AV 5th December 2015

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Vol 44 | Issue 30

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Let noble thoughts come to us from every side

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BUSINESS P14

WARM MODI UK

MODI’S IMPACT ON UK-INDIA RELATIONS

LABOUR PARTY DIVIDES OVER SYRIA AIRSTRIKES

CHANGES CLIMATE OF EMISSION TALKS Says Advanced Nations Should Take The Lead In Addressing Climate Change Issue

Anand Pillai In his characteristic style, polite yet not mincing words, India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi said it in no uncertain terms that the onus of reducing carbon emissions is more on the developed countries than the developing ones, although India – not highly industrialised yet – will contribute its mite to make the world a less warmer place to live in.

Modi on Monday told rich nations which powered their way to prosperity on fossil fuels that it would be morally wrong if they shift the burden of cutting carbon emissions on developing countries like India.

“The principle of common but differentiated responsibilities should be the bedrock of our collective enterprise. Anything else would be morally wrong,” he wrote in the Opinion section of 'Financial Times' on

FRIENDLY TALK: Prime Minister Narendra Modi with his Pakistan counterpart Nawaz Sharif at Paris summit on Monday November 30, 2015.

Modi's words of warning on warming came against the backdrop of a critical UN conference, known as COP21, aimed at agreeing a new global approach to climate change, the talks for which are being held in Paris.

Negotiators from 195 countries will try to reach a deal within two weeks aimed at

reducing global carbon emissions.

Modi, along with nearly 150 world leaders, was in the French capital to attend the opening of the climate summit with a central aim of the new agreement to keep global warming below 2C over preindustrial temperatures.

The Indian Prime Minister asked the devel-

oped nations to fulfil their duty to shoulder the greater burden of the fight against climate change.

Modi said: “Justice demands that, with what little carbon we can still safely burn, developing countries are allowed to grow. The lifestyles of a few must not crowd out opportunities for the many still on the first steps of the development ladder.”

Modi reiterated his plans to launch an alliance of 121 solar-rich nations in

INDIA

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'SOME AMOUNT' OF INTOLERANCE EXISTS IN SOCIETY:NAIDU

First Indian female footballer in Britain to be sent back Footballer Aditi Chauhan grabbed the media attention, when she was signed for English side West Ham Ladies. It made her the first Indian female footballer to do so. However it has been revealed that Chauhan will be asked to leave for India next month, since her visa in the UK cannot be renewed by the Football Association (FA).

Aditi came to Britain on a student visa last year to pursue

Aditi Chauhan

Master's degree in sports management from Loughborough University. Her student visa is about to CONTINUED ON P 5

the tropics aimed at bringing affordable solar power to villages that are off the grid. “We expect the same from the world with respect to responding to climate change,” he said.

“Some say advanced

countries powered their way to prosperity on fossil fuel when humanity was unaware of its impact.

Since science has moved on and alternative energy sources are available, they

centre.

Both the leaders were seen shaking hands and talking animatedly for a few minutes while sitting on a sofa, without their aides and officials hanging on their sides.

Emerging from the

venue, a visibly positive Sharif said, “If both sides want that the issues should be taken forward, then it is not possible that these will not be taken forward.”

The Pak PM also said that they

At last warming at global warming

A little more than four months after Narendra Modi and Nawaz Sharif met in Ufa, Russia, seeking to resume Indo-Pak dialogue process, the two prime ministers met in Paris at the Climate Change conference

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ONE ONE with Keith Vaz, MP

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Asian Voice | 5th December 2015

to

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Vin Murria

Vin Murria spent seven years as founder and Chief Executive Officer of Advanced Computer Software Plc, a $1.25bn market cap consolidator in the healthcare and business solutions sector which was acquired by Vista Private Equity in 2015, and five years as CEO of Computer Software Group plc, which following a take private and merger was acquired by Hellman Friedman for $800m. Prior to this Vin spent 15 years at Kewill Systems three of which as CEO and exited in March 2000 at a valuation of $1.8Bn. She is non-executive director at FTSE listed Zoopla plc and Softcat Plc, co-owner and partner of Elderstreet Investments. Her previous roles have included non-executive director of Chime Plc, Concateno Plc and Greenko Plc. Vin’s career has included a combination of venture capital, private equity and CEO/operational experience, centred around twenty years of M&A activity in the software sector.

In 2007 she founded the PS Foundation a charity focused on the education and hardship of girls in India and the UK. 1. What is your current Position?

Founder and CEO of ADV Technology. This is my next venture in the software and technology space focusing on industry sectors where cyber security, regulatory change/compliance and aging demographics are likely to play a significant part. We will launch on the public markets in the New Year.

2. What is your achievements?

proudest

Being able set up and fund the foundation supporting the education of young girls on behalf of my mother who as a young girl in rural India was not in a position to ever get an education for herself. The charity funds many students including a rural Indian girl at Oxford.

3. What inspires you?

People who have huge passion, energy, enthusiasm and magic for life. Great talent that is eager to learn, work hard, play hard

4. What has been the biggest obstacle in your Career?

At 22, I was told that I would never make it because I was 1) a woman, 2) young and 3) Asian.

The biggest challenge for all human beings is to believe in themselves and to ignore the detractors. Don’t ever let other people put limit on what you can

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

The excitement and challenge of starting something vibrant and new, with a fabulous team of dedicated and skilled people, and in a world where technology is eating the world. The software and technology sector is moving at such a pace from Uber to Just Eat. Software that controls markets yet doesn’t own the infrastructure or the costs associated with it. More importantly the wealth we have created for hundreds (many have become millionaires) of our employees has changed people’s lives. It would

Bullying undertaker discriminates female staff The Exeter tribunal heard how a 6ft 4in tall undertaker, Jon Christophers was “intimidating and bullying”. The tribunal heard that he wanted to replace an older member of staff, Rozamund Perrin, with a “young fit blonde”. This

be great to do it again and spread it even further.

do or be.

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

My mother and my first CEO who was a long term mentor.

The former gave me the confidence to take on the challenges and opportunities and the latter guided me away from any major detours early on in my career. Most importantly they both kept me grounded in the real world.

and also give back. I am incredibly fortunate to have employed nearly 4000 personal during my career and many of them I would say fall it that category

has costed his family run funeral firm £30,000.

Roz Perrin stated at the tribunal, “He [Christophers] dismissed me because he wanted someone younger. He was looking for a fit young blonde.”

Rozamund Perrin faced age and sex discrimination and was unfairly dismissed

Perrin's colleague at F Christophers and Son Ltd, Kate Parsons told the tribunal, “Jon's [Christophers] attitude in the office was that he was above all of us- no please or thank you. It was his way or no way. He would belittle Roz [Perrin] in front of clients, make promises he couldn't keep, miss deadlines and leave Roz to make the apologies and deal with the wrath of clients. He would make errors and try and blame Roz.” Parson's also mentioned how Christophers used to make fun of Perrin's typing, even

though she suffered with arthritis.

Perrin worked at the firm for four years and was unfairly dismissed. She won her claim for sex and age discrimination and unfair dismissal, however F Christophers and Sons appealed. The funeral firm have now had to pay out £30,000 compensation to Perrin.

Tribunal Judge Colm O'Rourke said that it was “a humiliating and degrading environment based on her gender”. The panel also agreed that Christophers had a “general discriminatory attitude to age”.

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7. And the Worst?

What’s there not to like???

8. What are your long term goals?

To create a strong viable business and culture that is fun to be part of but also something that does something bigger for the wider world. Most importantly never to waste my life creating something mediocre 9. If you were the prime minister what would you change?

The government has created a great business environment and i commend the work done.

However the tax advantages enjoyed by Private Equity and companies like Facebook, Starbucks, Google and Amazon need to be addressed UK business is at a competitive disadvantage in our own environment.

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

Nelson Mandela and Gandhi; their wisdom and words might help the world understand and deal with constructively many political and social problems facing us today.

Anjem Choudary allegedly breaches bail condition The 48-year-old radical Islamic preacher, Anjem Choudary, has returned back to jail, after he allegedly breached his bail conditions.

Anjem Choudary is to stand trial in 2016, with the accusation of inviting support for Isil.

It is alleged that Choudary had met a person whom he was prevented from meeting and being associated with.

District Judge Kenneth Grant stated at a hearing at Westminster Magistrates' Court, that Chouday had breached his bail condi-

Anjem Choudary has been remanded in custody after allegedly breaching his bail condition

tions by meeting the prohibited individual on Saturday 21st November.

Lawyer charged £750 an hour

Tea is good for teeth

Philipe Crowe (79), a former solicitor has been lamented after he charged clients an “unconscionable” £750 per hour for the handling of a will, as well as charging to attend funerals. Crowe retired from his practice in York, three years back. A disciplinary tribunal heard how Crowe allegedly took a loan of £121,950 from his client's account in order to pay off his personal debt.

Who doesn't love a nice cup of tea in B r i t a i n ?

Researchers have suggested that drinking regular cups of tea can be beneficial for children, especial for their teeth.

Researchers have also concluded that “tea can be consumed safely from the age of four years.”

COMMENTS

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Modi’s consistent message on terrorism Prime Minister Narendra Modi has had one overriding message for the international summits he attended recently, from the G20 in Turkey to the ASEAN security conclave in Malaysia: the civilized world must join forces if the diabolic Islamic Caliphate of Syria, Iraq and Lebanon (ISIL) is to be defeated. Casuistries on ‘moderate’ and ‘extremist’ elements within the jihadi coalition will no longer suffice. Power politics in this grave hour amounts to a crime against humanity. It does nothing for the reputation of the United States and its Nato allies that it is they who bear the greatest responsibility for the crisis of displaced humanity flooding into Europe from the Greater Middle East and North Africa. The tragic events in France and Belgium and the looming catastrophe in Syria were seeded in the Western intervention that has left ruined Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria and Libya.

The French President Francois Hollande, having witnessed the shocking events in his country, appears to be breaking ranks with the Obama Administration with his landmark visit to Moscow, where he and President Putin agreed to coordinate Russian and French aerial attacks on ISIL bases in Syria and share intelligence hereon. Questions are being asked in Europe, including the UK, about the rationale behind the Turkish decision to shoot down a Russian plane on the Syrian border.

Questions are even being asked of the US Administration’s Syrian policy by senators and others.

They include recently retired US and Nato General Paul Vallely, who said, in a TV interview, that Turkey was no longer a desirable Nato member, that President Erdogan had visions of an Ottoman Empire restored, had gone a long way to transforming Turkey into an Islamic state from its secular Kemalist legacy. General Vallely accused the Turkish regime of playing a double game concerning ISISL. The vociferous Turkish complaints about alleged Russian intrusions into its air space sound hollow, when Turkish warplanes have violated Greek airspace on more than 2000 occasions in

the past year alone. Anti-Turkish demonstrators in Athens burnt Turkish and American flags. There were similar scenes in the Bulgarian capital, Sofia and Macedonia. Memories of Ottoman oppression are also etched into the popular psyche of Armenians, Georgians and Serbs and Mother Russia is remembered as an historic liberator from the ‘abominable’ Turk.

European opinion is astir, as speeches in the European Parliament make abundantly clear. Apropos of the British government’s intent to bomb Syria, the former UK ambassador in Damascus, Peter Ford, scathingly dismissive of the proposal as pure folly. He pointed an accusing finger at Saudi Arabia – a long time US ally - as a funder and promoter of jihadi terror across the world.

Such is the unpromising canvas facing Mr Modi. The Obama administration has drawn closer to the Pakistan military following General Raheel Sharif’s five-day visit to Washington (See Media Watch, p 12). The Mumbai terrorist atrocities masterminded by the Pakistan military and intelligence services are now non events. With an eye to building India’s own coalition of the willing, Mr Modi signed up to important defence cooperation agreements with Malaysia and Singapore. He well understands that standard pieties are about all he can expect of President Obama and the US establishment.

India has its own security concerns to consider. The Islamic Fedayeen launched an attack on an Indian Army base in Kashmir; after a three-hour battle the jihadis were killed. More such attacks are inevitable. India’s former Intelligence Branch head and former national security advisor, M .K. Narayanan, has warned that a generous cash flow from Delhi to the Kashmir Valley is no guarantee of peace and stability, that Islamic radicalization in the State continues apace. India must prepare for the long haul. The struggle is bound to stretch the sinews of the Indian state, but it is better to face reality than live in cloud cuckoo land. The coming years will be a test of national resolve.

Ethiopia’s love of India This may be an understated relationship, but the bonding between Ethiopia and India is quite unique in a cynical world. The Indian presence in Ethiopia is significant, from Indian teachers revered for the education they impart, to eye surgeons who treat patients free of cost at local clinics and medical centres, many of which are linked by satellite to top hospitals in Bangalore.

Such entitlement permits televised consultations on heart operations and the like There are Indian agricultural scientists who help rural communities with crop selection and water management, making the sector more productive and self-sufficient; also industrialists seek opportunities to invest in the Ethiopian economy.

Finally, there is a discreet but effective Indian military footprint in the shape of a training facility for Ethiopian soldiers.

Located in the Horn of Africa, Ethiopia, with its ancient Christian population, is bordered by Islamic Eritrea, whose ruthless dictatorial regime is in cahoots with terrorist groups on the Arabian Peninsula across the Red Sea. Shared security concerns, and the defence cooperation that are the outcome, have cemented one of India’s most critical regional relationships. Not only are Indo-Ethiopian governments close, what is so inspiring is the people-to-people ties based on true affection that transcends ritual diplomatic niceties.

Hindu monk turned world mathematician Born in Howrah, a bustling suburb of Kolkata, and educated locally, Mahan Mitra, enrolled, initially, in an electrical engineering course at Ramkrishna Vivekenanda College before discovering his true vocation, mathematics. He travelled to the University of California, Berkeley, for his mathematics Phd. Returning to India, the young man joined the Ramakrishna Mission as a monk and taught at the same Ramkrishna Vivekenanda College Howrah, Belur, where he was once a promising student. Mahan Mitra was now Mahan Maharaj. His life’s inspiration has been the iconic Swami Vivekenanda who was as much a believer in the liberating force of science as he was of religion, saying that properly understood there was no contradiction between the two. Mahan Maharaj recently won the Infosys prize; earlier, in 2011, he won the Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar Award in Mathematical Sciences and is today regarded internationally as a mathematician of distinction. Mahan Maharaj has now joined the Mathematics Department of the prestigious Tata Institute of Fundamental Research (TIFR), where world renowned mathematician Professor C.R. Seshadri teaches. Professors Seshadri and M.S. Raghunathan were students of a French Jesuit Father Charles Racine, who earned his doctorate in France before joining St Joseph’s College in Trichy, then taught at Loyola College in Chennai, where Raghunathan and Seshadri were students. They honed their mathematical skills with a man of religious faith The Hindu monk, Mahan Maharaj, is also the source of mathematical wisdom to his students. Pure mathematics, he laments, is now the exclusive domain of specialized institutes. Most university students today opt

for computer sciences and medicine because of the high financial rewards.

That said, Mahan Maharaj recognizes the revival of Indian mathematics, ascribing this to a variety of factors, of which the first is the country’s participation in the Mathematics Olympiad. The performances of young Indian mathematicians have generated excitement; the event has caught public attention. Secondly, aspirants can draw on the knowledge of excellent teachers at specialized institutes where mathematics has star billing.

He mentions the Indian Statistical Institute, Kolkata, the Chennai Mathematical Institute, and IIT Bombay and IIT Kanpur as centres of excellence.

‘It is curious,’ he says, ‘that a disproportionately large number of students hailed originally from Bengal, though a substantial number pursue their careers outside Bengal. Bengal is one of the few states where students continue to pursue fundamental science, it has always been strong in theoretical physics. That trend started rubbing off on mathematics. After all, theoretical physics and mathematics are closely aligned. The result is partly cultural. People in the State have always been interested in theory,’ he said. The Swami concluded: ’The language of mathematics is one of reason. But the poem it constructs is something more – it holds the body of mathematics together cogently and in a unified way.’

The release of the film, ‘The Man Who Knew Infinity,’ tells the astonishing story of the mathematical genius Srinivasa Ramanujan and his collaboration with the eminent Cambridge mathematician Professor G.H. Hardy. It stars Jeremy Irons and Dev Patel. It is rewarding audiences the world over for their time.

No good act performed in the world ever dies. Science tells us that no atom of matter can ever be destroyed, that no force once started ever ends; it merely passes through a multiplicity of ever-changing phases. Every good deed done to others is a great force that starts an unending pulsation through time and eternity. We may not know it, we may never hear a word of gratitude or recognition, but it will all come back to us in some form as naturally, as perfectly, as inevitably, as echo answers to sound.

- William George Jordan

Cllr David Perry Leader of Harrow Council

An ambitious draft budget for Harrow Small Businesses are the lifeblood of Harrow As any business owner will know, if half of your income is taken away, you will have to make some incredibly tough decisions to keep your business going. This is the position that the Tory Government has put Harrow Council in.

Our budget for running services from street cleaning to care for older people has had £83m of cuts imposed on it from 2014 to 2018 – this is over 50% of our controllable spend.

However we will not be taking these cuts lying down. We have made £1m of savings by cutting senior managers, shared services with other councils to reduce costs and have started an ambitious once in a generation programme to Build a Better Harrow, through regenerating our high streets, building affordable homes and new schools for our families. This will also help raise money for the Council so we can continue to provide the services that residents rely on.

Nothing shows our

business like approach better than being recently awarded as the best small business friendly Borough in London.

This is for our work on training local apprenticeships to get our young people into work, setting up Trader’s association, and securing money to improve our high streets.

Despite the cuts we face, this important part of the Council’s work will be protected in the upcoming budget.

Other areas of the Council’s budget that will be protected include nearly £10m for freedom passes and nearly £20m to care for older people and vulnerable children.

We will always stand up for the residents of Harrow.

Locally we will continue to protect residents from the impact of these cuts, whilst nationally we will keep up the pressure on the Tory government to protect our local policing budget and to properly fund the NHS to avert a future crisis.

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

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American Muslim condemns treatment In Brief A bird costs utility company £25m at Heathrow Airport as ‘inhuman’ AsianVoiceNews

Asian Voice | 5th December 2015

An 18 year old American Muslim who was detained in Heathrow for 13 hours has condemned her treatment by UK border officials as 'inhuman'.

From the state of Michigan, Ayan Bashir Mohamud, was on her first trip outside the US visiting family in Leicester for a cousin's wedding. Miss Mohamud who has never travelled alone before and not been to the UK, was relieved, when she got off the 8 hours flight on 20th November, at 6am. But what followed, has scarred her forever.

She said: "I was going to baggage reclaim and I was asked to fill out a form.

I had trouble getting my aunt's address using my cellphone because it wasn't connecting to the airport wi-fi and I was sent to an area with two other people where I had to wait for a couple of hours."

Ayan was allowed to call her aunt Jawaahir Daahir, who is the founder of Leicester's Somali Development Services and was awarded the British Empire Medal in 2002 for her community cohesion work. Jawaahir drove to Heathrow but when she arrived was told she could not see or speak to her brother's daughter.

"By that stage Ayan wasn't allowed to make any phone calls, wasn't allowed

UKBA] feel that everyone Ayan have to sufwearing a scarf needs to fer." be checked thoroughly. I A Home felt it was inhuman for O f f i c e them to treat me that spokesman said: way.”

"We do not rouShe said her father tinely comment warned her she might face on individual questioning at the UK cases, but to border, but she said she ensure the corwas not expecting to be rect decisions “interrogated or held in a are reached it is Jawaahir Daahir and Ayan Bashir room for hours.” sometimes necesMohamud Ms Daahir, said her sary for Border niece’s ordeal was “a terriForce to detain to see anyone and wasn't ble, distressful unimaginpassengers while checks allowed any legal representation," Jawaahir said.

"She would have had Muslim woman punched in the face more rights if she'd been An 18-year-old Muslim woman, Ms Choudhury, who arrested for something." wants to be referred by her surname, was punched in Ayan said that a female the face as she walked down New Street, Birmingham, Borders Agency employee on Monday 23rd November, at about 7:30am. It is interviewing her allegedly alleged that this attack took place as Ms Choudhury accused her of having been was wearing a hijab. She said, “I can only think it was sent to England for an because he saw my hijab as he didn't take my bag or arranged marriage. anything. I've lived in Birmingham all my life and I've After the interview never experienced something like this before. My parAyan was told she had been ents are so scared that they're telling me to take my refused permission to enter hijab off. My mum's telling me to wear a hat instead.” the UK and would be kept Asian Voice does not condone such malicious in a detention centre behaviour towards any sect of society. We would like to overnight and put on a know your opinion on this matter. Whether you've flight back to the USA. been a victim of discrimination or racial attack, or But hours later another would like to state your discontentment, we would like Borders Agency employee to hear from you. Email us on aveditorial@ did a routine review of the abplgroup.com case overruled the decision.

She was released at able experience for her are carried out to ensure 8.30pm. and for our family”. they qualify for entry to Jawaahir, who lives in Rt Hon Keith Vaz, the UK." Evington, said: "I think Leicester East MP, said he Miss Mohamud told what happened in Paris has plans to raise Miss the BBC: “[It] hit me that made some people want to Mohamud’s case in his I was being judged based punish all Muslims. capacity as chairman of on what I was wearing on "Some terrorists blow the Home Affairs Select my head... After the Paris up innocent people and Committee. incident happened, [the then innocent people like

Leicester man jailed for abusing air hostess 46-year-old Jasbir Singh Bharaj, from Leicester, has been sentenced to 11 months imprisonment, after abusing an air hostess while drunk, causing damage to the in-house entertainment worth £2,500, as well as biting the police officer who arrested him.

The incident took place while on an Emirates flight from Dubai to Birmingham, on 16th September 2014.

A cabin crew stated that Bharaj was the worst passenger that he had ever come across.

Jasbir Singh Bharaj

At Birmingham Crown Court, Judge James Burbridge QC said, “You told a female member of cabin crew that if she were on the ground you would punch her in the face. And in a particularly grotesque piece of behaviour you dipped your fingers in your glass of wine and rubbed them on your private parts. The air hostess felt abused and disgusted after seeing you touch yourself in such a sexually explicit

Tributes paid to dad, described as 'kindest soul on the planet' Children of a father killed at a charity event in a banqueting suite has described how their lives would “never be the same”. Production worker Inderjit Singh Dhariwal, 49, of Langley, died in hospital on 24 November, after he was attacked at Samsons Banqueting Suite, Rood End Road, Oldbury on November 22, at 2am. Security workers Nicolas Salhan, 36, of Haybridge Avenue, Stourbridge, and Jonathan Davies, 42, of Old Bridge Walk, Rowley Regis, have both been charged with mur-

Inderjit Singh Dhariwal

der. His 21-year-old daughter Pooja called her father the “kindest soul on the planet”.

She reportedly said: “He put everybody before himself and was always willing to help. He was the kindest soul

on the planet.

“He had many big things to look forward to – his 50th birthday, both of my brothers’ 21st birthdays, his granddaughter’s first birthday, and many more.

“Our dad meant the world to us and his loss has shaken the family as well as the community. Our lives will never be the same without our taxi, our friend, our confidant, our dad.

“We miss you dad and love you forever, your legacy lives on and you will never be forgotten. RIP.”

way.”

Judge Burbridge continued, “You shouted f***ing Muslims send them back to where they came from and f***ing Isis.

It was also revealed in court that Bharaj had verbally abused police officers during his arrest, calling them “white bastards”.

“People need to know that if you get drunk on an airplane, upset other passengers and cause cabin crew to have a difficult job then custodial sentences apply,” Judge Burbridge said.

Dementia care to cost £8.5bn in 2030

According to figures released by the Alzheimer's Society, the cost to the government for people with dementia will increase from £3.8 billion in 2015, to £8.5 billion in 2030. In the UK, there are currently 856,700 people who have dementia; Alzheimer's disease accounts to 60% to 70% of the cases. 312,695 sufferers live in care homes, however, that figure is expected to increase to under 500,000 by 2030.

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LANCASHIRE: A pheasant was stuck in water pipes in Lancashire, in September 2014, which caused a panic amongst United Utilities and three million customers who consume its water. The utility company recently revealed that bill for compensating customers as well as removing the deceased bird from the water pipes totalled to £25 million.

During the summer of 2014, traces of a parasite called cryptosporidiosis were found in the water, affected about 300,000 homes. Residents were advised to consume water only after it was boiled as Cryptosporidiosis can cause vomiting and diarrhoea.

Proud Brummies

BIRMINGHAM: The Birmingham Awards held its inaugural ceremony at Edgbaston Stadium. The prestigious round-table event attracted over 500 people.

Distinguished guests included the Lord Mayor of Birmingham Cllr Ray Hassall, West Midlands Police’ Deputy Chief Constable Dave Thompson and Sunny and Shay Grewal, the husband-and-wife British Asian radio presenters. Awards were presented across 17 categories.

The evening was hosted by local DJ Dan Kelly.

Birmingham boasts the youngest population in Europe and is home to almost 33,000 companies, including almost 700 international firms. The awards are the brainchild of award-winning media professional Anita Chumber and Ifraz Ahmed of The Asian Today Limited.

We are Proud to be Gujarati

Dhiren Katwa BIRMINGHAM: Rumours are unhealthy, talk or write to us and we promise to reply. This was the clear message from members of the management committee of a Hindu cultural organisation to guests at a dinner and dance event in Birmingham last Saturday. The popular annual roundtable event featured a live band, Echoes International, and a raffle. Organised by the Gujarati Hindu Association Birmingham, this is one of its many events it hosts each year in an attempt to promote harmony, unity and respect for all. Founded in 1977, it boasts a membership of 400, and continues to pursue with pride its vision and mission.

GHAB’s Secretary, Subhashchandra B Patel, pictured, has devoted his career to promoting Gujarati customs, traditions, language, especially for younger Gujarati Hindus, and continues to do so. To find out more about GHAB visit www.ghab.org.uk

Female governor allegedly made to sit separately from men at Islamic school

BIRMINGHAM: It has been alleged from a letter on faith schools by Ofsted that the only female governor at Darul Uloom Islamic High School, in Birmingham, was forced to sit in a separate room, out of her male colleagues' site.

This led to the governor not being able to partake in the meeting; however, authorities were informed that this was the “usual arrangement”, head of the watchdog, Sir Michael Wilsaw. Darul Uloom School has been criticised for its “inadequate promotion in promoting fundamental British values”.

Loneliness can cause an early death

ENGLAND: A Study suggests that loneliness can change people's immune systems, making them more prone to illness and early death. The feeling of extreme isolation can stimulate a biochemical vicious circle that makes patients feels even lonelier than they had felt initially. In England, it has been stated that over half of the people aged 75 live alone. An estimated five million pensioners only have their television for company. Loneliness could have a big affect on millions.

