Asian Voice

!!!

VOL 40. ISSUE 42

80p

Let noble thoughts come to us from every side

First & Foremost Asian Weekly in Europe 25th Feb to 2nd Mar 2012

Britons now moving to India for jobs

Lindsey Gordon, with daughter Polly and husband Mick who now live in Mumbai, India

have never looked back since making the move.

Lindsey and Mick Gordon, both 46, sold their property in Maidstone, Kent and moved to Mumbai with their two children Hugh, 13, and Polly, 11, in 2008.

A sharp contrast to their life in Britain, they now live in a five-star, luxury gated compound, have a team of personal staff including a

driver and personal trainer, and earn high salaries.

Lindsey even claims to rub shoulders with Bollywood stars at the school gates.

Describing the Indian way of life, Mick - who runs a market research firm and manages a staff of 500 said: 'The attitude here is highly optimistic because everyone sees India's time is coming.’

'Here there's a belief that the future is ours, whereas in Europe it's all about hanging on to what we've got as things aren't going to get better. It's a fundamental difference in attitude.' And it was the difference in attitude which first prompted the Gordons to leave their home country.

Speaking about their decision to relocate to the side of the world, Lindsey said: 'We felt the country was going to the dogs and thought we'd get out while we could. India is heading into the stratosphere; it's incredible how quickly it's changing.'

'It is a basic rule that people move to places where there is opportunity and with the Asian markets growing big, both in terms of value and volume, it is attracting people from far and wide,' said by Ameet Nivsarkar, vicepresident of global trade and development at India's IT and software trade body NASSCOM. He expects the trend to continue for at least the next two decades.

Continued on page 26

While Baroness Warsi and the Pope Bendict XVI in the Vatican city have been criticising Britain’s ‘secular’ approach towards religion, Her Majesty has acknowledged the contribution of all faiths with equal importance.

In fact Queen Elizabeth II and Duke of Edinburgh Prince Philip will visit Hindu KrishnaAvanti Primary School in Harrow in Greater London on the first day of her Diamond Jubilee tour on March 29.

According to reports, the events on the occasion at this Hindu school will include unveiling a commemorative tapestry, watching a “community spectacular” stage show including dance

and music, and a photography exhibition.

In 2010, Queen Elizabeth, who is Supreme Governor of the Church of England, acknowledged contributions of “all faiths” while inaugurating Ninth General Synod of the Church on England in Westminster (UK). In 2009, Queen hosted Bollywood and Bhangra dances at Buckingham Palace in London.

Queen had already watched the Bollywood dancing during a visit to Bradford (UK) in the past. In 2002, The Queen and The Duke of Edinburgh visited Highgate Hill Murugan Hindu Temple in North London.

Continued on page 7

* !

) )% + "

" )-

An increasing number of people are moving to Asia and specially to India, to be part of the booming economy and capitalize on it. A survey says that 40 per cent of the white collar foreign workforce entering India each day comes from the UK. A survey last year found three in four Britons wanted to move abroad, with the most popular reason being the poor state of the UK economy. Overall unemployment in UK is currently 2.62 million, its highest since 1994.

Meanwhile India's economy is expected to surge ahead nearly seven per cent this year.

India has arrived, the speed at what the economy of India is growing and booming, it is very clear that India is at its top prosperity level. Thus the race to capitalize on its booming economy, many Britons are fast moving to India to settle forever.

Britons not living very good in UK gets ample of opportunities in India and have been earning high salary and good living.

And it seems many

Queen Elizabeth to launch her Diamond Jubilee tour with Hindu school visit

&

" *

'

& ' & '(%$

,,, ' +" $()-"

%#

2

UK

Asian Voice - Saturday 25th February 2012

one to one

I think I have been very fortunate in my career.

Perhaps the only obstacle is my own ability to come up with the very best research questions.

Keith Vaz MP with

Professor Shah Ebrahim BM BS MSc DM FRCP FFPHM Professor of Public Health, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine Shah Ebrahim, Professor of Public Health, Department of Epidemiology & Population Health, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine, Keppel Street, London WC1E 7HT and Director, South Asia Network for Chronic Disease, Public Health Foundation of India, New Delhi, India Shah Ebrahim is an epidemiologist with a clinical background in primary health care and geriatric medicine. His current research interests are in the effects of migration on obesity and diabetes in India and use of novel health interventions for management of chronic conditions. He is Director of the South Asia Network for Chronic Disease, Public Health Foundation of India, based in New Delhi and established in 2008 through a strategic award from Wellcome Trust. With colleagues at Public Health Foundation of India, London School of Hygiene & Tropical Medicine and 12 other British Universities he is collaborating on a programme to strengthen research and educational capacity for public health in India, also funded by a Wellcome Trust strategic award. He directs the British Women’s Heart & Health Study – a national cohort study of British women – established in 1999. He is coordinating editor of the Cochrane Heart Group which produces systematic reviews of the effects of interventions for heart diseases and is co-editor of the International Journal of Epidemiology. He holds an honorary consultant post with National Institute for Health & Clinical Excellence (NICE), supporting NICE’s international work.

1) Please tell us about the work you are doing on diabetes?

I am currently working in India running diabetes studies, ranging from the genetic susceptibility to diabetes of people in India through to helping

health workers use mobile phone technology to detect and manage diabetes in the best way possible.

2) What are your proudest achievements?

My proudest achieve-

The biggest influence on my career is Jerry Morris, who died last year aged 99 ¾. He was a pioneer in British epidemiology.

He also worked in India and for the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine and was instrumental in discovering the link between physical activity and the prevention of coronary heart disease.

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

ment is setting up a research centre in India South Asia Network for Chronic Disease (SANCD) in collaboration with the Public Health Foundation of India and the excellent researchers that I’m privileged to work with. Another is the Andhra Pradesh Children & Parent Study (APCAPS) currently running in 29 villages in Hyderabad looking at families – brothers, sisters, mothers, fathers, grandmothers – and the way that obesity and diabetes pass through the family.

This study will be able to answer questions about

the hereditary and environmental causes of these conditions.

3) Please tell us about your current position?

I am an epidemiologist with a medical background. I run a staff of 60+ people – In Delhi, Hyderabad, Goa, Chennai and Bangladesh. I am employed by the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine and work with the Public Health Foundation of India.

4) What has been the biggest obstacle in your career?

‘Rally around small charities’ young volunteer tells Indian community With over 400,000 dollar millionaires living in India and two decades of phenomenal growth, the Indian success story seems to have no end in sight. But there is a dark underbelly to this great success story- the parlous disparities between the rich and the rural poor. Akshay Patel tells the story of how grassroots organisations, like Educate for Life, are filling this void and describes a new quadruple challenge that means it is more important than ever for British Indians to get behind these great causes.

Educate for Life was established while Akshay was still studying medicine at UCL. Whilst there he met Ed Forrest, who shared his vision of creating innovative schools to serve the rural poor in India and four years on, their school, Hunar Ghar, meaning Skills Home, has 143 enrolled students serving a marginalised and isolated tribal community in Southern Rajasthan. Gradually, the quality and innovation at the school is transforming a community neglected by state services and considered too difficult to develop by local NGOs.

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

“In 2006 we started out with a 2-pence campaign to raise money to build the school. The campaign was symbolic of our belief that small contributions put together can make a massive difference in developing countries,” explains Akshay. “Five years later we are facing new challenges - inflation at almost 10% each year and diminishing exchange rates mean that 2pence today can pay for what 1penny five years ago did for the school. The communities we work with are the worst hit by food inflation, meaning without our work they would now be even poorer than they were when we arrived. In the context of tough economic times in the UK, it is crucial that the Asian community rallies around fantastic grassroots organisations that are the lifeline to villagers marginalised from state services.”

Last Saturday, ‘rally around’ is exactly what a small part of the community did, with a Valentine’s Dinner & Dance evening at The Grange in South London in support of Educate for Life. The event raised almost £3,500 in cash and a further

£371 in monthly pledges for this small charity.

Hina Amin who helped organise the evening said “It is amazing to see how these young British Asians show such compassion and want to make a difference to less privileged children thousands of miles away.

We should all help them achieve their vision in whatever way we can” For Educate for Life, these relatively small donations make a huge difference. Hunar Ghar costs just £2,000 per month to run. All expenses are paid by the trustees from their own resources so 100% of all donations go directly to the project.

Akshay says “We were only 22 years old when we set Educate for Life up and we run it voluntarily. The great event organised last Saturday takes some pressure off fundraising, so we can concentrate on what we’re really passionate about; creating a fantastic school that is a shining beacon of what is possible when a few people get together and get behind a great cause.”

For more information about the charity, visit www.educateforlife.org.uk

Having the opportunity to immerse myself in a different culture and attempting to do something towards reducing the effects of illnesses that are basically preventable.

7) And the worst?

The worst is the uncertainty that comes from not knowing what the future will be for our current enterprise. There is a high turnover of people working in research in India and you make friends and then they go that is sometimes difficult.

8) What are your long term goals?

My long term goals are to

see my current research thrive in India and for my young, enthusiastic researchers to go on to achieve great things in their careers.

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

If I was Prime Minister in the UK, I would tell Mr Lansley (Secretary of State for Health) to desist from the health reforms (Health and Social Care Bill) which is going to cause nothing but harm.

If I was Prime Minister in India, I would work very hard to prevent palm oil imports. I would prevent it for two reasons, firstly, palm oil is very high in saturated fats which are bad for heart health and secondly, the farming of palm oil is extremely destructive and a massive factor for deforestation. In India there is currently no import tax on crude palm oil.

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

I would like to be able to talk to Charles Darwin, to see how he got through to his ideas on evolution.

I would also like to speak to Charles Dickens - I have a great interest in people who chronicle history in ways that are accessible to everyone.

Hundreds of registered sex offenders roaming unchecked More than 100 registered sex offenders are roaming the streets unchecked after police lost track of them, the country’s biggest force has admitted.

The Metropolitan Police disclosed that 123 offenders have managed to elude officers and their whereabouts remains unknown.

Some of them have been missing for up to 14 years, Scotland Yard said.

Detectives believe that 48 of them have managed to flee the country, despite warrants for

their arrest being circulated nationwide. The Met revealed that although it knew in 2008 that there were 123 sex offenders unaccounted for, it still has not managed to reduce that figure. It is understood that the majority of those still at large were among those who could not be traced four years ago.

The Met stressed that those missing were not wanted for further sexual offences but for failing to notify police of their address or complete their annual check-in.

Phone and email records to be stored Details of every phone call and text message, email traffic and websites visited online are to be stored in a series of vast databases under new Government anti-terror plans.

Landline and mobile phone companies and broadband providers will be ordered to store the data for a year and make it available to the security services under the scheme.

The databases would not record the contents of calls, texts or emails but the numbers or email addresses of who they are sent and received by.

For the first time, the secu-

rity services will have widespread access to information about who has been communicating with each other on social networking sites such as Facebook.

Direct messages between subscribers to websites such as Twitter would also be stored, as well as communications between players in online video games.

The Home Office is understood to have begun negotiations with internet companies in the last two months over the plan, which could be officially announced as early as May.

Asian Voice - Saturday 25th February 2012

COMMENT

Is secularism an impediment to progress?

A heated debate is going on in Britain about secularism in the country. The question is whether secularism is an impediment to the progress of a country? Some politicians in Britain think that separating religion from politics will harm the progress of the country. Baroness Warsi says that the country is facing the threat of ‘aggressive form of secularism’. She may be having her own arguments to support her opinion, but history of countries where religious tolerance is the state policy has progressed well. An example is India, where there is no state religion. There people of all faiths co-exist without much rancour and progressing.

The origin of recent debate is the verdict of a liberal judge who recently stayed the prayer before the start of the Council meeting. But some religious sections opposed the verdict. They have forgotten the fact that in the council there were people of other religious faiths also. They may not be subscribing to your beliefs. In that case it is better not to have a prayer of a particular religious group.

The debate over Britain’s slow eradication of some religious customs as it has moved towards a secular society has always been bubbling under, but why is it suddenly springing to the surface? It is coming to the fore increasingly because people are struggling to find what joins them in a liberal

democracy apart from their economic well-being.

The main reason is that even same religious heads think that liberalizing religion will make some believers vagabonds. But no such thing will happen. The problem is that even the leaders have not much faith in the belief of their followers. The people who have full faith will go on practicing their religion without any inducement of coercion.

Religion is a private affair and there is no need for the state to interfere in the beliefs of the people.

The secularists believe that Baroness Warsi’s views were misguided. They believe that people have the right to practice their religious faith but the society is changing rapidly and we have to move with it.

They even wanted the Church of England Bishops removed from House of Lords.

The Queen is setting an example of her liberal mind by visiting the Hindu Krishna-Avanti primary school in Edgware on the first day of her diamond jubilee tour. Rajan Zed, the president of Universal Society of Hinduism, welcomed the Queen’s gesture and said that it showed the Queen’s inclusive approach. UK is now a multifaith society and Queen visiting the Hindu school is a step in the right direction. The question is will the religious heads who played a major role in politics is ready to abdicate their position?

India caught in the Middle East conflict The recent bombing of an Israeli embassy vehicle in New Delhi – 200 meters from the Prime Minister’s residence – raises disturbing questions about the security in the most high-security zones in the capital city of India. The motorcycle-borne bombers have gotten away after the attack reinforces these questions. The attackers might have scanned the area before the attack shows lack of alertness on the part of security men. If the perpetrators can attack and easily escape in the highsecurity area, then anyone can guess the fate of other Indian cities. The bombers need to be apprehended soon and security tightened at the national capital and other metropolitan centres. There is no room for complacency.

Circumstantial evidence suggests the hand of Iran in the attack. An identical attack was attempted on the same at another Israeli embassy vehicle in Tbilisi, Georgia. The modus operandi of the attack closely resembles the assassination of three atomic scientists in Iran. Moreover, the New Delhi attack comes a day after the fourth death anniversary of Hezbollah leader Imad Mughniyah, who died in a car explosion. Sometime back, a bomb plot linked to Hezbollah was uncovered in Bangkok. This indicates that a covert war between Israel on the one hand, and Iran and Hezbollah on the other, just arrived in India. This is a disturbing development for India.

The nature of the attack – the first ever in India where a bomb is supposed to have been attached to a target car and the nature of the target expose a new vulnerability in India’s internal security. As security agencies probe the attack, and as Israel and Iran trade allegations, New Delhi has to walk a diplomatic tightrope. India enjoys friendly relations with both Iran and Israel. These relationships are not mutually exclusive and India’s interest is tied with all of them. Israel is a vital ally- this year marked the 20th year of diplomatic ties, making enormous contributions to India’s defence.

India cannot also antagonize Iran as we are dependent on it for our oil requirements.

India also cannot afford the Middle East’s emerging conflict to spill over into Indian soil. But the challenge will not be met with mere diplomatic niceties. Although it is not known who is responsible for the attack, India’s security establishment has to gear up for this new reality. India’s stand against naming Iran without concrete evidence for the attack and refusing to join western sanctions against Iran, risking western ire and its own economic interests, has put India in a dilemma. India should put together all evidence and tell Iran that whatever be the nature of political differences between Israel and Iran, New Delhi doesn’t appreciate the sponsorship of terror activities on Indian soil.

Off -loading disabled is matter of concern Air carriers cannot refuse transportation to people on the basis of disability. It is neither justified nor humane to throw passengers off the flight only because of ‘being disabled.’ Airlines may exclude anyone from a flight if carrying the person would be inimical to the safety of the flight. If a carrier excludes a handicapped person on safety grounds, the carrier must provide the person with a written explanation about its decision. There have been quite a few cases recently when disabled passengers are offloaded from flight and that too without giving any written notice, neither giving explanation for such a rude act. This is a challenge to the dignity of a disabled person and a matter of great concern.

Airlines that are supposed to act as carriers and provide comfortable transportation for each and every person without any discrimination of caste, creed and nationality and off course, disability, are in fact acting in a diffident and inhuman way.

People with reduced mobility should be given extra care by the airlines but the recent incident that happened with Spice Jet airlines was quite perplexing.

Recently, the crew of a private airline, Spice Jet, offloaded a disabled lady from its Kolkata- Goa flight on the plea that she was disabled. Jeeja Ghosh, a teacher at Kolkata’s Indian Institute of Cerebral Palsy and a frequent flier across the coun-

try and abroad, was offloaded without any valid reason. She was asked to get off the aircraft and driven back to the terminal building even as she sought an explanation. She was told that the captain of the flight had refused to fly with her on board. Jeeja claimed to be a frequent flier and have been travelling comfortably without any attendant.

Other than a slight tremor of the head and a minor speech problem, Jeeja doesn’t suffer from any major disability. But the airline staff did not care; they just wanted her to be out of the flight. A flight crew took away her boarding pass and told her to get down from the flight. Officials did not bother to explain why they had stopped her from taking the flight.

The airlines said they would accommodate her in another flight. This is where the surprise stands!

How can an airline offload a passenger from one flight for her disability and then promise to let her board another flight despite her disability? The big question is how humane or justified is this act?

This is a case of torture to the handicapped person and humiliation to the entire community of people with disabilities. sThe Disability Discrimination Act states that, “it is illegal for an airline, travel agent or tour operator to refuse to allow a disabled person to board an aircraft when they have a valid ticket and reservation.”

www.abplgroup.com

3

Thought for the Week Exhaust the little moment. Soon it dies.

And be it gash or gold it will not come again in this identical disguise.

-"Exhaust The Little Moment" by Gwendolyn Brooks (1949)

Political Sketchbook Alpesh Patel’s

Political Will Is A Rare Commodity I found myself last week debating on NDTV with Shashi Tharoor. ‘Why does India have so many malnourished children?’ I was asked by the presenter.

‘Because India lacks the political will to do something about it. The Prime Minister should simply state, “before the decade is out, we will cut child malnoutrician rates 10-fold; from one child in two, to one child in 20 being malnourished.”’ I replied.

Simple.

But not simple for Shashi Tharoor, who commented my answer was a ‘sound bite’ and an ‘arbitrary figure’. That then summed up to me why India faces such a large problem with child health. A lack of political will. Shashi is a good man. I’ve met Shashi. He and I are involved with the Loomba Trust helping widows and orphans. But you know there is a lack of political will when a politician refuses to set a goal and a deadline.

Any businessman will tell you, without a goal and a deadline you simply will never make an achievement. So it was this past week I was delighted to hear there has not been a single case of polio in India in the past 12 months. Why? Because, as the head of the World Health Organisation explained, ‘there was political will’. So it is not that India cannot do it, as with most things in life, it is that there is a lack of will which explains why something is not done.

Why? From where does political will arise?

Sometimes it comes from a popular mandate – a politician who decides he must campaign on an issues and then on winning an election has of course to deliver. This kind of will comes from the mandate of the people. They say you get the Government you deserve, and this is why. Ultimately, it is a lack of will among the people.

By people, I do not mean the mom and pop trying to make ends meet. I mean those with ability to take a leadership role and make an issue of paramount importance. But the onus should not fall on the people alone. Surely when a government does not give effect to its own Constitution, this is a failing that interested parties can bring on behalf of the country as a whole, to indict the politicians.

Even in a land of lawyers, like America, the inaliable belief that ‘all men are created equal’ took from the 1760s until the 1960s to enforce – and even then it’s an imperfect implementation – let alone gender equality. So whilst we should not be too harsh, it is also not 1776 we live in but 2012 and it is about time political will did indeed exist, not pushed by media interviews, or the people, but by those who seek to rule in the first place themselves.

What Shashi Tharoor should have said is, ‘I’ll take it to the Prime Minister’. And incidentally, as for soundbites, I took my statement about ‘before the decade is out’ from Kennedy’s inaugural speech about putting a man on the moon. And with their soundbite and arbitrary date, know what? The Americans did it. Maybe ancient India has a lot more to learn from young America still.

Of course there is another way of describing a lack of political will. It is that you just don’t care enough.

ASIAN VOICE is published by Asian Business Publications Ltd Karma Yoga House, 12 Hoxton Market, (Off Coronet Street) London N1 6HW. Tel: 020 7749 4080 Fax: 020 7749 4081 Email: aveditorial@abplgroup.com www: abplgroup.com © Asian Business Publications

4

LEICESTER VOICE

Asian Voice - Saturday 25th February 2012

Rickshaw riders to start Indian trek

Website fraudster conned watch buyer out of £610 A fraudster conned a victim out of cash by claiming he had an expensive watch to sell on eBay. Safwaan Zamakda (22) advertised an Omega watch on the internet auction site.

A watch dealer bid £610 for the item and sent money to the defendant via Pay Pal service, which has safeguards to protect buyers and sellers.

Leicester Crown Court was told the money was returned.

Zamakda claimed there was an error with the Pay Pal account and persuaded the buyer to instead pay directly into his bank account.

The watch did not materialise and when the victim made inquiries Zamakda gave excuses.

Zamakda then contacted the police and falsely blamed the victim.

He later pleaded guilty to committing the fraud, in August 2010.

Philip Gibbs, prosecuting, said Zamakda had a previous conviction involving a similar eBay trick, when he dishonestly obtained £830 in relation to another watch he purported to be selling, also in 2010.

U n e m p l o y e d Zamakda, of Baseball Walk, Belgrave, Leicester, was sentenced to a 12month community order

Fund-raisers are taking two battered motor rickshaws on a 4,000km charity trek across India.

The group of six hopes the drive will raise £10,000 for four charities including Rainbows hospice, Loughborough.

One of the organisers is financial adviser Raj Sudra who raised £20,000 nearly three years ago from a rally to Mongolia.

Raj, 45, of West Knighton, Leicester, said: "We drove to Mongolia for a bit of fun and in the process raised a lot of money for various charities.

"We've been sitting around getting bored and thought why not do something crazy again?

"So, we have decided to drive across a country with some of the worst

and told to do 120 hours of unpaid work.

He will also have to pay £610 compensation to the victim.

Sentencing, Judge Lynn Tayton QC said: "This is a mean offence and it's not the first time you've committed this sort of offence.

"When the complainant tried to get his money back you made a complaint to police."

Balvinder Bhatti, mitigating, said: "It happened when he was a student struggling financially. It happened 18 months ago and he's learnt his lesson. He committed the offence without thinking."

Youth Conference 2012 In partnership with City Hindus Network and Akshayapatra

3 March 2012, 11:30am at Brunei Gallery (SOAS, University of London), Thornhaugh Street, Russell Square, London WC1H 0XG The youth are the future of a country and to have a secure and prosperous future, we must invest in them today. The global financial crisis has led to record youth unemployment in Britain, according to Government figures.

We at Asian Voice and Gujarat Samachar believe that our youth need to be empowered to the right social and economic changes. Educational achievements alone are not sufficient to get ahead in the ever more competitive employment market. Young people now, more than ever, need to stand out with their skills, experience and personal accomplishments.

Asian Voice and Gujarat Samachar are organising a Youth Conference at the Brunei Gallery, SOAS, University of London on Saturday 3 March 2012 for 15-25 year olds. The conference will feature leading professionals from different walks of life (including finance, law, medicine, politics, media and the arts) who will share their personal experiences and offer practical advice on how young people can fulfil their aspirations. The conference will also include interactive sessions and mentoring opportunities.

Confirmed speakers include: l Menhaj Huda (film director, producer and writer); l Divya Talwar (BBC News Reporter); l Misha Patel (Assistant General Counsel, KPMG); l Councillor Krupa Sheth (the youngest Councillor in Brent at the age of 20); l Aekta Mahajan (Cabinet Office); l Pratik Dattani (economist and Chair of the City Hindus Network); l Amit Sodha (lifestyle coach and stand up comedian); l Dr Pranav Somaiya (vascular surgeon); and l Rajay Naik (Director of Government and External Affairs, The Open University).

We will also be launching the pilot for the national enterprise scheme Young Asian Social Enterprise (YASE), launched in collaboration with the City Hindus Network.

This innovative scheme is based on an annual national competition for students to fund raise for charities supporting free education for underprivileged children in India. In return, the participants will be invited to present their idea and fund raising results to a panel of esteemed judges at the end of the competition. Those that have shown a real entrepreneurial spirit and drive will be presented a YASE award and receive expert mentoring and bespoke coaching from some of the City's top firms.

If you are interested to take part in this FREE conference, please email Rupanjana with your full contact details and age by Saturday 26 February 2012 at rupanjana.dutta@abplgroup.com. Limited seats available, are filling up fast, so please register asap to avoid disappointment.

Kishore Kantelia and Raj Sudra

roads around and in a vehicle totally unsuited for the road – a rickshaw.

Thankfully, our supporters have donated the vehicles for us."

The trip starts on April 3. They will take two battered rickshaws, which are powered by lawn mower engines, through some of the most challenging terrain on earth.

He said: "We shall be starting from Cochin, in Kerala in the south west, and we will head north taking in Chenai and Kolcata and then east heading for the finishing line in Shillong on the other side of Bangladesh, nearing the borders of Burma."

Raj is being helped by friend Kishore Kantelia, 51, who lives in South Knighton .

Kishore, a gas engineer, said: "We are hoping to complete the route in about three weeks. That's if nothing goes wrong. We have the skills to keep the team on the road and we

aim to raise thousands for charity."

The other three charities they are supporting are the Frank Water Project, which provides clean water in some of the world's poorest communities.

The second is The Rifles Regimental Trust – Care For Casualties Appeal which helps the severely wounded, their families and the families of fallen Riflemen rebuild their lives.

The third charity is Project Why in New Delhi (India) which gives education support and life skills to slum children and their families.

Raj added: " All proceeds will go to charity and we will be funding the trip completely ourselves.

We do understand that times are hard or all, but it's even harder for those less fortunate than us."

People can donate by visiting; http:// tinyurl.com/bharatexpress1

GPs' surgery on former pub site set for go-ahead Cllr Krupa Sheth

Pratik Dattani

Aekta Mahajan

Amit Sodha

Misha Patel

Menhaj Huda

Divya Talwar

Rajay Naik

Date: Saturday 3 March 2012.

Timings: 11:30am- 4:30pm.

Location: Brunei Gallery (SOAS, University of London), Thornhaugh Street, Russell Square, London WC1H 0XG (nearest tube stations: Russell Square, Euston, Tottenham Court Road).

Registration: Email Rupanjana with your full contact details and age by Saturday 26th February 2012 at rupanjana.dutta@abplgroup.com. Strictly limited capacity and pre-registration required.

Target age range: 15-25.

Other details: A vegetarian lunch will be served.

Please note: Limited seats available, are filling up fast, so please register asap. No entry without registration for security reasons.

A scheme to build a medical centre, retail and flats complex is set to be given the go-ahead.

The proposal, for the site of a demolished Victorian pub in Aylestone, Leicester, has divided local opinion.

Officers at Leicester City Council, however, are advising members of its planning committee to approve the scheme when it meets on Tuesday.

The plans for the old Rutland Arms site, on the corner of Aylestone Road and Wigston Lane, are for a three-storey building comprising a doctors' surgery with a dental suite, shops and seven flats.

Dr Rohit Sahdev bought the site and had the pub demolished last April.

A petition signed by 765 residents, who support the planning application, was handed into the council.

It read: "This will hopefully be the new home of Aylestone Surgery. We strongly support the scheme going ahead in its current form and hope the planning committee take

this into consideration."

At a public meeting in November, Dr Sahdev described the existing doctors' surgery, in Aylestone Road, as "unfit for purpose".

He said: "The vast majority of our patients appreciate the current surgery is not fit for purpose."

Dozens of other residents, however, are unhappy at the scheme, with 18 formal letters of objection received by the city council. Some argue there is no need for a doctors' surgery on the site.

Others believe it will worsen traffic congestion and parking problems in the area and are unhappy at the design of the building, calling it "bleak and brutal", not in keeping with its surroundings.

As reported in the Mercury, Philip Middleton, 48, told November's meeting: "The proposal is an utter monstrosity."

Last year's consultation found 43 people opposed to the scheme, with 35 supporting the "principle" of the new surgery.

