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Vol. 28 No. 31 Friday, July 31, 2015 • Published Weekly from Houston • 713-774-5140 20 Pages ( 2 sections) 50 cents E-mail: editor@voiceofasiaonline.com

Nation pays homage to Kalam, funeral in Tamil Nadu

Tamil Nadu on Thursday morning in accordance with the wishes of his family headed by his elder brother Muthu Mohammed Meeran Marraikar (99). He would be given a state funeral with full military honours.

EW DELHI, India, July 28 - The powerful and the commoners, jostled to offer their last respects to late A P J Abdul Kalam today as President Pranab Mukherjee, Prime Minister Narendra Modi and leaders cutting across political divide led the nation in paying homage to a leader who rose from humble origins to occupy the top office.

Both the Houses of Parliament adjourned for two days after paying glowing tributes while the Union Cabinet met to pass a resolution hailing his services to the nation.

Long queues of people, especially school and college students, were seen through the day at 10, Rajaji Marg residence of Kalam in Lutyen’s Delhi waiting for their turn to have a last look at the mortal remains of the person who had asked them to dream big and came to be hailed as the “People’s President”.

Mukherjee, Hamid Ansari, Modi and Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar and a host of dignitaries received the mortal remains of Kalam at the Palam technical area as the body was flown from Shillong to Guwahati en route Delhi by the Air Force. The dignitaries placed wreaths on the body that was wrapped in a tricolour and placed on a deck on the tarmac at at the Palam technical area. (PTI)

A seven-day national mourning was observed in honour of Kalam, whose last rites will be performed in his birthplace Rameswaram in

India president rejects clemency for 1993 bombings plotter

EW DELHI, | AFP | Wednesday 7/29/2015 - India’s president on Wednesday rejected a last-ditch plea to stay the execution of Yakub Memon for his role in the country’s worst ever attack, Press Trust of India reported. President Pranab Mukherjee rejected his petition for clemency after the Supreme Court in New Delhi ruled that he should die for his role in attacks that killed hundreds of people in Mumbai in 1993. Shortly after lawyers for Memon, the only one of 11 people convicted to have his death sentence upheld

Rep. Tulsi Gabbard, Lawmakers Introduce Resolution to Protect Religious Minorities in Bangladesh

on appeal, and activists met with India’s chief justice to ask for a 14day delay, local media reported. Menon is set to be hanged at the Nagpur jail in western Maharashtra on Thursday morning, according to media reports. Authorities in Nagpur have barred people from assembling outside the jail and beefed up security in sensitive areas in Mumbai. The Bombay Stock Exchange, the offices of Air India and a luxury hotel were among about a dozen targets of the March 1993 blasts, which killed 257 people in the deadliest attacks ever to hit India.

ashington, DC—Today, Rep. Tulsi Gabbard (D, HI-02) a member of the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Asia and the Pacific, introduced a bipartisan resolution calling on the government of Bangladesh to increase human rights protections, strengthen democratic institutions, and prevent the growth of extremist groups in the country. The resolution comes as ISIS and other trans-national radical Islamic groups Continued on Page 3

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FRIDAY, July 31, 2015

“Kalam not just India’s scientist but of the world” From K J M Varma eijing, Jul 28 - Fondly recalling former President A P J Abdul Kalam’s two memorable visits to China to interact with students, the Chinese academic community today paid rich tributes to India’s ‘missile man’ saying he was not simply a scientist of India but of the entire world. “Kalam’s death made us feel very very sad. We will remember him forever with tears in our eyes,” said Professor Jiang Jingkui, who heads the Centre for South Asian Studies in Peking University which honoured Kalam as visiting professor. Kalam passed away yesterday aged 83. “He is not simply a scientist of India but also for the entire world. People of China will remember him for long,” said Jiang who heads the Hindi department of the university. Kalam visited China twice, first

in 2012 and later 2014 on the invitation of the Chinese government. He addressed his first class at the Peking University, one of China’s oldest universities last year after formally taking over as honorary professor. The university offered him full facilities for him to continue with the teaching subjects of his choice. Addressing the students, Kalam had called for Sino-Indian joint space collaboration besides interface between universities of the two countries on development themes. Kalam took a class on “Sustained development system and creative leadership” to a group of students drawn from different disciplines. Responding to a question on how India and China can collaborate to generate clean energy, Kalam said that both countries being emerging space powers should jointly take up the challenge to build satellites that could generate round- the-

Letter to the Editor Remembering Dr.A.P.Kalam, a humble leader with a great vision for India

ndia has lost a great visionary In Dr.A.P.Kalam, a former President of India. Dr. Kalam was not only a visionary, but also had the courage to draw comparison with Singapore and tell his people to stop spitting on the roads in order to keep India clean. On a personal note, I had met and heard Dr. Abdul Kalam, in Houston atleast three times during his visits to Rice University, University of Houston and India House etc, Two years ago, during our tour of Southern India, my wife, Lakshmi and I had made a conscious effort to go and see his home in Rameswaram, Tamilnadu. Named ‘Kalam House’, it is a modest two story house with an iron gate and a terrace and a post box outside on the wall. Located at the Mosque street, it has a store inside selling various memorabilia to the public, By no means comparable to any of the Presidential Libraries in America, the ancestral house reflects his humble beginnings, and is an embodiment of his simple living and

high thinking. With best regards, Krishna Vavilala Houston, TX

A P J Abdul Kalam

clock solar energy and connect the world with clean power. Currently solar power can be harnessed only during the day. Research is on to harness solar power through satellite for round-theclock availability. The challenges to bring the power to earth are too many but it could be worked out through joint collaboration. If the two countries can join together for space solar power carbon neutral cities can be found everywhere, Kalam had said. Also in order to address development challenges, Kalam said that Chinese and Indian universities should have research and academic interfaces in development

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themes. During his first visit in 2012, Kalam told state-run CCTV in an interview that India will eventually will get the Permanent Membership of the UN Security Council as it is “undemocratic” to keep a country with over a billion people out of the decision-making process. “It will come. You cannot keep a billion people away from the decision making process,” Kalam said responding to question on whether India would get the UNSC membership. “Billion people...how can you keep away and keep veto power? It is not democratic,” a smiling Kalam had said. (PTI).

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STORY OF MAHATMA GANDHI

In Champaran, “face-to-face with God, ahimsa, truth” Part XI

he annual meeting of the Congress was held in December 1916 in Lucknow. The Congress was divided. There were the moderates and there were the extremists, but at Lucknow the Congress met without tension between the two wings.

May 31, 1917 as the last date for the abolition of indentured labor. He then went around the country to get support for this view. Meetings were held in all important places. Everywhere there was a great response. Even Gandhi said that he had not expected so much public support.

The President, Ambika Charan Mazumdar, spoke in terms of Swaraj, which previous leaders had demanded. A resolution was passed appealing to His Majesty’s Government and demanding that a definite step should be taken towards Indian self-government by granting the reforms contained in the scheme prepared by the AllIndia Congress Committee and adopted by the All-India Muslim League. In Lucknow the Congress and the Muslim League came to an agreement. This was later known as the Lucknow Pact. For the sake of the unity of India the Congress conceded many points demanded by the Muslims. For two years Gandhi had travelled extensively in India and had talked at different places. He now wanted to start some work connected with labor. His interest first centered on the problem of indentured labor, the system under which poor, ignorant laborers were enticed away from India to work in the British colonies. He had fought this system in South Africa and he wanted to see it abolished. The Viceroy, Lord Hardinge,

As a result of the agitation, the Government announced that the system of indentured labor would be stopped before July 31,1917. Gandhi had heard about an obnoxious system of agricultural labor prevailing in Bihar.

Mahatma Gandhi Week in Houston from Sept. 27 to Oct 3, 2004. Call 713-785-3900 or visit www.mahatmagandhilibrary.org announced that His Majesty’s Government had agreed to abolish the system’ in due course. Gandhi, however, wanted a definite date before which the system would go.

In the Champaran district of Bihar, the cultivators were forced by Europeans to grow indigo, a blue dye, and this imposed on them untold sufferings. They could not grow the food they needed, nor did they receive adequate payment for the indigo. Gandhi was unaware of this until an agriculturist from Bihar, Rajkumar Shukla, met him and told him of the woes of the people of Champaran. He requested Gandhi to go to the place and see for himself the state of affairs there. Gandhi was then attending the Congress meeting at Lucknow and he did not have time to go there. Rajkumar Shukla followed him about, begging him to come and help the suffering villagers in Champaran. Gandhi at last promised to visit the place after he had

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visited Calcutta. When Gandhi was in Calcutta, Rajkumar was there too, to take him to Bihar. Gandhi went to Champaran with Rajkumar early in 1917. On his arrival the District Magistrate served him with a notice saying that he was not to remain in the district of Champaran but must leave the place by the first available train. Gandhi disobeyed this order. He was summoned to appear before the court. The magistrate said, “If you leave the district now and promise not to return, the case against you will be withdrawn: “This cannot be,” said Gandhi. “I came here to render humanitarian and national service. I shall make Champaran my home and work for the suffering people.’ A large crowd of peasants was outside the court shouting slogans. The magistrate and the police looked nervous. Then Gandhi said, “I shall help you and calm these people if you let me speak to them.” Gandhi appeared before the crowd and said, “You must show your faith in me and in my work by remaining quiet. The magistrate had the right to arrest me, because I disobeyed his order. If I am sent to jail, you must accept that as just. We must work peacefully. Any violent act will harm our cause.” The crowd dispersed peacefully. The police stared at Gan-

dhi in admiration as he went inside the court. “That day in Champaran was an unforgettable event in my life ..... It is no exaggeration, but the literal truth, to say that in this meeting with the peasants, I was face to face with God, ahimsa and truth,” Gandhi wrote later. The Government withdrew the case against Gandhi and allowed him to remain in the district. Gandhi stayed there to study the grievances of the peasants. He visited many villages. He cross-examined about 8,000 cultivators and recorded their statements. In this way he arrived at an exact understanding of their plight and the causes. He came to the conclusion that the ignorance of the cultivators was one of the main reasons why the European planters could exploit them. Gandhi set up voluntary organizations to improve the economic and educational conditions of the people. They opened schools and taught the people how to improve sanitation. The Government realized Gandhi’s strength and devotion to his causes. They themselves then set up a committee to enquire into the grievances of the cultivators. They invited Gandhi to serve on that committee, and he agreed. The result was that within a few months the Champaran Agrarian Bill was passed. It gave great relief to the culti-

vators and land tenants. Gandhi could not stay longer in Bihar. There were calls from other places. Labor unrest was brewing in Ahmedabad and Gandhi was requested to help settle the dispute. Gandhi hurried back to Ahmedabad. Before taking up the labor dispute Gandhi wanted to move his ashram. The Satyagraha Ashram was in a village near Ahmedabad, but the surroundings were not clean and plague had broken out. It had spread there from Ahmedabad. A rich merchant of Ahmedabad, who was closely associated with the ashram, volunteered to procure a suitable piece of land. Gandhi went about with him looking for land and at last they chose a place on the bank of the Sabarmati river, near the Sabarmati Central Jail. The land was purchased and there the famous Sabarmati Ashram was started. In Ahmedabad there were many textile mills. Prices had gone up and the mill workers were demanding higher wages. The mill owners would not agree. Gandhi sympathized with the workers and took up their cause. He launched a struggle and resorted to peaceful resistance. The workers proudly followed Gandhi and pledged their full support to him. They paraded the streets with large banners, and said they would not go back to work until a settlement had been reached.

— To be continued

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FRIDAY, July 31, 2015

Second Front Page

Friday, July 31, 2015 • www.voiceofasiaonline.com • Page 3 • Email: editor@voiceofasiaonline.com • Tel: 713-774-5140

US Colleges visit India for Partenership for Skilling

Rep. Tulsi Gabbard, Lawmakers Introduce Resolution to Protect Religious Minorities in Bangladesh

lence and religious extremism. We expect Bangladesh to respect human dignity, honor commitments to freedom of expression and religion, and protect the human rights of all citizens, no matter one’s political disposition, creed, or religion. This resolution reaffirms our dedication to these principles.”

Continued from page 1

continue to grow their influence in areas like South Asia. Co-sponsors include Asia and the Pacific Subcommittee Chairman Matt Salmon (R, AZ-05) and Rep. Bob Dold (R, IL-10). In a speech on the House floor introducing the resolution, Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard stated, “Bangladesh is a country in turmoil. There are many concerns about the stability of the country, particularly since flawed elections were held last year, and the political violence that has ensued. I am particularly concerned over issues of religious freedom, and specifically, attacks against minority Hindus, Christians, Buddhists, and others, in Bangladesh. All too often perpetrators of crimes against minorities go unpunished. It’s up to the government of Bangladesh to take action to stop those who incite and commit violence and protect the rights of these minorities. [This resolution] calls on the government of Bangladesh to protect the human rights of all its citizens, particularly its vulnerable minorities, strengthen democratic institutions and rule of law, and prevent the growth of extremist groups.”

“Religious persecution is on the rise around the world, with 77% of the world’s population now living in countries with high restrictions on religious freedom,” said Congressman Bob Dold. “As the greatest force for human dignity in the world, the United States has an obligation to send the unequivocal message that we will not tolerate countries that fail to protect the fundamental freedoms of all citizens, especially minorities. I am pleased to join with my colleagues from both sides of the aisle calling on the government of Bangladesh to protect the rights of minorities, eliminate violent extremist groups and restore the rule of law.” Background Bangladesh, a Muslim-majority nation in South Asia, is the world’s eighth most populous country in the world. The country’s faltering democratic system has been subjected to an array of pressures in recent years, including a combination of political violence, corruption, poverty, and increasingly, Islamist militancy. Religious minorities, including Hindus, Buddhists, Jews, and Ahmadiyya Muslims, in Bangladesh face high levels of persecution, including the destruction of temples, homes and businesses.

