Asian Voice by Asian Business Publications Ltd

SEE INSIDE .... Hrithik stops traffic in Times Square ..page 20 Woman's burqa ripped off in France ...page 25 Six Indians indicted in Vienna shooting ........... .......................page 26 Facebook, youtube and twitter blocked in Islamabad .......page 27 Ginger eases aches and pains ..............page 30

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SEE INSIDE .... Judicial heavyweights support direct flight campaign ..............page 2 Onepass gives over 60's discounts ..............page 5 First global 'Green' Hindu meeting in Harrow .............................page 7 Ten Asians named in tax crime gang jailed page 10 Bhavan showcases Yakshagana string puppets ...........................page 11 29th May to 4th June 2010

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Tony Blair is adviser to Khosla Ventures of USA Vinod Khosla, a billionaire is the co-founder of Silicon Valley giant Sun Microsystems

Former British Prime Minister has accepted a job as the adviser for Khosla Ventures, a venture capital firm founded and owned by Vinod Khosla, the US billionaire and a partner of a leading Silicon Valley giant Sun Microsystems. Khosla Ventures was started in 2004 and specialises in environmentally friendly technologies that include nuclear, wind and solar energy projects. Khosla also backs start-

Soraa co-founder Steve DenBaars (L) and Calera CEO Brent Constantz (R) look on as former British Prime Minister Tony Blair speaks during the Khosla Ventures Cleantech Discussion on Monday, May 24 in California.

Hafiz Saeed remains a free man Pakistan Supreme Court finds evidence against him not solid enough to arrest the JuD chief again Eight dossiers provided by India were virtually trashed by the Pakistan Supreme Court on Tuesday. Appeals by the Pakistani federal as well as Punjab provincial government against release of JuD chief Hafiz Mohammad Saeed were dismissed. Hafiz Saeed, the founder of banned terror outfit Lashkar-e-

Hafiz Saeed

Toiba is the chief suspect, the mastermind behind the 26/11 terror attack on Mumbai. The Supreme Court ruled that the two governments have failed to provide enough evidence proving involvement of Saeed in the Mumbai attacks. He was earlier let off by the Punjab High Court last year.

ups in sectors such as mobile phones and the internet. Vinod Khosla, the 55-year-old tycoon has a fortune estimated by Forbes magazine at $1.1 billion. According to Khosla, Mr Blair will provide strategic advice regarding investments in environmentally friendly or helpful technologies. Mr Blair in a press release from Khosla ventures said: "Solving the climate crisis is more than just a political agenda item - it's an urgent priority that requires innovation, creativity, and ambition." Mr Khosla said: "Understanding local and global politics is now important for us, techie nerds. This is where our relationship with Tony Blair can really help us. He understands far better than I ever will the political and geopolitical forces, as well as organization behaviour and social behaviour and change." Continued on page 24

Kamla Persad wins Trinidad polls Indian origin granny become the first woman PM of the Caribbean nation Kamla PersadBissessar, the 58 year woman having her roots in India and a devout Hindu has become the first woman Prime Minister of Trinidad and Tobago. She led the political coalition, ‘People’s Partnership’ to a thumping victory Kamla Persad-Bissessar in the parliamentary Kamla Persadelections held on Bissessar, reacting to her Monday. They won 29 of coalition’s victory said: the 41 seats. President "I am grateful for the George Maxwell immense support from Richards was expected women and women's to swear her to power on groups across the counTuesday evening. try and to the extent that Her coalition unseatthis helps to break the ed the ruling party after barriers for so many a long rein of 43 years. It competent women may be noted that Mrs. faces.” Persad-Bissessar, a Outgoing Prime grand mother of two is Minister Patrick an MP for 15 years from Manning conceded her Siparia constituency. defeat after being in A has studied law and power since 2002. also is an MBA. She has Trinidad and Tobago also done her diploma in has a population of 1.3 education. Kamla has million and Indian served Trinidad & Diaspora comprises 44 Tobago as the first per cent. It is an oil-rich woman Attorney island nation. General and held minisShe is leading a coaliterial positions in the tion of five parties. ministries of legal affairs as well as education. Continued on page 24 - 1"( "##" /%1" #-+) /$ ,-%(

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Asian Voice - Saturday 29th May 2010

one to one Keith Vaz MP with

Punam Malhotra Punam Malhotra is the creator of My Desi Guru, a learning tool aimed at developing a fun way of creating a child’s interest in learning their own desi languages. She is mum to Rahul and Krish - her business ideas were inspired when she could not find any suitable products to help her own children learn Hindi. 1) What inspired you to create My Desi Guru? My kids were the inspiration. I wanted to lay down the foundations of learning our mother tongue and culture early on. However, I struggled to find any suitable up to date products for young kids. Friends were also facing a similar dilemma. In a bid to tackle this issue, I decided to create “fun” and “intuitive” Asian learning language products for pre-school children. My husband who is my best friend and critic encouraged me to pursue my dreams. In partnership with Pinal Patel the creative arm for this project, My Desi Guru was born and the rest is history! 2) Do you have a business background? Yes. I have a BA (Hons) in Business and Marketing and a further qualification from the

UK News Asian Voice and Gujarat Samachar hosted a high-profile luncheon at their offices last week in honour of Justice GS Nanavati. The retired Supreme court judge was also the Chief Justice of Orissa state and has headed the panels investigating the 1984 Sikh Riots and the Godhra riots. Sir Mota Singh, the first Asian and Sikh British judge was present as well. He is also the first Asian to be knighted for his professional services in the British judiciary. Other illustrious guests were industrialist and philantropist Manubhai Madhvani, his wife Mrs Sharadaben Madhvani, Brent councillor Harshadbhai Patel and various community leaders. One of the main discussions were about the ongoing campaign by National Congress of Gujarati Organisations, Asian Voice and Gujarat Samachar to resume direct flights between Ahmedabad and London. Publisher and Editor CB Patel spoke about how, inspite of direct flights between Ahmedabad and Mumbai running at full capacity, they were abruptly stopped when the UPA government came to power. CB highlighted the hor-

Institute of Direct Marketing. Skills from my education and experiences from my long successful professional business career have definitely contributed to establishing My Desi Guru. 3) What are your proudest achievements? It is hard to single one such achievement and I am not sure that would be the word I would use, however at a personal level it would be my boisterous kids who have been so supportive in everything I do and mean the world to me. Professionally, it has to be My Desi Guru. Launching a new company, creating a new brand and a range of unique products whilst juggling a job and a family was a real emotional rollercoaster but it has all fallen into place now. Word of mouth recommendation, thumbs

up from kids and parents has ensured our success making it all worthwhile. 4) Where do you see My Desi Guru going next? My Desi Guru wants to grow and reach everybody world wide! It plans to be at the forefront for language development for young kids initially but plans to cater for different age groups in the future. Different languages shall be launched in addition to the current bilingual English/Asian lan-

guages offered: Hindi, Gujarati, Urdu and Punjabi. New DVD series, books and various other product extensions and enhancements are planned. 5) What has been your biggest challenge so far? As a small team, there is always enormous pressure and work to be done managing all new product development, production and animation in the UK. It has been extremely labour intensive, however the positive feedback keeps us going and helps us to develop and grow My Desi Guru. 6) What is the best thing about your current role? Besides being my own boss, it’s rewarding to see kids learning languages from our DVD series. My Desi Guru filled a gap in the market for quality and modern DVDs teaching kids English/Asian languages.

Kids learn languages without even realising it. Languages are a foundation to keep them in touch with culture and heritage – and if our educational products can get even a small percentage engaged/exposed I feel that it is worthwhile. 7) What’s so unique about your DVD range? Our DVDs use modern and successful learning language methodologies; animated jungle charcaters, new story adventures, colourful animations, visual and spoken word pronunciations and music with an Asian twist to make it the perfect language tool. All created and designed in the UK, producing a modern teaching tool aimed at kids growing up in the western world. No prior language knowledge is required. Parents, carers, teachers can watch these DVDs with kids whilst participating and reinforcing learning so no one is left out! .Truly a great unique gift with long lasting benefits. Kids will simply want to watch them again and again! 8) If you were Prime Minister, what one thing would you change? I would introduce the learning of languages at nursery level which would benefit kids in later life in numerous ways. Learning additional languages has enormous educational benefits for kids including improved school performance, increased creativity and better solving of com-

People ■ Exactly a day after being congratulated in the Tea Room about his success in the election with the Common's biggest Labour Majority poor Stephen Timms was stabbed at his surgery. Wellwishers should write to the House of Commons. ■ David Miliband chose to go to Harrow for the first stop on his tour of Britain to find out why Labour had lost. He was greeted by a beaming Gareth Thomas. But against all odds Gareth won. I hope we are not going to have a recount. ■ Gordon Brown's resignation honours list contains at least three Asian names: one from each of the main political parties. News reaches me that an additional 100 names are being considered. That means an extra 10 ethnic minority peers. Make sure you get your name in quickly! plex problems. 9) If you were marooned on a desert island who would you like to spend your time with and why? My entire family of course! They would make the whole experience enjoyable and entertaining so there would be no need to rush a rescue operation!

Judicial heavyweights support direct flight campaign

Sir Mota Singh

rendous hardships faced by over 2,000 passengers flying between Ahmedabad and London every week due to the lack of direct flights. All passengers currently flying by either Air India or Jet Airways waste on average of three to four hours in transit at Mumbai and Delhi airport where they are made to disembark with all hand luggage before eventually catching a flight to Ahmedabad. This is specially cumbersome for elderly, passengers with diabetes, pregnant mothers, those travelling with children and wheelchair users. Aviation industry consultant Mr Piyush Desai, who also attended the event, explained the possible problems faced by the airline but he was also not very

impressed, when CB highlighted the total lack of any explanation provided by Civil Aviation Minister Mr Praful Patel. Inspite of detailed letters written by several prominent leaders both in Gujarat and UK to Mr Praful Patel it was shocking that most have received no formal acknowledgment let alone any explanations or information about Air India and what the Civil Aviation Minister is planning to do. Other guests who graced the event included Mrs Vanuben Nanavati herself a lawyer, Kumudben Patel (host of Mr Nanavati), Surendrabhai Patel (Bharatiya Vidhya Bhavan), Dr Ramnik Mehta (President of Lion's Club of Enfield and runs a charitable trust in Vakaner, Gujarat), Manubhai Tarai, Major Dhirubhai Patel, Kausikbhai Desai (auditor), financial consultant Ashok Patel and his son Hemit Patel. After beautiful melodies such as 'Jai Jai Garavi Gujarat' (on occasion of Swarnim Gujarat year) 'Chup Chup ke Raat Din' by Ghulam Ali sung by Prabhatdev Bhojak, the discussion shifted to the Indian judiciary system. With his vast experience of the judiciary in erstwhile

Justice GS Nanavati and his wife Mrs Vanuben Nanavati

Bombay state, Gujarat and Orissa as well as the Supreme Court in Delhi, Justice Nanavati was asked several questions on the subject. Whilst he was very guarded in his response,

befitting his status, overall he did recognise the important role of the judiciary in both governance and developing democratic processes. Overall, he was very optimistic for the future. When

pressed about long delays, he spoke of various experiments carried out in Gujarat where evening and weekend court sessions took place in the hopes of alleviating some of the pressure and workload. Judge Mota Singh was also able to elaborate on the situation in the UK especially in regards to the large number of students being called to the bar every year coupled with the limited number of judicial posts. Finally, everyone recognised the urgency of the direct flight campaign and are now awaiting the Indian government's support with bated breath.

L to R Piyush Desai, Surendrabhai Patel, CB Patel, Prabhatdev Bhojak, Sir Mota Singh, Justice GS Nanavati, Mrs Vanuben Nanavati, Harshadbhai Patel, Kumudben Patel, Major Dhirubhai Patel

Asian Voice - Saturday 29th May 2010

COMMENT

Britain subjected to strong economic medicine The Conservative-Liberal Democrat has rolled out its first measures to tackle the parlous state of the British economy. With a fiscal deficit now standing at 12.8 per cent of GDP – higher than that of Greece – the government debt will reach 82 per cent of GDP by next year. On the eve of the Queen's Speech to Parliament, savage spending cuts amounting to £6.25 billion were announced by an unapologetic Treasury Minister David Laws, who said: “Is this too draconian, are we being inflexible? My view is that, unless we send out this sort of shockwave through government departments, we won't get the step change in behaviour we expect. So we are being very draconian and very inflexible deliberately, over the next year to drive out these types of costs.” The former Chancellor of the Exchequer Alistair Darling criticised the cuts as a risk to the economic recovery. “It is clear these cuts will seriously affect support for business, mean fewer jobs for young people, and hit student places for this September,” he said. It was a reversal of Labour's plan to put the economy back on track. But George Osborne, the present Chancellor countered by saying that the Treasury and the Bank of England had both given “strong economic advice” in favour of early action to cut the current £156 billion borrowing. The argument will surely intensify. But the stage has been set with this and the Queen's Speech for a chill wind to keep blowing through Whitehall in the next few months. The Government's 'Emergency Measures,' to be revealed at the end of June, are certain to continue with the harsh medi-

cine. Lib Dem ministers David Laws and Vince Cable, who were against such cuts during the general election, attributed their change to the subsequent evidence of an economy heading for the rocks, with only drastic methods capable of steering it away from destruction. The last word clearly has not been said. Professor David Blanchflower, a former adviser to the Bank of England on interest rates, has warned against possibility of a double dip recession following the Government's spending cuts. A contemporary Bank voice, Adam Posen, a member of its Monetary Policy Committee, and an authority on the Japanese economy, foresees the possibility of a deflationary cycle in the UK, whose ill effects could be worse than the one that crippled Japan for a decade. All this is informed speculation. However this pans out, the hard truth is that the less well off in Britain will be hardest hit and the social consequences for the country could be pretty severe. If consumer spending declines with falling incomes and rising unemployment, the projected recovery for Britain will have to be deferred. Also, this is an opportunity to rebalance the British economy, to reduce its excessive dependence on the financial sector for a stronger industrial platform and its capacity to generate wealth for all the sectors. Meanwhile, the Eurozone is also experiencing its time of trouble, with Greece, Spain, Portugal et al disabled, and Germany, as the EU powerhouse, far from easy in its role of bail-out guarantor for the Continent's needy. We live in a bleak house.

Broken 13th century societies British Defence Secretary Liam Fox set the cat among the pigeons when he described Afghanistan as a broken 13th century country. In the context of his visit to Kabul and Britain's complex relationship with the Afghanistan and the deepening Taliban insurgency there, Dr Fox's pronouncement betrayed a lack of tact, yet it was also a pugnacious refusal to kowtow to the requirements of political correctness, the accepted synonym for moral cowardice. It would have been surprising if he hadn't attracted Afghan media accusations of 'colonialism' and 'racism' (which, in due course, no doubt, will extend to Islamophobia as well). Truth can often be hurtful – which it is in this instance. Better for the aggrieved to ease the pain with doses of abuse. But the ulcer remains and its undrained poison carries the risk of the infection spreading to other parts of the body politic. Such are the paths to a failing state, beyond which looms the apocalypse of the failed state. Afghanistan and its neigbour Pakistan share myriad social afflictions, stretching from obscene levels of gender oppression and inequalities to the absence of any recognised form of civilised governance. Violent tribal codes of honour involving vendettas and revenge, routine kidnappings for ransoms; also terrorism at home and abroad have become defining brands for much of the Islamic world. At the level of the family, British Pakistanis have lately hogged the media headlines. Three members of a British Pakistani family on a visit to Pakistan were shot dead in a suspected 'revenge killing' after the breakdown of their son's arranged marriage to a local girl. It is understood they were targeted by members

of their own extended family in a feud. A few months ago, a young boy of another British Pakistani family was kidnapped on a visit to Pakistan and was released after the payment of a ransom by his father. Over and above this, terrorism is now a significant Pakistani export to Britain and America and to other regions near and far. If the truth be told, the Islamic world has something of an image problem, best exemplified in the vexed issue of women's burkhas in Belgium, France and other places on the Continent. Specious arguments of identity and human rights in defence of such alien and offensive practices (to the host communities) simply add fuel to a bonfire of the vanities of authentic Islamophobia. The decision to build a 13-storey mosque and Islamic centre two city blocks from the Ground Zero in New York are stoking an anti-Muslim backlash in America. The proponents of this project say it will bring a healing touch to the relations between mainstream Islam in the US and non-Muslim America. But with memories of 9/11 still fresh this appears unlikely; it is a failure of the imagination. As one moderate American, with no hostile intent toward Islam, put it: how would people react if the Japanese set up a cultural centre across Pearl Harbour or the Germans opened a Bach choral society within sight of Auschwitz and its symbolism for the Holocaust? It would be insensitive, for sure. An understanding of the sense of loss of the Other, it would appear, is yet to take hold in significant swathes of the Muslim world. International relations will be less fraught when it does.

Ambanis prefer jaw-jaw to war-war Warring siblings Mukesh and Anil Ambani, two of corporate India's biggest names, have decided wisely that jaw-jaw is preferable to war-war, much to the relief of those who govern India, and to the businessmen and women who contribute so nobly to enriching the country and its people, not to speak of the people themselves. Dhirubhai Ambani established his business empire from the humblest of beginnings, which are now the stuff of legend. He died in 2002, leaving his sons to build on the legacy he had bequeathed. The elder Mukesh headed Dhirubhai's Reliance Industries Limited (RIL), with Anil his second-in- command. But they fell out in 2005 and the Ambani business was divided between the two brothers. The rest, as they say, is history. While Mukesh concentrated on the oil and gas sector and retail, Anil focused on telecoms and films. Their final spat was settled in the Supreme Court, with the court judgement going Mukesh Ambani's way. It was time to mend the breach and heal old wounds. The brothers' companies said in a joint statement that they would scrap non-compete agreements, which had long been a source of conflict. Mukesh's

Reliance Industries and Anil's ADA Group said they were “hopeful and confident that all these steps will create an overall environment of harmony, co-operation and collaboration between the two groups.” The Ambanis will hopefully emerge stronger and wiser for the experience and their respective businesses attain new heights of endeavour and achievement. India stands to gain from this. There is a larger picture, however. The Ambani conflict is not peculiar to a particular family, business house or country. Earlier, in India, the Kamani group fell apart because of its internal divisions, as did the Mafatlals. More recently, the Bajaj group weathered its stresses and strains successfully and is now on a crest. Perhaps the way out of family ownership problems lies in a more broad-based company structure run on stricter business lines such as that brought to the Chandaria group in East Africa many years ago by Sir Ernest Vaizy, the one-time finance minister in Tanganikya who subsequently held the same post in Kenya. The Chandarias have never looked back from the Vaizy restructuring. There is a lesson to be learned.

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Thought for the Week

“All that we are is the result of what we have thought. The mind is everything. What we think we become.” -PrinceGautamaSiddharta

Political Question

SeemaMalhotra Labour activist and campaigner Director, Fabian Women's Network

Can politics influence the success of a marriage? The general election brought into sharp focus our view of marriage, with a marriage tax allowance proposed by the Conservatives. While the reference to it is included in the new Coalition document, a provision is made for the Liberal Democrats to abstain. I followed the debate about marriage and families with genuine surprise, not least because in twenty years of political activism I’ve never personally seen Labour as anti-marriage. It is an important debate about whether recognising marriage in the tax system is really a question about whether state resources should promote a particular family model or be invested in all families, particularly families with children. Like most Asian Voice readers, I’ve grown up being taught the importance of family life. Marriage is an important part of Asian culture. But a strong marriage also depends on factors like your well being at home and in your job, your stress levels and how secure your financial situation is. That’s why I wondered what the Tories’ proposed marriage tax allowance of £150 a year (for some couples only) would genuinely help increase and improve marriages, or if it was using state funding to promote how one political party thinks you should live your life.

Official statistics actually show marriage rates dropped 25% under the Tories from 1981 to 1997, and rose for a period under Labour after 1997. The reasons need to be analysed further. However one possible factor is that the Government introduced measures helping family stability – addressing causes of relationship breakdown like lack of family time, unemployment, loss of home. Labour’s choices over thirteen years included doubling maternity pay to £124.88, increasing paid maternity leave from 3 months to 9 months, introducing paternity pay, encouraging flexible working, and allowing parents to share parental leave more flexibly. Marriage is still a popular choice for people, whether Asian or not Asian, religious or not religious. I hope the well being of home life stays on the political agenda, but perhaps it should be less about £3 a week state money for some married couples and more about what supports genuinely long term family stability. You can follow Seema on www.seemamalhotra.com For those of you who enjoy tweeting, you can tweet with her at SeemaMalhotra1. Seema will be away for a while but she will return in the Autumn.

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YOUR VOICE

How NHS law has evolved over the years The NHS Act 1946 was enacted on 5th July 1948. Since then it was amended and consolidated into NHS Act 1977; NHS and Community Care Act 1995; Health Authorities Act 1997; Health Act 1999; Health and Social Care Act 2001; NHS Reform and Health Care Professions Act 2002; Health and Social Care (Community Health and Standards) Act 2003 and the latest Health Act 2006 that consolidated all the previous acts. Health Act 2006 provides a comprehensive health service designed to secure improvement in the physical and mental health of the people and to prevent, diagnose and treat illness. The next Act in parliament should split the Act into two: National Health Treatment Act and National Health Promotion Act. A new Ministry should be set up for the latter. Those who are entrusted with health promotion would have a NHP budget to prevent illness. NHT budget should be reduced accordingly. There is an inherent conflict of interest when those who are entrusted to diagnose and treat illness are also given the responsibility to prevent illness. Once you prevent illness, there is no need to diagnose and treat illness as there would not be any illness to treat. Nagindas Khajuria Researcher into NHS costs London, N12

Politically illiterate Hindu community Reading Rupanjana’s excellent symposium why British Indians lost so many seats, I can not help but put my thoughts, experiences and observations. We all know that the Hindu community excels on most fronts, especially on education which leads to financial success in business and profession. But when it comes to politics, we are the paupers, the second class citizens and will remain so reading the views expressed by many prominent community leaders who failed to grasp either the gravity or the consequences, in response to Rupanjana’s inquisition. Kanti Nagda is an exception. His assertion that we are more interested in putting down our fellow Indians and our community is politically naïve is absolutely correct. But no one is able to gauge the reason why this is so. Today, politics has become an integral part of every ethnic minority with the exception of Hindus. While politics is preached from the altar, the pulpit of every religious establishment, telling, guiding the flocks, the worshippers how and for whom to vote, the Hindus shy away from discussing politics. I have been asked to leave some such establishments for discussing politics, trying to make our younger generation aware of the political reality. There attitude is “We are here only for the beer” and politics some how dents there pleasure. This is the downside of our community.

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Asian Voice - Saturday 29th May 2010

Hindu or Asian?

Caste – cause for concern

Mr. Jagatia’s letter, about 2010 elections in Britain Vs Asian electorate is noteworthy. He has overused the term Asian when we assume that he intended to analyse role of Hindus. The inclusive term Asian is for administrative facility denoting people from India, Pakistan and Bangladesh. There is no law to force on any to accept the term Asian. Hindus must be vocal about their Hindu identity, instead of meekly accepting word Asian. It is Hindus’ democratic right to avoid the term Asian. In eight news items in your newspaper, Sikhs and Muslims are referred by ethnicity, not as Asians. Why Hindu leader has to obliterate Hindu identity, in inter Hindu communication? By using the inclusive term Asian, Mr. Jagatia has speculated that Sikhs, Bangladeshi, Pakistani Muslims accept the collective name. They do not, and yet they are accepted and respected as per ethnic identity. Lumping Hindus-Indians under the label Asians is counter to their efforts to project a clean image. Any Hindu, and a representative of a Hindu organisation, should either impart glow of goodness and pride to the word and identity - Hindu, or he should not use Hindu title. Hindu identity expressed with pride and confidence will attract admiration and acceptance.

Recently the Government has proposed to bring the issue of ‘Caste Discrimination’ under the purview of the Equality Act as a distinct and specific issue; it has gone further: it proposes to potentially treat Castebased discrimination as equivalent to Racial Discrimination. The evidence received by the Government that influenced its Paper on the subject came from submissions made by Caste / Dalit lobbyists. Conscious that this evidence is hear-say and not authenticated data that can inform whether the problem exists and, if so, its magnitude and typology, the Government has commissioned independent research to look into this issue, and we welcome that. We believe that Caste based discrimination does not occur here in the UK within the Hindu community, and would wholeheartedly support Government actions to eradicate it should it be found that it does. Against the non-availability of any independent evidence on Caste practices among the British citizens originating from the Indian subcontinent, it is wrong for the Government to assume that ‘The evidence so far suggests that the Hindu and Sikh communities from the Asian Diaspora are the most likely to be affected by caste discrimination.’ Here in the UK, we are aware of no place of Hindu religious worship – temple/mandir – that practices caste based discrimination, or indeed any discrimination, against any devotee / visitor. We are not aware of any employer practicing such discrimination. If there is one, we would strongly denounce and disown such practices. We believe that any such discrimination, if practiced by anyone, can and should be dealt with by the already existing powers vested in the Equality legislation.

Ramesh Jhalla By email

British election: Asian Voters We were delighted to learn that in the recent British General Election some of the candidates from our community have been elected as Member of Parliament. Sadly, the media including the Asian Voice are describing these achievements by the members in controversial and may be in a highly detrimental ways including, Hindus, Sikhs, Muslims, Christians, Zoroastrians, Gujaratis, and Punjabis. Thus reminding us of the old British Colonialism of “Divide and Rule”. We strongly urge you to highlight these elected persons to the Palaces of Westminster as “from the Indian sub-continent or Asian community” thus promoting cohesion among people of different faiths Rajinder Chopra By email Not a single person interviewed by Rupanjana has raised this point. Are we blind to political reality? Unless and until we make politics part of our daily routine, discuss it at dinning table and preach politics from alter, make temples bastion, a hub of political awareness, we will always remain in political wilderness. Hindus have been thrown out of East Africa and most Islamic countries. No wonder Hindus, the 80% majority in India are treated as a second class citizens in their own motherland and heading for another partition. Bhupendra M Gandhi By email

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Girdhari Lal Bhan By email

Name: Gujarati vs Hindu I am a regular reader of Asian Voice and eagerly await its arrival through post. The recent issue of 22nd May, 2010 has disappointed me. Your paper describes Baronness Warsi as 'UK's first female Muslim minister” and Barrister Sabana Mahmood as “UK's first female Muslim MP” (page 14 of Asian Voice) respectively. But describing Shailesh Vara as “appointed Britain's first Gujarati Minister” (Page 2) and Priti Patel “as first Gujarati woman MP” (page 14) respectively seems very peculiar. It would have been much appreciated if they both would have been grouped as Hindus. AL Sharma Wembley

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Identity crisis who is to blame? I always ask my father every Saturday Morning "where's the Chappu". Coming across last week's edition, I noticed the articles and comments regarding the past election. I'd like to comment that as hard working Hindus many would, of course, vote after working hours and not just turn up at all hours of the working day. Many young Hindus will not participate in politics because it's the last thing on their mind, typical comment of "it's got nothing to do with me", until they find their local Navratri shut down and their hard earned tax benefiting other minorities except their own. Prime examples of identity was shown up in the article last week of all the newly elected persons, the Muslims were lucky enough to get called Muslim, whilst the others were not given that privelege to be known firstly by their religion, but being Gujarati and East African. How come? Are they not proud to be known by their parentage and roots ie Hindus whose origins are from India. Lets not forget the new PM stated in front of 110,00 Hindus at the Ram Katha that he understands the need for us to be called British Hindus. Many elders have unashamedly not provided their offspring the benefits of firstly being known by their dharma Hindu. Today, the Sikh and Muslims are proud to call themselves by their religous identity so why are the Gujaratis so ashamed of being called Hindu? Let us take the example of bodies which represent the majority of the Asian religous communities within the UK; Muslim Council of GB, British Sikh Federation, and then we have the largest Hindu community, which is Hindu Gujaratis, represented by the NCGO, again no religous identity? This is now in the mainstream, where events are advertised for Hindus and Gujaratis, we do not even classify under Hindus in a lot of websites. Its no surprise that the highest number of Asians marrying out of thier religion and thus converting are British born Gujaratis! Pritesh Patel Shooters Hill, London

The changing face of Britain’s politics Having seen elected MPs of Indian origin and then the racist behaviour report, I am more annoyed than proud to appreciate the changing colours of the House of Commons. The MPs will get their pay checks delivered monthly but what have the voters got? Nothing but peanuts. The Dorset racist behavior shows that changing colours of the Commons have had no impact or influence. Have they brought any change to their quality of life and safe secured environment? Ten days have gone by since I wrote to Labour councillors in Enfield. No reply. What a shame. S Vithalani Edmonton, London

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Karma Yoga House 12 Hoxton Market

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

(Off Coronet Street)

Cricket crazy Indians for the first time was seen so euphoric on Monday morning, as they expected a couple of Oscars. British Indians in the UK, Dharavi slums, the shanty township of Mumbai, a village in Uttar Pradesh and almost the entire Bollywood waited in expectation, glued to their TV sets. They burst into celebrations as one by one, their heroes, the actors of the British Indian film and the music maestro, A R Rahman bagged the top awards in the world of entertainment. British actress Kate Winslett also won the Oscar after having missed it almost five times earlier. ‘Smile Pinki’, a short documentary on a cleft-lipped Indian girl in Uttar Pradesh directed by American director Megan Mylan, won the Oscar for the Best Documentary (Short).

