VOICE OF ASIA 1
VOICE OF ASIA Over 26 years of dedicated service to the community
FRIDAY, May 8, 2015
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Vol. 28 No. 19 Friday, May 8, 2015 • Published Weekly from Houston • 713-774-5140 20 Pages ( 2 sections) 50 cents E-mail: editor@voiceofasiaonline.com
Sri Guruvayurappan Temple opens gates to devotees
Prayer meeting for Nepal earthquake victims by Manu Shah
W
ith the soothing strains of Bhagwan meri naeya us paar laga dena sung by Hemal Bhavsar and Hasmukh Joshi, about 200 people prayed together for the departed souls and families in Nepal devastated by a magnitude 7.8 earthquake. The Shradhhanjali sabha was convened at a short notice of just 24 hours.
He believed his life had been spared so he can render selfless service and immediately converted the hospital into a shelter for orphans. Along with him, 30,000 Patanjali volunteers are on the ground in Nepal helping with relief measures. Shekhar
will take $5 billion at a minimum. Sewa International has set a target of raising a minimum of $1 million for this cause. So far, they have collected $100,000 through online and checks with pledges of an additional $200,000.
by Somdatta Gangopadhyay
S
aturday, May 2nd, 2015 witnessed the auspicious occasion of the inauguration of the Sri Guruvayurappan Temple at 11620 Ormandy Street, Houston, TX 77035. Devotees may find more information at www.guruvayurappanhouston.org and www.krishnatemple.org. The Head Priest (Thantri) Kariyannoor Divakaran Namboodiri inaugurated the temple following the inauguration ritual. A throng of crowd consisting of about 2000 people gathered during inauguration. Kumbhabishekam in which the idol is installed in place (Pratishtha), was performed on 23rd April,2015, and it forms an integral part of the ritual. The Kalasha Puja took place on April 25th, followed by the Kalasha Abhishekam on April 26th. The Utsavam (festival) had begun on April 27th and continued until May 2nd. The temple remained closed for three days after the Pratishtha, and opened
Presenting the Deities to the sanctum of the temple.
Organized by Sewa International and supported by the Nepali Association of Houston, Patanjali Yogpeeth, USA, Hindus of The prayers were held at India House last Wednesday. Greater Houston, Indo American Charity Foundation, Agrawal, who heads Patanjali Yogina Patel from the GuIndia House and India Culture USA stressed that “the opportu- jarati Samaj also expressed Center, the event was held at In- nity to serve is a blessing� and their commitment to the cause dia House on 27th April. appealed to the gathering to help while Past President of the Indo Emcees Achalesh Amar and Nepal rebuild itself. Patanjali is American Charity Foundation, Kavita Tewari invited the heads also organizing a donation drive Ramesh Cherivirala along with of several organizations present and one can go to their website Alpa Shah presented a check to to speak to the gathering start- pyptusa.org if one would like to Sewa representative Kaushik Chatterjee for their donation ing with Ramesh Shah of Ekal donate. Vidyalaya. Describing this as a USAID Director for Texas, drive and promised to work for “human tragedy,� he said that Marty McVey, who is oversee- more funds. Ekal has 1200 schools in Nepal ing US assistance to Nepal statand about 250 villages where ed that 2 more aid flights with these schools are have been hard 130 US personnel have been hit and cannot be contacted. dispatched to help with rescue Two short videos depicted the operations. He also plans to visit horrors of the earthquake. Ac- Nepal as soon as it is safe. cording to emcee Kavita, the Described by the emcee as tragedy is worsened with only “a very generous soul,� one of a few rescue workers on the Houston’s leading physicians ground. and a well-known member of The President of the Nepali the Indo American community, Association of Houston, Jyoti Dr. Virendra Mathur stated that Ghimirey, Secretary Vishnu �we may not have the skills to Nepal and Youth Coordina- figure out how and when these tor Swasti also appealed to the natural disasters happen but we Good Samaritan Puneet Nehra gathering to donate funds to can help those who are facing help with relief efforts. “India pain and difficulty.� ICHMOND - A good Samaritan who stopped to help a driver has always treated Nepal like Past President of HGH, Sharon the side of the road was struck by another vehicle, and a younger brother,� said the ad Amin also observed that hasn’t been seen since. Now deputies are trying to find him. President. The organization has “if we work together, we can At about 9pm Sunday, authorities say Puneet Nehra, 43, of Sugar raised about $26,000 and their overcome any calamity� while goal is to reach $200,000. Those Kaushik Chatterjee from Sewa Land, stopped to assist with a crash on the Grand Parkway northwho would like to donate can International outlined the relief bound on the Brazos River bridge. The Fort Bend County Sheriff’s go to their website www.nepal- measures carried out by the or- Office says while assisting with that crash, Nehra was struck by an eseassociationofhouston.org ganization and appealed to the intoxicated driver. They believe he was knocked off the bridge and into the river. He hasn’t been located. As fate would have it, Baba gathering to go to sewausa.org if they would like to help. The Fort Bend County Sheriff’s Office, along with local fire departRamdev of Patanjali Yogpeeth was in Nepal to inaugurate an Rehabilitation agencies have ments, has been actively searching the river by boat and helicopters. Ayurveda College and hospital estimated that rebuilding the Anyone who may have witnessed the crash is asked to contact Deand narrowly escaped death. earthquake hit areas of Nepal tective Williams at 281-341-3839.
again on April 26th. A Kalasha Puja took place during the three day period, in which the granite constructions were put in a bed of paddy and then it was immersed in water for three days thereby purifying the constructions, and then the puja was performed. The temple has been built following the traditional Vaastu Shastra and the structure of the Hindu temples found in Kerala. Owned by the Kerala Hindu Society of Houston, the temple was originally started by four people naming Sasidharan Nair, Madhavan Pillai, GK Pillai, Somanatha Kurp. The actual opening of the temple dates back to as early as 1979 where the four people mentioned above were the only ones who were involved. By 1983, there were forty families involved in the organization. Finally the land was bought for the new temple in 2008 with the sole purpose of creating a prayer home.
Good Samaritan missing after being struck on side of road
Krishna being the main deity of the temple, building a Krishna Temple became a priority thereby opening doors to devotees to offer prayers to the Lord Krishna. The committee members have left no stone unturned toward building the temple. Some special kind of granite has been used to construct the basements of the temples, which again have been imported from India. The deities are also made from the same stone.
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The Sri Guruvayurappan Temple embodies the detailed art and architecture that one can expect to find in the temples of India. Every detail of the temple including the idols, the replica placed at the entrance, the wall embellishments and the structure has been done with the finest niceties and precision. Some mural paintings are still in progress adding to the artistic creation. ‘This is an unique opportunity for Indians.’said Baburaj Eranezhuth, a visitor, adding‘ I can relate to this temple just as I can relate to the temples in Kerala.’ Guruvayurappan idol was sponsored by Dr.Sachin Chandrasenan. Main sponsors include Sasidharan Nair who donated a house and money, Madhavan Pillai who donated money. Other sponsors include Dr.Suneesh Nair who donated the Thattva Kalashan, Jill Raman who donated the Nidraa Kalasham, Ramaratnam and Somarajan Nair for the Kumbesha Kalasham, and Sachin Nair for the Brahma Kalasham. The lunch was sponsored by the New India Supermarket on 23rd April.
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America. But it’s for everyone.’ said Sasidharan Nair, Global Fundraising Chairman,Sri Guruvayurappan Temple, adding, ‘We’ll perform annaprashana (first rice eating of a baby) and thulabhar (offering to the Lord). We’ll have a Sunday school where we are going to offer religious classes and language classes.’
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OP-ED/COMMENTARY/ANALYSIS
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VOICE OF ASIA Publisher: Associate Publisher: Editor-in-Chief: Austin Correspondent: Print & Media Marketing: Marketing: Production: Office Manager:
Koshy Thomas Sherly Philip Shobana Muratee Sherine Thomas Jacob David Susan Pothanikat AR Vadlamani Priyan Mathew
Columnists: Legal: Richard M. Alderman Legal: Sharlene Sharmila Richards Research: Prof. Meenakshi Bhattacharjee Health Insurance: Sudhir Mathuria Astrology: Hardik Vyas
VoiceofAsiaOnline.com Editor: Online & Newsletter : Shobana Muratee All rights reserved. No material herein or portions thereof may be published without the consent of the publisher. Voice of Asia assumes no liability resulting from action taken based on the information included herein. Published weekly by Free Press LLC, 8303 SW Freeway, Suite # 325, Houston, TX 77074. Tel: 713-774-5140. Fax: 713-7745143. Email for editorial submissions: voiceasia@aol.com; Email for advertising inquiries and submissions: ads@ voiceofasiagroup.com
Voice of Asia (USPS 010-215) (ISSN#10705058) is published every Friday (for a subscription rate of $30 per year) by Free Press LLC, 8303 SW Freeway, Suite # 325, Houston, TX 77074. Tel: 713-774-5140. Fax: 713774-5143. Periodical postage paid at Houston, Texas. POSTMASTER: Send address changes to Voice of Asia, 8303 SW Freeway, Suite # 325, Houston, TX 77074
It is the policy of Voice of Asia to publish letters to the editor which evidence a variety of viewpoints. The opinions expressed in any particular letter to the editor are not necessarily those of the management. Voice of Asia welcomes letters in reply to issues raised in letters to editor. In as much letters to the editor are not articles written or researched by members of Voice of Asia, it is not the policy of the Voice of Asia to perform any investigation or confirmation of any facts or allegations contained in letters to the editor. Moreover, Voice of Asia reserves the right to edit letters to the editor as necessary to correct errors of fact, punctuation, spelling and to comply with space constraints. Although paid advertisements may appear in Voice of Asia Group Publications in print, online, or in other electronic formats, the Voice of Asia Group does not endorse the advertised product, service, or company, nor any of the claims made by the advertisement. - The Publisher
FRIDAY, May 8, 2015
Another scam in the making? by Seema Sengupta
I
ndian Premier Narendra Modi’s arbitrary decision to scrap the $20 billion Rafale combat-aircraft contract — touted as the “mother of all defense deals” signed by New Delhi till date — serve as a warning to this still evolving democracy of the consequences of blindly electing leaders by believing their rhetoric. It is one thing to admire or worship such political personalities, but quite another to actually elevate them to the top slot. That leaders with authoritarian trait are fundamentally unpredictable is best reflected in Modi’s whimsical cancellation of the original Rafale deal concluded initially in 2012. According to the agreement, Indian Air Force (IAF) would have got 18 planes in flyaway condition while the rest of the 126 ordered was to be manufactured in India in collaboration with the government-owned Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL). And this term of contract perfectly fit into Modi’s grand “Make-in-India” concept. However, to everyone’s surprise, it is the same Modi, who goes around telling the world that “India will emerge as a major global center for defense industry” has not only throttled the prospect of HAL co-producing an advanced flying-machine but also knocked the wind out of India’s premiere public-sector defense manufacturer’s sails. Was aerospace not supposed to be the fulcrum of defense manufacturing in India as successive governments sought to usher a new dawn in design and production of high-end indigenous defense hardware?
causing financial losses to public-sector coal mining companies by giving preferential treatment to private players, Modi surely will be held culpable for shoving a disastrous decision
some uncomfortable questions. Sources reveal Modi has lobbied the French manufacturer discreetly to produce Rafale in partnership with this private Indian player because the IAF
A Dassault Rafale of the French Air Force seen at RIAT in 2009. down the country’s throat. Not only such quick-fix solution to bridge the technology gap in military aviation has farreaching consequences on the state exchequer, the reported presence of an Indian industrialist in Modi’s official meeting with the honchos of defense industry in Paris also raises
desperately requires six squadrons of “medium-multi-rolecombat-aircraft” to meet India’s strategic security requirements in the ever-changing geopolitical circumstances. And with 36 off-the-shelf planes, IAF cannot establish more than three Rafale Squadrons. Did the Indian premier therefore not violate the dignity of his chair by openly
promoting a private corporate house despite the fact that an organization functioning under government aegis has a stake in the same sector and this particular contract? Does Modi’s decision on Rafale not point to a conflict of interest whereby the impartiality of the prime ministerial chair is potentially undermined? Why did Modi award a single-vendor contract to the French firm once he decided to bypass the previous deadlocked-tender? There were other contenders who met every IAF requirement in the evaluation trials. Why were they not invited to submit a parallel bid for the 36 fighter aircrafts required in flyaway condition? India could have surely obtained such critical hardware at a far cheaper rate and ahead of the timeframe that Dassault has provided for delivering Rafale given the company’s manufacturing constraint. Besides, as is the common norm in any competitive procurement, allowing others to participate would have checkmated the French design of obtaining a revision in the terms and conditions of the contract so that they are absolved of the need to co-produce Rafale in stateowned Indian defense factories. Surely, Modi is shrewd enough to see through such business tricks. Did Modi not realize that his decision would adversely impact servicing, upgradation and future acquisition, with Dassault milking the Indian treasury unethically? Moreover, if we take into account the very fact that an entire cadre of IAF personnel have been trained to fly and maintain the fleet of 126 Rafale fighter jets, the perils of rewarding the French malfeasance will continue to haunt India every time the country seek to acquire hardware and technology from foreign sources. Ironic it is that Modi’s decision will neither uphold short nor long-term interest of India or her Air Force. Strangely, Modi refused to use India’s gigantic defense market as a bargaining-instrument to tame Dassault obstinacy. Undoubtedly, he will go down in history as a political executive who astutely used charm offensive to hide his corrupt practices.
Unless his friends and admirers — with deep pockets — use their influence to manipulate the media and sweep the issue under the rug, mothballing the “2012Rafale-contract” will prove costly for Modi. It is no less an incipient scandal of significant proportion, equivalent (in gravity) to the one concerning domestic coalfield allocations that tarnished the Teflon image of former Premier Manmohan Singh. If Singh, despite heading the coal ministry figuratively and not deriving any personal benefits, could be accused of
Seema Sengupta is a Calcutta based journalist and columnist. She is a recipient of the National Award for Excellence.
