Asian Star - October 08, 2016

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www.theasianstar.com AsianStar logo Saturday, April 25, 2015 6:42:48 PM

Vol 15 - Issue 36 Saturday, October 08, 2016

Father-in-law faces jail and deportation to India The father of a woman convicted of manslaughter for stabbing her pregnant sister-in-law in the neck has finally acknowledged his role in covering up the crime for years.

Kulwant Litt, 67, pleaded guilty to accessory after the fact to manslaughter on Tuesday, admitting that he helped dispose of the body of his daughter-in-law Poonam Litt and lied repeatedly to the police and court about what really happened to Poonam.

Charges of accessory after the fact to murder and perjury were withdrawn.

Continued on Page 9...

US releases Diwali stamp A Diwali stamp was launched here by the US postal service, capping seven-yearlong efforts by IndianAmericans and influential American lawmakers to commemorate the festival of lights. The stamp was unveiled at the Indian Consulate at an elaborate “ f i r s t - d a y - o f - i s s u e” dedication ceremony.

Continued on Page 7...

Punjab Bhawan A place preserving Punjabi’s Proficiency Read on Page 8....

Storm leaves over 50,000 without power in BC’s South Coast

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HOME INSPECTION PROGRAM The first significant storm of the fall season has hit B.C.’s South Coast, with rain and strong winds causing widespread power outages on Vancouver Island and the Sunshine Coast.

Over 50,000 customers are without power as of 10:45 p.m. PT, with much of Campbell River, Powell River and Qualicum Beach and North Saanich in the dark.

All of Denman and Hornby Islands are without electricity as well, and there are smaller outages throughout Metro Vancouver and many other communities.

Environment Canada has issued a warning for Greater Victoria, the Gulf Islands, East Vancouver Island and the Sunshine Coast, saying winds as strong as 80 km/h may Continued on Page 6... develop overnight.

Balochis to protest ‘China-Pak nexus’ in Vancouver next week Baloch activists will next week protest outside the Chinese consulate in Vancouver against a China-Pakistan nexus and alleged human right violations in Pakistan’s Balochistan province.

The Free Balochistan Movement (FBM) said it will hold this threeday, peaceful awareness campaign outside the Chinese Consulate starting Monday.

Continued on Page 6...

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LOCAL

Saturday, October 08, 2016

Trudeau says Liberals not looking at raising federal minimum wage

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Education key to fighting Surrey violence, says city’s new top cop Surrey’s new top cop will focus on education to help combat gang violence in the city.

“Prevention and education initiatives are much more effective and much cheaper than law enforcement when things go wrong,” said Chief Supt. Dwayne McDonald.

The new chief was officially announced Tuesday, Oct. 4.

McDonald said Surrey is well-suited to an education-based campaign because of its large youth population.

“Typically when we talk about gang involvement and when we talk about shots fired, it usually involves a younger population, and it usually involves the drug trade,” he explained.

“Those types of criminals prey on our young people, and they also try and seduce them into that lifestyle with the illusion of

riches.”

He said the RCMP will conduct more proactive patrols and will partner with the Combined Forces Special Enforcement Unit to target individuals or known gang locations.

McDonald said another key area he’ll focus on is homelessness in Surrey — especially the notorious ‘strip’ in the neighbourhood of Whalley.

“Our primary concern is for the health and safety of the people who frequent the strip.

Not only for the people who are camped there, but also for the residents, business owners that deal with those issues daily.”

He referred to the five years he lived in Whalley, a few miles from the strip, as

informative.

“I’m very familiar with it, not only from a law enforcement point of view, but a resident point of view as well.”

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau says his government isn’t looking at raising the minimum wage at the moment. Trudeau says the government is instead McDonald was previously with focusing on helping Canadians succeed by giving the Burnaby RCMP detachment, the families more money through the new child benefit, Combined Forces Special Enforcement making investments in infrastructure to boost Unit, and was most recently the head of the productivity and helping low- and middle-income Integrated Homicide Investigation Team. students afford post-secondary education. Trudeau says there is no magic solution to help those who face various economic barriers.

Ontario floats idea of guaranteed minimum income to ease poverty The prime minister made the comments during a question-andanswer session today hosted by Thomson Reuters in Toronto.

During last year’s federal election campaign, the NDP proposed raising the federal minimum wage to $15 an hour, which would only cover workers in federally regulated businesses, such as banks and Save up to $180 on select phones with WINDtab, like the Sony Xperia XA and the telecommunications companies.

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Joint statement leaks as Canada, EU try to overcome trade deal critics A leaked final draft began circulating around Europe Wednesday evening of a “joint interpretative declaration” Canada hopes will be enough to satisfy the remaining critics of the trade deal it hopes to sign with the European Union at the end of the month.

While much of the declaration appears to restate the shared principles driving the Comprehensive Economic Trade Agreement (CETA), a key section on its fifth and final page offers new language around the deal’s controversial government procurement provisions.

The text says that CETA “maintains the ability” to “use environmental, social and labourrelated criteria” in tendering, “in a way that is not discriminatory and does not constitute an unnecessary obstacle to international trade.”

Canada agreed to work with key European players on “clarifications” to the final 1,600page deal amid concerns that it wasn’t progressive enough to win the support of key political players in the European centreleft, including social democrats in Germany and Austria.

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4

Editorial

Saturday, October 08, 2016

Please visit us again your Royal Highnesses, but next time pay for your own holiday By: - Umendra Singh The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge had a fantastic visit to BC and Yukon last month - an all-expenses-paid trip courtesy of the Canadian taxpayer, paid for mainly by the BC taxpayers. Why should Canadian taxpayers have to foot the bill for this vacation of the royals? Not that they can't afford to. They are plenty wealthy in their own right because of all the real estate they inherited from their ancestors. So why are we taxpayers in Canada stuck with paying the vacation expenses of the Royal family. After all, no one pays for our vacation. The royal visit, which will included the Duke and Duchess and their two children, was paid for by the Canadian government and the governments of British Columbia and the Yukon. The cost is expected to run into at least three million dollars.

One of the most significant costs associated with the eight-day tour across B.C. and Yukon was security and policing costs.

The RCMP has not released any information publicly about how much it will cost to keep the royal family and other dignitaries safe

while attending more than a dozen events.

"Security costs for protection of visiting members of the Royal Family while in Canada are covered through the RCMP's existing operational budget. For security reasons, we can't provide a detailed breakdown of these costs," said a statement provided by the RCMP. The RCMP would also not provide information on the number of police officers assigned to the tour. The Victoria Police Department was responsible for policing crowds around the B.C. Legislature during the largest public event of the tour on September 24. The Vancouver Police Department was responsible for policing when Will and Kate visited Jack Poole Plaza on September 25 and made their way to the Downtown Eastside and the Kitsilano Coast Guard base. The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge have been to Canada once before touring Ontario, Quebec, Prince Edward island, the Northwest Territories and Alberta over nine days in 2011. That bill was an estimated $1.2 million. Can anyone give a good reason why we should pay for the Royal vacation.

Open Letter to parents in the Vancouver school district Dear parents of Vancouver public school students: I know many of you are concerned about what’s been happening around the Vancouver school board. I am too. We are focused on making sure the VSB delivers a quality learning experience, unaffected by what is underway. Recently, the BC School Superintendents Association informed us of troubling allegations regarding trustees and a workplace that has become toxic for staff who are vital to your board.

No parent wants to hear even a hint that something like that could he happening in the place responsible for leading the education of their children.

I want to reassure you that those allegations are being taken seriously - and the matter has been referred to WorkSafeBC because of its jurisdiction regarding bullying and harassment in the workplace.

As well, we will soon be receiving the full report of the special advisor appointed in July to scrutinize the financial situation and management practices of the Vancouver school board.

Here is my commitment to you: we will work to ensure teachers, principals and staff at the Vancouver school board are supported through this period.

The Ministry of Education will remain actively engaged on the education situation in Vancouver. We will move carefully and responsibly through this situation. We remain focused on ensuring the needs of our students and their education is at the heart of what happens.

Sincerely, Mike Bernier -Minister of Education

www.theasianstar.com # 202 - 7028, 120th Street, Surrey, BC V3W 3M8 Ph: 604-591-5423 Fax: 604-591-8615 E-mail: editor@theasianstar.com Editor: Umendra Singh Associate Editor: Shruti Prakash Joshi Marketing and Sales: Ravinder S. Cheema........604-715-3847 Shamir Doshi....................604-649-7827 Harminder Kaur...............778-708-0481 Parminder Dhillon..........778-859-9234 Layout: Avee J Waseer Pre-Press: Iftikhar Ahmed Contributing writers: Jag Dhatt, Akash Sablok, Kamila Singh, Jay Bains Photographer: Chandra Bodalia Publication Mail Agreement No 428336012 Return undeliverable Canadian addresses to Circulation Dept.

# 202 - 7028, 120th Street, Surrey, BC V3W 3M8 All advertising in The Asian Star is subject to the publishers’ approval and the advertiser agrees to indemnify the publishers against claims arising from publication of any advertisement submitted by the advertiser.

Saturday, October 08, 2016

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LOCAL

Saturday, October 08, 2016

Storm leaves over 50,000 without power Continued from Page 1...

Strong winds are also expected on the Lower Mainland but not to the same extent.

“Vancouver could have gusts up to 60-70 km/h and rain will be heavy at times, 30 to 40 millimetres expected overnight”.

“Winds and rains are ramping up overnight across the South Coast as a big low pressure system moves inland.”

Leaves clogging sewers may also play a factor in some areas leading to localized flooding.

Mainroad Howe Sound Contracting’s Bob Devaney says workers will patrol for flooding problems on North Shore highways until roads are clear and back to normal.

Environment Canada says the storm is expected to be strongest in the late evening and into the early hours of Friday but should be clear by morning.

Special Sonic Facials

Balochis to protest ‘China-Pak nexus’ in Vancouver next week Continued from Page 1...

Ever since Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi took up the cause of Balochistan in July, members of the Baloch community abroad have renewed their campaign to bring to light alleged human right violations in the Pakistani province. Many Baloch people live abroad as they are either exiled or have been forced to move out of Pakistan in the last several years, following

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alleged oppression by the Pakistani army.

Starting Monday, in Canada, activists plan to urge China “to stop being Pakistan’s partner in crime against the Baloch nation”, the Balochnama report said. It added that Islamabad “has been committing war crimes and crimes against humanity on Baloch people since 1948 when it illegally and forcibly occupied the sovereign state of Balochistan.”

Saturday, October 08, 2016

US releases Diwali stamp Continued from Page 1...

The US Postal Service (USPS) commemorated the Hindu festival of Diwali by dedicating the Diwali Forever stamp.

The stamp shows a photo of a traditional ‘diya’ lit against a sparkling gold background and the words ‘Forever USA 2016’ written below. The ceremony was attended by Consul General Ambassador Riva Ganguly Das, Congresswoman Carolyn Maloney, Diwali Stamp Project Chair Ranju Batra, USPS Vice President for Mail Entry and Payment Technology Pritha Mehra, India’s former Permanent Representative to the United Nations Ambassador Hardeep Singh Puri and eminent Indian-American attorney Ravi Batra.

“It has taken many years of hard work and advocacy but light has finally triumphed.

Today, Diwali has received its long awaited commemorative stamp and rightfully joins the ranks of other major religious and cultural holidays such as Christmas, Kwanzaa, Hanukkah and Eid,” Maloney said.

Mehra said the postal service is “honoured” to issue the Forever stamp that celebrates the Festival of Diwali. “We hope these stamps will light up millions of cards and letters as they make their journey through the mailstream,” she said. Das said she was “honoured” to be part of history as the USPS releases the Diwali Forever stamp.

“Now for the first time there is a stamp that celebrates Hindus, Sikhs, Jains and Buddhists as Americans forever. The Diwali stamp will be a matter of pride for generations to come,” Ranju Batra said.

Ravi Batra said since the start of the American Revolution, “destiny has beckoned the US and India to be the closest allies” and the Diwali stamp “represents nothing short of respectful inclusive indivisibility within America and between two sovereigns.”

Sally Andersen-Bruce of Connecticut photographed the diya and Greg Breeding of Virginia designed the stamp, with William Gicker of Washington serving as the project’s art director. Maloney said getting the Diwali stamp involved years of hard work and advocacy, including thousands of petition signatures, multiple meetings with Prime Minister Modi, personal appeals to President Barack Obama, and multiple Congressional Resolutions. She said the Diwali stamp would not have become a reality without the “tireless efforts” of thousands of grassroots supporters across the country who wrote letters and signed petitions.

“This stamp represents the triumph of knowledge over ignorance, lightness over dark and good over evil. These values, these virtues, are more important and relevant than ever before and I am thrilled that after many years of fighting for this stamp it has finally become a reality,” she said.

LOCAL

7

person of the week

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Saturday, October 08, 2016

Punjab Bhawan- A place preserving Punjabi’s Proficiency

W

ho doesn't want their culture to be showcased, preserved and reflected at a foreign land, and the when this dream gets wings. It's another step towards inner contentment. Lately, the first Punjab Bhawan out of Punjab has been inaugurated. Also the fact That it is the first Punjab Bhawan in any foreign country makes the information more delightful.

This ultimate reality is the result of dreams and dedication of a profound Punjabi lover Prof. Gurbhajan Singh Gill. One of the major attraction at this facility is the Hall of Fame, where Sukhi Bath , his family members and friends at the inauguration ceremony of Punjab Bhawan in Surrey , where Punjabi Scholars would be rewarded by getting their photographs hung on the wall of this hall.

At present the authority has chosen seventy names of the scholars that will be a part of this, including Amria Pritam, Sant Ram Udasi, Sobha Singh etc., in order to give them a tribute and encourage the young generation of Punjabis to be proud of their cultural and the gifts given by these people in thre form of literature and art. The project was initiated by a Canada based Punjabi businessman and philanthropist Sukhi Bathh, and is dedicated to late Arjun Singh Bathh, father of Sukhi. The Bhawan was inaugurated by Gian Kaur Bathh, wife of Arjun Singh and their great granddaughter Nimrata Bathh inaugurated the Bhavan in a well attended ceremony. On this auspicious occasion, many of the prominent Punjabi personalities were invited.

Apart from Canada, certain prominent thinkers, writers and journalists also attended

By:- Chhavi Disaver the inaugural function. Those who addressed the gathering include Sukhi Bathh, chief of Bathh Foundation, Gurbhajan Singh Gill, prominent Punjab writer, Prof. Harjinder Singh Walia, Head of the Journalism Department, Punjabi University, Baljit Balli, and Punjabi Singers, Raj Kamal Thhat and Kavinder Chandra.

On the occasion Sukhi Bathh announced that the Bhawan will keep its doors open for the Punjabi World and other activities for the welfare and development of Punjabi brotherhood. He also claimed to have purchased a chunk of land for the construction of a four-storied building that would house a library and a research centre. The building will be constructed within a year, told Sukhi.

This facility will give a chance to everyone who is involved with Punjabi Literature and Arts, to come forward and walk together for further development in the field. As we know, in Canada, not only Punjabi community but many other communities take interest in the subject- All thanks to the university and private initiatives.

Music, art, literature are the basis of progress for any language and community as it is the easiest and perfect way to get anyone attached with it. The building is not just seen as walls and rooms but a place which has emotions and history attached to it. Certain initiatives help our language and culture grow in foreign lands and taking initiatives like these are prominent examples of the assurity that our culture will be preserved forever because our love for Punjabi language will continue traveling with us wherever we travel.

LOCAL

Saturday, October 08, 2016

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Father-in-law faces jail and deportation to India in killing of daughter-in-law Continued from Page 1...

During an argument in the kitchen of the family home on Feb. 4, 2009, Mandeep Punia stabbed 27-year-old Poonam Litt in the neck with a box cutter and watched her bleed out on the floor, a judge found when sentencing Punia to 12 years in prison in August.

Poonam was holding her two-year-old daughter when she was stabbed.

A jury found Punia’s husband Skinder guilty of accessory after the fact to manslaughter. He was sentenced to seven years. Skinder and Mandeep Punia were tried together.

Litt admitted to the following facts read to the court by the Crown: He was home at the time of the argument.

He’d gone upstairs to get Punia’s husband to intervene, and when he returned Poonam was bleeding.

Punia claimed Poonam had stabbed herself, but Poonam indicated to Litt that she’d been stabbed by Punia.

Litt suggested an ambulance be called, but Mandeep and Skinder Punia said they would take care of it.

Litt took his granddaughter from her mother’s arms and went upstairs. He changed the girl’s bloodstained clothes and hid them in the basement ceiling.

When he went back downstairs, Poonam was dead. Mandeep and Skinder Punia were cleaning up blood in the kitchen. They discussed how to dispose of Poonam’s body.

Litt suggested using a mattress cover to wrap Poonam’s body. He and Skinder drove to Caledon and threw Poonam’s body over a fence into a wooded area.

Poonam was reported missing by her sisters when she didn’t show up for work the

next day.

Litt lied to the police, saying he’d heard her getting ready for work that morning. Poonam’s husband Manjinder Litt, in India with his mother at the time, immediately returned.

But Peel police’s investigation went cold until February 2012 when Litt admitted to a relative in India that he believed his daughter had killed his daughter-in-law and that he’d helped get rid of the body.

The relative taped part of the call and informed Poonam’s husband Manjinder who went to the police. Wearing a wire, Manjinder spoke with Litt who admitted what really happened in detail. He took Manjinder to the spot in Caledon where he and Skinder had left Poonam’s body.

However, when it came time for Litt to testify at the preliminary hearing and trial for Mandeep and Skinder Punia, he claimed his account of the stabbing was made up to help him reconcile with his son. He testified that he was drunk or jet-lagged when he made those statements, and maintained the truth was that Poonam was alive and getting ready for work on the morning of Feb. 5.

Superior Court Justice Bruce Durno told Litt that even though he was not pleading guilty to perjury, his lies to the court can be considered an aggravating factor for sentencing.

Durno also informed Litt that he would

likely be deported from Canada as a result of his conviction.

Litt’s attempt to plead guilty was almost derailed for a third time Tuesday when he insisted that he did not know for sure that Punia had stabbed Poonam when he helped dispose of the evidence. “It was clear this thing had happened, whether she did it to her, or she did it to herself, how do I know?�

Litt said through a Punjabi interpreter in answer to Durno’s questions to ensure Litt understood what he was pleading guilty to doing.

After a twenty-minute discussion with his lawyer, Litt agreed that he did know Punia had unlawfully killed Poonam when he helped her and Skinder Punia cover up the crime.

The plea was first delayed because Litt wanted to wait until Punia was sentenced on August 4, the Brampton Guardian reported.

But the day after Punia was sentenced, Litt’s plea was delayed again when Litt’s lawyer Kristin Bailey told the court she could no longer represent Litt for “ethical reasons because of an issue with the solicitor-client relationship.� Bailey was permitted to withdraw from the case.

Litt has been in custody since his arrest in April 2012.

A sentencing hearing is set for later this month.

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10

LOCAL

Saturday, October 08, 2016

2 UBC students rescue a young woman from Saudi attacker in her dorm room Eighteen-year-olds Adam Casey and Luca Berg are credited with likely saving the life of a young woman who was attacked in her dorm room at UBC’s Salish House just before noon

on Tuesday. Casey, who is an engineering student from Edmonton, was on his way to collect his mail. “A couple of girls ran into the building and said someone was being choked on the third floor,” said Casey.

Casey said he asked them if they had called 911 and then he went upstairs.

The directions weren’t very good. He went the wrong way twice.

“When I got there, there was a girl and a man. And the man was choking her,” said Casey. The victim and the attacker were both on the floor. Casey said the woman was in no state to be able to yell.

“I tried to get his hands off her neck that he was holding pretty tight, so I resorted to actually going after him,” said Casey.

“He was pretty determined. He wasn’t letting go easily.”

Casey says he has been practising martial arts for the past five years. Eventually, he was able to get one of the assailant’s hands free of the woman’s neck.

Luca Berg also ran into some distraught women in the dorm hallway while he was on his way to lunch. The arts student from Hawaii rushed to the room where the attack was taking place.

He found Casey attempting to disable the suspect.

“I just go for his [the assailant’s] legs which were around her neck and take them off. And, then she got out of the room and by that point she was safe,” said Berg.

Berg and Casey held the suspect until RCMP arrived at the scene.

Casey said he didn’t see the suspect with a weapon, but later there was a knife on the ground. UBC student Thamer Hameed Almestadi, 18, also a resident at Salish House, has now been charged with attempted murder, aggravated assault and assault with a weapon.

The victim remains in hospital with what police say are non-life threatening injuries.

Police have also said there is no continuing risk to to students.

Both men said they’ve never encountered a situation like this before in their lives.

“It still really hasn’t sunk in what happened.

It was adrenalin. I did what I had to do, felt right to do,” said Berg.

“I honestly think that anyone would have done it.” Berg and Casey are grateful to others in the dorm who came together to help someone in trouble. The incident hasn’t made them feel different about life at UBC. “There are 8,000 first years at this school.

And, the school has been here for decades.

Things happen when you have a lot of people together,” said Casey.

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RCMP offer apology and $100M compensation for harrasement, sexual abuse of female members The RCMP has delivered a historic apology to female officers and civilian members with a massive settlement over harassment, discrimination and sexual abuse claims that could cost up to $100 million. About 20,000 current and past employees who have worked for the RCMP since 1974 could qualify for compensation, but it is expected that about a thousand will seek payments.

The settlement agreement, which must still be approved by a Federal Court, deals with two separate class action cases that have been ongoing for nearly five years.

RCMP Commissioner Bob Paulson teared up as he apologized and praised the women for their courage during a news conference in Ottawa.

“To all the women who have been impacted by the force’s failure to have protected your experience at work, and on behalf of every leader, supervisor or manager, every commissioner, I stand humbly before you today and solemnly offer our sincere apology,” he said.

“You came to the RCMP wanting to personally contribute to your community and we failed you. We hurt you. For that, I’m truly sorry.”

Allegations included rape, unwanted sexual touching, physical assault, sexist comments, threats, gender discrimination, harassment and bullying.

Paulson also apologized to all Canadians for the “shameful” conduct within the ranks that bred “deep disappointment” in the national police force.

Janet Merlo, who was the lead plaintiff in one lawsuit, called it a “turning point” for

the RCMP. “I have total faith that this is the beginning of a new era — hopefully a better era,” she said. Merlo and Linda Davidson,

who led the other class action suit, said it was a small but “potent” minority of men who are perpetrators.

Paulson said the government has “generously” set aside $100 million for the claims, but there is no “cap” on the payouts.

While specific terms of the agreement will not be publicly disclosed until after it is approved by the court, Paulson said it sets out two broad elements: • There must be continued organizational change within the RCMP, with new initiatives and more accountability to eradicate gender discrimination and sexual abuse.

• There will be an independent claims process and compensation scheme.

Claims will be adjudicated by retired Supreme Court Justice Michel Bastarache.

Compensation claims will be paid at six different levels, based on severity of the severity of the acts and the impact on the woman’s welfare and career. The process will be confidential, but does not compel women to refrain from speaking about their experiences publicly.

Saturday, October 08, 2016

CRTC enforces lower wholesale internet rates Canada’s major internet service providers must lower the wholesale rates they charge smaller rivals for access to their networks, the country’s telecom regulator said on Thursday, in a move it said would protect consumer choice.

The Canadian Radio-television and Telecommunications Commission said it has set lower interim rates that established providers — including BCE Inc, Rogers Communications Inc, and Telus Corp — can charge to resellers, calling some of the companies’ own proposals “not just and

reasonable”.

“Canadians’ access to a choice of broadband internet services would have been at stake had we not revised these rates,” CRTC chair Jean-Pierre Blais said in a statement.

