AV 16th May 2020

FIRST & FOREMOST ASIAN WEEKLY IN EUROPE

inside:

inside: Love in times of coronavirus

PM Modi announces economic package, says lockdown 4.0 will have new rules

SEE PAGE 4

UK furlough scheme gets 4month extension

SEE PAGE 26

SEE PAGE 8

Queen withdraws from public stage SEE PAGE 11

R

Let noble thoughts come to us from every side 16 MAY - 22 MAY 2020 - VOL 49 ISSUE 3

The lockdown exit dilemma

Hizbul India chief Naikoo killed in shootout SEE PAGE 26

Man charged over racial abuse of BBC journalist A man has been charged after Sima Kotecha, a PIO journalist with BBC, alleged that she and her crew had been subjected to ‘racist and abusive behaviour’.

The alleged incident took place when Kotecha was preparing to broadcast from Sima Kotecha Leicester city centre at the weekend.

Leicestershire police have said the man would appear at court over the incident, which occurred on Sunday.

Appearing at Leicester Magistrates' Court by videolink, Russell Rawlingson pleaded not guilty to causing racially aggravated alarm or distress.

Continued on page 6

Fugitive Diamantaire Nirav Modi issued life threat to witnesses in £1.5bn fraud After advocating lockdown, the Prime Ministers of both the UK and India now face the challenge of reopening the economy.

Bringing businesses back on track while containing the spread of coronavirus has been termed as a "two-fold" challenge by Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and "ride down the mountain harder than the climb" by his UK counterpart Boris Johnson.

What the political leaders seem to be concerned about is a compli-

cated and sensitive situation that the two countries are in. If London has emerged as the coronavirus capital of Europe, Modi faces a daunting task of reopening a continent-size country.

Germany was among the first countries to ease restrictions. But the results were not at all encouraging as the number of new Covid19 cases jumped immediately. This explains the dilemma of world leaders planning to lift the lockdown or even ease the curbs.

Johnson seems to have adopted a wait-and-watch policy with the opposition terming his government guidelines as confusing and unclear.

Back in India, the governments at the Centre and in 28 states are set to match the steps as the country of 1.36 billion tries to get back on track. But while some states like West Bengal and Telengana want to continue the lockdown, Delhi is prepared to reboot.

Continued on page 6

India’s most-wanted man defrauded £1.5 billion from a national bank by using insiders and threatening to kill witnesses in an international Ponzi scheme, a court was told.

He was discovered last year living in a penthouse flat in the Nirav Modi Centre Point tower in central London, occupying half a floor at a cost thought to be about £17,000 a month.

Continued on page 6

2 UK

AsianVoiceNews

AsianVoiceNewsweekly

www.asian-voice.com

16 May - 22 May 2020

All Primary Schools to reopen by end of June

with Keith Vaz

Vipul Shah Vipul Shah was born in Mombasa, Kenya in 1953.His father had a maize mill and he and his brothers, helped him after school hours and at the weekends. This is where he gained some business knowledge at a very young age. He immigrated to the UK in 1979 and married Naina. Although he was working for a retail chain, he always wanted to become a businessman. With the help of a friend, he managed to set up a small multimedia manufacturing unit in the late 1990s. By early 2000, he successfully expanded his business and his son joined me him at the age of 18. His business was affected due to the digital age and he sold the factory in 2018. He is now happily retired and lives with his wife, son, and daughter-in-law.

1

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

Initially it was difficult for me to settle in a new country as I have always been reliant on my family, but since I was now alone, I learnt to take responsibility. I have always lived in North London with my wife, son and daughter and now feel at home here.

2

What are your proudest achievements?

My proudest achievement was when I designed my own tailor-made Machines with the help of a German Company. With those machines, I was the first in the world to produce machine packable CD sleeves.

3

What Inspires you?

My inspiration has always been my family especially my brothers and my wife. My family were business minded and always guided me to success

4

What has been the biggest obstacle?

My biggest obstacle was finance. Despite of know-how, I could not expand to what I wanted to achieve.

5

Who has been the biggest influence?

It is true that there is always a woman behind every successful man. Naina has been my Strength in every aspect of my life.

6

What is the best aspect?

I am now successfully retired with no regrets.

7

And the worst?

Every person goes through hurdles and worst times of their lives and I have learnt to be strong and confident.

8

What are your long term goals?

I am truly satisfied with my achievements and I thank my family and some friends who Have always stood by me.

9

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

If I were the Prime Minister of this country, I would not change much as we are doing Just fine. I have noticed that when ever I have travelled abroad, most people would like to live in UK. This proves that we are one of the best countries in the world.

10

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

I would have to choose Mother Teresa, as she spent most of her life serving the under privilege. She was selfless and that I really admire.

The Royal Family thanks world's nurses The Prince of Wales, the Duchess of Cornwall, the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, the Princess Royal, the Countess of Wessex and Princess Alexandra took part in the tributes.

Prince Charles thanked nurses for their "diligence" and "courage".While Camilla said: "Extraordinary times call for extraordinary people."In a video montage released by Kensington Palace on social media, many nurses were seen wearing face masks as they spoke to the royals about the impact of Covid-19.In one call, the Duchess of Cambridge said: "I don't know how you manage to do this and keep the show on the road despite the extra pressures you're all under and the challenging conditions - it's just shown how vital the role that nurses play across the world. You should be so proud of the work that you do."

All primary schools will reopen for a month before the summer holidays under plans announced last night by the government.

June 1 has been penciled in as the return date for children in reception, and years one and six, but ministers say that “if feasible” all primary-age children should return later in the month. It means primary schools could be fully open as early as June 22.

The plan to extend primary school opening to all years came in detailed guidance on how to keep teachers and children safe.

The proposals include class sizes being limited and staggered drop-off and

pick-up times at school gates.

Secondary schools will remain largely shut. Only pupils in the first years of GCSE and A-level study have been promised faceto-face time with their teachers.

Pupils returning to primary school in early June will be confined to classes of 15, compared with their usual 30, and prohibited from contact with other pupils and teachers.

There will be no PPE for teachers or children.

Health advisers say it is not necessary if they are with the same small group each day. They will, however, have access to immediate testing for Covid-19 if any

Priti Patel fights ‘paralysis’ accusation as immigration soars As she battles accusations of ‘paralysis’, the Home Secretary Priti Patel, a PIO, has unveiled a plan to counter the immigrants' crisis at the Channel which will see boats turn back to France.

Figures released by the Migration Watch UK, which campaigns for lower immigration, show that more than 3,000 migrants have already crossed the Channel since 2018.

It is believed that Patel has asked France to take responsibility for vessels even if they reach British waters.

A spokesman said a conversation between Patel and her French counterpart had been ‘very positive’ and the French government is ‘happy to explore ideas’ and will work with UK officials to hammer out a formal plan.

The move comes months after UK and France signed a deal to step up patrols on the French coast to check the migrant crossings by this spring.

However, the reports state a different story with numbers surging to record highs.

According to a report in The Times, a further 11 were brought into the port of Dover recently after being intercepted in an inflatable boat that had made an overnight crossing from France. The eight men and three women said they were from Iran, Iraq, Syria and Afghanistan.

According to the Migration Watch UK report, the immigrants’ number surged from 297 in 2018 to about 1,890 last year and at least 1,040 so far this year, including about

700 since lockdown began, it said.

The report claims that the biggest motivation for the immigrants to breach UK borders is the almost negligible chances of being sent back from the country and settling in Britain permanently.

“Returns are abysmally low. Only 155 people who arrived on small boats between the start of January 2019 and early April were returned despite approximately 2,500 detected arrivals,” the report said.

It warned that a “worsening paralysis of enforcement” in overall removals of illegal immigrants and failed asylum seekers was spurring more boat trips across the Channel.

The chairman of Migration Watch, Alp Mehmet was quoted as saying, “The government has had 18 months to deal with the problem of illegal Channel crossings in small boats. Thus far, a solution has not only proved elusive but the situation seems to be getting worse. With the public in . . . lockdown, it is surely not expecting too much for them to be confident their borders are secure.”

Under the Dublin III regulations, the migrants crossing the Channel who then claim asylum can be removed to another part of Europe if it can be proved that they first arrived in another EU state. However, the report claims that under the rules more asylum seekers were being transferred into the UK than out

FINANCIAL A SERVICES MORTGAGES Residential Buy to Let Remortgages

PROTECTION Life Insurance Critical Illness Income Protection

Please conta act:

Dinesh S Shonchhatra Mortgage Ad dviser

Call: 020 8424 C 4 8686 / 07956 810647 77 High Street, Wealdston ne, Harrow, HA3 5DQ mortgage@majorestate.co om ~ majorestate.com

show symptoms.

The government acknowledged last night that it was impossible to maintain social distancing among four and five-yearolds. Instead, an approach of small groups has been adopted, as well as staggered drop-off and pick-up times and one-way systems in corridors.

Schools will be advised to leave doors open, have one-way systems and arrange trips to the lavatories so pupils do not come into contact with children from others’ bubbles. Break and lunch times will be staggered. There will be breaks for hand washing, as well as regular deep cleaning of the premises.

Shree Kutchh Satsang Swaminarayan Temple in Forest Gate, Newham delivered food and variety of fruit on Thu 7th May to the NHS staff at Newham Hospital in East London joined

by Cllr Pushaben Mak. The staff were extremely grateful and was gratefully received. They were then joined by the SKS Swaminarayan temple band and they played outside at 8pm on the same day in appreciation of the support of NHS and Care workers. The NHS staff and security were extremely delighted to participate by dancing and clapping during the memorable session. The NHS staff and care workers are fulfilling a vital role in tackling COVID for the community. This just shows how just a few small gestures go a long way in the support of the current climate.

www.asian-voice.com

AsianVoiceNews

AsianVoiceNewsweekly

COMMENTS

UK

3

16 May - 22 May 2020

PM Narendra Modi reopens economy with caution A total lockdown for a continent size country of India home to 135 crore people - in late March by the Narendra Modi government caught many by surprise. Seven weeks later, we realise how important and timely the decision was. The government preferred saving lives over livelihoods, and rightly so. The lockdown has been one of the longest in the world. Now, after having restricted the spread of Covid-19 to quite an applaud level, it's time to focus on putting the economy back on track. In times of pandemic, keeping both the people and economy in the pink of health will be a daunting task and needs a balancing act.

Only 6 percent of India’s population is over 60, against 16 percent in the US, 19 percent in the UK and 23 percent in Italy. A large number of people in India toil in the informal economy: after the lockdown, over 140m migrant workers lost jobs. With railways closed, most of the workers were stranded miles away from home. With lockdown in place, the fiscal response has been a mere 1.1 percent of gross domestic product with daily-wagers being the worst-hit.

It can be said in the favour of lockdown that cumulative deaths from Covid-19 were a mere 1.5 per million till last week. T hat death rate is 135th in the world, far behind the UK’s 465 per million. But these figures will rise. It might be difficult to contain the spread once the restrictions are eased. But there are many other concerns. Since some 10m people are on average, in the normal circumstances,

expected to die in India in 2020, Covid-19 is not of overwhelming significance, even in health terms. Nobody can yet tell how badly the lockdown will damage the economy.

But, since it has been so severe and the fiscal response so limited, the economy may shrink even more than in highincome countries.

The Indian government can do a number of things to get the economy back on track. When the lockdown is lifted, enhanced testing, tracing and quarantine should be followed more vigorously, though it will be a major challen ge in one of the densely populated countries. At present, the government has divided the country into red (the most restricted), orange and green areas. But the first category generates 43 percent of GDP and the second another 38 percent. Severe restrictions cannot last very long. Second, the government should spend whatever it takes and in whatever way works, within reason, to support the people and the economy. Fiscal risks do exist. But economic and social risks are far more significant.

In a co-authored piece, Arvind Subramanian, former chief economic adviser, argues that additional spending may need to be at least 5 per cent of GDP. This is manageable. According to the IMF, general government debt was 70 per cent of GDP and the fiscal deficit 7.4 per cent last year. But India’s 10-year bond yield, at around 6 percent, is also well below long-term growth of nominal GDP. India can surely grow its way out of higher debt.

Care for elderly, but do not ignore youths Boris Johnson on Sunday shared his three-phase plan for opening the economy. As expected the most modest easing of restrictions was announced to start with.

The reality of the lockdown is harsh. Undoubtedly the elderly, whether in care homes or in the community, are our most vulnerable groups. Though not totally risk-free, but the young, are in far less danger. With each counting day under lockdown, their lives and futures are at stake. This is the harshest peacetime restrictions ever. And, never before has it caused so much damage to the majority to protect a minority.

There are better ways to look after the elderly than imposing a mass lockdown of all ages.

Mr Johnson will take comfort from the fact that public support for the lockdown is high. The government slow in its response at the beginning and with the highest death toll in Europe, is nervous about getting the release wrong.

While there is public support for the lockdown, it is weakest among the young, who, driven mad by confinement, want to get on with their lives. As the lockdown disrupts their education and careers, they are not unreasonably worried they will not have lives to get on with.

And it is not just the young who will suffer. The economic cost of the lockdown is mounting alarmingly. The Bank of England has forecast a scenario in which the economy slumps 14% this year. It also has a lockdown rule of thumb; every two weeks of additional lockdown costs 1.25% of gross domestic product, or £28bn. In America, on Friday, we saw the return of

Depression-era unemployment.

By focusing so intently on the immediate and present health risks, the government has taken its eye off future risks, not least that failure to get the economy going will leave the country unable to fund a health service.

Amid many mysteries related to COVID-19 yet to be solved, one this is clear- it is much deadlier for the elderly. The latest weekly figures from the Office for National Statistics show no deaths, thankfully, among those 14 and under. Just 1% of deaths were in the 15-44 age group, and just 11% among the under-65s as a whole, the vast bulk of the working population.

The youngest are champing at the bit to be released from lockdown purgatory and there is no good reason, assuming they are not living with the elderly, they should not be.

As they point out, about 4.2 million individuals fall in the 20-30 age group and do not live with parents. Of these, 2.6 million work in the private sector and are seeing their jobs and career prospects badly affected by the lockdown. A release of the young, they argue, would lead to “substantial economic and societal benefits” without significant health costs.

It makes sense. A release programme starting with the young could be extended to other low-risk age groups. It would offer a lot more hope than the thin gruel that is likely to be doled out by the prime minister today. It could even allow the government to be a leader, rather than a laggard, in its virus response. Free the young from the lockdown. We will not regret it.

Post pandemic economic shift can favour India Post Covid-19 pandemic there will be geopolitical and geo-economic shifts, that means to bring a balance to a system which is tilted towards China. Over the last two decades, almost every kind of manufacturing firm has set up its plants in China because of the country’s aggressive FDI policies. But now many companies realise this as a part of a larger global conspiracy. By attracting manufacturing, China has been reaping the benefits of R&D being done in other countries without even spending on it. China has been pursuing this policy till the time the world woke up to the consequences of the Covid-19 pandemic. China has a trade surplus with almost every country in the world, but it has now transformed into a trust deficit. Now, every country wants to pull out their investment from China and look for opportunities elsewhere.

India has been one of the top choices for such investments, especially after Prime Minister Narendra Modi took charge of the government and started his comprehensive global outreach. With PM Modi's 'Make in India' campaign and the increase in Ease of Doing Business rankings, India became a favourite spot for investors across the globe. This was followed by introducing the Goods and Services Tax (GST) regime that has boosted the confidence of international investors. But we still need to do more to capitalize the potential of our country to be a dream destination for investors.

Several companies are likely to shift their bases from China post Covid. The post Covid context has given India an oppor-

tunity to attract all those companies that are leaving China.

India has been a favoured destination for global companies in the last six years, but we have to do more to attract a significant share of investments. There were reports that the government is gearing up to invite those companies that are leaving China, and forming a robust strategy for the same. But the strategy to invite investors to India should also be floated as a social initiative where everyone from the system and society should get into a mission mode to promote the country, starting from ministries, officials, missions, think-tanks, social organisations, diaspora communities and even citizens.

There has been a demand from international investors for labour and judicial reforms, specifically on the sanctity of contracts and resolution of disputes. Centre and some of the state governments are discussing some changes in these areas. But here are some specific points which should be emphasised upon to attain maximum benefits. First, we need to identify the sectors where we anticipate a shift in investment. We then need to identify the industry size (from macro to medium) and handle their needs accordingly. A nodal body of the FDI for timely clearances should be formed and it should work in coordination with facilitation agencies like Invest India for better results. The Facebook and other US corporations have in the last two weeks invested almost 8 billion dollars in Mukesh Ambani's Reliance Jio is a step in the right direction.

To whatever degree we are alert, aware, to that degree we are living - Sri Sri Ravi Shanker

Alpesh Patel

Our Politicians Have to Help the Savers and Investors The savers and investors are the people who can afford their own pensions. They have less need to fall back on the State.

They are lucky. But still the way the whole system is geared to take their money, feed it to skills-less fund managers and give back poor returns means they are being ripped off.

Our politicians need to re-examine this travesty. Each week I receive emails from people who don’t realise the reason they are not making more of their money is that the socalled experts are ripping them off.

I wrote in the Financial Times to this effect many years ago. “Trust Yourself, not a Fund Manager” They’re supposedly the best equipped to manage your funds. Billions of dollars are entrusted to them, and they have global resources at their disposal.

So should you assign some of your money to fund managers? After all, there’s been a recent proliferation of fund supermarkets.

The lawsuit by Unilever’s Pension Fund against Merrill Lynch alleging fund manager negligence in underperformance back in 2001 was neither the first nor the last and showed that if the mighty Unilever can be so unhappy with their fund manager, what hope does a regular person have?

Little hope, according to ample evidence.

“The deeper one delves, the worse things look for actively managed funds…99% of fund managers demonstrate no evidence of skill whatsoever.” concludes William Bernstein in his study of the fund industry.* Investment legend Peter Lynch in Beat the Street** confirms, “all the time and effort people devote to picking the right fund, the hot hand, the great manager have, in most cases, led to no advantage”.

And Warren Buffett in his 1996 letter to his Berkshire Hathaway shareholder advocates a passive index tracker over fund managers: “…the best way to own stocks is through an index fund...”

But the most damning evidence against trying to pick a fund manager is their own performance.

Only 9 out of 355 funds analysed by Lipper and Vanguard beat their market benchmarks from 1970-1999.

Analysis by www.IFA.tv of the large Morningstar database of equity funds could find ‘no discernible pattern of persistence in superior manager performance.’

What about only picking the best performer fund managers.

Unfortunately, all the top 10 performing funds in any year drop from 1st place to nearly last place among all funds within in 2 to 4 years according to a 26 year study by DALBAR. The reverse, unfortunately, is not as certain.

The study found for instance that from 1998, the average stock fund investor earned returns of only 5.29% per year, while the S&P 500 returned 7.20%.

Yet despite this, 75% of mutual fund inflows follow last years "winners", according to fund researcher www.morningstar.com.

Even Nobel Laureates agree on the hopelessness of picking top performing fund managers. Prize winner Merton Miller observed in a documentary about funds, “If there's 10,000 people looking at the stocks and trying to pick winners, one in 10,000 is going to score, by chance alone, a great coup, and that's all that's going on. It's a game, it's a chance operation, and peoples think they are doing something purposeful... but they're really not.”

So what is to be done? If fund managers can’t beat market benchmarks, then we could invest in index trackers and be assured of at least matching the benchmarks. Vanguard and Barclays are two major providers.

And for Unilever and Merrill Lynch? With so much evidence about poor fund manager returns, little wonder Unilever settled their lawsuit. After all, the fund managers could turn around and say, ‘what did you expect?’

Alpesh B Patel *The Intelligent Asset Allocator, William Bernstein, (McGraw-Hill 2001). **Beat the Street, by Peter Lynch and John Rothchild (Simon & Schuster 1994)

Editor: CB Patel 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 Website: www.abplgroup.com © Asian Business Publications

4 UK

AsianVoiceNews

AsianVoiceNewsweekly

www.asian-voice.com

16 May - 22 May 2020

Love in times of pandemic costs Neil Ferguson his Covid-19 advisory role LOCKDOWN PROMOTOR, HIS MARRIED LOVER COULDN’T RESIST MEETING AS UK MAINTAINED SOCIAL DISTANCING All is fair in love and war, or so they say. Prof Neil Ferguson took it quite literally, it seems.

As the world declared war on Covid-19, it was Prof Ferguson’s advice to the government that led to the UK lockdown. Weeks later, ‘Prof Lockdown’ failed to practice what he preached, to please his married love.

Prof Ferguson had strongly advocated for strict restrictions to slow the spread of the coronavirus. While citizens struggled to cope with lockdown, the 52year-old could not persuade his 38-yearold lover to stay home.

Prof Ferguson admitted to have allowed his lover Antonia Staats, who is in an open marriage, to visit him at his London home during lockdown. They reportedly did this at least twice.

They came i n touch through dating application Ok Cupid — which makes them sound like teenagers desperately seeking love. She works for Avaaz, an online campaigning group that is clamouring for “green corona recovery now”, according to a report in The Times The repercussion: He quits as a government adviser on coronavirus.

It gets a tad more complicated since both happen to be married — Antonia to Chris Lucas, an Ar abic professor, who speaks several languages, and looks like a younger version of Neil the scientist, and Neil to an unassuming lady named Kim Polgreen. The younger couple has two children. Neil, and his estranged wife Kim Polgreen, have a child.

Antonia has talked about her ‘open marriage’ in interviews and admitted the Covid crisis has posed an “interesting lockdown challenge”. She lives the good life in a 1.9-million-pound home, and has joked it’s hard to cope with domestic chores in the absence of a cleaner and an au pair.

We don’t know what Kim is going

Mr Hancock admitted he was left speechless after learning of the Imperial College London scientist's "extraordinary" actions.

Hancock said Ferguson was a very eminent and impressive scientist, but took the right decision to resign.

Ferguson has become a well-known figure in Britain, makNeil Ferguson and his married lover Antonia Staats ing frequent media appearances during the through, since she has decided not to outbreak. On March 18, he tweeted that comment on the saga, which has all of he had a fever and cough, symptoms of Britain hanging on to every salacious Covid-19, and that there was a small risk detail. Neil and Antonia met on the he had infected others.

OkCupid app — which makes them Ferguson is the second scientific sound like teenagers desperately seekadviser in the U K to quit after failing to ing love. follow their own advice. Catherine His mother-in-law, surpris ingly, Calderwood resigned as Scotland's chief was one of his prime defenders: “He’s medical officer last month for twice working his socks off and this is how he travelling from Edinburgh to her secis repaid?”

Ferguson developed models that ond home.

As one of the founders of the MRC predicted hundreds of thousands would Centre for Global Disease Analysis at die unless the UK imposed drastic Imperial College London, Ferguson's restrictions to slow the spread of the work has been instrumental in shaping coronavirus. public health responses to outbreaks Prof Ferguson, who was dubbed including swine flu, Ebola and Zika.

"Prof Lockdown" for his regular broadFerguson has long advised authorities cast appearances, said he had made an including the World Health ‘error of judgment’ and he regretted Organization and national governundermining the norms of social disments in Britain, Europe and the U.S. tancing.

On March 16, Ferguson and colReacting to the lockdown violation leagues published a paper suggesting by the professor, the police has said that that even with some social distancing it will not investigate the scientist. measures, the U.K. could see 250,000 Terming the incident as ‘disapvirus-related deaths and the United pointing’, the Scotland Yard ruled out States a death toll of about 1 million. pursuing the matter because his deciFerguson predicted those figures could sion to quit as a government adviser more than double in both countries in a means that he ‘has taken responsibility’. worst-case scenario.

Health Secretary Matt Hancock The following day, Prime Minister said Prof Ferguson made the "right deciBoris Johnson advised Britons to work sion to resign" but added it was a matter from home, if possible, and to avoid for the police to decide whether to take unnecessary social gatherings. further action.

Breaking the silence around baby loss Aveer is my son, who I delivered on Sunday 19th January at 9.57pm. Aveer was an incredibly special baby – as he did not take a single breath in this world.

At 36 weeks of pregnancy, my husband and I were devastated to find out that our baby had a brain abnormality which would lead to severe mental suffering in the unlikely event that he would survive. We were advised a termination would be in the best interest of our baby rather than put him through a lifetime of suffering.

In Aveer’s memory, I am organising a sponsored walk called Aveer’s Footprints on Sunday 17 th May. Given the current circumstances of the pandemic, this 5k walk can take place anytime, anywhere.

The walk will help us raise funds for SANDS (www.sands.org.uk)– a stillbirth and neonatal charity, who have supported us in numerous ways to cope with the loss of our first baby.

Since January, we had attended their support groups and were provided with a memory box when we left the hospital, much like other bereaved parents who go without their baby in their arms.

The memory box contained items such as his footprints and handprints, his hospital bands, and a giraffe toy. This was a huge comfort to us at this intensely emotional and challenging time and we decided to fundraise for SANDS so

they can continue to care for other bereaved parents through their helplines and support groups.

We are also organising this walk to bring baby loss awareness to light, which is often considered a taboo subject and not openly discussed. From what I experienced, people often feel if they bring up my loss, it will remind me of the pain. Yet, the loss of a baby is like an emptiness in a mother’s heart, which cannot be filled, despite whether people discuss my grief with me or not.

I am writing this to encourage you to acknowledge that there was a loss and that a life existed, despite this being a challenging topic to bring up. I ask you not to shy away from the topic. Talk about baby loss as you would talk about any loss.

Many parents suffer in silence, however much like any other loss, pretending it didn’t happen won’t improve the situation. The more we talk about baby loss, the more we can accept it does happen.

To bereaved parents - I encourage you to talk about the love for your baby to help with your healing.

If you can, I urge you to walk with us on Sunday 17 th May and/or donate to

raise funds for SANDS and all money raised will be match-funded by our family foundation – Hemraj Goyal Foundation. You may register for the walk at https:/eventbrite.co.uk/e/ aveers-footprints-tickets-103809 027596 and donate at https:/justgiving.com/ fundraising/aveersfootprints.

Together we can encourage the awareness of baby loss.

I would like to thank you in advance for your support.

With love and thanks, Selina Goyal Aveer’s Mum

in brief

TWO ARRESTED FOR PIO’S MURDER IN LONDON

Two persons have been arrested in connection with the murder of an Indian-origin man, who was found dead in an alleyway in west London last month.

Detective chief inspector Helen Rance was quoted as saying, “We have made two arrests in connection with this tragic incident and our investigation is still very much ongoing. I want to thank the public for their help so far and also renew my appeal for any information.”

Baljit Singh, 37, who lived in the Hayes area of London, was pronounced dead at the scene after the Metropolitan Police and London Ambulance Service were called to Station Road on April 25.

A post mortem examination, held at Fulham mortuary on April 27, determining cause of death as compression to the neck.

Officers from the Met Police’s Specialist Crime Command (Homicide) opened the murder investigation soon after.

Two men, aged 20 and 24, were both arrested this week on suspicion of murder and are currently in custody in a west London police station.

Local reports quoted Helen Rance as saying, “Did you see the Baljit around 22.00hrs on April 25 in the vicinity of Station Road? If you think you may have information that could help our investigation and have not yet spoken to a police officer please come forward. You can either speak to my officers or you can call the independent charity Crimestoppers anonymously,” she added.

"Singh was subjected to a vicious assault; the severity of which has caused him to lose his life. My officers are working through hours of CCTV footage and speaking with people in the area to establish what has happened and identify those responsible,” Rance had earlier said.

The Met's Homicide team had been trying to trace two people Singh was in the company of just prior to his death.

It is believed a disagreement may have taken place during which the victim was assaulted.

JOHNSON'S DIVORCE WITH PIO WIFE FINALISED

In country’s 250-year-old history, Prime Minister Boris Johnson has earned the tag of UK’s first Prime Minister to have divorced wife while still in office. The process has concluded with the clearance of papers filed by him and his Indian-origin ex-wife Marina Wheeler earlier this year.

The now ended narriage was kind of a close India connection. Wheeler, whom he married in 1993, is half Indian.Wheeler is the niece of late editor and writer Khushwant Singh. Before they announced their separation last year after 25 years of marriage, Johnson had travelled several times to India with Marina. They have four children together.

The 55-year-old Johnson had announced his engagement with fiancée Carrie Symonds soon after the decree absolute was filed in February. Symonds, 32, who moved into Downing Street with Johnson in July last year, gave birth to their baby boy Wilfred Lawrie Nicholas Johnson recently.

Johnson's divorce from Wheeler, his second wife, was finalised with the grant of the decree just before the birth of the baby on April 29, report the Daily Mirror.

Wheeler, whose mother Dip Singh hails from Punjab, is a barrister and columnist. She has four children with Johnson. Wheeler sought nod of the Central Family Court in London on February 18 to apply for a decree absolute.

It is believed Johnson and Wheeler both could each walk away with 4 million pounds from the divorce settlement. Wheeler, who has previously written about surviving cancer, is due to publish ‘The Lost Homestead' about her mother, who married her father, BBC foreign correspondent Charles Wheeler, in 1962.

Ironically, after Boris Johnson first divorced, he was a single man for just 12 days before marrying his pregnant lover. History could so easily have repeated itself this time too but for the coronavirus. Johnson will have to wait a little longer before tying the knot for a third occasion.

