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South Asia Times Vol.11 I No. 4 I NOVEMBER 2013 I FREE

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Mixed Feelings at the Regional Pravasi Bharatiya Diwas, Sydney, 2013

By Neeraj Nanda

Read story on pageS 7,8

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AIII Diwali Fair 2013 dazzles amidst festivity

BY NEERAJ NANDA

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elbourne: This was the thirteenth year in succession that the AIII held its signature event this Diwali. The Sandown Racecourse, Springvale was the venue once again and from morning till closing the fair was flooded with people of all communities. It was a multicultural event as was evident from the 60 odd stalls selling and displaying all sorts of stuff. There was a Sandalwood company, travel and tour agents, a radio station, a marriage ‘Mandap’, readymade garments, jewellery, Ayurvedic stuff, faith organisations, toys, packed sweets, Basmati rice, Biryani, Dosa and Idly, Chaat, Indian food and what not. It was definitely a potpourri of things from the Indian subcontinent. The spirit of Diwali was there to see and enjoy.

The entertainment was excellent with lots of Bollywood dances, songs and a dashing fashion show. People clapped as models in beautiful dresses moved on the ramp. The colour and music combination laced with the models in sparkling dresses

made the atmosphere lively and joyful. Bollywood dances on popular numbers played and mixed by DJ Baba gave a touch of blissful festivity.

The AIII Committee consisting of Vernon Da Gama, Yogen Laxman,Sunil Kumar, Babu Akula, Neeraj Nanda, Hari Yellina, Mr. Soni, Pandit Patil, Harry Dip and Atil Gosai came on the stage and were cheered for the success of the event.

The seated crowd was addressed

by Senator Scott Ryan representing the Australian Prime Minister Tony Abbott, Inga Peulich representing the Victorian Premier, Leader of Opposition Daniel Andrews, Jude Periera MP among others. The media was also present and so were other VIPs and community leaders.

AIII President Vernon Da Gama and Trust member Yogen Laxman also addressed the gathering.

Interestingly, both the major parties Liberals and the Australian Labour Party (ALP) had their stalls at the event. The newly formed South Asian Public Affairs Committee (SAPAC) was also present. Indian/ South Asian newspapers South Asia Times (SAT), Indus Age and Indian

Link were also present. The SBS van was there with broadcasters Manpreet (SBS-Punjabi) and Savita Soni (SBS-Hindi) doing a live broadcast from the fair. Children’s rides were also a popular place and different rides made kids happy.

The food and other stalls did roaring business with all sorts of Indian food and sweets being popular. Chole-Bhutare and Dosa seemed to be the most popular food stuff on the day. The colourful marriage mandap by Bollywood Mandaps was also a big hit.

According to AIII sources there were about 15,000 people approximately at the fair and that included children who came in free.

The event went of till dark when the Sandown Racecourse was lit up with colourful fireworks watched by thousands of people. The VIP guests and volunteers were served an Indian dinner as the fireworks took place.

The event was a feather in the cap of the AIII. Its success over the years and each year speaks for itself.

The next AIII event will be the AIII Holi in March 2014 at the Sandown Racecourse.

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Celebrate India

Diwali fest lits up Federation Square

By New Desk

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elbourne: The sky was overcast but the crowds were no less and the function at the Federation Square went off with full enthusiasm and vigour. The organisers claim 58,000 people visited the venue throughout the day on 26th November. It was a sea of people who were eager to have a nice entertaining day.

Talking to SAT organiser Arun Sharma said there were quite a few first time items including the Launch on Diwali boat at Yarra, 2 x evenings of Decorated Horse carriage with Indian music, launch of documentary movie about the joint art project in Deakin edge and Dances at City Square which were well received by all Melbournians.”

“We also honoured priests from Catholic, Hindu, Sikh and Jain faiths who later blessed everyone for peace and harmony in the wider community on this auspicious occasion.”

“The Diwali at Airport took place with massive enjoyment for passing outgoing passengers who enjoyed Indian dance performances, decorations and sweets distribution www.southasiatimes.com.au - (03) 9095 6220, 0421 677 082

on 1st November”.

“Overall this year's celebration is an evidence of years of hard work by the team to see the Indian culture and festivals like Diwali getting acceptance in the mainstream, he said.

Free Bollywood movies were also screened at the Federation Square for five days as part of the festival. There were all sorts of stalls including food stalls selling tasty Indian food. Colourful dances with live music were a hit among those present.

The sponsors of the festival included Air India, SBS Radio, Telstra, Melbourne Airport, Federation Square, Mind Blowing Films, Hindu Foundation Fiji, RACV, Maharaja’s Choice, Gaura Travel, White Ribbon, Richmond Football Club and Indian Link.

The new Indian Consul General, M. Jain, Minister for Multicultural Affairs and Citizenship, Nicholas Kotsiras, MP representing the Victorian Premier, Leader of Opposition ,Daniel Andrews, former Victorian Premier Ted Baillieu, Federal leader of Opposition, Bill Shorten, Jude Pereira MP, Hong Lim MP among others were present.

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From The Editor

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SAT

South Asia Times

PUBLISHER/EDITOR Neeraj Nanda M: 0421 677 082 satimes@gmail.com

EDITOR (Hindi Pushp)

Dr. Dinesh Srivastava dsrivastava@optusnet.com.au

SAT NEWS BUREAU/Australia (Melbourne) Neeraj Nanda satimes@gmail.com

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Mixed feelings at the Regional Pravasi Bhartiya Diwas Sydney 2013

SAT NEWS BUREAU/South Asia (New Delhi, India) RAJIV SHARMA rajeev.anchor@gmail.com PRASHAT TANDON news.prashant@gmail.com

Minister Ravi assured overseas Indians that the government of India would continue to look out for and serve the interests of the growing Indian Diaspora that is more than 25 million around the world.

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Mr. Biren Nanda, India High Commissioner to Australia addressing the media

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By Neeraj Nanda

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ydney, Nov 11, 12, 13: It was a smooth Jet Air flight from Melbourne to Sydney on Sunday 10th November. We (me and my friend Mr. Tony Seth, G’Day India) landed full of vigour and enthusiasm laced with the zeal to once again network with the children of mother India spread out in many countries.

The Indian taxi-wallah at Sydney Airport took us through Sydney’s narrow roads with a smile to our designation at the Four Points by Sheraton and soon we walked down to the Sydney Convention Centre where our dream event was taking place. One could see desi (Indian) people loitering around and moving into the main hall with colourful ‘Incredible India’ jute bags on their shoulders.

The entry was smooth as we got our badges fast and started seeing familiar faces from Melbourne and Sydney.

MC Kumud Mirani (SBS HindiSydney) had claimed the stage and the inaugural session took off.

There were quick addresses

by Mr. Biren Nanda, High Commissioner of India to Australia, Mr. Vaylar Ravi, India’s Minister for Overseas Indian Affairs, Mr. Dipen Rughani, National Chairman, Australia India Business Council (AIBC), Mr. T. K. Manoj Kumar, Joint Secretary, Ministry of Overseas Indian Affairs (MOIA), Ms Sujata Sudarshan, CEO, Overseas Indian Facilitation Centre (OIFC)

Bollywood actress Pallavi Sharda being interviewed on the stage among others. Then there were a many others (a long list) who spoke on different subjects ranging from How to engage the Indian Diaspora with India? to financial engagements for NRIs in India. The Hall which could accommodate a few thousand had 250 or so people not in a mood to hear routine stuff.

It dampened my spirits as I pushed in an Aspirin to boost my blood flow. Though Kumud Mirani’s quote from Swami Vivekanand - ‘India needs to conquer the world’ was a morale booster, probably a mention of the mission to conquer the Red Planet could also have given the tired and sleepy NRI’s (also known as Non Returning Indians) the much needed awakening.

Minister Ravi assured overseas Indians that the government of India would continue to look out for and serve the interests of the

growing Indian Diaspora that is more than 25 million around the world. Mr. Ravi said “I am very enthused with the participation and I hope to take back a lot of shared experiences that will help enhance the engagement with overseas Indians” Mr Biren Nanda, the Indian High Commissioner for Australia said participation in the event was from all states and territories of Australia and from neighbouring countries including New Zealand and Fiji, attracting about 500 delegates from the Asia Pacific region.

“It was great to see participation from Australians and Indians living in Australia, all of whom are interested in plugging into India’s growing relationship with Australia” he said.

In his inaugural address, the NSW Premier, Mr. Barry O’Farrell said “Indian community is now the fastest growing ethnic

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community in the state and the country, and Indian languages are becoming the biggest nonEnglish languages spoken in the country. Hindi and Punjabi are even taught in schools and colleges.”

The NSW Premier and other Australian Federal Ministers, Senators and MPs commended the immense contribution of the Indian-Australian community.

Mr. Scott Morrison MP, Minister for Immigration and Border Protection was representing the Prime Minister of Australia and reinforced the same in his speech.

Australia India Business Council (AIBC) and Overseas Indian Facilitation Center (OIFC) signed a Memorandum of Understanding on this important occasion. Ms Sujata Sudarshan, CEO of OIFC said “The memorandum will help OIFC and AIBC to work closely on bilateral initiatives and people to people networks between Australia and India, thereby facilitating stronger ties between the two countries.”

The Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) and AIBC also organised a B2B meet during the conference.

The next two days were busy with all sorts of VIP speeches (local, state and Indian Government). Indra-devata (the Hindu god of rains) was in full action and getting relief moving into the lively Darling Harbour area became difficult. Every speaker mentioned the rising Indian population in Australia (400,000 plus now) and the need to connect to the ‘matrabhumi’ (motherland).

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Contd. from pg 8 The feeling among the hundreds of attendees (estimate of how many registered at the conference including the complimentary ones ranged from 250 to 500. The official claim is 500.) who talked to SAT was that there was too much emphasis on business, trade and investment issues. As if nothing else matters. Was is because the many sponsors included big companies like Adani Group, GVK, Aditya Birla Group, Tata Consultancy and so on. An IANs report says, “... the programme seems to have been hijacked by business interests who were more focused on business issues, rather than people-topeople concerns.”

There were many breakout sessions with impressive names but as I went from one to another it was not a very happy situation.

The attendance was poor except the one about the media (Power in the Asian Century), Indian languages and one on business.

Susi Das (The Age) conducted the media session effectively and the distinguished panel of media persons (and semi-media persons) including mostly from Australia. There were heated but relevant debates on reporting on the 2010 student issue, western reporting of Indian issues and the lack of relevant/ original content in the ethnic media. The conclusion was that the Indian ethnic media needs original/relevant content and the challenge of the digital revolution cannot be underestimated.

The best speech of the event was by former Fiji Prime Minister Mr. Mahendra Chaudhry. He appealed to the Indian Diaspora to guard against being deluded by certain success stories and thinking that "all's well everywhere".

"Indian Diaspora is by no means a homogeneous entity.

Let us not be deluded by the success stories of some sectors into thinking that all's well everywhere," he said.

Talking to SAT on the sidelines of the conference Mr. Chaudhry said “All authoritian governments are bad”, when I asked him about the current military government in Fiji. He seemed to be worried about the human and democratic rights of Indian people in different countries. His speech was well appreciated and cheered. He was the only speaker who ended

Dr. Dinesh Srivastava, Editor Hindi Pushp (SAT) addressing the breakout session on languages

Minister of Overseas Indian Affairs, Mr Vayalar Ravi addressing the gathering

Mr. Mahendra Pal Chaudhry, former Prime Minister of Fiji addressing the gathering

Ms Lisa Singh, Senator for Tasmania addressing the gathering

his speech with ‘Jai Hind’.

There were many cultural events (including Bollywood stuff) but the one that stood out among others was the Santoor recital by Pandit Shivkumar Sharma. His fingers weaved magic on the Santoor. An incredible classical presentation.

Unfortunately, the attendance at the concert was not much (less than 200) but still Panditji gave an exceptional performance.

Hindustani vocalist Meeta Pandit, sang to an enthralled audience.

Shiamak Davar Dance group and Kamahl’s performance of The Gettysburg Address were also quite popular with the audience.

The young Gidda dance team prepared in Sydney went away without performing as their performance was cancelled at the last moment and the young team had to wait for hours to get the bad news.

As the last concluding day (12 November) came I thought why was the event on a Sun-Mon-Tue and not on Fri-Sat-Sun. I am sure many more people would have come. Another hot topic was that the event was too expensive ($ 425 registration + 3 days room rent at a hotel + taxi fare + return ticket to Sydney + Misc expenses.

It roughly could be more than a thousand Australian dollars which can easily buy a return ticket to India). Obviously, the lunches and dinners had better attendance and were up

Ms Sujata Sudarshan, CEO of OIFC and Mr Dipen Rughani, National Chair, AIBC after signing the MOU on enhancing Australian-Indian ties to the mark. The presence of ‘Besharam’ girl Pallavi Sharda, Singer Kamal and cricketer Steve Waugh was a big attraction.

Very few ethnic media was present from Melbourne. The ones I located were – SBS Radio, SAT, Hindi Pushp (Hindi section of SAT), G’Day India and the India @ Melbourne. The Sydney media was there for obvious reasons. Don’t forget we have around 15 or so Indian papers in Melbourne. The media management can be described as weak. There was no daily media release or photos, the speeches ( a few) were only available in hard copy (lost on the way back). No official figures about registration, how much money spent, which sponsor gave how much and other things were not available.

Finally, the media release and a few photos dated 12 Nov. landed by email on 13 Nov. at 10.42 am.

