052810B

Indo American News • Friday, May 28 , 2010

online edition: www.indoamerican-news.com

www.indoamerican-news.com

Friday, May 28 , 2010

25

Business IndoAmerican News

STOCKS • FINANCE • SOUTH ASIAN MARKETS • TECHNOLOGY

Own a Piece of Manhattan in the (Not So) Old Country

By Jawahar Malhotra SUGAR LAND: For many, it was a treat just to see a former great world-class tennis player and have a picture taken with him. But as the presentation and the designs for the master communities were explained by and laid out on the projection screen, it became clearer that many of the over 80 people who attended the IREO’s sales event were seriously eyeing the Indian market for a real-estate opportunity.

Three members of IREO’s sales and marketing team, Marketing Associates Parag Vaidya, Anjali Grover and Mary Cronin were in town from the New York office this past weekend, supported by local staff, for a presentation at the Sugar Land Marriott of the properties that IREO is building in major cities in India. A beach resort development in Goa is scheduled to start in 2 years. And tennis legend Vijay Amritraj was on tour with them too as the official spokesperson.

Amritraj, who lives in Los Angeles, had been on the ATP circuit and played in many of the Grand Slam tennis events in his heyday, both in singles as well as in doubles with his brother Anand. Since then, he has dabbled in the movies and other ventures and currently runs the Vijay Amritraj Foundation which has charity projects in India, especially Chennai where Amritraj hails from. He is also works of issues as an associate with the United Nations.

“I played for India in the Davis Cup for 20 years,” explained Amritraj, “served 5 terms as President of the ATP and have done some movies and TV. I have learnt that you must exploit yourself to the limit and prove that you are the best in the world. You must look at a company and ask what they have done in their professional life.”

And that is what Amritraj found when IREO turned to him to be their ambassador. He is sure of IREO’s strong commitment to India and happy to see many cities, including his hometown of Chennai, among the sites for master planned communities. “It is a good partnership,” he concluded, “and one I can passionately promote.”

IREO was started in 2003 with as a global investment fund of $1.5bn and with the design and construction arm has offices in 7 cities in the US, India and Mauritius and 300 employees.

The funds have been used to buy up 3,000 acres all across India for 14 master-planned projects.

The flagship project is the Grand Arch (a cube with a square hole which resembles its namesake building in Paris, France) which is being built in Gurgaon, on Golf Course Road, about 2 miles from the South Delhi enclave of Saket.

Grand Arch is a 1.6m sf mixed-use development built on 21 acres, with lakes, shopping and an ice rink and was started in September 2009 with completion by September 2012. According to Grover, all phases were sold out by March 2010, “and we are actively looking to buy back some units!” she said.

Adjacent to it on the 800 acres that IREO owns, in Sector 66 another development spread

At the IREO real estate presentation last Sunday at the Marriot Hotel in Sugar Land, from left, Parag Vaidya, Mary Cronin and Anjali Grover with company spokesperson tennis great Vijay Amritraj.

Photo: Jawahar Malhotra Grand Arch, in Gurgaon, the flagship project for IREO, is spread over 21 acres and is completely sold out.

It will be completed in September 2012

over 11 acres, Uptown, will feature large landscaped greens, modern 3-side open apartments with modular kitchens. It was started in November 2009 and prices are up 20% year to date.

Nearby, in Sector 67, IREO just launched on Saturday Victory Valley, featuring a 178m or 51-story tower, the tallest in North India and the second tallest in the country, near the Aravalli Hills. All of these flats offer high ceilings, floorto-ceiling glass windows, and a Manhattan style of living. The prices range from Rs. 5,000 to 7,000 per sf ($106 to $148 per sf) and different forms of financing are available for the NRI wishing to buy in.

In the presentation that preceded the lively discussion with inquisitive and potential buyers, short videos were shown of the graphic representation of the communities, amenities and apartments in each of the three developments, including Waterfront, the company’s 500 acre development of four story townhomes and villa built around a 10 acre central lake supplied by the nearby Sidhwan Canal in Ludhiana, Punjab and which has opened up for bookings.

The 3,100 sf units will go for Rs 16,000 per sq

yard ($340) or about Rs 96 lkh ($204,000) and are expected to be ready much sooner than the Gurgaon projects. In Gurgaon, the water for the lakes and fountains in the development will come from subgrade tubewell since the water table which is fairly high in the area and the planned 90% recharge zone.

All of the projects that IREO has underway have been conceptualized and designed by

international architectural firms in Sinagpore and Hong Kong well-known for their work with high-density, multi-use living communities.

And since many of the investors are based in New York, a Manhattan style living was what they were after. As Grover aptly put it, “if you can get that style of living in India, then why would you look elsewhere? Why would you leave India?”

world markets

Wednesday, may 26, 2010 dow jones

Gold 47.12 $1,211.90 Ind. rupee

9,974.45 • -69.30 • -0.69%

nasdaq

2,195.88 • -15.07 • -0.68%

bombay

16,387.84 • 365.36 • 0.22%

colombo asi

4,250.99 • 24.50 • 0.58%

dhaka GI

6073.92 • 84.97 • 1.41%

Karachi 100

9611.55 • 183.11 • 1.94%

nepal NEPSE

479.40 • -3.04 • -0.63%

per oz.

Silver $18.05

per oz.

Platinum

$1518.00 per oz.

85.36

Pak. rupee

69.55

taka

113.97

S.L rupee

Brent $70.33 Spot 0.79% Spot Bid Prices Bloomberg.com

INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, MAY 28 , 2010 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM

75.80

Nepal rupee

26

Indo American News • Friday, May 28 , 2010

online edition: www.indoamerican-news.com

INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, mAY 28 , 2010 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM

online edition: www.indoamerican-news.com

B U S I N E S S in d i A

Bids Total $11 Billion for Wireless Spectrum in India NEW DELHI: Further ratcheting up the stakes in the fast-growing and intensely competitive Indian wireless market, telecom companies bid nearly $11 billion for spectrum designated for high-speed data services, the government said .

The final tally of a frenzied monthlong auction concluded at nearly twice the amount that the government had expected, a sum that many analysts had previously said might itself be too ambitious.

The rich haul should help the Indian government pare its significant fiscal deficit, a source of concern for many investors. But the high price will probably further strain the finances of telecom companies whose profits have fallen in recent months as competition has driven down the price of calls, in some cases to just 0.6 American cents a minute for local calls.

With more than 580 million subscribers, India is the largest wireless market after China. More than 20 million new wireless accounts were created just in March, thanks to cheap calling plans, competition from as many as 12 providers in some cities and an aggressive push by phone companies into rural India.

Earlier this week, Vodafone, the London-based company, wrote down by more than 25 percent the value of its Indian operations after paying $11 billion for a majority stake in it just three years ago. In the bidding that concluded Wednesday, Vodafone won spectrum in nine regions, including Delhi and Mumbai,

airwaves in 13 regions. Shares in Bharti AirTel fell 3.1 percent and Reliance Communications closed down 5.7 percent on Thursday.

Though the spectrum is intended for highspeed services known in the A cellphone shop in Bangalore, India. With nearly industry as thirdgeneration, or 600 million subscribers, India is the largest 3G, most comwireless market after China. panies are likely for $2.5 billion. to use the airwaves primarily to carry Seven companies submitted win- phone calls and text messages. Data ning bids for a total of 71 licenses, remains a niche application in India, pledging to pay 509 billion rupees where most people spend just a few ($10.9 billion). The auction results dollars a month on wireless service. will also determine the price two stateTelecom companies have struggled owned phone companies, MTNL and in recent months to deliver reliable BSNL, will pay for spectrum they service to customers after the Indian have already been allotted. Taking government began reviewing telethose payments into account, the gov- com equipment purchases last year, ernment said it would earn 677 billion citing security concerns. Many carrupees ($14.6 billion), compared with riers desperately need to increase cathe 350 billion rupees it had estimated pacity for new customers, which may earlier this year. have driven up bids in the auction.

Bharti AirTel, which is India’s bigIn a statement, Bharti Airtel, said gest cellphone company and recently “the auction format and severe specsigned a deal to buy a large African trum shortage along with ensuing mobile operation, spent the most policy uncertainty drove the prices for the spectrum, bidding $2.6 bil- beyond reasonable levels. As a result, lion for airwaves in 13 regions. An- we could not achieve our objective other big Indian company, Reliance of pan-India 3G footprint in this Communications, bid $1.8 billion for round.”-NYT

Indo American News • Friday, May 28 , 2010

27

Indian IT Professionals No Cheaper than American BANGALORE: IT professionals from other parts of the world are not cheaper than American IT professionals in the U.S. market, according to a report by Amit Tripathi and Praveena Sharma of DNA. A recent study by two professors have found that American engineers are not expensive in comparison to their counterparts from other parts of the world working in the U.S. “Contrary to the popular belief that foreign workers are a cheap source of labour for U.S. firms, we find that after controlling for their human capital attributes, foreign IT professionals (those with H-1B or other work visas) earn a salary premium when compared with IT professionals with U.S. citizenship,” Prof Henry Lucas and Prof Sunil Mithas of the University of Maryland, said in a report.

Lucas and Mithas have used data on skills and compensation of more than 50,000 IT professionals in the U.S. over 2000-2005 to study patterns in compensation of foreign and American IT professionals.

The professors said that salary premiums for non-U.S. citizens and for those on work visas vary in response to supply shocks created by the annual caps on new H-1B visas.

Som Mittal, President of NASSCOM, has approved the outcome of the survey by the professors saying once the cost of settling the Indian engineers on H-1B visa in the US

INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, MAY 28 , 2010 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM

was factored in, they worked out to be more expensive.

Subhas Dhar, Executive Council Member and head, sales, marketing and communication at Infosys Technologies, added that there were many instances lately of their U.S. customers being approached by American citizens who are ready to drop their salary demands below those of IT workers on H-1B visas. He said this was twisting the interpretation of the U.S. employment data.

“At such times, many of our clients have turned down the proposal saying that we (Infosys) provide better quality and flexibility. But at times, they have recruited those locals at much lesser cost,” said Dhar.

Rajendra Shreemal, Head of Investor Relationship and Treasury at Wipro Technologies, attributed the erosion in American ‘resources’ to a drop in demand. “This is making (IT) skill sets available at same price as that of Indians brought on work visas to the U.S. onsite centers,” he said. He added that the price of IT workers was based on skills and a host of other factors and so could not be painted with a ‘broad brush.’