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Asian Voice - Saturday 29th May 2010

Leicester Voice Onepass gives over 60's discounts CITY residents who are aged 60 and over will soon be able to get discounts at various outlets across the city by simply flashing their bus pass. Leicester City Council has teamed up with shops, restaurants, leisure and entertainment venues to provide the 'onepass' scheme. The scheme will entitle people aged 60 and over to discounts and special offers at a range of outlets, including Boots, Marks and Spencer, John Lewis, Phoenix Square, Curve and Showcase Cinema de Lux. Letters and information packs will be going out to around 40,000 eligible city residents this week. The packs will include a handy wallet, in which people can insert their bus pass, and a pocket-sized booklet listing all the discounts.

Councillor Rory Palmer, cabinet lead for adults and social care at Leicester City Council, said: "The onepass was a key commitment made by this administration and I am very pleased that we have delivered it. In the current climate it is important to save as much money as possible but to still be able to enjoy yourself. This new initiative will help people over 60 to do just that. All people have to do is place their concessionary bus pass into the onepass wallet in order to unlock a whole range of discounts across the city." Councillor Veejay Patel, leader of Leicester City Council, added: "This really is a wonderful initiative and I hope that it enables our 60-plus residents to continue to enjoy the many delights that

Cllr Veejay Patel

Leicester has to offer whether it be watching a film, eating out or doing their weekly grocery shopping." All of the onepass offers can be seen on the One Leicester website at www.oneleicester.com. The offers will be regularly updated. For further information about the initiative, visit the website or contact the city council's customer service line on 0116 252 7000.

NRI couple jailed in UK for VAT scam An Indian-origin couple who fled to India in 2001 after being arrested and questioned in a VAT scam worth nearly 700,000 pounds in 1998 and 1999, has been jailed after they returned to the UK recently. Loughborough-based Rekha Parmar, 43, and her husband, Jiva Parmar, 43, have pleaded guilty for the fraud and have been banned from being company directors for 15 years. While Rekha was jailed for three years and nine months, Jiva was jailed for three years and four months. The scam was described as "carousel fraud", which means a complicated type of cross-border tax evasion that exploits the fact that some countries such as Sweden do not levy Value Added Tax. Consignments are reportedly sold and re-sold between companies located in different countries to benefit from this loophole, reports from Leicester said. Rekha's barrister, Sham Uddin, told the court that she came back to Britain

from India because she missed the weather, 'genuinely missed' the popular television serial, Coronation Street and wanted to join her family. After profiting from the scam by nearly 700,000 pounds, the couple upgraded their house, bought expensive cars and paid for expensive private schools for their children. The Parmars' scam began in 1998, when each separately launched mobile phone wholesale companies. Rekha was in sole charge of a company called AUM Communications, in Sweden, and Jiva of Sphinx Ltd, Loughborough. Rekha's company sold a consignment of Nokia phones to her husband's company VAT-free. In turn, Jiva sold the phones to a legitimate Manchester-based company, Cellstar, which was unaware of the dishonest plot, and was charged VAT by Sphinx, but the cash was not passed on to the tax department. Cellstar then sold the phones to AUM

Communications in Sweden, where VAT was not leviable. The same or a similar consignment was again sold on to Sphinx, less VAT, and the cycle continued. In all nearly 13 such dishonest deals were carried out. The couple were arrested and questioned, but before being charged they fled to India in 2001. They split up two years later and Rekha went to Dubai. Judge Simon Hammond said: "These defendants were greedy and motivated to make a lot of money. It's serious because it's cheating honest taxpayers. It's an aggravating feature fraudulent funds were used to finance their children's private education." Three other men were earlier arrested in 2003 for their involvement with the plot. Babu Natha Daya Sarasia, Nagaji Vejaji Odedra, Maidev Meraman Chauhan were sentenced by Leicester Crown Court at the time. Sarasia was jailed again in 2009 for 25 years convicted of a £12mn heroin scam.

Bus route facelift to help access A bus route in Leicestershire is to get £160,000 of improvements to make access easier for the elderly and families. The Arriva 5 and 5A route from Melton to Leicester has had several stops remodelled with wider pavements, higher kerbs and improved signage. The county council said the changes would make it easier for those with limited mobility or young children to get on and off buses. It added this complemented low-floor buses introduced by operator Arriva. Some bus stop lay-bys

Do you have any comments, news or photographs about Leicester? If you do, please send them to Leicester Voice at

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£1m swine flu bill for NHS The swine flu pandemic last year cost the NHS in Leicestershire more than £1m, it has emerged. The money was spent on setting up collection points for patients needing anti-viral drugs, a vaccination programme and providing a telephone assessment line staffed by health workers. The bill for the primary care trust NHS Leicester City came to £636,000. The trust spent £306,000 to pay for the staffing of anti-viral collection points and for extra staff and training. A further £330,000 was provided by the Department of Health. The first cases of swine flu were confirmed at the beginning of June last when two Leicestershire school pupils were found to have the virus. The city was soon listed as one of the country's swine flu hotspots. At the time, Highfields GP Dr Vijay Rawal described surgeries as being "under siege" as city doctors were seeing more than 1,300 suspected cases a week and around 4,000 doses of anti-viral treatment were being prescribed. Health officials said small numbers of cases of swine flu were still being reported. They were also expecting it to be the

main strain of seasonal flu this autumn. Ivan Brown, a public health consultant at NHS Leicester City, said: "Last year, the city was classed as a hotspot and so we put considerable time and resources into preventing and treating the virus. Our spend reflects that we had a number of antiviral collection points open for extended hours over a long period of time. It also reflects the fact that staff took on extended hours, and in some cases different roles, to help deal with high levels of swine flu activity." Costs in the county ran to £460,000 in total, with £320,000 met by the Department of Health, which also paid for the vaccine. Much of the money spent by NHS Leicestershire County and Rutland went in setting up a telephone helpline to diagnose

patients with swine flu ahead of a national line put in by the Department of Health. A spokesman at the trust said: "The costs were either covered by the department, or through our contingency fund. No services have been cut, or will in the future be cut to fund the costs to date for swine flu." To date, a total of 74,922 people have had swine flu jabs and travellers can now pay for the injection along with other holiday vaccinations. More than 60 seriously ill swine flu patients have been treated on a specialist unit at Glenfield Hospital. Richard Firmin, director and founder of the unit, said: "The reason we found it worked for many swine flu patients is that many were young (between 18 and 35) and were generally healthy."

Leicester to vote on elected mayor Leicester will be asked to hold a referendum into whether the city should have a directly elected mayor. The mayor would control Leicester's purse strings and make key decisions on transport, policing, the environment and economic development – but would be held to account by the city council. The new Government yesterday announced plans for polls on elected mayors in the 12 biggest cities in England. The announcement was given an enthusiastic welcome by Leicester South MP Peter Soulsby – who admitted he would be attracted by the role. He said: "Elected may-

ors have proved to be successful where they have been introduced. "So long as they are matched by a system of accountability, they are an effective way of governing. I've long made no secret of the fact that if the city adopts the system, then I'd be very interested in doing the job and building on my 17 years experience as a councillor and council leader and five years as an MP." Leicester East MP Keith Vaz would not say whether he would ever stand for the job. But he added: "I fully support the policy of an elected mayor of Leicester. It is a longstanding view that I have held and I believe it is a way in which you can re-

energise interest in local government." It was unclear last Friday how soon the Government would look to implement its policy. But Leicester City Council leader Veejay Patel warned that having a directly elected mayor could result in other councillors having less say. He said: "In the past it has been the view that the leader and cabinet model works well. It is a model that is well established in this city. In this city all politicians like to engage in the decision-making process. It is the model that we have at the moment that ensures that happens, more so than the elected-mayor model."

Food thief found with drugs have also been redesigned to make sure vehicles can get as close as possible to the pavement. Lesley Pendleton, county council cabinet member for environment and transport, said: "It is important to make sure public transport is accessible to everyone

and 95% of county residents now have access to at least one bus every hour. We aim to tailor changes so that they complement those made by bus operators and I'm delighted that the county council has worked with Arriva to deliver these improvements."

A shoplifter was caught carrying £1,000 worth of drugs when he was detained for stealing food in a supermarket, a court heard. Gnanesh Gajoram, who was said to have learning difficulties, was arrested after taking items at Somerfield, in Leicester's Haymarket, on February 19, 2008.

Store detectives discovered his sports bag contained a stash of 19.55 grams of cocaine, with a street value of £782, and 22.16 grams of cannabis, worth £227. While on bail for those offences, he was seen by police acting suspiciously in the city centre, carrying another bag, on November 22 last

year. Abigail Joyce, prosecuting, said when Gajoram saw the officers he ran off, disappeared into a shop and emerged empty-handed. Officers recovered the bag, found to contain a kitchen knife, a machete with a seven-and-a-half inch blade, and a box of three more knives.

Asian Voice - Saturday 29th May 2010

Kapil’s

“Our London”

KHICHADI

CIIr Navin Shah AM

by Kapil Dudakia - email: kapil@abplgroup.com

London Assembly Member for Brent and Harrow

Krishna Avanti School Receipient of an Award

school. And, it is the Vedic principles of Vastu Shastra that has meant that the building is constructed without using steel and any ferrous metal. It is also very notable that the combination of the ancient science of Vastu Shastra and the contemporary ‘Breeam’ rating have produced this remarkable ‘green’ building. Breeam is a tool promoting and assessing sustainable design stan-

Establishment of the first government funded voluntary school in Harrow has made a history. This was a matter of pride as the need was very well demonstrated and what better place than Harrow – the borough with the highest concentration of Hindus in the UK. I extend my warm congratulations to the team at Krishna Avanti School lead by Nitesh Gor and the design team including the Architects and builders for winning the prestigious environmental award last week presented by the Harrow Heritage Trust in conjunction with Harrow Observer. My nomination for the award was motivated by two exceptional factors – design concept of the school and a ‘green’ building making a positive contribution to the environment. The concept and the design of the School are based on ‘Vastu Shastra’ an Indian Science of Architecture and Construction not too dissimilar to Feng Shui the ancient Chinese system of aesthetics. Vastu Shastra sets out the spiritual and psychological order of the built environment. Thus the siting of the entrance of the school is located to the North East corner and the directional alignment of the design relates to the North South grid determining locations of various functional uses of spaces. One of the unique features of the school is the Courtyard concept with a small place of worship forming spiritual heart of the

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dards and performance of buildings. The School building has received the highest Breeam rating as compared to any primary school in Britain and provides an inspirational and innovative solution with minimal environmental impact. The building with a special attention to the landscaping provides great environmental amenity aesthetically as well as to the pupils and other users of this fine school. I highly recommend a visit to the School to experience this delightful building complex with its unique qualities. Well done Krishna Avanti – well done Harrow Heritage Trust.

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Bhuj Nutan Mandir Last week turned out to be the one to cherish architectural projects that will go down in the history of the mankind. In addition to attending the award presentation event in Harrow, I also witnessed launch of a most remarkable temple project in Bhuj – India. I’ve always believed that every

setback presents an opportunity. The Nutan Mandir is a good example of this in that the old historic temple was sadly flattened in the earthquake in 2000. But, as a result of 9 years of amazing design and construction work there is a brand new white marble temple of the highest architectural quality and workmanship when it comes to the traditional marble carvings. Please look out for the photographs and wider coverage of the new Mandir elsewhere in the Asian Voice and Gujarat Samachar this week or in the near future.

Bolly to O2 My good friend Honey Kalaria asked me to compere the semi-finals of the Bollywood Dance Championship 2010 that were held at the City Pavilion last Sunday. Being an amateur with two left feet, and hearing that does not resonate to any tunes – I of course jumped at the task. Honey told me that this year the response had been incredible with more than a thousand dancers entering the competition and the standard reaching new heights. They had already gone through round one from which about 160 were selected to take part in the semifinals. With the sun shining and a clear blue sky I drove up to the City Pavilion in Romford and saw masses of people queuing to register and get ready for the competition of their life time. What a buzz and yes in my madness even I thought I might show the audience a move or two - of course sanity came back quickly and I am sure you are all glad to hear that tragedy was avoided and I did not inflicted this trauma on anyone. I met the judges and at that time it transpired to me that this was getting rather serious. These were some heavy weights from the music and dance world. People of calibre who have been there, done it and are still current and at the top of their careers. The panel composed of Richard Marcell (a leading choreographer who has worked on shows such as Strictly Come Dancing), the legend that is ‘Bigger’ (renowned for his ‘Urban Essentials’ show), ‘Jaya’ – the first Indian female singer songwriter who has been signed up by Universal, and ‘the chatterbox of the airwaves’, from Bang FM none

Honey Kalaria with some of the dancers

other than my good buddy Zyleen. The Millennium Suite at the City Pavilion has a great presence. For me the dance floor was the highlight, now call me old (OK I accept I am old) but a multi-coloured lighted dance floor was enough to give anyone the energy to get up and start dancing. Whilst I was wondering in my daze, the sound engineer put a mike in my hand and said, we are ready to go in 5. Reality beaconed, with mike in my hand and a willing audience keenly waiting to be entertained – I hit the stage and yes, momentarily I thought I was Tom Jones about to give a rendition of ‘Matilda’. Good sense prevailed as I avoid the urge and moved swiftly to start the show. And what can I say – performance after performance was ‘mind blowing’. Britain has got Bollywood talent, and in heaps. When you see a four year old walk up on stage with utter confidence, wait for the music and start pounding the dance floor, you can but only admire that the children of today have got that inner belief that they can do anything. What great spirit, high energy, tremendous enthusiasm and yes, there were some who had natural charisma which just illuminated the whole stage. I asked the judges what they thought and in one voice they said, ‘OMG, this is tough. How are we going to select the few to go to the mega final at the O2?’ Richard commented, ‘I will be using some of the dance moves in my next piece of work.’ Bigger said, ‘I cannot believe what I am seeing here today. I knew this was going to be a competition, but this is incredible and to see such diversity is so rewarding.’ Jaya who came fresh from releasing her new debut single ‘DJ Do It Again’ added, ‘I have to keep a few of these performers in mind for my next video shoot.’ The bubbly Zyleen just wanted to get onto her Radio show the next

morning and tell the whole world of the talent she had witnessed at the City Pavilion.

Parents grow up There are lessons for us parents. The time has come for all of us to grow up a little bit more since our children are racing seriously far ahead of us. They have a hunger to know who they are, and if ‘Bollywood’ is the vehicle for some that allows them access to at least a part of our modern culture, so be it. The participants showed that they had watched Indian movies, knew about stars of Indian cinema and many were actually singing the songs as they danced. For some children losing their mother tongue is now a reality, maybe Indian popular music at least gives them the opportunity to keep that language connection alive. This is not an ideal world, and the youth of today have not only to survive, but more importantly, they must learn to conquer. I have to commend the parents of all the participants, especially the younger ones for it is certain they must have spent many a weekends rushing around to make sure their little darlings got the dance tuition and practiced hard to take part in the competition.

Diversity wins again The group ‘Diversity’ won ‘Britain’s Got Talent’, but on Sunday it was a different kind of diversity that won the day. Participants came from different faiths, different ethnicities, different languages and different cultures. It seems the need for humans to dance to a tune really does help to break down barriers. As Richard said, ‘We choreographers often look to Bollywood for inspiration.’ That shows how far we have come in such a short period of time. The finals will take place at the O2 in July 2010. I don’t know about you, but I can’t wait.

COUNCIL/EDUCATION

Asian Voice - Saturday 29th May 2010

University places in spending cut It is that time of year again when students begin to prepare for university only to hear that extra university places and school services in England are to be cut in the coalition government's drive to reduce public spending. Cuts of £200m to the university budget will mean 10,000 fewer extra places than had been announced. The Department for Education is to be cut by £670m - including £311m for council spending on schools. The savings are intended to be part of public spending reductions of £6.25bn. The spending cuts were announced by the Chancellor George Osborne and his Chief

Secretary David Laws. "We need to tackle the deficit so that our debt repayments don't spiral out of control," said Mr Osborne. The cuts in university expansion come at a time of unprecedented demand for places - up 16.5% on last year. could be There 100,000 more people looking for university places this autumn than last year. The last Budget of the previous goverment had promised an extra 20,000 places - with the Liberal Democrats then offering 15,000 extra places. There will now only be another 10,000 extra places - the number promised by the Conservative party. It will mean an extra 8,000 full-time undergrad-

They say this premium - where money follows the poorest students to schools - will be paid for "from outside the schools budget by reductions in spending elsewhere". The Liberal Democrats had insisted in the run-up to the election that the scheme should be fully funded. They wanted an investment of £2.5bn. The document says: "We will promote the reform of schools in order to ensure that new providers can enter the state school system in response to parental

uate places and 2,000 part time places this autumn. But the funding will only be for one year, the second and third years will have to be funded by universities from other savings. The cuts of £200m in university spending will be in addition to £449m already announced for next year. The UCU lecturers'

union said the decision would "dash the hopes" of many young people - and the Conservative-Liberal Democrat coalition "should stop pretending that 'we're all in this together'". The Million+ group of new universities says the "real losers are the 10,000 extra students who would have had the opportunity to go to university".

demand; that all schools have greater freedom over the curriculum; and that all schools are held properly to account. We will give parents, teachers, charities and local communities the chance to set up new schools, as part of our plans to allow new providers to enter the state school system in response to parental demand". A foreword to the document promised "a breaking open of the state monopoly and extra money following the poorest pupils". The idea of encourag-

ing all good schools to "opt out" of local authority control by becoming academies is not explicit in the document, although we understand this will feature in the Queens Speech, when the government will set out its plans for legislation. Liberal Democrats generally like the idea of schools being held accountable locally. Schools will also get more freedom over what they can pay teachers, the coalition pledges, a move which will be unpopular with many teaching unions.

Council news First global ‘Green’ Hindu meeting comes to Harrow In what is believed to be a global first, Hindus worldwide met in Harrow, on 22nd May to mark the International Day for Biological Diversity (IDB). The event, convened by the Living Planet Foundation of the USA, is supported by numerous Hindu and environmental organisations and was titled ‘Sacred Dimensions of Biodiversity’. “Thousands of years ago, Hindu sages realised we needed to preserve our

environment and maintain ecological balance to ensure the survival of life on earth. Hindus believe all life is sacred, so we must challenge issues such as development projects that cause mass species extinction and loss of biodiversity,” says Kusum Vyas, Founder of the Living Planet Foundation. Top of the agenda was the threat to the Gulf of Mannar, the shallow stretch of water separating India from Sri Lanka. The

Indian government plans to build a shipping channel through the shallow waters, one of the last remaining intact ecosystems of its kind on earth, and the site of Adam's Bridge or Ram Sethu, a sacred site for Hindus. “We cannot stand idly by and allow our fragile environment to be defiled in this way. Hindus must play a much stronger role in fighting what amounts to an act of terrorism against Nature and against a sacred

site,” insists Mrs Vyas. Guest speakers at the Harrow event included the environmental campaigner Kathy Goldsmith, Ian Stephen of the Zoological Society of London, and the Hindu ecologist and author Ranchor Prime. Celebrations after the formal meeting featured Sitar performances and classical Indian dance. For more information on the Living Planet Foundation, visit www.livingplanetfoundation.org.

Swimming referral to boost health and wellbeing One thousand Crawley residents are being offered swimming at no cost to help combat health problems. The swimming referral programme will see participants, who are referred by health professionals or their GPs, given a book of 20 swim vouchers and the offer of lessons to improve their health and wellbeing and increase their sport and physical activity participation. The initiative, which sits alongside the current Weight Off Workshop and Active Life Referral programmes, targets people who would gain signifi-

cant health and wellbeing benefits from swimming and do not currently swim. The card of 20 free swims will encourage participants to get into the habit of going swimming, with the aim of two swims a week for a ten-week period. The scheme will also provide a 30-minute private lesson for people who may not have been swimming for many years and who need to build their confidence or a six-hour course (one hour per week) for people who are unable to swim or very weak swimmers.

Future Generations

Sai School Harrow Future citizens

Coalition agrees on free schools In a document released last Thursday the new coalition government confirmed that it would press ahead with plans for "free schools" in England and for schools to get more money for poor pupils. The proposed changes will make it easier for "new providers" to set up schools in the state system - including parents and teachers. The coalition document also says schools will be given more freedom over the curriculum. Both parties had backed the idea of a "pupil premium".

Councillor Lenny Walker, Cabinet member for Leisure and Cultural Services, said: "We have a fantastic swimming pool at K2 Crawley and it provides great opportunities for everyone but I believe we could help to improve the health of those who need it most. The swimming referral programme is a great way for people to enhance their health and wellbeing. Swimming is the most popular physical activity for adults and the most popular choice of activity for those who wish to start to exercise. The programme is also a good example of partner-

ship working between the Council, NHS West Sussex, Freedom Leisure, GPs, the Amateur Swimming Association and Crawley Wellbeing." Once a GP has referred a potential swimmer to Crawley Wellbeing, they will discuss their needs and issue the free swimming card and arrange any swimming lessons. Following completion of the swimming programme participants will be assessed to monitor their improvement in health and asked to complete a questionnaire and return to Crawley Wellbeing.

All 11 and 12 years old from Year 7 were asked to give their opinions on two current issues during class time last Saturday for the AV column: 1) Ditching your values to seek power and 2) Should special needs children be attending mainstream or segregated Schools? Their responses were are follows. 1) Ditching your values to seek power Eashan Thakrar: There will obviously be disagreements between Tories and Lib Dems, but if the best values from each party are brought to the table, I am sure it will be good for our country. Jaysal Patel: Combining the best brains of both parties should be better for us, although each party will shift from what was originally put down in the manifesto. Bhavik Mistry: It is not right to sway from your promises; Tories should have formed a minority government and not let their voters down. Aditi Vyas: So many Compromises will be made, but that’s not why people voted for those 2 parties, they will break many promises made to voters.

Priyanka Modi: Politicians should stick to what they say and not move their goalposts for the sake of power. Dylan Gokani: 2 groups of politicians with good ideas to solve our country’s black hole may be better than one considering we are still in recession. Special needs or mainstream schools Eashan: Special Needs children should be educated in mainstream schools, and it is up to us to make sure that they are treated well. Jaysal: If sp needs children are bullied in mainstream schools, bullies should be dealt with. At Sai School, we are told to look after special needs children, so we will never tease them or bully them. Rahul Gogna: Special needs children should be given an option. Those with severe impairments are better of in special schools as lesson plans are tailored to their needs. They fall behind otherwise and lose interest. Eashan: If they attend mainstream schools, it will be easier for them when they are adults and easily fit into the real world.

Ealing/Southall MP walks the talk Ealing and Southall MP Virendra Sharma joined children from Ealing Southall as they take explore their neighbourhood on foot as part of a national initiative. Children all over UK took part in this years National Walk to School week which encourages over two million children, parents and teachers to leave their cars at home and walk to school. This year's theme was “Walk Your Way.” Mr Sharma joined residents walking Dormers Well Infant School. He said: “I hope that parents and children across Ealing Southall join me. Walking is key to fighting childhood obesity, but it can also be beneficial to children in other ways, helping them learn vital road

safety skills, to interact with their local environment and to become ‘streetwise’ and develop independence.” Over the past two decades, the number of children who walk to school has dropped from 62% to 48%, with an enormous 43% being driven to school in cars - despite the fact that the majority of primary school pupils live within a 20 minute walk of their school.

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Dee Katwa

Asian Voice - Saturday 29th May 2010

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

Awarded on effectiveness, ethnicity, a coincidence

Celebrating the Arts

Nine British Asian women from across England each clinched a prestigious title, respective to their areas of work, at the glittering Asian Women of Achievement Awards ceremony last week. Among them, Shindo Barquer, a chief inspector at West Midlands Police, was presented with The Chairman’s award. Proudly donning her uniform, Shindo was recognised for her “commitment and deep dedication” to raising awareness of honour-related crimes and domestic violence in Britain. She joined the force at the age of 21, then becoming the West Midlands’ highest-ranking Sikh policewoman. West Bromwich-born Shindo is married to the chief fire officer of West Midlands Fire Service, the modest Vijith Randeniya. He is the first Asian head of an emergency service in England and Wales and manages a £120 million budget and 2,600 staff. The Arts and Culture Award went to Shazia Mirza, the 34-year-old British Pakistani stand-up satirist and comedienne from Birmingham. Kenyanborn Farah Ramzan Golant, chief executive of the UK’s largest advertising agency, AMV BBDO, was crowned Business Woman of the Year. Mum-of-two Farah, who describes herself as “optimistic, impatient and boundaryless”, also sits on the advisory board of Cancer Research UK. The Entrepreneur of the Year Award was notched up by table 59-seated Shazia Awan, director of ladies underwear brand Peachy Pink and anti-cellulite range PeachyBody. Judges described Shazia, who recently stood as the Tory parliamentary candidate for Leigh, Greater Manchester, as “driven, tenacious, infectious and a clever marketer”. The Media Professional of the Year Award was scooped by BBC news correspondent Razia Iqbal. Razia, 47,of Punjabi parentage from Uganda, covers a wide range of subjects and was recently commended for her special investigation into bogus Haiti fundraising charities. Professor Yasmin

Halima, a HIV treatment activist, was the recipient of The Social and Humanitarian Award. She is the director of Global Campaign for Microbicides which seeks innovative ways of helping to prevent AIDS through ethical research. The trophy for Young Achiever of the Year was collected by 28-year-old Bee Thakore, an aeronautical

Award was presented to Dr Monica Lakhanpaul who works as a consultant community paediatrician and senior lecturer in child health at Leicester University. She also offers support to abused children from the area. Each award category saw between four and six finalists. In addition to the nine awards, entrepreneur Dr Swati Piramal received the G l o b a l Empowerment Award, presented to her by Princess Michael of Kent. Orange sari-clad Dr Piramal, a trained medical doctor from Mumbai University, had flown in from India just for a day. Earlier this year, Dr Piramal, wife to Ajay Piramal, was recognised for promoting Kamel Hothi, Shazia Awan and the corporate governance Home Secretary Theresa May MP in India when she received an award from the engineer. Judges described President of India, Pratibha Bee, who in her opportunity Patil. On Wednesday this to say a few words thanked week she was among 15 her parents, sister and India’s leading industrialists, boyfriend Christopher, as including Mukesh Ambani “modest, charming and and Ratan Tata, who met funny”. Bee is a trustee at with the Indian Premier the UK Space Education Manmohan Singh as part of Trust and the youngest a trade and advisory council member on the board of meeting. directors of The Planetary Now in their 11th year, Society, the world’s largest the Asian Women of space advocacy group. Achievement Awards, were The Professional of the founded by Pinky Lilani Year Award went to Dr OBE, described by Theresa Zahra Jessa, an optometrist May MP, our new Home at Moorfields Eye Hospital. Secretary, as “a true ambasAlso, in her role as research sador for Asian women”. fellow at Anglia Ruskin Resplendant in a sky blue University she is looking sari, Ms May added: “Pinky into visual problems of the is a truly inspirational elderly . The Public Sector woman in everything that she does.” The awards, hosted by Real Business in asso-

Waverley is officially Outstanding

Kamal Hanif, pictured, headmaster of Waverley School in Small Heath, Birmingham, swapped his suit for an apron and cooked for around 100 guests to share his elation and celebrate the highest-possible “Outstanding” rating awarded to his school by Ofsted. The round-table event last Friday evening brought together staff, students, stakeholders and supporters of the secondary school which has 835 pupils, the majority of whom are of Pakistani parentage. “It’s not just about leadership,” said Mr Hanif, “it’s also about the staff, their commitment and dedication and that’s what I value the most.”

News in Brief

ciation with Lloyds TSB, celebrate the contribution of Asian women to British life in the media, business, the arts, politics and the voluntary sector. The ceremony at the Hilton Park Lane coincided with the Confederation of Business Industry’s annual dinner, as it does every year, also in Park Lane. The 1,000-guest list included Princess Badiya El Hassan of Jordan, Awards patron Cherie Blair, who paid a glowing tribute to her son Leo on the eve of his tenth birthday, Editor and Publisher of Asian Voice and Gujarat Samachar Mr CB Patel, James Caan from the Dragon’s Den, Labour Peer Lord Swaraj Paul, KTC Foods’ chief executive Jindy Khera, the Jatania brothers and entrepreneurial couple Kirit and Meena Pathak. Diana Brightmore-Armour, of Lloyds TSB, dressed, again, in an embroided cream sari welcomed “valued customers and clients” and said that Lloyds TSB was pleased to have sponsored the awards for the sixth consecutive year. The awards, compered by BBC newsreader Mishal Hussain, also saw a live musical performance by rising star Sonna. Mrs Lilani said: “These nine incredible women epitomise the spirit of the awards. Their determination to make a positive difference in British society and business is breathtaking.” In her welcome speech, the “one of a kind” Mrs Lilani, paid a glowing tribute to her team, “however challenging the situation, they remain calm, sweet-natured and upbeat,” she said. To find out more about the awards visit www.awaawards.com

Tory councillor in dock A father and son have appeared in court charged with election fraud. Conservative councillor Mohammed Munir, 57, pictured, of Thorpe Road, Walsall, pleaded not guilty to 11 counts of providing falsely signed electoral registration forms to the registration officer at Walsall Council. Son Ali Hayder Munir, 30, of the same address, denies two similar counts, plus charges which include applying for a postal vote for another person. His committal hearing for trial will take place at Birmingham Crown Court on June 18.