UK

Asian Voice - Saturday 25th February 2012

Geeta Aulakh murderer jailed Amandip Aulakh, 31, of Dudley Road, Southall, pleaded guilty to affray and was given a 15 week jail sentence on Monday 20 February.

This conviction followed the investigation into the murder of Geeta Aulakh, 28, in Greenford on November 16, 2009.

Detectives arrested and charged Aulakh last year following an incident on October 15, 2011, for witness intimidation and affray.

He admitted affray at the hearing on Monday at the Isleworth Crown Court.

Detective Inspector John Finch of the HSCC

said: “I am pleased all aspects of this case have been fully and thoroughly investigated. This serves as a reminder to others that we will go to significant lengths to achieve justice.”

Indian jailed in UK for driving test offence An Indian citizen has been jailed for six months after pleading guilty to charges of getting someone else to appear for him in his driving theory test because he could not speak English.

Sarbjit Singh, 35, who came to the UK a year ago and speaks only Punjabi, was also ordered to do 100 hours of unpaid work and pay 85 pounds court fees.

His six-month jail sentence has been suspended for 12 months by the

Leicester Magistrates Court. Passing the theory test is one of the prerequisites of getting a driving licence in the UK. Singh, a machine operator, wanted to work for his brother’s courier company but had no driving licence, reports from Leicester said.

He booked his driving theory test for June 16 last year at a centre in the city centre.

A man turned up claiming to be Sarbjit Singh, but staff became

British and Pakistani Foreign Ministers meet in London

5

This week the paid subscribers of Asian Voice will receive a copy of our Asian Voice Political and Public Life awards magazine along with their papers.

May breaks up Border Agency after security chaos Pakistani Foreign Minister Hina Rabbani Khar called on her British counterpart British William Hague on Tuesday in London in her two-day official visit.

During the meeting both the leaders discussed security situation in South Asia, particularly in Afghanistan and relations of Pakistan and Britain.

They also discussed various facets of the enhanced strategic dialogue framework Talking to media after

the meeting, Hague said that the Britain wanted peaceful and long-term relations with the Pakistan.

He said that both the countries must work together to eliminate terrorism in Afghanistan.

While Pakistan Foreign Minister Hina Rabbani Khar has vowed to continue better relations with Britain and said that it would never end.

(Detailed report next week)

suspicious and asked for identification.

He went to Singh’s home to get the identification, but Singh’s brother then discovered what was happening and stopped the man from taking the test. Singh

later discovered he could take the test in Punjabi but was arrested when he applied again.

Bally Paul, lawyer defending Singh, said her client did not understand how seriously fraud was taken in the UK.

Half a million EU travellers have entered the country without proper checks, according to a report published on Monday 20th Feb, showing chaos and confusion in the UK Border Agency.

An official inquiry into last summer’s row over the relaxation of border controls also found that students from low-risk states were allowed to enter Britain even when they did not have the necessary entry clearance.

Security checks were suspended regularly and applied inconsistently for many years as border staff tried to deal with large numbers of passengers arriving at ports and airports, the report said.

Theresa May, the Home Secretary, reacted

to the findings by announcing that the UK Border Agency (UKBA) is to be split in two. The UK Border Force is to become a separate law enforcement organisation with a “whole new management culture”, the Home Secretary told MPs. Brian Moore, the Chief Constable of Wiltshire, will be interim head of the force from March and the rest of UKBA will focus on handling immigration and asylum claims.

Mr Moore’s predecessor as head of the force, Brodie Clark, resigned after claims that he had relaxed border checks beyond what ministers had agreed for a summer pilot scheme.

6

UK

Asian Voice - Saturday 25th February 2012

LSE Sparks organises conference to inspire the next generation entrepreneurs

By Spriha Srivastava

British Asian’s film in Oscar nominations The Academy of Motion Picture Arts and Sciences has nominated SAVING FACE, a documentary featuring pioneering British/Pakistani surgeon, Mohammad Jawad, in the category Documentary Short Subject for the 84th Academy Awards.

SAVING FACE follows the personal stories of two acid attack victims as they are helped by eminent British/Pakistani reconstruction surgeon Dr. Mohammad Jawad — who earned prominence for restoring the face of British model Katie Piper after an acid attack.

Acid attacks on women in Pakistan are a not uncommon, if unspoken about phenomenon. SAVING FACE is the story of two survivors of such attacks — their battle for justice and their journey of healing through the pioneering surgical work of Dr Mohammad Jawad. Dr Jawad has been working in this field for several years now his humanitarian work shows how committed he is to helping victims of this sort of violence.

In 2009 a Channel 4 documentary ‘My Beautiful Face’ aired, and catapulted Dr Mohammad Jawad into the public eye. The story of Katie Piper, the beautiful model marred by an acid attack, and her ‘hero’, as she calls the man who restored her face and her confidence, has since been shown the world over with record viewing figures.

Dr Jawad was hailed as a ‘medical genius’ for the reconstructive work he performed on Ms Piper.

The heartrending story however, is only one of many that Dr. Jawad has encountered in his ground-breaking work with burns victims the world over.

The new documentary Saving Face, is scheduled to be shown on HBO in the USA and on Channel 4 in the UK, and will be screened as part of the Human Rights Watch Film Festival UK, in March 2012.

“No-one who sees these women could fail

attacked with acid.

In 2005, as the news of the devastating Pakistan earthquake which claimed nearly 75,000 lives emerged, Dr Jawad led a surgical team to offer combined expertise from the UK to look after victims of the disaster.

Establishing a clinical facility outside the danger zone, the team carried out reconstructive procedures for limb salvaging on approxiDr Mohammad Jawad mately 25 patients to be moved. Each beauper day for 7 weeks, as tiful in their own way, well as treating over 250 their lives have been more patients with other destroyed, their faces injuries. The simultaneand bodies disfigured, ous training of the Aloften by members of Shifa medical staff memtheir own families. The bers was an added longface is our primary portal term bonus to the counof communication, and try. these women have lost Dr. Jawad’s career that means of communispans more than two cation and been decades and multiple ostracised from society countries. Having comfollowing the terrible pleted a Cosmetic attacks that have been Surgery Fellowship in inflicted upon them.

London, he continued After what I saw, I could his training in the USA, not help but put my hand Italy, France, Belgium out to these women and and Turkey before do what I could,” said Dr launching his career in Jawad. the UK. He has held Dr Jawad’s tireless many eminent posts work for burns and acid throughout the country, victims in Pakistan (the including extensive work country of his birth,) and with children, his most all through the Middle recent position before East and Indian dedicating himself to his Subcontinent, has got private practice, Nip n him recognition from the Tuck Surgery, being at Buckingham Palace. The the Chelsea and Princess Royal, a patron Westminster Hospital in of ASTI (the Acid London, where he served Survivor’s Trust as Consultant Plastic, International,) extended Reconstructive and an invitation for him to Burns Surgeon, and he attend her 60th birthday continues his position as celebration in recogniHonorary Clinical tion of Dr Jawad’s work Senior Lecturer at the for a common cause.

University of London as He is also a trustee of part of his on-going comthe Katie Piper mitment to teaching and Foundation and was training. awarded the Star of Dr Jawad’s future Pakistan for his work via plans focus on the estabIslamic Help lishment of a charitable (Birmingham,) which foundation that will included a pilot project enable him to build upon led by Dr Jawad in which and expand his work a team of plastic surwith burns victims in geons were sent to Third World countries, Pakistan from the UK in who would otherwise 2009 to operate on chilhave little or no recourse dren with cleft lips and to reconstruction surpalates and people sufgery, and would also, fering from burns, the enable him to pass on his large proportion of these invaluable expertise to burns victims being local surgeons. women who have been

Let us know what you think.

Email Spriha at spriha@abplgroup.com

Shweta Desai As the European Union and the United Kingdom continue to fight economic slowdown, a network of 12 businessmen from the East and West came together to give practical lessons in entrepreneurship to budding business and management students. The London School of Economics Sparks Conference’ 2012, held over the weekend proved Rajiv Dhokia presenting Melody Hossaini with to be an inspiring platform her speaker gift for young students on As speakers shared carving their own niche in Mark Hanington - Cotheir anecdotes on how the business world.

Founder and Operations they started off, warning Taking over from its Director at Find Invest notes on failures and inaugural year in 2010, Grow, was useful in giving opportunities, the interacthe LSE Sparks 2012 - a a reality check on how to tive sessions provided a student run event hosted make business ideas click by the LSE’s and take it forward.

Entrepreneurs Most of the over 200 Society - concluded students from across busion February 18-19 ness schools in the UK presented an impreswho attended the confersive range of speakence are already budding ers including key entrepreneurs or have note speaker Kris their small business modGopalkrishnan - coels running through founder and chaironline portals or from man, Infosys, home. Dhokia said, the Stephen Wiener conference boosted the founder and CEO, confidence of such stuCineworld, Hussein dents to take their ideas Lalani -co -founder, out in the real world and 99p Stores, Michelle make it functional.

You - Co-founder, Asif Rangoonwala’s keynote ‘’Listening to these speakSongkick and speech ers has added value to our Josephine Fairley knowledge and ambitions. chance to the students to Founder, Green & Blacks It has inspired a lot of stuask questions and share among others. dents.’’ their thoughts. The panel LSE Sparks President Sparks which aims to discussions on financing Rajiv Dhokia said the inspire the next generaand exploring opportuniconference has grown in tion of entrepreneurs in ties by speakers including terms of speakers and its developing their own Gopalkrishnan, Julie agenda since last year. ‘’Its very rare to have such vast arrays of speakers from different nationalities, interesting backgrounds and different aspects of entrepreneurship to come together on one weekend.’’

Speakers like Lalani shared their stories on how they charted the road to success as immigrants in the UK, the difficulties faced to rent shops and how finally the family went on to embark on one of the most successful models of discount Facebook workshop and the audience stores by making fortune Meyer - Founder and out of pennies. The key business potentials and CEO, Ariadne Capital, advice coming from all the models, has partnered Ravi Rajagopal - Head of speakers was to have a with TiE UK this year in Business Development, vision, be ambitious, selffostering the young talent.

Diageo, Faisal Butt driven and believing in It will also continue its Managing Partner, oneself before tasting sucsupport to the UK based Hamilton Bradshaw Real cess.

Microloan Foundation Estate, Mark Hannington specialising in microfinancing, training and guidance to women entrepreneurs in sub-Saharan Africa.

Taking forward the networking at the conference social entrepreneur and Apprentice TV show contestent Melody Hosseni is planning to set up a bootcamp in its campus for skills and personality development of young entrepreneurs.

UK

Asian Voice - Saturday 25th February 2012

Queen Elizabeth to launch her Diamond Jubilee tour with Hindu school visit Continued from page 1 Diamond Jubilee celebrations will mark 60 years of The Queen’s reign who came to the throne on February six, 1952 and her coronation took place on June two, 1953. The Queen and the Duke of Edinburgh will be visiting England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland during this year to mark her Diamond Jubilee.

Krishna-Avanti Primary School, established in 2008, claims to provide “a world class learning environment that incorporates Vedic teachings” and is “inspired by the teachings of the BhagavadGita” and centered on loving service to Lord Krishna.

Children here are involved with aspects of growing, preparing, cooking and sanctifying their food. It is ecofriendly, vegetarian, involves practice of yoga and meditation, and promotes “character formation” consistent with Hindu virtues.

Designed according to Vastu Shastra, it has a marble temple and a meditation garden and pupils here sometimes participate in bathing of Hindu deities in yogurt, milk and rose water whilst engaged in kirtan. Its main sponsor is Anil Agarwal Foundation and Nitesh Gor and Dr. Kirit Modi are Chairman and Vice-Chair of its Board of Governors. Its Executive Headteacher, Headteacher and Deputy Headteacher are Rekha Bhakoo, Naina Parmar and J.

Ranger respectively.

Yuvraj Rana, new Chair of Governors of the Krishna Avanti School told Asian Voice, “It is a privilege and an honour for Harrow that the Queen has chosen to visit the Krishna Avanti School during her Diamond Jubilee Year. We shall be inviting many of the heads of the local schools who helped in setting up the first state-funded Hindu School in the UK. We shall be celebrating this unique event in March”.

Srutidharma das, Governor of the Krishna Avanti School and Temple President of Bhaktivedanta Manor said: “As the faith partner we consider that the Queen’s visit will mark an important and vital recognition of the Hindu faith in education. Spirituality is pervasive and is often not a priority in education but the Queen’s visit will emphasise the important role of spirituality in education together with the day-today learning of the children.”

Nitesh Gor, spokesperson for the i-Foundation told Asian Voice, “We are of course looking forward to hosting Her Majesty and Prince Philip. The visit will be just as the UK’s first ever Hindu state funded secondary school, Avanti House School (www.avantihouse.org), opens its doors to applications for Sept 2012. It is a real honour to know that the work of the Avanti schools are being recognised by the government and Royal family.”

Barry Gardiner MP criticises Olympic Organisers in a debate at the Parliament Shweta Desai Labour MP Barry Gardiner has once again attacked the London Olympics Organising Committee of the Olympic and the Paraolympic Games (LOCOG) for awarding a lucrative contract to Dow Chemicals through a ‘rigged’ process and said that Dow should publicly renounce its name to maintain the sanctity of the games.

Holding a debate in the Parliament, on Tuesday, Gardiner raised three issues concerning the appointment of Dow Chemicals, which owns Union Carbide Corporation and was responsible for the Bhopal Gas Tragedy in 1985 in India, which survivors groups have claimed, killed over 25,000 people.

Gardiner who also chairs the Labour Friends of India organisation has been campaigning Dow’s sponsorship for the games along with other Bhopal activist groups.

He challenged the procurement process awarding Dow chemicals ltd a contract for the Olympic stadium wrap, its legal responsibility for Union carbide and the consequences of the Bhopal gas tragedy and wider ethical concerns for the company’s practice causing environmental degradation. Gardiner accused Dow Chemicals of pressurising the International Olympic Commission and the LOCOG for rigging the procurement process and thus getting the contract estimated at £7 million deal.

‘’Dow has no respect for laws or ethical considerations. It is not fit for a company like this to be associated with the Olympic games in any way,’’ he said.

Gardiner also added its a disgrace that the International Olympic Association and the LOCOG has been parroting Dow’s official response that it was not directly involved in the Bhopal Gas Tragedy as it did not own Union Carbide at the time of the accident and that the matter was settled after a sum of $470 million was paid in compensation. ‘’It cannot be right that social, ethical and moral criteria have been thrown out of the window by the LOCOG for the Olympics by supporting Dow chemicals.’’

While Gardiner has raised the issue over Dow’s appointment with the LOCOG which is a private organisation with only one government representative, he said there has been no satisfying answers. Referring to the allegations over Dow’s sponsor-

ship and the Bhopal gas tragedy, Minister Tourism and Heritage John Penrose replied that there is a difference between the legal liability of a company and it being morally responsible for causing problems. He added that Gardiner needs to take these questions back to the LOCOG and ask them why Dow was awarded the contract. ‘’The ball is now in LOCOG’s court and it needs to answer to the allegations raised by us MPs and the public. I will once again go back to Lord Coe,’’ said Gardiner.

Meanwhile, Gardiner said as a Chairman of the Labour friends of India he feels the relationship between India and the UK has been downgraded over the last couple of months. The recent events including Indian governments decision to award contract for the fighter planes to France instead of Britain, the continuous absence of Indian High Commissioner in London, have brought light to the criticism to the relationship the two countries share. Gardiner said he has been trying to hold talks with business groups from both the countries for lucrative trade ties and has spoken with the office of the High Commission for the immediate appointment of the diplomat. ‘’But I feel like a lover who has been sweet talked by India, ‘’ he told Asian Voice.

IMPORTANT SAFETY WARNING BEKO FROST FREE FRIDGE FREEZERS MANUFACTURED 2000-2006 ONLY In a very small number of cases we have found that the defrost timer on a certain production range of Beko frost free fridge freezers can fail, overheat, and cause a potential fire hazard. As a responsible manufacturer, we are doing all we can to contact the owners of affected models and make the required modification, free of charge.

WE STRONGLY URGE YOU TO CHECK YOUR MODEL USING THE CHART BELOW AND TO CONTACT USIF YOU OWN AN AFFECTED MODEL Call FREEPHONE 0800 009 4837 or visit www.resafety.beko.co.uk If you have an affected model which has or develops a fault, or is not working properly, please unplug the product immediately and call us.

The models affected, listed (right), were manufactured between January 2000 and October 2006. Both the model number and the serial number can be found on the rating plate (see diagram right). Please contact us if your model’s serial number begins with any of the following: 00, 01, 02, 03, 04, 05, 06.

WHAT YOU NEED TO DO IF YOU OWN AN AFFECTED PRODUCT If you own an affected product, or if you are unsure if your product is affected, call our free phone number 0800 009 4837 between 8.00am and 8.00pm, open 7 days a week. Please have the model and serial number of your product ready when you call. If necessary, we will arrange for one of our trained engineers to visit your home and make the required modification, free of charge.

WE HAVE ENGLISH SPEAKING OPERATORS AT OUR CALL CENTRE, SO PLEASE HAVE AN ENGLISH SPEAKER WITH YOU.

7

AFFECTED MODEL NUMBERS CDA539FS CDA539FW CDA539FX CDA543FS CDA543FW CDA543FX CDA645FW CDA647FS CDA647FW

CDA648FS CDA648FW CDA653FS CDA653FW CDA653FX CDA659FS CDA751FS CDA751FX CDA752FS

CDA752FW CDA752FX CA5411FFS CA5411FFW CA5411FFX CA7014FFX CA7015FFS CA7015FFW CA7015FFX

NO OTHER BEKO BRANDED REFRIGERATORS OR PRODUCTS ARE AFFECTED Beko Plc. Beko House, Caxton Way, Watford WD18 8UF.

CS460FF (W) CS460FFS CS460FFSD CS461FFW CS461FFS CSA4706FFX CSB4606FFS CSB4606FFSD CSB4606FFW

8

www.abplgroup.com

Dee Katwa

Asian Voice - Saturday 25th February 2012

Midland Voice Contact: Dhiren on 07970 911 386 or dhiren.katwa@abplgroup.com

Drowning in Debt Thousands of families across the Midlands are facing serious difficulties with debt, according to a new study.

The study by think tank the Financial Inclusion Centre, commissioned by the Consumer Credit Counselling Service (CCCS), highlights that more than one in five of West Midland homeowners who took out a mortgage since 2005 have had problems making repayments.

At least two monthly payments had been missed or not paid in full for 21% of properties.

The figures also show that more than 1.5% of mortgages sold since 2005 are for homes

which have since been repossessed, or are currently the subject of a repossession order.

And between 41 and 45% of West Midlands homeowners are “mort-

Fraudster walks free A lying Birmingham salesman, Nadeem Yasin, who duped seven pensioners and vulnerable people, including a cancer sufferer, into buying double glazing has escaped a jail sentence. Instead, he was given a 12-month community order, told to do 240 hours’ unpaid work and pay £500 costs. In addition, his employer, Summit Roofguard Ltd, which trades as Status Glass UK, told Yasin, pictured, he can keep his job. Yasin, of Hodge Hill, had enticed his victims into buying double glazing on the promise of huge discounts that did not exist. Last Monday, at Coventry Magistrates Court, Yasin pleaded guilty to seven counts of fraud and seven charges of breaching consumer protection laws.

Charity under investigation A Birmingham-based Christian charity, The Christadelphian Magazine and Publishing Association, is being investigated by the Charity Commission over the disappearance of hundreds of thousands of pounds, reports the Birmingham Mail.

The charity has nine employees and its latest financial documents show that it has an income of £848,000 of which £564,000 was from voluntary donations and a further £275,000 was from charitable activities. It has assets worth nearly £1.5 million. The alarm was raised by its trustees.

VC salary under fire The pay packet of Birmingham University vice chancellor Professor David Eastwood has been described as “insensitive” by Mark Harrop, head of Birmingham Guild of Students. In 2010/11, Professor Eastwood, pictured, earned £419,000 – a 7% increase on his 2009/10 salary.

Birmingham University has around 28,000 students, 6,000 staff and a turnover of over £460 million. At £424,000, Professor Andrew Hamilton is the UK’s highest earning university vice chancellor.

Taxpayer picks up legal bill Birmingham City Council spent more than £1.3 million on hiring barristers in a year. A Freedom of Information request revealed external legal advice was sought by the council on 463 occasions in the last financial year despite it having the largest in-house local authority legal department in Europe with 300 staff. Ironically, Mirza Ahmad, the council’s most senior legal officer, lost his £115,000-a-year job last year in a restructure of the council’s senior management posts, carried out to save £1.4 million.

gage prisoners” – defined by the Financial Services Authority as people who would find it hard to move house because the debt on their current property is at least 85% of its value.

The number of people receiving counselling from the CCCS because they have difficulty meeting payments rose in the West Midlands from 4,899 in 2005 to 11,499 in 2010, an increase of 135%. Of those contacting the charity for help in the region,

the average homeowner had a mortgage of £111,847. The average unsecured debt was £14,413.

And the charity estimates that 151,000 households in the West Midlands, 8.6%, spend at least a quarter of their total income repaying credit cards, personal loans and other unsecured debts.

A separate study from R3, the trade body for lawyers and accountants specialising in insolvency issues, found 63% of West Midlands residents were concerned about their debt levels, while 48% said they struggled to make it to pay day.

Cricket fans fooled A Birmingham schoolboy was reduced to tears and his mother left furious after they travelled to London in the hope of seeing the Indian cricket team, as part of the Titans of Cricket show – only to find they didn’t turn up.

Now, Birmingham Trading Standards have launched an investigation into this, and other related complaints. Did you go to the show at London’s 02 Arena last October?

If so, share your experience by emailing me.

Full story next week.

Thief hid cash in bra A Midland post office worker who lined her bra with notes from the till over a six-month period before making up errors to account for the theft has been given a 12 month community order. Also, Leanne Wheawall, 24, who pocketed £640 from the till at Stafford Post Office, must complete 80 hours unpaid work and pay £85 costs. At Cannock Magistrates Court, Wheawall, pictured, pleaded guilty to a charge of theft.

Sporting Success The National Hindu Students Forum, the largest of its kind in Europe, deserves applause for bringing together over 700 students from 34 British universities at its eighth annual Sports Competition in Tipton, West Midlands, last Saturday. Credit, in particular, to NHSF’s national president Pranav Bhanot for his outstanding leadership. Pranav, a role model to young British Hindus, prefers, he says, constructive criticism over compliment, and has proven to tackle it professionally, unlike his predecessors - bar NHSF founder Manoj Ladwa.

Soul of Masribhai lives on Scores of bhajans fans from across the Midlands will travel to Slough Hindu Temple (SL1 2XU) next Saturday (Mar 3) to take part in an over 12-hour spiritual event. The programme has been organised by the family of Masribhai Jerambhai Pankhania to mark his fifth death anniversary. Legendary Masribhai, pictured, had earned immense respect and credibility for his saintly qualities and discourses across parts of East Africa and the UK, particularly by followers of the Sanatan Dharma, the roots of Hinduism.

News in Brief Hospital appointment delays Thousands of patients waiting to see a specialist have had their hospital appointment changed to a later date more than once, according to an NHS survey.

Almost a quarter of all patients in 2011 had their appointment switched at least once by hospitals, up from 21% in 2009.

Hari snubs Independent Johann Hari, pictured, suspended from The Independent for plagiarism, has rejected a return to the newspaper. The paper’s editor Chris Blackhurst had invited Hari to resume his column after four months’ unpaid leave. Hari said he planned to write a book.

Elected mayor debate Michael Heseltine will be among the panellists at a debate into whether Birmingham should have an elected mayor. Politicians and community leaders will be taking part in the event at Birmingham University next Wednesday (Feb 29) from 6pm. For details, call 0121 414 8782.

Charity dine and dance A fundraising dinner and disco event has been organised, yet again, by multi-talented Kishorbhai Vadhia and his son Chetan in aid of Midlands Air Ambulance. The event will take place at the Unity Club in Newtown (B19 3 RD) Birmingham on 31 March from 6.30pm onwards. Tickets costs £8. For more information call Kishorbhai on 07941 373 822.

Charity fun run Birmingham pupils are being encouraged to take part in a fundraising fun run. Participants can run, hop, jog or even cart-wheel in the Sport Relief Mile, which will be held on March 25 in the city centre. For details go to sportrelief.com/schoolstuff.

New role for Chopra Rajesh Chopra has joined e-Therapeutics, the biotechnology company, as a non-executive director.

Chopra, 50, a former clinical director of haematological oncology at the Christie Hospital, Manchester, has been a vice president of drug development at Celgene Corporation since 2009. He is a Fellow of both the Royal College of Physicians and the Royal College of Pathologists in the UK.

Wrap up warm

Thanks, the weather is warmer. A reader tells me he followed government advice during the cold snap and travelled with extra clothing, a sleeping bag, a 24hour supply of food and drink, shovel, safety triangle, rock salt and a tow rope. “I felt a right prat on the bus,” he said.

Man jailed for benefit fraud A Birmingham man has been jailed for eight months for benefit fraud. Abed Ali Bostan, 44, of Moseley, was sentenced at Birmingham Crown Court last Friday for dishonestly claiming £19,733 in housing benefit between December 2004 and January 2009.

Bostan falsely claimed to be a rent-paying tenant when he in fact owned the property.

Hotel sold, finally The Ramada Birmingham Hotel in Oldbury has been bought by Wolverhampton businessman Gurjit Mahal. The 81-bedroom hotel, which employs more than 35 staff, had been up for sale since May last year when former owners, Brierley Hill-based Fortmere Group, went into administration.

On the dole...

In Birmingham, 7.6% of the population, one in 13 people, is claiming Jobseeker’s Allowance – the fourth worst figure in the country, behind Hull, Wolverhampton and Hartlepool. In Wolverhampton, 11,761 people are claiming JSA, 7.7% of the working-age population.

UK

Asian Voice - Saturday 25th February 2012

Ken and Navin launch Brent and Harrow campaign

Ken Livingstone with Navin Shah

Labour Mayoral candidate Ken Livingstone and local London Assembly Member Navin Shah AM launched their local campaign on Sunday afternoon.

The event took place at Pradip Sweet Mart on Kenton Road on the border between Brent and Harrow, which together make up Navin’s large London Assembly constituency.

In a US style rally atmosphere, around 120 activists, residents and local community figures attended the event to meet the candidates, and to hear speeches from Ken, Navin, and Brent MP Barry Gardiner.

Malaysian student attacker facing jail

A teenager is facing jail for attacking a Malaysian student in an “exceptional” act of violence during the summer riots.

Ashraf Rossli, 20, the accountancy student had been cycling to help a scared female friend when his jaw was broken in two places as he was punched in the face.

Beau Isagba, 17, whose identity can be revealed for the first time was found guilty of grievous bodily harm at Wood Green Crown Court.

Lifting an order which banned publication of Isagba’s name, judge Witold Pawlak said: “I agree that this is a case in which there is a legitimate public interest in knowing the outcome off the proceedings and the identity of the defendant ... This was an exceptional case.”

Isagba had admitted looting a betting shop and a food and wine store in Ilford Lane before Mr Rossli, pictured, was attacked in Barking.

Ilford woman receives OBE

Audience at the Mart

Ken Livingstone praised the work of Safer Neighbourhood Teams in Brent and Harrow, which he established. He also said that police are demoralised following Boris Johnson’s decision to cut over 1700 officers across London amid rising violent crime.

Ken stressed his commitment to use the TfL surplus to cut fares by 7% on the tube and 11% on buses. Ken made clear that improving step-free access to outer London stations

India to appoint new Ambassador to Britain Dr Jaymini Bhagwati will be joining the Indian Embassy at UK as the new Indian High Commissioner on 27th February. J. Bhagwati, took over his assignment as Ambassador of India to Belgium, Luxembourg and to the European Union on 15 September 2008. Dr. Bhagwati is a member of the 1976 batch of the Indian Foreign Service. He has served for thirty three years in various capacities in the Ministry of External Affairs, Ministry of Finance in the Government of India and in the World Bank in Washington D.C. Immediately prior to being appointed India’s Ambassador to Belgium, Luxembourg and the EU, Dr. Bhagwati, pictured, served as Additional Secretary in the Ministry of External Affairs, Government of India and earlier as Chief, Corporate Finance in the World Bank. He has also served as Joint Secretary (Capital Markets, External Commercial Borrowings and Pension Reforms) in the Department of Economic Affairs in the Government of India.

