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Racial Attack on Sikh Pensioner shocks British Asians

Indian organisations celebrate Independence Day of India in the UK. See Page -27

See Page -25

Crash for Cash fraudsters appear in Court

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Indian rupee on Tuesday hit a fresh bottom below Rs 100 level against the British pound, even as the markets remain focussed on the Indian currency hitting a record low of sub Rs 64-level against the US dollar.

The rupee hit a new low of Rs 100.35 against the British pound (GBP) early in the morning, as weak domestic fundamentals, including ballooning current account deficit weighed down on the Indian currency.

After a modest recovery from its bottom, rupee was seen trading at Rs 99.7 against the British pound by mid-day trade.

The rupee has depreciated by about 25 per cent

in the past three months, from close to Rs 83 in midMay, while it was even higher at about Rs 80 against the British Pound in March.

At close to Rs 100 level, the British pound is the most expensive against the Indian rupee among major foreign currencies across the world, followed by euro (Rs 85), Swiss

franc (Rs 69), US dollar (Rs 63.7), Canadian dollar (Rs 61.5), Australian dollar (Rs 57.8), New Zealand dollar (Rs 50.9) and Singapore dollar (Rs 49.8).

Against the US dollar too, the rupee hit a fresh low below Rs 64-level and slipped to as low as Rs 64.11 before marginally recovering to Rs 63.72 by mid-day in the Interbank Foreign Exchange (Forex) market.

The rupee had recorded the decade's worst single-day fall of 148 paise to close at record low of 63.13 on Monday, while it dropped further by about 98 paise on Tuesday morning.

Continued on page 26

The Asian Community are in complete shock after a video of a horrific attack by a teenage girl on an 80 year old Sikh pensioner, went viral. The attack, which was seemingly unprovoked, occurred on the evening of Saturday 10th August in Coventry Continued on page 5

Pakistani Hindus hold protest demonstration in London A protest demonstration was held outside Pakistan High Commission in London, demanding equal rights for Hindus living in Pakistan.

The protesters, carrying placards reading "No More Forced Conversions", also

handed over a petition to the High Commission on 17 August in central London, asking the Pakistani government to take immediate action to ensure the well being and safety of Hindus in their country.

Continued on page 11

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www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 24th August 2013

Keith Vazwith MP

Keith Vaz MP

David Ward MP

than themselves – this can be people running businesses providing employment but also those in the voluntary and community sector who are doing so much for so many for little or no personal financial gain.

David Ward is the Liberal Democrat MP for Bradford East since May 2010. He was formerly a Bradford Metropolitan District Councillor from 1984-2010, his specialist area was education and he was a Governor for 30 years at various Special, Primary and Secondary Schools. David was a member of the Business, Innovation and Skills Select Committee from June 2010 to June 2012 when he became a member of the Education Select Committee.

1) What inspired you to stand for Parliament?

First and foremost to represent the community I lived in – I had been a Councillor in part of the Constituency for 26 years and on the Council I Chaired the Area Committee that covered the Constituency.

I stood five times over a twenty year period before getting elected and never ever considered standing anywhere else.

2) What are your proudest achievements in politics?

I would like to think that I made a contribution to improving education in Bradford – for awhile I was the Education Portfolio holder. In Parliament

Being a member of a small Party battling against two large and well funded Parties has always been difficult.

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

I have one of the b u s i e s t Constituency offices in the country and it is hard to believe anyone has better, more dedicated staff. The knowledge that we make a real difference to the lives of so many constituents is hugely rewarding.

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

No single individual but every week I am inspired by people who are making huge contributions to others less well-off

7) And the worst?

The heart-breaking cases that my office has to deal with. An MP is often the last resort a person tries after all else has failed. In Parliament the worst thing is being part of a

the most important thing I have done was to work with others to get over £17 million of Regional Growth Funding to support business growth in Bradford City Centre 3) Please tell me about your current position?

Within Parliament I believe that the work I did for two years on the Business Innovation and Skills Select Committee and now on the Education Select Committee is the most important work I do other than my Constituency work 4) What has been the biggest obstacle in your career?

Coalition Government having to deal with a terrible economic crisis.

8) What are your long term goals?

To continue serving my constituents to the best of my ability in terms of day to day casework but my constituency has one of the highest rates of unemployment in the country and so my goal is to support local businesses to create additional jobs.

9) If you were Secretary General of the United Nations, what one aspect would you change?

The global-level of expenditure on arms and on military forces around the world is an obscenity when so many live in poverty. I am not sure what I could do about this – but I would try.

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

Thomas Clarkson – a man who, it is claimed, over a forty year period travelled 35,000 miles on horseback to collect evidence to support the campaign to end the slave trade.

Why would I like to meet him?

To say thank you.

EXCLUSIVE

International, Innovative and Inspirational Asian Winners to attend Young Entrepreneur Awards Tanveer Mann The crème de la crème of innovative and inspirational youths from across the globe will be given the chance to participate in the 2013 Global Youth Entrepreneurship Summit between 9-12 September and the Young Entrepreneur Awards, Youth Business International (YBI) has announced.

The Awards are run by the Youth Business International, which was founded by the Prince of Wales in 2000. The event is sponsored by Accenture and Barclays and will bring together 300 people from 50 countries across the world.

Attendees include leaders from private sector, governments and non-profit organisations which are active in the youth entrepreneurship sector.

The theme of the Summit is 'Business as Unusual' and aims to demonstrate how to take advantage of the talents young entrepreneurs have to offer, and to formulate a series of major partnerships that enable more young people to start their own businesses.

Youth Business International’s Young Entrepreneur Awards, which will take place on 12 September at the Institute of Directors in Pall Mall, recognizes the achievements of these young entrepreneurs around the world.

Speakers at the event will include: Pierre Nanterme, Chairman & CEO, Accenture, Sir David Walker, Chairman, Barclays, Arup Banerji, Global Director for Social Protection and Labor, World Bank, Julie Meyer MBE, Founder & CEO, Ariadne Capital, Mike Herrington, Executive Director, Global Entrepreneurship Monitor, JP Rangaswami, Chief Scientist, Salesforce, Jacques Attali, President, Planet Finance.

The winners are selected by YBI's network members submitting entry forms based on their selected entrepreneurs’ businesses.

The praiseworthy and inspirational finalists this year are from all walks of life.

Of most particular interest are the Women of the Year, Startup of the Year and Mentor of the Year Award Winners, who have a direct connection with South Asia.

Women of the Year Winner Godavari Satpute Godvari Satpute has proved that persistence and dedication reaps success. By designing and producing decorative paper lamps (Akashkandil) from waste material, Godvari's business has brought financial security for her family. It has also given

Godavari Satpute

her female employees from impoverished backgrounds, the chance to gain financial independence and equip their children with a future of possibilities.

Struggling to meet the needs of her own large family on just her husband’s income, Godvari launched her environmentally-friendly and creative enterprise with no initial business support and only a very small family loan. Commercial

banks had rejected her proposal in the absence of collateral.

It was only with the support provided

by YBI’s India member Bharatiya Yuva Shakti Trust (BYST), in the form of a $3,600 loan and mentoring advice, that Godvari’s one-woman business was transformed into an enterprise employing 79 people and with an annual turnover of $50,000. She has also taken steps to expand into the United States.

and guidance. Mohan’s passion and dedication has inspired BYST to expand its operations into more outlying areas in India.

Startup of the Year Winner Nimali Gunawardana

Mentor of the Year Winner Mohan Singh Mohan Singh's passion lies with creating grassroots entrepreneurship in Haryana’s hinterland. Mohan, who is also Director of hydraulics firm Hind Fluid Power, has mentored more than 50 entrepreneurs over a 19-year period with YBI member Bharatiya Yuva Shakti Trust (BYST).He has also formed key relationships with financial institutions to enable and provide funding for startups. This highly experienced mentor was also pivotal to the success of BYST’s Mobile Mentor Clinic, which saw mentors from urban areas travel to rural entrepreneurs’ doorsteps to deliver necessary support

Nimali Gunawardana

Nimali Gunawardana is a 25 year old woman from Sri Lanka who is founder of Nimali Chips and Fibre Mill, a business producing coconut husk chips and coir which are exported to Canada, UK and Germany and used in agriculture. A completely new industry for Sri Lanka's rural district of Hambantota's Ambalantota, Nimali's new business employs 13 people and is looking to generate a turnover of more than $39,200. She has truly turned the tables on what is seen as the traditional and expected role of a woman in Sri Lanka. She has always funded her own education and even attended the International Labour Organisation's Generate Your Business scheme to Mohan Singh further her skills in entrepreneurship.

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 24th August 2013

Comment

The Indo-British relationship: Revisiting History The Indian columnist Swapan Dasgupta is something of a maverick. An avowed supporter of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP, he remains his own man and scarcely fits the BJP logo as an antediluvian cultural xenophobe and exclusivist. Mr Dasgupta’s nuanced piece in The Telegraph (August 15) revisited the sophisticated liberal Indian’s view of the Raj in the early 20th century. The fact that his op-ed article appeared on the latest anniversary of Indian independence carries a message for those weaned on the radical chic anti-colonial discourse of regurgitated clichés and rancid declamation. He quotes the august Gopal Krishna Gokhale, who opined that the development of the Indian character at the time was well behind that of the British, hence would be unequal to the challenge of governing India. And Rabindranath Tagore, who had returned his knighthood in 1919, in the aftermath of the Jalianwalabagh atrocity, asked in 1923: “What should we do if, for any reason, England was driven away? We should simply be victims for other nations.”

Winston Churchill pointed to the three million or so Indian soldiers, all volunteers, who fought Nazi Germany, Fascist Italy and Imperial Japan in a show of “loyalty to Britain and all Britain stood for.”

Swapan Dasgupta includes also the words of the proconsul Lord Curzon apropos of the Indian participation in the First World War: “Why are these men coming? What has induced them to volunteer to take part in the fighting? They are thousands of miles away….Their frontiers have not been crossed, their homes are not in jeopardy. They are not our kith and kin: no call of blood appeals to them. Is it not clear that they are coming because the Empire means something to them?”

These points can be embellished with extracts from an earlier chapter of India’s past. Amid the chaos and desolation of late Mughal rule, a galaxy of great British Indologists, beginning with Sir William Jones, and moving on to Charles Wilkins, Colebrooke, Carey, Wilson, Tod, Prinsep, Cunningham, Max Muller et al revealed the splendours of India’s classical civilization, the seedbed surely of the unfolding Indian enlightenment with its call for social reform, cultural renewal and political emancipation. India’s first British Governor General Warren Hastings (1772-1785), himself no mean scholar, wrote an enthusiastic foreword to Wilkins English translation of the Gita, then made this resounding pronouncement on the corpus of Sanskrit writings: “These will

survive when the British dominion in India shall have long ceased to exist, and when the sources which it once yielded of wealth and power are lost to remembrance.” It shouldn’t be forgotten either that the creation of the Indian National Congress in December 1885, which took India to freedom, was the handiwork of a retired British civil servant, Allan Octavian Hume by name, a fact warmly acknowledged by Mahatma Gandhi.

Rammohun Roy (1774-18330) savant, linguist and advocate of social and education reform told the visiting French writer and traveler Victor Jacquemont, way back in 1828, that India would need a century of peace, the Pax Britannica in this case, to recover from the devastation caused by the country’s previous rulers. With the establishment of an Indian middle class the British, he said, would be asked to leave the country, a prescient prophecy indeed.

Swapan Dasgupta makes the penetrating observation that the transition from Empire to Indian selfrule and after was a boon, with no attempt to derail tried and tested institutions bequeathed by the British. Britain, in a word, reconnected India with the Western world and its works. While denouncing British exploitation, Karl Marx, in a balanced critique, pointed to the first free press in Asia centred in Calcutta, the joint endeavour of Britons and Indians, the establishment of the telegraph and railways that united India as never before in her history, and the creation of a modern army – the product of “British drill sergeant” training - that would protect India from the endemic Turkic invasions from Central Asia. To all of these can be added the English language, which the philosopher (and Indian president) Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan described as Britain’s greatest gift to his country. The best of Britain jelled with the best of India in an epochal conjuncture. The Indian Republic survived its early traumas and the myriad challenges arising from societal transformation. The mayhem and violence in much of India’s immediate neighbourhood and beyond – the hyped Arab Spring, for example - are a reminder of what might have been if Fate had treated India less kindly. “The evil that men do lives after them, / The good is oft interred with their bones…..”

Future generations of maturing and confident Indians may come to appreciate fully Shakespeare’s wisdom, as they ponders Britain’s stabilizing influence in the context of their country’s millennial upheavals.

India and the US: the way forward US Ambassador to India, Nancy Powell was in Chennai recently, where she gave a significant address. In a tour d’horizon of Indo-American ties, she dwelt on a number of ground realities that were transforming a once frosty encounter into an increasingly trusting partnership. Why so? Speaking at the 50th anniversary of the Vaishnav College for Women to commemorate Martin Luther King’s iconic ‘March on Washington’ Ms Powell referred to the contribution of Indian Americans. “Despite constituting less than one per cent of the US population, Indian Americans are three per cent of my nation’s engineers, seven per cent of our IT workers and eight per cent of our physicians and surgeons. This community, including many US citizens from Chennai and all over South India has served as an invaluable bridge between our cultures. And in the process, they have helped accelerate the transformation of US-India relations,” she said.

Ms Powell spoke of the key role of education in the agendas of President Obama and Prime

Minister Manmohan Singh. She referred to “Some of the key areas of collaboration in education (which) include student and faculty exchanges, research cooperation, cooperation between community colleges and facilitating partnerships between Indian and American universities. I know the high value that South Indians place on education, so I was not surprised that five out of the eight ObamaSingh Initiative grant partnerships selected this year are with institution in South India, collaborating with US universities, including three from Tamil Nadu.”

Nancy Powell reiterated the message appearing on this page, from time to time: it is that the enduring strength of the Indo-US relationship lies in the ongoing conversation between their civil societies.

This is where their democratic cultures come into full play. Irrespective of what their government say or do, the people-to-people contacts have a transcending significance that will ultimately define the quality of the Indo-US partnership.

Deep freeze: the solution to India’s ties with Pakistan Ties with Pakistan have long been the dominating discourse among India’s chattering classes. It can be likened in many ways to Pavlov’s conditional reflex, much like a call of nature, more to do with the body, less to do with the mind. India’s mindless purveyors of speech and print, repeating ad nauseam the mantra of brotherly love and close engagement with Pakistan have no more to show for their labours than, say, an an ass wrestling with the mysteries of differential calculus. Pakistan was a criminal enterprise since birth and remains stubbornly so. It was conceived in hatred of the Hindu infidel and sought heavenly bliss in the redemptive Universal Caliphate.

Pakistan’s manic search for Islamic purity led eventually to the bloody secession of its former eastern province, now Bangladesh. Oppressing and murdering minority Christians and destroying Christian churches, not to speak of the murderous internecine conflicts within the House of Islam itself, has become the pre-eminent definition of faith in Pakistan and much of the Muslim world.

Reacting to the deaths of five Indian soldiers ambushed near the Line of Control in Kashmir, the Pakistan Parliament passed a resolution condemning India as a violator of regional peace and security.

India’s Parliament, across the political divide, has called for a suspension of talks with Pakistan. This has also been the advice of a body of retired Indian diplomats and security experts. Such counsel should be taken a step further. Being a continuing distraction from seminal issues, Pakistan is best consigned to the icebox of India’s securest diplomatic refrigerator.

Leave Pakistan to its own devices. The celebrated Pakistan democratic spring may yet go the way of the hyped Arab Spring and its bonfire of the vanities in Cairo, where 12 Coptic churches were recently burnt to the ground in a day and scores of Copts killed by Salafi mobs - the lowest common multiple of Islamist solidarity, since similar occurrences are also taking place in Syria. The Indian exorcist must deliver his Pakistan-fixated Indian patient from his inner demons.

3

Know that joy is rarer, more difficult, and more beautiful than sadness. Once you make this all-important discovery, you must embrace joy as a moral obligation - André Gide (1869-1951)

Mission Impossible On Indian Independence Day; China 300 – India 1 I write to you from the most heavily bombed country in the history of the world. My guide told me Laos had reigned upon it during the ‘secret war’ 280 million bombs at a rate of 1 every few seconds for 9 years. The bombers were the Americans of course during the Vietnam War. I get my spirit of adventure from my father. That drive from when I was a child from London to Gujarat still plays in my blood. So this Indian Independence day I wanted to mountain bike north from Luang Prabang to the Lao border with China, and by an unauthorised incursion plant an Indian flag on Chinese territory. See how they like it for a change! That was my Mission Impossible – an act of Independence.

After all, India Today reports there were some 300 incursions by the Chinese army into India last year. So why not one, just one, by an overseas citizen and nonresident of India?

The advice from my uncle when I told him about my Mission Impossible was characteristic of my family, it wasn’t ‘don’t do it’, it was, ‘don’t get shot or caught’. If some low level soldier were to report up to Beijing the daily happenings I’d like to think they may be perplexed that India has changed its policy to China to mirror the Chinese policy of incursion.

As for Laos, there are lessons for India. When that rifle bullet fired on 22 November 1963 in Dallas, few could have imagined that the assassination of an American President would ricochet to tragic ramifications half way across the world for a decade to make this the most bombed place in history.

And what did all the bombs achieve? The Communist flag flies proudly across this country. These Communists that the Americans tried to wipe out. The Yanks should have simply have dropped TV sets instead. Far more pervasive has been the voice of Hollywood and American ‘culture’ around the world than its bombs in the era of TV. It was American culture that defeated Communism in Russia without a single bomb being dropped – they all wanted those darn Levis jeans and to be free to sing like Madonna.

So what is the lesson for India? Laos, like India was a colony of the West because it could not protect itself.

Like India seeking help from the British to protect itself from Mughals, so too Laos sought protection from the French to protect itself from the Chinese. Empire was after all a mafia-style protection racket played by countries instead of Italian dons.

Continued on page 6

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Midlands Voice

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www.abplgroup.com - asian Voice 24th August 2013

Derby’s Fareed Hussain is a role model First Citizen Dhiren Katwa Nothing in life is impossible, according to Derby’s new mayor Councillor Fareed Hussain. He shared with me his journey, starting from 1968, then aged just 14, when he arrived on British shores from Kashmir.

Fareed, aged 59, who represents Arboretum Ward, is the second Mayor of Derby. He was put forward for the role by fellow Labour (Abbey Ward) Councillor Asaf Afzal, another modest and devoted British Muslim citizen. Cllr Afzal, who sees Fareed as his mentor, described him as someone who “does not let obstacles and challenges stand in his way�.

Upon his arrival, Fareed settled in Bradford where he attended a language centre to learn basic English. He left school three months before his 16th birthday and found work in a textile mill. “At this point in my life, my future aspirations were modest to say the least,� he said. “My prospects seemed bleak, having left school without any formal qualifications and still struggling to read and write proficiently.�

In the early 1970s, life for young immigrant workers was tough. “We found ourselves living in overcrowded conditions, with two or three families living in small, terraced houses. It was a time when racism was rife in both attitudes and actions. Unprovoked verbal or sometimes physical attacks at random were common, particularly when we travelled on our own,� he explained.

He went on to explain how the manual labour in factories was almost entirely provided by Pakistanis and Indians, while supervisors and managers were mainly from the indigenous population. “The prejudiced mind-sets of some of the management,� he explained, “meant that they were often less than polite when they approached and addressed us, but these were harsh real-

this opportunity to instigate a process by which the people of Normanton could access local government more readily, and use the political alliances I had formed to help break down some of the barriers between the people living in Normanton and the wider local community.�

He had to resign from the council in 1997, following local government reorganisation, but was re-elected Labour Asaf Afzal Fareed Hussain Councillor in Arboretum Ward. ities that we simply had Fareed has served the council in various to accept. Fortunately, although prejupositions including, Licensing dice existed, there were also many peoCommittee, Adult Services and Health ple in senior positions that were kind Commission, Cabinet Membership. His and willing to help.� leisure interests include reading, cricket EXCLUSIVE and travel. His two chosen charities for his year of office are The Alzheimer’s Fareed moved from Bradford to Society and The READ Foundation. He Derby in 1974 and worked for British enjoys spending time with his grandchilCelanese as a process worker until 1980, dren and pottering about in the garden. when he was made redundant. He Fareed is married to Nasim Akhtar, remained unemployed for six months, Mayoress of Derby. They have four “which allowed me to explore opportugrown-up children and five grandchilnities to become self-employed�. dren. Nasim was also born in Kashmir Alongside a friend, he opened up an and attended local schools in Mirpur.

Indian restaurant, despite having next to She came to the UK in 1975. She did not no experience in catering, and made a start work until her children were quite “modest success� of it. grown up. She now works in a local texFast forwarding to 1989, he was sectile firm. Nasim is a keen gardener and onded by his employer, Derbyshire enjoys watching Asian programmes.

County Council, to Leicester In concluding, Fareed said: “I am Polytechnic (now De Montfort humbled by the knowledge that many of University) to study for a qualification in my successes have been a result of fortusocial work. As part of his course he nate opportunities. In these austere studied local government and politics times of cutbacks and recession, opporwhich inspired him to take a more active tunities may not appear in abundance or role in politics. In 1991, he stood as in the form we wish, but they do still Labour Party candidate, while studying. exist and it is up to us to take advantage Asked about his motive, “I felt that the of them when they emerge in order to community I was a part of was living on reap the benefits they bring, even if that the fringes of society, with very little means steering our ambitions in a direcopportunity or capacity to influence the tion that we never intended.� A truly local decisions that affected their daily remarkable and inspiring gentleman. lives�. He added: “I believed I could use Hats off to you Mayor Fareed!

Leicester takeaway closed after council discovers mouse droppings

A sandwich and snack takeaway in Leicester, has been closed after council health inspectors found mouse droppings and mouse holes in the building.

Magistrates last week agreed to grant a hygiene emergency prohibition order on Krusty's, in Uppingham Road, Leicester, preventing the shop from operating as a food business until the council was satisfied it no longer posed an imminent risk to public health, a local newspaper has reported.

The business owner, Hasim Mohamed Teladia, of Wilson Street, Spinney Hills, Leicester, did not object to the application

by Leicester City Council and was ordered to pay ÂŁ662 costs. At Leicester Magistrates' Court, Mr Teladia said he agreed with the inspectors' decision to close the business. He told the court he had contacted a pest control company and intended to clean thoroughly over the weekend.

Court sanctions sterilisation of a man

A High Court judge has sanctioned the sterilisation of a man "in his best interests" in a landmark legal ruling.

The 36-year-old, from the Midlands, has learning difficulties and already has a son, born in 2010, with his girlfriend.

Mrs Justice Eleanor King ruled that a vasectomy could take place after hearing that another child could cause the man"psychological harm".

Experts said he was capable of sexual consent but did not have the capacity to make decisions about contraception.

Brave shopkeeper fights off armed Father drops young daughter in Indian river and passers-by were unable to rescue her.

A Wolverhampton doctor's family suffered a robber with vodka bottle Police and swimmers also searched for tragedy in India, when their young daughA shopkeeper and father of two in Old Swan area of Liverpool, Merseyside confronted a robber wearing a red cloth mask who threatened the shopkeeper with a kitchen knife.

A CCTV footage showed that the robber confronting Suranga Sooriyabandara at SBM Food and Wine with the 12in blade, which he held like a sword.

Mr Sooriyabandara, pictured, eventually managed to knock the weapon out of the man's hand with the bottle of Chekov vodka, before the attacker fled emptyhanded down the street.

The shopkeeper told a daily newspaper: ‘The knife was over a foot long, and he said he had

a gun, so I was worried. ‘I grabbed the bottle of vodka when he said he was going to shoot me. I managed to knock the weapon from his

hand and it has now been handed in to the police.’ The attempted robbery brought back

painful memories for Mr Sooriyabandara of the day his friend, Mahesh Wickramasingha, was killed while working in a shop in the Huyton area of Liverpool.

The attack, in June 2011, caused horror among the local Sri Lankan community.

Mr S oor iy a b a n d a r a and his brother Saman both contributed to a fund to help Mr Wickramasingha’s family in Sri Lanka.

A 37-year-old man from Liverpool has been charged with attempted robbery and is set to appear before Liverpool Magistrates’ Court.

ter died after falling into the river Musi.

Dr Megha Reddy, an anaesthetist, was on holiday with his family to visit relations and attend a wedding. His young daughter drowned after she slipped from his arms and fell into a fast-flowing river near the city of Hyderabad, the Sunday Telegraph has reported.

Dr Reddy, 42, told police that he had taken his 18-month-old daughter Manvi and her brothers, aged 10 and five, to see the Musi River, which was swollen from the monsoon season's heavy rains.

"I was holding Manvi when she suddenly moved and slipped from my arms," he told police inspector Srinivas Reddy.

Reports suggested he was taking photos of her brothers when she fell.

Dr Reddy couldn't jump into the river because it was flowing so fast, police said,

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her, but her body was found two days later three miles downstream by divers and a boat from India's National Disaster Response Force.

According to local reports, there was a 90minute delay in the search while neighbouring police authorities argued over whose responsibility it was.

His wife, Pratibha, said the family had been visiting a dam 100 miles from Hyderabad.

The toddler's body was returned to her family following a post-mortem examination, and her family Manvi was being comforted by relatives.

Dr Reddy, who has worked in Britain since 1997 is an anaesthetist at the University Hospitals Coventry and Warwickshire NHS Trust, the Telegraph said, where he specialises in obstetric anaesthesia.

5

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 24th August 2013

EXCLUSIVE

Ethnic minority groups are the keenest tech users Getting on a train and seeing a majority of passengers using the latest technology has become a habitual sight. Whether it be Iphones, Blackberries, Kindles, Ipads, the age range of users using the newest gadgets remains extensive. But new Ofcom research has revealed that it is the consumers from ethnic minority groups that are the keenest in Britain when it comes to getting the latest technology.

37% of people from ethnic minority groups say they love gadgets more than the British population (30%) and are more likely to say it’s important that their homes are equipped with the latest technology (32% compared to 20%). Ethnic minority groups are also more likely to have home broadband and a mobile phone, although they are less likely to watch TV and listen to the radio, compared to the British population as a whole.

Ofcom’s research gives an overview of use of and attitudes towards communications services among ethnic minority groups in Britain. It compares the largest ethnic groups: ‘Asian Pakistani’, ‘Asian Indian’, ‘Asian Bangladeshi’, ‘Black Caribbean’, ‘Black African’, ‘Mixed Ethnic Groups’ and ‘Other White’ with Ethnic Minority Groups combined and the British population as a whole.

According to the research, mobile phones are generally more important to people in ethnic minority groups than the wider British population.

More than half of the Mixed Ethnic (57%), Asian Pakistani (58%), Asian Bangladeshi (57%), Black African (56%) and Asian Indian (54%)

groups say they could not do without their mobile phones, compared with 43% of the British population.

Reshma Begum, 43, of Bangladeshi origin, said: 'For me to keep up to date with work and my hectic schedules, the latest technology is a must for me. I am constantly on the go so I tune into the radio on

my phone or check the news with my BBC app on my phone.'

Ethnic minority groups also tend to spend more money per month on their mobile phones.