Johnson first wed his university girlfriend Allegra Mostyn-Owen at a grand ceremony in 1987. A socialite, she was the cover girl of society magazine Tatler.

According to people close to him, the relationship turned sour in no time. And by the time his divorce was finalised in 1993, his next would-be-wife Marina Wheeler was already pregnant with their first child.

Johnson’s second marriage lasted longer but controversy and scandals were never too far. The 27 years period was marred by his many affairs. There is also a looming threat of investigation for possible misconduct over claims that he arranged preferential treatment for another alleged mistress while he was Mayor of London. Johnson has denied these claims.

In 2018, the couple eventually announced that they were separating just before his relationship with Symonds became public.

www.asian-voice.com

AsianVoiceNews

UK

AsianVoiceNewsweekly

5

16 May - 22 May 2020

UK universities reach Father charged with murdering his children out to Indian students for Covid support

Indian students, whether in UK or India, have been asked by the UK universities to get in touch with their varsity support services if they need help or guidance amid Corona lockdown.

The Indian government has begun phased repatriation of its citizens stranded abroad from May 7. Air India will be operating 64 flights until May 13 to bring back around 15,000 Indian nationals stranded abroad amid the Covid-19 induced lockdown.

As the Indian government's first phase of repatriations from the UK began from Saturday, many Indian students still face a long wait before they can fly home. The UK universities said they wanted them to know that the support continues to be available.

“We are aware that many Indian students are c oncerned about money and accommodation, are missing their families and are understandably distressed to be far from home during this global pandemic. My message to those students is: please, please speak to your university," said Vivienne Stern, director of Universities UK international, which represents 143 British university leaders.

"We may not be able to fix everything, but there are people on hand who will do everything they can to make things easier for you. Universities are providing support in the form of funding, food, accommodation and advice and guidance. We are in this together, please don't struggle alone," she was quoted as saying.

Universities UK said that support offered by universities includes delivering food to students, providing hardship funds for students in financial difficul ty, waiving accommodation fees or moving international students into accommodation where they can look after them by providing cleaning, security and catering. Universities are also providing pastoral and mental health support.

Jaspreet Singh, an Indian student at Birmingham City University (BCU), said: "I know being an international student how worried our parents can be. I send them regular updates and say I'm safe here. Make sure you are in touch with your lecturers and the amazing support team which BCU has got – make sure you use them."

Indians make up one of the largest groups of international students from outside the European Union (EU) studying at universities in Britain, after Chinese students. Thousands of these Indian students have found themselves stranded as India imposed a ban on interna tional flights in the middle of March.

Indian students' representative groups such as the National Indian Students and Alumni Union UK (NISAU-UK) and Indian National Students Association (INSA) have issued advisories and have been organising food deliveries and other assistance through the lockdown.

The UK Home Office had confirmed that any foreign students or professionals on visas that had expired or expiring would be given an extension at least until May 31. Many of the stranded students, from different parts of India including Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, Maharashtra and Uttarakhand, expressed their relief at that extension but remain concerned about the limited resources at their disposal.

PIO bizman kidnapped in Mozambique

Gujarati-origin businessman and philanthropist Rizwan Adatia has been kidnapped in Africa’s Mozambique, report local agencies. As per the statement of police, the car in which Adatia was travelling, was found abandoned. The reports suggest that the case has been handed over to the National Criminal Investigation Service (SERNIC).

A native of Porbandar in Gujarat, Adatia is the owner of the COGEF group which runs 35 wholesale supermarkets (cash & carry), 190 stores, four manufacturing units and employs more than 3,500 people in nine African countries.

The Indian high commission in Mozambique has stated that local authorities are taking action in the matter.

Adatia’s kidnapping is not the first for the African nation.

This is fourth confirmed case which is under investigation by the Mozambican authorities this year.

Last month, the police had detained five people suspected of involvement in other previous kidnapping crimes in Maputo and Inhambane provinces.

The businessman, through his non-profit Rizwan Adatia Foundation, has been focussing on reducing inequality in education, health and economic development in communities in Asia and Africa. The foundation has so far helped 740,700 through 18 strategic partnerships.

Earlier in 2017, the foundation celebrated Adatia’s 50th birthday on September 14 with 44 senior citizens and differently abled couples from Porbandar, Rajkot, Surat and Junagadh. They visited Singapore and Malaysia as part of the festivites.

This is not all. Again in 2016, his foundation sponsored a cruise trip of 45 female senior citizens from Porbandar. It is also engaged in several other philanthropic activities.

Police have charged an Ilfordbased 40-year-old father with the murder of his two children, aged three years and 19 months, respectively.

Both children had their throats cut by a sharp weapon when the police arrived at the crime scene recently.

Both children, three-year-old Nigash Nithiyakumar and 19-monthold Pavinya Nithiyakumar, were fatally wounded at their house in Aldborough Road North in east London.

The man charged for the crime, their father, Nadarajah Nithiyakumar was also rushed to hospital as he had knife wounds too.

Nithiyakumar, after his discharge from hospital, was charged with the murders of his son Nigash and daughter Pavinya on Thursday. He was presented before the Thames Magistrates' Court a day later.

An official, while opening the

inquests into both killings, told the East London area coroner Graeme Irvine that on April 26, Nigash was attacked by his father at his home and his throat was cut.

According to local reports, coroner was told that Nigash died in a Whitechapel hospital, east London the same day after being rushed there by the ambulance.

As per reports, the official added that a forensic post-mortem examina-

tion was carried out on April 28 and the cause of the death has been given as ‘incised wound to the neck’.

Talking about the killing of the second child, coroner was told that Pavinya too was attacked by the father and her throat was cut too like her brother and she died of her injuries on the spot. The cause of death in the case of the girl was same as her brother with an incised wound to the neck.

The identity of both the children was determined by their mother named Nisa.

After the hearing, the coroner ordered the inquest, saying that he was satisfied in relation to both these deaths but he was not going to fix a time for the inquest since the criminal investigation is still ongoing into the incident.

After opening the inquest, the coroner set a date for review to November 30.

6 UK

AsianVoiceNews

AsianVoiceNewsweekly

www.asian-voice.com

16 May - 22 May 2020

Number of deaths down at care homes According to latest figures, the number of coronavirus deaths in care homes across the UK has started to fall.

A review of death certificates, showed there were 2,800 deaths linked to the virus in the most recent week - down 12% on the week before, BBC reported It brings the virus death toll in care homes to more than 9,700.

The data also showed that between mid-March and early May more than 50,000 more deaths have been recorded than would be expected during this period.

This is known as excess deaths and is said to be a better measure of the true impact of the epidemic as it measures deaths linked directly to the virus and others associated with the lockdown.

The number of hospital deaths has been falling since early April.

But the government and care sector had been struggling to contain outbreaks in care homes.

These figures - from the Office for National Statistics and its counterparts in Scotland and Northern Ireland - are the

first sign that the corner may have been turned.

While the government's daily figures contain deaths in care homes now, the lack of testing particularly in the early days has meant it has been hard to establish a trend - the daily figures require a diagnosis of the infection.

Despite the drop, the virus has had a major impact on the overall number of deaths in care homes.

The total number seen in recent weeks - 9,700 - is more than two times higher than you would normally expect.

As well as the coronavirus deaths, there have been a large number of fatalities happening where the cause is unclear.

One suggestion has been that the lack of testing in care homes has meant the virus has not always been listed on death certificates when it should.

The Local Government Association said the number of deaths was "shocking" and a "terrible loss" to the families involved.

But England Care Minister Helen Whately said it was a "relief" care home deaths had started falling.

However, she added "our work is not yet done" and the government was "doing everything in its power" to help the sector, pointing out the availability of testing and personal protective equipment was being increased.

The 50,000 figure refers to the total number of extra deaths seen from midMarch to May. Normally during this period you would expect to see just under 100,000 deaths.

But close to 150,000 deaths were actually recorded - 36,000 of them mentioned coronavirus on the death certificate.

That leaves another 14,000 extra deaths that may be related to the epidemic in other ways, such as suicide or people who suffer heart attacks and strokes but have not accessed care.

The overall level of extra deaths is on a par with the excess winter mortality seen two years ago, which covers a period of four months whereas this is less than two.

Continued from page 1

The lockdown exit dilemma After Johnson set out his phase-wise easing of lockdown restrictions, several politicians have sought more clarity, whereas regional leaders have distanced themselves from the Prime Minister's initiative.

In Parliament on Monday, Johnson fended off criticism of his government's 50-page plan to exit lockdown and "rebuild the UK for a world with COVID-19."

Johnson has replaced nationwide "stay at home" slogan with "stay alert" in his lockdown addresses and made it clear that anybody unable to work from home was being "actively encouraged" to return to work.

But his new stance has left many Britons confused about when and how they can go to work, leave their homes, or socialise.

In his revised message, the UK PM contended that they were not expecting a huge turnaround this week and the government was simply trying to egg on those segments where people can not work from home.

After the outcry, Johnson toned down the plan for rebooting the economy. He amended his earlier

proclamation to say people "should now think about going back to work providing your workplace is Covidsecure and providing you can travel to work safely."

The shift in tone ended a day of confusion over the UK government's new messaging as business leaders expressed concerns and Wales and Scotland said they would be taking different approaches to ending the lockdown, shattering a cross-country consensus that has characterized the response so far.

Keir Starmer, leader of the opposition Labour Party, was scathing about the government's approach.

"What the country needs at this time is clarity and reassurance," he told The House of Commons. "At the moment, both are in pretty short supply."

Under Johnson's original plan, restrictions are to be eased in phases. The immediate changes, taking effect May 13, are in three main areas: A return to work for those who need to leave their homes to do so; relaxation of rules on leaving the home for recreation; and an encouragement to wear face coverings in shops and on public transport to help stop the spread of the disease.

Modi reaffirmed the importance of 'do gaz doori'

(a two-yard distance) and added that suggestion of "night curfew" raised by many Chief Ministers would surely reaffirm the feeling of caution among people.

Modi, however, has made it clear that a lockdown would continue in some form or the other even after May 17.

As the UK and India gear up to reopen, both the leaders have gained popularity for handling the coronavirus outbreak. Voters have rallied around those world leaders who took coronavirus seriously. They are among the world leaders whose acceptance ratings have gone up since the World Health Organisation declared a pandemic.

Quoting Morning Consult, a pollster, a report in Economist said a group of 10 politicians has enjoyed an average gain of nine points since January end.

Academics call this pattern rally-round-the-flag effect.

Britons got behind Johnson at first and his popularity bounced to 20 points. A recent dip of around 5 points may reflect fears that a tardy lockdown led to thousands of extra deaths.

Modi's ratings, after up and down in the graph, has now settled at the gain of around 12 points.

Ostracised, veteran finds friend in immigrant patient at hospital The veteran who served 34 years in Royal British Navy, has seen it all now. Once hailed for his services to the country with MBE, to the ostracisation and isolation after getting Covid-19 infection, Lt Commander Robert Embleton has had quite a bumpy ride in his life.

Embleton received an MBE honour from Queen Elizabeth II in 1993 for outstanding service to the Royal Navy.

The world has changed for the veteran after he left the hospital almost a month later for to his retirement home in Southwestern England.

Soon after arrival at his retirement home with wife Jean, Embleton realised he had to face another hurdle in the form of the stigma the virus carries with it. It didn’t come to him as a shock, as he had already discussed this prospect with the 57-year-

old Poorna Gunasekera, when they were in a ward together, recover ing from the virus.

The 79-year-old told the media that he was particularly regarded as a menace. It was in stark contrast to his discharge moments at the hospital when Embleton received a round of applause from all the front-line staff from the cleaners to the doctors.

This is exactly the kind of stigmatisation he had discussed at the hospital with Gunasekera when they were in a ward together recovering from the virus.

Gunasekera, unknown to Embleton, was a doctor and had been treated by three of his former students, thanked the former naval officer for ‘single-handedly’ lifting his spirits. The connection grew rapidly since Embleton had visited Gunasekera's hometown of Kandy, in Sri Lanka and the

two have now reconnected on Facebook after their discharge.

“I've always been a morale officer,” Embleton explains.

Gunasekera remembers that all four in the ward shared the same anxiety — of becoming fresh sources of outbreaks after leaving the hospital.

“It is a dreadful fear and we expected to be somewhat stigmatized, and that would be normal because I suppose I would do the same if the roles were reversed,” he said.

Embleton says the lockdown is “sapping the equanimity and self-confidence" of most elderly people and is “increasingly intolerable” for those like him who have no underlying health conditions and who are hugely active members of their local communities.

“It is not right to treat all old people as children, incapable of assessing risk,” he said.

Search on for a missing UK diplomat Police are searching a forest as part of efforts to find a British diplomat who has not been seen for six days.

Richard Morris, 52, left his home in Bentley, near Alton, Hampshire, for exercise on Wednesday.

Police said about 50 specialists were using dogs and drones to search nearby Alice Holt Forest.Mr Morris was the UK's ambassador to Nepal for four years until 2019 and was due to take up a position as British High Commissioner to Fiji in July.

The father of three was last seen by his family when he left home at about 10:30 BST. In a statement, Hampshire Constabulary said: "We have approximately 50 speciallytrained people currently involved in the search,

including volunteers from HANTSAR [Hampshire Search and Rescue].

"We are searching in that area as he was known to run there."

Mr Morris, who is originally from Worcestershire, is white with greying hair and a beard, and has a distinctive birthmark on his face, He was wearing a blue long-sleeved top, black shorts and blue trainers.

Previously police asked residents to search outbuildings on their properties for "any signs that someone might have been sheltering there or for discarded items". In a statement, the Foreign Office previously said: "Richard is a much-valued and well-liked colleague. We are extremely worried that he is missing and we all hope he will be found safe and well soon."

Continued from page 1

Fugitive Diamantaire Nirav Modi issued life threat to witnesses in £1.5bn fraud He was operating a new diamond business in the capital despite having had his bank accounts frozen by the Indian authorities and an Interpol red notice issued for his arrest.

He was detained at HMP Wandsworth, where he has been for the past 14 months as he fights extradition to India.

Mr Modi owns Firestar Diamond, a jewellery brand, and was worth $1.73 billion in 2017, according to Forbes.

He appeared via video link at Westminster magistrates’ court Monday for the first of five days hearings that will decide whether he is to be extradited. He wore a white shirt and black suit.

Helen Malcolm, QC, for the Indian government, said that the fraud had been orchestrated by fiddling MOUs (memorandums of understanding), for loans used by businesses to import foreign goods at a cheaper rate.

Continued from page 1

Man charged over racial abuse of BBC journalist The accused 50-yearold, of Glenfield Road in Leicester was bailed to appear at Leicester Crown Court on 15 June.

Ms Kotecha was due to interview people on Sunday evening following the prime minister's statement about the coronavirus lockdown restrictions.

The segment was cancelled and the incident reported to police.

Kotecha tweeted: “Apologies to our guests who we had to send home without putting on air after myself and team were subjected to racist and abusive behaviour – sad obstruction of reporting of a national crisis.

Yes I’m furious.” Backing its reporter, the BBC said: “While preparing to broadcast, our reporter, her production team and guests were subjected to racist and abusive behaviour.

We are appalled by what happened … We will not tolerate racism or abuse of our staff.”

www.asian-voice.com

AsianVoiceNews

7

AsianVoiceNewsweekly

16 May - 22 May 2020

14-day quarantine for all foreign arrivals at UK airports As part of measures to track the spread of coronavirus, UK airlines have claimed that the government has asked them to bring in a 14day quarantine for anyone arriving in the UK from any country, apart from the Republic of Ireland.

Reacting to the move, the industry body Airlines UK has said the policy needed "a credible exit plan" and should be reviewed weekly.

The plan is expected to come in force by May-end.

The BBC reports that the quarantine would mean people might be expected to provide an address when they arrive at the border.

The new restriction, which means travellers including Britons arriving in the UK would have to selfisolate at a private residence and fined up to 1,000 pounds or deported for flouting the rules, is expected to take effect at the end of this month.

Prime Minister Borris Johnson has vowed to move with “maximum caution” as he reopens the economy by lifting some of the social distancing measures and stayat-home orders.

“These measures will help protect the British public and reduce the transmission of the virus as we move into the next phase of our

response,” the newspaper quoted a government source as saying.

"We need to see the details of what they are proposing," said Airlines UK, which represents British Airways, EasyJet and other UK-based airlines, in a statement.

UK Aviation Minister Kelly Tolhurst is expected to clarify the policy to airline and airport representatives in a conference call later on.

Karen Dee from the Airport Operators Association, which represents most UK airports, said the measure should be applied "on a selective basis following the science" and "the economic impact on key sectors should be mitigated".

The British government has faced some criticism for allowing commercial flights

LABOUR LEADER’S PRO-INDIA SHIFT ON J&K DIVIDES PARTY

The opposition Labour Party is battling the difference within after newly-appointed leader Keir Starmer made a departure from the earlier pro-Pakistani stand of Jeremy Corbyn and signalled mending of ties with the Indian community in UK. The left group within the party, which is also seen as sympathetic to Pakistan’s causes, has slammed the party’s renewed position on the Kashmiri conflict, as set out by Keir Starmer last week after he met with the executive team of Labour Friends of India.

The Left MPs through their ‘Socialist Campaign Group’ (SCG), have released a statement which expresses ‘solidarity with the people of Kashmir in their struggle against the world’s largest military occupation’.

The SCG includes shadow cabinet members Rebecca Long-Bailey, Marsha de Cordova and Andy McDonald, plus several other frontbenchers, such as shadow ministers Dan Carden and Imran Hussein.

Sir Keir Starmer, the recently elected leader of Britain’s main opposition party, has changed Labour’s stance on the Kashmir issue.

“Britons of Indian origin contribute so much to the UK and to the Labour Party,” Starmer said recently after a meeting with the executive team of Labour Friends of India. He said that he is committed to working closely with Labour Friends of India to rebuild trust with the community. We must not allow issues of the sub-continent to divide communities here.

What possibly irked the Left MP most was his statement that any constitutional issues in India are a matter for the Indian Parliament, and Kashmir is a bilateral issue for India and Pakistan to resolve peacefully. Labour is an internationalist Party and stands for the defence of human rights everywhere.

He also stressed that a Labour government under his leadership will be determined to build even stronger business links with India and to co-operate on the global stage on issues such as climate change. “I look forward to meeting the Indian High Commissioner in due course to open a renewed dialogue between the Labour Party and the people of India.”

Indians are the UK’s largest ethnic minority community, making up over 2.3% of the population, with around 1.5 million people. A large share of both British-Indians and British-Pakistanis vote for Labour.

into Britain without requiring passengers to be quarantined or face temperature checks. Last month, it was revealed that about 15,000 were arriving each day.

Ministers have said that making such a move earlier would not have made a difference because of the prevalence of the virus in the country. They believe a tougher approach at airports is required only now as the ‘R' rate of transmission of the deadly virus has fallen in recent weeks.

Among some of the other steps being discussed within the government, UK Transport Secretary Grant Shapps will encourage the British public to continue to work from home if they can, while those who need to travel will be encouraged to walk or cycle to avoid crowding on public transport.

WILL: AN OFFICIAL DOCUMENT FOR WEALTH PROTECTION AND DISTRIBUTION

out your wishes.

Will is a legal document that sets out what you want to do with Who can be my Executors? your property after you pass on.

Anyone mentally capable over 18 Here are some answers to the years old. It is best to appoint a questions which you might have trusted person who you feel to define a Will. could do the job. You should have a minimum of one and What is a Will? maximum of four.

A legal document setting out what is to happen to your estate Can I leave gifts to people when you die. It is a legal declawithout a will? ration providing the transfer of No, you need a Will to leave gifts your estate to designated benefito friends or charity. ciaries.

Can a Will save me Inheritance Tax? Who can make a Will?

Anyone mentally capable over 18 Rakesh Prajapati Yes, However only if you use your years old. reliefs and exemptions properly.

Solicitor When does my Will become rprajapati@faranitaylor.com A standard Will may cause you legal?

Mobile : 07979 590 670 more Inheritance Tax than you would have paid without one. It Once signed and witnessed correctly it is legally valid. Legal advice helps how is important to get advice and ensure that you to sign properly, as many Wills are nullified as Will is drafted carefully. signed incorrectly.

What happen if I die without will?

Who can be my witnesses?

If you do not have a Will then you die intesAnyone mentally capable over 18 years old tate, your estate is distributed according to the who is not mentioned in the Will. No blood rules set by law. The rules will not favour your relations or their partners should witness the wishes and family members and may benefit to those who you prefer not to do so. Your asWill. sets may go to pass to the Crown if you have What is a Guardian?

A nominated Individual to look after children no living relatives.

The numbers of those dying intestate is rising. under 18 years old.

It is approximated 60% of the UK adult popDo I need to appoint Guardians?

If you have children under the age of 18, you ulation do not have one. Of the 40%, 1 in 4 do should appoint a Guardian. You can only do not reflect the person’s wishes or are simply not valid. A valid Will allows you to ensure this in a Will. that your assets are distributed according to What is an Executor?

A person named in the Will appointed to carry your wish when you die.

Immigration, Business Immigration, Citizenship by Investment, Commercial Litigation, Housing Law, Family Law, Wills and Probate, Employment, Crime, Taxation, Property Conveyancing, Personal Injury & Medical Negligence.

London: Fleet House, 6th Floor, 8-12 New Bridge St, London EC4V 6AL Tel: 020 7242 1666 Ilford: 1st Floor, 112 High Road, Ilford, Essex IG1 1BY Tel: 020 3301 6666

Gangs sell drug using mask as security against cops The ongoing Covid-19 pandemic has left the British people reeling but it has also given rise to another deadly menace of drug trafficking.

According to a report published in The Telegraph, charity leaders have expressed fears of criminals, wearing medical masks to disguise themselves, selling drugs outside busy supermarkets.

This new method is being used by gang members to avoid detection by the policemen, said Nathaniel Peat, founder of the Safety Box, a charity working across the south-east of England.

He said that offenders are using new methods like standing near a cash dis-

penser outside popular shopping centers to lure people who are flocking these places as panic buying takes place due to lockdown restrictions.

He said gangs are using protective masks to shed their real identity and ditch the policemen who may think of them as college students taking precautions to protect themselves from Covid-19.

There have been fears of crime rates rising rapidly as the gangs look to spread their wings by recruiting the young who have been no longer attending schools and colleges.

Peat claimed that he had been offered marijuana by a young offender who was wearing a protective mask.

As people are wearing masks to signal their will to fight against the pandemic, the same has given gangs an opportunity to use it as a disguise.

They easily skip the policemen’s scrutiny as they just look like someone who are being cautious instead of someone assumed to be selling drugs.

Various organisations have raised the alarm that youngsters on the peripheries of crime are particularly at risk following the closure of schools and community centres.

They say it would be extremely difficult to identify such youths from their behavior at home and teachers’ role in the school

becomes critical to flag the behavioral changes in the students.

Patrick Green, the CEO of the Ben Kinsella Trust, was quoted as saying, “When I heard the announcement, I felt some relief in terms of the response to the virus as schools in the UK follow most in Europe in terms of keeping teachers and students safe.

He said, “The absence of active schools from young people’s lives remains a concern as they play an important role in their grooming.

Schools are a safe place for them as they provide an excellent early warning systems in terms of safeguarding.”

Thomas Cook staff receive redundancy payouts Staff at the holiday firm Thomas Cook received a total of £59m in redundancy payouts after its collapse, a government taskforce has revealed.

The travel company's collapse last September left 21,000 global staff, including 9,000 in the UK, out of work.

It also led to one of the government's biggest repatriation programmes to bring home 150,000 holidaymakers.

About 1,300 employees who registered with the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) found new jobs.

What went wrong at Thomas Cook?

The payout has been divided between 8,281 former members of staff, a spokesman said.

The Thomas Cook National Taskforce was set up in September after the 178-year-old company entered compulsory liquidation "to mitigate the impact of Thomas Cook's insolvency".

Members said the aim was to "keep employee welfare front-of-mind" - in Peterborough, where the firm had its retail headquarters, and Greater Manchester, where many employees were based.

The taskforce, comprising local authorities, trade bodies and represen-

tatives from the DWP and Department of Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS), has now disbanded.

Cambridgeshire and Peterborough Combined Authority mayor James Palmer, a member of the taskforce, said support for staff "affected by the unfortunate and shock closing" of Thomas Cook would continue locally.He said: "Since Covid 19 broke out, we have launched a range of measures including business funding, training and job matching."I urge everyone in the region to continue to access the resources available to help individuals and businesses maintain resilience during this challenging time."

8 UK

AsianVoiceNews

AsianVoiceNewsweekly

www.asian-voice.com

16 May - 22 May 2020

UK furlough scheme gets four months extension The UK scheme to pay wages of workers on leave because of coronavirus will be extended to October, Chancellor Rishi Sunak has said, according to a report in BBC. Mr Sunak confirmed that employees will continue to receive 80% of their monthly wages up to £2,500.

But he said the government will ask companies to "start sharing" the cost of the scheme from August.

A quarter of the workforce, some 7.5 million people, are now covered by the scheme, which has cost £14bn a month.

The chancellor said that from August, the scheme would continue for all sectors and regions of the country but with greater flexibility to support the transition back to work.

Employers currently using the scheme will then be able to bring furloughed employees back part-time.

Mr Sunak will attempt slowly to reduce the cost to the taxpayer of the subsidy scheme, but full details are still to be worked out.

However, sources have told the BBC the Treasury stills expects to be paying more than half the costs between August and October.

Later on Tuesday, in an interview with the BBC, Mr Sunak said the number of job losses "breaks my heart", adding: "That's why I'm working night and day to limit the amount of job losses."

Mr Sunak told the Commons said: "I'm extending the scheme because I won't give up on the people who rely on it.

"Our message today is simple: we

stood behind Britain's workers and businesses as we came into this crisis, and we will stand behind them as we come through the other side."

There has been growing concern about the cost of the scheme, and last week Mr Sunak said it could not continue in its current form.

However, he was under pressure to announce changes soon to avoid a so-called "cliff edge" in which employers begin mass redundancies.

Any company seeking to cut more than 100 jobs must run a 45-day consultation, meaning 18 May was the last date employers could start this process before the furlough scheme ended in June.

The chancellor rejected suggestions some people might get "addicted" to furlough if it was extended.

"Nobody who is on the furlough scheme wants to be on this scheme," the chancellor said. "People up and down this country believe in the dignity of their work, going to work, pro-

viding for their families, it's not their fault their business has been asked to close or asked to stay at home."

Shadow chancellor Anneliese Dodds said broadly welcomed the changes, saying "at least we are moving in the right direction".

But she said the "big elephant in the room" is over what the government's employer contribution will involve, adding that the "critical point is that any changes to the scheme must not result in any spike in unemployment".

Despite the extension of the furlough scheme, Patrick Langmaid said it's still unlikely to stop him making people redundant from his Mother Ivey's Bay holiday park, at Padstow.

He has furloughed seven staff and has nine still working. The handful of staff he would usually employ seasonally he has let go.

"There is no income - and huge costs," he says.

"We are very worried about how we, as employers, are going to make contributions through August, September and October [when employers will be expected to share the costs of the scheme]", he said. "I am very, very worried about how I am going to cope in the winter.

"I've already started briefing my team that there will have to be redundancies," he says. He reckons four or five jobs may have to go, depending how long the lockdown lasts.

Dealing with redundancy is "horrible", he says, adding: "It is really not a nice time to be running a business."

Downing Street condemns attact on railway ticket officcer died of covid19 Dowing street has condemned as "despicable" an attack on a railway ticket office worker who died after contracting coronavirus.

Wife and mother Belly Mujinga, 47, was on the concourse of London's Victoria station on March 22 when a member of the public claiming to have Covid-19 spat and coughed at her and a colleague.

Both women fell ill with the disease within days of the attack, and Ms Mujinga died in hospital in Barnet on April 5.

Boris Johnson's spokesman said the Prime Minister's thoughts were with her family, adding: "It is despicable for a key worker to be attacked in this way while serving the travelling public." British Transport Police are now searching for the suspect – seven weeks later – amid suggestions that bosses at Govia Thameslink Railway (GTR) initially failed to call emergency services over the incident, despite Ms Mujinga’s request.

Her husband, Lusamba Gode Katalay, described how the suspect walked up to Ms Mujinga and spat in her face.

He said: “The man asked her what she was doing, why she was there, and she said they were working.

“The man said he had the virus and spat on them. They reported it to their supervisor. Belly came home and told me everything.” So far, 42 Transport for London (TfL) workers have died with Covid-19, in addition to 10 Network Rail staff.

Police officer charged with woman's murder A police officer has appeared in court charged with mur-

dering a woman in a pub car park.

Claire Parry, 41, from Bournemouth, was found unconscious at the Horns Inn in West Parley, Dorset, on Saturday afternoon, She later died in hospital from a brain injury caused by "compression of the neck", police said.

