a ’ s partnership had been a hit, recalling his own acronym HIT (Highways, I-ways and Transways) for the future India-Nepal ties during his first visit to Nepal as PM in 2014 “Today, we took some important decisions to turn t h i s i n t o a s u p e r h i t p a r t n e r s h i p T h e t r a n s i t a g r e e m e n t w i l l f a c i l i t a t e use of new rail routes and inland waterways for the p e o p l e o f N e p a l , ” M o d i s a i d , w h i l e l i s t i n g t h e a g r e e m e n t a n d p r o j e c t s that encompassed areas like r a i l c o n n e c t i v i t y , p o w e r , p e t r o l e u m p i p e l i n e a n d c r o s s - b o r d e r f i n a n c i a l payments

T h e t w o c o u n t r i e s signed a long-term power t r a d e a g r e e m e n t u n d e r which, as Modi said in his remarks to the media, India h a s s e t a t a r g e t o f importing 10,000 MW of e l e c t r i c i t y f r o m N e p a l i n the coming 10 years

Jaishankar asks Brics meet to fight terrorism

D e s cr i b i n g te r r o r i s m a s a ma j or t h r ea t t o i n t e r n a ti o n a l pe a ce a n d s ecurity, I ndi a's f oreign mi ni ster S Jai shan kar called upon all nati ons to ta ke resolute me asure s a gain st this men ace , i ncludin g its fin ancing and p ropag an da S peak i ng a t the Brics f oreign mi ni sters me etin g in Cape T own, the mini ster e mpha sis ed that i t mus t be comb ate d i n a ll of i ts e x p re s s i o n s a n d f o r ms a n d n e v e r tole rated

The discussion that took place in advance of the Brics conference that South Africa is anticipated to host in A u g u s t a l s o i n c l u d e d J a i s h a n k a r ' s Chinese and Russian colleagues, Qin Gang and Sergey Lavrov

A c c o r d i n g t o J a i s h a n k a r , t h e current state of the world demanded t h a t B r i c s c o u n t r i e s h a n d l e

i m p o r t a n t c u r r e n t c h a l l e n g e s s e r i o u s l y , c o n s t r u c t i v e l y , a n d collaboratively “Our gathering must send out a strong message that the w o r l d i s m u l t i p o l a r , t h a t i t i s r e b a l a n c i n g , a n d t h a t o l d w a y s cannot address new situations We are a symbol of change and must act accordingly,’’ he said in his opening

PM Modi invited to address joint session of US Congress for 2nd time

r e m a r k s , a s h e u r g e d t h e member-states to demonstrate s i n c e r i t y i n e f f o r t s t o r e f o r m g l o b a l d e c i s i o n - m a k i n g , including that of the UNSC

“This responsibility is even greater as we contemplate the devastating after-effects of the C o v i d p a n d e m i c , t h e s t r e s s e s a r i s i n g f r o m c o n f l i c t , a n d t h e economic distress of the global south They underline the deep s h o r t c o m i n g s o f t h e c u r r e n t i n t e r n a t i o n a l a r c h i t e c t u r e w h i c h d o e s n o t r e f l e c t t o d a y ’ s p o l i t i c s , economics, demographics or indeed aspirations For two decades, we have h e a r d c a l l s f o r r e f o r m o f multilateral institutions, only to be c o n t i n u o u s l y d i s a p p o i n t e d , ’ ’ Jaishankar said

India hosts China for in-person meet

India urged Beijing to move the disengagement p ro ces s along du ring another round o f di p lo m ati c d is c u ss i o n s between th e two cou ntries to reso lve th e dispute along the eastern Ladakh border

W h i l e a b r e a k t h r o u g h remained elusive, this was t h e f i r s t t i m e t h a t I n d i a hosted what was the 27th M e e t i n g o f t h e W o r k i n g M e c h a n i s m f o r

C o n s u l t a t i o n a n d

C o o r d i n a t i o n o n I n d i a -

C h i n a B o r d e r A f f a i r s ( W M C C ) i n p e r s o n s i n c e the military flare up in May 2020

The most recent round o f d i p l o m a t i c t a l k s t o o k place in person in Beijing

The next round of military negotiations will take place s o o n , b o t h p a r t i e s i n t h e talks agreed According to an

I n d i a n r e a d o u t , t h e t w o sides reviewed the situation along the LAC in Western Sector of India-China border a r e a s a n d d i s c u s s e d proposals for disengagement in remaining areas in a frank a n d o p e n m a n n e r R e s t o r a t i o n o f p e a c e a n d t r a n q u i l i t y w i l l c r e a t e conditions for normalising bilateral relations, said the Indian government

According to the Indian s t a t e m e n t , “ I n o r d e r t o a c h i e v e t h i s o b j e c t i v e , i n a c c o r d a n c e w i t h e x i s t i n g b i l a t e r a l a g r e e m e n t s a n d p r o t o c o l s , t h e y a g r e e d t o hold the next (19th) round o f S e n i o r C o m m a n d e r ' s meeting at an early date T h e t w o s i d e s a g r e e d t o c o n t i n u e d i s c u s s i o n s t h r o u g h m i l i t a r y a n d diplomatic channels ”

IIT-M ranked top institute for 5th year, IISc best university

Indian Institute of Tech nology (IIT), M ad ras, is at top spot in the national ranking s of institutio ns in overall and engineering categ ories for the fifth and eig hth consecutiv e year resp ectively Beng aluru -based Ind ian I nstitute o f S cience (IISc) was adjud ged th e best u niv ersity for the eigh th year in a row, as per th e latest edu cation ministry's N ati o n al I ns ti tu t io n al R an ki ng F ramework

I n N I R F - 2 0 2 3 , M i r a n d a H o u s e came on top in the category of colleges f o r t h e s e v e n t h y e a r , f o l l o w e d b y Hindu College and Presidency College, C h e n n a i I I S c B e n g a l u r u w a s a l s o adjudged the best research institute a n d I I T - K a n p u r r a n k e d f i r s t f o r innovation

I n t h e u n i v e r s i t i e s c a t e g o r y ,

Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) and J a m i a M i l l i a I s l a m i a r e t a i n e d t h e i r second and third ranks, respectively, while Jadavpur University occupied the 4 t h p o s i t i o n B a n a r a s H i n d u

University (BHU) moved one rank up to bag the fifth spot

I n t h e m e d i c a l c o l l e g e s c a t e g o r y , A I I M S ( D e l h i ) bagged the top spot, followed by PGIMER, Chandigarh, and C h r i s t i a n M e d i c a l C o l l e g e , Vellore - same as last year AIIMS has occupied the top slot in medical for the sixth c o n s e c u t i v e y e a r w h i l e i t moved to the 6th position in the overall category In the e n g i n e e r i n g c a t e g o r y , e i g h t I I T s – M a d r a s , D e l h i , Bombay, Kanpur, Roorkee, Kharagpur, Guwahati and Hyderabad – figured among the Top 10 T h e e i g h t h e d i t i o n o f N I R F observed that faculty with doctoral qualification is concentrated in the top 100 institutions

U S H ou s e S p e ak e r K ev i n M c C a r th y , b ac k ed b y b i pa r t i s a n l e a de r s h i p of both the Hous e and Senate, i n v i te d P r i m e M i n i s t e r Narendra Modi to address the US C on gres s durin g his s ta t e v i s i t t o t he W h i te House on J une 22

T h e i n v i t a t i o n , a l s o signed by Senate majority l e a d e r C h u c k S c h u m e r (Democrat from New York), S e n a t e R e p u b l i c a n l e a d e r M i t c h M c C o n n e l l (Republican from Kentucky) and House minority leader Hakeem Jeffries (Democrat f r o m N e w Y o r k ) i n v i t e d Modi to share his “vision for India’s future and speak to the global challenges both our countries face”

The invitation comes a week after the co-chairs of t h e b i p a r t i s a n C o n g r e s s i o n a l C a u c u s o n India and Indian Americans, C o n g r e s s m a n R o K h a n n a (Democrat from California) and Congressman Michael W a l t z ( R e p u b l i c a n f r o m Florida), wrote to McCarthy

urging him to extend the i n v i t e t o M o d i I f M o d i accepts, it will be a unique double for him: it will be his second address to the joint s e s s i o n o f C o n g r e s s a f t e r one in 2016

According to a report, W i n s t o n C h u r c h i l l a n d N e l s o n M a n d e l a w e r e a m o n g t h e f e w w o r l d leaders to be accorded this honour on two occasions F i v e I n d i a n P M s h a v e addressed the US Congress b e f o r e M o d i : M a n m o h a n Singh, Atal Behari Vajpayee, P V N a r a s i m h a R a o , R a j i v G a n d h i , a n d J a w a h a r l a l Nehru T h e i n v i t a t i o n t o t h e I n d i a n P r i m e M i n i s t e r c o m e s a m i d w i t h e r i n g c r i t i c i s m f r o m C o n g r e s s party leader Rahul Gandhi during his tour of US of M o d i ' s p u r p o r t e d a u t h o r i t a r i a n i s m , a n a s s e s s m e n t t h e U S e s t a b l i s h m e n t d o e s n o t a p p e a r t o s h a r e d e s p i t e o c c a s i o n a l d i s a p p r o v a l o f strong arm majoritarianism

India to host virtual SCO meet amid strife in China, Pak ties

T he gov e rn m e n t of I n di a d e c l a re d i t w i l l ho s t th e S C O s u m m i t r e m ot e l y , d e s pi te r u m ou r s t ha t C h i n e s e P r e s i d e n t X i J i n p i n g a n d P a k i s t a n ’ s P ri m e M i n i s t e r S he h b a z Sharif might travel to I ndia for the event on July 4 I ndia h ol d s th e pr e s i d e n c y c ur re n t ly of th e E ur as i a n group and had held an i nperson mee ti ng of the SCO foreign min isters earlier this m o n th i n G oa th a t s a w p a rt i c i p a t i on b y a ll m e m b e r - s t a t es , i n c l ud i n g

Pakis tan India had earlier invited l e a d e r s o f a l l m e m b e rcountries for the summitthe first under its presidency - that will be chaired by PM Narendra Modi At a time when relations with China h a v e b e e n r u i n e d b y t h e

b o u n d a r y i s s u e a n d w h e n relations with Pakistan are at an all-time low, an in-person summit would have allowed Modi to meet both Xi and Sharif

India’s decision to host a virtual summit also means Xi and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin won’t have to make back to back visits to I n d i a , a s t h e g o v e r n m e n t prepares to also host the G20 summit in September S i n c e t h e o n g o i n g military impasse in eastern L a d a k h t h a t b r o k e o u t i n April-May 2020, Modi and Xi h a v e n o t m e t b i l a t e r a l l y s i n c e I n d i a c o n t i n u e s t o i n s i s t t h a t r e l a t i o n s w i t h China aren't normal In the case of Sharif, India will be relieved it won’t have to host him when Pakistan is also mired in domestic political s t r i f e A M o d i - S h a r i f b i l a t e r a l w o u l d h a v e b e e n unlikely in any case Modi, Xi and Putin will probably meet up before the G20 at the Brics conference in Johannesburg in August A t t h e B r i c s f o r e i g n ministers meeting in Cape Town, S Jaishankar will also i n t e r a c t w i t h h i s C h i n e s e and Russian counterparts

Pushpa Kamal Dahal & Narendra Modi

S Jaishankar

Shah announces judicial probe into Manipur violence

H o m e m i ni s ter A m i t S h ah announced a judicial pro be into the ethnic vio lence that has rocked M anipur for the p ast m onth, th e creatio n of a unified comm and to o versee secu rity in th e state, a C BI inquiry into six sp ecific incid ents o f v iolence and a peace com mittee u nd er the g o verno r fo r ho ld ing reco nciliation talks betw een th e w arr in g M ei te i a nd K u ki com munities

Addressing a press conference before he wrapped up his four-day v i s i t t o M a n i p u r , S h a h s a i d t h e judicial inquiry headed by a retired high court judge will identify the reasons for the violence and those responsible for it

He also anounced that a massive c o m b i n g o p e r a t i o n w o u l d b e

Amit Shah

launched against insurgents found carrying weapons in violation of the ongoing suspension of operations (SOO) Shah’s statements coincided with a key change at the helm of M a n i p u r p o l i c e T h e p e a c e c o m m i t t e e w i l l h a v e represenatatives of all communities

Isro planning

to

a n d c o m p r i s e i n d u s t r i a l i s t s , sports persons, politicians, public representatives, and members of various civil society groups in Manipur

The unified command will work under the chairmanship of f o r m e r C R P F D G a n d n o w security adviser to the Manipur government Kuldiep Singh to ensure better synergy between v a r i o u s a r m s o f t h e s e c u r i t y establishment such as the state p o l i c e , A r m y , A s s a m R i f l e s a n d central paramilitary forces

W h i l e a p p e a l i n g t o m i l i t a n t outfits that are part of the SOO in Manipur, Shah said they should surrender weapons to the police right away He warned, “Anyone found with arms will face harsh

launch Chandrayaan-3 in July

India’s mo st po werful rocket, GSL V M KI II or LV M -3 , i nt egrated with Ch andr ayaan-3 s p a ce cr af t h a s la nd e d i n S riharikota and w ill soon be for th e country’s third m ission to the Moon in July C h andrayaan-3 c onsi sts o f an ind igenous land er modu le, p rop ulsion m odule and a rover w ith an objective of d ev eloping and demonstrati n g new te c h no lo g ie s required for inter-planetary m issions, Isro stated Speaking to the media, Isro chairman S Somanath s a i d , “ I s r o i s p l a n n i n g t o launch the Chandrayaan-3 mission in July The window for the mission launch will

b e f r o m J u l y 1 2 o n w a r d s ” B e f o r e i t s a r r i v a l i n S r i h a r i k o t a , Chandrayaan-3 had successfully passed several key tests, demon-strating its capacity to surv i v e t h e c h a l l e n g i n g a c o u s t i c e n v i r o n m e n t t h a t t h e s p a c e c r a f t would have to deal with d u r i n g i t s l u n a r l a u n c h Somnath had said while the mission parameters would r e m a i n t h e s a m e , “ t h e design and engineering are significantly different, compared to Chandrayaan-2 to make it more robust and avoid the problems (that led to the crash landing of the

lander during the last mission) from last time”