Pandit Shivkumar Sharma's Santoor recital

Luckily, a media colleague emailed the NSW Premier’s speech (thanks to the internet age) and Mr. Mahendra Chaudhry emailed his speech from his mobile (looks more in the digital age). The Press Information Bureau (PIB) website (run from New Delhi by the over staffed PIB) had nothing on the event.

Mr Tarun Kumar (First Secretary, High Commission of India) and Mr. Rakesh Kawara, Indian Consulate, Melbourne (on his way to Cairo) could be seen helping out and doing things. Madam M. Jain, New Consul general in Melbourne was a big motivating factor for participating in workout sessions. Still there were gaps.

This is not to say the event gave us nothing. I networked with hundreds of people and also had good talks. I made new friends. I am sure others might

The best speech of the event was by former Fiji Prime Minister Mr. Mahendra Chaudhry.

He appealed to the Indian Diaspora to guard against being deluded by certain success stories and thinking that "all's well everywhere". have had better experiences.

One only wished such an event needs to be better organised, connected to the community and less expensive. A region which has more than 800,000 people of Indian origin should have shaken Australia. But that did not happen. Yes, we did it but not as expected.

TAIL ITEM: India’s Minister for Corporate Affairs, Mr. Sachin Pilot ,who was supposed to address the PBD Sydney 2013 failed to turn up.

—SAT News Service

A dance performance during one of the sessions

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Spike in racial hatred complaints lodged with Commission Alleged cyber-racism accounted for 41% of racial hatred complaints. This is a significant increase from the previous year where only 17% of racial hatred complaints related to internet material.

By News Desk

M

elbourne, 29 Oct.: The Australian Human Rights Commission has experienced a spike in the number of complaints received on the grounds of racial hatred.

Figures disclosed in the Commission's 2012/13 annual report, tabled recently in the Federal Parliament, show that 192 of the 500 complaints lodged with the Commission under the Racial Discrimination Act (RDA) cited racial hatred as the grounds for complaint.

This represents a 59 per cent increase over the previous year, when 121 complaints were made on the grounds of racial hatred.

A large quantity of the racial hatred complaints relate to material on the internet.

Alleged cyber-racism accounted for 41% of racial hatred complaints. This is a significant increase from the previous year where only 17% of racial hatred complaints related to internet material. The increase is from 22 complaints to 79 complaints.

Of the 2,177 complaints lodged with the Commission during the year, 500

complaints (23%) were made under the RDA and 793 complaints (37%) were made under the Disability Discrimination Act. The Commission received a further 417 complaints under the Sex Discrimination Act, 310 complaints under the Australian Human Rights Commission Act, and 157 complaints under the Age Discrimination Act. 57.5% of complaints under the Age Discrimination Act related to employment.

The Commission successfully resolved over 1,079 complaints through its conciliation process.

Several case studies are included in the

2012/13 annual report, providing examples of the ways in which the Commission builds an understanding of and respect for human rights in Australia.

Key achievements include the Commission’s review into the treatment of women in the Australian Defence Force; the roll-out of national campaigns targeting racism and bullying; initiatives to encourage business to hire older Australians; and increased awareness of the rights of children and asylum seekers.

The Commission marked the 20th anniversary of the DDA with a collection of short films, Twenty Years: Twenty Stories.

These films provide insights into the lives of people with disability.

In May 2013, representatives from the Commission and the National Congress of Australia’s First Peoples presented a historic joint statement to the United Nations, confirming Australia’s support for the UN Declaration of the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.

Source: AHRC

Australia ‘streamlines’ international student visas

By News Desk

M

elbourne: Australia’s new Coalition Government has decided to streamline international student visas for 22 “low-risk non-university degree providers. The names of the twenty two low risk providers has not been released.

Minister for Immigration and Border Protection, Scott Morrison and Minister for Education, Christopher Pyne announced a package of measures that would simplify student visas through a streamlined assessment-level framework (ALF) and by extending streamlined visa processing arrangements to low-risk non-university degree providers.

‘The changes will assist all providers, but particularly the vocational education and training sector, making access to Australia’s education system more attractive for overseas students,’ Mr Morrison said.

‘Assessment levels under the ALF would be reduced from five levels to three, while financial evidence for AL3 students would reduce from 18

months to 12 months, provided funds were from a close relative of the student applicant. This would mean students from a number of key markets would be able to apply for a student visa with up to $A40 000 less in the bank.’

Streamlining of the visa application

process that Mr Morrison announced last week would benefit up to 22 lowrisk non-university providers for students enrolled in Bachelor, Masters or Doctoral degree courses or an eligible exchange programme, a media release said.

Minister for Education Mr Pyne said

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the measures would attract more overseas students to Australia, benefit our education system, create Australian jobs and stimulate our economy.

‘The non-university sector is an important contributor to our overall education exports,’ Mr Pyne said. ‘These changes would allow the vocational training sector to contribute more freely to our plan to restore Australia’s tertiary education system to its former peak of almost $19 billion in export income for the nation.

‘The non-university education system supports thousands of Australian jobs directly, and indirectly.

‘If we cut red tape and allow more students into Australia to access a world-class tertiary education we all stand to gain.’

Invitations to the 22 non-university providers will go out in coming weeks.

Subject to relevant legislative change under the stewardship of the Assistant Minister for Immigration and Border Protection, Senator the Hon. Michaelia Cash, the government would implement both elements of the package in early 2014.

—SAT News Service

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Overseas students paid low wages in Australia

By News Desk

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elbourne: When it comes to the worst paid jobs in Melbourne international students take the prize, according to an online survey by the cleaning and hospitality union, United Voice.

Pay as low as $7 an hour for weekend shifts in a Sydney Road restaurant, and $8 and $9 an hour in central city eateries regardless of whether it is a day, night or weekend shift are common according to a survey of international students’ work experiences.

Many students working as cleaners reported illegal pay rates from $8 to $15 an hour.

United Voice state secretary Jess Walsh said the survey revealed widespread ignorance of work rights among international students who are rallying today at the State Library in a protest marking International Anti-Poverty Day. “International students have become an invisible army of low paid, exploited workers in our city.

Many of them must work to support themselves while they study, but their vulnerability means they are prey for unscrupulous employers,” said Walsh.

“These survey findings underline the importance of our campaign for a new Clean Start agreement for city office cleaners that will ensure fair and equal pay and rights for all.”

More than 200 international students participated in the survey this year. It offers a rare and shocking insight into the real world experiences of international students in Melbourne: • A quarter of those responding received $10 or less an hour; • Sixty per cent earned less than

Union research has found that many subcontractors employ international students, some who report being paid $18 an hour which is $6 an hour below the city-wide Clean Start Agreement rate. the national minimum wage ($16.37 an hour).

• 79 per cent said they knew little or nothing about their rights at work; • 76 per cent said they did not receive penalties for weekend or night work.

Slightly better paid than many in the survey, but again with no shift loadings or weekend penalties, was the scooter-riding pizza delivery worker who reported receiving $12 p/hour for shifts of up to 10 hours without a break. He said that the best part of his job was sightseeing around Melbourne while making deliveries; but the worst of it was being harassed by late night drunks and the drug-affected, and “scoldings” from customers and his supervisor.

A 23 year old trainee chef at William Angliss Institute said he was paid $8 an hour while working as a kitchen hand in a city café. Another student said he recently quit his $9 an hour job when the owner of the

café where he was a waiter insisted on recycling uneaten rice from a customer’s plate as an ingredient for fried rice. He said that his pay was unchanged whether he worked from 10am-2pm, or 6pm-10pm.

The grim truth of employment for international students does not stop at illegal and exploitative rates of pay.

Added to the package for some are abuse and racism. A female cleaner on $15 an hour said she was asked for sexual favours in return for her predator supporting her bid for a permanent job.

The lowest rate of pay revealed by the survey was effectively $4 an hour for the student who in Adelaide delivered junk mail eight hours a day for three days in return for $100.

An international student employed as a cleaner in city office buildings said he was being paid $18 an hour by a sub-contractor to the Glad Group. This is more than $6 an hour below the agreed city rate of pay for part time cleaners on evening shifts.

Walsh said that after the midday rally members of United Voice would demonstrate against the Glad Group at 90 Collins St. Glad is one of the worst offenders in terms of using subcontractors who employ cleaners on sub-standard wages.

Union research has found that many subcontractors employ international students, some who report being paid $18 an hour which is $6 an hour below the city-wide Clean Start Agreement rate.

Recently, United Voice took action against Glad when it sought orders from Fair Work Australia requiring the company to reveal pay rates for all its city cleaners. This came after a company manager was overheard boasting of how she had hidden business papers from union officials who were checking on employment conditions at city sites cleaned by Glad.

—Source: United Voice

Singh Sabha Sports Club organises Multicultural Soccer tournament

By News Desk

M

elbourne: On 9th and 10th of November Singh Sabha Sports Club Melbourne organised a Multicultural Soccer Tournament for diverse ethnic communities of Australia.

This event was held at the Darebin International Sports Centre, Thornbury. Sixteen teams from different backgrounds participated in the seniors and juniors pools. Australia's leading Melbourne Victory provided meet and greet with their players, ran clinics for juniors and prize competitions. The Singh Sabha Sports Club introduced the famous kabaddi to diverse community after the finals.

AC Academy formed by the South American communities won the seniors and Reservoir High School team won juniors

defeating the Singh Sabha in finals. Club President Tejpal Singh Dhillon, Secretary Ajit Singh Chouhan, Darebin Mayor Tim Singh and Amit Khullar from Orange Brick presented trophies and prizes to everyone.

This event was aiming to bring multicultural communities together and participate in soccer. This tournament attracted more than 1500 people over two days. More than 20 ethnic backgrounds were exposed to each other and it encouraged social harmony among the people. Many people made news friends and shared common goals with each other.

This event was co-funded by the Darebin City Council, Football Federation of Victoria, Orange Brick Real Estate and the Tandoori Mahal Indian Restaurant.

—SAT News Service www.southasiatimes.com.au - (03) 9095 6220, 0421 677 082

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IEC awards: Enormous opportunity for the future with India, says John Howard

By News Desk

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elbourne: Speaking at the third Annual Indian Executive Club (IEC) Awards at the Melbourne Town Hall on 9 November, former Prime Minister John Howard said he is optimistic about the Australia-India relationship. While acknowledging ties between the two counties have not always been as strong as they should have been, he said he believed there is “enormous opportunity for the future”.

“Australia and India have a lot in common,” Mr Howard said. “We have a common language, essentially.

We have some common history. We have a common love for the greatest game in the world. And we broadly speaking have a common legal system,” said the former LiberalCoalition Prime Minister.

Mr Howard, Australia’s longest serving PM, and an advocate of closer Australia-India ties, said India had a great advantage due to its booming, youthful population.

“India remains a very young society – the age cohort between 15-25 is the largest of any country in the world – the total number exceeds the total population of Indonesia,” he said.

Mr Howard said that by contrast the rest of the world was ageing, with statistics projecting that by 2030, for the first time in mankind’s history, the total number of people over the age of 65 will exceed the number under the age of 14.

Mr Howard acknowledged India had to overcome many hurdles on the road to development but said trade opportunities and new business would be the greatest enabler.

“What both of these realities represent for Australia and India is an enormous opportunity for the future,” he said.

“India has an enormous contribution to make not only to the future of Asia but also of the world.

But it’s a partnership that I want to see her make with her friends in Australia,” he said.

Mr Howard acknowledged India had to overcome many hurdles on the road to development but said trade opportunities and new business would be the greatest enabler.

“In places like India there is still an enormous amount of poverty and there are great challenges not just for the Indian government but for the

rest of the world,” he said.

“You won’t take those people out of poverty unless you continue to have a strong economic and business environment. Nothing makes a greater contribution than expanding trade opportunities, creation of new businesses that employ people by their hundreds and thousands and millions,” he added.

Mr Howard also thanked the Indian Diaspora in Australia for their contribution to society and business, saying he was inspired by the numerous stories of small business success and entrepreneurship being told during the IEC awards ceremony.

—Source: Indian Sun

A music feast from Raaga Sudha School of Carnatic Music

By News Desk

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elbourne, 20 October : Raaga Sudha School of Carnatic Music presented a grand and unique music & dance programme on 20 October 2013 - “SHAKTI ... The Supreme Goddess”. It was a fitting finale for the school’s celebrations of the 10th year since its formation in 2003.

Earlier this year the school presented its 10th annual students concert, showcasing the exciting and impressive young talent being nurtured in the school.

Founded and led by Australia’s finest Indian classical violinist Mr. Murali Kumar, the Raaga Sudha School has earned an enviable reputation (in a relatively short span of 10 years) as the premier institute for South Indian Classical music learning in Melbourne.

The “SHAKTI” event was a thematic presentation, appropriately coinciding with the Navratri

and Dussera festive season. The event featured Indian classical music and dances in praise of the supreme Hindu Goddess Devi.

There were delightful presentations by local and inter-state professional artistes of high calibre.

The highlights of the event were:

• Violin concert by Mr.Murali Kumar, accompanied by his student Niranjan Neelakantan on the violin, and renowned percussionist Sridhar Chari on the mrdangam; • Flute performance by Mr.Sridhar Chari withMr. Murali Kumar on violin and Mr.Bala Shankar on the Mrdangam; • Bharatanatyam dance performances by acclaimed dancers Chandrika Srinivas and Lalitha Narayanan; • Audio-visual presentation on “Devi – her forms and temples” by Soundarajan Iyer; • Violin and vocal music performances by students of Raaga

Sudha School of Carnatic Music.

The unique feature of the event was that most of the songs performed were devoted to the Goddess Devi, in some of her many forms such as Kali, Kamakshi, Meenakshi, Annapurani etc. They brought out the devotional aspects of music and

dance well, and enthralled the appreciative audience.