Among the Black Caribbean and Black African groups, three in ten (30%) say they spend over £30 a month on average, compared to 16% of the British population.

However, TV and radio consumption varies widely across the different ethnic minority groups.

Those in the Asian Indian group are less likely to own a TV and watch TV than the British population as a whole. Eighty-two per cent of Asian Indian people say they own a TV and 93% say that they watch TV, compared with 96% and 99% of the British population respectively.

Preeya Patel, 18, of Indian origin, said: 'I tend to use my Iphone more than I watch TV. It has everything on it that I need. While my family usually listens to the radio when they are out and about'.

Across all ethnic minority groups included in the research, a smaller proportion say they have a TV at home compared to the British population as a whole (90% compared to 96%). Half of those in the Asian Bangladeshi group (50%) have just one TV in their home, compared with a quarter (26%) of the British population.

Listening to the radio is generally less popular among ethnic minority groups, with 40% of Asian Bangladeshis tuning in weekly, compared with 79% of the British population.

Racial Attack on Sikh Pensioner shocks British Asians Continued from page 1 City Centre and was filmed by a passer-by on his mobile phone. The unpleasant footage depicts the old man being kicked in the groin, then punched, kicked and spat on until he is left sprawled on the floor, with his turban next to him and a black eye and bloody nose.

West Midlands Police arrested the girl, who has been identified as Coral Millerchip, from Coventry and she has been remanded in custody and since denied bail.

Such a diverse and multicultural society that Britain has evolved in to today, there is no doubt that this is extremely distressing for viewers and all communities are finding it difficult to comprehend. The ignorance of the teenage girl is at the heart of this despicable attack and begs the question whether this generation has truly moved away from the racial traits Britain witnessed fifty years ago. Where is this hatred stemming from if not from a strong racial revulsion that has been passed on through generations?

27 years old, Sikh, Sandeep Surae, highlights this ignorance: 'This attack has truly appalled me on so many levels, the poor chap did not deserve any of that treatment. So much has been lost in society all displayed by that girls actions. To spit on a man's face when he is lying on the floor with his most precious item of his identity strewn on the pavement is the behaviour of someone that does not deserve to remain in a civilised society' Coventry Police chief superintendent Andy Nicholson, responded to the attack, calling it 'a despicable, violent attack on an elderly man in broad daylight.'

Proving that the assault has created worldwide outrage from all races, 40 year old, Christian, Duncan Watson said: 'Whether is was Asians or any other community, they are as much part of the British community as us natives are, and for this, it is very surprising that such an attack has taken place, especially when the perpetrator is only 19 years old. It is very shocking and unfortunate.'

Police are still urging people who witnessed the incident, or the build up to the attack, to contact West Midlands Police on the 101 number or Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555111.

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www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 24th August 2013

EXCLUSIVE

Sonu Nigam receives standing ovation from audience in Wembley Arena Rupanjana Dutta It is often said that forgiveness is a hard bargain. It was evident that Londoners had bitter memory of Sonu Nigam ditching them on his last show at the O2 (Greenwich Peninsula). Hence it was disheartening to see Wembley Arena three quarter full on last Saturday, and it deserved to be fuller.

Especially as what followed later was phenomenal and I bet people who did not attend, must have regretted their decision, when their peers boasted about the fantabulous show Sonu had put up.

With a few starting numbers by the new girl in the block - Jonita Gandhi, Sonu entered the stadium looking ravishing in an embroidered suit. He sang straight upto 3 hours, without a break, dancing, teasing the audience, playing with lyrics, flaunting the talents that he has, including the ability to play drum, dancing while singing live without catching his breath, swaping from one song to another, transiting from an era to another without sounding hideous.

I can go on praising Sonu and his talents till eternity. Let me say what are the few things that impressed me about Sonu's performance. I am aware he was heavily criticised by my fellow colleagues in Indian media, for running into troubles with Bollywood hotshots because of his certain 'reserves'. I am also aware that Sonu's acting career ran its unfortunate course. But may whatever be the negatives, no one can deny that this man is an outstanding and versatile singer. In his 22 years of Bollywood career and 26 years of stage career, he has created a bench mark. He is 40, but age hasn’t caught up with him. Looking as young as a 20 something, Sonu's energy and ability to cheer the audience is unmatchable.

And the icing on the cake? He is charming and very well spoken. He knows how to communicate with each of the hundreds of audience.

This show on Saturday is an exam-

Sonu Nigam

ple of what sensation a solo singer could single handedly create. The audience gave him a boost as they added to his background score and it was touching to see Sonu outside stage, standing amongst audience and singing with them.

He even received a standing ovation after a heart warming number from the recent film Agneepath.

But the most beautiful addition to his show was a short performance (from his father's arms) by Sonu's 5 or 6 years old son Nevaan. A die hard fan of the number Kolavaridi by Dhanush, his young voice felt like butter to the ears, sweet, smooth and fresh.

What could have been better? The choreography. While the dancers matched Sonu's enthusiasm, and occasional test of skills and patience, their performance stood out as odd. Often costumes did not match, and their moves seemed repetitive. Wembley seating arrangement is definitely better than O2 with more leg space, but their acoustic is very poor, making the music and Sonu's voice occasionally muffled.

But all said and done, it was a cutting edge performance by Sonu Nigam along with his music band or accompanier, and if I were to be invited again to watch him perform in London, I would gladly oblige. And I am sure so would others.

Dr Yousuf Hameid meets IJA Cipla's Dr Yousuf Hameid met Indian Journalists' Association members and guests on Thursday at Indali Lounge. For a man frequently described as a "pirate" and a "thief," Dr Yusuf Hamied seemed more rightly as India's Robin Hood, trying to make Aids and Cancer drugs affordable in India.

National Institute of Health Research Senior Investigator and Wellcome Senior Clinical Research Fellow at Imperial College London and Founding Director of the Tuberculosis Research Centre, Prof Sunetra G u p t a , Dr Hameid with Prof Sunetra Gupta tionals in order to provide Professor of generic Aids drugs and Theoretical treatments for other ailEpidemiology at the University of Oxford with an interest in infectious disease agents that are responsible for malaria, Dr Yousuf Hameid, Dr Jaimini Bhagwati HIV, influenza and Dr Kartar Lalvani and bacterial meningitis.

Dr Hamied studied The afternoon was chemistry at Christ’s durattended by many digniProf Ajit Lalvani ing the time of Lord Todd, taries including Prof who went on to win a Frank Kelly, Master of ments primarily affecting Nobel Prize and also Christ’s College, people in poor countries. became Master of the Cambridge, the High Cipla was founded by Dr College. Dr Hamied is best Commissioner Dr Jaimini Hamied’s father, Khwaja known outside India for Bhagwati, Prof Ajit Abdul Hamied, in 1935. defying large western Lalvani, Chair of In September 2011, in pharmaceutical multinaInfectious Diseases, a piece about how he was

British-Asian Entrepreneur Deepak Kuntawala of DVK Awarded Prestigious ‘Global Entrepreneur in the UK’ The enigmatic entrepreneur and Founder of DVK Deepak Kuntawala was awarded his eight consecutive accolade on the 19th of July 2013 at a prestigious ceremony at the House of Lords in London.

The high-profile gathering saw in attendance a host of British-Asian and Indian Non-Resident (NRI) dignitaries, VIPs, industry captains and community figures. The classic ceremonial dinner was hosted by Baroness Sandy Verma and her husband Ashok in the Peer’s Dining Room.

Kuntawala Deepak was one of 14 prestigious awardees on the night.

Manu Jagmohan Singh, who presented Deepak with his award together with Baroness Verma, described Deepak as, “Young, fashionable and stylish – what my organisation needs.’ Keynote speakers included: Baroness Verma, Minister in the department of Energy and Climate Change, and Lord Dolar Popat, Minister and Government Whip in the House of Lords. Lord

Baroness Verma, Deepak, Manu Jagmohan Singh

Swraj Paul also spoke, along with former Indian Central Bureau of Investigation official Joginder Singh, Manu Jagmohan Singh, Lord Ahmed of Wimbledon, the Indian Deputy High Commissioner, Virendar Paul and Baroness Usha Prashar were also in attendance.

Ever the innovative entrepreneur, Deepak Kuntawala recently chartered new territory when he established DVK Global Entertainment Investment, to nurture and finance unique global entertainment projects.

The fund is governed by leading international law

firm Mishcon De Reya and structured by the world’s largest professional services firm Pricewaterhouse Coopers. The fund’s first heavyweight project was its title sponsorship of An Evening with Pacino, which brought the awardwinning Hollywood icon Al Pacino to the London stage. The partnership with Bhaag Milkha Bhaag marks the fund’s official launch in July 2013 and its entry into the Indian film industry. Deepak’s other business ventures include the establishment of a women-only Sha’riah Fund for the Middle East region and a $1bn Africa Development Fund.

Mission Impossible On Indian Independence Day; China 300 – India 1 Continued from page 3 India needs to have strong defences of course and I say this knowing soldiers have just died on one of its submarines due to a fire. But India should mirror the Chinese policy .

Somewhere there is a document authored by a Chinese policy advisor to their Politburo stating the ‘Indian wants peace, from Gandhi to this day, they do not believe in being offensive. That is their Hindu way, and so we have learnt with the Buddhists, so too with the parent religion of trying to radically lower costs of biotech drugs for cancer, diabetes and other non-communicable diseases, The New York Times wrote : “Dr. Yusuf K. Hamied, chairman of the Indian drug giant Cipla Ltd., electrified the global health community a decade ago when he said he could produce cocktails of Aids medicines for $1 per day — a fraction of the price charged by branded pharmaceutical companies. That price has since fallen to 20 cents per day, and more than six million people in the developing world now receive treatment, up from little more than 2,000 in 2001.�

Full story in forthcoming issues of Asian Voice.

Photo Courtesy: Raj Bakrania

the Hindu, we can bully them to our bidding as we did in taking Kashmir from them.’ This document is yet to be leaked by Wikileaks.

But believe me it exists somewhere on some computer system in Beijing.

When I return from Laos to the UK, I will fly to India. I wanted to visit Srinagar in Kashmir but was told it is unsafe. I wanted to go to Kohima in the East of India to pay tribute to the Indian Army who in the Second World War caused the Imperial Japanese Army

to suffer the greatest defeat in its history. But I was told it is unsafe. India today cannot protect its borders from foreign forces, the way it could during even the Second World War and Independence. That is India’s Mission Impossible.

As for my mission impossible to plant an Indian flag in China – I got within 160 miles of China – mountain biking through jungle roads, along paddy fields is tough – my 24 year old guide was more exhausted than me!

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UK

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 24th August 2013

As I See It

Some facts, some opinions Dear Reader,

touched more or less all sections of the society, and has been inclusive beyond doubt” I venture to refer to a subject which I “Modi and Gujarat are development consider to be of crucial importance for symbols for the nation. Although the today and tomorrow, for the British scars of 2002 still remain but it was not Indians as well as Indians everywhere. just an enigma that more than 31 per There are over 1.5 million British cent of the Muslims voted for the BJP in Indians in the UK. This is their Karma the 2012 Assembly elections. Media has Bhumi (place of work) or Janma not yet realised this. The reality has not Bhuma (place of birth) or both. For yet dawned that 6 out of 8 MuslimIndians here, India ie. Bharat is their majority constituencies were won by Punya Bhuma (land of ancestors).

BJP candidates last December. And this All of us owe a lot to the se islands momentum of the Muslims overwhelm(UK), which has given us so much, over ingly voting for the BJP continued in which we have been able to build subthe local elections of February 2013. stantially as a token of our contribution Modi has been time-tested several and loyalty. According to Upanishad, all times in the past decade and this is perof us are born to be happy and loving. haps the first decade in the last 60 years No wonder the Mother undergoes so when Gujarat remained riot-free. The much discomfort and pain from the reason was simple. Modi has given the moment she has conceived a baby in Gujaratis the boon of peace and justice her womb. Pregnancy, especially labour which money is very stresscan't buy. And ful, sometimes across civilisaa painful tions of the process. But world, people the mother sushave liked a tains it gladly leader who can because of the provide them connection peace and juswith her child. because tice It is natural to prosperity is love. bound to folAll over the low if these are world now and made available before, somewhere more than CM Modi being tied rakhi by Muslim women in Gujarat to the people” Mr others , hatred Sareshwala quotes many other commuand distrust create violence and warnal rights in India, going back several fare. Strangely, we are not born with centuries. The Chairman of Council of these negative traits. Most of the disIndian Muslims UK , quot es the British trust stems from incorrect and inapproHigh Commission's New Delhi's priate opinions. Facts are facts.

Report, prepared over ten years ago.

Opinions differ, differ vehemently.

British diplomatic staff are well Opinions change in light of experience qualified, trained and experienced. The too. My thoughts about the above, was Reports are based on the sources which provoked by two widely circulated suppl ied them with information. The messages and I feel, it is my duty to disprophecy of doom and gloom has cuss some fundamental issues. thankfully not been fulfilled.

One is an open letter to Foreign Nevertheless, it is true that Gujarat has Secretary William Hague, Home remained totally peaceful since those Secretary Theresa May, Conservative ugly days of the first week of March Party Chairman Grant Shapps, Andrew 2002. The last 12 years have been a Feldman and Labour Party Leader Ed spectacular period for Gujarat and Miliband, from the Council of Indian India. I know that prior to 20th August Muslims UK. It is signed by the 2003, Mr Sareshwala also was very Chairman Munaf Zeena, whom I know skeptical and a severe critic of Mr very well and consider to be a friend. It Narendra Modi. I know these things mentions of the invitation to Shri because it was my privilege at the sugNarendra Modi, Chief Minister of gestion of Mr Pankaj Mudholkar of Gujarat and Chairman of the Election AAKRITI (www.aakritiapco.com), who Committee of BJP in India. One can approached me, to arrange a meeting read the full letter at www.coimuk.org. between Narendra Modi and Mr In this letter, Mr Zeena expresses Sareshwala in London. his 'utter disgust at the invitation by On the same day Mr Modi graced Labour and Conservative MPs to Mr Karma Yoga House (ABPL offices) and Modi to visit UK'. inaugurated Shakti Hall (a small audiTh e letter refers to a 'leaked report' torium). from the British High Commission in At that time, Lord Adam Patel was India, that states the 2002 pogroms of the Chairman of the Council of Indian Gujarat, 'had all the hallmarks of ethnic Muslims UK. Last year, Lord Adam cleansing and that reconciliation Patel met Mr Modi at Gandhinagar and between Hindus and Muslims is impos'appreciated his peace initiatives and sible while the chief minister remains in the inclusive prosperity among the power'. There are several other points Muslims of Gujarat'. Since then, Lord about the MPs who invited Mr Modi.

Adam has resigned and Mr Zeena has There is another widely circulating become the new Chairman of the email. It is written by Mr Zafar Council of Indian Muslims UK. Sareshwala, who is CEO MD of Parsoli Let me try to summarise it this way, Motors and who is one of the leading what happened in those dreadful days Muslims who has strongly supported of the beginning of March 2002 is totalNarendra Modi over the last few years. ly disgusting and shameful. Equally one Let me quote a few sentences from should not forget what happened just Zafar's letter. outside the railway station of Godhra “You may hate him or you may like where 59 Hindu pilgrims (mainly him but you cannot ignore him. The women and children) were burnt to journey which Narendra Modi has covdeath by an alleged Muslim mob. Let us ered - from being the most hated figure learn to love. Let us learn to trust in in 2002 to a probable prime ministerial view of facts. Let us not spread hatred candidate in 2014 - is astounding. based on individual opinions, which Modi's approach has undoubtedly given may be half true. him the status of a statesman and the In any case, we all have to move on. architect of the Gujarat growth model.

Let's move on with harmony and mutuThis could be counted as one of the al friendship. reasons for the minorities, including the Muslims gravitating towards Narendra - CB Modi. The fruits of this model have

2013

LILY Foundation is the sponsored charity of Asian Achievers Awards 2013

Why support the LILY Foundation?

Lady Mohini Kent Noon

After months of reading about the tragic fate of Manju, Radha, Sudha and other teenagers tricked into prostitution, dear reader, you will have some idea of the violent world in which they are trapped. When 14-year old Radha found herself a prisoner in a Delhi brothel, she wept and begged for mercy. But mercy, compassion, love and affection are unknown in Indian brothels. There are more sex workers in India than in any other country. Girls like Radha are locked up, starved and flogged until they give in to their fate.

The LILY Foundation supports four projects in India: STOP INDIA in Delhi; Gram Niyojan (GNK) in Bharatpur; Odanadi in Mysore and ARZ in Goa. Each week, for the next four weeks, I will write about one of them and share with you their urgent needs.

STOP INDIA immediately needs £10,000 to buy a dedicated school bus to transport the rescued girls. They cannot be allowed to use public transport because the traffickers are watching them and will kidnap them again.

You can offer a life to these poor girls by donating to one of their immediate projects and we will earmark your donation for that particular purpose.

STOP INDIA is run by a dynamic woman named Roma.

They urgently need our help with a slum project in Delhi, the Bawana settlement, which has a population of almost 300,000 immigrants from across the border as well as the Indian countryside.

STOP works closely with the following groups: ● Girls and youth in Bawana Community. ● School children sus-

A home and a positive change for the girls

ceptible to sexual abuse ● Young girls and adolescents. ● Girls and women in need of medical attention, which all the rescued victims need urgently.

Hundreds of young girls are kidnapped on their way to school.

Other, desperately poor children, leave home with their parents’ blessings because they believe the

The happy girls of Aashray

lies told by traffickers.

Large numbers of women are brought across the Nepal and Bangladesh borders with India and into brothels of cities such as Hyderabad, Mumbai and Delhi.

Of the seven Bangladeshi girls recently rescued from Hyderabad brothels, two were pregnant. They hated their unborn, unwanted babies. Eventually, these girls stayed at STOP India’s Delhi Aashray shelter, where they received intense counseling and medical care.

They were repatriated to Dhaka on 21st May 2013 but only after they had recovered sufficiently.

The causes of trafficking are many - poverty, lack of education and employment opportunities, social and family issues. Huge urban slums dehumanize the people and create a hot house where little girls are more

vulnerable to traffickers.

STOP India’s “Aashray” shelter is home to many tragic children.

Apart from medical attention, they are also given educational and vocational opportunities.

They encourage the rescued victims to help others like themselves.

They have established strong women’s SelfHelp groups, opened 2 shops owned by the ‘Sanjeevani Mahila Mandal’, created a c o m m u n i t y Medical Drop-In Centre, and created a team of qualified social workers to visit weekly.

They train children through theatrical productions and other creative means to understand the dangers of trafficking and human slavery.

They have a website selling jute Bags, cosmetic jewellery, and a wide range of merchandise handmade by the women under the supervision of their Sanjeevani Mahila Mandal. This provides a valuable source of income for the victims.

STOP INDIA also tries to tackle the larger issue of the indifference and corruption in the Indian society that allows all this to happen on such a large scale. Thus they work with local police officers and the local administration at their community centre.

STOP INDIA is doing their best to rescue, rehabilitate, educate, provide employment, hold talks with the local police and even traffickers to stop the terrible trade. Please help us to help them by giving generously.

For more information go to http://www.ipartnerindia.org/lily-foundation.php OR contact us at info@ipartnerindia.org/+44 20 7841 8919

Spoon trick to Alert Forced Marriage Faced with the prospect of being forced into a marriage against their will, teenagers, mostly from Britain's South Asian community, are using an unusual "spoon

trick" to save themselves from the ordeal. UK Charities are advising potential victims to do this so that 'when they go through security, it will highlight this object in a

private area and, if 16 or over, they will be taken to a safe space where they have that one last opportunity to disclose they're being forced to marry,' the spokesperson said.

UK

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 24th August 2013

Leading Lights

Rani Singh, Special Assignments Editor

Ayndrilla Singharay, Reinventing Tagore Writer Ayndrilla Singharay graduated with an MA in Creative Writing from Royal Holloway University, London where she studied under former Poet Laureate, Sir Andrew Motion. She is a trained English teacher and currently works as Training and Development Co-ordinator at Asha, a London –based South Asian charity that supports women and children escaping violence. She has carried out research for Asha and the Home Office on forced marriage in the UK and regularly delivers training on gender, domestic violence and forced marriage.

‘Unsung’ is Ayndrilla’s first play and is a modern interpretation of a Rabindranath Tagore short story, ‘Punishment’.

Ayndrilla, who grew up with Tagore’s poetry, stories and music around her, collaborated with a group of actors and directors to develop the idea. The original story focused on an impoverished family living in rural Bengal and how the women of the family were expected to make sacrifices for the men.

Ayndrilla Singharay

‘Unsung’ sets the story in present day London, exploring how a comfortable British-Bengali family

experiences the same patterns of behaviour. In the play, Ash and his brother Rana live together with

their wives Joy and Megh.

When the women of the family appear to step outside the boundaries the men have set, there are devastating consequences for everyone.

“Unsung” is the first contemporary version of this story and Ayndrilla hopes that it will be relevant for audiences at the Rosemary Branch Theatre where it is showing shortly. Through her work at Asha, Ayndrilla has met many women who are struggling to conform to the expectations their families have of them.

Expectations that they will make sacrifices for the wider good of the family, that their duty as a ‘good woman’ is to put their own desires second to that of their partner and children.

She feels that this problem is not unique to South Asian women. “Violence against women is something that exists within all communities in the UK. My play looks at a British family that has its roots in South Asia but the same story could take place just as easily in another community. Tagore’s story, like gender-based violence, is universal. The observations Tagore made in India one hundred years ago about gender inequality will resonate with people today.”

Ayndrilla is excited about bringing Tagore to a

diverse audience that may or may not be familiar with his works. While Tagore is widely known and adored by the South Asian community in the UK, his name is still little known amongst the wider population here.

Ayndrilla finds it difficult to pinpoint exactly why, as excellent translations of Tagore’s writings are available. “It is possible that Tagore’s renunciation of his knighthood following the Amritsar Massacre of 1919 affected his popularity at the time, or that he was stereotyped as a mystical poet and fell out of fashion. “ She says. With her new production, Ayndrilla hopes to increase awareness of Tagore’s work and his message of equality. She feels that even though there is a celebration of Tagore’s writing and music by both Indian Bengali and Bangladeshi communities in the UK through plays and concerts, these events might not be easy for everyone to access. “If you don’t speak Bengali, it can be hard to engage. Even my Bengali is not of a high enough standard to always fully appreciate what I am hearing. I know a lot of people are starting to include English translations in their events, and this is a step in the right direction.

If we don’t start celebrat-

9

ing Tagore in English, young people will lose interest and that would be a huge shame. I hope ‘Unsung’ might contribute to the process of preserving Tagore’s message for future generations.”

Making Tagore relevant to young people is important to Ayndrilla.

“This play is about our expectations of one another, and how dangerous they can be,” she said.

“That is something that young people are experiencing now more than ever. They are surrounded by expectations - from families, school, and media. There is pressure on young people – especially young women and girls - to look and behave a certain way. The recent suicides of the young girls who were bullied through websites and social media show how damaging this pressure can be. We have to understand what our expectations are doing to the people around us.”

‘Unsung’ will be playing at the Rosemary Branch Theatre in Islington from 30 August to 8 September. It is directed by Lucy Allan, whose directing work includes ‘Can’t Stand Up For Falling Down’ at the Lowry, Manchester and ‘Rootbound’ at the Arcola, London. w w w. r o s e m a r y branch.co.uk

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Your Voice

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 24th August 2013

English in India

To give or not to give

Modi’s speech

Kapil’s Khichadi

AV editorial comment 3rd Aug13 on the need for the language English in India is flawed, the main argument being the need to remove superstitions and advance social reform is not valid because that is what brown sahibs advance. On a flight to India an Indian citizens nervously asked me to fill in her landing card which was all English she only spoke Gujarati, this does not create a sense of belonging, but a sense of ruled by the other. Indians become doctors by having to learn two or three languages.

The economic argument is also strong for a single national language such as Hindi.

Germany, China, Japan and France do not speak English. Israel was created by reviving Hebrew a dead language for 2000 years. France created Airbus partly because of Gaelic pride in its language and culture. Next time you sit in a an Airbus remember it was built in France in French as a rival to Boeing. The only reason English is spoken worldwide is because of Empire and today the US is a superpower, even the Americans dislike of British rule lead them to create a rival English on Independence. Today India is physically independent but mentally enslaved to all things English, Mahatma Gandhi himself called for a Matru Bhasha and stop the use of English, so Rajnath Singh BJP president is only repeating his words and thoughts, as I am.

I was dismayed to read in the national media recently that some of the biggest and well know n charities pay their chief executives salaries in excess of £300,000 - and some trusts even go near enough to £1 million.

I immediately thought of those cute and innocent primary school kids working zealously to raise funds, only for that money to go into some charity executive’s pocket. Well done, children, and thank you very much indeed – for the excellent dinner I had at that salubrious restaurant! Do carry on and work harder still, please. And I thought of that goodhearted cyclist who sweats his guts out cycling from one end of Britain to the other thinking that the few pounds he will earn in sponsorship will go towards alleviating hunger of that poor African farmer in Kenya who toils all day to support his family, disappointingly then to find he receives only a fraction of the funds raised. And also give a thought to that charity shop worker, some quite elderly, who works voluntarily so that the charity can maximise its profits.

One bigger charity has commented that their executives have wider responsibilities and so deserve more pay, implying that their focus has to be on business lines absolutely– just like any commercial business. This can also imply, to my mind and I hope I am wrong, that the targeted beneficiary is simply an ‘excuse’ – a mere scapegoat – kept in place to facilitate this ‘business’.

No, sir, I will stick to charitable giving only to Shree Prajapati Association (UK), the community organisation to which I belong – it is run entirely voluntarily and the members are happy to donate.

Narendera Modi as the Chief Minister of Gujarat gave a very interesting speech at the independence day parade at Bhuj.

The speech was interesting in contrast to what the Prime Minster Manmohan Singh said at Delhi parade. Some of the political leaders including Advani were not happy with Modi to criticise the prime minster on Independence day and they have not realised that even chief Ministers of Indian states have the same right to send message to the people.

Independence day comes every year and the government spends cores of rupees for pageantry which is unnecessary.

The UPA ruled Indian government always talks about narrow and sectarian ideologies and promotion of tolerance in the society. On the contrary the present government is dividing the society by encouraging reservation in jobs and in educational institutions for Muslims, enforcing Sharia law and encouraging Madrasas.

On the other hand Modi was right to say that national security is under threat and Pakistan and China are occupying our territory and the government failed to address the situation. The food security will snatch food from the plates of poor.

By fixing the poverty line below 25 rupees, the UPA government is going to reduce subsidy to non Congress governments which have already introduced the welfare measures by means of providing subsidised grains, oil, free gas cylinders and so on.

It is ‘naive’ on the party of the UPA government to talk about pseudo secularism and divide India.It is time for leaders like Modi to speak out about the UPA government . Well done Mr Modi and carry on the good work.

Uttambhai D Mistry Bolton

Arun Vaidyanathan Via Email

It seems Arunji’s animosity towards Kapil is clouding his judgement. Personal feelings should not be allowed to override truth.