Chandrayaan-3 will lift o f f f r o m S a t i s h D h a w a n Space Centre in July to go i n t o a n e l l i p t i c a l o r b i t a r o u n d t h e M o o n , b e f o r e attempting to soft-land on the south pole side of the Moon

Gujarati man becomes one of FBI's most wanted

T he Federal Bureau o f Investigation (FBI) in the US has listed Bh ad resh Patel, a 33 -yearo ld Gujarati, as one of its 10 most wanted fug itiv es Th e FBI officials have been tirelessly pu rsuing Patel since he w ent underg rou nd in 2015 after brutally stabbing his w ife Palak, who w as 21 then, to death

New information indicates that Patel received assistance from a human smuggler of Punjabi ancestry who lives in the US to depart America, changing the troubling circumstances of the case in an unexpected direction This same facilitator had helped alleged human smuggler Bharat Patel, alias Bobby, in illegally trafficking Gujaratis into the US

Sources in the local community and police believe Patel first sought refuge with h i s r e l a t i v e s i n E c u a d o r b e f o r e i l l e g a l l y entering Canada Insiders from the local community shed light on Bhadresh Patel’s b a c k g r o u n d A c c o r d i n g t o s o u r c e s , Bhadresh, a native of of Viramgam, and his

wife had immigrated to the US in 2014 and had settled in Hanover, Maryland

“The couple lived in Ecuador for a while before arriving in the US on a visitor’s visa They lived in a hideout and worked there Their visa expired in March 2015, but they stayed in the US illegally,” said a source During their turbulent stay in America, trouble brewed in their relationship According to information obtained through various police departments, Palak expressed a desire to return to India, sparking frequent arguments between the couple

On April 12, 2015, an altercation on the issue escalated into a violent confrontation “Bhadresh used a knife to slash Palak’s face, then stabbed her multiple times at the café they worked in,” said a source An FBI document reads, “On April 13, 2015, Patel was charged with first-degree murder, second degree murder, first-degree assault, seconddegree assault, and possession of a dangerous weapon with intent to harm ”

Delhi HC rejects Sisodia’s bail plea but allows him to meet ailing wife

In v iew of the “extremely seriou s ” allegatio ns against him and the po ssibility of “evidence tam pering” in the excise po licy case, th e Delh i h igh court refused to g rant interim bail to A AP functionary Manish S isodia to attend to his ailing wife

Justice Dinesh Kumar Sharma, however, allowed the former deputy CM to meet his wife in custody for one day, at her convenience, between 10 am and 5 pm

Noting that the case concerns “extremely serious allegations” and there is a possibility of evidence tampering if Sisodia, who held several positions in the city’s AAP government, is released, the judge said, “the court finds it very difficult to persuade itself

to release the petitioner on interim bail for six weeks”

The HC had called for a report from LNJP Hospital on Sisodia’s wife at a special hearing In its order, the court suggested that she be examined by a board of doctors at AIIMS and added that she should be provided the best medical treatment

Sisodia had sought release on a temporary basis for six weeks contending he was the sole caretaker of his ailing wife His plea for regular bail in the matter is pending before the high court in the case lodged by the ED while his bail plea in another case b e i n g p r o b e d b y t h e C B I w a s r e c e n t l y rejected

a c t i o n u n d e r a l l r e l e v a n t l e g a l provisions ”

M e a n w h i l e , t h e C e n t r e h a s

c o n s t i t u t e d a t h r e e - m e m b e r commission of inquiry headed by former Gauhati HC Chief Justice (retd) Ajai Lamba as chairperson to

p r o b e t h e e t h n i c c l a s h e s i n

Manipur since May 3 that have claimed more than 100 lives and left a trail of destruction

M ilitants torch M LA’ s h ouse

T h e p r i v a t e r e s i d e n c e o f Congress MLA K Ranjit Singh was among a cluster of houses and s h o p s s e t a b l a z e b y s u s p e c t e d m i l i t a n t s a t S e r o u B a z a r n e a r S u g n u i n M a n i p u r ’ s K a k c h i n g d i s t r i c t l a s t w e e k , k e e p i n g t h e flames of the ethnic conflict alive and creating new flash points for

the security establishment to deal with

Most of homes were deserted after the recent exodus to relief c a m p s a n d t h e f e w a r e a s untouched by Meitei-Kuki clashes Legislator Ranjit wasn’t at home when the assailants struck

Gunfights between suspected militants and security forces were a l s o r e p o r t e d i n p a r t s o f t h e western border of Imphal West d i s t r i c t , i n c l u d i n g t h e S i n g d a , S e n j a m C h i r a n g a n d P h a y e n g neighbourhoods

A delegation of MLAs, led by power minister Th Biswajit Singh, visited displaced people of Ando in I m p h a l E a s t d i s t r i c t a t v a r i o u s r e l i e f c a m p s a n d o f f e r e d t h e m material and monetary assistance

Indian lawyers can now practice any law in UK

C ontinued f rom page 1

The Law Society and the Bar

C o u n c i l o f E n g l a n d a n d Wales have decided to support the implementation of the BCI's regulations allowi n g E n g l i s h a n d W e l s h lawyers and law firms to practise English law in India, but only in non-litigious matters and international commercial arbitration

The terms and limitations o n t h e p r a c t i s e o f f o r e i g n lawyers in the UK are listed in S c h e d u l e A o f t h e M o U

Foreign lawyers in England and Wales are permitted to p r a c t i s e a n y t y p e o f l a w , including Welsh and English law, without having to recertify their qualifications, except

for the following activities:

• The exercise of a right to audience in the courts and certain tribunals

• The conduct of litigation

• Reserved instrument activities

• Probate activities

• Notarial activities

• Administration of oaths

For eign lawyer s can practice in En glan d an d Wa les as:

a) Sole practitioners,

b) In a partnership o f foreig n lawyers,

c) As an assistant or consu ltant with a firm of foreig n lawyers,

d) In partnersh ip with solicito rs,

e) As an emp loyee of a solicito r and

f) As in-house lawyers

Likewise, the authorities decided that the BCI would have the power to control h o w f o r e i g n l a w y e r s a n d firms practise law in India

The 2022 BCI Rules will have an overriding effect on the MoU in this regard S i g n i f i c a n t l y , t h e B C I stated in a press statement t h a t " c e r t a i n c r u c i a l changes" were required to its recently enacted rules allowing the entry of international law firms on a reciprocal basis It further stated that prior to implementing any m o d i f i c a t i o n s , i t w i l l t a k e i n t o a c c o u n t c o m m e n t s from Indian law firms, a portion of the Indian Bar, and outside organisations

Govt to roll out all five guarantees this year, says Karnataka CM

N E W D E L H I : The K a r n a t ak a g ov e r nm en t c l e a r e d Co n gr e s s ' s f iv e "g ua ra nt ees " m a de be f or e the rec e ntl y c o nc l ud ed As s e m b l y el e c ti on s , a nd of f e r ed c l ar i f ic at i on s , e x pl ai n ed c o nd it i on s , a n d a n no un c e d d ea d l in e s "We held a cabinet meeting today We disc uss ed a ll f ive prom is es t horoughl y We have dec ided that all f ive guar antees wi l l b e im pl e m e n t e d i n t he p re s en t f i na n c i a l y ea r , " Ch ie f M i n is t e r Siddaram aia h said

The free electricity scheme (Gruha J y o t i ) w i l l d e p e n d o n t h e y e a r l y consumption at the household level A monthly average will be calculated, an extra 10 per cent added to it, and one won't have to pay the power bill if the final figure is below 200 units This will start from July 1

For Gruha Lakshmi, ₹ 2,000 monthly assistance to the woman head of every family, bank accounts will need to be l i n k e d t o A a d h a a r D u e t o t e c h n i c a l p r o b l e m s i n A a d h a a r l i n k i n g , a n d determining who is the family head, the verification process will start from June 15 to July 15, and finish by August 15 when the payments will begin This scheme is for both BPL and Antyodaya cardholders Those who already avail of social security pensions will get this ₹2,000 on top of that if she is the head of the family

Anna Bhagya promises an assured 10

Karnataka to set up special squad to check moral policing READING OF PREAMBLE TO BE MANDATORY IN KARNATAKA SCHOOLS

B EN G A LU R U : A spec ial squad will b e set up i n Karn ataka to c he ck moral polic ing, especially i n Mangaluru, the di strict headquarters of Dakshin a Kannada distric t, Karnataka Hom e M inis ter G Pa r a m e s h w a ra s a i d T he m i n i s t er s a i d t h e ob jective behind s etti ng up the spec ial squad was to c reate comm un al ha rm on y

"

kg of rice free to every member of a BPL household "We were giving 7 kg (in the previous government), they (BJP) made it 5 kg Now, 10 kg of rice per head will be given to all members of BPL families," he said This will begin on July 1

Under the Uchita Prayana guarantee, the Chief Minister announced free bus travel for women within the state in staterun buses from June 11 However, the women passengers can travel only within Karnataka not inter-state The scheme also excludes AC and luxury buses The Karnataka State Transport Corporation (KSRTC) will reserve 50 per cent of seats for men and the remaining for women

Youth who remain unemployed six months after their degree can apply to avail of ₹ 3,000 per month for 24 months as part of the Yuva Nidhi guarantee This includes transgender people too Rupees 1 , 5 0 0 p e r m o n t h w i l l b e g i v e n t o unemployed diploma holders for the same d u r a t i o n I f t h e y f i n d a j o b i n t h e meantime, then the payment would be stopped, Siddaramiah announced

I n D a k s h i n a K a n n a d a , p a r t i c u l a r l y i n Mangaluru, a lot of so-called moral policing is happening People are fed-up with it Some people are trying to create this in a big way So we want to stop this moral policing at once and take whatever necessary steps, so that this is not repeated,” Parameshwara told reporters

According to him, the Congress government in t h e s t a t e w a n t s t o c r e a t e a n a t m o s p h e r e o f communal harmony, so that people can live in peace "We have taken a decision to constitute a force within the police force to look into these affairs There will be a special squad to look into these affairs They will handle these cases; focus is on moral policing, Parameshwara said

To a question on compensation for those who died in communal violence, he said there have been seven murders with communal motives, and the department would recommend compensation to the families in all seven cases

According to Parameshwara, there was a delay in paying compensation because the previous BJP g o v e r n m e n t d i d n o t t a k e t h e d e c i s i o n o n compensation "For whatever reasons, which I don't know, the delay has occurred, but now we h a v e i n i t i a t e d t h a t s t e p t o g i v e t h e m c o m p e n s a t i o n t o t h e i r f a m i l i e s , " t h e h o m e minister said

SGPC told to ensure peace in Golden temple during Operation Bluestar anniversary

A M R I T S A R : Ak al T a kh t h as di rec ted th e S GP C to ens ur e that th e sanctity o f the Golden T emp le sh ould no t be disturbed during the commemoratio n of t h e O p er at i o n B lu e s ta r anniversary

Giving a reference of five high priests’ meeting on July 18, 2 0 0 6 , J a s p a l S i n g h , p e r s o n a l a s s i s t a n t o f A k a l T a k h t o f f i c i a t i n g J a t h e d a r G i a n i Harpreet Singh, has written to t h e S e c r e t a r y , S G P C , t h a t k e e p i n g i n v i e w t h e G o l d e n T e m p l e ’ s i n v i o l a b i l i t y , t h e r e s o l u t i o n p a s s e d u n d e r t h e signature of then Jathedar Giani Joginder Singh, be implemented

in toto, as per the directions of the Akal Takht

T h e r e s o l u t i o n r e a d s t h a t neither ‘ pro ’ nor ‘anti’ slogans be r a i s e d i n t h e p a r i k r a m a (circumambulatory path) of the Golden Temple on the occasion Similarly, media persons should refrain from taking interviews, bytes or questioning any person belonging to any group or party S e c r e t a r y , S G P C , P a r t a p Singh confirmed that the letter w a s r e c e i v e d f r o m t h e s e c r e t a r i a t w h i c h h a d b e e n f o r w a r d e d t o t h e G o l d e n T e m p l e m a n a g e r t o i n i t i a t e steps to maintain peace in the Golden Temple complex during

the programme M e a n w h i l e , S i k h a c t i v i s t s , under the banner of the Dal K h a l s a , h e l d a m a r c h t h a t started from Burj Akali Phoola Singh and culminated at the G o l d e n T e m p l e A c a l l f o r Amritsar bandh was also given to mark the occasion Bomb hoax at Golden T emp le A h o a x c a l l a b o u t f o u r bombs having been planted in the Golden Temple set off a h i g h a l e r t i n A m r i t s a r , a f t e r w h i c h p o l i c e a r e r e p o r t e d t o h a v e a r r e s t e d s o m e o n e d i s g u i s e d a s a N i h a n g f o r playing this prank P o l i c e c o m m i s s i o n e r

