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VOL 40. ISSUE 7

VOICE

Let noble thoughts come to us from every side

80p

18th June to 24th June 2011

Government whims and fancies: Losses all the way This government is perversely targeting immigrant communites who bring in wealth to this country, work hard, are law abiding and pay taxes, while those with a propensity for crime appear to be securing their rights against deportation.

Statistics suggest Her Majesty's prisons have the

lowest numbers of Hindus, Sikhs and Jains, who form the majority of Indians settled in Britain.

Still the government is making drastic changes to the existing visa system, thus effecting a communal disparity that may eventually become a threat to the stability of a multicultural society. It appears also

that reduction to the number of student visas issued will actually lead to a loss of revenue that could have otherwise helped during these difficult times.

Recently the government made changes to the students' visas and Tier 1 (HSMP) migrants. They are also planning to curtail rights of family visits to

weddings, funerals and other ceremonies and the Right to Appeal against rejection of visas. Asian Voice is campaigning for the preservation of the Right to Appeal (see petition on page 5).

The latest addition to the government's whims and fancies is barring migrants on Tier 2 to win

Rajapakse’s attitude irks India Not wanting to give in to any kind of pressure from his allies, Sri Lankan President Mahinda Rajapakse asserted to the visiting Indian delegation that his government would not be able to concede land and police powers to provincial councils.

He warned that this set up would send a signal that India and Sri Lanka are on a collision course.

This proposal comes in accordance with an Indiainitiated plan aimed at resolving the Tamil con-

Mahinda Rajapakse

flict, a media report said.

After conferring with leaders of ruling United People’s Freedom Alliance, where his allies voiced

strong objections to the 13th amendment to the Constitution, derived from the 1987 Indo-Sri Lanka Accord, Mr Rajapakse told the Indian team comprising national security adviser Shivshankar Menon, foreign secretary Nirupama Rao and defence secretary Pradeep Kumar that it would not be possible for him to hand over control over land and police to the provincial councils. With improving relation between the two nations, India had expect-

ed Colombo to improve on the 13th amendment as promised by Sri Lankan foreign minister G L Peiris to his Indian counterpart S M Krishna recently.

Rajapakse apprehends that the decision of conceding police and land would mean empowering the Tamils in the north and the east. After losing their Eelam campaign, the minority Tamils would need adequate devolution of powers to be able to lead their lives with dignity and in peace.

Continued on page 26

Home Secretary Theresa May

rights of settlement after 5 years. David Cameron government on Monday announced proposals that seek to prevent foreign professionals from settling here permanently.

The proposals were announced in a consultation exercise, that will affect Indian skilled workers as well as domestic workers such as cooks and 'ayahs', who travel to Britain with their employers.

Continued on page 2

Honours for exceptional people Anyone can be nominated for an honour but only exceptional people receive one.

Every year the Honours lists are published twice. Once in in mid-June at the time of the Queen’s official birthday and once at New Year. A total of 965 people have been recommended to the Queen for an award.

The list contains people from a wide variety of backgrounds.

This year fire station watch managers, a wine waiter, a cake and pastry maker, a school lunchtime supervisor and an optometrist have received an Honour from the Queen. The list also includes people working in academic research, relish making, environmental protection and care for the elderly.

74 per cent of these people have received honours for doing outstanding work in their communities, making a real difference to people across the UK. Continued on page 7

Asian Voice - Saturday 18th June 2011

COMMENT

The Archbishop has every right to speak his mind Dr Rowen Williams, the Archbishop of Canterbury, spoke his mind on the pages of the weekly left-of-centre New Statesman in which raised a number of critical issues for the Conservative-Liberal Democratic Coalition to consider. It was an elegant, yet passionate appeal to those in power to rethink some of their contentious policies, some even lacking a public mandate. Dr Williams raised the steady increase in poverty among significant sections of society, reflected in poor housing and education and much else. Spending cuts are all very well, but when they affect a disproportionate section of the population, it was surely time to take corrective look at the measures, especially their implementation.

The Daily Telegraph, while accepting that the Archbishop had the right to speak freely, like the rest of us, took him to task for venting leftwing opinions. This surely is a contradiction: the freedom to speak and write according to one's conscience transcends popular labels of left or right and conform to a fine English tradition; this does not infringe the rights of others to their own public or private discourse; it is a tradition that in no way undermines the rule of law, indeed it ennobles it. Hatred and violence has no place here. In 1986 the Anglican church set the cat among the pigeons when it published Faith in the City, a report that attacked the poli-

cies of the Thatcher government. Only the exceptionally loyalist Thatcherite would claim the rightness of their cause with the benefit of hindsight. Mainstream opinion has moved on.

The church as a spiritual body has a special responsibility to pronounce on ethical and moral questions, and on social responsibility in the political sphere. For newspapers and political partisans to draw the lines between what is permissible and what is not by a prelate is unacceptably intrusive of an individual's human rights, of which we hear a constant chatter.

There is in Christian doctrine and tradition a concern for the poor and disadvantaged, for justice in the face of injustice and oppression. The best of most religious faiths, be they Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, Jew or Muslim share these values and the vision that sustains them.

Dr Rowen Williams has argued his case with reason and compassion, it is for his critics to do likewise. Clergy in India, of every dispensation, will surely add to their calling if they also discussed issues of public interest with the dialectical skill of the Archbishop, not excluding his intellectual rigour and moral purpose. Catchy slogans and time-worn cliches are not fit for purpose.

Meanwhile, let the debate, which Dr Williams has initiated, add to our common pool of wisdom and deepen our moral sensibility.

Kolkata on the trail of London The historian and Labour MP Tristam Hunt, writing in Financial Times, dwells on the irony that done and dusted anti-colonialism in Calcutta, once the capital of the British Raj in India, had reached its sell-by date. The announcement by West Bengal's feisty no-nonsense Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, that she was planning the city's long overdue regeneration, with London as a model, was a sign of the times. She was elected to power in a storming victory at the polls over the previous Communist regime. Ms Banerjee is bent on rescuing Kolkata from its unenviable reputation, at home and abroad, as the Augean Stables of Communist nullity, trade union cronyism, burgeoning slums and stagnating education – a reputation, says Tristam Hunt, “Ms Banerjee is determined to dispel with her £60 million ($98 million) redevelopment.” It is nothing less than a project to restore the city built by Londoner Job Charnock way back in 1690 to something of its former glory. Scarcely believable, but true.

“There is to be a Calcutta Eye, modelled on London's South Bank ferris wheel; the redevelopment of Alipore Zoo along the lines of London Zoo; and a redesign of Curzon Park as a Hooghly version of Hyde Park.”

More power to her elbow. The Bengali Hindu

pantheon is replete with formidable female deities slaying all manner of monsters. Ms Banerjee, it would appear, is spirit made flesh.

Having routed the Communist Party, something Bengalis had despaired of ever accomplishing, she is now embarked on a giant makeover of Indian Bengal. Few doubt her ability to help put the place on the road to rebirth in the fullness of time.

Nothing quite equals an idea whose time has come. Kolkata is ready to join India's trajectory of economic growth and development, and is shedding its past like a reptile its skin. It is set to become once again one of India's foremost economic and financial hubs, its gateway to East and South East Asia and all that this entails for the entire region. This surely will be a future that works in buoyant contrast to the one that dismally didn't.

Reflexive anti-colonialism had become a garbage-bin of grievance and jealousy, driven by a corrosive inferiority complex, leading not to liberation, but to more of the same recycled waste.

One era has ended, we are on the cusp of another, which promises stability, progress and prosperity.

The Indian Spring has its wonders to behold.

M.F. Husain: Gathered to his fathers The death of painter Maqbool Fida Husain in London, at the age of 95, has given rise to much media comment in India and Britain. The Financial Times obituary headline, “India's Picasso whose nudes outraged Hindu right,”carried its special take on the truth. To see any of Picasso's towering genius in an inferior imprint is to decry true art. To confine the revulsion many Indians felt for his nude deities (the word is missing in the FT headline) to the “Hindu right” is to be severely economical with the truth. Indians of most rational ideological persuasions found these canvases distasteful, part of the iconoclastic rage for the sacred in other religious traditions that drives elements within the Islamic fraternity - Husain's depiction of the Crucifixion of Christ bordered on the obscene and made little sense and sensibility that is the essence of art as most know and appreciate it.

Husain left India, complaining of the alleged lack of freedom of expression there, to make his home in the Arab Gulf state of Qatar, where Sharia is the law of the land. One would dearly like to know the levels of artistic and intellectu-

al freedoms he enjoyed in the sheikhdom and the permitted norms of its public space. Any depiction of the Prophet Mohammed is strictly forbidden, for example, and Husain was careful never to be a deviant.

Husain was something of an exhibitionist, an attention-seeker. He once walked barefoot into one of Mumbai's most hallowed clubs, but what on earth he was trying to prove, what principle was at stake was never made clear. Flouting rules for their own sake can amount to nothing more than a childish prank. Walking unshod in expensive suits with expensive cars on call was eccentricity pure and simple.

But there is much also to praise in Husain's career. He belonged to a generation that put modern India art on the world map. His depiction of vibrant colour and dynamic movement earned him a deserved national and international reputation and his canvases sold well in the great auction houses of Britain and America.

His earnings were considerable, his work for the most part is unique; and his reputation as an artist firmly assured.

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Thought for the Week Discard hard and fast rules. Victory is the only thing that matters and this cannot be achieved by adhering to conventional canons.

"The Art Of Warfare" by Sun-tzu (500 BC)

“Our London” CIIr Navin Shah AM London Assembly Member for Brent and Harrow

Providing Better Access to London’s Public Spaces An area where I’ve come across constant passion, concerns and demand to improve legislation, in the last 18 years in public service, is the protection, enhancement of our open spaces (both in public and private ownership) and how we can improve access to open spaces for the enjoyment of local community and visitors. This was the case when I served on Harrow Council’s planning committee for nearly 8 years as well as in my ongoing role in addressing planning policies in Harrow. As the pressure to develop homes and other infrastructure has grown so has the pressure and absolute need to preserve and enhance our open/green spaces whether they are ‘private’ or ‘public’ has grown.

In my role of Assembly Member I’ve served on GLA’s Planning and Housing Committee since 2008 whose remit is to address / scrutinise strategic issues affecting Londoners including people living in the suburban areas like leafy Harrow and Brent that I represent. In late May the committee published its report “Public life in private hand”. The report especially focuses on the different ways the public realm (town/city squares, parks and thoroughfares) - is managed and it identifies a number of consequences relating to the shift in the ownership and management of public spaces from local authorities to developers.

The report in the nutshell urges the Mayor to preserve open access to London’s public spaces and asks the Mayor to use his planning powers to keep London’s public realm as open and accessible as possible and better manage the creeping trend towards private control of public space.

Three key areas emphasised in the recommendations made in the report: The Mayor should consider developing Supplementary Planning

Guidance (SPG) on the public realm once the Mayor’s Draft London Plan is adopted. The aim of this approach is to set out what is expected from public space in principle; clear guidance on how London’s boroughs could approach the provision and design of public realm, what desirable minimum standards are in terms of access and use, and how subsequent management responsibilities can be negotiated between boroughs and developers etc.

As to the public spaces (in public / private ownership) in new developments the report recommends he Mayor to encourage London’s Councils to draw up meaningful written agreements with developers to enable it to secure the highest possible level of public access to properly managed public spaces to achieve full and best public access and use of these space.

At the stage of preparing / amending local planning policies when preparing their ‘Local Development Framework’ the report recommends that the Councils should be mindful of how public space is to be managed in any significant schemes and how they will engage the community in both the design and the ongoing management process. This will go some way towards providing and protecting access to public spaces.

I agree with Nicky Gavron Assembly Member, Deputy Chair of the Planning and Housing Committee that high quality, safe and well-maintained public spaces play a major part in the London’s economy, environment and quality of life for both Londoners and visitors. They are areas where people should feel welcome to meet, sit, eat their lunch or simply wander through. To access the full report or for more details visit the GLA website or contact me on Navin.shah@london.gov.uk

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

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LEICESTER VOICE

Asian Voice - Saturday 18th June 2011

Hindu temple takes shape in Leicester A Hindu temple that will be one of the biggest in the Midlands is taking shape.

The Baps Shri Swaminarayan Mandir, on the corner of Catherine Street and Gypsy Lane, in Belgrave, Leicester, features details typical of temple architecture in northern India.

Its three sikhar towers – literally translated as "mountain peaks" – already provide an impressive landmark on the city skyline, according to neighbours.

Danielle Hunting, 23, of Gipsy Lane, who works in The Crusty Cob Shop opposite the temple, said: "I can't believe how quickly it's come together.

"It looks lovely. It certainly makes a better view out of the shop window than an old factory.

"It's quite exotic, like a little piece of India here in Leicester."

The £1 million project is being funded by members of the Hindu community under the guidance of Baps Swaminarayan Sanstha UK – a national charitable organisation.

Sanjiv Patel, the project's spokesman, told a local newspaper:

to the teaching of Gujarati.

"When the temple opens we intend to organise a big open day so everyone can have a look."

Planning permission to transform a former industrial site was granted by Leicester City Council in 2008.

Money for the building has come from donations Sanjiv Patel in front of BAPS Swaminarayan and fund-raising, including Temple at Leicester a women's 500-mile "Work on the mandir has been gaincyclathon in Abbey Park and Indian ing momentum over the past couple cooking events. of months, with the transformation Much of the building work has of the exterior clear for all to see. being carried out by volunteers.

"However, there is still a lot of Keith Vaz, MP for Leicester work to be done and our focus is on East, said: "I welcome the building getting it complete as soon as possiof one of the biggest temples in the ble.

East Midlands in Belgrave.

"It will be a Baps Shri "The provision of a community Swaminarayan Mandir and commucentre will ensure that people benenity centre and we are hoping to be fit and provide space for them to open sometime in the autumn. come together.

"Primarily, it will be a place of "It cements Leicester East's repworship but in addition there will utation as a beacon for community be activities for people of all ages, cohesion, development and diversifrom sports to drama, music lessons ty."

Police fails to capture violent mob A brave cashier managed to capture a violent mob who were smashing up a petrol station - but was allegedly forced to let them go when police failed to respond to a 999 call, reports the Daily Mail.

Petrol station worker Malik Mahmood, 29 (pictured), locked himself in the shop with the fivestrong gang and made an emergency call to police when they started wrecking the store.

The gang, wearing hoods, threw stock from the shelves and tried to smash their way out with a brick when they realised they were trapped, causing hundreds of pounds of damage.

Although terrified, Mr Mahmood stayed in the Birmingham city centre store with the gang for more than half an hour - until more yobs showed up and tried to break down the door so he was forced to let them go. After 30 minutes, police phoned back to see if the gang was still there

- after explaining they were too busy to attend.

Petrol station owner Pritesh Pattni said: 'My cashier was very brave trying to take these thugs on.

'They've been giving us trouble for a long time now, and we've just had enough of them.

'They smashed up the shop and caused £500 of damage and stole a whole host of items.

'My cashier kept ringing the police, but they just never turned up.'

A spokesperson for West

Midlands Police told the national paper: 'Shortly before 9.45pm on Thursday June 2, police received a 999 call from a member of service station staff reporting they had locked five young people inside the shop for causing trouble.

'Before officers arrived, the caller advised that the young people had left after damaging a door.

'An appointment was made to take a statement from the witness the following day. Human error meant we failed to keep this appointment.

'A new appointment was made for Monday, June 6, when officers took a full statement and secured CCTV evidence.

'Inquiries continue to identify those responsible for the criminal damage caused.

'We are very sorry that on this occasion we failed to meet the victim's expectations and our own high standards.'

England cricketer Monty Panesar arrested The England cricketer Monty Panesar was held by police and questioned after an alleged public argument with his wife, it has been reported.

Police allegedly arrested Panesar after a call from a member of the public who claimed to have seen him rowing with 28year-old Gursharan Rattan in the car park of a Luton pub.

Bedfordshire police confirmed the arrest to the national daily, saying that on January 22 a 29-yearold man was arrested on suspicion of common assault at a house in Luton and interviewed before being released without charge. No further action was taken.

The Luton-born leftarm spinner was arrested nearby at a relative's home following the incident in January.

Panesar married Gursharan at a traditional Sikh ceremony in

Monty Panesar and wife Gursharan Rattan

February last year.

The couple spent their honeymoon in the US before moving to Hove in East Sussex as Panesar signed a three-year contract to move from Northamptonshire to Sussex.

The couple's home is not far from the Brighton seafront where he played beach cricket as a boy.

His young wife, a graduate in pharmaceutical science, gained her award as Graduate Pharmacist of

the Year while working at the clinic inside Leyton Orient's Matchroom Stadium. She now works

as a locum, commuting to London from the couple's home in Hove. Panesar said recently that his wife had 'given me greater stability'. A spokesman for Panesar told the News of the World: 'Monty said that, yes, he went to the police station but that nothing has come of it. He is surprised it has come out and has nothing else to add.

'The police picked him up and took him to the police station where he was interviewed. The matter is now closed.'

Robbers burst into pensioner's home A gang of three men burst into the home of an elderly woman and robbed her.

The pensioner was watching television at home in Park Road, Blaby, when three men came in through the back door. They pushed her into her chair as she tried

to get up and stole a small sum of cash. The robbery happened at 10.40pm last Monday.

Out of the three men, two were Asian and one white. Pc Tracey Horne told a local newspaper: "The victim is extremely upset and is terrified to be in the house alone."

In brief Blackburn, part of school twinning scheme with Abbottabad?

The town where Osama Bin Laden hid for a number of years was allegedly involved in a school-twinning scheme with Blackburn.

Education bosses in the Lancashire community said Daisyfield Primary School they were amazed that Bin Laden's hiding place, Abbottabad in Pakistan, allegedly has an official link with Daisyfield Primary School, as reported by a national daily.

The British Council which runs the twinning scheme said that the relationship dates back to 2008 but is no longer running.

Two other schools in Blackburn were also involved in the Connecting Classrooms project.

Under the scheme, children from Blackburn exchanged letters with residents of the Pakistani community where the Al Qaeda chief was found and shot dead by U.S. troops last month.

Maureen Bateson, an executive member for children's services in Blackburn, told the Daily Telegraph: 'It was such a coincidence, we couldn't believe it.'

It was hoped the project would help to improve understanding between schools in Britain and those across the globe.

Headmaster of Daisyfield, Peter Fenton, told a national daily: 'I gather the scheme is being wound down.'

Diversity in Journalism conference

A seminar focusing on ways to increase the participation of black and ethnic minority communities in mainstream media is taking place in Cardiff this Thursday (June 16). This all-day seminar is part of a series which aims to widen ethnic diversity in journalism, nationally. Being held at the Cardiff School of Journalism, Media and Cultural Studies, this event will feature a round-table discussion, presentations and workshops. Speakers include Dhiren Katwa, senior news editor at Asian Voice, Head of Diversity at the UK Film Council Mary FitzPatrick, Marie Gillespie, Professor of Sociology at the Open University, Sue Caro, senior diversity manager at the BBC and John Jewell, head of the BA in Journalism, Media and Cultural Studies course at Cardiff University.

Loughborough student disputes Islamic extremism claims A group representing Muslim students has challenged the government to prove universities have become "complacent" in tackling Islamic fundamentalism.

The Federation of Student Islamic Societies (FOSIS) has said it will be looking at Home Secretary Theresa May's comments "quite seriously".

Its spokesman, Loughborough student Qasim Rafiq (pictured), said Muslim students were actually trying to "speak and engage".

The government has identified 25 priority areas for tackling terrorism. Leicester is one of the areas highlighted in the new £36m anti-extremism strategy.

The city is expected to receive about £70,000 from the scheme.

In announcing the policy, Mrs May said there needed to be better focus on preventing extremism at community levels.

FOSIS says it represents more than 90,000 Muslim students at colleges and universities in Ireland and the UK. Mr Rafiq acknowledged some opinions may appear to be "dissenting" and accepted "there may be discussions to be had".

"The great thing about being on a British campus is that you can speak your mind within the remits of the law," he said.

The FOSIS conference will be held at Cardiff University from 17 to 19 June.

The chairman of the Commons Home Affairs Select Committee Keith Vaz, also a Labour MP for Leicester East, said Mrs May "should clearly name" the universities.

UK

Asian Voice - Saturday 18th June 2011

5

Happy birthday Grandpa Philip! 102 foreign criminals and illegal immigrants Britain can't deport

members of the Royal For a man who didn’t Family and the Prince’s want to ‘make a fuss’, Mountbatten relatives.

Prince Philip was all smiles as he rounded off The family group still his 90th birthday celebraappeared to be in high tions last week (June 10) spirits as they ate in an with an intimate family meal at one of the country’s top restaurants.

He and the Queen were treated to dinner at the eye-wateringly expensive, three Michelin-starred restaurant The Waterside Inn, at Bray, Berkshire, by five of their grandchildren.

It was reminiscent of the 70th birthday party thrown for the Queen by her children at the same restaurant. A generation on, and it was the grandchildren picking up the bill.

It had been a long day for Philip, who in Duke of Edinburgh with the morning attended Queen Elizabeth a church service at St George’s Chapel in elegant private dining Windsor, followed by a room at the £150-a-head champagne reception for restaurant on the banks of 750 friends and admirers. the Thames.

After that, there was a They chose from a private lunch for senior menu which included

grilled rabbit fillets, panfried medallion of farmed veal with carrots and a crispy calf’s head fritter, and roasted Challandais duck.

Lord Dholakia, responding to a message to be conveyed to the Duke of E d i n b u rg h on his 90th Birthday said, “The essential feature of our democracy is the strength and stability of our Monarchy.”

He said that we can take great pride that next year when we will be celebrating the Diamond Jubilee of Her Majesty the Queen. He praised the Duke as the longest serving consort and the oldest serving spouse of a reigning British monarch.

Lord Dholakia finished by wishing the Duke of Edinburgh many happy returns and thanked him for his services to the United Kingdom.

GP found guilty of misconduct but cleared to continue working A doctor found guilty of misconduct after he sent a dying four-year-old girl home with just a mild children's painkiller has been told he can carry on working.

The youngster, known only as Hannah, died of pneumonia hours after being sent home by Pakistani-trained GP Dr Shoab Ibrahim (pictured).

Her worried parents had taken her to the Robert Frew Medical centre in Wickford, Essex, with a cough, vomiting and a high temperature where she was seen by Dr Ibrahim.

He said she was suffering from a chest infection and told her parents to

give her Calpol syrup.

But five days later the dying girl was carried back into the surgery by her father with blue lips and again the doctor told her anxious parents to give her the well-known children's paracetamol-based painkiller.

Hannah died just

hours later of pneumonia, a hearing of the General Medical Council was told.

She had been suffering from pneumonia for between two days and a week.

A GMC panel has now ruled that Dr Ibrahim was guilty of misconduct - but concluded that it was 'highly unlikely' that he would make the same mistake again.

Dr Ibrahim had denied allegations that he failed to listen to the parents' concerns and did not check the girl's pulse or temperature in the second examination but he admitted to failing to keep an adequate record of the consultation.

High cost of compensation culture and 'human rights' A race equality campaigner has cost taxpayers more than £1 million by bringing a string of discrimination claims – several of them against anti-racism groups.

Natasha Sivanandan (pictured) has spent 25 years pursuing tribunal cases and has now secured her biggest victory with a £425,000 payout.

Even her father, a distinguished campaigner against racism, has allegedly disowned her and accused her of bringing race relations into disrepute.

During her campaign Miss Sivanandan has qualified as a barrister so that she can do her own legal

work on the claims. At one point she was so busy that she took on an administrative assistant.

In the most recent ruling, her six-figure payout came from Hackney council and Hackney Action for Racial Equality (HARE), an advice service that ceased operating partly as a result of her action.

Miss Sivanandan, 57, who has no children and has never married, lives in a £450,000 housing association property in Wood Green, north London, which was allocated to her after she complained of racism at a previous property. She is understood to be claiming income support and disability benefit.

Since 1987 she has been involved in at least 10

cases, according to the Employment Tribunal Service register of decisions.

While most of the actions have been against employers or organisations that turned Miss Sivanandan down for jobs, others have been against a charity that rejected her application to become a foster parent, a housing association that failed to move her into a bigger home and even an employment tribunal judge.

The cases are said by experts to have cost public bodies more than ￡1 million in payouts, out-ofcourt settlements and court costs.

Miss Sivanandan could not be contacted for comments.

More than 100 foreign criminals and illegal immigrants have beaten deportation under controversial “right to family life” laws in the past year.

None claimed that they would be in danger of torture or abuse if they were sent home.

It can also be disclosed that one foreign criminal who used Article Eight was a violent thug and drug dealer (AP) who beat his girlfriend and failed to pay child maintenance – but was still allowed to stay in a ruling made by three senior judges. AP came to Britain aged three, when his mother was already in the country.

The mother, who also cannot be named, was living here after overstaying a one-month visa which was granted to come from Trinidad to Britain to attend her niece’s engagement party.

Sir Andrew Green, the chairman of

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MigrationWatch, said: “We must find a new balance between the rights of individuals and the rights of the community, which appear to have no weight at all.

“The fact that seven out of 10 who succeed have used Article Eight underlines the significance of an effective review. It is not enough to kick this issue into the long grass yet again.”

The figures come after a series of Article Eight cases exclusively revealed by this newspaper, which is demanding reform in our End the Human Rights Farce campaign, including:

A Nepalese killer, Rocky Gurung, allowed to remain here even though he was a single adult with no children, who lived with his parents.

A Sri Lankan robber allowed to remain here because he has a girlfriend in Britain.

An Iraqi killer who, it was ruled, should not be deported because he would be a risk to people in his homeland.

A Bolivian man who avoided deportation partly because he had bought a pet cat.

Last week this newspaper disclosed how tens of thousands of asylum applicants had been allowed to remain in Britain under the Home Office’s backlog-clearing exercise because officials feared that challenging any case with “family life” factors would be overturned in the courts, and lead to expensive legal actions.

Dine with the Duchess With her glossy hair, megawatt smile and £4,000 sequinned dress, she had all eyes on her!

But just hours before dazzling at her first official evening engagement on last Thursday, the Duchess of Cambridge could have been any young woman shopping on London’s King’s Road.

the wealthy, powerful and beautiful faces. It included renowned faces in British Asian circle like Js, former wife of cricketer Imran Khan and Anish Kapoor, the controversial sculptor from India.

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No more than four hours later, as a transformed Kate stepped out of a Jaguar at the Ark tenth anniversary gala, there was no chance of her going unnoticed.