“It was an honor to work on this resolution with Rep. Gabbard,” said Congressman Matt Salmon. “In Bangladesh, there is great potential. Through this resolution, we have encouraged Bangladesh to embrace non-violent democratic competition and rule of law, and to shirk political vio-

Left to right – Herny DerAntonian (Lone Star College), Jiten Agarwal (Cambridge Education Development), Houston Community College Trustee Neeta Sane, Deputy Chief Minister of Delhi Manish Sisodia, Linda Head (Lone Star College), Federico Zaragoza (Alamo College), Carol Fimmen (Alamo College)

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munity in the USA, India to discuss the challenges and possibilities for collaboration as a part of Government of India and Prime Minister’s Modi’s mission of Skilled India. Government of India aims to train over 40 crore (400 Million) people in India in different skills by 2022. The initiatives include National Skill Development Mission, National Policy for Skill Development and Entrepreneurship 2015, Pradhan Mantri Kaushal Vikas Yojana (PMKVY) scheme and the Skill Loan scheme. Delegation discussed about details of setting up of Center of Excellence in India in various sectors such as Health-

care, Manufacturing, Construction, Renewable Energy, People with Disabilities, Aviation, Retail & Media/Entertainment. The delegation met with higher officials & Joint Secretary Mr. Pawan Agarwal of Ministry of Skills & Entrepreneurship, Mr. Dilip Chenoy & Mr. Rajiv Mathur from National Skills Development Corporation, Mr. Manish Sisodia, Deputy Chief Minister of Delhi Government, Ms. Shobha Mishra Ghosh, Sr. Director, FICCI, Prof Rajan Saxena, Vice Chancellor, NMIMS, Mumbai, CEOs of Industry and Sector Skills Councils, and several other personnel from Government

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OBITUARY

The People’s Lawyer www.peopleslawyer.net Richard M. Alderman Interim Dean of the Law Center

Stepchild may not inherit from stepparent Q. My stepdad recently died. He was the only father I knew for more than 40 years. He did not have a will. Do I inherit any of his property? A. When someone dies without a will, state law determines who inherits the person’s property. Under the law, property of a stepparent generally goes to the person’s children. The term “children,” however, does not include a stepchild. Without a will naming you as a beneficiary, you do not inherit any of your stepfather’s property. Q. I have been married for ten years. I am currently considering divorce. Last month my father passed away and I inherited a large sum of money. If I file for divorce will my husband be entitled to half of the money I inherited? A. When you file for divorce, you basically split all of your “community property,” property you own jointly. Money you inherit, however, is “separate property,” and is only solely by the person who inherits it. Separate property does not get divided in a divorce. You should be able to keep the money you inherited, even if you get divorced. You should be sure to keep the money in a separate account and not co-mingle it with other funds. Q. I heard that if my ex does not pay child support he could lose his driver’s license. Is this true? A. Yes, it is true. A person who does not pay court ordered child support may lose any license issued by the State of Texas, including a driver’s license. In fact, he or she may even be put in jail. Q. My credit card bill is due on the 15th of the month. Is this the date by which I must mail the check, or the date it must be received? I recently mailed my check five days before it was due and was charged almost $50 in penalties and interest when it arrived one day late. A. The due date for your credit card bill is the date by which your check must be received. The credit card company recognizes that the check will take some time to arrive, and that is why there is a period of around twenty days between when your bill is received and when the check is due. Don’t rely on last minute mail delivery. To avoid a late fee and interest you should mail your check in plenty of time to arrive before the due date. An even better option is to pay your bill online and avoid any possible problems with the mail. Q. If at the time of death someone has no money and no assets, who has to pay the bills? Which relative would be responsible? A. When a person dies, the debts of the deceased are the responsibility of his or her estate— the money or other assets owned at the time of death. If a person dies with no estate, that is he or she does not have any property or cash, the debts do not get paid. Relatives are not responsible unless they have otherwise agreed to pay the bill. Q. I let a fried borrow the extra key to my apartment and he lost it. Can I require my landlord to change my locks? A. Under the law, a landlord has an obligation to change the locks at his expense when a new tenant moves in. After that time, the landlord must change the locks whenever the tenant requests, as often as the tenant wants. The tenant, however, must pay the costs of installing the new locks. In other words, you can require your landlord to change your locks, however, you must pay the costs. Do you want to know more about your legal rights and keep up with the most recent consumer developments? Subscribe to my free newsletter, The Consumer Alert, sent three times a week to your email mailbox. Subscribe at www.peopleslawyer.net

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In Loving Memory

r. Ninan T. Mathew, 78, passed away on July 27, 2015. He was a beloved and loving husband, father, grandfather, uncle, cousin, and friend, and a highly respected neurologist who will be greatly missed. Dr. Mathew was born on May 21, 1937, in the beautiful state of Kerala in south India, to T.N. and Rahel Mathai, a deeply devout Mar Thoma Syrian Christian family. He received his undergraduate degree at the University of Madras in Tamil Nadu and his medical degree at Trivandrum Medical College, Kerala. His interest in neurology started in medical school. Post-graduate training in neurology followed at Christian Medical College, Vellore, India. He married Sushila Abraham on May 17, 1962, and moved to Houston, Texas, in the summer of 1970 and completed additional fellowship training in cerebrovascular disease and stroke at Baylor College of Medicine in Houston, where he subsequently served as a faculty member. His interest in headache started through research, measuring cerebral blood flow in migraine patients while at Baylor. In 1976, Dr. Mathew established the Houston Headache Clinic, with outpatient and inpatient facilities for comprehensive care, which was the first headache specialty center in Texas. In 1984, he started the Dallas Headache Clinic. For 35 years, Houston Headache Clinic remained a major referral and research center for treating headache patients from around the world. Dr. Mathew served in various national and international organizations related to headache. He was president of the International Headache Society and the American Headache Society; chairman of the Headache Section for the American Academy of Neurology, which he helped to form, and the American Council for Headache Education. Dr. Mathew significantly contributed to medical litera-

Ninan T. Mathew, MD - Born May 21, 1937 - Died July 27, 2015. ture, with more than 200 scientific publications to his credit, in leading journals such as JAMA and Lancet Neurology. He edited books on cluster headache and his Handbook of Headache covers modern advances in headache. He was featured in a 2002 headache cover story in Time Magazine and appeared on numerous radio and television programs for the National Migraine Foundation and the American Council for Headache Education. In recent years, Dr. Mathew was the recipient of three Lifetime Achievement Awards from the Texas Neurological Society in 2012; the Headache Cooperative of New England in 2013; and the American Headache Society in 2014. In addition to his active career, Dr. Mathew was a member of Chapelwood United Methodist Church since 1978 and was involved with various cultural institutions. He was a founding member of the Indian Doctor’s Club in Houston and served as its second president. He was president of the India Cultural Center in Houston and was on the advisory board of the Asia Society Texas Center. He and Sushila were founding

patrons of the Hobby Center for the Performing Arts and the Asian Galleries of the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston. His interests included world traveling, antiques, and gardening. But his biggest passion was his family. Ninan is survived by his wife of 53 years, Sushila Mathew; his daughter, Rita Morico and her husband, Paul Morico; his son, Dr. Sanjay Mathew and his wife, Dessi Sherban Mathew; his son, Vijay Mathew and his wife, Charlotte Dubuc Mathew; and his six grandchildren, Rachel Morico, Mathew Morico, John Morico, Léon Mathew, Sofia Mathew, and Stefan Mathew; and Sushila’s three siblings and their spouses, and dozens of loving nieces, nephews, and cousins. The funeral service for Dr. Ninan T. Mathew will be held on August 1, 2015, Saturday, at 1 pm at Chapelwood United Methodist Church, located at 11140 Greenbay Drive, Houston, TX 77024. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to the Chapelwood Foundation, 11140 Greenbay Drive, Houston, TX 77024.

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VOICE OF ASIA 5

Mosquitoes Test Positive for West Nile Virus

UGAR LAND, TX The City of Sugar Land has confirmed the presence of West Nile virus at mosquito traps located in the areas of Merrick Drive in the Sugar Creek Subdivision, Settlers Way Boulevard and Lexington Boulevard, Austin Parkway west of Settlers Way Boulevard and Grants Lake Boulevard north of Austin Parkway. The mosquitoes tested positive for West Nile today. The City will immediately increase mosquito spraying to twice per week and will continue working closely with the Texas Department of State Health Services to trap and test mosquitos for the presence of the West Nile virus. The traps supplement the City’s larvicide and mosquito spraying operations. Humans can contract West Nile virus from a mosquito bite. Infected mosquitoes get the virus from feeding on in-

fected birds. The virus can cause serious illness or death. Dr. Joe Anzaldua, the City’s medical director and health authority, urges residents to take precautions to reduce West Nile exposure. “Residents should use insect repellent whenever they are outdoors and avoid going outside at dusk and dawn,” said Anzaldua. “People over 50 years old and those with compromised immune systems are at a higher risk of becoming seriously ill if infected with the virus. If people have symptoms that cause them concern, they should contact their healthcare provider immediately.” There are no medications to treat or vaccines to prevent West Nile virus infection. Symptoms may include a stiff neck, vision problems, body tremors, mental confusion, memory loss and seizures. The milder form of the illness is West Nile Fever. Symptoms may include fever,

headache, muscle and bone aches, nausea and drowsiness. People with the milder form of the illness typically recover on their own, although symptoms may last for several weeks. Up to 80 percent of people infected with West Nile virus will have no symptoms and will recover on their own. Anyone with questions or concerns should contact their doctor. The Texas Department of State Health Services recommends practicing the “Four Ds”: Use insect repellent containing DEET, picaridin or oil of lemon eucalyptus. Dress in long sleeves and long pants when you are outside. Stay indoors at dusk and dawn when mosquitoes are most active. Drain standing water where mosquitoes breed. Common breeding sites include old tires, flowerpots and clogged rain gutters.

FRIDAY, July 31, 2015

Rotary Club of Fort Bend County welcomes new team

UGAR LAND The local Rotary Club of Fort Bend County, under Houston District 5890, ushered in a new governance team on Wednesday July 8, 2015 during the Annual Induction Ceremony. Incumbent Chapter President, Kamram Makhdoom and Houston District Rotary Club 5890 Governor, Nick Giannone welcomed the new President, Surender Talwar, Secretary, Nalina Pillai and Treasurer, Kaushiki L Gashette. Overall, the ceremony focused on the charitable efforts and accomplishments of the prior year. In full support and deference to past leadership, the incoming members reinforced their continued commitment to the long term club goals. A priority for the 2015 - 2016 Rotary Club 5890 will be new membership drives. In rare form, the ceremo-

Annual Induction Ceremony was held on July 8, 2015. ny concluded with a traditional Hindi song performed by none other than the incoming President, Surender Talwar. The Fort Bend Rotary Club 5890 meets each Wednesday at

6:45 pm. Please feel free to encourage potential members to contact any of the aforementioned local members or attend a regular meeting as a distinguished guest!

UT Austin Receives Final Approval for New Doctorate for Nurses

USTIN, Texas (July 23, 2015) — The University of Texas at Austin School of Nursing has received final approval from the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board to launch a doctor of nursing practice (DNP) degree program, a professional doctoral program designed to prepare graduates for today’s increasingly complex health care practice and clinical leadership roles. The two concentrations

of the DNP program are advanced practice and executive leadership, and the curriculum will emphasize clinical and leadership skills. Graduates will be prepared to translate nursing research into evidence-based standards of care while contributing to health care teams that improve patient outcomes. “With our strong cadre of tenured and clinical faculty to lead the research and education efforts, I’m confident our DNP program will help

meet the demand for more nurses who are able to provide leadership at the highest levels of health care in Central Texas and across the state,” said Alexa Stuifbergen, dean of the School of Nursing. The degree will complement the current professional practice doctoral programs at UT Austin such as the Pharm.D. and soon-tobe-offered M.D. The start date of the DNP program is scheduled for January 2016.

More than 15 years ago, the American Association of Colleges of Nursing identified the need for a doctorate for advanced practice nursing and recommended that the DNP become the terminal degree for nurse practitioners. The group recognized that the growth in scientific knowledge and sophisticated technology was contributing to the growing need for clinical career paths that would attract outstanding students and retain nurses in clinical careers.

In 2010 the Institute of Medicine published its report “The Future of Nursing: Leading Change, Advancing Health,” which affirmed this need and recommended doubling the number of doctoral-prepared nurses by 2020. Currently there are more than 240 DNP programs nationwide and 11 DNP programs in Texas but none in Central Texas. The UT Austin program is designed for nurses who are employed full time. It will be offered in a hybrid format with a com-

bination of on-campus and online learning experiences. The School of Nursing plans to enroll 12 students in the first class. Professor Jane Champion will be the director of the program. For more information about the UT Austin School of Nursing’s doctor of nursing practice degree, please contact Champion at jdchampion@ mail.nur.utexas.edu. For more information, contact: Andria Brannon, School of Nursing, 512-471-5237.

SPECIAL

VOICE OF ASIA 6

FRIDAY, July 31, 2015

How India’s Late President Learned About Rocket Science With NASA wife Gita and me to stay with him at Rashtrapati Bhawan, the grand presidential residence in New Delhi.

A.P.J. Abdul Kalam was 83. AFP Photo by Ramabhadran Aravamudan (TIME).

efore he became India’s head of state, Dr. Kalam, who died on Monday aged 83, was one of the country’s most distinguished scientists. Here, a former colleague and friend recalls his time training with a young Kalam in the U.S. in the early 1960s.