The providers were told in 2010 that they must allow smaller internet providers access to their high-speed fiber networks at the same speed they offer to their own customers, at cost plus a 10 per cent markup.

In March the regulator asked for updated rate proposals since cost components had shifted and should have resulted in an overall reduction in rates.

Of the rate proposals received, only SaskTel’s was approved.

The other impacted companies are Cogeco Inc, Manitoba Telecom Services Inc, Shaw Communications Inc and Quebecor Inc’s Videotron. The enforced rates vary by provider, and will be finalized at a later date following further study and consultation.

Man killed in South Surrey farm incident One person has died on acreage in South Surrey in what police say was a workplace accident.

Details Thursday afternoon were scarce, but Surrey RCMP Cpl. Scotty Schumann confirmed shortly before 3:30 p.m. that a man was killed on rural property immediately north of Morgan Creek, in the 15600-block of 40 Avenue.

“There has been a sudden death and it appears to be the result of a workplace accident,” Schumann told Peace Arch News.

The victim, later described as a man in his twenties, died at the scene.

“He appears to have been working on a machine and was injured by the machine, and as a result of those injuries, he has passed away,” Schumann said.

Surrey Fire Services assistant Chief Brian Woznikoski said firefighters were dispatched shortly after 2:30 p.m. for a “cardiac

respiratory” incident. They left the scene just after 3 p.m.

“What I’m reading here is there was some sort of machinery involved,” Woznikoski said.

One person at the scene said emergency crews could be seen near two tractors towards the back of a field on the property.

Schumann said WorkSafeBC has been notified and victim services personnel have been dispatched to the scene.

Home buying affordability fades for millennials with new mortgage rule Millennials trying to buy their first homes face a dramatic hit to the amount they can borrow as a result of the federal government’s move to tighten mortgage qualification rules later this month.

That’s the warning from B.C. Real Estate Association chief economist Cameron Muir, who says the federal finance minister’s announcement Monday flies in the face of government efforts to improve housing affordability at the low end of the market. “It’s going to have a dramatic impact on affordability for millennials,” Muir said. “As much as 20 per cent of their purchasing power has been eliminated. Many of them will be squeezed completely out of the marketplace.”

Effective Oct. 17, buyers with less than a 20 per cent down payment – most first time buyers – will need enough income to qualify at a higher benchmark interest rate posted by the Bank of Canada, even though their actual payments are based on the lower rate retail banks offer them.

Right now the gap between the two rates is around two per cent, so the rule is equivalent to a sudden interest rate spike of that amount

for many buyers. Muir said a couple with combined annual income of $80,000 and a five per cent down payment can currently buy a home priced at about $500,000.

“That’s going to fall to about $400,000,” he said. “That’s a $100,000 reduction in their purchasing power. That’s a substantial hit to affordability.”

It’s the sharpest government-imposed cut to what new home buyers can afford in years, he said, predicting millennials will bear the brunt. “Unlike previous generations, their purchasing power has now been reduced through government policy.”

Finance Minister Bill Morneau unveiled the change as one of a series of measures to reduce risk in overheated housing markets.

Muir argued the mortgage qualification rule could have been phased in gradually.

“The shock over a number of years wouldn’t be the same shock we’re now going to see in the markets.”

He said the change threatens to have broader impacts, potentially triggering a drop in home construction activity, associated jobs and economic growth.

LOCAL

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LOCAL

Saturday, October 08, 2016

CMHC promises deeper report into impact of foreign home ownership in Vancouver The national housing agency’s latest report, billed to “provide insight into foreign ownership in Vancouver’s housing market,” wasn’t quite the blockbuster many had been hoping for.

Foreign buyers have been one of several factors impacting Vancouver home prices, the Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation said in its report released Thursday, adding, “although the extent to which wealthy foreign buyers/capital have impacted home prices is still unclear and contested, this is widely believed to be one factor driving prices.”

A deeper dive into foreign ownership is still in the works, explained CMHC’s Vancouverbased market analyst Robyn Adamache, who wrote the report.

“Nationally, we are still working with our partners at Statistics Canada and we are continuing to look at a couple of areas,” she said.

In March, it emerged the CMHC, which backs mortgages and tracks real estate data, was pushing for a fuller view of foreign ownership of residential real estate and its impact on rising prices.

Prior to this, CMHC president Evan Siddall said collecting “accurate and reliable” figures as opposed to anecdotes about foreign ownership was key to assessing any related risk and instability.

Documents cited by Bloomberg News at the time revealed the CMHC was in talks with eight federal agencies to track housing information. The agency confirmed its team of analysts were in meetings with the Canada Revenue Agency and FINTRAC, which monitors money laundering. There were also meetings with the Bank of Canada as well as housing and assessment agencies in B.C. “The main thing is we have (also) been holding roundtables with industry experts and academics to further our understanding,” said Adamache.

She said in addition to the agency’s regular condo vacancy and rental market surveys, there is a pilot program in Vancouver and Toronto that will look at foreign ownership of newly completed units. The CMHC report was released as the federal government introduced new rules that will make it harder for buyers to qualify for mortgages.

PICS presents Red FM appreciation plaque

PICS has thanked local radio station RED FM for graciously hosting a radiothon in support of PICS Diversity Village. President of RED FM Mr. Kulwinder Sanghera along with General Manager Bijoy Samuel and radio host Pooja Sekhon accepted the plaque presented to them by PICS CEO Mr. Charan Gill and President of PICS Board of Directors Bobby Pawar.

And as promised during the radiothon, RED FM presented PICS with a check of $30,000 which included proceeds from their 2016 RED FM Walk and Run and their own $15,000 corporate donation. Thank You RED FM!

Mounties seek ex-husband of woman found dead The Integrated Homicide Investigation Team (IHIT) has asked for the public’s help in locating 60-year-old Youngku Youn, whose former wife, Hee Sook Youn, was found clinging to life in the bathroom of the store on Wednesday. She was rushed to hospital, but the 59-year-old woman died a short time later. According to IHIT Staff Sgt. Jennifer Pound, there

was a history of violence in the family home. “There is a history of domestic incidents,” she said. The health food store is owned by Hee Sook Youn. Homicide investigators confirmed Thursday that they are treating the death as a murder. An autopsy has yet to be completed.

Pound said IHIT is working with the Burnaby RCMP, and it is not clear where the suspect is headed.

Gandhi Jayanti was celebrated at a Hindu Temple Burnaby on Sunday Oct. 2

LOCAL

Saturday, October 08, 2016

Montreal hijab-wearing student prevented from taking exam after teacher wanted to check for headphones Montreal’s Collège de Maisonneuve is trying to determine how to accommodate a student who was prevented from taking an exam because she wouldn’t temporarily remove part of her hijab, a school spokesperson said Monday.

The young woman was asked by her male biology teacher two weeks ago to pull back part of her Islamic headscarf so he could see whether she was wearing headphones, said Line Légaré.

“She didn’t want to show him her ears,” Légaré said, adding the student offered her teacher the possibility of touching her through the hijab to make sure she wasn’t trying to cheat.

“That made the teacher uncomfortable.”

He then told the student she couldn’t take the exam that day.

Légaré noted the teacher made it clear at the beginning of the school year he reserved the right to ensure students weren’t wearing headphones before exams.

“Whether the student had a tuque, a hat,

or lots of hair,” Légaré said, the teacher had written in his course outline he would ask students to show him their ears, a policy she said was condoned by the biology department.

Légaré said the teacher and the student are negotiating another date for her to take the exam.

She said to her knowledge the student hasn’t filed a formal complaint and added the school is looking at ways to ensure such “misunderstandings” aren’t repeated.

Quebec Premier Philippe Couillard was asked Monday about the incident and replied the teacher “used his judgment” to ensure there was no suspicion of cheating. “From what I hear, the exam will take place,” he said in Montreal. “I think this shows that people on the ground are best placed to manage these questions.”

He added his government has introduced a bill regarding religious accommodation “and we’ll have the chance to have a debate on these issues.”

New crosswalk helps community People residing in around often passing through 72 A Avenue and 124 Street no longer need to wait for any vehicle to stop. At the push of a button on a controlled pedestrian crosswalk : means drivers are alerted when they see the flashing yellow light.

Surrey City Council voted in favour, along with the City of Surrey to have erected a new pedestrian crossing at 124th street. This was

following many years that 124th street and 72nd Avenue as being the worst intersection for accident , which involved vehicles and people, Pedestrians and vehicles can now be more aware of each other, in circumventing accident.

After receiving new designated crossing paths people felt sigh of relieve because safety is prime concern for everyone.

New pedestrian crosswalk will be more blissful to many users.It is well known that this area is extremely busy, especially during school hours, we need to be mindful of each other, no matter if we are commuters taking transit, people going to the Newton Athletic Park or attendees at a nearby mosque.

People are pleased to have new neighbourhood fearless crossing because it is safer, easier and quicker way to access there across the street.

City of Surrey and the Surrey City of Council has done commendable job for making street safer with providing exclusive style flashing light crosswalk.

Contributed By: Hanif Patel, Surrey

13

Hundreds of BC foster children victims of sexualized violence At least 233 cases of sexualized violence against young people in the care of the province of B.C. have been been reported since 2011, according to a report from B.C.’s representative for children and youth.

Mary Ellen Turpel-Lafond said the actual number of victims is probably much higher, because many cases go unreported.

“These are disturbing numbers when you consider that we are talking about young people who in many cases are already traumatized, who can no longer live with their families, and whose protection is the responsibility of the government,” Turpel-Lafond said.

“Clearly, there is an urgent need to better prevent and to respond more appropriately to sexualized violence against children and youth in care — particularly when it comes to Aboriginal girls.”

The report titled Too Many Victims: Sexualized Violence in the Lives of Children and Youth in Care examines the cases of 121 youth that reported being victimized between 2011 and 2014. Some of the cases date back to 2004 but the victims waited several years to come forward.

Turpel-Lafond said there have been an additional 112 reports of children victimized since the time frame outlined in the report.

In roughly one in four cases, it was the

foster parent who victimized the child.

Nearly one in five victims attempted suicide within a year of being abused.

“Very clearly, the victims in this report are being swept under the carpet,” TurpelLafond said. The youngest victim was three years old.

More than 60 per cent of the victims were Indigenous girls.

Turpel-Lafond said that number was especially troubling because Aboriginal girls only make up about a quarter of the youth in foster care in B.C. “There is much we can do to both prevent this abuse and to better support children and youth who have experienced it, so that they don’t have a lifelong vulnerability to sexualized violence,” Turpel-Lafond said.

“Prime among the responses is to have strong child advocacy centres, such as the Sheldon Kennedy Centre in Calgary.

Aboriginal children and youth need these kinds of facilities, focused on their unique needs, to begin to address sexualized violence without blaming victims and further isolating them from their families, communities and caregivers.”

Turpel-Lafond also wants the province to ensure adequate training is provided to social workers and others working with this population, with a particular focus on Indigenous girls.

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LOCAL

Saturday, October 08, 2016

Self-described millionaire found beaten in Brampton ditch charged with fraud A self-described millionaire and business coach found beaten and half-naked in a Brampton, Ont., ditch earlier this year has now been charged with fraud.

Reza Mokhtarian has been charged with one criminal count of fraud against the

public over $5,000 between July 1, 2013, and Dec. 31, 2015, the Ontario Securities Commission said in a release Friday.

He is due in court in Toronto on Oct. 26.

The OSC declined to provide further details about the fraud charge, saying the matter is before the courts.

In February, Mokhtarian identified himself as the man found in the ditch, claiming on Facebook that his assailants were competitors. The Mississauga, Ont., man said he was dragged into a van on Feb. 25 after playing soccer with friends before being held captive in his home for 15 hours by four “large individuals.” He alleged another three men guarded the exits to his home, though details were murky because, he said, he had a concussion at the time.

Police later found a grey 2010 Bentley — with the licence plate “OCEANSKY” — which they say belonged to the victim. In March, two people, a man and woman from Brampton, were charged with kidnapping and forcible confinement. They are next set to appear in court on October 7th. Peel Regional Police would not say if the fraud charge and the beating and kidnapping are linked in any way.At the time, lawyer David Marcovitch tsaid that a group of Mokhtarian’s former clients alleged he had scammed them. “He held himself out as a foreign exchange trader, and we have not been able to confirm that he is registered,” said Marcovitch, who represented five of Mokhtarian’s former clients. “And now their investments have been lost.” In an interview following the alleged assault, Mokhtarian said he believed those responsible were competitors. The 33-year-old also denied his alleged kidnapping might have had anything to do with a previously failed business venture. Asked about his former clients at the time, Mokhtarian dismissed their claims.“They’re just glory seekers for media,” he said. “No one lost money, because they traded money on their own free will.” The release from the OSC says the charges followed an investigation by the commission’s joint serious offences team, which includes the RCMP’s financial crime program and Ontario Provincial Police’s anti-rackets branch.

Canadians aren’t as accepting as we think — and we can’t ignore it, writes Angus Reid Back in December, TV viewers around the world were treated to the scene of Justin Trudeau, Canada’s new, youthful prime minister, greeting Syrian refugees as they disembarked from government planes in Toronto.

These images no doubt reinforced the impression that many Canadians have of their country: That it’s a welcoming land of enormous generosity that celebrates the diverse cultures and languages arriving at her door — unlike our neighbour to the south that produced the venomous Donald Trump and seeks to integrate newcomers into a homogenous “American” society.

But the job of a pollster often involves confronting social myths with inconvenient data. The fact is, though this high-minded view of Canada may be comforting to many, it’s not entirely accurate. On immigration, the vast majority of Canadians prefer a policy that will enhance our economic prosperity over one that emphasizes the needs of people in crisis around the world. On multiculturalism, by a factor of almost two-to-one, Canadians say they would prefer that minorities “do more to fit in” with mainstream Canada, rather than encourage cultural diversity in which groups keep their own customs and language. (I asked an almost identical question 25 years ago, and fewer Canadians actually support multiculturalism as a concept today.)

Asked the same question today, Americans are actually more likely than Canadians to say minority groups in their country should keep their culture and language (in the U.S., it’s closer to a 50/50 split). Before considering the implications of these findings, some context is in order. First, we need to reflect on how much perceptions and attitudes have changed

throughout the decades.

Though Canadians offer less-thanenthusiastic responses on multiculturalism in the abstract, they’ve actually become more inclined to embrace specific instances of

diversity over the years.

One example in particular stands out. In the early 1990s, I conducted several polls on whether Canadians agreed with a policy in some legion halls that banned Sikhs wearing turbans.b At the time, Canadians were divided on the issue. Today, our defence minister is a Sikh veteran who wears a turban.

Likewise, around the same time, we polled Canadians on a campaign originating in Western Canada to change immigration policy to favour people from “white” countries.

Today, the question of giving immigration preference to “whites” is mercifully far behind us. There’s little evidence of a crisis today in the treatment of newcomers to Canada.

Unlike the situation in France, where large swaths of the immigrant community feel they aren’t treated as French citizens, we find that the vast majority of newcomers to Canada feel that they are treated as “Canadians.”

In fact, they’re more likely to say they’re optimistic about their children’s futures and the future of the country than Canadians who were born here.

Abbotsford man wins $9.7 million, will tell kids through the news In a classic ‘dad’ move, an Abbotsford man will troll his kids by letting them learn through the news that he won a $9.7-million lottery prize.

Daniel Schulli won the Sept. 17 Lotto 6/49 jackpot, becoming the latest British Columbian to become a millionaire.

“This is just so surreal,” he said. “My wife and I have been walking around the house giggling because we just can’t believe it.”

Schulli said he and his wife have no immediate plans, other than to breathe a little easier financially. His first big purchase, however, will be a new truck.

“Because my kids keep laughing at my old 1996 pickup,” he said, noting he’s yet to tell his three youngest children about the lotto win.

“They’re going to find out about it on the news.”

Schulli bought the winning ticket at Bradner General Store in Abbotsford.

LOCAL

Saturday, October 08, 2016

15

Vancouver School Board puts school closures on hold The proposed closure of up to 11 schools in Vancouver has been put on hold.

The Vancouver School Board voted to suspend the public process of closing schools in the district, as WorkSafeBC investigates “serious allegations of a toxic work environment.”

The acting superintendent of the VSB, Steve Cardwell, made the recommendation at Monday night’s school board meeting.

It comes after a week in which multiple senior staff went on medical leave, and Cardwell was appointed to the superintendent job he held from 2010 to 2014.

WorkSafeBC is investigating, telling CBC it is “aware of a letter from the B.C. School Superintendents Association regarding the Vancouver School Board.”

“WorkSafeBC will be proceeding with an investigation under the authority of the Workers Compensation Act,” said spokeswoman Trish Knight Chernecki in a statement.

But Vancouver School Board chair Mike Lombardi downplayed the issue at Monday’s

meeting, saying “we have a very stable situation here.” However, the provincial government is monitoring the situation.

“The ministry received a letter from the BC School Superintendents Association containing serious allegations of a toxic work environment between the elected Vancouver School Board and its staff,” said Education Minister Mike Bernier in a statement.

“We have passed the BCSSA’s concerns about the welfare and the lack of a sense of

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Brentwood mall lower level closed due to flooding Flooding at Brentwood Town Centre in Burnaby has closed stores on the lower level although the upper level of the mall is open for business as usual.

A spokesperson for the mall said it appears a water pipe burst at some point during the night. EB Games Assistant Manager Bob Johnson said water had soaked into the carpets of his store, but overall, the damage was “not that bad.” “The clean-up crews are working now,” he said. “We hope to have the store open by the end of the day.”

Officials with the mall said the flood does not appear to be related to the high rise construction that’s taking place next to the mall.

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Saturday, October 08, 2016

Vancouver councillor called on to resign after Chinese flag raising A coalition of Chinese immigrants rallied at Vancouver City Hall on Thursday, calling on Coun. Kerry Jang to resign after a controversial flag-raising ceremony last week.

During the ceremony, held outside City Hall last Friday to mark China’s National Day on

Oct. 1, Jang hoisted a Chinese flag up a large flagpole. He, along with Richmond East MP Joe Peschisolido, also spoke at the event while wearing a red scarf.

The celebration angered many Vancouverites who say red scarves symbolize loyalty to Chinese communism, and were worn by the fanatical Red Guards during Mao Zedong’s

Cultural Revolution in the 1960s. They sent an open letter to councillors and Peschisolido seeking assurances that such an event doesn’t happen again.

“We demand our government officials, members of legislative assembly and parliament put our Canadian values first when they deal with Sino-Canadian affairs,” read the letter, signed by Louis Huang, a spokesman for a group called the Alliance of the Guard of Canadian Values.

Jang previously told Postmedia he filled in at the event on behalf of Deputy Mayor Heather Deal, who was unable to attend. He could not be reached Thursday.

Meanwhile, Peschisolido said in an interview that he regretted having worn the red scarf.

He said he had been handed the item and told that it was “a symbol of 5,000 years of Chinese culture and civilization.”

“I looked around and everyone else was wearing it, so I said okay.”

Peschisolido said he later learned what the scarf represents to many Chinese-Canadians.

But the Liberal MP said he did not regret being there that day.

“If I had to do it again, I still would have gone,” he said. “I got the opportunity to speak, where I talked about the importance of economic ties between Canada and the People’s Republic of China. … But I also spoke about the importance of human rights, the importance of democracy, the importance of freedom of the press and freedom of one’s faith.”

Vancouver architect Bing Thom dead at age 75 Prominent Vancouver architect Bing Thom has died of a brain aneurysm. He was 75 years old.

Thom was on a trip to Hong Kong when he passed away Tuesday afternoon, according to the statement issued by his firm this morning.

His wife, Bonnie Thom, who shared his life for over 50 years, was by his side, said the statement.

Thom was born in Hong Kong, studied architecture at UBC and UC Berkeley, and worked in the offices of Fumihiko Maki and Arthur Erickson before opening his own firm in Vancouver.

Fellow Vancouver architect James Cheng said he was shocked to hear of Thom’s death.

“I was floored because I was sitting next to Bing two weeks ago at a wedding and we were talking about Bing working so hard and the stress of him flying to Hong Kong and doing work there,” said Cheng.

Thom is remembered as one of Canada’s leading architects and urban visionaries — both at home and abroad — by those who knew him.

“He really was the last of the ‘starchitects’ like Erickson,” said Cheng on Tuesday shortly after learning about Thom’s death.

Cheng, who also immigrated from Hong Kong and worked under Thom years ago on the Robson Square design for Arthur Erikson, said Thom was a ground-breaking architect for his generation of Chinese-Canadians.

“He really was a role model. He was the first early success to be a professional in the

community.”

It was Thom’s design for the Chan Centre for the Performing Arts at UBC in the late 90s that launched his international career, according to Cheng.

“The Chans donated the funds and then handpicked Bing to be the architect. That project actually launched Bing onto the world stage because of the success it has been and because musicians who played there raved about it.”

“Bing was one of those true giants of not just architecture but urbanism ... He was driven by pure passion and vision,” said Toderian.”

“He was one of the people who was a key input into this thing we call the Vancouver model or ‘Vancouverism’... I work all over the world and I am constantly running into his legacy.... It is amazing how far his vision has travelled.”

Toderian points to Thom’s design for the redevelopment of Central City in Surrey as one example of how he helped redefine the whole idea of a ‘suburban downtown.’

“He was one of these people who challenged the idea that only Vancouver would be an urban place... and he was quite right about that.” Cheng said Thom’s architecture went deeper than simply following a style.

“He had more of a commitment to a philosophy than an artificial style. His buildings were always very warm. He used a lot of wood ... and that’s partly his roots in B.C. and the West Coast.”

Vancouver homeowners missing out on $30M in grants, says councillor A Vancouver city councillor is asking the provincial government to review the homeowner grant program because he says vulnerable homeowners in the city are missing out on $30 million of provincial grant money due to outdated criteria.

Raymond Louie said residential properties valued at $1.2 million or less are currently eligible for the grant, with supplemental grants provided to seniors and veterans. Historically, this has meant about 95 per cent of residences would be eligible for a homeowner’s grant.

Today, with Vancouver home assessment values topping $1.2 million, Louie argues only

64.7 per cent of homeowners are now eligible for the grant. “It’s most pronounced in the city of Vancouver where homeowners are now

ineligible for this grant ... and that increases the unaffordability within the city.” Louie is proposing the province review and change the criteria. Instead of the $1.2 million threshold, he’s arguing the province should ensure 95 per cent of the city’s homeowners are eligible for the grant once more. “You look back to 2005, [the grant covered] 95 per cent of properties in B.C., all the way up until 2014 where it suddenly dropped.” If the city received 95 per cent coverage today, Louie said it would allow Vancouver homeowners to keep $30 million in total. “When we have these assessments that are going up — especially on the east side of our city

— people who have lived there for many years — seniors, fixed income — they can no longer afford these types of increases.”

Typically, recipients of the grant can receive $570 a year, whereas those who receive the supplemental grant — like seniors — get $845.

As for whether homeowners who have benefited from sky-rocketing house prices should also benefit from a grant, Louie said the benefits will trickle down to other residents.

“Many homes in our city have secondary suites, and the homeowner will try and recoup some of this lost grant by raising rents to their tenants and such,” he explained.

SFU researcher develops DUI detecting device for drugs and alcohol A new device developed by a Simon Fraser University researcher may someday be the first in the world to perform roadside sobriety tests for both drugs and alcohol.

The portable, wireless headset works by using cameras to record a driver’s eye movements, tracking the velocity of change in pupil size and jerkiness of pupil motion in reaction to a series of light patterns displayed on a screen. Ehsan Daneshi, an SFU computational neuroscience PhD candidate, said the device is based on other equipment his firm Ophthalight Digital Solutions Inc. has developed to test for illnesses such as multiple sclerosis, Alzheimer’s and eye cancer.

