AV 30th April 2022

FIRST & FOREMOST ASIAN WEEKLY IN EUROPE

Yasmin Hussain and Harleen Kaur confirmed as Batonbearers for Birmingham 2022 Queen's Baton Relay

R

SEE PAGE - 9

30 APRIL - 6 MAY 2022

14 Leading daily reeks of misogyny; writes Labour leader ‘crosses legs to distract’ PM

Let noble thoughts come to us from every side

This Eid, let’s focus on sustainability

26

Adani overtakes Warren Buffett, becomes world's 5th richest person

DAWN OF A HISTORIC

SEE PAGE - 22

VOL 50 - ISSUE 51

19

15

PM Modi gives global push to India’s traditional medicine Ayurveda

How should we tell the story of a World War?

Climate change and sustainability

FRIENDSHIP In a historic first visit as the UK PM to India Boris Johnson locks deals worth £1 billion with a promise of 11,000 new jobs across the UK with ‘good friend’ PM Narendra Modi.

SEE PAGE - 7

Local Council Elections

UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson meets Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi during his two-day visit to India

As India celebrates 75 years of Independence from the British Colonial rule this August 15, it also implies 75 years of eventually letting go of the trauma and aftermath of its horrifying colonial past, while navigating the socio-economic, cultural and political consequences of imperialism. On this historic note, the UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson finally made his long due - and officially first visit to India as the PM of the UK from 21-22 April 2022.

PM Johnson was accorded a ceremonial welcome at the Rashtrapati Bhawan on 22 April 2022, where he was received by Prime Minister Modi. Johnson later visited Raj Ghat to lay a wreath and pay tribute to Mahatma Gandhi.

Prime Minister Modi held bilateral consultations with the visiting Prime Minister at Hyderabad House and also hosted a banquet in his honour.

Elections are taking place across the UK on 5 May. There are about 4,360 seats up for grabs on about 146 councils, plus a handful of mayoral elections and seats on 1,000 parish councils.

Continued on page 13

Ready to fly again

Continued on page 8

SEE PAGE - 16-17

02

www.asian-voice.com

AsianVoiceNews

AsianVoiceNewsweekly

30 April - 6 May 2022

Swindon GP believes race was a factor in failed job application

with Keith Vaz

RAHOUL NAIK Entrepreneur Rahoul is the Managing Director of Jetpack Marketing He is only 26.

He studied Business and Spanish at Lancaster University, after graduating he was in charge of the Marketing Department for one of the UK’s biggest Sports Retailers, which led him to start his own business.

Outside of entrepreneurship, Rahoul is a keen political activist and third-sector supporter, especially championing young people.

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

For me, it has always been my hometown of Leicester. I’ve been fortunate enough to study away in Lancaster and work in London, Manchester and Madrid. But, there’s a gravitational pull about this city. I don’t think I’m the only one either!

What are your proudest achievements?

Two achievements come to mind.

The first is representing Leicester in the UK Youth Parliament. The second is starting Jetpack Marketing, my current business. I didn’t plan on being a business owner so young but when opportunities come, I always find it hard to say no!

What inspires you?

People. Although less about fancy titles or the money in a bank account.

I just find it inspiring to hear people’s stories and their lived experiences.

From Nelson Mandela to Steven Bartlett and even my own mother!

Knowing others go through their own trials and tribulations helps to put your own into perspective.

What has been biggest obstacle in your career?

I don’t think there has ever been a specific set blocker in my path. Or I suppose, if there was, I have an attitude that wouldn’t let it phase me. I think being young, Indian and in business brings its own issues. Getting into networks and having the ‘establishment’ accept you is always a challenge.

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

I’m so fortunate to have grown up around some incredible people in my life. To pinpoint specific people might get me in trouble! I was raised by four women: my grandmother, my mother and my two aunts. My whole family

bring a brilliant and unique view to life and they have always been influential to me.

What is the best aspect about your current role?

Helping business owners find success and be their best selves. We work with so many solopreneurs and the money they make directly goes to supporting their children, families and communities. Knowing you can make a difference is an amazing feeling!

And the worst?

It can be lonely and have a lot of pressure. That being said, the business community in Leicester is pretty expansive and there are great support networks for business owners.

What are your long term goals?

In my current role it is continue providing value to our clients. Beyond that, I am really excited to be working on some new business adventures. I believe we all have a purpose in life and mine is to help others. So anything that allows me to do that really!

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

I would change the school curriculum. We campaigned to introduce a ‘curriculum for life’ a number of years ago and I think it’s even more important now. Calculus is great but what about colonial history (including the bad stuff)? Or even financial education?

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

I’m not sure if you’d define him as a historical figure but Christopher ‘The Notorious B.I.G’ Wallace for sure.

I’d love to understand how he made his songs and what really happened in his and 2pac’s murders.

UK quarantine hotels cost taxpayers £400m A National Audit Office (NAO) investigation has found out that quarantine hotels for inbound travellers to the UK during Covid have cost the taxpayer more than

£400m, including almost £100m in unpaid room bills and fraud.

It has emerged that the taxpayer has been left responsible for more than

FINANCIAL A SERVICES MORTGAGES Residential Buy to Let Remortgages

PROTECTION Life Insurance Critical Illness Income Protection

Please conta act:

Dinesh S Shonchhatra Mortgage Ad dviser

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

half of the £757m bills as the hotels’ costs were not covered by the occupants.

The Department of Health and Social Care informed the NAO that they had issued a £385m contract to Corporate Travel Management to run the hotels, but about £74m of bills covering rooms and Covid tests are still pending and another £18m has been fraudulently reclaimed in credit card chargebacks, but only two cases have been investigated or challenged.

These losses came to light in an NAO report on how the UK managed crossborder travel during the pandemic. The report found that travel rules and border policy were incoherent, confusing and costly, and the government had no way of evaluating if they were worth it.

Dr Jason Seewoodhary, a Swindon GP said he felt that "race was a confounding factor" in his unsuccessful application for a role as a GP training programme director in Swindon. He believes that this is the very reason why the town has witnessed a shortage of GP appointments.

"What concerns me is that the recruitment process was flawed because they didn't implement equality and diversity measures," he said.

"Therefore we cannot be

certain that the recruitment wasn't confounded and someone was appointed based on characteristics that I don't have and maybe more favourable to a panel unconscious biases," he added.

Meanwhile, NHS Health Education England said they cannot comment on the case but was "committed to

improving recruitment".

Between 40 per cent to 50 per cent of GP trainees are from black and minority ethnic groups but the six training programme managers are white British, the GP said.

Geoff Smith, regional postgraduate dean and responsible officer for the South West, said: "We are committed to improving our recruitment processes to ensure that the best and most able candidate is appointed through a fair and inclusive process.

Fury as UK foreign aid handouts to India and Pakistan Last year, Britain spent more than £112million on foreign aid projects in India and Pakistan - where almost £12million went towards a scheme promoting various contraception methods. This has not gone well with Andrew Rosindell, the Tory MP for Romford in Essex, who said the government prioritised overseas aid over domestic need.

Andrew Rosindell, the Tory MP for Romford in Essex, said: “With the soaring

cost of living, I think there is zero support in the country for continuing to spend this level of taxpayers' money on international aid, much of which does not seem to go to the places it should be going to, as this research shows.

When the TaxPayer’s Alliance (TPA) looked at the "schemes" section of a publicly available Government entitled document Government Grants Statistics 2020 to 2021, it was revealed that a total of

£112,090,669.20 in taxpayers’ money was spent on 31 projects in India and Pakistan during that period. Notable schemes include £11,848,484.83 to promote condoms and other forms of contraception among Pakistanis, and £619,867 to expand renewable energy in India.

Details emerged on the day Boris Johnson flew to New Delhi for talks with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

Neighbours enraged as thieves steal milk from doorsteps in Nottingham Gee Hussain is one of the many people in Sneinton, Nottingham who had to cancel his deliveries owing to the reported thefts of milk and from cars.

The 46-year-old said his pregnant wife and elderly mother-in-law repeatedly woke to find their milk and orange juice had been stolen.

‘It’s been going on for three months, it’s so annoying. We had it delivered three times a week, and we would be lucky to see one of them – as soon as they are delivered they pick it up and off they go.’

After the first month of thefts, Gee said he installed a Ring doorbell and had

even caught the milk thieves in action.

‘It’s not only milk but fresh orange juice as well, anything they can get their hands on. At one point they dropped the orange juice next to someone’s house. It’s £8 but we’re paying for it

and my pregnant wife has to deal with it because I’m at work, a couple of times the milkmen have reimbursed us but they’ve done all they can, so we cancelled.’

Gee said he had contacted Nottingham Police about the thefts.

Civil servants drafted to Home Office to clear Ukraine refugee visa backlog In order to help clear a backlog of Ukrainian refugee visa cases after receiving criticism from UK sponsors that people’s lives were being put at risk by the delays, hundreds of civil servants have been drafted to the Home Office from across other Whitehall departments, including the Treasury, for the same.

The department is getting overwhelmed as hundreds and thousands of people are applying for visas through two routes, one which allows Ukrainians to travel to the UK if they have immediate family here, or if

they are matched with a sponsor.

Meanwhile, the Home Office is insisting that it is ramping up its efforts to tackle the visa wait for Ukrainian refugees despite some sponsors reporting that they have been waiting more than three weeks for a

response.

One UK sponsor expressed concern over the safety of the Ukrainian refugees who are stuck in the country as they are waiting for their visas to be approved.

“I wish they had made a break for the border early and tried to find safety somewhere else in Europe. I wake up in a cold sweat most nights thinking about them and hoping they haven’t come to some harm,” they said.

AsianVoiceNews

AsianVoiceNewsweekly

03

www.asian-voice.com

30 April - 6 May 2022

The challenge of promises A whole lot of excitement, some praises and some criticism for the UK Prime Minister’s India visit who secured a £1bn trade deal. It was a historical trip of course that prompted EU’s Ursula Von Der Leyen to follow Mr Johnson’s suit to secure trade for the bloc.

The Prime Minister travelled to India last week making huge progress on a post-Brexit trade deal. Mr Johnson told negotiators to get a free trade agreement (FTA) done by Diwali, in October, as he celebrated a "massive push" during the meeting in New Delhi on Friday.

But as he landed in Gujarat, while everybody anticipated a ‘Namaste Gujarat’ level celebration, it fell short of the grandeur.

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi who was in Gujarat till 20 April, left without welcoming his UK counterpart, as people pointed out a ‘subtle snub’ from PM Modi’s end. However, Mr Johnson had a delightful visit to Gujarat, spinning Mahatma Gandhi’s charkha at Sabarmati ashram and visiting Akshardham temple.

In New Delhi, while attending a press conference with the Indian Prime Minister, Mr Johnson made several promises including a new visa .regime and completion of the FTA by Diwali. As exciting as it sounds, with 22 Chapters of the FTA still pending confirmation, 6 months aren’t enough to conclude.

The challenges are many. Both countries have had their own complaints. Heavily dependent on Russian arms for

defence, India has always been particularly efficient in dealing with autocratic neighbours, so its abstinence from the UN vote wasn’t a big surprise. While the UK remains denied the ease of e-visa travel to India, Kashmir issues being discussed in UK Parliament and Khalistani separatist movements on UK’s soil remain irritants for India.

The UK has been looking for defence promises for a while with India and it’s a deal-breaker. As Rahul Roy-Choudhury, IISS Senior Fellow for South Asia in FT wrote, “Defence has been an ‘under-performer’ (in the case of UK-India). Several decades ago the UK was the largest source of arms for India; its share over the past ten years is less than 3 per cent. Bilateral cyber security and multilateral counter-terrorism cooperation remain key, as does maritime security cooperation in the western Indian Ocean.

“Rebuilding significant defence ties with India could also rebuild trust in the bilateral relationship. Foreign secretary Liz Truss’s 20-hour March visit to Delhi was successful in focusing on alternative sources of arms supplies for India. An attempt to deal seriously with legacy issues of UK defence supply chains was also important.

“But Johnson now needs to engage decisively on the sharing of defence technology and intellectual property. This could be challenging when the UK denies India space technology based on ‘dual-use’. Equally importantly, it will require British companies to ‘re-energise’ their ties and investments in India.”

100 years for justice?

The 1999 Macpherson report brought to light that the Met was plagued by “institutional racism”. This was six years after an 18-year-old black British teenager from Plumstead was murdered in a racially motivated attack while waiting for a bus in Well Hall Road, Eltham on the evening of 22 April 1993. His name was Stephen Lawrence. Almost three decades later, coincidentally, his namesake, Sir Stephen House is the acting Met commissioner in the interim.

However, post the controversial exit of Met Police Commissioner Cressida Dick, the ethnic minority community was waiting with a prayer to see one of their own - Anil Kanti "Neil" Basu QPM is a senior British police officer as the best replacement. That case is closed.

Meanwhile, the list of victims has become longer. From Sarah Everard to Sabina Nessa, Britain hasn’t been able to safeguard its people, men and women alike.

In 2019, the Met estimated it would take another 100 years to reach racial parity. Black and minority ethnic people made up less than a fifth of recruits to the Met in the 12 months to 31 March 2019. In the year 2020, it was reported that the Met had the most black, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME) officers of any force: 5,000 out of 32,600. But it also had the biggest race gap of any force because London is 40% BAME, while the Met’s ranks are 15.4% BAME. Today, the public has lost faith in Metropolitan Police owing to waning trust in officers, cases of MeToo and racial discrimination within the police force. Media reports suggest that the scandal-hit Met Police are receiving less than half of the applications it needs ‘but does not know why’.

The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, is calling on Londoners to join the Police service in London to help create a bigger and better Met and keep our city safe. Trusting the force whose own echo chambers are resonating with the sound of sexism, racism and increasing mistrust, paints a bleak future for the security of Londoners.

The Met is currently attempting to recruit an additional 1,800 officers by March 2023 as part of the Police Uplift programme.

The Metropolitan Police Service has put rules designed to boost the number of black, Asian and minority ethnic (BAME) officers on hold as it chases ambitious recruitment targets over the coming year. Residency rules for new recruits had required police constable applicants to have lived or studied in the capital for a minimum of three of the six years before their application. This inevitably puts potential candidates from ethnic minorities in a spot.

Having a more diverse police force may be less likely to discriminate against minority communities and will be more likely to consider the interests and perspectives of those communities, but the Met is behind in meeting its diversity targets for recruitment that were originally set for 2022. They are now slated to be met by 2030, with an overall “aspiration” for 40 per cent of officers to be of black, Asian and multiple ethnic heritage (BAMEH in Met classification), a target originally set by the Met for 2022.

Amid sexism, racism, and dearth of representation, it is also important to evaluate that a number of reasons why members of ethnic minority groups are less likely to consider policing as a career include: feelings of being unwelcome, a lack of minority ethnic role models in the police and an increased likelihood of receiving hostile reactions from family members due to their perceptions of the police.

At the current pace of change, it will take until 2079 for the police service to achieve a workforce that is representative of England and Wales in terms of ethnicity. That’s only fourteen years away from the centenary of Stephen Lawrence’s death.

Does that mean Britain's ethnic minorities will have to wait another 100 years? Let’s rephrase this - will we live long enough to see the change? There are no medals for guessing the right answer.

J&K may witness a new down after PM Modi's visit Prime Minister Narendra Modi's first visit to Jammu and Kashmir after the abrogation of Article 370 and 35A in August 2019 is expected to bring a new dawn to the region. His first public rally saw him talk up grassroots democracy and a development push for the region.

Speaking at Palli, Modi marked the first panchayat day celebration in J&K. Plus, he green-flagged a raft of projects, worth over £2 billion, including the opening of the Banihal-Qazigund tunnel connecting Jammu and Kashmir. To add to the message of new investment, PM Modi was accompanied by business leaders from the UAE. The latter’s proposed investments in the region is expected to be over £300 million. So, the real economic test in post-370 nullification will be whether new investment and “new” politics can create new opportunities, assuming Pak-abetted terrorism can be kept at bay. It will be a major challenge for the government to win the hearts and minds of the youth. Only this can provide a popular shield against Pakistan’s terrorist proxies. It will also create conditions for actual on-ground private investments. Towards that end, assembly elections in J&K and eventual restoration of statehood are vital to ensure residents have a say in their own development. That in turn requires the delimitation exercise to be fast-tracked.

“Empowerment” of the people has been a pet theme of the Modi government. The Modi government, since May 2019, has done its best to marginalise the established political parties in Kashmir. It is no secret that the most empowered section in J&K is the bureaucracy, accountable only to itself. The panchayats are a small cog in the wheel of the administration, and their members, elected in a process marred by violence and living under the threat of militants, know it. It is widely understood that only an Assembly election can truly empower the people

through their chosen legislators, just like it does in the rest of the country. The delay in holding these elections was justified in the name of a delimitation process. Putting it off any longer can only confirm the government’s continuing contempt for the will of the people and the democratic process in J&K. The investments by some of the biggest companies in the United Arab Emirates, is possibly far more significant and consequential, from a strategic point of view. The UAE is an important member of the Organisation of Islamic Conference and as such, is a major force in the Islamic world. Two years ago, it took the radical step of shaking hands with Israel. Now, the government claims, the Arab country’s most important business houses appear ready to invest in the Modi government’s “naya” Kashmir. There is a message in this for the people of Kashmir, including the diaspora, a significant number have made the UAE their home. It is also a message to Pakistan, which describes the UAE as a “brother country”.

In his outreach to the youth in the Valley, the prime minister said, “You will never suffer the way your parents, and grandparents did in the past.” This welcome message of hope can be realised on the ground only if the youth become stakeholders in the building of the state. The investment push, infrastructure development and the flow of tourists into the Valley need, for their fruition, a genuine political process, an essential aspect of a democracy. Let us hope that the announcement of a new investment scheme will improve the overall development of the UT and will create employment opportunities for the youth.

Following the investment in health, education and transportation announced by PM Modi, the region will have a new look Youth is the future of the region and once they gain employment, terrorism will have no hold on them and the government can gain the hearts of the youth.

Thought for the week Keep your face always toward the sunshine, and shadows will fall behind you. — Walt Whitman

Political Sketchbook Alpesh Patel

India Pakistan Relations Now Under Pakistan’s new Prime Minister I expect a dialling down of Pakistan’s aggressive stand towards India. But Pakistan will not dial down the terrorists it provides a home to.

First a reminder of the background.

August 5, 2019 The Kashmir debate has been a point of contention in Indian politics since Independence. Though no official side was taken during British rule, Jawaharlal Nehru and Mahatma Gandhi were both strongly in favour of retaining Kashmir. Pakistani leaders, like Muhammad Ali Jinnah and Liaqat Ali Khan, also supported this plan provided that the local government agreed with it.

This remained the status quo for some time after the Partition of India; however, things changed when Maharaja Hari Singh refused to align himself or his kingdom with either country. This remained the case until Pakistan decided to invade Kashmir in 1947, forcing its king to leave temporarily and sign a standstill agreement with India in return for military assistance.

When he returned to power amidst these events, Hari Singh signed another document which gave autonomy to Jammu and Kashmir under Article 370 of the Indian Constitution on October 26th that same year.

Nevertheless, he did not formally accede his state to India until January 30th 1949.

Govt readies to assert that scrapping of Art 370 was an internal matter.

Even as the world debated whether India's decision to end Article 370, which gave special status to Jammu and Kashmir, amounted to India violating UN resolutions on Kashmir, the Modi government asserted that since this was an "internal matter", it doesn't come under the charter of the UNSG. At the annual session of the UN General Assembly in New York, external affairs minister S Jaishankar had said that while India is open to dialogue with Pakistan on all outstanding issues in an environment free of terror and violence, it won't engage with Pakistan if it comes with pre-conditions.

"We have seen the letter sent by Pakistan's Foreign Minister to the Secretary General of United Nations on Jammu and Kashmir. The contents of the letter confirm that Pakistan has not been able to come to terms with the developments in India," a source said.

The new Pakistani PM will not be as vocal as Imran Khan who saw himself as Saladin and with an ego to match with regular calls to the Ummah which fell on deaf ears outside of Turkey and Malaysia. The Pakistani military, running out of money, like their country, is now trying to turn to US, after Russian money was not forthcoming (Russia has enough problems and Pakistan is not going to get on the to do list in the near term).

China will sell military hardware but at a cost which the military cannot afford. It will lend money to the civilian sector.

The US is speaking to the Taliban directly. Do they need Pakistan? Do Pakistan return to terrorism as a foreign policy instrument – is that why Khan had to go – he would not permit that? Pakistan is again cornered. No US, no Russia, no Afghan influence. It needs more options than China. Wait for them to try make peace with India whilst raising terrorism threats.

Asian Voice is published by

Asian Business Publications Ltd Units 207-208, Harrow Business Centre, 429-433 Pinner Road, North Harrow, Middlesex, HA1 4HN Tel: 020 7749 4080 • Fax: 020 7749 4081 Email: aveditorial@abplgroup.com Website: www.abplgroup.com INDIA OFFICE

Bureau Chief: Nilesh Parmar (BPO) AB Publication (India) Pvt. Ltd. 207 Shalibhadra Complex, Opp. Jain Derasar, Nr. Nehru Nagar Circle, Ambawadi, Ahmedabad-380 015.

Tel: +91 79 2646 5960 Email: gs_ahd@abplgroup.com © Asian Business Publications

04

www.asian-voice.com

AsianVoiceNews

AsianVoiceNewsweekly

30 April - 6 May 2022

Man who called for jihad at mosque jailed for 4 years Abubaker Deghayes, 53, from Brighton who made a stabbing gesture as he called for jihad ‘by sword’ at the busy Brighton Mosque and Muslim Community Centre, has been jailed. After evening prayers, he stood up unannounced and addresses 50 worshippers, including children where he was promoting terrorism.

The 53-year-old, originally from Libya, denied calling for bloodshed and said he was ‘rolling with the speech’ when he made the comments.

During his trial, jurors were shown his video where he was talking about jihad.

He told worshippers: "Whose power is more powerful than us?

Allah is more powerful than you.

You, idiots. You kuffar (nonbelievers)... The non-believer is an idiot. He's stupid."

He went on: "Jihad, jihad, jihad. Jihad is compulsory. Jihad is fighting by sword. That means this jihad is compulsory upon you, not jihad is the word of mouth but jihad will remain compulsory until the Day of Resurrection..."

Deghayes' two sons were

NHS banned from buying supplies from regions linked to slave labour The NHS will be banned from buying supplies from the Xinjiang region of China owing to the new regulations in the Health and Social Care Bill that will prohibit the NHS to procure from regions that are linked to slave labour. The Government has tabled an amendment to “eliminate” slavery from global health supply chains.

Campaigners have been claiming that thousands of Uyghur Muslims living in the region have allegedly been forced into slave labour and imprisoned under the Communist regime in China.

Campaigners have hailed it as the “biggest advancement in modern slavery legislation” in the UK. During the pandemic,

Chinese firms with links to alleged human rights abuses in Xinjiang were paid £150 for PPE. Luke de Pulford, the chief operating officer of Arise, an anti-slavery charity, said: “This is an extremely significant development, easily the most significant piece of supply chain regulation that we have around modern slavery in the UK.”

Amir Khan watch robbery: Detectives release image of watch Police have released an image of a £70,000 watch that was stolen from 35year-old former WBA and IBF light-welterweight champion Amir Khan, urging witnesses to come forward. Officers are appealing to the public to check their dashcam footage if they were driving near High Road in Leyton on Monday night to aid their investigation.

Earlier this week, Khan posted on Twitter how two men took his watch at gunpoint in East London, Leyton, adding that he and his wife Faryal were safe after the incident.

Meanwhile, Khan has criticised London Mayor Sadiq Khan for failing to tackle crime in the capital.

"Since Sadiq has come to

power the crime rate has gone up by 30 percent. I think what Sadiq is doing now by saying he's going to increase the police, increase more police on the streets and stuff like that, I think that's what London needs."

“My plan was to move to London later this year with Faryal and the kids but after what happened there’s no

chance that we’ll be doing that. London is not a place I want to live in anymore.

Our plan to move there is not happening.”

A spokesperson for the mayor said: “The mayor is appalled at what happened to Amir Khan and urges anyone with any information to come forward as soon as possible.

Chairman says mosque still working to eradicate hate speech Abubaker Deghayes, 53, who made a stabbing gesture as he called for jihad 'by sword' at the Brighton Mosque and Muslim Community Centre where he stood up unannounced and addressed around 50 worshippers, including children, on 1 November 2020.

Asim Takriti, who has been the chairman of the

mosque since 2018, reported Deghayes to the police after being concerned by his speech. He has been sentenced to four years in prison.

"There were not only men but also women and children present, which was a major concern to the mosque management. My concern was those kinds of speeches

could have a negative impact on children's minds, and their future thinking,” said Mr Takriti.

"Mr Deghayes ran the mosque for over 20 years, and there can be a culture of these sorts of speeches. It was hard to stop him, especially as he had lots of supporters.

It wasn't a good situation until Deghayes was arrested.

Mum guilty of manslaughter over fatal asthma attack 40-year-old Laura Heath was found guilty of manslaughter by gross negligence over her son Hakeem Hussain's death in Nechells, Birmingham, in November 2017. He was found dead in a freezing garden after an asthma attack. The court heard how Heath had even repur-

posed one of his inhalers as a makeshift crack pipe. She has admitted four counts of child cruelty at Coventry Crown Court and is due to be sentenced on 28 April.

"I just suspect he didn't wake me up, took himself to get fresh air and then probably fell asleep," she said in a police interview.

A post-mortem examination confirmed that Hakeem died of uncontrolled asthma.

Six months after Hakeem's death, Birmingham Children's Trust was formed, following years of criticism of council-run services in the city.

killed fighting for Islamists in Syria and his third son was stabbed in Brighton.

Abdul was murdered by a drug dealer in 2019 aged 22 – was the twin brother of Abdullah, who was killed fighting in Syria in 2016 aged 18. In 2014, their brother Jaffar, 17, was killed while trying to overthrow Bashar Assad’s government.

UK-India trade deal may include Whisky and visas Prime Minister Boris Johnson has expressed his desire of wanting a free trade deal with India by November, however, economists feel it's too soon to toast the prospects of a deal that may well prove hard to agree but an interim deal could be reached by the end of the year - if both sides are willing to make concessions.

Meanwhile, the Scotch Whisky Association wants India to do away with tariffs of 150 per cent on imported liquor which will boost exports by £1bn over five years.

Along with whiskey, India typically applies very high trade barriers - be it tariffs, quotas or restrictions on investment - to attempts to access its markets. However, that could be about to change as at the start of this year, the UK and India have begun talks with the aim of securing a trade deal by the end of 2022.

Mum charged £68,000 in NHS bills for toddler's deadly liver cancer Reeja Shrestha, 25, an East London mum has been billed £68,000 for NHS fees after her two-year-old daughter needed a series of life-saving treatments for a rare form of liver cancer, Hepatoblastoma. Reeja who has lived in the UK for more than 10 years expects to be billed more for further treatment.

"We had not even expected it could happen to a small child.

We don’t have any history of cancer in our family, so to happen to her, a small child, she’s not even like a one-yearold."

Reeja cannot take her to any place where there is a crowd as she’s very immunosuppressed.

The two-year-old is currently on a course of Rituximab therapy to treat cancerous lumps on her lungs, groins, underarms and behind her neck (PTLD).

in brief PROBLEMS IN MET ARE “NOT A FEW BAD APPLES, ADMITS TOP COP Sir Stephen House, who is taking charge of the force on a temporary basis insisted that the force was taking action to root out unacceptable behaviour “as fast as possible” while appearing before the Home Affairs Select Committee. In recent times, Scotland Yard has faced a slew of damaging scandals, including the murder of Sarah Everard by serving officer Wayne Couzens, and many more. “There is a significant campaign within the organisation to deal with this completely unacceptable behaviour, to root it out and to exit those people who are exhibiting that behaviour from the organisation as fast as possible and in the right way,” said Sir Stephen.

When MPs asked him if it was just a “few bad people,” he replied: “People have talked about a few bad apples, quite clearly that’s not the situation at all, it’s not a few bad apples.

“You can’t simply say that Wayne Couzens and a couple of other people have done something wrong - that’s been the spearhead of the problem, I would suggest, but there is a wider issue within the organisation which we acknowledge and we are dealing with.”

GOVERNMENT WILL ATTEMPT TO DELAY A VOTE ON A PROBE WHETHER PM MISLED PARLIAMENT OVER PARTYGATE

The Government is trying to delay a vote on a probe into whether Boris Johnson misled Parliament over partygate until the Metropolitan Police’s own probe into lockdown-busting parties in Downing Street and Whitehall has concluded, and the Sue Gray report has been published.

When a Labour-led motion calling for a parliamentary investigation into whether he lied to the Commons takes place on Thursday, Mr Johnson will be on an official trip to India. The PM has vowed to fight the next election no matter how many times he is fined for breaching Covid laws, as he believes that the scandal matters little to voters. Former Conservative minister Andrew Mitchell said, “I don’t think there will be a vote tomorrow. I think the House of Commons will agree to refer it to the Privileges Committee.

“I shan’t be there – quite a lot of my colleagues are heading off either tonight or tomorrow morning to their constituency. We expect this matter to be referred to the Privileges Committee, and I think the Government will go along with it.

Partygate row: Ministers on brink of quitting before Johnson U-turn After facing a “revolt” by junior ministers who threatened to resign rather than back him, Boris Johnson was forced to submit to a third investigation over lockdown parties. It is believed that at least six members of the government informed whips that they could not support a

Downing Street plan that would have put off a decision on holding a parliamentary investigation into the events.

Johnson had suffered a “revolt of middle ranks”, which forced him into a humiliating climbdown, said one minister.

Rather than support

Johnson, dozens of Tory backbenchers threatened to stay away from the Commons, putting a government victory at risk.

Now, the prime minister faces months of uncertainty as the Commons privileges committee examines the evidence against him.

AsianVoiceNews

05

www.asian-voice.com

AsianVoiceNewsweekly

30 April - 6 May 2022

Mayor urges Londoners of all backgrounds to join the Met The Mayor of London, Sadiq Khan, is calling on Londoners to join the Police service in London to help create a bigger and better Met and keep our city safe.

On a visit to a recruitment stall at W12 Shopping Centre in Shepherds Bush, the Mayor today urged Londoners of all backgrounds to join the Met so they can bring their range of experiences and skills to help others, and be the change they want to see in the force.

The Met currently has its highest ever number of police officers in the capital and is undergoing a recruitment drive to encourage 4,000 more officers

to join in the next year. The Met has also agreed on challenging targets to increase recruitment of people from Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic backgrounds and ensure those officers progress to become sergeants and inspectors.

The Mayor and the Met are committed to building a police force that looks and feels like the city it serves, which is vital in keeping London safe for everyone and rebuilding trust in Londoners.

The Mayor of London Sadiq Khan said: “Keeping Londoners safe is my top priority, and I am working closely with the police to encourage Londoners from all

Patients find it harder to get a GP appointment in Britain, says report According to a survey of 10,000 people that was done in ten countries, who were questioned by the US company Edelman about their access to treatment and trust in healthcare systems and leaders, it was revealed that patients find it harder to get a GP appointment in Britain than in Canada, Germany, France and the US. The study found out that Britain lags behind Canada, Germany, France and the US for access to high-quality healthcare. Public satisfaction with the health service is at 25year low owing to the difficulties getting a GP appointment and record NHS waiting lists.

The report by Edelman, the US marketing consultancy company, said people find their employer more trustworthy than the government for better health advice. The survey found about 67 per cent of UK employees expected their companies to “play a meaningful role in keeping them as healthy as possible”.

Dr Eleanor Read, managing director of health at Edelman UK, said, “The UK public loves the NHS and the individual doctors they deal with on a personal basis. But lots of people are waiting a long time for treatment ... some people have not seen their GP face to face for a long time.”

backgrounds to join a bigger and better Met Police service.

