Voice of Asia E-paper February 15, 2019

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Indian American Dr. Kiran C Patel establishes Sustainability Centre at IIT Gandhinagar

Southwestern National Bank celebrates the Year of the Pig

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OUSTON - Southwestern National Bank recently celebrated the coming of the “Year of the pig” on Tuesday, February 5, 2019 at the Bank’s main office in Houston, Texas. Chairman C.K. Lee, The Board of Directors, employees and customers gathered together for the traditional Chinese New Year celebration.

The celebration was oriented towards the public, as Southwestern National Bank provided traditional Chinese New Year snacks for customers.

Entertainment came in the form of Lion and Dragon dances. Lucky red envelopes were passed out to Bank employees and customers to feed the Dr Kiran C Patel unveiling new sustability centre at IIT Gandhinagar with IIT Gandhinagar Director Dr Sudhir Jain.

Continued on Page 4

Mohammed Younus, president of Southwestern National Bank and Hasu Patel, director feeding the lions with red envelope (with money) for good luck.

Google investing billions in US operations

• IIT Gandhinagar aims to become the Principal Resource Centre for Sustainable Development in India • Institute launches Dr Kiran C Patel Centre for Sustainable Development to advance local & global solutions through cutting-edge interdisciplinary research on water, energy & climate change • Overseas Indian philanthropist Dr Kiran C Patel, a distinguished cardiologist based in Florida, USA

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ANDHINAGAR, India: Indian Institute of Technology Gandhinagar aims to become the principal resource centre for sustainable development in India with the launch of Dr Kiran C Patel Centre for Sustainable Development, which will advance local and global

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AN FRANCISCO | AFP | Wednesday 2/13/2019 Google said Wednesday it will invest $13 billion in US data centers and offices this year as the internet giant continues to expand across the country.

solutions through cutting-edge interdisciplinary research. It has been set up with a generous endowment from overseas Indian philanthropist Dr Kiran C Patel, a distinguished cardiologist based in Florida, USA.

The spending will build on more than $9 billion in US investments in the past year and should create the potential for tens of thousands of new jobs, according to chief executive Sundar Pichai.

The Centre, inaugurated on Jan 30, Continued on Page 7

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Koshy Thomas Sherly Philip Shobana Muratee Sherine Thomas Susan Pothanikat Priyan Mathew Satish Philip

Contributors: OpEd: Dr. Chandra Mittal Legal: Sharlene Sharmila Richards Mala Sharma Research: Dr. Meenakshi Bhattacharjee Health: Sudhir Mathuria

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Editor Online: Shobana Muratee Marketing Director: Susan Pothanikat 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: 713774-5140. Fax: 713-774-5143. Email for editorial submissions: voiceasia@aol.com; Email for advertising inquiries and submissions: ads@voiceofasiagroup.com.

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.

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efore the fear of being blown up on a plane, or a train, or a sidewalk gave millions of people sleepless nights, before the threat of global climate disaster stirred dread, nuclear annihilation was the stuff of nightmares.

and Russia stepped back from the brink. Until now.

By the mid-1980s, the United States and the Soviet Union had amassed 63,000 nuclear weapons, with the promise of mutually assured destruction if even one were ever used, even accidentally.

Then, after years of global protests and skyrocketing budgets, American and Soviet leaders stepped back from the brink and began a process of arms control diplomacy, accelerated by the fall of the Soviet Union, that shrank those arsenals by nearly 90 percent. For decades, that process and that diplomacy continued … until now.

President Trump and his Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin, who control 90 percent of the world’s nuclear weapons, are preparing to abandon the 1987 treaty that eliminated ground-launched ballistic and cruise missiles with ranges of 310 miles to 3,100 miles. They have yet to begin serious talks on extending a 2010 treaty that reduced the nuclear warheads deployed on intercontinental ballistic missiles and other strategic systems, and the Americans, in particular, don’t appear to have any interest in doing so. Washington and Moscow are also modernizing old weapons systems and building new ones, at a cost of $494 billion over the next decade in the United States alone.

At the same time, Pakistan, India and North Korea are expanding their arsenals as the international consensus for nonproliferation erodes.

Experts with The Bulletin of Atomic Scientists, who evaluate the nuclear threat, last month judged the current state of affairs to be “as worrisome as the most dangerous times of the Cold War.” The Intermediate-Range Nuclear Forces Treaty of 1987, which eliminated 2,692 ground-based missiles, is part of a web of arms control agreements that have managed the threat. Mr. Trump is right to blame the Russians for begin-

by Quentin Karpilow and Zachary Liscow

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fter years of failing to pass a carbon tax, climate hawks are now rallying behind a bold new proposal for tackling global warming. Known as the Green New Deal, this economic stimulus package for the planet promises to dramatically cut carbon emissions through government spending on clean energy jobs, technologies, and infrastructure. The main selling point of the Green New Deal has been its politics. While carbon pricing has long been touted as the most cost effective policy for reducing emissions, it has struggled to gain legislative traction. By contrast, advocates of the Green New Deal believe their proposal can build a winning coalition by reframing climate policy as a story of economic growth and opportunity.

A Green New Deal is not just good politics. It is good economics. Society can combat climate change by using existing clean technologies to cut emissions today or by innovating new clean technologies to cut emissions in the future. We need both strategies to address global warming. Every second that we delay in reducing our carbon footprint imposes costs on ourselves and on countless future generations. If we want to avoid climate catastrophe, we need to make deep cuts in emissions soon. On the other hand, the challenges and costs of relying solely on current technologies to address climate change are prohibitively high.

We need investments in clean innovation to make it cheaper to reduce emissions in the future.

We could achieve the twin goals of slashing emissions and spurring innovation by putting a very high price on greenhouse gases. Carbon taxes can encourage industries to both reduce their footprints and develop cheaper clean technologies.

However, carbon pricing by itself is not the most efficient climate policy. As we explain in a recent paper, the cheaper and faster approach for our

Illustration by Kelsey Wroten

ning to unravel the I.N.F. treaty during the Obama administration by testing and then deploying a cruise missile banned by the treaty.

But he was wrong to assert in his State of the Union address that he had “no choice” other than to withdraw from the treaty, a move that takes effect in August.

His threat to “outspend and out-innovate all others by far” in the production of weapons of mass destruction was chilling, particularly given Mr. Putin’s vow of a “symmetrical” response.

“If our American partners suspend their participation in the I.N.F. treaty, so will we,” he said on Feb. 2. “And if they start working on new weapons, so will we.”

It’s unlikely the treaty will be revived, given the deterioration of Russian-American relations, despite Mr. Trump’s promises of warmer ties and a coziness that has drawn the scrutiny of the special counsel Robert Mueller.

The pact’s imminent collapse has intensified concerns that the United States and Russia will let the 2010 New Start agreement, with its caps on deployed nuclear warheads, intercontinental ballistic missiles and heavy bombers, as well as requirements for verification and

data exchanges, expire in 2021.

(Start stands for Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty.) Absent an extension or a new treaty, the nuclear arsenals will become unregulated — meaning there will be no legally binding, verifiable limits on the American or Russian nuclear arsenals — for the first time since 1972.

Adding to the uncertainty, Mr. Putin has warned that Russia is developing new “invincible” hypersonic missiles that will travel at more than five times the speed of sound.

The United States, meanwhile, is developing a new conventionally armed intermediate-range missile that could one day be deployed in Europe.

By the end of the year, Washington may be ready to field a low-yield nuclear weapon that could make it easier to use nuclear weapons without courting Armageddon.

Last month, Mr. Trump threatened to unsettle the nuclear landscape even further by promising to reinvent American missile defenses, a quixotic vision reminiscent of President Ronald Reagan’s unfulfilled “Star Wars” program.

Mr. Reagan appreciated the dangers of nuclear war and the value of negotiated agreements that could reduce weapons. The New Start numbers can go even lower. It has been over seven years since the two powers held

Green New Deal is good economics society is to combine a moderately sized carbon tax with significant federal spending on the development and deployment of clean technologies. While carbon pricing is the most cost effective way to reduce emissions today, government subsidies are the most cost effective way to advance clean technologies tomorrow.

The intuition behind all this is simple. Policies work best when they are narrowly tailored to the behavior that they seek to alter. Thus, if we want markets to produce more clean innovation, we should reward innovators rather than penalize polluters in the hopes that doing so will indirectly induce them to produce innovation. The benefits of directly encouraging clean innovation are striking. Economists have estimated our society can save more than $1.4 trillion a year if governments used a combination of taxes and subsidies, rather than taxes only, to address climate change.

In short, good economics calls for the type of broad federal spending on clean innovation that the Green New Deal promises to deliver. Of course,

the effectiveness of the proposal at spurring innovation will depend on its design, the exact details of which have yet to be ironed out. The package should increase funding for early stage clean energy research, as this kind of basic science is usually too risky to attract private investors. The Green New Deal should also include subsidies for the adoption and deployment of clean technologies, such as tax credits for clean energy investment and manufacturing. These types of policies that help emerging technologies scale up and mature can be powerful drivers of clean energy innovation.

Critics will undoubtedly argue that we cannot afford the Green New Deal. This line of attack, however, ignores the costs of inaction. While the Green New Deal will not be cheap, its price pales in comparison to the damage that unchecked climate change will inflict on the economy. This argument also ignores the savings that will result from the push toward clean energy innovation under the Green New Deal. The development of cheaper clean technologies should more than offset the costs of the stimulus

serious nuclear arms reductions talks. The United States, its allies, even the Russians will be less safe if that process atrophies.

With Democrats now in control of the House, the new chairman of its Armed Services Committee, Adam Smith of Washington, plans to hold what could be the most fundamental public examination of American nuclear doctrine in decades.

If Mr. Trump continues to push for an expanded nuclear arsenal and abandons the strategic arms accord, Congress should freeze the nuclear modernization budget and block funding for new weapons.

The commitment to spend billions of dollars to upgrade the aging nuclear arsenal was part of the Faustian bargain President Barack Obama made with Senate Republicans to win support for the New Start pact.

He did so with the hope that it would help lead, eventually, to a world with no nuclear weapons.

Outspending Russia on a nuclear arms race, as Mr. Trump has bragged he would do, or abandoning an arms control regime that has helped forestall nuclear war for decades, is a foolish game of chicken, with no possible winners.

- The New York Times Editorial Board

package.

Opponents will also claim that the government is a bad venture capitalist, and that a Green New Deal will pour taxpayer dollars into clean energy boondoggles. While concerns about government waste are certainly real, they can be avoided through smart policy design. The government can encourage innovation without favoring particular clean technologies or companies by enacting neutral research and development tax credits.

The ideal economic climate policy does include carbon pricing. But we cannot let the perfect be the enemy of the good. Even if the government cannot enact the best policy for cutting emissions today, it can still use the best policy for advancing clean innovation tomorrow. The Green New Deal pushes climate policy into uncharted political waters, but it does so based on sound economic theories. If we want to save the planet for the least amount of money, we need the Green New Deal, and we need it now.

Quentin Karpilow is a law clerk in the federal judiciary.

Zachary Liscow is an economist and a professor at Yale Law School who has served on the staff of the White House Council of Economic Advisors.

- TheHill.com

VOICE OF ASIA 3

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FRIDAY, February 15, 2019

Tel: 713-774-5140

UT Physicians Multispeciality International District celebrates Lunar New Year on Feb. 8

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OUSTON - The UT Physicians Multispecialty-International District wellness center hosted a free Lunar New Year Celebration featuring festivities, health education, and giveaways at 9:30 a.m. on Friday, Feb. 8. The center is at 10623 Bellaire Blvd, Suite C280. Guests received “Lucky Red Envelopes” and got to see a tai chi demonstration.

“The year of 2019 is the year of the Pig. At UT Physicians Multispecialty –International District’s Lunar New Year, we celebrate the impressive qualities of every culture while celebrating the Asian Lunar New Year. We not only celebrate an important part of Asia but also include international performances. In the Chinese lunar calendar a different animal or mythological beast represents every year in a twelve year cycle,” said Fahad Kamal, the community practice manager for UT Physicians Multispecialty-International District.

“UT Physicians Multispecialty –International District has worked hard to promote

Fahad Kamal, the community practice manager for UT Physicians Multispecialty-International District seen with event coordinators and guests.

Grandmaster Michael Aronson MBA addressing the guests. Photos credit: Susan Pothanikat the remarkable diversity and impressive communities sur-

rounding southwest Houston while fostering friendship

among nearly every culture,” he said.

FB County Judge KP George authorizes negotiations of interlocal agreement to protect the 'Sugar Land 95' historic cemetery

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ORT BEND COUNTY- Fort Bend County Judge KP George in coordination with Commissioners Court has authorized the County Attorney and his legal team to pursue an interlocal agreement between Fort Bend County and the Fort Bend

Independent School District (FBISD) to memorialize and protect the historic cemetery and Sugar Land 95.

“I am proud to authorize the negotiation of this historic cemetery and protect those buried at this site after bru-

tal conditions also known as the Sugar Land 95.” stated Fort Bend County Judge KP George.

BACKGROUND On April 06, 2018, the Fort Bend Independent School Dis-

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trict announced that a historic cemetery was found at the site and subsequently discovered remains belonging to 95 individuals, who are believed to be African-American prisoners forced to work on a plantation as part of the state’s unjust convict-lease system.

Mr. Huang I-Fa doing the calligraphy.

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VOICE OF ASIA 4

Arya Yuva Mandal students celebrate Dr. Martin Luther King Day at IM of Houston

FRIDAY, February 15, 2019

Southwestern National Bank celebrates the Year of the Pig

AYM (Arya Yuva Mandal) ILEAD 4 houston

by Dhruv Gomber ASGH AYM President

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rya Yuva Mandal (AYM) students celebrate Dr. Martin Luther King Day at Interfaith Ministries of Houston For over two decades, Martin Luther King Jr. day has been designated as a national day of service, not "a day off, but a day on". Volunteers across the nation gather every year to spread the true spirits of volunteering and giving back to the community.

So that's exactly what AYM (Arya Yuva Mandal) students of the Arya Samaj of Greater Houston did. On Monday, January 21st, 2019 (MLK Jr. day), all these youth volunteered at Interfaith Ministries’ ILEAD Youth Day of Service to help spread the spirits of volunteerism by assisting many groups, including but not limited to Meals on Wheels and refugee programs.

the ILEAD program, there was one shared goal: to work together with everyone else and help better the community. The activities began with an opening speech by the head of IM (Interfaith Ministries), Martin B. Cominsky for Greater Houston. Students of AYM were then split into four groups along with everyone else: one to make breakfast bags, one to wish happy birthday to those in Meals on Wheels who had birthdays, another to make care packages for refugees, and the last group to make Valentine’s Day cards. Altogether, all the youth split up at the event and carried out variety of service projects, including packaging several hundred meals, prepare

care packages, make telephone calls for wellness checks of seniors and cards for over 2,000 refugees.

The event took place over a span of four hours, with all the time devoted to the community service. As hours eventually came to a close, Neeraj Salhotra, an AYM alumni, made concluding remarks about the involvement of the community in public service. ILEAD's Youth Day of Service was a great success for the youth and the community, enlivening MLK Jr.'s spirit of hope and service to the community. It is with no doubt that we can say that AYM will be back the following year to help in such a great event.

Board of Directors and staff of Southwestern National Bank Continued from Page 1 dancing lions for good luck and good health.

Southwestern National Bank’s Main Location is located in the heart of Chinatown in Houston. Bank employees are fluent in many languages including Chinese, Taiwanese and Cantonese as well as English. The Bank strives to stay in touch with the local Asian community by participating in charity events and events that celebrate the cultural heritage of the area. Southwestern National Bank also provides monthly seminars to the community, free of charge, on a variety of valuable informa-

Drums being played for the lion and dragon dancer

Although students of all religions and faiths attended

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Schlumberger names new chief operating officer

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ARIS | Friday 2/8/2019 - Schlumberger (NYSE:SLB) announced today that its Board of Directors has appointed Olivier Le Peuch as Chief Operating Officer of Schlumberger Limited, effective immediately.

Reporting to Paal Kibsgaard, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Le Peuch will be responsible for the dayto-day management of all worldwide operations.

Previously, Le Peuch was Executive Vice President Reservoir & Infrastructure, responsible for the management of the Cameron product lines, including OneSubsea, as well as some of Schlumberger’s leading technology products lines, including Software Integrated Solutions and Schlumberger Land Rigs.

Schlumberger Chairman and CEO Paal Kibsgaard commented: “Olivier’s track record, consisting of significant industry experience combined with technical and management roles within Schlumberger, gives me complete confidence in his ability to manage and grow all aspects of our operations. I look forward to working closely with Olivier.”

Prior to his most recent position, Le Peuch held a variety of global man-

agement positions, including President of the Cameron product lines (February 2017 to May 2018); President of Schlumberger Completions (October 2014 to January 2017); and Vice President of Engineering, Manufacturing and Sustaining (August 2010 to September 2014). Earlier in his career, Le Peuch was GeoMarket Manager for the North Sea, and President of Software Integrated Solutions.

An electrical engineer with a master’s degree in microelectronics from the Bordeaux University of Science, Mr. Le Peuch began his career at Schlumberger in 1987 as an electrical engineer and spent his early career in custom software integration and development, and in high temperature electronics development for Wireline equipment.

About Schlumberger Schlumberger is the world’s leading provider of technology for reservoir characterization, drilling, production, and processing to the oil and gas industry. Working in more than 85 countries and employing approximately 100,000 people who represent over 140 nationalities, Schlumberger supplies the industry’s most comprehensive range of products and services, from exploration through production,

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protect the historic cemetery and Sugar Land 95.

“I am proud to authorize the negotiation of this historic cemetery and protect those buried at this site after brutal conditions also known as the Sugar Land 95.” stated Fort Bend County Judge KP George.

Tel: 713-774-5140

Harry Patel earns 2019 Credentialed Mediator Designation by Texas Mediator Credentialing Association

Olivier Le Peuch, COO of Schlumberger. Image Courtesy Schlumberger and integrated pore-to-pipeline solutions that optimize hydrocarbon recovery to deliver reservoir performance.