Realizing law enforcement could benefit from this technology, Daneshi worked with Amir Hossein Vejdani, Ophthalight’s chief medical officer and co-founder, to adapt the device to perform a battery of eye tests for impairment by both alcohol and drugs such as cocaine, LSD or cannabis.

Saturday, October 08, 2016

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DREAM CARPET

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LOCAL

Saturday, October 08, 2016

Emails, other sensitive information, given to provincial adviser, says VSB trustee Information about students or Vancouver school board staff may have been shared with a government-appointed adviser, trustee Patti Bacchus says.

The day before Vancouver school board superintendent Scott Robinson went on medical leave, he revealed to trustees that he had given adviser Peter Milburn access to trustee emails and records of in camera meetings, Bacchus said.

Bacchus, a Vision trustee and former school board chairwoman, said the information that was handed over may include confidential information about students, about negotiations with the government or about legal advice about staff.

She said she has filed a complaint with the privacy commissioner, asking for an investigation.

“My belief is that people have a reasonable expectation of privacy when they email me, that that information won’t be sent to government,” Bacchus said.

Education Minister Mike Bernier said Milburn, a retired B.C. deputy minister of finance, is preparing his report and it will comply with B.C.’s privacy laws. Milburn was appointed as adviser in July after the board refused to pass a balanced budget. Bernier said he did not know that the adviser had seen in camera minutes or private trustee emails.

“Anytime there is an audit, they go in and gather whatever information they can to … make recommendations to me,” Bernier said.

“Peter Milburn and his team will run through all of the applicable laws and legislation before they put something before me that could go to the public, to ensure that the regulations are not breached.”

When Milburn was appointed, he was charged with not only looking at the board’s finances, but at its governance, including the board’s training and experience and the “extent to which the board has considered the information presented by management in decision making.” Bernier announced Thursday that he is extending Milburn’s deadline by two weeks to Oct. 21, in light of the “drastic” and “sudden” changes taking place at the VSB. “I phoned Peter and said, in

light of everything that has changed over the past week or two, I want you to make sure you’ve taken all of those changing dynamics into consideration,” Bernier said.

In the recent past, the government eliminated a requirement for school districts to have schools 95-per-cent full. Meanwhile, several senior staff have gone on medical leave at the VSB, including Robinson, and WorkSafeBC is investigating a complaint of bullying of senior staff.

As a result of those developments, the board decided to call a halt to the process of considering 11 schools for closure.

Bacchus said she is making her concerns public because people want an explanation of what is going on at the VSB. She believes that when the government reversed its 95-percent requirement for school districts, it was “devastating” for staff who had been working hard for two years on a plan to achieve that capacity goal.

“Some of us on the board wanted to look at the plan again, but staff I think were exhausted. That created a pressure point.

They had already been under pressure from government to release all of this information,” Bacchus said. “Some have hinted that they it had been indicated to them that we wouldn’t be around — that we would be fired, so it was almost as though they were working for someone else and felt frightened about that.”

Bacchus believes that Robinson was frustrated and stressed about the information the adviser was asking for.

“He said it was very difficult and that he was being asked to hand over a lot of information and he indicated that he felt he was in a very difficult situation,” Bacchus said. “I think he is an incredible person and I have a lot of respect for him, but I think he was put in an incredibly difficult spot.” NPA trustee Fraser Ballantyne said he was aware of the situation, but that he isn’t concerned about it.

“I don’t think the special adviser is getting anything that shouldn’t be public,” Ballantyne said. “Everything we do is really under the public microscope and I certainly don’t have anything to hide. I don’t know why anybody would be concerned about that.”

Candle Light Vigil Organized by Canadian Hindu Foundation

We would like to inform you that Canadian Hindu Foundation organized Candle light vigil at Holland Park on Sunday September 25th at 4pm.This was very well attended by approximately 150-200 people including veterans and eminent speakers from the community. Everyone condemned this cowardice & ghastly act of Pakistan sponsored terrorist attacks in India. Each one of the participants pledged to fight against every possible design of Pakistan to destabilize India and we stand committed to combat against any evil force directed towards us and humanity. Canadian Hindu Foundation offers the deepest condolences to the family of martyred and we salute these brave soldiers who sacrificed their valuable life for the motherland. We are also planning to initiate signed petition against Pakistan consulate and submit the same to UN Council as well though each one of us has already signed the same individually and submitted to UN. Canadian Hindu foundation is willing to work for any future programmes you plan to organize and ask for our contribution

towards strengthening India. This event was organized in a very short notice as Canadian Hindu Foundation was formed a week ago of this event and it was solely planned by Canadian Hindu Foundation.

Canadian Hindu foundation came

to existence after deliberations of likeminded Hindus who have been working in community for last so many years and are working as volunteers.

Our organization has mission to spread Hindu values that can help build strong community both in Canada and India.

LOCAL

Saturday, October 08, 2016

Housing top concern for Vancouver’s new city planner Vancouver’s new city planner is determined to make it a city for everyone — and that means making sure people of all incomes can afford to live here.

Gil Kelley, who started work as Vancouver’s new chief planner Sept. 15, said affordable housing is the city’s biggest challenge.

“Part of the job of planning is making sure we’re bringing on a supply of housing that’s not simply trickle-down theory but actually locking in a substantial portion of new housing as long-term or permanently

affordable,” he said.

Kelley said he’ll be looking at what the city can do to increase housing for the middle class — particularly rental housing for families.

“Most of the market housing here is being built as condominium or strata units. It’s very interesting for me to observe that because in U.S. cities — especially since the recession — most of the new housing has been in the rental arena.”

One of his goals, he said, is to see what’s motivating Vancouver developers to focus on ownership and not rental housing.

Kelley, who was formerly the director of city-wide planning for San Francisco, said his work in that city — which faces many similar problems as Vancouver when it comes to housing affordability — could inform his work. For example, he said the federal governments in both Canada and the U.S. have “stepped away from the housing agenda”. Despite having robust economies, he said, both Vancouver and San Francisco are having troubles making up the difference.

However, Kelley said he sees more hope for Vancouver.

Federal government ran $1B deficit for last fiscal year The federal government posted a razorthin $1-billion deficit in 2015-16, a period in which both the Liberals and Conservatives had turns managing the public books.

The shortfall, released in a package of yearend numbers Friday, was a bit smaller than the $5.4-billion deficit projected by the Trudeau government in its March budget.

It would have been bigger if not for the Conservatives’ sale of GM shares, and a surge in personal tax revenue linked to the Liberals’ tax hike on the rich.

But the final deficit figure is sure to rankle the Tories, who have long argued they left government finances on track for a surplus before they were defeated in last fall’s election.

The Conservative government ran a $1.9-billion surplus in 2014-15 and had projected a $1.4-billion surplus for 2015-16.

The number released Friday is poised to trigger a fresh round of political sparring over which party did a better job overseeing the federal treasury.

“Basically, it’s the final chapter of Stephen Harper’s economic record,” said Daniel

Lauzon, a spokesman for Finance Minister Bill Morneau.

“It shows that they had an economic approach — and they campaigned on it hard a year ago — that they were going to cut their way to a surplus... So, they made cuts, they cut government services.”

Lauzon also noted that Harper-led governments ran a string of shortfalls during its decade in power.

The Tories posted six straight budgetary deficits, between 2008-09 and 2013-14 — a span that included the global financial crisis and the Great Recession of 2008-09.

MP Lisa Raitt, the Tories’ finance critic, has maintained her party left the Liberals on solid fiscal footing. She has said that position helped generate government revenues after the election because of the “low-tax environment” that was left behind.

Each party held power for several months in fiscal 2015-16, a year also marked by economic disappointment, which was mostly due to the feeble global economy and low oil prices.

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Lawyer Puneet Sandhar nominated as BC Liberal candidate in Surrey-Panorama Surrey lawyer Puneet Sandhar has been named by Premier Christy Clark as the 2017 candidate for Surrey-Panorama.

“It’s an honour to be named the candidate for Surrey-Panorama in the upcoming provincial election,” said Sandhar. “Surrey is a growing, vibrant city that has given so much to me and my family. Now it’s my time to give back by running to be a strong voice for our community in the Legislature, where I will work tirelessly to deliver on our priorities and needs.”

Sandhar immigrated to Canada from India in 2002, and quickly established herself after being called to the B.C. Bar in 2006. She holds a B.A. (Hons) and an LLB from Guru Nanak Dev University in India.

Outside of her role as a mother of two and fulltime solicitor, Sandhar is an active community leader, serving as a member of various organizations, such as: the Board of Legal Services Society British Columbia, Board of Variance with the City of Surrey, Advisory Board of Resource Works, and Board of Punjab Digital Library. She is also director of the South Asian Business Association of B.C and sits on the Mayor’s

Business Advisory Committee for the City of Surrey. For all of her community efforts, she was awarded the Queens Diamond Jubilee Medal in 2012.

Sandhar was announced on Wednesday, October 5 at a highly successful women’s event in Surrey, where she was joined by Clark, and Surrey MLAs Stephanie Cadieux, Peter Fassbender, and Marvin Hunt.

“Puneet is a respected leader in both her career and community, devoting her time and talents to making a real difference in people’s lives,” said Clark. “We have a plan to put British Columbians first that’s working – and it’s qualified candidates like Puneet who believe in this plan, and who will work hard to make sure that we can continue to look after the people we love.”

Sandhar joins a team of 52 BC Liberal candidates already selected across B.C., with 75 per cent of the party’s 2017 candidates expected to be nominated by its biennial convention, happening November 4-6 in Vancouver.

British Columbians will head to the polls on Tuesday, May 9, 2017.

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National

Saturday, October 08, 2016

Vancouver man accused of defrauding Chinese immigrants sponsored lunch with Justin Trudeau A few months before being elected prime minister, Justin Trudeau was the featured speaker at a Richmond business lunch sponsored by a company of a Vancouver immigration consultant accused of defrauding Chinese immigrant investors.

Paul Oei, accused Monday by the B.C. Securities Commission of perpetrating “a fraudulent scheme” through several investment companies, is the sole director of Organic EcoCentre Corp. The company, which was named in the Securities Commission allegations, is the listed sponsor for a July 2015 Richmond Chamber of Commerce lunch featuring Trudeau.

Photos obtained by Postmedia show Paul Oei breaking bread with Trudeau at the luncheon’s head table, and introducing Trudeau to the sold-out crowd. Oei and Trudeau embraced before the future prime minister addressed a packed room of Richmond business and political figures.

Attendees included B.C. Liberal MLA John Yap and key Richmond political fundraisers such as Cindy Chan and Pius Chan.

The luncheon at Sheraton Vancouver Airport Hotel — tickets were $90 for nonChamber members — was called a “non-

partisan” event.

It was titled a “Luncheon with Justin Trudeau — Real Change: Restoring Fairness and Growth to the Middle Class.”

The message might have been lost on some in the crowd. Event sponsor Paul Oei has been featured in The New Yorker as a “fixer” and “unofficial ambassador” for ultrawealthy Chinese clients looking for advice on how to immigrate to B.C. and invest their riches. Oei and his wife own six luxury vehicles and four homes, B.C. lending and title documents show.

In civil court cases that are separate from, but related to, the Securities Commission accusations, investors allege Oei and his wife, Loretta Lai, led them to believe investments in Fraser Valley recycling plant company Cascade were supported by the B.C. government and would let the investors apply for resident status in Canada.

Instead, the Commission alleged, Oei diverted $6.9 million of the $13.3 million raised for Cascade into his personal bank accounts, using that to fund his immigrationinvestment business, Canadian Manu, and to make charity donations, rent luxury cars and pay credit card bills.

Federal government closes tax loophole used by foreign home buyers, hikes mortgage scrutiny The federal government is taking aim at slowing Canada’s overheated housing market with new measures, including closing a tax loophole used by foreign buyers and stress testing more domestic mortgages.

Finance Minister Bill Morneau announced the changes during a conference Monday, describing them as a way to ensure that the country’s housing market remains stable and affordable for Canadian buyers.

Morneau also said that the federal government is now in consultation with “market participants” about finding ways for lenders to take on more of the risk in the current mortgage market.

The sweeping broad changes, targeting foreign buyers and over-leveraged Canadians, are a clear indication that the government remains uncomfortable with the current trajectory of overheated housing markets such as Toronto and Vancouver.

“Across the country, many middle class families looking to buy their first home see prices climbing, often out of their reach,” Morneau told reporters Monday. “Some are taking on high levels of debt in a rush to buy before it’s too late.”

During the press conference, Morneau avoided referring directly to foreign buyers, but a tax loophole that had allowed some to avoid paying capital gains taxes as their homes appreciated in value is also being closed.

“If it captures speculators who were using that tax rule inappropriately, that’s what we were hoping to do,” Morneau told the Financial Post in an interview.

Under the new rules, foreign buyers who were not residents at the time a home was bought will no longer be able to claim a principal residence exemption, and families will only be able to designate “one property as the family’s principal residence for any given year.”

The principal residence exemption means homeowners in Canada who designate a property as their principal residence do not have to announce the sale of that property, nor do they have to pay capital gains taxes if the value of the home has increased from the time of purchase to the time of sale.

Capital gains must be paid when secondary properties, such as cottages and homes that are used as a rental property to generate income, are sold.The federal government will also be implementing “mortgage stress

tests” for all insured borrowers. Morneau said that low-ratio insured mortgages — homebuyers who make a downpayment of at least 20 per cent of the property purchase price — will begin facing the same stricter eligibility requirements as homebuyers with lower down payments.

The stress tests will include seeing whether homebuyers can afford their mortgage payments if interest rates rise. While many buyers are currently qualifying for five-year mortgages at around two per cent, they will now have to prove that they can make mortgage payments at the Bank of Canada posted rate of 4.64 per cent — which, in markets such as Toronto or Vancouver, can add tens of thousands of dollars a year in interest charges.

Morneau said that the new rules will go into effect on Oct. 17, though the changes will not affect Canadians with existing mortgages.

The Finance Minister also said that the government will release a consultation paper in the coming weeks, to solicit views from mortgage lenders about how they can take on more risk in the market. Because many mortgages are guaranteed by the Canadian Mortgage and Housing Corp., Morneau said that too much of the responsibility is currently placed on the government and taxpayers.

“Anything we do will be gradual and take into the account market participant’s point of view,” he said in an interview.

The federal intervention in the housing market comes on the heels of an additional property tax on foreign buyers in Vancouver, which went into effect on Aug. 2.

A number of economists have voiced support for the idea of taxing foreign home buyers. Last month, CIBC World Markets said that Ontario has “no choice” but to soon announce a similar tax on overseas buyers, given the B.C. tax. Last week, Bank of America Merrill Lynch warned that there were plenty of signs that foreign buyers were warping the Canadian housing market and that it would likely lead to increased policy action.

“Evidence of a large foreign presence is abundant,” the economists wrote. “For example, resale house prices fell by 19 per cent (month-over-month) in Vancouver in August, the first month of a new foreign real estate transaction tax.”

Saturday, October 08, 2016

Vancouver property sales plunge as foreignbuyers tax takes effect Sales activity in the Vancouver area’s real estate market has slumped amid uncertainty over a new B.C. tax on foreign buyers, as bidding wars dry up for homes that would have attracted multiple offers earlier this year.

Home sales in the Vancouver area fell by 33 per cent in September compared with the same month last year as the market adjusts to the B.C. government’s 15-per-cent tax on foreign buyers, according to data released on Tuesday by the Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver. The tax took effect on Aug. 2.

Figures from Toronto to be released on Wednesday could offer more detail on whether the measures aimed at cooling Vancouver’s market have pushed investment east into Canada’s largest city, as some have predicted. The Toronto region’s strong real estate sector has fed similar anxiety about foreign investment and speculation.

The numbers on Canada’s two largest housing markets come the same week Ottawa moved to close tax loopholes used by some foreign buyers and to tighten mortgage rules.

Those policies are in addition to B.C.’s foreign-buyers tax and Vancouver’s plan for a tax on homes left vacant by speculators – all designed to curb what has become a housing affordability crisis.

The Vancouver area’s benchmark prices – which the industry says are representations

of typical properties – have set records or remain near their highs, according to the numbers released on Tuesday.

Dan Morrison, president of the Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver, said it is unclear how much the B.C. tax has affected sales because the market was already slowing in July. He said the uncertainty created by the tax has prompted some prospective buyers to step back.

“Buyer fatigue has been a huge factor, especially in the detached house market.

Now, we’re not having those crazy multiple offers,” Mr. Morrison said. “To get back to a more typical market is a healthy thing.”

Early data from the B.C. government show the number of foreign buyers in the Vancouver area’s housing market dropped in the first month of the tax, although some of that was due to a rush to close transactions before Aug. 2.

It could be difficult to gauge the ripple effects of the foreign buyer tax in the months ahead as Ottawa adds its own measures into the mix. Finance Minister Bill Morneau announced a range of changes on Monday to cool housing markets in Canada, including stress-testing a wider range of mortgages, which would make it more difficult for some borrowers to get approved, and closing federal loopholes that some foreign buyers have used to avoid paying capital gain taxes.

The internet ‘blackout zone’ in rural Canada An Ottawa Valley family’s monumental struggle to get broadband internet shows that a significant geographic digital divide still

exists in Canada, even for those who aren’t very far from urban centres.

“I live an hour from our nation’s capital, 10 minutes from the town of Renfrew on a busy highway,” says Kevin LeGris.

“I’m in a blackout zone with no hope of getting high-speed internet.”

LeGris, his wife and their six children live

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on a pastoral patch of 60 hectares about 14 kilometres southwest of Renfrew, Ontario.

He’s close enough to the town of 8,500 to have a Renfrew mailing address.

But in the 10 years they’ve lived there, LeGris and his family have not been able to get a reliable broadband internet connection.

LeGris says Bell is the main service provider in his area but Bell told him his address isn’t eligible for a DSL (Digital Subscriber Line), which is one of two ways most Canadians get internet, the other being cable.

He looked into a fixed wireless connection, where service providers use radio signals to send data, but he’s just slightly too far away from both of the nearest signal towers — one on either side of his property.

A local company told him it could give him a fixed wireless connection but he’d have to build his own 20-metre tower on his property, at his own expense.

He tried a satellite connection but says it was unstable and borderline unusable.

So he currently has a cellular internet connection.

To get a better cell signal, LeGris used a hockey stick to mount an antenna called a Yagi on his chimney. It worked OK, but every time the wind picked up a little, he had to climb onto his roof to make adjustments.

He’s since added a cell signal booster, which typically costs about $600 but which he bought used on Kijiji for $250.

He pays $140 per month for his internet plan. For that he gets 100 gigabytes (GB) of data per month. With his jury-rigged antenna setup, he gets download speeds that top out at about 3 megabits per second (Mbps).

NATIONAL

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Saturday, October 08, 2016

Canada violating international law by jailing hundreds of migrant children, advocacy groups say Canada’s incarceration of hundreds of migrant children is a violation of Canadian and international law, and a stain on the country’s reputation, according to 46 medical and legal advocacy groups who are pressing the government to stop it. Data obtained by the group show an average of 242 children were detained in each of the past four years, often after failed refugee claims.

Canada’s government says public safety is a main concern, along with flight risk and uncertain identity, but the group’s research shows virtually all detentions, almost 90 per cent, are to prevent people fleeing in advance of deportation or not showing up to a tribunal. In some cases, these people’s children have been born in Canada and are therefore citizens, but must be detained as well to avoid leaving children alone. That means the 242 number is lower than the true number, as it only includes formal foreign child detainees.

Newborns to teenagers, they come from all over the world, and have often fled conflict. They

are held in literal jails — the main ones are in Toronto one in Laval, Que. — where nutrition is poor for babies especially, conditions are grim, and their mental health is damaged so much that the younger ones start playing games like “security check pat down,” according to the advocacy groups.

“They are the equivalent of medium security prisons. There’s barbed wire, there are routines that people have to follow in terms of mealtimes. They’re not nurseries.

They’re not designed as daycare centres. These are, in effect, prisons,” said Samer Muscati, director of the International Human Rights Program at the University of Toronto. “It’s the worst sort of place you can put a child in ” He described meeting parents of children whose first words were “search” or “shift change.” Public Safety Minister Ralph Goodale, who oversees the Canada Border Services Agency, “wants to avoid housing children in detention facilities as much as humanly possible,” said his spokesman, Scott Bardsley.

WCB fines Coquitlam psychiatric facility $200,000 The Forensic Psychiatric Services Commission has been fined $171,000 by the Workers’ Compensation Board because of dangerous conditions at the Forensic Psychiatric Hospital in Coquitlam.

The B.C. Government and Service Employees’ Union said Thursday that union members at the hospital have been urging their employer to introduce safety measures, including investments in equipment and upgrades to the facility, as well as safer policies and procedures.

“The Provincial Health Services Authority needs to intervene at the Forensic Psychiatric

Hospital to address these issues immediately, before any more workers get hurt,” union president Stephanie Smith said in a statement.

“This facility has an atrocious record when it comes to violent incidents, and refusing to address the causes is completely unacceptable.”

Since 2013, WorkSafeBC has issued more than 44 orders to the employer mostly due to their failure to protect workers from violence.

Despite these multiple orders, the union said, the employer has failed to take sufficient precautions for the prevention of work-related injuries or illnesses.

Justin Trudeau defends carbon tax strategy Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is rejecting charges his government is being heavyhanded and interfering with its plan to impose carbon pricing on provinces that don’t act on their own.

A day after announcing that the Liberal government was moving forward on a national plan to price carbon, the prime minister defended his strategy against criticism from federal Conservatives and some provinces.

“A carbon tax is a bad idea and Canadian taxpayers will be the ones paying the tab. . . . the government should get out of the way and let the provinces do their job,” Conservative MP Denis Lebel said in question period Tuesday.

But Trudeau fired back, saying that for 10 years, the previous Conservative was “unable to work with the provinces, unable to build a protected environment. “This is the responsibility of all levels of government.

This is right for the economy. It is right for the environment. It is about time Canada had leadership on this file,” the prime minister said. The Liberal government on Monday unveiled their intent to establish a floor price on carbon pollution nationwide of $50 per tonne of carbon dioxide equivalent by 2022.

Provinces will have to meet or exceed that price, either through a direct price on carbon or a cap-and-trade system.

If a province fails to establish a pricing on carbon, Trudeau said the federal government would impose a carbon price in that jurisdiction. The plan won praise from

22 business and society leaders, including executives at The Co-operators, Uniliver, Telus and Loblaw Companies, who said that carbon pricing was the “most economically effective way to reduce emissions and stimulate clean innovation.”

The plan was not so well received among some provincial leaders.

As Trudeau made the announcement Monday, federal Environment Minister Catherine McKenna was meeting with her provincial counterparts in Montreal.

McKenna briefed her counterparts on the federal strategy just prior to Trudeau making the plan public. Speaking Tuesday, McKenna refused to comment on the tensions it caused behind-the-scenes, a tempest that saw three provincial ministers walk out early from the meeting in protest.

Instead, the federal environment minister insisted that Monday’s session was a “really good conversation.”

“Politics will be politics, but we’re focused on solutions. I am focused on continuing to work with all the provinces and territories,” McKenna told reporters on Parliament Hill.

Newfoundland and Labrador Premier Dwight Ball said Tuesday that many felt blindsided by the l announcement. “I think there are a number of provinces that are concerned with how it unfolded,” he said, according to a Canadian Press report.

Yet the Liberals are confident that the fuss is less than it seems. Four provinces — British Columbia, Alberta, Ontario and Quebec — already have plans in place to price carbon.

punjab

Saturday, October 08, 2016

Kejriwal acting as a Pak spokesman: Majithia

The tension at the Indo-Pak border has not only displaced thousands of villagers but has also shown its impact on the trade and hospitality industry.