Sampad, the Birmingham-based cultural organisation, has launched an exhibition and book, The Sampad Story, to mark its 20th anniversary. The free exhibition charts the journey of South Asian From left: Sampad Chair arts in the West Midlands since 1990 Ranjit Sondhi, Piali Ray OBE, Director of Sampad, and and is on display at the MAC, the newly reno- Najma Chowdhury, first Chair of Sampad in 1990 vated arts centre in Edgbaston, until August 30. The book captures the struggle, the moments of joy and the spiritual journey that has contributed to shifting the British arts scene. To find out more visit www.sampad.org.uk

Charity’s 25th birthday Birmingham Rathbone, a Midland charity which supports people with learning difficulties to achieve their full potential is inviting people to a free barbeque to celebrate its 25th anniversary. “The more the merrier,” said Guy Oddy, the charity’s Fundraising Manager. The celebration will take place next Saturday (Jun 5) from 12 noon till 4pm at the charity’s Garden Centre in Umberslade Road (B29 7SQ). Other activities on the day will include a children’s bouncy castle, face-painting, live music, drama and an opportunity to buy plants.

New bride and groom Three cheers for Devina, daughter of Narendrabhai Kanji and Jaswantiben Parmar, from the Jansari community, who got married to Umesh, son of Bhavanbhai Govindbhai and Ranjanben Patel, at Shri Krishna Temple in Sparkbrook, Birmingham, last Sunday.

Hearts with a vision The National Blind Children’s Society, or NBCS, has officially opened its first office in central London, thanks to the generosity of the Duke of Westminster. The two-part launch last Wednesday coincided with the charity’s 15th birthday. The NBCS, which has its headquarters in Somerset and an office in Birmingham, is totally reliant on voluntary donations and has an annual fundraising target of £1.6 million. Its mission is to enable blind and partially-sighted children and young people – of which there are an estimated 24,000 in the UK – to achieve their educational and recreational goals.

Filthy firm fined Bashir Ahmed, the owner of Mushtaq’s, an Asian sweet and savoury foods manufacturer in Sparkhill, Birmingham, has been banned from running a food business after mouse droppings were discovered on his premises. Mr Ahmed, pictured, who has been in business for 40 years, was fined £4,500 and ordered to pay £1,624 costs. It is the third time in four years that Mushtaq’s on Stratford Road has been prosecuted for food hygiene offences.

Widdecombe in Birmingham Straight-talking politician Ann Widdecombe will talk to an audience at Birmingham Town Hall. She will share her views and stories next Tuesday (June 1).

Name dispute A 23-year-old French woman has hired lawyers to stop Renault calling their latest car the “Zoe”. Zoe Renault, a student from Paris, says: “It would be unbearable for me to hear, ‘the Zoe has broken down…we have to get the Zoe overhauled…or soand-so killed themselves in a Zoe’.”

Asian Voice - Saturday 29th May 2010

Queen’s speech: Migration from non-EU countries to be capped The new coalition government will work to reduce migration from non EU countries, as was highlighted by the historic Queen's speech Tuesday. The Queen also gave a special mention to India saying: “My government looks forward to an enhanced partnership with India.” Queen Elizabeth II spoke from her throne at the House of Lords to the assembled peers and MPs. She said: “My government's legislative programme will be based upon the principles of freedom, fairness and responsibility.” She also mentioned that the first priority is “to reduce the deficit and restore economic growth. Action will be taken to accelerate the reduction of the structural budget deficit.” Twenty-two Bills, along with one draft Bill, were announced to underline what the new coalition government between the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats hoped to attain. The document named 'The Coalition: Our Government' which was announced last week detailed the government's administration plans.

Queen Elizabeth II at the Houses of Parliament

Immigration from outside the EU will be capped and thereby reducing net migration (difference between those moving to UK and those leaving UK). However, no figures were given about the reduction and MPs in the House of Commons are yet to debate on the subject. Detention of children for immigration purposes is also set to end. The controversial eight year ID card project will also be scrapped as part of the Freedom Bill along with universal databases. There will also be new controls on any DNA records kept on file

and restrictions on redress 'erosion of privacy', as the government terms it. In a major breach of protocol, the Sunday newspapers managed to obtain a draft of the speech containing information on the twentyone Bills, and leaked it two days before the Queen's official announcement. Whilst MPs called for an inquiry into the leak there was no such announcement by Prime Minister David Cameron. The government's legislative plans are now set for the next eighteen months.

Midwife slices off newborn baby's fingertip A newborn baby had the tip of her little finger sliced off by a midwife who was cutting the umbilical cord. Ishika Kainth was rushed just after birth from the delivery room at New Cross Hospital in Wolverhampton to an operating theatre 15 miles away at Birmingham Children's Hospital. Surgeons managed to stitch the damaged finger back on to her left hand. The baby's mother Jasvir Kainth, 28, had been through a four-hour labour when the accident happened on May 14. "The midwife was using really sharp scissors to cut the cord. When she cut the cord she cut through the finger as well, but did not even notice

at first. My husband Parminder told her she had cut the finger off and she replied: 'No I have not.' So I had to say to her: 'Look at all the blood.' We were hysterical. There was blood everywhere. It has caused my husband and I so much stress. You just do not expect these things to happen. Giving birth is supposed to be one of the most memorable experiences in your life. This was certainly different, but not in a good way." Mr Kainth, who was also present: "There was only one midwife there for most of the birth. After she cut the finger off she left the

room to get help. Doing that with a newborn baby who is losing blood all over the place was unbelievable. We were told that the midwife had 22 years of experience and so we will never understand how it happened." New Cross Hospital chief executive David Loughton said: "We can confirm there has been an incident. It is being investigated by an external investigator and the findings will be shared with the trust board and the family."

Research: fast food restaurants failing 76% of vegetarians Research of just under 6,000 UK consumers from food and drink research specialists, MMR Research Worldwide, for National Vegetarian Week 2010 (May 24th – 30th), has revealed that 76 percent of vegetarians are not happy with the choice of foods available to them in fast food restaurants. Only three percent of the 357 vegetarians polled were very happy with the

choice. Pubs and restaurants fair better – almost half were happy with the choice – but still with a considerable opportunity present to better satisfy the vegetarian market. “It does not come as a surprise that fast food restaurants do not score as highly with vegetarians as non-vegs. Vegetarians are more likely to choose healthy products and they

are motivated by products with no artificial ingredients, that are ethical, free range, low fat and organic, and that are sustainably produced using recyclable packaging. Many of these attributes conflict with common perceptions of fast food outlets and family restaurant chains,” says Mat Lintern, managing director of MMR Research Worldwide.

Ten Asians named in 21-strong tax crime gang jailed The final defendant of a twenty-one strong crime gang was sentenced this week for his part in a £37.5 million tax fraud. In total all twenty-one were jailed for a total of seventy-four years. Harbans Singh Kohli, 47, from Ealing, London, was sentenced to two years and six months, following two re-trials, for laundering just over £1 million in associated ‘missing trader’ fraud. He was disqualified from being a company director for 10 years. He was originally sentenced in 2007 but released by the Court of Appeal. The sentencing which ended one of the most complex investigations undertaken by HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) came at the end of seven trials and retrails. Investigations began in April 2002 into the ‘missing trader’ fraud, involving the dishonest manipulation of the VAT system through the import and export of computer processing units (CPUs). The gang used highly complex chains of VAT registered companies both here and abroad. One of the ‘missing traders’ used was Shivani (Limited) - an anagram of ‘I Vanish’ Criminal investigators from HMRC exposed the fraud which has resulted in seven interlinked trials

Harbans Singh Kohli

Somasuntharam Jeyakumar

Syed Mubarak Ahmed

Shakeel Ahmed

Mustapha Mehmet

Sukhdave Singh More

Tariq Kamal

Pravin Kumar Jogia

Babak Cherazi

Khaled Hamidi

and retrials, codenamed Operation Devout. Reporting restrictions have now been lifted following the conclusion Monday of the seventh and final trial. Adrian Farley, Assistant Director of Criminal Investigation for HMRC, said: “This was not some kind of victimless crime, but organised fraud on a massive scale by criminals masquerading as legitimate businesses all bent on making fast and easy profits at the

expense of the British taxpayer. Multiple businesses and bank accounts were deliberately set up to carry out the fraud and hide the proceeds of these crimes. However, each defendant knew the purpose of the payments they received were for money laundering and not legitimate trade.” The conspiracy involved the import of CPUs mainly from Ireland, VAT free. The goods would then be sold more cheaply, but with VAT added, through a chain of

companies each involved in the plot and sham invoices would be issued. Once the goods had been sold on a number of times they would be exported back to the EU. The exporter would then claim a VAT credit from HMRC for the VAT paid on the purchase of the goods. The gang would then divide the profits of the fraud and launder them through various bank accounts both in the UK and abroad before withdrawing the bulk of the cash. They

were paid a commission for their dishonest service. Some of the money is believed to have been invested in a third a tonne of gold bullion, substantial property in Dubai and a luxury flat near Harrods. Confiscation proceedings to reclaim the proceeds of the crime are now being pursued. The twenty-one defendants included: - nine from the West Midlands, one defendant from Buckinghamshire, two defendants from

Middlesex, six defendants from London and three defendants from Essex. Kohli was one of ten Asians arrested. Others included: Somasuntharam Jeyakumar (49), Syed Mubarak Ahmed (38), Shakeel Ahmed (38), Jaswender Singh Chahal (51), Sukhdave Singh More (45), Tariq Kamal (45), Pravin Jogia (63), Babak Cherazi (38), Khaled Hamidi (34), Mustapha Mehmet (54) and Timur Mehmet (37).

Asian Voice - Saturday 29th May 2010

What makes the UK and the Western world more fertile for Hindu religion and culture By Gautambhai Oza On my travels around the world with Param Pujya Bhaishree (Rameshbhai Oza) I have experienced a very positive outlook on the Hindu community settled in the west. I am perplexed for a moment as my thought process starts to question as to why this could be. What could be the reason why our Hindu Dharma is growing and flourishing in these countries? I could see that both parents and their children as well as their grandchildren were all hungry and thirsty for this ancient religious teachings and its spirituality. But how were they managing to keep it so alive in a world that was so far removed from their motherland. I came to the conclusion, after observing and speaking to the families in UK that the parents who came here in the 60’s and 70’s have worked hard to preserve their religious values and have tried to ensure that they pass them onto their children too. The main reason for doing this is that they truly value the teachings of Hinduism (Sanatan Dharma). Also, settling in different countries, after

leaving India to make a living in Africa and then in UK, USA or elsewhere has made it even more important that they keep their identity intact. When they arrived they came with one main goal and that was to flourish. Over the years they found that material wealth is not the only thing that matters, however, it is also vital for them to prosper socially, mentally and spiritually. They therefore began to find ways in which to make this possible, by putting in place Gujarati language classes, traditional Indian dance classes, bhajan- kirtans, discourses and cultural classes for their children. So fervent was their desire to do this that there saw a rise in Hindu temples and community centres being set up in the early 70’s. These parents were very much aware that they had traveled thousands of miles away from their motherland with the intent to flourish economically and help provide a sound education for their future generation and yet they didn’t want it at the cost of losing their culture and heritage which was of equal value to them. They believed strongly

that these values and traditions should also be preserved and encouraged to grow in the west. What has added further value to the efforts of these parents has been the visits from countless saints and bhaktas who have traveled the distance to reach out to them. Year after year they return to these lands to ensure that the seeds they had sown are growing. With the gentle flow of love pouring from their hearts, ‘Prem nu Pani’, they continue to shower their blessings on these seeds to watch them blossom and grow new shoots. However, when they come to find that perhaps some of these seeds are not growing so well or their shoots are decaying or growing out of shape, like a true gardener, they do not hesitate to trim, re-shape and curb these tender plants using what appears to be their ‘harsh’ grace, ‘kathor krupani kaatar’. It is this acute awareness of the value of our culture and timeless efforts of these elders who installed the first temples in the U.K and pioneered culture, language and religious projects to sustain our

Bhavan showcases Yakshagana string puppets

Sanatan values which has kept our culture so alive and vibrant in the West.. Those who justly fought to preserve our morals and ethics in the face of dilemmas, pressure and challenges to modernize become westernize in order to fit in. It is these parents, grandparents and santos who have been the real torch bearers, leading the children from strength to strength, guiding them through darkness and ensuring their fulfillment and success. It is these people that I salute today for their forward thinking, their time, effort, energy and perseverance that has kept our religion alive in the west. I have faith that if the new generations to come continue the pathway carved by their elders and santos our religion will continue on its upward journey and keep growing from strength to strength. These youngsters and parents have truly been an inspiration to me and I have every faith that God will continue to be with them in their pursuit for academic and spiritual growth, my best wishes and support will always be with them.

Dentist conquers fear of heights for charity A 44 year old dentist scared of heights is facing his fear in the name of charity. Dr Atul Gandecha is going to skydive from 10,000 feet in the air at Brackley. Oxfordshire on Saturday June 12, to raise money for his country of birth Tanzania. All the money will go to Bridge2Aid, a dental and community charity. Mr Gandhecha hopes to raise atleast £500 pounds. Dr Gandecha works at the Hainault Dental Practice in Hainault. He first got involved with Bridge2Aid’s work when he did dental volunteer programme in Mwanza, in October 2007. Speaking to the Ilford Recorder Dr Gandecha commented: “I am scared of heights, terrified in fact. My friends and colleagues are worried about how I am going to handle it as I still get shaky when standing on a chair to change a lightbulb. It is going to be an experience, but I'm not entirely sure I am looking forward to it. But it is all for a good cause and this money will make a difference in the lives of the people in Tanzania.”

By Puja Thakrar

The concert on the 23rd May given by the Yakshagana Puppeteers was a really unique event at the Bhavan. In the audience were many distinguished people, including His Excellency, The High Commissioner for India, Sri Nalin Surie. Seldom have we seen such a display of expertise. The dexterity of the puppet masters was absolutely incredible and it was difficult to remember that the puppets themselves were not actually living beings. There was no hint at all that behind each puppet was a puppet master (sutradhara) who has spent many years learning this ancient art. The programme was based on the Ramayana. The puppets are about

eighteen inches tall, made of wood with elaborate costumes, colourful headgear and heavy jewellery. The music – provided by several musicians discretely placed off-stage – consisted of a unique blend of percussion and other instruments. The lifelike movements of the puppets were accompanied by a dialogue supplied by two or three of the musicians. The audience at the Bhavan was truly spellbound by this performance which had more than a touch of magic. The artistes were simple; their art profound. The Head Puppeteer was Sri Bhaskar Kamath and Professor Dr Leela Upadhyaya, the leader of the group, gave the narra-

Sri Nalin Surie, Indian High Commissioner to UK

tion. Bhavan Chairman, Mr Maneck Dalal was full of appreciation and thanked all the artistes as well as Mrs Sudha Murthy from Infosys and Mr Balakrishnan of Syndicate Bank who had provided generous sponsorship for the event.

Dr Gandecha with his young son Krish (Pic Courtesy: Ilford Recorder)

He continued: “It was a scary experience, but it was over pretty quickly by the time you have launched you are almost ready to bounce back up. Hopefully readers will be happy to sponsor me and we can raise a lot of money.” Dr Gandecha, who is also a magistrate in Redbridge, got some valuable practice last month during a trip to South Africa when he took part in a sponsored bungee jump for the same charity. To sponsor him call 07881 912060 or log on to http://www.justgiving.co m/Atul-Gandecha

Insight India: bringing the past, present and future together ing our understanding of how we define ourselves and our role as the future generations of our society. Therefore it is important to build upon this process with enriching new experiences reflecting positively on what India has to offer.

Yakshagana Puppeteers performing at Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan

As a young person having grown up within the excitement and energy of the UK Indian community, it is a great comfort to know there is a way to pass on our knowledge and guiding principles to future generations. The cultural enrichment provided by such institutions as the Mandir, the Gujarati School, or cultural events, provide value as they act as a reminder of our cultural identity, and as a platform for learning, sharing and connecting people. Knowledge and understanding is enhanced and individuals gain from their own learning process, learning what being Indians means to them, and to be proud of their background. Placing young people at the core of this process is fundamental to strengthen-

Who we are and what we do Insight India takes a fresh new perspective on this learning experience for young people aged 15-17. The unique ten day programme offers opportunities for those who want to expand on their individual relationship with their cultural heritage. India is changing rapidly in many ways and we aim to encourage young people from the UK to understand the meeting of the old and the new, the modern and the traditional, and how they combine to form a unique new culture. Our exclusive programme draws on Connect India's extensive links with community, business and cultural organisations in Ahmedabad, to give participants a holistic and participatory experience far beyond what can be seen on a traditional holiday. We carefully balance time for

reflection, activities that encourage exploration and innovation, and skill-building in leadership and communication. Tailored to appeal to young people, our activities have been well thought out and planned according to specific learning outcomes, enabling participants to extend their understanding and awareness. As well as returning to England with a greater awareness of India's complexities, the programme also aims to give participants a chance to reflect upon themselves. It is hoped that such a sense of grounding, understanding and perspective can energise young people to approach their own challenges with a fresh perspective, and engage productively with the opportunities they will encounter. Be inspired... engage... immerse yourself... think... Discover your vision of the modern day India, and understand where Ahmedabad sits in relation to India’s thriving economy and spectacular culture. For more information, of if you think you know anyone aged 15-17 who would be interested in applying, check out our website: http://www.connectindia.org/

MEDIA WATCH

Asian Voice - Saturday 29th May 2010

Scrutator’s Something curious happened in India last week. The Indian Army placed a second order for 124 Arjun Battle Tanks to supplement the 124 it had ordered earlier. Domain-b.com online produced a scathing report (May 17), highlighting the relentless campaign against the tank and the scientists and engineers of the Defence Research & Development Organisation (DRDO) responsible for its design and production. Leading this campaign was The Times of India, which a year or so ago even wrote an editorial calling for the scrapping of the tank and the DRDO itself. The self-styled economic guru Gurcharan Das added his voice to the hostile chorus. He told how his high powered friends in Singapore had pooh-poohed the DRDO as a white elephant, a drain on India's scarce resources that violated good sense. The Indian Army was eventually prevailed upon to put the Arjun through the most testing trials (in March) in the Rajasthan desert, where it was pitted against the leading models from Europe and the formidable T90, Russia's best. The Arjun came up trumps by beating its rivals on every count. An elated Indian Defence Ministry spokesman said: “After many years of trials and tribulations, the tank has now proved its worth by its superb performance under various circumstances, such as driving cross-country over rugged sand dunes, detecting, observing and quickly engaging [and hitting] targets..... both stationary and moving with pinpoint accuracy.” The Defence Ministry decided immediately to authorize the development of the second generation of the Arjun MBT. The additional Arjuns, to be produced at the Avadi-based Heavy Vehicle Factory, apart from enabling the army to raise two fresh armoured divisions, gives the Arjun programme a new lease of life.

Anti-DRDO campaign What requires close critical scrutiny is the significance of the anti-DRDO campaign in some sections of the Indian media. This could have been financed by foreign interest groups keen to penetrate the lucrative Indian arms market. When the short range Prithvi missile systen was first tested in the late 1980s, The Economist said India would have been better served with a western variant. Sam Pitroda's C-Dot telecom system attracted critical media comment in the West,

be surprised to know that there is whole slew of DRDO designed and developed products that have proved to be a big hit with the armed services, in addition to saving the exchequer many crores of rupees. Let us look at some specific examples. “When it comes to military modernisation, some of the priciest systems to modernise are radars, detection and surveillance and electronic warfare equipment..... So how did DRDO respond to Indian requirements in the above area?”

Arjun Battle Tank put through its paces

since a number of high profile western bidders were competing for the contract. Wisely, the late Rajiv Gandhi gave the nod to Mr Pitroda. However, to return to DRDO, rediff.com (January 19, 2005) published a special report on the subject by Kaushik Kapisthalam. Entitled “DRDO: A stellar success,” it was an expert and prescient refutation (as it turns out) of the many media canards directed at the organisation and its work. Among the writer's opening paragraphs were two in sequential order that deserve special attention. “But the reader may

Mr Kapisthalam took us through his list, and impressive it was. In January 2004, the Indian Army accepted DRDO's Samyuktha electronic warfare system; also the Rajendra advanced weapon-locating radar, which doubles up in the Akash medium range surfaceto-air missile system. DRDO has supplied state of the art electronic warfare systems for the Navy and Air Force and much else besides. India's frontline SU-30MKI warplane “relies on cutting edge Indian components such as the Mission Computer, Display Processor, Radar Computer, Integrated

communications equipment, Radar Altimeter and Programme Signal Processors, all designed and developed by DRDO under a project titled 'Vetrivale'. And what about the Agni missile systems and their nuclear warheads, not to speak of the Brahmos supersonic cruise missile, developed in conjunction with Russia? All of these have the DRDO imprint.

Highway in construction

Manganese nodules India has used the remote operable vehicle to trace manganese nodules at the polymetallic nodule site in the central basin of the Indian Ocean. The robotic vehicle reached the maximum depth 5,000 metres. After reaching capturing video pictures of the ocean bed the robot was lifted with samples of manganese nodules (Domain-b.com May 14).

Indian dean Nitin Nobria has been named as Dean of of the Harvard Business School. He is the first Indian to be appointed to this prestigious position. Mr Nobria, the Richard P. Chapman Professor of Business, will take up his appointment on July 1. Harvard University President Drew Faust said: “At a pivotal moment for Harvard Business School, and for business education more generally, I'm delighted that Nitin Nobria has agreed to lead HBS forward. He's an outstanding scholar, teacher and mentor, with a global outlook and an instinct for collaboration across boundaries.” Mr Nobria responded: “I feel a profound sense of responsibility for continuing Harvard Business School's proud legacy of ground-breaking ideas and transnational educational experiences.” A specialist on leadership and organizational change, Mr Nobria was previously the School's associate dean for family development and chair of its organizational behaviour unit. He is current cochair of the HBS Leadership Initiative and has been a member of the HBS faculty since 1988 (Indian Express, May 5). Mr Nobria received his Bachelor of Technology degree in chemical engineering in 1984 from the Indian Institute of Technology in Bombay and his Ph.D in 1988 from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology's Sloan School of Management, where he earned the outstanding doctoral thesis award in behavioural and policy sciences.

Indian road building Brajesh Upadhyay writes (BBC News, April 23): “As India aspires to a double digit annual economic growth, infrastructure is the new priority. Prime Minister Manmohan Singh has underscored the need to double

infrastructure spending from $500 billion to $1trillion in the next five-year plan....Roads and highways are a particular focus of attention and the government's high-profile highways minister Kamal Nath has set himself a tough target of 20km of roads a day from June, meaning 7,000 km a year and 20,000 km of work in progress. It could be the biggest and most ambitious infrastructure roll-outs in the world today,” says Mr Upadhyay. He asks, “Mr Nath has sold the dream, can he pull it off?” Minister Kamal Nath, in an interview, told his interlocutor: “It was a well thought target. If we want the project to have an impact, it cannot be less than 20km a day.” He admitted that the target is “ambitious but it can be achieved.” However, Vineet Agrawal of Transport Corporation of India said it wasn't only a question of the length of the roads but also their quality that should be the goal. Mr Upadhyay again: “Whether it means writing articles in Wall Street Journal to woo foreign investors, criss-crossing the globe with his team to drum up interest or negotiating with state transport ministers to clear bureaucratic bottle necks, he says nothing is being left to chance. He says funds will not be an issue and says that apart from government funds, the additional investment will come through public-private partnerships.” The proof of the pudding will be in the eating.

Pakistan major According to a Times of India report (May 21), the Pakistani authorities, following mounting pressure from the Obama administration in Washington, have arrested Major Iqbal, serving officer of the Pakistan Army, for possible links to Faisal Shahzad, who is being held in the US for his recent attempt to bomb Times Square in New York. Indian agencies have identified Major Iqbal and Major Samir Ali as key figures in the conspiracy in the 26/11 terrorist assault on Mumbai. Indian

sources have said that the names of Majors Iqbal and Ali were included in the dossier submitted to the Pakistan foreign secretary Salman Bashir when he visited India. It is believed that Major Iqbal was the principal handler of David Headley, the American jehadi, who played a critical role in the 26/11 events.

Beijing anger The Daily Telegraph's Dean Nelson (May 12) told of China's anger at the Dalai Lama's presence at the IPL3 Twenty20 cricket match last month between the Chennai Super Kings and the Kings XI in the sylvan Himalayan setting of Dharamsala, the Tibetan leader's official abode. China's ire was reflected by the country's People's Daily newspaper, which accused His Holiness of pretending to like cricket to please his Indian hosts. The Dalai Lama was severely taken to task for describing himself as a “son of India.”

Dalai Lama greeting the people

The Tibetan government-inexile rejected the attack, which it said “reflects the Chinese government's arrogance; since His Holiness the Dalai Lama had no freedom in Tibet, he left for India, where he enjoys freedom. What he does or does not do, depends on his choice,” said a Tibetan spokesman. Curt and to the point. News of the tragic plane crash in Magalore, with the loss of 158 passengers and crew came as we were going to press. There will be more on this next week.

www.abplgroup.com

Asian Voice - Saturday 29th May 2010

Alpesh Patel Consultant Editor Financial Voice Dear Financial Voice Reader, End of the world...again. As I mentioned on CNBC which I co-hosted this past week, oil will fall because of fears of global slowdown. Longer term of course it will rise. And that is the same with the markets generally. Short term declines for a few months, then rises. Remember, when others are fearful you should be greedy. But I want to turn to the Queen’s speech and UKIndia trade. The mathematics is simple: British firms need investment returns offered by India that they simply can’t get at or near home. Britain has a burgeoning trade deficit. It needs to create jobs. Its companies have the talent and experience to export – it did after all create the world’s first multinational – the East India Company. An Island of a mere 1% of the world’s population generates 4% of world GDP. So British companies need help penetrating the Indian markets. Help from Vince Cable as Business Secretary. He is known to be an Indo-phile. So what’s the problem? The problem is the disparity between talk, understanding the issues, and ideas and execution. In January 2006, US Secretary of State Condoleeza Rice observed that the US State Department had “nearly the same number of State Department personnel in Germany, a country of 82 million people, that we have in India, a country of one billion people. The UK must avoid the same error. The UK Government needs to re-allocate more resources in India to its Foreign Policy, Defence and Trade and Investment policies. If countries can be thought of a companies, then Britain should follow the lead of virtually every S&P 500 and FTSE 100 company which has done exactly that – put more people on the ground in India. According to a UKIBC NRI survey 97.6% thought India’s business potential was good or excellent, 85.7% felt the recession made investment in India more attractive. But shockingly 61% said it was not easy or difficult to enter the Indian market. The answer for a cash-strapped UK is not to simply leave it to the private sector. British business needs the help of Vince Cable’s Business Ministry to penetrate the Indian market. However, Britain’s economic problems also need more capital investment from abroad. Again the maths is simple. Without investment capital, research, development needed for future growth and competitiveness dies. Without such inward investment jobs are lost. Britain’s geo-economic location within the EU and links with the US makes it an ideal ‘go global’ base for Indian companies. Vince Cable’s Ministry has to get out to India and grab the inward investment. Returning to the markets – expect them to continue lower on the back of Spanish, Italian, Portuguese, Irish news. The point is, once the Greek crisis is dealt with, those evil traders will want to focus on the next target and look to make money from that. How does that slow bleeding of the market end? Well it cannot end with confidence building measures based on more spending – we’ve done that already. Now it will be US earnings and Western cost cuts. You will actually see the markets do better as unemployment figures increase!

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Six Indian MFs pump in Rs. 3.74 bn in StanChart IDR issue Standard Chartered Plc opened its IDR issue in India on Tuesday. Just ahead of the public offer, the British bank had roped in six anchor investors, all of them Mutual Funds and Asset Management Companies engaged in the managing Mutual Fund business of their respective principals. The six together have subscribed approximately 15 per cent

Rel MediaWorks lab in UK expands film processing facilities Reliance MediaWorks has installed new facilities at their labs in UK, expanding the film processing capacities. The expansion will enable the company to handle processing films for Hollywood, British and European producers who shoot their flicks in UK. Their film processing facility at ilab, Soho is now equipped with highend neg bath as well as other additional facilities. In a filing with the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE), Reliance MediaWorks CEO Anil Arjun has said, “We see a strong business opportunity across Europe, which is why we are making significant investments to increase the capacity of our London Lab and enable it to support work on major feature film production as well.”

of the IDR issue or 36 million IDRs. They have invested at a price level of Rs. 104-105 per IDR. Reliance Mutual Fund (10.57mn IDRs), ICICI Prudential AMC (9.60 mn), HDFC AMC (6.03 mn), Franklin Templeton MF (4.80 mn), Birla Sun Life AMC (3.55 mn) and Sundaram BNP Paribas (1.40 mn) are the anchor investors. That leaves 240

million IDRs to be subscribed in the IPO. StanChart has offered the IDRs with a priceband of Rs. 100 – 115 per IDR. For the investors, ten IDRs would represent one share of the Bank. The shares are listed on the London Stock Exchange. The retail or the small investors will get a 5% discount on the final price of the IDRs which will be

decided after the issue closes on May 28. Retails investors will be eligible for allotment upto 30% of the issue. After Hong Kong, India is the second biggest market for StanChart, with income pegged at 12 per cent in 2009. The British bank earned an operating profit of US$7.23 billion with the contribution from India being US$1.06 bn.

Hinduja group acquires KBL bank for US$1.7 bn KBC, the Belgian banking and insurance group announced last week it had sold its private banking arm KBL European Private Bankers to Hinduja group, a UK based business conglomerate owned by Hinduja brothers, a family of businessmen of Indian origin for US$1.68 billion. This is the largest divestment by KBC to date. The group had to sell

off the private banking arm under a restructuring plan mandated by the European Commission. KBC had received state aid of 7 billion Euros. For Hinduja group, the KBL bank will add to the strength of their private bank in Switzerland and give them a further push in Europe. KBL European Private Bankers had 47 billion euros in assets under man-

agement, and 37 billion euros in assets under custody at the end of 2009. The KBL epb brand will be retained and the operation will continue to be headquartered in Luxembourg, KBC said. Hinduja group would be aiming to provide KBL epb with access to fastgrowing markets of the Middle East, the Indian subcontinent and elsewhere in Asia.