Back in the 1960s, we were both rookie engineers working for government organizations in India with just a few years of experience behind us—I worked in electronics and he specialized in aeronautics. Both of us had passed out from the Madras Institute of Technology in southern India, although he was older than me and graduated a few years ahead. But the first time I met A.P.J. Abdul Kalam—or Kalam, as I always knew him— was in a foreign country: the U.S. I’d gone there in December, 1962, and he followed in March, 1963. We were part of a seven-member team dispatched by Vikram Sarabhai, the father of India’s space program, to train with NASA and learn the art of assembling and launching small rockets for collecting scientific data. I’d already spent a few months training at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Centre in Greenbelt, Maryland, when Kalam arrived from India. Soon, we were working side by side at NASA’s launch facility in Wallops Island, Virginia. Our lodgings were called the B.O.Q., or the Bachelor Officer’s Quarters, and we’d lunch together at the cafeteria where, because we were both vegetarians, we survived mainly on mashed potatoes, boiled beans, peas, bread and milk. Weekends in Wallops Island were lonely affairs, as the nearest town of Pocomoke City was an hour’s drive away. Thankfully for us, NASA put on a free flight to Washington D.C. for its recruits, so we would head up the to American capital on Friday nights and return to Wallops on the Monday morning shuttle. It was a memorable experience. I remember one training session where Kalam had to fire a dummy rocket when the countdown hit zero. It was only after half a dozen attempts when he kept firing the rocket either a few seconds too early or too late that the man who went on to become one of India’s best known rocket scientists managed to get it right. Our American sojourn ended in December, 1963, when we returned to India to help set up a domestic rocket launching facility on the outskirts of Trivandrum, the capital of the southern Indian state of Kerala. It was very different world from NASA. India’s space program was still in its early years and we had to swap our weekend shuttles to Washington for bicycles, our sole mode of transportation in those days. Quite apart from the change, this presented a practical problem for Kalam: he didn’t know how to ride a bike! He was forced to depend on me or one of the other engineers to ferry him to and from work. When it came to food, if we’d lacked options at the canteen in Wallops Island, in Kerala we had to fend entirely for ourselves: there was no canteen at the nascent launch facility, and we had purchase our lunch at the Trivandrum railway station on the way to

Our lodgings were called the B.O.Q., or the Bachelor Officer’s Quarters, and we’d lunch together at the cafeteria where, because we were both vegetarians, we survived mainly on mashed potatoes, boiled beans, peas, bread and milk. work. Over the next decade and a half, Kalam and I worked closely on building India’s space program. Kalam eventually became the director of the project to develop the country’s first satellite launch vehicle, a task he pursued with single-minded devotion. He made his team work

Special team: Five early recruits to the space programme who were sent to the U.S. for training; (from left) R. Aravamudan, A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, H.G.S. Murthy, B. Ramakrishna Rao, andD. Easwaradas. Photo: From the personal collection of R. Aravamudan. Photo source Official Kalam.com

hard and set the benchmark for them by working twice as hard himself. He had a knack for getting things done and did not let initial failures deter his team. He pushed and pushed until eventually, in 1980, he succeeded with the launch of SLV3, India’s first experimental satellite vehicle which took off from Sriharikota on the country’s southeastern

coast. The same year, Kalam moved to India’s Defense Research and Development Organization and took on the task of building the country’s missiles. He injected a new sense of urgency and energy in the organization, and in 1998, led the team behind the country’s nuclear tests at

Pokhran in northwestern India. His unexpected election in 2002 as India’s President took him to a different plane, transforming him into a statesman and, rightly, a national legend. But he never forgot his early friendships. In 2007, when he was about step down from the presidency, he invited my

He never allowed his high office to come in the way of his natural informality, a quality that so endeared to so many across India and the world. One evening during our stay, he invited me and my wife to attend a national awards ceremony that he was hosting in his capacity as President. The ceremony was followed by a reception for the guests, among whom were many dignitaries. Suddenly, Gita and I found that our host had disappeared. I was looking around trying to find him when an aide came up to me and whispered a message from India’s head of state: the President wanted us to leave the other guests behind and join him in the building’s magnificent gardens. It turned out that the great man needed a break from the formality of the awards function and wanted to get some fresh air. For more than an hour, we walked up and down the beautiful gardens, reminiscing about the old days in Trivandrum and the badminton games we used to play at the Rocket Recreation Club. He returned to his Presidential duties quite recharged. Aravamudan is a former Director of the Indian Space Research Organization’s Satellite Centre in Bengaluru, India Source: TIME

DIASPORA

VOICE OF ASIA 7

FRIDAY, July 31, 2015

Indian-American Mary Thomas More than 61000 Indian announces US Congressional bid millionaires moved abroad in

last 14 years, reveals report New Delhi: India has seen the second-biggest outflow of high net worth individuals in last 14 years, with as many as 61,000 millionaires shifting base abroad due to reasons like tax, security and child education, says a report. A joint report by New World Wealth and LIO Global said the change in domicile, along with a rise in second citizenship applications, has increased dramatically since the turn of the century. Some 61,000 uber-rich Indians have changed domicile between 2000 to 2014 — second only to China which saw an outflow of 91,000 ultra-rich persons in the same period, the report said. “Indian HNWIs

tend to move to the UAE, the UK, the US and Australia,” the report said, adding that Chinese HNWIs mainly moved to the US, Hong Kong, Singapore and the UK. Overall, the UK has seen the biggest inflow of HNWIs from abroad and the figure stood at 1.25 lakh over the past 14 years. Other countries that saw significant HNWI outflows include France (42,000), Italy (23,000), Russia (20,000), Indonesia (12,000), South Africa (8,000) and Egypt (7,000). The factors of the outflow, according to the report, include turmoil in home country, security concerns and optimising education of children. Most of the HNWIs who moved into the

UK came from Europe, Russia, China and India. There were also substantial numbers that came from the Middle-East and Africa, the report added. In terms of inflows of HNWIs, the UK was followed by the US and Singapore. Inflows into the US predominantly came from China while the UK, India and Russia made up for a sizeable chunk. Most migration to Singapore came from China, India and Indonesia. This survey was conducted comparing the domicile of a sample of around 60,000 global HNWIs in 2000 with the same in 2014. HNWIs refer to individuals with net assets of USD 1 million or more excluding their primary residences. PTI

Mary Thomas announcing her candidacy. CREDIT MARY THOMAS VIA TWITTER

WASHINGTON: IndianAmerican Mary Thomas, a government attorney in Florida, has said that she will run for the US Congressional elections in November 2016. If elected, Thomas, whose parents arrived in American from India in 1972, would be the first woman IndianAmerican lawmaker to be a member of the US House of Representatives. Born in Charleston, South Carolina, 37-year-old Thomas is a Republican. She is pitted against incumbent Gwen Graham of the Democratic Party, who wrested the Second Congressional District of Florida from Republican Steve Southerland in 2014. Thomas, a personal friend of Florida Governor Rick Scott, told local media that she is hoping to create history by becoming the first Indian-American woman to be elected to the US Congress. So far only three IndianAmericans elected to the US Congress are Dalip Singh Saundh, Bobby Jindal and Ami Bera. From California, Bera is the only Indian American in the current Congress. “I’m a conservative Republican, a Christian, a wife, mother, and a lawyer. If elected, I would be the first Indian- American woman ever elected to Congress. This would truly be a historic event,” Thomas said during her campaign announcement in Florida last week. Thomas’s parents, Tom and Annie Thomas are physicians who immigrated from India in 1972. This is why she has such strong opposition to undocumented immigration. She said the issue of illegal immigration is “deeply personal to me and my family.” “My family story is a shining example of the American dream,” she said. “Illegal immigration is deeply personal to me and my family. My parents came to this country legally,” she told the local media according to Tallahassee Democrat. “They were willing to follow the law so that their children could have a better life, so that I could be here before you today the proud descendant of immigrants. So when President (Barack) Obama grants illegal and unconstitutional amnesty to millions of illegal immigrants, it is an outrage to me, my parents and to all of the immigrants waiting in line to become Americans legally,” she said. The Indian-American attorney works as general counsel for the Florida Department of Elder Affairs. She plans to step down from the post to campaign full time.

A graduate of the Florida State University College of Law, she also holds a Masters of Law from the University of Miami and a Bachelors degree from the University of South Florida. Thomas has been a member of Governor Rick Scott’s Administration since he was

sworn into office in January 2011. She currently serves as the General Counsel at the Department of Elder Affairs where she manages and oversees the legal department of an agency that administers a $900 million budget.

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VOICE OF ASIA 8

FRIDAY, July 31, 2015

Ghar Baithak - Classical music enthusiasts get together Greece Debt Crisis – A OPINION

Greek Tragedy without Catharsis standoff vis-à-vis the political compulsion of the European Union which is itself in the predicament of disintegration.

Vocalist Soumya Rege is seen accompanied by Guru Shruti Sample on the harmonium and Govind Shetty on the tabla. Photo credit Sanchali Basu. by Sanchali Basu

simple, unostentatious, well planned evening of classical music was arranged by classical music lovers and a very hospitable couple Soumya and Ajay Rege at their residence in Bellaire, the afternoon of July 19. The program started with Shamik Boses’s soulful vocal renditions, with able accompaniment provided by the proficient Raja Banga on the tabla and Deyali Chatterjee on the tanpura and vocal. He set the mood with raga Bhimpalashi, did a dhrupad style

lilting melody, happens to be the only Hindustani gharana of West Bengal. He ended with a bandish in raga Bhairavi. The next part of the afternoon belonged to Biplab Samadder on the violin. He started with raga Puriya-Dhanashree. The maturity in his playing has grown over the years and the compositions he played flowed from the alaap to the jod (majh, and drut jor) and to the first Gat in raga vilambit in Rupak taal (7 beats). The fluid transition into the second Gat in raga - madhyalaya in Ada chautaal (14 beats), led to the next Gat -

Sample on the harmonium and Govind Shetty on the tabla was a treat for the audience. She started with a Vilambit khayal in Ektaal, followed by drut in Teentaal in raga Bhupali. Being proficient in three vernacular languages of India, her mother tongue Oriya, her second love Bengali and her husband’s mother tongue Marathi. She presented a Marathi natyageet from the Marathi natak, “Katyar Kaljat Ghusli,” in raga Puriya kalyan – As the saying goes, “Music knows no language,” Soumya proved that the Natya sangeet which basically had

Vocalist Shamik Boses accompanied by Raja Banga on the tabla and Deyali Chatterjee on the tanpura. Photo credit Sanchali Basu. alaap followed by vilambit khayal in Ektaal and then two drut khayals in teentaal. Crediting the two gharanas that he got trained in, he sang one bandish from the Senia gharana, and one from the Bishnupur gharana. His deep resonating voice did justice to the Senia gayaki, founded by Mian Tansen, by blending layakari, chhandabhed and bol taans. The Bishnupur gharana known for its sweet

drut in Teentaal (16 beats). The sawal jawab with tabla exponent Raja Banga was very well appreciated by the audience. The final crescendo of the jhala demonstrated the level of expertise of both the artists. The last, but not the least performer of the early hours of the evening was the gracious hostess Soumya Rege herself. Her melodious vocal classical presentation with Guru Shruti

emerged so that the common people could also enjoy classical music. The program culminated with her rendering of a Tarana in Teentaal based on raga Bhairavi. The invitees got to mingle with the artists during the simple vegetarian potluck dinner that ensued. The evening was enjoyed by all, and the performances by all the artists were commended.

Chandra K. Mittal , B.S., M.S., Ph.D., FCP Professor, Biological & Physiological Sciences, HCC, Houston by Chandra K. Mittal, Ph.D.

n her recent interview with PBS-News Hour anchor Gwen Ifill, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) Managing Director Christine Lagarde revealed more than what she said about things to come regarding Greece’s debt crisis before it is all over. Lagarde said “It can take different forms. It could be significant rescheduling, with extension of maturities over time, with an extended grace period, with compressed interest. It can be a haircut. It can be budget transfers. I think on the — I’m very realistic, and we try to be. It’s — I think what we said is significant restructuring, which can take the form of a re-profiling for Greece.” These are all metaphors and code words used by diplomats when going gets tough in international finance, and the unpleasant message has to be conveyed without using direct words. For example, haircut, which means creditors writing off their loans and taking the loss on their books. The fact of the matter is that Europe and the E.U. are essentially bracing for a crash landing with Greece debt as intensive efforts are underway to make the best of the worst situation. Of course, the preservation of “rule of economics” is prime in the

Greece, the land of a history spread over 7 millennia, great philosophers, mathematicians, scientists, theatres, and indeed the cradle of democracy in human society, is today pondering over the question “to be or not to be” in the European Union much the way character Prince Hamlet in William Shakespeare’s Hamlet contemplates death and suicide. The Prince bemoans the pains and unfairness of life, but acknowledges the alternative might be still worse. Of course the present goings on are not theatre but real life. As Greece is pushed to the limits by its creditors, a real tragedy is in the offing. It is overwhelmed by its economic woes and faces serious uncertainty. A medical analogy for Greece’s state can be simply described in terms of “Congestive Economic Failure”. It is ironic that the place which invented Democracy for human society, is now at the brink of its own destruction by democracy as its elected representatives are compelled to give up its sovereignty. As part of the new bailout, Greece is also being compelled to commit its significant national assets as surety as well as consult the creditor institutions like IMF, EU or European Commission before any legislative action by the Greece Parliament. All this is likely to inflict pain and misery on Greeks regardless of the rhetoric by the public officials. The Greece crisis indicates that the idea of a European Union with a common currency was predictably doomed to fail as results indicate. History will record this failure to be primarily due to cultural and social incompatibilities between Greece and its European partners like Germany. Greece has a deep socialistic welfare state with weak economics versus Germany with a more conservative industri-

ous lot with a strong economic base. It is perhaps for similar reasons why the United Kingdom did not adopt the Euro as its currency and stuck with the British Pound. Beyond Greece, there is also a new headache looming on the horizon in Europe about the contagion effect of Greece on other E.U. partners like Italy, Spain and the Irish Republic, who also have accumulated massive national debts and whose economies too are growing at an anemic pace to meet their loan obligations in a timely manner. Such developments are likely to further add to the economic woes of Europe and the world including the United States whose economy is globally integrated. This may, at some point, draw the US tax payer into the Greece crisis and be compelled to contribute to its bail out. Ironic as it may sound, Greece’s modern day economic crisis does draw a parallel with the classical Greek tragedy invented in the 6th century BC. Aristotle defined and described the “tragedy” in 335 BC as a theatrical plot based on myths, which was, although played by real actors, but it ended in a tragedy giving the audience the catharsis or internal pleasure involving a strange set of psychological factors. Unfortunately, the “myth” equivalent in the present crisis is the “debt”, which has to be refunded in reality but cannot be due economic depression. And that is the modern Greek tragedy which will end without any catharsis. Dr. Chandra Mittal is Professor at Houston Community College and Co-Founder of Indo-American Association, Houston. He can be contact on drckmittal@yahoo.com or followed on twitter @drchandramittal.