B Ramaswamy, President and Managing Director of Sonata Software, also considers the relative costs of American and foreign IT professionals in the U.S. would depend on skills, geographic area and demand-supply equation, among other factors.-SI

28

Indo American News • Friday, May 28 , 2010

business in d ia

online edition: www.indoamerican-news.com

Sanjay Kapoor: A Man who Satisfies your Wants Kapoor asks the store manager at the Paul Smith store why the merchandiser has not ordered the blue moccasins he had suggested during a buying trip a few months ago

By Seema Chowdhry Sanjay Kapoor, managing director, Genesis Luxury (part of Genesis Colors), cringes at the music being played at DLF Emporio mall, New Delhi, as we head from the Canali store to the Paul Smith outlet for window-shopping. He mutters something about needing to chat with the mall’s staff about the music selection.

At the Canali store (among Kapoor’s favourite menswear brands, naturally), he had waxed eloquent about the mall’s many plus points as a one-stop-spot for luxury retail.

Clearly, however, the mall’s current deejay doesn’t pass muster with Kapoor’s staid banker-like sensibilities.

By his own admission, he is “more of a classic dresser than experimental”, something that also reflects in his taste in music.

Kapoor asks the store manager at the Paul Smith store why the merchandiser has not ordered the blue moccasins he had suggested during a buying trip a few months ago. I am surprised he could have recommended “blue moccasins”. Perhaps the surprise reflects on my face and he clarifies with a grimace that he would never have bought those for himself because he never wears moccasins, and brown shoes with laces are more his style. But he thinks young clients who favour the Paul Smith brand might have liked the shoes.

“Don’t get me wrong. I am not saying being dressed in a conservative suit is the only mark of a well-dressed man. Take two examples—A.D. Singh, who runs Olive, is always nattily turned out whether he is wearing a hat or a white suit. On the other extreme is Nakul Anand, who runs ITC hotels. He dresses in a suit with a matching pocket square and a tie always. It doesn’t necessarily mean one style is better (than the other), but what you prefer. I lean more towards Nakul Anand’s style.”

Read that as being dressed in “a dark, preferably Canali suit”, a white shirt, perhaps a tie in a bright hue such as jewel green, and brown shoes.

It’s a little tough to imagine this 42-year-old man as a no-holds-barred

Kapoor says Indian men spend more on luxury clothing brands; women are more priceconscious.

risk-taker at 24. Kapoor pursued an MBAat the University of Rochester in the US. He gave up a well-paying job (“must have been around Rs7,000 per month in the early 1990s) at Citibank to set up a business without having a concrete business plan in place, or so he claims. “When I announced my

decision to quit the bank, the response was ‘Are you nuts? Who quits Citibank in their early 20s?’” In his family, no one had ever dabbled in business, and they found this yearning to be an entrepreneur tough to comprehend.

But right at the start of his career, Kapoor was sure he did not want to work for someone else.

“It is really a twin-edged sword,” he says. “When you spend time working in a job, you get experience and become secure. But the longer you stay in a job, the more your risk-taking abilities get blunt.”

Kapoor and his partner Jyoti Narula (whom he met at Citibank) had a vague notion that lots of people were exporting garments and it seemed like an easy enough business. “It was not rocket science. We just had to go to Europe, get orders and come back and send the garments.”

But that was easier said than done. The duo did not get much business in the initial years—things began to change when they landed an order from a German shopping catalogue company for ties. “I think we had to make ties with red or black hearts.”

By 2000, the firm was using Satya Paul designs for its ties on a “fluid arrangement”. There was no marketing tie-up with the Satya Paul brand at this point. This arrangement was formalized in 2001 and the firm Genesis Colors was set up with a third partner, Puneet Nanda.

“In 2007, when Bottega Veneta’s Indian partner had exited, we decided to sign up with them. People said

the brand was premature for the Indian market. The products don’t have large logos or the bling factor. But my gut feel was that it was the right brand to have in the Genesis Luxury portfolio. Two years later we are all happy with the deal,” says Kapoor, explaining how he thrives on risk.

Now the firm owns the Satya Paul brand, Samsaara, Bwitch and has distribution rights in India for global luxury brands such as Just Cavalli, Canali, Kenzo, Paul Smith, Jimmy Choo, Etro and Bottega Veneta. The Etro stores are scheduled to open in Delhi and Mumbai in July.

While the company’s marketing tie-up with German luxury brand Aigner ended last year, in October Genesis Colors picked up a 49% stake in a joint venture with British luxury goods retailer Burberry to open stores in India. The deal came after it sold a minority stake (at close to $17 million, or around Rs76.5 crore now) to private equity Henderson Equity Partners to raise money to fund expansion plans for its luxury portfolio. Burberry has stores in Delhi, Mumbai and the latest one in Hyderabad which opened earlier this month.

Except for Burberry and Just Cavalli, none of the other luxury brands in the company’s international brands portfolio sells fashionwear for women. Kapoor believes women’s luxury shopping in India traditionally revolves around jewellery and accessories such as bags and shoes—it is not focused on fashion clothing. “Men here predominantly spend more money on luxury clothing brands. For one, they control the purse strings.”

Between men and women shopping in the luxury space, Kapoor finds women much more sensitive to price and less loyal to brands. “An Indian woman who walks into a Bottega Veneta store at DLF (Emporio) will call her niece in London and check the price of that handbag or shoe she wants to pick. She is far more sensitized to pricing than an Indian man.” In comparison, he says, men are self-sufficient shoppers, don’t do

INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, mAY 28 , 2010 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM

too much window-shopping and are brand loyal. “But they do tend to be as fussy as women about great service and good fits,” says Kapoor, narrating the case of an irate male customer who “exploded” on a member of Canali’s staff for daring to suggest that the gentleman’s suit be picked up by his driver rather than be delivered by the Canali staff.

“No one is coming to buy a suit because they see value in spending Rs75,000 on it. A customer buys it not because this is a need-based purchase, but a want-based buy. Someone is plonking down some serious money to feel good about the experience (of buying) the product and that is what we have to constantly learn,” says Kapoor.

Ask him why the luxury market is taking so long to establish itself in India, whereas luxury retail sales haven’t seen a better year than 2009 in countries such as China, and he says: “Some people say the high-end luxury business is recession-proof and others say it is most hit during recession. Definitely the downturn affected people’s mindset in India.

DLF Emporio opened in 2008, just as the news of the global downturn started trickling in. A few months later, the 26/11 attacks happened and after that the Satyam scam.

“India went through a solemn period for a while. We believe things started to turn around a little after the general election in May 2009. I know everyone says things got better in the last quarter of 2009, but we could see footfalls at the mall increase, retail sales (have been) slowly picking up since June 2009,” he says.

So did Genesis Colors suffer losses last year? The banker is on guard again. “We started retailing luxury brands in India two years (ago) only.

I have no concrete figures to compare with.”

Apart from expanding in cities such as Chennai, and opening more Satya Paul and luxury retail outlets, I wonder which other luxury brands Kapoor is eyeing. “Ralph Lauren,” he says wistfully as we enter the Just Cavalli store.-Mint

online edition: www.indoamerican-news.com

business in d ia

TATA Completes Probe into Nano Fire; Says Car Safe

Delivery of Nanos began in July 2009 and since then, more than 30,000 cars have been sold in the country.

MUMBAI: Tata Motors on Friday claimed that its ‘people’s car’ was “absolutely safe”, saying a probe into fires that gutted a couple of brand new Nanos by an expert team found “no manufacturing defects”.

“We have concluded a comprehensive investigation into the incidents of fire in two Tata Nanos.

The investigation, conducted by a 20-member Tata Motors Group team and an independent forensic expert, has reaffirmed that the Tata Nano is a safe car. “The investigations have also revealed that the incidents were not related,” a Tata Motors’ official said.

At the same time, the company offered to conduct pre-emptive checks on all Nanos on the road, starting May 24, but clarified that this was not a recall.

Recalling the incidents, the com-

pany said that the fire in March 2010, shortly after a customer took delivery of the car, may have been caused by a foreign object in the exhaust system that its expert team found.

In the other case that happened in April, it was concluded that the car that was being driven to the dealership caught fire possibly due to a ruptured fuel line.

Citing these findings, the official emphatically ruled out allusions that there were any manufacturing defects.

The probe team drew experts from across Tata Motors group, including the Nano project team, passenger and commercial vehicles businesses, the Engineering Research Centre, the Tata Motors European Technical Centre, and Jaguar Land Rover.

Besides, an independent forensic expert from the U.K. was part of the

investigation, a company spokesperson said.

“It is important for us to reassure our customer base which is why we are planning to conduct a preemptive diagnostic check on all the cars with customers,” he said, emphasising that these inspections do not constitute a recall.

Delivery of Nanos began in July 2009 and since then, more than 30,000 cars have been sold in the country. The first composite plant for manufacturing Nano at Sanand in Gujarat is expected to be commissioned next month.

“The Tata Nano has undergone all the necessary validations before delivering to customers — this includes more than 300 prototypes which together covered more than 2 million km of safe operation in all conditions,” the company official said.

Indo American News • Friday, May 28 , 2010

29

Bharti Retail to Explore South India Soon MUMBAI: In order to become a national retailer, Sunil Mittal’s Bharti Retail is planning to roll out stores in South India. Bharti Retail already has three to four properties in the southern states and by the year end, they were looking at booking spaces for around 50 stores, reports Raghavendra Kamath from Business Standard.

The chain has hired people to searchand book properties inWestern and Central India. In February 2007, when Bharti announced the foray into retail, it talked about investment of $2-2.5 billion by 2015 and $5 billion in revenues. “Bharti Retail has announced plans to increase the number of retail stores to about 140 across India by end of this year and in support of this plan, we are sourcing real estate, pan-India,” said a Bharti Retail spokesperson.

Bharti Walmart, the joint venture between Bharti Enterprises and Walmart is also expected to open cash and carry stores in the South in the next 12-24 months.

The chain wanted to expand its presence in the northern region before entering any other region and in contrast to this strategy, Reliance Retail and Aditya Birla have launched their operations from the South and expanded in

other parts.

“Southern cities such as Bangalore and Chennai offer reasonable retail rents compared to other cities and limited supply. South offers quality real estate at affordable rents,” said Susil Dungarwal, founder of Beyond Squarefeet, a mall advisory firm.

Currently, Bharti has a total of 70 stores, including 64 Easy Day stores and six Easy Day Market stores, in Punjab, Haryana, UP, Rajasthan, among others. The retailer recently appointed former Hypercity CEO Andrew Levermore as its Chief Operating Officer to head operations.

According to retail consultants, Bharti Retail will have to face challenges in scaling up in South as it already has a established retail market with the presence of majors such as Spencer’s, Aditya Birla, Reliance Retail, Nilgiris, among others. According to estimates, India has a total retail market of $385 billion and organised retail accounts for five per cent of that. The share of modern trade is expected to touch 14 percent by 2013. The penetration of modern trade is expected to reach 25-30 percent in the South, compared to five percent in other parts of the country. -SI

Karunanidhi Administers Anti-Terrorism Pledge CHENNAI: Chief Minister M. Karunanidhi on Friday administered the Anti-Terrorism Pledge at the Secretariat, marking the 19th death anniversary of former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi.