Schlumberger Limited has principal offices in Paris, Houston, London, and The Hague, and reported revenues of $32.82 billion in 2018. For more information, visit www.slb.com.

- Business Wire

Fort Bend County Judge KP George authorizes negotiations of interlocal agreement to protect the 'Sugar Land 95' historic cemetery ORT BEND COUNTY- Fort Bend County Judge KP George in coordination with Commissioners Court has authorized the County Attorney and his legal team to pursue an interlocal agreement between Fort Bend County and the Fort Bend Independent School District (FBISD) to memorialize and

FRIDAY, February 15, 2019

***BACKGROUND*** On April 06, 2018, the Fort Bend Independent School District announced that a historic cemetery was found at the site and subsequently discovered remains belonging to 95 individuals, who are believed to be African-American prisoners forced to work on a plantation as part of the state’s unjust convictlease system.

Harry Patel

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arry Patel, a local Houston Mediator with Harris County Dispute Resolution Center[DRC], has successfully completed the professional qualification requirement to earned Mediation Credential Designation for year 2019.

The Texas Mediator Credentialing Association (TMCA) with its mission “to Promote Quality Mediation throughout Texas”.

The Texas Mediator Credentialing Association (TMCA) also educating the public about the benefits of mediator credentialing and the availability of a grievance process at no cost to the public or the consumer. TMCA has continued to promote public confidence in the mediation process, to protect consumers through the availability of a grievance procedure, and to further develop the profession through its annual symposium for mediators.

Harry Patel was first required to meet Professional Mediation Basic Training, Mediation Cases conducted, and Mediation or hours of Mediation completed plus continuous professional Mediation Education [CLE].

Please feel free to contact Harry Patel at any time for any questions or information. Harry Patel can be reached at (713) 541-4777 or at HarryMediator@ aol.com

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VOICE OF ASIA 6

FRIDAY, February 15, 2019

AARP Foundation Tax-Aide available now through April 15

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ASHINGTON, DC, February 13, 2019 — Now through April 15, AARP Foundation is providing free tax assistance and preparation through its TaxAide program. AARP Foundation Tax-Aide is the nation’s largest free tax assistance and preparation service. Since its inception, the program has served more than 68 million taxpayers.

Tax-Aide started in 1968 with just four volunteers working at one site. Today, nearly 35,000 volunteers serve low- to moderate-income taxpayers at almost 5,000 locations in neighborhood libraries, malls, banks, community centers and senior centers nationwide. There’s no fee, and AARP membership is not required.

“AARP Foundation Tax-Aide provides free tax assistance to those who need it most,” said Daphne Kwok, AARP Vice President of Multicultural Lead-

A senior man being assisted in filing taxes. Photo credit AARP

Asisat Ope, M.D. joins Houston Methodist Primary Care Group at Sugar Land

Ope provides acute, chronic and primary care for women, men and children. She is board certified in family medicine, and her clinical interests include preventive care, minor procedures as well as diagnosis and management of various conditions such as high blood pressure, high cholesterol, allergies, asthma and thyroid concerns.

Ope graduated from the School of Nursing at The University of Texas Health Science Center in Houston and continued studying medicine at Ross Uni-

Tax-Aide volunteers are trained and IRS-certified each year to ensure they know about and understand the latest changes to the U.S. Tax Code. In 2018, the program’s volunteers helped 2.5 million people navigate complicated tax codes, ensure proper credits and deductions, and file their federal and state tax returns.

Taxpayers who used Tax-Aide received $1.3 billion in income tax refunds and more than $212 million in Earned Income Tax Credits (EITCs). They also avoided tax preparation fees and pitches for high-interest tax credit or refund loans.

To find an AARP Foundation Tax-Aide site or more information, including which documents to bring to the tax site, visit aarpfoundation.org/taxaide or call 1-888-AARPNOW (1-888227-7669). AARP Foundation Tax-Aide is offered in conjunction with the IRS. About AARP Foundation AARP Foundation works to end senior poverty by helping vulnerable older adults build economic opportunity and social connections. As AARP’s charitable affiliate, we serve AARP members and nonmembers alike. Bolstered by vigorous legal advocacy, we spark bold, innovative solutions that foster resilience, strengthen communities and restore hope.

To learn more visit aarpfoundation.org

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UGAR LAND— (Feb. 13, 2019) — Houston Methodist Primary Care Group is pleased to welcome Asisat Ope, M.D. to the Sugar Land practice located at 16605 Southwest Freeway, Medical Office Building 3, Suite 400 on the Houston Methodist Sugar Land Hospital campus. Ope’s new office offers patients added convenience, with on-site access to advanced and specialized care from Houston Methodist’s leading network of hospitals and specialty physicians.

ership, Asian American and Pacific Islander Audience Strategy. “With the support of bilingual volunteers, some Tax-Aide locations offer assistance in additional languages to help taxpayers who don’t speak English or speak English as a second language prepare their returns.”

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Asisat Ope, M.D., family medicine

versity School of Medicine in Bridgetown, Barbados, where she received her medical degree. She completed her family medicine residency at Houston Methodist Hospital in the Texas Medical Center.

“I am dedicated to fostering a collaborative relationship with each of my patients at Houston Methodist Primary Care Group,” Ope said. “I firmly believe that a healthy body fuels a healthy mind, and I am excited to provide integrative and holistic care, along with health education, for in-

dividuals and families.”

To schedule an appointment with Asisat Ope, M.D. or another Houston Methodist Primary Care Group physician, visit houstonmethodist.org/pcg/southwest or call 281.930.6639.

For more information on Houston Methodist Sugar Land Hospital visit houstonmethodist.org/sugarland or visit fb.com/methodistsugarland for the latest news, events and information.

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VOICE OF ASIA 7

Indian American Dr. Kiran C Patel establishes Sustainability Centre at IIT Gandhinagar

USTIN, Texas (2/12/2019) – Registration is now open for the Hogg Foundation for Mental Health’s 2019 Robert Lee Sutherland Seminar. The seminar, taking place on April 24, 2019 in Bastrop, Texas at the Bastrop Conference & Exhibit Center, will focus on the theme of “Working Together for Rural Well-Being.” The free, one-day event is open to all who are interested in the topics of community-based approaches to addressing resilience, mental health and well-being in rural communities.

2019, will develop a national and global network of leading experts and researchers on sustainability and undertake research on water, pollution, waste management, energy, natural resources and climate change.

The Centre will research sustainability and related challenges of high societal importance and promote cost-effective and sustainable solutions through its strong outreach and technology-transfer programmes.

Addressing the inaugural function, Dr Kiran C Patel said, “The single major challenge facing the next generation will be lack of clean air, natural resources and non-toxic environment. It is imperative that IITs of the world develop the intellectual capital to create a sustainable planet earth that can ensure the well-being of ten plus billion people residing in this world in the coming decades.”

Prof Sudhir K Jain, Director, IIT Gandhinagar, said, “Dr. Patel’s exceptional generosity for an institution with which he has no earlier connection touches us deeply and inspires us greatly. The gift will enable our faculty and students to work on developing practical solutions to major sustainability challenges through an integration of advanced research, traditional knowledge and field understanding.”

IIT Gandhinagar campus is the first campus in India to receive the 5 star GRIHA LD rating for its ecofriendly and

Rural Well-being to be the Focus of 2019 Robert Lee Sutherland Seminar

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Continued from Page 1

The Centre will undertake technology transfer of sustainable solutions to NGOs, local governments and industry and collaborate with policy makers and industry to identify and solve sustainability challenges.

It will also promote startups on sustainability with IITGN’s Entrepreneurship Cell by providing Seed Grants.

FRIDAY, February 15, 2019

The content of the seminar is organized into the following five themes:

Dr Kiran C Patel visiting fuel cell lab at IIT Gandhinagar. Photos provided by IIT Gandhinagar. sustainable design. The IITGN campus is considered a ‘living laboratory’ on sustainability.

• Climate Change (Extreme Events, Prediction and Simulation)

The Centre will strive to address major sustainability challenges and translate them into prototypes, patents, and publications. It will also establish an effective technology-transfer programme for sustainability solutions in the field and promote networking and collaboration among scholars, policy makers, industry, non-profit organizations and other stakeholders on sustainability

• Natural Resources, Wildlife & Ecosystems (Biodiversity, Conservation, Ecotourism, Traditional Ecological Knowledge, Environmental Humanities)

The Focus Areas of Dr Kiran C Patel Centre for Sustainable Development include, • Water (Desalination, Safe Drinking Water Production, Water Resource Research, River Flow) • Pollution & Waste Management (Air, Water and Soil Pollution, Waste Segregation, Treatment and Recycling, Waste to Resource Techniques) • Energy (Renewable energy, Efficiency and Energy Management)

The Centre will also support research on sustainability at IIT Gandhinagar, and identify, prioritize and lead sustainability related thrust areas. It will explore and promote collaboration opportunities, catalyze research proposals on sustainability on campus and develop vibrant Visiting Faculty and student research programmes.

IIT Gandhinagar has undertaken several Sustainable Campus Initiatives. The campus treats all its sewage in an environmental friendly sewage treatment plant and recycles all treated water for horticultural operations. It captures rooftop rainwater in four underground Jal Mandaps of 50 lakh litres storage capacity. It has implemented passive cooling systems and integrated a 500 KW capacity solar power plant into

its electric system.

The Centre will also undertake outreach and advocacy initiatives. It will coordinate training programs and workshops on sustainable development for professionals in industry, NGOs, and public officials and promote sustainable solutions in the public and private sphere, disseminate conceptual and practical knowledge, training materials and create awareness on sustainability.

The Centre also collaborates with global organizations and universities on its programs.

The Centre’s faculties have collaborations with colleagues at Columbia University, USA, Purdue University, USA, United Nations Development Programme, United Nations Environment Programme, Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute, Royal University of Bhutan and Sonnen, Germany, among many others. The Centre offers summer research internships open to students nationwide on various sustainability themes every year.

Community Collaboration: How can we create communityled solutions? Learn about the power and pitfalls of working together to address well-being while gaining an understanding of the building blocks of a successful collaborative, such as structures and processes that support inclusivity, authentic listening, and mutual trust.

Engaging Historically Excluded Groups: How can we approach collaboration with cultural humility? Learn how past and present inequities undermine communities’ efforts to foster well-being, and how to ensure historically excluded groups are included in community- and systems-level change efforts.

Social Determinants of Mental Health: What gets in the way of our ability to thrive? Learn how factors like education, transportation, economic stability, social connection, neighborhood infrastructure, and access to healthcare and healthy food impact resilience, mental health and well-being.

Change: What does it take to make lasting social change in rural communities? Learn how to inspire action where barriers seem hard to overcome, and consider strategies that impact systems, groups and individuals

that have the power to influence well-being.

Dialogue and Learning: What are the best methods for productive dialogue and group learning? Learn how to set the tone for inclusive and safe conversations in which all members of a community—no matter their life experience or circumstance—are encouraged to voice their perspectives and ideas.

The Hogg Foundation recognizes that the places where people live, learn, work, play and pray can have a significant impact on improving well-being. In other words, the work of well-being doesn’t just happen in health clinics. Thus, this year’s seminar is intended not only for mental health consumers, providers and advocates, but also for civic leaders, community members, and individuals from a wide variety of life experiences, such as from schools, faith-based organizations, nonprofits, businesses, and more. If you care about well-being in rural communities, this seminar is for you!

“This biennial seminar carries forward the legacy of the foundation’s first executive director, Dr. Robert Lee Sutherland, who started the series in 1978 to encourage dialogue and increase awareness about complex mental health concepts, such as recovery, integrated health and barriers to well-being,” said Dr. Octavio N. Martinez, Jr., executive director of the Hogg Foundation and senior associate vice president for diversity and community engagement at The University of Texas at Austin.

“April’s seminar is an opportunity for Texans to learn from each other and from national experts, and gain tools to help strengthen mental health and well-being across our state.”

Attendance is limited to 350 people. Details about the free event and how to register can be found at http://hogg.utexas.edu/ events-networks/rls-seminar.

VOICE OF ASIA 8

TAXES & PERSONAL FINANCE

3 tips to help you boost your tax-free income in retirement • Roth IRAs and Roth 401(k) plans provide investors with an opportunity to pay taxes on savings now, have it accumulate tax-free and take withdrawals without taxes in retirement.

• In 2019, you can put away up to $19,000 in aggregate in your traditional 401(k) and Roth 401(k), plus $6,000 if you’re 50 and over.

• There are tax implications when you contribute to these accounts, so talk to your financial advisor or accountant.

by Darla Mercado erhaps two of the sweetest words retirees long to hear are "tax free."

Though workers are told to put every spare pre-tax cent into a traditional 401(k) at work, the reality is that once the time comes to tap that account for income in retirement, income taxes will follow.

Here's the bright side: You can create a pool of tax-free retirement income. If you're lucky enough, you can even do it at work.

Say hello to the Roth 401(k): You pay taxes upfront on your savings, have them accumulate tax-free and then take withdrawals free of taxes in retirement, as long as you meet certain conditions.

This year, you might even spot one of these plans at work. Nearly 85 percent of the 106 employers polled by Callan said they offered Roth 401(k) accounts in 2018.

The investment consultancy surveyed the companies in September and October.

Roth 401(k) plans are offered alongside traditional 401(k) plans. Between the two, you can save a total of $19,000 in 2019, plus $6,000 in catch-up contributions if you're age 50 and over.

"The power of the Roth 401(k) is tax-free compounding over time," said Ed Slott, CPA and founder of Ed Slott and Co. in Rockville Centre, New York.

Here's what you need to know about maximizing your tax-free savings.

No income ceiling Roth 401(k) plans are an especially sweet deal for high-income earners.

That's because you're barred from making a direct contribution to a Roth IRA if your modified adjusted gross

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income exceeds $137,000 and you're single ($203,000 if married).

Income caps don't apply to people saving in Roth 401(k) accounts.

You can also save more annually in a Roth 401(k) compared to a Roth IRA. Roth IRAs are subject to an annual contribution limit of $6,000 in 2019, plus $1,000 if you're 50 and over.

1. Consider an in-plan conversion Got a Roth 401(k) at work?

Consider moving some of your traditional 401(k) savings over to the Roth, in a move that's known as an inplan Roth conversion.

Be aware that just like any direct contributions you make to your Roth 401(k), any pretax amounts that are converted will be included in your income and subject to taxes.

"The participant would be responsible for taxes on pretax principal and earnings, which could be a very large tax bill," said Jana M. Steele, senior vice president of defined contribution at Callan.

That increase in income can be dangerous for savers.

In the worst case, it can move you to a higher tax bracket.

Consider converting pretax dollars in chunks at a time in order to avoid a sharp spike in income and taxes, said Slott.

Be sure to consult your financial advisor or accountant before you move forward.

2. Know your plan's rules Maybe you've left your employer, and you have money saved in your traditional and Roth 401(k) accounts.

Though you can't add more money into those plans, there is nothing that prohibits an in-plan conversion of what you've already saved, according to Steele.

The catch is that your retirement plan document would have to permit it, she said.

Another thing: You can't just write a check from an outside bank account to add after-tax money to your Roth 401(k).

"Receiving personal checks is something that the record keepers aren't set up for, and nearly no plans will permit that type of one-off contribution," said Steele.

3. Be aware of timing Time is a major factor into getting the biggest bang for your Roth 401(k) buck.

Millennials are the best candidates to contribute to these accounts or to make a conversion of pretax dollars.

That's because they likely haven't reached their full earnings potential yet. As a result, the tax bill they'll pay for putting money into the Roth 401(k) will likely be lower now than in the future.

They also have many years of market growth ahead.

"They're in lower tax brackets, so this is a way to buy off the taxes when you're young and have your savings grow tax free," said Slott.

If you're approaching retirement, you should still be cognizant of your timing if you do a Roth conversion.

That's because if the conversion increases your income, it could also raise your Medicare premiums.

How much you pay for Medicare Part B and Part D, which cover doctor's visits and prescription drugs respectively, depends on your modified adjusted gross income from two years ago.

"If you're going to file for Medicare at 65 and you want to avoid the surcharge, then convert at age 62," said Slott.

One more potential thing for near-retirees to consider if they're weighing a lastminute Roth 401(k) conversion: This account, like your traditional 401(k), is subject to mandatory withdrawals after you turn 70½.

You can avoid these socalled required minimum distributions if you roll your Roth 401(k) into a Roth IRA, said Slott.

- CNBC

FRIDAY, February 15, 2019

Average tax refund down 8% so far this season

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ax season is off to a slower start this year, with early filers seeing smaller average refunds.

The average refund is down about 8% under the first full year of the overhauled tax code, according to data released by the IRS on Friday. Refunds averaged $1,865 compared to $2,035 for tax year 2017.

The total number of returns received also dipped during the first week of the season ending February 1, down from about 18 million to some 16 million so far in 2019.

This season will be watched closely to gauge the real impact of the Republican-led tax overhaul in 2017 that ushered in the most sweeping changes to the tax code in 30 years.

The new rules lowered most individual rates and nearly doubled the standard deduction. The legislation also included sweeping tax cuts for companies, lowering the cor-

Photo: Shutterstock

porate rate to 21% from 35%.

Some workers saw a bump in their take-home pay after employers started using the new IRS income tax withholding tables.

But experts have said people could see smaller refunds than expected if they didn't adjust their paycheck withholdings after the changes took effect.

Others could see their tax burden increase because the revised code eliminated some popular deductions.

The average American taxpayer got a refund of about $2,700 last year, according to IRS statistics.

Filing season opened just days after the end of the longest partial government shutdown in US history. "We thank the Treasury and IRS employees who have been working diligently to ensure the system is processing these returns efficiently," Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said in a statement Friday.

- CNN

Boost your 401(k) contributions without busting your paycheck Some of the best ways to increase your retirement savings:

2. Increase Contribution After Getting A Raise

3. Consider Tax-Deferred Options

1. Roll In Irregular Income

Many companies give out cost of living or inflationary raises at a specific time each year. While those extra funds are always welcome, if you can still live comfortably on the income you brought in last year, putting away an extra 2-3 percent can make a big difference in your retirement savings. By aligning an annual increase in your contributions with the small raise you regularly receive, you can put away a meaningful amount of extra cash within a short period of time.