The SHAKTI event was also dedicated to the memory of violin vidwan late Shri Kanchi Janardhanan and Padmabhushan Sangeeta Kalanidhi late Shri M.S. Gopalakrishnan, the revered Gurus of Murali Kumar.

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The event was professionally organised and delivered by the school and its dedicated team of volunteers who contributed significant time and energy to make it a great success. It was a memorable festival of music and dance and a feast to all art lovers of Melbourne.

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Meet-Greet with new Indian Consul General Manika Jain at the Indian Consulate

New Indian Consul General Manika Jain addressing the community at the Indian Consulate, Melbourne

Western Senior Secondary College(VCAL 11 & 12) info. session for agents

CEO Intaj Khan addressing the gathering at the Western Senior Secondary College(VCAL 11 & 12) info. session for agents.

Community Roundup

Mata Ki Chowki organised by the Sankat Mochan on 5 Oct

At the Westpac Diwali celebrations

At the Westpac Diwali celebrations

At the Westpac Diwali celebrations

At the Westpac Diwali celebrations

Mata Ki Chowki organised by the Sankat Mochan on 5 Oct

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SBS Punjabi program wins UN media award The UNAA Awards recognise those in the media whose work highlights and champions human rights and social justice issues and stimulates public debate and changes in public and private policy.

By our community reporter

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elbourne: The SBS Punjabi Radio program’s compelling documentary feature by Manpreet Kaur Singh and Sacha Payne, – ‘The Enemy Within’ has won the UNAA Media Awards 2013 (on 18 October) in the special category "Increasing Awareness and Understanding of Womens' Rights and Issues". It has also been named a finalist at the prestigious awards Walkley Awards winners to be announced on Nov 28, 2013.

The UNAA Awards recognise those in the media whose work highlights and champions human rights and social justice issues and stimulates public debate and changes in public

and private policy.

The Enemy Within, explores family violence in the Australian Indian community through the voices of victims, experts, police and the court system. Many of the stereotypes around Indian culture, victims and perpetrators of family abuse are challenged through the stories of six victims of family violence, as well as four experts, all from the Australian Indian community.

SBS Director of News and Current Affairs, Jim Carroll said: “It's great to see the efforts of our News and Current Affairs journalists recognised with these awards. They are reward for our continued commitment to producing quality coverage of such important issues.” Talking to SAT, Manpreet Singh said, “she was

overwhelmed and it was good at last mainstream Australia started recognising us.”

Listeners can hear the six episodes of The Enemy Within along with some additional content, including a 50 minute English version at http://www. sbs.com.au/yourlanguage/punjabi.

Episode 1 offers insight into how family violence manifests itself in the Indian community in Australia, why so many victims continue living in abusive relationships and highlights some of the issues that prevent victims from speaking out within the Indian Australian community.

Episode 2 features two tragic stories of wives killed by their husbands... One had an arranged marriage and the other, a love marriage.

Episode 3 begins with NSW Assistant Commissioner Mark Murdoch, who tells us that," Annually NSWPF responds to in excess of 120,000 incidents of DV in all its forms.

Episode 4 offers insight into how family violence manifests itself in the Indian community in Australia, why so many victims continue living in abusive relationships and highlights some of the issues that prevent victims from speaking out within the Indian Australian community.

Episode 5 offers insight into how family violence manifests itself in the Indian community in Australia, why so many victims continue living in abusive relationships and highlights some of the issues that prevent victims from speaking out within the Indian Australian community.

Episode 6 the final episode of The Enemy Within confronts the Indian community, the wider community, the police and people in positions of authority.

—SAT News Service

Air India Dreamliner windshield cracks during Melbourne landing

By News Desk

M

elbourne: Thousands of people who have booked with Air India for the holiday season were put off by the news that an Air India Dreamliner had its windshield cracked while landing at the Melbourne Airport on Sunday.

The incident happened when the Delhi-Melbourne-SydneyDelhi flight, carrying 74 passengers, landed at the Melbourne Airport late Sunday (3 Nov.).

“The windshield of the plane cracked and that can happen because of atmospheric changes”, said an Air India official by phone in Melbourne.

He further said, “The Dreamliner has multiple windshields and cracking of one of them was not dangerous”.

A report says the windscreen was later replaced and Air India dismissed any claims of technical glitches on the Melbournebound flight.

“It was no aircraft glitch. This may have happened due to rapid change in temperatures or some other particles on the windscreen while landing,” said an Air India spokesman Mr. Praveen Bhatnagar.

A local travel agent talking to SAT said, “Are these people crazy. Don’t they do checks”.

—SAT News Service

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Master Saleem live is amazing

By News Desk

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elbourne: From a child prodigy “Master Saleem” who was heard with amazement by music lovers in Punjab to becoming Bollywood’s singing sensation has been a musical journey which he has been nothing but a success. The fact that today he is singing under top banners is no doubt an achievement. He was here at the Thornbury Theatre, Thornbury on 26th October at an exclusive live business class gala dinner. Also known as Saleem Shahzada, Master Saleem was in his full form at the Thornbury Theatre. In the presence of leading business persons from the Indian/South Asian/ Punjabi background, Master Saleem sang some of his best known hits like Awara from 7 Khoon Maaf, Maa Da Laadla from Dostana,. Mast Kalandar and many more in Punjabi and Hindi. He also sang some of his mixed songs from Bollywood.

It his singing with his vibrant movements on the stage is the combination that was most appreciated by those present in Thornbury Theatre. Master Saleem while singing creates

The sound system was excellent and lighting a class in itself. The many colours of beautiful exclusive lighting and the Victorian ambience of the Thornbury Theatre with all the nice sitting arrangement made the Master Saleem event a big success.

Promoting SAT in Geelong a rapport with the audience which is one reason why people connect well with him. On both sides of the Theatre people were dancing while he sang his hit Punjabi numbers and he kept on pointing on towards them. He talks with his singing voice to the audience. This is unique as it creates popularity for the artist. The business class dinner also added to the fun of the event. The sound

system was excellent and lighting a class in itself. The many colours of beautiful exclusive lighting and the Victorian ambience of the Thornbury Theatre with all the nice sitting arrangement made the Master Saleem event a big success. The tasty and delicious Indian food made and served by the Altona Curry House, Altona also made a big difference to the musical atmosphere in the Theatre.

Master Saleem performing at the Thornbury Theater

At the Geelong Curry House, Geelong

All credit goes to Master Saleem and his music team for making the evening a mesmerising one. The Thornbury Theatre proved that it was among the best for such entertainment events. It goes without saying that it was the sponsors – Visa Link Immigration, St. Stephens Institute of Education, Angad Australian Institute of Technology, SPG, India at Home, Raine & Horne,

Orange Brick Estate Agents, St. Peter Institute, Australian College of Trade, Chawalas’ Veg & Non Veg, Royal Productions, 7 Cords Studios, South Asia Times (SAT), M L G Lawyers, S. K. Education Services, AGB and Singh Sabha Sports Club, Melbourne who made the event a big success.

No doubt, this event will be remembered as one of the best in Melbourne.

Master Saleem poses for SAT in Geelong

At the Thornbury Theater, Thornbury

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At the Thornbury Theater, Thornbury

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135,445 people in India took their lives in 2012 T

By K. S. Harikrishnan

HIRUVANANTHAPURAM, India, Oct 30 2013 (IPS) When Sarath, 29, a security staffer with a private firm in Kattakada town in India’s southern Kerala state hanged himself at his office premises, his death became a grim reminder of what statistics in the country have been showing for some time now: more and more young Indian men are succumbing to socio-economic pressures and are committing suicide.

Sarath had been depressed for a while, everyone around him said, allegedly over debt arising from a bank loan.

According to statistics released earlier this year by the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB), which functions under the country’s ministry of home affairs, 135,445 people committed suicide in the country in 2012. Of these 79,773 were men and 40,715 were women. The eastern state of West Bengal did not provide a gender breakdown.

The NCRB attributed suicides among men to socio-economic causes; women, it noted, were driven to take their lives more by emotional and personal issues.

Women make up 48.65 percent of India’s population, numbering 586 million out of 1.2 billion people in the 2011 census.

Farmer suicides have long been the worst kept secret of this primarily agricultural nation. Drought, rising costs of farm input and debt drove 13,754 farmers to suicide in 2012, according to NCRB statistics.

“Men are still the primary breadwinners in the family. Any obstruction or crisis in the situation can compel them to take the extreme step of ending their lives,” Dr Sreelekha Nair, an independent researcher on social development issues based in Kerala’s capital Thiruvananthapuram, told IPS. “Men are also probably the ones who interact more directly with public and social agencies that ensure social cohesion.”

Women are more prone to having second thoughts than men, Rev. Dr Jose Puthenveed, director and chief consultant psychotherapist at the St Joseph’s Guidance and Counselling Centre in the city of Kollam, 72 km north of Thiruvananthapuram told IPS. He was speaking from his experience at the centre, a non-governmental organisation working for the prevention of suicides in the city.

Nair, however, is reluctant to carry the socio-economic versus personal issue compartmentalisation for male and female suicides too far. She says more and more

women now involve themselves in economic activities and have direct involvement in the community.

“Moreover, the so-called personal or emotional causes may originate in social or economic settings,” she added. She also said that in the present social context, men may not admit to social upheavals, and women may not be seen as stressed by economic issues.

NCRB data also showed that a large number of those committing suicides were in the 15-29 age group; young people made up 34.6 percent of the suicide victims in 2012.

“Love affairs, failure in examinations, sexual abuse, ragging, humiliation and family conflicts are some of the reasons affecting sensitive youngsters, pushing them to commit suicide,” Dr Jayapradeep, a clinical psychologist with his own practice in Kochi, told IPS. “The real reason behind suicides is the inability of a person to overcome issues, problems, challenges, or a crisis which he or she may be facing,” said A.R. Suseel, lecturer in the department of counselling at the Kerala United Theological Seminary (KUTS) in Thiruvananthapuram. He is also a researcher in suicide prevention counselling at the Serampore University in West Bengal.

“Today, people do not share their problems with family, friends

or well-wishers,” he added. “The lack of social, emotional and psychological support aggravates the state of mind of mentally fragile people,” Suseel told IPS. Family issues contribute significantly to suicides: NCRB statistics show 25.6 percent of the 2012 suicides were on this account. Also, it says 71.6 per cent of the men who committed suicide in 2012 were married; the percentage for married women stood at 67.9.

“People are more self-centred today,” Sister Celine, counsellor at Kollam’s St Joseph’s Guidance and Counselling Centre, told IPS. “They inflate minor matters into big issues, leading to a crisis of the mind. Ego clashes only make things worse.”

Father Abraham Scaria, director of the Marthoma Hospital Guidance and Counselling Centre in Thiruvananthapuram, blames changes in the family structure – from joint families to nuclear units – for the growing number of suicides.

“Social interaction with other relatives decreases when people opt for nuclear families,” he told IPS. This leads to a feeling of isolation and a state of mental helplessness, he added. “At that stage, people think suicide is better than living.”

Preventive strategies implemented at a community level and identifying vulnerable individuals may be more effective than global strategies to arrest increasing suicides,

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According to statistics released earlier this year by the National Crime Records Bureau, 135,445 people committed suicide in the country in 2012.

Rajeev Radhakrishnan of the psychiatry department at the Yale University School of Medicine in the U.S. and Chittaranjan Andarade of the psychopharmacology department at the National Institute of Mental Health and Neurosciences (NIMHANS) in Bangalore, said in a study titled ‘Suicide: An Indian Perspective’, published in the Indian Journal of Psychiatry in 2012.

Suseel of Thiruvananthapuram’s KUTS stresses the need for a crisis management facility in all of Kerala’s villages. At 24.3 per 100,000 people, the state had the thirdhighest rate of suicides in 2012 after the northeastern state of Sikkim and the neighbouring state of Tamil Nadu, according to NCRB figures.

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Bangladesh textile tragedies survivors suffering

By Robert Stefanicki

D

HAKA, Oct 30 2013 (IPS) - Six months after the worst man-made disaster in Bangladesh’s history, safety conditions in garment factories have a chance to improve. But not the lives of survivors or the victims’ next of kin.

On Apr. 24, the collapse of Rana Plaza factory building took 1,133 lives of mostly female workers.

The disaster was too big to ignore. The unprecedented scale of the tragedy shocked people the world over, many of them dressed in clothes made in Bangladesh on request of giants such as Tesco, Carrefour, Benetton or Walmart.

Today, the site in the Dhaka suburb is enclosed by a barbed wire and metal fence covered with banners. ‘How long do we have to wait for compensation for the death of our parents ?’ asks one.

What was left of Rana Plaza can be seen from the top floor of a neighbouring building. Debris has been cleared, but the bodies of two cars stick out of a vast pool of mud water.

“They were parked in an underground garage,” Hassan, one of the volunteer rescuers told IPS. His team, he said, took some 400 people out of the rubble.

A survivor, Hasina, pulled her scarf up showing a deformed right arm with extensive scars.

“That day I came to work at 8:30. I heard from my colleagues about the cracks in the wall. We did not want to enter the building, but the supervisor forced us,” she told IPS. “Then the power was gone and soon after it happened.”

A piece of the ceiling pinned Hasina down. She was rescued the same evening. Today the young woman can barely move her hand, and is unable to work.

Hasina received compensation of 36,000 taka (450 dollars). The Bangladesh Garment Manufactures & Exporters Association (BGMEA), a powerful guild, promised to pay survivors a salary, so Hasina still gets 10,000 taka a month.