PC Timothy Brehmer, 41, was remanded in custody by Poole magistrates to appear at Winchester Crown Court on Wednesday. Previously police said they found Mrs Parry after being called to the pub by paramedics at 15:39 BST. She was taken to Royal Bournemouth Hospital where she died on Sunday morning. PC Brehmer, from Hordle, Hampshire, who knew Mrs Parry, was seconded from Dorset Police to the National Police Air Service but was not on duty at the time of the incident, detectives previously said.

The case has been referred to the Independent Office for Police Conduct.

Doctors take legal route for Regulator warns carriers on 7 billion pound cash refunds probe into PPE messa Doctors in UK seem to have it enough! Faced with the inadequate supply and mismanagement of gigantic proportions of PPE, doctors’ body has decided to take legal action to force the Borris Johnson government into launching an independent inquiry into the issue. There has been widespread criticism of NHS and the government for their abject failure in providing adequate personal protective equipment (PPE) for NHS staff and other frontline care workers.

The response by the Doctors Association UK (DAUK) and the Good Law project, follows the news of Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) withdrawing a model of protective goggles – “Tiger Eye” protectors – from use because they offered insufficient protection.

Almost 16 million Tiger Eye goggles, bought in 2009 as part of the stockpile, have been withdrawn from the NHS because they do not meet safety standards.

The body’s letter to the

DHSC says an immediate independent inquiry is essential to ensure sufficient PPE can be made available as soon as possible and to ensure healthcare workers are properly equipped for any second or third wave of Covid-19.

The chorus for probe has gained momentum in recent days as thousands of doctors have begun legal action seeking a public inquiry to investigate the failure to provide NHS and care staff with adequate personal protective equipment (PPE).

DAUK represents more than 29,000 medics working on the front line. Nearly 200 NHS and care workers have died after becoming infected with the coronavirus.

In the letter, doctors have said they support the government’s efforts to mitigate the crisis but are “deeply concerned” about the “failure to procure and supply adequate PPE”.

DAUK said the deaths of healthcare workers were a “tragedy which could have been averted. It said that we had a pandemic stockpile of

PPE which lacked essentials like full gowns and eye protection while other equipment were out of date. The body said that there has been a consistent systemic failure of the PPE supply chain, leaving staff in some instances with makeshift or no PPE. The barrister representing the case, Jolyon Maugham, said that purpose of the legal action was to ensure that NHS and care home workers are not forced to risk their lives again and we must learn from recent history. And we must learn them quickly, he said.

Another group of more than 1,000 doctors has urged the chief coroner for England and Wales, to ensure PPE be considered “in every single inquest of a healthcare worker who has died from suspected or confirmed Covid-19”.

There have been accusations that health workers with lower professional status were treated even worse.

The health department said it could not comment on possible legal action.

The country’s Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) has warned airlines over delay in the refunds to the tune of more than 7 billion pounds as questions continue to grow over their response.

The regulator has reminded the airlines that they are legal obligations to provide refunds to customers who had their flights cancelled because of the deadly outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Terming the agents and airlines as an area of concern, the Competition & Markets Authority has already initiated a probe into refunds across the economy.

According to a report in The Times, under the existing European law, passengers whose flights are cancelled are entitled to a refund within seven days. Many airlines, including Virgin Atlantic and Ryanair, are issuing vouchers by default while British Airways has removed the option to get a refund from its website.

The watchdog, in a

statement, warned the airlines saying “We are reviewing how airlines are handling refunds during the coronavirus pandemic, and will consider if any action should be taken to ensure that consumer rights are protected.”

The CAA said, “Under the law, consumers are entitled to receive a refund for their cancelled flights, despite the challenges the industry is currently facing.”

“We support airlines offering consumers vouchers and rebooking alternatives where it makes sense for the consumer. But it is important that consumers are given a clear option to request a cash refund without unnecessary barriers.

“We expect airlines to provide refunds for cancelled flights as soon as practically possible while appreciating there are operational challenges for airlines in the current circumstances.

“We have published guidance and advice for both industry and con-

sumers, and we continue to engage with airlines on this important issue.

“We do not expect airlines to systematically deny consumers their right to a refund.”

Under the legal provisions, the CAA can seek an enforcement order from the court. The regulator is believed to be sympathetic to offering vouchers “where it makes sense for the consumer”.

Among the airlines, Ryanair and Virgin have already said vouchers can be refused and cash requested. Airlines UK, which represents carriers, said: “UK airlines are paying refunds to passengers who request one; however, owing to the unprecedented increase in demand, these may take longer than normal.”

The aviation industry landed in the crisis in March no sooner did the countries started closing their borders. It braces another setback after the government made it mandatory for travellers to come to the UK to selfisolate for 14 days.

www.asian-voice.com

AsianVoiceNews

AsianVoiceNewsweekly

16 May - 22 May 2020

“WE ARE ALL IN THIS TOGETHER” Calling all small and medium sized businesses….

If you are struggling with any of the following, then please do call or e-mail us for sound confidential and realistic advice on how to overcome the obstacles and ensure that you get assistance where you need it most: • Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme • Coronavirus Business Interruption Loan Scheme • Bounce back Loan Applications • Grant Applications • Self Employment Income Support Scheme • Preparation & Presentation of Financial Information for Loan Applications • Preparation of Cash Flow Forecasts • General Advice and Guidance on Business Survival Post Covid 19.

We are here to help turn your crisis into your opportunity to strive!!

Kiran Patel FCA

Albury Associates Chartered Accountants 2nd Floor, One Hobbs House, Harrovian Business Village Bessborough Road, Harrow, HA1 3EX

Telephone : 07710 989 926 / 020 8051 5865 E-mail : kiran@alburyassociates.com

Please note that the initial telephone consultation will be free of charge.

A big thank you to C B Patel & All at ABPL for keeping the Asian community informed through this difficult period.

9

10 READERS VOICE

AsianVoiceNews

AsianVoiceNewsweekly

www.asian-voice.com

16 May - 22 May 2020

UK government `stay alert' is perfect message The Government’s new message has attracted criticism from many. But I think it’s perfect!

Easing lockdown was never going to be straightforward. The “Stay Home” instruction was very simple, easy and perfect for its time.

But it was never meant to last forever. It’s “Stay Alert” replacement is clear, concise and practical.it just needs to be understood.

It transpires, that the Government is giving the general British public more credit than it is deserving of, hoping that they will apply common sense in their everyday lives. In a nutshell the message is “do whatever you like, however you like, whenever you like but remain vigilant at all times.” Keeping your wits about you in your everyday actions will help to keep the virus under control and save lives. It’s simple!

Why does this simple but effective message get so much criticism?

Kiran Patel FCA

Money Management in school curriculum Alpesh Patel has made a very valid point about the education of basic finance and the importance of savings in “Political Sketchbook” (AV 9-16 May, 2020). In the schools they teach about marketing, consumerism, e-commerce but not about saving money for their own future to buy the first home or for any emergency. Due to the benefit systems in the UK, the concept of savings about the future financial needs in the younger generations has almost vanished. They believe that the state will take care of everything even if they do not have money.

One of the ways to mitigate this situation is to inculcate the good old habits of collecting and keeping the change in a safe place which can be counted once a month and put it in the bank. The school syllabus should include basic “money management” skills and how the banking industry works should be taught in a simple language with practical examples.

Hitesh Hingu London

Are Supermarket Ripping off Venerable Shoppers!

As the saying goes, in the time of adversity, kind, caring and conscious people show their true grit, come to the aid of venerable people while others, including many businesses, even highly trusted supermarkets take advantage to exploit the situation to their advantage, especially on financial front, ripping off people already disadvantaged on health, age, and disability front.

I have noticed while it is practically impossible to get slots for online shopping, many SMs have introduced special deals, ready packed boxes for vegetarian, vegan and non-vegetarians alike, priced from £25 to £45, filled with daily used hotchpotch items, as well as special deals on frozen foods, these deals readily available, no shortage of slots, delivered next day, needless to say costing twice the value if bought personally from SMs. A box costing £30 to £35 may hardly buy you eight to ten items of frozen dishes that are readily available at three dishes for £5.

A friend of ours experimented, going to SM and bought the same items for less than half the price, although such boxes do not incur home delivery charges.

Moreover most popular items are unavailable on most part with SMs reserving the right to replace them with what they call similar items.

While the advent of SMs is a bonus, as it has reduced food bill by nearly half, with their superior buying power, with plenty of variety and choice, many SMs have ten thousand, even more variety of items on their shelves, making it convenient for less mobile to do all their shopping at one go. I feel it is their solemn duty not to overcharge, exploit venerable, fickle, geriatric shoppers in their hour of need!

Kumudini Valambia

North Korea: Facts and Fiction!

Watching two hour documentary on North Korea, I was pleasantly surprised to see normal people so well dressed and apparently well-fed as well, although NK has gone through some bad times, famines when food shortages killed millions.

As 70% of NK is a hilly, mountainous country with breath-taking scenery, unparalleled beauty, there is a shortage of agricultural land. Moreover with Western sanctions imposed by delusive West for decades, NK badly lacks fertilizers and agricultural machinery, still employing old, human labour to till the land with poor harvest yield.

I was indeed surprised to learn that teaching English in schools is compulsory. No wonder most youngsters spoke fluent English and well educated. Most signs on roads and buildings were in Korean and English language, not Chinese! Western propaganda that NK people living a life of hell, ill-fed, mistreated and imprisoned in their own home-land may be off the mark.

Yes, they lack the press and personal freedom we enjoy in the West. But it is a million-dollar question how we use or rather misuse this freedom which may be doing more harm than good, as some Korean people pointed out that there is no crime what so ever, old people are safe, no one sleeps rough and there is no housing shortage which we suffer on a grand scale.

During the Korean War, the US bombed and turned every town, every city into a wasteland. All these cities are rebuilt with help from China and the old Soviet Union.

Towering skyscrapers beautifully painted in bright colors, lines main avenues, with wide, open roads and state of the art train stations and airports that would be an asset in any Western country, albeit without much traffic. But NK is planning ahead to become tourist heaven with beautiful beaches, enchanting countryside, and newly constructed 4* hotels. Then even Saudi Arabia has a similar aspiration!

Bhupendra M. Gandhi

Tears of joy amid sad times We are seniors in our mid-seventies and live in townhouse in Markham. Canada , Since C-19 pandemic hit worldwide and lockdown in Markham our neighbours by text messages, phone calls, Emails and in person though keeping safe distancing asked us to feel free at any time if we need any kind of help or favour they all will be more than happy to help us out. A couple of days ago one of our Canadian- Chinese middle age lady in small plastic bags containing 10 masks which was a rarity at that time with a personal hand written note left in our front porch for us to use or pass to anyone who needs. The next day on front glass door I stick banner cut from The Globe and Mail English newspaper print edition delivered to our place saying We all are team Canada.

Yesterday day other neighbor left one bottle of disinfectant spray and bottle of sanitizer on porch table and when I saw tears of joy came from our eyes in midst of sad time we are going through as my wife’s younger brother Dr Praful Patel Rtd Surgeon few days back died in Baltimore due to C-19 virus and due to lockdown none of his blood relative could go and visit when his wife, son and daughter going through tragic time to comfort and much-needed morale support to give at that time. Our neighborhood is like mini United Nations as many of them are from Hong Kong , India, Pakistan, East Africa, Egypt , Iran , Iraq and from their act of kindness towards us eased our pain in true Team Canada spirit.

Suresh and Bhavna Patel Canada

MAKE YOURSELF HEARD Write to our ‘Reader’s Voice’ section about what you think regarding the various ongoing issues all around the world.

Please send your letters to aveditorial@abplgroup.com Make sure they are NOT more than 250 words.

Any letter longer than the limit may not be published.

Note that all your letters are subject to being edited by our team for valid reasons.

- Asian Voice

Be thankful to where we are today Subhash V Thakrar For the moment imagine you were born in 1900. Many would think that that was a pretty simple time of life. Then on your 14th birthday, World War I starts, and ends on your 18th birthday. 22 million people perish in that war, including many of your friends who volunteered to defend freedom in Europe.

Later in the year, a Spanish Flu epidemic hits the planet and runs until your 20th birthday. 50 million people die from it in those two years. Yes, 50 million.

On your 29th birthday, the Great Depression begins. Unemployment hits 25%, the World GDP drops 27%. That runs until you are 33. The country nearly collapses along with the world economy. If you were lucky, you had a job that paid $300 a year, a dollar a day.

When you turn 39, World War II starts. You aren’t even over the hill yet. And don’t try to catch your breath. If you lived in London England or most of continental Europe, bombing of your neighbourhood, or invasion of your country by foreign soldiers along with their tank and artillery was a daily event. Between your 39th and 45th birthday, 75 million people perish in the war.

At 50, the Korean War starts. 5 million perish. At 55 the Vietnam War begins and doesn’t end for 20 years. 4 million people perish in that conflict.

On your 62nd birthday there is the Cuban Missile Crisis, a tipping point in the Cold War. Life on our planet, as we know it, could have ended. Sensible leaders prevented that from happening.

Now, in 2020, we have the COVID-19 pandemic.

Thousands have died; it feels pretty dangerous; and it is!

I owe the above analysis to my friend Sushil Radia. It does bring things in perspective. I know my own grandmother was born around 1900 and now realise the challenges she must have felt.

Now bring yourself to the present. Today we live a blessed life in relative comfort supported by so much. We have the mobile phones with innovative communication apps that enable us to talk face to face with family and friends. Yes, we do not have to go to some phone booth and try and have a conversation via a poor line. I have had coffee mornings and drinks with friends and I have had prayers with family using the phone apps and the feeling is as good as meeting in person. I have attended various webinars which otherwise would have required me to travel for over one hours to attend a lecture.

Could you have imagined convincing your GP to make a video call to deal with your medical issues?

Now he or she is willingly doing that thanks to Covid19. You can order your medication from the Patient Access and NHS Health Now Apps. These are worth downloading as they give a lot of authentic medical information.

We can also order our groceries online and have these delivered.

We are constantly being entertained by social media, an array of TV and film channels supplemented by various streaming companies. I recommend a film called Sawaan, which is a reminder of how lucky we are.

Despite our challenges we would all rather be living now than 100 years ago! Let us be thankful that we are where we are.

www.asian-voice.com

AsianVoiceNews

UK

AsianVoiceNewsweekly

11

16 May - 22 May 2020

Another chance to follow the right path Rohit Vadhwana Religions and mythologies are the ocean of wisdom. They have guided our lives for hundreds of years. The legendary story of Eve and Adam is an example of how there is an attempt by the human being to deal with the situation in our own way. It began with Eve eating the heavenly apple. The irresistible desire to know ‘What happens if I do this’ is the cause of fall from heaven. It was an irreversible action taken by Eve. Since then, we are living here, on the earth. Dealing with whatever challenge life throws at us, in our own humble capacity.

But there is always a chance to introspect. To take stock of our deeds and needs. The Ramadan, a holy month in Islam, offers us that opportunity. Fasting during Ramadan is one of the five pillars of Islam. Followers do not eat or drink anything from sunrise to sunset. It’s a practice where we are to purge our body and mind of any toxins. Repent for sins and wrongdoings is the main purpose. It requires a vow to adhere to what is right and discarding what is wrong.

Did Eve do the right thing? Was it inevitable for us to learn to take care of ourselves? Just like a child trying to walk on its own. Should we have taken our lives in our own hands, at some point in time? Well, opinions may differ. But Ramadan offers a chance to surrender to the wishes of Almighty. Let him decide on the course of our lives. It is absolute trust in the god.

Whatever religious we might be following, the practice of absolute surrender can be adopted. We may be facing a number of issues, emotional and social. But is there anything that we can control surely? If no, why not allow ourselves to be guided by the Almighty, emotionally and socially? Have faith. This is the month. Whatever inspiration will come to us, will be HIS wishes. Let the Almighty give us the strength to overcome Eve's tempting craving of eating an apple, and be guided by the Holy command that we may receive.

This is not blind faith. It is not a ritual. It is introspection, for our own benefit, to resolve the issues with the help of supreme intervention. To be guided by intuition rather than intellect. Intellect is akin to Eve’s desire.

Intuition is akin to what Adam might have felt. Society has been playing the role of snake, guiding us to walk on a certain path. How do we know what is the divine command? Let’s ask HIM, through a practice of purge, by removing all our prejudices. Keep a clean heart for new inspiration and guidance to be given by the Almighty.

Let’s have another chance to follow the right path in our lives. Let’s do this introspection.

(Expressed opinion is personal)

Covid19 : Queen withdraws from the public stage indefinitely Even as Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced the phase-wise withdrawal of lockdown restriction in place due to the pandemic, the Queen Elizabeth II will continue to stay in isolation for the unforeseeable future.

The Queen and Prince Philip have been staying at Windsor Castle right now and are being served by a small staff strength. The Queen goes about her routine of checking the voluminous government documents.

In routine affair, the Queen spends the late spring/early summer at Buckingham Palace hosting a series of garden parties before heading to Balmoral Castle in Scotland for the end of summer.

The pandemic onslaught has already led to cancellation of events such as the Trooping of Colour in June, which is attended by the Queen.

So, there is virtually no need for the Queen to return to her usual schedule.

With both the Queen and Prince Philip above 90 years of age, it is a safe bet for the couple to stay at the Windsor Castle. The Prince Philip is all set to celebrate his 99th birthday with 94-year-old queen next month.

The Queen Elizabeth isn’t realistically expected to be seen in publicly until the fall, marking it as the longest absence in her 68 year reign.

According to a report in The

Times, the queen will break with tradition, with no engagements or movements until the threat from the coronavirus clears.

The isolation will be a personal blow to the Queen who has always said that a queen has to be seen to be believed. This has been vindicated in her two public addresses after the advent of lockdown imposed by Johnson administration. Around 24 million people had watched her speech.

The Queen’s last public engagement was the Commonwealth Service at Westminster Abbey on March 9 and after that she has been in isolation since March 19. Her absence from public view has not come in the

The government acted unlawfully when it refused to compensate two lowincome households left up to £180 a month out of pocket when their legacy benefits were wrongly stopped and they had no choice but to move on to universal credit, the appeal court has ruled.

Although the households were significantly worse off on universal credit – and had successfully challenged the official error that ended their previous benefits – the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) argued it would be too costly and administratively complex to move them back to the old system, reported The Guardian.

The ruling holds out the prospect of

redress for potentially thousands of claimants who have lost out after moving to universal credit as a result of official error. They could now be able to return to their old benefits or have their universal credit awards topped up to previous levels.

The two households – one a single mother who gave up work to care for her disabled teenage daughter, the other a woman with mobility difficulties – lost about £140 and £180 a month respectively after they were moved on to universal credit, which they subsequently discovered meant a cut in benefits.

Lord Justice Singh ruled the DWP had breached the claimants’ human

way of her functioning though.

She has been in regular touch with the prime minister and world leaders by phone and video calls.

The Time quoted a royal source as saying, “The Queen won’t do anything which goes against the advice of people in her (age) category and she’s going to take all the appropriate advice. There are discussions about what we could and couldn’t do come October. We haven’t cancelled a load of engagements, but nothing is going into her diary at the moment.”

Pretty conscious, the Queen doesn’t want to be seen as someone who is ‘irresponsible’. The source added that if she gets an advice that it is safe for her to come back to the capital she may follow suit. But till such time, she wants to be seen as someone responsible in her acts before the nation.

Sources said that it was unlikely the Queen will be seen for a while now since there is also fear of the second wave of the pandemic later this year.

As a normal schedule, the Buckingham Palace opens annually to the public every summer since 1993 but with the spread of pandemic, it is all set to be rescheduled.

Court: Benefit claimants unlawfully short-changed rights. Its actions had nothing to do with the individual merits of their cases, he said, and “the only reason in reality why they moved from legacy benefits to universal credit was as a result of errors of law by the state itself”.

The DWP – which had successfully defended its position at the original high court hearing in March 2019 – said it was considering whether to appeal against Tuesday’s ruling.

The case highlights what critics say are flaws in the design and rules governing universal credit, which is the UK’s main working-age social security benefit, replacing six legacy benefits.

Gift your loved ones an Asian Voice & Gujarat Samachar subscription for Birthday, Wedding & Anniversary Save lots of money by subscribing for both papers

● Exclusive news, Outstanding columnists ● Excelent value for your subscription ● For 50 weekly issues and several special magazines plus Annual Calendar

Your Voice for 47 years, 200,000 readers Please detach this form and send it with your payment or credit card instructions to address below

NAME ADDRESS

ear One y on for d ripti subsc amachar an ly n S o t s i Gujara oice in UK V n a i s A

Subscribe to Asian voice and Gujarat Samachar TODAY to receive a FREE CALENDAR 2020

Please tick as appropriate:

❏ Gujarat Samachar & Asian Voice ❏ Gujarat Samachar

POST CODE TEL: Email: ❏ I’d like to be kept up to date by email with offers and news from ABPL I enclose a cheque/ postal order of £................... made payable to Gujarat Samachar Please charge my ❏ Visa ❏ Mastercard ❏ Credit ❏ Debit card for £ Card Expiry date Card No: Signature

RATES VALID FROM 1-2-2018

1 Year 2 Years

UK G.S. A.V. Both G.S. £30.50 £30.50 £36.50 £79 £55 £55 £66.50 £147

EUROPE A.V. Both £79 £131 £147 £252

Please Note: Subscriptions are non-refundable after 30 days

G.S. £95 £174

WORLD A.V. Both £95 £154.50 £174 £288

Date

CALL NOW 020 7749 4080

or Email: support@abplgroup.com www.asian-voice.com www.gujarat-samachar.com

GUJARAT SAMACHAR & ASIAN VOICE Karma Yoga House, Unit 1 12 Hoxton Market, (Off Coronet Street) London N1 6HW

12 MEDIA WATCH

AsianVoiceNews

AsianVoiceNewsweekly

www.asian-voice.com

16 May - 22 May 2020

SCRUTATOR’S Turned away by hospitals, infant with fever dies

Face-offs between Indian, Chinese troops in Sikkim, Ladakh Troops of India and China were engaged in two face-offs in Eastern Ladakh and North Sikkim along the disputed Line of Actual Control in the last few days where troops from both sides suffered injuries. Indian Army sources said that on May 5 and 6, there was a face-off between the Indian and Chinese troops in the Eastern Ladakh sector. The matter was resolved at the local level, they said. In another incident, the troops had a face-off in Nakula area of North Sikkim and some soldiers sustained injuries. The face-off was resolved after dialogue at the local level, Army sources said. India and China were engaged in a 73-day standoff in Doklam after Chinese troops were building a road from their territory to the Jhamphiri ridgeline. The Indian Army had last year carried out an "Exercise Him-Vijay" in Arunachal Pradesh.

The two sides have a long unresolved boundary dispute along the Line of Actual Control with both sides having different perceived boundaries. (Agency)

Labour laws exempted Following the footsteps of some other states, the Gujarat government has announced exemption of labour laws for 1,200 days to employers for new projects in the state. The decision, according to Gujarat chief minister, Vijay Rupani, is aimed at increasing economic activity in the state and creating more opportunities for fresh employment in the state. The chief minister, however, made it clear that none of the existing factories will be given any relaxation from labour laws and it is solely aimed at new projects.

The exemptions will not, however, be extended for minimum wage payment, ensuring security of employees and paying compensation in case of injury or death at the workplace. “Due to the coronavirus pandemic and the lockdown imposed to curb the rise in number of cases, we will have to face many challenges. However, to increase economic activity, give a start to new projects and reduce unemployment, we have proposed that if someone comes up with a new project, the project will get complete relief from labour laws except for three aspects,” said Rupani. (The Times of India)

Mental illness on the rise The lockdown has not only

caused financial stress but also led to mental illness issues. A study conducted recently by a team of experts points out that there has been a rise of about 25% in mental illness. The study shows that the cases of panic attacks have seen the biggest rise of 44%, while depression cases are up by 27%.

Cases of adjustment issues have seen a rise of about 23%. Addiction related problems have also gone up by 18%, while domestic violence has seen a rise of 9.5%.

Problems arising due to the matters related to religion are up by 2.1%, it said. The study has been carried out by Gujarat Psychological Intervention Helplines (GPIH). It has been formed by a team of 150 members which includes medical college lecturers and professional psychologists. The GPIH runs 10 helplines. Its findings are based on the counselling sessions of 40,350 persons across Gujarat. (The Times of India)

An eight-day-old infant died of fever after six private hospitals turned her away in Agra. The child’s father, a small-scale shoe manufacturer, claimed that for 10 hours they hopped from one hospital to the other with the sick child but no one provided treatment to the infant. This is the fourth case in the past 15 days in which a patient died while running from one hospital to the other. “I took my child to a nearby clinic where I was asked to take her to a ‘major’ hospital. I initially took her to four hospitals, but all of them refused to provide treatment to my daughter,” said the father. “On Monday evening, I rushed to another hospital, but the staff made me wait for over one hour.

After a checkup, the doctor told me to take the child to some other hospital as it does not have the required staff and facilities. Then I took my daughter to a multispecialty hospital. Here, the staff told me that the doctors are not available,” he added. (Agency)

Mehbooba’s detention extended

Chaos in Ahmedabad after closure call There was a mad scramble for groceries and vegetables after incharge Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC) commissioner issued a notification ordering a shutdown of all stores except those selling milk and medicines on May 15 evening. Crowds swelled outside vegetable and grocery stores in various parts of the city, caring two hoots about social distancing. Panic buyers were seen in the serpentine queues outside stores to buy

vegetables, fruits and groceries and whatever else they could catch hold of. As people rushed out of their homes to get essentials, heavy traffic snarls were also seen in several parts of the city. “Do we have a choice? I have a family of four to sustain for eight days! A decision comes in around 5pm to shut grocery stores and vegetable vendors from the next day. It’s the start of the month and we don’t have enough supplies to last us through this time,” said a man. (The Times of India)

The detention of former J&K chief minister Mehbooba Mufti under the Public Safety Act (PSA) was extended by three months, hours before it was due to expire last week. In a similar move, the detention of Ali Mohammed Sagar, former minister and senior National Conference leader, and Sartaj Madani, senior PDP leader and Mehbooba Mufti’s maternal uncle, was also extended by another three months.

The brief order by the home department of the Jammu and Kashmir administration said, the extension of PSA was made under the public order provisions of the Act. National Conference leader Omar Abdullah said the decision to extend the detention of Mufti was “unbelievably cruel” and “retrograde”. Several political leaders, including Omar, Mufti and former CM Farooq Abdullah were detained by the authorities on August 5. (The Indian Express)

Telangana extends lockdown till May 29 The Telangana government has decided to extend the lockdown till May 29, saying it can’t take the risk by lifting it at a time when the state has made considerable progress in

controlling the spread of Covid-19.

CM K Chandrashekhar Rao made the announcement at a news conference after a meeting of the state cabinet. With this, Telangana became the first state in India to extend the lockdown beyond May 17. Rao also said while the guidelines issued by the Centre allowing economic activity in orange and green zones will be followed, no activity will be allowed in Hyderabad and other red zone districts except the construction activity. (The Indian Express)

Flamingos flock to Mumbai As people adhere to India’s stay-at-home order during the Covid-19 pandemic, flamingos are

making the city of Mumbai its stomping grounds. More than 150,000 flamingos are taking over the Mumbai metropolitan region as they migrate to the area to feed and breed - a record number. In the process, the group of birds has created a breathtaking sea of pink that’s even more expansive than what residents typically witness around this time every year.

Although both lesser and greater flamingos typically visit India’s wetlands between September and May, this year came with a delay, which is why researchers believe these birds are swooping in a handful at a time. Assistant director at the Bombay National History Society (BNHS), Rahul Khot, said that nearly 134,000 flamingos were counted last year in Mumbai, and he expects the number to keep rising in 2020, both within the area and in wetlands where they aren’t usually spotted. With less people out and about, especially in such a large metropolitan area, the decrease in noise and human activity has attracted flamingos looking for an area where they won’t be disturbed. (The Indian Express)

Migrant cycling back home dies A 36-year-old migrant worker, who had set off for his native in Uttar Pradesh on bicycle, was found dead near Vadodara. Raju Sahni, a native of Kushinagar in UP, was working with an engineering firm in Ankleshwar.

His younger brother said that Sahni had become terribly homesick as there was no work due to lockdown. He started off on his bicycle. Later his body was found lying in Karjan, near Vadodara. The locals said that they saw the bicycle in the middle of the road and the man lying unconscious in the bushes with a backpack beside him. Police identified him from the Aadhaar card found in his luggage. They also found the identity card of an

engineering company where he was working with in Ankleshwar.

Post-mortem revealed that Sahni died of heart failure because of bicycling and heat. He had covered a distance of around 60 km. (The Times of India)

Pharma cos rush to make HCQ In the wake of growing demand for hydroxychloroquin (HCQ) in India and abroad, more companies are rushing to manufacture HCQ. This antimalarial drug is increasingly used in the treatment of Covid-19 patients across the world. As many as 68 pharmaceutical firms have been granted permission by Gujarat Food and Drug Control Administration (FDCA) to

manufacture HCQ tablets in the state. “In past one-and-a-half month, 68 pharmaceutical companies have received product licences to make HCQ tablets of varied dosages in Gujarat,” said H G Koshia, commissioner, Gujarat FDCA. Only 28 companies were into manufacturing of HCQ drug before Covid-19 outbreak. These companies were granted product licences over the period of 60 years. However, record 68 players have received permissions for HCQ in less than 60 days’ time post Covid-19 outbreak. (The Times of India)

Alert against African swine fever deaths A high alert was sounded at Kaziranga National Park (KNP) after the carcasses of 80 pigs, which died due to African swine fever, were recovered from inside the park. Park authorities said 53 pigs were found dead in a village adjacent to Agoratoli forest range in the park last month. These pigs were being reared by a local farmer and died of swine fever.

