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Arun Narote's killers get 38 years in prison Details on page 12
Outrage over San Jose hate crime Details on page 18
Martin Luther King was called ‘untouchable’
VOL 17, No. 906
January 27, 2012
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Periodical Postage
SIKH AMERICAN IS VA. TOWN MAYOR
India Post News Service
NEW YORK: The City Council of Charlottesville, Virginia elected Sikh American Satyendra Huja as Mayor, in a unanimous decision early this month. Although Huja has been in public service in Charlottesville for nearly four decades, his election as Mayor assumes historic significance for the Indian Ameri-
can community, more so because he is the only Sikh resident in this city of less than 45,000 population, and at least three American presidents have called Charlottesville home. Satyendra Huja was elected to Charlottesville City Council in November of 2007 and reelected to a second term in the November 2011 election. Satyendra Huja
Details on page 5
Oprah Winfrey meets Bollywood Details on page 24
CWG scam: HC grants bail to Kalmadi, Verma Details on page 5
India rejects US think tank report on nuclear safety
Details on page 7 Details on page 7
UN finds France violated Sikh religious right
Tata Steel bags multi-million pound order
Details on page 8 Details on page 7
Hindus welcome dismissal of Gita ban plea
CONTENTS Bollywood ---------------------- 38-39 Classifieds ------------------------- 47 Community Post -------------- 12-19
Details on page 8
Date Book -------------------------- 31 Edit Page --------------------------- 49
INDIA POST SURVEY
HealthScience Post --------- 34-37
survey@indiapost.com
Horoscope ------------------------- 20
This week’s question
Immigration Post ------------- 40-43
Can the new Myanmar govt be trusted
Life Style ----------------------- 24-25 Philosophy ------------------------- 48
Last week’s result
Publisherís Diary ------------------ 4
PBD awards are fair ? YES 63%
NO 37%
SIGN OF CHANGE: Myanmar democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi registers to run as a candidate in upcoming by-elections at the Thanlyin township election commission office on the outskirts of Yangon on January 18. Suu Kyi is contesting a seat in parliament in the April 1 by-elections in the latest sign of change in the military-dominated country. -Report on page 6
Real Estate -------------------- 21-23 TechBiz Post ------------------- 44-46 Travel & Hospitality Post ---- 26-30
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here is fame and there is notoriety and then there is a certain celebrity that one assumes just by being who they are made out to be by others. With author Salman Rushdie, it's all of that and a bit of villainy too for the many in the world who hate him, some who love to hate him and a few that hate to love him. If Rushdie didn't merit mention in gossip columns for his penchant for girlfriends who are much younger to him in age and taller in height, he would just be a token progressive Muslim voice that routinely gains place on panel discussions. But thanks to a cult of politicians in India, who zealously use religion as the basis for their shenanigans, Rushdie becomes a poster boy for vote bank politics, unfailingly ensuring his place in the headlines. And so he is in the news once again because a certain Muslim cleric in India decides to gain political mileage by demanding that Rushdie be banned from speaking at the Jaipur literary festival, because apparently Indian Muslims are still hurting from what he wrote in the Satanic Verses. And all it takes in India is a 'hurt religious sentiment' to bring the country to the brink of a communal flare up. It's ridiculous because Rushdie has been to India several times in the past. He can travel to India without a visa as the holder of a Person of Indian Origin (PIO) card. And we are not even talking about the democratic tenets of free speech. There are over 150 million Muslims in India and I cannot believe that most of them would still care about what was said in that book published almost 25 years ago. I am not a fan of Rushdie's writing but I have heard him speak and like what he says on religious fundamentalism. He does make for a very sane voice in the cacophony of bigotry and blind faith around the world. So if anyone needs to speak up, it is the Muslims in India - not against Rushdie but against their vested leadership.
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Heroine milestone Madhur Bhndarkar is super excited with his upcoming film 'Heroine' and his leading lady Kareena Kapoor's performance.
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Cover Story: Sikh Mayor The City Council of Charlottesville, Virginia elected Sikh American Satyendra Huja as Mayor in a unanimous decision.
Community: Teaching Hindi Bensalem Township becomes the first school district in the state of Pennsylvania to teach Hindi.
Health: Falsifying data An Indian American researcher at the University of Connecticut has been found guilty of falsifying and fabricating data.
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Travel: Goa Goa is known for its Gothic churches, crumbling forts, palm-fringed beaches, coconut groves, ferry rides.
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January 27, 2012
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Sikh American elected Charlottesville Mayor India Post News Service
NEW YORK: The City Council of Charlottesville, Virginia elected Sikh American Satyendra Huja as Mayor, in a unanimous decision early this month. Although Huja has been in public service in Charlottesville for nearly four decades, his election as Mayor assumes historic significance for the Indian American community, more so because he is the only Sikh resident in this city of less than 45,000 population, and at least three American presidents have called Charlottesville home. Satyendra Huja was elected to Charlottesville City Council in November of 2007 and reelected
to a second term in the November 2011 election. He was selected to serve as Charlottesville's Mayor at the first council meeting of 2012.
director of city planning and community development. From 1998 to 2004, he was director of strategic planning with experiences in the area of Down-
Although Huja has been in public service in Charlottesville for nearly four decades, his election as Mayor assumes historic significance for the Indian American community, more so because he is the only Sikh resident in this city of less than 45,000 population Huja is the President of Community Planning Associates, focusing on planning, design, development, and management consulting. He was hired by Charlottesville in 1973 to serve as
town Revitalization, Housing, Historic Preservation, Transportation Planning, Art and Culture Activities, and Neighborhood Revitalization. Huja also has been a consult-
Satyendra Huja
ant to the City of Pleven, Bulgaria for Economic Development and Tourism Marketing. Born 1942 in Kohat in what is present day Pakistan, Huja migrated to the US in 1960. He has a BA in Psychology and a Masters in Urban Planning from Michigan State University. Huja retired as community planner and Adjunct faculty at University of Virginia School of Architecture. Huja is married to his wife Irene and has two sons named Uday and Ajai, as well as a step-son named Ben. He is also a grandfather. In the last 38 years of public service in Charlottesville, including three years as a city councilor, he has been involved in many projects, programs and initiatives.
CWG scam: HC grants bail to Kalmadi, Verma "There is no allegation of money trail to the petitioners. There is also no evidence that the petitioner is threatening witnesses or interfering with evidence
ing a loss of over Rs 90 crore to the state exchequer. The CBI had in its charge sheet filed in May 2011 described Kalmadi as main accused in the case.
Kalmadi had moved the High Court in January, seeking bail citing the Supreme Court's judgment in 2G spectrum case and said it has been held that "bail is rule and jail is exception". Kalmadi said only a charge sheet has been filed against him and there was remote possibility of commencement of the trial in the near future
Former CWG Organizing Committee chairman Suresh Kalmadi
NEW DELHI: After remaining behind bars for nearly nine months, former CWG Organizing Committee chairman Suresh Kalmadi has been granted bail by the Delhi High Court in a 2010 Games-related graft case. The court also granted bail to OC former director general and coaccused V K Verma. While granting them bail, Justice Mukta Gupta directed them to furnish before the trial court a bail bond of Rs 5 lakh each and two sureties of the like amount. Justice Gupta said, "There is
no allegation that the petitioners are likely to flee from justice and will not be available for the trial." The court directed them not to leave the country without prior permission of the trial court. Kalmadi was arrested by the CBI on April 25, 2011 while Verma was arrested on February 23, 2011 in the Timing, Scoring and Result system scam. While allowing their plea for bail which cited Supreme Court's judgment in 2G spectrum case wherein it was held that "bail is rule and jail is exception", Justice Gupta said,
during investigation or trial." Kalmadi had moved the High Court in January, seeking bail citing the Supreme Court's judgment in 2G spectrum case and said it has been held that "bail is rule and jail is exception". . Kalmadi said only a charge sheet has been filed against him and there was remote possibility of commencement of the trial in the near future. The CBI had, however, opposed the bail pleas of Kalmadi and Verma and referred to the trial court's January 4 order submitting that it has been decided that the case would be heard on a day-today basis soon after scrutiny of documents. It had also said that there was nothing new in the "bail-is-ruleand-jail-an-exception" remark of the apex court while granting bail in the 2G case. Kalmadi, Verma and nine others have been accused of allegedly awarding a contract to a Swiss firm to install a Timing-Scoring-Result (TSR) system for the Games at an exorbitant rate, caus-
Besides Kalmadi and Verma, others who are accused in the TSR scam include OC former Secretary General Lalit Bhanot, OC Director General (Procurement) Surjit Lal, Joint Director General (Sports) A
S V Prasad, Treasurer M Jayachandran, Managing Director A K Reddy of Hyderabad-based AKR Constructions and promoters A K Madan and P D Arya of a Faridabad-based firm Gem International. Two companies AKR Constructions and Swiss Timing are also accused in the case. The Special CBI court had on May 23, 2011 given a go-ahead for their prosecution under various provisions of the IPC dealing with criminal conspiracy, forging documents and using fake documents as genuine and the Prevention of Corruption Act. The contract was illegally awarded to Swiss Timing which further sub-contracted it to Gem International. Gem International then sub-let the TSR work to AKR Constructions. -PTI
Chinese State Councilor, Dai Bingguo called on Prime Minister, Manmohan Singh in New Delhi on January 17
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Aung San Suu Kyi launches bid for Parliament YANGON: Burmese opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi launched her historic bid for a seat in parliament on January 18 in the latest sign of change in the country after the end of decades of outright military rule The Nobel Peace Prize winner is standing in April 1 by-elections seen as a major test of the regime's reform credentials following a surprising series of conciliatory gestures by the new nominally civilian government. The pro-democracy leader submitted her registration to stand in a rural constituency in Kawhmu near Rangoon, an area devastated by Cyclone Nargis in 2008, to the delight of crowds of supporters waiting outside. "Aung San Suu Kyi was the first member of the NLD to register. She's going to run for the lower house," said Win Htein, a senior party official. The 66-year-old's National League for Democracy party has already been given approval to return to the official political arena, against a backdrop of budding reforms including dialogue between the regime and the opposition. The NLD was stripped of its status as a legal political party in 2010 because it boycotted a controversial national election, saying the rules were unfair. Ms Suu Kyi was released from
Myanmar democracy icon Aung San Suu Kyi waves to supporters as she leaves the Thanlyin township election commission office after she registered to run as a candidate in upcoming by-elections, on the outskirts of Yangon on January 18
years of house arrest shortly after the vote, which was marred by complaints of cheating and easily won by the military's allies. A quarter of parliament's seats are now taken up by unelected military officials while the Union Solidarity and Development Party, which is packed with former military men, holds about 80 per cent of the remainder. Since coming to power in March, the new military-backed government dominated by former generals has made a series of reformist moves in an apparent attempt to reach out to political op-
"I guarantee the elections will be free and fair," said lower house speaker Shwe Mann. Ms Suu Kyi hinted at the weekend that she could take a position in the government but said it "depends on the circumstances"
ponents and the West. These included releasing hundreds of political prisoners, suspending construction of an unpopular mega-dam and pursuing peace deals with armed ethnic minority rebels. The NLD won an election in 1990 by a landslide, while Ms Suu Kyi remained under house arrest, but the ruling generals never allowed the party to take power. A total of 48 seats are up for grabs in the April vote - not enough to threaten the resounding majority held by the ruling party. But the participation of Ms
Suu Kyi would give a boost to the legislature's credibility. A top regime figure said that Burma has "no other way" but to embrace democracy, and promised that the April poll would be democratic. "I guarantee the elections will be free and fair," said lower house speaker Shwe Mann. Ms Suu Kyi hinted at the weekend that she could take a position in the government but said it "depends on the circumstances". The April by-elections are to fill places vacated by those elected in the 2010 polls who have since become ministers and deputy ministers in the government. Burma's government released about 300 political prisoners in its latest amnesty, prompting the US to move to restore full diplomatic ties for the first time in more than two decades. The top Republican in the US Senate said the regime was serious about change and voiced openness for an eventual lifting of the sanctions which he has long championed if Ms Suu Kyi believed it was the right course. "We are open to it," Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell said after talks with key regime figures in the capital Naypyidaw, describing the change of direction in Burma as "quite remarkable".-AFP
Karen army, Burma govt agree to ceasefire
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Karen National Union del egation who met with gov ernment officials for ceasefire talks says they have reached an agreement for a truce in the volatile eastern state of Myanmar, according to the Democratic Voice of Burma (DVB) website. A reporter in the Karen town of Hpa-an said both sides had agreed to a four-point ceasefire. "There are four points: the ceasefire itself, as well as opening of liaison offices, freedom to move around in the region without weapons, and to follow up with more talks". It becomes the strongest signal yet that peace may finally come to a region devastated by the world's longest-running civil war, although deep skepticism still remains. The KNU's vice-chairman, David Thakabaw, told DVB: "Our past experience dealing with the government has always been tricky. They're not very honest - they say good words but today is just like before [when talks broke down]." The 19-strong delegation will travel to the Eastern Regional Military Command headquarters
look at the problem from all angles." The KNU has also demanded that the Burmese army end attack against ethnic minorities across the country, although it is unclear if this formed part of the deal. In addition to the conflict, the government has neglected devel-
Representative of the rebel Karen National Union (KNU) Saw Jawni - Johnny - (L) and a Myanmar government official (R) exchange documents following ceasefire talks in Hpa-an, the main city of the country's eastern Karen state on January 12
in the nearby Mon state capital of Moulmein to discuss "military matters". The Karen refused to join a ceasefire process in the mid-1990s that saw many of the country's armed ethnic groups agree to truces, many in exchange for business concessions from the government. This in-
cluded the Kachin Independence Army in Burma's north, but that deal broke down in June last year and fighting has since engulfed large parts of the northern state. The KNU enjoys widespread support among the state's population, much of which has been subject to decades of debased
treatment at the hands of Burmese troops. Thackabaw said that Karen people were wary of what the outcome of a ceasefire might mean for the state. "A quick ceasefire now would be tantamount to surrender - that's what the people are worried about," he said. "We will be very cautious and
"A quick ceasefire now would be tantamount to surrender that's what the people are worried about," he said. "We will be very cautious and look at the problem from all angles" opment in eastern Burma, where poverty levels outstrip those in urban areas and where more than 500,000 people are classed as internally displaced persons (IDPs). Karen officials told DVB prior to leaving that they would press the government to prioritize development there.
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India rejects US think tank report on nuclear safety
Foreign Secretary Ranjan Mathai (C), Gary Samore (2nd R), White House Coordinator for Arms Control and Weapons of Mass Destruction (WMD) Terrorism and South Koreas Deputy Foreign Minister for Multilateral and Global Affairs Kim Bong-Hyun (2nd L) at the meeting of the Sherpas for the Nuclear Security Summit 2012 in New Delhi
NEW DELHI: Strongly rejecting the findings of a US-based think tank which poorly rated India on nuclear safety index, New Delhi has said the findings were based on "faulty methodology" and it used "unreliable information". "We have seen the report but we do not share its conclusions as we believe it is based upon faulty methodology especially on issues relating to India," Foreign Secretary Ranjan Mathai said. The index, compiled by think-tank Nuclear Threat Initiative (NTI) had ranked India very low, just above Iran, Pakistan and North Korea.
Mathai said all nuclear materials in India were subject to strict oversight controls and that New
keeping with international commitments, on-site physical protection, response capabilities and
"We have seen the report but we do not share its conclusions as we believe it is based upon faulty methodology especially on issues relating to India," Foreign Secretary Ranjan Mathai said Delhi has an unblemished record. He said the index was based on "unreliable information". While India scored good in
accounting procedures, it fell behind when it came to political stability and because of the lack of domestic legislation. -PTI
Tata Steel bags multi-million pound order from Siemens LONDON/NEW DELHI: Tata Steel has bagged a multi-million pound order from engineering giant Siemens Wind Power for the supply of 25,000 tonnes of high quality profiled steel plate for 150 wind turbine towers, it said. "The order - the largest to date for the steel company's dedicated wind tower hub in Scunthorpe, England - is worth an eight figure pound sum and establishes Tata Steel as a key supplier to Siemens Wind Power," the company said in a statement. Tata Steel will deliver the profiled plate, cut into the desired shape, between April and September this year, it added. "Demand for steel in the renewable energy sector will continue to grow and we are ideally placed to help our customers tap into this important opportunity," Tata Steel Commercial Manager for Power Generation Phil Knowles said. Knowles added, "The agreement we have negotiated with Siemens Wind Power is a strategic customer alliance that will help in our objective to be a key supplier in the offshore wind power market." The multi-million pound order from Siemens comes at a time when Europe's steel industry is struggling to cope with lower demand amid economic uncertainty in the euro zone. Tata Steel Europe, in particu-
lar, has been hit severely by the crisis, with its gross earnings (EBITDA) falling by 42.8 per cent to USD 103 million in the JuneSeptember quarter of 2011. The company has mothballed a blast furnace in Scunthrope and a hot strip mill in Llanwern in Wales in recent times. The company statement said it has already supplied Siemens Wind Power with 6,000 tonnes of steel plate for similar developments in the UK and Europe.
"Demand for steel in the renewable energy sector will continue to grow and we are ideally placed to help our customers tap into this important opportunity� The order is the largest so far for its dedicated wind tower site in Scunthorpe, UK, which was established in 2010. The plant can deliver up to 2,00,000 tonnes of steel plates annually. Following the announcement, shares of Tata Steel were trading at Rs 433.70 apiece on the BSE at 1400 hours, up 2.08 per cent from their previous close. -PTI
Martin Luther King was called untouchable in India ATLANTA: A moment of his trip to India initially left American civil rights activist Martin Luther King Jr "shocked" and "peeved" but it probably later brought him face-to-face with the then dark reality of black people being "untouchable" in US. Yes, it is common knowledge that King, one of the greatest icons of universal peace, was a follower of Mahatma Gandhi, but a trip to South India in 1959, where he was introduced as an American untouchable, also influenced his thinking. Speaking at the historic Ebenezer Baptist Church here on occasion of the Martin Luther King Day service, Raj Razdan, Executive Director of the Senior Citizen Program of Georgia, brought out new facets of King's learning ties with India. She said King, who was assassinated in 1964, once described his visit to India to a congregation here in the church.
students who were children of former untouchables. "The principal of the school introduced me and then he came to the conclusion of his introduction. He said, 'young people, I would like to present to you a fellow untouchable from the United Sates of America' and for a mo-
ciety. And as I thought about this, I finally said to myself, yes, I am an untouchable and every Negro in the United States is an untouchable". Razdan brought forward many commonalities between King and Gandhi, who has been described by the American civil activist as
King said he then started to think "about the fact that 20 million of my brothers and sisters were still smothering in an airtight cage of poverty in an affluent society. And as I thought about this, I finally said to myself, yes, I am an untouchable
Martin Luther King, Jr. and Coretta Scott King in New Delhi, India, 1959
"Dr King told the members of the church and I quote 'I remember when Mrs King and I were in India we journeyed down one afternoon to the southernmost
part of India to the city of Trivandrum in Kerala. That afternoon I was to speak at a high school. This particular school was attended by and large by
ment I was shocked and even peeved that I would be referred to as an untouchable'," Razdan quoted King as saying years back. King said he then started to think "about the fact that 20 million of my brothers and sisters were still smothering in an airtight cage of poverty in an affluent so-
his "social and political mentor". "It is little wonder that one of the books about the life of Dr King was titled 'King, The American Mahatma'," Razdan said. The Ebenezer Baptist Church is where King honed his oratory skills and found his spiritual fervor. -PTI
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UN finds France violated Sikh religious freedom India Post News Service
NEW YORK: The UN Human Rights Committee (UNHRC) has concluded that France had violated the religious freedom of 76 year old Ranjit Singh when he was asked to remove his turban for his ID photograph. This was disclosed recently at a media conference, in Bobigny (near Paris), by the United Sikhs legal team, who had filed a communication on behalf of Ranjit Singh to the UNHRC in December 2008. The media conference was told that the UNHRC observed that "even if the obligation to remove the turban for the identity photograph might be described as a one-time requirement, it would potentially interfere with Ranjit Singh's freedom of religion on a continuing basis because he
would always appear without his religious head covering in the identity photograph and could therefore be compelled to remove his turban during identity checks."
tuted a violation of article 18 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), which was entered into force for France on 4 February 1981. The views were adopted at the 102nd
I pray that France will now fulfill its obligation and grant me a residence card bearing my photo without baring my head," said Ranjit Singh, who despite his ill-health has had no access to the public health-care system or to social benefits since 2005 The Committee said that France had failed to explain how the Sikh turban hindered identification since the wearer's face would be visible and he would be wearing the turban it at all times, therefore, the regulation consti-
session of the Committee's sitting. "I had faith that truth and justice would prevail and I patiently waited for this day. I pray that France will now fulfill its obligation and grant me a residence card bearing my photo without baring
my head," said Ranjit Singh, who despite his ill-health has had no access to the public health-care system or to social benefits since 2005 because his residence card was refused due to his refusal to remove his turban. "United Sikhs is heartened by the Committee's observations that France is under an obligation to provide Ranjit Singh with an effective remedy, including a reconsideration of his application for a renewal of his residence permit and a review of the relevant legislative framework and its application in practice. France, the Committee noted, is also under an obligation to take steps to prevent similar violations in the future," said Mejindarpal Kaur, United Sikhs Legal Director, who addressed the media conference.
"We now look to France to fulfill its treaty obligations under International law and its moral duty to ensure that the freedom of religion and belief is upheld for everyone who lives within its territory," she added. "We are very pleased with the views that the Committee adopted and we welcome France's compliance with these findings. We also look forward to a similar resolution for Shingara Singh, whose case is still pending before the Committee," O'Melveny & Myers, a New York law firm engaged by United Sikhs, said in a statement through their attorneys who spoke during a telephone interview. A decision is still awaited for Shingara Singh, whose passport has not been renewed by France because he refused to remove his turban for his ID photograph.
Birmingham murders: Lithuanian Hindus welcome dismissal of Gita ban plea in Russia suspect charged LONDON: A 37-year-old Lithuanian national has been charged with the murders of Indian-origin Avtar Singh Kolar and his British wife in Birmingham recently, the British police said and indicated that the couple was killed during a robbery in their house. The West Midlands Police, that had launched a major investigation named Operation Tiler, said they were not looking for anyone else in relation to the case. The suspect, named Rimvydas Liorancas, 37, was to appear before the Birmingham Magistrates Court. He was taken into custody in Birmingham. The bodies of Avtar Singh, 62, and Carlole, 59, were found by
their police officer son, Jason, from their house in Handsworth Wood, Birmingham. The police ruled out theft of
The couple's bodies were found when calls to them went unresponded. A post mortem showed that the couple died due to head injuries gold as a motive for the murder, and said a number of items that were stolen from the Kolars house had been recovered.
There was also no link to the fact that the couple's son, Jason Kolar, is a serving officer in the West Midlands Police. The couple's bodies were found when calls to them went unresponded. A post mortem showed that the couple died due to head injuries. Sector Crown Prosecutor from West Midlands Crown Prosecution Service, Martin Lindup, said: "I have advised West Midlands Police that there is sufficient evidence and it is in the public interest to charge Rimvydas Liorancas, aged 37, with two counts of murder following the death of Avtar and Carole Kolar at their home in Handsworth Wood, Birmingham".-PTI
VISITORS TO URUGUAY: Lok Sabha Speaker Meira Kumar (C) and other members of the visiting Indian Parliamentary delegation with Danilo Astori, Vice President of Uruguay at Parliament of Uruguay, in Montevideo on January 16
India Post News Service
NEW YORK: The World Hindu Council of America (VHP America) has congratulated the judicial system in Russia in view of the recent decision in Siberia for dismissing a plea to ban the Bhagvad Gita. In view of the recent decision of the state prosecutors in Siberia on Jan 4, 2012, who dismissed a plea to ban the Bhagavad Gita, one of Hinduism's holy treatises, the World Hindu Council of America (VHP America) congratulated the judicial system in Russia, and Hindus around the world, for expressing their faith in Universal knowledge and divinity, as represented by the Bhagavad Gita. "We also thank Judge Galina Butenko of the Leninsky District Court in Tomsk for clarifying to the prejudiced plaintiffs belonging to a section of the Othodox Church, that the Bhagavad Gita "did not advocate social discord," as they had ridiculously claimed," the Hindu organization said in a statement. VHP America pointed out that one of the most reputable sons of Russia, Leo Tolstoy, was one amongst many, who was greatly influenced by the Bhagavad Gita. Milan Markovitch, author of "Tolstoi et Gandhi," wrote that: "There is not one of Tolstoy's works written after this period" of his life referred to in the Confessions "which is not inspired, in part, by Hindu thought…… His was a Christianity underpinned by the great Hindu doctrines.' Marcovitch
further adds that Tolstoy also "remains the most striking example, among a great many, of those who sought a cure for the western spirit, in Hinduism." A better understanding of Hindu philosophies, both from a theological and sociological perspective is critical to the removal
"We also thank Judge Galina Butenko of the Leninsky District Court in Tomsk for clarifying to the prejudiced plaintiffs belonging to a section of the Othodox Church, that the Bhagavad Gita "did not advocate social discord” of religious and social biases, which lead to such cases. It is also important this remains an isolated case of zealous intolerance, the VHPA said. The World Hindu Council of America (VHP America) looks forward to working with the Russian Government and their representatives in the United States, to develop educational initiatives, which would create a better understanding of Hindu religious scriptures and practices, the organization said.
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India contributes $ 1 mn Krishna lauds steps to contain EU debt crisis to UN women forum multi-year pledge to provide five million US dollars as core predictable funding to UN Women's resources.
Ambassador Puri also reaffirmed the Government of India's steadfast commitment to the goals of gender equality Pic Mohammed Jaffer-Snapsindia
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ndia has made a contribution of $1 million towards the core voluntary budget of the United Nations Women (United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women). Ambassador H S Puri, Perma-
nent Representative of India to the UN handed over the check of $1 million to Dr Michele Bachelet, Under Secretary General and Executive Director of UN Women on January 12. This contribution constitutes the second installment of India's
On this occasion, Ambassador Puri also reaffirmed the Government of India's steadfast commitment to the goals of gender equality, the empowerment of women and gender mainstreaming enshrined in the mandate of UN Women. India is currently one of the members of the Executive Board of the UN Women.