The flow of visitors to the Golden Temple too has reduced. Manager Sulakhan Singh said: “Since September 29, when the border belt vacation orders were issued, there has been 20 per cent decline in the number of devotees. The consumption of material for preparation of langar (community food) witnessed 15 per cent fall. Earlier, around 70 quintals of flour was used daily, now 50 quintals is being used,” he said.

Following a ban on public viewing of the Retreat ceremony at the Attari-Wagah joint check post and evacuation of residents from Attari, the economy of the small border town has taken a hit.

A 90 per cent decline in the toll tax revenue at the Amritsar-Attari toll plaza testifies the drastic fall in the traffic. An official said only 40-50 vehicles passed through the toll these days against 700-800 vehicles earlier.

Located just 2 km from the Attari-Wagah border is Sarhad, a restaurant that promotes the theme of “peace through food” with its Amritsari-Lahori cuisine. It has reported 90 per cent decline in sales. Other eateries and hotels in the area too have witnessed a drastic decline in their revenue.

Charnjit Singh Chadha, proprietor of HK Clark Inn, said the occupancy had declined to 30 per cent after the border tension. “Even the advance bookings are being cancelled whereas October-December happens to be peak season for business,” he said.

Tension eases, villagers rush back home Six days after the Army carried out surgical strikes across the LoC, the border area residents today started returning home.

They had been putting up in relief camps set up across the district.

“There is no use of staying in relief camps as our ripe paddy crop will get damaged if not harvested soon,” said Zora Singh, a resident of Bakhushah village, who was staying in a relief camp at Sant Kabir Institute, near Fazilka.

Manjit Singh of Ram Singh Bhaini village said since the government had ordered reopening of schools, he had brought his children back home to prevent the loss of studies.

Some villagers have, however, complained that they are allegedly being forced by government officials to leave the camps and return to the respective villages.

Harbans Singh of Bakhushah village,

Ashok Singh of Mohammad Pira village, Dalip Singh of Retewali Bhain village and Manjit Singh of Wisakhawala village alleged that he had been told to return home.

Official sources said as many as 4,471 residents were staying in 31 relief camps set up in various parts of the district. More than 1,000 have left the camps set up at Sant Kabir Institute, Government ITI, National College, Chuarianwali, Kheowali, Behak Khas, Kirianwali villages etc.

Additional Deputy Commissioner Charandev Singh Maan refuted the allegation, but admitted that the villagers had starting leaving the camps and the administration was lending every possible help to those who wanted to return on their own. “In fact, the border villagers started returning home for the education to their wards, to take care of their livestock and to harvest the paddy crop,” he said.

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the Indian armed forces. Later, the yatra went to Badali Ala Singh and Duffehra villages.

At Roorki village, youths and SAD workers led by Gurpreet Singh Raju Khanna, party candidate for Amloh constituency, welcomed the yatra. Leading the yatra in the home district of Capt Amarinder Singh, Majithia accused the PPCC chief of “playing petty politics over the move to shift villagers in border areas to safer places.”

Majithia said that all of a sudden had Amarinder had surfaced at the border and started playing politics.

“The idea behind evacuating the border villages was to ensure no loss of civilian lives in case of war,” he said.

Note: Programme can be change.

Revenue and Information and Public Relations Minister Bikram Singh Majithia today lashed out at Aam Aadmi Party supremo Arvind Kejriwal, terming him a ‘spokesperson of Pakistan’.

“Kejriwal is acting like a spokesperson of Pakistan. Like Pakistanis, he is asking for proof of Indian Army’s surgical strike on terrorists camps in Pakistan-occupied Kashmir.

He is demoralising our Army which has always made us proud,” said Majithia at the start of his ‘Buland Tiranga Yatra’.

He added that the yatra from Mohali to the War Memorial in Patiala had been organised to hail the Indian Army. Nearly 8,000 activists of the Youth Akali Dal participated. Majithia rode a motorcycle with Punjab PWD Minister Sharanjit Singh Dhillon riding pillion.

Taking a dig at Capt Amarinder Singh, Majithia said he was also politicising the issue.

“Being an ex-serviceman, Amarinder should not do such things especially when Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi has backed the Centre on the issue,” he said.

He said that more such marches would be organised in other parts of the state to boost the morale of the Army.

Fatehgarh Sahib: The march was accorded a warm welcome as it entered Fatehgarh Sahib.

Hundreds of Akali workers led by Nirmal Singh, MLA, Bassi Pathana, welcomed Majithia. He told them that by asking for proof, no one should belittle the sacrifices of

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NRI

Saturday, October 08, 2016

NRI jailed for raping teacher in Singapore A 27-year-old Indian-origin former beach patrol officer in Singapore was on Monday sentenced to more than 11 years in prison and 12 strokes of the cane for raping a drunken woman at the country’s famous resort island of Sentosa in May 2012.

Pram Nair was found guilty of rape and sexual assault in July this year after a 15-day trial, during which he defended himself by “scandalising” the victim, claiming the 20-year-old relief teacher was an alcoholic party girl and had flirted with him and other men that night.

Prosecutors had called for a 16-year jail term and 15 strokes of the cane, “an exemplary sentence” which would “pierce false stereotypes and wrong assumptions

about rapes and sexual assaults of intoxicated victims”, Channel News Asia reported.

The sentence would serve as a warning that “it is not OK to assume that skimpily-clad, drunk girls at a party are asking for it,” the Channel quoted Deputy Public Prosecutor Kavita Uthrapathy as saying.

Nair raped and sexually assaulted the victim on May 6, 2012, at about 2.25am when they met at a beach party and he plied her with alcohol, on one occasion pouring drink into her mouth for 20 seconds. After the victim was intoxicated, Nair separated her from her friend and took her to a stretch of Siloso beach 80 to 90 metres away from the party, where he raped her while she lay unconscious.

Indian youth jailed for stabbing, killing pregnant girlfriend in New Zealand An Indian student, who killed his pregnant girlfriend in a frenzied knife attack in New Zealand after she told him the baby was not his, was sentenced to life imprisonment on Tuesday.

The man, who goes by the single name Akash, displayed “cruelty, brutality and callousness” in murdering 22-year-old Gurpreet Kaur, Auckland High Court judge Matthew Palmer said.

The judge said the pair were secretly dating for 12 months but Akash, 24, snapped on April 7 this year when Kaur told him the baby was not his and she wanted to end the relationship.

High on methamphetamine, he stabbed

her 29 times and dumped the body in roadside bushes south of Auckland.

He initially pleaded not guilty, arguing the stab wounds were self inflicted, but admitted his guilt in August, four months after being arrested.

Palmer said the fact that Kaur was 7 to 10 weeks pregnant exacerbated the crime and made her death even more painful for her family.

“Not only did you murder Gurpreet Kaur and deprive her family of her existence, but you deprived her and her family of the potential of another life,” the judge said.

Akash was sentenced to life with a minimum of 17 years behind bars.

AAP Punjab convener Ghuggi woos NRIs in USA Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) Punjab convener Gurpreet Ghuggi was recently in USA on a four day trip where he interacted with the non-resident Indians and AAP supporters during events in six cities. Thousands flocked to meet Ghuggi in Tracy, Fresno and Fremont in West Coast and New York, New Jersey and Virginia in East Coast.

AAP USA convener, Pradeep Sundriyal had earlier unleashed the Mission Punjab strategy a few weeks back and the strategy has found huge support among the overseas Indians.

Even before Ghuggi had landed in USA on September 14, enthusiastic AAP overseas supporters started posting short videos welcoming Ghuggi to the USA and affirming their wholehearted support for the Punjab

elections in 2017.

While interacting with people in various cities, Ghuggi bemoaned the loss of language and culture in Punjab and the need to bring back the glory of Punjabi culture through education. He further stressed the need for skill based education, reforms in agriculture and AAP’s total commitment to bring about a drug free Punjab.

Striking a chord with the overseas supporters, Ghuggi applauded how well the Punjabis in the USA have preserved their culture and identity. Ghuggi took time to discuss and answer each and every question of participants at events in all the cities. Thousands of people who attended the events pledged to take forward the message of AAP.

NRIs to increase numbers in US Congress Indian-Americans are all set to increase their headcount in the US Congress as more candidates from the community, including women, are expected to win in the November elections.

With the prospect of a woman being elected for the first time as the president of the country getting brighter, Indian-American women are sailing ahead to create history by entering both the Senate and the US House of Representatives.

If local reports and political pundits are to be believed, California Attorney General Kamala Harris, 51, a close confidant of US President+ Barack Obama, is all set to be elected to the US Senate; thus making her the first Indian-American to enter the Upper House of the US Congress.

Similarly, Pramila Jayapal, 51, is cruising towards victory for the US House of Representatives Seat from the Washington State. She would be the first Indian-American woman to be elected to the House, which so far had three members from this minority ethnic community. While Dalip Singh Saund was the first Indian-American to be elected to the House of Representatives in 1950s, it was only in the 21st century that the community could see another member elected to the Congress. Bobby Jindal from Louisiana was elected twice before he went on be become two-term Governor of Louisiana.

Ami Bera, the only Indian-American in the current Congress is seeking his third consecutive term from California’s hotly contested set.

IITian diaspora asked to make Startup India a success India has urged the IITian diaspora to invest in Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Startup India campaign to promote a culture of innovation in its ancestral land.

Speaking at the 2016 International Conference of the IIT Alumni Canada, which brought over 400 IITians from the US, Canada and Australia to Toronto, Indian Consul General Dinesh Bhatia urged the IITian diaspora to make the Startup India campaign a success.

India is now an over $2 trillion economy and there are huge offers and opportunities for IITians to become a part of its success story, Bhatia told the techie conference, which, this

year, is focused on ‘Towards a Sustainable and Prosperous Future: Focus on Technology, Health and Environment’.

Canadian Science Minister Kirsty Duncan, MPs, and mayors joined in welcoming the IITian gathering which also included the director of IIT-Hyderabad and the deans of IITs in Mandi and Chennai.

Duncan, who was dressed in a sari for the occasion, lauded the role of the IITians in promoting innovation and entrepreneurship in Canada. She said the theme of the conference is in tune with agenda of the Canadian government, which wants to promote innovation and entrepreneurship.

INDIA

Saturday, October 08, 2016

Madras HC dismisses PIL on Jayalalitha’s health condition

Observing that it should not be used for “political purposes”, the Madras High Court on Thursday dismissed a PIL seeking a detailed report from the government on the health of Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa, undergoing treatment at a hospital here since September 22.

When the PIL came up, the first bench headed by Chief Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul observed, “This forum should not be used for political purposes and it is a publicity interest litigation.”“The hospital is already issuing health bulletins. The PIL is dismissed,” the court said. The petitioner “Traffic” Ramaswamy, a social activist, had submitted that the people of Tamil Nadu were eager to know about the health condition of Jayalalithaa.

The PIL also sought releasing of photographs of the meeting Jayalalithaa is said to have had with her cabinet colleagues and officials in the hospital. The 68-year-old AIADMK leader was admitted to the Apollo Hospital after she complained of fever and dehydration.

PM trading in jawans’ blood : Rahul In a barb reminiscent of his mother Sonia Gandhi’s “Maut ke Saudagar” remark made in Gujarat in 2007, Congress vice-president Rahul Gandhi today accused Prime Minister Narendra Modi of making political capital from the Army’s surgical strikes in PoK and said the PM was trading in the blood of soldiers.

“Our soldiers have given their blood. They have conducted surgical strikes for the country in Jammu and Kashmir. You are hiding behind their blood. You are trading them (Aap jawanon ki dalaali kar rahe ho)…” Rahul said to Modi, as he addressed a rally at Parliament Street this evening to end his 3,500-km kisan yatra through UP. Unusually caustic in his manner, the Amethi MP blamed

the BJP for exploiting a national security issue and advised the PM to help farmers, generate jobs and do stuff he was elected to do. “What you are doing is wrong. Indian soldiers have done their work. You do yours. Help farmers, raise seventh Pay Commission emoluments for the Armed Forces. That is your job, your responsibility. People have elected you to do that,” Rahul said, cementing his party’s line of “BJP is politicising surgical strikes”.

Rahul spoke amid Congress supporters who cheered him whenever he went for Modi. Keeping farmers’ agony central to his tirade, Rahul slammed the PM for “doing nothing for anyone” and said the PM had “divided the country”.

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Narcotics bureau arrests Wing Commander A Wing Commander of the Indian Air Force has been arrested by the NCB from Maharashtra in connection with its probe in an international drug racket involving a scientist and his wife. Officials said Wing Commander G Rajasekhar Reddy was arrested by the Narcotics Control Bureau (NCB) in coordination with Nanded Police on Monday and brought to Hyderabad today, based on investigations after a drug racket was unearthed in Hyderabad two days back.

They said Reddy, posted at Air Headquarters in Delhi, was the alleged “kingpin” of the racket and his purported involvement was revealed after the questioning of the duo in Hyderabad. Some mobiles and Rs 7.5 lakh in cash were recovered from him.

7 militants killed in north Kashmir gunfights Three militants were killed on Thursday when they attempted to storm an Army base in Langate while four others were gunned down as three infiltration bids were foiled along the Line of Control during the intervening night of Wednesday and Thursday.

In the wee hours of today, unidentified militants attacked an army base in north Kashmir’s Kupwara district. The attack was repulsed.

Police said three militants were killed in a gunfight in Langate, Handwara, over 75 km from here when Army and Special Operations Group of J&K Police were carrying out searches after militants attacked battalion headquarterd of 30 Rashtriya Rifles.

“The militants opened fire on the Army camp in the wee hours. Later, the area was

cordoned and during searches a gunfight broke in which three militants were killed,” police said. The operation is still underway.

The slain militants were in combat dresses.

The Commanding Officer of 30 RR Col Rajiv Saharan told the media that a large quantity of arms and ammunition was recovered from the slain militants.

“GPS, maps, radio sets, metric sheets, medicines and food items were also recovered from the slain militants. The medicines had Pakistani markings on them, suggesting that the militants were Pakistanis,” he said. “We are analysing the metric sheets and the maps as well.” The identity of the militants could not be established immediately.

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INDIA

Saturday, October 08, 2016

SC orders BCCI to implement Lodha recommendations The Supreme Court on Thursday gave the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) a day to promise to comply with reforms suggested by Justice Lodha’s panel for the body, although the latter said it could not do so.

The court, in its marathon hearing that began at 10.30 am and lasted 4 hours, sharply reproached the body for being “defiant” and said it did not want to “waste its time” reforming the board, after the BCCI showed its reluctance in implementing all of the committee’s sweeping reforms.

A Bench headed by Chief Justice of India TS Thakur warned the BCCI that it would have to force it to implement the recommendations if it did not do so on its own.

“BCCI’s defiant attitude will not lead anywhere,” the court said.

The court told the BCCI to stop giving funds to the associations that did not want the reforms. “People want money from you

(BCCI). You say they don’t want to reform; stop giving funds to such state bodies,” the court said. “Receiving money from BCCI is not the fundamental right of state associations. You need to cooperate and not obstruct the panel,” Justice Thakur said.

The court said it would pass an order on Friday if the BCCI failed to comply.

The BCCI had asked the court for time until October 17 to give its response. BCCI’s counsel Kapil Sibal told the court it would not be able to give an undertaking by Friday that all state associations will implement the order.

“We can’t give you any undertaking,” said Sibal, to which CJI Thakur said the court would pass an interim order.

The BCCI finds itself on a sticky wicket after it agreed to implement only part of a raft of changes recommended by a court-appointed panel, which was set up last year to usher in reforms at the world’s richest cricket board.

India welcomes new UN Secretary-General

India has welcomed the selection of Portugal’s former premier Antonio Guterres as the next UN Secretary General to replace Ban Ki-moon at the beginning of next year.

“Congratulations & Best wishes.

India welcomes Antonio Manuel de Olivera Guterres as next Secretary General of @UN,” India’s Ambassador to the UN Syed Akbaruddin tweeted.

Akbaruddin’s tweet was accompanied with a picture of Guterres

shaking hands with External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj. Guterres had met Swaraj during his visit to New Delhi in July this year. Guterres, the 67-year-old former head of UN’s refugee organisation for 10 years, emerged as a leading candidate in all of the Security Council’s straw polls. The 15-nation Council conducted a sixth straw poll yesterday in which Guterres received 13 encourage votes and two no opinion votes.

US will not declare Pakistan a terrorist state The US on Friday said it does not support declaring Pakistan a “terrorist state”, but will continue to work with the governments in the region to eliminate safe havens, which also pose a threat to India.

The US also called for a “meaningful dialogue” between India and Pakistan to address differences, including the Kashmir issue, and to bring down the recent tensions.

State Department spokesperson John Kirby, however, expressed confidence that Pakistan has kept nuclear arsenals safe from terrorists.

Asked if the government would support a bill in the Congress and an online petition that the US should declare Pakistan a “terrorist state”, Kirby at his daily press briefing said: “I have not seen anything specifically about the – such a bill, and obviously we don’t.”

He, however, said he would not comment on “whatever pending legislation may be coming in that regard”. “What we – what I would say is common threat, common challenge in the region, and we’re going to continue to work with Pakistan, with Afghanistan, and the Secretary (of State) just came back from Brussels and the Afghanistan conference in Brussels. And obviously it’s a threat to the Indian people as well.

“So we’re going to continue to work with the governments in the region to try to address these common threats and challenges, and we’ve always said that more can be done about the safe havens and that’s – we’re going to, again, try to work as cooperatively as we can to that end,” Kirby said.

UN top court rejects N-case against India

The United Nation’s highest court today rejected landmark cases brought by the tiny Marshall Islands against India, Pakistan and Britain for allegedly failing to halt the nuclear arms race. In its ruling in the case against India, the 16-judge Bench at the International Court of Justice (ICJ) said it had accepted Indian arguments that the ICJ, also known as the World Court, should not have jurisdiction in the case.

Judges said while the Marshall Islands might not be satisfied with progress on nuclear disarmament, it had failed to show that it has any ongoing legal dispute with India fit for the court to adjudicate. It later rejected the

Marshall Islands’ suit against other nations on the same grounds.

The tiny Pacific island nation was ground zero for a string of devastating nuclear tests on its pristine atolls during 1946-58 carried out by the United States. After the hearings at the tribunal based in The Hague, the Marshalls said it will now “study the ruling” which is final and without appeal. “Obviously it’s very disappointing,” Marshall Islands lawyer Phon van der Biesen said. Initially in 2014, Majuro (the islands’ capital) had accused nine countries of failing to comply with the 1968 nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty, which seeks to inhibit the spread of atomic bombs.

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FIJI

Saturday, October 08, 2016

“Miracle water” a source of hope for the sick People who travel to Natadradave Village to drink from the spring actually believe they will be healed.

And many who have heard stories of the power of the healing spring and have travelled to the village say it has been an experience.

Sukanika Votea from Navosa said: “We only heard stories and testimonies of people getting healed here, but to actually be here and witness it is something that I am in total awe of.”

Tevita Nalawa, 61, had been taking pain killers to sleep, but after having his first bath on Sunday, his daughter Elenoa said her father did not have to take any pain killers when he reached home.

Elenoa said her father flew in from Labasa on Saturday afternoon just to get to Dawasamu.

“My father suffered a mild stroke last year and he had been taking medications ever since. We saw changes with our dad when we

got home on Sunday afternoon,” Ms Nalawa claims.

Seini Raiyawa and her extended family left Vunidawa Village in Naitasiri at 2am on Monday just to get a chance to bathe and drink the water.

“We had a few family members who had internal sickness but experienced changes in their bodies immediately after bathing in this water so we thought of hiring a carrier and coming to the village.

“Some of the family members whom we came with usually experienced body joint pains and sickness and others are here to fill water to take back to those at home,” Mrs Raiyawa said.

Natadradave Village headman Tomasi Naisoso claimed that villagers witnessed people who were diagnosed with diseases healed, even those who were bedridden for days.

“This water source is a gift from God and we believe that those who come here and believe that they can be healed will be healed.”

Testimonies by some individuals have also been posted on a page on Facebook called Natadradave Testimonies.

Mr Naisoso said the water source was open to everyone and anyone who wished to use it.

“We have had visitors from overseas and even our Pacific Island countries who have been to the healing water spring and this will go on.”

Fiji authorities improve access to miracle water site The Natadradave stream’s water is said to heal such conditions as skin diseases and eye problems. Fiji media has been reporting on the water’s apparent healing powers and the Fiji Ministry of Health has investigated.

Fijivillage.com reports the acting permanent secretary of health, Josefa Koroivueta, saying they have tested the water for bacteria but when it comes to healing powers that is beyond scientific measurement.

People queue to take bathe in the Natadradave stream’s water said to hold healing properties. People queue to take bathe in the Natadradave stream’s water said to hold healing properties.

Staff from the Water Authority of Fiji have upgraded the site.

Its chief executive Opetaia Ravai said this will allow more people to have access

to the showers and the works done at the bathing area will increase water pressure.

The authority has also installed a strainer to

7s Gold medalist rep arrested for assault Fiji 7s rep Pio Tuwai has been charged with one count of assault.

Dubbed the off-load king, Tuwai is alleged to have off-loaded his anger when he allegedly assaulted his former girlfriend.

Police spokeswoman Ana Naisoro has confirmed that the national rep is set to appear in court on Monday.

“The 7s player alleged to have assaulted his partner has been charged with one count of assault. He remains in custody and will be produced at the Nadi Magistrates Court on Monday,” Naisoro said.

Tuwai who was dropped by Ben Ryan for the Rio Olympics after a series of medical conditions that led to his hospitalisation before the final leg of the Rio preparations is alleged to have assaulted the woman at her

workplace.

Their relationship is understood to have ended but the rugger is alleged to have attempted to reconcile and get back with the woman.

The victim was medically examined yesterday with reports now with the Namaka Police station.

Fijian duo selected to ref on world sevens series Two Fijian rugby referees have been selected to officiate in the upcoming World Sevens Series, Radio NZ reported a little after noon today.

“Kaveni Talemaivavalagi and Tevita Rokovereni have been named in a new-look panel of whistleblowers to referee on the men’s circuit, which kicks off in Dubai in December,” radionz stated.

According to the radionz report, Talemaivavalagi, a 27-year-old teacher, started refereeing while still in sixth form at Laucala Bay High School but has built up a lot of sevens experience over the past decade.

“Here at home we have lots of sevens tournaments going on ... I refereed in the Fiji International Sevens, the Oceania Sevens in Auckland and Sydney, in the Commonwealth

Youth Games in Samoa, the Pacific Games in Papua New Guinea, the Mini Games in Wallis and Futuna,” radionz quoted Talemaivavalagi as saying.

Talemaivavalagi thanked Fiji rugby officials and executives and (Former World Series referee) James Bolabiu “for painting a good picture for all of us upcoming referees to referee in the World Series”.

“And I thank James - he is always here with us and supporting us and giving advice on what are the things that need to be done and what needs to be improved,” radionz quoted him as saying.

Talemaivavalagi informed radionz that he was told he would get his chance at the Wellington and Sydney legs of the World Series early next year.

Brother denies claim of living on streets

prevent debris entering the water and has also cemented the areas around the bathing area.

The upgrade works had to be fast-tracked due to the numbers trying to reach the water site.

A family is furious because of claims made by a family member who now lives on the streets.

Mahendra Bali claimed that he lived his entire life on the street and he had not known his parents because of his mother’s involvement in the sex industry.

His elder brother Ravendra Bali said his youngest sibling was not born on the streets nor were his claims about his mother true.

According to the senior Mr Bali, they are from seven siblings — five brothers and two sisters — and all of them had a proper upbringing.

“In fact, I was the one who was working.

Our mother Ilisaveci Vereivalu used to sell

souvenirs and I being the eldest used to accompany her,” he said.