"I am determined to increase the trust and confidence that all our communities have in the police, which is why it is so important that we have a service that reflects the diversity of the city it serves. I want the Met to represent us all and urge Londoners of all backgrounds to apply to become a police officers and help be the change you want to see. I’m really proud that we now have more police officers than at any other time in London’s history and by joining the police you can help to impact so many lives for the better.”

Postal vote fraudster campaigns again Ayaz Khan who was one of six Birmingham councillors accused of turning Birmingham into a banana republic has been canvassing for Labour on the local election campaign trail as his son Saqib is now the candidate for Small Heath.

When Richard Mawrey QC, a High Court judge found evidence of vote-rigging during the 2004 local campaign, Khan was suspended from Labour. He and others were accused of masterminding widespread corruption by systematically forging ballot papers at the 2004 local elections.

Though they denied of any wrongdoing, Mawrey ruled that they were guilty of corrupt and illegal practice.

After being given a five-year plan from political office, campaigning or activity Khan is no longer a councillor.

We’ve g go ot ove er 850 na n tionwide e Yo our local Specsavers is part-owned by the exper e t opticians, audiologists and retailerrs who run it.

So your care is their business. should Thought you

ow know

Protest held against the Nationality and Borders Bill A hundred-strong group of women asylum seekers from every continent, many of whom have fled horrendous violence and persecution, went to parliament on Tuesday 25 April, to urge the House of Lords to stand firm in their opposition to the Nationality and Borders Bill.

The All African Women’s Group (AAWG), together with Women Against Rape and others in Global Women Against Deportations – a coalition based at the Crossroads Women’s Centre in London – organised a protest outside the House of Lords to urge peers to stand firm and amend/scrap the Nationality and Borders Bill. The hated Police, Crime Sentencing and Courts Bill also went to the Lords on Tuesday and will be a focus of the protest.

Celine Gana, a mother and rape survivor from Uganda, said, “This borders bill will block our chances of ever winning safety and protection in the UK and prevent those who come behind us from seeking asylum. Women and children will be the hardest hit. Even if we manage to overcome all the obstacles that are put in our way and get the right to stay, we will only be given temporary status with no right to family reunion or benefits. Most women asylum seekers are already destitute and this Bill will make that worse.

Without the right to a family reunion, mums and children will suffer the unbearable pain of indefinite separation.

“The government lies when it says that immigrant people are

scroungers and a drain on the UK. We’ve escaped for our lives from war, starvation and environmental collapse. We have a right to be here.

Our work has created the UK’s wealth through centuries of slavery and colonialism.”

The Lords’ amendments to the Nationality and Borders Bill would: ► Get rid of the “differential” treatment of asylum seekers which denies people the right to claim asylum, win refugee status, have recourse to public funds and the right to a family reunion ► Force the government to give notice if they want to remove people’s citizenship ►Stop the criminalisation of “illegal entry” when practically every legal route has been removed) ► Stop the criminalisation of those who help people who arrive by sea ► Allow unaccompanied child refugees to join their family ► Give more protection to victims of trafficking.

The government announcement to deport asylum seekers to Rwanda without their claim ever being considered has attracted particular fury.

Two-thirds of the public oppose the Nationality and Borders Bill. The Archbishop of Canterbury and the Archbishop of York oppose the Bill, and Scotland and Wales have rejected it. Ireland is launching an amnesty policy giving thousands the security of status. All asylum seekers’ lives matter.

06

www.asian-voice.com

AsianVoiceNews

AsianVoiceNewsweekly

30 April - 6 May 2022

Queen's 96th birthday toasted with gun salutes On the Queen's 96th birthday, two salutes were fired, the first, at noon, of 41 guns

by The King's Troop, Royal Horse Artillery, in Hyde Park, close to Buckingham Palace. An hour later, the Honourable Artillery Company, the City of London's Reserve Army Regiment, fired 62 guns from Tower Wharf, close to Tower Bridge.

The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge tweeted two pictures, one of the couples with Her Majesty at the Chelsea Flower Show a few years ago and another of the Queen and Prince Philip surrounded by their greatgrandchildren.

The monarch celebrated her birthday at the Duke of

Edinburgh's cottage on her Sandringham estate, a property she said her late husband "loved".

Along with this, the Royal Windsor Horse Show released an image of the monarch taken last month at Windsor Castle, where the Queen is flanked by two ponies, called Bybeck Nightingale and Bybeck Katie, that will both take part

in the show's tribute to the monarch.

To mark the day, the Changing of the Guard went ahead as usual at 11.00 am, however, it took place at Windsor Castle rather than Buckingham Palace.

As the Band of the Coldstream Guards played Happy Birthday, people in large numbers enjoyed glorious spring sunshine that were gathered to watch.

The Barbie doll, designed to capture the Queen's likeness, was released to commemorate her 70 years on the throne by toymaker Mattel. As part of the Barbie tribute collection, the company said they pay tribute to

"visionary individuals with an outstanding impact and legacy".

The doll is dressed in an ivory gown with blue ribbon, and features details drawn from the monarch's past. It wears a recreation of the tiara worn by the Queen on her wedding day, and pink

and blue ribbons modelled after ones given to her by her father George VI and grandfather George V, the company said.

NHS plastic surgeon ‘forced’ to choose between job and looking after elderly parents in India Plastic surgeon Dr Maharukh Daruwalla, who specialises in skin cancers and pediatric plastic surgery at East and North Hertfordshire NHS Trust, said she is being forced to choose between a job in the UK and looking after her elderly parents in India due to harsh immigra-

tion laws, causing her stress and anxiety.

She has already tried to get adult dependent relative (ADR) visas for her parents, who live in Mumbai, but was not entertained.

Dr Daruwalla’s

London boroughs charge more for bikes than car Cycling campaigners revealed that seventeen boroughs charge more for a space in an on-street bike hangar than they do for a parking permit for a car.

Islington charges £107.25 a year for a space in a secure hangar - plus a further £27.75 key deposit - but just £25 a year for an electric car or £30 a year for small petrol or hybrid vehicle.

Hounslow also allows free car parking but charges £36 for a bike hangar space.

Meanwhile, boroughs such as Camden, Hackney and Waltham Forest which are environmentally progressive boroughs, ensure it

costs less to park a bike than a car.

The different charges were revealed in a report published by the Fare City think tank which stated that the average cost of renting a space in a cycle hangar in London was £57.90.

More than 60,000 Londoners are waiting for a bike hangar space, as many London cyclists are forced to store their bikes at home, despite a shortage of space resulting in bikes being kept in wardrobes, toilets or hanging from walls. The plight was highlighted by the #ThisIsAwkward social media campaign.

A patient was Covid positive for record 505 days A patient in Britain battled the same Covid-19 infection for 505 days, the longest known continuous case since the emergence of the pandemic until they died. The previous record was 335 days.

“It certainly seems to be the longest reported infection,” said Dr Luke Blagdon Snell, an infectious disease expert at the Guy’s & St. Thomas’ National Health Service (NHS) Foundation Trust.

Researchers from Guys and St Thomas’ NHS trust

investigated which mutations arise — and whether variants evolve — in people with super long infections that involved nine patients who tested positive for the virus for at least eight weeks. All had weakened immune systems from organ transplants, HIV, cancer or treatment for other illnesses.

Repeated tests showed that their infections lasted for an average of 73 days and two of them had the virus for more than a year.

father, Keki, is 90 and her mother, Ville, is 82, whom she has not met for three years due to the pandemic.

She said: “The ADR visa is supposed to facilitate elderly parents joining their children who are in the UK but the rule change in 2012 has made it almost impossible. The rules are so harsh now".

Having four daughters, I felt the pressure to have boys Sunny Kooner, a mother of four daughters narrated her ordeal as a mother of only daughters who underwent a lot of pressure of having a baby boy.

Being a South Asian and growing up in Wolverhampton, she would constantly hear her grandma place the same demands from her mum, who had to face a lot of indifference for giving birth to a girl child.

When Mrs Sunny decided to have children and had two girls, her husband didn't belittle her for the same, in fact, he took good care of her and supported her.

However, when she fell pregnant for the third time she paid for a gender scan

Rohit Vadhwana Every one of us comes across a situation, in the profession, society or family, when one member is completely non-cooperative, or non-performing. It affects the performance of the whole team, as the strength of the chain is not more than its weakest link. Dealing with such a person becomes so difficult that we simply avoid facing him/her. It creates an embarrassing situation to engage with the person on any issue. The presence of such a team member affects the performance of the whole team, discourages other performing members, and demotivates everyone. So what's the solution? Easy guess, change the person.

What if it is not possible to change such a person?

Well, it might be a harsh reality sometime but we have to face it. The person stays there, right in front of our eyes, not doing anything, just poking us and others on every occasion, creating irritation and hurdles in work - but we are helpless. It may also lead to interpersonal issues, individual-level frictions and bitterness in the work or social atmosphere. Still, the person may remain defiant and incorrigible, especially if it is an attitudinal issue. It is because some people cannot see things from others' perspectives, and are so self-centred. It is also possible that the person is behaving in that particular way only with you, adamant to fail you, irritate you and harass you.

For the sake of peace of mind, and efficiency of yourself and the organisation, it is better - not ideal - to leave that person alone, and keep doing whatever possible good work you can do with other team members.

Obviously, management gurus would advise against leaving any person and plead for a team-building approach, but it is easier said than done. Therefore, without waiting any longer, or being self-critical for the reason of someone being unreformable, it is better to focus on the available strength and deliver the best possible result. After all, in every team, there are a few underperformers, some are critical and maybe even a few are anti-agenda. It is never an ideal situation, never all forces work together. Self-guilt doesn't help but self-reliance helps. So, wish all the best to that person, and keep working - in your social, professional or family set-up.

(Expressed opinions are personal)

and found out she was carrying twin girls. She recalls how she couldn’t tell anyone until she was six months pregnant. Her mum and sisters were delighted but her dad burst into tears.

"Together, my husband and I are trying to change views like this. I’ve even set up an Instagram page, called ‘Blessed with girls’ because that’s how I feel. Blessed".

Health secretary feels vulnerable children wrongly being given gender hormone treatment Health secretary Sajid Javid believes that vulnerable children are wrongly being given gender hormone treatment by the NHS as he prepares to launch an urgent inquiry. He thinks the system is “failing children” and is planning an overhaul of how health service staff deal with under-18s who question their gender identity.

Hilary Cass, a former president of the Royal College of Pediatrics and Child Health, who is leading a review into NHS gender identity ser-

What do you do with that one particular person?

vices for children found out that children were being affected by a lack of expert agreement about the nature of gender identity problems, a “lottery” of care and long waiting lists.

“This has been a growing issue for years and it’s clear we’re not taking this seriously enough,” an ally of the health secretary said. “If you look at Hilary Cass’s interim report, the findings are deeply concerning and it’s clear from that report that we’re failing children.”

Post Office accused of delaying negotiations Post Office bosses have been accused of delaying the negotiations over compensation for scores of subpostmasters who were wrongly convicted of fraud.

They have also been accused of ruining hundreds of lives after they introduced a computing system called

Horizon into branches 23 years ago and then brought private prosecutions based on its faulty evidence.

Meanwhile, lawyers have predicted that hundreds of convicted sub-postmasters could apply to the Court of Appeal after judges quashed 39 convictions a year ago.

Simon Arora retiring after 17years at B&M Simon Arora, 52, the boss of B&M, has announced that he will be retiring as a chief executive of B&M European Value Retail in 12 months' time once the company has appointed his successor.

He is stepping down after more than 17 years in charge of the discount retailer, during which he transformed it into an FTSE 100 powerhouse worth more than £5 billion.

The billionaire's brother, Bobby, 50, will stay on as its group trading director and their younger brother Robin, is involved in grocery buying.

“Now is the right time to have someone with fresh

energy, a fresh perspective take the business forward while continuing the existing successful strategy. I’m at pains to emphasise that this does not mark a change of strategy — the model’s working", he said.

Peter Bamford, B&M’s chairman, will search for Arora’s replacement and the company said that internal and external candidates would be considered.

AsianVoiceNews

AsianVoiceNewsweekly

07

www.asian-voice.com

30 April - 6 May 2022

CLIMATE CHANGE AND SUSTAINABILITY Peers and campaigners call for urgency Post COP26, as the world observed its first Earth Day, debating the threats, challenges and consequences of the climate crisis, Asian Voice in association with the Royal Air Force, organised the second of its ‘Be The Change’ discussion series, this time focussing on ‘Climate Change and Sustainability’. Held at the House of Lords on 20th April and hosted by Lord Raj Loomba CBE, the panellists included CEO in asset management, media commentator, international bestselling author and philanthropist, Alpesh Patel OBE; sustainability expert and former Head of Sustainable Partnerships at the Born Free Foundation Hitesh Patel, and noted screenwriter, playwright and novelist Laline Paull. The discussion was moderated by award-winning publicist and author Sangeeta Waldron.

bined global companies are the biggest contributors to carbon emissions. Responsibility and opportunity, aligning profit with decarbonisation at speed and supporting effective climate regulation by building private-public partnerships is key. A good example of this is leading brand Surya Foods who have developed the first carbonneutral source of rice in the UK.” Front row L – R: Alpesh Patel OBE, Hitesh Patel, Lord Raj Loomba CBE, CB Patel Chairman ABPL, Lord Dolar Popat, Laline Paull, Sangeeta Waldron, with members of the Royal Air Force

and Sustainability. On the journey, we need to exploit new technology. And we must play our part in addressing climate change.

Welcoming the guests, who included peers, community and business leaders, policymakers, professionals, climate enthusiasts and representatives from the High Commission of India, Lord Raj Loomba CBE said, "It would be no exaggeration to say that the climate situation is dire, and we are running a race against time.

Climate change is a global phenomenon and requires global collaboration. We are making some progress to reverse the trend but there is much ground to be covered until all our goals are realised. Climate change is a threat to human well-being and the health of the planet. Taking action now can secure our future."

Warrant Officer Caroline Cooper, Astra Core Team RAF. Aiming to be the first Air Force to be Net Zero by 2040

Lord Dolar Popat delivering the thank you note

“We need to adapt and evolve the Royal Air Force to operate and deliver battle-winning capability in the future operating climate and operate beyond fossil fuels by becoming the first Air Force to be Net Zero by 2040.”

The panellists discuss Climate Change

all have an individual responsibility to the planet and a duty of care to those who are not yet born."

Summarising their views on climate change the panellists said the following to Asian Voice:

Lord Raj Loomba, delivering the welcome address and speaking on climate change

CB Patel, Editor-in-Chief of Asian Voice and Gujarat Samachar briefly shared his thoughts about Mahatma Gandhi who inspired a nation to preserve our planet and provide the coming generations with a sustainable future.

In her speech, Warrant Officer Caroline Cooper, part of the Astra Core Team, RAF, said, “Astra is the name we have given to our journey to the Next Generation Royal Air Force.

“It has many pathways. They include the big-change programmes in the core Astra themes of People, Training, Equipment, Infrastructure and Support, as well as Digital, Space

Author, playwright, and storyteller Laline Paull said, “Be The

CB Patel, Chairman ABPL and Mr Rohit Vadhwana, First Secretary (Economic), High Commission of India, London (L)

In a message to Asian Voice, Sangeeta Waldron said, “As the moderator, I set the discussion with this thought - Ancient Science from the East and other cultures has warned us all to live in sync with Mother Nature and her resources. However, in the West, we dismissed this Ancient Science as superstition. Now modern science is proving that the climate is in crisis and natural resources are rapidly depleting. Our discussion agreed on this central point - to manage this crisis we need urgent behavioural changes and mindset. We

Change means having the courage to care and to act to save nature, despite the pain and confusion we feel about the harm humanity is still causing. Being the change means seeing ourselves as interconnected and part of nature, instead of plundering. We must repay the overdraft to Mother Nature and unite our efforts to combat climate change in our personal lives as consumers, in business, and in government. Nature needs the power of Asian Voice, and she needs it now."

Alpesh Patel OBE said, “We all know that climate change is real and it's getting worse. There are a lot of things we can do to help fight it, but one of the things we can all do is reduce the consumption of beef. For instance, you could eat a meat substitute or just eat less beef. You don't have to go 'cold turkey'. You might have, say, meatless Mondays. Beef, lamb and prawns produce the most CO2 per gram of protein. Let alone consuming beef, think of the gallons of water and square feet of crop needed to feed the cows. And when you realise that everything from the clothes you wear to your commute is linked to climate, it's easy to feel overwhelmed. But don't get too stressed out about it! Just be more mindful of each activity and its impact.”

Delivering the vote of thanks, Lord Dolar Popat urged the Asian Voice and Gujarat Samachar newsweeklies to do more to raise awareness about climate change within the British Asian community.

Hitesh Patel said, “Businesses have a huge role to play as the total com-

Photo credit Raj D Bakrania PR MEDIA PIX

Dignitaries, members of the RAF and esteemed guests

Laline's latest book, POD which is out now, is a haunting tale exploring the ocean's wonders and dangers, and the cruelty and ignorance of humanity. Published by Little, Brown.

08

www.asian-voice.com

AsianVoiceNews

AsianVoiceNewsweekly

30 April - 6 May 2022

Dawn of a historic friendship Continued from page 1 Johnson visited Mahatma Gandhi’s Sabarmati Ashram in Ahmedabad, where he tried his hand at the charkha. In a note penned in the visitor’s book of Sabarmati Ashram, Johnson paid tribute to Gandhi, saying, “It is an immense privilege to come to the Ashram of this extraordinary man and to understand how he mobilised such simple principles of truth and non-violence to change the world to get better.” Johnson was also gifted a copy of the autobiography of Madeleine Slade, better known as Mirabehn, who was the daughter of a British admiral who later went on to become a disciple of Gandhi.

A visit to Swaminarayan Akshardham in Gandhinagar On Thursday, 21 April 2022, Boris

Johnson visited Swaminarayan Akshardham in Gandhinagar, the capital of Gujarat, India.

He was greeted at the ornately carved stone Mayur Dwar with a garland of flowers by Pujya Ishwarcharandas Swami, International Convenor of BAPS Swaminarayan Sanstha (BAPS), on behalf of His Holiness Mahant Swami Maharaj, the inspirer of Swaminarayan Akshardham and spiritual head of BAPS. The PM was accompanied by Gujarat Chief Minister Shri Bhupendrabhai Patel, High Commissioner of UK to India, HE Alex Ellis. Sanjay Kara from the Neasden Temple in London was also present to welcome the prime minister and his delegation.

Johnson was overwhelmed and commented, “This is the mother of all mandirs. It is the source of your wonderful mandirs across the world.”

Inside the main monument, he paid respects to the murti of Bhagwan Swaminarayan by offering flowers and admired the art and architecture. Prime Minister Johnson conveyed his best wishes for the ongoing worldwide Pramukh Swami Maharaj Centenary Celebrations and the grand 30-day festival to be held in Ahmedabad from 15 December 2022 to 13 January 2023.

Mr Johnson shared, “Every time I visit a BAPS temple I am uplifted and feel a sense of deep spirituality. All of you, by your selfless work, values and goodness, are contributing in an amazing way towards world development.”

India-UK Together The two leaders welcomed the "India/UK Together” programme, marking India’s 75th year of independence through the promotion of the rich cultural ties between both countries, and the additional fully funded scholarships which would enable 75 Indian students to study in the UK in India’s anniversary year.

"I thank PM Narendra Modi and the people of India for the grand welcome. I felt like Sachin Tendulkar upon my arrival and also like Amitabh Bachchan when I saw hoardings everywhere," he said, addressing PM Modi as his "khaas dost" (special friend).”

"I would have not gotten the same reception anywhere else in the world. It was amazing to see your (PM Modi's) home state for the first time," Johnson said.

In a press statement, Johnson further explained, “These partnerships form the superstructure of the Living Bridge that Narendra describes between our countries, and today that bridge is humming with goods and services and people and capital, whizzing back and forth east to west and sometimes it can be hard to tell whether

Prime Minister laid a wreath at Raj Ghat, the memorial to the Indian independence leader Mahatma Gandhi

something is British, or Indian or frankly Brindian.”

‘Bull-dozed’ by controversy The UK PM arrived in India amid absolute unrest in Delhi over the demolition of mainly Muslim settlements in an area of the capital hit by communal violence – an issue that is being considered by India’s supreme court. TV footage about the demolition controversy, running prominently on Indian channels, showed JCB bulldozers being used to flatten properties. At the same time, Boris visited the JCB plant in India and was pictured riding one. Netizens called him ‘Tone Deaf’ for inaugurating the JCB Plant amid the ongoing controversy.

The campaign group Amnesty India tweeted: “In the backdrop of Municipal Corporation of Delhi using JCB bulldozers to raze down shops of Muslims in north-west Delhi’s Jahangirpuri yesterday, UK prime minister’s inauguration of a JCB factory in Gujarat is not only ignorant but his silence on the incident is deafening.”

Challenged about whether he would raise the demolition controversy with Narendra Modi when he meets the Indian prime minister on Friday, Johnson said: “We always raise the difficult issues, of course, we do, but the fact is that India is a country of 1.35 billion people and it is democratic, it’s the world’s largest democracy.”

The prime minister’s official spokesperson, when asked whether Johnson had visited the company because its chairman, Anthony Bamford, is a Conservative donor, responded: “No, he chose to go to the JCB factory because it is a very good illustration of UK business, working with India and the Indian government to benefit both the UK and India.”

In a press statement, the UK PM said, “On Wednesday I went to the airport in a Range Rover - Indian-owned, but made in Britain. And when I arrived here on Thursday, I visited JCB, British-owned, but made in India. Exporting 60,000 every year around the world, 110 countries. Or take the example of the Norton Motorbike now being revived in Britain by an Indian company. I’m very pleased that this visit has not only deepened our economic partnership.

“We’ve agreed on new deals worth £1 billion, and created more than 11,000 new jobs across the UK, in everything from electric buses to the robotic surgery of Smith and Nephew which I saw yesterday as well as in artificial intelligence, where India’s strengths are remarkable. And perhaps most significantly for the long term, we are making full use of the freedom that we now have to reach a Free Trade Agreement, a deal where you can lift those tariffs – you can, India, Narendra, on our machinery and apples – actually you’ve already done it on apples so thank you for the apples and we, in turn, we can lift the tariffs on your rice and textiles.

We’ve already closed four chapters, and today we’re announcing new measures to make it easier to export UK-made medical devices to India and ensure mutual recognition of UK higher education qualifications.

“And as the next round of talks begins here next week, we are telling our negotiators: get it done by Diwali in October. Get it done by Diwali. This could double our trade and investment by the end of the decade widening that living bridge into a multi-lane motorway – pulivating with beautiful jointly made electric vehicles and creating hundreds of thousands of new jobs in both our countries.

“So as India celebrates its 75th year of

independence, I am filled countries.

Trade and Prosperity with optimism about the GIFT City years ahead and the depth of the friendship between “What people want in our countries, and the our country is for the govsecurity and prosperity ernment to get on and that our partnership can focus on issues on which deliver for our people for we were elected and that’s generations to come.” what we’re going to do,” India’s Foreign Johnson said amid massive Secretary Shri Harsh criticism for partygate.

Vardhan Shringla wel- UK PM Boris Johnson shakes hands with “I think they will be HC Gaitri Issar Kumar comed the Indian High particularly interested in Commissioner to the United Kingdom, jobs and growth in the UK – a memorandum Gayatri Issar Kumar, as well as the Joint of understanding, principles today on wind Secretary looking after Europe West division power, gigantic ambitions for more wind in the Ministry of External Affairs, Sandeep energy,” he added.

Chakravorty.

The two leaders welcomed the strong Earlier, the External Affairs Minister, Dr resilience shown by the economies of India S. Jaishankar, called on the UK Prime and the UK and the positive growth in bilatMinister. eral trade showcasing the potential to double In the bilateral talks, the two Prime trade by 2030, as envisaged in the Roadmap Ministers appreciated the progress made on 2030. They welcomed the launch of Free the Roadmap 2030 launched at the Virtual Trade Agreement (FTA) negotiations in Summit in May 2021 and reiterated their January 2022 in New Delhi. They set a target commitment to pursue more robust and to conclude the majority of talks on a comaction-oriented cooperation across the full spectrum of bilateral relations.

Ukraine Russia conflict and India’s stand Acknowledging India's strong condemnation of what happened to Ukraine's Bucha, Boris Johnson said, “Talking to Prime Minister Narendra Modi today made it clear that he has already intervened several times and I am sure this is no secret from our Indian (media) friends, he has talked to Boris Johnson spinning Charkha Vladimir Putin several times. prehensive and balanced Free Trade "What Indians want is peace and they Agreement by the end of October 2022. want Russia out. And I totally agree. And I They specifically highlighted the successthink there is a difference in balance as India ful India-UK collaborations between GIFT has a historic relationship with Russia that City (Gujarat International Finance Teceverybody understands and respects that City, India's first International Financial goes back decades.

Service Centre) and the UK's financial ser"What was so interesting about the last vices ecosystem and agreed to develop couple of days was the way in which Britain greater linkages between the two countries’ and India are being really encouraged, financial markets. They noted the successful obliged by the pressure against autocratic resolution of recent taxation issues as a poscoercion.. whether it's Russia or China or itive step to further strengthen investor conwhatever to do more together. And that is fidence on both sides. offering a huge, huge joint agenda.”

The Indian jab USD 1 billion investment through British International Investment Both Prime Ministers recalled the highly successful collaboration on the Prime Minister Modi welcomed UK's AstraZeneca/Oxford University Vaccine commitment to public finance to the tune of with the Serum Institute of India (SII).

USD 1 billion investment through British "I have the Indian jab (manufactured by International Investment (BII) (previously SII) in my arms and the power of good it did CDC Group), the UK’s Development Finance me so many thanks to India and that has Institution, into climate-related projects in helped India to become, what Narendra has India over the period of 2022-2026.

Boris speaks up on extradition cases called the 'Pharmacy of the world'," Johnson said.

Boris Johnson said that extradition cases The two leaders welcomed the launch of were stuck due to legal technicalities, on the Indian arm of the RECOVERY global being asked about Nirav Modi, Vijay Mallya clinical trial of Covid-19 therapeutics with and other Khalistani extremists. “We've set the support of the Indian Council of Medical up an anti-extremist task force to help Research, and a new UK-India partnership India...UK govt ordered extradition...We through the Fleming Fund to tackle antidon’t welcome people who want to use our microbial resistance. They welcomed recent legal system to evade the law in India," The investments by SII in the UK, which focused British PM mentioned.“We don't tolerate on vaccine research, development and manextremist groups setting up in the UK threatufacturing. ening other countries, threatening India," What’s in store for the diaspora and Indians the British PM stated that the UK governback home? ment has set up an anti-extremist task force to help India. On being asked about fugitives Both leaders celebrated the deep and Nirav Modi and Vijay Mallya who have vibrant people-to-people ties between the sought refuge in the United Kingdom, two countries, fostered by the living bridge British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said, of 1.6 million strong Indian diaspora in the "the UK government has ordered their extraUK, and agreed to further strengthen this dition". special bond. They also announced their Climate action intention to cooperate on establishing mechanisms for sharing information on Through the Global Innovation Criminal Records, preferably before March Partnership, India and UK have agreed to co2023. finance up to £ 75 million to support the With India and the UK already sharing transfer and scale-up of climate-smart susstrong trade ties, Boris Johnson indicated he tainable innovations to third countries. was ready to offer more visas to India in Prime Minister Modi invited Prime Minister return for this year clinching a free-trade Johnson to India in 2023 for G20 Summit deal that could boost annual bilateral trade under India’s Presidency. Prime Minister by billions of pounds, according to a Reuters Johnson reiterated his invitation to Prime report.

Minister Modi to visit the UK. Prime The leaders emphasised the need for Minister Modi accepted the invitation. Modi close collaboration between the higher eduand Johnson reiterated the need for develcation sectors of the two countries and weloped countries to meet their climate finance comed the ongoing efforts to establish goals including delivering on the $100bn and transnational education programmes in both doubling adaptation finance by 2025.

AsianVoiceNews

AsianVoiceNewsweekly

www.asian-voice.com

09 30 April - 6 May 2022

Yasmin Hussain and Harleen Kaur confirmed as Batonbearers for Birmingham 2022 Queen's Baton Relay Shefali Saxena Harleen Kaur from Bradford and Yasmin Hussain from London have both been chosen to be Batonbearers for the Birmingham 2022 Commonwealth Games. They were both recently was invited to an exclusive early look at the Alexander Stadium in Birmingham, the venue for the Opening Ceremony of the Games, which is where the Relay will end on 28 July 2022.

Harleen is a martial artist and kickboxing champion who was the first British Asian Female to represent England at Kickboxing World Championships. Every year, she visits India to volunteer to work with children.

Speaking to the newsweekly, Harleen said: “It is such an honour to have been selected as a Batonbearer and to represent Yorkshire in the Queen’s Baton Relay. It feels so special to be recognised in this way for supporting the women in my area and the work I’ve done in India supporting the local communities there.”

From Bradford, Harleen Kaur is a martial artist and kickboxing champion. She is a fan-

Harleen Kaur

tastic representative in sport for her country and women in the South Asian community.

As a young girl, Harleen’s passion for sport shone brightly and she went on to successfully compete in kickboxing and also coach at a high level, helping those who have faced barriers in accessing sport.

As a competitor, Harleen won British kickboxing gold in 2015, followed by silver in the World Martial Kombat Championships. She was the first British Asian female to represent England in kickboxing in the world championships.

Harleen is also a keen volunteer, dedicat-

Inaugural Indo Pacific Dialogue Event hosted by Indo-Pacific APPG The inaugural Indo-Pacific Dialogue was hosted by the Indo-Pacific APPG in the UK parliament on 19th April 2022. This was the first physical event held in the parliament complex after the opening of the Covid restrictions. The purpose of this event was to explore the geopolitical situations within the Indo-Pacific region covering opportunities & challenges arising from the geopolitical manoeuvring of the regional and extra-regional powers.

The objective also was to introduce Indo-Pacific as a concept to the UK parliamentarians and build knowledge and empower MPs to have relevant conversations and influence the British government to play a more engaging role in the IndoPacific alliance. The keynote speakers at the event were Mr James Rogers, Co-Founder & Director of Research at the Council on Geostrategy & Prof. Alessio Patalano, Sr Lecturer, War Studies, Kings College London. Both speakers provided deep insight into the various dimensions of the Indo-Pacific region, including the boundaries covered, the maritime dimensions, geo-polity and military and geo-strategy of the region.

The speakers stressed the importance for the UK to play a more active and supporting role along with the regional players

like India to balance the power equation and maintain stability in the region. The inaugural event was chaired by the IndoPacific APPG chair MP Bob Blackman and attendees also included Labour MP Navendu Mishra, Lord Rami Ranger and host facilities courtesy MP Theresa May. Several civil society members, representatives from FCDO and university professors were in attendance.

This was the first such event in the UK parliament and the Indo-Pacific APPG intends to continue engaging with Parliamentarians and subject matter experts to mainstream this discourse and ensure there is more traction around IndoPacific and this becomes a key pillar of the UK’s foreign policy in coming years.

Ex-Tower Hamlets Mayor denies fears of wrongdoing Ex-Tower Hamlets Mayor Lutfur Rahman porters talking about care workers “collectwho was removed from office as mayor of ing” votes for the campaign at an event the East London borough in 2015 and with Rahman. banned from standing for office for five Rahman rejected any suggestion of years after a civil court found him guilty of wrongdoing. corrupt and illegal practices, is all set to run for office again.

Permitted to run again, he will be standing as the Aspire candidate in Imran Ahmed Khan who was expelled from the Tory party the race for mayor of the after he was found guilty of sexually assaulting a 15-year-old borough in elections that boy is being urged by local Tories to keep his promise of will take place on May 5. resigning from his Westminster seat, and has still not Alongside incumbent resigned.

Labour mayor John Biggs, The family of Imran Ahmad Khan have also been asked to Rahman is considered one intervene to ensure that he goes through with his promise to of the frontrunners. stand down in the Wakefield seat which he won from Labour However, some are raising at the last election. concerns already.