Guj govt challenges HC order on Lokayukta in SC NEW DELHI: The Gujarat Government has approached the Supreme Court challenging the state High Court order upholding the appointment of Justice R A Mehta as the Lokayukta by the governor. The Gujarat High Court had upheld the appointment of Justice (Retd) Mehta as the Lokayukta while sharply criticizing Chief Minister Narendra Modi for his "pranks" that had sparked a "constitutional mini crisis". Rejecting the state government's plea, three months after the High Court gave a split verdict, Justice V M Sahai said the "pranks" played by the Chief Minister on the Lokayukta issue "demonstrate destruction of our democracy". Justice Sahai, who was given the task of hearing the challenge against the appointment of Lokayukta following the conflicting verdict of the two-member bench, said Modi's "questionable" conduct of "stonewalling" the appointment of Justice Mehta threatened the rule of law. He said the Chief Minister's effort to metastasise the procedure for appointment of Lokayukta by issuing the Gujarat Lokayukta (Amendment) Ordinance, 2011, were "deprave and truculent" actions.
Holding that "extraordinary situations demand extraordinary remedies", he said, "Open resistance of the Council of Ministers headed by the Chief Minister in not accepting the primacy of the opinion of the Chief Justice of the Gujarat High Court in the matter of appointment of Lokayukta has created a crisis situation." There was no good reason to
Gujarat Governor Kamla Beniwal had on August 25 last appointed Justice Mehta to the post of Lokayukta, which had been lying vacant for the last eight years reject the name of Justice Mehta once the objections of the Chief Minister had been overruled by the Chief Justice, he noted. Modi had insisted on Justice J R Vora to be appointed as Lokayukta but this was not accepted by the Chief Justice on the ground that the judge had been appointed as the Director of the Gujarat State Judicial Academy.
If the Chief Minister's choice had been accepted, it would have set a "pernicious trend" and would have propitiated the public functionaries who were likely to fall within the scanner of Lokayukta and destroyed the integrity of the institution as envisaged, Justice Sahai said. Gujarat Governor Kamla Beniwal had on August 25 last appointed Justice Mehta to the post of Lokayukta, which had been lying vacant for the last eight years. The state government had challenged the appointment in the High Court the very next day, saying the governor had "bypassed" the state government. Modi had maintained that the governor had acted unconstitutionally in selecting the ombudsman as the state government had not been consulted. On October 11, a division bench of the High Court had given a split verdict on the appointment issue. While one of the judges had upheld the decision of the Governor, another judge had quashed the warrant of appointment issued by him, terming it unconstitutional. The matter was then referred to Justice Sahai. -PTI
BANGALORE: External Affairs Minister S M Krishna has voiced happiness over European leaders' decision to take steps to contain the debt crisis in Europe and said he believed a revival of their economies is in the interest of the international community, including India. "We are happy to note that European leaders have decided to take the required steps to contain the crisis and are confident that lasting remedies will be found and implemented," he told reporters here after talks with European Union High Representative for Foreign Affairs Catherine Ashton. He said India believes a revival of European economies and Europe's continued growth is in the interest of the international community, including India. He said India is committed to work with the EU as a true and reliable partner to contribute to world peace and prosperity. "Today we have concluded useful and substantive discussions covering the entire spectrum of our relations. We exchanged views in a spirit of warmth and friendship," he said. The relationship and engagement between India and EU in different areas has expanded over the years and would expand further as the EU evolves, Krishna said. Keeping in mind the important roles India and EU play in the international arena, views were also exchanged on various regional and global issues of common interest, he said. He said Prime Minister Manmohan Singh's visit to Brussels for the IndiaEU Summit in December, 2010, has
External Affairs Minister S M Krishna
The relationship and engagement between India and EU in different areas has expanded over the years and would expand further as the EU evolves, Krishna said strengthened the strategic partnership between India and EU. In the past one year, India and the EU have intensified dialogue on various aspects of the relationship, he said, adding, "We look forward to the visit of the leadership of the EU to India for the next India-EU Summit, scheduled to be held shortly in Delhi." Krishna said India and EU have prepared to take the cooperation forward in the India-EU Summit meeting. "The two sides also took this opportunity to review the progress in the implementation of the Joint Action Plan, which remains the guiding force of our relations," he said. -PTI
'FTA between India & EU will take more time' BANGALORE: A proposed Free Trade Agreement (FTA) between India and the European Union will take more time to materialize as discussions on its technical aspects are a long-drawn process, a top European Union official said here. "Discussions on technical details of the FTA between India and the European Union is a long-drawn process and there should also be political inclination for it," Catherine Ashton, the EU's High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and the Vice-President of the European Commission, told reporters here.
However, discussions on technical details of the FTA are progressing satisfactorily, she said after meeting External Affairs Minister S M Krishna ahead of the India-EU Summit to be held in New Delhi shortly. Ashton said there has been considerable progress in talks between EU and Indian officials on technical details of the FTA in the last three months. "FTA with India is of enormous importance to the EU," she added. With India aiming at a higher than 7.5 per cent growth rate, it needs investment and enhanced trade with nations in the EU, Ashton said. -PTI
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Scuffle between journos and Winfrey's guards at Vrindavan
US talk show host Oprah Winfrey walks with Australian author Gregory Roberts through a lane in Mumbai on January 17
MATHURA: On her maiden trip to India, American talk show queen Oprah Winfrey's visit to this holy town was marred when her bodyguards were involved in a scuffle with journalists. Three Indian bodyguards were arrested following the incident in which some video cameras were allegedly broken following a com-
plaint filed by media personnel covering Winfrey's visit. No one was injured in the incident, police said. The bodyguards were later released after they wrote a letter of apology to the media, police said. Two American securitymen and a dozen bodyguards from In-
dia were part of Winfrey's entourage when it reached Vrindavan. She is in India in connection with a shoot for her new show 'Next Chapter'. Earlier in the morning, she filmed a documentary on widows and also took part in a 'bhajan' at the ashram situated in Patthar Pura. -PTI
Bangladesh army says it foiled plot to topple govt DHAKA: Bangladesh army has said it has foiled a plot inside the force to topple Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's government and have arrested two former officers besides launching a manhunt for a fugitive officer while some 16 others are being kept under strict military vigil. "We have already unveiled a plot to topple the democratic government mounting in Bangladesh army, in which several in service officers were found to be involved," said an army spokesman at a hurriedly called press conference. Brigadier General Mohammad Masud Razzak told the crowded press conference at Dhaka Cantonment that 14 to 16 officers were under vigil as investigations were underway on their suspected involvement while the detained two former officers "bluntly admitted their role in the plot". "Stringent legal measures will be taken against the persons involved in the conspiracy after proper investigations," Razzak said.
He declined to give details about the plot or the suspects but said they all were officers of "middle level" and the officer on the run was a major and of the arrested two one was a former Lieutenant Colonel and another was a Major.
14 to 16 officers were under vigil as investigations were underway on their suspected involvement while the detained two former officers "bluntly admitted their role in the plot� "Banking on the army in the past, different evil forces availed political gains and made abortive attempts to do so but as an institution, military still has to bear the stigma," Razzak said. The Awami League led by Hasina assumed power in 2009.-PTI
'Don't be over-sensitive about US camera pioneer Kodak files for bankruptcy India's ties with China' ON BOARD SPECIAL AIRCRAFT: India's relations with China are on a strong footing and one should not be "over-sensitive" about it, External Affairs Minister S M Krishna said here. "Well, let us not be over-sensitive about our relations with China. The relationship between India and China are on a strong footing," Krishna told reporters
accompanying him on his way back home from Sri Lanka. He was responding to a question whether the relations between India and China were witnessing trouble again in the backdrop of the recent incidents like Indian traders being held in China and reports that Beijing refused to give visa to a member from Arunachal Pradesh who was part
of an Indian military delegation visiting the country. "India has strategic partnership with China. We have good bilateral relations with China," he said. Krishna's comments also assume significance in the wake of the recent talks between the two neighbors on the border issue.-PTI
BONHOMIE: Defense Minister A K Antony with Army Chief Gen V K Singh during an At Home organized on the occasion of Army Day, in New Delhi
NEW YORK: US camera pioneer Eastman Kodak, which brought photography to the masses over a century ago, has filed for bankruptcy. "After considering the advantages of Chapter 11 at this time, the Board of Directors and the entire senior management team unanimously believe that this is a necessary step and the right thing to do for the future of Kodak," CEO Antonio Perez said in a statement, referring to US bankruptcy proceedings. "Our goal is to maximize value for stakeholders, including our employees, retirees, creditors, and pension trustees. We are also committed to working with our valued customers," he added. The company, which dates back more than a hundred years, was a pioneer in popularizing photography. But it has been struggling to keep pace with the digital age and years of poor performance had already forced it to lay off 47,000 employees and close 13 manufacturing plants since 2003. "Now we must complete the transformation by further addressing our cost structure and effectively monetizing non-core IP as-
sets," Perez said. "We look forward to working with our stakeholders to emerge a lean, world-class, digital imaging and materials science company."
"Our goal is to maximize value for stakeholders, including our employees, retirees, creditors, and pension trustees. We are also committed to working with our valued customers," he added In its heyday Kodak shares topped USD 80 in 1996 - just at the outset of the digital photo revolution that eventually replaced the need for consumers to buy Kodak film, once a virtual monopoly in the US market. The bankruptcy filing places the jobs of Kodak's 19,000 remaining employees in question. At its height in the 1980s, it had 145,000 workers. -AFP
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US says it is open to work with India on missile shield WASHINGTON: Weeks after offering to sell its F-35 fifth generation fighter jets, the US has said it was open to work with India on joint development of a ballistic missile shield. The offer was made by Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense Robert Scher who said that the Indo-US defense ties were valuable and critical not only for the security and stability of the region, but globally. "We are really open to it. And this is something we ask to and ask them if they are interested in it," Scher said on collaboration on the missile shield project in an interview to PTI, emphasizing that US "is and will be a dependable weapons supplier to India." The top Pentagon official disclosed that Washington and New
Delhi had been involved in crucial discussion on the ballistic missile shield, adding that the US was looking forward to "restart" the dialogue. Reiterating that US was ready for India to join in the multi-nation collaboration on F-35 fighters, Scher said that Washington was still awaiting India's response. Referring to President Barack Obama's latest defense strategy in which the US commits itself to a long-term defense relationship with India, the Pentagon official said the US would certainly welcome discussion with New Delhi on F-35 and anti-missile system. He cited the sale of C-130J transport aircraft to India ahead of the schedule as an example of readiness of the US armament industry to respond to India's need.
Scher said the US has received request for additional six C-130J Super Hercules transport aircraft.
Given that the defense relationship between the two countries is relatively new, is not considered to be even a decade-old in many sense, the Pentagon official referred to defense ties with India as a "learning curve� "I will say that C-130J program is a great example of valuable con-
Musharraf delays plan to return to Pakistan ISLAMABAD: Pakistan's former military ruler Pervez Musharraf has delayed his plans to return home from self-exile after warnings from the government that he would be immediately arrested on his arrival in the country. Leaders of Musharraf's All Pakistan Muslim League told the media that he had delayed his plans to return to Pakistan later this month after consulting friends and party leaders. "Musharraf may not return to Pakistan this month," said Muhammad Ali Saif, the former President's spokesman. "Close friends are advising him against returning now," Saif told reporters. He sought to put a positive spin on the development by saying that Musharraf had been advised by his aides that his return at this juncture would provide "relief" to the government which is grappling with several crises. 68-year-old Musharraf had announced earlier this month that he intended to fly into the port city of Karachi between January 27 and 30. Days after his announcement, Sindh Home Minister Manzoor Wassan said Musharraf would be arrested and sent to jail as soon as he arrived in Karachi. Interior Minister Rehman Malik told the Senate or upper house of parliament that Musharraf would be arrested under the law of the land whenever he arrives in Pakistan.
"The moment he lands, he will go to jail," he said. Musharraf's spokesman Saif said the former President was not afraid of such threats or the cases
Interior Minister Rehman Malik told the Senate or upper house of parliament that Musharraf would be arrested under the law of the land whenever he arrives in Pakistan that have been filed against him in Pakistan. "Musharraf is not afraid of being arrested. The authorities will have to treat him according to his status and the law," he said. . "The
former President has never refused to appear before the courts. He will face the courts and the cases against him whenever he returns," Saif said. Musharraf seized power in 1999 in Pakistan's third military coup but was forced to step down as President in August 2008 after the Pakistan People's Party formed a government following elections. He has been living in Dubai and London since April 2009. In October, a court issued a warrant for his arrest over the killing of Baloch nationalist leader Akbar Bugti in a military operation in August 2006. Another court declared him a fugitive and issued a separate warrant for his arrest for failing to cooperate with investigators probing the 2007 assassination of former premier Benazir Bhutto.-PTI
tribution of both of our countries. It is proof, I think that the US is and will continue to be a dependable defense supplier and it is also good example program that we delivered on time and on budget," he said. Given that the defense relationship between the two countries is relatively new, is not considered to be even a decade-old in many sense, the Pentagon official referred to defense ties with India as a "learning curve". He said Washington wanted to focus on developing cooperative research and development in weapons technology with India so that both the countries could benefit. "Closer cooperation on technology and research pieces within the military and that is where we are looking to expand upon," Scher said.
The Pentagon official said there was commitment on the US side as well as India to break-down bureaucratic hurdles in defense cooperation as the two countries understood "how important the relationship is and how more important the relationship is going to be in the future." Responding to questions on the progress made by India and US on military pacts such as Communications Interoperability and Security Memorandum of Agreement and Mutual Logistic Support Agreement, Scher said this issue has not been discussed. "I will be honest with you. It has not come up in discussions that I had recently and numerous interactions. It is certainly something that we did talk about a lot," he said. -PTI
I am a 'man of crisis': Gilani tells Indian MPs ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani, currently in the thick of political upheaval, called himself a "man of crisis" when pointed out that his Indian counterpart had rightly called him a "man of peace". During a meeting with a visiting Indian parliamentary delegation last evening, the lawmakers, including former ministers Mani Shankar Aiyar and Yashwant Sinha, noted that Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had "rightly said that Yousuf Raza Gilani was a man of peace".
He recalled his meetings with Singh at Sharm-el-Sheikh in Egypt, Thimpu in Bhutan, Mohali and the Maldives on the sidelines of the last SAARC Summit. Referring to his visit to Mohali last year to watch the semi-final of the cricket World Cup between India and Pakistan, Gilani recalled his meeting with Congress president Sonia Gandhi and other top Indian leaders. These interactions "created an enabling environment" that paved the way for a meaningful dialogue process, he said.
Referring to his visit to Mohali last year to watch the semi-final of the cricket World Cup between India and Pakistan, Gilani recalled his meeting with Congress president Sonia Gandhi and other top Indian leaders Pakistan Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilan
59-year-old Gilani responded by saying that "in the context of Pakistani politics, he was a man of crisis," according to a statement issued by the premier's office here. Gilani said his government was committed to a "constructive, sustained and result-oriented process of engagement with India".
Aiyar and Sinha told Gilani that uninterrupted dialogue can bring peace and stability to both countries on a durable basis. Such a development "could entitle both the Prime Ministers for a Nobel Peace Prize," they were quoted as saying. . Gilani said it was his "most cherished dream to see Pakistan and India moving forward towards friendly, cooperative and good neighborly relations".-PTI
Desi News Sanskrit shlokas at King Memorial Service India Post News Serviceb
NEVADA: The 26th Annual Dr. Martin Luther King Junior Interfaith Community Memorial Service in Nevada was concluded with Mantras from ancient Hindu scriptures on January 15. Rajan Zed, President of Universal Society of Hinduism read from Bhagavad-Gita ,Upanishads and Rig-Veda (oldest existing scripture of mankind) besides Gayatri Mantra, the most sacred mantra of Hinduism, during his "benediction" on the occasion. Rajan pointed out that both Mahatma Gandhi and Martin Luther King shared a common vision on fighting injustice. Details on page 14
Indian Finance Minister to visit Chicago HARISH RAO
CHICAGO: Indian Finance Minister Pranob Kumar Mukherjee is slated to come to Chicago on January 28 and January 29 ostensibly to meet members of Indian Diaspora and attend the inauguration of a new plaque in honor of Swami Vivekanand - The Last Harvest: The Paintings of Rabindranath Tagore at the Art Institute of Chicago. The Inauguration ceremony is scheduled on Saturday January 28 at the Art Institute of Chicago on Michigan Avenue at 6 p.m. The event is jointly organized by the National Gallery of Modern Art, New Delhi, and the Ministry of Culture, Government of India, and the Consulate General of India, Chicago. Details on page 16
Indian Consulate gets operational in Atlanta India Post News Service
NEW YORK: The Government of India has opened its Consulate in Georgia, Atlanta. It's the fifth Indian consulate in the United States. Together with the first-ever Consul General of India in Atlanta, Ajit Kumar, Georgia Governor Nathan Deal on Jan 5, announced that the Government of India has opened its first consulate office in Georgia as of the start of the new year. Details on page 17
COMMUNITY ACROSS AMERICA
HAF and SABA outraged over San Jose hate crime Details on page 18
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PA School District announces Hindi for high school students India Post News Service
NEW YORK: Bensalem Township, located on the outskirts of the city of Philadelphia, becomes the first school district in the state of Pennsylvania to teach Hindi in its high school beginning Septem-
The board's decision was made in the presence of dozens of Indian American community members and office bearers of Yuva Hindi Sansthan. Dr. (Mrs.) Heather Nicholas, president of Bensalem School Board, supported the need of diverse population of Bensalem Township that comprised a variety of ethnic and cultural groups ber 2012. The School Board of Bensalem Township, in its meeting held Jan 11, unanimously adopted a reso-
HINDI AT BENSALEM: Dr. Surendra Gambhir, chairman, YHS addressed the Bensalem Township School Board meeting held on January 11, when the board adopted a resolution to launch Hindi curriculum in its High School. (Pic: Ashok Ojha)
lution to introduce Hindi curriculum for high school students. The decision came after a series of promotional efforts made by Yuva Hindi Sansthan, a non-profit educational and cultural institution, and supported by local Indian population. "We are very happy that the school board has accepted the long term demand of our community," said Yagnesh
Choksi, one of the directors of the school board. "We consistently made efforts to introduce Hindi so that our children grow up with knowledge of the national language of India." The board's decision was made in the presence of dozens of Indian American community members and office bearers of Yuva Hindi Sansthan. Dr. (Mrs.)
Heather Nicholas, president of Bensalem School Board, supported the need of diverse population of Bensalem Township that comprised a variety of ethnic and cultural groups. "We are confident that Hindi learning will open up new opportunities to familiarize our students about Indian culture," she commented. Cont’d on page 15
Arun Narote's killers get 38 years in prison India Post News Service
NEW YORK: A woman accused of killing an Indian graduate student in Connecticut in the summer of 2010, has been sentenced to 38 years in jail. Vanessa Ortiz, 21, was sentenced mid-December for the death of Arun Narote, a native of Andhra Pradesh, who was working part time at the Norman's Grocery and Delhi in Bridgeport, Connecticut to support his graduate studies at Stratford University, Virginia. On July 12, 2010 he was shot and killed during an attempted rob-
Ortiz pleaded guilty in September 2011 to charges of felony murder and conspiracy to commit first-degree robbery. She was one of three individuals charged in Narote's death Arun Kumar Narote
bery at the store where he worked. Ortiz pleaded guilty in September 2011 to charges of felony murder and conspiracy to commit firstdegree robbery. She was one of three individuals charged in Narote's death. Luis Torres, 25, also pleaded guilty to felony murder and conspiracy to commit firstdegree robbery and was, likewise, sentenced to 38 years in prison. Marisol Malave, who was convicted of driving the getaway car during the robbery, is awaiting sentencing. According to prosecutors, Ortiz is the one who pulled the trigger and shot Narote.
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Nav Grah Puja at Manav Seva Mandir
Devotees involved in Navgrah Puja Asian Media USA
CHICAGO: Socio religious noprofit organization Manav Seva Mandir in Bensenville celebrated Makar Sankranti by performing Nav Grah Puja on Saturday, January 14. More than 25 couples participated in the Nav Grah Puja starting from 5 p.m. and lasting till late evening This sacred event was attended
by over 400 devotees and members of the MSM who were actively involved in Puja ceremony. Donation for performing Puja was $51.00 per family. Hindu Shashtras name nine (nava) major celestial bodies (Grahas) which have astrological and astronomical significance. These celestial bodies are Surya (Sun), Chandra (Moon), Chevvaai/Mangal (Mars),
Acharya Sahshri Ji and MSM President at the Puja ceremony
The nine "grahas" or planets in our horoscope are in tune with our past Karmas and have indicators of the shape of things to come
Budhan (Mercury), Guru/ Brihaspati(Jupiter), Shukra (Venus), Shani (Saturn), Rahu (North Lunar Node) and Ketu (South Lunar Node). The nine "grahas" or planets in our horoscope are in tune with our past Karmas and have indicators of the shape of things to come, according to ancient Indian belief. Each of these nine planets exerts positive and/or negative in-
fluence in our lives, which is called "dasa" and experts called Jyotish seek to give out predictions based on their reading of horoscopes. The puja for nine planets are performed all over by Hindus in India and have special kshetras (place of worship) in South India especially in Kerala and Tamil Nadu. Cont’d on page 15
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Sanskrit shlokas at King Memorial Service
Indian faiths to be represented at Mormon event
At Martin Luther King Memorial Service in Nevada, from left are Mary Cooper, Gene Savoy Junior, Rajan Zed and Lonnie Feemster. (Pic: Debbie McCarthy) India Post News Serviceb
NEVADA: The 26th Annual Dr. Martin Luther King Junior Interfaith Community Memorial Service in Nevada was concluded with Mantras from ancient Hindu scriptures on January 15.
duism, during his "benediction" on the occasion. Rajan pointed out that both Mahatma Gandhi and Martin Luther King shared a common vision on fighting injustice. Reciting from Bhagavad-Gita, Zed stressed that action was better
Nevada Governor Brian Sandoval's proclamation and message from United States Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid were also read on the occasion by Verita Black Prothro Rajan Zed, President of Universal Society of Hinduism read from Bhagavad-Gita ,Upanishads and Rig-Veda (oldest existing scripture of mankind) besides Gayatri Mantra, the most sacred mantra of Hin-
than inaction and Gita advised selfless action without any thought of personal profit. Held at Second Baptist Church (SBC) in Reno with the theme "Remembering the dream, Fulfilling the
mandate", this Service also included musical renderings by local artists. Lonnie Feemster, President of RenoSparks Chapter of National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, delivered the keynote address while Bishop Gene Savoy Junior, President of Nevada Clergy Association, Reverend William C. Webb, SBC Pastor Emeritus, Mary Cooper of Northern Nevada Martin Luther King Junior Holiday Commission (NNMLKJHC) also spoke on the occasion. Reverend Clarence Brooks of SBC gave the "invocation". Nevada Governor Brian Sandoval's proclamation and message from United States Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid were also read on the occasion by Verita Black Prothro. Nobel laureate Dr. King (192968) is an American civil rights icon.
Mormon Temple in Salt Lake City India Post News Service
SALT LAKE CITY, Utah: While a Presidential hopeful Mitt Romney is facing rough weather because of his Mormon faith, it is interesting to note that Mormon Tabernacle on historic Temple Square in Salt Lake City, Utah is hosting an Interfaith Musical Tribute program on February 26 that would feature music/dance/blessings/readings of major faiths of the world. Hindu dance will reportedly be held at Mormon Tabernacle on historic Temple Square in Salt Lake City (Utah, USA), which houses the world headquarters of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latterday Saints (LDS). The Temple Square is the world headquarters of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS), and the Interfaith Musical Tribute, titled "Many Faiths One Family", will include Hindu, Muslim, Buddhist, Sikh, Jewish, Presbyterian, LDS, Unitarian, Gospel, Celtic, faiths. For Hindus it will be for the first time that there would be musical and dance presentation at the Mormon temple. Rajan Zed, President of Universal Society of Hinduism, said that serious and honest interfaith dialogue was the need of the hour. Religion was the most powerful, complex and far-reaching force in our society, so we must take it seriously. And we all knew that religion comprised much more than our own particular tradition/experience. Zed stressed that it was laudable on the part of LDS to host an inclusive Interfaith Musical Trib-
ute in Temple Square, containing various religions and denominations. "It is a step in the right direction," he pointed out. Historic Mormon Tabernacle, completed in 1867, is a national historic landmark and contains an 11,623-pipe Tabernacle organ. Photographs, however, will not be permitted during this performance. According to LDS sources, Jesus Christ is the head of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latterday Saints which has been restored by God through the Prophet Joseph Smith (1805-44).
Hindu dance will reportedly be held at Mormon Tabernacle on historic Temple Square in Salt Lake City (Utah, USA), The Church is led by 15 Apostles, which include President Thomas S. Monson who is also considered a prophet. One of the fastest growing church, it has over 14-million members in over 170 nations, over 28,000 congregations and 166 temples, and over 52,483 missionaries serving at any one time in nearly 340 worldwide missions. LDS is also known for its research and storage of genealogical records. Republican American presidential front-runner Mitt Romney is a Mormon and so is United States Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid.
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PA School District announces Hindi for high school students Cont’d from page 12
"Bensalem school administrators were very receptive to our proposal to introduce Hindi in its curriculum," said Dr. Surendra Gambhir, chairman of Yuva Hindi Sansthan, a retired professor who taught linguistics at the University of Pennsylvania for more than 36 years. "Bensalem becomes the first school district in Pennsylvania to introduce Hindi in its school curriculum," he pointed out. Promising to provide educational resources for jump starting a Hindi curriculum at Bensalem Ashok Ojha, YHS president offered full support and help of his
Nav Grah Puja at Manav Seva Mandir Cont’d from page 13
Most of them are concentrated near the Thanjavur district. Navagraha puja will be helpful when in one's horoscope the concerned planet dasa or sub-dasa is in operation or if the planet is associated with malefics and is in the 3rd, 6th, 8th, or 12th house. There are individual mantras one can chant on the basis of the day of the week like Surya (Sun) mantra on Sunday, Chandra (Moon) mantra on Monday, Mangal (Mars) Mantra on Tuesday, Buddha (Mercury) mantra on Wednesday, Brihaspathi (Jupiter) mantra on Thursday, Shukra Mantra on Friday and Shani (Saturn) mantra on Saturday. Rahu and Ketu Mantra's can be chanted any day on specific times of the day. Executive Board oath ceremony was performed after Nav Grah Puja completed by devotees. Raja Krishnamoorthi, Democratic Congressional candidate for Illinois's 8th District, gave a speech for the March 20 election. Devotees enjoyed delicious food delivered by Jay Hind restaurant. The Manav Seva Mandir holds events like such as BhajanSatsang, Group Satnarayan Katha, Youth Classes, Children Classes, annual youth camp during the summer holidays, flu vaccinations, health fair and medical facilities. They have Daily Arti such as Mangala Arti, Shringar Arti and Sandhya Arti. Upcoming event: Vasant Panchmi - 5:30 pm, Friday, January 27, Maha Shivratri - 5:30 pm, Sunday, February 19, Holika - 5:30 pm, Wednesday, March 07, Chaitri Navratra & Ram Navami - 5:30 pm, Friday, March 23. Hanuman Jayanti - 5:00 pm, Friday, April 06.
organization. "Indian American community in Pennsylvania and New Jersey is well equipped to support Hindi teaching in schools," he pointed out. Dozens of community leaders from New Jersey and Pennsylvania attended the meeting. YHS president informed the audience about varieties of activities undertaken by the organiza-
Ten percent of Bensalem Township, which has a population of more than 60,000, comprise people of Indian origin
tion including its summer programs held in Atlanta, GA in June 2010 and in Delaware in summer 2011 where hundreds of Middle and High school students learned Hindi and Indian culture. Dr. David Baugh, Superintendent of Bensalem School District, expressed his confidence that High School students in his district will take advantage of the
'Hindi 1' course that will be offered for the first time. Yagensh Choksi, Director of School Board in Bensalem, PA, thanked the board members for their support. About ten percent of Bensalem Township, which has a population of more than 60,000, comprise people of Indian origin, mostly from the state of Gujarat.