When Kapil posed twenty questions to Ed Millibend in his popular column, regarding visa issue for Modiji, Arunji was quick to dismiss it as irreverent. He underestimates power of media, especially Asian Voice; the most influential ethnic weekly widely read at Party Headquarters and has resulted in Modiji being officially invited by both parties to address HOC, rare honour indeed. We all have indirectly contributed in this unprecedented success! Defying gravity is suicidal!

I have been regular contributor to AV for more than 20 years that has given me immense satisfaction, personal odyssey and made friends at highest level. My postbag (Emails) is always full with appreciative comments. So I know from my own experience how influential Asian Voice is.

If Arunji fails to attract such attention, then he should examine his own conscious, style and contents of his contribution, make them intellectually stimulating. After all we reap what we sow; thorny Acacia would not yield harvest of sweet mangoes! Successes don’t come wrapped up in fancy papers. We are not Milky Bar Kids, dodgy donors dining in Downing Street and should not be allowed to dwarf morally. We should live in ocean of hope, enlightenment, not sea of despair!

Arunji should check his facts. Navin Shah, AM, well-known Indian/Hindu politician is Harrow Councillor while Manoj lives in Essex and Cllr Sodha is from Barnet. They are not solely Brent politicians as Arunji would like us to believe. Then he lives in Milton Keys, far removed from hustle and bustle of London!

Jayesh A Patel Wimbledon

Land of the Pharaohs The land that Queen Cleopatra loved so much lies in tatters. Violence has spread across much of the country after police swept in with armored vehicles, and bulldozers to clear two camps of supporters of ousted President Morsi. Many people have been killed, and many more have been injured. UN secretary general and other world leaders have condemned the use of violence and said that this was a difficult and unclear situation. Egypt has recently seen violence in an unprecedented scale. What with the violence in Tahrir Square when President Mubarak was ousted, soon after the removal from power of the rulers of Tunisia, Libya and other Arab countries in a follow on from the incident when a Tunisian street vendor set himself to fire in protest of the confiscation of his wares and the harassment and humiliation that was inflicted on him by municipal officials. His act started demonstrations and riots throughout Tunisia in protest of social and political issues in the country and spread to other Arab countries. This was followed by the toppling of President Mubarak and the start of what was to be a short lived democratic rule in Egypt.

Egypt’s government has slapped a month long night time curfew on Cairo and other provinces. This decision was announced shortly after a month long, nationwide, state of emergency was declared and the army was ordered to back the police in efforts to restore order.

I suppose this puts paid to my planned holiday to Sharm el-Sheikh, situated on

Pyramid power

I once bought a steel pyramid about nine inches high to find out if it would fulfil the manufacturer’s promise of being able to sharpen used razor blades, remove chemical taste from sweets and turn milk into edible curd. I placed some razor blades under the pyramid and after a week they certainly felt as if they had regained their sharpness.

Duly impressed, I opened a pack of sweets and put them under the contraption. They too tasted more natural after a few days.

Finally, I tried a tiny bowl of milk, pouring the same amount into an identical trial bowl outside the pyramid. Two weeks later the milk under the pyramid had turned to edible curd, while the milk outside tasted horrible as it had gone “off”.

Interesting results, don’t you think?

Rudy Otter Via Email the coastal strip along the Red Sea, and a cruise on the River Nile!

Dinesh Sheth Newbury Park, Ilford

Hindu and Sikh candidates targeted by Brent Labour Party I refer to the story in your Asian Voice of 17 August 2013 titled “Decreasing Hindus in Brent politics worries locals.”

Your story is not entirely true. I have been making enquiries and this is what I have discovered. There is no decreasing number of Hindus in Brent Labour Party.

The truth of the matter is that, on this occasion, the Labour Party has shown a vindictive attitude towards certain prominent Hindu and Sikh candidates. Insiders tell me that these three were targeted by the Brent Labour Party.

I will give a few examples but will not identify those concerned. One current Gujarati councillor, who has been in the Labour Party for decades and who was elected councillor long ago, was barred from the list of candidates on grounds that “he did not know the way the Labour Group runs.”

This to someone who has been councillor for three terms!

Another current Councillor, a former Mayor of Brent, who is also in his third term, was also excluded from list of candidates on spurious grounds.

A third candidate, someone who

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Bhupendra M Gandhi Via Email graduated several years ago and has worked for a Member of Parliament for several years, was also excluded from list of candidates.

It is clear that there are a number of Hindu and Sikh candidates who have been targeted by the Brent Labour Party.

Compared to eight Hindu candidates, I am told that there are fifteen Muslim candidates selected by the Brent Labour Party for next year’s election. I do not have the names of these fifteen but I trust someone with more knowledge than I will provide this information to you.

Dilip Mehta Via Email Continued on page 13

Disclaimer Asian Business Publications Ltd (ABPL) is not in any way responsible for the goods and services rendered by its advertisers. The ABPL management accepts all advertisements in good faith and it is entirely up to readers to verify advertisers’ products and services, should they feel the need to do so.

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www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 24th August 2013

Crash for Cash fraudsters appear in Court A few days ago in a widely published news, motorists were warned about a new car accident insurance scam, dubbed as "flash for cash".

However recently, a court heard that fraudsters packed a bus with fake passengers in a new 'crash for cash' scam before staging an accident that led to tens of thousands of pounds of bogus insurance.

It was allegedly orchestrated by employees of a company called City Claims 4 U, Sheffield Crown Court was told.

The ringleaders of the plot reportedly recruited the bus driver to deliberately collide with a Vauxhall Safira driven by another member of the gang.After the low speed crash 26 of the people on board the Sheffield Mainline bus submitted claims for whiplash and other injuries.

The court heard that police and ambulances arrived at the scene of the staged accident. None of the handful of genuine

passengers submitted claims.

Seven defendants are denying charges that they conspired to defraud insurance companies.

They include Mohammed Gulzar and Shoaib Nawaz, who run City Claims 4 U. The jury was told that Adam Herbert, 25, the bus driver, has already admitted conspiracy to defraud as has the car driver.

Katherine Robinson, prosecuting, said: ”It was a professional and organised conspiracy by deliberately making false claims over road traffic accidents which never occurred or were staged.

“This was an audacious plan to crash a bus being driven by Adam Herbert into a car driven by one of the defendants. The plan was to load the bus with as many dishonest passengers as possible then submit a raft of bogus claims for personal injury. ”Adam Herbert deliberately drove into the rear of a Vauxhall Safira at

slow speed. Injuries were reported by people on the bus.”

She said passengers described the collision as a “very minor bump” at slow speed. Those on board the bus included a member of staff of the claims company who submitted his own claim for personal injury.

One passenger later admitted to police that the whole accident had been staged.

Gulzar, 30, of Osgathorpe Road, Sheffield, Nawaz, 25, of Marshall Road, Sheffield, Liam Howden, 25, of Brinsworth Hall Avenue, Rotherham, Nisar Hussain, 28, of Morgan Road, Sheffield, Javed Khan, 46, of Nansen Road, Birmingham, Sami Selam, 37, of Chester Road, Flint, North Wales and Kiran Shaheen, 21, of Kensington Road,Bradfor d all deny conspiracy to defraud.

Eight other defendants have admitted the same charge and will be sentenced later.

The trial continues.

Pakistani Hindus hold protest demonstration in London Continued from page 1 Pakistan is home to about 3 million Hindus, comprising about 1.6% of the total population.

A delegation of Pakistani Hindus and the Vishwa Hindu Parishad on Wednesday submitted a memorandum to the UN explaining the violation of their rights in Pakistan and requesting rehabilitation in India.

The Alliance of

Heathrow faces new bomb threats

Security checks have gone up at UK's Heathrow airport after intelligence reports surfaced that alQaida is plotting attacks on airlines flying out of London. Britain has credible intelligence that female suicide bombers with explosives concealed in breast implants are planning to blow up Heathrow airport.

Increased surveillance led to long queues at Heathrow on Friday.

Security agencies have found that al-Qaida's chief bomb-maker Ibrahim alAsiri has developed a method to conceal explosives from airport scanners in an implant or bodily cavity. A large contingent of female suicide bombers have been recruited. The warning comes just days after the UK shut down some of its foreign missions following a warning from Interpol that a series of jailbreaks across nine countries in the past month, including in Iraq, Libya and Pakistan, could lead to new terror recruits.

Pakistani and British Hindus in a statement said, "The Hindus in Pakistan are facing a lot of suppression by the Muslim majority for the only reason that they are Hindu. Destruction of temples, abduction of Hindu girls and forced conversion and marriages, mass violence and economic and political marginalisation are just a few problems."

"They (Hindus) are not free to go to their temples which have been wilfully destroyed. They are not equal citizens of one state but victims of religious discrimination.

They live in perpetual dread with their daughters, property and religious places being constantly targeted for the

only reason that they are not Muslim, but Hindu," the petition said.

"Therefore the Hindu community in UK urges the government of Pakistan to implement meaningful constitutional and legal reform to ensure equality and religious freedom for the Pakistani Hindus; to protect the Hindus against violence such as abductions and forced conversions of Hindu girls and destruction of temples," it added.

"Pakistan must also repeal or at least review blasphemy laws and must remove all discriminatory references from the current educational curriculum and foster interfaith harmony within schools in Pakistan," the petition said.

11

Change Makers Computer Club for Learning Disabled Supported By Sai Youths

By Shamil Jobunputra, ex Sai School pupil For people with learning difficulties, everyday tasks can be challenging.

These individuals can also fall behind at school and potentially never achieve the qualifications needed to gain employment.

The ‘Computer Club’ classes aim to address these problems. These classes provide one to one support for people with learning difficulties to help them to read, write and count, using computer facilities. Every Saturday during term time, an experienced tutor sets assignments for each pupil and a one-onone volunteer helper helps the pupil to complete the tasks at his/her own pace. The volunteers are full-time students from local high schools and colleges, many introduced to the Club by Sai School of Harrow. The classes are located at Stanmore College, which generously provides the classes with access to its IT suites at no cost, and are co-ordinated and managed by the local

charity Community Link Up. The benefits of the classes are three-fold.

Firstly, it helps pupils to acquire the basic skills (reading, writing and counting) that they need to access all other knowledge. Secondly, it gives them life skills: they regularly practise using PowerPoint, Excel, Word and the Internet during the classes, and many of the lessons simultaneously introduce concepts such as planning and budgeting. Thirdly, it improves their social skills, through group activities, seeing the same pupils every week and forming friendships, and working directly with volunteers who are sometimes older and more mature than them. In addition, the classes also provides valuable oppor-

tunities for the volunteers, helping them to achieve the Duke of Edinburgh Award, improve their CVs, mention their contributions in their UCAS forms, improve their confidence and the feel good factor for putting back into the community. The classes have won iT4 Communities’ ‘Best Accessible Project 2009’ and they were presented with their award at the British Computer Society.

This month marks the launch of a campaign to recruit teachers, pupils and volunteers to expand the activities of the award winning project. We are would like to hear from teachers or other dedicated individuals who would be interested in setting work at the classes, volunteers to provide 1:1 support to the pupils for 1 or 2 hours a week, and individuals with learning difficulties who would benefit from extra support. If you are interested in any of these opportunities, please contact Rizwana on 020 8861 9920 or at rizwana@had.org.uk

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12

Media Watch

The brawls in the Rajya Sabha last week, Monday, August 12, brought Indian democracy to a new low. The Upper House of Parliament was due to debate the Hindu-Muslin communal riots in Kishtwar, a town in the state of Jammu and Kashmir.

The din went on amid the Speaker’s desperate calls for order, to little avail. The House was then adjourned. This is what the Indian public have to endure when they tune in to their domestic TV channels. The brawling MPs, mostly from the opposition BJP, which aspires to govern the country come the next general elections, display no respect whatsoever to the electors, whose taxes provide them an enviable lifestyle, or to the institution which they are privileged to represent.

Declining standards

into the 111 metre-long, 11 metre-wide and 15 metre-tall Arihant. Only five nations – the US, Russia, the UK, France and China are capable of building nuclear submarines, with India joining the club as the sixth.

The Telegraph editorial (August 13) put it well: “In every sphere of public discourse in India, there has been an alarming and appalling decline of standards.

This decline is most noticeable in the language politicians use within the legislatures”……

[And outside them]…..Very seldom are actual issues raised or discussed; instead abuse is heaped upon opponents and their parties. No political formation is completely free from this.” Is anyone listening?

Public disenchantment can turn into the rot that weakens and ultimately brings the democratic edifice crashing to earth.

Nothing is impossible, nothing is written in stone. Parliament was created to serve the country and its people; thanks to low quality MPs, it is increasingly unfit for purpose, which no pieties of good intent can hide.

It was an Indian achievement in the round.

R.K.Sinha, Chairman, Atomic Energy Commission, was particularly upbeat about the reactor.”It is really a demonstration of very advanced technological capability in the challenging areas of nuclear reactor design, manufacture and commissioning.”

S.Basu, Director, Bhabha Atomic Research Centre, one of the architects of the reactor, described its criticality “as a big achievement in terms of our defence preparedness.” (Hindu, front page report August 11, also Times of India, Telegraph)

Putting India on the map

INS Vikrant, China’s take

While political party goons and felons in Parliament gave India lessons in unruly behaviour many hundreds of miles away Indian scientists, engineers and industry, in tandem with a dedi-

INS Vikrant was launched last week at the Cochin Shipyard where it was built. Defence Minister A.K.Antony said that India had moved from being a buyer’s navy to a builder’s navy.

Significance

INS Arihant nuclear submarine

cated and disciplined workforce, were redeeming their country’s tarnished image. The reactor in INS Arihant (in Sanskrit, Destroyer of Enemies), the Indian Navy’s first nuclear submarine went critical in the early hours of Saturday, August 10, making the vessel operational four years after its launch and the subsequent harbour and sea trials, the latter now nearing completion.

Third triad The activation of the compressed reactor marks a milestone in India’s nuclear deterrence at sea, with land and air platforms already in place, the third triad will be fully functional when the underwater 700kilometre missiles are inducted

Commenting on the event, Senior Captain and Vice President of China’s Naval Research Institute, Zhang Junshe, said: “This bears great significance for the Indian Navy.

It makes India the fifth country, after the US, Russia, Britain and France to have such capabilities.

Which means that by the end of this year India will become the only country in Asia to have two aircraft carriers [INHS Viraat and INS Vikramaditya, presently undergoing sea trials in the Baltic Sea, and expected to be ready for delivery to the Indian Navy by Russia]. This will enhance…..the power projection capabilities of the Indian Navy.

India’s first self-made carrier, along with reinforced naval strength, will further disrupt the military balance in South Asia.”

www.abplgroup.com - asian Voice 24th august 2013

The launch of India’s first nuclear submarine INS Arihant has also come in for comment by analysts in think-tanks across China. (Press Trust of India August 12)

Independence Day parade in Delhi

Wary of India In 2010, Dr John Lee, Research Fellow at the Centre for Independent Studies in Sydney, Australia, told how the Chinese delegate, during the socializing that marked the close of a security conference in Washington, had caused “an awkward silence” when he stated that India was “an undisciplined country where the plague and leprosy still exist. How a big dirty country like that can rise so quickly amazed us.”(John Lee, “Why China Is Wary Of India”)

Submarine tragedy Triumph turned to tragedy as two explosions and a devastating fire in the submarine Sindhurakshak, which took two hours to put out, resulted in the deaths of the 18 sailors, 6 of whose bodies have been recovered by naval divers. The submarine was berthed at Mumbai and is now submerged beneath the waters.. The cause of the mishap

The Indian economy oscillates between low points and highs, the first underscored in June’s 2.2 per cent downturn in manufacturing, and in the Sensex crash by 769 points at the week-

Economic Zone (SEZ) into an integrated industrial area and become the first company to take advantage of the Maharashtra government’s new industrial policy, which allows developers to exit projects to build industrial enclaves.

Problems of land acquisition and changing tax laws have reduced the attractiveness of SEZs for investors (Mint August 10)

Tax revenues Improve

Explosion on submarine Sindhurakshak

is not yet known. The submarine had undergone an extensive refit in Russia and returned to India equipped with a state-of- the-art weapon system. It was then subjected to a rigorous check in April. A team of Russian experts will join in the inquiry in the search for answers. The parlous state of India’s ageing submarine fleet is a cause for concern.

Despite the government’s Cabinet Committee sanctioning the construction and purchase of new submarines several years ago, none has been inducted in the past decade. The Scorpene submarine project involving its French manufacturer has lain largely dormant in its Mumbai dockyard. The bloated, slothful Defence Ministry shows little purpose in putting things right (Times of India, Hindu, Telegraph August 15)

Economic contrasts

end and the accompanying descent of the rupee to its lowest ever 62.03 benchmark to the US dollar. More hopeful statistics, however, point to better things to come.

Mahindra & Mahindra’s June quarter net profit rose by a better-thanexpected 29 per cent on the back of robust tractor sales amid a good monsoon. Addressing shareholders in Mumbai, Anand Mahindra, Chairman & Managing Director, said: “We are bullish about the future. We are planning Rs 10,000 crore investment in the next three years, including an auto plant.

Our past experience suggests that this may pay dividends.”

(Hindu, Times of India, Mint August 14,17)

Tata Steel Tata Steel did remarkably well, clocking up a net profit of 90.46 per cent for the June quarter.

This was largely a result of a write-back deferred tax payment, but even without this gain, Tata Steel would have reported a net profit of 40 per cent over a similar period a year ago, thanks to improved returns from its Indian and European operations (Hindu August 14)

Bharat Forge Anand Mahindra, CEO, MD

Pune-based Bharat Forge seeks to convert its Chakan Special

Net direct tax collections have gone up by 10.37 per cent in the first four months of the current fiscal, with gross collection of income tax rising by 19.32 per cent (Hindu August 8)

Demand for IT parks Investor demands for Information Technology (IT) parks and Special Economic Zones (SEZs) are at their highest since 2009. Between January and July 2013, private equity companies invested in 16 commercial projects, compared with 12 in 2012. Some 16.2 million square feet of office space are expected to come up in the next few quarters across key cities Bangalore, Pune, Chennai and Mumbai (Mint August 9)

‘Free’ hand for Army in Kashmir Defence Minister A.K.Antony said that the armed forces were “free to respond” as they saw fit to Pakistani-Jihadi aggression from across the Line of Control in Kashmir. Infiltration from across the border had doubled in the past year, he said. He also revealed that “the Indian Army (had) successfully eliminated 19 hardcore terrorists….along the Line of Control and 10 in the hinterland” since June. These were not casual encounters. The terrorists were well trained and well armed. Indian security forces, he said, had also launched tactical operations against local support groups (Telegraph August 14)

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www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 24th August 2013

Your Voice Continued from page 10

India’s achievements in last 66 years During 67th year of India’s independence we must be optimistic. Only optimism can highlight India’s achievements.

India’s fast progress in short period must be harnessed to inculcate patriotism.

Be proud that India was never poor or coward; held its head high with dignity all through Mogul/British domination.

That spirit ignited 90 years (1857-1947) struggle for independence; is motivating India to compete with international rivals and succeeding in fields ranging from Yoga to nuclear and space exploration.

Tenacious dignity of a single person, Modi has U-turned the world opinion in his / India’s favour, in spite of 12 years of ongoing caustic/vicious hatred. Modi’s spirit must be replicated on national levels. Consider following achievements despite demographic, political, international and national millstones: 1 Budget in 1947, Rs:500 crore, today it is 1trillion dollars.

2 GDP then-Indian rupees 1lakh crore now-Indian rupees 100 lakh crore.

3 Below poverty population, then-66% now-22%.

4 1947- 565 princely states; today-28 states with Telengana as - 29th state..

5 1947-not enough fod for lesser population; today food surplus.

6 Today India manufactures every commodity –including spaceships-except aeroplanes.

7 Inflow by Indian businessmen proliferating abroad; then Dollars 4 billion, today-dollars 46 billions.

8 In spite of global economic depression, India is second fastest growing economy in the world.

We need to replace effete government.

Governance must be centred towards Indians first. Hindu agenda must be

Help to Buy or Help to Cry? I am writing about Help to Cry. I am sorry to give your predecessor Chancellor’ s H.T.B. stimulus plan H.T.C. In 2013, house prices were nearly five times average earnings. By 2016, it was clear that housing was less affordable as prices had increased to six times average earnings. The state then was too scared of voters to scrap the program. You asked me when the Financial Policy Committee would recommend that we bury the H.T.B. The short answer is: we can’t.

The rise in prices has created such an affordability gulf that withdrawing subsidised mortgages would lock a large chunk of the population out of the market. It would have been better back in 2013 to encourage borrowers to use low interest rates to keep paying off their debt, as they were doing until H.T.B. arrived. Now, the economy is perilously over indebted. Any interest shock could force the government to prop up the banks. The markets will turn on us. The only solutions would be a vast money printing exercise—again.

What Britain needs is the 1970s' plan to build 300,000 to 400,000 houses every year.

(Adapted from International Herald Tribune, 19 August 13 p16 by Charlotte Hogg, Governor of Bank of England) Nagindas Khajuria Via Email stressed without losing confidence of minority faiths. Whether Modi becomes P.M. or not, it is most essential to remove dynastic ethos from dominating India and voters.

Ramesh Jhalla Via Email

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13

Ensuring Mental Health sufferers are given a voice within family law proceedings It is stated that approximately 300 people out of every 1,000 will experience a form of mental health illness every year in Britain. From this 300, 230 sufferers will visit a doctor, 102 will be diagnosed as having a

By Savita Sharma mental health illness, 24 will be referred to a specialist psychiatric service and 6 will be admitted as inpatients in psychiatric hospitals.

Mental Heath illness takes many disguises from depression, stress, schizophrenia, phobias, obsessive compulsive disorders, to postnatal depression, personality disorders and more. In many instances Duncan Lewis has found that those that suffer from a mental health illness are also facing family law issues. Although Family law issues can be wide ranging, they can commonly relate to a relationship breakdown and/or where the Local Authority are involved.

If an individual has (or knows someone that has) been subject to a domestically violent relationship and this has subsequently caused a reactive mental health illness such as depression, it is vitally important that the victim seeks assistance from a family solicitor that understands mental health.

This will ensure that victims not only receive legal assistance against such abusive behaviour or receive help removing the perpetrator from the property they may share but this will also ensure that such legal steps are achieved as sensitively as possible whilst safeguarding their health.

Seeking prompt legal assistance can help victims obtain valuable time to obtain treatment and support for their mental health illnesses. For example a single mother who has been suffering from a severe mental health condition could find herself being detained in a psychiatric unit under the Mental Health Act 1983 (as amended by the 2007 Act). However, a number of mental health hospitals have Mother and Baby Units to deal with cases such as postnatal psychosis. Having access to this expert knowledge on where to receive help is vital.

To be detained under Mental Health laws, a person is said to be suffering from a mental health condition of a nature or degree which warrants that

person’s detention in hospital for assessment or treatment. Furthermore that person is assessed to be a risk to themselves and or others, such as their own children. For somebody suffering from a mental health illness the situation can be very daunting and confusing but obtaining correct legal advice from family & child care solicitors and medical attention is crucial.

If a person who is suffering from a mental health illness is involved in legal proceedings whether related to divorce, matrimonial finances or children, the key issue is whether the relevant person has the capacity to give instructions and as such instruct a legal representative. If there is any doubt as to capacity then a Certificate as to Capacity can be obtained to confirm this. If it is determined that an individual does lack mental capacity within the meaning of the Mental Capacity Act 2005; the Official Solicitor can be invited to represent that party as their litigation friend or in the proceedings, or Guardian appoint a person willing to do so. The Official Solicitor has the authority to provide instructions to progress any legal matter. However, the Official Solicitor is the litigation friend of last resort and will only act if there is nobody else suitable and willing to act.

It is usually better for a relative or friend to act as a litigation friend.

Nevertheless in such instances the support of family and friends and obtaining the correct legal advice is vital. Within family law matters inevitably the mental health state of a party can be important; especially where there are children and/or matrimonial finance involved. It is imperative that those suffering with a mental illness are given a voice within any family law proceedings. It is therefore highly advisable to seek legal advice from family solicitors in the first instance if you or somebody you know is suffering from a mental illness and has family law issues.

Legal 500 Law Firm, Duncan Lewis has extensive experience of working with clients throughout London and across the UK with mental health issues in family law proceedings. Duncan Lewis has specialist Family / Child Care & Mental Health Law Departments that work closely together to ensure that both legal rights and mental health interests are safeguarded promptly and sensitively for all clients.

Author, Savita Sharma of Duncan Lewis is a Director & Solicitor specialising in Family Law.

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Mo Farah to receive knighthood?

Prime Minister David Cameron has said that he would "warmly welcome" a recommendation for Mo Farah to be knighted.

The 30-year-old athlete achieved a historic double-double in Moscow on last Friday night as he added two world titles to the twin Olympic triumphs from last summer. The feat, completed by racing to 5,000m glory at the Luzhniki Stadium, sealed his status as perhaps the best British athlete in history. Last summer he also took both the 5,000 and 10,000m PM David Cameron crowns at the London Olympic.

Mo Farah

14

UK

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 24th August 2013

Asian Achievers Awards shortlisted candidates named It is that time of year again when the high-flyers of the Asian community will gather under one roof this September to attend the highly anticipated annual Asian Achievers Awards 2013.

The Awards will take place on Friday 6th September at the prestigious Grosvenor House Hotel in Park Lane. The theme of the awards this year is Women's Achievements and the chief guest is Cherie Blair.

Previous special guests include Icon of Indian Cinema and silver screen veteran Hema Malini, Rt Hon Dr Vince Cable, Shriti Vadera, Tony Blair, Jack Straw, Sebastian Coe and David Blunkett to name a few.

An independent panel of high profile judges have shortlisted nominees down to the finest in the community and the winner in each of the nine categories will be announced at the event. Five of the nine categories of shortlisted nominees are as follows:

WOMAN OF THE YEAR FARIDA GIBBS Farida Gibbs is the CEO of GibbsS3, a globally certified woman-owned business enterprise. Gibbs S3 has become an international provider of IT Staffing, Business Change and Project Solutions with operations in the US and Europe.

KAMAL BASRAN OBE Kamal Basran is the owner and non-executive director of the £35m-turnover Authentic Food Company, which she founded in 1985. Employing 248 staff, it has its headquarters in Wythenshawe, supplying frozen Indian, Oriental, Mediterranean and British dishes to retail and food outlets.

BALJINDER BOPARAN The 2 Sisters Food Group is a Birmingham based food-manufacturing company, established in 1993 by Chief Executives, Baljinder and Ranjit Boparan, as a frozen retail cutting operation. It has grown rapidly through acquisition and expanded to cover 36 manufacturing sites in the UK, 8 in the Netherlands, 5 in Ireland and 1 in Poland. It is listed 19th on the 2013 Sunday Times Top Track 100.

MEENA PATHAK OBE Meena Pathak is today widely heralded as the woman who brought Indian cuisine to the masses. After receiving a degree in catering and food in India, Meera started experimenting with tikkas and tandooris – the popular Indian flavours - trying to find a new way of preserving them in Britain. After three months, she finally created a paste which could be manufactured in a jar, sparking off a revolution in Indian food in Britain. The Patak’s company never looked back.