In her shimmering rose Jenny Packham gown, she reduced millionaires and celebrities to behaving like excited children as t h e y crowded around h e r eagerly taking p i c t u re s on their camera phones.

T h e e v e n t raised £17.2million for the Ark Duchess of Cambridge c h a r i t y, which helps disadvantaged children in the UK and around the world.

The 24 guests on William and Kate's table had an intriguing mix of

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UK

Asian Voice - Saturday 18th June 2011

Largest Meditation in Europe The World Culture Festival

By Spriha Srivastava

Chit - Chat Tell us in brief about yourself and the work you do?

My name is Gajendra Ramteke and I would describe myself as a shameless pachyderm who makes his living by accosting strangers at conferences, adding to Monday blues of CXO level people by calling cold, meeting strangers in coffee shops in the afternoon darkness of Helsinki or trying to decipher Scottish accent in Paisley to understand if he is buying from me or not. Yes, I am a sales professional in the IT Industry. I consciously chose to move into the challenging European market in IT Sales after having worked in the USA market for a considerable portion of my career. I consider myself as product of; as well as a catalyst; in an increasingly “flat world”. It has been an interesting journey interacting with CXO’s who have faced the brunt of being trapped in the Mumbai rains during their offshore centre visit or client Project Managers altering their project plans due to kidnapping of Rajkumar by Veerapan. It also has been fun evangelising offshore IT services to companies in remote places like Nijmegan, Ardooie, Veghel, Zeewolde or Nuenen.

My work has been very engaging and enjoyable.

Apart from your daily work schedule, what other activities are you involved in?

I presently serve as the President of Indian Institute of Management Bangalore Alumni Association (IIMBAA) London Chapter. I spend time along with the other board members on activities to bring them together and act as a catalyst to build a symbiotic

network. I also like to travel and have been more than 18 countries and travel photography is hobby. My photographs from the Chelsea Flower Show 2010 have been published by the Telegraph, being the only

Gajendra Ramteke

Asian amongst the selected was also a matter of pride.

How would you compare the work environment in UK to India?

I have been working with Indian IT companies in UK, so work culture wise there is still a distinct flavour of hegemony by the virtue of designations. It doesn’t change be it Delhi or in London. Nevertheless a multi-cultural work environment brings in an attitude of respect for capabilities and open communications. It also brings in a respect for individuals personal time unlike in India wherein employees are expected to work even on a Sunday. I think the labour laws here and employee benefits do keep employers on a leash and keeps the work environment more conducive for employees to balance their professional and personal life.

What, according to you attracts so many Indian professionals to work in the UK?

Till 10 years back I would say it was the British love for curry and the Indian lure of pound sterling and off course the quintessential Indian medicos to work in remote villages in Yorkshire and Newcastle too. I would call them “economic migrants”.

Today it is no longer that, Indian professionals come to UK for higher education given that UK is home to worlds top BSchools and Universities, second only to the US. IT industry also brought in the paradigm shift in attracting talented Indian IT professional.

Many UK Head Quartered companies have also set their IT Shared Services centres in India, like British Airways (WNS) British Telecom, Barclays, Standard Chartered, HSBC, Tesco, RBS and many more which opened doors for Indian IT professionals to come to UK. London being the capital also saw many finance and banking professionals from top-rung Indian B-school to UK. Peak hours at Canary Wharf tube station will show how India and Indians has transformed from the back-office to the backbone of UK economy.

Gond art auctioned A private exhibition and charity auction of Gond art in collaboration with A n t i - S l a v e r y International was held this Monday in London.

Organised by Adivasi Arts Trust, the exhibition brought the works of Gond artists from India.

The organization promotes awareness of Indian tribal culture, and works with the tribes involving them in digital media projects to make their arts more widely accessible.

Let us know what you think.

Email Spriha at spriha@abplgroup.com

Bapu seen on Mars?

When surveying the amazing pictures sent from Europe's Mars Orbiter back to Earth you would expect to enjoy images of mist-capped volcanoes and deep craters.

What you couldn't predict is seeing 'Mahatma' Gandhi's profile etched into the rock.

But an Italian space enthusiast called Matteo Lanneo has found exactly

that.

He was scanning through the latest images sent

by Europe's Mars Express probe when he came across this uncanny resemblance to the father of the Indian nation.

The head appears to have a moustache and shaven head and promi-

In the build up to the largest meditation in Europe one Sri Sri Ravi Shankar’s senior ambassador Rishi Nitya Pragya has been travelling across the UK inviting people from all backgrounds to come and be part of one the most historic events in Europe. Just the prospect of being part of a meditation with 70,000 people has had people flocking in numbers to come to Berlin.

Sri Sri Ravi Shankar

Rishi Nitya Pragya says “Can you imagine the blast of energy that will be created in the meditation.

Those fortunate to attend will get the full benefit of that in their body and soul” On 2nd and 3rd July, the world will meet in the

Olympic Stadium Berlin to be part of a memorable unison of diverse cultures expressed in a grand celebration.

Witness an unparalleled concert with 30 pianos and 2000 guitars and a meditation for peace that could receive an entry into the Guinness Book of World Records.

The World C o n t i n e n t s Pavilions completes the journey through the world experience by interactively showcasing the beauty of all world cultures through their local dance, music, food, literature, conferences and inter-cultural dialogue.

The World Continents Pavilions will also host the 5th International Women's Conference, the World Youth Conference and a Conference on Living Human Values.

Europe’s biggest Yoga Park invites you to explore

Shivali brings you Bhajan The latest album by international artist Shivali is a contemporary expression of spirituality. Produced

by London based singer, songwriter and producer, Arjun, a generous dose of the acoustic guitar coupled with Shivali’s unmistakable soothing voice adds a sense of soulfulness and instantly creates a sense of well-being.

The positivity flows from each track transporting you to carefree and tranquil space.

Shivali was born and raised in London, as the daughter of Indian parents; she was always encouraged by her family to pursue her dreams. Shivali took up singing professionally at an early age; her strong connection to India led her towards music with spiritual rhythms and tones. Petite, vivacious and incredibly confident. Shivali’s unbridled talent was recently discovered by Sony Music India, to whom she is now signed.

and experience educating yoga workshops to explore the effect of yoga on physical and mental health and inner peace.

A unique Yoga Museum will chart the evolution of Yoga from ancient sages to its global application in the 21st century.

P r o m o t i n g ‘Celebrating Diversity and Enriching Life’, the World Culture Festival is taking

Berlin Stadium

place on the occasion of the 30th Anniversary of the Art of Living, an international humanitarian NGO with special consultative status in the United Nations. Don’t miss this unique event and book your ticket now on www.worldculturefestival.org.

Eliminating discrimination against women Key government achievements in advancing gender equality and eliminating discrimination against women were highlighted in a new report to the UN last week. Home Secretary and Minister for Women and Equalities Theresa May said: "The government is committed to equality for women and despite progress over recent decades, there is still a long way to go. That is why the government is taking action to tackle the inequalities that women face in all aspects of their lives. From plans to tackle the gender pay gap with more rights to flexible working and a new system of flexible parental leave, to work to tackle violence against women, we are determined that the next generation of women and girls will have more opportunities than ever before."

Right to Appeal Petition We, the undersigned believe that the government's plan to scrap the Right to Appeal is absolutely unfair and cannot be justified on any ground. Our relatives residing in different corners of the world visit us for important family events like weddings, funerals etc.

Due to the incompetency reflected in the Home Office's decision-making process, the Right to Appeal is a necessity. The right helps ensure that no one is wrongly rejected from visiting their family in the UK. This measure would simply lead to unnecessary tension, discontent and drift in the Asian community.

Hence we request you to take into account the significant importance of retaining the Right to Appeal whilst considering the damaging outcomes if the proposed government plan is passed.

Readers of Asian Voice are asked to add their names to this petition by emailing rupanjana.dutta@abplgroup.com with their details.

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nent eyebrows, just like the political leader. It's not the first time that a face has been spotted on Mars.

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Name

Address with postal code & phone number

Sign

UK

Asian Voice - Saturday 18th June 2011 Continued from page 1

Honours for exceptional people

With community in question, the British Asians cannot be left out.

Following is the list of recipients under different section.

Queen's Birthday List 2011

OBE Dr Sunirmal (Biku) Ghosh. Founder, GwentSouthern Ethiopia Health Link. For services to M e d i c i n e .

(Monmouthshire) Feizal Hajat. Head of Community Safety Legal

es to Education.

(Edgware, Middlesex) Mayank Bachubhai Patel. Group chairman and chief executive Officer, Azibo Group. For services to the Financial Services Industry and to Entrepreneurship. ( A m e r s h a m , Buckinghamshire) Professor Nirmala Rao. Pro-director (Learning and Teaching) and Professor of Politics, School of Oriental and African Studies. For services to Scholarship.

(London, W5) Kuldip Rupra. For services to Black and Minority Ethnic Communities in the East of England. (Bedford, Bedfordshire) Dr Nasser Siabi. Chief executive, Microlink PC (UK) Ltd. For services to Disabled People. ( S o u t h a m p t o n , Hampshire) Professor Mona Siddiqui. Director, Centre for the Study of Islam, University of Glasgow. For services to Inter-Faith Relations. (Westerwood, Glasgow) Dr Kanwaljit Kaur-

Mrs Meena Modi is the Headteacher at Chater Infant School, Hertfordshire. She has received OBE for services to Education. Mrs Modi told Asian Voice, "This award is in recognition of my work at Chater Infant School in Watford over the past 7 years. I am very proud of our achievements and feel very privileged to have had the opportunity to work with such a committed and talented staff and governors. The parents and children have worked in partnership and together we have achieved an Outstanding school.

I hope this award will encourage others especially from the Black and Asian communities to consider teaching as a career. I can honestly say it is the most rewarding and exciting work and I still feel the same passion to make a difference which I felt when I started teaching in 1974. I have worked in a variety of settings and have felt enormous pride and joy

in seeing children enjoy learning and achieve well. I am keen to see staff grow in confidence and develop a yearning to do the best they can for the youngsters in their care. I believe very strongly in distributive leadership which enables teachers and other staff to support the development of the school.

I am retiring this year and hope to continue to contribute towards developing leadership skills as well as working with parents to ensure they are skilled in supporting their children.

I feel very humbled by the love and pride in my achievements shown by so many since being awarded the OBE, including my family, friends and my wonderful colleagues at work. This will encourage me continue to work in education with even greater zeal."

Services, Birmingham City Council. For services to Local Government.

(Leicester, Leicestershire) Mrs Hawa Bibi Laher.

Headteacher, Spring Grove Junior, Infants and Nursery, Kirklees, West Yorkshire. For services to Education. (Mirfield, West Yorkshire) Ms Rajinder Kaur Mann. For services to Black and Minority Ethnic People. (West Midlands).

Mrs Meena Modi.

Headteacher, Chater Infant School, Hertfordshire. For servic-

Singh. Chair, British Sikh Educational Council. For services to Education and to Inter-Faith Understanding. (London, SW19) Mrs Ramesh Kumari Verma. Chief executive, EKTA Charity. For services to Older People in East London. (Ilford, Essex)

ORDER OF THE BRITISH EMPIRE, CIVIL DBE Dr Reena Keeble.

Headteacher, Cannon Lane First School, London Borough of Harrow. For services to local and national Education.

(Harrow, Middlesex) CBE Mayur Parsuram Patel.

Team Leader, Litigation, Treasury Solicitor's Department.

(Wembley, Middlesex)

MBE Liaquat Ali. For services to Local Government in the London Borough of Waltham Forest. (London, E17) Nazir Ahmed Butt.

A doctor has spent the weekend celebrating being made an MBE in the Queen's Birthday Honours List.

Dr Marcus Solanki, a mental health clinician with Leicestershire Partnership NHS Trust, got together with friends and family to mark the award, which was given for services to the community.

Dr Solanki said: "This is very great honour and I feel very privileged and humbled to receive such an award."

The father-of-two said he received an official letter telling him of the MBE early last week and had to keep the award a secret.

The 55-year-old said: "I told my wife and my For services to Community Cohesion in the London Borough of Waltham Forest. (London, E11) Gurcharan Singh Dhesi.

Sergeant, Metropolitan Police Special Constabulary. For services to the Police.

(Kent) Hashim Ismail Duale.

For services to Community Cohesion in Leicester.

(Leicester, Leicestershire) Asif Iqbal. Project manager, Deaf Parenting UK and Public A p p o i n t m e n t s Ambassador. For services to Deaf and Disabled People.

(Hemel H e m p s t e a d , Hertfordshire) Devinder Kalhan.

Group manager, Adults and Communities Directorate, Birmingham City Council. For services to Local Government and to Inter-Faith Relations.

(Wolverhampton, West Midlands) Ms Kamaljit Kaur. For services to Equal Opportunities for Asian Women. (London, UB2) Mrs Jyotsna Arun Kotnis. For services to Community Relations in Northamptonshire.

(Northamptonshire) Parvinder Singh Lalli.

Executive Officer, Jobcentre Plus, Department for Work and

mother but I had to keep it from everyone else.

"It was not easy as I was bursting to share the good news."

Dr Solanki is chairman of Savera Resource Centre, in Leicester, which helps Asian people using mental health services, and a spokesman for the city's Gujarati Christian community.

He said: "I feel the award is also a bit of recognition for everyone who works there.

"I feel immensely proud as a member of the Gujarati Christian community to receive this MBE on their behalf."

Pensions.

(Gravesend, Kent) Ms Namita Panjabi.

Co-Founder, Masala World. For services to the Hospitality Industry.

(London, W1H) Bipinchandra Dharamshi Patel. ViceChair of Governors, Working Men's College, London. For services to Adult and Further Education.

(London, NW7) Mrs Maha Ridha. For services to Muslim Women.

(Wembley, Middlesex) Mrs Saroj Bala Seth.

For services to Community Cohesion in Leicester.

(Oadby, Leicestershire) Miss Amrit Kumati Dhigpal Kaur Singh.

Artist. For services to the Indian Miniature Tradition of Painting.

(Birkenhead, Merseyside) Miss Rabindra Kumati Dhigpal Kaur Singh.

Artist. For services to the Indian Miniature Tradition of Painting.

(Birkenhead, Merseyside) Dr Marcus Jayant Solanki. For services to the community in Leicester. (Leicestershire) PAPUA NEW GUINEA MBE Aravapo Lohia. For services to air transport and to Air Niugini.

In brief Two facing charge of murdering former Leicestershire policeman Two men were due in court on Monday charged with the murder of a former police officer.

The men, aged 22 and 24, were arrested within hours of the discovery of the body of former detective constable Paul Fyfe, 47, pictured, in a house in Balderstone Close, Rowlatts Hill, Leicester, at 2.30am on Friday.

A post-mortem examination concluded he died from a single stab wound to the chest.

The two local men were charged with his murder on Saturday and remanded into custody.

Another man of 21 is on bail.

Mr Fyfe, of Old Dalby, near Melton, left the force about six years ago.

In 2001, he received a bravery award for risking his life when he and two other officers pulled a 29year-old man from a fume-filled car as he tried to commit suicide.

More recently, Mr Fyfe worked as an independent representative for law firms in Leicester, including Sakhi solicitors, in Grey Friars, reports Leicester Mercury.

Turbanology: Sikhs Unwrapped Last week saw the launch of the groundbreaking art exhibition, “Turbanology: Sikhs Unwrapped.” Held at the Nishkam Civic Centre, Soho Road, Birmingham, the exhibition challenged public perception of the turban and encouraged visitors to learn about its religious and political relevance.

Exhibition director, Jay Singh-Sohal used art as the next step to tell the tale of the turban.

The exhibition followed the successful independent film “Turbanology: After 7/7”, which SinghSohal used to explore the social and political significance of the turban following the attacks in New York and London.

The exhibition appeals across the generations as children are given the opportunity to

learn to tie a turban in the workshops led by Sikh storyteller, Roop Singh, while the story of guest speaker Gurinder Singh Mandla will appeal to those seeking to learn about the challenges and achievement the British Sikh community has overcome in recent history.

SinghSohal, describes the event, “The team had set out to create a project that would provide a unique insight into what Sikhs consider their crown. The project offers visitors an exciting and interactive opportunity to learn about this key Sikh symbol. By engaging diverse audiences in the art of the turban, we demystify what has mistakenly become synonymous with terrorism and fear."

The Arts Council England supported exhibition will be hosted at selected venues from June to October ahead of a national tour in 2012.

Indian receives MBE for welfare to elderly citizens Mr Vithaldas Jeram Mamtora received MBE last year during Queen's birthday (reported on June 19th 2010, page 2).

He belongs to Jasapur, a small village in the state of Gujarat in India. He established his own business in Malawi in 1959 and in 1970, at the advice of his sons, he sold my business and came to live in Manchester, England.

Mr Mamtora told Asian Voice, "I joined the Indian Association and attended Gandhi Hall regularly for prayer and social meetings and it was here that in 1983 I took on a challenging task of setting up a centre for the welfare of our elderly citizens, under the umbrella of the

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bership of over four Indian Association. hundred together At this stage we had with a property a membership of designed to meet our four, but with hard needs and owned by work we increased the Centre." this number to twen"I was delighted to ty by 1988.We needbe awarded the MBE ed help to further and ‘The Order of develop our ambiMercy’ in recognition tions and in this of my voluntary conrespect we secured tribution to the welassistance from Dr Das, a committee fare of our senior citimember of the zens and I sincerely Indian Association. thank everyone With tremendous involved with the hard work, I am Centre for their suppleased to say that we Mr Mamtora receiving MBE port and encouragefrom Prince Charles have achieved a memment"

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Dee Katwa

Asian Voice - Saturday 18th June 2011

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

Care homes - a market opportunity to make vast sums of money?

This week, the future of Britain’s care homes has hit the headlines following the announcement by Southern Cross, the country’s largest private residential provider, of its financial uncertainty.

The news has sparked off national debate, timely too, given that this week marks National Carers’ Week. In addition, this Wednesday (Jun 15) saw Elder Abuse Awareness Day, an annual event which aims to raise awareness of the abuse that vulnerable people can suffer while offering practical help and advice to victims.

It is a fact that we face an ageing population, which for many wealthy British Asians has provided an ideal opportunity to set up, and run their own care home businesses.

According to experts, in 2010 there were 2.6 million people aged over 80 and by 2030 that is expected to rise to 4.8 million. That means there is a need for an 82 per cent increase in the number of care home places – 630,000 extra places – between now and 2030 in order to cope.

In Birmingham, the private and voluntary sectors now look after almost 90 per cent of councilfunded clients after the local authority, Europe’s largest, took a decision to close down most of its own homes. But with the council under pressure to find savings – it wants to slash the budget for care packages by £53 million

over four years – the amount it is prepared to pay home owners is being reduced in real terms.

This is a familiar pattern across England, according to Age UK, which is warning that councils across the country were already referring fewer elderly people into care, and under-paying fees to care h o m e providers by as much as £500 million a year.

With more and more people going to have to fall back on their own resources to provide care home fees, this could be seen as a wake-up call.

And with the traditional extended family unit no longer as common as it once was, few elderly people would like to be a burden on their family and generally are keen to maintain independence as long as possible. At the same time, many children of senior citizens would feel uncomfortable looking after a parent in their home.

It should therefore be no surprise that so many people, particularly British Asians, mainly middle-aged and over, have built, or are building,

ARTICLE REMOVED

buying, or renting accommodation in the Indian subcontinent. A tip-ofthe-iceberg example is that of Chimanbhai Vaghela, 63, and his 57year-old wife Ramila, from Rugby, who divide their year between England and India. The couple, who have three sons and a daughter, all married, have a property in Navsari. “It’s cheaper,

the weather is generally better and we have the best of both worlds,” said Mr Vaghela. Similarly, widower Santokh Singh Sahota, 73, from Dudley, has a second home in the Punjab where he spends the British winter months.

Another lady, who asked not be named, and lives in an elderly home in Birmingham, explained how “times have changed” and whilst she would’ve once preferred to have stayed with her family, is now “much happier” living independently. Talking of her multimillionaire businessmen sons, “after they got married, things changed”.

She explained how her sons and daughter-inlaws treated her unfavourably and gave her the impression she was a burden. “It wasn’t a nice situation to be in.

But, I deeply miss my grandchildren, but they do all visit me now and again, and I’d rather see them happy. I know I’m not alone, and I have faith in God who will see me through whatever life I have remaining.”

Returning to Southern Cross, the troubled care home provider, which runs 43 homes in the West Midlands, Birmingham MP Roger Godsiff recently had sponsored a hard-hitting motion in the House of Commons condemning the way the company is run. He attacked “the avaricious greed of financial entrepreneurs and their apologists, who view care for the elderly as just another commodity and market opportunity to make vast sums of money”. And Mr Godsiff, MP for Sparkbrook and Small Heath, also pointed out in the same Commons motion that two people with close links to Tony Blair had been involved with the company. This week, Asian Voice asked Southern Cross how many of its over 31,000 residents, nationally, were from an ethnic minority background. They were unable to say.

Boss fired for exposing himself A senior manager with IT firm Fujitsu has lost his £100,000-a-year job after he exposed himself and performed a sex act in front of three 14-year-old girls on their way home from a Midland school, Warwick Crown Court heard. David Wells, 40, from Leamington, admitted engaging in sexual activity in the presence of a child and was ordered to register as a sex offender for five years.

Get Britain Trading UK Hindi Conference A three-day conference dedicated to Hindi, India’s national language, will take place in Birmingham next week. The UK Regional Hindi Conference, from 24th to 26 June, aims to focus on the status and position of Hindi in the world. It has been organised by Gitanjali Multilingual Literary Circle, in association with other UK and European organisations and will feature a series of lectures, workshops, including one on the importance of Hindi to British Indian youth, a special dinner, keynote speakers as well as cultural performances. To sign up, or to find out more contact Dr Krishna Kumar on 07557 505170 or email profdrkrishna@googlemail.com

The Forum of Private Business is launching a campaign aimed at boosting the fortunes of small business across the UK. Get Britain Trading calls on the Government to tackle persistent problems affecting small-to-medium-sized enterprises, including late payment, access to finance and excessive red tape.

Topless sunbathing A quarter of women in the West Midlands admit to sunbathing topless abroad in a bid to get an all over tan. A poll found 24 per cent were prepared to ditch their bikini while on holiday. The Superdrug poll also found women in the 35-44 age group are most likely to bare all.

News in Brief Temple celebration Scores of people from across Britain will descend on the Baba Balak Nath Temple in Caldmore Road, Walsall,(WS1 3PD) this Sunday (Jun 19) to celebrate the installation of eight statues of Hindu Gods and Goddesses. Priests Sharadbhai and Chandrakantbhai, both Bhatt, will lead on religious ceremonies. All welcome. For more information visit www.mandirbababalaknath.co.uk

Power of the pomegranate Pomegranate juice could reduce stress in the workplace, according to a new study. Researchers from Queen Margaret University, Edinburgh, found that having the drink every day resulted in lower stress hormones and a reduction in blood pressure.

Breeding den for terrorists More terror suspects have been arrested in the West Midlands than anywhere else outside London, according to a new detailed Home Office report. Over the past ten years, 12 per cent of people convicted of “Islamist terrorism-related offences”, one in eight, came from Birmingham.

Tackling diversity in PR The Chartered Institute of Public Relations’ Diversity Working Group has published five key areas of work to tackle diversity in the PR profession. Wow! Its wording, as always, reads beautiful on paper. Box ticked.

Dads and Kids Group A kids’ fun day has been organised in Birmingham, as part of Fathers’ Story Week. The free event this Saturday (Jun 18) from 12pm-3pm at Tyseley Community Centre (B11 3BY) will feature face painting, bouncy castles, stalls and much more.

For further information call Tony Harbutt on 0121 675 5472.

Kids’ teeth need attention A third of five-year-olds in Birmingham have rotting teeth, according to new dental figures.

Birmingham Local Dental Committee has blamed a “failure” of the dental contract changes in 2006. In March, it emerged that nearly 50,000 fewer city residents were seeing an NHS dentist compared to five years ago with inner-city suburbs hit the hardest.

Royal treat for foster folks A Walsall couple who have fostered around 70 youngsters over the last 32 years have been invited to a Buckingham Palace garden party on July 12. Pat and Kevin, pictured, of Bentley, who have four grown-up children of their own, and three grandchildren, described fostering as “extremely rewarding”. The Royal invitation recognises their contribution to children’s services in Walsall.

MP in sex assault claim Andrew Bridgen, MP for North West Leicestershire, has been arrested on suspicion of sexual assault. It is understood the married father-oftwo, aged 46, was arrested in relation to allegations of assaulting a 29-year-old woman in central London last Thursday.

Post Offices decline More than 15 per cent of post offices in the West Midlands have shut down in four years. Since 2007, the region has lost 169 branches due to cost-cutting, of which some have been relaunched as new ventures.

EDUCATION / COUNCIL VOICE

Asian Voice - Saturday 18th June 2011

Nightriders to raise fund for charity Mrs Mita Ajay Mehta (pictured) is from Dar-es-salaam (Tanzania) and is participating in a bicycle ride of 100kms in London. It starts in the mid-night and will take around 6-7hrs. It covers all the important tourist attractions in London.

She is cycling for a charity and there are more than 1000 cyclists.

Mrs Mehta told Asian Voice "I am supporting a charity organisation called bridge 2 aid. I have raised an amount of 175 pounds already. It is organised by classic tours and its called the nightrider."

A rewarding experience: Fostering National Foster Care Fortnight ran from May 16-29 and the Council of Tower Hamlets appealed to families to come forward to give a child a home that they need.

Momotaj Begum fosters two teenage boys and a two year old toddler from the borough.

She said: “Fostering is such a wonderful thing to do; to help a child when they need it most and watch them get on in life.

“The fostering and adoption teams at the council give you loads of help and support – training courses and one to one help –but it’s much like parenting.

“It’s really important to just listen and talk to the child. “I have done short-term foster placements before, but the two older boys have been with me for a few years now.

“We have had our ups and downs, but we have

ety of backgrounds tackled them and ethnic groups to together and come look after children of through it looking all ages.

Babies, towards the teenagers, sibling future.” groups which the She has foscouncil does not want tered the baby since he was five Mamotaj Begum to separate and days old, who with a fostered child children with disabilities are all curwill soon be rently in need of a loving adopted. “It has been an incredibly rewarding expefamily. For more details rience,” Momotaj said. call 0800 279 9850 or In Tower Hamlets, caremail fostering@towerers are needed from a varihamlets.gov.uk

Council that can spot child 'troublemakers' Worried council bosses are identifying future classroom troublemakers before they are old enough to attend school.