Doctors to inform DVLA of patients who shouldn't drive

BRITAIN: GPs have to inform the DVLA about elderly patients whom they fear are no longer able to drive under new guidance from the General Medical Council, or pose a threat to the public if they seem dangerous behind the wheel. The watchdog says that doctors ought to put their duty to protect the public before patient confidentiality.

They've been told to inform the DVLA if the patients have ignored their advise to stop driving.

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Father who beat "paedophile" is spared jail

Devinder Kainth

Sandro Rottman

Devinder Kainth (40), reportedly killed, Sandro Rottman (37), an alleged Paedophile by continuously punching him, after Rottman took photographs of Kainth's daughter. This incident had taken place in February, in Spain, where Kainth, his partner, Gemma Hawkins, and their three young children were on holiday.

Sandro Rottman, a German national, was being investigated by the police at the time, who had found images of child sex abuse on his computer.

Kainth was arrested at the scene and admitted manslaughter at the Algeciras Criminal Court, in Spain, on Wednesday 25th November. He was sentenced to six months imprisonment, however, it seems as the though sentence may get suspended as the Spanish Court does

not usually force a first time offender to serve prison time for sentences of less than two years.

Rottman was an alleged known alcoholic.

The court agreed that the deceased's alcohol abused played a role in his death.

The court also considered the Kainth's emotional state after seeing his daughter's photographs, when the attack took place.

A document by the court read, “When the accused [Devinder Kainth] finished eating and got up to leave the restaurant he realised as he talked to Sandro [Rottman] that he had been taking photos of his children without his consent. This really upset the accused and led to him shouting at Sandro that he should erase them whilst he demanded he explain

Asian Voice | 5th December 2015

Baroness Scotland appointed as Commonwealth Secretary General After being chosen by leaders of the 53 Commonwealth countries, Baroness Scotland (60), the former Labour minister has been appointed as the new Commonwealth Secretary General. She will take up with post in 2016.

Baroness Scotland, who was Britain's first black woman QC, will be taking Kamalesh over from Sharma, who completed the maximum eight years in office.

In 2009, Baroness Scotland came under a lot of scrutiny as she was accused of employing an illegal immigrant from Tonga as a housekeeper.

She was fined £5,000, but the officials had accepted that she was not aware of her employee's status.

Lord Dolar Popat, Conservative Party Whip, has congratulated the his actions. The tense situation led to a fight in which the accused punched Sandro several times in the head.”

The court also stated that the punches alone may not have caused Rottman's death; he suffered from severe liver cirrhosis which led him to die soon after the attack.

Baroness Scotland

Kamalesh Sharma

Lord Dolar Popat

Baroness on her new post.

“I congratulate my good friend Baroness Scotland on her appointment as the first female commonwealth Secretary General. Patricia [Scotland] is an outstanding Parliamentarian and I cannot think of anyone better to steer and promote the values that the Commonwealth so proudly

stands for, such as the protection of human rights and rule of law.”

Lord Popat further stated, “Since joining the House myself, I have campaigned over the last 5 years to take this great institution to another level, including creating a Commonwealth Bank which would help harness

and promote the economic potential of the Commonwealth as opposed to the European Union. As it is often said, America is our ally, Europe our neighbours but the Commonwealth is our family- and I am sure Baroness Scotland will do an excellent job in championing this virtue.”

As per new reports, Prime Minister David Cameron's target to cut immigration is “virtually impossible”; whilst making the target possible, it may prove detrimental for the

economy.

PM Cameron's aim is to reduce the annual net figure of people who migrate to Britain.

The Prime Minister has been trying to persuade

other European leaders to sanction proposals that would aim to restrict free movement within the European Union, which is regarded as an essential principle of the union.

PM's migration target could harm economy

First Indian female footballer in Britain to be sent back

Continued from page 1

expire and even though the team had planned to sponsor her work permit, she cannot apply for it through the club as West Ham is in the third tier and she is classed as a semi-professional.

She reportedly said, “My student visa expires on January 29th in 2016 and as of now West Ham cannot extend it as a sponsor visa as only first and second division teams are allowed to do so.”

She added, “there are only two ways out for me, West Ham United Fc, the male club are registered to sponsor the visa and they can sponsor my work visa or the Indian government can help me by endorsing the Tier 1 Exceptional talent visa.”

Aditi’s well-wishers in India have taken to

Change.org, in an attempt to garner an Exceptional Talent visa. The petition titled “Let’s bring a change to Indian Football.. Let us join hands to support Aditi Chauhan!” has already reached its 7,500 target and will soon reach Minister of External Affairs Sushma Swaraj.

It has also been directed towards Football development Foundation Chief Nita Ambani. The 24-year who recently won an award in the UK, added, “I have always been aware about my visa issue and have been trying to get it sorted for long time now, after the awards it was highlighted a bit more.”

Aditi is among those thousands of Indians, who come to the UK to study.

Inspite of having exceptional talents that could be useful in UK skill market, are often forced to go back to India, due to lack of an

available visa. Earlier international students were provided with a post work study permit that allowed them to stay in the UK to work for two years, after graduating. This visa was scrapped by the Tory government in 2010. The number of Indian students coming to the UK, following the scrap has now halved, affecting the university market. London Mayor Boris Johnson has been rooting for a Commonwealth visa, that will allow students in the UK, to live in the UK and work for two years after graduating. It is believed, Home Secretary Theresa May is still considering it.

Want the post study work visa to be reinstated for international students? Support Aditi's plea to stay back in the UK? Have your say. Write to us at aveditorial@abplgroup.com

Lord Feldman to be questioned about "Tatler Tory" scandal The Conservative chairman, Lord Feldman will be interviewed as part of an inquiry regarding the bullying scandal that has swamped the Tory Party.

It is also said that Lord Feldman is allegedly under growing pressure to resign.

Lord Feldman will be

5

one of the 40 witnesses who will give evidence into allegations of blackmail, sexual misconduct and bullying involving Mark Clarke. This scandal, which has been dubbed as the “Tatler Tory”, has also forced the resignation of Grant Shapps MP. Lord Feldman

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Asian Voice | 5th December 2015

White vegetables can reduce stomach cancer risk According to a study by Chinese scientists, you could reduce the chance of developing stomach cancer if you consume more white vegetables, such as cauliflower and potatoes. It is said that stomach cancer causes 13 deaths per day in Britain.

The study also states that preserved food, beer and spirits, as well as salt raises the risk of contracting stomach cancer.

The research also found that those who consumed large amounts of white vegetables are less likely of developing the cancer by a third, compared to those who avoid eating such vegetables. Fruits, as well as green-yellow vegetables, such as cabbage and celery, can also have a protective effect.

Vitamin C is thought to be the important nutrient which works as an antioxidant to reduce cellular stress in the stomach. Vitamin C also fights a bacterium which is broadly

blamed for inducing gastric cancer.

Stomach cancer is one of the world's most common cancerous diseases, however, it seems to have declined in countries such

What to eat: l White vegetables, such as potatoes, cauliflower and onions; green and yellow vegetables, such as kale, celery and cabbage; fruits, especially oranges and grapefruit. l People tend to disassociate onions and potatoes as part of their five a day vegetables. However, surveys have suggested that these vegetables are beneficial in reducing the risk of stomach cancer. l Consuming 50mg of vitamin C daily, which is the equivalent of about two potatoes, reduces the risk by 8%, while 100g of fruits a day makes one 5% less likely of developing stomach cancer.

Eat less of: as Britain, probably due to people refrigerating their food, which allows them to consume more fresh food.

In the UK, 1 in 64 men, as well as 1 in 120 women are diagnosed with stomach cancer during their lifespan. In 2012, there were nearly 7,000 new cases of the cancer, while there were 4,800 reported deaths.

l Salt, especially as a preservative; alcohol such as beer and spirits; processed meat and liver. l Every five gram teaspoon of salt consumed daily could increase your chance of developing cancer by 12%. l Eating liver, spinach and pickled vegetables in excess is said to increase the risk of developing the disease.

MPs indulge in Mithai to support silver star diabetes challenge Senior Parliamentarians attended the Annual Diabetes Charity event, the Silver Star Diabetes Health Challenge as part of Diwali at Westminster in House of Commons.

Ed Vaizey MP, the Minister of State for Culture, Communications and Creative Industries, Philip Dunne MP, Minister for Defence Procurement, Rt Hon Alex Salmond MP, Former First Minister of Gregory Scotland, Campbell MP, Minister of Culture, Arts and Leisure (Northern Ireland) and the Rt Hon Keith Vaz MP, Chairman of the Home Affairs Committee along with other Members of Parliament were issued with a Silver Star Diabetes Pedometer. The pedometer will measure the amount of steps taken on a chosen day and see who can take the most steps.

They were also joined by Reverend Jesse Jackson the International Patron of Silver Star Diabetes.

Rt Hon Matthew Hancock MP, Minister for the Cabinet Office is the current holder of the Health Challenge. The MPs also took the quick and easy diabetes test to help raise awareness of the need for public testing of the condition. Special guest Chizzy Akudolu who plays Dr. Mo in BBC’s Holby City, joined in the efforts to highlight the problem of diabetes, and handed the MPs with

Rt Hon Keith Vaz, MP, Chairman of the Home Affairs Committee and Rev Jesse Jackson

propensity for diabetes a pedometer. who did not know about Silver Star Diabetes is it. The event was supporta national charity which ed by Astra Zeneca and seeks to raise awareness Abbott Diabetes Care of diabetes through advocacy and delivering free diabetes testing and lifestyle advice to the general public.

The Charity runs M o b i l e Diabetes U n i t s (MDU's).

The MDUs travel out into the com- Ed Vaizey, the Minister of State for Culture, munity, to Communications and Creative Industries Dr Modhwadia, places of work, worship, Chairman of the Trustees community events, High for Silver Star Diabetes Street and retail parks said: “I am delighted that testing the public for free so many MPs have decidfor diabetes and offering ed to take the test and lifestyle advice. During have taken the pedometer these visits its staff has challenge to raise awarediscovered thousands of ness of this largely people who have a

unseen health condition.

Silver Star Diabetes has tested over 49,000 people for diabetes and continues to reach out to communities to raise awareness for the condition.

Being tested is important to ensure that the condition is spotted early and people can get the right treatment as soon as possible.”

Chizzy Akudolu who plays Dr. Mo in BBC’s Holby City said: “The event was a great success.

It’s wonderful to see that the work of Silver Star Diabetes is continuing to raise awareness for diabetes. I am always delighted to contribute to this very worthwhile cause.”

Professor Jonathan Valabhji, National Clinical Director for Obesity and Diabetes at NHS England said: “Diabetes is one of the biggest health challenges we face today in the UK. There are 3.2 million people living with diabetes, the majority of whom have Type 2 diabetes, the onset of which can be prevented or delayed by a healthy lifestyle. Exercise is an important component of a healthy lifestyle, and I applaud Silver Star’s efforts to provide practical support and information to so many MPs who have decided to take the test and take the pedometer challenge to raise awareness of this health condition.”

AsianVoiceNewsweekly

Venki's wife keeps him grounded Women have the ability to make anyone feel grounded, and in some cases, even deflate one's ego.

Whenever a man gets too big for his boots, he can always rely on his wife to keep him in check.

Sir Venkatraman Ramakrishnan spoke about his wife's reaction, at the Foreign Press Awards at Park Lane Hotel, to when he had won the Nobel Prize in 2009, in Chemistry. The structural biologist recalled, “She said: 'What, you?' They say behind every successful man is a very surprised woman. I told her I was speaking to foreign journalists [at the Foreign Press Awards]... hosted by

In Brief

Sir Venkatraman Ramakrishnan

someone called Sandi Toksvig- heard of her? “Of course,” she said. 'I listen to Radio 4.' Then I got some kind of grudging respect.”

The Guardian received six Foreign Press Awards for its Long Read articles.

Martin Chulov, was bestowed with the top award for his work, ISIS: The Inside Story.

Divorce rates dip in the UK

BRITAIN: In this current day and age, couples have been opting to live together before marriage, which has proven to be successful in strengthening marriages.

According to recent figures from the Office for National Statistics, 130,473 couples divorced in the UK, in 2013. This shows a 3% decline in a year, and shows that the divorce rates have fallen to their lowest since 1975.

Figures also show that there has been a recent rise in the number of couples who opt to get married over the last couple of years.

Fake wedding arranger due to return to Britain

BRITAIN: An Indian immigrant, a bogus arranged marriage fixer was deported, however, she is due to return back to the UK as her nine-year-old son is said to be suffering from the separation.

An immigration judge ruled in favour of the 46-yearold woman last year.

It is said that the woman had entered Britain in 2002, on a visitor visa and allegedly was involved in a conspiracy to ease fake marriages. She was deported for two years in 2009, which made her son split his time between Britain and India, in order to spend time with both of his parents, but this arrangement upset him.

Lawyers asked officials to revoke her deportation in 2012, referring to a family life in the European Convention on Human Rights.

Sweet but not fattening

SURREY: Scientists have been working on hollow sugar crystals, a product deemed to bring dramatic changes which will aid tackle obesity.

A leading research company in Surrey, Leatherhead Food Research, states that hollow crystals could produce a taste which is sweet but at lower sugar levels.

Artist and Empire show at Tate Britain LONDON: “Cheetah and stag with Two Indian” by George Stubbs, along with 200 artistic works focussing on artists' reactions to the imperial occurrence is taking place at Tate Britain, London, in the Artist and Empire show.

Rescued jobs

Photo courtesy: Bridgeman/Tate

BRITAIN: Following the deal to sell Caparo Steels, over 300 jobs have been saved in South Wales and the West Midlands. The total number of jobs that have been saved with this deal is current 488.

Parents avoid speaking about depression with kids

BRITAIN: According to government-commissioned researched, most parents never discuss depression, stress or any other aspect of mental health with their children.

Parents stated that they did not think this was a topic that they needed to speak to their children about.

However, statistics show that at least 1 in 10 children some form of mental health problem before turning 18.

Other parents mentioned that they were not aware of how to start a conversation on depression and mental health.

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Asian Voice | 5th December 2015

7

Holloway Prison to be sold off Nearly £4,000 bill for HM Holloway Prison, considered as the largest women's prison in Western Europe, is about to be closed and sold off for housing.

This Victorian prison, which was branded by inspectors as “inadequate”, was built in 1852 as a mixed-sex jail. It became England's first women's jail in 1902.

George Osborne is said to have announced that other Victorian prisons would be sold in order to help pay for nine new jails.

However, the Prison Governors Association

6 hours parking

(PGA), stated how they were concerned about the closure of Holloway Prison. A spokesperson said, “The PGA has not

been consulted on this decision and it leaves us with some major concerns as to the capacity within the female estate.”

Police hunting suspect of mosque attack a n t i Police are hunting for M u s l i m a man who is suspecthate crime, ed of trying to set fire and are to Finsbury Park appealing Mosque, north for informaLondon, using a tion. petrol bomb.

The susCCTV images pect has have been issued. The b e e n suspect was also described as filmed outside the a white man mosque, which was Police are searching for a suspect who wearing blue once run by the radical cleric Abu Hamza, on attempted to set Finsbury Park Mosque ablaze jeans, a white the clothing alight and baseball cap and a white Friday 27th November, throwing the can into the hooded jumper. It is also just before 8:30pm, compound of the mosque. believed that the suspect allegedly wrapping clothThe police are treathad fled the scene on a ing around a jerry can ing this incident as an moped. filled with petrol, setting

Manish Wadhwani (32), a software engineer, was charged £3,731 for parking for six hours when he took his wife and 3-year-old son, along with his parents to Winter Wonderland in Hyde Park, London.

Wadhwani, from Watford, had pre-booked a £5 all-day parking deal at the NCP car park, but the bill at the exit shocked him.

“My first reaction was to scream in shock. I have never experienced anything like this before. It was the most expensive Christmas trip ever.”

It is believed that an error occurred when he has used the same parking deal in August, but the NCP system had not registered his exit. He had been charged for 93 days of parking.

Wadhwani said, “I booked into the car park on August 23 but when I was exiting there was a problem and it wouldn't work. I had to call for assistance and the operator lifted the barrier to let me out. As far as I know they never registered me leaving.”

It is said that the company launched an investigation into Wadhwani's charges and confirmed that

Manish Wadhwani

The receipt of Wadhwani's car park stay

he would be getting a refund.

An NCP spokesperson said, “Our investigation showed us that the customer had parked with us in August, and hadn't exited the car park using the card he used

on entry, this may be due to a barrier already been raised. As a consequence when he parked on Sunday, the parking equipment believed he had overstayed from his August booking.

The system believed he was on an overcharge stay and charged him accordingly. We offer our most sincere apologies and have immediately refunded this customer.”

Wadhwani affirmed, “I think I will be keeping clear of NCP car parks until they update their systems properly.”

Avoid small talk haircuts

For those who hate small talk while their hair is being done can rejoice. Bauhaus hair salon, in Cardiff, has introduced the “no chat option” for clients who hate making conversation during their hair appointment.

Customers can now opt to sit in a “quiet chair” while their hair gets a trim. This service is aimed at commuters who want to unwind after a long day at work. The owner of Bauhaus, Scott Miller, believes this will allow customers to acquire some peace and quiet in this busy day and age.

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Asian Voice | 5th December 2015

Trailblazer Ashish brings light to those in darkness Anand Pillai Ordinary people see only the possible, but the extraordinary visualise the impossible. This may be, perhaps, because ordinary people have mere eyesight, while the extraordinary have a vision. This is an extraordinary story of an ordinary man who fought his blindness and took on the world with sheer grit, determination and perseverance to make it big in life.

Ashish Goyal was born just like any other person with normal eyesight in Mumbai. But problems started when he reached 7.

At times he found it difficult to see properly, the vision became blurred, but then he pulled on with this defect in retina for more than 10 years. He knew he was getting blind but never told anyone outside. He was afraid how society will take it. Things were quite normal till the final stage of his college in Mumbai. He was pursuing Bachelor's of Commerce. But before he could finish it, he became completely blind. He was just 19 at the time. His world came crashing down.

He lost all his confidence – the fact that he cannot hang out with friends any more or for that matter cannot play cricket or participate in extra curricular activities, terrified him. He hid himself from society.

He was so dejected that he decided not to give his final college exams. But thanks to his mom, Jyotiben, who persuaded him to sit the exams. She told him: “If you don't appear for the exams, you are going to fail.

So it is better you sit the exam and fail.” This statement clicked. He wrote the exams with the help of writers and came out with flying colours, much to his delight and surprise. And then there was no looking back. A new Ashish was born, full of vigour and confidence.

His spiritual guru Dr Balaji Tambe based in Karla, 100km from Mumbai, also played a pivotal role in this transformation. Dr Tambe told Ashish: “You have lost only one sense. Four senses are still with you. Make use of them. Don't worry about the problem, rather look for a solution to the problem.” This went home with Ashish, and there began a new innings.

Ashish who had an academic bent of mind decided to chase his dreams. He did his MBA (finance) from the prestigious Narsee Monjee Institute of Management Studies, Mumbai. He stood second in class and did well in extra curricular activities as well. Ashish was happy but didn't know his joy was

shortlived. The jolt came during the campus interviews. His name was shortlisted every time, but the moment the companies found out he is blind, they rejected him outright, ruthlessly. They did not even give him a chance for PIONEER: Ashish Goyal an interview. This was a rude awakening for Ashish.

London office and later – However, when every after an interview with company around turned a their senior manangment blind eye to him, ING headed by Mr Bill Winters Vysya Bank came as a god– offered him a full-time send to the depressed job in 2008. Ashish worked Ashish. The interview with as Prop Trader (under the Bank managing direcinvestment side) with tor Dr V Raghunathan – a JPMorgan.

However, former IIMAhmedabad professor for 20 years – went well. The MD was so impressed with Ashish’s financial acumen that he gave him a free choice.

Ashish grabbed the opportunity with both hands and chose a trading role.

This was in 2003.

He worked with ING Vysya Bank for 3 years in Bangalore.

TASTE OF TRIUMPH: Young Ashish But then Ashish always thought big owing to changing finanand had big dreams. He cial regulations, banks realised that if he wants to could not do this business make a mark for himself, anymore, and so Ashish he should be either in had to quit JPMorgan in London or New York. He 2012. applied to Wharton Undeterred by this Business School, development, Ashish University of Pennsylvania, moved on. He joined for yet another MBA Hedge fund BlueCrest in degree. Mr Thomas Caleel London in 2012 and is curof the business school did rently working as Trader not discourage him, but Portfolio Manager. then he made a challenging Interestingly, Ashish Goyal statement. He told Ashish, is the first and the only “I have never seen a blind blind person in the world trader on Wall Street. to do this kind of a job.

There's no guarantee Ashish uses a screenwhether you will get a job. reading software to check But, anyways, life would research reports and email. definitely be better with an Besides work, he has MBA from Wharton school played Blind Cricket for than without it.” He graduLondon Metro Sports Club ated with honours. But for 2 years. Sachin nobody like him had done Tendulkar is his role model trading in bank before, so it for the way the little master was difficult to get his foot took on the world's best by in the Wall Street door. sheer hard work.

The companies were skepSurprisingly, despite tical to hire Ashish because the world looking the other there was no such preceway when he was down, he dence.

Eventually is not bitter. Ashish says: JPMorgan Chase came to “Many may have rejected his rescue. They offered me, but there were equally him internship at their good people who accom-

modated me. I am not bitter. I am happy. I keep doing what I want to do. In fact, I want to give it back to the society. I do lot of nonprofit work for various charity organisations like Royal National Institute of Blind People, Akshaya Patra Foundation UK, Pratham UK, and Teach for India. I help them in raising funds. I talk to young students, tell them about my story, advise them about the importance of knowledge and education. I mainly tell them 'Never give up. Keep perservering'.

Because knowledge is power, and they can go places if they have the right education. I even invited my spiritual guru Dr Tambe to London last year for motivational and spiritual talks and I would like to continue that.”

Ashish has come a long way. Today he is a sight for sore eyes. By his sheer courage and will power, he has earned his place in the sun, inspiring many differently-abled persons to take a leaf out of his book.

This year the World Economic Forum chose him as a Young Global Leader for his trailblazing achievements – which is something to write home about, at least for a nearly written-off person like Ashish. In 2010 Ashish was also presented with the National Award for Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities by then President of India Pratibha Patil.

He believes in prayers and does that regularly. He says prayers give him mental strength, peace, awareness and help him remain self-confident. He says today he has no fear and is not afraid of anything.

Well, someone who had swam against the current and turned the tide, how could fear touch him?

What makes Ashish extraordinary is – he believed in putting that little extra in ordinary things.

He stands out from the crowd, not because he has an impairment in his vision but more because he never lost sight of his vision.

Ashish got married last year and lives happily with his wife Neha in London.

We would like to know more about such people who shine out. Think you know someone like Ashish, who is worth interviewing?

Email their details to: aveditorial@abplgroup.com.

AsianVoiceNewsweekly

Discussion to be held on Indo-British relationship Shri Ushibhai Nagar, Chairman, Vishva Hindu Parishad, South London branch is organising a discussion on Prime Minister Modi’s visit to UK and the Indo-British relationship.

The event will take place on Saturday, 12th December 2015, 3-00 pm to 6-00 pm at Swami Vivekanand Hall, Vishva Hindu Parishad South London, 10 Thornton Road, Thornton Heath Pond, Surrey CR7 6JN. CB Patel, Publisher/ Editor of Asian Voice and Gujarat Samachar will discuss Prime Minister Mr. Narendra Modi’s recent three days visit to the UK and UK-India bilateral relationship in the current scenario.

CB has been a part of this country's changing demography for the last 49 years and is the

Publisher/Editor of Gujarat Samachar and Asian Voice for over 44 years. He has a vast knowledge of Britain’s political activities and has a close relationship with the Indian diaspora. PM Modi recently described CB as 'a friend' during his historical speech at the Wembley Stadium.

This will be a unique opportunity to discuss national issues, as well as issues that are specific to the British Indian community.

This is a free but RSVP only invitation. All from the community are warmly invited to the event.

For registration please contact VHP on 020 8665 5502 or Kamal Rao 020 7749 4001 / 07875 229 211 or email: kamal.rao@abplgroup.com

Over 200 people raise £9,000 for charity

On Saturday 28th November Shishukunj organised its first ever Danceathon to raise funds for projects in Nepal as well as its own charitable activities.

More than 200 people crammed into the London Academy in Edgware to participate in a vibrant and energetic fundraiser that involved participants of all ages.

The participants were taken through a marathon 5-hour dance session that covered styles such as Garba, Bhangra, Hip Hop, Salsa and Line Dancing.

Whilst focussing on fun, the event also successfully raised over £9,000 to re-build schools in the Dhading, Nuwakot and Rasuwa areas of Nepal. Proceeds will also be donated to

Shishukunj London’s activities as well.

Seven-year-old Dhiya Patel said “I took part in the dance-a-thon and did all the dances. I also raised £800 for Shishukunj and the children of Nepal – I had so much fun and hope Shishukunj does this again.”

Shishukunj is a children’s charity that has been working in London for over 30 years.

Through the medium of Indian culture, Shishukunj tries to instil morals and values in children from the age of 5 upwards so that they become responsible and respected leaders of tomorrow’s society.

For more information or to make a donation please visit www.shishukunj.org.uk

Son lives with father's corpse for several months A 59-year-old reclusive son, Timothy Brown, lived with the corpse of his dead father for four months, until a neighbour had spotted his skeleton.

Timothy Brown, had placed his father, Kenneth Brown (94) in his favourite armchair after he suffered a fall during a

fire in his bedroom, in June 2014.

Timothy Brown was later arrested for offences of concealing a body and preventing a burial.

It was also said that the son was not charged as detectives had decided that it was not in the public interest.

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Leading Lights

AsianVoiceNews

AsianVoiceNewsweekly

Rani Singh, Special Assignments Editor

Indian origin CEO OF London Stock Exchange, Nikhil Rathi Nikhil Rathi was appointed CEO of the London Stock Exchange plc subsidiary in September 2015.

He also has Group-wide responsibility for I n t e r n a t i o n a l Development.

Nikhil joined LSEG from the UK Treasury, where he held a number of senior positions. Most recently he was Director of the Financial Services Group, representing the UK Government’s financial services interests in the EU and internationally. He served as the UK representative on the EU Financial Services Committee and Head of the Financial Stability unit, overseeing a number of the UK’s financial stability interventions during the crisis. Nikhil also served as Private Secretary to the UK Prime Minister for three years from 2005 to 2008.