During his career Dr. Bhagwati has developed

In brief

wide experience in financial and economic matters with specialisation in capital markets.

Dr. Bhagwati has led Financial Technical Assistance teams to Turkey, Iran, China and Egypt. Further, he has worked as a Lead Specialist for Derivatives and Asset-Liability Management in the World Bank. He also has considerable experience of working on foreign policy issues related to Central Asia, Europe, Russia, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Cuba. Dr. Bhagwati has contributed chapters to several books on financial and economic topics and is a regular columnist in the Business Standard (an Indian financial daily newspaper).

Dr. Bhagwati is married and has one daughter.

should be a priority for a Labour administration, and made special reference to improvements at Harrow-on-the-Hill.

Navin Shah AM spoke about his local campaigning work to improve transport reliability, especially on the Jubilee and Metropolitan lines. He praised Ken Livingstone’s policy on fares and police, and pledged to work to support these policies at City Hall. He emphasised the importance of keeping the Mayor accountable to

make sure that Brent and Harrow receive a fair deal from City Hall.

Navin also spoke on the necessity of politicians working closely with local community groups and local members of the public.

As a candidate, he has pledged to stay in touch with mainstream concerns from residents, stressing Labour’s contrast with the current Conservative Mayor, who has described his 250,000 second salary as ‘chicken feed’.

Deported man trapped between 2 countries A Sikh man who was deported from Britain to Afghanistan is trapped in legal limbo as a stateless citizen, with the Government in Kabul demanding that he be sent back and keeping him under effective house arrest. Baljit Singh, 23, is unable to work or travel in Afghanistan after the authorities there refused to accept his claims that he was born in the country and imprisoned him for 19 months.

Mr Singh says that he fled Afghanistan at the age of 5 with his mother and stepfather during the chaotic civil war of the 1990s. They travelled to Pakistan, Bahrain and Egypt before settling in Austria. He later moved to Britain, believing that his chances of asylum were greater, and reported to the authorities upon his arrival.

Mr Singh, pictured, lived in the West Midlands, working in menial jobs, and became engaged to a British woman. He spent three years in the UK before being sent back to Afghanistan in 2010, without any identification papers, after failing to win asylum. His deportation papers cite as a reason a

failure to complete the application correctly, for which he blames his British lawyers. In Kabul, he says, he was met by two British officials who told him that they could not help him because he was Afghan. The local authorities thought otherwise and put him in jail.

He was released last month after serving 19 months in prison but must live with a guarantor and report monthly to the Attorney-General to renew a permit to ensure that he is not arrested by police on the street.

“The British say I am not British. The Afghans say I am not Afghan. What am I? An alien? I am a human being,” he said.

The British Embassy in Kabul said: “Individuals are only returned to a country when there is substantial evidence that it is their country of origin.

A 69-year-old Ilford woman who set up a charity to help older Asian people was recognised for her work when she was appointed an OBE. Ramesh Verma, of Ilford - the founder of the EKTA charity - received the honour from Prince Charles at Buckingham Palace for her services to older people in east London.

After caring for her parents in their old age, she set up her charity, based in Newham, in 1986, to help older Asian people access services.

She said: “They didn’t have anywhere to go because of the language barrier.

“I was honoured but it was a shock because I was just doing my job.”

EKTA runs projects across east London including participating in last year’s Asian Women’s Education and Training Fair at Redbridge Town Hall.

Will disabled passengers find restricted access to transports in Olympics?

Sulaiman Khan, 26, of Woodford Green, says passengers in wheelchairs will find access to this summer’s Games restricted by a “lack of understanding” from transport bosses, as reported by the Ilford Recorder.

Wheelchair user Mr Khan, pictured, suffers from muscular dystrophy and campaigns through the group Trailblazers.

He said: “Trains are just not accessible for wheelchair users and more understanding and funding is needed for this to change.

“My simple answer for TfL was for ramps to be installed on trains, but they informed me there would not be enough time.”

Mr Khan was speaking after allegedly disabled Melissa Melman had to slide down the steps of Ilford train station because the lift was out of order.

Melissa’s mum Sharon, 62, had to carry her daughter’s wheelchair down the steps and was furious station staff did not offer to help.

“My daughter is not the only disabled person who will have had a problem and with the Olympics coming up this should not happen,” she said.

“Even on the Underground the trains can be a foot below or above the platform, making it tough to get a wheelchair on or off the train.”

9

10

YOUR VOICE

Britain’s tolerance and decency grew from religion The decision to outlaw prayers at council meetings is another example of the under- appreciation of faith in our society.

As a Hindu who attended a Christian school I learnt to appreciate the similarities of our faiths; and every day I attend the Christian prayers in the House of Lords. I find the prayers inspirational and energising; a chance to pause and reflect in the working day. It is not compulsory; those of no faith do not have to attend.

Faith in whatever form can be a great inspiration to people. Yet as a society we seem to take every opportunity to criticise faith; often with people of one faith criticising the beliefs or values of another. We shouldn’t see the prayers at council meetings as “Christian prayers”, but as a chance to celebrate all faiths.

I strongly believe that when it comes to faith, there is more than unites than divides us. Yet the very tolerance our faiths’ teach us is under threat and we must all do more to defend it.

Britain has benefitted immeasurably from faith; so many of our values stem from our religious past. If you are in doubt, look no further than last year’s Royal Wedding –an event watched by millions in this country and billions around the globe- to see how a religious act can unite people.

Britain’s tolerance allows people of different views to happily coexist; we must never lose our appreciation of that tolerance.

Lord Popat House of Lords

Grow up Britain I feel I must join the debate following India’s decision to choose the French Fighter Rafale instead of the Eurofighter.

Those British politicians and British Indians who are advocating the Eurofighter appear to be shortsighted in their outlook. They appear to have forgotten that this was a transparent and long drawn out tender evaluation including detailed technical & financial evaluation of the 2 fighters on offer. Are they suggesting that India buys the Eurofighter irrespective of cost? Is the technical evaluation carried out by Indian experts also to be ignored? The Indian tax payer is entitled to secure best Value for Money just as any other government would.

Britain cannot expect to win every major Indian defence contract. It did win the contract for the Hawk Jet Trainers a few years ago. Some you win, some you lose! That is the nature of business deals so Britain should not portray itself as a bad loser. Some commentators/politicians seem to think that Britain has a god given right to win this contract!! Grow up, Britain and accept this loss gracefully. America, Russia and Sweden also lost out on this contract but they are not behaving like Britain is.

Rashmi Jeshang Via Email

Asian Voice - Saturday 25th February 2012

British PM and Deputy PM

Unsolicited Phone Calls

As I see it

I think Mr Cameron and Nick Clegg both are sailing in the same ship. They both are doing their job to destroy the NHS, welfare state, unions and increase unemployment, make profits and widen the gap between the rich and the poor.

People must blame themselves for unemployment and misery for supporting them in the last general election. Now people must bear in mind that as long as they are in power, there will be no job, no money, no house, no hope and no future.

Only misery for the young, old, sick and disable. In the next election, please think twice before you vote, Your future depends on vote.

Are other AV and GS readers being plagued and pestered by ‘phone calls we receive at any odd times from people trying to sell their goods and services or companies asking you to participate in their surveys? These calls have the habit of taking you by surprise at inopportune moments while you are having dinner or are in company or watching your favorite TV programmes. Thinking that it may be an important call which you may be waiting for, you rush to answer it only to find that somebody is wasting your time asking you to take part in their lifestyle survey! What can one do in these circumstances? I hate phone calls which interrupt my evening, especially when someone is trying to sell me something. I understand that there are websites which profess that they can stop these calls.

However I am skeptical about them working for me.

I now pick up the phone and keep it off the hook. This way the callers would incur call charges and would stop them ringing again. Or if taken by surprise and I answer the call, I ask the caller what was in it for me. I hope these tactics would work. Other readers may have some other tricks up their sleeve and may want to share them with us. Similar thing applies to junk mail. How do you stop unwanted post? Just return to sender in the stamped and addressed envelopes usually provided thereby costing them postal chargers.

I read CB Patel’s column ‘As I See it’ on 11th February with much interest. In his column he has raised some very pertinent points. Gujarat is such an advanced state. But there are some basic impediments that does not allow Ahmedabad to qualify as a metropolitan city. I also agree that Ahmedabad should have a visa on arrival and there must be some direct flights from London to Ahmedabad. It is such a hassle to do a break journey when you have children and old parents along with. I do not hail from Gujarat but my mother’s side of the family lives in Gujarat. So my wife or I have to take my mum to visit her family- whenever there is an occasion. Though Indian High Commission in the UK has improved their ways, it could have been so much easier if there was no OCI and PIOs and anybody originating from India could just get a visa on reaching India.

While most of the brilliant Indian techies are residing all over the world, I am sure they could have discovered an appropriate machine to help Indian immigrants distinguish between the right and the wrong kind of visitors!

It is so unfair that a progressive state like Gujarat does not have a direct flight from the UK, where world’s largest number of Gujaratis reside.

Kunal Datta London

Dinesh Sheth Newbury Park, Ilford

The recent attacks on Israeli diplomats in Georgia, Delhi and Bangkok allegedly carried out by members of Iranian Secret Service have raised some worrying questions. While such obnoxious attacks are common place in those countries, suicide bombers regularly targeting Israeli public as well as prominent personalities and Israeli Secret Service Mosad, one of the best and most efficient has recently targeted Iranian nuclear scientists within Iran, the attacks in neutral countries are a recent and more sinister development. The irony is that neutral countries are fast becoming battle fields.

Iran who is fast attaining the capacity to arm itself with nuclear weapons that would unleash a worse cold war scenario since the end of Second World War, with Turkey, Egypt and Saudi Arabia joining the arm race, the world would become a tinder garden that could explode at any time. But Iran is plodding along undaunted. Israel would not let itself become a garrotte victim by default.

There is no love lost between Shia Iran surrounded by Sunni Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Yemen who would in fact welcome an all out attack on Iran to destroy Iran’s nuclear capability even before it acquires military significance.Iranian president is playing a dangerous game, baiting and antagonising the West. The all out attack on Iran is a certainty in the eyes of the expert and learned observers that may come as early as this autumn.

So be warned. 2012 is going to be a topsy turvy year fraught with uncertainties, unrest and conflicts unparalleled in recent times.

Bhupendra M Gandhi Via Email

J B Patel Birmingham

Rafale over Eurofighter It is ‘naive’ on the part of Dr. Rami Ranger to criticise Indian government and the Air Force officials for going for French built Dassault Rafale in preference to Eurofighter Typhoon. Some of the points raised in his letter are outrageous and meaningless.

There are several advantages in buying the French fighter. The French fighter jet has a maximum speed of 2,390km/h when compared to speed limit of 2,125 km/h for Euro fighter. It has external weapons load 9500 kg when compared to weapon load of 6500+ kg for Eurofighter.

The Rafale fighter jet has a range of 3,700 + km when compared to 2,900 km for Eurofighter. The landing distance required is far less than the Eurofighter.

When compared with the specifications and cost of both the fighters, the selection of Rafale fighter jet is better value than Eurofighter.

Dr. Ranger states that British Aid is intended for the Indian poor. The amount is only a drop in the ocean when compared with Indian government spent on Commonwealth games, Formula racing and so on.

Dr. Ranger’s sinister accusation is that that French government banned Indian Sikhs from wearing turbans and hence India should not buy French fighter. I assume Dr. Ranger is a Sikh and wants to defend his Sikh Faith which is reasonable. Dr. Ranger should know that unlike India which is pseudo-secular country, France is a true secular state.

France has its set of rules and it has banned burkha in public place and also turbans in schools. If we do not confirm to their way of life, we should not live or look for jobs in France.

Dr. Ranger talks about abuse of basic human rights in France for not allowing Sikhs to wear Turbans in schools which affects only 500 children. On the other hand no Indian politician who comes from North of India mentioned about Sri Lanka violating Human rights for the cold blooded murder for more than 200,000 Hindus with the help of Indian government. Where is the justice?

British Indian politicians should grow up and not be slaves of the colonial masters.

Arun Vaidyanathan Via Email

Rushdie and our freedom of speech Whilst I don’t profess to understand the politics or complexities in respect of Sir Rushdie’s absence from the Jaipur Literary festival, I do wish to comment on the misuse of our valued freedom of speech which not all countries are lucky enough to enjoy. The freedom of thought and expression is a precious tool that should be used morally, responsibly and respectfully. An ordinary knife is an invaluable tool for cutting and in our everyday life, but if its used to stab a person it becomes an offensive weapon that can have dire consequences. When ‘Satanic verses’ first caused a stir, excerpts from it were published in a broadsheet newspaper and some of them were humiliating and hurtful to the sentiments of Muslims. There was no subtle artistry there. In ‘Midnight’s Children’ Sir Rusdie similarly insulted the deity of Lord Ganesh. Thankfully the Hindu religion is so magnanimous that like the lotus flower it remains untouched by the murkiness at its roots and rises above it.

An author of Sir Rushdie’s calibre does not need that kind of sordidness to create humour, nor does he need to create controversy to boost sales. One’s artistic license should not go beyond the realms of decency.

A Chohan Bromley

Please detach the form and send it with your payment or credit card instructions to address below FIRST & FOREMOST ASIAN WEEKLY IN EUROPE

VOICE 0

Page -13

Page -17

Page -18

1 Year 2 Years

Visit our website: www.abplgroup.com

UK EUROPE WORLD £25 £55 £70 £45 £100 £125

Page -19-21

Health Watch

Page -30

3( %"14!16 3/ 3(

*Subscriptions paid will not be refunded

!1#(

‘Smile Pinky’ too gets the Oscar Boyle says Mumbai dwarfed the statuette

E-mail: support@abplgroup.com

Cricket crazy Indians for the first time was seen so euphoric on Monday morning, as they expected a couple of Oscars. British Indians in the UK, Dharavi slums, the shanty township of Mumbai, a village in Uttar Pradesh and almost the entire Bollywood waited in expectation, glued to their TV sets. They burst into celebrations as one by one, their heroes, the actors of the British Indian film and the music maestro, A R Rahman bagged the top awards in the world of entertainment.

British actress Kate Winslett also won the Oscar after having missed it almost five times earlier.

‘Smile Pinki’, a short documentary on a cleft-lipped Indian girl in Uttar Pradesh directed

by American director Megan Mylan, won the Oscar for the Best Documentary (Short).

-/1% /. 0!'%

!..6

&1/.3 642( !.%2( (%$%+!1 4").! ,) "!#+ 2(/3/2( /"/ !*)5!,! !.!6 %1-!.3 ((%$! !.$ !.') !.%2( /.+!1

!..6

/6,% !.$

4").! ,)

/6,%

Diplomats under attack

!

EDUCATION / COUNCIL VOICE

Asian Voice - Saturday 25th February 2012

11

Term time holidays will be banned London Metropolitan University Parents are to be banned by Michael Gove, the Education Secretary (pictured), from taking their children out of school to save money on holidays. He is to abolish the right of head teachers to “authorise absence” from the classroom, which has been used to let families take termtime breaks, and will warn them they face fines for their children not being at school.

The move, to be announced by the end of the month, will form a key part of a Government review into school discipline and attendance carried out by Charlie Taylor, a teacher and behaviour expert. But it will dismay many parents who can pay up to twice as much for flights and accommodation during busy school holidays than in term-time and have come to expect that they will be able to remove their children from class to save money.

At present, head teachers have the discretion to approve two weeks of absence from school for each child, which is supposed to be for illness,

faces £6m over-recruitment fine

bereavement or when children cannot get to school because of bad weather.

It is not supposed to be granted for holidays but teachers wary of upsetting parents have widely ignored the rule.

A senior source at the Department for Education said: “Any time out of school has the potential to damage a child’s education.

That is why the government will end the distinction between authorised and unauthorised absence. This is part of the government’s wider commitment to bring down truancy levels in our schools. There will also be stricter penalties for parents and schools.”

Ministers believe that

high levels of truancy are a key reason for under-attainment. They believe that children from poorer backgrounds are held back by teachers being unwilling to enforce attendance.

Ministers believe that penalties imposed on parents whose children play truant need to be tougher and more vigorously enforced by the courts.

Parents who take their children out of school without permission currently face fines of just £100 – much less than the saving of booking family holidays during term-time. If parents refuse to pay the fine they are frequently given conditional discharges when the case comes to court.

17 years old youth debates on coalition Mehjabin Ahmed, who goes to Woodford County High School, described her appearance on a panel including Baroness Shirley Williams and Pragna Patel, the founding member of Southall Black Sisters, as “such a privileged moment in my life”, as reported by a local newspaper. Ms Ahmed was chosen from British Youth Council members

across the country to be their representative at the debate, organised by The Guardian newspaper and held at their Kings Cross’ office. After preparing with her politics class, Ms Ahmed, who was put forward by Redbridge Council’s youth services, went to raise issues of tuition fees and concerns over employment opportunities. And she went head-

to-head with Dame Williams over the usefulness of apprenticeships for women.

Regarding Mr Cameron’s appointment, she said: “If the Prime Minister wants to improve women’s lives for the better and give them a voice at least he is taking steps in the right direction.

“I do think a lot more needs to be done though.”

Council flats let out for £5,000 a week during Olympics Council house tenants are offering to rent out their taxpayer-subsidised properties for up to £5,000 a week during the Olympics, an investigation by by The Daily Telegraph has found The tenants are advertising their properties on websites and one boasted

to an undercover reporter that she was using revenues from illicit rentals to pay for lavish holidays.

The disclosure will add to growing government fears over the abuse of the council house system, which costs taxpayers billions of pounds every year.

Councils and housing

associations said they would investigate.

Local authorities said tenants were allowed to take in lodgers but not sublet their properties.

Ministers are poised to make subletting a council house a criminal offence, as it is only a civil offence at the moment.

Town centre events to create Olympic party in Ilford Olympic fever is heading to Ilford as the town centre becomes a hub of sports, arts and celebration during London 2012.Ilford Town Centre The pedestrianised area of Ilford Town Centre will host an array of exciting and colourful displays and workshops to entertain shoppers and encourage residents to celebrate the Olympics.

Plans include an international food market, live music, dance, arts and cultural events, and sports activities.

The programme of free events is called project Active Ilford and will also include two big screens for

visitors to cheer on competitors during key events.

The project is aimed at boosting trade for local businesses by driving visitors and residents to the town centre during the Olympics and Paralympics. Vision RCL will provide arts, entertainment and sports activities to complement the programme organised by the Ilford Business Improvement District team.

The Council's Cabinet agreed to offer funding and support for the programme of events, which will be jointly organised by the Council, Vision RCL and the Ilford Business

Improvement District team. In total, the support from the Council is estimated at £50,000 although some of this is provided by offering services for free. The Ilford Business Improvement District will be funding £100,000 for the project.

Fees for licensing and planning permission will be funded by the Council, although all of the events will still be subject to the relevant planning and licensing laws where necessary.

To keep up to date with the latest information on the Olympics, visit www.redbridge.gov.uk/lon don2012.

A London university is facing a fine of just under £6m for over-recruiting UK undergraduates this year.

London Metropolitan University says it recruited 1,500 more students than it should have done, partly because of the rush for places last summer. It received a letter from England's higher education funding body Hefce this week saying it would be fined £5.9m.

That is more than twice the highest fine imposed last year.

The magazine Times Higher Education is reporting that some believe as many as 25,000 students will have been over-recruited in this way, meaning there could be record fines this year.

Universities in England have to pay roughly £3,700 for each student they take above a set number they have been told they can take.

Last year Hefce imposed fines of just over £8.5m in total.

The largest (£2.2m) was against South Bank University, also in London.

This year's fines will be published by Hefce at the end of March.

London Metropolitan's Vice Chancellor Malcolm Gillies wrote to staff this week to explain what had happened.

He said London Met was one of "many" English universities which had unintentionally overrecruited during a rush for places ahead of the increase in tuition fees for many students in the UK. The university had been seeking to fill up half of its places through Clearing - the system which matches vacant university places to applicants who generally either apply late or do not get the grades they need for their first choices.

Prof Gillies said: "Because of the volatility of admissions in 2011-12 during Clearing, many English universities unintentionally over-recruited.

Universities have an obligation to accept students in particular categories.

We have always been a big university for Clearing and we are proud of that, of giving an opportunity to students. There was a large rush through the gate at the last minute.

But we greatly exceeded our number so we have to take it on the chin and recognise that we have an obligation to reach our target and we will have to revise our system."

Prof Gillies said that because the university would receive tuition fees [more than £3,000 a year this academic year] from the extra students it had taken on, this would offset much of the fine.

The net cost of taking on the students would be £700,000 he said.

The government has said over-recruitment is putting extra unexpected pressure on its finances, because of the cost of supporting students with tuition fee loans and bursaries.

Problem gambling in Asian communities neglected, says academic paper Asian gamblers are significantly more likely to have a gambling problem than their white counterparts, and are less able to access support and advice to help them, according to research by academics from the University of Salford and NatCen Social Research.

In their paper Gambling in Asian Communities in Great Britain, David Forrest, Professor of Economics at the University of Salford Business School, and Heather Wardle, Research Director at NatCen, reported that, while only O.S. No. 276/2006 IN THE COURT OF THE HON’BLE PRL. CIVIL JUDGE, SR.DN. BELGAUM, AT : BELGAUM BETWEEN: 1. Shri K.S. Pawale ...Plaintiff AND: 1. Shri Nahin. T. Kapadiya and others ...Defendants To, Defendant No.2Noshir Tehmuras Kapadiya Age: 71 years, Occu: Now Nil R/o: H. No. 128, Cambridge Road South-Phort, Merseyside, England.

CITATION Whereas, the above named Plaintiff have filed top noted suit against you for the relief of Declaration and Injunction.

Therefore you are hereby summoned to appear before this Court either in person or through your advocate duly instructed and answerable to all the material question relating to top noted suit on 22/3/2012 at 11.00 a.m.

Take notice that in default of your appearance on the day and date mentioned above, the suit will be heard and decided in your absence.

Given under my hand and Seal of this court 16th day of February 2012.

By Order of the Court Court Sd/Seal Sd/Siristedar, (V.Y.Onave) Bench Clerk Prl. Civil Judge, Prl. Civil Judge, Sr.Dn. Belgaum Sd/Sr. Dn., Belgaum (A.G. Mulawadmath) Advocate for Plaintiff BELGAUM DATE: 16-02-2012

around 49% of Asian males had gambled in the last year, compared to 75% of white males, the prevalence of problem gambling among Asian men who had taken part in gambling was more than double that for white men who had gambled, at approximately 3.4% and 1.6% respectively.

In fact, this made the proportion of Asian males classified as problem gamblers higher than the proportion of white males classified as problem gamblers even though far fewer gamble.

For women, the pattern was even more marked. Again, although a much lower proportion of Asian women (33%) had gambled in the previous year in comparison with white women (71%), the

prevalence of problem gambling was still much higher: 1.3% of all Asian females were problem gamblers, compared with only 0.2% of white females.

Among children aged 11-15 years the same pattern emerged again. In the sample of 9,000 young people, participation in gambling was less common for Asians. But those Asians who did gamble were extraordinarily likely to be experiencing gambling-related problems, with nearly 19% of them classified as a problem gambler. This was so high that the prevalence rate of problem gambling amongst all Asian youths was, at 2.9%, far higher than that for white people in this age group.

12

UK

Asian Voice - Saturday 25th February 2012

India Connect Q & A: Visa to India Where can I submit a postal application? If I submit it from outside London – where does it go?

Postal applications must be sent to our centralised processing centre located at 13, Canalside, Uxbridge Road, Hayes, Middlesex, UB4 0JN. Jiten Vyas, VFS Global Even if you address your postal application from outside London – your envelope will still be delivered to this address only.

What is the process followed for postal applications once they are received?

The minimum processing time for a postal application is 10-15 working days. Once such applications are received, they are opened and scrutinised by our agents. If your application is lacking in required information, photo specifications are incorrect or there is any reason that prevents us from processing the application – your documents and passports will be returned back to you with a sheet stating the reason. You would then be required to rectify the error and re-post your documents back to the visa centre. Upon receipt of a complete application and required documents, the application is forwarded to the respective Mission for processing.

Can I send my application directly to the High Commission? Where does it go if I have done so?

All applications should be submitted at the specified visa application centres. If you have already dispatched your application to the High Commission of India (London) – your application will be redelivered to our India Visa Application Centre 1-3, Canalside, Uxbridge Road, Hayes, Middlesex, UB4 0JN. But please keep in mind that there will be a delay in the processing of your documents until they reach the Visa Centre from the High Commission.

I get a message of ‘No Record Found’ on my postal application. What is the processing timelines?

Postal applications must be scrutinised before we can begin to process them. In case there are further details required to have been submitted by you or for example, the photographs given were not up to the specification – your application will be posted back to you. In this case, since we are unable to enter your details through our system, there will not be a record to track. In such cases, you can address your concern to info.inuk@vfshelpline.com. It is always strongly advised to ensure that you have read all requirements for an application before it is dispatched through the post.

Where can I get the correct specifications of photographs?

Each Visa Application Centre (except for Cardiff, Glasgow and Manchester) have in-house photo booths that will provide you with the required 50x50 size photographs for your application. The cost is £4 for a set of 2.

For more information regarding any quires about Indian Visa please contact by email or post: Email: info.inuk@vfshelpline.com Customer Relations Department.

India Visa Application Center, 60-62 Wilton Road, London SW1V 1DE

India Connect - your questions answered on India visas” a service offered by

Freezing British tourists yearn for Rajasthan and Kerala Rudy Otter Shivering crowds flocked to London’s Earls Court exhibition centre to learn all about sun-drenched breaks, and Rajasthan and Kerala were high on their lists.

Destinations, the annual 4-day holiday and travel show presented by The Times newspaper until 5th February, drew swarms of visitors to the various stands promoting the subcontinent, asking mainly about Rajasthan and Kerala.

Derek Biddle, representing Mysteries of India based in Sale, Cheshire, told me: “Everybody keeps asking about Rajasthan and Kerala, two of India’s best known destinations.

They hear about these places from relatives and friends and are keen to try them out for themselves.”

Rajeev Olickel, operations director of the Kerala Travel Centre of Witham, Essex, told me bookings to Kerala as well as the rest of India, after a brief lull, were “picking up nicely” again. Visitors took part in a free prize draw to win a 9-night break in Kerala.

Neil Sealy, business development manager of Trans Indus travel company of Ealing, west London, also said bookings to various parts of India have been “rising steadily” since January.

“People are determined not to let the economic downturn depress them and are heading for places like Kerala particularly which offers serene backwaters, brilliant wildlife and natural beauty. They are also attracted

by Rajasthan’s forts, palaces and temples.”

Short Story by Neha Garg For more stories visit www.scribbledesk.com

The Magical Waterfall Brian, Robyn and Issac were very excited. Their mother and father had just told them that they were all going to go for a holiday in the country. Oh how lovely would it be, to leave the town with its brick walls and smoky chimneys and hooting cars and go live in the delightful countryside where everything was peaceful and quiet.

They would be able to play in the fields and climb the hills. They would collect beautiful flowers each day to decorate their bedrooms.

So it was with great hullabaloo that the children set off to pack their things.

The next day, dragging suitcases, the little family set off to the railway station. Brian wished for the hundredth time that he was a train driver, then he would be able to travel up and down the countryside as much as he liked.

They boarded the train and waited impatiently for it to set off. Oh what joy, to see the noisy, smoky town rush past and give way to delightful hills and trees.

One by one the children fell asleep for it was rather a long journey and they were tired. When their mother shook them awake, it was late afternoon.

They got off at a tiny little railway station with just one sleepy porter.