MPs who want to resign must write to the Treasury to A video surfaced in begin the process, however, it is understood that no such letApril which showed one of ter has yet been received. the former mayor’s sup-

MP convicted of sexually molesting boy, 15, yet to resign

Yasmin Hussain

ing every summer to visits to Punjab in North India, supporting a sports charity, teaching life skills, English and self-defence. Driven by her passion to give back to communities, she also works as an ambassador for Sporting Equals and the Asian Sports Foundation who promote diversity within sport.

Harleen is a Batonbearer in recognition of her work within sports that brings South Asian women and women from other backgrounds to the forefront of sporting activity and athletics.

Yasmin is a football coach, completing the female-only FA level one coaching course. She has become the lead development coach at her club and now an FA community mentor for female coaches.

As a football coach, Yasmin's advice is, “If women like me want to pursue a sport as a career, I would encourage it as long as they are passionate enough about it. There will be times when you feel there isn’t enough support around you and can be difficult but if you always remember why you decided to pursue it as a career and always keep your intention right then just keep going.

For me it was to give girls opportunities I didn’t have, and I reminded myself in difficult times in my journey that to make a change I need to keep going and one of the reasons for my successful journey is my passion for want-

ing to make a change and to help break barriers for female in football, especially in the south Asian community. If the passion is there then defiantly, I will encourage them to go for it.”

Yasmin feels that there has been a massive change in the South Asian mentality. “The people who used to talk negatively about me playing football are now praising the work I do and asking me to coach children in their families,” she said.

“Also, the work I do is evident that there has been a change in the community. I have over 60 girls on a Monday night at training at Frenford &MSA WFC a club based in Redbridge. we have 3 teams playing competitive football in the Super 5 Women league. I have recruited 30 coaches from the south Asian community to help with the growth of females joining the club, 16 are actively coaching. If the mindset didn’t change then we wouldn’t see the growth of females from South Asian communities getting involved in football. There is still so much to do, we need more visible role models across the UK for the younger generation, but I can see it going in a positive direction,” Yasmin added.

Yasmin said that it was an absolute honour and privilege to be selected to represent London as a Batonbearer. 8000 Batonbeares applied and 2022 were selected and then 9 were chosen from 2022 for the unveiling.

“Being one of the 9, is an amazing feeling and I am grateful that my journey and the work I do has been recognised as inspirational. It’s a once in a lifetime opportunity and I just feel blessed that I have been chosen to be part of the amazing experience,” she told us.

“Being able to carry the Queens Batton to represent my community is an amazing feeling. Looking forward to carrying the Queen’s Baton with pride,” Yasmin added.

10

www.asian-voice.com

AsianVoiceNews

AsianVoiceNewsweekly

30 April - 6 May 2022

Screening of Gandhi & Co. Mintoo & Mitra (Both 11 Year Old) are known for two things, firstly their collective potential towards mischief and secondly for their legendary friendship with Bharat Bhai. The boys are clever but scrupulous and our old man is an embodiment of all the teachings of Gandhi.

Venue: Rich Mix Producer: Mahesh Danannavar Date: 7th May, Saturday Time: 5pm An unexpected happening corners Mintoo ( a Superhero Jango fan ) into proclaiming Mahatma Gandhi as his role model. Mintoo soon starts mimicking Gandhi’s behaviour but he is nowhere close to imbibing Gandhi’s values. His deceiving ways are fetching him rewards but little does he know how these ways are pushing him into troubled waters.

Bharat Bhai takes it upon himself to teach the unprincipled boys a valuable lesson in honesty & harmony. Can these contrasting personalities work towards complementing each other? How will Bharat Bhai catalyst this change? As he rolls up his sleeves to watch events unfold all he can hear is the voice of Gandhi saying “In a gentle way you can shake the world”.

Washing dirty linen in public The recent visit of our PM Boris Johnson to India was one of the most important visits to India by any British politician since India’s independence in 1947. No wonder he was followed by hordes of journalists, both from print media and TV channels.

But one may wonder about the honesty, intelligence and integrity of these journalists who were more interested in asking questions to the PM about the “Partygate” incidents rather than the importance of this visit which may change the commercial and business relations between these two industrial giants. This was akin to washing dirty linen in public where Indian people could not understand the importance of party-gate affairs which has nothing to do with either India or singing a trade deal.

India has a vibrant economy growing at the fastest rate in the world and will become the third-largest economy in the world in less than three decades, with some 7% annual growth, even faster than that of China, where lack of democracy helps China to advance at phenomenal speed without any restrictions no democratic nations could match!

I was surprised at the cool and calmness of the PM who tried to answer their questions when he should have told them bluntly that they should ask these questions when I am back in London. Let us concentrate on making a success of this most important mission in our industrial history, as leaving the EU, losing the biggest market on our door-steps makes the success of this trip vital, a priority!

No wonder Britain is considered the worst govern nation in Europe, where freedom of speech and expression takes priority over national interest and even national security. Our meddling in Ukraine has created the worst economic crisis since the end of WW2, with inflation touching 7%, queues outside food banks lengthening and children going to bed on a glass of water, while our PM is wasting billions in aid to Ukraine to prolong the war, the money badly needed at home to keep hunger at bay!

Bhupendra M. Gandhi

Time to wake up to natural disasters It is extremely disturbing to know the latest warnings issued by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change [IPCC] about climate change-induced natural disasters up ahead.

Post the latest climate change report released by the IPCC, almost all the media outlets have been highlighting the key takeaways from the report.

From Time Magazine To The New York Times to CNN to almost all the Asian media houses, the global media outlets have gone into detail about issues like climate change, global warming, sea-level rise and the like. Overall, it is all about human activities that have been the major driver of all these natural disasters.

First off, countries from across the world should take serious and immediate steps to reduce the emissions of methane and carbon dioxide that have been the major contributors to the climate change crisis. But given the latest findings and current erratic weather patterns like intense tropical storms, it is amply clear that no concrete steps have been taken worldwide to reduce carbon dioxide and methane emissions.

On all these official occasions, the IPCC Climate Change reports have often been talking about sensible things like planting trees and developing forests as part of fighting the climate change issue. Interestingly enough, my native areas such as Korkai, Tuticorin, Tiruchendur, Nagercoil, Kanyakumari, Marthandam and Tirunelveli in Tamil Nadu have been hubs of natural resources like big trees, rivers, seas, mountains and other natural vistas apart from having been home to rigorous agricultural activities like crop cultivation. As a matter of fact, such green activities and natural canopies will definitely act as a protective layer against the so-called greenhouse effect.

On top of all, public awareness is crucial to the fight against climate change. In fact, great efforts by green activists like Greta Thunberg towards climate change mitigation should be encouraged and appreciated. Efforts like communicating all the IPCC climate change findings to people through proper channels and raising global/public awareness of climate change problems will go the extra mile to pitch for a strong fight against the issue so as to be able to save our beautiful planet.

P. Senthil Saravana Durai Mumbai, India

Ominous signs The rapid rise in the number of Covid-19 cases in several states of India is a cause for concern. It was a hasty decision by the government to relax the Covid-19 restrictions in some states of the country. Covid-19 can spread when people breathe, talk, cough, or sneeze. A well-fitting mask keeps the virus from reaching others. It can also protect the wearer from getting infected. Also, masks stop people from touching their mouths and faces — contaminated hands are another way for the virus to spread. Even if you have taken all three doses of the vaccine, keep wearing your mask.

Jubel D'Cruz, Mumbai, India

BBC’s blatant bias BBC bias comes up repeatedly. Whenever a high-profile figure visits India, the main thing that BBC news cover is the Far-Right fraternity. BBC did it again during their coverage of Boris Johnson's visit to India. They did the same when Trump visited India. Most of the coverage was about the FarRight extremists in India. Far-Right groups are in all countries, not just in India. India is a lot more than its Far Right.

The news covered the plight of Muslims only. Why does the BBC choose to ignore the plight of all other religions or the progress that India has made since independence? The BBC should present a balanced coverage and not just focus on one minority issue in India over and over again. I am sure BBC has had complaints before about this, but despite that, it chooses to report with this blatant left bias. We are not doing enough to stop this.

Hansa Pankhania UK

Refugees: Kith and Kin The current Ukrainian refugee crisis has clearly demonstrated how strong and deep the kith and kin feelings run in human beings. Countries such as Poland, Hungary and others in Eastern Europe have opened their hearts and homes to the refugees fleeing the war in Ukraine. But the very same countries had closed their borders and put up fences to stop refugees from Syria, Afghanistan, Yemen and other nonEuropean countries from crossing into their countries, just a few months ago. This clearly shows the difference in treatment based on race, religion and nationality and is something for humanity to reflect on. It seems to me that the kith and kin feelings run very deep in Europe (and perhaps elsewhere if we are honest about it).

Humanity tends to be more welcoming to those that they consider being one of their own.

Dinesh Rai

Britain shying away to make autonomous emergency braking compulsory Meera Naran who lost her son Dev when a lorry crashed into his grandfather's car in 2018 is campaigning with AA and is urging transport secretary Grant Shapps to make autonomous emergency braking (AEB) compulsory by adopting legislation that she is calling Dev’s Law. According to Thatcham Research, the motor insurance industry’s research centre, it is the safest technology which automatically slows down or stops a vehicle if its driver fails to respond to the threat of a collision and this could save about 110 lives a year. Also, it will prevent a further 12,300 casualties on Britain’s roads.

From July 6, it will become compulsory in the EU and Northern Ireland but there are no plans to implement it in Great Britain.

•

Kapil Dudakia

Kapil’s KHICHADI Arc of Evil

President George W Bush in his State of the Union address on January 29, 2002, used the phrase ‘axis of evil’, naming in particular Iran, Iraq, and North Korea.

The ‘arc of evil’ is a phrase that I am coining and is made up of the west, China, the Middle East, and Russia.

They compete to stamp their authority in multiple spheres including economics, trade, energy, commodities, defence, and in writing history that best suits their own narrative.

The west is governed by their white imperialistic nature which fuels their need to conquer and loot nations across the world. The Middle East is overpowered by Islamists who see it as their duty to convert, conquer, or kill all ‘kaffirs’ in their pursuit to establish a caliphate. You then have nations such as Russia and China, both coming from a different history, but both wanting to make sure that the west is checked before it becomes unstoppable.

And then you have India, a nation that for 1500 years has been used, abused, and invaded by multiple entities. Each invader destroying a part of the heritage of Bharat by their brutality and by committing ethnocide against Hindus and Indic people.

The Christianists are devious, they infiltrate nations from within by using the ethnocide tool. In India we see Christianists paying vulnerable families thousands of Rupees to convert – it seems their God does have a price after all.

The Muslim community has been plagued by Islamists who have created genuine fear across the world. However, they have managed to play the victim card and gain very powerful support from the political left, from academia and from the liberal media. They have spent billions of dollars to whitewash their crimes. Case in question, Qatar with the football world cup, Saudi Arabia hosting world title boxing, buying up football clubs, hosting Formula 1 racing and the list goes on.

China has used an intelligent method, basically to buy out the world and to become the production centre for anything. Whilst 70% of its population lives behind a wall of subserviency, the elite in urban centres use the state power to infiltrate every global and national body of significance. Whilst they commit the cultural genocide of 1 million Uyghur Muslims, the world stands by in their indifference and duplicity.

Winston Churchill on 5 March 1946 first used the term, ‘iron curtain’ to denote the separation of western Europe from Russia and its satellite allied nations. In 1991 the ‘iron curtain’ came down. That was on the understanding that NATO would maintain distance and not threaten Russia. The west broke the unwritten understanding and today Ukraine is being destroyed by both sides who wish to make a point.

The ‘arc of evil’ is a composite of these independent cabals. Today, each attempting to undermine India via the media, and by buying out academia and global institutions. India is a democratic nation of 1.3 billion with an unmatched dharmic history of love, peace, and non-violence. Today we witness unwarranted attacks on it from the east, the west, and the compromised faiths. The antiIndia cabal use their poisonous tentacles strategically. For example, over the past few years politicians like Tan Dhesi, Preet Gill, some Pakistani Labour MPs assisted by other Labour MPs have taken every opportunity to attack India and PM Modi with their fake outrage. Recently we witnessed Tan Dhesi meet Ilhan Omar the US Congresswoman and well-known sympathiser of extremists. Tan has also been anti-India on Kashmir, trumpeting the Pakistani position whenever he gets a chance (as well as the Khalistani extremists). So, we should not be surprised when last week Ilhan Omar visited Pakistan occupied Kashmir (PoK) without permission of the Indian government. In effect, she trespassed on Indian soil which should be unacceptable to President Biden, if he has any common sense. As long as PM Modi maintains his nerve and commands his foreign office and consulates around the world to be proactive and give a bloody nose to anyone who dares to undermine the nation, India will do fine.

Thanks to PM Johnson, there is now an agreement which will target Khalistani extremists in the UK. India now needs to be equally proactive in bringing to justice such extremists. The highest calling of leadership is to challenge the status quo and unlock the potential of others. PM Modi will lead the resurgence of this great nation India and unlock its potential once again.

We are grateful to all letter writers for more and more versatile letters well within word limit. Please keep contributing as always. If you are new, then write to Shefali at shefali.saxena@abplgroup.com

AsianVoiceNews

AsianVoiceNewsweekly

11

www.asian-voice.com

30 April - 6 May 2022

Boris Johnson makes “historic” visit to India

Ruchi Ghanashyam Mrs. Ruchi Ghanashyam is the former High Commissioner of India to the UK. With a career in Indian Foreign Service for over 38 years, she has been posted in many countries including South Africa, Ghana, before arriving in the UK. She was only the second woman High Commissioner to the UK since India’s independence and during her tenure, she witnessed a number of significant developments in the UK-India relations. @RuchiGhanashyam UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson made an official visit to India at the invitation of Indian PM Narendra Modi on 21-22 April 2022. With 75 years of India-UK relations and Azadi ka Amrit Mahotsav being marked now, the visit was termed “historic” by PM Modi.

The visit came a year after the virtual summit between the two leaders in May 2021. It provided an opportunity to review progress on the India-UK Roadmap 2030 launched last year.

The two leaders resolved to advance the India-UK ties which were upgraded to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership earlier. A comprehensive joint statement was issued following the meeting. A separate UK-India joint cyber statement was also issued.

Prior to arriving in Delhi, PM Johnson stopped in Ahmedabad, Gujarat, becoming the first Conservative PM to visit Gujarat.

Apart from business meetings, he visited the Gujarat Biotech University at Gift City and the Akshardham Temple.

During the visit, both sides committed to strengthening defence and security cooperation and agreed to work together to meet new threats across land, sea, air space and cyber domains. The UK also came forward to partner with India on new fighter jet technology as well as in the maritime sphere to detect and respond to threats in the oceans. In order to support greater defence and security collaboration with India over the coming decade, PM Johnson announced that the UK will issue an Open General Export Licence (OGEL) to India, to reduce bureaucracy and shorten delivery times for defence procurement.

This is the UK's first OGEL in the IndoPacific region.

The visit provided an opportunity for the two PMs to review the progress of negotiations for the free trade agreement (FTA). PM Johnson urged the negotiators to try and close the deal by the third quarter of this year. PM Modi said that "good progress" was being made in the negotiations for the FTA and recalled that both sides have decided to do their best to close the pact by the end of this year. He said that in the last few months, India has concluded Free Trade Agreements with UAE and Australia, and

urged that the FTA with the UK be negotiated at the same pace and with the same commitment.

There was considerable concern in the Indian media, prior to the visit, about how the two sides would bridge their different of approaches to the Ukraine crisis. Shortly before arriving in Delhi, the official spokesman of the UK PM stated that the UK would not be seeking to lecture or try to persuade India on one position or another.

Reiterating India’s stance on the crisis, PM Modi spoke of the call for an immediate ceasefire; for resolution through dialogue and diplomacy; and for respect for the territorial integrity and sovereignty of all countries. Both countries emphasised the need to maintain a free, open, inclusive and rulesbased order in the Indo-Pacific.

The two prime ministers discussed cooperation on clean and renewable energy to support India's energy transition from imported oil to more sustainable energy.

The two sides launched a virtual Hydrogen Science and Innovation hub to accelerate affordable green hydrogen. They also

Downing Street parties: Chancellor Rishi Sunak 'extremely and sincerely sorry' Chancellor Rishi Sunak said he is "extremely and sincerely sorry" after receiving a fine for attending a lockdown-busting gathering for the PM's birthday. He also denied that he had considered resigning after receiving the fixed penalty notice from the Metropolitan Police.

The Metropolitan Police issued the chancellor, the prime minister and his wife Carrie Johnson, a fixedpenalty notice for breaching COVID rules over the event on 19 June 2020.

Speaking in Washington, where he will be attending the spring meeting of the IMF, Mr Sunak apologised.

"I paid the fixed penalty notice straight away and I am extremely and sincerely sorry for the hurt and the

anger that this has caused so many people.

"I have always acted, I believe, in good faith in regard to what I said to parliament."

Asked if he had considered resigning, he replied: "No. I am focused on getting on with the job I have got to do."

This comes as the PM prepares himself to face a parliamentary investigation into whether he lied to MPs about Downing Street parties during the coronavirus lockdowns.

British woman accused of killing her husband with the help of her lover

unveiled plans for the Green Grids Initiative announced at the Glasgow COP26.

PM Johnson also said that both countries focussed on the partnership as science superpowers. PM Johnson appreciated the collaboration between Oxford university/Astra-Zeneca and the Serum Institute of India, which had helped vaccinate more than a billion people against Covid, including himself, and established India’s reputation as the pharmacy to the world. He announced that the two countries would now embark on joint initiatives on malaria vaccines. He spoke of a focus on antimicrobial resistance, and a digital partnership between the Indian National Health Authority and UK’s NHS. New deals worth £1 billion were announced by the UK PM. One of these was £6.9mn to train Indian doctors in acute medicine: an advanced Post Graduate Program in Primary Care and Acute

A British woman Yasneer Kausar, 65, has been held in prison in Pakistan after being accused of having a lover murder her 65-yearold husband, Mohammad Farooq, in exchange for a chance to live in the UK. She has been accused of his death by strangling by two younger men, one of which was her lover, at the family's Pakistan home in a town near Rawalpindi in Punjab.

After the death of the husband's younger brother, the couple, which hold both British and Pakistani passports, reportedly travelled to Pakistan.

They have a sprawling £1.5million home in Leeds, West Yorks, while the late

husband is the director of a British property firm.

On April 1, Mr Farooq’s body was found in a burnt down car in a rubbish dump in Morgah, near Islamabad.

Police arrested Mrs Kausar earlier this month and charged her with hiring two men to kill her husband.

She is currently being

held in prison in the country and a court hearing is expected to take place on April 30 where it is thought she will enter a plea.

Meanwhile, Mrs Kausar's son, Sajid Bashir, has launched a petition pleading for his mother's innocence and asking the British government to monitor her welfare in prison.

NCGO UK Proudly presents Gujarat Day Celebrations Zoom: Meeting ID: 886 4966 2961 Passcode: ncgouk Date: Sunday 1st May 2022 Time: 5pm UK • 9.30pm India

Medicine designed by Ujala Cygnus Healthcare Group in collaboration with BAPIO (British Association of Physicians of Indian Origin) Training Academy will recruit and enroll a group of 20 interested doctors in MSc in Acute Medicine each year to provide them with knowledge, hands-on clinical training and bedside medicine by local faculty, topped up virtually by UKbased faculty, with a visit to NHS Hospitals in the UK for six weeks for first-hand experience. This would upskill MBBS doctors in India and help bring in UK based best practices, in a practical demonstration of the Living Bridge that brings the two countries closer.

From defence and security, to trade, investment, science, energy and healthcare, the visit opened new vistas in many areas, setting the ground for closer India-UK ties.

Chief Guest Shri Parshottam Rupala Minister of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying

Live Music Alka Thakur and Band

Anchor: Dhirubhai Gadhvi

Supported by Gujarat Samachar & GCS Brighton

Join us to celebrate

12

www.asian-voice.com

AsianVoiceNews

AsianVoiceNewsweekly

30 April - 6 May 2022

SCRUTATOR’S An air hostess' moving farewell message An Indigo flight attendant teared up while addressing the passengers on her last working day. Speaking on the public announcement system in the aircraft, she thanked each and every flier. She said she doesn't want to leave the company but she will have to move on.

The video showed the woman fighting back tears as she spoke about her time at the company. “I don't want to go, but I have to go,” she said. “I don't know what to say," she said as she paused for a while and then thanked her company for taking care of their employees, "especially we girls. Thank you, everyone. I thank every one of you who flies with us.

Because of you, we get salaries on time, or before time just like our flights,” she added.

Several users, on the social media platform, have identified the flight attendant as Surabhi.

“You were an amazing crew, Surabhi. more than that you are an amazing human. You are so kind and humble. You made everyone around you comfortable. I have never seen you without a smile on your face. You are so positive, keep going, all the best. I also missed flying with you, but still got a lot of beautiful memories with you,” said a user. (Agency) Mother bird guarding eggs from excavator

Reams of literature have been dedicated to the unconditional love of mothers and the myriad shades of motherhood. So when a video displaying the strength of a determined mother turned up on social media, it went viral in no time. And this is no ordinary mother. It is, in fact, a bird striving to protect her eggs in the face of what appears to be imminent danger. The video has also found a fan in industrialist Anand Mahindra, who has shared the clip on his Twitter timeline. The Chairman of Mahindra Group has uploaded the clip with a single line caption, “Maa Tujhe Salaam (Mother, salutations to you).” The video features a bird trotting around her eggs and brooding. Soon enough, an excavator is passing through the mud road and moving dangerously close to the eggs. As soon as this happens, the bird begins to chirp loudly in an attempt to prevent the vehicle from running over the eggs. Even as the excavator continues to approach the eggs, the bird keeps chirping, expanding its wings. The excavator continues moving back and forth, with the avian chirping all along. Finally, the excavator moves away from the bird and its eggs. Replying to the post, one user said, “No one can give love and affection like a mother.” (Agency)

‘Space bricks’ for Mars developed

In what holds the potential of aiding construction of future settlements in Mars, a team from the Indian Institute of Science (IISc) and Isro has developed a technique to make “space bricks” using Martian Simulant Soil (MSS). The team led by Aloke Kumar, associate professor at IISc’s mechanical engineering department, has demonstrated that Microbial Induced Calcite Precipitation (MICP) - where, under right conditions can create bricks using MSS. Apart from Aloke, the team comprises Rashmi

Dikshit, Nitin Gupta and Koushik Viswanathan from the IISc, and Arjun Dey from Isro’s UR Rao Satellite Centre.

All five members were also part of a team that developed “space bricks” using lunar simulant soil (LSS) in February 2018. In their latest findings, the team has reported creation of bricks using both LSS and MSS. In layman’s terms, bacteria are very versatile organisms and certain species are capable of bio-mineralisation - a process by which living organisms produce minerals to harden or stiffen existing tissues - which was exploited to make these bricks. (The Times of India)

Lifer for mother who flung her baby girl A sessions court in Mumbai sentenced to life imprisonment a mother who had killed her month-old daughter by plunging her out of the window of KEM hospital 12 years ago. Dipika Parmar, who had been out on bail since 2010, had told the court that she was suffering from “postpartum disorder” at the time of the incident. Parmar had prematurely delivered twins - a girl and a boy - in October 2010. The prosecution said Parmar killed the girl who was seriously ill and needed ICU treatment which would have cost the mother Rs 200. Since she did not have the the money to get the child treated at the ICU, she threw her daughter through the window of the hospital. After being called to the witness box, Parmar was informed that she had been found guilty of the murder of her daughter. Besides murder, the judge also found Parmar guilty of the charge relating to abandoning a child. (Agency)

DGCA grounds aircraft over shabby cabin The Directorate General of Civil Aviation (DGCA) in an unusual step ordered SpiceJet to ground an aircraft after a passenger tweeted pictures of its shabby interiors. The passenger said some cabin panels were broken or missing, there were a few loose window frames, and many seats were dirty or torn. The DGCA asked the airline to operate it only after carrying out the necessary repairs in the cabin. This is for the first time the DGCA has asked an airline to take action after a passenger flying a SpiceJet Boeing 737 from Bengaluru to Guwahati took pictures of the aircraft cabin and tweeted them, tagging the DGCA. A team of regulatory officials conducted a surprise inspection of the aircraft and, soon, the budget airline received an order to fly the aircraft only after carrying out the required repairs. The airline was asked to ground the aircraft for necessary maintenance action,” people in the know said. (Agency)

Photo of filter coffee shocks the internet

the 0001 number plates began at Rs 500,000. (Agency)

Female elephant gives birth to twins

A Chennai-based artist painted a hyper realistic tumbler of filter coffee with a newspaper in the background and several twitter users reacted with glowing praise. While most Indians are very particular about their Chai, there are enough people in the country who also would prefer a nice hot cup of filter coffee to start their day. Filter Coffee served in a steel tumbler is a staple in most households. Therefore when twitter user @VforVendakka posted a picture titled “I painted filter coffee”, most users thought this was her morning cup of caffeine.

However, on closer inspection, the internet was shocked to learn that this picture was indeed a portrait drawn by the user herself. The Chennai-based artist painted this hyper realistic setting with a newspaper in the background and several twitter users reacted with glowing praise.

She even shared a time-lapse video of her drawing the hyper-realistic drawing for any naysayer or people doubting her skill.

(Agency)

In a rare occurrence, a female elephant gave birth to twins at Bandipur Tiger Reserve in Karnataka earlier this week. The forest officials said that some tourists came across a herd of elephants, including one pregnant female in labour, struggling to give birth. The elephant, unable to stand any longer, stepped into a nearby water body. Soon, the mother elephant was found coming out of the pond with two calves. According to the Society for the Protection of Animals Abroad, elephants have a one-in-a-million chance of bearing twins, with the majority of twin births happening in wild African elephants. In their lifespan, they can have four to five offspring. In September last year, Sri Lanka's main elephant orphanage recorded a rare twin birth as a 25-year-old named Surangi delivered healthy male calves. They were the first elephant twins born in captivity in Sri Lanka since 1941, elephant expert Jayantha Jayewardene said.

(Agency)

Man buys VIP license plate for Rs 15,00,000

Testing milk quality at your doorstep

A man from Chandigarh has spent more than Rs 15,00,000 for a super VIP number plate to put on his scooter that costs Rs 71,000. Brij Mohan recently bought the elusive number plate ending with 0001 at an auction held by the Chandigarh Registering and Licensing Authority. This follows Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar's announcement that the government would put certain ‘special' number plates out for auction to generate extra revenue for the state. Mohan who runs an advertising agency spent Rs 15,44,000 at the government auction to secure the number 0001. He revealed that he bought this special number plate for a future vehicle he plans to buy around Diwali in 2022. Until then, however, the VIP license plate will sit on top of his Honda Activa Scooter. The Chandigarh Registering and Licensing Authority had put a total of 378 license plates up for sale at an auction and has generated close to £150,000 in additional revenue. The number plate that ends with 0001 is currently being used in 179 government vehicles out of which 4 of them are owned by the Chief Minister of Haryana himself. The CM decided to give up these license plates and the bidding for

Now you can test the quality of the milk at your doorstep. This nanotechnology-based dipstick to detect adulterants in milk has been developed by Amreli’s College of Dairy Science affiliated with Kamdhenu University. This device can instantly detect eight kinds of adulterants in milk. Such is its efficacy that the tool has secured the tops pot among 1,974 participants from across the country in the recently held national-level ‘Kritagya Hackathon 2.0’ competition organized by the Indian Council of Agriculture Research (ICAR). The college has applied for registration of a patent and once it gets the patent, the college will transfer this technology for commercial production.

The cost of a dipstick is just one rupee.

There are 20 types of adulterants including starch, urea, detergent, maltodextrin, neutraliser, boric acid, hydrogen peroxide, and ammonium sulphate among many other impurities. Dean of the varsity and principal of the dairy science college, V M Ramani, who has developed this technology said: “The unique feature of this technology is its ease of use, instant result, low cost, and that it needs no expertise and can be used by all and sundry - from households to the district milk cooperative level.” (The Times of India)

AsianVoiceNews

AsianVoiceNewsweekly

13

www.asian-voice.com

30 April - 6 May 2022

Local Council Elections: Cost of living remains paramount agenda Continued from page 1

Voters in England, Wales, and Scotland will pick who they want to run services that affect everyday life in their local area. People in Northern Ireland will choose its government.

Media reports suggest that the results are likely to reflect how people feel about Boris Johnson, the "partygate" scandal, how Covid has been handled and the rising cost of living.”

Speaking about the importance of local council elections, Kanti Nagda MBE told Asian Voice, “Local elections, taking place every four years, gives voters the opportunity to express their opinions on how things are run in their local area. People consider planning permission, crime, transport, and climate change thus giving chances for the prospective candidates to address these issues. In addition to these, we are facing a cost-of-living crisis, as inflation rises, energy bills soar, and fuel prices spike. All citizens from the UK, the Commonwealth and the EU who are aged 18 and over on the day of the election and are living in the area are eligible to vote in the local elections provided they have registered with the local registrar. It is every citizen’s duty to perform the civic right by going out on 5.5.2022 and putting a cross on a ballot paper.”

East London Labour stronghold According to Evening Standard, at the last local elections in 2018 Labour had their best results in 45 years in London, securing control of 21 of the capital’s 32 borough councils and winning every single seat on three councils. One of those councils was Barking and Dagenham, which Labour has controlled since the borough’s formation in 1965.

Despite campaigning on the issue during a by-election in the

Priti Patel 'to be appointed Tory chairman'?

In a bid to revive the party's fortunes in the wake of an expected drubbing at next month’s local elections, Boris Johnson might appoint Priti Patel as Tory chairman, who is currently unpopular amongst Tories for her role.

The PM is planning to move her to a different role in a summer reshuffle. It is believed that Ms Patel and Home Office civil servants have a toxic relationship.

According to the source, the PM considers Ms Patel as ‘ideal’ to help the Government move on from the Partygate row and to lead the party as it gears up for a General Election expected in two years’ time.

Thames ward last year following the resignation of Labour councillor Bill Turner, Labour retained the seat with 42.4 per cent of the vote.

Like voters across London and the country, those in Barking and Dagenham will Baljeet Gill who is standing for the local elections likely also be factoring the cost in North Heath on May 5th and Labour Party of living crisis into their decicolleagues sion.

Labour MP for Sheffield While Barking and Dagenham Heeley and Shadow Secretary of Council agreed a 1.99 per cent State for Transport tweeted that increase to council tax bills last the victim of disgraced Wakefield month, it still represents one of the MP Imran Ahmad Khan called the smaller increases across London.

Conservatives days before his Half of London’s boroughs have election detailing first-hand agreed council tax increases of 2.99 reports of child sexual assault. It per cent – the maximum allowed is horrifying no action was by the Government. taken.” She shared a letter she Andy Burnham calls for ‘complete wrote to Chairman of the rewiring of Britain’ Conservative Party, Oliver Greater Manchester Mayor Dowden on the serious questions Andy Burnham has called for a he must answer. “complete rewiring of Britain” and Dowden shared photos camits political system – including the paigning in Newcastle and tweetintroduction of proportional reped, “It’s Conservatives who keep resentation (PR) for general eleccouncil taxes low, and deliver bettions and wholesale reform of the ter local services.”

House of Lords.

Tories are set to lose 800 council Burnham has highlighted the seats, poll indicates cost of train services from Meanwhile, Telegraph excluManchester to London – pointing sively reported that Tories are set out that an open return ticket costs to lose 800 council seats – and Sir more than a flight to India, Keir Starmer on course to be PM Jamaica, Brazil and the Ivory Coast. in 2024. “Pollsters Electoral The Greater Manchester Calculus and Find Out Now are Mayor said that “all parts of the forecasting a five per cent swing north need substantial regional from the Tories to Labour at the devolution” in order to fulfil the local elections in England and Government’s promise of levellingWales on May 5. If replicated at a up left-behind areas of the country. general election, the figures sug“The House of Lords needs to gest Labour would emerge as the be an elected senate of the nations largest party in Parliament, 15 and regions,” he continued.

