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US court denies appeal of Rajat Gupta Details on page 6

VOL 20, No. 1035

July 18, 2014

China invites India to APEC Summit

FORTALEZA, Brazil: In a significant development, China has invited India to attend a summit of Asia and Pacific (APEC) leaders as Prime Minister Narendra Modi met President Xi Jinping and discussed various issues including the need to resolve the boundary question in an amicable manner.

The two leaders, who arrived almost at the same time here for attending the BRICS summit, engaged shortly thereafter for what was described as "good discussion and good meeting".

The meeting was scheduled for 40 minutes but it went on for 80 as it was a freewheeling discussion without any constraints.

The two leaders appeared well prepared for the meeting as both of them referred to the statements made by the other before they assumed power, External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Syed Akbaruddin said.

Details on page 7

Indian-origin woman found dead in pool Details on page 6

India, US officials discuss trade policy Details on page 7

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GRASP OF PROMISE: Prime Minister Narendra Modi meeting the President of the People’s Republic of China Xi Jinping, at Fortaliza in Brazil on July 14

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Ind-American surgeon chosen for BBC lecture Details on page 32

3 richest men call for US reform in immigration Details on page 46

NY to provide ID card for all, including illegals Details on page 46

WTO rejected India's challenges: US Details on page 12

CONTENTS Bollywood ---------------------- 30-31 Classifieds ------------------------- 48 Community Post -------------- 16-24 Date Book -------------------------- 47 Edit Page --------------------------- 54 HealthScience Post --------- 32-35 Horoscope ------------------------- 49 Immigration Post ------------- 44-46 Life Style ----------------------- 50-52 Philosophy ------------------------- 53 Publisher’s Diary ------------------ 4 Real Estate -------------------- 26-27 TechBiz Post ------- 12-15 & 23-25

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Travel & Hospitality Post ---- 39-43

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July 18, 2014

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Publisher’s Diary

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here are industry and academic level discussions as well as much talk among the NRI community over the new BJP-government's maiden bud get that was presented in the Indian Parliament last week.

Of all the provisions in the budget that directly impact the NRIs, one particular announcement sounded much as a clarion call by the Indian government to overseas Indians - and that was to help save the sacred Ganga. And it could not have been a more appropriate cause for those of us who carry a particularly emotional zeal when it comes to contributing meaningfully to the land of our birth.

The Indian government has allocated a little over $300 million (Rs. 2000+ crore) for its Ganga Conservation Mission called 'Namami Gange'.

Now, successive governments in India have been talking of cleaning up the Ganga over the decades but not much has been achieved with funds typically drowning in the murky waters of the much sullied river. But this time around we know the Indian government is serious because Prime Minister Modi has not only run his election campaign on the promise of cleaning up the holy river, but has gone ahead and set up a separate ministry to deal with it and made budgetary allocations for the purpose.

While I deplore Modi's political critics who have dubbed it as the 'saffronization' of the Ganga (a ridiculously laughable accusation), I laud the first ever concerted efforts that are going into the task of cleaning it up.

Ironically, for all the religious significance attached to rivers in India, the country has some of the filthiest rivers seen anywhere in the world, and we are not even talking about the lack of cultural activities along the banks or simple river fronts or boardwalks for that matter.

If we see, practically every major city in the world boasts of thriving riverfronts built into the very trade, cultural and lifestyle ethos of its people, and they do not necessarily worship these water bodies.

So come on Indian Americans. We are over two million of us. Let's spare a thought to Ganga; and a nominal $100 each perhaps?

Romesh K Japra rkjapra@indiapost.com

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HIGHLIGHTS Bollywood: Priority love Deepika Padukone let go of her professional commitments to spend time with her beau Ranveer Singh on his birthday.

Cover Story: PM meets Xi PM Narendra Modi met Chinese President Xi Jinping and discussed various issues including the boundary question

Community: Clash avoided A clash was avoided at a community meet planning to welcome Modi who is coming to New York on September 28.

Call for reform 3 of the world's richest men - Bill Gates, Warren Buffett and Sheldon Adelson unite to plead for immigration reform

Life style: Award for Yajnesh Martial Arts practitioner Yajnesh Shetty, who has trained a number of Bollywood actors, has been honored in US

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Saputara A picturesque hill station 1000 m above sea level with a nice bracing cool climate, Saputara is located in Dangs, Gujarat

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July 18, 2014

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Xi & Modi have a 'good meeting' China invites India to APEC Summit

Prime Minister Narendra Modi at a bilateral meeting with the President of the People’s Republic of China Xi Jinping, on the sidelines of the sixth BRICS Summit, at Fortaliza, in Brazil on July 14

FORTALEZA: In a significant development, China has invited India to attend a summit of Asia and Pacific (APEC) leaders as Prime Minister Narendra Modi met President Xi Jinping and discussed various issues including the need to resolve the boundary question in an amicable manner.

The two leaders, who arrived almost at the same time here for attending the BRICS summit, engaged shortly thereafter for what was described as "good discussion and good meeting".

The meeting was scheduled for 40 minutes but it went on for 80 as it was a freewheeling discussion without any constraints.

The two leaders appeared well prepared for the meeting as both of them referred to the statements made by the other before they assumed power, External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Syed Akbaruddin said.

He quoted Xi as saying that "when India and China meet the world watches us".

President Xi in particular referred to Modi's experience in Gujarat as Chief Minister and his focus on development.

The discussions centered around all aspects of the bilateral relations, regional and international matters, he said.

The surprise invitation for the APEC summit as part of partnership and engagement came in the context of the two leaders discussing the need for the two countries to work together in international fora like BRICS and other fora.

The meeting was the fourth

high-level engagement between the two countries since the Modi government assumed charge six weeks ago.

First Xi's emissary Wang came to Delhi, followed by the visits of Vice President Hamid Ansari' and Army Chief Gen Bikram Singh to China recently.

Xi acknowledged his visit to India in September and extended an invitation to Modi to visit China, which was accepted.

The dates will be decided by diplomatic channels, he said.

Asked if India has accepted the invitation for the APEC summit,

Akbaruddin said November was a busy month with SAARC and G

Xi also told Modi that India should work more deeply with the Shanghai Cooperation Organization but the prime minister pointed out that New Delhi was only an observer

20 meetings scheduled but New Delhi considers the invitation as a significant gesture which will be given very serious consideration.

Xi also told Modi that India should work more deeply with the Shanghai Cooperation Organization but the prime minister pointed out that New Delhi was only an observer. If other members were willing, India was ready to work with SCO more closely.

On the boundary question, Modi said there was need for finding a solution and maintenance of peace and tranquility on the border was essential for resolving the

issue.

It was a substantive and a very cordial and warm meeting in which the two leaders struck a personal rapport which augurs well for the future, the spokesman said.

He said the prime minister emphasized that there should be no incidents on the border that would undermine the bilateral relations.

To a question on the incursions by the Chinese army on the border, Akbaruddin said India conveyed its concerns to China on the issue.

Cont’d on page 6

BRICS nations to avoid protectionist measures FORTALEZA, Brazil: BRICS nations, including India, expressed commitment to refrain from taking any protectionist measures and improve policy coordination to enhance trade and investment.

"They (BRICS trade ministers) reaffirmed their commitment to refrain from trade protectionist measures that are incompatible with WTO obligations, while respecting the special and differential treatment for developing countries," said a joint communiqué on the eve of the sixth BRICS Summit.

Commerce and Industry Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, who is accompanying Prime Minister Narendra Modi, attended the meet of Trade Ministers of

BRICS (Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa).

The ministers also expressed concern over the slow pace of global economic recovery and

They emphasized that updating international governance structures remain a necessity for better policy coordination and for the promotion of global economic

The leaders also emphasized on strengthening intra-BRICS cooperation in e-commerce to extend the opportunities for intra-BRICS trade and enhancing closer economic cooperation stressed that "the uncertainty regarding economic growth and policy responses in developed countries could lead to increased volatility in financial markets and further affect the international economy".

prosperity, it said.

In spite of the challenging economic environment, it said the BRICS countries will continue to contribute to the global economic recovery.

The leaders vowed to continue

work to further strengthen their economic relations, the statement said.

Further, the Ministers reaffirmed the importance of a continued dialogue on international investment agreements.

The Ministers noted the principles outlined in the document 'A BRICS Perspective on International Investment Agreements' as a voluntary reference for countries to advance a more balanced approach to investment treaties.

The leaders also emphasized on strengthening intra-BRICS cooperation in e-commerce to extend the opportunities for intra-BRICS trade and enhancing closer economic cooperation.

Cont’d on page 6

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US appeals court denies Rajat Gupta's petition NEW YORK: A federal appeals court here has denied a petition

by India-born former Goldman Sachs director Rajat Gupta, currently serving a two-year prison term in the US, to rehear his insider trading conviction.

A full panel of the 2nd US Circuit Court of Appeals denied Gupta's petition for "panel rehearing, or, in the alternative, for rehearing en banc".

"The panel that determined the appeal has considered the request for panel rehearing, and the active members of the Court have considered the request for rehearing en banc. It is ordered that the petition is denied," the order said.

The denial is a blow to the efforts by Gupta to have his conviction overturned and his insider trading case reheard.

65-year-old Gupta reported to the minimum security satellite camp at FMC Devens in Ayer, Massachusetts on June 17 to begin his two-year prison sentence.

His prison is next to the medical centre where his one-time

friend and business associate hedge fund founder Raj Rajaratnam is serving his 11-year prison sentence for running the

tition is denied by the appeals court.

Gupta had been fighting with all his might to reverse his insider

Rajat Gupta

massive insider trading scheme.

Gupta's petition for rehearing was pending before the appeals court when he reported to prison last month.

He had said last month in court papers that he will seek review by a higher court if his rehearing pe-

trading conviction and avoid going to jail.

He began his prison sentence after fighting a protracted legal battle to clear his name in one of the biggest insider trading schemes in US history.

Apart from the two-year prison

WARM WELCOME: Prime Minister Narendra Modi being received by the President of Brazil Dilma Rousseff, on his arrival at the Ceara Events Centre for the Sixth BRICS Summit, at Fortaleza, Brazil on July 15

Indian-origin woman found dead in swimming pool NEW YORK: An Indian-origin woman was found dead in a swimming pool of a house, where she was attending a party, and local police are investigating the drowning incident.

The body of the victim, identified as Rajkumari Motwani, 55, was found at the bottom of the swimming pool when residents of a home in Long Island were cleaning up their backyard following a party.

They noticed a body in the

deep end of the backyard pool.

Police officers responded to a 911 call from the resident and Motwani's body was pulled out from the water, Suffolk Police said in a statement.

Motwani's body has been transported to the Suffolk County medical examiner's office.

She was a guest at the birthday party and was pronounced dead at the scene.

Suffolk County Police Homicide Squad detectives are inves-

tigating the drowning death.

Police have not found any criminality in relation to Motwani's death following a preliminary investigation.

Detectives are seeking information from the public about the incident.

A neighbor of the house where the party happened, said two adult children live in the house that was once inhabited by their parents, who moved to a different city two years ago. -PTI

term, Gupta has been ordered to pay USD five million in fine and a separate USD six million in restitution to Goldman Sachs.

He also has been ordered to pay USD 13.9 million as penalty in the US Securities and Exchange Commission's parallel insider trading case against him.

A three-judge panel of the appeals court had in March upheld Gupta's conviction by a district judge on insider trading charges and had denied his bid for a new trial.

In April, Gupta had filed a combined petition for rehearing and

rehearing en banc, requesting that he be allowed to remain free on bail till his petition is decided on by a full bench of the appeals court.

Gupta had argued that his insider trading case should be reheard by the entire appeals court bench since "critical evidence" in his favor was excluded at trial.

The Harvard-educated Gupta is one of the most high-profile Wall Street executives to be convicted of insider trading, charges that were brought against him by Manhattan's India-born top federal prosecutor Preet Bharara. -PTI

Xi & Modi have a 'good meeting' Cont’d from page 5

On his part, Modi also emphasized on the economic relations between the two countries and talked about cooperation in the infrastructure sector, industrial parks and investment.

He referred to the adverse trade imbalance against India and sought correction of the situation.

Xi acknowledged that there was a possibility of enhanced trade, particularly in the services sector from the Indian side and the increased Chinese tourist numbers to India.

Modi referred to the visit of Chinese travelers coming to Gujarat in the ancient period.

The possibility of additional Mansarovar Yatra route was raised by Modi considering the

fact that he had himself undertaken that pilgrimage in difficult conditions in the present route.

Xi gave an assurance that China will consider the request for the additional route.

The two leaders touched on the historic and civilisational links between the two countries, especially the Buddhist links.

The Prime Minister referred to terrorism and extremism and said India and China should work together to fight the menace in the region in view of the common civilisational heritage they had.

Replying to questions whether any timeliness were discussed on resolving the border question, Akbaruddin said obviously since it was a first meeting between them they could not go beyond their initial references and stated positions. -PTI

BRICS nations to avoid protectionist measures Cont’d from page 5

"They welcomed the proposal to establish a BRICS Expert Dialogue on Electronic Commerce.

They instructed the Contact Group for Economic and Trade Issues (CGETI) to elaborate terms of reference for the Expert Dialogue," it added.

Highlighting the potential for forging closer links between the Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSME) of the BRICS nations, they instructed their officials to explore ways to promote cooperation in this field. This

would include sharing information on regulatory framework and promoting business to business contacts.

On the progress of WTO talks, the Trade Ministers agreed to pursue vigorously the achievements, objectives and timelines set out in the Bali Ministerial decisions.

"They reaffirmed the importance of an open and rules-based multilateral trading system and underlined the central role of the WTO in setting rules for global trade," the communiquĂŠ added. PTI

July 18, 2014

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India, US officials discuss trade policy NEW DELHI: Seeking to boost bilateral commerce and investment, India and US trade officials met here to prepare the framework for the ministerial level meeting of the Trade Policy Forum (TPF), a body which has not met since 2010.

"Commerce and Industry ministry officials met counterparts from the US here. They have discussed various issues related with trade and investment," a senior government official told PTI. American pharma sector The official said that soon Deputy United States Trade had alleged that Indian Representative (USTR) IPR laws discriminate Wendy Cutler will also visit here to meet Commerce Secre- against US companies tary Rajeev Kher. and violate global norms Prime Minister Narendra Modi is scheduled to meet American President Barack logue between the countries. It Obama in September to give a new has five focus groups: Agriculmomentum to the strategic part- ture, Investment, Innovation and nership.

Creativity (intellectual property The US-India TPF is an inter- rights), Services, and Tariff and agency collaboration led by the Non-Tariff Barriers.

USTR. It is the principal trade diaLast month, USTR Michael

Froman called up Commerce and Industry Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and the two had talked about ways to further strengthen the relations on economic front.

The TPF meeting is expected by the end of this year.

In recent months, the US has increased its attack against India's intellectual property regime and safety issues related to domestic pharmaceutical sector.

American pharma sector had alleged that Indian IPR laws discriminate against US companies and violate global norms.

At present, bilateral trade is around USD 100 billion.

The US-India Business Council (USIBC) had said bilateral trade between the countries could touch USD 500-billion mark over the next one decade.

India has received about USD 12 billion in FDI from the US companies during April 2000 to March 2014. -PTI

Bera praises India on IAEA agreement WASHINGTON: Indian-American US lawmaker Ami Bera has praised India ratifying an International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) agreement that will open

Ami Bera

its civilian nuclear program to unannounced spot inspections.

"I am pleased with India's significant step in ratifying an International Atomic Energy Agency agreement that will open its civilian nuclear program to unannounced spot inspections," Congressman Bera said during a Congressional hearing.

"As we move forward, it's important to continue to have an open dialogue with the Indian government about issues like liability concerns so we can tackle India's energy needs and open their energy market to US companies. That will benefit both our countries' economies," he said.

"With a new government in India, we have an opportunity to work together to continue our partnership and strengthen our economic relationship. We should make sure that as we encounter challenges, we maintain open channels of communication to find solutions that benefit both our great nations," Bera said.

Representing Sacramento County from California in the US House of Representatives, Bera is the third-ever and the only IndianAmerican Congressman in the current Congress.

Born and raised in California, Bera is a physician. -PTI

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'Expeditious 26/11 trial will bridge trust deficit' NEW DELHI: India has said an in Lok Sabha. expeditious and successful conRijiju said a total of 43 attempts clusion of probe and trial of those of infiltration along the Indo-Painvolved in the Mumbai terror at- kistan border have taken place till tacks case in Pakistan would help May this year. bridge the trust deficit between He added that 277 such atthe two neighbors. tempts were made during 2013 "In order to take up the issue while in 2012, they were 264. of terrorism strongly with PakiHe also said that till July 11 this stan, government has conveyed to the Pakistan leadership, at the meeting be- Pakistan must abide by tween the Prime Minister its commitment that it and the Prime Minister of will not allow its territory Pakistan on May 27 in New Delhi, that Pakistan must and territory under its abide by its commitment control to be used for that it will not allow its teraiding and abetting of ritory and territory under its control to be used for aid- terrorist activities against ing and abetting of terror- India and for providing ist activities against India and for providing sanctuar- sanctuaries to such ies to such terrorist groups. terrorist groups "It has also been conveyed to Pakistan that an expedi- year, a total of 42 incidents of tious and successful conclusion ceasefire violation have taken of the investigation and trial re- place along the Line of Control lating to those involved in the and International Border in Jammu Mumbai attacks would be a major and Kashmir. confidence building measure and "As per report, no security perwould help bridge the trust defi- sonnel or civilian was injured or cit," Minister of State for Home martyred during these ceasefire Kiren Rijiju said in a written reply violations. India has repeatedly

emphasized, including at the highest level, the need for Pakistan to uphold the sanctity of the Line of Control and abide by its ceasefire commitment of 2003 along the International Border and Line of Control," he said.

He also denied there was any proposal to "demilitarize" the

Kiren Rijiju

Indo-Pak border.

"However, under the Simla Agreement of 1972, India is committed to resolve all outstanding issues with Pakistan including the issue of Pakistan's forcible and illegal occupation of Jammu and Kashmir through a peaceful bilateral dialogue," he said.-PTI

Bill passed for Misra appointment as Modi aide NEW DELHI: Parliament has cleared a Bill to remove legal hurdles that were coming in the way of appointing former TRAI chief Nripendra Misra as Principal Secretary to the Prime Minister amid strong opposition by Congress.

The Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (Amendment) Bill, passed in Lok Sabha earlier, was approved in Rajya Sabha by voice vote.

Moving the Bill in Upper House, Law and Telecom Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said it was aimed at removing "a palpable anomaly" as existing law allows a former TRAI Chairman to take up private job two years after retirement but bars the person from taking up a gov-

ernment job ever in life.

Other regulatory bodies like Competition Commission, Air-

Nripendra Misra

ports Economic Regulatory Authority and SEBI do not have such provision, he said, adding the government decided to amend the law to bring parity among all regulatory bodies.

The Bill was not "individualspecific", Prasad said, adding it

was aimed at doing away with the existing anomaly so that capable persons could be utilized after their superannuation.

"The scope of the bill is very limited and it is to create equality among all regulatory bodies," he said.

Later, replying to questions raised by various members, he said Misra is a man of integrity and the 1967-batch IAS officer has served in various capacities in Centre and the states.

He also said the Prime Minister should have every right to choose his Principal Secretary for good governance.

The TRAI Bill replaces an ordinance issued on May 28 to amend a clause in the TRAI Act by which Misra could not have been appointed to any government post after retirement.

Misra, who retired in 2009, joined the PMO the same day the ordinance was promulgated and the bill was being brought to give his appointment the requisite legal backing.-PTI

Govt rules out changes in AFSPA in J&K NEW DELHI: The Narendra Special Powers Act (AFSPA) Modi government is understood which has been in force in some to have ruled out changes in the of the disturbed regions in the controversial AFSPA in Jammu country. and Kashmir and favored its conDefense Minister Arun Jaitley tinuation in the present form in had also visited Jammu and Kashthe state. mir to analyze the situation in the The decision in this regard is state and had visited the forward understood to have been taken at locations there. a meeting of the Cabinet CommitHe had stated that any decitee on Security headed by the Prime Minister recently, sources said The Army had also given its here.

The CCS discussed opinion in the matter and changes suggested by the Administrative Re- had opposed the repealing forms Commission, they or dilution of the law said.

The Army had also in any form given its opinion in the matter and had opposed the repealing or dilution of the law sion on revoking AFSPA will dein any form and stated that it was pend on the progress in the situarequired for it to operate in the tion in the state over a period of state, sources said. time.

Even though Jammu and KashOn the need for AFSPA, Army mir has been relatively peaceful Chief Gen Bikram Singh had in the recent past except for the stated that it was "an enabling" ceasefire violations along the Line act as it "gives Army additional of Control (LoC), the Army feels powers to operate in an environthat it is more of "absence of vio- ment which is marked by very high lence" rather than establishment degree of uncertainty and comof peace there. plexity and an asymmetric enviSeveral groups and political ronment where you cannot differparties in Jammu and Kashmir and entiate between a friend and a foe north eastern region have been as the terrorist merges with the demanding either repeal or backdrop and hides amongst the amendment to the Armed Forces locals." -PTI

Viji Murali appointed CIO of California varsity WASHINGTON: Indian-Ameri- Services, and CIO for the WSU can Viji Murali, an IT veteran in system. higher education, has been named She succeeds Pete Siegel, who as the chief information officer and left UC Davis a year ago. vice provost of Information and Professor Prasant Mohapatra Educational Techhad served as interim nology at a prestivice provost and gious university in CIO in the meantime. the US. Murali would "University of start her new job on California Davis is August 18. incredibly fortunate "I am excited to be to recruit someone joining a university with Viji's experiwith such a wonderence and expertise. ful reputation, to She is a leader in her lead the IT enterprise field, and her efforts that contributes to will be essential in the university's exrealizing our vision cellence, in everyof excellence," thing from student Viji Murali Chancellor, Linda P success to reB Katehi, said in search," she said. announcing Murali's appoint"I intend to develop a shared ment. vision with the faculty, staff and Murali comes to UC Davis from students, and we will move the Washington State University, institution to even greater where, since 2007, she has served heights," Murali said in a stateas vice president for Information ment.-PTI

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Indian-American funded al-Qaida groups WASHINGTON: A 31-year-old Indian-American, caught in a FBI sting operation, faces up to 15 years in prison after pleading guilty to providing thousands of dollars in material support to three terror groups operating under al Qaida in war-torn Syria and Somalia.

Gufran Ahmed Kauser Mohammed was arrested last year in a Miami-based terrorism investigation led by an FBI employee, who engaged him and a Kenyan national, Mohamed Hussein Said, 26, in an online, undercover financial scheme.

Mohammed had pleaded not guilty in August when he was indicted, but changed his plea when he made an appearance before US District Judge Ursula Ungaro in Miami.

Mohammed and Said were charged with conspiring to provide a combined total of about USD 25,000 to the al-Qaida splinter groups. Both defendants were ordered held without bond. Said, who pleaded not guilty, is still set

for trial next year, Miami Herald reported.

The Miami FBI employee posed as a brother and a sister who supported al-Qaida as a way to communicate in an Internet chat room with the two men overseas.

The men were accused of plotting to finance the terrorist group's

In April 2012, the FBI undercover employee established online contact with Mohammed, who arranged to send a series of wire transfers totaling more than USD 9,000 to the FBI agent battles in Syria and Somalia, according to an indictment.

The 'online covert employee' assumed the role of the brother,

saying he was an al-Qaida fighter.

Then he switched to playing the sister, saying she could help collect money for the terrorist group.

In 2012, the FBI employee first engaged Mohammed in Saudi Arabia and later Said in Kenya.

Mohammed, who once had lived in California, and Said, who had resided in Mombasa, were arrested in Saudi Arabia and brought to Miami by FBI agents.

The indictment said Mohammed and Said met in Saudi Arabia in May 2011 and agreed to provide financial and other help to an al-Qaida affiliate, al-Shabaab, which was seeking to overthrow the US-backed transitional government in Somalia.

Through September of that year, Mohammed allegedly wired Said over USD 11,000 to back alShabaab, the indictment said.

In April 2012, the FBI undercover employee established online contact with Mohammed, who arranged to send a series of wire transfers totaling more than USD 9,000 to the FBI agent. -PTI

PIO gets life in prison for killing wife, kids CHICAGO: A 46-year-old Indian-origin computer scientist, who was extradited to the US from India to face trial in a triple murder case, has been sentenced to life for killing his wife and two young children by slashing their throats in 2008.

Lakshminivasa Nerusu was last month found guilty by a jury after less than two hours of deliberations. "I think you're most wholly, completely and utterly selfish," Oakland County Circuit Court Judge Nanci Grant told Nerusu, as he stood shackled in jail garb, before she sentenced him to life in prison without parole.

"That doesn't make you mentally ill, that makes you an evil human being," Grant was quoted as saying by the Detroit Free Press. The judge sharply dismissed Nerusu's claim that he was mentally ill when he murdered his wife and two children.

Grant, a judge for 18 years, told Nerusu that she has handled hundreds of murder cases.