He sleepily helped them pile all their suitcases into a taxi. It chugged its way down a little country lane to where their holiday home stood; a tiny white cottage almost completely covered in red roses. How pretty it looked!

'Mum, we MUST go exploring right away,' said Brian and together with his two sisters, he set off. The cottage was in a little valley which was surrounded by mountains on three sides. Brian, Robyn and Issac skipped along happily.

Presently they came to a waterfall rushing down the face of the mountain.

'My My, isn't it making a lot of noise?' said Robyn, covering her ears.

'Yes, it really is a gigantic waterfall.

See what a big river it falls into at the bottom of the mountain?' said Issac.

It was then that Brian noticed the stones.

'Hey Issac, Robyn! See those stones at the bottom of the waterfall? Don't they look like they are leading straight into it?'

The other children looked to where Brian was pointing. The stones did indeed look like stepping stones right

into the waterfall.

'What use is that? There is nothing behind the waterfall but the face of the mountain,' said Robyn.

'Shall we go check it out?' said Brian.

He was already rolling up his trousers.

'That looks dangerous Brian,' said Robyn, looking scared.

'Come on Robyn, I will hold your hand. Don't be afraid.' said Issac, extending a reassuring hand towards her.

One after the other, the 3 children stepped off the bank and onto the first stone. It was big enough to hold all 3 of them at once.

'Ooooooh!' said Issac, shivering with excitement. 'Hurry up you lot. Let's keep going.'

He jumped to the second stone, then the third as he slowly made his way to where the waterfall fell into the river. The other two followed.

'I say, are either of you wet?' said Brian, suddenly stopping. He was almost level with the curtain of water that was the waterfall.

Issac stopped too.

'No,' he said and looked at Robyn.

She shook her head.

'I don't understand,' said Brian reaching out to touch the waterfall. 'We should have been soaking wet.'

Issac was beginning to feel uneasy.

'Maybe we should go back,' he said with a nervous look at Robyn.

'I vote we keep going,' said Brian as he took a tentative step forwards and disappeared behind the waterfall.

'Brian!' shouted Issac and Robyn together but Brian did not answer.

'We have to go after him,' said Issac. He took Robyn's hand and pulled her forwards into the waterfall …..

What happens Next? Where did Brian disappear off to? Will Issac and Robyn be able to find him? And what will they find behind the magical waterfall?

Part 2, coming soon.

LSE celebrates India Week Romil Patel The Society for the Promotion of Indian Culture and Ethos (S.P.I.C.E) exhibits and celebrates the rich culture and tradition of India. Between 18 and 26 February, the London School of Economics is playing host to India Week 2012, which is S.P.I.C.E’s flagship event. “India week 2012 seeks to engage the student population in the UK through a series of lectures, panel discussions and cultural activities.” The event was inaugurated on 20 February by the much-loved Bollywood actor, Rishi Kapoor. This event addresses a wide range of topics pertaining to India such as the role of Bollywood, corruption and female empowerment in India. It is also a fabulous opportunity to gain an insight into the

Bollywood legendary actor Rishi Kapoor with journalist Romil Patel

world’s largest democracy and to indulge in scrumptious Indian food!

More to follow in the upcoming edition.

UK

Asian Voice - Saturday 25th February 2012

Lord Bilimoria: Education is the passport to the future Alina Polianskaya Romil Patel

&

Since its inception in 1989, Karan Bilimoria’s brand of Cobra Beer has helped wash down countless cuisines and it is now sold worldwide. In 2004 he received the CBE for services to business and two years later he was raised to the peerage as Baron Bilimoria, of Chelsea. Most recently, Bilimoria received the Global Indian Icon award and we were eager to find out more about his views on business and politics.

While studying Law at Cambridge University, Bilimoria was distinctly unimpressed by the brands of beer on offer. “I had this idea of creating a beer that had the refreshing qualities of a lager and the smoothness of an ale because I hated fizzy lagers and I loved real British ale” he remarked.

“I wanted to create a beer which could accompany all food, especially curry.”

Thus Cobra’s seeds had been sown.

So what advice does Bilimoria have for enterprising young minds? He firmly believes that the value of a good education should not be underestimated and he was quick to praise higher education in Britain which he labelled as “one of the jewels in Britain’s crown.” I think that education is so important, not only for building the foundations for your career, but also as a fallback because the reality is that not all businesses succeed.

That is why I recommend

Lord Karan Bilimoria was presented with PowerBrands Hall of Fame Global Indian of the Year award by Dr. Ruby Dhalla, Ms. Priti Patel and Prof. Arindam Chaudhuri

pursuing further studies before starting your own business. Your education is a great passport to your future.”

Next, a steely determination “to aspire and achieve against all odds” as well as taking advantage of the numerous resources which are on offer are crucial for success. “Nowadays there is so much support available for starting a business such as government initiatives, mentoring programmes, conferences and speaker events.” In spite of these aids,Lord Bilimoria criticised certain government policies such as the threefold increase in tuition fees as well as the immigration cap. “Not only is cutting spending on higher education wrong as it is vitally important, it is also one of our biggest exports.

Foreign students bring directly or indirectly - ￡8 billion into this economy.

The immigration cap is a cruel cap which is affecting the country and its business rates. For example, there is an urgent requirement for skilled workers in Indian restaurants across the UK and the immigration cap is hindering these businesses.”

What should be done? “We need to encourage funding from private sources, not cut the public funding” he opined. “Public expenditure needs to be cut but the question is what do you cut? When do you cut it and how quickly do you make the cuts? I think that the government has got its priorities absolutely wrong.” There is no doubt that this sentiment is shared by large pockets of society, namely students.

Southall football club announces launch of cricket club/academy Just over a year ago Southall FC was relaunched with a mission of becoming embedded in the local Southall community, placing family values at the center of the re-launch. A year on the club has made massive strides towards achieving its mission. It has initiated a number of community programmes consistent with local council policies, and at the same time has made great progress in building a winning football team.

Today they are proud to announce the launch of a much needed Southall Cricket Club/Academy. This is a sport that is extremely popular within the Asian community and as we all know Southall is at the very heart of the Asian community in UK. By providing a choice of various sports, our club plans to provide the local children with a range of sporting options

which will boost not just their health and fitness but also encourage them to select a sport of their choice.

The Cricket Academy would be run under the leadership of Cricket legends - Mr. John Emburey and Mr. Alvin Kalicharan.

Mr. Alvin Kalicharan added “We believe our club as well as the facility that we plan to build will provide a much needed Cricket facility for the local community as well as the Middlesex County League. Just to see the Middlesex County League play at our academy would surely provide some great inspiration to the youth and children in the local area. Please spread the word our trials begin on Saturday 03rd March 2012 from 6pm – 9pm at Featherstone Sports Centre, within the grounds of Featherstone High School, Middlesex, UB2 5HF.”

O.S. No. 348/2006 IN THE COURT OF THE HON’BLE PRL. CIVIL JUDGE, SR.DN. BELGAUM, AT : BELGAUM BETWEEN: 1. Shri T.S.Sateri ...Plaintiff AND: 1. Shri Nahin. T. Kapadiya and others ... Defendants To, Defendant No.2Noshir Tehmuras Kapadiya Age: 71 years, Occu: Now Nil R/o: H. No. 128, Cambridge Road South-Phort, Merseyside, England.

CITATION Whereas, the above named Plaintiff have filed top noted suit against you for the relief of Declaration and Injunction.

Therefore you are hereby summoned to appear before this Court either in person or through your advocate duly instructed and answerable to all the material question relating to top noted suit on 22/3/2012 at 11.00 a.m.

Take notice that in default of your appearance on the day and date mentioned above, the suit will be heard and decided in your absence.

Given under my hand and Seal of this court 16th day of February 2012.

By Order of the Court Court Sd/Seal Sd/Siristedar, (V.Y.Onave) Bench Clerk Prl. Civil Judge, Prl. Civil Judge, Sr.Dn. Belgaum Sd/Sr. Dn., Belgaum (A.G. Mulawadmath) Advocate for Plaintiff BELGAUM DATE: 16-02-2012

13

Queen recognises Jainism as a major faith in Britain On 15th February an event was held where the Queen recognised Jainism as one of the nine historical major faiths in Britain.

The nine historical major faiths (Christianity, Baha’i, Buddhist, Hindu, Jain, Jewish, Sikh and Zoroastrian) celebrated this event by showing the treasures to Her Majesty & the Duke of Edinburgh and by gifting ‘A Year of Service’ to Her. The Archbishop of Canterbury invited Her Majesty on the 15th of February to show the treasures of the respective faiths where Dr Natubhai Shah led the Jain delegation that included Mr Tushar Shah (President O s h w a l Association UK), Mr Harshad S a n g h r a j k a (Secretary IoJ) and Mr Kamal Mehta (Trustee Jain Samaj Europe). All NonChristian faiths were treated equally and allowed 4 persons for the presentation.

Jains displayed the Kalpa Sutra, one of the most auspicious sacred text as their treasure.

The Department of Community and Local

Archbishop of Canterbury, Her Majesty with Dr Natubhai Shah, Mr Tushar Shah (President Oshwal Association UK), Mr Harshad Sanghrajka (Secretary IOJ) and Mr Kamal Mehta (Trustee Jain Samaj Europe)

The writing on Kalpasutra

Government has initiated the faith led ‘A Year of Service’ to gift a social action project by the faith communities near their important sacred day. The attached chart gives the programme for each com-

munity. In November there will be national celebration of these gifts of ‘A Year of Service’.

Jains have been given the opportunity of visiting sick in April. The Jain community in the UK has been excited to be part of this celebration. We will visit a few hospitals and hospices in London, Leicester, Manchester and Birmingham.

London Jains will visit 6 Hospitals, 2 Hospices and some housebound sick. Each visiting Jain group will consist of 6- 10 persons which will include health professionals, interfaith leaders and community leaders and volunteers. We hope to entertain the sick by instrumental music and giving gift of sweets or fruits.

14

Asian Voice - Saturday 25th February 2012

Samantha will not sign new films Kollywood actor Samantha has made a decision - not to sign any new films this year. Because the actress’s diary is already overflowing with projects in Tamil, Telugu and Hindi which will keep her busy throughout 2012. She is currently doing a trilingual with Gautham Vasudev Menon. Titled ‘Neethanae En Ponvasantham’ in Tamil, the movie marks Samantha’s debut in Bollywood, since it is simultaneously being made in Telugu and Hindi too. And she has Mani Ratnam’s ‘Kadal’, an offer which has made the ‘Bana Kathadi’ girl super happy. “It is a big gift to act in Mani sir’s movie so early in my career. I am so thrilled to work with such a great filmmaker,” she says.

Different endings for ‘Ekk Deewana Tha’ Gautham Menon has created history. In what appears to be the first time in India, his “Ekk Deewana Tha,” the Hindi remake of his romantic musical in Tamil “Vinnaithandi Varuvaya” will have two different endings. Fox Star Studios, the Hindi producers, have decided to go with two endings for the film. In an exclusive interview Gautham Menon said: “My Ekk Deewana Thaa will have two different endings. The popular ending shown in most of theaters will have one particular ending while a directors cut shown in an elite screen will have a different ending.”

Richa in the Bengali remake of ‘Singam’ R i c h a Gangopadhyay made her debut in films Tamil t h r o u g h ‘Mayakkam Enna’ ‘Osthe.’ and Having established her market across the South Indian film industry, she has started acting in her mother tongue Bengali. She earned a good name in South Indian language films and for now has avoided signing any new projects due to this Bengali movie.

When enquired about this, she has mentioned that she prefers to act in the films that are made in her mother tongue. Apart from that she does not want to act in other language films without understanding them.

Hot Garam masala

The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel

Asin promised another century with ‘Housefull 2’ While Kareena Kapoor stays on to be the numero uno heroine when it comes to be a part of the 1 billion grossing films and Priyanka Chopra has as well joined the league with ‘Don2’ and ‘Agneepath,’ the one who has managed this feat much earlier is Asin.

With ‘Ghajini’ being Bollywood's first century affair and ‘Ready’ making it two in a row for the South import, Asin has now been promised by the makers of her next film ‘Houseful 2’ that she would now enjoy yet another 1 billion runner.

Ranveer Singh dances for his fans in Purulia!

The unit of Vikramaditya Motwane's epic romance “Lootera” starring Ranveer Singh and Sonakshi Sinha has been shooting in a small village in the Purulia district of West Bengal. It was quite a grueling schedule for the cast and crew as the location of the shoot was a 4 hour drive from the hotel where they stayed in Purulia. However, despite travelling to and fro for almost 8 hours daily and then shooting another 8-10 hours, Ranveer would still make it a point to entertain the huge crowd that would gather outside his hotel to see him every day. Ranveer would dance to popular tunes from ‘Band, Baaja Baaraat’ for the cheering crowd, which had gathered from far and wide. Needless to say, within no time he had become a darling of the masses of Purulia district.

Sherlyn posts nude picture Firebrand Sherlyn Chopra has donned a new hat.

She has turned producer and says that she is happy to be a part of the era which has witnessed a huge revolution. She is also happy that she has gone from being just a pin-up girl to an entrepreneur. The actress says ""Unconventionality is no longer a taboo.

It is being applauded and celebrated by both the classes and the masses. The pulse of the youth is racing towards liberalisation. And I'm truly loving it."

Following her statement, the actress has recently posted her naked pics on twitter on her birthday saying "Thx a ton for all ur wishes!! Here's one more on public demand !!! I was born this way!!' . However, one of the pics clearly resembles the first look of 'Jism2' campaign.

“The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel” from the director of “Shakespeare in Love” John Madden, featuring Bollywood’s latest crush and top model Tena Desae romancing “Slumdog Millionaire” star and BAFTA nominee Dev Patel is a feel-good comedy boasting the cream of British talent, including Dames Judie Dench and Maggie Smith, Bill Nighy, Tom Wilkinson amongst others.

They are joined by veteran Indian actress Lillete Dubey (“Monsoon Wedding,” “Housefull,” “Kal Ho Naa Ho”), who plays the mother of Dev Patel’s character Sonny. The film will be released nationwide in cinemas on 24th February.

The film revolves around a desperate group of English pensioners who abandon their homeland enticed by advertisements of The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel, a seemingly luxurious sanctuary for “the elderly and beautiful” in Jaipur, India. On arrival, they discover that the hotel falls somewhat short of the romantic idyll but are gradually won over by the ever-optimistic young entrepreneurial manager Sonny (Dev Patel). “The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel” promises a heady mix of comedy and emotion, showing India at its beautiful best.

Veena denies being a spy Pakistani actress Veena Malik has denied working as a spy for her country's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), Delhi police told a court. The police statement came after a court's order to file an action taken report on a complaint seeking registration of a case against Malik for allegedly spying in India. Metropolitan Magistrate Purva Sareen after taking note of the police report, listed the case for arguments on March 2. Mahidul Hassan, Imam of a mosque in south Delhi's Jamia Nagar, in his complaint alleged that she was working for the ISI after Malik's purported photograph was published on a magazine cover with an "ISI" tattoo on her arm.

Asian Voice - Saturday 25th February 2012

My priorities have changed now, Genelia

Kareena's mujra brings the house down in Delhi Delhi was abuzz recently with echoes of 'Dil Mera Muft Ka' - the mujra song from Illuminati's ‘Agent Vinod’ starring Saif Ali Khan and Kareena Kapoor.

Lead actress, Kareena Kapoor was in the capital city for the special screening of the song at DT Mall, the first mujra track of her career which opened to whistles and an encore. Says a source present, "Kareena Kapoor is Bollywood's ultimate diva and her performance in a mujra song is a double bonus for the audience. There was clapping and whistling in the cinema as soon as the song was screened. 'Dil Mera Muft Ka' is a sure-shot treat to all Bebo fans."

At the event, Kareena Kapoor mentioned that she admires veteran actress Rekha for her performance to mujra songs. "Rekhaji has been the ultimate performer when it comes to classic mujra songs but 'Dil Mera Muft Ka' is a contemporary take on mujras and I hope everyone enjoys it as much as I have had performing it," said Kareena. The highly anticipated action-adventure ‘Agent Vinod’ also starring Saif Ali Khan, Adil Hussain, Ram Kapoor, Prem Chopra and Gulshan Grover, is all set to release on the 23rd March 2012.

Ali Zafar: Change is good Romil Patel Ali Zafar is an accomplished singer and song writer with an array of talent in the arts.

Recently, he ventured into acting and I quizzed him on his upcoming film “London, Paris, New York” which will be released worldwide on 2 March 2012. I was eager to uncover the journey of a talented Pakistani who, as it transpires, has been a popular export to India.

How did you find the evolutionary process from singer to actor?

Extremely adventurous. Music and acting are closely interrelated. As a singer I have played different characters in my music videos almost like a short film. I felt that it was the right time to unleash the actor within me for a feature film.

Please describe the experience of working in Bollywood There was a lot of hard work. I came to India in 2004 and I released my first song. It has been a long journey but the success from my first film has made it worthwhile. The opportunity of composing and writing my own songs for the movies were a big deal for me. It has been an extremely joyous journey for me. In the end I feel that it has been worth it. Rewards after hard work are considerably more enjoyable than receiving them on a silver platter.

What sets ‘London, Paris, New York’ apart from other romantic flicks?

I think it is the new age way of telling a love story. It's in an entirely different place. It is different because the narrative has been put in a manner which is more new age. It is more contemporary. It is shorter. The way in which the two characters speak – it is today’s language, youthful, casual and natural. It is trying to appeal

to the younger generation.

How was working with Katrina and Imran in ‘Mere Brother Ki Dulhan’?

They were both great co-stars to work with, very fun and very helpful.

How different has it been working on this film (‘London, Paris, New York’) than ‘Tere Bin Laden,’ ‘Luv Ka The End’ or ‘Mere Brother Ki Dulhan’?

Every film is different. This one is short – two people are having a conversation and the camera is shooting them. It is very naturally shot. It doesn't look like acting. It is our (director and actors) representation of these two characters. One day lies in London, the other in Paris and the final in New York.

Did you shoot in London, Paris, New York in all three cities?

Yes. Each left a different impression which was long lasting.

Enriching and memorable in its own way.

Of the three, which is your preferred city?

I love New York and London – both of them.

Paris a little bit less because it is harder to communicate.

How has transition been from the days of Pakistan to India?

It's been interesting, different. Change is good in whatever form it comes, you evolve throughout life.

What sets this film apart from other Bollywood films?

This is the probably the first time the actor and actresses are singing their own songs in a Bollywood movie. This is unique. I have written the lyrics and composed the songs, arranged them and sung them.

15

Actress Genelia D'Souza, who tied the knot with actor Riteish Deshmukh earlier this month, says her priorities in life have changed after marriage. The 24-yearold said she will continue doing films but her first preference will be her husband and family. "Life has become all the more beautiful after marriage. I am excited to be the part of his family. I will continue doing films but now my first priority will be my family. I haven't decided yet whether I will work only with him, or how many films I will do in a year. But I have to adjust many things in life now," she said.

Genelia, said she is happy to have Riteish, 33, in her life. "Riteish is the biggest gift I have had in my life. He is the kind of guy I have dreamt of. He respects me and his family and I feel this is the biggest asset in a person's life. Dating each other for the past eight years was an exciting phase for me," she said.

In "Tere Naal Love Ho Gaya", directed by Manpreet Kumar, Genelia will be seen playing a tomboy who kidnaps Riteish to escape her impending marriage with some other guy. The film has a unique climax that everyone will enjoy," she said. Hitting theatres on February 24, this will be the third film together for the newly-wed couple.

Paresh Rawal to tour London with his comedy play

Katrina, Deepika back in Ranbir's life

Venugurlekar, Rajesh Singh, Chetan Dhanani and others.

The plays will be conducted in Harrow, Wembley, Ilford, Hayes and Central London. The event will be held for five nights - 5th, 6th, 7th, 8th and 9th of April 2012.

The play will be in East London on Thursday 5th of April (at 19:30), at Eastbury comprehensive school.

On Friday 6th (at 18:30) of April it will be in Harrow at Hatch End High school. On Saturday 7th of April (at 19:30) the event will be held in Hayes at the Navnat Centre. On Sunday 8th (at 18:30) of April the event will be in Central London, at the Logan Hall and the final show will be in Wembley at Copland Community School on 9th of April (at 18:30).

For further information and tickets please contact Bharat Amin on 07703856157 or email to events@fantasiaads.co.uk

It's that time of life when history repeats himself. Just a little while ago, Ranbir Kapoor who was touted to be Casanova, was single and ready to mingle. Deepika Padukone and he broke up, he was linked to Katrina Kaif and suddenly news of his and Nargis Fakhri were doing the rounds. And then nothing! Now, they all seem to be coming back! Deepika and Ranbir have buried the hatchet, and are even working together in Ayaan Mukherjee's film. And post that we get to hear Kat and Ranbir are an item again! Result: Deepika and Katrina re-enter the Kapoors life in a sort of role reversal.

After the good response he received for his Hindi play “Krishan vs. Kanhaiya” in May 2011, Paresh Rawal and his team is visiting London again in April 2012 to make the people laugh again. He is collaborating with Fantasia Events, founded by Bharat Amin and Mukesh Gadhvi for the tour. The play, Krishan vs.

Kanhaiya was performed in London for the first time last year, following its success in USA. Following endless requests from the London audience, Paresh Rawal is happy to visit London again with his play in April 2012.

Paresh Rawal plays the lead role of Krishan, who is an atheist within a religious family. The play, takes you on a journey with Krishan and the dispute he has with God. He says the play as ‘an intelligent comedy, with a message to take home.’ He has been supported on stage

by Vaibhav Bineewale, Puja Gupta, Saunil Daru, Pradip

16

Asian Voice - Saturday 25th February 2012

Asian Voice - Saturday 25th February 2012

17

18

Asian Voice - Saturday 25th February 2012

Want to Keep Your Cash Flow From Crashing?

Dear Financial Voice Reader: What are bankers worth I will have appeared on Sky News for a documentary by the time you read this. The question I am being asked; ‘what are bankers worth?’

Well let me tell you. Bankers have created the second largest company in Britain – HSBC. Second only to Shell. In fact bankers have created five of the largest British companies in the FTSE 100. (Barclays, HSBC, Lloyds, RBS, Standard Chartered).

These companies they created are worth as much as £100 billion in the case of HSBC. That is value to the shareholders, often pension funds. Indeed, in the case of HSBC it has tripled its share price in 15 years – again a bonus to its shareholder pensioners. And that is before paying dividends to them.

Their most recent UK corporation tax bills came to £3bln (Barclays), £3 billion (HSBC), £539m (Lloyds), £634m (RBS) and £1bln (Standard Chartered). That excludes payroll taxes and the tax of employees and tax in other countries.

And if you want to know jobs they create: Citigroup employs 200,000 people. Barclays employs 140,000 people. The profit generated per employee of Barclays, assuming they all worked out of their UK company, comes to £40,000 each. That in a sense is what a banker is worth. So should they be getting paid more or less?

Those at the bottom as a receptionist didn’t create that much? So they should not be on £40,000 should they?

What is a banker worth? In the case of Barclays, who paid total tax globally of £6 billion pounds it is someone who gave rise to a company that generates £40,000 in tax on average across every single employee. I bet the ‘Occupy’ protestors don’t add that much value to society.

So is the CEO Bob Diamond overpaid? Well what if we linked bonuses to the tax your company pays? The more tax the company you run pays, the more pay you can award yourself. If Barclays did that, would you say the CEO is worth 1% of the annual tax his company pays? If he was his salary including bonus would have been 10 times higher. In fact his £6m salary, represents 0.1% of the company’s tax bill.

What about looking after poor shareholder pensioners? HSBC pays more in dividends for every £100 of stock you hold than BP does to its shareholders. Price of oil is so high – don’t hear anyone complaining there.

They pay more than BT does – price of your phone bill sky high? Pay more than BskyB pays its shareholders – complaints about Murdoch anyone? They pay more than Diageo – binge drinking Britain a complainer?

Anyway, it’s a business – what business is it of the Government to argue whether they should get more or less. If you don’t like it, you have three choices – become a banker, become a shareholder, or move your custom elsewhere. Oh, or become a dictator.

And for those wanting to break up British banks into tiny units I say this. It is a competitive world and for your information HSBC is only the 9th largest bank by assets in the world. Despite being Britain’s second largest company. ($183billion in assets compared to JP Morgan’s $1.8 trillion) – so stop trying to make Britain tiny.

Oh, economic damage caused? The Dow Jones Industrial Average is around pre-credit crunch levels of 2008. So your pension which owns these companies has recovered. It took one year of the market dropping ie 2008 and then since January 2009 – the market has risen and risen – including bank stocks. During the dotcom bubble, the market fell for three years (2000 to 2003) and took four years to get back to pre-fall levels.

Don’t hear anyone saying Mark Zuckerburg’s worth too much do you? Social utility of Facebook? Well costs hundreds of hours in wasted work time and lack of productivity as employees play around on Facebook.

What of social utility? Barclays serves 48 million people in 50 countries. Not really unwanted by society is it?

Sticking with Barclays, they also in one year: Delivered £43.6bn of gross new lending to UK businesses, including £14.7bn to SMEs; Provided over £230bn in credit facilities to businesses globally, raised over $1tn of funding for corporate clients including $388bn for governments and public sector entities; Supported almost 1m home owners, including over 10,000 first time buyers. Oh, and pretty much doubled their share price since December too.

The Greek tragedy unfolding in Europe shows all too clearly the consequences of spending more than you make. It is not that different for a business. If your business is experiencing problems with debt collection, then take note: bad debt collection and knock on cash flow problems are often cited as top reasons for business failure. Getting the cash in is as important as getting a big contract.

To recover debts quickly you should have clear payment terms (for example, demanding payment within 30 days) and standard debt recovery procedures (which could be, sending out reminder letters, ending with a final letter warning of legal action).

Legally, demands should be as specific as possible and say if interest is included. Courts also want people to try and resolve matters before starting a Court claim, if you don’t you may not be able to recover the money you spend in doing so. You should

therefore be open to negotiation and settlement outside of Court action.

If your customer does not respond to your payment requests (or overtures to settle) and you have to take legal steps, then the amount and the complexity of your case will decide which Court will hear it: claims below £15,000 will usually be heard in the County Court and anything higher will be heard in the High Court.

Apart from in the simplest cases it is a good idea to get advice on what to include in your Court documents: the Court may throw your case out if you are not clear about the legal basis of your claim and you could be liable for costs. Further there are complicated rules about the interest (such as if it is contractual or set in law) which can be claimed. The fee normally paid when you submit your papers in Court will also be lost if your claim is thrown out.

Having filed your papers with the court,

you can either ask the Court to send them to your debtor, or send them yourself. There are stringent rules and time limits and so you should get guidance on this first. Where the debtor does not respond to your Court documents then you can ask the Court to give judgment against your debtor.

This is not the end of the road: even when you have a judgment, the debtor may not pay. To enforce the judgment you will have to apply again to the Court: you could apply for a charging order against a property, or have goods belonging to the debtor seized for instance. There are other methods also, and the relative merits will depend on the circumstances of your case.

Remember, cash flow is king, and making bad debtors good is one way

Bhavini Kalaria

of ensuring that your business survives.

If you would like legal advice or have questions on any of the matters discussed, you can contact me at info@londonlawpractice.com or on 0208 445 6753.

Air India loses monopoly over foreign routes the maximum permissible capacity granted to a country as per the bilateral deals under air service agreements (ASA). These agreements lay out the maximum number of seats that can be deployed between two countries by their respective carriers in a week.

The first right of refusal

by AI has given a major advantage to foreign carriers. They have become lead players in almost all important sectors as private Indian carriers were not allowed to spread their wings and the Maharaja

did not have the resources to do so either. Foreign carriers have 55% share in the Asia-Pacific region.

With mega airports coming up in India at huge costs, the ministry is also trying to create hubs like Dubai, Singapore or Hong Kong here by giving desi airlines freedom to expand their networks and give connectivity to across the globe from their bases here. The government has decided to increase the connectivity between India and other countries by entering into agreements with nations that do not have an ASA at present.