East Sussex County Council have picked out 72 'troubled' pre-schoolers they think are most likely to be expelled when they start school in three

months' time.

The council, which had the 19th highest exclusion rate of 150 local authorities in 2008/09, said it has identified the youngsters to 'support children whose behavioural difficulties may stem from undiagnosed communication problems'.

Teenagers Demonstrate the Value of Learning Art to the Public Art is a subject often neglected in an overcrowded curriculum. Wandsworth based, Thames Christian College pupils last week demonstrated why it shouldn't be sidelined, with its display of exceptional GCSE Art at the school's Art Exhibition on the 8 June. From perfume bottle and magazine designs to Olympic stamps, ceramics, fine art and mobiles the pupils showed the wide range of new skills they had developed over the last year.

There is far more to Art than simply producing aesthetically pleasing work. The problem solving skills developed in Art, together with the ability to think outside the box, will be increasingly needed in a society where ideas not products are the new currency. Creative education is what has enabled our country to excel in the Arts historically and has brought the UK its excellent worldwide reputation for invention

and design.

Dave Adkins, Deputy Head and Head of Art at Thames Christian College commented: "At Thames we take Art seriously by setting real-life commercial briefs, it's not just about getting pupils to achieve A*/A at GCSE, although most do. This academic year, we redesigned the Art curriculum to incorporate Design Technology as well as enable pupils to take two Art GCSEs."

Harrow pupils to participate in Times Spelling Bee Four pupils from Harrow will go head-to-head with ten other schools in a spelling competition this month. The four, all from Orley Farm School, in Harrow-on-the-Hill, have already clocked up the highest score in the history of the Times Spelling Bee and hope to continue their good run to snatch the top prize.

Armaan Kamerkar, 12, told a local newspaper: “It's really exciting and

actually I didn't think we would get this far. Before the first round I was scared of even getting through that.

“Now I'm relieved and I'm just apprehensive because its going to be really tense but its definitely going to be really exciting.”

More than 1,200 school have taken part in the contest, and Orley Farm fought off seven in the semi-finals alone with

a score of 100, the highest ever.

Along the way they had to spell words such as “armadillo” and “stentorian”.

Barbara Boylan, a teacher from the school, said: “We knew we were putting together a fairly strong team but we are very flabbergasted by how far they've come.”

The grand final will be at the IndigoO2 at the O2 Arena on June 23.

Reading with children is vital for a good start in life The extent to which reading to children at home reduces their chances of developing social and emotional problems in later life has been revealed in a new study.

Academics found that the magnitude of the gap in children’s education at home before they start school was larger than

previously thought.

Between the ages of three and five, some children’s verbal skills are already 50% more advanced than others. Experts said that the findings reinforced the fact that parents could be more influential in their children’s education than schools.

A Caring Family Can Help Mental health problems are common and affect one in four people. People can and do recover from mental illness, often with the love and care of family and friends. Here 28-year-old Selina Khunkhuna (pictured left), who has recurring depression, and her mother Susan talk about the importance of family support and opening up about mental health.

Selina: “I was diagnosed with depression in 2003 during my final year at university. At the time I was feeling pressure about my options once I graduated and what my life would be like afterwards. During a holiday abroad a family member who is a psychiatrist noticed something was wrong with my behaviour and informed my parents; I became very unwell soon after.

“There is a lot of stigma and shame around mental illness in the Asian community and that mostly comes from misinformation and misunderstanding because it’s hidden away and people don’t talk about it. But I have a big, strong family network and they became involved in my care and helped me to get better.

“I think my parents were shocked and scared by what was happening to me, and didn’t fully understand what was going on. They thought involving a faith healer would help, but we’ve now learnt about the type of support that people with mental health problems need and the benefits of seeking advice and treatment from medical professionals.

9

“My family have been amazing, my mum especially - she is the first person I talk to when I am feeling unwell. It makes a big difference when you seek proper help and your family know how to care for you. It means you can be open about what you are going through. With the right family support you can and do get better. I am proof of that.”

Susan: “When Selina was diagnosed with depression my husband and I did not know what was happening – we had no one to talk to and felt lost. At first she was admitted to hospital but we didn’t think it was the best place for her, so we took her home and decided to care for her ourselves.

“We were desperate to help our daughter and tried everything we could, like involving the faith healer, but once we turned to mental health

professionals we realised there were more effective treatments out there and we were not alone. Once you start talking about mental health you realise how many people are going through the same thing as you.

“I think people are afraid to be open about mental illness because they see it as a failure in some way. But that is not true; it is just an illness and it’s no one’s fault. My advice for anyone who has a loved one with mental health problems is to listen to them and also go to your GP and talk about what is happening.

Once you open up it is possible to find support and recover, just like Selina.”

It’s time to talk, it’s Time to Change. To find out more about ending mental health stigma please visit www.time-to-change.org.uk Or Contact: 020 8215 2357.

10

YOUR VOICE

Asian Voice - Saturday 18th June 2011

Hidden Economy in the UK

Learn Gujarati

Use of Nuclear power

Food for Thought

The Financial Times article on the hidden economy was interesting [FT 9 June p14]. It stated that UK had an “estimated” hidden economy of 12% of GDP in 2011.

This appears to be “an exact arithmetical calculation” on known GDP statistics: UK GDP currently is ￡1,500 billion; UK actual tax burden is 38% or ￡ 500 billion. If you gross up ￡500 billion by the tax burden of 38%, you come up with a white GDP of ￡1,315 billion. The difference is exactly 12% or ￡185 billion.

The more accurate estimate is likely to be 20%. In the first year, the coalition government has concentrated too much on ill-conceived Bills, changes and reforms and wasted the nations’ valuable time in debating them umpteenth time.

Billions have been wasted by introducing Bills that were not carefully worked out in health, welfare, immigration, university fees, prisons and defence.

The Prime Minister is still not learning from his mistakes and is now planning yet another Bill on university course fees auctions and competition.

All that is required is higher calibre efficiency audits of public services provided by both central and local governments that would bring about the right changes to improve productivity and savings gradually.

The hidden economy has a positive effect on the low earners and benefit claimants when their wages or benefits are cut while cost of living is going up and should rightly be ignored.

The same hidden economy has a negative effect on tax evasion by high earners, be they professionals or large businesses. HM Revenue & Customs need more experienced professionals that could raise billions just from tax inquiries.

I would like to thank Jayntibhai Tanna for his concern about poor teaching of Gujarati. His suggestions about developing excellent professional teachers and Heads is very welcome, especially coming from such a knowledgeable person, a former Principal, Education Adviser and inspector.

However, the Gujarati speech community, or for that matter Hindi, Punjabi, Tamil and Bengali to mention just a few, face the same problem which needs to be addressed vigorously at community level.

I have personal experience of very well educated Gujarati families where Gujarati is not spoken let alone read because the younger generation brought up in this country simply cannot see how their “limited” languages can help them to communicate with friends, teachers or class mates. Limited, because these languages lack commonly accepted words like TV, computer, mobile, I-pod, karaoke, mountain bike etc. Their communication in their “mother tongue" is further complicated when their friends insist upon using teenage-speak.

The so-called community languages (give whatever name you wish to use e.g. lesser taught language) are taught by volunteers or very low paid teachers who are concerned community members. The dedicated teachers of Gujarati are unable to attend courses offered by Examination Boards like OCR because they simply cannot afford the course fees.

Here I must give credit to Gujarat Samachar for producing “Learn Gujarati" and offering it to the enthusiastic Gujarati community at a very affordable cost. Credit must also be given to The Gujarati Literary Academy for producing the first set of excellent home-grown Gujarati Text books written by Dr.Jagdish Dave and conducting Teacher training Courses.

Dr. Jagdish Dave has spent many hours in many towns and cities of U.K. and also many other countries of the world to train teachers to use these books.

The cardinal need of the hour is to revive the spirit of learning/teaching of Gujarati, and encouraging the local born young generation to communicate in Gujarati. Asset Languages offers excellent tests to students who are learning Gujarati and can take them at Breakthrough, Preliminary, Intermediate or Advanced stages. Once we are successful in capturing the interest of the lost generation we can enable them to read Gujarati literature and make them aware of our “Asmita”.

Upendra Dave Via Email

A contributor to “Your Voice” last week has written against the use of nuclear power. One of his reasons he quotes for this is that the nuclear reactors belch out poisonous gases into the atmosphere. This is just not true.

Germany currently gets almost a quarter of its electricity from nuclear power plants, which emit limited greenhouse (not radioactive) gases. Angela Merkel said to the German Parliament “If we want to quickly get out of nuclear power ….we need fossil-fuel power plants. There is no way around”. When Germany turns to smog-belching coal power plants, emissions could get worse.

France, which gets almost 80% of its power from nuclear energy is unlikely to close down all its nuclear reactors.

This is not to say we should not learn lessons from Fukushima in Japan or the Three Mile Island and the Chernobyl disasters before that. The main factors at all three of these have been a combination of human error and design deficiencies that resulted in a core meltdown.

If recent oil prices are anything to go by, world oil supplies are erratic and unreliable. Renewable energy is unlikely to make a significant contribution in the next decade at least. Coal with its emissions is not really an attractive option.

That only leaves the nuclear option.

The way forward is using Thorium instead of Uranium. The advantages of using Thorium over Uranium are that it produces less long-lived radioactive waste and a meltdown accident is improbable.

According to the Thorium Energy Alliance "there is enough thorium in the United States alone to power the country at its current energy level for over 1,000 years."

The price of our weekly shopping is rising. Where we used to get away with a trolly full of groceries from the supermarket in return for £50 or £60, we now see hardly any change from hundred pounds worth of notes. There is a huge hike in food prices, and they are rising at their fastest rate for two years. The reasons are given as global demand from emerging markets like India and China.

These demands are not met due to draughts in some parts or floods in other parts of the food growing regions. On top of the food prices, rises in electricity and gas prices are also in the pipe line. This must be due to the unrest and conflict in the oil producing countries and the effect is a squeeze on supply. Also rising world food prices are tightening the squeeze on populations already struggling to buy adequate food. Global food prices have risen 83 per cent over the last few years.

The increases have been driven by high income growth in emerging economies, the relative inelasticity of supply, historically low stock levels and some speculative investment. Oxfam has forecast that by 2030, the average cost of key crops could increase by between 120% and 180%.

So what could be done to meet this rise in demand for food? Perhaps the vast areas of land that are used to graze animals which are being reared for their meat can be put to alternative use for grain and vegetable production.

Nagindas Khajuria Via Email

Students of India I am sure Asian Voice readers will agree that the crackdown on the peaceful supporters and Ramdevji's eviction from Delhi was despicable. This action by the police who no doubt are in the hands of corrupt officials and politicians compares with draconian measures by the authorities against peaceful protest whether Tianmen square, Libya, Baharain, Egypt or Syria.

The cancer of corruption affects all the Indian public including the NRIs and I am surprised that the western media do not focus on this vital news as they did for the countries in the middle east. The main thing they seemingly reported was the connection of Ramdevji's fasting with VHP and always reminding us how BJP 'right wing Hindu' party will take over the protest.

Are the western media reporters biased like their political leaders picking and choosing who and when to support?

Surely a respectable investigative piece detailing why Ramdevji got involved in the first place would have been appropriate.

Also where are the student protesters in India, are they consumed by large doses of the IPL/copied UK and American talent programmes? Why can't they start a movement to bring the corrupt Congress party government to a halt? What happened to the erstwhile IT knowledge to facilitate awareness and whistle blowing corrupt officials?

Kiran Mehta Via Email

New Delhi's heavy handed clampdown I am very much impressed by the editorial comments in Asian Voice regarding New Delhi's heavy-handed clampdown on peaceful protest of Baba Ramdev Ji. We all know that some of the demands are very difficult to meet immediately but it is equally essential for the Government to start thinking and develop the policies which should give hope to 90% poor people of India.

I have spoken to many people and practically all are against the police action taken by the Government of India against the peaceful demonstrators. You do not expect such things in a civilised country and India is one.

I feel it is essential that the Government of India should apologise and work together with Baba Ramdevji and others to find the appropriate methods which should help the people of India and India becomes the place where every one lives with dignity and respect.

Dharam Sahdev Ilford

Bharat Parmar Via Email

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Dinesh Sheth Newbury Park, Ilford

Swami Ramdev’s fast unto death Decision to end fast unto death is welcome news. The fight is over but battle continues. Days of martyrdom are gone. Kaliyuga treachery needs reciprocal ruthless attack on enemy.

Unfortunately honest campaign is devalued when propaganda shifted focus from corruption to Swamiji. Any activist can be more constructive alive. Good efforts of a martyr– even for mother land -are forgotten soon.

Swami Ramdev has bona fide intentions in the campaign against corruption and returning cash to India, his stubborn fast unto death was incongruent. In absence of any ongoing strategy, all the followers would have scattered after death of Swamiji. His sacrifice would have achieved nothing, but gained ridicule in India and abroad.

Swami Ramdevji must carry on the battle as planned and his programme of raising an army on model of Salvation Army by Chrstians and retinue of bodyguards as retained by many leading personalities. Fasting was all right in olden days when rulers revered gurus and religion of kingdom, but is not justified in India where Hindu religion is dumped to dustbin of secularism and gurus reduced to category of charlatans and thugs.

All Hindus must support Ramdev ji without fear. RSS, VHP, BJP must fight back the stigma flung by UPA. Ramesh Jhalla Via Email

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

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

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

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

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YOUR VOICE

Asian Voice - Saturday 18th June 2011

11

Sikh protest and MKHA

Domestic violence

Poverty stricken Indians

M F Husain – no more

It has been reported in Asian Voice that two hundred Sikh protesters trashed their own Sikh community centre in West Midlands to protest against the sale of meat and alcohol in the premises.

It is very unfortunate that some members of the Sikh community took drastic steps to ransack the place causing damage to the place costing thousands of pound. There are reasons for their protest but this should have been done peacefully.

The owners of the place should realise that Sikhism is a faith and they should have followed basic tenets of the religion.

If the owners wanted to use the place for special functions and weddings where alcohol and meat is served they should change the name to Punjabi or Indian cultural centre.

The Hindu Association in Milton Keynes (MKHA) is making the same mistake by proposing to call its place as a multi-cultural centre and the centre may be used for social and wedding functions.

It appears that centre will be used all sections of the community. The problem is that Hindus may not use that centre any longer for religious activities since meat and alcohol may be served there. MKHA was formed to promote Hinduism, its tradition, rituals and culture in this area 25 years ago and also to teach awareness of Hinduism to children born in this country.

Arun Vaidyanathan Via Email

I write further to the article on domestic violence by women against men reported in your Volume 40, Issue 6 edition. It was an interesting feature and one I was pleased to see being reported in your paper. The police is continuing to have a positive arrest policy for domestic violence allegations certainly demonstrates this Government’s commitment to driving out domestic violence. It is of course not clear what proportion of increase in prosecutions is due but I am sure the Secretary of State for Justice will give careful consideration to the same.

Whilst special measures can be put in place in Court to make giving evidence easier for vulnerable victims such as by the use of screens to shield the victim from the defendant’s sight it would appear this is still more commonly requested by female victims. Whilst many male victims may not seek special measures to assist in giving evidence in such circumstances. In many communities it has been historically frowned upon to report such matters to police. But if we are to move further forward as a society with equality towards victims of domestic abuse we must ensure that both men and women are continually treated fairly.

Cllr. Sachin Rajput Conservative GLA Candidate For Brent & Harrow

Swami Ramdevji`s campaign against corruption is absolutely legitimate under not only the Indian law, but more importantly under the Universal Declaration of Human Rights to which India is a signatory. His campaign has publicly and openly underlined the fact that almost 840 million Indians struggle to survive on up to Rupees 20 per day and that the poor of India are the ultimate victims of the scourge of Indian corruption. Indian PM formally stated to a press conference a few days before the Commonwealth Games that 37 percent of the Indian population was living below poverty line, meaning about 450m of the 1200m population are struggling to survive through scavenging. The brutal police action at the behest of the Indian Govt in the dead of the night on totally peaceful demonstrators, ladies and men of all ages, while they were asleep having fasted the whole day, was a most callous violation of human rights and human dignity – indeed, this was the most indecent and uncivilised action by the government of the so-described largest democracy of the world.

Kishor Ruparelia Via Email

M F Husain has died in London – let his soul rest in peace – not. Many so called art lovers in the West and some Indians regarded him as a great artist but for Hindus he was an obscene and a coward artist. He escaped justice but at least the decent people of Bharat had the last word in ensuring that he could not return to Bharat. For those who don’t know, he painted a number of Hindu deities in the nude and in vulgar acts. How dare could he hurt the sentiments of millions of Hindus around the world in the name of art. Why did he not, in the name of art, paint Mohammed or Jesus in such light?

The answer is simple, he felt he could get away with insulting Hindus but the Christians or Muslims would not have tolerated it and they would have made sure he did not reach 95. Those of you (in particular Hindus) who are still not sure of his intentions, then I dare you to acquire a replica of one of his Hindu deities “art” and place it in your Mandir at home.

Narendra Patel Birmingham

The heroes of India Swami Ramdev and Anna Hazare are the two heroes of modern times who without caring about their own pleasure, comfort and happiness determined to sacrifice everything to uplift the future of the country. The secrecy of black money in a foreign bank which could change the destiny of the whole population of Indian subcontinent is in the hands of few rich

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people who are the leaders, politicians, ministers, governors, administrators of unfortunate India. Why is Sonia Gandhi, Manmohan Singh, Pranab Mukherjee, Kapil Sibal, Sheila Sikshit, so and so forth are keeping silence? Why can't these traitors distribute their money to the poor? This would bring about revolution!

Ramesh V Moradabadi Southall

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Righ to Appeal I read the letter of Gulab Mistry in Asian Voice (11th June). I must complement Asian Voice and Gujarat Samachar for carrying on such an initiative. There are very few newspapers which do such campaign journalism. Scrapping of Right to Appeal is like losing a fundamental right. I have asked all my friends and family to sign the petition with the help of modern technology. I hope Gulab Mistry himself has signed it as well!

Amrik Singh London

Milibands and Labour

Who cares about either of the Milibands? The failure to acknowledge the gross mismanagement of the economy by the Labour party which led to the credit crunch and the colossal deficit demonstrates the lack of principle from this weeks leaked papers. As to the lack of policy where would one begin? Vapid statements about the 'squeezed middle' and flaccid attacks on government policy without actually offering an alternative do not demonstrate that Labour understand the reality of opposition let alone that they deserve to return to power. And let us not forget that Ed Miliband has done what all weak leaders do, surrounded himself with colourless yes-person.

Soap opera probably describes Labour today.

Ravi Shah Harrow

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MEDIA WATCH

Asian Voice - Saturday 18th June 2011

Scrutator’s Asked if the government The election of the new head of the International Monetary planned to set up more such Fund (IMF) is creating waves, although not the sort that centres, Minister Anand Sharma accompanied the departure of its previous chief, the told reporters, “There will be. I Frenchman Dominique Strauss-Kahn, momentarily trapped in am sure that we will be looking the US by a little local difficulty. at augmenting because India The present world economic order was seeded in the needs more technology centers.”

India had to “give more thrust to wartime Bretton Woods Anglo-American accord, in 1944, that value-added manufacturing set the parameters of the new global order. Thus were born which, as of now, is on the lower the World Bank and its twin, the International Monetary Fund. side compared to developed The understanding was that the former would have an economies or emerging American head, while the latter would have a European in economies.” charge. Such has been been the practice for the past sixty-odd He said the government was year. keen that India, through collaboThe West favours to keep things as they are, the newly ration and its own efforts was in emerging nations insist that this cannot be, that the current tectonic global shift in economic power must find an appropriate reflection in international institutions, whether they be at the United Nations Security Council or the IMF. The BRICS nations – Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa – are making their collective voice heard loud and clear.

Their message articulates the need for change and their determination to break the mould.

With Mr Strauss-Kahn gone, the French Finance Minister Christine Lagarde has thrown her cap into the ring for the IMF post. Europe and the US back her candida- Christine Lagarde with Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee in New Delhi ture, but India and China and Latin a position to manufacture green America, to go no further, have yet to be convinced. Ms technologies.

Lagarde embarked on a journey to India and China to canvas support. The Daily Telegraph's Dean Nelson, reporting from Monorail project on New Delhi (June 8), produced the following headline: “Lagarde track claims India has changed tack over IMF role”:.

The Nelson text referred to the minister's claim that “India The Hindu (June 4) reported had reversed its opposition to a European appointment to head that a monorail project for the International Monetary Fund and accepted that the winChennai, first proposed by Tamil ning candidate should be chosen regardless of origin.....She Nadu AIADMK leader said she would press ahead with reforms within the IMF for Jayalalitha on 2006 is back on emerging economies, particularly India and fellow BRICS countrack with her triumphant electries Brazil. Russia, China and South Africa.” tion victory as state Chief

Long-term vision

could learn from the emerging economies of India and China in handling the Greek, Irish, Portuguese financial crises. He also praised the academic work of the late Patna-born Sanjaya Lall (for many years a distin-

Mr Nelson went on to say that Indian Prime Minister Dr Manmohan Singh was less concerned with present IMF election “He wants to use the process to accelerate the reform of the Bretton Woods institution to give more influence to the emerging economies. Ms Lagarde said that while she had neither sought nor received an assurance of support from Dr Singh and his Indian cabinet colleagues, they had shown 'warmth' and 'appreciation' of her candidacy for the job.”

Meanwhile, from the dreaming spires of Oxford, Lord Christopher Patton, the Anand University's Chancellor, put Sharma forward the name of India's guished teacher at Oxford and Planning Commission Deputy previously a student as well) as Chairman Montek Singh “truly fantastic.”

Ahluwalia as the next IMF Managing Director. Lord Patton spoke of his pride that Prime Nano tech centres Minister Singh and Mr Ahluwalia, alumni of Oxford A Hindu newspaper report University, had played a critical (June 4) told how India was part steering the Indian econolooking to set up more nano my in recent decades (The manufacturing technology cenHindu June 4). tres in a bid to give greater conThe Business Standard tent to the country's value added Online (June 4) reported the goods. This was subject of a launch of the Sanjaya Lall speech by Commerce and Visiting Professorship of Industry Minister Anand Business and Development at Sharma, who laid the foundaOxford University's Said tion stone for an advanced nano Business School . The star technology laboratory, as part of speaker was Economics Nobel the nano manufacturing technoLaureate Professor Amartya Sen ogy centre to be established at (currently at Harvard the Central Manufacturing University) who said there Trechnology Insititute in “were a few things” Europe Bangalore.

Minister. The project will be introduced in a phased manner.

The plan to cover the Chennai Metropolitan Area with a network of 18 monorail corridors, eventually covering 300 kilometres, will give the Tamil Nadu capital a mass urban transport system worthy of its size, population and economic importance; it will be the world's largest monorail network.

Although a 45-kilometre metro rail system is already under construction, the costintensive project is both expensive in time and money and will be draining economically if it were to be expanded. The monorail scheme is designed to “integrate with the existing transport system.” The first phase of the project will cover 111 kilometres and begin reducing the congestion in the metropolis.

Heavy lift C-17s for IAF The Economic Times (June 8) reported India's decision to buy 10 C-17 Globemaster heavy-lift transport aircraft from its manufacturer, US company Boeing at a cost of $4.1 billion. This was testimony to the growing IndoUS relationship, according to State Department spokesman Mark Toner, who said: “I would say that this deal is indicative of our growing military and humanitarian ties. This kind of airlift capability is pretty unique and it's a significant step forward for India.”

He said the aircraft, once inducted into the Indian Air Force, would broaden India's capability to deploy troops in large numbers and also to provide humanitarian relief during natural disasters.

“The future of the India-US relationship is bright,” said Mr Toner.

Mizoram air base The North Eastern state of Mizoram has agreed to allot land for an Indian Air Force base.

The base will be equipped with the necessary surveillance radar and will house four of the IAF's top combat aircraft. The news was released following talks between Chief Minister Lal Thanhawla and Air Marshal K.K.Nohwar AOC-in-C, Eastern Air Command.

Modern facilities including schools, amusement parks and canteen will also be set up to service the needs of the local community and those of the IAF personnel (Times of India June 4).

Agni V to be ready for testing by year-end A Hindu newspaper report says that India's 5,000-kilometre ballistic missile will be ready for testing by the end of the year. It quoted Dr V.K.Saraswat, the Defence Research &

under production,” he said.

Apropos of Agni-V, Dr Saraswat explained that, following its inaugural test, the missile would be further tested for modifications and effectiveness.

“This missile would be based on the concept of re-entry capable of covering the whole of Pakistan and China,” he said.

A Hindustan Times report (June 11) quotes Air Chief Marshal P.V.Naik (Chief of India's Air Staff) as saying that no cap (as was being suggested) should be placed on the range of the 5,000 kilometre missile. The Air Chief Marshal, who heads the chiefs of staff committee, said: “India should pursue an Inter-Continental Ballistic Missile (ICBM) programme to acquire a range of 10,000 kilometres or even more. Breaking out of the regional context is important as the country's sphere of influence grows. We have no territorial designs on any country, but India needs the technical capability to match its sphere of influence. There is no point capping the missile programme at 5,000 kilometres. If we have the technical capability, we should build on it.”

Brahmaputra project Michael Sheridan, in The Sunday Times (June 12), writes that China is planning to divert the River Brahmaputra (whose headwaters lie in Tibet) to China, which would destroy the Himalayan eco-system and reduce much of northern India to a desert. However, The Hindu newspaper in India (June 14) quoted China's Foreign Ministry spokesman Hong Lei as saying, in response to a question about India's reported concerns, that China “adopts a responsible attitude towards the development of cross-border water resources.

We adopt a policy that protection goes with development, and take into full consideration the interests of downstream countries.”

Chinese experts, to whom

INS Kabra joins Navy The Times of India revealed (June 8) that the fast patrol craft INS Kabra had been commissioned into the Indian Navy by Vice Admiral N.Sushil at Kochi for coastal surveillance and protection duties. The 49-metrelong, 7.5-metre-ship, with a displacement of 320 tons, has a top speed of 35 knots and a crew of three officers and 39 sailors. It was built at the Garden Reach Shipyard in Kolkata. This is the eight such ship to join the country's naval; fleet and is especially useful for low-intensity operations and anti-piracy operations.

It is well equipped with electronic systems and an appropriate armament suite.

The course of the Brahmaputra as it enters India

Development Organisation (DRDO) chief as saying on the sideline of a conference in New Delhi: “The Agni V missile will be ready by the end of the year, probably in December.”