"None of them affected me like this one did," she said. "I've never

had to stop and pause and gather myself until I saw the photos of your murdered children."

Nerusu quarreled with his wife, Jayalakshmi, 37, the morning of October 13, 2008, then stabbed her 59 times with a kitchen knife, before slashing her throat.

He waited for his daughter, Tejasvi, 14, to arrive home from school before ambushing her as she came through the door.

Forty minutes later, he attacked his son, Siva Kumar, 12, as he, too, arrived home.

He fled to Hyderabad the next day but was arrested in 2013 and extradited back to Michigan to face murder charges.

Nerusu had admitted to the killings, and testified on his own behalf, but said he blacked out and could not recall the details. He had admitted he would sometimes slap his wife when they argued and worried that she would call the police.

Defense attorney Lawrence Kaluzny argued Nerusu was insane at the time, but jurors clearly disbelieved that.-PTI

10 India Post

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Naganathan is interim president of Toledo varsity WASHINGTON: Indian-American Nagi Naganathan, an alumnus of the National Institute of Technology at Tiruchirappalli, has been appointed interim president of the University of Toledo.

Naganathan, 58, has been at University of Toledo since 1986, first as a professor and later as chairman of the department of mechanical, industrial, and manufacturing engineering.

Board members unanimously approved his appointment.

"As interim president, I will do my very best to make sure that our university remains committed to excellence in academ-

ics, research, patient care, and community engagement through a synergistic engagement of our expertise in all of our campuses," Naganathan said in a statement.

Naganathan has received a number of prestigious awards, including a Fellow of the American Society of Mechanical Engineers, UT Outstanding Teacher Award, UT Outstanding Researcher Award, TST/TSPE Engineer of the Year, and Distinguished Alumnus Award from his alma mater, the National Institute of Technology in Tiruchirappalli.

He came to the United States in 1979.

Naganathan earned his bachelor's degree

Nagi Naganathan

with honors in mechanical engineering from the National Institute of Technology at Tiruchirappalli (formerly known as Regional Engineering College), a master's degree in mechanical and industrial engineering from Clarkson University, New York and a PhD. in mechanical engineering from Oklahoma State University. -PTI

Indian-origin woman held for abducting own child NEW YORK: A 38-year-old Indian-origin woman was arrested at an airport in the US for abducting her son and taking him to India nearly eight years ago.

The mother, Padmashini Devi Drees was arrested at the Dallas-Fort Worth airport.

Her son Drew Dees, now 10, has been reunited with his father Dean Drees, the McKinney Courier-Gazette reported.

Padmashini is in the Collin County jail on a USD 10,000 bail. Her inmate record lists Dean James Drees as her ex-husband.

In addition to the child custody charge, a state jail felony, she is also on an immigration hold.

Police said Drew was two years old in late December 2006 when Padmashini kidnapped him. The police had issued a warrant for her arrest for interference with child custody.

The case remained open and investigators found out about Padmashini's location.

The investigators learned that she planned to return to the US with her son and apprehended her at the airport.-PTI

Indian gets 15 years for killing compatriot in UAE DUBAI: A 29-year-old Indian man has been jailed for 15 years in the UAE for stabbing his friend to death in an inebriated state at the latter's birthday party.

S J, identified only by his initials, had a heated argument with fellow countryman A S before he stabbed him with a knife on December 16.

"I was so drunk...I did not realize what I was doing," S J told the Dubai Court of First Instance.

Judge Ezzat Abdul Lat sentenced S J, who works as a cook in Dubai, to an additional month in jail for getting drunk.

"The defendant will be deported following the completion of his imprisonment," the judge was quoted as saying by the Gulf News.

The accused in his defense said: "I stabbed him but I did not intend to kill him...I did not even think of killing him.-PTI

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Australian held with Sat phone at Mumbai airport MUMBAI: A 54-year-old Australian national, working as a vice-president in a company in Malaysia, has been arrested from the domestic airport in the financial capital of India for allegedly possessing a satellite phone, police said.

McDonald Bruce Andrew, who was to take flight to Goa with his wife and children, was found with Iridium company's satellite phone when he was intercepted by personnel of the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF), they said.

He was granted bail on a personal bond of Rs 15,000.

India has banned the use of sat phones and even if foreigners coming in with valid documents permitting them to carry such phones, the domestic authorities reserve the right to overrule such permissions.

"McDonald was charged under relevant sections of the Indian Wireless Telegraph Act 1933, Indian Telegraph Act 1885 and subsequently arrested," said Lahu Gautam Thate, Sub-Inspector at Airport Police station.

"McDonald claims he was not aware of the rules in India. He is carrying the satellite phone as it will not have

Poonia finishes 2nd in US discus event NEW DELHI: Ace Indian discus thrower Krishna Poonia warmed up to her defense of Commonwealth Games gold medal as she finished second in a meet in Chicago, United States.

Poonia, who won gold in 2010 Delhi Commonwealth Games, came up with a best effort of 59.17m at the 2014 Chicagoland Throws Series at Benedictine University.

Krishna Poonia

Poonia has a personal best and national record of 64.76 in her name.

With this effort, Poonia crossed the CWG qualifying standard of 58.46m set by Athletics Federation of India last month.

32-year-old Poonia had won gold in 2010 Delhi CWG with an effort of 61.51m.

The Glasgow Commonwealth Games begins on July 23 and track and field events begin on July 27. -PTI

any network problems like cell phone have and says he has no other ill intentions," Thate said.

"The satellite phone has been confiscated. McDonald's lawyer approached police and he was granted bail on personal bond of Rs 15,000 at the police station," he added.

According to police, McDonald arrived in India with his family from Malaysia on June 11 and checked into a five-star hotel in Mumbai. His wife is originally from Goa. "The family was scheduled to fly to Goa. McDonald and his family were passing through AI terminal of the domestic airport when he was intercepted and upon check-

ing, the satellite phone was discovered from him. He was subsequently brought to the police station by the CISF," Thate added.

A satellite phone connects to satellites unlike the normal cell phone, which is connected to the terrestrial mobile sites. The Sat phones bypass the local telecom system which means the agencies are unable to track the conversation.

Further it also interferes with the signals that are picked up at the army stations and also by intelligence agencies.

-PTI

Tech News Chicago wants more people to drive electric cars CHICAGO: The city of Chicago is trying to encourage more people to drive electric cars.

TechBiz

Michael Mayer (R), Director of Volkswagen Passenger Cars India at the launch of the New Polo car in

12 India Post

Mayor Rahm Emanuel announced a new website that will be a ``one-stop-shop'' for information on electric vehicles, including rebates and incentives. People also will have the chance to test drive an electric vehicle at the Taste of Chicago in Grant Park.

In a statement, Emanuel says driving an electric vehicle is a ``smart choice.'' He says it saves residents money and helps the environment.

Emanuel says: ``The City of Chicago is committed to an environment in which energy efficient vehicles are the norm, not the exception.'' The city also is working with other organizations to help install vehicle charging stations at multiunit dwellings, such as apartment and condominium buildings. -AP

Etihad plans daily Delhi-SF service MUMBAI: Gulf carrier Etihad has said it will launch a daily flight from New Delhi to San Francisco from November, providing an important air-link between the national capital and the Californian city.

San Francisco is home to thousands of Indians and the new service, scheduled to launch from November 18, will benefit business and leisure passengers flying from New Delhi, Etihad said in a release here.

Etihad Airways will operate a three-cabin Boeing 777-300ER aircraft, which has been leased from Jet Airways, to cater to the new route, it said.

The new service will also enhance the growing US-India trade and commercial ties, particularly in the technology industry as seven out of the top 10 social media companies, including facebook, YouTube, twitter and LinkedIn, are based in the Bay Area, Etihad said.

"Etihad Airways is renowned for its growing global flight network which provides an important link to Indian communities around the world, especially those living in the United States," said Eitihad Airways President and chief executive James Hogan.-PTI

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July 18, 2014

New Delhi

Microsoft to reinvent productivity to empower people: Nadella WASHINGTON: With its "mobile-first, cloud- first world" concept, Microsoft aims to reinvent productivity to empower every person and organization on the planet, company's CEO Satya Nadella has said.

"This is a bold ambition with massive opportunity for our partners as we d e s i g n Microsoft experiences that you can creatively extend for every individual and business on the planet," Nadella said in a letter to Microsoft's partners at the 2014 Worldwide Partner Conference, which kicked off in the US Capital.

The four-day long conference is being attended by some 150 participants from India.

"The day I took on my new role I said that our industry does not respect tradition - it only respects innovation. I also said that in order to accelerate our innovation, we must rediscover our soul - our unique core," he said.

Last week in an email to employees, Indian American Nadella shared how as the productivity and platform company for the mobilefirst, cloud-first world, Microsoft will reinvent productivity to empower every person and organization on the planet to do more and achieve more.

"In this new world, there will soon be more than 3 billion people with Internet-connected devices from a farmer in a remote part of the world with a smartphone, to a professional power user with multiple devices powered by cloud service-based apps spanning work and life," he wrote.

"The combination of many devices and cloud services used for generating and consuming data

creates a unique opportunity for us. Our customers and society expect us to maximize the value of technology while also preserving the values that are timeless," he added.

able all industries. And we will strike the right balance between using data to create intelligent, personal experiences, while maintaining security and privacy. By doing all of this, we will have the

"We will create more natural human-computing interfaces that empower all individuals. We will develop and deploy secure platforms and infrastructure that enable all industries.

And we will strike the right balance between using data to create intelligent, personal experiences�

Satya Nadella

"We will create more natural human-computing interfaces that empower all individuals. We will develop and deploy secure platforms and infrastructure that en-

broadest impact," Nadella said.

Meetul B Patel, general manager SMS&P Microsoft India, said the goal is to unleash the potential of small and medium businesses

in the country.

"We have the mission that stays with us, how can we get people to do all the things that they can do, or achieve what they can through the use of technology. And we keep doing that," Patel told PTI on the sidelines of the WPC-2014.

"We have grown very well.

And we know, we have a lot more to do to get India truly, truly on line and truly use technology to unleash everyone's potential. This remains our driving force in India," he said.

Very excited about the technology adoption in India, Patel said Microsoft in India is focusing on barriers to technology adoption for small businesses affordability, skill, development applications and how to use it and what it can be applied for.

Cloud, he argued, helps in addressing these challenges, which makes technology more accessible, affordable to small and medium businesses in India.

"Cloud is now being accepted as a very very viable options for small businesses in India. In fact, a necessary option. So, we see the adoption really accelerating in the last few technologies now," he said.-PTI

WTO rejects India's challenges on steel import: US WASHINGTON: The US has claimed that the WTO has rejected most of India's challenges against American trade remedy laws and determinations regarding imports of certain steel products from India.

According to US Trade Representative Michael Froman, the World Trade Organization panel rejected India's challenges to key aspects of US countervailing duty laws and regulations, and most of the hundreds of challenges brought by India against

case-specific Department of Commerce determinations in a

countervailing duty proceeding covering hot-rolled carbon steel flat products from the country.

"This dispute is another example of the Administration's commitment to fight for American workers and industry by taking strong trade remedy measures against unfair subsidies and defending those actions when challenged by our trading partners," US Trade Representative Froman said.

Michael Froman Cont’d on page 14

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More tax concessions when economy improves: Jaitley NEW DELHI: Indian Finance Minister Arun Jaitley has promised more concessions in income tax when the economy improves.

"We do not want a high taxation regime. It was because of the high taxation regime of the previous government that inflation

three classes of tax payers - right from lower to the middle and higher income brackets," he told Rajat Sharma on India TV, according to a release issued by the channel.

The Finance Minister said had the government more money in its coffers, he would have given more

Jaitley defended the government's decision to allow 49 per cent foreign direct investment (FDI) in defense sector saying he would prefer companies headed by Indians with 49 per cent FDI manufacturing defense equipments in India rather than opting for imports. rose.

"I think there was never a Union Budget since 1947, which gave relief up to Rs 50,000 across all

reliefs. "May be, if the government has more money tomorrow, I will raise (reliefs)," he said.

He expected tax payers to

spend more, save more which would lead to higher economic growth and give a boost to the manufacturing sector that had seen a negative growth in the last two years.

Jaitley defended the government's decision to allow 49 per cent foreign direct investment (FDI) in defense sector saying he would prefer companies headed

by Indians with 49 per cent FDI manufacturing defense equipments in India rather than opting for imports.

"As far as I know, it was Soniaji (Congress President) who had been opposing 49 per cent FDI in defense and was preferring imports of defense equipments," he said.

Jaitley, who also holds the Defense portfolio, pointed out that

Budget only the beginning, says Arun Jaitley

Blackstone, partner developing maiden REIT

NEW DELHI: Brushing aside we tried to rationalise individual criticism of not having done taxation. We have also removed inenough reforms in the Budget, Fi- verted duty structures," Jaitley said. nance Minister Arun Jaitley has The Budget has proposed insaid this was the beginning of the creasing the income tax exemption journey and he did all he could do limit to Rs 2.50 lakh from Rs 2 lakh under the given circumstances. and raised the ceiling on invest"This is the beginning of our ment in saving instruments to Rs journey, not the end. Abhi hum 1.5 lakh from Rs 1 lakh per annum. jitna kar sakte the, humne utna On criticism of Budget not havkiya hai (Whatever I could do now, ing a detailed roadmap for fiscal I have done). And all the decisions consolidation, Jaitley said: "I have are not taken on day one," Jaitley not spelt it out in details because I told PTI. have provided for Expenditure Jaitley, who presented his Management Commission and if maiden Budget on July 10, is be- anybody feels that in 45 days you ing criticised, especially by rating can come out with the scheme of agencies, for not repealing the retrospective tax amendment and not The Budget has proposed providing enough sops increasing the income tax for the industry. exemption limit to Rs 2.50 The Minister, however, has provided relief lakh from Rs 2 lakh and to the salary earners by raised the ceiling on insacrificing Rs 22,200 vestment in saving crore in direct taxes.

Refuting the criticism, he said the government has rationalisation of subsidies to taken important steps which are which people in the last 66 years necessary but not taken in the past have not found an answer, we must 10 years. rate the agencies then."

"Each one of those major isHe said that there are two ways sues, whether it is insurance or of reducing fiscal deficit - either real estate, defence, retrospective you spend less or you earn more. tax, simplification of tax adminis"The ideal situation is that you tration, transfer pricing (were im- should earn more because if you portant). So in 45 days, we have spend less then you are contracttried to address each one of them ing expenditure and you may end and then we have given impetus up contracting some parts of the to the manufacturing sector. economy... I have looked at unre"These are important decisions. solved issues that they (UPA govOur government is very clear in ernment) left behind or the probsome sector you got to give more lems they have left behind," he relief. Aam aadmi par aap kitna bojh said, adding in the period of 45 denge? (How much can we burden days he has tried to address most the common man?). So, that is why of these problems.-PTI

MUMBAI: The Blackstone Group and its local partner Embassy Group are likely to set up India's first real estate investment trust (REIT) and list it in on domestic exchanges next year.

"We have already started the ground work. We were waiting for some positive steps from the government. We are evaluating all the regulatory issues and are hopeful to get some clarity on it by next year," Embassy Property Developments Chief Executive for Commercial Real Estate Division Michael Holland told reporters on the sidelines of an event here.

He said his company expected more clarity on these issues, including exemption from capital gains, tax among other issues after the next Budget.

Embassy and Blackstone have a joint portfolio of over 16 million square feet of office space in Bangalore and Pune.

"We wish to increase the portfolio to 30 million sq ft by looking at assets in the top five metros. We may consider this portfolio that is likely to have a value of USD 2 billion on the stock exchanges. Further, listing here makes more sense for our investors here," he said.

He said both the companies are currently working towards meeting challenges on the operational and regulatory fronts.

In his Budget, the Union Finance Minister had announced REITs as a pass-through entity and other incentives for it, including exemption form longterm capital gains tax.-PTI

26 per cent FDI in defense was permitted during the NDA regime under Atal Bihari Vajpayee.

"We are the largest importer of defense equipment in the world.

For the last one and half months,

mir - "and look where we are today on Kashmir."

The Minister said the Centre must contribute to Gujarat's project erecting the world's tallest statue in the Narmada River for

Arun Jaitley

most of the foreign leaders who came to meet us were pitching for sale of their defense equipments," he said.

The Minister said it would be wiser if there were companies with 51 per cent Indian equity, getting foreign technology and investment and manufacturing defense equipment here.

He made a veiled attack on the Nehru-Gandhi family over some Congress leaders objecting to Rs 200 crore allocated in the Budget for the Sardar Patel statue project in Gujarat.

"I would rather want hundreds of memorials for Sardar Patel across India. I consider Patel as the tallest leader since independence. It was he who brought about the merger of 550 princely states within two and half years of independence," Jaitley said.

He said Jawaharlal Nehru took up one issue - Jammu and Kash-

which he would like state governments to also contribute.

He said Congress leaders were objecting may be because Patel did not belong to a particular family.

On former finance minister P Chidambaram's statement that the Budget speech was only a reiteration of Congress' government's policies and targets, Jaitley said, "I would then be very happy, if the Congress supports our budget but I know they won't support.

The UPA government had left the economy in a mess."

On introduction of Goods and Services Tax (GST), he said states had reservations about getting their dues after the new levy is introduced.

"After we pay off their bills (dues of states), we will then introduce this GST. This will increase our GDP, reduce tax evasion and also reduce undue harassment to industry," he said. -PTI

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17 new international routes for Indian airlines NEW DELHI: Government has granted traffic rights to Indian airlines on 17 new international routes since last May, including Kolkata-Guangzhou and DelhiTehran sectors.

Expressing hope that these

traffic rights have been granted since May 2013 are ChandigarhDubai, Madurai-Dubai, MaduraiKuala Lumpur, BagdograKathmandu, Hyderabad-Riyadh, Bangalore-Abu Dhabi, Hyderabad-Abu Dhabi,

rights would give a major boost to Indian carriers, Minister of State for Civil Aviation G M Siddeshwara said in Lok Sabha that these rights were granted to private Indian airlines after considering the operational requirements of national carrier Air India.

The other sectors for which

Ahmedabad-Abu Dhabi, GoaAbu Dhabi, Lucknow-Abu Dhabi, Pune-Abu Dhabi, BangaloreTehran, Chennai-Doha, Hyderabad-Doha and LucknowDoha.

The guidelines for allocation of these rights on global sectors are done to provide a level-playing

Budget: Education, taxes keep social media abuzz NEW DELHI: Education and taxes were the most discussed topics on social media during Budget as individuals, businesses and politicians posted on these two segments across platforms like Facebook, Twitter and blogs, a study by credit rating agency CRISIL said.

According to a study by CRISIL, conducted across 36,000 profiles, 47 per cent of mentions by individuals were related to education, while 24 per cent of the mentions by businesses were about announcements and impact on the education sector.

About 12 per cent of the mentions by individuals were about taxation, while in the case of businesses it was higher at 35 per cent.

CRISIL Managing Director and CEO Roopa Kudva said among the sample of 36,000 profiles, 814 politicians and activists showed up, reflecting a good engagement by the segment.

"We found that individuals

were most concerned about education. Almost half their mentions were about education.

This reflects the demographic of individual social media users young individuals looking to their future," she added.

While politicians and social

activists had an opinion on most topics, media's focus was on taxation, followed by housing, banking, defense and education.

"Tax was the prime topic in Karnataka and Maharashtra, while it was not even in the top five mentions of people from the National Capital Region, where the centre of attention instead was FDI and defense, reflecting influence of proximity to the corridors of power," Kudva said.-PTI

field to all eligible private airlines while retaining the primacy of the national carrier, as also the availability of traffic rights under respective bilateral air services agreements with the respective countries, Siddeshwara said.

To a question on Bangalore airport, he said the Bangalore International Airport Limited has a plan to construct a second runway and a new terminal in line with the traffic projections.

The expenditure and timeline of the project would depend on various factors like appointment of technical consultants, preparation of Detailed Project Report, stakeholders consultations and approval of various authorities, he added.

Government was also considering proposals to declare Bhopal, Indore and Raipur airports as international airports, he said in reply to another question.

Regarding flight operations in the Northeast, he said none of the airports in the region have closed operations in the past three years and the government remained committed to strengthen flight operations there. -PTI

Indian businessman jailed for bribery in Dubai DUBAI: A 34-year-old Indian businessman has been sentenced to six months in jail and fine for offering a hefty bribe to a labor inspector to lift a ban on his four companies, a media report said.

The Dubai Court of First Instance in its judgment jailed the businessman for offering a Dh30, 000 (USD 8167.82) bribe to a Labor Ministry inspector, Gulf News reported.

The accused identified as V.A will have to pay a fine of Dh30, 000 (USD 8167.82) and he will be deported after the jail term, Presiding judge Ezzat Abdul Lat said.

The defendant had pleaded not guilty.

The Court records said that police arrested the defendant in a sting operation after the inspector accepted Dh9, 000 as part of the bribe from V.A. The money will be confiscated, the ruling said.

The Emirati inspector told prosecutors that he had known the businessman since 2009 as he owns and manages four companies, the daily reported.-PTI

Ditto TV - for dil that is very much Hindustani India Post News Service

P

ging on to www.dittotv.comon smartphones, tablets and PCs. What is Ditto TV? Ditto TV is India's first over-the-top (OTT) TV distribution platform launched by Zee Entertainment Enterprises Limited (ZEEL).

ZEEL is India's leading television, media and entertainment companies and amongst the largest producers and

icture a beautiful sunset at the Golden Gate Bridge where you are watching one of Shah Rukh Khan's love saga with your special one right beside you; or a quixotic Saturday brunch and a quiet afternoon at Central Park, where you enjoy your favorite videos / m o v i e s ; sounds too romantic to be true?

Are you anxious about the new twist in the plot of your favorite 'saas-bahu' serial and are eager to catch it Ditto TV is India's first while on your way back from over-the-top (OTT) TV work or in your distribution platform launched leisure time?

Are you by Zee Entertainment feeling nostal- Enterprises Limited (ZEEL) gic about your childhood years and want to aggregators of Hindi programcatch episodes of your favor- ming in the world.

Ditto TV is available in all the ite shows in your yesteryears?

Craving for some Indian TV, international markets across the some Bollywood masala, ro- globe and has created a digital revolution in the entertainment mance or drama?

All of this is very much pos- space, transforming the way Insible at your fingertips by log- dian content is consumed today.

WTO rejects India's challenges on steel import: US Cont’d from page 12

"The WTO panel's findings rejecting most of India's numerous challenges to our laws and determinations is a significant victory for the United States and for the workers and businesses making these steel products," Froman said.

In its order, the WTO panel upheld key US countervailing duty laws and regulations regarding the application of "facts available" and the calculation of benefit.

The panel also rejected most of the challenges brought by India against Commerce's case-specific determinations, including challenges to over 300 instances of the use of "facts available", challenges to Commerce's benchmark calculations and specificity determinations, findings that two Indian entities constituted "public bodies" and were thus subject to WTO subsidy disciplines and Commerce's inclusion of new sub-

sidy programs in countervailing duty review proceedings, Froman said.

With respect to the findings by the panel that US measures breach WTO rules in certain respects, the United States is studying those findings and will evaluate all options to ensure that US remedies against unfair subsidies remain strong and effective, he said.

In this dispute, India alleged that several US laws and regulations governing countervailing duty investigations, as well as specific countervailing duty measures imposed on imports of certain hot-rolled carbon steel flat products from India, were inconsistent with provisions of the Agreement on Subsidies and Countervailing Measure (SCM) and the General Agreement on Tariffs and Trade 1994.

The WTO panel rejected most of India's claims against US laws and regulations "as such" under the SCM Agreement, Froman said. -PTI

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Tech Mahindra in Saudi JV for connected solutions DUBAI: Midad Holding, a subsidiary of Al Fozan, a leading group with diversified business interests in Saudi Arabia, has signed a joint venture (JV) agreement with Tech Mahindra, a specialist provider of connected solutions, the company has said.

The JV, to be called Tech Mahindra Arabia, will be head-

CP Gurnani, Managing Director and CEO, Tech Mahindra Limited said that Saudi Arabia has been a focus market for Tech Mahindra and they are "excited" about the economic growth potential the region has.

"This joint venture will establish the company as a leading player in providing IT and ITeS

quartered in Al Khobar.

Tech Mahindra Arabia will also have presence across other major cities in Saudi and will be functional post the regulatory approvals.

The regional strength of Midad Holding and the global connectivity of Tech Mahindra will combine together in creating a synergic value proposition for customers in Saudi Arabia.

solutions", he said.

Additionally it will also provide an exciting career opportunity for the talented men and women in Saudi region," Gurnani added.

"Part of Midad Holding's model is to partner with global leaders providing game changing solutions that add value and address the challenges facing Saudi Customers.

"The purpose of the joint venture is to leverage Tech Mahindra's global expertise in Information technology while maximizing local content," Mohammed Al Baadi, Managing Director & CEO, Midad Holding, said.