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VOICE OF ASIA 9

FRIDAY, July 31, 2015

Myanmar movie star, four India’s top court refuses to stay bomb plotter’s execution others win Magsaysay awards

EW DELHI, India | AFP | 7/29/2015 1ndia’s top court on Wednesday rejected a last-ditch plea by a convicted bomb plotter, clearing the way for his execution. Yakub Memon had petitioned the Supreme Court to halt his hanging, scheduled to take place on Thursday morning, on the basis that his death warrant had been issued before all legal avenues to appeal were exhausted. He was convicted of plotting a series of coordinated bomb attacks in Mumbai in 1993 that killed 257 people, the deadliest attacks ever to hit the country. “(The) death warrant is legal and there is no legal infirmity in it,” the court said in its rul-

ing. The top court had on July 21 rejected a final appeal by the 52-year-old, who has spent more than two decades in jail. Eleven people have been convicted over the 1993 attacks, which targeted the Bombay Stock Exchange, the offices of Air India and a luxury hotel in India’s commercial capital. They were believed to have been staged by Mumbai’s Muslim-dominated underworld in retaliation for anti-Muslim violence that killed more than 1,000 people. Memon and two of his brothers were convicted in 2006 by a specially-designated court using controversial anti-terror legislation that was introduced

after the 1993 bomb blasts and is no longer on the statute books. Another brother, Tiger Memon, was alleged to have masterminded the attacks along with Mumbai gang boss Dawood Ibrahim. Both have been on the run since 1993 and Yakub Memon is the only one of the 11 convicted to have had his death sentence upheld on appeal. The only remaining barrier to his execution is a mercy petition he filed with President Pranab Mukherjee, who could stay the execution. Last year Mukherjee rejected a similar plea filed by Memon’s family.

Nepal temple bans mass animal slaughter

ATHMANDU, Nepal | AFP | 7/28/2015 In a victory for activists, Nepalese temple authorities said Tuesday they would end a centuries-old Hindu tradition of mass animal slaughter that attracts hundreds of thousands of worshippers. The festival, held once every five years, sees hordes of devotees from Nepal and India flock to a temple in the Himalayan nation’s southern plains to sacrifice thousands of animals in the hope of appeasing the Hindu goddess of power, Gadhimai. “We have decided to completely stop the practice of animal sacrifice,” said Motilal Prasad, secretary of the Gadhimai Temple Trust, which organises the celebrations. “I realised that animals are so much like us -- they have the same organs as us... and feel the same pain we do,” Prasad

told AFP. The practice of ritual sacrifice has a long history in Nepal, with devotees offering goats and buffaloes to gods during major festivals in the hope of finding health and happiness. Some 2.5 million worshippers sacrificed an estimated 200,000 animals during the most recent instalment of the Gadhimai festival held last November in the village of Bariyapur near the Indian border. “It won’t be easy to end a 400-year-old custom... but we have four years to convince people that they don’t need to sacrifice animals to please the goddess,” Prasad said. Animal rights activists applauded the decision, which came after years spent lobbying temple authorities and the Nepal government in a campaign that attracted support from celebrities including Brit-

ish actress Joanna Lumley and French movie legend Brigitte Bardot. “It has been a long effort... we took a firm stand and it has finally worked,” said Manoj Gautam, president of Animal Nepal Welfare Network. “We realise that people have been victimised by superstition so building mass awareness is critical, but I am very hopeful that we will see a bloodless festival in 2019,” Gautam told AFP. According to legend, the first sacrifices in Bariyapur were conducted several centuries ago when Gadhimai appeared to a prisoner in a dream and asked him to establish a temple to her. When he awoke, his shackles had fallen open and he was able to leave the prison and build the temple, where he sacrificed animals to give thanks.

UN says Pakistan must stop executions

ENEVA, Switzerland | AFP 7/29/2015 - The United Nations on Wednesday urged Pakistan to reinstate its moratorium on the death penalty, condemning a recent surge in executions. The plea came as the number of people executed in Pakistan rose to 182 since a moratorium was lifted in December last year, according to the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights. Some 8,000 people are currently on death row in Pakistan, said the OHCHR, whose statement came after two murder convicts were executed by hanging following a one-month break during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan that ended in mid-July. “I reiterate my previous call

to Pakistan to continue the moratorium on actual executions and to put in place a legal moratorium on the death penalty, with a view to its abolition,” said the UN Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions Christof Heyns. “Several other executions may take place in the coming days, and most of them fall short of international norms,” Heyns said. The OHCHR said at least two of those on death row had severe disabilities. “We call on the authorities of Pakistan to protect the right to health of Abdul Basit and Khizar Hayat, and other inmates in death row with severe psychosocial disabilities,” said the UN Special Rapporteur on the right

to health, Dainius Puras. The European Union and human rights campaigners have previously urged Pakistan to reinstate the moratorium. Pakistan lifted the ban on executions, which had been in place since 2008, following a Taliban attack on a school in Peshawar that killed more than 150 people -- mostly children -in the country’s deadliest ever terror attack. The death penalty was initially reserved for terror convicts but was extended to all capital crimes in March. Critics say Pakistan’s criminal justice system is marred by police torture and poor legal representation, meaning many of those now facing execution have not had a fair trial.

Myanmar’s actor Kyaw Thu (right) chats with democracy leader Aung San Suu Kyi during her visit to “Kyaw Thu Art Zone” gallery in Yangon on Jan 1, 2011. The popular and award-winning actor is among this year’s recipients of the Philippines’ Ramon Magsaysay Award. (AP photo). ANILA, Philippines and natural disasters “irrespecThe Filipina recipient was Li| AFP | 7/29/2015 tive of ethnicity or religion”, gaya Fernando-Amilbangsa, 72, - A movie star from the Magsaysay foundation said. who was born to a prominent Myanmar, two Indians, a FilKyaw Thu has used his ce- Philippine Catholic family but ipina cultural researcher and a lebrity status to attract dona- married a man from the Muslim Laotian handicrafts promoter tions while carrying coffins and regions of the south. She moved were named on Wednesday as driving hearses himself to help to that region where she fell in this year’s winners of Asia’s dispel the stigma in Myanmar love with the fading indigenous Magsaysay Awards. against those in burial services. arts of the local culture.

The Manila-based Ramon Magsaysay Awards, named after a Filipino president who was killed in a plane crash, were established in 1957 to honour people or groups who change communities for the better and are often described as Asia’s Nobel Prize. This year’s awardees include celebrated Myanmar movie actor and director Kyaw Thu, 55, who founded a charity in 2001 to provide funeral services for the poor of Yangon. From there, his Free Funeral Services Society has branched out to a free clinic, a school and charity work for victims of war

Anshu Gupta, 44 of India received an award for founding a volunteer organisation which redistributes donated items to the poor and victims of natural disasters, the award organisation said. This includes scrap cloth which is used to make rugs, blankets and even sanitary napkins for the poor. His countryman Sanjiv Chaturvedi, 40, received the award for years of fighting corruption and working for transparency during his decade of service in government, despite suffering demotion and harassment.

She received the Magsaysay award for her efforts to preserve the dance arts of Filipino Muslims while deepening their links to other Asian cultures, the organisers said.

Though trained as a nurse, Kommaly Chanthavong, 71, of Laos, received the award for her role in organising impoverished rural women into a silkweaving group that eventually grew into various large-scale handicraft projects. This has helped keep native cultural traditions alive while providing village women with a steady income, strengthening their position in society, the Magsaysay Foundation said.

Pakistan police kill head of anti-Shiite group, 13 others by Waqar Hussain

AHORE, Pakistan - The leader of an anti-Shiite group behind some of Pakistan’s worst sectarian atrocities was killed in a shootout with police early Wednesday along with 13 other militants, authorities said. Malik Ishaq was shot dead along with fellow Laskhar-e-Jhangvi (LeJ) militants, including senior commanders, in the eastern province of Punjab. LeJ, long seen as close to AlQaeda and more recently accused of developing links with the Islamic State group, has a reputation as one of Pakistan’s most ruthless militant groups. The shootout appears to have wiped out much of the top leadership of LeJ, a driving force in a rising tide of violence targeting Shiite Muslims, who make up around 20 percent of Pakistan’s 200 million majority Sunni Muslim population. As well as numerous sectarian atrocities, LeJ was also blamed for the 2009 attack on the Sri Lankan cricket team in the eastern city of Lahore. Ishaq, who had been in and out of

Pakistani police escort the head of banned Lashkar-e-Jhangvi (LeJ) Malik Ishaq (C), as he arrives at the high court in Lahore, December 22, 2014 (AFP Photo/). police custody in recent years, was arrested on Saturday and was being moved when loyalists attacked the convoy in Muzaffargarh, a senior police official told AFP on condition of anonymity. “The police retaliated and in the encounter Ishaq, his two sons and 11 others were killed, while six policemen were injured,” he said. Punjab Home Minister Shuja Khanzada confirmed to AFP that Ishaq and “13 other sectarian militants including two of his sons”

had been killed in the early hours of Wednesday. According to a police account sent to journalists, the shootout came when LeJ militants tried to free Ishaq after police had taken him to recover a cache of explosives. - Blow to militants A police official said all six militants in police custody were killed along with eight of the attackers, while some of the would-be rescuers fled.

Suu Kyi registers for Myanmar polls as ruling party braces for losses by Hla-Hla HTAY

matically between the still powerful army and the party’s influential leader and parliamentary speaker Shwe Mann, who is widely considered a presidential hopeful.

HANLYIN, Myanmar - Myanmar’s opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi on Wednesday registered to run for a general election which her party is expected to sweep, as the ruling bloc admitted it was bracing for big losses.

Shwe Mann has faced opposition from soldiers in his constituency in recent days over his readiness to support Suu Kyi in her efforts to change the constitution, which bars the opposition leader from top political office.

Hundreds of cheering supporters gathered in the township of Thanlyin, a two-hour drive from Yangon, as Suu Kyi formally registered her intention to stand again for the rural constituency of Kawhmu in November polls. The veteran activist, the first candidate confirmed by the National League for Democracy (NLD), was thronged by singing and flag-waving activists but did not address the crowd.

Myanmar’s opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi submits her electoral registration form at a district court in Yangon, on July 29, 2015. © AFP / by Hla-Hla Htay.

Candidates cannot begin campaigning until election officials give the green light, NLD spokesman Nyan Win told AFP.

“We don’t expect a winning result like in 2010. It’s impossible,” USDP general secretary Maung Maung Thein told reporters at an event announcing Yangon regional candidates.

“Everyone is waiting for that,” he said. In contrast to the jovial at-

mosphere in Thanlyin, Suu Kyi’s main political opponents in Yangon revealed signs of creeping pessimism as tensions mount between the leader of the ruling Union Solidarity and Development Party (USDP) and the powerful army. The USDP, the semi-civilian reincarnation of the previous

junta which is packed with former soldiers, won a landslide in dubious 2010 elections when it ran virtually unopposed. Suu Kyi remained under house arrest at the time and her party boycotted the vote. But the ruling party has already started to manage expectations about its fate at the

upcoming polls.

- Tensions with army Relations have soured dra-

But the former junta number three posted comments on his official Facebook page insisting he acted “in the interest of the country” and suggested he was ready to defy both the army and President Thein Sein. Recalling a recent interview where he was asked if he would stand with Suu Kyi against the president and the army chief, he said it would be more exact to say he was with Suu Kyi and “the people”. The soldiers’ hostility to Shwe Mann has cast doubt over the political allegiances between the ruling party and the military that spawned it, heighten-

ing uncertainty as the country heads towards elections. Myanmar began emerging from military rule after the 2010 polls with a new government led by Thein Sein that has introduced broad political and economic reforms, ending decades of isolation and heralding an investment rush in the resource-rich nation. But Suu Kyi, who entered parliament in 2012, has warned that reforms have stalled, with activists locked up and press freedoms curtailed. She remains excluded from the presidency because of a clause in the junta-drafted 2008 constitution which bans candidates with foreign children. Her two sons are British. The military, which occupies a quarter of seats in the legislature, has staunchly refused to countenance a reduction of its political role. Last month it voted down a series of charter change draft bills, including one that would have removed its veto on constitutional amendments.