Ministers and Secretariat staff took the pledge.

Elsewhere in the State, blood donation camps, distribution of school books and notebooks and dhoties and saris marked the occasion.

At the State headquarters of the

Flat for Sale in Delhi Vasant Kunj, New Delhi SFS two bedrooms, converted to three bedrooms, two baths, 2nd floor, 1200 sq.ft, scooter garage, Sector-A, Pocket-B&C. Empty flat, original allottee anindyam@shaw.ca 832.316.1556 INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, MAY 28 , 2010 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM

Congress, Union Minister of State for Railways K.H. Muniappa, Tamil Nadu Congress Committee president K.V. Thangkabalu, Congress Legislature Party leader D. Sudarssanam, deputy leader D. Yesoda and MPs and MLAs offered floral tributes to a portrait of Rajiv Gandhi.

Congress leaders also garlanded his statue at Little Mount junction.

Mr. Muniappa went to the Rajiv Gandhi memorial at Sriperumbudur and placed wreaths.-Hindu

30

Indo American News • Friday, May 28 , 2010

business in d ia

online edition: www.indoamerican-news.com

Win-Win Deal for Ambanis

By Piya Singh MUMBAI: The decision to call off the non-compete agreement inked between the country’s richest siblings in January 2006 will throw open several new investment opportunities for the Ambani brothers.

Elder brother Mukesh, however, seems better placed to take advantage of the move to dismantle this agreement that so far barred him from venturing into areas such as telecommunications, power, financial services, and media and entertainment. Many of these areas need large capital outlays.

That is exactly what his Reliance Industries Ltd is looking for — business opportunities of a scale that can absorb its $4.9-billion cash pile.

The group can raise additional resources from the sale of treasury stock and the massive cash flows that it is expected to generate from its gas business that was commissioned a year ago in the KG-D6 basin.

By cancelling the non-compete agreement, Mukesh can start bidding for coal-based mega power projects and plunge into the telecom business that he had to cede to brother Anil.

He can also foray into the financial services businesses by buying up a mutual fund or a financial services business that has synergies with his retail operations, said industry sources who declined to be named.

Banking is also turning out to be an area of interest for a number of industrial groups after the government announced in this year’s budget that

the RBI would soon hand out more banking licences.

Under the old arrangement, banking had been earmarked as a preserve of Anil “from the date on which the RBI initiates regulatory changes allowing industrial houses to establish banks”.

“Mukesh Ambani will soon have even more cash at his disposal. Besides the $5 billion cash on its books, the group will have an annual cash flow of $5 billion and can sell more treasury stock worth $7-$8 billion.

So in one sense, it is a compulsion for RIL to look for mega projects and diversify its risks by venturing out of oil and gas, and petrochemicals,” said Mumbai-based analyst S.P. Tulsian, who tracks the businesses of the brothers.

“The scrapping of the non-compete agreement is significant as it will enable Mukesh to get into new areas quickly,” said another industry source.

Target telecom Market speculation suggests that one of the new areas that the Mukesh Ambani group can immediately target will be telecom.

Reports in the media have suggested that the Mukesh Ambani group and its associates have a 13.5 per cent indirect stake in Venugopal Dhootowned Datacom Solutions through an elaborate layered structure. RIL has denied this development so far.

The decision to scrap the pact will obviate the need for elaborate subterfuge and shadowy arrangements.

Anil and Mukesh Ambani. File Photo

“Mukesh Ambani will also be ideally poised to bid for the government’s mega power projects. Anil Ambani has so far got three and cannot bid for another till one of the three is up and running,” Tulsian said.

The government has awarded four mega power projects so far. While the Mundra project has gone to Tata Power, Anil Ambani-controlled Reliance Power has bagged the Sasan, Krishnapatnam and Tilaiya projects.

While power projects may be a window available to Mukesh, the capital-intensive nature of power generation may appeal to the group that has been scouting for acquisitions overseas.

Recently, RIL through its subsid-

iary Reliance Marcellus got into a joint venture with US-based Atlas Energy to develop shale gas acreage in a transaction estimated at $1.7 billion. The deal followed a failed attempt to acquire bankrupt Dutch petrochemicals company Lyondell Basell despite upping its bid. At one stage, RIL was ready to pay $14.5 billion for Lyondell Basell.

Anil benefits too For the Anil Ambani group, the decision to call off the non-compete arrangement, except in the case of gas-based power generation, highlights the younger Ambani’s intentions to develop this business.

The statement released by both groups said, “RIL has agreed not

INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, mAY 28 , 2010 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM

to enter into gas-based power generation business for the period up to March 31, 2022.”

“Anil Ambani has a one-point programme: he now has a bankable agreement to set up 10,000MW of gas-based power generation,” said Tulsian.

The scrapping of the non-compete agreement will also offer a major relief to Anil’s Reliance Communications (R-Com). The right of first refusal that was held by the Mukesh Ambani group as far as divesting a stake in R-Com will no longer be valid. This will allow R-Com to bring on board a foreign investor, a transaction that has been attempted in the past with South Africa’s MTN. The deal fell through as the Mukesh Ambani group was willing to exercise its claim on the right of first refusal in the telecom company.

“That the telecom business is in a turmoil overseas and competitive pressures are damaging the bottlomlines of telecom companies in India is well known. R-Com is the only large company in its sector that does not have an overseas partner,” said a Mumbai-based analyst.

Last week, Vodafone had announced a $3.3-billion impairment charge on the valuation of its Indian operations that it had acquired for $11 billion in 2006.

R-Com recently bid Rs 8,585 crore for 3G spectrum in 13 circles. The 3G rollout programme will entail heavy capital expenditure in the initial years.- Telegraph

Indo American News • Friday, May 28 , 2010

online edition: www.indoamerican-news.com

Indo American News

31

South Asia News of the Diaspora

Crash Raises Issue of India’s Aviation Oversight

By Vikas Bajaj and Heather Timmons MUMBAI, India — An Air India flight that crashed after landing in southern India on Saturday killed 158 people and raised questions about India’s oversight of a rapidly growing aviation industry.

The immediate cause of the accident appeared to be pilot error: the Boeing 737 overshot the hilltop runway in Mangalore, one of India’s trickiest airports, on the southwestern coast.

But pilots and safety experts said the error may have been compounded by weaknesses in India’s safety inspection regime, inadequate training and an airport that critics said should never have been built in such a difficult spot.

“This incident should not have happened,” said Kapil Kaul, who heads the Indian and Middle East arm of the Center for Asian Pacific Aviation, a consulting firm.

Aviation officials said the pilot missed the landing threshold, a critical section of the runway at airports where runways are short because of hilly terrain. The plane, arriving from

Dubai, United Arab Emirates, then veered off the runway and struck a concrete navigational aid, Aviation Minister Praful Patel said at a news conference at the airport. “The wing fell off and the aircraft plunged into the valley,” he said.

Only 8 of the 160 passengers and 6 crew members survived, according to the airline, which is owned and operated by the Indian government.

“As soon as we landed, the tire burst,” one of the survivors told a local television crew from his hospital bed. “Within three seconds there was a fire blast. The inside was filled with smoke.” He said he escaped through a crack in the fuselage.

The accident focused attention on India’s booming but troubled aviation industry, one that reflects the contradictions of a nation with one of the world’s fastest-growing economies but where electricity is irregular and clean water scarce, and many people struggle to survive on less than a dollar a day.

Start-up commercial airlines have grown exponentially here in recent years. The number of domestic air passengers has tripled in the last five

Left: It is believed the plane, which was traveling from Dubai, overshot the hilltop runway where it was landing in one of India’s trickiest airports.

years, and the number of international passengers traveling to and from the country has doubled.

But infrastructure and safety have not kept pace, Mr. Kaul said. Industry and government must make a “quantum leap” to catch up on safety and training, he said.

Many airlines, including Air India, are losing hundreds of millions of dollars. In New Delhi, where the government is building a new 42-acre terminal, power failures sometimes shut down runway lights and air traffic control equipment.

Although India has had few major accidents in recent years — the last major crash was in 2000 — the number of near collisions and other safety problems has been increasing.

Last year, for instance, there were three near-miss collisions at the airport in Mumbai, India’s commercial capital.

Mangalore, in the Western Ghats, or hills, region, has other limitations imposed by geogra-

phy. Just a week ago, Mr. Patel, the aviation minister, inaugurated a new terminal there, promising that work to extend the runway would start soon.

On Saturday, he denied that poor planning was a factor in the accident.

He said that an older runway at the airport was “even smaller,” and that there had been no accidents on it.

The newer runway, while shorter than those in other major Indian airports, is more than adequate for landing a Boeing 737, aviation experts said.

But critics said it was neither long enough nor wide enough to allow room for such a large jet to compensate for error. Environment Support Group, one of several groups that sued twice to stop the airport’s expansion, said the new runway did not comply with existing Indian laws or international standards.

The lawsuits also said the site was unsuitable for heavy commercial traffic because it was on a plateau, surrounded by industrial smokestacks and garbage dumps that attracted birds, and it would be impossible for emergency crews to reach airplanes that crashed off the plateau quickly enough to rescue passengers.

The crash on Saturday, the Environment Support Group said in a statement, was “no accident, but a direct result of the series of deliberate failures of officials and key decision

INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, MAY 28 , 2010 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM

Fire men rush a child to hospital during rescue work

makers.”

But it remained unclear to what extent the accident may have been related to the wider problems across India’s aviation industry.

“This particular incident appears like a pilot error, and therefore it can happen anywhere,” said Sanat Kaul, a former aviation official who also once was on Air India’s board of directors. “Aviation safety is a bigger issue, and it shouldn’t be mixed up with a crash like this.”

The pilot, identified by The Associated Press as Zlatko Glusica, 55, a British citizen of Serbian origin, had landed the same aircraft in Mangalore 19 times before. He had 7,500 hours of flying experience, including 3,500 on this type of plane, Mr. Kaul said.

In addition, aviation officials said that the weather was clear. And the plane, a Boeing 737-800, was relatively new, having made its first flight in December 2007, according to the Aviation Safety Network. The 737-800 has been involved in five fatal accidents since entering service in 1998.

But investigators were still trying to determine what factors may have led to the error and caused it to be so devastating.

Continued on page 33

32

Indo American News • Friday, May 28 , 2010

online edition: www.indoamerican-news.com

INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, mAY 28 , 2010 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM

online edition: www.indoamerican-news.com

Crash Raises Issue of Aviation Oversight Continued from page 31

Experts say India has been lax in training aviation specialists, including air traffic controllers, maintenance engineers, pilots and regulators. Mr. Kaul estimates that just 10 percent of the industry staff members trained at local schools are qualified to do their jobs.