After Abhishek, Bengal moves SC for stay on CBI, ED probe

NEW DE L HI : Afte r TMC lead er Ab hish ek Ban erje e faile d to s tall CBI an d ED pr ob e i nto his alle ged role in teacher recrui tme nt s ca m, the We st Benga l govern men t fai led to con vin ce t he Supreme C ourt for a n urge nt heari ng on i ts appeal for stay of a C alcutta HC order refus ing to ha lt probe s b y the cen tral age nci es into s ca ms relati ng to tea cher s ’ re crui tmen t and a ppointmen ts i n muni ci paliti es West Bengal counsel Sunil Fernandes briefly recounted the recent history of the case - the SC directing shifting of the case f r o m J u s t i c e A v i j i t G a n g o p a d h y a y i n Calcutta HC to a new judge, the new judge r e f u s i n g t o r e c a l l o r d e r f o r p r o b e b y CBI/ED into Banerjee’s alleged role in the scam and imposing Rs 25,00,000 cost, the SC staying the cost but the probe, and a d i v i s i o n b e n c h o f t h e C a l c u t t a H C r e j e c t i n g s t a t e ’ s p l e a f o r r e c a l l o f t h e

W h e n a v a c a t i o n b e n c h o f J u s t i c e s Sudhanshu Dhulia and K V Viswanathan asked what is the urgency, Fernandes said, “The law and order is a state subject The s t a t e n e e d s p r o t e c t i o n T h e p e t i t i o n s seeking stay of CBI and ED investigation required urgent hearing If these agencies continued any further, then the illegal probes would become a fait accompli ” Solicitor general Tushar Mehta, who was incidentally present virtually in the c o u r t r o o m , s a i d h e w a s p a r t o f t h e proceedings during the hearing of appeals filed by Banerjee and said, “It is strange that the state is seeking protection What protection can the state seek against CBI and ED probe? Can the state get arrested by the agencies? Protection can be sought by accused persons, not the state ” This led to sharp and few unsavoury exchange of words between Fernandes and the SG indicating the high stakes involved in the case

Naunihal Singh said: “A massive s e a r c h o p e r a t i o n y i e l d e d n o explosive We have arrested and b o o k e d a m a n a b o u t t h i s dummy threat ”

The cops took the threat s e r i o u s l y b e c a u s e t h e r e h a d been three low-intensity blasts a r o u n d t h e G o l d e n T e m p l e between May 6 and 11 The call was made from a stolen mobile phone, which the police were able to track down

Asked about the affiliation of the arrested man, Naunihal said: “It will be premature to draw any conclusion, but we are o n t h e j o b t o f i n d o u t t h e motives of the accused ”

Mamata kin stopped at airport, handed ED notice

K O L K A T A : Im mi g r a t io n o ff ic ia l s t u r n e d ba ck Trinamool Congress n ational gen eral secretar y Abhishek Ba nerjee’ s wife Rujira a nd the coupl e ’ s chil dren who were taking a fl ight t o me et he r ail ing mothe r in D ubai ED official s at the airport al so ha nded he r a summons, asking her to appear b efor e them at t he ir Kolka ta office Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee called the immigration action and the subsequent ED summons ‘inhuman’ “A notice is served at the airport asking her (Rujira) to appear (before them) on Thursday Her mother is very ill Supreme Court had said she should inform ED if she had to travel She did that long back ED could have told her then not to travel,” Mamata said ED in Kolkata did not s p e c i f y t h e n a t u r e o f t r a v e l r e s t r i c t i o n s imposed on Rujira; nor did officials specify whether there was any lookout notice on her R u j i r a ’ s l a w y e r s i n d i c a t e d t h e y w e r e

contemplating moving SC against ED

The Karnataka government is set to make a daily reading of the preamble of the Constitution in schools and colleges mandatory Social welfare minister HC Mahadevappa discussed the proposal at a meeting of his department and later tweeted about it on his social-media handle Officials said the move would be first implemented this year in about 850 residential schools run by the social welfare department Activists and educationists welcomed the government’s move “The preamble sets out a goal for what kind of society we aim for It is important that children understand this I request the government to similarly launch a Constitution-literacy programme the way the Kerala government has done The Constitution should be in everyone s home and heart The government should teach children Dr B R Ambedkar s contribution to the Constitution and his writings on our constitutional values, said Vinay Sreenivasa, a social activist

SAAS-BAHU FIGHTS ERUPT OVER CASH INCENTIVE

The proposed implementation of the Karnataka government s Gruha Lakshmi scheme, offering a monthly subvention of Rs 2,000, is said to have inadvertently sparked conflicts between ‘atthe and sose (mothers-in-law and daughters-in-law) in several households Instances of disputes between ‘saas’ and ‘bahu have begun to surface as family members argue over who should receive the monthly cash incentive The lack of clear eligibility criteria in the Congress' election manifesto, where they pledged to grant the monthly subsidy to the woman head of the family, has further contributed to the confusion among households When asked, women and child development minister Laxmi Hebbalkar was queried on the issue she said it’s a decision for the family to take But later clarified that the money should ideally go to the mother-in-law as she is considered the female head as per Indian tradition

PUNJAB CONG CHIEF HECKLED IN NEW YORK

Punjab Congress chief Amarinder Raja Warring was allegedly heckled in New York He claimed that the incident was orchestrated by proKhalistan supporters Warring said a man tried to confront him on the pretext of talking to him I did not run away from being questioned It was part of propaganda by pro-Khalistani supporters at events organised by the Indian Overseas Congress in the US, he said Warring, who was in New York, said he was opposed to the idea of Khalistan

BJP FUNCTIONARY SHOT DEAD; PARTY BLAMES TMC

A BJP mandal secretary of Dinhata subdivision in Cooch Behar district of Bengal was shot dead at his home, sparking tension in the area Locals alleged Prasanta Roy Basunia (26) was speaking to a group of people in his sitting room when an altercation broke out One of the visitors reportedly whipped out a pistol and shot Basunia in the head Cooch Behar SP Sumit Kumar said: “The circumstances leading to the death are being probed We are waiting for the post-mortem report The victim had a pending arrest warrant against him ” Cops said Basunia had been booked in six criminal cases including theft dacoity and attempt to murder and was listed as absconding in police records

The murder took place barely a km from Union minister Nisith Pramanik’s residence Basunia was known to be close to Pramanik The incident triggered a political slugfest ahead of panchayat polls BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari demanded a CBI probe alleging TMC role in the murder TMC got scared after hundreds of its activists in the area left to join BJP, he tweeted

DIASPORA STANDS BY ODISHA TRAIN TRAGEDY VICTIMS

Continued from page 1

The FISI UK appeal reads, "A devastating t r a i n a c c i d e n t h a s o c c u r r e d i n O d i s h a , India, leaving behind a trail of destruction and despair Tragically, there are over 280 f a t a l i t i e s a n d o v e r 9 0 0 i n j u r i e s O u r thoughts and prayers are with families and friends affected by this shocking incident "

"Undoubtedly, it is traumatic and devastating for both the survivors and the ones who have lost their loved ones It will take a lot of time and effort for them to heal In s u c h d i s t r e s s e d t i m e s , w e m u s t c o m e together and lend our support," it further notes

"The money generated shall be used to provide essential support and aid to the victims of this tragedy," said the international non-profit organisation

S e n i o r B r i t i s h g o v e r n m e n t o f f i c i a l s made the appeal as they expressed their sympathy and support for India during this tragic time on social media

King Charles III sends a mes sage of c on dolenc e recalling hi s conn ection wi th Odis ha

King Charles III sent a message of condolence to President Droupadi Murmu

"Both my wife and I have been most profoundly shocked and saddened by the news o f s u c h a d r e a d f u l a c c i d e n t o u t s i d e Balasore I would like to express our deepest possible condolences to the families of all those who have so tragically lost their lives," the UK Royal said in a statement

In the statement that was also posted across the royal social media channels, the 74-year-old monarch spoke of the special place in his heart for India and reflected upon his fond memories of a visit to Odisha 43 years ago

“I do hope you know what a special place India and the people of India have in our hearts I have particularly fond memo-

ries of visiting Odisha in 1980 and meeting some of its people on that occasion," it said

"I pray, therefore, that you may be able to convey our most heartfelt prayers and sympathy to all those who have been affected by this appalling tragedy, together with o u r s p e c i a l t h o u g h t s f o r t h e p e o p l e o f Odisha,” the King concluded Prime Minis ter Sunak express es support for s urvivors

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak expressed his heartfelt support and admiration for the survivors and those working tirelessly in the r e s c u e o p e r a t i o n s " M y t h o u g h t s a n d prayers are with @narendramodi and with all affected by the tragic events in Odisha My deepest condolences to the family and friends of those killed, and my heartfelt support and admiration to the survivors and those working tirelessly to respond," Sunak t w e e t e d U K F o r e i g n S e c r e t a r y J a m e s Cleverly expressed heartfelt condolences to the families of the victims My thoughts are with the survivors and emergency services "

British Foreign Secretary James Cleverly said, “Tragic news of the train crash in India My heartfelt condolences to the families of the victims My thoughts are with the survivors and emergency services ”

Lord Tariq Ahmad of Wimbledon said, “ D i s t r e s s i n g s c e n e s a n d r e p o r t s f r o m

59 MPs urge German envoy to return Indian child in its foster care since 2021

F ifty-nine M Ps from 19 p art i es h av e w r it ten to th e G er m an am bas s ad o r to India seeking h is interv ention in ensuring the retu rn o f an Indian baby girl who w as taken aw ay from her p a re nts b y t h e G erm an a u th o ri ti e s i n S ep t em b er 20 21

The German child welfare agency Jugendamt took custody of Ariha Shah, when she was seven months old, a l l e g i n g t h a t t h e p a r e n t s harassed her “We do not cast aspersions on any agenc y i n y o u r c o u n t r y a n d assume that whatever was done was thought to be in t h e b e s t i n t e r e s t s o f t h e baby We respect the legal procedures in your country, but given that there are no c r i m i n a l c a s e s p e n d i n g against any member of the said family, it is more than

time to send the baby back home,” the parliamentarians wrote T h e l e t t e r h a s b e e n e n d o r s e d b y M P s c u t t i n g a c r o s s p a r t y l i n e s T h e y included Hema Malini (BJP), A d h i r R a n j a n C h o w d h u r y ( C o n g r e s s ) , S u p r i y a S u l e ( N C P ) , K a n i m o z h i Karunanidhi (DMK), Mahua M o i t r a ( T M C ) , A g a t h a S a n g m a ( N P P ) , H a r s i m r a t Kaur Badal (SAD), Maneka Gandhi (BJP), Praneet Kaur (Congress), Shashi Tharoor ( C o n g r e s s ) a n d F a r o o q Abdullah (NC) They said Ariha’s pare n t s D h a r a a n d B h a v e s h Shah were in Berlin as the baby’s father was employed i n a c o m p a n y t h e r e T h e f a m i l y s h o u l d h a v e b e e n back in India by now but for some tragic events

A r i h a w a s t a k e n a w a y

from her parents after the child had suffered an accidental injury for which she was hospitalized An investig a t i o n w a s i n s t i t u t e d against her parents for child s e x u a l a b u s e I n F e b r u a r y 2022, the police case was closed without any charges a g a i n s t t h e p a r e n t s T h e hospital too issued a report ruling out sexual abuse, the letter read

The case has taken over a y e a r - a n d - a - h a l f f o r a n evaluation of the parents by a court-appointed psychologist, they said India's extern a l a f f a i r s m i n i s t r y s p o k e s p e r s o n A r i n d a m Bagchi said Ariha’s continued stay in the German foster care and “infringement” of her social, cultural and linguistic rights is of deep concern to the government of India and the parents

BBC ‘accepts’ it paid lower taxes

T he BBC has “ackno wledg ed '' th at it m ay have p aid lower taxes in Ind ia than its liability, according to go vernment sources The broad caster, w hich h as been u nd er the lens of tax authorities w ith its o ffices in Delhi a nd M u m bai ‘ s u rv e ye d ’ a fe w m onths ag o is, however, yet to file rev ised returns o r make a written s u b m i ss i o n to th e in co m e tax d ep artm ent “It is only a statement o f intent so far, there is no payment,” a source said A survey is an exercise to ch eck the books and other docum ents

b r o a d c a s t e r a i r e d a c o n t r o v e r s i a l

documentary on PM Narendra Modi in the UK Without naming BBC, in February, the income tax department had alleged that the income and profits disclosed by the organisation's units were “not commensurate with the scale of operations in India”

It also said the surveys allegedly “indicate that tax has not been paid on certain remittances which have n o t b e e n d i s c l o s e d a s i n c o m e i n India by the foreign entities of the group ” BBC had said at the time that it was cooperating with authorities

#OdishaTrainAccident in #India which has already claimed the lives of close to 300 people and with many injured Our thoughts and prayers are with all those impacted as well as the emergency teams working on this tragic accident ”

278 killed in worst train crash in 30 years, over 100 unidentified bodies

The total number of fatalities in the triple train accident in Odisha as of Tuesday reached 278 as three more victims succumbed to their injuries The Balasore train catastrophe on June 2 resulted in 278 fatalities and 1,100 injuries, according to Indian Railways

K h u r d a R o a d D i v i s i o n a l R a i l w a y Manager (DRM) Rinkesh Ray said that of the 278 bodies, 177 have been identified while 101 more are yet to be identified, and that the unclaimed bodies have been kept in six different hospitals

Railway minister Ashwini Vaishnaw said the commissioner of railway safety will conduct a second investigation to determine the exact cause of the disaster, whether it was caused by a human error, a malfunctioning signal, or other possible reasons - to avoid similar tragedies

The Coromandel Express crashed at a s p e e d a b o v e 1 0 0 K m p h t h a t i t s e n g i n e climbed the goods train and 22 compart-

m e n t s p a c k e d w i t h p a s s e n g e r s d e r a i l e d

Three of the derailed coaches careened into parallel tracks and crossed the tail-end of t h e S i r M V i s v e s w a r a y a T e r m i n a l