If you’re someone who is currently using a Roth option, but are at or near the height of their careers, consider switching to a traditional 401(k) or 403(b). By deferring the tax on your income until you withdraw it, you can choose to take that money out if you’re at a lower bracket. And because you’re now putting money away before you pay tax on it, in order to keep your takehome income the same, you can put away a bigger portion of your income in your retirement savings plan.

One of the easiest ways to save more in your retirement accounts without giving up any of your regular income to is put in any money you earn outside of your regular paycheck.

For example, if you’re a sales manager who gets a quarterly bonus for meeting your sales goal, by putting that bonus income directly into your 401(k) or 403(b), you’re not taking away from the money you need for daily life expenses but you’re one step closer to maxing out your retirement account contributions.

- Pioneer Press

DIASPORA

VOICE OF ASIA 9

Bills introduced in US Congress to remove per-country green card limits

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ASHINGTON (PTI) - Two identical legislations backed by top companies fromthe Silicon Valley like Google have been introduced in the US House of Representatives and Senate to end the percountry limit on green cards and could benefit thousands of Indian professionals waiting to gain permanent legal residency if signed into law.

In the Senate, Republican Mike Lee and Democratic presidential aspirant Kamala Harris introduced the Fairness for High-Skilled Immigrants Act on Wednesday, a bill that would remove per-country cap for employmentbased green cards.

An identical bill -- Fairness for High-Skilled Immigrants Act (HR 1044) -- was tabled in the US House of Representatives by Congressman Zoe Lofgren and Ken Buck, chair and ranking member of the House Judiciary Subcommittee on Immigration and Citizenship, with co-sponsorship of a bipartisan group of 112 Congressmen.

If passed by Congress and signed into law, the legislations would benefit thousands of Indian professionals on H-1B visas whose current wait time for permanent legal residency is more than a decade.

The H-1B visa, most soughtafter among Indian IT professionals, is a non-immigrant visa that allows US companies to employ foreign workers in speciality occupations that require theoretical or technical expertise.

A green card (officially known as a Permanent Resident Card) allows a person to live and work permanently in the United States.

According to some recent studies, some categories of those Indian professionals face a wait of 151 years under the current system which imposes a country cap on people who get green cards.

The United States makes currently 140,000 green cards available every year to employment-based immigrants, including many who first come here on temporary H-1B or L visas.

The existing law, however, provides that not more than seven per cent of these green cards can go to nationals of any one country — even though some countries are more populous than others.

Because of this seven per cent limit, for example, a Chinese or Indian post-graduate may have to wait half a decade or more for a Green Card, much longer than a student from a less-populated country.

"Ours is a nation of immigrants, and our strength has always come from our diversity and our unity," Harris said.

"We must do more to eliminate discriminatory backlogs and facilitate family unity so that high-skilled immigrants are not vulnerable to exploitation and can stay in the US and continue to contribute to the economy," said the IndianAmerican Senator.

Co-sponsored by 13 more Senators, the Fairness for High-Skilled Immigrants Act increases the per-country caps for familysponsored green cards from seven per cent to 15 per cent.

Without adding any new green cards, it creates a "firstcome, first-served" system that alleviates the backlogs and allows green cards to be awarded more efficiently.

"Immigrants should not be penalised due to their country of origin," Lee said.

"Treating people fairly and equally is part of our founding creed and the Fairness for High-Skilled Immigrants Act reflects that belief. Immigration is often a contentious issue, but we should not delay progress in areas where there is bipartisan consensus just because we have differences in other areas," Lee said.

The bill has also been endorsed by Immigration Voice, Compete America Coalition, the Information Technology Industry Council, Google, Walmart, the US Chamber of Commerce, National Association of Manufacturers, The Heritage Foundation, La Raza, and many

FRIDAY, February 15, 2019

Bill introduced on NRI marriages in Parliament If an NRI man fails to register his marriage within 30 days of date of marriage, his passport can be impounded or revoked.

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EW DELHI: PTI Feb 11, 2019 - External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj on Monday introduced a path breaking Bill on Registration of Marriage of non-Resident of India in Rajya Sabha . others.

The Fairness for HighSkilled Immigrants Act alters the per-country limits for employment-based immigrants so that all are treated equally regardless of their country of birth.

Noting that the immigration system is severely broken, and it has been broken for decades, said Lofgren said at the heart of this broken system are the outdated employment- and family-based immigration systems, which suffer under decades-long backlogs.

"In combination with the per country limits, these backlogs keep nuclear families apart for decades, while preventing US employers from accessing and retaining the employees they need to stay competitive. The Fairness for High-Skilled Immigrants Act begins to address these problems and makes the immigration system somewhat more rational. It is a small, but good step forward," Lofgren said.

Buck said year after year, he has met with constituents who come here legally on work vi-

sas from India or China and face decades-long wait times for obtaining permanent residence.

"We want to ensure America remains globally competitive, we need to ease the backlogs and leverage the talent and expertise of our high-skilled immigrants who help strengthen the US economy and fill knowledge gaps in certain fields," he said.

These are people who have helped America grow and thrive as a nation of immigrants and the US needs to make sure the system continues to value those who are following American laws and doing the right thing, Buck argued.

Aman Kapoor, co-founder and president of Immigration Voice, welcomed the move.

"It would help to grow our economy by allowing highly skilled immigrants to start their own companies and hire American workers. And, it will finally remove the last vestiges of discrimination from our high-skilled immigration system," Kapoor said.

The Bill is an outcome of a joint initiative of the Ministry of External Affairs, Ministry of Women and Child Development, Ministry of Home Affairs and Ministry of Law and Justice.

The objective of the Bill is to create more accountability and offer more protection against exploitation of Indian women by their NRI s spouses.

It envisages (i) Registration of Marriages by Non-Resident Indians; (ii) Amendment of the

Passports Act 1967 and (iii) Amendment to the Code of Criminal Procedure 1973.

According to the provisions of the Bill, the compulsory registration of marriage within thirty days of marriage in India or abroad would provide better enforcement of rights of the deserted spouse under various family laws. Similarly, the Amendment to the Passport Act would empower the Passport Authority to impound or revoke the passport of NRI, if it is brought to his notice that the NRI has not registered his marriage within 30 days from the date of marriage. The Amendments to CrPC, 1973 would empower the Courts for issuance of summons, warrants through the specially desig-

nated website of the Ministry of External Affairs. It also provides provisions for attachment of properties belonging to the NRI, if he does not appear before the Court and is declared as Proclaimed Offender by the Court.

The introduction of the Bill was necessitated by the Ministry of External Affairs due to numerous complaints received from Indian nationals mostly women deserted or harassed by their Non-Resident Indian Spouses. The Bill proposes to offer greater protection to Indian women married to NRIs and serve as a deterrent to NRIs against harassment of their spouses. This would provide much needed relief to all Indian women married to NRIs worldwide.

Indian American and girlfriend charged with murder-for-hire PTI | Feb 07, 2019,

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ndian American Narsan Lingala and his girlfriend Sandya Reddy have been charged with trying to hire a hitman to kill the former's estranged wife.

Lingala, 55, who has been charged by criminal complaint with one count of murder-forhire was produced before US

Magistrate Judge Michael A. Hammer in Newark federal court and was held without bail.

His ex-girlfriend, Reddy, 52, appeared in the court on the same charge and was also detained.

According to the complaint, in May 2018, Lingala was in a

holding cell at the Middlesex County Superior Courthouse as he awaited a court hearing.

While there, he asked another inmate if he knew anyone who could kill his estranged wife.

The inmate responded that he Continued on Page 10

SOUTH ASIA

VOICE OF ASIA 10

Pakistan women's rights activist released from detention

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SLAMABAD, Pakistan | AFP - One of Pakistan's leading women's rights activists has been released from police custody, she told AFP Thursday, after Amnesty International said she and others had been detained "arbitrarily".

She was separated from the other activists, she said, and was not placed under official arrest.

"They didn't charge me with anything. They didn't let me contact my lawyer. They just kept moving me around," she said.

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Pashtun rights activist Gulalai Ismail judicial murders, or "encounter killings" as they are commonly known in Pakistan.

He accused Ismail and the other activists of uttering "antistate slogans".

An Islamabad police official dealing with the case swept the claims aside.

Police follow "a proper procedure and her claims of an encounter are unthinkable," he told AFP, referring to extra-

She has been freed, but "as a human rights defender, she is still not safe," said Rabia Mehmood, a researcher for

Amnesty International.

"It is really alarming that peaceful protests are constantly targeted by the Pakistani state," she added.

The PTM is demanding, among other things, an end to what it says are enforced disappearances and extra-judicial murders of ethnic Pashtuns by police and other security officials.

Ismail is also the co-founder of Aware Girls, an NGO that promotes gender equality. She has received several international awards.

Nude protest, black flags greet India's Modi in Assam

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UWAHATI, India | AFP | Saturday 2/9/2019 - A second day of protests on Saturday tainted Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to northeast India where proposals to change a nationality law have sparked outrage.

Assam, a state of 33 million, has been plagued by decades of tensions between local tribal and indigenous groups and settlers from outside, including many Muslims and Hindus from nearby Bangladesh.

Modi insisted that his government will ensure that the amended law does not harm Assam and neighbouring states

Protesting against Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Assam visit, Asom Jatiyatabadi Yuba Chatra Parishad (AJYCP) Bongaigaon district committee staged a protest on Saturday. (Photo:Sentinel Assam) however.

Addressing one public rally, he said the bill, which still needs approval from India's upper chamber, was a "national commitment" to the minorities.

"The passage of the bill will ensure that those people who... love India more than their lives will be accommodated in India.

It is a responsibility of India to accept those people," he said.

Modi said citizenship will only be granted after thorough checks on each applicant.

While groups in Assam want to block all outsiders, human rights activists have condemned the government law for not covering Muslims.

They say it will be the first time

religion has been a criteria for nationality in India, which is officially secular.

Last year the Assam government released the first draft of a state citizens' register that rejected four million mainly Muslim residents who were unable to prove they were living in the state before 1971, when millions fled Bangladesh's war of independence.

Modi said that his government was speeding up efforts to seal the India-Bangladesh border.

An election is expected to be called for April-May and the BJP's hopes in the northeastern states have been badly damaged by the new law, analysts said.

Indian American and girlfriend...

Continued from Page 9 knew such a person.

In June 2018, at the direction of law enforcement, the inmate introduced Lingala to an undercover agent posing as a hitman.

Over subsequent weeks, Lingala and the undercover cop spoke on the phone and planned to meet in person the next time that Lingala travelled from Indiana to New Jersey.

On August 18, 2018, Lingala and the undercover police officer agreed to meet outside a New Jersey shopping mall.

Later that day, Lingala and his then-girlfriend, Reddy, arrived outside the mall and approached the cop.

Lingala introduced Reddy and stated that she understood what was going on. The trio then entered the undercover cop's car.

They proceeded to have a conversation that was video recorded. The cop asked Lingala

Cheap, locally-made liquor is common in parts of rural India and bootleggers often add methanol -- a highly toxic form of alcohol sometimes used as an anti-freeze -- to their product to increase its strength.

If ingested in large quantities, methanol can cause blindness, liver damage and death.

In one district of Uttar Pradesh 59 people had died after consuming toxic alcohol, police spokesman Shailendra Kumar Sharma told AFP. In a neighbouring district a senior police officer said nine had died, adding that 66 suspected bootleggers had been arrested in the state and samples of the liquor sent to a laboratory for testing.

Train 18 series (new semi high-speed trains) ready to be flagged off on February 15, 2019. (Photo credit: Urban Transport News)

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EW DELHI: PTI Feb 11, 2019, Vande Bharat Express or Train 18's air conditioned chair car ticket would cost Rs. 1,850 and the executive class fare will be Rs. 3,520 for a Delhi to Varanasi trip, including the catering service charges, officials told PTI on Monday.

On its return journey, chair car ticket will cost 1,795 and the executive ticket will be priced at 3,470, they said.

the Rs. car Rs.

While the chair car fares are 1.5 times the price of Shatabdi trains running the same distance, the executive class fares are 1.4 times of first class air conditioned seating in the premium train, the official sources said.

The semi-high speed train is scheduled to be flagged off

by Prime Minister Narendra

Modi on February 15.

The train has two classes of tickets -- executive class and chair car -- and both will have differently priced meals, the sources said.

While passengers travelling from New Delhi to Varanasi in the executive class will be charged Rs. 399 for morning tea, breakfast and lunch, travellers in the chair car will need to pay Rs. 344 for the same.

Those travelling from New Delhi to Kanpur and Prayagraj will have to pay Rs. 155 and Rs. 122 for executive class and chair car, respectively.

From Varanasi to New Delhi, the passengers will be charged Rs. 349 and Rs. 288 in the executive class and chair, respectively.

Hardline Islamists injure dozens in attack on minority Muslims in Bangladesh

Media reports said the nude protesters were detained while Assam student groups said police baton charged another group of activists.

His nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has faced a severe backlash in the region over a proposed change to a 1955 citizenship act which would give Indian nationality to Hindus and other minorities who have fled the neighbouring Muslim countries of Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Pakistan.

Authorities said many victims had complained of dizziness and were taken to hospital writhing in pain after consuming the illicit alcohol.

Police said at least 31 people died in neighbouring Uttarakhand state and that two had been arrested on suspicion of supplying the liquor. Four suspects have been arrested in the state.

Protesters waved black flags and burned effigies of the Hindu nationalist prime minister while some students staged a nude protest outside the state government complex in the Assam capital of Guwahati.

Black flag protests -- considered a strong insult -- greeted Modi when he arrived in Guwahati on Friday night to start the tour of Assam, Arunachal Pradesh and Tripura as he prepares to call a national election.

Modi on February 15.

News of the deaths in the states of Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand has trickled in over the past three days, with police suspecting the moonshine had been cut with methanol.

Ismail was briefly detained in October after speaking at another PTM meeting. Her brief disappearance this week has inflamed social networks, with the hashtag #WhereIsGulalai going viral.

"You cannot arrest citizens and just disappear them."

At least 99 Traveling on Train 18, dead after India's fastest: How much consuming will a ticket cost? toxic alco- The semi-high speed train is scheduled to hol in India be flagged off by Prime Minister Narendra EW DELHI, India | AFP | 2/11/2019 - At least 99 people have died and scores have been hospitalised in northern India after drinking toxic alcohol, triggering a crackdown against bootleggers, officials said Monday.

Gulalai Ismail was arrested along with 17 other members of the Pashtun Protection Movement (PTM), a peaceful organisation defending the rights of ethnic Pashtuns, during a protest in Islamabad on Tuesday.

"It was very painful for my family, who tool 30 hours to know where I was," she told AFP, adding that she had been freed late Wednesday.

FRIDAY, February 15, 2019

to confirm what he wanted him to do and the accused said, "I want that woman to be out of my life... totally. Never again.

She never comes back."

During the conversation, the undercover cop asked, "You want me to take care of her?" to which Lingala responded, "Yeah."

The undercover cop stated, "She's done, I'm going to kill her. End of story." Lingala responded, "Yeah. End of story."

During the conversation, Lingala gave the cop information about the intended victim including his ex-wife's full name, home address, age, and home phone number.

He also described the entrances to and layout of her home; the name of the company where she worked; and the timing and details of her work commute.

Lingala showed the undercover officer photos of the exterior and interior of his ex-wife's home. Reddy also

provided the him information about the intended victim.

The trio also discussed the price and the undercover cop demanded between USD 5,000 and USD 10,000, depending on the job's complexity.

Lingala agreed and asked if he could pay after the job was done. The cop, however, said he would need a down payment.

The couple discussed the issue and then Lingala asked the cop, "Can I give you a thousand down payment?" to which the undercover cop agreed.

Lingala later stated, "I want that money to go into your pocket."

Lingala informed the undercover officer that making the down payment would take about two weeks.

After the meeting, authorities arrested Lingala and Reddy. The murder-for-hire charge is punishable by a maximum of 10 years in prison and a USD 250,000 fine.

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HAKA, Bangladesh | AFP | 2/13/2019 Police fired rubber bullets and tear gas at hundreds of hardline Islamists who attacked minority Muslims in northern Bangladesh, leaving at least 25 people injured, officials said Wednesday.

The clashes erupted Tuesday night after days of tensions over a planned convention of the Ahmadi Muslim minority community in the town of Ahmadnagar. Majority Sunni Muslim groups demanded the event be cancelled.

Hardline Islamists do not consider the Ahmadis to be Muslim and have called for them to be banned. The 100,000 Ahmadis in Bangladesh have faced repeated attacks and are often barred

from establishing mosques.

The group is banned in Pakistan.

Police said several Sunni groups have been holding protests against the Ahmadis' local convention, scheduled to start in just over a week.

"Some 700-800 men wielding sticks and batons marched towards Ahmadnagar and clashed with the Ahmadis," local police chief Abu Akkas said.

Police fired rubber bullets and tear gas to "maintain law and order", he told AFP, adding that at least 20 police and five Ahmadis were injured.

Ahmadi community spokesman Ahmad Tabshir Choudhury said at least seven of the Muslim minority were injured, three critically.

The last few decades have seen a number of attacks targeting Ahmadi Muslims in Bangladesh.

In 1999, a bomb ripped through an Ahmadi mosque in the southern city of Khulna, killing at least eight worshippers.

In 2015 a suicide blast by a suspected Islamist extremist at an Ahmadi mosque in the northwestern town of Bagmara wounded three people.

The Islamic State group claimed responsibility for the attack, but the authorities blamed the homegrown militant group Jamayetul Mujahideen Bangladesh (JMB), which is accused of killing scores of religious minorities including Hindus, Christians, Sufi Muslims and Shiites.

Murder of Indian politician sets stage for election bloodshed

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OLKATA, India | AFP | Sunday 2/10/2019 Several thousand activists paraded through a West Bengal town Sunday with the body of a politician whose killing opened a campaign of violence ahead of India's general election.

