Consulate General of India, Vancouver www.cgivancouver.org
Vol. 02, Issue No. 13 March 29, 2018.
India in Vancouver Weekly Newsletter
India Perspectives India Perspectives is the flagship publication of the Ministry of External Affairs. Richly illustrated, this magazine provides our readers with an insight into India’s culture and tradition along with elements of contemporary India. Click here to read more‌. Ministry of External Affairs, India
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Vol. 02, Issue. 13, March 29, 2018.
Consulate News
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Vol. 02, Issue. 13, March 29, 2018.
Ugadi (New Year) Celebrations organized by Vancouver Area Telugu Association 1 Vancouver Area Telugu Association organized Sri Vilambi Nama Samvatsara Ugadi Celebration on Saturday, March 24, 2018 at Royal Place Banquet Hall, Burnaby. Consul General Mrs. Abhilasha Joshi attended the Ugadi celebration which was also graced by Hon’ble Raj Chouhan, Deputy Speaker of Legislative Assembly of BC and NDP MLA for Burnaby. Mrs Joshi thanked Mr. Bangar Raju, President of VATA, Mr. Ramakrishna Vodnala, Secretary of VATA and the members of the Telugu Association for the wonderful event which comprised cultural performances by members of the talented community.
Consul General, Abhilasha Joshi participated in the “Ram Navami” celebration at Lakshmi Narayan Mandir, Surrey. (Sunday March 25, 2018)
Important Trade Fairs in India – To know more, click on
The State Government of Punjab has launched the “Connect with Your Roots" (CYR) Programme for Young Boys and Girls of Punjabi Origin settled abroad. The Programme would provide an opportunity to the youngsters settled in different parts of the world, to visit the places from where their families hailed or where their ancestors were born, or where they themselves spent their early years. 2. This scheme will be part of Friends of Punjab Garima Gram Yojana scheme and will be financed from this scheme only viz.–06Friends of Punjab Mukh Mantri Garima Gram Yojana – Plan Scheme NRI-2. Likely Expenditure for a group of 15 NRIs on a ten days tour would be Rs 3.00 to 4.00 lac. In all 6 to 8 groups would visit the state of Punjab in a year. 3. The proposed scheme could be open to young boys and girls in the 16-22 years of age group as there is a lot of curiosity among Indian-Origin youngsters settled in others countries to know about their ancestral home. The proposed Scheme would open to Young Boys and Girls of NRIs Parents living abroad, a platform to go back to their roots and connect with their roots and discover their identities. The visit would also give these youngsters a chance to learn and speak their native language. It would also enable them to learn about their family background and the culture to which they belong and also to build an emotional bonding with the Country of their roots. In the long run this programme will enhance the NRIs engagement at the level of the Youth, who can be a vital engine in the State’s progress to achieve social harmony, modernity and all-round development of its youth living abroad and in Punjab. 4. The dates of programme can be scheduled to align with the academic calendar and school/Collage vacations of the participants. We can also try to link the dates with the traditional Punjabi festivals and auspicious days, such as Lohri, Holi, Baisakhi, Gurupurabs and Diwali etc. Initially, the programme will be open to youth from U.K, Germany, France, Italy, Belgium, U.S.A and Canada. For more details, please visit: http://cyrnri.punjab.gov.in/ Click here to see the brochure. 2|P a g e
Vol. 02, Issue. 13, March 29, 2018.
Cultural – Heritage Tourism in India Sun Temple, Konarak, Orissa Built in the thirteenth century, it was conceived as a gigantic solar chariot with twelve pairs of exquisitely-ornamented wheels dragged by seven rearing horses. The temple comprised a sanctum with a lofty (presumably over 68 m. high) sikhara, a jagamohana (30. m. square and 30. m. high) and a detached nata-mandira (hall of dance) in the same axis, besides numerous subsidiary shrines. The sanctum and the nata-mandira have lost their roof. The nata-mandira exhibits a more balanced architectural design than that of other Orissan temples. The sanctum displays superb images of the Sun-god in the three projections which are treated as miniature shrines. The sanctum and the jagamohana together stand on a common platform studded with an intricate wealth of decorative ornaments and sculptures, often of a highly erotic type. The roof of the jagamohana, made of horizontal tiers grouped in three stages with life-size female sculptures of matchless charm and delicacy adorning each stage, the whole surmounted by two stupendous crowning members, produces a picturesque contrast of light and shade and is unparalleled for its grandeur and structural propriety. Majestic in conception, this temple is indeed one of the sublimest monuments of India, notable as much for its imposing dimensions and faultless proportions as for the harmonious integration of architectural grandeur with plastic elegance. The Sun Temple entered the UNESCO world heritage list in 1984.