Farm yield touches record high: Manmohan

Sensex surges past 18,000 mark after 6 months

Air India's virtual monopoly among Indian carriers, to be the first to fly to foreign destinations, is finally over. For a long time, AI enjoyed exclusive privilege of "right of first refusal", which ensured private Indian carriers are deprived of foreign routes even if the national carrier says it might do so at a later stage.

As a result, foreign carriers are able to utilize almost all their flying rights to India, while desi airlines are unable to do so because of the AI roadblock as private airlines could operate a route only after Maharaja

Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh on Monday said India's farm yield has touched a new high with food production expected to exceed 250 million tonnes, "an all time record", at the end of the Eleventh Five Year Plan ending March 31.

Addressing the golden jubilee celebrations of the Indian Agricultural Research Institute (IARI), Dr Singh emphasized that a prosperous, productive and sustainable farm economy is the cornerstone of equitable and inclusive growth of India.

He said the government was pursuing comprehensive reform and revitalisation of agrarian economy and has adopted a multi-pronged strategy to improve returns to farming and step up investment in rural infrastructure.

declines to fly there.

While removing this anomaly, the government says it will still give due weightage to AI's operational plans but not allow it to be a roadblock for other carriers. The aviation ministry has decided that all scheduled Indian carriers would be allowed to utilize

He said the government's flagship agricultural plans like Bharat Nirman, Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA), the Rashtriya Krishi Vikas Yojana and the Rainfed Areas Development Programme and other agrarian policies have begun to pay off and the country has "reached new plateaus in food grain production".

"Food production at the end of the Eleventh Plan

will exceed 250 million tonnes, an all time record.

Our pulse production, at 18 million tonnes, is well above the previous barrier of 15 million tonnes.

"We are producing today more milk, more fruits, more vegetables, more sugarcane, more oilseeds and more cotton than ever before. Last year production of vegetables went up by 9.57 per cent and nearly two million tonnes of cold storage capacity was created."

He said the agricultural growth was "likely to be about 3.5 per cent per annum during the Eleventh Five Year Plan which is much better than in the 10th".

He said the achievement was "commendable" but "we must improve upon it in the Twelfth Plan to reach four per cent growth or even higher".

Buoyed by strong foreign institutional investment flows on the back of strong global cues, the Bombay Stock Exchange sensex surged past the psychologically significant 18,000 mark last week - a level last was seen in August 2011. In the process, the index also registered a 20% increase from its 52-week low that it hit on December 20, which technically signals a bull market.

Although investors in sensex companies emerged richer by about Rs 3,000 billion, since the lows of the last week of December. But not all the traders shared the same euphoria on the possibility of a sustained bull run.

That is perhaps to do with the fact that no one was really expecting this rally.

FINANCIAL VOICE

Asian Voice - Saturday 25th February 2012

19

A Double Edged Sword

Suresh Vagjiani Managing Director Sow & Reap A Property Investment Company

Some time ago we completed on a property in Bravington Rd, Maida Vale. This property was formally a freehold block consisting of three one bedroom flats.

The property was bought at auction for £726,000.

The aim was to convert this into a two bedroom ground floor flat with a garden, a two bedroom on the first floor, and a three bedroom on the top floor.

The end goal is to sell the individual flats, achieving £1.2m in total, this was our estimation based on what we saw in the local area.

The construction costs where £200k. So the gain on this would be £274,000.

The property was purchased in cash originally to save time as it was picked up in the auction. On one hand it’s always good to have some level of borrowing on the property. One of the important points with property is you can make money......with the bank’s money and not yours. If you think about this most of the money used to purchase property normally belongs to the bank not you.

Typically on a Buy to Let mortgage 75% of the money used belongs to the bank.

On the other hand our Indian instinct tells us borrowing is bad.

First generation Indians always worked hard to ensure their properties where debt free as soon as possible so they could pass something through to the next generation.

If you analyse the word mortgage you will see it is very revealing.

The word mort means death and gage has its roots in chains and being tied. Often the root of a word reveals its true meaning.

Credit is a double edged sword. In recent years it has caused havoc. Not to the Amish community in the US however, they are a Christian society who live off the land, and refrain from taking debt unless it’s for land.

S o i f u s e d i n t h e ri g h t wa y i t c a n g e n e ra t e d is p ro p o rt i o n at e pr o f i t s a n d in t h e wr o n g wa y c a n d r o wn yo u . C re d it i s a k n i f e , in t h e h a n d s o f a su rg e o n i t c a n b e u s e d t o h e a l a n d i n t h e h an d s o f a c r i mi n a l i t c a n k i l l , i t b o i l s d o wn t o w h o is u s i n g i t a n d t h e i r c o m pe t e n c y .

Going back to our block, because this was a development project the bank valuation has been done very thoroughly. In the past we have had some ridiculous exchanges with valuers when purchasing single BTL properties. I remember one valuer who had marked a property down as an ex-council property when it wasn't. I called him up and asked him where he got his information from, he replied it

The Victorian House Sanitisation The most notable advance in house design was the provision of internal bathrooms and WC’s leading to unprecedented improvements in personal and domestic hygiene. At the beginning of this period hot water had to be heated at the kitchen fire and carried, losing heat all the way to wherever it was needed. After use the dirty water had to be disposed of equally laboriously. By the end of the Victorian age a hygiene revolution had taken place. Most towns had public supplies of clean water and sewage disposal systems and most new houses were provided with bathrooms, running water and plumbed-in water closets.

Despite these advances large sections of the working class population at the beginning of the twentieth century were still having to share privies, wash in cold water at the scullery sink and take baths in portable tubs. Those at the opposite end of the social scale were slow to adopt bathrooms, although in their case it was through choice. Some wealthy families were enthusiastic about indoor plumbing, but there was a great deal of aristocratic resistance to bathrooms, and to plumbed in fitting generally. As long as there was a cheap supply of labour to fetch and carry

water for them, the upper classes had little incentive to install expensive equipment for the same purpose.

Thus the development of the modern bathrooms was largely a middle class phenomenon.

The effort of keeping a family clean in a house with neither a bathroom nor an army of servants was a powerful motive to acquire indoor plumbing.

was the (very elderly) pensioner living as a tenant in the flat. I told him I had spoken to the council and they had confirmed it was not.

He had the nerve to ask me to send the documents to him. So he, a RICS qualified surveyor, who is paid to do the job gets his info from practically thin air, and we have to document our claim!

The valuation report for the block was refreshingly well done and well researched. The value placed on the building in the report dated 4th December 2011 was £1.2m on the assumption three flats where to be made and reconfigured. The build cost had been estimated very accurately at £200k which is roughly what we will be paying the contractors. It helps if the valuer is based in the local area. At times valuers come in from way outside of London and give ridiculous prices.

It is always good when a well done valuation report confirms your estimates. But the truth is the level we quoted of £1.2m was conservative, the valuer naturally follows suit as one of his aims is to cover himself for liability. As these properties will come on the market in Spring I believe we will achieve more than the quoted figure, time will tell.

The report even went on to recognise it is “apparent that a two tier market has developed”. This is due to increased difficulty in obtaining funding with cash-rich purchasers available to take advantage of distressed sales situations such as the one we had picked up.

The housing market still sees house prices flat although the London area still continues to buck the national trend.

The report stated: “House prices are predicted to remain at their present level over the coming months although London and the South-East still fails to follow the national trends with some areas showing increased demand and activity leading to rises in prices.

We consider that demand for well placed residential properties such as the subject remains reasonable at appropriate levels.”

The fact there is a two tier system is very important. This means investing in property in the right sector will yield profits.

Many do not believe property will rise, as there’s a tendency to paint everything with the same brush and have become frozen with in action.

Central London is still set to rise and there will be more opportunities coming on to the market at the higher end. We appreciate this level of purchasing will be hard to reach by most, this is why it’s a good time to get into consortiums and be ready to strike. Call us to find out more about how this can be achieved.

We provide a turnkey solution. Contact us now:

Specialists in Central London Property Sourcing

0207 313 4595 Westbourne House, 14-16 Westbourne Grove, London, W2 5RH

Tips of the Week l Always get a Decision in Principle before offering on a property either in auction or through an agent l Pay careful attention to the ground rent especially on new build flats, as many have been kept high so they can be sold on by the developer in addition to the flats

20

Asian Voice - Saturday 25th February 2012

FINANCIAL VOICE

Asian Voice - Saturday 25th February 2012

21

Foreign Exchange Paresh Davdra is the Dealing Director of RationalFX, Currency Specialists.

Is Greece on the verge of Bankruptcy?

Over the past couple of weeks the Eurozone has been suffering heavily with the Euro due to the turmoil in Greece. The public was out in full force in retaliation to the cutbacks put in place by the government as measures including reductions on pensions and decreases in salaries were put into place. How many times have we heard about debt problems in Greece? It has become a regular figure in the spotlight with constant money being pumped into an economy that is not showing any real improvements. Many key individuals believe that the time has come for Greece to accept they can no longer remain in the Euro and should exit before further massive bailout funds are pushed their way again.

With video footage showing violence and outrage on one side whilst on the other the likes of Brussels and European economies are welcoming the austerity measures put in place to prevent the country going into default. Greece faces deadline requirements in mid-March when it needs to make repayments on a € 14.5bn bond, or face bankruptcy. In the meantime a deal on Greece's next bailout package is expected to be finalized today. Policy makers are studying the potential of

granting a bridge loan to Athens that would allow the island nation to meet €14.4 billion in repayments which are due on March 20th and consequently to avoid a default.

Evangelos Venizelos (Greece Finance Minister) believes that many of the Eurozone countries want Greece out, but Merkel (German Vice Chancellor) still says that she wants Greece in.

European Union officials are believed to be looking to delay all or part of Greece's bailout until after a general election in the country that is expected to take place in April.

This current phase of the crisis could be Greece's last chance to stay in the euro-club. The UK Telegraph believes the German finance ministry is heavily focused on Greece to declare

itself bankrupt and to agree to a reduction on the amount of its debts held by banks. This will literally mean the country could become default as soon as the next couple of days. What is interesting is that even though Merkel would like Greece to stay in the Eurozone reports are suggesting that German Finance Minister Schauble had potentially lost faith over the ability of the Greek government to abide by the severe austerity measures pit into place.

Pressure is mounting in Germany as the President Christian Wulff stepped down from their post last Friday – this comes after fears there may be ties with accepting political favours over the last couple of months. The majority of the population seems to have lost

their faith in Wulff and this is one of the main reasons why he may have stepped down. Merkel will be under the spotlight again as she initially selected Wulff and now will need to elect a new figure. This could hinder the confidence vote in Merkel as she wants Greece to remain in the Eurozone. Merkel is optimistic that a deal can be struck today, but triple ‘A’ rated countries like Finland and the Netherlands are losing their confidence and may threaten another delay on the bailout until the scheduled EU Summit in March.

More importantly what needs to be noted is that how many times will be hearing bad news on Greece? And will this continue no matter how much money is pumped into Greece by likes of the International Monetary Fund (IMF), European Monetary Union (EMU) and European banks.

This could be a time for investors buying from Euro to take advantage of the on-going saga with the debt crisis with Greece. This will come about if Greece falls as the Euro will surely see a bearish result with importers buying due to favorable rates. Whatever happens in the next few days will have a huge impact on the World economy.

Weekly Currencies As of Tuesday 21st February 2012 @ 3pm GBP - INR = 77.76 USD - INR = 49.22 EUR - INR = 65.19 GBP - USD = 1.58 GBP - EUR = 1.19 EUR - USD = 1.32 GBP - AED = 5.80 GBP - CAD = 1.57 GBP - NZD = 1.89 GBP - AUD = 1.48 GBP - ZAR = 12.18 GBP - HUF = 343.07

www.rationalfx.com Information provided by RationalFX. None of the information on this page constitutes, nor should be construed as financial advice. The exchange rates used are the commercial foreign exchange rates provided by RationalFX. For a live quote or to find out more about how RationalFX can help you, call us on 0207 220 8181.

22

fInancIal vOICE

Asian Voice - Saturday 25th February 2012

Amit Patel has over 15 years experience in the field of Leadership and Human Resource Management

Maria Fernandes

maria@abplgroup.com

Students under the spotlight again The date for the closure of the post study work route, which allowed foreign students who completed degree level studies or above to remain and work for 2 years has finally been set to the 6th April 2012. At the same time, and in order to deflect criticism, the Government are introducing a new category for students called the Graduate Entrepreneur category for those who have engaged in entrepreneurial activity for example developed a business idea whilst at university. This route will only open in April 2013.

The proposal is to introduce it for one year and allow an extension for up to 2 years. Applicants can thereafter switch into Tier 1 (Entrepreneur) if they invest £50000 in their business. However the catch is that this category will be limited to 1000 places.

The other changes to be made are an increase in the amount that students and those in work will be required to meet to show that they can support

themselves. Students will have to demonstrate availability of £1000 per month from the current £800 for those in London and to £800 from £600 for those outside London.

Furthermore those who pay accommodation fees to their Tier 4 Sponsor will only be allowed to deduct a maximum of £1000 from the maintenance required to be shown even if the student has paid more than this.

The final change is that there will be a limit of 5 years for students to remain in the UK with some limited exceptions.

Work placements will be limited to a third of the total time spent in the UK. To cap it all off there are will be further rises to fees.

A former Education Minister, Lady Blackstone has expressed her concern about the drop of students in particular from India which she estimates to be 20% and the effect this will have on Universities as students will chose UK’s main competitors, the US and Australia, who

have much more generous arrangements to encourage students. Her view is shared by many others including Viscount Hanworth, professor at University of Leicester.

The amounts required to be met are already high and these measure will definitely have an impact on students. Universities who have already seen a drop of 14% will see a huge drop of students to the less popular Universities at a challenging time and in a short span of time the influence of the UK as a centre of learning will diminish, once lost never to return. A high price to pay for a political goal of a party which failed to appreciate the difference between students and immigrants.

Maria Fernandes has been in practice exclusively in immigration for the past 25 years.

Fernandes Vaz is based at 87 Wembley Hill Road Wembley in Wembley and can be contacted by telephone on 02087330123, by email on info@fernandesvaz.com.

Dealing With Dissent

“Under a Conservative government, the NHS will remain free at the point of need and available to everyone, regardless of how much money they have in the bank." David Cameron, 2006. This was the pledge the then Leader of the opposition gave to the country.

Today, he is prime minister and one of the greatest challenges to his government is to convince people that his government is not going to privatize the NHS. Despite numerous pledges, amendments and clarifications, there is still a strong, loud voice of opposition to his plans.

Rather than wade into the debate about how to ‘treat’ the NHS, I wanted to focus on how Cameron has dealt with the significant resistance to his proposals. In 2006 he initially suggested that people could opt to use their contributions to the NHS as part payment towards a medical insurance policy. He learned very quickly that such a policy would permanently alienate him from the vast majority of middle class voters and so he scrapped that idea and

made the pledge quoted above.

Once he became Prime minister, his health secretary began the process of laying out the governments proposals.

Instantly there was widespread and vociferous outrage at some of the plans. Again, Cameron maintained his poise and stated that his government would be different to the previous one in that they would actually consult with key stakeholders and even more importantly, they would listen. He stated that is they had got it wrong, they would put it right.

To be fair, he did listen and some amendments were made. However, the veracity of the opposition has still not been subdued and as recently as Monday he was again defending his proposals saying, "Reform is never easy, but it is vital to reform our NHS because I want it to be there looking after every family in the country and doing a good job into the future.”

Cameron has given a good example of how to deal with dissent. When you wish to bring about change you should make

DGCA summons UK businesses target surging Kingfisher officials, govt Indian tourism market

A record number of British tourism businesses will be visiting India soon to tap the tourism market there.

Representatives from tourism, retail and sporting industries will participate in India Mission 2012, encouraged by the emergence of India as a major player in terms of tourism visits to Britain over the last couple of years, with record highs for both spend and visits being witnessed. Around 250 key Indian buyers are expected to meet with the UK trade delegation at various briefing sessions to be held in New Delhi and Mumbai.

With inbound arrivals from India expected to increase significantly over the remainder of the decade, VisitBritain hopes it will be able to use key events in 2012 to entice a greater number of Indians to choose Britain for their next holiday.

While Indians undertook nearly 10 million outbound visits in 2010, Britain received only 371,000 visitors from the country, making the UK the 11th most visited destination by Indian residents. Competitors such as France are currently receiving 20% more visitors from India than the UK, so it is vital that VisitBritain increases its activities to motivate

Indian travellers to favour Britain instead.

VisitBritain research suggests that the number of annual visits to Britain from this BRIC nation has the potential to almost double by 2020, which could result in nearly 800,000 visits a year. A typical visit to Britain from India generates £980 with visitors tending to stay for longer periods of time due to a dominance of visits to friends and relatives already living in the UK. As part of VisitBritain’s £25 million GREAT image campaign, Mumbai and Delhi will be submerged in GREAT branding, with huge billboard posters being seen by over 16 million people.

VisitBritain’s 60 second TV advert will be exclusively shown just before Indian movie goers sit down to watch their latest Bollywood blockbusters across 120 cinemas. There will also be 200 taxis with GREAT branding driving around the two major cities in India picking up thousands of commuters each day. As well as the image side of the campaign VisitBritain is working hard with partners on tactical marketing, bringing in the likes of British Airways who offer great deals to turn aspirational

travel into visits right now.

Head of the mission and VisitBritain’s Strategy and Communication Director, Patricia Yates said: “Trade missions such as this are essential for building the foundations for sustained growth of the UK’s inbound tourism economy. Britain accounted for only 3% of all outbound trips from India in 2010, yet while this still generated nearly £363 million for the UK economy, there is clearly scope for us to do more in order to attract a greater share of a market worth £6.5 billion a year.”

“We know the Indian market has enormous potential for us, but if we are to achieve our 2020 projections of 80% growth we must be able to capitalise on the strong interest that already exists and do everything we can to encourage a greater number of visitors. To do that, we must be able to take advantage of the positive perceptions that the Indian population has of Britain, particularly those relating to our culture and heritage and sport which we are exploiting by taking Historic Royal Palaces, Marylebone Cricket Club and Wimbledon Lawn Tennis Museum on this mission.”

says no bailout "Recently govern-

Kingfisher's top officials, including its CEO Sanjay Aggarwal, were summoned by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) on Monday to explain the largescale disruptions in the operations.

The union civil aviation has made it clear that the government will not bail out the airline.

Kingfisher Airlines operations continued to be disrupted with around 14 flights cancelled on Monday, a day after the DGCA took a serious note of the developments and asked the airline CEO to appear before them, an airport official said.

Meanwhile, the government has ruled out any bailout plan for the cashstrapped airline. Civil Aviation Minister Ajit Singh said: "The government is not going to have any bailout plan for Kingfisher Airlines.

Government is not going to ask banks or private industry for that matter."

ment had seized their bank accounts also.

So our first concern is that flights which are ongoing, passenger safety should not be compromised and then let us see what reply they give.

DGCA is inquiring into it," Singh said.

"Recently, the employees in Kolkata went on a strike for non-payment of salary for several months.

Naturally, the flights got cancelled," he said.

DGCA's role, he said, was to see that there are no questions on passenger safety.

Kingfisher was holding talks with banks and they have given their business plan. Government has made some changes recently, including in respect of aviation fuel policy whereby airlines could directly import jet fuel, Singh noted.

More than 20 flights were cancelled on Monday. About 80 flights of the carrier from six metro cities did not operate on Sunday leaving hundreds of passengers stranded. The ailing carrier had failed to file a report on the number of flights it had cancelled since Friday night to the DGCA.

By Amit Patel

every effort to clearly state what you propose to do, why you are you doing it and how. There will always be doubters and critics, but it is important to listen to them and understand their concerns, for you will need their support. You should consider any proposals and if they are practical and sensible then they should be accepted and implemented.

By doing this you can win over many skeptics and would be opponents.

Of course, you could also resort to another ‘Cameron tactic’ – organise an emergency summit to discuss the plans, but just don’t invite those who oppose you the most. This is how you deal with dissent.

Amit Patel has over 15 years experience in the field of Personal Development and Human Resource Management.

He has delivered speeches on People Management and Development throughout Europe, North America, and Asia. To contact Amit, email amitpatelmail@gmail.com

China overtakes India as largest gold consumer China has overtaken India as the world's largest gold consumer as buyers here shunned the yellow metal in the wake of spiralling prices.

Latest data released by the World Gold Council, the agency involved in market development, showed that demand for jewellery, and gold bars and coins fell 42% to 173 tonnes during the fourth quarter of 2011.

At the same time, demand in China grew to 190.6 tonnes during OctoberDecember 2011, compared to 190.3 tonnes a year ago, marking the first time when India dropped to the second position in gold consumption rankings.

While India remained the top consumer for the full year, even that position may come under threat in 2012. Sales during the year fell 7% in India to 933 tonnes, led by a 14% fall in the jewellery segment. Purchase of bars and coins, however, grew by 5%. At 770 tonnes, China's consumption was 87% of India's. "This figure has only recently risen above the 50% mark, reflecting the strength of China's presence in the gold market," the WGC report said. This year, the report warned, there were fewer auspicious dates in the Hindu calendar, which may impact sales in India.

woRld

Asian Voice - Saturday 25th February 2012

In Focus Border issue: China blames India Beijing: China has blamed India and its multi-party political system for the delay in solving the vexed Sino-India border issue.

Though the 15th round of border talks were concluded last month leaving a "good trend" in the bilateral relations, some contradictions and issues are still severely disturbing the normal development of the China-India relations. Because the Indian side insist that the border line between China and India should be based on the " McMahon Line" left by British colonists. It also said that India believes that the border dispute between the two countries covers not only the eastern region of 90,000 square km but also 30,000 sq km in the western region.

Egypt to hold presidential poll in May Cairo: Egypt's first presidential election since Hosni Mubarak was overthrown a year ago will be held by late May. Army leaders who took over from Mubarak in February last year have faced street protests and widespread demands that they hand power to civilians sooner than the end-June deadline they had set themselves. The nominations for the race would be accepted from March 10, minister for Parliamentary Affairs and Local Development Mohamed Attia told al-Ahram and said the election would be held by late May, giving candidates three weeks to declare their candidature and 45 days for campaigning.

Hindu images razed in Maldives museum Colombo: The Maldives' national museum reopened without some of its most valuable exhibits a week after a mob of suspected religious extremists smashed images from the pre-Islamic era of this Indian Ocean archipelago. About 35 exhibits, mostly images of Buddha and Hindu gods, were destroyed in the attack. Some of the artifacts dated back to the sixth century. Ninety nine per cent of the Maldives' pre-Islamic artifacts from before the 12th century, when most inhabitants were Buddhists or Hindus.

NRI couple meets kids in Norway foster home Oslo: Distraught parents of two Indian- origin children held in Norway under protective care had an emotional re-union with their kids and hoped that the family's suffering will end soon, months after the issue triggered a diplomatic row. NRI couple, Anurup and Sagarika Bhattacharya, met their children Abhigyan (3) and Aishwarya (1) for two hours after a gap of three months at the foster home in Stavanger under close observation of child welfare authorities. The children were taken under protective care in May last year by Barnevarne, the Norwegian Child Welfare Services, on the ground of "emotional disconnect" with the parents, and placed them in foster parental care according to a local Norwegian court's directive.

India-born biologist bags major international award Washington: India-born biologist Kamal Bawa has bagged the world's first international award for outstanding scientific work that promotes sustainable development globally. Dr Bawa, distinguished Professor of Biology at the University of Massachusetts in Boston, will receive the Gunnerus Sustainability Award from the Royal Norwegian Society of Sciences and Letters (DKNVS) at a function in Trondheim, Norway on April 17, an official announcement said.

Prison fire kills over 350 in Honduras Comayagua, Honduras: More than 350 convicts died screaming and spluttering when a huge fire ripped through a prison in Honduras, reducing large swathes of the complex to a blackened husk. Choked by smoke and scorched by flames, hundreds of inmates scrambled to escape with their lives after an inmate apparently set fire to the overcrowded prison in Comayagua, about 75 km (45 miles) north of the capital Tegucigalpa last week.

23

'Ban Gita' court battle restarts in Russia Moscow/New Delhi: Hindus in Russia are bracing for a fresh court battle against attempts in the Siberian city of Tomsk to get their sacred 'Bhagavad Gita' branded as "extremist literature" and banned, after the state prosecutors filed an appeal against an earlier judgment in December last year throwing out their case.

The state prosecutors have already filed their appeal in the Russian court, which has set March 6 as the date of first hearing of the appeal, according to Krishna followers in Russia.

"The prosecutors have filed their appeal in the Tomsk court against the earli-

er judgment dismissing their plea to ban Bhagavad Gita.

The court has now set March 6 as the date of hearing their plea," Sadhu Priya Das, a key

member of the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (Iskcon) said.

Tomsk region prosecutor general Vasily Voikin, in his appeal, has demanded that a Russian comment included in 'Bhagavad Gita As It Is', the treatise on the Hindu sacred scripture by Iskcon founder A.C. Srila Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada be banned, RIA Novosti quoted his deputy as saying.

"The prosecutor has demanded that a Russian translation of a comment in this book, earlier published in English, be banned as extremist, not the canonical text of the scripture," Tomsk region deputy prosecutor

general Ivan Semchishin said.

"The bid to ban the Russian translation of the Bhagavad Gita has been misunderstood," Tomsk region prosecutor general Alexander Buksman said.

"It's important to discern gems from the chatter in this very case; the society's perception of this issue is that prosecutors are standing against the concepts of this religion (Hinduism).

However, the problem is that the Russian translation has paragraphs that could be seen as promoting extremism; prosecutors started the case for that reason," Buksman said.

Ukrainian girls face jail term US asks India to 'wean' from Iranian crude for insulting Indian flag

Kiev: A group of Ukrainian topless protesters may face jail term up to four years for climbing onto the balcony of the I n d i a n ambassador in Kiev and tearing down India's national flag last month, police said on Friday.

The protesters had brought down the Indian flag, smashed the doors and windows with it and threw it on the ground.

The Femen activists were enraged by the Indian foreign ministry ordering thorough checks into all Ukrainians aged 15 to 40 seeking to enter the country, saying it would help weed out the numerous prostitutes in search of a job, the RIA Novosti reported.

The incident resulted in two cases opened on separate charges of hooliganism and desecration of state symbols,

Ukrainian police said.

But no one was charged as of Friday evening. The incident had occurred on January 19.

The Indian ambassador to Ukraine, Rajiv K. Chander, was not at his residence when the four women from Femen arrived in Indian attire and stripped to their waists before using a ladder to reach the second-floor balcony, an Indian media report said.

The women tied a banner in English to the balcony that declared: "We are not prostitutes". They also carried placards in English and Russian that said "Delhi, close your brothels" and "We demand apologies".

Washington: As the US imposed new sanctions against Iran, Washington said it was talking to India, Pakistan, Russia, and China about what they can do, particularly to wean themselves from Iranian crude.

"We are engaged in conversations with all of these governments with regard to the importance of implementing existing international sanctions, national sanctions," State Department spokesperson Victoria Nuland told when asked about several countries still doing business with Iran.

It was also talking to them about "doing what they can to increase sanctions, particularly to wean themselves from Iranian crude. So this is a process, it's still going on," she said.

But as the Secretary of State Hillary Clinton said on Friday, "we do assess that the pressure, economic and diplomatic, on Iran is beginning to pinch. And you see the fruit of that, and the fact that we after many months, have Iran

Iran cuts oil sales to Britain, France; threatens to snap EU supply Tehran: Tehran will cut oil exports to more EU nations if they remain "hostile" , the deputy oil minister who heads Iran's state oil company said on Monday, a day after sales were halted to France and Britain. Exports to Spain, Greece, Italy, Portugal, Germany and the Netherlands would be stopped, Ahmad Qalebani said, Mehr news agency said.

"Certainly if the hostile actions of some European countries continue, the export of oil to these countries will be cut," said Qalebani, who runs the National Iranian Oil Company. He added: "In the current market situation, the price per barrel (of oil) will probably reach $150."