He said that the 3,000-kilometre range Agni-III missile had already been inducted into the armed forces. “Agni-III is already inducted. Its development has been completed and is

The Hindu had spoken, said the heavy costs and technical difficulties rendered the project unfeasible. The project was initially mooted by Wang Guangqian, of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, who is the Director of Tsinghua University's Hydroscience and Engineering department.

Hopefully, good sense will prevail.

UK

Asian Voice - Saturday 18th June 2011

13

Political Sketchbook Alpesh Patel’s

India and Money don’t buy you respect Aircraft carriers. Britain doesn’t have one anymore. The Navy has made it clear this is a mistake.

China is to launch its first one this year. India aims for three by 2020. China doubtless aims for many more. Does this matter? Is it boys with their toys?

A few thousand years ago it was the number of skulls or scalps you had that determined the level of respect you held. And respect was important because it meant self-interest and the interests of your family/clan/society could be preserved. Today, it is the number of weapons systems.

And Britain has made an error.

She should issue Aircraft Carrier bonds whereby the public can pay for the carrier in return for 3% interest repayment, like with War Bonds in the Second World War. What of India? It does matter.

It matters because India is the world’s largest democracy and nowhere on earth do four nuclear powers meet than around India.

As China stretches to Pakistan, so it is vital India reaches out to

Russia – a long-time ally. Indeed, India is uniquely positioned to reach out to Iran too.

As global resources become scarcer, and their rocketing prices is one sign of that, wars will be inevitable.

The Chinese string of pearls naval strategy would be the first step to impinging on sea routes and grabbing at resources. When India goes to war with China it is because the Chinese want to see how far they can push a perceived weak and distracted nation. More than this the Chinese at all costs must stop a US-Russian-Indian encirclement.

But what worries me is whether India will play its political role. Presently there seems little ability to do so. Where is the lead on Libya or the Arab Spring?

Where is the willingness to take a lead in shaping the future of the Middle East? You may say, why should it? India has enough domestic problems. This is all true and it should focus on cleaning up its internal corruption before telling the rest of the

world what is right and wrong.

And it is because it knows this, that India also knows that economic growth alone is not enough to justify influence or respect. It knows a permanent place on the UN Security Council is not going to happen. (Not least because the voting needed to make it happen would be impossible to achieve in reality).

So where does that leave the Indian people and the Nation of India? Well, as long as the West’s interests co-incide with India’s then that is fine. But it does mean the West has the strongest case for a politically stronger India. Namely it could with India influence Russia and Iran to be less of a threat to global stability.

Bottom line: We in the West can either be more like them, or they more like us – you pick – I know what I prefer.

And India with its close Iranian and Russian connections is the West’s best hope. But the West knows India isn’t up to the job either. So for now, the world heads to conflict… all

My First Spiritual Journey

By Shyam Raiyarel 14 years This year a trip was arranged for all the youth leaders of Anoopam Mission from UK and USA. This was an opportunity for us to spend some quality time with our Guru, Param Pujya Sahebji, while travelling through Europe. The majority of the group were 18 to 25 year olds; as a fourteen year old, I was the youngest member there!

On Monday 30thMay, after a small delay, we set off not knowing what to expect. We started off with dhun, asking that god be with us and look after us throughout our journey.

We had a great pleasure of our guru, other sadhus and youths from all different ages and backgrounds accompanying us.

One of the main purposes of this trip was for the youth of our satsang to learn how to keep god in the centre of our lives. By doing this you learn to be responsible for your actions and accept whatever the outcome in any thing you do. The more you want to get closer to god the more pleasure you gain. You have to experience this as it’s very addictive, it’s like the more you get the more you want.

You only need to walk a few steps towards god and

he always meets you halfway he will never let you walk alone.

Do seva to please god and your guru and see the satisfaction you attain in life. We were given our daily duties for the trip according to our age and experience. This brought me closer to everyone and

woken up at exactly 8.00am which was our departure time, we panicked! Everybody was ready and already on the coach. Finally, half an hour later we boarded the coach. We thought that we would get comments or be told off because we had held everyone up and

after me in every way including kicking a football with me at every opportunity. This shows how vital it is to keep good friends and very important that you go to mandir and associate with the right people. All these values are instilled in you slowly, every action has an equal

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Spiritual journey

I bonded so well with everyone this gave me a great pleasure. For me personally, this trip was a chance to meet many new people and learn from their experiences to enhance my knowledge.

See good in everyone, that’s what you will get in return. Every day we had early starts and late nights.

We would have to be down for breakfast by 6.30am, so that we could leave on time in order to keep to the schedule. One morning, my room partner, Neil and I both overslept! We did not hear the alarm. When we were

delayed the schedule.

But the amazing thing was that no-one said anything! Instead, during that time, they had prepared our breakfast for us and brought it onto the coach.

When we got on, they made sure that we were ok. The love and the kindness of all the youths was so touching, that we were never late again! That love and kindness came from what our Guru has taught us.

As the youngest one there I was at an advantage as I was at the front of the queue for everything. The youths saw me as one of them and looked

and opposite reaction. In one week I made friends for a lifetime and I know that I will get nothing but the best from them and that they will be there for me for guidance as they have become not only my friends but part of my amazing life.

While on this trip we visited so many beautiful places, like Jungfrau in Switzerland, which was like heaven on earth. But this trip made me realise, that true heaven is where there is love, kindness and compassion. I found this with my Guru and all the youths who made this trip unforgettable.

Each month we are inviting our readers to send in any questions they may have relating to that month’s ‘Spotlight on’ feature. So, if you have any familyrelated questions that you would like to put to Karen, please email your question together with your name and contact details, to: av@haroldbenjamin.com.

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14

COMMUNITY

India Connect Q & A: Visa to India What are the normal processing times?

Normal processing times are a minimum of 2-3 working days depending upon the visa category applied for and the application itself.

Asian Voice - Saturday 18th June 2011

London celebrates Ratha Yatra

London's 'Ratha-yatra' Festival of Chariots returned to the streets of the capital on Sunday 12th June 2011. London was illuminated by the wonderful colours and sounds of the annual Hare Krishna festival, a vibrant celebration of Indian culture and spirituality in the city.

Despite the rain, thousands of

How do I withdraw my application and will I get a refund?

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

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

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

How do I track my application?

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How do I withdraw my application and will I get a refund?

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What if I have lost my ICR for collection of passport?

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festival-goers, pilgrims, and faith leaders from all over the world hand-pulled the three 40-foot high colourful chariots carrying the sacred deities of Lord Jagannath, Lady Subhadra and Lord Balarama from Hyde Park to Trafalgar Square. The giant chariots were accompanied by a procession of singers, musicians, and dancers. London pulsated to Indian spiritual sounds with instruments from across the globe.

At Trafalgar Square, where the procession concluded, those who braved the wet weather enjoyed cultural and edu-

cational displays and exhibitions, revealing the spiritual heart of India.

Revellers participated in lively workshops, sample traditional Indian music, food, and literature, or try sari-draping and face-painting. On the stage, festival-goers were treated to traditional Odissi temple dance, contemporary philosophical dramas, and energising mantra chants. In addition to all this, free sumptuous Indian vegetarian cuisine added to a special family vouting.

‘Conservative Future’ grand launch held in Harrow

By Nikhil Gor Last Thursday saw the Grand Launch of Harrow’s Conservative Future (CF) branch, which represents the youth wing of the Conservative Party. The launch was held at Café Café, Harrow on the Hill with special guests Bob Blackman, Member of Parliament for Harrow East and Cllr Sachin Rajput, GLA Conservative candidate for Harrow and Brent. The evening brought together youngsters from across Harrow, ranging from students to young professionals.

Ameet Jogia, Chairman of Harrow CF said that, “the launch was a great success and is the first event of many to come.” Ameet added “that Harrow CF is open to all, not just for die-hard Conservatives and provides students with the opportunity to find out the Conservative Party is about and what it can offer. Harrow CF also helps young people get engaged in politics and to take responsibility of issues in their local area.” Harrow CF currently also helps students gain work experience in Harrow’s Conservative Associations and Conservative MPs. Asian Voice interviewed Bob Blackman MP on Conservative future and community relationships.

What does "Conservative Future" mean ?

Conservative is the future of

Cllr Sachin Rajput, Bob Blackman MP, Ameet Jogia

Conservative Party. It gives opportunity for young generation from age group of 18-35.

The purpose behind is to create a new breed of conservative activist and become conservative politician and party leaders who will lead the community through politics in coming future.

Young generation who are interested to join Conservative politics by joining the "Conservative Future" helps them to learn how to campaign, how election process works what are the main tasks and how to achieve them with a team effort. My message to young generation is that join party, learn the basics and then get elected as MPs, Councillors, Assembly Leaders.

What is the objective of Conservative Party ?

Any party objective is to pass their message across generations.

They are the future leaders and going to lead the country with their full spirit.

How was your interaction with young prospects and audience ?

Today there are some outstanding people present. They have the basic ideas but they need to gain some real experiences. It will make them tough. No party ends with or without a leader. It has to continue with new ideas and new talents.

What were the main subjects, this young audience were more interested in?

It was very interesting, They talk about climate change and understand how they are going to deal with it later as they are quite young at this stage.

They didn't raise important subjects like Education, Economy which I would like them to raise in coming future.

Any particular message you want to give to our readers ?

My message to Asian Voice and its readers is regardless your age embrace politics, come and join party- if you believe in family, law and order and continue respecting individual lives and rights to create enterprise, wealth, and be the best in what you can do. Conservative values are the same as Asian Values.

While concentrating on professional, personal and social life you must also involve equally in politics.

Those who came from East Africa know if you do not take part in politics, you will never represent or belong to a country!

OBITUARY rose fell to the ground. I picked it up and kept it as a memory of a moment of history – a forgotten era. As they covered the coffin and lifted it for the final journey, there was media frenzy outside the hall.

Suddenly 8 sombre faced men picked up the coffin and carried it out for its final journey – The journey of no return.

Even in death, he was destined to haunt the galleries of fame.

Immortalised, Husain was frozen in the hour glass of Shahnaz Husain with late M F Husain time.

A flawless white sheet the world. Nothing mattered. He covered his mortal remains. My was now part of another world. head reeled.

I could not believe it The saddest part was when a huge Husain is no more.

The aura was plank was brought that covered the heart wrenching and emotionally coffin and a long wreath of flowers draining like the shattering sound was placed across the length. On of silent thunder. top of the wreath was a tiny white At last Husain was at peace card that read, “Husain – you are a with the world. His life was one celebration – you will always great celebration. remain in our hearts”. A small pink

Husain-the end of an era

By Shahnaz Husain Husain lived life on his own terms!

That life was not just to be lived but celebrated.

It was a sad day. Lightening had struck the world of art. I walked into the Idara Jafaria, London – Crowds of men on the right and women on the left. As you walk into the hall, the musky smell of flowers - grim faces, muffled moans, holy citations the hearse, the wooden box with nails, swollen blood -shot eyes, a sea of heads bowed in homage to our very own Picasso. The somber aura was overwhelmingly.

In the centre of the room lay the coffin. After some chanting of prayers, the public was given permission to file past. It was heart wrenching to see Husain’s body in the casket – at last at peace with

UK

Asian Voice - Saturday 18th June 2011

15

by Shree Short Story by Neha Garg

Abby helps her friends

SUDOKU

us. We belong to the toy shop down the road. We were naughty and escaped last night,' he hung his head in shame.

'We had seen children play in this park and we wanted to enjoy too. It's very boring sitting on the shelves, waiting to be sold.'

With that the teddy bear started crying very loudly.

'Please take us back to the shop,' said the soldier, marching up to Abby.

'Poor elephant has a very bad stomach ache and cannot move. We are all very small and cannot lift him.'

Abby was puzzled but these toys needed her help. She felt very important.

'Hop into my bag,' she said as she leaned over the fence and opened her bag.

'The toys gave a cheer and jumped in. All except the elephant who couldn't move. Abby picked him up and gently put him in the bag too.

Then she walked down the road to the toy shop. She opened the bag and the toys jumped out. Soldier ran into the shop and drove out a toy truck.

They loaded the elephant in and ran off into the shop yelling, 'Thank you Abby. Thank you sooo much.'

COLOUR ME

Abby hopped along in the sunshine as her mother waved goodbye. Oh, what a beautiful day, thought Abby. Her mother said she was grown up enough to walk down to school by herself. Abby was very proud.

Suddenly she heard a loud groan.

'Ooooooh,' came the noise. Abby was startled. She did not know where the noise came from. She looked around.

'Oooooh,' went the voice again. It sounded as if someone was in great pain.

Abby looked over the fence that separated the park from the road. What she saw astonished her. 3 pairs of teary eyes looked back at her. Now Abby wasn't surprised because they were crying. She was surprised because those eyes belonged to 3 toys. An elephant, a soldier and a teddy bear. The elephant was holding its stomach, groaning.

'Please help us,' cried the toys.

Abby rubbed her eyes. Was this really happening?

'You can talk?' said Abby, very surprised.

'Yes,' replied the teddy. 'Please help

Be a Fashionista, Be You! If you have any questions or a story or a new style to share with us, please write to Shree at aveditorial@abplgroup.com

Between the Lines Fashion is fleeting.

Fashion is fun, fast and forever evolving. It’s up for grabs for anyone with money and inclination, however little of both. It can be bought, sold and recycled.

Style on the other hand, is intrinsic and notorious for eluding even the most determined of women. As they say, either you are born with it or not. It’s what we all covet and sometimes achieve.

And some things never go out of style.

Like hand-writing a Thank You note, or the habit of reading, some things are perennially in vogue. Take the humble stripe t-shirt for instance;

Happy Father's Day Father’s Day is about bonding.

Father's Day is about celebrating those days our fathers have worked away in the offices till late hours, so that we could have our favourite toy or nicest vacations. Father's Day is to thank the fathers- who have made us proud!

Held usually on the third Sunday in June every year (Sunday 19th June 2011), traditionally, the celebrations in the United Kingdom have ranged from small gatherings among families to commemorate the day, to large scale events sponsored by government offices and agencies. The government tries to hold these special celebrations every year in a bid to promote family ties and bonding. These things have been identified by the government as being essential for the continued success of families in the UK as well as the entire set of countries which make up the United Kingdom.

The UK has celebrated Father’s Day for many years, although the special day did not originate in the United Kingdom.

Several councils were founded in the United Kingdom in the early days of Father’s Day in order to pro-

mote the special day for those who wanted to celebrate it. For others who had not heard of a special day for honouring fathers, the councils established for this purpose did an excellent job in helping to promote awareness with those who were unfamiliar with the special day.

For many dads in the UK, sporting events are a good way to celebrate the holiday. Taking dad to a sporting event is a good way to create a time of special bonding for the child and father.

UK adopted this celebrated, after Father’s Day became a recognised holiday in the USA. During the 1930’s in New York City, a retail group started to promote the holiday

is there anyone out there that doesn't own, and love, a Breton top?

Stripes just seem to have that magical effect of making us feel puttogether and fresh on even the worst of days.

Like an old friend, while the stripe keeps coming back into fashion, it never seems to go out.

From the time Coco Chanel took this sailors’ uniform and turned it into a must-have for Parisian women mid-century, the stripe t-shirt has remained one of the wardrobe heroes for women all around the world.

It’s appeal enhanced in no small way by its accessibility.

This season, fashion

via various committees and councils. From these early days of promotion, Father’s Day started to become the holiday that it is now.

Incorporating Father’s Day was the goal of this organisation, and this goal was realised in the years following this initial push. Dodd, one of the founders of the original Father’s Day, was one of the biggest proponents for the push to commercialise the holiday. On the other hand, the founder of Mother’s Day, Anna Jarvis, spent the better second half of her life opposing the commercialisation of the holiday she helped to create. Merchants in the UK recognised the need to add humour and fun to the holiday, and they successfully did this over the initial years of the holiday.

Help celebrate Father’s Day this year by spending some quality time with Dad. He has done a lot for the family and will continue to do so.

Many in the UK will choose to give a gift to Dad this year, and there are many choices- like a neck tie, a personalised album, a book, ticket to a sports event or gift dad a ticket to Olympics 2012.

returns to the very versatile striped t shirt. With nautical themes still going strong, there is a Stripe Resurgence of sorts. But those who don’t follow fashion but look nice anyway have always favoured this fashion classic. It goes everything: with jeans, this season’s bright maxi skirts (a la Jil Sander), under a cashmere cardigan or under a trench coat and with red lips if you are after French cool.

Stay faithful to this enduring classic. Splash out on payday for one from the Marc Jacobs Spring-Summer ’11 Collection or put your mouth where is money is and pay a visit to the Gap. The effect is the same: cool, classic and always in style.

Teenager’s crusade for kidney disease awareness

By Namishka Doshi Earlier on this week I was privileged to appear on MATV’s CB Live, for which I’m thankful to have had the opportunity to go onto the show and talk about a charity event I am hosting on the 8th of July. I was very much encouraged by Shri C.B. Patel and Kokilaben Patel.

Let me introduce myself – I am Namishka Doshi a 17 year old student from Pinner, Middlesex.

When I was 11 years old I lost my father to kidney failure, he battled with the illness for 12 years till it finally took his life.

When suffering from kidney failure dialysis is the treatment the patient and in this case my dad had to undergo. His illness brought about a range of problems; it was difficult to travel because of his treatment plan, for example he had to take care with what he ate so he changed his diet. The worst thing is that the only cure for this is if the patient receives an organ donor.

Only one per cent of people on the organ donation list are Asian meaning Asian people have to wait three times longer than other ethnicities to receive a donor.

Right now nearly 1,200 Asian people in the UK are waiting for a transplant. Some of whom will die while waiting like my father did.

A few months back I decided it was time I did something about this illness and started to raise a bit more awareness. I have chosen to host a

Dinner and Dance event in aid of the National Kidney Federation and to raise awareness of the NHS organ donation scheme. All proceeds from the event will go to the National Kidney Federation to enhance a kidney patient’s treatment.

They will use the money to make sure hospitals are hygienic so patients do not contract any other infection, buy new equipment and a range of other things that will improve treatment.

I plan to leave donor card forms and leaflets on the tables as Asian people tend not to donate their organs after death.

For further information on the event or any support you can give please contact Namishka Doshi on 07891816070 namishkadoshi@hotmail.com or Harshad Kothari on 07956 334162 harshad@sasconsultancy.com.

16

BollYwooD

Asian Voice Saturday 18th June 2011

Don't celebrate my birthday, says Vijay

Ilayathalapathy Vijay's birthday falls on June 22 and his fans are gearing up to celebrate it in a

grand manner. When this was brought to Vijay's notice, he appealed to his fans not to celebrate his birthday and instead they should help the poor and needy by distributing various welfare measures.

The star has said that arrangements should be made to distribute books, uniforms, sarees and other such goods to poor people. A function to this effect was held recently in several places in Chennai and some more are being planned on June 22.

Vikram's next, a mass entertainer!

Katrina is the sexiest woman Actress Katrina Kaif tops the sexiest women 2011 list of men's lifestyle magazine FHM, edging out Deepika Padukone who won the title last year. Katrina had won the title in 2008 and 2009 too. The FHM 100 sexiest women list is based on online and SMS voting. "We'd love to say 2011 was a close contest, only ‘Sheila’ made sure it was far from. A feat that becomes even more significant because no woman has ever won the sexiest woman title three times in the last 17 years that we've been making the list. Her average is higher than Sachin Tendulkar's and she replaces Deepika Padukone who won the crown in 2010, " said Kabeer Sharma, executive editor FHM India, in a statement.

Katrina seems to be the toast of the season - she was the only Bollywood actress to feature on the India Today's Elite Power list and is also the most Google-searched Indian celebrity.

Bats for her ex-friends: Katrina believes in keeping her friendships with her men long after the romance is over. She is also a very diplomatic. She is the one who actually initiated a conversation with Kabir Khan, making sure he casts her with Salman Khan in “Ek Tha Tiger” though her personal relationship with Salman is over.

Likewise now she is trying to ensure that she and Ranbir Kapoor (her other ex) also do Ayan Mukherjee's next for Karan Johar.

A source says, “Karan has not signed Katrina for this project. In fact Ayan is currently in Simla writing the film. However, Kat has got Ayan to make a verbal commitment to her and leaked out information saying that she is the girl that Ayan has chosen to team up with Ranbir so that all speculation on whether girls like Deepika Padukone and Anushka Sharma may make it to this project opposite RK Junior are nixed.''

Sony TV brings The X Factor to India

Actor Vikram has started work on his next, “Raja Pattai,” in which he teams up with director Suseenthiran. The actor said, "It's been a while since I did a proper mass masala film and this is that kind of flick. I'm sure it will be a crowd puller. However, logic doesn't take a back-

seat in the script." On Suseenthiran, he said, "He has delivered a hat-trick of hits. I recently saw his Azhagarsamiyin Kuthirai and really appreciated his work in it." Deeksha Seth marks her debut in K-town with this flick. "It's a dream debut for me," said the actress.

‘Avan Ivan’ finally releasing on June 17

Sony Entertainment Television has recently unveiled in Mumbai the Indian version of the singing show, The X Factor. The show gives the viewers an opportunity to help choose the next musical star. The hopefuls will audition in front of the judges as well as the audience across the country. The concert-like atmosphere will give the contestants an opportunity to prove their prowess - vocal ability, charisma and stage performance.

The contestants will be divided into three categories: contestants between 16 and 25 years, above 25 and groups. Each category will be mentored by one of the show’s three judges - Sonu Nigam, Shreya Ghoshal or film director Sanjay Leela Bhansali.

The judges may have their say but the audience will decide who ultimately has The X Factor.

Sonu Nigham said: "The singers have to impress the audience first. The viewers will judge them first, then we do." Said Shreya: "It's people's competition more than anyone else's. We analyse and criticise pointing out the finer points but it's the people who vote for the X factor man or woman.”

Bhansali said: "The X Factor aspirants face the whole of India, not the three judges. India decides the winners and the losers."

The young singer Aditya Narayan hosts the show, travelling the length and breadth of India in search of truly gifted singers.

Emraan Hashmi fine with serial kisser image

The makers of Avan Ivan seems to have finally made their mind on the release of their upcoming Tamil movie. After postponing the date on several occasions, they have officially announced that the film will hit the screens on June 17. The promotions of

Avan Ivan are on full swing and the movie bosses are making every effort to attract the audience. The movie is simultaneously hitting the screens in Telugu and Tamil. The Tollywood version of the film has been titled as “Vaadu Veedu.”

Bollywood actor Emraan Hashmi has accepted the “serial kisser” image. If 68-yeqr-old Amitabh Bachchan is still the ‘angry young man,’ he can’t have a problem with his ‘serial kisser’ image.

Unapologetic about his numerous on-screen kissing scenes, Emraan, who’s ready now to return with his role from “Murder” in the forthcoming sequel, says, “Everyone has a forte that fans come to associate them with. Being stereotyped is not detrimental to my career as long as it doesn’t stop me from doing different films.” By his own admission, 70 per cent of his films have sexual content, but the actor insists, “As long as I get to do engaging films and my fans are entertained, I am not worried.”

Shah Rukh Khan gives newcomers a lesson Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan had everyone on the sets of Red Chillies Entertainment's “Always Kabhi Kabhi” impressed to no end. The actor sure did give the newcomers a lesson on perfection - while on the sets of the song in which SRK makes a special appearance. He asked the director Roshan Abbas for the lyrics and would keep rehearsing with choreographer Caesar until he got the steps just right.

Amazed to see SRK do 20 straight rehearsals, the kids were in complete awe of him!

Says a source, "The kids were awestruck watching SRK rehearse they wondered where all the energy and enthusiasm came from and how he managed to focus on the task minus distractions even after so many years. It was then that Roshan told them that's what makes a superstar."

Says Roshan Abbas, "Shah Rukh's keenness to learn the lyrics and the steps had the kids spellbound. They got to see what goes behind making a superstar first hand. I was shocked to see the energy and vigor they came out with after this experience."

Set with the backdrop of a high school, Always Kabhi Kabhi is a story of four unique lives trying to compete with the pressures of growing up and the firsts we all experience in school.

Directed by Roshan Abbas Always Kabhi Kabhi is the launch pad for four of the newest Gen X faces Zoa Morani, Giselle Monteiro, Ali Fazal and Satyajeet Dubey.

Mallika out to probe how hot she is Mallika Sherawat wants to prove that she is the hottest in Jalebi Bai! As the sex siren's item number in “Double Dhamaal” goes on air this weekend, the actress will be seen doling out hot jalebis to her fans at a suburban sweet mart in Mumbai to coincide with the launch of the track.

Says a source, "The Double Dhamaal team has been planning for a while for the item number. They feel Mallika herself distributing garma garam jalebis in a store is the best bet."

Adds the source,

"Mallika feels she is looking her sultry best and wants to tempt people just as a freshly made hot jalebi does to the tastebuds!" Laughs director Indra Kumar, "It's going to be a hot jalebi and a hot Mallika."

He adds, "Even when we shot for the track at Mehboob Studios, the mood was festive and celebratory. We used to order 25 kg of the sweet everyday for the entire unit during the filming."

During the shoot, choreographer Ganesh Acharya used to have a party with unit hands including the diet-conscious Mallika who would insist on feeding Indra Kumar the hot sweets herself!

Asian Voice - Saturday 18th June 2011

Yana item number too hot to handle Yana Gupta's item number, Zara kareeb se, in “Murder 2” will not be shown on small screen as part of the movie's promos, thanks to the Censor Board's sharp scissors.

Apparently, the panel found the song to be too horrific, especially for the below 18 audience.

Confirms director Mohit Suri, "Yana will not be shown in the item number for the promotions on the small screen. Her song was not only found hot to handle but too gory and suggestive, too."

Prachi to shed her desi image After Jacqueline Fernandez it is Prachi Desai’s turn to steam up the screen for the Bhatts. Once again Mahesh and Mukesh Bhatt have decided to turn the staid into the seductive.

Like Jacqueline who has gone from doing kiddies’ films to playing the full-blown seductress in “Murder 2,” Prachi with her prim image will now be transformed into a seductive siren in the Bhatts’ thriller “Informer” to be directed by Kunal Deshmukh.

Falling in love with Ranbir is easy Ranbir Kapoor has revealed on Simi Selects India's Most Desirable how close he is to his mother Neetu Singh. "I'm closer to mom. My mom used to cut my nails till two years back. I'm very dependent on her." The actor features in the show's first episode.

In the 'Meet the Parents' round, Neetu has stated, "Ranbir is very soft and polite. It is very easy to fall in love with Ranbir." Oooh.. now we know why the long list of girls in his life, Dippy, Kat, Nargis, Angela...