A 2006 audit by the International Civil Aviation Organization found hundreds of safety violations, and scored India worst on “technical personnel qualification and training.”

Inadequate pilot training has bedeviled the aviation industry, especially as it has expanded. Many airlines have hired foreign pilots because demand for air travel was outstripping the pace at which India could mint new pilots.

The industry employs about 600 expatriate pilots, but the government has ordered airlines to replace them with Indians by next summer, raising concerns about how the country will be able to produce enough qualified pilots so quickly.

India requires 200 hours of flying time and a high school diploma to co-pilot a passenger airline, compared with 250 hours required by the American Federal Aviation Administration. But many American airlines have minimum requirements of 1,000 hours or more, according to the F.A.A.'s web site.

Pilots here said that even that minimum was often skirted.

“A lot of people I graduated with, if I knew they were flying a plane

I wouldn’t get on it,” said one new commercial pilot in New Delhi who did not want to be quoted by name criticizing his peers.

“Basicallyyoupaytheflightschools a lot of money” and in return they give you a license, he said. Trainee pilots sometimes pay others to fly the required hours on their behalf.

Pilots say that Air India has a reputation for paying well and not requiring long hours, but that the planes often have technical problems.

The company’s engineers often find loopholes to clear planes to fly, said one commercial pilot who flies for another airline.

The aviation industry has also been plagued by a shortage of qualified safety inspectors.

In April 2008, the director general of civil aviation, Kanu Gohain, told the business newspaper Mint that India had just 3 inspectors for 10 commercial airlines and 600 planes, well below global norms.

While the government has since been able to raise the number — by hiring 14 permanent inspectors and borrowing another 14 from commercial airlines — Mr. Ranganathan says many are inadequately trained.

Moreover, lapsed inspections over the last few years have left a backlog that may take years to eliminate, he added.

“If you look from 2004 to 2009, they were just very few safety audits done,” he said in a telephone interview. “It’s only in the last year that things were done. We are paying for that.” - NYT

in d ia

Indo American News • Friday, May 28 , 2010

33

No Question of Retirement: Manmohan Singh

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh speaks at a rare news conference, his first in four years, in New Delhi.

NEW DELHI: Just into his seventh year in office, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh today ruled out retirement since his tasks remain “unfinished” but offered to make way for a younger leader if the Congress party wanted that.

At a 75-minute press conference, his third in the capital since he first became the Prime Minister in 2004, Singh scotched speculation of “mistrust and distrust” between him and party President Sonia Gandhi, saying that there was “not an iota of truth” in that.

He was asked whether he would make way for Rahul Gandhi to take over during his current tenure which will end in 2014 and whether the thought of retirement came to his mind.

In a carefully-crafted response, Singh told over 700 journalists, “I have been given this task (of Prime Ministership). It is still unfinished.

Till I finish the tasks, there is no question of retirement.”

At the same time, he said he himself felt sometimes that younger people should take over. “As and when, the

INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, MAY 28 , 2010 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM

Congress party makes that judgement, I will be very happy to make place for anybody chosen by the party,” he said.

At another point, the 77-year-old leader said Rahul Gandhi was “very qualified” to join his Cabinet and he had talked to him about it several times but the young leader wanted to focus more on building the party.

“Whenever he (Rahul) is ready, he would be an appropriate addition to the Cabinet,” the Prime Minister said.

During the press conference that was telecast live nationwide and that coincided with the completion of one year of UPA-II, Singh answered questions on a range of issues including price rise, naxalism, terrorism and relations with Pakistan.

“I am reasonably satisfied with the pace of work” but “I could do better than what I have done.”

This is how Prime Minister Manmohan Singh assessed himself and his government on completion of UPA-II’s one year in the second term.

However, he refused to give any marks to himself or the government on performance when asked to give ratings at a press conference.

“Some TV channels and the press have given some marks on our performance. It is not fair on my part to comment on that. It is for the people of India to judge the performance of the government,” he said.

To a question, he also said he was confident that his government will complete its term.-Outlook

34

Indo American News • Friday, May 28 , 2010

online edition: www.indoamerican-news.com

INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, mAY 28 , 2010 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM

online edition: www.indoamerican-news.com

o p ini o n

Indo American News • Friday, May 28 , 2010

35

Name, Nom, Naam …

By Lakshmi Palecanda The first thing you do when you move to a new country is get an official ID there, right? That is what we did when we got to India. And right away we discovered that the Indian government is differently-abled when it comes to people’s names.

AsthequotationfromShakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet goes, “What is in a name? That which we call a rose/ By any other name would smell as sweet.” Juliet says these lines when she tells Romeo that she loves him, and not the name that is associated with him. But while they may call you “Tinku,” “Bobby,” “Rinki,” “Pinki,” “Chottu,” or “Rani” at home, you have an official name which identifies you amongst the nearly 1.5 billion other people who inhabit this earth.

India law mandates that I pick one spelling for my name and stick with it. I am “Lakshmi,” not “Laxmi” or “Luxmi,” and if I do want to change the spelling, I have to swear an affidavit in the presence of a legal authority, and publish the change of name in a newspaper. This is the letter of the law in India. But reality, as with most things Indian, is far from what it is on paper. And that is what struck us first when we came back to live here.

The truth is that though the Indian government mandates consistency in nomenclature, its own officials are not so particular, and tend to tamper with people’s names and initials at will. My husband, P.M. Aiyappa of Vihara Marg in Mysore, out to get his first official ID in India, was issued a driver’s license as P.M. Ayyappa of Vinaya Marg. As it happens, there is a Vinaya Marg in Mysore, and if there is a Ayyappa residing there, he had better pray that his namesake doesn’t drive rashly. There is more anecdotal evidence: once a Ragaja Gopal found her railway ticket given to Rajagopal, an N. Nagaraj keeps getting water bills addressed to M. Nagaraj, and a Mr. G. Ramamurthy has all his utility bills coming to his house under the name Mr. G.

Ramaswamy. There is also an everpresentdangerofinvoluntaryreligious and transsexual conversion, such as when a Ms. Kalyani becomes a Mr. Kayani, or a Mr. Ali Sait becomes Ms. Anita Sethi. You may think that it is a good thing if your bills are addressed to someone else, because that absolves you of the responsibility of paying them, but would you be okay if the apartment or site that you bought with your life’s savings is registered under a misnomer? Uh, no, thanks.

These kinds of silly spelling mistakes happen all the time. It is as though there is a game at the Pub-

lic Service Commission to find out the number of ways a name can be mauled. In government offices, they ask you to print your names in block letters on applications, then ask you to read it to them, and nod their heads … and then proceed to screw them up thoroughly. In some cases, they actually will “correct” the spelling.

So what if you are 60 years old and all your life’s records are in the “wrong” spelling. I had a Sandya Deviah tell me that when she showed an official an affidavit bearing the spelling of her name as it appeared on all her records, she was stunned to have him enter her name as “Sandhya Devaiah” because “It is the correct spelling, Madam.

You’ve been writing it wrong all these days.” Only God can save you if you are a Remya, not Ramya, Vidya, not Vidhya, Naveen, not Navin. I don’t

know what people who change their names midstream in life do with the government, and I am afraid to find out.Sometimes these mistakes are so strange that they defy plausible explanations. My grandfather’s name was Venkataramanan, but it is variably written as Venkatramani or Venkatraman. That, at least, is pardonable.

However, how would you explain to one Alamelu why her Electricity Board lists her as Kamala? Or why Rangarajan’s official mail calls him Raghunath?

Once a mistake has been made, it is almost impossible to correct it. If even one of your records end up with an incorrect name spelling, you have to correct all the documents you ever had, from your pre-school leaving certificate to your son’s mundan picture, making sure that all the said documents have been duly attested by a “reliable” government official in the presence of your maternal great-grandfather (the government is gracious in this aspect. If, by sad mischance, your maternal great-grandfather is dead, your paternal great-grandfather can be used as a substitute). You should also take out your entire savings in 500 rupee-notes, to give as tokens of love and affection for people who you have never seen before and will never see again (at least not until your name gets messed up once more).

A news article appeared in Indian papers last year about a Gujarati who now lives in Australia. The story goes that the man’s son’s name was misspelt in his birth certificate that had been issued in India. He had been trying to get it corrected … for three years. The officials kept him running around until he lost it one day and pulled a knife on them.

And as if it isn’t bad enough already, a government project has been proposed to make an official ID card for every Indian. Well, things are going to get pretty interesting!

As for me, I have adjusted thoroughly. Call me Ishmael … I’ll probably respond.-IC

Become a Piping Designer Learn to become a piping designer for petrochemical and refinery plants . Taught with actual blueprint drawings by experienced engineer.

Weekend classes Visit: leelearning.com

Read us online at

indoamerican-news.com

SHOBA JOSHI

ON AM 1320

Geetanjali Radio

Sat & Sun 2- 6 PM For your business ads Cell: 832-878-4338 | Tel: 281-265-3498 713-545-4749 Fax: 281-265-3498 | 713-932-8037 shobajoshi@hotmail.com INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, MAY 28 , 2010 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM

36

Indo American News • Friday, May 28 , 2010

technology

online edition: www.indoamerican-news.com

The Decline of Instant Messaging Instant Messaging was once tipped to replace e-mail, but recent figures suggest that it has lost ground sharply. Why?

OMG. Instant messaging (IM), once the mainstay of teenage gossips, techie know-it-alls and office time-wasters everywhere, looks as though it is in trouble.

Just a few years ago, it was meant to be the future.

More immediate than e-mail, less fiddly than texting, sending an IM was widely expected by many technology pundits to become our preferred mode of online communication, whether socially or in the office - or socially in the office, for that matter.

But how times change.

In 2007, 14% of Britons’ online time was spent on IM, according to the UK Online Measurement company - but that has fallen to just 5%, the firm says, basing its findings on the habits of a panel of 40,000 computer users.

The study was released shortly af-

ter AOL sold its ICQ instant messaging service $187.5m (£124m) - less than half what the company paid for it in 1998.

And in September 2009, a survey of internet use by the New Yorkbased Online Publishers Association found that the amount of time spent by surfers on traditional communications tools, including IM and e-mail, had declined by 8% since 2003.

It is a far cry from the early days of the decade when this very website anticipated that IM would overtake e-mail by 2004 [see internet links].

Cast your mind back to the early noughties - a time when dial-up was still widespread and the Apple G3s looked futuristic - and it becomes easier to recall why IM looked like it was about to conquer the world.

It was, after all, instant. It let users see if their friends and contacts were online and, if so, communicate with

them in real time.

Tech-savvy office staff could chase up a query and expect an answer straight away, without having to pick up the phone.

Teenagers in their bedrooms could exchange schoolyard tittle-tattle without the encumbrance of having to press “refresh” on the browser screen to their web-based e-mail account.