B e n g a l u r u - H o w r a h S u p e r f a s t E x p r e s s (12864) crossing the station at the same time CBI to probe Odisha train ac cident

In a rare move, the Centre announced a CBI investigation into the rail tragedy in O d i s h a a f t e r t h e r a i l w a y s ' p r e l i m i n a r y assessment identified "interference" with the "electronic interlocking system" and "points" that enable the safe movement of trains as the "root cause" of the crash

The railway ministry ruled out any fault o f t h e l o c o d r i v e r o f t h e C o r o m a n d e l Express or failure of signals Though the decision to bring in the CBI points to suspic i o n s o f c r i m i n a l i t y , r a i l w a y m i n i s t e r Ashwini Vaishnaw and the Railway Board did not mention sabotage

Terrifying tragedy, those found gui lty won’t be s pared, says Modi

P r i m e M i n i s t e r N a r e n d r a M o d i described the Balasore train catastrophe as a " t e r r i f y i n g t r a g e d y " a n d v o w e d t o t a k e e x e m p l a r y a c t i o n a g a i n s t t h o s e f o u n d responsible, a remark seen as pointing to a preliminary assessment about human failure being the possible cause of the tragedy

"Yeh ghatna atyant gambhir hai, har prakar ki janch ke nirdesh diye gaye hain aur jo bhi doshi paya jayega, usko sakht se sakht saza ho, usko bakhsha nahin jayega ( T h e g o v e r n m e n t c o n s i d e r s t h i s a n extremely grave incident Multiple investigations have been ordered and exemplary punishment will be given to whoever is found guilty, he will not be spared)," he said after visiting the accident spot and the Balasore hospital where the injured are being treated

India, US finalise roadmap for defence-industrial cooperation

D u r i n g P M N a r e n d r a Modi’s vis it to Wa shi ngton late r this month, I ndi a and th e US se t the s tage for clinchin g the me ga proj ect to co- pr odu ce f i gh te r j et en gin es, whi le als o d eci din g to f urth er s tren gthen opera tional mi litary coopera tion in the Ind o-Pacifi c wi th an ey e firmly on “the b ully in g an d coercion” by C hina

The high-level meeting between defence minister Rajnath Singh and US secr e t a r y o f d e f e n c e L l o y d A u s t i n c o n c l u d e d a n e w a m b i t i o u s d e f e n c e - i n d u strial cooperation roadmap t o f a s t - t r a c k t e c h n o l o g y collaboration and co-production of existing as well as futuristic weapon syst e m s a n d p l a t f o r m s I t r a n g e s f r o m a i r c o m b a t , i n f a n t r y c o m b a t v e h i c l e s

a n d I S R ( i n t e l l i g e n c e , s u r v e i l l a n c e , r e c o n n a i ss a n c e ) s y s t e m s t o l o n gr a n g e a r t i l l e r y , s m a r t munitions and underwater domain awareness

T h e i m m e d i a t e t a k eaway will be the inking of the major pact between US company General Electric ( G E ) a n d d e f e n c e P S U Hindustan Aeronautics to j o i n t l y p r o d u c e G E - F 4 1 4 turbofan engines in the 98 Kilonewton thrust class in India

According to a source, “ T h e r e w i l l b e v i r t u a l l y 100% ToT (transfer of techn o l o g y ) f o r t h e G E - F 4 1 4 engines, which will power the indigenous Tejas Mark2 fighters (existing Tejas Mark-1 jets have less powerful GE-F404 engines procured without any ToT)

Other projects like the co-

p r o d u c t i o n o f S t r y k e r armoured fighting vehicles, l o n g - r a n g e a r t i l l e r y a n d

ISR systems are in the discussion stage ”

T h e r o a d m a p i s a l s o likely to facilitate the ToT a n d s e t t i n g u p o f M R O facilities that India is pushi n g f o r u n d e r t h e l o n gpending deal for acquisition of armed Predator or M Q - 9 B S e a G u a r d i a n drones The deal’s high cost a t $ 3 b i l l i o n f o r 3 0 Predators has led India to cut down the requirement to 18 drones

During the delegationlevel meeting, sources said India briefed the US on the “ a g g r e s s i v e i n t e n t ” s h o w n by China along the 3,488km line of actual control amid the continuing military confrontation in eastern Ladakh

Opposition well organised in India, says Rahul Gandhi

Amid eff orts back h om e to galv a ni s e t h e ri va l p o l i ti c al f o r c e s agains t th e BJP government at the C entre with an eye o n next year' s L o k Sa b h a e l e c ti o ns , C o n gr e s s l e a de r R ah u l G an dh i s a id t h e O p po s it io n in India w as "p retty w ell u nited" Rah ul was on a s ix d ays U S to u r in Sa n F r anc is co , W ashingto n DC and New York

“It’s our job, it's our business, and it's our work to fight the battle for democracy in India “And it's something that we understand, we a c c e p t , a n d w e d o , ” h e t o l d

“But the thing to remember is that Indian democracy is a global public good Because India is large enough that a collapse in democracy in India will have an impact on the world So that is for you to think about how much you have to value Indian democracy But for us, it's an internal matter, and it's a fight that we are committed to, and we are going to, we are going to win,” Rahul said P M Mo di deserves resp ec t: Sam Pitroda

As Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to the US approaches, Congress leader Sam Pitroda has

said that he is ‘proud’ of the reception given to the senior leader The Indian Overseas Congress chief, however, asserted that the PM was ‘getting reception’ because he represented 1 5 billion Indians and 'not because he s BJP’s prime minister ' someone told me that, the Indian Prime Minister is getting a lot of reception And I said I'm happy about it because, at the end of the day, he's also my prime minister But let's not make a mistake H e ' s g e t t i n g r e c e p t i o n b e c a u s e he's India's PM And not because he's BJP’s prime minister Separate these two things," Pitroda said

Kids dig well with bare hands to quench thirst

Little kids in Gujarat's Chhota Udepur district's Dabba village are digging the ground to get their daily need of drinking water. They get up early in order to travel to a well that has been dug near their homes and begin r e m o v i n g s o i l w i t h t h e i r b a r e h a n d s . T h e i r c h a n c e s o f d i s c o v e r i n g enough drinking water for the day increases as they dig deeper “It has become a summer ritual for many residents of our village located in a remote area of Naswadi taluka From kids to grown-ups, everybody takes turns to dig the well and fetch water for daily use,” said a resident of Sitawala faliya in Dabba village “Water is a priority for us If we excavate more soil from the well, we get better-quality water. So, our children also joined us in the digging exercise,” rued Meena Bhil, another resident (The Times of India)

TTD to build Sri Balaji temple in Navi Mumbai

T i r u m a l a T i r u p a t i D e v a s t h a n a m s (TTD) will lay the foundation stone for the Sri Balaji temple in Navi Mumbai on June 7 T T D h a s i n v i t e d M a h a r a s h t r a C h i e f Minister Eknath Shinde to the "bhoomi pujan " It will be the first TTD temple in M a h a r a s h t r a T T D , t h e w o r l d ’ s r i c h e s t H i n d u t e m p l e t r u s t , w i l l c o n s t r u c t t h e replica of Tirupati Balaji temple on 10 acres in Sector 12 of Ulwe node In April 2022, Maharashtra had allocated this land parcel to TTD to construct the temple While the cost of the land is £50 million, TTD has e s t i m a t e d t h e c o n s t r u c t i o n t o c o s t £ 7 million (Agency)

Stalker stabs girl 34 times, crushes head

A 16-year-old girl was brutally attacked by a man who wanted to be in a relationship with her He stabbed her 34 times, kicked her, and crushed her head with a concrete block The killing was reported from Delhi’s Shahbad Dairy last week and captured on CCTV camera The footage shows around a d o z e n p e o p l e w a l k i n g b y e v e n a s t h e attacker repeatedly stabs her The accused, Sahil Khan fled the spot after the murder and was arrested from Bulandshahr after cops tracked a call that Khan made from his aunt’s phone to his father During initial questioning, Khan asserted that he had known Sakshi for almost two years and was furious that she had just severed contact with him She cautioned him to keep away during the argument between the two, and this turned out to be the immediate cause of irritation Khan apparently lost his mind when he noticed a tattoo of another boy on her wrist (Agency)

Leucistic shikra spotted in Pavagdh forest

About a month ago, three enthusiastic bird lovers were driving out when they spotted a rare white bird close to Pavagadh Seeing a female shikra perched on a tree on a h i l l s u r r o u n d e d b y f o r e s t s , K a r t i k

Upadhyay excitedly pulled over his car to have a better look

It was a leucistic bird whose original feather colour had been

gone A normal shikra usually has grey or brown feathers “It was a rare spotting This is only the second time that a leucistic shikra was seen in India and the first ever in Gujarat The first was spotted at Pench National Park in Madhya Pradesh,” said Devvratsinh Mori, an ornithologist working at Ahmedabad University, Mori, along with Kartik Upadhyay, Dr Raju Vyas and Mittal Patel observed the bird’s movements for a month (The Times of India)

Chhattisgarh official gets dam emptied to find his cellphone

R a j e s h V i s h w a s , a n o f f i c i a l i n Chhattisgarh, churned a dam for a mobile and was consequently condemned The " e x p e n s i v e " c e l l p h o n e t h a t t h e f o o d inspector lost while taking a selfie on a weekend outing required him to empty the whole Paralkot reservoir in the Kanker area The bizarre act led to over 41,000 cusecs of water being drained out over three days when it could have been “used to irrigate 1,500 acres of farmland” in the parched state Vishwas got his mobile back but earned a suspension from DM Priyanka S h u k l a f o r “ m i s u s i n g h i s p o s i t i o n b y d r a i n i n g m i l l i o n s o f l i t r e s o f w a t e r i n summer ’ s heat to retrieve his phone” The episode unfolded on May 21 but came to light when photos and videos went viral showing Vishwas sitting under an umbrella while divers scoured the reservoir and two powerful pumps empty out water (Agency) Man ends life after three failed attempts

Bhupendra Solanki, 45, a resident of A h m e d a b a d , h a s m a d e t h r e e s u i c i d e attempts, but failed Finally for the fourth t i m e h e s u c c e e d e d i n h i s a t t e m p t According to an FIR filed by his son Aniket Solanki, Bhupendra ran a business in the Jodhpur area of Ahmedabad Bhupendra remarried in 2017 But after six months, the pair started quarreling and in January 2020, his second wife moved out, according to the c o m p l a i n t A g g r i e v e d , B h u p e n d r a a t t e m p t e d s u i c i d e i n F e b r u a r y 2 0 2 0 b y c o n s u m i n g p o i s o n , b u t s u r v i v e d I n October 2022, Bhupendra had a dispute with his relatives At that time too he had attempted suicide but survived On May 17, the couple quarreled once more He drank poison to end his life, but his son Aniket rescued him by taking him to the hospital L a t e r B h u p e n d r a l e f t h i s h o m e i n t h e morning Aniket went looking for him at the riverfront and found his sandals He then called the cops Bhupendra’s body was recovered from the Sabarmati river later

(The Times of India)

Ramcharitmanas becomes world's longest recorded song

Shri Ramcharitmanas, an epic poem, is being officially recognised as the world’s l o n g e s t s o n g D r J a g d i s h P i l l a i f r o m

Varanasi has set the Guinness record by singing the entire Shri Ramcharitmanas for a duration of 138 hours, 41 minutes, and two seconds This remarkable accomplishment h a s b e e n o f f i c i a l l y r e c o g n i s e d b y t h e Guinness Book of World Records as the longest song ever composed Pillai came to know that an American singer was holding r e c o r d I n s p i r e d b y t h i s d i s c o v e r y a n d driven by his own passion for music, Pillai m a d e t h e d e c i s i o n t o u n d e r t a k e t h e challenge of singing the longest song and aimed to establish the record under his own name (Agency)

Four-year-old dies after locking herself in car

While playing hide and seek with her pals in the Bareilly area of Uttar Pradesh, a f o u r - y e a r - o l d c h i l d s u f f o c a t e d t o d e a t h a f t e r b e c o m i n g u n i n t e n t i o n a l l y l o c k e d inside an SUV According to authorities, the e v e n t t o o k p l a c e i n t h e d i s t r i c t o f Bisharatganj The child, identified as Mahi Saxena, had gone out to play with her f r i e n d s w h e n s h e w a s r e p o r t e d t o b e “missing” by her family Her parents were out for work and her grandmother was doing household chores at the time of the incident Mahi's concerned parents later discovered her unresponsive body inside their SUV and transported her to a local hospital, where she passed away shortly after receiving medical attention (Agency) Minor left without passport as both parents are Oz citizens An Indian couple from Bengaluru were startled to find that t h e i r m i n o r s o n ' s p a s s p o r t h a s b e e n withheld because both his parents had given u p t h e i r I n d i a n c i t i z e n s h i p t o b e c o m e

Australian citizens As per the Citizenship Act, when a person ceases to be a citizen of India, every minor child of that person shall thereupon cease to be a citizen of India The parents have requested an exception and t h e m i n i s t r y o f h o m e a f f a i r s ( M H A ) i s currently considering their request It was a n u n e x p e c t e d t u r n o f e v e n t s f o r t h e

Bengaluru couple, IT professionals and had moved to Australia in 2015 The couple had reportedly relocated to Australia, leaving t h e i r l i t t l e k i d i n t h e c u s t o d y o f h i s g r a n d m o t h e r A f e w y e a r s a g o , t h e y

r e n o u n c e d t h e i r I n d i a n c i t i z e n s h i p a n d became Australian citizens, while the boy, who is now 15 years old, had an Indian Passport (Agency)