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FRIDAY, May 8, 2015
Second Front Page
Friday, May 8, 2015 • www.voiceofasiaonline.com • Page 3 • Email: editor@voiceofasiaonline.com • Tel: 713-774-5140
Bollywood Shake, YAH & Jaffrey Brothers hold Houston auditions
P
ioneers of reality dance competition Boogie Woogie, Javed & Naved Jaffri present “NAACH MERI JAAN”, a global dance reality show akin to the hit shows that have recently enthralled audiences in India. Naved Jaffri & Pria Haider Productions, A & K Events & IBDF have brought this show to the US and judges Naved Jafri, Omi Vaidya and Vatsal Sheth came to the Houston auditions on Saturday, April 25th to judge contestants from
Houston. Never before has there been a dance reality show with Bollywood judges strictly for US contestants ONLY. The Houston auditions were organized by Ruchika Dias, Founder & CEO of Bollywood Shake in association with Youth Association of Houston at the Cullen Performance Hall. In addition to running a very successful Bollywood dance school and hosting her own radio show (Bollywood Shake Radio which airs on
Singapore Sovereign Fund GIC and Norwest Venture Partners invest $ 28M in local services leader Sulekha.com
C
HENNAI - Sulekha. com, India’s leading digital platform for local services, today announced that GIC, the sovereign wealth fund of Singapore, and Norwest Venture Partners, a top-tier global investment firm, have invested $ 28 M into the company. Sulekha. com will use the capital to further expand its platform that connects one of the largest bases of users and local service providers, and invest in technology and branding.
Satya Prabhakar, Founder and CEO of Sulekha.com, said, “Sulekha was founded in Austin as a tiny website serving Indians in US and this investment by GIC and Norwest is a powerful endorsement of the vast potential of the local services opportunity and Sulekha’s ability to prosecute it successfully both within and outside of India. Sulekha has cultivated deep expertise and built a sophisticated platform in 800+ local service categories including home/office
Temple drums at opening
Arrival of new Super Post-Panamax cranes mark the beginning of a new era
Drum artists from India were present at the opening festivities (Utsavam) of Sri Guruvayurappan Temple. (Photo credit: Biju Pillai) 106.1FM weekdays MondayFriday 4-7pm), Ruchika has always given a platform to locals to showcase their talent from
Miss Bollywood pageant with Preity Zinta to Mrs. Bollywood pageant with Raveena Tandon Continued on page 5
services, coaching/training, health/lifestyle and property/ rentals. Sulekha’s large base of user and businesses, unique IP, vast operational footprint, plus rapid migration to mobile are transforming the local services market.”
in diverse categories such as computer training, serviced apartments, party catering, babysitting, elder care, yoga lessons, kitchen renovation, and wedding photography. Sulekha sends 16+ million user needs a year to over 2+ million active businesses on its platform.
Param Parameswaran, Chairman of Sulekha.com, said, “We are pleased to add GIC to our investor group. Sulekha has architected a remarkably lucrative business model because of the immediacy, specificity and location-oriented nature of the user local service needs. Sulekha has been enjoying significant organic growth while being quite capital efficient, making it one of only a few digital companies in India that have been profitable.” Local businesses spend an estimated $2.5 billion in advertising across various media to capture $200 billion worth of local services bought
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kvdoraiswamy@yahoo.com • kvdoraiswamy60@gmail.com More than 30 years of experience as Priest in major temples including Sri Meenakshi Temple Pearland, TX. Can speak 5 languages (Kannada, Tamil, Telugu, Hindi, and English) Rituals Performed: Sreemantham, Punyahavachanam, Namakaranam, Annaprashanam, Vidyarambham, Choulam, Upanayanam, Wedding, Sathya narayana puja, and all kind of Homas (Havans) and more. I can drive to your place.
Promod Haque, Senior Managing Partner of Norwest Venture Partners, said, “Sulekha’s innovative digital platform allows users to fulfil their needs while providing a highly targeted and affordable avenue for small businesses to secure customers. Less than 10% of local businesses in India have ever advertised according to recent estimates. Sulekha is seizing an enormous opportunity in transforming how businesses find local customers and grow and we look forward to significant scale ahead.” Added Parameswaran, “It is great to have Promod’s ongoing participation during this time as we seek to capture this largely untapped opportunity.” Mistui & Co. (Tokyo), a Global Fortune 200 company, and Indigo Monsoon Group are also investors in Sulekha. Sulekha.com is one of India’s largest and fastestgrowing digital platforms for local service need fulfillment in over 40 cities, connecting tens of millions of users and local businesses in 800+ need categories such as computer training, serviced apartments, wooden flooring, party catering, baby-sitting, elder care, yoga lessons, kitchen renovation, wedding photography, moving-packing, pest control, event planning and auto repair. Sulekha has 14 offices and 1,300+ employees across India, including Delhi, Mumbai, Pune, Ahmedabad, Hyderabad, Bengaluru, Kolkata, Chennai, Austin.
The cranes, nearly 30 stories high, were manufactured in S.Korea
F
our new Super PostPanamax wharf cranes for the Port of Houston Authority’s Barbours Cut Container Terminal traveled up the Houston Ship Channel today on the last leg of a 73-day journey. The cranes, nearly 30 stories high, were manufactured by Konecranes in Mokpo, South Korea, and left for Houston Feb. 23, 2015.
These new electric Ship-ToShore cranes can lift and lower a loaded container at twice the speed of the cranes currently in use at the Barbours Cut terminal. They weigh 1,505 tons, compared to 635 tons for the existing cranes. These cranes, the largest ever built by Konecranes, are 289 Continued on page 5
Correction In last week’s issue, the caption under this photo was incorrect. The correct caption is below. Voice of Asia regrets the mistake.
With his wife Kanwal by his side, Raj Bhalla receives the Golden Trowel Award from Worshipful Master Wayne Switzer. (Photo credit: Jawahar Malhotra)
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VOICE OF ASIA 4
The People’s Lawyer www.peopleslawyer.net Richard M. Alderman Interim Dean of the Law Center
Property owned before marriage is not divided at divorce Q. I have been married for three years, and I now want a divorce. My husband tells me that Texas is a community property state. He says if we get divorced, he will get one-half of everything I brought into the marriage. I owned substantially more than he did before we were married, including a house. Does he now own half of everything, including my house? A. Your husband is partially correct. Texas is a community property state. This basically means that property you acquired during your marriage is considered “community property.” Community property is divided when a marriage ends. Property you owned before you were married, however, is “separate property.” If the marriage ends, due to either death or divorce, separate property belongs to the owner of the property and is not divided. In other words, the property you owned before the marriage, including your house, will remain yours following a divorce. I suggest you meet with a family law attorney and discuss all the ramifications of filing for divorce. Q. You have written that the statute of limitations for suing on a debt is four years, and that there is no wage garnishment in Texas. I have a debt collector harassing me about an eight-year-old student loan. He says if I don’t pay he will sue and garnish my wages. Doesn’t it violate the law to make such threats? A. You are correct that as a general rule, a lawsuit to collect a debt must be filed within four years and that Texas has no wage garnishment. It also is a violation of federal law to harass you, or threaten to take any action prohibited by law. Like many “general rules,” however, this one has some exceptions; and the biggest one is student loans. Federally backed student loans are subject to federal law, and have no statute of limitations. The law also allows wage garnishment, even in Texas. In other words, you can be sued on an 8-year-old student loan and your wages could be garnished. I suggest you talk with the debt collector to see if you can work out a payment plan you can afford. Q. I recently moved to town and rented an apartment with an old friend. Two months ago, our friendship went south and he forced me to move out. Last month he moved out with six months remaining on the lease. Now, the landlord says I owe rent until the property is rented to a new tenant. Is this right? A. When you sign a lease you agree to abide by its terms until the end of the lease. The fact that your friend forced you to move out does not matter. The landlord did not pick your roommate, and should not have to bear a financial loss because your relationship ends. As far as the law is concerned, you are responsible for the rent unless the terms of the lease say otherwise. I suggest you carefully read your lease, and then talk with the landlord. You may be able to work something out regarding your liability. I should note that if you do have to pay, in my opinion, your friend is responsible for reimbursing you if he was the reason you had to move. Q. Can I make my spouse the executor of my will if she is the beneficiary? A. Basically, anyone except a minor, a person who is incompetent, or a convicted felon may serve as the executor of a will. In fact, in most cases the executor is a family member and beneficiary. Q. Can I be charged a fee when I return something to a store? A. A store may charge a “restocking fee” for returns, provided it tells you before you buy the product. For example, the store should have a sign near the cash register or something written on the receipt if it is going to charge a fee on returns. If it does not give you notice of the fee, my opinion is that you cannot be charged. Do you want to know more about your legal rights? Visit my website at www.peopleslawyer.net
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FRIDAY, May 8, 2015
It’s time to save a mother with Save A Mother
Kar along with her troupe Raag Rang appeared on stage to present a musical evening to the event. A Guru Mantra, an invocation to the Guru, performed
by Somdatta Gangopadhyay
S
unday, the third day of May, 2015 hosted a grand evening in the form of a fundraising event organized by Save A Mother (SAM), an organization devoted to mothers especially in the under-privileged sections in India. The event took place at the Sweetwater Country Club. Crowds started gathering as early as 5 PM onwards, and the hall was soon humming with the hustle and bustle of people meeting and greeting each other. The first hour being the cocktail hour and photo session, some hungry mouths were munching on mouthwatering snacks like vegetable pinwheels, samosa and some
The gala collection was $66000, of which approximately $27000 from the live auction. (Photo credit: Bijay Dixit) other items, while other camera friendly people were eager to let the moment captured by the shutterbugs. Drinks like juice, wine were also served to make the cocktail hour complete.
by the troupe inaugurated the evening. This was followed by popular Bollywood numbers like Choti Si Aasha (My Little Dreams) and other songs as well.
As the evening had set on, it was time for some music. Keka
The audience had an opportuContinued on page 5
VOICE OF ASIA 5
Bollywood Shake auditions
COMMUNITY were honored to host the Houston auditions for Naach Meri Jaan Season 1 and wish the winners all the best for the Grand Finale! Houston looks forward to Naach Meri Jaan Season 2 now!
Continued from page 3 to Mandira Bedi fashion show! And this event was no different!
Special thanks to the sponsors of the event Anand & Dr. Ashima Chauhan, AIS Insurance and Realtor Shaneel Mitha. Last weekend’s Houston auditions brought some great dancing talent from all over Texas in 5 categories – Adult Solo, Adult Group, Couples, Kids Solo and Kids Group! 40 different performances and over 100 participants showcased their talent at Cullen Performance Hall and impressed the judges and audience. The show was organized very well lead by Saritha Yempati of YAH, with back to back performances followed by the judges’ comments on each performance. The judges gave constructive feedback and honest advice to all participants and the feedback was a treat to watch especially from Naved Jaffri who has judged so many dance reality shows! The show is holding auditions in 10 cities across US and CANADA including Houston, the only city in Texas where auditions will be held. The content gathered from these cities will be compiled and a 10 episode season of “NAACH MERI JAAN” will be aired on Life OK channel. The winners will get to tell their stories about their passion for dance and their journey which has lead them to this special moment of being selected as a semi finalist to compete in the Grand Finale. The winners of the show will get the once in a lifetime opportunity to dance in an upcoming Bollywood film. They will also get an amazing photo shoot done by one of Bollywood’s top photographers who will come down to the US and help to create a portfolio for the individuals. Both these prizes are things that are unattainable for most people from the US who may be looking to get into Bolly-
FRIDAY, May 8, 2015
Naach Meri Jaan Houston Audition Judges were Naved Jaffri, along with his brother Javed Jaffri, was one of the creators, directors, hosts and producer of one of the most established Bollywood dance competition reality TV show, Boogie Woogie. In 7 seasons, Boogie Woogie created its own history The Houston auditions were organized by Ruchika Dias, Founder & CEO of Bollywood Shake in association with Youth Association of Houston at the Cullen Performance Hall.
wood. Overnight an individual will be going from the boy or girl next door to a household name across the world! All the participants did a wonderful job and are winners
Save A Mother Continued from page 4 nity to learn more about SAM as Veena Kaul, the President, SAM, appeared on stage to express a vote of thanks and share a few words with the audience. She let the audience know more about SAM through a short video which unveiled the various projects and work undertaken by SAM as well as the mission of the organization. Rupa Iyer shared the history of the organization which started in 2002. She also spoke in details about the work and projects done by SAM with regard to vaccination and other healthcare issues for women, while also sharing a video presentation. A live pledging by Priti Singh and Preity Bhagia soon took after. A donation campaign was set up soon after with the aim of raising $15,000 in fifteen minutes. The dictates of the ‘time machine’ was followed religiously as busy hands and generous hearts were filling up the pledge forms with details. And then the much awaited time dawned when the campaign concluded successfully raising $27,000. Cheers and a huge round of applause accom-
in our eyes, but here are the official results. Kids Solo - Milinda Nutalapatti Kids Group - Twisting Tornadoes panied by a background music was enough to announce the festive mood. ‘Pregnancy and motherhood are the most beautiful life-altering events that I have ever experienced. Every woman needs to rejoice pregnancy as it is not a disease, yet 15 percent of all pregnancies result in life threatening complications,’ said Seema Kachru, Board Member, SAM, adding, ‘Even for small things like iron tablets, India is failing to meet its goal. Anaemia is a major concern for menstruating girls. If they have iron deficiency, their learning ability is reduced and general performance in day-to-day activities is also impaired. Worse, such girls later become susceptible to death when they go in the family way and develop postpartum hemorrhage due to iron deficiency after childbirth. But we all can do our bit by helping these girls to stay healthy. This is where SAM comes into play with its simple solutions and simpler methodology-- education and awareness programs at the grass root level in the field.’ Kachru is also a mother of two beautiful and healthy teenage girls. The musical evening was
EXPERTISE
Couples - Devi Arunachalam & Pulkit Vats Adult Solo - Preeyanka Hussain Adult Group - UTD Sharara Bollywood Shake and YAH revived as Keka Kar was welcomed back along with her troupe on stage to give a brilliant performance. Once again Bollywood got ‘alive’ through some old melodies and the current ones as the troupe performed with all the energy maintaining a harmonious pattern. Some of the songs that were sung included Jab Pyar Kisi Se Hota Hei (When One Falls in Love), Pani Da (In the Water), Chand Si Farish (With the Moon). Abhijit Kar, Keka Kar’s son performed to Pani Da and Chand Si Farish which left the hall echo with excitement accompanied by a huge round of applause. As every event becomes complete with a dinner, crowds proceeded toward the dining for dinner, and soon returned to their respective seats so as not to miss the perfect combination of ‘khaana with gaana’ (food with music). Delicious items like salad, parmesan eggplant, and chicken filled up the dinner plates. A pasta bar was also set up where guests had the option of trying fresh cooked pasta in a customized way by experienced chefs. Dessert items like tarts, cakes and chocolate filled strawberries were also not missed out either.