Satyajit Biswas, a lawmaker from the eastern state's ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC), was shot dead at point blank range by unidentified gunmen as he attended a ceremony for a Hindu goddess late Saturday.

His party blamed the arch rival Bharatiya Janata Party of Prime Minister Narendra Modi but its leaders denied any involvement.

"We suspect a political link to the killing," said West Bengal deputy police chief Anuj Sharma. He added that two people had been arrested but would not say if they were from a party.

Followers marched with the 38-year-old legislator's body from a hospital in Nadia district, about 120 kilometres (75

miles) from Kolkata, to his home village.

Nadia, which borders Bangladesh, was a battleground between the TMC and BJP during civic polls last year. There were dozens of deaths during the campaign.

Modi must soon announce a national election expected to start in April and which will almost certainly see new bloodshed.

Biswas "had been actively trying to prevent the BJP's foray into the community," said TMC general secretary Partha Chatterjee as he blamed the rival party for the "shocking killing".

West Bengal BJP chief Dilip Ghosh blamed the murder on splits in the TMC. "When there is a political killing, they accuse my party.

Let there be a Central Bureau of Investigation inquiry, everything will become clear," he told AFP. West Bengal witnessed grue-

some political murders around past elections with victims hacked to pieces and some burned alive along with entire slums.

There is a close link between criminal networks and political groups in the state, according to Sabyasachi Basu Roy Chowdhury, vice-chancellor of Rabindra Bharati University in West Bengal. "This has complicated the problem," he said.

According to the Indian Express newspaper, in 2013 the Communist Party accused the TMC of killing 142 political opponents ahead of the last national election.

Political killings are rife across India. While National Crime Bureau data said there were more than 100 political murders in 2016, political experts said the figure is much higher.

Kerala, Uttar Pradesh and Bihar states in the north are the worst for political murders, the government data shows.

VOICE OF ASIA 11

FRIDAY, February 15, 2019

US/WORLD

VOICE OF ASIA 12

With armoured vehicles and snipers, US seeks to deter Russia

by Shaun Tandon

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RZYSZ, Poland | AFP | Wednesday 2/13/2019 - With the Russian border little more than an hour away, the desolate grey sky burst open with an explosion of fire and a plume of smoke. If the scene evoked the Cold War, it was intentional.

US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo trekked Wednesday to the Polish town of Orzysz to witness NATO live-fire exercises in an unmistakable sign to Warsaw that the United States has its eye on Russia.

Pompeo walked through drizzling rain with senior Polish officials over frozen soil and patches of snow to a reviewing stand as several hundred troops stood at attention.

Pompeo, a West Point graduate who served as a US Army cavalry officer in Germany when Poland was on the other side of the Iron Curtain, said little had changed except, he joked, that back then he was listening to cassette tapes of Van Halen.

The US defense chief likened Orzysz, around 70 kilometres (45 miles) from Russia's Baltic Sea enclave of Kaliningrad, to divided Germany's infamous Fulda Gap -- where NATO feared that Soviet tanks could penetrate its defenses.

"Today, the gap in which we

stand occupies the same priority focus for NATO commanders that the Fulda Gap did back then -- once again because of Russian aggression," Pompeo said in reference to the so-called Suwalki Gap. He said that the concern was not theoretical, denouncing Russian President Vladimir Putin for the 2014 annexation of the Crimean peninsula and ongoing support for separatists in Ukraine, as well as Moscow's war a decade earlier with Georgia.

"We take seriously those concerns that Russia may one day try to open a front along a line right here," Pompeo said.

- Simulated battle Pompeo then advanced with senior Polish officials including Foreign Minister Jacek Czaputowicz to observe exercises by troops from the five countries at the base -- the United States, Poland, Britain, Croatia and Romania.

Amid startling shots from rocket launchers, 20 troops sprinted from a corner for a display of hand-to-hand combat, simulating punching and kicking one another as if in the throes of battle.

Pompeo watched with a smile as Bradley armoured vehicles rolled by and a dozen soldiers jumped out before him and squatted with their

rifles, shooting metallic targets in the shape of enemy bodies.

A Polish officer provided a running, dispassionate narrative in precise English, explaining, "The snipers wait patiently for the enemy soldier to present the opportunity for the perfect shot."

- Wooing the US Putin has accused the United States of trying to contain Russia and has pledged to boost Moscow's own military, including by deploying nuclearcapable Iskander missiles to Kaliningrad.

Meanwhile, US President Donald Trump has voiced admiration for Putin and mused that NATO -- which considers an attack on any of its 30 members an attack on all -- cheats the United States out of money.

Believing a permanent US presence would be the ultimate deterrent, Poland has offered to contribute to building a US base -- which it has cheekily suggested could be called Fort Trump.

FRIDAY, February 15, 2019

Eminent Sikh American Gurinder Singh Khalsa announces entry into politics

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ASHINGTON: PTI | Feb 07, 2019 - Eminent IndianAmerican Gurinder Singh Khalsa, who recently won the prestigious Rosa Parks Trailblazer award, has decided to enter electoral politics. "An interest in public policy based on my past experiences along with the desire to give back to my community are among the prevailing factors as to my decision to run for office," Singh told his supporters in Indianapolis on Wednesday after announcing his plans to run for City Council of Fishers.

A resident of the Fishers community in Indiana for over a decade, Khalsa is a prominent business leader, entrepreneur, and philanthropist who has worked with public service leaders and organisations across the state and nation.

Asked about a troop increase, Pompeo said the United States was "taking a look at it".

"I want to be a part of giving back through public service," he said according to a press release issued Wednesday.

NATO promised Russia in 1997 not to station significant forces in the former eastern bloc. As tensions have grown however, the alliance has instead rotated troops through front-line countries.

Asked why he decided now was the time to run for council, Singh responded, "I have met many trailblazers who have made a difference in the lives of others through their work in public service."

US Vice-President Mike Pence with Indian-American Sikh leader Gurinder Singh Khalsa. (Photo credit: PTI) "My experience in business operations and the ability to bring a new voice to the table as we strive for forward-thinking visions and goals for the community will be an asset for Fishers," he added.

Singh said he desires to invest in the very community that provided him with the same opportunities which have contributed to his success as a community leader.

"I desire to invest my time in Fishers - working towards collaborating with others as we address the fast-paced growth of our community and inspiring others to get involved with the community, as well," Singh said further.

"My values center on the growth of our community and the voice of our community," he reiterated.

Last month, Khalsa received the prestigious Rosa Parks Trailblazer award because of his courage and integrity displayed in May of 2007 when he was asked to remove his turban while attempting to board a flight in Buffalo, New York.

Following this incident, he worked towards bringing this issue to the attention of the US Congress, which later resulted in headgear policies being changed in airports nationwide.

Taliban announce talks with US in Islamabad: spokesman

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ABUL, Afghanistan | AFP | 2/13/2019 - The Taliban said Wednesday that its negotiators would meet US envoys for talks this month in Islamabad, and also sit down with Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan to discuss Afghanistan.

US officials have repeatedly accusing Pakistan of turning a blind eye to, or even collaborating with, the Afghan Taliban, which launch attacks in

But a Taliban statement issued Wednesday said separate meetings would be held first on February 18 in Islamabad "by the formal invitation of the government of Pakistan".

Talks in Doha would follow a week later on February 25, the statement said.

Khalilzad is heading a large delegation on a tour of Belgium, Germany, Turkey, Qatar, Afghanistan and Pakistan to boost the peace process and bring all Afghan parties to the table.

He has expressed cautious hope for a deal before Afghan presidential elections slated for July, but says the Taliban must come to the table with the Kabul government, which the insurgents consider a US puppet.

President Ashraf Ghani -who has expressed frustration at being sidelined from recent talks -- flew to Munich on Wednesday to attend an international security conference, his office said.

The Taliban also announced a meeting with Prime Minister Khan in Islamabad for "comprehensive discussions" about bilateral affairs with Afghanistan.

News reports in Pakistan last month had suggested Islamabad was open to hosting the next round of talks with the insurgents.

In January, as he travelled the region building support for the peace process, Khalilzad met Khan in Pakistan -- one of just three countries that recognised the Taliban regime before their ousting by US-led forces in 2001.

Pakistan's foreign ministry said in December that President Donald Trump, who is pushing to end the 17-year war in Afghanistan, wrote to Khan seeking Islamabad's support for peace efforts.

Ties between Washington and Islamabad have soured recently.

The White House believes

that Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence agency and other military bodies have long helped fund and arm the Tali-

ban, and believe a Pakistani crackdown on the militants could be pivotal in deciding the outcome of the war.

Pakistan has long denied the claims, saying thousands of its citizens have been killed in its long struggle with militancy.

Indian American Nurses Legacy Award (IANLA)

The announcement, not immediately confirmed by Washington or Islamabad, comes as America's chief negotiator tours the globe shoring up support for a peace process to end its longest war.

Zalmay Khalilzad, a former ambassador to Afghanistan, held extensive talks with the militants last month in Qatar, where the Taliban have an office. More talks are slated for later in February.

Afghanistan from alleged havens along the border between the two countries.

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VOICE OF ASIA 13

Fort Bend View

FRIDAY, February 15, 2019

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

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Unanimous vote supports County Judge KP George’s expansion of the Office of Emergency Management Preparedness, efficiency, and better communication drive County Judge George’s innovative structural change to bring the Fire Marshal’s Office under the Office of Emergency Management.

F

ORT BEND COUNTYFort Bend County Judge KP George moved the Fire Marshal’s Office under the Office of Emergency Management through a 5-0 vote of the Commissioners’ Court.

With this motion, both departments will be overseen by the leadership of Chief Administrator Mark Flathouse who reports to the County Judge. The Fire Marshal’s Office will continue to maintain the high level of service while ultimately providing the synergy needed to improve the quality of emergency service for our residents.

“I am proud to act on this important issue that has intimately impacted the lives of Fort Bend County residents,”

said County Judge KP George. “In less than a 100 days on the job, we brought the Fire Marshal under the Office of Emergency Management to improve our disaster response and preparedness as a county. Moving forward, the new Office of Emergency Management will be able to improve our communication with the public, coordinate better with partner entities, and build community confidence in an effective emergency management operation.”

Chief Administrator Mark Flathouse said, “It has been refreshing to work with the visionary leadership of County Judge George to lead our emergency management operation into the 21st century. I look forward to bringing the

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Section 2

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Fort Bend ISD Spelling Bee champions named

Chief Administrator Mark Flathouse.

Image: Fort Bend County, TX innovation and efficiency of the Fire Marshal’s to the whole county’s emergency management service.”

FBISD Board Member Jim Rice to chair TASB Legislative Committee

A

beginning in 2012, serving two consecutive terms in that office. He is a 2014 graduate of Leadership TASB.

USTIN – The Texas Association of School Boards (TASB) First Vice-President Jim Rice (Fort Bend ISD) has been named the chair of the 201819 TASB Legislative Committee.

The committee is a standing committee of TASB Board of Directors.

Elected to the TASB Board of Directors in 2012, Rice previously chaired the Legislative Committee during the 84th Legislative Session and has served on the Nominations and Planning and Development committees.

Rice was elected to the Fort Bend ISD Board in May 2010. He was elected board secretary beginning in June 2011 and board president

Rice is president of Rice and Gardner Consultants, Inc., an engineering and construction management firm. In addition to his professional duties, he currently serves as the Fort Bend Chamber of Commerce’s Education Division vicechair and is a 2005 graduate of the Fort Bend Chamber of Commerce’s Leadership Forum Class.

Jim Rice, TASB Legislative Committee Chair and FBISD Board Member

Shown in Austin advocating for public education are (from l-r): TASB Legislative Committee Vice Chair Debbie Gillespie, Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick, TASB President Jim de Garavilla, TASB 1st Vice President and Legislative Committee Chair Jim Rice, and TASB Secretary Charles Cunningham.

He is also involved in numerous civic organizations for Fort Bend, including Fort Bend Cares, Fort Bend Literacy Council, Fort Bend P16 Regional Council, and Greater Fort Bend Economic Development Council. Rice is co-founder of the charity Fort Bend Cares, which benefits underprivileged youth in the community.

TASB is a nonprofit association established in 1949 to serve local public school boards.

School board members are the largest group of publicly elected officials in the state. The districts they represent serve more than 5.34 million students.

Fort Bend ISD to launch Early College High School and Pathways in Technology programs for 2019-20 school year All current FBISD 8th graders eligible to apply, applications now accepted

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ORT BEND ISD (February 11, 2019) – Following Board approval in January, Fort Bend ISD is excited to launch three new programs for the 2019-20 school year. Early College High School and Pathways in Technology Early College High School (P-TECH) programs will provide students with opportunities to earn college credit, an associate degree, a two-year postsecondary certificate or industry certification – all while earning their high school diploma.

ECHS Program Information The ECHS programs are open to all current FBISD 8th grade students, who can commit to completing a four-year program, beginning their freshman year of high school through their senior year. The three ECHS programs to which students may apply include: - Early College High School at

Marshall High School that features coursework applicable to any degree program - Pathways in Technology (PTECH) Early College High School at Hightower High School - Health Science that features coursework focused on specific health science degree plans - Pathways in Technology (PTECH) Early College High School at Willowridge High School - Computer Programming that features coursework focused on specific computer programming degree plans Application Window The application window opens Monday, February 11 and closes Friday, March 22. There are no criteria or pre-requisites for eligibility into the programs. FBISD only asks that students be dedicated and committed to earning an associate degree or core college credit while earning a high

school diploma.

More information about the programs and how to apply can be found on the Early College High School and P-TECH webpages.

To learn more about the Early College High School program, visit www.fortbendisd.com/ echs. For additional information regarding the Pathways in Technology (PTECH) program, visit www.fortbendisd.com/ptech.

Sahana Gade, a student at Walker Station Elementary, and Aarnav Gopinath, a GT Academy student at Quail Valley Middle School, were named the 2019 District Spelling Bee Champions.

F

ORT BEND ISD (February 8, 2019) – It took nearly four hours to name the 2019 Fort Bend ISD District Spelling Bee champions on Monday, February 4.

Aarnav Gopinath, a student at Quail Valley Middle School’s GT Academy, and Sahana Gade, a student at Walker Station Elementary, were named the two District champions. Yale Zhang, a student at Colony Meadows Elementary was named the alternate. This is Aarnav’s second time as a District champion, a title he also earned in 2017.

The two champions advance to the regional Houston Public Media Spelling Bee, which will be held on March 23, 2019. The Houston bee is the largest regional bee in the nation, and Aarnav and Sahana will join students from across the greater Houston area in the competition.

VOICE OF ASIA 14

FRIDAY, February 15, 2019

BOLLYWOOD - HOLLYWOOD Section 2

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Fellow actors defend Liam Neeson over controversial comments she said.

“So I can say this man is not one.”

Actor Terry Crews also commented on the controversy saying in a tweet: “I believe that every person on earth is capable of the greatest good, or unspeakable evil. Liam is just describing his fork in the road.”

Neeson’s controversial comments were made in an interview to promote his new thriller “Cold Pursuit,” about a father seeking revenge after his son is murdered by a drug gang.

Irish actor Liam Neeson arrives at the premiere of ‘Widows’ at the Toronto International Film Festival in Toronto, Ontario.

L

OS ANGELES | AFP - Fellow actors and co-stars have come to the defense of Liam Neeson after he admitted he once set out to kill a black man as revenge for a friend who had been raped.

Actress Michelle Rodriguez, who co-starred with Neeson in last year’s movie “Widows,” lashed out at the fierce criticism her colleague has faced at the amfAR Gala in New York late Wednesday, insisting he was not a racist.

“It’s all fucking bullshit,” she told Vanity Fair. “Dude, have you watched ‘Widows’? His tongue was so far down Viola Davis’s throat.

“You can’t call him a racist ever,” she added. “Racists don’t make out

with the race that they hate, especially in the way he does with his tongue -so deep down her throat. I don’t care how good of an actor you are. It’s all bullshit. Ignore it. He’s not a racist.

He’s a loving man. It’s all lies.”

Whoopi Goldberg also spoke out during a panel discussion on television, saying she doesn’t believe the 66-year-old “Taken” star is a bigot.

“People walk around sometimes with rage. That’s what happens. Is he a bigot? No. I’ve known him a pretty long time, I think I would have recognized. I’ve been around a lot of real bigots,” she said.

“You can’t be surprised that somebody whose loved one is attacked is angry and wants to go out and attack,”

The New York red carpet event on Tuesday for the film was cancelled in the wake of the interview. Neeson’s appearance Friday night on The Late Show with Stephen Colbert -- a top US talk show -- has also reportedly been cancelled.

In the bombshell interview, Neeson spoke of “hoping some black bastard would come out of a pub and have a go at me about something, you know? So that I could... kill him.”

In an attempt at damage control, he spoke with ABC’s “Good Morning America” on Tuesday, explaining that he knew his behaviour was wrong and had sought help from a Catholic priest and friends to come to terms with his behaviour.

He also insisted race was not the driving factor behind his actions.

“If she had said an Irish or a Scot or a Brit or a Lithuanian, I know it would have had the same effect,” he told ABC. “I was trying to show honor and stand up for my dear friend in this terrible medieval fashion.”

Woody Allen sues Amazon for $68 million

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EW YORK | AFP - Filmmaker Woody Allen has filed a $68 million suit against Amazon for breach of contract, accusing the streaming giant of canceling a film deal because of a “baseless” decades-old allegation that he sexually abused his daughter.

Allen says Amazon sought to terminate the deal in June, and has since refused to pay him $9 million in financing for his latest film, “A Rainy Day in New York,” his lawyers at Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan allege.

That film was one of several to be produced with the Oscar-winning director under a series of agreements reached after Allen made the “Crisis in Six Scenes” program for Amazon, which was then a new content provider.

He is seeking that $9 million along with minimum guarantees owed him for three other films, totaling “in excess of $68,000,000,” according to a complaint filed Thursday in federal court in New York and obtained by AFP.

In addition to the first nine million, the contract provided for minimum inputs of another nine million, 25 million and another 25 million for the other three films, planned for 2018, 2019 and 2020 respectively. That totals 68 million.