Community Across America
16 India Post
January 27, 2012
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Indian Finance Minister to visit Chicago HARISH RAO
Yogathon begins with nationwide Sun Salutation VASANT PANDAV
CHICAGO: Hindu Swayamsevak Sangh (HSS), USA volunteers and fitness enthusiasts in Chicagoland joined others across the nation commencing the sixth year of annual "Health for Humanity Yogathon" or "Surya Namaskar Yajna (SNY)" by offering 69190 Surya Namaskars in 88 different places in 27 states. In a nationwide wave or lehar, 1984 participants performed total
Pranab Mukherjee
CHICAGO: Indian Finance Minister Pranab Kumar Mukherjee is slated to come to Chicago on January 28 and January 29 osten-
The event is jointly organized by the National Gallery of Modern Art, New Delhi, and the Ministry of Culture, Government of India, and the Consulate General of India, Chicago sibly to meet members of Indian Diaspora and attend the inauguration of a new plaque in honor of Swami Vivekanand - The Last Harvest: The Paintings of
Rabindranath Tagore at the Art Institute of Chicago. The Inauguration ceremony is scheduled on Saturday January 28 at the Art Institute of Chicago on Michigan Avenue at 6 p.m. The event is jointly organized by the National Gallery of Modern Art, New Delhi, and the Ministry of Culture, Government of India, and the Consulate General of India, Chicago. Sara Lee Foundation is the Lead Corporate Sponsor of The Last Harvest: The Paintings of Rabindranath Tagore. Generous support is provided by Anita and Prabhakant Sinha and the Sinha Kikeri Foundation; Elissa Efroymson, Adnaan Hamid, and the Efroymson-Hamid Family Foundation; and the Efroymson Family Fund, a CICF Fund. Additional support is provided by Charles and Kathleen Harper, and Penelope R. Steiner.
Telugu Assn to celebrate Sankranti & R-Day HARISH RAO
CHICAGO: Tri-State Telugu Association (TTA), a non profit organization, has announced organizing a major community event 'Sankranthi and Republic Day celebrations' on Saturday, Jan 29 at Lemont Temple.
The three-hour program would start at 5-30 p.m. and one of the highlights is the submission of entries for Rangoli competition. There would be cultural program and dinner following the submission.
All participants and beneficiaries of this unique event will continue exercise practice sun salutation yoga individually at home or collectively at community centers
5322 sets of Surya Namaskar (13 Surya Namaskars per set) starting from the East coast and ending in the West coast between 10:00 am to 12:00 am local time in one day This fifteen day Yogathon that began on January 14 will continue till January 29. All participants and beneficiaries of this unique event will continue exercise practice sun salutation yoga individually at home or collectively at community centers or other public gathering places all across the United States.
Surya Namaskar or Sun Salutatiaon for Health
While congratulating HSS for their leadership role in preservation and promotion of the ancient Hindu heritage and culture, Congressman Frank Wolf from 10th District of Virginia also commended HSS for promoting healthy activities such as Yoga. Mayors of Town of Morrisville, NC and that of City of San Antonio, TX also appreciated Health for Humanity Yogathon by proclaiming in their respective town and city. Many more public events in schools, universities and other locations are planned at various locations till the concluding day, January 29. Surya Namaskar integrates simple Yoga postures in 10-steps
that, along with easy breathing technique, can provide immense health benefits to both the body and the mind. HSS initiated this health awareness project in 2006. Since its inception, various Yoga centers, community organizations, schools and colleges regardless of individual faiths and beliefs, have participated all across the United States. Last year, over 10,000 people from 38 states participated in this unique yogathon performing nearly one million Surya Namaskar. A number of schools, universities, yoga clubs, community leaders and many volunteers expressed their willingness to participate in this Yogathon.
'Coming Together in Skokie' highlights Assyrian culture SURENDRA ULLAL
CHICAGO: "Coming Together in Skokie" (CTIS) will honor the Assyrian culture this year. The official kick-off of the six-week series of programs is Sunday, January 29 at Niles West High School in Niles, a north side suburb of Chicago. Members of the Indian community are part of CTIS and have welcomed wholeheartedly the move. Assyrian community will present cultural and art exhibits at 2:30 p.m., followed at 3:15 by a cultural program that includes a celebration of Assyrian culture, a brief historical summary, Assyrian wedding
practices, dancing, and the personal journeys of Assyrian students. CTIS is a community-wide
host of cultural activities. In its first year, CTIS featured the Asian-Indian community and the novel Motherland. Au-
Members of the Indian community are part of CTIS and have welcomed wholeheartedly the move. Assyrian community will present cultural and art exhibits celebration designed to promote literacy and to explore in depth a different culture each year, through reading and discussing selected books and enjoying a
thor Vineeta Vijayaraghavan came to Skokie to speak to residents and students. Cont’d on page 17
Community Across America
January 27, 2012
India Post 17
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New Indian Consulate gets operational in Atlanta India Post News Service
NEW YORK: The Government of India has opened its Consulate in Georgia, Atlanta. It's the fifth Indian consulate in the United States. Together with the first-ever Consul General of India in Atlanta, Ajit Kumar, Georgia Governor Nathan Deal on Jan 5, announced that the Government of India has opened its first consulate office in Georgia as of the start of the new year. "This marks a significant milestone in Georgia's international evolution," said Gov. Deal. "The Consulate General is the crowning symbol of the dynamic business and cultural connections India shares with our region and state." In addition to Georgia, the Consulate will serve the states of Alabama, Florida, Mississippi, South Carolina and Tennessee, as well as the US Virgin Islands and the US commonwealth of Puerto Rico. Kumar, who has previously served as the Indian consul general in Frankfurt, Germany, and Durban, South Africa and as Ambassador of India to the Republic of Zimbabwe, will lead a team of 20 full-time employees. The consulate's primary focus, aside from consular services, will be trade and investment, which is expected to greatly enhance and encourage opportunities for commerce between Georgia and India. It will
also serve the approximately 100,000 Indian nationals living in Georgia and roughly 290,000 across the Southeast with services such as visas, passports and other documents. "This is a proud day for the State of Georgia, whose longtime efforts to locate an Indian Consulate General for the Southeastern United States in Atlanta culminated in the Indian government's 2008 announcement of its intentions," Deal said. "Despite
both countries had announced that the government of India would open two additional consulates in Georgia and Seattle besides its consulates in New York, Chicago, Houston and California, in view of the increasing Indian American population in those parts of the country. The decision was taken at a meeting between the then US President George W Bush and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, in Washington.
In addition to Georgia, the Consulate will serve the states of Alabama, Florida, Mississippi, South Carolina and Tennessee, as well as the US Virgin Islands and the US commonwealth of Puerto Rico the worldwide economic crisis, all parties have pressed forward vigorously to realize this purpose. The Indian Consulate is a vital addition to Atlanta's consular corps and community of trade commissions and binational chambers of commerce, which already represents more than 70 other countries and is a key component of Georgia's diversity and international success." The Georgia Consulate became a reality after more than three years of discussions between the US and India. In October 2008,
However, the Obama Administration decided to give permission for opening of only one consulate. "On August 20, 2010, the Department informed the Government of India that it could open a consulate in either Atlanta or Seattle. On February 25, 2011, the Government of India informed the Department that it had chosen Atlanta as the site of its new consulate," the State Department said in a statement emailed to reporters in response to a question asked at a daily press briefing
'Coming Together in Skokie' highlights Assyrian culture Cont’d from page 16
Last year CTIS showcased the Filipino-American community, and several books by Filipino authors. Cecilia Manguerra Brainard, author of When the Rainbow Goddess Wept and Almira Astudillo Gilles, author of Willie Wins participated and shared their writing techniques and knowledge of Filipino history and culture. The Village of Skokie is a community rich in diversity. Residents hail from many different countries and speak more than 90 languages and dialects. "We acknowledge this wonderful diversity as an opportunity to build knowledge, awareness, and appreciation for the many cultures around us," said Mrs. Van Dusen, the First Lady of Skokie village. "We hope that residents and students will read these books, take part in public discussion groups, and enjoy the many activities we are offering."
Indian Community of Southern California (ICSC) Celebrates
India Republic Day Sunday, January 29th • 7:30pm Rupee Room Cuisine of India 1170 N. Tustin Ave, Orange, CA 92867
INVITED GUESTS
Hon. Congressman Ed Royce
Hon. Assembly Member Tony Mendoza
Hon. Mayor of Cypress Parkash Narain
Jatin Pandit Famous Music Director
CULTURAL PROGRAM Bhangara & Ras Garba Dilip Butani (Chairman) • Amrit Bhandari (President)
Program Committee:
Dr. Manmohan Singh
Ramesh Ramnani, K.V. Kumar, Mohan Sharma, Ajay Khetani, Vijay Patil, Raj Walia, Lal Thakrar, Kris Kakkar, Sunil Shah, Prakash Pancholi, Ramesh Bhatt, Siddharth Pathak, Nauzad Sadry, Amit Anand, Kishan Hingorani, Babubhai Gorajia, Mahendra Sanatra, Ashok Desai, Dr Manorama Sharma, Naresh Solanki, Dr Ramesh Gokuldas, Amarjeet Dhamija, Tulsi Savani, Atul Ghadiali, Roshan Khandpur, Kumar Jawa, Dr Ramesh Kothari, Dinesh Gala, Dr Sinduri, Kamini Khare, Ravji Patel, Manu Patel, Suresh Bhatti, Harshad Mody, Dr Kailash Dhamija, Balbir Singh, Ritu Sehgal, Vinny Jindal and Kainaz Pandit.
18 India Post
Community/California
January 27, 2012
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HAF and SABA outraged over San Jose hate crime India Post News Service
SAN JOSE: Almost two months since he was viciously beaten in an apparent hate attack, Atul Lall, a resident of San Jose, California is yet to see his attackers being brought to justice. The South Asian Bar Association of Northern California (SABA-NC) has joined the Hindu American Foundation (HAF) to condemn the brutal attack of the 32-year old Hindu man who was assaulted while leaving a Lucky shopping center parking lot on the night of November 21, after picking up groceries for the family's Thanksgiving dinner. Lall, who has a pre-existing disability, was attacked by a group of three men, who repeatedly punched him, broke his jaw with a tequila bottle, poured alcohol and spit on him, and called him a "terrorist." "It is shocking and deplorable that this young man was targeted and singled out based on his ethnic/religious background or perceived background in what appears to be a violent hate crime," said Samir Kalra, Esq., HAF's California based Director and Senior Fellow for Human Rights. "This type of bigotry is not only an affront to the Hindu,
Muslim, Sikh, South Asian, and Middle Eastern communities, but an egregious attack on the values of American society." Following the attack, Lall called 911 and drove himself to the hospital, where he had surgery to repair his jaw. San Jose police, however, did not arrive at the hospital until approximately four hours after the incident.
plorable act," Kalra added. Lall has still not recovered fully from the attack and continues to require medical treatment for his injuries. He is an industrial designer and a recent graduate of San Jose State University, whose family immigrated to Silicon Valley from the eastern Indian city of Kolkata over 30 years ago.
Lall has still not recovered fully from the attack and continues to require medical treatment for his injuries. He is an industrial designer and a recent graduate of San Jose State University, whose family immigrated to Silicon Valley from the eastern Indian city of Kolkata over 30 years ago According to an official from the San Jose Police Department, the incident is now being investigated as a hate crime, but no arrests have yet been made in connection with the case. Lall has expressed frustration with the slow pace and lack of progress in the investigation. "We urge the police to conduct a thorough and expeditious investigation and apprehend those responsible for this de-
"It is extremely disturbing to know that certain individuals actually believe that by threatening and physically harming innocent people they are protecting our country from terrorists," said Shaamini Babu, Co-
President of SABA-NC. "With hate crimes continuing to occur throughout the country, organizations such as SABA-NC and HAF must monitor such incidents and attempt to ensure that law enforcement holds those individuals accountable for their egregious actions. Anyone aware of a hate crime may report it to SABA-NC by calling 1-88899NO-HAT (E)." HAF and SABA-NC expressed their sympathy and support directly to the victim and his family and reiterated their hope for a quick resolution to the case. Anyone with information about the incident should call the San Jose Police Department's assault unit at 408277-4161. Those interested in assisting the victim with his ongoing medical expenses can make charitable donations to the "Atul Lall Fund" at any Wells Fargo Bank, or contact Shaamini Babu at president@southasianbar.org for more information.
Gov Jeb Bush endorses Ricky Gill
India Post News Service
F
ormer Florida Governor Jeb Bush has endorsed Ricky Gill in his race for U.S. Congress, praising both Ricky's experience and his vision for the 9th Congressional District. Governor Bush's endorsement confirms why Ricky is the right candidate at the right time. According to Governor Bush, Ricky "is precisely the kind of candidate we need at this critical moment in our nation's history."
Here's what Governor Bush had to say about Ricky: "I support Ricky Gill because he understands that freedom and opportunity are the essence of this great nation. Ricky has the ideas and experience needed to fight for the smaller, smarter government that will restore these American ideals. He also has the vision needed to promote education reforms that will ensure all Americans have the right to rise to their fullest potential. He is precisely the kind of candidate we need at this critical moment in our nation's history."
Community/California
January 27, 2012
India Post 19
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Punjab Palace opens second branch
Interior of the Restaurant
JS BEDI India Post News Service
R
iverside's culinary icon, Punjab Palace, opened its second branch on University Avenue recently. Located at University and Chicago, next to Rite Aid, the new eatery features a banquet hall and a restaurant with a seating capacity of 100. The cuisine is Punjabi
both veg and non veg. Being in close proximity to UCR, the restaurant is very popular with Indian students who crave for the taste of home. Punjab Palace is a family business that launched its first restaurant on Tyler over a decade ago. The business is run by brothers Ashok and Raj Sharma. Raj takes care of the Tyler branch whilst Ashok and his son Vishal run the
University branch. There Vishal is at the front desk whilst Ashok handles the kitchen. Punjab Palace has a distinguished record and has been voted # 1 Indian Restaurant by Press Enterprise Newspaper consistently since 2003. Both branches have an A rating by the health department - an achievement vary rare in Indian restaurants.
Ashok and Vishal Sharma
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Horoscope
India Post
January 27, 2012
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Your Weekly Future by Pandit Parashar
JANUARY 27TH - FEBRUARY 2ND (November 23 to December 22)
(March 21 to April 20)
M
A
oney wise it looks like a very promising week. Business trips will be be fruitful and you will get results immediately. You will be associated with a very hard working person and work on an important project. Your actions will reflect confidence and maturity. You will make some interesting changes in diet.
child giving you some stress will be on right path from now. News about an addition in the family will cause lots of excitement. You will continue to gain knowledge and wisdom. Dealing in Stocks and playing lottery will be fruitful. Boss will take your side on an important issue. You will make many good decisions.
(April 21 to May 20)
(December 22 to January 19)
S
ituation will become little challenging but you will gain an edge. Some of you will be getting ready to appear in a very competitive exam. Money wise planets looks alright and you will have couple of opportunities to save or make quick money. Have patience at home and listen to whole think before forming any opinion.
S
earch for an ideal property to move will continue. You will send many applications and wait for response. Money wise you will stay comfortable. Venus in second will bring an opportunity to make quick money without making much efforts. You will buy some new apparels or perfume for personal use and take family out for dinner.
(May 21 to June 20)
(January 20 to February 18)
S
Y
trong Venus will help you overcome all obstacles and it will make you cheerful and you will arrange a party and invite family and friends. You will hear some very good news from a distant place. There will be remarkable improvement in ongoing projects overseas. You may make an appointment to have eye sight retested.
ou will continue to work on your plans. Progress will be slow but steady. Overaggressive attitude will help get many issues resolved. You may spend time looking for better options to insure your vehicles or home this week. Money wise you will be comfortable and meet all commitments on time. You will finalize a short trip also.
(February 19 to March 20)
(June 21 to July 22)
S
I
ome one will come up with a nice looking deal but you should do more research before making any commitments. You will be close to finish an important project on hands and the boss will show his appreciation by making the necessary recommendations for promotion. Money will come but will go out fast on paying bills.
ssues involving close family members will keep your mind occupied most of the time and you will be looking for easy solutions which will be hard to find. Loan application will get approved or credit limit will be increased by bank. Search for better job will continue and you will be working on several good looking leads.
(July 23 to August 22)
Y
ou will be more focused and overcome many hurdles in career. Mind will stay sharp and you will be full of energy. Some of you may start going back to health club to stay fit. People in business will spend more on advertising in order to stay well ahead of their competition. Do not take a chance with weather this week. (August 23 to September 22)
F
inancial pressure will keep increasing and you will be looking for new avenues to improve revenues. You may use your savings to meet new commitments. Boss will give you additional work and a deadline. You should do more research before making any new financial commitments. One of your vehicle will need minor repairs. (September 23 to October 22)
I
t is going to be another exciting week. You will hear of couple of encouraging news. Property related matters could get resolved. Money can pour in from many directions. It will be another good week for people in real estate or food business. All meetings will go well and you will be assured of the deals.
(October 23 to November 22)
P
lanet Sun in third will help you get a big clearance from a government agency that can open a number of doors. You may arrange a get together at your place and invite few friends. You will be working extra hours but enjoy the new assignment. People will benefit from your expertise and foot traffic will increase.
Hrithik should be careful about health & physical safety
H
rithik Roshan turned 38 on erational from March 2011 to April 2012, January 10. The Budhadivtya is somewhat better for Hrithik profesyog and Gajkesari yog in his sional career in acting. Simultaneously, horoscope makes him a popular figure his latest release, "Zindagi Na Milegi in Bollywood. According to astrolo- Dobara", have been reasonably better. gers, 2012 will prove to a Though, this Antardasa successful year for of Ketu is not looking Hrithik Roshan. His films good for Hrithik will score well at the box Roshan's health and office. physical safety. Before His movie, Agneepath end of April 2012, he will prove to be a hit may suffer from severe among the youth. health problems, sudOffers for advertiseden injury or legal disments will pour. He will putes. try his hand at film proThe chances of unductions and he may buy dergoing surgery and a house. being hospitalized are He will have a baby quite prominent in girl in 2013. The position Hrithik Roshan horoHrithik Roshan of sun and rahu in his scope. The union of horoscope indicates that he will get un- Saturn with Ketu in fourth house may favorable results in his work during Oc- also generate problems for his social tober 2013 to September 2014. Of late, image and on family front; and his parHrithik Roshan is not experiencing the ents may also face some severe health success in similar terms, as it used to issues. Therefore, Hrithik Roshan be. should be very careful and cautious till The current Antardasa of Ketu, op- April 2012.
Pandit Parashar, CEO & COO Astro Scan USA is also available for individual consultations. He can be reached at: parashar@parashar.com
925-833-7170
website: www.parashar.com
Realty Tidbits Indiabulls raises Rs 200cr from IL&FS Trust
NEW DELHI: Indiabulls Real Estate has sold a 9.36 per cent stake in a subsidiary developing Bharat Textile Mills land in Mumbai to IL&FS Trust for Rs 200 crore. Indiabulls had bought 8.39 acres of Bharat Textile Mills land in 2010 for Rs 1,580 crore from National Textile Corporation. Its wholly-owned arm, Indiabulls Infraestate Ltd, is developing the land. In a filing to the Bombay Stock Exchange, Indiabulls Real Estate informed that IL&FS Trust Company and its group of investors have invested Rs 200 crore to pick up a 9.36 per cent stake in Indiabulls Infraestate. The deal was struck at a valuation of Rs 2,136 crore, which is at a premium of Rs 555.7 crore to the price of Rs 1,580.3 crore paid by Indiabulls to acquire the Bharat Mills land.-PTI
Gurgaon now looks to its periphery
G
urgaon realty has always been centered on the Golf Course road and the M-G road. The attraction offered by the former is the mixed development of high specifications both in the residential and commercial segment while the latter has been popular on account of the malls and also for its connectivity to the NH-8. With saturation setting in along these locations, developers have now focused their attention on the Golf Course Extension Road and the Northern Peripheral Road. In early 2008, prices were in the range of Rs 3,000 a square foot. That has risen since then and today, projects command a price of Rs 6,000 and above per sq ft.
Flat owners allege project delay by Jaypee NEW DELHI: About 150 flat buyers in Jaypee Group's wellknown 'Wish Town' housing project in Noida has alleged that the builder has delayed completion of the project causing them financial burden. The buyers who booked their flats in 2007 and early 2008 in four projects - Kalypso Court, Imperial Court, Pavilion Court and Pavilion Heights - have formed an association 'Jaypee Wish Town Flat Owners Association' (JPWTFOA) to exert pressure on the builder for early delivery of their flats.
Real Estate 21
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January 27, 2012
'Green' touch for affordable housing
T
he International Finance Corporation (IFC) has decided in principle to support affordable housing in the Rs 5-7 lakh range for the Indian lower-middle and less-affluent segments. IFC, which has embarked on a major initiative in the housing finance sector in India for the first time, is looking at supporting mass housing and 'truly affordable housing'. Dovetailed with this initiative will be efforts to keep the housing projects that it will support in line with appropriate green building initiatives - environment-friendly, energy, water and other resources-efficient structures.
NRIs too can avail home loans
N
RIs too can avail home loans for purchase of residential property. They can purchase a house and can even take loan for self-construction on a plot and also for renovation/improvement of an existing residential property in India. Like resident Indians, NRIs can avail up to 80-85 per cent of the cost of residential property as a home loan. However, the down payment should be directly remitted from abroad through normal banking channels or from non-resident external (NRE) account and/ or non-resident (ordinary) (NRO) account in India. EMI payments too should be remitted from any of these accounts. In the case of NRIs, however, there is a stress on certain pre-requisites such as qualifications, current job profile, past experience, probability of continuing abroad for the loan tenure and probability of servicing the loan with an extended tenure in case of return to India. The Loan-To-Value (LTV)
ratio for NRI customers varies from one bank to another, though the manner of calculation is the same in case of a regular home loan. The income taken into account for calculating the home loan eligibility is the repatriable income plus any income in India. For NRIs working in countries that restrict repatriation such as African countries, only the repatriable portion
of the income is considered for calculating loan eligibility. Though the regular home loan tenures can be up to 25 years, loan tenure for NRIs is normally 10-15 years. Along with the standard documents required for a home loan, NRIs need some additional documents such as the appointment letter and contract, labor card (if employed in the Middle East),
salary certificate, bank statements and income tax returns filed in the country of residence. Loan eligibility can be enhanced by taking a joint loan with relatives. However, for certain reasons banks allow only a select list of relatives to be joint owners of the property. It is important that NRI provides General Power of Attorney (POA) in favor of a trustworthy relative as per the draft of the Bank which should be duly attested by the Indian consulate in the country of residence. In case the loan borrower is in India, the POA can be locally notarized. Most banks require the POA to ease the process of dealing with the NRI borrower. The POA holder only gets the powers that you give and does not have the power of dealing with the property. Like resident Indians there are certain tax benefits too for NRIs on interest payments which can be useful if they have any taxable income in India.
Mangalore real estate Negative outlook on developers seek funds Indian real estate
T
he real estate developers' body in Mangalore has urged bankers not to compare them with developers in mega cities while extending funds to them. Speaking at the inauguration of a home loan fest, organized by the State Bank of India (SBI) here, Mr P.M.A. Razak, Chairman of Mangalore chapter of CREDAI (Confederation of Real Estate Developers' Association of India), said loan sanctions are not materializing because bankers compare them with their counterparts in metros. Stating that NPAs or sub-standard assets are unlikely in Tier-2 and Tier-3 centers in the country, he said a major portion of the present NPAs in real estate sector is by a handful of big developers in the metros. He said a major portion of the local economy in Mangalore is driven by the real estate sector, as the city lacks mega industries and investments in IT (information technology) sector. More than 65 per cent of jobs for un-skilled workers
in the region are generated by the real estate sector, he said. In such a situation, banks should help the real estate sector by extending adequate funds to them, Mr Razak said. Inaugurating the fest, the
Stating that NPAs or sub-standard assets are unlikely in Tier-2 and Tier-3 centers in the country, he said a major portion of the present NPAs in real estate sector is by a handful of big developers in the metros Karnataka Minister for Ports, Mr Krishna Palemar, said home loan and car loan 'utsavs' like this would help customers own their dream house/car. Added to this, such loans will also help boost the growth of the city.
NEW DELHI: Rating agency Fitch has assigned a negative outlook to the real estate sector for this year due to weak demand and high cost of construction. "Fitch Ratings says it has a negative outlook for the Indian real estate sector in 2012 due to weak overall demand and higher construction costs, which are likely to continue to squeeze margins," the agency said in its report '2012 Outlook: India Real Estate Sector'. It said high equated monthly installments, resulting from significantly higher interest rates, besides lower household surplus due to high inflation and high residential unit prices, have reduced affordability for properties. "Both material and labor costs increased during 2011. Residential segment sales, which had improved in Q1 of 2011, moderated significantly and are likely to continue at the lower levels during the first half of 2012," Fitch said.