Pakistan operations of RBS may go to Faysal Bank Faysal Bank is believed to have won the bid for the Pakistani operations of British bank – The Royal Bank of Scotland. No further details were available. A persona familiar with the process however added that the deal may be finalised

soon. Ithmaar Bank, based in Bahrain and EFG Hermes Holding SAE are the majority stake holders in Faysal Bank, Pakistan. RBS had earlier tried to sell its entire stake of 99.37 per cent to Pakistan’s MCB Bank

Ltd., but the deal could not get through as it could not secure the regulatory clearance. Later, Faysal got the due diligence of the RBS operations this year. RBS also has plans to sell other non core operations in Asia.

Asiana beats Cathay Pacific as World’s best airline

Competition was an all Asian affair; Singapore retains no. 2 position Asiana Airlines of South Korea has bagged the airline of the year award at the annual World Airline Awards in Hamburg, Germany. Most of the top rankings went to Asian carriers, as Singapore took the no. 2 position, while Qatar got the no. 3 ranking. Cathay Pacific, last year’s winners slipped to no. 4. The Skytrax annual awards based on surveys of more than 17 million passengers, and carried out over 10 months, were announced on May 20. Customer service, comfort of seating, quality of food, lounges and cabin crew are the parameters based on which the travel-

ers rate the airlines Asiana had ranked third last year, and Skytrax chairman Edward Plaisted praised the airline's commitment to customer service. Asian airlines dominated the award categories, with the full service airlines joined by AirAsia winning the Best Low-Cost Airline award

and Garuda of Indonesia picking up the Most Improved award. Qantas dropped to seventh place down from sixth last year. In 2008, it was rated the world's third best airline. Air New Zealand overtook Qantas to become the best-rated airline in the Australia/Pacific region, climbing from

eighth last year to fifth this year. Qantas walked away with two awards for its premium economy class Best Premium Economy and Best Premium Economy Seat. Virgin Blue also received an award for best low-cost carrier in the Australia/Pacific region. The final top 10 ranking in the awards were: 1. Asiana Airlines; 2. Singapore Airlines; 3. Qatar Airways; 4. Cathay Pacific; 5. Air New Zealand; 6. Etihad Airways; 7. Qantas Airways; 8. Emirates; 9. Thai Airways and 10. Malaysia Airlines.

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finAnciAl voice

Asian Voice - Saturday 29th May 2010

US firm Abbott to buy Piramal’s formulations business Piramal Healthcare last week entered into a definitive agreement with Abbot Laboratories of Illinois, US, to sell its domestic formulations business (also referred to as healthcare solutions business) for a total cash consideration of $3.72 billion. Abbot will pay $2.12 billion on closing of the sale in the second half of 2010 and a further $400 million in each of the subsequent four years after the closing of the transaction, commencing in 2011. Addressing mediapersons, Piramal Group Chairman Ajay Piramal said “the $400 million payable annually over the subsequent four years is only a deferred payment and is not contingent on performance.” On the rationale for selling the business, Mr Piramal said, “in future, there would be huge value created if the business goes global as it is already strong in India. However,

“We have not sold our shareholding in Piramal Healthcare and have placed all shareholders on an equal footing. The money will go to the company and presents us with a good opportunity to create shareholder wealth in future. As the money will come into the company, we will pay long-term capital gains tax of 22 per cent and will also pay off our debt of around pound 190.34 million.'' Mr. Piramal said in the last 22 years, the Piramal Group had raised only pound 14.67 million in 1994 and pound 22.02 million in 2005. The sale proceeds would be invested in the retained business, in new growth areas

The sale is conditional upon Piramal shareholders' approval and closing conditions. Piramal and Piramal Enterprises and

associates have agreed that for eight years following the closing, the company will not engage in the business of generic pharmaceutical products in finished form. However, Piramal is free to continue its retained businesses. The transaction does not have any commitment from Abbott to buy/source from Piramal. The businesses retained by Piramal include custom manufacturing for third parties, critical care (including inhalation anaesthetics), over-the-counter consumer products (like the recently acquired i-pill, Lacto Calamine and Saridon), manufacture and supply of active pharmaceutical ingredients (API), vitamin and fine chemicals, diagnostic medical devices and equipment and diagnostic services, including pathology laboratories and radiology centres and clinical research services.

Bharat Sanchar Niam Limited (BSNL) has banned Chinese vendors – Huawei and ZTE – from bidding for its pound 293.26 million contract for supply 55 lakh GSM lines for its north and eastern zones. BSNL has specified that only three Western vendors - Ericsson , Nokia Siemens and Alcatel Lucent - can participate in the bidding process. “It is a fact that telecom gear from Western vendors are expensive when compared to Chinese, but a government directive prevents us from

placing any orders with telecom gearmakers from China, especially if the equipment has to be installed in circles that share international boundaries,” BSNL chairman and managing director Kuldeep Goyal said. He also added that BSNL board had cleared the new tender, limiting the participation to the three Western vendors, last week. This is also the first tender the PSU has floated after it cancelled its 93 million lines contract, the world’s largest for telecom equipment, earlier this

year. Following the junking of the 93 million lines contract, which had run into several controversies, including court cases and a probe by the Central Vigilance Commission, BSNL had decided to do away with its tender-based equipment procurement process and adopt the ‘managed capacity model’ followed by private telcos. But BSNL’s plans to move to a managed capacity model have found no takers in the government. The communications ministry (in a letter dated May 10 to BSNL) has told the

PSU that its plans to outsource the building, management, maintenance of its networks to global equipment majors may pose a ‘threat to national security’. The note added that since the government relied on BSNL’s networks during times of external aggression and internal disturbances, the telco should not compromise on the security factor. The telecom department has also told BSNL that it can only approve a new procurement model after studying the security angle.

we would not have been able to do justice to the business globally and it makes a lot more strategic sense for the business to go where it is going. New growth areas

yet to be identified and, “we will also look at giving a special dividend to shareholders.'' The formulation business of Piramal manufacture, markets and sells branded pharmaceutical products in finished form in India, Nepal and Sri Lanka. It is being sold as a going concern on a slump sale basis. The assets to be transferred include the company's manufacturing facilities at Baddi, Himachal Pradesh, and the rights to about 350 brands and trademarks. Piramal has 12 units spread across India, North America and the UK, of which Baddi will go to Abbott. The sale will also involve the transfer of around 5,500 employees. Retained businesses

BSNL bans Chinese firms from bidding

JSPL to acquire Oman’s Shadeed for $464 mn

Naveen Jindal led JSPL will acquire Oman based Shadeed Iron & Steel Co for $464 million, marking its first overseas presence in the steel sector. The company concluded the buyout agreement with UAE’s Al Ghaith Holdings, which owns the Shadeed Iron & Steel Co. “Jindal Steel & Power (JSPL) through its 100% subsidiary Jindal Steel & Power (Mauritius) has decided to acquire Shadeed Iron & Steel Co (Shadeed), a company incorporated under the laws of the Sultanate of Oman,” the leading domestic steel maker said in a statement. “A definitive share purchase agreement (SPA) and other transaction documents have been signed at $464 million, including the assumption of liabilities,” it added. The company said it has tied up $400

million in debt financing from international banks while the balance will come from internal accruals. JSPL director Sushil Maroo said, “The acquisition is part of our plans to expand operations overseas. It is a gas-based unit. We are also setting up 2 MTPA gas-based units in India. It is a strategic fit for us. It will mark our first overseas presence in the steel space.” On the mining front, JSPL had recently acquired several coal and iron ore mines in Africa and Bolivia. With Shadeed’s acquisition, the company aims to tap the burgeoning construction and infrastructure market of the Middle East. “There is strong demand for steel in the Middle East and North African countries, with a

supply shortfall estimated to be over 15 million tonnes,” it added. Shadeed is setting up a 1.5 MTPA gasbased steel plant at Sohar Industrial Port area, Oman. “This is a tremendous acquisition for JSPL as the facility is engineered by Kobe Steel and Midrex, leaders in the field of direct iron technology and JSPL believes facility can be made operational within a year. “This is also the same technology JSPL will be using in its Orissa facility, and the additional experience will help bring this new facility on stream in a timely manner,” it added. The acquisition announcement comes within days of the Indian firm announcing that it had aborted the buyout discussions with the UAE-based parent firm due to many “open issues.”

Maria Fernandes maria@abplgroup.com Appeals and the abuse of process There is already evidence that the severe reduction in rights of appeal over the years and in particular with the introduction of the Points Based System has resulted in sloppy decision being made. With no judicial scrutiny of decisions there are a vast number of cases which are simply refused and where allegations are made which remain on record dot years to come. The only remaining challenge in these cases, judicial review, is not only an expensive process but does not consider the merits of the application but its lawfulness. In the meantime those whose appeals are successful often having waited for 6- 8 months for a decision can expect to wait for several weeks and months for the decision to be implemented and for passports to be stamped. Why there should be a delay of several is completely surprising particularly in the current climate when decisions can be sent electronically the same day!! There was no previously published standard for processing of these decisions However these standards have recently been published and provide for processing within 8

weeks of the receipt of the decision. This means that if the UKBA take 6 months to communicate it no one breaks any standards or targets. The legal process having determined that the decision was wrong should ensure at the very least that the decision can be implemented within a reasonable period. To allow this delay to persist makes a mockery of the appeals system.

21 year immigration rule for spouses A Court of Appeal case There have been a number of unsuccessful challenges to the Immigration rule which prevents spouses who are over 21 from qualifying for entry. However now the Court of Appeal have granted permission for a full hearing to take place in July 2010. The issues which will be considered will be the fact that the rule is racially discriminatory and that it affects family life and the right to marry. Maria Fernandes is a principal of Fernandes Vaz solicitors who specialise in immigration and nationality law. She has substantial experience of immigration and is an accredited member of the Immigration Law Panel.

Godrej Consumer to acquire Latin America’s Issue Group Godrej Consumer Products on Sunday said it would acquire Latin America-based Issue Group, a market leader in hair colours in several counties in the region. Godrej Consumer Products Ltd (GCPL) has entered into "an agreement to acquire a 100 per cent stake in Laboratoria Cuenca, Consell SA, Issue Uruguay and Issue Brazil (collectively referred to as 'Issue Group')," the FMCG major said in a statement. The acquisition provides a self-sustaining platform for GCPL's ambitions in the hair care and household insecticides segments in Latin America, the Indian firm said. "The Issue Group provides us the perfect platform for establishing a strong presence in the fast-growing hair colour markets in Latin America," GCPL

Chairman Adi Godrej said. The acquisition is valued at approximately 8 times EBITDA and is expected to be EPS accretive in the first year of operations, it said, but did not disclose how much it will pay to acquire the group. This is the third acquisition by GCPL in recent times. It had announced its plans to acquire Tura, a leading beauty brand in West Africa, and has completed the acquisition of the Megasari Group, a leading household care company in Indonesia. The Indian firm recently entered into an agreement to acquire the 51 per cent stake held by US-based partner Sara Lee Corporation in joint

venture Godrej Sara Lee and will own 100 per cent of that business once the deal is closed. The Issue brand enjoys volume leadership in Argentina, with a market share in excess of 20 per cent. The business had revenues of over USD 33 million in 2009. Issue Group is also the market leader in hair colours in Peru, Uruguay and Paraguay and has an emerging presence in Brazil. "We are very happy to partner with the Godrej Group in Argentina. They are getting access to an extremely strong brand and a dedicated set of employees. We hope that they take the brand to greater heights throughout Latin America and we wish them the very best for the future," Issue group promoters Roberto Hlace and Oscar Villalba said.

FINANCIAL VOICE

Asian Voice - Saturday 29th May 2010

Mukesh – Anil announce truce; sign new MOU Sunday agreement bring cheer to investors, all Reliance stocks surged on Monday The biggest business empire in India, Reliance has ushered into a new dawn of peace between the two parts owned by brothers Mukesh Ambani and Anil Ambani. The brothers have decided to bring down the curtain on one of the most acrimonious battles of post-Independence corporate India. They decided to end the sharp differences and create an environment of harmony, cooperation and collaboration between their groups. All the previous non-competition agreements will be scrapped and replaced with a new MOU. It was decided that the Mukesh Ambani-owned Reliance Industries Limited (RIL) will not enter the gas-based power generation business till March 2022. Both companies would open negotiations to finalise the agreement for gas sale to Anil Ambani's Reliance Natural Resources Limited

Edison Awards gold prize for Tata Nano Nano, the small car from the Tata group in India has won the prestigious Gold prize in the best new product segment at the Edison Awards 2010. A statement by Tata Motors in India said the Edison Awards, recognised as America’s innovation award, symbolise the persistence and excellence personified by Thomas Alva Edison. Marketplace innovation, marketplace success, technological innovation, market structure innovation, societal impact and design innovation are the criterion for decision.

Anil Ambani, Mukesh Ambani

(RNRL). This development that has surprised many but ended the era of uncertainty and bad blood, both groups decided to move forward. The agreement, which is bound to bring relief to the corporate world and also in government circles, comes within a few days of the Supreme Court declining to give any relief to Anil Ambani in the gas dispute and directing the brothers to resolve their differences over gas pricing within six weeks. “A new, simpler noncompete agreement exe-

cuted limited to gas-based power generation. RIL and RNRL will expeditiously negotiate a gas supply arrangement as per the Supreme Court order and hope to conclude negotiations very soon,” said a statement issued by the Anil group. The cancellation of the non-compete agreement would provide both groups enhanced operational and financial flexibility and greater ability to participate in high growth sectors such as oil and gas, petrochemical, telecom, power and financial services, the statement said.

Reliance investors get richer by Rs 180 billion Investors of the Ambani brothers group companies grew wealthier by a cumulative Rs 180 billion in a single day on Monday, driven by the massive spurt in the stocks of RIL and ADAG companies following their decision end disputes and terminating all the noncompete agreements effected in January 2006. The market capitalisation of Reliance Industries, the country's most valued firm, soared to Rs 3340.60 billion at the end of the trade on Monday, up from Rs 3256.55 billion on Friday. Shares of RIL surged 2.58% to settle at Rs 1,021.45 on the Bombay Stock Exchange. During the trade the stock jumped 5.34% to touch an intra-day high of Rs 1,049. ADAG companies made their investors richer by Rs 95.52 billion.

Indian 3G spectrum auctions mobilize Rs. 677.19 bn Mobile operators under pressure; price wars are already telling on their current operating margins There was a delay of around four years, but atleast in this case; it has turned out to be beneficial for Government of India. The auctions for the 3G spectrum for mobile services operators fetched a windfall of Rs. 677.19 billion (US$15 billion approx). The 3G spectrum will enable mobile service providers to offer video calling and high-speed internet usage on mobile phones. The leading mobile operators – Bharti Airtel and Reliance have both won 13 circles each while Vodafone, Idea and Tata have won 9, 11 and 9 cir-

cles respectively. All the operators though are facing huge pressures on their margins as stiff tariff wars force all to cut airtime rates. Adding to that, the heavy burden that they will be bearing for paying the licence fees for the 3G spectrum will be a huge strain on their balancesheets for atleast a couple of years. Three private operators will be offering the 3G services, while BSNL or MTNL, as the case may be would be the fourth opera-

tor in competition. Finance minister Pranab Mukherjee, who had expected a total of Rs 350 billion from both 3G and WiMAX spectrum auctions, was very happy, while the reactions from the mobile operators were mixed. Vodafone Essar CEO Marten Pieters said high value customers are expected to have a strong interest for the 3G services. Bharti Airtel on the other hand feels the auction prices were driven beyond reasonable levels.

Sebi in favour of voting rights for ADR/GDR investors Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi), the market regulator is in favour of ending ehe practice of restrictive clauses by companies, stripping the voting rights of ADR/GDR investors. A board meeting last week of the regulator deliberated on the need to remove obstacles to bringing the holders of global and American depository receipts (GDRs/ADRs) at par with domestic investors. If Sebi is able to get it through, it will trigger the takeover regulations even when the holders of ADRs/GDRs exceed certain percentage of stake or when their votes are used by the management to cross the threshold. Such a move requires approvals from the finance

ministry and the Reserve Bank of India. These provisions, if they come into operation ensure that managements do not gain undue control over companies by taking away the voting rights of their ADR/GDR holders. Citing certain cases, Sebi has said the entitlement of DR holders on exercise of voting rights on the underlying shares is governed by "terms of issue" of DRs, which are "unilaterally decided by

the management of the issuer, who finalises the "terms of issue". The DR has no choice but to accept the terms if he is interested in subscribing to the DRs," the regulator said. C i t i n g instances of overseas offerings, Sebi said the voting rights for the ordinary shares represented by the DR holders vest with the holders in most cases and in some cases when they failed to cast their votes, it goes to the management. This, however, was also followed by some companies like Sterlite Industries and Tata Motors, the regulator noted. In a notification last November, the Sebi had

amended the takeover regulations to provide that where ADR/GDR holders are entitled to exercise voting rights on the shares underlying ADRs/GDRs by virtue of clauses in the depositary agreement or otherwise, open offer obligations will be triggered upon crossing the threshold limits. "Similarly, when the right to instruct the custodian to vote vests with the management, the latter would trigger the takeover regulations," it added. The open offer is triggered when an acquirer increases his stake to 15 per cent in a company. He is then obliged to make an open offer for acquiring additional stake of 20 per cent from public shareholders, as per the takeover code.

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Aban Offshore to tap global markets with FCCBs, GDR/ADRs The company has plans to raise Rs 44.07 bn Aban Offshore, a company engaged in offshore drilling has drawn up plans to mobilise upto Rs. 44.07 billion via sale of shares. According to information submitted to the BSE on May 25, the company said the board of directors has approved for an issuing of FCCBs (Foreign Currency Convertible Bonds), GDRs (Global Depository receipts) and ADRs (American depository receipts) to mop up

US$ 400 million (Rs. 19.07 billion approx) from international markets. For the remaining Rs. 25 billion, subject to approval by shareholders, the company would raise the amount by allotting shares to qualified institutional buyers (QIBs). Aban reported a consolidated net profit of Rs 392.6 million in the Q4 last year against a loss of Rs 930 million in the same period previous fiscal.

Ahmedabad to have OZ Trade Commission office Automotive technologies, Financial services and Marine sector potentials in Gujarat attract Australia Ahmedabad, the economic capital of Gujarat will soon have the office of the Australian Trade Commission. The trade & investment development agency of Australian government has decided to open an office in Ahmedabad to establish their formal presence in the state. Chandigarh, Cochin, Jaipur and Pune are the other cities where Australian Trade Commission has plans to set up offices in the near future. "Gujarat is a very important business destination for Australian companies. OZ companies coming to India visit Delhi

or Mumbai, but miss out on growth centres like Gujarat. This is the reason why we are establishing our presence in Ahmedabad," Peter Forby, Australian consul general for western India and trade commissioner, said. He was in Ahmedabad to take part in a seminar on 'Winning Business & Investment with Australia' recently. "We see potential Australian role in various sectors in Gujarat. Automotive technologies, financial services, medical & biotechnology, marine sector including ports & coastal infrastructure, are some of them," Forby said.

Indian software guys no cheaper than American Maryland profs say foreign Indians actually earn a premium in the US Are foreign information technology (IT) professionals cheaper than American IT professionals in the US market? No, says a study. "Contrary to the popular belief that foreign workers are a cheap source of labour for US firms, we find that after controlling for their human capital

attributes, foreign IT professionals (those with H1B or other work visas) earn a salary premium when compared with IT professionals with US citizenship," Prof Henry Lucas and Prof Sunil Mithas of the University of Maryland said in a report brought out recently.

financial voice

Asian Voice - Saturday 29th May 2010

Zydus to commission 250-bed corporate hospital in 2011 Work begins on £29.33 mn project on SG Road in Ahmedabad India’s pharma major Zydus Cadila has started work on its pound 29.33 million multi super speciality hospital on SG Road in Ahmedabad last week. The 250-bed hospital is expected to be commissioned by end of 2011. The pound 439.86 million company plans to set up the eight-storey hospital on a 10,000-square metre plot, which it bought from local real estate firm Ganesh Housing, in Thaltej.

A group subsidiary, Zydus Hospitals & Healthcare Research Pvt Ltd, is carrying out the project. Even as construction work commenced last week, the company has already started the exercise of roping in some of the best doctors and specialists in the different branches of medicine. International architecture firm Burt Hill is working on the designing aspect, the source said, adding that for interiors

the firm is negotiating with some of the best designers to lure foreign and NRI patients in view of medical tourism. As a special case, the government has granted additional floor space index (FSI) to the project. When contacted, an official in the urban development department confirmed and informed that Zydus has paid for extra FSI to construct high-rise building in the restricted area.

Scrap business firm owned by an Indian is the fastest growing in USA Ram Guru wanted to get a Masters in Computer Science, but landed in metals scrap trade

His goal was to secure a masters degree in Computer Science, but he missed. Yet, Ram Guru made a mark with his entrepreneurial skills in the land of opportunities. Today, his firm is one of the fastest growing ones in the USA, expected to earn a whopping US$ 80 mn in revenues this year. Ram Guru, 44, hails from Chennai. His firm, Milestone Metals is engaged in scrap metal.

It was a chance entry into this business, when a friend back home asked him to help him in get some high-quality scrap for business. Initially he was reluctant. But Guru quickly figured out how to obtain aluminium and get it shipped to India. Growing demand for highways, homes, offices, factories and other parts of infrastructure in the BRIC countries -- Brazil, Russia, India and China --

was creating a big boom in the metals market. And Guru got into the business. Guru started his business from a basement with a single phone line and desktop. He buys used steel, copper, brass and aluminium from about 100 scrap-metal yards across the USA, negotiating a price based on the Comex Metal Exchange or the London Metal Exchange.

World’s biggest cargo airport to open in Dubai Dubai's second airport which is designed to be the world's largest is set to start operations from June 27 for cargo only. According to Dubai Airports chief executive officer Paul Griffiths, the Al-Maktoum International Airport, which is designed to be the world's largest when completed, plans to receive passengers next year. He said that the passenger terminal is scheduled to be ready by the end of this year and that it would enter service at the beginning of the summer season in 2011, towards

the end of March. The airport, which is designed to have six runways and handle 120 million passengers when fully completed, was supposed to be operational by the end of 2008. Its runway has been ready since 2007. Griffiths was speaking to reporters on the sidelines of the annual Arabian Travel Market in Dubai. "We are not just creating the largest airport in the world... (It is) also the best," Griffiths said adding that Dubai expects to receive 150 mn passengers by 2030 at its two airports. The new airport is

Labour reforms sans hire-and-fire is new CII chief’s preference Labour reforms are sure to be focused, but the social security cover for the labour should not be diluted. This is the preference of Hari S Bhartia, new president of CII (Confederation of Indian Industry), the apex body of industries in India. “While labour reforms are certainly important for the industry, the focus is also on providing security. The industry is not asking for a hire-and-fire policy. We do not want that any of the security cover that has been extended to the labour to get diluted,” Bhartia told in a chat with one of the leading English dailies, the Indian Express.

He met Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh as well as other key policy makers soon after getting elected as the CII head. He has also floated the idea that new labour policies could first be tested in manufacturing zones. Topmost on his agenda, Bhartia said, was to provide the crucial link between education and employability by training the youth in industryspecific skills. “At CII, we will focus on creating employability by encouraging self-employment and entrepreneurship. In fact, the industry will work towards taking vocational training to the school level,” said Bhartia.

planned to cover 140 square km, part of the USD 33-billion Dubai World Central development in Dubai's Jebel Ali area, home also to the region's largest port and its busiest free zone. Dubai is also continuing to expand its existing airport, building a third concourse while it plans to expand Terminal Two, which is the hub for its young low-cost carrier, Flydubai. Dubai airport handled 11.47 million passengers in the first quarter of this year, up 20.4% from the corresponding period last year, he said.

Alpesh Patel’s Political Sketchbook: The Queen’s Speech and India a New Special Relationship When Barak Obama made his inaugural speech upon election he specifically mentioned Hindus. Now the Queen at the State Opening of Parliament, upon the election of the coalition Government specifically mentions India. It must be nice to be wanted. ‘Britons have made a national sport out of saying the country is going to the dogs since they handed India back in 1947,’ wrote a journalist for the National Post during the recent British General Election campaign. Given that the United Kingdom is in financial crisis, part of a European Union in even greater political and financial crisis, whose two major trading partners – the EU and US both fear ruin, will the new UK Government simply look inward, or will it realise the central part India can play in helping British interests? And even if the cashless new UK Government ‘gets India’ what can and should it do about it other than make speeches? If you want to know what a politician will do, ignore their speeches, instead read the Queen’s speech – the annual speech Her Majesty the Queen makes at the State opening of Parliament outlining the actual legislation Her most Loyal Government plans to turn into law. According to that Speech, the Government’s first priority will be to “reduce the deficit and restore economic growth” and to “accelerate the reduction of the structural budget deficit”. No surprise

there. On foreign policy, the Government will seek “lasting security and stability in Afghanistan” and “an enhanced partnership with Pakistan and India”. It will also address “serious international concerns posed by Iran’s nuclear programme”. David Cameron vowed to build a "new special relationship" with India, believing the country can become a major political and trade partner. And there is much reason to believe this is more than rhetoric. Firstly, he has stated this recently as Prime Minister. Second, back in 2006 his first trip abroad as the then new leader of the Conservative Party was to India. Answering on his blog (political blogs are far more revealing than political speeches – as many unguarded politicians have discovered to their cost) why he is visiting India he wrote, ‘Our relationship with India goes deep. But I think it can and should go deeper. Our special relationship with America is well known. But as the world’s centre of gravity moves from Europe and the Atlantic to the south and the east, I think it's time for Britain and India to forge a new special relationship for the twenty-first century. For too long, politics in this country has been obsessed with Europe and America. Of course these relationships are, and will continue to be, vital. But serious and responsible leadership today means engaging with much more energy in the parts of the world

where our strategic interests will increasingly lie.’ The new coalition Government’s Foreign Secretary, former Conservative Party Leader, William Hague’s second visit abroad, after the US, was Afghanistan. When one considers India neighbours the nuclear armed on-off democracy of Pakistan, and a nuclear definitely non-democratic China, and add India’s strong relations with Russia and Iran, then again the maths is simple: India is of vital strategic importance to Britain’s national security interests. The problem is not that these issues are unknown, but a willingness and ability to act on them. Only in 2006 did the RAF and IAF hold their first ever joint exercise. Britain needs to seek as close a tie in foreign policy co-ordination with India as it does with the US where interests overlap if it is serious about recognising the importance of India. As a CNBC reporter put it, it’s not about ‘Cameron's team has talked about the need to rekindle historic ties with Asia’s other major growth driver, India. It remains to be seen though whether anyone in the new coalition government has grasped the opportunities out there for a brave, externally focused Britain.’ And that will be the test for Her Majesty’s Government if it is not to regret having ‘given up India’ – does it not just ‘get it’ when it comes to India but is there a plan of execution?

Surat diamantaires can expand business in Switzerland: Envoy

Indian businessmen need to plan value addition to diamonds All big and popular Swiss brands of watches are using diamonds polished in Surat. Looking at it as an opportunity, the Swiss ambassador to India, Philippe Welti, visited Ahmedabad last week to market Switzerland as a major business destination of Europe. At a seminar organised by state unit of CII, Welti highlighted opportunities available in Switzerland in manufacturing and trading in sectors like pharma, biotech and gems & jewellery. "For people of Gujarat,

these three segments offer huge business potential in Switzerland. Trading opportunities and value addition in sectors like diamond and life sciences should be explored in Switzerland," he said. According to Welti, Gujarat is the hub of diamonds and precious stones. "At present, these diamonds are polished and then sent to Switzerland for being used in branded

watches. So, diamond cutters or polishing units of Gujarat have huge scope in Switzerland. But they will have to do some value addition," he said. So far as trading and life sciences or pharmaceuticals business is concerned, Switzerland can be made headquarters of European business of Indian entrepreneurs. "Many companies from Gujarat and other parts of

India have come to Switzerland and set up main offices of their European business there. Alembic and Dishman Pharmaceuticals are a few of them," he said. Welti said that bilateral trade between India and Switzerland is in the region of $3.5 billion at present. "Of the total, twothirds is Swiss exports and one-third is Indian exports. In the past five years, bilateral trade between the two countries has increased three-fold," he said.

FINANCIAL VOICE

Asian Voice - Saturday 29th May 2010

Property Focus Suresh Vagjiani Managing Director of Sow & Reap, a Property Investment & Financing company.

HIP HIP HOORAY

Breaking news: Home Information Packs (HIPS) have been suspended in England and Wales with immediate effect, pending primary legislation for a permanent abolition. This new legislation will now encourage landlords to place their properties on the market. This factor combined with the very real prospect of increased capital gains on the sale of investment properties to be implemented by the current government will help to increase the short term supply of properties on the market. HIPs currently disincentivise landlords from placing their property on the market. This is because of the up front costs involved in getting the HIP done. Proponents of the HIP state this has a filter to discern serious buyers from those who only want to test the market. The current government believes suspending HIPs will reduce the cost of selling a home, remove a layer of regulation from the process and provide a welcome help to the housing market during the recovery. Sellers will still be required to commission, but won’t need to have received, an Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) before marketing their property, and the government will consider how the EPC can play its part

in the new drive for a low carbon and eco-friendly economy. In the Guru’s opinion it is only a matter of time before they will use this information to apply a tax based on the rating of your property, the system is already set up to do this efficiently via the current regulation for a mandatory EPC to be done. So what does this mean for us? By removing red tape and increased costs for vendors we may see a new wave of properties coming onto the market. This along with the threat of a high level of capital gains tax will encourage sellers now to place their properties on the market and with summer ahead of us, housing activity should be increased. At Sow & Reap we have seen high yielding properties in central London are in great demand. We examine clients’ existing portfolios and refinance them to fund future property purchases or for investment novices we have looked at their residential properties for equity or cash savings they may have to ensure they are working hard for them. So the advice of the Property Guru is with lower costs for vendors there should be more properties on the market also making it an ideal time to move home or invest.