It also offered workers a handy means of circumventing their employers’ e-mail usage policies.

Chat’s all folks Chris Green, a technology journalist turned industry analyst, recalls the heady days of IM’s ascendency.

“That was the way it was going,” he remembers. “E-mail had peaked.

And IM offered additional value over e-mail.”

There were niggles, however. Initially, IM systems were “proprietary” and non-compatible, so those using Microsoft’s MSN Messenger were unable to reach friends on Aim, ICQ, or Yahoo! Messenger.

The firms would subsequently allow cross-pollination of their systems, but, says Mr Green, the delay in “finding something that was ubiquitous across all platforms” - in the same way that sending an e-mail from a Yahoo! to a Hotmail ac-

count was seamless - cost the format dearly.

Into the vacuum stepped social networking sites.

Paul Armstrong, director of social media with the PR agency Kindred, believes that the rise of the likes of Facebook and Twitter - which allow users to do much more than just send messages - simply had more to offer.

“With instant messaging you have to stay at your computer,” he says.

“With social networking, you can use your phone’s web browser or SMS. “Rather than shifting away from instant messaging, people are using the functions of instant messaging on different platforms.”

Even though Facebook’s own instant messaging system - not covered in the UK Online Measurement habits - was widely-regarded as inferior to those provided by the established IM networks, users were tied into a one-stop shop for sharing thoughts, photos, and being re-introduced to long-forgotten former colleagues and classmates.

Return to sender The effect on IM, says Chris Green, has been catastrophic.

Windows Live Messenger - formerly MSN Messenger - was no longer “bundled” with Vista and Windows 7, becoming instead an optional extra, he says. Google may be bullish about Google Talk, the search engine’s attempt to blend IM

with e-mail, insisting that millions of its users “love the convenience and simplicity” of the service.

But Mr Green says its modest success represents a “flop” when put alongside the company’s dominance elsewhere on the web.

“People have moved on,” he says.

“The novelty value has worn off. If you look at teenagers today, they are using Twitter on their mobiles.”

But has IM died out altogether?

The figures would suggest that although its market share has fallen, its raw numbers have not.

California-based IT research firm The Radicati Group estimates that there are 2.4 billion IM accounts worldwide, rising to 3.5 billion by 2014.

Plenty of browers, it seems, still value the speed and simplicity of IM.Technology journalist and BBC Click presenter LJ Rich notes that, in many countries where internet use is censored, BlackBerry Messenger is used to bypass state-sponsored snoops.

And she believes that the principles of IM survive - it is just that sites such as Facebook and Twitter let us talk to a wider audience via a wider range of platforms, including mobiles.

“With social networks, we’ve gone from instant messaging to something that’s more like conference calls,” she says.

Maybe IM will have the last laugh after all. Or, rather, the last LOL.BBC

Google Pac-Man Eats Up Work Hours Pac-Man, the popular video game has gobbled up almost five million hours of work time since it was put on Google’s homepage, a report said today.

The playable version of the classic video game was introduced

by Google on its front page on May 21 to celebrate 30 years since the launch of Pac-Man in Japan. But within three days, it has consumed nearly five million hours of work time, the BBC reported.

The statistics on how many people played and for how long were gathered by software firm Rescue Time, which makes time-tracking software that keeps an eye on what workers do and where they go online.

On a typical day, according to the firm, most people conduct about 22 searches on the Google page, each one lasting about 11 seconds.

Putting Pac-Man on the page boosted that time by an average of about 36 seconds, the firm said based on the browsing habits of 11,000 Rescue Time users.

The firm believes this is a relatively low figure because only a minority realised that the logo was playable.

To play, people had to click on the “insert coin” button which reINDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, mAY 28 , 2010 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM

placed the more familiar “I’m Feeling Lucky” button on May 21 and 22.

Extrapolating this up across the 504 million unique users who visit the main Google page every day, this represents an increase of 4.8 million hours - equal to about 549 years.

In dollar terms, assuming people are paid $ 25 an hour, this equates to about $ 120m in lost productivity, the firm said.

For that money, the firm suggested, it would be possible to hire all Google’s employees and put them to work for about six weeks.

The game designed by Toru Iwatani was first released by Japan-based Namco into arcades on May 22, 1980.

The search giant reworked the game so the layout was arranged around letters forming its name.

The Pac-Man game proved so popular that Google has now made it permanently available on its own page.

“We’ve been overwhelmed, but not surprised, by the success of our 30th anniversary Pac-Man doodle,” Google vice president of user experience Marissa Mayer said in a blog.

“Due to popular demand, we’re making the game permanently available.”- Agencies

online edition: www.indoamerican-news.com

Indo American News • Friday, May 28 , 2010

INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, MAY 28 , 2010 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM

37

38

Indo American News • Friday, May 28 , 2010

online edition: www.indoamerican-news.com

INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, mAY 28 , 2010 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM

online edition: www.indoamerican-news.com

Indo American News • Friday, May 28 , 2010

By Prabalika M. Borah Living alone and working in a city comes with its advantages and disadvantages. While some choose to weigh the advantages over the disadvantages others take a longer time to come to terms with the fact of living and working in a new city. Love, life and all that jazz by Faiyaz Ahmed is a coming of age story about the lives of young twenty somethings set in Mumbai.

In the words of the author, Faiyaz, “the story is about Tania, Sameer, Vikram and Tanveer, who start by exploring their lives after college and how they evolve by discovering the changes in themselves

INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, MAY 28 , 2010 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM

39

40

Indo American News • Friday, May 28 , 2010

A Two-Year-Old Hardened Smoker Ardi throws tantrums when he can’t light up

Indonesian toddler Ardi Rizal is addicted to smoking at age 2

JAKARTA, Indonesia: A toddler in Indonesia is in the news for all the wrong reasons. He has become a hardened smoker at the age of two.

According to British tabloid 'The Sun', Ardi Rizal, who is addicted to smoking, was given his first cigarettes by none other than his father when he was just 18 months old.

His father,Mohammad of Musi Banyuasin village said: "I'm not worried about his health, he looks healthy.

He cries and throws tantrums when we don't let him smoke. He's addicted."

Indonesia has a spiraling problem with child smokers.

25 per cent of 3 to 15-year-olds have tried cigarettes.

Ardi’s youth is the extreme of a disturbing trend in Indonesia. Data from the Central StatisticsAgency showed 25 percent of Indonesian children ages 3-to-15 have tried cigarettes, with 3.2 percent of those active smokers.

The percentage of 5- to 9-year-olds lighting up increased from 0.4 percent in 2001 to 2.8 percent in 2004, the agency reported.

Child advocates are speaking out about the health damage to childrenfromsecondhand smoke, and the growing pressure on them to pick up a cigarette in a country where one-third of the population uses tobacco and single cigarettes can be bought for a few cents.

- Agencies

online edition: www.indoamerican-news.com

Addicted To Twitter?

By Navdeep Kaur Marwah To say that Twitter’s popularity has taken an all-new dimension with people spending their whole day over tweeting won’t be an exaggeration.

But what if online social-networking starts taking a toll on your actual social life?

Filmmaker Karan Johar admits, “I am obsessed with Twitter. Twitter

has become my spouse as I can share every emotion that I want to with the people on it. And going by my fixation, I can say that I might need help to overcome it in future.” Singer Lily Allen has branded the site as “very addictive and dangerous”.

“Anything which is done in extreme can be addictive. There has been an increase in complaints by parents about childs’ obsession with social networking especially on Twitter. One of the parents came during their daughter’s board exams saying

INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, mAY 28 , 2010 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM

that she wasted an hour every day Twitter and Facebook,” says Dr Aarti Anand, consulting clinical psychologist, Sir Ganga Ram Hospital, New Delhi “The need for people to be connected with others and the high that one gets with knowing that so many people are reading what I tweet has people hooked on to Twitter. The celebrity presence adds to the damage. And the easy access through mobiles and through applications (like tweetdeck) on the iPhone and Blackberry makes matters worse,” says Dr Amitabha Saha, senior consultant, psychiatry, Brainex.

Check for addiction

- Constantly feel the need to check Twitter and it hampers your day-today activities and productivity.

- Keep refreshing the twitter page or checking your cell phone every now and then for new tweets.

- Have more Twitter followers than friends in real life.

Avoid addiction

- Make some real friends.

- Schedule a specific time to ‘be active’ on Twitter.

- Don’t install the software or tool on your cell phone. - HT

online edition: www.indoamerican-news.com

Indo American News • Friday, May 28 , 2010

INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, MAY 28 , 2010 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM

41

42

Indo American News • Friday, May 28 , 2010

S t r ai g h t u p f o o d t a l k

online edition: www.indoamerican-news.com

Ginger in Your Wine

BY Debesh Banerjee

They are considered blasphemy in the wine world, but flavored wines are here When Nainaz Shroff, managing director of Taylor and Shroff, was brainstorming for launching a customised range of wines for the Indian market, she found inspiration in the unlikeliest source — a roadside tea stall. “I was visiting Nashik Valley in 2006 with my business partner when we stopped over at a chai shop. After we were offered a cup of ginger tea, I was inspired to incorporate the Indian fancy for having ginger-flavoured teas in wines,” says Shroff, 24. She has tied up with England-based winemaker

David Carr Taylor to form a unique collaboration that produces wine in flavours of ginger, cherry and apricot for the Indian palate. At their 37-acre vineyard in Hastings , England , the wines are fortified, with 17 per cent alcohol, high sugar content and have been apparently restructured to suit Indian dishes. “These wines can be enjoyed with hot and spicy Indian food like tandoori chicken, dal makhni, etc since they are fortified. The high alcohol lifts the oil content from the dish and the fruitiness softens the spice quotient of the dish. Its sugar content also makes it suitable to paired with desserts,” she adds. The wines are priced at Rs 1,635 ($35) per bottle in Delhi. Indian Express

South Korea has at least 300 Indian Restaurants

By Venkatachari Jaganathan If you feel like tucking in some tandoori chicken or aloo gobi while traversing the lanes of the South Korean capital, walk right in to one of the many Indian restaurants that are a hit with not only tourists but also locals. North Indian cuisine, especially Punjabi dishes, is fast making inroads in South Korea, with the country boasting of at least 300 Indian restaurants, of which around 50 are in the capital city alone.

‘Lots of restaurants serving Indian dishes have come up in South Korea, more so in Seoul. There are around 50 Indian restaurants in Seoul,’ Shrestha Rajesh, president of Mount Fishtail that serves Indian and Nepali cuisines said.

Besides stand-alone restaurants, there are also chains of Indian restaurants in South Korea. Interestingly, the restaurants are owned by enterprising Nepalis like Rajesh as well as locals - and not necessarily people of Indian origin. ‘The demand is good as there are many Indians in South Korea. Also the Koreans are developing a liking for Punjabi cuisine,’ Rajesh said.