G B Kumar, Vice President and Geo Head, Middle East and North Africa, Tech Mahindra Limited said: "Tech Mahindra Arabia will pave the way for exponential growth by solving the business and technical challenges of customers from Telecom, Public Sector, Oil & Gas, Petrochemicals, Utilities, Manufacturing and BFSI segments.

"Our differentiating strengths in Networking, Mobility, analytics, cloud and security will be of key importance in bringing value to Saudi customers," said Kumar.

Tech Mahindra Arabia will provide a gamut of Information Technology (IT) and IT-enabled services (ITES) to cater to the established and emerging sectors in Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), the company said. -PTI

Top NRI entrepreneurs hail budget LONDON: Leading NRI entre- resident Indians for investments preneurs have hailed India's bud- made into the country especially get as "progressive, pragmatic and in defense and insurance sectors sensible" while suggesting that where the management control overseas Indians be treated on equal terms with resident Indians for investments.

T h e Hinduja brothers, who top Britain's rich list, said in a statement that Finance Minister Arun GP Hinduja and SP Hinduja Jaitley's budget had set the direction for a "very positive long- still rests with Indian resident enterm agenda". tities or persons.

The budget attempts to balance Lord Swraj Paul, Chairman of a broad stimulus and capability Caparo Group welcomed the budbuilding agenda while meeting fis- get as "pragmatic and sensible" cal and deficit targets, the Hinduja and said it would send a positive Group Chairman S P Hinduja and signal to foreign investors. -PTI Co- Chairman G P Hinduja said.

MORE TECHBIZ They said that overseas Indians had always been strongly POST NEWS ON supportive of India and deserve PAGES 24-25 to be treated on equal terms with

Desi News Ekal Foundation raising record $5 million for 2014 PRAKASH WAGHMARE

W

hen Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his maiden speech in Indian Parliament talked about 'issue-centric focused activities like Education to eradicate poverty', it was as if he was referring to "Ekal Vidyalaya Foundation" ('EVF') mission. For past 25 years, "Ekal-USA" has been dispensing literacy, health care, and integral development in rural and tribal areas of India uplifting countless neglected isolated masses. "Ekal" recently concluded its annual fund-raising campaign through a series of concerts, all across USA. Details on page 22

Duvet covers with Ganesha image withdrawn India Post News Service

PHILADELPHIA: Urban Outfitters (UO), a publicly traded retail company headquartered in Philadelphia which offers a variety of lifestyle merchandise, has removed Lord Ganesha Duvet Cover from its website after strong protests and huge appeal for its withdrawal from a large segment of Indian American community Interestingly, Christian and Jewish leaders also came out in support of Hindus who were highly perturbed over cheap use of Indian deities by the American corporation for marketing its products. They urged immediate withdrawal of duvet covers carrying image of Lord Ganesha calling it inappropriate.

Details on page 18

Vaishnav Samaj & GOPIO organize Health Fair Asian Media USA

CHICAGO: Vaishnav Samaj of Midwest (VSM) in partnership with Global Organization of Peoples of Indian Origin (GOPIO) held its Third Annual Health Fair at Shreejidwar Haveli (www.shreejidwar.org) in to two distinctly separate phases, organized one week apart.

The Phase 1 on June 15 was devoted to investigational aspect which included collection of patient's data, including registration, demographic data with information of gender, sex, age of patients along with documentation of patient's medical history, etc.

Details on page 20

COMMUNITY ACROSS AMERICA

16 India Post

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World Cup winning team practiced Yoga

July 18, 2014

Details on page 20

Clash avoided at community meet planning to welcome Modi India Post News Service

NEW YORK: The start was savory and the end could have been unpleasant but the sagacity and the commonsense displayed by the organizing group and the community leaders at large brought about a unified sense of purpose at the end for according a handsome welcome to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi who is

Prime Minister Narendra Modi

coming to New York on September 28.

The TV Asia auditorium here on Saturday afternoon was the meeting place for a plan of action to accord a grand reception to PM Narendra Modi when he visits New York. The first ever meet of this type was organized not by any particular organization but by a group of "volunteers" coordinated

by Dr Bharat Barai, a prominent oncologist from Indiana and a former head of the Federation of Indian Associations (FIA) Chicago.

The Auditorium was full with over 250 community members representing various groups and interests. One of the reasons upsetting some members was that even while the proposed reception was taking place in New York-New Jersey areas, the Tri-state community leaders were not taken into full confidence. The members of the volunteer group that is supposed to organize the reception for PM was also not fully representative of the Indian community per se, it was pointed out.

Dr Bharat Barai, the "Lead Volunteer," sought to clarify that all efforts were made and are being

made to invite all those who want to work in different committees.

This was the first meeting seeking input from the community. Besides, all efforts were being made to include "volunteers" from different parts of the country. Besides, to dub this event as a Tristate affair was not right as it was a national affair for the Indian American community.

No sooner had he finished his welcome address, Ankur Vaidya, president of Federation of Indian Associations (FIA) for New York and New Jersey stood up and pointedly asked Dr Barai "who gave you the authority to lead the community event. Show us something in writing before you proceed."

The no-holds-barred meet took a different turn with a few senior community leaders coming on the podium making their appeal to the community to stay united. Dr Barai kept his cool and pointed out that "the event was for all of us as Indians and that those who feel differently may chalk out their own action plan".

At this stage members of the audience showed cleavage with a large majority supporting the Volunteers group and coordinators

and the others opposing. But a huge majority indicated their preference with Dr Barai and the group that hosted the meet and that proved to be a turning point.

Chandrakant Patel, president of the Overseas Friends of BJP when asked as to why there was no mention of OFBJP replied "this is not a show of the OFBJP. It is a show of unity of the Indian community and as many as 200 people from all communities would be included in the committees."

Shalli Kumar, a community activist and an entrepreneur from Chicago was against Dr Barai hijacking the event. He had earlier indicated that Consul General was inclined for setting up a new com-

Indian Consul General in New York Dyaneshwar Mulay drove down to the auditorium and explained the official position with regard to the reception event. The intervention by the Consul General was quite soothing

Dr Bharat Barai

mittee. He was of the opinion that if the all-inclusive committee is not formed and the community is not taken into confidence, the event may prove a failure.

Indian Consul General in New York Dyaneshwar Mulay drove down to the auditorium and explained the official position with regard to the reception event. The intervention by the Consul General was quite soothing and it clearly gave the message to the groups at loggerheads to make it a real community event by sinking their personal differences and working together.

He asserted that it was a totally community affair and there was no government patronage to it.

Cont’d on page 19

Madison Square Garden

JULY 18, 2014

Community Across America

India Post 17

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Breathtaking dances performed at AIA Competition sented Bollywood Dance.

Bollywood Rhythms presented a beautiful fusion dance performance. Seniors Group presented a Qawwali. Anubhav Group from NWU presented a wonderful show which won hearts of all and also that of judges in that they were declared 1st Prize winners.

UIUC presented a show interweaving the story of Anjali and Neel; Bhangra Dance by UIUC. Kalaapadma Dance Academy presented traditional Gujarati

Asia Media USA

CHICAGO: Over 400 people gathered to witness the outstanding dancing performances of talented youth across Chicagoland at the Hinsdale Community House in Hinsdale, a south west suburb of Chicago on Sunday July 13.

The event was organized by the Association of Indians in America, (AIA) Illinois Chapter and was rightly themed the 'Group Dance Competition 2014 - Youth Talent Show. This was really a unique performance by the best in the business. High voltage dance performances were presented by 11 top teams from Illinois. The talent show consisted of performances by youth as well as a talented group of elders between 60 to 65 years.

National Anthem of US and India were sung by Anil Sharma.

After this Dr Ghanshyam Pandey

AIA Illinois Chapter Executive Committee, invited guests and participants of 11 groups

pants for their efforts in presenting their performances.

Dr Ghanshyam Pandey, Chairman Board of Trustees said, AIA has always put special emphasis on youth programs from the beginning of its inception and has organized youth and children's programs every year during the 1980 period and many second generation Indians were involved in the youth programs at that time. After a lapse of few years the AIA is re-starting youth programs and youth talent Dance performances by talented youth at shows and this AIA dance competition is one example introduced Salil Mishra, President, of it. Dr. Pandey gave complements AIA Illinois, who in his welcome to President Salil Mishra for bringremarks said AIA has tried to ing his expertise and resources to achieve its objectives and imple- the organization and most of all ment its strategies. He thanked the for his generosity.

Santosh Pandey, Treasurer, Board for its support. He welcomed all those present and also AIA conducted the program and applauded the efforts put in by did an excellent job as Master of Ceremony. This was a youth talyouth.

Dr Ghanshyam Pandey intro- ent competition for dancers and duced Naren Patel, a prominent about 11 groups participated in Chicago businessman and Na- this competition.

It started with Bollywood tional Vice President of AIA. In his short yet sweet speech, he remem- Groove presenting Bollywood Medley Dance followed by S o o r y a D a n c e Academy's Kathak.

Kalaapadma D a n c e Academy presented B h a r a t Natyam.

Fizza UIUC presented Bollywood F u s i o n bered one and all who had helped Dance. Utkaala Dance Academy him in performing his duties. He presented beautiful Odissi Dance. appreciated all talented partici- Thirak Group from Naperville pre-

Dandiya Raas mixing various songs.

At this stage, competition winners were announced. Beena Patel invited all the participating groups on stage and commended their performances and said it was difficult for the judges to decide who is the best. All participants were given certificates by Naren Patel.

It was a very close contest.

Judges took more than 20 minutes to decide the winners. Every group which had performed had a

unique style and presence. There was Bharatanatyam, Garba Rass, Bollywood, Kathak, Qawali (mujra style), Odissi, Lavani and Fusion dances. The dance competition represented entire India. The quality and performance of each and every group was an eye popper rendering the audience spell bound. The dances represented all the Indian colors. It is nice to see our Indian American youth performing so well.

Cont’d on page 20

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Community Across America

July 18, 2014

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Duvet covers with Ganesha image withdrawn India Post News Service

PHILADELPHIA: Urban Outfitters (UO), a publicly traded retail company headquartered in Philadelphia which offers a variety of lifestyle merchandise, has removed Lord Ganesha Duvet Cover from its website after strong protests and huge appeal for its withdrawal from a large segment of Indian American community Interestingly, Christian and Jewish leaders also came out in support of Hindus who were highly perturbed over cheap use of Indian deities by the American corporation for marketing its products. They urged immediate withdrawal of duvet covers carrying

image of Lord Ganesha calling it inappropriate.

Lord Ganesha Duvet Cover, an "Online Only" item, did not show

up after search on UO website.

Rajan Zed, President of Universal Society of Hinduism who spearheaded the protest, appreciated the move by the UO management for understanding the feeling and concerns of the Hindu community. It was brought to the attention of the management that the very idea of Lord Ganesha's image on duvet cover was highly inappropriate and trivializing of highly revered Hindu deity.

"It is highly repulsive and it is in the best interest of the company itself that the move to market the Duvet Ganesha cover is scrapped," said Sohan Joshi, president of National Federation of Indian Americans. Madhu Patel,

president NRI Press Club said he was happy and congratulated the UO for showing "maturity, albeit belatedly." Denigrating deities of other religions is despicable and should not go unpunished, he added Nand Kapur, former head of Association of Indian Americans said that members of the Indian community here were actively

Hindus received huge backing from Christian and Jewish leaders in their bid to scrap marketing of Lord Ganesha covers

considering a petition to the Congress thru their local lawmakers for banning any misuse of pictures of deities or highly revered figures of any religion for commercial marketing.

Hindus received huge backing from Christian and Jewish leaders in their bid to scrap marketing of Lord Ganesha covers. Reverend Richard L. Smith, a United Church of Christ pastor in Nevada, said that a global company like UO should not be in the business of hurting the feelings of devotees of any religion with inappropriate usage of its deity. He urged UO to recall its duvet cover carrying image of Hindu deity Ganesha.

Cont’d on page 19

Community Across America

July 18, 2014

India Post 19

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Guru Purnima celebrated at Grayslake temple were honored as our real Gurus in the family and society. According CHICAGO: Close to 300 devo- to our age old beliefs, our grandtees gathered at Grayslake Hindu parents and elders in the commuMandir to celebrate the festival of nity are the real Brihaspatis. The guru is beyond name and form, Guru Purnima last week.

The function started with Lord beyond what we could imagine Ganesh and Devi Durga Pujan by with the limited vision of the thinkthe sponsors of Mata ki Chowki. ing mind, irrespective of their reliThe Pujan and Jyoti Prakash were gions. So, they were honored by performed with all the rituals by washing their feet with utmost devotion and offering them tilak, pushpa, phal, uttariya. And More than 70 seniors inArati. cluding ladies and gents of A beautiful poem Lake County were honored about 'the significance of Gurus in our life' writas our real Gurus in the ten by Geetha Patil was family and society given to every devotee.

Four most senior Brahmins from different Pundit Anil Joshi. Later the pujan communities were honored as of four mukhya Hindu Acharyas Maharishi Vyas namely Onkar namely Adi Shankaracharya, Sharma, Prabhakar Joshi, Ganesh Ramanujachrya, Madhvacharya Ji and Monohar Jogalekar. The and Mahaprabhu Vallabhachrya Vyas pujan was performed by Pt was performed by both priests of Anil Joshi by offering tilak, turbans and shawls to them. the temple.

A brief message on the imporMore than 70 seniors including ladies and gents of Lake County tance of Gurus was given by Joshi India Post News Service

Honoring Senior ladies at the temple Guru Purnima celebrations

Ji to devotees. He said that in Hindu philosophy Moksha will be attained only by Guru Krupa but not by following other margas namely Bhakti Marga or Gyan Marga. Only Guru is called Para Brahma Parameshwar the ultimate power as Brahma. Ancient tradition is that we follow our

Guru's teachings in life and acquire spiritual enlightenment and over all progress.

On this occasion, Devi bhajans were sung by Anu Gupta, Nikhil Sharma and Naveen Mishra.

Kanya Pujan was performed before Maha Mangalarati.

Mouthwatering Maha Prasad prepared by temple kitchen volunteers was served to all devotes.

At the end, Pundit Joshi offered vote of thanks to all the devotes for gracing this event and volunteers for helping to make this event a grand success.

Clash avoided at community meet planning to welcome Modi Cont’d from page 16

Temple Acharyas wth senriors who were honored

Duvet covers with Ganesha image withdrawn Cont’d from page 18

Rabbi Elizabeth Beyer of Northern Nevada and California supported the request made by Rajan Zed asking UO to reconsider its marketing and selling of an item of Hindu faith to be used as bedding.

Commercialization of a Hindu god is hurtful to devotees. Prompt action to remove this item from UO website and avoiding its being sold in the future was pitched for.

Rajan Zed suggested UO and other corporations worldwide to send their senior executives for training in religious and cultural sensitivity so that they had an understanding of the feelings of customers and communities when creating new products or launch-

ing advertising campaigns.

Lord Ganesha is highly revered in Hinduism and his image is meant to be worshipped in temples or home shrines and not to be slept upon. Inappropriate usage of Hindu deities or concepts for commercial or other agenda was not okay as it hurt the devotees.

Lord Ganesha is highly revered in Hinduism and his image is meant to be worshipped in temples or home shrines

The objectionable Duvet cover was priced at $129.00-$169.00 on the UO website, which described it as "UO Exclusive" and "topped with a standout illustration by the talented Valentina Ramos".

UO, Inc. offers merchandise in Urban Outfitters, Anthropologie, Free People, Terrain and BHLDN brands through stores in USA, Canada, and Europe; besides garden center, catalogs, websites and wholesale. It boasts of its "established ability to understand our customers and connect with them on an emotional level" and calls its brands "both compelling and distinct". Richard A. Hayne and Tedford Marlow are President of UO, Inc., and Chief Executive Officer of UO Group respectively.

75000 Marathi folks in USA, and will spread the message about Narendrabhai. I can help you with IT aspect," he assured the Volunteer committee members.

While the Indian-American community hoped to accord a grand reception to Modi at a venue that can accommodate between 60,000 and 80,000 people, the two most desired venues Yankee Stadium in New York that can accommodate over 60,000

He also clarified that he had not indicated or said to anybody that he intended to dissolve the present Volunteer Committee or set up a new committee. "We would play a supporting role only," he said and expected all the members to work together In a message to the community CG asked them not to fight for position "as we all are volunteers, including Dr Barai" who indicated that he was not even inclined to be Sunil Suryawanshi, presion the podium. The CG dent Bruhan Maharashtra said, "We have to follow the simple principle Mandal, said he was im- no prominence to any pressed with Barai's paone person. Only the Prime Minister will be on tience and how he the dais." handled things.

Many were of the view that the event will not only be successful but there people, and Giants Stadium in New would not be enough tickets to get Jersey with a seating capacity of entry into event. Sunil 80,000 - are already booked for the Suryawanshi, president Bruhan last week of September, when Maharashtra Mandal, said he was Modi would be in the US. That leaves the Madison impressed with Barai's patience and how he handled things. He (Dr Square Garden which has a capacBarai) was respectful throughout ity of 20,000 which is far below the and that comes only after some- expected turn out of the people one who has worked for long time wanting to see and hear PM Modi.

And according to sources, the in public life.

"Sincerely appreciate what you application for the venue is under are doing for the community in process and will be bestowed a USA. I will be able to reach out to favorable consideration.

Community Across America

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July 18, 2014

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World Cup winning team practiced Yoga MADHU PATEL

Germans have won the World Cup and kudos to them. It was a grueling battle to reach the top and it was a dream comes true after years of intensive efforts and practice.

Interestingly, reports surface that the German football team in a bid to excel in the field, had taken to practicing Yoga, an age old Indian practice that helps promoting healthy body and healthy mind. They had been doing Yoga under the guidance of GermanAmerican yogi Patrick Broome.

Attending yoga lessons was not mandatory, it's purely voluntary, said Harald Stenger, Director of Communications for the German national team as reported in Gulf News. "Any player who wants to attend is free to make an appoint-

Winning German team & Yoga practice

ment with the yoga trainer or he can attend group sessions," he added. Among its ranks, the Ger-

man team the players such as Arne Friedrich, Jens Lehmann, Simon Rolfes and Thomas Hitzlsperger

are reported to have attended these sessions on a regular basis.

Broome, a specialist yoga in-

Vaishnav Samaj & GOPIO organize Health Fair Asian Media USA

CHICAGO: Vaishnav Samaj of Midwest (VSM) in partnership with Global Organization of Peoples of Indian Origin (GOPIO) held its Third Annual Health Fair at Shreejidwar Haveli (www.shreejidwar.org) in to two distinctly separate phases, organized one week apart.

The Phase 1 on June 15 was devoted to investigational aspect which included collection of patient's data, including registration, demographic data with information of gender, sex, age of patients along with documentation of patient's medical history, etc.

From this information, each patient's data was used to stratify risk factors which were used for assigning screening tests including collection of blood and urine for analysis of pertinent screening chemistry and hematological and urine analytic tests etc.

These samples were sent for analysis to the Laboratory of Nationally recognized University of Illinois Pathology Laboratory.

Vaishnav Samaj of Midwest (VSM) and Global Organization of Peoples of Indian Origin (GOPIO), doctors, medical personal and Temple volunteers. [Phase 1 / June 15]

yrs of age, bone density scan for those at risk of losing calcium from bones (osteoporosis), hearing and eye sight screening etc. were also performed . Results of these cumulative data along with patient's information were placed in each person's confidential file.

Phase 2 was held on June 22, a

Ear and Eye examinations by volunteer physician specialists

Other cost effective and life saving tests like Electrocardiogram (ECG) on all individuals over 55

week later. During the second phase, the individual cumulative documentations were given to

each patient and they were directed to see individual volunteer physicians present including primary care specialists and ancillary medical personnel including audiologist, optometrists, ultrasound technologist chiropractic specialists etc. This resulted in far more comprehensive evaluation and care of patients seen. At the end these patients were given thorough medical evaluation advice and referral for further care and follow up.

Physician consultations were provided

by Primary care physician doctors including Dr Umang Patel, Dr Jayashree Raju, Dr Pratimaben

Shah and Dr Rakesh Parikh. ECG interpretation and Cardiology consultation was given by Cardiologist Dr Samir Shah.

Cont’d on page 22

structor and guru to international pop stars Madonna and Sting, has been working with the German team for the last three years after he was introduced to former coach Jurgen Klinsmann by Oliver Bierhoff.

Klinsmann then asked Broome to work with his players and, after some initial resistance, he has now become accepted as part of the German national team's medical staff.

Coach Joachim Loew too vouched for this ancient practice associated with meditative practices in Buddhism and Hinduism in India. "We have sessions only in the mornings and players are free to attend. Most of them enjoy being there. It's a great idea as I am sure it helps our players," Loew said.

There cannot be more positive testimony about the importance and efficacy of this age old Indian practice for mental and physical fitness, said Kanubhai Brahmbhatt, a Brand Ambassador for International Yoga Alliance and founder Director of Yog Setu. He has started Yoga training center in DesPlaines and has already enrolled Indian and Koreans as students.

Breathtaking dances performed at AIA Competition Cont’d from page 17

This was one of the best performances of year 2014 Dr Ghanshyam Pandey declared winners of the competition and presented the prizes to them as follows: 1st Prize $700 to Anubhav Group from NWU; 2nd Prize $500 to Odissi by Utkaala Dance Academy and 3rd Prize $300 to Bollywood Pataka by Bollywood Rhythms. A special Consolation Prize of $200 was

given to Kalaapadma Dance Academy.

Judges were Kiran ChauhanAnila Sinha Foundation, Trupti Patel- Payaliya and Jhara DasPresident of OCHA Chicago. The vote of thanks was proposed by Beena Patel who thanked the dance gurus for continuing dance education to our children and parents for keeping our culture alive for years to come by instilling traditional values in them.

July 18, 2014

Community Across America

India Post 21

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Lord Krishna exhibition at Utah's museum India Post News Service

UTAH: Utah's flagship art museum, Utah Museum of Fine Arts (UMFA), will have an exhibition on Lord Krishna starting August 8 and running till November 20 this year in the Museum's Emma Eccles Jones Education Gallery.

This exhibition explores God Krishna through sacred and secular artworks, dating from the 11th century to the 20th, from the Museum's Asian art collection.

Krishna promised followers that through bhakti (devotion) to him, one could gain moksha (salva-

Utah Museum of Fine Arts

tion).

There will be an additional exhibition with the underlying theme "Moksha: Photography by Fazal Sheikh."

The exhibition of blackand-white p h o t o graphs depicts the lives of widows, in Hindu sociLord Krishna Exhibition in Utah ety in India,

who seek refuge and sanctuary in the holy city of Vrindavan - where they pray for moksha, a release from the constant cycle of death and rebirth in which Hindus believe.

Applauding UMFA for organizing the exhibition, Rajan Zed, President of Universal Society of Hinduism, said that art had a long and rich tradition in Hinduism and ancient Sanskrit literature talked about religious paintings of deities on wood or cloth. He also commended UMFA for Hindu artifacts in its permanent collection which included images of Hindu deities Shiva, Vishnu, Durga, Ganesha, Lakshmi, Hanuman, Saraswati etc.

It will be in the fitness of things tion of over 5,000 years of art from if major art museums across the around the world". Per its mission globe - Musee du Louvre and statement, it "inspires critical diaMusee d'Orsay of Paris, Metro- logue". Located on the University politan Museum of Art in New of Utah campus in Salt Lake City, York, Los Angeles; Getty Center, it claims to preserve over 19,000 Uffizi Gallery of Florence (Italy), original art objects. Gretchen Art Institute of Chicago, Tate Dietrich and George Lindsey are Modern of London, Prado Mu- Executive Director and Deputy seum of Madrid and National Gal- Director respectively. lery of Art in Washington DC - freSalt Lake City also houses the quently organize art focused exhibitions thus sharing the rich Hindu art heritage with the rest of the world, he observed The Utah Museum of Fine Arts, a university and state art museum whose history goes Accompanying photo exhibition of widows in Vrindavan back to early 1900s, claims to be "Utah's primary cultural re- world headquarters of The Church source for global visual arts" and of Jesus Christ of Latter-day having "a comprehensive collec- Saints.

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Community Across America

July 18, 2014

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Ekal Foundation raising record $5 million for 2014

W

hen Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his maiden speech in Indian Parliament talked about 'issue-centric focused activities like Education to eradicate poverty', it was as if he was referring to "Ekal Vidyalaya

PRAKASH WAGHMARE

certs. This year according to 'EVF' President Vinod Jhunjhunwala, it is on its way to raise at least $5 Million. "Ekal" is the largest grassroot NGO movement of its kind undertaken by Indians and NRIs, globally.

This year 'Ekal' had invited two

gale "Vibhavari Yadav". Both the artistes pulled record crowds this year wherever they performed.

Aditi Bhagwat's concert theme "Avartan" proved to be a mesmerizing composition of 'Taal, Saaz Aur Awaaz through Kathak fusion Dances & Bollywood melodies'. It

MA organized a fun-night called 'Rangeela', not only, to create awareness about 'Ekal', but also, to raise thousands of dollars for it.