Kesar mango celebrates 89th birthday

K e s a r m a n g o r e c e n t l y c e l e b r a t e d i t s 89th birthday after the Nawab of Junagadh Mahabat Khan III gave kesar its moniker on May 25, 1934 According to folklore, the n a w a b n a m e d t h e f r u i t a f t e r b e i n g s o m o v e d b y i t s s w e e t n e s s t h a t h e a l s o i n c r e a s e d t h e p a y o f h i s g a r d e n s u p e r i n t e n d e n t S K I y e n g a r , b y t h r e e rupees Legend has it that there were few mango trees on the outskirts of Vanthli adjacent to which a small mango orchard lay owned by Salebhai Idi In the 1930s, S a l e b h a i , w h o s e r v e d a s t h e N a w a b o f Junagadh, tasted the ripe mangos and sent some to his friend Sheikh Saheb of Mangrol as well 'Salebhai ni Amdi' is how Shaikh dubbed the fruit Interestingly Salebhai’s 155-year-old mango tree still bears fruits in a village near Talala According to history, N a w a b s e n t h i s g a r d e n s u p e r i n t e n d e n t Iyengar to various parts of the country and a l s o a b r o a d t o p l a c e s l i k e I n d o n e s i a , Malaysia, Singapore, and China to study mangoes (Agency)

Book returned to library after 96 years

We occasionally forget to return a book we borrowed from a library However, there was a remarkable instance where a book was returned after an incredible 96 years! The US-based St Helena Public Library recently posted this amazing tale along with s e v e r a l e n g r o s s i n g i m a g e s o f t h e l o n goverdue book to its Instagram page The b o o k w h i c h w a s r e t u r n e d i s c a l l e d ' A History of the United States' by Benson Lossing The person borrowed the book on February 21, 1927, and returned it in 2023 Chris Kreiden, the director of the Saint Helena library, said, One of my staff members brought it, they came up and said, 'Oh, somebody had returned that book,' and they thought it was really cool It was a really old book, and we didn't realize quite how old it was " (Agency)

Blood test shows promise of quicker diagnosis of cancer in UK

A National Health Service (NHS) trial of a new blood test for m ore than 50 types of cancer has shown p rom ise after it co rrectly revealed two ou t of ev ery three cancers in p eop le who had visited their g eneral practitioner (GP) with suspected symp to ms in England or Wales, s h a red re s ear ch e rs f ro m th e U niv ersity of Oxford

The Galleri test also correctly identified the original site of cancer in 85 per cent of those cases in what has been described as the first large-scale evaluation of a multicancer early detection (MCED) test in individuals who presented to their GP for diagnostic follow-up for suspected cancer The SIMPLIFY study enrolled 6,238 patients, a g e d 1 8 a n d o l d e r , w h o w e r e r e f e r r e d f o r u r g e n t i m a g i n g ,

e n d o s c o p y o r o t h e r d i a g n o s t i c m o d a l i t i e s t o i n v e s t i g a t e s y m ptoms suspicious for possible gynaecological, lung, lower GI or upper GI cancer or who had presented with non-specific symptoms

“New tools that can both expedite cancer diagnosis and potent i a l l y a v o i d i n v a s i v e a n d c o s t l y investigations are needed to more accurately triage patients who pres e n t w i t h n o n - s p e c i f i c c a n c e r s y m p t o m s , ” s a i d B r i a n D

Nicholson, Associate Professor at O x f o r d U n i v e r s i t y ’ s N u f f i e l d D e p a r t m e n t o f P r i m a r y C a r e Health Sciences and co-lead investigator of the study

“The high overall specificity, positive predictive value, and accuracy of the cancer signal detected and cancer signal origin prediction

that was reported across cancer types in the SYMPLIFY study indicate that a positive MCED test c o u l d b e u s e d t o c o n f i r m t h a t symptomatic patients should be evaluated for cancer before pursuing other diagnoses,” he said Participants provided a blood sample, from which DNA was isolated and tested Most patients diagnosed with cancer in England and Wales first see a primary care p h y s i c i a n t o i n v e s t i g a t e s y m ptoms suggestive of cancer The most commonly reported sympt o m s l e a d i n g t o r e f e r r a l w e r e unexpected weight loss (24 1 per cent), change in bowel habit (22 0 per cent), post-menopausal bleeding (16 0 per cent), rectal bleeding (15 7 per cent), abdominal pain (14 5 per cent), pain (10 6 per cent),

Reducing morning carbohydrate intake helps control type 2 diabetes

A ccord ing to an internatio nal team of r es ea rc h ers led b y U BC Ok an ag a n acad em ics, people with Type 2 diabetes ( T2D) can make a small adj ustment to th e fi rs t m eal of the d ay to better control their blood sug ar levels In th e U BCO Faculty of Health and Social D ev el op m en t, B arb ar a O li v ei r a collaborates on research projects with D r Jo n ath an L i tt le ’ s E x erc i se , M etabolism and Inflamm ation L ab

Their most recent research supports t h e i d e a t h a t p e o p l e w i t h T 2 D c a n benefit from switching from a traditional w e s t e r n - s t y l e l o w - f a t b r e a k f a s t l i k e oatmeal, toast and fruit to a low-carb meal higher in protein and fat

Dr Olivera said, “We're not talking about a complete diet overhaul One of many complications for people living with T2D is rapid or large increases in blood glucose levels after a meal Our research indicates a low-carbohydrate meal, first thing in the morning, seems to help control blood sugar throughout the day ”

Controlling glucose levels is critical for reducing the complications of T2D, i n c l u d i n g i n f l a m m a t i o n a n d cardiovascular disease--the major cause o f m o r b i d i t y i n p a t i e n t s w i t h T 2 D T r e a t m e n t s t r a t e g i e s t h a t c a n h e l p lower post-meal glucose swings and rapid changes in glucose are crucial to managing this condition," she adds "We've determined that if the first meal of the day is low-carb and higher in p r o t e i n a n d f a t w e c a n l i m i t

hyperglycemic swings ” T h e i r 1 2 - w e e k s t u d y h a d 1 2 1 participants split into two groups One was advised to eat from a selection of l o w - c a r b b r e a k f a s t s c o n t a i n i n g a p p r o x i m a t e a m o u n t s o f 8 g o f carbohydrate, 25g of protein and 37g of f a t I n c o m p a r i s o n , t h e o t h e r w a s advised to eat from a selection of lowf a t h i g h e r - c a r b o p t i o n s c o n t a i n i n g a b o u t 5 6 g o f c a r b o h y d r a t e s , 2 0 g o f

protein and 15g of fat All the breakfast options in both groups provided 450 c a l o r i e s P a r t i c i p a n t s h a d v a r i o u s breakfast choices and were required to upload a photo of their meal, which a s t u d y d i e t i t i a n r e v i e w e d t o c o n f i r m compliance

All participants were provided with a c o n t i n u o u s g l u c o s e m o n i t o r i n g d e v i c e t h e y w o r e t h r o u g h o u t t h e study They also undertook A1C blood tests before and after the 12 weeks to m e a s u r e t h e i r a v e r a g e b l o o d s u g a r levels They also measured their weight a n d w a i s t c i r c u m f e r e n c e a t t h e beginning and end of the trial As the

d i f f i c u l t y s w a l l o w i n g ( 8 8 p e r cent) and anaemia (7 1 per cent)

N H S n a t i o n a l d i r e c t o r f o r cancer, Professor Peter Johnson, said, “This study is the first step in testing a new way to identify c a n c e r a s q u i c k l y a s p o s s i b l e , being pioneered by the NHS –earlier detection of cancer is vital and this test could help us to catch more cancers at an earlier stage and help save thousands of lives ”

s t u d y c o n t i n u e d , t h e y r e p o r t e d feelings of satiety, energy and activity levels Dr Oliveira notes while there were no significant differences between the low-carb and other group for weight, b o d y m a s s i n d e x o r w a i s t circumference, the low-carb group did see a reduction in blood sugar levels, and some were able to reduce their g l u c o s e - l o w e r i n g m e d i c a t i o n T h e u p w a r d a n d d o w n w a r d s w i n g s i n b l o o d g l u c o s e l e v e l s , k n o w n a s glycemic variability, with the low-carb group were also significantly lower, s u g g e s t i n g t h e b e n e f i t s o f a l o wcarbohydrate breakfast for stabilizing blood sugars throughout the day One interesting finding was that people with low-carb breakfasts selfr e p o r t e d l o w e r c a l o r i e a n d c a r b o h y d r a t e i n t a k e a t l u n c h a n d during the rest of the day This could suggest that a breakfast rich in fat and p r o t e i n , w h i l e l o w e r i n c a r b s , c a n impact daily eating habits

"Having fewer carbs for breakfast not only aligns better with how people with T2D handle glucose throughout t h e d a y , b u t i t a l s o h a s i n c r e d i b l e potential for people with T2D who struggle with their glucose levels in the morning, she adds By making a small adjustment to the carb content of a single meal rather than the entire diet, w e h a v e t h e p o t e n t i a l t o i n c r e a s e a d h e r e n c e s i g n i f i c a n t l y w h i l e s t i l l obtaining significant benefits ”

Some effective ways to avoid tanning

Summer is a sea son of f un an d f rolic H ow e ve r , i t a l s o b ri n g s al on g th e p e s k y is s u e of t an n i n g P ro lo n ge d e x pos ur e t o ha rmf ul s un ra y s ca n r e s ul t i n s k in t a n n i n g, w hi ch ca n s ometi mes be q uite ch alle ng in g to e limina te There fore, it i s cruci al to t a k e p r e ca u t i o n a r y m e a s u r e s t o pre vent tann ing itse lf Each s eas on n e ce s s i t a t e s a t a i l o r e d s k i n ca r e r o u t i n e , a n d s u mm e r s k i n ca r e e mp ha s i se s th e i mpor ta n ce of ta n pre venti on

In an article, skin and hair expert and founder of Deyga Organics, Arthi Raguram, shared some effective ways to avoid tanning

Apply sunblock

Sunscreen is essential throughout the year, safeguarding the skin from the harmful UVA and UVB rays emitted by the sun In the summertime, it

is crucial to generously apply suns c r e e n o n a l l e x p o s e d b o d y a r e a s , including the face, neck, hands, and legs Carrying a sunscreen stick or spray is an excellent choice to facilit a t e r e a p p l i c a t i o n e v e r y 2 - 3 h o u r s

Remember to apply sunscreen at least 20 minutes before sun exposure

Use aloe vera gel

Aloe vera serves as an excellent cooling agent during the summer season Not only does it soothe sunburns, but it also aids in minimizing tanning effects Store a container of aloe vera gel in the refrigerator and utilize the cold gel to refresh your skin after a prolonged, hot day Apply a generous a m o u n t o f g e l t o y o u r f a c e , n e c k , hands, and desired areas Allow it to sit for approximately 15 minutes before gently removing it with a damp cloth Instantly, your skin will feel noticeably

soft and supple With repeated applications, you will observe your tan lines gradually fading away Exfoli ate regularly

To minimize the effects of tanning, one effective method is to regularly exfoliate your skin A simple h o m e m a d e s c r u b c a n b e m a d e b y combining yogurt and tomato pulp, which can be gently applied to the skin twice a week Tomatoes contain vitamin C, while yogurt contains lactic acid, both of which aid in removing sun tan

Kee p yourse lf covered Wear full-sleeve clothes to prevent tanning Carry a cover-up or a kimono while you are out in the sun Also, wearing loose, cotton clothes can be quite comforting during the scorching heat Keep your head covered with a hat or a bandana

T h e U n i v e r s i t y o f O x f o r d sponsored the SYMPLIFY study and was responsible for data collection, analysis and interpretation The study was funded by US h e a l t h c a r e c o m p a n y G R A I L –which has developed the Galleri blood test – with support from NHS England, NHS Wales, the National Institute for Health and Care Research (NIHR) and NIHR O x f o r d B i o m e d i c a l R e s e a r c h Centre

Grief may increase risk of heart problems: Study

T h e U n iv ers i ty o f A ri z o na re se ar ch e d the influence o f grief on heart functio n and d i sc o v e red th a t intense griev ing migh t in d u c e a s ig ni fi c an t in c rea se i n bl o o d pressure According to th ei r d at a, g ri ev i n g may be a risk factor fo r ca rd i ac e v en ts P u bl is h ed in P sy c h o so m a ti c M e d i ci ne , t h e s tu d y d em o n st rat es an association between grief sev erity and elevated systolic blo od pressure response

Senior author of the study and a UArizona associate professor of psychology, Mary-Frances O’Connor, said the i d e a o f “ d y i n g o f a b r o k e n h e a r t , ” w h i c h c a n h a p p e n following the loss of a loved one, was the motivation for the research Increased risk of mortality after the death of a loved one has long been documented in epidemiological s t u d i e s T h e s t u d y b y O ’ C o n n o r a n d h e r c o l l e a g u e s examined blood pressure as a possible contributing factor The study included 59 participants that had lost a close loved one in the past year

"We were looking for a way to test the cardiovascular effects of grief during that vulnerable time in the first year after the loss," said lead study author Roman Palitsky, who was a doctoral student at UArizona when the study was conducted and is now the director of research projects in s p i r i t u a l h e a l t h a t E m o r y U n i v e r s i t y W o o d r u f f H e a l t h Sciences Center

Study participants were interviewed and asked to focus on feelings of separation and attachment through a process researchers call "grief recall ” The researchers talked to each participant for 10 minutes and asked them to share a moment when they felt very alone after the death of their l o v e d o n e T h e r e s e a r c h e r s t h e n m e a s u r e d t h e s t u d y participants' blood pressure