MPs short of an overall majority “And I would turn House of and probably reliant on a powerCommons elections into a proporsharing deal with the SNP to form tional representation system. a government,” the publication Every MP is fighting for their small reported. constituency, and it prevents peoTheir report categorically ple from acting across a broad mentioned that Electoral region. I would like to see MPs Calculus and Find Out Now elected more on a regional basis found the Tories are likely to lose than on a constituency basis.”

Comedian had to cut joke about Rishi Sunak owing to decline in his popularity The comedian Nish Kumar,36, who is currently touring his live comedy show Your Power, Your Control, with shows coming up across the UK throughout the summer, said that he had to axe a joke about Chancellor Rishi Sunak from the live set as ‘everyone hates him now’.

‘I had a whole bit about Rishi Sunak being the beneficiary of culturally lowered expectations,’ he said.

‘But now, literally in the last week, that joke doesn’t work anymore because everyone f***ing hates him now.

He added: ‘That joke literally no longer works.’

Kumar's new show is a mixup of comedy with politics, the format he didn't give up even after he was booed offstage after making a Brexit joke in 2019.

Sunak who once endured popularity throughout his time as Chancellor, even being dubbed as 'Dishy Rishi' by some, now is facing criticism owing to the Partygate fiasco, the soaring cost of living and his multi-millionaire wife’s controversial tax arrangement.

Virendra Sharma MP seeks private renter experiences MP for Ealing, Southall, Virendra Sharma, has partnered with the campaign organisation Generation Rent to launch a new private renter project in the constituency. Together they are seeking to include the full range of experiences of private renters in Ealing, Southall.

Virendra Sharma MP said: “I hear from private renters in the

most terrible of situations.

People who have been forced to endure terrible conditions, criminal behaviour from their landlords and impossibly high rents.

But we know that these cases will only be the tip of the iceberg.

Through this project, we will work to shine a light on the experiences of private renters in my constituency, and to ensure that

their voices drive the debate for rental reform nationwide.”

“We are inviting all renters to take part in the project. We want to hear about your experiences as a private renter – the good and the bad”.

Virendra Sharma MP and Generation Rent have launched the first part of this project with a survey.

Oliver Downden during local elections campaign in Newcastle

810 seats – with their wards falling from 1,965 to 1,155 – while Labour will gain 835, giving the

party 3,722 predicted wards.

Keeping in mind that not just representation from ethnic minorities, but more factors will be instrumental in this election, including the fate of the Tory party - a possible cabinet reshuffle should they lose, the list of candidates released by the Conservative Friends of India promises representation of ethnic minorities during these much anticipated elections.

Here’s the list of CF India Candidates Sanjana Karnani Kingsbury London Borough of Brent Hari Hrushikesh Borpatla Heston East ward Heston Salman Khan Kingsbury London Borough of Brent Sumeet Jalan Bromley Sushil Rapatwar Preston ward Charu Sood Weybridge St George’s Hill ward Runnymede & Weybridge Constituency Pranav Patel Barnhill Ward London Borough of Brent Ms. Shumaila Ali,Mr Nimit Shishodia, Ms. Hetal Kataria Hema Mistry Preston Ward London Borough of Brent Harmit Vyas Northwick Park Ward London Borough of Brent Manoj Mishra, Kanta Mistry and Jayanti Patel Queensbury Dr Kaushik Chakraborty Broadheath Ward Yash Patel Alperton Sonia Maya Dhiman Heston East Jignesh Patel and Jesal Patel Hounslow East Rahul Gupta St. Paul’s Cray Ward Borough of Bromley Aarti Joshi Belsize Ward London Borough of Camden

Ragbhir Sandhu London Borough of Bexley Sonal Sher Hoe Valley ward Woking Preeti Rana South Woodford ward London Borough of Redbridge Ekta Gohil Colham & Cowley Ward in Hillingdon Uxbridge & South Ruislip Constituency Rishiraj Goenka Wandsworth Town in Wandsworth Borough Council Soma Pemmireddy Bassingbourn Ward in South Cambridgeshire District.

Abbas Merali Moor Park and Eastbury ward, Three Rivers District Council elections Paul Singh Bhangal The Southern Ward of the Camden Borough of Bloomsbury Pritheepal Singh Bevois Ward, Southampton Test constituency Chandra Alapati - Sutton South ward Sutton and Cheam constituency Venu Sood Sutton Central ward Sutton and Cheam constituency Mukesh Rao Sutton West ward Sutton and Cheam constituency Binita Mehta-Parmar Mayoral Candidate Watford Note: Asian Voice reached out to Labour Friends of India to access their list of Asian candidates but didn’t hear back from them by the time we went to print on Tuesday evening.

Bedfont Conservatives hold community Q&A The Conservative candidates for Bedfont Ward – Hareshkumar Bhalsod, Peter Edwards, and John Osborn – held a public meeting at Bedfont & Feltham Football & Social Club on the evening of 25 April 2022.

Local residents posed a number of questions to the candidates about development, anti-social behaviour, and Hounslow Council’s record of customer service. Cllr Gerald McGregor – leader of the Conservative Group on Hounslow Council – chaired the event, and endorsed Hareshkumar, Peter and John as representatives for Bedfont.

The three candidates discussed their campaign to “Take Back Bedfont” from a Council which, they said, has let Bedfont down.

Hareshkumar Bhalsod, a retired London Underground station supervisor, focused on public services. Peter Edwards, a long-serving community activist and famil-

iar face in Bedfont, stressed the importance of a Council which listens. John Osborn, a former National Crime Agency officer, discussed the importance of police engagement and civil enforcement to safeguard our communities.

Mr Osborn, who now works as an aide to a senior MP, said: “I was delighted to join residents at Bedfont & Feltham Football & Social Club. Public engagement is essential to local representation, and it was great to answer a range of questions – including some very tough ones! – about our plans to Take Back Bedfont.”

Mr Bhalsod, who is a food poverty activist with the local temple, said: “This event was fantastic.

It was great to see such a strong focus on the issues affecting Bedfont, and residents were very supportive of our campaign. I hope that locals vote to Take Back Bedfont on 5 May!”

14

www.asian-voice.com

AsianVoiceNews

AsianVoiceNewsweekly

30 April - 6 May 2022

Leading daily reeks of misogyny; writes Labour leader ‘crosses legs to distract’ PM An article in The Mail on Sunday reported that Labour leader Angela Rayner “crosses and uncrosses her leg to distract Prime Minister Boris Johnson”.

The article further reported that unnamed senior Tories had “mischievously” suggested Labour’s deputy leader deploys what it called “a fully clothed parliamentary equivalent of Sharon Stone’s infamous scene in the 1992 film Basic Instinct”.

“She knows she can’t compete with Boris’s Oxford Union debating training, but she has other skills which he lacks. She has admitted as much when enjoying drinks with us on the [House of Commons] terrace,” the report quoted a Conservative MP as saying.

“It is also suggested she employs the tactic when sitting next to Sir Keir when he faces Mr Johnson at PMQs,” it suggested.

The article also described the Labour MP’s background as “a grandmother who left school at 16 while pregnant and with no qualifications before becoming a care worker”.

Naturally outraged by the article, Rayner tweeted a long thread, saying, “Women in politics face sexism and misogyny every day and I’m no different. This morning’s is the latest dose of gutter journalism courtesy of Mail on Sunday. I stand accused of a “ploy” to “distract” the helpless PM - by being a woman, having legs and wearing clothes.

“I am conspiring to “put him off his stride”. The rest I won’t repeat - but you get the picture. Boris Johnson’s cheerleaders have resorted to spreading desperate, perverted smears in their doomed attempts to save his skin. They know exactly what they are doing. The lies they are telling. The potted biography is given - my comprehensive education, my experience as a care worker, my family, my class, and my background.

“The implication is clear. But it is the PM who is dragging the Conservative Party into the sewer - and the anonymous Tory MPs doing his bidding are complicit. He and his

cheerleaders clearly have a big problem with women in public life. They should be ashamed of themselves. I won’t be letting their vile lies deter me. Their attempts to harass and intimidate me will fail. I’ve been open about how I’ve had to struggle to get where I am today.

“I’m proud of my background,

I’m proud of who I am and where I’m from but it’s taken time. I hope this experience doesn’t put off a single person like me, with a background like mine from aspiring to participate in public life. That would break my heart. We need more people in politics with backgrounds like mine - and fewer as a hobby to help their mates. Thank you to so many of you for your messages of solidarity and support.

“For calling this out for what it is. You are making a stand in the name of decency against those who would further coarsen, cheapen and debase our politics to benefit their own interests. We all deserve so much better.”

Responding to this, PM Boris Johnson wrote on Twitter, “As much as I disagree with Angela Rayner on almost every political issue, I respect her as a parliamentarian and deplore the misogyny directed at her anonymously today.”

Birmingham's first-ever bell boat race for women Birmingham witnessed the city’s first-ever bell boat race which was exclusive to women and younger children belonging to different backgrounds. Dozens of women, some in hajib or dastar, took to the water in the first of what organisers hope will become a regular sporting event in Birmingham, Birmingham Mail reported.

According to them, some 17 teams made up of eight paddlers each took part in the community tournament, designed to inspire women who don't often take

part in competitive sport. An all-female Peaky Blinders team took part against teams from Aston social empowerment hub Saathi House, Legacy WM in Lozells, West Midlands Police, Swift Cruisers, New Hope Global, Baby Bengal Tigers, Ninja Warriors, the Unsinkables and the Squid Squad. Naseem Akhtar, from Saheli Hub, a group that promotes health and wellbeing among South Asian women in the region, helped manage proceedings on the day.

At least one senior position should be held by a woman Confirming early proposals, Financial Conduct Authority has said that at least one senior position such as company chair, chief executive or chief financial officer should be held by a woman.

The FCA said companies will have to make annual statements showing how they are complying with the new rules, or explain any divergences.

The report quoted, “These measures will improve transparency on the diversity of company boards and their executive management for investors and other market participants, increasing engagement in this area and informing investment decisions. We hope, in turn through investor pressure,

issuers are encouraged towards greater diversity in practice, which may have further benefits for corporate governance and decision-making.”

In February the government-backed FTSE Women Leaders Review said female representation on the boards of Britain’s top 100 companies stood at 39.1%. The review raised a voluntary target to 40% for the top 350 companies by the end of 2025, up from a previous target of 33%.

The watchdog said that companies could also consider wider diversity aspects such as sexual orientation, socio-economic background, and disability, and publishing diversity data on a company’s audit, remuneration and nominations committees.

A happy ‘milestone’ birthday Rupanjana Dutta When I was five, my mum had already put me through two different schools, before settling for just the one, that did not suit my personality at all. It is an alien concept for the new age parents, but in the early 80s, Indian parents, even with a degree in child psychology would stick to their own standards, constantly failing to comprehend their child’s aptitude or ability to perform better in a certain conducive environment. As it would also happen in most Indian families, I was constantly compared to my overachieving older cousins, but miraculously I still had the self-confidence left to survive. I was a resilient, chatty, imaginative and weirdly tall child with a horrible hairstyle, but who adapted unusually well to most cumbersome situations.

Raised by overprotective working parents, living in a joint family, I found it difficult to connect with people of my age at school. But there was one kindred soul, who was a family friend’s daughter. She was well-versed and understanding of my peculiarities or if I may say quirks, and I to hers.

We spent many summer afternoons in a hot and humid Kolkata, talking to each other for hours on the (land) phone, discussing our dreams and despair, me filling her in with the stories from newly read novels, and she of her newest adventures with boys, under the moaning old ceiling fans and a watchful disgruntled grandmother.

By 16, I had missed most of the common teenage year milestones such as belonging to a clique in an all-girl school, short skirts, parties with boys and secret discos or even a stolen first kiss. At university, when my best friend arrived for a morning lecture on her boyfriend’s motorcycle, I wondered if I had missed that socalled milestone too.

Life took a different turn eventually and at the age of 20 when I had a crazy heartbreak, I realised I had finally reached my first milestone. The milestone of boundless grief and regrets.

Andrew Garfield at The Late Show with Stephen Colbert talking about his late mother said something that has stayed with me and am paraphrasing here. He said, grief is a wonderful thing that will stay with us forever, till we pass. There is always that regret. We never get enough time with people, whether they live till 60, 15 or 99. I hope this grief stays with me because this is all that unexpressed love that I never got to share.

As I celebrated a ‘milestone’ birthday on Tuesday, here’s what my top 5 tips would be, as an experienced and now certified middle-aged woman.

1. You love more than once. With an almost full heart, even if it’s broken or cracked. Don’t be afraid of that overpowering gush of emotions. And if you have loved fiercely but still lost, that’s ok too. You do not want to ever not know how to love, with every bone and cell in your body. It’s better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all. It usually helps you to be a better version of your former self.

2. We all (women) become our mothers.

Even in our best efforts to avoid what we fear the most, the nagging, the doubts, the pragmatism. It’s inevitable.

But there’s always room to choose what you do not want to be. So, work on that.

Unfortunately, you can’t change what you are born with, but what you do with your life is your choice (in most cases). Your achievements are not defined by what others have done. It’s ok not to be married by a certain age or

never or not have children by 30 or ever. It’s your decision. It does not make you any less successful as a woman or human.

3. Nothing can be compared to parents’ love. It’s not unconditional. I don’t believe in that. No relationship is ever unconditional. Let’s not put them on a pedestal, they are humans too with all sorts of insecurities and flaws. But the intensity with which they can love, no one can ever match that. Even if it’s temporary.

So, if you can bear to be in the same room with them, and forgive them for all the hurts and disappointments, do that. You will always have regrets and guilts for not having done enough. So will they. But nothing outweighs what you have done for them or what they have done for you.

4. Travel. With the cost of living high, and various other post-pandemic restrictions it is difficult to plan or budget, but if you can, do travel. Try different food. Try a different culture.

Nothing better than learning about the world by travelling the world. It helps you to be more empathetic.

Historically humans don’t let things remain beautiful. They destroy nature, and countries, kill their own, drunk with power and illegal ambition. You never know when the country you once visited, the city you walked through be burnt to the ground. So, soak in whatever is unknown, cherish new experiences and build memories.

Everything else is short-lived.

5. Make life-long friends. I am very lucky to have 12 girlfriends in my life, who have held me through everything. They are scattered across the world but have all played their roles at different times under different circumstances.

When my parents passed away, they were the first to call or reach or hold me tight. It’s not all glamorous like the Sex and the City, with unlimited champagnes, posh condos or designer clothes. We have our strong differences, and frustrations and our degree of commitment to each other vary. But I am not ashamed to admit, that I would have definitely not survived this journey if they were not for the wind beneath my wings. I love you girls. Thank you for being there always.

As the very wise Jay Pritchett, from my all-time favourite, show the ‘Modern Family’ once said: there are all kinds of milestones in life. The kind you expect to live through, the first kiss, birthdays, graduations, if you are lucky a wedding or two, or even a new addition to the family. But then there’s the kind you never dream to live through again and that’s the best kind of all!

(Writer is the Managing Editor of Asian Voice newspaper, who turned 40 on 26 April)

AsianVoiceNews

AsianVoiceNewsweekly

15

www.asian-voice.com

30 April - 6 May 2022

Charity Walk for Ukraine organised by Asian charity and Bhaktivedanta Manor

This Eid, let’s focus on sustainability

A charity walk has been organised by the combined efforts of the Lotus Trust and ISKCON Bhaktivedanta Manor to raise funds for needy Ukrainian refugees.

The walk will begin at 9:00 AM on Sunday 24th effort will continue the supply of the raw material taken into the heart of

April 2022 from the Krishna Avanti Primary School on Avenue in Camrose

Edgware in north London and reach Bhaktivedanta Manor in Aldenham near Watford by about 12 noon.

The route is 6 miles long and there will be 200 - 250 walkers altogether. Rajesh Agrawal, the Deputy Mayor

of London for Business, will be present and offers his wholehearted support.

Participants of all ages have stepped forward to support the cause, ranging from three-year-olds to grandparents, including walkers in their 80s. The funds collected from this

Ukraine into various cities like Kyiv and Kharkiv etc where food is cooked on a daily basis and then delivered to underground stations for people in need.

This has resulted in massive appreciation from the Ukraine citizens who are greatly suffering.

The Hare Krishna movement growing on a remote Irish island The Hare Krishna religion has one of its large followings in India, is a branch of Hinduism increased in the 1970s when The Beatles' George Harrison developed an interest in Indian spirituality.

The International

Society for Krishna Consciousness, which has

had members on Inish Rath in County Fermanagh since 1987 is beginning to grow. A new generation of people from the Indian community based in Belfast has been discovering what locals call “Krishna Island”, for the first time.

Uber Eats serves free meals to Muslim delivery drivers On the final days of Ramadan, Uber Eats has launched pop-up restaurants for its Muslim Punjabi drivers and couriers where they will be served free meals. Muslim TV chef and rapper Big Zuu is also supporting the initiative and has developed one of the dishes

being served in London.

The 'Sundown Spots' series of restaurants will be offering free iftar meals.

This service has begun on Monday, April 25 to Wednesday, April 27 in London, Manchester and Birmingham.

Uber delivery couriers

and drivers are allowed to have an iftar dine-in experience as well as a complimentary takeaway.

The halal restaurants include MyLahore in Birmingham, Ayam Zaman in Shepard's Bush, London, and the Muslim Heritage Centre, Manchester.

Indian fusion food makes a way to Hatch on Oxford Road Cheeky Tikka, a popular Cheshire food trader, offering up healthy, Indian street food that made a name for itself during the first lockdown has now opened at the shipping container food and retail village under the Mancunian Way. It has become a go-to destination for Cheshire

foodies and has also hosted a number of pop-ups in Alderley Edge and Wilmslow.

Run by Aisha Tilstone, her dishes range from fan favourites such as Pukka Pakoras and Tandoori Lamb Chops, to Wicked Wings and Crackling Spinach Chaat.

During the first lockdown, it started off as a virtual restaurant and became popular for its healthy approach to Indian cooking.

Aisha’s food is inspired by generations of cooks in her family and her dishes represent a fusion of authentic recipes and modern culinary influences.

Woman jailed after her shotgun was discovered in Kempston school A woman has been jailed for three years after a sawn-off shotgun she was looking after for someone ended up being taken into a Bedfordshire school.

Keesha Kalyan, 21, has been jailed for three years after a sawn-off shotgun she was looking after was discov-

ered in the bag of a 15-year-old boy at Kempston Challenger Academy in October 2018, sparking a major alert at the school.

Police came across text messages that were exchanged between the two discussing a ‘dotty’ - which is urban slang for a shotgun - being taken

into Kalyan’s home address and her asking the boy not to say anything about it.

Upon investigation, detectives found her fingerprints on the bag containing the gun, but she claimed the "dotty" she was referring to in the text messages was a religious ornament.

'Sustainable' fashion refers to garments that have been made in a way that is mindful of the many environmental issues the fashion industry touches upon. Sustainable fashion brands create fashion in a way which is most considerate of humanity and the environment, reducing the environmental impact wherever possible.

T h e ultimate goal is to have a system which works without leaving a negative footprint.

Essentially, ethical and sustainable fashion is an approach towards sourcing, manufacturing and designing clothes which maximizes the benefits to the industry and society at large, at the same time minimizes the impacts on the environment.

More fashion-forward buyers are holding brands accountable for their clothes' impact on the planet, as they view brands as an extension of their values and identity.

A growing number of ethical and sustainable luxury brands are offering both high-quality and

Shilpa Bilimoria

beautiful pieces.

This Eid, Asian Voice tried exploring options of sustainable fashion gifts that you could present to your loved ones.

Shilpa Bilimoria Creative Director & Founder, House of Bilimoria told Asian Voice, “As a sustainable brand that loves working with South Asian textiles, we think gifting sarees are the perfect way to be spending this Eid. These sarees could then be upcycled in many different ways such as accessories, cushions, dresses and shirts. Other sustainable options are things made from second-hand fabrics and people could even consider swapping outfits this Eid instead of always buying new."

Pal payasam recipe / rice kheer recipe

by Chef Jomon Kuriakose of The Lalit London INGREDIENTS á á á á á á á á

¼ cup Wild Black Rice 6 cup Milk ¼ cup Sugar 1 tsp Ghee / clarified butter 10 Cashew / kaju (halves) 2 tbsp Raisins / kishmish ¼ tsp Cardamom powder 2 pinch Iraninan Saffron

INSTRUCTIONS 1) firstly, in a large kadai stir and boil 5 cup milk.

2) add in soaked Black rice and stir well.

3) Simmer and cook for 15 minutes or until the rice grains are cooked well.

4) Stir slightly until the kheer turns creamy.

5) now add 1 cup milk and adjust consistency. also, add ¼ cup sugar and stir well.

6) Add saffron and stir over a medium heat until it extracts its flavour and colour 7) boil for 3 minutes or until the kheer turns creamy and sugar is dissolved completely.

8) pour the roasted nuts over kheer and add ¼ tsp cardamom powder. mix well. finally, enjoy rice kheer hot or chilled for a week when refrigerated.

Why is Eid not a public holiday?

As the holy month of Ramadan ends, Eid-AlFitr will be celebrated by Muslims across the world, however, as it doesn't fall on a set date, Muslims find it difficult to book the time off.

As Eid is not considered a public holiday in the UK, many Muslims are either forced to avail the celebration as annual leave or work on that day.

People are now raising the question online as to why is Eid not recognised as a holiday, for those who celebrate it?

People get time off for Easter and Christmas in the UK, as a part of

public holidays, despite most people not identifying as religious.

However, some companies like Monzo are fixing things. The bank offers its employees the chance to opt-out of regular public holidays such

as Christmas, Easter etc and reallocates their holiday to another time such as Eid or Diwali.

Though Eid is a three-day celebration, it is usually reduced to one as Muslims have to return to school or work.

16

www.asian-voice.com

AsianVoiceNews

AsianVoiceNewsweekly

30 April - 6 May 2022

READY TO FLY AGAIN T

he last two years were very challenging for the travel and tourism industry. Now the industry has finally started to get back on its feet and travellers are ready to fly. As a part of the Golden Jubilee celebrations of Gujarat Samachar, Asian Voice and Gujarat Samachar organised a seminar as an initiative to boost the business of the Travel and Tourism industry. Issues and concerns of the travellers as well as travel agents were discussed and answered by an expert panel.

Kantibhai Nagda, MBE, CEO of Sangat Advice Centre said in his welcome speech, “It’s my pleasure to welcome you all to the Sangat centre. It’s a registered charity, started 49 years ago. We provide advice and guidance on immigration, welfare benefits, housing, matrimony etc. We take the cases to the tribunal, the high court. In short, we are a mini citizens advice bureau.”

Introducing the theme of the seminar, CB Patel, Editor-InChief of Asian Voice and Gujarat Samachar said, “Traveling is not just limited to enjoyment, it’s all about exploring new places, new people, cultures, cuisines, rituals and styles of living. It’s to experience life in a different way and also a good remedy for stress, anxiety and depression.

Now people have overcome the fear and are resuming their prepandemic lives as a new normal.

Today we are here to find out the possible and practical solutions to boost the travel and tourism industry.”

The moderator of the discussion was Paresh Kiri, Head of Acquisitions and Investment of Stratsmore Group. Mahesh Liloriya, Group Editor welcomed the guests. Pooja Raval, Manager of business development ABPL group introduced the panelists.

The panelists included: Suhas Jadav regional manager (UK & Europe) Air India, Sean Tipton press office – ABTA, Rajan Sehgal chairman Skylord Travels, Hitesh Mehta managing director Citibond Travel, Divyakumar Shah, CEO of Sona Tours, Navin Shah former member and chair of the London assembly. The consensus among them was all about learning from the last two years because now is the time to fly.

The last flight

S

uhas Jadhav Regional Manager of Air India (UK, Europe, Israel and Moscow) said, “I remember the last flight from the UK was on 18th March 2020. We were astonished.

On 4th April we got the message that India is going to operate the Vande Bharat fight.

Suhas Jadhav, RM Air India

I was stuck with only 50 per cent staff.

We were supposed to do the ticketing in our office for the list which was coming to us from the India commission. It was a horrendous job. There are so many instances that my airport manager was crying because flights were full and people were in such a dire stage to get tickets. In the fourth phase, we started allowing travel agencies for ticketing. Till that time, we did the ticketing from 9 am to 1:30 am. It was a mission for us. We did it. The scene was the same at the time of the Ukraine crisis. We only operated one flight successfully. The second flight was about to land but the Ukrainian government didn’t allow us. We are now over the pandemic and the travel industry is picking up speed. Now is the time that the people want to move out. We are pretty optimistic about that.”

126 million new jobs in Travel & Tourism

S

ean Tipton press office – ABTA said, “You all know the kind of business pressures on you but as far as the refund is concerned there has to be a balance.

Panelists: (L-R) Navin Shah, Divyakumar Shah, Rajan Sehgal, Hitesh Mehta, Sean Tipton, Suhas Jadhav

Refunding needs reforms

R

ajan Sehgal, Chairman of Skylord Travels said, “We have been in this business for the past 40 years. We are mainly consolidators and work between Airlines and the Travel agents. We all faced a very tough time. There were a lot of issues regarding refunding. We have regulatory bodies like

L-R: Charat Mehra, Rajan Sehgal, Suhas Jadhav, Mahesh Liloriya and guest Sean Tipton, Press Office, ABTA

We were here to provide support to our members. Obviously, you're ready, at the same time you also think about regaining public confidence. We do surveys every now and then, it was really surprising that 75% of people still thought that severe restrictions are in place. About 30% to 40% of new customers said that they've never used the travel agent before. The latest World Travel and Tourism Council Economic Impact Report has revealed that the Travel and Tourism sector is expected to create close to 126 million new jobs within the next decade. The report indicates that the tourism sector will be the driving force of global economic recovery, thus creating one in three all-new jobs. Travel and Tourism would be the third biggest employer on the planet.”

ABTA and ATOL, these bodies must make sure that all the money should be refunded within the time limit.”

Hitesh Mehta, Managing Director of Citibond Travel, said, “We have been in the family business for the last 45 years. It was a very painful time for the travel and tourism industry. Our business is quite diversified. We have a good spectrum of clientele. Refund was the major issue, however, now things are good. Technology is also very important now. It’s our responsibility to educate the people who want to travel. Now the majority of the world is open, so we should think about how to get promoted again, how to get people’s confidence.”

Divyakumar Shah, CEO of Sona Tours (the brand has been in business since the 1970s) said, “Two years were of great challenges but the good thing is we are coming

out of pandemic fear. The whole industry was at a standstill, but we eventually returned all the refunds back. We were listed as the only Indian company among 24, which refunded the funds back to customers. Things are better now. Much healthier, safer and easier. People have started travelling but they are still scared.

We all have become more technical. That's a good outcome of the pandemic.”

Navinbhai Shah, former member and chair of the London Assembly said, “This centre is a landmark of Harrow. Harrow is a hub of the Indian community. Outside Leicester, Harrow has the highest presence of the Indian community in the UK. This is the beginning of a new era for everyone in economic activity as well as in lifestyle.

People are still having concerns, perceptions and Fear. Convincing the travellers is an added responsibility of the tourism industry."

Pravin Kantaria, MD of P&R Travel said, “I've been in the business for the last 36 years. Our speciality is tailor-made packages. Planning in advance with proper advice is very necessary to avoid last time sneakiness.”

Paras Meisheri, Director of Global Travel Solutions was also present at the seminar. His company specialises in Iraq, Iran and Africa tours.

Charat Mehra, Sales manager of Skylord travel admitted that “it's been a horrendous two years” and now people are waiting to get on to a site and waiting to book a holiday.

Delivering a vote of thanks CB Patel, Editor-In-Chief of Asian Voice and Gujarat Samachar said, “The largest print media

AsianVoiceNews

17

www.asian-voice.com

AsianVoiceNewsweekly

30 April - 6 May 2022

Experts answer common questions related to travel and tourism

Q

: Why are travel agents demanding full money in advance for the future trip?

L-R: P&R Travel team, Pravin Kantaria, Krishna Pujara, Navinbhai Shah, Paresh Kiri, Paras Meisheri, Suhas Jadhav, CB Patel, Rajan Sehgal, Mrs Sehgal, Divyakumar Shah, Hitesh Mehta, Charat Mehra, Yash Shah, Mahesh Liloriya, Pooja Raval

Kantibhai Nagda, MBE, CEO Sangat Centre

Rajan Sehgal, Chairman - Sky Lord Travel

Hitesh Mehta, MD - Citibond Travels

Experts: The longer you leave the ticket it will become more expensive. Airlines offer attractive fares only for a certain period of time.

Now if it's a flexible ticket you can deal on a deposit basis. If you pay the full amount, you should be given the ticket. Whereas in the case of just holding a deposit, you are liable for the fare increase. So, it's worth checking the terms and conditions, each agent will have its own way of operating.

Q

: Is paying by card instead of cash safe and sound?

Experts: There are two regulators in the travel industry. Cash deals always have low protection. Card payment helps you with quick refunds also. At the same time while going to cashless mode, always check the company’s profile. If it has an IATA number, validate it, go to the regulator’s main website and check. You need to understand the terms and conditions also. Every ticket has different conditions. Just don't go for the price. The same ticket for the same destination can have different prices for a reason.

Q

: Now that the Holiday Market is opening up, how will the industry fill the gap between the high prices and people being comfortable to travel and going forward?

Paresh Kiri, Head of Acquisitions & Investment of Stratsmore Group

publicity in all national and international press are related to travel and tourism. I am privileged to share that Asian Voice & Gujarat Samachar have been the favourite source for the advertisement and promotion activities of airlines and travel companies for many years. We have the largest share of advertising and promotion in the ethnic press. Even during the pandemic, our services were utilised by this sector and we even gave our maximum to promote and support this sector.

ABPL Group, publishers of Gujarat Samachar & Asian Voice, has conducted various events, seminars and webinars befitting the requirements of our readers, community and our advertisers. Our recent seminars with support from the RAF at the House of Lords received huge acclamation from renowned dignitaries.

“We are privileged to organise this Travel & Travel tourism seminar and I am very grateful to all the participants and panelists who have helped us to make this small initiative a grand success with their presence. It is the first time when there is a dialogue with stakeholders, service providers and consumers.

“I must recall, in 1966 I met Mr Manek Dalal. He strengthened Air India.

He also played an active role in the establishment of Bhartiya Bhavan which is a real place of Indian culture, dance and music. In those times Air India was one of the world’s best five airlines. Actually, it’s a bridge between overseas Indians and India.

“This seminar is only a trailer of the movie. A lot more to be done for the Travel and Tourism industry.”

Navin Shah, Former Member and Chair of the London Assembly

Charat Mehra, Sales Manager of Skylord Travel

Divyakumar Shah, CEO - Sona Tours

Pooja Raval, Manager Business Development ABPL group

Experts: Prices have gone up, you know why.

If there are fewer flights, they want more money. Huge losses in the last two years and a shortage of staff are the main reasons. If everything goes well in the next couple of years, we will be able to fill the gap. And yes, prices always fluctuate in our industry, it's almost like the stock market would go on and on at a price and it's pulled down all day long. It is based on supply and demand. To go to a sound travel agent to get a proper understanding is advisable. If you were travelling now, the passports are taking up to 12 weeks to come back. Visa is taking much longer for the interview. So, don't book and pay when you don't have proper documents in hand.

Q

: When we will be having direct flights to Ahmedabad as per the pre-pandemic schedule?

Suhas Jadhav, Regional Manager of Air India said, “We have increased one flight, so as of now there are three flights operating to Ahmedabad. We will certainly try and increase the flights but it will take some time for normality. Airlines can never make a profit by selling economy-class tickets. They have to have a business or first-class to survive. The corporates have not yet started flying. So, the travel pattern which we are looking for is only the family travelling.”