On March 8, Nishka Ayyar in Campbell, CA made Ekal the center-piece of her 'Arangetaram' gifts. Three young men, Kunal, Vimal, and Amit who founded 'Weekend Casual' in CA, an outlet for men's fashion, have resolved to donate a part of their earnings to 'Ekal' and are also promoting Ekal-cause through their company's website.

In such individual efforts, Stephen Hinlick has proved to be the trail-blazer. A young entrepre-

neur from Tampa Bay area, Stephen has embarked on a solo walkathon from Tampa, FL to Seattle, WA to meet 100,000 people along the way to raise $100,000 for 'Ekal'. This 'Walk- Across-USA' episode by a person who knew nothing about the country and the culture he desperately wanted to help reflects how Ekal has caught people's imagination to eradicate illiteracy from the face of our developing nation. For details about 'Ekal', one can visit its web www.ekal.org.

Prakash Waghmare is "Ekal" PR-Media Affairs National Committee Member

Vaishnav Samaj & GOPIO organize Health Fair Cont’d from page 20

Foundation" ('EVF') mission. For past 25 years, "Ekal-USA" has been dispensing literacy, health care, and integral development in rural and tribal areas of India uplifting countless neglected isolated masses. "Ekal" recently concluded its annual fund-raising campaign through a series of concerts, all across USA. 'Ekal' hosted 69 concerts through its satellite chapters, where its pool of over one thousand dedicated volunteers ensured their grand success. Last year, Ekal had raised over $4.50 million, most of it through con-

groups of artistes to headline its events. One group of artistes was headed by renowned Kathak

was a uniquely produced audiovideo music spectacle of five different disciplines such as dance,

'Ekal' hosted 69 concerts through its satellite chapters, where its pool of over one thousand dedicated volunteers ensured their grand success. Last year, Ekal had raised over $4.50 million, most of it through concerts. This year at may raise $5 Million. dancer Aditi Bhagwat and another was headed by Gujarat's Nightin-

tabla, vocal, drums & Sarangi.

Vibhavari Yadav's concerts were devoted to old nostalgic Bollywood melodies which have eternally captivated our hearts.

Each concert was coupled with a power-point & DVD presentations on Ekal's activities, its ecliptic progress, and various innovative projects that empower the village masses.

In the 'Ekal' movement, its youth-wing has always played a key role. Students and young adults around the country are gravitating towards the Ekal cause and coming up with creative fundraising and awareness events. Adeet Phanse, Ashwin Sethi and their friends in NJ raised funds for Ekal by entertaining the Senior Citizens in Nursing Homes and at Indian festivities. Sai Khisty at Rutgers University in NJ and Somil Sanghvi a high-schooler in MA organized basketball tournaments to benefit 'Ekal'. Sahana Srinivasan, a 11th grader at Lexington High School, Lexington,

Thakkar, Surekha Gandhi, Rohini Iyanger At the education seminar, a presentation on Nutrition, Diet and Diabetes was done by Diptiben Shah and Darshana Vyas. There was enthusiastic lively participation by attendees.

Temple volunteers provided breakfast of tea, coffee, light snack and cookies to all patients and volunteers. At the conclusion of

Eye screening and consultation were provided by Dr Parag Majmudar, Dr Snehali Upadhyay, Dr Achut Desai and Dr. Jigna Joshi. Ear Nose and Throat consultation was provided by Dr Ramesh Patel. Chiropractic exam was performed by Dr Avani Shah and Dr Arun Mani. Physical therapy was presented by Dr Aparna Sekhar.

Vo l u n teers took care of registration and triage desk.

Volunteers were seen very busy drawing b l o o d samples at the blood draw tables.

Dr Pratima examining a patient To minimize the waiting time, there were four machines the event, healthy lunch was enused to perform ECGs. The Dia- joyed by all. Dr Umang Patel betic consultations were provided thanked all volunteers and proby Kishore Chugh, Vivek Patel, vided a package of Prasad from Paragi, Patel, Rajesh Chotalia and Mandir to all volunteers.

More than 100 individuals Prashant Patel. Screening Mammogram and Paps smear registra- availed the free services provided tion were completed by Sarah Rao, at this health fairs. It is an annual Carla Zang and Yaohoa Jin from community service open to any Xilin Association in Naperville, IL. needy individual without considDental assessment and consulta- eration of race, religion, ethnicity tion were provided by Dr Kaushi race or age VSM management is led by Dr Shah and Dr Neha Sheth.

Screening for Abdominal Aor- Umang Patel (President), Rajesh tic Aneurism (AAA), a prevent- Shah (Chairman), Kamlesh Shah able and highly fatal condition, (Secretary), and Hansaben Patel was performed by Julian Shibly. (Vice President).

Next big events are Nand Blood Draw Team comprised Bhagwat Thakkar, Bakul Thakkar, Mahotsav on Saturday, August Pankaj Shah, Heta Kadakia, Janak 31and Annakut Mahotsav on SatPatel, Hiren Khambhati, Neelam urday, November 18.

Horoscope

July 18, 2014

India Post

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Your Weekly Future

by Pandit Parashar

JULY 18TH - JULY 24TH , 2014 (March 21 to April 20)

C

onfidence will be at it's peak. Property deal may finalize after making some last minute amendments. You may take a short trip to neighboring town to attend to some important business.

Strong Jupiter will help those applying for further education this week.

A close relative will try to hide some facts from you, be careful.

(September 23 to October 22)

C

hanges in career become imminent. You may start looking for another place in or outside your organization. Property deal can also finalize and you may start working on relocation.

Some of you may join a health club to get back in shape. Stocks purchased will appreciate quickly and you should dispose them off right away.

(October 23 to November 22)

(April 21 to May 20)

M

oney wise you will do a lot better this week as planets give you several opportunity to make extra money. News will fi nally come and you will be completely relieved about a child.

You may make an appointment with a government agency to resolve an important issue. Some of you will continue your search for better job.

O

pportunity will look great but it will be better to let it go and stay where ever you are. You may attend a religious cer emony with family this week. Affairs involving a child will get resolved in favorable way. You will help many with your expertise. People in business will see sales shooting up and make new clients.

(November 23 to December 22)

(May 21 to June 20)

D

ecisions will reflect intelligence and confidence. People will notice change in your attitude and smile on your face. Work in and around property will also finish this week. You may be in touch with a financial institution for a big business loan. There will be some interesting and positive developments at work and a raise is in the air.

Y

our decisions will lack confidence and as a result you may miss the target. You may have some work done in and around your property this week. Spouse if working, will find another source to make additional money. You will meet an interesting personality during the course of a business trip this week.

(June 21 to July 22)

Y

ou will continue to work on a great plan and almost start to smell the success. Keep an eye on the road when behind wheels and try to stay away from unnecessary argument at the party.

You will also study some very useful material to update your knowledge. You will receive valuable advise and good leads from a matured person.

(December 22 to January 19)

P

eople seeking a job will finally lay their hands on a good one.

You will make final payment on couple of old bills and reduce the liability up to a great extent. Stay away from unnecessary argument with a colleague. You may also plan a very short trip to a nice place with family. Pleasant surprise coming in mail.

(July 23 to August 22)

Y

ou will take a chance, stretch your limits and as a result these Fresh commitments will put you under pressure. Stay away from stocks for a little while if possible. Some of you may be traveling away from home for business purpose this week. Just handle all machinery and tools with care. You will receive invitation for a big upcoming event.

(January 20 to February 18)

O

bstacles will be followed by excellent solutions. Spouse may not support on your ideas but you will still move forward with your plans. Expenses may shot up temporarily. You may also try to cut down on caffeine or nicotine. Contract will get approved with minor changes. Keep an eye on your credit card bills.

(August 23 to September 22)

P

lanets will help those looking for a change in career or to launch new venture in partnership with like minded friends. There will be big progress on personal front as the final commitment can come any time. Financial pressure will disappear completely. You will travel to another town to meet a friend this weekend.

PANDIT PARASHAR, CEO & COO Astro Scan USA is also available for individual consultations.

He can be reached at: parashar@parashar.com

(February 19 to March 20)

Y

ou may completely change or drop your plans to travel. There will be some changes in a partnership setup and you will start looking for a replacement. Some old payment or money due will come during the week. You will attend a big social event with family and meet many after long interval. Try your hands at lottery.

510-886-4370 www.parashar.com

24

India Post

TechBiz Post

July 18, 2014

www.indiapost.com

IndiGo to add 12 new domestic flights MUMBAI: No-frills airline IndiGo has said it will add 12 new flights in its domestic network, that include a second daily nonstop flight between Mumbai and Indore and a fourth daily non-stop flight between Delhi and Pune.

Of these, four services will be operational from tomorrow while the remaining eight flights are scheduled to take off next month, IndiGo said in a release here.

The Gurgaon-based carrier will be operating 516 daily flights, connecting 36 domestic and overseas destinations with a fleet of 79 aircraft.

Effective July 15, IndiGo will launch a second daily flight between Mumbai and Indore and fourth daily flight between Delhi and Pune, the airline said, adding all these are nonstop flights.

Besides, IndiGo will also introduce first daily service on the Indore-Hyderabad route and a second daily flight between Hyderabad and Vizag.

Also, a third daily flight between Mumbai

and Indore and a sixth daily flight between Mumbai and Kolkata will also be launched from August 3, the release said. -PTI

More fake Rs 500s as Rs 1000 notes 'costly' NEW DELHI: Pakistan ISI-run mafia indulging in production of Fake Indian Currency Notes (FICN) has been laying more emphasis on counterfeiting Rs 500 and lesser denomination notes as compared to those of Rs 1,000.

This came to light after some consignments of fake currency were intercepted by security agencies and during interrogation of people involved in the racket it was found that counterfeiting of Rs 1,000 was costlier than notes of lesser denominations, official sources said. According to a report by Central Economic Intelligence Bureau (CEIB), India is "extremely vulnerable" to FICN from Nepal, Bangladesh, Malaysia and Thailand through Pakistani operators and their conduits.

"The most widely circulated FICN denominations are Rs 500, followed by Rs 100 and Rs 1,000. Seizures also indicate notes of Rs 50 and Rs 20 in circulation," it said.

Intelligence assessments and seizure reports confirm that India is extremely vulnerable to FICN from Nepal, Bangladesh, Malaysia and Thailand. "Pakistani operators based in Nepal, Bangladesh, Malaysia and Thailand act as recipient of FICN from Pakistan as well as conduits to the distribution channels in India through air and land border," the report said.

Seizure reports also indicate FICN racketeers using villages, weekly haats, liquor shops and petrol pumps of the border areas with Nepal and Bangladesh to pump the fake currency into the system, it said.-PTI

TechBiz Post

July 18, 2014

India Post

25

www.indiapost.com

Rs 13,000 cr loss due to thefts in 2013 NEW DELHI: The year 2013 witnessed theft of valuables worth Rs 13,219 crore, second highest of the decade, as per the data by the National Crime Records Bureau.

The amount recorded is the second highest in the last decade.

However, the recovery percentage rate by the police was second lowest.

The police was able to recover stolen articles worth only 1,762 crore from all over the country during the period.

A senior police officer said that the value has gone high mainly because of the increase in prices of various products over the years.

"Value of articles have gone up drastically over the decade. The highest number of share in the stolen articles is of vehicles. In Delhi where the number of vehicles equals to that of total number of vehicles in Kolkata, Chennai and Mumbai, 30 per cent of stolen articles are vehicles," the officer said.

He further said that a decade ago value of vehicle were com-

paratively very low than what they are priced at today, which has again contributed majorly in the recorded number.

Cash, jewellery, and vehicles remain on the top in the list of sto-

The data shows that year 2010 recorded the highest number of recoveries of the stolen property with the percentage recovery rate being 28.9 per cent, highest of the decade. len articles, police said.

Year 2012 was the worst performer with thefts worth 21,07,194 lakhs and recoveries made were only worth 1,41,793 lakh rupees, during the last decade.

The percentage change recorded over the decade in the value of property stolen rose to 661.9 per cent with the percentage recovery rate being -48.3 per cent.

The data shows that year 2010 recorded the highest number of recoveries of the stolen property with the percentage recovery rate being 28.9 per cent, highest of the decade.

State wise, Maharashtra stood at the top with thefts recorded worth Rs 4,315 crore, followed by 3,048 crores in Goa. The data also revealed that in recovering stolen goods in 2013, Tamil Nadu stood ahead of all with the highest rate of recovery at 73.6 per cent, followed by Sikkim with 51.9 per cent, Andhra Pradesh 51.7 per cent, and Rajasthan 50.7 per cent.

However, the worst states in recovering stolen goods last year are Goa with 0.1 per cent of recovery percentage rate, Kerala with 2 per cent, and Manipur with 3.3 per cent. -PTI

LG unveils 18-inch flexible display SEOUL, South Korea: LG Display Co. has developed an 18-inch flexible display that can be rolled into the shape of a thin cylinder, a step toward making a large display for flexible TVs. The South Korean display panel maker said the flexible display has a resolution of 1200 pixels by 810 pixels and maintains its function when it is rolled up.

While that resolution would fall within the range of high-definition, images on the display would not look as sharp as the latest flat displays that boast ultra-high definition.

LG touted its technology as a significant advance, saying the cylinder's diameter would be just 6 centimeters (2.4 inches). It means LG Display could produce TVs that are larger than 50 inches diagonally and can be rolled up.

It is based on OLED technology, an advanced display that can show images in richer colors.

South Korean display makers are striving to gain an edge in flexible display technology as they see it as a way to set their products apart from their rivals in China, Taiwan and Japan. They also hope that the novel form would give

consumers a reason to buy a new gadget.

Last year, Samsung Electronics Co. and LG Electronics Inc. each released a smartphone with a curved display to show off their technological prowess.

But it is unclear how the na-

scent technology would make handsets or televisions more useful. LG said its technology would make large TVs portable and it is up to the TV makers how they expand the use of the technology.

The South Korean company also unveiled a semi-opaque display. Though it is not as transpar-

ent as glass, that's the direction that the company is heading. LG named it the transparent display saying its transparency has improved from existing technology.

In the picture provided by LG, it is possible to see hands through the display. LG Display spokes-

man said it is possible to view images on the transparent display from the front and from the back.

By 2017, LG aims to develop a flexible and transparent display that measures more than 60 inches diagonally, Kang In-byung, head of LG Display's R&D Center, said in a statement. -AP

Lufthansa directed to pay Rs 4.5 lakh to flyer NEW DELHI: German airline Lufthansa has been directed by a consumer forum in the national capital to pay Rs 4.5 lakh to a flyer for causing harassment and mental agony after his baggage went missing while flying from Frankfurt to London in 2007.

New Delhi Consumer Disputes Redressal Forum directed the airline, whose office is located here, to pay Rs 3 lakh (USD 5,000) as compensation to west Delhi resident Rajeev Vaderah for loss of his valuables and also Rs 1.5 lakh as harassment and litigation expenses.

"In our considered view, complainant (Vaderah) is liable to be compensated for loss of goods ransacked as well as for harassment, litigation expenses and mental and physical loss suffered," the forum presided by C K Chaturvedi said, while directing the carrier to pay the amount.

In his complaint, Vaderah told the forum that he was flying from Frankfurt to London on July 11, 2007 when seven of his bags went missing.

He said that after repeatedly approaching the airlines office through calls and emails, he re-

ceived five of the bags over a period of one week but in a ransacked condition and all the valuables were stolen. He returned to Delhi from London on July 20, 2007 after which he received the remaining two bags, he added.

He further said that he suffered "anxiety, harassment and mental

agony" and had to spend Rs three lakh (USD 5,000) to purchase essentials in London.

When he informed the airline's office here, it sent two cheques of Rs 61,875 each as compensation towards full and final settlement.

Vaderah alleged that the compensation was inadequate as the cost of the valuables lost on the flight was over Rs six lakh (USD 10,000).

The airline, in its response, admitted the facts and said it has already given compensation to the man for his loss through cheques which he had already encashed. PTI

Pizza Express bought by Chinese firm LONDON: Pizza Express, a UKbased restaurant group with over 60 outlets in Europe, India and the Middle East has been sold to a Chinese private equity firm for 900 million pounds, becoming the latest example of Chinese companies taking over British businesses.

The UK Gondola Group confirmed the sale to private equity firm Hony Capital for 900 million pounds (USD 1.53 billion).

There are 436 Pizza Express restaurants in the UK along with 68 internationally - including 22 in China - employing more than 9,000 workers.

In India, the company has four restaurants, all in Mumbai.

Chief executive Richard Hodgson said expansion in Asia was a "key part" of future growth strategy.

The sale was a "very positive

development at an exciting time for the business", he was quoted as saying by the BBC. Pizza Express already has 12 restaurants in Hong Kong and nine in Shanghai, Saudi Arabia and Bali.

The sale comes as The Gondola Group - which also owns UK pizza chains Zizzi and ASK Italian opened the first Pizza Express restaurant in the Chinese capital Beijing earlier this year.

In a joint statement released by the two firms, Hony Capital said it planned to expand the brand both in the UK and in China.

John Zhao, chief executive, said the firm aimed to "leverage our local expertise" to accelerate the restaurant chain's growth in Asia.

The deal is the latest example of Chinese firms buying and taking over British businesses. -PTI

26

India Post

July 18, 2014

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Datebook

July 18, 2014

India Post 27

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NEW JERSEY

NEW YORK

NORTHERN CALIFORNIA

SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA

Upcoming

ILLINOIS

Upcoming

Upcoming

Upcoming

Upcoming

Sun, Aug 3 • Bombay Jayashree And

Sat, July 28 • Pandit Ajoy Chakrabarty Sanskriti Music

• J K Yog Satsang and Bal Mukund Hindi Classes are held every 2nd and 4rth Sunday of Month

Sun, July 20 • Padma Bhushan Dr K.J. Yesudas Venue: Raritan Valley Community College Edward Nash Auditorium, 118 Lamington Rd, Somerville, NJ 08876 Time: 4:00 pm

Fri, July 27 • Fashion Extravaganza Venue: Marriott Uniondale Hotel, 101 James Doolittle Blvd, Uniondale, NY 11553 Time : 06:00 pm Contact: 732-331-0255

Sat, Aug 2 • Devi Sri Prasad Live In Concert – New Jersey Venue: Prudential Center, 25 Lafayette St, Newark, NJ 07102 Time: 7:30 pm Contact: 732-404-7621

Sat, Aug 09 • Tribute to R.D.Burman by Mahalaksmi Iyer and Jolly Mukherjee Venue: Union County Performing Art Center, 1601 Irving Street, Rahway, Nj 07065 Time : 8:00 pm Contact :732-986-4011

Sat, Aug 9 • Kumar Sanu Live In Concert Venue: Colden Center, 65-30 Kissena Blvd, Flushing, NY 11367 Time: 08:00 pm Contact : 718-639-2881

Sun, Aug 24 • Mika Singh Live In New York Venue: Long Island University, 720 Northern Blvd, NY 11368 Time: 06:30 pm Contact: 347-989-6104

Shubha Mudgal Live In Bay Area

Venue: Amador Theater, 1155 Santa Rita

Venue: Chabot Collage, 25555 Hesperian Blvd, Hayward, CA 94545 Time: 6 pm Contact: 408-368-6865

Rd, Pleasanton, CA 94566

July 26, 27, Aug 2, 3 • BATA-Cricbay Cup - Proceeds will go to Sankara Eye Foundation (SEF)

Sat, Aug 23 • Aa Family Komedy Chhey Gujrati Drama

Venue: Fremont and Sunnyvale Cricket Ground Time: 9:00 am

Venue: James Logan Performing Arts Cen-

Sat, Aug 9 • BATA Cup (San Ramon)- All

Contact: 510-648-0596

proceeds go to Sankara Eye Foundation (SEF) Venue: Bay Area Telugu Association, 39120 Argonaut Way, Fremont, CA 94538 Timet: 8 pm

Sat, Aug 9 • GurdasMaan Live in Concert Venue: San Jose Center for Performing Arts, 255 Almaden Blvd, San Jose, CA 95113 Contact: 408-802-5128

Sun, Aug 10 • Meet & Greet With Siddharth Venue: Tirupathi Bhimas, 1208 S Abel St, Milpitas, CA 95035 Contact: 408-629-0554

Sat, Aug 16 • 22nd Festival of India and Parade Venue: Corner of Paseo Padre and Walnut Ave., 39439 Paseo Padre Pkwy, Fremont, CA 94538 Contact: 510-565-9993

Time: 05:00 pm Contact: 408-887-5948

ter, 1800 H St, Union City, CA 94587 Time: 7:00 pm

Chicago Satsang Information: J K Yog, Chicago - Swami Mukundananda Venue: Clarion Inn/Waterford Banquets, Board Room, 933 South Riverside Drive, Elmhurst, IL 60126 Time: 3:30pm-5:30pm Contact: Ajay & Arti Chandhok @ 630-561-4807 Website: www.jkyog.org

1st and 3rd Sunday of Month • Chicago Children's Bal Mukund Character Building Program and Hindi Literacy Classes

ATLANTA Upcoming Tue, July 24 • Aakriti - An Evening of Indian Classical Dance Venue: Joe Mack Wilson Auditorium,Southern Polytechnic State U, 1100 South Marietta Parkway, Marietta, GA 30060 Time: 4:30 am

Venue: Vogelei Center, 650 W. Higgins Road, Hoffmann Estates, IL 60192 (Next to Nissan Dealership) Contact: Ajay & Arti Chandhok @ 630-561-4807

Mondays and Fridays • Free ESL - English as Second Language Classes Metropolitan Asian Family Services

Sun, July 29 • Bollywood Dream Girl Hema Malini As Durga

Venue: 9015 N Milwaukee Ave, Niles, IL, Time: 10:30am to 12:30pm Contact: 773-465-3105

Venue: Atlanta Symphony Hall, 1280 Peachtree Street NE, Atlanta, GA 30303 Time: 6:30pm

Mondays and Fridays

Sun, Aug 3 • Tamil Mega Kondattam

Stars

Venue: Ferst Center for the Arts, 349 Ferst Dr, Atlanta, GA 30313 Time: 6:30 pm

• Free ESL - English as Second Language Classes Where: Metropolitan Asian Family Services Venue: 9015 N Milwaukee Ave, Niles, IL, Time: 10:30am to 12:30pm Contact: 773-465-3105

India Post 29

July 18, 2014 www.indiapost.com

TOP TEN HINDI FILM SONGS

1 Galliyan: Ek Villian 2 Banjaara: Ek Villian 3 Saturday Saturday: Humpty Sharma Ki Dulhania 4 Caller Tune: Humshakals July 18, 2014

www.indiapost.com

30 India Post

K

areena Kapoor says that Rohit Shetty, who has mastered the art of churning out fast-paced action-packed dramas, is the Manmohan Desai of the current generation.

"I chose to do 'Singham Returns' because it's a Rohit Shetty film. I am a huge fan of Rohit and according to me, Rohit is the Manmohan Desai of this generation," said Kareena, who had featured in Shetty's hit comedies "Golmaal 4" and "Golmaal 3".

"He is fantastic and which actress would not want to be

D

part of his films. He has given me my career's biggest hits and another is on the way. He has written this role especially for me. It has Rohit, Ajay Devgn and this is more my home than anything else."

In "Singham Returns", this big screen diva will be seen mouthing abusive language. She said: "There is no 'Lavani dance' number as such, but I have spoken in fluent Marathi. I picked it up quite fast and I have given a lot of gaalis in Marathi so it was a lot of fun shooting for the film."

eepika Padukone reportedly let go of her professional commitments recently to spend time with her alleged beau Ranveer Singh on his birthday.

A report says the day Deepika flew to Turkey was the day when she was scheduled to shoot a commercial for a cosmetic brand that she has been endorsing for a while.

Quoting a source, the report adds that Deepika has back-to-back work commitments. Since her calendar was blocked, it was a Herculean task for the brand to get a date from her. So when she cancelled the shoot, the brand was seemingly very upset.

As the actress planned to surprise Ranveer on his birthday, she planned the trip last minute and hence had to cancel the shoot.

The actress' spokesperson denies the buzz saying that Deepika finished her brand commitments before flying out of India.

5 Fugly Fugly Kya Hai: Fugly 6 Aaj Phir Tumpe: Hate Story 2 7 Samjhawan: Humpty Sharma Ki Dulhania 8 Raat Bhar: Heropanti 9 Johnny Johnny: Its Entertainment 10 Humdard: Ek Villain

July 18, 2014

Bollywood

India Post 31

www.indiapost.com

S

hraddha Kapoor was recently threatened with a media blackout by the miffed Mumbai paparazzi. Though that feud has since been resolved, the young actress is facing another blackout, across the border.

Mirror has unearthed a picture of the actress which was published in a Peshawar-based newspaper, Daily Mashriq.

The picture was clicked at a recent promotional event of her just-released movie, with Shraddha dressed casually in denim shorts and a top.

But, the Daily Mashriq, which claims to be "the largest circulated newspaper of the region", obviously felt that the outfit was too risque for its readers. And so they decided to digitally add on a pair of knee-length black leggings and cover Shraddha's legs.

When shown the image, Shraddha laughed over it. The film production company's CEO, Tanuj Garg, who is familiar with the workings of the Pakistani press, said: "It's a common practice in certain regions."