Golaghat district administration has ordered a probe into the incident and a team of veterinarians of Bokakhat subdivision has launched an inquiry into the matter.

Thereafter, forest staff in Kaziranga recovered another 28 pig carcasses in the Brahmaputra.

These too had died of swine fever in upstream areas such as Arunachal Pradesh and Lakhimpur and Dhemaji districts in Assam, where a large number of pigs had died of African Swine Fever. “People threw away the carcasses in the Brahmaputra, which passes through Kaziranga.

It is a serious cause of concern to wildlife in Kaziranga and hence the high alert has been sounded in and around the park,” said divisional forest officer (Kaziranga) Ramesh Gogoi. (The Times of India)

www.asian-voice.com

AsianVoiceNews

UK

AsianVoiceNewsweekly

13

16 May - 22 May 2020

PIO MP says she was ‘sacked’ as care worker for raising PPE issue Nadia Whittome, an Indian-origin opposition Labour MP, who had returned part-time to her previous role of a care worker to join the fight against the coronavirus pandemic in the UK, has alleged that she was sacked for speaking out against the shortage of personal protective equipment (PPE).

Whittome was born in the UK to a Punjabi father and is the youngest Member of Parliament in the House of Commons. She has been representing her birthplace of Nottingham in central England since her win in the December 2019 General Election. She is now running a drive to encourage care workers to speak out if they have safety concerns.

"Because I've spoken out about this (PPE shortages) I've been sacked from my employment. But this isn't just about me, it's not just about one individual case, or even one employer. Care workers across the country are being easily exploited by their employers, especially if they're on zero-hours contracts," said the 24-year-old Labour Party MP, who had pledged to donate the salary from her part-time role at the retirement home run by ExtraCare to a local Covid-19 support fund.

"If you are one of the care workers who has been pressured or threatened with disciplinary action for speaking out about the lack of PPE, then I'd like you to contact my office, in confidence, to share your experience. It's really important that we get a picture of the scale of this happening across the country," she said, in her appeal to care workers. Her employer ExtraCare said in a sta tement that the reason for Whittome's contract being terminated was that they no longer required extra staff and also that there were no problems with PPE at the Lark Hill retirement village where she had been based.

The retirement village, among the largest in the UK, added that as a result of "rigorous" infection control measures, no deaths have occurred within the Lark Hill care home as a result of C ovid-19.

But Whittome said she will be collecting evidence on how care workers are "undervalued, underpaid, and fear speaking out" due to their precarious employment status.

She said: "Just over a month ago, when the coronavirus pandemic took hold, I returned to my part-time job as a care worker because I knew that this crisis would be falling on already underpaid, overworked care workers, who would be even more stretched.

Opposition Labour leader Keir Starmer spoke out in his MP's favour and tweeted that "no-one should be sacked for speaking out".

PoK activists back Labour leader Starmer's stand on Kashmir Political activists from Pakistan occupied Kashmir (PoK) have come to the support of underfire Labour leader Kier Starmer after he renewed his party’s stand on Kashmir, a move seen as a bid to placate the influential Indian community.

The Labour Party leader, who replaced Jeremy Corbyn, while speaking to Friends of India said, “Any constitutional issues in India are a matter of the Indian Parliament and Kashmir is a bilateral issue between India and Pakistan which need to resolve peacefully.”

Shabir Choudhry, President, Foreign Affairs Committee of United Kashmir People's National Party (UKPNP) and Usman Kayani, President of UKPNP, said, "Labour Party is an important political Party of Britain and they formulate policies that suit their Party and national interests and that doesn't have to be in consonant with our wishes."

The UKPNP leaders said that the above statement has annoyed

Downing Street changes stand on Covid-19 briefing The Downing Street did a U-turn after initially saying that Boris Johnson would only respond to public’s questions and avoid queries from journalists. Just hours after this, the prime minister’s press office did a turnaround and said that Covid-19 briefing will now have a mixture of

OUR HOME ALLOWS YOU OR YOUR LOVED ONE TO LIVE LIFE TO THE FULL. Our on-site care and facilities include: Temple, Full pure vegetarian menu, Landscaped gardens, a Yagna Shala, Hair and Beauty salon, Cinema, Shop.

To view our home or to meet a member of our team, please call now or visit www.karunamanor.co.uk ●

● Karuna Manor, a bespoke and unique care Visit our highly commended, luxury care home and you will feel like you have arrived home, offers residential, nursing and somewhere very special. specialist care for memory loss. ● Our highly trained dedicated teams are proud to deliver quality person-centred care.

Comfortable, well-appointed homes

Karuna Manor ● Christchurch Avenue ● Harrow ● HA3 5BD

Tel: 020 8108 2881

some sections of the Jammu and Kashmir. However, non-Muslims of Jammu and Kashmir, as well as other Muslims have welcomed this statement.

They said, "People have a right to comment on any political issue; and we cannot deny anyone of that right. However, we should not give this impression that Kier Starmer's statement has made Jammu and Kashmir a "bilateral issue".

"Although we say, we are the

principal party to the dispute, but the bitter fact is that Jammu and Kashmir dispute has always been dealt as a dispute between India and Pakistan. We should criticise those who have made this dispute a bilateral one," The joint statement read.

UKPNP leaders emphasised that while using our right of expression we need to ensure that we do not promote extremism, intolerance and religious hatred; and antagonize South Asian communities in Britain.

"In this context, we agree with the Labour leader that we must not allow issues of the sub-continent to divide communities here," they added.

PoK and Gilgit Baltistan, which are part of erstwhile princely state of Jammu and Kashmir, remain under Pakistan's illegal occupation since 1947. The land is misused by the Pakistani establishment to promote terrorism and mislead the youth from Jammu and Kashmir in the name of religion.

Email: cdm@karunamanor.co.uk

questions from journalists and the public. Since the outbreak of pandemic, daily press briefing has been held at the Downing Street with the prime minister and/or a cabinet minister alongside two senior advisers. If the earlier stance of not taking questions from journalist had been imple-

mented, it would have been a first in a period of almost two months since the daily briefings began. Earlier, the PM encouraged those who can’t work from home to go back to work and got rid of a limit on daily exercise outdoors as part of easing of lockdown curbs.

14

16 May - 22 May 2020

AsianVoiceNews

AsianVoiceNewsweekly

www.asian-voice.com

www.asian-voice.com

AsianVoiceNews

AsianVoiceNewsweekly

16 May - 22 May 2020

15

16 UK

AsianVoiceNews

AsianVoiceNewsweekly

www.asian-voice.com

www.asian-voice.com

AsianVoiceNews

UK

AsianVoiceNewsweekly

16 May - 22 May 2020

The UK government, regulators and financial organisations are urging people to be extra careful, as fraudsters are seeking to exploit the Covid-19 crisis. Britain’s Asian community which seems to be more susceptible to such frauds is falling victim to various misinformation, as fear around the pandemic spikes. After the recent report by NHS England, about how the BAME community has been affected disproportionately by the virus, fake news circulating on social media targeting the community has increased.

For example, a very common one is that drinking alcohol every day could kill the coronavirus germs in the throat. People tend to believe it more as the word ‘throat’ is very cleverly and strategically placed in a sentence about the false coronavirus remedy. Another common one is holding your breath for 10 seconds to prove if you have coronavirus. Gargling with hot water for 15 seconds is another fallacy.

Dr Neeraj FRCS, Patil, Consultant in Emergency Medicine currently treating C o v i d - 1 9 patients in the UK, told Asian Voice, “It seems to be natural for some people in our community to believe in false information, and a lot of it is due to superstition. Turmeric may be good for health but drinking turmeric water does not kill coronavirus. Also, the very idea that being affected by coronavirus will immediately kill you is a wrong notion. Covid-19 illness is classified into five categories- asymptomatic, mild, moderate, severe and critical. 95% of the patients are in the asymptomatic, mild and moderate category and do not require hospital admission.”

He described how the community is often seen sharing messages and rejoicing over the ‘discovery’ of an anti-viral drug that cures Covid-19 which he finds extremely worrying.

“Honestly, at It is always vital to present, no drug check if health related has been proven messages or content, to be safe and effective for circulating on treating Covidsocial media have come 19.

Everything from trusted official that is not seriously harmful is being tried sources. and tested to see if it works,” said Dr Patil. “There is insufficient clinical data to recommend either for or against using Hydroxychloroquine and Remdesivir.

Convalescent plasma may be used, and more trials are required to see if this really works. It may work by reducing viral load. So, it could be used as a treatment, but we need to check if the above therapies really work or not.”

It is always vital to check if health related messages or content, circulating on social media have come from trusted official sources. When considering health advice most importantly, you should check the following websites: The NHS, Public Health England, GOV.UK.

17

16 May - 22 May 2020

PRODUCED IN PARTNERSHIP WITH UK GOVERNMENT

COMBATTING COVID-19 MISINFORMATION AND FAKE NEWS RUPANJANA DUTTA TALKS TO THE COMMUNITY FIGHTING THE MISINFORMATION PANDEMIC RAMADAN DURING COVID-19 AND FAKE CHARITIES However, health misinformation is not the only demon that is being fought by the community.

During Ramadan, generosity and charity become very important for the Muslim community.

But due to the lockdown, cash collection for charities has reduced and there is a fear of people falling victim to online fraud.

Farhad Ahmad, an Imam for the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community told the newspaper, “There are trusted charities and online platforms, that are officially registered. People in the community are aware and use them. But during this unprecedented time, online transactions will increase. Lot of people will feel generous and help those in need.

Elderly parents who are living separately or away from children, or anyone who is paying online, they have to be extra careful regarding criminals and fraudsters, who will try to take advantage of such vulnerable people.”

The Charity Commission has also highlighted this issue. In a statement shared by the government, they urged the community to be more vigilant and ignore requests to donate through a money transfer company. It says, “Increased online giving is expected this Ramadan, with a reduction in cash collections, as mosques and community centres remain closed to reduce social contact. Most fundraising is genuine; however, fraudsters and criminals may sometimes take advantage of public generosity during times of increased giving, using various methods such as fake appeal websites, email appeals that falsely use the name of genuine charities, or appeals from fake charities.”

People are urged to check the charity’s name and registration number at gov.uk/checkcharity as most charities with an annual income of £5,000 or more must be registered.

TEMPLES HELPING THE COMMUNITY FIGHT MISINFORMATION

BAPS Swaminarayan temple, in Neasden, London, that has been a favourite among recent UK Prime Ministers, including current PM Boris Johnson, now broadcast their daily prayers live online, and have attracted more than 3.3mn viewers.

Yogesh Patel, from BAPS Swaminarayan Temple told this newspaper, “Every day, after our online ‘arti’, Yogvivek Swami, the head sadhu (saint) at the temple briefs everyone in English and Gujarati, summarising what the ministers have said earlier in the day at the Covid-19 press briefing. He also talks about relevant issues and educates people about online scam circulating via emails, Whatsapp, and social media, and urges devotees to be extremely careful about what they click through or open.

Stay safe, stay better informed.

Sharing the right information can save lives.

You can help by only using and sharing trusted and accountable sources.

“We have also put out literature in Gujarati and English on important information from the UK Government and Public Health England, which has been especially appreciated by the elderly in our community. We are also in the process of putting together short videos on physical exercise, mental health, etc to help the community.”

UNIQUE FRAUD CASES AND CYBERCRIME ON THE RISE

There have been fake texts claiming to be sent from the Government alerting people that they have received a fine for breaking social distancing rules. But with many Indians stranded in the UK due to coronavirus, there has been a spike of unique cases, where desperate citizens, longing to return home have been robbed of money after buying what turns out to be fake tickets. Hackers have also stepped up attempts to access people’s networks and steal their log in details and passwords.

Sanam Arora from NISAU, an umbrella organisation for India and India-related student societies in the UK said, “Every other day there has been either deliberate or careless misinformation being spread, on news of evacuation or resumption of commercial flights. One for example, seems to have originated in Sheffield and another which went quite viral was about flights in early April. We alerted the High Commission of India to this, following which they also issued clarifications. We advised people to stop sharing sensitive data about themselves and others, such as passport information in public WhatsApp groups. We've managed to control this to a large extent, but we still see people sharing such information publicly. This must stop, as they don’t realise that they are exposing themselves to fraudsters.”

Ashish Popat from the British Indians Voice who is administrator of the group on social media said, “We are helping Indians stranded in the UK due to the coronavirus emergency. The High Commission of India is collating information on a form, and scamsters are duplicating such forms and trying to collect card details and other personal information. People are so desperate to go home, that they often don’t think through. Additionally, people are often clicking on links, through which data is being stolen. Fraudsters are often posing as genuine charities or collating data for supposed health surveys and stealing information.”

Sourav Niyogi from Bengal Heritage Foundation said, “Before repatriation of the stranded Britons from Kolkata, India to the UK, we saw some messages going around about flights- that we quickly identified as fake. We double checked the information with Nick Low, the British Deputy High Commissioner in Kolkata and tightened the security around the three social media groups that we run. Now without prior approval of the administrators, no one can post anything on our Facebook group walls. This also ensures fake messages regarding Covid-19 health remedies are kept out.”

But not everybody gets lucky. Aman Remember, Patel* recently became a victim of the police and banks identity theft. A fraudster made a number of credit card applicawill never ask you to tions in his name. He only withdraw money or transfer it to realised something was not right when he received a letter from a different account. Neither will the credit card company, asking they ask you to reveal your full to pay instalments. Speaking to banking Asian Voice he said, he did not password or PIN. know how the person got hold of any information about him and suspected that it could be from discarded letters in bins outside that were perhaps not cleared for a while.

Beena George, has fallen victim to cyber fraud recently and said that her credit card information was stolen last month, after she bought car insurance online. That was then used by scammers to shop for around £285 worth of electronic items, sports shoes and food. “This is a completely Covid-19 related fraud,” said Beena.

“When they tried to make a couple of more transactions, including one for £500, the bank investigated and messaged me. They cancelled my cards and reissued and returned all my money.”

Fraudsters have also been sending messages to trick people into thinking that they are getting genuine offers of financial support from the government. (*Name changed on request)

Checklist to protect from cyber fraud The Government has a checklist to help people protect themselves from cyber fraud: ! Just take a breath – for a moment - before you part with your money or personal information. It sounds simple, but this alone could end up preventing fraud from taking place. ! Ensure that you are using the latest software, apps and operating systems on your phones, tablets and laptops and update them regularly. ! And if you get an unexpected or suspicious email or text message, do not click on the link or attachment. ! Don’t be afraid to challenge things like these. It’s alright to refuse or ignore requests for your money or details if you are suspicious – only criminals will try to rush you or create panic. ! Remember, the police and banks will never ask you to withdraw money or transfer it to a different account.

Neither will they ask you to reveal your full banking password or PIN. ! You can check if requests are genuine by using a known number or email address to contact organisations directly.

And if you think you have fallen victim to a scam, then contact your bank immediately and report it to Action Fraud.

For further information use https://sharechecklist.gov.uk/.

16 UK

AsianVoiceNews

AsianVoiceNewsweekly

www.asian-voice.com

www.asian-voice.com

AsianVoiceNews

UK

AsianVoiceNewsweekly

16 May - 22 May 2020

The UK government, regulators and financial organisations are urging people to be extra careful, as fraudsters are seeking to exploit the Covid-19 crisis. Britain’s Asian community which seems to be more susceptible to such frauds is falling victim to various misinformation, as fear around the pandemic spikes. After the recent report by NHS England, about how the BAME community has been affected disproportionately by the virus, fake news circulating on social media targeting the community has increased.

For example, a very common one is that drinking alcohol every day could kill the coronavirus germs in the throat. People tend to believe it more as the word ‘throat’ is very cleverly and strategically placed in a sentence about the false coronavirus remedy. Another common one is holding your breath for 10 seconds to prove if you have coronavirus. Gargling with hot water for 15 seconds is another fallacy.

Dr Neeraj FRCS, Patil, Consultant in Emergency Medicine currently treating C o v i d - 1 9 patients in the UK, told Asian Voice, “It seems to be natural for some people in our community to believe in false information, and a lot of it is due to superstition. Turmeric may be good for health but drinking turmeric water does not kill coronavirus. Also, the very idea that being affected by coronavirus will immediately kill you is a wrong notion. Covid-19 illness is classified into five categories- asymptomatic, mild, moderate, severe and critical. 95% of the patients are in the asymptomatic, mild and moderate category and do not require hospital admission.”

He described how the community is often seen sharing messages and rejoicing over the ‘discovery’ of an anti-viral drug that cures Covid-19 which he finds extremely worrying.

“Honestly, at It is always vital to present, no drug check if health related has been proven messages or content, to be safe and effective for circulating on treating Covidsocial media have come 19.

Everything from trusted official that is not seriously harmful is being tried sources. and tested to see if it works,” said Dr Patil. “There is insufficient clinical data to recommend either for or against using Hydroxychloroquine and Remdesivir.

Convalescent plasma may be used, and more trials are required to see if this really works. It may work by reducing viral load. So, it could be used as a treatment, but we need to check if the above therapies really work or not.”

It is always vital to check if health related messages or content, circulating on social media have come from trusted official sources. When considering health advice most importantly, you should check the following websites: The NHS, Public Health England, GOV.UK.

17

16 May - 22 May 2020

PRODUCED IN PARTNERSHIP WITH UK GOVERNMENT

COMBATTING COVID-19 MISINFORMATION AND FAKE NEWS RUPANJANA DUTTA TALKS TO THE COMMUNITY FIGHTING THE MISINFORMATION PANDEMIC RAMADAN DURING COVID-19 AND FAKE CHARITIES However, health misinformation is not the only demon that is being fought by the community.

During Ramadan, generosity and charity become very important for the Muslim community.

But due to the lockdown, cash collection for charities has reduced and there is a fear of people falling victim to online fraud.

Farhad Ahmad, an Imam for the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community told the newspaper, “There are trusted charities and online platforms, that are officially registered. People in the community are aware and use them. But during this unprecedented time, online transactions will increase. Lot of people will feel generous and help those in need.

Elderly parents who are living separately or away from children, or anyone who is paying online, they have to be extra careful regarding criminals and fraudsters, who will try to take advantage of such vulnerable people.”

The Charity Commission has also highlighted this issue. In a statement shared by the government, they urged the community to be more vigilant and ignore requests to donate through a money transfer company. It says, “Increased online giving is expected this Ramadan, with a reduction in cash collections, as mosques and community centres remain closed to reduce social contact. Most fundraising is genuine; however, fraudsters and criminals may sometimes take advantage of public generosity during times of increased giving, using various methods such as fake appeal websites, email appeals that falsely use the name of genuine charities, or appeals from fake charities.”

People are urged to check the charity’s name and registration number at gov.uk/checkcharity as most charities with an annual income of £5,000 or more must be registered.

TEMPLES HELPING THE COMMUNITY FIGHT MISINFORMATION

BAPS Swaminarayan temple, in Neasden, London, that has been a favourite among recent UK Prime Ministers, including current PM Boris Johnson, now broadcast their daily prayers live online, and have attracted more than 3.3mn viewers.

Yogesh Patel, from BAPS Swaminarayan Temple told this newspaper, “Every day, after our online ‘arti’, Yogvivek Swami, the head sadhu (saint) at the temple briefs everyone in English and Gujarati, summarising what the ministers have said earlier in the day at the Covid-19 press briefing. He also talks about relevant issues and educates people about online scam circulating via emails, Whatsapp, and social media, and urges devotees to be extremely careful about what they click through or open.

Stay safe, stay better informed.

Sharing the right information can save lives.

You can help by only using and sharing trusted and accountable sources.

“We have also put out literature in Gujarati and English on important information from the UK Government and Public Health England, which has been especially appreciated by the elderly in our community. We are also in the process of putting together short videos on physical exercise, mental health, etc to help the community.”

UNIQUE FRAUD CASES AND CYBERCRIME ON THE RISE

There have been fake texts claiming to be sent from the Government alerting people that they have received a fine for breaking social distancing rules. But with many Indians stranded in the UK due to coronavirus, there has been a spike of unique cases, where desperate citizens, longing to return home have been robbed of money after buying what turns out to be fake tickets. Hackers have also stepped up attempts to access people’s networks and steal their log in details and passwords.

Sanam Arora from NISAU, an umbrella organisation for India and India-related student societies in the UK said, “Every other day there has been either deliberate or careless misinformation being spread, on news of evacuation or resumption of commercial flights. One for example, seems to have originated in Sheffield and another which went quite viral was about flights in early April. We alerted the High Commission of India to this, following which they also issued clarifications. We advised people to stop sharing sensitive data about themselves and others, such as passport information in public WhatsApp groups. We've managed to control this to a large extent, but we still see people sharing such information publicly. This must stop, as they don’t realise that they are exposing themselves to fraudsters.”

Ashish Popat from the British Indians Voice who is administrator of the group on social media said, “We are helping Indians stranded in the UK due to the coronavirus emergency. The High Commission of India is collating information on a form, and scamsters are duplicating such forms and trying to collect card details and other personal information. People are so desperate to go home, that they often don’t think through. Additionally, people are often clicking on links, through which data is being stolen. Fraudsters are often posing as genuine charities or collating data for supposed health surveys and stealing information.”

Sourav Niyogi from Bengal Heritage Foundation said, “Before repatriation of the stranded Britons from Kolkata, India to the UK, we saw some messages going around about flights- that we quickly identified as fake. We double checked the information with Nick Low, the British Deputy High Commissioner in Kolkata and tightened the security around the three social media groups that we run. Now without prior approval of the administrators, no one can post anything on our Facebook group walls. This also ensures fake messages regarding Covid-19 health remedies are kept out.”

But not everybody gets lucky. Aman Remember, Patel* recently became a victim of the police and banks identity theft. A fraudster made a number of credit card applicawill never ask you to tions in his name. He only withdraw money or transfer it to realised something was not right when he received a letter from a different account. Neither will the credit card company, asking they ask you to reveal your full to pay instalments. Speaking to banking Asian Voice he said, he did not password or PIN. know how the person got hold of any information about him and suspected that it could be from discarded letters in bins outside that were perhaps not cleared for a while.

Beena George, has fallen victim to cyber fraud recently and said that her credit card information was stolen last month, after she bought car insurance online. That was then used by scammers to shop for around £285 worth of electronic items, sports shoes and food. “This is a completely Covid-19 related fraud,” said Beena.

“When they tried to make a couple of more transactions, including one for £500, the bank investigated and messaged me. They cancelled my cards and reissued and returned all my money.”

Fraudsters have also been sending messages to trick people into thinking that they are getting genuine offers of financial support from the government. (*Name changed on request)

Checklist to protect from cyber fraud The Government has a checklist to help people protect themselves from cyber fraud: ! Just take a breath – for a moment - before you part with your money or personal information. It sounds simple, but this alone could end up preventing fraud from taking place. ! Ensure that you are using the latest software, apps and operating systems on your phones, tablets and laptops and update them regularly. ! And if you get an unexpected or suspicious email or text message, do not click on the link or attachment. ! Don’t be afraid to challenge things like these. It’s alright to refuse or ignore requests for your money or details if you are suspicious – only criminals will try to rush you or create panic. ! Remember, the police and banks will never ask you to withdraw money or transfer it to a different account.

Neither will they ask you to reveal your full banking password or PIN. ! You can check if requests are genuine by using a known number or email address to contact organisations directly.

And if you think you have fallen victim to a scam, then contact your bank immediately and report it to Action Fraud.

For further information use https://sharechecklist.gov.uk/.

18 FINANCE - UK

AsianVoiceNews

AsianVoiceNewsweekly

www.asian-voice.com

16 - 22 May 2020

Dear Financial Voice Reader, Alpesh Patel As people email me about their pensions and their investments and their concerns, I am reminded of my time at Bloomberg TV. On Bloomberg TV, as a stock picker, I had the ability to script my whole session. So, on those slots on Wednesday evenings, as Sally, my co-presenter, asked me for my ‘buy’ and my ‘sell’ of the week, I would have a list of criteria each week I would go through in my preparation.

Now, some background, the way it worked was that each week, I would pick a stock which I thought would rise over the next 6 months (my ‘buy’) and which I thought would fall over the next six months (my ‘sell).

The programme went out live from 8pm-9pm. I would come in at around 11am to prepare for my noon slot and for the evening show. For the stock-picking I had a set of criteria to make life easier.

But don’t forget, each week I am putting my head on the block. Make no mistake if you get it wrong, you’re costing people money and they aren’t too forgiving. And don’t forget the bulletin boards. Investors on their can kill your reputation in a few anonymous keystrokes.

Those criteria and that stock-picking meant for one six month period I had a 100% track record on each week’s buy and each week’s sell for some 3 months. In other words, each week the two stock picks from 6 months ago had both done what they were supposed to: the ‘buy’ had gone up and the ‘sell’ had gone down.

In fact, I also over the only 6 month period we had analysed, beat on performance with my stock picks every single other analysts, guru and pundit on Bloomberg. I published this in my book Investing Unplugged (Macmillan). The point for here is that, although I could put more detail into a stock-pick, such as when to enter, exit points, stop-losses, even then I couldn’t, because I knew in Sally’s book, sitting on her lap, all that would be written down would be “Vodafone – buy”. And rightly so. That was the job at hand.

And that’s the problem. What was the point of saying, “buy Vodafone if the share price rises above 120p, but any fall below 115p would be an exit. If you do buy keep up a trailing stop-loss so that you exit on a 1 week low.” All that the viewers were interested in six months later were the scores. The superficiality of it all! But that grabs people’s attention.

So be careful.

UK construction sector suffers worst slump in April The Covid-19 outbreak has led to UK’s construction industry witness its worst decline in more than two decades in April, as large number of real estate players have closed their sites.

IHS Markit, the report tracking the industry, said its gauge of activity fell to 8.2 last month from 39.3 in March, the lowest since data were first collected in April 1997. Shockingly, this is significantly lower than the previous record low of 27.8 in February 2009 at the height of the financial crisis.

Signalling the lack of confidence, more than fourfifths of firms of those surveyed (86%) reported a drop in business activity since March, while only 3% reported an increase.

Among the hardest hit were the residential and commercial construction sectors while even civil engineering registering a decline.

“Widespread site closures and business shutdowns across the supply chain meant that vast swathes of the construction sector halted all activity,’’ said Tim Moore, economics director at IHS

Markit.“Construction companies widely commented on worries about cash flow, operating costs and severely reduced productivity, as well as a slump in demand.’’

The data follow grim surveys on services and manufacturing, and indicate that Britain could be facing its sharpest ever economic collapse. The closure of builders’ merchants and manufacturing stoppages led to widespread shortages of materials. About threequarters of construction companies reported longer delivery times from suppliers, and also highlighted a lack of safety equipment such as face masks and goggles for their workers.

According to a report, house sales in the country have virtually came to a halt since lockdown measures were introduced in the last week of March. This has prompted the Office for National Statistics to temporarily suspend its UK house price index. It said the lockdown was “expected to greatly reduce the amount of housing transactions” in April, making it very difficult to produce a national measure of house prices.

Mid-sized banks cope Covid in UK, but warn of pain ahead The adverse effect of the Covid-19 pandemic has forced a large number of mid-sized UK banks to tread cautiously. Though the banks have reported steady deposits and demand, they have warned that it was too early to assess the long-term damage of the outbreak to their businesses.

The lockdown has brought the British economy to a near halt, prompting bigger banks to set aside provisions for loan losses recently in case businesses and consumers struggle to pay them back.

Virgin Money registered loss after setting aside 232 million pound ($289 million) provision for bad loans and likely defaults due to the pandemic. However, it

reported a capital buffer of 13% beating market expectations. Beating current market condition, another financial institution OneSavings reported steady net loans and retail deposits in the first quarter and an impressive 2.66% net interest margin - an indicator of underlying profitability.

Metro Bank could not

reassure its investors with marginal quarterly trading update. The bank reported a marginal decline in lending with a 77 million pound rise in total deposits. The bank said it was difficult to predict with any certainty how the pandemic affect its operations it will update in due course.

"Metro's limited Q1

trading update may be a hostage to fortune in terms of what it does not disclose as opposed to what it does," Jefferies analyst Joe Dickerson was quoted as saying. Unlisted Co-op Bank reported a further quarterly pretax loss of 27 million pounds but said this was in line with company expectations. Citing a lower capital buffer compared to its peers, analysts had been concerned that Virgin Money might need to raise additional capital, but a common equity tier 1 ratio of 13% was welcomed by analysts as ‘a big positive’.

Virgin Money chief financial officer Ian Smith said the bank still had "a very substantial buffer" to the regulatory requirement of 10%.

