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Biden surges past Sanders in Democratic race as Bloomberg exits

Sri Kulkarni secures Democratic nomination for TX CD-22 A total of 14 Asian Americans win Super Tuesday elections in Houston area, 11 in Democratic Party and 3 in Republican

by Shobana Muratee

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Democratic presidential candidate Joe Biden, flanked here by his wife, Jill, notched up an impressive slate of wins on Super Tuesday (AFP Photo/Frederic J. Brown)

by Chris Lefkow

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ASHINGTON | AFP | Wednesday 3/4/2020 -Joe Biden, counted out just days ago, was in control of the race for the Democratic

presidential nomination on Wednesday after racking up stunning primary victories over Bernie Sanders and earning the endorsement of deep-pocketed billionaire Michael Bloomberg.

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resident Donald Trump hailed the “incredible comeback” of the 77-year-old former vice president in the Super Tuesday contests and Continued on Page 2

O U S T O N 3/4/2020 - Following a historically high turnout for the Democratic primary in Texas, Sri Preston Kulkarni has won the Democratic nomination for Texas’ 22nd congressional district with 54% over his party candidates former Pearland city council member Derrick Reed and attorney Nyanza Davis Moore, according to unofficial results. Previously the 2018 Democratic nominee, in that contest Kulkarni came within 4.9 percentage points of unseating now retiring Representative Pete Olson.

Vying for the same congressional seat, Republicans Troy Nehls and Kathaleen Wall will face a runoff election May 26. Nehls, received 41% of the vote while Wall received 19%, just enough to face a runoff. Meanwhile, Sri will be preparing to face the Republican nominee who

Sri Preston Kulkarni (Campaign photo via Facebook) will be decided by a runoff election.

Sri Preston Kulkarni is the son of an Indian immigrant father and a mother whose family descends from Sam

IACCGH 10th Annual Tax Seminar features Houston’s leading CPA’s

Houston. Kulkarni is a former Foreign Service Officer who served fourteen years overseas in places like Iraq, Russia, and Jerusalem, and as a former Defense, Foreign Policy and Veteran

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The task force is led by Secretary of Health and Human Services Alex Azar, and is coordinated through the National Security Council.

In a tweet on Monday,

KAUSHAL PATEL A SSOCIATES

F ORENSIC D ATA C ONSULTANT

Continued on Page 2

Indian-American Seema Verma appointed key member of US COVID-19 task force ASHINGT O N : | 3/3/2020 - Indian-American Seema Verma has been appointed as one of the key members of the White House Coronavirus Task Force constituted by US President Donald Trump to combat the deadly disease that has claimed six lives in the country and infected over 90 others.

Trump on January 30 created the coronavirus task force to lead his administration’s response to the deadly virus that emerged in China and has wrecked havoc across the globe.

L to R: Bhavna Kalyan, Jagdip Ahluwalia, Tarush Anand, Swapan Dhairyawan, Tupil Narasimhan, Imtiaz Munshi, Kershaw Khumbatta, Mahesh Desai and Ramesh Cherivirala. Photo credit: Bijay Dixit

Affairs Advisor to Senator Kristen Gillibrand (D-NY).

Kulkarni has been endorsed

by Representatives Sylvia Garcia (TX-29), Joaquin

Administrator at Centers for Medicare & Medicaid, Seema Verma during TIME 100 Health Summit in New York City. (Photo: Brian Ach/Getty Images).

US Vice President Mike Pence announced the appointment of Seema Verma, Administrator for the Centers for Medi-

care & Medicaid Services (CMS), and Robert Wilkie, Secretary for the Continued on Page 3

ABFE FELLOW

OP-ED/COMMENTARY/ANALYSIS

VOICE OF ASIA 2

by Grady Means

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potentially brilliant foreign policy strategy unfolded last week during President Trump’s trip to India.

Hardly anyone in America knows that, or has been talking about it, because it’s hard to find a journalist who filed an interesting or insightful story from New Delhi.

Trump’s visit to India reflected a complex approach for strengthening America’s hand in South Asia and triangulating Russia, China and India in Central Asia. But, rather than assessing what was happening on this trip from a geopolitical perspective, most journalists subjected Americans to a predictable Trump-diminishing snarkfest. A central storyline was that Trump flew halfway around the world to get the adulation of 100,000 Indians in a cricket stadium, broadcasted back to the U.S. at 3 a.m. Eastern time. Pseudo-psychologist commentators branded the trip an effort to “seek adulation” and “a sightseeing tour.”

But, as they like to say, here is the breaking news: Any day of any week, Trump could fill stadiums from Cleveland to Dallas with 100,000 cheering Americans who actually could vote for him, rather than flying a grueling 20 hours to India for affirmation. Actually, global power politics took place under the noses of an evidently clueless press corps and major agreements were discussed that could change the balance of power in

FRIDAY, March 06, 2020

Trump’s namaste magic in India eludes American media

Photo: Getty Images

Asia.

Perhaps these media members might have considered context.

Just before Trump left for India, the U.S. reached agreement on a ceasefire and potential peace framework with the Taliban in Afghanistan, hopefully bringing to a close the longest military conflict in American history. As anyone knows who has followed the war post-9/11, the ants at the picnic for any lasting deal with the Taliban are the Pakistanis and their Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) agency. These are the folks who harbored Osama bin Laden, have provided cover and aid for the Taliban, and deceived President Obama’s military and diplomatic leaders while gulling them for billions of dollars in aid.

Having concluded an initial deal with the Taliban, Trump likely wanted to send a message to the Pakistanis that America is creating deals with their rival India, and that bond will only strengthen if the ISI disrupts progress toward peace.

The Indian intelligence service, the Research and Analysis Wing (RAW), is also active in Afghanistan and has leverage that might be used to support peace in the region. Certainly the Taliban came up during the president’s conversations — but the stories filed by the U.S. press demonstrated no curiosity about this at all.

RAW is especially active in Balochistan, a region where Russia has always sought influence in its quest for warm water

ports. We know Russia came up in the context of arms sales.

Over the past 15 years, the U.S. has allowed Russia to expand influence in the region as a principal arms supplier to India. The Obama administration’s efforts to court Pakistan, and Obama’s aggressive campaign to curry favor across the Muslim world, handicapped any real opportunity to challenge Russian influence. But Trump’s new arms deal with India may be a useful step toward establishing real American influence in this critically strategic part of the world.

All extremely important, but instead we got press coverage of monkeys at the Taj Mahal.

The takeaway from the president’s India trip is the same as these other examples: The quality of much of American journalism has been hollowed out by “journalists” who rely on cheap shots and snarky comments about Trump, rather than getting real, insightful stories.

In India, Trump received namaste — he deserved it. Many clueless American members of the press will never understand why.

Grady Means is a writer and former corporate strategy consultant.

- The Hill

Sri Kulkarni Biden surges past Sanders in Democratic race as Bloomberg exits secures Democratic Continued from Page 1 in his home town of Burlington, her poor performance on Super Vermont, where the self-de- Tuesday, when she failed to win nomination directed a stream of insults at scribed democratic socialist got a single state.

Bloomberg after the fellow New his start in politics as mayor four “She will make her own deciYorker ended his campaign. for TX CDdecades ago. sion in her own time,” he said.

Sanders, 78, the leftist senator “I have every reason to beAsked about the withdrawfrom Vermont, expressed confi- lieve that we’re going to win this al of former New York mayor 22 dence in his chances of winning thing,” Sanders said. “I firmly be- Bloomberg from the race and Continued from Page 1

Castro (TX-20), Tony Cárdenas (CA-29), Ted Lieu (CA-33), Lucille Roybal Allard (CA-40), Raja Krishnamoorthi (IL-8), Tom Malinowski (NJ-7), Ro Khanna (CA-17), and Nick Lampson (Ret. TX-22). Kulkarni has also earned the coveted endorsement of the AFL-CIO TGC, End Citizens United, Houston Chronicle, Asian American Action Fund, and GLBT Caucus.

Sonia Rash, Democratic candidate for Fort Bend County Attorney secured 37.8% and will face a runoff. Democratic candidate Surendran K. Pattel, running for Fort Bend County District Court 505 received 30.3% of the vote and will also head for a run off.

Open letter

Indo-American Association of Houston (IAA)

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ounded in 1993, The Indo-American Association of Houston (IAA) is a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization which promotes the cultural arts of the Indian subcontinent in the American context. IAA has been lauded as being one of the first Indian arts organization to earn recognition amongst mainstream non-profit organizations as an equal.

Recently, a new organization using the name SIA has been promoting shows similar to IAA events at many of the same venues used by IAA. SIA also is using the exact same telephone number IAA has used for years to promote its events.

IAA is not associated with or in any way connected to SIA. IAA continues to enthrall Houston audiences with spectacular events as it has, for the past 27 years.

IAA proudly launched its 2020 season with Javed Siddiqui’s play “Hum Safar” starring Harsh Chhaya and Lubna Salim at the beautiful Zilkha Hall, Hobby Center to a packed audience on Friday, February 21st.

Our offerings for 2020 include something for everyone: Masala Jazz: A fusion of Raga and Jazz featuring Garaj Mahal, Friday, March 27, at Wortham Center Sakhi: A tapestry of love and friendship through dance and music, Saturday , April 11, at Stafford Centre of Performing Arts Penn Masala – A Capella, Fri-

day April 24, at Zilkha Hall, Hobby Center From Khayal to Thumri: Vidushi Kaushiki Chakraborty, Thursday May 14, at Stafford Centre of Performing Arts Yahoo! – A Niche entertainment production on the Karishma of Shammi Kapoor, Sunday, May 31 at Cullen Performance Hall Classical, Bollywood & Beyond: Dr. L Subramaniam & Kavita Krishnamurti, Saturday, July 11 at Stafford Centre of Performing Arts Thari – The Loom: in collaboration with the Asia Society, Friday July 24 & Saturday July 25 at Asia Society Nashili Peshkash…A True Khazana: Vatsala Mehra, Saturday August 1 at Stafford Centre of Performing Arts Shanti Dhwani: Pt. Partha Bose promoting peace and non-violence, Saturday August 22 at MATCH Houston Soulful Strings, Soulful Voice: Ustaad Shujaat Khan, Saturday September 12, at Stafford Centre of Performing Arts.