H

A

fter featuring in intense roles in films like "Oye Lucky!

Lucky Oye!" and "Gangs Of Wasseypur", Richa Chadha is in the mood for some song and dance routines in Hindi filmdom. If a source close to her is to be believed, she isn't too happy being perceived as a 'serious' actress.

Richa is a trained dancer. "She feels strongly that none of her previous roles have ever helped her explore a more fun side to her personality. So, after proving her mettle in acting, Richa now looks at surprising her fans with her dance moves," the source said.

She has recently shot for two dance numbers, one for her upcoming film with Nikhil Dwivedi, "Tamanchey" and another with Kalki Koechlin for "Jiah Aur Jiah". Richa has trained in Kathak, and she has also learnt street Jazz from Ashley Lobo's Danceworx.

The actress is making a conscious effort to chose films that get her an opportunity to show her dancing skills, added the source.

uma Qureshi has shed those extra pounds, is looking much leaner and has become the cover girl of Femina. She says she has achieved all that by making healthy choices.

If she wowed everyone with her performance in "Gangs of Wasseypur", her curvy figure started a new trend. But shedding weight hasn't altered her fondness for food. "I am still a foodie and every 10 days my trainer gives me a break and lets me eat whatever I want to and that's how I manage. I don't believe in starving, I am just making healthy choices," said Huma.

"I have a fabulous trainer who has put me on a healthy diet. I have stopped eating junk food. I workout almost everyday - do yoga, stretching and some running. "I am quite enjoying this new phase of being fit and I am doing it in the right way, I don't believe in crash diet. It's very unhealthy. It should be done in the right way," she added.

Huma appears as the cover girl on Femina with the tagline Be Unstoppable and she loves it.

L

ike most actresses, Alia Bhatt too harbors the desire of wanting space of her own and living an independent life.

While sources maintained that the young actress wanted to move out, her father, filmmaker Mahesh Bhatt said, "Alia is and has always been independent under the same roof. We have a huge house and are living in harmony."

He added, "I won't deny that she has been wanting to get a place in the same building and wants to expand the space."

„ Health

Line

Chiropractor had past allegations of impropriety ST. PAUL, Minn.: A Little Canada chiropractor charged with sexually assaulting a female patient had been allowed to keep practicing for decades after allegations of improper contact first surfaced, according to records from the Minnesota Board of Chiropractic Examiners.

Allegations against Paul D. Thompson, 54, were investigated as far back as 1991, the Minneapolis Star Tribune reported. The board put him on probation at least twice, but did not suspend his license until after he was charged with sexually assaulting a patient.

Thompson, of Vadnais Heights, was in court on charges of third- and fifth-degree criminal sexual conduct. He left without taking questions from reporters.

The board suspended his license last month while the criminal case advances. A trial is scheduled to begin Aug. 25.

Board documents could end up playing a key role, as prosecutors have said they plan to introduce them as evidence.

One document from 1991 shows that Thompson was accused of inappropriate contact with several female patients and a female employee from 1986 to 1989. The allegations say he touched them or made inappropriate personal remarks. -AP

„ Delhi doctors remove 'largest' salivary gland tumor NEW DELHI: Doctors at the city-based Lok Nayak Hospital have removed a 420 gram salivary gland tumor, and claimed it was the largest of its kind extracted so far.

"So far, the largest tumor reported in medical literature weighed only 87.3 grams. The tumor we removed is seven times bigger in cuboid volume and weighs 420 gms," said Dr Vikas Malhotra, associate professor of ENT and head of neck surgery at Maulana Azad Medical College.

ENT surgeons at Lok Nayak Hospital, who operated on the 28year-old patient last month and removed the tumor, now plan to get it published in medical journals.

The patient, a native of Moradabad, had come to the hospital in the last week of May. He was unable to accept any solid food for previous three to four months and a week prior to the operation, he had even faced difficulty taking fluids. -PTI

Health Science

Juneau regulates electronic cigarettes Details on Page 35

32 India Post

www.indiapost.com

July 18, 2014

Indian-American surgeon Gawande chosen for BBC lecture LONDON: A well-known Indian-American surgeon and writer Atul Gawande will deliver this year's prestigious BBC Reith Lectures in four global cities, including Delhi.

Dr Gawande, a Harvard professor and best-selling author, will give four talks later this year, grouped under the title 'The Future of Medicine'.

The 48-year-old said he was "flattered and grateful" to be invited to speak in Boston, London, Edinburgh and Delhi.

"I hope to use the lectures to bring together my thinking on how medicine is changing and must change globally," he said in a statement.

Dr Gawande follows on from Turner Prize-winning artist

Dr. Atul Gawande

Grayson Perry, who looked at the state of art in the 21st Century in last year's lectures.

His lectures will be broadcast on BBC Radio 4 and the BBC World Service from November.

According to a BBC report, the first, titled Why do Doctors Fail, will examine whether failure in medicine is down to ignorance or ineptitude.

It will be followed by The Century of the System, in which Dr Gawande will focus on the development of systems from simple checklists to complex mecha-

nisms.

The third lecture, The Problem of Hubris, will explore aging and death, while the fourth, The Idea of Wellbeing, will argue for a shift in medicine's priorities.

"Atul Gawande is a significant intellectual and practitioner in global health," said Gwyneth Williams, Radio 4's controller.

"I look forward to the opportunity he will surely provide for us to bring our thinking up to date and perhaps to re-evaluate our approach."

The BBC Reith Lectures named after John Reith, the BBC's first director general - have been held since 1948, the year the philosopher Bertrand Russell spoke on 'Authority and the Individual'.

-PTI

Cancer related deaths Joining gym may give you better grades on the rise in India NEW DELHI: Cancer seems to be tightening its grip on India with cases of various types of cancer and related deaths being on rise,

Health Minister Harsh Vardhan

according to data released by the government.

"The increase in number of cases may be attributed to ageing population, unhealthy lifestyles,

use of tobacco and tobacco products and unhealthy diet," said Union Health Minister Harsh Vardhan in reply to a written query in Parliament.

According to the Indian Council of Medical Research (ICMR) data around 11, 17, 269 cases of cancer have been reported till now with Uttar Pradesh reporting highest number of cases at 1.8 lakh followed by Maharashtra which recorded 1.02 lakh.

States like Bihar (98,346), West Bengal (84,325) and Andhra Pradesh (80,334) also reported lot of cases.

Last year, a total of 10,86,783 cases were reported across India while 10,57,204 cases were reported in 2012 and 10,28,503 in 2011.

Besides, that 49,91,597 people died this year due to various types of caner with Uttar Pradesh recording the highest deaths(82121) followed by Maharashtra (44,924). -PTI

WASHINGTON: Students, note! The answer to getting better grades may not lie in spending time at the library, but in a gym!

Researchers from Michigan State University (MSU) found that students who were members of the recreational sports and fitness centers on MSU's campus during their freshman and sophomore years had higher grade point averages than those who were not.

The research also indicated that students with memberships stayed in school longer. An increase of 3.5 per cent in two-year retention rates was seen among this group.

"That could equate to about 1,575 people within a student population of 49,000 deciding to move on to a third year of school," said James Pivarnik, a professor

of kinesiology and epidemiology at MSU. "These results provide a compelling argument to universities that a higher student retention rate could be enhanced just by having adequate recreational and fitness facilities for students," he said.

The research supports previous theories suggesting that by creating an environment that connects students to an institution, in this case a university recreational facility, an increase in academic success and retention can occur.

During the project, Pivarnik's team analyzed data from a sample of freshmen and sophomores, totaling 4,843 students, and compared the GPAs of those who purchased a fitness facility membership and those who did not. -PTI

July 18, 2014

Health Science Post

India Post 33

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Medical students to be posted in rural areas NEW DELHI: In a bid to ensure availability of doctors in rural areas, the government has said it is mulling sending medical students pursuing post-graduation courses on village posting and has identified 184 districts in 18 states to push for medical facilities.

Health Minister Harsh Vardhan said a proposal of the previous government to

the ministry and with Indian Medical Association...We are positively thinking of sending the post-graduate students to these places while they are pursing their post-graduation medical studies.

"During that period, we propose to send them to these places. I am sure that in the near future, we shall be able to resolve this issue. It will certainly help in improving our manpower situation at the Primary Health Centers," he said.

He said a 10 per cent incentive for competitive exams in post-graduation will be given to students spending one year in rural posting. The incentive could go up to 30 per cent.

The minister said as part of the Center's efforts to improve medical and health facilities in states, it is helping state governA medical student says the government should send postments set up health cengraduates to rural areas because MBBS doctors cannot do much ters in low performing diswithout senior doctors and proper facilities. tricts. send those who have completed their postEquipment for newborn care to help regraduation had faced opposition, thus it duce maternal mortality rate and infant morwas not pursued. tality rate is also being provided.

Now the government is discussing an Responding to a supplementary, Vardhan idea with various stakeholders to send stu- said the Medical Council of India has been dents completing post-graduation on rural told that the government is not willing to stints. accept reduction in seats in government "Now we are reviewing the whole situa- medical colleges. He said the government tion. We are in the process of discussing wants MCI to focus on quality of educaand deliberating upon this issue in our tion and not the size of lecture theatres. meetings and with our various officials in PTI

Flyers duty free allowance of cigarettes halved NEW DELHI: In another step against smoking, the government has reduced by 50 per cent the duty free allowance of cigarettes to 100 sticks and 25 cigars in airports.

The decision comes barely a day after Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley proposed 'sin tax' and announced increase in excise duty on cigarettes in the range of 11 to 72 per cent.

According to the recently notified Baggage (Amendment) Rules, 2014, passengers arriving from abroad to any Indian airport will now be entitled to bring into the country 100 cigarettes, 50 cigars or 125 grams of tobacco without payment of customs duty.

However, there has been no change in the limit of bringing two liters of liquor or wine by a passenger.

Jaitley, while presenting his maiden budget, had proposed increase in excise duty on cigarettes in the range of 11 per cent to 72 per cent. Similar increases were proposed on cigars, cheroots and cigarillos.

"Likewise, the excise duty is being in-

creased from 12 per cent to 16 per cent on pan masala, from 50 per cent to 55 per cent on unmanufactured tobacco and from 60 per cent to 70 per cent on gutkha and chewing tobacco...

"These are healthy measures and I hope

everyone would welcome them from the point of view of human and fiscal health," the Finance Minister had said.

Jaitley has also increased duty free allowance to Rs 45,000 from Rs 35,000 for all passengers of and above 10 years of age and returning after stay abroad of more than three days. -PTI

Sunshine vitamin boosts bowel cancer survival LONDON: Bowel cancer patients with high levels of vitamin D in their blood are more likely to survive the disease, a new study has found.

Patients with the highest levels of vitamin D have half the risk of dying compared with those with the lowest levels, the findings show.

The study is the first to correlate total blood levels of vitamin D in bowel cancer patients after their diagnosis - which includes that produced after exposure to sunlight and that obtained from dietary sources - with their long term survival prospects.

The University of Edinburgh team tested blood samples from almost 1600 patients after surgery for bowel cancer.

The greatest benefit of vitamin D was seen in patients with stage 2 disease, at which the tumor may be quite large but the cancer has not yet spread.

Researchers found that three quarters of the patients with the highest vitamin D levels were still alive at the end of five years, compared with less than two thirds of those with the lowest levels.

The results show that vitamin D is associated with a much better chance of cancer survival, although the nature of this relationship is not clear from this study.

The study's authors aim to set up a clinical trial to test whether taking vitamin D tablets in combination with chemotherapy can improve bowel cancer survival rates.

Measuring vitamin D levels in bowel cancer patients could also provide a useful indication of prognosis, the scientists say.

"Our findings are promising but it is important to note that this is an observational

study. We need carefully designed randomized clinical trials before we can confirm whether taking vitamin D supplements offers any survival benefit for bowel cancer patients," said Professor Malcolm Dunlop, Head of Colon Cancer Genetics, MRC Human Genetics Unit.

The research was published in the Journal of Clinical Oncology. -PTI

34 India Post

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California bill would regulate pet insurance SACRAMENTO, Calif.: California could soon start regulating the small but growing market for pet insurance under proposed legislation.

A bill by Assemblyman Matt Dababneh, D-Los Angeles, would set guidelines for the largely unregulated pet insurance industry, according to the Sacramento Bee. Former Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger vetoed similar legislation, but the latest measure was approved 78-0 by the state Assembly and now awaits approval by the state Senate.

If the proposed legislation is signed by Gov. Jerry Brown, California would be the first state to impose basic requirements for pet insurance, said Patrick Storm, a spokesman for Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones, who supports the legislation. ``Pet insurance is still the Wild West, and that's what we're trying to rein in,'' Storm said.

The legislation was prompted by increasing complaints to the

state Department of Insurance about pet insurance policies that consumers say are confusing or sometimes misleading. ``Consumers weren't confident in the product they were buying,'' Dababneh said. ``There's obvi-

ously a big new opportunity for us here in California to once again lead the way.''

The legislation would make policies more transparent and give insurance regulators a greater ability to oversee the plans. Policyholders would get a 30-day trial period during which they would have the option to return their coverage.

The pet insurance industry has largely remained neutral on the bill, but Veterinary Pet Insurance, the largest U.S. provider, has endorsed the measure. ``Because there are now so many companies in the market, we felt it was important that everyone was playing by the same rules,'' company spokesman Curtis Steinhoff said.

Only about 1 percent of American pet owners hold policies, but they're becoming increasingly popular as treatments get more expensive and more owners treat their pets like members of the family.

Stuart Waldman decided to buy pet insurance after treatment for his previous dog cost him $17,000. But he hasn't been impressed and wishes consumers could have better access to policy information, Waldman said. ``We get claims rejected constantly because of a pre-existing condition,'' said Waldman, a Los Angeles resident and former Assembly aide. ``We always have to appeal.'' -AP

Board increases secrecy for disciplined dentists PORTLAND, Ore.: It will soon be harder to track down the details of new disciplinary cases against dentists after the Oregon Board of Dentistry voted to remove the names of licensees it has disciplined from the board's official newsletter.

Disciplinary information on an individual dentist can still be found online, but determining who has been recently disciplined will now take significantly more effort. It requires entering license numbers from the newsletter into the board's online search function.

The vote is the state board's latest flip-flop on an issue that divides the nearly 8,000 dentists and hygienists it regulates.

Critics said transparency is important for the public.

Board members who supported the change ``just want to make it harder to find out who has discipline against them,'' the board's former president, Eugene dentist Norman

Magnuson, told The Oregonian. ``Those who have been disciplined don't want their names out in the community.''

Backers of the change say disclosing the names of disciplined dentists serves no purpose. ``All it does is pour salt in the

James Morris, a member appointed

by Gov. John Kitzhaber to represent the public, supported the move, saying naming names would ``dilute the brand of licensees.'' wound,'' said board member Todd Beck, a Portland dentist who made the motion to remove names at the June 27 board meeting. ``It's just mean, it's spiteful and

it's fodder for gossip.''

While the dentistry board's meeting minutes will continue to include the names of dentists disciplined, they frequently include no information about what led to the discipline. In contrast, the board newsletters posted online summarized each case in an easily understandable way.

The newsletter goes to all licensees as well as 150 other people, according to the board.

James Morris, a member appointed by Gov. John Kitzhaber to represent the public, supported the move, saying naming names would ``dilute the brand of licensees.''

The vote to remove names was not listed on the board's public agenda. The decision pits the dentistry board practice against those of other state boards that routinely include the names of disciplined licensees in newsletters or in frequent discipline roundups posted online and sent out by email. -AP

Pennsylvania didn't address fracking health impacts PITTSBURGH: Pennsylvania's former health secretary says the state has failed to seriously study the potential health impacts of one of the nation's biggest natural gas drilling booms.

Dr. Eli Avila also says the state's current strategy is a disservice to people and even to the industry itself because health officials need to be proactive in protecting the public. ``The lack of any action speaks

The gas drilling industry has said hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, is safe and there's no evidence of serious health problems from it. volumes,'' said Avila, who is now the public health commissioner for Orange County, New York. ``Don't BS the public. Their health comes first.''

Avila told The Associated Press that he believes senior political advisers did a ``disservice'' to Republican Gov. Tom Corbett by putting a study of health effects on the back burner three years ago. That has led to a cycle of public fear and confusion, Avila said. ``What are you so afraid that we're going to uncover?'' Avila said of industry leaders, adding that it would be better to clearly tell people what is or isn't a prob-

lem. ``It's not that I'm against fracking. I'm sure it's helping many individuals financially.''

The gas drilling industry has said hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, is safe and there's no evidence of serious health problems from it.

In 2011, an advisory commission recommended the state create a public health registry to track drilling-related complaints and address concerns. The state House approved $2 million for it, but Senate GOP leaders and the governor's office cut the funding at the last minute. Health Department spokeswoman Aimee Tysarczyk told media outlet State Impact recently that the department is still committed to creating a health registry.

The Marcellus Shale drilling boom that began in Pennsylvania around 2008 has generated tens of thousands of direct jobs and more than a billion dollars in royalties to landowners but also complaints about air and water pollution and the industrialization of nearby communities.

Some people have complained that nearby drilling led to headaches, nosebleeds and other problems, and there are long-term concerns about the toxic chemicals used in the fracking process that breaks the rock to free gas. But without coordinated statewide research, it's impossible to know how widespread or dangerous the problems are or even if drilling is responsible.

Cont'd on Page 35

Porn addiction is akin to drug addiction: study LONDON: Porn addiction triggers the same brain activity in people as triggered in drug addicts, according to a new Cambridge study.

Pornography triggers brain activity in people with compulsive sexual behavior - known commonly as sex addiction similar to that triggered by drugs in the brains of drug addicts, researchers said.

However, the researchers caution that this does not necessarily mean that pornography itself is addictive.

Previous studies have suggested that as many as one in 25 adults is affected by compulsive sexual behavior, an obsession with sexual thoughts, feelings or

behavior which they are unable to control.

This can have an impact on a person's personal life and work, leading to significant distress and feelings of shame.

Excessive use of pornography is one of the main features identified in many people with compulsive sexual behavior.

Researchers at the University of Cambridge looked at brain activity in 19 male patients affected by compulsive sexual behavior and compared them to the same number of healthy volunteers.

The patients started watching pornography at earlier ages and in higher proportions relative to the healthy volunteers. PTI

July 18, 2014

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Juneau regulates electronic cigarettes JUNEAU, Alaska: Juneau resident Todd Mace picked up electronic cigarette use about a year ago as a healthier option while he tried to kick a decade-long cigarette habit. Being able to take a couple puffs of his e-cigarette inside the bars kept him out of the lineup of smokers outside downtown bars - and away from temptation, he said.

But now Mace, along with Juneau's other e-cigarette smokers, must follow the same rules imposed on tobacco smokers - no smoking in bars, restaurants, bus stop shelters, city buildings and other public places.

The ordinance amending the city's preexisting secondhand smoke control code to include e-cigarettes was adopted at a June 30 Assembly meeting. It puts into writing what some city institutions - including the Juneau School District and the Zach Gordon Youth Center - had already decided to do: put restrictions on a relatively new product that hasn't been addressed through legislation.

Robert Barr, director of the downtown library, was integral in getting something on e-cigarettes in the Juneau books. He said that since e-cigarettes became popular, he has had about six instances in which library patrons either asked if they could use an e-cigarette inside or just took one out and started puffing.

With e-cigarettes left out of the city's secondhand smoke control code, library staff couldn't legally say no, Barr said, and they couldn't do anything when other patrons complained about the vapor. ``We couldn't really address those complaints people were having,'' he said. ``I asked the city attorney if that was something that fell under the city secondhand smoking code. It didn't seem appropriate to be using e-cigarettes in the libraries considering that the health effects seemed to

be pretty real. We went forward from there.''

He worked with city attorney Amy Mead for about two months until the ordinance was adopted, he said.

There are many opinions on the health effects of e-cigarettes, which are filled with a liquid combination of propylene glycol,

water, flavoring, nicotine, and other chemicals that is then heated, vaporized and inhaled.

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration is not yet regulating the contents of e-cigarettes. The administration is currently taking public comment on the issue, however.

Barr pointed out that in October of last year, 41 of 50 states' attorneys general including Alaska's - signed a letter to the FDA entreating it to begin regulating ecigarettes. ``They're marketed as being safe products that can be used in public unlike tobacco,'' he said. ``That's unfortunately not true.''

Bob Urata, a physician with Valley Medical Care, spoke in favor of the ordi-

Pennsylvania didn't address fracking health impacts Cont'd from Page 34

Patrick Creighton, a spokesman for the Marcellus Shale Coalition, stressed in an email that public health and safety are priorities of the Pittsburgh-based industry group. ``There is no higher industry priority than the health and safety (of) our employees, contractors and the communities where we operate,'' Creighton said, adding that ``as game-changing supplies of clean natural gas continue to be safely produced to meet our growing energy needs, air quality is sharply improving.''

Avila spoke to the AP after State Impact reported that two former Health Department employees said they had been told to forward certain environmental health complaints - including drilling - to the Bureau of Epidemiology and to not discuss the issues with callers. The memo included other subjects beyond drilling, such as Superfund sites, garbage dumps and mining.

Tysarczyk said in an email, ``There was not and is not an effort to keep employees from taking Marcellus Shale-related health complaints or from following up on complaints.''

All such complaints, she said, are ``immediately reported to the Bureau of Epidemiology for review and follow-up.''

Tysarczyk said the department has responded to all 51 Marcellus Shale healthrelated complaints it has received, and ``any complaint or investigation is shared directly with the individual involved and his or her physician if the individual has seen a physician.''

The database of the complaints contains personal health information and can't be made public because of medical privacy laws.

State Impact reports that Pennsylvania, Colorado and North Dakota log drilling-related complaints in databases, but Health Departments in Ohio, Oklahoma, Texas, Wyoming and West Virginia don't keep track of them at all. -AP

nance during the public comment period at the June 30 Assembly meeting, according to meeting minutes. He called e-cigarettes ``the new battle'' now that lung cancer prevalence in Alaska is dropping. Urata said that although the FDA is still researching it, the aerosol inhaled and exhaled from e-cigarettes is ``not benign'' even if it isn't smoke, and contains toxins and carcinogens. If a product includes nicotine and is exhaled, it doesn't belong in a public building, he said.

Mace said he knows that e-cigarettes aren't healthy, but he feels so much better than he did when he was smoking a pack a day. He started using an e-cigarette about a year ago, and, a few months ago, stopped smoking cigarettes entirely. ``The last four months I stopped buying them, I stopped bumming them from friends,'' he said. ``An alternative to help me quit smoking is why I bought (an ecigarette).''

He said he's read article after article about the effects of e-cigarette use. It's hard to say what's fact and what isn't, but,

regardless, he doesn't plan to be a lifetime user. ``Ultimately, I do want to quit smoking electronic cigarettes as well,'' he said.

Mace said he's disappointed he'll no longer be able to smoke inside at bars.

That's the only public, indoor place he'd ever used it because ``there's a certain etiquette " to e-cigarette use, he said. ``I don't walk around at Fred Meyer using it,'' he said. ``I saw a guy in Wells Fargo setting up a new account, ... puffing away.

Don't be disrespectful - don't be in the movie theater, don't be in the store.''

Mace's smoking habit started years ago while drinking with friends at bars, and the temptation is still very real, he said.

Keeping his distance from other smokers has helped him stay cigarette-free.

The appeal of the e-cigarette is ``I don't have to be outside, I don't have to be around it, the temptation's not there,'' he said. ``But what I'm going to do is just go outside and have my electronic cigarette.''

Barr said he's pleased the ordinance passed, and library patrons will be, too.

There isn't enough e-cigarette use in the library to merit putting up signs, he said, but anyone who breaks the new rules will be notified.

The ordinance was adopted without much discussion by the Assembly, which voted unanimously in favor.' -AP

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Realty Tidbits

'Human props' stay in luxury homes to help sales TAMPA, Fla.: When the Mueller family sits for dinner, the leftover broccoli and crepes are already wrapped in plastic, the kitchen is beyond spotless, and the rest of the home is so tuckedaway tidy it looks like they just moved in. In a way, they have: Every inch of furnishing, every little trinket and votive candle, sits precisely as designers placed it five months ago.

That would make them the most perfect suburban ideal, except for one catch: This isn't actually their home. Bob and Dareda Mueller and their three grown sons are, instead, part of an ``elite group'' of middle-class nomads who have agreed to an outlandish deal.

They can live cheaply in this forsale luxury home if it looks as if they never lived here at all.-AP

Sanjeev Dasgupta is CEO of Ascendas Fund MUMBAI: Private equity lender Ascendas India Trust (aiTrust) says it has appointed Sanjeev Dasgupta as Chief Executive Officer of Ascendas Property Fund Trustee.

Dasgupta, who succeeds Jonathan Yap, will oversee the operations of a-iTrust and its asset, investment management, finance and investor relations activities, the PE firm said in a statement here.

Yap will, on the other hand, focus on his role as Ascendas Group's Assistant Group Chief Executive (Overseas Funds and India).