Next is who?

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Anushka aiming for size zero After Rani Mukerji and Kareena Kapoor, another Yashraj heroine, Anushka Sharma, has been spending long hours in the gym after reportedly told to cut down to size zero for the sexy, skimpy wardrobe she has been given for “Ladies Vs Ricky Bahl,” and that includes show-all swimwear.

The actor admits that she has been working out a lot but insists it’s for a better-toned body. She asserts that those who know her well are astounded when stories like this get around since she has always been naturally slim. “I’ve always been active and sporty, with a high metabolism rate. Earlier my visits to the gym were sporadic. Now, I’m more regular. My character in ‘Ladies Vs Ricky Bahl’ demands a good physique and trendy styling,” says Anushka. She, however, is quick to add that the training is not for weight loss: “I tend to lose weight if I’m not working out, if I lose any more weight I’d be anorexic.”

17

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Asian Voice - Saturday 18th June 2011

Infosys eyes UK govt deals to close in on TCS, Wipro Dear Financial Voice Reader, Chateaux Laffite Rothschild 1982. It rolls off the tongue and doubtless the wine, were I not teetotal, would slip equally smoothly down the throat. I mention this as I was for two days last week in Belgium as the guest of Banque Privee Edmond de Rothschild, who are the bankers to my fund. And they told me more than I ever knew about their wines.

So in a room of some of the wealthiest families and their representatives in Europe (and me) – what did they have to tell us? Here are some observations and insights: 1. I was the only non-white in the room of 200 guests. Well, some of them had tans. And not cheap fake tans either.

2. India was mentioned once. As a place not to invest because of risk of conflict with Pakistan. Most of the investment talks focussed on Europe and the US. Old money is conservative money for sure.

3. Russia and the direction it chooses politically is key to the future – towards China or towards the EU/US alliance.

4. The most interesting section was when the owners of the Renault F1 team explained how they get deals done with heads of government. It was a wonderful way to see how old wealth multiplies behind hidden doors and deals. In their case – they simply invited Putin to drive an F1 car. And whilst he did that, lots of deals were being struck. It’s a little more complicated than that – but I do want to be invited again next year you know.

5. There was definitely no fear of the future. Just a calm slow certainty. They could all have been Swiss in their attitude.

6. What are they buying? Well it was the Annual Growth meeting so the focus was on Private Equity.

On buying companies. But it was most definitely European in feel. The buying wasn’t about SE Asia, China or the Middle East. Allocations to those regions were to be small. Over 50% would definitely be in the very established US and European markets.

7. As for commodities – purchasing of companies owning the mines was one option. These are not people who chase prices – they buy the means of production and let the prices chase them.

8. All in all it brings you down to earth – or elevates you – depending on your perspective and given 72 hours earlier I was in debt-ridden Dubai and corruption focussed Delhi.

9. But do not be fooled. The old money only needs to grow a couple of percentages and it can make more than a ten percentage rise in a fortune 10 times smaller. And that is why we ‘outsiders’ without the wealth or the long European family histories will focus on the high economic returns of China, India and South East Asia – knowing the risks will ensue.

10. But then again, Rothschild’s made their money from the wild west of Europe at war. So it’s all very well being cautious now. We’ll all be cautious when we too own half of Europe.

Thoughts on @alpeshbp.

My blog is at www.alpeshblog.com and www.alpesh.tv you can see my latest TV commentary.

Alpesh.patel@tradermind.com

Infosys is evaluating options to tap into UK's multi-billion government outsourcing market, as it seeks to compete better with larger domestic rival Tata Consultancy Services by increasing its share of revenues from public sector departments looking to cut costs.

So far, India's secondbiggest software exporter has stayed away from addressing the UK's government outsourcing market. In contrast, rivals TCS and Wipro have established subsidiaries and won several deals, including from the country's pension management authority and tax department. "We are studying the market. But there are contractual and liability challenges," said BG Srinivas, Senior Vice-President, manufacturing, product engineering, product lifecycle and engineering solutions businesses.

Infosys recently

announced a new subsidiary in the US to focus exclusively on public sector projects. Srinivas, however, ruled out a separate subsidiary for this business in the UK. Several UK government departments have already started sending IT jobs overseas to cut cost of operations and cope with a local shortage of skills.

For instance, the UK's tax authority, HM Revenue & Customs, is beginning an offshore outsourcing pilot in India with technology vendor Capgemini.

The UK government has announced measures like putting a cap on IT projects over £100 million, protecting its inhouse IT capabilities and greater scrutiny on projects being awarded. "The UK government has articulated that outsourcing will continue but they will be cost conscious," Srinivas said. Europe accounts for over 20% of

Infosys' $6-billion revenues, of which over 50% comes from the UK. Infosys has also identified France, Germany, Switzerland, Netherlands , Belgium and Poland as its core markets in Europe

Infosys buys NZ Gen-i's software solutions biz Meanwhile, Infosys said its Australia and New Zealand unit has acquired the software solutions business of New Zealand's Gen-i for an undisclosed sum. Infosys said in a statement it would take over 110 employees and contractors from Gen-i, which would raise its New Zealand staff strength to up to 150 people. It also plans to add 15-30 new hands immediately.

Gen-i is the corporate information communication technology (ICT) arm of Telecom New Zealand.

"Since launching our

Tata tea group looking for strategic investor Tata Global Beverages, the owners of UK’s Tetley Tea and US’ Eight O’Clock coffee, is looking for a strategic investor to off load 20 per cent of its international operations.

The tea group which has partnerships with beverages groups PepsiCo and Starbucks, expects to conclude a deal in the next few months. The move comes after Tata Global Beverages failed to nail a deal with private equity.

Financial sponsors may yet be brought on board, said RK Krishna Kumar, vice-chairman, but they should be able to “make a contribution to what we set out to do”.

Mr Kumar said: “There are quite a large number of strategic players who have come to us. So it is a process of carefully analysing what is a good and then moving further down the road.”

The company is keen to expand both internationally and to broaden its

product portfolio. As part of this, in the past year it established alliances with PepsiCo, the US-based soft drinks group, and Starbucks, the coffee chain, and it is keen to further exploit these partnerships.

It is also embarking on a global shopping spree, having built up a $1bn war chest following the disposal of its 30 per cent stake in vitamin water maker Glaceau to Coca-Cola in 2007.

“The main purpose of that cash is to have a war chest for acquisitions, and there are a sizeable number [of possibilities],” said Mr Kumar.

After Maruti, Ford plans to set up plant in Gujarat After Maruti Suzuki, Ford India is planning to set up manufacturing plant in Gujarat. The Detroit-based company plans to invest Rs 50 billion to set up a three-lakhcars-per-annum plant in Gujarat. The state government has identified 400 acres of land near Sanand, where Tata Motors commissioned its Nano plant last year. Another 100 acres will be set aside for components units.

While Ford officials and state government authorities remained tightlipped, sources close to the development say an announcement is likely sometime this month.

Ford India, the US carmaker's Indian subsidiary, already manages a Rs 17

billion manufacturing plant at Maraimalai Nagar, 45 km from Chennai with a peak capacity of 200,000 units per annum.

Ford India neither confirmed nor denied the development. "As part of its plan to introduce eight new products by the middle of the decade, Ford is significantly expanding its capacities in its existing facility in Tamil Nadu as well as exploring other options to meet the grow-

and the company has seen revenue from these regions grow faster than the UK in the past two years. UK's contribution to revenue has come down from over 60% two years ago to about 50%.

ing demand of consumers in India and export markets across the world," a company spokesperson said.

If Ford finalises on Gujarat, the state's dreams of becoming an auto hub will get a big boost. While General Motors and Tata Motors already have units in the state, companies like Maruti Suzuki are likely to finalise Gujarat to set up a one million car per annum plant soon.

first New Zealand office 18 months ago, we have been studying the market to find the right strategic partner," Infosys Australia & New Zealand Chief Executive Jackie Korhonen said in a statement.

"Our partnership with Gen-i makes sense because we share core values and complement each other's strengths to fill some critical gaps in the marketplace."

The partnership has significant potential to further grow New Zealandbased technology jobs, the company said.

TCS topples ONGC to become India's third most valuable company

India's largest software company TCS last week briefly toppled ONGC as the country's third most valued company with its market capitalisation soaring to over Rs 2,310 billion, driven by a spurt in share price.

Tata Consultancy Services (TCS) claimed the position of third most valued company with over 6 per cent spurt in its share price.

The scrip opened on a bullish note on the Bombay Stock Exchange ( BSE at Rs 1,169 and then surged to touch an intraday high of Rs 1,182.30, thereby increasing the market valuation of the company to Rs 2.314 billion.

ONGC dropped to the fourth position with a market capitalisation of Rs 2,302.20 billion.

Reliance Industries and Coal India with M-cap of Rs 3,100 billion and Rs 2,570 billion respectively, remained the top two most valued companies, according to the data available with BSE.

FINANCIAL VOICE

Asian Voice - Saturday 18th June 2011

19

Birds Of The Same Feather Flock Together

Suresh Vagjiani Managing Director Sow & Reap A Property Investment & Financing company.

Whilst in Goa this week I met the owner of a number of holiday villas in South Goa. Oddly enough he was a white man from Grimsby, England. More surprisingly he was into property in the UK and this is how he got started. India got under his skin when he went back packing several years ago. Of all the people I would bump into, I bump into a UK property man!

Back in UK after his travels Giles ended up as a used car salesman.

Having got comfortable and enjoying the buzz of going to auctions to purchase cars this is where he ended up buying his first property.

Property was always something he was looking into. Originally his idea was to save up, buy a property then save up some more then buy another property. The original seed was sown in his mind when he met a client who was into property. Not having the money but simply the enthusiasm to purchase a property he put his mind to work.

In Grimsby where Giles is from, at the time properties were going for around the £20k mark. Giles figured he could purchase one with credit cards without the need for even a mortgage. Being comfortable with the auction environment he went along and ended up picking up a property - a mid-terraced house for £14k. This property was paid for via cheques from the credit card companies. This finance came with zero percent interest for six months.

In order to save costs he done the work himself or rather tried to, made a mess of it and then got some builders in to do it properly. This took six months, after this the property was valued at £28,000. Taking an 80% remortgage for £22,400 he was able to pay the credit card companies back, just at the time when they would hike the interest rates and then was in a position to purchase more properties without the need to sell the initial one. The next two were higher in price, naturally as the prices had increased. These two were purchased from agents and not the auctions.

H e had noticed auction properties were get ting over heated, the prices were more t han what propert y agen ts where askin g for. No rmal ly Gil es woul d go and see abou t 40 propertie s worth typically aroun d £40,000. He the n would pu t in a stupid o ffer.

Ou t of seeing 40 propert ie s an d pu tting in 40 stupid offers 2-3 would co me back as a positive . The offers he would pu t in would be aro und £15-16,000. So t he success rat io was 5%, clearly this wou ld h ave to be a full time job.

His golden rule was the 15% rule. Very simply he looked at interest rates historically and found they had rarely gone above 10% therefore if he stuck to properties yielding 15% regardless of whether the price went up or down he could not go wrong. So this was his parameter when purchasing. I asked him what kind of tenants he would get in this location, the demand comes from one parent families. Grimbsy has the highest ratio of one parent families in the whole of Europe. It was known as the yummy mummy capital, though Giles confirmed they were not very yummy! Here’s a fact I did not know.

After purchasing these two properties Giles again refinanced and went for a commercial property. He broke his rule of 15%, this deal had a 12.5% yield, with commercial the tenancies tend to be stronger and more long term and therefore he allowed a little slackening of his rule a little in going for this property.

Using this domino strategy he built his portfolio to 14 properties.

By this time which was around the year 2000 it was impossible to find the yields he was used to at 15%. In short everyone was doing it and the BTL yields had softened.

Afte r h aving boug ht and re nted and gett in g bored of this conce pt , he decid ed to really go o ut and d o so me thing special with the prope rties. Con cent rating o n all owing n atu ral light into t he propertie s and look ing for an gles rather t han plain vanilla d eveloping, he gained an edg e when he came t o resell the apartmen ts.

When this occurred he went to Goa to look at a deal with a block of flats which was high yielding. This deal fell through. He went with his father who was a typically British man in his habits and had never been to India before. Going there his father fell in love with the country and also wanted to invest, though Giles told him not too as if things went wrong at least Giles could make his money again, his father could not being much more senior. However against his son’s advice they bought a track of land with planning permission for 80 flats.

It took him five years to convince the RBI to give him planning to build only four villas. It took him this long to convince them this was a really low impact development and would help local employment. I guess perhaps they were sceptical of someone actually telling the truth.

The scheme he had in mind was designed by himself and a friend of his who had dropped out of university whilst studying tropical gardening.

Giles himself has a keen interest in tropical architecture.

Together they spent two months in Goa looking at the sun and the wind, seeing how they moved. What they have created is a truly stunning design which looks completely in sync with the natural surroundings.

The living area is totally open, so there is a free flow of air, the roofs have been angled to avoid the rains coming in during monsoon season.

Most of the bathrooms are outside in the open, (but cannot be seen into), with the bedrooms located on the ground floors.

The villas each come with a gourmet chef and drivers at your disposal. After renting the villas out for a year to a rental management company Giles has now moved to Goa with his family to take the project hands on.

Studio in Popular Sutherland Ave The property is a bright and recently refurbished studio flat situated on the lower ground floor of this superb mid-terrace Victorian house. Set on the lower ground floor the property comprises of a reception room with open plan kitchen, bathroom and separate sleeping area. The property lies within close proximity of Little Venice Canal and Warwick Avenue Underground Station which makes it highly attractive to potential tenants. The property is currently rented on an AST until June 2012 producing £13,000pa.

Tenure: Share of Freehold Service Charge: £500pa approx Purchase Price: £240,000 Accommodation: Reception Room, Separate sleeping area, Open plan kitchen, Bathroom Tenancy Details The property is let on an Assured Shorthold Tenancy from 2nd June 2011 for a term of 12 months at a current rent of £180 per week.

Cash Flow Statement

Comparables

Commentry This property is cheap for the location, we feel it is at least 10% off the true market value. The return on deposit is low in comparison to the other properties we advertise, this is partly because the property has been under rented. A little money spent on refurbishment will ensure a higher rental figure.

This is one for capital growth. This property will appeal to first time buyers and those who want a second home in the area.

We provide a turnkey solution. Contact us now: Specialists in: l Property Sourcing l Mortgages l Commercial Finance l India Properties

UK Sales 0207 313 4595 India Sales 0203 384 5323

Tips of the Week lDon’t wait to buy real estate, buy real estate and wait lNinety percent of all millionaires become so through owning real estate.

Westbourne House, 14-16 Westbourne Grove, London, W2 5RH

20

financial voIce

Asian Voice - Saturday 18th June 2011

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

Maria Fernandes

maria@abplgroup.com

The amnesty that wasn’t The battle has raged about whether or not there is an amnesty. The Immigration Minister vehemently denied that there was one. Following the tough image that was being portrayed this was not surprising. It would be political suicide to admit that there is in place a system especially in terms of numbers.

What is certainly true is that unlike the past recorded amnesty a few years ago there were conditions that needed to be met in order to qualify, usually that there were close family members, good character and long residence.

This time round the UK Border Agency announced that there was a old backlog of cases which were separated from the newer cases and placed within a particular unit of the UK Border Agency with allocated staff and a 5 year plan. No other information was available and the UKBA advised that they would make contact with the applicant and that the

applicant was not under any circumstances to make contact. A number of solicitors advised their clients that there was an amnesty and charged huge amounts of fees to process these claims. As time went on it became clear that some cases were likely to be successful usually those which involved families with children. Fast forward to July when the cases are due to be completed and it was noted that wider groups of migrants were now achieving success but the process (and fairness of it) became haphazard. The worst part of the system was that practitioners knew that there was a form of amnesty but that the way it was being operated was not transparent obviously for political reasons.

In the US, a country which has a very robust immigration system, it is possible under their law to apply to remain there after a period of 10 years spent unlawfully providing you can show actual

India set to further liberalise FDI policy India’s finance minister Pranab Mukherjee said that discussions were on to further liberalise the FDI policy. "Discussions are underway to further liberalise the FDI (foreign direct investment) policy," he said at the annual conference of chief commissioners and directors general of Central Board of Excise and Customs (CBEC) last week.

He said with an aim to make the FDI policy user friendly, all prior regulations and guidelines have been consolidated into a comprehensive document.

The document is reviewed every six months.

Mukherjee's statement comes within weeks of an

Inter-ministerial Group (IMG) headed by Chief Economic Advisor Kaushik Basu recommending to the government opening up the multi-brand retail sector for FDI to tame inflation.

The IMG constituted in February by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had favoured opening of the sector in a calibrated manner.

Last July, the industry department had initiated discussions on opening the sector for FDI. The share of organised retail in the total retail trade happens to be just over 4 per cent in India. The unorganised retail sector employs about 33 million people.

Tesco sales up despite subdued show in UK

British supermarket group Tesco says its sales rose 7.8 per cent in the 13 weeks ending May 28 despite a relatively subdued performance in its home market.

Tesco, the world's third-largest retailer, said on Tuesday that overall

sales excluding petrol were up 6.7 per cent compared to last year.

Its British operations underperformed, with sales there up only 3.4 per cent on a same-stores basis. When taxes and petrol sales were excluded, sales were actually down 0.1 per cent in Britain.

The company's performance in Britain was likely to have been distorted by the Royal wedding , which was a public holiday. Tesco's Fresh & Easy venture in the United States reported 11 per cent rise in sales.

presence, have a close relative who would suffer hardship and are of good character. In effect it is an amnesty. Other countries will have similar systems.

Boris Johnson was right to have suggested that the way forward was to have a system of earned amnesty so that it would have the effect of allowing those who work hard and are of good character to regularise their stay and start paying their taxes thus depriving the unscrupulous from exploiting others.

Amnesty is a word.

Granting amnesty is a process that could be beneficial to the country if only the politicians were brave enough to say so.

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

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

Escorts eyes Gujarat to set up tractor plant Tractor-maker Escorts Ltd is in the process of identifying locations for its Rs 2.50 billion manufacturing facility. The company is looking at few states down south and western India, including Gujarat.

Rohtash Mal, executive director and CEO, Escorts Agri Machinery Group said, “We are looking for strategic locations in view of growing markets as well as proximity of auto component suppliers. Gujarat is definitely one of the state under consideration for our new plant, which will have capacity of 50,000 tractors annually. The new plant would be commissioned in next couple of years.”

Escorts has manufacturing facility at Faridabad in Uttar Pradesh. The company has a capacity to manufacture 1 lakh tractors annually. The company plans to export 4,000 tractors, especially to African markets. Last fiscal it had exported nearly 2,500 tractors. Demand of tractors in India is growing at around 20%.

Growth rates in states like Gujarat, Maharashtra and Andhra Pradesh is nearly 100% year on year last fiscal and these markets are expected to grow at similar rates in wake of shortage of labourers as well as growing rural economies.

When One Problem Leads to Another On April 11th 1970, Apollo 13 took off from Earth on a mission to the moon. Unlike its predecessor Apollo 11 it did not capture the attention of the world. It was simply doing what had been done before. Man had reached the moon, came home and everybody got back to their day to day lives. That was of course until April 13th 1970.

During some routine maintenance procedures Oxygen 2 tank exploded setting off a chain of events which suddenly transformed this ‘routine’ spaceflight into a gripping rescue mission.

With oxygen rapidly leaking out and virtually no electricity – mission control had to devise a plan to get them back.

The problem was that whenever they came up with one solution another problem was discovered. They decided to use the Landing module as a ‘lifeboat’ as that still had some oxygen and power – but not enough to get them back to earth. So they had to conserve

what little power and oxygen they could in the service module. Having determined a way to survive, they then plotted how they could repower the Service module to enable them to land on Earth. Here too there were problems – they needed the computer telemetry to tell them where there were, but this would mean switching off the guidance system which would help them control where they were going!

At some point in our lives we face a situation wherein we are forced to make difficult choices and it can seem that whatever we do will have some consequence or negative impact. The decisions made during such times can be the defining actions of a person’s life. These situations can vary in gravity and scale. After the terrorist attack on the Twin Towers, the US government had to make a decision to either send troops to Afghanistan to hunt down Al Qaeda or try to

By Amit Patel

restrict Al Qaeda by tightening security at its borders. Other decisions are more personal – when the Titanic was sinking many men helped their wives and children into the life boats and then stood back as the ship descended beneath the waves.

It is not always possible to make the right decisions, all one can do is make the best decision possible at that particular time. Good leaders are those who can evaluate a situation, identify what is critical, urgent and important; weigh up the possible solutions and then take the decision of what the next course of action will be.

Apollo 13 made it home not because of any miracle – but because of strong leadership. There are times when one problem will lead to another and then another. The three essential qualities required are sound judgement, courage and perseverance.

RIL enters insurance business; acquires Bharti’s stake in AXA JVs Reliance Industries, India's largest private business house, has made its entry into the insurance business by agreeing to buy Bharti's 74 per cent stake in its life insurance business, Bharti-Axa. Through this deal, Bharti has exited the business in both the life and general insurance arms.

“The decision is in line with the Bharti's strategy of focussing its energies and financial resources in businesses where it is making a deeper impact in India and overseas. At present, the financial services ventures do not fit into Bharti's long-term growth plans,” the company said in a statement.

The company had entered into these joint ventures with the AXA group in 2006 and held 74 per cent stake in these ventures - Bharti AXA Life

Insurance and Bharti AXA General Insurance.

“It (Bharti) intends to use the proceeds from selling its interests in these joint ventures towards other group businesses in India and abroad,” it said.

Bharti, a leading telecom player, has operations in 19 countries including 16 nations in Africa where it acquired Zain Telecom's assets last year for over $10.7 billion. It has accumulated mobile subscriber base of over 190 million.

In a separate statement

RIL also said the company had reached an understanding with Bharti on acquiring its entire stake in the joint venture with AXA.“This sale is subject to necessary approvals from the Insurance Regulatory and Development Authority, the Competition Commission of India and any other relevant/applicable authorities,” Bharti said. Bharti also said that it was in the process of offloading its stake in its joint venture with AXA for asset management.

According to the Reliance statement, RIL and its subsidiary Reliance Industrial Infrastructure (RIIL) would effectively own 57 per cent and 17 per cent, respectively, in both the insurance companies and would become AXA's joint venture partners in India.

IndiGo to fly to Dubai, Bangkok from Sept India’s budget carrier IndiGo plans to start international operations to Dubai, Bangkok and Singapore from September this year, and will deploy 8-9 aircraft to service these routes, a top official said on Tuesday.

The airline plans to expand its fleet to 60 aircraft by December 2012 from 39 now, president of the company Aditya

Ghosh told reporters.

Owned by InterGlobe Enterprises and industry veteran Rakesh Gangwal, a former chief executive of US Airways, IndiGo is the third-largest domestic carrier with about a fifth of the market share behind Jet Airways and Kingfisher.

Buyoed by a rising demand in Asia's thirdlargest economy, IndiGo in January agreed to buy 180

planes from Airbus for an estimated $15.6 billion in the largest jet order in commercial aviation history.

IndiGo had said it was considering all options including an initial public offering to finance the plane order. India's domestic carriers carried 19 million passengers this year through April, 18 per cent more than the corresponding period last year.

FINANCIAL VOICE

Asian Voice - Saturday 18th June 2011

21

Foreign Exchange Rajesh Agrawal is the Chairman & CEO of RationalFX, Currency Specialists.

For any further information call 020 7220 8181 or e-mail info@rationalfx.com

Growth still slow in the major economies It was a quite week for Sterling last week with the main focus on England’s rate decision, which as expected, had no change at 0.5%. As markets expected, the Bank of England made comments that they will not be reviewing the interest rates until November this year. Acting IMF chief John Lipsky was in London giving his annual economic

assessment on the state of the UK. He said that the state of the recovery was on track but more QE may be needed if growth doesn’t move in line as the BoE have suggested.

Sterling comfortably traded above the $1.64 prior to the rates decision but managed to drop below that level when, Manufacturing, Production and Industrial figures all came in worse, this backed the fact that UK growth was slowing down.

Germany, the strongest economy in the Eurozone showed

their trade balance increasing slightly but their Industrial Production dipping slightly, these figures showed that the German economy was slowing down, which was back by Angela Merkel’s earlier comments. The Eurozone did have some good data in the form of retail sales and German Factory Orders, the figures had little effect as the markets were awaiting the rate decision from the Eurozone. Although the market was expecting them to be kept on hold, there was a slight chance that they may surprise the market by increasing them before the current expected July hike. EU GDP Q1 figures came out on Thursday, QoQ was up 0.8% and YoY was up 2.5%, both of which came out better than the previous, but in line with the expectation. The Euro was not supported by the data, trading around 1.4640 from 1.4680 in the morning session, later we saw further down to 1.4560.

ECB Interest Rate Decision came out unchanged at 1.25%, at least till next month. The decision itself did not affect the rate as such but while Trichet’s speaking, we saw Euro move massively against its major counterparts. EUR/USD dipped down from 1.4650 to 1.4480,

Weekly Currencies As of Tuesday 14th June 2011 @ 10.30AM GBP - INR = 73.39 USD - INR = 44.73 EUR - INR = 64.57 GBP - USD = 1.64 GBP - EUR = 1.14 EUR - USD = 1.44

even worse than the dropping GBP/USD. Therefore, GBP/EUR picked up from 1.1230 to 1.1320, which is the high of the week. Germany CPI MoM and YoY came out this early morning; this was a slight decline from the previous and the market consensus. MoM is reading from 0.2% to 0% and YoY is reading from 2.4% to 2.3%. Euro did not find any support from it, trading below 1.44 level, seeing a further risk aversion.

We have started of the week with little date out from the United States but saw Fed Chief Ben Bernake giving his monthly speech regarding all matters toward the state of the US economy and US dollar midweek.

He touched on rising unemployment being a big and a main rea-

son for lower consumer spending. A slowdown in the recent jobs market is also a worry for the Fed as we saw the lowest number in Non Farm payrolls this month of 54,000 a concern.

Rising commodity prices are also being seen as a worry on inflation and are being watched closely by the central bank.

Finally the United States debt worries are a major concern for the Fed as within recent weeks credit rating agencies have put a review on the once Ultra safe AAA+ debt. The dollar still remains venerable at the moment with uncertainty regarding the United States credit rating and mounting debt problems, which are seeing investors shun the greenback’s recent gains over the last few days.