We hope that the above resolves any confusion that may exist amongst our sponsors, patrons and audience. The all-voluntary Board of Directors invites you to join us for the 2020 season and beyond, and we hope to see you at the Wortham Center on March 27th!

For more information on IAA and its upcoming events visit www.iaahouston.com

Other Asian Americans who won in the Democratic primary are: Kathy Cheng, who had a landslide victory as the Democratic Candidate for TX Supreme Court Pl. 6 with75% of the vote, according to unofficial results, and Tina Clinton, running for Texas Court of Criminal Appeals Pl. 4 finished with 80% of the vote.

Democratic candidate for congressional District 2 Sima Ladjevardian will faceoff against Elisa Cardnell in runoff elections in May 26 elections against Republican U.S. Rep. Dan Crenshaw for congressional Texas District 2.

Democrats Suleman Lalani and L. “Sarah” DeMerchant will be on their party’s runoff ballot in May. Lalani garnered 31.68%, or 4,419 votes; while DeMerchant received 29.58%, or 4,126 votes.

Democratic Candidate for Fort Bend County Constable Pct. 4 Nabil Shike won with 51% of the vote over challenger Joseph Villarreal.

Republican candidates Jacey Jetton, Texas House District 26, received 41% will run off with Matt Morgan (will be on the Republican runoff ballot in May), Tom Virippan (Texas House District 27) with a 54.11% win, and J. J. Clemence (Fort Bend County Tax Assessor-Collector) got 24.6% for a May runoff with James Pressler.

Incumbents Gene Wu (Texas House District 137), Hubert Vo (Texas House District 149) and R.K. Sandill (Harris County District Judge, #127th JD) did not have any primary opponents on Super Tuesday.

In general, across the Greater Houston area, 11 Asian American Democratic candidates won out of 19 races in total (or 58%).

Three Asian American Republican candidates won out of 13 candidates trying to secure a win or run-off (23%).

the nomination despite being “disappointed” with his showing on Tuesday, when the centrist Biden won at least 10 of the 14 states at stake.

“We go forward basically neck and neck,” Sanders told reporters

lieve that we are the campaign to defeat Donald Trump.”

Sanders said he had spoken with fellow progressive candidate Elizabeth Warren and the senator from Massachusetts was “assessing” her campaign following

his endorsement of his opponent, Sanders said he expected to see “a lot of money coming into the Biden campaign.”

“It’s about defeating Donald Trump, and with your help, we’re gonna do it.”

VOICE OF ASIA

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FRIDAY, March 06, 2020

COMMUNITY Second Front Page

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World renowned Yoga guru Swami Ramdev to visit Houston A 3-day Therapy Session with the Guru in June from 18 - 20, 2020 ic research and treatment with Yoga, spiritualism and Ayurveda, and cater to about 10,000 patients every day.

by Manu Shah

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ouston is priming up to welcome the most prominent face of Yoga.

Since 2008, under the guidance of Swami Ramdev, Patanjali Yogpeeth (USA) Trust has conducted 12 Yoga Teacher training workshops in cities across the US and trained more than 700 teachers. Many Patanjali Yoga teachers conduct free yoga classes in temples and community centers.

Patanjali Yogpeeth USA President Shekhar Agrawal recently announced that none other than Yogrishi Swami Ramdev himself will be in Houston on the 18th, 19th and 20th June to personally conduct a 3-day Yoga Chikitsa (Therapy) and Meditation Camp at the George R. Brown Convention Center in downtown Houston.

The last time Swami Ramdev held a camp in Houston was in 2008 where more than 3,000 people attended the 5-day yoga session. A recent survey revealed that there are 40 million “yogis” in the US and the number is growing exponentially. The resounding interest in the practice of yoga since June 21 was declared the International Day of Yoga in 2015 is expected to attract substantially more crowds this time.

Organizers say the camp will include pranayama (breathing techniques) asanas (physical poses) for fitness and meditation to declutter the mind. This will be done through demonstrations, guided practice and commentary by Swami Ramdev. Trained yoga teachers and interpreters on the floor will assist the attendees in following the exercises.

For over three decades, Swami Ramdev, with his supple body and gravity defying poses, has been guiding legions of people to take charge of their health with the practice of yoga. Millions of people flock to his yoga camps or tune in to his YouTube videos or daily telecasts to follow his simplified instruc-

Scientific research is now backing

what Swami Ramdev has been saying all along. “Good health, he is fond of quoting, is the birthright of every human being and yoga and meditation can make the world disease-free.” With this goal in mind, the organizers are encouraging yoga aspirants to take full advantage of the three day camp that is “scientific, secular and universal” and use this tool to transform one’s own health.

For more details, visit www.pyptusa. com or contact Shekhar Agrawal at pyptusa@gmail.com

Indian-American Seema Verma ...

Continued from Page 1 Department of Veterans Affairs, to the task force.

Swami Ramdev held a camp in Houston in 2008 where 3,000 people attended. File photo. tions in their own living rooms. Steeped in ancient yoga wisdom, he has helped millions cure themselves of various ailments and if not cure, at least, control their blood pressure, diabetes, asthma, obesity and medication by practicing yoga, natural healing and herbal remedies.

Patanjali Yogpeeth USA will be working in unison with other organizations in the city to reach out to a wider section of yoga seekers and enthusiasts so they can obtain the benefit of Swami Ramdev’s presence in Houston.

The 5000 year old practice, according to Swami Ramdev, can play a critical part in shaping a healthy body and mind and calls for no expensive equipment other than the willingness of an individual to practice it consistently. Incidentally, this Brand Ambassador of yoga hasn’t missed a single day of practice since he was 9 years old. His Divya Yog Mandir Trust and Patanjali Yogpeeth in Haridwar, India, established in 1995 and 2006 respectively, along the banks of the holy river Ganga, are world renowned institutions for scientif-

“The White House Coronavirus Task Force has been working every single day to ensure the health, safety & well-being of the American people,” he tweeted.

“Today, we made good progress in combatting the spread of the Coronavirus and added key members, @SeemaCMS and @SecWilkie, to the Task Force,” he said.

All the six deaths in the US are from the Washington state with 43 domestic cases and 48 cases of the individuals who returned to the US, officials said on Monday.

Trump along with Pence reviewed the situation at the White House on Monday with top health officials and those leaders from the pharma corporate sector who are working on either vaccine or therapeutics

for the COVID-19.

Responding to her appointment, Verma said that in efforts to address the potential spread of the coronavirus, it is the time for healthcare facilities to redouble their erfforts on keeping patients safe from infections of any kind.

“Thank you @POTUS Trump, @VP Pence, & @SecAzar for the opportunity to serve America’s patients & represent the @CMSGov perspective, which focuses on enforcing essential health and safety standards in America’s healthcare facilities and protecting patients,” she tweeted on Monday.

“As a reminder, facilities are required to comply w/ Medicare’s infection control practices. For #COVID19, we encourage you to take necessary precautions, as recommended by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC),” she said.

VOICE OF ASIA 4

Section 2

Family Health

Email: voiceasia@aol.com

5 things you can discuss with US Supreme your primary care physician Court to review Obamacare law

Don’t Be Afraid to Ask

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ASHINGTON | AFP | - The US Supreme Court on Monday agreed to once again review former president Barack Obama’s signature health care law, the target of repeated political and legal challenges over the past decade.

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UGAR LAND— (March 2, 2020) — When you’re not feeling well, a primary care physician (PCP) helps you get back on your feet — but that’s not all they can do. Your PCP gets to know you, your family and your health history, and can do a lot more for your health than you may realize.

“There’s a lot to gain from building a good relationship with a doctor you trust — and doing so can also help you make the most of your health care visits,” said Johneca R. Broussard, M.D., board-certified family medicine physician with Houston Methodist Primary Care Group in Riverstone. Don’t hesitate to ask your PCP for advice about anything related to your health and well-being. Here are some examples: Talk about mental health. PCPs are trained to do mental health assessments and provide treatment for depression and anxiety, including prescribing medications and helping you find a counselor or therapy program. “It’s important to tell your doctor if you’re feeling sad, depressed or overwhelmed by stress or anxiety,” Broussard said. “You can feel better with treatment, and it starts by having a simple conversation with your doctor.”

Make a plan to reach a healthy weight. Your PCP can help you get started with a nutrition plan or weight loss program. Keep in mind, your doctor is not there to judge you if you’ve put on a few pounds. The goal is to offer advice and help you understand

Johneca R. Broussard, M.D. your risks.

Find support to quit smoking. If you’ve been unsuccessful quitting before, your PCP can help you with solutions. “Ask your doctor about medications, local support groups, like Beat the Pack®, and other tools to help you reduce or stop smoking,” Broussard said.

Ask about sexual health. It’s important to speak openly about sexually transmitted diseases, sexual dysfunction and other sensitive topics. The conversations you have with your doctor are private, and your doctor will not share information with anyone unless you say it’s OK. Get referrals to specialists, if needed. Making an appointment with a specialist can be costly and may involve a long wait. Your PCP can make the process easier by finding the right specialist for you, and in some cases, you may be able to avoid a specialist visit if the condition can be treated by your PCP. To schedule an appointment with Johneca R. Broussard, M.D., or another primary care physician with Houston Methodist Primary Care Group, visit houstonmethodist.org/pcg/southwest or call 832.416.1678.