Qalebani also said any country wanting Iranian oil would be required to sign "longterm contracts."

European companies, he said, would be held to "two-to five year contracts with no preconditions." Iran exports about

20% of its crude - some 600,000 barrels per day - to the EU, most of which goes to Italy, Spain and Greece.

On Sunday, the oil ministry announced it had halted exports to France and Britain.

That was in apparent retaliation for an EU-wide ban on Iranian oil that is to come fully into effect July 1 as part of Western sanctions against Tehran's nuclear programme .

Although the ministry's measure was largely symbolic, prices for the black stuff soared on fears Tehran could expand its cuts to other European nations.

air defences," said a statement from the Katem-ol-Anbia military air base coordinating Iran's anti-air and ballistic missile systems. Missiles, antiaircraft artillery, radars and warplanes were being deployed, it said. The declaration, reported by the official news agency IRNA, came as officials from the UN nuclear watchdog were holding talks in Tehran on Iran's suspect nuclear programme which has unsettled the West and Israel.

It also coincided with increasing speculation that Israel was mulling air strikes on Iran's nuclear facilities.

Tehran deploys warplanes, missiles, radars to defend nuclear sites: Iran's military on Monday announced it has launched four days of manoeuvres in the south of the country aimed at boosting anti-air defences protecting nuclear sites. "These exercises aim to reinforce the integrated abilities of the country's anti-

IAEA inspectors arrive for Ntalks: Senior UN inspectors arrived in Tehran on Monday for talks on Iran's disputed nuclear programme. Asked if the IAEA delegation would visit Iran's nuclear facilities, foreign minister Ali Akbar Salehi told the student news agency ISNA: "No. Their work has just begun."

suggesting that we go back to the table," Nuland said.

Asked about Pakistan saying that it is going ahead with the construction of the gas pipeline between Iran and Pakistan, she said: "We have issues of concern and we've been very clear about those with the Government of Pakistan."

"We think it's a bad idea; we've made that clear. But I'm not going to predict where this might go."

Asked about Israel blaming Iran's Qods Force for a string of attacks on Israeli diplomats in India, Georgia and Thailand, Nuland said: "I think, we are still where we are, that we wouldn't be surprised if the fingerprints and the trail lead back to Iran but we're not in a position to assess until the investigations of the host governments are complete."

In response to another question, she said the US had offered help in the investigations but could not say if any of the countries had taken up the offer.

1984 Sikh riots: US court to hear plea on March 15 New York: A US court is set to hear on March 15 a petition seeking a 'default judgment' against the Congress party for its alleged failure to defend the charges of conspiring, aiding, abetting and organizing attacks on Sikhs in India in November 1984.

The plea filed by a New York-based Sikh body is also urging judge Robert W Sweet of US federal court of the Southern District of New York to issue 'Letters Rogatory' for appearance of justice G T Nanavati.

In a statement, attorney Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, the legal adviser to Sikhs for Justice (SFJ), said that the plaintiffs would ask the court to issue Letters Rogatory for appearance of justice Nanavati who had gone into the anti-Sikh riots in the wake of assassination of the then Indian PM Indira Gandhi in 1984.

24

PakIStaN-BaNGladeSh-SrI laNka

Asian Voice - Saturday 25th February 2012

Won't help US attack Iran: Zardari

Islamabad: Pakistan President Asif Ali Zardari has assured his Iranian counterpart, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, that Islamabad would not assist the US if it attacks his country amid rising tensions over Tehran's nuclear program, Pakistani media reported on Friday.

The two leaders met on the sidelines of a trilateral Iran, Afghanistan summit in Islamabad. Pakistani media quoted Zardari as saying that Pakistan and Iran "needed each other and no foreign pressure could hinder their ties''. He is said to have told the US "not to tell Pakistan who it can and cannot trade with" amid pressure from Washington to abandon the Iran-Pakistan gas pipeline.

There was no official word on Zardari's reported comments. But the two later called for "non-interference and nonintervention" in their internal affairs at a joint statement issued at the end of the summit along with Afghanistan President Hamid Karzai.

The three pledged against allowing their territories to be used against each other, strengthen regional stability, fight terrorism and drug trafficking besides promoting trilateral trade.

Move to give MFN status to India being misconstrued: Gilani

Islamabad: The issue of Pakistan giving India Most Favoured Nation (MFN) status is being misconstrued though it is only meant to ensure that there is no discrimination in trade between the two countries, Pakistan prime minister Yousuf Raza Gilani said.

Gilani made the remarks while interacting with journalists during a private visit to Pir Jo Goth in southern Sindh province.

He said a similar status had already been given to 100 other countries across the world. The federal cabinet had allowed the commerce ministry to negotiate with its Indian counterpart on the issue of trade balance, he said.

The government will never compromise on the country's national interests while taking steps like giving India MFN status, he said.

Gilani noted that since his government came to power in 2008, trade across the Line of Control (LoC) had been recorded at Rs 15 billion.

The annual trade between

China and India, despite their border dispute, was to the tune of USD 60 billion, he pointed out.

Several extremist groups, including the Jamaat-udDawah, have opposed the government's decision to give MFN status by the end of the year. They have threatened to launch protests if the government goes ahead with the move.

Following talks between Indian commerce minister Anand Sharma and his Pakistani counterpart Makhdoom Amin Fahim in Islamabad last week, the two sides agreed to switch over to a negative list regime for trade by the end of February.

Finally, India to give nod to investments from Pak New Delhi: India’s commerce and industry minister Anand Sharma may announce the government's "in-principle" decision to lift the ban on investments from Pakistan in return for concessions from across the border.

Sources said with the home ministry approving a plan to treat foreign direct investment from Pakistan at par with those from Bangladesh, it was only a matter of time before the government notified the new norms. In the next stage, the finance ministry has to clear the proposal making it possible for the Reserve Bank of India to amend Foreign Exchange Management Act (Fema).

Over the years, the government has pruned the negative list and Pakistan remains one of the last few countries on the negative list for investment.

Allowing investment from Pakistan is one of the elements of the trade and investment related measures to improve business links between neighbours. Even during the commerce secretary-level talks in November, the issue was discussed but a commitment was not given.

The summit's timing was crucial as it came amid strained relations between Islamabad and Washington and Tehran's rising tensions with US and Israel over the nuclear program.

Later, Ahmadinejad lashed out against "foreign interference'' in the region at a joint press conference with Zardari and Karzai. He did not name any country, but said, "foreign powers" were determined to dominate "our nations" "All problems are

coming from outside. In order to promote their goals and ambitions... they don't want to allow our nations to develop."

Ahmadinejad said in an apparent reference to the West. "We are here to strengthen the steps in order to solidify cooperation among the three nations. We are going to move towards removing the problems... and we should deny others the opportunity to interfere.'' Ahmadinejad also raised the nuclear issue, saying nuclear-armed nations ``are not superior to others''.

"The nuclear bomb is not going to bring about superiority.'' He said Iran's relationship with Pakistan was an example of an alliance that "is not because of nuclear bomb or weapons".

US pledges $2.4bn aid to Pak in 2013 Washington: The Obama administration proposes to lavish $2.4 billion of US taxpayer money on Pakistan in 2013 despite its dodgy role in terrorism and nuclear proliferation that has set the world on edge. Unveiling an annual budget of $3.8 trillion that calls for tax hikes on the rich, the administration last week recommended to the Congress $2.2 billion in assistance to Pakistan including $1.1 billion already authorized under the Kerry-LugarBerman bill and $800 million for the Pakistan Counterinsurgency Capability Fund.

An additional $197 million is proposed to support the US government's civilian presence, as well as programs for engagement with Pakistani civil society.

The ostensibly reason offered by the state department for this massive aid to a country most Americans perceive as an enemy (a sentiment that is reciprocated in Pakistan) is that it will "provide a bulwark against extremism and support joint security and counter-terrorism efforts." Both propositions have been questioned

Congressman Dana Rohrabacher as an attack on Pakistan's sovereignty.

"The department of state does not typically comment on pending legislation, but it is not the policy of the administration to support independence for Balochistan," Raines said.

Balochistan has witnessed a spike in violence by nationalist groups that are seeking greater autonomy and a say in the exploitation of the southwestern province's abundant natural resources, including minerals and gas.

Baloch groups have

Musharraf 'knew Osama bin Laden was in Abbottabad' Islamabad: Former president Pervez Musharraf knew that Osama bin Laden was hiding in the garrison town of Abbottabad and the Pakistani intelligence itself had made the safe house that sheltered him, a former ISI chief has alleged, according to a media report. Former CIA official Bruce Riedel quoted ex-ISI chief Gen (retired) Ziauddin Khwaja alias Ziauddin Butt, as saying that Musharraf "knew bin Laden was in Abbottabad".

Protest in Afghanistan over reported desecration of Koran Bagram: About 200 Afghans demonstrated outside the main US military base in the country after a report that foreign troops had improperly disposed of a large number of Korans and other religious materials.

General John Allen, commander of the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF), offered his "sincere apologies" for the actions in an apparent bid to prevent anti-Western anger from spreading across Afghanistan. The Koran is the holy book of Islam. Korans had been burnt inside the base and some of the material had been taken outside the facility, citing accounts from labourers. Protests raged for three days across Afghanistan in April last year after a US pastor burned a Koran in Florida.

Dhaka wants Bangla as an official UN language

by analysts who have noted the Pakistani military's embrace of extremism and terrorism, including its anger at the US raid that killed Osama bin Laden.

Despite this, the Obama administration has actually hiked the proposed military financing to Pakistan while scaling down civilian aid. The state department is requesting only $1.1 billion in civilian assistance for 2013.

Elsewhere, the administration has requested $800 million under the Pakistani Counterinsurgency Contingency Fund, a reimbursement program for the Pakistani military jointly run

by State and DOD.

US says it doesn’t back Balochistan independence Islamabad: Amid Pakistani leadership's angry criticism of a bill moved in Congress seeking the right to self-determination for people of Balochistan, the US said it does not support independence for the province.

"The US respects the territorial integrity of Pakistan. Members of Congress introduce legislation on numerous foreign affairs topics and these bills do not in any way imply US government endorsement of any particular policy," US embassy spokesman Robert Raines said in a statement.

The statement came a day after PM Yousaf Raza Gilani condemned the resolution moved in House of Representatives by

In Focus

Dhaka: Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina has said that Bangladesh was working to make Bangla an official UN language considering the vast number of its speakers and its rich literary heritage. Bangla, which is spoken by at least 300 million people on the Indian subcontinent, is the national language of Bangladesh as well as the main language in West Bengal. It is also widely spoken in Assam and Tripura. At present, English, French, Arabic, Chinese, Russian and Spanish are the six official languages at the UN. Last year, in an address to the UN General Assembly in New York, she had said, "I earnestly appeal to you to back my proposal to declare Bangla as one of the official languages of the United Nations.

Bangla is spoken by over 300 million people worldwide."

Pak recovers stolen Indian necklace Lahore: A diamond necklace worth 1,000,000, which was stolen from an Indian trader at an India show was recovered by Pakistan police and two men allegedly involved in the crime were arrested. The crime was solved in less than 48 hours. The timely action by police had saved Pakistan from embarrassment, the police chief said.

Suicide blast kills 23 Shiite Muslims in Pakistan Peshawar: A suicide attacker on a motorcycle blew himself up in a market in a Pakistani town close to the Afghan border, killing 23 Shiite Muslims and wounding 50 people. Sunni extremist groups such as alQaida and the Taliban often believe Shiites are infidels and that it is permissible or even praiseworthy to kill them. The emergence of those groups in the country over the last 10 years has added to the frequency and viciousness of attacks against Shiites. After the attack, security forces fired on crowds protesting the attack, killing three people.

US missile strike kills 6 people in northwest Pakistan alleged that hundreds of their activists have been arrested without due process and killed in the past two years.

Every week, bodies of the "missing persons" or men detained without charge are found across the province.

Most allegedly bear marks of torture and bullet wounds.

Mirali: A suspected US drone fired two missiles at a house in Pakistan's northwest tribal region near the Afghan border killing six people. The attack occurred in Spalga village in the North Waziristan tribal area, the main sanctuary for Taliban and al-Qaida militants in Pakistan. The identities of those killed were unknown. US President Barack Obama has significantly ramped up drone attacks in Pakistan since he took office. He recently acknowledged the covert CIA-run program in Pakistan for the first time in an interview.

INDIA

Asian Voice - Saturday 25th February 2012

India, Italy in diplomatic row over killing of fishermen

With the Italian foreign minister Guilio Terzi ramping up pressure on India about the involvement of the Italian naval personnel in killing two local fishermen off the Kerala coast, a diplomatic row appears to be brewing between New Delhi and Rome.

An Italian official and legal delegation travelled to Kochi on Monday, even as the two Italian guards, Massimiliano Latorre and Salvatore Girone, were remanded to three days in police custody by the local magistrate.

Terzi on Monday said that there were “considerable differences” between Italy and India over the incident. “There are currently considerable differences of a legal character.

Up to now I have not seen the co-operation between India and Italy that would be desirable and would allow a quick resolution,” Terzi said.

Fundamentally, there are differences between the two nations over the locale of the incident. The

EC notice to Verma for remarks on sub-quota The Election Commission issued notice to Union steel minister Beni Prasad Verma over his remarks on sub-quota for minorities, holding that prima facie it was a violation of the Model Code of Conduct and sought his reply.

The Commission, which examined the video recordings of Verma's speech at a rally in Farrukhabad in UP, said it “is prima facie satisfied” that the steel minister, “by making the aforesaid statements, has violated the aforesaid provisions of the Model Code of Conduct”.

The EC notice states, “It is evident from the above statements of Shri Beni Prasad Verma that he was well aware that by making such utterances, he was violating the model code of conduct and yet he deliberately and willfully did the same.”

The Commission asked Verma to explain his position by 5 pm on February 20, as to why action should not be taken against him for violating the provisions of Model Code of Conduct. In case Verma fails to reply to the notice, the EC will decide the matter without any further reference to him, the notice said.Sources said the Election Commission had taken serious note of Prasad’s comments, particularly for daring the poll body to take action against him.

25

In divine light

By Rajen Vakil

Story of Yavakrit

An Italian diplomat walks in front of two Italian guards from the oil tanker 'Enrica Lexie' as they are taken into custody in Kochi

Italians say the shooting occurred on international waters, and consequently prosecution and investigation should be according to the UN and not Indian laws.

India maintains that the crime was committed on an Indian vessel, even if it was in the “contiguous zone”, and unarmed Indian fishermen had been shot dead. Hence, the case fell under Indian jurisdiction, and should be prosecuted as per

Indian laws.

The Italian oil tanker Enrica Lexie was flying with an Italian flag in international waters as it sailed from Singapore to Egypt, when the incident occurred on last Wednesday.

Agencies quote a statement by the Italian foreign ministry as saying; the presence of armed guards on board the ship was permissible under Italian law and corresponded to UN resolutions.

Disabled teacher offloaded from flight A teacher who suffers from cerebral palsy was forced to get off a flight at the Kolkata airport on Sunday morning as the airline felt she was not fit to fly. She was asked to get off the aircraft and driven back to the terminal building even as she sought an explanation. She was told that the captain of the flight had refused to fly with her on board.

Jeeja Ghosh, head of advocacy and disability studies at the Indian Institute of Cerebral Palsy (IICP), was unable to travel to Goa where she was supposed to attend a seminar. This is, however, not the first time she was flying alone. Jeeja claimed to be a frequent flier.

"I was escorted to the flight by an assistant and I was in my seat. After a while, I realized that a commotion was going on around me. I sensed something wrong.

Then, a flight crew asked me for the boarding pass and told me to get down from the flight. I was put in a car and brought back to the terminal building. I was hysterical as the flight officials did not bother to explain why they had stopped me from taking the flight," said Jeeja.

The officials said that the captain was reluctant to fly with her which is why she was asked to get off, alleged Jeeja. "Some officials were sympathetic, but they failed to convince the captain. I had demanded that I be allowed to board any other flight or they refund the money.

But the officials assured me that they will try to accommodate me on Monday. The airport officials took a written complaint from me and promised to take action. Later, they dropped me home."

Several social activists resented the action of the flight officials. Sociologist Ruby Sain, who is a close acquaintance of Jeeja, said, she was used to travelling alone and had never faced any difficulty.

"Jeeja has studied abroad and often travelled around the country for academic seminars. No airline has even found her unfit for a flight. It's both strange and shocking. She was humiliated. Airport officials and flight crew should be sensitized on challenged passengers." said Sain.

Shampa Sengupta, a disability rights activist, said, it was unfair to get her off the aircraft. "I have known her for many years and she is definitely fit to fly.

Other than a slight tremor of the head and a minor speech problem, Jeeja doesn't suffer from any major disability. She should have been allowed to travel. The airline owes an explanation," she said.

Airport officials said some airlines require challenged passengers to carry a 'fit to fly certificate'.

Yudhisthira asked Rishi Lomesh, “Please tell us the story of the great Rishi Bharadwaj, how did he attain the heights of yoga, why had Yavakrit, his son, to die?”

Lomesh said that Rishi Bharadwaj and Rishi Raibya were fast friends and that they lived in an ashram – a sacred spot, exactly where Rishi Lomesh and the Pandavas were standing. It was also at this spot that the learned Yavakrit had met his end.

Raibya had two sons called Arvavasu and Paravasu, while Bharadwaj had one son, Yavakrit.

Raibya and his two sons were great scholars, very well-known, and respected by all the Brahmins.

Bharadwaj practiced austerities in isolation and so the Brahmins hardly knew him, let alone respect him.

The fact that Raibya and his sons were very popular with all the Brahmins and his father was hardly known hurt Yavakrit deeply.

He decided to acquire knowledge directly, not by studying the scriptures, but by practicing severe austerities or tapas.

He tortured his body and remained hungry so much so that the power of his tapas started disturb-

ing Indra, the king of the gods. Indra appeared before Yavakrit and asked him the purpose behind performing such terrible practices. Yavakrit said, “O lord of the Devas, I want to acquire the knowledge of the Vedas which normally Brahmins get by studying. To study the Vedas I would have to find a Guru and work under his guidance for many years. I want the knowledge immediately and so I am practicing these very intense austerities.”

Indra replied, “O Brahma rishi you have chosen the wrong way.

Nothing can be gained by mutilating and torturing your body. Go find a Guru and study the Vedas at his feet.” Saying these words Indra left but this did not deter Yavakrit who continued his practices. This time he practiced with such a heightened intensity that Indra had to come to him again and said, “What you want is impossible, this is not the way.

You or your father will never acquire this knowledge this way.”

At this Yavakrit said, “If you do not fulfil my desire, I will light the

yagna fire and one after the other cut off my limbs and sacrifice them to the fire.”

Indra went into deep thought and realized that he could only tackle Yavakrit in a different way.

In his mind he cunningly decided on a course of action. He took on the form of a thin and undernourished Brahmin. He then went to the spot on the banks of the River Ganga where Yavakrit was practising his austerities.

The young rishi could see that the Brahmin had started building a wall of sand to stop the flow of the river. Indra, disguised as the Brahmin, would pick up a fistful of sand and then go and throw it in the river. Again he would come back and repeat the same.

Yavakrit, who was watching the Brahmin from a distance, started laughing at his effort and said to him, “This is a stupid effort; you are trying to do this task in an impossible manner.”

Indra said, “I want to build a road across the river so it is easy for pilgrims to cross.”

Continued next week…

All past articles on the Mahabharata can be accessed from http://epaper.asianvoice.com or from http://www.3stepbreath.com/mahabharata.html

India seeks extradition of Headley, Rana

Armed with a special court order, India will soon write to the US seeking extradition of American citizen David Coleman Headley and his Canadian accomplice Tahawwur Hussain Rana for their trial here for plotting with LeT and HuJI terrorists to attack places of iconic importance in the Capital and other cities including Mumbai.

Though Headley had entered into a plea bargaining with US authorities and got immunity from being extradited to India or any other country, New Delhi has to follow the legal procedure by formally pressing for his extradition backed by the court order.

Taking cognizance of NIA's chargesheet against Headley, Rana, Lashkar founder Hafiz Saeed, the outfit's key commander Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi and five others, a special court sought their presence before it for trial on March 13.

"We will write to the US with reference of the court order. New Delhi will highlight that the chargesheet against Headley and Rana is not restricted to the 26/11

Mumbai terror attack case alone. It also covers the offences which do not come under the 12 counts on which he had pleaded guilty and entered into the plea bargaining," a home ministry official said.

Under the plea bargaining, Headley had become prosecution witness in the trial against Rana, who was acquitted by a US court in the 26/11 case but indicted for his role in a terror plot against Denmark. Both are currently in jail in Chicago.

"Rana may be acquitted in the Mumbai attack case, but he is an accused here in the case which pertains to a criminal conspiracy with LeT and HuJI terrorists to carry out attacks in New Delhi and other places in India," said the official.

He said New Delhi would also write to Washington to take into account the fact that the US authorities had agreed for Headley's plea bargaining without taking India on board despite a pending case against the accused here.

A section within the home ministry believes that though it is highly unlikely that the US will extradite Headley and

Rana, the move may see some legal wrangling between the two countries -- especially if someone decides to approach an American court. Even under the existing extradition agreement between India and US, Rana will have to first undergo his sentence in an American jail if convicted for his role in the Denmark plot.

"In any case, the accused's appearance for trial through video link cannot be ruled out as a compromise in future," the official said.

The NIA has, meanwhile, begun the process of sending letter rogatory to Morocco for recording the statement of Headley's estranged Moroccan wife Faiza Outalha for evidence against him. She had visited India with Headley twice during the latter's reconnaissance mission.

India, which has already asked Pakistan for deportation of Saeed and Lakhvi, will again write to Islamabad with reference of the court order. Lakhvi, who is in jail, is being tried in a Rawalpindi court in the 26/11 case whereas Saeed and others chargesheeted by the NIA remain scot-free.

INDIA

26

Asian Voice - Saturday 25th February 2012

In Focus

Direct London-Ahmedabad flight still a dream

FIR filed against Rahul Gandhi for roadshow An FIR was filed against Rahul Gandhi for allegedly flouting restrictions on his roadshow in Kanpur. The Congress star campaigner was booked under Section 188 of IPC for violating prohibitory orders imposed in the city and under Sections 283 (danger or obstruction in public way) and 290 (public nuisance).The district administration said while it had given permission for a two-hour roadshow over 18 km, Rahul’s event covered 35km, took six hours and passed through several areas where restrictions had been imposed in view of Shiv baraat processions. The Congress accused the administration of acting at the behest of the state government.

Woman bites off man's tongue who tried to rape her A 25-year-old woman bit off a man's tongue when he tried to sexually assault her at her house in Javalgaon village in the district of Maharashtra. Anita Pawar, who works as a labourer, was alone at her house in the village when the accused, identified as Dadarao Hare (35), tried to force himself on her. In a bid to save herself from the attacker, Anita severed Hare's tongue with her teeth, police said. The accused has been booked under related sections. And he has been admitted in a local hospital and is recuperating.

Bihar's Super 30 coaching idea wins high praise in Canada Bihar's free coaching centre which helps poor students crack the prestigious Indian Institute of Technology-Joint Entrance Examination (IITJEE), has won high praise in Canada. Super 30 founder Anand Kumar was felicitated "for his remarkable way of spreading the light of education in the darkened corners of the society" at a function organized by South Asian Cultural Society in Vancouver, British Columbia. Marc Dalton, the British Columbia legislature adopted a resolution honouring Kumar and lauding Super 30 for its role in shaping the destiny of many students from poor families.

Bus dives into river in Goa, 7 dead Four primary school children were among seven persons who drowned when the private mini bus they were travelling in plunged into the Mapusa River at the Aldona-Calvim ferry wharf at Aldona. While six bodies were recovered, one is yet to be traced. The children were all primary students of St Thomas Girls High School. Bus driver first fled the scene after swimming to safety and later surrendered to the police. He has been booked for the offence of culpable homicide. The state government has also ordered a magisterial inquiry into the tragedy.

%') %# $ %" ) %+ *

"

&

" + $)( $

* " " , ' ( &+) & &$$&%) (+ (.

( $ %*) %$ ' $ %+ &&# & (! %* # % &% &% * &% &% &% (

(! % *+ ! )

' ) ( *$ * '(!#

( $ % " ((*

$ $ %+ *

$! $ $(*' $ &+) & &$$&%) &% &% .

')( *

.

" " *$

# "( )*

$ $ " " " ' ) %$ % ( $ % $ * ' ) # '( ) - ' $$ + '( '%+ ((&- !)+( %*( &% &% * +% ) %+ *

( $ + '( , ' ( (&), %&( &+) (" % '* $ (

travelling from Ahmedabad to London will fly to Mumbai, then change the flight and will be accommodated in Boeing 777.

There are changes in the time of departure of this flight from Ahmedabad. As a result the waiting time at Mumbai airport will be comparatively less.

New timings: There are some time changes in the existing flights and the waiting time is shortened as well.

According to new timetable, Ahmedabad-London flight will start at 4 am from Sardar Vallabhai Patel airport in Ahmedabad and will reach Mumbai at 5.05 am.

Then the flight from Mumbai will start at 7.10 am and reach London at 11.30 hours. Return flight will start at 13.30 from London and reach Mumbai at 4 am.

From Mumbai this flight will start at 5.30 am and reach Ahmedabad at 6.30 am.

Asian Voice/Gujarat Samachar’s initiative for direct flight: Asian Voice and Gujarat Samachar news weeklies and Chairman of

&% &%

the National Congress of Gujarati Organisations (NCGO), UK raised the issue of direct flight between London and Ahmedabad, as in the absence of such a facility, travellers have to spend at least 4 to 5 hours in waiting, which at times goes up to 10 to 12 hours at some other air-port in India or in some other country, which is a huge waste of time. Lack of such a flight is also a huge problem for senior citizens, children and female passengers. A memorandum was also submitted to the concerned authorities then.

Details were furnished to refute the claims of Air India that there was not enough traffic on the London – Ahmedabad sector. The memorandum had also the questioned the fact that, if Air India’s claims are to be believed, then how come the air line in the first place increased the frequency of the flight from three to five per week. The Gujarati diaspora in Britain have made a similar demand through the National Congress of

Gujarati Organisation, while the Direct Flight Task Force launched a powerful signature campaign in support of direct air service.

The concern of the weeklies in achieving the task of direct flight has been nonstop and continuous. In his column 'As I see it', CB Patel, the Publisher/Editor of Asian Voice and Gujarat Samachar, had written about the visa on arrival in Gujarat and the direct flight issues between Ahmedabad and London. It is known that many people have written to the Indian High Commission already. Asian Voice and Gujarat Samachar have requested more and more readers to raise this concern with the concerned authorities.

Kasab was never tortured, given fair trial: Maharashtra govt to SC The Maharashtra government refuted the allegation of the sole convict in 26/11 Mumbai terror attack case, Mohammad Ajmal Amir Kasab, that he was not given fair trial and said death sentence awarded to him was a permissible means of punishment.

Former solicitor general Gopal Subramaniam, appearing for the state government, contended that Kasab was never tortured or maltreated and there has been no violation of his constitutional rights.

"At no point of time he was tortured or maltreated by the authorities and there has been no failure of constitutional rights given to him," he submitted before a bench comprising justices Aftam Alam and C K Prasad.

Subramaniam also submitted that death sentence, which has been awarded to Kasab, is a permissible means of punishment.

Referring to the entire sequence of events leading to

the 26/11 attack, which was planned by Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) in Pakistan, he submitted that had Kasab not been caught alive, then it would not have been possible to know that outsiders were involved in the mayhem.

The 24-year-old Kasab had pleaded with the Supreme Court to commute his death sentence to life imprisonment.

Senior advocate Raju Ramachandran, who has been appointed amicus curiae by the apex court to defend Kasab, had told the bench that he was not a part of the larger conspiracy for waging war against the nation.