"When you go to a cardiologist, they don't just measure your blood pressure They also sometimes do a stress test, like a treadmill, and measure your blood pressure This is sort of like an emotional stress test," O'Connor said

After grief recall, participants' systolic blood pressurethe pressure the heart exerts on the arteries while beatingincreased From the baseline level, systolic blood pressure climbed by an average of 21 1 millimetres of mercury - the unit used to measure blood pressure That is approximately as much of an increase as expected during moderate exercise

Among the 59 participants, those who showed the highest level of grief symptoms experienced the greatest increase in blood pressure during the grief recall “This means that it isn't just the death of a loved one that impacts the heart, but our emotional response to loss that is affecting our heart,” O'Connor said

The study's findings are helpful for clinicians, as they show that people experiencing bereavement are at higher risk for hypertension and other heart-related problems, O C o n n o r s a i d “ I t s i m p o r t a n t f o r p s y c h o l o g i s t s a n d therapists to encourage grieving clients to get their regular medical check-ups Often, when we've been caring for a loved one who's dying, we neglect our own health care, ” she said

Kangana says goodbye to airport looks after 'starting the trend'

Ileana D'Cruz jets off to her babymoon with her boyfriend

Actor

Ileana D’Cruz, pregnant with her first child, is on her babymoon

She recently shared a sweet photo from their dinner date with a mystery man, presumably her boyfriend Sharing a picture of their hands, Ileana wrote on Instagram Stories, “My idea of romance - clearly can’t let him eat in peace ” The picture gave a peek at the diamond ring she wore on her ring finger in the blackand-white photo

Ileana jetted off to an undisclosed location for her babymoon Sharing a beach video on Instagram Stories, she wrote, “Babymoon ” She shared another short clip of some drinks kept on a table The actor did not feature in the clips, and it is not known where she is She also shared a photo of a dessert she ate during her recent dinner outing Along

with it, she wrote, “Oooh baby ” I l e a n a h a s m a i n t a i n e d silence about the identity of her future baby’s father ever since she shared the news of her pregnancy in April She c r e a t e d q u i t e a b u z z o n s o c i a l m e d i a a c o u p l e o f m o n t h s a g o a f t e r s h e announced that she would be welcoming her first child She posted two photos on Instagram on April 18 The first of a baby’s romper with the slogan ‘And so the adventure begins’ and the second of a pendant, which said ‘Mama’

In her caption, Ileana had written, “Coming soon Can't wait to meet you my little darling ” Since then Ileana is d o c u m e n t i n g h e r p r e g n a n c y o n Instagram She has shared some photos of her baby bump in the last few weeks She had shared a picture on Instagram Stories recently, giving fans a peek into her ‘ preggy (pregnancy) perks’, and all the food she has been craving

Anurag pens a heartfelt note on completing three decades in Mumbai

Mass Com and I just have been figuring ever since So grateful to this city for everything and all the friends and memories that it has given me (red heart emoticon) #karmbhoomi”

Kangana

Ranaut has taken credit for starting the ‘airport look’ trend in India She took to Instagram Stories lately to share a picture of her 2018 look at the Mumbai airport She captioned it, “Only person to blame for starting the stupid trend of airport looks ”

Well-known filmmaker Anurag Kashyap shared a throwback on his Instagram over the weekend to mark a special day when he first arrived in Bombay He recounted that on June 3, 1993, he landed in Dadar station, and life took a turn from there forever

Sharing a picture of the Punjab Mail on his Instagram, Anurag wrote a heartfelt note in the caption where he talked about the three-decadelong journey in the city of Mumbai so far He began, “3rd June, 1993 I landed at Dadar station it was raining I didn’t know that monsoons in Bombay were that long I remember taking my first local train from Dadar to Andheri to meet a friend , who came from Delhi before me ”

Anurag then wrote how this friend inspired Imtiaz Ali's 2011 film ‘Rockstar’ starring Ranbir K a p o o r “ H e w h o b e c a m e t h e i n s p i r a t i o n f o r @imtiazaliofficial ‘ s most special film “Rockstar” I got courage from both Jaggu and Imti to come to mumbai but then , they got into @sxcbom to do

Several fans reacted to the heartfelt post and a d d e d c o m m e n t s A c t o r A r j u n K a p o o r w r o t e , “Punjab mail to sangam mail ” A fan wrote, “And changed Indian cinema within 5 years!” Another wrote, “Thank you Anurag n company for keeping the bar of Bollywood high ”

Anurag started his career as a co-writer with Ram Gopal Varma’s ‘Satya’ which was released in 1998 He made his directorial debut with ‘Paanch,’ which never got a theatrical release He went on direct movies like ‘Black Friday,’ ‘No Smoking,’ ‘Dev D,’ ‘Gulaal,’ and ‘Gangs of Wasseypur ’ His last release ‘Kennedy’ starring Rahul Bhat and Sunny Leone was screened at the Cannes Film Festival where it received a seven minute-long standing ovation

Kangana had turned heads in a lavenderhued Dior dress and a soft pink Prada overcoat She complemented it with black heels and oversize sunglasses The actress called herself a “Victim of capitalism,” she added, “Brainwashed by magazine editors and fashion industry to look a western woman so that I only fill the pockets of international designers Ashamed to repeat clothes always buying without any care about the impact of my choices on the environment ” S h a r i n g m o r e p i c t u r e s , s h e w r o t e ,

“While I act like a bimbo, the system hails me as a fashionista to encourage me to promote more international brands while my own people like weavers and handicrafts men dying slow and steady death Then they shrewdly start to price tag everything I wear making it a vanity issue for me and guess what I fall for the trap now more than style it's about brands even for a genuinely stylish person Fashion brands make you work for them for free by just sending clothes and b a g s t h e y s t a r t t o h i j a c k c u l t u r e s a n d tradition of an entire civilisation ”

Kangana also bid goodbye to the trend and wrote, “If this is how an Indian woman looks then what does an American woman look like? Bye bye airport looks we have gone past that phase Now it’s time even if I buy one piece of clothing, I ask myself how many Indians benefit from this!”

Sobhita says the North vs South ' war ' became visible after cinematic success

Actor

Sobhita Dhulipala gave her two cents on the ongoing debate about Hindi films versus movies from the south and said there is nothing new about it She said the “war” has become more visible due to the success of pan-India films in recent times

Sobhita was last seen in Mani Ratnam's ‘Ponniyin Selvan: II ’

It is the sequel to ‘Ponniyin Selvan: I’ and starred Vikram, Aishwarya Bachchan, Jayam Ravi, Karthi and Trisha in lead roles Actors Aishwarya Lekshmi, R Sarathkumar, Jayaram, Prabhu, Vikram Prabhu, Prakash Raj, Rahman and R Parthiban are also a part of the film

Sobhita said, “I don't think it is a new war at all The war has just become more visible now because of cinematic successes But since pre-independence there has been debate on what should be the national language India isn't really a union of states in a way It's a country where we are all tied together We cheer for our cricket team but inherently, we are very different in our food and culture and languages We should acknowledge and celebrate it Homogeneity is not something that is natural or something I root for I like the differences ”

On the work front, Sobhita will be next seen in ‘Sitara’ with Rajeev Siddhartha She also has Netflix's ‘Monkey Man’ in the pipeline It is the directorial debut of Dev Patel and also features Patel and Sharlto Copley

Nora Fatehi says people would ask if she wanted to be the ‘next Katrina Kaif’

Nora Fatehi shared her experience during her initial days in Mumbai, when she’d often lock herself in her room and work on her accent In a recent interview, Nora said, “Whatever opportunities I have got have been very last minute and thankfully I was prepared. I remember staying locked up in my room and watching stuff on TV, working on my Hindi. I wouldn’t party or make boyfriends like the other girls I realised in my second month in India I needed to tone down my Canadian accent, tone down my body language and

work on my Hindi I missed out on my brother’s wedding, his birthday, everything. So many people were like, ‘Do you want to be like the next Katrina Kaif’?”

She added, “I knew I had to be prepared for whatever opportunity that came my way Most of the projects I got, was very last minute I would work on m y H i n d i a n d s u c h s o t h a t I w a s c o m p l e t e l y p r e p a r e d f o r a n y opportunity coming my way I knew I could only get one opportunity and if that did not work, I d be (out of the game) ”

When asked if she felt weird letting go of her identity and mould herself into Indian aesthetics for Bollywood, Nora said there was nothing wrong if she “ a s s i m i l a t e d w i t h t h e c u l t u r e a n d p e o p l e ” o f t h e p l a c e w h e r e s h e i s working Nora has featured in special dance songs in popular films, ever since she first started working in Hindi films She w o r k e d i n s o n g s s u c h a s ‘ M a n h a r i ’ ( B a h u b a l i : T h e C o n c l u s i o n ) , ‘ I t t a g e Recchipodham,’ and (Puri Jagannadh's film Temper), among many others She also featured in the remake of Sushmita Sen's famous ‘Dilbar’ song

Shahid doesn’t want to 'do some trash' in Hollywood

Naseeruddin says he uses Filmfare awards as door handles for his washrooms

One

Naseeruddin is the recipient for three National Awards for his work in ‘Paar,’ ‘Sparsh,’ and ‘Iqbaal ’ He has also won three Filmfare Awards for his performances in ‘Akrosh,’ ‘Chakra,’ and ‘Masoom ’ In the interview, the actor opened up about his thoughts on awards, stating that they are an outcome of lobbying in the industry

When asked if there is any truth in the rumours that uses awards as door handles in his house, Naseeruddin laughed and added, “Any actor who has put their life and effort into portraying a role is a good actor If you just pick one person from the lot and say that ‘this is the best actor of the year, ’ how’s it fair? I am not proud of those awards I did not even go collect the last two awards I received So, when I built a farmhouse I decided to put these awards there Whoever goes to the washroom will get two awards each as the handles are made of the Filmfare awards ”

Naseeruddin added, “I don’t find any value in these trophies I was happy when I received the initial ones But then, trophies started piling up around me Sooner or later I understood that these awards are a result of lobbying One is receiving these awards not necessarily because of their merit So I started leaving them behind ”

“After that, when I received Padma Shri and Padma Bhushan, it reminded me of my deceased father who used to always be worried about my job and said things like ‘if you do this useless work, you will become a fool’ So, when I went to Rashtrapati Bhavan to collect the awards, I looked up and asked my dad if he was seeing all this He was and I am sure he was happy I was h a p p y t o r e c e i v e t h o s e a w a r d s B u t I c a n ’ t s t a n d t h e s e competitive awards ”

Naseeruddin was last seen in the second season of ‘Taj: Reign of Revenge ’ It also stars Aditi Rao Hydari, Rahul Bose, Sandhya Mridul, and Zarina Wahab

of the most acclaimed actors in the industry, Naseeruddin Shah, has won multiple awards for his performances over the years In an interview, he revealed that he doesn’t take these awards seriously and uses his Filmfare awards as door handles for his washroomsVijay Varma 'not worried' about being stereotyped for his negative roles

Vijay Varma’s recent performance in the web show ‘Dahaad’ has received much praise and love The actor, who essayed the role of Anand Swarnakar, a psychopath serial killer in the series, said, “I am over the moon with the kind of responses Dahaad has been getting I’m very proud of the project and its compelling story. We know we’ve created something which is worthy of being loved.”

Varma confesses he doubted how audiences would react and respond to his twisted and dark character

“I kept thinking what happen when the seri w i l l r e l e a s e a n d h o w p e o p l e w i l l p e r c e i v e this evil character And h e n c e , I w a s

p l e a s a n t l y s u r p r i s e d w h e n i t r e c e i v e d a p p r e c i a t i o n f r o m e v e r y w h e r e , ” h e s a i d When asked if he fea getting stereotyped play n e g a t i v e r o l e s , V a r m a

“I’m sure it’ll leave some impact And I wouldn’t be surprised if I get typecast

Actor

Shahid Kapoor has revealed he wouldn’t want to go to Hollywood and “do some trash ” He added that if offered a Tamil, Telugu or Malayalam movie, he would do it if it satisfies him as an actor

After making his Bollywood debut with ‘Ishq Vishk’ in 2003, Shahid featured in hit movies like ‘Jab We Met,’ ‘Haider,’ ‘Udta Punjab,’ and ‘Kabir Singh ’ His career has so far only steered forward in Hindi language movies The actor said in a recent interview, “I have worked here for 20 years so I love my fraternity and I love our films I feel very comfortable here Having said that, I’m here to do good work So on one hand you ’ re saying Hollywood, I’ll say the reverse thing If somebody offers me a Tamil, Telugu or Malayalam movie and if I feel there’s a great role to do and it will satisfy me as an actor, I’ll go do that If you are chasing performance and calibre, I wouldn’t want to go to Hollywood and do some trash That’s not what I would want to do ”

He added, “Abhi mere ko Hollywood mein break mil gaya hai kuch bhi kar lo Nahi (Now I got a break in Hollywood, do anything, no)! There has to be a certain feeling from inside You should feel inspired, excited and challenged to do something then language should not be a barrier But language is a genuine thing Some people are good at making a transition but some people are not It’s not easy to do that If I get an opportunity, I’d go anywhere Just give me something exciting I just did OTT I don’t care "

and people say, ‘He must be u p t o s o m e t h i n g ! ’ T h a t might happen But, I’m not w o r r i e d b e c a u s e I h a v e e n o u g h i n m y a r s e n a l t o k i n d o f c h a n g e o v e r t h e y e a r s F o r n o w , I w a s e n j o y i n g b e i n g d e l i c i o u s l y evil ” H e a l s o c l a r i f i e d t h a t n o n e o f t h e s e d a r k c h a r a c t e r s o r p r o j e c t s affected his mental health as is the case with many actors after playing such s “ P l a y i n g e s e t w i s t e d characters in Darlings a n d n o w D a h a a d definitely impacted me, but not to the e x t e n t t h a t t h e y would take a toll on my mental health I e n j o y e d t h e e f f e c t s hat they create in the ience’s minds,” Vijay