GBP - AED = 6.02 GBP - CAD = 1.60 GBP - NZD = 2.00 GBP - AUD = 1.54 GBP - ZAR = 11.09 GBP - HUF = 300.44

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

22

PakiSTan-BagLadeSh-Sri Lanka

Asian Voice - Saturday 18th June 2011

Pak judge conducting trial of 26/11 suspects transferred In focus Islamabad: The judge of the anti-terrorism court conducting the trial of seven Pakistani suspects charged with involvement in the Mumbai attacks has been changed for the fourth time, with the current incumbent being transferred to another court in Punjab province.

Rana Nisar Ahmed, who had been hearing the Mumbai attacks case since he was appointed judge of Rawalpindi's anti-terrorist court no III in November 2010, was transferred.

Ahmed had also been conducting the trial of five suspects charged with

Zakiur Rehman Lakhvi

involvement in the 2007 assassination of former premier Benazir Bhutto.

According to a notification issued by the Lahore High Court, Ahmed was appointed as additional district and sessions judge in Shakargarh.

The move came hours after Ahmed issued a permanent arrest warrant for former President Pervez Musharraf for failing to cooperate with investigators probing Bhutto's assassination.

Ahmed also ordered the Federal Investigation Agency to provide a complete record of Musharraf's moveable and immoveable assets for confiscation at the next hearing on June 25. Ahmed had first issued an arrest warrant for Musharraf in February after investigators declared him an absconder. He constantly pushed FIA prosecutors

Pervez Musharraf aide booked for possessing liquor Islamabad: Pakistani actress Atiqa Odho, a close aide of former military ruler Pervez Musharraf, has been served a show cause notice to appear before customs authorities and clarify her position regarding two bottles of liquor found in her luggage during a search at the Rawalpindi airport.

The notice had been served, customs spokesman Rana Shakeel told the media. Police too have booked Odho on charges of possessing two bottles of liquor.

They acted after the Supreme Court took suo motu notice of an incident in which Odho was let off after being briefly detained

Roadside bomb kills 15 in Afghanistan Kabul: Afghan authorities say a roadside bomb has hit a bus in southern Afghanistan, killing 15 people, including eight children. The Ministry of Interior says the attack took place on Saturday in the Arghandab district of Kandahar province. The ministry also said in a statement that one person was wounded in the blast.

The UN says that May was the deadliest month for Afghan civilians since 2007.

Pervez Musharraf

by authorities at the Benazir Bhutto International Airport in Rawalpindi on June 4 for possession of liquor.

Reports said police had sought permission from the Home Department of Punjab province to obtain arrest warrants for Odho, who lives in Karachi.

Odho was Vice President of Musharraf's

All Pakistan Muslim League but resigned from the party after the incident was reported by the media.

The airport security force found the liquor in her baggage during a security check before she was to board a flight to Karachi. The All Pakistan Muslim League has said a three-member committee is looking into the issue.

Though Odho tendered her resignation, her fate will be decided after the committee's findings, the party said. The consumption of alcohol is banned in Muslim-majority Pakistan but the country has a thriving bootlegging industry. Alcohol is available at a premium in most Pakistani cities.

Tamil language lessons for Sri Lanka MPs Colombo: Sri Lanka Ministry of National Languages and Social Integration has commenced a programme to provide education on Tamil language to the members of Sri Lanka Parliament. The National Institute of Language Education and Training will conduct the Tamil language course for the MPs. Prominence is given to speech in Tamil in the sixmonth course, says the Ministry. The classes are to be held for two hours in

the morning on each Wednesday before the parliament meets.

The first course is to be commenced with the participation of 30 MPs and ministers of both government and opposition.

The Minister of National Languages and Social Integration, Vasudeva Nanayakkara, says the public officials at government institutions, especially, receptionists and other personnel interacting with the public should be bilingual.

to ensure Musharraf's appearance in court.

Experts said the sudden transfer of Ahmed could affect proceedings in the Mumbai attacks case, as the new judge appointed to conduct the trial will need time to acquaint himself with the details of the complex case.

The trial has been marred by delays and technical hitches since proceedings began in 2009. At least one of the three judges who previously heard the case was changed after he received threats from militant groups, sources said.

Pak pamphlets incite people to kill Ahmadiyas Islamabad: Pamphlets branding members of the minority Ahmadiya community as "wajib-ul-qatl" (fit to be killed) and inciting people to attack them are being openly circulated in Pakistan's textile industry hub of Faisalabad, according to a media report.

The pamphlets list the names of several Ahmadiya industrialists, doctors and business men.

The first name is that of a cloth house, three owners of which were gunned down in a brazen attack last year, The Express Tribune newspaper reported.

The pamphlets were issued by the All Pakistan Students Khatm-eNubuwat Federation and are being circulated at main shopping plazas and important commercial centres of the city in Punjab province.

"To shoot such people is an act of jihad and to kill such people is an act of sawab (blessing)," the pamphlets say.

The Umoor-e-Aama Jama'at Ahmadiyya of Faisalabad, a group representing the community, reacted to the distribution of such literature by saying that the propaganda campaign is being "carried out unhindered by some fanatic religious groups under the patronage of law enforcing agencies and the provincial government".

Gilani for early conclusion of FTA with US Islamabad: Pakistani Prime Minister Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani has called for an early conclusion of Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with America to promote economic activities and address the issue of poverty and unemployment, particularly in underdeveloped and militancyhit areas of Pakistan.

He was talking to a US Congressional delegation led by Doug Lamborn, which called on him at the PM's House in Islamabad.

While underlining Pakistan's strong commit-

Syed Yousuf Raza Gilani

ment to cooperate with the US in defeating the common enemy of terrorism and militancy, Gilani stressed on the need for concerted efforts by both

sides to bridge the trust deficit through reinforced cooperation in intelligence sharing, joint action against al Qaeda and its affiliates, as well as progress on various segments of strategic dialogue in multi-faceted fields.

He termed Pak-US relationship as significant in the context of how they can shape the future of this region, and called for joint endeavours to ensure maximum utilisation of the potential for economic development in Afghanistan as well as the region at large.

The members of US Congressional delegation termed Pakistan as an extremely important country in the world in the war against terrorism and for defeating violent extremism.

They assured Gilani that despite strong sentiments in US Congress for reducing the budget deficit and cutting down on foreign aid, the economic assistance to Pakistan would continue.

They also welcomed Gilani's proposal for Free Trade Agreement between Pakistan and the US.

Hindu trader shot dead in Pak

Islamabad: Unidentified gunmen shot dead a Hindu trader in a busy market in Mastung town of Balochistan province in southwest Pakistan on Monday, police said.

The trader, identified only as Dewan, was killed in the main bazar of Mastung, located about 50 km from provincial capital Quetta. The trader's body was handed over to his relatives after an autopsy at a nearby hospital. Police said they had lodged a case and started a probe. There has been an increase in incidents of harassment of the minority Hindu community in Balochistan province since last year.

55 killed in Pakistan violence Peshawar: At least 55 people were killed and many others injured in a series of attacks in Pakistan last week. In the first incident, at least 35 people were killed and over 100 injured when twin bomb blasts ripped through a crowded market in Peshawar. The second of two explosions was carried out by a suicide bomber who detonated his explosive vest when a large number of people gathered after the first blast, police said on Sunday. In the third incident, around 150 militants attacked a security check post in Waziristan, killing eight soldiers. The security forces retaliated and killed 12 militants.

Death caught on tape sparks controversy in Pakistan

Karachi: Pakistani authorities say they are investigating paramilitary forces who allegedly shot and killed a teenage boy in custody in the southern city of Karachi.

The incident was caught on video and aired on local television, sparking the latest controversy for the Pakistani military. A spokesman for the paramilitary Rangers claimed forces detained 18-year-old Afsar Shah because he was attempting to rob people in a park in Karachi . He said a gun was recovered from the boy and he was shot because he was reaching for a Ranger's rifle.

Shah's brother, Salik, a local crime reporter, denied his brother was a robber and accused the Rangers of shooting an innocent person. Both the Rangers and the police said that they would conduct an investiation.

Pak to deport American held for spying Islamabad: A US national who has been arrested for allegedly spying on nuclear facilities near the Pakistani capital and is expected to be deported soon as the interior ministry has already cancelled his visa. Matthew Craig Barrett, 27, was remanded to judicial custody for 14 days by a court in Islamabad on Saturday following his arrest from sector I-11 of Islamabad on Friday. He was then taken to Adiala jail in Rawalpindi. Police said the interior ministry had ordered him to leave Pakistan

by June 4 and his continued presence in the country violated the Foreigners Act.

India-Pak to ease visa norms Islamabad: India and Pakistan are making efforts to ease visa procedures, and a second round of talks between the home ministers of both the countries would be held in August, the Indian high commissioner has said. India and Pakistan were trying to bring about procedural changes in their visa regime, Sharat Sabharwal said in his address to the Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FPCCI) recently. "It is essential to promote bilateral trade to bridge the trust deficit between the two countries," Geo News quoted him as saying. FPCCI president Haji Ghulam Ali said it was vital for the two countries to exchange more trade delegations.

Row in Pak over budget by Christian FM Lahore: Several legislators of the PML-N, the ruling party in Pakistan's Punjab province, have objected to the upcoming provincial budget being presented by finance minister Kamran Michael on the grounds that he is a Christian. Michael, who holds the human rights and minorities affairs portfolios in the provincial government, was given charge of the finance ministry after the Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) ended its alliance with the Pakistan People's Party in Punjab in March. PML-N leaders are "in a bind trying" to figure out who to assign the finance portfolio before the budget is presented in the assembly. Several PML-N members have objected to a Christian being given the position of delivering the annual budget, a daily said.

Pak prosecutors given 7 days to provide papers

Islamabad: A Pakistani anti-terrorism court conducting the trial of LeT's Zakiur Rehman Lakhvi and six other suspects charged with involvement in the Mumbai attacks gave prosecutors a week's time to provide copies of statements of key Indian witnesses and other relevant documents to defence lawyers. The prosecutors were unable to produce the documents during proceedings conducted by Judge Rana Nisar Ahmed behind closed doors at Adiala Jail in Rawalpindi, sources said.

woRld

Asian Voice - Saturday 18th June 2011

23

In focUS

US court acquits Mumbai attack accused Rana

Canadian city to honour Raj Kapoor

Chicago/New Delhi: In a verdict that disappointed India, a US court last week acquitted Tahawwur Rana of plotting the 2008 Mumbai attacks.

The court, however, held him guilty of supporting Pakistan-based terror group Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT) and planning a strike in Denmark that will get Rana a maximum of 30 years in jail.

A 12-member jury here reached a split verdict after two days of deliberations and ruled that the 50-year-old PakistaniCanadian was not guilty of conspiracy to provide material support to the Mumbai attacks which killed 166 people, including six Americans.

If he had been convicted on this count, he could have received a maximum sentence of life imprisonment.

Ontario: City of Brampton in Ontario, Canada will name a street after the great showman Raj Kapoor. This will be a welcome gesture to Indian cinema since the City of Brampton hosts of the 12th International Indian Film Academy (IIFA) Weekend and Awards.

With the Videocon d2h IIFA Weekend and the Floriana IIFA Awards making their North American foray into Canada this year, IIFA and the Toronto International Film Festival (TIFF) have tied up to host a tribute to Raj Kapoor. Titled, ‘Raj Kapoor and the Golden Age of Indian Cinema’ the festival will run for six weeks at the TIFF Bell Lightbox. Several pieces of memorabilia from RK films, including the costumes, cut-outs and props used during the films which will be displayed in the Bell Lightbox atrium during the festival. A series of paintings inspired by Raj Kapoor films will also be showcased in the building. Members of the Kapoor family are expected to attend the opening of the film festival on 26th June 2011. The city would also like to induct Raj Kapoor into the Brampton Hall of Fame, having a star placed there in his honour.

US hails death of al-Qaeda's Africa head Washington: US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton expressed satisfaction at the death of the suspected head of al-Qaeda in east Africa and the man held responsible for American embassy bombings in the 1990s. Fazul Abdullah Mohammed was held responsible for the bombing of the US embassy in Nairobi was gunned down by Somali government troops, after he refused to stop at a roadblock in the capital Mogadishu last week. Mrs Clinton said it was a "just end" for the man accused of bomb attacks on the US embassies in Kenya and Tanzania which killed 224 people in 1998. The 38-yearold Comoran's death is also seen as a rare victory for the Western-backed Transitional Federal Government of Somalia, which is fighting al-Shebab Islamic militants linked to al-Qaeda for control of the east African country.

94 killed in China rain fury Beijing: At least 94 people were killed and over 100 went missing in flooding caused by torrential downpours in central and southern China, reports said on Sunday. Flooding on the southern reaches of the Yangtze river and in southwest China's Guangxi region in recent days has affected 13 provinces or regions and destroyed 465,000 hectares of cropland, it said.

Provinces such as Hubei, Anhui and Hunan along the middle and lower reaches of the Yangtze river had recently been suffering a severe drought. China is hit by heavy summer rainfalls every year. In 2010, torrential downpours across large swathes of the country triggered the nation's worst floods in a decade, leaving more than 4,300 people dead or missing. One devastating mudslide in the northwestern province of Gansu killed 1,500 people in August.

China building aircraft carrier Beijing: China’s top military official has acknowledged his country is building its first aircraft carrier by refurbishing a Soviet vessel. The move will put it on a par with India, which has one aircraft carrier in the INS Viraat. But Chinese shipbuilders are expected to produce a 60,000 ton carrier that is double the size of Viraat, and also equip themselves with the capability to churn out more such vessels in a short space of time.

India is expected to welcome the INS Vikramaditya (formerly Admiral Gorshkov) in 2013, after several delays. The news caused a stir in the naval world.

Filipino declared world's shortest man Sindangan( Philippines): A Filipino blacksmith's son who stopped growing when he was a toddler was declared the world's shortest man as he celebrated his 18th birthday. Measuring just 59.93 cm, or 23.5 inches, Junrey Balawing is the oldest of four siblings. The rest all of normal stature born in the rural town of Sindangan on southern Mindanao island. "Officially he is the world's shortest man," said Craig Glenday, editor-in-chief of the Guinness Book of World Records who measured Balawing in front of cheering relatives and villagers. The previous record holder was Khagendra Thapa Magar of Nepal, who was measured in 2010 at just over 26 inches.

"Thank you all for supporting my son, the world's shortest man," Junrey's father, Reynaldo, said.

Egypt's Muslim Brotherhood party recognised Cairo: Egypt's banned Muslim Brotherhood has been recognized as the Freedom and Justice Party. The announcement would allow the group to run in parliamentary elections set for September. The Brotherhood is considered one of Egypt's best organized blocs following the fall of president Hosni Mubarak in February.

It was founded in 1928 but outlawed since 1954. Even so, it has built and maintained a powerful social welfare network. Its candidates, running as independents, won 20 per cent of the vote in a 2005 parliamentary election.

combined and remains in federal custody without bond, a US Justice Department statement said.

No sentencing date was set. Rana’s lawyers said they would appeal against the ruling as there was an “error” in the trial.

Not a setback A disappointed New Delhi made it clear that the US court’s verdict was not a setback for the National Investigation Agency’s (NIA) investigation against Rana and his friend David Coleman Headley, a PakistaniAmerican operative of the LeT. India’s External Affairs Minister S M Krishna said that he was not satisfied with the outcome as there was enough evidence to link Rana to the Mumbai attacks.

“The fact remains that

throughout the last few months when the trial was going on and in the course of evidence there were substantial linkages between those two (Rana and Headley) and the Mumbai attacks,” Krishna said. But it was a judicial process of a foreign country and could not be dictated. He laid stress on Pakistan conducting investigations on the basis of evidence.

Sources said one of the options New Delhi might consider was prodding Washington to file an appeal against the acquittal of Rana on one count of conspiracy in the court in Chicago. India has been closely monitoring the trial of Rana in the court in Chicago as it exposed the role of the Pakistani spy agency Inter-Services Intelligence in plotting the 26/11 carnage.

Australian PM refuses to meet Dalai Lama

ISI officers, NCOs trained me: Headley

Canberra: Australian prime minister Julia Gillard refused to meet the Dalai Lama during his visit to Parliament House on Tuesday but insisted that the snub had nothing to do with Chinese pressure on world leaders to shun the exiled Tibetan spiritual leader. "I make my own decisions and the government makes its own decisions about meetings that we hold," Gillard told reporters. The Dalai Lama said he wasn't disappointed. He seemed to know little about Gillard - including her gender.

"If your prime minister has some kind of spiritual interest, then of course, my meeting would be useful, otherwise I have nothing to ask him," the Dalai Lama said during a news confer-

We have killed Somalia minister, claim rebels Mogadishu: Somalia's Al Shabaab rebels said on Saturday they were behind the killing of Interior Minister Abdi Shakur Sheikh Hassan after they planted a bomb under his bed at his house in the capital Mogadishu. An Islamist forum website carried a message saying Al Shabaab movement had taken responsibility for the killing.

"By the grace of God Almighty, the interior minister of the apostate government and its national security (interior) minister was killed in the afternoon on Friday...a bomb exploded planted by the mujahideen inside the home, specifically under his bed. After the blast he was taken to hospital but nothing was left, only a rotten corpse," the message said.

Abdi Shaur, the minister's driver, had said on Friday that he believed the minister was killed by a female suicide bomber, thought to be his cousin.

Tahawwur Rana

Announcing the verdict, US District Judge Harry D Leinenweber said Rana was guilty of providing material support to the LeT, which had carried out the 26/11 attacks, and plotting to bomb JyllandsPosten, a Danish newspaper which had published cartoons of Prophet Mohammed.

Rana faces a maximum sentence of 30 years in prison on the two counts

Dalai Lama

ence. He twice referred to Gillard as a man before he was corrected.

Meetings with the Dalai Lama are a delicate issue for heads of state because China regards him as a dangerous separatist who wants Tibet to split from the country - a charge he denies. In Australia, which has extensive trade ties with China, a low-key

2008 meeting between the Dalai Lama and the acting prime minister brought a rebuke from Beijing.Some lawmakers accused Gillard of being out of step with Australia's most important defense ally, the United States, where the Dalai Lama has met President Barack Obama.

Some observers suspect Gillard is demonstrating her independence of the Greens party, a vocal critic of China's control of Tibet and a crucial supporter of the ruling Labor Party. Greens leader Sen. Bob Brown met the Dalai Lama Tuesday and had been lobbying Gillard to do the same. Brown criticized Gillard for failing to meet the Dalai Lama while her office door was open to mining executives.

Canada announces new visa regime for Indians Toronto: Giving a fillip to Indo-Canada trade relations, Toronto has announced a new visa regime that would allow Indians 10 years multiple entry visa to the country.

The announcement was made by Canadian minister of international trade Edward Fast at a meeting with delegates of the Indian government and business community at the two-day mini Parvasi Bharatiya Divas Canada 2011 convention was held here.

Fast said the new visa process would be available to Indians who travelled to Canada frequently. "After an initial visa screening, applicants can get a visa that allow them to visit Canada often - as long as their passports are valid up to 10 years," Fast said.

India’s minister of state for external affairs Preneet Kaur who led a delegation said both countries were committed to strengthen their bilateral trade relations. "The Indo-

Canadian community is a microcosm of the people of Indian origin living abroad," she said.

“India and Canada will soon sign the Social Security Agreement, conclude a bilateral Investment Protection Agreement, negotiate a revised Double Taxation Avoidance Agreement and complete an ambitious Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement," she said, adding both nations aim at a bilateral trade target of USD 15 billion in next five years.

Both countries were in talks for a Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement that would yield significant economic benefit and lower tariff on a large number of products for both the countries.

W a s h i n g t o n : Notwithstanding Pakistan's denial, LeT operative David Headley has highlighted the deep involvement of ISI in the Mumbai attacks conspiracy by revealing how he received meticulous training in espionage from its officers and agents during "thousands" of sessions.

The training, imparted in a two-storey ISI safe house in Lahore, was not like the James Bond style but focussed on ways to camouflage his identity and earn the confidence of Indians he was going to use.

Headley, a PakistaniAmerican, was initially imparted training by terror outfit Lashkar-e-Toiba (LeT) for conducting reconnaissance for Mumbai attacks but his handler Major Iqbal of ISI was dissatisfied with it, following which advanced training was given to him

by Iqbal and several NonCommissioned Officers (NCOs) of the spy agency.

"I had been consulting with or meeting with Major Iqbal, and he was discussing what Lashkar intended to use me for, which was surveillance.

"He said that he wanted me to do something which he thought was more important, which was do intelligence work for the ISI at that time," Headley informed a Chicago court which was conducting the trial of coaccused Tahawwur Rana.

"He (Major Iqbal) looked at my notes that I had made from my LeT course, and he expressed a dissatisfaction... it was wasn't very good," Headley said in his testimony, transcript of which is available with a news agency. The instructions in spying were then given by Major Iqbal and NCOs from the ISI.

24

INDIA

Asian Voice - Saturday 18th June 2011

India successfully tests Prithvi-II missile armed forces, a senior official said. 'The missile reached the predefined target in the Bay of Bengal with a very high accuracy of better than 10 meters,' he said. 'Prithvi-II met all the mission objectives and was like a text book launch.

'All the radars and electro optical systems located along the coast monitored the missile throughout the flight

Cartoon: Jami

India last week successfully test-fired its nuclearcapable Prithvi II missile from a military base in Orissa, defence sources said. The surface-to-surface missile with a range of 350 km was fired from the launch Complex-III of the Integrated Test Range at Chandipur-on-sea in Balasore district.

The launch was carried out as part of the regular training exercise of the

…………corruption in epitaph? Anything can happen now

In divine light

By Rajen Vakil

The Remorse of Nala

path,' he said.

An Indian navy ship near the target zone witnessed the final event.

The launch was overseen by scientists of the Defence Research and D e v e l o p m e n t Organisation (DRDO).

Prithvi is India's first indigenously built ballistic missile. It is one of the five missiles being developed under the country's Integrated Guided Missile Development Programme.

The missile, with flight duration of 483 seconds reaching a peak altitude of 43.5 km, has the capability to carry a 500 kg warhead.

Prithvi, which has features to deceive anti-ballistic missiles, uses an advanced inertial guidance system with manoeuvring capabilities and reaches its target with a few metres of accuracy.

Nala abandoned a sleeping Damayanti alone in the forest and started roaming in the jungle. He then came across a huge ball of fire. From within the fire, a voice called out to him, “O Nala, have no fear and come into this fire.”

Mustering courage Nala entered the fire, and saw a huge snake in it. The snake introduced himself as Karkotaka, and revealed that ages ago he had deceived Sage Narada, on account of which the muni had cursed him. The curse was that he would remain stationary in this ball of fire till Nala rescues him. The snake promised Nala, “If you lift me out of this ball of fire and free me, I will do good for you.”

Feeling compassionate, Nala lifted Karkotaka out of the fire. Karkotaka then told him, to not stop walking even after leaving the fire, and to count his steps. Nala did as he said and the moment he counted his tenth step, “dus” the snake bit him. The Sanskrit word “dus” also means “bite or sting.” So when he uttered the word dus, it implies that Nala asked the snake to bite him.

As the snake’s poison started circulating in Nala’s blood, his entire appearance changed and he became deformed. He became short, ugly and his arms and legs contorted badly. The snake reassures Nala, “Fear not, I have bitten you for your own good. Now no one will recognize you. Your misfortune befell you, because of Kali. Kali entered your being and controlled your thoughts and actions. You lost the game of dice and the kingdom because of Kali. But now, Kali will find staying in your body very painful and torturous, as my poison will keep burning and stinging him. Now, go to the kingdom of Ayodhya and approach its King Rituparna. He will not recognize you because of your changed appearance.

He is an expert at the game of dice and knows all the strategies and secrets of winning. You are an expert with horses and know the secrets of speed. Exchange your knowledge with Rituparna, and once you have mastered the game of dice, go win back your kingdom. Also, keep this cloth and when you wish to regain your original form, put it on your shoulder.” Saying this, the grand snake vanished.

Let us interpret the story till here. We have previously seen that Nala

fell from a high state of being to a lower one, when Kali or darkness entered his being. This resulted in the Nala Damayanti separation, where Damayanti symbolizes the “power to resist”.

So Nala lost his power to resist when Kali entered his being. For instance, we decide that we will not say anything hurtful to another person. However, no matter how much we try to maintain our awareness, when a challenging situation comes in front of us, once again we fall in the old habit, and involuntarily let a few hurtful words fly towards the other person. In retrospect, we realize that we were hypnotized by the situation, and we tend to repent.

The ball of fire symbolizes the fire of repentance burning within us. Now our repentance can take one of the two tracks: one is the right track which leads to remorse and the awakening of conscience within us. The other is the wrong one which most people follow and that leads to a state of guilt. Of course here we do not talk about the very large group of people who feel nothing when they commit an act of unawareness.

Guilt is counter-productive. In guilt, we lament over what we have done, blame ourselves and slip into a feeling of self-reproach or inferiority.

With guilt nothing changes within us, and we tend to repeat the same mistake again, even though we do not want to. In remorse, on the other hand, we allow ourselves to burn in the flames of repentance, which awakens the light of conscience within. We are able to observe the pattern within our subconscious that is responsible for our action and discern the inner cause leading to the outer action. We take responsibility for our thoughts, words and actions and through the heat of purging ourselves we are able to free ourselves of the compulsive tendency and break the pattern. We pass through the purgatory within and reach a higher dimension of understanding and maturity within us.

In the story the snake Karkotaka represents our buried and dead conscience. The poison is the sting we feel when our conscience awakens. The snake makes Nala count to ten. Till nine, all numbers are single represent-

ing a state of non-duality.

Ten is the first dual number and that is when the snake bites Nala. For our conscience to bite us there must be a struggle between two aspects what is right and what is wrong. It is this struggle of the dual which leads to inner friction that give rise to the flames of repentance.

The process of remorse can again be divided into two steps. In the first, we allow the old pattern to burn in the flames. This leads to a higher state of consciousness and understanding which is not immediate but takes some time to digest. The snake gives Nala a different form as he had to learn the art of dice from King Rituparna, who would not have parted with this knowledge if he knew he was giving it to another King. The word Rituparna means ‘a seasonal leaf’. So this is a new turn for Nala, and is the second step, a period of healing and living incognito.

Nala did as Karkotaka advised and met King Rituparna in Ayodhya.

Nala told the king that he is an expert at handling horses and he can reach any place very fast and quickly. He also told him that he is an expert cook and can bring out hidden tastes from food.