She is undergoing re-

Foreign clients should not avoid responsibility, even if the workers’ imagination is too narrow to blame them.

habilitation. Treatment is free, but she complains that commuting by rickshaw costs 20 taka each time – an amount that adds up.

The Rana Plaza tragedy resulted in an outpouring of commitments from governments, local and global institutions, groups and individuals.

According to some reports, each family of the deceased and seriously injured received up to a million taka – but IPS did not meet anybody who got anything close to that amount.

The compensation was paid mostly by the government of Bangladesh. Irish retailer Primark (one of the brands whose clothes were produced at Rana Plaza) paid a short-term allowance of 16,000 taka (200 dollars) to each victim, in what unwittingly made Primark the most recognisable brand in Bangladesh.

Long-term compensation is still under negotiation.

The bad omen was that in a September meeting on this issue organised in Geneva with the support of the United Nations International Labour Organisation (ILO), only nine of the 29 companies that ordered production at Rana Plaza were present.

With 3.6 million people working in the garment

industry, Bangladesh is the world’s second-largest clothing exporter after China. About 60 percent of exports go to Europe and 23 percent to the United States. The minimum wage for a garment worker is 38 dollars a month, though after a massive street demonstration recently, an increase is imminent.

Yet the survivors are far from blaming the West for what happened at Rana Plaza. Usually they do not know which brand made an order for clothes they were sewing.

Abdulrahman, who lost his wife Sharifa in the collapse (he got a total of 136,000 taka, or 1,700 dollars, in compensation plus a rickshaw from local NGO Karmojibi Nari), does not even blame the owner of the building, since “he did not order the factory owners to place the power generators on the upper floor instead of on the ground floor.” It was the generators’ vibrations that caused the collapse.

Abdulrahman blames only the factory owners, who along with the building’s owner Sohel Rana, are under arrest, awaiting trial.

What penalty is appropriate for Sharifa’s death?

“I don’t want the manufacturer to be hanged. A life sentence would be enough.

And he should apologise,”

the mourning widower said.

“Foreign clients should not avoid responsibility, even if the workers’ imagination is too narrow to blame them,” said Dr. Khondaker Moazzem of the Centre for Policy Dialogue in Dhaka.

According to the researcher, who co-authored the report ‘100 Days of Rana Plaza Tragedy’, the compensation paid to the victims so far is too small.

“According to some independent calculations the injured workers should get an average of more than two million taka.”

Families of the missing are in the worst situation. So far, 332 workers have not been identified or found, and their relatives are in a limbo, with no right to any compensation.

For the garments industry, Rana Plaza seems to have been a wake-up call.

Six months on, new deals to improve safety of the workers are in place.

One is called ‘The accord on fire and factory safety in Bangladesh’. It was signed (under pressure from customers and public opinion) by more than 100 retailers and brands, mostly from Europe. Before the end of this year they plan to start “independent” inspections at about 1,600 factories used

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by them.

In another measure, employees will be trained to exercise their rights, including the right to refuse entry into a building considered unsafe.

‘The alliance for Bangladesh worker safety’ has been set up, and 23 brands, mostly from the U.S., have joined. This factory safety deal is seen as less rigorous than the other accord because its signatories are not legally bound by their commitments, and it is not linked to unions or workers’ rights groups.

Not least, the government in Dhaka and the ILO, with the backing of the British and Dutch governments, have launched a 25-million-dollar plan to provide technical expertise for building and fire safety assessments in the country’s garment trade over the next three-and-ahalf years.

Amid doubts on the supply of professional and incorruptible inspectors for the job, individual brands have already inspected more than 500 factories themselves.

Since the Rana Plaza disaster, the authorities in Bangladesh are more sensitive to any breach of safety rules and are keen to close unsafe factories as never before. The manufacturers themselves prefer to do that rather than to risk a new tragedy. The BGMEA has so far inspected 620 plants and ordered the closure of 20.

Everybody in Bangladesh agrees that such a tragedy must never be repeated. But the way ahead is far. Three weeks ago, a fire ripped through the Aswad garments factory in a Dhaka suburb. Ten workers died.

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Send money to India from only $10* AU Toll Free: 1800 049 087 Send to a bank account online: moneygram.com.au

Send money to your loved ones. Find our agent locations:

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Energy Information Fund Open for Applications

Grants are now available through the Victorian Government’s Energy Information Fund to assist not-for-profit organisations to educate and empower community groups to make informed decisions about electricity.

The Fund focuses on groups within the community that may not be reached by mainstream information campaigns. These include but are not limited to: culturally and linguistically diverse communities, seniors’ groups, indigenous communities, rural or isolated communities, people with a disability, carers and concession card holders.

This Funding round opened on 17 September 2013. In order to allow ample time for all relevant organisations to apply the deadline for submitting to this round has now been extended.

Applications now close at 5.00pm on Friday 20 December 2013.

Further details about the Energy Information Fund and how to apply for a grant are available from: switchon.vic.gov.au/energyinformationfund

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Afghan or Pakistani?

By Ashfaq Yusufzai

P

ESHAWAR, Pakistan, Nov 10 2013 (IPS) - Seventeenyear-old Usmanullah Shah has never been to Afghanistan, the land of his forefathers. The son of Afghan parents who fled to Pakistan 34 years ago to escape war, he shudders at the thought of going there.

“I was born here and grew up here. I have never seen my native country and I consider myself a ‘citizen’ of Pakistan,” Shah, a Grade 10 student, told IPS. “We consider Pakistan our second home and don’t want to go back,” he said.

There are around 1.6 million registered Afghan refugees in Pakistan, the largest refugee population in the world, according to the office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR).

In July, Pakistan extended the deadline for their repatriation to December 2015 – a decision hailed by people like Shah.

Neither he nor his three younger brothers wants to move out of Peshawar, a border city and the capital of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province. One of them, Ikramullah Shah, said, “We are extremely happy with Pakistan’s decision to extend our stay here.”

The boy, who studies in Grade 7, said that after 35 years of war Afghanistan was not liveable anymore.

“From what we hear, there are no educational, health or civic facilities there.

In Pakistan, we are better off.”

That’s a thought shared by many Afghan refugees, especially the younger ones.

Usmanullah Shah said his parents left Kabul when the erstwhile Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan in 1979. That was the time when the Afghan influx into Pakistan began, only to continue, propelled by bloody conflict in that country.

Islamabad has been consistently pushing the UNHCR and the international community to help repatriate the refugees. UNHCR spokesman Qaisar Afridi said 3.8 million Afghan refugees had been repatriated over the past 11 years.

In December 2012, the remaining refugees were given a six-month extension and asked to return

by Jun. 30 this year. But

again, with the help of the U.N. refugee agency, they were allowed to stay on in Pakistan, Afridi said.

The decision was taken at a meeting in Kabul attended by Afghan, Pakistani and UNHCR officials in July this year. Afghan refugees with Proof of Registration (PoR) cards were legally entitled to stay on, Afridi said.

Abdul Qadir Baloch, Pakistan’s minister for states and frontier regions, said Islamabad had agreed on humanitarian grounds, especially in view of the law and order situation in Afghanistan.

“We aren’t going to force out anyone who has legitimate documents for a temporary stay. The government has been extending hospitality to the Afghans and wants them to go back with dignity,” Baloch told IPS. He said registered Afghan refugees were entitled to bank accounts, driving licences and connections for telephone, electricity and gas. But the nearly two million illegal refugees would face action from authorities, Baloch said, without elaborating.

Afghans are found in large numbers in cities like Peshawar, Quetta, Karachi and Islamabad. There is also a large population of

Afghans residing in Pakistan illegally.

Jamaher Anwari, the Afghan minister for refugees, who had travelled to Islamabad to hammer out the agreement on refugees, told IPS: “Pakistan has hosted our people with open hearts despite its own hardships.”

“The situation in Afghanistan is rapidly returning to normal and we hope all Afghan refugees in Pakistan will proceed to their own country within the specified period,” Anwari said.

But that may be easier said than done.

“The Pakistani government’s decision to extend the deadline for repatriation brought relief for refugees who run businesses or have other interests here and could not have left for Afghanistan immediately,” Muhammad Hashim, a 51-year-old carpet dealer in the Board Area of Peshawar on Jamrud Road that leads to Afghanistan, told IPS. Hashim, who is originally from Jalalabad, said many Afghans now had homes in Pakistan and Afghanistan and travelled frequently between the two countries. He pointed out that a sprawling market had come to be called “Mini Kabul” as it was completely dominated by Af-

ghan shopkeepers.

Hashim said in Pakistan he lived in an upmarket neighbourhood and his three sons and two daughters were studying in an English-medium school.

“Our younger generation doesn’t want to leave Pakistan for Afghanistan. The situation there offers no hope for young Afghans,” he said.

Life is, however, not always comfortable for refugees.

“Police demand bribes from us,” Muhammad Rafiq, a taxi driver who hails from Kabul, told IPS. “We pay because most Afghan drivers don’t have valid documents,” added the 44-year-old father of two boys, aged 10 and 12.

“The Pakistani government, as well as the people, see us as parasites,” he said. “But my sons don’t want to go back despite the problems here.”

The presence of Afghan refugees is often frowned upon by Pakistanis, who see them as competing with the locals for jobs and housing.

Mian Ziaul Haq, secretary of the Hayatabad Estate Dealers’ Association here, said: “They have caused a shortage of housing not only in Peshawar but in all major Pakistani cities. They are looked

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I was born here and grew up here.

I have never seen my native country and I consider myself a ‘citizen' of Pakistan. down upon by Pakistanis, though house owners are happy with the fat rents they get.”

Despite the resentment they face, many refugees want to stay put.

Muhammad Sadiq, a 23-year-old Afghan who owns a mobile phone shop in Mardan, one of the 25 districts of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, has never been to Afghanistan and doesn’t intend to go either.

“What is left in a country ruined by three decades of endless war?” he asked.

Sadiq told IPS, “My parents visit their native home in Jalalabad regularly, but I and my brothers never accompany them.

We live here comfortably and don’t see any reason to go back.”

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Dwindling aid slows Sri Lanka

By Amantha Perera

K

ILINOCHCHI, Sri Lanka , Nov 7 2013 (IPS) - When the first trains in almost two and a half decades started running through this war-ravaged town in Sri Lanka in mid-September, Sinngamuththu Jesudasan could not resist the temptation to go and have a look – repeatedly.

The last time the 62-yearold had seen a train on the track in Kilinochchi was somewhere in the late 1980s. “They suddenly stopped,” Jesudasan told IPS, staring motionlessly at the blue train speeding on the track towards Kilinochchi.

He was not alone. The first trains on the Kilinochchi track, declared open by President Mahinda Rajapaksa, attracted dozens of fans every time they sped by on the northern line.

Fathers brought young kids on bicycles closer to the track to see the train, and at least during the first few days, schoolchildren lined up at the newly refurbished Kilinochchi station, the train’s final destination on the northern line, to get on to the carriages.

“It is impressive isn’t it,” Jesudasan asked as he watched the train pass by.

Impressive indeed – the northern rail track is part of a multi-billion dollar infrastructure development undertaken by the government. By the Central Bank’s account, since the end of the war in May 2009, over three billion dollars have been spent in the North on infrastructure development.

The changes are visible to all. The A9 road that runs through the Northern Province is a six-lane highway, a far cry from the pot-hole infested dirt track it was for most of the last three decades. There are new hospitals, new electricity distribution systems and new banks.

Two recent U.N. surveys, one by the Office of the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and another by the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), finalised in June this year also found impressive progress in the former war zone, especially in infrastructure works.

Similar sentiments were expressed by U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay soon after she toured the region in August.

But just beneath the veneer of development lie the

lingering issues of unemployment, poverty, food insecurity and mass debt.

There are new roads, but they don’t seem to have brought in new riches.

Despite the impressive development spending, in the last three years, Sri Lanka has been struggling to harness donor funding for humanitarian work in the former war zone.

Since 2010, three successive joint appeals for work in the region have run into a collective shortfall of 430 million dollars. The U.N. has undertaken a new needs evaluation and the next appeal is likely to be released during the first quarter of 2014, OCHA officials in Colombo said.

“The era of cheap aid is over. Increasingly it will become tougher and tougher for the government to look for development aid at concessionary rates,” said Anushka Wijesinha, research economist at the national research agency Institute of Policy Studies of Sri Lanka.

Part of the aid slowdown has actually been blamed on the country’s economic progress. In early 2012, the World Bank categorised Sri Lanka as a low middleincome country, effectively limiting access to concessionary funding.

“The middle-income status directly affects donor contribution towards postwar reconstruction, rehabilitation and remaining

humanitarian assistance,” stated the OCHA survey that is yet to be made available freely.

It also pointed out that there were regions of extreme poverty and vulnerability in the island. One of the most vulnerable regions is the war-hit north.

The UNHCR survey that interviewed 917 of the 138,651 families that have returned to the six northern districts since the war’s end found that only nine percent had regular wages. Over 55 percent said their income was based on irregular work, and over 43 percent of the families earned a paltry Rs 5000 (38 dollars) a month – less than one-sixth of the national average monthly income.

And debt seems to be rampant: “52 percent of the respondents report a total household debt of Rs 50,000 [380 dollars] or less, and a total 47 percent of respondents [report a] total household debt at Rs 100,000 [760 dollars] or more,” the survey found.

Experts say the slowing down of funding now puts the onus on the government to step in to carry out the remaining humanitarian assistance work.

“The issue of assistance is definitely one of the current dominant problems to addressing the IDP [internally displaced persons] problem,” said Mirak Raheem, who recently authored an extensive research study on protracted war displaced in

Sri Lanka. “Donor financial support has played a crucial role in humanitarian work and now it will be incumbent on the government to fill the gap.”