WORLD/US

VOICE OF ASIA 10

FRIDAY, July 31, 2015

Clinton to urge Congress to lift Cuba embargo

Fire forces two-hour shutdown at Rome airport

A man deploys a banner in front of the US Embassy in Havana, on July 20, 2015 (AFP Photo/Adalberto Roque)

Terminal 3 at Rome’s Fiumicino international airport on May 7, 2015 (AFP Photo/Tiziana Fabi)

IAMI, 7/29/2015 Hillary Clinton will urge US lawmakers Friday to lift the trade embargo against Cuba, arguing that Republican opposition to normalizing ties reflects the past’s “failed policies,” her campaign said. Clinton, the frontrunner for the 2016 Democratic presidential nomination, will make her plea during a speech in Miami. “She will highlight that Republican arguments against increased engagement are part of failed policies of the past and contend that we must look to the future in order to advance a core set of values and interests to engage with Cubans and address human rights abuses,” her team said. President Barack Obama made his own appeal to Congress on July 1 to end the crippling embargo, but the Republican-led Senate and House of Representatives have been unmoved. Obama gave the green light in

2013 for secret negotiations between Washington and Havana, and last December he and his Cuban counterpart Raul Castro simultaneously announced plans to normalize relations after more than half a century of strain. On January 20, the countries reopened embassies in their respective capitals. Clinton has expressed support for the detente and for ending the embargo before, including in her memoir “Hard Choices,” released last year. In June 2014, shortly after the book’s publication, the former secretary of state told the Council on Foreign Relations that “the embargo is Castro’s best friend,” because the leader could use the US blockade as an excuse for all Cuban economic woes. Her position puts her in contrast with her many Republican presidential rivals, including former Florida governor Jeb Bush, who speaks fluent Spanish, and Marco Rubio and Ted

Cruz, US senators whose parents fled Cuba. They have been outspoken in criticizing the administration’s improved ties with Havana, and have demanded that the embargo remain in place. While diplomatic ties are on the mend, dismantling the trade blockade is expected to be far more difficult, with a US president requiring an act of Congress to lift the embargo. Many Republicans and some Democrats have said they would oppose such a move.

READ Global News Visit: www.voiceofasiaonline. com

by Ella IDE

OME, Italy | AFP | 7/29/2015 - Rome’s Fiumicino airport was forced to suspend all flights for around two hours Wednesday after a fire broke out in a nearby pine grove, spreading dense smoke across the runway. Italian airline Alitalia said the airport was “fully operational again” after firefighters gained control of the blaze following the afternoon shutdown, but many take-offs suffered delays into the night. Interior Minister Angelino Alfano confirmed that an investigation had been opened after authorities found that the fire started in multiple places, leading them to believe it was started deliberately. Several flights were delayed for more than four hours, a French tourist named Lise told AFP as she waited for her flight to Paris, which was delayed by over two hours. Clouds of grey smoke blown by strong winds had briefly grounded all flights at the capital

city’s biggest airport, which was forced to close in May after a blaze devastated part of a terminal and had yet to fully reopen.

ously damaged and the airport was forced to reduce capacity by 40 percent.

Teams of firefighters raced to tackle the fire in a pine grove in Focene, next to the airport, which spread to engulf several vehicles in a nearby carpark.

Alitalia said Wednesday that the cost of damages from the May 7 fire had reached 80 million euros ($88 million), but the figure could still rise.

Two fire-fighting planes and two fire-fighting helicopters were dispatched to battle the blaze. Fiumicino mayor Esterino Montino said the blaze had stretched about one kilometre (half a mile) wide. “The fire seems to have started in two or three different places,” he added. The airport is still struggling to recover from a nighttime blaze triggered by an electrical fault in a bar which sparked scenes of total chaos in May, with thousands of people hit by flight cancellations and airport staff forced to wear protective masks. Terminal three, which handles international flights, was seri-

Extremely difficult period’

The airline’s CEO Silvano Cassano said in a statement that it had been an “extremely difficult period” and warned the company could be “forced to shift its growth elsewhere”. The airport’s woes have piled on the problems for Rome’s mayor Ignazio Marino, who has been battling accusations that the eternal city has descended into grimy and dishevelled chaos, where the transport sector in particular has failed pitifully in the searing summer heat. The embattled mayor was confronted with revelations at the end of last year of a mafia network operating out of Rome’s city hall, pocketing millions of euros from a string of lucrative contracts thanks to corrupt contacts on the inside.

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Hermes to probe, punish ‘cruelty’ to crocs used for handbags “Any proven negligence will be corrected and punished,” Hermes said, highlighting that it does not own the farm and that the alligator skins are not used to make the Birkin bag. The manufacturer added that it imposed the “highest standards in the ethical treatment of crocodiles” on its partners. Hermes also said Birkin’s request did not affect “the friendship and

trust” between her and the house. The bag was designed for Birkin in 1984, after a chance meeting of the singer and the then president of Hermes, Jean-Louis Dumas. A young mother at the time, she complained she could not find a bag that was both elegant and practical. The bag has since become a celebrities’ favourite, beloved of Victoria Beckham, Kim Kardashian and char-

acters in the popular “Sex and the City” television series, among others. The crocodile version, which costs at least 33,000 euros ($36,000), is one of Hermes’s best-known products, along with its silk scarves and purses named after Grace Kelly. The handbag, which also comes in cow, calf or ostrich leather, is made entirely by hand in France. Each bag takes 18 to 25 hours to complete.

Itsy-bitsy ‘facekinis’ a hit for China white skin lovers

holes for the mouth and nose, offering those who couple it with a full body suit complete protection from not only ultraviolet rays, but also jellyfish and mosquitoes. The mask was developed more than 10 years ago, with Chinese media attributing its invention to Zhang Shifan, who runs a swimwear store in Qingdao.

This photo taken on June 21, 2007, shows an employee holding a 129,000 USD crocodile Hermes Birkin Bag during a private opening for the new Hermes store on Wall Street in New York

ARIS, France | Hermes said Wednesday it was probing claims of cruelty at crocodile and alligator farms that supply the French fashion house with skins for its luxury handbags and accessories.

PETA filmed disturbing images of crocodiles in Zimbabwe and alligators in Texas -- whose skin is used to make watch-straps -- in which they live crammed into barren concrete pits before being “cruelly hacked” to death.

British singer Jane Birkin on Tuesday asked Hermes to remove her name from the iconic crocodile skin Birkin bag after rights group PETA published an expose on “cruel” treatment of the animals at farms in Texas and Zimbabwe.

“At just one year old, alligators are shot with a captive-bolt gun or crudely cut into while they’re still conscious and able to feel pain,” PETA said.

“Hermes respects and shares her emotion and was also shocked by the recently published images,” the company said in a statement.

“The investigator saw alligators continuing to move their legs and tails in the bleed rack and in bloody ice bins several minutes after their attempted slaughter,” it added. Hermes said it was investigating the farm in Texas.

The mask has become a common sight on the beaches of Qingdao, in the eastern province of Shandong.

Swimmers wearing a facekini at the beach in China. Photo by Hong Wu/Getty Images

INGDAO, China - Ever more Chinese women are embracing the “facekini” to protect them from the sun and the threat of a tan on a trip to the beach.

Pale white skin is highly-valued in China, where a darker complexion is associated more with poor rural women, who often labour for long hours in the sun. The nylon accessory has tiny

The former German colony is best known abroad as the home of Tsingtao beer, perhaps China’s bestknown brand overseas, but is also a resort where holidaymakers flock to cool off in the Yellow Sea during the heat of summer. The facekini has evolved into a fashion accessory for some, and comes in many different colours, with some of the most recent designs resembling the brightly coloured and striking masks of Peking Opera.

Alarm sounded over Myanmar’s betel habit by Reuben EASEY

ANGON, Myanmar As he manoeuvres his taxi through the barely moving traffic of downtown Yangon, Myo Min Htaike’s jaw methodically pounds a pulpy mass of nuts and tobacco, his teeth stained a dark blood-red. Plying his trade in the seemingly eternal gridlock of Myanmar’s now booming commercial hub, he is more than used to spending long days on the roads and “kun ja” -- better known as betel nut or quid -is the one thing that keeps him going. “I’m so sleepy when I start driving the taxi,” the 32-yearold tells AFP. “So I eat kun ja to help me stay awake.” Kun ja is an enormously popular stimulant chewed throughout Myanmar. But it comes with a long list of serious health downsides including addiction, deeply stained gums and a high risk of mouth cancer. The small parcels of tobacco, areca nuts, slaked lime and optional spices, wrapped in the vivid green leaves of the betel plant, are ubiquitous across the former junta-run nation. Users sing its praises as a pick-me-up that increases alertness, boosts energy and freshens the breath. “When I started eating betel quid for my tooth pain, I didn’t like it much. But it made my

toothache go away and I came to like it,” Myo Min Htaike says, the tell-tale red stains visible on his lips. - ‘It’s Myanmar’s habit’ Yangon is a city in a constant state of change since decades of brutal junta rule gave way to a reformist government in 2011 that resulted in the lifting of most western sanctions. Cranes jostle for space on an increasingly crowded skyline as locals furiously tap away on mobile phones that just a few years ago were far beyond their reach. But some things have not changed, as the vivid red splashes of spat out betel on virtually every pavement and wall testify. Chewers queue up at small kiosks across the city selling the wraps for 200 kyats (around 20 US cents). Hawkers carry them in trays hung around their necks and sell them to passing motorists at busy junctions. For sellers, feeding the national habit can provide a good living. Myo Myint Tun rises at 3:00 am every morning to sell quids to commuters at a city train station. On top of his 20 regulars, he estimates another 80 people stop by each day, earning him around $40 -- a good living in a country where the average wage in 2012 was less than $100 a month. “Most of the people in Myan-

mar eat betel quid -- it’s Myanmar’s habit. It’s been that way since long ago,” he says. But doctors warn that the national appetite for the stimulant is damaging health in a country with a threadbare medical system. “Myanmar has one of the highest (number of) users of smokeless tobacco globally, especially among males,” Dr Dhirendra Narain Sinha, a specialist at the World Health Organization (WHO) told AFP. His research has found just over half of Myanmar’s men use the substance, in addition to 16 percent of its women. Both tobacco and areca nut are known carcinogens, with mouth-related cancers accounting for a fifth of all of Myanmar’s cases of the illness. Those who chew betel quids without tobacco, Sinha says, have a 250 percent greater chance of having oral and oropharyngeal cancer than non users. For those who chew tobacco as well the risk jumps 770 percent. But doctors say the message to stop chewing is not getting through. “People do not know what are the side effects or the health effects of eating betel quids in Myanmar,” warns Dr Than Sein of local advocacy group the People’s Health Foundation (PHF). - Low healthcare spending -

A betel seller preparing ‘kun ja’ at his shop near Naypyidaw in Myanmar (AFP Photo/Ye Aung Thu). According to the latest WHO figures, Myanmar spends the lowest proportion of its GDP on healthcare in the world -just 0.5 percent in 2013, lower than South Sudan and Haiti. By comparison, the military budget accounted for 4.3 percent of GDP in 2014, say defence analysts from the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute. The onset of mouth cancer is often a slow and avoidable death sentence. In common with neighbouring countries, cigarette packs

in Myanmar now carry gory photographic warnings of the health risks, but betel is free of any packaging. The PHF has produced leaflets and posters aiming to get its message across, and wants warnings placed at betel kiosks. The health ministry says it is studying the proposal. But helping Myanmar kick the habit will not be easy. Betelchewing is a deeply-rooted cultural practice throughout south and southeast Asia, thought to date back several centuries. Nonetheless, Dr Than Sein

says he takes inspiration from neighbouring countries. “If you go to Thailand, you will not see much of the people eating betel quid anymore, even in the rural areas. If you go to Malaysia, the same way. So why do our people still keep the tradition?” he asks. Sitting behind the wheel of his taxi, Myo Min Htaike says he is more than aware of the health risks, but after 12 years sees no prospect of quitting. “I’m afraid (of suffering health problems),” he admits. “But I can’t live without it.”

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LEISURE

VOICE OF ASIA 12

FRIDAY, July 31, 2015

Karachi artists reclaim city Pet Talk: walls from hate graffiti Diets For Pets With Liver Disease

ave you ever been in a restaurant and noticed a strange dish on the menu? You may have seen the word “liver” and cringed with disgust. Though there are many benefits in consuming liver, it is not a common meal that you might serve during family fun night. You may find this part of the digestive tract unappealing on the dinner table, but have you ever considered all the important functions of this organ?

Pedestrians walk past a painted design on a wall in the southern port city of Karachi (AFP Photo/ Asif Hassan) by Ashraf KHAN

or years Karachi’s walls have been spattered with the bloodstains of murder victims and scrawled with graffiti touting everything from sectarian hatred to quack cures for erectile dysfunction. Now a group of artists and volunteers are reclaiming the walls by painting them with cheerful designs aimed at bringing some happiness and pride back to an often violent, chaotic and corrupt city. Karachi, Pakistan’s economic capital and biggest metropolis, has been swamped in recent years by a wave of extortion, murder and kidnapping -- for religious, criminal, ethnic and political reasons. Those behind the new project, called “Reimaging the walls of Karachi” hope that by taking art to the streets they can bring a more positive outlook for its 20 million inhabitants. “We are working together and taking back the city by reclaiming the walls which are filled with hate graffiti,” artist Norayya Shaikh Nabi told AFP while drawing an abstract of the city on a wall along a busy road.

they need, they aim to repaint walls in 1,600 different places -- from warehouses to schools to flyovers and underpasses. The scheme is being run by I Am Karachi, a charity working for the cultural, social and literary uplift of the city, backed by funds from the US Agency for International Development. - Rare street art Pakistan boasts some talented young artists, but public art is rare. Munawar Ali Syed, who is leading the team of artists, said it was a pleasure to take their work beyond the elite circles of galleries and graduate shows. “It’s important for society to remain involved with art and music, but unfortunately such things are waning from our culture,” Syed told AFP. “In my 17-year art practice in the galleries, I have enjoyed working here the most as I am directly communicating with my viewers.” Under Syed’s watchful eye, a team of artists use stencils to create images of boys flying kites, donkey cart races and other images of rural life. Elsewhere, flamboyant, brightly coloured paintings of

Karachi was hit by two major terror attacks in just over a year. A Taliban attack on the airport left 38 people dead last year June, and in May this year gunmen slaughtered 45 minority Shiite Muslims on a bus. It was the first attack in Pakistan to be claimed by the Islamic State group. The project’s coordinator Adeela Suleman said she was delighted the work had brought a “less hostile” look Schoolchildren have also been made part of the project, in the hope of shifting a sense of ownership of the city and its appearance on to the younger generations. “We included younger people so they can carry this work on further,” said Nabi, as she worked with her teenage daughter on a wall. “When they grow up they will feel that they are comfortable in sort of working for the city -- this is like planting a seed to the next generations.” The artists hope the project will subtly change people’s behaviour after years of violence, softening them a little. “I believe that this will yield

Artists and volunteers paint designs on a wall in the southern port city of Karachi (AFP Photo/Asif Hassan). Nabi, an art teacher at the Indus Valley School of Art and Architecture, is one of 200 artists, artisans and labourers taking part in the project. With help from the city authorities to get the permission

peacocks and elephants have not only radically changed the feel of Karachi but have also drawn foreigners, who usually move with extreme caution around what is a volatile city. Aside from daily murders,

good results in the long term,” Syed said. “When you see positive things around you so your behaviour becomes positive and a big change comes along in one’s life.”