The report said that oversupply of commercial space continues in some markets. "However, the demand for office space is likely to be maintained at 2011 levels as the hiring momentum of the IT/ITeS sector, the major driver of office space in India, continues in 2012. Demand for retail commercial space is expected to be low in 2012," Fitch said. According to Fitch the debtequity ratio of most real estate companies continued to increase in the second half of last year. "On the other hand, declining profits resulted in leverage (debt to EBITDA) at high levels in 2011... and this is expected to continue in 2012, negatively impacting the creditworthiness of real estate companies," the report said. Fitch added that the dependence of realty firms on operational cash flows to fund growth and service debt is likely to increase. -PTI
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January 27, 2012
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Ameriprise sets up offices in Delhi, Mumbai NEW DELHI: Ameriprise Financial Inc, the US-based financial planning solutions provider, has begun operations in India. Ameriprise India Private Ltd, Indian subsidiary of Ameriprise Financial has set up offices in Delhi and Mumbai and plans to expand its reach to other metros in the future. "With the 34 per cent savings rate, India offers great opportunity in the space of financial planning," Ameriprise Financial president (financial planning and wealth strategies) Kim M Sharan said. The company provides holistic and tailor-made financial planning for individuals having annual income of over Rs 20 lakh, she said. The USP of the company is going to be comprehensive unbiased ad-
vice at competitive fee through the well-trained advisors, she added. Ameriprise India Private Ltd
The company provides holistic and tailor-made financial planning for individuals having annual income of over Rs 20 lakh, she said Chairman Bimal I Gandhi said, "The company will provide a personalized financial plan that exam-
ines cash flow, liabilities, insurance and investment needs." The company has already got insurance brokerage license from insurance regulator IRDA. "For other products such as equity, real estate and tax, we are in the process of tying up with distributors," he said. "We have two revenue streams? fee and commissions. Our model is not transactionbased but advisory based. However, we do implement the financial plans and we make full disclosure regarding commissions that we get from products," he said. Ameriprise Financial, a Fortune 500 company, manages assets of over USD 600 billion through its mutual funds and life insurance companies in US and Europe. -PTI
DLF's KP Singh tells his life story
H
aving cheated death on five occasions, switched almost overnight from the rural backwaters of Uttar Pradesh to being chauffeured around in a Rolls-Royce, rubbed shoulders with the English high society and almost married into it - but fate intervened and sent me back to India and to a cavalry regiment of the Indian Army." On that racy note, DLF Chairman K.P.Singh plunges into a narrative about his life in his autobiography 'Whatever The Odds: The Incredible Story Behind DLF'. The book comes at a time when land acquisition issues are under intense public scrutiny and farmers' agitations have led to the crafting of a new land acquisition policy. But, controversies aside, the book offers a first-hand account of how a real estate baron grappled with a maze of archaic laws and town planning norms, persuaded lawmakers to change some obsolete ones, and went on to build, brick-by-brick, what is today India's largest real estate company. The book is punctuated with gripping anecdotes on the deciding moments in Singh's life and the turning points both on his professional and personal fronts. The book documents the journey of DLF, its early setbacks, the happy milestones and the constant battle for survival. Singh reveals how his father-in-law, Chaudhry Raghvendra Singh, pained by the slow progress of his real estate venture, had almost closed DLF down after private sector de-
velopers were forced out of the business of urban land development because of Government regulations. In 1975, nudged by Chaudhry Saheb, Singh himself came close to selling shares in DLF but then quickly decided against it, after being advised by two DLF loyalists. "It was January 1975. I picked up my pen to sign a share transfer form. I was about to sell all my shares in DLF. On the desk before
KP Singh
me was a cheque in my favor for Rs 26 lakh‌It was the amount I would get for severing my links with DLF forever," he writes. The flow and rhythm of the narrative offers readers a glimpse of Singh's persona as a businessman, a doting husband, a loving father, and a devoted son. And it underlines his versatility. Singh admits there were times when he would start his day chasing different lev-
els of bureaucracy to navigate complex regulations and laws, and a few hours later, with equal ease, trudge the dusty lanes of Haryana villages to share a meal with the farmers. He would chat with them in the local dialect, in an attempt to persuade them to sell land. The same afternoon, he would play golf with the elite before dressing up for dinner with the global CEOs. That said, the journey from the rural belt of Uttar Pradesh all the way to the billionaire club was not an easy one for Singh. He describes how Bansi Lal, an influential politician and then Union Defense Minister, unleashed a relentless campaign to destroy his company. Singh admits that Bansi Lal managed to keep the company in check for almost 20 years, from 1970s to the 1990s. From the difficult decisions to the most daunting personal moments, the book has it all. Singh talks with emotion about his wife Indira's miraculous escape after a chopper crash in the hills of Mussoorie in December 2000 and her subsequent battle with small cell lung cancer. "Indira was the wind beneath my wings," he says. Between the covers, Singh also talks of his own near-death experiences. Woven subtly into this 322-page narrative is Singh's mantra for success: doing thorough groundwork and background research before crucial meetings; building long-term relationships and maintaining them; dreaming big; and never losing sight of the goals even in the toughest of times.
Sobha Developers launches two projects in Chennai CHENNAI: Bangalore-headquartered Sobha Developers has announced its foray into Chennai residential market by launching two ventures with a combined project size of over Rs 400 crore. Company Managing Director J C Sharma announced the launch of Sobha Merrita and Sobha Se-
various amenities, Sobha Meritta had a project size of Rs 300 crore, TP Sanjaya Sarathy, Regional Director of the firm said. He added that Serene was of a project size of Rs 120 crore and coming up at Porur over 3.15 acres. There was "overwhelming response to the soft launch and
This was the second residential project by the developer in the state after its projects in Coimbatore though the company was executing "contractual projects" for IT firms Mr J.C. Sharma, Managing Director, Sobha Developers
rene at Kelambakkam and Porur on the city outskirts respectively. This was the second residential project by the developer in the state after its projects in Coimbatore though the company was executing "contractual projects" for IT firms Infosys and Dell in Chennai, he told reporters here. Coming up over six acres with
good buyer interest," he said adding the company was looking at implementing various projects, including Villas in Chennai. A company release said Sobha Developers had completed 73 real estate and contractual projects as of September 30, 2011 with a total developed area of 47.37 million sq.ft. -PTI
Supertech to invest Rs 2,250 cr on housing project NEW DELHI: Real estate company Supertech has said it will invest Rs 2,250 crore to develop a luxury housing project in Noida and has roped in Twinkle Khanna, former film actress, as the interior designer. The Noida-based company will develop 650 flats in 'ORB' project, a part of 50-acre integrated township 'Capetown'. "We are launching three towers which are circular in shape at an initial price between Rs 1.5 crore and Rs 2.5 crore. The total project cost is estimated at Rs 2,250 crore," Supertech Chairman and Managing Director R K Arora told reporters here. "Twinkle Khanna has designed this project and she is master in this field," he added. The project has been designed in a way to create maximum interior space and the circular shape of towers would provide uninterrupted supply of air and 180 degree view. The investment would be funded through debt and internal accrual, Arora said, adding that the construction has started and would be completed in the next 42
months. Addressing the conference, Khanna said, "We are creating a global contemporary modern homes with absolute unique design." It is a blend of four things -space, structure, color balance and unexpected element, she added.
"Twinkle Khanna has designed this project and she is master in this field."The project has been designed in a way to create maximum interior space Khanna said she has been in this business for last 10 years and has no plans to return to Bollywood. "I have worked with many developers and hospitality chains like Marriott and done a lot of homes for Bollywood stars." Asked whether she has said goodbye to Bollywood, Khanna quipped "I think so". -PTI
Real Estate Post
January 27, 2012
India Post
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Finally, flat buyers will also be owners NEW DELHI: To ensure that apartment buyers do not have to struggle to sell their property, obtain loan on it or leave it to their children as legally recognized legacy, the Delhi High Court has set the ball rolling to guarantee buyers "exclusive ownership rights". A bench headed by Acting Chief Justice A K Sikri has noted that the authorities must execute for flat buyers a "deed of apartment" as per the Delhi Apartment Ownership Act - which allows "heritable right". The court also said it was "unfortunate" that despite a 2010 court ruling and a law in place, flat-owners had to seek court's help to hold, use, enjoy, transfer and mortgage their flats, Till now, owners use a power of attorney to transfer their property as they do not have the absolute right on an indivisible land. The deed, as suggested by the High
Court, will also give an owner undivided interest in the common areas and facilities appurtenant to such apartment, besides a right to form own association, membership on a par with original allottees, voting rights and right to fix maintenance.
In its draft judgment, the court said deputy commissioners (DCs) of each district in Delhi should be given the task of gathering required information and documents from the owners, builders and government agencies to execute deeds of apartments At present, the title of such property rests with the society, making securing bank loans tough. The directive seeks to change this. In its draft judgment, the court said deputy commissioners (DCs) of each district in Delhi should be given the task of
Delhi, Mumbai slip in APAC realty rankings NEW DELHI: Delhi and Mumbai have slipped in an AsiaPacific real estate investment opportunities list for 2012 owing to economic and inflationary issues, says a joint report by the Urban Land Institute (ULI) and PwC. The report, titled, 'Emerging Trends in Real Estate Asia-Pacific 2012', found Delhi and Mumbai dropped from fifth and third place in last year's list of real estate investment prospects to 12th and 15th position, respectively, in 2012. However, Bangalore maintained its position as the 10th most favored investment destination in the Asia-Pacific real estate space. "Bangalore continues to be a stable play. It never crashed when the sub-prime crisis hit and it didn't rocket up even when the markets were doing well in 2006-07. It's a very organic, growth-driven market," the report noted. In terms of development prospects, Bangalore gained two positions to rank seventh in 2012, while Mumbai dropped dramatically from first to 10th place and Delhi fell from second to 13th place. The report said vacancy rates are likely to remain stable in Mumbai in 2012. Furthermore, while absorption will be positive again, rental values remain questionable, as economic and inflationary issues linger. About Delhi, the report said, "Inflation has continued to spike costs and it may not be economically feasible to build there... Ongoing funding problems do provide investment opportunities for private equity investors." The report said, "India's economy continues to produce the second-fastest growing gross do-
gathering required information and documents from the owners, builders and government agencies to execute deeds of apartments. Justice Sikri, who had passed the 2010 judgment, is adjudicating the plea of peti-
mestic product in the Asia-Pacific region, just behind China, but developers face great difficulty raising capital through the nation's banking system." "Within the country, investment prospects are brightest for Bangalore; however, respondents noted concern about the economy in general. Rankings plummeted for New Delhi and Mumbai, both affected by inflation concerns," it added.
"Bangalore continues to be a stable play. It never crashed when the sub-prime crisis hit and it didn't rocket up even when the markets were doing well in 2006-07. It's a very organic, growthdriven market," the report noted Meanwhile on the Asia-Pacific level, Singapore and Shanghai have retained their first and second ranking, respectively, as property investment hotbeds. Sydney replaced Mumbai as the third-most preferred destination, followed by the fast-growing Chinese city of Chongqing and Beijing. In the development category, Shanghai bagged third rank, followed by Chongqing, Beijing and Jakarta. -PTI
tioner O S Bajpai to ensure implementation of the verdict, whereby the land owning agencies - L&DO and DDA - were asked to appoint competent authorities in accordance with the Act to register the deeds.
During the hearings, the court noted that the number of such officers appointed was not sufficient. The court was not impressed by the authorities plea that execution of the deed was not possible in cases where promoters or builders did not hand out the required documents. "We are of the view that effective steps have not been taken so far (as) exploring the possibility of compelling the promoters/builders without the need for filing of suits or arbitration proceedings," the court said. It also took note of the fact that the law did not prescribe any penalty for the promoters who do not execute the deeds. The parties in the case have been asked to respond to the draft judgment - the points in which were made during the hearings following which the court's verdict would be made final.
Slow down may hit Realty sector
D
emand for commercial space has declined in the country with a slowdown in economic growth. This clearly suggests that creation of fresh job will take a hit, which, in turn, will impact the demand for residential space. In a report, CB Richard Ellis says that with a weak global economy and slowing of economic growth on the domestic front, the Indian office market is expected to navigate choppy waters for the next few quarters. "The IT / ITeS segment is expected to witness supply pressures, with demand not being able to match new supply addition, which might have an adverse impact on rental values in this segment," the report says. Absorption figures went through a decline in 2011. The report says the prevailing market conditions led to an approximate 12% decline in overall absorption of office space in leading cities of the country, in 2011. According to the findings of the report, approximately 28 million sq ft of prime office space was absorbed in 2011, against 32 million sq ft in 2010, across key cities. The OctoberDecember quarter witnessed absorption of almost 6.5 million sq ft of office space across leading cities in the country, compared to nearly 5 million sq ft in the previous quarter. Bangalore, the NCR (National Capital Region), Chennai and Hyderabad were the leading cities accounting for almost 80% of the entire space getting absorbed in the country. Anshuman Magazine, the managing director of CB Richard Ellis, South Asia, says the subdued sentiment was indicative of a larger scenario of uncertainty
within the corporate sector, in India and in the global market, which impacted demand. The reduced demand for office space due to economic downturn led to an increased accumulation of vacant space. The condition forced de-
The report says the prevailing market conditions led to an approximate 12% decline in overall absorption of office space in leading cities of the country, in 2011
velopers to postpone the construction of office space which led to a decline in supply addition in 2011. The report says that supply addition in leading Indian cities
declined sharply, by almost 50%, touching about 30 million sq ft in 2011, compared to more than 55 million sq ft added in 2010. While the NCR and Bangalore led supply addition, most cities witnessed a drop in the number of completed projects, with delays on account of rising vacancy levels and appreciating input costs impacting construction timelines, especially in the last two quarters of 2011, the report says. "The tight liquidity situation, high interest costs and uncertain demand were deterrents for developers to construct. It would be safe to say that this sentiment would remain, till the global and the Indian economic situation stabilizes," Magazine says. Gurgaon continued to be the hub of office transaction activity in the NCR, with an addition of almost 1.2 million sq ft of Grade A supply, largely in the commercial and IT/ITeS segments. Almost 5,20,000 sq ft of commercial stock was added to the market. SEZ pace continued to attract occupier interest, with approximately 5,00,000 sq ft office space getting leased.
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India Post
MUMBAI: Talk show queen Oprah Winfrey's first day in Mumbai turned out to be a star- studded extravaganza with the creme de la creme of Mumbai making an appearance to welcome her in the city. Within few hours of arriving in Mumbai, Oprah headed towards the Bachchan residence, perhaps to meet the new arrival in the Bachchan family. After spending an hour there, superstar Amitabh Bachchan himself drove the lady to a private party hosted in her honor by acclaimed Indian so-
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cialite Parmeshwar Godrej. Clad in a beautiful orange saree, believed to be gifted and then draped by Aishwarya, Oprah was accompanied by the entire Bachchan clan including son Abhishek and mother Jaya. The party saw almost every big celebrity of tinsel town including Shahrukh Khan, Priyanka Chopra, Priety Zinta, Lara Dutta, Shilpa Shetty, Anil Kapoor, Imran Khan, Neha Dhupia, Sameera Reddy, Hrithik Roshan, Kangna Ranaut, Dino Morea, Ashutosh Gowariker, Javed Akhtar along with wife Shabana Azmi and children Farhan and Zoya Akhtar, Arjun Rampal among others. Also present were novelist Shobha De, business tycoon Anil Ambani along with wife Tina Ambani and jewelry designer Farah Khan Ali etc. "The gracious Oprah Winfrey visits our home, to meet us and bless the baby...warm hearted, endearing...drive her to the party in her honor. And Oprah in sari..looking lovely!!," Amitabh Bachchan wrote on twitter.
January 27, 2012
Mom-to-be Lara Dutta went one step ahead and even posted a picture of her along with Shahrukh Khan and Oprah. She tweeted "@Oprah and @iamsrk, two people I absolutely adore! Thankyou for making my day! Now can go into labour happily!,"
“The gracious Oprah Winfrey visits our home, to meet us and bless the baby...warm hearted, endearing... drive her to the party in her honor. And Oprah in sari..looking lovely!!” "Tonight was dinner at the Godrej House with Oprah Winfrey . Nice to see her wear a beautiful Sari. Also nice to see Ash out after so long!," said Priety Zinta. Shobha De in her ever so sarcastic style tweeted, "Oprah conquers Mumbai! SRK tells her she is the biggest star in India. Country's A-list queues up for pics with sari-clad celeb.O is WOW!". Cont’d on page 25
January 27, 2012
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A whodunit and the tale of contemporary Afghanistan lands in Kabul to train local journalists. Unwittingly, however, he finds himself embroiled in a surreal murder of an American army officer and sets about to find the killer(s). For an American in Afghanistan there is no dearth of enemies, the possibilities ranging from the Al Qaeda, Taliban, the army, vested interests and mercenaries, to the scores of innocent civilians who are dismissed off as collateral dam-
characters. There are characters that give the feel of the connectedness of the sub-continent and there are the perfunctory love-interests, who, if it were a movie, would be considered eye-candy. As he investigates, Anzan travels north and south of the country, risking his own life through undulating and unapologetic terrain where if bombs or landmines laid out by terrorists do not kill
Talwar manages an almost objective reportage of scenes as if coming straight from a reporter's notes. What you get is - although not highly sophisticated - a fast-paced narrative with contemporary relevance and a political dimension. Although fictional, Talwar's characters seem as real as the ac-
BOOK REVIEW
Author Rajesh Talwar
SRIREKHA CHAKRAVARTY
I
t's one thing to spin off a fictional story set against a his torical backdrop but quite another to fictionalize life in a contemporary war zone. You see, it leaves little scope for imagination to run wild. But author Rajesh Talwar makes it harder on himself by donning a reporter's cap to give a unique if not a factual perspective on war ravaged Afghanistan in his latest book "An Afghan Winter" unraveling as he does, a murder mystery that keeps one turning the pages. Anzan Safri is an Indo-Tibetan journalist based in Dubai who
But then, it's not the quaint whodunit that keeps you riveted - it's the stories of ordinary Afghans, their frailties, strengths and complexities as they struggle to lead a life of quiet dignity age by violence seekers. Anzan's friend and US Army officer, Michael, has been murdered in a bomb attack. There are three potential suspects - the Englishman Greg West who worked with Micahel in the ammunitions depot; the German Kurt Kainzer, a pedophile who ran a charity as a front; and the Iranian head of a media organization, Mansour Hashimi. The protagonist's keen deductive instincts and easy-going nature bring him into contact with many mundane yet interesting
Sunny Leone to play new-age Helen
P
ooja Bhatt has revealed that she has signed on Sunny Leone. She says, "Sunny will play a woman caught in the crossfire of two men trying to seduce her and are in turn being seduced by her. The best part of casting Sunny is that she didn't have any background of the film or our body of work. She responded to my father's offer with an energy that was spontaneous. However, I will not reveal who that woman is under the sheet in the "Jism 2" poster. Just as no one knows who
the voice of "Bigg Boss" is, let the myth under the sheet remain." About Sunny's role Pooja says, "It is the story of a girl who emerges from darkness to light. I've great respect for Sunny because she doesn't sell her profession as one being born out of tragedy. In the film, she works in the entertainment industry. Sunny plays a new-age Helen in "Jism 2". Helen was a great combination of sensuality and grace. One doesn't get that combination in the socalled item girls of today's cinema. Sunny's character is a combination of dazzling beauty, intelligence and vulnerability." So, will it be Emraan Hashmi or Randeep Hooda opposite Sunny? "By the grace of God, Emraan is doing very well now. I can't expect that he will be sitting at home waiting for me to sign him on. Besides, I'm not interested in following a pattern of Mahesh Bhatt or Shagufta writing the lines and Emraan mouthing them. I want brand "Jism" and brand "Murder" to be different. I am considering Randeep for another film."
you, then you could get killed by so much as just sneezing as you pass by the automatic weapons of moving American convoys. But then, it's not the quaint whodunit that keeps you riveted - it's the stories of ordinary Afghans, their frailties, strengths and complexities as they struggle to lead a life of quiet dignity in the face of foreign occupying forces, fundamentalists, mercenaries, and unscrupulous westerners that tug at your heart. What you don't get is hyperbole and overstatement that fiction writers may sometimes fall victim to. With brevity as his essential style,
tual locations and situations described. Much as you sense the third world squalor in a surviving city like Kabul, you get a feel of the made-for-foreigners-only opulence in its hotels and restaurants, the sights, sounds and smells of local bazaars as also the warm hospitality of the tradition-bound Afghans. But then, the author has had the advantage of getting a ringside view of the country as a war zone veteran and United Nations
staff member who spent years working in Afghanistan. Having studied at Delhi University and Nottingham, he practiced law for many years and has worked for the United Nations in Somalia, Liberia, Kosovo, TimorLeste and Afghanistan. Talwar, who has written a dozen odd books ranging from novels, plays, children's books to 'how to' guide books on divorce law and choosing a lawyer, believes his years spent as a diplomat in Afghanistan contribute to the unique plot of An Afghan Winter. He believes that his book gives readers an accurate, informative and entertaining window into Afghanistan life. "By combining the distinctive location of Afghanistan and making the narrator half Tibetan, there is an unparalleled dimension and non-stereotypical viewpoint to the tale in an exotic location," Talwar says. If you have ever watched images of Afghanistan on television and wondered who those faceless people are that live through all that death and destruction and their dynamics with the people who cause that destruction and those who bring those images to you, read An Afghan Winter. It tells you the stories behind at least some of those faces. An Afghan Winter is available for sale online at Amazon.com and other channels.
Oprah meets Bollywood Cont’d from page 24
"Butterflies in my stomach as I get ready to meet my inspiration @Oprah. Did not feel this way even when I met my first boyfriend haha," jewelery designer Farah Khan Ali tweeted. On the other hand, the 'lady in focus' tweeted, "@FarahKhanAli was so great meeting you and all the beautiful Bollywooders. Directors, poets, screenwriters, what a nite!" and "@FarahKhanAli just opened your gift..WOW! What a fun nite , eh?. The next day Winfrey toured a slum in the Colaba neighborhood close to the Taj Palace hotel where she is staying. This visit was an endeavor to get a broad view of all facets of the country. The traffic came to a standstill and people gathered to see the lady even though when many of them didn't know who she actually was. She was taken around by Gregory David Roberts, the Australian author best known for his novel Shantaram in which he talks about
the tumultuous life in Mumbai. Oprah is in India for her new show 'Oprah's Next Chapter' in which she would travel around the world, interviewing celebrities, news-makers and others. In India, she would interview the internationally acclaimed writer and public speaker and spiritual guru Dr. Deepak Chopra. Apparently, a part of her show would be shot at Taj Mahal and Agra Fort. Oprah is also expected to visit the upcoming Jaipur Literary Festival commencing from Jan 20. Oprah said she wore a sari for the first time. Designer Queenie Singh, who was on the exclusive guest list, reveals, "Oprah was quite comfortable in the sari, considering she had worn it for the first time. She carried it off quite elegantly. She was so excited to be in India and had wonderful things to say about the country." Oprah, who mingled with everyone, was seen sampling a few Indian dishes as well. She gave a vote of thanks speech at the end of the party, thanking the hosts
and the people who turned up to welcome her." Gifted a sari Sameera Reddy who was at the party said, "Oprah was humble and very down to earth. She mingled with everyone at the party. She was surrounded by many people at the party and I waited for my turn to meet her. When we finally met, the beautiful lime green Shantanu-Nikhil sari that I was wearing caught her attention. She exclaimed, 'oh my god! What a beautiful sari! I love the color. It's my favorite'. "I offered to get a similar sari for her but she hesitated, 'no‌ no, that is not necessary' but I insisted. I immediately told Shantanu-Nikhil to design a similar sari. It will be sent to Oprah when she is in Agra. "I also told her that I was very plump earlier and she inspired me to lose weight. She couldn't believe it and said that I looked gorgeous! My day was made. I'd say she's one of the most humble celebrities I've ever met."
Goa is the most popular tourist place of India. "The pearl of the east" is known for its Gothic churches, crumbling forts, palm-fringed beaches, coconut groves, ferry rides, bubbly folk music
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G
oa is the most popular tourist place of India. "The pearl of the east" is known for its Gothic churches, crumbling forts, palm-fringed beaches, coconut groves, ferry rides, bubbly folk music‌ the list is endless! With its 131km-long coastline, Goa is an important locale in every tourist's itinerary. Sun, sand and sea being the major attractions, Goa trip is a perfect heaven for the ones who need and want relaxation. Goa Beach Resorts always add to the fun. Christian pilgrimage tours to Goa are extremely popular. Besides pilgrimages Goa is famous for honeymoons, specially the honeymoon packages. Location: Situated on the western coastline of India, the Union Territory of Goa is sandwiched between the states of Maharashtra and Karnataka.
January 27, 2012 The capital Panaji is at a distance of 592 km from Bangalore and 593 km from Mumbai. The waters of the Arabian Sea wash the coastline of Goa. It is split into two districts - North Goa and South Goa. North Goa includes the city of Panjim, the former capital of Old Goa, Fort Aguada and Candolim, Chapora, Vagator, and the beaches Calangute, Anjuna, and Baga. South Goa includes Vasco da Gama Bogmalo, Margao, Colva and Benolem. Being near to the sea, Goa enjoys a maritime climate, with April and May being very hot. The Goa Beach Resorts situated on the beach ides are the best way to enjoy Goa. Christian Pilgrimage tours to Goa are usually taken up around Christmas and New Year. Best time to visit is October to May History: Goa has been a key destination for Christian pilgrimage tours in India. Goa was a part of the Mauryan Empire, around 3rd century BC. Cont’d on page 28
January 27, 2012
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International Circus Festival in Monaco
M
onaco International Circus Festival 2012 will host the first circus competition for young artistes on 4th and 5th February in Monaco. This "new generation" festival is a unique competition for young artistes, to be held in a real circus ring, the ring of the Monaco International Circus Festival. Prince Rainier III created the International Circus Festival of Monte Carlo in 1974 to provide support to the art he loved the Circus, and especially to the families of Cirque. In this spirit, the Organizing Committee has decided to give birth to a new International Festival for Young Artists under the Honorary Presidency of HSH Princess Stephanie and together with his eldest daughter, Pauline, President of the Jury. The "new generation" festival will showcase the sheer talent of artistes like Piste d'Azur Circus School (France), Monaco Femina Sports team, gymnastic acrobats (Monaco), and many
more. Clowns, tightrope walkers, acrobats, magicians and animals will appear before an international jury to win the junior gold, the junior
silver or junior bronze on Saturday 4th February at 3pm and 8pm and Sunday 5th February at 3pm at the Chapiteau De Fontvieille
(Fontvielle Big Top) in Monaco. About Monaco: Monaco is one of the world's most desirable destinations with over 300 days of sunshine a year and mild temperatures, it celebrates with enthusiasm the arts, culture, sumptuous cuisine, spas, beautiful surroundings, spectacular landscapes and high-adrenaline activities like the Formula One Grand Prix, casino gaming, land and water sports and exciting nightlife. According to a press release, tourists will be more than happy enjoying luxurious accommodation, family restaurants and exceptional landscape in Monte Carlo. The place is gorgeously clean, the hotels are a marvel, the people are beautiful and the food is delicious. There are wonderful restaurants, shops, attractions, coast, nightlife, sports facilities and culture all within walking distance. You can have a fulfilling romantic experience with the world class spas, set in gorgeous surroundings and offering a variety of therapies and treatments from around the world.