Impressed, Rituparna tells him that he was always keen on speed and he can look after both his stables and kitchen. In the stables Nala sees his old charioteer Varshneya, who does not recognise his former king. Varshneya observed the way Nala handled the horses, and even though Varshneya knew that only Nala knew the art of handling horses this way; he could not recognize Nala as his former king because of the changed appearance.

Meanwhile, Nala couldn’t stop thinking of Damayanti, even though everything seemed to have settled outwardly for him. Gurdjieff calls this the state of “self remembering”. In Indian bhakti yoga, the devotee pines to merge with God. Every night as he would go to bed, Nala would long for Damayanti and sing a song of how only a stupid person could have left his wife in the jungle all by herself.

The author can be reached by emailing 3srb@live.com (Edited by Chintu Gandhi)

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

InDIA

Asian Voice - Saturday 18th June 2011

25

Gujarat to introduce e-voting in taluka panchayat polls AV Correspondent Following its success in the civic body elections, the Gujarat election commission is now all set to introduce e-voting in the forthcoming taluka panchayat elections. With the introduction of e- voting at the grass root electoral process, the state is expected to become one of the pioneer states in introducing the concept.

Not wanting to leave any kind of dis-

crimination between urban and rural electorate, e-voting will be introduced especially in those villages which already have the facility of e-gram. Gujarat election commission Secretary P S Shah said, ``In the recently concluded civic elections, especially in state capital Gandhinagar, it was a success but many argued that it comprised of an urban literate population but the rural population has been ustilising of the e- gram facilities as well.’’

Shah said that those villages which have connectivity, and a computer literate population have been selected as sample villages for the pilot project. Shah said that in taluka panchyat elections the important part of the elections is that even 100 votes matter a lot. ``This facility will enable the voters who are still outside the village to cast their vote through e- voting,’’ said Shah.

Officials said if the pilot project is suc-

cessful during the taluka panchayat elections then by the next assembly elections e-voting will be introduced for all the assembly constituencies.

Shah said that the process of testing has already begun in about 100 villages which have been identified for this process. “The servers and the connectivity are being tested on a frequent basis by the taluka level officials so that it does not flop in the last moment,’’ said Shah.

In focus 10 get death for honour killing A special court in Etah last week handed death sentence to 10 of the 14 accused in a 2008 honour killing case. One of the accused was let off due to insufficient evidence while another was awarded one-year imprisonment. The remaining two are minors and are being tried by the Juvenile Justice Board. The court also imposed a fine of Rs 10,000 on each accused. Death sentence to 10 accused in a single case is rare, said judicial officers. In March 2011, a Gujarat court handed death sentence to 11 of the 31 people convicted in Sabarmati Express carnage. But that was a riot situation in which 59 persons were killed.

22 charred to death in TN bus accident

At least 22 people, including five women, were burnt to death in Tamil Nadu when their bus fell into a pit and its diesel tank caught fire, police said last week. One passenger and the bus driver had a miraculous escape. While trying to avoid hitting another vehicle, the Pollachi-bound bus crashed into the pit near Vellore district. Vellore district officials said only two people, including the driver and another passenger. The driver later surrendered to police. Karthikai Rajam, the lone surviving passenger, said he escaped by breaking open a window but couldn't save the life of his wife Smitha.

Mamata inks peace pact with GJM

West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee last week signed a bipartite agreement with Gorkha Janmukti Morcha in Kolkata to finally pave the way for peace in Darjeeling. The Bengal government decided to set up an autonomous hill council with more financial and executive powers than the existing Darjeeling Gorkha Hill Council and form a panel to examine the inclusion of the Gorkha-dominated 398 mouzas. GJM agreed to hold elections to the new council and work for the development of the hills.

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Reporter shot dead in Mumbai In an incident which sent shock waves through the journalistic community, motorcycle-borne gunmen shot dead a senior journalist, Jyotirmoy Dey, an investigative reporter with Mid-Day, in Mumbai on Saturday afternoon. Police suspect it is the handiwork of an organized gang, possibly as a result of some investigative reports written by the veteran crime reporter in the past, or personal enmity. After three days police were unable to achieve any breakthrough regarding the case though they have detained many suspects.

TN govt scraps DMK's free colour TV scheme

Scrapping yet another pet project of the erstwhile DMK rule, the Tamil Nadu government jettisoned the free colour television scheme. The orders for around 7 lakh colour television sets to be procured under the sixth phase of the scheme had been cancelled, chief minister Jayalalithaa told the Assembly.

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InDIA

Asian Voice - Saturday 18th June 2011

Laying controversies to rest, Maqbool Fida Hussain dies at 95 in London

Knowing to have quoted controversies during his lifetime as a painter, M F Hussain left behind a legacy of art that will never be replicated in style and form. Hussain’s death in a London hospital last week created a vacuum in the world of modern art. The 95-year-old painter, known for his liberal thinking and his admiration for beauteous Bollywood actresses always kept him in the news. Hence even as Hussain continued to live in a self-imposed exile died as a Qatari, despite being an Indian national after 94 years. His death was caused by a heart attack triggered by accumulation of water in his lungs.

It was a non-bailable warrant for his arrest that forced the painter to stay out of India and he will be remembered famously for his bare feet and Bugattis.

He left India in 2006 and explained to his fans that “matters are so legally

complicated I have been advised not to return home”.

Though Hussain’s style of work was not compared with any of his contemporaries but he was often dubbed as India’s Picasso.

He first quoted controversy when his 1970s nudes of Hindu deities which came to light some 20 years later. And then controversy never left Hussain. His portrayal of Bharat Mata as a naked woman in 2006 added on to more trouble for him.

Even when it came to film making, Hussain could not have avoided controversy, hence his film, ‘Meenaxi: A Tale of Three Cities’, had Muslim organizations complaining it contained a song that blasphemed the Quran.

Within weeks of 26/11, he was controversially displaying the blood-spattered Rape of India at the Serpentine Gallery in London and expressing optimism that India’s

youth will rise and throw the old fogies away.

Apart from his passion for paintings, Hussain had several muses in Bolloywood, the best known is Madhuri Dixit.

He signed the paintings inspired by her as ‘Fida’.

His next muse was Tabu, and then Amrita Rao. His new inspiration was Anushka Sharma whose Band, Baaja, Baraat he had seen 15 times Hussain’s interest in India Inclusive started early. At Independence,

Hussain, 32, elected not to go to Pakistan, joining five others instead to form the Progressive Artists’ Group in Mumbai. It would set the tone for modern art in India, eventually taking it to the zenith of multi-million dollar purchase prices in the world’s auction rooms.

Husain, who rejoiced in experimentation in his early years by blending disparate ethnic and mythological themes, set out to capture and portray India’s mood in the next six decades.

Some described him as the artistic equivalent of a poet laureate, celebrating India’s triumphs and weeping over its tragedies.

Art lovers also remember him for an 80s exhibition in Mumbai consisted of two halls shrouded in white cloth while torn newspapers littered the floor. Hussain was on Friday laid to rest at Brookword cemetery near London.

Baba Ramdev discharged, vows to continue fight Baba Ramdev was discharged from hospital here Tuesday morning, with doctors asking him not to do yoga and breathing exercises for a few days.

The yoga guru said he would keep up the fight against corruption.

'The cruelty and barbarity on people committed on the night of June 4 will not be wasted. I will work till my last breath to fight against corruption to make India an economic

superpower,' Ramdev told reporters after being discharged from the Jolly Grant Hospital in the Uttarakhand capital.

Doctors said his blood pressure and pulse rate were normal on Tuesday, four days after he was admitted there due to

deteriorating health during a nine-day long fast against corruption.

They have also advised him not to do breathing exercises and yoga - something the 46-year-old has hugely popularised in India - for a few days.

'He must take rest till he becomes totally fit.

There is no special restriction on food as he takes only fruits,' S.L. Jethwani from the hospital told reporters here.

Wipro plans £20 tablet computer for Indian masses Keeping the masses in mind, a device jointly developed by Wipro and a Belgian nanotechnology company, India’s wealthiest software tycoon has announced plans to produce a £20 tablet computer designed to bring iPadstyle technology.

Wipro, the IT giant founded by Azim Premji, said that it was developing a touch-screen PC device that would cost a fraction of the 29,500 rupee (£400) starting cost of an Apple iPad in India.

The tablet, aimed at the nation’s rural poor and schoolchildren, is taking shape at Wipro’s Electronic City campus in Bangalore. A pilot model should be ready early next

year, Wipro said. It is developing nanotechnology and miniaturised components to help drive down power consumption and overall cost.

Sales of tablet PCs such as the iPad, Blackberry’s Playbook and Samsung’s Galaxy Tab in India are expected to exceed one million units in the next 12 months. With a population of 1.2 billion and 3G technology being introduced across the country, a huge potential market is thought to exist for affordable devices.

Ashok Jhunjhunwala, of the Indian Institute of Technology, Chennai, pointed out that cutting the cost of a tablet PC to such a low level posed sig-

nificant technical challenges without compromising on quality. He said that it was feasible using current technology to manufacture a tablet computer for about £50 but that significant further advances would be needed to bring the cost down further. He, however, added if the project succeeded, the implications for India would be huge.

P r o f e s s o r Balakrishnan, chairman of the Super Computer Education and Research Centre at the Indian Institute of Science in Bangalore, said a viable device costing under $50 would bring huge benefits for India’s rural poor, by allowing for improvements

in basic education, including reading and writing skills.

It would also create new possibilities to supply mobile banking services to poor families who are currently excluded from the mainstream financial sector and would allow for the provision of better public services from government.

Wipro has teamed up with Imec, a nanotechnology company in Belgium, to collaborate on the project. Mr Premji, who is based in Bangalore, donated shares worth £1.2 billion in Wipro into a trust, the Azim Premji Foundation, to help improve state-run elementary schools in India.

Rajapakse’s attitude irks India Continued from page 1 “In India, land and police powers are devolved to the states, so why not in Sri Lanka too? Why remain suspicious about devolution of powers to the Tamils even after the Tigers are gone?” asked a Tamil leader, requesting anonymity. “But then,

denial has always been a state policy when it comes to handling the Tamil issue, Tigers or no Tigers,” he lamented.

This decision came as a disappointment for the Indian team but they did not make it evident, hence on the Saturday meeting with Mr Rajapakse, Shivshankar Menon hand-

ed over a letter from PM Manmohan Singh telling him he had accepted the invitation to visit Sri Lanka. Though the actual date is yet to be worked out, it would be the first visit of an Indian Prime Minister for bilateral talks in Sri Lanka in 14 years.

Dr Singh is already under pressure from TN to

act tough on the Lankan issue. Tamil Nadu Chief minister J Jayalalithaa recently piloted a unanimous resolution in the Assembly demanding that Delhi impose economic sanctions on Sri Lanka and also pressure the UN to launch war crimes probe on the Colombo regime.

In Focus Truck mows down 18 pilgrims near Ahmedabad Firoz Khan is inconsolable. Five members of his family, including two young nieces, had set out last week from their home in Dungarpur in neighbouring Rajasthan to offer prayers at the Urs of Peer Bhadiyad baba in Ahmedabad district. But in the wee hours of Thursday last, his world came crashing down as he received the news that his loved ones were run over by a truck on the Ahmedabad Dolka highway, about 50 km from Ahmedabad.His family members were among 18 pilgrims who lost their lives in the accident. At the primary health centre in Dolka, there were heart rending scenes as relatives jostled for the traumatic identification parade. The dead included eight women and two children. Thousands of pilgrims from Rajasthan, Gujarat and Madhya Pradesh visit the shrine every year, most of them on foot. The victims had just reached a halting point at Begwa chowk on the highway at around 12.30 a.m. After the accident the truck driver disappeared from the scene. At the incident spot, the tell tale signs of the horrific incident were visible.

Scattered slippers, fruits smashed by the truck tyres and blood strewn all around testimony to the horrific tragedy. Maqbool Khan, a survivor of the accident also recounted the traumatic moments during the night.

“Before I could realize anything, the truck stopped about a couple of feet away from me, killing several people and injuring many,” Khan said.While 16 people died on the spot, two others succumbed to their injuries at the government hospital.

Guwahati Archbishop nominated for Nobel Prize Archbishop of Guwahati Thomas Menamparampil has been nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize in recognition of his initiatives to bring peace among ethnic communities of the North East. The Archbishop's name has been nominated by a popular Italian magazine 'Il Bollettino Salesiano' which also published a four-page story on Menamparampil in its June edition titled 'A Bishop for Nobel Prize'. "I had not expected the nomination, but was overwhelmed by it. I was told about the possibility of such a development during my visit to Rome last month," Menamparampil said on Monday.

India announces $3 mn aid to Libya India last week announced humanitarian assistance of US $ 3 million to Libya. The assistance comprises US $ 1 million cash through UNOCHA and relief material and medicines to the tune of US $ 1 million to Benghazi and Tripoli each. A cheque of US $ 1 million was handed over to Under Secretary General for Humanitarian Affairs Valerie Amos at New York by India's permanent representative, Hardeep Singh Puri.

Jaya seeks Chidambaram's resignation Accusing India’s Home Minister P Chidambaram of getting himself elected to Parliament through "fraudulent" means, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa on Tuesday said his continuance in the Union Council of Ministers was untenable and sought his resignation.

"Our party has always maintained that Mr Chidambaram's victory was through fraudulent means...his continuance in the Union Council of Minsters is untenable," Jayalalithaa told reporters at her maiden press conference in New Delhi after assuming office last month.

Declare assets, Modi tells ministers Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi has asked his ministers to prepare a list of their properties. Officials said during a cabinet meeting Modi has asked his ministers to prepare a list of movable and immovable properties owned by them and their family members.

Officials said the directions were issued to ministers after IAS officials declared their properties recently.

Officials said while filing nomination each candidate furnishes the details of his immovable and movable properties. He said once this list was prepared by his ministers, the same would be declared.

Jumbos run riot in Mysore, kill one Mysore came to a standstill last week when two elephants strayed in from the Muttati forest and went on the rampage, leaving one person dead and several injured. Three cows perished and many vehicles were damaged before one of the elephants was tranquilised and the other sedated. Three persons have been hospitalised. Elephants are usually seen in Mysore, so nobody heed any attention when two elephants were spotted ambling down the road. Trouble started when one of the elephants got separated from its partner, leading it to go berserk. The 8-year-old tusker ran riot, killing a guard manning an ATM. It was an hour before the elephant was cornered and a couple of tranquilliser darts were shot at it and after some it collapsed. The other jumbo ran in the opposite direction and got stuck in a cesspool. It was sedated there.

Women & history

Asian Voice - Saturday 18th June 2011

Any quest ions writ e to m amta @thinkspalon

By Mamta Saha don.com

Psychologist

A spotlight on coaching In this weeks article I am focusing on the ‘coaching journey’. At times we want to change and value good advice, however it becomes difficult to incorporate such beneficial changes.

This is especially true when we have operating from within our comfort zones for so long. Read below for a Q and A insight into Vijay Parikhs experience of being coached by me.

Vijay Parikh is a Partner and Head of Commercial Investment Department at Harold Benjamin Solicitors, based in Harrow. Vijay highly regarded with- in property circles. His clients are based all over the world including east Africa, South Africa, India and the Middle East. Vijay is a true entrepreneur and commercially minded and it is this flair that he brings to the legal advice given to his clients.

What triggered you to get a coach - considering you are successful, how did you feel a coach could help you be even more successful?

I had faced some challenging times over the last 12 months. My energies and emotions were stretched. I realised that a lot of my decisions were driven by factors, which were not necessarily relevant.

I was keen on using coaching to sharpen my decision making process and become more effective and have better relationships as a result.

How do you feel that coaching has changed you?

It is important to note that, coaching is not about someone providing you with all the answers.

It is about being provided with tools to discover the answers yourself and have the ability to apply them.

I have become a lot more relaxed, confident and ease with myself.

What benefits has the coaching brought to your life?

I am challenged every day; I juggle work, business, social, family, community, and clients. I work in a highly pressured environment in which I am constantly

seeking new ideas and opportunities both for my firm and clients. I run and manage a team of lawyers. I need to be at my best at all times. The coaching has certainly helped remove a number of mental obstacles which has lead me to operate more efficiently and effectively and enables me to apply my time effectively.

Were you not apprehensive about spending your hard earned savings on coaching? How do you convince yourself that this was a good investment to make?

It is a very small price to pay to be the best you can and being your best at all times. Spending money on the gym and spending money on sharping your mind is no different.

Would you recommend coaching?

I certainly would recommend coaching.

Mamta Mamta is fantastic.

We have been working together over the past few months. Mamta has greatly skilled in being able to challenge the reasons why and how I make decisions.

She has the ability for me to find answers to solutions and problems simply by untangling my thoughts and preconceived ideas.

There has been a fundamental improved change, within a very short space of time. She has empowered me to make challenging decisions in positive ways, she stretches my abilities and I feel better for it. I look forward to continuing my journey with Mamta. Highly recommended life coach who will make a difference professionally and personally.

How do you see ongoing coaching assisting you?

There is always room for improvement. The world is consistently changing. I need to keep up to date with new ideas and generate new opportunities. I will continue to use coaching to continue to better myself and meet the challenges that come my way.

Could you provide a specific example of a challenge in your life where coaching with

Mamta has helped you.

I now know that anything is possible. I no longer seek approval of others for my actions. I have the ability to place full confidence in my abilities and myself. I consider myself to be fantastic and know that anything is possible.

What advice would you give to people who are considering coaching but are unsure whether to go ahead or not?

You have nothing to lose, but everything to gain. You will be surprised how effective the coaching sessions are. I would certainly recommend attending the Boot camp Mamta is running this month.

Through the coaching experience what visions and goals have you created to achieve in the next 5 years that you didn’t have / wouldn’t have thought of before the sessions?

I’ve realised that all prejudices and preconceived ideas are created from a very young age. all fears are simply “mind made”.

I’m in the process of creating visions and goals that would far exceed any that i would have set before the sessions. These include creating “non legal service businesses”, working with associated firms in India and China, working more closely with the Media.

I am running a one day Impact Boot Camp on June 25 that will focus on how you can get attuned to being the best you– regardless of what life throws at you. The intense one-day event will definitely help you get the happiness and fulfillment you deserve. The timings are 11 – 4 pm, in Covent Garden London and the Asian Voice price will be £50. Places are filling up fast, get in touch by emailing mamta@thinkspalondon.com a.s.a.p.

Alternatively you may prefer one to one coaching which is a greatbespoke alternative, again do email me for further information. Stay connected on facebook and twitter also. Good luck, god bless.

An apple a day keeps flab away An apple a day keeps the doctor away, so goes the old saying.

Now, researchers claim to have found out the exact reason - the fruit helps keep one’s body toned and slender by boosting muscles and fighting the flab. A new study by the University of Iowa has found that urso-

lic acid - a substance found in the peel - has natural body building qualities and could help people keep a toned, slender body. And, it could even help with diabetes. In experiments, the researchers discovered that it boosts muscle growth by up to 15% and reduces body fat by more than a

half. It also has health giving properties - reducing blood sugar levels, cholesterol and harmful fatty acids. Lead researcher Christopher Adams said the substance could be especially useful in the elderly who naturally lose body muscle, known as atrophy.

27

By Dr Anil Mehta

Queen Anne: The last of the Stuart monarch

Blenheim Palace

Anne (1665-1714), Queen of Great Britain and ireland (1702-14), was the 2nd daughter of the deposed Catholic King James ii who ruled from 1685 to 1688 (Anne herself was a Protestant). her predecessors, the joint rulers of Britain William iii and Mary ii (Anne’s sister) left no heir, so she succeeded to the throne in 1702 at the age of 35. she was the last sovereign of the stuart dynasty and after the political union of England with scotland (1707), the first monarch of the United Kingdom of Great Britain. though never in good health, Anne presided over a splendid period of English history – the age of military successes and cultural innovations.

Anne wished to rule independently but her lack of intellect and chronic ill health caused her to rely heavily on her ministers and trusted friends. she was easily swayed by her circle of friends, especially sarah, wife of a brilliant soldier John Churchill and then Abigail Masham (sarah’s cousin) when she split with the Churchills in 1710.

Almost the whole of Anne’s reign was taken up by the War of the spanish succession (1701-13) in which the coalition of European powers (Britain, Austria, Netherlands) fought to prevent the French from taking over the spanish throne made vacant by the death of its king Charles ii without an heir. John Churchill led Britain and its allies to a series of brilliant victories over Louis XiV of France most famously at Blenheim in Germany. What’s more, when the war ended in 1713, Britain had gained a string of colonial possessions such as Gibraltar in Europe and Nova scotia in North America among them. success in war established Britain as a major European power and boosted English national pride and the queen’s popularity.

John Churchill was made Duke of Marlborough and awarded with a sumptuous mansion called Blenheim Palace near oxford. it was during Anne’s reign in 1707 that the scottish and English parliaments united becoming a single political unit with parliament sitting at Westminster. though the scots lost their parliament, they retained their own religious, legal, and educational systems. Union also reduced the danger of the scots opting for a Jacobite (Catholic) monarch. in 1683 aged 18, Anne married Prince George of Denmark, a distant cousin and their relationship quickly blossomed into one of devotion. Despite 18 pregnancies, no child survived her, and in 1701, by the Act of settlement (to ensure Protestant succession), she agreed that on her death the throne would pass to the protestant house of hanover of Germany. though never in good health and not particularly intelligent, Anne was amicable, dutiful, and generous to good cause. she gave active encouragement to major national ventures such as war with

France or the union with scotland. Being cheerful and kindly she was very popular with her subjects. once on the throne she tried to steer a middle course without getting too involved in the arguments of Whigs and tories, the two main parties of the time. her misfortune as a mother may have caused her to over-eat and drink. the final years of her reign were blighted by gout and rheumatism. she moved about with great pain. she died at Kensington Palace, London at the age of 49, and was buried in Westminster

Abbey. her fine statue (pictured) adorns the courtyard of st. Paul’s Cathedral.

Anne was the last monarch to preside at the meeting of the Privy Council and to refuse assent to a parliamentary bill. she was the last sovereign to ‘touch for the king’s evil’ – a belief that the touch of the king’s or queen’s hand could cure the condition of scrofula, a form of tuberculosis. Many sick visited her for the royal touch. the world’s first daily the Daily Courant was published in her time (1702) from London. she established horse racing at Ascot in 1711. her Anglican sympathies (she was a devout Anglican) led her to set up Queen’s Bounty in 1704, a charity for the benefit of poor clergy.

Anne will also be remembered for the distinctive taste in decorative arts and furniture that came to full flourish in her reign. Furniture made by craftsmen in her reign (known as Queen Anne style) still draws much admiration today. the chairs for example, are characterized by simple curvilinear lines and cabriole (animal like) legs.

As per Act of settlement, Anne was succeeded by the German Prince George of hanover who became George i of Great Britain and ireland launching a new hanoverian dynasty (the house of hanover). in the last 700 years England had Danish, Norman, French, Welsh, scottish, and Dutch sovereigns and now it was an elderly German who could not even speak English!

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UK

Asian Voice - Saturday 18th June 2011

This week Rishi Nityapragya from Art of Living Foundation will talk about their activity in Art of Living and their vision. Rasikbhai M Patel (RM) who organises medical camps in Bhadran, Anand district, Gujarat will also be interviewed in CB Live.

Sneh Joshi - 020 8518 5500

If you do not have a tv, go to www.tvunetworks.com and watch CB Live on TVU Player Channel 75203

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Coming Events l Mantra for Success by Hindu Cultural Society of Havering, Thursday 23rd June, 7:30-9pm.

Nagrecha Hall, Leyton Road, E15 1DT

lSunday 19th June, Kutch Madhapar Karyalaya UK presents Indian Bazaar. Kingsbury Green Primary School, London NW9 9ND.

l Protest for Baba Ramdev, Old Palace Yard, Opposite the Houses of Parliament, London, SW1P 3JY, UK, 12pm to 2:30pm. Contact: Sanjay Jagatia: 07805 054776. Contact: 01708452068.

lJain samaj Manchester presents Health Mela, Saturday 25th June, 10am-4pm.

669 Stockport Road, manchester.

Contact: Ashok N Mehta 07956965778

l Message from Bhagavad Gita by Jaya Row, 26B Tooting High Street London SW17 0RG, 7.30 to 9.00pm - Wednesday June 2011 Refreshments will be served

lAnnual Queensbury Eco-Cultural Festival in Eton Grove Park Queensbury on Sunday 3rd July 2011.

Contact: Public Relations - Kamlesh Jadeja Tel: 07809569777

l Mare Kone Kahevu? at At Patidar Samaj Hall, Tooting, London SW17 0RG A Show of this Gujarati Drama which is produced by Bhartiya Bhavan, 6.30PM, Saturday 16 July 2011.

Tickets: £15, £10 and £8

WINNERS The correct answer to the West is West competition is b) Aqib Khan.

The winners are D Radia and Kimmie Patel

l Ernst & Young will be hosting an event on Monday 4 July 2011 entitled "How the Mighty Fall: Reading between the lines from the Mahabharata."

RSVP will be required- london@vpnglobal.org.

Amazing predictions

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There is a definite expansive trend where money is concerned, so do not be surprised if this turns out be a time of fortunate opportunities and lucky breaks. Keep your assertive inclination under control as conflict and disagreement could be sparked off by your short-sightedness. Think carefully about the implications of your actions.

ARIES Mar 21 - Apr 20

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TAURUS Apr 21 - May 21 You should enjoy a very popular phase in your life where everyone wants to invite you to parties. This will give you a chance to meet people and pursue any romantic liaisons that might present themselves. Your communications are extremely high making it easy to close those lucrative deals.

Extra energy and drive will serve you well in getting things accomplished. There appears to be a more successful trend coming into effect. Amorous affairs continue to be highlighted - whether or not this leads to a lasting relationship depends much on your own personal maturity and circumstances.

GEMINI May 22 - June 22

You will find added scope and greater incentive to push full steam ahead with your cherished aims.

You must be careful not to tread on other people's toes.

This is the right time to talk things over with your loved one - especially anything that has been worrrying you or making you feel insecure.

CANCER Jun 22 - Jul 22

LEO Jul 23 - Aug 23 It is a good time to get away from usual routines and seek a retreat for a few days. All the better if you are interested in such things as meditation, yoga and therapies that help you to get in closer touch with your inner self. This will have a beneficial effect on your physical and psychological well-being.