“I used to sell newspapers from 1970. I sold three copies of The Fiji Times to make one cent, I also sold New Zealand Herald which used to come out every Sunday. I bought it from the Bidesi Bookshop opposite Sukuna Park.

“I was supplementing the income of my mother. So whatever I earned from selling newspapers, bottles and salusalu for nightclubs was for the family.”

According to Mr Bali, Mahendra was married once and had a daughter who would be 18-years-old. He said he had no one but himself to blame for the situation he was in.

PAKISTAN

Saturday, October 08, 2016

Nawaz Sharif tells military to act against terror following global isolation Faced with growing global isolation and pressure to act against terror originating from Pakistan, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has bluntly asked the military leadership, including the ISI, to act against terrorist groups and conclude soon the probes into the 2008 Mumbai and 2016 Pathankot attacks.

Pakistan’s influential Dawn newspaper, citing unnamed sources, said the civilian government, in a “blunt, orchestrated and unprecedented warning”, asked military-led intelligence agencies “not to interfere if law enforcement acts against militant groups that are banned or until now considered off-limits for civilian action”.

“Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has directed that fresh attempts be made to conclude the Pathankot investigation and restart the stalled Mumbai attacks-related trials in a Rawalpindi

Terror camps thriving in PoK, confirm locals

anti-terrorism court,” the newspaper said.

It said the government had informed the military leadership of “a growing international isolation of Pakistan and sought consensus on several key actions by the state”.

The government asked spy agency Inter-Service Intelligence (ISI) chief Gen Rizwan Akhtar and National Security Adviser Nasser Janjua to travel to each of the four Pakistani provinces with a message for ISI’s sector commanders.

The decisions were taken after an extraordinary verbal confrontation between Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif and the spy agency chief, the newspaper said.

It said the account was based on conversations with Dawn of individuals present in crucial meetings Nawaz Sharif held this week.

Terror training camps have been thriving in Pakistan Occupied Kashmir (PoK) for years, according to people living across the area who have shown resentment to the Pakistan’s intelligence agency ISI for having made their region a haven for anti-social elements.

Residents of Muzaffarabad, Kotli, Chinari, Mirpu , Gilgit, Diamer and various parts of the Neelum Valley say their lives has been made a living hell by the terror training camps as the lawless men, who train here, plunder local villages and molest the women of the area.

They say that their region is being used by the ISI to further its proxy war against India.

In various interactions, people and leaders in the region spoke about the daily extortion and harassment caused the terror groups who

are located near the Line of Control (LoC).

“If management doesn’t end Taliban’s terror camps and ‘no-go’ areas in Diamer, Gilgit, Baseen and others, then we will take action,” a local leader of Gilgit was seen as saying.

Residents confirm that the region is being used as nothing more than a staging post for Pakistan’s proxy war against India. They say they have no sympathy for the terror groups who are perhaps hated more in PoK than anywhere else.

PoK leaders like Arif Shahid exposed the ISI terror nexus in the region and paid for it with their lives. Shahid has been found on record saying that the poor people of Pakistan are being exploited by the ISI to wage a Jihad against India in which only the Pakistan Army is interested.

Pakistan army caught by surprise, lost 5 men A senior Pakistani police official, recorded under the impression that he was speaking with a superior, admitted that there were casualties in the Indian surgical strike across the Line of Control, a TV report has said.

A CNN-News18 report said the Pakistani police officer rattled off events of the night of the raids and confirmed claims made by the Indian Army.

“Sir, that was night...you can say roughly 3-4 hours... between 2 AM and 4 or 5 AM... the attack continued between that time,” Ghulam Akbar is recorded as stating.

Ghulam Akbar, SP (special branch) of the Mirpur Range in PoK, is heard confirming

that the surgical strikes had indeed taken place on the early hours of September 29 in areas like Leepa mentioned in reports of the attacks. Akbar clearly stated that the Pakistani army was caught unawares and lost five soldiers whose names were revealed but not telecast by the channel and that the bodies of unknown number of terrorists were quickly removed by the Pakistani military. Akbar put out a picture of the areas that he personally knew were under attack that night - Samana in Bhimber, Hazira in Poonch, Dudhniyal in Neelam and Kayani in Hathian Bala.

He said the Pakistani army cordoned off these areas after the surgical strikes.

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Superstore

Saturday, October 08, 2016

South Asia

Saturday, October 08, 2016

Terror camps thriving in PoK, confirm locals

Terror training camps have been thriving in Pakistan Occupied Kashmir (PoK) for years, according to people living across the area who have shown resentment to the Pakistan’s intelligence agency ISI for having made their region a haven for anti-social elements.

Residents of Muzaffarabad, Kotli, Chinari, Mirpu , Gilgit, Diamer and various parts of the Neelum Valley say their lives has been made a living hell by the terror training camps as the lawless men, who train here, plunder local villages and molest the women of the area.

They say that their region is being used by the ISI to further its proxy war against India.

In various interactions, people and leaders in the region spoke about the daily extortion and harassment caused the terror groups who are located near the Line of Control (LoC).

“If management doesn’t end Taliban’s terror camps and ‘no-go’ areas in Diamer, Gilgit, Baseen and others, then we will take action,” a local leader of Gilgit was seen as saying.

Residents confirm that the region is being used as nothing more than a staging post for Pakistan’s proxy war against India. They say they have no sympathy for the terror groups who are perhaps hated more in PoK than anywhere else.

PoK leaders like Arif Shahid exposed the ISI terror nexus in the region and paid for it with their lives.

Shahid has been found on record saying that the poor people of Pakistan are being exploited by the ISI to wage a Jihad against India in which only the Pakistan Army is interested.

Shahid fought tooth and nail against Pakistan’s oppression in PoK before he was shot outside his residence in Rawalpindi on May 14, 2013. He was 62. The investigation into Shahid’s murder is still inconclusive, and there is no closure to the cold-blooded murder, so far. The ISI is blamed for conspiring and executing Shahid’s murder.

US wants India and Pak militaries to cut tension The US has encouraged continued communication between Indian and Pakistani militaries to reduce tension, saying American officials are in contact with both the neighbouring countries.

“We are aware that the Indian and Pakistani militaries have been in communication with one another and we encourage these continued discussions between India and Pakistan as a means to reduce any tensions that may be out there,” Pentagon press secretary Peter Cook said.

“We are encouraged by that and we certainly would encourage those conversations to continue,” he told reporters on Tuesday while responding to questions on the current tension between the two countries after the Uri terror attack.

US officials are in contact with both the countries, he said. Cook said US defense secretary Ashton Carter and the US government hope that tensions between Pakistan and India would be lowered and that there would be an effort at communication here to try and address those concerns. “That is certainly a view that he shares with others in the US government,” he said.

America’s view on non-proliferation of nuclear weapons are clear, he said. “This is obviously something that this government and others around the world want to keep nuclear weapons out of the hands of terrorists. And that is something that our views on that are quite clear,” Cook added.

Sikh man shot dead in Afghanistan A Sikh man was abducted from his home and gunned down by suspected militants in Afghanistan's restive Nangarhar province bordering Pakistan, a media report said on Sunday.

Sardar Rawail Singh, who lived in Jalalabad, was abducted from his house Saturday morning by militants wearing military fatigues and killed in Khalis Famil area.

The incident triggered a massive protest by the minority Sikh community who staged a demonstration by placing the body of Singh in front of the provincial governor's house in Jalalabad and demanded the arrest of the killers.

They accused security forces of negligence in arresting the killers and asked the government to bring to justice the killers as soon as possible.

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Bangladesh releases Explosion in Kabul, four Canadian student facing people wounded: Police allegation of bombing A Bangladesh court has cleared a university student of all allegations related to the restaurant siege three months ago in which 20 hostages were killed. Metropolitan Magistrate Nur Nabi passed the order Wednesday after an investigator appealed for clearing Tahmid Hasib Khan, an undergraduate at the University of Toronto who has Canadian residency.

Prosecutor Abdullah Abu said Khan was cleared of suspicion that he was involved in the attack July 1 on the Holey Artisan Bakery in Dhaka.

He had walked free Sunday after a court grant him bail. The Islamic State group has claimed responsibility for the attack but the government has blamed local militant groups.

Five of the attackers were killed.

An explosion struck a busy road during rush hour traffic in the Afghan capital of Kabul on Wednesday, police and witnesses said.

The blast, suspected of being set off by a suicide bomber, occurred just before 5 p.m.

(1230 GMT) on a major road near a university and an old parliament building, said Najib Danish, a spokesman for the Interior Ministry.

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FRUITICANA

Saturday, October 08, 2016

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Saturday, October 08, 2016 Saturday - October 08, 2016

Hrithik REACTS on Kangana’s ‘43-yearold son’ remark

PC’s sex scene from ‘Quantico 2’ goes viral

Hrithik Roshan has never let his personal life affect his work. He only talks about his work and lets his work speak for himself. However, when his alleged love affair with Kangana Ranaut came out in public, the actor had no option but to speak up for himself. He produced various evidences against Kangana and their war turned ugly. It was all out in open. But after that, Hrithik has gone all quiet again. Instead, his father broke the silence recently when he was asked about the Hrithik Kangana spat.

Shiv Sena did NOT allow Nawazuddin to act in a play because he is a MUSLIM This year doesn’t seem to be going good for actor Nawazuddin Siddiqui.

Just last week he was accused by his

sister-in-law that Nawaz tortured her physically and hit her while she was three months pregnant. And just when Nawaz and his spokesperson refuted all such stories, he has landed up in another controversy. Here’s what happened.. Nawazuddin was in his hometown – Muzaffarnagar where he was going to be performing in a play

for the first time. Nawaz was playing the role of Mareech in Ramleela and it had always been a dream for the actor to be a part of the play. However, Shiv Sena workers objected against a Muslim being a part of Ramleela and asked him to step down.

Mukesh Sharma, who is the district head of Shiv Sena there approached police and asked the committee to drop Nawazuddin from participating in the show. “Our objection is with his name as well as the person. His sisterin-law has filed a case against him. He is trying to use this role to get back his social prestige. We will not allow this.

For over 50 years, no Muslim has been a part of the production. Why should this be allowed now? We went to the police and our members went around town to spread the word and urge people to stop this,” he says.

Nawaz insisted that he would want to play a minor part in the production.

And that’s how he landed up playing Mareech .

Bollywood actress Priyanka Chopra’s lovemaking scene from the second season of her American TV show ‘Quantico’ has leaked online and gone viral. In the video clip, Alex

Parrish (Priyanka Chopra) shares intimate moments with Ryan Booth (Jake McLaughlin). The two get all hot and steamy as they simply cannot keep their hands off each other!

Salman Khan files Rs 100-crore defamation suit against TV channel Bollywood superstar Salman Khan has filed a defamation suit against a TV news channel in the Bombay High Court

and has slapped damages worth Rs 100 crore, reported Hindustan Times.

Salman Khan was accused of poaching a chinkara at Bhawad near Jodhpur and another chinkara at Ghoda farms during the shooting of his film, ‘Hum Saath

Saath Hain’, in September 1998.

In a suit filed before a division bench of the HC in August this year, Salman Khan claimed a sting operation conducted by the channel in the 1998 chinkara poaching case was malicious and defamatory.

Salman Khan wants the channel to be restrained from releasing or making public in any way, any part of that sting operation, reported Hindustan Times.

According to the report in Hindustan Times, in the channel’s sting operation “witnesses claimed they saw Khan shoot the endangered chinkaras in Jodhpur”. However, later the “witness/es turned hostile and claimed the video was doctored”. In July this year, the Rajasthan HC acquitted Salman Khan in two cases related to poaching.

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Bollywood

Saturday, October 08, 2016

Fawad Khan FINALLY breaks his silence on Pakistani artistes ban And he finally speaks up! After maintaining suspicious silence over the whole issue surrounding the ban on Pakistani artists in India, Fawad Khan finally gives a heartfelt reaction. Yes! Taking up to Facebook, he’s issued an official statement clarifying, “I’ve been in Lahore since July as my wife and I had been expecting our second child. I’ve received numerous requests from the media and from well wishers worldwide asking me for my thoughts on the sad incidents that took place in the past few weeks. As a father of two little children, I pray and wish like many others that together we can build and live in a more peaceful world. I believe we owe it to our

children who will shape our tomorrow. This is the first time I have spoken on the matter. Please disregard any other words attributed to me during this time because I have not said them. I thank all my fans and fellow artists from Pakistan, India and people in general all over the world who have shown continued support for their belief in love and understanding to unite a divisive world.” Also read: This video of Akshay Kumar reacting on surgical strike an Although IMPPA in its latest discussion has revised the ban on Pakistani actors and has allowed Fawad’s next film Ae Dil Hai Mushkil to release across the nation. But the fact Fawad was ridiculed for being a Pakistani and was also trashed for making insensitive remarks which were not even said by him in first place, is definitely something that went way too far.

In fact, there were even open letters written all over which questioned Fawad and all the other Pakistani actors for not condemning the ban. But guess, Fawad has put an end to all the allegations of being a betrayer or whatsoever by this one Facebook post. Now it’s left to see if Shah Rukh Khan’s Raees actress Mahira Khan too will voice her thoughts on this controversial debate.

Naach Meri Jaan! That’s the title of Salman Khan’s first song shot for Tubelight

We bet you were super stoked upon watching the video of Salman Khan dancing in Manali. The video recorded by someone on the sets of Salman’s film Tubelight has been going viral on social media platforms since morning and has been viewed over eight thousand times. In the video, Salman is seen rehearsing for a song sequence with back up dancers and choreographers. The track from the leaked video looks like a happy dance number as it has dancers in Kashmiri attire syncing their steps with Salman. A little birdie tells us that it took Salman just a mere couple of hours to learn the steps. The final cut is sure to look exquisite with the beautiful scenery in the background. The steps look quirky like every Salman song. Given the fact that the film’s plot revolves around the Indo China war, we saw little scope of a song like this, but this sneak peak gives us a hint that Tubelight will surely have its light moments.

And guess what? Now we have got know the title of this track and trust us, your wait for Tubelight is going to get tougher. Keep your dancing shoes ready, as we are going to get yet another awesome dance number with Tubelight – Naach Meri Jaan. And with this video, we already know a few dance steps, that we can copy and be ready ahead of time.

Talking about the plot of Tubelight, our source exclusively revealed to us that the film is a copy of Hollywood film, Lost Boy.

Saturday, October 08, 2016

New Released Bollywood Films

Oct

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Saat Uchhakkey

*ing: Manoj Bajpayee, Vijay Raaz, Kay Kay Menon

Oct

21

31st October *ing: Soha Ali Khan, Vir Das

Oct

28

Shivaay

*ing: Ajay Devgn

Oct

28

Ae Dil Hai Mushkil *ing: Ranbir, Anushka, Aishwarya Bachchan

Nov

11

Rock On!! 2

*ing: Farhan, Arjun Rampal, Shraddha Kapoor

Bollywood

M.S.Dhoni – The Untold Story scores the second highest first week collection in 2016 Sushant Singh Rajput’s M.S. Dhoni – The Untold Story continues to create records. It has already become the second highest opener of 2016 after Salman Khan‘s Sultan with 21. 30 cr.

By earning 21. 30 cr on its first day, MS Dhoni-The Untold Story has managed to go past Shah Rukh Khan‘s Fan’s 19. 20 cr total on its day 1, thus securing the second spot. It was also Sushant’s biggest opener and opening weekend till date. Apart from that it is also the highest opener for a biopic film and also highest opening weekend for the genre. M.S. Dhoni: The Untold Story has now become

the second highest weekend grosser of 2016 after Salman Khan‘s Sultan. Over the weekend, Sushant’s film (Rs 66 crore) has beaten Shah Rukh Khan‘s Fan (Rs 52.35 crore) and Akshay Kumar’s Housefull 3 (Rs 53.31 crore) to become the second highest grosser of 2016. However, M.S. Dhoni: The Untold Story failed to touch Salman Khan’s massive first weekend record of Rs 180.36 crore courtesy Sultan. And the records continue to pour in. It will soon touch the 100 crore mark and now we noticed that it also has the second highest first week total this year.

Salman Khan’s Sultan bought for Rs 55 cr by Sony Entertainment Television Salman Khan‘s Sultan shattered box office records this year. Fans who missed out on seeing the superstar conquering the ring as the troubled Sultan Ali Khan fret not. The film will be shown shortly on TV. As per a report, the film will have its satellite premiere on Sony TV. Yes, the channel bought the rights for a whopping Rs 55 crores.

It is one of the highest for any film released in 2015. Directed

by Ali Abbas Zafar, Sultan stars Salman Khan, Anushka Sharma, Randeep Hooda and Amit Sadh.

It seems the channel has already recovered half its investment. A huge mobile firm and a couple of FMCG companies have tied up for the worldwide premiere. As per a news report, Oppo Mobiles, Colgate and Hindustan Unilever are the firm’s that will be presenting the magnum opus.

Ajay Devgn: I won’t work with Pakistani artistes at the moment

Ajay Devgn has become the first A-list star to openly confess that he won’t work with any Pakistani artiste at the moment. During his interview with CNN IBN, the actor used honest logic gave his explaination as to why he wouldn’t work with Pakistani stars.

“We all want peace, lekin taali ek haath se nehi bajti (you can’t clap with one hand). I heard some people saying talks are the only way to continue but talks have been going on.

You keep talking to people and they come and kill you then you still continue your dialogue. I want to see you getting into a fight with somebody and after he gives you a tight slap on your face and you say okay let’s have a talk right now. What will your reaction be instantly?” the actor explained.

Interviewer Bhupendra Chaubey even directly asked him if he was taking a pro-BJP

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stance since the actor had campaigned for the political party in the past, and also his wife, Kajol Devgn have earlier praised one of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s pet project Swacch Bharat initiative.

Ajay Devgn was not the only furious actor who openly expressed his opinion. On social media, an angry Akshay Kumar expressed his shock that some people are debating the ban on Pakistani artistes at a time when soldiers are being killed in terror attack. A family who has a son or father in the army, fighting in the battle field is least concerned about which Bollywood film released and whether it has Pakistani artistes, he said in a video message.

Other actors such as Shah Rukh Khan and Amitabh Bachchan have also tweeted their support and lauded the government on the surgical strike.

Talking about Salman Khan, the episode where he featured on The Kapil Sharma Show got one of the highest TRPs. The channel can now earn from the multiple screenings across its sub channels. We know the impact of Salman Khan on TV. His Bajrangi Bhaijaan premiere on Star Gold and Star Gold HD brought in huge profits for the channel. It aired last year in December and got the highest TRPs ever beating the record held by Aamir Khan’s 3 Idiots. It got a TRP of 15.5. The channel has created a 360 degree advertising campaign to build up the hype for the premiere. We are sure Sony TV will also gave some plans for marketing this film. The channel has been on a major makeover mode this year. We had a bouquet of new shows that topped online TRP charts as well as The Kapil Sharma Show.

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Saturday, October 08, 2016

Bollywood Horoscope Aries

Libra

March 21 - April 20

Sept. 24 - Oct 22

Your stars are moving on and the Sun adjusts its position before long, leaving you to stand on your own feet once again.

You’re entering a tricky financial phase and have to make a number of awkward choices. It may be time to abandon a commitment which is burdensome, but don’t let anyone down,

Money matters can only increase in importance as the week passes, but don’t expect a quick and easy answer. You will come to realise that you have the chance to set your finances on a more prosperous course, but how, and when, are questions that are still unclear. Take more time to work out what you really want.

Taurus

Scorpio

April 21 - May 20

Oct 23 - Nov 22

Mercury is sending a challenge to Pluto, and the heavens are lining up for a frank, though friendly, confrontation. You will have to speak the truth even at the risk of upsetting someone – although be on hand afterwards with reassurance. It may be that only you can utter the words they need to hear.

It may be difficult for you to imagine that a close partner can possibly be right, so deep is your belief in your own infallibility. However, any astrologer, on seeing the current planetary picture, would advise you to compromise and bend to circumstances. What you want is not as important as what you need!

Gemini

Sagitarius

May 20 - June 21

Nov 23 - Dec 22

Something may happen behind the scenes to change your plans and ideas, perhaps an amazing event. Whatever takes place will almost certainly involve your work or routine chores are preoccupying you at the moment. Romantic hopes are reinforced by Venus’ passage through lively regions of your chart.

Your astrological personality is a complex and rich one. Many Sagittarians are now starting to resemble obstinate and emotional Scorpios. In fact, friends may realise that your behaviour, especially a tendency to secrecy in important matters, is departing ever further from what they have seen in the past.

Cancer

Capricorn

June 22 - July 23

Dec 23 - Jan 20

A difference of opinion between lively Mercury and passionate Pluto is bound to awaken ideas of social adventure; you’ll be on the look-out for new friends and anxious to put former associates in their place. Additional attention is required to all travel, holiday and adventurous plans over the coming weeks.

Leo

The week opens with the Moon supporting your sign, so family affairs will probably keep you on your toes. As the days go by, you will see that money lies at the root of all disagreements. If you can increase your earnings, you will solve many of your problems. A fun outing should be scheduled for later.

Aquarius

June 24 - August 23

Jan 21 - Feb 19

It’s a week of two halves. The Moon issues a challenge to your sign from Monday to Wednesday, so these will be the days to apply your cheery Leonine medicine to a partnership. Only you can do this, so why don’t you organise a break from routine and plan something special instead? You can put your feet up later.

Virgo

Recent developments in the sectors of your chart associated with children and romance seem bound to work out for the best in the long run, even if you have been rather disconcerted by statements or events. Sunday, when the Moon adjusts its position, should be a special day, so enjoy it to the full.

Pisces

August 24 - Sept 24

Feb 20 - March 20

Legal matters seem to have some role to play in your life over the next three weeks. Is it possible that you have embroiled yourself in a bureaucratic muddle? If you stick to your guns and do what you know to be right, you won’t go far wrong. Keep a professional plan under review for a little while longer.

Harshvardhan Kapoor, Saiyami Kher walk the red carpet with Anil and Sonam Kapoor at BFI

This is a spectacular week for all of you pursuing inspirational ambitions, educational goals or working in the travel and communications industry. Show other people that you mean business – and get them on your side. Also, if romantic plans are afoot then please act soon: do not delay!

Harshvardhan Kapoor and Saiyami Kher are the two new faces all set to dazzle Bollywood with their debut film Mirzya today. But before the audience decides the fate of their film, it has already got its European premiere at the 60th BFI London Film Festival on Thursday (October 6). Father Anil Kapoor and sister

Sonam too stood by Harsh to cheer the young star of their family. Scroll to, see how what all happened at the world premiere.

And not just that, the actor also got the best wishes from none other than Trainspotting and Slumdog Millionaire director Danny Boyle.

Deepika, Priyanka, Alia – actresses bitten by the SRK bug!

It’s very hard to not love someone as charming as Shah Rukh Khan. He’s every bit gorgeous for as rightly said, he is the ‘King of romance’ who can instantly make anyone go weak in the knees. Start talking about his flattering looks and you will get reminded of his ohso-mesmerising smile. Talk about his sense of humour and you wouldn’t know very to start or stop. His energy is so infectious that you would want to be its victim forever.

Yes! We too are indebted to his love that he’s showered upon us through all his films, through his every word of wisdom. So it comes as no surprise that even our Bollywood actresses cannot stop gushing about Shah Rukh Khan every time they’re asked about him.

Here, we show you few of SRK favourites – Priyanka Chopra, Deepika Padukone, Alia Bhatt who have never fallen short of praises for Shah Rukh..

Starting with SRK’s newest sweetheart, Alia is literally thanking her stars for having got a chance to work with Shah Rukh in her next film, Dear Zindagi. While she’s grown up watching Shah Rukh on the big screen. Dear Zindagi just got her even closer to SRK that every time you ask Alia about her experience working with Shah Rukh, she goes in a state of happy daze.