Sound and light shows at 20 centres across India KANYAKUMARI (TN): Sound and light shows at tourist centers, such as the one set to come up at the Poombuhaar Shipping Corporation here, will be arranged in 20 locations across the country, India Tourism Development Corporation (ITDC) Chairman Lalith K Panwar said. Arrangements for the show, which are being made by the combined effort of ITDC and the Tamil Nadu Tourism Department at the cost of about two crore rupees, would be complete by the end of this month, Panwar said after inspecting the venue. It is planned to implement these kinds of shows in 20 tourism locations across the country at centers such as Delhi, Jaipur and Andaman and Nicobar islands, he said. The sound and light show was being arranged as the number of tourists visiting Kanyakumari had been increasing day by day and the show would both entertain and educate them, he said. Panwar added that the show would feature, in different languages, the life histories of Swami
Vivekananda, Tamil poet and philosopher Tiruvalluvar and the legend behind the Bhagavathi Amman temple here. Panwar said that after the ar-
The sound and light show was being arranged as the number of tourists visiting Kanyakumari had been increasing day by day and the show would both entertain and educate them, he said
rangements for the show are completed, its management would be handed over to the Tamil Nadu government. -PTI
Travel & Hospitality Post
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January 27, 2012
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Indian tourism road shows in Saudi Arabia NEW DELHI: Aiming at tapping into tourism potential of Saudi Arabia, the Tourism Ministry organized road shows in the cities of Dammam, Riyadh and Jeddah there between January 7 and 11. A strong Indian delegation comprising officials from the tourism departments of Jammu and Kashmir and Maharashtra, members of the Indian Association of Tour Operators (IATO), Air India, Jet Airways, Taj Group of Hotels, Medical and Wellness facilities were present to showcase India's
tourist attractions to the Saudi Arabian travelers. While the Indian delegation was led by Union Tourism Secretary RH Khwaja, the state delegation of Jammu and Kashmir was led by Minister of Tourism & Culture Nawang Rigzin Zora and Minister of State for Tourism Nasir Aslam Wani. Ambassador of India Hamid Ali Rao was also present during the event in Riyadh. The road show in the city of Dammam on January 7 witnessed the presence of over 154 participants representing the members
of the Travel Trade, Media and opinion makers of this sector. During the event held in Riyadh on the January 9, as many as 172 members of the travel industry and media participated and got a glimpse of Indian tourism products and its rich cuisine. The final leg of the road show was held in Jeddah on January 11. One of the highlights of the road show was the focus on "Medical & Wellness" Tourism potential of India. India's vast potential as a health and wellness tourism des-
tination, backed by its medical facilities and world-class doctors, staff and hospitals, ancient healing systems such as 'Ayurveda' and other rejuvenating programs were show-cased. . The cost of medical services in India is almost 30 per cent lower to that in western countries and is most cost-effective in the region. According to travel statistics, 4.5 million Saudis representing nearly a quarter of the population, traveled abroad and spent about USD 33 billion last year. -PTI
Goa: Beaches & churches major attractions Cont’d from page 26
The Satvahanas of Kolhapur, and later the Chalukyas of Badami, took over the governance. Other dynasties followed, including a short-lived Muslim invasion, until the Vijaynagar Empire established itself for almost a century. This era, too, ended with the arrival of the Sultans of Gulbarga, from whom the rule passed on to the Adil Shah of Bijapur. Soon, the Dutch, English, French and Portuguese, all began struggling for its possession. Ultimately, in 1510, the Portuguese conquered Goa, with Alfonso de Albuquerque leading the invasion. Having ruled for around four centuries, in 1961, fourteen years after the country's independence, the Portuguese had to leave Goa. Tourist attractions Beaches and churches are the key attractions in Goa. Christian pilgrimage tours and Goan Carnival attract numerous visitors. In the local dialect, Goa is often referred to as "Goa Dourada," (meaning "Golden Goa") because of its beaches, forts, churches, waterfalls, seminaries, and caves. Today, Goa Beach Resorts are attractions in themselves. "The queen of Indian beaches," Calangute is a stretch of 7 km. Baga beach is a handy commuting point to Anjuna. At a distance of 7 km from Panaji is the beach of Dona Paula, which is a good site for relaxation and sunbathing. At a distance of 6 km from Margao is another beach, Colva, which offers good accommodation. Calangute, Baga, Candolim, Colva are dominated by package tourism. Anjuna, the traditional rave center is popular with the bag packers. Benaulim falls between hype and hip, and is filled with beach shacks and low-key Goa beach resorts. Arambol in the north and Palolem in the south are idyllic by nature. Other famous beaches include Miramar and Agonda. Goa Beach Resorts along these beaches in Goa are excellent accommodation options. The Dudhsagar waterfall and Arvalem waterfall attract many
Taj HotelĂs Fort Aguada Beach Resort.
tourists every year. The rock-cut caves of Khandepar and Arvalem are also worth mentioning. The Pilar monastery, Saligao seminary, and Rachol seminary attract the religious minded travelers. While nature has been generous to Goa, man too has contributed a lot to Goa's beauty. The strong Roman Catholic commu-
popular. The Goa State Museum, the Secretariat, the statue of Abbe Faria in the capital is a must see for lovers of art. The largest of the churches in Goa, the Se Cathedral is in Old Goa and is flocked by thousands of tourists every year. The holy shrine of Basilica of Bom Jesus, also in Old Goa, houses the mortal
The Dudhsagar waterfall and Arvalem waterfall attract many tourists every year. The rock-cut caves of Khandepar and Arvalem are also worth mentioning. The Pilar monastery, Saligao seminary, and Rachol seminary attract the religious minded travelers nity, with the active support of the erstwhile Portuguese rulers, has had a number of churches built in this picturesque locale. In Panaji, one must visit the church dedicated to our Lady of Immaculate Conception, and the Chapel of St. Sebastian. No doubt that Christian Pilgrimage tours to Goa are so
Monica, Church of Our Lady of Rosary, Chapel of St. Anthony and Chapel of St. Catherine-all of which are in Old Goa. Fort Aguada is worth a visit to savor the nostalgia of the Portuguese regime, especially in its lighthouse and the Aguada jail. Terekhol Fort in the Arambol beach has been now converted to a hotel. The Museum of Christian Art in Rachol Seminary and church and the Braganza House near Margao are also worth a visit. Besides these, to get a glimpse of the Hindu population in Goa, one has to visit Ponda. The Kerkar Art Complex in south Calangute is also an important tourist center. The Wednesday flea market at Anjuna is an important trading center for handicrafts from Kashmir to Gujarat. Fairs & festivals Being a predominantly Roman Catholic society, most of the festivals of Goa are Christianity-specific. Feast days, thanksgiving, monsoon celebrations, processions-all mark the Goanese calen-
one of Goa's most distinctive festivals. The main attraction of the festival comes when devotees of Goddess Lairaya walk across burning coals to prove their devotion. The Feast of St. Anthony in the month of June is also significant as it marks the beginning of monsoon. Besides such religious festivals, Goa is also known for its arts and crafts fairs, and food festivals. How to reach Air - Goa's international airport is Dabolim, at a distance of 29 km from Panaji, on the coast near Vasco da Gama. Most domestic airlines operate here apart from the chartered private airlines operating from UK and Germany. Getting round the place is quite easy. Several ferry services are also available Rail-The major railway stations in Goa are Margao and Vasco-dagama. These stations are in the Konkan railway line and are well connected to Mumbai. Road-Kadamba bus stand of Panaji is the main bus station. The state owned bus services of Goa, Maharashtra and Karnataka operate
Parasailing on the Calangute beach, Goa.
remains of St. Francis Xavier. It is a famous pilgrimage center among the Roman Catholic world. Most Christian pilgrimage tours include visits to these churches of Goa. Other famous churches are the Convent and Church of St. Francis of Assisi, Church of St. Cajetan, Church of St. Augustine Ruins, Church and Convent of St.
dar. Shigmo, the Goanese version of Holi, is celebrated in the month of February and March. The Feast of Our Lady of Miracles, celebrated 16 days after the Easter, is secular by nature and is celebrated with pomp and show by both Hindus and Christians. Igitun Chalne, held at Sirigao temple in Bicholim during May, is
from this station. These buses connect cities in Goa to in and out of the state Goa. Super deluxe A/C buses are available from Mumbai (580 km) and from Bangalore (650 km). Sea- Shipping services from Mumbai to Panaji are available. Vacation cruises are offered by some tourist companies for enjoying the marine life of Goa.
Travel & Hospitality Post
January 27, 2012
India Post 29
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Thailand authorities claim Bangkok safe BANGKOK: Thailand has sought to assure foreign tourists about the safety of its capital Bangkok after an alleged terror plot was busted and the US and other nations issued warnings of possible attacks in the tourist hotspot. Yingluck Shinawatra, who within months of becoming the Thailand's first woman premier, had to deal with the worst floods in the nation's history and its impact on the economy, is now coor-
dinating with security agencies to rule out any potential threat to the popular tourist destination. Shinawatra said authorities would continue to monitor the situation closely and that she had also asked the foreign ministry to explain the situation to other countries so that the tourism sector is not affected. A Lebanese national, who is a suspected member of the Hezbollah militant group, has been
arrested in the wake of terror alerts, authorities said. The US Embassy in Thailand through its website had warned its citizens that foreign terrorists might be looking to carry out attacks in Bangkok. Few other countries, including Israel and Australia, also issued travel alerts. Deputy Prime Minister Kowit Wattana, who is in charge of security affairs, said all security agencies were closely watching the situ-
ation and possible terror threats, and assured that the situation was under control. Defense Minister Yutthasak Sasiprapa said the US and Israel had informed Thailand on December 18 of a report obtained by an Israeli intelligence unit that members of a terrorist group would travel to Thailand and might carry out terrorist attacks. Intelligence units had since been keeping certain individuals
suspected of being Hezbollah militants under watch but there was no evidence to make any arrests. Yutthasak said the US, Israel and Thailand initially agreed to handle the situation secretly in case news leaks scared people in Bangkok and affected tourism. Thai officials were not very happy when the US unilaterally revealed there might be terrorist attacks in the country, as Thailand was not a terrorist target, he said.
Switzerland eyes 20% growth in Indian visitors NEW DELHI: Switzerland Tourism said it is targeting a 20 per cent growth in overnight visitors from India this calendar year and will make an additional investment of 1 million Swiss francs (over Rs 50 crore) to make it possible. "Because of stagnation in the key markets, the Swiss government decided to allocate more funds to distant markets like India and China to boost tourism," Switzerland Tourism India MD Michael Maeder told PTI here. In 2012, the new initiatives and campaigns of ST will focus on water and its role in the lives of Swiss people and it has dedicated 2012 to the 'Year of Water'. "This year, we plan to have 5,50,000 overnights spent by Indians in Switzerland. India is a very important market for us," he added. Switzerland Tourism is a federal public corporation. Its mission, as decreed by a Federal Resolution, is to promote Switzerland as a holiday, travel and conference destination, both at home and abroad. On being asked about the strategies he thought will make this growth possible, Maeder added: "It is quite feasible. The amount of packages and products we have can make it happen." Switzerland tourism is planning major marketing initiatives targeting travelers across age groups both through joint marketing drives with tour operators in India and
Our expertise of three decades has made us to innovate the planet
consumer promotion programs, he added. The drive will also see participation by new partners such as Engadin St. Moritz and the Glacier Express & Bernina Express railways, ST said. "Already 22 Swiss suppliers are here and after Delhi, they will go to Kolkata, Chennai, Ahmedabad and Mumbai to meet the tour operators," Maeder said. For consumer promotion, Switzerland
In 2012, the new initiatives and campaigns of ST will focus on water and its role in the lives of Swiss people and it has dedicated 2012 to the 'Year of Water' Tourism will undertake billboard campaigns at Bangalore, Mumbai and Delhi in MarchApril, advertising campaigns on leading channels and online marketing, he added. On the growing number of partners from Switzerland, Switzerland Tourism India Deputy Director Ritu Sharma said: "It is exciting to have new Swiss partners coming to India to showcase their products to the travelers here. We have almost doubled the number of partners to 22 from 12 last year."-PTI
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Ahmedabad to renovate 600-yr-old fort AHMEDABAD: In a bid to promote heritage based-tourism, the Ahmedabad Municipal Corporation (AMC) has finalized an ambi-
tious project to renovate and beautify the 600-year-old Bhadra Fort and its adjoining areas in the heart of the city.
AMC, which has already bid for the UNESCO World heritage status for the city, signed a memorandum with the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI) to restore the splendor of Bhadra Fort built by the founder of the city, Ahmed Shah, in 1411 AD. The project aims to beautify the half a kilometer stretch from the fort where Sultan Ahmed Shah used to hold his royal court to the Teen Darwaja in the next two years. The area between Bhadra Fort and Teen Darwaja will be an exclusive pedestrian zone with a specially designed walkway besides various landscape and design elements like fountains, lighting, swanky street furniture, signage and public amenities to beautify the Bhadra Plaza. "The entire project aims to boost the heritage tourism in the city, which is home to many famous monuments of the Mughal era," Municipal Commissioner, Guruprasad Mohapatra told PTI. The project is being implemented under the Jawaharlal Nehru National Urban Renewal Mission (JNNURM), and has
been designed by the CEPT University here, he said, adding that Rs 74.39 crore have already been approved for it. The project includes development of the public plaza and a pedestrian space from Bhadra Fort to Teen Darwaja, restoration of
The Bhadra fort once included royal palaces and a garden inside the fort but now houses city civil and sessions court
the fort itself, development of Azamkhan Sarai area, a pedestrian bridge connecting Bhadra fort to the Sabarmati riverfront, and multilevel parking space. "Work on the public plaza and the pedestrian space from Bhadra Fort to Teen Darwaja will commence from January 26 and is likely to be completed within
10-12 months," Mohapatra, said. Once the project is completed it would become easier for the tourist to know about Ahmedabad, its history, present and the future, he added. When asked about the vendors who presently do business on the stretch between the Bhadra fort to Teen Darwaja, Mohapatra said that they would be coming up with a vendor's policy soon which would take care of that issue. The Bhadra fort once included royal palaces and a garden inside the fort but now houses city civil and sessions court. To the east of the fort stands the triple gateway or Teen Darwaja, from which sultans used to watch processions from the palaces to the Jama Masjid. The royal entrance is triple arched and richly carved. The fort campus has been put to a variety of uses in the past from a 'musafirkhana' (inn) during Moghul period and a jail during British rule. During Maratha rule, a temple dedicated to goddess Bhadra Kali was established there. -PTI
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BANGALORE: In backdrop of increasing number of man-animal conflicts in the state, the Karnataka government plans to establish a leopard rescue centre at the Bannerghatta National Park here, a top forest official said. Leopards from "vulnerable areas" will be caught with the help of tranquilizers and shifted to this proposed centre, Principal Chief
Conservator of Forests and Head of Forest Force A K Varma said, responding to a question on a leopard reportedly attacking a man in Hassan district few days back. Varma said the state is also planning to establish "Siri Chandana Vana" (mini sandalwood forests) at 50 to 60 places across the state. Admitting that the long-pending proposal of an elephant corri-
dor in the state needed to be taken up proactively and aggressively, Varma said the state government has approached the Centre for funds for the project as it is not possible to bear the entire estimated cost of Rs 500 crore alone. Varma expressed hope that the Centre will start Elephant Conservation Authority on the lines of Tiger Conservation Authority in the 12th plan and added that Karnataka will soon come up with an eco-tourism policy and disallow "uncontrolled tourism." -PTI
IRCTC special package for Buddhist circuit NEW DELHI: Aiming to woo Buddhist pilgrims, the Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) has announced a special tour package for those traveling on the Mahaparinirvan Express from January 21. The Buddhist circuit special train will cover all major Buddhist sites including Bodhgaya, Nalanda, Rajgir, Sarnath, Varanasi, Kushinagar, Sravasti and Agra. "Tourists will also have opportunity to visit the world famous Buddhist site Lumbini in Nepal. -PTI
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Sat Feb 4
Sat Jan28
• Kartik Seshadri-Masters of Indian Music
• 2012 Sankranthi and Republic Day Celebrations
Venue: Peter Norton Symphony Space 2537, Broadway@ 95th Street, New York Time: 8pm Contact: 212-545-7536
Sat Feb 18 • Thyagaraja Aradhana Venue: PS 115, 80-51, 261st Street, Glen Oaks, New York Time: 3pm Contact: 631-462-2814
Sat April 7 • Best of the Best 2012 Venue: Tribeca Performing Arts Center, 199 Chambers Street, New York Time: 6:30pm
Venue: Samaradhi Auditorium, Hindu Temple of Greater Chicago (HTGC), Lemont, IL Time: 5pm Contact: 630-403-8342 Highlights: Registration and Membership Renewals, Submission of Rangoli Competition, Dinner, Cultural program
Wed March 7 • Loves Got a hold on me Venue: Freedom Hall, 410 Lakewood Boulevard, Park Forest, IL Time: 7pm Contact: 312-572-9373
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Sat Feb 4 • Fusion Beats Presents Ladies Night Out! Venue: Ramada Inn, 999 Route 1 South North Brunswick, New Jersey Time: 7pm Contact: 732-422-6480
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WASHINGTON DC
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• Dhol Di Awaaz Venue: Center of Performing Arts 255 Almaden Blvd, San Jose, CA Time: 6pm
• Radio Zindagi and Association for Kids and Youth Programs Presents: 5th Annual India Republic Day Kids and Youth Celebrations Venue: Lake Elizabeth Park .Community Center , Fremont, CA Time: 9am to 12pm Contact: 510-378-0698 Highlights: Painting Competition: Open from Age Group 3-14 Theme : India Culture ,India Dances ,Music, Religion,Festivals , Nature , Great Man of India and US and any theme of Your Choice. Paper Provided , You Bring Colors/ Pencils etc. Award/Trophies/Certificates by age Groups. Public Speaking Competition Open Age Group 5-14, Theme: India Culture ,India Dances ,Music, Religion,Festivals , Nature , Great People of India and US and any relevant theme of Your Choice.
• Pongal Vizha-2012 Venue: Littleton High School Auditorium, 56 King Street, Littleton, MA Time: 3pm
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Sat April 21 • Yamandu Costa, Classical Guitarist Venue: 8000 York Road, Towson MD, Baltimore, WDC Time: 8pm Contact: 443-296-2247
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• Garba with Attitude Venue: Segerstrom Center of the Arts, 600 Town Center Drive, 92626 Time: 1pm Contact: http://www.garbawithattitude.com
Sun Jan 29 • ICSC celebrates India Republic Day Venue: Rupee Room Cuisine of India, 1170 M. Tustin Ave, Orange, CA Time: 7:30pm Highlights: Bhangara & Ras Garba. Guests: Hon. Congressman Ed Royce, Hon. Assembly Member Tony Mendoza, Hon. Mayor of Cypress Parkash Narain, Jatin Pandit famus Music Director.
Fri Feb 3 to Sat Feb 25 • Buddha: Triumph & Tragedy in The Life of the Great Sage Venue: Bootleg Theater, 2220 Beverly Blvd, Los Angeles, CA 90057 Time: 7:30pm Contact: 800-838-3006 Highlights: Written & Performed by Evan Brenner, Directed by John C. Reilly, Presented by the Bootleg Theater
Sun Jan 29
Sun Feb 05
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• South Asian Wedding Expo 2012 Information
Venue: Dublin Library, 200 Civic Plaza, Dublin, CA Time: 2pm Contact: 408-329-2428
Venue: Pacific Palms Hotel & Conference Center, 1 Industry Hills Parkway, CA Time: 11am Contact: 714-493-7900
Sun Feb 11 Sat Feb 4 ï Teacher Workshop: New Year Celebrations Venue: Asian Art Museum 200 Larkin St. San Francisco, CA Time: 9:30am
• Passage Meditation Retreat in Encino Venue: Holy Spirit Retreat Center, 4316 Lanai Road, Encino, CA Time: 9am Contact: 800-475-2369
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Ashland County has 10 whooping cough cases ASHLAND, Wis.: Ashland County now has 10 cases of whooping cough. Cyndi Zach, the public health administrator for the county health and human services department, says the cases include nine students in the Ashland School District and one adult. She tells The Daily Press that four others are being watched as ``suspects'' for whooping cough, or pertussis as it is clinically known. The first reported case involved a student in the Ashland Middle School in December. Whooping cough is an extremely contagious bacterial disease that brings on uncontrollable, often violent coughing, which can make it hard to breathe. -AP
Indiana student's TB is drug-resistant strain FORT WAYNE, Ind.: Northeastern Indiana health officials say a Fort Wayne student whose tuberculosis diagnosis prompted the testing of nearly 150 classmates for the illness has a drug-resistant strain of the disease. The Journal Gazette reports that testing shows that the student's tuberculosis is a virulent strain that doesn't respond to the most powerful first-line drugs used to treat the illness. Fort Wayne-Allen County Department of Health department spokesman John Silcox said that it's the first known case of multidrug-resistant tuberculosis in Allen County. -AP
Radioactive tissue boxes removed from NY stores ALBANY, NY: New York Health Commissioner Nirav Shah says 12 decorative metal tissue boxes contaminated with radioactive material have been removed from four Bed, Bath and Beyond stores in the state. The retail chain says no other stores in New York had the item, called Double Ridge Boutique. Shah says the products were not distributed to the public. The Nuclear Regulatory Commission notified the retailer on Jan. 10 that the shipment of metal boxes was found to contain Cobalt-60. The low-level radioactive material has numerous industrial and medical uses, including cancer radiation therapy. -AP
Health Science 34
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January 27, 2012
Court clears immediate enforcement of abortion law AUSTIN, Texas: A federal appeals court cleared the way for Texas to immediately begin enforcing a new law requiring doctors to conduct a sonogram before performing an abortion. Details on page 36
Indian American researcher alleged to have falsified data India Post News Service
NEW YORK: An Indian American researcher at the University of Connecticut Health Center has been found guilty of falsifying and fabricating data of his nearly decade long research with regard to the benefits of resveratrol found in red wine. According to UConn Today, a campus publication, an extensive research misconduct investigation has led the University of Connecticut Health Center to send letters of notification to 11 scientific journals that had published studies conducted by Dipak K. Das, a member of its faculty. Das, Ph.D., a professor in the Department of Surgery and director of the Cardiovascular Research Center, was at the center of a farreaching, three-year investigation process that examined more than
seven years of activity in Das's lab, the publication said. "We have a responsibility to correct the scientific record and inform peer researchers across the country," Philip Austin, interim vice president for health affairs was quoted as saying.
guilty of 145 counts of fabrication and falsification of data. Inquiries are currently underway involving former members of Das's lab; no findings have been issued to date. As a result of the investigation the Health Center has frozen all
The investigation was sparked by an anonymous allegation of research irregularities in 2008. The comprehensive report, which totals approximately 60,000 pages, concludes that Das is guilty of 145 counts of fabrication and falsification of data The investigation was sparked by an anonymous allegation of research irregularities in 2008. The comprehensive report, which totals approximately 60,000 pages, concludes that Das is
externally funded research in Das's laboratory and declined to accept $890,000 in federal grants awarded to him. Dismissal proceedings, in accordance with the University's bylaws, are currently underway.
The US Office of Research Integrity (ORI) is now reportedly conducting an independent investigation. "While we are deeply disappointed by the flagrant disregard for the University's Code of Conduct, we are pleased the oversight systems in place were effective and worked as intended," Austin said. "We are grateful that an individual chose to do the right thing by alerting the appropriate authorities. Our findings were the result of an exhaustive investigation that, by its very nature, required considerable time to complete. Das had gained attention in recent years for his work into the beneficial properties of resveratrol, which is found in red wine. He has been employed by the Health Center since 1984, and was awarded tenure in 1993, UConn Today said.