On the work front, Shahid is set to feature in Ali Abbas Zafar’s ‘Bloody Daddy,’ a remake of the 2011 French film ‘Sleepless Night ’ His character in the film, Sumair faces off against white-collar drug lords, deceitful friends, a ruthless crime boss, murderous narcs, and both corrupt and honest cops The film also stars Ronit Roy, Sanjay Kapoor and Rajeev Khandelwal

Bloody Daddy will release on JioCinema on June 9

i n c l u d i n g ‘ S h e , ’ a n d ‘ M i r z a p u r ’ Talking about the genre's popularity, h e f e e l s e v e r y s u b j e c t i s g e t t i n g exploited right now “We have access to all sorts of content through several s t r e a m i n g p l a t f o r m s i n d i f f e r e n t languages Crime has always been a fascinating genre for as long as we can think of As a species, we are obsessed w i t h w a t c h i n g v i o l e n c e o r c r i m e , maybe because it constantly exists around us in some form Having said t h a t , w e d e f i n i t e l y n e e d m o r e c o m e d i e s a n d t h a t t o o i n t e l l i g e n t humour ”

Samantha raises a toast to her friendship with Vijay Deverakonda

Samantha

Ruth Prabhu took to Instagram recently and shared an adorable post to toast her friendship with friend and co-star Vijay Deverakonda Both actors are working on their upcoming Telugu romantic drama ‘Kushi ’ Sam’s photo featured the two posing together at a cafe While she is beaming with happiness, Vijay appears to be in the middle of a conversation The photo was clicked by ‘Kushi’ director Shiva Nirvana

Sharing the photo, Samantha tagged the actor and the director She wrote in the caption, “Sees you at your best, sees you at your worst Sees you come last, sees you come first Sees your lows, sees your highs Some friends gently standby What a year it has been!! @thedeverakonda @shivanirvana621 #Kushi ” In response, Vijay called Samantha his “Favourite girl ”

‘Kushi’ marks the second time collaboration of the actors Last month, a teaser for their song ‘Na Rojaa Nuvve’ was released on Vijay’s birthday It introduced their characters in the film for the first time It has been sung by Hesham Abdul Wahab Vijay presented the song as a gift for his fans and wrote on social media, “With full love Our 1st song from #Kushi ”

Chiranjeevi responds to cancer rumours

Veteran star Chiranjeevi has issued a clarification after several reports claimed he was diagnosed with cancer and was cured after treatment He penned a long note on Twitter saying that the reports emerged after he spoke on the need to raise awareness about the disease

In his statement in Telugu, Chiranjeevi clarified that he undertook a test earlier in which “ non-cancerous polyps were detected and removed ” He also added that he had said if the polyps weren't removed it “would have turned out to be cancer ” Chiranjeevi said that as several reports misquoted him it led to “ unnecessary confusion ”

Chiranjeevi wrote, "A while ago I spoke about the need to raise awareness about cancer while inaugurating a cancer centre I told you that cancer can be prevented if you undergo regular medical tests I was alert and took a colon scope test I said that nonc a n c e r o u s p o l y p s w e r e d e t e c t e d a n d removed I only said, 'If I hadn't done the test first, it would have turned out to be cancer' That's why everyone should take precautions and undergo medical tests/screening ”

He added, "But some media organizations did not understand this properly and started publishing web articles saying 'I got cancer and I survived due to treatment T h i s h a s c a u s e d u n n e c e s s a r y c o n f u s i o n

Many well-wishers are sending messages about my health This clarification is for all of them Also, an appeal to such journalists: don't write nonsense without understanding the subject Because of this, many people are scared and hurt (folded hands emoji) ” Several fans supported the actor and expressed happiness for his good health "It's good to know everything is ok thanks to prevention This information can help many " said a person "Thank God you are healthy and you have to be healthy," read a comment "Long live Chiranjeevi garu ! I hope I will meet you soon for a cup of coffee !" wrote another person

Journo asks Siddharth a provocative question about love life

Siddharth, who is currently gearing up to release his upcoming Tamil film ‘Takkar,’ found himself in an uncomfortable interaction with a journalist The actor was in Hyderabad for the promotions of the Telugu-dubbed version of the movie recently As part of a media interaction, a reporter asked him about his love life amid speculations that he’s dating Aditi Rao Hydari

The reporter told Siddharth that he’s quite popular for his love stories in films However, he’s been not so successful, when it comes to real-life romance Sid, however, took it in stride and responded, “I’ve personally never thought about this even once, not even in my dreams Even when I see my face

in the mirror But since you are really concerned about my love life, both of us can talk a b o u t i t i n p r i v a t e O t h e r s have nothing to do with it, and it has nothing to do with the Takkar movie as well ”

H i s r e s p o n s e g a r n e r e d much positive attention, with m a n y e v e n c a l l i n g o u t t h e reporter for their “cringeworthy” question One Twitter u s e r w r o t e , “ L i t e r a l l y e v e r y t i m e I s e e s o m e t h i n g w i t h him, I start to cringe and feel disgust There is a limit to a s k i n g s o m e o n e q u e s t i o n s like that on a public platform He thinks he has this 'chanuvu (closeness)' with all those actors, but it’s gone to a point, where it’s just beyond ridiculous ”

ActorRana Daggubati was spotted at an event recently, where he spoke about Prabhas’ upcoming film ‘Project K ’ He said that the film is set to break new boundaries A science-fiction thriller made on a massive budget, ‘Project K’ marks the maiden collaboration between Prabhas and filmmaker Nag Ashwin of ‘Mahanati’ fame The movie also stars Amitabh Bachchan and Deepika Padukone in key roles Rana was recently at the India Today Conclave South 2023 and participated in a session titled ‘The Rise of the Pan India Star: How to break boundaries of language and geography ’ He spoke about the movie becoming a global Telugu film and how he feels it c o u l d b r e a k b o u n d a r i e s t h a t e v e n S S R a j a m o u l i ’ s ‘Baahubali’ and ‘RRR’ could not Rana said, “We celebrate each other’s cinema fully Like there is another film called Project K, which Nag Ashwin is directing with Prabhas, Amitabh Bachchan and Deepika Padukone That’s a film we are really looking forward to in Telugu That film will, I think will break the boundaries that both Baahubali and RRR haven’t done ” He further said, “Pushing that boundary to the next edge I am really looking forward to that film and it could really become a global film from Telugu (cinema) ”

H i s s t a t e m e n t r e c e i v e d s e v e r a l r e a c t i o n s o n Twitter One social media user wrote, “Keep your expectations very high Project K will be a neverbefore-seen movie, which has the potential to clash with any other movie, not only from India but also Hollywood ” Another one said, “My faith in Project K just skyrocketed after seeing this ”

SATURDAY 17 JUN 2023

9:00 JAI SHRI KRISHNA

9:30 SUR PRABHAT

10:00 DESHI BEATS

16:30 SURI

17:00 BHAKT GORA KUMBHAR

17:30 RASOI SHOW 18:30 HU TU ANE HU TU TU TU

MON 12 JUN - FRI 16 JUN 2023

9:00 JAI SHRI KRISHNA 9:30 SUR PRABHAT 10:00 DESHI BEATS 16:30 SURI 17:00 BHAKT GORA KUMBHAR 17:30 RASOI SHOW

HU TU ANE HU TU TU TU

RADHA RAGHAV

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

22:00 MARI LADKI RE

SUNDAY 18 JUN 2023

6:00 LAKHO VANZARO

11:30 MADHAVPUR NE MELE

14:30 ALAKHA NA AJVALA

17:30 HU TU ANE HU TU TU TU

19:30 SORATHNI MRS SINGHAM

21:30 MARU MAN MOHI GAYU

SATURDAY 17 JUN 2023

16:30 RASOI SHOW-DESI FLAVOURS

17:30 KUMKUM NA PAGLA PADYA

18:00 BALIKA VADHU SEASON 1

19:00 AJNABI BANE HUMSAFAR

19:30 Nima Denzonpga

21:00 KHATRA KHATRA KHATRA

MON 12 JUN - FRI 16 JUN 2023

16:30 RASOI SHOW DESI FLAVOURS

17:30 KUMKUM NA PAGLA PADYA

18:00 BALIKA VADHU SEASON 1

19:00 AJNABI BANE HUMSAFAR

19:30 Sanskaar - Dharohar Apnon Ki

20:30 Bhagyalaxmi - Rishton Ki Gatha

21:00 KHATRA KHATRA KHATRA

22:00 Jab Pyar kisi se hota hai

SUNDAY 18 JUN 2023

16:30 RASOI SHOW-DESI FLAVOURS

17:30 KUMKUM NA PAGLA PADYA

18:00 BALIKA VADHU SEASON 1

19:00 AJNABI BANE HUMSAFAR

19:30 Nima Denzonpga

21:00 KHATRA KHATRA KHATRA

22:00 KABHI ALVIDA NA KEHNA

‘Project K’ is set to break new boundaries, says Rana Daggubati

Priyanka, her mother hang out with Salma Hayek, Jay Z at Beyonce concert

Priyanka Chopra recently attended Beyonce’s concert at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in London and if the photos and videos are anything to go by, she had quite the blast The actor was joined by her mother, Madhu Chopra Beyonce’s highly anticipated Renaissance Tour started in mid-May

Tom Holland calls India visit with Zendaya a 'trip of a lifetime'

Tom Holland was in Mumbai earlier this year with girlfriend and actress Zendaya for the launch of the Nita Mukesh Ambani Cultural Centre (NMACC) In a recent interview, he said he enjoyed the best food with the best people on a “trip of a lifetime ”

Alia joins Julia Roberts and Idris Elba in a new Gucci video

Thefirst Indian luxury fashion brand Gucci ambassador, Alia Bhatt, joined some big Hollywood names in a brand new campaign video She took to Instagram and Twitter to share the video She captioned, “Excited to be chiming in for Gucci Chime’s 10th Anniversary Campaign! Gucci chime for gender equality Chime in ” The video begins with ‘Ozark’ star Julia Garner introducing herself, followed by Halle Bailey, John Legend and Salma Hayek Pinault, who says she ‘chimes for gender equality ’ Then Daisy Edgar Jones, Alia, Serena Williams, Julia Roberts and Idris Elba support ‘education, strength, dignity ’ “We chime as one, ” Idris says in the end Alia's fans left comments for her on t h e G u c c i v i d e o o n I n s t a g r a m “Bollywood queen Alia Bhatt,” wrote one “Alia and Salma, my favourite Alia with someone of my nationality is my win,” w r o t e a n o t h e r A l i a g o t t h e m o s t a

e c t i o n compared to others

Alia was in Seoul recently to attend

the Gucci Cruise 2024 show She donned a mini black dress with a polka-dotted cutout She wore black platform heels and a Gucci Jackie 1961 transparent bag Last month, Alia was announced as the first Indian global ambassador of the brand Gucci took to Instagram to share the news and wrote, “Alia Bhatt is the House’s n e w e s t G l o b a l B r a n d A m b a s s a d o r T o mark the occasion, the actress, producer, and entrepreneur were captured with the Gucci Bamboo 1947 bag ”

Alia also took to Instagram to share her excitement and feelings with her fans S h a r i n g t h e p i c t u r e s , s h e w r o t e , " I ' m honoured to represent the house of Gucci not only in India but at a global stage Gucci's legacy has always inspired and intrigued me and I'm looking forward to the many sartorial milestones we create together @gucci ”

She will be seen next in Karan Johar's ‘Rocky Aur Rani Ki Prem Kahani ’ She also has ‘Heart of Stone’ with Gal Gadot and ‘Jee Le Zaraa’ with Priyanka Chopra and Katrina Kaif

Pri shared a glimpse of the m a s s i v e c r o w d e n j o y i n g B e y o n c e ’ s p e r f o r m a n c e S h e w r o t e , “ B e y o n c e a n d J a y Z

thank you for the incredible e x p e r i e n c e ” T h e a c t o r a l s o wished her mother and wrote “Happy almost birthday ” Pri l o o k e d a m a z i n g i n a b l a c k outfit, dancing and grooving at the concert Madhu was seen hugging H o l l y w o o d a c t r e s s S a l m a Hayek Pri also shared a picture of her posing with Jay Z She t h e n d r o p p e d a b e a u t i f u l picture of the artist from the concert and called her “Queen f o r e v e r ” H e r a d m i r a t i o n f o r Beyonce is well known In an earlier interview, the actor had said, “I admire Beyonce a lot b e c a u s e s h e i s a n a m a z i n g p e r f o r m e r a n d m o r e t h a n a n y t h i n g , s h e b a l a n c e s h e r personal and professional life very well ”

She added, “She has a child, a n d a t t h e s a m e t i m e , h e r professional life also, which is amazing! That’s the kind of a person I would like to be – who can balance both personal and professional life together ”

On the work front, Priyanka Chopra was recently seen in the web show ‘Citadel ' The second season of the Spy series has been announced The actor will also be seen in Farhan Akhtar’s ‘Jee Le Zaraa,’ co-starring Alia Bhat and Katrina Kaif in the lead roles

Speaking in an interview he said, “I had a wonderful trip It was the trip of a lifetime I always wanted to come to India, and I’m delighted to say that I’m excited to come back I met amazing people, we had wonderful food, and we got to see the wonderful Ambani Cultural Centre So yeah, I had a beautiful time ”