He said Koreans and other international travellers prefer tandoori items like naan - the regular variety as well as flavoured with butter-garlic, roti and lassi.

Other items like aloo gobi, daal and tandoori chicken also find favour.

Adds Shovan Das, Coex Intercontinental’s Chef de Partie: ‘The South Koreans prefer Indian dishes less spicy. For the Indian taste buds it will be bland.’

He said for Indian diners the items are made as per

their request and there is a good demand for Indian chefs in South Korea.

According to him, Indian dishes are more pocketfriendly compared to Korean food and there are around 300 restaurants in South Korea serving Indian dishes.

‘We require more Indian chefs to cater to the needs of not only tourists but also local Indians and Koreans. The pay packet is around $6,000 per annum,’ he added.

There are an estimated 6,000 Indians in South Korea who include businessmen, software engineers, scientists, research fellows, workers and students.

There are many Indian companies in South Korea like Tata Motors, L&T Infotech, Mahindra Satyam, Indian Overseas Bank, Tata Consultancy Services, Jindal Stainless Steel, Nucleus Software Solutions and Wipro Technologies. And their employees often make for eager customers for the Indian restaurants.

According to the Indian embassy in South Korea, the number of Indian students in Korean universities, mostly in scientific fields, is on the rise.

Rajesh said business prospects were good and he is planning to set up more restaurants in the city. ‘The investment is quite high. One needs around 100 million Korean wons (around $86,950) to set up a restaurant,’ he added.

Chef Alex of the Ashoka chain of restaurants predicts a busy season ahead. ‘The Indian cuisine business will be good during winter,’ he said.

INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, mAY 28 , 2010 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM

Babulbhai

online edition: www.indoamerican-news.com

india

On Your Mercs

Indo American News • Friday, May 21 , 2010

43

Driving a Merc is Aurangabad’s way of telling the world they’re not backward

By Sheela Reddy When the Mercedes office in Pune got a call two months ago from Aurangabad, a city better known for the nearby seventh century AjantaEllora caves than for its industrial growth, the salesman at the receiving end was not impressed. Not even when the caller told him that they wanted to book at least a 100 Mercedes cars, the largest-ever bulk booking of the luxury car in India. “We’ll call you back,” he said, but never did.

It’s an attitude that raises the hackles of Aurangabad’s mushrooming new billionaires. It’s an uphill task, they say, to convince anyone outside Aurangabad that there’s big money in this small town, once touted as Asia’s fastest growing city but better known for the ‘industrialists’ from outside who milked the state government

Nagori. “We realised it wasn’t going to work with a simple call, so a few of us went to Pune and gave a PowerPoint presentation about us and Aurangabad in general.” The dealer then organised a road show in Aurangabad, and agreed to take bookings. “They gave us only three days to make the bookings, otherwise the number would have easily gone up to 250-300,” Nagori says, adding that he’s still receiving cheques from those he couldn’t get in touch with on time.

It’s not hard to understand why the Mercedes Benz dealer, Chandravadan Bhandari, took so long to recognise their true worth:Aurangabad’s new rich seem unlike any you’ve seen before.

They don’t smoke or drink, don’t flaunt labels, nobody’s ever heard of a child going astray and their idea of a good time is getting together with

The moped is still seen in the city

Kiran Wadhi, 41, Builder/Contractor: “At least 25 per cent of the people living in our apartment complex can afford to buy a Mercedes,” says Wadhi. It takes courage to own one, according to him, because while it’s every businessman’s dream to drive in a Mercedes, “we put it off, saying not now, maybe next year.”

The Merc Gang of Aurangabad

dry of subsidies and vanished overnight. “We resent being called a backward town,” explains Sachin Nagori, a builder who, like many of the city’s rich, has made his fortune from scratch in the last 10 years. “Even MacDonald’s and Pizza Hut haven’t set up shop here as yet,” Nagori says, adding that a few years ago when Aurangabad’s entrepreneurs wanted Skoda to open shop here, they had to make a trip to the parent office with a Czech interpreter to persuade them. Fed up with the patronising tone they get from metros and multinationals alike, Nagori persuaded his friends and business associates to book their Mercs in bulk—140 of them at last count. “It was time to tell people outside that Aurangabad, far from being backward, has the potential to be another Pune.”

It was easier to convince Aurangabad’s rich to buy their first—or second and third, in some cases—Mercs than to persuade the luxury car company to take them seriously, according to

other families for a potluck dinner. And many of them continue to live in 400 sq ft apartments with peeling walls and stained stairways, the only concession to their new status being the two big cars parked among the neighbours’ scooters and Marutis. Like Kiran Wadhi, a builder who moved into his modestly furnished two-bedroom apartment in 1993, when he was still working for a construction company on a salary of Rs 5,000. For Wadhi, who rode a bike

Shiv Sagar

Manzoor Khan, 49, Silk mill owner: Khan’s grandfather started the first Himroo powerloom factory. He went to work in a tonga. With business growing fast, Khan is about to demolish his old home and build a new mansion instead. “In the last three years, owning a Merc here is no longer seen as flaunting your wealth,” he says.

for many years before he could afford his first Maruti car, the Merc is less a status symbol than a sign of achievement: he and his family of five (mother, wife, two school-going sons) have spent 14 of their happiest years in this tiny flat, as Mona, his wife, tells us. So why spend a fortune acquiring a Mercedes? “Because it’s always been my dream to own one—for a businessman, it’s a sign of ultimate achievement.” Mona interjects: “Our son always used to ask, ‘When will Papa get a Mercedes car?’” But the Wadhis are clear about one thing: “Just because we’re buying a Mercedes, we’re not going to change our lifestyle. We are old-fashioned people who believe in old values.”

Even the concept of a steel-and-glass office is quite new: until Nagori built his swank business centre a year ago, most of Aurangabad’s multi-billion businesses were conducted in 300 sq ft rooms, with an old desk and a few chairs and a mudpot of drinking water. It’s the kind of office even Sitaram Agrawal, chairman of one of Aurangabad’s biggest real estate companies, had until he shifted to his new office four years ago. In fact, Agrawal’s first Mercedes— gifted to him by his son for his 25th wedding anniversary—was parked for years outside their little office and flat. Was it an embarrassment, considering the neighbours probably owned, at best, a scooter or a bike? “It was a gift and I had to honour my son’s feelings,” explains Agrawal, whose father ran a grocery store and who started his own career on a scooter, running small contracts.

As in Agrawal’s case, the Merc is sometimes a tribute by sons to fathers who have built their business empires out of nothing. Virendrasingh Pawar has booked a top-class Mercedes for precisely that reason: his father made a fortune from scratch by supplying private security to Aurangabad’s industries and hotels. And now that Virendrasingh has taken over the business, diversifying into electronic security, growing in the last few years into the country’s leading firm, he wants to celebrate by gifting his father his dream car. For himself, young Pawar would prefer a BMW but feels that can wait. At first, Pawar senior, who has seen hard times, resisted, but like Agrawal, succumbed for reasons of sentiment that had nothing to do with a desire to flaunt a status symbol.

Aurangabad’s rich are also bending the hierarchy of Merc models to suit their own notion of family ranking. As Agrawal explains, the Merc he booked with the group of 140 was going to be of the top class, costing Rs 81 lakh. Since he already owns a Merc, he wanted to buy one for his son instead. But the son refused to accept the top class, saying that if his father drove a E-class Merc, he’d only drive a lower model—so they ended up getting the C-class one.

Continued on page 46

PURE VEGETARIAN RESTAURANT Our Specialty Gujarati Surati THALI

• Great Family Dine-In Atmosphere Free Wi-Fi Available CALL US ! VISIT US TODAY! • Friendly management & waitstaff • Full Service Catering Available • Great Vegetarian food 6662 SW Fwy, Houston, TX 77074 (at Hillcroft by India Grocers)

713-977-0150

We do CATERING for all occasions serving GUJARATI, NORTH & SOUTH INDIAN food.

INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, MAY 21 , 2010 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM

44

E N T E R T AIN M E N T

Indo American News • Friday, May 21 , 2010

JOB POSTING

NEWS PHOTOGRAPHER/ LIVE TRUCK OPERATOR

online edition: www.indoamerican-news.com

Kites Aims To Bring Bollywood To The West

KTRK-TV, the ABC O&O located in Houston, TX has an immediate opening for a full time News Photographer/Live Truck Operator.

Candidates should have a minimum three years experience in all facets of television news photography including lighting, audio and editing, and show exceptional knowledge and creativity in these areas.

Applicants should have a good eye for news photography, be able to work in the field unsupervised or with various reporters and be able to work in deadline situations. The ideal candidate will have experience shooting investigative reports, the use of hidden cameras and ability to shoot records and documents. Candidates should also have experience operating a microwave live truck and must be able to lift and carry 30 Ibs. of equipment.

All interested applicants must apply on-line at www.disneycareers. com by uploading a resume file, cover letter and list of references.

Interested applicants should also send a video tape sample of your news related work to: Human Resources, KTRK-TV, 3310 Bissonnet, Houston, TX 77005. Please Reference Job 10: 248531 on all materials submitted. No phone calls please, and no third parties. Equal Opportunity Employer M/F/V/D.

HELP WANTED EXPERIENCED CHEF POSITION A well established and reputed catering company with the chain of restaurants is looking to hire an experienced chef with the knowledge of Moghlai and North Indian cuisine to join our team of professional cooks.

Attractive salary

Please e-mail resume or call Tel: 713 256 5441 or 832 656 7861 E-mail: E-mail Daawatcatering@gmail.com

The latest movie to come out of India, Kites, has been described by some critics as bringing Bollywood to Hollywood - but at what cost? The film has been adapted for the West to appeal to a wider audience, with dance scenes cut out and steamy scenes put in.

It is also over half-an-hour shorter than the Indian version of the movie.

Actor Hrithik Roshan, one of India’s most idolised artists, stars alongside Mexican actress Barbari Mori and he told Sky News it

is the tale that makes it a potential global blockbuster.

“It’s a love story. It’s a really simple, sweet, straightforward, honest love story about two people who don’t have a common language yet fall in love which is what I think makes it a universal phenomenom,” Roshan told Sky’s Eamonn Holmes. The film’s director, Anurag Basu, is considered one of the most forward-thinking filmmakers to emerge from India and is said to be fearless in his vision of breaking the conventions

associated with Indian filmmaking. US director Brett Ratner - of Rush Hour and Prison Break fame - has edited the English language version.

Roshan added: “Every creative work has a potential to find its own level and its own audience.

“Whatever has happened has been such a natural progression of the attempt of making an honest film and I think that is what eventually gives the film its strength to be presented on a global platform.

“It’s honest, it is a human story.”

