AV 22nd November 2014

SEE INSIDE ....

Indian shuttlers made history in China

First & Foremost Asian Weekly in Europe

See Page 31

WTO impasse broken as India, US reach food security deal

See Page 26

UK Parliament commemorates the Sikh contributions to WWI

See Page 15

VOL 43. ISSUE 28

Let noble thoughts come to us from every side

80p

22nd November to 28th November 2014

! " # $ % &'% ( ) * %

! " ! #

Ties with India top priority, Cameron tells Modi

IPL match fixing: Srinivasan cleared; Meiyappan, Raj Kundra indicted

British PM invites his Indian counterpart to visit UK Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi held his first meeting with British Premier David Cameron who described relations with India as top priority of the UK's foreign policy and invited the Indian leader to Britain.

The bilateral meeting took place shortly after Modi arrived on a five-day visit at Brisbane in Australia to attend the G20 Summit. At their meeting, Cameron told Modi that "relations with India are at the top of the priorities of the UK's foreign policy." The British Premier also invited Modi

David Cameron and Narendra Modi

to visit the UK to which the Indian Prime Minister said he would do so at the earliest, the ministry of external affairs spokesman Syed Akbaruddin said.

Modi told Cameron that his vision was "very inspiring" and the two countries can partner in any way they can. The UK Premier was one of the first world leaders to congratulate Modi following his victory in the general elections in May. Earlier, Cameron's spokesperson had said that the Brisbane meeting was set to strengthen the broad and Continued on page 26

Send money around the world in minutes

N Srinivasan

Justice Mukul Mudgal committee, appointed by the Supreme Court to investigate the IPL fixing scandal, has cleared BCCI president-in-exile N Srinivasan on charges Continued on page 31

Indian student's untimely death saddens community The death of a British Indian student on Saturday has devastated the local community. He was among the five teenagers killed in a horrific car crash after a Saturday night trip to McDonalds. Arpad Kore, 18, with friends Blake Cairns, 16, Continued on page 5

Arpad Kore

For o locations across Londo on and the UK visit

m mone ygram.co.uk/ u tesco

*

Even more T Te esco locations across s London to sen nd and receive from

Welcome to the world of TRAVLIN STYLE

Delhi Baroda Rajkot Ahmedabad -

ÂŁ425 Mumbai - ÂŁ395 ÂŁ490 Goa ÂŁ475 ÂŁ555 Bhuj ÂŁ555 ÂŁ435

ALL PRICES ARE FROM AND SUBJECT TO AVAILABILTY.

OPEN 7 DAYS A WEEK

Singapore Hong Kong Bangkok ShanghaiDhaka -

Call

ÂŁ550 ÂŁ485 ÂŁ440 ÂŁ540 ÂŁ475

ALL PRICES ARE FROM AND SUBJECT TO AVAILABILTY

0208 954 0077 0203 751 4242

*Su Subject to agent hours of operation and local regulations. ons Tesco ons. e Personal Finance Plc is an agent of Mon neyGram International Limited in the provision of mone ey transfer services. MoneyGram, the Globe and Mon neyGram Bringing You Closer are trademarks of MoneyGr y am. All other marks are the property of their resp pective owners. MoneyGram International Limited is authorised and regulated in the United Kingdom by the Financial Conduct Authority. Š 2014 MoneyGram. 1014-80588 -80588

We also offer a Coach Tour to Europe with Indian Dinners, Lunch, Sightseeing and Services of a Tour Guide included.

CALL 0208 954 0077 0203 751 4242

CALL

TRAVLIN

STYLE

0208 954 0077

5938

EMAIL ritu@travelinstyle.co.uk Open 7 Days a week

UK

2

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 22nd November 2014

Amin Wakarul, Night Duty Manager, Hotel Radisson Edwardian Blu

Amin Wakarul was born in Chittagong, Bangladesh. He was educate in Notre Dame College in Dhaka, Bangladesh and Hotel school in Vienna where he made his Diploma in Module. After that he had Bsc in International Hotel Management in University of North Texas, USA and Msc in Hospitality Management and Merchandising in University in North Texas.

He worked in several high range hotel including Hilton; Hotel Forum; Hyatt International Hotel in Dallas; Fort Worth Airport and Sheraton. Now he is Night Duty Manager in one of the Luxury brand Hotel Radisson Edwardian Blu which is also called The Mayfair Hotel. It was a great opportunity for Mr Wakarul to have those continental hospitality experiences which made him a great person and a great servant in any diverse hospitality. He loves working on his position as a Night Manager in central London hotel where is a hub and junction of all celebrities from movie, sports and general people.

1) What is your current position?

-Night Duty Manager 2) What are your proudest achievements?

-Employee of the year in Front

office in 2009 -Lots of good reviews in Trip Advisor.

-instant good comments from guest for my hospitality during their stay

Making all possible in a luxury manner.

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

-I never say obstacles, yet the’ Opportunities’.

I would say nothing. I would take those as my career challenges.. Tried to overcome or win it as passion,

3) What inspires you?

-Being loyal servant with integrity to serve our guests (internal & external) with 100% satisfaction where always involve ‘Yes I can Attitude’.

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

-Michael Cheung who is true hotelier and gave me this opportunity to be a unique one 6) What is the best aspect about your current role?

-Dealing with high profile VIPs at night, complicated complaint

handlings, oversee whole night operations.. Working with all people in every walk of life‌ 7) And the worst?

-Nothing.

8) What are your long term goals?

-To be a GM of a Luxury Hotel in London 9) If you were Prime Minister, what one aspect would you change?

-Raise the average income for all because of their hard knock daily life.

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

-Mahatma Gandhi. Living very simple and building society with great philosophy in any condition.

Prestigious DSC prize for South Asian Literature to announce shortlist for 2015 award in London The shortlist for the fifth annual DSC Prize for South Asian Literature 2015 will be announced on Thursday 27th November 2014 by cofounders and also mother and son, Mrs. Surina Narula MBE & Mr. Manhad Narula at The Shaw Library of the London School of Economics and Political Science. The ceremony will be attended by authors, publishers, London’s literati and an array of public figures

l

Bilawal Tanweer

associated with the South Asian diaspora.

Since its inception in

6, T MFBEJOH TPMJDJUPST GPS /3* TFSWJDFT t 0$* 1*0 DBSET - Preparing full application - Transferring OCI visa on to new passport - Re-issue of OCI / PIO card (if lost or stolen) - 100% money back guarantee (subject to T&C) - Avoid the Indian High Commission queues

t 1"/ DBSE BQQMJDBUJPOT t "GmEBWJUT 4VSSFOEFS PG *OEJBO QBTTQPSU t *OEJBO 8JMMT 1PXFS PG "UUPSOFZ t *NNJHSBUJPO BOE /BUJPOBMJUZ 502-504 Honeypot Lane Stanmore Middlesex HA7 1JR

t JOGP!QJOEPSJBMBX DPN

XXX QJOEPSJBMBX DPN

Jhumpa Lahiri

2010, the DSC Prize has significantly impacted and drawn the focus of the world towards South Asian literature and the authors writing about this region. A coveted prize of US $50,000 is presented to one author from any ethnicity or nationality provided they write about South Asia and its people.

Writing in regional languages is also encouraged and the prize money is equally shared between the author and the translator in case a translated entry wins. The DSC Prize for South Asian Literature 2015 will be awarded at the renowned Jaipur Literature Festival on 22nd January 2015, from the shortlist unveiled in London.

Notable guests from previous festivals include Oprah Winfrey, Deepak Chopra and the Queen of Bhutan.

The jury for the DSC

Khaled Hosseini

Meena Kandasamy

Prize this year comprises Keki Daruwalla, Indian writer and poet (Chair of the Jury); John Freeman, author, literary critic and former editor of Granta; M a i t h r e e Wickramasinghe, a professor of English at the University of Kelaniya Sri Lanka and the University of Sussex and an expert on gender studies; Michael Worton, Emeritus Professor at University College London, who has written extensively on modern literature and art; and Razi Ahmed, founding director of the annual, not-for-

profit Lahore Literary Festival. After intense reflection over the longlist comprising 10 books, out of a total pool of 75 initial entries, the eminent jury will select the shortlist for this esteemed international award.

This year’s longlist includes: l The Scatter Here is Too Great by Bilal Tanweer l Helium by Jaspreet Singh l The Lowland by Jhumpa Lahiri l A God in Every Stone

by Kamila Shamsie l And the Mountains Echoed by Khaled Hosseini

The Gypsy Goddess by Meena Kandasamy l The Prisoner by Omar Shahid Hamid l Noontide Toll by Romesh Gunesekera l Mad Girl’s Love Song

by Rukmini Bhaya Nair l The Mirror of Beauty by Shamsur Rahman Faruqi Surina Narula MBE and Manhad Narula commenting on the announcement said: “The overwhelming support we continue to receive from the literary community has been fantastic. The amazing richness and diversity of South Asian literature makes our mission to promote this genre so crucial.�

Surina went on to say: “As expected the standard of entries this year was remarkably high and it proved exceptionally difficult for the jury to whittle them down to a shortlist of only five or six books. Each longlisted book was unique and full of character, and in its own right each and every one deserves a place on this year’s shortlist.�

Cameron aims to expand 24-hour visa service for wealthy visitors In an attempt to make the country more attractive to big spenders from overseas, Prime Minister David Cameron reveals that he aims to expand Britain’s 24-hour visa

service for wealthy visitors The service, which costs ÂŁ600 per application on top of the standard visa fee, is already available in China and India and ensures a deci-

sion on a visa application within 24 hours. Britain receives more than 100 priority applications each month so far, from China and about 60 per month from India.

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 22nd November 2014

COMMENT

Congress low in national esteem

The once luminous Indian National Congress with its long line of luminaries from its founder, Allan Octavian Hume, Dadabhai Naoroji, Surendranath Banerjee, Gopal Krishna Gokhale, Bal Gangadhar Tilak, Annie Besant,Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, Jawaharlal Nehru and Vallabhbhai Patel is now a discredited rump, headed by Sonia Gandhi and her son Rahul, and an array of absurdist courtiers who invite public scorn. The party’s celebration of the 125th birth anniversary of India’s first and greatest prime minister, Jawaharlal Nehru, by excluding the present prime of India, Narendra Modi and members of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party, was spiteful, vindictive and supremely insolent – the BJP having been elected to govern by the will of the Indian people, democratically expressed in a general election that elicited admiration throughout the civilized world.

What makes the Congress stunt even more odious was its decision to invite foreign dignitaries to emphasize the exclusion of the BJP top brass. The following extract from The Telegraph editorial of November 13 puts the whole shoddy affair in context. “The Indian National Congress harbours the illusion that Jawaharlal Nehru belongs only to itself. What is worse is that the president of the Congress [Sonia Gandhi] believes that Nehru belongs to the family she is married into. This is to diminish the importance of Nehru who was India’s first prime minister and, in his time as prime minister, by his personal example as well as by establishing institutional practices he laid the basis of a democratic and inclusive government. The selffashioned bearers of his legacy are determined to

undermine his achievements and destroy the processes he helped to create and put in place.

This is clear from the decision taken by the Congress to exclude the 15th prime minister of India, Narendra Modi, from the 125th birth anniversary celebrations of India’s first prime minister. What could be more incongruous than this?

The reason given for this exclusion is that invitations were sent only to those who believe in the ideals of Nehru and in democracy. This mode of reasoning – if petty politics can be dignified by the word ‘reasoning’ – confuses an institution with an individual: Mr Modi with the office of the prime minister. Whatever be the reservations of the Congress about Mr Modi, the present prime minister of India cannot be excluded from the birthday celebrations of the first prime minister. To carry out such an act of exclusion is a grotesque gesture of discourtesy to the office of the prime minister and to the noble ideals of democracy. It is an insult to the memory of Jawaharlal Nehru….Nehru was not without his faults as a prime minister but his real strength was his belief that democracy should have strong and deep roots in India….Even at the height of his power, he never disregarded Parliament. He had differences with people, sometimes even with very close colleagues…..He could live and cope with dissent and difference. Nehru was a true liberal.”

To these lines, one more may be added: “May you live long and continue to be the jewel of India.” It is from Mahatma Gandhi’s last letter to Nehru, written on 18 January 1948, less than a fortnight before his tragic death.

Prime Minister Modi has been on an extended foreign trip. His first port of call was Myanmar, where leaders of the Association of South East Nations assembled with ASEAN’s three partner countries, the United States, China and India. Trade and investment headed the conference agenda, but Myanmar’s progress from military dictatorship to representative democracy based on the rule of law, inclusive governance and respect for human rights also came under the spotlight. The consensus appeared to be that while the country had made significant advances in opening up its economy to the outside world, released significant numbers of political prisoners, had loosened the tight grip of the military on the reins of government and permitted limited freedom to the press, there was still a long way to go before the country could be certified as a fully functioning democracy.

The military still governs Myanmar and still prohibits Aung San Suu Kyi from standing as the country’s president. That said, what Myanmar has achieved after almost a full half century of an opaque and vicious military dictatorship is remarkable. When a prisoner in solitary confinement in a dark cell has suffered for so long, it takes time to adjust to fresh air and light. This, one must hope, is the case with Myanmar. Prime Minister Modi met with Aung San Suu Kyi for a lengthy conversation. She told reporters that India was her second home, so a visit to India in the near future is on the cards. Mr Modi’s talks with government leaders were warm and friendly. As a friendly neighbor, India has to be patient and discreet as it pursues its national interest. America, as usual, made the loudest noises about human rights issues, over which it has been notoriously selective over the years. No word, at least no word that can be heard internationally, has been pronounced in Washington on the lynching and burning to death of Pakistani Christian couple for alleged blasphe-

my against the Koran, for example, or the numerous abuses meted out to religious minorities in Saudi Arabia and the Gulf Sheikhdoms, which, like Pakistan, are cloned to the US military through pacts and dark understandings. President Obama’s human rights concerns voiced to an audience of young people in Yangon is part of American political theatre in a faraway country.

With China a looming regional presence, India must be more circumspect.

Mr Modi’s next stop was the G20 economic summit in Australia. He had much to say on trade and investment issues, on India being open to business, that the ‘Make in India’ signboard was one of welcome and opportunity for all comers.

This was important because he was speaking to the leaders of the most powerful global economies, including Presidents Obama, Putin, Xi Jinping, Hollande, Dilma Rousseff and Jacob Zuma plus Prime Ministers Shinzo Abe, David Cameron and Chancellor Angela Merkel, whose respective countries, Japan, UK, China together with the US , Russia, France, Brazil and South Africa are India’s foremost trade and investment partners. There were also one-to-one talks between various leaders on the sidelines of the summit. The BBC would make itself more credible were it to stop referring to President Putin as a “lonely and isolated” figure. India and China, each with a population of over a billion, Brazil with its 70 million and millions in South Africa were happy to keep the Russian President friendly company, as the BRICS group photograph [see page 12] illustrates. The BBC Correspondent’s sour observation reminds one of a famous Punch cartoon over a century ago: “Fog over the Channel. Continent isolated.” When the F word is standard usage among senior politicians and officials of the world’s sole superpower on leaders reluctant to play ball, the BBC comment, referred to above, is a minor transgression.

“Bangalore will become the world’s largest IT cluster by 2020,” claimed Srivatsa Krishna, IT Secretary, Karnataka Government, addressing the CeBT India and Bangalore ITE biz 2014 at the city’s International Exhibition Centre . Bangaloru [the local name] was not only India’s Silicon City, he said, but “we are on track to be [by 2020]the largest IT centre globally, employing the largest number of IT professionals.” The statistics reeled off make impressive reading. Bangalore contributed $45 billion, or 38 per cent of India’s total IT exports, including domestic consumption, last fiscal. Of this, $33 billion was from exports alone, compared with $18 billion from Tamil Nadu and $15 billion from Telangana and Andhra Pradesh.

Karnataka created 73,000 IT jobs last fiscal, employing 1 million people directly and 3 million indirectly, a figure expected to reach 8 million by 2020. India’s first internet Things laboratory will be set up by 2020 in Bangalore and three locations have been shortlisted for the facility: Electronics City, Airport Road and Silk Board.

A caution, however, has been sounded by Vishal Sikka, CEO, Infosys, who told the conference that, “India has a great opportunity to accelerate and reshape the world with software, but the depressing reality is of increasingly lower costs, hiring people faster from more and more mediocre places, training people less and less is a wrong direction that the IT industry is taking.”

Modi in Myanmar. Australia

India’s IT industry: Optimism, cautionary warning

3

You will never do anything in this world without courage. It is the greatest quality of the mind next to honour - Aristotle

“Our London” Navin Shah

GLA Member for Brent and Harrow

What type of London’s Skyline would you like to see?

London in its recent years has seen major changes to its skyline which has generated an important debate. How high should the building be? Are too many, too tall buildings harmful to London’s historic and architectural heritage? Are they blocking strategic views of some fine, old buildings of London? Whilst there have been various interesting additions to London’s landscape with tall buildings like the Shard; the Gherkin and Walkie-Talkie etc. There’s a controversy about poorly designed and not very well regulated plethora of new buildings built across London. The ‘Skyline Campaign’ recently has taken the lead to highlight these issues and raised concerns about the way tall buildings are developed. And, as a result recommendations have emerged to establish a ‘Skyline Commission’ for a better planned outcome to control and enhance the development of future tall buildings across London.

I am concerned about inappropriate tall buildings being planned across London, including in the suburban areas like Brent and Harrow and therefore joined the ‘Skyline Campaign’.

Planning Committee of the London Assembly of which I’m a member has also taken on board scrutiny of tall buildings in London. On conclusion of our work the Planning Committee will make recommendations to the Mayor of London, who is responsible for London’s planning policies.

At the London Assembly, a couple of weeks ago, all political parties unanimously agreed a resolution proposed by me asking the Mayor of London to set up a Skyline Commission for a better approach to tall buildings to preserve and enhance our skyline.

The resolution was NOT against high densities or tall buildings. New high rise buildings in fact, if carefully and sensitively developed, can make a positive contribution and

become part of our heritage, generating a high quality skyline.

I believe that the current planning process, implementation of policies and approach to tall buildings are flawed and need to be tightened to stop irreparable damage to London’s skyline. The problem is that high density is seen as an automatic license to approve tall buildings of well over 20 storey height. The problem is also that tall residential buildings largely provide luxury and unaffordable accommodation, totally unsuitable to meet London’s housing needs.

London requires genuinely affordable housing and requires family homes with gardens which we will not get from tall luxury buildings.

London is facing mind blowing challenges of economic and residential growth with the prospects of unparalleled high rise development. London’s 38 ‘Opportunity Areas’ (new hubs planned for economic and housing growth) with a combined capacity for 300,000 new homes and the Intensification Areas with 8,650 new homes are the type of locations where such tall buildings can and are most likely to emerge. Some of those areas could end up becoming ‘Mini Manhattan’ littered allover London.

According to New London Architecture there are over 230 tall buildings in the pipeline.

Of these 184 are residential. The cumulative impact of these developments on London’s skyline is not being thoroughly considered.

Powerful measures are required to stop the long term and lasting damage from unbridled, ill-considered and ill-conceived development of tall buildings. This is why the recommendation from London Assembly, in line with the recommendation of the Skyline Campaign, was made to the London’s Mayor is to set up a SKYLINE COMMISSION. Visit my website for more information.

MIDLANDS VOICE

Reigning back the ‘Trojan Horse’

4

Dhiren Katwa

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 22nd November 2014

Special meeting held for Governors & Heads

Blame does not move us forward, Fran Stevens OBE, Chair of the Birmingham Governors Network (BGN) told a gathering of over 150 people at a special meeting.

The meeting, “After Trojan Horse”, was organised by BGN for school governors and head teachers to consider the implications of the Trojan Horse affair for the future of school governance in all schools across the city.

The Trojan Horse affair was sparked off earlier this year following allegations of Islamist infiltration in British schools.

The packed theatrestyle meeting last Wednesday at the Birmingham Midland Institute in central Birmingham heard from a panel of three main speakers – Leader of Birmingham City Council Cllr Sir Albert Bore, Stephen Rimmer, Chair of the Trojan Horse Review Group and Colin Diamond, Deputy Birmingham Education Commissioner. Panel contributors included Reverend David Isiorha, representing the Birmingham Diocese and Amra Bone, from Birmingham Central Mosque, who is currently the only ‘qadi’ woman sitting on an Islamic court in the country. Each speaker was told that two minutes before their finish time a torch would be shone in their eyes. This was not needed.

Mrs Stevens OBE said the Trojan Horse affair had been a “wake up call

Amra Bone Albert Bore

for all of us” and asked what lessons could be drawn from the affair. She reminded everyone that schools belong to children, their parents and to communities. She added that BGN was listening and learning, participating in speaking up for governors in various forms and organising city-wide and local events.

Attendees’ opportunity to comment or ask a question in the final hour of the 6pm to 9pm meeting was ceased by many. A roving microphone was taken to participants who raised their hand. One longstanding governor asked why Birmingham’s Education Commissioner Mike Tomlinson had scheduled fortnightly feedback sessions with Education Secretary Nicky Morgan, yet not done the same with governors. Also, he asked if Mr Tomlinson, who was at another meeting, might make time to meet with governors. “Yes, of course, I can make that happen,” responded Colin Diamond, deputising for Mr Tomlinson.

Another chair of governors choked back tears as she told her story. “I’ve

been held accountable for something I’ve not been responsible for and I feel insulted.” She explained how she had been made to feel that her over 23 years of governance experience had been “worthless”.

‘Nobody in this time has asked me about my skills’, she added, words which won her rapturous applause. Mrs Stevens OBE thanked the speaker for her “impassioned speech” and assured her she was not alone in her feelings.

One governor of the Islamic faith said he was disappointed not to see any editorial on Islam and it’s place in the affair in a BGN newsletter, a copy of which was handed out to all. He also commented on the lack of Islamic representation on the panel. He asked why the city’s Lord Mayor, who happens to be a Muslim, was not included on the panel. Mrs Stevens OBE pointed out that Amra Bone was representing the Muslim community and that his comments were noted for evaluation purposes.

One attendee stood up and questioned the authenticity of British values. He asked if these values reflected the sacrifices of the Asian community to the British way of life.

Sikh procession in Smethwick

Colin Diamond

Separately, the head teacher of a primary school called for action on influencing change in policy of Sex & Relationships Education, or SRE. She pointed out that SRE was currently not statutory and was being applied inconsistently to schools across the land which, she argued, was causing a lot of problems.

Cllr Sir Albert Bore reminded all that the Trojan Horse affair was a result of a small number of misbehaving governors in a small number of schools and that we must not let this distract us from the majority good governance.

He pointed out that 81 per cent of the 430 schools in Birmingham are rated either Good or Outstanding by Ofsted, the schools watchdog. He did however admit that the working relationship between his council, Europe’s largest, and Ofsted had been a challenging one. There are almost 90,000 children aged under 5 living in Birmingham, making Birmingham one of the youngest cities in Europe.

To find out more about BGN visit www.bhamgovernorsnetwork.org.uk

Vaz successfully opens Diabetes centre

MP for Leicester East Keith Vaz has opened a new Diabetes Outpatients Centre at Leicester General Hospital. The centre is one of the largest of its kind in Europe and will enable all researchers to work together on one site for the first time.

A type 2 Diabetic himself, Vaz has campaigned for the some 50,000 fellow sufferers in the city. He stated: “As a diabetic, I and others will be very happy to have our care managed under one roof (…) this unit will save lives. By having dedicated diabetes services we can

treat the condition more effectively and help people manage all aspects of their diabetes in one location.”

This extension at Leicester General joins together outpatient clinics held at Leicester Royal Infirmary and two locations at the General: “I am so pleased to see Leicester leading the way in tackling this condition,” continued Vaz. The opening was also attended by such supporters as Chief Executive of Leicester Hospitals John Adler, Melanie Davis, Professor of Diabetic medicine at the University of

Diabetes centre opening

Leicester, and 5 consecutive Olympic gold-medal winner Sir Steve Redgrave who was diagnosed with diabetes in 1997. The transfer of diabetes outpa-

Ex-Conservative councillor and family exposed in visa scandal 62 year-old Khadham Hussain, who served as a Conservative councillor for City Ward, received nine years in jail for leading a visa forgery business with his family.

Craig Swanston,

Sikh celebrations in Smethwick

from Home Office C r i m i n a l Investigations, commented that it has been “a complex investigation into the criminal activities of a Bradfordbased organised crime group (…)

His

(Hussain's) gang, which included members of his family, used fraudulent practices to cheat our immigration system and facilitate the illegal entry of foreign nationals into the UK.” The Bradford

tient clinics from the Royal to the General is one of a number of service changes being instituted across Leicester's hospitals.

Crown Court heard that the gang manufactured and sold forged documents, which were consequently put through by others for visa applications to the Home Office: “The sentences reflect the gravity of these offences” Swanston continued.

The Nagar Kirtan, or Sikh procession, took the streets of Smethwick to celebrate the birth of Guru Nanak, the religion's legendary founder.

Thousands of worshippers, dressed in a vibrant combination of orange and blue, started from West Bromich High Street and made their way to the Guru Nanak Gurdwara in Smethwick over a period of four hours. Coordinator of the Council of Sikh Gurdwaras in Sandwell Parmjit Singh Dhillon commented: “A great deal of work has gone into organising this event and I am grateful for the support of the members of the entire local community

Sikh and non-Sikh, all related authorities, including Sandwell Council and West Midlands Police (…)

I hope we will be able to celebrate this event with minimum disruption to residents, business owners, services and other road users.”

The celebration was a joyous occasion indeed with the jubilant crowd following an adorned float carrying the Sikh holy scriptures or the Sri Guru Granth Sahib and religious services commencing to finish.

Sikhs from eight of Sandwell's Gurdwaras took part in the parade where the turnout was in thousands.

40 year-old Muhammed Saeed was sentenced to two years in jail at Birmingham Crown Court for committing fraud. The Urdu translator hid the answers to driving theory tests in the guise of verbal symbols for fees of £120.00. His clientele expanded to citizens of Kent, Luton and Bradford and drew the attention of the Driving Standards Agency.

Officer in charge DC Mark Calvert said: “It seems Saeed was establishing a reputation as a theory test ‘fixer’ in the Muslim community for anyone struggling to pass (…) at the start of each test translators have to read out a vow which states ‘I confirm I will not do anything to affect the integrity of the test and understand that by assisting a candidate I may be committing a criminal offence' (…) He obviously thought it was easy money and that, as the cheat’s code was in Urdu, assumed the DSA and police would be oblivious to his scheme. He was

wrong and is now paying the price for his con.”

An independent interpreter deciphered that Saeed was using the Urdu word 'you' to mean 'yes' to help the prospective candidates. Among the many hopeful HGV and bus-drivers who Saeed assisted through the assessments, three had failed more than 15 times before turning to him for help, while another had tried a total of 25 times.

Saeed pled guilty to six counts of fraud. His case is one of many that has led to the DSA's decision to axe foreign language support on driving tests which has been in effect since April.

Urdu translator offers cheat service in driving tests

Hussain's wife Zahida Parveen, three sons Adnan, Gibran and Adam Ashraf, and nephew Numan Shafi were all found guilty in conspiring where the troupe were linked to about 100 fraudulent visa applications between them.

Muhammed Saeed

Hussain and family

UK

Gandhi statue attracts donations from all across the globe

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 22nd November 2014

Labour's tighter immigration plan faces criticism

Amidst immigration debates running for the last few weeks, a plan of stricter border control, by the Labour party which may lead to the recruitment of 1,000 more border and immigration enforcement staff, has faced severe backlash by the Home Secretary, who has criticised that this scheme could possibly fund only 59 new members of staff.

The £45 mn recruitment plan that was leaked before its announcement, by Shadow Home Secretary Yvette Cooper, said that the recruitment of 1,000 more border and enforcement staff will be

Yvette Cooper

‘funded through the introduction of a small charge (approximately £10) to process electronic visa waivers for those coming to the country.’

Critics, especially Home Secretary Theresa May, has pointed out that the electronic visa waiver scheme applies to Oman (13,600 visitors to the UK), Qatar (48,300 visitors to the UK) and the United Arab Emirates (61,400 visitors to the UK). Even when you add Kuwait (113,000 visitors to the UK), which will join the scheme next year, that makes a total of 236,300 visitors, which according to Labour’s sums would

Theresa May

raise £2.363 million.

Assuming costs of £40,000 per employee, this means Labour could only recruit 59 officers based on the plans they have revealed.

Extending the scheme to other countries would cost more to operate than it would recover in fees. If Labour wants to extend the electronic visa waiver scheme to visitors from all countries that do not at present require a visa – such as the United States, Canada, New Zealand and Australia – they will be creating a complicated new system that would cost more to operate than it would recover in fees of £10 per person.

A we went to press, Ms May said: ‘Labour are pretending they can hire 1,000 more immigration staff when their funding model would raise enough money for only 59 new staff members. And as their secret spending review contains plans to cut the Home Office budget, they are being especially dishonest.

‘And what’s more, by relaxing the Government’s immigration reforms, Labour would take Britain backwards and risk a surge in both legal and illegal immigration.

‘This disastrous policy launch shows Labour aren’t remotely ready for the responsibility of government.’

Indian student's untimely death saddens community

Continued from page 1

Jordanna Goodwin, 16, Megan Storey, 16, and Bartosz Bortniczak, 18, died in the two-car crash on Saturday night.

Friends of the group laid scores of floral tributes outside Danum

Academy in Doncaster, where four of the five were pupils, and Mr Bortniczak was a former student. The school students mourned the loss of their friends, who were absolutely inseparable.

Headteacher Rebecca Staples said, “Blake

Rupanjana Dutta

Lord and Lady Desai held a press conference in the House of Lords last week, announcing that the statue of Mahatma Gandhi in Parliament Square is now attracting small and large donations, pouring in from all across the globe. This comes as a welcoming news after the campaigners raised their concern regarding the need for a sum of £600,000, to finish the project on time.

While Lord Meghnad Desai, Chair of the Gandhi Statue Memorial Trust did not disclose the full amount raised so far, speaking about completing the sculpture, and on the fundraising he said: "I had a call yesterday from someone in India and he promised me a six-figure sum in donation. He is a good friend and I am looking forward to that.

“The word is spreading around.

We are getting very good support from donors and we have lots of pledges and money is also coming in through our website. I have also written to my colleagues in the House of Lords and they are doing their bit to help too.”

The plan for this last statue in the historical Parliament square was revealed by Chancellor George Osborne with the then Foreign Secretary William Hague, during their visit to India in July.

The Foreign Ministry has confirmed that there are efforts being made to have the Indian Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi, over for the unveiling on 30th January 2015, but no confirmation has been delivered so far from the The world celebrates 25 years of the fall of the Berlin Wall, this year. During my visit to the city on the weekend, it was a pleasant surprise to see a bust of Mahatma Gandhi, in a Museum at Checkpoint Charlie- that was a point of control between West Germany and East Germany, during the conflict days.

The exhibition stands specially dedicated to the unique stories of those people stuck suffering in the German Democratic Republic (GDR) or East Germany, the resilient escapees, wars after the signing of NATO and many other human rights issues.

The Berlin wall existed from 1949 to 1990 and the GDR covered the area of the present-day German states of MecklenburgVorpommern, Brandenburg, Berlin (excluding West Berlin), Sachsen, Sachsen-Anhalt, and Thüringen.

The Exhibition: 'From Gandhi to Walsea: Non Violent Struggle for Human Rights Worldwide' includes an original Cairns, Jordanna Goodwin, Arpad Kore, and Megan Storey were all flourishing in our sixth form," "They were popular, lively and loved by those who knew them and many students looked up to them within our community.”