The Asian Voice first

asked Nikhil what the Stock Exchange does.

He answers: “London Stock Exchange provides the market where big and small companies around the world can raise finance or ‘capital’ from investors in order to invest and create jobs. We are the world’s most international exchange, with nearly 2,500 companies from more than 115 countries raising finance on our equity markets. Our markets include the Main Market, where the very largest blue chip companies in the world come to r a i s e f i n a n c e , Nikhil Rathi and AIM (Alternative Investment Market) - the world’s leading capital market for

smaller, fast-growing companies.

Since its launch in 1995,

Royal Borough of Kingston switches on the lights for the first time to celebrate Diwali For the first time in history, festive lights in Kingston Market Place, New Malden High Street and Surbiton Town Centre were switched on to celebrate Diwali this year. Kingston Guildhall and the Hook Centre were also floodlit as part of this important Hindu festival.

The Mayor and Mayoresses, Roy, Manisha & Sonali Arora, invited residents to join them in the Town Centre to watch the lights come on and enjoy some festive time together.

Hundreds of Kingston residents turned up, despite the heavy rain, to celebrate and mark this historic event with prayers, garba dancing, bhangra dancing and singing. During the evening, there was also a mini food market, Indian sweets and henna stalls for residents to enjoy.It was a truly memorable evening.

Councillor Roy Sanjeev Arora, Mayor of the Royal

AIM has helped more than 3,500 small and growing companies raise £90 billion in finance.

Companies can also list bonds on our Main Market to raise finance from institutional and private investors. This includes the Order book for Retail Bonds (ORB), which since its launch in 2010 has allowed private investors to trade bonds in small denominations, and has helped companies raise over £4.6 billion.

London Stock Exchange Group is in the top tier of exchange groups with nearly 5,000 employees based in 21 cities, delivering services worldwide. When it comes to cross-border listings, the LSE is the world’s most international exchange with more international companies on our market than any other exchange.

We have had an office in Hong Kong for over ten years now with over 200 companies in the AsiaPacific region using us to raise finance.”

As a fresh pair of hands at the ancient institution, what were the challenges?

Nikhil says, “London Stock Exchange is over 315 years old. Embedded in our culture is a desire to help innovative companies raise the capital they need to grow and support the economy. The biggest challenge for us is to make sure we

gic partnership that uses are always being creative London’s capital markets and innovative in the and expertise to finance way we support compaIndia’s rapid growth. nies.”

We welcomed the It wasn’t easy for Nikhil announcements by HDFC himself get to where he is and Bharti Airtel that they now. “I used to work in the intend to list bonds on UK Government and then London Stock Exchange, decided to make a career and also the agreements we move. That was a tough signed with the State Bank decision as I had had a of India and Yes Bank to phenomenal time in the raise finance through our Civil Service. So the markets. biggest hurdle for me has We have already been to prove myself in a seen the first Indian fixed commercial environment.” income Exchange Traded Since the “Big Bang” in Fund list on London Stock 1986, all trading on Exchange and, significantLondon markets has been ly Prime Minister Modi electronic and on announced the screen. Every weekday Government of morning, there is a ”London has a India’s intenmarket open ceretion to launch mony where dif- history of working with partners in the first govferent compaernmentnies who are India and we b a c k e d listing for the welcome the rupee bond first time often bonds that were in London come and offiannounced during with the procially open the Prime Minister ceeds of this market. Charities Modi’s visit.” bond being used and other groups to finance India’s too can celebrate a sperailway infrastructure. cial occasion by opening London has a history the market. of working with partners in Nikhil comments on India and we welcome the recent agreements made bonds that were during PM Modi’s visit. announced during Prime “We were delighted Minister Modi’s visit. They that Prime Ministers have already generated Cameron and Modi agreed interest in India about the that the City of London benefits of listing in should play an increasingly London and we hope that important role in raising they will pave the way for and channelling investmore Indian bonds and ment into infrastructure financial products to list in projects in India - laying London in the future.” the foundation for a strate-

Bank For Your Banking Needs

Borough of Kingston upon Thames, who orchestrated this event, said: “I’m thrilled that, for the first time in the history of our borough, town centres and some of our municipal buildings have been lit up in celebration of Diwali.”

“As a multi-cultural, multi-faith community, I feel this is an important step in making all of our residents feel engaged and integrated.”

“I am delighted that so many residents have come

along and joined us in the Market Place for this festival of lights, joy and peace.”

“A big thank you to Kingston residents and our Partners for supporting this important historic event – a number of different communities and organisations worked hard to make this possible.”

The event was supported by Kingston Council, Kingston First, the Sarvoday Hindu Association, Surbiton Business Community and The Rotary Club.

Grenade rips part of woman's middle finger Sarah Bluck (50), lost part of her middle finger after a stun grenade she purchased exploded in her hand. Bluck bought the stun grenade from Paul Heddell's wartime paraphernalia stand, at Folkestone Racecourse.

She had bought the grenade thinking it had

Asian Voice | 5th December 2015

been deactivated.

Earlier this year, Paul Heddell had been jailed for five years for possessing a machinegun.

Heddell admitted two breaches under the health and safety laws, and was given a six-

month jail sentence by Judge James O'Mahony.

Stun grenade explodes in Sarah Bluck's hand, ripping part of her middle finger

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READERS’ VOICE

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Asian Voice | 5th December 2015

Sophia: Suffragette Princess British televisions so often come up with gem documentaries. Life story of Princess Sophia Duleep Singh was no exception, aired in the week when Sikhs worldwide celebrated birth anniversary of the founder of Sikh faith, Guru Nana.

Sophia, granddaughter of Maharaja Ranjit Singh and Goddaughter of Queen Victoria, was leading campaigner for women’s suffragette movement that is part of British history, transforming political and ethical rights of British women, ultimately gaining right to vote in 1928 after three decade struggle.

Perhaps Sophia’s contribution was as important as that of Emmeline Pankhurst, who led the Suffragette movement but Sophia’s status, charm, elegance, pedigree and beauty with royal connection attracted prestige needed to draw attention of mostly hostile press.

While Emmeline’s name is synonymous with women’s Suffragette victory that changed the political map of Britain, Sophia’s contribution was buried under the weight of Emmeline’s fame and fortune. Her white ethnicity getting exposure over Sophia’s Indian background.

When Ranjit Singh passed away, Prince Duleep was young boy, in no position to challenge might of British Raj who annexed his peaceful and prosperous kingdom in 1854, exiling the family to London. Ironically Punjab and India’s loss was Britain’s gain.

Sophia was so dedicated to her cause that she never married and passed away in 1948, her ashes scattered in Punjab, place associated with fond childhood memories. Perhaps British Indian community should erect her statue outside House of Parliament, fitting tribute to a daring princess!

Bhupendra M. Gandhi Via Email

Autumn statement The Autumn Statement of Chancellor George Osborne was not very helpful for the hard working middle class people.

I am a former Gurkha. I have served 24 years in the British Army and I have sacrificed all my life to pay taxes and people on benefits are enjoying, courtesy of the UK government. Because of my small pension in accordance with the Tripartite Agreement (TPA), I have been working as a caretaker in Central London, travelling everyday from Watford to pay my bills.

And I am still struggling hard to find my "status" with the British government .

The Life in UK is very hard and challenging for hard working middle class people like us. The UK government did exploit it's own people by introducing the benefit culture and now the government wants to bury them alive.

Those who have their benefits stopped, are taking their anger out on the people like me. Early morning when I was waiting for my bus, a white young man shouted at me and said "do not ever try to be like me". Racism and the crime rates have gone up and the UK government is creating a very unhealthy and unpleasant environment.

I urge the UK government first to clear the mess at home, before creating a mess by bombing indiscriminately in Iraq, Syria, Libya etc.

Subscribe Today Yam Gurung UK

Asian Voice in UK for only £29 for one year

Intolerance allegation

India's intolerance hike

A leader, who proudly proclaims himself to be a Hindu Nationalist, from a modest back ground, took a highest office in the land with an historic landslide victory; it appears cannot be digested by the opposition and their supporters.

The media’s integrity is questionable. Rather than highlighting on the progress and development made by the government in short space of time,they are engage in bashing negativity to damage the image of Modiji.

His silence on false perceptions is unbearable to them. Modiji is focused on FDI i.e.

First Develop India.

The most tolerant country in the world perhaps to all religions is India. For many centuries people of all religions have found safety and security in India and this will not change. Of the 180 crores Muslims and 20 crores Christians, vast majority have a Hindu ancestry. It is a shame that many cannot respect and accept the goodness of this great religion’s belief and values and are always in defiance. Hindu’s culture is such that whether they reside in any Christian or Muslim country, they can integrate,assimilate.Never are in conflict. These genuinely peace loving people are welcome wherever they reside and prove to be good citizen.

Niranjan Vasant London

Dream team?

India's prime minister Narendra Modi is undoubtedly an outstanding politician but are members of his cabinet equally talented? And how many of them are women?

I feel sure that Asian Voice readers would be interested in an article spotlighting Modi's team.

Vijay Joshi

By Email

Allegation by actors about “intolerance” in India makes incredible reading. Such statements by millionaire actors and other activists are cheap and disdainful publicity stunts. “Intolerance” propaganda, rowdy behavior and blocking activity of parliament, and return of awards by artists/writers etc. are war of nerves to force Modi/BJP government to quit before its 5 year term.

The cry of intolerance should come soul destroying poverty ridden people rather than millionaires. There are other minorities eg Bahai, Jews, Parsees, who have no complaint. They silently contribute towards nation building. Sindhi refugees kicked out from Pakistan during partition of India in 1947, have never grumbled.

Issue is blown out of proportion on communal and political lines by vested interests. These blur distinction between intolerance as national ethos and a few criminal acts, affecting one particular community. Nationally, tolerance is a historic fact from days of Ram till today when Indians play cricket with Pakistan, shelter millions of illegal Bangladeshi migrants, had Muslim Presidents and Christian Defense Minister, and where economic migrants from Pakistan flourish and prosper.

Incidents of “Intolerance” must be considered as criminal acts, and should be left to law and order departments of state.

Ramesh Jhalla Via Email

IS members

Interpol estimates that there are 28,000 IS members among 500 million inhabitants in the 28 EU countries. It follows that there are three times that number of IS members in the non-EU developed countries' population of 1.5 billion population.

I am surprised that UK is still bombing Iraq after invading Iraq in 2013 and now also wants to bomb Syria and eliminate IS members in Iraq and Syria.

The 100,000 or so IS members are living among approximately 900,000 helpers around them. These 1 million people are living among approximately 10 million innocent people.

Every time bombing a territory tactic is used, for every member and two helpers, 7 innocent persons are potentially murdered or at least injured.

Eventually, some on those innocent people will be encouraged to join IS. Kurdish is the second official language in Syria, Iraq and Iran. The Kurds are hoping to curve out their own independent country in that region with 7%, 20% and 20% population of Kurds respectively.

It is best not to use bombing and/or drones but use ground troops to figure out whether there is any possibility of a rival leader to Bashar Al Assad and/or learn at grass roots level about the region. And then agree with Russia to support a long term plan. Moderation and caution is desperately and urgently needed before any further military action is taken.

Otherwise we shall continue in a vicious circle of unnecessary expenditure and effort of counter-terrorism by both sides. We cannot defeat terrorists by terrorising them.

Nagindas Khajuria Via Email

Prayer Power

We live in a predominately Christian country with liberal attitude, freedom of worship, press and above all enjoy unparalleled human rights that are so often abused for selfish reasons, to avoid deportations by criminals.

Christianity is mocked, side-lined, even sabotaged by so called liberals, secular Christians as well as zealots to please, placket tiny minority either from ethnic group who live a sheltered existence and are in any way difficult to please or from mainstream who are engrossed in selfish world with different priorities from main-stream society.

Banning of advert reciting Lord’s Prayers from cinemas is prime example of undermining Christianity in this country on pretext of hurting feelings of nonChristians. Most of us came to Britain knowing full well that this is Christian country and what it stands for.

Few years back some supermarkets played Christmas carols that were very much appreciated, especially by children, but were forced to abandon by protesters under threat of boycott and prosecution.

No wonder many Christians feel that Christianity is under threat in this predominantly Christian country, as more and more establishments, especially Councils ban Christmas decorations, parties and plays in schools.

It is time for us, non-Christians to stress that we are happy to celebrate Christmas and be part of mainstream society, as without integration, society will fragment to the detriment of the nation’s well-being.

Kumudini Valambia Via Email

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11

Celebrating the Hindu Heroes Headteacher suspended for and Heroines of the Past serious misconduct allegations

Priyel Upadhyaya, NHSF (UK) PR Team

As a young Hindu, my childhood was filled with stories of Lord Rama and Sita, the antics of the mischievous Krishna and learning about the deeprooted devotion that Maa Parvati had towards Lord Shiva. Every story leading up to the Mahabharata was a true epic. I was excited by these incredible figures. They were the stories of all the murtis in my mandir at home after all!

Not just for me, but for millions of Hindus around the world, this was the foundation of our beliefs and way of life. There is no arguing that they have left an ever-lasting imprint.

But what about the other beacons of the Hindu community that showed the way to improve society? What about the

incredible stories of Meerabai, Swami Vivekananda, Padurang Shastri Athavale and others just like them? These personalities devoted their lives to society and NHSF (UK) is extremely proud to celebrate them.

Dharma Fest 2015 will see Hindu students from across the UK showcase the stories of these personalities through the performing arts and we pres-

ent to you an evening of spectacular acts at the esteemed Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan.

All that remains is for you to take your seats and open your eyes to the wonderful world of the Heroes and Heroines that have graced our society after the Mahabharat era.

There is no doubt that you will walk away with a newfound energy to find the hero within you!

School mistakenly releases names of pupils 'at risk of radicalisation' The first names of seven pupils allegedly at risk of radicalisation was mistakenly leaked by Greenleaf Primary School to Waltham Forest Council.

Parent, Haras Ahmed, had entered a Freedom of Information request after classes at the school participated in a social cohesion survey. Primary-age pupils were asked whether they agreed or disagreed with statements, such as “it is better to be a dead hero than live impassively”, and “if a student was making fun of my race or religion I would try to make them stop even if it meant hurting them”.

Some parents stated their disappointment regarding the survey as they had not been consulted, also stating that this exercise was racist and targeted Muslim children.

The council has stated that it has launched a full

A rise in public health funerals

Under the Public Health (Control of Disease) Act 1984, councils have to arrange, as well as bear funeral costs when a person dies and no one is able or willing to pay for their burial or cremation. The number of these funerals (also referred to as paupers' funerals), has increased, with the cost rising to £1.7 million; an increase of almost a third in four years. According to the latest figures, the most public health funerals in Britain took place in the north-west of England.

Greenleaf Primary School

inquiry and has “taken legal steps” to recollect the information.

Haras Ahmed said, “It's been a disaster from the start to finish. Firstly we're told it's a social cohesion policy, and then after various questioning they accept it's a de-radicalisation process and then to release the names of the children in such as insensitive way. Any parent in any school- whether they are of a Muslim faith or non-Muslim or no

faith- would be appalled by their children's data, such sensitive data, are released to a member of the public.”

A spokesperson said, “On behalf of the school, the council has taken legal steps to secure all copies of the information. The school has informed the families affected of the action that the council is taking on its behalf, and that the council has launched a full investigation.”

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Uma Pandya, the headteacher of Sudbury Primary School, has been suspended for allegations of serious misconduct. An investigation is taking place.

However, it has been said that staff from the school have threatened to strike if Pandya is given her post back. A secret ballot took place at the school where 40 out of 43 workers allegedly voted for her immediate removal from her post as the school's headteacher. A source told the Kilburn Times, “The

Sudbury Primary School

chair of governors instigated an independent inquiry because of the nature and frequency of complaints against her [Uma Pandya].

That independent inquiry

determined that she should be suspended pending further investigation. It would be unusual to suspend a head without some significant grounds.”

Ambulance take longer to reach Brent and Harrow New analysis of NHS data has revealed that ambulance services have failed to meet monthly target response times in Brent and Harrow, since March 2014.

The analysis, by Local London Assembly Member Navin Shah AM, comes after the Care Quality Commission (CQC) recommended last week that the London Ambulance Service (LAS) be placed into special measures. Mr Shah said the crisis facing the ambulance service is the culmination of “years of underfunding and

understaffing”.

Ambulances are expected to respond to the most serious incidents within 8 minutes on 75% of callouts, in line with national targets. Yet the LAS has failed to meet this target across the capital since April 2014. The service hasn’t met its response times in Brent and Harrowsince March 2014. Navin Shah AM said,“At a time when our capital’s resilience could be tested by anything from a deadly virus outbreak to a major terrorist

incident, we need to know our ambulance service is equipped and ready to respond. There’s little doubt that the crisis facing our ambulance service is the culmination of years of underfunding and understaffing, which has had a worrying impact on response times in Brent and Harrow. Whilst we know our paramedics are incredibly hardworking and committed, the fact remains that they need to be adequately supported and resourced.”

12

MEDIA WATCH

www.asian-voice.com AsianVoiceNews

Asian Voice | 5th December 2015

Celebrities, especially film stars, adore the limelight. It’s part of their dramatic art. Aamir Khan, a hero to millions across India, made a speech in which he declared that his wife and he (and their child) had given some thought to departing the country, so alarmed were they by the rising swell of religious intolerance. Happily, other Muslim celebrities, either in music the arts or in public life as social activists, were not sufficiently shaken to follow the Khan family into exile. It was not that they thought everything in India was hunky dory, it clearly is not. Many leading writers, artistes and scientists have expressed concern at fanatical words and deeds from a section of the Hindutva faithful who, despite their vocal chords, are very much a minority.

(Times of India, Hindu, Telegraph Aamir Khan November 23-215 Mudslinging

A sense of responsibility among Indian politicians being as rare as gold dust, Rahul Gandhi and Arvind Kejriwal were quick on the draw, firing a barrage of salvoes at the BJP-led government in Delhi. BJP sources spoke darkly of a ‘conspiracy’ and the long suffering public were treated to yet another bout of mud-slinging. In the early 1950s McCarthyism convulsed and besmirched politics in the United States. Sufficient numbers of the population, including the bulk of the intelligentsia, stood up for liberal values and eventually won the day. Arthur Miller wrote a classic play on that dark period.

Choice of exile

What Aamir Khan needs to tell his admirers is the country to which he wishes to go on leaving India – which is unlikely he ever will. It won’t for sure be Pakistan or Saudi Arabia or some other Middle Eastern haven, surely?

What about Europe or America?

Is he aware that the leading Republican party candidate for next year’s presidential race, Donald Trump, advocates a national data base for every mosque in the country? Is he aware of the massive rise of hate crimes perpetrated against Muslim communities across Europe and the United States in the aftermath of the Paris bombings? Is he aware that Taslima Nasrin, the Bangladeshi novelist has sought asylum in India because she feared for her life in the country of her birth? Is he aware that she wishes to live in Kolkata but cannot do so because of the fear of violence from Muslim groups in the city opposed to her presence for alleged apostasy?

Sleeper cells threat

The eyes of the world are on Paris and Brussels in the aftermath of the jihadi bomb blasts, but every nation in the civilized world has to look to its own security. India, in particular, faces the threat of sleeper cells of Lashkar-e-Toiba, Hizb-ul-Mujahideen, Jaish-eMohammed, Indian Mujahideen, Student Islamic Movement of India (SIMI), all eager and willing to strike at the awaited call of

Israel Naval Platform. The final test, before induction, will take place from an Indian Naval Platform (Hindu November 27)

Rajasthan on the march

Finance Minister Arun Jaitley inaugurated the Resurgent Rajasthan Partnership Summit in Jaipur with a galaxy of India’s top industrialists in attendance, including such names as Cyrus Mistry, Chairman , Tata Sons,; Anil Ambani of the Reliance Dhirubhai Ambani Group; Kumar Mangalam Birla of the Aditya Birla Group; Gautam Adani of the Adani Groip; Pawan

their handlers (Times of India November 20)

Closer ties for Pakistan, US

The 5-dayvisit to Washington by Pakistan’s Army chief General Raheel Sharif has cemented closer US-Pakistan military ties.

General Sharif held talks with US Secretary of State John Kerry, Defence Secretary Ashton Carter, Vice President Joe Biden and Republican Senator John McCaine, Chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee, who said afterwards, ‘We value our relationship with Pakistan during these very challenging times. Under the leadership of General Sharif, the Pakistan Army inflicted losses to the enemy at great sacrifice. I thanked General Sharif for his leadership and expressed my appreciation for the sacrifices of many brave Pakistani soldiers in the fight against terrorism.’

Mumbai 26/11 has been reduced to a footnote (Hindu November 22) See Comment page 3.

Interceptor test successful

India’s ballistic missile system registered a significant success following the test of an upgraded version of the indigenously developed interceptor, launched over the Bay of Bengal, which destroyed an incoming missile travelling at supersonic speed.

The technologies of this system have been developed by the Defence Research and Development Organisation (DRDO). India plans to deploy a two-tiered ballistic missile defence system to protect important cities and vital installations from enemy attack. The first phase of the system seeks to destroy incoming enemy missiles at 2,000 kilometre range; while the second phase is designed to destroy it at a higher height.

Eleven interceptor tests have been carried out to date of which nine were successful. (Hindu November 23)

Long range missile tested

India’s long range surface-to-air missile, jointly developed by the Defence Research and Development Organization (DRDO) and Israel Aerospace, was tested successfully from the

Rajasthan Chief Minister Raje Scindia

Munjal of the Hero Group; Anil Aggarwal of the Vedanta Group; and Uday Kotak of Kotak Mahindra Bank. Also present were the Japanese and Italian Ambassadors; a senior minister from South Australia state government; and K Shanmugan, Foreign Minister, Singapore, who announced a new air service between Singapore and Jaipur.

Administrative reforms

Chief Minister Vasundara Raje outlined the sweeping administrative reforms that have transformed Rajasthan from a backwater to one of the most thrusting States in the country. Her government had repealed 248 acts since returning to power in 2013, and moved far-reaching amendments to industrial and labour laws. Investment proposals worth Rs 3 lakh crore had been received in the past year, she claimed. (Telegraph November 20)

UP in Guinness Book of Records

had crippled it. The Maharashtra government had commissioned consultancy firm Accenture to make a report on putting the city’s night life back on track. The report envisaged a Single Window Authority Business Licensing System on the lines currently operating in Singapore.

Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, having read the report, has signified approval of its contents. (Hindu November 20)

4G Smart phones drive growth

Smart phone shipments to India grew by 21 per cent in the third quarter ending September 30 on the back of rising demand for affordable 4G devices. According to International Data Corporation Quarterly Mobile Phone Tracker, 28.3 million smart phones were shipped to India in this quarter against 23.3 million for the same period last year. Also, the sale of 4G devices grew three-fold in the same quarter over the one of last year.(Business Line November 24)

IIT courses for military careers

In an endeavour to make military careers more attractive for India’s youth, the Short Services Commission has proposed that recruits be paid a gratuity and accorded entitlement to a fully funded one year course at elite institutions such as the Indian Institutes of Technology or the Indian Institutes of Management to equip them for post-services careers.

(Times of India November 20)

AsianVoiceNewsweekly

Universities in the United States and to the London School of Economics in the UK. The Global Network for Advanced Management, which has 28 top management institutions as its members , has begun virtual classroom sessions for its members. IIM Bangalore is the only Indian management school that is member of Global Network (Times of India November 18)

Tejas extolled

India-built Tejas, has come in for a great deal of scorn from certain media scribes, all committed to a

Tejas aircraft

foreign purchase.

Swarajyamag.com/technology/st op-complaining-about-thetejas… website responded with a robust reply. It pointed to the experience of the world war that gave America, Europe and Russia their head start. India began from scratch, and the final product, with its sub-systems was a creditable performance, especially in the face of Western hightech sanctions. Tejas II is an improvement on Tejas I and the will stand the country in good stead going forward.

Indians back freedom

India stands high among countries that value and extol religious freedom. In a global medium of 74 per cent, 80 per cent Indians, in a poll, approved these concepts, according to the Pew Research Center in the US. Pew, IIM Bangalore which conducted surveys in 38 linked to Yale, LSE countries between April-May 2015, found strong support among Indians for gender equality and religious freedom.

Support for media freedom in India polled 74 per cent in a global median IIM Bangalore campus of 78 per cent.

Support for internet freedom at 38 per cent in Bangalore’s Indian Institute of India is among the lowest in the Management is set to offer classworld. es linked to Yale and Berkeley

Uttar Pradesh, India’s most populous State has entered the Guinness Book of Records by planting a million trees in just eight hours as part of the government’s green drive . The programme was executed through the coordinated efforts of forest, irrigation departments, Noida and Greater Noida Authority (Hindu November 23)

Mumbai night life back

Mumbai, once famous for its night life, is set for a revival.

Moral policing by vigilante groups and the local police force

PM Modi with Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong.

See comment page 3

UK

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Asian Voice | 5th December 2015

13

45,000 Indian migrants in Britain

To War – But not for our allies

God there are some bad arguments for going to war – and they crowd out the good ones. Let alone us being out-thought and entrapped by cave dwelling desert nutjobs that are ISIS. This is a group that managed to get a NATO country to shoot down a Russian fighter jet. An act of war that even at the height of the cold war had not brought us closer to World War 3.

By the time you read this, the vote on going to war will have taken place in Parliament and I will be on BBC to 280m viewers given my (unelected) view.

If we’re to go to war the reasons are not that ‘we must be seen to stand besides our allies’. Britain has proven herself on that and no one doubts Britain as a trusted ally in the fight against terrorism and for liberty. In fact, when you say, ‘we must stand by our allies’ you really do put off people who are thinking ‘what the hell do you think we did in World War II, don’t question Britain’s courage and bravery’.

And where were our allies in the Falklands conflict? And let’s not forget our NATO ally Turkey before shooting down a Russian jet and almost dragging us into World War 3 didn’t exactly consult us.

We really have to stop being outmaneuvered by others – just as in Iraq when opposition leaders fed false intelligence to us for the case for war – really we must stop being the stupid naive kid in the dangerous playground.

So the argument for a fight is not helping allies. We are more than happy to stand apart from them in Europe when it suits us economically, well even more so militarily.

And the argument is not that otherwise we will be a ‘second rate power’. That

is a childish argument. We are UN Security Council Permanent Member and a nuclear power. End of story.

Equally the argument for not going to war should not be fear of retaliation.

That’s not how Briton behaves.

The best argument to extend into Syria from Iraq (and how this is reminiscent of extending from Vietnam to Cambodia and Laos) is if and only if we can actually be effective.