Q

: Is travel insurance important?

Guests in the Travel and Tourism Seminar Photo credit Raj D Bakrania PR MEDIA PIX

Experts: We think it's important as well.

When you buy any kind of holiday ticket, you must get travel insurance. Always advisable to check the service covered.

18

www.asian-voice.com

AsianVoiceNews

AsianVoiceNewsweekly

30 April - 6 May 2022

Dear Financial Voice Reader,

Alpesh Patel OBE

If you’re like a lot of my Great Investments Programme students you have some cash to invest and are worried inflation will eat away at it’s buying power.

Investing in the stock market now The S&P 500 is up 4-fold in the past decade.

A common mistake investors make is believing that they missed the boat on investing, that it's just too late to enter the stock market. The S&P 500 has risen 4x in the past decade and along with it, many of today's largest and most recognizable companies have attained unprecedented valuations. Who would have thought so many companies would be worth over a trillion dollars. How many zeros is that? The world turns quickly these days and when you look at some of the newcomers from a year or two ago like Beyond Meat or Bumble, they’re huge failures and other successes did not even exist a couple of decades ago.

Do you have extra money lying around?

Do you have extra money lying around?

If the answer is yes, then I'll show you how to get a better return on it than if you bought gold, held cash, or even invested in bonds.

It’s easy to think that investing money is only for the wealthy and well-versed in finance. But the truth is that anyone can do it. All you have to do is invest in an S&P 500 index fund and let time work its magic.

If you invested $10,000 in an S&P 500 index fund 10 years ago, your investment would be worth $40,000 right now (before taxes). And in an ISA there are no taxes. Or in a SIPP. That's a lot more than you'd get from keeping your money under a mattress!

There are good reasons to be cautious.

Two things should be clear by now. First, the stock market is volatile. Its price today will almost certainly not be its price tomorrow. And second, recessions are inevitable. The economy is a cyclical beast, and it may go south again at any moment.

So why invest in the stock market at all?

While it's true that recessions are always a possibility and that their effects can be devastating, it's also true that the stock market can fall—and recover—many times in between major crises. Indeed, that's what's been happening for decades now. The S&P500 is up 10x since 1995. Butt bewarned, it produced 0% from 1998 to 2010. In other words, it does not rise in a straight line. And I don’t know if it is about to give another 12 years of 0% returns – but I doubt it.

If history repeats itself, we should buy all the S&P 500 we can right now “The P/E ratio is a classic measure of any security's value, indicating how many years of profits (at the current rate) it takes to recoup an investment in the stock. The current S&P500 10-year P/E Ratio is 34.1. This is 70% above the modern-era market average of 19.6, putting the current P/E 1.8 standard deviations above the modern-era average. This suggests that the market is Overvalued.” Says website Current Market Valuation. Historically, stocks do not return much during a recession (and sometimes bear markets). From its peak on September 1st, 1929 until its trough on June 1st, 1932 the Dow Jones Industrial Average declined by 89%. From November 1973 to October 1974 – it declined 46%. Then from March 2000 until October 2002 – it declined by 49%. It would be reasonable to expect that if we have another recession within two years (which is what people are expecting), stocks might decline by 50-60% over several years.

98% UK business leaders expect operating costs to soar According to the survey, record number of UK business leaders expect operating costs to soar this year as inflation proves more sticky than thought. The latest quarterly survey of chief finance officers at leading British companies found that 98% believe operating costs will rise in the year ahead, a level not seen since the question was first asked in 2011. Almost half of those, 46%, said the increase will be “signifi-

challenges.

CP Gurnani, Tech Mahindra CEO and MD said innovations and applications of Artificial Intelligence can significantly transform productivity and create revenue streams for businesses in the UK. He said, “We are also committed to investing in the local communities we operate in, and initiatives like these will help increase the employability

ing interest rates and labor shortages also ranked high on the list of challenges ahead.

However, there are few business leaders who also believe the BoE will be able to bear down on inflation as effectively as its rate-setters believe. More than half, 53%, expect inflation to settle between 2.5% and 3.5% in two-years’ time, and a quarter expect it to remain above 3.5%.

With operating costs

escalating, 71% of finance directors expect profit margins to be squeezed.

Even so, three quarters expect revenues to rise.

The findings of the survey underscore the scale of the cost shock that companies are experiencing as they grapple with both supply chain and energy disruption caused by the war in Ukraine and already high prices as a result of lockduring the downs pandemic.

As inflation hits trade, IMF sees weaker UK economic growth According to the International Monetary Fund forecast, Britain’s economy will slow in 2022 and face weaker economic growth and more persistent inflation than any other major rich nation in 2023.

The IMF said its downgrades for 2022 and 2023 reflected “elevated inflation pressures” and tighter monetary policy.

The consumer price index jumped to 7% in the 12 months to March, a 30-year high, and is set to go higher in April when big hikes in power tariffs kicked in. The government’s budget fore-

casters said in March that inflation could touch almost 9% later this year, depending on energy prices.

Experts fear that Britain’s economy is heading for a slowdown, or possibly even a recession, as consumers and businesses are hit by the leap in inflation, higher taxes, rising interest rates and uncertainty caused by the war in Ukraine.

While Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey said the BoE was walking a tight line between tackling inflation and avoiding a recession, so far, finance minister

Rishi Sunak has resisted calls to add to his support for households.

Consumer confidence slumped this month to close to its lowest level since records began nearly 50 years ago. The report sent a recession warning signal.

Among businesses, optimism dropped for the third month running in April and was the lowest since October 2020, according to the S&P Global/CIPS composite Purchasing Managers’ Index.

Spending in shops by consumers also fell more

than expected in March, adding to a slip in February, according to official data.

Volumes are above levels before the pandemic but are lower than they would have been without it.

As the squeeze on earnings tightens, households have been using savings they built up during the coronavirus pandemic.

The amount of money households save as a percentage of gross disposable income plus pension accumulations fell back to close to its pre-pandemic level in the last three months of 2021.

Pound falls to its weakest level against US dollar since Sept 20 The British Pound finished last week sharply lower against the US dollar, pressured by weak UK economic data, soaring US bond yields and some risk-off sentiment. During New York afternoon market hours, GBP/USD was down 1.44% to 1.2840 on the day and off 1.68% over the past five sessions, trading at lows not seen since September 2020.

Various UK reports, including retail sales, manufacturing output and ser-

Indian IT firm Tech Mahindra to create 1,000 jobs in UK Information Technology firm Tech Mahindra said it plans to create new revenue streams and add 1,000 jobs in the UK. The tech giant will collaborate with a leading academia and research institute in the UK to co-innovate at Tech Mahindra, Makers Lab in Milton Keynes, said in a statement.

British PM Boris Johnson, made an announcement regarding a new collaboration between the two countries, during his 2–day visit to India. The initiative aims to grow innovation and prosperity in both the countries and harness the power of emerging technology to confront global

cant.” More than three quarters of finance leaders, 78%, also expect inflation will still be well above the Bank of England’s target at 2.5% in two years’ time. The BoE’s forecast is for a drop to 2.1%.

Geopolitics has overtaken Covid as the top risk facing business. With the exception of the pandemic, it’s a greater concern than any other factor since the question was first asked in 2014. High inflation, ris-

of future technologists in the UK as well as globally.

Johnson said, “trade and investment between the UK and India is creating jobs and sustaining livelihoods in both the countries.” He said he was pleased that Tech Mahindra had decided to join the legions of Indian companies investing in the UK, boosting our technology sector and driving economic growth.

vices sector activity for March, surprised on the downside, a sign that the recovery is faltering and that the economy is starting the second quarter on a weaker footing as surging price pressures curtail demand.

With growth slowing rapidly, the Bank of England (BoE) may not be as aggressive as other central banks in its fight against inflation.

This means that we may only see moderate interest rate increases in the coming

months, rather than frontloaded hikes such as those entertained by the Federal Reserve, which is now seen raising borrowing costs by 50 bps at its meetings in May, June and possibly July.

Looking ahead, there is little reason to be optimistic about sterling. The increasing probability that the UK economy will contract in the second quarter and that the BoE’s normalization cycle will underwhelm expectations may keep GBP/USD

subdued or prompt the next leg lower in the exchange rate.

In the event of a bounce, initial resistance lies at 1.2980/1.300, but if buyers manage to overcome this hurdle decisively, we cannot rule out a climb towards 1.3055, followed by 1.3200.

However, the bullish case seems a far-fetched scenario at this point, with the bears firmly entrenched in the driver's seat judging by the current price action.

232 businesses get Queen’s Awards for Enterprise A total number 232 businesses representing every part of the country and a range of sectors have been recognised by Her Majesty The Queen on her birthday as among the best in UK. Awards have been won in the categories of International Trade (141 winners), Innovation (51), Sustainable Development (31) and Promoting Opportunity (9).

The awards were created following the recommendation of a committee chaired

by His Royal Highness The Duke of Edinburgh in 1965.

The first awards, originally known as The Queen’s Awards to Industry, were made the following year.

Winners’ awards are valid for 5 years. Winners are per-

mitted to fly The Queen’s Awards flag at their main office and use the emblem on their marketing materials. Winners are also given a Grant of Appointment (an official certificate) and a commemorative crystal trophy. Her Majesty’s Lord Lieutenants will be presenting the Awards to busi-

nesses locally throughout the year.

Eligible businesses are free to apply for one or more categories.

The winners pass an assessment process, judged by senior officials in Whitehall and experts from industry, academia and the third sector. On that basis, the winners of The Queen’s awards are recommended by the Prime Minister to Her Majesty The Queen.

Applications for the 2023 Queen’s Awards for Enterprise will open on 1 May 2022 and businesses are encouraged to apply.

AsianVoiceNews

www.asian-voice.com

AsianVoiceNewsweekly

FINANCE & REAL ESTATE

19

30 April - 6 May 2022

RIL abandons its bid to acquire Future retail Following objections by the lenders, the Reliance Industries (RIL) has abandoned its proposed deal to acquire Future Retail’s (FRL), the parent company of Big Bazaar, for £2.47 billion. The company cited less than adequate positive votes from banks for the scheme of arrangement, as the reason for it not going ahead with the deal. To go through, the transaction required 75% of FRL’s secured creditors to vote for the motion but around 69% voted against it, FRL said.

“As per these results, the shareholders and unsecured creditors of FRL have voted in favour of the scheme but the secured creditors of FRL have voted against the

scheme. In view thereof, the scheme of subject arrangement cannot be implemented,” said RIL in a regulatory filing. A senior banker, however, said

lenders were forced to vote against the proposal as RIL not made any had commitments and Future Group promoter Kishore Biyani appeared to lack support for the scheme the retailer had put up.

While the development may result in a cash-strapped FRL facing bankruptcy proceedings, a majority of its stores and employees are currently with RIL. In late February, RIL had moved in to take control of around 900 stores of FRL as the latter failed to pay rentals.

Govt to sell only 3.5% of IMF slashes India’s growth forecast after Ukraine war its stake in LIC The Life Insurance Corporation’s (LIC)'s initial public offering (IPO) is likely open in the first week of May, and the government has so far decided to sell only 3.5% of its holding as against the 5% proposed earlier, officials said.

LIC has until May 12 to launch its IPO under the earlier approval granted by the stock market regulator Sebi, and most likely the date could be May 2. The IPO had to be deferred due to the choppy market conditions triggered by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Officials said the 3. 5% dilution was subject to regulatory approvals.

To ensure that the shares are attractive to retail investors and to

leave some money on the table for listing gains, the government has settled for a £60 billion valuation.

Earlier, the market expected the government to sell shares worth around £120 billion.

At 3.5%, it’s £2.1 billion.

It can be increased (up to 5%), but it has to be decided at the time of the red herring prospectus (RHP),” an official said, adding that reservations, discounts, issue dates and issue price will be known soon.

As the impact of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine weighs heavily on prices and supply chains, India’s economy is estimated to grow by 8.2% in the current fiscal (2022-23), sharply slower than the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF’s) earlier forecast of 9%.

In its latest World Economic Outlook (WEO) report, the IMF forecast India’s economy to grow by 6.9% in 2023-24.

The latest GDP growth forecast for India is still higher than the RBI’s estimate of 7.2% for 2022- 23. The central bank had earlier lowered its growth estimate from 7.8%, citing the impact of the war in Ukraine and breakdown of supply chains. The finance ministry had earlier estimated the economy to grow in the 8-8.5% range in 2022-23.

China is estimated to grow 4.4% in 2022-23 and 5.1% in 2023-24, a downgrade of 0.4 percentage point. The IMF cautioned that slowing growth in China’s economy has wider ramifications for Asia and for commodity exporters.

The WEO said that the war in Ukraine will severely setback the global recovery.

According to the WEO, “As such, external positions are generally expected to deteriorate – particularly for net oil importers. Notable downgrades to the 2022 forecast include Japan (0.9 percentage point) and India (0.8), reflecting in part weaker domestic demand - as higher oil prices are expected to weigh on private consumption and investment - and a drag from lower net exports.” India, however, will retain its tag as the fastest growing major global economy but it faces severe headwinds.

Adani overtakes Warren Buffett, becomes world's 5th richest person Adani Group Chairman Gautam Adani has become the world's fifth-richest person overtaking legendary investor Warren Buffett, according to Forbes data.

According to Forbes estimates, Buffett's net worth stood at $121.7 billion.

Adani's estimated $123.7 billion net worth makes him the richest person in India, $19 billion wealthier than the country's number 2, Mukesh Ambani (who's

worth an estimated $104.7 billion), Forbes said in a report.

Adani surpassed Buffett as shares of the famed investor's Berkshire Hathaway dropped by 2 per cent on Friday amid a broad drop in the US stock market.

There are now only four people on the planet richer than Adani, according to Forbes' real-time billionaire tracker.

The four persons who

Bernard Arnault ($167 .9 billion), Amazon founder Jeff Bezos ($170.2 billion) and Tesla and SpaceX chief Elon Musk ($269.7 billion).

Suman Bery will be new Niti Aayog vice chairman Niti Aayog vice chairman Rajiv Kumar has stepped down from his post after nearly five years at the helm and will be replaced by economist Suman Bery.

Rajiv Kumar had taken over as vice-chairman of the government think tank in August 2017 after Arvind Panagariya decided to return to his teaching assignment at Columbia University.

Actually, the move to replace Kumar has been sudden. The tenure of the

Suman Bery

vice chairman has traditionally been coterminus with the term of the government. The Prime Minister serves as the chairman of the

government think tank, which took shape after the erstwhile Planning Commission was closed down.

After the sudden development, Kumar confirmed stepping down without elaborating further. The Appointments Committee of the Cabinet accepted the resignation of Kumar with effect from April 30. According to the government order “Appointment of Dr Suman K Bery initially as full time

Suresh Vagjiani, Sow & Reap Properties Ltd

A deal has come into our radar in the NW of England.

The property consists of a commercial empty space and the site consists of about a quarter of an acre, with a building of about 1,500 sq. Ft. sitting on it. The site is ripe for planning permission.

However, to just depend upon planning for a site is not a wise move.

We are in touch with a Blue Chip franchise company, who wish to occupy the building on an FRI lease. This would value the building at about £400K. The purchase price we have been offered for the building is £500K. The building will only occupy about 25% of the site therefore the 75% will be ripe for planning permission. The vendor is flexible in regards to how the deal is structured. They are even open to the possibility of a subject to planning deal.

However, agreeing the terms of this when there are two sets of lawyers involved is likely to be a long drawn out process, perhaps even ending at logger heads.

Therefore, it is better to keep things as simple as possible; especially for a deal of this size.

There are a couple of things we can do. One is to purchase the property in two lots. One with the building on, and the other simply the land. The completion would be delayed so that we could synchronise the lease signing with the company, so that on completion we would have a paying tenant. This would trigger a lender to loan about 70% of the value of the deal. And likely have a positive cash flow.

The other section could be funded by a bridge again at circa 70%. This would serve to stabilise a large portion of the deal, as the interest would be covered by the rental. And a smaller exposure is left to planning risk.

Once planning is obtained the second site can be refinanced and all the funds pulled out, potentially. Most would be looking at this deal as a pure planning deal, but we know from experience this process can be whimsical and uncertain. By restructuring the deal and having a tenant in there neutralises the risk substantially, and allows one to have breathing space to focus on the goal.

There is still some pressure, but only a fifth of what it would have been without the tenant. So, this does not remove the risk entirely but reduces it to only a fraction of what it would have been ordinarily. The split also allows one to sell this part off, once planning is gained, and therefore one has made profit without getting one's hands dirty. Given this site is some distance away this may be a good exit route. If time is not on your side you could sell the second land parcel off the back of a positive pre app report.

The rates for funding the commercial deal would be manageable now, I think this might be unlikely in 6 months to a year’s time. Therefore, if this deal were to go ahead, we would lock into a fixed rate now rather than later. Interest rates are creeping up, and to be on a variable currently is very risky in my opinion. Therefore we are working with our clients to hedge any floating rates in preparation for what is to come in the economy.

This can often be done with minimal hassle.

Tata cuts businesses ties with Russia

Gautam Adani

are richer than Adani include Microsoft cofounder Bill Gates (worth an estimated $130.2 billion), French luxury goods king

Cutting the right deal

member, Niti Aayog, with immediate effect and up to April 30, 2022 on the same terms and conditions as are applicable to full-time members of Niti Aayog,” It also said that Bery has been appointed vicechairman of Niti Aayog with effect from April 1, 2022 on the same terms that were applicable to the previous vice-chairman.

Kumar had the rank of a cabinet minister as vice chairman of the government think tank.

Indian conglomerate Tata has cut business ties with Russia as the corporate fallout from the invasion of Ukraine spreads. Tata Steel has said that it has taken a “conscious decision to stop doing business with Russia”.

Previously, British sister concern Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) paused vehicle shipments to Russia citing “trading challenges”. JLR sold over 13,000 luxury vehicles in Russia last year. Tata Steel sourced raw materials, mainly coal, from Russia to produce the metal. “To ensure business continuity, all our steel manufacturing sites in India, the UK and the Netherlands have sourced alternative supplies of raw materials to end its dependence on Russia,” the company said.

India has not imposed any sanctions on Russia and has also not criticised its invasion of Ukraine. “The EU will end their business ties and our businesses in the UK and Netherlands are part of this decision,” a Tata Steel executive said. TCS had said though it does not have any operations in Russia, it is helping clients maintain their business continuity plans as well as sees an opportunity to ramp up hiring in Eastern Europe, where it employs about 5,000 people. Sister concern Tata Power, which had bagged a mining licence for a thermal coal mine in Kamchatka province in Russia for $4.7 million in 2017, has recently applied for its cancellation.

20

www.asian-voice.com

AsianVoiceNews

AsianVoiceNewsweekly

30 April - 6 May 2022

Loyalists turn against Lanka PM as he refuses to step down COLOMBO: Sri Lanka’s beleaguered prime minister came under increased pressure to step down, as staunch allies broke ranks and backed street protests calling for resignations over a worsening economic crisis. Media minister Nalaka Godahewa announced his support for the thousands outside President Gotabaya Rajapaksa’s office who are demanding he and other members of his family relinquish power.

Godahewa, previously a staunch Rajapaksa loyalist, said the president should sack his elder brother, PM Mahinda Rajapaksa and allow an allparty interim government to take over. “The entire cabinet, including the prime minister, should resign and (there should be) an interim cabinet that can win the confidence of all,” Godahewa said. Several other ruling party members, includ-

ing Dullas Alahapperuma, a former media minister and cabinet spokesman, have asked the premier to step down.

Students mob PM’s home Thousands of student demonstrators surrounded the Sri Lankan PM’s residence in the capital as the anti-government Galle Face protests reached its 16th day and the clamour for the president and PM to resign grew louder. Inter University Students’ Federation (IUSF) students were seen slo-

ganeering outside the PM’s residence in Wijerama Mawatha, with dozens demonstrating from the parapet and boundary walls of the official residence. The agitators demanded both President Gotabaya and Rajapaksa resign. The slogans ranged from soft jibes to taunts.

Thousands of demonstrators have hit the streets since April 9, as the government ran out of money for vital imports; prices of essential commodities have skyrocketed and there are shortages of fuel and medicines.

World Bank aid Meanwhile, Lanka finance minister Ali Sabri said that the country will receive $300m to

$600m from the World Bank over the next four months to buy medicine and other essential items. The finance minister was in Washington to negotiate a rescue package with the International Monetary Fund, said in a video conference that the talks with the IMF might take some time, and that the World Bank has agreed to provide support in the meantime.

Neighboring India has also agreed to provide $500m to buy fuel, and negotiations are under way on an additional $1bn from New Delhi, which has already provided a credit line of $1bn, Sabri said.

Sri Lanka is on the brink of bankruptcy, with nearly $7bn of its total $25bn in foreign debt due for repayment this year. A severe shortage of foreign exchange means the country lacks the money to buy imported goods.

Bilawal Bhutto sets terms for joining Shehbaz govt ISLAMABAD: Signs of discontent among the constituents of Pakistan’s ruling coalition appeared early with PPP chairman and foreign minister designate Bilawal Bhutto Zardari linking his joining the federal cabinet with the induction of lawmakers representing smaller parties that played a hand in former PM Imran Khan’s ouster. Bilawal won’t be a part of the Shehbaz Sharif government if there is no place in the cabinet for Moshin Dawar, leader of the antimilitary rights group Pashtun Tahaffuz Movement (PTM), along with lawmakers of allies like Balochistan National PartyMengal (BNP) and Awami National Party (ANP), sources said.

The PPP chief is currently in London to discuss with PM Nawaz Sharif the promises and agree-

ments that his party made with coalition partners who supported the no-trust move against Imran.

“Bilawal’s deliberations with the PML-N chief will focus on cabinet expansion, redress of grievances of the coalition partners, particularly of the Baloch and Pashtun nationalist parties, besides introduction of electoral and political reforms ahead of next year’s polls,” a senior PPP functionary said.

The security establishment, sources said, has been against Dawar being made a minister due to his party’s stand on accountability of the powerful military for alleged rights abuses committed against the Pashtun community, including enforced disappearances and extra-judicial killings, during its nearly

Pak NSC says no US plot in ex-PM Imran’s removal ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s National Security Council, a body of top civil and military leaders, has rejected former Prime Minister Imran Khan’s accusations that the United States had conspired to topple his government through a parliamentary vote of confidence.

Khan, 69, who led the nuclear-armed South Asian country of 220 million people for three and a half years, had accused Washington of backing a conspiracy to remove him. Asad Majeed, former Pakistan ambassador to the US who had written a cable to Islamabad about Washington’s take on Khan’s Moscow visit, briefed the civil and military leaders on a forum called National Security Committee (NSC).

“The NSC after reviewing the contents of the communication, the assessment received, and the conclusion presented by the security agencies, concludes that there has been no conspiracy,” a statement from the

office of new Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, who chaired the NSC meeting, said.

It said the country’s premier spy agencies informed the NSC that they found no evidence to support any conspiracy theory. Khan’s Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party demanded a judicial probe into the matter.

two-decade war against terrorist outfits in the country’s northwest.

Another key ruling coalition partner, Maulana Fazlur Rehman-led Jamiat Ulema-eIslam, has already shown displeasure over the possible induction of lawmakers from PTM and ANP in the cabinet as his right-wing party has been a key political rival of Pashtun nationalist parties in the northwestern Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and southwestern Balochistan provinces.

Shehbaz cabinet sworn in Earlier, a 37-member federal cabinet took the oath of office, just over a week after the then leader

of the opposition Shehbaz Sharif replaced Imran Khan as the country’s PM through a postmidnight no-trust vote in parliament. President Arif Alvi, who had excused himself from administering oath to Sharif, skipped the event again, leaving the duties to Senate chairman Sadiq Sanjrani. The oath ceremony was postponed it due to Alvi’s refusal.

Pakistan seeks more funds from IMF ISLAMABAD: Pakistan has sought an increase in the size and duration of its $6 bn International Monetary Fund (IMF) programme, the country’s finance minister, Miftah Ismail, has said. Ismail made the comments in a video statement following talks with the IMF in Washington. It came after the fund said Islamabad has agreed to roll back subsidies to the oil and power sectors ahead of a

Elon Musk acquires Twitter for $44 bn WASHINGTON: In one of the world’s biggest deals in the tech world, billionaire Elon Musk has taken control of Twitter. The deal will see Musk acquire the social network for approximately $44 billion with shares valued at $54.20. Musk had announced his takeover bid on April 14, calling it his ‘best and final offer’.

“Free speech is the bedrock of a functioning democracy, and Twitter is the digital town square where matters vital to the future of humanity are debated. I also want to make Twitter better than ever by enhancing the product with new features, making the algorithms open source to increase trust, defeating the spam bots, and authenticating all humans. Twitter has tremendous potential – I look forward to working with the company and the community of users to unlock it,” Musk said in a press statement posted to his Twitter account once the deal was confirmed. But his bid initially saw Twitter’s put in place a ‘poison pill defence’ against the hostile takeover. However, once Musk announced that he had secured funding, the board went into negotiations with the Tesla cofounder. According to Wall Street Journal, Musk met “privately with several shareholders of the company to extol the virtues of his proposal” and also made video calls to them to push for his case.

resumption next month of a review of the IMF’s support for the country.

“I’ve requested the fund and I think they have, largely, agreed to extend this programme for another one year,” he said. “I’ve also requested that they enhance the funding available to Pakistan from $6 billion under this programme to perhaps a little bit more.” The details will be decided when the mission comes to Pakistan in May, he said.

“Based on the constructive discussions with the authorities in Washington, the IMF expects to field a mission to Pakistan in May to resume discussions over policies for completing the 7th EFF review,” the IMF said in a statement, referring to its Extended Fund Facility programme. This covers $6 bn of support the IMF agreed in 2019 to extend to Pakistan. The IMF suspended its loan to Pakistan in 2020 after the country failed to meet the conditions. The plan was revived last year after removed premier Imran Khan’s administration agreed to tougher conditions, including raising oil prices and electricity tariffs although a few months later he rolled back the increases to soothe public anger over rising living costs.

in brief INDIA FLAYS US CONGRESSWOMAN'S POK VISIT India has condemned US Congresswoman Ilhan Omar's visit to Pakistan occupied Kashmir (PoK) last week as violative of India’s territorial integrity and sovereignty.

The remarks came during a briefing by the ministry of external affairs spokesperson Arindam Bagchi where he was answering a question on the US representative’s visit to Pakistan. The 37-year-old Omar represents the MN in Congress. She is one of two Muslim women elected to the US Congress in 2018. Born in Somalia, she and her family fled the country’s civil war when she was eight. The family spent four years in a refugee camp in Kenya before coming to the United States in the 1990s. In 1997, she moved to Minneapolis with her family.

SIKH LEADER, SONS BEATEN BY PAK LAND MAFIA Pakistani Sikh leader Sardar Mastan Singh and his sons Dilawar Singh and Palla Singh were beaten by the Islamist radicals at Nankana sahib. Sardar Mastan Singh is the former president of Pakistan Sikh Gurudwara Prabandhak Committee and a Sikh leader.

He and his sons were badly injured in the attack, and were undergoing treatment at the government hospital. In a video, Dilawar said, “ for the last ten years, these people have repeatedly assaulted us. We had a fight with them in Nankana. My maternal uncle and we have our own lands there. It is around five and a half acres. We have somehow managed to maintain it. But the people and the police keep on negotiating with us. This bothers us. Today, when we were harvesting the crop, a few people suddenly came and beat us brutally.”

NAWAZ SHARIF TO RETURN AFTER EID Pakistan’s former PM Nawaz Sharif is returning to the country after Eid to voluntarily face the judicial process in all cases against him, federal minister and PMLN leader Javed Latif said. Nawaz, whose third term as PM ended in 2017 when he was forced to resign in accordance with the Supreme Court’s decision in the Panama papers case, flew to London in November 2019 to seek treatment for various ailments.

“Nawaz Sharif will be seen in Pakistan after Eid,” Latif said in a video statement a day after new PM Shehbaz Sharif’s 37-member cabinet took the oath of office. On the cases as pending against Nawaz, the minister said PML-N believed in the sanctity of the legal process and would accept whatever verdict the courts gave.

PAK PM, RUSSIAN PRESIDENT EXCHANGE LETTERS Pakistan’s new PM Shehbaz Sharif and Russian President Putin have quietly exchanged letters to strengthen bilateral relations, a media report said, amid allegations by Imran Khan that his maiden visit to Moscow, much against Washington’s wishes, led to his ouster. The letters were exchanged after the election of Shehbaz as PM but both the sides kept development away from the media glare, Express Tribune reported. A senior Pakistan foreign office official confirmed that Putin wrote a letter to the PM, congratulating him on his election and expressed his desire to deepen cooperation between the two countries. The congratulatory message by Putin was made public by the Kremlin Press Office. Shehbaz wrote back to Putin thanking him and expressed similar sentiments on ties, the newspaper reported.

AsianVoiceNews

AsianVoiceNewsweekly

21

www.asian-voice.com

30 April - 6 May 2022

in brief AFGHAN MOSQUE BLAST KILLS 33 A Taliban official said a bombing at a mosque and religious school in northern Afghanistan killed at least 33 people, including students of a religious school.

Zabihullah Mujahid, the Taliban’s deputy culture and information minister, said the bombing in the town of Imam Saheb, in Kunduz province, also wounded another 43 people, many of them students. No one immediately claimed responsibility, but Afghanistan’s Islamic State affiliate claimed a series of bombings that happened a day earlier. Since assuming power, the Taliban have been battling the Islamic State affiliate known as Islamic State in Khorasan Province or IS-K which is proving to be an intractable security challenge for Afghanistan's religiously driven government.

PHILIPPINES’ POLL BODY CLEARS LAST HURDLE FOR MARCOS The Philippines’ poll body cleared a major legal hurdle in front runner Ferdinand Marcos Jr’s - son of the late authoritarian ruler Ferdinand Marcos - path to the presidency when it dismissed the final petition calling for his disqualification from the May 9 election. The Commission on Elections (COMELEC) ruled that a case calling for Marcos to be barred from the contest based on his failure to file income tax returns lacked merit. “Regardless of the fact that the non-filing of income tax return was done repeatedly by the respondent, there is still no tax evasion to speak of as no tax was actually intentionally evaded,” the COMELEC’s first division said in the ruling. “The government was not defrauded. ” Marcos has consistently topped opinion polls.

PRIEST ATTACKED WITH KNIFE IN FRENCH CHURCH A man described as mentally unstable attacked a priest with a knife in a church in Nice, southern France, officials said. Interior minister Gerald Darmanin said on his Twitter feed the priest’s life was not in danger and added that police had arrested the attacker. Nice mayor Christian Estrosi said the attacker was mentally unstable, had no criminal record and was known to have purchased a knife several days earlier. BFM TV quoted police as saying the attacker was a 31-year-old French man and there was no suspicion of a terror motive. A local lawmaker said the priest, named as Father Christophe, had been stabbed several times and a nun had been hurt.

RUSSIA EXPELS DUTCH, BELGIAN, AUSTRIAN OFFICIALS Moscow is expelling 15 Dutch diplomats after the Netherlands last month told 18 Russian diplomats to leave, Russia's foreign ministry said. The ministry said in separate statements that Russia was also expelling four Austrians and an unspecified number of Belgian diplomats in retaliatory moves.

European countries have kicked out more than 300 Russian embassy staff since Moscow sent its troops into Ukraine on February 24. Russia has stepped up its response in the past week by expelling diplomats from the Czech Republic, Bulgaria and the European Union, as well as the Dutch, Belgians and Austrians. Meanwhile, Russian foreign minister Sergei Lavrov said Moscow is committed to avoiding nuclear war after he was quizzed repeatedly about the possible use of atomic weapons in Ukraine.

Canada to start Express Entry draws from July; sops for foreign students OTTAWA: Canada is all set to resume its Express Entry draws in early July to fill hundreds of thousands of vacant positions in all sectors across the country.

The draw will be open for candidates that fall under the categories - Canadian experience class (CEC), federal skilled worker (FSW) and federal skilled trades (FST).