Along with the new responsibility, Dasgupta will also be the CEO of India Funds that manages Ascendas' private real estate funds.

Prior to joining Ascendas Group, Dasgupta was President of Real Estate at ICICI Venture, where he was responsible for realty private equity investments, it said. -PTI

Real Estate 38

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July 18, 2014

Owners of Trump Plaza casino expect it will close ATLANTIC CITY, New Jersey: Atlantic City's crumbling casino market disintegrated even further as the owners of the Trump Plaza casino said they expect to shut it down in mid-September.

Trump Entertainment Resorts told The Associated Press that no final decision has been made on the Boardwalk casino. But the company said it expects the casino to close its doors Sept. 16.-AP

Sops for sector to boost housing demand, say Realty experts NEW DELHI: Hailing Budget proposals, realty developers and consultants said the government's move to give tax sops on home loans and investment trusts, and easing of FDI rules will boost housing demand and investment in the slowdown-hit real estate sector.

Country's largest realty firm DLF Group Executive Director Rajeev Talwar said: "The finance minister must be complimented for presenting a very good budget that offers directional clarity and will surely kickstart the economy".

Measures like hike in rebate on interest paid on home loans to Rs 2 lakh, increase in limit under Section 80C to Rs 1.5 lakh and a raise in personal income tax limit to Rs 2.5 lakh will surely spur people to invest in housing, he added.

Talwar also noted that the budget has ended the ambiguity on the tax status of REITS (Real Estate Investment Trusts), paving the way for introduction of this instrument that would attract global funds to invest in the sector.

Stating that the proposal of 100 smart cities is a big step towards urbanization, Talwar assured "DLF will surely be a contributor and a partner in this mega initiative".

Tata Housing MD and CEO Brotin Banerjee said the budget has introduced proposals that would help kick-start investment in the real estate sector.

"The government's move to provide necessary incentives to REIT's and giving a tax pass-

tion to Rs 2 lakh would help more people to buy homes and this could trigger renewed interest in realty market, he said, adding that relaxation in FDI would boost foreign investment.

Unitech MD Sanjay Chandra said: "I am glad to see REITs be-

Tata Housing MD and CEO Brotin Banerjee said the budget has introduced proposals that would help kick-start investment in the real estate sector

through status is a positive move as it will reduce the pressure on the banking system, avail fresh equity and attract long term finance from foreign as well as domestic sources," Banerjee added.

Increasing the interest deduc-

coming a reality in India finally. I hope SEBI will soon come out with detailed guidelines on REITs, so that realty companies can start taking benefit of this mode of financing.

"REITs will also hopefully lead to large scale participation from

retail investor community in the commercial real estate space," Chandra added.

Describing budget as "half glass full and half filled with hopes", realtors apex body CREDAI Chairman Lalit Kumar Jain said it met with some expectations and left some out.

Jain welcomed the announcements on REIT and FDI but rued that infrastructure status to realty sector or industry status to housing were not accorded.

Industry body NAREDCO Chairman Naveen Raheja said change in FDI rules will help to get finance in small projects.

"Clarity on tax treatment and promotion of REITs will open up new source of capital for crunched real estate thereby filliping the growth of the so called slowed down sector".

CBRE South Asia Chairman and Managing Director Anshuman Magazine said: "The biggest announcement for the realty sector was SEBI being directed to introduce REITs in India. We expect the entry of this much-awaited investment instrument to provide alternative funding channels to the realty sector." -PTI

REITs may fetch USD 10 billion this fiscal itself MUMBAI: Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs), which now seems to be a reality, is likely to net a whopping USD 10 billion this fiscal itself, thus pro-

viding the much-needed funds to the cash-starved developers, say industry experts.

Finance Minister Arun Jaitley had announced in the Budget that REITs (real estate investment trusts) will get pass- through entity status and other incentives,

should bring in about USD 10 billion by March, of course subject to all the regulation by Sebi and stamp duty concessions by the state governments to be put in place," city-based builder Hiranandani Group Managing Director Niranjan Hiranandani

REITs will reduce the pressure on the banking system, avail fresh equity and attract long term finance from foreign as well as domestic sources, say experts. including exemption from longterm capital gains tax.

"REITs will be the new funding mechanism for rental assets. This

told PTI. A REIT is a company that owns, and in most cases, operates income-producing real estate prop-

erties by pooling in money from several investors. A passthrough entity does not have to pay corporate tax.

"The clarification that tax on the income earned by REITs will be a pass through, removes a major impediment to its attractiveness. This will allow channelising of funds from retail investors to the sector. They would also provide diversification benefit to real estate investors," an analyst at India Ratings said.

REITs will reduce the pressure on the banking system, avail fresh equity and attract long term finance from foreign as well as domestic sources, say experts.

Cont’d on page 39

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Tax and non-tax incentives to promote urban infrastructure NEW DELHI: In order to meet of the built up area for Foreign the demands of better urban liv- Direct Investment (FDI) has been ing, government has offered tax reduced from 50,000 square meters and non-tax incentives to promote to 20,000 sq meters and capital reinvestments in urban infrastruc- quirement from USD 10 million to ture and housing sectors besides USD 5 million. increasing Plan outlay in the BudTo further encourage this acget 2014-15. tivity, such projects committing at Urban Development and Hous- least 30 per cent of the total project ing Minister Venkaiah Naidu has cost for low cost affordable housdirected senior officials of the two ing will be exempted from minimum ministries to initiate action imme- built up area and capitalization rediately for operationalizing new initiatives after the presentation of the budget.

Acknowledging the importance of urban development and urban renewal to meet growing aspirations of the people for better urban living, the government has increased Plan Outlay for urban related projects by 251.44 per cent in the budget.

The Plan outlay, which was Rs 6,561.34 cr in the Revised Estimate for 2013-14, has been hiked to Rs Urban Development and Housing Minister 16,497 cr for the curVenkaiah Naidu rent financial year.

Noting that "a neomiddle class is emerging which has quirements, with the condition of aspiration of better living stan- a three year lock-in. dards", the government has proAssistance to the ongoing vided Rs 7,060 cr for realizing Prime Metro Rail Projects in the cities of Minister Narendra Modi's vision Delhi, Jaipur, Mumbai, Kolkata, of developing one hundred Smart Bengaluru, Chennai and Kochi has Cities. been substantially increased by Rs According to a senior Urban 2,265 cr to Rs 8,025 cr as against Development Ministry official, the Rs 5,759 cr in the Budget 2014-15. cities will be developed as satelIn addition, Rs 100 cr has been lite towns of large cities and by provisioned for the new Metro modernizing the existing mid-sized projects in Lucknow and cities.

Ahmedabad.

He said Smart Cities will accomIn a major initiative, the governmodate the burgeoning number of ment has proposed a corpus fund people without which the existing of Rs 50,000 cr to promote and ficities would soon become nance infrastructure projects in urunviable. ban areas on shared risk basis unIn order to encourage develop- der 'Pooled Municipal Debt Obliment of Smart Cities, requirement gation Facility' over a period of five

REITs may fetch USD 10 billion this fiscal itself Cont’d from page 38

"Dependence of developers on bank funding is likely to come down as REITs will enable them to get access to cheaper funds compared to debt which is costly.

REITs will attract investments from long term-capital providers like pension funds," Ernst & Young India tax partner Gaurav Karnik said.

"The pass-through entity sta-

tus for REITs would pronounce a plethora of opportunities to developers and funds alongside addressing some sector specific issues of lack of transparency, organizing the real estate industry among others," Apex Multicons chairman Anant Pandit said.

However, when asked about the quantum funds that may flow into the market, he said it is too early to assess as Sebi has to notify the final regulations. -PTI

years. This facility set up in 2006 has corpus of only Rs 5,000 cr.

A new 'Mission on Low Cost Affordable Housing' will be launched under which Rs 4,000 cr has been provisioned for providing cheaper credit for affordable housing to the urban poor, Economically Weaker Sections(EWS) and Low Income Group (LIG) segments through National Housing Bank.

It has envisaged supporting 500 habitations for providing safe drinking water and sewerage management, use of recycled water for growing organic fruits, solid waster management

digital connectivity through private capital and expertise through Public Private Partnership (PPP) to renew their infrastructure and services in the next ten years.

Emphasizing on Metro connectivity, government has made it clear for promotion of Metro Rail projects including light rail systems in two million plus cities in the PPP mode with central governments support through viability gap funding (VGF).

The budget has also proposed inclusion of slum development in the list of Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) ac-

tivities to encourage private sector contribution.

Addressing the concern of middle and lower middle classes due to high cost of financing, it has increased the deduction limit on account of interest on loan in respect of self occupied house property from Rs 1.50 lakh to Rs 2 lakh.

With the aim of promoting investments in infrastructure and construction sectors, which play a significant role in reviving the economy, government has tried to create a conducive tax regime for Real Estate Investment Trusts and the proposed new 'Infrastructure Investment Trusts'. -PTI

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Computerized allotment of houses in Gujarat VADODARA: A computerized draw for allotment of houses will eliminate middlemen and ensure transparency in the process, Gujarat Chief Minister Anandi Patel said here.

"In the past, middlemen used to syphon off benefits intended for poor. I hope that the computerized draw system would keep them at bay," Patel said here.

She presided over a function to mark computerized allotment of

houses by the Gujarat Housing Board (GHB).

The draw was held for 772 houses to be constructed in the city, under 'Mukhyamantri Gruh Yojana'.

"Since 2012 when the then chief minister Narendra Modi announced building of 50 lakh houses for the urban and rural poor, the state government has already built 2 lakh houses and allotted them to beneficiaries. An-

other 40,000 to 50,000 houses are in various stages of completion while government plans to build 3 to 4 lakh houses every year," she said.

The chief minister also said that the government will provide quality infrastructural facilities near housing sites in a transparent and expeditious manner.

"Apart from providing houses to the poor, the government is also determined to provide them edu-

cation with a view to create a prosperous society," Patel said.

Patel also said that the state government has already approved more than 150 town planning

the economically weaker sections and also help people get loans for their homes. "It is our aim to provide affordable homes to everybody," she added.

Gujarat Chief Minister Anandi Patel

schemes with an aim to make the state free of slums. "These houses are to be built for different categories of people as per their annual income," she added.

The chief minister said that government will build homes for

Meanwhile, State Housing Commissioner Mona Khandhar said that the computerized draw was held for 772 beneficiaries belonging to (Low Income Group) LIG- 1, LIG- 2 and (Middle Income Group) MIG-1 categories. -PTI

Ansal to raise Rs 400 crore from Peninsula Brookfield BANGALORE: Ansal Properties and Infrastructure Ltd is set to raise Rs.400 crore from Peninsula Brookfield Investment Managers. Peninsula Brookfield is a joint venture between Peninsula Land Ltd and Brookfield Asset Management with Rs.1,000 crore worth of assets under management. The money will be deployed from its maiden fund, Peninsula Brookfield India Real Estate Fund.

The transaction is in the last stage of closure and the money will be raised through the non-convertible debenture (NCD) route in the form of structured debt, said two people directly familiar with the transaction. The money is being raised for a massive 2,500 acre development that Ansal had undertaken back in 2009, in a project called Metropolis in Greater Noida.

The project, which is under construction, will take another five-six years to complete. "The capital will be used for a mix of things-some of it for project development and some for refinancing earlier loans on the project which will be maturing soon," said a company executive, who didn't want to be named. From peak debt levels of Rs.1,800 crore four years back, Ansal has tried to constantly pare debt. Currently, the real estate firm has a gross debt of around Rs.1,050 crore. Property consultant Knight Frank India is

the adviser to the transaction.

Peninsula Brookfield declined to comment. NCDs have been a popular debt instrument among real estate developers in the past three years. NCDs typically cannot be converted to stock and offer yields of 14-20%.

Peninsula Brookfield's investment strategy is to look at financ-

NCDs have been a popular debt instrument among real estate developers in the past three years.

NCDs typically cannot be converted to stock and offer yields of 14-20%. ing and refinancing opportunities, quick turnaround opportunities and buy-in at below intrinsic value with a margin of safety. While looking at deals in key property markets such as Delhi, the National Capital Region, Bangalore and Pune, it partners good quality developers who are in need of capital to restructure their balance sheets or grow. -Agencies

41 India Post

www.indiapost.com

A As per Hindu mythology, Lord Ram spent his 11 years of exile in the dense forests of Saputara.

There is a deity of a serpent (snake) placed on the banks of the river Sarpaganga

picturesque hill station located 1000 m above sea level with a nice bracing cool climate, Saputara the 'Abode of Serpents', is located in the forest region of Dangs of Sahyadari Ranges. The town, the only hill station in Gujarat, is situated on the MaharashtraGujarat border. The ambiance is very cool throughout the seasons and the maximum temperature experienced here is 28 degrees in summer months.

As per Hindu mythology, Lord Ram spent his 11 years of exile in the dense forests of Saputara. There is a deity of a serpent (snake) placed on the banks of the river Sarpaganga. Local tribal folks worship this serpent god and celebrate festivals like Holi. Saputara is enriched with natural relics and bio diversity, with awesome climate of chilly air and the terrains covered with mists in the evenings.

Saputara attracts lots of tourists to its scenic lap, owing to its stunning view, lively location and cool climate. Saputara has marvelous waterfalls and the place is ideal for watching sunrise and sunset. In the pleasant monsoon, Saputara offers breathtaking scenes for nature lovers.

Cont’d on page 42

July 18, 2014

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SAPUTARA

Stunning views of sunrise, sunset amid cool ambiance Cont’d from page 41

The Saputara Lake in the backdrop of lush greenery and charming surroundings is a major attraction. Boating facilities such as paddle boats are available on the lake.

The place also houses some beautiful gardens and a museum.

One of the main attractions of Saputara is the 'Pushpak Ropeway'. It is considered the longest

Pandava Caves

Step Garden

ropeway in the country and attracts a large number of children and young couples. There is a hill resort with hotels, parks, swimming pools, theatres and a museum.

SAPUTARA ATTRACTIONS Pandava Caves: Pandava Caves, also known as Aravalem caves, are renowned by the mythical stories of Pandavas, the great warriors of the epic Mahabharatha.

The caves are located in an ambi-

where one can hear the echo of what one says. It is located in Matheran near Saputara. It is one of the prime tourist attractions near Saputara. Echo Point offers exquisite picturesque surroundings with many waterfalls, enhancing the breathtaking beauty of the location. The atmosphere is calm and cool. There are many spectacular tourist spots like Louisa Point, Charlotte Lake, and King George Point.

Saputara Lake: Saputara Lake,

ance of wilderness at a place Valpoi in the district of North Goa, a border district of Goa with Gujarat. It is believed that Pandavas put up here for some time during their stay in the forest and they used these caves to offer prayers to Lord Shiva. An impressive Shivling is placed inside the caves. These are beautiful caves lending light to the epic period.

Echo Point: Echo Point, as the name highlights, is the place

a serene and secluded picnic spot, is placed right at the heartland of Saputara valley. The lake is on the base of Saputara hill station and is placed perfectly on the picturesque hilly surroundings. The surroundings of the lake are provided with many facilities for merry making, especially with children's parks and play grounds.

Step Garden: Another attractive place in Saputara, the Step Garden has the unique feature of a garden set up in steps. Cont’d on page 44

Travel & Hospitality Post

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India Post

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London pips Bangkok, Paris Rs 500 cr for creation of 5 tourist circuits as top tourist destination LONDON: London has topped Bangkok and Paris as the world's most popular destination, and is expected to host 18.7 million international visitors this year, according a report.

The projected figure of 18.7 million global visitors in 2014 is 300,000 more visitors than the 2013 top destination city Bangkok, says the report Mastercard Global Cities Index.

Bangkok was the second most popular city with 16.4 million visitors predicted for 2014 while Paris was placed third.

London mayor Boris Johnson said: "With nearly nineteen million visitors this year London is the world's favorite place to visit.

Europe boasts two of the top five cities, London and Paris, with Bangkok, Singapore, and Dubai making up the global top five.

Overall, Europe boasts eight of the top 20 destination cities by international overnight visitors.

Istanbul (7th), Barcelona (11th), Amsterdam (12th), Milan (13th), Rome (14th) and Vienna (17th) all make the cut.

In 2013, according to the Office of National Statistics International Passenger Survey, London hosted over 16 million international visitors in a year for the first time.

Tourists from around the world

Cairns, President of International Markets, Mastercard said.

London being recognized as the top destination will boost its ability to continue to be a global leader, whether hosting events to draw in further investment, or inspiring those within to drive growth, Cairns said.

Some of the major cultural events in London this year drawing millions of international visitors include, 'Ming: 50 Years that changed China' at the British Museum, 'Constable: The Making of a Master' at the V&A and 'Rembrandt: The Final Years' at the National Gallery.

Among other 2014 events likely to draw global attention is

London

"Our city perfectly combines history, heritage, arts and culture, not to mention vast amounts of green space and major events that are the envy of the planet."

Now in its fourth year, the index provides a ranking of the 132 most traveled cities around the world.

flocked to London to attend exhibitions, visit royal palaces, dine at Michelin starred restaurants, and watch world-class sporting events.

"The recognition of this year's top international destinations reinforces the continued importance of cities as business, cultural and economic hubs," Ann

the commemoration of the 100th Anniversary of World War I with the re-opening of the Imperial War Museum this month and the Great War in Portraits exhibition.

An exhibition about fictional detective Sherlock Holmes and the Thames River Festival in September offers a feast of activities for visitors. -PTI

India wants to lower visa fees, air fares PANAJI: The Center wants to decrease visa fees and air fares in a bid to boost tourism in India, Union Tourism Minister Shripad Naik has said.

"We are charging USD 100 as visa fee while other countries like Sri Lanka and Maldives charge only USD 25. We want to bring it on par with these countries which are attracting large chunk of tourists," he told PTI here.

The Union government is also working on lowering air fares, which is discouraging tourism growth in the country, he said.

"Air fares for countries like Sri Lanka, Maldives and Malaysia are lower than India. We are working towards reducing the air fares so as to stop the travelers getting diverted to these destinations," he said.

The e-visa facility which was announced for nine airports in the recent Union budget would be extended to other states in a phased manner, the minister said.

"In first phase we have taken nine airports, but in a phased manner it will be extended to other states," Naik said, adding that Goa airport would be covered in the

first phase.

Difficulty in getting timely visa has been discouraging travelers from visiting India, he expressed.

Naik refrained from commenting on the off shore casinos' issue, stating that it is a state subject and the Union Tourism Ministry does not deal with it.

The BJP-led state government had recently decided to move the off shore casinos out of Panaji's Mandovi River by 2015 as there was lot of opposition by locals over the casinos being operated near Goa's capital city. -PTI

NEW DELHI: With the aim of boosting tourism, the government has announced allocation of Rs 500 crore for creation of five tourist circuits with specific themes in the country.

In his maiden Budget speech in Parliament, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said India's rich cultural, historical, religious and natural heritage provides a huge potential for the development of tourism and job creation as an industry.

The General Budget 2014-15 proposes to create five tourist circuits around specific themes for which a sum of Rs 500 crore has been set aside in the current financial year.

Jaitley said Sarnath-GayaVaranasi Buddhist circuit would also be developed with world class tourist amenities to attract tourists from all over the world.

The Finance Minister also announced the launching of National Heritage city Development and Augmentation Yojana (HRIDAY) for conserving and preserving the heritage characters of these cities.

The program will be launched in cities such as Mathura, Amritsar, Gaya, Kanchipuram, Vellankani,

and Ajmer with a provision of Rs 200 crore in the current Budget.

The project will work through a partnership of Government, academic Institutions and local community combining affordable technologies.

A National Mission on Pilgrimage Rejuvenation and Spiritual Augmentation Drive (PRASAD) with an outlay of Rs 100 crore is

also proposed to be launched in this financial year.

Jaitley has set aside a sum of Rs 100 crore for the preservation of archaeological sites.

Highlighting the importance of Goa emerging as a major international convention centre, the Finance Minister said there is a need to develop world class convention facilities in the state.

Government will fully support this initiative to develop the facilities in PPP mode through VGF scheme, the Minister added. -PTI

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Dubai airport set to become world's busiest DUBAI, United Arab Emirates: Now that he's had a taste of running the world's busiest air hub for international passengers, Dubai Airports CEO Paul Griffiths is determined to hang on to the honor while setting his sights on an even bigger prize: beating Atlanta for the title of busiest airport on the planet.

Dubai International Airport has been creeping up the aviation traffic rankings for years, fueled

largely by the rapid expansion of hometown champion Emirates and its younger sibling, low-cost carrier FlyDubai. Both airlines and the airport are owned by the emirate's government.

The most recent figures compiled by Airports Council International, covering the past 12 months through March 2014, show that Dubai - at least for now - has beaten Heathrow for the crown of most international passenger traf-

fic. It ended 2013 in second place behind the European hub.

Griffiths isn't shy about calling his facility, which handled 66.4 million passengers last year, the world's largest international airport. But the 56-year-old Briton was quick to hedge that claim during a recent interview with The Associated Press, saying he wants a bit more data - and to get through a major runway overhaul that's reduced flight numbers - to ``pro-

claim that quite loudly.'' ``Once we've got through summer 2014 we'll have a look at the numbers and see if we can accurately claim that title, hopefully forever,'' he said.

The airport Griffiths oversees, with its mall-like duty free halls, tranquil Zen gardens and luxury car raffles, still has room to grow before it can boast being the world's busiest airport when all flights - foreign and domestic - are

taken into account.

Griffiths thinks it's just a matter of time - likely before the decade is out.

His airport ended last year at No. 7, with Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport in the top spot. But it's growing much faster than the competition. Dubai is the only airport in the top 10 posting double-digit percentage point gains.

Griffiths joined Dubai Airports in 2007 after a stint as managing director at London's Gatwick, Britain's second-biggest airport. He is a self-described ``petrol-head'' with a love for anything that moves and an avid organist a passion that helps inform his job and its many moving parts. ``Running a multi-faceted organization like an airport ... is very much like being part of an orchestra or playing the organ,'' he said. ``You've got a lot of different strands that are moving independently of each other that you have to bring them in line so that they make perfect harmony together.''

Below his office, not far from where arriving passengers wait to get their passports stamped, construction workers are noisily working to expand Dubai International once again. -AP

SAPUTARA Cont’d from page 42

Well laid out steps are adorned with beautiful plants, flower pots and in the midst of nice woods.

There is a forest hut for the comfortable stay of the visitors, placed amidst the garden. The garden is well maintained and offers many varieties of flowers and plants. The garden has open space for children to roam around.

This is a nice place to spend the evenings away from the town's hustle and bustle.

Sunset Point: An awesome view of sunset is the spectacular attraction of Sunset point, also known as Gandhi Shikhar (peak). It is at a walkable distance from the heart of the town. This point provides a breathtaking view of the surrounding tribal villages in their natural splendor and also an aerial view of wide spans of Dang Forest. The dense forest surrounding Saputara is dotted with picturesque scenes and many tribal villages. One can reach this marvelous sunset point by using the ropeway or by climbing the hills.

Valley View Point: Valley View Point, also known as Sunrise Point, is a peak in Saputara, from where one can get a marvelous bird's eye view of the down Saputara valley.

Adventurous travelers need to make a difficult climb of about 1.5 km to reach this spot. Picturesque surroundings with cool breeze offer an envious picnic location at the mount. Tourists here lie down on the greenish lawns, close their eyes and dream the gifts of nature.

hills, nature walks around the Saputara Lake, hill climbing to Valley View Point, camping in the dense woods of Saputara hills and many such adventurous activities.

BEST TIME TO VISIT Saputara promises an all year pleasant weather. It does not ex-

perience any extreme climatic variations. Summer during March to June has a narrow temperature band of 28°C to 38°C. Winters during December to February are extremely pleasant within the temperature range of 8°C to 28°C. Monsoons during July to September offer a humid climate with average rainfalls.

An attraction here is the three day 'Grishm Mahotsav' during May. The Mahotsav is very attractive for the tourists to watch the hill station with many art and cultural programs.

HOW TO REACH

By Train: Waghai railway station is about 50 km away from Saputara city center. This station is directly connected with Mumbai and regular train services are available from here to many cities in India.

Delhiites can now book auto through smartphone NEW DELHI: Now you can use your smartphone to hire an autorickshaw in the national Capital with a new App "Pooch-O", which was launched by Lt Governor Najeeb Jung.

Delhi Integrated Multi-Model Transit System (DIMTS) has developed "Pooch-O", which will now allow users to locate autos, fitted with GPS, nearest to them and can then call its driver, whose numbers are registered with DIMTS, on their mobile phone and book a trip.

Pooch-O app can be downloaded on only android phones from Google Play store and thereafter, people have to ensure GPS of their phone is on and can find out auto nearest to them through maps.

Launching Pooch-O at his secretariat, Jung said that this is very advanced technology, which would be very useful especially for women traveling in auto at night.

"After booking auto through this app, commuters can share their travel details on Facebook and Twitter so that their friends and family members can get to know about their locations. Besides, there are several security elements in this app," Jung told reporters.-PTI

Valley View Point is majestic.