Chandana Kularatne, an economist with the World Bank in Washington, told IPS that the government should first use the massive investments in infrastructure to foster growth in the region and build transport links.

“Development projects such as the building of roads are expected to improve connectivity and hence economic activity,” he said.

Attracting new investors would work as a great boost to the two main income generators in the region – agriculture and fisheries. Over 90 percent of the provincial population’s income is linked to the two sectors, and over 50 percent of the provincial economic output comes from them as well.

However, both sectors still crave outside buyers who can negate the impact of middle-men who drive down prices.

Wijesinha said that government should be much more astute with development spending and should also look at ways of expanding domestic tax revenue so that more funds could be generated within the island.

The OCHA survey said that its ongoing needs assessment survey will give a clear picture on the most vulnerable communities to

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But just beneath the veneer of development lie the lingering issues of unemployment, poverty, food insecurity and mass debt. There are new roads, but they don’t seem to have brought in new riches. help set priorities for aid and assistance.

It also said that things should change from the last three years, when there was a distinct separation between development and humanitarian work, with the government taking over the bulk of the former, and the humanitarian agencies taking the lead in the latter.

“The remaining and current humanitarian needs should be addressed concurrently with the development assistance,” the survey said.

But before all that, there should be sufficient funds to carry out the work, something that has been lacking.

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Story of a Dalit activist, who dared “cross the line” S

on of a farm labourer, Kantilal Parmar is today a senior Dalit rights activist with the Navsarjan Trust. He says, his story is not his alone. Many other Dalits in India have the same experience as he, facing untouchability and discrimination. “When I talked about my life with other Dalits in Gujarat, I realized that we all had similar experience in our life. Probably I am more fortunate than many of my Dalit friends. At least, I have an opportunity to share my story, which many others don’t”, he says. Here narrates how how fought to become an activist: I am Kantilal Ukabhai Parmar. My surname is Parmar.

My father is Ukabhai and my mother is Jivuben. I was born in Chital village in Amreli district in Gujarat. I have two brothers and two sisters. I am the eldest. I have two uncles.

One of them was working at the district panchayat as clerk and has just retired, while the other uncle works as peon at the Chital High School in my village. My grandmother, whom I loved a lot, passed aay at the age of 96 in 2009. We all lived in a joint family, altogether.

My ‘polluted’ coin

I am born in chamar community, a Dalit sub-caste.

People called us “untouchables”. I faced ‘untouchability’ many times in primary school.

I took my primary education from class one to seven at the Jashvantgadh Primary School in my village. In the classroom, we had to sit in the backbenches, without exception. We were not allowed to sit near the Patel students, the dominant caste classmates.

There was a water tank in the school, and the Dalit students had to use separate tumblers to drink water.

It was not easy for us to take part in cricket game in school.

We were not even allowed to pray. When the dominant caste classmates needed to exchange coins with us, they would collect coins from us after purifying them by sprinkling water on them, as they thought the coins that we had were polluted. Every day we were shamed. I could not understand what was wrong with me or why we were considered inferior.

First leaf-plate for drinking water

When I was at school, my parents worked at a farm as agricultural labourers. When-

ever I had vacation or holiday, I came to the farm to assist my parents’ work along with my siblings. I remember, one day when we went to the farm, we brought our own plates and glasses. There were many people from our community to work at the farm but we only had one common tumbler.

We walked in a queue. I was so thirsty, but could not use the tumbler which was used by others from the dominant caste.

I asked the landlord for water. I had to get the water using my palms as the water was poured from above, since the landlord did not want my palms to touch the container, thereby polluting the entire water. The water began to flow off from my hands. I was too young to drink properly like this. Seeing this, the landlord asked me to collect some leaf from the tree nearby and use it as a plate or a tumbler to collect water. I followed him, as I was very hungry, and drank water. I did not want to do this, but had no other option.

I have my name, Kanti People from upper castes in the village, I remember, never called me by my name Kanti; they would address me as dhedh. It was common for persons belonging to the Dalit community to be referred to as dhedh, which is a derogatory way to refer to us, a refer-

ence to our so-called impurity for doing jobs like cleaning up others’ dirt. We are often even today addressed in the same derogatory manner, especially in villages.

Chamar is a community identified as cobblers. We are expected to repair shoes and sandals. The upper caste people who came to my father to repair their shoes and sandals would throw their shoes to my father from a distance. After repairing, my father would put the shoes at some point to let the upper caste persons to collect their shoes. Payment was not guaranteed, since such work was our duty in the caste hierarchy. If at all someone was willing to pay, the payment used to be leftover food or some grains.

When there were local celebrations like a wedding or a festival in the village, my grandmother was usually informed. We were never expected to participate in such functions, nor did we expect to be invited. However, we were allowed to go to these functions, not to participate, but to collect the leftover food. My grandmother generally went for these functions.

She along with others from our community would have to wait in a corner, outside the venue and away from the view of the guests, until the feast was over. In between, we were

not allowed to show face anywhere around where the upper caste had even the possibility of seeing even our shadow, since even that was believed to be polluting.

Once the feast was over, the leftover food was gathered and dropped on the ground outside the festival spot or the marriage feast hall. To keep the food in one place or from being spread around we used to dig a small ditch in the ground. Once the person who had dropped the food in the ditch would leave, we were allowed to collect the food from the ditch. Most often, this used to be the food we would get after days of starvation.

Kanti, do not cross the line We were taught by the elders in the family that we needed to behave properly in society, abiding by all the caste practices. We were continuously cautioned that we should always keep in mind that we were the lower caste.

We were also cautioned that the upper caste was very superior and we were inferior.

We needed to behave in such a manner that we did not cross the line. In addition to that, from daily practice, we came to know that it was dangerous to cross the line.

For example, in the school we were not allowed to be admitted into the school sports team. We were continuously

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reminded that we were inferior, and also continuously threatened to be immediately punished if we crossed the line. The punishment often used to be punishment in public. Not only was the punishment made in such a way that people saw it, it was often symbolic. For any “mistake” that I committed, my father or the entire community would be punished.

There was a timber merchant in our village. Many of my family members and persons from our community used to work for this merchant in his yard. There were separate glasses for us to drink water, kept beside a window in the yard, where there was a water container. If we needed to drink water, we must first make a sound like a light cough before approaching the window. This was to warn the upper caste people that we were going towards the window and hence they should not reach the spot by accident.

We were not allowed to pour water for ourselves. A person would pour water from the container without touching our glass or us. If we did not follow this rule we would be punished. Maybe it might be me who might make a mistake of touching something that we were not supposed to touch.

And, the punishment would be for all the labourers in the yard from our community who worked there. The punishment would be in the form of not paying wages for the entire week, or somewhat similar, or even worse.

There were eight to ten timber merchants in our village.

Only the Hindu timber merchants practiced caste discrimination. The Muslim merchants did not. But it was hard to get a job with the Muslim merchants, since there were only two or three of them, and they would generally have no vacancy.

My mother and grandmother had to buy milk from an upper caste person, usually a Patel. To make the payment for the milk, they were expected to keep the money on the ground and stay away.

This was to ensure that even by accident we did not touch the upper caste persons and polluted them. The Patel, who would sell us milk, would first purify the money by spraying water on it, and then take it.

Such practices continue even today. They happen less in towns but are a way of life in villages. Not that caste identity

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or practices have changed in towns, but because in villages everyone knows who is who, while nobody knows who is who in towns.

Even today, we cannot easily buy a house or a property in a town or a city. When we do the documentation for buying property, we need to furnish our complete address as well as our full name. The address and the name would reveal our caste identity. Once the caste identity is revealed, often the seller would pose some excuse in order to refuse to sell us the property.

Helping hand of Brahmin teacher

At the secondary school, teachers would often abusively call us as “son-in-law” of the government. This was done to make a mockery of the government schemes which help persons from lower castes to reach the mainstream. Teachers often used to say, “Hey son-law-law of the government, come here.”

However, all teachers from upper caste were not like that.

Anshuyaben, a female teacher from the Brahmin caste, gave me free English tuition after the school. She supported me a lot. She considered me as her son, and I was allowed to go to the teacher’s home. The teacher also visited my house.

I used to work hard and was always the first or second in the class.

However, there was another teacher, named Sangani, who taught male students. He would ask me “Why do you study English? You do not need to study English. You should not study English.” He tried to discourage me this way. I am sure that he believed in what he said; perhaps to him a lower caste person like me was nothing but a fellow destined to do inhuman labour. To him, education was of no use to us.

One day I asked him, “Why can’t I study?” And the teacher replied, “What are you going to do after finishing the school?

Even if you secure good marks in the examination, what would you do? You are chamar.

You cannot go to college. And you should not go to college.

Besides, who is going to take you to the college?”

This was in sharp contrast to Anshuyaben, whose duty was to teach only female students, yet she encouraged me in every possible way. Finally, when the examination results were published, I was the first in the school. I got 66 per cent marks. It was 1986. When Sangani came to know of my result, he said, “You did something wrong.”

Following the result, people started visiting me with food or sweets and congratulated me. However, my family did not have anything to give back to the guests, not even a cup of tea, as we were so poor. The

entire village came to know of my high score. A local newspaper published my name and photograph, and I was so happy. However, I realized soon: I did not have money to study more. My parents could not afford higher studies. I must return to work.

The students who scored the highest mark in the school would be awarded Rs 251 as an award in the village. But neither the school nor the village gave me the award, because I am Dalit.

My uncle was working in the local administration at that time. He had more money. People told my uncle to help me.

My uncle told my father that he would help me to travel from the village to the city and get me enrolled for diploma in electronics engineering. But my father denied the offer, not because he did not want me to study, but because he did not want to end up in debt, even to his own brother.

My uncle insisted to accept the help and finally my father agreed. My uncle said, “Kanti is one among us. He is good at studies. We must encourage him. This might be his only way out of this curse of caste”.

College was no different In Bhavnagar town, where I studied, initially I did not notice the practice of caste discrimination. When I enrolled at the college my education certificates exposed my caste identity along with my village name. At the college hostel where I stayed, I realized soon that the upper caste students, as always, had the upper hand.

They could stay anywhere they wished, in any room of the hostel. However, we from the lower castes were all boarded in a separate hostel, the “exclusive” Dalit hostel.

It is very tough in Gujarat during summer due to heat, and water is a much sought after commodity. There was a water tank for the upper caste students, but none for us in the hostel. We could not take a shower or wash our clothes.

Often, we did not even have enough water to drink. We had to wait for the leftover water from the upper caste community. The hostel for the upper caste students had more facilities, including electrical gadgets and television. Nothing was there for us. Soon I realized that the college was no different from the village.

I had borrowed a cycle from my uncle for commuting between the hostel and the college. There used to be movie shows at night in the town. One day, an upper caste student came to me and said, “Give me your cycle. I need to go to go for a movie tonight.”

I refused. “I won’t give you my cycle, because I don’t want to give it to you“, I said. The same night my cycle was destroyed. I was very angry and also sad. I could not complain against him. I just had to keep

quiet.

The upper caste students could pick up any Dalit student they chose to beat us up.

This could be with or without any reason. Sometimes they would come drunk and beat up Dalit students just for fun.

We had no right to say “No”.

We had to face it. We could not complain. If we dared, we would face abuse from the college administration. We just had to obey.

Some upper caste boys would bring girls to the institution. When they required our room to spend their time with girls, we were expected to vacate our rooms. If we objected, we were assaulted. We were treated as servants even in the college. It became intolerable.

I soon moved from Bhavnagar town to Amreli for diploma course.

At Amreli, I started organizing Dalit students. I would directly contact those Dalits students who were admitted in the college. I encouraged them to stay together and formed a Dalit students’ union. I became a Dalit student union leader.

The name of the Dalit student union was Dalit Yuva Vidyarthai Sangathan (Dalit Young Students’ Federation). We dealt with issues concerning Dalit students, and also started writing complaints, even petitions to the Prime Minister.

I started developing my own small group for the Dalit students’ rights, specifically on issues like scholarship for Dalit students. In my case, however, even though I was qualified to get a scholarship it was denied to me.

The ration shop experience In 1988, the government reserved ration distribution shop in my village for the Dalit community members. My father, who had studied up to the fourth standard, helped by my uncle, filled up a form to run the ration shop. His application was granted and he began his ration shop.

After my father got the license for the ration shop, my father stopped working in the farm as he had to open the ration shop every day till late evening. When he used to go to the farm, he would accompany with him other family members like my mother, grandmother and my sisters to work at the farm. However, with the absence of male members in the family, it became difficult to go outside of the village for farm work.

The ration shop needed more than one person to be run. It also required some investment for which my father had to get a loan from a bank.

But the loan and the interest was too high for my father to pay back. My father also wanted some support for running the shop and asked my uncle to join as partner. The problem was that the profit from the ration shop was not high enough and had to be reinvested in

southSouth asia times 27 Asia Times the shop for ten years.

This ten year period was the toughest time for my family. Any profit there was had to be divided for three persons, and after division. We got nothing. In addition to that, I was studying at the time.

Though the shop began in the village, half of the ration card holders in the village went to Amreli town to collect their ration since they did not want to buy it at my father’s shop. Thus we lost 50 per cent of the potential customers.

There was a village head, belonging to the upper caste community. A BJP leader, he intentionally kept changing the ration card register which had the record of those who were registered with the ration shop. The ration card holders started getting confused as to where to go to collect their ration and blamed it on my father. They believed that my father cheated them since they could not find their names under my father’s ration shop in which the ration card holders initially registered their names.