If You Don’t Move Forwards, You Go Backwards In this week’s FT there is an article in the news analysis section looking in depth at the current rates offered by all the banks; and trying to give advice on where to get the highest returns. It is like squeezing water out of a stone. In short whichever bank in you keep your funds at current rates the real spending power of your money will shrink. The week’s inflation which is measured by the RPI index reached 5.3%, the highest in 20 years, at this level of price rise it is impossible to achieve a positive real rate of return if keeping your funds in a bank. As interest rates have hit an all time low about 1/3 of banks are offering rates of 0.1%. My suspicion is with current regulation placed on high street banks it has become extremely difficult to lend money under the new regime under the guise of money laundering and responsible lending. The highest rate paid currently is an instant access rate by Coventry which is 3%. Marginally higher than this is if you tie your money up for more than a year. For 2 years plus you will earn 4%. Still your funds will be decreasing in real terms. It is clear money in the bank will decrease your wealth. With turbulence in the share market, what are your alternatives? Call me old fashioned but I like things that exist and you cannot simply print more off on a whim. Contrast the above to a small very low yielding deal closed this week for a client. The property is a period conversion lower ground flat on Shirland Rd a in Maida vale. The flat is a one bedroom, has a massive 500 sq ft of outside living space in addition to 477 sq ft living space. Most people associate a basement flat with a lower ground flat this is not the case. Lower ground property means the ground the flat is on is lower then the entrance of the property. So they still can be light and airy, as opposed to basement flats which have been dug into the ground for. This flat was on the market for £330,000. We have closed this at £285,000. Let’s look at the yield a flat like this will generate. Assuming a 20% deposit at

which comes to £57,000 and a rate of 5.5% we are looking at repayments of £12,540 against an easily obtainable rental of £350 pw which comes to £18,250 p.a. Taking off service charges of £650 and management of £1,825 you will get a return on your funds at 5.6% net. And this is not where you will earn your money, the returns in this deal are made on aggressive capital growth. We predict a selling price of £350,000 in a 2 year period leading up to the Olympics. This will then return a £50,000 over a two year period (allowing £15,000 for costs) this means the return will be approximately 50% per annum.

This is the return we are aiming for. The property was already being purchased by another buyer and a contract was already with them. We have a very good relationship with the agent and agreed to exchange quicker and release £20,000 to the seller on exchange, normally his solicitor keeps hold of all funds until completion has taken place. Why do people, despite the above, still keep funds in banks? It is not time which holds someone back from investing into property, as we offer a complete turn key solution to investment. Only two signatures are required to complete a property transaction – so it is not lack of time which is the excuse most use. It is simply lethargy, they have survived doing what they have been doing and therefore find it frightening to do something different. Until there is a need to do something different most people are very averse to change. This is seen with people who refuse to give up smoking until a heart attack forces them to do so often it’s too late. The same applies to investing. Currently your funds are shrinking in the bank – how long will you wait?

n Mortgages n Commercial Finance n Property Sourcing n Gujarat Properties - Sale & Resale T: 0207 706 0187 F: 0203 014 8484

E: info@sowandreap.co.uk W: www.sowandreap.co.uk

31 Southwick Street, Paddington, W2 1JQ Registered in England No. 05083823

www.abplgroup.com

asian Voice - Saturday 29th May 2010

A back pain that can be taken care of A back pain can many a times put you off work and put you back to bed rest. But there are some simple ways to get out of it apart frpm a simple bed rest. Exercise is probably the last thing on your mind, but it can be the best thing for chronic back pain. Swimming is a fantastic exercise for back pain. Put an ice pack on your back. It will help reduce any swelling. Put a heating pad on your back. You can try this for a couple of days or you can rotate the ice and heat back and forth for about 30 minute intervalsIf your mattress is too soft, try putting a board under it. Experts say tat many a times back ache is also related to a stress related job. If this is the case then learning relaxation techniques would be great for you. Pay attention to how you are breathing. If you are holding your breath and

not breathing evenly this is a sign you are stressed. Breathing correctly is very important. If you can't calm down and breath evenly because you are so upset, try getting a bottle of bubbles and blowing bubbles. This will take your mind off of your worries and even out your breathing. Try using an adjustable water bed. In a waterbed you have

Any que stio

SwaTI Bhan

equal pressure on your entire body. Try laying down and putting a pillow under your knees. If laying on your back doesn't work try laying in the fetal position, curled up on your side. Try the pillow between your legs. A massage on your back with herbal oils using knuckles and increasing pressure slowly. After a few minutes you will feel less discomfort. This gets rid of tension and relaxes the muscles in that area. Try including garlic in your diet. Try soaking in a tub of Epsom salt. The heat of the bath can increase circulation and reduce swelling. Magnesium has antiinflamatory and antiarthitic properties which can be absorbed through the skin. Magnesium is an important nutrient in the body.

Life style

ns wri te to mam ta@abplgroup.com

By Mamta Bhatia, Psychologist

How to find ‘the one’ (Part 1) From my interactions with clients, it seems that finding a partner these days has become somewhat difficult. It is for this reason, I write an article for all that are looking for love. Regardless of whether you are a man or women, young or old - as human beings you have an inherent need for companionship and there is nothing wrong with that. For centuries being in committed matrimony has been considered ‘utopia’ to the point where it has become an expectation to one day settle down. Often people learn that it is easier said then done. Modern living dictates for an expected busy lifestyle. With heavy work loads and everyday responsibility coupled with family and societal commitments it is no wonder people have pressing schedules allowing little time for self let someone else. Read below for some simple tips to help you get closer to finding love. Stop worrying and start being proactive. If you spend all of your time worrying about being single you will take time away from being creative and meeting the one for you. Rather, think about what is in your control. For example, you may

have access to a huge network of friends which means engaging in more social activity thus increasing your chances of meeting someone. Additionally, where you spend your time is in your control. So rather then devoting more time to the office, spend a few evenings a week doing something you enjoy. Psychologist say that you are more likely to be attracted to someone who has similar interests to you. Talk about what you want in a partner, not what you don’t want. This is fundamental to attracting the right people into your life. If you concentrate all your energy and time constantly discussing what you don’t want in a partner you send out signals that this is actually what you do want! It sounds crazy but the theory is backed up by quantum physicists, they believe that every thought we have relays energy and I agree. It will certainly help if you to make a list, on the left hand side of you page, list all the things you don’t want in a partner. Then on the opposite side write down what you do want. For example:, on the left you may write: I don’t want someone who is a constant

worrier, and on the right hand side you may write: My future life partner is someone who is confident and open to the flow of life. Can you notice the energy difference with these two sentences? The first sentence is obviously negative and the second feels better because it is positive and possible. Remember nothing is impossible and if you ever doubt this look around you for great role models and re-inspire yourself to get the happiness you deserve in life. Contact me at mamta@thinkspalondon.com if you have any questions and read next weeks article for further tips to help you find the one. For daily inspiration follow thinkspalondon on twitter and become a fan of think spa London on face book. Also, In June I will be running another intimate coaching session, contact me asap to secure your place. Good luck, I send you peace and energy. Written by Mamta Bhatia a London based Psychologist at ThinkspaLondon.com. Mamta fuses Eastern wisdom with Western application giving you easy to apply tools to live a happier fulfilled life.

Vegetable Cutlet Ingredient • 1 medium size carrot • 1 medium size potato • 1 medium size beet root (optional) • 4-5 Beans • Peas (optional) To Grind • garlic 1 small piece • Fennel seeds 2-3 • Green chili 2-3 • Coriander leaves little bit • One medium sizes onion finely cut & keep. To dip • 2-3 tablespoon of Maida & add little bit of water and mix them well (it should be pouring like idli flour) Powder • Take 3-4 slices of bread

& powder them. (you can use either breads crumbs) Method 1. Finely cut all the above said vegetables. 2. Wash & Pressurecook with little bit of water, turmeric powder & salt. 3. Smash them & keep it aside (if there is any excess waterin the cooked vegetables just drain). 4. Heat one tablespoon of oil. 5. Fry onions till it turns into brown & add the grounded paste. Just fry for few seconds. 6. Then add the smashed vegetables & fry till it gets thickened. Wait to cool. 7. Then make them into small balls and dip it in the above said Maida consistency & imme-

diately smear them in the above said powder and spread them in the plate or paper to dry. 8. Once everything over just do deep-fry or roast both the sides of them by adding little bit of oil till it turns into brown in the wok or thava. Servings: 12-15 (depends upon the balls Side Dish: Ketchup, Chilly chutney

Asian Voice - Saturday 29th May 2010

ART & CULTURE

“Indian classical dance has lost its importance and is getting diluted” By Spriha Srivastava

Elephants bring colours to London It’s that time of the year when Londoners cannot stop talking about how the lovely weather is these days. And Indeed it is just the right time to pack your little picnic basket and sit in Hyde Park with friends and family for a nice little picnic. Well that’s exactly what I did a few days back and it became even more memorable with the colourful and decorative elephants that have entered London and are now seen in every nook and corner of London. It is a very unique way of creating awareness about the crisis faced by endangered Asian elephants. A much appreciated effort has been made by artists who must have spent months designing these elephants. And the best part about this exhibition is that every elephant is unique in its own way. Running from May to July 2010, this is London’s biggest outdoor art event on record. With an estimated audience of 25 million, www.elephantfamily.org aims to raise £2 million for the Asian elephant and benefit 20 UK conservation charities. Each of these 260 elephants is on sale and every bid made for them is a bid for their habitat. And habitat destruction remains one of the biggest problems facing the endangered elephants today. Infact, during my trip to India earlier this year, I visited the Rajaji National Park in Dehradun which is extremely well known for Elephants. During the course of interviews with the forest officials I found out that one of the biggest issues that has led to deaths of many elephants has been destruction of their habitat or shifting their habitat from, let’s say one national park to the other. A lot of these national parks have been divided b national highways, rail tracks and other commercial operations which scare the animal to move around freely. Although this remains a serious problem even today, the elephant conservation projects such as the present one in London have been

very active and helpful in creating awareness among people. These elephants, designed by artists and sponsored by many celebrities are placed in the touristiest spots so that people can spot it easily, take pictures and then go back home thinking about it. It is a very uniquely designed campaign to tell a story that the organizers wish to tell. And apart from everything else it makes London look extremely colourful and rich in this beautiful summer. A very strong aspect about this exhibition is the fact that it has been backed by well known artists, celebrities and corporate sponsors. This makes the cause to be taken up more seriously. As Joanna Lumley mentions on the www.elephantfamily.org website, “All those who grew up with Colonel Hathi in the Jungle Book film, or those even older (like me) who remember him

from the book of Mowgli by Kipling, must be shaken to know that without our help the magnificent Asian elephant may die out altogether. How dreadful to think that we may cause the extinction of this giant in our lives: and how fabulous to know that by supporting Elephant Parade and Elephant Family we can turn the tide and ensure their survival. Don't leave it until it is too late: join me and a thousand thousand others, and give now. Remember: ele-

phants never forget. Let's make sure they will still be there to remember that we didn't turn our backs on them." Some other sponsors for this campaign include biggies like Audi, BT and so on. While many Indian brands like the Bank of Baroda, State Bank of India, CII and so on have played their part in sponsoring this campaign. Twenty Twenty cricket star Lalit Modi has sponsored eight elephants which have been placed around Trafalgar Square. While elephants have paraded in Holland and Belgium since 2007, this is Britain's first Elephant Parade. Organised by elephantfamily.org, a social enterprise founded by father and son Mike and Marc Spits, the benefits of the Elephant Parade are donated to the Elephant Family. It represents the greatest opportunity to date to raise funds and awareness for our cause. So if you still haven’t spotted one of these, it is high time you make use of the lovely British summer and go out on the streets of Notting Hill or Trafalgar Square till you can spot a cute baby elephant decorated in the most unique way. By actually making an effort to spot these elephants you are one step closer in helping out this Parade. If the Elephant Parade fulfils its mission to become "the world's largest financial support organisation for elephants," perhaps the tragedy of the Asian elephant's collapse can be reversed. (For more details, log on to www.elephantfamily.org)

Let us know what you think. Email Spriha at spriha@abplgroup.com

Priyal Sanghavi It is certainly an Indian summer at British theatre. After the Britain's Got Bhangra, London plays host to a dance show which has been touring the world since its Sydney premiere in 2005. The Merchants of Bollywood is a tribute to the Indian Film Industry and is based on choereographer Vaibhavi Merchant’s life and her family who have been choreographers in Bollywood. Asian Voice speaks to Carol Furtado a veteran of many stage shows who plays the lead role in the musical. Tell us more about playing Ayesha Merchant. Ayesha is a modern Indian woman, someone who comes from a family with rich classical roots. She values her traditions but at the same time is keen on making her own mark. Ayesha rejects her classical training to pursue her dreams in Bollywood. She is an ambitious, independent and a courageous woman who leaves her home to make it on her own in a very male driven

Carol Furtado

Bollywood industry. Is this truly your first big musical? I’ve got a dancing carrier of 10+ years but never worked in a musical before this one. Did the role require lot of training especially in classical Indian dance? The role of Ayesha by itself was rather effortless but the classical dance pieces a nightmare. Playing the classically trained Ayesha was quite a challenge as I’ve had quite the reverse journey personally, from western to classical dancing in the show. Is the dancing very arduous? Have you suffered any injuries?

We definitely push our bodies to its limit and then there are other factors that contribute in making the ride rough on our bodies. like performing in below minus temperatures, different types of venues , doing single city shows, traveling everyday etc etc etc. I’m happy and lucky to get away with the small cuts, bruises, swellings and aches everyday than suffering a major enduring injury. How is performing live in UK different from anywhere else? Memories of our performance in London in 2007 are still vivid in my mind. The responses from the audiences were spectacular. I guess this is so because people in the UK are more aware of our films, the Indian culture and the excitement associated with it. Besides the show is in English ( a huge barrier in most of the countries we’ve performed like Italy, China, Spain etc) and that again helps in getting instant audience reactions. In short , connection with the audiences will be instantaneous!

REVIEW Merchants of Bollywood has- one which is predominantly Indian and has been surrounded by Bollywood throughout their lives, other, which is predominantly white and has a slight inkling to the world’s biggest film industry. If you belong to the latter category, then this show is certainly enjoyable and will get you on your feet. If you are from the former, then give it a miss. Ayesha decides to give up her temple-roots to make her name in Bollywood much to the wrath of her grandfather Shantilal. As a famous choreographer who

refused to give up classical dance in favour of sleaze in the 80s, he bitterly denounces his grand daughter. Ayesha then realises she must return to her roots in Rajasthan and her beloved Uday. It serves as a three hour introductory class to Bollywood. By now everyone has grown weary of Bollywood stereotypes making fun of stereotype scripts, such as Om Shanti Om. The narrative is weak and neglected. The songs are mostly from the Yashraj Film stable thus missing out some great classics. However kudos to the Rajasthan

sequence featuring the folk song Kesariya Balam. The lead actor Dipender Singh who with his 6-pack abs can give any star a run for his money, has no lines and we have no idea where he comes from. Furtado while an ace dancer is a lacklustre actress. We laugh at the homosexual negative director rather than with him. Ultimately its the background dancers which are the main attractions. Overall, go for it if you are a fan of song and dance routine and ignore the story.

garammasala

Asian Voice Saturday 29th May 2010

Traffic stops at Times Square for Hrithik Vikram says Aishwarya is a hero in ‘Raavan’ Tamil superstar Vikram, who makes his debut alongside Aishwarya Rai Bachchan in the three versions of ‘Raavan’ in Hindi, Tamil and (the dubbed) Telugu, got to share the most daunting experiences in the jungles of Kerala with Aishwarya, including dancing high above water-level on “the most slippery rock God had ever invented.” Says Vikram, “Yes, it was quite an experience. It’s more she dancing while I just join in. I am just a passable dancer. I’m a good fighter but not quite the dancer. I always felt Madhuri Dixit was the best dancer ever. But then I saw how Aishwarya held her own in ‘Devdas.’ I thought it fantastic. It was really nice to see her dance. I just forgot my own steps and kept staring. Every hero from the South wants to work with her at some point in his career. I got my opportunity finally. It’s wonderful that I’m making my Hindi debut with her. It’s strange that every Miss World and Miss Universe enters movies. But who has had the lingering impact of Aishwarya’s? She has some kind of an enduring aura. Over the years she has really evolved as an actor.” Vikram says Aishwarya is a hero in “Raavan.” “There are three main characters, me, Abhishek, and Aishwarya. I’ve done a lot of tortuous sequences in the past. But this

one takes the cake and the ache. And Aishwarya suffered all the wounds, pain, fever and insect bites heroically in the forest. For all the dangerous scenes, she hardly ever used a dupe. She was totally up to the task. I coped. Guys are used to roughing it out. But she fell ill quite a few times.” Both Aishwarya and Vikram play the lead in the Hindi and Tamil versions of “Raavan.” Explains Vikram, “I had to do two characters. But she had to play the same character twice, in two languages, one after another. For example, if she had to climb a rock with me, she’d do it climb down and then do it again with Abhishek.” “Raavan” was shot in the thick forest. Says Vikram, “We were not even allowed to drive in to location sometimes. It was like going to war. The terrain was so treacherous. Every scene was risky. If it wasn’t raining we were near waterfalls so always wet and susceptible to fall ill.” Playing Aishwarya’s noble husband in the Hindi version and then the dark outlaw who kidnaps her in Tamil, was not easy, he said.

Miss India Parvathy joins tinsel town

Winners of beauty contests stepping into tinsel town is not a new thing in these parts. Toeing the line of Aishwarya Rai, Sushmita Sen, Priyanka Chopra and Parvathy is others Omanakuttan, whose act‘Uma debut ing was Maheswaram’ launched in Chennai last week. The Pantaloons Femina Miss India World 2008, who is happy about donning the greasepaint, says, “I am a great fan of movies. As a Malayalee by birth and a girl who was brought up in Mumbai, I have watched several Malayalam and Hindi movies.” ‘Uma On Maheswaram’, she says, “It is a dance-based film. I was glued to the script Nithin director when Ramakrishnan narrated it to me. Besides, the movie prominent some has stry like indu names of film

Prakash Raj, cinematographer Madhu Ambat and editor V T Vijayan.” Ask her whether she is game for commercial films, which are taken into account to judge an actress’s success rate, Parvathy says, “Why not? Who will say no to share the screen space with Ajith, Suriya or Vikram?”

Hrithik Roshan proved a real and literal traffic-stopper in New York recently when all traffic was halted for him to sprint across 42nd Street to meet his fans. Amidst heavy security bandobast at Times Square the New York premiere of “Kites” concluded on Sunday evening to a roaring ovation. There were some heart-stopping moments of security hazard caused mainly by Hrithik Roshan’s fan-concern when breaking all protection protocol the star made a dash across the bustling 42nd Street from the venue of the premiere to eager fans across the road. Hrithik Roshan’s considerate gesture towards fans at the Times Square venue of the Kites premiere, created panic for the tense and anxious Kites team. The story goes…at around 5

in the evening when Hrithik along with his co-star Barbara Mori and wife Sussanne, Dad and Mom Rakesh and Pinky Roshan, director Anurag Basu (with wife) and other members of the team reached the 42nd street at Times Square he was told to wave out to hordes of Indian fans who had been standing on the other side of the super-board street since early

morning waiting for a glimpse of the star. Sanjeev Lamba of Reliance Big Pictures confirms the incident, “Hrithik did indeed dash across the 42nd Street from our red carpet to waiting fans across the road. And we aren’t about crossing just any busy street at peak hour. 42nd Street is a gigantic universe. Hrithik ran across a good half a mile to get to his fans. ” Says Lamba, “We had to halt all traffic on 42nd Street for Hrithik to cross. So we can finally say Hrithik Roshan is the first traffic-stopper from Bollywood to make the crossover. ”

Sushmita now wants a child of her own She is already a mother of two adopted girls but Bollywood diva Sushmita Sen now wants to have a biological child as she feels the "clock is ticking for her." The 34-year-old actress, who adopted Renee in 2000 and a three-month-old girl named Alisah this year, is also open to adopt more children. "I will go for a biological baby this time because clock is ticking for me," Sen told reporters on the sets of

'I Am She.' "After that (biological baby) I can mother as many babies as pos-

sible as there are lot of babies who want the love of a mother," the former Miss Universe added. Even as her desire to have a blood child triggered possibility of the diva entering wedlock, Sushmita preferred to keep mum on possible marriage plans. "I said the clock is ticking... I never said anything about marriage," Sushmita said responding to a question whether her

wedding was on the cards. The actress said like every girl she too is waiting for a prince charming. "Every girl wants her prince charming. Though I stopped thinking about it long back but I still want to meet my prince charming," the actress said. Terming herself as politically incorrect at times, Sushmita said that she takes decisions based on her instincts. "I love being me," she quipped.

SRK, Salman to play cricket together at IIFA Their infamous row has hogged headlines for a long time but Bollywood superstars Salman Khan and Shah Rukh Khan will come together for a charity match during IIFA this year. The actors, who have not been on speaking terms for last two years, will unite to face Sri Lankan cricketers during the match, which will help raise funds for the rehabilitation of former child soldiers.

The actors became bitter enemies after their fight during the birthday party of actress Katrina Kaif in 2008. Bollywood actress Bipasha Basu and Sanjay Dutt will flip the coin for the toss during the match, which will be organised on the day two of IIFA weekend. Shah Rukh, will also perform during the three-day-long extravaganza to be held in Colombo on June 3-5, after a

gap of five years. Other celebrities to attend the event are Kareena Kapoor, Saif Ali Khan, Riteish Deshmukh and Vivek Oberoi. Apart from the main award ceremony, a global business forum, a fashion extravaganza, a film workshop and premieres of upcoming films will also be held. Boman Irani, Ritesh Deshmukh and Lara Dutta will once again host the awards gala.

Now, Ranbir on the menu in a Chandigarh dhaba Ranbir Kapoor's one-day promotional visit to Chandigarh recently began with a near-stampede, followed by a boycott-threat by television journalists but it ended on a happy note - a mammoth dinner at a suburban dhaba. Onlookers were left gawking at the scrawny superstar's incredibly large appetite. The reed-thin actor is a hearty eater. Says a person close to the star, "It's his metabolic condition. He needs to eat frequently and fast otherwise his weight slumps drastically." Ranbir with Raajneeti co-star Manoj Bajpai and director Prakash Jha arrived at 11 pm at Pal's Dhaba, located in the outskirts of Chandigarh. When the owner saw the star-guest he panicked. Laughs Jha, "He requested us to wait in the car to clear the crowds. We waited for about 20 minutes before we were told the coast was clear." The actor ordered every dish on the menu. Jha who is a frugal

eater and habitually skips lunches and dinners just kept staring as the table filled up in groaning glory with the gourmet's delights and the dietician's nightmare. To the dhaba staff's delight Ranbir, a hardcore non-vegetarian ordered almost every chicken dish and had second helpings of them. He specially enjoyed the butter-chicken masala. The dhaba's owner has decided to start a new chicken dish named after Ranbir. "They always thought of stars as starving themselves to stay slim. To see a star eat so heartily and still stay so slim was a revelation for them, " concludes Jha.

bollykats

Asian Voice - Saturday 29th May 2010

Mallika plays with python to promote ‘Hisss’ at Cannes

Ashok Chakra

She is known for her bold roles in films and now Mallika Sherawat is showing her bold avatar even in film promotions. The actress was seen posing with a live python to promote her snake film “Hisss” at the ongoing 63rd Cannes International Film Festival. Dressed in a yellow and black dress, Mallika, who plays a snake woman in the film, attempted to handle a 22-foot python to promote the film at the Majestic Hotel in Cannes, France.

“All the Snakes have just entered the Majestic Hotel in Cannes! Hissstory is being made,”

Mallika posted on her Twitter page. Directed by Jennifer Lynch and produced by

Govind Menon and Vikram Singh Lamba of Split Image Pictures, the movie also stars Irrfan Khan, Divya Dutta and American character actor Jeff Doucette. It will be distributed by Venus Records and Tapes. The actress also revealed the Indian release date of the film. “The announcement was made at Cannes, ‘Hisss’ being released (in) India Independence Day (Aug 15),” she added on the micro blogging site.

rear, her “Raajneeti” crew were far from amused when they saw Katrina hop out of a cab unaccompanied (even her personal manager and constant companion came straight to the airport). Ranbir and Prakash Jha were seen soundly ticking her off for her disregard for security rules. Katrina has been indulging in such reckless security-adventures much too often these days. According to a close friend, she takes off on her own, usually accompanied by her trusted driver and no other companion, just for a spin far

away to drive off loneliness. But her latest adventure-ride to the airport on her own, has left Katrina’s family in jitters. It has now been decided that Katrina’s youngest sister, Isabel, who has been studying cinema in the US, may cut short her acting course to join Katrina in Mumbai. Katrina admits her family is worried about her safety. “But what’s the big deal about hopping into a cab to rush to the airport? Thousands of girls do it all the time. What’s there to get hyper?

Katrina never bothered about her security

Ashok Chakra, a war and social film has no prominent names for any of the credits, including the lead cast. Based on the 26/11 terror attack on Mumbai, it is produced by Colorfull Movies. Based on a true story, Ashok Chakra is a tribute to all martyrs who lost their lives in 26/11 terror attack in Mumbai. The country honours all soldiers who were involved in fighting the incident with Ashok Chakra. Indian agencies gets the news through Assab the names of those who are training men to become human bombs. These human bombs are made in quantity and sent to different countries to spread terror. Assab is one of them who come to Mumbai through water and creates terror in the city and how he kills people in Mumbai. In the film, Assab is hanged. The film, directed by S P Muneshwar has Rajan Verma, Arun Bakshi, Milind Gunaji, Mushtaq Khan, Avtar Gill, Ashan Khan, Sudesh Berry, Homi Wadia, Amit Bhel, Mehul Buch, Ashok Samarth, Adi Irani, Sandeep Munde, Manini De Mishra, Vaibhavi Bhel, Usha Jadhav and Firdous in the key cast. It has lyrics by Manoj Kumar, while Aroon Bakshi has scored the Music. Mushahid Husain Pasha has penned the dialogues. Mohnish Sharan has written the screenplay.

New Hindi movies releasing this week 1. Ashok Chakra

Top 5 Bollywood movies for the week No. Film 1 2 3 4 5

No. Last Week Badmaash Company 1 Housefull 2 Bumm Bumm Bole New Kushti New It's A Wonderful Afterlife 3

Total weeks 2 3 1 1 2

In spite of the constant flow of stalkers and mobs, Katrina Kaif continues to step out fearlessly without fearing about repercussions. While Salman Khan has always believed in following security measures, all efforts to convince Katrina to do the same fell on deaf ears. In fact, Katrina has always disregarded security threats. Some time ago, when hordes of young and old people had descended on her at a public gathering she had fobbed off the security arrangements made by the organizers arguing, “They love me. They can never harm me.” But her latest daredevilish disregard for all rules of self-preservation takes the cake. Recently, when Katrina was required to fly to Bangalore for an event with Ranbir Kapoor, Katrina just hopped into a taxi with her hand-luggage and took off. Much to the shock and disbelief of the cabbie who had no clue about the VIP passenger he was carrying until he looked into his rear-view mirror. While Katrina cracks up at the recollection of the moment when the cabbie spotted her in the

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Minissha Lamba wants a man who doesn’t run after girls Bollywood actress Minissha Lamba wants her "Mr Right" to be a selfmade and quiet man. Although the 25-yearold star, who has previously been linked to actors Aftab Shivdasani and Abhay Deol, insists she isn't ready to mingle soon, she did not hesitate to share what qualities she is looking for in her guy. "I want a self-made man. Someone who is confident but quiet about it and doesn't run after girls," said Minissha. However, when it comes to being emotional,

the actress prefers to be a little detached as she feels it helps people to deal with the difficulties in life more strongly. "There are lots of things in life that bog us down and distract us from the real issues and I feel that emotional attachment is something that gets you worked up unnecessarily. It becomes much easier when you stay a little detached and deal with things s t r o n g l y, " Minissha said.

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Asian Voice - Saturday 29th May 2010

High Court absolves Advani, other BJP leaders of conspiracy in Babri case BJP veterans Lal Krishna Advani, Murli Manohar Joshi, Uma Bharti, Vinay Katiyar and others heaved a sigh of relief last week. A revision petition by the CBI, seeking to reverse the lower court’s order of absolving the BJP leaders of conspiracy charges in the Babri Masjid demolition case was dismissed by the Lucknow Bench of the Allahabad High Court on Thursday. Justice Alok Kumar Singh upheld the lower court's order of May 4, 2001 and turned down the CBI's plea to proceed with the conspiracy charge. Mr. Advani and others faced charges in two cases arising out of two separate FIRs. The first, where a conspiracy was alleged against “lakhs of unknown kar sevaks,” was for the offence of demolition (case 197). The second, which

L K Advani

Uma Bharti

specifically charged Mr. Advani and sangh parivar leaders with making inflammatory speeches leading to the demolition (case 198), was tried in a special court in Rae Bareli. Thursday's High Court order that upheld Mr. Shukla's ruling effectively absolving Mr. Advani and others from the conspiracy charge. However, the judgment does not affect the second case (case 198),

which continues in the court of the Chief Judicial Magistrate of Rae Bareli. Senior IPS officer Anju Gupta recently testified in the case against Mr. Advani. Ms. Gupta, who was Mr. Advani's personal security officer in Ayodhya when the mosque was demolished on December 6, 1992, alleged that provocative speeches were made by Mr. Advani minutes before the masjid was brought down.