VIRGO Aug 24 - Sep 23 Efforts to restructure and transform your lifestyle are more likely to meet with success. Experience you have built up in the past will now stand you in good stead. If you are thinking of investments, then this is an opportune time to go ahead with your plans. Co-operative ventures are likely to generate financial success LIBRA Sep 24 - Oct 23 Legal matters are likely to occupy your attention this week. A long-standing problem or disagreement will need to be sorted out before allowing you to restructure both personal and joint financial interests more efficiently. Luck and love form a pleasing combination as Jupiter, the planet of luck and expansion has moved into your solar 8th house.

SCORPIO Oct 24- Nov 22 sAn exchange of opinions ought to prove very enlivening at this time. An influence that should help to enjoy the 'nicer' side of others as bring out the best in friends, colleagues and partners alike. A wind of change may be in the air; attention should turn to the wider world and benefits come from broadening of horizons and mental stimuli.

SAGITTARIUS Nov 23 - Dec 21 Charm will be your ally in this week' s activities. Others will be responsive to you and your ideas. You are extremely warm and affectionate as a person and you look for just as strong a response from your partner. You will achieve success by being responsible and diplomatic.

CAPRICORN Dec 22 - Jan 20 The fiery planet Mars is the moving force in regard to amorous experience, giving more than just a hint that links between lovers will be rather intense and passionate. Your attitude to material interests is likely to undergo some deep change. On a material level the trend greatly favours anything geared towards establishing greater financial stability.

AQUARIUS Jan 21 - Feb 19 Relationships look great as Venus and Mars help to enhance your personal magnetism and put you in a gregarious mood. There are subtle transformations taking shape in you life and a feeling of helpful influences in the background. There is much to suggest that you are in tune with your inner self.

PISCES Feb 20 - Mar 20 Don't be afraid to act forcefully if your instinct tells you it's time for change.

This week the focus is your house of family and home.

Besides spending more time tending to domestic affairs, the focus can be on cultivating and nourishing your inner foundations, so to speak.

HealtH Watch

Asian Voice - Saturday 18th June 2011

29

Power foods at workplace

Five healthy foods to eat at your workstation that can battle the ill effects of sitting at your desk for many hours at a stretch.

We've all heard it times and again that sitting all day long at the desk isn't really good for the health.

Sadly, there aren't any feasible alternatives to this mode of working. While you can't just leave your job, you can surely do something which is beneficial for your health. Eating the right kind of fruits can help you overcome the negative effects of sitting like a robot all day.

Here are five power foods you can enjoy while sitting at your desk. They can work wonders for your heart, blood pressure, and can even improve your memory and concentration.

Walnuts: Some new researches have pointed out that walnuts have more (and better quality) antioxidants than almonds, peanuts, pistachios and many other nuts. All nuts have been found to improve lipids and can reduce the risk of heart diseases. Walnuts have also been found to enhance cognitive and motor function in animals

By Radhika Madlani

Co-Ed or Segregate?

with Alzheimer's. Experts recommend seven walnuts a day.

Cup of Green Tea: Polyphenols, one of the major ingredients of green tea, is known to help repair the damaged DNA and stimulate the immune system. Besides, research shows that green tea also helps in reducing the risk of cancers, including skin cancer and prostate cancer.

Popcorn: If there ever was a list of healthy snacks, this is definitely going to be on the list. In fact, many say that popcorn is the healthiest snack available. It is 100 per cent whole grain and is big on fiber and antioxidants. If you can air-pop your popcorn and add a minimal quantity of salt, you'd have the best popcorn, say experts. If your office has a microwave, just make sure you bring a pack of low sodium pop-

corn to work.

Dark Chocolate: This, too, contains those powerful antioxidants called Polyphenols which combat the risk factors (like oxidation of LDL cholesterol) for heart diseases and also inhibit clotting. Studies have also indicated that consuming a small bar of dark chocolate daily can reduce blood pressure in people with mild hypertension. Caffeine, another active ingredient of dark chocolate, can give you that much-required kick and a boost in concentration levels.

Fruits: Not only they help you conquer that “false hunger”, they are also brimming with nutrients which are needed to keep you going all day. You can choose between apples, bananas, mangoes, oranges, papayas etc. but make sure you carry some fruits to the office on a daily basis.

Exercise improves memory in older adults A new study conducted by researchers shows that one year of moderate physical exercise can increase the size of the brain's hippocampus in older adults, leading to an improvement in spatial memory.

The project is considered the first study of its kind focusing on older adults who are already experiencing atrophy of the hippocampus, the brain structure involved in all forms of memory formation.

The researchers recruited 120 sedentary older people without dementia and randomly placed them in one of two

groups - those who began an exercise regimen of walking around a track for 40 minutes a day, three days a week, or those limited to stretching and toning exercises.

Magnetic resonance images were collected before the intervention, after six months, and at the end of the one-year study.

The aerobic exercise group demonstrated an increase in volume of the left and right hippocampus of 2.12 per cent and 1.97 per cent, respectively. The same regions of the brain in those who did stretching exercises decreased in volume by 1.40 and 1.43 per cent, respectively.

Spatial memory tests were conducted for all participants at the three intervals. Those in the aerobic exercise group showed improved memory function, when measured against their performance at the start of the study, an improvement associated with the increased size of the hippocampus.

schools, the children I school confirmed that in Gender segregation in interacted with and their experience, boys schools remains a topic of observed seemed perfectanalysed information and hot debate in academic ly ‘normal’ and I could experiments differently to circles. As a parent who not really justify any of girls.

The variety in was educated in a mixed the stereotypes I had in approaches made for a (co-ed) school, it is diffimy mind as I entered better learning expericult to decide whether a both the schools. ence for the whole class. single sex or co-ed school It makes sense to Left refreshed at what I is better for my daughter. allow children to learn in had seen, I then visited So, with an open mind, I an environment that is the single sex school. recently took to two Open realistic without encourAgain, the lady giving Days locally to visit both aging misconceptions of me the tour of the site types of schools to explore the gender stereotypes. explained how logisticalthe benefits of each.

As more classes contain ly, having the same sex My personal view topics of discussion that children made things a lot before entering the involve daily life, psycholeasier. She also confided schools was that real life ogy and human behavior, in me that girls in a nearconsists of boys and girls it is essential that chilby co-ed school were so the earlier our children dren appreciate differing quite boisterous whereas learn to understand and views on life from each in her experience girls at respond to the varied gender’s perspective. the single sex school needs and outlook of With internet and techbehaved much better and both, the better. On the nology replacing human worked quite hard at other hand, I did notice connection and interactheir education without the difference between tion, many parents fear the added distraction young girls who generally that separating girls and from boys. She went on seemed to be ahead of boys in their learning to confirm that the girls their male counterparts. environment will only at their school achieved Although this is a generic further the gap between much better academic observation, I have come the two. results. This is true but I across plenty of research In the end, the deciwould argue that the nonon the topic that confirms sion I will make will be on diverse social economic that girls learn in differthe merit of the standard profile of many of the ent ways to boys and of education the school girls in this school defitherefore if a learning has to offer along with nitely impacted their environment was catered the facilities and cost of results.

I was also for their unique learning each. The issue of co-ed advised that because girls styles, they would do betor single sex is a lesser and boys mature at differter. Of course, my conissue for me but of ent ages, teaching them clusion was that school course, everyone has a together actually does was not all about learnpersonal view. My only them a dis-service. ing, it is also a place to advice if you are faced As you would expect, refine social skills and with the challenge of I left confused as I could absorb the way relationselecting a school is to see the benefits of both. ships between the two visit both ends of the What was refreshing was genders work. spectrum. Test your prethat at both schools, The first school I visconceptions as you visit teaching staff were ited happened to be coeach and base your deciempowered to use creed. The lady giving me sion on fact. ativity, recognise the genthe tour explained how Quote: der differences and gender differences are “Children have to be accommodate these into recognised by the teacheducated, but they also their classes to ensure the ers and it was up to them have to be left alone to learning environment to draw on these differeducate themselves.” they created was conences to get the best out – Abbe Dimnet, ducive. What was reasof the pupils in their Art of Thinking suring was that at both class. For instance, the Should you have any comments or want to get in touch with me you can email on avmamaria@gmail.com

Physical activity can help you quit smoking If you are addicted to smoking, have tried to stop but have not been successful. Then try exercise, it has proved to be the one that stops you to fag. This has been found out by researchers from the University of Western Ontario Canada.

A combination of nicotine replacement therapy and exercise works best,

according to Dr. Harry Prapavssis, director of the

Exercise and Health Psychology Laboratory. In a recent study, 70 per cent of women had stopped smoking at the end of the 12-week program, but after one year, only 27 per cent remained abstinent.

"Our physical fitness and weight data supported the abstinence data. This suggests that exercise needs to be maintained for

individuals to continue to kick the habit," Prapavessis said. "It is important to determine whether inexpensive home and community-based lifestyle exercise maintenance programs can maintain exercise, fitness and weight after cessation program termination, and hence prevent (reduce) smoking relapse," he added.

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30

Sport

Asian Voice - Saturday 18th June 2011

British shot-putter banned for doping violations A British shot-putter has been handed a three-year ban after testing positive for two prohibited substances. Mark Edwards, who was ranked No. 2 in Britain in 2010, tested positive for testosterone and a metabolite of the banned substance clostebol last September and was provisionally suspended in November. A tribunal of the National Anti-Doping Panel said it gave Edwards a harsher sanction than the standard two-year ban because the presence of more than one banned substance constituted aggravating circumstances. The tribunal rejected claims by Edwards that his urine sample may have been tampered with en route to a laboratory. The 36-year-old Edwards, who coached Britain at the 2008 Paralympic Games, is banned until November 2013.

Bopanna-Qureshi win German ATP event Top seeds Rohan Bopanna and Aisam-ul-Haq Qureshi lived up to their billing and won their first ATP title of the season, overcoming Robin Haase and Milos Raonic 7-6 (8), 3-6, 11-9 in the summit clash of the Gerry Weber Open in Halle, Germany last week. It took the Indo-Pak pair one hour and 19 minutes to beat the DutchCanadian combination. The win would do a world of good to the confidence of the Indo-Pak pair in the run up to the Wimbledon Championships. It is Bopanna's third career ATP World Tour doubles title, having triumphed in Johannesburg with Qureshi last year and with American Eric Butorac in 2008 in Los Angeles. Apart from winning at Johannesburg, Bopanna had reached final six times. Except for Atlanta event, Qureshi was his partner in all those tournaments, including the US Open.

Overall, they were playing their ninth ATP World Tour doubles final together. In the final, interestingly the Indo-Pak pair could not convert any of the four breakpoints, three in the opening set, and also dropped their serve in the second set but held their nerves in the Super Tie break to clinch the issue.

Kallis named South African Cricketer of the Year

All-rounder Jacques Kallis dominated the South African Cricket Awards, winning three of them, including the prestigious Cricketer of the Year.

Kallis also won Test Cricketer of the Year award and the KFC "So Good Award!" for his centuries in both innings of the Test match against India at Sahara Park Newlands in Cape Town, where he persevered despite a painful injury.

Kallis had won Cricketer of the Year award in 2004 as well. AB de Villiers was named ODI Cricketer of the Year and Hashim Amla, who scooped almost all the honours last year, remained the choice of his peers, being named SA Players' Player of the Year and SA Fans' Player of the Year. Lonwabo Tsotsobe was named Pro20 Cricketer of the Year. Former Pakistani player Imran Tahir, was named SA International Newcomer of the Year.

India clinch one-day series against West Indies Hosts earn a consolation victory in the 4th match

India has clinched the one-day series against West Indies with a third straight victory while the hosts managed to win the fourth one-day. Earlier, in the 3rd one-dayer Rohit Sharma steered his team to a hard-fought victory made worse by an early batting debacle at the Vivian Richards Stadium in Antigua on Saturday.

It was an excellent display of patience from Sharma, who took his time settling the team’s nerves that got frayed by quick dismissals of middleorder strongmen Virat Kohli and Suresh Raina. He was ably supported

by Harbhajan Singh and Praveen Kumar as India chased a meagre 226 set by the hosts.

Sharma’s 86 off 91 balls also overshadowed Andre Russell’s 64-ball 92 that helped West Indies cross the 200run mark and was a very brutal knock giving the hosts some chance of staying in the game.

Earlier in the day, on a very friendly batting track, West Indies started disastrously and continued that way till the 30th over. Even before they could post a 100 runs on board, seven wickets had been lost, with the wily leg-spin of Amit Mishra proving too hot to handle.

Lendl Simmons, who had bailed out the hosts to some extent in the last One-dayer at Port-of-Spain, once again stuck around for longer than anybody else in the top order. A slow but steady 45 from 68 balls came off Lendl’s bat and with Ramnaresh Sarwan at the other end it seemed early on that the hosts would stabilize.

However, that was just about the time when disorder struck again.

Sarwan ran himself out and the rest of the middle-order kept following him in quick succession. With the exception of Kieron Pollard, who fell prey to an insufferable umpiring error, the remaining batsmen - Kirk Edwards, Marlon Samuels and Danza Hyatt - looked like they lacked any kind of inclination to stay in the middle. It was finally the eighth-wicket partnership of 82 runs between Carlton Baugh and Andre Russell that steadied Windies. Russell threatened to hit almost every Indian bowler out of the park, keeping his best for Munaf Patel and Suresh Raina in particular.

India beat West Indies by 7 wickets India produced a disciplined allround performance to notch up a convincing seven-wicket victory over the West Indies in a rain-affected second one-day international and also take a 20 lead in the five-match series on Wednesday last.

Virat Kohli (81) played a stellar hand in first partnering opener Parthiv Patel (56) for 120-run second wicket stand and then withstanding the little tremor induced by the rain breaks.

Rohit Sharma's unbeaten 86 helped India seal the series.

Chasing 241 to win, India were 100 for one in 22 overs when a sharp shower made the square unfit to play for 85 minutes. The rain break reduced the visitors innings to 37 overs and the target was revised to 183, implying they needed 83 runs from 90 deliveries.

India achieved the target comfortably losing the wickets of Parthiv Patel (56) and Virat Kohli (81) in 33.4 overs.

Earlier, India restricted West Indies to 240 for nine after skipper Suresh Raina won the toss and elected to field at the Queen's Park Oval.

Amit Mishra (4/31) and Munaf Patel (3/35) struck in the late moments to stop the run flow and trigger a collapse after the Caribbeans went off to a good start.

For the hosts, Ramnaresh Sarwan (56) and Lendl Simmons (53) cracked individual half-centuries up the order but their middle-order crumbled, slipping from 175 for three in 34 overs to 229 for nine in 48.5 overs.

Windies ease to consolation win Finally, West Indies managed to put together the kind of performances they have been missing, and hence losing matches - often from positions from where they could have won. On Monday they didn't relent despite a poor start, and registered a welcome win albeit after the series was lost.

Lendl Simmons got his sixth fifty in his last eight innings, Kieron Pollard notched up his personal best against a Test-playing nation, Carlton Baugh again played the support role before taking the lead behind the stumps, Andre Russell smacked 25 off 14 before unsettling India with his bouncers, and

Darren Sammy and Anthony Martin backed up expertly with their bowling, scalping six under-pressure batsmen between them.

The 103-run win is West Indies' third-highest margin of victory over India in ODIs. The highest is the 135run win in Vijayawada in 2002.

The 146 is India's sixth-lowest score against West Indies overall and their second lowest in the West Indies.

The 96-run stand between Carlton Baugh and Kieron Pollard is the second-highest for the sixth wicket for West Indies in ODIs against India after the 118-run stand between Ricardo Powell and Nehemiah Perry in Singapore in 1999.

Pollard's 70 is his fourth half-century and second-highest score in ODIs. His highest is the 94 against Ireland in the 2011 World Cup. Anthony Martin's 4 for 36 is fourth on the list of best bowling performances by a West Indies bowler against India in ODIs since 2005. In the same period, Ravi Rampaul's 5 for 51 in Chennai is the best.

It was never going to be an easy win.

Not with Praveen Kumar and Amit Mishra in the kind of form they've been in. The two bowled six maiden overs and took five wickets between them to undo Simmons' good work. Simmons brought West Indies back from 41 for 2 through a counter-attack on the returning Ishant Sharma and on the dominant Mishra. However, he saw his partner in recovery, Darren Bravo, pick out one of three fielders on the leg-side boundary to send West Indies into a tailspin that stopped with Simmons' run-out to make it 103 for 5 in the 27th over.

India's slide began with Tiwary who was now playing his comeback match as an opener, a role he is not accustomed to. It showed as he struggled against the moving ball. Nerves were on display too. He almost ran himself out and was dropped off Roach before finally edging Sammy. Parthiv Patel pulled, flicked and upper-cut well in scoring 26 of the 41 runs that came while he was at the crease. Sammy, though, got rid of him with a smart one-handed return catch to his left.

S Badrinath was then pinged by Russell's bouncers. There was an air of helplessness in the way he moved about the crease, trying to get out of the way, looking for the upper-cut. The struggle finally ended when he gloved a hook and was quick in rushing off the field.

Yusuf Pathan soon did something similar to Simmons, but there was still one man West Indies needed to see the back of. Rohit Sharma had denied them on two previous occasions in this series, but this time he top-edged a slog-sweep off Martin after having looked good for 39 off 47. Game over.

Andy Murray beats Tsonga in Queen's win Briton Andy Murray withstood an athletic onslaught from JoWilfried Tsonga to beat the Frenchman 3-6 7-6 6-4 and win the final of the Queen's Club championships on Monday. The climax of the Wimbledon warmup event was being held a day late after rain washed out play on Sunday and, while conditions stayed dry, Murray weathered the storm of Tsonga's fast groundstrokes, diving volleys and energetic charges.

"He was playing a different sport to me in the first two sets.

I've never seen anyone dive so much," the world number four grinned in a courtside interview.

Murray, who picked up his second Queen's trophy after also triumphing in 2009, goes into next week's grasscourt grand

slam at the All England Club having given the British public and media even more reason than usual to set expectations high.

Having dished out a grasscourt masterclass to American Andy Roddick in the semi-finals, Murray was forced to play a different game against Tsonga who hurled every imaginable shot at the Briton while also throwing his body across the court.

The Frenchman's high-risk strategy of attack had looked like paying off before an unlucky net cord in the 11th game of the

second set prevented him from breaking to serve for the match.

The ball bounced off the top of the net and had looked like it would make it over the net before dropping down on the wrong side in what was a major turning point in the match.

"I remember only this ball," Tsonga said on court. "Today I had only one chance, it was this one but I missed it. But today Andy was just too good and I will try to beat him next time."

Outlandish shots Fifth seed Tsonga had lost to

Murray in the quarter-finals at last year's Wimbledon and he found himself lacking once again as the Scot drew on his experience of three grand slam final appearances, as well as his passing shots, to see him through.

His mouth often caught somewhere between a grimace and a look of mild amusement as Tsonga reached the most impossible shots, Murray gave the Frenchman a taste of his own medicine with some outlandish shots of his own.

SPorT world

Asian Voice - Saturday 18th June 2011

Sachin Tendulkar, Jacques Kallis share top spot in Test rankings

Sachin Tendulkar

Sachin Tendulkar and South African Jacques Kallis continue to jointly share the top spot in International Cricket Council (ICC) Test rankings for batsmen. They are followed by Jonnathan Trott of England at the third place, and Sri Lankan vice-captain Kumar Sangakkara in the fourth and Alastair Cook in the fifth.

India's Virender Sehwag and VVS Laxman occupy sixth and eighth position respectively. The newly appointed South African skipper for ODIs and

Jayasuriya to join Lanka team Veteran batsman Sanath Jayasuriya who turned 42 this month has been recalled to play for Sri Lanka in the upcoming limited overs and Twenty20 matches against England. The Lankan authorities were forced to fall on the retired player in the wake of a doping investigation involving Sri Lanka opener Upul Tharanga.

He was included in a 16-member squad announced last week, a day after Sri Lanka Cricket announced the official notification by International Cricket Council that Tharanga has tested positive for a banned substance after the World Cup semifinal win over New Zealand and that a disciplinary action has been initiated.

The squad: Tillakaratne Dilshan (captain), Thilina Kandamby, Kumar Sangakkara, Mahela Jayawardene, Sanath Jayasuriya, Dinesh Chandimal, Jeevan Mendis, Dimuth Karunaratne, Angelo Mathews, Tissara Perera, Lasith Malinga, Nuwan Kulasekara, Dilhara Fernando, Suranga Lakmal, Suraj Randiv, Ajantha Mendis.

Twenty20, AB de Villiers is at ninth position followed by another South African, Hashim Amla at 10th place.

Mahela Jayawardene and Thilan Samaraweera have dropped two places each to 12th and 13th, respectively.

Kevin Pietersen has slipped three places to 29th spot and Andrew Strauss has fallen four places to 33rd.

The rankings for Test bowler is led

by South African Dale Steyn. England off-spinner Graeme Swann is second and James Anderson third. The Indians in the list are strike bowler Zaheer Khan at fifth place and spinner Harbhajan Singh at seventh.

Bangladesh captain Shakib-Al Hasan occupies eighth place while New Zealand captain Danniel Vettori is at ninth and Austrlian Bollinger 10th.

Left-arm spinner Rangana Herath has become the highest-ranked Sri Lanka bowler in the rankings after a good performance in the Lord's Test.

Herath's figures of 2-64 and 3-87 have helped him to move up five places to a career-best 19th position.

Also achieving their career-best rankings are England fast bowlers Steven Finn and Chris Tremlett.

Jacques Kallis

Finn, who had match figures of 4139, has gained three places in the table and is now in the 15th position while Tremlett, who had match figures of 3116, has climbed four places to 24th spot. The two fast bowlers are still in the qualification period.

A bowler qualifies for a full rating when he reaches 100 Test wickets, and with one more Test remaining the two can potentially improve their rankings further depending how they perform in Southampton.

India cricket will rule for at least for 5 years: Fletcher When Duncan Fletcher stepped in to take over as India coach from Gary Kirsten, he said it was “promising young talent” which had lured him to Indian cricket.

Now, having seen some stellar displays of character as a second-string, virtual India A squad romped to a One-day series win against the West Indies - Suresh Raina’s men lead 3-0 in the five-match series - Fletcher believes the world champions have sufficient bench strength to dominate world cricket for the next half-a-decade or more.

“It is due to the amount of talent India have,” Fletcher explained. “Indian cricket is in a very, very healthy state presently. I know five years in international cricket is a long time but unless some international teams suddenly come up big, I don’t see it happening (India losing its grip).”

It’s a provocative statement from the low-key, softspoken veteran coach who has mastered the art of working behind the scenes, but a clear indication that Indian cricket’s transition from the era of the Tendulkars and Laxmans to the Virat Kohlis and Rohit

Sharmas might not be as bumpy as the one Australia is going through.

The scoreline in the Caribbean has not reflected the fact that this young Team India, with an average age of 24 and entrusted with the task of living up to the ‘world champions’ tag, has had to tide over some tough moments, like Rohit Sharma pulling the team out of a hole during Saturday’s chase with a match-winning unbeaten 86, with dogged support from the tail. Sharma and Raina had steadied India in the first ODI too, and on the bowling front the likes of Munaf Patel, Amit Mishra and Praveen Kumar have played responsible roles.

There’s a lot of young talent on the bench too.

“Amazing” is the word the 62-year-old Zimbabwean has used to describe India’s bench-strength. On Rohit’s innings in the third ODI, he said, “It shows the depth of talent India has. You don’t often find a player like that who can finish a game in style.

It was a difficult chase and with the calmness that Rohit played, his innings shows a lot of character.”

Bhupathi, Paes lose doubles' final at Queen's

Mahesh Bhupathi and Leander Paes were denied a first doubles title at Queen's as the Indian duo were beaten 6-7 (2/7), 7-6 (7/4), 10-6 by top seeds Bob and Mike Bryan on Monday. Bhupathi and Paes were defeated by the Bryan brothers in the Australian Open final in January and once again they came up short against the world's number one ranked pair.

Third seeds Bhupathi and Paes had beaten French Open champions Max Mirnyi and Daniel Nestor in the semifinals of this Wimbledon warm-up event and they had a good chance to win the final as well. After taking the first set in a tense tie-break, Bhupathi and Paes were on course for victory when they broke for a 4-2 lead in the second set. But the Bryans, three-time champions at Queen's, broke back to force another tiebreak and this time they took it to level the match before coming out on top in the super tie-break.

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Sreesanth, Zaheer out of WI Test series Zaheer Khan and Sreesanth have been ruled out of the Test series against West Indies, further weakening a squad that is already missing several first-choice players.

Zaheer has a right ankle problem, Sreesanth has a right elbow problem and both are undergoing rehabilitation. Abhimanyu Mithun and Praveen Kumar have been named as their replacements in the Test squad.

Shoulder injuries to Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir had earlier forced the selectors to opt for a pair of inexperienced openers in M Vijay and the uncapped Abhinav Mukund.

Sachin Tendulkar wanted to spend some time with his family and opted out of the tour as well.

While the batting was hit hard by these withdrawals, the bowling initially wore a stronger look with Zaheer - who skipped the limitedovers leg of the tour - expected to lead a fullstrength attack to the Caribbean. His and Sreesanth's absence will now add further fuel to the debate on the impact of a cramped IPL schedule on the Indian team.

India's revised Test squad: Mahendra Singh Dhoni (capt), VVS Laxman (vice-capt), Murali Vijay, Abhinav Mukund, Rahul Dravid, Virat Kohli, Subramaniam Badrinath, Harbhajan Singh, Ishant Sharma, Abhimanyu Mithun, Amit Mishra, Pragyan Ojha, Praveen Kumar, Munaf Patel, Suresh Raina, Parthiv Patel.

India opposes umpire decision review in England Tests The Indian cricket board has reportedly sent an official notification to the England and Wales Cricket Board, opposing the use of the Umpire Decision Review System (UDRS) in the upcoming Test series between the Dhoni two nations.

According to the ICC regulations, the UDRS can be used in a series only with the consent of the boards. In the recent past, the UDRS has faced opposition from Indian cricketers, including Sachin Tendulkar and captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni, who feel the technology cannot be trusted beyond limits.

Dhoni has been quite vocal in opposing the UDRS mainly after Ian Bell was given not out during a World Cup match in Banglore.

India will play four Tests against England starting July 21. In May the ICC's cricket committee recommended the use of UDRS in all forms of the game. "There are moves for this to be implemented at the board’s annual meeting later in June but convincing India will be tough," said a report. "It is a blow for Graeme Swann, who acknowledged during last winter's Ashes tour the benefit he has gained from the technology. Of his 138 wickets, 29.71% have been lbw, the second highest proportion of any bowler in Test history," the report said.

Former England off-spinner John Emburey said the reason India does not want the UDRS is that it "will favour our bowlers".

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Asian Voice - Saturday 18th June 2011