Omi Vaidya - Omi Vaidya is an American actor who is best known for his performance as Chatur Ramalingam or “The Silencer” in the 2009 Bollywood film, 3 Idiots. He has also appeared in a number of television shows and commercials. Audiences may remember Omi from his roles in Arrested Development, The
Office, Rolling, Bones, CSI, 3 Idiots, Dil To Bachcha Hai Ji, Desi Boyz, Players, Jodi Breakers and Rules of Engagement. Vatsal Sheth - Vatsal Sheth is an Indian film, television actor, model and a young entrepreneur. He started his acting career with Just Mohabbat ,a Hindi-drama serial loosely based on The Wonder Years, which aired on Sony TV channel. He made his debut in Taarzan: The Wonder Car opposite Ayesha Takia who also made her debut in the same film. He has also starred in movies like Paying Guests, Heroes, Hostel, a Disney Film The Cheetah Girls: One World and recent Jai Ho in which he did a cameo. Most recently he has been seen in the TV serial Ek Hasina Thi.
Port of Houston Continued from page 3
Payal Mitra, another singer from Raag Rang was able to invite quiet a lot of shaking legs on the dance floor through her performance to Dum Maro Dum (Take Some Puff), another evergreen Bollywood number. The night was set on fire to the Keka Kar-Payal Mitra duo performance to Yeh Mera Dil (My Heart) which invited many a dancing feet on the floor. The old times in the Bollywood rejuvenated through songs like Piya Tu (Oh My Darling), Duniya Mein (In This World) and many other popular numbers performed by the troupe. The evening was made possible owing to the contribution of a few more hands like Darshak Thacker for sound, Bijay Dixit for photography, and DJ Pranav Kothari. When asked for the goal of SAM, Poonam Tulsiani, Board Member, SAM, said, ‘We want to make sure mothers in those poverty stricken sectors are taken care of and their children are taken care of too. We are trying to educate the mothers because if the mother is educated on healthcare, then only she can educate her children and produce healthy children.’
feet high with a lift height of 204 feet. They will handle ships 22 containers wide. “As part of a significant upgrade of our Barbours Cut Container Terminal, these new Super Post-Panamax cranes will accommodate the significantly larger vessels that will be calling on our container terminals after the expansion of the Panama Canal,” Port Commission Chairman Janiece Longoria said. “International trade, primarily containerized cargo, continues to expand rapidly at our facilities. More trade means more jobs and economic activity for our region and state in support of our mission.” The growth in container trade through the Port of Houston and the increase in Super PostPanamax ships coming to the port require faster and larger cranes for even more efficient containerized cargo handling. The expansion of the Panama Canal will be complete in 2016, and this will allow larger postPanamax vessels to transit the canal and bring more cargo through the Port of Houston. The nearly $50 million contract for the cranes was approved by the Port Commission in 2013.
ACCESS
Two names you know well. Now working together in five locations. Now expert breast radiologists from MD Anderson Cancer Center are interpreting mammograms and performing diagnostic procedures at five Memorial Hermann breast imaging locations. The same breast centers you count on for a great experience, leading edge 3-D imaging technology and advanced diagnostic tools are now staffed by MD Anderson doctors. Isn’t it time you had your mammogram? Visit memorialhermann.org for convenient online self-scheduling with ScheduleNow or call 877.40.MAMMO.
MEMORIAL CITY | NORTHEAST | SOUTHWEST | SUGAR LAND | THE WOODLANDS
INDIA
VOICE OF ASIA 6
GUILTY! Salman Khan gets 5 years for hit-and-run Star’s mood swings evident in court
M
UMBAI - A sessions court on Wednesday found actor Salman Khan, 49, guilty under the charge of culpable homicide not amounting to murder and sentenced him to five years’ imprisonment in a 2002 case in which it held that his car rammed a bakery in Bandra, killing one and injuring four while he was driving under the influence of alcohol. Sessions judge D.W. Deshpande on Wednesday convicted Bollywood actor Salman Khan on other counts in addition to five years RI for culpable homicide. The court sentenced him to one year’s imprisonment under section 338 of IPC and three months under section 337 for causing grievous hurt. Furthermore, he was sentenced to two, six and two months simultaneously under sections 134 read with 187, 185 and 3 (1) read with 181 of the Motor Vehicles Act. He also has to pay a total fine of Rs. 29,000. Khan was found guilty under the Bombay Prohibition Act under section 66 (a) and (b) for which he received two months imprisonment and fine of Rs 500. All sentences will run concurrently. Here is how the Salman reacted during the announcement of verdict in the court: 1. Salman wore a stoic expression when arguments were on. In the dock, he looked pensive, kept fidgeting and was seen wiping his face several times. 2. The only time he reacted was when his lawyer spoke of his ailments and his sister started crying. He gestured to his sister to stop crying. While waiting for the sentence, his sister ran to him and hugged him. 3. Salman was his normal, smiling self while waiting for word from the HC on his appeal.
Bollywood actor Salman Khan sits in a car as he leaves the sessions court after getting an interim 2- day bail from the High Court in the 2002 hit-and-run case, in Mumbai on Wednesday. (PTI Photo) 4. He greeted the people who went up to chat to him. He even waved to fans who were standing on the ledge of a building opposite the court trying to catch a glimpse of him. 5. When news came of the HC relief, he looked visibly relieved and the family cheered up. Appeal Khan’s lawyers immediately moved the High Court challenging the lower court’s judgement. “We are seeking suspension of sentence. The hearing on the appeal is on Friday,” defence lawyer Shrikant Shivade said. Following the bail order, a relieved Khan was seen smiling, waving to onlookers from the courtroom window and interacting with ease with his family. He left the court after 7 p.m. after completing the bail formalities. The courtroom let out a shocked cry after hearing the quantum of the sentence. Khan’s defence lawyer Shrikant Shivade had argued that his client’s case was on a lower
Meet the NBA’s first Indian player
W
hen it comes to Sim Bhullar, the first Indian-origin professional player in the National Basketball Association, there’s more
Singh hails from Bhullar village in Punjab. While he envisions a much brighter future for Indian basketball players, Bhullar continues to focus on improving his
New Mexico State’s Sim Bhullar (2) looks to pass as Texas State’s Joel Wright (25) guards during the second half of a Western Athletic Conference tournament. (AP Photo/David Becker) than what meets the eye. Bhullar towers over average people. He is 7’5” tall and weights close to 180 kilos. And he is just 22 years old. Torontobased Bhullar is already creating a ‘giant’ impact in India, where cricket overshadows all other sports. He has managed to attract the interest of young sports aspirants after his recent NBA game against Minnesota Timberwolves. Earlier this week, Bhullar visited India to conduct a coaching clinic for aspiring basketball players in Chandigarh, and explore the roots of his Punjabi descent, which included a visit to the Golden Temple in Amritsar: his mother Varinder Kaur is from Amritsar, while his father Avtar
game, his body and reveals his persistent passion for the game to HuffPost India. How has life changed since you played your first NBA game? Life is a lot more jam-packed and a lot has been happening. It’s been a roller coaster ride till now. What is the biggest hurdle you have had to face while trying to get into professional basketball? Making sure that I do the right thing on and off court. I need to work on my body, I need to ensure that I am able to play for a longer time as I intend to stay in the NBA for as long as I can. -Associated Press
footing when compared with the sensational Alistair Pereira and Sanjeev Nanda hit-and-run cases where the number of deceased persons was more and the sentences were not more than three years. He even invoked Khan’s philanthropic activities to argue that a harsher punishment would not serve the humanitarian purpose. The actor’s Being Human Foundation has conducted 600 surgeries and received a donation of Rs. 42 crore so far. Mr. Shivade also pointed to the actor’s “neurological condition” though the actor kept signalling vehemently to his lawyer not to argue on that ground. The prosecution sought maximum sentence for Khan.
“Salman is a celebrity. He is followed by many. So everyone should know about the repercussions of the wrongful act. Providing a deterrence
FRIDAY, May 8, 2015
thorough exemplary punishment should be the criteria,” prosecutor Pradeep Gharat told the court.
The court did not initiate any perjury proceedings against Salman’s driver Ashok Singh. -PTI
INDIA
VOICE OF ASIA 7
Abducted doctor couple freed
and was constantly monitoring the rescue operation launched by the State police. Leading Gaya-based doctor Pankaj Kumar Gupta and his entrepreneur wife Shubhra Gupta were abducted on May 1 while retuning from Giridih in neighbouring Jharkhand after attending a relative’s marriage ceremony. “We’ve arrested nine criminals, including the gang leader Ajay Singh, involved in the case from Gomti Nagar in Lucknow”, said State police chief P K Thakur
Pankaj Gupta with wife Shubhra at their Gaya residence after they were rescued by the police from Lucknow on Wednedsay. (Photo credit: Manish Bhandari) by Amarnath Tewary
T
he kidnapped doctor couple from Gaya returned home safely on Wednesday after they were
freed in Lucknow. The police claimed to have arrested nine criminals involved in the sensational abduction case. Chief Minister Nitish Kumar had taken the case as a “challenge”
The kidnapped couple were kept at an apartment in the Gomti Nagar area, he said and added that three luxury vehicles, including one belonging to the doctor, police uniforms, a foreign-made weapon, Mrs Gupta’s purse and gold chain were recovered from the flat. Mr Kumar who was peeved
RTC buses run over normal life in Telangana and Andhra Pradesh
H
YDERABAD - Only three per cent of the services run by Telangana state and Andhra Pradesh by the RTC were on the roads as the strike by staff unions took full effect on Wednesday. APSRTC vice-chairman and managing director N. Sambasiva Rao said that the corporation was able to run 1,218 of the scheduled 11,282 services (10 per cent) in Andhra Pradesh, and 350 out of 10,705 services in Telangana. Passengers had a tough time finding alternative transport options and many were unhappy about the timing of the strike, mostly due to increasing of fares by private buses, autorickshaws and shared cabs. With over 1.6 crore regular commuters being affected, the RTC management has ordered 6,000 contract employees to rejoin by noon on Thursday, or
RTC unions said their talks for 43 per cent pay hike. face termination. Mr Sambasiva Rao also said that if the contract employees resumed work by Thursday noon, their services would be regularised at the earliest. He, however, said that Esma (Essential Services Maintenance Act) would not be invoked against the employees but requested regular employees to
resume their duties by Thursday noon. The unions — AP State Road Transport Corporation Employees Union and Telangana Mazdoor Union — were unrelenting and said that the strike would continue till their demand for a 43-per cent pay hike was accepted. - Deccan Chronicle
over the incident had even transferred 17 IPS officers, including the Gaya police chief, on Tuesday to streamline the falling law and order situation in the state. “The Chief Minister even talked to his U.P. counterpart Akhilesh Yadav regarding the case and with the help of the UP police we finally zeroed in
FRIDAY, May 8, 2015
on the gang,” Mr. Thakur told media persons. He also claimed that because of the mounting police pressure, the kidnappers released the doctor couple on Wednesday morning and they reached home by train. “We’d kept the gang members on surveillance for some days and with the help of the
UP police surrounded the Sharda apartment in Lucknow on Wednesday morning and arrested them”, Mr. Thakur said. However, skeptics said the doctor couple might have been released by the kidnappers after paying a huge amount of ransom. -The Hindu
SOUTH ASIA
VOICE OF ASIA 8
Pakistan activist faces military’s wrath Baloch separatist campaigner, backers draw threats for trumpeting plight of missing insurgents by Saeed Shah
K
ARACHI -Playing host to Mama Qadeer Baloch is a dangerous act in Pakistan. The 73-year-old humanrights campaigner routinely receives death threats; his hosts at public appearances have been targeted for assassination; and on Wednesday, the administra-
Students and some faculty defied the ban, however. Mr. Baloch was smuggled onto the campus overnight, faculty members said, and around 200 people gathered outside the auditorium and listened to him speak on Wednesday. The pro-military anchors of political talk shows regularly brand Mr. Baloch a traitor and
Mama Qadeer Baloch, wearing a white turban, waited to start a march with protesters in Rawalpindi, Pakistan, in February 2014. (Photo credit: B.K. Bangash/AP) tion of Karachi University shut a planned lecture to avoid the wrath of the country’s powerful military establishment. Since 2009, Mr. Baloch, a retired bank worker, has kept a solitary vigil on a sidewalk outside the press club in this southern megacity, surrounded by pictures of people he alleges the military abducted from his native Balochistan province, a sparsely populated western province that is rich in minerals. Although Pakistan is better known for fighting a militant Islamist movement, the country’s 600,000-strong armed forces, equipped with modern weaponry and nuclear arms, since 2006 have battled a secular separatist insurgency in the province, which the military claims is supported by archenemy India. As with other security issues, the military runs the Balochistan campaign with little input from the elected civilian administration. Human-rights groups say the conflict has seen security forces abduct suspected insurgents and their political supporters, often dumping their tortured corpses. Independent rights groups also accuse the separatists of killing settlers in Balochistan from other provinces, especially teachers and laborers. Mr. Baloch’s campaign shows the shrinking public space for discussion about Balochistan and other issues as the military increasingly asserts itself. “Mama Qadeer gives a human face to whatever is going on in Balochistan and I think that’s why they are trying to make sure that he must not be heard,” said Mohammad Hanif, a leading Pakistani novelist. On Wednesday, the arts auditorium where Mr. Baloch and two other speakers from Balochistan were scheduled to speak was locked. Faculty who organized the discussion received a letter from the university on Tuesday that read: “Seminars related to sensitive issues are not allowed in the university premises.”