ADVERTISEMENT FOR BIDS CITY OF HOUSTON

The City Secretary for City of Houston will receive bids at 900 Bagby, Room P101, Houston, Texas for the following Department of Public Works and Engineering project[s]: Project Name : WBS Number : Bid Date : Project Location : Project Manager : Estimated Construction Cost: Prebid Meeting :

Neighborhood Back Lot Wastewater Substitute Service Program – W. Clay, W. Pierce, and W. Bell R-002011-0071-4 June 24, 2010 West Clay, West Pierce, and West Bell Streets Robert C. Miles, P.E. Phone Number (832) 395-2330 $427,535.00 Tuesday, June 1, 2010, at 1:00 P.M., 14th Floor, Conference Room No. 1414, 611 Walker, Houston, Texas 77002

Bids will be accepted until 10:30 a.m., local time on the Bid Date shown above. Bids received after that time will not be accepted. Bids will be publicly opened and read aloud at 11:00 a.m. on the same day in City Council Chambers. All interested parties are invited to attend. Place and date of Bid opening may be changed in accordance with Sections 15 3(b)(5) and 15-3(b)(6) of the City of Houston Code of Ordinances. Low bidder shall comply with City of Houston Code of Ordinances. All bidders shall comply with Article II, Chapter 15, City of Houston Code of Ordinances.

The requirements and terms of the City of Houston Pay or Play Program, as set out in Executive Order 1-7 and Ordinance 2007-0534, are incorporated into this project for all purposes. All bidders shall comply with the terms and conditions of the Pay or Play Program as they are set out at the time of City Council approval of this Agreement.

Bid Documents may be purchased at the City of Houston offices located on the Smith Street side of the 1st Floor Lobby of 611 Walker, Houston, Texas 77002 for $50.00 per set. Only cash, checks or money orders will be accepted and a maximum of two sets will be sold to each prospective bidder. Addenda will be distributed at no cost to those who are registered plan holders with the City. Bid documents and drawings may also be obtained electronically at the City’s website: http://bidsets.publicworks. houstontx.gov/ The Project may contain City of Houston Standard Construction Specifications for Wastewater Collection Systems, Water Lines, Storm Drainage, and Street Paving sections that are incorporated into Project Manual by reference. These Standard Specifications, along with Standard Details, may be acquired at no cost on the City’s website at http:// documents.publicworks.houstontx.gov/documents/specifications/2009_standard_specification.pdf.

Bidders shall comply with City Ordinance 2007-0293 (March 7, 2007) and City of Houston Affirmative Action and Contract Compliance Division Minority/Women-owned Business Enterprise (MWBE) Procedures. Low Bidder will be required to make good faith efforts to achieve a MWBE participation goal as stated in Document 00800 – Supplementary Conditions.

It is unlawful for any Contractor to contribute or offer any contribution to a candidate for City elective office during a certain period prior to and following a contract award. Bidders should refer to Chapter 18, City of Houston Code of Ordinances for filing requirements and further explanation.

Dated: (Publish Friday, May 21, 2010)

Anna Russell City Secretary

INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, mAY 21 , 2010 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM

online edition: www.indoamerican-news.com

Indo American News • Friday, May 21 , 2010

INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, MAY 21 , 2010 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM

45

46

Indo American News • Friday, May 21 , 2010

india

online edition: www.indoamerican-news.com

On Your Mercs

Continued from page 43

For Santosh Muthiyan too, the Merc is more a matter of family prestige. Some twenty years ago, his father, who owned a cloth shop, threw him out of the house because he failed his tenth class exam. Muthiyan began as a door-to-door salesman.

Today, he and his partners own the biggest infrastructure company in Aurangabad, building luxury homes and a mall that is expected to be one of Asia’s biggest. At 37, Muthiyan believes it’s time he started living: in a few months he’ll be moving from his 1,000 sq ft apartment into a 51,000 sq

Sanjeevkumar Kankariya, 49, Kankariya Group Chief: Starting his career selling cherries, Kankariya took a loan to start a printing press when he was 21. A multibillionaire today, he says: “I started off on a bicycle, and will always think of myself like that. But there’s no harm spending when you’ve earned it and pay your taxes.” ft mansion with a swimming pool and gym that he’s building for himself.

Left to himself, he’d probably like to go on living in his present apartment which he shows us around with great pride. But Muthiyan sees an upward lifestyle almost as a challenge. “I promised myself that I’d take my father to live with me when I have a big house and a big car, and I’m now fulfilling that pledge.” Muthiyan has, of course, booked the top-class car for

his father.

Muthiyan believes that money must “rotate”; that it’s the obligation of every rich man to spend so that the city can grow. But there are those who scoff at this “Mercedes Benz patriotism”. As Ram Bhogale, chairman of Umasons Auto Components, one of the leading auto parts manufacturers here, says: “I can certainly afford to buy a Merc, but why would I spend Rs 50-80 lakh on a car? I’d rather

invest it in a machine for the factory.” This Merc gang, according to Bhogale, is attracting the wrong kind of attention to Aurangabad. “You’ll end up attracting scamsters and real estate mafia here by these sort of gimmicks,” he says, adding: “Don’t build bridges to wrong destinations.”

Agrees A.N. Kadam, secretary of the Mahatma Gandhi mission, which runs several private colleges with an annual turnover of Rs 32 crore: “There’s a cultural difference between the old and new generations in Aurangabad. The latter want fast money and development, not caring if it’s sustainable or not. They call it development, I call it a mess.”

“But it’s in the nature of entrepreneurs to be impatient,” argues Nandkishore Kagliwal, another selfmade billionaire who now heads the region’s biggest seed companies.

Kagliwal says he’d be just as happy to drive in his old ambassador car.

But he’s booked a Merc as well just in solidarity with the group.

As Mansingh Pawaar, vice-chief of the Maharashtra Chamber of Commerce, Industry and Agriculture puts it: “The idea was to make the world sit up and take note of Aurangabad’s rapid growth, and it worked.” What an idea, Sirji!- Outlook

May 31: Day to Quit Facebook SAN FRANCISCO(Agencies): Has that time finally arrived when you’d be better off deleting your Facebook account? If so, then May 31 is looking like D-Day. A website called Quit Facebook Day has set the last day of May as the day everyone keen to leave the social network should finally take the plunge and hit the Delete key.

Several high profile technology pundits and celebs are kicking the world's number one social networking site to the curb.

The bridge too far has been Facebook's recent introduction of a platform that, by default, gives third-party companies access to members' names, friend lists and hobbies to "personalise" their surfing experience.

When a member logs onto a partner site, such as Yelp or Pandora, the content displayed is shaped by their own interests, as

well as the activities of their Facebook friends. To disable this feature, a manual opt-out is required.

According to a security expert website, Facebook users unwittingly expose themselves to five

dangers that might be beyond their control: their information is shared with third parties; their privacy settings revert to a less safe default mode after each redesign; malware from Facebook advertisements; fake profiles from scammers; and real friends who unknowingly make them vulnerable.

Agencies Google Canada reports that the top online search related to "Facebook account"

INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, mAY 21 , 2010 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM

is "delete Facebook," while the fastest-rising related query is "deactivate Facebook account," up 40 per cent over the past 90 days.

Worldwide, the search engine's results on Facebook account deletion ballooned from 15.9 million to 19.5 million between May 11 and 13 alone. There are 400 million members in total.

Privacy and security must be dirty words at the Facebook HQ at the moment as the world's largest social media network comes under fire for its privacy policy that has left users exposed and vulnerable.

Amazingly, it was reported that Facebook's privacy policy is a whopping 5,830 words long, even more verbose than the Constitution of the United States which reads at 4,543 words. Meanwhile, Facebook is making it difficult for users to delete their accounts. Let's wait for May 31!

online edition: www.indoamerican-news.com

Indo American News • Friday, May 21 , 2010

INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, MAY 21 , 2010 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM

47

48

Indo American News • Friday, May 21 , 2010

online edition: www.indoamerican-news.com

INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, mAY 21 , 2010 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM

s p o rt s

online edition: www.indoamerican-news.com

Indo American News • Friday, May 21 , 2010

49

England Beat Australia To Lift World T20

England stunned pre-tournament favorites Australia by a whopping margin of seven wickets and with three overs to spare to win the ICC World T20.

Paul Collingwood won the toss and decided to field first, in a decision that surprised many an expert. However, the same looked justified as the Aussies lost three wickets in the very first three overs to be reduced to 8/3.

ShaneWatson was caught at the first slip after the ball was parried by the wicket-keeper Craig Kieswetter, while his opening partner Dave Warner was run-out off a direct hit.

This was followed by Brad Haddin being caught down the leg-side as

Sidebottom took the two wickets.

Clarke had batted at number three but could not get going and was dis-

Car Racing Both are bigger than life and enjoy taking a risk or two. Formula One’s Bernie Ecclestone and Force India owner Vijay Mallya have more things in common than one could imagine and once they start talking, the stories don’t stop rolling.

Vijay, what advice did you get from Bernie when you told him that you were going to take over the ailing Spyker F1 team?

Mallya: To be fair, I first brought up the subject of buying a team with Bernie when I started sponsoring Toyota in 2007. I asked him whether he thought I should buy a Formula One team, and he said no - leave your hands off. That was his first spontaneous advice to me. But I had a clear concept. I didn’t want to pour money into a team, but I wanted

missed by Graeme Swann for 27 (27 balls), as the Aussies slumped to 47/4 in ten overs. At this Australia was in

trouble but it was Cameron White who came to the rescue again.

Yardy was banished for a couple of sixes to go with a couple of fours, while, despite the wicket of White (30), the momentum did not ebb.

David Hussey got to his 50, an in company of his brother took the Aussie total to 147/6 in the 20 overs. 100 had come off the last ten overs, and 55

off the last five.

In reply, Michael Lumb departed

very early, but the Englishmen acquitted themselves rather well through a second wicket stand of a century between Kevin Pietersen and Craig Kieswetter, both of whom looked in ravishing touch.

Pietersen scored 47 but was usurped by an innings to remember from Kieswetter who smacked a 49-ball 63 to turn the game in the favour of England.

In the end, both the batsmen were dismissed in quick succession but the Aussies did not have anything left in the tank as England romped home to a seven-wicket win. Kieswetter won the man of the match as the English side won their first ever World Cup tournament.

- Contributed by www.cricketusamag.com

I’m in F1 for the Fun of it: Mallya

to create a competitive team with strong Indian ties. I told Bernie that it would be very positive for F1 if India could become part of the sport with its own team, especially as Bernie had just done a deal to have an Indian Grand Prix by 2011. In hindsight I know that my decision was right.

Bernie, when did it dawn on you that Vijay was the right man to successfully establish an Indian team?

Bernie: I knew that he wanted it, and I also knew that when he puts his energy behind something, in the end he will be successful. On the other hand he knew that if he wouldn’t do it then I would find somebody else

(laughs).