The top court, which had upheld the law in 2012 and 2015, will examine a suit brought by Democrats seeking to counter lower court rulings that put in question the law’s constitutionality.

The nine justices will hear arguments in the case sometime in the fall and reach a decision in 2021, after the US elections in November in which health care is a major issue.

Enacted in 2010, the Affordable Care Act is one of the most ambitious in the history of the US health care system.

In its original form, it required Americans to buy health insurance or face a financial penalty.

It also required insurance companies to offer policies to any potential client, regardless of the state of their health.

The law enabled some 20 million previously uninsured Americans to become insured, in a country where the cost of medical care is extremely high.

But Republicans from the start have regarded the obligation to provide insurance as an abuse of government power.

Since his arrival in the White House, Donald Trump has frequently attacked Obamacare, suffering a major setback in 2017 when Congress, by a razor-thin margin, refused to repeal the law.

www.voiceofasia.news

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FRIDAY, March 06, 2020

Tel: 713-774-5140

CMS Develops New Code for Coronavirus Lab Test

he Medicare claims processing system will be able to accept this code on April 1, 2020 for dates of service on or after February 4, 2020.

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) took further action to ensure America’s healthcare facilities and clinical laboratories are prepared to respond to the threat of the 2019-Novel Coronavirus (COVID-19). Specifically, CMS developed a new Healthcare Common Procedure Coding System (HCPCS) code for providers and laboratories to test patients for SARS-CoV-2. This code will allow those labs conducting the tests to bill for the specific test instead of using an unspecified code, which means better tracking of the public health response for this particular strain of the coronavirus to help protect people from the spread of this infectious disease.

Healthcare providers who need to test patients for Coronavirus using the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) 2019 Novel Coronavirus Real Time RT-PCR Diagnostic Test Panel may bill for that test using the newly created HCPCS code (U0001). The Medicare claims processing system will be able to accept this code on April 1, 2020 for dates of service on or after February 4, 2020. HCPCS is a standardized coding system that Medicare and other health insurers use to submit claims for services provided to patients.

CMS Prepares Nation’s Healthcare Facilities for Coronavirus Threat Under the leadership of President Donald Trump and Secretary of Health and Human Ser-

vices Alex Azar, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) is taking critical steps to ensure America’s health care facilities and clinical laboratories are prepared to respond to the threat of the 2019-Novel Coronavirus (2019-nCoV).

Specifically, CMS issued two memoranda to advise health care providers and State Survey Agencies (SAs), the entities that inspect healthcare facilities to ensure compliance with current CMS requirements and safety standards, with important information about infection control procedures and the use of certain laboratory tests. CMS is committed to the protection of patients and residents from the spread of infectious disease.

CMS issued two memoranda to advise health care providers and State Survey Agencies (SAs), the entities that inspect healthcare facilities to ensure compliance with current CMS requirements and safety standards, with important information about infection control procedures and the use of certain laboratory tests. CMS is committed to the protection of patients and residents from the spread of infectious disease.

Every Medicare participating facility in the Nation’s healthcare system must adhere to standards for infection prevention and control in order to provide safe, high quality care. The first memo provides information on infection control policies and practices. In addition, CMS urges SAs and health care facilities to review the information provided by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) to aid in self-assessment of infection control and emergency preparedness protocols.

Sudhir Mathuria HEALTHLIFE 360 713-771-2900

The memo also provides links to training and self-assessment tools for facilities to use as they review their processes and, if necessary, improve their practices.

CMS is authorized to ensure quality testing at laboratories under the Clinical Laboratory Improvement Amendments (CLIA) and provides guidance to laboratories to meet CLIA requirements to ensure that laboratories produce accurate, reliable and timely results while being responsive to the pressing needs of our health care providers. The second memo issued today notifies SAs about guidelines related to the use of a laboratory test for 2019-nCoV, authorized on February 4, 2020 by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), which has been deployed into CDC-qualified laboratories to test for 2019-nCoV. To select right Medicare Plan, Individual or Group Health Plan, or Long Term Care plan contact Sudhir Mathuria at 713-7712900.

Beat the Pack Program

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ouston Methodist Sugar Land Hospital is offering a unique program to help people quit smoking. The program is offered each quarter. Participants meet once a week for four weeks from 5:30-6:30 p.m. The next sessions are being held on April 8, April 15, April 22 and April 29. A trained facilitator provides tools, tips and support to help smokers create and follow through with their personalized “quit plan.”

Registration is required. For more information or to register, visit houstonmethodist.org/events and search for Beat the Pack, or call 281.205.4514.

FRIDAY MARCH 13, 2020 VENUE 10505 Cash Rd, Stafford, TX 77477 DINNER 6:00 PM - 7:30 PM PROGRAM 8:00 PM

VVIP/VIP

$75/$50 General

$35

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$25/$15

For Tickets Visit: https://www.ekal.org/houston/tickets For Information Call: Nikhil Mehta (832) 660-8008

Naren Chavda (832) 605-3436

Kokila Shah (832) 443-0997

Prakash Shah (281) 974-0805

Urmi Desai (832) 498-7759

Yogi Patel (713) 885-6241

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FRIDAY, March 06, 2020

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FRIDAY, March 06, 2020

IACCGH 10th Annual Tax Seminar features Houston’s leading CPA’s

Mahesh Desai CPA, being honored by IACCGH President Tarush Anand and past president Swapan Dhairyawan. Also seen is Executive Director Jagdip Ahluwalia. Photo by Bijay Dixit.

by Manu Shah

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OUSTON - The Indo American Chamber of Commerce of Greater Houston (IACCGH) hosted its 10th Annual IACCGH Tax Seminar. The Outreach Program was first launched during the term of leading CPA and IACCGH Past President Ajit Thakur for the benefit of the community at large.

Immediate Past President Swapan Dhairyawan, a well-known CPA himself, continued to organize and moderate the event with the support of local CPAs and Tax Consultants over the last decade at India House.

Initially, the focus was on American Tax Laws as they affected Indo Americans with overseas assets but over time, the event evolved in scope covering

changes in US Tax laws and how they affect American Tax payers and residents.

On Sunday 23rd February, 2020, four renowned CPAs shared the dais to present changes in tax laws through Power Point presentations. Imtiaz Munshi covered Tax Law Changes and Ownership of Shares abroad and Filing Requirement, Mahesh Desai also dealt with Tax Law Changes and

Moderator Swapan Dhairyawan with panelists Tupil Narasimhan, Imtiaz Munshi, Mahesh Desai, Kershaw Khumbatta. Photo by Bijay Dixit.

Overseas A/C Reporting and Compliance, Kershaw Khumbatta simplified the SECURE Act and outlined Retirement Plans while Tupil Narasimhan went over Qualified Opportunity Zones and FATCA Compliance. These Power Point presentations will soon be available on the Chamber website. (www.iaccgh.com). The seminar concluded with a Q & A session and a one-on-one consul-

tation with a CPA as required.

an Summer.

Earlier in the event, Executive Director Jagdip Ahluwalia opened the session while President Tarush Anand welcomed the over 120 attendees. The panelists were presented with special 10th anniversary mementoes. The event was sponsored by Ramesh Cherivirala of New York Life.

Refreshments were generously donated by Mahesh Shah of Indi-

Disclaimer: The seminar is for information purposes only and is not intended as tax advice.

For information on upcoming events hosted by the IACCGH, visit iaccgh.com. The next event is the Shell IACCGH Distinguished Lecture on March 30th featuring the new Consul General of India to Houston – Hon. Aseem Mahajan.

Golden Moon Festival - Gaura Purnima at ISKCON of Houston

by Monisha Yerram

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aura Purnima is a festival that commemorates the divine appearance of Chaitanya Mahaprabhu, an incarnate of Lord Krishna. This auspicious day, also known as the “Golden Moon Festival,” rep-

resents the significance of this divine Personality, the name of the festival portraying His beautiful “golden-like” bodily complexion.

Over 500 years ago, Chaitanya Mahaprabhu came to this earth with the sole purpose of spreading the holy names of Krishna and encouraging every individual to practice devotional service sincerely so that they can get the opportunity to gain mercy and enlightenment from the Lord. His teachings and devoutness are the foundation and origin for the Hare Krishna movement (ISKCON), attracting people across the globe to participate in the congregational chanting of the holy names, Hare Krishna Hare Krishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare.

This tradition of celebration has been set in this verse from the Srimad Bhagavatam, one of the most influential Puranas:

kṛṣṇa-varṇaṁ tviṣākṛṣṇaṁ sāṅgopāṅgāstra-pārṣadam yajñaiḥ saṅkīrtana-prāyair yajanti hi su-medhasaḥ Translation: In the Age of Kali, intelligent persons perform congregational chanting to worship the incarnation of Godhead who constantly sings the names of Krishna. Although His complexion is not blackish, He is Krishna Himself. He is accompanied by His associates, servants, weapons and confidential companions.

Devotees from all parts of the world faithfully observe this festival by first fasting throughout the day and only breaking it at moonrise, which symbolizes the time when Mahabraphu appeared in Mayapur, India. They offer different foods to the Deities on the altar, dance and sing during the melodious kirtan glorifying the holy names, and behold the abhishek, the ceremonial bathing of the Deities.

The festival also includes a wonderful discourse on the glories of Mahaprabhu, followed by delicious, free feast.

Please join us and participate in a rare opportunity to glorify Chaitanya Mahaprabhu and his many spiritual feats on March 9 at 7 pm! A cultural festival is also planned on Sunday, March 22nd at 5 PM. ISKCON of Houston is located at 1320 West 34th Street, Houston, TX 77018. Visit us at ISKCONHouston.org

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FRIDAY, March 06, 2020

AN ER VISIT RESULTS IN A SHOCKING DIAGNOSIS When Elaine Delira’s legs began to swell, the 44-yearold would never have guessed the cause. After checking in at the Emergency Center at Memorial Hermann Sugar Land Hospital, Delira underwent a full workup. Her blood work came back indicating she was anemic. A CT scan revealed a possible tumor.