"Arpad Kore was always willing to help and assist at school; he was a totally reliable member of

5

PMO. However, Lord Desai said that though he is hopeful to have the statue ready for unveiling, it would be difficult for him to give an assurance of the precise date of unveiling, as its mandate was limited to raising the funds.

Deepak Yadav, a UKbased Indian entrepreneur who has donated generously, was also present in the press conference and spoke about why it was important for young people come forward and donate- which he considered more as an honour and an investment in the future.

The noted British sculptor Philip Jackson gave a detailed account of how he chose a particular image for Mahatma Gandhi. He said that he was helped by photographs and books given by the famous economist Lord Desai and the Indian High Commissioner, HE Ranjan Mathai.

Mr Jackson also said that he was able to give the Gandhi statue, a look of resoluteness, when he met Gopalkrishna Gandhi recently, who told him about this particular quality that Gandhi possessed.

The statue is now in the process of being cast in bronze, after which it should be ready for the proposed unveiling in early Mahatma Gandhi outside 10 Downing Street 2015. in 1931

An exhibition on Gandhi in Berlin

The bust of Mahatma Gandhi at an exhibition in the Checkpoint Charlie Museum

diary, his letters and wooden sandals, as well as other objects once belonging to Mahatma Gandhi.

The exhibition also presents examples from various countries

our community, a true gentleman who looked out for everybody. He had a tremendous sense of humour," she added.

Inspector Pete Serhatlic said: "It's absolutely horrific, it's an extremely sad situation."

The group of friends were killed when the driver, understood to be Mr Bortniczak, ‘lost control’ heading downhill on a bend and a car coming in

across the years, including India, Czechoslovakia, Poland, and to show how justice can be achieved without fighting and bloodshed, using non-violent demonstrations and humour.

the opposite direction slammed into the side of their vehicle, causing devastating damage. The accident happened at 9.40pm on Saturday in damp and foggy conditions. They were driving along a 60mph stretch of the A630 road – known as an accident black spot – when the Toyota slid sideways into the opposite carriageway and was hit by a Seat Leon. A 21-year-old man

believed to be driving a third vehicle was arrested on suspicion of dangerous driving, the BBC reported.

The driver of the Seat, a 45-year-old man from Mexborough, suffered a broken leg.

Police have appealed for witnesses to try to establish whether excessive speed was to blame.

They said the man, from Doncaster, was later released on bail.

6

UK

'Holyman' abuser Charanjit jailed for 13 years

A man said to be a "healer and holyman" has been sentenced to 13 years for the rape and abuse of a 12year-old girl .

Charanjit, 46, from Twinburn Gardens in Newtownabbey, County Antrim, was jailed in his absence after being admitted to hospital at the previous sentence hearing with chest pains. He had been found guilty by a jury of eight sexual offences including rape and sexual assault The judge also said that Charanjit would be deported to India. He said it is a matter for the secretary of state to decide if Charanjit who does not

Charanjit is to be deported back to India

speak English is deported now, during his time in custody or at the end of

his sentence.

Charanjit carried out the offences between 30 September 2012 and 1 February 2013.

During the trial, the victim, now aged 14, told the court that she was brought to Charanjit for treatment as he was considered a holy man or healer. She said that he diagnosed her as having a stone in her stomach.

The victim said that she visited him twice and was sexually abused on both occasions.

The defendant denied the charges throughout the trial. However, the jury rejected his version of events.

Brum surgeon Nafees Hamid guilty of indecent assaults

A neurosurgeon has been found guilty of eight indecent assaults against patients at two Birmingham hospitals.

Nafees Hamid, 51, had denied a total of 15 charges relating to 10 women between 2009 and 2013 at the city's Queen Elizabeth and Priory hospitals.

The jury at Birmingham Crown Court acquitted Hamid of five counts of sexual assault.

The spinal surgery specialist, of Russell Road, Moseley, Birmingham, told the court that some of the alleged attacks did not

Birmingham neurosurgeon Nafees Hamid

happen, while others were legitimate examinations which had been misconstrued.

Among the victims he was convicted of assaulting was a woman in her mid-20s whose complaint led to Hamid's arrest in November 2013.

The patient, who cannot be named for legal reasons, told jurors she felt "frozen to the spot" as she was subjected to an assault at the private Priory Hospital in 2013.

The seven other counts on which Hamid was convicted relate to four women who attended hospital for a variety of complaints between January and September 2012.

Parliament evacuated after bomb scare

Part of the UK parliament was evacuated after an iPad belonging to a minister’s aide sparked a bomb scare.

Streets surrounding the buildings in central London were cordoned off on Monday morning after a suspicious package was found in Portcullis House, which contains MPs’ offices.

Bridge Street, Westminster Bridge and Victoria Embankment to Northumberland Avenue were closed to traffic and MPs were forced to leave the building.

Following an investigation, the Metropolitan police declared the package in question was not

Part of the houses of parliament was evacuated after a bomb scare

Shrien Dewani trial: Lawyers to apply for dismissal

Lawyers for Shrien Dewani, the man accused of organising the murder of his wife on their honeymoon, are to apply for the case to be dismissed.

Swedish national Anni, 28, died in Cape Town, South Africa in 2010 after an apparent carjacking that went wrong.

Mr Dewani, 34, of Bristol, has pleaded not guilty to charges including kidnapping and murder.

Defence lawyer Francois van Zyl said he would apply for the dismissal after the state rested its case on Monday.

Mr Dewani is on trial accused of plotting for his wife's murder with three men, shuttle taxi driver Zola Tongo, Mziwamadoda Qwabe

and Xolile Mngeni in November 2010. Mngeni was sentenced to life in prison for Mrs Dewani's murder but died in prison, while Qwabe was sentenced to 25 years. Tongo was sentenced to 18 years following a plea bargain deal.

The prosecution claimed Mr Dewani conspired with the trio to

stage the hijacking, for which he paid 15,000 rand - less than £1,000 at the 2010 exchange rate.

Mr Dewani maintains the money was actually for a surprise helicopter trip which Tongo was helping to arrange.

The case for the dismissal will be argued before Western Cape High Court judge Jeanette Traverso on Monday.

During the trial, the judge has dismissed sections of the state's case, describing evidence about Dewani's sex life as irrelevant.

Mr Dewani admitted at the start of the case that he is bisexual and one of the prosecution witnesses was a male prostitute who he had paid to have sex with.

Health watchdog the Care Quality Commission (CQC) has ranked almost every GP surgery in England in terms of risk of providing poor care.

The majority are of low concern, but 11% have been rated in the highest risk band by CQC. Many of the elevated-risk practices had possible issues with appointments, mental health plans, and cervical cancer screening.

The CQC register will help target inspections.

The watchdog said the register did not necessarily indicate poor GP surgery performance.

"It is important to remember that the data is not a judgement, as it is only when we inspect we can determine if a practice provides safe, high-quality and compassionate care.

The data is a further tool that will help us to decide where to inspect and when," said CQC chief inspector of general prac-

tice Prof Steve Field.

The health watchdog ranked 7,276 practices out of the total 7,661 in England, and placed 864 practices in the "highest concern" category. In about 3% of high-concern practices, patients stated they had difficulties in getting an appointment to see a GP or nurse.

However, surgeries that were not at high risk also saw patient dissatisfaction with appoint-

ments. In about one sixth of practices, patients had a limited ability to get appointments and services, the CQC said.

Potential issues in elevated-risk practices also included the provision of care plans for people with schizophrenia, bipolar disorder or other psychoses, and potentially low numbers of women aged 25 to 64 who had received a cervical screening test in the past five years.

Watchdog ranks GP surgeries by risk

IS's Jihadi John threatens slaughter in Britain

dangerous. A spokesman said: “It has been declared non-suspicious – everything has been stood down.”

Conservative MP Nick Boles, minister of state jointly for the Department

for Business, Innovation and Skills and the Department for Education, later revealed that the scare had been caused by a tablet computer belonging to his newly recruited apprentice.

Police fail to record one in five of all crimes says report More than 800,000 - or one in five - of all crimes reported to the police each year are not being recorded by officers, a report suggests.

The problem is greatest for victims of violent crime, with a third going unrecorded. Of sexual offences, 26% are not recorded.

An HM Inspectorate

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 22nd November 2014

of Constabulary report

looked at more than 8,000 reports of crime in England and Wales. The watchdog said the failure to record crime properly was "indefensible".

Home Secretary Theresa May, pictured, described the findings as "utterly unacceptable", but police representatives said the situation had improved since the study.

Jihadi John, the nickname given to a Briton who beheaded two British and two American nationals abducted by the Islamic State (IS) Sunni radical organisation, has threatened slaughter on the streets of Britain.

Following the release of a threat video by the IS, Prime Minister David Cameron has called an emergency Cobra meeting, the Telegraph reported on Monday.

In the video of the murder released Jihadi John threatens to slaughter people on the streets of Britain and termed Cameron as a puppet of US President Barack Obama.

Cameron was briefed on the ongoing situation by security officials while at the G20 summit in Australia.

The prime minister's

Islamic State 'Jihadi John' holds hostage Alan Henning before his execution.

official spokesman said: "The prime minister will chair a meeting of Cobra (Cabinet Office Briefing Room) following the most recent murders perpetrated by IS news of which broke over the weekend.”

He continued: "Chairing

the Cobra will give him the chance to get the very latest from intelligence and security officials."

The video featuring the masked militant contains the most explicit threats of attacks on British and American streets.

UK

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 22nd November 2014

Bombay Stock Exchange supports Lord Loomba's crusade for socio-economic empowerment of poor widows in India

The Loomba Foundation, a UN accredited global NGO working for the cause of poor widows and their children, and BSE Ltd. (formerly known as Bombay Stock Exchange Ltd.), Asia’s first and India’s fastest Stock Exchange, today hosted a conference entitled

her husband Shiraz Lalji and Patron Padamshri Sh. Vikramjit Singh Sahney, to provide training to widows to help them become self-sufficient by giving them a means of earning income.

Members of Parliament from the British and Indian gov-

ernments including Rt. Hon. Lord Dholakia PC OBE DL, Trustee of the Loomba Foundation and Liberal Democrats Deputy Leader, House of Lords, and benefactors and dignitaries from both countries were also present at the event, alongside Mr. Pankaj Modi from Gandhinagar, and Mr. Jaykumar Parekh, member of the Advisory Council of The Loomba Foundation. Senior representatives of hundreds of BSE-listed companies, mutual funds, brokers,

investment bankers, insurance companies, analysts, underwriters, and regulators were also invited for the event.

Harjiv Singh, Trustee of The Loomba Foundation, and Co-Founder & CoCEO of Gutenberg Communications, delivered the vote of thanks.

The Chief Guest from UK, Rt. Hon. Dr. Vince Cable MP, Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills and President of the Board of Trade, UK, said, “Women in India are breaking the glass ceiling across banking, petroleum, technology, pharmaceuticals, healthcare, FMCG, and other industries which is amazing. Why then, in a world of meritocracy, should a woman be bereaved of the wonderful opportunities of growth merely because she lost her husband? I am encouraged to see so many corporate leaders here today – I hope you will come forward to join hands with The Loomba Foundation in their crusade to provide equal opportunities and basic human rights to widows and their children. I also wish luck to Chris Parsons for his walk marathons in India early January to raise funds for the cause of widows.”

In his message, Sh. Devendra Fadnavis, the honourable Chief Minister of Maharashtra,

Reeves MP hold Labour's first ever summit on selfemployment. The summit of self-employed workers and businesses will discuss how the next Labour government should support the entrepreneurialism of people who set up and build their own business.

Chuka Umunna MP, Labour’s Shadow Business Secretary, said: "In recent years we've seen a marked rise in people choosing to become their own boss, but at the same time self-employed people's incomes have been hardest hit by the cost-of-living crisis. And all too often self-employed people are being held back and ignored by government and we've seen entire programmes put in place by ministers which fail to take their needs into account.

"That's why Labour has convened a summit on self-employment this week, putting selfemployed people at the

heart of our plans. Where the Tory-led government has failed, the next Labour government will stand squarely with Britain's wealth creators so they can meet their aspirations."

Rachel Reeves MP, Labour’s Shadow Work and Pensions Secretary, said: "Labour is on side of people who work hard and do the right thing but are being let down by David Cameron's government. Since 2010 millions of self-employed people have seen their living standards fall by 14 per cent and the government has failed to give them the support they need.

Labour wants to break down the barriers which millions of self-employed people face when they are try to apply for a mortgage or save for a pension.

We're holding this summit to ensure the next Labour government does everything it can to help selfemployed people to succeed."

Hon Chief Minister of Maharashtra, Devendra Fadnavis, flanked by Right Hon Dr Vince Cable on the left and Lord Loomba Chairman and Founder of Loomba Foundation

‘Corporate Social Responsibility: Empowering Poor Widows in India’. The event encouraged corporate India to channel their mandatory 2% Corporate Social Responsibility provision in the new Companies Act for the benefit of impoverished widows.

A highlight of the conference was the launch of a project of 500 sewing machines in Mumbai jointly by The Loomba Foundation’s Trustee Mrs. Shamin Lalji and

Labour party to hold a special summit for Britain's self employed

New figures have revealed that in 2010, there has been a 13% rise in the number of self employed people. It is not evident if this has been caused by the decline in the employment rate, but making use of the opportunity well, the Labour party has decided to hold a summit for self-employed workers.

It is evident that this summit will please the Asian community to a great extend, who have one of the highest percentage of self employed people, mostly engaged in variety of businesses, amongst the ethnic communities.

In a report the Office for National Statistics have shown that every region in the UK has seen a rise in self-employment apart from Northern Ireland. The highest rises were in the North East (23 per cent), London (20 per cent) and East of England (16 per cent).

Labour has released the figures as Chuka Umunna MP and Rachel

British Deputy High Commissioner in Mumbai, Kumar Iyer, Chris Parsons, Chairman India Practice & Ambassador for the Loomba Foundation, Herbert Smith Freehills, Mr S Ramadorai, Non Executive Chairman BSE, Padmashri Vikram Singh Sahney, Patron of the Loomba Foundation, Rt Hon. Dr Vince Cable, Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, Rt. Hon. Lord Dholakia, Trustee of Loomba Foundation & Lib. Dem. Deputy leader of the House of Lords, Lord Loomba Founder & Chairman & Harjiv Singh, Trustee of the Loomba Foundation & Co-CEO of Gutenberg Communications

said, “My government is committed to improve socio-economic status of those who are downtrodden and poor. Especially we are planning to roll out development initiatives for empowering destitute, widows, and single women by setting up support centers. I am touched by the work The Loomba Foundation has been doing in empowering poor widows and their children. I am sure, with the help of social organizations and institutions we will take up this

challenge of building social infrastructure.

Lord Raj Loomba CBE, Founder and Chairman Trustee of The Loomba Foundation, who was recently presented with the Lifetime Achievement Award by the United Nations Association of New York, said, “Our Foundation has held several events to create global awareness on the plight and unmet needs of the widows, but this is perhaps the biggest contingent of business leaders I have ever seen

at a single place to show solidarity for the cause. I am deeply indebted to the BSE for making this possible.” Lord Loomba thanked Rt Hon Lord Dholakia, Trustee of the The Loomba Foundation and Lib Dems Deputy Leader in the House of Lords, for presiding over the conference. In addition, he also thanked BSE for their kind contribution of Rs. 10 Lakhs to the Loomba Foundation, which will enable the Foundation to empower 200 widows in India.

7

UK

Bradford hope: teenagers crusade for the homeless

8

Sarish Saghir and Sukhpreet Shergill were chosen from more than 40,000 young people across the UK to be ambassadors for the National Citizen Service.

They were recruited for their altruistic actions in caring for the homeless.

Sukhpreet Shergill

Sixteen-year old Sarish from Girlington called her community project 'Hope for the Homeless'. This involved preparing hampers full of essentials, including clean clothes and toiletries, about 100 of which were

distributed in a soup kitchen at St Pio Friary in Bradford. Unsurprisingly Sarish and her team have now raised another £2,000 to continue with the enterprise: "I still get recognised by some of the homeless people from the project and they thank me and ask for more items" she said in an interview given in Telegraph and Argus. “We hope to create more hampers and have them ready to hand out just before Christmas, hopefully not only making homeless people smile, but making sure they stay warm and healthy throughout the winter.”

Recently turned eighteen Sukhpreet of Bolton Woods also distributed packages chocked full of bare necessities, but took his project to a homeless shelter: “"It was an amazing experience," he beamed. "The people we helped were so grateful, and you could tell we were doing a great deed as everyone was so polite despite all they have been through.”

Sarish Saghir

Ellie Julings, a local delivery partner for NCS, said the duo were stellar role models for Bradford: “Sarish and Sukhpreet thoroughly deserve this recognition - Sarish for her energy and passion for social action and Sukhpreet for his ability to inspire and encourage others.” As Sukhpreet stated, “everyone should apply for NCS as it is a once-ina-lifetime chance." Sarish also commented: “My confidence has grown, I’m more comfortable to give my opinion, take part, and help prove the traditional stereotypes of teenagers wrong."

Low-cost, inflatable baby incubator developed

In what could help reduce the number of deaths resulting from premature births, a researcher from Loughborough University in Britain has developed a low-cost, inflatable baby incubator for use in the developing world.

The incubator MOM provides the same performance as an expensive modern incubation system, but costs just 250 pounds (Rs.24,206.79) to manufacture, test and transport to the desired location, said a statement issued by the university.

"I was inspired to tackle this problem after watching a documentary on the issue for premature babies in refugee camps. It motivated me to use my design engineering skills to make a difference," said

James Roberts, who created the incubator.

MOM is an inexpensive, electronically controlled, inflatable incubator constructed to decrease the number of premature child deaths within refugee camps. The device can be collapsed for transportation and runs off a battery which lasts 24 hours, in case of power outages. The incubator is

blown up manually and it is heated using ceramic heating elements.

Over one in ten babies worldwide are born prematurely. According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), 75 percent of deaths resulting from premature birth could be avoided if inexpensive treatments were more readily available across the globe.

flags on the bridge.

The structure of Lord Ganesha, which constantly changed colour, ended the procession on the bridge overlooking a pond full of lights.

Members of the public carried colourful candles and mini tea lights during the spectacular procession. More than 300 people had their face painted

with Gopi dots during the celebration, which lasted for much of the day, and many received Mendhi designs on their hands.

The performance stage ran from noon to 4.30pm and included Kathak, Bollywood and Street Dance, spoken word, devotional singing and live instrumental music.

Diwali in Watford Hundreds of people turned out for the Festival of Lights celebration and procession to mark Diwali. They followed a 2.5 metre illuminated structure of Lord Ganesha, tricycles decorated with illuminated peacocks and a traditional Dhol player on Sunday.

The procession went from The Parade to The Pond, which was decorated with illuminated floating lotuses, freestanding lanterns and

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 22nd November 2014

Krupali Patel: Radiographer of the Year

Sunetra Senior

Last week the talented Krupali Patel was awarded London Radiographer of the Year at the House of Commons. This welldeserved honour was bestowed by The Society and College of Radiographers at the Radiography Awards 2014 for all Krupali's mentorship and training work with students in fetal cardiac sonography.

Proud parents Girish and Niru Patel said: “she has worked very hard for this.”

There is no doubt that Krupali of St Thomas' Hospital has accomplished much in the last six years. First qualifying as a radiographer, Sonali went on to complete her ultrasound training and graduated with a distinction in 2009. Her consequent work with The British Heart Foundation to improve fetal cardiac training for all sonogra-

Krupali Patel

phers in South East England then led to her prestigious role as sonography tutor. This includes providing the practical and theoretical training for students who are undertaking obstetric and gynaecological ultrasound training. Lynda Mulhair, a fellow doctor, added that “Krupali has devised an in-house course for individuals to undertake basic ultrasound which includes basic anatomical theory and physics.” Recently, Krupali has also given valuable feedback to ensure that high quality ultra-sound is performed

by all practitioners in her department.

However this young medic is not just a specialist sonographer; she is also, as Lynda continued to gush, an exceptional person: “Krupali is delightful to work with.

She had infinite patience with the students under her care, including the doctors in training. She remains calm under pressure and always strives to ensure that both the women and students get the best care possible (… ) She is unfailingly professional, but also demonstrates a good sense of humour.”

The proactive wonder also organises monthly educational sessions for all sonographers on subjects that they have suggested and looks to recruit the relevant speakers. We are very pleased to hear of Krupali's success and know that there will be much more to come.

'Trinity Mirror' aggravates digital revolution debate

Publishers 'Trinity Mirror' announced that they were closing seven of its local newspapers including The Reading Post, Harrow Observer and Woking Informer to establish a more online focused platform. This has caused outrage in the regional printjournalism community.

Resulting in the loss of 50 jobs with the most casualties in editorial, The National Union of Journalists described the decision as a “sickening blow” for the company’s west London employees and a “watershed moment” for the local newspaper industry.

Martin Shipton, the chair of the Trinity Mirror NUJ group chapel elaborated: “Trinity Mirror is shutting down well-established titles and replacing them with an online news presence unattached to newspapers. So far there is little evidence that an operation of this kind can generate the revenues needed to sustain a workforce of sufficient size to provide a decent news service.”

Even rival editor Lesley Potter demonstrated concern about the company's decision. Speaking on behalf of her publica-

'Trinity Mirror' offices

tion The Reading Chronicle est. 1825, Potter stated “we have been fierce rivals over the years, but we have always had a healthy respect for one another. We at the Reading Chronicle have absolutely no intention of abandoning print.”

Despite the objections, 'The Trinity Mirror' has cited a 12% slide in print advertising revenue for the 17 weeks to October 26, following a 9% fall for the first half of 2014 and a 44% rise in digital publishing revenue over that same period. About 10 new digital editorial roles and two digital commercial roles will be generated for their new digital model.

Simon Edgley, the managing director of Trinity Mirror Southern, described their actions as

a “bold digital-only publishing transformation” for a “digital-savvy audience” and said that this was “an important and pioneering step that might, in time, be applicable to other existing markets or indeed new ones (…) decisions that impact our staff are never easy to make but they are absolutely necessary if we are to continue our transformation into a modern multiplatform publishing operation, with the flexibility and agility to invest and grow our news brands.”

The union announced this week it had written to culture and digital economy minister Ed Vaizey calling for an inquiry into the future of local newspapers due to a number of similar cases with newspapers across the UK.

New insight into age-related blindness There could soon be new treatment for age-related macular degeneration (AMD), one of the major causes of blindness, as researchers have identified a new protein intimately connected to the disease.

The protein called Factor H-like protein 1

(FHL-1) is responsible for protecting our eyes from attack by a part of our immune system called the complement system. It has been shown that AMD sufferers are genetically predisposed to develop the condition.

"The research suggests

that it is FHL-1 that protects the back of the eye from immune attack.

Insufficient FHL-1 in the back of the eye may result in inflammation that eventually results in vision loss from AMD," said lead researcher Simon Clark from the University of Manchester.

UK

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 22nd November 2014

Leading Lights

Rani Singh, Special Assignments Editor

Former Top Banker Transforming Healthcare

by Pioneering Genetics in Emerging Markets “Think of your genome comprising over 3 billion base-pairs as your Book of Life, holding secrets to your health. Now imagine deciphering this book in order to create your personal lifelong plan for a healthy existence. This is the power of genetics! It allows the delivery of personalised medicine. A specific, tailored action plan for predicting and managing our individual health, from diagnosis to treatment.”

Thus begins Sumit S. Jamuar, Executive Chairman of Global Gene Corp, a company applying genetics research to deliver personalised medicine in India and emerging markets. Global Gene Corp was born out of Mr Jamuar’s desire to transform the provision of quality health care in India and emerging markets.

“My drive is to build and transform businesses that have a substantial impact – both business and social,” he says. “The challenge in emerging markets is that the gap

Sumit S. Jamuar

between demand for quality healthcare versus supply is significant, and growing. We believe genetics is the disruptive force,” Sumit explains. “We have on our team some of the best genetics and engineering experts in the world with pedigrees from institutions such as Harvard Medical School, IIT, Newcastle University, NUS”

Sumit is excited by the possibility of transforming healthcare through personalised medicine, particularly in light of the growing number of non-communicable ailments that include cardiac and metabolic diseases.

Sumit continues, “right now if you fall ill, you go to your doctor, and he or she prescribes a drug based on symptoms. Using genetics you can understand your individual risks, predict what drugs will work for you as an individual, and which ones to avoid.”

This sounds like a powerful application. We discuss statins, a drug commonly prescribed in the UK- particularly if you are Asian. Research has shown up to 13% Asians

have a negative side effect of statins – joint pains, muscle degeneration.

Sumit says, “If you do our pharmacogenomics test, you could find out if statins will be suitable for you, or what alternative might be more effective.

Imagine the possibility of transforming healthcare in collaboration with healthcare professionals, pharmaceutical companies and policy makers!”

All this happens to neatly marry with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s “Make in India” theme.

For instance, research studies have established that Indians have a similar genetic makeup that is distinct from their Chinese or European counterparts.

Sumit and his team built IndiaCHIP™, a preventative health screen for Indians. This means that Global Gene Corp is a unique provider that uses India-specific genetic datasets. Sumit is excited by the potential of building a global company with its core in India and international collaborations.

His team members are spread across the UK, Boston, Singapore and India.

We talk about influences shaping his life.

Sumit feels his parents, Mrs Rita Jamuar and Prof.

Sudhanshu S. Jamuar, provided the foundation as they “wanted me to

work hard, be modest and stay grounded.”

His father, a Professor in Electrical Engineering who taught at the Indian Institute of Technology, Delhi (IIT), invented the Hindi Devnagri script computer terminal (along with collaborators). Sumit says, “I was brought up on the IIT campus surrounded by the smartest technology problem-solvers in India. That ethos got ingrained in my DNA.” Sumit is a Chemical Engineer from IIT, a highly selective college where up to 300,000 apply and the entry pass rate is less than half a per cent. He values the IIT because he was amongst “all kinds of geeks with a great collaborative network. It taught me humility because there was always someone smarter and better than you.” He has an MBA from INSEAD and has attended programmes at Tuck Dartmouth, UMASS Amherst and the Royal Central School of Speech and Drama. Sumit started his career with McKinsey & Company, India, where he was the first undergraduate to be hired directly as a consultant in India.

“McKinsey was the best building block for my business career as I gained amazing professional experiences and global networks,” he comments.

Until 2012, Sumit was

with the Lloyds Banking Group in London, where he held several senior leadership positions. His last role was running global business as Managing Director (MD) and Global Head. He is believed to be the youngest person in the bank, at 31, to achieve the MD position. Sumit is also the co-founder and Executive Chairman of KYCTrust, addressing compliance risk for financial services using big data. He is the Advisor to SPICMACAY, UK, promoting Indian classical music and culture, and the UK Trustee for the Lake Tanganyika Floating Health Clinic.

In closing I ask him about his acting course at the Royal Central School.

Sumit says, “The acting course taught me how to channel my energy – even though we cannot control what happens around and to us, we can control our reactions. That makes all the difference.”

Global Gene Corp: www.globalgenecorp.com: Global Gene Corp is a genomics company and unique provider of high-quality genetic testing services that are predictive and preventive to provide actionable information to customers and physicians even before the symptoms of a disease become evident.

Rupee Exchange Rate You will not like to miss

Rapid Funds 2 India – You just need to visit any of our 10 branches in the UK Click Funds 2 India –

9

Just get online and remit money to India at ease

• Remittances to any Bank in India.

• Free remittances to Bank of Baroda branches in India For Rupee exchange rates and terms and conditions,

Terms and conditions apply

visit www.bankofbarodauk.com or call 020 7457 1515 Visit any of our 10 branches in the UK: Bank of Baroda London Main Office EC1Y 2BD T:+44 (0) 20 7457 1544

Bank of Baroda Tooting Branch SW17 7TR T: +44 (0) 20 8767 6469

Bank of Baroda Ilford Branch IGI 2RT T: +44 (0) 20 8514 8609

Bank of Baroda Aldgate Branch E1 1NL T: +44 (0) 20 7480 0000

Bank of Baroda Southall Branch UB1 1QD T: +44 (0) 20 8574 1324

Bank of Baroda Wembley Branch HA0 4TL T: +44 (0) 20 8902 7407

Bank of Baroda Kenton Branch HA3 0HD T:+44 (0) 208 909 1739

Bank of Baroda Birmingham Branch B21 9SU T: +44 (0) 121 523 5973

Bank of Baroda Manchester Branch M4 5JU T: +44 (0) 161 832 5588

Bank of Baroda Leicester Branch LE4 6AS T: +44 (0) 116 266 3970

Bank of Baroda is established in the UK with company number BR002014 and is based at 32 City Road, London EC1Y 2BD. T. +44(0)207 457 1515 F. +44 (0)207 457 1505 E. info.uk@bankofbaroda.com W. www.bankofbarodauk.com Bank of Baroda is authorised and regulated by the prudential Regulation Authority and Financial Conduct Authority in the UK and is a member of the Financial Services Compensation Scheme (FSCS) established under the Financial Services and Markets Act 2000. Our regulator firm reference no. is 204624

10

UK

Sardar Patel Memorial Society (UK)

It was heartening to learn that the matter between Shree C B Patel and Sardar Patel Memorial Society (UK) has been resolved amicably (Asian Voice 15th Nov. 2014).

Nobody came out a winner or looser, but the Hindu samaj in the UK showed its maturity and hence came out a stronger and a better samaj.

So let’s march forward together and say loudly HAR HAR MAHA DEV. Chuni Chavda By email

Canada endures the pain of jihadi terror

I refer to the editorial in the Asian Voice of 1st November 2014. I fully share your sentiments.

The irony is that ISIL was created by and with the encouragement of some western nations.

Incidentally it is inaccurate that 5 soldiers died after Parliament was stormed.

The only soldier who died in Ottawa was the one shot in front of the war memorial.

The shooter then travelled to Parliament Hill, where he did go inside the building but did not harm anyone. He was taken down by security forces before he could do so. (si) Andy Chande Dar-es-salaam By email

Cancer Awareness Day

Seventh November was Cancer Awareness Day. We should all remember, highlight it in our calendar, as Cancer kills more people than any other illness with the sole exception of heart disease.

There are 200 different types of Cancers, including lumps, swellings, wart and moles, unexpected weight loss, difficulty in swallowing and most serious bowel and prostate cancers that affect one in ten male populations, although benign prostate growth affects most males over the age of 65. This can be easily controlled with medication. But one should consult GP ASAP. Although Cancer may be developing slowly in our bodies, symptoms are undetectable until they are too obvious to ignore, such as bleeding, diarrhoea, painful lumps in breasts, nagging coughs and difficulty in swallowing and many more abnormalities one may find it difficult to associate with Cancers.

So often Cancer appears in healthy people who rarely visit their GPs, thus live in serene bliss ignorance. It is of utmost importance that everyone should be aware of these symptoms and visit their GPs if in doubt without lamentable excuses.

It is better to be safe than sorry. Let us be generous to McMillian Nurses and Marie Curie Cancer Care charities that look after terminally ill patients and give moral and physical support to their families in their hour of need.

Is the end inevitable?

I hasten to agree with all that Kapil Dudakia boldly said in his column Kapil’s KHICHADI on the question of ‘Is Labour going Sharia?’ (AV 8 November 2014).

When Gujarat suffered its devastating earthquake in the early 2,000, a Conservative Mayor of Bolton lodged an appeal to help the victims of that earthquake. An Appeal Committee was set up comprising leaders of the wider communities and some senior Councillors, majority of whom were Labour members, with a Labour Chairperson. It was formally agreed that any appeal funds collected would go ONLY to a project in Gujarat where most devastation had occurred.