foreign agent. He said he often receives personal threats from men who identify themselves as Pakistani intelligence agents, adding that he believes the military is weighing whether killing him would add to their Balochistan problem. Mr. Baloch, who openly advocates independence for his home province, said he isn’t deterred. “When I come here and put up pictures of our martyrs, of our missing, and I look at their youthful faces, my spirits rise so much,” he said in a recent interview outside the Karachi press club. “Sometimes I sit here all day alone, but I don’t feel lonely.” He began his protest when Pakistani security forces detained his son, Jalil Reki, an activist with a separatist political party, at the family home in Balochistan’s provincial capital Quetta in February 2009. Mr. Baloch said intelligence agents in 2011 warned him to end his protest “or receive your son’s body.” Mr. Reki’s battered corpse was found near Balochistan’s border with Iran 20 days later, he said. Mr. Baloch was the main speaker at a talk on human rights in Balochistan at a small arts center in Karachi in April. The host of the event, Sabeen Mahmud, a 40-year-old peace activist, was assassinated by gunmen as she drove away after the event. She had previously received threats over Mr. Baloch’s talk, her colleagues said. The military denied involvement. Karachi police said they are focusing on two likely culprits in their investigation: a foreign intelligence agency or a local Islamist militant group. Ms. Mahmud organized the appearance after a planned talk by Mr. Baloch at a prestigious private university, the Lahore University of Management Sciences in eastern Pakistan, was abruptly canceled. The university said this was “on orders from the government.” Some faculty members
said the order came from the military’s Inter-Services Intelligence spy agency. The government and the military declined to comment. In March, Mr. Baloch said
officials at Karachi Airport stopped him from leaving Pakistan for a talk in New York organized by expatriate Pakistanis on the situation in Balochistan, saying he is on the Exit Control List, a roster of people barred by the government from leaving the country. Two Pakistani government
FRIDAY, May 8, 2015
officials confirmed that Mr. Baloch was prevented from boarding the flight, but said they couldn’t confirm that he is on the Exit Control List. Last year, Pakistan’s most famous news anchor, Hamid Mir, was shot in Karachi, after he ran a show that featured Mr. Baloch and other activists from Balochistan. Mr. Mir, who barely survived and still has two bullets lodged
in him, said military personnel had warned him against airing the program. The military denied involvement in the attack. “The state is after these 10, 15 activists, headed by an elderly man, Mama Qadeer,” said Mr. Mir. “Is this really a nuclear power? It doesn’t act like it.” The military didn’t respond to requests for comment on Mr. Continued on page 10
VOICE OF ASIA 9
FRIDAY, May 8, 2015
INNOVATION
VOICE OF ASIA 10
FRIDAY, May 8, 2015
The overlooked Asian-American glass ceiling by Lydia Dishman
T
here’s another glass ceiling you haven’t heard much about even though it’s 3.7 times harder to crack. Part of the problem is that it’s hiding in plain sight. Silicon Valley, bastion of brogrammers and boys’-club VCs, has come under scrutiny for its dearth of diversity. Spurred by critics, Intel has pledged to upend its own dismal statistics by investing $300 million to recruit and promote gender and ethnic diversity within its ranks, while Apple made a $50 million grant to encourage engineers at historically black colleges and Google awarded $775,000 to Code2040 to launch a Technical Applicant Prep (TAP) program to give black and Latino students the resources and skills to get full-time jobs in the tech industry. What’s missing in these initiatives is any sort of discussion to be more inclusive of AsianAmerican men and women in the executive pipeline, according to the Ascend Foundation, a nonprofit organization providing objective analysis to address the challenges facing the corporate community. Ascend recently analyzed 2013 data from the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) on Google, Hewlett-Packard, Intel, LinkedIn, and Yahoo to determine how the glass ceiling affects Asian-Americans (defined by the EEOC as being from the Far East, Southeast Asia, or the Indian Subcontinent) in rising to management in Silicon Valley. The study authors also noted that they reviewed EEOC data for Cisco and eBay from 2010 and that those numbers were consistent with these companies. The resulting Executive Parity Index (EPI) compared racial and gender representation at executive levels to each cohort’s representation in the nonmanagerial professional workforce within these five major tech industry players. Analyzing a sample size of nearly 140,000 professionals, managers, and executives, the study revealed that while Asians made up 27.2% of the professional workforce at these five companies, they accounted for only 13.9% of top brass. For comparison, white men, not surprisingly, were above parity, meaning their representation at the executive level is at least equal to their representation in the professional workforce, according to the data. White women were close behind. Here’s how the numbers break out by company:
Baloch Continued from page 7 Baloch’s allegations. In April, Pakistan’s army chief, Gen. Raheel Sharif, vowed to “unearth terrorists, abettors, sympathizers, financiers” of the Baloch insurgency. According to Mr. Baloch’s Voice for Baloch Missing Persons organization, more than 21,000 Baloch have disappeared and 6,000 bodies have turned up since 2000. Other human-rights groups put the tally much lower, in the several hundred. The Human Rights Commission of Pakistan, an independent organization, said, for instance, that it was able to document 109 disappearances and 67 dumped bodies found in Balochistan during 2014, and added that no inquiry or prosecution took place over any of these cases. Information on Balochistan is murky outside Quetta. Because of danger of attack by jihadists, separatists or the military, Balochistan is hazardous place for human rights activists or media to work. Last year, Mr. Baloch walked more than half the length of the country—to Islamabad from Karachi—over a three-month period to highlight Baloch human rights, heading a small band of followers, including children whose fathers have disappeared. “I ask for our children back,” said Mr. Baloch. “I ask for a solution to the dumped bodies.” -Wall Street Journal
Asian-Americans are fairly well represented in the tech industry, but barely present in top positions at giants like Google and Yahoo. Yahoo’s workforce is 45% Asian vs. 46% white. Executives are 382% more likely to be white. LinkedIn’s workforce is 46% Asian vs. 47% white. Executives are 205% more likely to be white. Intel’s workforce is 38% Asian vs. 52% white. Executives are 417% more likely to be white. Google’s workforce is 33% Asian vs. 60% white, but whites have only a 34% advantage in becoming an executive. Hewlett-Packard’s workforce is 16.5% Asian, which the study authors attribute to HP having a large portion of its workforce outside Silicon Valley where the Asian population is significantly less concentrated. White executive advantage was not measured. As Asian-Americans make up about 5.6% of the U.S. population, these statistics might seem to be on par with their overall representation in the population. But as the Ascend Foundation report points out, “With Asians representing 27.2% of professionals, few people would agree that 5.6% of exec-
utives is sufficient just because it matches the proportion of the U.S. population. Most people would find it more reasonable to expect that roughly 27% of executives would be Asian, at parity with their professional numbers.”
Asian, black, and Hispanic women all ranked significantly below parity, but the Ascend Foundation discovered Asian women are the least represented as executives, relative to their percentage in the workforce. There were 9,254 Asian
Story graphic: FastCompany.com While Asians made up 27.2% of the professional workforce at these five companies, they accounted for only 13.9% of top brass. The glass ceiling gets more troublesome when gender is factored in.
women professionals in the survey’s sample (13.5%), but only 36 Asian women execu-
tives (3.1%). In other words, only one out of every 285 Asian women is an executive, less than half the ratio for the entire workforce of one executive per 118 professionals. The current glass ceiling has led some to take legal action. For one complainant, the publicity surrounding the case did little to help—or hurt—her adversary. Ellen Pao was asked to pay $1 million to cover legal fees after she lost her gender discrimination suit against Kleiner Perkins. Other pending cases include Chia Hong’s against Facebook and Tina Huang’s against Twitter. But lawsuits are an extreme measure to tackle the imbalance. In its work to support and encourage Asian-American leadership, the Ascend Foundation encourages raising awareness among Asians to develop what it takes to make it to the executive ranks. The organization discovered that many Asians had a “tendency to underappreciate the importance of personal and organizational leadership skills as requisites
for higher management roles.” The study authors observed that because meritocracy usually stops at the door to the executive suite, “Asians, despite demonstrating functional excellence as middle managers, are not promoted as often as others they deem less capable.” The authors write that Asians lack the awareness needed to demonstrate emotional intelligence and vision: “Soft skills are needed because the more common Western management culture heavily relies upon crossorganizational collaboration and distributed decision-making.” Culturally risk-averse, Asians prefer the safety of a respectable profession, according to the study. They tend to keep their heads down and expect automatic rewards for a job well done. The authors write, “As a result, many Asians are less likely to seek roles that provide challenge and visibility, such as leading a new initiative, taking on a failing product line, or becoming an official public spokesperson.” Lydia Dishman is a business journalist covering innovation, entrepreneurship and style.
Lifestyle VOICE OF ASIA
VOICE OF ASIA 11
ONLINE .COM voiceofasiaonline.com
Vol. 28 No. 19 Friday, May 8, 2015 Section 2 Page 11
10 lifestyle changes needed at 30!
H
ow you live your thirties determines how healthy you’ll be at 60. Ten lifestyle changes you can sneak in, now You’ve just hit the big 30, your sleep timings are still all over the place, meals nothing short of junk and work life resembles a trip to hell and back. Sounds familiar? Well, we suggest you rework your life plan. The impact of your erratic lifestyle may not show now, but will determine how fit and fab you’ll be when you are celebrating your 60th birthday. CUT CRAP
SAVE UP An average person has plenty of disposable income in his/her 30s, some of which can almost easily be set aside for life post retirement.Plus, building the habit of saving early means you’ll continue it further down the line. So be content with what you have. And buy only what you can afford. If you are content with what you have, you will have a happier life.
THE
If you smoke, stop. Ask yourself if you want creaking bones at 60, or an immunity that is as spineless as a sponge? And, while you are at it, bid adieu to your favourite biscuits, cakes, crisps, chips, and colas. They are unnecessary expense, have zero nutrition, contain loads of calories and are a major threat to your health. MEND YOUR RELATIONSHIPS Parents, siblings, friends, old bosses, annoying aunts? You may not see eye to eye with them. But hey, it’s never too late. If you didn’t understand the situation at a point the misunderstanding occurred, never mind. Speak to them now. Life is short, so cut out all the anger and bitterness of the past you are holding onto. A happy heart equals to a healthy life. WORKOUT THE RIGHT WAY Don’t just sit there whining about your weight; exercise. Keep your weight in check. Obesity does all kinds of horrid things to your body. But in the pursuit of slimming down, don’t go running in the afternoon heat. And, if you must, wear a sun block. Do you want bruises from just lightly touching the side of a box and having your skin peel off?
FOLLOW YOUR LIFE PURPOSE Want to buy a house? Make babies? Write a book? Pursue a PhD? Switch your career? Learn to play a new musical instrument? Go diving? Go for it. And go for it, now. It’s true that time starts accelerating as you enter your 30s, and it keeps accelerating. So the time that you’ll get around to those dreams should be now. GET SOME SNOOZE Sleep is the time for our body to repair any damage caused by stress, ultraviolet rays and other harmful exposures. During sleep, cells produce more protein which is used in repairing damaged cells.Muscle injuries and other trauma also heal faster during sleep. If you deprive yourself from a minimum of six to seven hours of snooze, you are causing undue stress to the body, which can result in various health complications. TAKE CARE OF YOUR TEETH Get your little cavities fixed as they come up.Unlike many
Email: editor@voiceofasiaonline.com Tel: 713-774-5140
Why you should never paint office walls white
body health issues, dental problems only get worse -and things like crowns and implants are uncomfortable, time-consuming and expensive. They also go beyond the mouth and affect other parts of the body. If you have a steady income, the bills won’t be the painful thing. BE CURIOUS Get out of the house and go for adventure right now. Throw caution to the wind, take on the risk, make it as big as you can possibly manage. If possible, include someone you’re close to - make a big memory. Your brain never stops growing, so exercise it with media that matters. Tr a v e l i n g will change you like nothing else can. It will put you in places that will force you to care for issues that are bigger than you. Reading is traveling with out moving. So, pick at least 10 books a year cover to cover -across different genres. MAINTAIN A JOURNAL You are the sum total of your experiences. Don’t wake up when you’re 60 and realise that you’ve wasted your life gathering possessions. You are bound to forget more of your precious memories that you’ll remember. So, maintain a diary. Your written records will entertain and endear in your future. And while you are recounting memories, spare a few minutes every day to meditate to reflect on your life experience and in turn make positive changes. The list of benefits is endless, it only consumes few minutes of the day, the change in your life and the people you love is priceless. PHONE A FRIEND Choose people who make you feel like you already are your best self, who challenge
FRIDAY, May 8, 2015
by Stephanie Vozza
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hite walls in a room might feel crisp and clean, like a blank slate, but if they’re in your workplace, it’s time to repaint. Color not only affects a person’s mood, but it can also hinder a worker’s effectiveness. In a study from the University of Texas, researcher Nancy Kwallek tested the impact of color on productivity by giving three groups of people clerical tasks to complete in three different rooms, each painted a different color: red, white, and aqua. Some individuals, which Kwallek calls high-screeners, were able to block out the color “noise” of their surroundings, while others, low-screeners, were affected by it. The highscreeners had no difficulty working in the red room, while low-screeners tended to be distracted by the color. Both groups, however, made more errors when they worked in the white room. “White doesn’t help us be productive, and most work environments are white, offwhite, or gray,” says Kwallek, who suggests the sterile quality isn’t conducive to work. Aqua, however, is a good choice. “There have been studies that asked worker preference about environment and color, and the majority felt they liked to work in a blue or blue-green environment,” she says. Colors can elicit a variety of emotions, affecting the mood and output of your staff. Here are some common paint-color choices and what you need to know to use them properly: *Red For The Detail-Oriented. A powerful color, red stimulates the pulse and can raise blood pressure. A study by the University of British Columbia (UBC) found that red can help increase performance in employees who have detailoriented assignments. *Blue For Creative Types. Blue is calming. It promotes communication, trust, and efficiency. It also helps people with creativity by opening the mind to new ideas. In the workContinued on page 13 you by their example, and who you genuinely enjoy. Nurture them. Laugh with them. Go crazy with them, too. Contribute to their enjoyment of life. Take the time every week to be in touch and build memories with them, which you can cherish once you cross 60. -Mumbai Mirror
Seeking the elusive fee-free exchange rate by Seth Kugel
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raveling on a budget can mean counting every penny, but that’s a lot harder to do if you are converting from centimes or centavos. Most of us do a lot of rounding: that yak wool blanket for 100,000 Mongolian tugrik, at 1,924 tugrik to the dollar? Divide by 2,000 — it’s about $50. Even if you travel with a smartphone app that gives you real time exchange rates, like Oanda (oanda.com/mobile), how close to that elusive true market value are you really getting? And what gets you closest: exchanging cash, using A.T.M.s, or plunking down your credit card? Here are ways to minimize fees and commissions when traveling abroad. Before you travel, set aside some time to evaluate each of your payment options. Start by checking your credit cards. Do they charge foreign conversion fees of 2 or 3 percent? These days, many cards charge neither conversion nor annual fees. Chase and Capital One for example, are good places to start. (Discover never charges a fee, but is not as widely accepted.) And don’t forget to factor in points or miles or cash back that you would not be getting with your debit card or cash. If you pay no fees and get 1 percent or more back, you have actually beaten the market rate. What about A.T.M. cards? Though it’s generally true that A.T.M.s offer better rates than cash exchange, some bank cards charge a foreign conversion fee (up to 3 percent) plus a per-transaction flat fee (up to $5). And you will also often be charged by the foreign bank whose A.T.M. you’re using. Matt Kepnes, author of “How to Travel the World on $50 a Day,” has long advocated a Charles Schwab Bank checking account, which charges no fees at foreign A.T.M.s, reimburses foreign bank fees, charges no currency conversion fee, costs nothing to open and requires no minimum balance. If you can’t be bothered to open another account, read your bank’s terms carefully. Bank of America clients pay a 3 percent conversion fee, $5 per foreign withdrawal, plus whatever the foreign bank charges. That can be more than a 10 percent ding, over all. But if those customers use the Global A.T.M. Alli-
ance, which has banks in about 30 countries, there are no fees beyond the 3 percent. (Account holders with elite status at many banks also often avoid flat fees as well.) A final note: If you use debit cards for purchases, check if you will be charged per foreign transaction — and if you are, avoid using that card while abroad. Always alert your banks you’re going abroad; otherwise you are at risk for having your card blocked for suspicious activity. Even if you’re not going to exchange cash when you arrive, stuff $100 or more in your wallet or bag as a safeguard, along with a note of the current exchange rate. Check if you will need local currency to get into town from the airport, and if so, plan ahead to avoid changing money there. Most airports have A.T.M.s, but some people feel safer if they also exchange some money before they leave, just in case. If you do so, comparison shop. In New York City, there are several small, trustworthy exchange booths that beat out banks and companies like Travelex every day. (Yelp has a good list.) Once you are abroad, a no-fee credit card should just about always be your first choice. But you will also need cash. If you do want to exchange dollars for foreign currency, you will want to check the rates offered against the market rates and factor in any commissions. It’s rarely a good deal, but if you are facing, say, $10 in potential A.T.M. fees — or you tried the A.T.M. and it doesn’t work — that may be the best option available. And as always, know your surroundings. In less safe destinations, you may want to make smaller A.T.M. withdrawals even if it means paying a fee each time, so you don’t have to walk around with large amounts of cash. On the other hand, if A.T.M.s are scarce or finicky (true in many developing countries),.In remote destinations, of course, you may have no choice. In your trip’s final days, carefully budget how much cash you will need, and try to stick to it. If you underestimate, you will end up paying a fee for a small cash withdrawal just to pay for a cab to the airport; if you overestimate, you will be getting rid of those soon-tobe-useless coins buying overpriced gum at the airport. -New York Times
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SCIENCE & TECH
VOICE OF ASIA 12
FRIDAY, May 8, 2015
Science’s love affair with 60 Percent of large herThe Lord of the Rings bivores may go extinct thanks to humans by Julie Beck
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hough at first glance, science and fantasy seem to be polar opposites, the Venn diagram circles of “scientists” and “Lord of the Rings fans” have a large overlap. One could (lovingly!) label that region “nerds.” Fight me on that if you want, but there’s plenty of evidence that suggests scientists love J.R.R. Tolkien’s epic. Several newly discovered animal species have been named after characters from the books—a genus of wasps in New Zealand is now called Shireplitis, with species S. bilboi, S. frodoi, S. meriadoci, S. peregrini, S. samwisei and S. tolkieni. The wasps bear the names of the hobbits because they too are “small, short, and stout,” according to a press release. On the other side of the size spectrum, paleontologists named a 900-pound ancient crocodile Anthracosuchus balrogus, after the Balrog, a giant whip-wielding fire monster from The Lord of the Rings. There is also a dinosaur named after Sauron, which seems kinda harsh to me. And many, many more, if the website “Curious Taxonomy” is to be believed. “Given Tolkien’s passion for nomenclature, his coinage, over decades, of enormous numbers of euphonious names—not to mention scientists’ fondness for Tolkien—it is perhaps inevitable that Tolkien has been accorded formal taxonomic commemoration like no other author,” writes Henry Gee in his book The Science of Middle Earth.