Allen says Amazon told him the deal had become “impracticable” because of “supervening events, including renewed allegations against Mr Allen, his own controversial comments” and the refusal of actors to work with him.

The four-time Oscar-winning director said he asked for details of these “accusations” and “statements,” to no avail.

And Allen claims Amazon’s unilateral termination of the contract forced him and his production company Gravier Productions to cancel “highly recognized individuals” whom he had hired.

Allen has been accused of molesting Dylan Farrow, his adopted daughter, when she was seven years old in the early 1990s.

He was cleared of the charges, first leveled by his then-partner Mia Farrow, after two separate months-long investigations, and has steadfastly denied the abuse. But Dylan, now an adult, maintains she was molested.

In June last year, the same month that Amazon apparently terminated his contract, Allen backed the #MeToo movement against sexual harassment -- and said he should be its poster boy.

“I’ve worked in movies for 50 years, I’ve worked with hundreds of actresses, and not a single one has ever suggested any kind of impropriety at all,” he said in an interview with Argentina’s Canal 13 television network.

“I -- who was only accused by one woman in a child custody case, which was looked at and proven to be untrue -- I get lumped in with these people.”

Vicky Kaushal’s Uri makes box office history, is first ever midrange film to cross Rs 200 cr mark

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UMBAI - Vicky Kaushal’s war drama, Uri: The Surgical Strike, has crossed the Rs 200 crore mark at the domestic box office, becoming the first ever ‘midrange’ film to achieve this feat. The film took less than a month to make Rs 200 crore at the box office, considered a new benchmark for success after the dilution of the Rs 100 crore mark. The film has made over Rs 300 crore worldwide.

Bollywood’s Rs 200 crore-plus club is dominated by films starring Shah Rukh Khan, Salman Khan and Aamir Khan, with the exceptions being Sanju, starring Ranbir Kapoor, Simmba, starring Ranveer Singh, and Krrish 3, starring Hrithik Roshan.

Trade analyst Taran Adarsh tweeted the news on Thursday. Uri has made more than Rs 25 crore in its fourth week of release. According to Adarsh, the film crossed the Rs 75 crore mark on its eighth day of release, the Rs 100 crore mark on day 10, Rs 125 crore on day 13, Rs 150 crore on day 17, Rs 175 crore on day 23 and Rs 200 crore on day 28. The film registered the highest ever day 23 and 24 totals, beating the previous records, set by Baahubali: The Conclusion, one of the biggest hits the country has ever seen.

The film is based on the Indian Army’s 2016 surgical strike in Pakistan.

Its tagline, ‘How’s the josh’ has already entered the pop-culture lexicon, with everyone from Vicky’s Bollywood contemporaries to PM Narendra Modi invoking it. Director Aditya Dhar in an interview to PTI spoke about the

Yami Gautam origins of the tagline. “I had some friends from Defence background, so with them I used to go to a lot of Army clubs. There was one in Delhi where we used to go for Christmas or New Year parties. There used to be a retired Brigadier who would line up all the kids in front of him and have a chocolate in his hand,” he said. “He would say ‘How’s the josh?’ and we were to respond with ‘high sir!’ The kid who was the loudest got the chocolate. Being a foodie, I used to be the loudest and always got the chocolate.”

Uri fended off competition from Kangana Ranaut’s historical epic, Manikarnika: The Queen of Jhansi, which has made Rs 80 crore in India, and Sonam Kapoor’s same-sex romance, Ek Ladki Ko Dekha Toh Aisa Laga, which flopped with Rs 17 crore.

“It’s a surreal feeling that audience has accepted our film with open arms,” said Vicky in an interview to IANS. - Hindustan Times

Amazon did not immediately reply to a request for comment.

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LEGAL

VOICE OF ASIA 15

Section 2

Email: voiceasia@aol.com

www.voiceofasia.news

WRONGFUL DEATH CLAIMS IN TEXAS

T

exas legislature enacted the Wrongful Death Statute which provides the sole remedy and maximum compensation for the decedent’s spouse, children, and parents for all losses sustained as a result.

Wrongful death is defined as death that occurs as the direct result of intentional, unintentional, negligent, reckless, or unskillful actions of a person or entity when the death was avoidable and there are monetary damages.

This action creates a valid wrongful death claim and it is especially important when the deceased was the primary income owner or estate owner for the surviving family members.

tion. Mala has also been selected as 10 Best Attorneys by the American Institute of Personal Injury Attorney for 2018-2019, Top 40 under 40 by the National Trial Lawyers for 2018-2019, and Texas Top 10 Personal Injury Attorney by Attorney and Practice Magazine for 2019.

This material is available for informational purposes only and not for the purpose of providing legal advice.

You should contact an attorney to obtain advice with respect to any particular issue or problem. If you require advice or assistance, you may contact her at office number 281-893-8644 or by email at mala@sharmalaws. net to schedule a free consultation to discuss your case.

Texas Wrongful Death law exists to provide a right for the surviving family to pursue a lawsuit against the negligent person or company to seek full damages and punish the wrongdoer for their negligence. It is imperative that spouses, children, or parents suffering from the wrongful death of a loved one, to contact a qualified attorney to begin working on their claim immediately. The attorney will work to prove all evidence of the egregious actions by the defendant for the highest compensation.

Who can file a Wrongful Death Claim in Texas?

There are many parties that can file for wrongful death claims, including the spouse, children, and parents of the deceased. Siblings of the deceased are not allowed to file a claim. Under Texas law, the plaintiffs of such lawsuit are in the shoes of the victim if s/he had lived. Each party may file together as a team or separately. Further, the named beneficiaries must file the claim within threemonths after the death or the executor or administrator of the estate shall bring suit on behalf of the beneficiaries.

There is also a two year statute of limitations from the date of death.

About Mala Sharma Mala Sharma has been practicing family law and personal injury with her family at the Law Offices of Sharma & Associates, founded in 1997. Mala is President Emeritus of the Houston Northwest Bar Association, Board member of the Houston Trial Lawyers Association and South Asian Bar Association. She is also a member of the Houston Bar Association.

About the Author: Mala Sharma has been practicing family law and personal injury with her family at the Law Offices of Sharma & Associates, founded in 1997. Mala has been appointed leadership roles for the American Bar Association GP Solo and GP Solo YLD division, is Board member of the Houston Trial Lawyers Association, Past President of the Houston Northwest Bar Association, and prior board member of the South Asian Bar Association. She is also a member of the Houston Bar Associa-

What damages may be recovered?

by Sharlene Sharmila Richards, Immigration Lawyer Email at srichardslaw@aol.com

Disclaimer: This material is available for informational purposes only and not for the purpose of providing legal advice. If you require advice on any particular legal question, you may contact Sharma & Associates at 281-893-8644 or by email at mala@sharmalaws.net to schedule a free consultation to discuss your case.

Willy, Nanayakkara & Associates ATTORNEYS AND COUNSELORS AT LAW

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Sharlene Sharmila Richards

Q: I am sponsoring my sister and her family for immigration. My income alone is not enough to satisfy the Affidavit of Support requirements but if I add my husband’s income, it satisfies the threshold requirement.

My husband and I file joint Federal Tax Returns every year. Please can you give me information how to do the affidavit of support to include his income?

A: In the Form I-864, you will include information that you are including the income of your household member, specifically, your spouse. To be a household member, your spouse must be at least 18 years old, and her income must be the result of lawful employment or derived from lawful sources. You will both sign Form I-864A Contract Between Sponsor and Household Member. You will need to submit your most recent joint federal tax returns and the Form(s) W-2s for you and your household member.

Also include you and your spouse’s proof of present employment.

Q: I like to include my assets in addition to my income in order to meet the affidavit of support requirements. How do I calculate using the value of my assets?

A: To meet the requirements under the affidavit of support, in addition to income and salary, the sponsor can use assets such as real estate, saving account funds, stock and bonds which are readily available. The general requirements are that these assets must be readily convertible to cash within one year without creating financial loss or hardship and the net worth of the assets must be five times the difference between the sponsor’s income and the income the sponsor is required to meet according to the Poverty Guidelines for the sponsor’s household.

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ASHINGTON, Feb. 10, 2019 — President Trump has repeatedly expressed support for legal immigration this month, suggesting a change of course for his administration.

L. Francis Cissna, director of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services, recently told business leaders supportive of high-skilled immigration that the administration could consider new regulations for intracompany transfer visas known as L-1s, which broadly allow a U.S. employer to transfer an executive, manager or professional with specialized knowledge from an affiliated foreign office to a U.S. office.

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The assets can either be the sponsor’s, his household member’s or that of the intending immigrant. United States Citizens who are sponsoring their spouse or minor children (under 18 years old) can divide the value of their assets by three rather than five, to make up the deficiency in the income.

Q: I read that there is a change in the policy about the affidavit of support in that even if the income of the petitioner sponsor appears to be sufficient, the immigrant can still be denied the immigrant visa because of public charge grounds.

Is this correct?

A: This interpretation of the sufficiency of an affidavit of support is an evolving area of law and is currently more applicable where the immigrant is receiving his or her immigrant visa from the consulate overseas. The Trump administration has recently proposed changes to how the consular officer will adjudicate the sufficiency of the affidavit of support. In the past, if the Affidavit of Support was sufficient, then the immigrant would not be found to be inadmissible as a public charge. Now, the fact that the affidavit of support is sufficient, it is deemed as just one positive factor to be considered as part of the ‘totality of circumstances’ and the consular officer will need to consider other factors such as the immigrants age, health, work prospects, how may immigrants are immigrating as the family unit etc. This change in policy, for now, appears to only be implemented in the consular processing context.

Q: My child will become a US Citizen upon her arrival in the United States as a Permanent Resident because I am a US Citizen when my child was born. What form is required for the Affidavit of Support?

A: Your child is exempt from the Affidavit of Support requirements. As such, you do not need to submit an I-864 Affidavit of Support for the child.

You will just need to submit Form I-864W. Q: I am using a Joint Sponsor to provide his Affidavit of Support for my wife’s immigration to the United States. The Joint Sponsor’s income is insufficient in itself but if added with my income, it is sufficient. Can I go ahead and submit the Joint Sponsor’s Affidavit of Support?

A: If your Joint Sponsor’s income in itself is insufficient on its own to meet the threshold requirements for the income i.e at least 125% of the federal poverty guidelines, you cannot ‘supplement’ his income with yours. Your best bet would be to find another Joint Sponsor whose income on its own will meet the income threshold requirements.

Also do not forget to have the Joint Sponsor submit a letter detailing his or her relationship to the intending immigrant as well as provide information about his or her motivation for financially sponsoring the intending immigrant.

Disclaimer: Any advice provided in this article is general in nature and not intended to constitute legal advice for any specific case. Please consult with an immigration lawyer about the specific circumstances of your case.

My Bio Sharlene Sharmila Richards is a licensed Immigration lawyer practicing in Houston, Texas. She is a member of the American Immigration Lawyers Association. She was admitted to the New York State Bar in 2000 and is a member of the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals and a member of the US Supreme Court. You may contact her at telephone number 713-623-8088 or by email at srichardslaw@aol.com to schedule a free consultation to discuss your case.

Trump signals shift on legal immigration

by Louise Radnofsky

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ment-based immigration system that was responsive to their stated needs, though he also emphasized that USCIS would prioritize protecting American workers and upholding the law.

A major problem, observers said, is that policy and rule changes have increased administrative backlogs at USCIS, the main agency that oversees legal immigration programs.

“I want people to come into our country in the largest numbers ever, but they have to come in legally,” Mr. Trump said in his State of the Union address Tuesday, adding the unscripted phrase “in the largest numbers ever.” He repeated the sentiments Wednesday in an interview with regional reporters.

said in the White House cabinet room, “We need people.

You see that with the jobs numbers.”

Mr. Trump made those remarks at an event focused on human trafficking at the southern border. But he opened by talking about employment numbers released that morning—the addition of 304,000 jobs in January—and indicated he believed some companies might now be facing a hiring squeeze that foreign workers could relieve.

Mr. Trump has made some supportive comments about demand for foreign labor from U.S. industries before. But his recent remarks stood in contrast to his longstanding backing of restrictions to favor Americans’ jobs, wages and security.

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VOICE OF ASIA 16

Section 2

Young Life

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Perseverance: Youth Leadership Development Program inspires

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Could sitting at the front of the class help kids learn?

The YLDP session heard fro Guest Speaker Sandhya Rao (seated in red).

by Gaurav Reddy

H

OUSTON - For the month of January our YLDP session was held at the Lighthouse of Houston where we had the pleasure to listen to the guest speaker, Sandhya Rao. She talked to us about what it means to be appreciative for life and the opportunities that we are given.

Ms. Rao is motivation to all as she is living proof that the sky is the limit regardless of what keeps an individual down.

Ms. Rao started her talked off by explaining to us about her disability. At the young age, of only 2 months old she was diagnosed with Brittle Bone Disease and partial loss of vision. This caused Ms. Rao, who at the time was a very stubborn kid to learn Brail. She discussed how having a good mentor and role model is very important and changed her life

around.

Just as we see Ms. Rao as inspiration, her mentor was likewise motivation to her as she pushed her to learn Brail and helped her endeavor through the troublesome circumstances.

Her mentor helped Ms. Rao view her disabilities in a new light and focus on the positive aspects throughout. Truth be told, her instructor helped her so much that she learned Brail before being educated by the American Disability Service. Ms. Rao likewise went onto saying how she started off at Rice University and then went on to Stanford University where she learned law and practices jurisdiction now.

Ms. Rao’s determination throughout her entire adventure to where she is currently was a motivation to me and has really given me the inspiration

Sitting closer to the teacher could help students pay better attention to the class according to new research. (Photo © skynesher / IStock.com) Lighthouse President Gibson Duterroil to find a way to accomplish my objectives throughout my everyday life. She taught me that I am the main individual in charge of my life decisions and the result of my choices and to always stay confident. She reminded everybody that her motivation was her dedication and willingness and that she didn’t give anybody a chance to influence her.

Obesity-linked cancers on the rise in young adults

by Marlowe Hood

P

ARIS, France | AFP | 2/4/2019 - A sharp increase in obesitylinked cancers among young adults in the United States could foreshadow a reversal in the overall decline in cancer mortality, researchers warned Monday.

In a sweeping study covering two-thirds of the US population, they showed that half a dozen cancers for which obesity is a known risk factor became more frequent from 1995 to 2015 among women and men under 50.

The younger the age bracket, the more quickly these cancers gained ground, they reported in The Lancet, the medical journal.

During the period examined, the incidence of pancreatic cancer, for example, increased by about one percent per year for adults aged 45 to 49.

Among 30 to 34-year-olds, the average annual increase was more than twice that.

Among 25 to 29-year-olds, the rate jumped by 4.4 percent per year.

Comparing five-year age brackets from 25 to 80, the annual hike was similarly highest among the 25 to 29 cohort for four other obesity-linked cancers: kidney (6.23 percent), gallbladder (3.71 percent), uterine (3.35 percent), and colon (2.41 percent).

“Our findings expose a recent change that could serve as a warning of an increased burden of obesity-related cancers to come in older adults,” said co-author Ahmedin Jemal of the American Cancer Society, USA. Obesity has more than doubled in the United States over the last four decades.

- Mortality could rise It has also risen sharply in other rich nations and, more recently, the developing world.

Today, some two billion people are overweight or obese.

With few exceptions, cancer has been seen as a disease of ageing.

Indeed, the researchers note that the number of new cancer cases reported remains much higher in older age brackets, even if the rate of increase

N

ew European research has found for the first time that sitting closer to the teacher could boost children’s learning.

Carried out by researchers at the University of Tübingen, Germany, the new study looked at 81 secondary school students aged between 10 and 13.

Using virtual reality, the researchers created a virtual classroom for the children and randomly assigned them a seat either near to the teacher or at the back of the classroom.

During the virtual class, in which the teacher explained how to solve a math problem, virtual classmates disturbed the

lesson every now and again, for example by whispering to one another.

The findings, published in the journal Learning and Instruction, showed that students who sat at the front of the class, and therefore close to the teacher, performed math tasks significantly faster than the children at the back of the class, suggesting that they had paid more attention to the teacher’s instructions and learned better.

Moreover, the study also found that the effect was equally strong for all children, including those with symptoms of ADHD, such as difficulty in self-regulating attention and be-

havior.

“These children require further support, for instance, by being spoken to directly, to facilitate learning. This aspect should be emphasized in existing recommendations for teachers,” says first author Friederike Blume.

“It is now important to consider how all students of a class can benefit equally from teacher proximity,” adds Blume, with the researchers suggesting that the teacher could move around the classroom during the lesson, or students’ places could be rotated throughout the school year to give everyone a chance of being at the front.

- Relaxnews

Instagram curbs self-harm posts after teen suicide

by Glenn Chapman with Dmitry Zaks in London

S

AN FRANCISCO, Ca | AFP | Friday 2/8/2019 - Instagram has announced a clampdown on images of self-injury after a British teen who went online to read about suicide took her own life.

Obesity has more than doubled in the United States over the last four decades. (AFP Photo/Ralf Hirschberger). is now fastest among young adults.

Two pancreatic cancer cases, for example, were diagnosed among every 100,000 24 to 49-year-olds from 2010 to 2014, compared with 37 cases for every 100,000 people aged 50 to 84.

Overall, the number of people in the United States who succumb to cancer has declined.

From 1980 to 2014 -- when cancer claimed some 20 million lives -- mortality dropped by 20 percent, from 240 to 192 deaths per 100,000 people, due in part to reduced tobacco use.

“But in the future, obesity could reverse that progress,” co-author Jemal cautioned.

“Obesity is now one of the most preventable causes of cancer in the US and UK -around 1 in 12 cases in the US are caused by excess weight, and more than 1 in 20 in the UK.” Building on earlier research suggesting a link between obesity and more frequent colon cancers in young adults, Jamel and colleagues analysed all cancer cases from 1995 to 2015 in 25 US states home to 67 percent of the population.

- Too much junk food The data covered 30 types of cancer, 12 of which had previously been linked to obesity.