Stressing on Kasab's age as an important factor to

The voice of the voiceless we start a campaigning column

+ " ' )) %+ !*. ,!##!&% &% &% * )* '(!# * ' ) # ' ) $$ + '( '- (& %+ * .

Change of time in Ahmedabad-Mumbai-London flights; waiting time has been reduced Direct London-Ahmedabad flight still remains a dream unfilled. One Gujarati newspaper had reported that Air India will soon start Ahmedabad-London direct flight. In order to confirm this news, Asian Voice –Gujarat Samachar enquired with Air India office but this news turned out to be false, as Air India office confirmed that no direct flight has started so far between Ahmedabad and UK. The news in Gujarati daily said that the passengers flying from Ahmedabad to London, will not have to change flight at Mumbai but fly London in the same flight itself. Without any prior notice, this direct flight will start from 15th March.

Gujaratis travelling to Britain were glad to read this news. But their happiness did not last long as they came to know about the truth as soon as they contacted the travel agent who informed that Air-India has not started any direct flight.

However, there are few changes like passenger

Asian Voice is keen to start running more investigative stories and subjects concerned with corruption in different fields; the health service, education, sport, politics, centres of religion and culture, local and national government, etc. To develop this strand we are putting a call out to you, our readers, to give us stories with facts and evidence so that we can follow up and expose wrong-doing.

Do you know of someone who received a kick-

back or has achieved a position through some means other than merit?

Can you provide us with evidence of money laundering or corruption in high places? Have you got evidence of local planning laws being flouted? Is your GP practice providing the correct services to a professional standard?

Every community has its exploiters and we are keen to expose these people. Please write to Rani Singh at aveditorial@abplgroup.com.

SC notice to Jayalalitha on CBI’s plea

commute his sentence, he had pleaded for a lenient approach as he was drawn into it as a result of exploitation of religious faith and false ideology.

Maintaining that the prosecution has failed to prove the case against Kasab beyond doubts, he had said that his right against self-incrimination as well as his right to get himself adequately represented by a counsel to defend himself in the case had been violated during the trial.

The apex court had on October 10 last year stayed the death sentence of Kasab, the lone surviving terrorist involved in the November 2008 Mumbai attack.

In the special leave petition (SLP) filed by Kasab challenging the Bombay high court judgment, he had claimed he was brainwashed like a "robot" into committing the heinous crime in the name of "God" and that he does not deserve capital punishment owing to his young age.

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalithaa was on Tuesday issued notice by the Supreme Court on a CBI appeal challenging the Madras High Court verdict, which had quashed a case, registered against her for allegedly receiving an illegal remittance of US $ 300,000 in 1992.

While issuing notice to the Tamil Nadu Chief Minister, a bench of justices Altmas Kabir and S S Nijjar, however, refrained from staying the September 30, 2011 judgment of the Madras High Court, delivered on a plea

by Ms. Jayalalitha for quashing the FIR against her.

The case of the CBI is that Ms. Jayalalitha had received a remittance of 300,000 US dollars in 1992 through a demand draft issued by banker’s trust company in New York, drawn on ANZ Grindlays bank, St Helier Jersey.

Britons now moving to India for jobs Continued from page 1 'I would say there has been a rapid increase in the number of Britons coming and settling in India because it is easier for them to adapt in this country.

'Owing to the historical and cultural connection, a lot of the things are common in both countries and hence it's not too difficult for them to settle down here.'

A spokesman for the British High Commission in Delhi said the government was committed to helping businesses wanting to expand

into India: 'From the Prime Minister down, all British ministers consistently encourage British businesses and entrepreneurs to explore the huge commercial potential that exists in India and beyond.'

Dearth of jobs in the UK is compelling a number of Oxford University pass outs to work as bar tenders, waitresses and waiters, a survey has revealed. Of the 3,500 pass outs who supplied information, nearly 200 have been working in non-graduate occupations.

INDIA

Asian Voice - Saturday 25th February 2012

In Focus Monkeys to be trained to pick coconuts Monkeys are to be trained in Kerala, southern India, to pick coconuts because traditional local palm tree climbers are no longer willing to take the risk for low wages.The numbers of palm climbers has declined sharply in recent years as the young low caste men who do the dangerous job – climbing 30 or 40 feet with their bare hands or a scare – have broken away from their traditional role to take better paid jobs.In 2009, they offered a one million rupee prize (around £12,000) to the first inventor to create a 'coconut-picking machine'.The prize failed to find a solution and now officials have turned to the best tree climbers known to man – monkeys, which India has in vast supply.They are considering opening a training school to train simians to do the work no longer wanted by local men.

56% polling recorded in phase 3 UP polls Around 56 per cent of the 1.75-strong electorate exercised its franchise last week for 56 seats in the third phase of the UP assembly polls in which Mayawati’s ruling BSP is facing a strong challenge from Congress, SP and BJP. The incident-free third phase of the seven-part elections in the state will decide the fate of three cabinet ministers, a minister of state, 29 sitting MLAs and 14 former ministers. The polling, which began on a sluggish note at 18,374 booths spread over 10 districts, picked up as the day progressed with state election officials putting overall turn out at around 56 per cent.

Kashmiri youths are shunning violence and Pakistan Kashmiri youths are increasingly leaning towards non-violence and also moving away from Pakistan. The survey by the Institute for Research on India and International Studies (IRIIS) also holds the historical baggage of Jammu and Kashmir and the presence of security forces for the disconnect between the Kashmiri youth and the Indian state. Conducted in 2011 on behalf of the Indian home ministry, the survey says the young in Kashmir spend more time listening to music and watching Hindi movies and also watching cricket. The survey blames three successive governments of the National Conference, CongressPeoples Democratic Party (PDP) and Congress-National Conference for showing little interest in reopening the cinema halls that got shut in the Kashmir Valley due to separatist violence in the early 1990s.

Kerala best tourist destination, shows survey For the second year running, Kerala has been rated the best tourist destination in the country by a survey of Nielsen Company on behalf of the Outlook Traveller magazine.

The survey also found Kerala as the second best state for winter destination after Goa, while Rajasthan and the Andamans occupied the third and fourth slots, respectively.

Kerala occupies the fourth place for beach holiday. And Kerala' coastal city of Kochi, emerged as the sixth best city for tourists after Jaipur, Bangalore, Delhi, Mumbai and Hyderabad. The arrival of international tourists into Kerala grew from 6.50 lakh to 7.3 lakh in 2010-2011.And the total foreign exchange earnings grew by 11.18 per cent.

`10 mn seized, notice to prez’s son President Pratibha Patil’s son and Congress MLA Raosaheb Shekhawat have been issued a notice by the district collector in connection with the seizure of Rs 10 million unaccounted cash from Amravati, where civic polls are underway. Besides Shekhawat, notices were issued to MoS Rajendra Mulak, MPCC general secretary Ganesh Patil, city Congress chief Vasantrao Saurkar and Mulak’s personal assistant Ashish Bodhankar, district collector Rahul Mahiwal said. He added that the hearing will be held on February 21.

27

Anti-terror hub: Now, seven CMs take on UPA, Congress downplays threat The United Progressive Alliance (UPA) faced a fresh crisis after seven chief ministers came out against a proposed powerful counter-terror intelligence hub, saying it infringed on the rights of states.

The Congress, which leads the UPA, tried to play down the issue after ally and West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee joined three chief ministers of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)ruled Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh and Himachal Pradesh as well as Janata Dal-United's Nitish Kumar in Bihar, Biju Janata Dal's Naveen Patnaik in Orissa and AIADMK's J Jayalalithaa in Tamil Nadu.

Telugu Desam Party (TDP) chief N Chandrababu Naidu also spoke out against the National Counter Terrorism Centre (NCTC).

Led by the most vocal Patnaik, the chief ministers declared that they were against the NCTC because they had not been consulted before New Delhi notified it.

In separate letters to Prime Minister Manmohan

Singh, six of them complained that the proposed NCTC would infringe on the federal structure and the rights of state governments.

Union finance minister Pranab Mukherjee, the chief troubleshooter of the government, said in West Bengal that a decision would be taken after studying the criticism.

The powerful anti-terror agency, a brainchild of home minister P Chidambaram, will integrate and analyse inputs on terror threats in India. It becomes functional on March 1.

It allows central government agencies to make arrests or searches in terrorism-hit states without seeking permission from their governments.

Manmohan Singh and Chidambaram did not respond to the criticism. But

Home Secretary RK Singh insisted the government was not passing a new law.

However, he justified the NCTC. "There was no need to consult the states prior to notifying the NCTC. It has been formed for better coordination among (security) agencies to fight terror better," the home secretary said.

R.K Singh, according to sources, spoken with West Bengal chief secretary Samar Ghosh and cleared that the agency derives its power from the existing Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) and no new legislation was being proposed for it.

BJP leader Arun Jaitley

Delhi rebuffs pressure on Iran ties Indian officials asserted that national interest, not US or Israeli pressure, would guide Delhi's bilateral relations with Iran and insisted there was no evidence yet to link Tehran car-bomb attack.

The comments came on a day Tel Aviv's ambassador in Delhi Alon Usphiz met foreign minister S.M. Krishna to request permission for forensic experts from his country to inspect the remnants of the bomb that injured embassy staffer Tal Yehoshua Koren.

Minutes after Usphiz had left, the new Saudi Arabian envoy also called on Krishna.

Although official sources said Iran didn't figure in the talks, the timing of the visit was lost on few as Riyadh has been supporting Washington's views on Tehran's alleged nuclear weapons programme.

But government officials said India's stand on Tehran's nuclear programme hadn't changed. They said Delhi opposed any effort towards developing nuclear weapons but the West Asian country did have the right to exploit nuclear energy for peaceful purposes.

A senior official said there

was "nothing new" in America's disapproval of India-Iran ties and the pressure on Delhi to scale down the relationship. "These are not a new set of positions. Our relationship with Iran is not in contradiction with our relationship with the US and others," the official said.

As strategic partners, the official added, India and America agree to disagree on the issue of Iran. "We (India and the US) talk as two friends.

They have a point of view on this issue and we cordially and respectfully disagree on our different approaches on this."

Commerce minister Anand Sharma, who was on Islamabad said there was no possibility of India-Iran trade declining because of the attack. "I don't think that trade and these things are inter-related," he told agencies. "The investigations are on, and those behind this serious attack will be brought to justice."

Indian officials insisted there was nothing to link Iran to the February 13 bomb attack on the Israeli embassy car. "As of today, we have no evidence to find any individ-

ual, entity, organisation and country being involved in this incident," foreign ministry spokesperson Syed Akbaruddin said.

Sources said neither had Tehran contacted Delhi about incident, nor had South Block sounded the Iranians out on the attack.

Iran's ambassador to India Mehdi Nabizadeh said his country was "not accepting or denying" Israel's allegation about Tehran being behind the bomb. "We don't know anything," he told reporters, saying it should be left to India to "verify" the real position.

"I don't know how can we assume within short moment who has done this," the envoy said, adding that the incident "happened in India. If Indian security said something like that (then) we have to verify.... This is false and they (Israel) always keep feeding such a thing."

The Iranian embassy later clarified that Tehran had already denied Israel's "mischievous claims" and sources blamed the envoy's comment that his country was neither accepting nor denying Israel's accusation on his poor command over English.

warned that any attempt to undercut the power of the states could derail the central government.

His colleague Balbir Punj said: "It is a weird proposal.

Terrorism is ... a national problem. "If the prime minister and home minister are serious about it, they should have taken state governments on board.

"How can we have a tangible fight against terrorism when you don't enjoy the confidence of your allies?" he asked, referring to Trinamool Congress chief Banerjee.

The first to raise his voice was Patnaik who said in Bhubaneswar: "The centre's notification completely bypasses the states.

Banerjee, whose relations with the Congress have become frosty, alleged that "arbitrary exercise of powers" by the NCTC would have "a bearing on the rights and privilege of the states".

She said the home ministry should have consulted the states before coming up with such "draconian" law.

She asked Manmohan Singh to withdraw it.

8 devotees killed in Junagadh temple stampede Eight devotees, including three women and a tiny toddler were killed and 12 injured following a stampede on the eve of Mahashivaratri mela at Pagnala near Damdodar Kund, 3 km from Junagadh, Gujarat on Sunday. At least nine lakh people had gathered at Junagadh for the annual five-day fair beginning on Monday to celebrate Mahashivaratri.

Pushing and shoving by some in the crowd probably triggered the stampede at the narrow Pagnala bridge. The boundary wall of the bridge on one side gave in because of the chaos, hurtling many people down, resulting in deaths and injuries to the devotees.

The victims were rushed to Junagadh hospital where they were declared brought dead. Of the six deceased, three have been identified as Manguben Bhikhubhai, a resident of Vijapur; Keshubhai Bhanubhai from Jamnagar and Chandan Roval, also from Jamnagar.

Praful Patel seeks probe into Air India's plane switch row

Union minister Praful Patel wants a formal inquiry to determine whether Air India pulled out the stops to ensure his family could fly business class for a holiday in April 2010.

Mr Patel was the Civil Aviation Minister at the time.

Mr Patel has written to the current aviation minister, Ajit Singh, stating that he is "personally embarrassed and pained" by the allegations that Air India acted upon his instructions.

He also stresses that his

family did not travel for free, and were not upgraded to business class.

"They were actually fully paid business class passengers," he writes.

Mr Patel's daughter, Avani, was flying with her husband and in-laws from Bangalore to the Maldives.

The national carrier's Airbus 319, normally used for this route, did not have enough

business seats to accommodate her eight-member group.

On the day that she flew to the Maldives and for her return journey, an Airbus 320 was used - it has 20 business class seats as compared to eight on an A319.

The switch in planes meant that 48 seats were left vacant. Three days later, the same plane brought the family back and this time the vacant number of seats rose to 55.

Air India had refused to share this information for

nearly 18 months till the Chief Information Commissioner ruled that the details had to be revealed in public interest under the Right to Information Act. Air India has said that it did not do Mr Patel's family any favours and that the airline acted purely with commercial interests.

When asked about the incident, Ajit Singh said today, "they (Air India) should not have done this (changing the aircraft)."

28

travel & Women

asian voice - Saturday 25th February 2012

Purvi’s travel bag

By Purvi Apurva Shah

wOmen acHIevers

Ela Bhatt: Woman who brought change in the lives of thousands

By AV Correspondent

PancHganI

Place to relish strawberry pizza and strawberry bhel Marpo strawberry festival in Panchgani is a tempting proposition for the gastronomes. The food court serves such dishes that you have never tasted in your life. Very innovative culinary delights like strawberry bhel and strawberry pizza should be tasted without fail.

The festival is organized on a huge ground laced with various things related to strawberries.

The ground has the capacity to absorb around 1,000 visitors. The sight of volunteers dancing to live drumbeats and the baskets of showstopper strawberries create lovely views. The popular attractions of this festival are chocolate making area and the stalls selling preserves and juice mixes.

Visitors love to relish the raisin and cashew dipped chocolates.

Ghati masala - must try spice: What makes the food of Panchgani somewhat distinct from the general cuisine of Maharashtra is the masala the people of the hill-station use in their cooking.

It is simply called Ghati Masala. And the punch it gives is amazing.

Panchagani is the one of those rare places that touches your heart every time you visit, it is a holiday retreat which generates so much of freshness that you are once again full of energy.

It is not only a holiday destination but also famous for education with several residential boarding schools and colleges. There are lots of old British buildings and

Parsi houses that borders the lush green place.

Panchgani is a beautiful hill station, tucked away in the Sahyadri mountain ranges in the western ghats of Maharashtra. It is named after the five hills around it. At an altitude of 1,330 m it is just 40 m below Mahabaleshwar. Pune 98 km away, is the nearest airport and the most convenient railhead.

At one go: Terra Camp is a camping packed with all kinds of fun activities in one. It offers several

adventure sport activities such as abseiling/rappling, climbing, zorbing, and mountain biking, along with peaceful guided nature walks, treasure hunts and bonfires.

Pick a horse from one of the numerous stables and canter along unexplored routes through hidden lovers' lanes, to the caves and Kamalgadh Fort.

It is famous for the second largest high altitude plateau in Asia which is known as 'Table Land'. The Table Land at Panchgani has also been used as a location for the shooting for various films,

because of its picturesque beauty.

Devil's Kitchen: There is a small cave known as the 'Devil's Kitchen'.

Legend and folklore says that the Pandavas of the Mahabharat epic, stayed in this cave for a short while.

Panchgani Points: Sydney Point and the Parsi Point are situated on a hill top from where you can see the shining water of the Dhom dam.

The amusement park 'On Wheelz' offers around 15 rides that kids enjoy thor-

oughly.

Velocity Entertainmentz is a fun and amusement park for all age group, here ‘Go Karting’ ‘and ‘Drop Tower’ are deadly.

If you are the adventurous kind of person, you musty go for paragliding and even for trekking.

Panchgani was developed during the British rule in India, in the 1860s. Englishman John Chesson is said to have taken several initiatives during that time, for developing the infrastructure of Panchgani, and hence he is known as the founder of the Panchgani hill station.

Ela Ramesh Bhatt is not just a name affiliated with Ahmedabad or restricted to Gujarat. She is a name that is associated with the word change. She has given a new meaning to the lives of many underprivileged and a name to be aspired by many a young heart.

She is the founder of the Self-Employed Women's Association of India (SEWA)-[I]. A lawyer by training, Bhatt is a respected leader of the international labour, cooperative, women, and microfinance movements who has won several national and international awards.

Her childhood was spent in the city of Surat.

Her father, Sumantrai Bhatt, had a successful law practice. Her mother, Vanalila Vyas, was active in the women's movement.

Bhatt attended the Sarvajanik Girls High School in Surat from 1940 to 1948. She received her Bachelor of Arts degree from the MTB College in Surat in 1952. Following graduation, Ela entered the Sir L A Shah Law College in Ahmedabad. In 1954 she received her degree in law and a Gold Medal for her work on Hindu Law. She then Holi, on 7th March, is one of the major festivals of India, celebrated with enthusiasm and gaiety on the full moon day in the month of March as per the Gregorian calendar.

Holi festival may be celebrated with various names and people of different states might be following different traditions. But, what makes Holi so unique and special is the spirit of it which remains the same throughout the country and even across the globe, wherever it is celebrated.

Preparations: Entire country wears a festive look when it is time for Holi celebration. Heaps of various hues of gulal can be seen on the roadside days before the festival. Pichkaris in innovative and modern design too come up every year.

Womenfolk too start making early preparations for the Holi festival as they cook loads of gujiya, mathri and papri for the family and also for the relatives. At some places, especially in the north, women also make papads and potato chips at this time.

Season of Bloom: Everybody gets delighted at the arrival of Holi as the season itself is so gay. Holi is also called the Spring Festival - as it marks the arrival of spring, the season of hope and joy. The gloom of the winter goes as Holi promises bright summer days. Fields get filled with

taught English for a short time at SNDT Women's University in Mumbai. But in 1955, she joined the legal department of the Textile Labour Association (TLA) in Ahmedabad.

In 1956, Ela Bhatt married late Ramesh Bhatt.

After working for sometime with the Gujarat government, Ela Bhatt was asked by the TLA to head its women's wing in 1968.

In this connection she went to Israel where she studied at the Afro-Asian Institute of Labor and Cooperatives in Tel Aviv for three months, receiving the International Diploma of Labor and Cooperatives in 1971. She was very much influenced by the fact that thousands of female textile workers worked elsewhere to supplement the family income, but there were state laws protecting only those who were solely industrial workers and not these selfemployed women. So with the co-operation of Arvind Buch, the then president of TLA, Ela Bhatt undertook to organize these selfemployed women into a union under the auspices of the Women's Wing of the TLA. Then in 1972 the Self-Employed Women's Association (SEWA) was established with Buch as president and she herself

as the general-secretary.

She was one of the founders of Women's World Banking in 1979 with Esther Ocloo and Michaela Walsh, and served as its chair from 1980 to 1998.

She currently serves as the Chair of the SEWA Cooperative Bank, of HomeNet, of the International Alliance of Street Vendors, and of WIEGO. She is also a trustee of the Rockefeller Foundation. She was granted an honorary Doctorate degree in Humane Letters

by Harvard University in June 2001.

Bhatt was also awarded the civilian honour of Padma Shri by the Government of India in 1985, and the Padma Bhushan in 1986. She was awarded the Ramon Magsaysay Award for Community Leadership in 1977 and the Right Livelihood Award in 1984.

She has been chosen for the Niwano Peace Prize for 2010 for her contribution to the uplift of poor women in India. On November 2010, US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton honoured Bhatt with the Global Fairness Initiative Award for helping more than a million poor women in India to a position of dignity and independence.

HOLI

celebrates victory of good over evil crops, promising a good harvest to the farmers.

Legends: Holi has various legends associated with it. The foremost is the legend of demon King Hiranyakashyap who demanded everybody in his kingdom to worship him but his pious son, Prahlad became a devotee of Lord Vishnu. Hiranyakashyap wanted his son to be killed.

He asked his sister Holika to enter a blazing fire with Prahlad in her lap as Holika had a boon which made her immune to fire.

Story goes that Prahlad was saved by lord himself for his extreme devotion and evil minded Holika was burnt to ashes, for her boon worked only when she entered the fire alone.

Since that time, people light a bonfire, called Holika on the eve of Holi festival and celebrate the victory of good over evil and also the triumph of devotion to god.

Holika Dahan: On the eve of Holi, people gather at important crossroads and light huge bonfires,

the ceremony is called Holika Dahan. Ash left from this bonfire is also considered sacred. People believe that the ash protects them from evil forces.

Play with Colours: The day after Holi is Dhulati. It is a day of fun as people play with colours on this day.

Bright colours of gulal and abeer fill the air and people take turns in pouring coloured water over each other. Children take special delight in spraying colours on one another and throwing water balloons at passers by.

Expression of Love: Lovers too apply colours on their beloved. There is a popular legend behind it.

It is said that the naughty and mischievous Lord Krishna started the trend of playing with colours.

He applied colour on his beloved Radha to make her one like him.

Ecstasy of Bhang: There is also a tradition of consuming intoxicating bhang on this day to further enhance the spirit of Holi.

HealtH Watch

Asian Voice - Saturday 25th February 2012 A brief 10-minute massage helps reduce inflammation in muscle, a new study has found. According to Justin Crane from McMaster University, as a non-drug therapy, massage holds the potential to help not just bone-weary athletes but those with inflammationrelated chronic conditions like arthritis or muscular dystrophy.

While massage is well accepted as a therapy for relieving muscle tension and pain, the researchers delved deeper to find it also triggers biochemical sensors that can send inflammation-reducing signals to muscle cells.

In addition, massage signals muscle to build more mitochondria, the power centres of cells that play an important role in healing.

“The main thing, and what is novel about our study, is that no one has ever looked inside the muscle to see what is happening with massage, no one looked at the biochemical effects or what might be going on in the muscle itself,” Crane said.

“We have shown the muscle senses that it is being stretched and this appears to reduce the cells’

Massage helps ‘speed up muscle recovery’

inflammatory response.

“As a consequence, massage may be beneficial for recovery from injury,” he said.

For their study, the researchers followed 11 men in their twenties.

On their first visit, the men’s exercise capacity was assessed. Two weeks later, the men cycled on a

Indian curry spices curb stress

Adding Indian curry spices like turmeric and cinnamon to a high-fat meal could help reduce oxidative stress and thus thwart the risk of chronic disease, according to a new study.

"Normally, when you eat a high-fat meal, you end up with high levels of triglycerides, a type of fat, in your blood," said Sheila West, associate professor of biobehavioral health, Penn State, who led the study.

"If this happens too frequently, or if triglyceride levels are raised too much, your risk of heart disease is increased. We found that adding spices to a high-fat meal reduced triglyceride response by about 30 per cent, compared to a similar meal with no spices added."

West and her colleagues prepared meals on

two separate days for six men between the ages of 30 and 65 who were overweight, but otherwise healthy.

The researchers added two tablespoons of culinary spices to each serving of the test meal, which consisted of chicken curry, Italian herb bread, and a cinnamon biscuit. The control meal was identical, except that spices were not included.

The team drew blood from the participants every 30 minutes for three hours.

"In the spiced meal, we used rosemary, oregano, cinnamon, turmeric, black pepper, cloves, garlic powder and paprika," said Ann Skulas-Ray, postdoctoral fellow. "We selected these spices because they had potent antioxidant activity previously under controlled conditions in the lab."

When the meal contained a blend of antioxidant spices, antioxidant activity in the blood was increased by 13 per cent and insulin response decreased by about 20 per cent.

bicycle for more than 70 minutes, to a point of exhaustion when they couldn`t cycle any more.

They then rested for 10 minutes.

While resting, a massage therapist lightly applied massage oil to both legs, and then performed massage for 10 minutes on one leg using a variety of

Why our hair turns grey?

Scientists have finally discovered answers to and provided clues on why our hair turns grey.

Researchers at NYU Langone Medical Center have shown that Wnt signaling, already known to control many biological processes, between hair follicles and melanocyte stem cells can dictate hair pigmentation.

"We have known for decades that hair follicle stem cells and pigment-producing melanocycte cells collaborate to produce colored hair, but the underlying reasons were unknown," said Mayumi Ito, assistant professor in the Ronald O. Pereleman Department of Dermatology at NYU Langone, who led the study.

"We discovered Wnt signaling is essential for coordinated actions of these two stem cell lineages and critical for hair pigmentation," added Ito. The lack of Wnt activation in melanocyte stem cells leads to de-pigmented or grey hair.

techniques commonly used in rehabilitation.

Muscle biopsies were done on both legs and repeated 2.5 hours later, after which the researchers found reduced inflammation in the massaged leg.

Crane admits being surprised that just 10 minutes of massage had such a profound effect.

“I didn’t think that little bit of massage could produce that remarkable of a change, especially since the exercise was so robust. Seventy minutes of exercise compared to 10 of massage, it is clearly potent," Crane said.

The results hint that massage therapy blunts muscle pain by the same biological mechanisms as most pain medications and could be an effective alternative.

“Given that mitochondrial dysfunction is associated with muscle atrophy and other processes such as insulin resistance, any therapy that can improve mitochondrial function may be beneficial,” Mark Tarnopolsky, professor of medicine for the Michael G. DeGroote School of Medicine, who oversaw the study, said.

Severe headaches for days, nausea and vomiting migraine patients go through hell. In fact it has been ranked as the 19th most disabling disease by WHO. But anti-ageing drug botox can bring some relief to chronic patients, say experts, though there is not much awareness about this cure yet.

Jamuna Pai, a Mumbai-based cosmetologist, said that botox "blocks the pain pathways and beautifully t r e a t s migraine. We people who have not gone t h r o u g h migraine don't know what it can do".

What are the symptoms?

The typical migraine headache affects only one half of the head.

It is pulsating in nature and lasts from two to 72 hours.

Pai said: "Those who get migraine attacks vomit, can't get out of bed for three-four days, going to work is out of question.

DIMPLE VANS - CARS - MINIBUS

Profesional

Aspirin can beat cancer spread Aspirin and other household drugs may inhibit the spread of cancer because they help shut down the chemical ‘highways’ which feed tumours, Australian researchers announced.

Scientists at Melbourne’s Peter MacCallum Cancer Centre said they have made a biological breakthrough helping explain how lymphatic vessels key to the transmission of tumours throughout the body - respond to cancer.

“We’ve shown that molecules like the aspirin... could effectively work by reducing the dilation of these major vessels and thereby reducing the capacity of tumours to spread to distant sites,” researcher Steven Stacker said.

Doctors have long suspected that non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs such as aspirin may help inhibit the spread of cancer but they have been unable to pinpoint exactly how this is done.

By studying cells in lymphatic vessels, the researchers found that a particular gene changed its expression in cancers which spread, but not when the cancer did not spread.

The results reveal that the gene is a link between a tumour’s growth and the cellular pathway which can cause inflammation and dilation of vessels throughout the body.

Once these lymphatic vessels widen, the capacity for them to act as ‘supply lines’ to tumours and become more effective conduits for cancer to spread is increased. But aspirin acts to shut down the dilation of the vessels.