India reports new TB strain resistant to all drugs MUMBAI: Indian doctors have reported the country's first cases of ``totally drug-resistant tuberculosis,'' a long-feared and virtually untreatable form of the killer lung disease. It's not the first time highly resistant cases like this have been seen. Since 2003, patients have been documented in Italy and Iran. It has mostly been limited to impoverished areas, and has not spread widely. But experts believe there could be many undocumented cases. No one expects the Indian TB strains to rapidly spread elsewhere. The airborne disease is mainly transmitted through close personal contact and isn't nearly as contagious as the flu. Indeed, most of the cases of this kind of TB were not from person-to-person infection but were mutations that occurred in poorly treated patients. What's more, there's a debate within the public health community about whether to even label TB infections as totally drug resistant. The World Health Organization hasn't accepted the term and still considers the cases to be what's now called extensively drug-resistant TB, or XDR. However, Dr. Paul Nunn, a coordinator
at the WHO's Stop TB Department in Geneva, said there is ample proof that these virtually untreatable cases do exist. The Indian hospital that saw the initial cases tested a dozen medicines and none of them worked, a pretty comprehensive assessment. A TB expert at the U.S. Centers for Disease Control
battle back and mutate into a tougher strain that can no longer be killed by standard drugs. The disease becomes harder and more expensive to treat. In India, doctors in Mumbai have reported a total of 12 patients who failed initial treatment and also didn't respond to the medicines tried next over an average
Indeed, most of the cases of this kind of TB were not from person-to-person infection but were mutations that occurred in poorly treated patients and Prevention said they do appear to be totally resistant to available drugs. ``It is concerning,'' said Dr. Kenneth Castro, director of the CDC's Division of Tuberculosis Elimination. ``Anytime we see something like this, we better get on top of it before it becomes a more widespread problem.'' Ordinary TB is easily cured by taking antibiotics for six to nine months. However, if that treatment is interrupted or the dose is cut down, the stubborn bacteria
of two to three years. Three have died. None of the others have been successfully treated. The doctors detailed the first four cases in a letter to a U.S. medical journal last month, blaming private doctors for prescribing inappropriate drug plans that sparked greater resistance in three of those four patients. ``These three patients had received erratic, unsupervised second-line drugs, added individually and often in incorrect doses, from multiple private practitioners,''
wrote the doctors from P.D. Hinduja National Hospital and Medical Research Center in the journal Clinical Infectious Diseases. One of the doctors, Zarir Udwadia, in a phone interview, said there is little hope for the surviving nine patients, all poor slum dwellers living in the community. He said he has detected one case of a mother passing the strain to a daughter living in close quarters. One of the patients was also infected with HIV, which typically results in faster death. Udwadia criticized the testing and treatment methods of the Indian government's TB program, which he says forces patients to turn to private doctors, many of whom do not understand how to properly treat TB or the risks of increasing drug resistance by prescribing the wrong drugs. ``It was a given that this would happen,'' Udwadia said. ``They have had no help from the Indian TB system. They are the untouchables, so no one is making a fuss. They don't have the power to vocalize. There's going to be more family contacts. It's going to spread for sure.'' Cont’d on page 37
January 27, 2012
Health Science Post
India Post
35
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Babies try lip-reading in learning to talk WASHINGTON: Babies don't learn to talk just from hearing sounds. New research suggests they're lip-readers too. It happens during that magical stage when a baby's babbling gradually changes from gibberish into syllables and eventually into that first ``mama'' or ``dada.'' Florida scientists discovered that starting around age 6 months, babies begin shifting from the intent eye gaze of early infancy to studying mouths when people talk to them. ``The baby in order to imitate you has to figure out how to shape their lips to make that particular sound they're hearing,'' explains developmental psychologist David Lewkowicz of Florida Atlantic University, who led the study. ``It's an incredibly complex process.'' Apparently it doesn't take them too long to absorb the movements that match basic sounds. By their first birthdays, babies start shifting back to look you in the eye again unless they hear the unfamiliar sounds of a foreign language. Then, they stick with lipreading a bit longer. ``It's a pretty intriguing finding,'' says University of Iowa psychology professor Bob McMurray, who also studies speech development. The babies ``know what they need to know about, and they're able to deploy their attention to what's important at that point in development.'' The new research appears in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences. It offers more evidence that quality face-time with your tot is very important for speech development more than, say, turning on the latest baby DVD. It also begs the question of whether babies who turn out to have developmental disorders, including autism, learn to speak the same way, or if they show differences that just might provide an early warning sign. Unraveling how babies learn to speak isn't merely a curiosity. Neuroscientists
want to know how to encourage that process, especially if it doesn't seem to be happening on time. Plus, it helps them understand how the brain wires itself early in life for learning all kinds of things. Those coos of early infancy start changing around age 6 months, growing into the syllables of the baby's native language until the first word emerges, usually just before age 1. A lot of research has centered on the
A lot of research has centered on the audio side. That sing-song speech that parents intuitively use. Scientists know the pitch attracts babies' attention, and the rhythm exaggerates key sounds. Other studies have shown that babies who are best at distinguishing between vowel sounds like ``ah'' and ``ee'' shortly before their first birthday wind up with better vocabularies and pre-reading skills by kindergarten audio side. That sing-song speech that parents intuitively use. Scientists know the pitch attracts babies' attention, and the rhythm exaggerates key sounds. Other studies have shown that babies who are best at distinguishing between vowel sounds like ``ah'' and ``ee'' shortly before their first birthday wind up with better vocabularies and pre-reading skills by kindergarten. But scientists have long known that babies also look to speakers' faces for important social cues about what they're hearing. Just like adults, they're drawn to the eyes, which convey important nonverbal messages like the emotion connected to words and where to direct attention. Lewkowicz went a step further, wondering whether babies look to the lips for cues as well, sort of like how adults lipread to decipher what someone's saying at a noisy party.
Preliminary deal reached in health care cutbacks BATON ROUGE, La.: Attorneys say a preliminary settlement has been reached in a dispute over cutbacks in state funding for home health care for disabled Louisiana residents. Nell Hahn, an attorney for the nonprofit Advocacy Center, told U.S. District Judge James J. Brady that the state Department of Health and Hospitals officials have agreed to expand the number of waiver slots for people who were receiving more than 32 hours of home assistance prior to cutbacks announced in 2010. The Advocate reports the nonprofit sued the state on behalf of those residents, arguing that cutbacks against the blind and people with other disabling conditions could force them into nursing homes against their wishes. Kimberly L. Humbles, a DHH attorney, also told Brady a settlement has been
So he and doctoral student Amy HansenTift tested nearly 180 babies, groups of them at ages 4, 6, 8, 10 and 12 months. How? They showed videos of a woman speaking in English or Spanish to babies of English speakers. A gadget mounted on a soft headband tracked where each baby was focusing his or her gaze and for how long. They found a dramatic shift in attention: When the speaker used English, the 4-
reached. But both Humbles and Hahn noted that the settlement is preliminary. A second court hearing will be necessary when final arrangements have been reached for notification of affected residents, the attorneys told the judge. But right now, Hahn told Brady, people who were receiving more than 32 hours of home assistance per week in 2010 ``don't have to have a showing of need to be in the class'' that will have access to the waivers. Brady signed the preliminary settlement. ``I think this is in the best interest of all,'' the judge said. Neither Hahn nor Humbles would comment on the preliminary settlement or discuss its details after the hearing. Humbles and other DHH attorneys said a joint statement by both sides will be released soon. -AP
month-olds gazed mostly into her eyes. The 6-month-olds spent equal amounts of time looking at the eyes and the mouth. The 8and 10-month-olds studied mostly the mouth. At 12 months, attention started shifting back toward the speaker's eyes. It makes sense that at 6 months, babies begin observing lip movement, Lewkowicz says, because that's about the time babies'
brains gain the ability to control their attention rather than automatically look toward noise. But what happened when these babies accustomed to English heard Spanish? The 12-month-olds studied the mouth longer, just like younger babies. They needed the extra information to decipher the unfamiliar sounds. That fits with research into bilingualism that shows babies' brains fine-tune themselves to start distinguishing the sounds of their native language over other languages in the first year of life. That's one reason it's easier for babies to become bilingual than older children or adults. But the continued lip-reading shows the 1-year-olds clearly still ``are primed for learning,'' McMurray says. Babies are so hard to study that this is ``a fairly heroic data set,'' says Duke University cognitive neuroscientist Greg Appelbaum, who found the research so compelling that he wants to know more. Are the babies who start to shift their gaze back to the eyes a bit earlier better learners, or impatient to their own detriment? What happens with a foreign language after 12 months? Lewkowicz is continuing his studies of typically developing babies. He theorizes that there may be different patterns in children at risk of autism, something autism experts caution would be hard to prove. -AP
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Court clears immediate enforcement of abortion law AUSTIN, Texas: A federal appeals court cleared the way for Texas to immediately begin enforcing a new law requiring doctors to conduct a sonogram before performing an abortion. The three-judge panel agreed to a request by the state's Attorney General Greg Abbott to cut short the typical three-week waiting period between a ruling and its implementation. Earlier in the week, the judges had lifted a temporary stay issued by a district court judge who found the new law potentially unconstitutional, but did not at that point issue a legal mandate that would make the law enforceable. Texas' new law requires doctors to conduct a sonogram before performing an abortion, to show the woman the image, to play the fetal heartbeat aloud and describe the features of the fetus, at least 24 hours before the abortion. There
are exceptions in the case of rape, incest, fetal deformities and for women who have to travel great distances to reach a doctor. The Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals order means doctors fighting the law do not get the opportunity to appeal the decision by Chief Judge Edith Jones before it goes into effect. Under normal circumstances it would not have taken effect until Jan. 31. That clears the way for the Texas Department of State Health Services to issue rules for complying with the law and to prosecute doctors who do not obey it. A spokeswoman for State Health Services said agency officials are developing a schedule for enforcing the law as soon as possible. ``Given today's order we are moving forward with legal guidance from the attorney general's office,'' said Carrie Williams, an agency spokeswoman. ``We're
working toward full implementation and we are moving quickly to comply with the order. We've been preparing for this since the legislation passed during the last session.''
The Center for Reproductive Rights, which supports the doctors' lawsuit against the state, complained that it was not given a chance to respond to Jones' order The Center for Reproductive Rights, which supports the doctors' lawsuit against the state, complained that it was not given a chance to respond to Jones' order
or the attorney general's request for an immediate mandate, before Jones decided to grant the attorney general's request to immediately enforce the law. ``There is no justification for Texas to have insisted on the immediate enforcement of this intrusive and demeaning law, nor the court of appeals to have granted it without giving us an opportunity to be heard,'' said Nancy Northup, president of the center. ``Texas reproductive health providers and the women they serve deserve to be treated the same as anyone else seeking a fair hearing from our courts.'' The appeals court's opinion had disagreed with District Court Judge Sam Sparks in Austin, who is hearing arguments on the overall constitutionality of the state specifying how a doctor talks to his or her patients. Jones found the doctors' objections insuffi-
cient to block enforcement of the law pending a final outcome of the trial in Sparks' courtroom. One of the conservative supporters of the law, the Liberty Institute, welcomed the court's decision not to delay the law any further. ``This court order means that the Texas sonogram law is to be enforced effective immediately, as it should be,'' said Jonathan Saenz, the institute's legislative director. The question of whether the law is constitutional, though, still resides with Sparks. No matter what he decides, both sides are ready to appeal the case back to the Fifth Circuit. Jones made clear in her ruling that she finds nothing wrong with the law, even though federal judges have objected to similar laws in other states. The issue is likely to end up before the US Supreme Court. -AP
Food stamps, indigent fund No major health impacts from turbines show Idaho under stress BOISE, Idaho: Despite a slowly improving economy and falling unemployment rate, the agency that cares for Idaho's poor and disabled residents said there's plenty of evidence to show people are still struggling. Food stamp recipients hit a record in November, with 235,000 people receiving the federal aid. The monthly payout, to 16 percent of Idaho's 1.5 million residents, is now $30 million. There are so many people getting help, grocery stores have complained the deluge on the first day of every month the day when recipients get their food stamp debit cards loaded has interrupted their business. What's more, the fund that pays the medical bills for Idaho's indigent population expects to spend nearly $40 million through June 30, a 14 percent spike over fiscal year 2011. To top it off, Department of Health and Welfare Director Dick Armstrong told budget writers on the Joint Finance-Appropriation Committee that some of his best employees are quitting, lured by private-sector salaries that can be 40 percent higher. With a 13.6 percent turnover rate at the agency, Armstrong suggested one antidote is a pay increase. ``We cannot afford to lose our high-performing and skilled workers,'' Armstrong told the panel. ``A change in employee compensation is vital to us.''
Armstrong said demand for food stamps is due to rise 6.3 percent in the fiscal year that ends June 30, adding another 14,000 people to the rolls, compared with 2011. ``Food stamps are a good barometer of what's happening in the economy and poverty,'' he said. With so many people now getting this help, Idaho grocery stores have struggled to keep up with demand on days the benefits are issued, Armstrong said. Consequently, his agency is working
The fund that pays the medical bills for Idaho's indigent population expects to spend nearly $40 million through June 30, a 14 percent spike over fiscal year 2011 with the Northwest Grocery Association, an industry lobby, to stagger the days, instead of doing it on the first day of the month. The tentative plan would be to pay out benefits over the first 10 days of the month. While changes may help grocers, a multiple-day system will be more expensive - as much as $220,000 more annually for four state staffers who will have to
answer phone calls and alleviate confusion from recipients wondering why their rechargeable food stamp debit cards are empty. ``Every state will tell you, there's no ignoring the ongoing costs of multiple-day payouts,'' Armstrong said. An unemployment rate that's at 8.5 percent it hit 9.7 percent, a record, last February has impacted more than just food benefits. Providing medical care for Idaho's indigent population will cost Idaho nearly $40 million this year, up from about $35 million the state spent on the Catastrophic Health Care program in fiscal year 2011. Program director Roger Christensen told budget writers that the ``CAT fund,'' as it's called, has seen a ``significant'' 2012 caseload increase. Last session, lawmakers set aside $22.3 million for the state's share of the program. But Christensen is back at the Legislature, asking for $17.6 million more to keep the program from running out of cash in February. Christensen said expenses could have been even higher, if Idaho hadn't made changes several years ago. Then, it boosted counties' share of indigent medical bills to the first $11,000, from $10,000, and began screening applicants seeking indigent aid for Medicaid eligibility where the federal government picks up 70 percent of costs. -AP
BOSTON: Wind turbines do not pose serious health risks to people living nearby, though noise from some turbines could be annoying and cause sleep disruption, a state-appointed panel of experts says in a report. The report was commissioned by Massachusetts public health and environmental agencies after residents who live near existing or proposed wind energy projects raised concerns. ``There is no evidence for a set of health effects ... that could be characterized as `Wind Turbine Syndrome,''' the report concluded. But the panel urged that more study be done on the sleep issue and also recommended that Massachusetts adopt noise limits for wind turbines similar to guidelines in place in Germany and Denmark. Three public meetings are scheduled next month to hear comments about the report, in Boston, the Berkshires and on Cape Cod. Officials insist the findings will not be adopted or implemented until after the meetings. In the report, the panel said it found no scientific evidence that low-frequency sound emitted by turbines affects the inner ear and balance, or the vestibular system. It also said the ``weight of evidence'' didn't point to any links between the turbines and diseases including diabetes, high blood pressure and migraine headaches. ``The strongest epidemiological study suggests that there is not an association between noise
from wind turbines and measures of psychological distress or mental health problems,'' the report continued, but added that ``limited evidence'' exists that noise from louder turbines could cause annoyance or disrupt sleep. Scientists on the panel said the link between turbine noise and sleep disruption was tenuous and based primarily on people who self-reported trouble sleeping. A coalition called Windwise Massachusetts called last year for a statewide moratorium on con-
Three public meetings are scheduled next month to hear comments about the report, in Boston, the Berkshires and on Cape Cod struction of industrial wind turbines until potential health effects were studied. Representatives of the group questioned the findings of the report. They said the panel relied on pre-existing data and studies rather than holding public hearings or speaking directly to people who claim to have been adversely affected by turbines. ``There is definitely a total lack of transparency here,'' said Virginia Irvine, a member of the coalition's steering committee. -AP
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NC health secretary leaving Perdue's Cabinet RALEIGH, NC: Health and Human Services Secretary Lanier Cansler will leave Gov. Beverly Perdue's Cabinet at the end of the month after three years running one of the largest and most complicated departments in state government and return to the private sector. Perdue announced that Cansler, a Republican in a Democratic administration, would head a new commission that the governor has yet to assemble on affordable health care in the state. The governor's senior policy adviser Al Delia will become acting HHS secretary early next month. The department receives $4.5 billion in state funds, or nearly one-quarter of the state's budget, to run Medicaid, mental health facilities, social services and other health programs. Cansler's last day will be Jan. 31, according to department spokeswoman Renee McCoy. Cansler was quoted in Perdue's release as saying he had been honored to serve on Perdue's staff ``as she steered the state through incredibly difficult times and stabilized North Carolina's fiscal house.''
``We cut spending, eliminated waste and consolidated agencies all to make state government more efficient without neglecting our core mission of serving the people,'' Cansler, 58, said in a prepared statement. Cansler's department had taken heat recently from Republican leg-
Perdue announced that Cansler, a Republican in a Democratic administration, would head a new commission that the governor has yet to assemble islators for managing the Medicaid program and the costs related to a new claims processing system. Cansler and other Perdue administration members had been at odds with the Legislature in the past few months over how to close a Medicaid budget shortfall of nearly $150 million. Cansler largely had taken a
more moderating tone while dealing with the GOP leaders at the Legislature compared to Delia and others, who had been speaking out more forcefully against Republicans about the Medicaid hole and the blame for it. Perdue said in the statement she will miss Cansler's ``calm, wise advice'' but that she would ``continue to rely on his counsel.'' ``The state is better for his service,'' she added. Cansler, from Asheville, served in the state House for three full terms before leaving in 2001 to become deputy HHS secretary in Gov. Mike Easley's administration under then-Secretary Carmen Hooker Odom. He left in 2005 and started a consulting business that was involved in department issues. Cansler's consulting clients included Computer Sciences Corp., which landed a contract announced in late 2008 to complete an overhaul of North Carolina's Medicaid billing system. The project has yet to be completed, and a state audit finalized for release this week said a Medicaid agency didn't fully document details on how the delays came about. -AP
India reports new TB strain resistant to all drugs Cont’d from page 34
India's Health Ministry did not respond to phone calls and written requests for comment. Similar highly resistant cases have been noted before. In 2003, two Italian women died and there were 15 cases reported from Iran in 2009. That same year, The Associated Press reported on a case of a Peruvian teenager who was infected at home but diagnosed while visiting Florida. He was successfully treated for a year and a half with experimental high doses of medicines not typically used for TB, costing about $500,000. Those resources are unthinkable in the developing world, where TB remains a menacing killer and where few hospitals can perform tests to find out which antibiotics might work. ``For there to be another report coming out from India is no surprise at all. Indeed, in a sense, it's surprising it's taken so long,'' said WHO's Nunn. This is ``yet another alarm call for countries and others engaged in TB control to do their jobs properly.'' Tuberculosis is an age-old scourge that lies dormant in an estimated 1 in 3 people world-
wide. About 10 percent of those people eventually develop active TB, which kills roughly 2 million a year, according to the WHO. Each victim infects an average of 10 to 15 others every year, typically through sneezing or coughing. If a TB case is found to be resistant to the two most powerful antiTB drugs, the patient is classified
Those resources are unthinkable in the developing world, where TB remains a menacing killer and where few hospitals can perform tests as having multi drug-resistant TB (MDR). An even worse classification of TB - one the WHO accepts is extensively drug-resistant TB (XDR), a form of the disease that was first reported in 2006 and is virtually resistant to all drugs. An estimated 20 percent of the world's multi-drug-resistant cases are found in India, which is home to a quarter of all types of tuberculosis cases worldwide. -AP
TOP TEN HINDI FILM SONGS
1 Jhoom Jhoomta Hun Main : Players 2 Dil Yeh Bekarar Kyu Hai : Players 3 Zara Dil Ko Thaam Lo : Don 2 4 Chikni Chameli : Agneepath 5 Jis Jagah Pe Khatam : Players 6 Hai Yeh Maya : Don 2 38
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7 Hosanna : Ek Main Aur Ekk Tu 8
Ek Main Aur Ekk Tu : Ek Main Aur Ekk Tu
9 Aromale (My Beloved) : Ek Tha Deewana 10 Kal Chalna Shuru Tu : Ek Main Aur Ekk Tu
Leaked video
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ooks like filmmaker Madhur Bhndarkar is super excited with his upcoming film 'Heroine' and his leading lady Kareena Kapoor's perfor mance in the film. He says that the film and her performance will not only be fabulous, but also a shocker for her fans. "Her character Mahi Arora is very contemporary, very edgy, very hardhitting and very real like my other cinema. Kareena will definitely be a shock element to the people because of the way she has worked in the film," the 43-year-old producer-director said here at the launch of photographer Dabboo Ratnani's calendar. "I am looking at the film because I know the story, I know the screenplay, I know the dialogues. She will be fabulous," he added. "'Heroine' is 25 percent over. The next schedule is in February, March and April and the picture will release in September. The way you people are waiting for the film, so am I. I hope it finishes really soon," he said.
I
t is well known that Jacqueline Fernandez lost out on Krrish 3 because she refused to lock lips with Hrithik Roshan. Later she opted out of Race 2 because she was concerned with overexposure. Now, it is learnt that she is out of Mahesh and Mukesh Bhatt's much talked about Raaz 3, which is ready to go on the floor. Predictably, she was uncomfortable about the costumes in the film and did not want to be seen in revealing clothes. Strangely enough, this is the same Jacqueline who made a huge impact with the Bhatts' runaway hit Murder 2, where she seemed to have no problems donning scant clothes. When contacted, producer Mahesh Bhatt confirmed the news. How come Jacqueline had no issues with the costumes in Murder 2, he was asked. Mahesh replies, "That's the beauty of it. We are yet to find the replacement. When we were making Raaz, Lisa Ray had a similar issue and Bipasha replaced her and went on to became a huge star. Let's hope that's what happens with the actress who replaces Jacqueline." Whether she is really a throwback in an age of showing more skin or is her fiance filmmaker Sajid Khan, who has been known to come in the way of her doing steamy scenes, to blame, it is not yet clear.
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ipasha Basu's crazy birthday party is out there on the internet for all to see. But the leaked video has left the actress miffed as she feels her privacy has been invaded. "I'm still in shock that my privacy has been invaded! These were private moments from my birthday that were leaked and I am very upset," tweeted Bipasha. The actress has turned 33, and true to her latest song "Ho gayi tunn" from her new release, "Players", Bipasha seemed to be high in the video. She can be seen dancing around with celebrity friends like Milind Soman, Aftab Shivdasani, Sikander Kher and Abhay Deol, amid a lot of drinks and cheers. She even cut a quirky cake, with special candles on it, and looked fabulous in a nude-colored gown. She can even be seen dancing in the washroom with a couple of girls, and later grooving on the dance floor with Sikander. No wonder Bipasha is so upset.
January 27, 2012
Bollywood
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To the rescue
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riyanka Chopra was rescued by her former sweet heart, Shahid Kapoor, after she got nearly mobbed on the sets of their tentatively titled Teri Meri Kahaani in Aurangabad. A stampede like situation occurred as the crowd got uncontrollable. A source says, "On an average there were nearly 8,000 to 10,000 people on the sets. On the day we shot at Daulatabad Fort, over 30,000 people bought tickets to visit the place. On the last day we were shooting at the lake, which was surrounded by hills. "Two of those were completely filled with people. It was madness. Some people tried to get too close to Priyanka and that's when Shahid came forward and took her aside." Adds the source, "They both were pretty cool and took a break every two hours to wave to the people who had come all the way to see them. Shahid even said it would have been depressing if no one had come to see them."
New Dhoom girl?
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ani Mukherjee was written off by the Indian audiences. However, she proved her worth yet again with her amazing performance in 'No One Killed Jessica'. The latest buzz has it that Rani Mukerji is being considered for Yash Raj's Dhoom 3. Well, yes! you heard it right. Rani might join the cast of Dhoom 3, as well. A source close to the project informed, "Rani might be seen in a role similar to Aishwarya Rai in Dhoom 2. In Dhoom 3, Aamir is playing the villain and Rani shares a fabulous rapport with him. In fact, she had once mentioned on a chat show how Aamir had been her best co-star among all Khans." "YRF has three big films with the Khans - Salman, Shah Rukh and Aamir. Two of these projects are already on floors. This leaves only Dhoom3 open with a challenging female role. Rani too is keen on being a part of the film. She will take a call soon," added the source.
Complicated relationship!
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nushka Sharma is often in the news and that too for all the wrong reasons, one of them being her relationship with Ranveer Singh. There was a time when Ranveer wanted to date Anushka. But now we hear that, the couple are already in a relationship, but its a little complicated. While chatting with a daily, Anushka Sharma revealed that the on-screen relationship she and Ranveer shared in Band Baaja Baaraat is very similar to that of their real life relationship. She also says that there are times when they can't stand each other even for a second. Talking about her professional life, Anushka said that she works for good scripts and not for production houses. And till she is being respected and offered good scripts by Yash Raj Films, she doesn't mind working for them over and over again. Currently the actress is working on Vishal Bharadwaj's Matru Ki Biwi Ka Mann Dola.
In Brief NM Gov pushes to end immigrant driver's licenses SANTA FE, N.M.: Highlights of public safety issues before the Legislature: BACKDROP: New Mexico and Washington are the only states to allow illegal immigrants and others without Social Security numbers to get a driver's license. Utah issues a driving permit to immigrants but it can't be used as identification, such as to board an airplane. Republican Gov. Susana Martinez says New Mexico's policy is a security risk and contends the state is a magnet for illegal immigrants who falsely claim to be residents just to get a driver's license. PROPOSALS: Martinez proposes to stop the state from granting licenses to illegal immigrants. Some Democrats suggest an alternative approach of requiring fingerprints from applicants who are foreign nationals, renew their licenses every two years and increase penalties for license fraud. Licenses currently can last up to eight years before renewal. The governor, who is a former prosecutor, supports ending the statute of limitations on the prosecution of homicides such as seconddegree murder and manslaughter. OUTLOOK: The governor's license proposal should pass the House, as it did last year, but it will be a close vote in the Senate if the measure makes it that far. -AP
Immigration courtrooms silent during ICE review DENVER: U.S. prosecutors in Denver and Baltimore are reviewing thousands of deportation cases to determine which illegal immigrants might stay in the country - perhaps indefinitely - so officials can reduce an overwhelming backlog by focusing mainly on detainees with criminal backgrounds. Federal deportation hearings for non-criminal defendants released from custody were suspended Dec. 5 for the review and resume. Similar reviews are planned across the country to allow U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to target deportations of illegal immigrants with criminal records or those who have been deported previously. Officials are reviewing the files case by case to determine where ``prosecutorial discretion'' might be applied. Republicans have decried the policy as a back-door way of granting amnesty to people who are living in the U.S. illegally. -AP
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POST rescinds rules on immigration status checks NASHVILLE, Tenn.: After being sued for creating rules in secret, a state commission has rescinded a policy that directed local jailers to check the immigration status of detainees. Details on page 42
Indian and Vietnamese immigrants become American over time SURENDRA ULLAL
CHICAGO: A study of Indian and Vietnamese communities in North America by Dr. Caroline Brettell and Dr Deborah Reeddanahay of Southern Methodist University in Dallas reveals many interesting aspects of their characteristics relating to their convergence into the new communities they embrace. In North Texas, immigrants from India and Vietnam develop and embrace their American identity over time - without shedding their culture of origin, as some say they should, according to a new anthropological study. "A key contribution of our research is its emphasis on the fact that the civic incorporation of newcomers does not necessarily mean abandoning who you are," says Brettell, an anthropology professor at SMU in Dallas. "Immigrant communities have spaces and places that are already operating as viable arenas for ex-
pressing civic and political presence and for becoming American," she says. Brettell and Reed-Danahay uncovered how North Texas Vietnamese and Indian immigrants de-
ways in which immigrants participate in the civic and political life of America," Brettell says, "so they move over time from the periphery to the core of American civic and political life."