In the history of warfare the only time airpower without ground troops has led to a surrender of any enemy has been against Imperial Japan in the Second World War. ISIS are as militant as the Japanese were.

It’s precisely when we are willing to be ‘imprecise’ that we kill not just those in ISIS for whom the world is black and white, but for whom it is grey, they will know our resolve and like the Japanese, surrender. History. I wish it weren’t so.

But making believe a fairy tale world won’t help.

If we’re to go to war, then do it properly. Instead of front of the queue do it on condition the whole Middle East steps in first. Do it alongside the Saudis, the Emiratis? All the countries we arm. Let them be in the front line – and prove they are our allies. This is a religious war – the enemy told us, so let the Middle Eastern brethren step up. Let their troops step in on the ground.

And the children? The women? The refugees? There is no good end to this.

Either ISIS get them, or we open borders, or we wipe out as many as we can and that will be the good with the bad – it always is if you want victory. Missiles have not been built where that is not the case.

And afterwards, they can carve it up – it’s what we in the West do best isn’t it?

Elephant banned from tycoon's son's wedding The son of tycoon Yogesh Mehta, Rohan Mehta, spent £14 million on his wedding with Roshni, ensuring he has a lavish and memorable wedding.

However, the officials in the Italian city of Florence, refused his request of making an entrance to the wedding by riding on an elephant. His request was rejected due to health and safety.

Yogesh Mehta established the Dubai-based Petrochem Middle East company in 1995. His worth is an estimated £415 million.

Nicotine death Jonathan Keen (46), died after drinking liquid from an e-cigarette.

He was found in his flat in Chesham, next to empty cider cans and traces of clear fluid. A suicide note was later found by the police. It was concluded by a pathologist that Keen died as a result of alcohol and nicotine toxicity.

The joyous couple: Roshni and Rohan Mehta

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) said that Romania has become the third ranked country for new arrivals in Britain; with 34,000 migrants arriving in the UK from Romania, since 2014. Romania was previously ranked in ninth place, while Poland is on fourth place with 32,000 migrants; up from 5th place. India and China topped the list with 45,000 and 39,000 migrants. For the first time since the records began in 1975, Australia has been knocked off the top five list.

Top 5 countries where immigrants came from in 2014

Up from 3rd

Down from 1st

INDIA

CHINA

Up from 9th

ROMANIA

Up from 5th

POLAND

Down from 2nd

SPAIN

Chart courtesy: Office for National Statistics (ONS)

Britons unite to "answer hate with humanity" The recent terror attacks in Paris has left many astound.

The city is still reeling in the aftermath of the chilling event which has left many wounded, and scarred many people's psyche. However, those who are still feeling the effect of the attacks or not just the victims or their family members; many are from the Muslim community as well. In the week after the Paris attacks, there were reportedly 115 anti-Muslim hate crimes in Britain, with most cases involving girls and women aged 14 to 45 who wore traditional Islamic dresses.

Many Britons have united and shown solidarity with Muslim communities

Adviya Khan can feel a change in people's behaviour towards her after the Paris terror attacks

who have been suffering due to hate crimes post the Paris terror attacks.

An online petition “answer hate with humanity” has over 150,000 names, while the hashtag #MuslimsAreNotTerrorist has been doing the rounds on Twitter.

Muslim women in

Britain can definitely sense the change in behaviour from other people after the recent attacks.

A Muslim Londoner, Adviya Khan (27), the cofounder of Hijablicious.com, speaks about the change in atmosphere, which makes her feel anxious. She said, “I've always loved the fact that in London every type of person feels comfortable. It's a multicultural place, it's my home, and I've never had a problem. But since the attacks in Paris I know I stand out more, people seem that bit more nervous around me, and that's the first time I've felt like that.

I'm more nervous too.”

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UK

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Assessing the Modi Impact: Will UK-India Relations Leapfrog?

India Inc. as part of its Policy India Programme hosted its third high-level Policy India Summit in London on 17th November 2015 hosted by the law firm- Allen and Overy in their London Headquarter.

The focus was on IndiaUK bilateral trade & investment within the context of an impact assessment of the Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s recent visit to the UK in November.

High-profile speakers included Indian Commerce Nirmala Minister Sitharaman, UK employment minister Priti Patel, Indian High Commissioner to UK Ranjan Mathai among others. Other key CEOs such as Lord Karan Bilimoria and senior representatives from some of the world’s leading organisations like JCB, EY, KPMG, Standard Chartered were present too.

Britain's Employment Minister Priti Patel said, “This visit has truly been a vibrant illustration of the partnership and the commitment we have to India… the UK will remain the place for India to come to within Europe.

“What stood out for me throughout the duration of this visit was the natural affinity between our two countries, rooted in 1.5 million strong Indian diaspora in Britain that have contributed so richly to British life, success and identity.

“Our people-to-people ties, between British Indians and Indians have been strengthened as a result of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to the UK. Ours is also a natural partnership for a mutually shared prosperity.”

Her views were echoed on the Indian side by commerce minister N i r m a l a Sitharaman who said: “The UK matters to India and, to quote Prime Minister Modi, the UK has proven to be a very strong partner for India within Europe.”

The Indian minister also reiterated her government’s commitment to the reform agenda, which will be derailed by the results of any state election result.

“State elections do happen but that does not alter the course of the central government or its man-

Some Highlights of the Modi Visit:

Key panelists launch India Inc.'s India Investment Journal

Siddharth Zarabi, executive editor of Bloomberg TV India and India Inc CEO Manoj Ladwa in conversation with Minister for Employment Priti Patel and Mrs Nirmala Sitharaman, Indian Commerce Minister (on video link from Delhi) on subject 'India-UK Trade Relationship: The Road Ahead'

date,” she said.

The Indian High Commissioner to the UK, Ranjan Mathai, highlighted some of the deals struck during the visit, marking a new era in the relationship.

“The civil nuclear agreement adds a new dimension to our engagement with the UK… India is on course to be a part of the global supply chain in the field of civil nuclear,” he said.

Britain has branded its relationship with India as “special”, largely as a result

trade between the two countries grew from $12.6 billion in 2010-11 to $14.38 billion in 2014-15.

However, both governments and the business community believe the relationship can deliver much more in terms of jobs and growth for both countries. David Cameron on taking office in 2010 said the UK should be India’s “partner of choice” and has made three trips to India as British Prime Minister. A long-awaited reciprocal visit by Mr Modi finally came through this

Engrossed audience at the summit

of the influential global Indian community in the UK. India and the UK are third highest sources of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) for each other and

month. The Policy India Summit was therefore, perfectly timed in the wake of this historic visit to explore the roadmap ahead, challenges and

solutions.

CEO and founder of India Inc. Manoj Ladwa laid the groundwork: “Prime Minister Modi was the first Indian Prime Minister to visit the UK in nearly a decade, making this a historic and landmark visit. The relationship between India and the UK moved beyond the geographic boundaries of the two countries to look at opportunities to collaborate all over the globe.

“In this summit, we explored how best the key challenges and opportunities can be navigated to realise the immense potential of this relationship.”

S a n j e e v Dhuna, partner at Allen & Overy, added: “The overall sentiment is that the business climate is changing in India and this summit comes at the right time to explore the opportunities.

“It is important to understand that the reform agenda will take time. What is key is that there is the determination and spirit to undertake those reforms.”

l Forthcoming economic and financial dialogue between the finance ministers. The role the City of London will now play in channelling investment into infrastructure projects in India, through the establishment of an India-UK partnership fund under the umbrella of the National Infrastructure Investment Fund (NIIF). l Announcements by HDFC, Bharti Airtel, State Bank of India and Yes Bank to raise finance through the City of London, which also opens up the opportunity for the Indian private sector to raise capital for their investment and growth. l A new Ease of Doing Business Partnership, including several different strands of work which will provide impetus to greater investments. l The reconstituted India-UK CEOs Forum. l Under the new UK-India Skills pledge, 11 UK companies have committed to support skills development in India. l Together, the UK government and UK businesses will establish new “Centres of Excellence” in key sectors, starting with a centre for Automotive and Advanced Engineering in Pune. l 2016 will be the UK-India year of Education, Research and Innovation. l UK will be the partner country for the 2016 Technology Summit in Delhi. l Smart cities, the establishment of new healthcare facilities and a ground-breaking completion of negotiations for a Nuclear Cooperation Agreement and the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) on closer civil nuclear collaboration between the UK and India.

Charity screening held by Maharashtra Mandal London For the cause of creating livelihoods for the unfortunate families of deceased farmers in India, Maharashtra Mandal London has screened the Marathi film Anuraag on Saturday 28th November, followed by Dinner and Dance program. It is the world premiere for Anuraag starring brilliant artistes Dharmendra Gohil and Mrunmayee Deshpande.

Dharmendra is an established actor in Gujarati theatre who has also acted in films like Gandhi- My Father and Suno Na- Ek Nanhi Aawaz. Mrunmayee is a popular actress in Marathi TV serials and films and has been national award winner in Marathi theatre and Kathak dance.

She has a distinction of acting in 16 films in the last 3 years. Anuraag has an intense theme where a couple keeps trying to work on their 10 year old relationship running into midlife crisis, and have their emotional rollercoaster ride.

Both the actors presented stellar performances in their roles. The film is shot entirely in Leh Ladakh area presenting spectacular and picturesque scenery. The director and script-writer of the film is Dr. Ambarish Darak, one of the most

renowned Refractive Surgeons in India and a record holder for his contributions to eye care. He believes in making off-beat films as his passion. Suresh Deshmane’s cinematography and Sameer Mhatre’s music were excellent.

Question and Answer session followed the screening, curated by the President of MML Sushil Rapatwar, during which Dr Ambarish, Suresh and Mrunmayee have all interacted with audiences.

Dr Govind Trustee Kanegaonkar has also spoken on the occasion. It was a nice gesture by the team Anuraag to facilitate the proceeds towards charity for afflicted farmer families in India. During the dinner Praajakta and dance, Pargaonkar and Rajan Shegunshi captivated the audience with their melodious renditions from Bollywood films, while absorbing visuals were played in the background.

SP

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request the Metropolitan Police reopen their investigation.”

He further said,

the everyday is not as mundane as it seems Virendra Sharma MP “Comparing Hinduism and Sikhism to the hateful ideology of Nazism doesn't raise issues around political freedoms it persecutes millions at their most special time of the year. Six million Jews and millions more died at the hands of the Nazis;

trying to use that intense suffering and cruelty to make a political point demeans humankind.”

CCLEF now sponsors over 100 Asian girls Asia has become the largest recipient of sponsorship from the UK based charity Commonwealth Countries League Education Fund (CCLEF). The charity provides funding for the secondary education of capable girls who for financial reasons would otherwise be unable to attend school.

CCLEF is entirely funded by donations and fund raising activities, and employs just one part time member of staff, who supports the efforts of the voluntary Board of Trustees.

The charity has been historically well supported by members of both the business and social Asian communities. Most recently they were awarded a grant of £1000 by the Women’s India Association.

The charity also benefits from outstanding voluntary efforts from Asian individuals based in the UK. Their London 10k run campaign was led this year by 22 year old law student Jagravi Upadhyay. Under her superb voluntary leadership, the run raised a record amount for the charity, she was also a

15

Writing with Lightning

Virendra Sharma speaks about the violation of Aum/Aumkar On Sunday 7th November 2015, at the Houses of Parliaments, anti-Modi demonstrators projected a violated version of the sacred Aum and Aumkar, both holy for Hindus and Sikhs. While some would state that the demonstrators were making a political point, many could deem this action as insulting and demonstrating religious intolerance.

Virendra Sharma MP states, “Demonstrating religious tolerance at a time of celebration and oneness for millions around the world is not making a political point, it is insulting. I have written to the Speaker of the House of Commons and the Home Secretary asking them to investigate the incident fully and to

TLIGHT

Laxmi Hariharan:

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member of the organisational team for “Splendours of the Commonwealth” a glittering fundraising evening held in September at The May Fair hotel, London.

Jagravi was recently elected to the Board of Trustees for the CCLEF, becoming their youngest Asian trustee in many years CCLEF aims to raise enough funds to support around 450 girls. The cost of sponsoring this number of girls for five years of secondary education is over £500,000.

India currently benefits from having the largest number of CCLEF sponsored girls in the Commonwealth, including a small group of very capable blind girls. The charity aims to continue to increase its’ numbers in India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka.

You can find out more about the work of the Commonwealth Countries League Education Fund, or make a donation, by visiting www.cclef.org, or e m a i l AdminSec@cclef.org

Sunetra Senior

‘Pulse racing, I rush forward, bringing the blade down on him’: this line taken from Laxmi’s latest piece of fiction, short story ‘Untamed’, published as part of the magical and morphed anthology ‘Uncommon Bodies’, is the perfect little reflection of her unique, writerly approach. Magical Realism and Fantasy are literary traditions notorious for blurring the boundary between reality and abstraction through inversion and exaggeration, but Laxmi attacks her subject matter in such a way that it cleaves the line completely. As we read through the fevered first-person eye of Leana the wolf-girl, on an epic mission to right a family wrong in a hybrid-filled cosmopolitan Bombay, we practically become one with the evocative atmosphere, and are never really released until the final, gasping throe. “Why do I write?” Laxmi asked us. “It’s the intrigue to understand myself better.

Why is it that I do the things I do and the things I don’t do? Why do I react to situations in a certain way?

Realising the answer to these questions helps me jump forward to the bigger questions, ‘Who am I? Why am I here?” Not afraid to reach into the furthest recesses of herself – even if it takes her somewhere dark – the journalist-turned- writer helps us negotiate emotionally all those larger cerebral concepts: coping with a conflicted identity, the seeping through of globalisation into the personal sphere, and an insatiable, existential yearning for a set purpose in our lives. Living life to the full as she writes it, Laxmi has already received several awards for her novella series, ‘Ruby Iyer’ since her plunge into fiction-writing, following careers in television and more commentative writing– she has launched TV Channels for MTV and NBC Universal Syfy, and contributed to publications such as ‘The Gaurdian’ and ‘Huffington Post’. As the writer herself best surmised then, there is every reason that through her stories and “shared experience, you can find yourself too”.

What type of writing are you currently exploring?

I hope to keep writing, in all forms.

Short, flash, novels, novellas, novelettes, poetry, haikus ... It’s a marathon not a sprint.

You have had a ‘near death experience’ that motivated you towards starting a more creative career. Could you expand on this a little?

I'd always written since I was very young, but moving countries and travelling, and then trying to find my feet in a new country, UK, took precedence. Then in 2011 I had a near death experience. When I came out of it, I realised if I died tomorrow the one thing I would regret, was not writing. I became aware that time was not infinite. And writing does not mean sitting alone in a basement and staring at my computer screen, though I do that too sometimes. No, for me it was stripping away a lot of the pretence I had gathered over the years; putting an end to all the roles I thought I should play, and instead doing what feels more natural and me.

you think that life comes from?

I am told I write like that - 'raw.' That's how it comes out, right now. I love writing fast, and action paced, and externally it's very physical. It keeps me riveted, and that's important as an author. Over a period of time I realised it's even more potent if I also shared my characters inner turmoil. It's very freeing for me to reveal what's in their head-cathartic, even. I can't do that in real life—not yet. A few years ago, I wrote the episode of Leana the wolf girl meeting Aki the swordsman and this strange surreal conversation they had, leading her to the Hugging Saint.

I used that as the spring board to the

What attracts to the tradition of Magical Realism?

Perhaps it's because I believe the everyday is not as mundane as it seems. I think everyone has a secret and I often feel the unseen layers around us we all plug into. It controls us, and I often sense it; I like mystery and perhaps that's why I engage in a genre where things might not be as they seem.

‘UnTamed’ was full of rich and raw imagery. Where do

story. The Hugging Saint—Hug Boy— she calls him, was inspired by a real life visit to the living Hugging Saint.

Amma. And it was amazing. How could one person hug thousands every day and still stay fresh and smiling at the end of the day?

Name an interesting book you have read recently?

Alison Ripley-Cubitt's, Castles in the Air, a memoir. It’s set in Malaysia, Hong Kong and London. An eightyear old girl witnesses her mother’s secret and knows from that moment that life will never be the same.

Finally, what would be your advice to other creative souls who might be feeling a little nervous about getting started?

The more you do, the better you get at it. I get my inspiration from doing it every day. The question is do you want it badly enough to make space for it?

W

Road-show, Bombay

www.laxmihariharan.com

www.amazon.com/LaxmiHariharan/e/B007M6E542/ref =dp_byline_cont_ebooks_1

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India Seeks Climate Justice, W CONTINUED FROM P1 argue that those just beginning their development journey bear no less responsibility than those who have reached the zenith of their progress.

New awareness, however, should lead advanced countries to assume more responsibility. Just because technology exists does not mean it is affordable and accessible,” the PM said. keep global warming below 2C over pre-industrial temperatures.

The Indian Prime Minister asked the developed nations to fulfil their duty to shoulder the greater burden of the fight against climate change.

Modi said: “Justice demands that, with what little carbon we can still safely burn, developing countries are allowed to grow. The lifestyles of a few must not crowd out opportunities for the many still

on the first steps of the development ladder.”

Modi reiterated his plans to launch an alliance of 121 solar-rich nations in the tropics aimed at bringing affordable solar power to villages that are off the grid. “We expect the same from the world with respect to responding to climate change,” he said.

“Some say advanced countries powered their way to prosperity on fossil fuel when humanity was unaware of its impact.

Since science has moved on

and alternative energy sources are available, they argue that those just beginning their development journey bear no less responsibility than those who have reached the zenith of their progress.

New awareness, however, should lead advanced countries to assume more responsibility. Just because technology exists does not mean it is affordable and accessible,” the PM said.

COPING WITH CLIMATE

Justice demands that carbon curbs should not limit poorer nations’ ability to grow - Narendra Modi | PM, India

He said this meeting should recognise that some face a choice between lifestyles and technologies, while others stand between deprivation and hope.

He said India believes in taking a sustainable path to development.

Sustainable development is development that meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.

Not shying away from India's responsibility to the uphill task, Modi said India is committed to the cause and will do her bit in right earnest. “We will play our part.” Modi said.

“India is also experiencing the impact of climate change caused by the industrial age of the developed world. We are concerned about our 7,500 km of coastline, more than 1,300 islands, the glaciers that sustain our civilisation and our millions of vulnerable farmers. We have pledged that, by 2030, we will reduce emissions intensity by at least 33% of 2005 levels, and 40% of installed power capacity

will be from non-fossil fuel sources. We will have 175GW of renewables by 2022, and have imposed levels on coal and rationalised subsidies on petroleum products. Additional forest and tree cover will absorb at least 2.5bn worth of carbon dioxide. We will clean our rivers and create smart cities. We are replacing diesel with clean energy, and building 50 new metro railways,” he added.

He said the need for clean energy and healthy habitats should be worked out in a spirit of partnership. “India will work with governments, laboratories and industry to facilitate a natural transition to a clean energy era through affordable and accessible renewable energy,” Modi said.

The PM said the best political and technical measures will be ineffective unless “we review a lifestyle that overburdens our planet”.

“Our targets must seek to drive restraint in use of fossil fuel and moderation in our lifestyles,” the PM said.

With a reference to

ABC of SUMMIT

What is COP21?

The 21st Conference of the Parties – COP21 – is a meeting of 195 countries in Paris hosted by the UN, aimed at agreeing an action plan to reduce carbon emissions.

What are the specific goals?

The ultimate aim is to limit warming to 2C (3.6F) above pre-industrial levels, widely seen as a dangerous threshold. Since 1880, the average global temperature has already risen by almost 1C. About 0.6C of this has occurred in the past three decades.

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UN climate conference 30 Nov – 11 Dec 2015 Leaders from 147 nations are addressing the meeting, known as COP21.

Negotiators will try to reach a deal in 2 weeks aimed at reducing global carbon emissions and limiting global warming to 2C (3.6F).

The UN has endorsed a goal of limiting global warming to no more than 2C over pre-industrial levels by the end of the century.

But more than 100 poorer countries and low-lying, small-island states are calling for a tougher goal of 1.5C. Developing nations say industrialised countries should do more to cut emissions, having polluted for much longer.

But rich countries insist that the burden must be shared to reach the 2C target.

One of the few firm decisions from the 2009 UN climate conference in Copenhagen was a pledge from rich economies to provide $100 billion a year for poor countries from 2020 to develop technology and build infrastructure to cut emissions.

Where that money will come from and how it will be distributed has yet to be agreed.

WHAT WORLD LEADERS SAID

Why does this matter?

When the Earth warms about 2C above pre-industrialised times, scientists say there will be dangerous and unpredictable impacts on our climate system. And we are already half-way to that danger point.

Climate Change: A change in global or regional climate patterns, in particular a change apparent from the mid to late 20th century onwards and attributed largely to the increased levels of atmospheric carbon dioxide produced by the use of fossil fuels.

Greenhouse gas: A gas that contributes to the greenhouse effect by absorbing infrared radiation. Carbon dioxide and chlorofluorocarbons are examples of greenhouse gases.

Greenhouse effect: A phenomenon in which the atmosphere of a planet traps radiation emitted by its sun, caused by gases such as carbon dioxide, water vapour, and methane that allow incoming sunlight to pass through but retain heat radiated back from the planet's surface. l Naturally occurring greenhouse gases – carbon dioxide, methane, and nitrous oxide – normally trap some of the sun's heat, keeping the planet from freezing. l Human activities, such as the burning of fossil fuels, are increasing greenhouse gas levels, leading to an enhanced greenhouse effect. The result is global warming and unprecedented rates of climate change.

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US President Barack Obama has said the UN climate conference in Paris could be a “turning point” in global efforts to limit future temperature rises.

“I came here personally to say the United States not only recognises the problem but is committed to do something about it,” said Obama.

Russian President Vladimir Putin said, “We have demonstrated we can ensure economic development and take care of our environment at the same time.”

Chinese President Xi Jinping told the conference he did not see the Paris talks as a turning point nor a “finish line, but a new starting point”.

He said that climate change went beyond national borders and that it was “a shared mission for all mankind”, before reiterating China's pledge to start cutting its emissions from a peak in 2030.

British Prime Minister David Cameron used his address to consider how future generations would respond to the idea that it was “too difficult” for this generation of politicians to reach an agreement in 2015.

“Our grandchildren would ask why it was so difficult. Instead of making excuses to our children and grandchildren, we should be taking action,” Cameron said.

Prince Charles called for large-scale restoration of forests, warning the world would need much more forest “as all the horrors” of global warming started to bite. Protecting forests from being cut down is a key part of tackling climate change.

World leaders attending the climate summit in Paris observed a minute's silence on Monday for the 130 people mowed down in a jihadist attack on the French capital on November 13.

UN chief Ban Ki-moon thanked France for its “courageous” decision to host the 150 heads of state and government little more than two weeks after the deadly assault.

Mahatma Gandhi, the PM wrote in the UK's leading financial daily, “We look forward to Paris with the sense of duty that Mahatma Gandhi called us to assume: We should act as 'trustees' and use natural resources wisely as it is our moral responsibility to ensure that we bequeath to future generations a healthy planet. India will do its part for success in Paris.”

Modi spoke in English at the Paris Summit and his speech was well received by all and sundry.

But he gave a hint of the rows to come as he used his speech to insist that rich nations must make the deepest cuts.

He said 300 million people in India lived in homes with no electricity.

The rich nations should allow India enough room to grow. He said richer nations should not try to impose an end to the use of conventional energy such as coal, consumption of which is growing by 5% a year in India.

“It is not just a question of historical responsibility, they also have the most room to make the cuts and make the strongest impact.

And climate justice demands that with the little carbon space we still have, developing countries have enough room to grow,” Modi said.

Fund Commitment: Mukesh Ambani

Many wealthy countries insist there can be no deal unless large emerging economies take on more responsibility for fighting climate change. The challenge for the Paris Summit is – equity between the developed and developing worlds.

Modi is not refusing to

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17

Wants Right To Carbon Space Country India US China India

EMISSION DATA

Year 2012 2012 2012 2030

contribute to a deal. The Indian Prime Minister's point is that India's growing population cannot be denied the same path to development through the use the fossil fuels that today's rich countries pursued. So more of the burden to cut emissions must fall on those countries' shoulders, even at the cost of some of the prosperity their citizens enjoy at present.

Modi is right that India needs cheap power for its own growth, but not for ever. The need is to spur the world to forge the innovation necessary to make low carbon sources competitive with coal.

In this respect the commitment of $10bn to clean energy investment by a group of 20 wealthy nations should be only the first step.

India has promised to cut its emissions per unit of GDP by up to a third but, unlike China, has refused to set a date by which its emissions will

Annual per capita CO2 1.6 tonnes per person 16.4 tonnes per person 7.1 tonnes per person 5 tonnes per person

peak then start to decline.

Modi offered to take part in stock-taking exercise of countries' emission pledges, which the UN said are insufficient to prevent catastrophic climate change.

What Paris Conference can do is – it can build an understanding of the opportunities that lie in carbon transition, as well as furnish the financial means needed to unlock technological change.

Mukesh Ambani, chairman of India's Reliance Industries, has also committed funds for clean power technology.

Others supporting this cause include Bill Gates, the Microsoft co-founder, Facebook's Mark Zuckerberg and Virgin Group's Richard Branson, among others.

India is the world's fourth-largest carbon emitter after China, the US and the EU, and Modi's blunt affirmation of India's position on global warming is sure to set the

Emissions by Country

• In 2011, the top carbon dioxide (CO2) emitters were China, the United States, the European Union, India, the Russian Federation, Japan, and Canada.

• These data include CO2 emissions from fossil fuel combustion, as well as cement manufacturing and gas flaring.

• Together, these sources represent a large proportion of total global CO2 emissions.

• Emissions and sinks related to changes in land use are not included in these estimates.

tongues wagging in the days to come.

His assertion came days after US Secretary of State John Kerry said India could be a “challenge” at upcoming climate change talks in Paris beginning November 30 as it “has been more cautious, a little more restrained in its embrace of this new paradigm”.

Two weeks ago Kerry had expressed concern about India’s desire to burn more dirty coal for electricity, after New Delhi blocked efforts by the G20 countries to prepare for an ambitious climate accord in Turkey.

Responding to US’ concerns that India will be a “challenge” at the summit, India’s Environment Minister Prakash Javadekar said: “India cannot be bullied. You can’t bully India, the message is clear. Developed countries need to provide carbon space to developing countries.”

Calling Kerry’s comments unwarranted and unfair, Javadekar said the real challenge at Paris cli-

requirement for new coalfired power stations to supplement other sources of electricity. Half of India’s extra emissions are expected to come from coal.