B o t h T o m a n d Z e n d a y a a r r i v e d i n India on March 31 for the grand launch of NMACC Situated within the Jio World Centre at Bandar Kurla Complex, it was inaugurated on April 1, and the fashion showcase was launched on the second day of the opening gala

The exhibition explored the layered i m p a c t t h a t t r a d i t i o n a l I n d i a n d r e s s , textiles and craft have had on international fashion sensibility since the 18th century

It featured iconic Western couture and ready-to-wear designs inspired by India from the 20th and 21st centuries The event saw many celebrities in attendance, including Priyanka Chopra, Nick Jonas, Sidharth Malhotra, Kiara Advani, Madhuri

D i x i t N e n e , A i s h w a r y a R a i B a c h c h a n , Vicky Kaushal, and Karan Johar, among others

On the work front, Tom will feature in the psychological thriller ‘The Crowded

R o o m ’ I n s p i r e d b y t h e s t o r y o f B i l l y Milligan, the first person acquitted of a crime due to dissociative identity disorder, the series will release on Apple TV Also, T o m ’ s s h o r t f i l m ‘ L a s t C a l l ’ w i l l b e screened at Tribeca Film Festival

Leonardo DiCaprio hangs out with British-Indian model Neelam Gill

Hollywood star Leonardo DiCaprio was reportedly seen din with British-Indian model Neelam Gill in London last week. His mother, Irmelin Indenbirken and other friends accompanied the pair ‘The Revenant’ actor was photographed in a black cap, jacket, blue jeans and white sneakers while leaving the Chiltern Firehouse This isn’t the first tim t h e t w o w e r e s p o t t t o g e t h e r D i C a p r i o w a s leaving Hotel Martinez in C week ago with Gill and other women A report by The New York Post, however, suggests the two are not dating each other The actor was

rumoured to be dating supermodel Hadid in May They were t o g r a p h e d l e a v i n g p a r a t e l y a t C i p r i a n i Downtown in Manhattan’s S o h o n e i g h b o u r h o o d o n M a y 5 a n d h a v e b e e n s p o t t e d h a n g i n g o u t t o g e t h e r o n s e v e r a l occasions

Born in Coventry, Gill

i s a 2 8 - y e a r - o l d m o d e l with roots in Punjab She is reportedly Burberry’s first model of an Indian-origin e has worked for many highl e f a s h i o n c o m p a n i e s , d on the front page of Stylist M a g a z i n e , H a r r o d s M a g a z i n e , a n d

Vogue India She spoke on ‘Resilience & Recovery’ at TEDx Talks in 2021

India’s bowlers shift focus to Oval clash

Ahe ad of th e W orld T est Champion ship fina l ag ainst

A us t r a l ia , wh i c h g e t s unde rway on Jun e 7 a t the O v a l, t h e I n d i a n cr i c k e t t ea m is con ce n t r a t in g on increa sin g wor kload for the bowlers, who ha d a leng thy run in t he IPL

I n t h e b o w l i n g department, while the likes o f M o h a m m e d S i r a j , S h a r d u l T h a k u r , A k s h a r Patel, Jaydev Unadkat and Umesh Yadav were part of the first batch to travel to E n g l a n d , p a c e s p e a r h e a d M o h a m m a d S h a m i ’ s d e p a r t u r e w a s d e l a y e d a s the IPL final in Ahmedabad was moved to the reserve day after incessant rain

Batting mainstay Virat Kohli was also among the players who left in the first batch along with the Rahul Dravid-led coaching staff

C h e t e s h w a r P u j a r a , w h o w a s i n E n g l a n d w i t h t h e t e a m b e c a u s e h e w a s p l a y i n g i n t h e c o u n t y

c h a m p i o n s h i p f o r S u s s e x , joined Kohli in the camp

Prior to the important f i n a l , t h e I n d i a n t e a m i s anticipated to participate in a f e w p r a c t i s e s a t t h e Arundel Castle Cricket Club in Sussex “The preparation has been good so far The

initial bit was to ease into the practice session but the last two sessions have been p r e t t y h a p p y I t h i n k w e pushed them a little bit Just a d d i n g a l i t t l e b i t o f workload for the bowlers, just kind of preparing them for the Test match,” said India’s bowling coach Paras M h a m b r e y i n a v i d e o released by BCCI

“ ( W e a r e ) h a p p y w i t h the conditions, I think it is a lovely ground, (it is) kind of what you can expect The weather is holding up, it has been sunny, a little windy, a little chilly but something that we have to get used to (when) playing in England,” he said

Some hope for wrestlers after their meeting with Shah

I n a st u nn i n g t ur n o f e v e n t s, t h e w r e st l e r s d e m a n d in g t h e a r r e st of former Wrestl in g Fede ration of India chief Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh hav e r e s um e d n e g o t ia t i o n s wi t h t h e gove rnment, which has re sult ed in a t e m p or a r y d e - e sc a l a t io n o f t h e a git ation

According to sources close to them, agitating wrestlers Bajrang Punia and Sakshee Mallikh, along with a group of coaches and others, had a two-hour m e e t i n g w i t h U n i o n h o m e m i n i s t e r Amit Shah The office of the home minister refused to confirm the sudden m e e t i n g , w h i c h h a s p r o v o k e d indignation from the khaps who had taken up the cudgels for the agitating g r a p p l e r s a n d h a d a p p e a r e d t o b e p r e p a r i n g f o r a p r o l o n g e d confrontation

The wrestlers' camp said that Shah

did not agree to their principal demand for the immediate arrest of Singh, who i s a B J P M P , f o r a l l e g e d l y s e x u a l l y harassing a minor wrestler However, they did not appear to be dissatisfied with the HM's alleged fulfilment of their other demands, which included the appointment of a separate president for women wrestlers, the withdrawal of FIRs against the protesting wrestlers for disobeying prohibitory orders on May 2 8 , a n d t h e p r o h i b i t i o n a g a i n s t B r i j Bhushan's family and relatives running

India beat Pak to win junior Asian hockey

in the upcoming wrestling federation elections

The discussions happened shortly after Punia, Mallikh, and Vinesh Phogat r e s u m e d t h e i r r o l e s a s r a i l m i n i s t r y employees, which was significant and w e n t a g a i n s t t h e i r c o n f r o n t a t i o n a l demeanour But while there were signs of thaw, the two sides remained stuck on t h e i s s u e o f w r e s t l e r s ' d e m a n d f o r

Singh's arrest

Shah, according to wrestlers, agreed to the withdrawal of FIRs against the wrestlers and their supporters who were detained while trying to march towards the new Parliament building on May 28 He also agreed that no family member or relative of Singh would contest the upcoming federation elections, and that a woman official would be appointed in the new federation to look after the affairs of women's wrestling

Debate in BCCI over open e-auction for bilateral rights

The Board of Control for Cricket in India ( BCCI) i s debating the best strategy to auction off the medi a rights for bi lateral c ri cket during the cycle 2023–2027, according to reports The choi ce, if reports are to be beli eved, is b etween a clos ed process and an open e-auction

T h e B C C I ’ s o w n e x p e r i e n c e with the auction of IPL rights last year should provide a clear pointer to the answer On that occasion, it resorted to e-auctions and ended up earning close to £4 84 billion, a three-fold jump from the previous auction A logical question to ask would be – why change a process that has worked so well for you so recently in the past?

But past experience is by no

means the sole reason why the open e-auction route should be preferred over the closed bid method Clearly an open auction is by definition more transparent since everybody can see how much is being bid and have no doubts at the end of the p r o c e s s t h a t t h e h i g h e s t b i d d e r won Closed bids have historically b e e n p l a g u e d b y s u s p i c i o n s o f c o l l u s i o n a n d p o s t - f a c t o b i d s w i t c h i n g b e h i n d c l o s e d d o o r s O b v i o u s l y , t h a t i s n o t a c l o u d anybody at the BCCI would want to have hanging over the process

While the BCCI is technically a private body, we cannot escape the fact that Team India – and hence its bilateral engagements – represents the nation

I nd i a , t h e d e f e nd i ng

c h a m p i o n s, d e f e a t e d

P akistan to wi n the Junior

A si a C u p h o ck e y ch amp io nsh ip i n Sa lal ah ,

O ma n, in a h otly cont ested

c h a m p i o n sh i p m a t c h

P l a y i n g i n f r o n t o f a p a ck e d h o u se , In d i a

c l a i me d t h e i r f o u r t h continenta l crown with a f ig hting 2-1 v erdi ct

For the majority of the first quarter, Pakistan was able to contain India and f o u g h t o f f a f e w p e n a l t y corners The first goal was scored in the 13th minute by t h e i n - f o r m A n g a d B i r S i n g h , w h o r e c e i v e d a s s i s t a n c e f r o m A r a i j e e t

Singh Hundal P a k i s t a n m a n a g e d t o earn penalty corners in the first period, however they w e r e u n s u c c e s s f u l i n

c o n v e r t i n g t h e m T o h i s c r e d i t , q u i c k - t h i n k i n g I n d i a n c u s t o d i a n M o h i t h HS stopped their assault In the second quarter, Pakistan came out of their s h e l l a n d a t t a c k e d w i t h m o r e i n t e n t a n d p u r p o s e with Rehman Abdul and Ali Murtaza trying to get past t h e I n d i a n d e f e n c e b u t failed The Uttam Singh-led India doubled the lead in t h e 2 0 t h m i n u t e t h r o u g h Hundal, who found the roof o f t h e g o a l P a k i s t a n , c o a c h e d b y t h e s e a s o n e d R o e l a n t O l t m a n s , p u l l e d o n e b a c k w h e n a n u n m a r k e d B a s h a r a t A l i t a p p e d i n a c r o s s f r o m Abdul Shahid in the 38th m i n u t e T h e g o a l a d d e d impetus to Pakistan’s charge a s t h e y a t t a c k e d w i t h renewed vigour

Dhoni undergoes knee surgery; to play next IPL

Th e Ch ennai Sup er Ki ng s ( C S K ) s ki p p er M S Dh o n i underwent a knee surg ery in Mu mbai in his effo rts to be fit for th e next seaso n of IPL After playing in th e IPL c h am p i o n sh i p g am e las t week, he prom ptly board ed a f li g h t t o M u m ba i w i th

C S K tea m d o c to r M ad h u

Tho ttapp illil, where he m et w i th exp e rt Dr D i ns h aw P ar d i w al a, w h o recomm ended that Captain Co ol undergo surgery right

once H e d i d n ' t w a s t e a n y

t i m e a n d u n d e r w e n t a n arthroscopic repair on his l e f t k n e e w h i c h h a d troubled him through the IPL He had sustained the i n j u r y d u r i n g a n I P L training camp in Chennai T h e t e a m d o c t o r t r e a t e d him during the IPL which

helped him to be fit against all odds But it was clear that the surgery had to be d o n e a n d o n c e D h o n i announced that he would l i k e t o p l a y o n e m o r e season, he felt there was no point delaying it so that he gets enough time to do his rehabilitation According to a s o u r c e , H e w a n t e d t o have it done before he went to Ranchi It has been a long s e a s o n f o r h i m a n d h e wanted to get this out of the way " I t i s u n d e r s t o o d t h a t Dhoni will need three to f o u r m o n t h s o f r e h a b i l i t a t i o n t i m e f o l l o w i n g w h i c h h e w i l l start his preparation for the n e x t s e a s o n A f t e r t h e s u r g e r y , h e w a s r e l e a s e d from the Mumbai hospital and he left for Ranchi

Indian chess player Gukesh scalps No. 2 Firouzja after blitzing No 1 Carlsen

S e v e n te e n - y e a r - o ld I n d i a n c hess player D Gukes h’s ri sing s ta t ur e i n t h e w or l d g ot a n o t he r b oo s t w h e n h e de feated world N o 2 A lireza F i rou z ja , 19 , in a n o ve r- t heb o ar d c l as s i c al el i te m ee t i n S t a va n g e r , N or w a y Th e p r e vi ou s d a y , i n th e b l i t z s ection, Gukes h ha d achieved hi s firs t-ever vic tory over N o 1 M a gn u s C a rl s e n G uk e s h c urren tly trai ls V An and, the s tronges t Indian on the lis t, by j us t 12 Elopoin ts after his tw o

victories with blac k pieces

Former seven-time national champion Praveen Thipsay said Carlsen has recently shown an “ u n p o s i t i o n a l ” t e n d e n c y t o keep the pawn on ‘d2’ and push ‘f4’ “Despite it being a Blitz game, Gukesh showed fantastic accuracy and crushed Carlsen i n a w a y C a p a b l a n c a o r Alekhine positionally crushed u n s c i e n t i f i c p l a y b y opponents,” said Thipsay

On the Firouza vs Gukesh clash, Thipsay said, “Probably

the most remarkable game I have seen in over a couple of y e a r s G u k e s h d i d n ' t m i n d e x p o s i n g h i s k i n g a n d w e a k pawns because he had judged the position perfectly in tactics

T h e m o s t a c c u r a t e d o u b l eedged game I have seen in the last several years Gukesh’s play reminds me of Carlsen of 2013

I think these two games show that he is capable of playing at that class and strength ”

G M a n d c o a c h A b h i j i t Kunte said, “It is good to see

G u k e s h s c o r i n g a g a i n s t t h e world’s elite and utilising this opportunity I hope to see him soon playing in Candidates for a shot at the World title ”

A s t h e y m u s t p l a y a n Armageddon game after each d r e w g a m e , t h e t r a d i t i o n a l

N o r w e g i a n e v e n t d o e s n o t provide an abused cushion of equal points to both players A victory in the Armageddon is worth 1 5-1 points, whereas a victory in the classical game is worth 3-0 points

Gukesh

Geeta Jhala sings national anthem at WTC