The gastroenterologist on call ordered a colonoscopy.

“I was shocked,” says Delira.

“As I was waking up from the colonoscopy, I overheard the nurse speaking to my son, who was 19, saying they had found cancer. I was terrified. I had no idea. I had not noticed any blood in my stool. No i nd ic at ion of c a nc e r whatsoever.”

Delira was diagnosed with aggressive stage III colorectal cancer. The colonoscopy revealed a cancerous mass and cancerous cells also were found in the nearby lymph nodes.

removing it,” says Dr. Agarwal.

Because of the cancer’s location, Delira’s first surgery included rectum removal, hysterectomy and a temporary ileostomy.

“To allow her intestine to rest and heal, I performed a temporary procedure called a diverting loop ileostomy, through which stool could pass into her ileostomy bag,” said Dr. Agarwal.

“I overheard the nurse... saying they had found cancer.”

After being admitted to Memorial Hermann Sugar Land, Delira was treated by a multidisciplinary team that included Memorial Hermann affiliated medical oncologist Sanjay Sethi, MD, and colon and rectal surgeon Amit Agarwal, MD. The specialists developed a treatment plan that included chemoradiation, a combination of chemotherapy and radiotherapy, followed by two surgeries.

“We started Elaine on six weeks of chemoradiation therapy, to try to shrink the tumor before surgically

After her first surgery, Delira had two more rounds of chemot herapy before returning to the hospital for a reversal of her ileostomy and a biopsyto check for the presence of cancer cells. The biopsies came back benign with no signs of cancer. Delira was back at work two weeks later.

Delira appreciated the care and support she received throughout her cancer journey.

“When something like this happens, you are so scared. But everyone in the hospital was so supportive.

They helped put my mind at ease. I would have never made it without God, my family and my doctors,” she says.

rate among younger adults, leading the ACS, in 2018, to lower their recommended initial screening age from 50 to 45.* According to Dr. Agarwal, many in the medical community believe unhealthy eating and sedentary lifestyles are contributing to earlier development of colorectal cancers.

Check with your doctor to see if you should be screened for colorectal cancer. If you don’t have a doctor, we can help you find one.

Recommended Screening for Colorectal Cancer Lowered to Age 45

Schedule your screening online today. With just a few clicks, you can schedule and confirm your colonscopy at a Memorial Hermann location that is convenient to you.

American Cancer Society (ACS) research shows that colon and rectal cancer is occurring at an increasing

Go to cancer.memorialhermann.org/colon to select your location and choose your time.

Memorial Hermann Sugar Land 17500 West Grand Parkway South Sugar Land, TX 77479 281.725.5000 memorialhermann.org/sugarland

Due to recent changes in screening recommendations, please consult your insurance provider to confirm coverage if you are under the age of 50.

*

Amit Agarwal, MD

VOICE OF ASIA 9

Fort Bend View

FRIDAY, March 6, 2020

Section 2

Sugar Land, Katy, Stafford, Missouri City, Richmond, Rosenberg and Meadows Place

Email: voiceasia@aol.com

•

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Houston Methodist Sugar Land Hospital offers free cancer survivorship seminar

S

UGAR LAND, February 26, 2020 - Houston Methodist Sugar Land Hospital is offering a free seminar designed to help cancer survivors overcome the many challenges a cancer diagnosis brings.

The seminar – titled “Super Charged: Powering Your Way Through Your Cancer Journey” - is open to anyone who has experienced cancer, from those recently diagnosed to individuals who have completed treatment.

The seminar is scheduled from 8:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturday, May 2 at Audi Sugar Land, 10330 Highway 90A. Breakfast and lunch will be served, and each survivor may bring one caregiver.

“At Houston Methodist Sugar Land, we recognize that cancer survivorship begins at the moment of diagnosis and continues through treatment and beyond,” said Amy Sebastian-Deutsch, director of oncology and infusion services at Houston Methodist Sugar Land. “The journey is disruptive and involves a great number of emotional and physical challenges. But learning what to expect and how to

respond can be extremely powerful. With the proper information and support, survivors can take back control of their lives.”

The seminar will focus on the four key elements of cancer survivorship – physical, social, psychological and spiritual well-being.

The morning activities will begin with a panel discussion on managing the side effects of cancer treatment, featuring Kirtan D. Nautiyal, M.D., medical oncologist with Houston Methodist Oncology Partners at Sugar Land; Waqar Haque, M.D., radiation oncologist with Houston Methodist Radiation Oncology Group at West – Katy and Asha Wurdeman, D.O., palliative care specialist at Houston Methodist Sugar Land. The other morning session will focus on the financial and social implications of a cancer diagnosis, featuring Stephen King of King Insurance Services, Armando Barros, financial coach and Janice Suchtya, attorney.

After lunch, the seminar will include more intimate sessions on the emotional and psychological aspects of cancer, fea-

turing Michael Hack, clinical social work/therapist, LCSW, SAP, and an uplifting look at the critical role that spiritual strength can play in overcoming challenges, featuring Thomas Thompson, program director of hospital missions at Houston Methodist Sugar Land.

“The seminar is called ‘Super Charged’ because our goal is to help participants ‘rev their engines’ to deal with their diagnosis and discover ways that they can thrive despite their challenges,” said Sebastian-Deutsch. “We will give survivors and caregivers the tools and momentum they need to help them along their journey.”

Individual registration is required and space is limited. Sign up today by visiting events.houstonmethodist.org/ supercharged-sl or by calling 281.274.7500.

To learn more about Houston Methodist Cancer Center at Sugar Land, visit houstonmethodist.org/cancer-sl. For the latest news, events and information, visit our Facebook page at fb.com/methodistsugarland.

Katy ISD baseball coach recognized

by Positive Coaching Alliance

K

ATY, March 2, 2020 – High school and youth coaches from across the United States were recently recognized by the Positive Coaching Alliance (PCA) for teaching life lessons through sports, while also instructing players how to master and honor their sport. Out of 700 nominees that represented 44 of the 50 states, Katy High School Baseball Coach Tom McPherson, was recognized as one of the Double-Goal Coach Regional Winners!

The organization received nu-

merous nominations and letters of recommendation for Coach McPherson from the Katy ISD community. Among them submissions by students, parents and community members, a fine testament of the impact he has made on the athletes and their families.

Coach McPherson’s outward composure can come off as a calm and collected individual, but on the inside, many have said that he has a respect for the game and a passion to succeed

on and off the baseball field.

In his 42 years of coaching of which 32 have been at Katy High, he has obtained a wealth of knowledge in the sport that has resulted in more than 800 wins. He teaches the players that it’s okay to make mistakes, but it’s how you choose to react to those mistakes that make a difference.

“Every player is special and unique in their own way, and no two players are the same,” said Coach McPherson.

•

Tel: 713-774-5140

Fort Bend ISD Katy students spell their to host annual way to victory!

All Star Talent job fair, April 4

F

ORT BEND ISD, February 26, 2020 – Fort Bend ISD will host its seventh annual All Star Talent Draft job fair on April 4, 2020 at Constellation Field (1 Stadium Drive, Sugar Land, 77479).

Candidates may register on the FBISD Human Resources webpage. Registration will also be open at Constellation Field on the day of the event.

The District is seeking qualified and experienced individuals to join its team, and currently has openings for teachers, campus and District administrators, paraprofessionals, auxiliary support and central office staff.

Applicants are asked to bring multiple copies of their resumes and dress in business casual for the event. FBISD school and department administrators will be on site to interview applicants. Please keep in mind that this is an “adults-only” event.

“My goal is for them to be better athletes and even better people, and along the way, I want them to enjoy the game,” added McPherson.

In the coming weeks, PCA will select 25 national winners, who will each receive $1,000, a certificate from PCA, recognition on their website, newsletters and media campaigns, and an invitation to accept the honor at PCA’s National Youth Sports Awards and Benefit on Saturday, May 2, in California.

“Any sport can be a means for positive influence and personal development in its players. That’s why a coach plays a crucial role,” said Katy High School Athletic Coordinator and Football Coach Gary Joseph. “Coach McPherson has a unique way of helping his players reach their potential but at the same time ensure they love the sport,” added Coach Joseph.

The KHS Varsity Baseball

Left: Keerthana Krishnan (Beckendorff Junior High, Grade 8), was awarded Runner-Up. Right: Kunsh Kalra (Wilson Elementary, Grade 4) was the Spelling Bee Champion. (Photo: Katy ISD)

K

ATY - V-I-C-T-O-R-Y is an easy word for most of us to spell, but the simple word sounds perfect for Katy Independent School District Spelling Bee Champion, Kunsh Kalra, and Runner-up, Keerthanan Krishnan. The winning word was “lachrymose,” which Wilson Elementary Kunsh Kalra, spelled correctly without any reluctance.

Kunsh, a fourth grader at Wilson, went through a rigorous 11 rounds of competition to ultimately be recognized as the Katy ISD Spelling Bee Champion. Beckendorff Junior High eighth grader, Keerthana Krishnan, was named the Spelling Bee Runner-up with her last word being “cachinnate.”

team kicked off its season on Monday, February 24. Last season, they finished with a record of 24 wins, six losses and two ties.

“Spelling bees promote students to read at a deeper level, research new topics and broaden their horizons on different subjects. Our Katy ISD students spend several hours a day preparing for this competition, and it’s great to see the fruits of their hard work,” said Katy ISD Instructional Officer for Curriculum and Instruction, Lisa Wells. “Some students are returning competitors, who come back the next year with a higher self-confidence and improved public speaking skills,” added Wells.