However, when the funds were collected and they came to a large amount, a final meeting was held in which, the experienced Chairperson permitted, invalidly, several non-Committee members to influence their final decision on which project to support. Despite vehement objections from the bona fide Committee members, the money went to a project located in a non-devastated area with a large Muslim population.

After the meeting, I confronted a Labour councillor who I knew quite well.

He said, “Sorry, Mr Mistry, I can’t stop to talk to you – I have an important meeting to attend to at the Halliwell Mosque – better show my face there.’!

So, Kapil, I think it goes without saying that our political masters appear to be deeply immersed in vote-catching exercises than in the wider good of the people they are meant to serve.

Uttambhai D Mistry Bolton

Islamaphobia, real or imaginary

Islam and Muslims are constantly in news, grabbing headlines but for all the wrong reasons. While some may say these are self-inflicted wounds, we all have Muslim friends who came here from India and East Africa. Most belong to Daudi Bhora, Ismalis, Ahmedia, Sufis and Shia Ithna-Asheri Muslim communities.

Some may be extremely religious but they are as law abiding, highly educated and professional, productive citizens as we the Hindus, Sikhs, Jews and Jains are.

Lord Gulam Noon and Ex MEP Bashir Khanbhai are the shining examples I personally know.

So reading “Interview with Shahnaz Husain” seen receiving Golden Peacock Award from Home Secretary Theresa May in last week’s AV was a pleasant surprise. Shahnaz’s assertion that “I am Indian first and Muslim much afterwards and with Modi at the helm, we are safe” was extremely assiduous, assimilating sentiments all Indians, irrespective of their religious, cultural or ethnic orientation should install in their children. She could prove a valuable Brand Ambassador for Modiji, as Amitabh was for Gujarat under CM Modi, spreading Modi’s brand of egalitarianism.

If Modi survives, be at the helm for

Subscribe Today Kumudini Valambia By email

Asian Voice in UK for only £28.50 for one year

ASIAN VOICE

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 22nd November 2014

Indians sidelined during Remembrance

For once I totally agree with Miss Vadgama. We Indians from Undivided India have been totally sidelined in the remembrance of the Wars.

I have a file of letters which contains correspondence with David Dimbleby and others. David Dimbleby says "I mention the Indians when the High Commissioner lays the wreath." Well there are over 50 High Commissioners from the Commonwealth who lay wreaths and their names are all mentioned which means that every name takes less than 30 seconds.

Some of those didn't provide any men and some very few. So there we are with one and half million in the First War and two and a half million in the Second War, not conscripted - volunteers and we can't expect a proper acknowledgement.

To me this is very hurtful.

Baroness Flather By email

125th birth anniversary of Jawaharlal Nehru

Recently India marked Jawaharlal Nehru’s 125th birth anniversary. Modiji paid tribute and magnanimously suggested that it should be celebrated globally.

But, should Nehru be iconised/ raised above Bharat/ India, or relegated to history’s archives as Nehruvians did to Sardar Patel, Shashtriji and Morarji Desai?

It is clear that Nehru was born Hindu, raised Muslim and was practicing Christianity. This made him turn Kashmir issue in favour of local Muslims and drag the matter to UNO. It will take centuries to undo this imbroglio. During his Prime minister-ship, he was manipulated by Lord and Lady Mountbatten to undertake decisions incompetent to India’s national interests. Such decisions have damaged and continue to damage India and especially Kashmir.

Post independence, he wrongly declared India as secular state whereas Pakistan boldly declared itself as Muslim state. Next blunder was non alignment and decapitating India’s army, under belief that India would not be invaded.

China jolted him to realise folly of this notion.

Price of non alignment is still extracted by America who is openly and continuously instigating Pakistan against India and is ignoring protests and proofs by India.De-iconisation of Nehru is necessary to implement pro India decisions, even if painful to Nehruvian lobby.

Ramesh Jhalla By email two terms, India will be different nation, medical tourist hot-spot, especially for complementary medicine, competing with China on world stage, leading space race. Perhaps, after all 21st Century will belong to India!

Bhupendra M Gandhi By email

Please detach the form and send it with your payment or credit card instructions to address below

Tel: 020 7749 4080

Karma Yoga House Fax: 020 7749 4081 E-mail: support@abplgroup.com 12 Hoxton Market, (Off Coronet Street)

London N1 6HW

UK EUROPE WORLD 1 Year £28.50 £75 £85 2 Years £51.50 £140 £160 Subscriptions are non-refundable after 30 days

Giant Leap for mankind

The European Space Agency landed a probe on a comet on Wednesday. This is a first such mission in space exploration and the climax of a 10 year odyssey. The 100 kg probe which is virtually weightless on the comet's surface, touched down on schedule at about 1600 GMT on 12 November after a seven-hour descent from Rosetta, its orbiting mother-ship. It is now located half-billion kilometres (300 million miles) from Earth. This is an incredible achievement.

However, India is not lagging behind.

It has sent a setalite to Mars. The $72m probe was sent to orbit the earth last year.

According to Indian sources, the mission was achieved at an extraordinary low price of one-tenth of what a similar mission would have cost the advanced nations like the US and Russia.

And India is the first country to have the Mars mission succeed at the first attempt. This is no mean achievement for a so called third world country.

The country’s second mission, not necessarily an Orbiter Mission like the previous one, could take place between the years 2018 to 2020. But then wasn’t it India that invented the zero, without which no scientific discovery would have been possible? It was in India that the first flying machine of any kind was dreamed of.

We cannot forget the “Pushpak Viman” in Ramayan and that the first Jain Tirankhar, Adinath Bhagwan, used to fly to reach his abode on Mount Shatrunjay in Palitana.

Dinesh Sheth Newbury Park, Ilford

When shall we learn to care for the poor?

13 women died due to botched surgeries at different sterilisation camps held under National Family Planning programmes in Bilaspur the home district of Health Minister Amar Agrawal.Many more are suffering in the Hospitals.

May I enquire from All the MPs, MLAs and Councillors of India Will they send their daughters in such camps for sterilisation Operations? If not then close these camps immediately.

Health Minster Amar Agrawal must resign from his post together with Head of Medical Department who created such camps and did not monitor the services.

All these operations must be carried out in proper hospitals and every facility should be given to poor people`s Wives failing which these incompetent leaders must understand that if poor people will wake up, these leaders may suffer.

Modi cannot be everywhere but we all have to be responsible and have caring Nature.

Dharam Sahdev Ilford

Have something to say about the stories featured in Asian Voice?

Letters are welcome at: aveditorial@abplgroup.com Word limit: 200 words.

Visit our website: www.abplgroup.com

NAME

ADDRESS POST CODE Email:

TEL:

I'd like to be kept up to date by email with offers and news from ABPL

Please charge my VISA / ACCESS / MASTERCARD for £

Card No:

Signature

Card Expiry date

Date

EDUCATION/COUNCIL VOICE

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 22nd November 2014

11

E.U. immigrants strain public The Swaminarayan School school budget, so thinks judged as excellent in all areas wider community.

The official report states on the success of the school, “The S w a m i n a r a y a n Schoolenables pupils to obtain excellent standards in their work and to develop outstanding qualities as young people. They combine this with achieving excellent results in public examinations throughout the school.

Pupils in the EYFS receive an outstanding preparation for the move into Year 1. Excellent teaching throughout the school supports pupils’ academic progress, and provides a good focus on meeting different pupils’ needs.” “The quality of the pupils’ learning and achievement is excellent.

Results in national tests at age 11 were exceptional in relation to the national average for maintained primary schools. In class pupils show exceptional perseverance and application.” “At GCSE pupils achieve three times as many A*/A grades as the national average. At A Level the proportion of pupils gaining A*/B was higher than the national average for maintained schools.” “The contribution of curricular and extra-curricular provision is excellent.”

“The quality of leadership and management, including links with par-

COUNCIL NEWS

ents, carers and guardians, is excellent.

The leadership of the school provides a clear moral compass, which guides every aspect of school life. The quality of governance is excellent.

Governors bring considerable commitment and expertise to their work.”

“The EYFS setting makes outstanding provision in meeting the needs of the range of children who attend. The contribution of the early years provision to children’s wellbeing is outstanding. The overall quality and standards of the early years provision are outstanding.

Staff provide excellent role models by their considerate, caring behaviour, and relationships between staff, children and parents are excellent.”

Headteachers Mr Manani and Mr Raja attributed the ISI’s findings to the collective efforts of everyone involved with the School.

“The credit for this success goes to our teamwork – committed and dedicated staff supported by governors, trustees, hardworking pupils and parents who recognise the value of education. But above all, we are grateful for the blessings and continual guidance of the founder of our school, His Holiness Pramukh Swami Maharaj.”

Iain Duncan Smith

Iain Duncan Smith, Pensions Secretary for the Conservatives, has said E.U immigrants who are receiving a state education in Britain “literally change the schooling because so many people arrive not speaking English” during an interview with Radio 5 live.

He explained his concern came primarily from the thought that such migrants will eventually get “older” and also start “taking from the state” in pensions after straining public school funds. As well as asserting his feeling that the E.U community cause “problems with local services, transport all that kind of stuff”, he went on to rebuff a recent report conducted by researchers at the prestigious University College London that showed E.U immigrants actually provide a net worth of £20 billion to the country in taxes, with the claims in benefits taken into account: it was “a silly report” said Smith, “oh look in tax terms they have contributed more – first of all you have to take

them all the way through to when they get older.”

Sir Michael Wilshaw, the chief inspector of schools, corroborated the sentiment when he said schools being “faced with an influx of children from other countries need the resources and capacity to deal with it and if those resources aren’t there, that’s a big issue for government.” Last week the Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond also leant towards putting pressure on Brussels to fund the costs of building new schools if they were needed for migrants who were crossing open borders.

State school makes Sunday Times record Grinling Gibbons Primary school located in Deptford, SouthEast London is surpassing more or less all private schools, according to 'The Sunday Times' league tables.

The inner-city institution where English is the second language of most pupils, came in at number 4 which is the highest ranking position for a state-funded school since the survey's start in 1992.

First London Gurkha burial site to open in Hillingdon Hillingdon Council formally opened the first dedicated Nepalese Gurkha burial site in London this Tuesday.

The burial site for the local Gurkha community is near the Peace Memorial Garden in Cherry Lane Cemetery, West Drayton. There is space for up to 100 graves in addition to 30 column burial units which will house ashes.

A special dedication plaque will be unveiled by the Mayor of Hillingdon, Cllr Catherine Dann.

More than 150 members of the Nepalese community are expected to attend the event.

Leader of the Council, Ray Puddifoot, said: "We wanted to acknowledge the contribution and sacri-

Pensions Secretary Iain Duncan Smith

The unfaltering Pensions Secretary added “Europe as a whole needs to tackle this because when all the GDPs of the various economies were about the same then the freedom of movement really was a fairly balanced process, once the economies are not the same you get big difficulties, so he is simply warning what the Germans already know privately and have said to me – they need to sort this problem out."

Previous Conservative Prime Minister Sir John Major has more flatly suggested a “temporary” limit being placed on E.U immigration that does not infringe on the rules of free movement as a “pragmatic” approach.

The heated discussion about state education comes amongst other immigration controversies such as Michael Fallon, the defence minister, using inflammatory language when he said that British towns were being “swamped” and taken “under siege” by immigrants. The debate goes on.

Life at the Grinling Gibbons school

Redbridge Council prosecutes unscrupulous Landlords and Letting Agency

Joanna Lumley with retired Gurkha soldiers in 2009

fices that Gurkhas have made for this country, and as Hillingdon Council commemorates the World War 1 centenary it seemed like the right time for us to do this."

In 2009 all retired Gurkhas won the right to live in the UK, following a campaign led by actress Joanna Lumley, whose father served with the 6th Gurkha Rifles.

FREE TV Amplifiers for Pensioners As part of Amplifon’s National Campaign for Better Hearing we are now giving enquirers with hearing difficulties a FREE TV Amplifier to help with everyday sounds around the home - great for conversation, listening to TV, radio, even birds singing! Most people with hearing difficulties could benefit from this offer.

The TV Amplifier will be given free to keep, with batteries included. There is no obligation to purchase and all genuine enquirers will be delighted with this free offer from Amplifon.

I first realised I was losing my “hearing when I was struggling to hear the TV. I now wear hearing aids and no one complains about the volume on the TV anymore.

”

Hurry limited stock available.

FREEPHONE 0800 912 7878

(HMO) in Lansdowne Road, Ilford IG3.

On 18th October 2013, the property was inspected under a Magistrates' warrant by the Council’s Housing Standards Team, supported by Redbridge Community Police Team.

Housing Enforcement Officers found the end of terrace property which had a loft conversion was being occupied by 16 adults and one child.

The property had mould, dampness, fire

A local Letting Agent has been found guilty of nine housing offences in the latest of a number of successful prosecutions taken by Redbridge Council.

Ayub Patel, trading as Lakeview Estates, of 762 High Road, Ilford IG3, his company Broach Ltd trading from the same address and the landlord Abu Taher from Warwick Road, Stratford were prosecuted for failing to license and properly manage a House in Multiple Occupation

safety issues and a dangerous electrical installation.

Following a two day trial on 28 October and 3 November 2014 at Romford Magistrates’ Court, the defendants were each found guilty of nine offences – one offence of operating a licensable HMO without a licence and eight housing management offences. They were each ordered to pay fines of £5,000 and court costs of £1,695. A total of £20,085.

Please tell me how I can claim my FREE TV Amplifier Mr

Mrs

Ms

(please tick)

First name

Other Surname

Address Postcode Telephone

Mobile

Email

AV201114ESS8

The Swaminarayan School, Europe’s first independent Hindu school, was inspected by the Independent Schools Inspectorate [ISI]in early October. The school was judged to be excellent in all areas, confirming its position as one of the best independent schools in the country.

The Swaminarayan School is an independent day school for boys and girls aged between twoand-a-half to eighteen years with 496 pupils. The School was founded in 1992 by His Holiness Pramukh Swami Maharaj to provide the very best of British education while reinforcing Hindu values and traditions.

ISI, the agency responsible for the inspection of all accredited independent schools, examines and reports on all educational provision for pupils, including those less than five years of age.

After spending almost a week at the School, the team of seven ISI inspectors reported on the School’s excellent standards, highlighting the success that has been achieved not only through exceptional academic results, but also in providing spiritual, moral, social and cultural development in addition to excellent pastoral care and links with parents and the

Simply address your envelope to FREEPOST Amplifon.

(No further address details or stamp required).

The National Campaign for Better Hearing is a trading name of Amplifon Ltd.

Quote AV2011

Dr Chris Steele MBE

Your details may be used to keep you informed about exclusive offers, products and services from Amplifon by mail, phone/mobile, SMS or email. If you do not wish to receive such information, please write to Amplifon, Gateway House, Styal Road, M22 5WY. Your details will not be passed on to third parties.

12

MEDIA WATCH

Chhattisgrah and India were shamed last week by botched tubectomy operations in a village in the State’s Bilaspur district, following which eleven women died and several more are battling for their lives. Eighty-six of these sterilization surgeries were conducted by two doctors and an assistant in a mere three and a half hours with just one laparoscopy machine.

Abortion tragedy in Chhattisgarh

Within hours of the operations a number of the patients complained of abdominal pains followed by fatalities over the next couple of days. Chhattisgarh may be one of India’s poorest states and its rural hinterland especially deprived, but the State government, headed by Chief Minister Raman Singh, surely has a case to answer. The Bilaspur tragedy has exposed the serious shortcomings of mass sterilizations across the country. Though vasectomy is a simpler operation gender bias against diminishing the supposed virility of men - to which governments pander by not targeting males in sufficient numbers - points to a cultural perception which must be addressed through the proper information and mass publicity campaigns. The Bilaspur camp had every appearance of a cottage industry factory. Lessons have to be learned – and quickly – to prevent such tragedies happening again. Dr R.K. Gupta who performed these operations, and was absconding, has been arrested. He had proudly claimed to have performed 50,000 such operations over the past several years. Dr Gupta says that he has made a scapegoat, that the medicines at these government health camps were substandard. There is some truth in his allegations, as the pharmacy supplying them has been raided and closed down, but surely it was the doctor’s duty to suspend these operations until he was satisfied that these shortcomings were put right. The judicial probe ordered by the government will achieve little unless there is an administrative overhaul. Choice, quality, accountability are prerequisites of family planning. (Times of India, Hindu, Telegraph November 12, 13, 14)

Cabinet reshuffle

The expected cabinet reshuffle at the Centre was received with a measure of public approval

judging by comments during television discussions and the indepth coverage of the print media and their editorials. The theme of Prime Minister Modi’s changes appeared to have been the performances of ministers and the likelihood of prompt delivery by the newcomers. The erstwhile Goa chief minister Manohar Parrikar has been made Defence Minister, an appointment widely welcomed.

Under the previous incumbent, A.K.Antony, the department’s work had been reduced to a crawl, with much needed arms acquisitions delayed time and again. Parrikar’s science background as a former Bombay IIT alumnus should get things moving in the proper direction.

Suresh Prabhu’s appointment as Railway Minister is a measure of Modi’s commitment to professional expertise. The Prime Minister brushed aside the Shiv Sena leadership’s objection to Prabhu’s elevation, leaving the Sena to sulk. (Times of India, Hindu November 9)

Meeting the terror threat

The echoes of the Burdwan bomb blasts and their consequences keep reverberating across West Bengal and beyond.

The timely intervention of the National Investigation and kindred agencies from Delhi prevented a possible tragedy of enormous dimensions. They unearthed an extensive terror network across the state into neighbouring Bangladesh. There has been as steady stream of arrests, the latest being that of Burdwan terror kingpin Sajid near the Kolkata airport. Under interrogation, he confessed that his operations base was in Bangladesh and that his organization Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen had ambitions to extend its reach to Jharkhand and other eastern Indian states, the eventual goal being the creation of a Greater Bangladesh.

New ministers, Manohar Parrikar and Suresh Prabhu

Bangladesh operation

Meanwhile, the Bangladesh Rapid Action Force has arrested Sajjid’s brother, Monayam, in a rural district of the country. With India’s intelligence sleuths due to visit

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 22nd November 2014

Bangladesh, it would appear that tracking down the latest catch was a joint operation between the two bodies. The challenge now is to crack the true identity of Sajjid, who has operated under multiple aliases.

An Uttar Pradesh police constable (name not released) has been arrested following the discovery of his links with the West Bengal-Bangladesh terror network., it’s not only about jihadi terrorism, however. The Punjab police has snared the Khalistan Liberation Front’s top operative Harminder Singh and his associate Gurmeet Singh Gopi at Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport. The Punjab police claims to have neutralized a number of KLF sleeper cells and arrested KLF operatives (Hindu, Telegraph, Times of India November 7,8,9,12)

Indoctrinating youth

A close and quiet survey of madrassas in India has reportedly discovered that Bangladeshi instructors in the main with fake Indian identity papers are indoctrinating Muslim youth. The report submitted to the Home Ministry last month, has pointed to mushrooming of unregulated madrassas with unaccounted financial support along the Bangladesh and Nepal borders contiguous to West Bengal, Assam and the Terai region (Times of India November13)

Rajnath Singh in Israel

Home Minister Rajnath Singh met Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu for talks aimed to strengthen India’s very warm and cordial relations. We look forward to strengthen it further.” Welcoming Rajnath Singh, Netanyahu said: “Indians

top Israel defence force officials.

The missile is meant primarily for Indian Navy warships (Times of India November 11).

Agni II tested

India’s 2,000 kilometre-range nuclear weapon-capable Agni II was tested (part of a routine to keep it in readiness ) for its full range off the Odisha coast in the

Bay of Bengal. A battery of sophisticated radars, electrooptical systems tracked the trajectory and monitored various parameters of the missile from the launch site to splash down.

Senior officers of the Indian Army were present (Hindu November 10)

Green shoots in Rajasthan

Visit a cluster of villages in the Sikar and Alwar districts of Rajasthan, where you’ll find check dams built over the last few years that have dramatically changed the lives and incomes of local farmers. Times was when communities here were dependent on the vagaries of the monsoons and accustomed to harvesting yearly crop of bajra and other millets. Rajendra Singh introduced a water harvesting revolution through check dams.

Govardhan, 65, a farmer who has worked with Singh, owns 60 bighas of land (3 acres) with his five brothers, now harvest three crops per year, including wheat and one cash crop (Business Line November 11)

Rajnath Singh with Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netahnyu

and Israelis share the combination of ingenuity and continuity.

India is a very important ally for us and we view the Home Minister’s visit as very significant.”

(Times of India November 7)

Yamaha sales in top gear

India is fast moving up Yamaha’s market share in two-wheeler products that include motorcycles and scooters. The Japanese company’s most lucrative market is

Indonesia, where it sells 1.8 million units, with Vietnam second and India third. The inauguration of a second Yamaha plant in Chennai in the next three months will position India to overtake Indonesia as Yamaha’s largest market. (Business Line November 10)

Industrial output up, price rise slows

Industrial growth in September rose sufficiently and the pace of the price rise declined in October, leaving India Inc somewhat optimistic that the Reserve Bank of India may opt for a cautious cut in the interest rate, thereby spurring investment and stimulating growth.

Data released by the Central Statistical Office last week showed industrial output growing by 2.5 per cent year-on-year.

October retail figures revealed that retail inflation, measured by the consumer price index, had slowed to 5.5 per cent compared to that of the 6.5 per cent of the previous month. However, September registered the fast industrial growth in the previous three months, led by a surge in the capital goods segment (Times of India November 13)

Infosys to hire 2,100 in US

Indian IT major Infosys plans to hire 1,500 professionals and 600 students in the US during the current financial year as it seeks to strengthen its place in its largest market and regain its status as sector’s bellwether. “We believe in hiring professionals will help us to build a next generation services company,” said Peggy Tayloe, Head of Human Resources America-Infosys. The company is set to continue its global recruitment programme of hiring MBA graduates from leading business schools, and recruit 100 Masters graduates for its sales teams under this initiative (Business Line November 7

Cognizant in Australia

Cognizant Technology has acquired its third Australian company in the past three months. A statement from Cognizant said that, as part of the deal, around 150 digital experts would be joining the company.”This strategic acquisition underscores our commitment to the local market,” said John Burgin, regional head for Australia and New Zealand.

(Times of India November 13).

Israel-India missile flight-tested

The long-range surface-to-air missile system being developed

by Israel Aerospace Industries and India’s Defence Research & Development Organization (DRDO) with an interception range of 70 kilometres was tested for the first time (in Israel) against a flying target. The DRDO chief Avinash Chander and IAI chief Joseph Weiss were present at the site, together with

Narenda Modi with BRICS leaders at G20 summit in Australia.

See comment page 3

UK

The Politics of Black Money

I write to you having returned from India accompanying Minister Verma. We met with India’s Finance Minister Arun Jaitley.

During this time the British PM invited PM Modi to the UK and PM Modi spoke about a G20 effort to bring black money back to India.

My proposition to Arun Jaitley is this: The UK too had a major problem, as did the US, with offshore untaxed hidden funds. We in Britain are experts in finding ways of getting this money back. The UK’s tax authorities provided a method of voluntary disclosure, combined with a fine, and avoidance of criminal prosecution.

The tax evaders knew they got to avoid jail. The Government got tax revenues. But it also got something else – money back into the UK economy and more importantly business acumen of the tax evader, used to earn clean money.

What about punishment? I once asked the Head of the HMRC enforcement unit this very question when hosting a show on CNBC – and he said it would simply be too expensive and counterproductive to have a trial for every tax evader.

Government policy is increasingly about understanding behaviour and nudging behaviour in the correct direction. I would far rather those with hidden off-

Arun Jaitley with Alpesh Patel

shore accounts were punished, but I would even more the Government got their funds into the Exchequer.

The UK became a leading authority in tax disclosure facilities negotiated with offshore banks and the UK government, allowing individuals to negotiate settlements anonymously. It’s a pragmatic solution. It’s a negotiated amnesty. Whilst it will make some people’s blood boil that culprits are not in prison, don’t forget fines on top of all back taxes, plus interest means that we don’t do too badly as a country. We get everything a trial would have got us, except one more person in prison.

New legislation swoops in to protect young women

A High Court in London made legal history when it banned two Birminghambased men, aged 27 and 31, who were suspected of sexual predation, from approaching girls under the age of 18. This was facilitated by the use of a civil injunction in lieu of a criminal hearing proceeding which made it easier to penalise the men's actions more specifically and immediately.

Police saw a 17 yearold girl leaving the men's vehicle, a Nissan Micra, at around 3am in the morning in an intoxicated state where they fled the scene as the officers approached.

Though the men, yet unnamed, claimed they were offering the victim “a ride for her safety”, Mr Justice Keehan ruled that it was clear they were talking “palpable nonsense” and that they had invited the girl into the car “for nefarious purposes”.

“I am quite satisfied on the totality of the evidence that they were seeking to sexually exploit this

young and vulnerable woman,”he said, drawing from the evidence of seductive text messages and a half-empty bottle of vodka found in their Nissan.

This is exactly the sort of circumstance that would fall short of a criminal conviction, but ticks the box for a civil injunction. The judge said that though the men did not engage the teenage girl in sexual behaviour, they would have been likely to do so in the future.

The injunction is revolutionary in the protection of young women as courts begin to apply it across the country. If social orders are breached perpetrators will face jail for contempt of the court.

A free exhibition at:

The Story of Leicester’s Ugandan Asian Community

Newarke Houses Museum & Gardens The Newarke, Leicester LE2 7BY

Open: Monday - Saturday from 10am to 5pm Sundays from: 11am to 5pm

Tel: 0116 225 4980

www.leicester.gov.uk/kampalatoleicester

13

UAE blacklists Islamic Relief

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 22nd November 2014

British aid charity 'Islamic Relief', who have been enlisted to work on £12.5 million valued projects with the Department for I n t e r n a t i o n a l Development, involved in helping children affected by the Syria conflict remain in school and improved the quality of lives in Bangladesh, Kenya, Pakistan and Sudan through “Islamic microfinance” schemes, were chastised as a terrorist outfit by the United Arab Emirates.

Though the British government are still waiting for “further clarification from the Emiratis on their rationale for some of these designations, and any practical implications,” the Islamic aid group are speculated to have been banned because of their apparent ties with the Muslim Brotherhood, the latter's charity 'The Muslim Association of Britain' being one of the 85 organisations already etched into the UAE's 'black book'.

The Muslim Association is a highly influential organisation whose equally devoted perspective on Islam

Vital mentoring support for female entrepreneurs announced

Female business owners across the country will benefit from additional mentoring support, Women and Equalities Minister Jo Swinson has announced on Tuesday evening, at the British Bankers' Association (BBA)2014 Mentorsme Awards for Excellence in Women's Enterprise Mentoring, held at the BT Tower.

To celebrate Women's Entrepreneurship Day on Wednesday 19 November, the first ‘Meet a Mentor’ event was launched at the Kensington Roof Gardens, London.

This builds on the success of the government’s ‘Get Mentoring’ project, delivered by the UK Sector Skills Body for Enterprise (SFEDI), which successfully recruited and trained over 15,000 volunteers from

the small business community, including over 6,000 mentors who were trained to specifically support female entrepreneurs.

Women and Equalities Minister, Jo Swinson, said: “It is vital that we support female entrepreneurs. There are more women-led businesses in the UK than ever before, and we know that if women were setting up and running new businesses at the same rate as men, our economy could benefit from 1 million more entrepreneurs.

“Mentoring is key to this. It helps to build confidence, develop key business skills and provides a network of contacts for those starting out. That’s why we are funding a series of mentoring events across the UK, launching tomorrow on Women’s Entrepreneurship Day.”

Travel Consultant

We are a well established Independent Travel Agency looking for an enthusiastic and experienced Travel Consultant to join our dynamic team based in Hendon, North West London.

Interested candidates should have at least 2 years GDS ( preferably Galileo), experience as well as Ticketing, ABTA and Tailor Made Holidays

Please email CV to admin@exploratours.co.uk

Islamic Relief aid workers

poaches many of the followers who might otherwise turn to the fundamentalist ideology of the Emirates. In a passionate rebuttal to the UAE's accusation, the 'Muslim Association of Britain' have stated that they have “nothing whatsoever to do with terrorism or any other form of extreme ideology.” In a separate statement 'Islamic Relief' said “we assume that our inclusion on the UAE list can only be attributable to a mistake (…) we will be engaging with the UAE authorities to seek the removal of this wrongful designation.”

UAE is an important

transport hub and aid workers risk being arrested if they fly through while assets kept in the region or processed through the financial system are subject to confiscation. Based in Birmingham, Islamic Relief is a philanthropic organisation that is valued by the Disasters Emergency Committee, alongside charities such as Oxfam and the British Red Cross. Recently, they joined together to combat the Ebola outbreak.

This is another blow for the British aid charity who have also been denounced by the state of Israel for supporting Hamas.

Punjab National Bank (International) Ltd. Southall Branch Moves into New Premises On November 3rd, Punjab National Bank (Interna tional) Ltd, Southall Branch, moved into newly refurbished premises at 110, Southall Road, S o u t h a l l , Middlesex, UB1 1RB. The new Mr. Bhupinder Singh, Managing branch premises were inaugurated by Director, Mr. Onkarjeet Singh, Asst.

Gen. Manager and Shri.T.S. S h r i . T. S . S a i n i ( P r e s i d e n t , Saini (President, Multicultural Society) opening ceremony, Multicultural Society) Mr.Onkarjeet Singh and Mr.Bhupinder Singh, (Asst.General Manager, MD, of Punjab National PNBIL, Southall Bank (International) Branch), Mr.Malli ( Limited. Mr.Bhupinder President Gurudwara Singh, Managing Director Singh Sabha), Mr.Shanu of PNBIL, informed that Chadha, Mr.Rocky Arora, the branch which crossed Mr.Talwinder Hayre, the landmark of USD 500 Mr.Manoj Khanna, Million in business will Mr.Raj Makkar, Mr. shortly be offering securiVivek Chadha, Mr.Naib ty deposit 4000 lockers at Singh Sidhu, along with this modern Banking other members of staff of premises.

PNBIL. Also present at the

INVESTMENT GOLD FOR SALE

GOLD BARS and gold bullion coins (Krugerrands, Maples, Sovereigns & Others)

¾Ъ.અщ.ªЪ. ╙¾³Ц

¢ђàª ઇ×¾щ窸щת Âђ³Ц³Ъ »¢¬Ъઅђ અ³щÂђ³Ц³Ц ╙ÂŨЦઅђ (¸щ´», Âђ¾ºЪ³ અ³щĝЮ¢ºщ׬) ¾щ¥щ¦щ. અЦ´³Ъ §λºЪ¹Ц¯ ¸ЦªъઅЦ§щ§ Âє´ક↕ÂЦ²ђ.

City Office: 88 Gracechurch Street, London EC3V 0DN Tel: 020-7283 7752/4080 Fax: 020-7283 7754 Email: info@goldinvestments.co.uk

www.goldinvestments.co.uk

UK

Sexual orientation is no barrier to success

14

Pepe Julian Onziema

Lord Cashman

Dr Ranj Singh

Winners of the 25th anniversary Stonewall Awards were announced at a prestigious ceremony attended by over 500 guests at the Victoria & Albert Museum in London.

Unlike almost all such ceremonies I attend throughout the year, this one is unique. The actual ceremony is just an hourlong, during which winners of the ten categories are revealed, seamlessly.

Also, guests are sat in rows on each side of the aisle, as opposed to roundtables. There is a drinks reception before and after the ceremony. During the latter, an army of unisex waiters donning black aprons offer guests a variety of delicacies in bowls, on this occasion it was soup, pasta, cod with mushy peas and savouries.

This year’s ceremony, held on Thursday a fortnight ago, was hosted by Julian Clary, the openly gay English comedian and novelist, and Stonewall CEO Ruth Hunt. During the ceremony waiters snaked around the room offering popcorn on trays, wine and champagne.