Nearly 15,000 pubs face permanent closure As the UK faces the uphill task of resurrecting economy which suffered due to the onslaught of Covid-19 outbreak, one of the hardest hit businesses has been the pubs. There are fears that close to 15,000 of them face permanent closure if the lockdown is not lifted sooner than later.

Industry experts have painted a very grim picture of the business. Emma McClarkin, chief executive of the British Beer and Pub Association, was quoted as saying that the coronavirus crisis was "devastating" for the sector financially and that if pubs weren't allowed to reopen until the end of September, they might have to close for good.

"We could be losing 40 per cent of our businesses if they do not open by the end of September. That equates to about 15,000 pubs and breweries," she said. Pubs face a double whammy as and when they open after the lockdown is relaxed.

Even after the waiver, when they do reopen, people may stay away as they would have been warned abut socialising and could fear going out in groups or staying out for lengthy periods.

The perceived vision of people cramming into pubs once they eventually reopen was "something of the past", she warned. "There are going to be much fewer people inside our pubs and that is part of the reality going forward.

McClarkin said, "In the current situation, people are nervous about going out, but they are definitely nervous about socialising in the way they used to and it will take time to build that consumer confidence." She said that the two-metre distancing rule would also limit indoor capacity by about 70

Online supermarket Ocado's sales jump 40% Buoyed by the lockdown in the UK, British online supermarket Ocado has reported a jump of 40.4% in second quarter.

The firm has raised capacity to meet the rapid surge in demand as the country battles coronavirus lockdown. The growth skyrocketed from 10.3% in the first quarter extending gains for 2020 to 35%.

After the outbreak of Covid-19 pandemic, the country has been under lockdown since March 23.

Recently, the Prime Minister Boris Johnson has indicated that the country is past the peak of the pandemic. In March, the sudden surge in traffic forced the firm to stop registration of new customers. The firms also had to start a queuing system to cater to heavy demands.

The firm’s finance head

D u n c a n Tatton-Brown said that it took them a few weeks to understand the new scenario and they couldn’t serve the customers as well as they would have liked to. Before the outbreak, the online delivery system had a share of 7% in UK’s grocery sales, about one out of every 15 households. Before the pandemic’s onslaught, online market leader Tesco enjoyed a 35% share in the country’s online grocery market, while Ocado had about 14%.

Tesco, Sainsbury's, Asda and Morrisons – the big players of UK have been strengthening their online capacity to keep pace with the rampaging demands.

Data suggests that even if delivery capacity is doubled,

around 85% of the market would still need to be served by stores. "There is too much demand in the UK for online (grocery) for the UK operations to serve that," Tatton-Brown was quoted as saying. Ocado's capacity had increased to enable the delivery of over 40% more groceries in the UK than before Covid-19 hit, with its mature warehouses running at their peak and at their best ever efficiencies. The number of items per customer basket appeared to have passed its peak, but remained high, Ocado said.

per cent. Experts contended that while it was important for pubs to start trading again, opening in the wrong conditions would not be in "anyone's interests. A fatal blow for many pubs would be a secondary closure" if a second wave of the pandemic hits the country, McClarkin said.

PNB's fraud claim dismissed The Court of Appeal in London has refused permission for the British subsidiary of Punjab National Bank (PNB) to appeal against a judgment dismissing its USD $45 million claim for fraud and misrepresentation in respect of loans given to Indian and US companies involved in the renewable energy sector.

This was the third consecutive defeat for PNB in this case and the UK High Court has criticised the PNB’s failure to disclose existing proceedings it had brought in the debt tribunal in Chennai. The court also criticised PNB’s lengthy statements of case which it said demonstrated a lack of particularity and specificity, and that the case of fraud was not supported by cogent facts and evidence. Lord Justice Floyd’s recent decision to refuse permission to appeal has effectively brought to an end the two-year legal battle.

www.asian-voice.com

AsianVoiceNews

AsianVoiceNewsweekly

REAL ESTATE VOICE & INDIA FINANCE

19

16 - 22 May 2020

India plans to check Chinese portfolio investors After foreign direct investment (FDI), the government is looking to clamp down on unbridled access to the Indian market by Chinese portfolio investors as it seeks to plug a possible loophole that investors from across the border can use to acquire shares in listed domestic companies.

The finance ministry is looking at options, including the possibility of mandating the “approval route” for Chinese foreign portfolio investment (FPI) as well. FPI investors typically acquire smaller shares and keep churning their investment.

The government will initiate the steps in consultation with market regulator Sebi.

In contrast, FDI is a more long-term and stable source of funding, which the government had recently blocked for Chinese investors through the automatic route and

mandated that direct investment from countries that share a border with India will only be permitted with prior government approval. Although the move will leave Taiwan investment out of the ambit, Hong Kong will be covered by the guidelines.

Sources said that plugging this gap was important as the government wanted to ensure that a group of investors blocked via the FDI route do not use the FPI option to gain significant ownership in a company.

Besides, the department for promotion of industry and internal trade (DPIIT) is looking to define “beneficial ownership” of shares in line with the provisions of the Companies Act. So, companies where Chinese citizens own over 10% cannot escape prior government approval even if the funds are coming via a third country such as Singapore or the US. Under Indian laws, there are two definitions of “beneficial ownership” with the Prevention of Money Laundering Act being more

liberal than the recentlynotified rules under the Companies Act. The often opaque participatory notes are one of the instruments where the FPI policy will have to be watched.

The amendments to the FDI rules were necessitated by the fear among officials as well as businesses about possible takeover attempts

by Chinese companies of Indian entities where share prices had fallen after the coronavirus outbreak.

Several other countries from Italy and Germany to Australia and Japan - have set up screening mechanisms to block possible takeover bids by Chinese investors, many of whom are suspected to be extended arms of the state.

Although Indian authorities had begun work months ago, acquisition of over 1% stake by People’s Bank of China in HDFC Bank was seen as one of the triggers for speeding up the FDI policy change last month.

India offers land to companies leaving China India is developing a land pool nearly double the size of Luxembourg to lure businesses moving out of China, according to people with knowledge of the matter. A total area of 461,589 hectares has been identified across the country for the purpose, the people said.

largest economy, the people said.

The four countries are among India’s top 12 trading partners, accounting for total bilateral trade of $179.27 billion. The foreign direct investments by the four nations between April 2000 and December 2019 stands at over $68 billion, government data shows.

Making unused land available in special economic zones, which already have robust infrastructure in place, is also being examined.

A detailed scheme for attracting foreign investments is expected to be finalized by end of the month, the people said.

Own Programs States have been separately urged to evolve their own programs for bringing in foreign investments. The Prime

Minister held a meeting on April 30 to discuss steps to fast-track strategies for wooing investors. Andhra Pradesh is in touch with several companies from Japan, the US and South Korea. “We have the advantage of coastline and ready-made industrial parks with necessary clearance,” Rajat Bhargava, special chief secretary of the state’s revenue department, said.

“We are focusing on certain sectors like IT and related manufacturing, food processing, and chemicals and have been holding video conferences with investors.”

Uttar Pradesh is also developing an online system for land allotment for all industrial and commercial purposes and is in talks with global companies for attracting investments in sectors such as defense and aerospace.

That includes 115,131 hectares of existing industrial land in states such as Gujarat, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh, they said.

Luxembourg is spread across 243,000 hectares, according to the World Bank.

At present, investors keen on setting up a factory in India need to acquire land on their own. The process, in some cases, delays the project as it involves negotiating with small plot owners to part with their

holding.

Companies Calling Providing land with power, water and road access may help attract new investments to an economy that was slowing even before the virus hit, and is now staring at a rare contraction as a nationwide lockdown hit consumption.

The government has hand-picked 10 sectors electrical, pharmaceuticals, medical devices, electronics, heavy engineering, solar equipment, food processing, chemicals and textiles - as focus areas for promoting manufacturing. It has asked embassies abroad to identify companies scouting for options. Invest India, the government’s investment agency, has received inquiries mainly from Japan, the US, South Korea and China, expressing interest in relocating to the Asia’s third-

Chargesheet filed against Rana Kapoor

Tata Motors scraps £100 mn NCD offer in ‘tight’ market

Nearly two months after he was arrested, the ED filed a chargesheet against Yes Bank founder Rana Kapoor before a special court, official sources said.

Kapoor was arrested by the ED on March 8 and charged under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). The agency is probing allegations of paying £60 million to a company controlled by Kapoor and his family members, from a firm linked to the scam-tainted Dewan Housing Finance Ltd (DHFL).

The decision comes two days after the company approved to issue unsecured, redeemable NCDs worth £100 million in three tranches. Tata Motors is the first major company to scrap its NCD offering after the nationwide lockdown

Tata Motors, the flagship of India’s biggest conglomerate Tata Group, has withdrawn plans to launch a £100 million non-convertible debenture (NCD) offering, citing “higher cost expectations from participants due to tight money market conditions.”

prompted by the coronavirus pandemic, underscoring the tight liquidity conditions in the bond market. Mutual funds, insurance companies and bank treasuries are mostly the largest subscribers of NCDs. Tata Motors, however, added that the company continues to have sufficient liquidity and would “consider issuance of NCDs at appropriate time and under normalised market conditions”. Thanks to the lockdown, the automaker for the first time in its 75-year history sold zero vehicles in

April. In the recent past, several companies have announced plans to launch NCD offerings to create a cash buffer to tide over the current challenging situation.

Tata Motors’ sister companies Tata Steel and Tata Power (via subsidiary Coastal Gujarat Power) said they plan to raise funds via NCDs. In the last two months, investors have shifted to lowrisk assets. As a result, while the demand for central and state government bonds has risen, there are not many takers for corporate debt instruments.

Life After Lockdown Suresh Vagjiani, Sow & Reap Properties Ltd

We for one are gearing up to do some more business when the lockdown period is over.

Properties in general will not be selling at the ‘retail’ prices which could have been obtained prior to lockdown.

This should mean only those who are serious to sell will be placing their properties on the market.

Therefore, by default there is an argument to say those who put their properties on the market will be those who have to sell. Otherwise why would somebody put their property on the market, when it is in a dampened state?

This is particularly true of those which have been entered into auction, especially considering an auction house will not generally take on properties which do not have sensible reserve prices, given the current market conditions.

An unsold lot affects the sales rate of the auctioneer, and so makes it more difficult to attract new lots for the next auction. Current auctions are the score board which attracts future entries.

The vendors are not necessarily individuals, they could belong to an institution who require more liquidity to be shown on their accounts, especially given the recent sluggishness in the economy.

We are looking at a lot which has failed to sell in auction once, and we are hoping it will fail again, which means the vendor will be more inclined and justified in accepting a low ball offer.

Due to the lockdown auctions have now all gone online. In order to bid online one needs to register, and for most auctioneers in order to register you need to deposit funds. Previously, all one had to do was rock up to an auction and raise your hand. This added layer of compliance is likely to reduce the number of bidders.

Certainly, this would mean retail buyers are less likely to come in on the scene.

The more hoops you place in the way, the harder it becomes to attract interest and therefore buyers.

One could argue any serious buyer would have no issues in agreeing to some basic money laundering checks, and placing a deposit; you only need one right person to purchase the property. You don’t need interest from the market.

There are strategies which we have actually executed in the auction environment, and made excellent returns with; which if used in this environment would serve the investor well. I have covered these in previous articles but it is always good as a reminder.

One is to look for properties which are in the wrong auction; this could be for example a residential property in a predominantly commercial auction, or a property which is geographically in the wrong auction.

Another is to look for unknowns; this would scare off most buyers. You can either do the work to turn the unknowns into knowns, or take a view and quantify the risk. A third is to look for properties which have enforcement actions on them, again they will scare many bidders off; but a little research with advice from a planning consultant may reduce the problem to a manageable size.

NRIs get tax relief on prolonged stay in India The government of India announced relief to those who have been facing difficulty with the status of their residency in India under section 6 of the Income Tax Act, 1961 due to lockdown and suspension of international flights owing to the Covid-19 outbreak, as they were required to prolong their stay in India.

There were various representations received from people who had to prolong their stay in the country due to the lockdown and suspension of international flights, expressing concerns that they will be required to file tax returns as Indian residents. Considering these, Union finance minister Nirmala Sitharaman allowed discounting of the prolonged stay period in India for the purpose of determining residency status. The finance ministry further said that as the lockdown continues during the financial year 2020-21 and it is not yet clear as to when international flight operations would resume, a circular excluding the period of stay of these individuals up to the date of normalisation of international flight operations for determination of the residential status for the financial year 2020-21 shall be issued after the flight are resumed. The Central Board of Direct Taxes (CBDT) issued a circular detailing the relief.

There are a number of individuals who had come on a visit to India during the previous year 2019-20 for a particular duration and intended to leave India before the end of the previous year for maintaining their status as nonresident or not ordinary resident in India.

20 PAKISTAN & BANGLADESH

AsianVoiceNews

AsianVoiceNewsweekly

www.asian-voice.com

16 - 22 May 2020

India donates 30,000 Covid-19 testing kits to Bangladesh DHAKA: India has donated 30,000 Covid-19 test kits to Bangladesh as part of its emergency medical assistance to the neighbouring country which has reported 14,657 coronavirus cases and 250 fatalities.

'This assistance which is covered under the SAARC Covid-19 Emergency Fund is intended to support the efforts of Government of Bangladesh in tackling the spread of coronavirus,' the Indian High Commission in Dhaka said in a statement.

Indian High Commissioner Riva Ganguly Das handed over the kits to Bangladesh’s Foreign Minister AK Abdul Momen at his office, saying these domestically produced kits were widely used in India for Covid-19 detection.

According to the statement, Das said Bangladesh was the first country to receive these test kits from India on priority,

'which reflects the importance of Dhaka to New Delhi'. Momen appreciated India’s help for the three tranches of assistance.

An Indigo cargo flight transported the supply to be dispatched to Bangladesh’s Institute of Epidemiological Disease Control and Research (IEDCR). Dhaka received the first tranche of the Indian emer-

gency medical assistance containing 30,000 surgical masks and 15,000 caps on March 25.

The second Indian consignment consisted of 50,000 sterile surgical latex gloves and 1,00,000 Hydroxychloroquine medicine tablets. The Indian gesture came as Prime Minister Narendra Modi ensured his country's readiness to help

Bangladesh in containing the spread of the virus and in mitigating health and economic impact of the pandemic.

In a video conference on forming a joint strategy to fight Covid-19 in the SAARC region, Prime Minister Modi on March 15 proposed the emergency fund with an initial offer of USD 10 million from India and asserted that the best way to deal with the coronavirus pandemic was by coming together, and not growing apart.

Bangladesh's foreign ministry said in a statement that Momen thanked India for the medical supplies as well as assistance in returning Bangladeshi nationals stranded in India. He also urged India to take steps to allow goods-laden Bangladeshbound trucks stranded in Petrapole land border to cross the frontier, saying the delay would result in huge loss to Bangladeshi importers.

On May 8, the deaths from coronavirus infection crossed the 200-mark in Bangladesh, just three weeks after the country witnessed the 100-mark in fatalities. Bangladesh recorded its first fatality on March 18 and crossed its 100-mark on April 20.

On April 17, the country recorded the highest deaths (15) from the pandemic announced by the World Health Organization (WHO). The DGHS official said as many as 5,642 samples were collected in the last 24 hours while 5,738 were tested in 36 laboratories across the country. In the briefing, Prof Nasima also revealed that 236 more Covid-19 patients recovered from the

infection in the last 24 hours.

As per the revised guidelines provided by the newly-formed Clinical Management Committee of the health

authorities, so far 2,650 people have recovered from Covid-19.

On March 8, the health authorities in Bangladesh reported the first case of Covid-19.

Indian High Commissioner Riva Ganguly Das hands over the kits to Bangladesh's Foreign Minister AK Abdul Momen.

Covid-19 tally in Bangladesh crosses 14,000-mark DHAKA: The confirmed cases from Covid-19 surpassed the 14,000-mark in Bangladesh as the country recorded the highest single day cases with 887 more people testing positive in the last 24 hours. This takes the number of total confirmed cases to 14,657.

Directorate General of Health Services (DGHS) Additional Director General (Administration) Prof Nasima Sultana provided the latest figures in a daily online bulletin on Covid-19 situation from Dhaka on Sunday afternoon. She said among the 14 deceased, 10 were men and four women.

Pak drugmakers warn against banning raw material from India KARACHI: The drug manufacturers in Pakistan have warned against banning raw material from India, saying it will weaken the country’s ability to fight the coronavirus pandemic. The Pakistan Pharmaceutical Manufacturers’ Association (PPMA) organised a press conference in Karachi on Monday where they said that import of raw materials for manufacturing medicines should not be stopped from India or any other country.

“At a time when the federal and provincial governments in the country have been in the process of setting up more and more quarantine centres, isolation facilities, and special hospital wards to accommodate Covid-19 cases, there is a dire need to ensure constant supply of essential medicines to treat coronavirus patients,” PPMA senior vice chairman Syed Farooq Bukhari said.

The total number of Covid-19 cases in Pakistan rose to 31,684 on Monday. Out of these, Punjab recorded 11,568 cases, Sindh 12,017, Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa 4,875, Balochistan 2,017, Islamabad 679, GilgitBaltistan 442 and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir 86 patients. A total of 28 more people died in the last 24 hours in the country (between Sunday and Monday), taking the tally of Covid-19 deaths in Pakistan to 667. Another 8,212 recovered so far. But Pakistan began to lift its lockdown despite a surge in the number of Covid-19 positive patients.

Pak court seeks birth certificate of Sikh girl married to Muslim boy LAHORE: A Pakistani court has sought the computerised birth certificate of a Sikh girl, whose marriage with a Muslim boy last year, triggered tension in the country and also raised concerns in India. Lahore High Court (LHC) Justice Shehram Sarwar held the hearing of a petition filed by Muhammad Hassan, seeking custody of his wife Jagjit Kaur, who has been sent to a shelter home on a court order.

The judge sought the birth certificate of Kaur issued by the National Database and Registration Authority (Nadra) to determine her age to decide on the petition. Kaur, the daughter of a Sikh priest of Nankana Sahib, was sent to Lahore's Darul Aman (shelter home) after she made a statement before the LHC that she married Hassan of her free will after converting to Islam and did not want to go back to her family.

However, her brother,

Manmohan Singh, alleged that Hassan abducted his sister with an intention of rape.

He claimed that Kaur was below 16 years of age and had not reached the age of consent when the incident happened. Hassan’s counsel told the LHC that she was now 19 and her computerised national identity card (CNIC) was available.

The judge, however, directed the counsel to submit the birth certificate of Kaur to determine her age and adjourned the hearing till May 22. This issue snowballed into a controversy after a video of the girl's family became viral on social media in which one of her family members had alleged that a group of men attacked their house and she was abducted and forcibly converted to Islam and was married Hassan in September last year.

Subsequently, in January Hassan's elder brother Imran Chishti allegedly incited a mob in the name of religion

and threatened to destroy the worship place (Gurdwara Janamasthan) to build “Ghulaman-e-Mustafa” shrine there. Chishti, a government employee, was later arrested.

Chishti had claimed that Hassan had been beaten up by police for “lawfully and consensually” marrying the daughter of the Gurdwara's granthi. He alleged that Hassan has been pressured by police and authorities to divorce her so that she returns to her parents’ house.

The Indian government had condemned the attack on Gurdwara Janamasthan and demanded action against those involved in it. India had voiced its concern with Pakistan over the abduction and forced marriage of the Sikh girl and sought 'immediate remedial action' from the Pakistan government. Punjab Governor Chaudhry Sarwar was on the forefront to pacify the Sikh community in Nankana Sahib over the alleged abduction of Kaur.

in brief FIRST HINDU YOUTH JOINS PAK AIR FORCE

A Pakistani Hindu youth has become the first person from the minority community to join Pakistan Air Force. Rahul Dev has been recruited as general duty pilot officer. Dev hails from Tharparkar district of Sindh province. Sharing a picture of the new recruit, the PAF recently tweeted, “Good news during #Covid19... Congratulations #RahulDev who hails from very remote village of Tharparkar has been selected as GD Pilot in #PAF.” Though Dev’s exact age is not known, those inducted in PAF at his level are often around 20. The official Radio Pakistan said it is “for the first time in Pakistan’s history” that a Hindu youth has been recruited. A report said that the induction showed that the PAF was breaking barriers. Last year, Kainat Junaid became the first woman from KhyberPakthunkhwa province to have been selected for fighter pilot training.

ARMED MEN DAMAGE CHURCH IN PAKISTAN

A group of armed men vandalized a church in eastern Pakistan before fleeing the scene, a local police official said. The incident in the village of Kala Shahkaku in Punjab province took place on Saturday and was apparently not sectarian but connected to a land dispute involving the church, according to police official Shahid Akram. An image from the attack, broadcast on social media showed a cross, which had originally hung above the entrance door of the church, lying atop a pile of rubble. However, the extent of damage to the church could not be determined from the photograph. Akram said police have detained two suspects and were still conducting searches for the main culprits. “Our initial investigation shows that some local Muslims orchestrated this attack over a lingering land dispute," he said, adding that “all those who are linked to this sad incident will be arrested." Human rights activists and local Christian leaders condemned the vandalism and urged the Punjab government to arrest all those linked to the attack.

HUNDREDS EVACUATED AS WILDFIRES RAGE IN FLORIDA PANHANDLE

Wildfires raging in the Florida Panhandle have forced nearly 500 people to evacuate from their homes, authorities said. One wildfire that broke out in Santa Rosa County has been named the Five Mile Swamp fire as high winds and low humidity caused the blaze to expand 10 times in size, the Florida Forest Service said in a statement. The fire started as a prescribed burn but quickly grew out of control, according to The Tampa Bay Times. The Forest Service said multiple structures have been lost in the 2,000-acre fire, and authorities are recommending residents south of Interstate 10 to evacuate. The agency did not make clear how many people have been evacuated from the area. So far, about 20% of the 2,000-acre fire has been contained, authorities said. “This is an extremely dangerous and fast-moving wildfire situation that is evolving rapidly, so everyone in the affected area should follow directions from state and local officials,” said Florida Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried. Almost all of Florida has had lessthan-usual rainfall this year. National Weather Service meteorologist Jack Cullen said that the dryness helped fuel the fires.

Cullen, who is based in Mobile, Alabama, said the wind is the real culprit. Firefighters are also battling another 575-acre fire in Walton County. Authorities said approximately 500 people were evacuated from the area and multiple structures were lost in that fire. There have been no reports of injuries or deaths.

www.asian-voice.com

AsianVoiceNews

AsianVoiceNewsweekly

SRI LANKA & AFRICA 21 16 - 22 May 2020

in brief KUWAIT IMPOSES 20-DAY 'TOTAL CURFEW' People in Kuwait have been told to follow curfew restrictions and abide by the health authority instructions, state news agency KUNA reported citing the Kuwait Government.

Coronavirus cases have increased due to the failure to abide by social distancing, health minister Sheikh Bassel Al-Sabah said in an online briefing. But the health situation, he added, was under control and “the number of infections is expected to decline after the implementation of the full curfew in the country.” The full curfew started on March 11, but people were allowed to leave their homes for two hours each day between 4.30 to 6.30 pm. The Kuwait Municipality has also announced that it will allow grocery stores to deliver items to nearby residents during the curfew. It said that only stores located in investment areas can take advantage of this decision and deliver commodities to customers during the morning shift from 8 am to 4 pm and the night shift from 8 pm to 1.30 am.

Meanwhile, Kuwait has continued repatriating its citizens from abroad due to the coronavirus pandemic. The foreign ministry said it was ready to start working on the repatriation of Kuwaiti nationals from Saudi Arabia through the land checkpoint Al-Nuwaiseeb.

HACKERS DISRUPT VIRTUAL SA HOUSE SESSION WITH PORN

Hackers disrupted a virtual session of South Africa’s parliament, posting pornographic images in the second such incident since the coronavirus outbreak. The “meeting was temporarily disrupted by so-called ‘bombers’ or hackers,” parliamentary spokesman Moloto Mothapo said. South Africa’s parliament has been operating virtually as part of measures to fight Covid-19. Pornographic images popped up a few minutes before the start of the Zoom meeting and then a male voice hurled sexist and racial insults at Speaker Thandi Modise, according to a newspaper.

Modise adjourned the virtual meeting.

ITALIAN SCIENTISTS SAY THEIR VACCINE NEUTRALISES VIRUS, HUMAN TRIALS SOON

Italian scientists claim to have developed a vaccine candidate that could neutralise coronavirus within human cells. According to findings from the tests conducted at Spallanzani Hospital in Rome, the vaccine generated antibodies in mice that work on human cells. Takis Biotech is developing the coronavirus vaccine candidate. Italian news agency ANSA quoted Takis Biotech CEO Luigi Aurisicchio as saing: “This is the most advanced stage of testing of a candidate vaccine created in Italy. Human tests are expected after this summer.” All of the vaccine candidates being developed are based on the genetic material of DNA protein ‘spike’, the molecular tip used by the coronavirus to enter human cells.

ISRAELI HOUSE NOMINATES BIBI TO FORM GOVT

The Israeli parliament formally nominated PM Benjamin Netanyahu to form a new coalition government despite his upcoming trial on corruption charges, bringing him closer to a fifth term after more than a year of political stalemate. Seventy-two of the Knesset’s 120 lawmakers signed on to Netanyahu’s candidacy after parliament passed legislation approving details of a power-sharing deal between the premier’s right-wing Likud party and centrist rival Benny Gantz’s Blue and White, a joint statement from the factions said. Netanyahu’s nomination was submitted to President Reuven Rivlin. Netanyahu and Gantz plan to swear in their new coalition in on Wednesday.

Nearly 200,000 people in Africa could die of coronavirus, WHO warns

GENEVA: The coronavirus pandemic could kill up to 190,000 people in Africa over the next 12 months and “smoulder” in ‘“transmission hotspots” for years, the World Health Organization has warned. A WHO modelling study found that anywhere between 29 to 44 million people could be infected and between 83,000 and 190,000 Africans could die of Covid-19 if it is not controlled.

The spread of coronavirus in Africa will probably be slower because of the continent’s youthful population and environmental factors, WHO says. The model predicts a slower rate of transmission, lower age of people with severe disease and lower mortality rates compared to what is seen in the most affected countries in the rest of the world.

"The lower rate of transmission, however, suggests a more prolonged outbreak over a few

years," WHO said in a statement.

"While Covid-19 likely won't spread as exponentially in Africa as it has elsewhere in the world, it likely will smoulder in transmission hotspots,” said Dr Matshidiso Moeti, the head of the WHO in Africa.

Experts have warned that the continent of 1.3 billion people is uniquely vulnerable to the pandemic. High rates of malnutrition and poverty, underfunded

healthcare systems, high numbers of HIV infections and fragile food supplies mean Africa could soon face disaster.

The vast majority of African leaders were quick to recognise the threat posed by Covid-19, closing their borders and cutting off international air travel when there was only a handful of cases in their countries. This slowed the spread of the virus but now recorded coronavirus cases are

beginning to climb steadily in almost every African country.

According to statistics released by the WHO, there have been almost 63,293 confirmed cases of Covid-19 and 2,290 deaths in Africa. However, because of low testing numbers, these figures almost certainly represent a fraction of the total number of cases. Africa’s limited medical services would quickly be overwhelmed if the virus started to spread in the same way it has in Europe and the US. There is an average of less than one intensive care bed and one life-saving ventilator per 100,000 people in Africa, a recent analysis found.

Dr Moeti warned African leaders that "Covid-19 could become a fixture in our lives for the next several years unless a proactive approach is taken by many governments in the region". She added: "We need to test, trace, isolate and treat.”

Lanka's apex court to hear pleas against Parliament dissolution COLOMBO: Sri Lanka's Supreme Court has set May 17 and 18 as the dates to hear the seven petitions filed by the opposition parties and the civil society against the dissolution of Parliament by President Gotabaya Rajapaksa. Gotabaya on March 2 dissolved Parliament, six months ahead of schedule, and called a snap election on April 25 to elect a new 225-member House.

However, the election commission in mid-April postponed the parliamentary elections by nearly two months to June 20 due to the coronavirus outbreak, which has infected 863 people and claimed nine lives in the island nation.

The new date clashed with the constitutional imperative that the new Parliament has to meet within three months since its dissolution. Most petitions

Gotabaya Rajapaksa

filed by the opposition parties and civil society argue that according to the Constitution the elections must be held and a new Parliament must be summoned within three months of the dissolution order.

The apex court set May 17 and 18 as dates to hear the seven petitions, court officials said.

The petitioners say as per the prevailing situation, the country would be deprived of a parliament for a period beyond the maximum permissible limit of

three months. As per the Constitution, the new Parliament must be summoned

by June 2.

The petitioners also claim that due to the restrictions imposed in response to the pandemic, the conditions to hold a free and fair election will be hampered as parties would not be able to campaign freely.

In the court, the lawyers for the petitioners sought an interim relief by way of an order on the election commission to stop all preparatory work for the polls until the cases are heard.

However, the court refused to grant an interim order until all parties represented their case.