433 hot air balloons soar into the record books

Like humans, pets depend on their livers to clean their blood and regulate their metabolism. Pets are susceptible to a variety of liver diseases that can be caused by birth defects or can develop with age. Fortunately for Fido, a change of diet can help manage some of these diseases and regulate the animal’s metabolism again. One of the many roles of the liver is to regulate the body’s metabolism by cleaning the blood. After digestion, nutrient-rich blood passes through the liver, where the blood is filtered. The good stuff, like vitamins and minerals, is processed into forms the body can use and store. The bad stuff, like toxins, is transported back to the intestine and will be excreted from the body. Since the liver plays a very important role in the regulation of the body’s metabolism, disorders of the liver can be very serious. Dogs and cats can develop a wide variety of liver disease. Dr. Jonathan Lidbury, assistant professor at the Texas A&M College of Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Sciences, explains some of the most common forms of liver disease our pets are susceptible to getting.

Early in the course of liver disease many of these dogs and cats will not show symptoms. Other pets experience symptoms that are not specific to liver disease, such as weight loss, decreased appetite, decreased activity, vomiting and diarrhea. At a later stage in the disease, symptoms like jaundice (yellow discoloration of the gum, the whites of the eyes and sometimes the skin), a distended, fluid-filled abdomen, and unusual behaviors (such as walking in circles, pressing of the head against walls, or apparent loss of vision) can occur. Lidbury encourages pet owners to seek veterinary attention if their dog or cat experiences any of these signs. If their pet develops liver disease, owners should work with their veterinarian to formulate a treatment plan. Sometimes nutritional supplements are recommended, while other situations require a change in diet to help regulate your pet’s disease. “Diet can play a very important role in the management of liver disease, but it is important to realize that the nutritional needs of patients with these different diseases vary,” Lidbury explained. “For example, some dogs develop chronic hepatitis due to accumulation of copper in their livers. These dogs are sometimes started on medications to reduce the amount of copper in their livers, but feeding a copper-restricted diet can also be beneficial.”

“Dogs with congenital portosystemic shunts are at risk of developing hepatic encephalopathy, which is a syndrome of neurological dysfunction due to liver disease,” Lidbury continued. “These patients may benefit from being fed a moderately protein-restricted diet.” Though he uses this example in dogs, Lidbury discourages pet owners from feeding cats protein-restricted diets, even while they are living with liver disease. “Cats have a higher dietary protein requirement than dogs, so they should not be severely protein restricted or fed a nonmeat protein-based diet,” he explained. “The provision of adequate nutrition, especially protein, is essential for the treatment of cats with feline hepatic lipidosis. These cats are often anorexic which can mean possible tube feeding.” Your pet’s liver disease should be discussed with a veterinarian before you make any changes to their diet. A number of commercial prescription liver diets are available for your pet, as well as the option to cook meals at home for your pet under the supervision of a veterinary nutritionist. An improvement in your pet’s health can be observed in as little as a day to several months. Though liver disease can have a negative impact on your pet’s life, a change in diet can help monitor the disease and help improve your pet’s health. Pet Talk is a service of the College of Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Sciences, Texas A&M University. Stories can be viewed on the Web at vetmed.tamu.edu/pet-talk. Suggestions for future topics may be directed to editor@ cvm.tamu.edu.

Love Train brings techno beats back onto Berlin’s streets

People take part in the “Train Of Love” festival in Berlin on July 25, 2015 (AFP Photo/Wolfgang Kumm)

ERLIN, Germany, Thousands of people danced their hearts out at Berlin’s techno Love Train festival on Saturday, the first such street event since 21 revellers died in an accident at the legendary Love Parade five years ago.

One expressed solidarity with refugees, in reference to the thousands of people fleeing war and poverty and risking their lives to reach Europe by boat. Another called on the EU to reject a draft free trade agreement with the United States.

The Love Train festival, called “Zug der Liebe” in German, featured 14 trucks loaded with massive speakers blasting electronic music as they inched their way through the sunny city on a 10-kilometre (sixmile) route.

Love Train organisers see the event as a political demonstration rather than a festival, rekindling the original spirit of the Love Parade, which was held for the first time in 1989 on the eve of the fall of the Berlin Wall.

According to police figures, 10,000 people attended the party.

As the Cold War neared its end in the then-divided city, 150 people came together to dance while calling for peace, disarmament and pancakes to end world hunger.

Banners pinned onto the trucks appealed for “tolerance not hate” and “love without borders,” though other slogans were more political.

Hot-air balloons fly near Chambley-Bussieres, eastern France, on July 26, 2015, marking the first day of the “Lorraine Mondial Air Ballons” (AFP Photo/Jean-Christophe Verhaegen)

“Common liver diseases in dogs include chronic hepatitis (chronic inflammation of the liver) and portosystemic shunts (abnormal blood vessels that bypass the liver). Common liver diseases in cats include feline hepatic lipidosis (fatty liver), cholangitis (inflammation of the bile ducts) and portosystemic shunts,” said Lidbury.

But by 1999 the event had

H A M B L E Y- B u s sières (France) (AFP) - Four hundred and thirty-three hot air balloons lifted off from an air base in eastern France on Sunday and soared straight into the record books.

bley-Bussieres air base to beat the previous record for simultaneous hot air balloon flights.

The balloons, including some spectacular designs such as a French chateau and rotund cartoon character Obelix, took off from Cham-

“A new page in ballooning history has been written,” said Philippe Buron-Pilatre, organiser of the twice-yearly Lorraine Mondial Air Bal-

The previous record was set at the same spot in 2013 when 391 ballons went up.

swollen into a 1.5 million-reveller affair, and German authorities refused to continue classifying it as a demonstration, making organisers responsible for cleaning and security costs. The Love Parade concept was then bought from its founders and relocated to Duisburg in western Germany, where a massive stampede inside a concrete tunnel killed 21 people and injured 500 others, bringing an end to the annual rave. A ceremony was held on Friday in Duisburg to commemorate victims of the tragedy, provoked when 1.4 million people converged on a site with a capacity of just 250,000. The Love Parade came to an end with the accident, and Love Train organisers are keen to distance their event from it.

lons event. The biggest dangers for the balloons, which were arrayed in parallel lines six kilometres (four miles) long for the takeoff, was that two of them might collide causing tears in their fabric, something that has happened twice since 1989, he added. Enthusiasts from over 40 nations took part.

HEALTH, SC & TECH

VOICE OF ASIA 13

FRIDAY, July 31, 2015

Is science drawing closer AI will make a global arms to an alien world? race ‘virtually inevitable’: Stephen Hawking and Elon Musk call for ban on automated smart weapons

This NASA artist’s concept compares Earth (left) to the new planet, called Kepler-452b, which is about 60 percent larger in diameter (AFP Photo/T. Pyle) by Mariette LE ROUX

ASA’s discovery of Earth-like exoplanet Kepler-452b, nicknamed “Earth 2.0”, has social media buzzing about the chances of finding a faraway world, possibly with alien life or key resources such as water. Science or fiction? The experts respond. - Is ‘Earth 2.0’ like our planet? Currently we don’t know if this planet is terrestrial -- rocky –- or a small gas planet. If Kepler-452b turns out to be a terrestrial world, it will be the most Earth-like known which also orbits a G-class star like the Sun. The other leading competitors have mostly be found to orbit cooler dwarf stars. There’s a real chance we’re talking about a terrestrial, potentially habitable exoplanet, with more similarities to our home world than any other place in our Solar System. - Tom Kerss, astronomer at the Royal Observatory Greenwich - Could we settle there? With our best available technology, we have no chances of reaching any exoplanet in the near future! The fastest

spacecraft in the Solar System -- NASA’s Juno probe -- is currently travelling at almost 86,000 miles (138,000 kilometres) per hour relative to the Earth. At this speed it would take about 33,000 years to reach the nearest star after the Sun, and almost 11 million years to reach Kepler-452b! - Kerss - So what can we do? If we had a sufficiently large telescope -- and there are people who are studying such concepts right now -- we could actually make the first primitive maps of an Earth-like planet around a nearby star that would provide us details about the atmospheric composition, the surface composition, whether they have oceans, clouds, perhaps even seasons, and start characterising what those planets are like. Whether or not we can discover life, now that is a very tricky question and a very hot topic in astrobiology -- would we recognise those signs of life? And it is a very exciting prospect. - John Grunsfeld, associate administrator for NASA’s science mission directorate Perhaps in the distant future, human beings will develop the technology necessary to jour-

ney out into the galaxy and begin exploring the billions of worlds hidden among the stars. Until then, astronomers will continue to study exoplanets to learn more about the history of our own Solar System, and the nature of the Galaxy in general. - Kerss - A new world? Given the diversity of the planets discovered to date, I believe we will find a habitable planet yet. I’m sure that one day we will discover a planet similar to Earth in terms of size and other features. - University of Bordeaux astronomer Emeline Bolmont Throughout my childhood, astronomers simply guessed that there might be a few hundred habitable worlds in the Galaxy, but fortunately this turned out to be very pessimistic. The true figure is closer to tens of billions! Particular Earth-like candidates have also thrown up surprises which are fuelling exciting speculation -- as well as research -- on the range of worlds where forms of life might be able to cling on! - Kerss

Polycystic Ovary Syndrome: The silent disorder that wreaks havoc on the body by Magaly Olivero (US News). ne in every 10 women has polycystic ovary syndrome, a disorder that is the leading cause of female infertility and a risk factor for diabetes, cancer, heart disease and other life-threatening illnesses. Yet half of all women with PCOS are undiagnosed. “Polycystic ovary syndrome is an extraordinarily prevalent lifelong disorder that many women don’t know they have and many physicians and practitioners don’t know how to manage,” says Dr. Ricardo Azziz, a professor at Georgia Regents University in Augusta, Georgia, and founder of the Androgen Excess and PCOS Society. What is PCOS? The exact cause of PCOS is unknown. But experts believe the syndrome may involve a combination of disorders associated with an excess of male hormones (androgens) and irregular ovulation, says Azziz, an internationally recognized researcher in the field. He estimates that 70 to 80 percent of PCOS cases are genetic. Some studies have found that if a mother has PCOS, there is a 50 percent chance her daughter does, too. The name -- polycystic ovary syndrome -- can be misleading because PCOS impacts far more than a woman’s ovaries. “Polycystic ovary syndrome is more than a cosmetic- or fertility-related issue. It’s a condition that affects health across the board. This is not just one disorder, and not all patients are the same,” Azziz says. Symptoms include irregular menstrual cycles, infertility, excess facial and body hair, male pattern baldness, severe acne, small cysts (fluid-filled sacs) on one or both ovaries, insulin resistance, anxiety and depression, and weight gain. There is no cure for PCOS, and treatment focuses on managing and slowing the progression of symptoms.

PCOS is responsible for 70 percent of infertility issues in women who have difficulty ovulating, according to the PCOS Foundation. The condition can develop in pre-teens, teens and post-menopausal women, as well. Without proper management, PCOS can lead to other serious medical conditions. An estimated two-thirds of women with PCOS will develop metabolic dysfunction, Azziz says. Women with PCOS constitute the largest group of women at risk for developing cardiovascular disease and Type 2 diabetes. More than 50 percent of women with PCOS will become diabetic or prediabetic before age 40, reports the National Institutes of Health. They’re also at greater risk for endometrial, ovarian and breast cancer. Although a large percentage of obese women have PCOS, not all women struggling with obesity have the condition, Azziz notes. Thin women can have PCOS, too. Broken Health Care System Sasha Ottey founded PCOS Challenge, Inc., in Atlanta, Georgia, after experiencing disappointment with the availability of support and information following her diagnosis. She sought medical help due to irregular menstrual cycles. Her gynecologist gave her an informational pamphlet and said to come back when she wanted to get pregnant. Her endocrinologist told to lose weight, and come back in six months. She tried seeing a nutritionist to help with the weight loss, but was denied insurance coverage because she wasn’t diagnosed with diabetes. “I felt let down by the health care system,” recalls Ottey, executive director of PCOS Challenge, Inc. “I did my own research and found there were many other women and girls struggling and searching for answers and support where there was none. I decided to take matters into my own hands.” Today PCOS Challenge, Inc. offers education and support to

people around the world, hosts awareness symposiums across the country and produces radio and television shows featuring leading experts in the field. “The lack of awareness is so profound that it can take up to seven doctors and many years before some women get a diagnosis,” said Ottey. “There’s a huge disparity when it comes to diagnosis, research and support. We want to make polycystic ovary syndrome a public health priority.” The Emotional Toll Gretchen Kubacky, one of the few psychologists in the nation who specializes in PCOS, assists women dealing with the “emotional fallout” of having the condition. Many have been struggling with infertility, weight gain, hormone imbalances and other medical issues for years without a definitive diagnosis. “By the time they get to my office, many show signs of depression,” Kubacky says. Depression is four times more common in women with PCOS, and a third of all women with PCOS meet the criteria for major depression, she says. They are also more likely to experience anxiety, low self-esteem, suicidal thoughts and eating disorders. Many struggle with poor body image. “They have facial hair, male pattern balding and hair on their body where it doesn’t belong. Many are significantly overweight. This is not the American ideal of what a woman should like. The body shaming is sort of a micro aggression that gradually erodes a person’s psyche,” Kubacky says. The lack of awareness among medical practitioners compounds the problem. “There’s a lot of blame in the medical arena. Doctors who aren’t aware of PCOS think people just can’t control themselves or aren’t working hard enough to lose weight. Yet these women exercise and diet constantly, and they still weigh 200 pounds,” she says.