Guests included Diane Abbott MP, the sacked shadow public health minister, who was in a merry mood; EastEnders’ Danny Dyer, Sue Perkins and TV show How to Look Good

Naked’s Gok Wan, a humble and down-to-earth personality who chose to sit towards the back with his friends. Also present was paediatrician Dr Ranj Singh, a successful NHS doctor, specialising in the care of children and young people, also a popular personality in the British medical media community Lord Michael Cashman won a standing ovation on being announced as the Politician of the Year at the 2014 Stonewall Awards. This award was jointly bestowed upon Liberal Democrat Home Office Lynne Featherstone.

Leader of the Labour Party Ed Miliband hugged his “friend” Lord Cashman, Stonewall founder, as he presented a trophy to him. Lord Cashman blew a kiss to the audience as he stepped off stage. The i newspaper was named Publication of the Year for its coverage of gay issues throughout the year.

Channel 4’s Liz MacKean was named Journalist of the Year for the hard-hitting Dispatches documentary Hunted that exposed the brutal treatment of gay people in Putin’s Russia.

Other winners on the night included Emmerdale’s Alicya Eyo who was crowned Entertainer of the Year.

“This is the first award I’ve won, ever, in my life,” smiled Alicya as she accepted her trophy.

Ugandan activist Pepe Julian Onziema was voted Hero of the Year by thousands of Stonewall supporters for his tireless work campaigning for equality for lesbian, gay, bisexual and trans (LGBT) people despite threats of violence. Ruth Hunt, Stonewall’s CEO, described Pepe “a global beacon of hope”, adding, “who inspires and influences so many people – not just those in his home country of Uganda, but all those fighting for equality around the globe.”

A recent report entitled One Minority at a Time revealed there are still serious failings in public services to meet the needs of Britain’s 400,000 black and minority ethnic LGBT people.

The report exposes widespread assumptions that black people are heterosexual, with little effort being made to correct this view. One participant in the research said: “I think I can either be gay or I can be South Asian, or I can be a Hindu. The fact that I can be all three becomes very difficult for people to comprehend.” To find out more about the Stonewall Awards visit www.stonewall.org.uk/aw ards

Dhiren Katwa

The gift only you can give

Volunteers needed from Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic communities this Christmas to give blood NHS Blood and Transplant is urging more Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) communities across England and North Wales to come forward, make time this Christmas to give a gift only they can give and make a blood or platelet - donation.

BAME communities are especially in demand as some rare blood groups and some blood disorders are more common among ethnic communities. For certain conditions, for example sickle cell anaemia, it is beneficial for patients to

receive blood from someone with the same ethnic background.

This Christmas more than 200,000 blood donors are needed to give a very special gift and help hundreds of thousands of

patients.

Last year 1 in 5 blood donor appointments were missed over the festive period putting NHS Blood and Transplant’s critical operation under unnecessary pressure.

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 22nd November 2014

Hindu Council Birmingham celebrates Diwali The Hindu Council of Birmingham’s annual Diwali celebration last Sunday attracted scores of people of all ages, race and faith backgrounds.

But, sadly, this may have been the last such celebration according to Jo Thanki, HCB’s President who announced that Birmingham City Council would no longer be able to provide a grant.

Mrs Thanki urged the community to offer any support for next year.

The Lord Mayor of Birmingham, Cllr Shafique Shah, said in his speech that this decision was unfortunate and that he would do “anything I can to influence this decision”. Held at the New Bingley Hall, Hockley, the 2pm-7pm event featured stalls, exhibitions, a kids zone, stage performances, entertainers and much

Lord Mayor of Birmingham, Cllr Shafique Shah

more.

VIPs included former Birmingham City Council leader Cllr Mike Whitby, Conservative Party candidate Akaal Singh Sidhu, Sunil Kumar, representing Mr BC Pradhan, Acting Indian Consul General in Birmingham, Cllr Chaman Lal and faith and community leaders.

Sari-clad Mrs Thanki invited on stage and praised the work of her

volunteer team including Ramanbhai Bulsara, Hameerbhai Chouhan, Taranbhai Shelat, Prafulbhai Nathwani just a handful of a larger team.

The auspicious diva, or lamp in front of an idol of Lord Ganesh was lit by the Lord Mayor, who did so, disappointingly, with his shoes on, a mark of disrespect. Perhaps a lesson to be learnt, particularly for the Hindu and Sikh community leaders who sat in the front row and looked on. Whilst one must not dwell on this unintentional oversight, it is an observation worth learning from.

Over and above, another fantastic celebration of the Festival of Lights and much credit to the volunteers of HCB without whom this event would not have been the success that it was, yet again.

Diversity and aspiration take centre stage at KPMG’s Asian Festival Dinner

Cultural Secretary Rt Hon Sajid Javid with KPMG Senior Partner Simon Collins and Shadow Business Secretary Chuka Umunna MP with Nina Amin, KPMG

Continuing to build a solid economy for future generations and promises of a diversity review of Britain’s boardrooms were just some of issues that took centre stage in front of 300 prominent members of the Asian Business community on Tuesday night.

Conservative MP Sajid Javid and Labour MP and Shadow Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills Chuka Umunna were both guest speakers at KPMG’s 11th Annual Asian Festival Dinner in London where they addressed successful business owners from the Asian business community.

In their speeches Mr Umunna and Mr Javid spoke of the importance of having aspirations for our Over the festive period 12,500 platelet donations are needed to help treat patients with cancer, serious blood disorders and those who have undergone transplants.

Every blood donation is vital, but over winter months NHS Blood and Transplant particularly needs to ensure supplies

young workers and private business owners and entrepreneurs.

Mr Umunna and Mr Javid spoke passionately about how they identified with the work ethic and priorities demonstrated by Asian businesses who championed the building of a prosperous economy for future generations.

Mr Umunna announced at the dinner that, if Labour is elected in 2015, Lord Mervyn Davies has agreed to lead a review on ethnic diversity in business leadership, which Mr Umunna said he hoped would do for ethnic diversity in business exactly what Lord Davies' review on gender diversity did for that issue.

Commenting on the evening, Nina Amin, of the universal blood group O Rh Negative which is often in short supply as demand is so great. They also need to ensure supplies of the rarer blood groups A Rh Negative, B Rh Negative and AB Rh Negative as these are vulnerable to shortfall.

This year NHS Blood

MBE, KPMG Partner said: “We were delighted that both Sajid and Chuka were able to join us. Both MPs recognised the hugely valuable role that Asian businesses play as employers and wealth generators in the UK and the tremendous examples they are to our younger generation of ambitious business people.

“Diversity and aspiration were central themes for both speakers, who have themselves compelling social mobility stories to tell.

“It is obvious that opening opportunities for young people, regardless of their backgrounds is absolutely central to creating a much more interesting, skilled and successful Britain of the future." and Transplant faces extra pressure as Christmas Day and Boxing Day fall ahead of a weekend, raising concerns fewer donors than usual will get around to making life saving donations during the busy festive period.

For more information visit www.blood.co.uk

UK

UK Parliament commemorates the Sikh contributions to World War I

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 22nd November 2014

15

'Empire Faith & War: the Sikhs and World War One'

From the blood-soaked trenches of the Somme and Gallipoli, to the deserts and heat of Africa and the Middle East, thousands of Sikh troops fought and died alongside their European and colonial counterparts in the Great War of 1914-1918. We Will Remember Them.

Rupanjana Dutta

Last week on Remembrance Sunday of the First World War Centenary, Britons paid homage to the contributions of the fallen British and Commonwealth soldiers. From the symbolic ceramic poppies in the moat around the Tower of London to celebrations in the Parliament, schools, churches, military basesspecial tributes were paid nationwide.

On this occasion, the British Parliament commemorated the remarkable but largely unknown contribution of one of the world’s smaller communities, the Sikhs. Their disproportionate large role was marked by a special reception in the usually Members’ Only dining room, the Churchill Room in the House of Commons.

The event was hosted

by Wolverhampton South West MP, Paul Uppal in conjunction with the UK Punjab Heritage Association (UKPHA).

The keynote speech was given by Cabinet Minister, the Right Honourable Sajid Javid MP, Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport under the bust of Sir Winston Churchill.

Members of the armed forces, politicians, schoolchildren and members of the Sikh community came together to ‘Remember Them’, and listen to a unique classical Indian musical performance of a wartime Punjabi folk song and a stunning rendition of the Last Post on the Dilruba before holding a minute’s silence to remember the fallen.

Descendants of both British and Sikh World War One soldiers were also in attendance, along with a company of reenactment soldiers dressed as the 15th Ludhiana Sikh regiment from the National Army Museum’s ‘Road to the Trenches’ project. The 15th Ludhiana were amongst the first detachment of Indian soldiers on French soil one hundred years ago who helped stem the German tide.

Three-year project launched

UKPHA’s project ‘Empire, Faith & War: The Sikhs and World War One’ aims to commemorate the experiences of Sikh soldiers and the families they left behind. Over the next

Lord Indarjit Singh

three years they will collect and share stories from the Sikh community and build a unique online database of Remembrance.

Other outputs include education packs, a commemorative publication and a documentary film.

In doing so UKPHA and its volunteer Citizen Historians, including young people from all backgrounds, will help enlighten the world about the untold story of how one of the world's smaller communities played such a disproportionately large part in the 'war to end all wars'.

A remarkable contribution

Although making up just 1% of the population of British India (and concentrated mainly in the northern region of Punjab), Sikhs made up nearly 20% of the British Empire’s Indian Army at the outbreak of the war.

Their contribution, and that of their Indian

brothers in arms, proved critical in the early months of the fighting on the Western Front, helping save the Allies from an early and catastrophic defeat.

Lest We Forget

The meeting was graced by keynote speaker, Secretary of State for Culture, the Right Honourable Sajid Javid MP, who praised the Sikh contribution and the UKPHA for their work.

Rt Hon Sajid Javid MP

Labour Frontbench spokesperson, and Member of Parliament for Wolverhampton South East, Pat McFadden, added his congratulations and appreciation of the Sikhs’ exemplary role.

Lord Indarjit Singh CBE spoke eloquently about the Sikh wartime heroics while Major General Nitsch OBE of the British Army added his praise and thanks and quoted from the Great War poem ‘Harnam Singh’ penned by the Commander-in-Chief of the Indian Corps on the Western Front, General Sir James Willcocks, and noted how Sikhs continue to serve in today’s British Army.

Speaking at the reception Paul Uppal MP said: “The first Remembrance Sunday of the Centenary offers us a chance to reflect upon all those who served in Britain’s forces one hundred years ago.

The Sikh and wider British Indian Army’s contribution was huge but remains largely forgotten.

As a Member of

Parliament which includes one of the largest Punjabi communities in Britain I’m delighted to be able to help remind my fellow Parliamentarians and others about this immense contribution which now at last is being properly commemorated

by UKPHA’s ‘Empire, Faith and War’ project.”

UKPHA Chair Amandeep Madra added: “UKPHA is honoured to be able to bring the ‘Empire Faith & War’ project to the heart of the British establishment. It

could not be more fitting or timely as we mark the Centenary a day after Remembrance Sunday.

Our three-year project will help tell the untold story of the Sikh contribution and help the world Remember Them.”

Around 130,000 Sikhs served in World War One – around as many Sikhs as currently reside within Greater London. In total around 423,000 Sikhs live in the United Kingdom.

Pat McFadden MP said: “As an MP representing a constituency with a large Sikh population, I know this anniversary is of huge importance to the Sikh community today. It is a source of pride and of course of reflection on the many young lives cut short by war. Of what they gave and of the futures they may have had.

“For our tomorrow they did give their today.

We honour their memory, their sacrifice and the brave record of the Sikh contribution to World War One” Lord Indarjit Singh noted how by the end of World War One, some 130,000 Sikhs had seen active service, fighting from the Somme to Gallipoli and across Africa. “Over 138,000 Indian troops fought in Belgium and France,

many of them Sikhs,” he said.

“Sikhs fought with great distinction in the freezing mud-soaked battlefields of Europe and with equal distinction in the Middle East. In the illfated Gallipoli Campaign, the 14th Sikh regiment sustained very heavy casualties.

“Many plaudits were

showered on Sikh soldiers by the British and their allies, and rightly so.

Their courage and record in battle is second to none and we should remember them with pride. They have set the bar high and we, succeeding generations, must show we are equal to the challenge,” he added.

Brent Liberal Democrats celebrate the past, while looking ahead to the future

From fighting to improve borough services, to securing millions in funding for local schools and helping bring an end to child detention, Sarah Teather’s record as MP for Brent Central has been nothing short of stellar.

It is in this spirit that the Brent Liberal Democrats gathered for their Annual Dinner to recognise the successes of the past, while looking ahead to a promising future. It was an occasion to celebrate the enlightenment of Diwali and honour Brent’s proud standing as the most diverse constituency in the country, made up of vibrant and enterprising communities from all over the world.

D a n n y Alexander, Chief Secretary to the Tr e a s u r y, summed it up nicely on the evening when he pointed out that

CB Patel with Sarah Teather

as Sarah steps down, Ibrahim Taguri, raised just around the corner from Sarah’s constituency office, has stepped up to continue her legacy by putting Brent first.

Ibrahim reaffirmed his pledge to taking on the tough challenges, fighting for the things

Photo courtesy: Raj Gedhu

that matter most to residents, and pronounced his steadfast commitment to ending child poverty by 2020.

Why does he care so passionately about the issue? Because, he said, it speaks to the very heart of many of the challenges that too many people face on a daily basis, from housing shortages, to struggling schools, to rampant crime. If we want to see real change, we have to start at the very beginning, giving children a fair chance.

The Annual Dinner was a reminder of all of Sarah’s hard work over the last 11 years, taking on issues both big and small. It’s this same commitment that remains the guiding ethos in Ibrahim’s promise to his home, to where he grew up, to where he learned about the value of community, in his mission to put Brent first.

Photo courtesy: Raj D Bakrania, Prmediapix

16

MODI SPECIAL

PM charms diaspora in Sydney

Addressing a huge gathering of more than 16,000 enthusiastic members of the Indian diaspora at the Allphones Arena at Olympic Park, Sydney, Prime Minister Narendra Modi dedicated the respect and ovation that he was getting in Australia to the Indian people. "This welcome, this respect, this enthusiasm I dedicate it to the people of India. These incredible scenes and this massive reception in Sydney will galvanize India," said the prime minister. The prime minister lamented that "it took 28 years for (an Indian prime minister) to come here."

In what seemed like a repeat of the rock star reception he received at the Madison Square Garden in New York, Modi was greeted by wild applause from a 16,000 strong-crowd throughout his speech. Prime Minister Modi pointed out that although it takes just one day to come to Australia, it had taken a prime minister of India 28 long years to arrive, and promised that it would never happen again. He also explained that had it not been for democracy he would not have been present at the Allphones Arena today.

Modi announced that his government was working to facilitate visa-onarrival for Australian tourists and said the PIO (Persons of Indian Origin) and OCI (Overseas Citizen of India) status would be merged ahead of Pravasi Bhartiya Divas to be held from January 7 in Ahmedabad.

Modi said that he felt fortunate to be the first Prime Minister of India who was born in independent India, and hence, felt a greater responsibility.

"We must pledge that we will live for the country and we will struggle for the country. We did not get the opportunity to die for the nation or spend our

youth in jail. But we can surely live for the nation, that is something that everyone has the opportunity to do," he said. Modi also said that it was his good fortune to be the first Indian prime minister to be born postIndependence.

In his address, Modi said over 71 million bank accounts have been opened through the Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana so far in the villages in India and the money deposited amounts to Rs 50 billion. Modi also invited the Indian diaspora in Australia to participate in the Swachch Bharat campaign.

The prime minister said cleanliness is an area where his government is focusing. "Dirt attracts illness and the poor man suffers, due to which work days are lost and monetarily too.. I invite your participation in the drive," he said, as the crowd chanted "Modi, Modi".

Modi also urged the diaspora to build at least one toilet in the village of their origin in India. He expressed admiration for the dignity of labour he has witnessed in Australia.

"When I came earlier to Australia many would ask what have you learnt from Australia - and that is dignity of labour," he said. He said in Australia people speak with the same respect to a doctor as with a driver. He mentioned how on weekends a research scientist works as a driver to earn money.

"This dignity of labour is something to learn from," he added. He said he wanted to give the same message of dignity of labour through the Swachch Bharat campaign.

Giving an example, he said in India the garbage collector is called the "kachchra wala". "But he in reality is removing the filth... our mentality needs to change." He said that today people, including

industrialists, are participating in the clean India mission. "I salute them."

He added that on Mahatma Gandhi's 150th anniversary in 2019 - "the least we can do for Mahatma Gandhi is have a clean India."

India, Australia target free trade pact, economic boost: Australia and India will push for a free trade pact, Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott and Modi said on Tuesday during a rare state visit to Canberra by an Indian leader. Trade between Australia and India stands at around $15 billion a year, or just a tenth of that between Australia and China.

"We want to go further and that's why the next priority for Australia is a comprehensive economic partnership agreement with India," Abbott said.

"If I may say so, this is a moment in time. This is the time to get this done."

Modi, in an address to Australia's parliament, pledged greater cooperation on regional security, issuing a veiled swipe at China over disputes with its neighbours over islands in the South China Sea. Sign social security pact: India and Australia on Tuesday signed a bilateral agreement on social security, which aims to strengthen people-to-people contacts, facilitate and regulate regulations between the two countries with respect to social security benefits and coverage. The agreement was signed between Indian High Commissioner in Australia Biren Nanda and Australian Social Services Minister Kevin Andrews. The agreement will provide for social security and superannuation benefits for those who have been residents of the other country on basis of equality of benefit, export of benefits and avoidance of double coverage.

South Korea President Park Geun-hye invited Prime Minister Narendra Modi to Seoul to enhance cooperation between the two nations. "Engagement beyond the ASEAN too.

Prez @GH_PARK of Rep of Korea invites @PMOIndia to Seoul to enhance cooperation," Ministry of External Affairs official spokesperson Syed Akbaruddin tweeted during the meeting between the two leaders on the sidelines of the 12th ASEAN-India summit. Earlier in the day, Prime Minister Modi met with the Prime Ministers of Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand and the Sultan of Brunei.

Narendra Modi and Park Geun-hye India is my second home: Suu Kyi Myanmar's opposition leader and Nobel peace laureate Aung San Suu Kyi told Prime Minister Narendra Modi that India was her "second home".

The National League for Democracy leader called

Aung San Suu Kyi and Narendra Modi on the Indian prime minister during the ASEANIndia summit and East Asia Summit.

"India is my second home," Suu Kyi told Modi.

The pro-democracy icon did much of her schooling and her college in New Delhi.

South Korea President invites Modi to Seoul

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 22nd November 2014

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 22nd November 2014

G20 backs PM Modi's agenda on black money, tax avoidance

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday managed to get the Group of 20 include a certain clause in the final Leaders’ Communiqué that will make it difficult for tax havens to give complete tax exemption to companies.

This, along with the G20’s endorsement of a global Common Reporting Standard for automatic exchange of tax information on a reciprocal basis, are the twin pillars in India’s fight against tax evasion and repatriating unaccounted money, said Suresh Prabhu, sherpa to Prime Minister Modi for the G20 Summit.

Prabhu said that the Prime Minister made a strong pitch against black money. “At present, there are many rigidities in international tax laws, and

past tax treaties also do not facilitate easy exchange of information,” he said. India has to make specific requests with tax jurisdictions for information, and more often such information is shared with caveats.

The Prime Minister’s Office said that India’s concerns on black money and tax avoidance have been taken on board in G20. This, government officials said, would give an impetus to India’s move to renegotiate treaties with some countries.

On the implication of the clause that now commits the G20 to ensure ‘transparency of taxpayer-specific rulings found to construe harmful tax practices’, Usha Titus, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Finance, pointed out that Luxembourg, for instance, had

given a series of rulings which effectively did not require certain corporates to pay any tax.

“The inclusion of this clause will make it difficult for tax havens to do so for specific corporates,” she said.

This is part of the base erosion and profit shifting (BEPS) action plan of the G20/ OECD to modernise international tax rules. The G20 final draft said that this plan has made significant progress. “We are committed to finalising this work in 2015,” it said. The G20 countries are expected to exchange information with each other and other countries by 2017 or end-2018 after completing legislative procedures.

Modi has been pushing the issue of black money in his meetings with global leaders including Japanese Prime

Two months after it signed a landmark free trade agreement (FTA) in services and investments with the ASEAN, India strongly prodded the 10-nation bloc to wrap up an accompanying pact on the mutual recognition of educational and professional qualifications - an essential prerequisite for India to leverage its competitive advantage in the services sector.

In his address at the 12th India-ASEAN Summit, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi stressed on this issue and said: “I suggest that we conduct a review of our free trade agreement on goods to improve it further and make it beneficial to all. I also urge that the FTA on Services and Investment be brought into force at the earliest … We should move quickly towards mutual recognition of degrees”.

The reluctance of ASEAN members to ratify the mutual

recognition of degrees pact stems from continuing apprehension on the impact that this could have on their own services sectors.

The Philippines, which is yet to ratify the overarching services agreement, had earlier raised concerns that opening up of the region’s services sector may have an “adverse impact” on its own services industry, given India’s strength in the sector.

India had signed the FTA in services and investments with the ASEAN on September 9, 2014, two years after the discussions on the pact concluded. The benefits for India from the agreement which was expected to pave the way for India to leverage its competitive offerings in finance, education, health, IT, telecommunications, transport, movement of professionals and enabling Indian service providers to offer services to ASEAN customers with greater ease than what is

possible currently - is unlikely to fructify in the absence of the mutual recognition agreements that essentially honours the educational and professional qualifications across India and the ASEAN. This is a problem that India already faces in case of similar FTAs in services that it has in place with Japan and South Korea. The services pact - unarguably India’s strong point - with ASEAN was the first that India had signed with another trading country/bloc after the NDA government assumed office in May. The delay in signing mutual recognition agreements stems from the opposition by some ASEAN countries to free movement of professionals, given rising unemployment in their countries.

As a result, some of these countries are insisting that Indian professionals should obtain local qualifications; for instance, a doctor wanting to practice in Thailand must

Minister Shinzo Abe and the BRICS leaders. At an informal meeting with BRICS leaders Dilma Rousseff of Brazil, Xi Jinping of China, Vladimir Putin of Russia and Jacob Zuma of South Africa, Modi called for close coordination on unaccounted money stashed abroad. He said unaccounted money was also linked to security challenges.

Reform should be peopledriven, simplify processes Modi in his address to the G20 nations on Saturday spoke of the need for reform to make it people-driven and that it should lead to simplification of processes. Speaking at a retreat and lunch before the G20 summit, Modi said reform should be technology driven and should have scale and address the root causes, according to tweets posted by

ministry of external affairs spokesperson Syed Akbaruddin.

"Reforms should lead to simplification of processes...& processes of governance must be reformed - PM @narendramodi to G-20," said a tweet.

He said: "Reform is a continuous multi-stage process... must be institutionalized Globally, reforms are handicapped with perception of being government programs, a burden on the people, this needs to change."

"Reforms should lead to simplification of processes... and processes of governance must be reformed," he said.

"Reform is bound to face resistance... must be insulated from political pressures.

Reform has to be driven by the people....cannot be by stealth,"

he added. Earlier, in his first engagement of the day, Modi said repatriation of black money kept abroad was a key priority and called for "close coordination" on the issue during a meeting of BRICS leaders here.

The G20 membership comprises a mix of the world's largest advanced and emerging economies, representing about two-thirds of the world's population, 85 per cent of global gross domestic product and over 75 per cent of global trade.

The members of the G20 are Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, South Korea, Mexico, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Turkey, Britain, the US and the European Union.

obtain a licence from Medical Council of Thailand.

Except for the Philippines, every other ASEAN member - Singapore, Malaysia, Laos, Cambodia, Brunei, Vietnam, Myanmar, Thailand and Indonesia - has ratified the service deal. India

had implemented the FTA in goods with ASEAN members in 2010, while it had concluded the negotiations for FTA in services and investments in 2012.

With the signing of the pact in services and investments, the FTA is stated to become a comprehensive economic partnership between the two sides, but for the hassle of the mutual recognition agreements.

The UPA-II government had come under criticism for signing free trade agreements “in haste” and losing out on the benefits provided by the same. While India has an advantage in services, its existing trade balance with ASEAN is negative. India’s economic strength lies in services, given that over 50 per cent of GDP comes from services.

Last December, the Union

Cabinet had approved the FTA in services between India and the ASEAN. Unlike in India, ASEAN members have to approach their respective Parliaments for ratification of such pacts.

However, following the criticism, the commerce department undertook a study to gauge the impact of the FTAs on India’s trade.

India has signed FTAs with countries including Korea, Japan, Singapore, Thailand and Indonesia. Trade between India and the 10-member bloc stood at about $76 billion in 2012-13. Both sides aim to increase it to $100 billion by 2015 and envisage lifting import tariffs on more than 80 per cent of traded products by 2016.

The signed FTA is to be formalised under the umbrella framework of the Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement (CECA), which India and ASEAN inked in 2003.

Pushes for pact to improve free trade agreement with ASEAN

MODI SPECIAL

17

Meets Russian PM, stresses for strong ties

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi met his Russian counterpart Dmitry Medvedev and called for greater cooperation between their states and regions. On day three of his visit to Myanmar, Modi met Medvedev ahead of next month's annual Indo-Russia summit. The Indian PM recalled his visit to Russia in 2001 and told him "Am sure India-Russia ties will be strengthened", according to tweets posted by the Prime Minister's Office.

Modi's meeting with the Russian leader was his first diplomatic engagement on the third day of his 10-day three-nation tour of Myanmar, Australia and Fiji on the sidelines of the two back-to-back India-ASEAN and East Asia summits in Nay Pyi Taw. The Russian Prime Minister conveyed that India was a "close and valued partner for us" during the meeting at the Myanmar International Conference Centre. On the extent of Russia-India relations, Medvedev said: "There are many areas where we are cooperating".

In response, Modi said he was confident that the ties between the two countries will be strengthened.

During their conversation, Modi also spoke on the need for the federal units states and regions of the two countries to cooperate more, a view which Medvedev endorsed.

Russian President Vladimir Putin is travelling to New Delhi next month for the 15th annual IndiaRussia summit.

Modi, during his first meeting with Putin on the sidelines of the BRICS summit in Brazil in July,

favoured broadening India's strategic partnership with Russia in nuclear, defence and energy sectors.

He had also invited Putin to visit Kudankulam atomic power project during his trip for the annual summit.

A tweet posted by external affairs ministry spokesperson Syed Akbaruddin said, "Our federal units (states/regions) need to cooperate more PM @narendramodi pitch reasonates with Russian PM Medvedev."

Modi keen on Malaysian model of performance assessment As part of his endeavour to constantly evaluate the performance of his government, Modi is taking a cue from the Malaysian model, calling it an "excellent example".

During his meeting with his Malaysian counterpart Najib Razak, Modi said he was greatly impressed by the performance assessment mechanism that is in place in the southeast Asian country.

Modi told Razak that he had had discussions on this subject with some Malaysian officials who had worked on it, ministry of external affairs spokesperson Syed Akbaruddin said.

The PM said that this was an excellent example of how monitoring of performance is done. But he said Malaysia is more than only governance reform.

While this was governance reform, Modi also felt that Malaysia has been open for economic reforms and he felt that both Malaysia and India could work together in areas like housing. Modi said public housing was a major focus of the new Indian government which plans to go for large scale public housing by 2022. And he felt that Malaysian companies who had expertise in these would be welcome specifically in public housing projects.

Razak set up the Performance Management and Delivery Unit, commonly known as PEMANDU, in his office in September 2009, just a few months after taking over.

PEMANDU oversees implementation, assesses progress, facilitates and supports delivery and drives progress of the G o v e r n m e n t Tr a n s f o r m a t i o n Programme and the Economic Transformation Programme launched by Razak, who heads the unit as its chairman.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi wowed students of a leading Australian university, freely mingling with them during a visit, and made it a point to tell them that it is former Indian Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru’s birth anniversary, as he sent his best wishes to children.

Within hours after his arrival following an overnight flight from Myanmar, Modi headed for the Queensland University of Technology (QUT) for the first engagement of his five-day Australia visit, the first by an Indian Prime Minister in 28 years after Rajiv Gandhi.

“I wrote on the selfie with my young friends at QUT.. Today is 14th November. Pandit Nehru’s birthday. My good wishes to children,” Modi said in a tweet. The Prime Minister, wearing a lab

coat over a full-sleeved white shirt and a beige coloured pant, said he is fortunate to be among children on the occasion of Nehru’s birthday.

The Prime Minister, who was in Australia for the G20 summit and for bilateral talks with his Australian counterpart Tony Abbott in Canberra, was given a guided tour of the QUT campus and interacted with a group of selected students, some of whom were Indians.

Several students could not hide their enthusiasm and turned into shutterbugs as they relentlessly took photos. The enthusiastic response to Modi’s visit to QUT prompted a post on the University media’s twitter handle - “Perhaps the most high-powered lecture QUT has hosted.”

Agro Robot Modi was also shown an agriculture robot ‘AgBot’ at the University’s

‘The Cube’ complex - the University’s Science and Engineering Centre developed under a joint bio-energy programme using agriculture waste.

The Agro Robot, developed as part of a programme to develop robotics technology in the agriculture sector, is a light weight machine that performs the functions of a large tractor, including weeding work.

“Research is key to development. There is ongoing relationship between development journey of humankind and research. Increasing dominance of science and technology in the field of agriculture will surely prove to be beneficial to farmers and to the field of agriculture as a whole. It is an important endeavor for welfare of mankind. Best wishes for your effort,” Modi wrote on the ‘AgBot’ in Gujarati.

Wows students at Queensland varsity

16

MODI SPECIAL

PM charms diaspora in Sydney

Addressing a huge gathering of more than 16,000 enthusiastic members of the Indian diaspora at the Allphones Arena at Olympic Park, Sydney, Prime Minister Narendra Modi dedicated the respect and ovation that he was getting in Australia to the Indian people. "This welcome, this respect, this enthusiasm I dedicate it to the people of India. These incredible scenes and this massive reception in Sydney will galvanize India," said the prime minister. The prime minister lamented that "it took 28 years for (an Indian prime minister) to come here."

In what seemed like a repeat of the rock star reception he received at the Madison Square Garden in New York, Modi was greeted by wild applause from a 16,000 strong-crowd throughout his speech. Prime Minister Modi pointed out that although it takes just one day to come to Australia, it had taken a prime minister of India 28 long years to arrive, and promised that it would never happen again. He also explained that had it not been for democracy he would not have been present at the Allphones Arena today.

Modi announced that his government was working to facilitate visa-onarrival for Australian tourists and said the PIO (Persons of Indian Origin) and OCI (Overseas Citizen of India) status would be merged ahead of Pravasi Bhartiya Divas to be held from January 7 in Ahmedabad.

Modi said that he felt fortunate to be the first Prime Minister of India who was born in independent India, and hence, felt a greater responsibility.

"We must pledge that we will live for the country and we will struggle for the country. We did not get the opportunity to die for the nation or spend our

youth in jail. But we can surely live for the nation, that is something that everyone has the opportunity to do," he said. Modi also said that it was his good fortune to be the first Indian prime minister to be born postIndependence.

In his address, Modi said over 71 million bank accounts have been opened through the Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana so far in the villages in India and the money deposited amounts to Rs 50 billion. Modi also invited the Indian diaspora in Australia to participate in the Swachch Bharat campaign.

The prime minister said cleanliness is an area where his government is focusing. "Dirt attracts illness and the poor man suffers, due to which work days are lost and monetarily too.. I invite your participation in the drive," he said, as the crowd chanted "Modi, Modi".