BUSINESS PERSON OF THE YEAR THEMBALATH RAMACHANDRAN Bristol Laboratories Ltd was established in 1997 and since then, with the focused strategic vision and leadership of Mr. T Ramachandran, the company has become one of the fastest growing generic companies in the country.

FIROZ TEJANI The Tejanis are best known for International Currency Exchange or ICE. It was one of the earliest foreign Exchange outlets on the high street in the UK, and today its expansion encompasses most of the globe.

MUMTAZ KHAN Mumtaz Khan is founder and owner of the Mumtaz brand and has since become one of the richest men in Yorkshire and Lancashire, with a personal wealth of £85 million (2013). Mumtaz Khan is the Governor of the first bank to open in Azad Kashmir and the founder of Halal Baby Food and Mumtaz group of Industries.

DILESH MEHTA Dilesh Mehta is a true visionary and entrepreneur with over 25 years in the prestige fragrance industry. He has built company Shaneel Enterprises Ltd (Designer Perfumes) into a global entity.

SPORTS PERSONALITY OF THE YEAR SADDIQA SHAN Saddiqa Shan is a Muslim girl, with a keen interest and

passion in football. From her younger years she pursued it through playing for some renowned clubs, such as Aston Villa and Birmingham city, and still continues her participation.

RUQSANA BEGUM Ruqsana Begum is an English kickboxer who is currently British female Atomweight (48–50 kg) Muay Thai boxing Champion and captain of the British Muay Thai Team. She is also coach at “Fight for Peace,” a charity which uses boxing as a prevention and rehabilitation model to confront the problem of child and youth participation in crime.

VISHAL LADWA Vishal M Ladwa is the captain of the England Men’s Kabaddi team. Titled the ‘David Beckham of Kabaddi’ Vishal has popularised and pioneered the growth of kabaddi in the UK after captaining not only the University of Manchester and the University College London kabaddi team but also founding the National Universities of Kabaddi League (NUKL) KIRAN MATHARU Kiran Matharu is a female golfer who is predicted to dominate women’s golf for many years. Yorkshire born Kiran started golf at the age of 11 and hasn’t looked back since.

ACHIEVEMENT IN COMMUNITY SERVICE PIARA SINGH AULAKH MBE Instrumental in the development of the Gurudwara in Hounslow and initiator for the development of many popular community services, Piara is currently a Director for the Sikh Human Rights Group.

PROFESSOR NAINA PATEL OBE Naina Patel is the founder of Policy Research Institute on Community and inter-faith relations (PRIAE) in the UK. She founded the institute in 1998 to meet a large gap in ageing an ethnicity research, engagement of elders to service information and innovations.

DORAB ERACH MISTRY Mr Dorab Erach Mistry is a British Indian who holds 10 directorships, 6 of which are currently active, and 4 are previous. Since 1996 Dorab has been a regular speaker on the buy and sell rates of india.

CHARAN KANWAL SEKHON Working with many charitable organisations & faith groups, Charan played a key role in raising over one million pounds for over 20 charities. The first Asian to run London Marathon to raise funds for UK’s leading disability charity Papworth Trust, Cambridge, he is also Town Councillor and Regional Coordinator for UK’s leading Yoga charity.

MEDIA, ARTS AND CULTURE AMOL RAJAN Amol is the first non-white editor of the independent newspaper. Before his post, he was a news reporter, sports correspondent, columnist comment editor and editor of the independent voices.

SEETA INDRANI Seeta began her career in the original cast of Andrew Lloyd Webber’s international hit, Cats, going on to work with companies as esteemed as The Royal Shakespeare Company, The Royal National Theatre and, Rambert dance Company.

KIRAN SHAH Kiran shah is an actor, stuntman and performer and is a devoted, well loved member of the film industry. He has been involved with epic films such as The Hobbit, Lord of the Rings, The Chronicles of Narnia, Star Wars, Indiana Jones, Superman, Titanic to name a few.

NAVIN KUNDRA Navin Kundra has made his mark as an achiever in media, arts and culture through his singing, songwriting, composing, producing and performing. Added to his accomplishments is a Guinness World Record for the largest Bollywood dance at the Manchester Mega Mela to his song Mehbooba.

Dear Readers, Diwali is two months away. The New Year is knocking at the door waiting to bring in colours and light to our lives with fervour of joy and ever lasting happiness.

Asian Voice and Gujarat Samachar as every year will be publishing the ‘Diwali Special’ Magazine for our fabulous and supportive readers like yourself. This year in the English section, we are doing something special for our young readers.

-If you are between 10-25 years of age, write an article in English on 'how you celebrate your Diwali every year' or 'your most memorable Diwali' in no more than 700 words, along with your photo.

Or - if you an organisation, which has a youth wing or support youth activities, tell us how your young members or youth wing celebrates Diwali in 500-600 words with 2 pictures (in no less than 300dpi).

Last day of entry is Sunday 6th October 2012.

Please email to aveditorial@abplgroup.com with your full name, age and contact number.

- Asian Voice

Ilayaraja to rock London on bank holiday Veteran actor Kamal Haasan is all set to join the legendary music composer Ilayaraja in his live concert to be held in London. The concert named as "Raja the Raja" (Raajathi Raja) is scheduled to happen on Saturday 24 August at the O2 Auditorium in London from 4:30pm. The event is being held as a tribute to Ilayaraja, the maestro who has done soundtrack for more than 800 Indian films including Bollywood. He is also famously known as A R Rahman's 'Guru' or in other words, inspiration.

Ilayaraja has nearly hit the 1000 film mark, in his 37 year career and has composed nearly 5000 songs, in more than 10 regional languages in India, from Tamil and Hindi, to Kannada and Malayalam. He has provided intricate film scores for more than 950 Indian films in various languages in a career spanning more than 37 years.

He holds a gold medal in guitar from Trinity College, London and is renowned for his lightening speed in composing music, his complex orchestral arrangements and his work with the Budapest Symphony Orchestra. He has also juxtaposed Western Classical music with Eastern traditions, in albums like Nothing but wind and How to name it.

Popular musicians including SP Balasubramaniyan,

Ilayaraja

Yuvan, SP Shilaja, Karthik, Jeya Chandran and Chimayi will be among others to attend the event. He is a multiple award winner, from various organisations in India and around the world, and is also the recipient of the prestigious Padma Bhushan Award from the Government of India.

There are rumours that one of India’s most revered film stars, the multi-talented Kamal Haasan is taking time off the sets of the film Vishwaroopam 2, the sequel to it’s controversial part 1, to be at the show, after incurring an injury on the set. He reportedly told an Indian media, “I believe that this wound on my face will be healed when I come to London.

Ilayaraja’s music can heal any wound. I do not know what magic it wields, but his music can do wonders, for me – see you there, on August 24th, The O2, you and me, as fans of Ilayaraja.” Haasan is also a close associate of The Lord of the Rings film franchise producer, Barrie M Osborne.

Husband hires thieves to rob his lover at Victoria Station Nilanka De Silva, 34, masterminded a shrewd plan to steal £10,000 from his mistress Kirti Mistry on March 3, after he learnt she would be travelling through the station with money to pay for her ill mother's treatment. De Silva planned to use the stolen money to repay a £40,000 debt her owed her. The robbery occurred at Victoria station in cen-

t r a l London, and left Ms M i s t r y traumatised. The plot only surfaced because one of the t h i e v e s , Christopher Wynter, was an experienced criminal under police surveillance.

He was then sentenced for 20 months by Recorder Francis Bacon.

UK

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 24th August 2013

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If you have any particular topics you would like covered on my page, please let me know.

MusIc

Tanveer Mann

Shide Boss releases brand new single ‘Kangna’!

After having great success with his debut hit 'Ni Sohniye' in 2011, Shide proves he is one of the UK's brightest music talents with his highly anticipated new summer anthem ‘Kangna’. The song released on 15th August by Moviebox Records and went straight to the number one spot in the iTunes World Music Chart in a matter of hours.

‘Kangna’ is produced by one of the most in demand Asian producers of the moment, the international hit maker Dr Zeus. Shide and Zeus have collaborated to create a Punjabi / Urban dance anthem which is sure to rock the dance floors around the country in 2013.

‘Kangna is out to buy now on iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/gb/album/kangnafeat.-dr.-zeus-single/id681874542. Watch the video for ‘Kangna’ on YouTube: www.youtube.com/movieboxrecordlabel

Singing Sensation Avina Shah releases new single ‘Aao Na' Since the release of her charity debut single ‘Tere Bina’, followed by the hugely successful dance track ‘Dil Deweena’, Avina Shah has been performing at events across the globe. She is now back with her brand new single ‘Aao Na’, a romantic love song, yearning for someone that is not in your life anymore and wanting to reunite with them for just one more night.

Did you know..?

women blink twice as much as men

POLITICS With the world becoming smaller due to the explosion of Twitter and Facebook, it seems that even pre-teens are up to date with breaking news and politics at just a click of a finger.

Gone are the days then, when Politics was merely an optional subject to take at A Level. This generation's youth are becoming increasingly politically aware and that is why, I believe, the voting age should be lowered from 18 to 16.

Today, there are over 1.5 million 16 and 17 year olds in the UK who are denied the vote. That is a significant portion of the UK population who are not given the chance to make sure youth issues are represented.

‘My new song is very different to my other releases; it’s a deep and meaningful ballad, very dreamy, very wishful. It’s a very different kind of love song this time, I think it’s something a lot of people will be able to relate to’ said Avina.

Due to the unique signature sound of her music, which fuses together Avina's melodious Hindi vocals with western style music; she has expanded her listenership across continents with thousands of fans and followers from an extensive range of cultures and musical backgrounds.

‘Aao Na’ releases on Thursday 22nd August 2013 and will be available to download on iTunes and many other online musical stores.

Word of the Week: Pule: To whine; whimper, intr.v. puled, pul·ing, pules.

Should 16 year olds be given the right to vote?

However, it seems the government are getting closer to achieving the significant change. Labour have already expressed their manifesto pledge to lower voting age by 2020 today. Shadow justice secretary Sadiq Khan said the change should take place in conjunction with improved citizenship education in schools to teach 16-year-olds about the democratic system.

Mr Khan, who is also MP for Tooting in south London, told The Sunday Times: ‘The evidence we have is that if you vote the first time you are entitled to, you will carry on doing so through your life. There are more and more things that 16 and 17-year-olds can do - work, pay national insurance and tax, have sexual relation-

FILM The Nomad Cinema has lined up an exciting programme of films this season for a magical open-air atmosphere in a number of beautiful locations.

ships, get married and enter civil partnerships and join the armed forces.’

According to the website www.votesat16.org, 16 year olds should be properly included in society and should be shown 'the trust and respect that society expects of us, by giving us the right to vote'.

What do you think?

Email your thoughts to tanveer.mann@abplgroup.com.

Wednesday 28 August - CORAM SECRET GARDEN -WHERE THE WILD THINGS ARE (PG) Thursday 29 August - FULHAM PALACE ANNIE HALL (15)

Screenings are below:

Wednesday 4 September - CORAM - THE LOST BOYS (15)

Wednesday 21 August - CORAM SECRET GARDEN - THE KID (U)

Thursday 5 September - FULHAM PALACE WHEN HARRY MET SALLY (15)

Thursday 22 August - HORNIMAN MUSEUM AND GARDENS - THE MOTORCYCLE DIARIES (15)

Friday 6 September - ROUNDWOOD PARK GHOSTBUSTERS (PG)

Saturday 24 August - QUEEN’S PARK - THE USUAL SUSPECTS (18) Sunday 25 August - HORNIMAN MUSEUM AND GARDENS - CENTRAL STATION (15)

Saturday 7 September - QUEEN’S PARK CROUCHING TIGER, HIDDEN DRAGON (12) Tuesday 10 September - BROMPTON CEMETERY - DONNIE DARKO (15) Wednesday 11 September - BROMPTON CEME-

www.punjabeeblonde.wordpress.com tanveer.mann@abplgroup.com

EDUCATION

AS COST OF UNIVERSITY INCREASES, NUMBER OF STUDENTS STRUGGLING TO MAKE ENDS MEET RISES As many university hopefuls head to their universities of choice next month, not-so-positive figures show that since the increase in tuition fees came into effect last September, more students are continuing to struggle to make ends meet.

Lloyds TSB’s third annual Student Finance Report reveals that nearly one in five (18%) fulltime students at university in 2012/13 surveyed say they do not have enough money to meet monthly outgoings, compared to around one in six (16%) last year. Nearly half of students (38%) admit they are only just meeting their monthly outgoings but money is tight.

With many students’ annual income derived from student loans, over half (56%) surveyed think they will be in debt of over £10,000 on completion of their course, with the average estimated debt at £16,909. This is a stark contrast with the £27,796 estimate by first year undergraduates - a clear sign that the rise in tuition fees is having a significant impact on students. It is not so shocking then, that over half of first year undergraduates (55%), were worried about the levels of debt they may be taking on due to their present degree.

The survey also revealed that 51% of students had a full or part time job within the last academic year, compared to 48% the previous academic year.

To make ends meet, more than four in ten of these students have turned to paid work to supplement their income, with 43% saying their main reason for finding employment was to support themselves through university.

Seeking employment to supplement income is having an adverse affect on an increasing larger proportion of students with 29% of those who worked during term time in the past academic year admitting that it has affected their studies in a negative way, compared with 25% in 2012.

Philip Robinson, director of current accounts at Lloyds TSB, says: “Following the rise in tuition fees, our research shows that the majority of students are expecting to leave university with a high level of debt, with most expecting to see this extend well into five figures'.

TERY - EDWARD SCISSORHANDS (12) Thursday 12 September - FULHAM PALACE FOUR WEDDINGS AND A FUNERAL (15) Thursday 19 September - FULHAM PALACE AMÉLIE (15) Friday 20 September - HYDE PARK LIDO - IN THE MOOD FOR LOVE (PG) Saturday 21 September - QUEEN’S PARK ROMAN HOLIDAY (U) Sunday 22 September - HYDE PARK LIDO BREATHLESS (PG) Tickets are available now from whereisthenomad.com. Prices range from £8.50 £16.00. Age Restrictions Apply.

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www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 24th August 2013

Hrithik, Priyanka to smooch in ‘Spiderman’ style

While Hrithik Roshan-starrer “Krrish 3” will be high on action, Hrithik's fans will get a chance to see their idol as both a superhero as well as romantic avatar.

The movie will allegedly show Hrithik smooching Priyanka Chopra in a style similar to “Spiderman.” Hrithik will be hanging upside down while he locks his lips with Priyanka in an intense romantic scene. Sources who have seen the scene being shot say that the scene is similar to the one in which Toby Maguire shares an intense kiss with Kirsten Dunst in Spiderman. Film makers wanted to have an intense kiss between the lead couple.

However, they wanted it to be unique and hence they thought of ‘borrowing’ this concept from Hollywood.

Kajol wants ‘strong’ script

Actress Kajol is looking for the kind of script that makes her feel it’s worth spending time away from her children when she starts shooting for the film. “If I have to do a film, then I feel there should be a reason for it. The script should be so good and strong that the time I am not spending with my kids does not seems to be wasted.

It should be that good,” she said. The 39year-old was last seen in a full-fledged role in two 2010 releases – “My Name Is Khan” and “Toonpur Ka Superhero”. She made a special appearance in Karan Johar’s 2012 directorial venture “Student Of The Year.”

As of now, Kajol, a mother of two kids is enjoying time with her family. “To tell you the truth, I am very happy with my life, with my children. I am really happy bringing them up, spending time with them,” said the actress.

What prompted John to slash his fees?

John Abraham, who is a happy producer with “Vicky Donor's” success is excited about his upcoming film “Madras Café” and claims that budget is very important thing when it comes to his productions. When asked about his little secret as a producer, John stressed, "Madras Cafe's budget is just a fraction of all big films. I have to keep a check on budgets and that's the most important part." John claims that he enjoys acting more than producing. "I enjoy acting more than producing. On being asked about the toughest thing to be a producer, John claimed, "Well the clash between me as a producer and an actor was my fees. As a producer I cut my own fees as an actor."

‘Chennai Express’ among top four all time grosser

It seems that Shah Rukh Khan and Deepika Padukone starrer “Chennai Express” is going to give tough competition for films which have managed to make a record for themselves. With the fastest entry to 100 crore club, SRK's film has made 1.82 billion at the box office till Friday. The Independence Day collection has reached an amount of 196 million in India which has surely benefited the film at the box office. Rohit Shetty's Chennai Express has reached the top 4 all time grosser films.

I get to maintain my original skin colour: Vedhika Vedhika is thrilled to be part of two period films Bala’s ‘Paradesi’ and Va s a n t h a b a l a n ’ s ‘Kaaviyathalaivan’ - back-toback in Kollywood. And, unlike in her previous film, the actress does not have to darken her skin tone for her current film. Vedhika says, “For Paradesi, I had to darken my skin tone with the help of makeup so that I could look the part. But, in Kaaviyathalaivan, I get to maintain my original skin colour.

Though both are period films, I sport a very different look in this film, something that’s very traditional.” The actress started shooting for her portions, along with Siddharth, Prithviraj and Nasser, in Karaikudi early this month.

I'm a fighter: Deepika Padukone

Ever since she stimulated proper expressions in 'Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani' and then wowed with her emoting in 'Chennai Express', Deepika Padukone has moved up on the success ladder.

The actress is not swayed by this, says she never gives up and would continue to work hard. "I feel ups and downs are a part of one's career and this totally depends on how you take it. You can either be knocked down by the negative things or you can take it in a positive way and learn from it," Deepika said in an interview. "Maybe because I am from a sports background, I don't give up easily. I am a fighter," added the daughter of former All England badminton champion Prakash Padukone.

Richa Panai game for more in Kollywood After working in a couple of Malayalam and Telugu films, Richa Panai is excited about debuting in Kollywood with Suresh Kumar's Manathil Mayam Seithai (MMS). "I've done Yamudiki Mogudu with Allari Naresh in Telugu, and that's how the makers of MMS noticed me. It's a TamilTelugu bilingual, and I'm happy to have landed this project," says Richa. The actress plays Mythili in the film, and is paired opposite Sethu of Mynaa fame. "It's a love and revenge saga, a battle of guts. It's not an experimental film, but not the regular family drama as well," she smiles, "We shot both in Chennai and Hyderabad, and I'm slowly getting acquainted with the way the Tamil industry works. It's one of the most reputed industries, and I'm open to signing on more films here."

Ayushmann Khurrana to star in period film Ayushmann Khurrana is set to portray a historical character in a period film, but refuses to divulge any details. "I am soon going to play a historical character. I am going to do a period film and you will get to know about it soon," the 28-year-old told reporters at the 'Saath Hain Hum Uttarakhand' show, organised on the occasion of Independence Day. "I am not allowed to speak about it right now, but yes, I am going to do a biopic," he added.

Ayushmann is currently shooting for Yash Raj Films' untitled project with Sonam Kapoor.

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 24th August 2013

Vikram Prabhu in dilemma!

Vikram Prabhu, son of actor Prabhu and grandson of legend Sivaji Ganesan, made a sensational debut in cinema with ‘Kumki!’ Though his debut movie itself generated a lot of buzz and won a lot of accolades and awards, it is said that Vikram Prabhu was in a dilemma as to whether he should choose acting or directing! Vikram Prabhu has three movies on hand, including ‘Ivan Veramathiri’ directed by M Saravanan, ‘Sigaram Thodu’ with Thoonga Nagaram director Gaurav Narayanan and ‘Arima Nambi’ with Anand Shankar. All these three movies are said to be of different genres, and all these directors signed up Vikram after being impressed with his performance in Kumki! At this stage, it looks like Vikram’s confusion and decision to take up acting before directing, sure does seem to be paying rich dividends!

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Anushka Sharma to play a jazz singer T

alks of “Jab Tak Hain Jaan” girl, Anushka Sharma playing the role of a bar dancer in Anurag Kaskyap's upcoming “Bombay Velvet” have been doing the rounds. However, a leading daily reported that Anushka will actually be seen in a more retro role, a jazz singer from the 60's. We hear the diva has been taking lessons from an Indo-Australian jazz singer to help her get into the skin of the character. The vivacious Anushka Sharma will be seen sharing screen space opposite Bollywood's heartthrob, Ranbir Kapoor. Fans and the media alike are curious to see what kind of chemistry the two youngsters will share. The film also stars filmmaker Karan Johar, who will be playing a baddie for the first time.

“Bombay Velvet” is the first film from a trilogy about Mumbai before the city turned into a Metropolis.

Rishi Kapoor angry with Katrina's visit to his house?

K

Kangna to wear `125,000 worth shoes in ‘Krrish 3’ Hrithik Roshan-starrer “Krrish 3” is making news with its awesome trailer, a smooching scene between lead couple Priyanka and Hrithik and its resemblance to X-men series. Now we hear that Kangna Ranaut, who is playing a mutant in movie, is wearing shoes that are allegedly worth `125,000. The actress is very excited as she will get to sport designer shoes that are allegedly being personally designed

by Gavin Miguel. Will Kangna be able to carry such expensive shoes with elan?

atrina a n d Ranbir may have played hide and seek with the media previously, but it seems like they were avoiding a clash with the big daddy - Rishi Kapoor instead! Seems like the couple's worst nightmare has come to life! The recent holiday pictures of the couple have awakened the sleeping giant! Previously a hangout spot for the duo, Katrina would often visit Krishnaraj, Ranbir Kapoor's residence and has allegedly even celebrated her birthday there. But it seems like this area is now off limits for Katz! Were these visits kept under wraps for a reason? Well, sources have revealed that Rishi Kapoor is quite miffed with the recent rumors floating around about the couple. He has also had a bit of a show down with the media in the past about the same. Hence this time around when Katrina was visiting Ranbir post his trip to Colombo, she had to face the wrath of Kapoor daddy.

Salman's visa woes delays 'Kick' start

S

ajid Nadiadwala's magnum opus 'Kick' has been in the pipeline for two years but the project has been stuck deep in the doldrums ever since. A lot of the film's woes are tied to the troubles of its star Salman Khan and the bad times refuse to end for both. Nadiadwala flew to Glasgow in the last week of July with the cast and crew to shoot the first schedule of the film but Salman was stuck in Mumbai because of visa troubles and a looming court date in the hit-and-run case. The director-producer flew back to Mumbai for Eid celebrations but insiders tell that the real reasons are a lot less celebratory.

According to last reports, Salman was supposed to leave for Glasgow but the actor is twiddling thumbs at home as he has still not received the required work permit for his UK shoot. When contacted, the actor's father Salim Khan said, "My son has a tourist visa but he has not got the work permit yet. The shoot may have to be shifted elsewhere." A source close to the film said "The second schedule of the film was supposed to be shot in India and now that the Glasgow schedule has gone awry, the film may start with the second schedule in India."

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www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 24th August 2013

Financial Voice Dear Financial Voice Reader,

As the Rupee plunges and Narendrabhai becomes more attractive, Summer is a good time to think about your investments of course, but take a longer view on improving your investment self. For most people the problem is they can’t ever find the time. I like most professional investors have some tricks to improve your investments through creating the time to think about things. (This is part 1) ‘The reasonable man adapts himself to the world; the unreasonable one persists in trying to adapt the world to himself. Therefore all progress depends on the unreasonable man.’ George Bernard Shaw, Maxims for Revolutionaries Here are the rules for entrepreneurs and the rest of us if we dare. They are a combination of my experiences and those of entrepreneur and author of New York Times Bestseller, ‘The Four Hour Work Week’.

I started trading at the age of 12. The same age as Warren Buffett. So how come I’m not as rich as Buffett was at my age?

Simple, like most entrepreneurs I worked too hard. I didn’t spend enough time thinking. Buffett’s not cleverer than me. Seriously, I know, I have a higher IQ. Actually my IQ is higher than that of Albert Einstein. The difference is, they both spent more time thinking than me and that is why they achieved more.

At Oxford, I worked too hard. Sure, I was an Oxford Don at 29, with my own FT column and show on Bloomberg, and a book published by the FT outselling Harry Potter – for a time. All those things however came not from hard work, they came from thinking.

As the philosopher and Nobel Prize winner Bertrand Russell said, “Men fear thought as they fear nothing else on earth — more than ruin, more even than death.”

Hard work will make entrepreneurs rich, but not wealthy. “There is a difference between the merely rich, and the wealthy’ would say the son of Lord Bagri, Hon Apurv Bagri, my onetime mentor and best friend.

So I have changed as an entrepreneur; to move from a rich income to serious wealth. And in so doing, I have a confession. I’m not a busy person. I used to be, in my 30s. No longer. People think I am busy. I like them to think that, so they leave me alone with time to think.

They think I must go to a function every single evening and weekends. They think I travel endlessly and never speak to my family. Wrong. My parents live with me and my weekends are empty by principle.

I’m not busy, and I don’t plan to be. ‘But you do TV programmes, write books, run a private equity firm, do TV interviews, work with charities. I don’t get it, where do you find the time? I bet you don’t have time for family and are always travelling.’

Part 2 is next week, with rules to create time to think about investing.

India lags BRIC peers on import cover India may not be short of foreign exchange to cover its import bill but the falling rupee and fears of FIIs withdrawing some of their investments in the country have put a spotlight on the reserves.

From an import cover of over 17 months a decade ago, India now has reserves of around $279 billion, sufficient to fund imports of just under seven months. In contrast, the BRIC peers - China, Russia and Brazil - have reserves to cover imports for one-and-a-half to two years. Compared to some of its Asian countries, such as South Korea, Malaysia and Indonesia, the situation in India would appear to be under control. But, economists are quick to point out that barring Indonesia, all other economies with similar import covers have a surplus on the current

account, while India reported a record deficit of 4.8% of GDP in 2012-13.

Of course, as the government has maintained that there is no need to panic just yet. "We are not short of money, or reserves or foreign exchange," India’s economic affairs secretary Arvind Mayaram said.

The government seems to be drawing comfort from the possible fall in gold imports after a series of measures initiated by it.

But, a weaker rupee will push up the import bill for oil and other products even if shipments stay flat.

"There is stress on multiple fronts and external vulnerabilities have gone up. While there is pressure on foreign exchange reserve, much higher compared to 1991," said D K Joshi, chief economist at rating agency Crisil.

Euro zone comes out of recession faster than expected

Stronger growth in Germany and France helped the euro zone to emerge from its longest recession to date in the second quarter, confirming expectations a fragile recovery was under way.

The 17 countries sharing the euro needed seven quarters to return to growth of 0.3 per cent, on a seasonally adjusted basis, in the three months to June, data from the European Union's statistics office Eurostat showed.

Confirming a fragmented picture of the rebound, Spain's economy fell by 0.1 per cent on the quarter, while Italy and the Netherlands both dropped by 0.2 per cent.

Bailed euro zone peer Portugal posted a 1.1 per cent expansion, showing the fastest growth in the euro

zone in the three months to June, data showed.

The bloc's performance in the second quarter beat expectations of 35 economists who anticipated a 0.2 per cent rise.

The economy fell in the second quarter by 0.7 per cent, compared with the same period last year, with the market anticipating a 0.8 per cent decline.

Eurostat revised the first quarter drop in the

euro zone to to 0.3 per cent on the quarter, from a previous 0.2 per cent fall.