For five of the 12, the rate of increase for new cases was highest in the youngest age group, and for a sixth -- a form of bone marrow cancer called multiple myeloma -- the biggest jump was among adults in

their early 30s.

Of the other 18 types of cancer, only two showed a similar trend, with the others either stable or -- for those related to smoking and infection -- in decline.

“This study should be a wake-up call to all Americans, young and old alike,” the American Society of Clinical Oncology said in a statement.

“Obesity is set to overtake tobacco as the leading cause of preventable cancer-related death, and there is an alarming lack of awareness among the American public of the link between obesity and cancer.”

Still unexplained, however, is why the six other forms of cancer classified by the UN’s International Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) as related to obesity did not also show similar rates of increase among younger adults.

The authors called for more aggressive screening for obesity by front-line doctors, and called on them to warn patients about the cancer risk of being seriously overweight.

Currently, less than half of primary care physicians in the US regularly measure the body-mass index (BMI) of their patients.

“The quality of the American diet has worsened in recent decades,” said lead author Hyuna Sung, also of the American Cancer Society.

More than half of 20 to 49-year-olds eat for too little fruits, vegetables and whole grains, and too much salt, fast food and sugary drinks, she said.

The Facebook-owned picture sharing platform’s announcement followed a Thursday meeting between its global chief Adam Mosseri and British Health Secretary Matt Hancock.

British teen Molly Russell took her own life in her bedroom in 2017. The 14-yearold’s social media history revealed that she followed accounts about depression and suicide.

The case sparked a vigorous debate in Britain about parental control and state regulation of children’s social media use.

“It is encouraging to see that decisive steps are now being taken to try to protect children from disturbing content on Instagram,” said Molly’s father Ian Russell.

“It is now time for other social media platforms to take action.”

Molly’s parents did not directly blame Instagram for the loss of their daughter.

But they cited the easy access to such posts as a contributing factor, to which Instagram should respond.

Mosseri said the changes followed a comprehensive review involving experts and academics on children’s mental health issues.

“I joined the company more than 10 years ago and we were primarily focused on all of the good that came out of connecting people,” Mosseri told The Telegraph newspaper.

“But if I am honest we were under-focused on the risks of connecting so many people.

That’s a lesson we have learned over the last few years.”

- Cry for help Instagram has never allowed

Molly’s parents did not directly blame Instagram for the loss of their daughter.

But they cited the easy access to such posts as a contributing factor, to which Instagram should respond. posts that promote or encourage suicide or self-harm.

But it will now remove references to non-graphic content related to people hurting themselves from its searches and recommendation features.

It will also ban hashtags -- words featuring a “#” that mark a trending topic -- relating to self-harm.

The measures are meant to make such images more difficult to find for depressed teens who might have suicidal tendencies.

“We are not removing this type of content from Instagram entirely,” said Mosseri.

“We don’t want to stigmatise or isolate people who may be in distress and posting selfharm related content as a cry for help.”

Instagram is also reaching out to counsellors to see how they can engage with teens who the platform thinks need help.

- ‘Careful regulation’ Social media are coming under increasing scrutiny as they expand in reach and cultural influence.

Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg said last year that

he thought more regulation of the industry was “inevitable” because of the internet’s size.

“My position is not that there should be no regulation,” Zuckerberg told an April 2018 US congressional hearing.

“But I also think that you have to be careful about regulation you put in place.”

Instagram’s Mosseri told The Telegraph that he supported statutes being considered by the British government “as a concept”.

“There is a lot of regulation already,” said Mosseri.

“We think it’s important to collaborate with policy makers so that ... whatever legislation or processes they put in place work, make sense.”

The UK government this month will publish a “white paper” on harmful online behaviour that will be used as guideline for possible oversight rules.

“The task is to design a system of oversight that preserves what is best and most innovative about the online companies but which also insists that they do what they can to keep the users of their services safe,” UK culture minister Jeremy Wright wrote in The Times.

VOICE OF ASIA 17

FRIDAY, February 15, 2019

February is American Heart Month

February is Spay/ Neuter Awareness Month

Section 2 Tel: 713-774-5140

Money, focus needed for Trump’s ‘end HIV’ plan to work

by Ivan Couronne

W

T

ASHINGTON | AFP | Wednesday 2/6/2019 - US President Donald Trump’s call for an all-hands-on-deck push to end the AIDS epidemic focuses on trouble areas and vulnerable populations as progress against HIV has stalled, officials said on Wednesday.

here are four Medicaid programs in Texas: STAR, STAR+PLUS, STAR Health and traditional Medicaid. The type of Medicaid coverage a person gets depends on where the person lives and what kind of health issues the person has.

Although no dollar figure has been announced yet, details began to emerge of the plan touted by Trump in his State of the Union address the previous night.

• Traditional Medicaid — Traditional Medicaid is for those who can’t be in managed care. Traditional Medicaid is also called fee for service.

“My budget will ask Democrats and Republicans to make the needed commitment to eliminate the HIV epidemic in the United States within 10 years,” Trump said.

“Together, we will defeat AIDS in America and beyond.”

The plan aims to reduce the number of new infections by 75 percent in five years, and by 90 percent in 10 years.

Currently, about 40,000 new infections of HIV occur in the United States annually, according to Health and Human Services assistant secretary Brett Giroir.

A total of 700,000 lives have been lost to AIDS in America since 1981, he told reporters on a conference call with experts from leading government health agencies.

“Recent data has shown that our progress in reducing the numbers has plateaued,” said Robert Redfield, director of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Reducing new infections by 90 percent would bring the United States in line with global goals, including a program run by UNAIDS, to end the HIV epidemic.

France also has proclaimed its aim of wiping out the epidemic by 2030.

- A concentrated focus What’s new in Trump’s announce-

President Donald Trump used his State of the Union address on Tuesday to call for a bipartisan commitment to eradicate AIDS in the United States within a decade.

(Photo © alexskopje / IStock.com) ment is a concentrated focus involving all the relevant government agencies, according to Anthony Fauci, a longtime leader in HIV research and director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases.

tion.”

“You can theoretically end the epidemic as we know it, and that is our goal,” Fauci told reporters.

Better diagnosis is needed, too, since one quarter or more of people with HIV do not know it.

“The question is implementing it.”

The plan involves targeting geographic areas where HIV cases are concentrated, including 48 of the US’s 3,000 counties and areas like Miami, Florida; San Juan, Puerto Rico; the US capital, Washington; Atlanta, Georgia and certain rural areas in the south and midwest.

- Getting treatment Another major factor in eliminating the spread of HIV is making sure people who are infected are taking antiretroviral medications, which vastly reduces the likelihood of spreading the virus, a concept known as “treatment as preven-

Also, there is PrEP, medication someone who is not infected with HIV takes daily in order to prevent an infection that could be acquired from an infected partner.

“I believe it is possible, if we work together to do it,” said Redfield.

- Money talks But cash is key, and just how much will be allocated in the 2020 budget remains to be seen.

In all, the US president devoted just five sentences to the issue in his hourand-a-half-long speech.

But according to Giroir, managing even that much was a big deal for the public health community and those affected by HIV. “Getting five lines in the State of the Union is a Herculean task,” he said.

Kidneys grown in rats could pave way for human transplant options

T

OKYO, Japan | AFP | Wednesday 2/6/2019 - Scientists said Wednesday they have successfully used mice stem cells to grow kidneys in rat embryos, using a technique that could one day help grow human kidneys for transplant.

But the researchers cautioned that their success was only a first step and that “serious technical barriers and complex ethical issues” remain before the process could be used for human organs.

The research, published Wednesday in the Nature Communications journal, began with the development of a suitable “host” in which the kidneys could be grown.

The researchers collected rat embryo structures that had been genetically modified so they would not develop kidneys on their own.

The embryos were then injected with pluripotent stem cells from mice and implanted into rat wombs so they could be carried to term.

Pluripotent stem cells are a kind of “master” cell that can develop into any of the cells and tissue that make up the body.

• STAR — STAR is Medicaid for children, newborns, pregnant women and some families and children. People in STAR get their services through health plans, also called managed care plans.

You can see how well some STAR health plans perform by looking at the STAR health plan report cards.

• STAR Kids — STAR Kids is a new Medicaid program for children and adults 20 or younger who have disabilities. Under STAR Kids, you will get basic medical and long-term services and supports through the health plan’s provider network. You also will get Medically Dependent Children Program (MDCP) waiver services through the health plan’s provider network, if you are eligible.

• STAR+PLUS — STAR+PLUS is a Medicaid program for people who have disabilities or are age 65 or older. People in STAR+PLUS get Medicaid basic medical services and long-term services through a health plan, also called a managed care plan • STAR Health is Medicaid for children who get Medicaid coverage through the Texas Department of Family and Protective Services. STAR Health also is for young adults who were previously in foster care and have either: • Medicare-Medicaid Plans - In six Texas counties, HHSC and the federal Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) have set up combined MedicareMedicaid health plans for people in those counties who have both Medicare and Medicaid coverage, known as dual eligible. The six pilot counties are Bexar, Dallas, El Paso, Harris, Hidalgo, and Tarrant.

By having one Medicare-Medicaid Plan (MMP), Medicare and Medicaid benefits work together to better meet the member’s health-care

by Sara Hussein

The technique has previously been used to grow mice-derived pancreases in rats, but the new study is the first evidence that it could one day provide a solution to the massive shortage of donor kidneys for people with renal disease.

Understanding Texas Medicaid Star Program

A new study points to a technique that could one day potentially provide a solution to the massive shortage of donor kidneys for people with renal disease.

(Photo © ericsphotography / IStock.com) The researchers found that the mice stem cells produced apparently functional kidneys in the rats.

But the same did not hold when rat stem cells were injected into similarly modified mice embryos.

- Short-lived subjects “Rat stem cells did not readily differentiate into the two main types of cells needed for kidney formation,” said Masumi Hirabayashi, an associate professor at Japan’s National Institute for Physiological Sciences, who supervised the study.

Conversely, “mouse stem cells ef-

ficiently differentiated... forming the basic structures of a kidney,” he told AFP. The reason for the difference is still not entirely clear, but the researchers believe “environmental cues” inside the mice are likely to blame, rather than the stem cells or technique.

But even in the rat embryos, the technique was not without problems.

While the rats developed apparently functional kidneys, including with proper connections to the ureter

Sudhir Mathuria HEALTHLIFE 360 713-771-2900

needs by offering basic health care and long term services and supports.

CHIP is designed for families that earn too much money to qualify for Medicaid, but cannot afford to buy private health insurance. To qualify for CHIP, a child must be age 18 or younger, a Texas resident and a U.S. citizen or legal permanent resident.

CHIP enrollment fees and copayments are based on the number of people in the family and the family’s income and assets.

Enrollment fees are no more than $50 a year for all the children in the family. Some families pay no enrollment fee. Co-pays for doctor visits and prescriptions range from $3 to $5 for lower-income families and $20 to $35 for higher-income families.

CHIP enrollment fees and copayments are based on the number of people in the family and the family’s income and assets.

Mothers-to-be also can apply for CHIP perinatal coverage.

All CHIP services are delivered through managed care medical and dental plans.

To enroll in Dual eligible Medicare and Medicaid Plan or Medicare Advantage or Medicare Supplement or Medicare Prescription Plan contact Sudhir Mathuria at 713-771-2900.

The article was published earlier on 12/21/2018

-- tubes that link the kidneys to the bladder -- they died shortly after birth because they did not suckle properly.

Removing the genes that allow kidneys to develop in utero appears to

DIET & EXERCISE

VOICE OF ASIA 18

Miracle treatment or dangerous drug?

Indonesia cashes in on Kratom

by Harry Pearl / with Aseanty Pahlevi in Pontianak

P

FRIDAY, February 15, 2019

Mindfulness may be an effective treatment for some chronic pain sufferers

ONTIANAK, Indonesia | AFP | 2/8/2019 - The sweltering backwaters of Indonesian Borneo have become the unlikely ground zero for the global production and export of Kratom, a tree leaf hailed by some as a miracle cure for everything from opioid addiction to anxiety.

Part of the coffee family, the leaf has been used for centuries in Southeast Asia and Papua New Guinea for its pain-relieving and mildly stimulating effects but it is now sold in powder form and exported worldwide -alarming some health regulators who have raised concerns about safety.

Kratom stimulates the same brain receptors as morphine, although it produces much milder effects.

“I take Kratom and have had no problems. Every strain has its benefits – some help you relax, others can treat insomnia or treat drug addiction.

Some help increase stamina,” grower Faisal Perdana told AFP. Fellow farmer Gusti Prabu, who now exports 10 tonnes of the drug a month, agreed.

“Our ancestors used Kratom and there were no negative side effects. It can help eliminate drug addiction and help people detox,” he explained.

But its popularity is causing concern -- the drug is unregulated, and has had little clinical testing to assess its safety or side effects.

Kratom is already banned for domestic consumption in Indonesia, Malaysia and Thailand, though the former allows its export in unprocessed form.

Health authorities in the United States -- now the drug’s top importer -- have linked consumption of the plant and its derivatives to dozens of deaths, warning it could aggravate a deadly opioid epidemic gripping parts of the country.

Compounds found in Kratom are opioids, which expose users to the same risks of addiction and death as illicit opiates, according to the US Food and Drug Administration.

But for farmers in Kapuas Hulu, West Kalimantan -- the centre of production -- demand for Kratom is such that they have moved away from traditional commodities such as rubber and palm oil to start growing the tree, turning it into a major cash crop.

And at the main post office in Pontianak, the key trading post for this part of Indonesian Borneo, it’s clear the health warnings have done little to dampen interest.

Samples of the Kratom plant leaves in dried and shredded form (Photo © Louis Anderson / AFP) “Around 90 percent of our shipments from West Kalimantan province are Kratom that’s been sold to the United States,” post office head Zaenal Hamid said.

As many as five million Americans use the drug and that number is growing, according to the American Kratom Association.

Data from 2016 showed that the region was shipping some 400 tonnes abroad every month -- worth about $130 million annually at current global prices of some $30 a kilogramme.

Most Kratom customers are reached through online platforms such as Facebook, Instagram and Chinese emarketplace Alibaba.

The trend for alternative medicine has been credited with increasing interest in Kratom from Europe and America, where it is usually consumed as a tea or in capsules.

- Opioid epidemic The US is struggling with an opioid epidemic, fueled by addiction to prescription painkillers as well as street drugs like heroin and synthetic versions such as fentanyl.

Kratom is legal in 43 states, but the FDA is pushing for greater restrictions and has already put an import alert on it, which means shipments entering the US can be confiscated.

In a statement, the organisation warned consumers not to use the drug and said it was “concerned that Kratom appears to have properties that expose users to the risks of addiction, abuse, and dependence.”

Scientists say that while Kratom may have positive attributes, very little research has been done into the

Are your ‘caffeine withdrawal headaches’ actually migraines?

by Cathryn L Todd

I

f you cut out coffee and quickly start feeling like someone’s banging a frying pan against your head, you’re probably wondering what’s going on so you can stop it.

Are you having full-on caffeine withdrawal headaches? Or is caffeine such a magical substance that it was masking underlying head pain from something like migraines all along? It can be confusing to get to the bottom of what’s happening, especially when your head is throbbing so hard it’s tough to even think. Here, neurologists walk you through what you should know about this kind of head pain—and how to stop the pounding.

Caffeine withdrawal headaches are most likely your issue here.

These can happen when your brain becomes used to that regular hit of caffeine over time. But let’s back up a bit so you know exactly which processes to blame for your head pain.

Caffeine peps you up by affecting a chemical in your brain called adenosine. Adenosine typically accumulates in your brain over the course of the day, making you sleepy, Lauren Green, DO, RD, a board-certified neurologist at the USC Headache and Neuralgia Center and assistant clinical professor of neurology at the Keck School of Medicine of USC, tells SELF. As an adenosine antagonist, caffeine is an opposing force that helps wake you up by binding to your adenosine receptors. This blocks your brain’s absorption of adenosine, preventing the level of drowsiness you would otherwise experience, Dr Green explains. All of this can happen with even one cup of coffee. But when you regularly consume significant amounts of caffeine, you can develop additional adenosine receptors, Dr Green explains. And, in general, your adenosine receptors will become less sensitive to the effects of any caffeine you do consume. This means that over time you need to ingest more caffeine in order to block adenosine’s fatigue-inducing effects, so you form a dependence of sorts.

That’s why you can experience caf-

feine withdrawal if you’re used to drinking caffeine daily and stop abruptly, Lauren R Natbony, MD, assistant professor of neurology at the Center for Headache and Facial Pain at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, tells SELF. Yes, caffeine withdrawal is a legit phenomenon. It’s actually included in the fifth version of the Diagnostic and Statistical Manual of Mental Disorders, which mental health experts use to diagnose various psychiatric conditions. If you experience at least three withdrawal symptoms within 24 hours of stopping caffeine consumption (or cutting back drastically), you could definitely be experiencing withdrawal.

Symptoms include intense fatigue, irritability, mental fogginess, and—drumroll please—a horrible headache. (Dr Natbony says people often describe these headaches as “diffuse and throbbing.” Not the most pleasurable experience.)

While even one-cup-a-day coffee drinkers can get caffeine withdrawal headaches and other symptoms, Dr Natbony says it appears that there’s “a dose-dependent relationship” related to the amount and frequency of consumption. Translation: The more coffee you were drinking, the worse your withdrawal might be. (According to the Mayo Clinic, 400 milligrams of caffeine per day is the maximum safe amount for most healthy adults. That’s about the amount in four cups of coffee.)

Fortunately, for most people, caffeine withdrawal symptoms usually go away within about a week of cutting out caffeine, Dr Natbony says (or within an hour or so of consuming caffeine). But you may be able to avoid the headache and other unpleasant symptoms altogether by weaning yourself off caffeine instead of quitting cold turkey. For instance, you could mix decaf coffee with your usual caffeinated stuff in greater proportions over time until decaf is all you’re drinking.

It’s unlikely that your post-coffeecutting headaches are actually migraines you had all along. “It’s an interesting theory, but it’s a very unlikely

drug.