On April 27, seven opposition parties urged President Gotabaya to summon the dissolved Parliament while pledging cooperation to tackle the pandemic. Gotabaya rejected the Opposition's call to reconvene

the House, saying they were trying to make a political gain at a time when the pandemic has hit the country.

The opposition parties also argued that Gotabaya had no power to draw public finances after April 30, the date till which the dismissed Parliament had approved expenditure by the president. Gotabaya maintained that he still had the power to draw money from the consolidated fund. Over 16.2 million voters are eligible to vote to elect 196 members under proportional representation and a further 29 members on national cumulative votes of each party based on proportional representation.

Gotabaya, who was elected as President in November, was keen to hold fresh elections for a mandate to implement his policies. He was seeking 150 seats or the two thirds in the 225-member assembly.

Sri Lanka to target high-spending tourists to revive tourism COLOMBO: Sri Lanka will target high-spending tourists to revive the tourism sector which has been shattered by the coronavirus pandemic, President Gotabaya Rajapaksa has said.

Widespread travel restrictions and the closure of airports and national borders to curb the spread of the virus had plunged international tourism into its worst crisis.

During a meeting with the members of the newly-appointed Presidential Task Force on Economic Revival and Poverty Eradication, Gotabaya said tourism sector which make a huge contribution to the national economy should be revitalized

to suit the changing situations.

He proposed that Sri Lanka take steps to issue visas with a recognised health certificate when tourists begin to return to the island country, the Colombo Gazette reported. He also proposed that Sri Lanka Tourism target countries where the coro-

navirus has been contained.

The president emphasised the need to focus promoting medical tourism by highlighting the 'successful efforts taken

by Sri Lanka to contain the spread of the coronavirus.' He also urged the authorities to target long-term tourists who often travel to other countries during the winter season.

The president also noted that promoting domestic tourism can ensure the hotel industry is protected. Tourism accounts for about five per cent of the economy, with Britain, India and China

the main markets. The number of international tourist arrivals in Sri Lanka declined in March 2020 by 70.8 per cent in comparison to a year ago as the tourism industry has been hit hard by the coronavirus outbreak. The president expressed optimism that the economy adversely affected by the Covid-19 pandemic could be re-built on a solid basis as the government is preparing to resume day-to-day life and work from next week.

The number of coronavirus patients in Sri Lanka reached 863 on Tuesday, the Ministry of Health said. The Ministry of Health added that 9 deaths due to Covid-19 have been reported so far in Sri Lanka.

22 WORLD

AsianVoiceNews

AsianVoiceNewsweekly

www.asian-voice.com

16 - 22 May 2020

PIO family of doctors loses dad-daughter to Covid NEW YORK: An IndianAmerican father and daughter, both doctors in New Jersey, have died due to the Covid-19, with Governor Phil Murphy describing their demise as "particularly tough" and hailed them for dedicating their lives for others. Satyender Dev Khanna, 78, was a surgeon who served both on staff and as the head of the surgical departments for multiple hospitals across New Jersey for decades.

Priya Khanna, 43, was a double board certified in both internal medicine and nephrology. She was Chief of Residents at Union Hospital, now part of RWJ Barnabas Health. "Dr Satyender Dev Khanna and Dr Priya Khanna were father and daughter. They both dedicated their lives to helping others. This is a family dedicated to health and medicine. Our words cannot amply express our

"And for a doctor, I''m not one, but I would bet, I don't think there could be a more fitting way to be remembered, or a nurse or a healthcare worker of any kind," Murphy said, adding that the doctor had a Satyender Dev Khanna and Priya Khanna passion for bicycling, condolences," New Jersey and he often found peace from Governor Murphy tweeted. the hustle of the hospital in "Both dedicated their lives biking along the Jersey Shore. to helping others and we lost Priya Khanna did all of her both of them to Covid-19," medical training in New Jersey Murphy said during a press and then did her fellowship in conference, saying their demise nephrology in South Jersey with is a "particularly tough one." the Cooper Health System. Like Satyender passed away at the her father, she too worked at Clara Maass Medical Center Clara Maass, where she died. where he had worked for more She was also Medical Director at than 35 years. Governor Murphy two dialysis centers in Essex described him as a "pioneering County and "took pride" in doctor" who was one of the first teaching the next generation of surgeons to perform doctors, Murphy said, adding laparoscopic surgery in the that the ICU physician who state. He is being remembered cared for Priya Khanna was by colleagues as a "gentle and trained and taught by her as caring physician." well.

"Priya will be remembered as a caring and selfless person who put others first. And even while in the hospital, fighting her own battle, she continued to check up on her mom and dad and her family," Murphy said.

"This is a family, by the way, dedicated to health and medicine," he said.

The governor spoke with Satyender's wife Komlish Khanna, who is a pediatrician.

The couple has two more daughters - Sugandha Khanna, an emergency medicine physician and Anisha Khanna, a pediatrician.

"Unbelievable. Our words cannot amply express our condolences nor, I am sure, can they express the pain that the Khanna family is feeling. But I hope that the fact that our entire state mourns with them is some small comfort. And we mourn everyone we have lost.

We commit in their memory to saving as many lives as we can," Murphy said.

facilitated in a tie-up with Aster DM Healthcare group, with the support from the Indian Consulate and the UAE's Ministry of Foreign Affairs a n d International Cooperation.

India's Consul General Vipul said, "It is yet another example of strong India-UAE bilateral ties and reflects deep understanding of problems faced by expatriates as well as UAE nationals in the UAE." "We feel extremely proud to be a part of this joint initiative in providing relief for Covid-19 patients in different facilities," he said.

Azad Moopen, Founder Chairman and Managing Director of Aster DM Healthcare, said, the group felt

duty bound to assist UAE by bringing their medical professionals from India for best possible healthcare delivery to citizens, residents and visitors during the Covid-19 situation. Humaid Al Qutami, Director-General of the Dubai Health Authority said, "This initiative is testimony to the relationship shared by the two nations and it highlights the close collaboration between the government and the private health sector."

The Indian nurses, who specialise in working in the intensive care unit, said that they are happy to be part of the initiative.

Royin Mathew Thomas, one of the nurses in the delegation, said it is his duty to serve people, and so is happy to help the UAE battle the pandemic as part of this special delegation from India. Dipika Suraj Khavale had to leave his 2year-old child back in India to be part of the team.

First batch of 88 nurses from India arrive in UAE ABU DHABI: The first batch of 88 nurses from India arrived in the UAE to help the country's stretched healthcare professionals amid a surge in the number of Covid-19 infections in the Gulf nation that has crossed 18,878 with 201 casualties, according to media reports.

The Ministry of Health and Prevention said the UAE reported 624 new cases on Saturday, taking the total number of infections to 18,878.

The number of fatalities reached 201 after 11 deaths were reported on the day.

The nurses, who are from Aster DM Healthcare hospitals in the states of Kerala, Karnataka and Maharashtra, will be put under quarantine for 14 days after which they will be assigned to various field hospitals as per requirement, the Khaleej Times reported.

They arrived on a special flight

at the Dubai airport on Saturday. India's Ambassador to UAE Pavan Kapoor said that this would further strengthen the long-standing friendship between the two countries.

"India and the UAE are showing how a strategic partnership translates into concrete cooperation on the ground in dealing with this pandemic. Helping a friend in need is the motto of cooperation between our two countries," he said. According to a report in the Gulf News, the arrival of the nurses was

Nepal objects road connecting Lipulekh with Dharchula in Uttarakhand KATHMANDU: Nepalese Foreign Minister Pradeep Kumar Gyawali said that efforts are on to resolve the border issue with India through diplomatic initiatives, a day after Nepal raised objection over a crucial link road connecting the Lipulekh pass with Dharchula in Uttarakhand. Gyawali made the remarks in the Parliament after the ruling Nepal Communist Party lawmakers tabled a special resolution in the House demanding return of Nepal's territory in Kalapani, Limpiyadhura and Lipulekh.

In the resolution, the lawmakers asked the Nepal government to take necessary

steps to get back around 400 sq km land east of Mahakali river, a border river, which they claimed was being encroached. Gyawali claimed that the territories belonged to Nepal as it was mentioned in the Sugauli Treaty of 1816 and three supplementary documents subsequently exchanged between the Nepal government and then British India government, and no other agreement was signed to change the status.

He assured the Parliament that the issue would be resolved through diplomatic initiatives and efforts are on towards that direction. Speaking on the occasion, lawmakers advised the government to hold consultation

with the Chinese side too, as the matter was trilateral issue.

They also advised the government to start highest level dialogue between Nepal and India to resolve the matter.

Gyawali said that Nepal has raised objection to the construction of the strategic link road by the Indian government connecting Darchula in Uttarkhanda with the Tibetan Autonomous Region of China via the Lipulekh Pass.

Nepal's Foreign Affairs Ministry in a statement said the government 'has learnt with

regret' about the inauguration of the link road connecting to Lipulekh pass, which Nepal claims to be part of its territory.

The 80-km-long strategically crucial road at a height of 17,000 feet along the border with China in Uttarakhand was thrown open

by India's Defence Minister Rajnath Singh last week.

in brief 3 RUSSIAN DOCS MYSTERIOUSLY FALL FROM HOSPITAL WINDOWS

Three medical workers in Russia who had been in disputes with the health authorities over handling the pandemic have plunged from upper-storey windows, local news outlets have reported. Some reports suggested that the falls, which killed two doctors and left a third in critical condition, were suicides or accidents. Russian dissidents have long attributed mysterious falls from balconies to state violence. Aleksandr Shulepov, a medic for an ambulance service in Moscow, fell from a window of a hospital where he was being treated for Covid-19. He is critical. He had complained in online videos about lack of protective gear and being forced to work after falling sick. In Siberia’s Krasnoyarsk, Elena Nepomnyashchaya, the chief doctor at a hospital, fell from a window on April 26 and died. She had objected to authorities’ plan to treat Covid-19 patients there, according to TBK, and had complained about insufficient protective gear. Natalya Lebedeva, the head of the ambulance service at Star City, the cosmonaut training centre, died on April 24 after a plunge from a window at a hospital where she was being treated for Covid-19. The local daily wrote she had committed suicide after managers accused her of allowing the spread of the virus.

AFGHAN GOVT RELEASES OVER 100 TALIBAN PRISONERS

The Afghan government has released 102 more Taliban prisoners in line with the USTaliban peace deal signed in February this year. "Pursuant to President Ashraf Ghani's decree, the government released 102 Taliban prisoners. Over 850 has been released, getting us more than halfway to 1,500. More can be released upon the start of talks," National Security Council Spokesperson Javid Faisal wrote on Twitter. Faisal had said that the prisoners were being released based on their age, health, and length of remaining sentence as part of efforts toward peace and battling Covid-19. The prisoner exchange and launch of the intra-Afghan talks became possible after the Taliban and the United States reached a peace deal in February this year. However, talks have been delayed due to Afghanistan's electoral tussle and mutual disagreements over the release of prisoners.

The Taliban is demanding that the government to release 5,000 prisoners on the basis of the peace deal.

DRONE DISCOVERS MASS GRAVE OF ISLAMIC STATE VICTIMS IN SYRIA

Islamic State fighters used a gorge in northeastern Syria as a mass grave for their victims, a human rights group has revealed, after it deployed a drone to confirm the suspicions. In a report, Human Rights Watch said the terror group dumped the bodies of people it had abducted, tortured and executed in al-Hota gorge, near Raqqa. It is one of around 20 mass graves containing thousands of bodies in areas that were formerly held by the so-called Islamic State (IS). Local villagers told researchers from Human Rights Watch that people had been threatened by IS fighters and thrown into the gorge, while videos posted on Facebook in 2014 show two victims being cast in. The clothes on the men's bodies in that video match the clothing of two men being killed on camera in a separate propaganda video, Human Rights Watch said. Activists used a drone to fly into the gorge, where they discovered six bodies floating in the water in a state of decomposition. “Al-Hota gorge, once a beautiful natural site, has become a place of horror and reckoning,” said Sara Kayyali, Human Rights Watch’s Syria researcher.

www.asian-voice.com

AsianVoiceNews

INDIA

AsianVoiceNewsweekly

16 - 22 May 2020

Ahmedabad Civil Hospital doctors complain of lack of professionalism Resident doctors of the Ahmedabad Civil Hospital, which has accounted for 258 out of 513 Covid-19 induced deaths in Gujarat, have alleged that the hospital’s high fatality rate was due to difficulty in getting essential equipment and drugs on time to save patients. They also alleged that senior doctors did not attend to patients. However, former superintendent MM Prabhakar, who has been brought back as officer on special duty to the hospital, said that the resident doctors’ grievances have been addressed.

The Ahmedabad Civil Hospital has kept apart 1,200 beds for Covid-19 patients there, apart from 500 beds at the Gujarat Cancer Research Institute (GCRI), where 69 medical staff of GCRI, including doctors, nurses and paramedics have tested positive. Resident doctors at the civil hospital, where Superintendent GH Rathod is under quarantine, came up with a detailed note on their concerns.

“There is much shortage of essential drugs like Labetalol, Noradrenaline, Adrenaline, AntiH y p e r t e n s i v e , Streptokinase, insulin and equipment like urobags, catheter, ryle tubes,” essential for saving lives.

“Currently it takes 4-5 hours to get such medicines

from the main hospital building and by the time the medicine arrives, we lose the patient who needs it.

They should be made available immediately and in adequate quantity so that patient care won’t be compromised due to logistics,” the note said.

Most deaths occur in hospitals due to comorbidities. “Currently, medicine department has continued its unit system and is not working as single dedicated team. This leads to discontinuity of patient management and unnecessary exposure. For example, those who working in nonCovid-19 wards are forced to go to Covid-19 wards just to collect information. They are at high risk of infecting non-Covid patients,” the note said.

On experienced staffers, the note alleged “majority of faculties in the institute don’t perform the minimum expected duty, such as taking rounds, which ultimately lead to mortality of patients. Ensure accountability and increase workforce, if required, and on duty facilities at Covid Hospital which will reduce the mortality of patients,” the note added. It alleged “unforgivable inhuman attitude, evident by indifference and carelessness shown by higher authorities towards resident who turn positive while treating Covid-19 patients.”

The note claimed that “Covid-19 positive resident doctors have been kept stranded for long hours despite high grade fever owing to indecisiveness and

11 killed as gas leaks from Vizag chemical plant At least 11 people died and hundreds fell sick - many of them collapsing on roads and pavements - as they tried to escape toxic styrene vapours leaking from a chemical plant owned by South Korean company LG in the densely populated Gopalapatnam area of Andhra Pradesh’s Visakhapatnam.

The state government evacuated 10,000 people living within a radius of 5km of the LG Polymers plant, whose holding company LG Chem was later booked for culpable homicide based on a complaint filed by the revenue officer of Venkatapuram village.

Around 800 people were taken to hospitals, many of whom have since been discharged.

“I woke up with a start around 4.30 am and felt some uneasiness in breathing. There was a peculiar stench in the air, as if something was burning in kerosene. My wife woke up, too, and immediately started vomiting," said Dipankar Banerjee, an insurance executive who lives in the area.

Three women in an apartment next door became unconscious even as Banerjee, his wife and 11year-old son scurried out of

their house to join a crowd of people outside covering their noses and mouths to keep out the noxious stench of styrene, a liquid hydrocarbon that can leak at high temperature and evaporate easily into the atmosphere as vapour.

As the fumes spread, many breached the Covid-19 containment zones to take shelter in safer places.

Gopalapatnam Society, a red zone, is barely a kilometre from the LG plant.

Thousands of people sprinted till they could breathe without inhaling the vapours. Those who could not run called police and disaster response teams for help. Some fell to the ground and lost consciousness. A few fainted inside their homes.

Animals and plants didn't escape the toxic gas

assault either. Cattle, dogs, cats and birds were found whimpering or lying still on roads and open spaces. Tree leaves sported a burnt look.

State-run buses were used to shift the affected to hospitals. More than 25 ambulances and fire engines were involved in the rescue operation. Sources said around 5,000 people broke out in rashes after inhaling the styrene vapours. Almost everyone felt a burning sensation in the eyes. At least 10 main hospitals, including King George Hospital, treated hundreds of people for symptoms ranging from breathlessness to severe headache and nausea.

Around 11 am, AP police chief Gautam Sawang said the leak in the chemical plant had been plugged and the vapours that had escaped were "neutralised".

lack of prior preparation of management regarding treatment of resident doctors.” Several resident doctors are alleged to have turned positive while treating patients.“We heard that 13 resident doctors have been tested positive and moved to a hotel designated for Covid care,” a resident doctor from Civil Hospital said. “But that may not be the actual number as they

are not carrying out enough testing,” the doctor added.

The state government had last week brought back former Superintendent MM Prabhakar as an Officer on Special Duty for Covid in Ahmedabad. Dr. Prabhakar said that the issues raised by resident doctors were resolved after their meeting with the management.

Talking about high mortality, he admitted that the sys-

tem was overburdened, which contributed to the high mortality. “Further, delayed reporting of patients due to stigma is also making things worse as are the comorbid conditions,” Dr. Prabhakar said adding that unlike H1N1, the Covid virus infection is leading to multi-organ failure in patients with comorbid conditions in a big way.

16 migrants run over by train in Maharashtra Sixteen jobless and weary migrant labourers who had dozed off on a railway track after walking nearly 36km from Maharashtra’s Jalna, where they used to work in a steel plant, were run over by a goods train at Satana village near Aurangabad last week, tragically cutting short what was to be a journey back to their native MP. The deceased were in a group of 20 that set out from Jalna on foot for the Bhusawal railway junction, around 160 km away, in the hope of catching a train to MP. The four survivors were also lying on the track, but just managed to get out of harm’s way.

“We were exhausted and sat on the track to drink water. Some of us chatted before dozing off. The train arrived soon after and ran over most of my mates. Four of us heard their cries and woke up, and barely managed to jump aside,” one of the survivors, Sajjansingh Dhurve, said, adding they had assumed no train would be plying during lockdown.

Severed limbs, bloodstained rotis, torn currency notes and clothes and other belongings lay strewn on the track for hours. The railway administration and police had a tough time recovering the dismembered body parts

of the 16 victims and sending these to the mortuary at Aurangabad’s Government Medical College and Hospital (GMCH).

“The tracks were at a little elevation from the ground, which offered some safety from reptiles and other wild creatures,” Dhurve, one of the four who survived, said. Expressing grief over the death of the workers, Maharashtra CM Uddhav Thackeray announced Rs 500,000 in financial aid to each of the victims' families. His MP counterpart Shivraj Singh Chouhan announced a like amount to the next of kin of the deceased.

The 20 workers used to work in a steel plant that has just resumed operations after 40 days of lockdown, Jalna collector Ravindra Binwade said. “Another 58 migrant workers from the plant had earlier secured travel passes to return home.

The 20 workers involved in incident had visited the collectorate but did not apply for passes. They had been assured of passes if they applied.” However, sources in the district administration said the workers were disappointed at not being able to secure travel passes and decided to set off immediately. “They went back to the steel plant, stayed there for some time before setting out for Bhusawal on foot. The plant had received permission from the MIDC to restart manufacturing and resumed operations on April 4, but the workers thought it best to return home," a source said. Rafiq Shah, police patil of Satana village, said 14 of the migrant workers died on the spot and two on the way to hospital. “I live just 500 metres from the site.

I heard a loud bang and the goods train, which was going from Nanded to Manmad, screeching to a halt”.

24 INDIA

AsianVoiceNews

AsianVoiceNewsweekly

www.asian-voice.com

16 - 22 May 2020

SOUTH INDIA

Karnataka announces £161 mn relief package BENGALURU: The Karnataka government has announced a £161 million relief package to help stimulate economic activity in the state and to compensate for the loss of livelihoods.

As part of the package, the government has decided to pay Rs 25,000 per hectare up to a maximum of one hectare. Sixty thousand washermen (dhobis) and 2,30,000 barbers would also be given a one-time compensation of Rs 5,000. Also 775,000 autorickshaw and taxi drivers will also be given Rs 5,000 each as a one-time relief.

Chief Minister BS Yediyurappa made these announcements while addressing a press conference.

He said the monthly fixed charges of electricity bills for MSMEs, who have suffered huge production losses due to the

BS Yediyurappa

lockdown, will be waived for two months. Electricity consumers of all categories, the CM said, would be given incentive and concessions if they pay the bill in time. No electricity connections would be disconnected till the end of June for consumers who have not paid their bills, the CM added.

Weavers were also given a package with £10.9 million being set apart for weavers’ loan waiver schemes. Also 54,000

handloom weavers in the state would get Rs 2,000 each as a one-time measure. Pointing out that there are 15,80,000 registered building workers in the state, Yediyurappa said they would get Rs 5,000 each as a one-time assistance.

To fund all these relief measures, the state has hiked liquor prices by 11%. This hike comes on the back of a 6% hike which was announced in the budget earlier, bringing the total hike on retail liquor prices by 17%.

Siddaramaiah, leader of the opposition in Karnataka assembly, criticised the package as being completely inadequate and said that at least half of the losses suffered by farmers should be compensated.

“Government should come forward and buy the vegetables, fruits and flowers grown by the

farmers. The Rs 10,000 per acre compensation does not suffice even to spray pesticides on them. Also what about tanners, road side vendors, carpenters and others? It is unfortunate that the government has not done anything for large sections of the society which are suffering.”

KPCC President DK Shivakumar also lashed out at the government for announcing ‘meagre and inadequate compensation package.’ He also demanded that a special assembly session be called to discuss the challenges faced by the public and how to address that. Reacting to this demand, Yediyurappa said that he is meeting a delegation of Congress leaders who have sought his time in the next few days and thus there was no need for any special session.

PUNJAB

Showdown between Punjab ministers, chief secy CHANDIGARH: In an unprecedented development, several Punjab cabinet ministers walked out of a pre-cabinet meeting on liquor policy, following an alleged argument between Finance Minister Manpreet Badal and Punjab Chief Secretary Karan Avtar Singh. The meeting was called to discuss the new liquor policy, before it was to be approved in the Cabinet meeting later.

Besides the ministers, the meeting was attended by Chief Principal Secretary to the Chief Minister, Suresh Kumar, and Principal Secretary to the CM Tejvir Singh. The situation became tense when during the course of discussion, the Chief Secretary made observations about the non-viability of certain suggestions put forth by the ministers. Certain remarks reportedly made by the Chief Secretary were objected to by the Finance Minister, who stood

up and left the meeting.

Later, Cooperation Minister Sukhjinder Randhawa also reportedly made certain observations against the functioning of the Excise Department. Though the senior officials tried to pacify the ministers, they had started leaving the venue. The meeting was to be followed by lunch before the Cabinet meeting. But after the fiasco, the Cabinet meeting was postponed.

The ministers suggested a government department taking control of the unsold vends and certain other changes in the excise policy. The other ministers present at the meeting were Tript Rajinder Bajwa, Balbir Sidhu, Vijay Inder Singla and OP Soni.

Before leaving, the ministers reportedly expressed anguish over the delay in finalising the excise policy and bureaucracy calling the shots in decisionmaking in the government. Ever

since the Covid-19 lockdown began, some of the ministers have been reported to be sulking over being ignored in decisionmaking and the bureaucrats running the show.

Due to the social distancing, the ministers have not been able to meet Chief Minister Capt Amarinder Singh and have been interacting through videoconferencing, during cabinet meetings.

Opposition criticises govt Meanwhile, the opposition SAD, BJP and AAP targeted the Congress government, saying a 'constitutional crisis' has erupted and Cabinet ministers have 'lost faith' in the government, a day after a showdown between the ministers and the chief secretary.

Akali Dal spokesperson Daljit Singh Cheema said a 'constitutional crisis' had erupted in Punjab, with Cabinet ministers expressing 'loss of faith' in the

Manpreet Badal

government.

'It is unfortunate when every state is doing its utmost to combat Covid-19, the Punjab Cabinet is fighting with bureaucrats as witnessed in yesterday's pre-cabinet meeting,' he said in a statement.

With the Cabinet not 'trusting' the bureaucrats and vice versa, there is a leadership crisis due to which Punjab and Punjabis are suffering, he claimed.

Bengal told to stop violations by ‘specific groups’

In a letter to West Bengal chief secretary Rajiva Sinha, home secretary Ajay Bhalla said there was very little testing of people in the state in proportion to the population and a very high level of mortality at 13%,

enforcement of the lockdown by enhancing police p r e s e n c e .

Instances of problems faced due to ostracism of healthcare professional and lack of quarantine facilities were also worrying, Bhalla Mamata Banerjee inspecting the streets added. the highest for any state.

The letter said central teams “Lockdown violations have observed free movement of been noted in the cities of people in large numbers without Kolkata and Howrah by specific masks, bathing in rivers and groups in specific localities with playing cricket and football in reports of corona warriors, containment zones. including the police, being The Centre had deputed two attacked in such localities,” Inter-ministerial Central teams Bhalla said. He asked the chief (IMCTs) to Kolkata and secretary to ensure stricter Jalpaiguri districts since April

KERALA SAYS 'CURVE FLATTENED'

Kerala has flattened the coronavirus curve in 100 days after the first case was confirmed, state Finance Minister Thomas Isaac said, a day after Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan said the state had been successful in containing the virus in January, when the first case was reported, and during the second wave of infections in March. In his tweet Isaac also reiterated the Chief Minister's statement that with only 16 active cases in hospitals across the state, the government was bracing itself for a third wave of infections. "It has been 100 days since the first Covid-19 case was reported in Kerala on January 30... We could contain the spread at that stage. The second phase started in (the first week of) March. Today, after two months, we have managed to flatten the curve," Chief Minister Vijayan said.

TN CAN SELL LIQUOR ONLINE ONLY

Alcohol can be sold online in Tamil Nadu, the Madras High Court said, ordering the state government to shut down liquor shops because of huge crowds that challenged social distancing protocols and other precautions against coronavirus. Hundreds of people in serpentine queues, which extended over a km in many areas, were seen at liquor stores across the state. Liquor worth £17 million was sold in a day. Social media was abuzz with visuals showing consumers being sold more than the permitted number of liquor bottles. There were also tell-tale signs of no checking of Aadhaar cards, violating almost all conditions put forth by the court earlier.

PLASMA TRIALS IN 7 PUNJAB HOSPITALS, PGI

WEST BENGAL

KOLKATA: In a stern warning to West Bengal, the Centre asked the state chief secretary to ensure that lockdown measures were strictly implemented as its two teams had found “specific groups in specific localities” of Kolkata and Howrah violating the lockdown. Uncontrolled crowding of markets and free movement of people in large numbers, many playing cricket and football, were some of the instances pointed out in a communication to the state.

in brief

20. These teams extensively toured seven districts in the state. West Bengal has not furnished any data regarding the number of households and individuals contacted and surveyed for signs of Covid-19 symptoms so far. Also, testing facilities were lacking in hill districts of north Bengal, the home secretary said.

State home secretary Alapan Bandyopadhyay said ASHA workers had held a survey (AprilMay) on 60 million households to identify people having fever, cough and breathing distress.

Trinamool secretary general and state education minister Partha Chatterjee said the Centre should come to the state’s aid and not just find fault with each and everything the state does.

In a major boost to health research in the region, seven hospitals from Punjab and the PGI in Chandigarh have been selected as part of the ICMR’s nationwide trial to determine if the plasma therapy could work in critical Covid-19 patients. Only 28 sites have been selected for the trial to be held across hospitals in Gujarat, Rajasthan, Punjab, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Madhya Pradesh, UP, Karnataka, Telangana and Chandigarh.

Ludhiana’s Satguru Pratap Singh Hospital, Christian Medical College and Dayanand Medical College, Guru Gobind Singh Medical College and Hospital, Faridkot, Government Medical College, Patiala, and Amritsar’s Guru Ram Das Institute of Medical Sciences and Research and Government Medical College will be part of the trial approved by the Drug Controller General of India and the National Ethics Committee of the government.

CASE AGAINST BABUL SUPRIYO

The Kolkata Police has filed a case against Union Minister Babul Supriyo for sharing fake photos of Bengal Chief Secretary Rajiva Sinha on microblogging site Twitter. On Sunday the police lodged a case and initiated action against the BJP minister for the photo he shared on May 8 which allegedly shows Rajiva Sinha drinking with some people, it was also alleged that one of them is Mamata Banerjee’s brother Kartik Banerjee. The South division of the Kolkata Police took to Twitter to announce that the photo shared is fake and that action has been taken against Supriyo for sharing the image. The tweet said: "This post circulating on social media is “Fake.The information shared in the message is false. A case has been started over this and legal action being taken." While on May 8, Supriyo shared the photograph claimimg that if Sinha and Banerjee are together then it "raises many questions".

www.asian-voice.com

AsianVoiceNews

INDIA

AsianVoiceNewsweekly

25

16 - 22 May 2020

The writer is a Socio-political Historian - E-mail: haridesai@gmail.com Dr. Hari Desai

Scindias of Gwalior: From 1857 to 2020 • Savarkar referred Jayajirao as “cobra, traitor and coward” who sided with British • In May 2017, CM Shivraj Singh indicted Jyotiraditya as Villain, now he is a Hero

I

t does not take more time for Indian political chameleons to change colours: Gwalior of Madhya Pradesh is known for such experiences since 1857. Once a Sardar of Peshwa the Maharaja of Gwalior Jiyajirao Scindia refused to support the “First War of Independence” in 1857 and supported the East India Company.