Modi also urged the diaspora to build at least one toilet in the village of their origin in India. He expressed admiration for the dignity of labour he has witnessed in Australia.

"When I came earlier to Australia many would ask what have you learnt from Australia - and that is dignity of labour," he said. He said in Australia people speak with the same respect to a doctor as with a driver. He mentioned how on weekends a research scientist works as a driver to earn money.

"This dignity of labour is something to learn from," he added. He said he wanted to give the same message of dignity of labour through the Swachch Bharat campaign.

Giving an example, he said in India the garbage collector is called the "kachchra wala". "But he in reality is removing the filth... our mentality needs to change." He said that today people, including

industrialists, are participating in the clean India mission. "I salute them."

He added that on Mahatma Gandhi's 150th anniversary in 2019 - "the least we can do for Mahatma Gandhi is have a clean India."

India, Australia target free trade pact, economic boost: Australia and India will push for a free trade pact, Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott and Modi said on Tuesday during a rare state visit to Canberra by an Indian leader. Trade between Australia and India stands at around $15 billion a year, or just a tenth of that between Australia and China.

"We want to go further and that's why the next priority for Australia is a comprehensive economic partnership agreement with India," Abbott said.

"If I may say so, this is a moment in time. This is the time to get this done."

Modi, in an address to Australia's parliament, pledged greater cooperation on regional security, issuing a veiled swipe at China over disputes with its neighbours over islands in the South China Sea. Sign social security pact: India and Australia on Tuesday signed a bilateral agreement on social security, which aims to strengthen people-to-people contacts, facilitate and regulate regulations between the two countries with respect to social security benefits and coverage. The agreement was signed between Indian High Commissioner in Australia Biren Nanda and Australian Social Services Minister Kevin Andrews. The agreement will provide for social security and superannuation benefits for those who have been residents of the other country on basis of equality of benefit, export of benefits and avoidance of double coverage.

South Korea President Park Geun-hye invited Prime Minister Narendra Modi to Seoul to enhance cooperation between the two nations. "Engagement beyond the ASEAN too.

Prez @GH_PARK of Rep of Korea invites @PMOIndia to Seoul to enhance cooperation," Ministry of External Affairs official spokesperson Syed Akbaruddin tweeted during the meeting between the two leaders on the sidelines of the 12th ASEAN-India summit. Earlier in the day, Prime Minister Modi met with the Prime Ministers of Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand and the Sultan of Brunei.

Narendra Modi and Park Geun-hye India is my second home: Suu Kyi Myanmar's opposition leader and Nobel peace laureate Aung San Suu Kyi told Prime Minister Narendra Modi that India was her "second home".

The National League for Democracy leader called

Aung San Suu Kyi and Narendra Modi on the Indian prime minister during the ASEANIndia summit and East Asia Summit.

"India is my second home," Suu Kyi told Modi.

The pro-democracy icon did much of her schooling and her college in New Delhi.

South Korea President invites Modi to Seoul

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 22nd November 2014

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 22nd November 2014

G20 backs PM Modi's agenda on black money, tax avoidance

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday managed to get the Group of 20 include a certain clause in the final Leaders’ Communiqué that will make it difficult for tax havens to give complete tax exemption to companies.

This, along with the G20’s endorsement of a global Common Reporting Standard for automatic exchange of tax information on a reciprocal basis, are the twin pillars in India’s fight against tax evasion and repatriating unaccounted money, said Suresh Prabhu, sherpa to Prime Minister Modi for the G20 Summit.

Prabhu said that the Prime Minister made a strong pitch against black money. “At present, there are many rigidities in international tax laws, and

past tax treaties also do not facilitate easy exchange of information,” he said. India has to make specific requests with tax jurisdictions for information, and more often such information is shared with caveats.

The Prime Minister’s Office said that India’s concerns on black money and tax avoidance have been taken on board in G20. This, government officials said, would give an impetus to India’s move to renegotiate treaties with some countries.

On the implication of the clause that now commits the G20 to ensure ‘transparency of taxpayer-specific rulings found to construe harmful tax practices’, Usha Titus, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Finance, pointed out that Luxembourg, for instance, had

given a series of rulings which effectively did not require certain corporates to pay any tax.

“The inclusion of this clause will make it difficult for tax havens to do so for specific corporates,” she said.

This is part of the base erosion and profit shifting (BEPS) action plan of the G20/ OECD to modernise international tax rules. The G20 final draft said that this plan has made significant progress. “We are committed to finalising this work in 2015,” it said. The G20 countries are expected to exchange information with each other and other countries by 2017 or end-2018 after completing legislative procedures.

Modi has been pushing the issue of black money in his meetings with global leaders including Japanese Prime

Two months after it signed a landmark free trade agreement (FTA) in services and investments with the ASEAN, India strongly prodded the 10-nation bloc to wrap up an accompanying pact on the mutual recognition of educational and professional qualifications - an essential prerequisite for India to leverage its competitive advantage in the services sector.

In his address at the 12th India-ASEAN Summit, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi stressed on this issue and said: “I suggest that we conduct a review of our free trade agreement on goods to improve it further and make it beneficial to all. I also urge that the FTA on Services and Investment be brought into force at the earliest … We should move quickly towards mutual recognition of degrees”.

The reluctance of ASEAN members to ratify the mutual

recognition of degrees pact stems from continuing apprehension on the impact that this could have on their own services sectors.

The Philippines, which is yet to ratify the overarching services agreement, had earlier raised concerns that opening up of the region’s services sector may have an “adverse impact” on its own services industry, given India’s strength in the sector.

India had signed the FTA in services and investments with the ASEAN on September 9, 2014, two years after the discussions on the pact concluded. The benefits for India from the agreement which was expected to pave the way for India to leverage its competitive offerings in finance, education, health, IT, telecommunications, transport, movement of professionals and enabling Indian service providers to offer services to ASEAN customers with greater ease than what is

possible currently - is unlikely to fructify in the absence of the mutual recognition agreements that essentially honours the educational and professional qualifications across India and the ASEAN. This is a problem that India already faces in case of similar FTAs in services that it has in place with Japan and South Korea. The services pact - unarguably India’s strong point - with ASEAN was the first that India had signed with another trading country/bloc after the NDA government assumed office in May. The delay in signing mutual recognition agreements stems from the opposition by some ASEAN countries to free movement of professionals, given rising unemployment in their countries.

As a result, some of these countries are insisting that Indian professionals should obtain local qualifications; for instance, a doctor wanting to practice in Thailand must

Minister Shinzo Abe and the BRICS leaders. At an informal meeting with BRICS leaders Dilma Rousseff of Brazil, Xi Jinping of China, Vladimir Putin of Russia and Jacob Zuma of South Africa, Modi called for close coordination on unaccounted money stashed abroad. He said unaccounted money was also linked to security challenges.

Reform should be peopledriven, simplify processes Modi in his address to the G20 nations on Saturday spoke of the need for reform to make it people-driven and that it should lead to simplification of processes. Speaking at a retreat and lunch before the G20 summit, Modi said reform should be technology driven and should have scale and address the root causes, according to tweets posted by

ministry of external affairs spokesperson Syed Akbaruddin.

"Reforms should lead to simplification of processes...& processes of governance must be reformed - PM @narendramodi to G-20," said a tweet.

He said: "Reform is a continuous multi-stage process... must be institutionalized Globally, reforms are handicapped with perception of being government programs, a burden on the people, this needs to change."

"Reforms should lead to simplification of processes... and processes of governance must be reformed," he said.

"Reform is bound to face resistance... must be insulated from political pressures.

Reform has to be driven by the people....cannot be by stealth,"

he added. Earlier, in his first engagement of the day, Modi said repatriation of black money kept abroad was a key priority and called for "close coordination" on the issue during a meeting of BRICS leaders here.

The G20 membership comprises a mix of the world's largest advanced and emerging economies, representing about two-thirds of the world's population, 85 per cent of global gross domestic product and over 75 per cent of global trade.

The members of the G20 are Argentina, Australia, Brazil, Canada, China, France, Germany, India, Indonesia, Italy, Japan, South Korea, Mexico, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Turkey, Britain, the US and the European Union.

obtain a licence from Medical Council of Thailand.

Except for the Philippines, every other ASEAN member - Singapore, Malaysia, Laos, Cambodia, Brunei, Vietnam, Myanmar, Thailand and Indonesia - has ratified the service deal. India

had implemented the FTA in goods with ASEAN members in 2010, while it had concluded the negotiations for FTA in services and investments in 2012.

With the signing of the pact in services and investments, the FTA is stated to become a comprehensive economic partnership between the two sides, but for the hassle of the mutual recognition agreements.

The UPA-II government had come under criticism for signing free trade agreements “in haste” and losing out on the benefits provided by the same. While India has an advantage in services, its existing trade balance with ASEAN is negative. India’s economic strength lies in services, given that over 50 per cent of GDP comes from services.

Last December, the Union

Cabinet had approved the FTA in services between India and the ASEAN. Unlike in India, ASEAN members have to approach their respective Parliaments for ratification of such pacts.

However, following the criticism, the commerce department undertook a study to gauge the impact of the FTAs on India’s trade.

India has signed FTAs with countries including Korea, Japan, Singapore, Thailand and Indonesia. Trade between India and the 10-member bloc stood at about $76 billion in 2012-13. Both sides aim to increase it to $100 billion by 2015 and envisage lifting import tariffs on more than 80 per cent of traded products by 2016.

The signed FTA is to be formalised under the umbrella framework of the Comprehensive Economic Cooperation Agreement (CECA), which India and ASEAN inked in 2003.

Pushes for pact to improve free trade agreement with ASEAN

MODI SPECIAL

17

Meets Russian PM, stresses for strong ties

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi met his Russian counterpart Dmitry Medvedev and called for greater cooperation between their states and regions. On day three of his visit to Myanmar, Modi met Medvedev ahead of next month's annual Indo-Russia summit. The Indian PM recalled his visit to Russia in 2001 and told him "Am sure India-Russia ties will be strengthened", according to tweets posted by the Prime Minister's Office.

Modi's meeting with the Russian leader was his first diplomatic engagement on the third day of his 10-day three-nation tour of Myanmar, Australia and Fiji on the sidelines of the two back-to-back India-ASEAN and East Asia summits in Nay Pyi Taw. The Russian Prime Minister conveyed that India was a "close and valued partner for us" during the meeting at the Myanmar International Conference Centre. On the extent of Russia-India relations, Medvedev said: "There are many areas where we are cooperating".

In response, Modi said he was confident that the ties between the two countries will be strengthened.

During their conversation, Modi also spoke on the need for the federal units states and regions of the two countries to cooperate more, a view which Medvedev endorsed.

Russian President Vladimir Putin is travelling to New Delhi next month for the 15th annual IndiaRussia summit.

Modi, during his first meeting with Putin on the sidelines of the BRICS summit in Brazil in July,

favoured broadening India's strategic partnership with Russia in nuclear, defence and energy sectors.

He had also invited Putin to visit Kudankulam atomic power project during his trip for the annual summit.

A tweet posted by external affairs ministry spokesperson Syed Akbaruddin said, "Our federal units (states/regions) need to cooperate more PM @narendramodi pitch reasonates with Russian PM Medvedev."

Modi keen on Malaysian model of performance assessment As part of his endeavour to constantly evaluate the performance of his government, Modi is taking a cue from the Malaysian model, calling it an "excellent example".

During his meeting with his Malaysian counterpart Najib Razak, Modi said he was greatly impressed by the performance assessment mechanism that is in place in the southeast Asian country.

Modi told Razak that he had had discussions on this subject with some Malaysian officials who had worked on it, ministry of external affairs spokesperson Syed Akbaruddin said.

The PM said that this was an excellent example of how monitoring of performance is done. But he said Malaysia is more than only governance reform.

While this was governance reform, Modi also felt that Malaysia has been open for economic reforms and he felt that both Malaysia and India could work together in areas like housing. Modi said public housing was a major focus of the new Indian government which plans to go for large scale public housing by 2022. And he felt that Malaysian companies who had expertise in these would be welcome specifically in public housing projects.

Razak set up the Performance Management and Delivery Unit, commonly known as PEMANDU, in his office in September 2009, just a few months after taking over.

PEMANDU oversees implementation, assesses progress, facilitates and supports delivery and drives progress of the G o v e r n m e n t Tr a n s f o r m a t i o n Programme and the Economic Transformation Programme launched by Razak, who heads the unit as its chairman.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi wowed students of a leading Australian university, freely mingling with them during a visit, and made it a point to tell them that it is former Indian Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru’s birth anniversary, as he sent his best wishes to children.

Within hours after his arrival following an overnight flight from Myanmar, Modi headed for the Queensland University of Technology (QUT) for the first engagement of his five-day Australia visit, the first by an Indian Prime Minister in 28 years after Rajiv Gandhi.

“I wrote on the selfie with my young friends at QUT.. Today is 14th November. Pandit Nehru’s birthday. My good wishes to children,” Modi said in a tweet. The Prime Minister, wearing a lab

coat over a full-sleeved white shirt and a beige coloured pant, said he is fortunate to be among children on the occasion of Nehru’s birthday.

The Prime Minister, who was in Australia for the G20 summit and for bilateral talks with his Australian counterpart Tony Abbott in Canberra, was given a guided tour of the QUT campus and interacted with a group of selected students, some of whom were Indians.

Several students could not hide their enthusiasm and turned into shutterbugs as they relentlessly took photos. The enthusiastic response to Modi’s visit to QUT prompted a post on the University media’s twitter handle - “Perhaps the most high-powered lecture QUT has hosted.”

Agro Robot Modi was also shown an agriculture robot ‘AgBot’ at the University’s

‘The Cube’ complex - the University’s Science and Engineering Centre developed under a joint bio-energy programme using agriculture waste.

The Agro Robot, developed as part of a programme to develop robotics technology in the agriculture sector, is a light weight machine that performs the functions of a large tractor, including weeding work.

“Research is key to development. There is ongoing relationship between development journey of humankind and research. Increasing dominance of science and technology in the field of agriculture will surely prove to be beneficial to farmers and to the field of agriculture as a whole. It is an important endeavor for welfare of mankind. Best wishes for your effort,” Modi wrote on the ‘AgBot’ in Gujarati.

Wows students at Queensland varsity

18

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 22nd November 2014

Dear Financial Voice Reader,

The British PM on returning from Australia’s G20 meeting commented on how we are on the brink of another economic disaster. So are we really? The stock markets continue soaring. Why? Whenever data is better than our expectation, then prices rise. Companies make better profits than we expect, so their announcements lead to higher prices.

Why are our expectations so low? Well comments such as those of the PM, perversely lead to lower expectations, and therefore higher share prices on any good news. The markets are just that perverse. That’s odd. But that’s how the market work.

Doubtless the PM wanted the markets to hold back and be cautious, his comments will have the exact opposite effect.

What is my take on the markets? Yes we have huge debts around the world. But when interest rates are so low, debt actually doesn’t matter. It is free money.

Companies continue generating profits, this is partly because their wage bills are not rising and we are all working longer and harder for less money. Of course this is not good. It is unbalanced. Shareholders, the capitalists make money, whilst the wage earner is screwed.

Things are unbalanced. This is why some inflation is good – it ensures salary rises. Wages actually need to rise to increase tax take.

What all this means, as it always has, is that if you have capital then own assets, like a home, or shares, and prefer it to being an in income earner. Life has always been like that, and even more so at the moment with the markets.

The PM of course didn’t realise this is what he was alluding to when he spoke. The answer to the injustices of low wages is not some Marxist solution – but it is to support a shift in balance between company profits going to the shareholders as dividends, and more going to staff as wages – this maybe schemes to encourage greater spending with the company in which people work if it is a consumer company.

Were unions more powerful, they would have made the case for higher salaries. Political leadership is sadly not likely to lead to higher wages. But higher wages do mean more tax take. The only people to suffer in the short term would be the shareholders as company profits would drop.

But that is what the PM wanted and was saying… that given the state of the global economy, share prices should not be as high as they are. What he really was saying is salaries should be higher – but that’s a very Labour message!

India's WPI inflation slows to 5-year low

India's wholesale price inflation slowed to a 5year low in October on the back of cooling food and fuel prices, triggering expectations of a cut in interest rates. The latest data comes close on the heels of numbers which showed retail inflation slowing to a fresh low of 5.5% in October, largely due to moderating food and fuel prices. The sharp moderation in price pressures, evident from the two data sets, piles enormous pressure on the Reserve Bank of India to cut interest rates to boost growth.

The annual rate of inflation, based on the monthly wholesale price index, stood at 1.8% in October compared to 2.4% for the previous month and 7.2% during the corresponding month of the previous year, data released by the commerce ministry showed. The

October number was the slowest pace of inflation since September 2009.

The RBI has so far resisted calls for a reduction in interest rates, citing stubborn inflationary pressures and would prefer to see more evidence before it is convinced to move on rates. It relies more on retail inflation than the WPI inflation. It will review monetary policy on December 2.

Finance minister Arun Jaitley said he expects the moderation in global crude prices to have a positive impact on prices.

“We believe that softening of prices is in our interest.

With crude prices down, this trend of lower food prices will continue,” Jaitley told reporters.

India Inc has been stepping up the pressure to cut rates which, it says, is critical to boost investment and help revive growth.

Modi invites Aussie businessmen to participate in smart cities plan

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has invited Australian businessmen to participate in India's ambitious plans for smart cities to cater its growing urban population at Brisbane on Monday.

Addressing the business community at a breakfast meeting hosted by the Premier of Queensland, Prime Minister said, "We have launched Make in India as a new mission to promote manufacturing in India. Creating world class infrastructure, 100 Smart cities; Metro projects for 50 cities; modern waste management system for 500 cities; affordable healthcare within everyone's reach; sanitation for all by 2019; a roof over every head by 2022; electricity in every household; Clean Energy - with special focus on solar energy; energy efficiency, water conservation, Clean Ganga Programme , which is also a major urban renewal and environment protection programme."

"You can participate in India's ambitious plans for smart, sustainable, habitable cities to cater to its growing urban population.

It is expected that nearly 11 per cent of the world's urban population in 2025 will be in India," he said.

Praising Queensland and Brisbane for its hospi-

tality, Prime Minister Modi said, "I am honoured and very encouraged by this large turnout.

Congratulations to Queensland and Brisbane for hosting such a wonderful G20. For the past few days, you have shown what a world class city you are. Queensland's economy has been performing well, on basis of your traditional strengths in areas like tourism, resources and agriculture, but also through your investments in areas of advanced technologies and services. This is a tribute to your leadership and to the government and business in Queensland. Queensland can take justifiable pride in its success in the tourism sector."

He said that Queensland can be an important partner in India's development in the area of energy, mineral resources, agriculture, education, skill development and food security

and expressed his delight to be here.

Pointing about Queensland taking major steps to boost economic and trade ties with India, Prime Minister Modi added, "You have sent a number of trade missions to India.

Just this September, there was a Queensland-Gujarat Energy Roundtable in Gandhinagar, the capital of Gujarat. And, I am naturally pleased that Queensland will be participating in Vibrant Gujarat in January 2015 to showcase your infrastructure capabilities. I know that you are not partial to Gujarat, but you are sending delegations to Kolkata and Delhi and elsewhere!

The second reason is that today, India is your fourth largest export destination.

For us, Queensland is emerging as a major investment destination."

Prime Minister Modi said that India wants an integrated partnership in

joint research to improve yield and farm productivity which will help develop agriculture supply, chain infrastructure and food processing.

He further added that India-Australia relationship is comprehensive, involving economic cooperation, a growing security and strategic partnership and increasing cooperation in international forums, which are vital for peace, stability and prosperity.

Prime Minister Modi also drew the attention of the business community here about a slew of reform measures initiated by his government in areas like defence, railways and insurance.

Prime Minister Modi asserted that good governance is the starting point of change. He said,"In the area of processes, changing the way we work as government.

Good Governance is the starting point of change. It is as important to business as it is to ordinary citizens.

Eliminating unnecessary laws and regulations, making processes easier and shorter, ensuring that our government is more transparent. Focus on ease of doing business. We are partnering with state governments and even going doing to districts and villages."

months, Indian diplomats in Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, Oman, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates have sharply increased the minimum salaries that they recommend for Indian workers at private and public firms in those states.

"We want the Indian workforce to be paid higher salaries. Inflation, the value of the Indian currency and a rise in the cost of living in the Gulf were the factors that led to the decision," Y S Kataria, a spokesman for the Ministry of Overseas Indian Affairs (MOIA) in New Delhi, said.

The success of India's strategy is not yet clear, however. Officials in at

least some GCC nations have expressed displeasure, and the strategy could backfire if those countries end up hiring more workers from elsewhere in the world.

"Of course it will encourage companies to look at Bangladesh and Pakistan as more viable options to get migrant workers,” said Mohammed Jindran, managing director of UAEbased recruitment agency Overseas Labour Supply.

The Indian government cannot dictate the pay of its citizens in the Gulf - decisions to hire workers are made by labour recruiters in individual countries, which have not set minimum wages for migrants and usually prohibit union activity by them.

However, the recruiters must rely on the co-operation of local authorities to operate in India. An internal memo-

randum prepared by the MOIA, sent last month says that if workers are offered wages below specified minimums, ministry officials "would deny emigration clearance".

In Saudi Arabia, the Indian embassy lifted the recommended minimum salary posted on its website to 1,200 riyals ($320) a month earlier this year from 670 riyals. In the UAE, the minimum wage for Indian blue-collar workers rose to 1,500 dirhams ($409) in recent weeks from 1,200 dirhams last year, Jindran said.

Even when Gulf recruiters agree to certain wage levels, the numbers do not necessarily stick.

Some workers are promised one salary when they sign up in their home country, then forced to renegotiate lower wages when they arrive in the Gulf.

India's role as a top labour supplier means its drive cannot be totally ignored by recruiters, and it could have a big impact in some countries and industries.

India seeks higher pay for millions of Gulf workers

India is pressing rich countries in the Gulf to raise the wages of millions of Indians working there, in a drive that could secure it billions of dollars in fresh income but risks pricing some of its citizens out of the market.

Over 5 million Indian nationals are believed to be employed in the oil exporting states of the Gulf, the single largest group in a migrant worker population of more than 20 million.

Migrants do many of the dirty and dangerous jobs in the region, from construction to the oil industry, transport and services. They account for nearly half of the roughly 50 million population of the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council.

So India's campaign for much higher pay could have an impact on economies around the region, especially if it leads to a general increase in wages for workers from other big labour-supplying countries such as Pakistan and Bangladesh.

Over the past seven

REAL ESTATE VOICE

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 22nd November 2014

19

Going for the kill, or waiting for the prey?

Suresh Vagjiani

Sow & Reap A Property Investment Company

Currently we are working on a deal on a freehold pub in Fulham which popped up a week ago. I actually vowed to not do any more deals this year, as we have had a frantic year and this is a good period to take stock and do an audit of what’s going on and what we can improve on.

My vow didn't last very long, it’s like a drunkard suddenly taking a vow not to drink again. It makes sense, but logic doesn't come into it when there is a more powerful force driving the person which is a compulsive addiction.

So when presented with this deal I couldn’t help but start to track it. The property consists of 6,700 sq. ft., it comes occupied with a commercial tenant paying £150k per annum. The purchase price offered came to £3m, within one week it had risen to £3.1m - so £100,000 is the price of procrastination of just one week on this deal.

E ve n at £3. 1 m I h ave be e n to l d th e re is an o t h e r part y ho v e ri n g aro u n d t h is pro pe rt y wh o w an t s t o pu rc h ase as a lo n g t e rm h o l d an d t h e pr ic e c o u l d ris e e v e n f u rt h e r u pwa rd s . We h av e b e e n i n f o rm ed v e rba l ly t h e te n a n t w ou l d b e l o o k i n g t o v ac at e f o r a fe e , t h i s f e e h as b e e n q u o t e d at £300 - £ 450k . T h e pro pe rt y h as be e n l e t o u t t o a l arg e p u b g ro u p wh o h ave in t u r n su b l e t it to a s mal l e r te n a n t .

This means this premises was probably not running well for the larger pub group. I am also aware that smaller pubs are struggling, the pub business isn't what it once used to be and many of them are looking to jump ship. With a £150k rent plus the council rates who will want their pound of flesh not to mention the other expenses - it will take a lot of pints in order to start making a profit.

Looking at the property it is fairly typical of what a pub is in London. There are four floors starting from the basement. The ground and the basement are used for running the pub and the upper floors are used for residential, the lease is granted to the tenant over the whole building. In actual fact he might only be using the bottom two floors.

There is another way to tackle this situation rather than going straight in and offering a lump sum of money in order for the tenant to vacate the building, and that is to wait for the rent review to come up which in this case will be in a year.

Th i s me a n s we w il l ro u g h l y g e t o u r mo n e y b ac k on t h e re si d e n t ia l e le m e n t al o n e su b je c t t o pl an n i n g o f co u r se , le a vi n g t h e c o mm e rc i al as yo u r pro f i t .

The commercial element can remain where it is, the rule of thumb is the value of commercial is priced at roughly 50% of the residential this means it will be valued at £1.675m attracting a rental of £83,750 at 5% yield, which is about right.

This is a simplistic calculation but it contains all the salient points enough to know whether to go ahead with the purchase or not.

There is a further possibility to get another floor on this property, which will mean an extra uplift of £1.5m on it post development, this will be the cherry on the pie.

We purchased a pub deal last year in the area of West Kensington, we managed to get planning for an additional floor on the freehold building we acquired. It was sold without any work being done to the property, with an uplift of £500,000 just on the back of the planning.

This could be a similar scenario, though we are faced with the added complication of the lease, which didn't really exist on the first deal, when we acquired the first property the tenant was holding over the tenancies.

It is wise to be pessimistic in this situation and assume the lease will never be surrendered. This will mean you have purchased a buy to hold property which will generate a good yield for you much like purchasing a bond will do.

The lease is for 35 years with 25 years yet to run, banks love this kind of tenancy and the funding would be easy on a property with long term secure rental.

Banks take the most pessimistic view and look at who will pay the mortgage if you are unable to or are even dead. Here the covenant is strong enough to honour their commitment and pay the rent well into the end of the lease, and this is a long lease, this makes them comfortable, and when they’re comfortable they are one step closer to giving the loan.

We do not have the luxury of approaching the bank prior to agreeing the deal, we will need to take a view and go ahead and exchange.

Agreeing a long completion will give us enough breathing space to agree a loan. The banks are not known for their speed and deals can take over three months, we are in the midst of completing a refinance with a high street bank and even from the time the loan has been sanctioned the due diligence and procedures have taken a further two months!

Therefore it would be prudent in this scenario to also get a bridging facility in place, this can be agreed quickly. This will be your insurance policy, should the bank finance not happen in time; there will be cost involved but this can be seen as your insurance premium.

On e m e t h o d is t o g o st ra ig h t f o r t h e k il l , an d t h e o t h e r i s t o l ie a n d wai t f o r t h e pre y t o c o me to yo u . Th e app ro ac h may b e d i f f ere n t b u t th e o bj e ct i ve is t h e sam e .

B u t t h e l at t e r h as t he ad v an t ag e as t he pre y w ho is t h e t e n an t c an n o t d e t e c t yo u r e ag e rn e s s t o h av e t h e m o u t.

You simply increase the rent according to market levels to flush the tenant out, if it’s too much for them you can helpfully suggest a solution which is to occupy only the ground and lower ground floor and leave you free to use the upper two floors as residential flats.

We don't have any floor plans on the building, on good authority we have heard it’s 6,700 sq. ft., assuming half is residential and pricing it at £1,000 per sq. ft. the price just for the residential flats developed comes to £3.35m.

The Real Deal

South Hampstead, London, NW6 Purchase Price: £875k l A large two bedroom flat on the first floor of a period conversion l Long lease l High ceilings l Fantastic views of the communal gardens l Properties in this location are being sold for around £1,100 per sq. ft. while this is coming in at around £810 per sq. ft. l Very good buy and hold opportunity as the prices in this location are going to rise heavily Call us now to reserve!

0207 993 0103

We provide a turnkey solution. Contact us now:

Specialists in

Central London Property Sourcing

info@sowandreap.co.uk

www.sowandreap.co.uk

55 Bryanston Street, Marble Arch Tower, London, W1H 7AA

Follow us online:

Sowandreapuk

SowandReapProperties

Tips of the Week l Property is a very forgiving asset class, even if you purchase a dud property given time it will rise; the stronger the location the quicker it will rise. l Decide how you want to make your money - there are properties which produce great yields and those which give massive capital growth. Decide what you require before investing.

20

LEGAL VOICE

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 22nd November 2014

Brand India ranks 31 out of 50 nations

An annual nation branding survey carried out by research firm Anholt-GfK, which measures the reputation of countries, ranks India at 31st among 50 countries, with Germany overtaking the United States for top spot in 2014.

The study measures global perceptions of each country, based on 23 different attributes that make up the six overall dimensions on which national image is based: exports, governance, culture, people, tourism and immigration/ investment.

Although manufacturing is part of the export metric, it is measured in terms of perception, not volume: whether a country’s manufacturing makes an important contribution

to science and technology; whether it involves innovation and creativity; and whether it makes one feel good to buy things from that country.

Which is why China ranks 12th in exports even though it is a low-cost manufacturing superpower; India is 26th. “China ranks very low in terms of exports; the goodwill garnered with culture, where it ranks a high 8th, has not caught up,” says Xiaoyan Zhao, senior vice president and director of Nation Branding Index at GfK. India, at 23rd, also ranks higher with respect to its culture than its overall 31st ranking. Cultural metric include heritage, tourist landmarks, etc.

Where both China and

India lose out is in terms of governance, where they stand 46th and 42nd respectively, with India faring marginally better than China. But India's overall 31st rating - sandwiched between Czech Republic at 30 and Turkey at 32 - is the worst among BRIC nations. Brazil tops at 21, China at 23, and Russia at 25. Whatever the reality is, at least in terms of image and perception, the top ten nation brands are all OECD countries, with the US ceding ground to Germany for the first time since the annual survey began in 2009. “Germany appears to have benefited not only from the sports prowess it displayed on the world stage at the FIFA World Cup championship,

but also by solidifying its perceived leadership in Europe through a robust economy and steady political stewardship,'' says the survey. Germany's score gains in the areas of `honest and competent government', `investment climate', and `social equality' are among the largest it achieved across all the aspects covered by the NBI 2014 survey .

In contrast, the US has shown the least impressive NBI gain among developed nations. While it is still seen as number one in several areas, including creativity , contemporary culture, and educational institutions, its role in global peace and security only ranks 19th out of 50 nations.

BSE, NSE eye to set up small banks

Bombay Stock Exchange and the National Stock Exchange are looking to set up small banks in the country once the Reserve Bank of India opens the window for applications.

The move will help the two exchanges, which have cash transactions running into millions, manage some of the funds, but will come as bad news for the existing players, such as HDFC Bank, which manage this amount and benefit by way of low cost of funds.

Earlier, RBI governor Raghuram Rajan had said that the regulator is set to issue guidelines for fresh small banks and is expected to invite proposals by the end of the month. But the exchanges have been working on the proposal for the past few months.

Sources said the BSE board discussed the proposal, although some of the directors had certain reservations. The proposal may be headed for discussions again once the RBI issues

the final norms, said a source privy to the talks.

Similarly, the NSE is learnt to have discussed the plan, although the exchange declined to comment on the issue. Sources said the proposals are only at the discussion stage and a final decision on seeking a licence will be taken after the guidelines are released.

Experts, however, said while exchanges may be drawing up plans to set up banks, there is no guarantee that the RBI will issue licenses given that the proposed banks will handle cash that is generated dur-

ing a related entity’s business. They said the regulator will decide on the proposal based on how the bank is structured.