Damaged Quran of Vadodara restored by an Iranian NGO The Jumma Masjid in the Mandvi area of Vadodara, the cultural city of Gujarat has a damaged treasure restored with the help of an NGO from Iran. The masjid had an ancient Quran, which got damaged in July 2005 when floods wrecked havoc in the city. One of the world’s largest Quran is 1.90 metres long and 1.4 meters wide. It has 1200 pages written with a special ink. It is a 230 year old book. Two parts of the restored scrip-

ture were handed over to Masjid Sabha and Darul Uloom (MSDU) of Vadodara by the ambassador of Iran recently during a function. “Major parts of the book had suffered damages as they got wet during floods. No one in the city was ready to fund the repair of this unique Quran. The Iran embassy in India showed interest in restoring it and hence two parts of the book were handed over to them,” said Mohammed Hanif

Dayma Kumar, chairman of MSDU and member of Jumma Masjid Trust. The Quran was taken to Iran and was restored in its natural form by the Iran Culture House. They funded all the repairing costs, estimated at more than Rs. 1.8 million. Iranian authorities have offered that if the other parts are send, those too would be restored. This Quran was written by Islamic saint Mohammed Goush in eighteenth century.

Sanjay Dutt too has plans for a mega film studio in Gujarat ‘Munnabhai’ impressed by Modi, development in the state

Gujarat is flooded with offers to set up film cities by around half a dozen Bollywood personalities, the latest being Sanjay Dutt. On a recent visit to the state, kin of former Congress MP and minister, late Sunil Dutt, Sanjay was accompanied by a Gujarati businessman settled abroad, Paresh Gilani. Sanjay Dutt and Gilani prefer a location in Kutch district or some other place in the Saurashtra region of the state. Gilani, who will be investing in the venture, said their project could be a replica of Disney – MGM or Universal Studios of Florida. After a meeting with Narendra Modi, the chief minister of Gujarat they said Modi had promised them of prompt

action after they decide on the exact site. Politically, it is important to note that Amitabh Bachchan is promoting Gujarat as a tourism destination, while even Munnabhai is impressed with the progress of the state. They both are close friends of Amar Singh, the former lieutenant of Samajwadi Party boss

M u l a y a m Singh. Of the other projects proposed by Bollywood biggies, Paresh Rawal has a plan to set up one near Umergaon, just on the Maharashtra border in Valsad district. Shatrughan Sinha, also a BJP leader wants a film city in Mandavi in Kutch district. A proposal by Jackie Shroff for a film city on the Bavla-Bagodra highway near Ahmedabad and another near Nal Sarovar by Itina Film City Private Limited, a Bangalorebased developer, are pending.

In divine light

By Rajen Vakil

Kacha and Devyani - the play of energy The Mahabharata consists of many seemingly unrelated small stories, each of them having a deeper meaning that seamlessly connects with the overall essence of the scripture. One such reference is to the story of Kacha and Devyani and about the long-standing conflict between the Devas and the Asuras for the supremacy of the three worlds. Devas means beings of higher states of consciousness and positive emotions (simply, gods) while Asuras means demons. Brihaspati was the guru of the Devas and Shukracharya of the Asuras. In the battles that were fought, every time Asuras died, Shukracharya brought them back to life through Sanjivani, a mystical power that he possessed. So, the Devas were effectively helpless against the asuras. To deal with the situation, the Devas approached Kacha, Brihaspati’s son, requesting him to go to Shukracharya as his disciple and learn the very powerful technique of Sanjivani. They explained to him that Shukracharya would not part with his art; to obtain it, Kacha would have to win over the admiration of Devyani, Shukracharya’s daughter. Then, Shukracharya would have no option but to share his art with Kacha as he loved his daughter very much. Kacha approached Shukracharya and requested to be accepted as a disciple. He started living in Shukracharya’s household, performing tasks a disciple does for his guru. As his aim was to win over Devyani, he kept her happy by performing song, dance, and music; he went into the forest and bought her fruits and flowers, charming her in all possible ways. Over time, Devyani became devoted to Kacha. The Asuras became aware that Kacha was there to learn the secret art of Sanjivani from their guru and recognised the fact that if he was successful in doing so, they would lose their supremacy in their battle with the Devas. So, they decided to kill him. One day, when Kacha was tending to Shukracharya’s cows in the forest of solitude, the Asuras cut him up and fed his pieces to wolves and jackals. When Kacha did not return by night, Devyani got upset and pleaded with her father to find

Kacha. Shukracharya divined the incident and told Devyani that the Asuras had killed him. Devyani then implored her father to bring him back to life for she could not live without him. Using

(2) being unlimited, the sex energy can connect and provide energy to any other centre, and (3) the potentiality of returning to the source (the sex cell can become divine). This upward movement of sex

the power of Sanjivani, Shukracharya bought Kacha back to life. Then, the Asuras again cut him up and threw his pieces into the ocean. Once again, Shukracharya had to bring him back to life. The third time, the Asuras cut him into pieces, burned those pieces, ground the burnt pieces into powder, dissolved the powder in wine, and gave the wine to Shukracharya to drink. They did this to ensure that Shukracharya could not bring him back to life again. Shukracharya figured what had happened when he called out to Kacha, who answered from his stomach. He explained to Devyani that it was not possible to bring back Kacha for he would have to die. Devyani answered, “I don’t want either of you to die and if one of you dies, I will follow him into the realms of death”. Shukracharya had no option but to teach Kacha the secret art of Sanjivani. He thus used the art to bring Kacha back to life and Kacha, in turn, brought Shukracharya back to life. Thus, through the folly of the Asuras, Kacha fulfilled his aim of learning the art of Sanjivani. He decided to return home to the gods with his newly acquired knowledge. Devyani asked Kacha to marry her but he refused saying that as both, she and him had come out of her father’s stomach, they were now siblings. Devyani, sensing the whole matter, cursed Kacha that he would never be able to use his vidya (knowledge). Kacha countered that he would pass it on to a worthy disciple who would make proper use of it. Let us understand the hidden meaning of this story now. Shukracharya represents the sex centre within us; ‘Shukra’ meaning sex. Sex energy has three functions, (1) to bring continuity in nature through birth of children

energy is called ‘Dev ayan’ and is symbolized by the daughter of the sex centre ‘Devyani’. Demons or asuras represent the negative emotions within us. They never die, for every time we express negativity whether through anger, jealousy, hatred, self-love or irritation, we misuse sex energy and revive these negative emotions. Shukracharya using the Sanjivani vidya to keep bringing demons back to life symbolises the revival of negative emotions. Brihaspati represents the power of higher thinking and Kacha (meaning to shine) is the knowledge gained through higher thinking. For higher thinking to perform effectively it must connect with sex energy, that is, it must possess the secret of Sanjivani (an unlimited supply of energy). This has to be stolen away from the negative emotions. Kacha goes to learn this art and fails on two initial occasions but the third time, on account of the folly of negative emotions, is able to gain this vidya. How do negative emotions keep repeating? Once a situation that caused a negative emotion passes away, the remnant negativity connects to the sex centre, draws energy from it, which paves the way for a recurrence. Recurrence happens mechanically whilst to recall is a conscious act. Recalling from the dead using Sanjivani implies a conscious act, so if we can recall positivity, the cycle of the recurrence of negative emotions breaks. This is done by introducing a pause in the negativity. If this happens, then the sex energy channelizes and starts moving upward, called ‘Dev Ayan’, the daughter of Shukracharya. (Edited by Chintu Gandhi. Illustration by Siddharth Ramanuj.) The author can be reached by emailing 3srb@live.com

Asian Voice - Saturday 29th May 2010

Hang Afzal, says Delhi CM Sheila Dikshit After holding on to Afzal Guru's file for nearly three years, Delhi Chief Minister Sheila Dikshit last week backed the Supreme Court decision to hang the Parliament attack convict. "File age chali gayi hai (the file's been sent)," she said.

"The government has made its stand clear that it does not have any objection (to hanging Guru). The Centre must examine law and order implications if the sentence is executed," a Delhi government official said.

No retirement midway, asserts Manmohan Indian PM says he gets advice from Sonia and wife Gursharan Virtually dismissing the possibility of relinquishing the post of Prime Minister, Dr. Manmohan Singh said he has got a task assigned and will stay in office till that is accomplished. Addressing a press conference in New Delhi on Monday to mark the completion of one year of UPA rule in season II, he said there is a perfect coordination between him and the Congress president Sonia Gandhi. He meets her every week to discuss major issues. At the 75-minute press conference, he was repeatedly asked questions about his legacy, retirement, relationship with

Sonia Gandhi and any “succession” plan involving Rahul Gandhi. Maintaining that he had stated in a number of instances that younger people should take over, he said: “As and when the Congress party makes that judgment, I will be very happy to make place for anybody chosen by the party.” He said Rahul Gandhi was “very qualified” to join the Cabinet and said he had requested him on a number of occasions to do so but the young MP had declined saying he wanted to give his attention to party-building. “Whenever he (Rahul) is ready, he will

Manmohan Singh

be an appropriate addition to the Cabinet,” he said. He reiterated the government stand on Jammu and Kashmir to have a dialogue with all groups pro-

vided they shun violence, rejected the opposition charge that the CBI was being misused and made a clear distinction that terrorism was not bound by religion and was condemnable in all forms. He underlined that the National Advisory Council was not a “super cabinet” but an advisory body which made meaningful contribution in developmental programmes. Asked if he missed the structured support of Left parties, Singh underlined the pragmatic approach of the UPA to indicate that there was no use conjuring up imaginary situations.

2 million for a car, 1 million for a special number! Chandigarh man says no regrets for spending a fortune for 0001 He bought a luxury SUV Toyota Fortuner for almost Rs. 2 million, and spent more than half of that amount, Rs. 1 million for getting a registration number of his choice – 0001. Yes, Narinder Singh Shergill of Chandigarh perhaps symbolizes the

Punjabi spirit of getting what they want, at whatever the cost. His wife was angry, but Narinder has no regrets. He is an agriculturist turned real estate agent. Shergill had recently received compensation running into nearly Rs 20 million (Rs 2 crore) for a

prime piece of land, 20 km from here in Punjab, which the government acquired for expansion of a national highway. Shergill is certainly not the only one chasing 'VIP' numbers for high prices. In recent years, nearly half a dozen people have paid up to half a million

rupees to pick up the '0001' series number. In Punjab's Jalandhar city, a Delhi-based businessman, Pravin Chaudhary, bought the '0001' series number for his luxury Rs.20 million Bentley car for a whopping Rs 725,000 in August 2008.

International meet for bird lovers at a Jamnagar village Nal Sarovar is the famous bird sanctuary in Gujarat, but very few people know that Khijadia village in Jamnagar district, Saurashtra is also a place for bird lovers. It attracts a large number of migratory birds in winter. An international conference on migratory birds will be held in Khijadia bird sanctuary in Jamnagar in December this year. More than 100 participants from abroad and across the country are expected to attend the conference.

Officials in the tourism department said the event is aimed at bringing Khijadia on the tourism map. An official said both Khijadia and Nal Sarovar play host to large number of migratory birds, but the former was still not on the tourist map. Therefore, the tourism department was planning to have the conference in December, a month when migratory birds would be here in large numbers. The officials said that Khijadia was the only place with fresh water and

sea water together and hence about 250 different variety of bird species flock to this sanctuary every year. This sanctuary falls on way to Dwarka and is just 15 km from Jamnagar. The officials said that the approach road to the sanctuary was not in good shape and hence needed urgent attention. Jamnagar collector Sandeep Kumar, also the coordinator of the conference, said that from Rajkot-Jamnagar highway to the sanctuary about 10

km stretch would be resurfaced and a proposal has been sent to the roads and building department. Kumar further said that watch towers were also being constructed. About 100 experts from abroad and another 300 participants from the state would be attending the conference, he said, adding, the conference would have deliberations on the migratory bird apart from other issues. In addition, an interpretation centre has also been set up.

Molester cop Rathore gets 18 months jail in Ruchika case

Disgraced former Haryana top cop, SPS Rathore finally got a taste of prison. His appeal against the sentence of six months in jail was dismissed by a Chandigarh court. The court accepted CBI plea to increase his sentence and order 18 months of jail sentence. Rathore’s bail was cancelled and he was arrested right in the court. Later, he was sent to Burail jail in Chandigarh. A CBI court had held him guilty of molesting Ruchika Girhotra, a teenager and sentenced him to 6 months in prison. Rathore, 68, turned grim as Additional District and Sessions Judge Gurbir Singh pronounced the verdict in a packed court

SPS Rathore

here. The judge rejected his appeal against his December 2009 conviction in a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) special court in the August 1990 molestation of Ruchika Girhotra in Panchkula, a Haryana town 15 km from Chandigarh. This is the first time in

two decades that Rathore has been formally arrested. Rathore has been stripped of President's Police medal after his conviction, was taken into custody by the CBI within the court premises itself after he did not move out after the pronouncement of the enhanced sentence. Ruchika's family and friends were jubilant. "We are very happy. Justice has been done. But our fight to get him even more punishment for abetment to suicide will continue. We cannot bring Ruchika back but today her soul will rest in peace," Ruchika's father S.C. Girhotra said after the verdict. "This shows that no one is above the law. Even

a powerful person like him can be punished. Two years or one-and-a-half years does not matter," he added. Rathore's wife and senior lawyer Abha Rathore and his other lawyers surrounded him in the court even as Ruchika's father and others rushed out to announce the judgment to a battery of journalists waiting outside. Rathore's wife pleaded with the judge that her husband had undergone a heart bypass surgery and should be given bail. But the judge ordered that Rathore be arrested and taken to Burail prison. He asked Rathore's wife to give reports of his medical condition to the jail superintendent.

Flash strike hits Air India; 16 flights cancelled As engineers and other staff, particularly flight crew of Air India went on a flash strike on Tuesday, operations of the airline were severely hit, leading to cancellation of atleast 16 flights on Tuesday. Cancelled flights included five international ones. 16,000 staff resorted to strike to protest delay in payment of salaries. The action started 12.30 pm and it also affected several other flights too. Air India had last week decided to delay the May salaries by a week. The international flights cancelled were those from Delhi to Jeddah, Abu Dhabi and Dubai (two flights) and one from Amritsar to London, Air India officials said. Domestic services from Kolkata, Mumbai, Hyderabad and Chennai were also affected. Among the flights delayed was one from Coimbatore to Chennai, which flew in

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M Karunanidhi after a two-hour delay. In Delhi, Civil Aviation Minister Praful Patel held a meeting with Air India CMD Arvind Jadhav to take stock of the situation, official sources said. While senior officials said the management had invited leaders of the Air Corporation Employees Union (ACEU) for talks, its General Secretary J B Kadian said this evening that no such invitation has yet been received. Demanding immediate withdrawal of the "gag order", he said the ground staff, cabin crew and engineers, mostly belonging to the erstwhile Indian Airlines, were participating in the strike.

Jharkahand CM asked to prove majority by May 31 Minister Raghuvar Das handed over a letter withdrawing his party's support to the government, Raj Bhavan said. With 14 MLAs, the Congress sees a possible role in the formation of a stable government. “We are watching the developments. We are putting our minds together to save Jharkhand from collapse,” Congress in-charge for the State K. Keshav Rao told reporters in New Delhi.

The BJP on Monday withdrew its support to the nearly five-month-old JMM-led government in Jharkhand reducing it to a minority, following which Chief Minister Shibu Soren was asked by the Governor to prove his majority on the floor of the Assembly by May 31. Mr. Soren was summoned by Governor M.O.H. Farook in the evening after BJP leader and Deputy Chief

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Asian Voice - Saturday 29th May 2010

Kasab is now Qaidi No C-7096 Ajmal Kasab, Pakistani terrorist sentenced to death in the Mumbai terror attack case, has got a new identity with the jail authorities labelling him as Qaidi No C-7096. The number is allotted to maintain record of convicts and henceforth he would be referred as Qaidi No C-7096, jail sources said. Kasab has been placed in category 'C' prisons allotted to murder convicts.

Those convicted for lesser offences up to three months imprisonment are allotted category 'A' while the convicts serving jail sentence of three months to five years are put in 'B' class. Since Kasab has been given death penalty he would not have to work in jail. Those serving rigorous imprisonment are given carpentry work or asked to prepare food.

158 killed as Air India plane crashes in Mangalore In a major disaster, an Air India Express flight from Dubai to Mangalore crashed while landing at the Mangalore airport on Saturday morning. 158 people, including six of the crew died on the spot, while 8 passengers had a miraculous escape. According to officials, the Air Traffic Control (ATC) saw the plane approaching normally and enter the runway but suddenly veered away after skidding and one side of it hit the Instrument Landing System (ILS) antenna on the ground. The body of the plane, after it overshot the landing point broke and some passengers were thrown out of the aircraft, just before it crashed into the valley. According to reports, the mishap occurred

lot of smoke.” The incident happened near a valley 10 km from the airport, Karnataka Home Minister V S Acharya said.

‘Black box’ found

Onlookers and firefighters stand at the site of a crashed Air India Express passenger plane in Mangalore on May 22

because of the tyre burst but there is no confirmation yet. The Director General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) is going to probe the accident. When the plane was landing there was no distress call by pilots, say the authorities.

India’s combat chopper takes to the skies India’s first indigenous combat helicopter capable of participating in antiNaxal and counter terrorism operations on Sunday took to the skies, marking its first official flight at the HAL airport in Bangalore. The Light Combat Helicopter (LCH), designed and developed indigenously by the Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) in four years since the project began in 2006, is likely to

be ready for induction by the Army and Air Force before 2014. It also has NuclearBiological-Chemical (NBC) attack protection, electronic warfare suite and counter-measures when it comes under enemy fire. The chopper has advanced features such as night operation capability, armour protection, a glass cockpit with tandem seating for two pilots and stealth features.

Tony Blair is adviser to Khosla Ventures of USA Continued from page 1 Blair said he shares a "clear vision" with the tycoon, "one of the earliest leaders in cleantech investment". Mr Blair's main political role is as special UN envoy for the Middle East quartet, which comprises the United Nations, Russia, the United States

and the European Union. Its aim is to reinvigorate peace talks between Israel and the Palestinians. He also runs the Tony Blair Faith Foundation, which, his website says, promotes respect and understanding between the major religions and makes the case for faith as a force for good in the modern world.

Kamla Persad wins Trinidad polls Continued from page 1 The election was fought on several issues including massive corruption in all sectors of the national economy, the lack of medical facilities, a total breakdown in the infrastructural capacity and the mismanagement of the nation. Rising crime with over 3,000 people being murdered over the last eight years was also an issue. COP chief Winston

Mangalore airport has a table-top runway which means that it is located on a hill top, which demands accuracy with no room for error while landing.

Dookeran said: "Everyone who wants a change, wants a better Trinidad and Tobago is welcome in the People's Partnership". "Today, we begin the business of government as we build a partnership of interests on a wide of range of national issuessafety and security, economic development, justice and the well-being of our citizens, and introduce a new face of governance for our beloved country."

There were 166 people on board, according to sources. The CISF has been brought in for the rescue operations. Meanwhile, eight survivors have been sent to hospital. According to reports, 19 children were on board.

The plane had caught fire and smoke was seen coming out of the airport. According to sources, the fire has been doused, after nearly three hours of the crash. Sunil Krishnan, Executive Director, Air India, said, "We did see a

Meanwhile, aviation investigators have recovered the crucial "black box" that records all flight data, three days after the crash. The box itself was found still operational, with the "main memory" left intact, officials from Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) said on Tuesday. The cause of the worst air disaster in India in a decade was still unknown, officials said. Only eight people among the 166 passengers and crew survived, mostly by jumping out of the plane that split in half and burst into flames soon after landing on Saturday. Among the dead were 19 children and four infants.

Adipur in Kutch too has a Rajghat! Samadhi there has Mahatma’s ashes, but is simply neglected

All parties and governments in India swear by the name of Mahatma Gandhi, but that is perhaps where it all ends. In Gujarat, the very place of birth and the Karmabhoomi of Gandhiji, there is a Rajghat, a Samadhi of the father of the nation but very few know of that. While Gujarat government has announced and started work on a very ambitious ‘Mahatma Manidr’ in Gandhinagar, the state capital, little has been done to take care of the Samadhi in Adipur, Kutch. After Rajghat in Delhi,

this is the only place in the country which has Gandhi’s ashes. Very few people know that a staunch Gandhian from Sindh province in Pakistan Bhai Pratap Dayaldas had brought some of Gandhiji’s ashes to Adipur soon after his death. Bhai Pratap had migrated to India after Partition, according to Nirmala Gajwani, chairman of Sindhu Resettlement Corporation Ltd (SRC). SRC manages upkeep of the samadhi and Adipur town itself. On February 12, 1948, Bhai Pratap, Acharya

Kriplani, former royalty of Kutch and other leaders of the region, performed the immersion ceremony of Gandhi’s ashes at Kandla creek and laid the foundation of Gandhidham town. Some ashes in the urn were kept at the samadhi. Ironically, Gandhi was assassinated on the day Bhai Pratap’s telegram reached Delhi inviting him to lay Gandhidham’s foundation stone. General manager of SRC Mohan Sajnani adds, “Bhai Pratap was very close to Gandhi and wanted Sindhis to remember him. SRC recently spent

Rs 12 lakh on the upkeep of the samadhi. But we feel this place deserves more. If the Kandla Port Trust and Gujarat government take interest, this place can become popular. It was on Gandhi’s insistence that the former rulers of Kutch donated 18,000 acres for families from Sindh who settled here after Partition. Even today there are about 20,000 Sindhi homes in the towns. Adipur, in fact, has been designed on Gandhi’s concept of ‘Sarvodaya’, aiming to bring people from different castes in one locality.

Navy commander first Indian to circumnavigate globe solo

Officer Had Embarked On A Round-The-World Trip In August ’09 A naval officer became the first Indian ever to circumnavigate the world solo on a sail boat on Saturday when he steered into the Mumbai harbour after an arduous voyage spanning a little over nine months. Commander Dilip Donde, who embarked on the voyage on August 19 last year on INSV (Indian Naval Sailing Vessel) Mhadei, approached the finish line as his boat, ceremonially escorted by a fast attack craft of the Indian Navy along with speedboats and two tugs operating their water canons, touched base back in India at the Sunk Rock Light House here. Vice-President Hamid Ansari along with Chief of Naval Staff Admiral Nirmal Kumar Verma and

Donde’s family members, who were on board INS Delhi, anchored at the finish line, witnessed the historic moment and gave him a rousing reception. He was later received by them on INS Mysore. ‘‘Having completed the voyage, I am feeling great. I could not have done it without this fine boat. I was quite convinced that anybody can do circumnavigation in a boat like this. The credit goes to Mhadei,’’ said Donde. ‘‘It gave me a big kick,’’ he said after he returned to the city after the 276-day voyage, as part of the Navy’s daunting ‘Sagar Parikrama’ project. The Vice-President described it as a momen-

tous occasion. ‘‘It is an occasion that makes every Indian happy, proud and willing to emulate. I think that would be the greatest tribute to what Commander Donde has done. It was a long awaited first and it was done very well.’’ ‘‘Donde has shown that skill, determination and courage can achieve what is considered to be immensely difficult, if not impossible. So far, 175 people across the world have managed to finish such task,’’ Ansari said. ‘‘Spirit of adventure and innovation are two things one needs to focus on,’’ he said adding no nation in the history of the world can become great unless these two qualities come together, not occa-

sionally or sporadically but continuously. The 42-year-old officer covered 21,600 nautical miles sailing in the seas to achieve the milestone. Congratulating Donde, Admiral Verma said, ‘‘This is indeed a new beginning. Donde has shown professional competence, courage and his will to conquer. He was able to rise to all the challenges thrown at him by the sea. It’s a great achievement.’’ Dhonde, an NDA alumnus and trained diver in the Navy, volunteered for project ‘Sagar Parikrama’ and also trained with the legendary Sir Robin Knox-Johnston, the first man to sail solo and non-stop round the world in 1968-69.

Asian Voice - Saturday 29th May 2010

Gujarati origin doctor wins Democratic primary Washington: Manan Trivedi, an Indian-American physician of Gujarati origin, has won a surprise primary election last week even as incumbents faced a backlash from voters who claimed the scalp of a distinguished five-term Senator from Pennsylvania. Trivedi, a 35-year-old doctor from Philadelphia suburbs who served as a battalion surgeon during the Iraq War, stunned Doug

Pike, a heavily favoured former newspaper editor, to win the Democratic primary in Pennsylvania’s 6th district. Son of immigrants from Ahmedabad, Trivedi was born and raised with his brother in Fleetwood, Berks County. His parents worked at the old Red Cheek apple juice factory. Trivedi polled 21,338 to 20,667 for a narrow 50.8% to 49.2% victory.

UK Ministers in Kabul for talks Kabul: Three cabinet ministers of UK, led by Foreign Secretary William Hague, have arrived in Kabul to meet political and military leaders in the Afghan capital. Mr Hague, Defence Secretary Liam Fox and I n t e r n a t i o n a l Development Secretary Andrew Mitchell are looking at ways to accelerate Afghan troop training. Dr Fox said he was seeking to pull out UK troops "as soon as possi-

ble" and Britain was not a "global policeman". But Mr Mitchell said it was "crucial" to create a functioning Afghan state. Interviewed by journalists on their RAF flight into Kabul, the ministers indicated they were not planning any significant changes to UK policy on Afghanistan. And Dr Fox said the sacrifices of British troops remained essential. "When I got this job the very first question I

asked myself was 'do we have to be in Afghanistan, do our troops have to take these costs of life and limb?' And my answer is still 'yes'." However, in an earlier interview, Dr Fox suggested he was seeking ways of getting troops home. "We need to accept we are at the limit of numbers now and I would like the forces to come back as soon as possible," he said. In the first Afghanistan visit of the

new coalition government, he confirmed the ministers would be examining whether Afghans could manage their own security by 2014 - as suggested by General Stanley McChrystal, the US commander of the international forces in Afghanistan. "I want to talk to people on the ground, our trainers, to see whether there is room to accelerate [Afghan troop training] without diminishing the quality."

Woman’s burqa ripped off in France

London: Taking offence at the attire of a fellow shopper, a 60-year-old lawyer ripped off a Muslim woman's burqa in a clothing shop, in what is being described by the police as France's first case of rage against the Islamic veil. During a weekend shopping trip the woman lawyer had an argument over the attire following which the pair came to blows before being arrested. The incident happened due to growing racial tensions in the country, as France prepares to introduce a total ban on burqas and other forms of reli-

gious dress, which cover the face. The woman lawyer made snide remarks about a 26-year-old Muslim convert's burqa while walking through the store in Trignac, near Nantes, in the western Loire-

Atlantique region, a report said. "The shop manager and the husband of the Muslim woman moved to break up the fighting," a police officer said. All three were arrested and taken to the local gendarmerie for questioning. Cabinet approves veil ban law Meanwhile, the French cabinet approved a draft law to ban the Muslim full-face veil from public

spaces, opening the way for the text to go before parliament in July. "In this matter the government is taking a path it knows to be difficult, but a path it knows to be just," President Nicolas Sarkozy told the assembled ministers, according to his office. According to the text of the law, no-one in France will be allowed to wear a garment "designed to hide the face". Those who flout it will be fined 150 euros ($180) or sent on a course to learn the values of French citizenship.

I'm a Marxist, says Dalai Lama New York: Tibetan spiritual leader the Dalai Lama last week said that he was a Marxist, yet credits capitalism for bringing new freedoms to the communist country that exiled him - China. "Still I am a Marxist," the exiled Tibetan Buddhist leader said in New York, where he arrived with an entourage of robed monks and a heavy security detail to give a series of paid public lectures. Marxism has "moral ethics, whereas capitalism is only how to make profits," the Dalai Lama, 74,

said. However, he credited China's embrace of market economics for breaking communism's grip over the world's most populous country and forcing the ruling Communist Party to "represent all sorts of classes." Capitalism "brought a lot of positive to China. Millions of people's living standards improved," he said. The Dalai Lama, giving a series of lectures at the Radio City Music Hall in central Manhattan, struck a strikingly optimistic note in general, say-

Dalai Lama

ing that he believed the world is becoming a kinder, more unified place. Anti-war movements, huge international aid efforts after Haiti's earth-

quake this year, and the election of Barack Obama as the first black president in a once deeply racist United States are "clear signs of human beings being more mature," he said. The Dalai Lama said he felt a "sense of the oneness of human beings," jokingly adding: "If those thoughts are wrong, please let me know!" Although China, which forced him to escape for his life in 1959, is loosening up, he had harsh words for a communist leadership that he said still seeks to rule by fear.