Applications will be processed within six month service standard.

This comes as good news for aspiring Indians and also

international students already in Canada whose plans of obtaining permanent residency had been derailed. For the past several years, Indians have led the charts both in terms of the number of invites issued to become permanent residents and those admitted as permanent residents. In 2020, Indians bagged 50,841 invites to apply for permanent residence in Canada under the ‘Express Entry’ route, making it to be 47% of the total invites (just over 100,000).

Travel curbs throughout most of 2020 and 2021 delayed the processing of overseas applications, which led to an increase in the size of the processing inventory. To manage this inventory, the Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) temporarily paused invitations.

This has helped reduce the backlog from 110,000 cases to just 48,000 in March, 2022.

Immigration minister Sean Fraser also announced a new temporary policy that will give

UAE announces new entry and residency rules DUBAI: The UAE cabinet has approved the executive regulations of the federal decree law on entry and residence of foreigners aimed at strengthening the UAE position as an ideal destination to live, work, and invest.

The executive regulations provide comprehensive information on the types and conditions of entry visas and residence permits. The new system of entry and residence aims at attracting and retaining global talents and skilled workers from all over the world, and boosting the competitiveness and flexi-

bility of the job market and fostering high sense of stability among UAE residents and families.

Golden Residence Substantial amendments were introduced to the Golden Residence Scheme to simplify the eligibility criteria and expand the categories of beneficiaries. This long term 10-years residence is granted to investors, entrepreneurs, exceptional talents, scientists and professionals, outstanding students and graduates, humanitarian pioneers and the first line heroes.

The amendments allow

the Golden Residence holder to sponsor his/ her family members including spouse and children regardless of their age, and to sponsor support services (domestic) laborers without limiting their number. Furthermore, there is no restriction related to the maximum duration of stay outside the UAE in order to keep the Golden Residence valid.

There are other benefits for family members that allow them to stay in the UAE in the event of the death of the original holder of the Golden Residence until the end of their permit duration.

More than 100 killed in blast at illegal Nigerian oil refinery ABUJA: More than 100 people were killed in an explosion at an illegal oil refining depot in Nigeria’s Rivers state, a local government official said. “The fire outbreak occurred at an illegal bunkering site and it affected more than 100 people who were burned beyond recognition,” the state commissioner for petroleum resources, Goodluck Opiah, said.

Unemployment and poverty in the oil-producing Niger Delta have made illegal crude refining an attractive business but with deadly consequences. Crude oil is tapped from a web of pipelines owned by major oil companies and refined into products in makeshift tanks.

The hazardous process has led to many fatal accidents and has polluted a region already blighted by oil spills in farmland, creeks and lagoons.

The Youths and Environmental Advocacy Centre said several vehicles that were in a queue to buy illegal fuel were burned in the explosion.

“The unemployed youth are trying to produce oil on their own in order to sell to survive,” according to a source. “The youths know that this is dangerous but because of the poverty levels, they have indulge in illegal

refineries.” “The government said the owner of the illegal refinery is presently on the run and they have declared him wanted,” Mbah added.

“They’re hoping that if he’s apprehended, they will find out exactly what happened.”

At least 25 people, including some children, were killed in an explosion and fire at

another illegal refinery in Rivers state in October.

In February, local authorities said they had started a crackdown to try to put a stop to the refining of stolen crude, but with little apparent success.

Government officials estimate that Nigeria, Africa’s biggest oil producer and exporter, loses an average of 200,000 barrels per day of oil – more than 10 per cent of production – to those tapping or vandalising pipelines.

recent international graduates with expiring temporary status an opportunity to stay in Canada longer so that they can continue to gain work experience and have a better chance at qualifying for permanent residency. Starting in summer 2022, former international students who are in Canada and have a post-graduation work permit expiring between January and December 2022 will qualify for an additional open work permit of up to 18 months.

France's Emmanuel Macron wins second term

Emmanuel Macron

PARIS: French President Emmanuel Macron won re-election on Sunday, convincingly defeating his rival Marine Le Pen and prompting a wave of relief in Europe that the far-right had been kept out of power. Centrist Macron was set to win around 58 per cent of the vote in the secondround run-off compared with Le Pen on 42 per cent, according to projections by polling firms for French television channels based on a sample of the vote count.

Macron is the first French president to win a second term for two decades, but Le Pen's result also marks the closest the farright has ever come to taking power in France and has revealed a deeply divided nation.

The 44-year-old president faces a litany of challenges in his second term, starting with parliamentary elections in June, where keeping a majority will be critical to ensuring he can realise his ambitions to reform France.

In a victory speech, Macron vowed to respond to the anger of voters who backed his far-right rival, saying his new term would not continue unchanged from the last five years.

Kane Tanaka, world’s oldest person, dies at 119 FUKUOKA (JAPAN): Kane Tanaka, a Japanese woman believed to have been the world’s oldest person, has died aged 119. Tanaka died of old age at a hospital in southwestern Fukuoka city on April 19, Japanese public broadcaster NHK reported. She was born in the Fukuoka region on January 2, 1903 - the same year the Wright brothers flew for the first time and Marie Curie became the first woman to win a Nobel Prize. She was confirmed as the world’s oldest living person

by Guinness World Records in 2019.

Tanaka was in relatively good health until recently and lived at a nursing home, where she enjoyed board games, solving maths problems,

Kane Tanaka

fizzy drinks and chocolate. She had been planning to join last year’s torch relay for the Olympic Games but pulled out because of coronavirus concerns.

In her younger years, Tanaka ran various businesses including a noodle shop and a rice cake store. She married Hideo Tanaka a century ago in 1922, giving birth to four children and adopting a fifth.

22

www.asian-voice.com

AsianVoiceNews

AsianVoiceNewsweekly

30 April - 6 May 2022

PM Modi gives global push to India’s traditional medicine Ayurveda 'Jamnagar's contribution for wellness will get a global identity' Nischal Sanghavi Ayurveda is a traditional system of medicine that originated in India some 3,000 years ago. In India, Ayurveda is considered as a form of medical care, equal to conventional Western medicine, traditional Chinese medicine, naturopathic medicine and homeopathic medicine. After Narendra Modi government came to power, the Indian government established a dedicated Ayush Ministry in 2014 which is responsible for developing education, research and propagation of indigenous and alternative medicine systems in India.

GCTM coming up in India Prime Minister Modi recently laid the foundation stone for the world's first WHO Global Centre for Traditional Medicine (GCTM) in Gujarat’s Jamnagar. GCTM will be the first and only global centre for traditional medicine across the world. It will emerge as an international hub of global wellness. A grand ground-breaking ceremony was held in Jamnagar in the presence of Mauritius PM Pravind Kumar Jugnauth, WHO Director General Dr Tedros Adhanom and ambassadors and high commissioners of 40 countries among other dignitaries. Video messages from the Prime Ministers of Bangladesh, Bhutan, Nepal and the President of Maldives were played on the occasion.

WHO chief Tedros thanked PM Modi for his leadership in providing all the support for the establishment of WHO Global Centre for Traditional Medicine in Jamnagar. Tedros termed GCTM as a truly global project as 107 WHO member countries have their country specific

Jamnagar. The city has a quality Ayurvedic Institute of Teaching and Research in Ayurveda.

PM Modi invoked the Indian concept of ‘Vasudhaiv Kutumbkam’ and prayed for the whole world to always remain healthy. He said that with establishment of WHOGCTM, this tradition will get further enriched.

Global push to Ayurveda PM Modi with Mauritius PM Pravind Kumar Jugnauth and WHO The ground-breaking Director General Dr Tedros Adhanom ceremony was followed by a Global Ayush Investment and Innovation governmental offices which means the Summit 2022 at Gandhinagar. During the world will come to India for its leadership in summit Modi declared that the government traditional medicine. He said traditional has a plethora of initiatives to encourage and medicines abound globally and GCTM will promote the Ayush sector. go a long way in bringing the promise of the One of the initiatives is the introduction traditional medicine to fruition. For many of the Ayush visa category in India for regions of the world traditional medicine is foreign nationals who want to come to India the first line of treatment. to take advantage of traditional medicine.

Jugnauth thanked PM Modi for Modi said that the government has been associating Mauritius with the occasion encouraging startups in the traditional giving details of legislative recognition to medicine sector. Some days ago an Ayurveda in Mauritius. He also thanked incubation centre was inaugurated under Gujarat for providing scholarship to students the All India Institute of Ayurveda. The from Mauritius for studying Ayurvedic government is also encouraging production medicine in Jamnagar. During his speech PM of herbal and medicinal plants and working Modi said “The GCTM is a recognition of speedily for an e-market place which is a India's contribution and potential in this portal that would connect companies field”. He further declared “India takes this making Ayush products with farmers partnership as a huge responsibility for growing medicinal plants. serving the entire humanity.” Expressing ‘Ayushmark’ is also being developed happiness at the venue of the WHO Center, which will be stamped on products to give an The Prime Minister said “Jamnagar’s assurance of high quality globally. The contributions towards wellness will get a government has signed more than 50 MoUs global identity with WHO’s Global Centre in the past few years and is optimistic of a for Traditional Medicine.” He said that more huge export market to open up in 150 than five decades ago the world’s first countries across the globe.

Ayurvedic University was established in

First Lata award People urged to stay alert to threat conferred on PM Modi from Covid Prime Minister Narendra Modi will interact with chief ministers on the emerging Covid situation in India on Wednesday through video conferencing, an official said. Union Health Secretary Rajesh Bhushan will make a presentation at the conference. With several festivals coming up, Prime Minister Narendra Modi had on Sunday urged people to stay alert to the threat from the coronavirus and continue to follow Covid-appropriate behaviour such as wearing masks and frequently washing hands.

Over 86 per cent of India’s adult population is now fully vaccinated against the coronavirus infection, Union Health Minister Mansukh Mandaviya said as the number of cumulative vaccine doses administered in the country crossed 1.88 billion on Tuesday. More than 19,67,717 vaccine doses have been administered till 7 pm on Tuesday. The daily vaccination tally is expected to increase with the compilation of the final reports for the day by late night. Over 46,044 precaution doses of Covid vaccine were administered in those aged 18-59 years till 7 pm on

Tuesday, taking the total number of precaution doses given in this age-group to 5,15,290 so far, according to the health ministry data.

The Drugs Controller General of India (DCGI) granted emergency use authorisation to Bharat Biotech’s Covaxin for the age group 6-12 years and Corbevax for the age group 5-12 years. Zydus Cadila’s two-dose Covid-19 vaccine, meanwhile, has been approved for the 12 years and above population.

India reported more than 15,700 fresh cases in the week (April 18-24) as compared to 8,050 earlier, an increase of 95%. This was the second week of rising cases after a steady decline for 11 consecutive weeks. Delhi, Haryana and Uttar Pradesh accounted for a bulk of the new cases during the week, with most of the numbers coming from NCR cities.

These were the only three states where cases had registered an increase last week.

This week, nine other states reported a rise in cases, including Kerala, Maharashtra, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Bengal, Rajasthan and Punjab.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi was honoured with the first Lata Deenanath Mangeshkar award on Sunday and remembered the iconic singer as an artiste who was an integral part of nation-building and will be missed on Rakhi.

Maharashtra Chief Minister and Shiv Sena president Uddhav Thackeray skipped the event amid a tussle between BJP and Sena.

“Lata Didi, apart from being the queen of melody, was my elder sister. She taught generations the language of love and compassion. I feel fortunate that she loved me like a brother. After many decades, this will be the first Rakhi when Didi won't be here,” Modi said in his award acceptance speech. Lata Mangeshkar died at 92 in February following multiple-organ failure.

Maharashtra minister and NCP leader Jitendra Awhad tweeted the invitation card of the Lata Mangeshkar award ceremony, saying it didn't mention the name of Uddhav Thackeray.

“The Mangeshkar family avoided mentioning the name of the Chief Minister on the invitation card of the award ceremony. Their role is incomprehensible. This act of the Mangeshkars is an insult to 120 million Marathi people,” Awhad tweeted.

Guru Tegh Bahadur stood like a rock in front of Aurangzeb: PM Modi Prime Minister Narendra Modi asserted that India is following the ideals of Sikh gurus. Addressing an event from the Red Fort to celebrate the 400th birth anniversary of Sikh Guru Tegh Bahadur, Modi said the Gurudwara Sis Ganj Sahib near the Red Fort stands as a symbol of the immortal sacrifice of Guru Tegh Bahadur.

This holy Gurudwara reminds us how great was the sacrifice of Guru Tegh Bahadurji to protect our great culture. At that time there was a storm of religious fanaticism in the country. India, which considered religion as a matter of philosophy, science and self-reflection,

was facing people who had committed violence and atrocities in the name of religion.

I am happy that today our country is moving forward with full devotion on the ideals of our gurus. On this occasion, I bow at the feet of all ten gurus. Hearty congratulations to all of you on the occasion of Prakash Parv.

In front of Aurangzeb’s tyrannical thinking, Guru Tegh Bahadur became ‘Hind di Chadar’ and stood like a rock.

This Red Fort is a witness that even though Aurangzeb severed many heads, but could not shake our faith. India has

never posed a threat to any country or society. Even today we think for the welfare of the whole world. When we talk about a self-reliant India, we keep the progress of the whole world in front of that goal. The prime minister also released a commemorative coin and postage stamp to mark the occasion. The programme was focused on highlighting the teachings of the ninth Sikh guru who sacrificed his life to protect religion and human values, ideals and principles in world history.

Guru Tegh Bahadur’s death anniversary is commemorated as ‘Shaheedi Divas’ every year on November 24.

in brief PAK BOAT WITH 9 HELD; HEROIN WORTH £28 MN SEIZED The Indian Coast Guard and Gujarat AntiTerrorist Squad apprehended a Pakistani boat with nine crew members on board in the Arabian Sea near the state coast and seized 56kg heroin worth £28 million from the vessel, a defence spokesperson said. A top police officer said that the Coast Guard had to fire shots at the boat as it tried to flee after being challenged by the interceptor ship. Two to three crew members received minor injuries. The Coast Guard ship intercepted and apprehended the Pakistani boat ‘Al Haj’ early Monday morning from the Indian waters, the defence spokesperson said in a statement.

JIGNESH MEVANI GETS BAIL, HELD IN ASSAM AGAIN Arrested Gujarat MLA Jignesh Mevani was freed on bail in Assam's Kokrajhar on Monday, only for Barpeta police to take him into custody again on charges of assaulting a woman cop the day he was brought to the state to face a probe into allegedly provocative tweets on PM Narendra Modi.

"BJP and RSS are doing this to tarnish my image, and they are doing this systematically. They did it to Rohit Vemula, they did it to Chandrasekhar Azad. Now they are targeting me," the Independent MLA from Vadgam said. A Kokrajhar court had remanded Mevani in police custody for three days on April 21, a day after an Assam police team arrested him from Gujarat’s Palanpur and flew him out overnight. The police’s request for extended custody was denied by the first-class judicial magistrate on Sunday.

CHARGESHEET AGAINST TWO IN NSE SCAM CBI filed a chargesheet against Chitra Ramkrishna, former CEO-MD of the National Stock Exchange (NSE) and ex-group operating officer Anand Subramanian in the “co-location” scam in a special court, endorsing the widely held suspicion that the so-called Himalayan yogi whom the stock exchange chief would take instructions from was none other than the latter. The agency has accused Chitra of abusing her position in facilitating exploitation of the exchange’s server architecture. The probe has revealed that unfair and preferential access to NSE’s servers allegedly were provided to certain entities under the co-location set-up, sources said. Both accused are in jail since their arrest on March 6 and February 25 respectively. The investigation has also revealed that both Chitra and Anand derived personal benefits out of the “colocation” scam.

CRPF MAN GETS BACK HIS JOB AFTER 38 YEARS The Supreme Court has restored the job of a CRPF jawan after 38 years with all consequential benefits from 1984 onwards, including pension, but no back wages after the Centre failed to place records of the case to prove that due process of law was followed in terminating his job. He was dismissed from service for allegedly being absent from duty and quarreling with civilians under the influence of alcohol. The SC bench passed the order in favour Balwant Singh, after the aggrieved jawan alleged that he was not been supplied with a copy of the probe report against him and not given an opportunity to defend himself before the authority concerned. He alleged that the dismissal order was passed in violation of natural justice.

AsianVoiceNews

AsianVoiceNewsweekly

23

www.asian-voice.com

30 April - 6 May 2022

PM Modi opens projects worth £2 bn during J&K visit During his first visit to J&K on Sunday since the abrogation of Article 370, Prime Minister Narendra Modi came with a treasure trove of developmental packages for the people of the union territory.

Modi laid the foundation of developmental projects worth over £2 billion as he rightly told the mammoth gathering at Palli village in Samba district, “I am here with a message of development. To give speed to development in J&K, projects worth over £2 billion have been inaugurated today.”

During the visit, Modi also launched the ‘Amrit Sarovar Mission’ and transferred the amount of the National Panchayat Award into the bank accounts of the winning Panchayats. He laid the foundation stone of the Delhi-Amritsar-Katra Expressway and inaugurated the 500KW Solar Power Plant at Palli village along with 108 Jan Aushadhi

infrastructure.

“The youth of the Valley mark my words that you will not face the difficulties faced by your parents and grandparents. This I will accomplish Narendra Modi and I have come to Kendras in J&K. He also laid assure you that,” the PM said the foundation stones for in Palli village where he the 850 MW Ratle addressed more than 30,000 Hydroelectric Project & 540 elected rural representatives MW Kwar Hydroelectric of J&K as well as the nation Project to be constructed on on the occasion of the Chenab river in Kishtwar Panchayati Raj Day. District. The Prime Minister The PM said the celebrainaugurated the Amrit tion of Panchayati Raj Day in Sarovar initiative, which J&K “marks a big change” as marks a special moment in it is proof “that democracy the collective endeavours to has reached the grassroots”. rejuvenate water bodies.

He expressed satisfaction Under this initiative, 75 that panchayat and district water bodies will be develbody elections were conoped and rejuvenated in ducted peacefully for the each district. first time in J&K in 2020. He Promise to its youth defended the abrogation of PM Modi told the youth J&K’s special status under that they won't face hardArticle 370 and 35-A, saying ships their parents and his government has implegrandparents suffered for mented almost 200 central want of opportunities and laws and the Panchayati Raj

system for the people who were “deprived” of these benefits before. He pointed out that people in J&K’s villages, women, the poor and deprived sections of society are the biggest beneficiaries of central schemes for LPG, toilets, electricity, cheap or free healthcare, land rights and water connections.

Modi said J&K will write a new chapter of success in the next 25 years, which will be the “amrit kaal” of Indian independence. The youth of the region will get employment with the rapid pace of development, he said. “Local youth of Palli will get jobs. I met panchayat representatives, heard them out, their dreams and mission. They showed me what ‘sab ka prayas’ actually means.”

He also talked about the removal of anomalies in reservation clauses. “I feel proud that after 75 years, people from Valmiki Samaj are equal to any other citizen of India. These people suffered a lot.”

India suspends tourist visas for Chinese citizens India suspended tourist visas issued to Chinese nationals, global airlines body International Air Transport Association (IATA) has told its member move carriers.

The appeared to be a response to Beijing stonewalling India's appeals as about 22,000 Indian students who are enrolled in Chinese universities are unable to go back for physical classes. The neighbouring country has till date refused to let them enter.

These students had to leave their studies in China and come to India when the

Covid-19 pandemic began in early 2020. In a circular issued on April 20 regarding India, the IATA said, "Tourist visas issued to nationals of China (People's Republic) are no longer valid." It said the following passengers are allowed to enter India: nationals of Bhutan, India, Maldives and Nepal; passengers with a residence permit issued

by India; passengers with visa or an e-visa issued by India; passengers with an overseas citizen of India (OCI) card or booklet; passengers with a persons of Indian origin (PIO) card;

and passengers with a diplomatic passport.

The IATA also said that tourist visas with a validity of 10 years are no longer valid. The IATA is a global airlines body with around 290 members that comprise more than 80 per cent of global air traffic.

India has urged Beijing to adopt a "congenial stance" in the matter as the continuation of the strict restrictions is putting the academic careers of thousands of Indian students in jeopardy, MEA spokesperson Arindam Bagchi had said on March 17.

Bagchi said a Chinese foreign ministry spokesperson had stated on February 8 that China was looking into the matter in a coordinated manner and that arrangements for allowing foreign students to return to China were being examined. But Chinese side did not give any categorical response about the return of Indian students.

Bagchi said the issue was also taken up with Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi by External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar during a meeting in Dushanbe in September last year.

Row over 'partial' demolition of 300-year-old temple in Rajasthan The Rajasthan government came under attack after a “300-year-old” temple was “partially” demolished during an anti-encroachment drive at Rajgarh in Alwar.

The video of the demolition went viral on social media, triggering a slugfest between the ruling party and opposition BJP. The Congress said that the Rajgarh municipality, which carried out the demolition, is being ruled by the BJP and the action was based on a unanimous resolution by the municipality.

The district administration, too, said the action to remove the encroachment was taken as per the master plan. In a clarification, the Alwar collector said the demolition of temples at Rajgarh was part of the antiencroachment drive taken up after a unanimous resolution passed by the Rajgarh municipality on September

8 last year.

He said all encroachers were given prior notice. He clarified that one temple, a private one, was illegally constructed recently over a drain and the idols were removed by the encroachers themselves before the drive.

A small part of an old temple was also demolished as it was causing traffic problems.

The sanctum sanctorum of the temple is intact, he said. The idols that had to

be removed from the old temple will be relocated, he said. BJP state president Satish Poonia, however, questioned how a “300year-old” temple can be an encroachment. He has sent a fact-finding team to the spot which will submit its report in three days.

At a press conference, Congress state president Govind Singh Dotasara lashed out at the BJP accusing it of playing politics on the issue. “In 2018, the BJP

mandal president wrote a letter to the district collector recommending the removal of this encroachment. There is a BJP board in Rajgarh municipality, headed by Satish Guharia.

The resolution to remove this encroachment was passed by the municipal board. It was only after that the encroachment was removed. The Congress government does not tamper with temples. This has been the agenda of BJP,” he said.

“Many temples were demolished during the BJP rule in Rajasthan during the tenure of former CM Vasundhara Raje. Recently, bulldozers were run in Delhi to erase buildings despite SC objections. Also, many temples were brought down in Gujarat. It's the BJP and RSS which are playing politics on these issues,” he said.

Happy Maharashtra, Gujarat Day Sushil Rapatwar There are some dates in history that become iconic as time passes. It was on 1st May 1960 – the two prosperous states of India were born – Maharashtra and Gujarat. What should have happened peacefully then unfortunately was marred by police firing on protestors demanding their right which led to the deaths of 106 protestors. Subsequently, the authorities agreed and thus were born the two states on a linguistic basis, much similar to Andhra agitation and formation of a separate state for Telugu speaking people carved out from the Madras Presidency.

Language is an integral part of our personality. It shapes our values, our culture, and our thought process through its vast array of literature, poetry, songs, and stories. Formed based on linguistic uniqueness, Marathi-speaking people got to have their own state of Maharashtra. It is a sandhi (combination) of two words Mahaan (great) and Rashtra (state) meaning a great state.

This day is celebrated with great camaraderie across the state including government and private enterprises along with schools and colleges displaying the pride of Maharashtra through its many facets such as singing patriotic songs, parades, and dances throughout the state. The same is observed with great enthusiasm outside India too by the diaspora living abroad.

History of Gujarat The state took its name from the Gujara, the land of the Gujjars. After Gujjars, Islam Sultanate, Mughals, Marathas, Europeans, and Britishers took over the state. Finally, “Quit India Movement” started to get independence from the British people which was led by Mahatma Gandhi and Sardar Patel.

To integrate the entire Gujarati-speaking population under one administrative body, a Mahagujarat conference took place and they finally decided to split the states of Gujarat and Maharashtra.

The then Bombay though had people speaking various languages like Marathi, Gujarati, Kutchi, and Konkani, which obviously did not work out. Several protests were carried out by various linguistic groups for the creation of states based on the language of the regions.

Gujarat finally received the status of a state in 1960, the same day Maharashtra was also formed. Thus, both the states on this day celebrate their statehood. The first capital of Gujarat was Ahmedabad; the capital was moved to Gandhinagar in 1970.

Army, IAF induct Israeli anti-tank missiles amid LAC standoff The Army and IAF have begun to induct advanced Israeli anti-tank guided missiles (ATGMs) with longer ranges and greater armourpenetration capabilities, amid the two-year-long military confrontation with China in eastern Ladakh.

The Israeli ‘tank killers’ were ordered under emergency procurement last year due to the troop stand-off with China, which is yet to show any signs of de-escalation. The sheer utility of such weapons has been demonstrated during the ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict.

Ukrainian troops armed with US-origin Javelin ATGMs and western next generation light anti-tank light missiles (NLAWs) have destroyed hundreds of Russian tanks and other armoured vehicles since the conflict began on February 24.

The Israeli family of Spike ATGMs is equally lethal and versatile. The Army is inducting the Spike LR-2 launchers and missiles, which have a ground strike

range of 5.5km, while the IAF is integrating its Russian-origin Mi-17 V5 armed helicopters with Spike NLOS (nonline of sight) missiles that can destroy ground targets around 30 km away.

“Both the fifth-generation ATGMs are being inducted in limited numbers under emergency procurement to plug certain operational gaps. The much larger requirement for ATGMs will be met through ‘Make in India’ projects,” a top defence source said. “The pilot-controlled NLOS missiles, which can be armed with different kinds of warheads, are primarily meant for specialised ‘behind the hill’ missions by IAF helicopters,” he added.

The IAF, incidentally, has 22 Apache attack helicopters, armed with Stinger air-to-air missiles, Hellfire Longbow air-to-ground missiles, guns and rockets, inducted under the deal with the US in September 2015. The Army, in turn, is getting six Apaches under a deal in February 2020.

24

www.asian-voice.com

AsianVoiceNews

AsianVoiceNewsweekly

30 April - 6 May 2022

in brief

SOUTH INDIA

After hijab, new row in Karnataka is over school's Bible policy Bengaluru (Karnataka): After the hijab row in Karnataka classrooms, a new row has erupted in the state alleging that a school in Bengaluru had taken an undertaking from parents that they would not object to their wards carrying the Bible to class.

Hindu Janajagruti Samiti accused the administration of Clarence High School in Bengaluru of making it mandatory for students to carry the Bible. State spokesperson of the group, Gowda, alleged that the school has asked non-Christian students to compulsorily carry and read the Bible adding that it violated Articles 25 and 30 of the Constitution.

Principal of Clarence High School, Jerry George Mathew said, "We are aware that some people are upset about one of the policies of our school. We are a peace-loving and law-abiding school. We've consulted our advocates on this matter and we'll follow their advice. We won't break

Masks, social distancing made mandatory in Karnataka

law of the land."

Karnataka Primary and Secondary education Minister BC Nagesh said that no educational institution can force people to follow a certain religious practice and if institutions are found doing so strict action will be taken against them. "No institution can teach religious textbooks. As you know Bible is a religious book of Christianity. Such things cannot be taught in our institutions. Whether it is a minority institution or other institutions. No religious practices are allowed," the minister said.

Bengaluru: Amid fresh Covid-19 concerns in different parts of the country and apprehensions about a possible fourth wave of the pandemic, the Karnataka government has decided to issue guidelines making wearing face masks and maintaining social distancing compulsory.

The decision was taken at a meeting headed by Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai with senior ministers, officials and the Covid technical advisory committee consisting of experts in Bengaluru, to review the situation in the state amid concerns over a possible fourth wave.

"Masks should be worn compulsorily, especially at places where there is a crowd and in indoor places, social distancing has to be maintained. Guidelines will be issued today to this effect. We have not taken any decision regarding imposing any penalty immediately," Health Minister K Sudhakar said.

The minister said the number of positive cases have slightly increased in Bengaluru, where the positivity rate is 1.9 per cent, and the situation will be monitored and supervised with guidelines about the treatment if required.

PUNJAB

Sidhu says Cong needs to reinvent itself, backs ‘honest’ Mann CHANDIGARH: Congress leader Navjot Singh Sidhu said the party lost the Punjab elections because of the “mafia raj” that prevailed in the state and it now needed to reinvent itself, while praising Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann as a “younger brother” and an “honest man.”

Without taking names, he blamed Amarinder Singh and Charanjit Singh Channi –the two Congress chief ministers who ran the state in the past five years – for failing to crack

down on the “mafia”.

He said he will support Mann, whose Aam Aadmi Party trounced the Congress in the recent assembly polls, if he fights the mafia. “He is an honest man,” Sidhu told reporters at the sidelines of an event where Amrinder Singh Raja Warring took charge as the state Congress president. Sidhu had resigned from the same post after the party's defeat in the Punjab elections.

“I did not speak earlier but everybody has a right to

speak and I say today that the Congress lost because of the five-year rule of the mafia raj,” he added. Sidhu said he has always fought against the mafia. Though he did not elaborate, he has in the past criticised his own Congress government in the state over alleged mafias in sandmining, transport and cable TV sectors. “My fight was not against any individual. It was against the system and against some persons who were eating into the state like termites,” he said.

Navjot Singh Sidhu

WEST BENGAL

Bengal to seek more IAS, IPS officers as number of districts will rise Kolkata: The West Bengal government has decided to write to the Centre urging it to increase the allotment of IAS and IPS officers as the state administration is planning to raise the number of districts and that will require more such officials.

State Industry Minister Partha Chatterjee claimed that some neighbouring states that are smaller than West Bengal have more IAS and IPS officers compared to what this state has.The state Cabinet on Monday okayed a proposal to constitute a panel of officials to recruit more West Bengal Civil Service (WBCS) and Police Service (WBPS) officers to run the administration more efficiently, Chatterjee said.

"The CM has asked the chief

Partha Chatterjee

secretary to write a letter to the USPC to increase the allotment of fresh IAS and IPS cadres for West Bengal because we will be having more districts," he said.

The Cabinet also decided to fill up a total of 11,551 vacancies in the health department with contractual temporary workers primarily for the infrastructure development in urban and rural areas, Chatterjee said.

Mamata, governor Dhankhar praise each other KOLKATA: Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee and state governor Jagdeep Dhankhar found themselves praising each other instead of trying to fend off acerbic attacks from one another. Bengal Mamata Banerjee & Jagdeep Dhankhar CM, who seemed to with her. mellow first, did choose the The governor gestured that Bengal Global Business he did not hear her last words, Summit’s opening session to prompting Banerjee to get ask Dhankhar to “pass on a closer to him and whisper message to the Centre” to something in his ears; they then ensure that “industrialists shared a smile before the (investing in Bengal)” are not national anthem started. “I am troubled by agencies. excited that the governor has “All these industrialists out joined us for the BGBS here, they cannot open their programme. He gave an mouths. We want the Centre’s excellent opening speech, help. But I would like you to which we appreciate. Like your personally see that speech, we would appreciate industrialists are not disturbed your cooperation always,” through some agencies. Please Banerjee said before her see to that,” Banerjee asked “message to the Centre”.

Dhankhar, who shared the dais

YEDIYURAPPA AGAINST NAMING AIRPORT AFTER HIM Veteran BJP leader B S Yediyurappa has requested the Karnataka government to name the airport that is coming up at Shivamogga B S Yediyurappa after any illustrious personality of the state, following it's recent decision to name it after him.

Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai after inspecting the ongoing work of the airport on April 20, had announced that it will be named after the former chief minister, and would send a proposal in this regard to the Civil Aviation Ministry, Government of India.

"I am touched by Chief Minister Bommai's decision to name the airport after me. With all humility, I request the government to name the airport after any illustrious personality which will be a befitting tribute to their contribution," Yediyurappa said in a tweet.

ONE KILLED, 3 HURT AFTER EV BATTERY EXPLODES An 80-year-old man was killed and two others injured when the detachable battery of an electric scooter, kept on charge inside a home in Nizamabad district of Telangana, exploded and triggered flames, causing burn injuries. The incident occurred when the battery was being charged. A man, identified as Ramaswamy, died after suffering burn injuries. His son Prakash, wife Kamalamma and daughter-in-law Krishnaveni suffered injuries, while trying to save their father.