Swatantraveer Savarkar described the Maratha Maharaja as “Cobra, traitor and a coward” who led to slavery of India for next nine decades.

Present day ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the state and at the Centre reminded the Scindias of their past action of 1857 during the bye election held in May 2017 calling Jayajirao Scindia a traitor trying to attack his Congress descendant Jyotiraditya Scindia branding with his forefathers. Of course, when the Chief Minister Shivraj Singh and the national General Secretary of BJP Kailas Vijayvargiya must have forgotten that the Rajmata Vijayaraje Scindia was the founder Vice President of their Maharaja Jiyajirao Scindia who was party and two of her daughters branded as traitor by Savarkar Vasundhara Raje and Yashodhara Raje were the information!’ But still, forgetting leaders of BJP. all this the Scindia, with all his March 2020 brings a change army and all his guns, advanced and the leadership of BJP on the Peshwa on the 1st of June, declared the same “Maharaja” near Gwalior. The Shrimant Jyotiraditya a hero who was (Peshwa) who deserves the instrumental in installing respect of the whole country Shivraj Singh Government by thought for a moment that the demolishing the Congress-led Scindia had repented and was Kamal Nath Government! It be coming forward to salute the flag reminded that in 1967 one of the of Swadesh. But, Lakshmi said closest friends of Prime Minister that he was coming, not to Indira Gandhi and a Congress salute, but to smash that golden MP Rajmata Scindia left flag. She came forward with her Congress following refusal of ministerial berth. She joined Jan Sangh and was instrumental in formation of Sanyukt Vidhyak Dal ministry in Madhya Pradesh. Her son Madhavrao Scindia remained with Jan Sangh but opted to join Congress to have long lasting career as a Congress MP and Union Minister till his death in a plane crash. His son Jyotiraditya who lost his Lok Sabha election in May 2019 and was The Titular Maharaja Jyotiraditya Scindia denied the Chief Ministerial berth in the state also three hundred horsemen and remained with the Congress till advanced right on the guns of he joined the BJP in March 2020. the Scindia. Soon, she caught the The Rani Laksmi bai of view of Jayajirao Scindia and his Jhansi had cautioned Nanasaheb personal guard the brave Peshwa, her co-leader in the ‘Bhaleghate’ troops. The cobra Revolution of 1857 along with shows not such rage when it is Tatia (Tatya) Tope, but the trodden upon as Lakshmi Scindia ditched even his showed at the sight of this ancestors’ boss for safeguarding traitor!” Savarkar describes; his own interest at the cost of “Jayajirao Scindia, coward as he Swaraj and Swadharma. was, and his minister, Dinkar Barrister Savarkar writes: “They Rao, fled, not only from the field, had written to the Scindia, ‘We Next Column are coming to you, so that we shall be enabled to proceed A reformist Rajarshi of towards the south.’ But this Kolhapur Shahu ungrateful man had forgotten Chhatrapati the former relations. Well then, remember the former and the but from Gwalior itself, and ran present relations too. ‘The to Agra!....how can he who goes ancestors of the Scindia were our against his own country and servants, our Hujres-that was against his own Dharma be a the former relation. And, the ruler ? …. On 3 June 1857, a big present relation? The whole Durbar was held in Phul Bagh. army of the present Scindia had All Sirdars, statesmen, joined us. Tatia had gone to noblemen, shiledars, and cavalry Gwalior, seen the leaders, and officers, who joined the gained all necessary Shrimant, took their seats

according to their rank. Tatia Tope and the Arabs, Rohillas, Pathans, Rajputs, Rangdes, Pardeshis, and others under him came to Durbar in their military uniform and with swords by their side. The Shrimant himself was dressed in the Peshwa’s uniform Shirpana and Kalgitura on head, pearls in his ears, and pearl and diamond necklaces, round his neck…..all stood up in reverence, salutes were received, and the Shrimant ascended the throne.” The victory over Gwalior was celebrated but Lakshmi was missing since she preferred the battlefield to the Durbar.

Lieutenant Rose attacked Gwalior and captured it too. Away from there even the Rani was killed. Thus ended the last organized resistance of the Rebellion. In the famous words of Rose, she was the “best and bravest of the rebel leaders”.

Subhadra Kumari Chauhan’s celebrated poem “Jhansi ki Rani” is being recited even today by the people of India, presenting the darling queen; but the Government of Rajasthan headed by Vasundhara Raje

Indian, Chinese troops clash in Ladakh, Northern Sikkim In flare-up of border tension between India and China, troops of the two countries were engaged in two fierce face-offs in Eastern Ladakh and near Naku La Pass in Northern Sikkim, leaving several soldiers on both sides injured, official sources said.

In the first incident, scores of Indian and Chinese army personnel clashed along northern bank of the Pangong Lake in Eastern Ladakh on the late evening of May 5 and the face-off ended next morning following a dialogue between the two sides, they said. A number of soldiers on both the sides sustained minor injuries as they exchanged punches and resorted to stonepelting, the sources said, adding around 200 personnel were involved the face-off. Both sides brought in additional troops following the fracas.

It was the first case of troops from both sides exchanging blows after a similar incident had taken place around the Pangong Lake in August 2017. There was no official reaction or details about number of injuries on the Indian side.

In a separate incident, nearly 150 Indian and Chinese military personnel were engaged in a faceoff near Naku La Pass in the Sikkim sector of the Sino-India border in which at least 10 of sustained injuries, the sources said. The personnel clashed and exchanged punches, they said.

'Temporary and short duration face-offs between border guarding troops do occur as boundaries are not resolved...Aggressive behaviour by the two sides resulted in minor injuries to troops,' the Army said in a brief statement. 'The two sides disengaged after dialogue and

interaction at local level. Troops resolve such issues mutually as per established protocols,' it said.

The troops of India and China were engaged in a 73-day stand-off in Doklam tri-junction in 2017 which even triggered fears of a war between the two nuclear-armed neighbours. The India-China border dispute covers the 3,488-kmlong Line of Actual Control, the defacto border between the two countries.

China claims Arunachal Pradesh as part of southern Tibet while India contests it. Both sides have been asserting that pending the final resolution of the boundary issue, it is necessary to maintain peace and tranquillity in the border areas.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Chinese President Xi Jinping held their first informal summit in April 2018 in the Chinese city of Wuhan, months after the Doklam standoff. In the summit, the two leaders decided to issue 'strategic guidance' to their militaries to strengthen communications so that they can build trust and understanding.

Modi and Xi held their second informal summit in Mamallapuram near Chennai in October last year with a focus on further broadening bilateral ties.

Kashmiri Pulitzer Prize winners caught in political debate

Scindia got the poem removed from the school textbooks since it presented the Scindia ancestors in bad light. Of course, it raised a controversy. The RSS leader, Kanaiya Lal Chaturvedi openly challenged the Scindia government’s decision saying it was a historical fact that the Scindia of Gwalior sided with the British in 1857. Vasundhara’s mother, Rajmata Vijaya Raje, in her autobiography, “Rajpath se Lokpath par”, tried to influence the readers to believe that the Maharaja of Gwalior, Jayajirao, was a nationalist and tried to help the Peshwa under whom the natives tried to challenge the English rule in 1857. Most of the historians have come to the conclusion that the Scindia sided with the British. Savarkar preferred to call him “a Cobra and a Traitor”. And now unfortunately, the Indian political chameleons are busy making efforts to change or rewrite the Indian history.

A political controversy erupted between the Congress and the BJP over the Pulitzer Prize awarded to t h r e e photojournalists Dar Yasin, Mukhtan Khan and Channi Anand from Jammu and the Kashmiri photojournalists, Kashmir. saying that the pictures they had This year, the US-based been awarded for depicted antiPulitzer Prize for best feature India sentiments in Kashmir. photography category has been "Dear @RahulGandhi ji. You awarded to three Associated Press congratulated Mr Dar who received (AP) photographers -- Mukhtar the Pulitzer award for Khan and Dar Yasin from Kashmir photography.

One of the and Channi Anand from Jammu photographs is enclosed here with. "for their striking images of life in The caption mentions "Indian the contested territory of Kashmir Occupied Kashmir. Mr Rahul, is as India revoked its independence, Kashmir an integral part of India?" executed through a Patra asked. The controversy did communications blackout". The not remain restricted to the spat awards are given each year in 21 between Rahul and Patra only. categories and entries are accepted Many news channels aired lengthy from all over the world. debates on whether the awards Senior Congress leader and Lok should have been given to the two Sabha member Rahul Gandhi Kashmiri photojournalists, Dar and greeted the three winners from J&K Mukhtar, in particular. through his comments on Twitter, The Pulitzer Prize, awarded saying, "Congratulations to Indian every year for achievements in photojournalists Dar Yasin, journalism, literature and art in 21 Mukhtar Khan and Channi Anand categories, comprises a certificate for winning a Pulitzer Prize for and a $15,000 cash award. The their powerful images of life in award was established in 1917 by Jammu &Kashmir. You make us all the provisions in the will of Joseph proud." BJP spokesman Sambit Pulitzer who had made a fortune as Patra was quick to react as he a newspaper publisher. criticised Rahul Gandi for praising

26 INDIA

AsianVoiceNews

AsianVoiceNewsweekly

www.asian-voice.com

16 - 22 May 2020

PM Modi announces economic package, says lockdown 4.0 will have new rules Stressing that “we have to protect ourselves and move ahead as well”, Prime Minister Narendra Modi, in his address to the nation, announced a special economic package amounting to £200 billion to deal with the Covid-19 crisis. PM Modi also said the fourth phase of nationwide lockdown would be different and have new rules and guidelines.

“I announce a special economic package today.

This will play an important role in the ‘Atmanirbhar Bharat Abhiyan‘.

The announcements made by the government on Covid19, decisions of RBI and today’s package totals to £200 billion. This is 10 per cent of India’s GDP,” PM Modi said.

Emphasising that the

special economic package would focus on land, labour, liquidity and laws, PM Modi said it would benefit labourers, farmers, honest tax payers, MSMEs and cottage industry.

“Beginning Wednesday, Finance Minister will announce details of special economic package,” PM Modi said.

With the third phase of

the lockdown expiring on May 17, PM Modi said the next phase would be different and have new rules and guidelines. “Based on the suggestions by states, information related to lockdown 4 will be given to you before 18th May. We will fight corona and we will move forward,” the PM said.

Calling it an

Narendra Modi

unprecedented crisis, the PM said making the country self-reliant was only way to make 21st century belong to India.

“India’s self-reliance will be based on five pillars -

e c o n o m y , infrastructure, technology driven system, vibrant demography and demand,” he said.

“When India speaks of selfreliance, it does not advocate for a self-centered system. In India’s self-reliance there is a concern for the whole world’s happiness, cooperation and peace,” PM Modi said.

The PM said when the Covid-19 crisis started, not even a single PPE kit was manufactured in India and only a few N95 masks were

available. “Today 200,000 PPE kits and 200,000 N95 masks are manufactured in India daily,” PM Modi said.

PM Modi first addressed the nation over India’s coronavirus preparedness on March 19, where he announced a “janta curfew” on March 22. On March 24, he announced a 21-day nationwide lockdown. On April 14, he extended the lockdown period till May 3.

On April 3, in a video message, Modi asked the nation to light lamps for frontline corona warriors on April 5. The lockdown was further extended till May 17 by the Home Ministry.

Gujarat crosses 500 Covid deaths, 58% After Facebook deal, Ambani’s RIL one step fatalities in past 11 days With 20 fresh deaths in past 24 hours, the death toll in Gujarat breached the 500mark. Meanwhile, 347 fresh cases were recorded, taking the tally to 8,542 and the death toll to 513. Gujarat became second state after Maharashtra to record 500plus deaths of Covid-19 patients. The death rate in state is skyrocketing with 58% of total deaths recorded from May 1 to 11, reveals analysis.

Till April 30, Gujarat had 214 deaths whereas in past 11 days, 299 deaths were added. The state added 100 deaths in four days. Out of 299 deaths, Ahmedabad district accounted for 251 or 84% of mortality.

State health department has stopped providing analysis of age and comorbidity of the deceased patients since May 5. Out of the 347 patients, Ahmedabad accounted for 268 or 77% of the patients.

Ahmedabad district on

Monday crossed 6,000mark with cases touching 6,086 and recorded total 400 deaths. Majority of the cases have been recorded from Ahmedabad city, which is identified as one of the national hotspots of the viral infection.

After Mumbai, Ahmedabad district has recorded the maximum cases of Covid-19 in India.

Jayanti Ravi, principal secretary (health & family welfare), said that the state is stressing on increasing immunity of the Covid-19 positive patients, especially

in Ahmedabad.

“We have got about 4,000 kg of A y u r v e d i c m e d i c i n e s i n c l u d i n g Shamsham Vati, Dhashamul Kavath and Ayush 64 capsules in a special aircraft f r o m Uttarakhand,” said Ravi, adding that the medicines would be able to create about 350,000 doses for the patients.

Ravi said that they are also providing herbal concoction to the state-run hospitals to boost their immunity.

Total cases reach 70,756 India’s Covid-19 count went past 70,000 on Monday, just two days after crossing the 60,000 milestone, as Maharashtra continued to report above 1,000 new cases for the sixth day while the pandemic spread alarmingly in Tamil

Nadu, which added its highest single-day number of cases at 798. Overall, however, the count of new cases across the country was down from Sunday’s record high (of 4,308) to 3,607.

India now has 70,793, according to the latest numbers reported by states.

Maharashtra has nearly a third of all cases. Just four states Maharashtra, Gujarat, Tamil Nadu and Delhi - have 66% of India’s Covid case load.

The count of fresh cases remained high in Gujarat (347) and Delhi (310), but both these states have reported higher numbers in past few days. In what would be a relief for health authorities, Monday’s death toll came down to 82 after remaining at 113 for two consecutive days.

Maharashtra recorded the highest 36 deaths, taking its total toll to 868, with Mumbai alone accounting for 528.

Hizbul India chief Naikoo killed in shootout One of Kashmir's mostwanted terrorists, Hizbul Mujahideen commander Riyaz Naikoo, was killed along with an aide in a fivehour gunbattle with security forces at his native Baighpora in Pulwama district, bringing the curtain down on an eight-year run that saw him go from a mathematics teacher to a terror mastermind with a Rs12,00,000 bounty on his head.

As news of Naikoo's death spread, the Union Territory administration again suspended mobile internet across the Valley and voice communication over all networks barring that of BSNL. Incidents of

Riyaz Naikoo

stone-pelting at security forces was reported in parts of south Kashmir and downtown Srinagar.

Naikoo and his aide, identified as Adil, were eliminated within hours of security forces killing two Lashkar-e-Taiba men in a

separate operation at a nearby village, capping a relentless offensive against terror outfits since the May 3 Handwara encounter in which eight security personnel, including two Army officers – Colonel Ashutosh Sharma and Major Anuj Sood – were killed in action.

Known for doing a Houdini act every time security forces cornered him, Naikoo had been holed up in a concrete hideout at Baighpora, when a joint

team of the Army's 50 Rashtriya Rifles, CRPF's 185 Bn and police started an operation to flush out the two Lashkar terrorists from Shaar Shali village of Khrew, also in Pulwama district.

A senior official of J&K police said there was a tipoff about Naikoo visiting Baighpora, less than 10km from Khrew, to see his ailing mother Zeba even as security forces were engaged in an encounter with the Lashkar terrorists. "Around 3 am on Wednesday, a separate team of J&K Police, the Army's 55 Rashtriya Rifles and CRPF reached Baighpora and was immediately greeted with a volley of gunfire. After a five-hour exchange of fire, Naikoo was shot dead.

closer to zero-debt plan

Reliance Jio has become a $65.95 billion firm in four years after Facebook bought a 9.9 per cent stake in the firm for $5.7 billion.

Jio makes parent Reliance Industries (RIL) among the top-five listed companies in India by market cap. This gives the social media Mukesh Ambani company a foothold in India’s fast-growing market and access to more than 388 million Indians online. It also helps billionaire Mukesh Ambani-led RIL cut significant debt.

RIL’s debt, increased due to the breakneck expansion of Jio - where Ambani invested $40 billion in 2016, and other businesses. The Facebook deal is now the centrepiece of the ambitions of India’s biggest private company to cut net debt to zero by March 2021.

Prior to this, RIL accelerated efforts to reduce debt by attempting to sell stakes worth billions of dollars in some of its businesses. It is in talks with Saudi Aramco to sell 20 per cent of its oil to chemicals business and Canadian private equity firm Brookfield Asset Management for a stake in its telecom tower business.

Ambani, in his speech while addressing the company's 42nd Annual General Meeting on August 12, 2019, said the company had a “very clear roadmap to becoming a zero net debt company by March 31, 2021.” In 2018, Reliance transferred telecom infrastructure assets to two separate infrastructure trusts for a consideration of £12.5 billion with the intention of raising this money from large global institutional investors. For the same, it has received strong interest and commitments from reputed global investors and is confident that these transactions will be completed by the end of FY21, Ambani said. He added that the company had ended FY19 with net debt of £15.45 billion.

Ambani also said Saudi Aramco would buy 20 per cent stake in RIL’s oil-to-chemicals (02C) division, at an enterprise value of $75 billion. Reliance also signed an agreement with BP for investment in KG-D6.

"The commitments from these two transactions are about £11 billion," he added. Now, with RIL’s 2021 vision in place and swiftly moving, investors should expect major debt reduction moves through stake sale, asset monetisation and value unlocking through listing or strategic sale of key business divisions.

Along with these moves, RIL is doubling down on its consumer businesses - Reliance Retail and Reliance Jio Infocomm. These two consumer businesses contribute nearly 32 per cent to the consolidated EBITDA currently and their share is likely to increase to 50 per cent over the next few years.

This transition to zero debt company along with transformation from commodity business to consumer oriented business should be value accretive for investors.Analysts also state that RIL’s net debt will fall even if energy and retail demand struggles for six months and the planned asset sales are delayed.

www.asian-voice.com

AsianVoiceNews

HEALTH

AsianVoiceNewsweekly

27

16 May - 22 May 2020

in brief WHY YOUR EMOTIONAL STRESS SHOWS PHYSICAL SYMPTOMS

A recent study published in the Science journal, has finally revealed why your body responds to emotional stress; and it all lies in a neural circuit. The circuit, as the study points out, could be a key target for stressinduced disorders like PTSD, and panic disorder.

It said, emotional stress activates the sympathetic nervous system, which kicks in physical responses, like rising blood pressure, faster heart rate, and an increase in body temperature. However, these responses are interpreted as coping mechanisms to boost physical performance in fight-or-flight situations.

The study was conducted by injecting tracers into the brains of rats, who were subjected to a stressful event. It showed that the DP/DTT brain areas were highly active when exposed to stress.

TAKING HERB SUPPLEMENTS? HERE'S WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW

With the Covid19-induced lockdown turning us all into a bunch of health freaks, many have made the effort to eat right and exercise.

However, some of us short-cut seekers have also resorted to consume supplements – which are not always approved by experts. I know what you are thinking at this exact moment. But I take “natural” supplements! Experts believe they can still cause aftereffects similar to modern medicine.

Reports reveal, over 50 per cent dietary supplements across global markets are unregistered, and counterfeit.

Do not be fooled by the marketing promotions. Doctors believe supplements without prescription can do more harm than good, especially if it's not needed for the body.

The only formula is to eat right, exercise, sleep well, and get enough sunlight.

Posting edited food pictures may just give you an eating disorder The social media age has got us documenting almost everything we do, including cook, eat, travel; not without editing them and adding some filters though. While all these posts may be getting you more than a dozen likes, a recent study reveals it can lead to some eating disorders.

The study, published in the International Journal Eating Disorders, editing and uploading selfies on social media platforms like Instagram may increase the risk of an eating disorder.

The American researchers revealed a consistent and direct link between posting edited photos on Instagram and risk factors for eating disorders. Posting photos contributed to greater anxiety and reinforced urges to restrict food intake and exercise compared with not posting photos.

Co-author Pamela K Keel from Florida State University, said, “As more people turn to social media to stay connected, it's critically important to let others see you as you are. Compared with edited photos, we saw no decrease in the number of likes or comments for unedited photos on Instagram; knowing this could reduce harmful pressures to change how you look.”

The study sought to determine how posting edited photos are connected to eating disorders, as well as anxiety and depression symptoms, in male and female college students. The research team examined concurrent associations between posting edited photos and mental health measures in 2,485 undergraduates in stage I. Meanwhile, in stage II, they examined causal associations between posting edited photos and eating disorder risk factors in 80 undergraduates who endorse posting edited photos in stage I and volunteered for the experimental portion of the study.

The findings showed those who endorsed edited pictures reported greater disordered eating patterns and anxiety than those who did not.

However, no differences were found for symptoms of depression.

Types of eating disorders:

Not only posting, one also needs to pay close attention to their eating pat-

terns. Below are some serious, yet extremely subtle eating disorders.

1. Anorexia nervosa

This disorder is characterised by extreme weight loss, difficulty in maintaining appropriate body weight, and even distorted body image in many.

People suffering from this conditions could drastically restrict their calorie intake, exercise compulsively, and even try to compensate for eating via forceful vomiting or laxatives.

Such individuals are obsessed with weight, food, calories, fat grams, and dieting. They have a negative body image, and run away from situations involving food and avoid meal time.

They could also exhibit stomach cramps, and other gastrointestinal complaints, fatigue, dizziness, and fainting due to nutritional deficiencies, menstrual irregularities, brittle and thin hair, weak nails, and dry and dull skin cavities.

2. Bulimia nervosa

harmful fad diets, which lead to a quick weight loss by eliminating certain food groups completely from the diet, and are harmful in the long run.

Most physical symptoms like dizziness, fatigue, weight fluctuations, menstrual irregularities, gastrointestinal issues, weak immunity, and deteriorating quality of hair, skin, and nails remain the same as that of anorexia nervosa, certain physical changes might be unique to bulimia.

3. Binge eating

This eating disorder also involves episodes of losing control and eating till you get uncomfortably full. However, it is not always followed by unhealthy compensatory measures such as forced vomiting, but is surely followed by guilt, shame, and distress. The physical and behavioural symptoms of the binge eating disorder are more or less similar to bulimia nervosa.

4. Orthorexia

This disorder is characterised by repeated episodes of binge eating beyond the point of feeling comfortably full, followed by inappropriate behaviour to compensate for the calories gained in binges via self-induced vomiting, misuse of laxatives, fasting, and/or excessive exercise.

They express constant fear of gaining weight, show discomfort while eating around others, heavy reliance on

This disorder basically indicates an individual's obsession with proper or “healthful” eating, often resulting in them damaging their own well-being instead. Symptoms including compulsive checking of ingredient lists and nutritional labels on food items, sticking strictly to a narrow food group that is deemed as healthy. Individuals with this disorder also spend too much time in meal planning, obsession with food and health blogs on social media.

It is true! Green tea scientifically proven to help aid weight loss

Study: Indian summer won’t slow down Covid-19

Green tea has long been used to help promote weight loss, at least by celebrities, and people from the health industry.

However, scientists have now joined that bandwagon too. A research paper published in the journal Phytotherapy Research ratifies the weight-loss benefits of green tea.

The study, which featured 26 randomized controlled trials and included over 1,300 participants, discovered that people who consumed green tea for longer than 12 weeks had a reduced body weight and body mass index.

Unfortunately, green tea consumption showed no bearings on the waist size of the participants.

For the uninitiated, green tea is a powerhouse

The hot Indian summer is a ray of hope for several Indians with multiple sources suggesting it might stop the ongoing Covid19. However, a recent study has some real bad news for all of us. A study published in the Canadian Medical Association Journal paid attention to 144 geopolitical areas, including states and provinces in Australia, the US, and Canada along with others, to study the impact of latitude and temperature on Covid-19.

The study observed the impact of latitude, temperature, humidity, school closures, restrictions of mass gatherings, and social distancing while assessing the growth of the pandemic during the period between

of antioxidants. A study published in the journal PMC claims that regular green tea consumption can keep lung, colon, mouth, stomach, and breast cancer at bay. However, you must limit your green tea consumption to three cups a day. Much like everything else, too much green tea can be harmful or you. As

green tea contains copious amounts of caffeine, too much of it can make you irritable, increase your heart rate, and mess with your digestion.

There are also reports that claim that the plant contains heavy metals, that can interfere with your system if you drink too much of it.

March 7 to 13. Interestingly, it found that latitude or temperature had little to no bearings on the growth of Covid-19. The humidity does not contribute in reducing the transmission of the pandemic.

In a report, Peter Juni from the University of Toronto, and St Michael's Hospital in Canada, said,

“We had conducted a preliminary study that suggested both latitude and temperature could play a role. But when we repeated the study under much more rigorous conditions, we got the opposite result.” Co-author of the study and epidemiologist at Dalla Lana School of Public Health in Canada, Professor Dionne Gesink said that the summer is not going to make this go away.

With the third phase of India's lockdown set to come to an end soon, there are several public health questions still unanswered.

To Our Readers

We are publishing these items in good faith, kindly consult your Doctor before you try to implement any advice. We do not hold any responsibility for its efficacy...

28 LIFESTYLE & FOOD

AsianVoiceNews

AsianVoiceNewsweekly

www.asian-voice.com

16 May - 22 May 2020

Seven scientific hacks for a happy state of mind We all know that one person who just oozes happiness... (Yes, you know the one) They are always smiling, having fun, and in fact, have a real knack for processing their negative feelings in a healthy way. However, if you think there is no way you could be that person, wait just a second!

Science proves how you persevere your life is a power you hold within.

Below are seven such hacks that may just brighten up your gloomy day:

1. Buy flowers for yourself

Harvard researchers claim fresh flowers are the ultimate pick-me-up, and keeping them at home works wonders in keeping anxiety and negative moods at bay. A study also shows that people who picked up flowers for themselves felt more compassion towards others and felt new enthusiasm towards.

2. Wake up and smell the Oranges

Citrus scents like orange, lemon, and grapefruit bring out positive chemical reactions in your brain, as well as ease stress. If you feel like you need to be uplifted, use a few drops of citrus essential oil on your pressure points.

3. Carbs for an afternoon snack

Carbohydrates actually boost mood-boosting chemicals in the brain,

HOW TO MINIMISE HAIR BREAKAGE?

Hair care depends a lot on how we sleep, too. At night, the brushing of hair against the bedsheet and the pillow can lead to breakage. Which is why it is important to know that there are some ways in which you can lessen the damage.

A top bun

Many hair experts say that if you have styled your hair, then you have to make sure it does not fall on your face when you sleep. This is when you can make a top bun. It is easy, and will make sure the hair stays on top, while you sleep comfortably. A few loose strands will do no damage.

A simple braid

A braid is a great way to make sure there is no hair breakage. Before you hit the bed, wear your hair in a simple braid so as to minimize any kind of breakage. Make sure it is not too tight, though, or it could end up making you feel uncomfortable. Also, it is a great way to ensure there is no tangling and pulling.

A ponytail

The biggest advantage of having a ponytail is that the strands will not fall on your face, and it won’t be too tight either. A complicated hairstyle could damage the hair, but you cannot ever go wrong with a ponytail.

however, focus on whole-grain sources instead of refined carbohydrates to reap the benefits. When you begin to feel down, go for an afternoon snack of 25 to 30 grams of carbs.

4. Add more turmeric for your meal

The active compound in turmeric, curcumin, has natural antidepressant qualities. Turmeric has vast wholebody health benefits such as lessening the effects of rheumatoid arthritis, osteoarthritis, and other inflammatory conditions, as well as fighting Alzheimer's disease and diabetes.

5. Eat chocolate

Chocolate contains tryptophan, which boosts the production of serotonin in the brain, leading to better moods. This trick also works with other foods containing tryptophan,

such as poultry and eggs.

6. Drink Coffee

A Harvard University study found that women who drank at least two cups of coffee regularly were at a 15 per cent lower risk of depression than women who did not. However, stick to your normal every day black coffee and skimp out on those fancy mocha lattes.

7. Try meditation

Meditation is a proven stressbuster with no harmful side effects.

Studies have shown that its benefits range from pain reduction and lower blood pressure to a boost in libido.

Meditation releases "happy" chemicals in the brain - serotonin, dopamine, and endorphins - all of which work together to put you in a better mood.

8 lifestyle mistakes that are messing your menstrual cycle Listen up ladies! If your menstrual cycles are irregular, causing you weird pains, and making you grumpy, and you constantly find yourself wondering why your periods are tougher than your friends, it may be time to change certain habits!

Reports reveal there are certain factors that are contributing to the disruption of your cycle.

Recipe POTATO CHAAT 3 medium-sized boiled potatoes, peeled and diced 1 tsp fennel seeds 1 tsp cumin seeds 1 tsp red chilli powder 1 tsp anardana 1 tsp chaat masala 2 green chillies 1-inch piece ginger 100 gm coriander leaves 1 1/2 tsp salt, 2 tsp roasted jeera powder, 2 tbsp yogurt, 1 tsp oil Coarsely chop the green chillies, ginger, and coriander leaves. Toss into a food processor, along with 1 tsp of roasted jeera powder, 1 tsp salt, and a splash of water. Blend until you reach the desired consistency. Transfer to a bowl and keep aside.