Other disciplines aren’t left out of the fun, though— there’s a geologically interesting region in Australia called the “Mordor Alkaline Igneous Complex,” a pair of asteroids named “Tolkien” and “Bilbo,” and a crater on Mercury also named “Tolkien.” A spectrograph used to study certain kinds of galaxies is called the Spectrographic Areal Unit for Research on Optical Nebulae (SAURON), which has an accompanying processing system called Palantir. A palantir is Middle Earth’s equivalent of a crystal ball, allowing the holder to see anywhere in the world. Palantir is also the name of a software company that has been linked to the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency and National Security Agency, which is an instance in which the reference crosses over from fun into too-real.
by Nick Visser
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What has it got in its academic journals, precious?
Naming something is one way to honor your favorite author—another is by applying your scientific expertise to analyzing Tolkien’s fictional world. And I don’t mean in a media-studies sense, though there’s of course plenty of that too. There are a remarkable number of papers purporting to scientifically study aspects of The Lord of the Rings and the world it takes place in. Much of the writing is tongue in cheek, of course, but many of these papers also incorporate actual scientific principles and methods. A recent one, from March, published in the Journal of Interdisciplinary Science Topics, wonders whether the “seemingly unachievable feats of heroism and athleticism” accomplished in the books are due to greater oxygen content in Middle Earth’s atmosphere. “The men of Middle Earth are analogous to humans on Earth,” as the study points out, so the researchers take Aragorn and his “tireless defense of Helm’s Deep” against an onslaught of evil orcs as an example. “Although Aragorn gives his age to be 87 he displays the physical prowess of a man assumed to be in their mid30s due to him being from a magical race of men, the Dúnedain, gifted with long life,” they write. “Therefore his age will be approximated to be 35 for the purposes of calculating his arterial partial pressure of oxygen.” Using an equation to calculate how atmospheric makeup would affect the exchange of oxygen for carbon dioxide in the lungs, they conclude that a higher percentage of oxygen in Middle Earth’s atmosphere could well play into Aragorn’s ability to stay up all night slaying orcs. “This could also explain why creatures on Middle Earth can grow to a much larger size than they do on Earth, such as Shelob the giant spider, and how Middle
Earth is home to large creatures such as dragons,” the study reads. Other pressing MiddleEarth questions that science has tried to answer include:
h, how the mighty have fallen.
Thanks in part to poaching and habitat loss, 60 percent of the world’s largest herbivores are at risk of extinction, according to a new report published in the journal Science Advances. The study, “Collapse of the World’s Largest Herbivores,” provides a sobering look at 74 of the largest terrestrial plant-eating animals. The gentle giants have had
ened,” Bill Ripple, a professor at Oregon State’s College of Forestry, told The Huffington Post. “Most of the very large herbivores have already been wiped out in developed countries.” Ripple and his fellow researchers analyzed population data from the International Union for Conservation of Nature. They found a majority of large plant-eating animals -- found across swaths of Africa and Southeast Asia -- face a dual threat of hunting and habitat loss due to deforestation and the spread
Is Bilbo able to escape Gollum in The Hobbit because Gollum, living in a dark cave, is Vitamin-D deficient and therefore weaker? (Maybe.)
plant and animal species are at risk of extinction if climate change continues unabated. Another study conducted by Ripple and his colleagues last year found 60 percent of the world’s largest carnivores -- lions, leopards, otters and wolves -- were at risk of extinction. So, what’s to be done? Ripple said he’s optimistic about conservation because of changes in response to biodiversity catastrophes. He pointed to Yao Ming’s efforts to combat shark fin soup in his native China, which some experts say have cut consumption by 50 percent to 70 percent. Efforts from legislators, including a new bill sponsored by Rep. Peter DeFazio (DOre.), would help reinforce the illegality of the wildlife trade. But much of this comes down to money. Not just for the well-loved elephants and rhinos, but also for the lesserknown warty pigs and moun-
Could Frodo really have survived being stabbed by a cave troll, even if he was wearing impenetrable mithril armor? (Yes, but he would have at least fractured his sternum, “which would have made escape impossible.”) What kind of mental illness does Gollum have, anyway? (“Most likely” schizoid personality disorder, but possibly also multiple-personality disorder.) Climate scientists at the University of Bristol also created an elaborate climate model of Middle Earth (though the paper was published under the name Radagast the Brown). According to the model, the climate of the Shire, where hobbits live, is most similar to “Lincolnshire or Leicestershire in the U.K.” and Mordor is apparently similar to Los Angeles or west Texas, except, you know, without the all-seeing lidless eye sweeping over the landscape.
Most of the very large herbivores have already been wiped out in developed countries (Photos: stock images)
a tough go as of late. Nearly 100,000 elephants were poached in just three years. A record number of rhinos were killed for their horns in 2014. And mountain gorillas are among the most endangered plant-eaters on Earth. “I was surprised by the fact that so many of these large animals were consider threat-
of livestock. The study points to many of these species as highly important elements of the food web that couldn’t be replaced by smaller species. A separate study released last week warned one in six
tain anoa. “One of the bottom-line issues is, the people in the rich countries need to come help rescue these animals,” Ripple said. “They need to help.” -Huffington Post
“It has been documented that Middle-Earth caught the attention of students and practitioners of science from the early days of Tolkien fandom. For example, in the 1960s, the Tolkien Society members were said to mainly consist of ‘students, teachers, scientists, or psychologists,’” writes Kristine Larsen, an astronomy professor at Central Connecticut State University, in her paper “SAURON, Mount Doom, and Elvish Moths: The Influence of Tolkien on Modern Science.” The paper points out many of the taxonomical references to Tolkien listed above. -The Atlantic
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LEISURE
VOICE OF ASIA 13
Turn away during Screen-Free Week? A big challenge for some by Brent Haywood
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here’s no way you, your family or friends could spend a week without watching TV, logging onto a computer or incessantly checking Facebook updates and other apps on a smartphone. Or could tuning out that technology lead to more informed direct communication or a rebirth of enjoyment of the outdoors?
ies, such as in Battle Ground, Wash., and Missoula, Mont., hold alternative events to help people resist the lure of screens. Sioux City School District spokeswoman Alison Benson said school officials don’t plan to push for participation. Adelmann encourages people to unplug from digital entertainment and spend their free time playing, reading,
said. Stevens heads the Morningside Mathematics Department, which includes computer science courses. He said some obsessive people will take screen time to extreme lengths and believes children’s use of devices should be limited to avoid violence in video games. But for the majority of people, Stevens said the old saying that moderation is the key seems to
Certainly, unplugging in a wired world is a huge challenge, said Morningside College professor Dean Stevens.
“Really being present in the moment is hard for people,” said Sara Adelmann, project manager for Screen-Free Week. The CCFC throws in a disclaimer that shows the overwhelming magnitude of technology in the culture -- the screen-free goal applies to people’s personal time and isn’t intended to include work commitments or school usage. The initiative was begun in 1994 under the name TV Turnoff Week. Eventually, to keep up with the rising number of technological options consuming the time of Americans, the name was changed to Screen-Free Week. Some schools and librar-
Adelmann concedes that much of American culture relies on technology with screens for entertainment. She said there is growing research looking into whether that reliance for some people could more aptly called an addiction. “It is certainly turning out that there is evidence that it can be habit-forming,” Adelmann said. TV use is higher for younger kids, including those as young as 1 year old. As children get older they start adding in many other screen devices. “TV is still pretty popular for younger kids. But mobile technology is rapidly becoming something that is more of a focus for even very young kids,” Adelman said.
“In this modern world, it seems almost impossible to put down the screen,” Stevens said. Nonetheless, Screen-Free Week is at hand, and from May 4-10 officials from the Campaign for a Commercial Free Childhood, based in Boston, Mass., are challenging people to unplug from digital entertainment and rediscover the joys of life beyond a screen.
understanding of how times have changed and how we use these technologies to communicate, to bond together, for entertainment purposes, for information purposes.”
A nonprofit group based in Boston, Mass., is encouraging people to unplug from digital entertainment for a week. But a Morningside College professor says unplugging in a wired world is a huge challenge.
connecting with family and friends and getting outside as they work through ScreenFree Week. The endeavor is aimed mostly at children, but anyone should consider taking part, she said. The number of national groups that have joined in support is now at 40 with the addition of the American Academy of Pediatrics this year. Adelmann said it is impossible to know how many people tune out technology for the whole week. “Screen time in general is a really timely topic for people. I think families are struggling with it -- how much is too much, what is the balance. People are looking for ways to reflect on that,” Adelmann
be a guiding principle. He said using smartphones or computers to access social media such as Facebook or Twitter is simply a form of communicating with family and friends. “Especially the younger generation, it is almost their primary mode of communication with each other,” Stevens said. “So, imagine if somebody asked you not to talk to some of your friends for a week. It seems like it would be more cruel than an interesting experiment to seeing how you can deal without the screens.” Stevens said the push to unplug for a week “lacks
She pointed to surveys over the past several years routinely showing that kids are on screens 7 1/2 hours a day to send text messages, post photos on Instagram or play games. That time trails only sleep in hours per day and ranks ahead of time spent in school. “Children just have access to way more screens than television now. All of that time is adding up. It is replacing time they could be doing other things with their lives, like spending time outside, being physically active, even just daydreaming -- that is almost extinct these days,” Adelmann said. “Being creative and having time for open-ended play, where it is their own minds and imaginations, that is something kids are losing out on.” That’s why Adelmann encourages people to give the week a shot. “It really depends on the person. We know some people say, ‘Wow, that was way easier than I thought it would be,’” Adelmann said. -Sioux City Journal
FRIDAY, May 8, 2015
Thailand conferred ‘Best Wedding Destination’ by Travel + Leisure magazine
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EW DELHI - Thailand has been conferred the Best Wedding Destination by Travel + Leisure India & South Asia at the fourth edition of the India’s Best Awards 2014 ceremony recently held at The Leela Ambience Gurgaon Hotel in New Delhi, India. This is the fourth year in a row where Thailand has received the best wedding destination award from India’s prestigious travel magazine, Travel + Leisure India & South Asia. The polling was conducted as a reader’s choice, both through the magazine and online in 2014, over a period of six months. In addition to this, opinions of a panel of outstanding experts in their fields are also taken into consideration. Mrs. Juthaporn Rerngronasa, Acting Governor of TAT and Deputy Governor for International Marketing (Europe, Africa, Middle East and Americas) said, “Thailand is the perfect wedding destination, as it boasts spectacular romantic wonders, from the green mountains of the North, to the tropical beaches and islands. The weather is as warm and welcoming as the people, and our range of accommodation includes many secluded villas which are perfect for couples seeking privacy in paradise. Thailand’s large Indian community means wedding planners have great experience in putting together spectacular ceremonies and celebrations that guarantee memorable nuptials and honeymoons.”