Kunsh and Keerthana will represent Katy ISD at the Houston Public Media Regional Spelling Bee on February 29 at 1:30 p.m. in the Baylor College of Medicine Academy at James D. Ryan Middle School. The top two spelling champions will advance to the 93rd Scripps National Spelling Bee, which will take place, May 26-28, in Washington D.C. We wish them an A-D-V-A-NT-A-G-E-O-U-S competition!

VOICE OF ASIA 10

FRIDAY, March 6, 2020

HOLLYWOOD - BOLLYWOOD

Section 2 •

www.voiceofasia.news

•

Email: voiceasia@aol.com

US abortion ‘Sooryavanshi’ - Akshay Kumar thrills in drama among this new action-packed, anti-terror film favourites at Berlin filmfest

by Kit Holden

B

ERLIN | AFP | A US film about a teenage abortion is among the favourites ahead of awards night at the Berlin film festival on Saturday, as the annual event came under scrutiny over the issue of female representation.

An international jury led by British Oscar winner Jeremy Irons will dish out the top Golden and Silver Bear prizes at Europe’s first major cinema event of the year.

The 70th anniversary edition of the Berlinale, its first under new leadership, after former director Dieter Kosslick ended 18 years at the helm last year.

Of the 18 films in the running, Eliza Hittman’s “Never Rarely Sometimes Always” has emerged as a favourite among critics.

Sidney Flanigan plays a 17-year-old from Pennsylvania forced to travel to New York in order to abort an unplanned pregnancy.

Hailed for its empathy and emotion, female solidarity is at the heart of the film, in which male characters are marginalised and often predatory.

Bollywood actress Katrina Kaif arrives during the trailer launch of the upcoming action Hindi film ‘Sooryavanshi’ in Mumbai on March 2, 2020. (Photo: Sujit Jaiswal / AFP) The cop trio puts forward a grand entry and has resolved to fix the prevailing mayhem. (Image Credit: YouTube screengrab)

B

ollywood superstar Akshay Kumar’s upcoming film Sooryavanshi’s trailer is finally out. The trailer is a power-packed treat for fans of Akshay Kumar and has a patri-

otic fervour. The trailer features scenes of Akshay Kumar’s adrenaline-pumping stunts including bikes, helicopters and cars. Set in Mumbai, Akshay Kumar plays the role of Anti-terrorism squad

L

ONDON, United Kingdom | AFP | Monday 3/2/2020 - Britain’s Royal Mint on Monday unveiled a seven-kilogram gold coin with the highest face value in its 1,100year history in honour of the latest James Bond film.

The film’s success comes in the wake of a controversy earlier in the festival over Irons’ past comments on abortion and women’s rights.

At his opening press conference, the jury head was forced to clarify that he supported “wholeheartedly the right of women to have an abortion should they so decide”.

- #MeToo murmurs If she were to claim the Golden Bear, Hittman would be only the seventh woman to win the Berlinale’s top prize, and the first US director to do so in 20 years.

This year’s festival has seen simmering debate over women’s representation and the #MeToo movement, fuelled in part by news Monday of Harvey Weinstein’s conviction for rape and sexual assault.

New festival directors Carlo Chatrian and Mariette Rissenbeek also came under fire for picking one fewer female-directed film than in the previous year.

One competition film, “DAU: Natasha”, was widely slammed for an interrogation scene which included a graphic sexual assault.

Local newspaper Der Tagesspiegel said “DAU” was a “low point.”

The film has been directed by

Akshay Kumar has two other exciting films lined up for 2020 after Sooryavanshi, he will be seen in horror-comedy Laxmmi Bomb and he will be ending the year with historical drama Prithviraj based on the heroic Prithviraj Chauhan.

New seven-kilo gold coin unveiled to ‘Inside the Actors Studio’ host James Lipton dies aged 93 celebrate new James Bond film

Audiences and critics were particularly enthralled by an intense, single-shot scene in which Flanigan’s character answers personal questions at a clinic.

In a 2016 interview with the Guardian, Irons had said abortion “harms a woman” and that the church was “right to say it was a sin”.

head DCP Veer Sooryavanshi and he is entrusted with the responsibility of preventing the ‘biggest attack’ on Mumbai.

Rohit Shetty and has Katrina Kaif paired opposite Akshay Kumar, with Ranveeer Singh and Ajay Devgn starring in extended cameo appearances.

Sooryavanshi is slated to release worldwide on the 24th of March 2020.

James Lipton reportedly passed away at his New York home following a battle with bladder cancer (AFP Photo/Dimitrios Kambouris)

L

OS ANGELES | AFP | 3/2/2020 - James Lipton, the US actor-turned-academic who for decades interviewed Hollywood’s biggest A-listers as host of “Inside the Actors Studio,” has died at 93, the show’s network said Monday.

Lipton hosted the influential show for nearly 25 years, conducting hour-long interviews with silver-screen legends from Paul Newman and Dennis Hopper to Julia Roberts and Scarlett Johansson.

“Beloved Inside the #ActorsStudio host James Lipton has died at 93,” tweeted Ovation TV, an arts network that acquired the show last year when Lipton retired.

Lipton passed away Monday at his New York home following a battle with bladder cancer, his wife Kedakai Mercedes Lipton told The Hollywood Reporter and The New York Times.

The show was conceived as part of a program for drama students

at the New School in Manhattan, but the Bravo cable channel picked up the television rights.

Lipton focused on the craft of filmmaking and avoided straying into celebrity gossip.

Nominated for 21 Emmys, the show was praised for its stellar lineup and in-depth discussions, but drew criticism for an approach labeled sycophantic by some viewers.

Born in Detroit in 1926, Lipton embarked on an acting career in the 1940s, and later moved into writing and producing.

During a 2013 interview, Lipton described a brief period in his youth when he had worked as a pimp in Paris.

“We’ll miss him dearly, but we wish him peace as he arrives at those pearly gates. #RestInPeace” wrote Ovation TV. Lipton would finish his interviews by asking each famous guest to answer a series of identical questions, borrowed from

www. voiceofasia.news Read the latest articles and news on BOLLYWOOD /HOLLYWOOD & ENTERTAINMENT Visit : www. voiceofasia.news

The one-of-a-kind new coin celebrating the release next month of the 25th movie in the legendary franchise, “No Time To Die”, has a face value of £7,000 ($9,000, 8,000 euros).

At 185 millimetres in diameter, it is also the largest coin ever made by the Royal Mint, Britain’s official coin-maker.

The piece is engraved with an image of the fictional British spy’s favourite car -- an Aston Martin DB5 -- and its famous BMT 216A number plate surrounded by a gun barrel.

It is part of a collection of several coins and metal bars launched to mark the release of “No Time To Die”, which premieres in London later this month.

The ensemble includes gold coins weighing two kilograms, one kilogram and five ounces -- with face values ranging from £10 to £2,000 -- as well as a number of silver and other coins.

The mint did not release the price tag for the seven-kilo gold piece, but the recommended retail price of the two-kilo coin is an eye-watering £129,990.

Meanwhile the metal bars, which will be available in gold and silver, are set to have all of the 25 official James Bond film titles engraved on them.

“The design series focuses on

The piece is engraved with an image of the fictional British spy’s favourite car, an Aston Martin DB5. (AFP Photo)

iconic imagery from the Bond films,” designers Christian Davies and Matt Dent said in a statement.

“Finding the balance between design detail and what can be accomplished in production was a challenge, nowhere more so than the intricate spokes of the DB5’s wheel,” they added.

The latest instalment of the British spy saga, due to start hitting cinemas around the world in early April, sees Bond drawn out of retirement in Jamaica by his old friend and CIA agent Felix Leiter.

It is expected to be actor Daniel Craig’s last outing as 007, after starring in four previous fims.

LEISURE/LIFESTYLE

VOICE OF ASIA 11

Real-life ‘Rio’: near-extinct macaws return to Brazil

S

AO PAULO, Brazil | AFP | - In what could be the next sequel to the hit film series “Rio,” a group of near-extinct Spix’s macaws arrived in Brazil Tuesday in a bid to return them to their natural habitat.

The macaws arrived by plane in the northeastern state of Pernambuco, said Brazilian environmental agency ICMBio. It tweeted a picture of Environment Minister Ricardo Salles holding a cage carrying one of the birds, with the message: “They’ve arrived!”

The macaws will now be taken to a specially built facility in the city of Curaca, in neighboring Bahia state, said ICMBio, which is working on the project with a German conservation group, the

Feminist, fashionable and fighting for sustainability: India’s Anita Dongre

by Ammu Kannampilly

N

AVI MUMBAI, India | AFP | Monday 3/1/2020 - With stores in India and New York, multiple clothing brands and a global celebrity following, fashion designer Anita Dongre is a feminist powerhouse in a male-dominated industry. But her true ambition is to create an environmentally sustainable company, she says.

The bright blue parrots, which are extinct in the wild, shot to fame in 2011 with the animated film, featuring a Spix’s macaw that is raised in captivity in Minnesota and returns to Brazil to try to save his species.

In the real-life version, conservationists on both sides of the Atlantic collaborated to send 50 Spix’s macaws from Germany to Brazil, where the goal is to reintroduce them to the wild.

FRIDAY, March 6, 2020

Spix’s macaw couple Bonita and Ferdinand, pictured in 2014 at the ACTP wildlife conservation organization in Schoeneiche, eastern Germany (AFP Photo/Patrick PLEUL) Association for the Conservation of Threatened Parrots (ACTP).

“They will be prepared over the next few months for their resettlement and further life,” ACTP said on its website.

That includes 21 days of quarantine, followed by activities designed to help the birds adapt to the climate and survive in the wild, officials said.

Starting in 2021, a first group of them will be released into the wild. The rest will remain at the facility to breed.