What India is looking for at the Paris summit is that the climate deal should be just and equitable so that it gets the carbon space to develop as other countries did before it.

“Either we remain poor or you need to tell us a paradigm by which people can have better quality of life with lower energy use,” says Ajay Mathur, a veter-

an of climate talks and one of New Delhi’s negotiators in Paris.

As temperatures rise, India becomes more prone to droughts, floods, crop failures and cyclones.

Scientists predict that average temperatures on the

Failure of Leadership

densely populated plains of north India will rise by between 2.9C and 5C by 2080.

So India probably has more at stake in the struggle against warming than any other large economy at the summit.

Labour Party divides over Syria airstrikes Airstrike in Syria

GREENHOUSE GAS EMISSIONS Type

Per cent

Carbon dioxide (Fossil fuel use)

57%

Carbon dioxide 17% (Deforestation, decay of biomas etc.)

Methane

14%

Nirtous Oxide

8%

Carbon dioxide (other)

3%

Fluorinated Gases

1%

mate meet would be getting developed countries to offer more concessions.

Modi has promised cooperation, but still India is seen as an obstructionist or a challenge. India insists it has been misunderstood.

In 2012, its annual per capita carbon dioxide emissions were just 1.6 tonnes per person compared with 16.4 tonnes per person for the US and 7.1 tonnes per person for China. By 2030 its emissions will still amount to only about 5 tonnes per person per year.

India does not deny that its greenhouse gas emissions will increase dramatically in absolute terms – from 1.48bn tonnes of CO2 equivalent annually in 2005 to more than 7bn in 2030 – but says that is because of a growing population and the need to provide electricity to the 300m Indians who lack it today, and the

Upto 100 Labour MPs are expected to back Mr David Cameron on Wednesday, as he formally calls for a debate and vote in Parliament on whether to authorise a military airstrike against Isil jihadists in Syria.

David Cameron’s Cabinet has approved plans to launch RAF missile strikes to kill Islamic State leaders hiding in Syria.

The Commons motion to give final approval to attacks on selected individuals has been drawn up. Mr Cameron believes that he has the numbers required in the Commons (two-third majority) to endorse an intervention.

It is believed that the plan is to explicitly rule out the use of ground troops, and pledge that only Isil would be targeted, and promises have

Work and Pensions Secretary Iain Duncan Smith with Employment Minister Priti Patel at the Cabinet Meeting in 10 Downing Street

With Germany now planning to deploy its air force to the coalition against Isil, Mr Cameron cancelled business in the Commons on Wednesday, including his weekly Prime Minister’s Questions, to facilitate an 11 hours debate.

been made that millions of pounds worth of aid funds will be spent thereafter to help Syria recover.

The motion also notes the unanimous UN call for action against Isil.

However, critics have pointed out that there is no exact indication about

when this military action would end.

On the other hand Jeremy Corbyn, the leader of Her Majesty's Opposition has set out an argument, as expected, in favour of opposing the Syrian air strikes, based on a poll of just 1900 Labour party members.

Party officials released a result of a survey that claimed that 75% of Labour party members oppose UK bombing in Syria.

Mr Corbyn’s spokesman said: “The Prime Minister should stop the rush to war to allow for a full discussion.

Matters of national security are far too important to be bulldozed through the Commons for political convenience.”

The survey was however called into question with one Labour MP calling it a "rather vague consultation".

The party divides At least 40 Labour MPs are expected to exercise a free vote to push for air strike. It is clear that a number of Labour frontbenchers will support Mr Cameron's calls for air strikes and the Labour leader was warned of resignations if he attempted Continued on page 18

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Failure of Leadership: Labour Party divides over Syria airstrikes Continued from page 17 to force his party to vote with him. This of course reflects the sharp divide that the Labour party faces.

Mr Corbyn, who is definitely an old school, won the top job in his party based on two of his principle characteristic traits. He is renowned as a man of value, who believes in democratic politics- that discussions and disagreements 'are to be prized and not hidden'. However when these two traits are in conflict, there is deep trouble.

Mr Corbyn has a long history of opposing military action. Yet he is now the leader of the Shadow Cabinet where the deputy leader of the Labour party Tom Watson, or Shadow Foreign Secretary Hilary Benn appear to be in favour of air strikes, though Mr Watson wrote to Mr Cameron saying he “does not believe parliament has been given proper time” to discuss air strikes. He added: “As Jeremy Corbyn has made clear, parliament needs more time to make a considered decision.”

Broadly speaking, Mr Corbyn's leadership easily defies the objective of Her Majesty's real opposition.

In parliamentary democracy, it's rather odd and extraordinary for the Opposition party not to have a collective view or voice. The leader of the party should have commanded his party to follow his lead. But Monday evening's shadow cabinet meeting has proven Mr Corbyn's failing abilities to lead.

The meeting lasted for seven minutes, when his own ministers started shouting at their leader calling his behaviour disgraceful. An 'ashen-faced' Mr Corbyn faced an open revolt from his most senior Parliamentary allies. Mr Corbyn went into the meeting to allow his ministers to vote on the air-strike matter with conscience. The meeting began with an attempt by Mr Corbyn to outline his new positiononly for his colleagues around the table to say “it's already on Twitter”. The Labour leader appeared unaware that the plan he was outlining had already been briefed to The Guardian, suggesting a free vote would be offered but the official party policy would be changed to Andy oppose war.

Burnham, John Healey and Jonathan Ashworth led the fightback, warning Mr Corbyn “you can't throw us to the wolves.” At the end of the two- hour meeting the group abandoned Mr Corbyn's plan.

But none of this pacified the wider parliamentary divide. In fact Margaret

Jeremy Corbyn and David Cameron

Beckett, one of the most loyal of Labour Mps told Mr Corbyn, “stop dividing us.”

By-election in Oldham

Though Jeremy Corbyn's closet ally has insisted that Thursday's by-election in the Labour stronghold of Oldham has nothing to do with the declining leader-

Royton (the seat that was held by Michael Meacher, who died last month), because they have not come in terms with Mr Corbyn's leadership. He said the result depends on Mr Corbyn's performance or the turmoil of the previous month.

Stephen Kinnock, the Labour MP said that a bad result on Thursday would

Andy Burnham, Hilary Benn and John McDonnell

ship force of Mr Jeremy Corbyn, Ukip is hopeful that they would be able to snatch the seat from Labour.

John McDonnell, the Shadow Chancellor has suggested that some Labour party Mps are dismissing the party's chances in Oldham West and

contribute to the 'drumbeats on leadership'. He further added, leaders were judged by results, with failing hold over Scotland, Wales and London are their hopes, although he was sure that he had not come across significant opposition to Mr Corbyn in Oldham.

As far as the air-strike

AT A GLANCE l David Cameron calls for a motion in House of Commons over airstrikes in Syria to combat Isil. l Jeremy Corbyn allies warn MPs this may lead to counter-attacks in Britain, killing thousands of innocents. l Defence Secretary Michael Fallon says, the UK is already a target for Islamic State extremists and the threat has "intensified". l Jeremy Corbyn offers Labour MPs free vote, though the Shadow cabinet meeting leads to a major fallout among Labour MPs, with growing fears of resignations and Mr Corbyn losing his authority as a leader. l Shadow Cabinet Frontbenchers promise to support Mr Cameron's pledge. l Upto 100 Labour MPs to support the government. l Germany to send 1,200 troops to fight Isil l Anti-bombing Stop The War protest in London takes place on Tuesday outside Parliament. l Bombing Syria will cost Britain 'low tens of millions of pounds' and will be paid by Treasury's reserve. l No use of ground troops, Britain pledges that only Isil would be targeted, and promises to help with funds thereafter to help Syria recover. l David Cameron's claims that there are 70,000 moderate opposition fighters on the ground in Syria have been thrown into question. l Critics said there was still no indication about when the military action would end.

intervention is concerned, one must realise that the matter is very finely balanced. There may be 70,000 fighters who oppose Islamic State, but it is legitimate to question whether they could really be said to constitute a fighting force, while President Assad's regime continues to lurk around as the real enemy. If Isis has to be defeated, much more than bombing will be needed. The world's powers will have to throw more weight behind the Vienna diplomatic process aimed at creating a post Assad transition. The deep disaffection of Sunni Muslims, from which Isis draws its strength must be tackled.

While the shadow of the errors made in the aftermath of the invasion of Iraq hangs heavy, Syria presents an exceptionally difficult diplomatic and military problem.

Corbynists worked hard before the Shadow Cabinet meeting to impose their point of view. They perhaps implied that they could easily replace any opponent who quits. Had Mr Corbyn taken their advice, perhaps he would have at least preserved his reputation for sticking to his guns as a leader.

Instead when the frontbenchers indicated that a whipped vote would force their resignations, he immediately backed down.

Mr Corbyn's own backbench career has been a long act of rebellion, but as The Times rightly points out, now he is left with no authority to crush any rebellion. In fact he is left

Diwali at Labour Party HQ

CB Patel, Publisher/Editor of Asian Voice and Gujarat Samachar speaking to Labour party leader Jeremy Corbyn

Diwali party host Bharat Shah, Managing Director of Sigma Pharmaceuticals addressing the gathering

The Labour party had organised a Diwali programme at the party Headquarters on 25 November. It was hosted by Bharat Shah, MD and founder of Sigma Pharmaceuticals. It was attended by Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn, other MPs, dignitaries and guests. with no authority- that shows real dark days for Labour leadership in the coming days. A country without a conscientious

Opposition party- also poses questions on the power of democracy. It is a time for the Britons to stop, think and act.

Indian Journalists' Association bids farewell to HE Ranjan Mathai The Indian Journalists Association hosted a farewell dinner for the Indian High HE Commissioner Ranjan Mathai. Present at the dinner were Minister for Employment Priti

GP Hinduja, Lord Meghnad Desai, Lady Kishwari Desai, CB Patel

Prashant Pise.

Mr Mathai and Miss Patel both reflected a few thoughts on the recent

HE Ranjan Mathai

Patel, Indian tycoon GP Hinduja, Lord Meghnad Desai, Lady Kishwari Desai, entrepreneur and hotelier Joginder Sanger, Asian Voice and Gujarat Samachar Publisher CB Patel, Head of Chancery, Indian High Commission,

Employment Minister Priti Patel

visit of the Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the UK and discussed the thriving Indo-British bilateral relationship, including the recent list-

ing of rupee bond and its growing importance. The opening remark was made by Aditi Khanna, President, IJA. A vote of thanks was given by Rupanjana Dutta, Secretary. Ashis Ray, former President of the IJA gave a short speech on behalf of the past Presidents of the IJA. Navtej Singh Sarna, an Indian Foreign Service officer, will be India’s next High Commissioner to UK, the External Affairs Ministry has confirmed.

Photo courtesy: Raj D Bakrania, Prmediapix

www.asian-voice.com AsianVoiceNews

REALESTATEVOICE

Time to jump off the fence

AsianVoiceNewsweekly

Asian Voice | 5th December 2015

19

Following on from the theme of last week’s article, we are going to be looking at what affect a 3% hike in stamp duty will have on the London property market. The property market is absorbing the news of the planned tax assault on buy to let by the chancellor, this change will force investors to pay thousands more in stamp duty on new purchases on top of the loss of tax reliefs unveiled in July.

Suresh Vagjiani

Sow & Reap A Property Investment Company

A new 3% additional stamp duty rate on any property bought as a buy to let or as a second home will see the tax on a £175,000 purchase jump sixfold from £1,000 to £6,250. For someone buying in London, say a two-bed flat for £400,000, the stamp duty rises from £10,000 to £22,000. This is a significant rise and agents are already seeing signs of heightened activity from those who wish to avoid this extra hike.

As mentioned in last week’s article property is one of the few industries producing money for investors, a pie which the government is trying to get a piece of. The following example illustrates this: If an investor purchases a property to hold long term at £250,000 and over a good five year period the property rises to £400,000 the investor can refinance at say 70%. They then can extract £280,000 from the property. This will give them the 25% initial deposit back of £62,500 and about £217,500 in ‘profit’. The government gets none of this; there are only two types of tax on property one is on the income and the other is on the sale. If you don't sell you do not pay. There are only two ways to profit on a property, one is the rental income and the other is the increase in value.

The above scenario is impressive and realistic, if you had purchased a property in 2010 in the right location you could well be sitting on this type of gain. It is understandable the government therefore wants a piece of this pie. This will be the third round of stamp duty hikes, in recent years. The market has recovered well from the two previous hikes, though the top end of the market is still a little sluggish currently, which is expected considering the steep hike. The real blow would have been the mansion tax if it had crept in, this was likely if Labour had won the recent elections. Many were predicting the property market would not have recovered if this would have come in. Property however is more resilient than most assume, Hong Kong introduced a Mansion Tax, the property market was stagnant for a while and then once the market had absorbed the change it carried on rising.

Bid/Offer spread, Market Value Adjustment, tied into these products.

Clever words to bamboozle the average person into thinking they are justified and bonafide. All these words mask the fact that the pension scheme is taking money out of your pocket and putting it in theirs – period - from the sales agent to the fund manager and to top it all of the returns are usually abysmal.

In contrast, property is simple to understand. Income is only in two ways and expenses are the mortgage payments, maintenance and agent’s fees. The average lay man can comprehend this, you don't need a university degree. Furthermore the property, assuming it’s freehold, does not have an end date to it. It will carry on producing a monthly payment stream long past when you’re gone. There are many typical Jewish families who had the foresight to purchase London property just after the second world war. They own thousands of properties in London which are now handled by the third generation of their families and they generally do not sell but carry on amassing. We only get to deal with the scraps left over.

Those who have been sitting on the fence for many years now is the time to move. I have met investors who have been contemplating buying property for even as long as ten years, they are the procrastinators. They move through life by looking in the rear view mirror, always looking at what has happened and how they have missed the boat rather than looking at the terrain ahead.

Looking backwards in property you will always feel you have ‘missed the boat’. But if you turn around and look ahead there is a chance you won’t miss the next one.

Therefore with a resilient London property market, the expected hike will cause a rise in activity which has already started to occur, this will increase up till April 2016 then the market will stop for a breath, giving the market a chance to absorb and put into perspective the rise, and then it will carry on rising again. Where else will investors both nationally and globally put their money? A property is a natural annuity. An annuity is a stream of payments; it’s a word I got to know well having studied this one word for many years at university. An annuity is what underpins many investment products, such as life assurance, bonds and pension schemes.

With life assurance you pay in a series of payments and your estate gets a lump sum when you die. With a pension scheme the same scenario - you pay in, but the event of a payout is on retirement or a reduced sum on death. Interestingly both of these products have an end date, based on an event, death or retirement. At university I learned complicated terms which surround these products, for example in the case of a pension scheme, you have terms like Annual Management Fee, Renewal Fee,

The Real Deal

I have heard people come and say the market cannot carry on like this, it has to come down. Well it hasn’t, and medium to long term it will not in my opinion. Of course there will be periods of down turn, but it’s not a crash. These periods are temporary periods of stagnation. Property does not crash, it drops in price for example by 10-15%, especially in solid locations like London.

A trophy asset in Mayfair, London, W1 Purchase Price: £3.6m l l l l

A large three bedroom flat in Mayfair’s most prestigious block Share of freehold Very good natural light In the premier middle block which has been achieving the maximum price l Another flat in the same block was for £6.25m at £3,023 per sq. ft. in October last year while this is coming at around £2,568 per sq. ft. l We expect the value of this proeprty to be around £4.4m - £4.6m after refurbishment

In a previous article I compared the price of a painting done by Picasso and London property.

The painting had gone up by 462% in 18 years; roughly 25% per annum. There is no comparison to this piece and with age it will increase in value.

According to Nationwide London property prices have increased by 334% during the same period, this equates to an annual uplift of 18%.

London property comes out on top because it produces income and it’s easier to get funding on it.

You have a short window of time to make a decision if you wish to save the extra 3%, it can take 3 months to complete a deal and Christmas is traditionally a slow period in the property market, therefore if you want to invest now is the time.

Call us now if you would like to have a piece of the pie!

0207 993 0103

We provide a turnkey solution. Contact us now:

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Tips of the Week

l The majority of money in property is made from capital growth, don't sacrifice this for just rental yield as this is only a part of the return. l New properties generally have high service charges and ground rents and these will dampen the rental yield; while existing properties especially ex local flats have very reasonable service charges and ground rents and will give good rental yield, and if in the right location good capital growth too.

20

LEGALVOICE

VISA BYTES

Asian Voice | 5th December 2015

Maria Fernandes

Entrepreneurs beware: the next targets for change

Entrepreneurs have been shielded from the largescale changes that were imposed on all other categories but that is about to change. The Migration Advisory Committee (MAC), which provides advice to the Government were asked to review this category and report back. They have done so. So far MAC have had a 100% success rate in their proposals being passed into law and it is unlikely that recommendations made this time will be rejected.

There are some interesting statistics which suggest that there is a high refusal rate overall of 48% but the figures include those Post study workers who, virtually overnight were told that they were not allowed to switch to work but allowed to invest £50,000 instead of the usual £200,000. It resulted in an explosion of applications and refusals.

It is accepted that the volumes for this category is much lower than in any of the skilled work categories. However the volumes are beginning to rise in this area.

The conclusion of the report is that the Graduate Entrepreneur scheme works well and it has been suggested that it is expanded to create a new start up route.

However MAC have concluded that the general Tier 1 Entrepreneur route contributes “little or nothing to UK plc” and they recommend a complete overhaul of the scheme. There is concern that the entrepreneur route is not clearly defined and should be designed to cater for those who bring new ideas and growth and should be actively involved in the business. In particular criticism is made of those who use an “investor lite model” which involves investing £200,000 and taking a small stake in the business which they believe does not fit the intention of this regulation. There was also concern expressed that there are businesses which have a low potential for growth and that these businesses are concentrated in retail, wholesale and catering industries. Other concerns centred around the fact that a number of dependants qualify to enter.

It is also recommended that the entrepreneurial team which can divide the funds should be abolished and recommends that the process is monitored on a regular basis.

The thrust of the report is that businesses that have innovative ideas and have potential for growth should be encouraged and that the small businesses such as restaurants are not considered to provide a suitable benefit for this category. There were some welcome comments about the need for a premium service to prevent passports being held at the Home Office for months.

What emerged from this report is that the rules do not encourage growth. However what is clear is that the regulations have been in force for many years. The young active entrepreneurs have not had restrictions in qualifying for entry and yet their numbers have not grown. It is hard to see how rules changes will affect this. The mood music of these changes is to bar the small time business and welcome the banker.

To contact Maria Fernandes, please email at info@fernandesvaz.com

HSBC to shut down private banking business in India Marking the exit of yet another foreign bank, from the cut-throat wealth management business in Asia's third-largest economy, HSBC is shutting its private banking unit in India. An India spokesman said, “After a strategic review of the global private banking operations in India, we have decided to close the business. This marks further progress in the HSBC group strategy to simplify business and deliver sustainable

growth.”

Even though India has been claiming millionaires at a strong pace, it has failed to translate into profits for the foreign wealth managers that have set up teams of well-paid bankers to help manage those riches.

Banks, including Royal Bank of Scotland and Morgan Stanley, have sold their onshore India private banking units in the recent past, as part of their global business restructuring.

www.asian-voice.com

Indian economy grows by 7.4 pc in second quarter AsianVoiceNews

India’s economy grew by 7.4 per cent in the second quarter, official figures showed, outperforming China and slightly ahead of analysts’ expectations.

Growth in the three months to the end of September quickened to 7.4 per cent year-on year from 7 per cent in the previous quarter, according to statistics ministry data.

The figures for the second quarter of the financial year were marginally higher than the median forecast of 7.3 per cent in a survey of economists by Bloomberg News. They also bettered China’s 6.9 per cent increase in Gross Domestic Product (GDP) recorded for the same period and reported by Beijing last month.

The figures are a boost

for Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his ruling party which suffered a drubbing in Bihar assembly election earlier this month. Modi has made boosting economic growth a priority since sweeping to power in a general election in May 2014 and India has now recorded three straight quarters of growth above seven per cent.

But investors have raised concerns about the pace of promised economic reform needed to create jobs for India’s tens of millions of young people.

Investors are hoping Modi’s government will be able to reach a consensus with opposition parties and push reforms through the current session of parliament, including one that

AsianVoiceNewsweekly

paves the way for a longawaited national sales tax.

Monday’s numbers were the latest growth data to be released since the government introduced a revised formula for calculating GDP that some analysts have criticised. India’s government changed the way it calculates GDP in January, saying the new method was closer to international standards. The main change is that India now measures its economic growth at market prices to incorporate “gross value addition” in goods and services as well as indirect taxes. But analysts say the new data does not correlate with some other economic indicators, including last year’s industrial production figures and corporate profits.

US sees Pfizer-Allergan deal as a big tax loss The announcement by US pharmaceutical firm Pfizer and Ireland's Allergan of a $155 bn deal spurred an instant retaliation from presidential candidates, Bernie Sanders and Hillary Clinton. The deal is one of the recent takeovers in which a US company effectively relocates its headquarters overseas to exploit another country's lower corporate tax regime.

Pfizer would base in Ireland where Allergan holds its headquarters, if the deal is approved. The joined company will be renamed Pfizer PLC and continue to trade on the New York Stock Exchange.

Analysts estimated that Pfizer's current tax, which is about 25 per cent, would drop below 20 per cent in Ireland. According to Congress Joint Committee on taxation, inversions will cost the US taxpayer $ 19.5 billion over the next 10 years.

Sanders posted on Twitter opposing the deal.

He wrote, “This merger would be a disaster for Americans who already pay the highest prices in the world for prescription drugs.” He also said in a statement that, “The Obama administration has the authority to stop this merger, and it should exercise this authority.” While President Barack Obama called inversions “unpatriotic”, Clinton, in a statement said, “We cannot delay in cracking down on inversions that erode our tax base.” She also accused the pharmaceutical major of avoiding its “fair share of taxes.”

Meanwhile, Ireland

finds itself in an even worse position as it already is dealing with an EU investigation of its tax regime. To dodge any more eyes on the country's tax policies, finance minister Michael Moonan said after the Pfizer deal that inward investment agency IDA Ireland, did not encourage inversions. US Treasury Secretary Jack Leno said, “US companies are currently taking advantage of an environment that allows them to move their tax residence overseas to avoid paying taxes in the US, without making significant changes in the nature of their overall operations.”

“While we intend to take additional action in the coming months, there is only so much the Treasury Department can do to prevent these taxavoidance transactions.

Only legislation can decisively stop inversions.”

Under the terms of the Allergan deal, the companies will exchange 11.3 Pfizer shares for every Allergan share. The deal also contains a cash component of between $6bn and $12bn. “The proposed combination of Pfizer and Allergan will create a leading global pharmaceutical company with the strength to research, discover and deliver more medicines and therapies to more people around the world.”

Allergan's chief executive, Brent Saunders said, “The combination of Allergan and Pfizer is a highly strategic, value-enhancing transaction that brings together two biopharma powerhouses to change lives for the better.”

India to displace UK to be world's 3rd largest aviation market India is expected to displace Britain as the thirdlargest air transport market by 2026, an International Air Transport Association's updated passenger growth forecast says. The same forecast also said China is expected to overtake the United States as the world's largest passenger market by 2029.

It projected that globally total passenger numbers will reach 7 billion by 2034 with a 3.8 per cent average annual growth in demand taking 2014 as baseline year. Previously, IATA forecast that global air pas-

senger count will reach 7.4 billion by 2034 based on a 4.1 per cent average annual growth rate. The global air transportation body said that the revised result reflect a negative trend in the world economy which is expected to dampen demand for air transport,

especially slower economic growth projections for China.

“Economic and political events over the last year have impacted some of the fundamentals for growth.

As a result, we expect some 400 million fewer people to be travelling in 2034

than we did at this time last year,” said Tony Tyler, director general and chief executive of IATA. India is expected to add 275 million new passengers taking its total passenger numbers to 378 million. In terms of routes, Indonesia-East Timor will be the fastest growing at 13.9 per cent, followed by India-Hong Kong at 10.4 per cent.

Currently, aviation helps sustain 58 million jobs and $2.4 trillion in economic activity. In 2014, 3.3 billion passengers flew.

The number of passengers in 2015 is expected to reach 3.5 billion.

CURRENCYVOICE

www.asian-voice.com AsianVoiceNews

Asian Voice | 5th December 2015

Paresh Davdra is the Dealing Director of RationalFX,

UK economy expected to grow by 2.5% Currency Specialists.

The Bank of England governor Mark Carney has said that UK interest rates are likely to remain low "for some time". UK rates have been held at 0.5% since March 2009. Most economists are not expecting the Bank to raise rates until mid-2016 at the earliest. Mr Carney said that "even with limited and gradual rate increases it still will be a relatively low interest rate environment". He remained vague on when a rate rise might be coming, and added: "The question in my mind is when the appropriate time for interests to increase and that is strongly consistent with the strength of the domestic economy." Mr Carney also said that he did not see any need for negative interest rates and that productivity was more likely to exceed than undershoot the Bank's latest forecasts, reducing the pressure on inflation.

Meanwhile, sterling fell after the Bank's chief economist Andy Haldane said he saw more downside risks to growth and inflation than had been indicated by the Bank's latest economic outlook.

He reiterated his view that the Bank's next move might actually be a rate cut. "I see the balance of

21

Foreign Exchange

AsianVoiceNewsweekly

risks around UK GDP growth and inflation as skewed materially to the downside, more so than embodied in the November 2015 Inflation Report," he told the Treasury Committee. According to another poll, it is anticipated The Bank of England will hike interest rates in the second quarter of next year but the timing may rest on whether the U.S. Federal Reserve tightens policy in the world's largest economy come December.

George Osborne’s Autumn Statement stated that they expect the UK economy to grow by 2.5% in 2016 and 2.4% in 2017, revised up from 2.3% and 2.4% respectively. Unemployment is set to fall to 5.25 next year and stay there until 2017 when it is set to rise. He is also made a U-turn on controversial and unpopular tax credit cuts, but admitted the shortfall will be made up by an 11.6B raid on British businesses. Sterling fell back towards a seven-month low against the dollar, with upbeat UK forecasts and a spending review by the Chancellor not changing the view that interest rates will not rise any time soon. The pound had initially climbed after George Osborne's "Autumn Statement", in

which he eased some spending cuts and dropped an unpopular plan to scrap some benefits for low-earners, as well as announcing a higher growth forecast of 2.5 percent for 2016.