The single currency area, however, now faces an uneven and bumpy recovery dented by record high joblessness and belttightening austerity in peripheral countries, which need to speed up market reforms, boost growth and create new jobs.

The eurozone's growth, which translates to an

annualized rate of around 1.3 per cent, is still well below the 1.8 per cent the US enjoyed during the second quarter.

The figures will be greeted with a sigh of relief

by Europe's policymakers, who have spent nearly four years grappling with a debt crisis that has threatened the very future of the euro.

But they were not ready to declare victory, aware that this is only the start of what is expected to be a slow and uneven recovery.

"This slightly more positive data is welcome - but there is no room for any complacency whatsoever," Olli Rehn, the EU's top monetary official, said in his blog after the release of the figures. "I hope there will be no premature, self-congratulatory statements suggesting `the crisis is over'."

India’s inflation jumps to Diageo to pay Indian-origin 5.79 pc on high food prices CEO Menezes 1.05 bn India's wholesale pricebased inflation jumped to 5.79 per cent in July, the fastest pace in five months, due to a sharp rise in the prices of food items and fuel, government data showed.

The headline inflation measured in terms of the Wholesale Price Index (WPI) accelerated to 5.79 per cent in July as against 4.86 per cent recorded in the previous month.

Inflation was recorded at 7.52 per cent in the corresponding month of last year, according to data released by the ministry of commerce and industry.

Prices of vegetables jumped 46.59 per cent.

Onion prices soared 144.94 per cent year-onyear.

Food inflation soared to 11.91 per cent during the month under review as compared to 10.17 per cent recorded in the corresponding month of last year.

The price of rice soared by 21.15 per cent and cereals became costlier by 17.66 per cent. Wheat prices jumped by 13.42 per cent. However, pulses were 7.39 per cent cheaper.

High diesel prices pushed up fuel and power inflation to 11.31 per cent in July 2013 as compared to 8.39 per cent recorded in the same month last year.

Diesel became costlier by 26.34 per cent. The cooking gas price rose by 5.78 per cent and the petrol price rose marginally by 1.33 per cent.

The annual inflation data for May was revised downward at 4.58 per cent from 4.7 per cent reported earlier.

According to data released by the Central Statistics Office (CSO), retail inflation based on the Consumer Price Index (CPI) was recorded at 9.64 per cent in July.

The world’s largest spirits maker Diageo Plc has proposed an annual pay package of up to 10.9-million British pounds (about Rs 1.05 billion) for its newly appointed Indian-origin CEO Ivan Menezes.

Menezes, who has been with UK-headquartered Diageo for about 13 years, was paid total remuneration of 7.8-million pounds (Rs 750 million) in the last financial year ended June 30, 2013 when he served as chief operating officer.

After his promotion as CEO with effect from July 1, he has been given an 8.6% hike in base salary to onemillion pounds (about Rs 96 million) and would be entitled to further benefits totalling up to 9.9-million pounds (Rs 950 million) a year, Diageo said in its latest annual regulatory filing.

Diageo, which owns brands like Johnnie Walker, Smirnoff, Baileys and Guinness, recently acquired a significant

stake in India’s leading liquor firm United Spirits from Vijay Mallya-led UB Group in a deal worth over $2 billion.

The 53-year-old Menezes, who studied at premier Indian educational institutions like St Stephen’s College and IIM-Ahmedabad besides Kellogg School of Management in the US, is said to have been instrumental in the United Spirits deal.

Prior to joining Diageo, Menezes held senior positions with giants like Nestle, Booz Allen Hamilton and Whirlpool.

India’s 10 leading business houses, including Reliance Group, Vedanta, Essar and Adani, have seen their total debt levels soar by 15 per cent to over Rs 6,000 billion during the last fiscal while profitability continues to remain under pressure, a research report said.

The cumulative debt of these groups, which also include Jaypee, GMR, GVK, JSW, Lanco and Videocon, is likely to further increase in the current fiscal because of

rupee depreciation and delays in projects being undertaken by many of them, Credit Suisse said its annual House of Debt report for India.

According to the report, the collective debt of these 10 groups rose to Rs 6,310.25 billion at the end of last fiscal ended March 31, 2013, from Rs 5,473.61 billion a year ago.

"For most of them the debt increase has outpaced capex and asset sales are yet to take off.

The rising stress is visible with some loans of Lanco, JPA, and (Anil Ambaniled) Reliance groups already being restructured," it said.

"The largest increases have been at groups such as GVK, Lanco and ADA where the gross debt levels are up 24 per cent year-over-year.

Asset sales-key for de-leveraging for most of these - have still not taken-off; only GMR and Videocon have had some success on that front," Credit Suisse said.

The report also warned of additional asset quality stress of banks because of growing debt levels of big business houses. While large corporate NPLs (non performing loans) are still low, the over leverage in the large corporate segment is high and is a potential source of additional asset quality stress for banks, it said, while adding that corporate asset quality issues are likely to persist for the banking sector.

Ivan Menezes

India's top 10 business groups' debt rises to `6,000 bn

finAnciAl Voice

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 24th August 2013

19

Joining the dots

Suresh Vagjiani Sow & Reap A Property Investment Company

Last week we met a client who didn’t realise what potential he was sitting on. He is in the Rag trade. The 'rag trade' is the garment trade where many Asians have made their wealth including the famous Dhirubhai Ambani.

We have several clients from this industry and they all say it’s a difficult environment; it isn’t as good as it used to be. Margins have been cut right down, previously China was not as open to trade as it is now and the world has become a flat level playing field. Also when there is too much information available it is difficult to find margins.

Consequently his income had dropped from £50k to £15k, yet he is still engaged in the same activity. Rather like a mouse going around a wheel. You often find many business people who have made their wealth doing one thing. However the environment has changed, and therefore business has declined, yet they still clutch on to the original business which initially made their wealth for them. They do this as it is comfortable, they know the business, they have relationships with their clients... And they cannot let go of it… it's like their baby.

They neither adapt their business to the modern world nor do they venture into other territories. What's sad is they have worked and saved very hard, often paying off any loans they had on the business and their properties; and yet they still carry on playing an outdated record.

Cl early th e model which se rved t hem a cou ple o f decades ago will n ot serve t hem be st n ow. The world has moved on, you did n't have in ternet back then . In divid uals as well have change d their priorities, t he h ig hest prio rity is n ot nece ssarily to earn mon ey, prioritie s have chan ged in ord er. Mo ney will always rank hig hly in the prio rity of a Gu jarati but pe rhaps it is not the hig hest an y more. Lifestyle and he alth see m to be becoming high on the list.

Consequently to get the most out of their business they need to adapt to the new world and the opportunities it presents. Clearly doing the same thing to earn £15k does not make sense.

On speaking further we discovered he had three BTL properties which were all mortgage free. There were three proprieties which had a combined value of £800k, refinancing these at a sensible level would give a lump sum, based on 50%, of £400k. The cost of this would be roughly 5% per annum, this means this money will cost him £20k per annum.

There is another route to releasing money which is known as equity release. This allows you to take money out of your property and not pay interest on the funds until you and your spouse die.

Then the lender will reclaim their loan plus interest cost from the property by resell. This product has restrictions on the Loan to Value, the older you are the higher Loan to Value you will get. As Asians we never look at preserving wealth simply for ourselves, the tendency is too look at several generations down the line. This is a distinctive feature, which also runs heavily in the Jewish community.

Asians that might have done equity release, would have probably done this more as a part of a crude inheritance tax planning angle rather than an investment one.

If the amount of money released, £400k, was invested in a property fund and the fund had an expected minimum return of 15%, and then met this target, then the client would make £60,000 on his money, leaving him a net income of £40,000. So almost making him the same money that his business used to make during the good times.

Of course there are risks associated with any investments; when it comes to track record the past is the past and not the future, this is the first most obvious one. However the past is indicative of the future, furthermore this is property you're investing in not some fancy new idea. Property has stood the test of time and weathered many turbulent times in the economy.

Doing nothing is not an option. Your money is earning paltry returns in the bank, and services which were free are being stripped from you. If you do nothing your wealth goes backwards.

The principle here is the same as when you purchase a garment at £5 and sell it for £15, and you keep the difference. People can understand this. But when you apply the same principle to money for some reason they get confused. The interest rate percentage is the cost of borrowing money, so if you can use this money to get a higher percentage rate than what it has cost you to borrow then you have a profit. Here the profit will be 10% on the money invested.

Simply by joining the dots more money can be made than actually working (well in this gentleman's case anyway); the issue is many people think it's too good to be true. Therefore it is - for them.

But this saying is not cast in stone. For example if I had said you could purchase property with no money and get a cash back, this statement would also fall in to the category of 'too good to be true'.

Therefore it is considered false.

Yet I have previously been able to purchase a property with no cash and I received £40,000 cash back. Straight after completion.

This was in fairness during pre-credit crunch times, however the same principle is true still - but you need to wait six months. You can get all your money out from an investment and still have a cash flow.

There is still a way that you can also purchase property with no money down, but it's not as easy as the good old days. It is possible if you can find a property which has a good discount from the market valuation.

The biggest block for people not investing in property funds is not that of return or security, these concerns can be addressed satisfactorily. A compliant fund would have the necessary checks in place and the evidence would be there to back up the track record. The real issue is psychological; most people cannot conceive they can earn money for not doing anything. It has been ingrained in their psyche you need to work hard to earn your money, this has been passed down generation after generation.

The concept we passed to our client is in short: spend more time enjoying your life, and less in working; just by re-juggling your finances you can earn even more money for doing less - in fact nothing. Of course you need to be satisfied the return will be as expected and your funds will be held securely.

Why not attend one of our seminars or call our office to see what potential you may be sitting on?

And what do es he have to d o to get t his? No thing, ju st sig n some bits of paper. The rest is tak en care of. In short he ge ts his life bac k and earns even more mo ney.

The Real Deal Olympia, London, W14 Purchase Price: £1.25m l An end of terrace three storey Victorian building l 3,000 sq ft area with part residential and part as a pub l Freehold l Will come with vacant possession l Priced at £417 per sq ft while properties in this area are priced at £1,000 per sq ft Call us now to reserve!

We provide a turnkey solution. Contact us now:

Specialists in Central London Property Sourcing

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SowandReapProperties

Tips of the Week More people lose money from not making a decision than making the wrong decision when it comes to property investment.

Remember - The early bird gets the worm!

Property prices in good locations tend to be high, but these are the areas where you get the maximum capital appreciation. So it’s better to save or club together to ensure you purchase a diamond.

20

UK

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 24th August 2013

Manmohan seeks new thinking on RBI's monetary policy Maria Fernandes

maria@abplgroup.com

Museum of Migration lans are in hand to create a Museum on P Migration which will cele-

brate for, once the, role of migrants to the UK. It is being developed by those with experience in immigration and human rights and will look at the migration patterns in the past and look at where this society is headed. The rationale behind it is that in order to improve public perception of immigration, they must understand its history and an interesting way in which this will be achieved will be by an educational programme aimed at the younger generation. The interesting and different aspect of it is that it will be a mobile museum unit based in areas where immigration was traditionally high for example the Lake District which has a high Viking stock or in major cities such as Leicester, Birmingham or London which have a strong immigrant presence.

Exploratory work is being undertaken to establish how the units can be converged with other exhibitions taking place in the areas. There are museums of this nature in other countries but this one will be the first in the UK. It has solid financial backing and a good team of staff and trustees. Perhaps in time the notorious “Go Home” Van will be housed under the Silly Ideas section.

Bloody Foreigners

by Robert Winder: Much can be done to educate the public about the role of immigration. It should become part of the curriculum. An interesting book called “Bloody Foreigners: the story of immigration to Britain “is a fascinating book taking the reader through the various periods in history from the Lascars, Chinese and Gypsies. There were apparently nearly 20000 negro servants in London alone in 1700s. At around this time rich visitors, particularly from India, began to influence British ideas and as far back as 1773 the first British curry appeared on the menu. An Indian, SK Mohammed, established the first vapour bath in Brighton and introduced the word shampoo. In 1892 the first British MP of Indian origin was elected. The more recent waves of immigration have provoked outcries and it began with the influx of Irish refugees escaping the potato famine. This later concentrated on the Jews and the other communities. The book is interesting because it acknowledges that initially there was hostility but that the public come to terms with the change. He traces a fascinating story of immigration through the ages and it a compelling factual narrative of how societies absorb and develop.

India’s top brands chase rural niches to boost sales

A couple of decades after the FMCG companies' proverbial discovery of a pot of rural gold, companies higher up the consumption ladder: automobiles, jewellers, scotch whisky makers, financial service providers et al are eyeing rural niches with strong purchasing power to top-up revenues.

Maruti Suzuki, which has a 40% share of domestic four-wheeler sales, has identified about 300 rural niches in last five years, which today account for 10% of the company's domestic revenues. The company reached out to niches such as potato growers in West Bengal, blue pottery makers in Jaipur, timber merchants in Gujarat, turmeric growers in Tamil Nadu, granite polishers from Hyderabad, painters from Madhubani in Bihir and nut and bolt manufacturers in Sonepat among many others to beat the 2008 slowdown.

Having seen traction, it's an enthusiastic marketer

to the rural niches now.

Simply put, rural niche is nothing but India's spread-out hinterlandwealth driven by commodity cycles and increased economic activity. "The rural opportunity is really an ocean of niches. There is not one rural, but thousands of rural niches and each niche is an opportunity," said brand-expert Harish Bijoor.

"The initiative to identify 'niche segments' was to take the rural drive to the next level. The idea was to go granular in our approach. And we found that there were numerous small segments within the economy that were doing better than the rest," said Mayank Pareek, COO (marketing and sales), Maruti Suzuki India. This calendar, the auto major will add another 30 plus niche markets for greater rural penetration. Jewellery and saree retailers down south have followed a similar rural niche strategy in expanding their footprints to smaller towns.

Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh called for evolving a fresh thinking on RBI's monetary policy in a globalized economy and dealing with the constraints of its macro economic policies.

"The time has come to look at the possibilities and limitations of the monetary policy in a globalized economy and dealing with the constraints of the macro economic problems. That is where a fresh thinking is called for," he said. "I think Raghuram Rajan (Governor designate) will evolve a policy with the help of professional persons for a national consensus if we have to carry on with implementing social and economic changes in a complex economy,” Singh said.

The remarks assume significance in the context of the raging debate over RBI's hawkish policy stance on checking inflation vis a vis government priority on growth.

Singh was speaking after releasing "RBI History - Looking Back

Manmohan Singh

and Looking Ahead", the fourth volume of 78-yearold central bank's history, at a simple function at his residence.

The subject also came up in the speech of outgoing RBI governor Duvvuri Subbarao, who in his welcome address, said the debate on growth-inflation balance has been clouded by some "over simplifiations".

The Prime Minister, himself a governor between 1982 and 1985, recalled that when he was chosen to head the central bank, he had no idea of what a monetary policy was.

He said he had then asked noted economist Prof.

Sukhamoy Chakravarti to head a committee to go into

what a monetary policy should do and that report was a big help to him.

Singh expressed the hope that Raghuram Rajan would build on his predecessor's work to chart a new course of action in the very difficult period of economy now.

The prime minister said the RBI has done the country proud in shaping the monetary and credit policies and also influencing the line of credit in rural areas. "RBI has served the country with distinction.

But I would say the best is yet to come," he added.

On growth-inflation balance, Subbarao said the first and possibly the most important debate was about balancing between growth and inflation in the policy context. "This is a balance that both governments and central banks struggle with.

In my view, this debate has been clouded by some oversimplifications."

"One such oversimplification is to say that governments are for growth and central banks are for

price stability. Another oversimplification is to assert that there is a tension between growth and inflation, and that one necessarily has to play the trade-off between growth and inflation in policy making," he said.

Subbarao said RBI's monetary policy aimed at three objectives - price stability, growth and financial stability. "To contend that the Reserve Bank is obsessed with inflation, oblivious to growth concerns, I think, is both inaccurate and unfair. The Reserve Bank is committed to inflation control, not because it does not care for growth, but because it does care for growth. There is any amount of evidence to show that an evidence to show that an environment of low and stable inflation is a necessary precondition for sustainable growth.

How history will evaluate the Reserve Bank on its balanced commitment to growth and inflation is an interesting conjecture," the outgoing governor said.

RBI under pressure India does not need to end money crunch IMF credit: World Bank economist

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) should reverse the measures it has taken since April to tighten liquidity to restore investor confidence, boost growth and stabilise the rupee, a number of leading businessmen and economists have said amid dire predictions that the Indian currency could fall to Rs 65 per dollar in the coming days.

The rupee touched an intra-day low of 63.30 on Monday, its lowest level ever against the dollar, before closing at a new low of 63.13, down 148 paise, its worst single-day fall in a decade. "There is more pain likely for the rupee in the near term," said Sugandha Sachdeva, currency analyst, Religare.

Experts said RBI's liquidity tightening measures, instead of stabilising the rupee, was contributing to its fall by hurting growth and raising the spectre of a return of capi-

tal controls.

"RBI should not introduce any more monetary tightening measures. It should also roll back some of the measures (it has taken). Hurting growth will impact confidence," said Abheek Barua, chief economist, HDFC Bank.

"At this juncture, instilling confidence among investors should be the most important task," added Naina Lal Kidwai, president, Ficci, and country head, HSBC India.

However, Kaushik Basu, chief economist, The World Bank, felt the negative sentiment about India had been "overplayed" but he, too, accepted that growth might have suffered.

"Growth may not have bottomed out. We have further to go (down), but the situation is not as bad as is being captured by the headlines," he said at a function in Delhi.

As the Indian rupee and BSE Sensex crashed yet again, World Bank chief economist Kaushik Basu said, "India does not need to seek a line of credit from the International Monetary Fund (IMF) to help fix the economy."

"I don't think that we are in a situation where there is any need for that," Basu told reporters after giving a lecture in the Indian capital, when asked whether India should ask the IMF for money. "India has enough foreign exchange reserves, so the question of having to turn to the IMF is not there."

The rupee fell despite a series of measures unveiled last week to try to stall its decline. The rupee has been the worst performer in Asia since late May, when the US Federal Reserve first signaled that it may begin

Kaushik Basu

tapering its monetary stimulus this year, sparking an exodus of cheap money from emerging markets worldwide.

India's economic problems cannot be compared to the country's 1991 balance-of-payments crisis, Basu said. Basu cited a raft of economic data to show that the current situation was healthier than that of 1991, describing such comparisons as a "non question."

Trade flows between India and Pak despite tensions

Trade between India and Pakistan, one of the most significant confidence building measures (CBM), has been moving smoothly despite the recent crossborder firing in Jammu and Kashmir which have escalated tension and overshadowed the resumption of the dialogue process for normalisation of relations.

In fact, traders form both sides have been asking for upgradation of infrastructure to keep pace with expanding trade, especially through the AttariWagah land route. And

with India mulling importing onion to increase domestic supply, traders in India are quite enthusiastic sensing another opportunity and have asked their counterparts in Pakistan to be ready with permission for exporting the commodity that their government does not allow.

Even cross-border trade along the Line of Control (LOC) in Jammu and Kashmir has not stopped, although running on a very low-key fashion. Nawaz Sharif government has sought assistance from the

Asian Development Bank (ADB) to set up a border management system to deal with increased trade and transit traffic through the Attari-Wagah border.

Reports from Islamabad said the objective was to speed up processing of goods and people and cut down on waiting time.

Bilateral trade is conducted mostly through the Mumbai-Karachi sea route and Attari-Wagah land route. The Indian government has said the ceasefire violations in the past few months and killing of sol-

diers have not affected twoway trade. "Both sides have made considerable progress in improving bilateral trade ties. Pakistan has moved from a Positive List regime to a Negative List regime, which substantially increases the tradable items with India. India has similarly liberalized its earlier restrictions on inward/outward investment flows to Pakistan.

Both sides also agreed on a detailed roadmap for Preferential Trading Arrangements under the SAFTA.

finAnciAl voice

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 24th August 2013

21

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

Positive week for Euro Zone

Weekly Currencies As of Tuesday 20th August 2013 @ 4pm GBP - INR = 99.48

The euro zone enjoyed a positive week as improved GDP figures gave the European Central Bank (ECB) more reasons for optimism however the single currency has not strengthened.

It would appear that the recovering economy in mainland Europe still needs more positive data to compound its position.

Industrial production in the euro zone rose to 0.7% in June and the latest ZEW survey confirmed that economic sentiment for the euro zone rose higher than expectation in July.

The data is well timed and lends to expectations that the euro zone has exited a six quarter recession. However with renewed talk of Greece requiring another bailout we could well see a subdued reaction by the markets to support euro further.

Retail sales grew by 3% in July, surpassing a rise of 2.5%.

In recent weeks the pound has been rallying following encouraging data from the manufacturing, construction and service sectors as well as seeing increase in house prices. For the time being, it looks like

investors are looking past Mark Carney’s ‘Forward Guidance’ on keeping interest rates 0.5% until unemployment falls to 0.7% and are focusing on economic data to position themselves on the pound.

On the data front, the United Kingdom showed that the trade deficit narrowed to its lowest level in nearly a year in June and a separate report showed that the U.K. construction sector expanded in the second quarter, adding to signs that the recovery is gaining

traction. However the data, surprisingly, had little impact in supporting the pound. Inflation in the UK fell to 2.8% in July, in line with expectations; which should ease the squeeze on consumer purchasing power.

In the United States trading session once again saw more dollar weakness extending the pound’s position over the greenback to a two month high. The extent of the dollar’s weakness has come at a time when the majority of analysts have stated that they expect

the dollar to gain a significant amount of strength over the next three months as the Fed look to reduce their quantitative easing program in September or October. Only time will tell as to when this will happen however some telltale signs of this move can already be seen as global risk aversion has already begun to take hold as share prices have started to fall whereas the classic safe haven; gold has climbed almost 8% in the month of August.

However whilst rupee buyers will no doubt be wondering how much higher GBPINR could go, an element of caution should be noted. The Reserve Bank of India has continued to make plans to restrict the weakness of the rupee with various measures such as restricting the amount of money that can be sent out of the country and banning the imports of gold coins and bars.

Whilst these measures have been limited so far, if the RBI decide to take drastic action and actually intervene in the markets then we could see the rate fall considerably.

USD - INR = 63.47 EUR - INR = 85.25 GBP - USD = 1.57 GBP - EUR = 1.17 EUR - USD = 1.34 GBP - AED = 5.76 GBP - CAD = 1.63 GBP - NZD = 1.96 GBP - AUD = 1.72 GBP - ZAR = 15.91 GBP - HUF = 349.30

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

22

Pakistan-Bangladesh-sri lanka

In Focus Heavy rains kill 110 in Pak

Karachi: At least 110 people have been killed and 300,000 others affected due to the heavy monsoon rains and flooding in many parts of Pakistan, the National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) said. Senior NDMA officials said heavy rain and flooding had caused havoc in the provinces of Khyber-Pakhtunkhawa, Punjab and Balochistan. "In two weeks, the heavy rain have affected more than 300,000 people who have been displaced while around 110 people have died in the flooding and other incidents caused by the rain," an official said. He said around 770 villages had been hit by the rains while flooding had destroyed 2,427 houses.

Bangladesh observes National Mourning Day

Dhaka: Bangladesh observed the National Mourning Day at state level last week to commemorate the 38th death anniversary of Father of the Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and made a fresh pledge to build Bangladesh in line with the ideals of independence. A member of the parliament, Abdul Matin Khashru said that Rahman was killed to end the politics of pro- liberation. At the fateful dawn of August 15, 1975, a group of disgruntled army officers staged a bloody massacre and assassinated Bangabandhu and most of his family members, toppling his three-and-ahalf-year rule.

Lanka court orders release of 8 Indian fishermen

Colombo: A court in Sri Lanka ordered the release of eight Indian fishermen, who were taken into custody by naval personnel of the island nation on June 15 for allegedly crossing the International Martime Boundary Line. The fishermen who were under judicial custody since June 16 were ordered to be released by magistrate Anandhi Kanakarathinam of the court in Mannar. However, the remand of 41 other fishermen, arrested on different dates, was extended up to August 22, officials and president of Innocent Fishermenâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Association Arulanandham said.

Female Afghan MP taken hostage

Ghazni (Afghanistan): An unknown gang has kidnapped a female Afghan member of parliament, officials said, in the latest example of prominent women being targeted in the country. Fariba Ahmadi Kakar and her three children were taken at gunpoint in the central province of Ghazni on the main highway from Kandahar city to Kabul. "The security forces released her children (two girls, one boy) in an operation. But she has been kept in another location, we are still searching for her," Mohammad Ali Ahmadi, deputy provincial governor of Ghazni, said. "The town elders are also involved in talks with the kidnappers to secure her release," he added, giving no further details about the identity of the kidnap gang.

Nearly 500 Indians lodged in Pakistani jails

Islamabad: Nearly 500 Indians, including 437 fishermen, are currently lodged in various jails in Pakistan, a top aide to Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has said. Sartaj Aziz, advisor to Sharif on National Security and Foreign Affairs, told parliament that there were 491 Indian prisoners, including 437 fishermen and 54 other civilians, in jails across Pakistan. He said nine of detainees were already set free and there is proposal to release another 73 Indian fishermen.

Aziz said the latest list given by India on July 1 under Consular Agreement showed that there are 386 Pakistani prisoners in Indian jails. But according to the record of the Pakistan Foreign Office, there were at least 485 Pakistanis jailed in India, including 172 fishermen and 313 other civilians, he said. This shows a total of 99 Pakistanis in India are unaccounted for, he said. "We have taken up the matter with the Indian authorities to clarify the discrepancy," Aziz said in reply to a question by one of the members.

www.abplgroup.com - asian Voice 24th August 2013

Kashmir a national issue: Nawaz Sharif

Islamabad: Describing Kashmir as the "jugular vein" of his country, Pakistan prime minister Nawaz Sharif said India and Pakistan should join hands to tackle poverty and disease instead of wasting their resources on wars.

Kashmir is a "national issue and the jugular vein of Pakistan" and its resolution is as dear to him as other Pakistanis, Sharif said in his first address to the nation since assuming office in June.

Sharif cautioned that Pakistan cannot achieve any target without strengthening its economy. "Alongside the Kashmir issue, we will have to pay attention to strengthening our economy, resolve our internal and external problems and tackle the power crisis and terrorism," he said.

Referring to his desire to forge good relations with India, Sharif said both coun-

tries should realise that "instead of wasting their energies and resources on wars, they should wage war against poverty, ignorance and disease."

Pakistan and India will have to join their heads together to address common issues like poverty and ignorance, he said and added that progress and development of a nation is deeply linked to cordial relations with neighbours. It is because of this that we want good relations with all neighbours, includ-

ing India," he said. Sharif said he had "always wanted good relations with India" and the people had supported his contention during the general election in May. Without referring to clashes along the Line of Control in Jammu and Kashmir, Sharif said the country is "fully prepared to defend the motherland along with its valiant armed forces."

India accuses Pakistan of being behind the soldiers' deaths and of sponsoring militant attacks across the Kashmir border as a way to increase pressure on India in Afghanistan ahead of the 2014 drawdown of NATO troops. Pakistan has denied involvement and instead accused India of opening fire and killing one of its soldiers in late July.