My father and my uncle who was a second partner were not aware how to run the ration shop and the legalities involved. They found it difficult to understand what the village head was doing by changing the register. However, another uncle, the third partner, who was working in the government service, came to know of what was going on. My uncle could not say that the village head was wrong. He was not supposed to be involved in the ration shop as he was working for the government.

My father and uncles struggled for a while by talking to people. During the first part of running the ration shop, we faced various problems, one after another. It was believed that Dalits should not run a ration shop and it had been dominated by the upper caste.

However, it was the government which had granted us the license for the ration shop and they could not prevent us from running it.

I used go to home during vacation. My father was running the ration shop and mother and sisters worked at the farm.

I also went to work at the farm to support my family. However, even after hard labour at the farm, we did not have food to eat at home. We were so poor, that often we would only had water and some dry rotis to keep us alive. However, none of us complained.

When I was studying at college, many people used to come to me for writing a complaint and getting a petition done. Even when the upper caste people threatened me, the hostel was safe. I did not have to pay the rent in the hostel, as it was subsidized for me by the government. This was the time that I read an article written by Martin Mac-

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wan, who had founded Navsarjan Trust in 1998 as a Dalit rights group.

I was already a self-styled activist and became interested in social work for the community. I did not sit for my examination. I was engaged in something else, rather than studying. I almost stopped studying in 1993, as I became a social activist insideout. After reading Macwan’s article, I met him and asked him, “Can I work with you?” I joined Navsarjan Trust as a village human rights defender in 1998.

This was my new beginning as a human rights activist.

Putting theory into practice The first case I dealt with was the case of Devaliya village in which the water pipeline for the Dalits was cut off by the upper caste people. We protested it and created social tension, which resulted in the social boycott of the village by the upper caste for a long period of time, about three to four years.

I started meeting people, writing complaints and organized protest meetings. Various people came to us and inquired as to what had gone wrong.

It developed into a huge social issue. People from the central intelligence department approached me. One of them was a Dalit. He said, “Why don’t you complain to the National Human Rights Commission?” He gave me the address.

This was my first petition to the National Human Rights Commission, which responded with an order consisting of 21 pages, though generally it responds in just one or two lines.

We took the order to the High Court as public interest litigation. The High Court stated that what the National Human Rights Commission had said was right and must be enforced. I started to learn how these things could be used and how the mechanism could be utilized.

Macwan would often for regular session of activists regarding different issues of law, land reforms, social issues etc. He gave regular coaching to activists to empower them with the essential tools and basic knowledge. As I started working with him, I immediately got an opportunity to put theory into practice, and it succeeded.

Meanwhile, I found that my family had some apprehensions. Even today it has. They say that I should be careful and I should be afraid of this and that. However, when circumstances forced me to react and when I got exposed to more knowledge, I realized that caste discrimination was wrong and there were different laws and mechanisms. I tried to find some remedy. Initially I was afraid. As time passed by, I slowly became courageous and got results.

Source: Counterview.org, November 8, 2013

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mental path that India has embarked on since Independence.

In that context, it is indeed legitimate to raise questions about this Mars Mission, its goals, deliverables and benefits. Any such mission or programme is about choices, what to do, when and how. What will be gained and at what cost? Surely nobody can argue that the Indian public or any concerned citizen cannot ask these or related queries.

Equally, can it be anybody’s case that all science, all quest for knowledge and capability, all creative endeavour, should only be weighed against one measure, namely its direct and immediate contribution to poverty alleviation? Do science, art or culture not have any autonomous place in the life of a nation and its people? Can all societal and developmental activity be reduced to either-or propositions? These are legitimate questions too.

But first let us take a closer look at the Mission itself.

JOURNEY TO MARS

By Raghu

N

ew Delhi: INDIA’S Mars Mission started off in spectacular fashion on November 5 with a text book launch and precise positioning of the Mangalyaan (literally craft to Mars) spacecraft in its planned orbit around Earth. The successful launch was hailed in India as a tribute to the country’s growing technological prowess and an embellishment of national pride. Internationally, it was

greeted mainly with considerable acclaim. But there was also some criticism, at home as well as abroad.

Unfortunately, most of the effusive praise as well as the criticism were clichéd. The former, especially in India, was prematurely self-congratulatory and too full of smug satisfaction to stomach even a hint of doubt: anyone raising critical issues was regarded as a party pooper, and any ifs and buts were attacked as rude interruptions of what should have been unadul-

terated celebration. The critiques, both in India and in western media, were almost all about Indian poverty and backwardness, and questioned, censured or even mocked India for embarking on a space mission, as if a developing country had no business getting engaged with advanced science and technology: this criticism left no room for any appreciation for a difficult job undertaken and done well, or for India adding to the pool of knowledge and capability.

There were also many exag-

gerated comments about an Asian space race, about India trying to go one up on China in particular, a sentiment unfortunately echoed in India by some over-enthusiastic supporters of the mission.

This article argues that understanding India’s Mars Mission calls for putting aside these blinkers. The Mission should be looked at in the context of India’s space programme, as part of a broader science and technology policy, itself located within the develop-

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As originally announced

by ISRO, the Mission to Mars was to be launched using the much more powerful GSLV (Geo-Stationary Launch Vehicle) rocket that would have carried a larger satellite with more instruments. Unfortunately, the GSLV could not be fully developed in time, and had encountered many failures, chiefly due to problems with the indigenous cryogenic stage. In the absence of the GSLV, the Mars Mission was reconfigured to a launch using ISRO’s tried and tested work horse, the PSLV (Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle). For this writer, it is very important to understand this change and its implications, because it has crucial bearing on the objectives and potential benefits or otherwise of the Mars Mission. The significance of this change has been missed by most commentators. It has been deliberately underplayed by proponents of the Mission and in order to boost public perceptions of achievements of India’s Mars Mission. A lack of understanding of this change among most critics has led to their either misplaced criticism or wholesale rejection of the entire Mars venture. Again for this writer, the use of PSLV has meant that India’s Mars Mission is sub-optimal and will not yield the originally expected benefits in scientific understanding nor advance Indian technological capability to the extent envisaged. But more on this later.

In the absence of the

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more powerful GSLV, the methodology adopted for the Mars Mission was similar to Chandrayaan-1, India’s earlier maiden mission to the Moon. Since PSLV does not have the power to directly take heavier spacecraft completely out of Earth’s gravitational pull into inter-planetary space, the strategy adopted was to put the craft into Earth orbit and then fling it into space in a sling-shot manoeuvre along a particular trajectory and use the solar system’s gravitational forces, along with small welltimed boosts, to get the spacecraft to the desired orbit around Mars, and earlier in Chandrayaan around the Moon.

The difference of course is that Chandrayaan had to travel only about 400,000km to the Moon whereas Mangalyaan or the Moon Orbiter Mission (MOM) would have traveled over 680 million km by the time it starts orbiting Mars.

Once there, the small scientific payload comprising 5 sets of instruments weighing just 13kg aboard the 1350kg spacecraft would begin their experiments.

These different instruments would look for methane in the Martian atmosphere, measure hydrogen isotopes in the atmosphere so as to assess how water vapour may have escaped from Mars, look at the composition of the Martian surface through infra-red imagery and also photograph the red planet and its two Moons, Phobos and Deimos.

The methane experiments have come in for considerable criticism on the grounds that NASA’s Curiosity rover traveling on the Martian surface has not found any traces of methane, the charge being that India’s experiments are like re-inventing the wheel and nothing will come of it. This is uncharitable and mistaken to boot. Atmospheric measurements at various locations will yield different findings not necessarily available from near-surface readings from a limited area on Mars. ISRO has also been having discussions with NASA to explore areas of complementarity and configure the experiments accordingly.

It must be kept in mind that not all science is about spectacular “Eureka moments,” science is also about taking incremental steps and adding bits and pieces of knowledge complementary to pre-existing information and adding to a growing pool. Having said that, there is no escaping the fact that the science component of the Mission

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is quite low key, and limited in scope. Most of the limitations come from the small size of the spacecraft, the fuel it carries and the payload. These have also meant that the Orbiter will be in a highly elliptical orbit around Mars, going as far as 80,000km away from the surface, severely limiting the measurements and observations its instruments can make. And these limitations are, in turn, due to the low capacity of the PSLV launcher compared to the hitherto unavailable GSLV.

COMPLEX MANOEUVRES

On November 5, the MOM spacecraft was placed precisely in its designated orbit around Earth in a highly elliptical orbit with perigee (shortest distance from the planet) of 246.9km and apogee (longest distance from the planet) of 23,566km.

This elongated trajectory will be further elongated in stages and used to build up velocity of the craft till it is fast enough at the perigee to be flung out into space, escape Earth’s gravity and proceed towards Mars. It is proposed to do this through 6 successive burns or firing of booster rockets on the craft.

The first of these orbitraising manoeuvres or burns was successfully carried out early this morning (Thursday, November 7) when MOM was placed in an orbit with apogee of around 28,793km. Subsequent burns will take the craft to 40,000km, 70,656 km, around 100,000km and lastly around 200,000km. After this, on December 1, the spacecraft will be flung out to inter-planetary space in a transfer orbit, first to orbit the sun and finally, on September 24, 2014, to where it can be captured by the gravity of Mars and start orbiting the red planet.

All these complex manoeuvres, critically dependent on precision as regards both location and timing across millions of kilometers with the MOM spacecraft traveling at high speeds, will be controlled

by ISRO’s Bangalore-based tracking centre ISTRAC which has now taken over mission control from the Sriharikota launch centre assisted by Indian shipborne tracking systems positioned in the South Pacific near Fiji, and further aided by ground stations in Port Blair and Brunei and Biak in Indonesia, as well as NASA’s Deep Space Network’s stations in Canberra, Madrid and Goldstone in the US. The Mangalyaan launch and the first orbit raising manoeuvre have gone extremely well so far. But

there is a long way to go to September 24, 2014. As such, the current exultation and the proclamations of triumph at India’s maiden Martian venture where others such as China and Japan have failed, is premature. China’s Mars craft was unable to leave Earth orbit due to failure of the Russian launcher, whereas Japan’s spacecraft overshot Mars and could not capture the Martian gravity. Other attempts have crashed onto the Martian surface. India has the usual advantages of the late starter, learning from others’ mistakes and incorporating corrective or precautionary measures.

LIMITED ACHIEVEMENT

With all these limitations, if Mangalyaan does indeed succeed in entering stable Martian orbit and staying there conducting its scientific experiments even for a substantial part of the planned six months, ISRO and India would indeed have done well. But most of the kudos would be chiefly for just having reached Mars and placing a craft in orbit around it.

The original goal of the Mars Mission, announced when it was expected to be powered by GSLV, was to “develop the technologies required for design, planning, management and operations of an interplanetary mission.” Over the past week, ISRO spokespersons have been repeatedly emphasising that the Mission is mainly a “technology demonstrator.” However, in the considered opinion of this writer, this Mission has been more of a “capability demonstrator,” to show India can do something like this.

If the Mars Mission had been undertaken with the GSLV, it would not only have yielded better science through deployment of more and better instruments, it would also importantly have showcased India’s heavy launch ca-

pability which India presently lacks. Without GSLV, India today depends on other nations such as the European Space Agency to launch high-orbit communications satellites for TV and telephony at more than 3 times the cost it would itself had incurred. And India continues to miss out on significant commercial opportunities that GSLV could provide.

For whatever reasons that can only be conjectured, despite knowing that GSLV would not be available for a 2013 Mars Mission, ISRO and India’s political leadership decided not to wait for the next window of opportunity in 2016 or 2018, and put more human and financial resources into development and proving of the GSLV, but to go ahead with a PSLV-based mission even though the scientific and technological dividends would be modest. Perhaps the calculus was that the prestige dividend and the morale boost for ISRO, quite discomfited by repeated failures of the GSLV, and for the people at large, would compensate. These objectives are not ignoble and maybe one should not turn one’s nose up at them.

But one should acknowledge all this and put all factors into perspective while evaluating India’s Mars Mission.

THE POVERTY DEBATE

Finally, the big debate about whether India, as a poor developing country, with such a high percentage of its people suffering from poverty, malnourishment, food insecurity, poor sanitation and so on, should spend so much money on a space mission, that too to Mars, with little or no tangible benefits for the Indian poor or the Indian people in general.

The Mars Mission will cost around Rs 450 crore or $75 million, less than a sixth of NASA’s MAVEN Mission to Mars later this month.

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As space missions go, this is low cost indeed. It is also a very small proportion of India’s space programme budget, which is itself only 0.35 percent of India’s total budget. And within this comparatively small space budget, which goes mostly into satellites for communication, weather and remote sensing, navigation, and launch vehicle development such as for GSLV, the budget for science and exploration is only 8 percent. Should one grudge a notably small fraction going to science and developing technological capability?

Would it make a big difference to India’s poverty alleviation effort, for which lakhs of crores are supposedly earmarked, if these Rs 400 crores are not spent on the space programme?

Surely, if poverty levels have not gone down, reasons lie in political economy, in resource allocation to benefit the rich and growing middle-classes, in poor implementation of anti-poverty programmes.

Why look for scapegoats and easy targets like space ventures or science in general?

India’s space programme has been, almost uniquely in the world, and arguably even more so than the erstwhile Soviet Union’s, heavily oriented to applications, such as for education, remote sensing for mapping and locating natural resources, communications, weather observation and prediction (as during the recent Phailin cyclone in Odisha and AP) etc, in other words for direct developmental benefits rather than to scientific inquiry or exploration. In fact, critics of India’s science and technology policy point to low investment in basic sciences and scientific research as a major factor underlying India’s steady decline in global standings in both science and technological innovation.