“Sometimes I wish I could just give up design and focus on sustainability full-time,” the Mumbai-based Dongre tells AFP during an interview at her factory outside India’s financial capital.

“Time is running out. Climate change is right at our doorstep and we all have to do something,” says the 56-year-old, whose clothes have been worn by some of the world’s most high-profile women including

Anita Dongre surrounded by an artisan group. (Photo: AFP / Sajjad Hussain)

her belief that “economic empowerment is the only way a woman can assert herself”.

Besides producing five clothing lines, hand-crafted fine

The Spix’s macaw was declared extinct in the wild in 2000, the victim of poaching, habitat destruction and trafficking in exotic pets. Just 163 of them remain alive in captivity worldwide, according to ICMBio.

Americans wary of Facebook ‘power,’ survey shows

W

ASHINGTON | AFP | 3/2/2020 - A large majority of Americans believe Facebook has “too much power” but many would be disappointed if the social networking giant disappeared, a survey showed Monday.

The “tech trust survey” for online technology news magazine The Verge found 72 percent thought Facebook’s power was too extensive, even if their overall views of the company were mixed.

Nearly half of the 1,123 respondents expressed concerns over how Facebook handles private user data, the December survey

showed. But 55 percent said they would be disappointed if it disappeared.

There were a range of views, sometimes contradictory, on Big Tech, which has drawn increasing scrutiny for dominating key economic sectors, with antitrust probes in several parts of the world underway.

Roughly nine in 10 said they had “favorable” opinions of firms such as Google, Netflix and Microsoft. The percentage was 80 percent for Apple, 71 percent for Facebook and 61 percent for Twitter.

A majority said Google, Amazon, Microsoft and Apple had a

“positive” impact on society, but only 40 percent said the same for Facebook.

In the survey, 56 percent said the government should break up tech companies if they control too much of the economy. But fewer than half were aware that Google owns YouTube and that Facebook controls Instagram and WhatsApp. But strong majorities said they would be disappointed if Google, Amazon, Microsoft, Netflix or Apple disappeared.

Microsoft led the pack in the number of Americans who say they trust it, at 75 percent, with Amazon at 73 percent.

A stunning collection from Indian fashion designer Anita Dongre in New Delhi. (Photo: AFP / Sajjad Hussain)

Hillary Clinton, Kate Middleton, Ivanka Trump, Priyanka Chopra Jonas, and Beyonce.

Turning a company with an annual turnover of $105 million into a carbon-neutral enterprise is a daunting proposition, but Dongre has never been one to shy away from challenges.

When she started her business aged 23, armed with two sewing machines and a staff of two male tailors perched on the balcony of the bedroom she shared with her sisters, she was the first woman in her conservative family to work.

Today, she says that of all her accomplishments, she is proudest of her commitment that no woman seeking work will ever be turned away from the gates of the four-storey factory she runs.

“I see my journey reflected in theirs,” she says, emphasising

jewelry and accessories, her foundation provides training and jobs to more than 250 rural women, with plans to cover 30 villages by 2025.

- Greenwashing risks Feminist values have been at the heart of her brand: her clothing has always been size-inclusive, going up to an XXL. Even when she ventured into bridal wear, her advertising campaigns challenged traditional norms and featured women sporting tattoos, enjoying their wine, and paying for their weddings.

“It is very important for me to show a woman who is not coy or veiled -- someone bold and sassy. I was that girl. I drove a jeep. I proposed to my husband,” she says.

“The world has never been fair to women... and I am not

comfortable promoting regressive ideas to sell clothes,” she adds.

Her decision to focus on the urban professional woman has seen the brand reap dividends as female spending power increases in India.

“It’s so rewarding to walk into stores and meet the women who buy my clothes. When a customer tells me, ‘I wore your blazer to my first job interview 15 years ago and I got the job’, it’s thrilling,” she says.

She will need to rely on that goodwill to convince customers to shop in a wholly different way than they are used to: prioritising sustainability and slow fashion over instant gratification.

On the one hand, Dongre’s task has never been easier -when she spoke about environmentally-friendly design more than a decade ago, few paid attention. Today, she says drolly, “I am glad it’s finally fashionable to be green”.

On the other hand, greenwashing remains a huge risk, she explains.

“You can’t take a sustainable fabric, cover it with plastic sequins and still call it sustainable.”

She is the only Indian designer to join the Sustainable Apparel Coalition (SAC), a global alliance of retailers, brands, suppliers, campaigners and labour groups that provides members with the tools to measure the environmental impact of their activities.

The SAC is a non-binding organisation, meaning members are largely responsible for their own efforts towards sustainability and transparency.to support our efforts,” she says.

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FRIDAY, March 6, 2020

Tel: 713-774-5140

Talking about a menstrual revolution: Asia’s period problems

This picture taken on February 27, 2020 shows Olivia Cotes-James, founder of LUUNA Naturals, speaking during a workshop in Hong Kong. (Credit: AFP Photo)

by Liz Thomas

H

ONG KONG, China | AFP | Monday 3/2/2020 - Olivia Cotes-James wants us to talk about menstrual health.

Properly.

No more euphemisms, no more opaque marketing, no more superstitions, and no glossing over cramps, bleeding, or pain: Reframing current attitudes is vital for female empowerment and health, as well as the environment, says the 29-year-old founder of LUÜNA Naturals, which hails itself as Asia’s first period care company with an all-female leadership team.

She is not alone in wanting to change the conversation: Last year the UN warned that taboos around menstrual health were “disempowering” women worldwide, calling for action to end it.

“Period stigma is the biggest barrier to the global advancement of women,” agrees Cotes-James, adding: “Periods can still cause us to feel dirty, ashamed and frustrated. If menstrual taboos persist and society continues to devalue our fundamental female biology, what hopes do we have of ever being seen as equal?”

On average women will spend up to eight years of their lives on their period, according to UNICEF. They are vital to the continuity of the human race, but myths and misconceptions still dominate worldwide.

The arrival of menstrual cups, period underwear, which can remove the need for products entirely, and apps that track your cycle have led to a new culture of openness in a generation keen to verbalise the long-hidden realities of the female experience and reproductive rights -- from #MeToo and #ShoutYourAbortion, to miscarriage awareness campaign #Iamthe1in4 and #Trustaftertrauma, where women share their stories of obstetric violence.

Bloggers and vloggers lay bare the realities of how period products work on social media.

There is even a period emoji in the pipeline.

- Myths and Misogyny Normalising menstrual health can only be good for women’s overall health, says CotesJames, whose firm sells organic cotton pads, liners, and tampons, as well as medical grade silicone menstrual cups, but also works to help low income communities across Asia who don’t have access to safe, hygienic products.

She explains: “Instead of seeing menstruation as a powerful indicator of well-being we are taught to shun it. In doing so, we ignore vital signs of underlying health issues. For example, around 1 in 10 women have endometriosis, yet it still takes almost a decade on average to diagnose.

“A huge part of this is the fact that we don’t pay attention to telltale signs like how much

The Luüna Period Collective is a network of social initiatives across Asia whose staff and communities is supported with donations of period cups and menstrual health workshops.

blood we lose every month, or dismiss painful menstrual symptoms as normal because society has led us to believe that they are.”

Using a menstrual cup, could help women gauge if the amount of blood they lose falls within the normal range, she says, adding that open discussons about cramps, nausea, or pain, will help us understand whether there is an issue within our bodies.

In parts of Asia, the situation is even more complex for women as deeply ingrained cultural and religious beliefs often add another layer of restrictions on them.

In rural Nepal, women are still exiled to outhouses during their periods, despite the practice being illegal and resulting in deaths from exposure as well as sexual and animal attacks. In parts of South Asia, menstruating women are seen as unclean, spreading disease, and are forbidden from touching communal food, while across the region having a period renders people too impure to visit temples.

- Period plastic pollution -

WWW.VOICEOFASIA.NEWS

Even among tech-savvy professionals in city centres, myths persist -- some fear using tampons is akin to a sex act, others believe virgins cannot use menstrual cups or believe they cannot swim or exercise during their period.

LUÜNA takes a multipronged approach to tackling this: With offices in Shanghai, Hong Kong and Singapore, as well as London, the company hosts workshops, myth-busting meet-ups and frank discussions about period products, fertility, and menstrual health for women and men.

Its social impact arm, The LUÜNA Period Collective, collaborates with a network of local initiatives. For every cup sold, it donates one, but it also provides education in disadvantaged communities where poor sanitation, a lack of clean water, and restrictive cultural norms, add to the stigma.

“For us social impact is not a seasonal campaign, it’s at the core of what we do. Encouraging the use of plastic pads in low income communities does not solve period poverty, and it exacerbates another urgent issue -- plastic waste,” she says.

In the developed world, the average woman uses 11,000 disposable menstrual products over 30 years, according to the Women’s Environment Network. Switching to a cup, which could last up to ten years, would potentially save billions from landfill where they can take centuries to decompose.

- Fight for gender equality Born in New Zealand but raised in the UK, Cotes-James now splits her time between Hong Kong and Shanghai.

She’s clear that while there are pronounced issues in Asia, universally women have been let down by inequality and archaic approaches to female reproduc-

tive health.

There is five times more research into erectile dysfunction than Premenstrual Syndrome, for example, according to science forum ResearchGate, despite the latter affecting far more people. A 2005 study by the University of Pennsylvania found female pain is more likely to be underestimated.

Cotes-James says it took her years to realise the painful symptoms she was experiencing during her period were actually an allergic reaction to the viscose and polyester found in some sanitary pads and tampons.

For decades men have decided everything about periods -- from helming companies that make menstrual products and overseeing advertising of them, to setting legislation that taxes them as a luxury item and failing to require firms to declare what period care items are made of, she says.