Reminds us of this interview where Alia had used perfect words to describe Shah Rukh as she said, “Shah Rukh is magic… his words, his persona, his eyes! When he looks into the camera, he is such a delight to work with! He

has tremendous regard for everyone’s work and he doesn’t let the fact that he is Shah Rukh Khan weigh him or others down. He doesn’t let anyone feel unimportant. He is so knowledgeable. He knows so much more than me. He makes every anecdote, every incident from his life sound so interesting. I just loved to sit and chat with him between shots.

Bollywood personalities’ birthdays

Gauri khan October 8

rekha October 10

amitabh bachchan October 11

ronit roy October 11

Saturday, October 08, 2016

Eshwar Shakti

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Movie Review

Mirzya There have been legendary love stories of Laila Majnu, Heer Ranjha, Romeo and Juliet brought to life on screen by filmmakers all across the world. Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra tries his hand at telling the mystical love story of MirzaSahiban through the eyes of contemporary lovers. Mirzya doesn’t have the nuts and bolts of a typical Bollywood film. It has the song and dance routine, but it’s done differently, there is very little chest thumping and dialogue baazi and no item song or gimmick to make the film appeal to a broader audience. The promos have been indicative of the texture and fabric of Mirzya. The songs and our interactions with the debutant actors Harshvardhan Kapoor and Saiyami Kher sounded really intriguing with the way they spoke about their magnum opus.

But is Mirzya worth the hype?

What’s it about Mehra starts the film with a robust visual of men riding horses with their faces covered in black scarves. Our hero Mirzya (Harshavardhan) gets one of the most stylised introductory scenes in recent times. Saiyami

Saturday, October 08, 2016

Harshvardhan Kapoor and Saiyami Kher’s performances and beautiful frames stand out in this bland love story Kher, standing under a tree surrounded by men guarding her, throws a glance at our hero as the sky lights up with fireballs and piercing arrows.

Just when this vivid image lingers in your mind, Mehra cuts his frame to the modern day setting of Jodhpur where a young Suchitra and Monish begin their love story. Harshavardhan and Saiyami have two different looks throughout the film, defining the distinct worlds they belong to. Do they serve any purpose? Does the love story manage to hold our interest?

And does the music, which has a very large part to play in this movie, make the experience melodious or jarring ? Let’s find out …

What’s hot Mehra has gone for the kill as far as visuals are concerned. He doesn’t hold back in a single frame and lights the whole screen up with imagery and shades that are bold and

extremely eye catchy. The way the camera just hovers over the sand dunes or the VFX laden Mirzya world are both equally fantastic. Mirzya could make for an excellent comic book if it wanted to use these story board graphics to tell the story in a different format. Leepakshi and Niharika who are responsible for creating these two distinct looks do a fantastic job in giving these characters the Colors and fabrics

they require. Background score adds up to the drama at the right moments. Coming to the most important question – how good are the debutants? Honestly, they both deserved a better film to showcase their talents, but given the constraints of the technique and format, they do their best. Harshvardhan manages to stir your interest in his interpretation of Mirzya. It’s not so much the facial hair or the props but the yearning in his eyes to deliver and that hunger to give everything in every scene.

He needs to work a lot on his screen presence and diction, perhaps a bit of body language as well, but despite the hiccups, his take on bringing his director’s vision alive is honest and sincere. Saiyami has unconventional looks and they work in her favour. Her scenes with Harshvardhan in the second half stand out. The

fact that these two are newcomers gives their pairing an edge.

What’s not Mehra’s biggest flaw in the film is his technique and narrative. The concept of two worlds, two parallel timelines, two different characters just doesn’t work. There are moments when you are drawn into the fantasy Mirzya world and want to stay there a bit longer, but a song or a background score comes out of nowhere taking you back into the real world.

Neither here nor there, the film ends up being a case of too much flavour can sometimes spoil a good dish. Also Mehra doesn’t give Harshavardhan or Saiyami any big scene or moment to play up. Instead there are fleeting moments that have some spark. I can’t think of one big stand out scene in such a long film. The songs are great, but were they required at such regular intervals? The awkwardness between switching from one world to another finally gets to you and there is very little damage control that a director can do in his last 20 minutes. Mirzya despite being a hardcore love story doesn’t draw touch any emotional chord, because the emphasis is so much on the format and technical aspects that the writing takes a major backseat.

What to do Mirzya is a visual masterpiece, but one only hoped that it had a narrative that promised an equally brilliant premise. Watch it to usher in two newcomers Harshvardhan Kapoor and Saiyami Kher who fortunately have follow up films that hopefully do more justice to their skills.

Saturday, October 08, 2016

Tutak Tutak Tutiya Prabhudheva, Tamannaah and Sonu Sood’s horror comedy will tickle your funny bone!

There are films that move you and then there are films which give you a message.

There are also films that makes you sit and think, and then there other films which is made just for entertainment!

Titled Tutak Tutak Tutiya falls in that last category.

The film is directed by Tamil cinema’s famed filmmaker A.L. Vijay aka Vijay. This is his first Hindi film and it stars Prabhudheva, Sonu Sood and Tamannaah in the lead role.

This film also marks the debut of Sonu Sood as a film producer. Is the film worth a watch?

What’s it about The film tells the story of a South Indian man named Krishna (Prabhudheva), who lives in Mumbai and wants to marry a modern girl, a girl who can speak perfect English without any errors. Director Vijay makes this evident from the first scene itself.

Due to circumstances he is forced to marry a village girl called Devi (Tamannaah).

They together shift to a flat in Mumbai.

Krishna is ashamed of her and tries to shoo her back to the village. Until he sees a different side of her, a much modern one, the kind he always wanted to marry but there is a catch! The flat he moves in is haunted and Devi’s sudden makeover is due to the fact that she is possessed by the ghost called Ruby.

Also there is superstar Raj Khanna (Sonu Sood), who is in love with Ruby. Who is Ruby? What does Ruby want? What does Raj have to do with Ruby? Or is there actually a ghost? Or is Devi playing a prank on Krishna? For that you will have to watch the movie. But the most important question is, if movie is worth your time and money? Let’s find out…

What’s hot It’s a Prabhudheva show from start to finish. He is bit awkward in the first scene but gets his groove and shines throughout. His comic timing is amazing and he is believable in emotional scenes. He is the life of this horror comedy.

Tamannaah plays her part perfectly.

Her voice modulation is good and she shifts between her two strikingly different personalities with ease. The comedy scenes are actually funny and director Vijay handles them well. Special mention has to be given to ever dependent Murli Sharma who is top notch as Sonu Sood’s manager. The film never takes itself too seriously, which works in its favour. The story by Vijay and Paul Aron holds your attention for the most part and is intriguing. The dialogues by Chintan Gandhi are funny.

What’s not Sonu Sood doesn’t bring anything new to the table. His character of a superstar, who is in love with Ruby is a weak and one dimensional. He is playing a done to death good guy. Apart from showcasing chiseled body in the action scenes the actor has very little to offer.

Also his role should have been termed as a special appearance rather than a full fledged one as he is hardly there in the first half of the film. The music of the film is a big problem.

There are songs and they are bland. Apart from the title track and Rail Gaddi (both of which are rehashed version of chartbuster Punjabi tracks). The movie builds itself up well to a sudden dry climax. It is the climax that is majorly messed up. Also, I understand the film is a trilingual but the dubbing was terrible in some scenes.

What to do Coz I went for this film with zero expectations, I enjoyed it for most part. The film is like those dubbed south Indian films you enjoy on TV. It is illogical but no one’s complaining.

Hard nosed intellectuals should stay away.

The film has 126 minutes run time and it’s entertaining. It’s the kind of film you watch, enjoy and forget.

I am going with earnest three out five. Go in and enjoy the film.

Movie Review

7

8

Saturday, October 08, 2016

Entertainment

Butter Paneer Masala Ingredients: 250 gms paneer Рcubed and saut̩ in a tbsp of ghee till golden brown, remove into a dish and add a cup of hot water to the fried paneer cubes and let them sit in it for 5mts,then drain the water and keep aside 2 big onions (blanch for 10 mts and puree) 1 tbsp ginger-garlic paste 1 tsp red chilli pwd (I used kashmiri chillis) you can increase to 1 1/2 tsps 3 big ripe tomatoes (blanch ,de-skin and puree) 3 tbsps cashewnut paste 1 tsp coriander pwd 1/4 tsp haldi (turmeric pwd) 1 tsp kasuri methi (dry fenugreek leaves) garam masala pwd (make a pwd of 3

cloves,1 green cardamom and 1 cinnamon) 3 tbsps butter 2 tbsps fresh cream Method: Heat 2 tbsp of butter in a pan, add the onion paste and saut till light brown (approx 8-10 mts). Add ginger-garlic paste. Saute for 3 minutes. Add chilli pwd and combine, followed by the cashew paste and combine.

Add tomato puree, crushed kasuri methi,coriander pwd, haldi, garam masala and salt. Stir and let it simmer for 4-5 mts.

Add the paneer and simmer for 4-5 minutes. Add a small cup of water and let it cook on medium heat for 10 mts or till you get the desired curry consistency. Remove from fire, stir in remaining butter and fresh cream.

Let the curry sit for 10-15 mts before serving. Garnish with coriander leaves. Serve hot with rotis, naan , paranthas or simple steamed white rice.

Butter Paneer Masala is cooked on the same lines as Kadai Paneer , a creamy curry where paneer is cooked with bell peppers and tomatoes and served in a kadai (restaurant style). I enjoy these melt-in-the-mouth tender cubes of paneer, appealing velvety texture and color, bursting with flavor butter paneer masala with rotis, salad and a glass of mango lassi. I love the color, texture and taste

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of this delicious vegetarian curry. So, now that you have Paneer Butter masala recipe, will you make it? :)

FLEXIBLE COURSE OFFERING General Article about SCS - 471 words; for multicultural publications You may think your school days are behind you, but continuing education is becoming more and more popular as people continue to broaden their minds, and learn new skills to stay relevant in the ever-changing marketplace. Whether you’re a newcomer to Canada or simply looking to enhance your credentials, continuing education is a great way to boost your career.

In a recent poll conducted by Environics, when asked to name a reason why people were unable to take a course, 42 per cent of participants responded, “I don’t have time right now.”

To help students overcome these time challenges, the University of Toronto School of Continuing Studies offers more than 600 nondegree courses and 80 specialized certificate programs designed specifically for adult learners – delivered in-class, online and in hybrid formats combining both approaches.

The expertly designed courses are delivered by instructors who are recognized leaders in their fields.

Sandra Stella enrolled in the Public Relations and e-Commerce certificate programs at the School of Continuing Studies before even stepping foot into Canada. “I focused on schools that not only had the solid reputation, but that could deliver quality teaching online.

And that’s exactly what I found at U of T’s School of Continuing Studies,” she explains.

“Although I had great work experience in the UK and Africa, I needed to ensure that I was coming to this country with a solid understanding of how business operates here, and how to apply new and old skills to make headway in my new career. The online factor is a big plus for me since I am raising two little ones and appreciate the convenience of logging on at times that work best for me.”

Judy Escobar, a recent graduate of the inclass certificate in Cloud Computing at the School of Continuing Studies, found her continuing education so valuable that she, along with her colleague Thyagi DeLanerolle, created a startup called BizXPro, a free online tool thatmakes it easy for businesses to find trusted IT providers. “When I embarked on the three-course program, I was juggling my family life and a demanding full-time job as a sales professional,” recalls Escobar. “Yes, I had to be disciplined in balancing my time but I also found the three-course structure manageable, convenient and at the end of the day, extremely worthwhile since it gave me the ability to excel at my job and the confidence to start a business.” The School is conveniently located on three campuses: U of T Mississauga, U of T Scarborough and the downtown St. George campus. Learners can mix locations – as well as in-class, online and hybrid formats – to create a flexible learning plan that works best for them.

Visit learn.utoronto.ca to learn more about how to further your career and advance your lifelong learning

Saturday, October 08, 2016

Canada added 67,000 jobs in September Canada’s economy added 67,000 jobs in September, blowing away expectations of a small uptick for the month.

Statistics Canada reported Friday that despite the job surge, the unemployment rate stayed steady at seven per cent as more people were looking for work, too.

“Simply put, around as many people entered labour markets looking for work as those who got it,” Scotiabank economist Derek Holt said of the numbers.

By sector, services led with 56,000 new jobs, but manufacturing and construction each added 6,000 jobs. Education saw a large surge, but that’s likely seasonal as school started during the month.

“Education employment jumped by 17,000 in the month, reversing three straight monthly declines through the summer — this sector is often plagued by seasonal wonkiness,” Bank of Montreal economist Doug Porter noted.

Most of the new jobs were part time, the data agency said. There were 44,100 part-time jobs while full-time jobs were up 23,000.

Self-employment surged by 50,100.

New jobs didn’t come evenly across the country, with most from Quebec, Alberta and New Brunswick.

There was little change in the other provinces.

Overall, the uneven showing is in keeping with a recent trend. “Up and down, down and up. Canada’s monthly job growth has been especially noisy over the past several months, echoing the volatility in the overall economy,” TD Bank economist James Marple said.

“Looking through the monthly din, the trend is consistent with a moderate pace of growth, but one that appears to be turning the corner from its moribund state early in the year.”

U.S. employers add 156,000 jobs as unemployment rate creeps up U.S. employers added 156,000 jobs in September, a decent gain that reflects a steady economy but also a sign that hiring has slowed from its robust pace last year.

The unemployment rate ticked up to five per cent from 4.9 per cent, the Labor Department said Friday, but mostly for a positive reason: More Americans felt confident enough to start looking for work, though not all of them found jobs. As a result, more people were counted as unemployed.

Job growth has averaged 178,000 a month so far this year, down from last year’s pace of 229,000. Still, hiring at this year’s level is enough to lower the unemployment rate over time. Economists have expected the pace of job growth to slow as the supply of unemployed workers declines.

“On balance this report should keep the Federal Reserve on track toward a rate hike

by December independent of other risks that still need to be evaluated like the election,” said Scotiabank economist Derek Holt in a commentary.

After seven years of pinning that rate at a record low near zero to try to spur more

borrowing and spending, the Fed raised its rate modestly in December. It has not acted since.

Friday’s report also comes a month before voters will decide a presidential election in which the two major nominees have sketched out wildly conflicting views of the economy’s health and what should be done to stimulate its growth.

In September, average hourly pay rose six cents to $25.79 US and is now up 2.6 per cent from a year ago. That’s better than the gains for most of the seven-year economic recovery, during which pay has increased at a tepid pace of about two per cent a year. The pay increases, modest as they are, suggest that many employers are being forced to pay more to attract workers.

Yet wage gains are still lagging behind the roughly 3.5 per cent pace that’s consistent with a healthy economy.

Nearly all the net job gains occurred in the services industries, including higher-paying services such as management and technical consulting, accountants, and computer networking.

Business

9

Canada Post thanks Canada’s Small Business owners with Free Shipping Tuesdays in October October is Small Business Month, a time to recognize the hard work and sacrifice of the thousands of small business owners across the country. Their success has a huge impact on the economy and Canada Post is proud to help make their important work a little bit easier.

“Small business owners and entrepreneurs rely heavily on the postal system to send bills, cheques and offers to their customers” says Deepak Chopra, President and CEO of Canada Post. “We also work closely with small businesses entering ecommerce to help them with their day-to-day shipping needs but also to innovate and grow because the more successful they are, the more successful we are.”

In Canada, small business makes up 98 per cent of all businesses and employs millions of Canadians. They not only rely on Canada Post for the shipping of their parcels but they still regularly use the mail to conduct their operations.

At this year’s Canada Post E-commerce Innovations Awards, Canada Post recognized and celebrated four small business companies

for their excellence in e-commerce, omnichannel strategies and customer engagement.

Each winner receives high-value prizes that includes $50,000 of free shipping, along with substantial marketing package. This year’s winners were: • Surmersur out of Québec City for Best OmniChannel Retailer Award • Momzelle out of Montréal for Pure Play of the Year Award • MATH Sport out of Québec for Most Exciting Start-Up Award; and • Lunapads International out of Vancouver for the Community Impact Award To mark this year’s Small Business Month and as a token of its appreciation, Canada Post has given small business owners four days to circle on their calendars, as it introduces Free Shipping Tuesdays. The special offer entitles customers to one domestic Xpresspost™ or one Expedited™ parcel shipment at no cost every Tuesday in October. The offer is open to Solutions for Small Business customers.

To sign up for the program, customers go to canadapost.ca/freetuesdays. A promotion code will appear on the page each Tuesday in October to take advantage of free shipments available online.

BlackBerry to release new keyboard smartphone within six months, executive says One of BlackBerry’s top sales executives says the company will release a new smartphone with its distinctive physical keyboard within six months.

Instead, it said it would rely on partners to produce BlackBerry devices.

“There will still be a keyboard-based BlackBerry device, designed and distributed within the next six months,” he said.

Thurber said that the keyboards set BlackBerrys apart from market-leading Apple and Samsung smartphones that feature touch screens.

“I think there’s a demand for keyboard phones. As we’ve been showing mockups of what we’ve been working on, to our carrier and distributor partners, they are very excited about this,” Thurber said in the three-minute video.

He addressed confusion about whether BlackBerry smartphones will disappear or continue to be available after in-house design

and development ceases by the end of the company’s 2017 financial year on Feb. 28.

“We’ll now be working with partners to take our software onto their hardware.

So there will continue to be BlackBerrybranded devices for sale all over the world,” Thurber said. The only such partnership announced is with a joint venture company that will primarily make BlackBerrys for the Indonesian market. The keyboard phone is expected to be a DTEK model.

10

Saturday, October 08, 2016

Classifieds JOBS

JOBS

JOBS

Required Driver 1)able to drive a truck 2)able to navigate his way around 3)have a clean driving record 4)and be able to do merchandising 5)and be able to speak multiple languages 6)minimum of 3 years Driving Experience

like packing, unpacking, counting, sorting, labelling order-picking and scanning.

• Check inventory levels and report to the supervisor • Rotate stock and ensure enough space for new shipment • Keep area safe, clean and organized Requirements: • Some Secondary School • Ability to carry-out physical work • Comfortable working in a fast paced, physically demanding environment.

Core Capabilities: • Organized • Ability to pay attention to detail • Ability to work co-operatively in a team environment • Ability to learn quickly and work efficiently How to apply: To apply please submit your resume to resume@a1doors.ca We thank all those who apply however only those applicants shortlisted for interview will be contacted” -------------- Sept 17 2016

Inventory And Budgetary Controls; Assemble Data And Prepare Periodic And Special Reports, Manuals And Correspondence., Education: Completion Of High School.

Experience: 2-3 Years.

Wages 22.00/Hr.

Salesperson 1)minimum 3 years of being in sales 2)knowledge in food industry 3)speaks multiple languages 4)being able to merchandise Call 604-594-9800 -------------- Oct 8 2016 “A-1 Doors & Mouldings Ltd., located at 12625 80th Avenue, Surrey, B.C., V3W 3A6, has immediate vacancies for Two Stock Helpers.

Job Title: Stock Helpers No. of Positions: 2 Job Location: 12625 80th Avenue, Surrey, B.C., V3W 3A6 Term of employment: Full-time, permanent position, 30-40 hours per week.

Compensation: $16.50/hour.

Overtime at the rate of 24.75 after 40 hours per week Benefits: WCB Coverage with 4% vacation pay Job duties: • Receiving and unloading stock • Matching PO’s with packing slips and report discrepancies to supervisor • Organize stock in the showroom • Perform other warehouse task

BLACK CAT SECURITY LTD., 7085141A Street, Surrey, Bc Requires One Full Time Permanent Office Manager. Duties: Oversee And Co-Ordinate Office Administrative Procedures; Establish Work Priorities, Delegate Work To Office Support Staff And Ensure Deadlines Are Met And Procedures Are Followed; Co-Ordinate And Plan For Office Services; Assist In Preparation Of Operating Budget And Maintain

Required urgently for beauty salon in Burnaby We have a great opportunity to add a new member to our team. We are looking for someone who is professional and confident in there waxing and threading skills. Our salon has an amazing reputation in these services and would love the right professional for the job.

Please message for more info. 604-723-7553

JOBS

Knowledge Of English Required.

Hindi And Punjabi An Asset.

Emailblackcatsecurityltd@hotmail.com Or Fax @ 778 565 7165.

-------------- July 16 2016 One FlatFee Real Estate Inc. 10912888 80 Ave, Surrey, BC V3W 3A8 requires an indeterminate full-time Database Analyst.

Responsibilities -Collect and document user requirements -Design, construct, modify, Integrate, implement and test data models and database management -Operate database management systems to analyze data and perform data mining analysis -Conduct research and provide advice to other professionals regarding data management -Operate database management systems to analyze data and perform data mining - Lead, coordinate or supervise other employees Requirements - Bachelor’s Degree in Computer Science - 2 to 3 years of experience in a similar role Language: English Wages: $29/hr Please send your resume @ info@ oneflatfee.ca or Fax: 604-248-5253 -------------- July 09 2016

All Star Railing & Awning Ltd., #20 12318 84 Avenue, Surrey, BC requires a full-time permanent Welder Helper. Will be required to read and interpret work orders, operate metal cleaning equipment, assist welders, transport raw material and finished products manually or by using devices, clean work areas and equipment and perform other related duties to assist the welders. Should have high school education with some experience.

Knowledge of English is required.

Punjabi/Hindi will be an asset.

Wage: $20/hr. Apply by mail, email: 4242kamal@gmail.com -------------- July 09 2016 Western Door Manufacturing Ltd located at #109-8250, 124th St, Surrey, BC V3W 3X9, has an immediate vacancy for Carpenter.

We design and manufacture high end solid wood exteriors doors, solid wood interior doors and custom doors.

Job specification: Full time position with wages of $25/hour. 35 to 40 hours per week.

Job requirement: High School with 2-3 years of experience. Trade certificate will be considered as an asset.

Job duties includes read & interpret drawings & sketches to determine specifications; estimate height, width, length and other proportions; measure, cut, shape & assemble wood materials using woodworking machines, power tools and hand tools; Build exterior doors, interior doors, customs doors with jams; moulding, make transom arch shape; specially skilled in fancy wood design, traditional murals crafting on doors; Install hardware such as

NANNY NEEDED Needed Nanny for 2.5 year and 7.5 year old children. Good Pay

Please Call: 778 895 7900 / 604 834 2500

MATRIMONIAL hinges, handles, catches; Repair doors and replace panels of doors.

If interested send resumes at westerndoors@outlook.com -------------- May 21 2016 Planet Pride Logistics Ltd. of Richmond, BC is urgently seeking an Office Manager on f/time, perm. basis.

Must have min. high school education and either min. 2 yrs. exp. in clerical/ secretarial/office admin. or a university degree or college diploma in business admin. Duties incl. manage office staff and assign tasks as needed; analyze internal processes and recommend / implement procedural or policy changes to improve operations; establish work priorities; manage office supply inventory and maintain office equipment repairs. wage btwn $22.25 - $24/hr (depending on exp). Please email resume to planetpridelogist@gmail. com.

No phone calls or drop-ins please.

-------------- May 14 2016 “Vacancy for Stock Supervisor A1doors and mouldings, located at 12625 – 80th Avenue Surrey, BC, V3W 3A6 has an immediate vacancy of Stock Supervisor Term of employment : Full time, Permanent with 35 to 40 hours per week Salary : $18/hour Job duties : To supervise and coordinate activities of stock staff, plan and organize the display of stock in the showroom, identify outdated & defective stock, ensure orders are executed & delivered in time, maintain inventory and order merchandise, prepare periodic inventory reports, assign duties to stock clerks, providing stock clerk with the training, information, guidance encouragement &recognition needed to meet expectation, investigating, resolving & escalating customer issues as appropriate.