To argue that even small expenditure on scientific research, currently at a miserable level of less than 1.5 percent of GDP, is wasteful unless it delivers immediate and tangible benefits on the ground is retrograde, completely misunderstands the relationship between science and technological advancement, and stands in opposition to India’s self-reliant path of development.

India’s future development calls not for abandoning science and scientific research but in orienting it better or differently both for shortterm benefits as well as for longer-term developmental dividends.

Source: People’s Democracy

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a;gmn q; ayo?y; me‹

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l+mI pUj; kI r;t)

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N O V E M B E R

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a;ŽS$^eily;é vwD;ink tq; tknIkI D;n v k*xl k;² ivxeW åp se sUcn; p[*´igkI² jIv-p[*´oigkI áb;yo$eKn;lojIâ² èj;R-d=t; a;id k; aCz; p[dxRn hog;) ”s k;yRÞm me' a;ŽS$^eily; ke p[mu% ivXviv´;lyo' tq; http://www.sharda.org/Events.htm

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s'i=Pt sm;c;r

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2³ s;ihTy-s'?y; - apne log² apnI b;te' áxinv;r² 23 nvMbrâ Sq;n - KyU áKEWâ me‹ koqm ro@ a*r isivk @^;”v ke nuKk@¹ pr) ámeLve s‹d.R-45 @I-6â smy - x;m ke 7³30 bje se 10³30 bje tk) p[vex in"xuLk hw) ai/k j;nk;rI ke ilE¾ p[of¹esr niln x;rd; áé-mel" nalinsharda@gmail.com f¹on" á0402â 108 512â aqv; hirhr

”nme' se inMnili%t iv´;iqRyo' ko 7 istMbr ko a;S$^eily; me' ihNdI ix=; s'` Ã;r; a;yoijt ihNdI ix=; kI rjt jy'tI sm;roh ke avsr pr² .;rtIy k*'sl² ÅI r;kex k;v@¹; ne purSkOt iky; 1³ kOx;'g .gt² 2³ ijimx; modI² 3³ pLlvI aro@¹;² 4³ tuW;r goyl) purSkOt inb'/ .ivãy me' ¾ihNdIpuãp¾ me' p[k;ixt ikye j;ye'ge)

anus'/;n s'Sq;no' se 30 virã# p[;?y;pk tq; ai/k;rI .;g le'ge) ai/k j;nk;rI ke ilye inMnili%t vebs;”$ dei%ye- http://www.aus-

trade.gov.au/Export/Export-Markets/Countries/India/Events/Australian-Innovation Z; áé-mel" hariharjha2007@gmail.com f¹on" á03â 9555 4924â se sMpkR kIijye) 3³ ¾n$r;j kLcrl se'$r¾ p[Stut krt; hw -ihNduSt;nI x;S]Iy s'gIt kI nvoidt t;irk;² mIt; p'i@t k; s'gIt k;yRÞm águ¨v;r² 14 nvMbrâ s;;q me' a:¹tr huswn tbl; a*r .;rt .UW, goSv;mI tbl; bj;ye'ge) Sq;n - meLbnR irs;y$l seN$r² 31 S$ua$R S$^I$² s;¬q meLbnR² ivK$oiry;-3006 smy - 7³30 bje x;m se a;rM.

www.southasiatimes.com.au - (03) 9095 6220, 0421 677 082

ab h\sne kI b;rI hw

aSpt;l ke inym;nus;r² iksI rogI kI aSpt;l se zu¯I ke smy² ¬se pihyed;r kusIR á×Il ceyrâ pr bw#; kr le j;n; hot; hw) jUlI n;mk Ek p[ix=;qIR nsR ne de%; ik Ek vOõ VyiKt² aSpt;l me' kp@¹e phne² Ek ibStr pr bw#; hua; hw a*r Ek sU$kes ¬ske pwro' ke p;s r%; hua; hw) jUlI ke pUzne pr ¬sne kh; ik aSpt;l se b;hr j;ne ke ilye ¬se iksI kI sh;yt; kI a;vXykt; nhI' hw) jUlI ne ¬s VyiKt se kh; ik inym to inym hot; hw'² vh aSpt;l ke inym k; ¬Ll'`n nhI' kr sktI hw) jUlI ke bhut khne pr² vh pihyed;r kusIR pr bw# kr ilF¹$ tk j;ne ke ilye r;j¹I ho gy;) r;Ste me' jUlI ne ¬s VyiKt se pUz; ik Ky; ¬skI pTnI ¬se lene a; rhI hw) vOõ VyiKt ne ¬Êr idy; - ®muZe nhI' pt;² merI pTnI to èpr b;qåm me' aSpt;l k; g;¬n bdl kr kp@¹e phnne gyI hw®)

áp[eWk - @;Ž• surex guPt;² meLbnRâ

i$k$ %¹rIdne aqv; ai/k j;nk;rI ke ilye meLbnR irs;y$l seN$r se á03â 9699 3333 pr sMpkR kIijye aqv; inMn vebs;”$ pr j;”ye - https://www.melbournerecital.com.au 4³ g¹j¹l-g;yk² mnhr ¬/;s k; s''gIt k;yRÞm áxuÞv;r² 22 nvMbrâ Sq;n - m;lvnR $;¬n h;Žl² 1251 h;é S$^I$² m;lvnR² ivK$oiry;-3144 ai/k j;nk;rI ke ilye² nIlex p$el se 0402 303 472 pr f¹on Ã;r; sMpkR kre')

south asia 32 South Asia Timestimes

quick community guide Radio GUIDE

SUNDAY Hindi...............9 am to 10 am – 93.1 FM Urdu.............

10 am to 11 am – 93.1 FM Tamil.......... .11 am to 12 pm – 93.1 FM Hindi.............

8 pm to 10 pm – 88.3 FM Singhalese....

8 pm to 11 pm –97.7 FM MONDA Y Hindi................

3 Pm to 4 pm – 93.1 FM Bengali...........

4 pm to 5 pm – 93.1 FM Hindi............... .6 pm to 8 pm – 88.3 FM Indian (Fiji).............. .6 pm to 8 pm 88.3 Punjabi......1 1 am to 12 noon 92.3 FM TUESDAY Hindi...............

Hindi.................

WEDNESDAY Hindi.................

Hindi......................

Punjabi........

Hindi................

6 am to 8 am – 97.7 FM 2 pm to 4 pm – 97.7 FM

.6 am to 8 am – 97.7 FM 12 to 1 pm – 93.1 FM 11 am to 12 pm - 92.3 FM .8 pm to 9 pm – 97.7 FM

THURSDAY Hindi...........

Tamil................

Sinhalese.....

Punjabi.........

5.30 am to 7 am – 97.7 FM 8 pm to 9 pm – 92.3 FM 1 1 pm to 3 am –92.3 FM 9 pm to 10 pm – 93.1 FM

FRIDAY Indian..............

.8 am to 9 am – 88.3 FM

SATURDAY Sinhalese........

7 am to 8 am – 92.3 FM T amil...............

12-12.30 pm – 88.3 FM Indian...............

5 am to 6 am - 92.3 FM Punjabi.....................

12-2 am – 92.3 FM Indian............

9 pm to 10 pm – 92.3 FM Punjabi.............................

11 pm to 1 am

24/7 Radio stations Indian Link Radio (Subscription) 18000 15 8 47 Radio Santa Banta (Internet) Santabanta.com.au Radio Jhankar 88.6 FM; Every Thursday; 8 to 10 pm; Contact: 94668900 or 0411247320 or 9404 2111

South Asian websiteS India TEHELKA – www.tehelka.com OUTLOOK – www.outlookindia.com FRONTLINE- www.flonnet.com THE HINDU: www.hinduonnet.com TIMES OF INDIA: www.timesofindia.indiatimes.com HINDUSTAN TIMES: www.hindustantimes.com Pakistan DAWN: www.dawn.com THE FRIDAY TIMES: www.thefridaytimes.com THE NEWS INTERENATIONAL: www.thenews.com.pk

community

www.ekantipur.com/en THE RISING NEPAL: www.nepalnews.com.np

PLACES OF WORSHIP HINDU Shri Shiva Vishnu Temple 57 Boundary Rd, Carrum Downs, Melbourne, Vic 3201, Ph: 03 9782 0878; Fax: 03 9782 0001 Website: www.hsvshivavishnu.org.au Sri Vakratunda Vinayaka Temple 1292 - 1294, The Mountain Highway, The Basin, Vic 3154, Ph: 03 9792 1835 Melbourne Murugan Temple 17-19 Knight Ave., Sunshine VIC 3020 Ph: 03 9310 9026 Durga Temple (Durga Bhajan Mandali) Neales Road, Rockbank, Vic 3335 Ph: 03 9747 1628 or Mobile: 0401 333 738 Hare Krishna (ISKCON) Temple 197 Danks Street, Middle Park Vic 3206 Ph: (03) 9699 5122 Email: 100237.354@compuserve.com Hare Krishna New Nandagram Rural Community Oak Hill, Dean’s Marsh Rd., Bambra VIC 3241, Ph: (052) 887383 Fax: (052) 887309 Kundrathu Kumaran Temple 139 Gray Court, ROCKBANK Victoria 3335 Ph: 03-9747 1135 or M: 0450 979 023 http://www.kumarantemple.org.au/ SIKH BLACKBURN Sri Guru Nanak Satsang Sabha 127 Whitehorse Road, Blackburn VICTORIA 3130, Ph: (03) 9894 1800 CRAIGIEBURN Sri Guru Singh Sabha 344 Hume Highway, Craigieburn VICTORIA 3164 (see map), Ph: (03) 9305 6511 KEYSBOROUGH Gurdwara Sri Guru Granth Sahib 198 -206 Perry Road, Keysborough VICTORIA 3073 (see map) LYNBROOK Nanaksar Taath, 430 Evans Road, Lynbrook VICTORIA 3975, (03) 9799 1081 HOPPERS CROSSING Sri Guru Nanak Satsang Sabha 417 Sayers Road, Hoppers Crossing VICTORIA 3029, Ph: (03) 9749 2639 WERRIBEE Gurdwara Sahib Werribee 560 Davis Road, Tarneit VICTORIA 3029 PH: (03) 8015 4707

Sri Lanka DAILY MIRROR: www.dailymirror.lk DAILY NEWS: www.dailynews.lk THE ISLAND: www.island.lk

SHEPPARTON Gurdwara Sahib Shepparton 240 Doyles Road, Shepparton VICTORIA 3603 PH: (03) 5821 9309

Nepal THE HIMALAYAN TIMES: www.thehimalayantimes.com KANTIPUR NATIONAL DAILY:

JAIN Melbourne Shwetambar Jain Sangh Inc 3 Rice Street, Moorabbin, Vic - 3189, Australia. Phone: +61 3 9555 2439

N O V E M B E R

info@melbournejainsangh.org http://www.melbournejainsangh.org MUSLIM Melbourne West Mosque 66-68 Jeffcott Street, Melbourne Ph: 03 9328 2067 Broadmeadows Mosque 45-55 King Street, Broadmeadows Ph 03 9359 0054 Islamic Call Society 19 Michael Street, Brunswick Ph: 03 9387 7100 Islamic Centre of Australia 660 Sydney Road, Brunswick Ph 03 9385 8423 Australian Islamic Cultural Centre 46-48 Mason Street, Campbellfield Ph: 03 9309 7605 Coburg ISNA Mosque 995 Sydney Road, Coburg North Coburg Mosque (Fatih Mosque) 31 Nicholson Street, Coburg Ph 03 9386 5324 Deer Park Mosque 283 Station Road, Deer Park Ph 03 9310 8811 United Migrant Muslim Assn.

72 George Road, Doncaster Ph 03 9842 6491, Footscray West Mosque 294 Essex Street, Footscray Glenroy Musala 1st Floor, 92 Wheatsheaf Road, Glenroy Heidelberg Mosque Corner Lloyd & Elloits Streets, West Heidelberg Islamic College of Victoria (Mosque) 201 Sayers Road, Hoppers Crossing Ph 03 9369 6010 Huntingdale Mosque 320-324 Huntingdale Road, Huntingdale Ph 03 9543 8037 Al Nur Mosque 34-36 Studley Street, Maidstone Meadow Heights Mosque Hudson Circuit, Meadow Heights Springvale Mosque 68 Garnworthy Street, Springvale

EMERGENCY CONTACTS EMERGENCY CONTACTS Police, Fire & Abulance ........................

000 Victoria State Emergency Service (SES).......................................

132 500 Traffic hazards and freeway conditions..........................

13 11 70 Gas escape...........................................

132 771 Poisons information........................

13 11 26 Maternal and Child Line................

13 22 29 Parentline...........................................

13 22 89 Kids Help Line.........................

1800 551 800 Lifeline (provides confidential telephone counselling).................

13 11 14 Suicide Help Line....................

1300 651 251 Animal Emergencies..................

9224 2222

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2 0 1 3

HIGH COMMISSION FOR PAKISTAN,CANBERRA 4 Timbarra Crescent, O’Malley ACT 2606 (Australia), Tel: 61-2-62901676, 61-2-62901676, 62902769, 62901879 & 62901031, Fax: 61-262901073 Email: parepcanberra@internode. on.net, Postal Address: PO Box 684, Mawson ACT 2607 (Australia)

Sri Lanka Consulate 32A Brunswick Street ,Walkerville 5081 Melbourne , Phone: 9898-6760, 9248-1228 Email: rodney@techno.net.au

Bangladesh High Commission, Canberra 43, Culgoa Circuit, O’Malley, ACT-2606 Canberra, Australia, Ph: (61-2) 6290-0511, (612) 6290-0522, (61-2)6290-0533 (Auto hunting).