"A key contribution of our research is its emphasis on the fact that the civic incorporation of newcomers does not necessarily mean abandoning who you are," says Brettell Dr. Caroline Brettell
velop their identity as Americans by engaging first within their own communities, where they practice and develop citizenship skills, which they then use in a broader American context. "We view citizenship as the
Authors carried out three years of oral interviews and direct observation. Brettell and Reed-Danahay report the study results in their book, "Civic Engagements: The Citizenship Practices of Indian &
Vietnamese Immigrants" (Stanford University Press, 2012). The authors interviewed 67 first-generation Indian and Vietnamese parents, many but not all of whom are naturalized U.S. citizens. They also interviewed college students in their early to mid20s whose parents were immigrants from either India or Vietnam and who either were born in the United States or arrived as young children. After Mexicans and Salvadorans, Indians and Vietnamese are the largest groups of immigrants in DFW. The 2000 Census counted 47,090 foreign-born Vietnamese and 49,669 foreign-born Indians in DFW. Brettell and Reed-Danahay found that for the most part both Indian and Vietnamese immigrants to the region first arrived elsewhere in the United States, and then moved to DFW, often settling in suburbs. Cont’d on page 42
Waiver rule for those facing 3- or 10-year bars CYRUS D. MEHTA & DAVID A. ISAACSON
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n the raging immigration debate concerning the millions of undocumented immigrants in the US, one important issue has received scant attention. We have yet to meet a person who has roots in the US who desires to choose to remain undocumented. Most are forced to remain undocumented even though they have a pathway to a green card due to a perverse Catch 22 effect in our immigration law as a result of the 3 and 10 year bars imposed under INA § 212(a)(9)(B). Those who have remained unlawfully present in the US for 1 year or more face a 10 year bar to reentry if they depart the US. Similarly, those who have remained unlawfully present for more than 180 days face a 3 year bar to reentry if they depart the US. It should be noted that the term "unlawfully present" is a complex legal term and a discussion of this term is beyond the scope of this article.
These individuals, if they are the beneficiaries of an approved immigrant visa petition filed by a US citizen spouse or parent or a US citizen child (who is over 21), may often be unable to adjust their status in the US. Under INA § 245(a) one has to be inspected or paroled in order
yond the scope of this article. This spouse would need to leave the US and apply for an immigrant visa at the US consulate in her home country. However, if she was unlawfully present in the US for 1 year or more, it would result in her triggering the 10 year bar to reentry. Although, under the
Most are forced to remain undocumented even though they have a pathway to a green card due to a perverse Catch 22 effect in our immigration law to qualify to adjust status to permanent residence in the US. Thus, a non-citizen spouse of a US citizen who previously surreptitiously crossed the border from Mexico into the US would be ineligible to adjust status because she was not inspected under § 245(a). Of course, there are exceptions to this rule too, which is be-
current regime, she can apply for a waiver under INA § 212(a) (9) (B) (v), she can only do so after she has departed the US. Obtaining the waiver is no small matter because she has to demonstrate extreme hardship to the US citizen spouse if the waiver is denied. The emotional angst resulting from the separation of two
spouses is not enough. She will need to demonstrate, in addition to the emotional issue, financial, cultural, political and health conditions, among many others, as well as the balancing of ties within and outside the US. See Matter of Cervantes, 22 I&N Dec. 560 (BIA 1999), aff'd, Cervantes-Gonzales v. INS, 244 F.3d 1001 (9th Cir. 2001). Thus, this spouse will be rolling the dice if she departs the US to chance winning the waiver while outside the US. If the waiver is denied, she will be stuck outside the US and will be separated from her loved ones. Moreover, she can only demonstrate extreme hardship to a limited universe of qualifying relatives, which include a spouse or a parent. If she has US citizen children, under INA § 212(a) (9) (B) (v), she cannot demonstrate extreme hardship to them if she is separated. Cont’d on page 43
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Debate heats up over Illinois jailed immigrant policy CHICAGO: Controversy over a Cook County ordinance that forbids the sheriff from notifying federal officials when they're about to release suspected illegal immigrants from jail is heating up after a suspect charged in a fatal hitand-run posted bail and disappeared. Amid reports that Saul Chavez, an illegal immigrant, hasn't been seen since late last year when his family posted bail, the nation's top immigration official and the board president of the county that includes Chicago have squared off with dueling statements about the ordinance passed last September. ``This ordinance undermines public safety in Cook County and hinders (the Immigration and Customs Enforcement's) ability to enforce the nation's immigration laws,'' wrote the agency's director,
John Morton, in a letter to County Board President Toni Preckwinkle. ``In addition to undermining local public safety, the Ordinance may also violate federal law.'' Preckwinkle, though, responded in a news release that it
for someone with a prior felony conviction and who posed a flight risk. ``Some have tried to blame Chavez's immigration status, but what allowed Chavez to escape prosecution was an attainable
Proponents say the county's previous practice of holding immigrants in jail after they served their time or posted bail until federal agents could pick them up was unfair and unconstitutional isn't fair to link Chavez's immigration status with his disappearance, calling it a ``red herring.'' Preckwinkle said she is bothered by the case, not because of Chavez's immigration status, but because his bail was set too low
bond that didn't take into account his criminal history and flight risk,'' she said in the news release. Cook County has been at the center of the debate over the treatment of illegal immigrants for several months. While other places,
Cause questioned in death of ground zero worker NEW YORK: Friends of a Mexican volunteer firefighter who spent three months doing cleanup work at ground zero after 9/11 said they are skeptical of and disappointed with a medical examiner's conclusion that he died of natural causes. Rafael Hernandez, 49, who emerged as an advocate for immigrants exposed to thick layers of dust at ground zero, died Sept. 25 of obesity with obstructive sleep apnea and cardiac enlargement, said the city's medical examiner's spokeswoman, Ellen Borakove. Hernandez also suffered from an acute and chronic alcohol abuse, she said. ``The government has turned its back on him,'' said Jaime Munevar, a Colombian immigrant who says he is also sick from his cleanup work at ground zero. ``He told me before he died how much his back and lungs hurt. The pain is common among us, the immigrants who worked in the area.'' Hernandez, who came to the U.S. illegally in 1999, died in his Queens apartment. He held a biweekly support group for other immigrants with illnesses they believed were related to their work at ground zero. Many of them expressed dismay that the death of Hernandez was not officially linked to his exposure to the clouds of dust at the disaster site _ a finding they believe may have strengthened his claim for victims' medical compensation. His name would have been placed on the memorial to 9/11 victims that now sits at the
World Trade Center site. Thousands of people have blamed health problems on trade center dust, but evidence linking deaths to the dust has been inconclusive. The New York City medical examiner's office rarely categorizes deaths as related to the toxic dust. Hernandez had been diagnosed with respiratory problems after 9/11 and often went to a hos-
``The government has turned its back on him,'' said Jaime Munevar, a Colombian immigrant who says he is also sick from his cleanup work at ground zero pital. Obesity is a common cause of sleep apnea and cardiac enlargement. His lawyer, Jorge Anzola, said Hernandez settled a lawsuit against the city in 2010 over the disaster cleanup work done without adequate protective gear. ``Rafael was a wonderful person. He did a lot for a lot of people,'' Anzola said. ``But he was sick. He was on the go all the time, and I told him he had to take care of himself.'' Hernandez also suffered from asthma and slept with a machine
to aid his breathing, said Consuelo Trujillo, a Colombian immigrant who also suffers respiratory problems she blamed on her cleanup work at ground zero. ``He would suffocate when he talked and he had to stop for a second, to breathe,'' Trujillo said. New York City's Hispanic community has reacted negatively to the medical examiner's decision, said Rosa Duque, a Guatemalan immigrant who knew Hernandez. ``This has stained his legacy,'' the former cleanup worker said. ``Rafael used to say that if one day he was no longer around, we needed to keep fighting for compensation.'' Hernandez led a biweekly support group called Frontiers of Hope where the workers discussed their illnesses. They also sought to cope with the long-term psychological effects of their time near the disaster site. Before he died, he was expecting to receive his last check from the city and then move back to Mexico to be with his family, Anzola said. Though the number of Hispanics who were part of the ground zero cleanup crews is unknown, leaders of the immigrant community agree that Hispanics represented a large percentage of cleanup workers. Many were in this country illegally, they say, and contractors normally did not ask them for immigration papers, paying them low wages, in cash. Cont’d on page 42
such as San Francisco, have passed similar measures in response to the Obama administration's program that aims to pursue more criminal deportations, Cook County was the first to forbid a sheriff from holding suspected felons as well as those accused of misdemeanors. Proponents say the county's previous practice of holding immigrants in jail after they served their time or posted bail until federal agents could pick them up was unfair and unconstitutional. ``By refusing the detain people who are entitled to their freedom, based merely on a request from (immigration agents) we are upholding our system of justice,'' Jesus Garcia, a commissioner who supported the measure, said in a statement at the time. But critics have said the ordinance is a disaster waiting to happen, that ultimately an illegal immigrant who otherwise could have been held by federal authorities is going to walk out of jail and com-
mit another crime. ``This is our Willie Horton moment in Cook County,'' warned Commissioner Timothy Schneider at the time he voted against the ordinance, referring to the convicted killer who raped a woman after being released as part of a Massachusetts program. In her news release, Preckwinkle said the problem has nothing to do with immigration and everything to do with an overwhelmed criminal justice system. Judges, she said, have to make decisions ``in an instant, without access to the appropriate level of information upon which to base their decision.'' As a result, Preckwinkle has called for the Cook County Judicial Advisory Council to conduct a six-month study on how bail is set in the county. According to a statement by Preckwinkle, one of the goals is to provide judges with more complete information about defendants before they decide on bail. -AP
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Civil & Criminal Litigation Felonies, Misdemeanors, Inc DUI 1 Personal Injury, Business, Divorce etc. 1 Property Tax for Commercial Properties 1 1
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Immigration Post
India Post
January 27, 2012
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Anti-immigration tone of POST rescinds rules on Republicans alienating Hispanics immigration status checks ALBUQUERQUE, NM: The Republican Party is beefing up its minority outreach nationwide and preparing to put its rising Latino stars on the campaign trail amid concerns that tough immigration rhetoric in the presidential primary is taking on an increasingly antiHispanic tone. But immigrant-rights groups and some political watchers say the damage may be irreversible. They argue that the GOP has severely hampered itself as it looks to woo the critical Latino voting bloc that could decide who wins key states like New Mexico, Nevada, Colorado and Florida next fall. Mitt Romney ``is done,'' said DeeDee Blase, founder of Somos Republicans in Arizona. ``He'll be lucky to get 8 percent of the Hispanic vote'' after saying he would veto legislation that would create a path to citizenship for some illegal immigrants and accepting the endorsement of anti-immigration activist Kris Kobach, architect of two of the strongest immigration crackdown laws in the country. The GOP front-runner, Romney has referred to the legislation called the DREAM Act as a handout. The measure would allow some young illegal immigrants brought to the US as children to earn legal status if they went to
college or joined the military. Challengers, including Texas Gov. Perry, former Pennsylvania Sen. Rick Santorum and Ron Paul, have also taken tough anti-immigration stances in the campaign. Language from them has been so sharp that even New Mexico Gov. Susana Martinez, a Republican, has warned the candidates to
“What we have to do is this: We have to tone down the rhetoric, and we have to have a sincere, honest conversation with the voters,'' Martinez said watch their tongues. ``What we have to do is this: We have to tone down the rhetoric, and we have to have a sincere, honest conversation with the voters,'' Martinez said shortly after the Republican National Committee announced that it had hired a director of Hispanic outreach and was expanding its Latino-focused efforts. She's among the popular
Hispanic politicians Republicans will deploy to battleground states in the coming months. There's a reason for the urgent tone coming from Republican leaders on this matter. The government projects Hispanics will account for roughly 30 percent of the population by 2050, doubling in size and boosting their political power. Overall, Hispanics traditionally tilt Democrat, meaning the Republican Party is looking at a threat to their future power if they don't work to make inroads with this politically pivotal group now. Democrats have strengthened their standing with Hispanics in the most recent presidential election years. While much was made during the Democratic primary of 2008 of President Barack Obama's perceived weakness among Hispanics, he won 67 percent of their vote in the general election to 31 percent for Republican John McCain. It was a huge jump from 2004 when Democratic nominee John Kerry won Hispanics by 53 percent to 44 percent for Bush, a Texan who focused heavily on Hispanics. Some worry that this year's eventual GOP nominee won't fare much better than McCain four years ago and may fare worse if candidates don't soften the way they talk about immigration. -AP
Indian and Vietnamese immigrants become American over time Cont’d from page 40
Typically, Indian immigrants came voluntarily, seeking education, jobs and economic opportunity, although some came to join family members. Generally they have high levels of education and income, and typically already speak English, says Brettell, who conducted the Indian research. The Vietnamese came as refugees, primarily to escape communism and in search of freedom and democracy. More recently they've also come to join family members, says Reed-Danahay, who conducted the Vietnamese research. On the surface there are a great many differences between these two Asian immigrant populations, say the authors. But the anthropological research revealed significant similarities in the way immigrants from both India and Vietnam engage in civic and political activities. Despite a desire to belong and overcome feelings of otherness, Indian and Vietnamese immigrants reported that fellow Americans
sometimes exclude them on the basis of their accent, their skin color and their ethnic characteristics. While there hasn't been any sweeping anti-immigrant legislation in Texas such as in California, there have been a number of bills proposed at the state level aimed at illegal immigration, as well as some ordinances at the local level. "Both Indian and Vietnamese immigrants have learned to 'talk the talk' of civic engagement," Brettell says, "as they refer to their 'teamwork,' 'good neighbor ship,' 'giving back' and 'entering the mainstream' says Margaret Allen Historically, relationship between India and Vietnam is one of great antiquity for the interaction between these countries precedes the beginning of the Christian era, perhaps predates the connection of Indian culture, religions and civilization prior to all far eastern Hindu-Buddhist countries. It is believed that Indian mercantile class set up their earliest colony in Vietnam. It will not be an exaggeration to say that unlike many
invasions to India especially since the Mohammedan era, the most unique feature of this interaction is that it has been entirely peaceful. Americas happens to be the next most important place where these two cultures came into contact again after a thousand years. Immigrants in North Texas develop American identity by participating in ethnic community activities, then branching out to broader civic and political life. Whether contributing money to Boy Scouts, donating a statue of Gandhi for a Dallas city plaza, or successfully lobbying against flying Vietnam's communist flag in a citywide international celebration, a new study shows that immigrants in Texas are involved in their communities. SMU is a nationally ranked private university in Dallas founded 100 years ago. Today, SMU enrolls nearly 11,000 students who benefit from the academic opportunities and international reach of seven degree-granting schools.
NASHVILLE, Tenn.: After being sued for creating rules in secret, a state commission has rescinded a policy that directed local jailers to check the immigration status of detainees. The Peace Officer Standards and Training Commission was required to develop the policy by a recent state law, but a suit filed last month claimed they did so by email and in meetings that were not announced to the public. State attorney Joe Underwood, speaking at the commission's monthly meeting, recommended that members rescind the rules. They did so unanimously. Underwood said that detainees will still have their immigration status checked as part of a federal program called Secure Communities that is now active in all 95 counties. He told the commission that under Secure Communities, federal immigration authorities will receive electronic copies of the fingerprints of all detainees. It will then be up to the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement to decide whether to request an immigration hold on someone. ``Basically, this takes local law enforcement out of the process,'' he said. Underwood said that should remove the concern that some local jailers are engaging in racial profiling _ questioning only those detainees that they perceive to be foreign because of the way they look or talk. Attorney Elliott Ozment, who filed the suit against POST, said he was satisfied with the vote and would sign paperwork to drop the
suit later. ``This (decision) is important because we have run into problems with how these POST Commission regulations are being implemented in the counties,'' he said. Ozment has filed a separate suit in federal court claiming the Williamson County Sheriff's Office has violated immigrants' rights by detaining people without a request from ICE to do so.
State attorney Joe Underwood, speaking at the commission's monthly meeting, recommended that members rescind the rules. And they did Ozment said he expects cases like that to continue to come up under Secure Communities, but he will wait to hear from clients about their experiences before challenging the program. Stephen Fotopulos, director of the Tennessee Immigrant and Refugee Rights Coalition, also attended the meeting. He said he would like to see the POST Commission take further action to educate jailers about when they are legally allowed to detain someone suspected of an immigration violation and for how long. As for the POST Commission providing notice of its meetings, ``I think it's learned its lesson on that,'' Ozment said. -AP
Cause questioned in death of ground zero worker Cont’d from page 41
Before Sept. 11, Hernandez worked at a Queens shop, his friends said. As a professional paramedic firefighter in Mexico, he worked for the Red Cross there until he moved to New York in 1999, leaving behind two daughters and one son. He became a volunteer firefighter for the city fire department. ``I am not surprised by the medical examiner's decision but I feel he did not receive the medical help he needed,'' said Brenda Olvera, his wife, who lives in Mexico. The medical examiner's conclusion does not change anything, Anzola said. Hernandez's family
will receive his last city check and hope to benefit from a fund to compensate people who might have been sickened by exposure to trade center dust and ash. Hernandez's body was sent to Mexico for cremation but his organs stayed in New York to be analyzed by the medical examiner, his family said. During his wake in the fall, dozens of immigrants gave emotional speeches and paid tribute in song. ``He was deteriorating fast,'' said Virginia Villa, 63, a Colombian immigrant who said she also was sickened by the 9/11 cleanup work. ``I am worried about this medical conclusion because we are in the same situation. This is not dying by natural causes.'' -AP
Immigration Post
January 27, 2012
India Post
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Waiver rule for those facing 3- or 10-year bars Cont’d from page 40
It is not hard to see why there has been such a huge build up of the undocumented population in the US. Even while people may be eligible for permanent residence, they are unwilling to leave and chance a waiver from outside the US. While Congress enacted INA § 212(a) (9) (B) to deter overstays, it has had the exact opposite effect. People overstay, despite being approved for a green card, because of fear of facing the 3 or 10 year bars. It is thus heartening that the Obama administration has proposed a rule that will be published in the Federal Register on January 9, 2012 in the form of a Notice of Intent to publish such a rule, which will permit intending immigrants to apply for a provisional waiver in the US prior to their departure from the US. This rule, if published, will remove the uncertainty in leaving the US and being barred for 3 or 10 years if the waiver application is denied. Under the proposed rule, the waiver can be applied for while in the US. With the waiver in hand, the individual departing the US can more readily hope to reenter the US without facing the 10 year bar. This move has received thunderous applause from the immigration advocacy community and rightly so. In a time when Congress is virtually paralyzed and cannot even make small tweaks to improve the immigration system, the proposing of a smart administrative rule such as this one is consistent with the intent of the law. A child who has turned 21, and who may not be protected under the Child Status Protection Act, still remains very much part of the nuclear family especially in hard economic times when their parents are still the lifeline. People subject to the 3 or 10 year bars still need to apply for the waiver and meet the rigorous "extreme hardship" standard, except that they can apply for it in the US prior to their departure. If they obtain the waiver, they can at least be assured of not triggering the 3 or 10 year bars upon their departure. Apparently, if and when the rule takes effect, which under the formal rule making process may take some time, it will be limited to immediate relatives of US citizens who are seeking a § 212(a)(9)(B)(v) waiver of unlawful presence based on hardship to a US citizen, although the petitioning US citizen and the one to whom extreme hardship exists need not be the same (so that, for example, it appears that the parent of a 21-year-old US citizen petitioned for by that son or daughter would qualify if seeking a waiver based on extreme hardship to a US citizen parent, the grand-
parent of the petitioning relative). It appears that the rule will not cover people who are not immediate relatives of a US citizen (such as the over-21-year-old son or daughter of a US citizen who is petitioned for by their parent and not protected by the Child Status Protection Act), or whose qualifying relative for the waiver is a lawful permanent resident. It also will not cover people who need some other sort of waiver in addition, such as a waiver under INA § 212(i) for fraud. It is not entirely clear whether the proposed rule would cover people who in addition to a waiver under § 212(a)(9)(B)(v) need to obtain permission to reapply for admission because their departure will execute an order of removal and create inadmissibility under INA § 212(a)(9)(A), but it would seem that it should, since such applications for permission to reapply can already be filed in advance under existing regulations - the actual proposed rule may clarify this when it comes out. We do urge the USCIS to at least include sons and daughters of US citizens who do not qualify as immediate relatives. A child who has turned 21, and who may not be protected under the Child Status Protection Act, still remains very much part of the nuclear family especially in hard economic times when their parents are still the lifeline. These adult children, technically referred to as sons and daughters, would otherwise qualify under DREAM Act legislation, and may at least be able to take advantage of this provisional waiver if the proposed rule is adjusted to allow them to do so. Although this new proposed rule may be portrayed as some sort of radical innovation by immigration restrictionists, it is actually nothing of the sort. The governing regulations, specifically 8 C.F.R. § 212.2(j), have long provided that one who is consular processing an immigrant visa, and will need permission to reapply for admission because his or her departure will execute an order of deportation or removal and create inadmissibility under INA § 212(a)(9)(A), can file the Form I-212 application for permission to reapply in advance of departing from the United States, and "shall receive a conditional approval depending on his or her satisfactory departure." That is, people who will be subject to the 5- and 10-year bars based on executed removal and deportation orders (the length of the bar can vary depending on the circumstances of a removal order) have long been able to apply for advance waivers of those bars before they leave the US to consular-process an immigrant visa. This new proposed rule would simply update the regulations to cre-
ate a similar procedure for the parallel 3- and 10-year bars created by IIRIRA (the "Illegal Immigration Reform and Immigrant Responsibility Act of 1996"), for people who remove themselves from the United States after being unlawfully present even though there may have been no removal proceedings against them. It can therefore be seen as a long overdue technical fix. However, it remains to be seen how long the rule making process will take, which includes notice and comment. There is also bound to be opposition to the rule. The USCIS still has to publish rules from the enactment of IIRIRA
A child who has turned 21, and who may not be protected under the Child Status Protection Act, still remains very much part of the nuclear family especially in hard economic times when their parents are still the lifeline provisions in 1996! Hopefully, the Obama administration will give this high priority as the promulgation of such a rule may even reduce the undocumented population in the US. This technical fix could also reduce inefficiency in the era of Matter of Quilantan, 25 I&N Dec. 285 (BIA 2010), especially if accompanied by an additional change in the proposal relating to potential issues of fraud. Under Quilantan, entering the United States at a port of entry with the permission of an immigration officer is sufficient to create eligibility for adjustment of status as an immediate relative of a U.S. citizen, regardless of whether one's entry was procedurally proper, as long as the entry did not involve a knowing false claim to U.S. citizenship. Many people who were waved through the border as passengers in a car or the like have little cor-
roborating evidence of their manner of entry. Absent this regulation, if such a Quilantan entrant is married to a U.S. citizen and is denied adjustment because USCIS rejects their testimony regarding manner of entry, they will effectively be forced to request that removal proceedings be commenced against them so that they may testify before an Immigration Judge and seek to establish their manner of entry by credible testimony as Ms. Quilantan did in her case. Under the new procedure, some such Quilantan entrants may decide that it is simpler to seek an advance waiver of inadmissibility, as long as their qualifying relative's particular form of extreme hardship is such that a brief trip abroad to pick up an immigrant visa will not be intolerable. If the advance waiver is approved, the already overcrowded immigration court system would then be spared the necessity of hearing testimony regarding the applicant's manner of entry. One caveat, however, is that the current version of the proposal, which excludes waivers of fraud-re-
lated inadmissibility under INA § 212(i), could lead potential applicants and their attorneys to fear a potential finding of fraud inadmissibility by a consulate where the circumstances of the applicant's prior entry into the United States are murky and difficult to prove (making it hard to refute an inaccurate consular suspicion that some fraud may have been committed). The potential efficiency would be much greater if the USCIS proposal were modified to allow either advance waivers under INA § 212(i), or at least an advance finding that no fraud was committed by an applicant. Otherwise, Quilantan entrants within the U.S. may be reluctant to give up their right to have an Immigration Judge (and if necessary the BIA) adjudicate their contention that they did not commit fraud in their entry, and to instead be at the mercy of an effectively unreviewable determination by a consular officer. * Cyrus D Mehta, may be contacted at 212-425-0555 or info@cyrusmehta.com
Tech News Now an app to follow Great White Sharks
TechBiz 44 India Post
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alifornia based Marine Conservation Science Institute has launched an iPhone app that enables users to track the great white sharks as they roam in the Pacific Ocean. The app has been described as the first shark tracker of its kind and has been launched to raise funds for the institute's research. Users can watch the sharks on their smartphone screens. The sharks were tagged by the institute in recent years.
Ministry to defer Datwind's Aakash Project
T
he Ministry of Human Re source and Development (HRD) may put on hold the project of Datawind's Aaksah tablet. Recently, the users have complained some technical faults owing to its slow processor speed and less battery life. With effect to this, the government has shelved the supply order of 70,000 tablets. Earlier, 1 lakh Aakash tablets were supposed to be distributed amongst the students in which 30,000 has already been supplied in order to bridge the digital divide between the rich and poor. The Government is now planning to make new spectrums for the Aakash project.
Apple store faces customers' wrath in China
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pple Inc was at the receiving end of its customers' wrath after a botched introduction of the latest iPhone 4S in China. Customers who had waited throughout the cold night got angry after Apple's main store in Beijing's Sanlitun district failed to open. Apple had earlier announced that the store would open at 7 a.m. However people lost their patience after a man without any explanation announced that the phone wouldn't go on sale that day. They then started pelting the store with eggs and the Beijing police had to temporarily cordon off the store.
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MAHENDRAĂS NEW SUV:Vijay Nakra, Vice President, Sales Mahindra and Mahindra Ltd. poses with a Mahindra XUV 500 during the launch at Courtyard by Mariott in Ahmedabad on January 17. Mahindra's Sports Utility Vehicle (SUV) ' XUV 500 ' starting price at INR Rs.11.27 Lacs (ex-showroom Ahmedabad).
January 27, 2012
India not to seek waiver from US sanctions on Iran NEW DELHI: India will not seek a waiver from the US against its fresh round of sanctions against Iran even as a multi-disciplinary delegation is visiting Tehran to discuss financial and other aspects to ensure continued supply of oil from that country. Under the new American sanc-
countries that significantly reduce dealings with Iran. "We have accepted sanctions which are made by the United Nations. Other sanctions do not apply to individual countries. We don't accept that position and we continue to buy oil from Iran," Foreign Secretary Ranjan
“We don't accept that position and we continue to buy oil from Iran," Foreign Secretary Ranjan Mathai told reporters when asked if India would seek waiver from the US against the sanctions tions, made on December 31, financial institutions dealing with Iran's central bank will be penalized, which may result in more difficulty for India to pay Iran for oil imports. However, the US allows waivers for those buyers from
Mathai told reporters when asked if India would seek waiver from the US against the sanctions. He also cited examples of other European countries such as Greece which continues to import oil from Iran.
Foreign Secretary, Ranjan Mathai
In a bid to ensure uninterrupted supply of oil from Iran, a multi-disciplinary team is currently visiting Tehran to discuss financial transaction issues that may arise out of recent sanctions.