Critics sad that while Sharif's speech was clear on

his desire to improve ties with India, he sent mixed signals on how he plans to tackle militancy within Pakistan.

"I would like to take a step forward and invite those elements for dialogue who have unfortunately taken the path of extremism," Sharif said in his speech.

But he also refused to rule out the use of force, although it was unclear when or how it might be deployed.

"Like every Pakistani, I want to put an end to this bloodshed as soon as possible, whether this is done through mutual understanding at the negotiating table or the use of full fledged state force," Sharif said.

He did not address previous preconditions for talks raised by the Taliban, including a breaking of relations with the United States and resumption of hostilities with India.

No external solutions to Lanka's Gun-toting Pakistani arrested internal issues: Rajapaksa after six-hour ordeal Colombo: President Mahinda Rajapaksa on Monday told his political rivals not to internationalise Sri Lanka's problems and instead look to settle them internally.

"Some go to India and utter different things while others go to US and do same," Rajapaksa told a public gathering in the hill country resort of Nuwara Eliya.

He was referring to the current visit to India by the main opposition leader Ranil Wickremesinghe and a delegation of the main Tamil party, TNA who is on a tour of the US. "I don't want to talk about the Western nations who preach to us about the values," Rajapaksa said.

He said that Sri Lankans must talk to their government to find solutions to issues than confronting them, in an obvious reference to the August 1 incident at Weliweriya. At least three people were killed while 30 others were injured as the army was called in to quell public protests by villagers

clamouring for clean drinking water.

The government came in for local and international criticism for the armed crackdown on the unarmed villagers. "People must engage with the government in order to look for solutions and not clash with it," the President said.

Meanwhile the main opposition UNP reiterated its demand for an international investigation into the Weliweriya incident. "We call upon the government to allow for an international investigation rather than attempting to cover it up," Tissa Attanayake, UNP general secretary said.

Islamabad: A gun-toting man brought the Pakistani capital to a standstill for six hours after he started firing near parliament, with the drama ending shortly before midnight when police arrested him. Sikandar Hayat, who was carrying two locally made automatic weapons, was firing in the air at short intervals after parking his black Toyota Corolla car at Jinnah Avenue near parliament.

He had his wife and two children with him, using them as human shield against any police action. Zamurd Khan of Pakistan People's Party went to the man as a sympathiser but suddenly jumped at him but could not overpower him.

However, police commandoes already in position nearby opened fire and shot him in the leg. He first raised his arms and then fell down and was arrested.

His wife and two children were safely released, as the high drama ended after about six hours.

Musharraf indicted in Bhutto murder case Rawalpindi: A court in Pakistan has formally indicted former military dictator Pervez Musharraf with the murder of former premier Benazir Bhutto who was assassinated in 2007.

"He should be tried," the public prosecutor, Mohammad Azhar, told reporters after a brief hearing in the city of Rawalpindi during which the three charges of murder, conspiracy to murder and facilitation of murder were read out to Musharraf.

The indictment of the army chief who seized power in a 1999 coup - once Pakistan's most powerful man - is an unprecedented event in a nuclear-armed country ruled by the military for half of its 66-year history.

The case has also shattered an unwritten rule that the top military brass are

untouchable as the South Asian country tries to shake off the legacy of decades of military rule under the new government of Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif.

Musharraf, who made no public remarks during his appearance, denied all the charges against him, a lawyer from his defence team said.

Journalists were not allowed in the court room for the hearing which lasted just about 20 minutes.

"All the cases against Musharraf are fabricated. He denied all the charges," said Afshan Adil, the lawyer. The next hearing was set for August 27. Bhutto was killed in a gun and suicide bomb attack after an election rally, weeks after she returned to Pakistan from years in selfimposed exile.

The government at the time blamed Pakistani Taliban militants and Musharraf has said he warned her of the danger she faced. Hundreds of police were deployed along the main road leading to the court as well as on rooftops as Musharraf's car arrived.

On August 6, the court delayed the widely expected indictment because it was too dangerous for Musharraf to attend the proceedings due to threats to his life.

The man, who belongs to Hafizabad area of Punjab province, made several demands, including the imposition of Shariah or Islamic law and removal of the government before his arrest.

He said he should be given safe passage to leave the area. He was also heard saying that he wanted to negotiate with the Prime Minister. Interior Minister Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan earlier asked police to try to capture the man alive without harming his wife and children.

The media quoted police as saying that the man had a history of drug and alcohol abuse and was not mentally sound. Some reports said he was violent to his wife and children.

Imran Khan files suit over 'Jewish agent' barb Islamabad: Pakistani cricketer-turned politician Imran Khan has sent a legal notice to Jamiat Ulema-e-Islam chief Maulana Fazlur Rehman claiming damages of Rs 500 million for allegedly defaming him. The notice, sent last week, said Rehman accused Khan of being a Jewish agent in a TV interview on August 3. He also alleged that Khan has a foreign agenda backed

by Jewish lobby, the media reported.

Khan asked Rehman to apologize unconditionally or to take back his statement within a week of receipt of the notice or face a lawsuit for defamation. The notice said the apology should be telecast on national and international television and conspicuously printed in major newspapers.

world

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 24th August 2013

Anna Hazare leads largest India Day parade in US

Vidya Balan

New York: Indian social activist Anna Hazare and Bollywood star Vidya Balan led America’s largest India Day parade in Manhattan as Indians in New Yorker celebrated India’s independence.

The 33rd annual India Day parade down Madison Avenue featured 40 colourful floats, marching bands and convertibles and thousands of cheering revelers marching to the beat of dhols or the Indian drums.

Another highlight of the parade was a replica of the Red Fort in an 80 by 10 feet area in Manhattan near the parade route to showcase India’s heritage.

Many parade-goers along the orange, white and green lined route wore “I am Anna” paper hats to signify their support to Hazare, whose anti-corruption crusade has

Anna Hazare

inspired thousands at home and abroad.

One parade-goer wore a multi-coloured turban with three miniature Indian flags stuck in it. He waved an American flag and marched with three dozen members of the Vaishnav Temple of New York in New Hyde Park.

The parade drew elected officials and political candidates, including Reshma Saujani, a Democratic candidate for public advocate and Joe Lhota, a Republican mayoral candidate ahead of the September 10 primary.

“I think our voice is getting more politically powerful,” said Saujani, who would be New York city’s first IndianAmerican politician, if elected. “It’s important for the community to be out recognising that.”

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“What we’re really doing here is celebrating coming to America.” Also joining the event organized by the Federation of Indian Associations (FIA) were former Indian Chief of Army Staff Gen V K Singh, Tamil film star Sarath Kumar and his wife Radika Sarath Kumar, a television and film actress.

Hazare later rang the opening bell at the Nasdaq stock exchange to mark India’s Independence Day with many IT companies listed on Nasdaq.

Meanwhile, veteran community leader Thomas Abraham, founder of the Global Organization of People of Indian Origin (GOPIO) led the India Day parade organized by India cultural society of Rockland county in New City in New York.

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23

Crackdown on Muslim In Focus Canada names Brotherhood in Egypt street after Bapu

Cairo: Egyptian security forces have arrested the top leader of the Muslim Brotherhood, state media reported, pressing a crackdown on his group.

Mohamed Badie, 70, was detained at an apartment in Nasr City in northeast Cairo, the state news agency reported.

"That was after information came to the security apparatus locating his place of hiding," it said.

The Facebook page of the Interior Ministry was showing a picture of Badie sitting in a car between two men in black body armour, with a caption confirming his arrest. "The necessary legal measures are being taken," security forces said. Badie is the Brotherhood's General Guide.

He was charged in July with inciting violence along with other Brotherhood officials.

Together with his two deputies, he is due to stand trial on August 25.

800 dead in 4 days of clashes: Even as the death toll in four days of violence crossed 800, Egypt’s military leader General Abdel-Fatah el-Sisi vowed that the army will not stand by silently in the face of violence. He also said that the army has no intention to seize power

and called on the Islamists to join the political process. “There is room for everyone,” said Sisi to supporters of Morsi.

Under the banner of an anti-coup alliance, the Muslim Brotherhood said it would hold a demonstration in front of the building. Six big marches were heading towards the Roxi Square in Heliopolis. The protesters were heard chanting, “We can give our life and blood for Islam.”

This district hosts the Egyptian military headquarters. The anti-coup alliance cancelled a big rally in Cairo because of fear from thugs, local resident and snipers.

At least 811 people have been killed across Egypt after the security forces stormed and dispersed two major sit ins in Cairo.

The Muslim Brotherhood website has put up a list of 1,300 ‘martyrs’ who have died in the sit-in at Rabaa el Adaweya mosque in Nasr City.

Meanwhile, the Egyptian government has begun deliberations on banning the Muslim Brotherhood. "There will be no reconciliation with those whose hands have been stained with blood and who turned weapons against the state and its institutions," Egyptian PM Hazem el-Beblawi said.

Toronto: A street in Canada's Winnipeg city has been named after Mahatma Gandhi on the occasion of India's 67th Independence Day. The street leading to the Canadian Museum for Human Rights will now be known as Honorary Mahatma Gandhi Way. At a ceremony, Winnipeg mayor Sam Katz said it was appropriate the roadway leading to the museum be associated with an individual synonymous with the struggle for human rights.

"Mahatma Gandhi was a spiritual and political leader whose influence is still felt today," Katz said.

China floods claim 72 lives

Beijing: At least 72 people have been killed and hundreds of thousands were forced to evacuate in the past few days due to devastating floods in north and south China.

Nine people were killed overnight in floods triggered by continuous downpours in south China's Guangdong province. Eight people were killed in Puning city.

One person was killed in Zijin county, a local resident and another remained missing, staterun Xinhua news agency reported.

24

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South Bangalore to be kerosenefree in 3 months Bangalore is set to be the first city in the state to become kerosene-free in the next three months. The food and civil supplies department has issued public circulars asking kerosene users to shift to LPG connections claiming gas connections are easily available now.

Doctorate for actor Aamir Khan

Actor Aamir Khan will be awarded an honorary doctorate from the Maulana Azad National Urdu University (Manuu) for his contribution to the film industry, an official release from the varsity said. The university will award the doctorate to the actor during its 5th convocation ceremony to be conducted on its campus on August 24. There is no confirmation yet on whether the actor will attend the function.

In 30 years, Chennai shows ten-fold rise in diabetes

Diabetes is spreading fast across the country and Chennai reflects this alarming trend, with the incidence shooting up tenfold in the past 30 years. The Chennai Urban Rural Epidemiology Study (CURES), which covered 26,001 individuals above the age of 20, shows that 20% of the subjects were diabetic. The incidence of diabetes in the city was 2% in 1970.

Rare copies of Quran to go digital

Two rare copies of the Quran n penned by legendary calligrapher Yakut Al-Musta'simi along with his collection of five chapters of the holy book 'Panchsura' will be made available on the internet by the Salar Jung Museum soon. "Any museum which possesses one copy of the Quran written by Yakut is considered rich. We at Salar Jung Museum have two of them and also a Panchsura.

Punjab Amritsar youth among INS Sindhurakshak victims Just two days before his 24th birthday, parents of sailor Atul Sharma received the terrible news of the multiple explosions on INS Sindhurakshak in which 18 were feared, including three officers. "I received a phone call from a Navy official, informing that Atul was one of the victims of the submarine blast," said inconsolable Hem Raj Sharma, Atul's father.

Chandigarh arts and heritage festival opens Audience at TagoreTheatre got a glimpse of four women characters from the Ramayana. In the performance titled "Tejasa", which was made up of four different dance forms, the strength of the feminine form was depicted. The show marked the formal opening of the Chandigarh Arts and Heritage Festival 2013, which will see an array of performances till August 20.

Punjab police recover heroin worth Rs 700 million Punjab police recovered 14 kilogram heroin valued at around Rs 70 crore in the international market following arrest of three smugglers including an assistant security officer with Air India posted at Sri Guru Ramdas Ji International airport.In another incident Pathankot polic made recovery of 7 kilogram of heroin following arrest of two interstate smugglers.

Two students from Delhi University charred to death Two students of Delhi University were burnt to death when their car caught fire after colliding with a stationary truck on National Highway 1 in Haryana. The victims died inside the burning car while another person was pulled out and rushed to a hospital in Sonipat. The accident took place near Kundli, 45 km from New Delhi.

www.abplgroup.com - asian Voice 24th August 2013

409 Indian pilgrims cancel Haj plans The steep hike in fare coupled with a steady drop in the value of the rupee has led to the cancellation of hundreds of Haj applications this season. Unable to pay the increased charges, devotees from various districts in the state have been forced to drop their pilgrimage plans.

Sources from the AP State Haj Committee (APSHC) on Friday said that they have received requests for as many as 409 cancellations. This, as the Haj Committee of India (HCI) has revised their charges for Green Category Accommodation from last year's Rs 1,64,905 to Rs 1,79,800 this time around.

Rates of the Azizia Category

Accommodation too has shot up from Rs 1,36,264 to Rs 1,49,450.

Officials pointed out that the largest number of cancellations came from Hyderabad district with 158 pilgrims backing out either on account of financial difficulties or due to their failure to deposit original passport.

While Kadapa district recorded 48 cancellations, 33 pilgrims from Ranga Reddy said they could not make the pilgrimage. They added that out that of the total number, 241 were under the Azizia Category Accommodation and 168 under the Green Category Accommodation.

"The rupee-riyal exchange

rate of Rs 16.07 fixed by the committee this year too is a reason for this. The continuously plunging rupee is definitely a factor as the HCI has no control over currency value. Last year the exchange rate was Rs 15.23. The rentals for accommodation spaces in Saudi Arabia too have increased apart from the apex court's order of phasing out of Haj subsidy," said a source requesting anonymity.

Dealing another blow to pilgrims, the feud between the Nizam's Awqaf Committee (NAC) and the Nazir of Rubath, which provides free accommodation to pilgrims from the Nizam's erstwhile dominions, in

Mecca Hussain Shareef has taken an ugly turn with the latter trying to arm twist the NAC by threatening to bar applicants from the Rubath who are scheduled to make the pilgrimage via the APSHC. "Shareef had threatened to reserve accommodation in the Rubath for customers of private tour operators. The consul general in Jeddah, Faiz Ahmed Kidwai, is intervening. He has asked both Shareef and NAC to come to an amicable solution in the interest of the pilgrims. Many pilgrims are jittery on account of this tussle between the two groups," said APSHC executive officer Abdul Hameed.

Arguments in Jayalalithaa Film stars, directors vying for case to begin now BJP tickets in Seemandhra

on section 301(2) The special court of the CrPC, while trying the Rs 660 leaving the decimillion disproporsion to the court. tionate assets (DA) Anbazhagan case involving Tamil had claimed there Nadu chief minister is clear violation of J Jayalalithaa and section 234 CrPC, others will take up the interlocutory as the accused application (IA) were addressing filed by senior DMK arguments even leader K J Jayalalithaa before the proseAnbazhagan soon cution commenced for arguments. arguments, and apprehended This was after counsel it may lead to miscarriage of representing the nonagenarijustice. an DMK leader sought time Meanwhile, special judge on Tuesday to advance arguMS Balakrishna on Friday ments. Anbazhagan, based heard the arguments on whose petition the apex advanced by the counsel for court transferred the case to VN Sudhakaran and J Ilavarasi, the two other Bangalore from Chennai accused in the case. about a decade ago, sought The counsel contended the court's permission to there is no legal evidence assist the special public prosagainst the duo as regards the ecutor (SPP) Bhavani Singh, charge of conspiracy and who is new to the post.

Meanwhile, the SPP filed abetment and they have a statement of objections to acquired certain properties the IA stating that at best, cited in the chargesheet from Anbazhagan can assist him their personal income.

Gujarat chief minister Narendra Modi's Hyderabad visit seems to have helped BJP find probable candidates for polls in the Seemandhra region next year as the 'meeting with elites', held at a private hotel last Sunday, turned out to be an exercise of shortlisting party nominees.

If all goes well, the starstudded BJP would be fielding several film stars in the next elections. Among those who met Modi, BJP's chief poll campaign manager, were Ram Gopal Verma, K Raghavendra Rao, D Rama Naidu, Daggubati Rana, Mohan Babu (with his children Manchu Vishnu and Manchu Lakshmi) and Jagapathi Babu.

Others including, Krishnam Raju, Kota Srinivas Rao, Ali, Gouthami, MM Keervani and VV Vinayak also met him along with industrialists and media barons, including Ch Kiran, the son of Eenadu's Ramoji

Rao. As the BJP is scouting for candidates who can win seats for them in Andhra and Rayalaseema, party sources said many of them who called on Modi, are likely to be considered due to their popularity among the masses.

It was a huge turnout at the Hyderabad public meeting, Modi asked BJP leaders to strive hard and convert the positive reaction into votes, and to lay special focus on Seemandhra. "Having been identified as a pro-Telangana party, we see no problem in facing elections in Telangana.

However, we need to go for a different approach for Seemandhra. The party is working on many options, but nothing has been finalised as yet," said senior BJP leader and former Union minister Ch Vidyasagar Rao. It is not clear about the political prospects of the likes of Ram Gopal Verma, Krishnam Raju is likely to make a comeback.

Congress MPs to seek central Out on bail, former MLA accuses CBI, probe in illegal sand mining judge of wrongly convicting him A delegation of Congress MPs from Punjab would meet the union Environment minister JayantiNatrajan to seek a probe by the ministry into the illegal sand mining in Punjab.

This was revealed after addressing a rally under mass contact programme, PPCC President Partap Singh Bajwa said that he and other MPS would submit a detailed complaint to the environment minister along with the clippings of the media exposing the illegal sand mining.

"It is not just an issue of making thousands of crores through illegal sand mining but also creating an environmental and ecological disaster with very deep mining in river beds which would lead to serious consequences for the people living near the rivers," Bajwa said.

He alleged that business of illegal sand and gravel mining was worth around Rs 5,000 crores annually

and was happening under the active patronage of revenue minister Bikram Singh Majithia and Deputy CM Sukhbir Badal.

"We shall also request minister Natrajan said that if prima facie the fact of illegal mining would be established in the central enquiry then a CBI probe should be ordered to identify the culprits and to go the bottom of the issue," he said while adding that it was a big scam in Punjab. The illegal mining was happening with connivance of the police officials and the reason that police were not taking action against the offenders was that latter were enjoying political patronage from the top, he alleged.

He said that a probe by former Supreme Court judge Justice Kuldeep Singh had also exposed the fact of large scale illegal sand mining in the state and the party delegation would refer to that also as a strong base for a central probe.

Out on bail in the paddy scam case, former MLA Mangat Rai Bansal is out to take on Central Bureau of Investigation(CBI) and the CBI court. Bansal has accused the premier investigation agency of having destroyed evidence and implicated him falsely in the paddy scam case.

Not even caring for contempt of court proceedings, Bansal has also accused the CBI court judge of wrongly sentencing him. Punjab and Haryana high court on Tuesday had provided him bail after the former MLA cooled heels in jail for close to four months.

Bansal, after coming out of jail, showcased his anger against the CBI and termed it of having become a puppet in the hands of the ruling party and working to please the political masters. Patialabased CBI court had on April 20 sentenced Bansal and about 20 others, including three Food Corporation of India (FCI) officials, to 7

Mangat Rai Bansal

years of imprisonment.

About 17 years ago, CBI had registered a case against Bansal and other rice millers of Bareta for supplying substandard rice to FCI after custom milling. Bansal said, "The samples the CBI had collected in 1997 were changed and later evidence was destroyed to pin point me in the case. The CBI court too ignored my pleas wherein I had put on record CBI having destroyed evidence, and convicted me for supplying sub-standard rice".

Bansal hopes on SADBJP government to allow him to take charge as chairperson of district planning committee, the post he was holding when he was convicted by the CBI court on April 20.

indiA

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 24th August 2013

25

37 killed in Bihar Top LeT terrorist Abdul railway tragedy Karim Tunda arrested

At least 37 pilgrims, including women and children, standing on rail tracks were killed when a speeding express train ploughed into them in Bihar's Khagaria district, triggering angry protests by locals who attacked train drivers, set ablaze a coach and vandalised the station.

The 'kanwarias' or devotees of Lord Shiva were walking along the tracks at Dhamara Ghat station after alighting from the Samastipur-Saharsa passenger when the Saharsa-Patna Rajyarani Express travelling at 80 kmph, ran over them, a senior railway official said.

Khagaria is about 160 km from Patna.

Chief minister Nitish Kumar said that 37 persons, including women and children, were killed.

Among them were 13 women, four children and 20 men. The victims hailed from Khagaria, Sahrsa, Munger and Naughachia.

Twenty four others who sustained injuries were admitted to a hospital.

Soon after the incident, a violent mob

assaulted the train driver, set on fire an AC compartment and engine of another train, vandalized the station and even held a few rail staff hostage.

Railway Board chairman Arunendra Kumar said that the express was not supposed to halt at Dhamara Ghat and was given clearance to pass through, but the pilgrims on the tracks thought they could stop the train.

Though the driver applied the emergency brakes, it was too late by then, he said, adding an internal inquiry has been ordered into the accident.

The pilgrims were going to nearby Katyani

Sthan temple to offer 'jalabhishek' to Lord Shiva on the fourth and final Monday of the holy month of Shrawan.

Superintendent of police said that the engine of the Samastipur-Saharsa passenger train and an AC coach of Saharsa-Patna Rajyarani Express were set on fire by enraged local people.

The two drivers of the express train, Rajaram Paswan and Sushil Kumar Suman, fled from the spot after being attacked. They later contacted railway officials to informing them that they were safe, ECR CPRO Amitabh Prabhakar said.

Janmashtami celebrates Lord Krishnaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s birth anmashtami also known as Gokulashtami is celeJbrated all over India with

great gusto. On this auspicious day, Lord Krishna took birth to end the wickedness which was growing day by day during those days. This day holds great significance among the Hindus and the ardent followers of Lord Krishna observe fast. India is a country of diversity and thus, there is a slight difference in the rituals and traditions which are followed in various parts of the country. People sing bhajans, give performances on the life and great achievements of Lord Krishna during this festive time. The idols of Lord Krishna are decorated very beautifully and the houses and temples are also adorned to welcome Lord Krishna. Lord Krishna is showing His followers the path of honesty, truth and kindness through the holy book called Bhagavad Gita.

This year Janmashtami will be celebrated on 28th August.

When is Janmashtami celebrated: According to

the Hindu calendar, Janmashtami is celebrated on the 8th day of the Krishna Paksh or the dark half under the nakshtra Rohini, in the month of Shravana whereas as per the Gregorian calendar, it comes in the month of mid August-September. The Shravana month corresponds to the month of B h a d r a p a d a Krishnapaksha, according to Barhapatyamana. It is said that Lord Krishna took birth in the year of Visvavasu, about 5,227 years ago. He was the avatar of Lord Krishna which came to the earth in Dwapara Yuga.

In present times, this festival is celebrated for over two days because the nakshatra called Rohini and the 8th day of Krishna Paksh may not fall on the same day. This is why this festival is celebrated for two days, in which the first day is known as Krishnashtami, as on this day Lord Krishna took birth which comes on the eighth day after the festive occasion of Raksha Bandhan whereas the sec-

Top Lashkar-eTaiba (LeT) terrorist Abdul Karim Tunda, who was involved in around 40 bomb blasts, has been arrested from the Indo-Nepal border, a top Delhi police official said. Tunda, in his 70s now, was wanted in several criminal cases in India and is among the 20 top most terrorists, police said. He is an aide of underworld don Dawood Ibrahim.

Tunda, who hails from Pilkhuwa in Uttar Pradesh's Ghaziabad district, is an expert bombmaker and has been involved in around 40 bomb blasts. In Ghaziabad alone, he has been involved in 13 criminal cases.

Tunda claims innocence: Tunda claimed innocence in a Delhi court which sent him to four days' police custody. The hearing was forced to be held in-camera after a lawyer shouted slogans

"( #" ond day is called as Kalashtami.

Significance of Janmashtami: The festivities of Janmashtami start at midnight because it is said that God made his celestial appearance on the earth during this time.

Conch is blown and the idol of Lord Krishna is given a consecrated bath with panchamrit and then with gangajal. After this, people perform special puja, perform aarti, offer sweets, fruits and fresh flowers as a tribute to the God. Also, they rock the cradle which indicates that Lord Krishna has taken birth. After performing the rituals, people break their fast by having the prasad.

The main objective of the coming of Lord Krishna on this earth was to make the people and the Mother Earth free from the evilness of the demons. He also played a very significant role in Mahabharata which was the legendary battle took place in Kurukshetra.

He spreads the message of love, kindness, humanity, pure bhakti and good karma on the earth.

against him in the court.

Ahead of the hearing, a man slapped the accused while he was being taken to the courtroom by police.

Metropolitan Magistrate Jay Thareja, before whom Tunda, was presented, decided in the middle of the proceedings to hold in-camera hearing after an advocate shouted "Tunda is a terrorist".

The court sent the accused to four days' police custody for further interrogation. His earlier police custody ended on Tuesday. Tunda, the onehanded bomb maker, told the judge that he was "innocent" and did not motivate anyone to carry

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out blasts, said sources.

They said that during hearing, Tunda told the court: "I am innocent, I used to teach Quran and in Jehad killing old people, women and children is not permissible."

The court directed police to ensure safety of Tunda, who was slapped inside the Patiala House district courts complex by a man claiming to be a member of an organisation called Hindu Sena.

He was later detained by the police.

Tunda was involved in the 1993 Mumbai serial bombings that left over 250 dead, Delhi bomb blasts of 1997-98 and serial bombings in Uttar Pradesh and also in Haryana and Punjab.

Police said he trained young radicals in preparing bombs with locally available materials like urea, nitric acid, potassium chloride, nitrobenzene and sugar and planting them at crowded places.

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Indian Parliament passes anti-Pak resolution Indian Parliament rejected the Pakistan National Assembly resolution, saying it levelled "absolutely baseless and unfounded" allegations against India and asserted that Pakistan army was actually involved in "unprovoked" attack on the Line of Control (LoC) last week.

Both the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha unanimously adopted identical resolutions condemning Pakistan army for indulging in the attacks and asked the government of Pakistan to abide by the ceasefire commitment of 2003 along the international border and the LoC in letter and spirit.

The Houses regretted that the Pakistan army was indulging in attacks at a time "when efforts are being made to establish a long-lasting framework of peaceful, friendly and cooperative ties so that both the countries may henceforth devote their resources and energies to the pressing task of advancing the welfare of their people."

The resolutions read out by Chairman Hamid Ansari in Rajya Sabha and Speaker Meira Kumar in Lok Sabha said, "This House rejects and deplores the resolutions passed by the National Assembly of Pakistan on August 13,2013 and the Federal Assembly of Punjab which made absolutely baseless and unfounded allegations against the Indian Army and the people of India."