Prakash had reportedly been using the EV scooter for one year. The police have registered a case of causing death due to negligence against the manufacturer, Pure EV.

TWO PUNJAB FARMERS END LIVES Two debt-ridden farmers from Punjab’s Bathinda district ended their lives last week. Bharatiya Kisan Union claimed both the suicides were linked to loss of wheat yield. Jaspal Singh (39) from Miserkhana village committed suicide by jumping before a running train. His family owned 12 acres of land and had taken Rs 900,000 loan. He had used the entire amount on farming operations, but low yield added to his problems. Gurdeep Singh (28) of Mansa Khurd village hanged himself in the motor room in the fields. His family owned two acres of land and had taken 6 acres on lease. The family has a debt Rs 325,000.

Bathinda district BKU general secretary said both the farmers ended their lives after getting lower than expected wheat yield.

4 KIDS HURT WHILE PLAYING WITH CRUDE BOMBS Four kids were injured when crude bombs, which they started playing with thinking to be balls, exploded in West Bengal's Malda district, police said. Two of them are critical and undergoing treatment at the Malda Medical College and Hospital and the other two boys are undergoing treatment at the local health center, police said. The incident took place in Gopalganj in the Kaliachak police station area, they added. Thinking them to be balls, they picked up the crude bombs and started playing, police said.

AsianVoiceNews

AsianVoiceNewsweekly

25

www.asian-voice.com

30 April - 6 May 2022

India is 3rd-largest military spender after US and China India remains ahead of Russia and the UK as the third largest military spender in the world, but far behind China that spends four times and the US which spends 10 times its defence budget.

The total global military expenditure rose to $2,113 billion in 2021, surpassing the two trillion US dollar mark for the first time despite the economic shocks of the Covid-19 pandemic, as per the latest data released by global think-tank Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI).

. The five largest spenders were the US ($801 billion), which accounted for 38% of the world military spending, China (estimated $293 billion), India ($77 billion),

UK ($68 billion) and Russia ($66 billion). Pakistan was placed at the 23rd spot with $11 billion. While China’s actual military expenditure remains shrouded in secrecy, SIPRI

noted it has steadily grown for 27 consecutive years, the longest uninterrupted sequence of hikes by any country in its database.

“India’s spending was up by 0.9% from 2020 and by 33% from 2012. Amid ongoing tensions and border disputes with China and Pakistan that occasionally spill over into armed clashes, India has prioritised the modernisation of its armed forces and self-reliance in arms production,” said SIPRI. While SIPRI does not go into details, India certainly does not get the req-

India, US plan joint sea patrols, intelligence sharing to counter China With an eye on China, India and the US now plan to undertake ‘sea patrols’ and share intelligence in realtime to further expand their bilateral maritime cooperation in the Indo-Pacific as well as partner in new domains of space, cyber and artificial intelligence.

“Both countries expressed willingness and there was a broad understanding on the sea patrols as well as information-sharing, through satellites and other means, during the ‘two-plus-two’ dialogue in Washiangton last week,” the official said.

India and the US regularly conduct the top-notch Malabar naval exercise, along with the other two

‘Quad’ countries of Australia and Japan, as well as provide refuelling and operational turnaround facilities to each other’s warships under a reciprocal military logistics pact.

The plan to undertake sea patrols, whether in a joint or coordinated manner, will be a significant step forward in the backdrop of the increasing forays by China - which already has the world’s largest navy with 355 warships and submarines - into the Indian Ocean Region (IOR).

With defence minister Rajnath Singh also separately meeting his US counterpart Lloyd Austin and senior Boeing and

Raytheon executives as well as visiting the Indo-Pacific Command at Hawaii, there was “forward movement” on several fronts, which included “business opportunities”, the official said.

The US, for instance, will be sending a team to visit Indian shipyards in line with India’s offer to “maintain and repair” American warships in the region.

“India told the US it can provide customized facilities in a cost-effective manner,” the official said.

Similarly, Raytheon offered to invest $100 million for research in Bengaluru, while Boeing was “receptive” to setting up a MRO (maintenance, repair and overhaul) facility

India allows Japan commercial plane to pick up Ukraine relief India was reported to have denied permission to a Japanese military aircraft to pick up relief supplies from a UNHCR depot in India even as it said it had allowed the same by commercial Japanese aircraft.

The government said it had also approved overflight clearance for a Japanese defence aircraft carrying humanitarian cargo for Ukraine. After Japanese media quoted a local lawmaker to say India had denied landing permission for a military relief aircraft, the MEA said Japan’s request for picking up supplies using a commercial aircraft was approved. “We had received a request from Japan for permission to land in Mumbai to pick up humanitarian supplies from UNHCR depot for Ukraine and its neighbouring countries. We have conveyed our approval for picking of such supplies from India using commercial aircraft,’’ said spokesperson Arindam Bagchi.

“We had also received a request for overflight clearance for Japanese SDF aircraft carrying humanitarian

cargo for Ukraine. This was processed and approved as per established norms,” added the official.

The official was responding to reports from Tokyo that India had denied a Japanese SelfDefence Force aircraft to land in the country. The flight, apparently a C-2 transport aircraft of the Japanese military, was meant to pick up relief supplies from India and deliver it to Ukrainian refugees in Poland and Romania.

According to Kyodo News, a Japanese government official said at a Liberal Democratic Party meeting that India had agreed at a working level to allow the

transport plane to land, but “it suddenly withdrew its consent”.

The report quoted a lawmaker to say that “some of those at the LDP policy meeting accused the government of failing to take into account the possibility that India, which is highly dependent on Russian military and energy supplies, could reject the plan”.

While India is yet to condemn Russia’s actions, Japan has imposed sanctions on Russia and earlier this week revoked Russia’s most favoured nation status. Japanese PM Fumio Kishida had raised the Ukraine issue in his recent meeting with PM Modi.

in India for P-8 Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft and its variants in the region.

India operates a fleet of 12 Boeing-manufactured P-8I, contracted under two deals collectively worth $3.2 billion.

With Rajnath Singh strongly pitching for codevelopment and co-proof high-tech duction weapon systems, India and the US also decided to “revitalise” the moribund Defence Technology and Trade Initiative (DTTI).

Counter-unmanned aerial systems (UAS) and an ISTAR (intelligence, surveillance, targeting and reconnaissance) platform were identified as the next two projects for collaboration.

uisite bang for its buck.

The country’s military modernisation continues to be hampered by a ballooning revenue expenditure for day-to-day running costs and salaries for the 15,00,000 strong armed forces as well as a massive pension bill.

India’s £52 billion defence budget for 20222023, for instance, includes the huge £12 billion pension bill for the over 33,00,000 retired military and defence civilians.

Moreover, the £23 billion revenue expenditure dwarfs the £15 billion capi-

tal allocation for overall modernisation and new weapon systems. Then, the lack of concrete longterm plans to systematically build military capabilities with proper interService prioritisation as well as the weak domestic defence-industrial base compounds the problem.

Consequently, the forces continue to grapple with critical shortages on several fronts, ranging from fighters, submarines and helicopters to drones, antitank guided missiles and night-fighting capabilities.

Priyanka forced Yes Bank’s ex-chief to buy MF Husain painting: ED In its chargesheet filed before a local Mumbai court, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) said that former Yes Bank chairman Rana Kapoor paid £200,000 for an MF Husain painting and the money was later utilised for the treatment of Congress interim president Sonia Gandhi in New York.

Kapoor was forced by then petroleum minister Murli Deora to purchase the painting from Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra. Deora visited Kapoor’s offices many times to force him to buy the paintings, the probe agency said.

Deora also sent messages and called Kapoor in this respect several times. Kapoor tried to avoid Deora’s call and didn’t respond to his messages. However, he purchased the painting later. Kapoor gave a cheque of £200,000 to Deora.

His statements read that he was promised that it would help him getting a Padma Bhushan. But it was never fulfilled.

The Enforcement Directorate had arrested Kapoor on March 8, 2020, for allegedly conspiring with Dewan Housing Finance Limited promoters and siphoning off funds worth £505 million from Yes Bank through “suspicious transactions”.

Bombay HC refuses to quash 2nd FIR against Ranas Refusing to quash the second FIR lodged

by Mumbai cops against Amravati MP Navneet Rana and her MLA husband Ravi Rana for obstructing a public servant on duty, the Bombay high court on Monday said “the petitioners who claimed to be active in their political and public life are expected to act more responsibly”.

The Ranas, who were arrested on Saturday after they said they’d recite the Hanuman Chalisa outside CM Uddhav Thackeray’s residence, had challenged the second FIR as being “malicious” and “legally untenable”, and also said the first FIR was “extremely unusual” as it was “based on an apprehension without any actual offence taking place”.

An HC bench of Justices P B Varale and S M Modak said, “As it is said, great power comes with great responsibilities.

Responsible conduct from those persons active in public life cannot be an extra expectation, but it would be a minimum basic expectation.” The HC said the state was justified in apprehending that their act of seeking to recite a religious verse outside the CM’s residence would result in disturbance to law and order.

Accepting the submission of special public prosecutor Pradeep Gharat, the HC said the second FIR, registered on April 24, is for a “different set of events”.

Earlier, the court sent Rana and his wife to judicial custody for 14 days by a holiday magistrate on Sunday, a day after their arrest following a high-voltage faceoff with Shiv Sena.. Police on Saturday had booked the Ranas. A second FIR was filed against the Ranas on Sunday for alleged assault of a public servant to pr vent him/ her from doing official duty.

Help ‘more actively,’ Ukraine tells India A Ukrainian minister urged India to support the warravaged European country “more actively” and pushed the Western powers to put a “true embargo” on export of Russian oil and gas for its invasion.

Oleksandr Tkachenko, the minister for culture and information, said Russia’s actions against Ukraine are no different than what Adolf Hitler did in Europe

several decades ago and asserted President Vladimir Putin’s goal is to occupy his country completely and erase its identity.

He said India and Ukraine, which was invaded by Russia on February 24, share democratic values. “Because it (India) is the biggest democratic power in the world, and I believe the democratic values for which our

Ukrainians fight for the right to live in an independent state also are shared by the Indian people,” he said, speaking virtually at the Times Network’s India Economic Conclave.

Tkachenko, however, did not elaborate on what exactly he expects from India as Ukraine battles Russia, the country with which New Delhi shares close military ties.

26

www.asian-voice.com

AsianVoiceNews

AsianVoiceNewsweekly

30 April - 6 May 2022

How should we tell the story of a World War? Shefali Saxena The Second World War was a global struggle on an unprecedented scale, the likes of which have never been seen since. From London to Hamburg, Nanking to Manitoba, Dar-es-Salaam to Rawalpindi, Detroit to Stalingrad, the war affected everyone.

But while there is no doubt that the Second World War was a conflict on a massive scale, public discussion and commemoration of the war in the UK has often neglected to acknowledge its truly global nature, focusing instead on battles in Europe, the home front and the role of great power leaders.

So how should our society best explore the global nature of the Second World War? And in an era of increased debate about history and Britain’s imperial past, how can we ensure voices from all sides are heard in order to move towards a more inclusive understanding of our shared global history?

We speak to Professor Rana Mitter, Professor of the History and Politics of Modern China at St Cross College, Oxford and Dr Meera Sabaratnam, Reader in International Relations in the Department of Politics and International Studies at SOAS, University of London, and Chair of the Decolonising SOAS Working Group about it. ow Should We Tell The Story of a World War? Dr Meera: A war as far-reaching, widespread and destructive as the Second World War needs to be understood in its full historical and moral complexity. Our understanding needs to go beyond the battlefronts to look at civilians, who died both from violence and from the indirect effects of the war in numbers that far outnumbered military deaths. We need to go well beyond thinking about Britain, France, Germany and America to think about the huge roles played by China and the Soviet Union where deaths were far higher, and Japan whose impact across Asia was enormous. We also need to see this not as a war between nation-states but between empires and their allies and appreciate that there were tensions within as well as between these imperial structures. For

H

example, in India, different parts of the national movement supported different sides in the war or shifted allegiances particularly as they became frustrated with broken promises from the Dr Meera Sabaratnam British. o you think an objective account of the current climate will be possible in the near future or for our future generations?

Dr Meera: There has been a really significant shift over recent decades in moving away from a more self-serving jingoistic account of the war and towards a fuller reckoning with it from multiple perspectives and angles, towards appreciating it as something with enormous social consequences - towards writing a history 'from below'. Whilst of course some elements will not be available to be recovered, it will be important for historians around the world to collaborate and piece together archives of what can.

Prof Rana: Right now we have one advantage over previous generations - there is much more material available at the grassroots, because of the proliferation of digital materials - blogs, images, photos, social media posts. We know - if we care to what it's like being a Syrian refugee or a Ukrainian under fire. The danger is the preservation of such materials. To gain some kind of objectivity - which is not the same as neutrality - we must start working now on the task of preserving such materials to ensure the widest range is left for later generations to interpret. The IWM is one of the institutions that can and does play a crucial role in this sort of discussion. hy is studying our history so important?

How can nations like Britain do justice to it and make sure Britons know of the colonial past?

Dr Meera: Everyone on the receiving end of it seems to remember British imperialism quite well! It's odd that Brits themselves know relatively little about it. Whilst it is not possible to capture absolutely everything, it

D

W

Norfolk & Norwich Festival to celebrate with South Asian artists In May 2022 the Norfolk & Norwich Festival will celebrate its 250th Anniversary. The UK’s oldest single city arts festival has recently announced the full programme for this milestone occasion, with over 100 events, 18 new commissions and 40 free events on offer across 17 days between 13-29 May 2022.

The wide-ranging ‘Festival 250’ programme for 2022 revisits seminal works premiered at the Festival as well as introduces 18 new commissions.

Installations, exhibitions, gigs, cabaret, circus and even giant dominoes will be presented on beaches, in churches, at pop-up venues, chapels, art centres, in car parks and through the streets across the county from King’s Lynn, Great Yarmouth to Diss and Sheringham and throughout Norwich.

Festival Gardens will be a place to eat, drink and gather for the duration, with alfresco performances from local artists as well as international performances in the Adnams Spiegeltent. Transforming the city and country each May for 17 days, the 2022 edition of the Festival runs from 13 - 29 May. Booking opens on Wednesday 9 March.

There are a number of South Asian artists featured in the line-up for Festival 250: Arun Ghosh: The Canticle of the Sun (World Premiere) The Canticle of the Sun (translated as Praise of the Creatures) is an Umbrian prayer written by St Francis of Assisi in 1224 celebrating the unity of nature, from the sun to the creatures that live beneath it. Inspired

by this ancient text, BritishAsian clarinettist, composer and music educator Arun Ghosh reimagines it through spiritual music from across the world. Deploying the range of an eight-piece band, this World Premiere harnesses the intensely evocative sounds of qawwali, meditative mantras,

Ethiopian Mezmur, Gregorian chants and spiritual jazz.

Amjad Ali Khan, Amaan Ali Bangash and Ayaan Ali Bangash Amjad Ali Khan is one of the undisputed masters of the sarod. A recipient of a Grammy nomination, the Crystal Award, UNICEF’s National Ambassadorship and the Fukuoka Cultural grand prize, he honours the timeless interpretation of the sarod repertoire whilst also reinventing technique.

Forming a trio with him tonight are his sons, Gold Medal Winners of the Global Music Awards, Amaan Ali Bangash and Ayaan Ali Bangash.

is necessary for people to make sense e.g. of Chinese military strategy or Caribbean calls for reparations in the context of the things that happened.

Professor Rana Mitter Prof Rana: It's important because it's complex. The more you read and understand the complexity of the past, the more you understand why

today's society is shaped by the contours of history that lie just below the surface. It's important to remember that for many Asians, the links with Britain's history are ones that are not always well-known in Britain itself - for instance, both the contribution of Chinese workers (100,000 of them on the western front in World War II) and Indian soldiers in the Great War. There are never simply good or bad outcomes in history - history is not theology. But nobody can make a full judgement about Britain's fascinating history without having full and detailed knowledge of its colonial past.

Southampton Council of Faiths announced as newest Delivery Partner for UK City of Culture 2025 Southampton Council has announced that Southampton Council of Faiths (SCOF) will be their newest Delivery Partner, joining them in support of the bid to become the UK City of Culture 2025.

Based within the heart of the city, SCOF helps plays a vital role in promoting the understanding and access between faiths in the region and provides communications between faith communities and public bodies such as the police, fire, and health services. Meeting eight times a year, they discuss issues of mutual concern and recognise the importance of overcoming ignorance and fear.

Within SCOF, seven faiths are represented – Bahai, Buddhist, Islam, Christian, Hindu, Judaism and Sikhism – and one member from each faith acts as faith advisor to the Mayor of Southampton.

As a Delivery Partner, SCOF will provide on the ground support within the community as the charity organisation pledges its commitment to Southampton’s bid for the UK City of Culture title.

Bid Director, Claire Whitaker OBE, said: “Southampton Council of Faiths plays a vital role in representing the diversity and breadth of the faith communities in Southampton and we are thrilled to be working with them as a Delivery Partner.

This partnership ensures that our faith communities are shaping our programme and legacy for the city and the wider region.

We cannot wait to start our partnership with Southampton Council of Faiths and help showcase the city’s faith sectors and the important role they play in our community support.”

British pavilion has always been a showcase for the brightest and best of UK art Lord Parkinson delivered a speech at the Venice Biennale, celebrating the British Pavilion, Sonia Boyce’s artwork and Britain's vibrant art scene.

Below are some excerpts from his speech where he mentioned South Asian names who have contributed to the sector.

Lord Parkison said, “The Biennale is a much-cherished opportunity to showcase some of the best artists in the UK, but also to see international artists and colleagues reinforce connections, and to make the most of the face to face interaction which we have all been missing so much.

“But of course, we meet against the backdrop of the terrible situation unfolding in Ukraine. I know everyone here will want to extend our support and warmest wishes to our Ukrainian friends as they continue to suffer under the deplorable invasion by the Russian Federation.

“I look forward to visiting the Ukrainian pavilion during my stay here in Venice, to demonstrate the UK’s solidarity with Ukraine - and to admire the wonderful artwork of that culturally rich country.

“It is clearer than ever that to survive the challenges of this troubled world we must work together, and it is here that Sonia Boyce’s work has much to teach us. She is an artist who embodies the value of working together, of sharing a platform, whether she’s working with local communities in Barking and Dagenham or exhibiting at the Tate - or indeed the British Pavilion here at the Biennale.

“Sonia has had a 30-year career as a teacher as well as an artist. She has influenced many generations, sharing her expertise and experiences as an artist and enriching those with whom she has come into contact.

“We are very proud that she is representing Britain here in Venice.

She joins an august group of previous exhibitors, including Henry Moore, Barbara Hepworth, Anish Kapoor, Gilbert & George, and Jeremy Deller. The British pavilion has always been a showcase for the brightest and best of UK art, managed by the British Council, and I’m delighted to see this tradition continue this year.”

AsianVoiceNews

AsianVoiceNewsweekly

www.asian-voice.com

CALCIUM + Magnesium + Vit. D3

SKIN, HAIR, NAILS

Beauty Tablets

UK’S AWARD WINNING NO.1

Available from Superdrug, Holland & Barrett, Lloydspharmacy, GNC, supermarkets, health stores independent pharmacies, www.vitabiotics.com

Most trusted for pregnancy

kombucha Veggies: Spinach, broccoli, beets, cauliflower, french beans For diabetics, consuming non-starchy foods will ensure that blood sugar levels are managed better. Greens and non-starchy vegetables offer the right diet, which along with exercise helps build a healthy lifestyle.

Starchy foods are best avoid-

30 April - 6 May 2022

MOST TRUSTED VITAMINS Menopause Tablets

TABLETS For all women over 40 years Gentle IRON+Vitamin syrup

Food tips for people with diabetes to combat summer High temperature and humidity during the summers could have an adverse effect on one’s blood sugar levels. Being well-hydrated, avoiding starchy foods, and having a high-fibre diet can help people with diabetes stay healthy during the hot weather.

A steady intake of water, coconut water, cucumber juice and kombucha are healthy additions to the summer diet. Fresh vegetable salads in summer are a good mid-meal snack, while fruits like bananas, apples, and berries.

Following is a list of healthy food options for diabetic people in summer Drinks: Sugar-free lemon water, coconut water, fruitinfused water, herbal teas, teas without added sugars like green, black, or oolong, cucumber juice, chia water,

27

sponsored by:

ed as they cause blood sugar levels to rise. Bread, rice, and potatoes have starch and tend to interfere with blood glucose levels. The idea is to eat fresh and green. Being high in fibre, fresh vegetables help in keeping blood sugar levels under check.

Fruits: Strawberries, raspberries, blackberries, blueberries, oranges, peaches, plums and pears.

HEALTH & VITALITY Tablets

Practice yoga asanas daily for a healthier lifestyle Yoga has multiple health benefits. It helps improve flexibility, stability and the range of motion of the body. It also helps in stretching and strengthening a range of muscle groups and improves the mobility of the body. Yoga helps in relaxing the mind and getting the body ready. Bollywood’s famous yoga trainer Anshuka Parwani recently shared a short video of yoga asanas that can be done on a daily basis.

Anshuka writes that instead of waking up and checking our phones, we need to roll our yoga mats out and start inculcating a healthy habit into our lifestyle.

In the video, Anshuka performed Butterfly, Viparita Karani,

Bhujangasana, Ardha Matsyendrasana and Pavanamuktasana. From stretching the abdominal and core muscles to working out the arms and the leg muscles, these yoga asanas come with multiple benefits. “Once you get up, roll out your mat (or practice on the bed) and try these Yoga Asanas you

can do every day,” wrote Anshuka.

Noting down the health benefits of these asanas, she wrote, “This will help you physically and mentally, boost your energy levels and metabolism, reduce anxiety and increase your focus to face the day ahead.”

Intense exercise during the diet can help Women less likely to recover from long Covid-19: Study reduce fatty food cravings In a recent study, researchers found that intense exercise paired with diet can reduce cravings for fatty foods. The findings of the research were published in the journal ‘Obesity’ by physiology and neuroscience researcher, Travis Brown and colleagues from Washington State University and Wyoming State University. The experiment was designed to test resistance to the phenomenon known as “incubation of craving”. It means the longer the desired substance is denied, the harder it is to ignore signals for it.

The researchers said that while more research needs to be done, the study may indicate that exercise can shore up restraint when it comes to certain foods.

They said, “A really important part of maintaining a diet is to have some brain power - the ability to say ‘no, I may be craving that, but

I’m going to abstain’.

Exercise could not only be beneficial physically for weight loss but also mentally to gain control over cravings for unhealthy foods.”

In the study, the researchers and his colleagues put 28 rats through training with a lever that when pressed turned on a light and made a tone before dispensing a highfat pellet. After the training period, they tested to see how many times the rats would press the lever just to see the light and tone cue.

The researchers then

split the rats into two groups: one underwent a regime of highintensity treadmill running; the other had no additional exercise outside of their regular activity. Both sets of rats were denied access to the high-fat pellets for 30 days.

At the end of that period, the researchers gave the rats access to the levers that once dispensed the pellets again, but this time when the levers were pressed, they only gave the light and tone cue. The animals that did not get exercise pressed the levers significantly more than rats that had exercised, indicating that exercise lessened the craving for the pellets.

The research team plans to investigate the effect of different levels of exercise on this type of

craving as well as how exactly exercise works in the brain to curb the desire for unhealthy foods.

The researchers said it builds on the work of Jeff Grimm at Western Washington University who led the team that first defined the term “incubation of craving” and has studied other ways to subvert it. Brown also credited Marilyn Carroll-Santi's research at the University of Minnesota showing that exercise can blunt cravings for cocaine.

“Exercise is beneficial from a number of perspectives: it helps with cardiac disease, obesity and diabetes; it might also help with the ability to avoid some of these maladaptive foods," they said. "We're always looking for this magic pill in some ways, and exercise is right in front of us with all these benefits,” they said.

A UK study has revealed negative health impacts from severe cases of Covid19 continue to affect many people even a year after contracting the disease, making it urgent to develop treatments.

Christopher Brightling of the University of Leicester, who co-led the study, published in The Lancet Respiratory Medicine journal, “Without effective treatments, long Covid could become a highly prevalent new long-term condition.”

The study, involving altogether more than 2,300 people showed just 26 per

cent of those who had been hospitalised with Covid-19 reporting a full recovery after five months and only 28.9 per cent after a full year. Women were 33 per cent less likely than men to make a full recovery.

The most common symptoms reported by the long Covid suffered were breathlessness, fatigue, muscle pain, sleep problems, limb weakness and mental health impairment.

Brightling said there was “an urgent need for healthcare services to support this large and rapidly increasing patient population.”

A combination of these three treatments may reduce cancer risk As per a new study, a combination of three treatments has been shown to reduce a cumulative reduction of 61 per cent in cancer risk for healthy adults aged 70 and older. A mix of high doses of vitamin D, omega 3 fatty acids, and a simple home strength training program (SHEP) was studied by Dr. Heike BischoffFerrari and her colleagues at the University Hospital Zurich.

This is the first study to test the combined benefit of three affordable public health interventions for the prevention of invasive cancers. Considered a major age-related disease in

Europe and the US, cancer is the second leading cause of mortality in older adults and the chances of getting most cancers increases with age.

According to Dr. Heike, apart from preventive recommendations such as not smoking and sun protection, public health efforts that focus on cancer prevention are limited. She said, “Preventive efforts in middleaged and older adults today are largely limited to screening and vaccination efforts.” Mechanistic studies have shown that vitamin D inhibits the growth of cancer cells. Similarly, omega-3 may

inhibit the transformation of normal cells into cancer cells, and exercise has been shown to improve immune function and decrease inflammation, which may help in the prevention of cancer.

Dr. Heike and her colleagues wanted to fill these knowledge gaps by testing the effect of daily high-dose vitamin D3, daily supplemental omega-3s, and a simple home exercise program, alone and in combination, on the risk of invasive cancer among adults aged 70 or older.

Researchers conducted the DO-HEALTH trial in five

European countries (Switzerland, France, Germany, Austria, and Portugal) with 2,157 participants.

Bischoff-Ferrari said, “In DOHEALTH, our aim was to test promising combined interventions for cancer prevention taking advantage of potentially small additive benefits from several public health strategies. In fact, novel cancer treatments aim to block multiple pathways for cancer development by combining several agents. We translate this concept into cancer prevention.” Results show that all three treatments - vitamin D3, omega3s and SHEP, and cumulative

benefits on the risk of invasive cancers. Each of the treatments had a small individual benefit but when all three treatments were combined, the benefits became statistically significant, and the researchers saw an overall reduction in cancer risk by 61 per cent.

Dr. Heike said, “This is the first randomised controlled trial to show that the combination of daily vitamin D3, supplemental marine omega-3s, and a simple home exercise program may be effective in the prevention of invasive cancer among generally healthy and active adults age 70 and older.”

28

www.asian-voice.com

AsianVoiceNews

AsianVoiceNewsweekly

30 April - 6 May 2022

I just wanted to be a Mani Ratnam heroine: Aditi Rao Hydari A

ctor Aditi Rao Hydari has a movie career spanning 15 years. Over the period, she has worked in films in different languages from the National Award-winning ‘Kaatru Veliyidai’ to her latest ‘Hey Sinamika’. In a recent interview, the actor confesses that the entire reason she became an actor was to work with filmmaker Mani Ratnam.

“I just wanted to be a Mani Ratnam heroine. When I had this dream of being an actor, it seemed like an impossible dream. But somewhere in my head, one day I have to do a Tamil film. I was determined that if and ever it happens, I will just work so hard, like class 10 and 12 board exams so I can enjoy the process of being directed by this incredible person,” she recalls.

The 35-year-old says from then on, she was willing to take up work in any language. “Somewhere at the back of my head, my dream was so strong that I knew it would be possible to get out of my comfort zone in terms of language and put myself out there, take up the challenge and be ready for it.”

Akshay Kumar starts shooting for 'Soorarai Pottru' remake

“Ever since Katru... happened, something actually became clear to me, which was that films are stories and at the core of it, you tell them on celluloid because they made you feel something. Stories are universal, and I didn’t want the language to come in the way of anything. Feelings don’t have language. If you can make somebody feel something, whether you speak that language or are from that culture, country, you are theirs and they are yours,” Hydari says.

A

kshay Kumar and Radhika Madan are the lead pair of the Hindi remake of 'Soorarai Pottru'. The movie will be directed by Sudha Kongara. As we know, Suriya's biopic on the life of Captain Gopinath, 'Soorarai Pottru' was a huge hit when it came out in 2020. The film was released on Amazon Prime Video. Movie-goers were upset as the film could not get a theatrical release despite being such a great film.

Akshay Kumar has shared a clip where we can see Radhika Madan breaking a coconut on the launch of the movie. Filmmaker Sudha Kongara is with him.

The superstar asked fans to send names as suggested titles for the film. He wrote, "With the auspicious coconut-breaking and a small prayer in our heart, we begin the filming of our yet untitled film which is about dreams and the power of it... In case you’ll have any title suggestions, do share and of course your best wishes." Sadly, most fans do not look impressed. They told him that there was no need to make a remake of a film like 'Soorarai Pottru' that was seen already by millions of Indians on OTT platform.

Karan Johar’s latest poem pokes fun at Jaya Bachchan, Ranveer Singh

I

n a new post on his Instagram account, filmmaker Karan Johar shared yet another funny poem to build up the hype for his upcoming movie ‘Rocky Aur Rani Ki Prem Kahani’. KJo shared a selfie with the film’s lead couple Ranveer Singh and Alia Bhatt. He mentioned the rest of the cast in the caption including Jaya Bachchan, Dharmendra and Shabana Azmi.

Karan is seen in a pair of bright red sunglasses and a black jacket.

Meanwhile, Ranveer is seen in a white Tshirt while Alia is seen in a black one.

Sharing the photo, Johar wrote, “So much josh and jazbaati jawaani, Pritam ki dhamakedar dhun bhi hai sunani (So much energy and the emotions of the youth will be told to you through Pritam's music).” Talking about Dharmendra, he wrote, “Garam Dharam ka swag toh dekho (check out hottie Dharam's swag).”

KJo also poked fun at Jaya’s constant tussle with the paparazzi about clicking her pictures

Only the brilliant will stand out: Yami Gautam on the big screen vs OTT

A

ctor Yami Gautam believes it is not easy to bring the audiences back to theatres as viewers today have an awareness of the kind of content they want to watch on the big screen and on the without consent. “Bas humeri OTT platforms. Yami, who has featured in three OTT releases favourite Jaya ji ki tasveer mat ‘Bhoot Police’, ‘A Thursday’, and ‘Dasvi’, believes the digital boom kheencho (Just don’t click our has opened many doors for filmmakers and actors.

Jaya’s pictures)” he wrote. “Ab unki Speaking at the Times Network India Economic Conclave, beshumaar tareef karni hai lazmi, Yami said, “OTT has opened avenues and perspectives. It The one and only Shabana Azmi came at a time when it opened an important door financially (We have so praise the one and and economically for producers and for actors too. We are only Shabana Azmi). ”Aur very fortunate with multiple arrays of mediums coming phir Gucci mein lipta together and that the opportunities will not go away. The Ranveer as Rocky, Ishq challenge now is that only the brilliant will stand out.” ke ghode pe savaar like As an actor, Yami said the job is to be part of good an aashiq jockey stories, irrespective of the medium. “It is not easy to get (Ranveer, who is clad in the audience back to the theatre because we don’t know Gucci from head to toe, what is going to work. Now, we have not demarcated, will ride the wave of they have. Now, the audience is telling us what they love), Box office ki want to watch. Like, my own family is comfortable to maharani humari Alia watch (OTT) sitting nicely together. You want all your Rani, Kya phir banegi films to be on the big screen and they eventually are dulhania in this kahaani going to come on satellite and on OTT.” (The queen of box office, our She said digital platforms are becoming a global Rani Alia, which she become a village as the audiences are exposed to regional or bride again)? In sabka kare aap international content. “It is good because at the end intezar (Wait for all these), We are of the day you want to watch good cinema now coming soon to win your ishq wala pyaar! whether it’s coming from Malayalam or Tamil or #RockyAurRaniKiPremKahani FEB 10th Spain. I’m connecting with the emotion, the story. I 2023,” he posted. don’t question it. Besides, it pushes us and makes The movie will feature Jaya and us work harder. So, something that pushes you to Dharmendra play Ranveer’s parents, while get the better and the best out of you, you must Shabana plays Alia’s mother. ‘Rocky Aur Rani Ki appreciate it rather than making it like Prem Kahani’ was shot in New Delhi and competition.”