Office
Continued from page 11 place, blue would be a good color in a room that is used for brainstorming, suggests the UBC study. *Don’t Paint Conference Rooms Yellow. The color of optimism, yellow is stimulating. Too much of it, however, can cause anxiety, and studies show that people are more likely to lose their temper in yellow rooms, which might make it a bad choice for conference rooms. *Green For Inspiring Innovation. Similar to blue, green is a calming color that promotes harmony and balance. It also can enhance creative performance, according to a study published in the Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin. Green would be a good choice in an office where innovation is a key component. *Avoid Gray To Keep Mo-
rale Up. While gray is psychologically neutral, the color also lacks energy. It is suppressive and prepares people for hibernation, according to Colour Affects, a London-based color psychology consultant. Heavy use of gray can foster a lack of confidence and even depression. This color should be used in small amounts in an office and offset by a brighter color, such as red or yellow. “We see 10 million colors,” says Kwallek. “And blue can be sky blue, midnight blue, or anything in between. Generalizations don’t usually hold, because when you look at any color, you can vary it by light and dark, by hue and by brightness and dullness,” she says. “At the end of the day, it goes back to how we individually respond to any kind of noise. It’s not the color per se; it’s how the person responds.” But you should probably paint over the white walls just in case. -Fast Company
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VOICE OF ASIA 14
Friday, May 8, 2015
Section 2
Page 14
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FRIDAY, May 8, 2015
Tel: 713-774-5140
Indian student honored Five months after crash, with Texas A&M’s Eppright Texas A&M student in Outstanding Student Award vegetative state
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OLLEGE STATION - Akshata Kulkarni, a graduate student from India, is the winner of Texas A&M University’s 2015 Eppright Outstanding International Student Award. Kulkarni, who is pursuing a College of Agriculture and Life Sciences master’s degree in plant nutraceutical research, in addition to taking classes in finance and marketing, was presented the award at the annual meeting of the Texas A&M University International Board. The Eppright Award is the highest honor presented to a currently enrolled international student at Texas A&M, recognizing the outstanding contribution made by a student to international awareness, understanding and leadership at the university and in the community. Facilitated by Scholarships and Financial Aid, the award carries a $3,000 scholarship. Riyadh Chakmachi, a former international student from Iraq, created the Outstanding International Student Award in 1985. In 1991, the award was endowed through the generosity of the late Col. George J. Eppright, Class of 1926. The criterion to receive this prestigious award includes an excellent academic record, involvement in a wide array of university and community activities and promotion of international awareness on campus and in the community. Chad Wootton, associate vice president for external affairs who presented the award, said that Akshata Kulkarni “is
gies stressed with exams and projects to find a sense of well-being.
Akshata Kulkarni
a great example of a student who, no matter where they come from around the world, embraces the Aggie core value of selfless service to the greater good.” Kulkarni said the first Aggie tradition she was introduced to set the tone for her time at Texas A&M. She said “Howdy” expresses the warmth, enthusiasm and happiness that she saw in every Aggie as they greeted her. She said she believes that the culture and tradition of values such as honesty, fairness and respect are also expressed here. These values are deeply rooted in each person and influence one’s success regardless of nationality, she said. Kulkarni said she has made it a priority to express all of the Aggies core values during her time at Texas A&M. She is the co-founder of “Twin Hearts Meditation Club” which is aimed at promoting and facilitating the traditions of yoga and meditation for the purpose of staying calm and stress- free while preparing for the future. Her efforts provide a way for Ag-
As an active member of the Indian Graduate Student Association and Brazos Kannada Sangha, an organization supporting and serving as an interface for new Indian students as they arrive in Aggieland, she said knows the value of living in and promoting a positive and vibrant intercultural atmosphere. Kulkarni holds other leadership positions in various academically focused organizations, giving her the chance to work with students from different nationalities. She said she believes that in this interconnected world, where the classroom and workplace are very dynamic, fast-moving and multicultural, these organizations help her to understand and promote an international and inter-cultural atmosphere at Texas A&M. One faculty member said Kulkarni is “academically gifted” and has demonstrated she can master her coursework in the lab or her other classes, keeping a very high GPA. Another said she is a very passionate person who puts 100 percent into whatever she does. Kulkarni said she plans to continue her acts of service in her chosen profession finding a way to provide fresh fruit and vegetable options to lowincome families through education and demonstration of properly growing gardens in limited spaces. -TAMU.edu
O
n his first Thanksgiving holiday in the U.S., Texas A&M engineering graduate student Akshay Jain’s life changed forever in a matter of seconds on the evening of Nov. 30, 2014. Jain and four friends - Pranan Kannan, 22; Chiranjibi Boere, 23; Shachit Iyer, 23; and Kishan Bajaj, 24, all Texas A&M students at the College Station campus - were driving home from a short vacation in New Orleans, Louisiana, during the Thanksgiving break. At about 8:30 that night, a pickup truck driven by Ron Polawco came in from the opposite side and crossed the center line, totaling the Hyundai Sonata driven by Kannan. Police investigating the incident reported that no drugs, alcohol or speeding were involved. The truck hit the car on the passenger side, seriously wounding Bajaj and critically injuring Jain. Police spent more than a half hour trying to cut the young men out of the wreckage. Kannan, Boere, and Iyer were released from the hospital shortly after the accident. Bajaj took four days to recover. But Jain, 22, incurred traumatic brain injuries that night, and has lain in a vegetative state for five months at The Institute for Rehabilitation and Research at Memorial Hermann Hospital. A nurse confirmed to India-West that the young engineering student was still there and said he could only blink his eyes. He declined to comment further, citing patient privacy laws, and did not say when Jain was due to be released. Jain had moved to the U.S.
Akshay Jain, an Indian engineering graduate student at Texas A&M, remains in a vegetative state, five months after he was injured in a head-on car collision. The Indian American community in Houston has been helping the family. (Jain family photo) only three months earlier to do graduate work in chemical engineering at Texas A&M. Jain’s brother-in-law, Gagan Parakh, told India-West that the young student’s progress towards recovery has not been encouraging. He currently cannot move his arms or hands or arc his legs, nor can he communicate. The IIIT Gandhinagar alumnus – who received the Director’s Silver Medal and an award for outstanding research when he graduated from IIT last year – is now dependent on feeding and tracheotomy tubes. Parakh described his brother-in-law as very charismatic and ambitious prior to the accident. Jain has already had two shunts placed in his brain, and now needs a spinal cord injection to mitigate spasticity by easing the muscles, according
to Parakh, who recently returned to Mumbai after an extended stay in the U.S. to care for his ailing brother-in-law. Jain’s mother, Saroj, has not left her son’s bedside since she arrived, shortly after the accident. Parakh said the elderly woman speaks little English, but has gained the support of the large Indian American community in Houston. Jain’s health insurance has to date been sufficient to cover his needs. But coverage is due to run out in about two weeks, said Parakh. At that point, Jain will be moved to a nursing home, where he will receive only basic care, without occupational or physical therapy to aid in his recovery. Jain’s family has started an online funding campaign Continued on page 17
VOICE OF ASIA 15
Friday, May 8, 2015
It’s official, Hollywood is crushing Bollywood films
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UMBAI - Gone are the days when India was hardly a blip on Hollywood’s international radar. But now, from special screenings, extensive local partnerships or regional language dubs, Hollywood this year seems to have upped the ante on increasing its hold in the burgeoning Indian movie market. And if figures are anything to go by, efforts seem to have worked. Two massive Hollywood releases this year, Furious 7 and Avengers: Age of Ultron have not just given Bollywood stiff competition, but have lunged ahead of the domestic film industry. Also, despite a host of releases in Bollywood - the most recent one being Akshay Kumar’s Gabbar Is Back - it’s Avengers that continues to run strong across the country. Clearly, the industry is not niche anymore in India, it has become a serious threat to Bollywood. While growing interest and acceptance towards English films have been cited as the reason behind Hollywood’s phenomenal growth in India, a major reason which has helped them trump regional players, believe experts, are their marketing strategies. “For Avengers: Age of Ultron, we partnered with 50 local brands which is the largest not just for a Hollywood flick but also in the entire Indian industry,” says a representative from Disney India. And it’s not just Hindi, the flick was released in four languages, including Tamil and Telugu in four different formats in 2D, 3D, 4DX and IMAX 3D. Trade analyst Komal Nahta says that Hollywood has its strategies in place. “Hollywood has a great future here because of how well they have positioned themselves. “ -Deccan Chronicle
Bollywood Masala Section 2
Page 15
Email: editor@voiceofasiaonline.com
FRIDAY, May 8, 2015
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Bollywood comes in support of Salman Khan
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ick star Salman Khan has been fighting a hit-and-run case for over 13 years now and on 6th May, everything will settle down as the court will deliver its final verdict on the case. Salman‘s fans and families are anticipating the day and are praying for the actor day and night. We can only imagine how tough this must be for the actor emotionally. The actor has a lot of friends in the Btowns, who stand with the actor in his tough period, landing their full support. Salman‘s friends in Bollywood decided to give out a message in support at a recent event. Anupam Kher, who is working with the actor in Sooraj Barjatya‘s Prem Ratan Dhan Payo, said, “Salman is an amazing person. He is a great humanitarian and a wonderful human being. The kind of charity that he does is really heartwarming. I will pray to god for him. I hope everything gets sorted out.” Soha Ali Khan also said that the actor has her full support always. “Salman has always been close to our family. He has always helped us. I just hope that everything works out well for him and he has our support
Salman Khan pleaded innocence in Jodhpur court on April 29 (Image courtesy: PTI) always,” she said. Soha Ali Khan‘s husband, Kunal Khemu also came forward and gave out his message for the actor saying, “It’s a legal verdict, so I cannot give my view about the case. But, I wish that god gives him and his family a lot of strength.” Jackky Bhagnani, who happens to be Salman Khan‘s good friend, said that Salman is a great person and he wouldn’t do anything wrong intentionally. “I am personally very close to Salman Khan. He has
worked with my father closely and I know he wouldn’t do anything wrong intentionally. He is a great person, but it’s the decision of the court so I cannot talk much about it. I hope that justice prevails. But, yes he has our love and support always,” he said. While some celebrities came forward and showed their support for Salman by sending out a message, there were also few celebrities who avoided commenting anything on the matter as it is a legal matter. -PTI
Review: Mr X – Bollywood invisibility drama is well worth missing
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Forced to stay under the radar, he’s taken by a confidante
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In a letter to his Bollywood friends whom he has taken advantage of, he says: Dear Guys, I am really sorry about what I did last year at my farmhouse party. I betrayed your trust and breached your privacy by recording on hidden cameras our intimate conversations about your past relationships, affairs, marriages, sexual fantasies, rivalries and kinks. I did so purely out of the greed for sensationalism. After you threatened to sue me, I was forced to hold
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Emraan Hashmi in Mr X to a medical research facility to try to help with his burns. There he becomes a guinea pig for an
back the footage and sign a legal document that I will never release the footage. But because I believe the world needs to know the truth about Bollywood and its darkest sexual secrets, I recreated the events of that night and changed your names to protect your identities. I’m now ready to release India’s first reality film, Sabki Bajegi Band. Believe me, I have made no attempt to malign or judge you. In fact, I hope that this film inspires Indian audiences to go home and talk openly about sex, love, marriage with their friends and family the way you have so bravely shared with me that night. I hope we continue to be friends. No hard feelings please! And ya, it’s about time sex comes out of the closet in India! Yours truly,
Anirudh Chawla
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UMBAI - With his tall, fair and handsome looks, he could have been a quintessential Bollywood hero, but he chose to be an onscreen baddie. Actor Neil Nitin Mukesh, who ventured into Bollywood in Johnny Gaddaar, feels that the trend of negative characters has picked up in Hindi cinema immensely.
Open letter from ‘Sabki Bajegi Band’ director apologising to his Bollywood friends
J Anirudh Chawla, who has directed one of India’s first reality films Sabki Bajegi Band, produced by Yusuf Shaikh, had recorded candid conversations on sex and relationships of some Page 3 and B-Town celebs at a private party hosted by him, which he later converted into a feature film that is now ready for release.
Neil Nitin Mukesh
There are a lot of layers for an actor to do, and today if you have seen, the trend of actors doing negative roles, is picking up
pril truly has been the cruellest month, with movie theatres offering a succession of turkeys. The disappointment is unlikely to abate with the arrival of the fantasy-adventure Mr X. Reckless daredevil Raghu (Emraan Hashmi) plays a member of an elite anti-terrorist unit who stumbles into a dangerous political conspiracy. His enemies think they’ve done away with him in an explosion, but all they’ve managed to do is permanently fuse him to his leather jacket and jeans.
Neil welcomes smarter bad guys in Bollywood
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experimental radiation treatment. It helps with the burns, and comes with an unforeseen bonus – invisibility. A great deal of the pleasure in watching such films – though not this one, which is about as enjoyable as a colonoscopy – comes from the origin story of the hero’s powers. “When science doesn’t have an answer,” explains the lab technician, espousing very little faith in her chosen field, “there is only one answer – God. It’s a miracle.” No, it’s a cop-out. Mr X then proceeds to take out out his enemies in a way he could just as easily have done in plain sight. A relentlessly humourless film, Mr X has no fun whatsoever with his invisibility. No punking is attempted, no crime is apprehended, and the few laughs you get are unintentional and caused by terrible actors attempting to mime strangulation by unseen hands. In 1987, long before he made the Oscar-nominated Elizabeth, Shekhar Kapur made the irrepressibly joyous Mr India, in which the eponymous hero could turn invisible at will. Bursting with heart and soul, and a classic from the moment Continued on page 17
“There are a lot of layers for an actor to do, and today if you have seen, the trend of actors doing negative roles, is picking up,” Neil said in an interview here. After stepping into the cine world in 2007, the actor has been seen mostly in negative roles like 7 Khoon Maaf, David and Player. In Tamil cinema, his 2014 movie Kaththi also featured him in a negative character. Talking about his bent towards negative roles, Neil said: “I started my career with it. Johnny Gaddaar was a negative role. If you see the west, all the superstars have done negative characters.” The actor, who has even turned producer by collaborating with Madan Pahliwal of Miraj Group, says he’d like his banner to steer clear from the adult comedy genre. “I’m not trying to be derogatory to adult comedies, but it is just that it doesn’t match some sensibilities. Some people like it as it is a popular genre and it does really well in India also, but Madan and I have decided that the brand stays with its sensibilities,” said Neil. Neil has zeroed down four scripts to produce, and one out of it is a “dark thriller”, which is also written by the actor, who’s the grandson of legendary singer Mukesh and son of singer Nitin Mukesh. He also wants to produce a family drama. Until then, the 33-year-old actor is looking forward to his acting project — Sooraj R. Barjatya’s Prem Ratan Dhan Payo, which has Salman Khan and Sonam Kapoor in the lead role. Neil will play Salman’s rebellious younger step brother in the movie. “My character is called Ajay Singh and he is a rebel with a cause. He has a reason why he is so rebellious in nature,” said the actor, who also uses his singing talent in his films. After singing the title track of his film Aa Dekhen Zara, he says “you’ll see me singing very soon”. -IANS
HEALTHY LIVING VOICE OF AHEALTH SIA
VOICE OF ASIA 16
Friday, May 8, 2015
Section 2
Page 16
Email: editor@voiceofasiaonline.com
Long life depends on mother’s genes, lifestyle by Subodh Varma, TNN
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EW DELHI - For the past 50 years, researchers at Sahlgrenska Academy, University Gothenburg, Sweden, have followed the health of 855 Gothenburg men born in 1913. Now that the study is being wrapped up, it turns out that ten of the subjects lived to 100 and conclusions can be drawn about the secrets of their longevity. “The unique design has enabled us to identify the factors that influence survival after the age of 50,” says Lars Wilhelmsen, who has been involved in the study for the past 50 years. “Our recommendation for people who aspire to centenarianism is to refrain from smoking, maintain healthy cholesterol levels and confine themselves to four cups of coffee a day.” It also helps if you paid a high rent for a flat or owing a house at age 50 (indicating good socio-econmic standard), enjoy robust working capac-
Findings are that there is a correlation with maternal but not paternal longevity, fully consistent with previous studies. ity at a bicycle test when you are 54 and have a mother who lived for a long time.
tions have been demonstrated in Hawaii, the genetic factor appears to be a strong one.”