Requires: Completion of secondary school with one year of related experience.

If interested please send resumes by email at resume@a1doors.ca” ------------------------------------

Saturday, October 08, 2016

Election Notice This is to inform that the election of the Executive Committee of SurreyDelta Indo-Canadian Senior’s Society for the year 2017 – 18 will be held in Society’s main hall downstairs as per the program given below: Submitting nomination forms…………

October 10, 2016 (11:00am – 1:00pm) Scrutiny and withdrawal of forms…..

October 12, 2016 (11:00am – 1:00pm) (If only one slate submits nominations, the result will be declared same day) Election Date…………..October 29, 2016 (8:00am – 4:00pm) (Main Hall Downstairs) --------------------------------------------South Asian Seniors are planning to visit Australia & New Zealand through 13 days cruise and 2 days extra tour of Sydney (Australia) total 16 days including travel time. The cruise itinerary starts from Sydney (Australia) on November 17th 2017, one day visit at each of these

ports, Melbourne (Australia), Burnie (Tasmania- Australia), Wellington (New Zealand), Napier (New Zealand), Tauranga (New Zealand), Auckland (New Zealand), Bay of Islands (New Zealand) and back to Sydney (Australia). Every port the ship Norwegian Jewel will stop, all seniors will go for city tour by bus. All arrangements will be made for your air travel from Vancouver to Sydney (Australia) and return from Sydney to Vancouver, Cruise bookings, all port city excursions, city visits of Sydney (Australia), hotel stay in Sydney, food ( Pure Vegetarian or Non Vegetarian as per your choice) during Sydney City visits, also local bus pick up from Lakshmi Narayan Hindu Temple Surrey to Vancouver airport & back to Temple on return from Vancouver airport. The total tour will be of 16 days including travel time from 14th November 2017 to 1st December 2017. The travel insurance with Medical Coverage, Cancellation, Interruption and Baggage loss is a must, which you can arrange yourself or get the one we arrange for the whole group Insurance at a reasonable price to cover Basic Medical Coverage, Cancellation, Interruption, & Baggage Loss etc. The maximum cost for the whole trip to cover everything including return

Round Wrap Industries, #150 1680 Savage Road, Richmond, BC V6V 3A9 A reputed company manufacturing foiled PVC doors, requires one Production Supervisor on full-time indeterminate basis. Duties: supervision, coordination and scheduling of workers; resolving work problems; training of workers; preparing reports and ensuring safe and smooth running of the production.

Education: Minimum secondary school.

Experience: Minimum 5 years as Supervisor in same or similar trade or industry.

Language: English & Knowledge of Punjabi / Hindi will be an asset.

Salary: $32/hr.

Contact by email: info@roundwrap.com or fax 604 278 1463

Community News air tickets will be approximately $ 4,500.00 US Dollars per person. All staterooms are Double occupancy, so you should select your partner to share the stateroom with you on the ship. If you are interested to join South Asian group of Seniors, you should be in good health to walk independently, can afford the Luxury in life for 16 days, then only call. The entire amount $ 4,500.00 US Dollars or Equal ant Canadian Dollars as per present Bank rates will be spent on you only and will be taken from you in 4 installments with intervals.

You will have to pay me $ 750.00 US Dollars per person for Cruise deposit before 28th October 2016 to confirm your stateroom, and if you don’t have your travel insurance as mentioned above then you have to pay me $ 205.00 US Dollars per person for group travel Insurance in addition to cruise deposit. Please remember

11

the Travel insurance once purchased can not be cancelled or transferred to somebody else. The final payment for the cruise is due by 20th June 2017 and you will be able to pay through your credit card directly to Cruise Web. For the other payments for Air Travel, Port City Excursions and hotel stay & food expenses etc. you will be informed time to time.

The prices I have negotiated for the cruise are the rock bottom prices which can not be held for long and we are getting two amenities free, Gratuity for 13 days Cruise is Free and Cocktail Drinks are free for 13 days of Cruise for Ocean view cabins and above. Inside cabins will have only one Amenity Free of your choice. So don’t miss the chance of enjoying the Luxury in life for 16 days to visit Australia & New Zealand and call Surendra Handa Organizer/ Tel. 604 - 507 - 9945.

FOR LEASE Two retail units 3000sqft #130/140 - 304785 Cardinal Ave Abbotsford

(604) 725-6734 / (604) 595-1445

12

Review by Jag

Saturday, October 08, 2016

2017 Volvo V90 Cross Country Vail, Colorado: At this altitude (12,000 feet), the air is crisp and thin. Simple things like a brisk walk now are a chore and who would have thought I would have a quick bout of altitude sickness. Add to that a 30-minute head-bobbing drive, in a Volvo V60 CC, through a rutted dirt road fit for a rally race. My driving partner, Alan Taylor, who just completed a Baja race a couple of

is sure to make quite the impact. Now, Volvo launches the all-new member to the Cross Country family, the V90 Cross Country. The V90 Cross Country takes the V90 and transforms it into an all-road vehicle that rivals the likes of the E-wagon.

The all-new V90 Cross

months ago, didn’t hold back in making sure my breakfast was kept on edge. But what awaited us at Piney Lake Ranch was simply breath-taking.

In the past few years, Volvo has completely turned around their game and built some amazing vehicles. Take for example, the XC90, winner of a multitude of awards. Then there’s the new S90, their flagship sedan that

Country is built, and suited, for the North American environment.

It’s rugged, capable, and matches the lifestyle of Canadians (and those in Vail as well, of course).

According to Volvo’s Senior Designer Tisha Johnson, “The V90 Cross Country is the car you want to drive when you really

– The Unveil at Vail

want to connect with nature.” Featuring a ground clearance of 21 cm and a raised ride height, this vehicle will make sure you get to

lines. One of the best views of the V90 CC has to be the rear; most wagons have a difficult time balancing the rear tail light cluster into the body, but Volvo has mastered the art and made the V90 CC one of the sexiest wagons around.

The interior of the V90 CC continues to showcase Scandinavian beauty and elegance. Like the V90 wagon, it’s pure luxury and according to Johnson, “it’s where you want to connect with yourself.” Beautifully stitched leather, elegant wood inserts and state-of-the-art technology

surround the occupants. For audiophiles, a Bowers & Wilkins sound system will make all the drives more pleasurable. And of course, with Volvo, you have the best in safety, strength, and security, which is no surprise to anyone.

For Canada, the V90 Cross Country will be available only with the T6 setup. The 2.0 liter all-aluminum supercharged and your destination, whether city, country, or turbocharged four-cylinder engine will pump mountainside. out 316 horsepower and 295 lb“Everything about the V90 ft of torque, sending power to Cross Country is purpose Volvo’s most advanced Haldex built for making sure all all-wheel drive through eight passengers get to where they speeds. want,” continued Johnson.

I’ve driven the same engine “The new tires are both softer and transmission setup in the and rounder than what you S90 and can attest that the car will see on the V90.” Even the have enough power. In today’s cladding, which can be left world, you don’t need a V8 or V6 in black or colour-matched and Volvo’s four-cylinder is proof to the car, is perfectly suited of this.

Jag Dhatt as it’s tougher and able to With a starting price of Jag Dhatt is an automotive, handle off-road bumps and $61,900 the 2017 Volvo V90 motorcycle and lifestyle bruises. Speaking of off-road, Cross Country is a very attractive journalist. He is an AJAC member and regular the optimized chassis and option for those looking at a contributor writer to many new raised suspension setup capable, luxury all-road vehicle. print and online media ensure a smooth ride for I would say it would rival the outlets. occupants of the V90 CC. E-wagon, with a much more Even if you’re not a fan of attractive price plan. The new wagons, the V90 Cross Country will impress, V90 Cross Country will arrive in Canada the thanks to beautiful design elements and great first quarter of 2017.

Navratri was celebration last week at Hindu Temple Burnaby

Saturday, April 2, 2016

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Saturday, April 2, 2016

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Saturday, 2, 2016 Saturday, April April 2, 2016 i 5i 5

Vol. 6 No. 31

-

Saturday - April 2, 2016

- Tel: 604-591-5423 -

E-mail: ads@theasianstar.com

Vol. 6 No. 31 Saturday - April 2, 2016 - Tel: - Tel: 604-591-5423 E-mail: ads@theasianstar.com 604-591-5423 - -E-mail: ads@theasianstar.com Tel: 604-591-5423 E-mail: ads@theasianstar.com Vancouver’s skyline to rise amid an office-tower building boom Vol. 6 No. 31 - Saturday - April 2, 2016 - Tel: 604-591-5423 - E-mail: ads@theasianstar.com

No. 31 -- October Saturday Vol. 6 No.Vol. 56 6- Saturday 8, 2016- April 2, 2016

T T T

Vancouver’s skyline riseamid amid office-tower building boom Hot Toronto real estate market means paying more, boom Vancouver’s skyline totorise anan office-tower building

next two years due to competition. it Suisse tower is optimistic his building will he $240-million Credit Suisse/ Mr. Shokri and others say they expect The landlords who will likely suffer start to fill as the completion date gets closer.

SwissReal tower in the heart of many of the new towers to start signing tenant asnext a result of years the current boom are ownGehriger, the CEO SwissReal to competition. downtown Vancouver willSuisse/ be leases as Shokri they getand closer to completion.

That next two two it Franz Suisse is optimistic hisofbuilding years due due to competition. tower tower is optimistic his building will will he $240-million $240-million Credit others expect he Credit Suisse/ Mr.Mr. Shokri and others say say theythey expect ers of older buildings, Mr. Shokri said. Asit Suisse Group who bought the original historic completed in less than a year, but so far, is partly because companies in Vancouver, The The landlords who will likely suffer landlords will due likelyto suffer next twowho years competition. start tothe filltower as theiscompletion date gets closer. fill as completion date gets closer. it Suisse optimistic his building will SwissRealtower tower theheart heart many of the new towers to start signing SwissReal ininthe of of many of the new towers to start signing tenant well, new developments in the suburbs,start to he $240-million Credit Suisse/ Mr. Shokri and others say tenant they expect stock-exchange building in 2002 before partonlyInone tenant has signed up to move in. which do want to be in new, energy-efficient this hot Toronto real estate market where every penny more than renting and that current low mortgage rates help “We are in a twilight zoneasin awhich the crisis as a result of the current boom are ownresult of affordability the current boom are ownThe landlords who will likely suffer Franz Gehriger, the CEO of SwissReal Franz Gehriger, the CEO of SwissReal start to fill as the completion date gets closer. downtown Vancouver will leases as they getget to completion. downtown SwissReal Vancouver will be heart leases as many they closer to completion.

Thattenant which have already experienced higher nering with Credit Suisse to develop it, said tower inbe the of ofcloser the new towers to startThat signing The tenant committed a 10th of buildings, tend to on short counts, some has buyers could findfor themselves with less borrowing isoperate consistent with timelines. a higher propensity toolder rent, butofpeople are Shokri maintain But, he admits, for this to happen, there needs to be ers of older buildings, Mr. Shokri said.

Asareit.owners of buildings, Mr. said.

As as a result the current boom Group who bought the original historic Group who bought the original historic Franzgroup Gehriger, the CEO of SwissReal completed ininless than a ayear, sosofar,far, will is is partly because companies in Vancouver, completed lessfeet than year,but but partly because companies in Vancouver, vacancy rates in recent years, may have the main downtown leases they get closer completion.

That interested in leasing Vancouthe 370,000 square – leavingrules aVancouver state of Asbewell, he as said, prices into the new well, new developments in the the suburbs, power because of new mortgage set to take effect within not renting. ” Tal says that in Canada, unlike other parts of more affordable rental housing built, and government policies well, new developments in the suburbs, stock-exchange building in 2002 before parters of older buildings, Mr. Shokri said.

As stock-exchange building in 2002 before partwho bought the isoriginal historic only one tenant has signed upupthan totomove in.in.butwhich want to be in energy-efficient trouble as they compete with each other. verGroup onlyweeks. onethat tenant has move want to because benew, income new, energy-efficient completed in less a year, sowhich far,do do iswill partly companies in Vancouver, office space these days technology which already experienced higher emptiness isofunusual for an office skybuildings likely down in the two As Oct.signed 17, more applications will world, there’s a timelines. cultural tendency tohave value home ownership should push developers and builders to it.to the 4 i Saturday, July 25, 2015 nering with Credit Suisse todo develop it,before said it, which have already experienced higher well, new developments in the suburbs, The tenant has committed forfor amortgage 10th of to buildings, tend to operate on short nering with Credit Suisse develop said stock-exchange building in 2002 In Vancouver, the co-developer of the CredThe tenant has committed a 10th of buildings, tend to operate on short timelines. only one tenant has signed up move in. which do want to be in new, energy-efficient sector.

Those companies make their partdecivacancy rates inhave recent years,years, may may have have scraper in athis city.test” Even so, a huge shift of in undergo “stress to–evaluate aaborrower’s the main group interested in leasing Vancouvacancy rates in already recent which experienced higher the 370,000 square feet leaving state AsAs well, he hesaid, prices in in the newnew thenering mainwith group interested in Credit Suisse to leasing developVancouit, said the 370,000 square feet – leaving a state of well, said, prices the The tenant has committed for a 10th of buildings, tend to operate on short timelines. trouble asvacancy compete each other. ability totenancy make payments at region a higher business isunusual expected ver office space these days is the technology ratescompete in with recent years, may have troublethey as they with each other. emptiness that mortgage for as an the office sky- buildings will likely come i Saturday, 25, 2015down in the theoffice mainspace groupthese interested Vancoudaysinisleasing the technology theisis370,000 square feet – leaving of Saturday, As July well, said, prices in in the new emptiness that unusual fornot an office sky- a 4state buildings will likely come 4 i Julyhe 25, 2015down In Vancouver, the co-developer of the Cred- sector.ver interest rate. experiences something it has seen beThose companies make their deciscraper in this city. Even so, a huge shift in trouble as they compete with each other. sector.

In Vancouver, the co-developer of the Credver office space these days is the technology Those companies make their deciemptiness that is unusual for an will likely come scraper in this city.was Even so, aboom huge shift inoffice sky- buildings 4 i Saturday, July 25, 2015down in the The already in place for fore: an requirement office-tower building much business tenancy is expected as the region In Vancouver, the co-developer of the Cred- sector. Those companies make their deciscraper this Even a huge shift in business isinexpected as theso, region some types of mortgages.

Itcity. will now apply ofexperiences which istenancy speculative rathsomething itconstruction has not seen bebusiness tenancy is expected as to all an insured mortgages, including fixed-rate experiences something it has not seen be-the region erfore: than for specific committed tenants. office-tower building boom much experiences something it has ones with terms of five years or more.

“This is kind of uncharted territory for Vanfore: an office-tower building boom much of which is speculative construction rath-not seen beexpects it tocommitted bring about higher fore: an office-tower building boom much couver, ” said Shokri, a principal with which isMehdi speculative construction ratherofLarock than for specific tenants. mortgage rates as team lenders apply for aYoung. “much ofofspecific which is committed speculative construction raththe capital markets atterritory Avison er“This thanis kind for tenants. uncharted Vantougher filter to all of their mortgages. ” er than for specific committed tenants.

“But I don’t see a big disaster occurring. ” couver, ” said Mehdi Shokri, a principal with “This is kind of uncharted territory for VanFor Larock that will for VanThe Credit Suisse only the most “Thistower is kindatis ofAvison uncharted territory the capital markets team Young. couver, ”borrowers, said Mehdi Shokri, asays principal with translate into an a18 perdisaster cent drop inwave what visible and furthest along of a second couver, ” said Mehdi Shokri, a principal with “But I don’t see big occurring. ” the capital markets team at Avison Young. be ablethe to afford after Oct. 17. ofthey’ll new office towers planned for VancouThe Credit Suisse tower is only the most capital markets team at Avison Young.

“But I don’t see a big disaster occurring.”

According to his calculations, someone visible furthest along of aAasecond wave occurring.” ver and some key first cluster “But Isuburbs. don’t see big disaster Theanand Credit Suisse tower is$80,000 only the most with annual income of and new office towers planned fortower Vancouofoftowers – some two million square feet – a the most The Credit Suisse iswave only visible and furthest along of a second $40,000 down payment — an “average firstverbuilt and downtown somevisible key suburbs.

A first cluster was in the past three years. and furthest along of a second wave oftowers new office planned Vancoutime buyer” —towers currently hassquare aformaximum of – 11 some twooffice million feetare –for VancouAnother office developments of new towers planned ver built and downtown someofkey suburbs. firstOct. cluster purchase price $520,000.

ButACredit after 17, was in the past three years. proposed within blocks of Suver and some key suburbs.

A first of towers – some two million square feet – cluster Larock says that would drop to $425,000.

Another 11 office developments are isse’s Exchangeof tower atsome Howe and West towers – two million square feet – was built downtown in the three years.

According to mortgage broker Dave Larock, proposed within blocks ofpast Credit SuPender streets, even while the office-vawas builtrules downtown in firstthe past three years. under newinmortgage averageand time Another 11 tower officeatcontinues developments are isse’s Exchange Howe West cancy rate the region to inch Another 11 office developments are buyers would their maximum purchase streets, even while office-vaproposed within blocks ofofCredit SuupPender as a result ofsee the first wavethe building. proposed within blocks of Credit Suprice from to Howe $425,000. cancy rate in the$520,000 region to inch isse’s Exchange tower atcontinues West But drop commercial brokers say theand is and West isse’s Exchange tower atcity Howe The new mortgage rules are expected to up as a result of the first wave of building.

Pender streets, even while the office-vanot about to be populated by ghost towers.

Pender streets, on even the curtail some of the demand the real But commercial brokers say thewhile city is office-vacancy rate in the region continues toestate inch rate in the ghost region continues to inch market. not to cancy be of populated up about as a result the first by wave of towers. building. as a result Benjamin of the firstTal wave of building.

CIBC chiefupeconomist says But commercial brokers say the city is Butvarious commercial say the city is that among the waysbrokers the federal not about tonot be about populated by ghost towers. to betopopulated by ghost towers. government is attempting put the market under control, the so-called stress test rule will be the most effective yet.

“This will have a big impact on the market, there’s no question about it,” Tal said.

‘If there is a beneficiary to these policies, it will be the condo market, whether it’s on the for-sale side where buyers are forced into lower price points or on the rental side, as well, as fewer first-time buyers are getting into the marketplace.’

By law, homes priced at more than $1 million require the standard minimum down payment of 20 per cent, and are therefore uninsured.

But Tal says the one place the rule changes will be felt is the Toronto condo market, where sale prices are below $1 million a property and deals often involve first-time buyers with down payments of less than 20 per cent.

“That’s exactly where the target is,” Tal said.

Shaun Hildebrand, senior vice-president of real estate market research firm Urban Nation, agrees with Tal. “If there is a beneficiary to these policies, it will be the condo market, whether it’s on the for-sale side where buyers are forced into lower price points or on the rental side, as well, as fewer first-time buyers are getting into the marketplace,” Hildebrand said.

Tal also believes the stress test will push more potential homebuyers to the rental market, which he sees as a positive shift.

Vancouver’s skyline to rise amid an office-tower building boom new mortgage rules could give you less buying power

Saturda

14

Saturday, October 08, 2016

Real Estate

A third of insured mortgages would have ‘difficulty’ under new federal rules: Genworth

The largest private residential mortgage insurer in Canada says many of its customers would have difficulty meeting new rules introduced by the federal government this week.

Based on data accumulated so far this year, Genworth MI Canada Inc. estimates that more than one-third of insured mortgages, predominantly acquired by first-time homebuyers, would have difficulty meeting required debt-service ratios.

Genworth said in a release that those homebuyers would need to consider buying a lower priced property or increase the size of their down payment in order to meet the new federal requirements, which were brought in with the aim of cooling off overheated housing markets.

Under the federal rules, which will come into effect on October 17, all insured mortgages will have to go through a “stress test” that ensures a borrower’s ability to

make their mortgage payments at a higher interest rate. Borrowers will be tested against their ability to pay their mortgage if actual rates were as high as the big banks’ five-year posted mortgage rates, which the Bank of Canada says currently average 4.64 per cent.

Currently, only high-ratio insured mortgages, those with a down payment of less than 20 per cent of the purchase price, are subject to a stress test.

Genworth also said that approximately 50 to 55 per cent of its total portfolio new insurance written would no longer be eligible for mortgage insurance under the new lowratio mortgage insurance requirements.

Ottawa’s move to change the mortgage insurance rules came as it also said it will close a loophole in the tax laws that allows non-residents to buy homes in Canada and then get a tax exemption to avoid paying capital gains when they sell the home by claiming it as a principal residence.

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RBC bridges language barriers with new inT branch video interpretation app Vol. 6 No. 31

-

Saturday - April 2, 2016

- Tel: 604-591-5423 -

E-mail: ads@the

Vancouver’s skyline to rise amid an office-tower building

he $240-million Credit Suisse/ SwissReal tower in the heart of downtown Vancouver will be completed in less than a year, but so far, only one tenant has signed up to move in.

The tenant has committed for a 10th of the 370,000 square feet – leaving a state of emptiness that is unusual for an office skyscraper in this city. Even so, a huge shift in business tenancy is expected as the region experiences something it has not seen before: an office-tower building boom much of which is speculative construction rather than for specific committed tenants.

“This is kind of uncharted territory for Vancouver,” said Mehdi Shokri, a principal with the capital markets team at Avison Young.

“But I don’t see a big disaster occurring.”

The Credit Suisse tower is only the most visible and furthest along of a second wave of new office towers planned for Vancouver and some key suburbs. A first cluster of towers – some two million square feet – was built downtown in the past three years.

Another 11 office developments are proposed within blocks of Credit Suisse’s Exchange tower at Howe and West Pender streets, even while the office-vacancy rate in the region continues to inch up as a result of the first wave of building.

But commercial brokers say the city is not about to be populated by ghost towers.

Mr. Shokri and others say they expect many of the new towers to start signing tenant leases as they get closer to completion. That is partly because companies in Vancouver, which do want to be in new, energy-efficient buildings, tend to operate on short timelines.

As well, he said, prices in the new buildings will likely come 4 i Saturday, July 25, 2015down in the

next two years due to competition.

The landlords who will likely suffer as a result of the current boom are owners of older buildings, Mr. Shokri said. As well, new developments in the suburbs, which have already experienced higher vacancy rates in recent years, may have trouble as they compete with each other.

In Vancouver, the co-developer of the Cred-

Real-time multi-language interpretation – including American Sign Language – marks a North American financial institution first for two-way video service for clients Communication can sometimes be challenging, especially when there is a language barrier. RBC recently introduced a new language app for branches that provides clients with real-time video access to professional interpreters to conduct their banking.

For many immigrants to Canada whose first language isn’t English or French, it can be a real struggle to understand complicated topics or learn a new banking system. RBC understands that providing clients with the abilities and tools to have banking conversations in their preferred language is critical to developing their financial literacy in Canada.

To help clients overcome this language barrier, RBC has been providing multi-language services through its network by having staff at the branch that can speak in client’s preferred language or by providing information to them over the phone. With the recent launch of the new interpretation service app in all its branches it further bridges the gap.

The first of its kind in North America, this app provides real-time video access to professional interpreters for clients to conduct their Banking. RBC is also the first financial institution in North America to offer American Sign Language to its clients through this video app.

“It’s important that our clients can communicate with us in the most convenient way they choose. With a touch of a button, we can now bridge language barriers in branches from coast to coast -- just one of the ways that RBC helps clients thrive every day,” said Kirk Dudtschak, executive vice-president, personal & commercial banking, RBC. “We’re proud to continue to lead the way in providing accessible banking for our clients.”

Available now, this on-demand video service currently offers 13 languages, with more to follow. The app also supports 200 languages

through audio conferencing, a service RBC has offered over the telephone since 2009.