Mallya: Bernie knew that I wasn’t a freshman. I sponsored Benetton back in 1995. I’ve worked together with Michael Schumacher and Flavio Briatore. I’ve watched Formula One develop. That in itself is a huge asset - if you know what you are dealing with before you get involved. One of the biggest stimuli for me sure was to see how Asia was becoming a huge stronghold of F1.

Bernie: Go East! That was one of my visions.

How important will it be for you to

have an Indian driver at some point in the future?

Mallya: It is very important. I would love it. I’m not a fool and can see the enormous publicity potential which would come from it. The downside at the moment is that there is not one Indian pilot who has the potential to battle the best on the track.

Bernie: And this then would be extremely negative. To choose an Indian driver who just runs after all the others is no use to anybody. It would be counter-productive.

What should we expect from the

first Indian Grand Prix in 2011?

Bernie: A lot of curry (laughs).

What I have encountered in India, when I’ve been there, is that even the poorest people don’t show any form of envy. They give from the bottom of their hearts.

Mallya: More spectators than you have ever seen for an event. Amazing fans who will bring their love and show their enthusiasm for Formula One. (By arrangement with Force India Formula One Ltd and www.formula1.com ) Times of India

TCC Spartans Defeated Houston Cougars By 3 Wickets HOUSTON - There were couple of matches this sunday. The game was played at Matzke Park.

Cougars batted first and scored 193 runs after losing 7 wickets – Amir Manjee 25, Mustafa Himani 29, Jam Niazi 27 and Amar S 34, were the highlights of Cougars’ batting. Vishnu G. took four wickets from TCC bowling squad.

TCC Spartans’ start was little shaky but they still managed to chase 193 in only 38.3 overs with Manas 34, Srinivas 49 and Imran K 39. Mustafa took 3 wickets for Cougars.

While on the Stafford City Park, Cougars –II managed to win the game by 6 wickets defeating HECC. HECC batted first and were all out on 51 with Ali A scoring 24, he was the only player to reach double figures. Mudassar and Amir took 3 wickets each, Iqra

took 2 wickets.

Cougars – II reached the score in 11th over after losing 4 wickets. Riffat Bari 12 and Fahad Naved 16. Fahad D. took 2 wickets from HECC bowling.

Cavalier Cricket Club defeated Houston India Cricket Club by 9 wickets. The game was played at Sardar Patel Stadium.

HICC batted first and only managed to put 154 on the board. Ankit Mehta was the highest scorer with 24, second highest 23 by extras. Supritam and Damodhar took 2 wickets each.

Cavalier had a very good start with both the openers making fifties, Damodhar 51 and Phani K. 60 no out.

Supritam scored 37 not out. Cavalier chased the score in 19.4 overs. Kuldeep Patel took Damodhar’s wicket.

Contributed by Raheel Khan

INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, MAY 21 , 2010 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM

50

Indo American News • Friday, May 21 , 2010

c o mm u n i t y c o n n e c t i o n s

RELIGIOUS SERVICES

Arya Samaj of Greater Houston 281-242-5000

Havan Satsang 10 AM - 12, discourse by Dr. Premchand Shridhar: 281-7520100 DAV Sanskriti school 10 AM - 12 - Havan, Hindi and Naitik Shiksha classes. Shekhar Agrawal: 281-242-5000

Every Sunday satsang assembly accompanied by Santo with inspirational BAPS 281-765-BAPS (2277) talks & devotional bhajans from 4:30pm - 6:30pm followed by arati and mahaprasad. 281-765-BAPS (2277), www.houston.baps.org

may 2010

Daily Darshan & Arati Times: 4.30am, 7am, 8.30am, 12noon, 4.30pm, 7pm, 9pm. See darshan live on www.iskconhouston.org. Sunday Festival: 5.30pm to 7.30pm. Located at 1320 West 34th St, Houston, TX 77018.

Hindu Worship Society Temple

Priest – “Bhibhdutt Mishra Ji”. Open for Darshan all days, except Thursday, from 8am -10am & 5pm - 8pm. Sunday 11:30am to 1:30pm – Regular Puja, Religious discourses and Prasad. Website www.hwst.org

JVB Preksha Center

Regular weekly program of Yoga and meditation Mon-Thu 7.15pm to 8.15pm.

On Saturdays from 9.00am to 11.15am. Located at 14102 Schiller Rd.

281-596-9642

21 Fri

Temple hours: Mon - Fri: 8.30am-Noon, 5-8pm, Sat & Sun: 8.30am-2pm, 5-8pm, Aarti: Noon and 7.30pm, Chinmaya Prabha, 10353 Synott Rd, Sugar Land, TX 77478. www.saumyakasi.org, Bharati Sutaria: 281-568-1690

Parkash & prayer everyday: 6-7:15am, Evening Diwan: 7:15-8:30pm, Special Sikh Center of Gulf Diwan: Wed: 7-8:30pm, Sun: 10am-1:30pm, Langar everyday. 8819 Prairie Coast Area Dr., Houtson TX 77064, 713-466-6538, 281-635-7466, 832-633-5092 Sri Ashtalakshmi Temple 281-498-2344

8pm: DJ Aqeel Live in Houston, ABCD Houston, PRAVADA, Montrose: 713-533-1200

22 Sat Sat

Shri Kripalu Kunj Ashram 713-344-1321

Satsang & spiritual discourses, Sun: 10.30 am.-12.30pm. with simultaneous prog. of Hindi, Sanskrit and Moral science for kids, dance classes for children and adults every Fri:8 pm, www.shrikripalukunj.org

Shri Radha Krishna Four Arti daily: 6:30am , 12 noon, 7pm & 9pm. Tuesday & Saturday 7:10pm.

Sunday Bhajan and Kritan at 6pm. Maha Arti 7pm, More information www.

Temple srkt.org Located at 11625 Beechnut Houston, TX 77072.

281-933-8100 Swaminarayan Mandir (ISSO) 281-530-2565 Vedanta Society

Darshan: Daily 7.30am-12.30pm, 4-8.30pm. Aarti: Daily 7.45am & 7pm. Hanumanji Aarti: Sat: 7.15pm. Rajbhog Thaal (No Darshan): 10.30-11am. Dinner Thaal 5.30-6pm. Located at 10080 Synott Rd, Sugar Land TX 77498.

5906 Cypress • Classes Sunday from 10.30am to 12.30pm on Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna, 1st &3rd Sunday; Bhagavad-Gita, 2nd Sunday; on works of Swami Vivekananda, More information visit www.houstonvedanta.org

Free Citizenship Classes @ Houston Public Library

February - May 2010

Mondays & Thursdays Wednesdays 7-8:30pm 5:30-7:30pm Carnegie Neighborhood Library Henington Regional Library 832-393-1820 832-393-1970

Indo-American News - 120 Distribution Points 20% more copies . . . High Bright Newsprint paper Reaching more readers in our Community!

29 years in service! Thank you for your support!

2pm: Natural Healing Powers of the Body, Vivekananda Yoga Anusandhana Samsthana, Free admission, Keshav Smruthi, 713-582-3240 5pm: Young Professional Social, SEWA International, Houston, Avanti Apartments, Apt#1312, houston@sewausa.org 7pm: Tarun Vijay-Spokesperson of BJP Speaks on Current Challenges Facing India, India House, Gitesh Desai: 281300-7346

23 Sun

10pm: Natural Healing Powers of the Body, Vivekananda Yoga Anusandhana Samsthana, Free admission, JVB Preksha Meditation Center, 713-582-3240 12noon: Meditation Classes, Science of Spirituality, Free admission,University of St. Thomas, 713-261-7212, www.houstonsos.org

Daily Schedule: 7:30am – 9:30am -Suprabhatam, Sri Murthy Aaradhana, Tiruppa:vai Sevakalam, Theertha Ghosti, Balabhogam, 9:30am – 11am :Temple is open, 6:30am – 7pm, www.jetusahouston.org

Sri Guruvayurappan 11620 Ormandy St. Houston, TX 77035, www.guruvayurusa.org, temple@ guruvayurusa.org Temple Houston

6:30pm: Annual Awareness and Membership Drive, The Hindu American Foundation, & Hindus of Greater Houston, Madras Pavillion, Sugar Land, Vijay Pallod: 281-565-0001, www. hafsite.org 8pm: India Jazz Suites, Indo American Association, Wortham Center, 832-758-2844

Sanatan Shiv Shakti Rudrabhiskek every Monday followed by Aarti and mahaprasad. 5645 HillMandir croft, #701 Houston TX 77036.

713-278-9099

Saumyakasi Sivalaya 281-568-1690

CURRENT EVENTS

Send event information to indoamericannews@yahoo.com Listings should be concise and occur within 15 days of submittal

Durga Bari Society Temple hours: Monday - Saturday: 9am- 11am and 4pm to 7pm; Sandhya Aarti 6.30pm. Sunday 9am- 7 pm. www.houstondurgabari.org, Champak 832-347-4003 Sadhu. • 13944 Schiller Road.

Hare Krishna Dham

online edition: www.indoamerican-news.com

3pm: Role of Diet and Complementary Medicine in Cancer, Indo American Cancer Network, India House, iacannetwork@ gmail.com, www.iacannetwork.org

26

7pm: Narasimha Chaturdashi, Hare Krishna Dham, 281-2353590, www.iskconhouston.org

31

3pm: Changing India by Good Governance, Dr Jayprakash Narayan, Chutneys Restaurant, 781-367-9367, pflhouston@gmail. com

Wed

Mon

June 2010

4

8pm: Sukhwinder Singh Jai Ho, Hum Tum City, Arena theatre, , 713-545-4115, www.humtumcity.com

6

6pm: Lamhe, A Bollywood Musical Delight, Indo American Association, Jones Hall, 281-648-0422, www.iaahouston.com

Fri Sun

12 Sat

8pm: Sathavaro Shree Radhey Shyamno, Namaskaar Entertainment, HBU Morris Cultural Center, 281, 240-3333 8:30pm: STRINGS and FUZON Live, House of Blues, 832-607-2007

16

6:30pm: Chai Exchange, South Asian Chamber of Commerce, ,Westin Oaks Galleria, The Roof

20

4pm: An Evening with Pandit Jasraj , Indian Music Society of Houston and Center for Indian Classical Music of Houston, Govinda Shetty: 713-922-2501

Wed

Sun

INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, mAY 21 , 2010 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM

online edition: www.indoamerican-news.com

Indo American News • Friday, May 21 , 2010

INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, MAY 21 , 2010 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM

51

52

Indo American News • Friday, May 21 , 2010

online edition: www.indoamerican-news.com

INDO AMERICAN NEWS • FRIDAY, mAY 21 , 2010 • ONLINE EDITION: WWW.INDOAMERICAN-NEWS.COM