“It has great potential as a remedy for pain and opioid addiction given its pharmacology and its potential accessibility,” Michael White, head of the department of pharmacy practice at the University of Connecticut, told AFP. “It is promising and not proven,” he added.

Advocates insist it’s a safe alternative to prescription drugs and can actually help opioid addicts.

“Of the 44 deaths on record involving Kratom, they all involve poly-drug use,” said Ryan Leung, a spokesman from kratom lobby group Botanical Education Alliance (BEA).

“The FDA health warnings...(have) proven to be misguided by multiple experts,” he added.

For now, Indonesian producers are waiting to see how the regulatory battle in the US unfolds.

And while bad weather and a salmonella scare dented exports in 2017, provisional data showed Kratom shipments bounced back strongly last year.

Kratom farmer Prabu insisted: “The Kratom market has been very good over the past decade and it still has potential in the years ahead.”

He added: “People will see its usefulness, sooner or later.”

Mindfulness meditation may be able to ease symptoms of those in chronic pain according to a new review. (Photo © PeopleImages / IStock.com)

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ew Canadian research has found that mindfulness meditation may be effective in easing chronic pain as well as its associated symptoms.

Led by researchers at Ottawa Hospital Research Institute, the new review looked at 21 clinical trials involving nearly 2,000 people to assess the effectiveness of mindfulness-based stress reduction or cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) on chronic pain, which is defined as pain lasting at least three months. Participants were aged between 35 and 65, mainly women, with some living with chronic pain for over a decade.

CBT is currently the most widely used psychological technique for the treatment of chronic pain, although not everyone living with chronic pain finds the technique helpful, note the researchers.

Mindfulness meditation, which has grown in popularity in recent years for a number of conditions, is a type of meditation which helps promote stress relief by encouraging individuals to focus on being in the moment, paying attention to their thoughts, feelings, bodily sensations and the immediate environment.

The findings, published online in the journal Evidence Based Mental Health, showed that there were no

important differences between using either CBT or mindfulness, with the researchers finding that both significantly reduced the severity of pain, improved physical functioning, and also improved depression associated with chronic pain, when compared with usual or no care.

The researchers did advise caution when interpreting the results, saying that only one of the 21 trials directly compared CBT with mindfulness, only 12 trials were deemed to be of reasonable or good quality, and that it is still too early to tell whether CBT or mindfulness is better for people with different types of pain and psychological symptoms.

They suggest further research in this area, but conclude that, “While CBT is considered to be the preferred psychological intervention of [chronic pain], not all patients with [it] experience a clinically significant treatment response.”

“Although a number of recommendations have been proposed to improve CBT for patients with chronic pain, an additional solution may be to offer patients mindfulness based stress reduction since it shows promise in improving pain severity and reducing pain interference and psychological distress.”

- Relaxnews

Food safety on the table at world conference

by Nicolas Delaunay

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ood contaminated with bacteria, viruses, parasites and toxic chemicals is a mounting health hazard and a crippling economic burden, a global conference on food safety has been told.

The two-day forum is bringing together government officials and health experts from 125 countries to combat the peril of unsafe food, which kills more than 400,000 people each year, according to UN estimates.

“Today, the world produces enough food for everyone,” Jose Graziano Da Silva, director general of the UN’s Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO), said at the opening of the conference on Monday.

But much of this food “is not safe”, he added.

“We estimate that each year, nearly one person in 10 falls sick after eating contaminated food,” said Kazuaki Miyagishima, who heads the World Health Organization (WHO) food security department.

“We estimate that each year, nearly one person in 10 falls sick after eating contaminated food,” said Kazuaki Miyagishima, who heads the World Health Organization (WHO) food security department (AFP Photo/Andrew CABALLERO-REYNOLDS)

Of the 600 million people who fall sick from unsafe food, around 420,000 die, according to the UN’s estimate.

comprising 40 percent of those who fall ill.

Children under five suffer most,

scenario,” Dr Green says. Neither she nor Dr Natbony believes they have encountered this situation among their thousands of patients.

The pathophysiology of migraines is complex and not yet completely understood, Dr. Green explains. However, doctors do know that small amounts of caffeine can sometimes help relieve migraine pain, according to the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke (NINDS). It appears as though caffeine may do this by narrowing dilated blood vessels that might contribute to migraine discomfort. B In the end, the relationship between caffeine and migraines is complicated.

It’s pretty safe to say that if you’ve never had migraines and start getting headaches when you cut out coffee, it’s probably a caffeine withdrawal headache. But if that pain sticks around for over a week and all you’ve done is scale back on caffeine, you might want to check in with your doctor about your symptoms.

- Self.com

According to the WHO, contaminated food is to blame more than 200 diseases, ranging from diarrhoea to cancers -- and the economic impact is huge but often overlooked.

The FAO estimates the cost for low and middle-income countries to be in the range of $95 billion (83.5 billion euros) per year.

The conference, attended by ministers and deputy ministers from some 20 countries, is expected to issue a call for better coordination and support.

“Food safety is a crucial issue for everyone on earth, but it is here in Africa that the impact of the scourge is felt most,” AU Commission chair Moussa Faki told the conference, adding that a third of those affected come from the continent.

- All-round approach Miyagishima said a multi-pronged approach was needed.

This includes stronger laws, better training and equipment and beefing up health systems to detect potential risks and swap information countries, he said.

The risks are very diverse, ranging

from bacteria such as salmonella or listeria, to chemicals such as cancercausing heavy metals and organic pollutants.

For countries facing drought or famine, the challenge is preventing the population from using water contaminated by cholera, or eating food unsuitable for consumption.

For countries trying to better respect international norms and export certain food products, Miyagishima warned of a “situation where exported food is of a better quality than products destined for the local market”.

WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said that “food safety is linked to many sustainable development goals”.

In Europe, Miyagishima said there was a need for faster exchange of information between health authorities, recalling the 2017 contamination of eggs in the Netherlands, which were distributed to numerous countries.

The conference comes at a time of swelling controversy over the use of chemical products in agriculture, including the controversial weed-killer Roundup.

The UN in December announced the creation of a World Food Safety Day on June 7.

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BEAUTY & STYLE

VOICE OF ASIA 19

FRIDAY, February 15, 2019

Priyanka Chopra

Three luxury brands celebrating Chinese New Year

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rom Versace and Emporio Armani to Michael Kors, a host of luxury brands are celebrating Chinese New Year, February 5, with exclusive collections often loaded with symbolism. While some capsules celebrate this year’s animal, the pig, most are laced with the color red, synonymous with China.

Michael Kors The famous American brand is celebrating Chinese New Year with its MICHAEL Michael Kors line. The result is a collection of accessories, sometimes finished in bright red, and featuring golden details for a glamorous touch. The capsule notably features leather goods, including the “Whitney” cross-body bag and the “Rhea” backpack, as well as a pair of “Poppy” white sneakers.

“Poppy” sneakers by MICHAEL Michael Kors for Chinese New Year. (Photos © The respective fashion houses)

Versace is also celebrating the Lunar New Year with a The Italian brand Emporio Armani limited-edition collection of presents a women’s wardrobe for Chi- ready-to-wear and accessories for men and women. Available nese New Year, worlddrawing on the wide, the colors of China collection and reinterpretfeatures ing the pig via a handgraphic and styld r a w n ized motifs. Colprint inlection standspired outs include by the sweaters, longpig, the sleeve T-shirts animal of in cotton jersey Chinese fabric, cashmere New Year pullovers, a 2019, as jacket, a leather well as bomber jacket, a d e t a i l s keyring, a crossArmani: “Celebrate New Year with a festive body bag and a Versace’s cross-body bag, presented in an e v o k - red top with an adorable stylised pig design.” ing the watch. The fash- ornate frame on Instagram. fashion ion house also house’s signahas a special pouch bags, a leather backpack, a Chinese New Year collection for men. tures, such as the iconic Medusa waist pack, a scarf and a cross-body head. The capsule includes silk shirts, Versace T-shirts, tracksuits, a hooded jacket, bag.

Emporio Armani

Could choosing someone nice be the key to relationship happiness?

“The world needs to be trained to see beauty differently”

by Samhita Mukhopadhyay

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riyanka Chopra talks about the beauty pageant beginning to her globe-trotting career, and shares her thoughts on beauty, inclusivity and empowerment Chopra and I have a lot more in common than favouring colours that work with our skin tone: We both love the Wu-Tang Clan, spent formative years living in Queens, New York, and are obsessed with fashion. We’ve also both been judged for the colour of our skin, identify as “super feminists,” and are modern women trying to make sense of the world both within and outside of our South Asian identity.

I don’t bring all this up to brag about my immediate similarities to this world-famous woman, but to marvel that while Chopra was literally crowned the “most beautiful woman in the world,” she’s extremely relatable. And, despite our differences, we both came to similar conclusions

about beauty: that women should embrace and be empowered in it as they see fit.

I ask her if present-day standards of beauty are inclusive enough. Chopra says she’s thrilled about the expanding definition of what we think is attractive, but makes it clear she believes there’s still a long way to go. “You see so many women, different sizes, modelling, acting, taking their strength, but it’s the mindset that needs to change, of society, of men, of people—that view where a woman in a plus size should not be a check in the box. Or a woman of colour should not be a check in the box. Or a woman shouldn’t be a check in the box.”

She looks at me intently and quotes a familiar saying, but redefines it in the process. “Beauty lies in the eyes of the beholder. And everyone doesn’t look the same way, so the world needs to be trained to see beauty differently.”

- Vogue India

Turn down the volume: WHO takes aim at harmful smartphone use

Looking for personality traits such as niceness may be more important for a lasting relationship than looking for traits similar to your own. (Photo © alvarez/Istock.com)

For anyone out there looking for love, the key to a lasting relationship could be looking for a nice person, rather than someone similar to yourself.

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arried out by researchers at Michigan State University, the new study involved 2,578 heterosexual couples who have been married roughly 20 years to assess what effect personality traits have on well-being.

The findings, published in the Journal of Research in Personality, showed that having similar personalities, which is commonly believed to be a key to romantic happiness, had almost no effect on how satisfied people were in their lives and relationships.

Instead, it appeared that having a partner who is conscientious and nice leads to higher levels of relationship satisfaction, even among the couples who did share similar personalities.

Having a partner who is neurotic leads to lower relationship satisfaction, and perhaps surprisingly, so did having a partner who is more extroverted.

“People invest a lot in finding someone who’s compatible, but our research says that may not be the end all be all,” said study co-author Bill Chopik. “Instead, people may want to ask, ‘Are they a nice person?’ ‘Do they have a lot of anxiety?’ Those things matter way more than the fact that two people are introverts and end up together.”

When applying the research to dating apps, which have risen in popularity in recent years for those seeking love, Chopik says that matching people on compatibility may not be the best design.

“When you start to get into creating algorithms and psychologically matching people, we actually don’t know as much about that as we think

we do,” Chopik said. “We don’t know why the heart chooses what it does, but with this research, we can rule out compatibility as the lone factor.”

DIY herbal hair oil blend to help with aging hair

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our grandmother was on the right track when she convinced you to douse your hair in oil every Sunday. Apart from making your hair stronger from the root, applying oils on your strands makes them silkier to touch, and even boosts movement and bounce. This is particularly beneficial if your hair is dry or frizzy, or if you regularly use hot tools like blow-dryers or curling irons. “Hair needs to be moisturised because it needs to be protected against the environment,” says Colin Gary Hall, resident aromatherapist, Paro’s Botanica range. “The scalp produces oil to protect the shaft, but if you’re constantly washing your hair, you’re creating an imbalance that causes the scalp to produce more oil to compensate.”

Around half of those between the ages of 12 and 35, or 1.1 billion people, are at risk due to “prolonged and excessive exposure to loud sounds, including music they listen to through personal audio devices,” the UN health agency said.© (Photo: Martin Dimitrov/Istock.com)

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ENEVA, Switzerland | AFP | Tuesday 2/12/2019 - More than one billion young people risk damaging their hearing through excessive use of smartphones and other audio devices, the UN warned Tuesday, proposing new safety standards for safe volume levels.

WHO said it remained unclear how many of them had damaged their hearing through dangerous use of audio devices.

In a bid to safeguard hearing, the World Health Organization and International Telecommunications Union issued a non-binding international standard for the manufacture and use of audio devices.

WHO considers a volume above 85 decibels for eight hours or 100 decibels for 15 minutes as unsafe.

Young people are particularly prone to risky listening habits.

Around half of those between the ages of 12 and 35, or 1.1 billion people, are at risk due to “prolonged and excessive exposure to loud sounds, including music they listen to through personal audio devices,” the UN health agency said.

For hair growth, “(M)acadamia oil is super nourishing and excellent for falling hair,” says Hall. To enhance density, he also suggests a blend of essential oils that stimulate hair follicles. Mix 100ml macadamia oil with 10 drops of thyme essential oil (to boost blood circulation and balance sebum production), 15 drops of lemon essential oil (to kill bacteria, and clean and stimulate the scalp) and 15 drops of geranium oil (to balance hormones).

He says that if you don’t have macadamia oil on hand, you can swap it for almond oil too.

WHO chief Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus pointed out that the world already has “the technological knowhow to prevent hearing loss”.

Dr Kochhar recommends a tablespoon of olive oil with a teaspoon of castor oil and two drops each of rosemary (to stimulate growth) and lavender essential oils. “Use a hot towel to steam your hair so that the blend penetrates the root and shaft, and then shampoo after 20 minutes.” After shampooing, apply one or two drops of lavender essential oil (depending on your thickness and length) diluted with a teaspoon of water, and apply all over your strands.

Young people, he said, “must understand that once they lose their hearing, it won’t come back.”

- Vogue India

“It should not be the case that so many young people continue to damage their hearing while listening to music,” he said in the statement.

Currently, about five percent of the global population, or some 466 million people, including 34 million children, suffer from disabling hearing loss.

It insisted though that the new standard developed with ITU would go a long way to “safeguard these young consumers as they go about doing something they enjoy.”

The Safe listening devices and systems standard calls for a “sound allowance” software to be included in all audio devices, to track the volume level and duration of a user’s exposure to sound, and to evaluate the risk posed to their hearing.

This system could alert a user if they have dangerous listening habits.

WHO is also calling for parental as well as automatic volume controls on audio devices to prevent dangerous use.

While some smartphones and other audio devices already offer some of these features, the UN would like to see a uniform standard used to help protect against disabling hearing loss.

“Think of it like driving on a highway, but without a speedometer in your car or a speed limit,” Shelly Chadha of the WHO told reporters in Geneva.

“What we’ve proposed is that your smartphones come fitted with a speedometer, with a measurement system which tells you how much sound you’re getting and tells you if you are going over the limit”.

TRAVEL & LEISURE

VOICE OF ASIA 20

This Harry Potter beer festival is the most fun a Muggle will ever have

by Andrea Romo

A

ccio brewski!”

FRIDAY, February 15, 2019

New York is most popular Valentine’s Day destination for lovebirds

According to Delish, Rock Star Beer Festivals is bringing a Harry Potter-themed beer fest to the U.S. so all the Potterheads out there can imbibe in as much butterbeer as they like.

Or winter ales, pumpkin beers, and special cider “potions,” if they’d prefer.

The “Wizards and Witches Beer Festival” officially kicked off on Nov. 24 at San Diego’s Irenic venue, and is currently touring the country stopping in Denver, Portland, Seattle, Austin, and other cities.

At the moment, tickets are still available in Seattle on March 1 and Austin on May 11.

But you won’t be heading to some crowded beer hall.

This is a magic beer festival after all, so all venues will be decked out in Harry Potter decor to make the environment look just like locations like Leaky Cauldron, Diagon Alley, and Hogwarts’ Great Hall.

“We try to find venues that fit the theme, like historic building[s] and modified churches,” Rock Star Beer Festivals’ director of marketing and sales Ryan Wieczorek told Delish.

This magical event lets you drink adult butterbeer to your heart’s content. (Photo: Las Vegas Beverage Group) Among the different beverages people can enjoy are Snape’s Lair of Secret Cider Potions and an adult-friendly butterscotch beer (since butterbeer is technically supposed to be non-alcoholic in the books), as well as different winter and holiday themed ales. Because Harry Potter is practically synonymous with Christmastime.

$35 each, and all attendees must be 21 or over. More information can be found on the Rock Star Beer Festivals website.

In addition, according to Lonely Planet, there will be a bevy of activities for would-be witches and wizards, including live music with a DJ, photo ops with characters, and lots of food.

And if you can’t get into the festival, you can always buy a ticket to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter at Universal Studios in California or Florida to get your butterbeer fix. The park even sells butterbeer ice cream. - Delish.com

Tickets for the festival are

At the moment, locations are only planned through May, but Rock Star Beer Festivals will announce any locations on its Facebook page if it plans to add more dates.

Heart reunite for All-Star ‘Love Alive’ summer tour

Sheryl Crow, Brandi Carlile, Joan Jett & The Heartbreakers and Elle King to join Wilson sisters on road at select dates.

New York is a top destination this February 14. (Photo © istock.com/andreykrav)

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ew York and Cancun have emerged the top destinations for US couples planning to celebrate Valentine’s Day the grand way this year.

It’s the third year in a row that the Big Apple has claimed the top spot in travel insurance company Allianz Global Assistance’s list of most popular Valentine’s Day destinations for US lovebirds.

Rounding out the top five domestic cities are Los Angeles, Seattle, San Francisco and Miami.

Not surprisingly, the list of top international destinations is dominated by sun-soaked hotspots like Cancun, San Juan, Puerto Rico, San Jose Del Cabo, Mexico and Nassau.

Bucking the trend are two Canadian cities, Vancouver

and Toronto, the only coldweather destinations which are sandwiched between tropical destinations.

For the ranking, the group looked at bookings made between February 7 -11 and February 14-18 via travel partners offering their insurance packages.

Here are the top destinations this year: Domestic 1. New York 2. Los Angeles 3. Seattle 4. San Francisco 5. Miami 6. Chicago 7. Atlanta

8. Boston 9. Phoenix 10. Las Vegas International 1. Cancun, Mexico 2. San Juan, Puerto Rico 3. San Jose Del Cabo, Mexico 4. Nassau, Bahamas 5. Vancouver, Canada 6. Toronto, Canada 7. Mexico City, Mexico 8. Puerto Vallarta, Mexico 9. Oranjestad, Aruba 10. Montego Bay, Jamaica - Relaxnews

Forget chocolate, how about a cockroach for Valentine’s?