In a heavy-bottomed pan, heat the oil. Once hot enough, add the fennel and cumin seeds and let them crackle. Add the potatoes and stir-fry till they become light brown in colour.

Add the chilli powder, anardana powder, chaat masala and the remaining salt and jeera powder to the pan and toss the potatoes until all the spices are well-combined.

Turn off the heat.

Allow the potatoes to cool slightly and transfer them to a bowl. Add the yogurt and freshly-prepared green chutney, and combine well. Garnish with pomegranate seeds and coriander, and you’re done!

OATS KHEER

1 cup oats 2 cups toned milk 1 tsp elaichi (cardamom) powder 8-10 almonds 5-6 walnuts 8-10 pistachios 8-10 raisins 1 carrot, grated Jaggery to taste, 2 tbsp desiccated coconut 1 tsp Ghee, 1/2 cup pomegranate seeds 1 tsp flax seeds, 1 tsp soaked chia seeds Heat the ghee in a pan and roast the walnuts, almonds, and pistachios in it. Once they’re crispy and red, crush them into coarse chunks using your mortar and pestle. Set aside.

In another pan, combine the milk, half a cup of water, and the elaichi powder and bring it to a boil.

Now, add the oats and jaggery. Boil the mixture till the oats swell up. Just before the mixture reaches the desired consistency, add the grated carrot and bring it a boil. Turn off the heat.

Scoop the mixture in a bowl and garnish with roasted nuts, raisins, flax seeds, chia seeds, pomegranate seeds, and desiccated coconut and enjoy the goodness.

Bet your money on that honey!

1. Inadequate sleep

This is not just your period, but an ultimate foe for your entire lifestyle. Experts reveal, insufficient sleep can disrupt the hormonal balance in your body, prompting irregular periods.

2. Too much exercise

Starting a rigorous workout out of the blue, especially without warming up first can be killing your menstrual cycle. If you are resuming your fitness habits after a long time, you may want to take it down a notch and only gradually step it up.

In fact, scientists also suggest that sudden vigorous exercising can lead to weight gain as bodies do not adapt easily to change.

3. Too much stress

One of the biggest causes for irregular periods is stress. Work pressure can not only disrupt your mental health, but also your periods. There have been several extreme cases that lead to PCOS.

4. Eating habits

Crash diets, or binge eating ; be what it may, drastic changes in your diet can affect your hormones and ultimately mess with your cycle.

5. Smoking and Drinking

While neither these habits are directly

connected to your periods, they may just be affecting your sleeping patterns, which most certainly are a major factor behind your irregularities.

6. Too much junk food

There are more than one reasons why you should slow down on junk food. In fact, excess sugar can take your periods on a ride.

Eat a balanced diet that includes protein, carbs, and fibre in proper proportion.

7. Wrong kind of cosmetics

Certain shampoos, hair dyes, and moisturizers might have male hormones that can impact your cycle.

8. Irregular work habits

Awkward work shifts directly translate to a disrupted sleeping pattern and ultimately, a menstrual mess. A study reveals women working irregular shifts are more prone to have irregular cycles.

Summer has officially kicked in, and we know you are juggling your skincare woes. With no salon appointments to make, wondering what to do? No need to worry! Step into your kitchen and bring out that bottle of honey, let us take you on a ride !

Honey is naturally antibacterial, and helps to fight off acne. It is high in antioxidants, so fights harmful radicals. It is a humectant, meaning it just draws in moisture from the air, and will leave you skin soft and smooth. It can also help break up excess sebum clogging up your pores.

For acne-prone skin: 1 teaspoon lemon juice, 1 teaspoon baking soda, 1 tablespoon honey For oily skin: 1 teaspoon bentonite clay, 1 teaspoon apple cider vinegar, 1 teaspoon honey For sensitive skin: 1 teaspoon matcha powder, 1 teaspoon jojoba or almond oil, 1 tablespoon honey For dry skin: 1/4th avocado, 2 tablespoon crushed almonds, 1 tablespoon honey

www.asian-voice.com

AsianVoiceNews

AsianVoiceNewsweekly

BOLLYWOOD

29

16 - 22 May 2020

Twinkle pays an ode to her mom Dimple on Mother's Day In her latest editorial column, Twinkle Khanna wrote about her bond with her mother, actor Dimple Kapadia, and daughter Nitara.

Mentioning how life with her mom could sometimes be a little too much to handle, she said, “I clearly recall more than one occasion when I almost had to sit on my hands so that I would not end up strangling my mother. Like the time, she said my newly done highlights looked like someone had spat paan on my head.

She said it as a joke but her criticism, even light-hearted, would sting.”

She, however, added that she developed a new respect for her own mother after she became a mother herself. She wrote, “I know that like

most daughters, my self-worth for the longest time and partially even now, is based firmly on what I perceive as my mother's notion of me...I try to help my daughter rejoice in her strengths, build confidence, integrity and fearlessness while also throwing a few vegetables down her throat. But I know I will still slip up inadvertently.”

Twinkle also raised a toast to the “perfectly imperfect” mothers. In a video message posted on her social media, she said, “I am going to tell you what mother's really want for Mother's Day or what at least I want for Mother's Day. I want to be free of all responsibilities for an entire day. I don't want anyone to ask me any questions.”

Priyanka shares special Anushka, Virat are all kinds of message for mom and cute in recent throwback pic mother-in-law Cricketer Virat Kohli shared a throwback picture from his vacation with wife and ace actress Anushka Sharma and its as adorable as they come.

The photo shows Anushka giving Virat a kiss while he clicks a selfie. He captioned the post, “Throwback To the soft winds, rustle of trees, touch of that winter snow .... All things we are eternally grateful fir. Like we have always been.”

Another photo shows snow covered mountains and a lovely picturesque town. The beautiful couple are currently in lockdown with Sharma's parents in Mumbai. Mumbai police commissioner Param Bir Singh said that the couple have contributed Rs 500,000 each for police welfare amid the ongoing pandemic.

The couple had earlier donated undisclosed amounts to the PM CARES

fund and Maharashtra Chief Minister's Relief Fund to support the fight against Covid-19.

Aamir urges scriptwriters to continue writing One of our favourite actresses Priyanka Chopra shared a beautiful message for all mothers, as she wished her mom Madhu Chopra and mother-in-law Denise Jonas on Mother's Day. She shared a photo montage with both of them, and others.

The 'Quantico' actress can be heard saying in the video, “To whoever raised you, loved you, taught you right and wrong, kissed your wounds, hugged you after a heartbreak, sat in the front row of your school play, today is for them. Mother's Day is a lot more touching this year than before. With a lot of us far away from our loved ones, shared memories keep us

close.” She added, “Not being able to hug or celebrate my mother or my mother-inlaw or all the mother figures in my life today makes my heart heavy. So for the lucky ones who are at home with their families, hold them extra tight. So, to all of you mothers, the ones we’re born to, the ones we come across every day in our life, or the ones we choose, here’s wishing you all a very Happy Mother’s Day.” She captioned the video, “Mother's Day. Happy Mother's Day to all the maternal figures around the world. Today, we celebrate you. Love you, Mom. @madhumalati @mamadjonas.”

Actor Aamir Khan has urged writers to not stop amid the Covid-19 induced lockdown and rather, continue with “more enthusiasm”. A media report quoted him as saying, “Budding scriptwriters should continue writing with more enthusiasm, especially during these times. Every filmmaker needs a good script.”

The actor is on the panel of judges for an initiative that awards five winners with a cash prize of Rs 50,00,000. In a video announcing the winners of the contest, Khan said, “Those who did not make it to the top five should not get discouraged. In fact, scriptwriters should continue writing with more enthusiasm, especially during these times. Every filmmaker needs a good script.”

30 BOLLYWOOD

AsianVoiceNews

AsianVoiceNewsweekly

www.asian-voice.com

16 - 22 May 2020

Sara says brother Ibrahim is interested in joining Bollywood 'Love Aaj Kal 2' actress Sara Ali Khan has revealed her brother Ibrahim is definitely interested in joining Bollywood, but has to complete his education before he can pursue the career. In a recent interview, Sara said, “He has not even gone to college as yet. And I think acting is a while away. It's definitely something he is interested in, something he is passionate about. And he's gonna study in LA and he's gonna study film in LA and if he wants to do something, he'll do it.”

She added, “There's a lot of hard work, as we all know, that goes into it, a lot of prep that goes into it. But at his age, before even going to college, just the desire is enough right now and then, he'll work towards it. And if he works towards it and people like what he does, then sure. It's a dream right now, making it a reality is on him.”

Ibrahim has been making more appearances on the internet lately, with his own TikTok videos, and on sister Sara's Instagram. In an earlier interview, father Saif had spoken about the possibility of Ibrahim joining the film industry.

Genre: Coming of Age Comedy Drama Duration: 1 Season, 10 episodes

Get to know Devi, an Indian American navigating her way through high school

Filmmaker Vishal Bhardwaj writes emotional ode to Irrfan Khan Filmmaker Vishal Bhardwaj of 'Maqbool' fame shared an emotional Instagram post on deceased actor Irrfan Khan. He said, “There were and there are and there will be a lot of tears to shed.” Sharing a picture of the two, he wrote, Thank You sir. Thank you.

There were and there are and there will be a lot of tears to shed. Thankyou for helping me bring them out. Thank you.”

He wrote it felt like the explosion of a bomb in his heart when he first heard of the actor's death. Sharing an anecdote from February 2014, when 'Haider' was being shot in Srinagar. A crowd gathered around the crew and became unruly as they expected a selfie with Irrfan. As security began to whisk the actor away, “A boy runs out from a lane situated at the square leg direction of the car. He bends his shoulder back and throws a stone like a professional cricketer at the car to run him out. The wind screen shatters into pieces.”

Vishal added that the panicked security guard almost opened fire on him but was stopped by Irrfan “just in time”.

by Vallisa Chauhan

The actor was not the least bit upset by the incident and in fact laughed about it later, “Vishal sahab, kya throw maara saale ne.. Aisa graceful ki Jonty Rhodes yaad aa gaya (Vishal sahab, what a throw it was.. So graceful that I was reminded of Jonty Rhodes).”

Vishal wrote about when he saw Irrfan’s mortal remains at the crematorium. “I walk forward to face him. I am

looking at his face endlessly. Time has stopped. I realize how heavy his eyelids are. A lullaby in Irrfan’s voice echoes in my head... ‘Aa ja ri nindo tu aa ja.. Ifu ki aankhon mein.. (Come dear sleep, come.. Settle into Ifu’s eyes..)’.”

“Tears have drenched my N95 mask as I stand still, looking at his serene calm face. I want to cry aloud. I can’t.

My throat is choked,” Vishal wrote.

Never Have I Ever' is a teen comedy drama following the life of Tamil Indian American, Devi Vishwakumar, as she navigates her way around high school in Severn Oaks, California..

The series starts with an introduction to Devi (Maitreyi Ramakrishnan) who kneels in front of her shrine at home praying to the gods to make her cool, hot and get a boyfriend.

We learn that Devi’s father Mohan (Sendhi Ramamurthy) and mother Nalini (Poorna Jagannathan) moved to California in 2001 and although they tried to keep to their Indian traditions, Devi, was influenced by the American traditions. At one of Devi’s concerts at school her father suffered a heart attack in the audience and passed away, Devi was very close to her father and idolised him and she was devastated. Things only got worse for Devi as her legs stopped working a week later and she was confined to a wheelchair. Miraculously just as her legs stopped working 3 months later they started working again but she was now known in school as the nerdy Indian girl in the wheelchair.

Starting a new year with legs that now move again, Devi decides things must change. She tells her two best friends that this year they are not going to be the unpopular girls in school and to start building their popularity they must get good looking boyfriends and she is determined to loose her virginity.

At the same time Devi’s beautiful cousin from India Kamala (Richa Moorjani) is staying with them. This again causes issues for Devi as she already feels like the underdog and her cousin is smarter, prettier and more Indian than she is.

The first few episodes of Never Have I Ever will remind you of The Mindy Project, starring the writer of Never Have I Ever, Mindy Kaling. As the episodes move forward in the series we finally start feeling some sympathy towards the main character Devi, as we see a teenager falling apart whilst trying to deal with the grief of the loss of her father.

Shah Rukh asks fans to submit scary films Actor Shah Rukh Khan has found a new way to promote his upcoming production 'Betaal', and we are extremely excited. The Badshah of Bollywood asked his fans to make short horror films inside their homes and send them over to him.

In a note, he said, “Who doesn't enjoy a good horror film or series? I know that I do! Since we all have a bit of time on our hands and have binged a lot of shows and films, how about we channel the inner filmmaking ghost in us to make a scary indoor film with an element of horror in it.” He added, “Any camera that you can shoot with.

A prop readily available at home that can be used spookily – And you. (You can choose to make it with multiple people as well, as long as the rules of social distancing are followed). The selected three will be getting on a video call with me and these four awesome people!” But wait! The best part is yet to come! Shah added that he will make a film as well. “I will be sending in my film as well...” he said. 'Betaal' is set for a May 24 release on Netflix. Co-directed by Patrick Graham and Nikhil Mahajan, the show is co-written by Suhani Kanwar. Set in a remote village, the show narrates the story of a team on a mission to help the villagers and fight the horrific enemy. It started when they stumble upon the curse of Betaal mountain, which unleashes an army of zombies on them as well as the villagers.

Never Have I Ever is a great watch for both Teens and Adults who have grown up in a multi-cultural society and although parts may be hard to relate to because it feels like it is stuck in the past it brings a great comic twist watching Devi try and master being an Indian American in High School.

You can get in touch with Vallisa: djvallisa@gmail.com

www.asian-voice.com

AsianVoiceNews

KOLLYWOOD

AsianVoiceNewsweekly

31

16 - 22 May 2020

Rajamouli’s son Karthikeya opts out of maiden production 'Aakasavani' Filmmaker SS Rajamouli's son S Karthikeya confirmed he has opted out of his maiden Telugu production 'Aakasavani'. Releasing a statement, he said, “It has been quite a journey so far as a producer. Working on 'Aakasavani' has been one hell of a learning experience that I shall cherish for a lifetime. However, some good sojourns have to end. As much as I was excited about the project and decided to give it my all, I am so equally dedicated to the other project which I'm working as a line producer, and sometimes that prevents the much-deserved time I'd like to dedicate to the film.”

He added that since he and the film's director Ashwin Gangaruaju have a clash over creative vision, he's decided to relieve himself from the project. He added, “With an amazing crew place, progress has been great on the film. However, over time we have realised that the creative vision of the director and I is different and I felt it would be appropriate to make it easy for the team by handing over the project to someone whose ideas are in sync with the vision of the film.”

The movie has now been handed over to producer A Padmanabha Reddy of AU&I Studios Pvt Ltd.

Film producers seek permission to complete pending movies Priyadarshan working on new

script for Akshay Kumar

Tamil Nadu film producers are seeking to complete the post-production of pending movies as the Indian government resorts to gradually ease the lockdown. A joint letter was written to Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami by Tamil Nadu film producers and FEFSI Union of Workers, seeking permission to resume post-production activities.

The letter said, “Tamil film industry has over Rs 500 Crore investment locked due to this lockdown, including films for which post-production activities are pending. While we understand the permission to allow the shooting with many people involved of the films is difficult since Chennai city is still under red zone, we appeal to you to consider the resumption of post-production activities so that we can at least complete our films which were already shot.”

The unions assure that they will ensure all necessary safety measures for workers involved in post-production. They said, “We guarantee to ensure social distancing of the people involved in post-production with all precautions like sanitizing the places where we will be working, and ensuring masks and gloves for all the people involved in these activities.”

The letter also pointed out how in Kerala, the government has already allowed post-production work, with less than five people working at a time.

TV Listing

WEDNESDAY MAY 20, 2020 00:42

05:00 FILM: VIKALP

05:00 07:04 09:56 13:00 16:35 19:14

FILM: FOUR PILLARS OF BASEMENT FILM: LOGIN FILM: SHIVA SHAKTI FILM: KRANTIVEER FILM: CHINA GATE FILM: WOH LAMHE FILM: FAMILYWALA

07:34 FILM: ISHQ CLICK

17:02

FILM: WANTED

20:10

FILM: GREAT GRAND MASTI

22:42

FILM: WOH LAMHE

MONDAY MAY 18, 2020 01:00 FILM: NAZAR

* Schedule is subject to change

SATURDAY MAY 16, 2020

22:26

FILM: AGNIVARSHA

10:19 FILM: DARAAR

THURSDAY MAY 21, 2020

13:50 FILM: RAM BALRAM

01:03 05:00 07:20

FILM: HAI APNA DIL TOH AWARA FILM: THE SILENT HEROES FILM: KHEL KHILARI KA

23:42

FILM: NAZAR KE SAMNE

01:53

FILM: UTT PATAANG

05:00

FILM: WAKE UP INDIA

07:22

FILM: NAZAR KE SAMNE

09:58

FILM: DIL

TUESDAY MAY 19, 2020

13:43

FILM: JUNGLE

00:35

FILM: JAHAN TUM LE CHALO

16:49

FILM: 7 KHOON MAAF

05:00

FILM: PRITHIPAL SINGH... A STORY

19:43

FILM: PARDES

07:00

FILM: KRISHNA ARJUN

09:44

FILM: JASHNN - THE MUSIC WITHIN

12:20

FILM: KEEMAT

15:48

FILM: GHAR MEIN RAM GALI

SUNDAY MAY 17, 2020 23:41

FILM: GANGSTER

01:35

FILM: DASTAK

05:00

FILM: BAAT BANN GAYI

07:11

FILM: THE PERFECT GIRL

09:08

FILM: PARDES

13:02

FILM: HUM AAPKE HAIN KOUN...!

Veteran filmmaker Priyadarshan has confirmed he is currently working on a fresh script for a project with actor Akshay Kumar in mind. In a recent interview, he said he has been coping very well with the lockdown. “Sometimes, it's good to slow down and the lockdown has given many of us a chance to relax and ruminate.

17:18 FILM: THE KILLER 19:48 FILM: KHAUFF 22:13 FILM: GREAT GRAND MASTI

MEIN SHAM 18:39

LIFESTYLE : STAR STOP

19:16

FILM: HUM TUM SHABANA

21:53

FILM: MAD MAD ISHQ

10:13 13:28 16:27 19:20 21:54

FILM: FILM: FILM: FILM: FILM:

I've done a bit of reading, besides watching films at my Chennai home. I've also started writing a new script, for Akshay Kumar.”

Meanwhile, the release of his upcoming 'Marakkar: Arabikadalinte Simham' has been postponed indefinitely.

Priyadarshan added, “With such huge stakes involved, we’re

MRITYUDAND MAD MAD ISHQ EK SE BURE DO JURM ZEHER - A LOVE STORY

FRIDAY MAY 22, 2020

00:30 FILM: YEH HAI JUDGEMENT HANGED TILL DEATH 05:00 FILM: THE PERFECT GIRL 07:00 FILM: KRISHAN AVTAAR 09:57 FILM: GHATAK - LETHAL 13:16 FILM: JURM 15:50 FILM: KHILADI 19:10 FILM: SATYAMEVA JAYATE 21:54 FILM: RAGINI MMS

concerned about our product which we painstakingly built, but we are in no hurry to release the film. We’ll take a call when the world returns to normalcy, when people are in a position to enjoy things the way they used to earlier. We’re looking forward to a release in December or even early next year.”

SATURDAY 16TH MAY 11:00:

MAHAKALI

13:30:

DIKRI ANE GAAY DORE TYA JAY

17:00:

DHARAM THI GUJARATI

18:00:

MUJHSE SHAADI KAROGI

19:30:

DESI BEAT

20:00:

KHATRON KE KHILADI (SEASON 10)

16:30: RASOI SHOW

TROLL POLICE

SUNDAY 17TH MAY 11:00:

SHRIMAD BHAGWAT

17:00:

DHARAM THI GUJARATI

18:00:

MUJHSE SHAADI KAROGI

19:30:

DESI BEAT

20:00:

MAINE PYAAR KYUN KIYA

0:30:

DEV (SEASON 1)

SATURDAY 16TH MAY 13:30: MAHABHARAT 18:30: INDIA UNLIMITED 19:00: NAAGIN (SEASON 4) 20:00: MAHABHARAT

13:00: OMG - OH MY GOD 16:00: DHARAM THI GUJARATI

21:00:

* Schedule is subject to change

22:00: DABANGG

SUNDAY 17TH MAY

17:30: CHHUTA CHHEDA

MON 18TH MAY FRI 22TH MAY 2020

11:00:

MOTU PATLU

18:00: TUM KAUN PIYA

13:30: MAHABHARAT

11:30:

PAKDAM PAKDAI

18:30: DIL KA RISHTA

15:00: KI & KA

13:30:

MAHABHARAT

19:00: MERE HUMRAHI

18:30: SIRF 30 MINUTES

15:30:

GOLMAAL 3

19:30: KITCHEN CHAMPION

18:30:

DESI BEAT RESET

MON 18TH MAY FRI 22TH MAY 2020

19:00: CHOTI SARDAARNI

20:30: BARRISTER BABU

20:00: MAHABHARAT

19:00:

NAAGIN (SEASON 4)

8:00:

TERE NAAL ISHQ

21:00: BALIKA VADHU - LAMHE

22:00: SHAITAAN

20:00:

MAHABHARAT

8:30:

BHARADWAJ BAHUEIN

23:00: BIGG BOSS (SEASON 13)

22:00:

BAJIRAO MASTANI

* Schedule is subject to change

PYAAR KE

32

www.asian-voice.com

16 - 20 May 2020

AsianVoiceNews AsianVoiceNewsweekly

Sports will never be the same after Covid-19 Coronavirus has suspended almost all sports events across the globe. When these events finally resume, there are bound to be drastic changes in fans' and players' experiences.

Scheduling all the cancelled and postponed events in the near future is also going to be a big headache.

First, there were denials.

Secondly, sports administrators over the world started taking notice.

Soon postponements followed with a promise to resume live-action soon. But as one after another, countries across the globe went into lockdown, hopes of seeing our favourite athletes in action started diminishing further.

Perhaps the most telling blow came when the Tokyo Olympics were postponed to the following year with no fixed date in sight.

Coronavirus' domination over the wide world of sports was complete. With no end in sight as to when this crisis will be over, one thing is for certain: sports (including day-to-day life) will never be the same if and when the pandemic subsides.

With close to 4.3 million people being affected to date, the world stands at a crossroads, faced with the decision of jumpstarting the economy while living under the fear of the novel Covid19. Sports administrators are also increasingly grappling with questions regarding the future of various events and leagues across the world.

There has been some good

news recently in the form of the German Bundesliga declaring a May 16 restart while the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) planning to host West Indies for a full tour starting in July.

But even the most optimistic of sports fans would understand that unless and until a vaccine for the coronavirus is invented and is available for the masses, when and how sports will return to their pre-Covid-19 status is anybody's guess. In this piece, we try to present a few key areas regarding popular sports which are set to undergo massive changes as they try to get back on track.

Stadium experience Playing in front of empty stadiums is an idea that has been mooted by many since the onset of the pandemic and it seems the only logical way to restart play while 'living with the virus'. With the risk of a contagion set to rule the daily lives in the near future, most die-hard fans will also be a bit apprehensive about filling the stadiums to watch a game. While it will certainly be a weird experience for the players and also for those watching

on TV, there doesn't seem to be a way out of this unless governments are able to strictly impose social distancing norms in big stadiums.

A curious example, in this case, has arisen out of Taiwan a couple of days ago.

Recently, sports officials in Taiwan started to adjust to the new age by filling the stands with fake spectators instead of real ones, stocking locker rooms with bottles of sanitizer, and urging players and coaches to keep a distance.

Even if a handful of spectators are allowed inside the stadiums, it might lead to a reduction in prices of tickets, online subscription fees, and other services on offer as the sporting bodies would certainly want to win back their fans whichever way they can.

Entry/exit protocols in and out of the stadiums might also see a

Kohli only Indian batsman who can match genius of Brian Lara: Alastair Cook Former England captain Alastair Cook has included current India skipper Virat Kohli in his list of batsmen who came close to matching the genius of legendary West Indies batter Brian Lara. Lara, who is the only batsman to score 400 in a Test innings, had retired after scoring 11,953 runs in 131 Tests and 10,505 runs in 299 ODIs. During a Q&A session with the Sunday Times, Cook recalled a 2004 tour game where the legendary West Indies batsman had scored a century in a session to leave him awestruck.

"I was part of an MCC team that played West Indies at Arundel in the first match of their 2004 tour," Cook said. "We had a decent bowling attack - Simon Jones, Matthew Hoggard and Min Patel, all of whom were England players. Brian

Lara scored a century between lunch and tea which made me realise I was witnessing another level of batsmanship altogether. It was a genius at work," he added.

Apart from Kohli, the other players who found a spot in Cook's list were Ricky Ponting, Jacques Kallis and Kumar Sangakkara. "The ones who came close to that when I was playing for England were Ponting, Kallis and

Sangakkara," Cook, who captained England for 59 Tests, said.

According to the former England opener, Kohli finds a spot in the list because of his sheer ability to score runs freely across formats.

"Now you would have to put Virat Kohli in that group, especially for his ability to score so freely in all three formats," Cook said. Alastair Cook scored 12,472 runs from 161 Tests, the most by an England batsman in the traditional format of the game, at 45.4 with 33 hundreds and 57 fifties. The left-handed opener retired from international cricket after the home series against India in 2018 and he made a 147 in his final Test innings at the Oval.

drastic change in the form of biometrics as people would prefer a fast and seamless experience rather than security guards checking each ticket in person.

Fan engagement With the lack of any liveaction at the moment, there is no doubt that fans are currently hungry for more.

But if the period under lockdown is anything to go by, players and teams all over the world have started finding new ways to keep their fans engaged. The sudden spike in Instagram Live sessions with athletes across sports is already a signal that more such ways of personalized fanengagement are set to become the norm. While earlier fans had to be mostly dependent on news outlets to get a sneak-peek into their sports stars' lives, the lockdown has ensured that almost every day some or

the other player is coming closer to his followers by interacting with them directly - either via a Q&A session, online challenges, etc.

Innovations and rule changes Necessity is the mother of invention and in the case of cricket, the fear of Covid19 has already started a debate regarding whether it's still appropriate to continue using saliva on the ball. For a game already grappling with fall in attendance figures, cricket could also see more innovations on the lines of T10 leagues or The Hundred. Similarly in other sports, multiple rule changes to avoid contact between players and keeping the fans sitting at home glued to their screens, are sure to bring much more innovation at a faster pace. Sevens Rugby is another example of such an innovation and more

investors would come in and try to create more futuristic sports leagues to attract the public.

Player training With athletes being consigned to their homes due to the lockdown, there is an increasing concern regarding whether they will be fit to perform when asked to. In this scenario, we might see a shift in the training approaches as they will have to be remotely monitored. Thus, training might become much more personalized and playercentric.

Restart yes! But when?

More than 150 sports events have been either postponed/cancelled since the beginning of the Covid19 pandemic. While there was no choice for the sports federations to do so, one of the biggest questions facing them is that of when these events will be held eventually. A number of World Championships and global events like Olympics have been postponed till further notice but there is bound to be a clash between the dates of most of these proposed events.

Scheduling is going to be under focus also as the qualifying rounds for the above events are also set to be compromised with there being no sunset date in sight as far as the Covid-19 is concerned. How sports administrators are going to deal with these issues is a factor that is going to define the future course of sports all over the world.

Quality of cricket can’t be compromised: Joe Root England test captain Joe Root is keen to play international cricket this summer but not by compromising on quality of the game or its intensity, the 29-year-old has said. With professional cricket suspended because of the Covid-19 pandemic, the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) is considering playing the series against West Indies and Pakistan behind closed doors.

“If the game is compromised, it shouldn’t be going ahead,” Root said.

“The game itself, the intensity it is played at - if you can’t play test cricket at its absolute best we shouldn’t play it. It’s not a fair reflection of the sport.”

England’s home series against West Indies scheduled for June has been postponed while the inaugural ‘The Hundred’, which was to begin in July, has been moved to next

year.

Root, like any professional cricketer, longed for international cricket but stressed public health was paramount.

“The guys are all missing playing and desperate to get back out there but safety is paramount for everyone involved. As soon as that is compromised, this can’t happen,” he said.

According to a report, ECB's plans to play in 'biosecure' venues could keep the players away from their families for up to nine weeks. Fast bowler Mark Wood said most players were fine with the idea after their chat with director of cricket Ashley Giles and the chief medical officer Nick Pierce.

“We trust what Ashley

and the doctor are saying and if an environment is set up where it works then I think most players would trust that,” Wood said in a video conference. “We are all willing as long as the environment and everybody - people working at the ground, management, cameramen - is safe.

“Everyone is desperate to get going and it would be good to get out there but the bigger picture is what is going on on the front line,” added the 30-year-old.