In Europe, the Markit flash composite Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI), which tracks manufacturing and services activity and accounts for more than twothirds of the economy, rose to 54.9 from 54.2 in October - far above the 50 mark that separates growth from contraction for the 31st month running. New export orders and employment rose to their highest readings in three months, suggesting demand from abroad remained strong despite broad concerns about the global economy. This has no doubt been fuelled by Euro weakness leading to German goods being cheaper for consumers outside of the Eurozone German business confidence unexpectedly rose in a sign that Europe’s largest economy is robust enough to weather risks including a global slowdown and Volkswagen AG’s emissions scandal. The IFO institute’s business climate index climbed to 109 in

November, the highest level since June 2014, from 108.2 in October. US economic growth for the third quarter has been revised up, helped by stronger investment and house building. GDP rose at an annual pace of 2.1%, not the 1.5% rate it reported last month.

Even with the GDP revision, growth still slowed from an annual pace of 3.9% in the second quarter. However, in the second quarter of the year the economy was rebounding from the impact of the harsh winter weather experienced at the start of the year, which slowed the US economy to a crawl.

The better third quarter growth is still likely to fuel speculation that the US Federal Reserve is ready to raise interest rates next month. The upward revision by the Commerce Department puts the US economy on course to grow at least 2% in the second half. It comes in the wake of strong jobs growth in October. Consumer spending, which accounts for more than two-thirds of US economic activity, grew at a 3% rate, down from the 3.2% rate estimated last month.

Weekly Currencies As of Tuesday 1st December 2015 @ 1pm

GBP - INR = 100.25 USD - INR = 66.50 EUR - INR = 70.49 GBP - USD = 1.51 GBP - EUR = 1.42

EUR - USD = 1.06 GBP - AED = 5.34

GBP - CAD = 2.01

GBP - NZD = 2.27

GBP - AUD = 2.07

GBP - ZAR = 21.74

GBP - HUF = 441.53

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

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22

ASIANBUSINESS

Asian Voice | 5th December 2015

Consultant Editor Financial Voice

Alpesh Patel

Dear Financial Voice Reader, I’ve had some nice emails from traders following my system. Robert Fearn wrote just as I was about to write this column ‘made a nice £406.57 today’.

So what is it they are doing right? Technology has meant trading is easier than ever. I don’t mean there are online brokers and websites – those have been there for years. I mean there are indicators to guide you when to buy and sell.

That has been the biggest issue for traders until now – when to buy and when to sell. And it is not easy.

There are a lot of calculations and things to think about. You need to be watching the market, looking at the prices.

But very few people know indicators exist. I started creating indicators years ago because I knew automation is key to productivity. God knows the Government tells us we Brits are unproductive.

Why would people not want to be more productive? Because it takes an investment in time upfront.

But you reap the benefits forever. Most people prefer doing the way they’ve always been doing things and that is why so many people never get ahead.

By using an indicator, from an expert, you get their experience, their expertise, and don’t have to make your own mistakes. You also get to reduce stress. You see for a lot of people indecision, confusion caused by the markets leads to stress. They know the upside is the opportunity to make money, but the downside is the stress.

This is also a key reason traders like me use indicators. They have to be stressed. Not me. They do the calculations. If they do not tell me to buy, then that’s fine, I’m not worried.

The more you can automate when it comes to trading and making money from the markets, the easier your life becomes. It’s a little like trying to get people to understand the benefits of smart meters, or the internet even!

Keeping on top of cutting edge innovation is what sets the early adopters apart and gives them an edge.

All financial technology must solve a key global and important problem. We know already from the data people are less investing in the market than they should given their future financial needs. The reason for this is they think it is harder than it really is.

This is why it is vital we keep them informed of developments to make their lives easier – like what Uber did for taxis, indicators do for making money from the markets. And we should not be surprised.

The UK is the home of financial innovation after all.

RBI keeps rates on hold The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) kept its key lending rate unchanged on Tuesday, leaving the door open for more easing but making that dependent on meeting a challenging inflation target f or 2017.

At its last meeting in September, the RBI slashed the repo rate by 50 basis points to 6.75 per cent to boost growth.

RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan noted weak rural and global demand was holding back economic growth, while highlighting pockets of softness in sectors such as construction.

But he said the focus of monetary policy would shift towards achieving consumer inflation of 5 per cent by March 2017, a target analysts say will be challenging, even as he noted risks to inflation remained "slightly to the downside" by the coming March.

The RBI "will use the space for further accom-

modation, when available, while keeping the economy anchored to the projected disinflation path that should take inflation down to 5 per cent by March 2017," Rajan said in his statement.

Achieving the RBI's target of 6 per cent inflation in January should not be a problem. But achieving Rajan's March 2017 objective may prove more difficult for a country that less than two years ago suffered double-digit inflation.

A recent pay hike for government employees and potential food price shocks are causing renewed concern about inflation. Meanwhile, a prolonged slump in commodity prices has pushed down consumer prices, but a more sustainable fall would depend on the government continuing to keep a lid on spending and pass reform measures such as a national goods and service tax.

www.asian-voice.com

Good response to India's gold bond scheme AsianVoiceNews

In an overwhelming response to the government's gold bond scheme, the first tranche has received 63,000 applications for 917 kg of the metal, worth £24.6 million, as per a senior government official. Economic affairs secretary Shantikanta Das called it an “excellent response for an innovative product”. The issue date of the scheme was shifted to November 30 from November 26 to enable smooth uploading of applications into the RBI's eKuber system, the government said.

The finance ministry said, “This overwhelming response has been received from the retail investors who are the focus of this scheme. This new and innovative saving instrument has elicited response from across the country and

it is expected that subsequent tranches will continue to receive such enthusiastic response.”

The RBI, in consultation with the government, decided to issue sovereign gold bonds. The bonds were sold through banks and designated post offices.

Raising money through the bonds will form part of the market borrowing programme of the government. Finance minister Arun Jaitley had

announced the sovereign gold bond scheme in the 2015-16 budget, aimed at developing a financial asset as an alternative to purchasing metal gold. The bonds are denominated in multiples of gram(s) of gold with a basic unit of 1gram. The tenor of the bond is for eight years with an exit option from the fifth year. The exit option will be exercised on the dates when interest is paid.

Minimum permissible

Falling oil price pushing up demand for dollar in India The falling crude prices have turned good for some while it has not been so for other countries whose currency is pegged to US dollar.

Since November last year, when the Opec cartel began to fight for a bigger share of the market, Brent crude oil has fallen more than 40 per cent.

Copper, nickel and other commodities have followed suit, hurt by a slowdown in China but also oil’s magnetic pull on the sector. Some of the world’s biggest oil and commodity exporters and the impact on currencies versus the US dollar is clear - Russia’s rouble is down 30 per cent over the same period, Norway by 12.6 per cent, Canada by 15.5 per cent.

But the blow of lower oil revenues for some is cushioned by commodities largely being priced in US dollars, a currency that has strengthened notably over the past 16 months. Look at Russia, the dominant oil exporter outside Opec.

While the rouble has rallied recently, over the year it has fallen far enough to benefit its country’s oil producers, since they pay for oil production in roubles, but receive revenues in dol-

lars.

That is how the Putin government wants it. Not so fortunate, however, are oil producers whose currencies are pegged to the dollar, including many Opec members. RBC Capital Markets points out that Saudi Arabia's new leadership has had to draw down on its reserves and resort to borrowing to pay for high levels of social spending. FX reserves are down from $746bn in August 2014 to $647bn in September 2015. While Saudi Arabia has led the group’s policy of intensifying output to fight competition from higher-cost rivals, such as US shale producers, it can argue that it has been one of the hardest hit by the double whammy of keeping its currency pegged to the dollar during the oil rout.

Impact on Indian economy: Since the oil imports in India are increasing, this pushes up the demand for dollar which strengthens the dollar against rupee. This depreciates the value of the Indian rupee and erodes purchasing power of Indian currency in the international market. US dollar is the currency of international trade, so for all practical purpose all buy and sales on international level is defined in terms of USD. Now, if USD strengthens, it will mean one dollar should be able to buy more than what it earlier bought which means that what is locally priced a t 200 Dirham should now be available at say 45 USD. Thus the price of crude goes down. This is the relation dollar value and crude oil share - one strengthens other weakens.

Also, US is the biggest importer of crude oil. So when crude price go up, it means US will be shelling out more dollars to buy it, which means more dollars are going out of the country and hence the dollar will weaken. Same would be true other way round.

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investment is 2 units (2 grams of gold) and the maximum amount will not be more than 500 grams per person per fiscal year (April-March). A self-declaration to this effect will be obtained. The investors will be compensated at a fixed rate of 2.75% per annum payable semiannually on the initial value of investment.

In case of joint holding, the investment limit of 500 grams will be applied to the first applicant only. The bonds will be issued in tranches. Each tranche will be kept open for a period to be notified. The bonds are eligible for conversion into demat form. The redemption price will be in rupees based on the previous week's (Monday-Friday) simple average of closing price of gold of 999 purity published by IBJA.

Digimeal is the way forward

Risha Jindal, CEO of Digimeal The world wide web (www) is something that even children are aware of, and it has proven to be a blooming and successful industry, with many people making a name for themselves in this field. One such talent is 18year-old Risha Jindal, CEO of Digimeal. She launched this app, along with her sister, Sumita Jindal, in 2015, after winning £15,000 at the Inspiring Digital Enterprise award.

The speciality of this app is that it renders healthy recipes using three main ingredients and leftovers. Risha Jindal said, “In her first term of university, my sister found she often didn't know what to do with ingredients. She'd call my mum for a recipe. We knew cooking was an everyday problem for students, and she and I thought about developing an app to solve the problem. I've learnt so much in a year.

Now I can talk about designing a product with confidence. I'm proud to be a woman in tech. More of us need to get involved.”

Produce quality products, Jaitley urges exporters India's finance minister Arun Jaitley has urged Indian exporters to produce quality products at competitive prices in the face of slowing demand in international markets and in the context of the continuous decline in the coun-

try's exports.

At the closing ceremony of the India International Trade Fair 2015, he said, “One important factor, which our global experience now teaches us is that the world wants to buy good products, it wants to

buy cheaper products and therefore you have to think ahead of the others, manufacture products which are cost and quality competitive.” “This can actually enable you, even in adverse global circumstances, to find bigger markets. And

we have to create in India an ecosystem which can actually facilitate that. The purchasing capacity of global buyers is contracting. Their ability to buy has been reduced and therefore suppliers are going to find it difficult,” he added.

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Sharif, Ghani vow to resume Taliban peace talks

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PARIS: Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and Afghan President Ashraf Ghani have agreed to work together to revive stalled peace talks with Taliban insurgents after meeting on the sidelines of a climate change conference in Paris, officials said.

They met on Monday amid heightened tensions over Kabul's accusations that Islamabad aided the Taliban in their brief capture of the northern Afghan city of Kunduz in late September. Pakistan, which wields considerable influence over the militants, hosted a historic first round of peace negotiations in

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July. But the talks stalled soon thereafter when the Taliban belatedly confirmed the death of their longtime leader Mullah Omar. The United States and China have been push-

ing for the process to restart, but frosty ties between Islamabad and Kabul have been hampering those efforts.

A Pakistan government statement said Ghani and

Sharif had discussed the negotiations while they were in Paris.

"Both leaders agreed to work with all those who would enter such a process as legitimate political actors and act, alongside the Afghan government, against those who refuse to take the path of peace," the statement said. Hopes for better ties were high after Ghani's election last year.

But they have since plummeted, with Kabul blaming Islamabad for a surge in Taliban violence in 2015.

The Pakistani statement said Monday's talks were held "in an atmosphere of warmth and cordiality".

Myanmar's top leaders to Saudi to execute over 50 hold talks with Suu Kyi convicted of terrorism?

YANGON: Myanmar's top leaders will hold talks this week with opposition chief Aung San Suu Kyi, the first since her party's landmark election success.

There is uncertainty over the handover of power after Suu Kyi's opposition National League for Democracy swept nearly 80 per cent of seats in the November 8 polls.

Under the country's complex political system, the army-backed parliament will stay in power until at least January, while a new president is unlikely to be sworn in until March. Suu Kyi has requested “national reconciliation” discussions with the president and army chief to assure smooth transition. The call, however, has gone unanswered until now, sparking speculations. Both President Thein Sein and powerful army chief General Min Aung Hlaing have now agreed to meet her. Both Thein Sein and General Hlaing have congratulated Suu Kyi on her party's poll victory and promised to respect the election result.

But concerns remain over Myanmar's transition in a country where the military

still holds enormous political and economic sway, and has a long history of quashing democratic aspirations.

“The president will meet with Daw Suu on December 2nd,” presidential spokes person Zaw Htay said without elaborating. Win Htein, a senior member of the NLD, confirmed the talks with the president. The military released a separate statement confirming that the army chief would meet Suu Kyi at the defence ministry in the capital Naypyidaw on the 2nd of December.

But Suu Kyi is still banned under the armydrafted constitution from becoming president because she married and had children with a foreigner.

The military also retains 25 per cent of seats in the two legislative chambers, giving it a de facto veto over any constitutional change. Suu Kyi has so far opted to take a modest approach to victory, dampening celebrations despite her party's overwhelming majority in the combined national parliament.

Elderly media mogul obsessed with sex, steak According to court documents lodged in a battle over Sumner Redstone's medical care, the 92-yearold US media mogul is said to be obsessed with having daily sex and eating steak.

However, Redstone is unable to sign his name or make informed decisions.

It is said that doctors have also warned him about his “fixation” on eating steak and having sex.

Sumner Redstone controls 80% of the voting stock in Viacom and CBS.

US media mogul, Sumner Redstone

RIYADH: As reported by two newspapers, Saudi Arabia plans to execute more than 50 people convicted of terrorism, in what could be a warning to would be jihadis.

Fifty-five people were awaiting execution for “terrorist crimes” that killed more than 100 civilians and 71 security personnel, the newspaper reported, without specifying when the executions will take place. Some of those facing execution were affiliated with al-Qaida, the report said. Others are from Awamiya, a largely Shia town in the oil-producing Eastern Province where the government has suppressed demonstrations for equal rights. Diplomats in Riyadh say their governments have been assured

by Saudi Arabia that they will not execute Shias convicted after protests.

Awamiya residents responded to the news by closing off roads leading into the city with burning debris, activists said.

The alleged al-Qaida militants stand accused of attempts to overthrow the government and carry out attacks using small weapons, explosives and surface-to-air missiles. One prisoner was accused of trying to buy nuclear material in Yemen worth $1.5 million for use inside Saudi Arabia.

The charges against the Awamiya residents include sedition, attacks on security officials and interference in neighbouring Bahrain, which has also experienced unrest since 2011. Saudi Arabia has already executed over 150 people this year, most of them beheaded in public, rights group Amnesty International said this month.

Indian-origin Antonio Costa is new Portugal PM LISBON: Portugal President Anibal Cavaco Silva has appointed Antonio Costa, an Indian-origin, as the new prime minister after the government formed following the October 4 election. While Costa's Socialist Party did not win the election, he cobbled together a coalition of left parties that has a little more than the majority mark in the 230-member Assembly. His party finished second, with 86 seats.

The former mayor of Lisbon, 54 -year -old Costa is the latest in the large Indian diaspora across the globe to reach top political positions - from Fiji to New Zealand and Guyana and from Mauritius to Malaysia to Singapore to South Africa to Britain, and beyond. The coalition government installed after the election

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Asian Voice | 5th December 2015

23

Bangladeshi arrested for threatening intellectual

DHAKA: Bangladesh police have arrested a man belonging to Jamaat-e-Islami for threatening Professor Anisuzzaman and Muntassir Mamoon with death. He had issued threats under the mask of the Islamic State. Under pressure to accept the presence of ISIS in Bangladesh, the government has repeatedly denied the terrorist organisation's establishment here. Bangladesh Home Minister Asaduzzaman Khan said that those who claim to belong to ISIS are all “fruits of the same tree.”

ISIS claims responsibility for attack on Bangladesh Shi'ite shrine

DHAKA: The Islamic State has claimed responsibility for an attack carried on a Shi'ite Muslim mosque in Bangladesh, killing one person and wounding three others.

Witnesses said three young men stormed into the mosque situated in northwestern Bogra district, and shot at worshippers. “They opened fire after locking the main gate and then fled immediately after the shooting,” police official Ahsan Habib said. SITE monitoring service said the Islamic State had claimed responsibility for the attack. The attack follows the recent bombing on the biggest Shi'ite shrine in the country.

Anti-abortion `terror' attack kills 3

WASHINGTON: In what could be categorised as a terrorist event, 57 year old Robert Lewis Dear, a suspected antiabortion activist stormed a Planned Parenthood Clinic in Colorado Springs with a gun, resulting in the death of two civilians, a police officer, and multiple casualties after an hours-long shootout that ended with his capture. US entities are loath to call them terrorist attacks although they meet the FBI's definition of terrorism, “The unlawful use of force and violence against persons or property to intimidate or coerce a government, the civilian population, or any segment thereof, in furtherance of political or social objectives.”

Indian actor drowns in waterfall

KUALA LUMPUR: An upcoming Malaysian-Indian actor was found dead in northern Malaysia after he allegedly slipped and fell from a waterfall. The 25 -year -old Keshava Rajan was found between rocks at the Lubuk Degong Waterfalls in Bidor of Ipoh state. The actor was reported missing after he had slipped and was swept away by strong currents while on picnic with his family. The police said rescue team found his body stuck between rocks. Rajan was scheduled to leave for Chennai for the final preparations for the premiere of his debut film 'Ka Ka Ka Po'.

Memorial plaque for Indian techie

SYDNEY: The family of Prabha Arun Kumar, who was stabbed to death in Sydney this year, has unveiled a plaque in her honour. Her parents, husband, daughter and brother, who were present at the function, took a walk on the same path at Parramatta Park, where she was killed. “No mother or father should go through what they have been through in having to bury their own daughter,” her brother said.

Kumar was on the phone with her husband when she told him that a suspicious-looking man was following her before she started pleading with her attacker not to harm her. “I think I've been stabbed,” were her last words to as she collapsed.

Nepal Maoists burn Indian embassy vehicle Antonio Costa and headed by Pedro Passos Coelho, which did not have a majority, was voted out by the Costa-led opposition, paving the way for the first Socialist government supported by left parties since dictatorship was overthrown in 1974. Costa, who had promised to ease austerity measures imposed by a large financial bailout package, is likely to have an uneasy tenure. He has had to agree to six conditions laid down by the president, mainly focussing on continuing austerity measures.

KATHMANDU: Members of the Communist Party of Nepal-Maoist said they have set a vehicle belonging to the Indian embassy on fire. The party members claimed that they burnt the vehicle and smashed its window panes to protest India's blockade of transport of supplies of food items and other commodities to Nepal. However, both, the police and embassy officials have rubbished the claims by Netra Bikram Chand and said the vehicle caught fire due to a technical fault. Meanwhile, the CPN-Maoist has called for a shutdown in Nepal in protest.

Pakistan minister escapes unhurt

PESHAWAR: Pakistan federal minister for housing Akram Khan Durrani escaped unhurt in an IED blast which killed two people in the volatile northwest of the region. The bomb exploded in a roadside in Bakakhel area of Bannu bordering volatile Miran Shah in North Waziristan Agency, killed two officials of the health department on the spot and injured three others. Durrani narrowly escaped as his vehicle had already cross the spot, police said. An official said that the minister's motorcade was on its way back from Bakakhel when a remote device hit one of the vehicles.

Police have cordoned off the area and launched an operation to arrest the perpetrators.

24

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Jaya sues magazine for defamation Asian Voice | 5th December 2015

CHENNAI: Tamil Nadu chief minister Jayalalithaa's office has issued a defamatory suit against popular Tamil weekly Ananda Vikatan for running a comprehensive series on the governance of the AIADMK government.

Defamation charges were also moved against DMK leader M Karunanidhi and the editor of the paper Murasoli, for authoring and publishing articles against her.

The CM filed a defamation case in the Principal Sessions Court in Chennai against the publication's article titled 'What has

Jayalalithaa Jayalalithaa done so far?' which was part of 'MantriTantri' series, published on November 21. In the complaint, it is stated that the article has defamed the chief minister and maligned her name.

In response, the Vikatan group issued a

strongly worded statement declaring that they will continue to speak the truth and maintained that there was nothing new in the series against the AIADMK government. They said they had run similar series during the DMK regime too, called the 'Cabinet Camera', which was apparently packed with blistering attacks on the party's top ministers. While no legal action was taken, the article did see protests for writing about Karunanidhi's elder son Alagiri and his nexus with notorious Madurai gangs.

“Problem emerged only

when we wrote about her.

There were no threats when we ran other stories in the series against AIADMK ministers and their poor governance,” said a senior journalist working with Vikatan group. Besides legal action, Vikatan group’s statement said, there were efforts to stop the distribution of their publication in districts.

However, government sources denied it. “We intervened only when DMK men had purchased some 100,000 copies of Vikatan magazine and distributed it.

Notice to TN over Journalist abused over caste markers for kids post on abuse at Madrassa NEW DELHI: The National Human Rights Commission has issued a notice to the Tamil Nadu government, after taking suo moto cognizance of a report published in a paper on how colourful wrist bands are used by schools in southern districts to identify the caste of students. The commission, in a statement, issuing notices to the Principal Secretary in Social Welfare Department and District Collector, called for a factual report within two weeks. “The content of the press report, if true, raises a serious issue of human rights,” it said.

The Commission has taken suo motu cognisance of a media report that in schools of Tirunelveli district, caste comes in shades of red, yellow, green and saffron.This is what the students wear on their

wrists, foreheads, around their necks, under their shirts, indicating their caste. In this belt in southern Tamil Nadu, known for violent caste conflicts between OBCs and Dalits, these bands are markers that tell children who is a friend, who is not.

While these dominant communities use markers such as wrist bands to single out and subjugate Dalits, these were ways of asserting themselves. The content of the press report, if true, raises a serious issue of human rights," observed the Commission while issuing notices to the Principal Secretary in Social Welfare Department and District Collector, Tirunelveli, calling for a factual report within two weeks.

The District Collector had asked the education department to ban wrist bands in schools.

size."

KOZHIKODE "As I moved to (KERALA): A class 4, an Ustaad woman journalist groped girls and in Kerala has been poked them during a facing online night class if there abuse and her was a power cut. A Facebook page has been temporarily Journalist VP girl even burst out once and threatened blocked after she Rajeena to report about him to shared her account authorities," Rajeena of classmates being abused shared. at a Madrassa when she She said several boys was a child. and girls were forced to VP Rajeena, who works quit because of the abuse. with a regional newspaper Her post has become conrun by a hardline group, troversial and has prosaid in her post that at a voked strong reactions on Madrassa she went to in both sides of the debate. "I Kozhikode, an Ustaad or am not scared of any of teacher called all the boys these vitriolic comments and touched them inapand threats aimed at my propriately. "First day of personal life because I have first class, the ustaad called truth and Allah is on my boys and unzipped them, side," says Rajeena. feeling them up at the Her Facebook account, wrong places," she wrote. flooded with messages of When the boys tried to anger as well as support, avoid the touching, writes has been blocked for severRajeena, the teacher told al hours. them he was "checking the

Dal Khalsa lambasts Capt Amarinder appointed deputy CM Sukhbir Singh Punjab Congress chief CHANDIGARH: Former Punjab chief minister Captain Amarinder Singh was appointed as the chief of the Congress party in the state. Earlier, Partap Singh Bajwa has resigned as Punjab Congress chief to make way for Amarinder Singh. Amarinder is the party's lawmaker from Amritsar and its deputy leader from Lok Sabha.

Bajwa was forced to resign as majority of the MLAs rallied behind Amrinder.

Amarinder had not only openly challenged the authority of Bajwa, an appointee of Congress vicepresident Rahul Gandhi, through parallel show of strengths but had also been vociferous in demanding his ouster.

The change comes ahead of assembly polls in the state, due in 2017. Over the last few months, Rahul Gandhi held a series of meetings to discuss how best to prepare the party

Amrinder Singh for the elections.

In the last Assembly polls, the party had projected Amarinder Singh as its chief ministerial candidate. The Congress, however, failed to win and the "overconfidence" of Singh was considered one of the key reasons for the debacle.

But with a running feud between Amarinder Singh and Bajwa, party unity was crucial for the Congress.

The leaders had put up a united face during Rahul's recent visits.

Last week, Gandhi led a delegation of party leaders from Punjab, including the Captain and Bajwa, to President Pranab Mukherjee to project unity in the state unit.

HOSHIARPUR: Radical Sikh unit Dal Khalsa lashed out at Punjab Deputy Chief Minister's claim that they and other Sikh groups were responsible for disturbing the communal harmony. They further said the minister's “politically managed” move to pardon Dera Sacha chief has put the state on boil.

“Instead of owning up his own socio-political follies that vitiated the peaceful atmosphere of Punjab, Sukhbir Badal was trying to point fingers towards others,” Dal Khalsa head H S Dhami and spokesperson Kanwar Pal Singh said.

They also hit out at the Deputy Chief Minister for clubbing them together with the opposition Congress. These leaders said that the turmoil in the state was caused by the state government's failure to expose the hidden forces and the design behind the sacrilege incidents and

Sukhbir Singh Badal denial of justice to victims of police firing.

They also warned Sukhbir to “stop throwing muck” on them and rather “change his feudal mindset” as it was not only damaging his personality, but also the reputation of the Akali Dal. “The crowd at the November 10 congregation did not belong to any particular political shade but were general masses who assembled to air their resentment and send a stern warning to the rulers that they should stop taking Panth for granted,” the group said.

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Lankan navy arrests 20 fishermen

RAMESWARAM: Sri Lankan naval personnel have arrested 20 fishermen on charges of allegedly violating the International Maritime Boundary Line. Their four boats have also been taken into custody. Eleven of the fishermen belong to Rameswaram. They were arrested near Katchatheevu and taken to Talaimannar. Other fishermen hailing from Jagadapattinam in Pudukottai district were arrested near the Sri Lankan coast and taken to Kangesanthurai. Assistant director of fisheries department, Gopinath said a boat had sunk near Katchatheevu and six fishermen in it were rescued by other fishermen and brought to safety.

Lawmaker booked for allegedly slapping Air India official

HYDERABAD: A criminal case has been registered against a YSR Congress lawmaker from Andhra Pradesh for allegedly slapping an Air India station manager at Tirupati Airport. Lok Sabha lawmaker P Mithun Reddy went to his cabin at the airport and picked a fight with him regarding boarding passes for his relatives for a flight. He also shouted at the manager before allegedly slapping him. A case has been registered against him under different sections of IPC for preventing a public servant from discharging his duty, Yerpudu police station sub-inspector Ramakrishnaiah said.