Growing public anger at such gender inequality is driving change -- India, Canada, and 13 US states have abolished the socalled tampon tax, while MPs in Scotland are backing a bill that will make period products free.

But Cotes-James warns: “Our bodies are still subject to decision making by predominantly male-led governments. We deserve the final say over our bodies -- that includes everything from feminine care companies being required by law to disclose ingredients on packaging, to overcoming restrictive reproductive rights.

That is one of the biggest challenges we face in the fight for gender equality and we are still a long way from that being the reality.”

VOICE OF ASIA 13

Section 2

Business

Email: voiceasia@aol.com

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AN FRANCISCO | AFP | Monday 3/2/2020 - Apple has agreed to pay up to $500 million to settle a class-action lawsuit over claims it covertly slowed older iPhones to get users to upgrade.

by Heather SCOTT

W

File photo

People who owned iPhone 7 models or older will get $25 for each handset, with the amount rising or falling depending on how many people file claims and costs of getting word to them.

Lawyers behind the suit want to pocket $93 million of the settlement money plus another $1.5 million or so for out-ofpocket expenses, legal documents indicated.

France’s consumer watchdog said last month that Apple had agreed to pay 25 million euros ($27.4 million) in a related case.

French prosecutors opened an inquiry in January 2018 at the request of the Halt Planned Obsolescence (HOP) association.

The slowed handset performance was described by Apple as a well-intended feature to “smooth out” spikes in demand for power to prevent iPhone 6 models from shutting down due to the cold or weak batteries.

Waymo brings in $2.25bn from outside investors, Alphabet

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aymo, the former Google self-driving car project that is now a business under Alphabet, said Monday it raised $2.25 billion in a fundraising round led by Silver Lake, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board and Mubadala Investment Company.

This is the company’s first external investment..

“We’ve always approached our mission as a team sport, collaborating with our OEM and supplier partners, our operations partners, and the communities we serve to build and deploy

the world’s most experienced driver,” said Waymo CEO John Krafcik said in blog the company posted Monday.

“Today, we’re expanding that team, adding financial investors and important strategic partners who bring decades of experience investing in and supporting successful technology companies building transformative products.”

In January, Waymo announced that it would begin mapping and eventually testing its autonomous long-haul trucks in Texas and parts of New Mexico.

Tel: 713-774-5140

Fed vs coronavirus: What can the US central bank do?

Apple agrees to $500mn deal in iPhone-slowing suit

A federal judge in California presiding over a group of lawsuits will be asked to approve the proposed settlement at a hearing in early April, according to a court filing on Friday.

Apple did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The litigation centers on stealthy mobile operating software changes in the name of avoiding “unintended power-offs.”

In December 2017, Apple admitted that iOS software was tweaked to slow performance of older iPhones whose battery life was deteriorating to prevent handsets from spontaneously shutting down.

Critics accused Apple of surreptitiously forcing users to buy phones sooner than necessary, and the outcry forced Apple to upgrade its software and offer steep discounts on battery replacements.

The proposed settlement calls for Apple to pay at least $310 million dollars, but no more than $500 million, to compensate affected US iPhone owners and pay lawyers for the plaintiffs, according to court documents.

www.voiceofasia.news

FRIDAY, March 6, 2020

The company issued a software update to make it easier for customers to see if an aging battery is affecting performance.

An Apple statement at the time maintained that “we have never -- and would never -- do anything to intentionally shorten the life of any Apple product, or degrade the user experience to drive customer upgrades.”

ASHINGTON | AFP | Monday 3/2/2020 - Wall Street has tanked, some factories in China have shuttered and businesses and investors fear the new coronavirus could damage the global economy and maybe even cause a recession.

The US Federal Reserve says it’s ready to take action. What can it do, and will it actually benefit the economy?

- Statement to reassure markets In its worst week since the 2008 global financial crisis, Wall Street plunged 11.5 percent last week, and $3.5 trillion in equity value evaporated into the virus-infected air.

Mortgage rates are near all-time lows as coronavirus worries hit markets

by Chris Arnold

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AN FRANCISCO, Monday 3/2/2020 - A dramatic drop in mortgage rates may give prospective homebuyers a chance to afford the house they’ve been eyeing — or to lower monthly payments for homeowners who refinance.

Last week, fears over coronavirus outbreak’s anticipated economic impact sparked the most dramatic stock market sell-off since the financial crisis. Stocks rallied Monday on expectations that the Federal Reserve will cut interest rates to boost the economy.

But there’s a silver lining in this market mayhem for homeowners and homebuyers: Mortgage rates have been driven down near all-time lows.

Mortgages tend to rise and fall with 10-year Treasury yields.

So nervous investors piling into bonds have helped push down mortgage rates, which have fallen about a full percentage point over the past year.

That’s a good thing, says Laurie Goodman, co-director of the Housing Finance Policy Center at the Urban Institute. She says buying a home is crucial for

most Americans to build wealth and these lower rates can mean hundreds or thousands of dollars a year in lower mortgage payments.

“Homeownership is really the single best way to build wealth,” Goodman says. The median homeowner has a net worth of around $230,000 — nearly half of that is in the form of equity in their home, she says. Meanwhile, Goodman adds, the median renter has a total wealth of less than $5,000.

If you have good credit, rates on a 30-year fixed mortgage have dropped from about 4.5% to around 3.5% over the past year. Goodman says that effectively makes the same priced house from a year ago more than 10% cheaper today in monthly mortgage payments.

So, she says, someone who was on the fence a year ago about whether they could afford to own a home “is going to find it very attractive at this time.”

Millions of people around the country who are already homeowners could probably save money on their monthly payment by refinancing. But, it can be a little tricky to figure out if that’s worth doing.

- NPR

As the death toll climbs, investors seem particularly worried about the spread of the virus to more countries, with the hit to the economy coming at a moment when growth was already fragile.

The Federal Reserve is supposed to focus on the domestic economy, not worry about dayto-day stock movements. But in a crisis, markets look to the central bank for reassurance.

Fed Chair Jerome Powell responded Friday with a statement to calm the situation.

He acknowledged the coronavirus “poses evolving risks to economic activity,” and said the Fed is “closely monitoring developments.”

And the kicker: “We will use our tools and act as appropriate to support the economy.”

Investors read that as a promise to cut the benchmark interest rate, and stocks rallied Monday.

“The Fed is trying to show the nation that it’s awake ... and it will provide support for the economy as need be,” Alan Blinder, former vice chair of the central bank, said on CNBC on Monday.

- Cut rates at scheduled meeting The Fed’s traditional and most powerful tool to affect the economy is the federal funds rate, the benchmark used to determine the cost of all forms of lending from credit cards to home mortgages.

The Fed raises the rate when it wants to slow the economy and ward off inflation, and cuts when it wants to provide stimulus by making borrowing less expensive, boosting consumption and investment.

The Fed’s policy committee meets eight times a year, and markets and most economists overwhelmingly expect US central bankers to vote to cut the key rate at their next meeting March 17-18.

The problem is the benchmark rate remains at a very low range of 1.5-1.75 percent, following three rate cuts last year.

Many economists warn another rate cut would be ineffective, since the virus is hitting supply rather than demand, and acting now will hamper the Fed’s ability to react to a downturn driven by a contraction in consump-

tion, which drives two-thirds of the US economy.

“A cut in two weeks would be somewhat of a panic move as well” and “does nothing to change the economy facing a health crisis,” economist Joel Naroff told AFP. “Assuming that the epidemic passes... much if not most of the impediments to growth will pass as well, and the economy will be able to revive without any help.”

- Unscheduled rate cut In dire circumstances, like at the height of the 2008 global financial crisis, policymakers will not wait for a scheduled meeting but hold a conference call to take emergency action.

That has the psychological effect of showing the Fed is responsive to events, but also can add fuel to inflamed fears.

And unlike in 2008, when the financial system seized up, the current epidemic has caused factories to be shuttered and transportation to grind to a halt.

So while a rate cut in this circumstance would be “modestly reassuring,” David Wilcox, a former Fed research director now with the Peterson Institute for International Economics, cautioned that there are limits.

“The tools available to the Fed are extraordinarily ill-suited for addressing the near-term aspects of the problem,” he told AFP. “No amount of rate cutting (and there isn’t room for much) is going to persuade local officials not to close schools... or manufacturers to reopen their plants.”

- Extreme measures & global response When the situation becomes extreme, such as in the 2008 global crisis, the Fed can inject liquidity into financial markets to ensure they continue to function. But that is unlikely to apply in this case.

Global central bankers and finance ministers also can join forces to coordinate their responses to make them more effective, through the G7 or G20.

The US Treasury said Monday the G7 will hold exactly such a call on Tuesday, led by Powell and Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin.

France’s Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire said of the call: “There will be coordinated action.”

TRAVEL

VOICE OF ASIA 14

FRIDAY, March 6, 2020

Top airlines axe flights as coronavirus saps demand

by Roland Jackson with Tom Barfield in Frankfurt

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ONDON, United Kingdom | AFP | Monday 3/2/2020 - British Airways and Ireland’s Ryanair on Monday announced major flight cancellations particularly to Italy, in response to the worsening novel coronavirus outbreak, while Germany’s Lufthansa extended cutbacks.

BA, which is owned by International Airlines Group, said it would cancel some 216 flights to various countries as a result of weaker demand sapped by the spread of COVID-19 disease.

The International Civil Aviation Organization says the virus outbreak -- which has hit Italy the hardest in Europe -- could mean a $4.0-5.0 billion drop in worldwide airline revenue.

- ‘Reduced demand’ “To match reduced demand due to the continuing coronavirus issue, we are merging a number of flights between March 16 and March 28,” BA said in a statement.

“We will be contacting customers on cancelled flights so

we can discuss their travel options, including rebooking onto other carriers where possible, full refunds or booking with BA for a later date of travel.”