US court rejects blocking of bank loans to Air India NEW YORK: Paving the way for a crucial loan guarantee by the US Exim Bank to Air India, a federal court has rejected a bid by an industry body of major US airlines to block USD 3.4 billion loan to the national carrier to purchase new Boeing planes. Trade body 'Airlines for America' had filed a lawsuit in November last year against the US Exim Bank opposing the loan guarantee to Air India to buy the muchawaited Boeing 787 Dreamliners,
saying the financial support would put US carriers at a commercial disadvantage. The US Exim Bank had in October last approved loan guarantees of USD 1.3 billion to support Air India's fleet acquisition from Boeing and another USD 2.1 billion preliminary commitment to support future deliveries of the US aerospace company's planes to the Indian national carrier. Rejecting the plea, Judge James Boasberg of the US District Court for Columbia said the trade group had failed to show that American carriers will suffer significant financial loss if the Boeing jets are delivered to Air India.
"Because plaintiffs have not demonstrated a likelihood that they will suffer irreparable harm during the pendency of the lawsuit in the absence of an injunction, the court will deny their requested relief," Boasberg ruled. The judge further noted that "none of the airlines participating in this lawsuit currently offers a direct flight between the US and India." Maintaining that only two planes were scheduled to be delivered to Air India by March, he pointed out that it was "wholly speculative" to assume that these deliveries would cause financial injury to US carriers. -PTI
India currently pays Iran about USD 1 billion every month through Turkey for the 370,000 barrels per day of crude oil it buys from the world's fourth-largest oil producer.-PTI
Google, Facebook warned of being blocked in India
G
oogle India and Facebook have been warned that they could be "blocked" in India if they failed to remove objectionable material from their web sites. The Delhi High Court warned the two websites and said that websites that carry objectionable materials could be blocked like it's done in China. Former Additional Solicitor General Mukul Rohatgi, appearing for Google India, said that it was impossible to monitor billions of postings even if some of them were obscene, objectionable and defamatory. He added that Google India is a subsidiary of Google Inc and has a separate legal identity and is not bound by the acts or offences committed by its holding company. However Judge Suresh Cait refused to accept Google India's argument and said that that as a beneficiary that did business in India, Google India could be liable for it.
TechBiz Post
January 27, 2012
India Post
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India-Japan to examine high speed rail corridor NEW DELHI: India and Japan, a pioneer in bullet train operations, have decided to set up a high-level working group to examine various issues related to establishment of high speed rail corridors in the country. The decision was taken during
Stressing the importance of high speed trains for the country and its economy, Trivedi said he has discussed the issue with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and with the Japanese Prime Minister and they are "very serious" about the project a meeting between Railway Minister Dinesh Trivedi and Japanese Minister for Land Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism Takeshi Maeda here. "We have taken a decision that at a very high level of decision making there is going to be a working group between Japan and India. We
The Minister of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism (MLIT), Government of Japan, Takeshi Maeda meeting the Union Minister for Railways, Dinesh Trivedi to discuss bilateral issues in the field of rail transportation and various aspects of high speed train corridors in India, in New Delhi.
have to find out where do we begin," Trivedi told reporters here. He was asked about the progress of the proposed high speed corridor project in the country. Stressing the importance of high speed trains for the country and its economy, Trivedi said he has discussed the issue with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and with the Japanese Prime Minister and they are "very serious" about the project. Known for its expertise in running bullet trains, Japan has shown keen interest in India's am-
bition to run high speed trains. Japan's External Trade Organization and Oriental Consultancy along with Parsons Brinkhoff India have recently bagged a contract to carry out pre-feasibility study of the HyderabadVijayawada-Chennai corridor, one of the six corridors identified by Indian Railways for high speed train operations. To a pointed question if high speed train operations are possible in India, President of East Japan Railway Company Satoshi Seino replied in the affirmative. -PTI
Jet Airways orders 17 Boeing 737s WASHINGTON: Jet Airways has converted its options to buy Boeing 737 mid-range from the US aircraft manufacturer into a purchase agreement. "Jet Airways of India has placed order for 17 Boeing 737 aircraft," a spokesman of Boeing told PTI here. The spokesman, however, did not give any further detail, saying that it is up to the Jet Airways to make the announcement. Indian aviation industry sources said the premier private carrier could have converted its options to acquire 10 of these
planes into purchase agreements. The airline, which had given firm orders almost four years ago for 11 Boeing 737-800s with options to buy ten more, had received the first of these planes in September last year. As per list prices, the deal is likely to be around USD 1.4 billion. However, airlines generally negotiate for major concessions from the makers. Jet Airways spokespersons were not available for comments. The sources said the airline could also convert its wide -body aircraft order to acquire more nar-
row-body ones. However, there was no confirmation on the issue. The new Boeing 737-800s, for which additional orders have been placed, have significantly quieter cabin and are fitted with a decor called Sky Interior which has inspired shape, color, decor and texture. The LED lighting, fitted in the new aircraft, can portray different color schemes like a soft blue sky and a relaxing pallet of sunset colors. -PTI
UN report pegs India growth at 7.7% in 2012, 7.9% in 2013 NEW DELHI: India's economic growth rate will remain subdued at 7.7 per cent in 2012 and 7.9 per cent in 2013 as downside risks have increased, mainly on account of problems in Europe and the USA, says a UN report. "India's economy is forecast to expand at a pace similar to 2011 in the following two years... at 7.7 per cent in 2012 and 7.9 per cent in 2013," the UN report on 'World Economic Situation and Prospects 2012' said. The report cautioned, "The downside risks to the regional outlook have sharply increased in recent months particularly in case
of India. Double-dip recessions in Europe and the United States would have a significant impact on economic activities across South Asia." The government recently lowered the GDP growth target for the current fiscal to 7 per cent from the earlier estimate of 8.5 per cent. However, the study gave a positive outlook on South Asia's economic growth prospects and projected that the region's economies will grow by 6.7 per cent and 6.9 per cent in 2012 and 2013, respectively, accelerating beyond the 6.5 per cent growth rate experienced in 2011. -PTI
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TechBiz Post
India Post
January 27, 2012
www.indiapost.com
ONGC in talks with US company for oil exploration NEW DELHI: State-run Oil and Natural Gas Corp (ONGC) is in talks with US energy firm ConocoPhillips to explore possibilities of joining hands for exploration of oil and gas in Indian deep sea and shale gas in North America. ONGC is proposing to sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with ConocoPhillips for cooperation in exploration and development of shale gas and deepwater opportunities, a company official said. The company in a statement said "discussions with ConocoPhillips to explore possibilities of any business partnership are at a very nascent stage." The state-owned firm is keen to rope in a foreign major with technology to develop deepwater finds like the ultra deep sea UD-
1 discovery in KG-DWN-98/2 block in Krishna Godavari basin. ConocoPhillips last October visited data room for 19 deepwater blocks of ONGC. The official said ONGC had approached
ConocoPhillips has shown interest in ONGC deep water blocks, he said adding the draft MOU provides for potential exploration and development of shale opportunities in India, North America and elsewhere
ONGC is proposing to sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with ConocoPhillips for cooperation in exploration and development of shale gas and deepwater opportunities, a company official said 12 companies working in South East Asia including ConocoPhillips of USA for potential farm-in and a deep water flyer for eastcoast blocks was sent to them.
and potential deepwater opportunities offshore India. ONGC has expressed interest in joining hands with ConocoPhillips, or its affiliates,
in shale assets in North America. This is ONGC's fourth attempt to get a credible foreign partner in its exploration acreage after Petrobras of Brazil, Statoil of Norway and BG Group of UK walked out of its ventures for various reasons. While Petrobras and Statoil walked out because of delays in getting regulatory approvals for picking up stake in blocks such as KG-DWN-98/2, BG withdrew as part of its global portfolio realignment. If talks with ConocoPhillips succeed, ONGC is looking at bringing to production dozens of deep sea finds it has made in the Krishna Godavari and Mahanadi basin. ConocoPhillips is the third-largest integrated energy company in the US and the fifth-largest refiner in the world. -PTI
Videocon to withdraw SEZ project Exports up 6.7 pc in Dec, may achieve $300 bn FY'12 target in W Bengal NEW DELHI: A Videocon group firm has approached the Centre to withdraw its IT/ITES SEZ project at Jalpaiguri due to "latest business outlook" in the northern region of West Bengal. "...Now, the developer has requested for withdrawal of formal approval stating that the company is not able to implement the project owing to the latest business outlook of the region," according to a Commerce Ministry document. An inter-ministerial Board of Approval (BoA), chaired by Commerce Secretary Rahul Khullar, will consider this request on January 24. The project was to be implemented by Videocon Realty and Infrastructure Ltd which had been granted a formal approval for setting up 10-hectare Special Economic Zone (SEZ). The preliminary
approval was given in May 2009. Even as Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee recently held a meeting in Kolkata with industrialists, sev-
"The developer has requested for denotification of the SEZ...in the changed economic scenario," the agenda papers of the BoA meeting said eral projects relating to steel and power are stuck in the state for different reasons including certain
regulatory and land issues. Infrastructure major Larsen and Toubro has also approached the Commerce Ministry to surrender its IT/ITeS SEZ which was to come up at Coimbatore in Tamil Nadu, due to "economic unviability" of the project. "The developer has requested for de-notification of the SEZ...in the changed economic scenario," the agenda papers of the BoA meeting said. Besides, 11 developers including that of Parsvnath SEZ Ltd and Taneja Aerospace and Aviation Ltd have extension of time for execution of their projects. However, India's largest software firm, TCS remains bullish on the sector and has sought approval for its new SEZ project at Indore in Madhya Pradesh. -PTI
NEW DELHI: India's exports growth remained subdued at 6.7 per cent year-on-year in December on account of poor demand in Europe and the US, but the government is hopeful of achieving its USD 300 billion target for the current fiscal. Though growth during the month under review was not robust, it was higher than in November, when overseas shipments grew by just 3.8 per cent. In sharp contrast, imports grew at a faster pace of 19.8 per cent year-on-year to USD 37.8 billion in December, translating into a trade deficit of USD 12.8 billion, Commerce Secretary Rahul Khullar told reporters here. During the April-December period this fiscal, exports aggregated to USD 217.6 billion, a year-on-
Bangladesh to abandon 8 projects under Indian credit DHAKA: Bangladesh has planned to abandon eight of the 21 projects to be implemented under the Indian USD 1 billion credit line due to complexities arising out of lender's "tough conditions", reports said on Tuesday. An inter-ministerial meeting on Monday decided that the eight projects might be dropped and replaced with "easily executable" fresh ones, if agreed by the lender, media reports said. The 'Samakal' and several other newspapers reported that the decision came as the ministries concerned reported that it became difficult for them to execute projects as the credit conditions required the recipient to procure 85 per cent of the goods and services from India, which were available in the country, in many cases, at a much cheaper cost.
"If the goods and services particularly like sands, bricks and workforces are to be procured from India, which are available in Bangladesh at a much cheaper price, the project cost will be very
conditions attached to the loan. The Samakal newspaper quoting Economic Relations Division's senior assistant secretary Zinat Rehana said Bangladesh would convey the plan to a visiting In-
"Only one project has been running smoothly. The money for the rest 19 schemes under the USD 1 billion credit could not be utilised due to procurement complexities," a joint secretary at the finance ministry said high," a senior finance ministry official said. The official said the inter-ministerial meeting on Monday discussed the problems as the executing ministries and government agencies raised the issue of harder
dian delegation which was expected in Dhaka next week. Bangladesh earlier undertook 20 projects under the Indian credit for upgrading its infrastructure after the Indian government in August 2010 confirmed USD 1 bil-
lion loan for Bangladesh. The Financial Express newspaper reported the largest recipients of the loan - the railway and the communications ministries - have so far failed to receive funds from the Indian credit line as they took up 17 projects under the credit, but they are yet to complete tender process for most of the schemes. The report said Bangladesh Road Transport Corporation (BRTC) is the lone government agency, which was able to start spending some Indian credit to procure buses from India. "Only one project has been running smoothly. The money for the rest 19 schemes under the USD 1 billion credit could not be utilised due to procurement complexities," a joint secretary at the finance ministry told the newspaper. -PTI
year growth of 25.8 per cent, thanks to the surge witnessed in the early months of the fiscal. From a peak of 82 per cent in July, export growth slipped to 44.25 per cent in August, 36.36 per cent in September and 10.8 per cent in October. "If you get USD 80 billion exports in the remaining quarter (January-March, 2012), you are looking at close to USD 300 billion. And imports may touch about USD 460 billion," Khullar said. Experts opined that the country's exports growth for the entire fiscal will stand at about 20 per cent. During the first three quarters of the current fiscal, imports were up by 30.4 per cent at USD 350.9 billion. The trade deficit stood at USD 133.3 billion during the period. -PTI
Haryana's milk production going up CHANDIGARH: The annual milk production in Haryana has reached 62.67 lakh tonnes in the current fiscal so far compared to 52.22 lakh tonnes during 2004-05. Stating this here, a spokesman of the Animal Husbandry and Dairying Department said per capita per day availability of milk in the state is 680 grams compared to national average of 262 grams. A target for doubling the milk production in the next 10 years has been fixed, the spokesperson added. Further, he said the government has opened 133 veterinary hospitals and 291 veterinary dispensaries. The total number of veterinary institutions in the state have now gone up to 2,790 for providing veterinary and breeding services to the livestock in the state, he said. -PTI
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Philosophy
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ong before I undertook the education of the youngsters of the Tolstoy Farm I had realized that the training of the spirit was a thing by itself. To develop the spirit is to build character and to enable one to work towards a knowledge of God and self-realization. And I held that this was an essential part of the training of the young, and that all training without culture of the spirit was of no use, and might be even harmful. How then was this spiritual training to be given? I made the children memorize and recite hymns, and read to them from books on moral training. But that was far from satisfying me. As I came into closer contact with them I saw that it was not through books that one could impart training of the spirit. Just as physical training was to be imparted through physical exercise even so the training of the spirit was possible only through the exercise of the spirit. And the exercise of the spirit entirely depended on the life and character of the teacher. The teacher had always to be mindful of his p's and q's, whether he was in the midst of his boys or not. It is possible for a teacher situated miles away to affect the spirit of the pupils by his way of living. MEISTER ECKHART
G
race is from God, and works in the depth of the soul whose powers it employs. It is a light which issues forth to do service under the guidance of the Spirit. The Divine Light permeates the soul, and lifts it above the turmoil of temporal things to rest in God. The soul cannot progress except with the light which God has given it as a nuptial gift; love works the likeness of God into the soul. The peace, freedom and blessedness of all souls consist in their abiding in God's will. Towards this union with God for which it is created the soul strives perpetually. Fire converts wood into its own likeness, and the stronger the wind blows, the greater grows the fire. Now by the fire understand love, and by the wind the Holy Spirit. The stronger the influence of the Holy Spirit, the brighter grows the fire of love; but not all at once, rather gradually as the soul grows. Light causes flowers and plants to grow and bear fruit; in animals it produces life, but in men blessedness. This comes from the grace of God, Who uplifts the soul, for if the soul is to grow God-like it
It would be idle for me, if I were a liar, to teach boys to tell the truth. A cowardly teacher would never succeed in making his boys valiant, and a stranger to self-restraint could never teach his pupils the value of self-restraint. I saw therefore that I must be an eternal object-lesson to the boys and girls living with me. They thus became my teachers, and I learnt I must be good and live
mant and even tried to overreach me. At last I picked up a ruler lying at hand and delivered a blow on his arm. I trembled as I struck him. I dare say he noticed it. This was an entirely novel experience for them all. The boy cried out and begged to be forgiven. He cried not because the beating was painful to him; he could, if he had been so minded, have paid me back in the same coin, being a
sons. I have therefore never until this day been able to decide whether I was right or wrong in using the ruler. Probably it was improper, for it was prompted by anger and a desire to punish. Had it been an expression only of my distress, I should have considered it justified. But the motive in this case was mixed. This incident set me thinking
Training of spirit depends on character of teacher Never again after this incident did he disobey me. But I still repent that violence. I am afraid I exhibited before him that day not the spirit, but the brute, in me Mahatma Gandhi
straight, if only for their sakes. I may say that the increasing discipline and restraint I imposed on myself at Tolstoy Farm was mostly due to those wards of mine. One of them was wild, unruly, given to lying, and quarrelsome. On one occasion he broke out most violently. I was exasperated. I never punished my boys, but this time I was very angry. I tried to reason with him. But he was ada-
stoutly built youth of seventeen; but he realized my pain in being driven to this violent resource. Never again after this incident did he disobey me. But I still repent that violence. I am afraid I exhibited before him that day not the spirit, but the brute, in me. I have always been opposed to corporal punishment. I remember only one occasion on which I physically punished one of my
and taught me a better method of correcting students. The youngster soon forgot the incident, and I do not think he ever showed great improvement. But the incident made me understand better the duty of a teacher towards his pupils. Excerpted from My Experiments with Truth The 64th death anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi will be observed on January 30
must be lifted above itself. To produce real moral freedom, God's grace and man's will must co-operate. As God is the Prime Mover of nature, so also He creates free impulses towards Himself and to all good things. Grace renders the will free that it may do everything with God's help, working with grace as with an instru-
he has not love. Therefore there is no inner freedom which does not manifest itself in works of love. True freedom is the government of nature in and outside man through God; freedom is essential existence unaffected by creatures. But love often begins with fear; fear is the approach to love: fear is like the awl which draws
better than all the work of creatures. But this is intended for those who are enlightened by God and the Holy Scriptures. But here on earth man never attains to being unaffected by external things. There never was a Saint so great as to be immovable. Some people wish to do without good works. I say, "This
As long as man loves something else than God, he is not free Love often begins with fear; fear is the approach to love: fear is like the awl which draws the shoemaker's thread through the leather ment which belongs to it. So the will arrives at freedom through love, nay, becomes itself love, for love unites with God. All true morality, inward and outward, is comprehended in love, for love is the foundation of all the commandments. All outward morality must be built upon this basis, not on selfinterest. As long as man loves something else than God, or outside God, he is not free, because
the shoemaker's thread through the leather. As for outward works they are ordained for this purpose that the outward man may be directed to God. But the inner work, the work of God in the soul is the chief matter; when a man finds this within himself, he can let go externals. No law is given to the righteous, because he fulfils the law inwardly, and bears it in himself, for the least thing done by God is
Meister Eckhart
cannot be." As soon as the disciples received the Holy Ghost, they began to work. I can never arrive at a state when discord shall be as pleasing to my ears as harmony. When Mary sat at the feet of our Lord that was her school time. But afterwards when Christ went to heaven, and she received the Holy Spirit, she began to serve and was a handmaid of the disciples.
Loud speech, profusion of words, and possessing skillfulness in expounding scriptures are merely for the enjoyment of the learned. They do not lead to liberation. -Adi Shankaracharya Never think there is anything impossible for the soul. It is the greatest heresy to think so. If there is sin, this is the only sin? To say that you are weak, or others are weak. -Swami Vivekananda Let no man in the world live in delusion. Without a Guru none can cross over to the other shore. -Guru Nanak Life is life - whether in a cat, or dog or man. There is no difference there between a cat or a man. The idea of difference is a human conception for man's own advantage. -Sri Aurobindo A man is truly free, even here in this embodied state, if he knows that God is the true agent and he by himself is powerless to do anything. -Sri Ramakrishna And as long as you're subject to birth and death, you'll never attain enlightenment. -Bodhidharma
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India's Iran policy dilemma: nuclear fuel or crude oil? J JEGANAATHAN
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n a move to enervate Iran the US has recently imposed fresh economic sanctions that would stifle Iran's financial institutions. Unlike in the past the US seems to be keen on persuading key oil importers such as India, China and Japan to implement sanctions against Iran. The proposed sanctions will severely hamper Iran's oil revenues. While Japan has already decided to reduce its oil dependency on Iran, China has expressed anguish about US' decision. The Indian position, however, remains unclear. India confronts a policy dilemma in choosing whether to bandwagon with the West or to befriend Iran. India wants to strengthen the strategic partnership with the US and at the same time wishes to maintain good relations with Iran. As a corollary, the inadvertent dilemma now is whether to choose nuclear fuel and lose crude oil or vice-versa. This article argues that the energy question is fueling India's Iran policy dilemma and explores options for India to overcome it. In general, economic sanctions are considered to be an element of coercive diplomacy in international politics. However, in Iran's case it has proved to be a sign of timid diplomacy. The so-called western approach of 'carrots and sticks' has failed to persuade Iran to forgo its nuclear weapon program. Moreover, neither the E3/EU nuclear diplomacy nor the IAEA negotiations could prevent Iran from pursuing the uranium enrichment program. Despite the US' campaign of international isolation and Israel's saber-rattling, Iran is brazenly furthering its uranium enrichment program. Technically, Iran's enrichment capability illustrates that nuclear weapon is within Iran's reach. Whether the proposed economic sanction will bite Iran or boost the regime's conviction is a moot question but the perplexing question is how it impacts India a traditional friend which turned out to be a situational foe. The India-Iran-US triangular relationship emerged as an inevitable phenomenon after the IndoUS nuclear deal steering the security dynamics of the region. India's interest in this complicated trio seems to be driven largely by its energy security interests than other factors. As a third largest importer of crude oil from Iran amounting to 12 per cent of its
overall import, India will face a tough time ahead if the economic sanctions against Iran are implemented as well, if Iran blocks the Strait of Homruz. Therefore, there is no doubt that it will severely upset India's energy security which is sine quo non for its already sluggish economic growth. India needs crude oil as well as nuclear fuel for its fast growing economy. The former is supplied by Iran and the latter is ensured by the US under the Indo-US nuclear agreement. Thus India is situated in a very awkward position when it is asked to support oil sanctions on Iran. The economic sanctions will jeopardize
Nuclear facility in Arak, Iran
India's oil import from Iran. With the rising global oil price, booming inflation and increasing domestic energy consumption India cannot afford to lose oil supply from Iran. At the same time, India cannot stop the US or the west from exercising military op-
With the rising global oil price, booming inflation and increasing domestic energy consumption India cannot afford to lose oil supply from Iran. At the same time, India cannot stop the US or the west from exercising military option against Iran tion against Iran. India should, in the meanwhile, avoid any symbolic hostility and protect its energy security interests in this unending nuclear impasse. India's vote against Iran at the IAEA in 2005 was a symbolic gesture to show to the world that it is a responsible nuclear power and also to secure US help to ensure nuclear fuel supply from Nuclear
Supplier Group (NSG). Nuclear energy contributes to 3 per cent of its electricity generation. However, crude oil and natural gas have become essential commodities without which the country's economic engine will cease to function. Securing the supply and production of these energy sources have become top priority for the government in India. Three plausible scenarios are likely to emerge in the future: Iran will be air-raided, Iran will test a nuclear bomb and the current nuclear stalemate will continue. None of these scenarios will be favorable to India and rather would endanger India's energy security. To avoid a stalemate the following can be considered: First, India needs to de-hyphenate its relationship with the US on Iran by articulating its energy security interests. This requires a 'deft diplomacy' from the Indian side and the present international security environment stormed by global economic crisis favors implementation of this option. This would help India to overcome a catch-22 situation vis-Ă -vis oil imports from Iran. Second, India can stage-manage the present nuclear stalemate between Iran and the west by suggesting an alternative non-western approach similar to that of Brazil-Turkey initiative to strike a consensual deal with Iran. This would at least prolong the Iranian plan to test a bomb, thus avoid any nuclear domino effect in the region. Third, India should prepare for a nuclear weapons-armed Iran. So far, there is no official statement from India stating nuclear-armed Iran is a threat to its national security. When India could live with the nuclear-armed Pakistan, it can simply do the same with Iran. But, securing India's interests, in case Iran is attacked is going to be a big challenge for India. The possibility of war on Iran or Iran testing a nuclear weapon is minimal at least in the shortterm due to global economic crisis and the forthcoming national elections in the US and Iran. This provides ample space for India to maneuver and exercise diplomatic skills to protect its vital energy security interests in the region. The writer is Research Officer, IPCS
India Post Dithering UPA
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t is not as if the UPA government was caught on the wrong foot by the Anna Hazare movement alone. Even on minor issues it has been found dithering resulting in small matters being blown up into a crisis. The date of birth of the Indian Army Chief is such a matter which has been allowed to grow up into a confrontation between the Army and civilian leadership. The issue has been simmering for the last four years but instead of taking a firm decision the government has allowed the issue to be referred to different bureaucracies leading to a perception of lack of trust by the Army Chief. Political leadership is about taking decisions. The present Indian leadership is so lacking in this faculty that it seems frightened of taking decisions. That is why the Prime Minister, supposedly the supreme executive authority, keeps referring vital issues to this committee or that committee, displaying a lack of ability to decide for himself. Trained as a bureaucrat he is unable to function as a politician thus leading to a whole lot of problems compounded by indecision. Blaming alliance partners all the time is no way to run a government. The decision about the Army Chief's date of birth has nothing to do with the UPA's allies. Army Chief General VK Singh says his hand was forced to move the Supreme Court on the issue of his date of birth as he wanted to prevent an adverse decision after a Public Interest Litigation by ex-armymen was coming up in a court. He fears insidious motives behind the PIL. Adding to his discomfiture were stories slandering the Army Chief being highlighted in the media allegedly leaked by the Defense ministry. Another factor that undermined the compromise efforts being worked out between the government and the Army Chief was the habit of UPA functionaries of talking in multiple voices. While the Army Chief was given assurances that his honor and integrity will be protected, there were other voices saying different things which shook the confidence of the Army Chief. The relationship between the Army and the government is quite different from what transpires in Pakistan. There the government is said to function under the directions of the Army whereas in India the Army is belittled at the hands of bureaucrats, what to speak of the politicians. The insecurity among army people has only increased in the tenure of the present Defense Minister A K Antony. Under his watch the Army has bee functioning under inadequate facilities and in the name of preventing corruption in procurement, he has blocked infusions of arms into the Army. He also allowed this issued to fester resorting to a bureaucratic approach instead of resolving it quietly with the Army Chief. BJP leader Jaswant Singh, a former army officer himself, went to the extent of saying he was "amazed at Antony's incompetence and sheer folly of treating such a sensitive matter in an insensitive manner." Antony, who is highly regarded by Sonia Gandhi, is now at the receiving end of adverse voices from the Congress party and the government although they are not willing to come out in the open. It is tragic that the matter had to go to the Prime Minister and even he has not been able to resolve it. It is obvious that this case has also been spoiled by too many cooks in the broth and none willing to exercise authority leaving the matter in the hands of the bureaucracy.
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