An open letter signed by more than 1,000 robotics experts, including Tesla-founder Elon Musk (right) and physicist Stephen Hawking (left), has called for an outright ban on ‘offensive autonomous weapons beyond meaningful human control’ in an effort to prevent a global AI arms race by Ellie Zolfagharifard, (27 July 2015, Dailymail.Com)

‘

Autonomous weapons will become the Kalashnikovs of tomorrow.’

That’s the stark warning made in an open letter signed by more than 1,000 robotics experts, including Teslafounder Elon Musk and physicist Stephen Hawking. The strongly-worded letter calls for an outright ban on ‘offensive autonomous weapons beyond meaningful human control’ in an effort to prevent a global AI arms race. ‘If any major military power pushes ahead with AI weapon development, a global arms race is virtually inevitable,’ it states. The experts point out that, unlike nuclear weapons, AI weapons require no costly or hard-to-obtain raw materials.

ban offensive autonomous weapons, and in doing so, securing a safe future for us all.’ ‘Autonomous weapons are ideal for tasks such as assassinations, destabilising nations, subduing populations and selectively killing a particular ethnic group,’ it states. ‘We therefore believe that a military AI arms race would not be beneficial for humanity.’ It adds that there are many ways in which AI can make battlefields safer for humans, especially civilians, without creating new tools for killing people. As well as Musk and Hawking, key signatories of the letter include Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak, Skype co-founder Jaan Talinn and linguist and activist Noam Chomsky. ‘Many of the leading scientists in our field have put their

But it issued a warning that research into the rewards of AI had to be matched with an equal effort to avoid the potential damage it could wreak. For instance, in the short term, it claims AI may put millions of people out of work. In the long term, it could have the potential to play out like a fictional dystopias in which intelligence greater than humans could begin acting against their programming. ‘Our AI systems must do what we want them to do,’ the letter warned. Earlier this year, Musk warned that the risk of ‘something seriously dangerous happening’ as a result of machines with artificial intelligence, could be in as few as five years. He has previously linked the development of autonomous, thinking machines, to ‘sum-

The letter predicts that it will only be a matter of time until the technology appears on the black market and in the hands of terrorists, dictators and warlords. It says AI technology, that could lead to robots like the Terminator, has reached a point where the deployment of such systems is feasible within years. Picture credit :Rex/Shutterstock. ‘Autonomous weapons are ideal for tasks such as assassinations, destabilising nations, subduing populations and selectively killing a particular ethnic group,’ it states. ‘We therefore believe that a military AI arms race would not be beneficial for humanity.’ It adds that there are many ways in which AI can make battlefields safer for humans, especially civilians, without creating new tools for killing people. As well as Musk and Hawking, key signatories of the letter include Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak, Skype co-founder Jaan Talinn and linguist and activist Noam Chomsky. ‘Many of the leading scientists in our field have put their names to this cause,’ Professor Toby Walsh from the Future of Life Institute. ‘We hope to bring awareness to a dire subject that, without a doubt, will have a vicious impact on the whole of mankind. ‘We can get it right at this early stage, or we can stand idly by and witness the birth of a new era of warfare. ‘Frankly, that’s not something many of us want to see.’ ‘Our call to action is simple:

names to this cause,’ Professor Toby Walsh from the Future of Life Institute. ‘We hope to bring awareness to a dire subject that, without a doubt, will have a vicious impact on the whole of mankind. ‘We can get it right at this early stage, or we can stand idly by and witness the birth of a new era of warfare. ‘Frankly, that’s not something many of us want to see.’ ‘Our call to action is simple: ban offensive autonomous weapons, and in doing so, securing a safe future for us all.’ The letter, put together by the Future of Life Institute, was today presented during the 2015 International Joint Conference on Artificial Intelligence in Buenos Aires. Earlier this year, the same organisation issued another an open letter warning about AI risks. The document said there is a ‘broad consensus’ that AI research is making good progress and would have a growing impact on society. It highlighted speech recognition, image analysis, driverless cars, translation and robot motion as having benefited from the research.

moning the demon’. Speaking at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) AeroAstro Centennial Symposium in October, Musk described artificial intelligence as our ‘biggest existential threat’. He said: ‘I think we should be very careful about artificial intelligence. If I had to guess at what our biggest existential threat is, it’s probably that. So we need to be very careful with artificial intelligence. ‘I’m increasingly inclined to think that there should be some regulatory oversight, maybe at the national and international level, just to make sure that we don’t do something very foolish. ‘With artificial intelligence we’re summoning the demon. You know those stories where there’s the guy with the pentagram, and the holy water, and … he’s sure he can control the demon? Doesn’t work out.’ Hawking has also voiced questions over whether AI could be controlled in the longterm. Earlier this year, he said said success in creating AI ‘would be the biggest event in human history, [but] unfortunately, it might also be the last.’

Young Life

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Friday, July 31, 2015

OUSTON - Keshav Smruti is alive and busy on Sunday, August 26th. 40 college aged kids are frantically working and running around while a few of the lazy eat pau bhaji. But they can all agree they’re very excited, as the coming Tuesday will kick off what has taken the entire summer to prepare for.

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The 31st annual Hindu Heritage Youth Camp to commence shortly

tion, you’re expected to have a legit website”, he says, explaining how he may know how great HHYC is, but showing it to others is important. A better website allows this, and it’s shown in the increased registration, up almost 30 kids from the prior year. But Amin wants the improved website to go beyond that, long term he hopes that it can properly capture the 31 years of history that camp has, and provide portals for counselors and parents. He wants campers to be able to visit the website and look back at the material they were able to learn. He beams “we believe we’re a staple event in the Houston community, and we want to show that”.

The 31st annual Hindu Heritage Youth Camp will be taking place this year during the first and second weeks of August. Growing on last year’s success, registration this year will be at an all-time high of 200 children ranging from 7 to 17. In preparation for HHYC this year, co-directors Bharat Pallod and Arpan Amin have been planning since February. It’s a long process, starting with finding enough counselors and volunteers who will be able to make the commitment through the summer. But in recent years there has been a surplus of volunteers, as lifelong campers are eager to return the favor. In addition to counselors, the two directors must also find volunteers - doctors for each day, “aunties” to help in the kitchen and “uncles” to help keep everyone straight, and sponsors to ensure camp fees remain low. As Pallod puts it, “we get coun-

VHPA 2015 camp councilors: Top row- Yash T., Arjun R. Divya S., Rohan C., Shamal S., Shiven S., Ketan D. Second row- Bharat P., Akash D., Namita P., Manan S., Sheeba A., Resham H., Shyam M., Alisha A., Puja J., Aadithya S., Sid R., Vevek S., Arpan A. Third row- Saumya W., Sujata A., Sonya C., Anoosha A., Unnati S., Abhimanyu A., Rahul S., Saket S., Lipika G. Fourth row- Niti D., Simran J., Nina W., Priya S., Kavita P., Rohit M., Veli S., Esheeta B. Photo credit Vijay Pallod. selors, volunteers, and campers from every part of the city, it really requires bringing the whole community together. But we’re able to do it, the support is overflowing.” Pallod is co-directing camp for the second consecutive year.

Doing it once is simply not enough. “You use the first year to learn, and you use the second year to build on that and make camp better.” He’s worked with his co-director diligently on that. For his co-director Arpan

Amin, directing camp for the first time is something very special. His father Sharad Amin was one of the founders of camp, and Arpan proudly boasts that his first camp was when he was still in his mother’s womb 23 years ago. Growing up attending HHYC has not only

given him lifelong friends but also shaped his identity today. The desire to return the favor to the next generation is visible. One of the best examples of this is the revamped HHYC website, hinducamp.com. “Today, if you’re a legit organiza-

For both directors, long term plans for their camp are even bigger. Owning a campsite would be nice, and having additional events in the year would be ideal. “The goal of camp is to help strengthen these children’s identity” as counselor Ketan Datta puts it, and he believes there is so much more they could do to achieve this. But for now, his priority is reviewing a counselor’s presentation on Dharma. For details visit www.hinducamp.com

Indian state sets schoolbag weight limit

UMBAI, India |- Children struggling under the weight of an oversized schoolbag is a common sight the world over, but now one Indian state has ordered parents to ensure kids lighten their load.

ecutive order. “But we have found bags that weigh 20 to 30 percent due to thick notebooks, textbooks, unrequired stationery and even cosmetics. “This is harmful. It causes spine and joint problems as well as stress and fatigue. They adversely affect the well being of the child,” he added.

The government of Maharashtra, in the west of India, has passed a resolution saying no child must carry to school a backpack that exceeds 10 percent of their body weight.

Given the intense competition for higher education places in India, children often feel under immense pressure to perform well at school, with materials for extra tuition in the evening often adding to the weight of their bag.

Five-year-olds in grade one are being asked to pop their satchels on weighing scales when they arrive for class so teachers can check they don’t exceed 2.5 kilograms (5.5 lbs).

The government ruling said teachers should stagger homework and timetables so children don’t need to carry several textbooks to school every day. It also asked parents to ensure children do not pack unnecessary items.

Grade eight pupils aged 12 are limited to carrying 4.2 kilograms, all in a bid to prevent lasting injury, the state government said in a resolution passed earlier this week. “As a rule of thumb the bags must be ten percent of the child’s body weight,” local education secretary Mr Nand Kumar wrote in the ex-

The Indian state of Maharashtra, in the west of India, has passed a resolution saying no child must carry to school a backpack that exceeds 10 percent of their body weight (AFP Photo/Fred Dufour)

The order did not mention any punishment for violating the weight restriction.

Obama urges young Kenyans to shape their future

AIROBI, Kenya - Billing himself as the United States’ first Kenyan-American president, Barack Obama called Sunday on citizens of his paternal homeland to cast aside “bad traditions” and forge a more just future. Seeking to leverage his popularity and status as a “son of the soil”, Obama said: “Kenya is at a crossroads, a moment filled with peril, but also enormous promise.” But, he told a raucous Nairobi arena, “the future of Africa is up to Africans”. “For too long I think that many looked to the outside for salvation and focused on somebody else being at fault for the problems of the continent,” he said. Playing the role of brother and wellwishing friend, Obama said oppression of women, violent extremism, ethnic tensions and the “cancer” of corruption were key issues to be addressed. “We can see that future for Kenya on the horizon, but tough choices are going to have to be made,” he said. His bluntest criticism was directed at the ill treatment of women and girls. “Treating women and girls as second-

class citizens, those are bad traditions. They need to change, they are holding you back,” he said. “There is no excuse for sexual assault or domestic violence, there is no reason that young girls should suffer genital mutilation, there is no place in civilised society for the early or forced marriage of children.” “These traditions may date back centuries, they have no place in the 21st century.” Addressing corruption, he said that too often “corruption is tolerated because that’s how things have always been done.” “Ordinary people have to stand up and say enough is enough.” - ‘He gets us’ Much of Obama’s speech stressed his affinity with young Kenyans, a vital group in a country where 60 percent of the population is aged under 24. “He gets us,” said his half-sister Auma, introducing a man she described as “my brother, your brother, our son.” Reinforcing that message, Obama recalled details of pre-presidential trips to

Kenya replete with the stuff of everyday life: broken down cars, traditional foods and an airline losing his luggage. “That doesn’t happen on Air Force One,” he joked. Throughout his two-day trip, Obama has tried to bridge two constituencies: Americans reexamining their stereotypes of Africa, and Africans hoping for a better future. But the aspirational message for the continent belies a hard-nosed security need. A young but impoverished population could be fertile ground for instability and the growth of groups like Somalia-based Al-Shebab. The Al-Qaeda-linked group has hit a series of targets in Kenya, including the Westgate mall in Nairobi and Garrisa University, killing scores. Obama also called for a sense of national unity that casts ethnic differences aside. In 2007 and 2008, election-fuelled clashes between rival ethnic groups killed more than 1,000 people and forced hundreds of thousands more from their

The crowd cheers as US President Barack Obama arrives to speak at Safaricom Indoor Arena in Nairobi on July 26, 2015 (AFP Photo/Saul Loeb) homes. Kenya’s deputy president William Ruto still faces crimes against humanity charges at the International Criminal

Court over the violence. “A politics that’s based on only tribe and ethnicity is doomed to tear a country apart,” Obama said.

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Bollywood Masala

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In R. Balki’s next, Amitabh and Jaya Bachchan will play themselves

Amitabh Bachchan recalls ‘achievement’ with APJ Abdul Kalam

FRIDAY, July 31, 2015

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Fury after Bollywood star says death row bomber innocent

Amitabh Bachchan recounts how he had one opportunity of having a telephonic conversation with the former president APJ Abdul Kalam.

In a cameo set in their own home, the Bachchans will make a joint appearance in a film after 14 years

In R. Balki’s untitled next film, the Bachchans will star as themselves in a cameo appearance set in their own home, reported Mumbai Mirror.