The cancelled flights include 12 from London Heathrow to New York’s JFK airport, plus 204 short-haul round-trips, including to Albania, Austria, Belgium, Ireland, Italy, France, Germany and Switzerland.

There was no word from parent group IAG about its other divisions which include Spain’s Iberia and Ireland’s Aer Lingus.

In a further development, Brazilian carrier Latam suspended flights between San Paolo and Milan from March 2 to April 16.

Separately, Irish no-frills airline Ryanair announced it would cut up to a quarter of its short-haul flights, particularly to Italy.

“Ryanair today notified passengers that it was reducing its short haul flight program mainly to and from Italy by up to 25 percent for a three-week period from March 17,” it said.

“Over the past week, Ryanair has seen a significant drop in bookings over that late March/ early April period, in response to the COVID-19 virus.”

- ‘Passenger no-shows’ “There has also been a significant step up in passenger no-shows on flights, particularly from and within Italy,” it added.

Dublin-based Ryanair did not expect the cancellations to have a material impact on its current financial year to March 2020 but said it was “far too early to speculate” what the impact might be on 2021.

“Our focus at this time is on minimising any risk to our people and our passengers,” noted Ryanair Chief Executive Michael O’Leary.

“It makes sense to selectively prune our schedule to and from those airports where travel has been most affected by the COVID-19 outbreak.”

Earlier Monday, Lufthansa extended cancellations on Iran and China routes until late April due to the spreading disease.

Photo: Kham/Reuters

The group’s namesake carrier and subsidiaries Austrian and Swiss will not fly to and from mainland China until April 24, Lufthansa said in a statement.

Tehran flights will be suspended until April 30.

The cuts are part of a wider scheme Lufthansa announced Friday that will ground 23 longhaul aircraft and cut short- and medium-haul services by up to 25 percent.

Lufthansa said Monday it was reducing the frequency of flights between major German hubs Frankfurt and Munich and Seoul and Hong Kong.

The group is also reducing

frequency on routes to cities in Italy, including Rome, Venice, and Milan, with subsidiary Brussels Airlines affected alongside low-cost carrier Eurowings, Austrian and Swiss.

It has also suspended new hires as part of its measures to cushion the business impact of the virus, which it added was “not yet possible to estimate”.

- More EU airline failures? Ryanair predicted Monday that the outbreak would spark more European airline collapses in a sector already marked by fierce competition.

“We expect that this

COVID-19 virus will result in further EU airline failures over the coming weeks,” Ryanair said while reassuring over the strength of its own balance sheet.

In northern Italy, 11 towns have been placed under quarantine due to coronavirus.

On Monday the global death toll from the epidemic passed 3,000 as dozens more patients succumbed in China.

More than 90,000 people have now been infected around the world, mostly in China but with significant outbreaks also in South Korea, Italy and Iran.

STATEPOINT CROSSWORD THEME: MARCH MADNESS

Week of March 7, 2020 HOROSCOPE.COM

21 March to 20 April Even though there is a busy focus on your sector of goals and career, there’s another side of you that might prefer to withdraw and quietly reflect. And yet the two can complement each other, because in the silence you could find the answers to ongoing professional issues and other matters.

21 April to 20 May Take extra care with the details, especially as they apply to your job, business, or key transactions. With logical Mercury rewinding and moving back into your sector of ambition, watch out for errors, especially when signing agreements or contracts. Read the fine print, and if it’s very important, you might want to get it checked by a lawyer. You can never be too careful.

21 May to 20 June If you’re ready to travel, consider making a checklist. With thoughtful Mercury backing into your sector of far horizons, you could forget something. Don’t leave the house without making sure you have your passport, tickets, hotel reservations booked, and everything you need to make sure your journey is smooth and free of problems.

21 June to 22 July The sun’s presence in your sector of travel and adventure can be a call to follow your heart. It’s time to embark on a journey that is both fascinating and relaxing and perhaps enjoy an opportunity for quiet reflection along the way.

On a financial note, it would be wise to keep the paperwork associated with any transaction, especially if it involves a lot of money.

23 July to 22 August There’s a major focus on your lifestyle sector that will continue for some time yet, so this is an opportunity to look at your habits and how they may be either helping or hindering you. With feisty Mars and jovial Jupiter in this sector, you could feel inspired by the idea that small changes repeated daily can add up to big results over time.

23 August to 22 Sept Chatty Mercury, your ruling planet, is on the move again as it reverses back into Aquarius and your sector of work and wellness. During its rewind phase, there is the potential for delays and misunderstandings, which is why you still need to be careful at work and in everyday interactions.

23 September to 22 Oct There’s still a powerful focus on your home and family sector this week. And with upbeat Jupiter and dynamic Mars in this zone, you may feel that you’re finally getting somewhere concerning a key issue.

Your attitude may be lighter due to expansive Jupiter’s influence encouraging you to rise above it all and find another way.

23 October to 21 Nov The sun is in your sector of creativity and romance, so you now have an opportunity to explore your natural talents and perhaps take them further. If you have abilities in art, crafts, music, or anything else, use your imagination to enhance your ideas and you could do very well. This is very much a time to showcase your work. You never know who might want to buy something you create.

22 November to 21 Dec As dealmaker Mercury moves back into Aquarius and your sector of communication, it would be just as well to take care when signing anything important. With this lively planet still its retrograde phase until next week, there is the potential for error. Be sure to look at the details and don’t commit to anything until you’re certain it’s right for you.

22 December to 20 Jan You may be very animated by your plans and goals and enjoying the positivity that expansive Jupiter brings to your sign. And with feisty Mars also here, you may have the courage to move out of your comfort zone and explore new possibilities. Go easy with finances, though, because persuasive Mercury reverses back into your money zone this week prior to turning direct next Monday.

21 January to 19 Feb With chatty Mercury continuing its retrograde phase and moving back into your sign midweek, it would be just as well to take extra care when signing anything or purchasing big-ticket items. Whatever you do, read the fine print and keep the relevant paperwork and receipts. As sweet Venus enters your home zone for the rest of the month, her presence can inspire you to beautify your place.

20 February to 20 Mar Your social life continues to be as busy as always this week. But with jovial Jupiter involved in the mix, you might be eager to expand your circle of friends by joining a club, committing to a community project, and moving in new circles. And with fiery Mars also in this sector, you’ll have enough energy to be very successful at what you do.

ACROSS 1. Cutlass or Delta 88, for short 5. Passports and driver’s licenses 8. Bit of smoke 12. Narcotics agent, for short 13. Type of coffee maker 14. Sashay 15. Austin Powers’ antagonist 16. Creole cuisine staple 17. Designer Calvin 18. *Last year’s winning coach 20. Red-encased cheese 21. Prepared 22. Drunkard’s sound?

23. Source of white meat 26. They are often grand 30. “Ever” to a poet 31. Mrs. Potts of “Beauty and the Beast” 34. Cough syrup balsam 35. Russians, e.g.

37. A shot could prevent it 38. Up and about 39. Lake ____caca, South America 40. Plant disease 42. *Member of University of Utah team 43. Autumnal zodiac sign 45. Rooster, e.g.

47. Rare find 48. Campus VIPs 50. Razor-____ 52. *Lowest seed 54. In good health 55. 2017 Oscar-winning animated film 56. “____ for thought” 59. Essential oil derived from iris 60. Nasal input 61. Pre-swan state?

62. *NCAA basketball team with most titles 63. *7 seed opponent in round 1 64. Prospector’s mother

DOWN 1. *Top seed 2. Abbreviation on a bathroom door 3. Precedes drab 4. Part of an eyeball 5. Vexed 6. Eastwood’s _____ Harry 7. Quarrel 8. *Lowest seeded team to win championship 9. Part of ideal 10. Fit for a skinny one 11. Mightier than sword?

13. Give to St. Vinny’s 14. Yarn store unit 19. Does like Matryoshka 22. *An airball doesn’t do it to either rim or net 23. Outdoes 24. Thing of the past 25. One of the Muses 26. *Final ____ 27. India’s sacred flower 28. *Like last eight 29. More sure 32. Like Bob Ross’ hair 33. Layer 36. *Cavaliers’ state 38. Make amends 40. Slow-witted 41. Demosthenes, e.g.

44. Waits for approval, e.g.

46. Being of service 48. D in LED 49. Former prisoner 50. Rigid necklace 51. Catapult 52. One from Glasgow 53. Canceled 54. Olden-day French coin 57. Goes with borrowed and blue 58. Indigo extract

SOLUTION: MARCH MADNESS on Page 15

VOICE OF ASIA 15

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SMALL BUSINESSES / CLASSIFIEDS

FRIDAY, March 6, 2020

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BUSINESS DIRECTORY

ACCOUNTANTS M.D. Associates LLP A full service CPA firm

2 Locations to serve you Houston 713-774-6533 Spring 281-251-2205

visit us at: www.mdassociatescpas.com

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Email: accuratebookkeeping2018@gmail.com 7011 Harwin Dr Suite 230 Houston, TX 77036 l

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We cater from 10 people to 800 people for all occasions. We deliver to your venue.

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Email Obituaries to us at: voiceasia@aol.com Deadline for publication: Tuesdays by 5pm.

List Your Business CALL TODAY 713-774-5140 Accounting Assistant

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When you find some time, READ!

READ DAILY! 15 - 30 minutes of reading daily helps your brain focus better. Grab a novel!

A Community message from Voice of Asia Group

MONTESSORI TEACHER NEEDED Brightstart Montessori Academy, Stafford Is looking for a fun-loving, experienced and qualified toddler teacher. If interested kindly contact us on 832-987-1601 or send your resume to info@brightstartmontessori.com

STATEPOINT CROSSWORD SOLUTION

Answers: CANDY from Page 14

VOICE OF ASIA 16

FRIDAY, March 6, 2020