Fax : (61-2) 6290-0544 E-Mail :hoc@bhcanberra.com Consulate of Nepal, Melbourne Email: cyonzon@nepalconsulate.net.au Level 7, 28-32 Elizabeth Street, Melbourne VIC 3000, Ph: (03) 9650 8338 Email: info@nepalconsulate.net.au SBS1 – Daily NDTV News - 11 am - Monday to Saturday. (From New Delhi, India).

TV News/programs Hindi News Urdu news SBS1 - PTV News – 9.30 am - Every Sunday – (From Pakistan).

Readymades Roshan’s Fashions 68-71 Foster Street, Dandenong, Vic 3175 Ph: (03) 9792 5688 Raj Rani Creations 83-A Foster Street, Dandenong, Vic 3175 Ph: (03) 9794 9398 Heritage India 54-56 Foster Street, Dandenong, Vic 3175, Ph: (03) 9791 9227 Site: heritageindia.net.au

DVDs, Music CDs & Film Stuff Baba Home Entertainment 52C Foster St., Dandenong 3175, (03) 97067252 Essence of India 76 Foster St., Dandenong 3175 (03) 87744853; 0413707685 Accountants & Loans Deepak & Associates Suite 4 & 6, Bldg.6, Hamilton Place, Mont Waverley 3149, (03) 9807 5992; 0402459174; 0411733737

southSouth asia times 33 Asia Times

quick community guide

N O V E M B E R

2 0 1 3

contd from previous page All Banking Needs Rakesh Raizada Commonwealth Bank (Indian Banking) Ground Floor, 378 Burwood Highway Burwood East 3151 Mobile: 0434470095 Email: rakesh.raizada@cba.com.au Immigration iVisa Consulting Level 5, 45 William St. Melb.

Mobile: 0409504094 www.ivisaconsulting.com.au 1st Migration PL, Suite 110, Level 1, 672 Glenferrie Road, Hawthorn Vic 3122 Travel Agents Gaura Travels 1300 FLY INDIA or 1300 359 463 info@gauratravel.com.au Supa Cheap Travel 381 Burwood Road, Hawthorn 3122 Ph: (03) 98194656; Mobile: 0420201155 info@supacheaptravel.com.au www.supacheaptravel.com.au Mann Travel 329 Clayton Road, Clayton 3168 info@manntravel.com.au www.manntravel.com.au Travel House 284 Clayton Road, Clayton 3168 Ph: (03) 95435123, Mobile: 0425803071 mail@travelhouse.com.au Solicitors/Barristors Vernon Da Gama & Associates 28 Fromer St. Beltleigh 3204 Ph: (03) 95038046; Fax: (03) 95038047 Mobile: 0401407280/042193100 Email: vernondagama@msn.com

VIEW POINT

South Asia Times

ociinfo.inau@vfshelpline.com CONSULAR SERVICES (Passport, Visa, OCI, PIO & Miscellaneous) Please note that all these consular services are handled by VFS Global (Indian Passport and Visa Service Centre) The Consulate General of India in Melbourne will continue to provide to residents of Victoria and Tasmania the following consular services, for which applications would have to be lodged directly with the Consulate: Miscellaneous OCI Services â&#x20AC;˘ Miscellaneous Consular Services (such as attestation of documents, transfer of visas from old to new passport, affidavits, birth certificates, life certificates, certificate required to transport ashes or mortal remains to India etc) IMPORTANT: The Consulate does not accept credit cards, EFTPOS, personal cheques or company cheques. Please send only money orders or bank cheques with applications sent through the post. Cash payments are accepted only at the counter.

WORKING HOURS General Working Hours 9.00 am to 5.30 pm Monday to Friday, Consular Working Hours 09.30 am to 12.30 pm Monday to Friday, (except on public holidays observed by the consulate) International Students International Student Care Service (ISCS) www.multicultural.vic.gov.au/iscs Ph: 1800 056 449 Emergency Services Police, Fire, Ambulance............................000 Crime Stoppers......................1800 333 000 Property st Property PL, Suite 110, Level 1,672 Glenferrie Road, Hawthorn Vic 3122

INDIAN CONSULATE (MELBOURNE) Address : 344, St. Kilda Road, Melbourne, VIC 3000, Australia , P.O. Box No: 33247 Domain LPO Vic 3004 General phone: +61-3- 96827836 Fax No: + 61-3- 96968251 Web site: www.cgimelb.org PHONE NUMBERS Phone Number for General Consular Enquiries(operational only during Consular Working Hours i.e. 0930 hrs to 1230 hrs, Monday to Friday) For PCC and PCC and Driving License Verification enquiries 03- 96825800 02 8223 9908/ 1900 969 969 Email ID for General Consular Enquiries consular@cgimelb.org Visa enquiries: visainfo.inau@vfshelpline.com Passport/Police Clearance Certificate/ Driving License Enquiries passportinfo. inau@vfshelpline.com, OCI/PIO Enquiries

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South Asia Times south asia 34 South Asia Timestimes

Business

N O V E M B E R

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Jindal takes over Gujarat NRE but still no relief for unpaid mine workers

By our business reporter

M

elbourne 18 October, 2013: Shareholders of Gujarat NRE have voted in favour of a takeover deal by Jindal Steel, but whether workers at their two Illawarra coal mines in New South Wales who have not been paid wages for four weeks will be paid remains a mystery. The workers are facing financial hardship and unions are upset over the continuing stalemate.

Around 200 shareholders voted unanimously on 16th October, 2013 to allow the Indian company to buy up to 53.63 per cent of Gujarat NRE shares.The deal is expected to inject $68.8 million of new capital into the company, and once debts are paid, $18.7 million will be left for Gujarat to pay its workers and suppliers.

However, after the shareholder meeting, the workers facing financial hardship were not sure when

they will be paid.

The Illawarra Mercury reports that Jindal representative Jasbir Singh said the company was still ‘‘only an investor’’ in Gujarat NRE, meaning it was unable to tell when the back wages will be dispersed. ‘‘We are doing our due diligence, and it would not be fair to comment just now when they salaries (will be paid) because it’s the company who has to

come up with a plan when they are doing their day to day business,’’ Singh said. ‘‘The existing management and existing operations stays as it is, but I can say that our large investment is at stake and we are not taking it lightly, we are taking it very seriously.’’

While chairman Arun Jagatramka, who caused ire by arriving to the meeting in a black Bentley, told the crowd they could expect “a

statement in the next few days” about the payment of wages. ‘‘As a board, we will be meeting after this meeting and we will be discussing these things,’’ Jagatramka said. ‘‘The thing is, we have sort out many things, before we actually start working.’’

CFMEU general-vice president Wayne McAndrew slammed the company for failing to provide a clear date around when the workers could expect the cash, reports Australian Mining. ‘‘It is simply unacceptable that Gujarat NRE has left them in limbo and could not give a satisfactory answer when questioned about whether workers should donate their labour for free next week,” McAndrew.

Before voting got underway Jagatramka said he “always treated my employees as part of my family and our current situation

causes me great pain.” ‘‘I once again extend my sincere apologies to my employees and their families for the problems that you are experiencing,’’ he said. ‘‘The support given by all Gujarat NRE workers is greatly appreciated and we would not have been able to accomplish so much without your dedication and spirit.’’

Earlier, workers at the Gujarat NRE were sent payslips which show wages, taxes,superannuation and union fees have all been paid.

Gujarat NRE C is an Indian mining company engaged in coal mining, coal preparation and export of coal. It owns and operates the NRE No.1 Colliery and NRE Wongawilli Colliery coking coal mines in the Southern Coalfields Region of New South Wales.

It exports the majority of its ROM Coal product to its parent company, Gujarat NRE Coke Ltd, in India.

—SAT News Service

MLG Lawyers open office in Coburg

By our business reporter

M

elbourne: MLG Lawyers have opened their legal office in Coburg with a big gathering of friends and supporters.

The new office is situated at Sydney Road, Coburg.

It is on the main road and

there is ample parking around. Interestingly, the tram stop 30 (Route 19) is at their doorstep. The Moreland Station (Upfield Line) is only five minutes’ walk from the office.

The practice areas of MLG layers is Criminal law, Property law, Family law, Conveyancing, Driving offences,

Sale of Business, Motor Vehicle Accidents, Commercial leases, VOCAT & Estates, Debt recovery, Migration, Commercial matters among others.

The guests enjoyed a sunny bar be cue (on the back of the office) and went around the office rooms to have an idea of the practice.

The office is decorated with lots of paintings and other decorations. It gives a good feeling to the clients.

Roni Randhawa, Abdullah Altintop and Hukukta Guvbnilir Isim can be contact-

www.southasiatimes.com.au - (03) 9095 6220, 0421 677 082

ed at: Address: 144 Sydney Road, Coburg, Vic 3058 Phone: (03) 9386 0204 Fax: (03) 8672 0205 Email: info@mlglawyers. com.au www.mlglawyers.com.au

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Sholay 3D releasing in January, 2014

By News Desk

M

elbourne: You will once again hear the dialogues â&#x20AC;&#x201C; Kitne aadmi the and Jo dar gaya wo mar gaya which made Sholey a cult movie in the

seventies. Now it is confirmed. The epic movie has gone through an epic 3D treatment. Sholay, almost four hours long, is one of the longest films to be converted to this format. Pen India Pvt. Ltd. and Maya Studio worked together on the 3D

treatment. The film is expected to release on 4 January, 2014.

According to a media report the Sholay 3D version will have a 'new background score'. The original music was by R. D. Burman. Now we await the film, considering many of us weren't born or conceived in 1975 to watch the film on 70 mm.

Producer-Director Ketan Mehta owned Maya Digital Studios is the team behind Sholay 3D. They had no easy task at hand, considering the movie needed colour correction. Also, elements from each of the over 5000 shots were enhanced visually. A computer-generated shot that fans will notice - The oil barrels exploding in the train robbery sequence shall spark red instead of black. This is to go with the film's title, implying embers.

Melody & Rhythm

Devotion in Indian music

By Murali Kumar*

these composers travelled to temples and sung in praise of the presiding deity of the temple, or of the place itself. So it is understandable that many feel that the devotional heart of Carnatic music and the purity of intention that characterised the great musicians of the past are rare to be found today.

Moving to the west of India, the abhang is a popular form of devotional poetry which is sung in praise of god Vitthala. The abhangs were first sung by saints such as Dnyaneshwar, Tukaram, Namdev in the language Marathi. Apart from devotional themes some of these abhangs also dealt with philosophical or sociological themes. Today the abhangs are sung or played by many leading musicians across India, not just in Maharashtra. During the 20th century abhangs have also found their way into the Carnatic music concert repertoire.

Back to the bhajans, there have been great many composers in north India over the centuries. Their works are generally in the various dialects of Hindi. Some of the greatest and revered composers of bhajans, whose works are immortal, are Kabir, Mirabai, Tulsidas and Surdas. Bhajans are sung throughout India at concerts as well as at religious festivals and communal gatherings of devotees. In conclusion it is worth reflecting on the devotional roots of almost all forms of Indian music, including the sophisticated classical music forms of south India and north India; it is important for the modern-day musician to appreciate this vital historical aspect. * The author is Indian classical musician, Artistic Director - RaagaSudha School of Carnatic Music); www.raagasudha.com.au

M

elbourne: Music that is pleasing to the ears is often praised with adjectives such as divine or heavenly.

This is particularly true for Indian classical and semi-classical music forms. The origin of Indian music, in its many forms, has deep roots in devotion or bhakti. Hindus around the world have just concluded the Navratri and Diwali festivities, so it is appropriate to explore the subject of devotional Indian music at this time.

The traditional Indian music genre that is purely devotional is the bhajan. The origin of the bhajan is in the Saama veda of Hinduism which is a text of religious hymns. The bhajans are composed and sung in praise of Hindu gods, typically in group renderings by gatherings of devotees.

There are many types of devotional songs â&#x20AC;&#x201C; from the simple kirtan to the more complex forms set to ragas and musical patterns such as dhrupad or kriti. Over the past few centuries both the north Indian Hindustani and south Indian Carnatic styles of music have evolved with the devotional aspect at their core.

The Carnatic music genre is largely comprised of kritis or kirtanas which are devotional in nature and are sung by a vocalist or played on various instruments. In fact the birth of Carnatic music is in the ceremonial devotional music sung in the temples of south India. The great trinity of composers of Carnatic music (Thyagaraja, Muthuswamy Dikshitar and Shyama Sastry) were firstly ardent devotees of their gods and composed spontaneously in praise of the gods.

These composers are themselves revered as saints today. Very often www.southasiatimes.com.au - (03) 9095 6220, 0421 677 082

south asia 36 South Asia Timestimes

Church service for Urdu/Hindi/ Punjabi speakers

By Murali Kumar*

M

elbourne, 19 October, 2013: A new church service in Urdu/Hindi/Punjabi for subcontinent people started today. The service was arranged by Pakistani Christians (Australian Association of Pakistani Christians) at the All Saints Church Kooyong, Glenferrie Road. The service was followed by a dinner in the church hall with people bringing

in many subcontinent dishes from home. Interestingly, those in the service at the Anglican church belonged to different Christian denominations.

SAT Editor Neeraj Nanda was welcomed as their own with people posing for pictures. Copies of the SAT October issue were also distributed to worshipers. It was told this was the first service of its kind in Australia. It will happen each month now at the same church. â&#x20AC;&#x201D;SAT News Service

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