Minister leaves meeting after spat with woman cop

CHANDIGARH: Haryana minister Anil Vij had a spat with the superintendent of police (SP) Sangeeta Kalia and asked her to leave a meeting in Fatehabad. But the IPS officer refused to leave, forcing the fuming minister to walk out of the meeting in a huff. On being asked about the steps being taken to check the illegal liquor sale, Kalia claimed around 2,500 cases were registered in the past 10 months, which was a "record". Vij was apparently not satisfied with the reply and as the two continued to argue before he asked her to "get out." Since the SP refused to leave, the minister left the place in a huff.

Black flags shown to Punjab CM during his sangat darshan

TARN TARAN: Hundreds of farmers interrupted Punjab chief minister Parkash Singh Badal's sangat darshan programme, held recently, and showed him black flags, in Bharowal village of the Khadoor Sahib Assembly constituency. Badal, who had started the programme after a break of almost three months, was left stunned by the unrest as around 150 farmer activists of the Kissan Sangharsh Committee barged into the venue and held protests against him. Waving black flags, they raised slogans like 'Badal-Modi Murdabad' and criticised the Punjab government for ignoring issues of the farmers.

The police swung into action as the chief minister left in a hurry.

Shiv Sena offers ‘reward’ to anyone who slaps Aamir

LUDHIANA: In protest against Aamir Khan's recent remarks on intolerance, the Punjab unit of the Shiv Sena has announced a reward of Rs 100,000 per slap for anyone slapping the actor. The announcement was made during the party's protest outside hotel MBD Radisson Blu in Ludhiana where Aamir was staying. It was alleged that the Shiv Sena workers used derogatory language against the actor during their protest, and burnt his photographs. Punjab chairman, Shiv Sena, Rajeev Tandon claimed that “any person who will slap Aamir Khan will get Rs 100,000 for each slap from the Shiv Sena.” He said, “We give an opportunity to the manager and employees of the hotel and also the team of his film to slap Aamir and get the reward from us.”

Dera chief Gurmeet Singh begins work on 3rd film

CHANDIGARH: After the success of his two films in a row, head of Dera Sacha Sauda, Gurmeet Ram Rahim Singh is ready to come out with his third film 'Online Gurukul'. His last movie 'MSG- 2' had turned out to be a success, registering a record revenue of £430 million.

The demand for the movie was so much so the producers had to run a record 1,872 non-stop shows over 48 hours in different cinemas of Punjab and Chandigarh. Film's producer CP Arora said, “The film is still attracting a large number of moviegoers. Happy with the response, Gurmeet Singh is now preparing for the release of his third film.

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A group of five people were harassed and intimidated to force them leave a cinema hall after fellow moviegoers took exception to them not standing while the Indian national anthem was playing. The incident came to light the next day when a video was posted on social media.

The little over two minute video shows a crowd encircling and harassing the family for not standing up for the national anthem.

One man can be seen calling the people “a*******” and threatening to slap them.

The group comprising of a man, three women and a child, was at PVR Cinemas at Phoenix Market City, Mumbai, to

watch a late night show of the film 'Tamasha'. The Maharashtra government has made it mandatory to play the national anthem before every film in cinema halls, since 2003. After the ruckus, the group is seen leaving the hall as others applaud. While PVR confirmed the incident, they said they could not confirm the identity of the people involved. They also

cleared that the people were not asked to leave but chose to exit on their own.

In an official statement, PVR Cinemas said, “PVR Cinemas is fully committed to the policy of equal respect for everyone.

According to an order of the Maharashtra government, it is mandatory for all cinemas to play the national anthem before every film. Being a law abiding company…PVR Cinemas follows the practice of playing the national anthem prior to every show. On November 29, 2015, there was an altercation between guests at one of our cinemas in Mumbai.

Our staff intervened keeping in mind the safety of guests.”

Rahul spurns SC offer to say sorry over RSS remark Congress vice president Rahul Gandhi has rejected an offer from the Supreme Court to express regret over his alleged comments holding RSS responsible for Mahatma Gandhi's assassination, and get the criminal defamation case against him closed.

The young Gandhi has appealed against a Bombay high court decision rejecting his petition seeking the cancellation of a criminal defamation case filed against him by an RSS worker for his comments during the last general election campaign. He has also filed a written petition, along with BJP member Subramaniam Swamy and AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal, challenging the constitutional validity of criminal

Rahul Gandhi defamation provisions of the IPC. The Apex Court has reserved verdict on those petitions.

When the special leave petition challenging the HC verdict was called for hearing before Justices Dipak Misra and P C Pant, the bench said, “The case can be given a decent burial”, and dictated a proposed order where Rahul expresses mild regret for his utterances. However,

Rahul's counsel, Kapil Sibal turned down the offer saying, “I cannot give a response. If there is a battle, it can always be fought. There are several SC judgments supporting my client in addition to other evidence.” Senior advocate M N Krishnamani, appearing for RSS worker R M Kunte seemed to have agreed for closure of the case if Rahul expresses regret.

Rahul's counsel Mahalaxmi Pavani said the court had not ordered stay of proceedings in the defamation case in the special leave petition. She said the Bhiwandi court in Maharashtra has scheduled the next hearing in the criminal defamation case filed by Kunte on January 6.

Ahmedabad doctors hold meet to discuss joint preservation The Indian Cartilage Society held its 3rd Congress in Ahmedabad last week, where they hosted a couple of events.

Founded in 2004 by Dr Deepak Goyal, the aim of the meet is simple; Preserve The Joint. With over 1,300 doctors in the association, they are working to spread awareness on cartilage preservation. Dr Goyal brought the concept that cartilages can be repaired, something many doctors are completely unaware of.

Dr Goyal said, “ICS looks forward to change the mindset that joint pain means knee replacement.

There were 700,000 replacement surgeries in America alone last year.

The worrying part is that as the number of cases increase, many of the

patients are of the young age, ending the common belief that knee replacement is for old people.

Now the number of old and the young patients is almost equal.”

ICS Congress Secretary Satish Patel said, “There is always a window period in cartilage injury, wherein no pain is felt until almost 70% damage has already occurred. ICS wants to spread proper awareness.

It is not just the general public, doctors are ignorant of the fact that in a fracture, the cartilage can also be repaired. We gather national and international doctors every two years and provide them with a platform where they all get a chance to share their knowledge.”

Dr Goyal added, “The doctors need to be educat-

Won't leave India, but stand by my statement: Aamir Khan Asian Voice | 5th December 2015

5 made to leave movie hall for ‘not standing’ during national anthem

ed on the subject foremost.

Our motto is clear; Care, Preserve, Repair. With our patients, we offer them manageable techniques and methods to preserve their joints. Our doctors suggest weight loss, lifestyle modifications, and disease modifying drugs with no side-effects. The worst problem is the consumption of painkillers, it is incessant.”

The two-day meet saw live surgeries on meniscus tear, micro-fracture, mosaicplasty, knee cap dislocation, among others.

There were international speakers and around 60 lectures and/or talks on cartilage and joint preservation. Dr Patel said, “The idea is to clearly differentiate between repair and replace as two different sciences.”

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After provoking the entire nation into a furore over his statement on intolerance, actor Aamir Khan retracted his words without backing off on them. “I stand by everything that I have said in my interview.

Neither I nor my wife Kiran have any intention of leaving the country. We never did, nor would we like to in the future.

Anyone implying the opposite has either not seen my interview or is deliberately trying to distort what I have said. India is my country, I love it, I feel fortunate for being born here, and this is where I am staying.”

He added, “To all those people ... who are, I would like to say that I am proud to be Indian, and I do not need anyone's permission nor endorsement for that.”

While he retorted at “all those people calling me anti-national” and the ones “shouting obscenities at me for speaking my heart out, it saddens me to say you are only proving my point,” the actor also thanked all those who stood by him.

“We have to protect what this beautiful and unique country of ours really stands for. We have to protect its integrity, diversity, inclusiveness, its many languages, its culture, its history, its tolerance, its concept of ekantavada, its love, sensitivity and its emotional strength,” he said and

Aamir Khan then ended his statement with Rabindranath Tagore's poem “Where the mind is without fear and the head is held high,” which he chose to call a “prayer“ at this point.

After the internet burst into life with mixed reactions, Khan's industry friends backed him for facing the criticism with grace. Some like Javed Jaffery simply retweeted his statement of setting the record straight, while others like Hrithik Roshan and Farah Khan showed strong support. Hrithik tweeted. “What I learn from this even when attacked u must find d power to respond and not react!

Well done @aamir_khan”.

Farah Khan said, “We say there is no intolerance. But when somebody has a point of view, everybody jumps on him and attacks him, which is the definition of intolerance. That is ironic.

On one hand, we say we are not intolerant and on the other we say how dare you say we are intolerant.”

However, the Bharatiya Janta Party only sharpened its attack at the actor, accusing him of committing the “moral offence” of blaming the “entire country for his own sake.” BJP Spokesperson M J Akbar said, “It is unfortunate that for the sake of his name, he is defaming the entire country. I feel it is a moral offence.” he said there is absolutely no problem with an icon or non-icon in a democracy criticising anything, “but yes, when an icon blames the whole nation, I think there is an appropriate reason for a reaction. I do not believe that you have a right to drag down the nation because of any personal antagonism towards a political party. The nation must always be above politics.”

'Some amount' of intolerance exists in society, admits Venkaiah Naidu India's Parliamentary Affairs Minister M Venkaiah Naidu has conceded there is “some amount” of intolerance in the society, which needs to be identified and dealt with firmly, instead of being generalised.

Without pointing towards any incident in particular, Naidu said the people making out of turn statements should be condemned, isolated and disowned. He claimed that incidents have not happened overnight after Narendra Modi became Prime Minister.

Referring to the killing of Dalits and writers in certain states, he said, “There is some amount of intolerance in the society, in different areas. That has to be identified, it has to be localised, it has to be dealt with firmly. Instead of that, we are making it generalised.” Naidu said incidents have not happened overnight after Narendra Modi became Prime Minister. “These things have been happen-

M Venkaiah Naidu

ing. Some people making out of turn statement, we have to condemn, we have to isolate them... they have to be condemned and disowned.”

Welcoming senior Congress leader P Chidambaram's statement that banning of Salman Rushdie's controversial novel 'The Satanic Verses' was “wrong”, he said, “Sir, there are two things, one people writing the books, they should not affect the sentiments of the people, they should not arouse social tension, but at the same time, freedom of expression and freedom of

speech, people have got right. But there has to be broad consensus about how do we go about it.”

While banning Salman Rushdie's book draws cheers, the same on a book on Shivaji draws protests, he said, adding that “there are different angles are coming, Hindu angle, Muslim angle.”

“Let there be policy for banning books, or films,” he said. “Let us all be tolerant to each other and then tolerant to verdict of the people...Respecting the mandate of the people was the biggest form of tolerance.”

INDIA

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Asian Voice | 5th December 2015

Now, Nestle's pasta found unsafe

added, “The standard limit is 2.5 PPM while it has been found to be 6 PPM. The letter informing the Nestle company sent at its Modinagar address has come back here undelivered. On the basis of the report this food product now comes under the 'unsafe food category'. The report has been sent to the FDA Commissioner on October 12 for sanction to lodge a case and in case it is received it will be filled in the court of the CJM here.”

“They (Nestle) were sent a letter over a month ago intimating them about the results. They had a month's time to appeal against the test but the letter sent by the FDA was not received by the company and was returned here,” Yadav said.

District Magistrate Vaibhav Srivasatav also said, “The sample which has failed the test is of June and we

Faced with a fresh controversy, just after Maggi noodles hit the market, much to the consumer's delight, Nestle's Pasta has now landed in a soup after its samples, tested at Uttar Pradesh governmentowned food testing laboratory, were found to be carrying lead beyond the permissible limits. Pasta samples collected from Nestle distributor, Sriji Traders, were sent to a government food testing laboratory in Lucknow, said Arvind Yadav, Designated Officer at Food and Drug Administration Mau. He said, “After Maggi, the sample of macaroni pasta was taken from Mau and sent to the National Food Analysis Laboratory, Lucknow in which the lead was found to be much more than the permissible limit. According to report received on September 2, they failed the tests.” Yadav

will taken immediate action on the directives... we are in touch (with the authorities) on phone.”

Meanwhile, Nestle officials said its products are safe for consumption and are not aware of any tests done by the Uttar Pradesh government. “We are not aware of any analysis reports for Pazzta supposedly picked up from Sriji Traders,” said a Nestle India spokesperson. “The Pazzta manufactured by us is 100 % safe and there is absolutely no concern on lead. Therefore, we need to see the contents of reports and we also need to confirm whether these supposed tests have been conducted at FSSAI Notified and NABL accredited laboratory that has the expertise and is certified for testing lead under the Food Safety and Standards Act,” Nestle India said in a statement.

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AsianVoiceNewsweekly

Sheena Bora murder: Peter Mukerjea undergoes lie-detector test Former media baron Peter Mukejea underwent a liedetector test in connection with the three-year old sensational murder of his step daughter Sheena Bora. CBI sources said several questions about the crime, his conversations with his wife Indrani Mukerjea and his own statements were put to him during the test by CBI officials at the Central Forensic Science Laboratory.

They said there were some questions where there were indications of "deception". The agency has received the nod from a special court to subject Peter to polygraph tests. The agency produced Peter before a special court

in Mumbai on Monday which extended his police custody.

CBI has subjected Mukerjea to intense questioning since November 19 when he was taken into custody which ranged from alleged siphoning off funds from the media house founded by him and Indrani, overseas account of Sheena Bora, relations between family members, missing details of Sheena and his conversations with his son Rahul.

The sources claimed that on many accounts his answers were purportedly not convincing and changing which prompted CBI to put him to polygraph test.

Funds siphoned off funds from INX deal Nearly three months after CBI took over the probe, the agency for the first time made a reference to reports of £90 million being siphoned off by Peter and Indrani during the INX News Pvt Ltd selloff.

The agency, in its remand application seeking further custody of Peter, told a court in Mumbai that it suspects the couple created an account in Sheena’s name, possibly in a bank in Singapore, to park money illegally. The agency said these financial transactions could be a motive behind the murder.

Pak ISI, terror groups planning major strikes in India Coinciding with the 7th anniversary of 26/11 Mumbai attacks, the central intelligence agencies have received specific inputs that Pakistan's ISI recently held a meeting with chief commanders of top terrorist outfits Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT), Hizbul Mujahideen and Jaish-e-Muhammed (JeM) - asking them to carry out terror strikes in India.

Reports suggest that some 30 militants from the three outfits have been briefed by ISI and brought close to the Line of Control to take part in a 'spectacular' strike on Indian soil.

Intelligence sources said after giving specific directions to the leaders of LeT, JeM and Hizb, ISI held a detailed briefing of 30 terrorists in a camp somewhere in Pak-occupied Kashmir (PoK) a few days back.

Sources said ISI is pro-

viding logistical help to the three outfits. The meeting, an official said, was headed by an ISI handler - identified as Showkat Khan - at a camp in PoK for which the terrorists travelled from Peshawar.

The terrorists are said to be highly trained and have been asked to cross over to India before the routes in the upper reaches are blocked by snow.

Following the inputs, the Indian agencies fear a major attack in the next one month. "We are making every possible attempt to get all details of the operation which has been planned by the Pakistani establishment with the terror outfits," said an official.

The security establishment is wary of the capabilities of LeT, JeM and Hizb since these outfits have carried out some of the major attacks in India, including the 26/11 Mumbai attacks,

2000 Red Fort attack, 2001 Parliament attack and September 2011 Delhi high court attack besides serial bombings in many cities.

Interestingly, Jaish-eMuhammed, which has been working with ISI for ages but went out of favour after the assassination attempt on former President Pervez Musharraf, has been asked to participate actively in the operation. "This suggests that JeM is now back in ISI-fold," said an official.

In fact, the attack last week an Army camp in Tangdhar in Kashmir near the LoC was carried out by three heavily-armed militants of JeM, suggesting that it is trying to win back the confidence of ISI and Pak army. The central government has asked beefing up of security measures and intensifying vigil along the border and LoC.

CONTINUED FROM P1

don't see anything out of the ordinary in that,” he said later. Pakistan media couldn't get enough of the news and constantly highlighted the meet.

They described it as a “positive development”, showing the footage on repeat. They reported that the meeting was held in a “cordial atmosphere”, which it said was a “positive and happy occasion.” The rendezvous is significant as India's External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj has been invited for the 'Heart of Asia' conference in Islamabad, on December 9. Sharif had indicated that Pakistan is

out pre-conditions for sustainable peace, during a meet with British counterpart David Cameron on the sidelines of the Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting. He had told Cameron that Pakistan intends to maintain friendly relations with all its neighbours including India and Afghanistan.

Ties have been strained between both the counries, especially this year, over border firing and a series of ceasefire violations. Talks between the National Security Advisors of both the countries were cancelled in August as, while India wanted to discuss terror attacks, Pakistan insisted on raising Kashmir.

At last warming at global warming

want to discuss and resolve issues.

The spokesperson for India's Ministry of External Affairs, Vikas Swarup posted a picture of the two leaders and posted it on micro-blogging website Twitter saying, “PM @narendramodi mets PM Nawaz Sharif at COP21 in Paris.” Downplaying the event, he later tweeted, “This was a brief exchange of courtesies in the Leaders Lounge.

PM meets many Heads of State/Govt.” “The Prime Minister greatly values his relationship with Prime Minister Sharif and if they have waved at each other I

ready for a dialogue with-

AsianVoiceNews

HEALTH&WELLNESS

AsianVoiceNewsweekly

27

| Asian Voice | 5th December 2015

Moderate coffee drinking may Salt water bath is good for our health! reduce death risk S R FOOD

esearchers, including those of Indian-origin, claim that drinking two to three cups of coffee daily may reduce your risk of death from heart disease, diabetes and suicide. In the study, people who regularly drank moderate amounts of coffee daily – less than 5 cups per day – experienced a lower risk of deaths from cardiovascular disease, neurological diseases, Type 2 diabetes and suicide.

The benefit held true for drinking caffeinated and decaffeinated coffee, suggesting it is not just the caffeine providing health perks but possibly the naturally occurring chemical compounds in the coffee beans.

“Bioactive compounds in coffee reduce insulin resistance and systematic inflammation,” said Ming Ding, the study’s first author and doctoral student at the Harvard TH Chan School of Public Health in Boston, Massachusetts.

“They might be responsible for the inverse association between coffee and mortality. However, more studies are needed to investigate the biological mechanisms producing these effects,”

FITNESS

said Ding.

The findings are based on data from three large ongoing studies: 74,890 women in the Nurses’ Health Study; 93,054 women in the Nurses’ Health Study 2; and 40,557 men in the Health Professionals Follow-up Study.

Researchers assessed coffee drinking every four years using validated food questionnaires and followed participants for up to 30 years. During the follow-up period, 19,524 women and 12,432 men died from a range of causes. In general, people who frequently drank coffee

Half of 45-year-olds will get pre-diabetic high blood sugar

A

study from the Netherlands say that almost half of 45-year-olds will develop an elevated blood sugar level that often precedes diabetes. Prediabetes or impaired glucose metabolism has no clear symptoms, but people with higher than normal blood sugar based on a blood test should be tested for diabetes every one or two years, according to the American Diabetes Association. "We have known this from previous studies - but what this study adds is a method of communicating risk in a better way - a person's lifetime risk of developing diabetes," said Dr Kamlesh Khunti of Leicester General Hospital in the UK. One in three healthy 45-year-olds will develop diabetes in their lifetime, Khunti said. Researchers from Erasmus University Medical Centre and the Harvard School of Public Health followed people for about 15 years, categorizing their blood sugar levels according to WHO standards. Blood sugar levels of 6 millimoles per litre or

less are considered normal.

Levels above 6mmolL and below 7mmolL are considered prediabetic, and levels of 7mmolL or greater are diabetes.

In their 15 -year study, a total of 1,148 people developed elevated blood sugar levels, 828 developed diabetes and 237 started taking insulin to control their diabetes. The team translated these results into population risk levels at age 45, and found that about half of them would develop prediabetic blood sugar levels before their death, 30% would develop full-blown diabetes and nine per cent would start taking insulin. About three-quarters of those with elevated blood sugar at age 45 would develop diabetes, and half of those who already had diabetes would start taking insulin.

Higher body mass index or waist circumference increased these risks.

"People should know their risk and if they are at higher risk, then they should have a more intensive method of reducing future diabetes risk," Khunti said.

www.asian-voice.com

LIFESTYLE

were more likely to smoke and drink alcohol. To separate the effects of coffee from smoking, researchers repeated their analysis among never-smokers, and found that the protective benefits of coffee on deaths became even more evident.

“Regular consumption of coffee can be included as part of a healthy, balanced diet,” said senior author Frank Hu, a Professor of Nutrition and Epidemiology at Harvard.

“However, certain populations such as pregnant women and children should be cautious about high caffeine intake from coffee or other beverages,”

said Hu. The study by researchers, including Ambika Satija and Shilpa N Bhupathiraju, both from Harvard, was not designed to show a direct cause and effect relationship between coffee consumption and dying from illness. So the findings should be interpreted with caution, researchers said.

Previous studies found inconsistent associations between coffee drinking and risk of total and causespecific death. The new study adds to the literature that moderate coffee consumption may confer health benefits.

Sleeping for eight hours can enhance memory

new study has revealed that people are significantly better at remembering faces and names if they sleep for up to eight hours after seeing those faces and names for the first time. Jeanne F Duffy of the Brigham and Women’s Hospital found when participants were given the opportunity to have a full night’s sleep, their ability to correctly identify the name associated with a face and their confidence in their answers significantly improved.

In the study, participants were shown 20 photos of faces with corresponding names from a database of over 600 colour photographs of adult faces and asked to memorise them. After a 12-hour period, they were then shown the photos again with

A

To Our Readers

We are publishing these items in good faith, kindly consult your Doctor before you try to implement it. We do not hold any responsibility for its efficacy...

either a correct or incorrect name and also were asked to rate their confidence on a scale of one to nine.

Each participant completed the test twice – once with an interval of sleep in between and once with a period of regular, waking day activities in between.

When given an opportunity to sleep for up to eight hours, participants correctly matched 12 percent more of the faces and names.

The study suggested that sleep after new learning activities may help improve memory.

Duffy said that sleep was important for learning new information, adding that people more likely to develop sleep disruptions and sleep disorders as they get older which may in turn cause memory issues.

alt water bath offers a wealth of benefits that are good for our health. Following is a list of health benefits that one can get from taking a bath with salt water.

Healing and relaxing: Using Himalayan bath salts are known to stimulate circulation, hydrate the skin, increase moisture retention and promote cellular regeneration. Besides, they are also helpful in detoxifying and healing the skin. Saltwater bathing reduces inflammation of the muscles and joints, relaxes muscles and relieves pain and soreness.

Good for skin: Saltwater baths in their natural form possess many minerals and nutrients that help rejuvenate skin. Minerals such as magnesium, calcium, bromide, sodium and potassium get absorbed into the skin pores, cleansing and purifying the surface of the skin, leaving it healthy and glowing.

Detoxification: Bath salts also help detoxify the skin? Well, yes, the warm water opens up skin pores

allowing the salt minerals to get absorbed deep into the skin, ensuring complete cleansing. These salts help draw out the harmful toxins and bacteria absorbed by the skin throughout the day, keeping your skin looking healthy and clear.

Youthful glow: Use bath salts regularly to decrease the appearance of wrinkles and fine lines on the face.

They make your skin soft and supple. Bath salts achieve this by plumping the skin and balancing the skin moisture. They also give skin that natural glow that is lost in the routine life. Treatment of various problems: Bath salts are not only beneficial for your skin but they also play an important role in treating some serious health conditions like osteoarthritis and tendinitis. In addition, bath salts are also effective in reducing itchiness and insomnia.

Mobile phone can help better control BP

A

new study says that an interactive web system with the help of your mobile phone can be an effective tool for better blood pressure control. Test persons lowered their blood pressure and were better able to understand how their lifestyle affects their blood pressure and actively participated in followup discussions. These results were shown in a doctoral thesis at the University of Gothenburg.

Well controlled blood pressure reduces the risk for cardio-vascular complications. In addition to taking daily medication, persons with high blood pressure need to understand the sometime complicated connection between the blood pressure values and daily life. Blood pressure medication combined with changes in lifestyle gives good results, but despite

awareness of this, few people are able to reach a well controlled blood pressure.

In her thesis, researcher Ulrika Bengtsson developed and evaluated an interactive system for persons living with high blood pressure that, with the help of their own mobile phone, can be used to self-manage the high blood pressure on a daily basis. The result showed statistical and clinical significance in lowering blood pressure between the first and last weeks of the study, says Ulrika, adding "the blood pressure reduction trend was fairly similar, regardless of the initial blood pressure level, blood pressure dropped."

The thesis shows how the use of an interactive system with questions and messages designed to act as a support in the treatment of high blood pressure can result in a reduction in blood pressure.

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Asian Voice | 5th December 2015

Nayanthara to receive highest salary

AsianVoiceNewsweekly

Rajinikanth to undergo a make-up test for 'Enthiran 2'

N

ayanthara, who will be seen opposite actor Vikram for the first time, in a film to be directed by Anand Shankar, will be paid a whopping salary for accepting the role of the lead lady in the film.

Sources have revealed that the actress signed the deal to act in the yet to be titled, after being offered £30,000 as payment. If this report holds to be true, she will become to number one actress in terms of salary.

The two tentative titles considered for the film are ' M a r m a Manidhan' and 'Mareesan'.

Harris Jayaraj will most probably score music for the project.

T

amil supers t a r Rajinikanth will soon undergo a special make-up test for his upcoming 'Enthiran 2'. A source from the film unit said, “In the first week of December, Rajinikanth will be in the city for special make-up test for Enthiran 2. International

make-up artist Sean Foot, who had worked in films such as I and Avatar will take care of the look of the superstar.” To be directed by S Shankar, the film will also feature Amy Jackson, and possibly Hollywood star Arnold Schwarzenegger. Music for the film will be given by A R Rahman and visual effects by Srinivas Mohan of 'Baahubali' fame.

Kamal Haasan's 'Uttam Villain' wins best film award

K

amal Haasan's recent tragi-comedy Tamil film 'Uttam Villain' hit it home at the Los Angeles Independent Film Festival last week. The movie has won Best Film, Best Actor for Kamal Haasan, Best Music for Ghibran and Best Sound Design for Kunal Ranjan.

A delighted Haasan said, “We never expected to win anything.