In addition, they said in several developing countries, including India, banks have joined hands to set up a stock exchange but it is rare for stock exchanges to set up banks.

In the past, the RBI has been very selective in issuing bank licences and has handpicked the promoters who have been given bank licences.

But, with small banks which are now expected to

be allowed to get a panIndia footprint - and payment banks, the RBI is trying to deepen the reach and is expected to be more lenient. In the draft guidelines issued by the RBI, payments banks and small banks were proposed to be niche or differentiated banks to push financial inclusion. The RBI had proposed that the presence of small banks be restricted to contiguous districts in a homogeneous cluster of states or Union Territories to give them a local feel.

But now this rule is proposed to be changed.

BSE plans to set up comex: The Bombay Stock Exchange is set to seek regulatory nod to set up a commodity exchange to rival NSE-promoted National Commodity & Derivatives Exchange (NCDEX). Sources said the BSE board recently cleared the proposal and the exchange will now approach Sebi for approval.

After making personal investments in e-commerce major Snapdeal and online jewellery store Bluestone, Ratan Tata, chairman emeritus, Tata Sons is now investing in furniture e-tailer Urban Ladder. Tata's investment comes just four months after the Bangalore-based start up raised $21 million in a second round of funding from Hong Kong's Steadview Capital and its existing investors. The undisclosed investment amount from Tata comes at a time when the country's online commerce market is witnessing frenetic growth leading to top dollar being funnelled into the sector. “He (Tata) understands the furniture space very well, specially our focus on product design, said Ashish Goel, CEO & co-founder of the two-year-old company.

Two Indians and an Indian-origin Singaporean have won an award for young social entrepreneurs here for developing a mobile phone-based English learning solution for elementary school students from low-income families in India.

Pramodh Rai, 27, Ankita Gupta, 23, and Priya Andleigh, 23, who teamed up to develop this learning solution named 'Jugnu', were chosen from a group of 76 youth representing 12 nations including Cambodia, Indonesia, Malaysia, Republic of Korea, Singapore, Thailand and the US. The award was given

by Singapore International Foundation (SIF), a nonprofit organisation, for their innovative business ideas. The three, who study at Nanyang Technological University, feel that poor

students in India are not exposed to proper environment where they can learn English.

"They forget everything they learn in school as parents don't speak in English and they even can't teach them," Gupta said.

"So we reach to them through mobile phones after they are at home and ask some basic questions based on which we develop a customised programme as per their need," she said.

"Through this programme, they can learn at their home and don't need tutor," Rai said adding that the programme is for learning basic English like vocabulary and grammar.

The programme, which started with an initial cost of SGD 5,000 has been successfully tested in three Delhi schools and now the three are planning to register it as a business in

Singapore.

"Right now it is a small initiative but later on we want to expand it to rest of India and other parts of Asia," said Gupta, who is from Mumbai.

Three other teams were also honoured along with them. The four winning teams will receive SGD 10,000 each in funding and will get a chance to work with an international firm to sharpen their business skills.

SIF Chairman Euleen Goh said the winners focus on environment, organic, mobile apps and thought of reaching the unreachable, is commendable.

"At the SIF, we make friends for a better world, bringing together global Citizen Ambassadors to share knowledge, skills and experiences to uplift and enrich lives through social enterprise," she said

Tata invests in furniture e-tailer

Indians in Singapore win young entrepreneurs award

Maria Fernandes

Sponsorship licences: the punitive approach

The approach of the UKVI in sponsorship has moved from collaborative to punitive and minor infractions are now being used to downgrade and worse suspend licences. Gone are the days when not finding an illegal worker was good enough to prevent any serious consequences.

The problem is that there is no appeal before an independent body. This is of course a problem in all other areas of immigration but felt acutely in the area of sponsorship.

The only recourse is to apply to the High Court but this is an expensive process. Furthermore its jurisdiction is different as does not consider the merits but looks at whether the process has been a reasonable one.

Of course the downgrading and suspensions means that new staff cannot be brought in and this works effectively in cutting numbers of migrant staff and helps the government by reducing numbers.

At present care homes are being targeted

and this is causing great concern. These homes cater for vulnerable patients with dementia.

Taking away their ability to retain or bring trained staff will only put pressure on a system that is already reeling with constant regulation. In the end the people who will suffer most will be the residents themselves.

Local residents do not want to work the antisocial hours that are required and they will take these jobs as stop gaps moving on as soon as something better comes along. The situation is becoming desperate. So what is to be done?

First make sure you have your systems in order. This means checking documents, ensuring your paperwork is uptodate and that you regularly check that you remain compliant. It is important to allocate this task to someone reliable.

Secondly if you believe that you have acted reasonably be prepared to fight. Don't give in.

To contact Maria Fernandes, please email at: info@fernandesvaz.com

At 32, Shah youngest partner at Goldman

Kunal Shah, a 32-year- old Indian-origin managing director at Goldman Sachs, is among the 78 individuals to be promoted to the position of partner, becoming the youngest to be inducted into the investment giant's most coveted club. Shah is one of the five persons of Indian-origin to have made the cut in Goldman Sachs in 2014 class of partners.

He was promoted to managing director at the investment banking giant at the age of 27. The Cambridge University math grad was also named in Forbes `30 under 30' Finance list in 2011. He has been a rising star at Goldman since he joined the company in London in 2004, analysing interest rate products, before trad-

ing on the global macro desk, according to Forbes.

The other persons of Indian-origin named to the firm's elite group are Meena Lakdawala Flynn, Manikandan Natarajan, Umesh Subramanian and Rajesh Venkataramani.

Goldman Sachs chairman and CEO Lloyd Blankfein and president and COO Gary Cohn personally called the 78 individuals to inform them of their elevation.

India regained its position as the world’s top gold consumer overtaking China in the third quarter as demand for jewellery surged almost 60 per cent, according to new data from the World Gold Council. Lower prices, the

new administration of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and better prospects for economic growth provided an “encouraging backdrop” for gold demand, the industry group said in its latest quarterly report.

Kunal Shah

India regains position as world’s top gold consumer

CURRENCY VOICE

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 22nd November 2014

21

Foreign Exchange

Paresh Davdra is the Dealing Director of RationalFX,

Upward Trend In Wage Growth Currency Specialists.

GBP The headline unemployment rate stayed the same as the previous month at 6%. However, the data shows that a record number of people are now in work as the jobless total fell 115,000 in the quarter to September.

Wage growth figures were released yesterday showing that wages excluding bonus' were up 1.3% in the three months to September. This is significant, as this is the first time in 5 years wage growth has been higher than inflation, signalling an end to the cost of living squeeze.

The main event in the UK was the Bank of England's Quarterly Inflation Report. Mark Carney stated that plunging commodity prices, the recent weak wage growth and slowing global growth has triggered a drastic change of view on their outlook for inflation. They now expect it to take 3 years to return to the banks 2% target.

GBP fell on the back of comments suggesting that the Bank of England expects to hold interest rates at 0.5% until around October next year. This is in contrast to the view held in August's inflation report where the Bank had been signalling that pre-election rise in February was most likely.

Growth in 2015 has been

Tuesday November 11th

revised slightly lower to 2.9% from the banks August forecast of 3%. They also expect the unemployment rate to fall to 5.7% by the end of 2015, however, the nature of job creation (young and low skilled) will weigh on wage growth.

EUR According to the latest consumer prices data out yesterday Inflation in Greece fell to -1.7% in October, A decline on last months figure of -0.8%. As the Greek economy struggles with high unemployment and the impact of austerity measures imposed by the EU this is a further sign that their ailing economy is still on shaky ground.

In Italy industrial production fell 0.9% in September with Economists only anticipating a 0.2% decline. That means that industrial production has shrunk by 1.1% over the last quarter, accelerating from a 0.5% decline in April-June. Overall this equates to Italian production being 2.9% lower than in September 2013.

On a slightly brighter note, euro zone investor confidence has stopped falling, but remains close to an 18-month low.

Industrial production data for the whole of the Euro zone YoY figures came in significantly above expectations at 0.6%, when it was

Monday November 17th

forecast to slip by 0.3%.

Reports have shown the German economy has narrowly avoided recession, growing 0.1% in the third quarter, with the economy contracting to 0.1% in the April-to-May quarter, another negative figure would have meant Germany entering recession. The statistics office said German consumers had increased spending strongly during the third quarter period, and that exports had also risen. The French economy grew faster than economists forecast in the third quarter as domestic demand helped it bounce back from a contraction in the previous three months.

The Euro significantly strengthened on Friday after news emerged the euro-zone economy grew 0.2 per cent in the third quarter, according to official figures published by Eurostat, beating expectations of 0.1 per cent growth. Further good news for the euro-zone, Greece exited recession and entered growth for the first time since austerity measures were put in place.

USD Despite the US being on a bank holiday for Veterans Day, Boston Federal Reserve bank president Eric Rosengren discussed the Feds fight for higher inflation. He believes the Fed should fight low inflation as vig-

Tuesday November 11th

orously as it would a too rapid run-up in prices or risk the same sort of prolonged slow growth plaguing Japan and Europe. Failure to get inflation to the Fed’s 2 % target, raised the risk that investors and consumers would slip into deflationary thinking, changing their spending and investment patterns in ways that would further undermine growth.

Applications for U.S. unemployment benefits rose more than forecast last week, representing a pause from a recent run of readings close to a 14-year low. U.S. consumer sentiment also rose in November to a more than seven-year high as falling unemployment and lower gasoline prices boosted views on both current conditions and expectations.

The University of Michigan's preliminary reading on the overall index on consumer sentiment for this month came in at 89.4, the highest reading since July 2007, well above economists expectations.

The Commerce Department’s retail sales figures used to calculate gross domestic product, climbed 0.5 percent in October after being little changed the prior month. The September reading was revised up from a previously reported 0.2 percent decrease.

Monday November 17th

Weekly Currencies As of Tuesday 18th November 2014 @ 7pm

GBP - INR = 96.56

USD - INR = 61.71 EUR - INR = 77.38 GBP - USD = 1.56 GBP - EUR = 1.25

EUR - USD = 1.25 GBP - AED = 5.75

GBP - CAD = 1.77

GBP - NZD = 1.97

GBP - AUD = 1.79

GBP - ZAR = 17.25

GBP - HUF = 381.08

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.

Tuesday November 11th

Safe as houses

With RationalFX you get: ȏ 0% commission & no hidden costs

ȏ Stop/limit orders & forward trades

ȏ Fixed exchange rates for up to 2 years

ȏ Online payments platform available 24/7

ȏ Low wire transfer fees

ȏ Personalised service

Sign up for a free account today: www.rationalfx.com/business or call our dealing desk: 020 7220 8181

Monday November 17th

22

WORLD

Tony Blair made millions in secret deal with Saudi Arabian oil company

Former Prime Minister Tony Blair made a fortune in a secret and lucrative business deal with his Tony Blair Associates (TBA) and a Saudi Arabian oil company.

Under the deal, it was agreed that TBA would help promote the firm PetroSaudi International, a firm promoted by one of the senior members of Saudi royal family, to Chinese leaders. The proposed fees were £41,000 a month and a 2% cut of any deal it helped broker.

According to The Sunday Times, Blair would make introductions to senior political leadership, industrial policy makers, corporate entities and other persons in China identified by PetroSaudi officials. The contract gives a fascinating insight into Blair’s business empire, which has been dubbed Blair Inc. The document says TBA can provide consultancy services “on geopolitical services,” “introduction to

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 22nd November 2014

ities, which include the Tony Blair Faith Foundation, which promotes dialogue between religions, and the African Governance Initiative, which promotes reform in Africa. Many were, however, concerned at what they consider Blair’s race for cash since leaving office, with an opaque network of financial interests that stretch from the United Arab Emirates to Kazakhstan to America.

Many people consider it wrong on the part of Blair to conceal his business interests and minting money by using his previous role as Britain's Prime Minister.

The former prime minister is likely to face questions about whether it was appropriate for him after leaving office to be paid by a private company founded by a senior member of the Saudi royal family. He will also face questions over the scale of any confidential business deals in the Middle East and

whether they may have led to conflict with his role as Middle East envoy.

A group of former British ambassadors has already joined a campaign calling for him to be removed from the unpaid post, citing his role in the Iraq invasion, the lack of progress on his Middle East mandate and the lack of transparency over his business dealings and personal finances. Since leaving Downing Street, Blair has amassed a vast fortune with his property portfolio alone comfortably worth £ 25 million. He has secured advisory roles with the US investment bank JP Morgan and Swiss insurer Zurich International. He is also one of the best-paid speakers in the world, earning as much as £150,000 for a single speech. His main commercial activities come under the umbrella of TBA. TBA’s client list and the modus operandi of its employees are, however, carefully guarded secrets.

engaging more fully with the ongoing peace process'.This included a radio transmitter but this was done with the 'full knowledge of the Government of Sri Lanka under different leaders, including during the period when Mahinda Rajapaksa was prime minister'. Solheim added that transparency with respect to Colombo was "total" as with all of Norway's peace efforts in SL. Solheim added he had

met Rajapaksa 'dozens of times' before he became president and kept him 'fully informed of all elements of the peace process'. Rajapaksa had also been - as a minister and then PM--"fully supportive of our peace aims" and even asked Norway to continue its efforts. After the 2005 presidential election, he did so 'publicly' and invited "me personally to visit Sri Lanka", said Solheim. Rajapaksa, the Norwegian leader claimed, had also made a number of political requests that he asked him to convey on his behalf to LTTE leader V Prabhakaran. 'All these messages were duly communicated on to the LTTE leadership, and the killings ceased for a period.'

Rajapaksa had expressed his gratitude for this both to Norway and to myself personally.

"When we last met in 2010, President Rajapaksa as a recognition of Norway´s peace efforts invited me to come back to Sri Lanka, visit the country and experience the peace." Solheim said further details on all these issues will be made public in spring 2015 in a book detailing the Norwegian peace engagement in Sri Lanka.

In the context of the inquiry initiated by the UN Human Rights Council, Solheim reiterated that he considered it the duty of all with relevant information to provide the best possible knowledge, in full honesty, "regarding war crimes allegedly committed by both the LTTE and the Government of Sri Lanka.” Rajapaksa had expressed his anger that Solheim was planning to give evidence against Sri Lanka in Geneva.

against JuD chief Hafiz Saeed, LeT commander Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi, Sajid Majid, Azam Cheema and two other Pakistani nationals, Major Iqbal and Major Sameer Ali. According to their attorney, the request for “trial by jury”, “default judgement” and a “$ 688 million compensation”

was filed before the Eastern District Court of New York after November 1, 2013, court summons were duly served to JuDLeT and other defendants in Pakistan to which they did not respond.

The compensation has been sought by the family members of seven people who were killed by LeT terrorists and two others who were injured. The American and Israeli victims of the 2008 attacks had first filed their case on November 19, 2010. They had also sought action against ISI and its chief, but the court ruled that out after the US state

department told the court that they enjoyed diplomatic immunity as they were a part of a foreign government.

According to court papers, LeT, its leaders and other defendants were served with court summons and complaints. But they have failed to answer or otherwise defend against this action, alleged the attorney on behalf of the 2611 victims, including Rabbi Shimon Rosenberg, father of Rifka Holtzberg who was murdered alongside her husband Rabbi Gabriel Holtzberg during the attack on the Chabad House in Mumbai.

Tony Blair

Chinese industrialists and politicians” and introductions to “potential sources of equity and/or debt investment”. One condition was utter secrecy. The contract states: “Each party will ensure that no announcements, statements or documentation containing any reference to either party or to Tony Blair will be published or made without the prior express written consent of the other party.”

Blair sees no contradiction between this type of work and the principles espoused in the Beijing speech in November 2010.

This is partly because he considers it helps finance his extensive unpaid activ-

Norwegian envoy rejects Rajapaksa's allegation

Colombo: Diplomat Erik Solheim has rejected Sri Lankan president Mahinda Rajapaksa's allegation that Norway and he in particular were "funding" the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam.

Solheim, who was Norway's key facilitator in the Colombo-Tamil rebels peace process and is a former minister of international development, has said that Norway "financed neither the LTTE in general nor its military operations" in particular. He added that Rajapaksa himself was fully aware of Norway's entire engagement with the Tamil rebels, and had even requested him to communicate with the Tigers.

In a statement, Solheim has said that Norway made 'economic resources available to the LTTE peace secretariat in order to assist them in

Mahinda Rajapaksa

Mumbai attack victims seek $ 688 mn from Pak accused

Washington: Nine American and Israeli victims of the 2008 Mumbai attacks have demanded a compensation of $ 688 million from the Pakistanbased perpetrators of the terror assault, including JuD chief Hafiz Saeed. In a re-submission before a New York court on October 30 and 31, the nine victims of the Mumbai attacks - from the US and Israel - argued for a “trial by jury” and “default judgement” against Jamaatud-Dawa (JuD) and Lashkare-Taiba (LeT). They also argued for a “trial by jury” and “default judgement”

In Brief

Families urged to start Christmas shopping now

London: Transport secretary Patrick McLoughlin has urged families to do their Christmas shopping now because a shortage of lorry drivers has raised fears that there could be empty shelves in the shops. Thousands of drivers have quit over the past few months following a new European Union rule forcing them to go for expensive training. Though he did not see any problem in the next six weeks, but to be on the safe side advised the families to do their shopping now.

Badger cull costing more than official figures

London: Care For The Wild, an animal charity, said that the official figures show the pilot culls in Somerset and Gloucestershire cost £6.3 million, equivalent to £3,350 for every badger killed, but the figure did not include the cost of policing. According them the cost would be equivalent of £5,200 for each badger killed.

The charity had previously estimated it cost more than £4,000 per badger killed.

Britain's top earners pay more in tax than 9 mn lowest-paid workers

London: Official figures show that the top 3,000 income tax payers in Britain contribute 4.2 per cent of the government revenue from income tax than the 9 million lowest paid workers who contribute less than four per cent to the government kitty in this financial year. Each of the top 3,000 earners declared an income above £2.7 million, the figures from HM Revenue and Customs show. Some 30 million people pay income tax – meaning the contribution from the top 3,000 is the same as the total from around a third of the lowest earners.

Suspected terrorist flees to Syria

London: Siddhartha Dhar, also known as Abu Rumaysah, a suspected terrorist with close ties to Waltham Forest has fled to Syria with his family despite a travel ban. He was a founding member of Islam4UK and is a close associate of Walthamstowbased Islamist cleric, Anjem Choudhary. He was arrested in September on suspicion of encouraging terrorism as part of a probe into the banned extremist group al-Muhajiroun, which was led by Choudhary. He was ordered to hand over his passport, but left London on a coach to Paris. It is believed that he is now in Syria with his wife and four children under the Islamic State.

Drinking problem among retired professional women rising

London: Doctors say the drinking problem among retired professional women are rising. One reason for the rise is the online delivery service. Increasing number of female retired professionals have developed drink problems after stepping down from successful careers, mirroring a pattern seen among men, they said. Government figures published last month showed a 65 per cent increase in the number of women over pension age beginning treatment for drink related problems in the last five years in England.

December set to become the wettest month

London: According to the Met Office, a rainy December could make 2014 the wettest year ever recorded in the UK. The 10 months to the end of October were already the second rainiest such period since records began, official statistics show. If November and December see rainfall just one-fifth above historical averages, it would be enough to make 2014 the wettest year overall – beating the record set in 2000.

More British students enrolling in US universities

London: For the first time, more than 10,000 bright British students are studying in the American universities, warning a backlash over the UK’s "narrow and utilitarian" degrees. One reason is the attractive liberal arts degrees and generous scholarships. Figures show the number of students crossing the Atlantic jumped by a record eight per cent in the last academic year following a major recruitment campaign by universities, including leading Ivy League institutions.

One kiss shares 80 million bacteria

Amsterdam: Dutch scientists say that a single 10second kiss can transfer as many as 80 million bacteria.

They monitored the kissing behaviour of 21 couples and found those who kissed nine times a day were most likely to share salivary bugs. Studies suggest the mouth is home to more than 700 different types of bacteria - but the report reveals some are exchanged more easily than others.

WORLD

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 22nd November 2014

In Brief

Parents want new law to protect under-12s at home alone

London: Most parents believe that leaving a child home alone under the age of 12 should be made a criminal offence. A poll found that two thirds want the government to set a legally binding minimum age limit. Most say that the current situation, in which families judge for themselves when it is safe to leave a child, is inadequate.

Teach children to embrace outsiders, says Church of England

London: The Church of England warned that rules that require schools to teach British values must not become a “loyalty” test. Schools must instead teach children to embrace outsiders, as in the parable of the Good Samaritan, and to understand the importance of dissent based on conscience, the Church says. The National Society, which is responsible for the Church of England’s 4,700 state schools, has submitted a paper voicing concern about the government’s plans for schools to enforce British values.

Mother jailed for funding Isis jihadist husband

London: A young mother has been jailed for two years for duping a friend into smuggling cash to her jihadist husband in Syria. Amal El-Wahabi, 28, persuaded a school friend to take a flight to Istanbul carrying £15,900 intended for Aine Davis, 30, a convicted drug dealer who joined the ranks of Isis last year. The cash was given to Nawal Msaad, 27, who was stopped at Heathrow before a flight to Istanbul and produced the notes from her underwear.

Supermarkets using packaging tricks to entice customers

London: An investigation has revealed that supermarkets are using a number of packing tricks to entice customers. The tactics include tiny portion sizes that make products appear healthier, own-label products copying the packaging of big brands, poorvalue gift sets in which the cost of individual products is the same, and excess packaging that tricks customers into thinking that they are getting more for their money. The study also found traces of fish gelatine in surprising products such as Lea & Perrins Worcestershire Sauce, Lilt, and Hellmann’s Caesar salad dressing. Other tricks included missing out the main ingredients from product names. One example is Innocent Kids Cherry and Strawberry smoothies, which contains only 11 per cent strawberries and 7 per cent cherries. The main ingredients are cheaper apples and grapes.

Couple married for 65 years die moments apart

London: A devoted couple from Derby, Harry Stevenson, 88 and his 89-year-old wife Mavis, who had been married for 65 years died within minutes of each other. Stevenson died moments after care home staff informed him of the death of Mavis. They had refused to be separated throughout their life and when Mavis' health deteriorated, Stevenson moved into a care home to be with her.

British tourists warned of Chikungunya

London: The British tourists who are planning to visit the Caribbean have been warned of the dangers of Chikungunya virus that is sweeping there.

According to reports, British tourists in the Caribbean are being struck down by a debilitating and potentially deadly virus carried by mosquitoes in the islands, including Barbados, St Lucia and the (St Vincent) Grenadines, where many UK holidaymakers flock during the festive season. The report said thousands have been hit by the illness, which leaves victims bedridden for days, and the more vulnerable victims have died. The report added that the tour operators are playing down the problem.

ISIS beheads US aid worker Kassig

Beirut: An ISIS group video shows rebels beheading a dozen Syrian soldiers and ends with a militant claiming to have killed US aid worker Peter Kassig.

The video ends with the militant standing over a severed head he says belongs to Kassig. The main militant in the video who speaks to the camera has a British accent and warns that US soldiers will meet a similar fate. The video identifies the militants' location as Dabiq, a town in northern Syria that the militant group uses as the title of its English-language propaganda magazine and where they believe an apocalyptic battle between Muslims and their enemies will occur.

23

Musharraf warns of proxy war with India in Afghanistan

Karachi: The departure of Nato combat forces from Afghanistan could push India and Pakistan towards a proxy war in the troubled state, Pakistan's former military ruler General Pervez Musharraf warned in an interview.

Musharraf praised new Afghan President Ashraf Ghani, who made his first official trip to Pakistan last week in a bid to reset fractious ties with Islamabad.

Pakistan's support is seen as crucial to Afghan peace as US-led forces pull out by the end of this year after 13 years battling the Taliban. But the former strongman said calming tension between India and Pakistan - running high at the moment after some of the worst cross-border firing in years - is key to peace in Afghanistan.

"The danger for Pakistan is... the Indian influence in Afghanistan,"

Pervez Musharraf

he said. "That is another danger for the whole region and for Pakistan because Indian involvement there has an antiPakistan connotation.

They (India) want to create an anti-Pakistan Afghanistan."

Nucleararmed neighbours India and Pakistan have long accused each other of using proxy forces to try to gain influence in Afghanistan.

While India has tried to gain traction with the Tajik ethnic group, which dominates in northern

Afghanistan, Pakistan has sought to use its leverage with the Pashtuns of the country's south and east who make up the majority of the Taliban. "If Indians are using some elements of the ethnic entities in Afghanistan, then Pakistan will use its own support for ethnic elements, and our ethnic elements are certainly Pashtuns," Musharraf said. "So we are initiating a proxy war in Afghanistan. This must be avoided."

Musharraf blamed India for supporting separatist rebels in Pakistan's southwestern province of Baluchistan via training camps in southern Afghanistan - a common accusation in Pakistani military circles. Former Afghan president Hamid Karzai routinely accused Pakistan of secretly backing the Taliban as a hedge against Indian influence in

his country. Pakistan denies the accusation, though it was one of only three countries to officially recognise the Afghan Taliban regime, in power from 1996 until 2001 when the US-led invasion resulted in its overthrow.

Musharraf criticised former Afghan president Hamid Karzai for sending officials for training in India and not Pakistan, saying "these small things add up to strategic problems".

Ghani and Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif pledged at the weekend to move on from the sniping and bitterness of the Karzai years, with the Afghan leader saying three days of talks had undone 13 years of differences.

But Musharraf warned that regional rivalries could flourish again once Nato's 34,000-strong combat contingent leaves by the end of next month. passports from those they suspect of planning to travel abroad for terrorism, the reports said.

The new powers could cause legal wrangles over fears of civil liberty contraventions, but Cameron said they were necessary.

“We listen carefully to what the police and security services advise us,” he said. “We think about the civil liberty implications, we think about the effect on other countries, but at the end of the day I make the choices on what I believe is necessary to keep the British public safe and I think this new power is important in that regard.”

Kathmandu: Pakistan's Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has rejected the use of a bulletproof car provided by rival India for next week's summit of South Asian leaders in Kathmandu, a Nepalese official said. Sharif "will be bringing his own car... all other vehicles for (visiting) heads of countries have come from India", said foreign ministry spokesman Khaga Nath Adhikari. He denied the move was a snub specifically targeted at India, whose ties with Pakistan have worsened since October over some of the worst cross-border firing in years.

The South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation (SAARC) summit will see the leaders of Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, the Maldives, Sri Lanka, Nepal, India and Pakistan meet in Kathmandu on November 26 and 27.

UK to bar return of jihadists: Cameron

Canberra: British Prime Minister David Cameron outlined plans to seize passports of British jihadists and stop them from returning after fighting overseas, while proposing landing bans on airlines that fail to comply with London’s no-fly lists.

Some 500 radicalised Britons are estimated to be fighting in Iraq and Syria.

“We will shortly be introducing our own new Counter-Terrorism Bill in the UK,” Cameron said in a speech to Australia’s Parliament before travelling to the G-20 leaders’ summit in Brisbane, adding that there was “no

opt-out from dealing with this.”

The bill will create “new powers for police at ports to seize passports, to stop suspects travelling and to stop British nationals returning to the UK unless they do so on our

terms.” There would also be “new rules to prevent airlines that don’t comply with our no-fly lists or security screening measures from landing in the UK,” he said.

British media reports said the legislation would block individuals from returning from Syria and Iraq to Britain for at least two years unless they comply with strict measures. These could include being escorted back to Britain and then facing prosecution, bail-style reporting conditions and de-radicalisation courses.

Border guards and airport police would also be given new powers to seize

Islamabad: Four flags of the dreaded militant group Islamic State or ISIS have been confiscated near a highly- sensitive ordnance unit close to Islamabad, setting alarm bells ringing for the Pakistani security establishment.

The presence of IS flags, though symbolic, on electricity poles in a closely-guarded part of the historic city of Taxila, near the Pakistan Ordnance Factory (POF), has added to the fear that the terrorist outfit may exploit terrorist groups in the country.

The flags came up after reports surfaced that a spokesman of the ISIS visited banned terror outfit Jundullah in the troubled southwestern Balochistan province. Jundullah is a branch of the Pakistani Taliban or the TTP, which recently sacked its spokesman for announcing allegiance to the ISIS. It has also claimed responsibility for the Wagah Border attack that killed

at least 63 people.

Law enforcement agencies confiscated four flags of the IS, also known locally by its Arabic acronym 'Daish', Dawn reported.

A senior Intelligence officer told the newspaper that a few flags, bearing the Islamic State monogram, were found near the main entrance to the POF complex, while others were spotted on nearby electricity poles. So far, police and intelligence agencies do not know who put up the flags in the heavily-protected area. A probe has been launched to root out any sympathisers of the terrorist group from areas near the federal capital.

However, no suspects have been detained in connection with this matter.

Investigators are looking at footage from surveillance cameras to identify those who put up the flags. Regional Police Officer Akhtar Umar Hayat Laleka cautiously indicated that there had

been reports of the presence of one such flag in the area and a team had been dispatched to investigate the matter.

The Islamic State group has captured large swaths of territory in Iraq and Syria and declared a self-styled caliphate, or Islamic empire, in the Middle East in June.

Islamic State group visits Pak militants Meanwhile, Jundullah spokesman Fahad Marwata claimed that a delegation from the Islamic State group has visited Jundallah's leaders in southwestern Pakistan.

He said the purpose of visit by the Islamic State group was to see how it could work to unite various Pakistani militant groups. Jundullah is a branch of the Pakistani Taliban, or Tehrik-eTaliban Pakistan as the group is known.

The TTP recently sacked its spokesman for announcing allegiance to the Islamic State group.

David Cameron

ISIS flags hoisted near Islamabad

Sharif rejects bulletproof car from India

24

INDIA

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 22nd November 2014

Rajinikanth hesitant to join politics

Chennai: Tamil superstar Rajinikanth who has been invited by various political parties to join them, said that he was not scared of politics, but hesitant to take the plunge. "Everybody wants me to join politics.

I'm aware of its depth and danger. I'm not afraid, but just a little hesitant," he said at the audio release promotional event for his action film 'Lingaa'.

"It's not in my hands. If god is willing, I will serve people," he said, reiterating his oft-quoted remark. "I think doing films with a social message is also some kind of service to society.

Making films and entering

Rajinikanth

politics is easy, but emerging victorious is tough in both," he added. BJP has been wooing the cine icon openly in recent times.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi while he was campaigning for BJP in Tamil Nadu had called on the star at his residence. Union min-

Jaya disqualified for 10 years from contesting elections

ister Pon Radhakrishnan and state BJP president Tamilisai Soundarrajan have expressed hope that Rajini would join the party.

TNCC chief E V K S Elangovan has said the actor should not join any party as he belongs to the entire state.

At the audio release event, filmmakers Ameer, Cheran, K S Ravikumar and a few others urged Rajinikanth to join politics as his fans want him to become chief minister.

"Rajini sir should enter politics. His fans want him to become chief minister. We all believe he will join politics soon," Ameer said.

Ravi Kumar said that he wants to see Rajinikanth join politics, but the decision lies with the latter who shouldn't be forced. A few personalities even compared Rajini with Mahatma Gandhi and Former TN CM K Kamaraj and urged his venture into politics.

Though he has been hinting about his political interest from 1995, Rajnikanth never got into direct politics. Critics point out that he gives these kind of indications whenever his movies are releasing. "He will create a hype during his movie release. But chances of his political entry are very remote," they said.

Lakshmi Mittal's niece gets Rs 100 mn in alimony

Section 8 of the Chennai: AIADMK Representation of chief and former the People Act, chief minister 1951."