“Our findings that there is a correlation with maternal but not paternal longevity are fully consistent with a previous studies,” Dr. Wilhelmsen says. “Given that the same associa-
But the researchers found that the “genetic factor” was weaker than the other factors. The study identified the following key factors for a long life based on the 7 cenenar-
10 common symptoms that could be cancer by Cindy Kuzma
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f you found a lump on your body where there wasn’t one before, you might proceed to freak out. Doctors call this an “alarm symptom,” or a sign that should put patients on high alert for cancer. Yet when British researchers recently surveyed people who had experienced 10 of these types of signs, about half of the participants didn’t see their docs. Some people brushed the symptoms off as inconsequential, while others feared what they might find out. This doesn’t mean you should think “tumor” the second you feel something new. But there are certainly situations that require action, like if you have any symptom that’s completely different than what you’ve had before; if it’s more severe than anything you’ve experienced; or if it persists longer than you’d expect. If a symptom lasts 3 to 6 months or significantly grows in severity, it’s time to call your doc—though you’ll probably want to get some signs, like bleeding, checked out sooner. Act even faster if you have a family history of cancer, if you smoke, or if you drink heavily, advises Gordon Iheme, M.D., an internal medicine specialist at Cleveland Clinic. All factors raise your cancer risk. Here are 10 red-alert signs and what they might mean for your health. 1. Change in the way a mole looks The deadly skin cancer melanoma can strike at any age
ticles—which may signal testicular cancer—should prompt an immediate call to your doc. 4. Changes in bladder habits
and often appears first in the form of unusual moles. View any alterations to your skin with extra suspicion if you’re outside a lot, and see a doctor if you spot a new mole or one that’s growing or changing
Having to pee more often or more urgently than usual could be a sign of prostate cancer, which tends to appear at younger ages in some ethnic groups (including AfricanAmericans), Dr. Iheme says. 5. New bowel routines Watch your number two, too. Colon cancer can cause long-
Half of people who experienced these symptoms blew them off. Don’t be like them!
color, advises Marc Shapiro, M.D., of the Cleveland Clinic department of hematology and oncology. 2. Persistent hoarseness
cough
or
Coughs that don’t go away could signal lung cancer, especially if you’re a heavy smoker. And a scratchy voice may serve as a sign of head and neck cancers. That’s because malignancies can directly affect your voice box or damage the nerves that control it, paralyzing your vocal cords. Head and neck cancers are on the rise in young men due to increased rates of infection with the HPV virus, which can cause the cancers, says Mary Daly, M.D., Ph.D., chair of the department of clinical genetics at the Fox Chase Cancer Center in Philadelphia. 3. Unexplained lump You’ve probably felt the lymph nodes in your neck swell when you have a cold. That just means your body’s fighting a bug. But swollen lymph nodes in your armpit, neck, and groin that don’t go away after a few months and aren’t accompanied by signs of infection could be lymphoma, which tends to occur at a young age, Dr. Daly says. And of course, lumps in your tes-
term constipation, diarrhea, or a change in the way your poop looks. (It often appears narrower.) Some Cancers Have Genetic Links, like prostate and colon cancers, so stay more alert for new bathroom patterns if you have a family history, Dr. Iheme says. 6. Unexplained weight loss Shedding pounds when you’re not eating less or exercising more could point to colon or liver cancer due to a phenomenon called cachexia. That’s when tumors release compounds that change your metabolism in complex ways, reducing your body’s ability to use protein and calories and wasting away muscles and fat. You’ll want to pay extra attention to this symptom if colon cancer runs in your family or you’re a big boozer. (But if you do actually want to drop weight, check out The Anarchy Workout—one guy lost 18 pounds of pure fat in just a month and half!) 7. Lingering, unexplained pain In most cases, you can pinpoint a reason your back or chest might ache, Dr. Daly says—like running through the first round of golf this season or a particularly killer
ians who were still part of the study (of the remaining three, two had dementia while one dropped out due to personal reasons): Two lived at home and five in assisted living facilities None of them smoked All of them exhibited good temporal and spatial cognition All of them wore hearing aids Most of them wore glasses, were able to read and watch TV All of them were slim and had good postures All of them used walkers “Normally we conducted the surveys at hospitals, but we visited the seven centenarians at home,” Dr. Wilhelmsen says. All of them were clinically healthy, satisfied with their circumstances and pleased to be living where they were.” A total of 27 per cent (232) of the original group lived to the age of 80 and 13 per cent (111) to 90. All in all, 1.1 per cent of the subjects made it to their 1 per cent to cancer, 6 per cent to pneumonia and 16 per cent to other causes. A total of 23 per cent of the over-80 group were diagnosed with some type of dementia. The study was originally published in Scandinavian Cardiovascular Journal.
CrossFit workout. Cut back on your activity and see if the pain goes away. If it lingers for 3 months or longer, it’s time to schedule an appointment. That’s because tumors pressing on nerves, organs, or bones can cause aches. Also, if you have severe abdominal pain that doesn’t let up, “that’s something that definitely should not be ignored,” Dr. Iheme says. Though there are many potential causes, several common and serious cancers—like those of the stomach and pancreas—produce this symptom. 8. Unexplained bleeding Blood in your phlegm could mean lung cancer, while spotting it in the toilet could signal kidney, bladder, or colon cancer. And a skin tag that bleeds could be skin cancer. Tumors can bleed themselves, or damage the blood vessels or lining of the lungs. Don’t wait before getting this checked out. If it’s severe, sudden, or you have symptoms of shock—such as a rapid pulse or a drop in blood pressure—head to the ER. 9. Sores that don’t heal Some skin cancers show up this way. Sores in your mouth could be linked to oral cancer, especially if you smoke, drink, or have HPV—all factors that raise your risk, Dr. Daly says. Ask your doctor to check your sores if they don’t go away within that 3- to 6-month window. 10. Trouble swallowing If you can’t gulp, it may signal head and neck cancer—a tumor may be blocking your throat. As with oral cancer, smoking, drinking, and HPV can all increase your risk. Failure to swallow is also linked with cancers of the stomach or esophagus. Though these diseases aren’t common in young men, people with reflux have a higher risk of esophageal cancer, and those with ulcers may be prone to stomach cancers. -Yahoo News
Health minister launches new campaign to make India fit
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EW DELHI - Health minister JP Nadda on Thursday launched a campaign called HealthifyIndia, which aimed to help a million Indians to adopt better practices for a better life. As part of the campaign, the partners involved will deliver goods and services worth Rs 1000 to anyone who pledges to have a healthy life as part of the campaign.
while launching the campaign in the capital.
“I am pleased to see the use of smartphone technology for innovative answers to lifestyle diseases. I wish HealthifyIndia all the very best,” said Nadda,
The health portal, thehealthsite.com, is India’s most visited health website with 40 lakh visitors. It also give access to 500 health experts and is available
The campaign is a result of the efforts of popular fitness app HealthifyMe, which also has a popular website, fitness portal healthifyme.com, run by Zee Media’s India.com, Godrej Nature’s Basket, Manipal Hospitals, Medanta and the Apollo Centre for Obesity, Diabetes and Endocrinology.
FRIDAY, May 8, 2015
in four languages. Tushar Vashisht, CEO at HealthifyMe said that they have invested Rs100 crores in the campaign. “Along with our partners Godrej Nature’s Basket, Manipal Hospitals, Medanta, Apollo Centre for Obesity, Diabetes and Endocrinology, we have ensured that any person who pledges to lead a healthy life is given our full cooperation. Someone who wants a healthy life simply has to log on and pledge, after which he or she will be able to access Rs 300 worth of calorie tracking software. -dna online
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Using Life Insurance in Retirement Plans In addition to using life insurance in a defined benefit plan, it can be purchased at the participant’s option in a defined contribution plan, such as a 401(k) plan, a profit-sharing plan, or a money purchase pension plan. In such cases, life insurance can be attractive to plan participants as an additional option for them. Life insurance is most often used in this way in a profit-sharing or 401(k) plan, but it could be used in other types of defined contribution plans as well. Life insurance in a plan can provide funds to pay estate taxes, thereby enhancing the ability of plan proceeds to provide financial security for the plan participant’s survivors. Individuals who are selfemployed, whether as sole proprietors or as business partners, can establish retirement plans for themselves under a Keogh plan (also known as an HR-10 plan). Like other qualified retirement plans, Keogh plans receive favorable tax treatment under the Internal Revenue Code. Self-employed individuals who contribute to a Keogh plan can take a business tax deduction for contributions made for themselves and for employees. The contributions and the interest earned on plan assets are not taxed until withdrawn from the plan. Certain rules apply to life insurance used in a qualified retirement plan to ensure that the life insurance is only incidental to the plan’s primary purpose. Life insurance is considered incidental if it meets one of the following tests: • The cost of providing life insurance is less than 25 percent of the cost of providing all plan benefits. • The death benefit does not exceed 100 times the monthly retirement income at the normal retirement age. In general, the first test applies to defined contribution plans, such as moneypurchase pension plans, 401(k) plans and profit sharing plans. If permanent life insurance other than universal life insurance is used in the plan under the first test, it is considered incidental if the life insurance premium is less than 50 percent of the cost of providing all plan benefits. The reason for the difference in the case of perma-
Sudhir Mathuria Contact: Sudhir Mathuria Licensed Professional Health Life 360 6650 Southwest Freeway Houston TX 77074 713-771-2900 www.MyMedicarePlanning.com nent life insurance is that the cash value portion of the permanent life insurance policy actually provides a retirement benefit rather than a death benefit. Just as the first qualified plan test generally applies to defined contribution plans, the second test—a test referred to as the 100-to-1 test—applies to defined benefit plans. So, a $100,000 life insurance policy in a defined benefit plan providing a $1,000 monthly benefit at retirement is considered incidental, because the policy’s death benefit is not more than 100 times the monthly benefit at retirement. The advantage of life insurance inside a qualified retirement plan is that the employer can deduct the premium as part of the employer’s annual contribution on behalf of the covered employee. Furthermore, participating life insurance products in a qualified plan can provide employees with higher dividends than otherwise identical policies because of the more favorable tax treatment such policies receive. Finally, life insurance policies purchased in a qualified retirement plan can be offered by the insurer on a guaranteed issue basis. In such a case, plan participants are able to purchase life insurance in the plan on a far more favorable basis than is possible if the life insurance were purchased outside the plan. In fact, for an uninsurable individual, it may make the difference between being able to purchase life insurance and not being able to purchase it. To plan and purchase life insurance from any major company contact Sudhir Mathuria @ 713-771-2900.
Quinoa: Health Benefits & Nutrition Facts
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uinoa, often described as a “superfood” or a “supergrain,” has become popular among the health conscious, with good reason. Quinoa (pronounced KEEN-wah) is packed with protein, fiber and various vitamins and minerals. It is also gluten-free and is recommended for people who are on a gluten-free diet. Quinoa is a good source of protein, fiber, iron, copper, thiamin and vitamin B6. It’s also an excellent source of magnesium, phosphorus, manganese and folate. A ‘good source’ means that one serving provides at least 10 percent of the daily value of that nutrient, while ‘excellent source’ means that one serving provides at least 20 percent of the daily value of that nutrient. Quinoa’s unusual composition and exceptional balance of protein, oil and fat, as well as its minerals, fatty acids, antioxidants and vitamins, make it a highly nutritious food. The article also noted that phytohormones are found in quinoa, unlike many other plant foods. Phytohormones help regulate plant growth. Some types, called phytoestrogens, are being studied as a treatment for menopause symptoms because they sometimes behave like estrogens in the body.
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Business VOICE OF ASIA
VOICE OF ASIA 17
Section 2
Parag Parikh, ace investor, killed in car crash in US
Page 17 Email: editor@voiceofasiaonline.com
by then. I remember his conviction in investing in strong companies with a direct consumer connect — the Nestles, Castrols and ITCs of the world — which were expensive then. But he was convinced of their long- term
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tock market veteran and one of India’s original value investors, Parag Parikh, died in a car crash in the US on Sunday.
Traders who knew him for more than three decades say that his strong conviction was what set him apart from the rest in the broking community, as he was never shy of taking a different stand on an investment idea if he was convinced of its strength. “He was one of the few who had imbibed value investing
Stock market veteran and one of India’s original value investors, Parag Parikh, died in a car crash. (Photo: paragparikh/twitter)
Jain
estimated at about $15,000. “Even if our family sells off all our assets, it still won’t be enough to support him,” said Parakh.
at youcaring.com, to raise $100,000 to take the young man back to India to receive proper medical attention and care. The family is from Indore, a Tier 2 city without facilities equipped to rehabilitate Jain, according to Parakh. Doctors predict that Jain will need at least another year of hospital care; the family is hoping to raise sufficient funds to keep the promising young man at a hospital in Mumbai, with access to neurosurgeons and physical therapists. The family is also daunted by the cost of flying Jain home,
Parikh started his broking business in 1979 as a sub-broker. He, however, found it extremely difficult to break independently into the then small club of brokers on Dalal Street who very close knit and did not encourage outsiders. The break came in 1991 when economic reforms liberalised norms in the stock market, which were then thrown open to foreign investors. In 10 years, his broking and wealth management businesses were flourishing, but he didn’t hesitate to give it up and start an asset management company (AMC) in 2013 to offer MFs as an option for small investors.
Parikh, 61, was among the first professionals - he was a chartered accountant by training - to enter the broking business and was known for his practical approach to stock market investing and contrarian views, which saw him studiously avoid technology stocks during the dotcom boom, and also one of the few to stand up for Indian brokers in their fight against foreign institutional investors.
Continued from page 14
values.”
from Warren Buffett and oriented it to suit the Indian market,” said Shankar Sharma, vicechairman of First Global. “We were novices when we started in the mid eighties and looked up to him as he was already an icon
Mr. X Continued from page 15 of its release it remains the gold standard for fantasy adventures.