News from India 1. Ministers and Senior Dignitaries attending Informal WTO Ministerial Meeting call on PM Appreciating India for hosting the meeting, several Ministers of WTO discussed multilateral trade with PM Modi. He reiterated India’s commitment to a rule-based multilateral trading system based on inclusiveness and consensus and re-emphasized the need for a compassionate approach towards Least Developed Countries. Read more‌ (https://www.narendramodi.in, March 20, 2018)
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Vol. 02, Issue. 13, March 29, 2018. 2. India is the third largest electricity producer India’s electricity production grew 34% over seven years to 2017. India produced 1,160.10 billion units (BU) of electricity–one BU is enough to power 10 million households (one household using average of about 3 units per day) for a month–in financial year (FY) 2017. Electricity production stood at 1,003.525 BU between April 2017-January 2018, according to a February 2018 report by India Brand Equity Foundation (IBEF), a trust established by the commerce ministry. With a production of 1,423 BU in FY 2016, India was the third largest producer and the third largest consumer of electricity in the world, behind China (6,015 BU) and the United States (4,327 BU). Read more… (Bhasker Tripathi, IndiaSpend, March 26, 2018 08:48 IST)
3. India emerges as second largest steel maker Superseding Japan, India has now emerged as the second-largest steelmaker in the world. With China on top, India had been holding the number three slot for the third year in a row till 2017. A spectacular 3.4% rise in production to 8.4 million tonnes (mt) compared with Japan’s 0.5% output fall to 8.2 mt in February made India’s production second highest not just for the month, but for the January-February period of the current year as well. Japan had produced more than India in all preceding months including in January 2018. While China is miles ahead of others in terms of production, the gap between Japan and India was narrowing in the past few years. Japan produced 104.7 mt steel in 2017 compared with India’s 101.4 mt. Read more… (Surya Sarathi Ray, Financial Express, Tue, 27 Mar, 01:07pm)
4. Air India makes history by flying to Israel via Saudi airspace The direct maiden flight of Air India to Tel Aviv from New Delhi arrived here on Thursday, heralding a new chapter in the IndiaIsrael ties and ending a decades-old overfly ban by Saudi Arabia. Flight AI 139 landed at Tel Aviv's Ben Gurion airport at 2215 (Israeli time). "This is really a historical moment...We are in a new era. I am sure that we will see many more Indian tourists coming to Israel...and Israelis would also come to India in much higher numbers," Israeli Tourism Minister Yariv Levin told PTI. He said such a direct link would further strengthen the relationship between the two nations. Saudi Arabia's decision to permit Air India to use its airspace has enabled the airline to take a shorter route. Read more… (PTI, Mar 23, 2018, 16:00 IST)
5. India's first Sign Language Dictionary with 3000 words launched, step towards removing communication barriers Union Minister for Social Justice and Empowerment has launched the first Indian sign language dictionary today which comprises of 3000 words. During the launch of the dictionary in Delhi, Thaawarchand Gehlot addressed on the occasion and said that the aim is to give the constitutional right to speech to deaf people and opportunity of freedom of expression, and also bringing them into the mainstream society. Read more… (IndiaToday.in, March 23, 2018, 16:07 IST)
6. Indian women peacekeepers play sterling role in Liberia As the UN mission in Liberia successfully completes its mandate, the role of an all-female contingent of peacekeepers from India deployed with it is being highlighted for inspiring women in the West African nation to become police officers. The United Nations Mission in Liberia (UNMIL) was established by the Security Council in 2003 and will officially close at the end of this month, successfully completing its mandate after almost 15 years of supporting the West African nation in the transition to peace and democracy. Read more… (Agencies, Millennium post, Sun, 25 Mar, 02:20pm)
7. IIT alumnus builds AI-powered tool for social media marketers These days, a brand can take a severe beating in social media and other digital channels if it is not listening. There are thousands of reviews out there, but most digital media agencies turn a blind eye to understanding each review. No wonder, customers take to Twitter to complain, and brands are forced to raise quick tickets to address issues. Santosh Thota, the Founder of SmatSocial, has built a platform that uses AI with natural language processing (NLP) to understand customer feedback, on product and services, from various social media platforms and review forums. Read more… (Vishal Krishna, Your Story, Sat, 24 Mar, 01:19pm)
8. Big feat for Indian-origin scientists! Novel antibiotic to kill drug-resistant bacteria created Indian-origin scientists have developed a novel “game changing” antibiotic which is capable of killing drug-resistant bacteria and could lead to the first new class of antibiotic drug in 30 years. The breakthrough is another major step towards developing a commercially viable drug version based on teixobactin – a natural antibiotic discovered by US scientists in soil samples in 2015 which has been heralded as a “gamechanger” in the battle against antibiotic resistant pathogens such as MRSA and VRE. Scientists from the University of Lincoln in the UK successfully created a simplified, synthesized form of teixobactin which has been used to treat a bacterial infection in mice, demonstrating the first proof that such simplified versions of its real form could be used to treat real bacterial infection as the basis of a new drug. Read more… (PTI, Financial Express, Sun, 25 Mar, 02:02pm)
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Vol. 02, Issue. 13, March 29, 2018.
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