Jayalalithaa has The notification been disqualified also said that from contesting Srirangam assemelections for 10 bly constituency, years, the Tamil represented by Nadu government has said in a gazette J Jayalalithaa Jayalalithaa "shall be deemed to have become notification. vacant from the date of her "Consequent upon the conviction," September 27. conviction of Selvi J Although media was Jayalalithaa, member of the given to understand on legislative assembly, she November 9 that a notificastands disqualified for being tion declaring Srirangam a member of the Tamil Nadu seat as vacant was issued, Legislative Assembly from actually it was issued offithe date of conviction, i.e., cially many days later by the the 27th day of September, the state government.

2014 for the period of her Jayalalithaa was convicted sentence (four years)," the and sentenced to four years gazette notification dated in jail besides a fine of Rs 1 November 8 read. It was billion in a 18-year-old disissued by Speaker of the proportionate assets case by Tamil Nadu Assembly P a special court in Bangalore.

Dhanapal.

She was released from jail in It also said that she Bangalore on October 17 as "shall continue to be disper the Supreme Court qualified for a further period order granting her bail in of six years since her release the case. in terms of the existing

Bengaluru: A family court here has awarded the niece of steel tycoon Lakshmi Mittal Rs 100 million as alimony. Swasti Mittal (27) divorced 32-year-old Nepali businessman Nirvana Chaudhary by mutual consent. She also got 57 jewellery items worth Rs 100 million given by her parents at the time of her wedding.

In mutual consent cases, the parties decide the alimony amount and approach the court with a Memorandum of Lakshmi

Chandigarh: The simmering feud between alliance partners Shiromani Akali Dal and BJP in Punjab was escalated for the first time to the PMO level with deputy chief minister and Akali leader Sukhbir Badal shooting off a letter to Narendra Modi, questioning the "confusion generated among Sikhs" over BJP's goodwill gesture to give compensation to 1984 anti-Sikh riot victims.

The BJP on October 30 with an intention to hijack SAD's core Sikh issue that helped Akalis strike an emotional chord with the voters almost every election - had announced Rs 500,000 relief to families of 1984 riot victims. This move was designed to give a shot in the arm for the Punjab BJP, which had become more assertive after its historic victory in Haryana assembly polls. However, Sukhbir has now picked holes in the announcement, pointing out that the compensation is still at a proposal stage only. "There is a sense of palpable disappointment

Ashram in Chandigarh: The H a r y a n a ' s Punjab and Barwala town Haryana high said that Rampal court on Monday was medically not directed Haryana fit to appear police to bring before the high before it by Friday court. "His medcontroversial sect ical condition leader Rampal, Rampal does not permit after he again him to go out. Doctors have failed to appear before the advised him bed-rest till court. Defying non-bailable Nov 19. We will submit his arrest warrants issued medical certificate in the against him, Rampal again court," the ashram failed to appear before the spokesman said. court on Monday.

Tension prevailed outThe court also rapped side the ashram complex the Haryana government since Sunday as hundreds of and the state police for failsecurity personnel suring to arrest Rampal and rounded the complex and present him before the thousands of followers of court. Citing medical reathe sect leader also provided sons through his counsel, a shield to the ashram by Rampal did not appear camping outside. before the high court again.

Clashes broke out at the Hearing in the matter conashram: Meanwhile, reports cerning contempt proceedsaid that more than 100 ings against the self-styled people were injured when godman continued on clashes broke out at the Monday morning. ashram premises.

The court questioned Supporters of the controverthe state government move sial godman opened fire on to withdraw security forces the police. The police also and police from near the fired tear gas shells resulting sect's ashram. A spokesman in injuries to several people. of the sect leader's Satlok

Sukhbir targets Modi on relief to anti-Sikh riot victims

Sukhbir Badal and even resentment among the Sikh community as to why the compensation award for the victims of the Congress-orchestrated 1984 anti-Sikh riots was not implemented immediately after its announcement," says Sukhbir's letter.

This is for the first time the SAD has taken a dig at Modi government on the sensitive issue. With this, SAD has also taken the alliance "fight", which was restricted to Punjab leaders till now, to Delhi. Sukhbir pointed out that a lot of ground had to be covered to ensure comprehensive justice to the victims. The letter stated the compensation was treated as the first concrete and meaningful step to apply balm on the hurt Sikh psyche.

Understanding. Both parties agree to the amount before the family court judge who grants them the divorce. “It is possible to get such handsome alimony amounts only in mutual consent cases. In contested divorce cases, it is simply not possible to be granted so much money as alimony however rich the

parties might be,” said a family court lawyer.

The alimony in this case is being paid in instalments.

While Rs 80 million has already been paid in two equal instalments on April 4 and August 1 respectively, the remaining amount will be paid up on or before January 31, 2017 going by the terms laid out in the agreement.

Swasti and Nirvana had tied the knot at Leela Hotel in Goa on April 20, 2007 and the couple had proceeded to Mittal Kathmandu post their wedding. Differences cropped up soon and the couple parted ways after four years. In July 2011 Swasti moved back to her parents’ place and has been living with them since.

Under mutual consent, it is mandatory for the couple to be living separately for at least one year.

HC raps Haryana govt for not arresting sect leader

South Brief

Vasan to launch new party on Nov 28

Chennai: Former union minister G K Vasan, who split the Congress in Tamil Nadu recently, will formally launch his party and hold its first public rally in the state in Trichy on November 28. Announcing the date, Vasan said it would "draw the attention of the whole country."

More than 150,000 people are expected to attend the meeting at Trichy's G Corner grounds. "The name of the party (which is being cleared with the Election Commission), will be declared after four to five days," Vasan said while addressing the women's wing of his new party in Chennai.

Karnataka minister's daughter to wed in mass marriage

Bengaluru: Karnataka social welfare minister H Anjaneya walked the talk by performing his daughter's wedding at a mass marriage on November 19. “We (politicians) regularly attend mass marriages and give speeches about simplicity and the need for avoiding ostentatious weddings. Shouldn't we do what we speak? I'm from a humble background and always prefer simplicity,'' he said. “We agreed to this happily. I'm a simple girl and don't want any hype. My father believes in simplicity and I wanted to make him feel good and proud,'' his daughter A V Anupama said.

26 Lankan prisoners on fast unto death for early release Trichy (Tamil Nadu): A total of 26 Sri Lankan refugees in the Trichy central prison are on a fast unto death. They were demanding early completion of the cases against them. Cases pending against them include illegal entry into the country and alleged association with the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE). All 26 prisoners have been arrested from various districts in Tamil Nadu. The pending cases and transfers from one prison to another are believed to have irked the prisoners to go on a fast unto death protest.

North Brief

Job generation could prevent drug abuse: Nikki Haley

Amritsar: South Carolina Governor Nikki Haley shared her concerns about rampant drug abuse both in Punjab and South Carolina. Her answer to fighting this menace was to generate jobs and provide a better life for the youth. "The issue of drug abuse is everywhere, and we see more and more drug adducts. When people have jobs, they feel productive and start living a better life," she said. She said they were also doing the same in South Carolina, and observed that the same was happening in India. "The economy is turning in India, jobs are coming, it is exciting to see what India is going to be," she said.

Pakistan tightens security for Sikh pilgrims

Amritsar: Sikh devotees, currently on pilgrimage to Pakistan to celebrate the birth anniversary of Guru Nanak Dev, have been advised to stay in gurdwaras in view of possible threat to them from terror outfits in Pakistan, in the wake of Wagah suicide bomb blast recently. "Pak authorities have made unprecedented security arrangements for the jatha," said president of Nankana Sahib Sikh Yatree Jatha, Swaran Singh Gill. "As soon as the Sikh jatha crossed the border, a security cordon was thrown around. Security vehicles were escorting us wherever we went," he said.

Drunk man beheads two sons

Chandigarh: Haryana police on Sunday arrested a middle-aged man for allegedly beheading his two young sons in a village in the state. Police said Sheel Pal killed his two sons, Sadeek and Salim, aged 21 and 18, respectively, while they were asleep at their home in Kharati Khera village of Fatehabad district, about 225km from here, Saturday night. Police said the accused, who was drunk at the time of the crime, used a sharp-edged weapon to kill them.

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 22nd November 2014

Escape to the Middle East

D

ubai is well known for sun, sea, sand and opulence and if you want to know more about the city then take a tour through the city .Visit the Sheikh’s Palace, walled town and the grand mosque, as well as spice and handicraft markets or enjoy a thrilling desert safari and unwind with soft Arabian music in the evening followed by a lavish barbeque dinner in Bedouin tents under the starry skies of the desert.

Dubai offers many luxurious hotels to stay in, with the current popular choice being the Atlantis, which might be more affordable than you’d expect.

Packages for 3 nights start from just £775pp including flights, accommodation, half board and unlimited access to Aquaventure, the largest water park in Dubai and the Lost Chamber which are great fun for the families.

If you want to get away from the vibrant city life of Dubai and still want to discover fantastic sights - Abu Dhabi

is the perfect destination. You can start your trip from the shopping malls, electrifying desert safari, Ferrari world - the world’s largest indoor theme park, where you can enjoy 20 rides including the world’s fastest roller coaster.

Packages for 3 nights, staying at the 5* Emirates Palace starts from just £739pp

including flights, accommodation with daily breakfast.

The best way to get to Abu Dhabi is with Etihad Airways, which covers over 80 destinations worldwide including India so if you wish to stopover for a couple of nights in Abu Dhabi, Brightsun has a specific offer one night free in a choice of many hotels and enjoy 2 for 1 deals on the main attractions. For details on this great package, get in touch with Brightsun Travel, the

appointed agent of Etihad Airways.

Another most popular gateway of the Middle East is Fujairah where you can unwind in one of the luxurious and affordable beachside resorts. During you stay in Fujairah you can visit the renowned Al Hayl Castle and Fujairah Fort. With 3 night packages at the 5* Le Meridien Al Aqah Beach Resort with flights, accommodation, bed & breakfast and transfers at just £589pp, this is a deal not to be missed.

To take advantage of any of these excellent offers visit www.brightsun.co.uk or call Brightsun Travel on 0208 819 0531, where their experienced friendly consultants can book your holiday, arranging everything under one roof including flights, hotels, transfers, tours and insurance.

TRAVEL - INDIA

25

Modi unveils Maneesh Media’s 'Jewels of Gujarat - Leading Global Gujarati Personalities'

Chandmal Kumawat (L), Siddharth with PM Modi at the book release function

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has unveiled Maneesh Media's silver jubilee publication – “Jewels of Gujarat Leading Global Gujarati Personalities”- on september 28 at a function in New York. India's external affairs minister Sushma Swaraj and many other dignitaries were present at the function.

Chandmal Kumawat, chairman Maneesh Media, said, “This coffeetable book is a salute to the Gujarati community and our humble effort to enlighten the world about the great and diverse Gujarati Diaspora. Being entrepreneurial and enterprising the Gujarati Diaspora is spread across the globe and in this book we have compiled 80 eminent personalities from 14 different countries across the globe. This book features three personalities of Gujarati origin from UK namely - Lord Dola Popat, Priti Patel, Exchequer Secretary to the Treasury, and C B Patel Editor & CMD Gujarat Samachar,” he added.

“Overwhelmed by the response to the book now we embark upon a journey to come out with an updated version of the book which is slated for release on January 6, 2015, the eve of Pravasi Bhartiya Divas (PBD) along with the honouring ceremony for all the personalities featured in the book for their outstanding achievements in their respective areas of excellence.”

Kumawat said that the India release of the book coincides with the centenary of Father of the Nation Mahatma Gandhi’s return to India from South Africa in January 1915 an so the updated version will have profiles of 100 personalities.

Personalities featured are great achievers who have reached the apex of their career around the world and are respected for their remarkable achievements.

“Our compilation is unique and interesting for its out-of-the-box approach where we have

tried to highlight the featured personality’s humble beginning, the hardship he/she had been through besides details of social & community involvement along with a brief family introduction,” adds Kumawat. According to him this novel way of presentation of a person’s life story makes it a good read and an amazing inspirational document for youngsters who can learn a great deal from these achievers.

“This book is a collective effort and our supporting organsations like Vishwa Gujarati Samaj, Assocham, National Federation of Indian Associations (NFIA), Asian American Hotel Owner’s Association (AAHOA), Association of Indian Americans in North America (initiator for Chaalo Gujarat event), Singapore Gujarati Samaj, Gujarat Samaj - Hong Kong, Muscat Gujarati Samaj & Gujarati Samaj – Qatar,” said Siddharth Kumawat, Director Overseas Maneesh Media.

Kim Kardashian to join Indian Bigg Boss house

Anderson and late reality TV star Jade Goody have also appeared on Bigg Boss.

The 34-year-old Kardashian, who is visiting India this week for the first time, will appear in Bigg Boss as a "guest to interact with the contestants", a statement by the Colors channel said.

The eighth season of the programme begean in October. Among the Indian participants in the house this year are a number of models and TV actors. The show is hosted by Bollywood star Salman Khan.

huge amounts on India's cricket making Kandriga icon Sachin village a model Tendulkar has habitation in the adopted the country through sleepy village of his MPLAD Puttamrajuvari funds. He waved Kandriga in and greeted the Nellore district of youth who gave Andhra Pradesh under the Sachin Tendulkar him a rousing reception. The vilSansad Adarsh lage reverberated with Grama Yojana (SAGY) as ‘Sachin, Sachin’ through Rajya Sabha member. his visit. Interacting with Sachin pledged to spend

women’s self-help groups in the village, Sachin said women should manage development works in the area. “Women are the backbone of the nation and every woman has a role in developing a strong nation,” he said.

Sachin said he had dedicated his Bharat Ratna to his mother and also to the mothers of the entire nation.

Reality TV star Kim Kardashian is set to make an appearance on the Indian version of Big Brother, a spokesperson for the channel airing the show says. Kardashian will join the remaining 12 participants on the programme, known as Bigg Boss.

Kardashian is a household name in the UK and the US, best known for reality shows and a leaked sex tape.

Former Baywatch star Pamela

Kim Kardashian

Sachin adopts AP village

26

INDIA

WTO impasse broken as India, US reach food security deal

India and the United States have resolved differences on the issue of public stockholding for food security, paving the way for revival of stalled global trade talks and implementation of the pact on trade facilitation for easier customs rules.“We are extremely happy that India and the US have successfully resolved their differences relating to the issue of public stockholding for food security purposes in the WTO in a manner that address our concerns,” India's commerce & industry minister Nirmala Sitharaman told reporters.

Details of the deal were not disclosed.

The bilateral agreement makes clear that a mechanism under which WTO members will not challenge such food security programmes under WTO dispute settlement procedures will remain in place until a permanent solution regarding this issue has been agreed and adopted, a statement from the US trade representative said.

The “peace clause”, which would have prevented action at the WTO, was to be in place for four years, raising fears that the devel-

Continued from page 1 deep relationship that UK and India have, building on a partnership of equals based on mutual respect.

The Indian community in the UK is keen to have a visit by Prime Minister Modi to inaugurate Mahatma Gandhi's statue which is being raised outside the Palace of Westminster in London's Parliament Square. The statue will stand amid monuments to other statesmen, including Nelson Mandela, Winston Churchill and Abraham Lincoln.

Addressing a press conference at the end of the G20 meeting in Brisbane, Cameron said that his focus was very clear and that was delivering the long-term economic plan that was helping to turn Britain around, get people back to work, about securing prosperity for every family in Britain.

“I think we’ve made some important steps forward that really help with that long-term economic plan and help with the growth and the jobs that people want in Britain. First of all, we focused on trade.

It’s good that the Trade Facilitation Agreement, so long stuck in the process, is now going to go ahead.

That was a breakthrough at the G20. But also we’re very focused on the trade deals that can add to British growth, to British jobs and, in particular, we’ve just had a successful meeting between the

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 22nd November 2014

oped countries would walk away with the trade facilitation pact without addressing India's concerns.

The decision will come as a major boost for the Narendra Modi government as the Bali agreement was one of the first issues red-flagged by it after assuming charge. The stand had come in for severe criticism from across the world and even within the country but the pact with the US reinforces Modi's image as a man who stays firm.

The India-US agreement comes ahead of the G20 meeting in Brisbane where the PM met US President Barack Obama and other global leaders.

With the deal done, the world's 20 largest economies are expected to signal their commitment to free and fair global trade talks. Next week a team from the WTO is scheduled

to visit India to assess its trade policies.

The deal gives India the flexibility to provide minimum support price and procure as much grain as it wants for its security programme without being challenged by other WTO members at the global trade body .India agrees with U.S. on food stockpiling, clears way for WTO deal Obama praises Modi's 'personal leadership' in breaking WTO deadlock The US President has commended the "personal leadership" role provided by Prime Minister Narendra Modi in finding a path forward on WTO Trade Facilitation Agreement (TFA) reached between the two countries, a presidential spokesperson said. "The president had extensive discussions with Prime Minister Modi on this issue and appreciates his personal leadership in finding a path forward," the White House press secretary Josh Earnest said in a statement after India and US announced that the two countries have reached an agreement on TFA. Obama who met the

Prime Minister briefly on the sidelines of the East Asia Summit in Nay Pyi Taw, described Modi as a man of action.

In a statement, Earnest said the important breakthrough reached between the United States and India will unlock progress toward the full and immediate implementation of the WTO Trade Facilitation Agreement, which will lower the costs of trade for developed and developing countries alike.

"This breakthrough will also strengthen the multilateral trading system and give a boost to its ongoing work, including in the area of food security," he said. "Combined with the recent announcement of a breakthrough on the WTO Information Technology Agreement (ITA) and the agreement among Trans Pacific Partnership (TPP) Leaders that the end of those landmark negotiations is coming into focus, this has been a good week for expanding opportunities for American businesses and workers and for promoting growth around the globe," Earnest said.

countries of the European Union on the one hand, and the United States on the other to put rocket boosters under the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership which we think can add some £10 billion to our side of the equation and can result in real jobs. And I think it’s important we start taking on the opponents of this deal and exposing some of the arguments against. This is good for Britain, good for jobs, good for growth and good for British families.

Second thing where we’ve made some important breakthroughs was tax issue that I put upfront and centre at the G8 that I hosted in Northern Ireland a couple of years ago. And that was making sure that that big companies pay the taxes that they owe. This cooperation between different tax authorities to have greater transparency over tax and make sure there’s greater fairness over tax, we made some real progress. There were now over 92 different countries and tax authorities properly sharing information and, as the OECD set out at this G20 meeting, the action we’ve already taken has resulted in $37 billion of extra tax being paid by big companies. And I think this was all to the good. The more we could make sure that big corporations pay their taxes properly, the less we have to tax hard working people who I want to

make sure keep more of their own money to spend as they choose. So, again, the tax issue, like the trade issue, is not some arcane, distant, dry and dusty topic. It’s directly relevant to delivering growth and jobs, and the long-term economic plan in the United Kingdom. Final issue in terms of keeping our people safe was the importance of being very clear to Russia that the continued destabilisation of Ukraine was simply unacceptable. And I think there has been good unity between European countries and the United States of America. We’ve just been discussing it at the separate meeting that we would continue to maintain the sanctions against Russia, we would continue to to keep the pressure and that if Russia continues to destabilise Ukraine, further measures would follow. This was important because although some have said, of course, there’s a cost to sanctions, there would be a far greater cost of allowing a frozen conflict on the continent of Europe to be created and maintained. So, it’s right that we take this action.So, I think it’s been a good G20. I think we’ve made some progress on some things that really matter to British families, British people back at home and it had been good to be part of this work.”

Keith Vaz raises Cameron- Modi meeting in the House of

Commons: On the 17th November Keith Vaz MP asked Prime Minister David Cameron about his first meeting with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Keith Vaz said: “The summit marked the first face-to-face meeting between the Prime Minister and Indian Prime Minister, Narendra Modi.

The right hon. Gentleman has said previously that trade between our two countries has barely scratched the surface of what is possible. Did he discuss specific measures for increasing trade, and did he persuade Modi to visit the UK?” Prime Minister David Cameron said: “I had a very good meeting with Prime Minister Modi, who got the conference off to a good start by agreeing to lift India’s block to the Bali trade facilitation agreement, which is vital to helping drive global growth. On the BritishIndia relationship, Britain is, I think, the secondlargest inward investor in India, but the right hon.

Gentleman is right that more could be done on trade. We discussed the need for the EU-India freetrade agreement to get going again and for structural reform in India to help open up her economy and lead to higher growth rates, and I am clear that Prime Minister Modi is a man with a clear vision for doing economically for his country what he succeeded in doing for Gujarat.”

Ties with India top priority, Cameron tells Modi

Happy Birthday

Arzoyi Bansal

DOB: 19 November 2013

Happy first birthday to our dearest Arzoyi! May you enjoy this very special day! Your parents are truly blessed to have you!

Lots of love,

Suchira aunty, Debasree aunty, Vinaya aunty, Mitra aunty, Ujjaini aunty and Rupanjana aunty

Bajrang Dal forces Victoria statues out of Agra park

Bajrang Dal in Agra is keen to erase every trace of colonial rule from the city.

Days after their protest on the “central location“ of three of the century-old Queen Victoria statues, the local administration quietly removed them from Paliwal Park, in the heart of the city, to the backyard of the Agra Municipal Corporation's John's Public Library Bajrang Dal leaders had sent out a memorandum on November 7 demanding that the statues, a relic of our colonial past, be removed within 72 hours.

On November 10, the statues were removed to a more innocuous part of the city.

Bajrang Dal state coconvener Ajju Chauhan said, “Paliwal Park is the heart of Agra. The Bajrang Dal is absolutely against

having any sign of colonialism here. We are against such signs anywhere in the country. I am surprised that a huge amount of money is wasted in the maintenance of these statues and the library, which only serve as reminders of slavery.”

Chauhan said Bajrang Dal would organize a protest to ensure that the name of John's Public Library is changed too.

“This library should ideally be named after Ram Vilas Sharma, a renowned Hindi author who refused several prestigious awards because what he sought was the enrichment of the Hindi language, not awards,” Chauhan said.

The three statues, each between 10 and 12 feet tall, was carved in a mixture of 10 metals, including gold.

Five armymen have been awarded life sentence for a staged shootout in 2010 in which three youths were killed in Machil area of Jammu and Kashmir's Kupwara district, army sources said.

Army sources said the five men, including two officers, were sentenced by "summary general court martial" but the sentence was subject to confirmation.

The five armymen were identified as Colonel Dinesh Pathania, Captain Upendra, Havildar Devender, Lance Naik Lakhmi and Lance Naik Arun Kumar. The sources said the army does not take such instances lightly and justice was being delivered speedily after start of the court martial proceedings.

Shezad Ahmad, Muhammad Shafi and Riyaz Ahmad, all from Nadihal village in Baramulla district, were gunned down by the armymen near the Line of Control (LoC) in Machil May 3, 2010.

The army had then claimed that the youths were Pakistan-trained guerrillas who were killed while trying to infiltrate into the Kashmir Valley.

But when pictures of the slain youths were published in newspapers, their families and relatives identified them as three missing youths who had no connection with militancy.

In the aftermath of the alleged staged shootout, protests and clashes with security forces erupted in the Kashmir Valley.

5 armymen get life term for Kashmir fake encounter

27

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 22nd November 2014

HEALTH WATCH

Sugary drinks aren't all that bad for the young and active

S

hort-term, moderate consumption of sugary drinks has little impact on the metabolic health of youngsters who remain physically active, finds new research.

"These high-fructose and high-glucose beverages may not be as unhealthy for adolescents as previously thought, provided that kids stay active," said Jill Kanaley, professor and associate chair at the department of nutrition and exercise physiology at University of Missouri.

Physical activity component is really critical in protecting against some of the negative effects of drinking large amounts of sugar-sweetened drinks demonstrated in previous studies, he added.

Kanaley measured several aspects of metabolic health, including insulin sensitivity and cholesterol levels, after participants had consumed moderate amounts of either highglucose or high-fructose beverages every day for

Sleep apnea impairs spatial memory in humans

S

cientists have revealed that sleep apnea may affect people's ability to form new spatial memories, such as remembering where they have parked their car.

Researchers at NYU Langone Medical Center conclude people took longer to complete a 3D maze when sleep apnea disrupted the REM stage of sleep.

The study has found that through the playing of a specific video game that disruption of rapid eye movement (REM) sleep as a consequence of sleep apnea impairs spatial memory in humans even when other sleep stages are intact.

The research, led by Andrew Varga, MD, PhD,

To Our Readers

We are publishing these items in good faith, kindly consult your Doctor before you try to implement it. We do not hold any responsibility for its efficacy...

clinical instructor of Medicine in the Division of Pulmonary, Critical Care and Sleep Medicine at NYU Langone and an attending physician in NYU's Sleep Disorders Center, builds on earlier studies in rodents demonstrating that deprivation of REM sleep has detrimental effects on memory.

However, this is the first study to demonstrate the importance of REM sleep for spatial memory in humans, and to document the negative consequence of sleep apnea on spatial memory.

Varga said that their study has shown for the first time that sleep apnea, an increasingly common medical condition, might negatively impact formation of certain memories, even when the apnea is limited to REM sleep and the findings suggest memory loss might be an additional symptom for clinicians to screen for in their patients with sleep apnea.

two weeks.

The high-glucose drink contained 50 grams of glucose and 15 grams of fructose; the high-fructose drink contained 50 grams of fructose and 15 grams of glucose. The researchers used armbands with elec-

tronic sensors to monitor physical activity of the participants in age group 1520. During the study, the female adolescents averaged around 8,000 steps per day, and the males averaged about 10,000 steps per day.

Kanaley found that increased physical activity diminished negative effects associated with high-fructose diets. Many parents of adolescents worry about their children's consumption of sweetened beverages. "I certainly would recommend that they work to reduce their children's intake of sugary drinks, but it also is important for kids to remain active, especially if they are drinking a lot of sugary beverages," Kanaley emphasised.

High-fat diet can delay brain ageing

A

new study in mice has revealed that signs of brain ageing can be postponed with the help of a high-fat diet. The study headed by the Center for Healthy Ageing, University of Copenhagen and the National Institute of Health found that in the long term, this opens the possibility of treatment of children suffering from premature ageing and patients with Alzheimer's and Parkinson's disease.

The researchers studied mice having a defect in their DNA repair system.

In humans, this defect causes the disorder Cockayne syndrome, where patients prematurely age as children and die at an age of 10-12 years.

The study shows that placing a mouse model of Cockayne syndrome on a high-fat diet will postpone ageing processes such as impaired hearing and weight loss.

Professor Vilhelm Bohr said that the study is good news for children with Cockayne syndrome, because we do not currently have an effective treatment and their study suggests that a high-fat diet can postpone ageing processes. A diet high in fat also seems to postpone the ageing of the brain.

The findings therefore potentially imply that patients with Alzheimer's and Parkinson's disease in the long term may benefit from the new knowledge.

Matrimonial

Beautiful 32yrs old Hindu Gujarati girl based in Northwest . with Tall, slim and athletic features believes in Hindu values and loves travelling . seeks single Gujarati groom vegetarian 31-36yrs of similar qualifications with similar interest Please contact us on nashv20@hotmail.com or 07715104606

Stretching mistakes you should never commit

D

o you know that if you don't stretch in the correct way, you might end up thwarting the entire purpose of your workout and suffer unwanted injuries?

Doing pre-workout stretches thoroughly will determine whether you are benefiting from your workout or whether it's worsening your muscle tear. Here are the major stretching mistakes that you should never commit.

Not doing a proper warm-up According to gym instructors worldwide, this is the most commonly committed mistakes in any gym. A warm-up is a must before any kind of workout - cardio or weights - and must ideally last at least 12-15 minutes.

Assuming that stretching is a warm-up Stretching and warming up is not the same. You need to warm up first, before you are ready to stretch.

A slow jog or brisk walking on the treadmill is a good warm-up.

Rushing through your stretching exercises Stretching should be for the entire body. You cannot skip any parts.

Involve stretches that work your lower back, shoulders, calves, stomach, quads etc. You should not move from one stretch to the other in very quick succession because that may cause unwanted injuries. Try to hold each stretch for 20 seconds. When you breathe deeply and hold the stretch, your muscles get trained to tolerate the maximum that your limbs can go to.

Giving stretching a skip after a workout You have done an hour of strenuous exercise and now you just want to rush out of the

gym; that is a huge mistake. Spend some time bending and stretching after your sweat session. Then, do a cool down before you leave the gym.

Not stretching every day You need to be your flexible best always and that can only happen if you stretch daily, even on the days that you aren't gymming. This ensures that your gym days are more fruitful and that you make the most of them.

Not breathing properly Breathing right is a very important aspect of stretching. Breathe naturally while you inhale through your nose, expand your rib cage and upper abdomen as you fill in your lungs.

When exhaling, breathe out through your mouth, preferably making an audible sound. This relaxes you. While stretching, you need to breathe out when you are exerting, that is, when you are actually contracting your muscles.

Doing static stretches Never stand still and do stretches that work only one muscle. You should rather do stretches that work a group of muscles - like a lunge that stretches your upper hamstring muscle, your ankles and also your glutes.

Ignoring pain while stretching When you are in the middle of a stretch and you feel pain, stop immediately and consult an expert. Your stretch should make you feel a gentle pull only, not immense pain.

If you are hurting, you are doing it wrong. Rest a few days and then go back to working out under a qualified trainer.

28

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 22nd November 2014

Rajinikanthstarrer 'Lingaa' in legal tangle

'Kaththi' being remade in Hindi Amy Jackson plays beautiful T ghost in 'Masss'

I

f reports are to be believed, Amy Jackson is reportedly playing the role of a stylish ghost in “Masss,” and her portion will be completely shot in Bulgaria. Amy has taken a screen test last week to see whether she will be able to pull off the role, and things have worked out positively. Amy plays the central character in this film. So if things work out as planned, “Masss” will have the beautiful Nayanthara in Indian attire, and Amy Jackson in some trendy fashionable attire. “Masss” is directed by Venkat Prabhu, and is touted to be a horror comedy.

Currently the team is in Hyderabad and is likely to fly to Bulgaria after completing its schedule. Venkat Prabhu is being directed this film and produced by Studio Green.

Y u v a n Shankar Raja is composing the music. “Masss” will hit the theatres in summer 2015.

here have been reports of AR Murugadoss directorial "Kaththi" being remade in Hindi. Salman Khan and Akshay Kumar were reportedly the front-runners to star in the Hindi remake. Now, a picture posted by Murugadoss has given fillip to those rumours. The director has tweeted a picture, in which he is seen chatting with Salman Khan. The Tamil filmmaker is apparently narrating the story to the "Dabangg" star.

"Kaththi" villain Neil Nitin Mukesh had declared that either Salman Khan or Aamir Khan would be apt for the role played by Vijay in the Tamil movie.

Murugadoss has always loved to remake his films in Hindi. First, he entered Bollywood with "Ghajini" remake starring Aamir Khan. Recently, he remade his blockbuster

S

“Happy Ending” is an upcoming Hindi romance comedy film directed by Raj Nidimoru and Krishna D K and produced

by Illuminati Films. The film stars Saif Ali Khan, Ileana D'Cruz, Govinda, Ranvir Shorey and Kalki Koechlin in pivotal roles.

Kareena Kapoor Khan and Preity Zinta also feature in cameos. Yudi (Saif Ali Khan) is a writer who hasn't written anything for a few years. He is caught between finding inspiration and finding love. Armaan (Govinda) a fading movie star who goes to Hollywood to get a Bollywood script written in Hollywood style in his desperation to save his stardom. He approaches Yudi to write a film for him.

development and has been asking a lot of questions on Twitter. But the director seems to be in no mood to respond.

Nonetheless, even if Salman Khan gives green signal for the movie, the project will not start in the near future as the director is tied up with a female-oriented Hindi movie with Sonakshi Sinha.