“Akshay was always very strong-willed, never letting anything stand in his way. His road to recovery will be long and hard,” said a note on Jain’s youcaring.com page. “But we know that this would have never stopped Akshay. Please help cheer him on as he goes through the fight of his life. He would never have backed down from a challenge, and neither will we.”
No one had any such expectations of director Vikram Bhatt, a long-term practitioner of B-movies, but still, using the same plot device borders on sacrilege. And while watching his films for their craftsmanship is as absurd a notion as watching a Michael Bay movie for character development, Bhatt does, nonetheless, have a few preposterous yet entertaining thrillers under his belt. Sometimes featuring supernatural elements, and more often than not garnished with lashings of sleaze, his films pioneer the modern “horrex” Bollywood genre, combining horror and sex.
Almost 900 supporters have raised more than $51,000 towards Jain’s long-term care. -IndiaWest
As such, Mr X is a change of scene for him, in so much as it’s a family film, one you can can take your children to see –
“It’s a big shock to the community. He was a man of tremendous conviction in value investing,” said Motilal Oswal, co-founder of Motilal Oswal Financial Services. but only if they’ve done something to merit such a cruel and unusual punishment. April truly has been the cruellest month, with movie theatres offering a succession of turkeys. The disappointment is unlikely to abate with the arrival of the fantasy-adventure Mr X. Reckless daredevil Raghu (Emraan Hashmi) plays a member of an elite anti-terrorist unit who stumbles into a dangerous political conspiracy. His enemies think they’ve done away with him in an explosion, but all they’ve managed to do is permanently fuse him to his leather jacket and jeans. Forced to stay under the radar, he’s taken by a confidante to a medical research facility to try to help with his burns. There he becomes a guinea pig for an experimental radiation treatment. It helps with the burns, and comes with an unforeseen bonus – invisibility. A great deal of the pleasure in
FRIDAY, May 8, 2015
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In 1994, Parikh, who was one of the many Indian brokers representing international broking firm Jardine Fleming in India, walked out of their lucrative contract in protest after the foreign firm displayed little trust in Indian market intermediaries. Parikh’s AMC, Parag Parikh Financial Advisory Services (PPFAS), was India’s youngest fund house, which focused on value investing, a trait made popular by legendary investor Warren Buffett. PPFAS was notable in that it had only one scheme – PPFAS Long Term Value Fund. “He brought good practices into broking and wealth management business. He extended this when he started the AMC business. These are all part of the financial services business,” said Anand Rathi, another longtime associate and past president of the BSE. watching such films – though not this one, which is about as enjoyable as a colonoscopy – comes from the origin story of the hero’s powers. “When science doesn’t have an answer,” explains the lab technician, espousing very little faith in her chosen field, “there is only one answer – God. It’s a miracle.” No, it’s a cop-out.
Greenpeace India faces shutdown as funds run out
G
reenpeace India’s executive director Samir Aich on Tuesday told staff members to start preparing for an imminent shutdown as the non-profit’s domestic accounts have been blocked by the government over alleged violations of India’s foreign exchange laws. We have one month left to save Greenpeace India from complete shutdown, and to fight MHA’s indefensible decision to block our domestic accounts,” Aich told colleagues, according to a statement from the non-profit. from the moment of its release it remains the gold standard for fantasy adventures.
Mr X then proceeds to take out out his enemies in a way he could just as easily have done in plain sight. A relentlessly humourless film, Mr X has no fun whatsoever with his invisibility. No punking is attempted, no crime is apprehended, and the few laughs you get are unintentional and caused by terrible actors attempting to mime strangulation by unseen hands.
No one had any such expectations of director Vikram Bhatt, a long-term practitioner of B-movies, but still, using the same plot device borders on sacrilege. And while watching his films for their craftsmanship is as absurd a notion as watching a Michael Bay movie for character development, Bhatt does, nonetheless, have a few preposterous yet entertaining thrillers under his belt. Sometimes featuring supernatural elements, and more often than not garnished with lashings of sleaze, his films pioneer the modern “horrex” Bollywood genre, combining horror and sex.
In 1987, long before he made the Oscar-nominated Elizabeth, Shekhar Kapur made the irrepressibly joyous Mr India, in which the eponymous hero could turn invi sible at will. Bursting with heart and soul, and a classic
As such, Mr X is a change of scene for him, in so much as it’s a family film, one you can can take your children to see – but only if they’ve done something to merit such a cruel and unusual punishment. -Review by Faiza S Khan
HOROSCOPE
VOICE OF ASIA 18
FRIDAY, May 8, 2015
Your Horoscope for the Week of May 8, 2015 READ YOUR COMPLETE HOROSCOPE
by Hardik Vyas, Astrologer Cell : 832-298-9950
ONLINE WWW.VOICEOFASIAONLINE.COM
Aries (A,L,E) 21 March to 20 April
Libra (R,T) 23 Sept to 22 Oct
Gambles of life, In your case, they are not really gambles but intuitive insights. Your careful research and caution make falling in love, dealing with children, or expressing a talent, secure areas of your life. Ideal financial conditions could seem elusive, right now. You may think that someone who should want to cooperate has undermined your position with a public event. Let others take the glory, if that is the issue. You may have other papad to fry and can go on to other projects with ease once you’re really willing to let go the present.
Tread lightly on weakened personal & professional relationships. People at a distance may hurt your pride. Some may disapprove with your tactics, and will clearly let you know, how they feel. Don’t try to take on everybody by yourself. Group projects may require the use of kid gloves. Emotions & feelings will interfere with your ability to bring people closer together. You need to take a closer look in the mirror & face your own personal challenges. Recognize your abilities and follow your dreams.
Scorpio (N,Y) 23 Oct to 21 Nov
Taurus (B,V,U) 21 April to 20 May Keep yourself grounded & realistic. Don’t sell yourself short. You are in the company of people who think the world of you. You’ll regain a measure of control over your life by being more confident in who you are. Your behavior will be understood by those who know you and love you. Seek their help to get yourself back on track. Accepting help doesn’t mean that you’re doing a bad job on your own, everyone can always stand a little improvement in their methods.
Trust your gut instincts & be aware of your own power and effectiveness. Some situations in your personal life may be trying, to say the least. Try not to let them to make you feel down. speak to someone impartial & get their perspective. Don’t allow expectations of family members to apply undue pressure on you. If you lose your focus, you could get careless. You will be effective in projects that you are able to promote on an international level. Partners could be important to the kind of success that will put your creative ideas on the map.
Sagittarius (BH,F,DH,TH) 22 Nov to 21 Dec
Gemini (K,CHH,GH) 21 May to 20 June Attain perfection, or your version of perfection. Just when you think you have the ability to control your own destiny, things will start to erode slightly. Prepare to deal with the consequences of getting involved in someone else’s personal problems. You may be driven you to take chances that you normally wouldn’t even consider, otherwise. Let your basic grasp of cause and effect be your guiding light, for the moment. The circular nature of events will shed light on your past mistakes.
Business, romance, and playful games, All of which should prove to be deeply satisfying experiences. Nothing can stand between you and what you want. You have an exciting chance to express a more compassionate, caring and nurturing part of yourself. You words will be well heeded. Romance may sweep you off your feet, and you may feel loved and cared for. Emotional highs are certainly welcome. Find a way to create excitement in your social and public life.
Capricorn (KH,J) 22 Dec to 20 Jan
Cancer (D,H) 21 June to 22 July Tremendous opportunities at a distance, that had been almost overlooked. Traveling to distant shores may provide a particular kind of emotional security, but you may need to wait for a better time to travel. Communicate your plans & get started on your future agenda. This way, you’ll be able to put additional points in the bank and that will provide you with bigger dividends later on. Your creative fire will blaze brightly. This is a time of breakthrough and personal triumph. Experience is the best teacher for you right now.
Awakening of your spiritual ties. Your psychic energy will be very strong. Predictions can influence your current reality without really overriding it. You may think that you need to keep peace, at any price. Be willing to walk away from events that require any physical force. Lead the way by simply doing what you do best. Your ultimate stroke of charm is your ability to laugh at yourself. Just a few words from you can make all the difference to those you love.
Aquarius (G,S,SH) 21 Jan to 19 Feb
Leo (M) 23 July to 22 August Conserve your energy for important tasks to structure new public and career projects. Investments and gambles may not pay off. If you’ve recently been disappointed in romance, felt abandoned, you may act in a way that you’ll regret later. Organizational discussions may not go well, either. You may be tempted to say some things you’ll wish you hadn’t. Be objective and try to understand how others might react to your actions. Show your compassion and utilize your sense of humor. Persevere in the face of apparently overwhelming odds.
Use your powers of persuasion to influence other’s ideas. Don’t be shy about expressing your opinions. Value the things that you have to offer to important public projects. Go full steam ahead with important projects, especially those that may lie at a distance from your present locale. There may be something you need to prove to yourself. Any work that you do now will be touched by your sincerity. Your present actions are destined to become the stuff that memories are made of.
Pisces (D,CH,Z) 20 Feb to 20 March
Virgo (P) 23 August to 22 September Keep up with everyone else’s expectations. You may need to curb some activities so you don’t spread yourself too thin. Don’t get lazy at the wrong moment. Encourage your partners to go forward with exciting and challenging plans. Your home may be a haven that enables you to express the best of your ideas and intellect. Set high goals and know that you’ll hit the bull’s-eye. Do something special for yourself. If others are involved, so much the better, but you don’t really need others to enjoy yourself. Quality time comes in all shapes, sizes, and colors. Children & elder family members will require your attention.
QR
An emotional meltdown, either yours or someone else’s, close to you. Use any stress reduction techniques you can, to help keep your cool. Take a break from what you’ve been doing, and check in with your partner before going any further. Language & communication are tools you can use with great skill and power. If others aren’t prepared to give you what you deserve, reach out and take it for yourself. Celebrate your genius, even if you have to do it alone. Find and maintain your natural rhythm. You don’t need to have an extreme experience in order to be motivated. Emotions can be almost ‘immature’ around you and your patience is in the crapper
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Part Time Accountant Property Management Company in Houston is looking for a part-time accountant with the following qualifications: • Degree in Accounting or Business preferred. • Must have good working knowledge of Quickbooks and Excel. • Experience in generating financial reports & bookkeeping. • Other duties as assigned. Good compensation for an experienced person
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MANAGEMENT TIP OF THE DAY FROM HBR.ORG Define What a Meaningful Job Means to You To build a career that you love—not just enjoy—figure out what matters most to you. Think through a day or week at work. What made you most happy? What was most frustrating? Come up with a few hypotheses about what is most meaningful to you: I want a job where I create something that people can use every day. I want a job with enough flexibility so I can pick up my kids from school. I want a job where I’m directly interacting with people in need. Test your hypotheses. Convince your manager to let you work remotely for a month, take on a new assignment that involves new skills, or sign up for a cross-company initiative. Look outside your company too. Join industry groups, go to conferences, or volunteer. Find people who are doing what you think you want to do and ask them questions. Adapted from “How to Build a Meaningful Career” by Amy Gallo.
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KTRK-TV, and ABC owned station in Houston, TX has an opening for a part time Non-Linear News Editor. Candidates should have experience in editing on non-linear systems as well as knowledge of the Digital Newsroom and understanding of the digital workflow for broadcast news, in a deadline intensive environment. Serious candidates should also have a working knowledge of a server based digital media workflow. Candidates should be able to edit in deadline situations, be creative, precise and be able to work fast. You must be able to take direction, and be a “Team Player” who is not afraid of an intense news environment. Hours will vary depending on the needs of the department, so flexibility to work a varied schedule is required. Candidates must apply on-line at www.disneycareers.com by uploading a resume file, cover letter and list of references. Interested applicants should also send video tape sample of your work to: Human Resources, KTRK-TV, 3310 Bissonnet, Houston, TX 77005. Please Reference Job ID: 268732BR on all materials submitted. Equal Opportunity Employer – Female/ Minority/ Veteran/ Disability. No Telephone Calls.
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Digital Account Manager KTRK-TV, the ABC/Walt Disney Company owned station has an opening for a Digital Account Manager. The ideal candidate will be passionate about technology, excel in a team environment and have a history of delivering on and exceeding revenue goals in the digital space. Responsible for prospecting, selling, developing, and expanding the digital client base for KTRK. Drives new and incremental revenue and regularly meets pre-established activity and results quotas. Monitors and evaluates competitive media spending for sales categories. Works with moderate guidance in own area of knowledge.
Core Responsibilities Create / implement own sales pipeline to prospect and create leads, outbound activity, prioritization and metrics for measurement of progress. Continuously develop and strengthen an extensive set of relationships at the agency level, client level, VP and Director-levels across companies and across industry categories Create and execute deal metrics while managing communication of contract summaries for key stakeholders. Seek to understand and analyze prospective accounts’ advertising and marketing needs while consultatively recommending appropriate advertising solutions; consult, quote rates and schedule online advertising. Create and Maintain complete records on active and historic advertiser activity within our CRM. Stay ahead of industry changes and trends as they pertain to accounts and digital products. Understand the current marketplace as well as competitive strengths/weaknesses to monetize opportunity. Prospecting, developing and selling KTRK’s suite of digital media products to clients direct and through digital agencies. Work closely with internal support teams. Coordinates implementation of interactive programs with sales, marketing/promotions and creative services. Completes required documentation and reporting for the proper processing of contracts, advertising schedules and client invoicing. Sales travel is involved when needed. Excellent verbal and written communication skills. Impeccable time management and organizational skills. Excellent knowledge of digital solutions and understanding of consumer behavior across multiple media channels. Assembly, delivery and interpretation of monthly customer reports and campaign optimization. Other duties and responsibilities as assigned.
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Bachelor’s Degree or Equivalent Generally requires 2-4 years related digital sales experience for a digital publisher, network, DSP or digital agency preferred High level of sales maturity with emphasis on digital, social media and solution selling Strong understanding of the entire digital media ecosystem from publisher to advertiser Comprehensive knowledge of online advertising, creative units/executions and current competitive landscape Working knowledge of standard 3rd party industry measurement Demonstrated record of success for new business development Works well within a team and individually Excellent verbal, written and interpersonal communication skills A clear understanding of digital media advertising processes and industry terms including campaign metrics Ability to provide strategic and creative direction across all digital platforms (desktop, mobile, social, search listings, and programmatic buying) for client Proficient with Microsoft Office and CRM tools; Google Analytics experience a plus IAB Digital Media Sales Certification preferred To be considered all nterested candidates must apply on-line at www.disneycareers.com by uploading a resume file, cover letter and list of references. Reference Job ID: 268122BR. Equal Opportunity Employer – Female/ Minority/ Veteran /Disability. No Telephone Calls.
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