Because we never gave it any attention. We knew this was a major festival for independent films. But I was busy completing Thoongavanam and the rest of my team was also occupied with it. We just sent Uttama Villain to Los Angeles and forgot it. I didn't have the time to even think about attending personally.” Adding, “This is what comes from being a workaholic. You don't get to enjoy your victories. But the Los Angeles Indep endent Film Festival means a lot for our film.

'Angry Indian Goddesses'

A drama directed by Pan Nalin, 'Angry Indian Goddesses' is India's first all-out female buddy film. It came second in the voting for the People's Choice Award after screening at the 2015 Toronto International Film Festival. A story that revolves around girl bonding, friendships, realisations, devastations, and secrets, all starts when Frieda invites her gal pals to Goa for a surprise announcement.

Only independent films are eligible. For my studio Raj Kamal Films International, that's a huge triumph, struggling as we are to survive and not to be swallowed by the big corporate production houses.”

'Baahubali' shoot to start from Dec 15

I

t seems the end to the lingering question of why Kattappa killed Baahubali is near.

Director Rajamouli has confirmed the shooting dates for the sequel to the movie, and it will finally go on the floors on December 15. While it is final, it is not yet official. The shoot will wrap up in six months.

'Hate Story 3' The third movie of the thriller franchise, the story lines around Aditya and Siya Singh who have taken over the reins of the family business after the demise of Aditya's older brother. Their life takes a turn for the worse when an unknown businessman, Saurav Singhania enters and makes an absurd offer. 'Hate Story 3' will take the audience on a roller-coaster ride of relationships, hate and vengeance.

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www.asian-voice.com AsianVoiceNews

AsianVoiceNewsweekly

Kalki loves to work with Khans

B

ollywood actress Kalki Koechlin, like many other leading ladies in the tinsel town, also wishes to work with the Khans.

When asked about her dream cast, the 31-yearold actress said that she would love to work with the Khans, especially with Shah Rukh Khan because she thinks he is fantastic and charming as well.

Talking about her dream director, the 'Margarita With a Straw' star revealed that Vishal Bhardwaj tops her list because she thinks he is a fine blend of both artistic alternatives and commercial cinema. Kalki, who strongly believes in the Japanese saying, "Today better than yesterday worst than tomorr o w , "

also said that she would like to try her hand in traditional love stories because for her, it's not about not wanting to do commercial roles, it's about fitting in and doing something she can pull off convincingly.

Further, when the thespian actress was asked if she would like to wear a director's hat some day, she joked that she doesn't have spare money in her pocket. Kalki will be next seen in Nicholas Kharkongor's directorial 'Mantra' alongside Shiv Pandit and Rajat Kapoor. She will be seen in the character of Rajat's rebellious daughter, who always wants more from life.

Amitabh mouths Ranveer's dialogue

T

he latest to be hit by the dubsmash mania is veteran actor Amitabh Bachchan, who recently agreed to do a Dubsmash for Ranveer Singh. Mouthing the actor's famous dialogue from 'Bajirao Mastani', “Bajirao ne Mastani se mohabbat ki hai, aiyyashi nahi,” Big B totally nailed the video. An elated Ranveer Singh shared the video on his Twitter, writing, “Now this .. is Epic!!! :))) the Biggest 'B' of all @SrBachchan #BajiraoMastani”

Now, Ranbir feels the heat

'Sultan's' leading lady to have shades of grey

A

li Abbaz Zafar's 'Sultan' is already in the news with Salman Khan playing the lead role of Sultan Ali Khan, the wrestler, in the film. After speculations over the female lead and the similarity of the film to 'Abhimaan', it seems Ali has a real surprise for his audience. A source close to the film said, “The female lead is a negative character- very, very challenging.” However, it “ won't be an out and out negative character for sure”. Meanwhile, the shooting for the movie has begun sans a leading lady.

Farah mesmerised

by Shah Rukh-Kajol aura

Asian Voice | 5th December 2015

A

ctor Ranbir Kapoor, who is going through a lean patch in his career, says there is pressure on him to deliver a success with his romantic film 'Tamasha.'

"Of course, my last three films, 'Besharam,' 'Roy' and 'Bombay Velvet' haven't worked, so there is pressure because we don't make films for ourselves, but make it for the audience," Ranbir said.

"That audience or my fans who had trusted me might have said that 'Ranbir does good films'.

But when they came to the theatre, perhaps I didn't perform to make their money worth it," he added here when asked if there was pressure on him to deliver a hit after his failures.

Surprisingly, his three flops came after delivering the biggest hit of his career 'Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani.'

Ranbir had famously made his debut in Sanjay Leela Bhansali's 'Saawariya' eight years ago.

He terms the film as "the most important film of my life", and accepts that it was a disaster. But he still maintains that he had a lot to learn from the film's debacle.

Talking about his selection of films, the 'Barfi' actor said: "It is my aim with every film, that I do good films and good acting. My method of choosing the kind of films that I do is the same. It's not that a year ago I was doing less acting and I will now do more acting."

"What I can do is work with my heart, but I don't have any control over the final destiny of the film whether it'd be hit or flop."

Saif to star in Indian adaptation of 'Chef'

P

roduction h o u s e Abundantia Entertainment has acquired the remake rights to Jon Favreau's 2014 film 'Chef' featuring Sofia Vergara and Scarlett Johansson, and starring in the Hindi adaptation is none other than nawab Saif Ali Khan. Founder Vikram Malhotra said, “Ever since I first saw Chef, I knew that this film had to be made in India.

Charming relationships, a feel-good story and a unique journey of self-discovery make Chef the ideal film to bring alive in an Indian context. I'm also delighted that one of the finest actors in our country, Saif Ali Khan, will helm the title role in the Hindi version.” The movie is about a professional chef, who quits his job at a popular restaurant and launches a food truck with his friend and son.

T

he magic the iconic on-screen pair of Shah Rukh Khan and Kajol weaves is like none other, and just like their fans, choreographer-director Farah Khan still gets mesmerised even after working with them numerous times. “Shah Rukh's movie is my movie. I shot 'Gerua' song with SRK and Kajol in Iceland. I have seen their magic. When a person like me gets affected by their aura then a normal person too would get affected by it,” she told reporters while at the launch event of Viaan Mobiles.

Viaan Mobiles is named after Shilpa Shetty and husband Raj Kundra's three year old son. Praising Shilpa for her beauty, Farah said, “I should stay away from Shilpa as everyone would look bad in front of her. She is like this since I know her... Since Baazigar (1993). People usually deteriorate with age but she is becoming beautiful.”

Directed by Rohit Shetty, 'Dilwale' will hit the theatres on December 18, and also stars Varun Dhawan and Kriti Sanon.

Vidya starts shooting for Sujoy's 'TE3N'

A

c t r e s s V i d y a Balan has landed in Kolkata for her next film 'TE3N'.

Produced by Sujoy Ghosh, the film is the first for which the doors of the Victorian-era W r i t e r s ' Buildings have been opened for shooting.

She has already started shooting with actor Nawazuddin Siddiqui inside the redbrick structure, and super star Amitabh Bachchan is expected to join them later this week. Vidya said, “I wanted to shoot inside this building for a long time. Now this wish has been fulfilled.” She considers Kolkata her second home and has shot in the city for 'Parineeta' and 'Kahaani'.

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UK

www.asian-voice.com

Baroness Warsi to give lecture on British response to terrorism

AsianVoiceNews

Asian Voice | 5th December 2015

Britain’s first female Muslim Cabinet minister, Baroness Warsi, is to deliver a lecture at St Mary’s University, Twickenham entitled Terrorising Britain which will question whether the responses from successive governments to terrorism following the 7/7 bombings ten years ago has left Britain feeling any safer.

It will also ask whether Britain is terrorised by what groups like Daesh (ISIS) may be planning, or if the fear between communities is also terrorising Britain. Drawing on her experiences of sitting at the top table during policy

Baroness Warsi

discussions, Baroness Warsi will explore the answers to these questions and the effects of these policies on communities across Britain.

The lecture on 10 December will be Baroness Warsi’s first lecture at St Mary’s since being appointed Visiting Professor earlier this year.

Coming Events

l Sojitra Samaj (UK)- Children Christmas Party: Saturday 12th December 2015, 2:30pm- 6:30pm.

Alarm Jyot Mandir, Repton Avenue, Wembley, HA0 3DW. Contact Diptesh: 07803 136 230. l Hanuman Chalisa: Sunday 6th December, 12pm3pm. Social Club Hall, Northwick Park Hospital, Watford Road, Harrow HA1 3UJ. Contact Nemaben Fatubhai Mulchandani: 020 8459 5758. l Extra Ordinary General Meeting (EGM): Sunday 13th December, 2pm- 3pm.Apple Tree Centre, Ifield Avenue, Crawley RH11 0AF. Contact Chandubhai Nayee: 01293 5169 130. l Commercial Property Auction: Thursday 10th December. Contact Mehtab: 020 7034 4855. l Wanza- Children Christmas Party: Saturday 12th December. Contact Mehul: 07828 984 219. l Bhavans- Dharma Fest; Hindu Heroes & Heroines: Saturday 5th December, 6pm. Yoga Asanas With Slides by Shyam Mehta: Saturday 5th December, 3pm. Carols Conducted By James Marr: Sunday 13th December, 1pm. A Group Show By Anup Shankar Paul & Friends: Tuesday 1st- Monday 7th December, 11am- 7pm. Bharatiya Vidya Bhavan, 4a Castletown Road, West Kensington, London W14 9HE. Contact: 020 7381 3086. l Photography Exhibition by Ameya Kulkarni: Monday 7th December, 6:30pm. Exhibition on Churches of Goa: Monday 14th December, 6:30pm.

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Religious education in schools should be named "Belief learning" According to a report by researchers at Goldsmith, University of London, religious education should be renamed as “belief learning”, as they claim it is too closely associated with Christianity.

The researchers had questioned 331 teachers, pupils and parents about how religious education was taught. They found a strong support for it, although they were uncertain about its focus and purpose. They also agreed with renaming it as “belief

ARIES Mar 21 - Apr 20 The fiery planet Mars, your

Adam Dinham

learning”. The lead author of the research, Adam Dinham said, “Changes in the real religious landscape have far outpaced changes in education about it. The real picture is made up of more believing without belonging, and more nonbelieving at all.”

Grab a pint at Burger King Britain was not allowed to serve alcohol at a fast food chain. However, it seems as though things are about to change as the popular fast food chain, Burger King, has won a drinks licence for its restaurant in Bury St Edmunds.

Burger King has also applied for three more licences for its Hull, Blackpool and Newcastleunder-Lyme branches.

Initially, the popular burger joint had applied for a licence which would have allowed them to serve alcohol from 10am to 11pm, every day of the week. However, the police strongly opposed to the proposition.

The licence was granted to the food chain but with restrictions. The com-

ruling planet, continues to occupy your opposite sign for some time to come. Its influence will help you to maintain a high energy level and achieve positive results in anything that requires drive and initiative. If you are involved in a fairly competitive field of activity, you will be the one who comes out on top.

Taurus

TAURUS Apr 21 - May 21 The prevailing pattern of planets gives you a marvellous opportunity. Take time out to strengthen close ties of affection, sort out emotional differences and proffer the olive branch to anyone who may have caused you pain in recent months. Venus throws an easy light on affairs of the heart - prime time for engagements and weddings.

GEMINI May 22 - June 22 Jupiter, the planet of plenty graces your solar 4th house for some time to come, bringing noticeable improvements to your environment. This will hold you in good stead as you have a lot of important jobs to finish around the house such as decorating and for some buying or selling of properties.

CANCER Jun 22 - Jul 22 It is a great week for seeing real results. You can accomplish more than usual with a little elbow grease - the keyword here is discipline.

Your social graces will serve you well career-wise. Mixing business with pleasure will bring you benefits. You will achieve great success by being responsible and diplomatic.

Burger King has acquired licence to sell alcohol in Bury St Edmunds

pany can only sell one beer per adult and cannot sell alcohol after 9pm; they also have to prohibit people from drinking outside its restaurant.

So, fancy a pint? Forget the local pub... let's go to Burger King!

LEO Jul 23 - Aug 23 Don't be afraid to act forcefully if your instinct tells you it's time for change. This week the focus is your house of family and home. Besides spending more time tending to domestic affairs, the focus can be on cultivating and nourishing your inner foundations, so to speak.

VIRGO Aug 24 - Sep 23 Domestic and home matters are disturbed and a source of concern to you. You could find family members hostile and difficult to reason with. It is a period of handling matters with utmost diplomacy and calmness. Venus in your 3rd house of communications makes it that much easier to communicative clearly.

LIBRA Sep 24 - Oct 23 The flow of good energy this week makes you want to be responsible which can benefit you socially and personally. Financially, you have everything going for you. Be prudent and do not fritter away your good fortune. You should avoid using credit, simply because your spending habits may be excessive and impulsive.

SCORPIO Oct 24- Nov 22 The focus is on finances this week, but that doesn’t mean you should worry yourself sick.

Rather, it is about finding new and improved ways to boost your earnings potential. Don’t let nebulous tendencies interfere with your plans. It’s fine to consider several options but don’t get caught up in indecision. Schedule networking opportunities later this week.

Sagittarius Gujarat Tel: +91 79 2630 4142 Urvashi Jagadeesan (India) Mumbai: Kanti Bhatt, Hemraj Shah (Jumbo Advertiser) Horizon Advertising & Marketing: 2012, Shalibhadra Complex, Opp. Jain Derasar, Nr. Nehru Nagar Circle, Ambawadi, Ahmedabad. Tel +91 79 2646 5960 Email: horizon.marketing@abplgroup.com Business Manager: Hardik Shah (M) +91 99250 42936 Email: hardik.shah@abplgroup.com Advertising Manager: Neeta Patel (Vadodara) M: +91 98255 11702 Email: neeta_abplgroup@yahoo.co.in Business Co-ordinator: Shrijit Rajan M: +91 98798 82312 Email: shrijit.rajan@abplgroup.com International Advertisement Representative: Jain International Tel: +91 44 42041122/3/4 Fax: +91 44 25362973 Mumbai: +91 022 2471 4122 Email: jain@jaingroup.net Delhi Office: Tel: +91 9311581597

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SAGITTARIUS Nov 23 - Dec 21 There may be a certain amount of unfinished business to be dealt with. Therefore you will need to adopt a fairly flexible policy in order to accommodate the odd twists and turns of everyday life.

There are planetary energies firing you up preventing you from sleeping properly. Give yourself plenty of physical outlets to calm you down mentally.

Three planets travel through your twelfth house now, marking a time of retreat and regeneration. This also heralds a time for research and unfinished behind-thescene activities. Matters which have dragged on for a while should now be re-assessed and put to rest. Some of you will be looking to spiritual enlightenment and take up yoga and meditation.

CAPRICORN Dec 22 - Jan 20

AQUARIUS Jan 21 - Feb 19

Career-wise you cannot go wrong provided you do not act in a way that threatens other people's egos. An ambition that you have been striving for over the past year is likely to come to fruition which could mean promotion and a boost in status and reputation soon.

Play your cards right and you can pull strings in you favour.

PISCES Feb 20 - Mar 20 Charm is your ally in your dealings with others. Others will be impressed by you and your personable ways. Singles are apt to meet with new romantic opportunities. A good time to spend some time researching your investment options. Rely on your own research or your intuition. You need to exercise careful judgment regarding whom you'll confide in.

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England win T20 series vs Pak AsianVoiceNews

The third T20 match between England and Pakistan at Sharjah Cricket Stadium ended in a tie and went down to a super over to decide the winner. In the Super Over, Shahid Afridi and Umar Akmal were unable to get Chris Jordan away and finished on just three runs. Only one run came off the bat and Jordan also clean bowled Akmal with his last ball.

England sent out captain Eoin Morgan and Jos Buttler and they got the required four runs in the fifth ball.

Earlier, Pakistan could not make the 10 runs required in the last over bowled by Chris Woakes.

Sohail Tanvir, who came in at the fall of Afridi's wicket, smashed a straight six off Woakes' second ball of the last over which brought down Pakistan's target to just four runs off the last four balls. But Malik (75 in 54 balls) was out on the penultimate ball of the innings, holing out to Sam

India-Pak series unlikely in Lanka The government of India continues to sit tight over Board of Control for Cricket in India's (BCCI) proposal seeking nod for resumption of cricketing ties with Pakistan in Sri Lanka next month, amid indications of serious reservations about the cricket body's plan.

"They have jumped the gun," a senior government leader said, adding that revival of cricketing ties with the hostile neighbour may not necessarily be in accord with popular mood at a time when Pakistan continues with its support to terror activities.

The reluctance should put paid to early restoration of cricketing contact because India's schedule has no window to accommodate Pakistan beyond December.

Sharif approves proposal: Meanwhile, Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has granted permission to the PCB for a bilateral cricket series against arch-rivals India in Sri Lanka.

AsianVoiceNewsweekly

Billings in long on when Pakistan needed just two runs. Tanvir managed to steal a bye of the last ball to tie the score.

Pakistan lost its first two wickets in David Willey's first over, including a needless run out of Mohammad Hafeez.

England's spinners Moeen Ali (1-22) and Adil Rashid (1-29) - bowled well and Pakistan was 65-5 in 11.1 overs when Afridi joined Malik.

Malik reached his 50 in 39 balls.

It was his first half century in 16 matches, and he quickly crossed his previ-

ous highest of 57 not out against India in Bangalore in 2012.

Afridi (29 in 20 balls) smashed three sixes and the 50 of the partnership came in just 29 balls at the end of 16 overs. But after adding 63 runs for the sixth wicket, the captain departed, trying to lift a Willey slower delivery over the leg side but exposed his leg stump and was clean bowled.

Earlier, Morgan won the toss and elected to bat first. The move backfired immediately when debutant fast bowler Aamer

Yamin trapped Jason Roy leg before wicket with his first delivery in international cricket.

Joe Root (32 in 21 balls) then joined James Vince and added a quickfire 46 runs for the second wicket before Afridi brought himself into the attack in the sixth over and stuck immediately, removing Root by clean bowling him with his fifth ball, and then accepted a return catch from Moeen Ali (0) off his sixth delivery.

England was 82-6 at one stage, but Woakes and Vince put together the best partnership of the innings 60 for the seventh wicket before Woakes (37 in 24 balls) top-edged Tanvir to Akmal at the boundary.

Vince was the last man to go in the penultimate ball of the innings, his 46 coming in 45 balls. For Pakistan, Afridi (2-19) and Tanvir (2-36) were the most successful bowlers.

England won both the earlier two T20 matches.

Sarfaraz stars as India Colts win title India's Under-19 boys walloped the Bangladesh colts in a one-sided final on Sunday to emerge unbeaten champions in the U-19 Tri-series at Jadavpur University's Salt Lake campus ground. The final barely lasted 50 overs as the Indians raced to the target in 13.3 overs after Bangladesh, opting to bat, were skittled out for a paltry 116 in 36.5 overs.

Under-19 coach Rahul D r a v i d said he was impressed with the boys' attitude and willingness to learn. “We have almost identified the core players who will go on to represent the country in the U-19 World Cup,” said the former India captain.

If Bangladesh thought they could make a match of it after taking three Indian wickets for just 42, Sarfaraz Khan didn't take long to dispel their hopes.

He smashed an unbeaten 59 off just 27 balls with nine fours and three sixes.

The Mumbai-born batsman, who shifted base to Uttar Pradesh this season, admitted that he was under pressure as he had not scored in three games.

Sarfaraz Khan “I was in two minds on whether to play my shots or build an innings as we had lost three quick wickets. But I opted to play my natural game,“ said Sarfaraz, the Man-oftheMatch.

Sarfaraz picked out left-arm spinner Saleh Gazi for special treatment

after India went to lunch at 52 for 3 in 8 overs. He took 15 runs off Gazi in the first over after resumption of play. In Gazi's next over, Sarfaraz plundered 20 with three fours and a six.

Bangladesh skipper Mehedi Hasan Miraz brought himself on to try and check the flow of runs, but Sarfaraz was in no mood to stop as he hit him over mid-wicket for a six.

He struck the fastest 50 of the tournament in 23 balls when he hit pacer Abdul Halim for two consecutive boundaries.

Opener Rishabh Pant, who gave India a flying start with a quickfire 26 off 16 balls was named Man-oftheSeries.

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Asian Voice | 5th December 2015

Saina, Srikanth qualify for World Superseries Finals

S a i n a Nehwal and K i d a m b i Srikanth were the only two Indian shuttlers who qualified for the prestigious year-ending $1 million BWF World Superseries Finals to be played at the Hamdan Sports Complex from December 9-13.

The tournament sees the top eight players/pairs of the world compete in all the five categories of the sport - singles (men's and women's) and doubles (men's, women's and mixed). Both Saina, who had also reached the title round of this event in 2011, and Srikanth had also qualified last year. World No.2 Saina qualified quite comfortably, finishing fifth in the Superseries women's singles rankings. The Olympic bronze medallist clinched the India Open title in March after reaching the final of the All England Open - both of which were Superseries events.

Saina had also reached the final of the China Open.

Sachin's son Arjun hammers 106 in an under-16 match

Sachin Tendulkar's son Arjun continues to impress in junior cricket, with his latest achievement being a century in an under-16 domestic match.

Arjun hit 106 off 156 balls in a Mumbai Cricket Association (MCA) under-16 Payyade Trophy match at the Gymkhana ground that is named after Tendulkar senior. In a match between the Sunil Gavaskar XI and Rohit Sharma XI, Arjun – playing for the Gavaskar XI – hit 16 fours and 2 sixes in his hundred which helped his team reach 218.

Arjun, who bats left-handed and also bowls seam-up stuff, has in the past got tips from Pakistan legend and Kolkata Knight Riders' bowling coach Wasim Akram who was seen guiding Sachin's son during the last Indian Premier League season. The Payyade Trophy is also a selection trial for Mumbai's under-16 cricketers.

Ashwin in second spot on ICC rankings

Indian off-spinner Ashwin Ravichandran rose to a career-high second in the ICC Test rankings for bowlers after his strong showing in the ongoing home series against South Africa, while A B de Villiers lost his top spot in the batsmen standings.

Ashwin claimed 12 for 98 in the third Test in Nagpur to spin his side to a 124-run victory and India could move as high as second place in the ICC Test Championship if they win the fourth Test which starts on Friday. Ashwin’s ascent from the fifth position means that James Anderson and Yasir Shah drop to joint third on 846 points, while Stuart Broad fell to fifth, the ICC said in a statement. Australian pacer Josh Hazlewood, who produced man of the match figures of nine for 136 in the inaugural day/night Test, soared 10 places to 10th. Other bowlers to head in the right direction during the Nagpur and Adelaide Tests include Amit Mishra (up two to 31st) who joins Imran Tahir (up by 14 places to 35th) in making career-high gains, while Black Caps bowler Doug Bracewell is one place and a single point further back in 36th after gaining four places.

Ray completes 40 years as a cricket test match commentator

Ashis Ray completed 40 years as a test match commentator on Saturday 28 November. This makes him the senior-most still active Indian cricket broadcaster; and the third senior-most in the world after Tony Cozier of the West Indies and Henry Blofeld of England.

On 28 November 1975, Ray made his debut as a

ball-by-ball commentator on the India versus Sri Lanka test at Nagpur for All India Radio.

He stated: "I have a vivid memory of that experience. It was also Tiger Pataudi's maiden appearance as an expert commentator. Lala Amarnath was the other expert. N K P Salve was the President of the Vidarbha Cricket

Ashis Ray

Association."

Over the years, Ray has covered test cricket and/or World Cup tournaments in India, England, Australia, New Zealand, South Africa, the West Indies and Sri Lanka.

He was the only Asian in BBC's panel of ball-byball commentators for the 1983 World Cup. He commentated on India match-

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es in the tournament, including the semi-final and final, which India famously won. 25 years later he produced TV documentary 1983: India's World Cup, which was short-listed for a BAFTA nomination.

From the legendary Sunil Gavaskar to the lucid Sachin Tendulkar, he's described them all.

"I have known Ashis forever, it seems," said Gavaskar in a foreword to his recent book Cricket World Cup: The Indian Challenge, published by Bloomsbury.

His once co-commentator and former England all-rounder Trevor Bailey wrote: "His commentaries are in precise classical English."

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Asian Voice | 28th November 2015

India win Nagpur Test, clinch series www.asian-voice.com

Ashwin displayed his magic yet again to record a career-best figures of 7/66 India clinched the fourmatch series against South Africa by taking an unassailable 2-0 lead with an emphatic 124-run win in the third cricket Test at Nagpur. The architect of India's victory was Ravichandran Ashwin who displayed his magic yet again to record a career-best figures of 7/66.

Spinning a web of deceit, Ashwin had a superb match haul of 12 for 98, while leg spinner Amit Mishra claimed 3 for 51 as the hosts shot out the visitors for 185 in 89.5 overs in the second innings to wrap up the match 52 minutes after the tea session. This was also Virat Kohli’s first Test series win as a captain on home soil and also marked an end to South Africa’s track record of not losing a Test series away from home for nine long years. South Africa needed to score 310 to score for a series - levelling win but woefully fell short of the target, unable to negotiate the Indian spin

threat led by 29-year-old Ashwin who completed his 4th 10- wicket haul in a match in his 31st Test.

Ashwin’s second innings victims included three left - handers - the opening duo of Dean Elgar, Stiaan van Zyl and Jean -Paul Duminy - apart from the prize wicket of AB de Villiers, the visitors’

most successful batsman on this visit.

He fittingly took the last wicket, by clean bowling last man Morne Morkel through the gate in his final devastating spell of 4 for 16 in 19 balls.

However, it was Mishra, who got the important breakthrough in the second session to break the

stubborn 72- run fifth wicket stand between rival captain Hashim Amla (39) and Faf du Plessis (39), the visitors’ highest of the match after their capitulation for their lowest -ever total against India of 79 in the first innings.

Mishra got rid of Amla to end the partnership and also packed off du Plessis

soon afterwards before Ashwin polished off the tail with the second new ball in a devastating spell.

With India winning at Mohali and Nagpur and the game in Bengaluru being washed out, the teams will play the inconsequential final Test at Delhi’s Feroz Shah Kotla from December 3.

Murray does it for Britain

Britain won the Davis Cup for the first time in 79 years in Ghent, Belgium, when Andy Murray defeated David Goffin 6-3, 7-5, 6-3 in the first of the reverse singles for an unbeatable 3-1 lead over Belgium. It was a fitting climax for the 28-year old Scot to provide the winning point, having won all 11 rubbers he played in during the campaign as the British defeated heavy weights United States, France and Australia before the clincher against Belgium.

The win over Goffin made him just the third player, after John McEnroe and Mats Wilander, to win all eight singles in the same calendar year since the Davis Cup World Group started in 1981.