“Providing newcomers with the ability to have banking conversations in their preferred language is critical to helping our clients learn about how banking works in Canada and what

products and solutions are right for them.

The new language app is useful for anyone who considers English or French a second language, no matter how long they have lived here,” said Christine Shisler, senior director, cultural markets, RBC Fast facts: • How it works: When a client requires interpretation services in a bank branch, a banking advisor will open the language app on a tablet, and will select the client’s preferred language. In less than a minute, the client will be connected with a professional interpreter.

Using two-way video/audio technology, the client and banker can then speak directly with the interpreter, who also has access to an optional on-screen whiteboard feature to display any messages.

• Languages offered: 13 are available now through video translation, including Mandarin, Cantonese, Korean, Polish, Somali, Arabic, Haitian Creole, Portuguese, Vietnamese, Hmong, Nepali, Russian, and American Sign Language. The app also supports 200 languages through audio conferencing • Branch reach: The service is available at all RBC branches across Canada.

Canadian mortgage rates could rise under Ottawa’s new rules

Mortgage lending changes by the federal government are going to make it harder for non-bank lenders to operate and could see Canadians pay higher rates on their loans, mortgage brokers warn.

James Laird, president of mortgage company CanWise Financial and co-founder of ratewatching website RateHub, says the non-bank mortgage lenders offer important competition for the big banks.

“The non-bank lenders keep the banks honest,” Laird said.

“It is really important that we keep some sort of third-party pressure on them so they can’t set prices at whatever they choose.”

Starting Nov. 30, mortgages that lenders insure with portfolio insurance and other discretionary low loan-to-value ratio mortgage insurance must meet stricter criteria that had previously only applied to high-ratio insured mortgages. The change, brokers say, will make operating more difficult for non-bank mortgage lenders, who raise the money they use to lend to homebuyers by selling packages of insured mortgages to investors.

The large banks use portfolio insurance too, but they also have other ways to raise the

money they use to lend to borrowers seeking mortgages. “The banks were also heavy users of the bulk insurance program, but they don’t have to be,” Laird said. “A bank has its own money to lend if it chooses to, where a nonbank does not.”

The tighter requirements were part of broad changes that also expanded stress testing on insured mortgages, proposed consultations on lender risk sharing and closed a loophole in connection with the capital gains tax exemption on the sale of a principal residence.

Sherry Cooper, chief economist at mortgage broker network Dominion Lending Centres, said because of the lessening of competition, mortgage rates paid by Canadians will be now be higher. “Less competition means there’s less supply in the marketplace and as a result the price goes up a bit. How much, we don’t know, and how big an impact this will be is still quite uncertain,” she said. The rules place new limits on the types of mortgages that can be insured.

The change, brokers say, will make operating more difficult for non-bank mortgage lenders, who raise the money they use to lend to homebuyers by selling packages of insured mortgages to investors.

it Suisse tow start to fill a Franz G Group wh stock-excha nering with the main gr ver office sp sector. Tho

31

Saturday, April 2, 2016

i 5

Saturday, October 08, 2016

-

Saturday - April 2, 2016

Real Estate

15

Metro Vancouver real estate sales cool, but prices remain stable - Tel: 604-591-5423 -

E-mail: ads@theasianstar.com

couver’s skyline to rise amid an office-tower building boom

edit Suisse/ he heart of er will be , but so far, to move in. or a 10th of ng a state of n office skyhuge shift in s the region not seen beboom much uction rathted tenants. tory for Vanrincipal with vison Young. r occurring.” nly the most second wave for Vancoufirst cluster square feet – three years. pments are Credit Sue and West he office-vanues to inch of building. y the city is host towers.

Mr. Shokri and others say they expect many of the new towers to start signing tenant leases as they get closer to completion. That is partly because companies in Vancouver, which do want to be in new, energy-efficient buildings, tend to operate on short timelines.

As well, he said, prices in the new buildings will likely come 4 i Saturday, July 25, 2015down in the

next two years due to competition.

The landlords who will likely suffer as a result of the current boom are owners of older buildings, Mr. Shokri said. As well, new developments in the suburbs, which have already experienced higher vacancy rates in recent years, may have trouble as they compete with each other.

In Vancouver, the co-developer of the Cred-

it Suisse tower is optimistic his building will start to fill as the completion date gets closer.

Franz Gehriger, the CEO of SwissReal Group who bought the original historic stock-exchange building in 2002 before partnering with Credit Suisse to develop it, said the main group interested in leasing Vancouver office space these days is the technology sector. Those companies make their deci-

The number of homes sold in Metro Vancouver continued to drop last month, but the benchmark price remained stable,

according to new numbers from the Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver.

In total, 2,253 homes were sold in September, a decrease of 9.5 per cent compared to August 2016, and a drop of 32.6 per cent compared to September 2015.

But the benchmark price for all residential properties in Metro Vancouver remained stable at $931,900 — a 0.1 per cent decline compared to August 2016, but a 28.9 per cent increase compared to September 2015.

The sales drop follows the introduction of a 15 per cent tax on foreign buyers by the provincial government in early August.

“There’s uncertainty in the market at the moment and homebuyers and sellers are having difficulty establishing price as a result,” said board president Dan Morrison in a statement Tuesday morning.

He notes the slowdown in sales was

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most significant for detached homes, but benchmark prices remain flat for all types of homes. “Supply and demand conditions differ today depending on property type. We’re seeing more demand for condominiums and townhomes today than in the detached home market.” Sales of detached properties decreased 47.6 per cent last month from September 2015.

The benchmark price for detached properties is $1,579,400 — a 0.1 per cent increase from August 2016, and a 33.7 per cent rise from September 2015. Also in September, sales of apartment properties decreased 20.3 per cent compared to September 2015.

The benchmark price of an apartment property is $511,800 — down 0.5 per cent from to August 2016, but up 23.5 per cent from September 2015.

Sales of attached property decreased 32.2 per cent compared to September 2015.

The benchmark price of an attached unit is $677,000 — down 0.1 per cent from August 2016, but up 29.1 per cent from September 2015.

Last month, the real estate board released statistics showing the number of sales in the region dropped 26 per cent in August compared to the same month in 2015.

In July, sales were down 18 per cent compared to the same month in 2015.

0 By: Asian Star ADVT.

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Saturda

16

Saturday, October 08, 2016

Garry Grewal

Vol. 6 No. 31

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week, very busy location take out with availability for seating if desired.

Tons of tourists year round, central to major sites in Hope business qualifies for LMI. Take advantage of many hotels, businesses and areaas near grocery stores, city hall, local police in integral the area well as residences.

Complete turn station, key operation. motels and cinema. Well established, great sales and a complete Asking $159,900 turn key operation that will not last long! Asking $199,000

2010

2011, 2012 2004-2005 2008-2009 2010 2006-2007 2013-2014 2011, 2012 2008-2009 2013-2014

4 es, acr el Hot velopment and de Well established Vera's Burger site vailablea in the egina, City R Franchise oflocated on busy Fraser Saskatchewan.

Prime location, not Amazing opportunity that rarely becomes available! This unique H i ghway

i n

C l ove rd a l e . We l l own run y to be missed! or e Contact mor f business offers Pizza, Pasta, and Chicken etc. Additionally, the maintained establishment full turn kitchen has a full commercial/industrial kitchen infrastructure in details. place which is perfect for catering and food manufacturing. This key operation ready for you to be your MORE 1000O 12,000 . T AIL S.F & unique concept allows for the combination of both. Well AVAILABLE FORfor ALE S ASE & own boss!

Contact listing realtor maintained, quality equipment this turn key operation is ready to

breakfast and lunch menu and rarely found…Liquor license as go! Contact Listing realtor for more details. Asking $139,900 well! Outdoor seating back and front of premises, tons of parking Dream Pizza or ale FS and many, many more high rises coming in the area currently make Established Indian Sweets and Restaurant business located in high traf�ic area of Scott Rd, Surrey.

Perfect opportunity o our be own t y boss this a business owners dream come true. Turn key business ready Wide ariety egetarian v v menu eets. with xpanded Can sw tobe egetarian add e dishes non to v the with ell this established w Pizza & Indian and waiting for you! Confidentiality agreement will Seating have to for be 50. Complete turn key restaurant menu.

Catering services provided regular clientele.

Perfect opportunity to be your own boss with this well signed before viewing the business. Asking $149,900 Cuisine in y. unning Langle R successfull y or f great business opportunity! Asking $129,000 established Pizza & Indian Cuisine in Langley. Running the veLast ears y�ixcellent with yedail sales. successfully for the Last five years with excellent daily sales.

Close o ys t Da Inn, estern The & Best W Close to Days Inn, The Best Western & Westward Inn also close to the Greyhound station, taxi stop bus stand and many Westward Inn o also eyhound the closeGr t Busy, established Pizza and Pasta restaurant in the heart of Maple Fantastic opportunity to run your own Pizza & Indian Cuisine apartments near by. Excellent location & turn key operation. station, taxi op st bus y stand and man Ridge on Lougheed Hwy. 4.5/5 Offers extensive open menu plus a School business!

Excellent food, rated by customers 7 days This is an opportunity not to be missed! Asking $139,900 bookings, Catering for parties/meetings etc. Full website. This apartments near y. cellent b Ex location & ey ation. turn oper Thisk

it Suisse tow start to fill a Franz G Group wh stock-excha nering with the main gr ver office sp sector. Tho

NEW LEASING OPPORTUNITY

LEASE

Showers, Birthdays, Anniversaries, Special occasions and even Private Wedding ceremonies. Wait...there's more! This beautiful treasure of a business offers gorgeous select apparel, furnishings, jewelry, linens, gifts, vintage treasures and home décor. A beautiful, breathtaking turnkey operation this is a chance to own a niche business created and Established and reputable towing company that serves established with love and a business owners delight don't miss this clients throughout the opportunity!

Lower Mainland.

Ideal Please oach do staff, not ealtor contact orappry f info required. Asking $75,000 opportunity to run your own turn key business in a niche

next two years due to competition.

The landlords who will likely suffer as a result of the current boom are owners of older buildings, Mr. Shokri said. As well, new developments in the suburbs, which have already experienced higher vacancy rates in recent years, may have trouble as they compete with each other.

In Vancouver, the co-developer of the Cred-

FOR 4020SALE 272 T, /S LEASE LANGLEY

8318 cottS oad R ering is medical off and 2800 SQ Ft of office/warehouse space in other ofessionals pr an opportunity o t Mainland Business Park. Corner Unit, 2 purchase emium pr of�ice space ey, in Sur take out and delivery. Establishment there is not a liquor license at this location. Asking $549,000 BC. o Set ed t y lots allcomplet bof fparking.

2016, this entrance doors beand state if eel the and ete art concr st Contact for more info.

FRANCHISE OF EAST INDIAN CUISINE FOR SALE building will er off ae etail mixtur of and r A very rare opportunity to own a beautiful Parisian feel Salon/Café in of�ice space o ofessionals t pr lookingor f a Established & busy Franchise for East Indian Cuisine, perfect turn key Historic Abbotsford. Well established, with a loyal client following this home or ftheir business. Space beautiful establishment ers offy all brunch,da ea.

Lunch long erm and t Afternoon T opportunity, rarely available. Prime location. Please call for information on this In addition, this beautiful café offers so much more! Reservations for 8318 Scott Road is offering medical and other professionals an is ed. limitoday Callor et f mor details. not to be missed business! Asking $549,000

ONE IN

E-mail: ads@the

MASTER AWARD

2006-2007 2004-2005

#106 Group 7565 132 St.,Coast Surrey.

BC. Sutton - West Realty PH:604-572-3005 FAX: 778-574-4174 #106 7565 132 St., Surrey. BC. PH:604-572-3005 FAX: 778-574-4174

- Tel: 604-591-5423 -

he $240-million Credit Suisse/ Mr. Shokri and others say they expect SwissReal tower in the heart of many of the new towers to start signing tenant downtown Vancouver will be leases as they get closer to completion. That completed in less than a year, but so far, is partly because companies in Vancouver, only one tenant has signed up to move in. which do want to be in new, energy-efficient The tenant has committed for a 10th of buildings, tend to operate on short timelines. the 370,000 square feet – leaving a state of As well, he said, prices in the new emptiness that is unusual for an office sky- buildings will likely come 4 i Saturday, July 25, 2015down in the scraper in this city. Even so, a huge shift in business tenancy is expected as the region experiences something it has not seen before: an office-tower building boom much of which is speculative construction rather than for specific committed tenants.

“This is kind of uncharted territory for Vancouver,” said Mehdi Shokri, a principal with the capital markets team at Avison Young.

“But I don’t see a big disaster occurring.”

The Credit Suisse tower is only the most visible and furthest along of a MASTER second wave PLATINUM of new office towers planned for VancouAWARD AWARD ver and some key suburbs. A first cluster of towers – some two million square feet – was built downtown in the past three years.

Another 11 office developments are proposed within blocks of Credit Suisse’s Exchange tower at Howe and West Pender streets, even while the office-vacancy rate in the region continues to inch up as a result of the first wave of building.

But commercial brokers say the city is not about to be populated by ghost towers.

DIAMOND AWARD

CLUB MEMBERAWARDS WINNERCOMMERCIAL OF FVREB’sMEDALLION TOP ACHIEVEMENT - Highest Dollar Volume Award - Commercial Top Sales Award

Saturday - April 2, 2016

PREC PREC

T

WINNER OF FVREB’s TOP ACHIEVEMENT AWARDS

-

Vancouver’s skyline to rise amid an office-tower building

to be your own boss and take it to the next level! Asking $229,900

J.J AINI S

PLAZA

4020 272 ST, LANGLEY

8077 eas t KING GEORGE BLVD. The perfect retail

corner unit in busy plaza move inMagnificent luxury estate situate don 8.5 acres with over 8100 sq. ft of living space. ready. Approx 1200 sq ft perfect for fast food, Home includes 6 bdrms, 8 washrooms, a separate guest house and fruit stand. 5 acres of�ice or retail has blueberry plants as well. This stunning home possesses every luxury possible with space. Easy access to highway, close to all high ceilings, crown molding, stainless steel appliances,Granite counter tops, open amenities on Busy King George Hwy. Great floor plan, large gym room, grand patio, sundecks, built in vacuum, top of the line security system, separate wok kitchen and much more! This gorgeous home is situated Opportunity contact me today. in the middle of serene farmland yet only two minutes away from Aldergrove Town centre and with quick access to Hwy #1. The second house is rented as well as fruit stall.Rare opportunity to advantage of this stunning home! Call today for a personal viewing.

AUTO

BOD Y SHOPOR FSALE

PAYAL BUSINESS CENTRE - 82 Ave & 128 St

Established auto y or bod shop our sale f own y! be boss y toda L NE IST W Well established ell anduto equipped e w Car A Center which IN G offers complete car &epair. truck inspection, service The ect perf opportunity our to own run businessy with a well ecognized r and established ve . automoti center Contact realtor or ef mor Askingdetails. $139,000

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Approx. . 4500 of�ice sqft vailable. ec. space Rea, ara small of�ice, r oom andlunch Don't miss this rare opportunity to own your own busy Lighthouse 8321 ., Surrey. cellent 128 Ex locationSt Asking in $209,000 busy conference oom. ery r V y nicel designed and �inished.

8077 KING GEORGE BLVD. Great unit available for lease Indian Cuisine Franchise! Prime location in Brickyard Station Plaza facing King George Blvd. Great visual and retail exposure. this fantastic business has Take out and dine in, beautiful décor, UNIT OR FASE LE ON T 72 & 132 Close to shopping, Station, restaurant and mix Public SP ORMenu.

ALE F S quality kitchen, Full Liquor license and OFFICE full Indian ACE Cuisine Available for lease.Gas Opp JR Furniture.

Good of warehouse and of�ice space. Centrally Transit. This space has 2 offices inside and lunch room as Complete turn key operation enables you to be your own boss with Approx.

3100 vailableSFor f of sale of�ice in ey. space theClose a busiest to plaza Banquet in Halls, Surr in light industrial zoning.

DONAIR BUSINESS located APARTMENT Investment Opportunity in Hope. 7200 Sq. ft retailshops & further Askinginfo. of�ices. this established franchise. Contact me today for $749,000 well as washroom. Perfect Of�ice for Accountants, for Notary, eat vestment sale! In Gr FOR ALE S FOR ALE S Asking $389,000 Immigration or other consulting or Lawyer. The space can large Lot Fully renovated home close to the #1 1016 Sq cellent xposure, Ft e op Ex t �loor of�ice y space Khalsa within the Amazing opportunity to be your own boss! also be converted for various retail uses as well. 1260 Sq. ft. ,6960ey Surr 120 St UNIT OR ALE F T S AA KHALS BUSINESS CENTRE Business Cent er x. comple ull ea F ar eddesignat or oom f classr space and addition Established Donair food outlet in prime busy Downtown core. 2 bed, 2 bath 850 sq.ft home Perfect ving li space Take vantage ad eat of vestment in this opportunity! gr ound Ideal etail/�loor Gr oom/of�ice showr r space with of�ice space. ake vantage T ad ons of ofxposure t om visual fr . 128th e af�ic High st tr area in Langley. Already steady clientele from high ceilings eys in busy Surr Khalsa Business Center ariousat over the of 128 and 84.

CD zoning allows v 1000 corner sq ft 2 to use as a rental property. Asking $349,000 gr in opportunity . $325,000.00 the ous numer businesses ounding, surr tons complexof eat vestment 95 Ave & 152 St., 940 sqft. office space is available for lease on 2nd floor including 3 small offices, businesses uses.

Asking $349,000 bedroom with den 2traf�ic and lots of opportunity to expand the #2. 1920 sq ft of second vate �loor of�ices, droom,of�iceboar space. meeting room and reception. Also available 9400 sqft. space for lease. LOTS OF EXPOSURE. bath corned unit in business further. Low lease, and great area reception ea,ar chenette. kit cellent Ex xposure, e op t �loor of�ice y space wit Established auto body shop for sale be your own boss today!

Harleen dens.

Gar UNITS OR ALE F S (15299 VE) 68 A make this the perfect turn key operation to own Well established and well equipped Auto Care Center which Khalsa Business er Cent x. comple ake vantage T ad ons of of xposure t visual fr e om Asking Excellent vestment in opportunity o etail twefrontr stor units ey in al Plaza a location. centr busy $289,900 Surr your own business today! Asking $99,000 offers complete car & truck inspection, service and repair.

128th . st af�ic High xcomple eattr vestment gr in opportunity . $550,000 Great opportunity to get into a Franchised and easy to operate Candy Currently ocery leased e, Stor to o this or a Asking units is sale. Gr$899,000 f tw

INVESTOR OPPORTUNITY

2590 sqft. Retail and Office space for sale Asking $649,000

D SOL NEW FRANCHISE

UNIT FOR SALE

INVESTOR Of�ic

2590 sqft . etail R ande space for sale Asking $649,000 In Mughal Garden plaza 2 units available, approx 4875 sqft.Already leased to long NEWNG I term tenants, to be sold together. Asking $1.25 million LIST

business! This established franchise is located in Ocean Park Shopping Center near major anchor Safeway. This rapidly growing franchise

currently has 22 locations within BC and Alberta. With unique product OPP ORTUNITY NEW FRANCHISE Imported from the US and UK this franchise is completely turn –key and full NEWNG

I LIST Investment Opportunity in Hope. training provided. This easy to run business is perfect for a couple and for 7200 Sq.those wanting to try their hand at being an entrepreneur. Asking $79,900 ft large Lot Fully renovated home close to the 95 Ave & 152 St.,RETAIL SPACE AVAILABLE 940 sqft. of�ice space is available for OFFICE SPACE FOR SALE Downtown core. 2 bed, 2 bath lease8321 - 128 St., This is a hard to come by 900 sq ft unit perfect on 2nd �loor including 3 small of�ices, meeting room 850 sq.ft home to use as a rental and reception.

Also available 9400 sqft. space for lease.

Approx. 3100 SF of office space available for sale for small business retail, office or company that needs storage opportunity to run your own Pizza & Indian Cuisine and office ie: cleaning company. Cheaper then leasing at this LOTS OF EXPOSURE. in the busiest plaza in Surrey. Close to Banquet property.Fantastic Asking $349,000 price suitable for many businesses. Inquire today. business! Excellent food, rated 4.5/5 by customers open 7 days a

Asking $209,000

CUSTOM STEEL & FABRICATION BUSINESS FOR SALE Established custom steel and aluminum fabrication business.

Great opportunity to run your own business with services that include: aluminum welding and repair, custom and stock trailers, mobile welding service, crane fabrication, fabrication of residential gates, security bars and much more! Mon– Fri operation closed on weekends.

Please contact me for more details on this hard to come by opportunity!

Asking $149,000

PIZZA & INDIAN CUISINE BUSINESS

Halls, retailshops & offices. Asking $749,000

BUSINESS FOR SALE

Established Indian Sweets and Restaurant business located in high traffic area of Scott Rd, Surrey. Wide variety vegetarian menu with sweets. Can be expanded to add non vegetarian dishes to the menu.

Catering services provided regular clientele. Seating for 50. Complete turn key restaurant great business opportunity! Asking $129,000

UNITS FOR SALE (15299 68 AVE)

week, very busy location take out with availability for seating if desired. Tons of tourists year round, central to major sites in Hope and integral area near grocery stores, city hall, local police station, motels and cinema. Well established, great sales and a complete turn key operation that will not last long! Asking $199,000

CONVENIENCE STORE & MINI MART

Excellent investment opportunity two retail storefront units in a busy Surrey Plaza central location. Currently leased to a Grocery Store, this is two units for sale. Asking $899,000

D

SOL

D SOL

Don't miss this chance to run your own buy Convenience store/Mini mart! This well established business is well or-ganized, excellent set up, with all your essential sundries for sale as well as lottery AND the licensing to sell Pizza at this location! Busy area near parks, schools, residences it is the perfect small business! Ample of opportunity to add your ideas to an already turn key operation!

Don't miss this great small business prospect! Asking $149,000

AUTO BODY SHOP FOR SALE

The perfect opportunity to run your own business with a well recognized and established automotive center. Contact realtor for more details. Asking $139,000

BEAUTIFUL TURN KEY A SPALON / OR FSALES

Great opportunity to get into a Franchised and Located in a busy commercial plaza in the D easy to operate Candy business! This established UCE franchise is located in Ocean Park Shopping Center RED 11925 95 AVEheart of Surrey. Lots of traf�ic and close to near major anchor Safeway. This rapidly growing public transportation, restaurants, of�ice franchise currently has 22 locations within BC and Approx. 4500 sqft. office space available. Rec. area, small office, lunch room and conference room. and retail shops. Established recently the Alberta. With unique product Imported from the Very nicely designed and finished.

US and UK this franchise is completely turn –key spa and salon offers modern décor up to and full training provided. This easy to run date equipment/furnishings. Excellent business is perfect for a couple and for those wanting to try their hand at being an entrepreneur. turn key operation. Asking $60,000 Asking $79,900 UNIT FOR LEASE ON 72 & 132 ST

Available for lease. Opp JR Furniture. Good mix of warehouse and office space. Centrally located in light industrial zoning.

29/07

Office for sale! Great Investment

#1 1016 Sq Ft Excellent exposure, top floor office space within the busy Khalsa Business Center complex. Full area designated for classroom space and additional office space. Take advantage of tons of visual exposure from 128th st. High traffic complex great investment opportunity. $325,000

#2. 1920 sq ft of second floor office space. Includes 10 private offices, boardroom, reception area, kitchenette. Excellent exposure, top floor office space within the busy Khalsa Business Center complex. Take advantage of tons of visual exposure from 128th st. High traffic complex great investment opportunity. $550,000

07/10