Two Koreas stepping up war-like rhetoric US backs South Korea in cutting trade with the North Seoul/Beijing: South Korea on Monday announced steps to tighten the vice on the North’s already stumbling economy in punishment for sinking one of its navy ships, with both sides stepping up their war-like rhetoric. The United States, which backs Seoul, warned that the situation was “highly precarious”. China, the North’s only major ally, urged calm. The mounting tension follows last week’s report by international investigators accusing the North of torpedoing the Cheonan

corvette in March, killing 46 sailors in one of the deadliest clashes between the two since the 1950-53 Korean War. The United States, which has 28,000 troops on the peninsula, threw its full support behind South Korea and said it was working hard to stop the situation from escalating. With US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in Beijing, Washington pressed China to rein in the hermit state. China has avoided taking sides in the issue. Analysts say it is fearful of destablising the grip of

North Korean leader Kim Jong-il, who is looking increasingly frail as he tries to secure the position of his youngest son as successor to the family dynasty that has ruled the state for more than 60 years. The vitriolic comments across the heavily defended Cold War border are rattling investors and niggling at diplomatic relations in the economically powerful region. Few analysts believe either Korea would dare go for war. The North’s military is no match for the technically superior

South Korean and US forces. And for the South, conflict would put investors to flight. “I solemnly urge the authorities of North Korea ... to apologise immediately to the Republic of Korea (South Korea) and the international community,” South Korean President Lee Myung-bak said in a nationally televised address. Lee said he would take the issue to the UN Security Council, whose past sanctions are already sapping what little energy North Korea’s economy has left with.

Three Indians help create artificial life in lab Washington: Three Indian-origin scientists are part of a team that has for the first time created a synthetic cell, controlled by man-made genetic instructions, which can also reproduce itself. The 24-member team included Sanjay Vashee, Radha Krishnakumar and Prashanth P. Parmar. "We call it the first synthetic cell," said genomics pioneer Craig Venter, who oversaw the project. "These are very much real cells." Developed at a cost of $30 million by the researchers at J. Craig Venter Institute, the experimental one-cell organism opens the way to manipulation of life on a previously unattainable scale, the Wall Street Journal reported. According to experts, scientists have been altering DNA piecemeal for many years, producing genetically engineered plants and animals, but the ability to craft an entire organism offers a new power over life. However, the achievement documented in the journal Science, may stir nagging questions of ethics, law and public safety about artificial life. "This is literally a turning point in the relationship between man and nature," said molecular biologist Richard Ebright at Rutgers University who wasn't involved in the project.

Australian jailed for attacking Indian taxi driver Melbourne: An Australian, who viciously assaulted an Indian taxi driver because he hated Indians, was on Monday sentenced to a prison term by a court here. The 23-year-old Indian victim was a student and part-time taxi driver. He suffered a fractured skull, nose and cheekbone in the attack early in the morning on Feb 16 two years back, The Age reported on Monday. The assailant, Murat Kilinc, 22, told a psychologist that he and his family hated Indians due to their apparent lack of concern for others. Witnesses first heard screams and cries and then spotted two people running away, prosecutor Jim Bessell told the county court last week. Judge Joe Gullaci said that he was not satisfied beyond reasonable doubt that the victim was attacked because he was Indian. Gullaci said he was also unable to be satisfied whether the attack was pre-planned. He ordered Kilinc to serve a minimum of 18 months.

Australia expels Israeli diplomat over Dubai killing

Melbourne: Australia has expelled an Israeli diplomat saying Israel was behind the forging of Australian passports linked to the murder of a Hamas operative in Dubai. Australia's foreign minister said these were "not the actions of a friend". The UK took similar action in March, after concluding that Israel was responsible for the use of forged UK passports in the plot. The Israeli foreign ministry said Australia's decision was disappointing. Ministry spokesman Yigal Palmor said it was "not in line with the importance and the quality of the relationship between our countries". At least four forged Australian passports were used in the killing of Mahmoud al-Mabhouh in Dubai in January. The originals belonged to Australians living in Israel. Foreign Minister Stephen Smith said: "I have asked that the withdrawal be effective within the week."

Thai PM says country under control after unrest Bangkok: Thai PM Abhisit Vejjajiva says order has been restored to the capital, Bangkok, and throughout the country. Mr Abhisit said the government would "move swiftly to restore normalcy" following a week of violence which left more than 50 people dead. In a televised address he said reconciliation efforts would continue to address political divisions. Anti-government protesters returning to Chiang Mai in the north received cheers and applause from supporters. Many of the "red-shirt" protesters - named for the colour they adopted - said they were determined to keep up the drive to force Mr Abhisit to step down and call new elections. Many of the protesters in Bangkok came from the north and west of Thailand, where support for former Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra, ousted in a 2006 military coup, is strong.

Asian Voice - Saturday Saturday 29th May 2010

13-year-old US boy climbs Mount Everest Beijing: A 13-year-old American boy became the youngest climber to reach the top of Mount Everest last week, breaking the former record as part of his quest to climb the highest peaks on all seven continents. A spokesman for Jordan Romero said the boy's team called him by satellite phone from the summit of the world's highest mountain, 29,035 feet

13 students hurt in latest China knife attack Beijing: At least five men armed with knives burst into the dormitory of a vocational college last week and slashed nine students, one of them seriously, sparking new fears in a country on edge over a series of shocking rampages at schools. Four students had been wounded in an earlier confrontation between the two groups, bringing the total injured to 13. The pre-dawn attack took place in Haikou, the capital of the southern island province of Hainan, when five or six men burst into a dormitory at the Hainan Institute of Science and Technology and slashed the students, the China News Service reported. It said eight were wounded slightly, while one’s hand was cut off. Two students remained hospitalized with wounds that were not life-threatening, the reports said. Because it was a vocational college, the students would have been much older than the children targeted in a string of attacks at schools across China in the last two months.

Chinese tycoon jailed on corruption charges Beijing: Huang Guangyu, once reputed to be China's wealthiest person, was last week sentenced to 14 years in prison on corruption charges. Xinhua reported that Huang, who is former chairman of Chinese electronics retailer giant Gome, was sentenced to 14 years in prison by a Beijing court over illegal business dealings, insider trading and bribery. The 41-year-old tycoon, listed by the Hurun Report as China's richest man in 2004, 2005 and 2008, was detained by Beijing police in November 2008. He was estimated to be having a fortune of $3.6 billion in 2008. Huang has been charged with illegal foreign exchange trading via Hong Kong in 2007 and insider trading of Shenzhen-listed Zhongguancun stocks. He has also been accused of offering bribes of 4.56 million yuan ($667,600) to a number of officials. Huang resigned as a Gome director in January 2009 but is still the largest shareholder.

Hecklers interrupt Iran President’s speech

Khorramshahr (Iran): The Iranian president, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad, experienced an unusual show of public discontent over his government's handling of the economy. He was addressing a crowd of several hundred people in the south-western city of Khorramshahr. But the speech was interrupted by a group shouting "We are unemployed!" The president - whose public events are carefully controlled - calmly continued and did not seem distracted by the disruption. Correspondents say Mr Ahmadinejad's speeches are regularly carried live on national TV where crowds more usually respond with slogans such as "God is Greatest" and "Death to America". Iran's economy is suffering double-digit inflation and the official jobless rate stands at 11 per cent. But the actual number of people looking for jobs is believed to be much higher.

Indian American to be US Acting SG Washington: Top Indian American lawyer Neal Kumar Katyal will now serve as US government's top legal counsel, with Solicitor General Elena Kagan vacating the post following her nomination to the Supreme Court. Kagan informed the Supreme Court in a letter that she has been nominated by President Barack Obama for the vacancy in the apex court, and the development leaves her principal deputy Katyal to serve as the Acting Solicitor General. Solicitor General is the top US lawyer, who argues the administration's cases before the Supreme Court. "In light of my nomination to serve as Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of the US, the Principal Deputy Solicitor General Neal Kumar Katyal, will serve as Acting Solicitor General in all fillings after the date of my nomination involving the United States Government," Kagan said in a her letter dated May 17 to the Supreme Court clerk.

above sea level. "Their dreams have now come true. Everyone sounded unbelievably happy," a new statement on Romero's blog said. The teenager who climbed Mount Kilimanjaro in Africa when he was 10 years old has said he was inspired by a painting in his school hallway of the seven continents' highest summits.

Nepal heading towards President’s rule, emergency Kathmandu: With an unprecedented constitutional crisis set to engulf Nepal and its embattled Prime Minister Madhav Kumar Nepal still refusing to quit, President's rule and a state of emergency looms ahead for the troubled nation from Friday midnight. On Tuesday, the prime minister, who has been refusing mounting pressure by the opposition Maoist party as well as the international community to step down and make way for a new, all-party government, held a long meeting with President Ram Baran Yadav, the constitutional head of state who could become the de facto executive from Friday midnight. Nepal told the president that he would not knuckle under pressure by

the Maoists, who say they will bail out the government only if the prime minister resigns. The Maoists, a former guerrilla party, fought a 10-year war to abolish monarchy in Nepal, once the only Hindu kingdom in the world, and to have an election that would allow the country to get its first constitution drafted by elected representatives. However, the constituent assembly that was

elected two years ago stands to be dissolved from Friday midnight since it failed to complete its task of drafting the new constitution. With the dissolution of the constituent assembly, which also serves as the interim parliament, the government also stands to become dissolved automatically. The prime minister can stave off the crisis by declaring a state of emer-

Taliban win £1,600 bounty for killing Nato soldier

Kabul: Taliban rebels are earning a bounty of up to 200,000 Pakistani rupees (£1,660) for each Nato soldier they kill, according to insurgent commanders. The money is said to come from protection rackets, taxes imposed on opium farmers, donors in the Gulf states who channel money through Dubai and from the senior Taliban leadership in Pakistan. So far this year 213 Nato soldiers have been killed in Afghanistan, including 41 British troops, bringing the potential rewards for the Taliban to £350,000. Taliban commanders said the bounty had more than doubled since the beginning of last year. The insurgents, who employ “hit and run” tactics against foot patrols and convoys, use paid informants, media reports

gency for six months. However, since only a civil war or natural calamity can validate the declaration of emergency, he would aggravate the crisis if he does so. The only way out is by amending the constitution and extending the deadline. But to do that, the government needs two-third majority in parliament, a feat that is impossible till the Maoists agree since they are the largest party, holding nearly 40 per cent seats in the 601-member house. The government last week tabled a proposal in parliament to amend the constitution and extend the deadline without consulting the Maoists. In retaliation, the opposition party tabled a veto proposal.

Six Indians indicted in Vienna shooting

and the local population to confirm the deaths of Nato soldiers. “We can’t lie to our commanders: they can check to see if there was a fight in that area. We get money if we capture equipment too. A gun can fetch $1,000 [£690],” said a commander from Khost province who controls about 60 fighters. The money usually reaches commanders via the traditional hawala transfer system found in many Muslim countries. They then share it among their men and sometimes celebrate with a feast. “It’s a lot of money for us. We don’t care if we kill foreigners: their blood allows us to feed our families and the more we kill, the more we weaken them. Of course we are going to celebrate this,” said a commander from Ghazni province.

The increase in rewards for Taliban fighters comes as the Afghan government prepares to present its strategy for ending the insurgency. This aims to lure less senior insurgents away from the fighting by offering them jobs in farming and engineering, vocational training in carpet weaving and carpentry, education and assimilation into the Afghan security forces, including the secret police. President Hamid Karzai hopes that a peace jirga (tribal council) in Kabul next weekend will rally support for this peace and reintegration programme (PRP). The PRP says little about the government’s approach to negotiations with senior Taliban, but suggests that exile in a third country is one option.

Vienna: Six Indians were indicted in connection with a shooting at a temple in Vienna in May last year. A Sikh preacher was killed and more than a dozen were wounded in the incident. The incident triggered riots in several cities in northern India. P ro s e c u t i o n spokesman Thomas Vecsey said one of the men currently in pretrial custody was indicted on the charges of murder and two counts of attempted murder. The other five are accused of involvement in the murder and attempted intentional aggravated assault. None of the suspects have been identified. Court spokesman Christian Gneist said a trial date was expected to be set in the next few weeks.

Hyderabad’s NetIndia, said a home-made device allowed them to change results on an EVM by sending it wireless messages from a mobile phone. “Almost every component of this system could be attacked to manipulate election results,” said

Halderman. “ T h i s proves, once again, that the paperless class of voting systems has intrinsic security problems. It is hard to envision systems like this being used responsibly in elections.” A video on the Internet by the researchers shows two kinds of attacks. One attack involves replacing a small part of the EVM with a look-alike component that can be silently

instructed to steal a percentage of votes in favour of a candidate. The instructions can be sent from a mobile phone. “Our look alike display board intercepts the vote totals that the machine is trying to display and replaces them with dishonest totals - basically whatever the bad guy wants to show up at the end of the election,” Halderman told reporters. Another attack uses a pocket-sized microprocessor to change the votes stored in the EVMs between the election and the public counting session, which in India can be weeks later.

US scientists hack into India’s EVMs, expose flaws

New York: India’s electronic voting machines (EVMs) with chips made in Japan and the US were designed to stop fraud and accelerate the voting process, but computer scientists say these paperless machines are vulnerable to fraud. Professor J Alex Halderman of the University of Michigan and his computer science students say they were able to hack into the EVMs to manipulate results. Halderman, who led the seven-month research project, with a security researcher from the Netherlands and

Asian Voice - Saturday 29th May 2010

No decision yet on army chief's extension Islamabad: Pakistan Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani last week termed as 'inappropriate and premature' the defence minister's assertion that army chief Gen. Ashfaq Parvez Kayani's tenure would not be extended, an indication that this could well be on the cards. Defence Minister Ahmed Mukhtar's statement earlier this week that Kayani, who is due to retire in

October, would not be given an extension was 'inappropriate and premature and he should not have given such a statement', Gilani said during an interaction with senior journalists here. A decision on this would be taken 'when the time for it comes and so far no decision has been made', Online news agency quoted the prime minister as saying.

For the UK family, Pakistan visit proved fatal In FocUs Troubled marriage of son leads to murder of father, mother, sister Gujrat: Three Britons - all members of the same family - have been shot dead in a marriage dispute in eastern Pakistan, local police said. Mohammad Yousaf, 51, his wife Pervez, 49, and daughter Tanya, 23, were killed at a cemetery in a village near Gujrat. The three, of Nelson, Lancashire, were shot by four gunmen - understood to be related to them after an argument broke out. Another woman was also killed. Two men have been arrested while two others are on the run. E y e w i t n e s s

Muhammed Anwar described how two groups of attackers had been laying in wait for the family inside and outside the cemetery. Mr Anwar, a relative of those killed, said the family had just arrived and started praying at a grave when they were attacked and shot at. He said the family had been warned to stay away from the village, because of the tension surrounding marital difficulties between Mr Yousaf's son and a girl from the village, but nobody expected such a reaction. BBC Islamabad corre-

spondent Aleem Maqbool said two of the suspects were believed to be nephews of the murdered couple - who were in Pakistan to attend a wedding. Police in Pakistan said the murders were a result of a long-running dispute and, according to our correspondent, are not looking for anybody outside of the family. Tariq Abbas Qureshi, Gujrat police chief, said the killings were premeditated and carried out by heavily armed attackers. The police chief said one of the suspected attackers was in custody

and another was killed at the scene due to what appeared to be friendly fire. Two others are currently on the run. Family member Eileen Ansar: "They were lovely parents, they doted on their children" He said it was hoped further arrests would be imminent. Family friend Mohammed Iqbal, who sits on Pendle Borough Council and Lancashire County Council, said: "They went for a wedding and a holiday and they are now having to bury members of their family."

Musharraf said, adding: 'So you have to - your party has to win in the election. Then only do you decide to run.' 'Basically, you are heading the party, you are running for the prime ministership,' he said. 'Because in Pakistan, the chief executive is the prime minister, not the president.' Musharraf resigned as president under pressure in 2008 and left the country about a year ago. Since then, he has been on a lecture tour of the US, Britain and Europe. He said he was unsure about the exact timing of his return.

'It is related to the elections in Pakistan,' he said, adding: 'I am very sure of one thing, that whether it's end-term elections or midterm elections, I will be there before those elections.' Mid-term elections could come next year, Musharraf said. Mush challenged to appear in SC Meanwhile, both prime minister Yousuf Raza Gilani and Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz (PML-N) chief Nawaz Sharif have challenged the former general to appear before the Supreme Court and face trial in numerous cases pending against him.

Musharraf wants to be prime minister

Washington: Former Pakistan president Pervez Musharraf plans to return home to re-enter politics and has indicated that he wants to be the prime minister. In an interview last week, he also discounted the findings of a UN probe that laxity on his government's part had resulted in the December 2007 assassination of former prime minister Benazir Bhutto in a gun and bomb attack in the garrison town of Rawalpindi. Musharraf initially declined to say whether he was eying a particular office, telling, 'The question... of whether I am

Pervez Musharraf

running for president or prime minister will be seen later.' But his subsequent remarks he clearly implied that he wants to be the prime minister. 'We run a parliamentary system there'

Times Square plot: US officials rush to Pakistan New Delhi: In a clear indication of the growing pressure on Pakistan over the Times Square plot, the US has sent two top security officials to Pakistan to impress the importance of showing results in the ongoing investigations and stepping up the military offensive against the Taliban and Al Qaeda. National Security Adviser James L Jones and CIA chief Leon E Panetta rushed to Islamabad to convey a strong message to the Pakistani leadership. The New York Times quoted a senior Obama administration official as saying that General Jones “would not threaten the Pakistanis, but would convey the risks

to the country’s relationship with the United States if a deadly terrorist attack originated there”. The Times Square plot with its Pakistani links has clearly shaken Washington which has sought to cultivate Pakistan as a frontline ally in the war against the Taliban and Al Qaeda. The trip of the two senior officials comes after US secretary of state Hillary Clinton had warned Pakistan of “serious consequences” if a terrorist attack originated there. According to an NYT report, Gen Jones would push Pakistan to take measures against the Taliban and other terror groups. While The

Washington Post said the two officials intend to reiterate the importance of stepping up the military offensive against groups linked with Al Qaeda in the Federally Administered Tribal Areas. The Post report further said the bombing attempt had generated questions from the US Congress on Pakistan’s effort to confront terror groups even though the US administration has expressed its support for Pakistan’s cooperation. The two security officials are scheduled to meet Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari, Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani, Army Chief Gen

Ashfaq Kayani and ISI chief Lt Gen Ahmed Shuja Pasha during their visit. According to the NYT, the US has been pushing Pakistan to step up its offensive in North Waziristan - the stronghold of the Pakistan Taliban. Shahzad has admitted to have undergone training in a jehadi camp in North Waziristan. Another three Pakistani nationals have also been arrested in the US on charges of providing finances to Shahzad. Pakistan, which has been under pressure, has also made several arrests, including an army major, in Karachi and other parts of the country.

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Islamabad: The Pakistani authorities have blocked access to Facebook, Youtube and social networking website Twitter. The authorities have cited “sacrilegious contents” as the reasons for the crackdown. When users tried to log into site, there browsers displayed a message that said "this site is restricted." The crackdown began after the Lahore High Court issued an order for blocking Facebook over a page hosting a contest for blasphemous caricatures of Prophet Mohammad. Over 450 URLs have been blocked so far by the authorities.

17 killed in Karachi factional clashes Karachi: At least 17 people have been killed when ethnicbased political factions clashed in the Pakistani commercial hub of Karachi last week. The city was earlier plagued by political clashed in the 1990s.The city of about 18 million people is Pakistan's main industrial base and home to its main port, stock exchange and central bank. It is also the main gateway for Western military supplies bound for neighbouring land-locked Afghanistan. Karachi has not been spared Islamist militant violence with several big bomb attacks over the past few years but for many residents, a bigger worry is the return of the factional violence that racked the city for much of the 1990s. The cause of the latest round of violence was not clear but it involved activists of the Muttahida Qaumi Movement (MQM), the dominant party in the city, and the rival, ethnic Pashtun-based Awami National Party (ANP). "Over the past 24 hours, at least 17 people have been killed in targeted attacks as well as in exchanges of fire between rival groups," Karachi police chief Waseem Ahmed said.

Supreme Court summons Law Minister Islamabad: Pakistan's Supreme Court summoned Law Minister Babar Awan to explain why the government had not fully implemented its verdict annulling a graft amnesty that benefited President Asif Ali Zardari and thousands of others. A five-judge bench summoned Awan to appear before it after Law Secretary Aqil Mirza, who recently resigned, sent a letter to the court saying he could not appear before it as he was very unwell. The apex court had summoned the Law Secretary and Attorney General Anwar-ul-Haq to appear before it to explain why the government had not contacted authorities in Switzerland to reopen graft cases against Zardari. Attorney General Haq informed the bench about the Law Secretary's letter. The bench observed that no one was taking responsibility for the failure to implement its verdict on the National Reconciliation Ordinance, a graft amnesty issued by former military ruler Pervez Musharrraf in 2007 that benefited over 8,000 people, including Zardari and several close aides. The bench also said that the court's ruling was being passed from door to door.

Hafiz Saeed’s security tightened Lahore: Pakistani authorities have directed police to step up security of Jamaat-ud-Dawah chief Hafiz Mohammad Saeed, blamed by India for masterminding the Mumbai attacks, followings reports that a group of Taliban militants might target him. The interior department of Punjab province has issued a circular to police that there is a “potential” threat to the life of Saeed and his security should be enhanced. Lahore’s acting police chief SSP Shafiq Ahmed told PTI that there is a security threat to Saeed and police had received instructions from the provincial government to beef up his security. “Following the instruction, we have deployed more policemen at his residence in Johar Town and the JuD mosque in Chauburji. We have also improved his escort during his movements,” Ahmed said.

60 Taliban militants killed Peshawar: Pakistani forces in pursuit of militants who fled a clampdown in Waziristan killed 60 rebels in fierce clashes in the volatile Orakzai tribal region of northwest Pakistan last week. The clashes took place in the areas of Dabori and Saam in the tribal belt in which two soldiers were killed and about 20 security personnel injured, security officials said. The Pakistani forces are conducting a major campaign to flush out Taliban fighters from the area as they suspect that large number of rebels have taken shelter in the region to escape the army crackdown in Waziristan. The security officials claimed about 40 militants were also injured in the fighting, which marked the latest in a series of clashes in Orakzai Agency.

Asian Voice - Saturday 29th May 2010

This week in CB Live, CB will talk about the new government in Britain as well as about the opening of two new Hindu temples at Crawley and Ealing Road with prominent guests

Sneh Joshi - 020 8518 5500 You have everything to gain by following creative inclinations. If you have new ideas, now is the time to put them into practice. Whatever your present interests you are likely to find that new doors open and the way ahead offers increased scope for expressing your real self. A great time to meet and interact with people.

ARIES Mar 21 - Apr 20

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Which city hosted the Europe premiere for Kites?

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a) London b) Paris c) Barcelona Answer to win two music CDs and two posters of ‘Kites’ Please send in your answers with full contact details by email clearly marking 'Kites Contest' in the subject line to aveditorial@abplgroup.com or by post to Asian Voice, Asian Business Publications LTD Karma Yoga House 12 Hoxton Market (Off Coronet Street) London N1 6HW. Deadline Monday May 31

Asian Film fest in London

The Asian Film season opens this summer at Asian Music Centre. It features some of the most prominent movies from Indian cinemafrom Satyajit Ray to Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra. Some of the screening go a step further into discussions onto the film scores. The timetable is as follows: Sunday 30th May, 3.00pm, Pather Panchali (dir Satyajit Ray) Bismillah of Benaras (documentary movie by Nasreen Kabir). Saturday 5th June, 3.00pm, Mughale-Azam (dir K. Asif) Followed by a presentation on the use of traditional music in films, exploring the inematic treatment and space of qawali, thumri, kirtan, bhajan, sufi music, hayal in films such as Amar

Akbar Anthony, Umrao Jaan, Pyaasa, Lagaan. Sunday 13th June, 3.00pm Rang de Basanti (dir R. Omprakash Mehra) Followed by a presentation on modern and postmodern film scores by contemporary composers with a special focus on R.D. Burman, Shankar-EhsaanLoy and A.R. Rahman (Sholay, Don, Yaadon ki Baaraat, Dil Chahta Hai, Luck by Chance, Roja, Guru, Bombay). Venue: Asian Music Centre, 1-2 Bradford Rd, off Warple Way, Acton, London, W3 7SP For more information, please contact: Sara Bigatti at sara@amc.org.uk or phone: 020 8742 9911 or Pedro Carvalho at fnik@btconnect.com and turn to page 21

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Coming Events l Women’s Interfaith Evening- a workshop on A Faith Perspective on Domestic Violence on May 26, 2010, 6.30pm – 8.30pm at The Gloucester Room, Ilford Central Library, Clements Road, Ilford. Call 020 8708 2478 l Pran Pratistha Samaroah at Shri Sanatan Hindu Mandir, Alperton, Wembley HA0 4TA will be telecast live on MA TV ON Saturday, May 29 from 3.30pm to 6.30pm. l The round-the-clock kirtans “devotional chanting” event hosted by Hare Krishna Movement. In its 11th year, this 24-hour spiritually invigorating event will take place at Shri Balaji Temple, Dudley Road East (B69 3DU). For accommodation reservation, or to find out more, contact Mohan Nandi on 07966 238 376 or visit www.iskconbirmingham.org l Hashima Massell talks about her exhibition Earth I Atmosphere. The ceramicist born in Pakistan and currently working in Blackburn, she has created works from clays found in different parts of the world. She speaks on Tuesday, May 11that 11am Bilston Craft gallery, Pleasant Bilston, V14 7LU : 01902 552 507. l The Merchants of Bollywood, Tuesday 18th May- Saturday 5th June Tue-Sunday at 7:30pm, Sat and Sun Mats at 2:30pm, Peacock Theatre, Holborn l The Indian Portrait exhibition exploring Indian artists work over three centuries in depicting human form and changing role of portraiture today. Till June 20. National Portrait Gallery St Martin's Place London WC2H 0HE l Britain's Got Bhangra musical showing the rise of Bhangra. May 24th- June 4th. Warwick Arts Centre, Gibbet Hill Rd, Coventry, West Midlands CV4 7AL - 024 7652 4524

TAURUS Apr 21 - May 21 There is a definite expansive trend where money is concerned, so do not be surprised if this turns out be a time of fortunate opportunities and lucky breaks. Keep your assertive inclination under control as conflict and disagreement could be sparked off by your short-sightedness. Think carefully about the implications of your actions. GEMINI May 22 - June 22 Decision making will prove to be a bit of a bind because of your wavering mind - seek professional advice and then steam ahead. Be careful with your expenditure as you have a tendency to be extravagant. Relationships need to be scrutinised carefully. Try to stand back and get a more objective view of the pattern of your life.

CANCER Jun 22 - Jul 22 With Venus in your sign, this is a good time for your social as well as your love life. If you’re single you are likely to meet the person of your dreams. You could also benefit at work through a promotion. Organise your time so that it is not taken up entirely by the demands of other people. LEO Jul 23 - Aug 23 The fiery planet Mars is the moving force in regard to amorous experience, giving more than just a hint that links between lovers will be rather intense and passionate. Legal or official matters are likely to occupy your time. Jupiter, the planet of luck and expansion has moved into your solar 8th house. VIRGO Aug 24 - Sep 23 This is a good time to get away from usual routines and seek a retreat for a few days. All the better if you are interested in such things as meditation, yoga and therapies that help you to get in closer touch with your inner self. This will have a beneficial effect on your physical and psychological well-being. LIBRA Sep 24 - Oct 23 You will be pleased to see that your social life livens up during this week. Its influence will help you to maintain a high energy level and achieve positive results in anything that requires drive and initiative. If you are involved in a fairly competitive field of activity, you will come out on top. SCORPIO Oct 24- Nov 22 Your thinking is inspired, so listen to your thoughts. This may be a time of expansion and improved opportunity and it would be unwise to let yourself become complacent. A good time for restructuring and rethinking your aims and interests. Affairs of the heart are likely to flourish. SAGITTARIUS Nov 23 - Dec 21 Don't be afraid to act forcefully if your instinct tells you it's time for change. This week the focus is your house of family and home. Besides spending more time tending to domestic affairs, the focus can be on cultivating and nourishing your inner foundations, so to speak.

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CAPRICORN Dec 22 - Jan 20

Regardless of the limits, you have the capacity to turn the course of your life in a more fulfilling direction. Saturn in Virgo, the sign of efficiency, will help you organize your priorities and systematically put them into practice. People entering your life now will encourage you to move beyond your established boundaries of safety.

AQUARIUS Jan 21 - Feb 19 Extra energy and drive will serve you well in getting things accomplished. There appears to be a more successful trend coming into effect. Amorous affairs continue to be highlighted - whether or not this leads to a lasting relationship depends much on your own personal maturity and circumstances. The outlook remains optimistic as developments bring you a sense of real achievement. Relationships look great as Venus and Mars help to enhance your personal magnetism and put you in a gregarious mood. Venus, the planet of love and romance throws a pleasing light on love and creativity, make the most of this phase.

PISCES Feb 20 - Mar 20

Time

Asian Voice - Saturday 29th May 2010 7 8 9 10 11

C R O S S W O R D - 89 1

12 13 17 18 21 22 24

30 34

40 42

30 31 32 33 34 35

resident 30 16A, 38A and 55A, e.g. 33 Maestro Dorati 36 Implement for hewing 37 Aristocrat 38 “Part-time Lover” man 41 Tears into pleces 42 Bad-mouth 43 Genetic letters 46 For no profit 49 Ooze 50 Lifter’s shout 54 Quilt with a

Across 1 Image digitizers 9 Attacked 14 Baby doll 15 Identical 16 “A Natural Women”lady 18 Come next 19 Western tip of England 20 Desist 21 Promotional links 23 Leb. neighbor 24 Harrison in “Star Wars” 25 Salt Lake City

How many words of four or more letters can you make from the letters shown in today’s puzzle? In making a word, each letter may be used once only. Each word must contain the central letter. There O should be at least one I seven-letter word. N Plurals, foreign words N and proper names are I O not allowed. British English Dictionary is P used as reference.