Now, cure migraine with a botox jab

DIMPLE SELF DRIVE HIRE LTD Competitive prices No hidden extras Unlimited mileage 3 days & over Special weekend rates Minibuses 8, 12, 15 & 17 seaters Vans & estate cars

29

Mini Bus (8-17 Seater) 8 Seater from £60 12 Seater from £65 15 Seater from £70 17 Seater from £80 Small Cars from £25 Medium Cars from £30 Large Cars from £35 Large Vans from £40

Tel: 020 8205 1200 / 7898 Fax: 020 8200 7426 www.dimpleselfdrive.com Email:dimplemotors@aol.com 19 Varley Parade, Edgware Road, London NW9 6RR

People tie a cloth tightly around their heads to control the pain.

"A few prick jabs are like god's gift for the chronic migraine patients.

For an experienced person, it takes about two minutes to inject it and in 10-14 days you will see the result. The effect lasts six

months and the person will not get pain attacks."

According to a study, WHO has ranked migraine as the 19th most disabling disease.

Women are believed to be three times more likely than men to suffer from migraines. It is a chronic neurological disorder characterised by moderate to severe

headaches, and nausea.

However, Pai, who has been a pioneer in bringing botox to India, says there is not enough awareness about the procedure, which has got the approval of the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA).

"The awareness is not much, though it has got approval. Less than five per cent come for treatment of migraine," she said, adding migraine patients in the age group of 20 years to 55 years come for the treatment.

Botox has been used as a treatment for other physical disorders for a long time, says Raghu Kumar, managing director, Allergan India.

He says for migraine patients, it got approval less than a year ago.

"Botox has been used for all the therapeutic indications like cerebral palsy movement disorder, spasticity and post-stroke spasticity since 1996," said Kumar.

UK

30

Asian Voice - Saturday 25th February 2012

CB Live is only a Gujarati programme in UK on MATV SKY 793 This week Dr Chetan Morjaria from Uganda Medical Mission that helps Africa's needy people will be present at CB Live for an interview.

Bhavan's future play 'Chakra thi Charkha sudhi' director Rajubhai Bharot will also be present and will be interviewed by Gujarat Samachar Managing Editor Kokilaben Patel.

If you do not have a SKY, go to www.tvunetworks.com and watch CB Live on TVU Player Channel 75203

Sneh Joshi - 020 8518 5500 ARIES Mar 21 - Apr 20 Venus, the planet of love and romance throws a pleasing light on affairs of the heart. It is certainly going to be a fortunate time for those already married or in an established relationship. The keynote is emotional enrichment through close interaction with a loved one.

7pm to 8pm Every Thursday

For more information e-mail:

cblive_matv@yahoo.co.uk

Coming Events l Asian Voice & Gujarat Samachar & Sangam Association of Asian Women will be jointly celebrating International Women’s Day Event on 8th March 2012, 10.00am – 1.30pm. Venue: Meenal Mehta Banqueting Hall, Edgware, Middlesex HA8 0AP Contact: 020 8952 7062 l Gadhia family and Lohana Community East London has organise Bhajan Night on Saturday 25th February 2012 at VHP Mandir, 43 Cleveland Road, IG1 1EE, 7 pm onwards.

Contact: Vyomeshbhai and Binduben Gadhia: 020 8599 9603 l Shree 108 Hanuman Chalisa Maha yagya Social Club Hall, Northwick Park Hospital, Watford Road, HA1 3UJ (Opposite Car Park 3 and 186 Bus Stop),11am-5pm. Contact: 020 8459 5758 l Charity dine and dance: A fundraising dinner and disco event by Kishorbhai Vadhia and his son Chetan in aid of Midlands Air Ambulance. Venue: Unity Club in Newtown (B19 3 RD) Birmingham on 31 March from 6.30pm onwards.

Contact: Kishorbhai on 07941 373 822.

$

'$

" $ "# (! " " ## # "& # ! # $* # % " $

$)

&

"

+

# % " $ #! % !" ) "#

)

+

%

l Sunday 26th February 2012 - 3.30pm to 5.15 Bhajans by Shree Raj Gambhir and Various Artists followed by Arti, and Maha Prasad. Adhya Shakti Mataji Temple, 55 High Street, Cowley, Middlesex UB8 2DX. Tel: 07882 253 540 l Holki Dhuleti, Thursday, 8th March 2012, from 8.00pm to 10.00pm. Seaview Building, Cardiff, CF24 5EB. Contact Vimlaben Patel on 07979 155 320. l Nehru Centre, 8 South Audley Street, London W1K 1HF. Contact: 020 7491 3567 - 28th Feb 6:15pm ICCR Exhibition: Tagore and Cinema - 28th Feb 7:00pm Focus on Tagore's women characters - 29th Feb 6:30pm Love in Persian poetry, Indian storytelling and Chinese Music - 1st Mar 6:30pm Amitav Ghosh with Harriett Gilbert - 6th March 6:15pm Heaven to the Left l Asian Voice and Gujarat Samachar presents Youth conference in association with City Hindus Network (CHN) and Akshayapatra, 3rd March 2012, 11:30am-4:30pm. Age: 15-25 ONLY. Venue: Brunei Gallery, Soas, University of London.

If you want to take part in the conference please register by emailing Rupanjana at rupanjana.dutta@abplgroup.com by 26th Feb 2012. Limited seats available.

"$# #

"# !

+ "" " '

"

! !

,

$! &"'$% " + "" " )"$ # "! $! * '$% "!% "

# &

Editor: CB Patel Associate Editor: Rupanjana Dutta Tel: 020 7749 4098 - Email: rupanjana.dutta@abplgroup.com Senior News Editor: Dhiren Katwa Freelance Correspondent: Rudy Otter Chief Operating Officer ABPL: Liji George Tel: 020 7749 4013 Email: george@abplgroup.com Chief Financial Officer: Surendra Patel Tel: 020 7749 4093 - Mobile: 07875 229 220 Email: surendra.patel@abplgroup.com Accounts Executive: Akshay Desai Tel: 020 7749 4087 Email:accounts@abplgroup.com Advertising Managers: Alka Shah Tel: 020 7749 4002 - Mobile: 07944 151 893 Email: alka.shah@abplgroup.com Kishor Parmar Tel: 020 7749 4095 - Mobile: 07875 229 088 Email: kishor.parmar@abplgroup.com Media Consultant: Rovin John George - Email: rovin.george@abplgroup.com Tel: 020 7749 4097 - Mobile: 07875 229 219 Nihir Shah - Email: nihir.shah@abplgroup.com Tel: 020 7749 4089 - Mobile: 07875 229 111 Business Development Manager: Urja Patel - Email: urja.patel@abplgroup.com Design and Layout: Harish Dahya & Ajay Kumar Tel: 020 7749 4086 Email: graphics@abplgroup.com Customer Service: Ragini Nayak Tel: 020 7749 4080 - Email: support@abplgroup.com

GEMINI May 22 - June 22 You may find yourself hard at work behind the scenes, although that may not be apparent to others. You may find yourself caught up in a whirlwind of activity, with opportunities to advance on both the inner and outer level. There’s a sparkle to your social life and you will have fun communicating with others.

CANCER Jun 22 - Jul 22 This week you will make your best progress by focusing your mental and physical energies on what you want to achieve. Intense focus is what is needed now. The underlying trend seems to be pulling you into a much wider social circle now. This is bound to enrich your life and give you a deeper sense of purpose.

LEO Jul 23 - Aug 23 Decision making will prove to be a bit of a bind because of your wavering mind - seek professional advice and then steam ahead.

Be careful with your expenditure as you have a tendency to be extravagant. Relationships need to be scrutinised carefully. Sometimes it is a good idea to take stock.

VIRGO Aug 24 - Sep 23 You have the dynamic planet Mars in your sign. This planet indicates a desire to push forward, to assert yourself mentally and physically. This also means that you want to improve your work prospects. Of course, there are still challenging issues on both a personal and practical level - tread carefully.

LIBRA Sep 24 - Oct 23 All close ties of love and affection will benefit from the gentle influence of Venus. If you are married or have a well-founded relationship, it seems that the pattern of events will somehow draw you closer together emotionally. Librans who are not sure of their career, this is a fine time to do some serious thinking.

SCORPIO Oct 24- Nov 22 A good time for restructuring and rethinking your aims and interests.

Your social graces will serve you well career-wise.

Mixing business with pleasure will bring you benefits. All things considered, your health should be robust. The more you live up to your own set of principles the more you’ll gain.

"$ % " # $ # %! $ $ $ ! & $ # " & "

( % ( %

TAURUS Apr 21 - May 21 You will find added scope and greater incentive to push full steam ahead with your cherished aims. You must be careful not to tread on other people's toes. This is the right time to talk things over with your loved one - especially anything that has been worrying you or making you feel insecure.

There seems to be a danger of conflicts of duty between home and work. Your work is likely to take up a lot of your time which may generate some domestic strain. Try to balance these areas of your life.

Some of you will be intent on expanding their mental horizons through meditation, yoga or by travelling.

SAGITTARIUS Nov 23 - Dec 21

(BPO) AB Publication (India) Pvt. Ltd. 207 Shalibhadra Complex, Opp. Jain Derasar, Nr. Nehru Nagar Circle, Ambawadi, Ahmedabad Tel/Fax: +91 79 2646 6061 Chief Executive Director: Kamlesh Amin Tel: +91 922 710 4308 Email: kamleshamin123@yahoo.co.in Editorial Co-Ordinator (BPO): Nilesh Parmar (M) +919426636912 Consulting Editor (BPO): Bhupatbhai Parekh, Ahmedabad, Gujarat Tel: +91 79 2630 4142 Mumbai: Kanti Bhatt, Hemraj Shah (Jumbo Advertiser) Horizon Advertising & Marketing: 205 Shalibhadra Complex, Opp. Jain Derasar, Nr. Nehru Nagar Circle, Ambawadi, Ahmedabad Tel / Fax: +91 79 2646 5960 (M) +91 9913346487 Email: horizonadvt2009@yahoo.in Neeta Patel, (Advertising Manager) (M) +91 98255 11702 International Advertisement Representative: Jain Group(South India) Tel: +91 44 42041122/3/4 Fax: +91 44 25362973 Mumbai: +91 222471 4122 Email: jainmedia@eth.net

Asian Voice Main Office Karma Yoga House, 12 Hoxton Market, (Off Coronet Street) London N1 6HW. Tel: 020 7749 4080, Fax: 020 7749 4081 www.abplgroup.com © Asian Business Publications

Asian Voice switchboard: 020 7749 4000 Gujarat Samachar switchboard: 020 7749 4080 Sales: 020 7749 4085

CAPRICORN Dec 22 - Jan 20 It's a time of slow and steady progress that can set the stage for a long time to come. Of course, there are still challenging issues on both a personal and practical level. To get here you may have overcome obstacles by making important decision and choices. You will achieve a lot more, especially when you're motivated by your own desires.

AQUARIUS Jan 21 - Feb 19

Give top priority to important written work.

This applies particularly to financial and commercial interests. If you can manage to get away from usual routines, this will prove to be highly enjoyable and have a beneficial effect on your physical and psychological well-being. Loved ones will be looking after you.

Your energy and attention will be very much devoted to financial matters. The tide of fortune continues to run strongly in your favour for some time to come. You will be working harder than usual, intent on getting thing done. Close personal relationships may come under some stress and strain.

PISCES Feb 20 - Mar 20

SPort world

Asian Voice - Saturday 25th February 2012

Lanka pacemen make merry against India

India once again wilted against quality pace bowling as Sri Lanka defeated them by 51 runs in the eighth match of the one-day Triseries at the Gabba in Brisbane on Tuesday.

India, who were shot out for 178 by the Australian pace battery during a 110-run loss at the same venue on Sunday, were all out for 238 in 45.1 overs against Sri Lanka, chasing 290 for victory.

Nuwan Kulasekara picked up three wickets, including Gautam Gambhir (29) and Sachin Tendulkar (22), while Thisara Perera cleaned up at the end with four wickets. Lasith Malinga took two while the remaining wicket went to paceman Farveez Maharoof.

India, the 50-over world champions, got off to a dreadful start, losing their top three batsmen with just 54 on the board.

Virender Sehwag, who led India in the absence of the banned Mahendra Singh Dhoni, was caught at third man off the second delivery of the innings while Tendulkar's wait for his 100th ton was prolonged after he played Kulasekara on to his stumps.

India tried to rebuild with a 92-run stand for the fourth

Sri Lanka bowled out India for 238 to post a 51-run win

wicket between Virat Kohli (66), who was dropped twice

by Dinesh Chandimal, and Suresh Raina (32) but it was never enough.

Irfan Pathan (47) played an entertaining late cameo to deny Sri Lanka a bonus point before India were all out on the first delivery of the 46th over.

Tillakaratne Dilshan (51) and Mahela Jayawardene (45) gave Sri Lanka the ideal start with a 95-run opening stand after they won the toss and opted to bat.

Sri Lanka lost three quick wickets during the middle overs and needed some an assault by Lahiru Thirimanne (62) and all-rounder Angelo Mathews (49 not out) to get to

Shoaib Akhtar in a new controversy

Former Pakistan Test pacer Shoaib Akhtar has once again found himself in a new controversy after actor Meera claimed that she had a year long affair with the speedster, who never appreciated her commitment.

Pakistan's popular and well known actor said that the affair took place two years back while Shoaib was still playing for the national team.

"It was an intense affair and I wasted one precious year of my life waiting for him. I was committed and sincere to him. But he didn't

appreciate me," she said.

"It happened two years back. I was sincere to him.

But I ended the affair when on the same day he proposed to me and my cousin. It was a joke for me," Meera, who is known for her publicity stunts, said.

Meera, who has even worked in Indian movies and had a spat with Indian filmmaker Mahesh Bhatt, also claimed that Shoaib had once slapped her in front of some staffers at a television station but she did not say a word for his sake.

However, Shoaib, who retired during the 2011 World Cup abruptly and is currently working as an expert with a channel for the PakistanEngland series, denied the allegations.

"I don't know what she is talking about," he said.

Shoaib also said that he was never romantically involved with Meera.

289 for six from their 50 overs.

Aussies crush India: India came a cropper against Australia at the Gabba on a pacy pitch that woefully exposed the capabilities of the ‘young’ Indian team on Sunday. Made to field first, nothing seemed to go India’s way and chasing a stiff 289 was always improbable if not impossible. In fact, India were rattled straight up by Aussie pacemen Brett Lee and Ben Hilfenhaus and as early as the 11th over, the writing was on the wall.

MS Dhoni’s heroics had helped the Indians edge past the hosts with their highest run chase of 269 in their previous clash at the Adelaide

Oval, but this time the Australians raised the bar and in reply the Indians gave up without a fight being dismissed for 178 runs in 43.3 overs to lose by 110 runs.

What’s worse, they also conceded a bonus point.

Shockingly, when the Indians needed to be cautious, early on, they were carefree. In fact, the last ten overs of the Australian innings and the first ten of the Indian innings turned out to be the most decisive passage of play. Australia scored 101 runs from their last ten overs and cleaned up the top four Indian batsmen in 10.3 overs, which more or less settled the issue and put the hosts back on top of the league table.

Hilfenhaus, who returned to the One-Day squad after a two year break was at his menacing best and picked up 5 for 33 in 9.3 overs. Lee supported him well with 3 for 49.

Dhoni, who is turning out to be India’s most consistent batsman, top-scored with 56.

When India began their chase, Gautam Gambhir struck a sweetly timed straight hit to the fence, but fell soon to a snorter from Lee which he edged to Matthew Wade behind the stumps for the first of his five victims.

Andrew Symonds retires from all forms of cricket Former Australian all-rounder Andrew Symonds, one of the game's highly talented but maverick players, last week announced his retirement from all forms of professional cricket, bringing an end to a career marked by controversies and disciplinary breaches.

The 36-year-old Symonds, a temperamental and colourful personality whose racial row with Indian spinner Harbhajan Singh made headlines in 2008, cited family reasons for his decision to quit cricket.

He would not be playing for his IPL side Mumbai Indians this season as he was quitting competitive cricket in the wake of the impending birth of his first child.

He has not played for Australia since being sent home from the Twenty20 World Cup in England three years ago but has turned out for several domestic sides and clubs in limited-overs

cheat, Britain's Press Association reported.

Mark Milliken-Smith, lawyer for Westfield, told the

court: "It is clear, we submit, that Kaneria and his associates targeted Westfield. Westfield was on the verge of the squad, more susceptible for that reason; less likely perhaps to be able to say no to the club's international star, his future with the club uncertain."

The court was told other Essex players heard Kaneria talking about spot-fixing while Milliken-Smith told the court a "blind eye" was turned to the rumours. Westfield, who was playing in one of his first televised matches, received an interim suspension order from the England

Action at a Glance Lanka thrash Australia A clinical Sri Lanka rode on captain Mahela Jayawardene's unbeaten half century to register their first win of the cricket tri-series with an eight-wicket crushing of Australia in a rain-affected match on Friday last.

Chasing a revised target of 152 for a win under the Duckworth-Lewis method, Jayawardene (61 not out) anchored the run chase with a solid 67-ball unbeaten knock after opener Tillakaratne Dilshan (45) and Kumar Sangakkara (30) laid the foundation for an easy win at the Sydney Cricket Ground. Earlier, electing to bat, Australia were all out for 158 in 40.5 overs after the match was reduced to 41-overs-a-side affair with rain interrupting the tie at the end of the 26th over when Australia were 88 for six. The target for Sri Lanka was revised to 152 and they chased it down in just 24.1 overs, thereby collecting a bonus point also.

They needed to overhaul the target in 32.4 overs to get a bonus point.

Yuvraj says he is getting better Indian cricketer Yuvraj Singh revealed that the malignant lung tumour, for which he is undergoing chemotherapy in the Unites States, is "almost out of his system" after the first cycle of treatment. "Got very good news from dr lawrence today! The tumor is almost way out of the system After reading my todays scan !Second cycle has started," Yuvraj, being treated at the Boston Institute of Cancer Research, wrote on his twitter account. The 30-year-old, who went to US last month, has gone bald during the treatment, which will go on till the last week of March before the process of rehabilitation starts in April. The dashing batsman had earlier got a message from US cycling legend Lance Armstrong, whose own inspirational triumph over cancer is well-documented, wishing him a speedy recovery.

"Message from @lancearmstrong makes me feel better! Thank you lance means a lot hope we can meet," tweeted Yuvraj.

Sahara to remain Team India's sponsor

cricket and Twenty20 leagues. "Effective immediately, I am retiring from all forms of professional cricket," Symonds said.

"It is with regret that I will not be able to fulfill my final year of the IPL with the Mumbai Indians. Mumbai Indians and the IPL have both been very supportive of me, but the impending arrival of my first child is a priority," he said.

Pak cricketer Kaneria named as go-between in fixing case Former Pakistan cricketer Danish Kaneria was named in court on Friday as a gobetween in a spot-fixing case involving former English county player Mervyn Westfield.

Bowler Westfield, 23, pleaded guilty at an earlier hearing to being paid 6,000 pounds to give away a set number of runs in the first over of a match between his Essex side and Durham in September 2009.

The London court heard that Westfield's Essex team mate Kaneria told him that a friend would pay him to

31

and Wales Cricket Board.

Legbreak bowler Kaneria, who played 61 tests and 18 one-day internationals for Pakistan between 2000 and 2010, was arrested in connection with the case but later released without charge.

In November, a British court jailed three Pakistani players - Salman Butt, Mohammad Asif and Mohammad Amir - for fixing parts of a test in England in 2010. The Westfield case has raised fresh concerns about connections between cricket and illegal gambling circles on the Indian sub-continent.

The impasse between the Indian Cricket Board and Sahara ended with the BCCI agreeing to Sahara's demand. Sahara will remain as Team India's sponsor and the Pune Warriors will continue to play in the Indian Premier League. The board has also agreed to reactivate the auction money for the Pune warriors. On February 4, Sahara decided to cut its ties with the BCCI, withdrawing its sponsorship of the Indian team and ownership of the Pune Warriors India IPL franchise. Sahara said the decision to end their partnership comes over longstanding business grievances with the BCCI and the IPL governing council's handling of Yuvraj Singh, who is the captain of the Sahara-owned IPL team, Pune Warriors.

Serbia confers top award to Novak Djokovic Serbian President Boris Tadic awarded tennis star Novak Djokovic with the Gold Star of Karadjordje, the highest state honour medal for his "exceptional merits." Tadic called Djokovic the "best ambassador" of Serbia, according to a presidential press release. It will be the first time the Star of Karadjordje has been awarded since it was discontinued by the leadership of Yugoslavia after World War II. The decoration was first established in 1904 by King Peter and reintroduced in 2010. Karadjordje established the modern Serbian state and led the first successful uprising against the Ottoman Empire in 1804. He was the founder of the Serbian royal family.

32

Asian Voice - Saturday 25th Febuary 2012

Action at a Glance Richard Levi makes T20 history South African allrounder Richard Levi, playing in his second T w e n t y 2 0 International, created history with his big-hitting on Sunday. Levi took just 45 balls to reach his hundred - the quickest in the history of T20. The previous record was held by two batsmen, both taking 50 balls for their hundreds - Chris Gayle (117 off 57 balls) for West Indies against South Africa at Johannesburg on September 11, 2007 and Brendon McCullum (116 not out off 56 balls) for New Zealand against Australia at Christchurch on February 28, 2010. Levi's unbeaten 117 was studded with 13 sixes, the highest in Twenty20 Internationals, surpassing the 10 sixes hit

by Gayle during his 117-run knock. Levi also hit five fours besides the 13 sixes, totalling 98 runs from boundaries alone another T20 record, bettering McCullum's tally of 96 (12 fours, 8 sixes) during his 116-run knock against Australia. Levi is the first South African and the sixth overall to register a hundred in T20.

Ricky Ponting dropped from Australian ODI team Ricky Ponting was dropped from the Australia team because of poor form on Monday with s e l e c t o r s strongly indicating that his career in oneday internationals was all but over. The 37year-old, the second most prolific batsmen of all time in one-day internationals with 13,704 runs since his debut in 1995, had made just 18 runs in five games in the ongoing Tri-series against India and Sri Lanka. "Ricky Ponting has been dropped from the ODI side and the national selection panel has spoken about moving towards the 2015 World Cup," chief selector John Inverarity told a televised news conference in Perth. "The door is never closed on anyone but there is a strong indication there." Inverarity said he hoped Ponting would remain available for test cricket after he had made a decision on his future in the one-day game. "I spoke with Ricky this morning, he was disappointed and understandably so, but he took it on the chin," he said.

2nd ODI: Cook's ton inspires England win

Alastair Cook hit a second successive hundred to guide England to a 20-run win over Pakistan in the second daynight international last week, giving his team a 2-0 lead in the four-match series.

England put up a challenging 250-4 powered by Cook's 102 before they bowled well to restrict Pakistan to 230 in 49 overs at Abu Dhabi Stadium.

Misbah-ul Haq failed to match his counterpart during his 59-ball 47 as Pakistan lost track after being well set at 179-4, needing 72 in the last 11.1 overs.

Steven Finn, who took four wickets in the first match, finished with the identical figures of 4-34 to anchor England's win.

Pakistan got off to a good start with Mohammad Hafeez (26) and Imran Farhat (47) notching 61 by the 16th over before Hafeez was caught at mid-wicket off James Anderson.

Farhat, who hit five boundaries, added 31 for the second wicket with Azhar Ali (31) before Samit Patel took two wickets in the space of 12 runs, removing Ali and Younis Khan (five).

Farhat fell to a silly run out, leaving Misbah and Umar Akmal (21) to add 37 for the fifth wicket before Patel took a smart diving catch at cover to send Umar back with 72 still needed off 11.1 overs.

Shahid Afridi briefly threatened England with a run-a-ball 18 but his wicket and Craig Kieswetter's sky-high catch to dismiss Misbah settled the issue for England.

Cook said he was confident that 250 was a winning total. "It was a slightly different pitch from Monday on which a 250-total was good enough and we bowled well upfront. Finn was again outstanding," said Cook, who won a second successive man-of-the-match award.

Misbah said fielding made the differ-

with Ravi Bopara who made an attractive 58.

Cook was again at his fluent best, hitting 10 boundaries off 121 balls before he gave a return catch to leg-spinner Shahid Afridi in the 42nd over.

He hit paceman Umar Gul for two boundaries to reach 99 and then took a single off Abdul Rehman to reach the three-figure mark as he carried the batting right from the start.

England, who remained unchanged from the first match, also owed their progress to a dropped catch by part-time wicket-keeper Umar Akmal who let Cook off on 28 off Afridi, a costly lapse for Pakistan.

No dropping of Dow, asserts IOC chief Rogge

The International Olympic Committee stood by Dow Chemicals despite vehement protests from India, saying that the multinational firm had no ownership stakes in Union Carbide till 2000.

In a letter to Indian Olympic Association acting president VK Malhotra, IOC supremo Jacques Rogge appreciated the concern of the Indian apex body about the victims of 1984 Bhopal tragedy but maintained that Dow will remain a sponsor of the ! $ !

London Olympics.

IOC pointed out '78 +1.'(1+ '6)+1 !+6:.)+7 that its relation%461* %.*+ ship with Dow is well over 30 years and that “we were aware of the +6 Bhopal tragedy when discussing 6'3)-+7 the partnership with Dow.” Dow % & # " ! #" became an official Olympic partner in "448.3, July 2010 and the 2'.1 /92(4 5'6)+1 ;'-44 )4 90 official Chemistry " 551; company for the

!+3* '6)+1 84 3*.'

Alastair Cook plays a cut

ence. "I think the batsmen showed improvement, but the fielding was the main difference. We lost wickets in cluster," said Misbah, whose team lost their last five wickets for 23 runs.

Earlier Cook scored his fourth hundred - the first England captain and ninth batsmen for his country to hit back-to-back hundreds in one-dayers - to carry on the good work after his careerbest 137 earlier win in the series opener.

The 27-year-old left-hander put on 67 for the opening wicket with Kevin Pietersen (26) after England won their second successive toss and batted.

He also added 49 with Jonathan Trott (23) for the second and 78 for the third

Olympic movement until 2020. In London, they will sponsor a decorative wrap around the Olympic stadium, costing some $11-million, but without their branding.

IOA has opposed Dow Chemicals as one of the sponsors of the London Olympics because of Union Carbide was responsible for a lethal gas leak that killed thousands of people in Bhopal in 1984. The organisation had urged the IOC and London Olympic Games Organizing Committee

(LOCOG) to withdraw the firm as the Games sponsors.

The IOC sympathised with India but was equally resolute in its reply. “IOC recognizes that the Bhopal tragedy was horrific.

The Olympic Movement sympathizes with the grief of the victims’ families and regrets the ongoing suffering people face in the region,” Rogge said in his letter.

We’re not convinced: Malhotra The IOA said it was not convinced by IOC’s stand.

“We want IOC to appreciate the sentiments of the victims and drop Dow as sponsors,” Malhotra reiterated.

The IOA official also urged the government to come out with a clear stand on this issue. “We have yet to receive any reply from the government while IOC has written to us.

While Dow Chemicals operates in India with the full knowledge and permission of the government, it is throwing the ball into the IOA’s court when this sponsorship issue is raised. We want the government to come clean on this issue,” he added.

Federer beats Del Potro to capture second title in Rotterdam

Roger Federer grabbed his second title at the ABN AMRO world tennis tournament in Rotterdam after beating Argentine Juan Martin Del Potro 6-1, 6-4 in the final on Sunday.

The match was a replay of the 2009 US Open final, the only Grand Slam final won by Del Potro. This time, however, there was no doubt who was the better player.

Federer put on an impressive and stylish performance in the Ahoy arena.

The number one seed from Switzerland dominated his Argentinian opponent from the start, with an early break in the second game, and eased to 6-1 in the first set. The second set was without breaks after four games, but Federer broke the third seed to take a 3-2 lead. Del Potro failed to convert any of the seven breakpoints on offer.