Both the Houses underlined that "there should be absolutely no doubt in anyone's mind about Pakistan army’s role.

www.abplgroup.com - asian Voice 24th August 2013

Pak Hindus in India organize protest rally A group of Hindus who travelled to India from Pakistan staged a rally at the United Nations office in New Delhi last week against alleged persecution in the Islamic republic. The right-wing Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP, World Hindu Forum), which organised the rally, said protesters would not return home due to “atrocities” against Hindus in Muslim-majority Pakistan. “We have appealed through the UN that Hindus in Pakistan should be allowed to live with dignity and those who have left the country due to atrocities must be given proper rights wherever they are,” VHP spokesman Vinod Bansal said. “Those who have arrived in India must be given citizenship because they are part of the country,” Bansal said, as Hindu children from Pakistan carried posters which read “We Want Justice”.

Bansal said protesters,

numbering about 100, were from a group of 480 people who arrived on pilgrim visas to attend a Hindu festival in February, adding that Hindus from Pakistan regularly travel to India. Pakistani Hindus say attitudes against them have hardened due to the country’s progressive Islamisation over the last 30 years that has fuelled intolerance of religious minorities.

Hindu, US Human

Rights groups held demonstration against Pak: Meanwhile, various Hindu and Human Rights Organizations in US has demanded from Pakistan government to immediately put an end to the atrocities perpetrated on hapless minority communities including Hindu's and Sikhs.

Navin Kataria, President of Indian American Intellectuals Forum in a memorandum

After UK, Australia invites Modi Days after British MPs invited him to address their Parliament, Australia extended an invitation to Gujarat Chief Minister and BJP's campaign chief for 2014 elections Narendra Modi to visit that country.

Australian High Commissioner to India Patrick Suckling met Mr Modi in Gandhinagar and invited him to visit Australia, a statement from the Gujarat government said.

"India has been on the top in Australia's foreign policy owing to smooth relations and parallels between both the coun-

tries. Developing relations with Gujarat has been on the top priority since last 10 years," Mr Suckling told Mr Modi.

They discussed about the possible ties between both the regions in different sectors such as education, sports, agriculture,

dairy technology, water management and infrastructural facilities, among others.

Mr Modi invited Mr Suckling to attend Vibrant Gujarat Global Agro Tech Summit and Exhibition which is scheduled in coming September and to the Vibrant Gujarat Global Investors' Summit in 2015.

Last week, Britain's Opposition party's Labour Friends of India chairman Barry Gardiner sent a letter to Mr Modi inviting him to the House of Commons to speak on 'The Future of Modern India'.

submitted to Consul General of Pakistan in New York said that there was an ongoing campaign of vilification and slander against minorities in connivance with Pakistan government purportedly to denigrate and demonize their religion.

In the memorandum he stated that "It is a well known fact that Pakistan is an apartheid state.

Torture, loot, discrimination and murder of Hindu men and rape of Hindu girls and their forcible marriage to Muslims is going on unabated."

Indian American Intellectuals Forum in cooperation with Vishwa Hindu Parishad of America, Hindu Human Rights Watch, Justice for Hindus, India Heritage Foundation, Human Rights Coalition against Radical Islam, Probasi of Brooklyn and Hindu Mahasabha of America had organized a demonstration on August 14th

near Pakistan Consulate in New York in protest against hate, intolerance and savagery in Pak against Hindus and Sikhs.

Quoting report of Human Rights Commission of Pakistan he said "According to report on an average around 20 to 25 Hindu girls are being abducted, converted to Islam and forcibly married to Muslim men every month in the southern Sindh province."

It further said that twelve million rupees ($140,000) jaziya - the medieval tax - was levied on Sikhs last year in the North West Frontier Province of Pakistan.

It said that Hindus had been terrorized in Pakistan to such an extent that in April-May this year, about 500 Hindus who crossed into India under the pretense of visiting a religious festival, refused to go back and begged government of India to give them political asylum.

Submarine explodes with 18 men The Indian Navy suffered a huge blow when a frontline submarine exploded and sank here at dawn with 18 sailors after two explosions turned it into a deadly ball of fire.

The deep sea attack vessel INS Sindhurakshak, recently refurbished in Russia, suffered an unexplained explosion just after Tuesday midnight and an immediate deafening blast heard almost in the whole

of south Mumbai.

Naval officials said the rapid spread of the blaze and the intensity of the explosions left the trapped 18 sailors, including three officers, with apparently no chance of escaping.

"We cannot rule out sabotage," Navy chief Admiral DK Joshi told the media after defence minister AK Antony visited the disaster site at the Mumbai naval dock.

Asian Voice wishes its readers a Happy Navroz and Rakshabandhan. We will carry a special supplement on Janmashtami with regular issue next week.

Indian ` hits new low against £, $ Continued from page 1

Forex dealers said besides strong demand for the American currency from importers and banks, dollar's strength against other currencies overseas amid expectation that the Federal Reserve will soon taper its bond-buying programme weighed on the domestic currency.

Continuing plunge in equity markets in view of sustained capital outflows by foreign funds is further adding to the pressure on the rupee. In order to arrest the rupee slide, RBI last week had announced measures such as restriction on Indian firms investing abroad and on outward remittances by resident Indians, triggering fears of return of capital control regime.

A spate of measures by the central bank and government has failed to halt the slide, with liquidity tightening measures aimed at making it harder to short the currency pushing up borrowing rates and battering corporate and investor sentiment.

Govt takes steps to support markets, rules out capital controls: The Union government took steps on Tuesday to support the beaten-down bond market, in moves also expected to prop up the battered rupee, while a top official said there was no need to issue sovereign bonds to Indians abroad or bring in capital controls.

Late in the day, the Reserve Bank of India said it would buy long-dated government bonds worth 80 billion rupees ($1.3 billion) through an open market operation on August 23 and would decide after that on the amount and frequency of further operations as warranted.

A series of liquidity-tightening measures to support the rupee has sent interest rates surging, prompting many economists to cut their growth outlooks for Asia's third-largest economy, which grew at a decade-low 5 per cent in the last fiscal year.

"I think the steps will help the rupee positively," as foreign investors are attracted back to Indian debt on the expectation of falling yields, said NS Venkatesh, treasurer at IDBI Bank.

No capital controls: Separately, economic affairs secretary Arvind Mayaram, one of the most senior officials at the finance ministry, said there was no need currently for a bond issue to non-resident Indians (NRIs).

A bond issue to NRIs is among the measures that has been discussed by the government in order to attract inflows to support the embattled currency. "In today's scenario, I think that will give a much greater panic situation because we don't need that kind of money at this moment," Mayaram said.

He also ruled out capital controls.

India has taken several measures that restrict outflows, prompting market worries about further such steps.

"There is no intention of government of India to put any capital controls as such," Mayaram said.

With a record high current account deficit, India is especially exposed to the expected gradual reduction of the US Federal Reserve's quantitative easing.

"There is a kind of sense of panic in the market. We believe it is completely unfounded," Mayaram said.

The RBI also relaxed rules on mandatory bond holdings for banks, known as the statutory liquidity ratio, which will help protect lenders from large mark-tomarket losses.

In contrast to an earlier rule asking banks to cut their hold-to-maturity bond holdings gradually to 23 per cent of deposits, the RBI on Tuesday allowed banks to retain those holdings at 24.5 per cent of deposits.

Weak Government, Weak growth: Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's weak coalition government, heading into national elections by next May, has been hamstrung from pushing through reforms to attract more long-term capital.

The rupee's plunge adds to worries

about India's ability to fund a record high current account gap and whether Finance Minister P. Chidambaram will be able to meet his goal to pare the fiscal deficit to 4.8 per cent of gross domestic product (GDP) this fiscal year.

Rating agency Moody's said that while the rupee depreciation was a new variable for the economy, the factors underpinning it have been incorporated in its investment grade rating for India.

Modi slams government on falling rupee: Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi criticised the union government, saying it was not bothered about the falling value of the rupee and the security of the country. "It is unfortunate that the leadership in Delhi are not bothered about the security of the country nor about the decline in the value of the rupee," Modi said.

Expressing concern at the weakening value of the rupee, he said: "I do not think that the government will be able to strengthen the rupee against the dollar. In the last three months, the value of the rupee has been falling and the government has not taken any measures."

Taking a dig at the government, Modi said: "They are only bothered about saving their seats and position. They are completely immersed in devising steps to protect their chair and leadership."

UK

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 24th August 2013

Samvad a new initiative Asian Voice and Gujarat Samachar with the co-operation of local literary talent have organised a special programme named ‘Samvad’ on Saturday 24th August from 3-6 pm. This is a new initiative hoping to promote Indian languages, literature and culture. Samvad also inspires to bring our young and not so young generations and encourage them to meet each other and debate about our great values. The programme will be conducted partly in Gujarati and partly in English. The first programme of Samvad will focus on the work of literary personality Dr Jagdishbhai Dave.

All are invited. Please RSVP Vinod Kapashi 07966 006 261 or Kamal Rao 020 7749 4001

Indian independence day celebrated by Anoopam Mission Dr Rami Ranger MBE The Anoopam Mission, part of Swaminarayan movement is an oasis of tranquillity in Denham, close to London. I was invited along with Mr Richard Harrington MP, Vice Chairman of the Conservative Party to the Indian Independence Day Celebrations there on Sunday 18th August.

Approx 350 guests attended the patriotic function to show their love and devotion for Mother India as well as their adopted country, Britain. The founder of the Mission, Sahib Ji was in attendance. The proceedings were conducted magnificently by their Chairman, Mr Satish Chatwani, a successful entrepreneur and a devout devotee.

Many dignitaries attended the celebrations and included Mr Narendra Bhai Thakrar, President of Sanatan Mandir Alperton, Mr Harshadbhai Patel. Sri Bhupendrabhai Pandya, Vinod Nakraja President of the Mission and Lt. Gen. MM Walia (Rtd.), Mr CB Patel, Publisher/ Editor Asian Voice and Gujarat Samachar, The celebrations began with the national anthems of India and Britain. Mr Richard Harrington MP raised the British flag. The Indian flag was raised by Sahib Ji, Mr CB Patel and I. This was followed by patriotic speeches.

Sahib Ji, Richard Harrington MP, Dr Rami Ranger, CB Patel and other VIP guests during flag hoisting ceremony

Sri Bhupendrabhai Pandya had come especially from Mumbai to deliver a talk on spiritual living which brings happiness to our lives for a fuller living.

Mr Richard Harrington MP praised the Indian community for their positive and peaceful contribution to Britain.

He was proud of his friendship with the Indian community which went back to when he was a student in Leeds.

I praised Anoopam Mission for providing solace through their activities. He said religion was a force for good and we could witness this fact at the mission where everyone was received with

open arms.

Sahib ji gave a beautiful talk on Indian philosophy and a wonderful analogy of Lord Krishna having two mothers. A biological mother, Devaki and Yashoda who brought him up. Similarly, we Indians have two mothers, India a place of our origin and Britain where we now live.

The guests were treated to a mouth watering Prasad in the open grounds of this beautiful setting. The food was served by the devotees with devotion.

In all, it was memorable experience for both for Richard and I, one that will never cease to inspire us.

Hindu Council Brent celebrates Independence Day Hindu Council (Brent) celebrated Indian Independence Day on Saturday 17th August 2013 at the Federation of Patidar Samaj, Wembley.

The momentous occasion was celebrated with patriotic and cultural dances performance by children and youth from the Wanza Samaj UK, Diu Kadiya Nyanti Samaj, Binal Dance Academy, Kuntal School of Dancing and Encee Academy.

As special guests they had the First Secretary of Indian High Commission Sri T V Vasud Evan, Nainbhai Shah from London Assembly, Cllr

Paul Lorber and present were many members of their affiliated organisations.

The Speakers praised Hindu Council Brent, the umbrella body of the various Indian organisations, for organising India Day

celebrations in London. They commended Hindu Council (Brent) for their hard work for organising this event and for their commitment to fostering fellowship amongst Indo – British Community in the UK. All present also praised the inspiring patriotic and cultural performances by the children and youths presented a very professional manner.

At the end of the event all present enjoyed a sumptuous vegetarian meal.

27

Spriha Srivastava

Independence Day celebrated in London The Indian Independence Day was celebrated with enthusiasm and fanfare at the Indian Gymkhana Club in London. The High Commissioner Shri Jaimini Bhagwati hoisted the Tricolour followed by singing of the National Anthem.

Every year on Independence day and Republic day Indians all over the world yearn to see their tricolour hoisted, followed by the national anthem that leaves goosebumps on your body, reminding you that no matter how far you stay from your country, the patriotism and the love for the country will always be there.

Addressing the gathering of thousands of NRIs, Dr. Bhagwati welcomed the members of Indian community for joining the celebrations.

More than 50 Indian Associations in the UK representing different regions and communities of India participated in the celebration.

Depicting the confidence and ambitions of the youth of the nation and the rich heritage of the country, the representatives of these Associations presented a colourful cultural programme which included patriotic songs and dances.

Regional delicacies and cuisine of India were offered at the food stalls set up voluntarily by these Indian Associations.

Asian Voice and Gujarat Samachar also had their stalls, celebrating the Indian independence day spirit, which was graced by many dignitaries through out the day.

The event brought together the Indian diaspora representing Councillors of Indian origin, Captains of Industry, Academia, Youth, Students and budding artists who participated in the celebrations in a large scale.

The Indian High Commission has been hosting an event of this nature for the past three years now. A community event of this sort brings the NRI population in UK closer to the Indian government representatives in the UK. It is also a goodwill gesture on part of the Indian High Commission to acknowl-

Dr Rami Ranger, Richard Harrington MP and Gujarat Samachar News Editor- Kamal Rao at the Asian Voice and Gujarat Samachar stall in Indian Gymkhana

edge the efforts made by the established NRI community in the UK. The high commission also celebrated the day on August 15 at India House by unfurling the Indian flag and listening to the President of India’s speech.

During his speech, the Indian High Commissioner Dr. Jaimini Bhagwati named a number of prominent NRIs who have through their work have made India proud.

Also broadcast at the event was the address to the Nation by the Hon’ble President of India, Mr. Pranab Mukherjee.

The President in his second Independence Day speech to the nation expressed serious concern over the way Parliament and legislatures function and said corruption has become a major challenge. He also said that inflation, particularly high food prices, remains a cause of worry.

Noting the "widespread cynicism and disillusionment" with governance and functioning of institutions, the President said elections next year is an opportunity to elect a stable government that will ensure security and economic development.

"Every election must become a crucial milestone in our nation's journey towards greater social harmony, peace and prosperity," he said.

Mukherjee further said that we need a state that inspires confidence among people in its ability to surmount challenges before us. We need a media and citizens who, even as they claim their rights, are equally committed to their responsibilities."

Referring to Mahatma

Gandhi's promise of selfrule based on tolerance and self-restraint and the promise of freedom from want and deprivation, Mukherjee said, "For nearly seven decades now we have been masters of our destiny. This is then the moment to ask are we heading in the right direction?"

He said Gandhiji's vision cannot be turned into reality if the very values that were compulsory to his cause sincerity of effort, honesty of purpose and sacrifice for the larger good were spurned.

These words were broadcast for the entire NRI community present at the Indian Gymkhana Club in Osterley. And thus even though many would have heard the speech a few days back, the experience of hearing it among your own people, in front of your national flag is something totally different.

More than 200 families attended the event.

But the biggest applause is for the number of Indian associations in the UK that participated in the event. Be it a restaurant group or a temple association, those behind the stalls had just one objective, serving those who had come.

From hot poori chole to lavish rice, daal and sabji, to dhoklas, pakoras, sweets, juices, water and so much more, the stalls were the biggest attraction.

An event like this is always a product of team work and dedication.

And that has been extremely evident in the past three years. The Indian High Commission has brought about a new way of celebrating the Indian Independence day for those so far away from their country.

Let us know what you think.

Email Spriha at aveditorial@abplgroup.com

28

travel & women

www.abplgroup.com - asian voice 24th August 2013

AV Correspondent ohabbat Maqbara Palace, also known as M Mausoleum of

Y

ou’ve heard of those utterly mesmerising stories of Safari’s in Africa.

Well now is the time to book an unforgettable holiday taking in the magnificent beauty of Kenya, set in the green lands of East Africa.

Safari’s are an adventure like no other, they are unpredictable and bring you at one with nature in a way that god intended.

Over on the website for Brightsun Travel you will uncover a fantastic package that takes in some of the world’s most treasured Safari reserves. You are sure to have heard of the open plains of Masai Mara, the shimmery pink waters of Lake Nakuru and the swamps of Ambolesi. And not forgetting a backdrop of the stunning Mount Kilimanjaro.

er memory to treasure forever.

There’s no need to be scared when in the company of these large animals on their home patch, sometimes when they look at you, eye to eye, you can almost hear them say “Hakuna matata” – no worries!

Lest we forget, Kenya is a thriving country with many of its nature reserves using local materials for the buildings and the locals take sustainability as a core to their lives. During your trip you will want to visit the countries capital – Nairobi. This is a bustling city where you will find many African arts and crafts to take home to remind you of your amazing adventures with wild animals and at being at one with nature. Next time someone mentions the word “Safari” you

Bahaduddinbhai Hasainbhai, is situated in Junagadh, Gujarat. Its striking art and architecture make it one of the city's most important historical landmarks. It is also one of the city's oldest Mughal monuments.

The yellow mausoleum is a masterpiece of its kind with finely designed arches, vertical columns and elaborate stone carvings on the walls and windows.

Its silver-decorated portals, the winding staircases encircling its four tall minarets, the old step-well in the grounds and its onion-shaped dome contribute to its splendour.

With a combination of Indo-Islamic and Gothic architecture, Mohabbat Maqbara offers a sense of

Mohabbat Maqbara Palace A place of beauty and worship equality and exchange between the two cultures.

The Jami Masjid is on one side of the mausoleum while the Vazir's maqbara is

on the other. The Mohabbat Maqbara is generally closed to the public but can be seen by obtaining the keys from the mosque situated beside the mausoleum.

Started in 1878 by Mohabbat Khanji and completed in 1892 by his suc-

cessor, Bahadur Kanji, the Mohabbat Maqbara houses the tombs of Mohabbat Khanji and Bahauddin Maqbara of Bahaduddinbhai Hasainbhai, vizir of Nawab Rasul Khanji.

Standing over the grave of Nawab Mahabat Khan II, the tomb is a mixture of Islamic, Hindu and European influences, typical of Junagadh's royal monuments from the late 19th century.

This place is really a beauty to be visited because of the surrounding and silent place which makes a peaceful visit away from rush hour of city.

Usually, the maqbara is kept locked if the visitors are not present but can be unlocked by taking the keys from the nearby masjid.

Gujarat businessmen offer jobs to Uttarakhand victims AV Correspondent

From landscape beauty to the wilds of Africa’s Big 5, you will have the opportunity to see Buffalo’s, Rhino’s, Elephants, Leopards and Lions all in their very natural habitats.

Lake Nakuru, where the waters are often coloured shimmering flamingo pink, from the thousands of beautiful birds lining its shores. Here you will also likely see herds of gazelles as they romp the plains. Whilst en-route you will pass the monumental Thomson's falls where the waters cascade some 237 feet. These are sights that will stay in your mind’s eye for many many years.

As if seeing wild animals wasn’t enough, this package has an unforgettable stay at Kenya’s famous Tree Tops.

Treetops is Kenya’s original tree lodge, legendary for its historical royal connection, for the animals it attracts and for the sheer joy of exploring a lake visited by rhino, elephant, buffalo, lion, bushbuck, waterbuck and many other species.

An overnight stay here will be yet anoth-

will no doubt reminisce about this wonderful planet we live on where the wilderness is home to such great creatures.

There are many pleasures in life – but seeing the wildest of animals in a setting as beautiful as Kenya, really has to be top of that list.

To book this Kenya Horizons Safari which includes flights, tours, transfers, game drives with an English speaking guide and all meals on an all-inclusive basis, Brightsun have special offers with packages starting from only £1645 pp.

Brightsun Travel offers a price match promise on worldwide flights and holidays so you will get the best deals. To book your dream holiday, call Brightsun Travel on 0208 819 0486 or visit www.brightsun.co.uk

Even as relief continues to pour in from different parts of India for the Uttarakhand flood victims, a few businessmen in Gujarat have come up with a unique idea to reach out to the victims.

These businessmen think that instead of doling out relief material to the victims they want to offer jobs to the families of the victims which they think would be a permanent solution for the people in these affected areas.

While some are in the manufacturing industry, others are in the fabrication industry. The manufacturing industry offers jobs for least 100 people, the fabrication industry hopes to employ at least 25 people from the affected areas.

Vasant Mangrolia who owns an auto firm in Rajkot has decided to give jobs to at least 100 people A simple melange of vegetables and chick peas tossed in sesame seeds and chilli sauce Preparation time: 20 minutes.

Cooking time: 10 to 12 minutes.

Serves 4.

Ingrediansts: 6 baby potatoes, peeled and boiled 8 baby onions, peeled 6 baby corns 1 carrot, peeled 1 cucumber, peeled 6 cherry tomatoes ½ cup cooked Kabuli chana (chick peas) 1½ tbsp sesame seeds (til) 1 tsp ginger paste 1 tsp garlic (lehsun) paste 1 tbsp chilli sauce 1 tsp chilli flakes 1 tbsp oil Salt to taste.

Cut the baby corn, carrot and cucumber into thick strips like French fries. Keep it on the side.

Then heat the oil in a non-

from Kedarnath and surrounding villages. “Our intention is to give them jobs so that it becomes a source of income for them and their family,’’ said Mangrolia. He added that a group of representatives from Kedarnath will soon visit Rakjkot. “These representatives will understand the job profiles that will be given and also about the region that they will have to work in,’’ said Mangrolia.

Dharmendra Shah, an industrialist who own a fabrication plant, said, “Once the group visits the place and feels that they can comfortably work here, we will start employing them.’’ Shah said that he would be able to accommodate at least 25 people in his plant and these people would not need much training before they start their work. Shah said that most of these families were employed in

the tourism industry for their survival and according to government estimates it takes at lest two years for the families to get back to their original profession. The businessmen admit that those from Kedarnath and other affected villages might face the problem of being in a different region and climatic conditions but they will definitely prefer to be employed rather than resort to work which is not of their choice.

The industrialists feel that once they start the initiative others may also follow suit and offer jobs to the affected people.

Mangrolia said that he was in talk with other industrialists as well from other parts of the state and has been receiving a positive response but admits that it would become a reality once the representatives from these states visit and give their consent.

Fatak sabzi

stick pan and add the sesame seeds.

When the seeds crackle, add the ginger paste and garlic paste and sauté for a minute.

Add all the vegetables, chick peas and salt and sauté on a medium flame for 5 to 7 minutes.

Add the chilli sauce and chilli flakes, sauté on a medium flame for 1 to 2 minutes. Mix well.

Serve immediately.

Health Benefits: Baby corn is an excellent source of B vitamins. Baby corn provides folic acid, thiamin, riboflavin, and niacin. B vitamins contribute to digestion.

www.abplgroup.com - asian Voice 24th august 2013

CALCIUM + Magnesium + Vit. D3

Breastfeeding can protect from breast cancer

Non-smoking mothers who breastfeed their kids for more than six months may be less prone to the risk of breast cancer, a new research has revealed. The same is not true for smoking mothers.

Emilio GonzalezJimenez, of the University of Granada in Spain, and his colleagues analysed the medical records of 504 female patients, who were between 19 to 91 years of age and who had been diagnosed and treated for breast cancer from 2004 to 2009 at one of the city’s hospitals, reports femalefirst.co.uk.

On average it was found that women who had not breastfed their babies were, found to get breast cancer 10 years earlier than breastfeeding mothers.

In contrast, female smokers were diagnosed with breast cancer at a younger age and obtained no significant benefit from a longer period of breastfeeding.

"The results suggest that for non-smokers, breastfeeding for more than six months not only provides children with numerous health benefits, but it also may protect mothers from breast cancer,” said GonzalezJimenez.

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...

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Restless sleep is a recurring problem with most of us. And while a snoring partner is one of the primary reasons for you waking up abruptly in the night, the other factors could be internal and may be related to your health.

We get experts to break it down for you.

Headache: Possible causes: Dr Pratibha Singhal, consultant chest physician, bronchoscopist and sleep disorder specialist from Bombay hospital says, ‘Obstructive sleep apnea causes recurrent episodes of choking which causes a drop in oxygen levels in the body. This is sensed by the brain and it breaks the sleep cycle. The recurrent night awakenings causes the person to wake up with headaches.

Symptoms like nocturnal snoring and daytime sleepiness to name a few.

Sleep apnea poses several health hazards including uncontrolled hypertension, diabetes, etc. It can be easily diagnosed by doing a dedicated sleep study medically known as polysomnography.’

Solution: Treatment options depend on the results of the study and the advise of your specialist.

Breathlessness: Bombay Hospital Institute of Medical Sciences, and

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Bhatia Hospital, says, ‘Asthma is one of the primary causes of breathlessness and cough at nights.

Breathlessness at night in an asthmatic should sound the alarm on uncontrolled disease, and warrant a review of the medication prescribed. Often the disease hasn’t even been diagnosed, as in children with asthma.

Solution: Better control of asthma means better sleep, and therefore better growth. In a patient with cardiac disease, never ignore a night-time cough and breathlessness, especially an episode that wakes up the patient around 2 am. It is often a sign of cardiac decompensation and may need review of treatment, especially drugs to reduce fluid overload in the body, and others to optimise cardiac function.’

ated with death in offspring from cardiovascular causes.

With rising rates of excess weight among pregnant women, the authors said their findings are ‘a major public health concern’.

The findings indicate that the offspring of obese mothers are a high risk group who should be assessed for cardiovascular risk, and actively encouraged to maintain a healthy lifestyle.

‘As one in five women in Britain is currently obese at antenatal booking, strategies to optimise

Back pain: Possible causes: Dr Sujeet says, ‘Usually due to a bad mattress, either too hard or soft. Try putting your hand between your spine and the mattress. If it goes too easily, then the mattress is too hard. If it goes with difficulty, then your mattress is too soft.’

Solution: Mattresses should be changed once in eight to 10 years at least.

Also, do not use too many pillows (unless you suffer from acid-reflux), and the ideal possible way to sleep would be to use one pillow below neck, and one below knees to reduce back strain.

Patients with arthritis tend to get worse pain at nights, and may benefit with an antiinflammatory (pain-killer) before sleeping. Be careful with regular use of these drugs too, as excess use can cause kidney damage.

weight before pregnancy are urgently required,’ they said.

Obesity is a condition where a person’s Body Mass Index or BMI (calculated by dividing height by weight) is more than 30. It is becoming a global epidemic not only in developed nations but also in developing nations like India. Obesity is linked to a host of disorders like diabetes, heart diseases, hypertension and strokes.

Easy availability of sugars and fats, messing with our body clocks and an increased sedentary lifestyle are responsible for obesity. Being overweight and obesity are the fifth leading risk for global deaths with at least 2.8 million adults dying each year due to them.

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Kids of obese mums likely to die of heart disease

Researchers have found that children of obese mothers are at an increased risk of dying early as adults due to cardiac diseases.

Findings highlight the urgent need for strategies to prevent obesity in women of childbearing age, and the need to assess the offspring of obese mothers for their cardiovascular risk.

Rates of maternal obesity have risen rapidly in the past two decades. In the US, about 64 percent of women of reproductive age are overweight and 35 percent are obese, with a similar pattern in Europe, reported Science Daily.