Trekking: Saputara is really a wonderful vacation spot for trekking with many established trekking trails and many unexplored pathways, still with unspoiled atmosphere and surroundings. An enthusiast tourist to Saputara can undertake trekking in Saputara

By Air: Mumbai Chatrapati Shivaji International airport, which is 360 km away from Saputara, is the nearest airport.

By Bus: Saputara is well connected to all neighboring cities by Government owned buses. Private A/C and non A/C deluxe buses are also available.

In Brief Howie says secure border before immigration talk RAPID CITY, S.D.: Independent candidate for U.S. Senate Gordon Howie says the nation should not be talking about immigration reform until it secures its border.

The former state lawmaker from Rapid City says there may be many secondary problems regarding immigration, but the U.S. must stop the flood of illegal immigration into the country.

Howie, former Republican Gov. Mike Rounds, Democrat Rick Weiland and independent Larry Pressler are seeking the U.S. Senate seat being vacated by retiring Sen. Tim Johnson.

President Barack Obama last week asked Congress for $3.7 billion in emergency spending to get more resources to the border. The funding would increase detention, care and transportation of unaccompanied children, help speed the removal of adults with children by increasing the capacity of immigration courts and increase prosecution of smuggling networks. -AP

„ Migration helps boost EU population to 507.4 million BRUSSELS: The population of the European Union stood at 507.4 million people on January 1, official EU data showed, with a significant boost from immigration.

According to the Eurostat agency, the EU's population grew by 1.7 million people over a 12month period.

Since 1960, the population across the 28 countries making up the EU has grown by 100 million, Eurostat added.

By comparison, the population of the United States is estimated to be about 317 million, up from about 180 million in 1960, while China has about 1.35 billion people.

Overall, the EU population last year grew by 80,000 on a natural basis, the net of births and deaths, and added 700,000 people through migration.

The rest of the change was due to statistical adjustments.

Immigration was proportional highest in the smaller countries of Luxembourg, Malta and Sweden.

In absolute numbers, Germany saw a big boost of 437,300 residents while Italy's immigrants rose by 181,700 people.

In Spain, a net 257,000 people left the country.

Crisis-hit Portugal lost 36,000 residents, Greece dropped 52,000, Ireland 26,000 and Cyprus 12,000. -AFP

Immigration

Immigrant children could be housed in Westminster

45 India Post

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Details on page 47

3 of world's richest men unite for US immigration reform WASHINGTON: Three of the world's richest men - Bill Gates, Warren Buffett and Sheldon Adelson - put aside their political differences to unite in scathing condemnation of US lawmakers' failure to implement immigration reform.

In an opinion column in New York Times, the trio, who have a net worth of about USD 160 billion between them, said that a Congress paralyzed by partisanship is failing US citizens by refusing to make the compromises necessary to overhaul a system that Democrats, Republicans and President Barack Obama all say is broken.

"Americans deserve better than this," the men wrote, adding that despite their political differences they would be able to draft a bill acceptable to each of them.

They took particular aim at the Republican-led House of Representatives, which has stonewalled several attempts to craft legislation.

The House bill's differences, the trio argued, could be ham-

mered out with members of the Senate, whose landmark immigration bill passed with bipartisan support one year ago but has languished on Capitol Hill.

"Whatever the precise provisions of a law, it's time for the

"A Congress that does nothing about these problems is extending an irrational policy by default."

The three men may be on the same page with regard to immigration reform, but it is their political

Warren Buffett, Bill Gates and Sheldon Adelson

House to draft and pass a bill that reflects both our country's humanity and its self-interest," the billionaires said.

differences that makes the column stand out.

Gates, founder and former boss at Microsoft, and Berkshire

Hathaway founder and world-renowned investor Buffett have both supported Obama, while Las Vegas Sands Corporation chief executive Adelson is the casino magnate who in 2012 spent nearly USD 100 million in an effort to defeat Obama's re-election.

Last year's Senate bill created a "pathway to citizenship" for many of the 11 million undocumented people in the US, a sticking point for conservative House Republicans who view the provision as amnesty for illegal immigrants.

House Speaker John Boehner has publicly proclaimed his support for immigration reform but has also said efforts to draft a comprehensive bill in 2014 were essentially dead.

-AFP

NY to provide ID card for all, including illegals NEW YORK: New York City will offer a municipal identity card for all residents, including illegal immigrants, amid a federal-level deadlock over immigration reforms that seeks to provide citizenship to some 11 million undocumented people, including Indians.

The ID card will be issued to all residents of the five NYC boroughs, regardless of their immigration status.

The city administration would immediately initiate implementation of the program, with the goal of launching the new identification card in January 2015.

The card would be issued at no cost for applicants during the program's first year.

"We cannot accept a city where some of our residents are forced to live fearfully in the shadows, unable to visit their child's school or sign a lease.

This legislation will begin to provide New Yorkers with the dignity and peace of mind they deserve," Mayor Bill de Blasio said here yesterday.

"This bill has become reality

all city's residents, including the undocumented residents.

The city is also aiming to have the card recognized by banks, as well as connecting the ID with stores, restaurants, cultural insti-

The card would be issued at no cost for applicants during the program's first year

because community activists and organizers worked tirelessly to make this day happen."

The card would ensure access to city services and grant admission to all municipal buildings to

tutions and other incentive programs.

The applicants will have to furnish proof of their identity and their residency in New York, which currently has 8.4 million

residents.

The city would protect the confidentiality of all municipal ID card applications, and would not ask applicants about their immigration status.

Administration officials described the legislation as a "landmark" step that would create a "more fair and just city that is inclusive of all New Yorkers".

Council Member Carlos Menchaca, Chair of the Committee on Immigration, said the bill signing is a transformative moment as it would provide New Yorkers with have access to the largest municipal identification program in the country.

"This identification program is real celebration of the diversity of this city, and a commitment to the protection - and inclusion - of all," Menchaca said.

The legislation comes even as immigration reform remains stalled in Washington. -PTI

Immigration Post

46 India Post

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UK court clears stringent new visa rules LONDON: The UK Court of Appeal has cleared the way for a minimum income threshold of 18,600 pounds for British citizens bringing foreign spouses to live with them in the country, a move likely to affect thousands of visa applicants, including Indian-origin people.

The appeal court ruling followed a legal challenge by UK home secretary Theresa May to a high court judgment last July, which said the 18,600 pounds was "onerous" and "unjustified".

A minimum annual income requirement of 18,600 pounds is expected to hit thousands of visa applicants, including Indian-origin British citizens, who tend to get married in India and bring their spouse into the UK as their dependents, a media report said.

Justice Blake in July last had ruled that the financial requirements amounted to "a dispropor-

tionate interference with a genuine spousal relationship" and suggested that a threshold of 13,400 pounds, which was more in line with the national minimum wage, would be more appropriate.

But, according to a 'Guardian' newspaper report, three appeal court judges said that his analysis and conclusion that the income rules breached the human rights of the British husbands, wives or partners was not correct, so the rules were lawful.

The case was brought on behalf of two British citizens, Abdul Majid and Shabana Javed, who both live in Birmingham and a refugee, MM, who has the right to remain in Britain, who are married to spouses who live outside Europe.

Lord Justice Aikens, one of the three appeal court judges, said he was very conscious of the evidence submitted that only 301 of the 422 occupations listed in the

PRADEEP ROY-SINGH B.A. LL.B. M.B.A. J.D.

2011 UK earnings data had annual average earnings over 18,600 pounds.

"But, given the work that was done on behalf of the secretary of state to analyze the effect of the immigration of non-European Eco-

ners enter the UK," he said. "....what I regard as a rational conclusion on the link between better income and greater chances of integration, my conclusion is that the secretary of state's judgment cannot be impugned," he

nomic Area partners and dependent children on the benefits system, the level of income needed to minimize dependence on the state for families where non-EEA part-

said.

"She has discharged the burden of demonstrating that the interference was both the minimum necessary and strikes a fair bal-

ance between the interests of the groups concerned and the community in general."

The judge said it was not up to the court to impose its own view on what the minimum income threshold should be, unless it was irrational, unjust or unfair.

Campaigners say that many thousands more families who were put off from applying by the 18,600 pounds income threshold since it was introduced in 2012 will also be affected.

They say that the families who remain separated include British citizens in full-time employment on the minimum wage who are too poor to enjoy the right to a family life.

A Home Office spokesperson said the judgment will mean that, from the July 28, the 4,000 individuals whose applications are currently on hold, pending this judgment, will receive a decision.

"These are cases [that] met all the requirements apart from the minimum income threshold and now stand to be refused," he said.

-PTI

Attorney-at-Law

Former Assistant StateÂ’s Attorney

Civil & Criminal Litigation Felonies, Misdemeanors, Inc DUI 1 Personal Injury, Business, Divorce etc.

1 Property Tax for Commercial Properties 1 1

http://www.proy-singh.com

2335 W. Devon Ave., Suite 204, Tel: 773-381-1820 Chicago, IL 60659

'Cut foreign aid to pay for child migrants' FORT SILL, Okla.: Two Republican members of Congress toured a temporary shelter at the Fort Sill Army Post near Lawton, where more than 1,100 immigrant children are being housed.

Reps. Jim Bridenstine of Oklahoma and Marsha Blackburn of Tennessee visited the facility where some of the more than 57,000 unaccompanied children who have entered the U.S. illegally since October are being held.

Most are children and teens from Central America. ``This is a humanitarian crisis in our country that we have to figure out,'' said Bridenstine, who said many of the children are victims of human traffickers who tell families that if they make it to the United States they will get a free pass.

``It's horrendous,'' Bridenstine said, adding that conditions in Central America may be danger-

Blackburn said the U.S. should reduce financial aid to the nations the children are fleeing, in order to pay the cost of caring for them while they remain in the U.S. ous, but it is far more dangerous to turn children over to human traffickers.

``This is about protecting the children,'' Bridenstine said.

Blackburn said the U.S. should reduce financial aid to the nations the children are fleeing, in order to pay the cost of caring for them while they remain in the U.S. ``We need to let these countries know that we will take the cost of this from their foreign aid accounts,'' Blackburn said.

Blackburn said she opposes President Barack Obama's call for $3.7 billion in emergency funding to deal with the crisis along the nation's southern border. ``Money has been appropriated for border security,'' she said. ``People are coming because they think if you get here you can stay.

It is imperative that we let these countries know that there is not an entry mat.'' -AP

Immigration Post

July 18, 2014

India Post 47

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Immigrant children could be housed in Westminster WESTMINSTER, Md.: The federal government is exploring the possibility of housing immigrant children in a vacant Army Reserve building in Westminster, and some local leaders aren't pleased with the idea.

Westminster Mayor Kevin Utz said he was first informed about the prospect of using the building in an email. Officials plan to tour the site, which has been vacant for more than 20 years, to determine its suitability for use as a temporary shelter.

More than 57,000 unaccompanied children have crossed the U.S. border from Central America since October, fleeing violence and extortion in their home countries.

The Obama administration has asked Congress for $3.7 billion in emergency funding to cope with the crisis.

Although the building is not in his district, Republican Rep. Andy Harris, who represents other parts of Carroll County, said he would try to block it from being used to house refugees.

Nicaraguans Maria Ruiz, 9, left, and her sister Jolleth, 8, who last year crossed the U.S.-Mexico border without documents and alone

``We have no idea what diseases these children are coming from Central America with. They're putting it inside the middle of a community. I just don't think it's safe until we answer all those questions,'' Harris said.

Carroll County Commissioner Richard Rothschild said he would also oppose using the building for that purpose.

The federal government has considered three other sites in Maryland for possible shelters, but all three have been scrapped.

Democratic Rep. Chris Van Hollen, whose district includes the site, was noncommittal about the prospects of using it as a shelter but said Congress should give the president the funds he has requested. ``We must ensure the safe treatment of these young children while also making it clear that the United States does not have an open border. The congressman will consider proposed actions to determine whether they are consistent with those two objectives,'' his spokeswoman, Bridgett Frey, said in a statement. ``Mr. Van Hollen also believes we are witnessing the consequences of failing to act on comprehensive immigration reform.'' -AP

5 things to know about immigration courts

A

n overlooked element in the immigration debate is the U.S. Immigration Court system, where many of the newly arrived migrants will have their cases resolved. Here are key facts about the court system and its struggles: OVERFLOWING CASELOAD The number of immigrants with cases before the immigration courts has jumped 7 percent since October to more than 375,000, the agency's highest caseload to date.

The number of cases before the immigration courts rose by 23,000 during the previous fiscal year.

WAIT TIMES The average time a pending case has been before the immigration courts is now 587 days, which is about 19 months, according to the Transactional Records Access Clearinghouse at Syracuse University. Immigration lawyers say getting a hearing can take much

longer than that. For example, in Los Angeles, the average time a case has been before the immigration court is more than two years, data show.

COURT LOCATIONS The country has 59 immigration courts overseen by the U.S. Department of Justice. Some are inside detention centers, while others deal with immigrants who are not detained. The states with the biggest immigration caseloads are California, New York and Texas.

DEPORTATION VERSUS RELIEF Immigration judges decided more than 140,000 initial cases during the 2013 fiscal year, which doesn't include cases reopened or returned on appeal. More than two-thirds of the immigrants were ordered deported, while about 17 percent qualified for relief. Four years earlier, about 82 percent of the initial cases decided by the courts ended in deportation, according to agency statistics.

Detainees sleep in a holding cell at a U.S. Customs and Border Protection, processing facility in Brownsville,Texas.

NATIONALITIES The top five countries of origin of immigrants with initial cases decided by the court during the 2013 fiscal year were Mexico, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras and China, according to the Justice Department's Executive Office for Immigration Review.

-AP

Latest immigration firestorm touches Oklahoma FORT SILL, Okla.: As hundreds of immigrant children stay at a temporary shelter at the Fort Sill Army Post near Lawton, some Oklahoma leaders say they are concerned a broad agreement on the nation's immigration policy won't be reached this year.

Oklahoma has become a temporary home for unaccompanied Central American children flowing into the country. The latest crisis has prompted President Barack Obama to push for $3.7 billion in emergency funding, and several members of Oklahoma's all-Republican congressional delegation say they're taking a close look at it.

None expressed optimism that the latest crisis could serve as an impetus for broader immigration reform. ``I really don't, because they're not really related,'' said Rep. Tom Cole, a Republican who represents the district that includes Lawton and Fort Sill and is a member of the Appropriations Committee that will closely scrutinize the funding request.

Cole said the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services had requested expanded and longer use of military facilities through 2015 to shelter the youngsters, who also are being housed at military facilities in Texas and California.

Federal officials say the number of unaccompanied minors picked up since October now stands at 57,000, more than double what it was at the same time last year. They're coming mostly from

Cole said the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services had requested expanded and longer use of military facilities through 2015 to shelter the youngsters El Salvador, Guatemala and Honduras, often fleeing gang violence.

Cole and other members of the delegation called for the children to be more expeditiously returned to their country of origin, which is something the White House initially supported but left out of its emergency spending proposal. ``I'm glad ... for the president and White House spokesman to say they fully expect the majority of these young people to go home, but that's just not been the case,

and everybody in Central America knows that,'' said Cole.

Because of a law passed by Congress in 2008 that requires court hearings for young migrants who arrive in this country from ``noncontiguous countries,'' the vast majority of the children at Fort Sill will be placed with a sponsor, usually a relative, and transferred to immigration court in that jurisdiction to begin deportation hearings.

Cole and U.S. Rep. James Lankford, the GOP nominee for the state's open U.S. Senate seat, are among a growing chorus of House Republicans calling for extradition

Dressed in brightly colored T-shirts and shorts, the children walked in orderly, single-file lines from building to building for various activities of those children more quickly. ``Until we start actually sending children back, there is no signal to those parents to stop sending them,'' Lankford said.

Meanwhile, teenagers at Fort Sill continue to be processed through a three-story troop barracks that houses up to 1,200 kids at a time in 60-bed dormitories typically used for basic training for Army soldiers.

Members of the media were allowed to tour the facility for the first time since it opened June 14, although participants were heavily restricted and prohibited from taking photographs, asking questions or interacting with staff or the teens.

Dressed in brightly colored Tshirts and shorts, the children walked in orderly, single-file lines from building to building for various activities. A group of boys started chanting a marching cadence they learned from nearby troops, who march regularly in the area.

Girls inside one of the 60-bed dormitories played cards, board games and listened to pop music on the radio.

HHS officials conducting the media tour said children who arrive at the facility are provided with clothes, shoes, towels, and bed linens, and receive three meals a day, plus two snacks. They have access to bottled water, medical services, and various activities, including arts and crafts and classroom instruction. -AP

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July 18, 2014

Philosophy

July 18, 2014

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S

afransky: Let's pretend that I'm thoroughly unfamiliar with contemporary spiritual vocabularies. How would you describe your teaching to me?

Adyashanti: My background is primarily Zen Buddhism, and yet I would not describe what I teach as Zen. I don't really see myself as transmitting any particular tradition. My teaching has to do with enlightenment, with awakening to what you really are. It does not matter to me anymore whether I use Buddhist vocabulary, or Christian vocabulary, or Hindu vocabulary. Any vocabulary will do.

The heart of my teaching is to help people question their argument with reality, with what is, and also to help them question their whole notion of themselves.

Saunders: Do you use the terms "awakening" and "enlightenment" interchangeably, or are you talking about two different experiences?

Adyashanti: Awakening is when you realize that what you thought you were was nothing more than a dream, and you perceive the reality outside the dream, what's dreaming the dream of you. It's not just a mystical experience. It is actually realizing the underlying unity of all things.

Simply because you've had an awakening, however, does not mean you stay awake. EnlightenSWAMI SHANKARANANDA

I

n my early days in the ashram in India I went through a period of intense fear. I felt so hopeless and disempowered that I could not bring myself to speak to my teacher. One day, as I was doing my work in the ashram garden, he (Baba Muktananda) came up to me. He stood an inch from my face, nose to nose. He whispered to me: "Om Namah Shivaya, Om Namah Shivaya, Om Namah Shivaya."

He forcefully said: "Repeat this twenty-four hours a day. Meditate intensely for four hours a day!" I began at once. Less than a day later I was again experiencing joy bubbling in my heart. I felt triumphant and empowered; I had shifted my mood without recourse to unhealthy diversions.

When you go through a particularly difficult period of depression, it is hard to make rational decisions. The mind dwells on negativity. You can uplift your mind by intense mantra repetition.

Mantras are given in all the traditions of meditation including the Hindu yoga tradition, the Buddhist tradition as well as the Pilgrim's Eastern Christian tradition. That tradition continues today in monasteries like Mt. Athos

ment, in simple terms, is when you stay awake. If the awakening is abiding, that's enlightenment. And most awakenings are not abiding at least, not initially.

Saunders: Awakening and enlightenment sound like head-bound or heart-bound concepts.

Adyashanti: Enlightenment has nothing to do with the head or the heart. Certainly, the head and the heart tend to open up, but that's a byproduct. Enlightenment is actually waking up from the head and

Adyashanti: Yes and no. Ultimately, everything's a dream, and yet you still have to deal with the body. It's still there. You can call it "a dream," but it's still going to hurt if you bump your head.

Safransky: Most traditions suggest that years of spiritual practice are necessary before one becomes enlightened, but you say that it's a mistake to look to the future, to see spiritual awakening as some kind of goal.

Adyashanti: One of the best ways

it's the attitude with which the mind engages in the practices - an attitude that is seeking a future end and seeing that end as somehow inherently different from what already exists here and now.

The role of the spiritual practice is basically to exhaust the seeker. If the practice does what it's supposed to do, it exhausts our energy for seeking, and then reality has a chance to present itself.

In that sense, spiritual practices can help lead to awakening. But

Role of spiritual practice is to exhaust the seeker

Adyashanti

Simply because you've had an awakening, however, does not mean you stay awake.

Enlightenment, in simple terms, is when you stay awake. If the awakening is abiding, that's enlightenment.

from the heart. It's waking up from the dream of "me" and seeing the oneness of all things.

That's what I mean by "reality": that oneness. The truth is that you are that unity. You are not simply a particular person in a particular body with a particular personality; you are that one reality, which manifests itself as all these seemingly separate things.

Saunders: Are the body and physical sensations illusory?

to avoid awakening is to let the idea of awakening be co-opted by the mind and then projected onto a future event: something that's going to happen outside of this moment.

Of course, something may happen in the next moment something's always happening in the next moment - but the truth lies right here and right now; it is right here and right now. This looking to the future isn't really the fault of the spiritual practices themselves;

that's different from saying that the practice produces the awakening.

The spiritual practitioner is like someone who's running and is really tired and wants to rest. You could say, "Well, just stop, then." But they have this idea that they have to cross a finish line before they can stop. If you can convince them that they can just stop, they'll be amazed.

Excerpted from an interview with Adyashanti in thesunmagazine.org

in Greece and other places.

Monks have been meditating in caves for 30 or 40 years, repeating this prayer and attaining inner ecstasy.

There are many effective techniques of meditation. However, it is possible to get overly caught up in various techniques, to the detriment of the goal. The first

response". Actually, "one" is rather a good mantra, but ordinary words will not have the same effect as a mantra. Some words are simply more powerful than other ones. Even an effective mantra should be received from the proper source.

Ramana Maharshi used to tell an amusing story of mantra initia-

guard just stood there. The Prime Minister again repeated the order. The guard did not respond.

Angry at the minister's impudence, the king ordered the guard to seize him. The guard immediately took hold of him. "Do you see?" laughed the Prime Minister "you and I gave the same order to the same guard. My order to seize

Mantra should be received from proper source When you go through a particularly difficult period of depression, it is hard to make rational decisions. The mind dwells on negativity. You can uplift your mind by intense mantra repetition. step is to concentrate the mind on one thought. The mantra is a single thought. With practice, the mind can become concentrated and move beyond thought to deep meditation.

Dr. Herbert Benson of the Harvard Medical School thought that you could repeat any word or phrase as a mantra. His idea was to say the word "one" repeatedly. He called it the "relaxation

tion. Once there was a king whose Prime Minister used to practice mantra repetition. The king, aware of its positive effect, asked him for initiation. The Prime Minister told the king that he could not do it. Later the king called the Prime Minister before him and asked him why he refused his request for initiation. The Prime Minister called a palace guard and ordered him to take hold of the king. The

Swami Shankarananda

you had no effect, whereas your order to seize me had the authority and power of the throne behind it. It is the same with mantra."

Swami Shankarananda, born in US as Russell Michael Kruckman, is head of Shiva School of Meditation and Yoga, Melbourne. Excerpted from 'Happy For No Good Reason' Chapter Seven: Mantra - The Power Of The Word

As fragrance abides in the flower, As the reflection is within the mirror, So doth thy Lord abide within thee, Why search Him without?

- Guru Nanak The kingdom of God is not coming with signs to be observed; nor will they say, 'Lo, here it is!' or 'There!' for behold, the kingdom of God is within you.

- Jesus Christ Worlds and particles, bodies and beings, time and space: All are transient expressions of the Tao. - Lao Tzu He who knows his own self, knows God - Prophet Mohammed One need not scale the heights of the heavens,nor travel along the highways of the world to find Ahura Mazda. With purity of mindand holiness of heart one can find Him in one's own heart.

- Zoroaster I see Him as all. Men and other creatures appear to me only as hollow forms, moving their heads and hands and feet, but within is the Lord Himself.

- Sri Ramakrishna Where is that Moon that never rises or sets? Where is that soul that is neither with nor without us? Don't say it is here or there. All creation is Him but for the eyes that can see.

- Rumi

You Insure all your Valuables, all are replaceable except YOU! So Insure yourself FIRST. Call Sahanis, (Arish, Priya or Shiv) for your Insurance needs 718- 271- 0453. Serving for last 35 yrs

Yajnesh Shetty with Amitabh Bachchan

50 India Post

Yajnesh Shetty

www.indiapost.com NEW DELHI: Martial Arts practitioner Yajnesh Shetty, who has trained a number of Bollywood actors, has become the first Indian to bag prestigious 'United States Martial Arts Hall of Fame' award.

Professor Marty Cale, the Hall of Fame Director, announced the induction of Shetty, popularly known as 'Cheetah'.

The award ceremony was held at St Louis, Missouri Sheraton City Central Hall but Shetty could not attend and his master Richard Bustillo, who is a disciple of legendary Bruce Lee, received the award on behalf of the Indian.

Shetty has trained more than 100 Indian movie stars apart

Yajnesh Shetty with Hrithik Roshan

July 18, 2014 from a dozen international names besides providing training to thousands of women in self defense.

The program is backed by International Martial Art Council of America.

"It is a big honor, which I had never dreamt of. I am thankful to God that I was selected among hundreds of nominations. I dedicate this award to my parents and thousands of children who have trained with me," Shetty told PTI from Mumbai.

"I could not have done it without my master Richard Bustillo.

The sad part is that I could not attend the program because of short notice. I want to take martial art to a different level," Shetty said.

World record

Kannadiga Cheeta Yagnesh Shetty trains film stars in martial arts and body building and has trained 125 films stars of three generations in the last 35 years. No other physical fitness trainer in any cinema industry in the world has worked for so long or trained so many stars.