Solution of Spellathon - 88 busy, SUBSIDY, sudsy

A S A M I

L A L A S

A N A T

M I L O

O V E R W H E L M S

G O E S

A U R A

E T A S

T S T E S O E W A T A S H A T T E R A S B A R U N A Y N T A D A A N D E L S O O F L S E I S Y S

Sudoku-89 9

U R I A H

D E T R I M R E I N O T E R A T O

A N A

T A R O P T T S E R R A

I S L E S H A K M O N E W E D G S I T R E R O I L O S H S T I E P O L E R U I N A N S N I R E T T R E E

T O Y S D Y E R

1066 – The Battle of Hastings

The year 1066 is the best known date in English history when the most famous single event took place, the event so significant it completely changed the course of English history – the Battle of Hastings. On the 14th of October 1066, the French army (Normans) led by William, the Duke of Normandy, defeated the Anglo-Saxon army of King Harold II of England in the town (now called Battle) near Hastings. Harold was killed, and William the Conqueror (as is known since then) assumed the control of the whole country as King William I. Since then, England has never been the same again. William was a claimant to the English throne, which he insisted had been promised to him previously by his childless cousin, King Edward the Confessor (1004-1066) in gratitude for his support while in exile in Normandy, France. However, Edward changed his mind on his deathbed and nominated his brother-in-law Harold Godwinson, the Earl of Wessex, as his successor, who duly became King Harold I after Edward’s death. This was unacceptable to William, who decided to invade England to claim what he believed his rightful inheritance.

N E P A L

Find the familiar phrase, saying or name in this arrangement of letters.

8 1

William’s army (infantry and cavalry), landed on the English coast near Hastings on September 28, 1066. News invasion of Norman reached Harold who had

1 5

7 3

A stich in time.

to hurry back from the north, soon after his victory over his rebellious brother in the Battle of Stamford Bridge, in Yorkshire. On 14th October, Harold’s army, exhausted by a previous battle, mainly infantry armed with spears, swords, and battleaxes, confronted the French on a ridge six miles north-west of Hastings. Bitter fighting took place between the two armies. The English defended the ridge throughout the day, but in the afternoon the battle

swayed in William’s favour. His troops pretended to retreat. At this stage, some of Harold’s troops broke ranks against Harold’s orders, and chased the ‘retreating’ Normans downhill only to find themselves trapped and massacred by the French soldiers with their battleaxes. Finally the English army was overwhelmed by Norman archers, cavalry, and by their superior discipline. The battle was hard-fought but was won by the mobility and better strategy of Normans who used their archers to devastating effect. Harold was killed presumably by an arrow in the eye, along with his two brothers. His country was lost forever. There are various accounts of how many men took part in the battle, but it is believed that there were at least seven thousand on each side

if E times ILE equals BOOK, what does TO times IN equal? A. BREATH;B. TEASER; C. RUTABAGA; D. POISON; E. COPPER (Hint: No maths is needed.)

Solution of 88 :

with heavy casualties on both sides. William’s victory at Hastings was the last successful invasion of Britain and paved way for Norman subjugation of all England. On Christmas Day of 1066, he was crowned as King William I of England in London’s Westminster Abbey. In 1070, William built an abbey (Battle Abbey) on the site of the battle to commemorate his great victory. The abbey church’s high altar is the spot where Harold died and is marked by a memorial stone. The Norman Conquest brought great changes to England. William ruthlessly dealt with revolts against his rule. To consolidate his possessions, he built stone castles across the country including the Tower of London. He removed the English (Anglo-Saxon) landowners and distributed their estates among his fellowNormans. Nearly all landowners were Normans and so were the clergy. As a first step towards centralisation, he ordered a detailed inventory (a record of people and their assets) of his new kingdom which is known as the Domesday Book. It’s a unique document (in two volumes) now preserved in the National Archives, Kew. Furthermore, William made French the official language of England, united the country and brought it closer to the European affairs. He died in France in 1087 at the age of 60 after a fall from his horse, but the dynasty continued.

MINDBENDER 89

Solution of sudoku-88 HOW TO PLAY Each row, column and square 3x3 box is a sub-grid of 9 cells. Fill in the grid so that each subgrid contains the digits 1 to 9. Every puzzle has one solution.

Solution of - 88 :

By Dr Anil Mehta

WHATZIT? - 89

53 54 56

Solution of Crossword-88

Today’s Ratings: 02-average |03-good | 04-outstanding

39 40 43 44 45 47 48 49 50 51 52

washable cover 55 “Superfly” guy 58 Home of the Huskeis 59 Targeted 60 1979 Alda senatorial role 61 Shrill Down 1 Meager 2 Screen arrow 3 Relished 4 Evening, in ads 5 Old testament bk. 6 Air quality org.

SPELLATHON - 89

54 56

28 29

Long gun Caravan stpover Grainy rocks BPOE member Swimming pool edger Related Be inclined Per ___ (yearly) Capital of Spain? Sigma follower Spouse’s sibling 1942 Bing Crosby film Fabric or liquid finisher Shelf within a fireplace Hole maker 180 degrees from SSW Squirrel away Tic-tac-toe loser Wards (off) Donkey’s cousin Max degree Part of Canada’s Y.T. These, in Cadiz Morse Code unit Coty competitor Can skip Likely Freebies Dizzying designs Blue shoe leather How much above? Ethel’s tenant Scientologist Hubbard Sicilian volcano Conked out Beatles song, “___Blues” Murhpy Brown’s TV show.

pass

1. Notes 2. Tapes 3. Safer 4. Horse

KAKURO - 89

Solution of KAKURO - 88 20 12

The numbers in the pink squares refer

Example to the sums of the digits

that you must fill into the empty spaces directly below or to the right of the pink square containing the number. For instance, in the given example, the 2 boxes below 12 must contain 2 digits that add upto 12, whereas for 20, the 3 boxes places horizontally next to it must add upto 20. No zeroes are used here, only the digits one through nine. Note: A digit cannot appear more than once in any particular digit combination. For instance in the example, we cannot have the combination of 8+4+8 for 20.

HEALTH WATCH

Asian Voice - Saturday 29th May 2010

Allergy can prevent cancer, say studies cent less likely to get ovarian cancer than others, and children with allergies to airborne substances were 40 percent less likely to develop leukaemia than other youngsters. The research said evidence was growing that putting up with allergies provide a medical advantage and found that children with airborne allergies also had reduced rates of throat, skin, lung and intestinal cancer. “More work is still needed, but the numbers show that allergy is a statistically significant protective factor,” said Zuber Mulla, an epidemiologist at Texas Tech University, who led the ovarian cancer study. Canadian studies

People suffering from allergy are far less likely to contract cancer than others, according to two studies. Scientists believe that adverse reactions stimulate the immune system, helping to ward off other potentially fatal conditions, according to reports. “Allergies are a general activation of our immune systems. It’s hard to prove, and I’ve heard some scepticism, but it’s a concept in this field and the studies add to that,” said Ronald Crystal, chief of pulmonary and critical-care medicine at Weill Cornell Medical Centre in New York. The study found that asthmatics were 30 per-

Staying away from sun causes depression

showed that having an allergy or hay fever lowered the chances of getting pancreatic cancer by up to 58 percent.

The research into leukaemia and cancer was carried out at Minnesota University, America.

Food insecurity ups obesity risk during pregnancy A person's inability to obtain adequate amounts of food due to resource constraints can lead to greater weight gain and increased complications during pregnancy, says a recent study. "Prior studies have shown that women living in food insecure households are more likely to experience health complications," said study coauthor Craig Gundersen, who is a professor of agricultural and consumer economics at the University of Illinois, US.

According to the US Department of Agriculture Economic Research Service, 14.6 per cent of households were food insecure at some time during 2008, up from 11.1 per cent in 2007. This is the highest recorded prevalence rate of food insecurity since 1995, when the first national food security survey was conducted. For the study, a total of 810 low-and middleincome pregnant women were surveyed during January 2001 to June 2005. Women were sur-

veyed at the beginning of their pregnancy and a follow-up survey was administered after the birth of their child. "We looked at the effect of food insecurity on a variety of health factors related to pregnancy. We found that food insecurity is associated with a higher body mass index (height to weight ratio), greater weight gain during pregnancy, and a higher risk for the development of gestational diabetes," said Gundersen, whose results were published in the

which seemed to make hair follicles more sensitive to the body’s oestrogen levels, The Age reported. The gene variant’s link with hair loss was particularly strong in women over 40. Those who did not suffer baldness had a different variant of the same gene, which was less affected by oestrogen levels. Rod Sinclair, one of the researchers, said the findings represented a paradigm shift in female pattern hair loss treatment. Earlier, it was believed that high levels of oestrogen protected against baldness and promoted hair growth. “Women often notice that their hair thickens up during pregnancy and they often experience hair loss

000 +'-&,)/*0%" (%.

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after the delivery of the baby when they are breastfeeding, which is a lowoestrogen state, the same as the menopause stage. In situations where women are taking either the contraceptive pill or hormone replacement therapy and they experience hair loss it may be advantageous to select low-oestrogen preparations to minimise the impact on hair,” Sinclair said. The findings will be

Journal of the American Dietetic Association. These health issues are a concern as they can lead to assorted negative medical conditions," Gundersen said.

presented at the World Congress for Hair Research in Cairns next month, where experts from around the world will discuss the latest research on hair genetics and stem cell and developmental biology.

Moderate drinkers are healthier Moderate drinkers are found to have better health than teetotallers, a new study reveals. Telegraph.co.uk reported that the findings reveal that moderate drinkers have lower rates of heart disease, obesity and depression than people who abstain from alcohol entirely. Boris Hansel of the Pitié-Salpêtrière Hospital in Paris, who led the research, said: "Moderate alcohol intake is a powerful marker of a higher social level, superior general health status and lower cardiovascular

Hiding away from sun rays to protect oneself from skin diseases can harm one's health in many other ways, says an expert. A study published in the British Medical Journal (BMJ) has revealed that applying sun screen can contribute to Vitamin D deficiency. Though it is vital to protect our skin from harmful radiations, experts fear some people are taking it too far, according to reports. According to the study led by professors Simon Pearce and Time Cheetham, people are getting far too little sun exposure, which the body needs to produce Vitamin D. Staying out of the sun altogether can cause bone problems, and in extreme cases

rickets and osteoporosis, depression and even weight gain. However, the study does not suggest that one should not apply sun screens and let skin burn but to keep in mind that small doses of unprotected sun exposure are vital. According to experts, we need about 20 minutes of sunlight a day to help bodies produce enough vitamin D, known as the ‘sunshine vitamin’.

Ginger eases aches and pains

Treatment for baldness: Australian scientists discover key gene Australian scientists claim to have discovered a gene responsible for baldness in women which may lead to an effective treatment for hair loss. Researchers at the University of Melbourne and St Vincent’s Hospital studied the DNA of almost 500 women who had lost at least 50 percent of hair on their scalp. Aged between 18 and 65, all the women who participated in the study, suffered severe hair loss, a condition that will affect up to 55 percent of Australian women, including up to one in 10 teenagers. Compared with a group who were not going bald, the affected women were found to have a variant of the oestrogen receptor beta gene or ESR2,

HEALTH WATCH IN BRIEF

risk." As part of the study the researchers analysed the medical records of 150,000 people from Paris area who underwent medical examinations between 1999 and 2005. The researches divided the sample into four groups - people who did not drink; light drinkers; moderate drinkers; and heavy drinkers. An analysis of the records showed that light and moderate drinkers scored better than both teetotallers and heavy drinkers on a range of health indicators.

Eating ginger can help ease muscle pain caused by heavy exercise, says a latest research. Ginger root has been used as a household remedy since centuries for a variety of ailments, such as cough and colds and upset stomach, but now the study has revealed that ginger is particularly good for staving off muscle pain, according to reports. Professor Patrick O'Connor, of the University of Georgia , who led the research believes this remedy can be better than consuming painkiller drugs. "Anything that can truly relieve this type of

pain will be greatly welcomed by the many people who are experiencing it," he said. The study showed daily ginger intake reduced the exerciseinduced pain by 25 per cent. It is known to contain chemicals that work in a similar way to nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs, such as ibuprofen and aspirin.

Weight plays key role in kidney transplants A new study led by French researchers has revealed that matching up the weight of donors and recipients boosts success in kidney transplants. During the study, researchers followed over 1,000 transplant patients and found that those receiving a small kidney in comparison to their weight were more at risk of complications like high blood pressure, kidney scarring, and a 55 per cent increased risk of transplant failure two years after the operation. In the Journal of the American Society of Nephrology, the researchers said the findings would give surgeons a new chance to improve long-term survival, reports bbc.co.uk. Professor Jean Paul Soulillou, from the

French National Institute of Health and Medical Research, led the study and said from a clinical point of view the impact of the finding was similar to when researchers identified markers to enable tissue type to be matched to reduce the risk of rejection. "This information is potentially useful for thousands of transplants and provides a new opportunity to improve long-term graft survival," he added.

Sport world

Asian Voice - Saturday 29th May 2010

Inter Milan bag the European Champions League crown Inter Milan became the first Italian club to claim a trio of titles – the domestic league, the cup and the Champions League on Saturday, 23 May. Argentine striker Diego Milito netted twice – once in each half to bring an end to his team’s drought of a title for 45 years in the Champions League, as the Italian club beat their German rivals Bayern Munich 2 – 0. Inter Milan claimed three titles and in the process denied rivals Bayern Munich the same glory, but felt a bit depleted in absence of Franck ribery. The lone scorer, Milito Coach Jose Mourinho may have dominated the

Inter Milan's Argentinian defender and captain Javier Aldemar Zanetti (L) and Inter Milan's Argentinian forward Alberto Milito (R) show the Champions League Trophy to their supporters at San Siro stadium in Milan after their team's victory against Bayern Munich in the UEFA Champions league final football match on May 23, 2010.

build-up to this year’s final — not least because of what looks like his impending move to Real

Madrid — but Milito stole the show on the pitch with two clinical finishes. Reacting to the tri-

umph, he said, “I cannot explain how I feel.” Milito scored in all three Champions League knockout rounds as well as netting the winner in the Italian Cup final. It’s a joy I have never experienced before. It is great for the club. It a unique sensation. This is football. I’m very happy. I always fought. I always tried to give my maximum.” Inter coach Mourinho joins Ernst Happel (Feyenoord and SV Hamburg) and Ottmar Hitzfeld (Borussia Dortmund and Munich) as the only coaches to have won the European Cup/Champions League with two different clubs.

B’desh team in England, to play 2 test matches Mortaza dropped; Robiul Islam is the new cap in the 15 man squad While Mashrafe Mortaza did not find favour with the selectors for Bangladesh Tour of England, Robiul Islam is the new face of pace bowling in the team. Mohammad Asfraful is back for the Test matches.

Morgan’s test debut likely this week Eoin Morgan is likely to make his test debut this week against Bangladesh. England selectors have decided to give rest to two of their key players – Paul Collingwood and Stuart Broad in the two test match series. Broad is one of the key players who features in all the three forms of the game. Andrew Strauss is back to lead the side for the first time since the tour of South Africa in January. Steven Finn of Middlesex also comes in to the side and could play as a third seamer. England team: Andrew Strauss (capt), James Anderson, Ian Bell, Tim Bresnan, Alastair Cook, Steven Finn, Eoin Morgan, Kevin Pietersen, Matt Prior (w/k), Ajmal Shahzad, Graeme Swann, Jonathan Trott.

The Bangladesh team, led by Shakib Al Hasan is already in England and has played a few warm up matches, including a limited overs game. They will be playing two test matches, the first at the Lord’s in

London (May 27 to 31) and the second one at Old Trafford in Manchester (June 4 to 8). Team: Shakib Al Hasan (capt), Tamim Iqbal, Imrul Kayes, Mohammad Ashraful,

Junaid Siddique, Jahurul Islam, Mahmudullah, Mushfiqur Rahim (vicecapt/wk), Naeem Islam, Abdur Razzak, Shahadat Hossain, Rubel Hossain, Shafiul Islam, Mahbubul Alam and Robiul Islam.

Michael Clarke seems to have escaped the axe hanging on his captaincy of the country’s T20 squad, atleast for the next encounter against Pakistan, to be played in England. Ricky Ponting will lead the side in the 50 overs ODIs. Clarke though earned praise for his leadership of Australian Team in the recently concluded ICC T20 World Cup in West Indies. Under his stewardship, the team became runners up, losing just in the finals to England. But he faced a lot of criticism for his performance as a batsman in the shortest form of the game. Now, he will lead Australia in the two T20 games that they are to play against Pakistan, in England in July. The two T20 interna-

tionals are to be played in Birmingham on July 5 and 6. CA has also retained almost the same team that toured West Indies, except one change. Tim Paine has been left out, as a second wicketkeeper was not felt necessary for the two games. Adam Voges is replaced by Shaun Marsh for the five ODIs against England. He has now recovered from his back injury that he suffered in February during the tour of New Zealand. Clarke was praised for his attacking captaincy at the World Twenty20 in the Caribbean, where he guided Australia to the final, but he needs to lift his scoring rate to justify his position as a batsman. He has been given virtually the same squad, with the

only change being the omission of Tim Paine due to the reduced need for a backup wicketkeeper. The test team for the two test matches against Pakistan will be announced later. T20 team: Michael Clarke (captain), Shane Watson, David Warner, Cameron White, David Hussey, Michael Hussey, Brad Haddin, Daniel Christian, Steven Smith, Mitchell Johnson, Nathan Hauritz, Ryan Harris, Dirk Nannes, Shaun Tait. ODI team: Ricky Ponting (captain), Shane Watson, Shaun Marsh, Michael Clarke, Michael Hussey, Cameron White, Brad Haddin, Steven Smith, James Hopes, Mitchell Johnson, Nathan Hauritz, Ryan Harris, Clint McKay, Doug Bollinger.

OZ continue with Clarke for T20 captaincy

South Africa unbeaten in 4 matches West Indies lose two T20, trailing 0-2 in the 5 ODI series

The South Africans set up the tempo of winning right from the first T20 match and went on to win all the games they played – another T20 as well as the two ODIs played till Monday, May 24. All the matches were played at the same venue, Sir Vivian Richards stadium in North Sound, Antigua. In the last game, a high scorer, two good innings from Bravo and Sammy were just not good enough, as in the final stages, the South African

bowlers clawed back into the match to leave the home team 17 runs behind the mamooth 300 runs scored by them. Sammy played a whirlwind knock of 58 unbeaten. Amla, de Villiers slam tons in the first ODI SA began from where they had left it in the T20s. Two centuries from Hashim Amla and AB de Villiers (both scored an identical 102) helped the visitors post a strong 280 runs, a target that was not easy for the home team.

West Indies lose T20 series by a whisker In the second T20 encounter, the West Indies were unlucky just to miss the victory after having come so close to leveling the series. SA script an easy win A solid 53 from 45 balls by the veteran Jacques Kallis helped South Africa reach 136 for 7 in their 120 ball essay. Later, Ryan McLaren scalped five wickets, making West Indies task of chasing difficult.

{Brief scores: 2nd ODI - SA 300 for 5 (Amla 92, Kallis 85, Pollard 239) beat WI 283 (Bravo 74, Sammy 58*, Morkel 358) by 17 runs. 1st ODI SA 280 for 7 (Amla 102, de Villiers 102, Bravo 340) beat WI 215 (Gayle 45, McLaren 2-37). 2nd T20 - SA 120 for 7 (Miller 33, Taylor 3-14) beat WI 119 for 7 (Bravo 40, Botha 3-22) by 1 run. 1st T20 - SA 136 for 7 (Kallis 53, Pollard 2-22) beat WI 123 (Pollard 27, McLaren 5-19) by 13 runs}.

More trouble for Modi, now Chris Cairns sues him Suspended IPL boss Lalit Modi has more trouble ahead. Now, former New Zealand all rounder Chris Cairns has initiated legal action against him for alleging on his twitter page that Cairns was removed from the players’ list available for auction in January this year for his past record about match fixing. Cairns had threatened action against Lalit Modi Modi, but has been able to get the ball rolling just recently.

Titus Mbishei of Kenya wins Bangalore Marathon Ending the Ethiopian stran g leh old over long distance running, Young Titus Mbishei of K e n y a announced his arrival on the world stage, winning the Sunfeast World 10K Bangalore Titus Mbishei 2010 on Sunday, May 23 with an impressive time of 27:54 seconds. Aggressive running by the 19 year old Mbishei paid off as he bagged the top prize of $21,000. Uganda’s Moses Kipsiro (28:08), silver medallist in this year’s World Cross Country Championships and Kenyan Feyisa Lelisa (28:23), winner of 2009 Dublin marathon, settled for the second and third places respectively. Defending champion Deriba Merga of Ethiopia, who arrived only on Saturday night after being stranded in Dubai airport for 11 hours, came fourth in 28:32s. However, Ethiopian women made amends with a strong performance, claiming seven of the top 10 prizes including a 1-2. Yimer Wude came out with a superb kick just before entering the track, ending the challenge of last year’s winner Aselefech Mergia with a new event record time of 31:58s. Mergia clocked 32:00 while 2008 joint winner Grace Momanyi of Kenya finished third in 32:05. Turkey’s Elvan Abeylegesse, who starred in the dead heat with Grace, managed a disappointing 11th place in 33:28.

Anil Ambani in fray for Team India sponsorship Hero Honda also in race to grab the cricket popularity pie

Anil Ambani led ADAG and Hero Honda are two key contenders for the sponsorship of Team India in cricket, sources in the BCCI have indicated. It may be noted that elder brother Mukesh Ambani is already into the cricket business as the owner of Mumbai Indians team in the IPL. Sahara India’s sponsorship deal is scheduled to end soon after an extention of six months. Now that they have also bagged the Pune IPL team recently, Subroto Roy had indicated in March that the group will have a relook for the team sponsorship deal. The sponsorship deal includes BCCI’s men’s, women’s, India ‘A’ and under 19 teams. The Anil Dhirubhai Ambani Group (ADAG) is engaged in mainly service sector, their current businesses of telecom and financial services being the cornerstones of the group. ADAG is also in process of setting up power plants. Hero Honda, the other contender is the leading two wheeler brand.

Asian Voice - Saturday 29th May 2010

Match fixing charge rocks Pakistan cricket

Kiwis, Lankans share T20 honours in Florida

Kamran Akmal in the eye of the storm; CA, Australian players say no fixing Pakistan cricket is again caught in a huge controversy about match fixing, as last week an Australian newspaper reported that PCB has been provided with evidence about involvement of their players in fixing one test match – the Sydney test and one T20 match during their tour of Australia earlier this year. The tour had been a disaster for Pakistan, as they lost every single match – all the Test matches, the ODIs and the T20s. Meanwhile, Cricket Australia and some former Australian cricketers say they simply feel their team won the series fair and square, giving no importance to any of the matchfixing charges or the Pakistani players underperforming deliberately. Pakistan losing the Sydney test did raise some eyebrows, as Australia came from behind to beat the rivals. They were trailing in the first innings and Pakistan, chasing a small target of 175 runs, were 50 for one in the second innings, but shockingly lost the remaining nine wickets in 89 runs to give Australia a thrilling victory. Wicketkeeper Kamran Akmal was under the scanner for his poor showing behind the stumpts, as he dropped 4 catches in the Australian second innings. Of these, three lives benefited a single batsman – Michael Hussey. He went on the score 134 runs, thanks the

Kamran Akmal

largesse of Akmal. Shane Watson also had a lucky escape, as Akmal missed a run out chance, allowing Watson to score almost another half century. Though Cricket Australia has said they don’t have any suspicions, a former test cricketer from Australia said he had some suspicions, but it would be almost impossible to prove such things. After returning to Pakistan, coach Intikhab Alam and manager Aaqib Javed reportedly told PCB they suspected players to have fixed matches with even the involvement of bookmakers. After the report in the Australian newspaper, Kamran Akmal has said he is not bothered by the allegations of match-fixing. He also went on to threaten Intikhab and Aaquib of defamation. This all is in the back ground of anoth-

er Pakistani bowler, Danish Kaneria being arrested in England over spot-fixing charges in county games last year. On returning to Pakistan, the PCB banned Naved and Shoaib Malik for a year, while imposing an indefinite ban on Mohammad Yousuf and Younus Khan. Heavy fines were imposed on Afridi and the Akmal brothers for indiscipline. Match-fixing allegations: CA seeks details from ICC Cricket Australia has sought from the ICC the details of its investigation into Pakistan’s tour Down Under but insisted that the series was won fair and square by the hosts. “We have no knowledge of any concerns and we’d have expected to have some knowledge if there were any,” a CA spokesman was quoted as saying.

“If the ICC had any concerns we would absolutely provide them with whatever support they needed. At this stage we believe we won that game on the merits of our performance,” he added. Match-fixing suspicions have risen after outgoing ICC anti-Corruption Unit chief Paul Condon said that the series is under the scanner and players might have deliberately under-performed. Akmal threatens to sue coaches over match-fixing allegations Pakistan wicketkeeper Kamran Akmal has threatened to sue the team’s former coaches Intikhab Alam and Aaquib Javed if they don’t apologise for suggesting that he was involved in match-fixing during the disastrous tour of Australia. Akmal said he wanted a public apology from Intikhab and Aaqib for raising suspicions about his performance on the tour earlier this year. “I want an apology from them or else they should substantiate their claims that I deliberately left a run—out in the Sydney test. They must come up with evidence that I am linked with bookmakers,” Kamran said. Though PCB Chairman Ijaz Butt has made it clear that the inquiry into the Australian tour is a closed chapter and they found no evidence of match-fixing, Kamran said he wanted an apology.

Champions League T20 cricket minus English counties Ten teams to play in the 23 match tourney in September, in South Africa English counties being unable to take part in the lucrative Champions League T20 cricket tournament has resulted in fewer number of teams that will be playing the second edition of the lucrative and entertaining T20 cricket league, jointly organised by BCCI (India), CA (Australia) and CSA (South Africa). English counties had to give a miss, as the dates of the CLT20 clash with

their domestic calendar. ECB did readjust the calendar once on the request of the CLT20 organisers, but when the tournament was rescheduled, ECB said there was no room for further changes. Nine of the ten teams are already decided, and only three team feature again from the first season. They are -- Royal Challengers Bangalore (India), Victorian Bushrangers (Australia)

and Wayamba Elevens (Sri Lanka). The only place which remains to be filled is from the West Indies and it will be confirmed in late July. Trinidad and Tobago represented the Caribbean last year. This year, the CLT20 will be played from September 10 to 26 in South Africa. It will feature 23 matches and the teams which have already made it through are IPL champions Chennai

Super Kings (India), Mumbai Indians (India), Royal Challengers Bangalore (India), Victorian Bushrangers (Australia), South Australian Redbacks (Australia), Warriors (South Africa), Highveld Lions (South Africa), Central Stags (New Zealand) and Wayamba Elevens (Sri Lanka). The winners this year will take home a prize money of US$ 2.5 million.

The Sri Lankans celebrate a wicket at Florida on May 22

It was perhaps meant to be an entertaining, exciting weekend feast of cricket for the lovers of the game in the USA, but the slow and lifeless pitch denied any real fireworks. Sri Lankans settled the scores on Sunday with a 7 wicket victory against the Kiwis in the second game after they were beaten by a margin of 28 runs by the same opponents on Saturday. New Zealand’s hopes of setting up a decent challenge were shattered just the second over of the match. Nuwan Kulasekara sent back three batsmen in his very first over, leaving them tottering at 4 runs for 3 wickets. Only Vettori and Nathan McCullum managed to get into the double figures. Had those two also failed, the Kiwis could have faced the ignominy of the lowest ever T20 score. Yet, they could just muster a total of 81 runs. This ultimately did not prove any challenge for the Sri Lankans. 81 was also the lowest T20 score by New Zealand. The win was set up by Kulasekara's first two overs, three wickets in the first and no runs in the second. Ross Taylor fell to Angelo Mathews in the next over. Gareth Hopkins, in to replace the injured Martin Guptill, went for an ill-advised single, and many dubious records were in sight. Crisis man Vettori, though, found support from the older McCullum, and the two batted sensibly to add 45 for the sixth wicket. Neither of them looked to play across the line, both waited for the loose deliveries, which were rare. One of them

was a full delivery from Mathews in the seventh over, which McCullum punched down the ground for the first boundary of the innings. Vettori hit two more boundaries, both cleverly played reverse-sweeps against Sanath Jayasuriya. The partnership came to an end when Vettori swept at Ajantha Mendis. Chasing 82, Sri Lanka were hardly under any pressure, especially after Mahela Jayawardene got them going with a 12-ball 17. During his stay in the middle, batting looked at its easiest on this pitch not conducive to attractive cricket. Perera was sent in at the first drop, and he did his job by hitting two fours and a six in his 25 even as Dilshan struggled for timing. Those two cameos were enough, though, to set the chase up, and Dilshan saw them through. 1st match: Kiwis defeat Sri Lanka in a dull game A day earlier, on Saturday 22nd May, a slow and low pitch proved to be the undoing for an exciting game, as New Zealand could just graft 120 runs, losing 7 wickets. And Sri Lanka did even poor, as they were bundled out for 92 runs. It was a dull and lifeless track which sucked the pace and bounce from the deliveries and made shot-making almost impossible. {Brief scores: 2nd T20 - SL 86 for 3 (Dilshan 33*, Perera 25) beat NZ 81 (N McCullum 36*, Vettori 27, Kulasekara 34, Malinga 3-12) by 7 wickets. 1st T20 – NZ 120 for 7 (Taylor 27, Vettori 21*) beat SL 92 (Styris 310) by 28 runs}.