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Photo: Jeff Daly/Invision/AP/REX/Shutterstock

by Daniel Kreps

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hree years after family drama threatened to tear Heart apart, Nancy and Ann Wilson will reunite for a summer tour. The Love Alive trek will feature, on select dates, a combination of special guests like Sheryl Crow, Brandi Carlile and Joan Jett & The Heartbreakers as well as openers Elle King and Lucie Silvas.

“I could see it was time for Heart to have a break,” Nancy Wilson said in a statement of the band’s self-described “temporary hiatus.” “We’d been slogging through tour after tour fairly nonstop and were starting to burn out a little bit. Things had just reached a heavy climax. Working with my other new band Roadcase Royale was a lifesaver. Writing brand new songs playing shows and delivering a new album with them was the medicine my soul needed.”

In August 2016, Ann’s husband was arrested backstage at Heart’s Auburn, Washington concert on charges that he as-

saulted Nancy’s teenaged sons.

Although Heart managed to finish out their 2016 tour, the incident splintered the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame-inducted sisters.

Ann Wilson added, “Both Nancy and I have stretched our wings in life these last three years. We’ve both lived and loved. We have breathed and traveled and experienced life.

We come to this tour with fresh energy and oxygen.”

The Love Alive trek begins July 9th in St. Louis and spreads 39 gigs across two months, closing September 9th with a concert at Los Angeles’ Hollywood Bowl. Tickets for the tour go on sale to the general public on February 15th at Live Nation.

As for the band’s all-star guests, Nancy Wilson said, “I think this year is a good year to show the collective impact of some powerful women in music. We would usually steer clear of the female-centric concept, but in the light of current events it seems like the right statement at the right time.”

OS ANGELES | AFP | Friday 2/8/2019 - Forget chocolate, flowers or a romantic dinner. A zoo in Texas is offering singles the chance to name a cockroach after their ex and see it fed to a meerkat live on camera on Valentine’s Day.

In a campaign dubbed “Quit Bugging Me!!!”, the El Paso Zoo says the roach is a perfect Valentine’s gift for those needing closure on a past relationship that didn’t make the grade.

It said a cockroach would

be assigned to each nominee and the bugs would be fed to meerkats in an event streamed on the zoo’s website and Facebook page on February 14.

Zoo officials said Madagascar hissing cockroaches would

likely be used for the

feast.

“They do actually hiss, they are a very large species of cockroach, definitely not the largest, but it is one that we actually do breed here at the zoo for feeding purposes,” Sarah Murphy, an education specialist at the zoo, told the local ABC station.

“Sheryl and Joan we have known for a long time,” Ann Wilson added. “We have hung out and appreciated each other’s music onstage and off.

Brandi Carlile is a fresh and authentic artist that we both love… and Elle King is my favorite new artist. She has so much soul and attitude! We are so thrilled to host all these artists on the ‘Love Alive’ tour.

August 22 – Houston, TX @ Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion, and August 23 – Dallas, TX @ Dos Equis Pavilion .

New travel tool will help long-distance couples find their sweet spot

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ong-distance couples and loved ones living apart in faraway places can use a new tool that will offer up suggestions on the most affordable ‘rendez-vous point’ based on their locations.

To use the new Rendezvous tool from Kayak, flyers enter two home cities and approximate flight dates. The tool will then produce destination suggestions that help couples and loved ones meet somewhere in the middle.

For example, for crosscountry lovers in New York and Los Angeles, the tool suggests meeting in cities

like New Orleans, where couples can meet for USD $288 each in airfare, or Houston, where it will cost $255.

The flight aggregator also revealed the top trending destinations for Valentine’s Day this year, based on searches over the last six months for travel during Valentine’s Day weekend February 14-17.

Here are the top-trending destinations: 1. San Juan (interest up 105%) 2. Simpson Bay, St. Maarten (interest up 78%)

3. St.Thomas (interest up 39%) 4. Barcelona (interest up 36%) 5. Mexico City (interest up 28%) 6. New Orleans (interest up 25%) 7. Key West (interest up 25%) 8. Bahamas (interest up 19%) 9. Punta Cana (interest up 18%) 10. Lisbon (interest up 15%) - Relaxnews

voiceofasia.news is your TRAVEL news source

VOICE OF ASIA 21

FRIDAY, February 15, 2019

Home&Real Estate Tips to make a style statement in every room of your house

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ant to elevate your home décor?

Whether you’re going for farmhouse style or midcentury modern décor, make a statement in every room, even the most neglected spaces.

From the laundry room to the garage, to your home gym and game room, these easy and simple ideas from the design experts at Hunter Fan Company will add comfort and beauty to your home.

The Laundry Room While this space is one of the most used on a weekly basis, it’s often forgotten in terms of décor and style. Simple touches, like matching laundry bins, wall art and coordinated shelving can really change the ambiance and help organize laundry day chaos.

A staggering retreat in western India follows the contours of hills and forest

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ather-and-son duo Kamal and Arjun Malik weave House of Three Streams, a 12,000-square-foot weekend home for their families, into its natural environment.

Lonavala is a town in the district of Pune in Western India, located 93 km from Mumbai.

The area has a number of fortifications, such as the nearby Tung and Lohagad forts.

The architects state: “The topography of the land, the material memory of the surrounding forts, the light of the forest, and the deep water discharging ravines have created a dominant palimpsest of contextual parameters onto which the house has been woven.” A large wall between two ravines evokes the contours and materials of local fortifications.

The spirit of the architects in this house for the Malik family is to inhabit the hilly site rather than try to impose their forms

on the natural movement of the land.

“Formal planning strategies are incapable of absorbing the radical flow of the land and water, and everything from the spatial quality to the material language echoes the spirit of the site.”

According to the designers: “The engagement of the ‘made’ with the ‘found,’ the subservience of the former to the latter is the only constant within this matrix of flux as the elements interweave to create the space of encounter with the forest and the hill.”

While the private areas with bedrooms are “embedded in the forest,” the public spaces, on the contrary, “assume the mannerism of suspended flight of the north and east.” A weathering zinc for the roofs and locally quarried basalt are among the main visible materials used.

Tree-like structures were designed to support the roof.

Kamal Malik was born in 1949 in Shimala, India. He graduated from the School of Planning and Architecture (SPA, Dehli, 1972) and set up his own design studio, Malik Architecture, in 1975. His son, Arjun Malik, was born in 1980 in Mumbai. He graduated from the Rachana Sansad Academy of Architecture (Mumbai, 2002) and received his M.Sc. in Advanced Architectural Design from Colombia University (New York, 2005).

While this space has a ton of potential, it also comes with its share of challenges.

Many laundry rooms tend to be cramped and get steamy easily.

Adding a circulating element, like a ceiling fan, can remedy this woe and make chores more pleasant. Smaller options like the Loki from Hunter Fan Company come in options as small as 36-inches and can seamlessly coordinate with your updated space.

Their work includes the Lupin Research Park (Pune, 2001); Bhagwan Mahaveer Cancer Hospital (Jaipur, 2001); the House of Three Streams (Lonavala, Maharashta, 2017; published here); Mathrubhumi Headquarters (Cohin, 2017— ): Ahmedabad International School (Ahmedabad, 2018—); and the Film Conservation and Research Institute (Lonavala, 2018—), all in India.

Game rooms are often the most aesthetically neglected rooms of the home. Often a culmination of mismatched and hand-me-down furniture, the game room is most likely in need of some tender love and care. Some new pillow covers for the couch and an added cowhide rug can provide a refreshing update to this room.

Consider adding an accent wall in a bold color and replacing those outdated band posters for a grown-up look.

This article has been excerpted from ‘Homes for Our Time’

The Game Room

Loki indoor ceiling fan. (Photo: Hunter Fan Co.) The Garage For many people, the garage is the first interior space they encounter after a long day. Unfortunately, it’s also often the dumping ground for old tools, children’s toys and items with no place to call home. Built-in storage can help with organization, and adding a layer of colored floor protectant will make your garage seem more polished and presentable.

If you use the garage as a workshop, the introduction of a cool breeze can revitalize strenuous home projects and ensure proper ventilation.

Check out ceiling fan design options that can stand up to the elements, such as the Bruns-

wick or Cedar Key from Hunter Fan Company.

The Home Gym When it comes to getting in shape, motivation is key, and having a beautiful, enjoyable space while working towards your goals can make all the difference. Get a better workout by updating your home gym with new mats, colorful dumbbells and a brand-new sound system. Avoid overheating with the latest smart tech, such as the SIMPLEconnect Symphony, a fan that can be controlled from your mobile device or an automated virtual assistant, such as Siri, Google or Alexa.

-StatePoint

832-869-4026

Meridiana

Sienna Plantation: Stillwater Cove

Beds: 4-6 Bath: 3-5.5 Sq Ft: 3,073-4,697 Base Pricing From: the $390,000s

Beds: 3-4 Baths: 2.5-3.5 Sq Ft: 2,431-3,554 Base Pricing From: the $350,000s

in Iowa Colony, Texas

832-869-4032

in The Missouri City, Texas

832-756-2721

Sienna Plantation: Village of Sawmill Lake in The Missouri City, Texas

Beds: 3-6 Baths: 2-4.5 Sq Ft: 2,651-3,816 Base Pricing From: the $340,000s

832-869-4024

This is not an offer of real estate for sale, or a solicitation of an offer to buy, to residents of any state or province in which registration and other legal requirements have not been fulfilled. Pricing does not include options, elevation, or lot premiums, effective date of publication and subject to change without notice. All square footages and measurements are approximate and subject to change without notice. Trademarks are property of their respective owners. Equal Housing Opportunity.

Cane Island in Katy, Texas

Beds: 4-6 Baths: 3.5-4.5 Sq Ft: 3,287-4,609 Base Pricing From: the $460,000s

832-869-4026

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RESTAURANTS India’s Restaurant & Catering

INCOME TAX

For special parties and corporate events. Preferred Wine list, authentic vegetarian & nonvegetarian dishes, finest Indian cuisine with chef’s special dishes Ph: 713-266-0131/0805

Personal and Business Tax Returns, Payroll Sales Tax, Income Tax Audits and Representations.

S. Ram and Associates

Tel: 832-877-9625 Free Consultation asu2020.com

AC & HEATING SERVICE 75 Degree AC

Quality and Integrity works with Affordable Pricing New A/C + Heating, Installation, A/C Repair, Heating Repair, Yearly System Maintenance 1 Year Warranty on all of our works!

KENNY HO, Manager Call 713-598-2737 75degreeacservices@gmail.com

M.D. Associates LLP A full service CPA firm

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

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

Madhuram Mirch Masala

visit us at: www.mdassociatescpas.com

10758 FM 1960 West Houston, TX 77070

ELECTRICAL INSURANCE SERVICE

281.955.9878 216.338.3940 (cell)

PREMIER NATIONAL CARRIER

Shiva Indian Restaurant & Catering Specializing in North Indian Cuisine, office & Corporate catering 2514 Times Blvd, Rice Village Ph: 713-523-4753 Visit us online: www.shivarestaurant.com

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FRIDAY, February 15, 2019

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COMPUTER SERVICES Networking and Computer Repair

Home & Business, on site, Microsoft MCSE & A+ certified, low flat rates, free estimates, pickup & delivery, www.PCNetworkGuru.com Call Amit at 832-971-6807

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Week of February 15, 2019 21 March to 20 April What seems a great idea could be a cause for regret later in the week. Potent Mars in Taurus could encourage you to build security rather than throw caution to the wind. Therefore, if you’re determined to make changes in your life, consider doing so step by step.

21 April to 20 May You’re a very generous lover, and someone will be very lucky to have you. Even if you’re experiencing a fair amount of rejection now, it won’t last forever. It’s only a matter of time before someone appreciates your awesomeness, Taurus!

21 May to 20 June Events can trigger a wave of intense and vulnerable feelings. Avoid taking on unnecessary blame or responsibility for events. Your kind heart could see you making big sacrifices for the good of others. Ask for help in any situation where you need clarification.

21 June to 22 July Career activity brings excitement and drama but also a bit of unpredictability this week. Ideas are flying, but you need to monetize one before moving on to the next lest you find yourself with decreased cash flow.

23 July to 22 August An active social life and busy schedule could mean you need to recharge your batteries. Take the chance to recuperate so you can meet any future challenges.

An activity like dancing would enable you to release some of the intense emotion that you’ve been carrying with you.

23 August to 22 Sept The weekend could be rather more alluring as luscious Venus ties with dreamy Neptune, which might have creative and romantic potential. And a conversation could result in lucrative ideas and opportunities that are different from anything else you’ve tried.

astrology.com

23 September to 22 Oct Do you have a crush on someone, Libra?

Are you satisfied admiring this person from afar or do you want to do something about it? The first part of the week is perfect for random romantic surprises, so use your imagination.

23 October to 21 Nov This week is ideal for moving in a new direction. It also supports team development. Managers need employees with the training, skills, and resources to do their best. You can be unusually demanding of co-workers.

22 November to 21 Dec You have a supportive aspect benefiting your curiosity in money issues.

Your house of romance, kids, and family is highlighted Make sure you aren’t spending too much to get or keep someone’s love.

22 December to 20 Jan Don’t let too much emotion unbalance you. Emotion can be either positive or negative. The cosmos is taking you into some deep waters, and could also stir up bodily symptoms. Rest if you need it, or take a long, relaxing bath.

21 January to 19 Feb As focused Mars moves into Taurus and your home and family sector, it can act like a whirlwind encouraging you to get rid of clutter and make more space to welcome in fresh opportunities.

Over the next six weeks, your home could go through a major makeover that changes it for the better.

20 February to 20 Mar Are you ready to get romantic? What does your perfect date scenario look like?

If you have an online dating profile, why not spell out exactly what you’re looking for? It’s a lot easier than expecting other people to guess what you want, Pisces! Try to avoid relationship envy.

ACROSS 1. *Animated Isle dwellers 5. Dropped drug 8. *Kind of editing 12. Doing nothing 13. Hoodwink 14. Support person 15. Toothy wheel 16. Distinctive flair 17. Tadpoles, eventually 18. *”Bohemian Rhapsody” protagonist 20. Norse capital 21. *Kathy Bates’ Annie Wilkes, e.g.

22. Contrary conjunction 23. Withdraw, like Ukraine from Soviet Union 26. Sweet Madeira wine 30. *”Green Book” nominee 31. Completely lacking 34. Clip contents 35. Like pleasant winter day 37. Charge carrier 38. Food between meals 39. Relating to ear 40. Religious split 42. *”BlacKkKlansman” nominee 43. Sweet treat 45. *Paths to glory 47. One or some 48. Wharton’s “The House of ____” 50. Shipping hazard 52. *T’Challa, a.k.a. Black ____ 54. Arranges into categories 55. One with pants on fire?

56. Japanese stringed instrument 59. *Nominations for “A Star Is Born” (2018) 60. *Olivia Colman’s royal character 61. Discharge 62. Fill to excess 63. Casual attire 64. *”The ____ Emperor,” winner of 9 Oscars

DOWN 1. “Can you ____ it, man?”

2. Schiller’s address to joy 3. *The Oscars show is filled with it, informal 4. Tranquil 5. Seductive beauties 6. Tire in the trunk 7. Say it isn’t so 8. *Ryan Gosling’s role 9. *Former American ____ and best supporting actress winner 10. Emmet Brickowski’s brick 11. *Robinson in “The Graduate” 13. King’s order 14. Run ____ of the law 19. Red, as in healthy complexion 22. *”The ____ and the Beautiful,” winner of 5 Oscars 23. Heidi’s shoe 24. Fill with optimism 25. Locomotive hair 26. Twiggy’s skirt 27. Size 28. *Kevin Hart stepped down from this role 29. Ox connectors 32. *Bale’s role 33. “____ la la!”

36. *Literary forgerer portrayer 38. *2-time Oscar-winning Dame 40. *Jessica Lange won Best Actress for “Blue ____” 41. Famous existentialist 44. Teen worry 46. Israeli money 48. *Jackson ____ of “A Star is Born” 49. Stupid or silly 50. Result of hair follicle infection 51. “Cogito, ____ sum” 52. Neighborhood map 53. *Best Picture and Best Foreign Language Film nominee 54. Dry, Demi-____, Doux 57. “____ the season ...”

58. Giant Hall-of-Famer

SOLUTION: THE OSCARS page 23

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Houston Community College Request for Proposals (RFP-C 19-41) District Wide UPS Battery Replacement Project No. 19-41

Houston Community College Request for Proposals Commodity (RFP-C-19-42) CIP Phase 4 Network Equipment for North Forest and Culinary Locations Project No. 19-42

Sealed proposals will be received in Procurement Operations (3100 Main Street, Room No. 11B01, Houston, Texas 77002) until 2:00PM (local time) on March 18, 2019.

Documents can be o b t a i n e d a t : w w w. hccs.edu/about-hcc/ procurement/

Sealed proposals will be received in Procurement Operations (3100 Main Street, Room No. 11B01, Houston, Texas 77002) until 2:00PM (local time) on March 7, 2019.

Documents can be o b t a i n e d a t : w w w. hccs.edu/about-hcc/ procurement/

FRIDAY, February 15, 2019

Houston Community College

Request for Qualifications (RFQ) Architectural and Engineering Services for Katy Education Building Project Project No. 19-38

Sealed proposals will be received in Procurement Operations (3100 Main Street, Room No. 11B01, Houston, Texas 77002) until 2:00PM (local time) on Tuesday, March 5, 2019. and Programming Services for Katy Education Building Project Project No. 19-39

Sealed proposals will be received in Procurement Operations (3100 Main Street, Room No. 11B01, Houston, Texas 77002) until 2:00PM (local time) on Thursday, February 28, 2019.

Documents can be obtained at: www.hccs.edu/abouthcc/procurement/

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FRIDAY, February 15, 2019