Nor is there any other fitness guru in Bollywood who has trained film stars at different stages of their careers as efficiently as him since the 1970s. He has trained fathers and sons among generations of film stars too.

Shetty has trained almost four generations of Bollywood actors like Dilip Kumar, Dev Anand, Amitabh Bachchan, Akshay Kumar, Ajay Devgn, Hrithik Roshan, Sanjay Dutt, Sunil Shetty, Priyanka Chopra, Kareena Kapoor,

Karishma Kapoor and their children as well.

Shaetty says, "I have trained almost 150 movie stars, a feat which is going to enter in the Guinness Book of World Record.

I have also been appreciated by the legendary Jackie Chan for my unique martial arts. Sir Richard Attenborough who starred in 11 Oscar Awards winning movie 'Gandhi' has also been trained by me. Oscar winning director Ang Lee selected my student Ayush Tandon for the movie Life of Pi." "I have plans for starting up a martial arts training school in Mangalore as well, but the location has not been finalized. I also plan to direct a movie on martial arts, for which shooting will being in September or October," he said.

Yagnesh Shetty was born on August 1, 1956 in Ninjur of Karkala taluk in Karnataka. Son of the late Dr Srinivas Shetty and the late Gulabi Shetty, he completed his primary and high school education at Ninjur high school and PUC at Manipal Junior College.

July 18, 2014

India Post 51 www.indiapost.com

Akshay team vs Abhishek team in Kabaddi India Post News Service

Akshay Kumar, who was formerly a professional martial arts trainer in Bangkok before turning to acting, has lent a supporting hand to another sport, Kabaddi.

On his Facebook page, Akshay recently expressed 'I'm a sports enthusiast, be it cricket, martial arts, hockey or Kabbadi...that's no secret. I've always promoted fitness and sports. Cricket is already world famous but I feel it's now time to shift a little focus towards the sports which originated in our own country, Kabaddi.'

The superstar has personally requested fans to tune into the World Kabbadi League later this year. His enthusiasm for Kabaddi

extends as far as him owning his own Kabaddi team, which is due to take part in the World Kabbadi League being played across four continents from August to December. The World Kabbadi League is also set to be a somewhat star studded affair, with Bollywood counterpart Abhishek Bachchan, having also purchased the Jaipur team.

Sony to broadcast Kabaddi Sports and entertainment channel Sony SIX today said it has won exclusive rights to broadcast World Kabaddi League in India in its inaugural year.

World Kabaddi League, (WKL) is the world's first professional Kabaddi League that has been

Abhishek Bachchan and Akshay Kumar

conceptualized in India and will be played globally, the company said in a statement.

Commenting on the announcement, MSM Executive VP and Business Head Sony SIX Prasana Krishnan said: "We feel it is time to revive its legacy and make it an exciting venture for all those involved in the Kabaddi ecosystem.

It will be interesting to take this sport to the swanky stadiums in India and abroad."

"It's our endeavor to popularize Indian sports and through this association we aim to create visibility and generate interest for the game," he added.

The league will be played by 10 teams every weekend across 15 cities covering 4 continents.

Zohra Sehgal, veteran Bollywood actress, dies NEW DELHI: Legendary actress Zohra Sehgal, who essayed character roles with aplomb in a career spanning both theatre and cinema, died here on July 10 at the age of 102.

A Padma Vibhushan awardee, Sehgal breathed her last at Max hospital here.

"She died of a cardiac arrest.

She was unwell for last three-four days," daughter Kiran said.

The news was broken in the night by historian Irfan Habib who tweeted, "Just confirmed that Zohra Aapa is no more..."

In another tweet, he said, "Extremely sad to know about d passing away of Zohra Sehgal, a woman who lived a full life on her own terms. Great loss to art and culture. RIP." Sehgal, a vivacious personality, started her career as a dancer with Uday Shankar in 1935. She had appeared in many Bollywood films as a character actor as well as in English language films besides television series and plays.

Often called the grand old lady of Bollywood, she last appeared in Sanjay Leela Bhansali's "Saawariya" in 2007.

A Padma Shri awardee, she also received the Padma Vibhushan in 2010.

Sehgal, called the "laadli" of

Zohra Sehgal

entertainment and the doyenne of Indian theatre, was part of many a film and stage production over the past seven decades. the starred in films like "Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam", "Dil Se" and "Cheeni Kum" (with A m i t a b h Bachchan).

She was a member of the Indian People's Theatre Association and in 1946 debuted in its first film production "Dharti Ke Lal", which dealt with the Bengal famine. She also acted in another IPTA film - Chetan Anand's "Neecha Nagar".

In 2012, daughter Kiran wrote Sehgal's biography named "Zohra Segal: Fatty".

Kiran, herself an Odissi dancer, expressed grief that during her dying days, her mother could not even get the government flat she had asked for.

"She was always so full of life and energy. I am in very different state of mind right now...But, what is more tragic is that during her dying days, she could not even get the government flat she had asked for," she told .

Meanwhile, tribute poured in from the film industry, soon after the news of her demise and celebrities took to Twitter to expressed their condolences.

"Zohra Sehgal passes away at 102 yrs...What a journey and what an immensely lovable co-

star! Prayer for her blessed soul!," actor Amitabh Bachchan tweeted.

Filmmaker Madhur Bhandarkar paid his homage by sharing a vintage picture from the 1940 on the micro-blogging site.

"Zohra Sehgal, during a stage performance..." he said on his account.

Union Information and Broadcasting Minister Prakash Javadekar too expressed his heartfelt tribute.

Television producer Siddharth Basu tweeted," Forever young at heart & in spirit even at 102, the irrepressibly endearing Zohra Sehgal finally belongs to the ages.

May she rest in peace."-PTI

52 India Post

July 18, 2014 www.indiapost.com

Zinta gives police photos of bruised hand MUMBAI: Bollywood actress Preity Zinta has submitted four photographs to Mumbai police showing bruises on her hand to back her claim of criminal assault against her ex-boyfriend Ness Wadia even as the industrialist shared with investigators the contact details of witnesses he wants examined, police said.

"These four photographs, which show bruises on Zinta's hand, were received by us today.

We are examining the photo-

graphs, which will be crucial pieces of evidence in the case," said a police officer involved in the probe.

Meanwhile, the Wadia group wrote to Marine Drive police giving details of the witnesses whose statements they want to be recorded in connection with the case.

"We had contact details of a few of the nine witnesses whose names had been shared with us

by Wadia on July 2. Today we re-

Preity Zinta being escorted by cops

ceived contact details of the rest from the Wadias," the officer said.

Wadia's letter to the investigating officer at Marine Drive Police station sent on July 2 had names of Serieka Lal, Loretta Joseph, Pooja Dadlani, Anneline Adams, Farah Oomerbhoy, Sweetie Burman, Kamlesh Shah, Rayaan Mustapha and Sharat Nath as witnesses.

Contact details of the witnesses were sent to the police after they faced difficulty in locating them only on the basis of their names.

In her complaint to police on June 12, Zinta had accused Wadia of molesting, abusing and threatening her during an IPL match between Kings XI Punjab and Chennai Super Kings on May 30 at Wankhede stadium. Wadia and Zinta continue to co-own Kings XI Punjab team despite their estrangement.

Zinta had alleged that Wadia yelled at her and abused her before "grabbing my arm and pulling me". The photos were apparently given to the police to substantiate the charge.

Wadia has denied allegations against him as "false".-PTI

Women see ladies in red as romantic rivals NEW YORK: A red dress may be more than just a fashion choice, as a new study suggests that women who see a lady wearing the color red become more protective of their romantic partners.

Previous research has shown that men are more likely to respond romantically to women dressed in red but, until now, no one had looked at the way women perceive the color.

Researchers from the University of Rochester, Trnava University, and the Slovak Academy of Sciences collaborated to study what information the color red conveys to women.

Three experiments were involved in the study. The first one asked individuals to compare a digital image of a woman wearing red versus a woman wearing white.

Participants were asked questions about the woman's sexual receptivity.

Participants rated the woman in red as more sexually receptive than the woman in white.

Sixty-nine per cent reported they were in a committed relation-

ship, and the results of the experiment showed that participant's relationship status did not have a significant effect on their perceptions of women in white versus red.

The researchers tested whether

"Mate-guarding is the act of protecting one's own romantic partner from romantic or sexual encounters with others," said Pazda. participants would derogate a woman in red and the likelihood of guarding their mate from a woman in red in subsequent experiments.

"Derogation [involves] speaking poorly of another person to make them seem inferior, undesirable, or unlikeable, while making oneself seem superior and more likable by contrast," lead researcher

Adam Pazda said.

"Mate-guarding is the act of protecting one's own romantic partner from romantic or sexual encounters with others," said Pazda.

The researchers specifically tested whether women would derogate on the topics of fidelity, and financial resources.

The third and final experiment altered the conditions slightly. Instead of comparing white and red, the researchers chose to compare green and red in an effort to eliminate the possible bias of associating white and purity.

"Using green allowed us to equate both hues on lightness and chroma, which allowed for a more rigorous, controlled test of the red effect," Pazda said.

The participants were located in an Eastern European country, rather than the US as in the two prior experiments.

Results from the last two experiments confirmed that women found another woman in red to be more sexually receptive, versus white or green. -PTI

Salman Khan quits 'Bigg Boss'

S

uperstar Salman Khan has walked out of the eight sea son of the reality show, 'Bigg Boss'. Salman and channel Colors had differences on many issues in the past and this has led to the superstar to walk out of the show. It is not yet declared who will be replacing Salman Khan as Bigg Boss 8 host.

Channel is not happy with Sallu

Salman Khan

giving his personal views and being too judgmental about the participants. They are also not too happy with his biased attitude towards few participants. In the past, few contestants of the show discussed about Salman being biased.

Salman has his likes and dislikes and his fluctuating mood has irked the channel. In the past, Salman invited controversy for supporting Tanisha and Armaan Kohli. Kushal Tandon's re-entry on the show also irked the actor. He had also differences with the channel in season 5 over the change of slot from 9 pm to 11 pm.

Keeping all the drawbacks behind, Salman Khan has been successfully hosting the show for four consecutive years.

Arshad Warsi, Amitabh Bachchan, Shilpa Shetty, and Sanjay Dutt also hosted the show in the past but Salman Khan took the show to a new height. His charisma raised the TRPs of the show.

Though the exact reason of his exit from the show is not known, it is said that Salman is not happy with the remuneration, while some say he is too busy to shoot for 'Bigg Boss'.

Adlabs Imagica to open water park, hotel MUMBAI: Adlabs Imagica, the flagship venture of Adlabs Entertainment (AEL), which has filed for IPO, is planning to open Water Park and hotel this year, according to a senior company executive.

"We are adding a water park, Aquamagica, and a 287-room four star hotel, which are in advanced stages of construction.

We are hoping to open Aquamagica in August and the hotel is expected to be operational by the end of this year," Adlabs Entertainment Whole-time Director

and CEO Kapil Bagla, told PTI here.

Aquamagica and the hotel will be adjacent to the theme park, located on the Mumbai-Pune expressway, which has 25 themed rides and 5 themed restaurants.

Imagica witnessed 1 million visitors last week in its first year, from all over all the country.

Bagla said the company is also looking to develop similar project at other places like Hyderabad but nothing has been finalized as of yet. -PTI

July 18, 2014

India Post 53 www.indiapost.com

Startup offers exotic flavors of juices, smoothies, shakes NEW DELHI: A heady mix of dry fruits, ice creams, fresh fruits and syrup-theme based smoothies, scoops, shakes and juices in exotic flavors and combinations are what a trio of young entrepreneurs have brought to the market.

'Lagoon Sip' a recent startup by an enthusiastic trio of Sakeer Husain, Mohammed Aslam and Zahir Mohammed, all in their early twenties offers a range of experimental flavors.

While 'Seven Sisters' uses seven types of ice cream flavors, a 'Jamaican Chiku' shake has been specially made to match the taste of Somali people and 'Jungle Gym' is being offered as a juice for the health conscious.

"We wanted to offer something to the people that they never knew existed. We have worked out different combinations of ice cream flavors, syrups and fruits to bring out an interesting mix of quality and variety products," says 25year-old Sakeer Husain, who has done his Masters in Psychology

and has plans to pursue a PhD in the same.

Coming from varied disciplines, the trio of Sakeer, Aslam and Zahir share the common passion of entrepreneurship.

ing something of our own," says Aslam, who is a trained pilot.

Situated at Munirka village in the south west part of the city near the student hub of Jawaharlal Nehru University, 'Lagoon Sip'

"All of us are poles apart as far our career is concerned but we teamed up for this initiative as we are driven by the passion of creat-

owes its varied products to the heterogeneous population of the place.

"There are people from varied

communities living here. From JNU students to people from Somalia, Thailand and various other foreign countries visit our outlet. We have designed most of our products in a customized way to make everyone feel at home," says Sakeer.

Zahir Mohammed, a civil engineer by profession, did up the interiors of the outlet and is busy preparing an 'Iftar kit' comprising a bowl of fresh fruits, juice and date palms for the ongoing Ramzan festival.

"We did intensive research for this start up and visited many ice cream parlors, juice corners and other places, but were disappointed not to find quality and quantity. There are places where you are charged exorbitantly just for a cup of tea," says Zahir.

"We wanted to provide the food loving people of the capital an option that is healthy, tasty and most importantly affordable," he adds.

Hot favorite among customers of the Lagoon Sip is 'Seven Sisters'.

"I have been frequenting this place since it started two months ago. I am a huge fan of their 'Seven Sisters' and the 'Fantasy Milk', the special items here. What I find amusing is that you can have a nice sip here without burning a hole in your pocket," says Trishna Thakuria, a JNU student.

Anil Kumar, another frequent visitor to the outlet says, "I think this place has experimented with the palate creatively. Apart from what they have to offer, we are also encouraged to give suggestions for the menu."

Encouraged by the response it got in such a short time, the makers of Lagoon Sip are planning to open its branches in other places in the city - Jamia Nagar and INA. "We are working on a winter menu for the outlet where we will include munchins like cookies, burgers and pastries. We have already got offers for our products from IIT and the nearby DDA flats.

Once JNU opens after vacations, we are expecting brisk business," says Sakeer. -PTI

Workers struggle in Hamptons, playground for rich SOUTHAMPTON, N.Y.: This is a town where people are so rich that a $2 million home can be a handyman's special. A town where the thrift shop is stocked with donations of designer dresses and handbags.

But Southampton, with its privet hedges, pristine beaches and some estates costing tens of millions, also is where 40 percent of children get free or reduced school lunches, where a food pantry serves up to 400 clients a month and where some doctors and nurses share homes owned by the local hospital because they can't afford to buy or rent.

Studies show the wealth gap separating the rich from everyone else is widening, and few places in the country illustrate that as starkly as Long Island's Hamptons - America's summer playground for the haves and have-mores, where even middle-class workers struggle with the high cost of living. ``We have a tremendous amount of millionaires who live 3 miles from the food pantry, and they really have no idea that there's a need in this community,'' said Mary Ann Tupper, who retired last month after 21 years as the executive director of Human Resources of the Hamptons, a charity that assists 6,000 people annually through its food pantry

and other services for the working poor. ``In the summer they're working and everything is pretty good, but come the winter, all the nannies, the gardeners, the pool people, all those people are out of work, and then there's no money,'' Tupper said. ``The income disparity is tremendous.''

Kerry Lewendoski, who succeeded Tupper, adds: ``The people aren't just coming here to work in the summer. They live here; they have established homes and kids enrolled in the schools.

Southampton is their home, and they still have trouble getting by.''

Located on southeastern Long Island 80 miles from New York City, Southampton is one of several towns and villages stretching east along 40 miles of the Atlantic Ocean that collectively are known as the Hamptons. Census figures showed a 2010 population of 57,000 and a median income of $78,815.

But statistics in the Hamptons are an elusive notion, since many of the summertime denizens with their multimillion-dollar incomes identify themselves as residents of New York City or elsewhere. In the first quarter of 2014, the average selling price for a home in Southampton town was $1,845,431, though some oceanfront estates go for over $100 million.

Celebrities spotted hanging out in the Hamptons include Christie Brinkley, Rachael Ray, Kelly Ripa and Howard Stern, among other members of high society in New

ming 16-foot hedges on a 10-acre Southampton estate where he has worked for two decades. His 30mile commute sometimes takes up to three hours round-trip.

York and elsewhere.

Many of those who work in the Hamptons - painters, landscapers teachers, even journalists - live west of the region in suburban Long Island and commute as many as three hours round-trip daily.

From early spring to late autumn, the one primary road in and out of the Hamptons is jammed most mornings with pickup trucks and vans filled with tradespeople headed east. ``There's tons of work out here because this is where the money is,'' David Hahn said while trim-

Kimberly Piazza is a secretary in her husband's sod business and lives in the North Sea community in Southampton town, several miles north of the oceanfront estates. Coming out of the local general store, she said local milk prices are as high as $5.99 a gallon and eggs sell for up to $4 a dozen nearly double what those staples cost elsewhere on Long Island.

Gasoline prices are 50 cents to a dollar more a gallon at most stations in the Hamptons. ``The image is that we're all pretty much rich, hoity-toity, well-

to-do people,'' she said. ``And while you do have some of those people, a majority of us are still working class.''

At Southampton Hospital - the region's primary medical facility that has 25,000 emergency room visits annually - administrators wrestled for years with staffing shortages because qualified applicants could not afford the cost of living.

The hospital has since purchased three houses nearby and allows 17 nurses to live there as part of their compensation package, said spokeswoman Marsha Kenny. A similar program exists for resident doctors, with a goal to keep some working full-time at the hospital when they complete their training.

Last month, over the objection of neighbors, the town board unanimously approved a plan to build a 28-unit apartment complex, in part to provide affordable housing for people who work in the area. ``We have teachers and critical care workers that are commuting an hour and a half each way to work,'' said town supervisor Anna Throne-Holst. ``What makes anyone think they're going to make that commute? And if they do, are we really getting the best of the best?'' -AP

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Implications of increased FDI in Defense production

T

aking over by the new Modi government means a vastly stepped-up commitment to India's crisis prone defense sector with particular reference to attaining self reliance in defense manufacturing. In fact, the Bharatiya Janata Party's (BJP) election manifesto had made a strong and specific commitment to end India's dependence on imported arms and ammunition by boosting domestic production of high performance fighting equipment.

India Post

RADHAKRISHNA RAO

a positive step though it may not be as much of a move forward as everyone was hoping. The treatment of the balance 51% will be critical .The earlier policy at 26% FDI required 51% to be held by one resident Indian entity. It would be interesting to note what the change in that is, if any."

Indian Finance Minister and Defense Minister Arun Jaitley, while presenting the budget for 2014-15, did admit to the ignominious distinction India has achieved as the 'largest importer' of arms and fighting systems. That a country

in defense production is that it would be na誰ve to expect high technology to flow into Indian industry simply because foreign firms can invest more and repatriate profits. One would therefore need to wait and watch.

India should go about building a military-industrial complex based on its long term strategic needs.

At present, much of the defense production activities in India are centered on the facilities of the Defense Public Sector Undertakings and Ordnance Factories Board (OFB). Lack of direction and motivation as well as interference meant that they could come out with very few new and innovative products featuring state of the art technologies.

Conversely, private sector companies, that have made a modest foray into the defense production sector, are not enthusiastic about inFile picture of Smerch 300 MM Multi Rocket Launcher System passes through the Rajpath vesting in research during the 65th Republic Day Parade 2014, in New Delhi and development to build high-end Foreign Direct Investment which has sent probes to Moon fighting systems. As such, the pri(FDI) is already considered one of and Mars continues to meet 2/3rd vate sector in India's defense the 'game changers' for boosting of its defense requirements via manufacturing would need to be India's home-grown capability in imports stands out as a far from encouraged and incentivised to the production of state-of-the art edifying testimony to its "poor invest in research and developcombat systems. In fact, the 26% state of defense industrial infra- ment through a slew of proactive FDI cap on defense sector that structure," said Jaitely. measures. former Prime Minister Manmohan "We are buying a substantial There is a need for in depth Singh-led United Progressive Al- portion of our defense require- evaluation of the possible long liance (UPA) government had ments directly from foreign play- term political, geostrategic and failed to upwardly revise was con- ers. Companies controlled by for- security fallouts of an increased sidered far from an attractive eign governments and foreign pri- FDI cap in the defense production proposition for the global defense vate sectors are supplying our sector. and aerospace conglomerates to defense requirements to us at a Specifically, the trade sanction invest in India's defense produc- considerable outflow of foreign and technological embargo emaexchange," he added. nating from the US and its westtion sector.

Significantly, it has also been ern allies could deal a paralyzing But whether hiking the FDI cap to 49% by the NDA government decided to continue with the policy blow to a joint venture involving in its maiden budget would prod of permitting higher FDI cap be- a partnership of a US-based deforeign investors to pass on their yond the stipulated 49% in the fense company. Sufficient stratelatest genre technologies to Indian event of a foreign investor willing gic safeguards should be built into partners is not an easy guess at to part with the latest genre tech- joint ventures involving foreign nologies at his command. This, participation. this moment.

Far from being a magic wand to however, would be subject to apOtherwise the entire exercise of help India build a home-grown proval by the Cabinet Committee enhancing FDI cap in India's dedefense industry based on indig- on Security on a case-to-case ba- fense production sector could prove counterproductive, with enous expertise, an increased FDI sis.

For quite some time now, indus- serious consequences for the could be considered no more than a catalyst for the Indian defense try and trade bodies in India have combat-readiness of the Indian producers to face the challenges been lobbying for facilitating an defense forces. Self reliance in of designing and developing high- increased FDI inflow in the de- defense production should reend, complex fighting equipment fense production sector. It was in volve round a long-term vision of 2001 that India opened its defense the security threat perception with domestic resources.

In this context, Rahul Gangal, production sector to private par- faced by the country.

Principal, Roland Berger Strategy ticipation. However, the view of The writer is a Freelancer in Consultants says, "I think this is the Indian industrial sector active Bangalore. Courtesy IPCS

Leadership claim

W

ith 44 seats, not even 10 percent of the total strength, the Congress party has failed to qualify for the impor tant post of Leader of Opposition in Parliament. But it has not ceased to defy conventions, rules and tradition to continue to claim the post. When it had the brute majority like what the BJP has today, it made no concession and no leader of opposition was appointed. So the BJP might be tempted to give it the same treatment.

In today's scenario however many things have changed. The Leader of Opposition has the Constitutional position of representation in committees which select among others, important appointees like the CBI chief, the CIC, CVC, NHRC, CBI Director and Lokpal.

BJP's Sushma Swaraj, when she was Leader of Opposition during UPA rule, had vehemently opposed the suggested government nominee - senior lawyer P.P. Rao - in the Lokpal selection panel and his name had to be dropped. Thus the post has possibilities of stymieing government plans and appointments. The BJP might in the end agree to give the Congress the Opposition leader post with a quid pro quo. The BJP government has a big majority in the Lok Sabha but it is in a minority in the Rajya Sabha and would need support there from other parties to push through key legislation. It might expect the Congress to ensure backing on bills in return.

That apart it is interesting to note that none of the great leaders of the dynasty are willing to take over the post. Sonia Gandhi and her son, the prime ministerial nominee Rahul Gandhi are content to warm the second bench and have put forward the name of former railway minister Mallikarjun Kharge as leader of Opposition. Kharge is a staunch loyalist and is expected to do the bidding of the family.

But the Congress has learnt no lesson from the big electoral defeat. In any other party the leaders would have been made accountable for such a poor show. They would even have resigned to make way for more competent ones to come forward. But not in the Congress. Nobody is allowed to blame the "shehzada" (moniker given by Modi) who was entrusted to lead the Congress campaign and was thus responsible for the debacle. Nor is Sonia Gandhi's position as the supreme leader under threat. But when it comes to claiming the leader of Opposition position from among a truncated Congress the name of a minor leader is put forward. It is typical of the Sonia way of operation - back seat driving, pulling the strings from behind and power without responsibility. That is how Manmohan Singh, the previous prime minister was brought to his doom. If Sonia Gandhi had herself claimed the position of leader of opposition, the BJP might have obliged quickly. But playing old tricks by the same old dynasty mindset is making it difficult for the government to respond. Sonia Ganhdi has herself gone and met the Speaker to plead for this post.

The Congress has also made the spurious claim that it heads a pre-poll coalition (UPA) comprising 60 seats. But the legislation on this matter does not recognize polls and alliances. If it were so, the AIADMK, BJD and TMC could combine and create a bigger alliance with 91 seats. Thus going by the rules, the Congress is not entitled to this important position; so on what ground should the Speaker grant it, if at all she is inclined.

Karan Thapar in his column in Hindustan Times has argued that the leadership of the opposition is an issue that goes beyond the question of merit. He says, "The Congress may not deserve the post but India's democracy clearly requires there should be a formal Leader of the Opposition. Without it our democracy would be incomplete and diminished." Will then the Congress be the lucky beneficiary this time?

July 18, 2014

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July 18, 2014