Actress Padmapriya ties the knot

outh actress Padmapriya got married to Jasmine in Mumbai at a private family function.

Jasmine and Padmapriya met in New York City when they both were pursuing their Masters from Columbia and New York University respectively.

A native of Gujarat, Jasmine is a post graduate in Mechanical Engineering from IIT and also has a Masters in Public Administration. His interest in the development sector made him shift from the corporate career to the development sector and he first worked on the 'Jaago Re' One Billion Vote Campaign. At present he is the policy head for South Asia with Jamal Abdul Lateef Poverty Action

'Happy Ending'

"Thuppakki" ("Holiday") with Akshay Kumar in the lead role.

Now, Murugadoss is set to remake "Kaththi" in Hindi. His tweet is seen as an indication of his joint venture with Salman Khan. Meanwhile, the tweet has gone viral on social networking sites.

Fans are thrilled over the

Lab, headquartered in Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT).

Padmapriya made her debut in Malayalam film “Kaazhcha” and has gone on to do 48 films across all Southern languages and also in Hindi and Bengali. She is a National Award special jury award winner, two time Kerala state award winner, Tamil Nadu state award winner and a 3 time Filmfare award winner. She is the daughter of Brig V K Janakiraman and Vijayalakshmi Janakiraman.

She holds an MBA in finance from Kirloskar Institute, PG Diploma in Environmental Law from National Law School and Masters in Public Administration from NYU.

Karisma's love story derailed

K

arisma Kapoor , who married businessman Sunjay Kapur in 2003, is going now a through divorce. And even though she has managed to find love the second time in Sandeep Toshniwal, CEO of a pharmaceutical company, it seems fate is again set to play spoilsport.

Sandeep, who is married to Ashrita, a dentist by profession, and has two daughters with her has filed for a divorce. And rumours were doing the rounds that he is keen on tying the knot with Karisma as soon as their respective marriages are annulled.

Although Karisma's divorce is on its way, it will not be easy for Sandeep to get out of his marriage as his wife has refused to sign the papers over alimony issues.

Padmapriya whose latest release “Iyobinte Pushthakam” is running to packed houses in the theatres, will continue to work in films.

Shakti Kapoor, Hema Malini to work together

S

hakti Kapoor and Hema Malini will be working together after a gap of nearly 29 years in director Ramesh Sippy's new movie “Shimla Mirchi.” After sharing the screen space with her in unforgettable movies like 'Satte Pe Satta', 'Naseeb' and 'Phaansi Ke Baad,' they are working together after a long time. Shakti Kapoor says, "We last worked in 'Phaansi Ke Baad' and there isn't much difference in her today. She still looks like an angel and is very humble." In between shoots, they would spend an awful lot of time talking to each other about their earlier days.

T

he Madras High Court has issued notice to the makers of Tamil film “Lingaa” on a writ petition filed by aspiring filmmaker K R Ravi Rathinam who accused them of stealing his script.

Apart from Rajinikanth the film features Sonakshi Sinha and Anushka Shetty. The petitioner alleged that the producer and director had stolen the story of “Mullai Vanam 999,” being produced by him. He sought a direction to the authorities to constitute a committee to conduct an inquiry and "find the true authorship and ownership of the single storyline" found in both the films. Admitting the petition, Justice M Venugopal of the court's Madurai Bench ordered issue of notice to officials, including Secretary, Ministry of Information and Broadcasting. The petitioner submitted that the pooja for his film “Mullai Vanam 999” was held on February 24. He alleged that the producer and director of “Lingaa” had clandestinely stolen the storyline of his film from YouTube as he had made a posting on it.

US director thrilled to get Aamir's support

A

amir Khan has hosted special a of screening My "After Garden Grows" in Mumbai and the Oscar-winning American documentary director film Megan Mylan feels fortunate the that Bollywood superstar was supporting her latest project.

"After?" is about girl child marriages in India and tells the story of Monika, a rural Indian teenager growing food to feed her family, and the seeds of her own independence, in a tiny rooftop garden.

Mylan was in India with the heart touching documentary movie in association with West Bengal Government.

And she feels fortunate as Aamir hosted the special screening of it.

29

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 22nd November 2014

I am here not to become a glam doll: Mannara A

ctresses Priyanka and Parineeti Chopra‘s cousin Mannara, who is making her Bollywood debut in “Zid”, says she is here to act and not to become a showstopper or a glam doll.

“There is lot of expectation with your first film but I am a kind of a person who doesn’t keep any expectations. But, the kind of response we have been receiving for our work is humbling. It feels good when you get such a warm welcome from the industry,” said the actress.

“As an actress, what-

ever will be challenging for me I will do it. I am here to act and not to be a showstopper or a glam doll. If you are an actor you have to portray the character given to you,” she added.

Directed by Vivek Agnihotri and produced by Anubhav Sinha, “Zid” also features Karanvir Sharma among others. Asked if it was a conscious effort to go bold for her debut film, she said: “It might be bold for you but I am not bold. My character is bold in the film. Yes, the film has a bold poster and that’s one shade of that character.” Mannara also says her entire family is happy with her work in the film. “My entire family is happy with my work. My cousins Priyaka and Parineeti are also very happy with my work,” she said.

Ranbir, Katrina to finally move in together?

Sonakshi wants to hang Kamaal Khan C

ontroversial Bhojpuri actor-filmmaker Kamaal R Khan (KRK) has often landed in trouble for his infamous jibe on social networking sites. This time he has entered into a tugof-war tweets with none other than Sonakshi Sinha.

KRK, who often has this weird habit of dragging celebs and even

Filmmaker Ravi Chopra passes away

V

eteran filmmaker Ravi Chopra passed away at Breach Candy in Hospital Mumbai. He was suffering from a severe lung ailment for the last of couple Ravi years.

Chopra was admitted to the hospital last week and was said to be recovering . Son of producer-director B.R.Chopra and nephew of Yash Chopra, Ravi has given many hits like 'Zameer', 'Baghban', 'Mazdoor' etc. He also produced 'Bhootnath' and 'Bhootnath Returns', after his father's demise. Aditya and Uday Chopra are his cousins. As soon as the news of his demise broke out, Twitter was flooded with condolence tweets.

tagging them on Twitter, has invited Sona baby's wrath this time.

In his tweet he had mentioned `sona's asset. He even asked people to retweet if they thought Parineeti, Deepika and Katrina have big butts. This according to him was a survey carried out on Bollywood actress to choose the sexiest diva among them.

The controversial actor's Twitter said, "Pls RT this if you think tat @SonakshiSinha has biggest butt in Bollywood.(sic)" While he has deleted the tweet in which he mentioned Sonakshi's name, the `Dabangg` actress chose not to spare him.

She called him a waste of space and that he deserved to be hanged up side down.

Big B, Rajni to attend IFFI opening ceremony

T

45th he International Film Festival of India will be a starstudded affair with two of Indian cinema's biggest super-Amitabh stars and Bachchan Rajinikanth -sharing the stage at the opening ceremony in Goa on November 20. Bachchan will attend the festival as chief guest while Rajinikanth will be conferred with the special centenary award for Indian film personality of the year, Rajyavardhan Singh Rathore, minister of state for information and broadcasting said. Apart from Bachchan and Rajinikanth, celebrated Hong Kong filmmaker Wong Kar-wai will be honoured with the lifetime achievement award at the 11-day festival with his latest project `The Grandmaster' being the closing film.

B

ollywood actor Ranbir Kapoor says he is moving out of his ancestral bungalow temporarily due to some construction work and not because he wants to live separately from his parents. The 32-year-old actor is said to be moving in together with rumoured girlfriend Katrina Kaif into a new apartment. When asked about it, the ‘Barfi!’ star chose to ignore the question.

“Yes, I am shifting but it is just a temporary thing as there is some construction going on in my house.

I will be moving out in a few days,” Ranbir said.

Reports of Ranbir and

Farhan Akhtar made UN Women Goodwill envoy

F

arhan Akhtar has been appointed as the first ever male G o o d w i l l Ambassador by UN Women, it has been revealed. The 'Bhaag Milkha Bhaag' star known for his work as an actor, filmmaker and singer, will devote his efforts to promoting the empowerment of women and girls across South Asia.

The 40-year-old actor, who is running his own campaign against gender inequality named MARD, thanked UN for this honour. He said, "Firstly I would just like to say thank you to everyone at the UN for this wonderful honour. It really has been something that I have been focusing on for the last two and a half years and I feel this has really broaden the horizon and encourage me further down this path."

Katrina, 31, planning to live together have been doing the rounds for quite some time, even though the two have maintained silence on the matter.

Rumours of the two dating each other first emerged during the filming of ‘Ajab Prem Ki Ghazab Kahani’ in 2010. In August 2013, photographs of Ranbir and Katrina holidaying in Spain surfaced online.

Though Ranbir has never confirmed the relationship with Katrina, he has maintained that the actress is his close friend.

He has previously declined reports of them getting married next year.

Ex-Bollywood diva Mamta Kulkarni detained in Kenya

F

o r m e r Bollywood diva Mamta Kulkarni along with her h u s b a n d V i c k y Goswami been have detained by Kenya police on the grounds of alleged drug trafficking.

Reports suggest that Mamta and her hubby are currently being questioned for their role in drug-trafficking after being detained in Mombasa. The once-upon-atime bombshell returned to Kenya to live with her husband. It has also been learnt that Vicky has the reputation of being involved in drugs earlier as well. The arrest was the result of a secret joint operation by the United States Drug Enforcement Agency and the Mombasa Police.

30

UK

EBH presents annual Think Pink Cancer Ball

In support of cancer charities and hospital in India, Pakistan and UK

EBH will present its annual, Think Pink Cancer Ball in aid of Cancer Research UK, Indian Cancer Society and Shaukat Khanum Memorial Hospital, on Saturday 29th November at Newland Manor, Bucks.

The 'Think Pink Ribbon' themed charity ball will raise funds and awareness for cancer charities and hospitals in India, Pakistan and UK. The event will be unique in terms of supporting communities across multiple countries and will bring together businessmen, entrepreneurs and professionals from all three communities, uniting to support the worthy cause.

Set against the elegant backdrop of Newland Manor, the Think Pink Cancer Ball will commence with a Pink Champagne Reception followed by an evening of sumptuous dining, worldclass entertainment and high end South Asian fashion. The event is supported by leading luminaries from the international fashion landscape, Shyamal & Bhumika from India and Umar Sayeed from Pakistan, who will respectively present a runway show featuring their Winter ‘14 collections.

Gujarat based designers Shyamal & Bhumika’s

collections strongly reflect a passion for craft and heritage. The duo has an extensive portfolio of international clients as well as Bollywood artists such as Hema Malini, Sonakshi Sinha and Dia Mirza. Fashion heavyweight, Umar Sayeed, has been a leading light on Pakistan’s fashion scene for the last 25 years – a name with nationwide recognition and synonymous with ultra-chic and understated glamour.

Umar Sayeed and Shyamal will be in attendance at the event.

A Fashion Against Cancer auction segment will feature donated pieces by further designers HSY, Neeta Lulla, Ekta Solanki, Sana Safinaz, Tarun Tahiliani, Mansi Malhotra, Maheen Karim, Sania Maskatiya, Faraz Manan, Rana Noman, Moazzam Abbasi, Nickie Nina, Omar Mansoor and Simar Duggal.

On Sunday 30th November, the following day, EBH will be hosting a Trunk Show for the designers at St James’s Hotel and Club, London.

High end boutique, BIBI London, will be featuring a pop up at the Trunk Show, featuring Opulence, Amishi, Kari C & Kyra, Umar Sayeed and Shyamal & Bhumika.

Editor: CB Patel Associate Editor: Rupanjana Dutta Tel: 020 7749 4098 - Email: rupanjana.dutta@abplgroup.com Senior News Editor: Dhiren Katwa Freelance Correspondent: Rudy Otter Chief Operating Officer: Liji George Tel: 020 7749 4013 Email: george@abplgroup.com Chief Accountant: Akshay Desai Tel: 020 7749 4087 Email:accounts@abplgroup.com Advertising Manager: Kishor Parmar Tel: 020 7749 4095 - Mobile: 07875 229 088 Email: kishor.parmar@abplgroup.com Business Development Managers: Rovin J George - Email: rovin.george@abplgroup.com Tel: 020 7749 4097 - Mobile: 07875 229 219 Urja Patel - Email: urja.patel@abplgroup.com Graphic Designers: Harish Dahya & Ajay Kumar Tel: 020 7749 4086 Email: graphics@abplgroup.com Customer Service: Ragini Nayak Tel: 020 7749 4080 - Email: support@abplgroup.com (BPO) AB Publication (India) Pvt. Ltd. 207 Shalibhadra Complex, Opp. Jain Derasar, Nr. Nehru Nagar Circle, Ambawadi, Ahmedabad.

Tel. +91 79 2646 5960 Bureau Chief: Nilesh Parmar (M) +91 94266 36912 Email: nilesh.parmar@abplgroup.com Consulting Editor: Bhupatbhai Parekh, Ahmedabad, Gujarat Tel: +91 79 2630 4142

Obituary

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 22nd November 2014

We are heartbroken to announce that our beloved Mafatlal Patel of Balham, London, UK passed away on Sunday, November 16th, 2014 in Atlanta, Georgia, USA. He was born in Sejakuva, Gujarat on October 27th, 1935. He ventured to Africa (Uganda and Kenya) at the age of 16 to make a living. As a devout family man and Mafatlal Patel leader, he lived a harmonious life until the last few years when he lost his younger brother, Jayantibhai Patel and his deteriorating health made it very difficult for him to manage his lifestyle. However, he managed to do as much as he could by himself as he was very independent and selfdisciplined. Known for his honesty, he was incredibly punctual, precise, and meticulous - always willing to help as he was very knowledgeable and a proud Brit.

He was married to Vinaben Patel and is survived by his two daughters, Hasmita and Yamini, and 4 grandchildren.

Coming Events

l Chorna Haathma Chaavi- Marriage is a Gamble, Sun 23 Nov, 4pm, £10 tickets, by Shivam Theatre, The Drum. Contact 01213332444 l Sampad South Asian arts and British Council India are announcing the launch of a new collection of short stories, poems and reportage which form the winning entries to their international writing competition, “Inspired by my museum”. A similar publication “Inspired by Tagore” was brought out by Sampad and British Council India in 2011-12. To mark the publication of the anthology, the High Commission of India is organising a discussion forum which will feature guest speakers and readings by select winners. It would be my pleasure to invite you to India House on November 19, 2014 at 5 pm for the event to commence at 5:30pm. The discussion is expected to last for about an hour followed by refreshments. Venue: Gandhi Hall, India House, High Commission of India, Aldwych, WC2B 4NA

Competition Winner

The winner of Kumar Sanu and Alka Yagnik competition is Mrs Sarla Pajpani

Your communication sector is all-abuzz with planetary energies firing you up preventing you from sleeping properly. Give yourself plenty of physical outlets to drain off some of the excess mental stimulation. You feel like you can finally settle into a more grounded and steady routine instead of letting your schedule run you.

ARIES Mar 21 - Apr 20

TAURUS Apr 21 - May 21

Relationships are complex in the best of times, but Saturn's motion can make things even more complicated now. Misunderstandings can plague partnerships or potential romances - be more careful and forgiving. A good time for completing unfinished business and reassessing your future projects.

It would be unwise to take any risks, particularly in regard to joint interests and investments. So be extra careful if you need to deal with complex legal matters and necessary red tape. If love has left you feeling rather dejected or cynical, it looks as though soon events will pull you out of this mood of despondency.

GEMINI May 22 - June 22

CANCER Jun 22 - Jul 22

You’re likely to find yourself doing a lot of thinking about both new and existing partnerships, and maybe toing and froing in one relationship in particular. Home and family duties and responsibilities may weigh heavy on you. In effect, you’re building a new foundation, so the work you put in now will pay off in the future.

LEO Jul 23 - Aug 23 You need to pay more attention than usual to your everyday work dairy.

Meetings, work hours and organised breaks could play havoc, unless you're prepared to re-group on the spur of the moment. Try to be meticulous but flexible about your schedule. Play your cards right and you can pull strings in you favour.

VIRGO Aug 24 - Sep 23 It's a time of slow and steady progress that can set the stage for a long time to come. Of course, there are still challenging issues on both a personal and practical level.

To get here you may have overcome obstacles by making important decision and choices. You will achieve a lot more, by motivating your own desires.

At home, be at your diplomatic best and try not to tread on anyone's toes. Passions will run from hot to cold, and relationships may suffer. Even the most strong-willed Leos will be more open to compromise to keep the peace. All things considered, your health should be robust.

LIBRA Sep 24 - Oct 23

You will continue to be in a restless mood for some time to come. This makes you impatient with restrictions and even more determined to cut your own path. Do not get over-anxious if everything seems to be in slow motion - it is time to pull a few strings. You are likely to experience some tension in close relationships.

SCORPIO Oct 24- Nov 22

SAGITTARIUS Nov 23 - Dec 21

Urvashi Jagadeesan (India) Mumbai: Kanti Bhatt, Hemraj Shah (Jumbo Advertiser) Horizon Advertising & Marketing: 2012, Shalibhadra Complex, Opp. Jain Derasar, Nr. Nehru Nagar Circle, Ambawadi, Ahmedabad. Tel +91 79 2646 5960 Email: horizon.marketing@abplgroup.com Business Manager: Hardik Shah (M) +91 99250 42936 Email: hardik.shah@abplgroup.com Advertising Manager: Neeta Patel (Vadodara) M: +91 98255 11702 Email: neeta_abplgroup@yahoo.co.in Business Co-ordinator: Shrijit Rajan M: +91 98798 82312 Email: shrijit.rajan@abplgroup.com International Advertisement Representative: Jain Group (South India) Tel: +91 44 42041122/3/4 Fax: +91 44 25362973 Mumbai: +91 022 2471 4122 Email: jain@jaingroup.net Delhi Office: Tel: +91 9311581597

Asian Voice Head Office

Karma Yoga House, 12 Hoxton Market, (Off Coronet Street) London N1 6HW. Tel: 020 7749 4080, Fax: 020 7749 4081 www.abplgroup.com © Asian Business Publications

Asian Voice switchboard: 020 7749 4000 Gujarat Samachar switchboard: 020 7749 4080 Advertising Sales: 020 7749 4085 AsianVoiceNewsweekly

AsianVoiceNews

You may find yourself hard at work behind the scenes, although that may not be apparent to others. You may find yourself caught up in a whirlwind of activity, with opportunities to advance on both the inner and outer level. There’s a sparkle to your social life and much enjoyment is to be had simply from being in touch with other people.

CAPRICORN Dec 22 - Jan 20 Decision making will prove to be a bit of a bind because of your wavering mind - seek professional advice and then steam ahead. Be careful with your expenditure as you have a tendency to be extravagant. In relationships, sometimes it is a good idea to stand back and get a more objective view of the pattern of your life.

AQUARIUS Jan 21 - Feb 19 Jupiter, the planet of abundance, is transiting your partnership sector. You have plenty of romantic options. Financially you are still not out of the woods as Saturn is still challenging you. At work you will experience a mixed atmosphere, therefore be on your guard as communications can be misinterpreted.

The planetary activity in your chart signals a time of mixed emotions as well as personal issues to be dealt with. The accent’s very much on relationships. The outlook remains optimistic, so don't be afraid to act if your instinct tells you it's time for change. Professional and financial pressures will begin to ease.

PISCES Feb 20 - Mar 20

Indian shuttlers made history in China

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 22nd November 2014

Kidambi Srikanth downs Lin Dan in final, Saina clinches women's title

On a Super Sunday, the Indian shuttlers raided the dragon's lair and came out conquerors. In what will go down as a red-lettered day for Indian badminton, Kidambi Srikanth and Saina Nehwal cornered glory at the China Open Super Series Premier in Fuzhou. This is the first time that Indian players have won both the men's and women's singles at a major tournament.

Srikanth accounted for the invisible Lin Dan, considered the best ever shuttler on the planet, in straight games 21-19, 21-17 to lift the men's singles title, Saina made short work of Akane Yamaguchi of Japan 21-12, 22-20 to claim her maiden crown in China. “I did it. I beat him. Very very happy to beat such a great player. I don't know what to say,� said Srikanth, who gave a perfect birthday gift for his coach Pullela Gopichand. In a contest billed between David vs

Goliath, Srikanth donned the role of the former to perfection as he kept his composure and attacked when it mattered most to finish of the giant.

Popularly known as Super Dan, for his exploits on the badminton court, the fivetime world and two-time Olympic champion was left dumbstruck as the youngster launched an all out attack right from the start.

Known for his unorthodox style of play, Srikanth showed no nerves as he worked out the Chinese superstar. Playing before the ever-demanding home

crowd and carrying the hopes of millions of Chinese, Dan had a huge responsibility on his shoulders as he was the only local player left in the singles. But perhaps for the first time the legend failed to deliver as Srikanth built upon the early momentum, reached on top of net for the tosses and executed ferocious smashes whenever he got a chance. Srikanth took an early lead in the first game and was leading 9-4. Though Dan reduced the margin and moved ahead to 19-17, Srikanth silenced him with a four-

point burst. Perturbed by this, Dan played with a lot of caution in the second game and there was very little to separate between the two till the 15th point. It was here Srikanth broke free as he first moved to 1715 and then to 20-16 before notching up the biggest victory of his career. Earlier, Nehwal won her third title of year without breaking a sweat. Nehwal was in full flow in the first game as she raced to a 15-7 lead in no time. She saved a game point at 19-20 before shutting out the opponent with three straight points.

Continued from page 1 of match fixing and trying to scuttle the probe against him.

However the panel told the Supreme Court that Srinivasan, along with four other BCCI officials, "was aware of violation of players code of conduct by individual 3 (a player whose name is not disclosed) but no action was taken againt individual 3 by any of the foresaid officials who were aware of this interaction."

The panel concluded that Srinivasan's son-inlaw Meiyappan was indeed an official of the Chennai Super Kings, and that there was evidence that he was involved in illegal betting, but not in match fixing. "He was frequently meeting individual 2 (not named) in a hotel. This strengthens the conclusions of the committe in its report dated Feb 10, 2014 that individual 1

betting activity of this individual," the report added Rajasthan Royals coowner Raj Kundra too was found to be in touch with bookies and Meiyappan and Raj Kundra taking bets in violation of the (Meiyappan) was in close BCCI's anti-corruption touch with individual 2," code and that the probe the report said. against him was abruptly "Forensic reports of and without reason voice sample analysis furstopped by the Rajasthan ther confirm voice of this police upon receiving individual (Meiyappan) in papers from Delhi police. the conversation with the "The committe found person acting as a gothat a friend of individual between, between this indi11 (Kundra) was a known vdual and bookies. punter. The said punter has Consequently, the divuggiven a statement before a lence in two reports dated magistrate that he was February 8, 2014 and placing bets on behalf of February 9, 2014 about Kundra...Materials on voice sample belonging to record indicate that indithis individual vidual 11(Kundra) was (Meiyappan) gets resolved placing bets or was at the and the report thus minimum standing guaranbecomes unanimous about

tee for his punter friend.

These infractions also violate the IPL anti-corruption code," the report said.

Also in the dock is IPL chief operating officer Sundar Raman, who the panel said knew the contact of a bookie, and had contacted him 8 times in one season.

"This individual admitted knowing the contact of the bookies but however claimed to be unaware of the connection with betting activities. This individual also accepted that he had received information about Individual 1 (Meiyappan) and Individual 11 (Kundra) taking part in betting activities but was informed by the ICC anti-corruption chief that this was not actionable information.

This individual also accepted that this information was not conveyed to any other individual, the report said.

India's chief hockey coach Terry Walsh quit from his position after his contractual talks with Hockey India and the Sports Authority of India (SAI) broke down but a fresh proposal is still being worked out for the Australian's consideration.

Walsh, whose contract was to come to an end on Wednesday, had already submitted his resignation last month after his demands for a greater say in team decisions and hand-picked support staff were turned down by HI and SAI. He had been negotiat-

year-old to head back to Australia without withdrawing his resignation.

However, a fresh proposal will sent to him in the next couple of days for his consideration, leaving the door still open for his return to India.

Walsh, who was present at a press conference, said that he was still optimistic about coaching the Indian team and that the fresh proposal would address all his demands.

Walsh's continuance had become doubtful after reports emerged that he had developed serious differences with Hockey India president Narinder

Batra.

Batra had alleged that Walsh had indulged in "financial fraud" during his stint with USA Hockey and he was reluctant to keep the Australian on board. If Walsh does not come back, it can be counted as a setback to Indian hockey considering that the team had been producing good results under his watch. The men recently won the Asian Games gold medal after a gap of 16 years, which also fetched them qualification for the 2016 Olympic Games in Rio. It is, however, learnt

Kidambi Srikanth and Saina Nehwal

IPL match fixing: Srinivasan cleared; Meiyappan, Raj Kundra indicted

SPORT WORLD

Boxing India granted AIBA membership

Completing India's rehabilitation into the international boxing fold, AIBA unanimously gave permanent membership to the recently-elected Boxing India during its quadrennial congress in Jeju Islands, Korea. "We are extremely delighted to be unanimously accepted as the permanent member of AIBA, at the ongoing AIBA quadrennial Congress at Jeju Island, South Korea," Boxing India President Sandeep Jajodia said. "Boxing India carries the aspiration of the nation and will do its utmost to enable India win global acclaim in Boxing. We will work hard to promote boxing in the country and endeavour to make it the most viewed sport in the nation while focusing on replenishing and further developing the boxing economy of the region," he added.

Johnson wins best cricketer of the year award

Fiery Australian paceman Mitchell Johnson was named cricketer of the year by the International Cricket Council, matching his countryman Ricky Ponting's feat of winning the award twice. Johnson, 33, spearheaded Australia's attack during a 5-0 Ashes sweep of England last year and then helped his team beat South Africa 2-1, picking up 59 Test wickets between August 2013 to September 2014.

This is the second time the left-arm paceman has picked up the Sir Garfield Sobers trophy, named after the former West Indian great, after winning the award in 2009. His former captain Ponting also won the coveted prize twice in a row, in 2006 and 2007.

"Some of the greats of the game have been nominated and won this award and it's a very special honour," Johnson said.

Kohli named one of 2015 WC's ambassadors

The International Cricket Council (ICC) announced the star studded appointment of its ambassadors for next year's Cricket World Cup and India's Virat Kohli is a part of the five member group.

Accompanying Kohli would be Australian fastbowler Mitchell Johnson, New Zealand captain Brendon McCullum, Sri Lanka's former captain Kumar Sangakkara and Australia's Shane Watson.

The ICC Ambassadors would add their support and considerable profile in the build-up to and during the 2015 Cricket World Cup; including involvement in the board's Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) programme and event promotions. Kohli, a star for India in their victorious 2011 Cricket World Cup campaign, said that it was a matter of pride to be selected as the ambassador of ICC and thanked the board for bestowing this honour upon him.

Terry Walsh quits as chief coach of Indian hockey team

Terry Walsh ing to stay on board and met sports minister Sarbananda Sonowal but the talks ended inconclusively, prompting the 60-

31

that Walsh and some other support staff were having some issues with the government over TDS (Tax Deduction at Source) on their salaries.

Before this, the team won a silver medal in the Commonwealth Games and most recently defeated world champions Australia in an away Test series.

Earlier, a three-member panel had been formed to look into Walsh's demands but it failed to come to any "conclusion". The panel comprising former hockey captains Ajit Pal Singh, Ashok Kumar and Zafar

Iqbal met Walsh, Hockey India Performance Director Roelant Oltmans and Sports Authority of India officials twice but could not come up with a solution to end the logjam.

Apart from a greater say in decisions and support staff of his choice, Walsh has also sought 120 days paid leave in a year during which he has committed to stay available over video conference for players.

Walsh, on his part, reiterated that progress cannot be made without change in the current setup.

32

SPORT

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 22nd November 2014

Kohli makes it 5-0 for India against Lanka

Virat Kohli hunted down Sri Lanka's 286, to complete India's absolute domination in this series, while checking off the only conspicuous individual milestone that had been missing from the tour thus far a Kohli hundred.

He arrived with India in slight trouble, watched on aghast as his middle order deserted him in a crucial period, but picked apart the Sri Lanka death bowlers expertly, to see India home in the penultimate over. As the target neared Kohli even struck a helicopter-shot of sorts, to put the ball in the stands behind long-on, and sealed the match with a six at an individual score of 139 off 126 in the applause from a delighted Ranchi crowd.

All this despite an expertly paced 139 from a desperate Angelo Mathews earlier in the match, and a four-wicket haul for Ajantha Mendis, on the first track of the series that offered significant turn.

Having been the first Sri Lanka captain to lead his side to a Test series victory in England this year,

Virat Kohli

Mathews now has the ignominy of presiding over Sri Lanka's worst-ever oneday whitewash. Though, having taken two wickets and a fine catch in addition to his ton, Mathews might fairly feel his team could have supported him better.

Every other centurion in the series had sought to ground himself with a quiet period early in his innings, but in chases, Kohli is immune to the laws that bind other batsmen. He arrived at 14 for 2, and creamed a square boundary off his fourth ball.

Amabati Rayudu began with more jitters, but was soon fluent alongside his captain, as the pair forged a 136-run stand that became

the gut of the chase.

Rayudu found most of his runs in the arc between cover and midwicket, but Kohli milked the spinners square adeptly. Having travelled at 3.4 runs per over in the mandatory Powerplay, India were ticking along at over five by the 20th. Kohli drove through the covers for four to reach his half-century in 48 balls, eight overs before Rayudu managed the same milestone. The pair would be separated by a running mix up. But as long as Kohli stood at the crease, India's hopes never dwindled, even with wickets tumbling at the other end.

Sri Lanka's best hope of locking down the chase

Rohit Sharma

came soon after Rayudu's dismissal, when they, and the other India batsmen, managed to starve Kohli of the strike. During that 10over stretch, Kohli also took the single that took him to his 14th ton in ODI chases. India required 47 off the last five overs, but with a capable Akshar Patel in at No. 9, Kohli broke the back of the required rate with a six and a four off Mendis, then struck two more sixes off the same bowler to knock off the final runs.

Rohit Sharma made history: Rohit Sharma made a world record of 264 runs at the Eden Gardens in the 4th ODI. The Mumbai batsman

announced his return to international cricket -after being out with an injury since August -with an innings of pure class.

Rohit, who also became the first man in the history of the game to score two double centuries in ODI cricket, helped India thrash Sri Lanka by 153 runs. Turbocharged by Rohit's 173-ball 264 and Virat Kohli's polished 64-ball 66, India amassed 404 in their 50 overs after the latter won the toss and elected to bat.

It was India's fifth 400-plus total in this format of the game and it left Sri Lanka with a near impossible chase. Rohit, however, did not make a fluent start. He looked a bit rusty in the ini-

tial stages of his innings and was lucky to survive a dropped chance. Rohit, who only had four runs against his name at that stage, did not look back.

He concentrated on building his innings, reaching his 50 off 72 balls before changing gear and taking charge. His next 50 runs came off only 28 balls, while he raised his 150 off 125 balls. By this time he was hitting boundaries and sixes almost at will and raced to his second double century in only 151 balls.

He was dismissed off the last ball of the innings, leaving Virender Sehwag’s 219 against West Indies in Indore in 2011 a distant second.

India’s new-ball bowlers Umesh Yadav and Stuart Binny, who come in place of the rested Ishant Sharma, made early inroads into the Lankan innings, reducing them to 48/4 by the 10th over.

Dhawal Kulkarni provided the finishing touches, picking up four wickets for 34 in his 10 overs as Lanka were bowled out for 251 in 43.1 overs.