Many studies have shown a link between maternal obesity and disease later in life, but it is still not clear whether maternal obesity is associ-

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Leg cramps: Possible causes: Dr Pratibha says, ‘Restless leg syndrome RLS is a condition which is characterised by an urge to move , associated with unpleasant sensations that occurs or is worsened by rest and improves with activity. It can occur exclusively at night during sleep and therefore cause sleep disturbances. Various factors like iron deficiency anaemia, kidney failure, fibromyalgia, some neurological diseases and medications have been implicated as a cause.’

Solution: Detailed evaluation by sleep specialist and a polysomnography( sleep study ) is recommended. As the syndrome can vary from night to night.

Treatment includes correction of anaemia if detected or treat any other suspected cause. Sometimes some

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oral medicines which alter neurochemical transmitters in the brain may be needed. These are to be consumed only after consulting a specialists.

Cough: Possible causes: Dr Pratibha says, ‘In the horizontal position the acid from the stomach can travel up through the food pipe and cause irritation in the throat, which in turn causes cough and sleep disturbance. Some people are inherently predisposed to this and some may have it occasionally when they have had a very heavy meal just before sleeping.’

Solution: Interval of at least two hours between eating and sleeping and eating a light dinner can decrease this.

Sleeping with two pillows and keeping the head high will help in this condition. Antacid medications as advised by your doctor if the symptoms persist. The nose drains into the throat.

When there is a cold and the sinuses are filed with secretions they drain into the throat in the lying down position and this triggers a spasm of cough.

This can be rectified by sleeping in a slightly propped up position using two pillows. A cough suppressant or cold medicines as advised by the physician may be needed.

Say No to Sugar-Free and Fat-Free Claims

Products labeled "sugarfree" and "fat-free" are not shortcuts to flat abs and tank-top arms. While it may be tempting to reach for the sugar-free cookies or the fat-free cheese, don't let that temptation get the best of you. Give yourself a little slap on the wrist, step away from the Oreos and hightail it out of that grocery aisle—stat!

Those "sugar-free" products may not pack any refined sugars, but that doesn't mean you're out of dangerous territory. In these products, sugar is replaced with artificial sweeteners, which are not any better for you. In fact, they're worse. Sure, artificial sweeteners don't have calories, but they're hundreds of times sweeter than real sugar, which can cause serious confusion

for your body. When you eat something sweet, your body expects calories to follow. Because artificial sweeteners don't have any calories, your body goes looking for them later. So remember, if you're trying to lose weight, it's best to stay away from both real sugar and artificial sweeteners. But, if the sweet tooth strikes too hard and you can't resist, allow yourself a conscious indulgence of the real thing.

30

UK

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 24th August 2013

Successful Open Badminton Championships organised by Maharashtra Mandal London

Versatile artist holds exhibition in Hounslow The opening up of a more diverse social life is a point in favour of romantic attachments, if this is what you most desire. The need to push ahead with personal interests and to assert yourself with added force will take precedence over everything else for some time to come. The general pattern of things continues on a progressive and buoyant theme.

ARIES Mar 21 - Apr 20

Open Badminton Championships were organised by MML on 3rd August 2013 at The Hounslow Dome. The turn out was a whopping 125 pairs coming from all over England, chiefly from the South- from Ashford, Aylesbury, Bristol, C o v e n t r y , Croydon, Fleet, Ilford, Lo ughton, Milton Keynes, Nottingham, Rea ding, Slough and Stevenage.

Conceptualised and spearheaded by Sushil Rapatwar, President of Maharashtra Mandal London and helped by Ajinkya Ansingkar, Geetesh Ghanekar, Karthik Ramasubramanian and Nitin Madkaikar, the event was assisted on the day by volunteers Ajinkya Bhave, Kanchan Ghanekar, Kiran Matondkar, Nikhil Shrotri, Rajendra Sathe, Sapna, Sangeetha and Santosh Sawant.

The tournament start-

ed at 8 am to be able to accommodate the long marathon of round-robin matches. Men's doubles alone had 64 pairs to play, followed by Ladies Doubles and Mixed Doubles. To maintain time and space efficiency, different categories of players were called at different times. The day saw some very gripping semi-finals and final matches.

Winners of Ladies Doubles were Manami Williams and Linh Ly, Men’s Doubles were Akarin Charusdistavong and Daniel Tang, and Mixed Doubles were Manami Williams and Wayne Philogene.

President Sushil Rapatwar says “With the ground breaking audience we reached this year, we are certain to hold a more gratifying tournament next year. We also aim to make this a regular sports event in the Badminton circuit which most players would want to look forward to”.

Coming Events Janmashtami celebrations

TAURUS Apr 21 - May 21 Whether you’re single or attached you’ll have to go through a lot, as deep psychological transformations are taking place in all types of relationships. No matter what your chosen path is, you’ll be recognised and rewarded for it. Don’t be afraid to experiment, trust your hunches, go with your gut feeling. Solutions to minor problems should be considered very carefully if cash is involved.

Vibrant colours, bold strokes and happy feelings is what one understands on seeing Ratna's work.

Here's introducing an upcoming artist from Mumbai, India- Ratna Singh. She is a self taught artist who expresses her innermost feelings through her choice of colours . Orange is happiness, white is peace, green is prosperity, red for passion, yellow is positivity and gold is love. One gets instantly connected to their emotions through her play of colours. Her medium of work is mostly acrylic on canvas. Most of her work is sold through word of mouth and has reached Dubai, New Zealand ,New York and now London. Recently one of the projects in Pune, India, is doing up a series of paintings for an upmarket cluster of exclusive Apartments. On a

personal front, Ratna is gearing up for her Ph.D degree from Mumbai University and would like to set up a school near Mumbai for the underprivileged girl child. All proceeds from her paintings will go towards her dream project. Here's wishing her good luck !

Currently, Ratna shuttles between London, where her husband is currently posted and Mumbai, where her daughter studies.

Her work will be on display at Mantra Restaurant from 26th August 2013 (before Ganesh Chaturthi Pooja) which begins from- 9th September 2013.

For further details, please contact- Mantra, 253 Bath Road, Hounslow, London TW3 3DA, Tel: 020 8572 6000

l Om Babaji Yoga Ashram Haccadown Exeter at Devon, 7pm onwards, 28th August 2013.

Contact: pujari@ombabaji.org.uk l The Sarvoday Hindu Association, live music group led by Apporav Shah from 6pm till late; Contact: Anila Thakar 07508 346810 l Wednesday, 28th August 2013, Shree Jalaram Mandir Greenford 10.30am till midnight.

Contact on 0208 578 8088 / 9285 l Hindu Cultural Society of Havering on Wednesday 28 August, 7:30pm onwards.

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GEMINI May 22 - June 22

Anything or anyone that drains your time and energy should be re-evaluated. It’s time to use that creative imagination of yours to create grandeur in your life. Jupiter, the planet of expansion in your Solar 2nd house is creating a lot of opportunities for you. Don't get too carried away and lose sight of little things that mean a lot to you.

CANCER Jun 22 - Jul 22 You are in a brilliant period for increasing your earning power and you'll be busy taking charge of your finances.

Achieving a sense of security becomes a priority.

Although there is a lot of sorting out to be done in your relationship sector, it will not phase you as so many issues have already be dealt with.

LEO Jul 23 - Aug 23 If you are your own boss, then you can look forward to a fairly good week. Leos who face a strict schedule may find the next seven days a little frustrating, because this is a week where you will need a certain amount of personal space. You may be absorbing new ideas about how to create financial independence. Others may not understand, so you may have to keep your ideas to yourself.

VIRGO Aug 24 - Sep 23 Your communications are at their peak and any initiatives you take now will be well received by people in authority. An exchange of opinions ought to prove very enlivening at this time. Although the very practical affairs of life continue to be highlighted, you will still be very much in demand socially.

LIBRA Sep 24 - Oct 23 The prevailing astrological trend indicates increasing vigour and stamina. At an ordinary everyday level you can expect this to be a pleasant time, indulging in the good things of life. At a deeper level, there does appear to be a new energy stirring within you. This will urge you towards creating greater independence in your lifestyle.

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SCORPIO Oct 24- Nov 22 It's a time of slow and steady progress that can set the stage for a long time to come. Of course, there are still challenging issues on both a personal and practical level. To get here you may have overcome obstacles by making important decision and choices. You will achieve a lot more, especially when you're motivated by your own desires.

SAGITTARIUS Nov 23 - Dec 21 It would be unwise to take any risks, particularly in regard to joint interests and investments. Expenses and outgoings are likely to become heavy. So be extra careful if you need to deal with complex legal matters and necessary red tape. Plan your spending and set sensible budgets to reach your financial goals.

CAPRICORN Dec 22 - Jan 20 Jupiter is transiting your opposite sign and this is particularly beneficial and significant for you. This transit heightens your optimism and confidence. You are greeting life with a fresh and positive attitude. You have an altogether different perspective on life now, and are not fazed by anything. Furthering yourself comes easily during this transit.

AQUARIUS Jan 21 - Feb 19 Sun is transiting your eighth house--joint finances, loans, taxes, sexuality, and psychological matters. This is a time of increased accumulation of wealth if you manage your resources well. In some cases, a significant tax refund, inheritance, or other such benefit might arrive during this transit.

PISCES Feb 20 - Mar 20

It’s all about communications, as they take centre stage this week. A good time to speak up about your wants and needs without fear. Regarding love there will be a struggle between devotion and freedom. You need to create a balance between your passion for your lover, and yet the need for personal space.

Sport World

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 24th August 2013

Sacked by Sussex, Monty Panesar signs for Essex England left-arm spinner Monty Panesar has joined Essex for the rest of the season following his sacking by Sussex.

"Essex have secured the signing of Monty Panesar for the rest of the 2013 season.

Panesar will join the Club on loan from Sussex and is available for the six County Championship matches, starting with the Colchester Cricket Festival, Essex said in a statement.

Panesar, 31, could become Essex's second signing making their debut at Castle Park along with Gautam Gambhir who is also available for selection against Northamptonshire.

"We are delighted to welcome Monty to the Club for the remainder of the season.

He is a world-class spinner and we are confident that he will have a positive impact on the team," said Paul Grayson, Essex coach.

Panesar replaces Tom

Craddock who looks set to miss the remainder of the season for personal reasons.

Panesar was released by Sussex following a probe into his drunken behaviour outside a nightclub after being dropped for the fifth and final Ashes Test.

England Sunday called up left-arm Simon Kerrigan for the Oval Test, dropping a big enough hint that Panesar's international career was in jeopardy.

Panesar, 31, was fined 90 pounds by the police for drunken disorderly behaviour after urinating on night club bouncers and Sunday he received a big jolt when he was dropped for the Oval Test against Australia.

Sussex's professional cricket manager Mark Robinson added: "Monty has been an integral part of the professional cricket team and has been a valuable contributor to the overall performance of the club during

his time at Sussex.

"He is an outstanding bowler. I would like to thank Monty for his contribution and wish him well for the future."

Pnesar, who still has two more years of contract to run, thanked the county for agreeing to release him so that he could explore other opportunities of playing in all forms of the game.

Panesar said: "I am grateful to Sussex for allowing me to be released from my contract for 2014 and 2015 in order to explore other

opportunities to further develop my cricket. I want to give myself the best chance of playing all forms of the game at the highest level. I have endured a challenging time this year off the field and my frustrations have sometimes got the better of me professionally. I apologise for letting the club, my colleagues and my fans down.

"I have re-engaged with Neil Burns at London County Mentoring, to help to develop my cricket further and I feel that Neil, along with a trusted support structure in place around me will help me put my personal and professional problems behind me and enable me to put all my energies and focus into the game and a new club.

"I am determined to do whatever it takes to gain selection for England this winter. I want to become the best I can be.”

Usain Bolt becomes the most successful athlete

Usain Bolt, already enshrined as one of the greatest Olympians of all time, became the most successful athlete in world championship history when he anchored Jamaica to victory in the 4x100 metres relay on Sunday.

Bolt followed up the 100 and 200m double with his third gold in the final event, taking his alltime tally to eight. That matches American trio Carl Lewis, Michael Johnson and Allyson Felix but the Jamaican moved ahead by virtue of his two silvers from 2007.

Shelly-Ann Fraser-Pryce also completed the hat-trick as Jamaica won the women’s 4x100 relay in the secondfastest time ever, giving them all six sprint golds in Moscow to bring a smile back to the Caribbean island following the doping cloud surrounding the build-up to Moscow.

On a high-quality final day, there was a Kenyan middle-distance double as Asbel Kiprop retained his 1,500 metres title and Eunice Sum took a surprise gold in the women’s 800.

Frenchman Teddy Tamgho delivered the third longest leap in history as he soared 18.04 metres to win the triple jump and Christina Obergfoell’s javelin victory gave Germany their fourth field event gold.

Traditionally athletics programmes ended with the 4x400m relay but such is Bolt’s worldwide selling power that recent events have been rejigged.

Jamaica were pipped by Britain in the heats but the favourites drafted in Bolt and Nickel Ashmeade, while the US, unusually, used the same four in their evening heat as in the final.

Initially it seemed to be working in the Americans’ favour as they led approaching the final bend, but Rakieem Salaam’s handover to Justin Gatlin left the individual 100m runner-up off balance. He clearly strayed into the Jamaicans’ lead outside him but somehow escaped disqualification.

It made no difference to Bolt, who streaked clear to complete victory in 37.36 seconds, the sixth fastest ever, with the US in 37.66 Britain, another nation with a painful history of relay foul ups, crossed the line third but were disqualified for a late changeover. That promoted Canada on to the podium and somewhat made amends for the 2012 Olympics when they were disqualified after finishing third.

Bolt delighted the crowed with a celebratory Cossack dance, not easy for someone 6ft 5ins (1.95 metres) tall, before parading round the track with his three medals on show for 50,000 flashing cameras.

IOC rejects India's objections on chargesheeted persons

International Olympic Committee refused to change its stance on barring chargesheeted persons from contesting Indian Olympic Association elections, saying that entertaining IOA's objections would amount to undermining the Olympic charter.

IOC had sent the revised draft Constitution of the IOA which envisaged barring of corruption-tainted persons from contesting IOA elections. IOA had objected to this provision saying that Indian law would prevail on these matters.

However, IOC stuck to its stand. It also issued a veiled threat of possible action to the IOA, reminding it that it has been under suspension

and so should act responsibly to meet the conditions requested by the world body.

"The IOC has never questioned the principle that till one is convicted one is innocent. However the IOC Code of Ethics clearly states that the Olympic parties (which include the NOCs) must undertake to respect and ensure the respect of the IOC Code of Ethics which says in particular that they must not act in a manner likely to tarnish the reputation of the Olympic Movement. The IOA (still suspended) must therefore act responsibly and must adopt a clear wording in its revised Constitution," IOC stated in its letter.

"The wording of the pro-

Christophe De Kepper

posed provision which reads 'The Law of the land will prevail in all the affairs concerning Indian Olympic Association' cannot be accepted since this would leave aside and undermine the Olympic Charter and the IOA Constitution," said the letter written by IOC Director General Christophe De Kepper.

"The following (or similar) wording shall therefore be considered: 'The Indian

Olympic Association shall be governed in accordance with the IOA Constitution, the Olympic Charter and the Law of the land'.

"As per the IOC provision, the constitution would prevent any person charged by a Court in India for any serious criminal/corruption offense (whose situation would therefore tarnish the reputation of the Olympic Movement) from being eligible for election within the IOA," it said.

The IOC proposed that the Constitution would give legal tools to the IOA to act immediately and automatically whenever a member is facing such situations (relating to ethical issues) by taking provisional measures.

31

Chand, Rahul power India to win over Pakistan

Medium-pacer Sandeep Warrier picked up three wickets while opener Unmukt Chand struck a patient half-century as India's U-23 team got the better of Pakistan by three wickets in a limited overs Group 'A' match of the Unmukt ACC Emerging Teams Cup, Chand in Singapore. Chasing 192 for victory, India got off to a fine start with U-19 World Cup winning skipper Chand (61) and KL Rahul (46) providing the team a solid platform.

Despite the middle-order not contributing much, India could sail home with KL Rahul 13 balls to spare. Chand and Rahul shared a 84-run for the opening wicket. Apart from the duo, India skipper Suryakumar Yadav also made a useful contribution with 23 runs after Pakistan's left-arm spinner Raza Hasan picked up three wickets to take the contest to the closing stages. Opting to field, the Indian pace duo of Sandeep Sharma and Warrier proved their captain's decision right, reducing Pakistan to 22 for three inside 10 overs.

But Umar Waheed (46) and Usman Salahuddin (61) added 85 runs for the fourth wicket. While Warrier finished with three for 32 from his nine overs, Sharma chipped in with two wickets for 39. India got off to a flying start as Chand and Rahul denied Pakistan's frontline bowlers any success. The opening wicket stand was broken by left-arm spinner Mohammad Nawaz when he disturbed the timbers of Rahul.

Roger Federer slides to No 7 in ATP rankings

Roger Federer, who spent more weeks at No 1 than anyone, has reached his lowest spot in a decade by dropping to No. 5 after Wimbledon - and he fell two more places on Monday. Barring a withdrawal, Federer will be seeded seventh at the US Open, where he won five of his 17 Grand Slam titles. In other changes, French Open champion Rafael Nadal who won hard-court titles at Montreal and Cincinnati the last two weeks - rose to No. 2 from No. 3, swapping places with Wimbledon champion Andy Murray. Novak Djokovic remained No. 1.

Nadal, Azarenka win titles in Cincinnati

Rafael Nadal extended his sizzling summer with his first Cincinnati title on Sunday, while No 1 Serena Williams wilted just one set away from a breakthrough of her own. Nadal took advantage of the few Rafael Nadal openings he got against John Isner, grinding out a 7-6 (10-8), 7-6 (7-3) win at the Western & Southern Open that added yet another title to his sensational summer. Unbeaten on the surface in 15 matches this year and coming off a win in Montreal, the third ranked Nadal, who moved up to number two on Monday, won back-to-back hard court finals on consecutive Azarenka weeks for the first time in his career. On the women’s side, Williams has dominated, going 60-4 this season. She has never done well in Cincinnati, and was eager to win on Sunday for a career-best ninth title of the season. All the statistics were in her favour - a 12-2 career record against Azarenka, including that US Open title last year. For two hours and 30 minutes, Azarenka and Williams engaged in a seesaw battle before the Belarusian finally clinched the victory, toppling Serena 2-6, 6-2, 76 (8-6) to prevent the American from ticking a Cincinnati win off her ‘bucket list’.

32

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 24th August 2013

India A beat Australia A to win Tri-series title

Pretoria: India ‘A’ on clinched the Tri-series title with a comfortable 50-run victory over Australia ‘A’ in a low-scoring final, relying on a clinical display by their bowlers.

Opting to bat on a placid strip, India could manage only 243 in 49.2 overs with Shikhar Dhawan (65) and Dinesh Karthik (73) being the notable contributors. The Indian bowlers, who had been woefully out of sorts in the tournament, then managed to bowl out the Aussies for 193 in 46.3 overs to guide the team to victory at the LC de Villiers Oval.

It was India's fifth ‘A’ tournament victory since the concept was introduced in 1994. The 'law of averages' finally caught up with the Australians in a final that turned out to be an anti-climax of sorts with the Indians successfully avenging their twin defeats at the round robin league stage. Speedster Mohammed Shami (2/ 30) dealt initial blows to Australia 'A' and the likes of

India ‘A’ players celebrate victory.

Shahbaz Nadeem (3/ 34 in 10 overs), Perveez Rasool (1/30 in 10 overs), Ishwar Chand Pandey (1/47 in 8 overs), Suresh Raina (1/33 in 10 overs) kept the Aussie batsmen under tight leash.

Shami started by cleaning up rival skipper Aaron Finch (20) who went for a wild slog after hitting the bowler for a big six in an earlier over. Left-

hander Shaun Marsh (11), who has had a fine tournament, was Shami's second victim as he hit a length ball straight to Indian captain Cheteshwar Pujara at mid-on.

Glenn Maxwell (12) started with a six and four but was sent back by part-time offspinner Raina, who opened the bowling alongside Shami.

Maxwell tried to slog him past

mid-wicket but was holed out to Pujara as Australia were reduced to 50 for three.

It soon became 53 for five when left-hander Nick Maddinson edged one to Raina at first slip off Pandey's bowling and Mitchell Marsh failed to beat a Rohit Sharma throw as 'keeper Wriddhiman Saha whipped off the bails in a flash.

Moises Henriques (20) lofted Dhawan for a couple of sixes but was sent back by Nadeem when trying to cut one that went to Raina at slips. Nathan Coultier-Nile tried to give Nadeem the charge as Saha effected a smart stumping.

At 88 for seven, there was no looking back for the Indians but Josh Hazlewood (30) and Tim Paine (47) fought hard to add 54 for the eighth wicket before he was stumped by Saha off Nadeem's bowling. Paine was then cleaned up by Rasool as India finished off the match when Fawad Ahmed was out due to a horrible mixup with Gurinder Sandhu.

England name uncapped duo in squad for final Ashes test Uncapped test duo Simon Kerrigan and Chris Woakes have been named in England's 14-man squad for the fifth and final Ashes contest against Australia, starting at The Oval on Wednesday.

Fast bowler Steven Finn was also recalled to the squad after England, who have retained the urn and lead the series 3-0, lost pacemen Tim Bresnan and Graham Onions to injuries.

Finn returns after playing in the first test of the series at Nottingham, where he took two wickets in England's 14-run victory. He was a non-playing member of the second test squad before missing out on selection for the next two matches.

Yorkshire seamer Bresnan was ruled out for the remainder of the English season with a stress fracture in his lower back, while Onions misses out with a broken finger. "Tim Bresnan has made valuable contributions with both bat and

Simon Kerrigan

Chris Woakes

ball during the series and I would like to wish him all the very best in his recovery from his back injury," England selector Geoff Miller said in a statement.

"The focus for Bresnan now will be the tour of Australia later this year while this test will provide an opportunity for another member of this squad to make equally vital contributions."

Lancashire left-arm spinner Kerrigan, 24, who is yet to play for England in any

format, got the nod ahead of troubled tweaker Monty Panesar, who was recently fined for drunkenly urinating outside a Brighton nightclub. Warwickshire's Woakes, who made his England debut in 2011 in limited overs internationals, is also a handy batsman lower down the order similar to Bresnan.

"The inclusion of five pace bowlers as well as an additional spinner in Simon Kerrigan, who has impressed with Lancashire and England Lions in recent years, gives (coach) Andy Flower and (captain) Alastair Cook plenty of options once they have assessed the conditions at the Kia Oval," Miller added.

Squad: Alastair Cook (captain), James Anderson, Jonny Bairstow, Ian Bell, Stuart Broad, Steven Finn, Simon Kerrigan, Kevin Pietersen, Matt Prior, Joe Root, Graeme Swann, Chris Tremlett, Jonathan Trott, Chris Woakes.

India batsman Gautam Gambhir joins Essex

India batsman Gautam Gambhir is to play for Essex for the remainder of the season, the English county said.

The 31-year-old left-handed opener will replace New Zealand's Hamish Rutherford as Essex's overseas player, with Gambhir likely to make his debut for the club in their County Championship match against Northamptonshire. Rutherford is due to return home ahead of New Zealand's domestic and international competitions.

World Cup-winner Gambhir, who has scored 4,021 Test runs at an average of 44.18, said in a statement: "I am delighted to have this chance to make my county cricket debut with Essex. "After the IPL (Indian Premier League) ended I was looking to play some competitive cricket and playing for Essex will give me that opportunity. I am thankful to Essex for presenting me with this option and BCCI (Board of Control for Cricket in India) for allowing me to participate in county cricket. "I hope I can make some meaningful contributions to Essex in the ongoing season," he added.

Azharuddin offered coaching job

Former Indian captain Mohammad Azharuddin has been offered the job of coaching Jammu and Kashmir cricket team and he was considering whether to take it up or not, a report said. According to the report, Jammu and Kashmir Cricket Association president Farooq Abdullah offered Azharuddin the position that has been lying vacant since Bishan Singh Bedi's exit after the end of last season. "We still haven't reached the final decision," Abdullah was quoted as saying. Azharuddin's life ban handed by the BCCI in 2000 for his alleged involvement in match-fixing was overturned last year by the Andhra Pradesh high court.

Mujeeb Khan, Azharuddin's secretary, said the former batsman hadn't made up his mind. "He has been offered the post of coach by JKCA but he hasn't decided whether to take it or not," Mujeeb said.

Virat Kohli has makings of a good captain: Dhoni Indian skipper M S Dhoni, for one, is pleased to see his deputy Virat Kohli easing into the leadership role. "Virat has changed a lot over the last year. The best thing about him is that he is very expressive, and that helps a captain. His approach towards his game and also the way he operates in the field has changed.

He now has all the ingredients to lead a side and has led well in Zimbabwe," Dhoni said while speaking at a promotional event in New Delhi on Monday.

India's young crop has delivered results in the absence of stalwarts like Virender Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir, Zaheer Khan and Yuvraj and Dhoni clarified fit and in-form players - not age or experience - was the guiding factor, apart from top-class fielding skills.

"It doesn't matter if one is 40 or 42 years of age as long as he is fit and in form. I don't agree I am only keen on forming an all-youngsters team. Since cricket is a more skill-oriented game, if

there is one department where a player can perform in every game it is fielding.

And to be a good fielder, one has to be very fit. I will like to keep players who can save runs and are not below average as fielders," the captain said.

What about the long rope given to some younger players? "If a player is spotted as someone who has the talent to deliver and sustain pressure, he will be given a longer rope. But the individual has to perform to justify his selection," Dhoni said.

Dhoni remains a person who sets

short-term goals. For him, thoughts of the much-hyped tour to South Africa in late November can wait. He has some unfinished business with the Australian team before that. "We haven't done well against them in ODIs at home. We need to fix that first. The series is happening when the dew factor comes into play and the toss plays a greater role. A lot of work needs to be done for that series too," he said.

Dhoni has his own ways to stay fit too.

As he gets his head clear ahead of another hectic season, he isn't going through the rigorous fitness drills of a modern cricketer but is instead spending more time playing other sports like badminton to ensure his reflexes are razor sharp.

"I want my body to recover. Anyway, with the Champions League coming up, we will have to hit the gym as the professional trainers arrive. For the time being, I am trying to play other sports. In fact, I have been playing a lot of badminton since last week. That can work for the eyesight

and footwork as well," Dhoni said.

Known for his outside-the-box moves on the field, Dhoni certainly doesn't belong to the old school of cricket pundits.

Reacting to Rahul Dravid's assertion that young players should play more days' cricket before moving into the shorter format, Dhoni's curt reply was: "One should respect all formats. In fact, the norm in Indian cricket has been to play ODIs and T20s first and then get in to the Test team.

Most of us have got first exposure of international cricket by playing the shorter formats."

He even refrained from naming his alltime XI. "Forming an all-time XI is like mixing the parts of a two-stroke bike with a four-stroke bike. Guess what the outcome will be! I am not making my all-time XI. Not in this lifetime, at least."

Asked if he would keep his word and take a call on his Test career by 2013, Dhoni said, "You have to just wait and watch what happens in the next five months."