Rajasthan.

AsianVoiceNews

AsianVoiceNewsweekly

29

www.asian-voice.com

30 April - 6 May 2022

Shilpa is the first female cop in Rohit Shetty’s cop universe B

ollywood star Shilpa Shetty has joined the cast of Rohit Shetty’s debut series ‘Indian Police Force’.

Directed and produced by Rohit Shetty, the action series has been set up at streaming service Amazon Prime Video and is headlined by Sidharth Malhotra.

“Welcome to the squad Shilpa! Get ready for Gun Battles, Hand to Hand Combats, High speed chases and YES! Flying Cars…INDIAN POLICE FORCE #FilmingNow @sidmalhotra @primevideoin @theshilpashetty @rohitshettypicturez,” the caption read.

Shilpa's cop universe includes two ‘Singham’ films, headlined by Ajay Devgn, as well as Ranveer Singh-starrer ‘Simmba’ and ‘Sooryavanshi’, which featured Akshay Kumar.

The 46-year-old actor said she is thrilled to join Rohit Shetty’s cinematic universe with the show, which marks her OTT debut as well. “Ready to set the OTT platform on fire for

Tiger Shroff recreates 'chhoti bachchi ho kya' meme

A

ctor Tiger Shroff recreated a popular meme of himself at a recent promotional event for his upcoming film ‘Heropanti 2’. The video has gone viral on the internet and has been shared by several fan clubs on Instagram. In the video, Tiger holds the microphone toward the audience and asks them to repeat the meme loudly.

He then pretends to be unimpressed and then divides the audience into halves and has them compete with each other.

Pretending to be even more unimpressed, Tiger says, “Listen to me, you guys aren’t that strong,” before yelling, “Chhoti bachchi

ho kya?” People flooded the comments section of an Instagram post carrying the video to praise him for being a sport.

“The moment when meme becomes a memer,” one person commented.

Another person called Tiger a ‘legend’, while a third person wrote, “Sporting gesture.”

The line, which comes from the first instalment of the ‘Heropanti’ series, has become a viral social media trend recently, with brands like Tinder and Zomato jumping in on the fun.

‘Heropanti 2’ is directed by Ahmed Khan, and also features Tara Sutaria and Nawazuddin Siddiqui in supporting roles.

On the work front, Tiger also has ‘Bade Miyan Chote Miyan’ and ‘Ganapath’ in the pipeline.

Sridevi 'was obsessed' with the meaning of her name

J

anhvi Kapoor has often spoken about her family members and the bond they share. She has earlier, described her father Boney Kapoor, sisters Khushi Kapoor and Anshula Kapoor, and brother Arjun Kapoor as her mentors in life. Now, the actress revealed how her mother, late actor Sridevi was “obsessed” with her name.

When asked if she was named after Urmila Matondkar’s character in the film ‘Judaai’, Janhvi said, “No, I was not named after Urmila’s character in ‘Judaai’. I think dad just really liked the name from before the film and mom did too. I think mom was really obsessed with the idea that the meaning of it was purity and she would keep looking at me and keep telling me that I look pure and pure soul and things like that. So I feel it really resonated with her in that sense.”

On the work front, Janhvi has an interesting line-up of projects in the pipeline. When asked if she would like to star in any regional film, she said she “really

Shamita Shetty says overcoming depression made her stronger

B

the first time. Superrr Thrilled to join The Action King Rohit Shetty in his Cop Universe! #IndianPoliceForceOnPrime, now filming! @itsrohitshetty @sidmalhotra @primevideoin @rohitshettypicturez,” she wrote.

The makers of the film made the announcement online. They said the ‘Indian Police Force’ pays an ode to the selfless service, unconditional commitment and fierce patriotism of police officers across the country who put everything on the line in their call of duty.

Rohit shared the news of Shilpa joining the project in an Instagram post, alongside a picture of her from the set holding a gun.

The eight-part series is also the first OTT project for Malhotra. The shooting of ‘Indian Police Force’, an Amazon Original series in collaboration with Rohit Shetty Picturez, is currently underway in Mumbai. The show is most likely to be released next year on Prime Video.

ollywood actor Shilpa Shetty and her sister and Bigg Boss 15 fame Shamita Shetty share a strong bond. The same bond was reflected when the two sisters sat down for a chat show recently. During the conversation, Shamita opened about her battle with depression and how she makes sure that she doesn’t go back into that phase of her life.

On Shilpa’s chat show Shape of You, Shamita shared how it was her boyfriend at the time who pointed out that “something is wrong”. She said, “When I was going through that phase for the first time, I didn’t know it was depression. I couldn’t understand why am I behaving in a particular way. I was dating someone at that point, and he told me, ‘I think there’s something wrong.'”

However, the 'Mohabbatein' actor eventually came out of the difficult phase of her life, and now she believes that since she got past it, she can overcome anything in life.

And, this is why she managed to survive the difficult times inside the Bigg Boss house and ended up as one of the finalists on the show.

She shared, “I don’t know what I was thinking when I decided to go to the Bigg Boss house. I had extreme highs and lows in that house. I don’t know how I managed to put myself together and move on. It is because of what I have been through in my past. I have been through depression, and that is what made me stronger. It gives me the courage to take on challenges. I feel since I have overcome that, I can overcome anything.”

wants to do a South film, whether it’s Tamil, Telugu, or Malayalam.” She said, “I have been such a fan of their cinema for such a long time now and I think I’m just waiting for the right opportunity.” Janhvi said regional cinema has a charm, adding that the films in the South industry “appeal to a more localised audience and that it is more relatable and more colloquial in that sense.”

Janhvi is currently filming ‘Bawaal’ opposite Varun Dhawan. She also has ‘Good Luck Jerry’ and ‘Mili’ in the works, which are Hindi remakes of Tamil and Malayalam films, respectively.

30

www.asian-voice.com

AsianVoiceNews

AsianVoiceNewsweekly

30 April - 6 May 2022

Priyamani reveals the reason why she took a break from Bollywood

A

ctress Priyamani’s special dance song ‘One Two Three Four’ from ‘Chennai Express’ put her in the limelight in 2013. However, her fans didn’t get to see her in Hindi projects after the song became a rage. In fact, she only featured in the web series ‘The Family Man’ in 2019. Priyamani says she was never away from Hindi cinema, to begin with.

“I’ve grown up watching those films and people like Aamir, Shah Rukh, and Salman. You name the actor, I have seen all of their films. I was born and brought up in Bangalore, and used to watch both English and Hindi films. I literally just took my time to proudly enter this cinema.”

Stating that the problem was in the image. “If you enter Hindi cinema, you are there. It has a wider, pan-India audience, the NRI audience also watches a lot of Hindi films. I am glad I started my journey with ‘Raavan’ in 2010, then ‘Rakht Charitra’, followed by ‘Chennai Express’. After that, I wanted to take a break as I would keep getting a lot of offers for doing similar numbers. I didn’t want to be like that. Then came ‘The Family Man', and the rest is history.”

On the work front, Priyamani has ‘Maidaan’ in the pipeline alongside actor Ajay Devgn.

R Madhavan’s son Vedaant didn’t want to live 'under dad’s shadow'

V

edaanta Madhavan won a gold medal at the Danish Open swimming event in Copenhagen, recently after bagging a silver medal earlier.

In an interview, he opens up about the sacrifices his parents made for him and how he always wanted to make a name for himself.

Madhavan announced the news of Vedaant’s victory on Instagram by sharing a video from his felicitation ceremony. He wrote, “Gold....(dancing and gold medal emojis). With all your blessings and God's greatest the winning street continues (red heart and folded hands emojis). Today it's a Gold IN 800m for @vedaantmadhavan. Overwhelmed and humbled. Thank you Coach @bacpradeep sir @swimmingfederation.in @ansadxb and the entire team”.

Speaking in an interview, Vedaant said, “I didn’t wanna live under my dad’s shadow. I wanted to make name for myself. I didn’t

want to be just R Madhavan’s son.” He talked about the efforts his parents put in for him and said, “They are always looking after me. Both push so much effort. One of the main sacrifices my parents made was to shift to Dubai.”

R Madhavan and his family shifted to Dubai last year for better practice sessions for Vedaant. At that time, Madhavan told a media source, “The larger swimming pools in Mumbai are either closed because of Covid or out of bounds. We are here with Vedaant in Dubai where he has access to large pools. He’s working towards the Olympics, and Sarita (his wife) and I are right by his side.”

Vedaant had earlier won a bronze medal at the Latvia Open in March 2021 and had bagged seven medals (four silver and three bronze) at the Junior National Aquatic Championships last year.

Vijay’s father filmmaker Chandrasekhar slams ‘Beast’ director Nelson

A

ctor Vijay’s father and filmmaker SA Chandrasekhar has slammed ‘Beast’ director Nelson Dilip Kumar for making a movie ‘solely relying on Vijay’s stardom. Speaking in a recent interview, he expressed disappointment over the movie’s screenplay and raised questions at Nelson for not doing his “homework” on RAW agents and cross-border terrorism, which serve as the film’s important plot points.

‘Beast’ marked the maiden collaboration of director Nelson and Vijay. The movie stars Vijay in the lead as one of the best spies the country has ever had. The movie follows the character as he attempts to rescue people being held hostage by terrorists inside a mall. The movie opened in theatres amid high expectations last week, but mostly earned a mixed response from critics and audiences.

Chandrasekhar, in sharing his thoughts about the movie, said, “This is a film that was made solely relying on Vijay’s stardom.

Young filmmakers deliver an excellent first film in terms of content, technology and making. They also somehow achieve good

results with the second film.

When they begin to get the projects of big superstars, these young filmmakers begin to think, ‘now that we have dates of these heroes, we can make movies whichever way we want.’ They think he (the star) already has a huge fan following and his film will run successfully in theatres, so no need for a screenplay and things like that.

And they make a movie with a few songs and fights.”

Furthermore, Chandrasekhar said the film which talks about ISIS terrorists and RAW agents hasn’t done enough research to study how they operate. “You need to take time to study about all these things. You can’t just rush into a project because you’ve got dates from a star hero. A good screenplay will immerse audiences into a story and this was missing in this film,” he added.

In its opening weekend, ‘Beast’ breached the Rs 200 crore club worldwide. This is the fifth time a Vijay-starrer has breached the 200-crore club. Since then, the film has seen a massive drop each day outside Tamil Nadu, largely due to the success of the Kannada film 'KGF: Chapter 2’.

Rashmika Mandanna all set to make Bollywood debut A

ctress Rashmika Mandanna is all set to make her debut in Bollywood, however, she is already a popular name among the Hindi audience thanks to a series of superhits like ‘Pushpa: The Rise’, ‘Dear Comrade’, ‘Bheeshma’, and ‘Sulthan’. The actress has multiple Bollywood films in the pipeline such as ‘Mission Majnu’ with Sidharth Malhotra, ‘Goodbye’ with Amitabh Bachchan, and ‘Animal’ with Ranbir Kapoor.

She says she does not feel the pressure ahead of her Hindi film debut because she has a solid fan base. She says, “It feels super motivating honestly, to grab eyeballs even before my work has come out. I don’t want to look at it as a pressure, because from what I’ve seen from the north, they are all an amazing bunch. I hope I’ll have my way into their hearts with my work.”

Calling 2022 a big year for her, Rashmika says, “I am supremely excited for the year 2022. Each passing year for me is bigger than the previous one, but 2022 is going to be a different ball game altogether with so many amazing things coming up. I can’t wait for you’ll to witness it with me.”

“For me, it more about life goals than yearly ones. My one goal at the moment, is to keep on entertaining my fans and give back as much love as they shower with me with. And also accomplish the fitness goals I have set for myself,” she ends.

TV Listing

* Schedule is subject to change

MON 2 MAY - FRI 6 MAY 2022 6:00 Parka Padar Ni Gorande 9:00 SHUBH PRABHAT 9:30 SUR PRABHAT 15:00 RASOI SHOW 17:30 SHRIMAD BHAGWAT MAHAPURAN 18:00 DESHI BEATS 18:30 SURI 19:00 BHAKT GORA KUMBHAR 19:30 MARU MAN MOHI GAYU 20:00 RASHI RIKSHAWALI 20:30 MOTI BAA NI NANI VAHU 21:00 SORATHNI MRS SINGHAM 21:30 GEETA

SATURDAY 30 APR 2022 6:00 Saari Dikri Sasariye Shobhe 9:00 SHUBH PRABHAT 9:30 SUR PRABHAT 15:00 RASOI SHOW 17:30 SHRIMAD BHAGWAT MAHAPURAN 18:00 DESHI BEATS 18:30 SURI 19:00 BHAKT GORA KUMBHAR 19:30 MARU MAN MOHI GAYU 20:00 RASHI RIKSHAWALI 20:30 MOTI BAA NI NANI VAHU 21:00 SORATHNI MRS SINGHAM 21:30 GEETA SUNDAY 1 MAY 2022 9:00 SHUBH PRABHAT 9:30 SUR PRABHAT 12:00 Aavuj Reshe 15:00 RASHI RIKSHAWALI 16:30 MOTI BAA NI NANI VAHU 18:00 DESHI BEATS 18:30 MARU MAN MOHI GAYU 20:00 RASHI RIKSHAWALI 20:30 MOTI BAA NI NANI VAHU 21:00 SORATHNI MRS SINGHAM 21:30 GEETA 21:30 SASURAL SIMAR KA 2

* Schedule is subject to change

MON 2 MAY - FRI 6 MAY 2022 16:30 RASOI SHOW DESI FLAVOURS 17:30 CHHUTA CHHEDA 18:00 SASURAL SIMAR KA 18:30 TU AASHIQUI 19:00 THE GREAT INDIAN GLOBAL KITCHEN (SEASON 2) 19:50 BHAGYA KA LIKHA 20:00 SWARAN GHAR 20:30 KAWACH MAMTA KA 21:00 AJNABI BANE HUMSAFAR

SATURDAY 30 APR 2022 16:30 RASOI SHOW - DESI FLAVOURS 17:30 SASURAL SIMAR KA 19:00 THE GREAT INDIAN GLOBAL KITCHEN (SEASON 2) 19:30 BHAGYA KA LIKHA 20:00 COMEDY NIGHTS WITH KAPIL 21:00 AJNABI BANE HUMSAFAR 21:30 SASURAL SIMAR KA 2 SUNDAY 1 MAY 2022 16:30 RASOI SHOW - DESI FLAVOURS 17:30 SWARAN GHAR 19:00 THE ANUPAM KHER SHOW SEASON 1 20:00 COMEDY NIGHTS WITH KAPIL 21:00 COMEDY NIGHTS WITH KAPIL

AsianVoiceNews

AsianVoiceNewsweekly

CROSS-PLATFORM

www.asian-voice.com

31

30 April - 6 May 2022

Sam Heughan, Celine Dion all praise for Priyanka Chopra P

riyanka Chopra was showered with admiration and praise by her ‘It’s All Coming Back To Me’ co-stars Sam Heughan and Celine Dion as they confirmed the release date of the film on social media.

Priyanka will be seen opposite Heughan in the movie that releases on February 10 next year.

As Priyanka shared the first official still from the film on Twitter last week, Heughan reacted by saying, “Pro is WONDERFUL in this!!!” She replied to him, “Aww.. Look who is talking @SamHeughan! I think this will be such a lovely Valentine’s Day movie! And the new @celinedion music!!!” Meanwhile, Celine also called Priyanka “amazing” as she shared the release date on her social media pages. She wrote, “With the amazing @priyankachopra and the incredible @SamHeughan.

Premiers Feb. 10, 2023!”

‘Modern Love Mumbai’ set to release in May

Aziz Ansari’s ‘Being Mortal' suspends production after allegations on Bill Murray

A

mazon Prime Video announced that ‘Modern Love Mumbai’, the first of the three localised Indian versions of the widely-acclaimed international series will release on May 13 this year. The Mumbai chapter of the series has brought together six filmmakers Vishal Bhardwaj, Hansal Mehta, Shonali Bose, Dhruv Sehgal, Alankrita Shrivastava and Nupur Asthana.

They shared the poster of the film on their Instagram handles, along with the caption ‘Making way into your (heart emoji)’. The original anthology series ‘Modern Love’ is directed by filmmaker John Carney. The anthology includes ‘Raat Rani’, directed by Shonali, starring Fatima Sana Shaikh, Bhupendra Jadawat and Dilip Prabhavalkar, Hansal’s ‘Baai’, headlined by Tanuja, Pratik Gandhi and Ranveer Brar.

Vishal has directed ‘Mumbai Dragon’, which stars Yeo Yann Yann, Meiyang Chang, Wamiqa Gabbi and Naseeruddin Shah while Alankrita has directed ‘My Beautiful Wrinkles’, starring Sarika, Danesh Razvi, Ahsaas Channa and Tanvi Azmi. Dhruv's ‘I Love Thane’ features Masaba Gupta, Ritwik Bhowmik, Prateik Babbar, Aadar Malik and Dolly Singh while Chitrangada Singh and Arshad Warsi star in Nupur's ‘Cutting Chai’.

Inspired by the famous New York Times column, the anthology will showcase “soul-stirring and

The film will release in the US on February 10, 2023. The movie is based on the 2016 German film SMS fur Dich

by Karoline Herfurth. The film shows Pri playing the role of a woman struggling to move on from the death of her fiancé. To cope, she begins sending messages to his old phone number, which has been reassigned to a new man played by Heughan. Dion will also star as herself in the movie and play a pivotal part in inspiring the two main characters to fall in love.

The movie will also feature actors Russell Tovey, Steve Oram, Omid Djalili, Sofia Barclay, Lydia West, Arinzé Kene and Celia Imrie. The new title is named after Jim Steinman’s power ballad ‘It’s All Coming Back to Me Now’, which was made famous by pop star Celine Dion’s cover for her 1996 album, Falling Into You.

P

roduction on Aziz Ansari’s directorial ‘Being Mortal’ has been suspended following an allegation of “inappropriate behaviour” against veteran actor Bill Murray. Searchlight Pictures confirmed earlier the halt in production in a letter to the cast and crew, citing a “recent complaint” for their decision. uplifting stories that are rooted in the heart of the city of Mumbai.” The series is produced by Pritish Nandy Communications.

Talking about the adaptation, Nandy said, “With the most wonderful cast of masters and contemporary, Indian and international actors and some of the finest directors, writers and music creators that we have today, Modern Love Mumbai beautifully negotiates through the different shades of love that Mumbai, the city of dreams, throws up and celebrates. I am confident that every story in this anthology series will tug at and win the audiences’ hearts.”

The other Indian adaptations of the series are ‘Modern Love: Chennai' and ‘Modern Love: Hyderabad’.

Will Smith pictured in Mumbai following Oscars controversy H

ollywood star Will Smith was recently spotted at Mumbai’s Kalina airport, shortly after landing himself in hot water after slapping Chris Rock at the Academy Awards ceremony.

In the pictures, Smith can be seen alighting from a car and heading for the terminal as he interacts with a man who is likely his host in the city.

While the reason for Smith’s visit is yet to be known, it is speculated that it has something to do with the spiritual leader and Isha Foundation’s Sadhguru. The actor regards himself as one of Sadhguru’s followers.

Smith has been in the headlines lately for slapping the comedian and presenter onstage. The reason for the assault was a joke Rock cracked moments before about the former’s wife Jada Pinkett Smith. In the joke, Rock referred to Jada by saying, “G.I. Jane 2. Can’t wait to see it.” The joke was ridiculing fun of Jada’s lack of hair due to a condition

called alopecia.

Minutes after the slap, Smith was awarded an Oscar in the Best Actor category for his performance

in ‘King Richard’. He apologised for his behaviour in his speech and later through a social media statement.

As a consequence of his actions, he was banned from Oscars and other Academy events for 10 years.

“Late last week, we were made aware of a complaint, and we immediately looked into it. After reviewing the circumstances, it has been decided that production cannot continue at this time. We are truly grateful to all of you for everything you’ve put into this project.

Our hope is to resume production and (we) are working with Aziz and (producer Youree Henley) to figure out that timing. Production will be in touch with you to share details on the wrap, and we will let you know as soon as we have more information to share,” the letter read.

The Searchlight Pictures project marks Ansari’s directorial debut.

He also stars in the movie. At this point, the gravity of the allegations is not clear and we do not know if Murray will be involved in the project in future and if the film will still release in 2023 as it was scheduled.

‘Being Mortal’ is based on the acclaimed and best-selling nonfiction book titled Being Mortal: Medicine and What Matters in the End by American surgeon Atul Gawande.

32

www.asian-voice.com

30 April - 6 May 2022

AsianVoiceNews AsianVoiceNewsweekly

Gujarat Titans win a thriller Andre Russell’s pyrotechnics proved to be too little too late in the end as Gujarat Titans defended a small total to clinch a dramatic eight-run win over Kolkata Knight Riders in an IPL thriller on Saturday. With 12 points already in its kitty, the Titans are looking good for a playoff berth in its inception year. KKR’s top and middle order batters failed miserably in the wake of a clinical bowling display from the Titans with only Rinku Singh scoring 35 and it was left to Russell (48 off 25 balls) to go for a win and the West Indian nearly did it only to fail in the last over. Chasing 157 for a win, KKR ended their innings at 148 for 8 after Russell was out in the second ball of the final over.

Punjab beat Chennai by 11 runs Punjab Kings went in with a more calculated batting approach led by the dependable Shikhar Dhawan, whose ninth half-century against Chennai Super Kings helped his side romp home by 11 runs, overcoming Ambati Rayudu’s singlehanded effort. Tottering at 40/3, Chennai needed the experience of Rayudu, whose 78 off 39 balls, comprising seven fours and six massive sixes, seemed to get the chase of 188 back on track. But it was the disciplined effort of the Punjab bowlers, especially Kagiso Rabada and comeback man Rishi Dhawan, that pulled the red and gold brigade back into the match.

Eighth successive loss for MI KL Rahul once again proved to be Mumbai Indians’ nemesis as his magnificent second hundred set up a comfortable 36-run win for Lucknow Super Giants’ and in turn knocked the five-time champions out of this edition of IPL. Rahul continued his fairytale run against MI, slamming an unbeaten 103 off 62 balls with the help of 12 fours and four maximums as LSG posted 168 for 6 after being invited to

bat at the Wankhade stadium. In reply, Rohit Sharma looked good during his 31ball 39 but MI suffered a collapse once again to slump to 67 for four.

Buttler helps RR beat Delhi Capitals A clinical bowling performance – after Jos Buttler blasted a 65-ball 116 – helped Rajasthan Royals defend 222/2 against Delhi Capitals to register a 15-run victory in Match 34 of the IPL 2022 at the Wankhede Stadium on Friday. Prasidh Krishna finished with 3/22, while R Ashwin ended with 2/32 as Royals weathered some anxious moments as they defended their big total to register their fifth win of the season. Buttler had set up the victory by stroking to his third century of IPL 2022 and Devdutt Padikkal contributed a superb 54 as Rajasthan Royals posted a massive 222/2 in 20 overs, the highest score of this season so far. They then came back to restrict Delhi Capitals to 207-8 in 20 overs to seal the win.

Delhi Capitals demolish Punjab Kings Delhi Capitals showed remarkable resilience and hand Punjab Kings a ninewicket thrashing on Wednesday. Delhi, who had a chaotic build up to the game with a sixth Covid positive case being reported on the morning of the game, dished out a clinical bowling display to bowl out Punjab Kings for a below-par 115. On a track where the deliveries were holding up a bit, even Lalit Yadav became unplayable

leave alone Axar Patel and Kuldeep Yadav.

Delhi seemed in real hurry to close the game with Prithvi Shaw (41 off 20) and David Warner (60 not out off 30 balls) getting them off to a flying start. Their 83run partnership off 39 balls ensured Delhi cantered to victory in 10.3 overs, giving a big boost to their net run rate. Earlier, the Delhi spin trio of Lalit (2/11), Kuldeep (2/24) and Axar (2/10) did the bulk of the damage.

Punjab were tottering at 35/2 after losing openers Mayank Agarwal (24) and Shikhar Dhawan (9) early.

RCB beat LSG Royal Challengers Bangalore rode on skipper Faf du Plessis’ breezy 96 and Josh Hazlewood’s brilliant bowling to inflict an 18-run defeat on Lucknow Super Giants in the IPL on Tuesday.

The 37-year-old du Plessis roared back to form after a string of low scores with a 64-ball knock to help RCB post 181 for six after being sent into bat. Pace spearhead Hazlewood (4/25) then picked two wickets upfront and two at the fag end as RCB restricted LSG to 163 for eight to register their fifth win of the season. RCB are now second in the points table while LSG slumped to fourth.

Hazlewood rocked LSG’s chase early on as he bowled a fine opening spell. Using the bounce and movement on offer, he accounted for the dangerous Quinton de Kock (3) and Manish Pandey (6) in quick time.

Ryan Patel stars in Surrey's Bumrah, Rohit among Wisden’s Cricketers of victory over Somerset the Year

Somerset suffered their third defeat in county India captain Rohit championship as they lost Sharma and pacer to Surrey by three wickets Jasprit Bumrah has at the Kia Oval. It was the been named among five Surrey opener Ryan Patel, players in Wisden's continuing his fine start to 'Cricketers of the Year' the season, who led his in the 2022 edition of side to victory. He made Rohit Sharma & Jasprit Bumrah the Almanack. Besides 102 as the home side the duo, the list also features New Zealand batter Devon successfully chased the 237 Ryan Patel Conway, England pacer Ollie Robinson and Proteas women they needed to win on the star Dane van Niekerk.

Fisher for the next four weeks due final day, although not without England's Joe Root has been named leading cricketer in to a back injury. That is likely to losing seven wickets in pursuit of rule the pace bowler - who made the world, while South African women's team batter Lizelle their target. his debut in the West Indies - out Lee has been awarded the title of leading woman cricketer.

Ben Foakes finished unbeaten of the first Test against New Besides, Pakistan wicketkeeper-batter Mohammad Rizwan on 48 having passed concussion Zealand in early June. In Division has earned the title of leading T20 cricketer in the world. tests after a collision with his teamTwo, there was a thumping victory Bumrah starred for India in their visit to England last summer. mate Jamie Overton had forced for Derbyshire over Leicestershire, Besides his exploits in India's historic win at Lord's, he also him off the field on Saturday. There set up by another double century by produced a match-winning spell at The Oval with the latter was some good news for England Pakistan’s Shan Masood, his second handing India a 2-1 lead in the series that is to be concluded in with the return of Sam Curran after July this year. in as many weeks. six months out with a stress fracture. He bowled only ten overs but scored 113 runs in the match.

Elsewhere in Division One at India’s Greco Roman grapplers won five medals Sachin onto his back before getting a headlock Canterbury, Hampshire wrapped at the ongoing Asian wrestling championships in for a fall. Earlier, former Asian champion Sunil up an innings victory over Kent Mongolia’s Ulaanbaatar after Harpreet Singh Kumar (87kg), Arjun Halakurki (55kg) and Neeraj who were bowled out for 296, with and Sachin Sahrawat claimed a bronze each on (63kg) won bronze medals. This was India’s Kyle Abbott taking five for 29 from the second day. Harpreet won the bronze in the second-best show at the Asian Championships 16 overs. Hampshire remain on the 82kg category after his rival, Qatar’s Jafar Khan, after the country’s Greco Roman wrestlers had heels of Surrey with two wins from didn’t take the mat owing to an injury. Earlier, claimed gold and four bronze at the 2020 edition three. the Indian had lost to Rasoul Garmsiri in his of the meet in Delhi.

Northamptonshire ground out quarterfinal bout. In the 67kg category, Sachin In the other bouts of the day involving a draw against Yorkshire at registered a win ‘by fall’ over Uzbekistan’s Indians, Gyanendra lost his bronze play-off to Northampton. The New Zealand Mahmud Bakhshilloev to clinch the bronze.

Japan’s Ayata Suzuki by technical superiority in opener Will Young batted for six The Indian had lost to 2018 World bronze the 60kg category. Vikas was defeated by hours, making 96, as the home Uzbekistan’s Mirzobek Rakhmatov in the 72kg medalist Meiirzhan Shermakhanbet from team saved the match. Yorkshire category, while Ravi lost to Kyrgyzstan’s Uzur Kazakhstan in his quarterfinal bout after his are set to be without Matthew Dzhuzupbekov in the 97kg division opponent gained an arm lock and somersaulted

India’s Greco Roman grapplers win five medals

in brief PUJARA SCORES HIS 2ND TON FOR SUSSEX Out-of-favour veteran Cheteshwar Pujara continued his good form in the English County championship with a second successive hundred for Sussex against Worcestershire in an away match but couldn’t stop his team from being enforced follow-on. Pujara scored 109 off 206 balls, his 52nd first-class century, following his 201 not out against Derbyshire in his first game of the season. Pujara, whose knock was laced with 16 boundaries, took Sussex to 269 all-out in reply to Worcestershire’s first innings score of 491, riding on skipper Brett de Oliviera’s 169. Pujara was 85 batting on the second day and completed his hundred with a pull shot in this second division encounter being played at the New Road ground.

PANT FINED, AMRE BANNED FOR A GAME Following the altercation with on-field umpires, Delhi Capitals captain Rishabh Pant has been fined 100 per cent of his match fee while assistant coach Pravin Amre has been slapped a one-match ban and copped 100 percent of his match-fee. Shardul Thakur too has been fined 50 per cent of his match fee.

The incident occurred in the last over of the match against Rajasthan Royals when Rovman Powell hit Obed McCoy for a third consecutive six, chasing 36 in the last over.

The third delivery was high full toss which Powell deposited into the mid-wicket stand.

The square-leg umpire didn’t signal a no ball. The Delhi Capitals demanded a referral for a waist-high no-ball which was declined by the on-field umpires. Pant even suggested his batters to walk off the field.

Capitals assistant coach Shane Watson tried to calm down Pant but Amre walked on to the field to talk to the umpires. Pant later conceded that it was mistake to send Amre on to the field but claimed Capitals were also wronged.

KOLKATA, AHMEDABAD TO HOST IPL PLAYOFFS The Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad will stage the qualifier 2 and the final (on May 29), while the Eden Gardens in Kolkata will host the qualifier 1 and eliminator of IPL2022. As of now, the BCCI has decided to allow 100% crowd capacity during the IPL playoffs. There was speculation that the BCCI will keep the playoffs in Mumbai and reduce the crowd capacity due to the rising number of Covid-19 cases in the country, but the Board has decided to wait and watch. The venues for IPL playoffs were formally decided at the BCCI’s Apex Council meeting. The league stage of the tournament will conclude in Maharashtra on May 22, after which the four teams will travel to Kolkata and Ahmedabad to keep the biobubble intact.

V-P OPENS 2ND KHELO INDIA GAMES Exhorting the youth of India to make sport a part of their lifestyle, Vice-President M Venkaiah Naidu opened the 2nd Khelo India University Games at a colourful ceremony in Bengaluru on Sunday. Naidu said the New Education Policy has put a lot of emphasis on sport and it wants the state governments to reward sportspersons be it in admissions or promotions. Applauding the efforts of the Karnataka government and hosts Jain University, the vice-president asked the participants to make the best use of their chances to be the best.