Bachchans’ scene will be one of the best in the film: “It’s just a two-day shoot but this cameo is not just significant to the plot but also undoubtedly one of the film’s greatest highlights.” The hype is justified, especially since the seniors Bachchans were last seen together in Karan Johar’s Kabhi Khushie Kabhi Gham (2001).

But this cameo won’t be a blink-and-miss appearance. According to a source, the

R. Balki’s rom-com also stars Arjun Kapoor as a stayat-home husband and Kareena

ollywood’s golden couple, Amitabh and Jaya Bachchan, are set to make their return as a couple on the silver screen.

Kapoor-Khan as his corporate wife. In the film, “the Bachchans will not play Arjun or Kareena’s parents. Nor are they their mentors or advisors. Amitji and Jayaji are playing themselves in the film, a superstar couple. And they will be filmed in their own Juhu home, Jalsa,” the source added. The film is said to begin production next year.

Urdu language anti-religion, anti-puritan: Javed Akhtar

egastar Amitabh Bachchan, who is saddened by the demise of “simple, practical and caring” former president A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, recounts how he had one opportunity of having a telephonic conversation with the genius. The 72-year-old, on his blog, shared: “A simple man, of childlike demeanour, practical, caring and endearing to all…my only achievement of contact with him – a telephone conversation just before he was announced to be the next President of India. India is grieved.” Kalam died on Monday evening in Shillong, where he was delivering a lecture at a premium educational institute. “Sudden end to an iconic figure…the brain behind the phenomenal presence of India in science, missile technology and several other achievements connected with space research and putting India on the world map in these facilities,” Big B added. (The Indian Express).

Brothers trailer crosses 8 millions views on Youtube

UMBAI, Jul 27: The trailer of Akshay Kumar and Sidharth Malhotra’s upcoming action drama “Brothers” has received more than 8 million views on Youtube.

Writer, poet lyricist Javed Akthar.

EW DELHI: (July 28, 2015) - Societies, rather than religions possess a culture, says noted poet lyricist Javed Akthar for whom the Urdu language is essentially a secular progressive dialect without being religion specific. “Islamic culture is a misnomer. Religions don’t have a culture but societies have a culture. There is a central Asian culture, an Iranian, a Turkish culture, an Egyptian, an Indian culture… there can by synthesis of cultures like we have in India,” Akthar said at a function here late last evening. “Cultures come from different regions, not religions. So I believe there is nothing like an ‘Islamic Culture,’ had it been the case it then Saudi Arab would have it the most, which by the way is still looking for a culture,” Akthar said.

The poet-lyricist was speaking at a recital session at the India Islamic Cultural Centre here organised by HarperCollins from the book “In Other Words”, a translation of his own poetic works in English by Ali Hussain Mir. “Urdu has no connection with any religion. I can say this with great pride that generally in literature when poems are written ? say in Sanskrit, English, Greek or Latin, it is for the deities it for the Gods and then transcends to other topics. “Urdu is one exception in the world that from the very beginning is anti-religion. It was anti-fundamentalist and antipuritan,” Akhtar said. Interacting with the audience about the future of Urdu, the Sahitya Akademi winningscholar expressed concern over

the fate of other indigenous languages too, which he said, were not merely a means for communication but also carriers of culture and tradition. “There was a time when I used to get worried thinking about the future of Urdu. But that doesn’t happen anymore. Instead now what bothers me is the future of all Indian languages. Be it Urdu, Hindi, Gujarati, Marathi, Telugu, Tamil or any other… their prevalence and existence is very important for us.

The Karan Malhotra-directed film, which has been co-produced by Karan Johar, is an official remake of the 2011 Hollywood film “Warrior”. (ALSO READ: Salman Khan is Brothers actor Sidharth Malhotra’s new mentor! “The #Brothers trailer at 8 million!!! #BrothersAreComing #august14,” Johar posted on twitter.The film also stars Jacqueline Fernandez, Jackie Shroff and Shefali Shah. It will release on August 14.

Salman Khan is a hugely popular Bollywood actor who was himself convicted in May of a deadly hit-and-run accident (AFP Photo/Strdel)

EW DELHI, India | Bollywood superstar Salman Khan urged India’s top court Sunday to spare the life of a convicted bomb plotter due to be hanged this week, declaring him innocent and sparking a political furore. The Supreme Court is expected on Monday to hear a last-ditch appeal from Yakub Memon, convicted of being a key plotter of a series of bomb blasts that killed hundreds in Mumbai two decades ago -- the deadliest such attacks in India’s history. The court had last week rejected what was believed at the time to be a final appeal from Memon, paving the way for his execution on Thursday after more than two decades in jail. But his lawyers lodged the last-minute appeal, saying his execution date of July 30 had been set unlawfully back in April, before all legal avenues to appeal were exhausted. Khan, a hugely popular actor who was himself convicted in May of a deadly hit-and-run accident, described Memon, an accountant by profession, as innocent, sparking protests outside his house. “One innocent man killed is killing the humanity,” Khan said on Twitter where he has 13.1 million followers. “Get Tiger, hang him. Parade him not his brother,” Khan said referring to Memon’s brother Tiger, whom police say masterminded the attacks and who is still on the run. The actor later retracted the comments after uproar from the ruling Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), the opposition and a prosecutor involved in the case. “The Supreme Court gave its verdict on hard core evidence

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The attacks are a religiously contentious issue in India because they are believed to have been staged by Mumbai’s Muslim-dominated underworld in retaliation for anti-Muslim violence that killed more than 1,000 people. The Bombay Stock Exchange, the offices of Air India and a luxury hotel were among the targets of the March 1993 blasts, which killed 257 people in India’s commercial capital. Eleven people have been convicted over the attacks, but alleged masterminds Tiger and Mumbai gang boss Dawood Ibrahim have not been caught. Dozens of angry protesters, some waving BJP flags, converged outside the star’s house in Mumbai, demanding he apologise to the victims’ families. The actor said on Twitter he was retracting the comments because they have the potential to “create misunderstanding”, adding “I respect all faiths”. The furore came as a petition signed mainly by lawyers and politicians was given to Indian President Pranab Mukherjee urging clemency, partly on the basis that Yakub Memon has been languishing in jail for more than 20 years, the Press Trust of India news agency said. A former Supreme Court judge, Harjit Singh Bedi, also said the court should take notice of reports Memon had cooperated with investigators and returned voluntarily from Pakistan where he fled after the blasts. In a letter in the Sunday Express newspaper, Bedi said the court should examine whether these count as mitigating circumstances and refer the case back to the trial court for consideration.

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“Language is not a only a vehicle for communication, it carries a culture. Language carries tradition, a sense of continuity and identity. The moment you kill a language you make people rootless and that is what is happening with all our indigenous languages,” he said. PTI

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and none of us are in position to undermine the verdict,” said a BJP spokeswoman, Shaina NC.

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Malaria vaccine gets regulatory nod by Dario THUBURN / Mariette LE ROUX in Paris

ONDON - The world’s most advanced malaria vaccine got the nod Friday from European regulators, despite mixed trial results, for eventual use in children in African countries plagued by the killer disease. Dubbed Mosquirix or RTS,S,

the drug received a “positive scientific opinion” from the European Medicines Agency (EMA) following decades of research and millions of dollars of investment.

cally-advanced vaccine against the mosquito-borne disease that infects some 200 million people and kills about 600,000 every year, more than 75 percent of them children under five.

But it has yet to pass a final World Health Organization (WHO) hurdle, and may not become available before 2017.

In sub-Saharan Africa alone, the plasmodium parasite kills about 1,200 children on average per day, according to the WHO.

Mosquirix is the most clini-

The EMA’s Committee for Medicinal Products for Human

US regulators propose more detailed sugar labels

Mayne wrote in a blog post. Labels currently contain information on saturated fat, dietary fiber and sodium, as well as certain nutrients, but not on recommended sugar intake as a percentage of daily value. “Why propose providing this additional information to consumers? Scientific data shows that it is difficult to meet nutrient needs while staying within calorie requirements if you consume more than 10 percent of your total daily calories from added sugar,” Mayne said.

The daily recommended amount for sugars would be set at 50 grams of added sugars for adults and children age four and older, and 25 grams for children aged one to three (AFP Photo/Francois Nascimbeni)

ASHINGTON US regulators on Friday proposed adding more detailed sugar labels on packaged food, so that the amount would be expressed as a percentage of the daily recommended limit. The proposal by the US Food and Drug Administration is now open for a 75-day comment period. “This would fill a gap by providing the same valuable content already available to consumers for other nutrients,”

said Susan Mayne, FDA’s director of the Center for Food Safety and Applied Nutrition. The daily recommended amount for sugars would be set at 50 grams of added sugars for adults and children age four and older, and 25 grams for children aged one to three. “For example, a consumer who drinks a 20-ounce sugared beverage may be surprised to know it contains about 66 grams of added sugar, which would be listed on the label as 132 percent of the daily value,”

Health experts say sugar increases the risk of obesity, heart disease and diabetes. The FDA proposal was welcomed by the Center for Science in the Public Interest, a consumer group, which described it as “solidly grounded in science.” However, the group urged the FDA to express the amount of sugar in teaspoons as well as grams, so that people could better understand the amounts. “Consumers understand teaspoons far better than grams and strongly prefer that amounts of added sugars be listed in teaspoons,” said CSPI health promotion policy director Jim O’Hara.

US health insurer Anthem to buy Cigna for $54.2 bn

EW YORK - Anthem said Friday it has agreed to buy rival Cigna in a $54.2 billion cashand-stock deal that marks further consolidation in the US health insurance industry. The combined company would have $115 billion in annual revenue and cover about 53 million people. The companies said the deal, which requires government approval, was expected to close in the second half of 2016. “We believe that this transaction will allow us to enhance our competitive position and be better positioned to apply the insights and access of a broad network and dedicated local presence to the health

care challenges of the increasingly diverse markets, membership, and communities we serve,” said Joseph Swedish, Anthem president and chief executive, in a statement. Under the terms of the agreement, Cigna shareholders will receive $103.40 in cash and 0.5152 Anthem common share for each Cigna common share. Based on Anthem’s closing share price on May 28, before rumors of the acquisition surfaced, the deal is worth $188 per share, a premium of 38 percent. In late June and after several months of talks, Anthem had offered $184 per share for Cigna. But Cigna rejected it, saying it was “inadequate”. The planned merger comes

amid a wave of consolidation throughout the health-care industry in the wake of the US Affordable Care Act, known popularly as Obama care. Anthem’s acquisition deal follows US health insurance giant Aetna’s agreement earlier in July to buy rival Humana for $37 billion. Anthem had revenues of $73.8 billion in 2014 and works as the licensee for Blue Cross and Blue Shield plans in several US states. Cigna had 2014 revenues of $34.9 billion. Shares in Cigna were down 0.6 percent at $154.36 in premarket trade while Anthem was unchanged from Thursday’s close at $155.21.

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Use had analysed the quality, safety and efficacy of the drug, and its benefit-to-risk ratio, “for use outside the European Union”. Next, the WHO must decide whether to recommend Mosquirix’ use in vaccination programmes -- after which it will be up to national regulators to licence the drug. WHO spokesman Gregory Hartl said the UN’s health body should make the decision by November. Developed by GlaxoSmithKline, Mosquirix is the first malaria vaccine to reach the stage of being assessed by a regulatory agency. “The EMA assessment is not a recommendation to use this vaccine,” Hartl underlined. The WHO has yet to “look at how the vaccine is produced and if it is produced well enough and under proper manufacturing conditions so that we can have faith in ordering it for the UN system,” he told journalists in Geneva. Mosquirix may become the first licenced vaccine against a parasitic disease, but Hartl underlined: “We understand that 2017 is the earliest that this may occur.” Developed with funding from the Bill &amp; Melinda Gates Foundation, Mosquirix was the first candidate malaria vaccine to reach Phase III clinical testing -- the final stage before market approval. It is meant to shield children between six weeks and 17 months of age, and also protects against hepatitis B. In April, the results of a yearslong trial with 15,500 children in seven African countries were published in The Lancet medical journal -- announcing mixed success. - ‘Not the complete answer’ The drug offered only partial protection that waned with time, researchers found, but even so could prevent millions of cases. The EMA committee concluded that despite the vaccine’s limited efficacy, “the benefits of Mosquirix outweigh the risks,” said a statement. The malaria parasite has developed resistance to successive treatments. While there is a limited medicine chest available, insecticide-treated bed nets remain one of the most effective prevention methods. GSK boss Andrew Witty said Friday that Mosquirix on its own was “not the complete answer”. “Its use alongside those interventions currently available such as bed nets and insecticides would provide a very meaningful contribution to controlling the impact of malaria on children in those African communities that need it the most,” he said in a statement. Added Hartl: “Any financing for this vaccine must not draw resources away from scaling up bed-nets, effective drugs and rapid diagnostic tests for malaria.”

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Determining Family Life Insurance Needs ....Cont.

here are two ways to demine lie insurance need. 1) To determine the present value of future earnings for a 35-year-old individual, assume the following: • Current annual after-tax income—$50,000 • Projected rate of growth of earnings—5 percent • Future working lifetime— 30 more years • After-tax discount rate—6 percent The present value of future earnings in this example is about $1,275,000. This is the amount that, if invested today at a 6 percent after-tax rate of return, could provide an aftertax income stream payable in the middle of each year for the next 30 years, with the initial after-tax amount starting at $50,000. Each subsequent payment grows by 5 percent. After 30 years, the entire $1,275,000 is exhausted. 2) The most appropriate method of determining a family’s need for life insurance is through an approach called needs analysis. The amount of insurance should be sufficient to cover a family’s economic needs if the primary wage earner were to die tomorrow. Therefore, the starting point in needs analysis is to evaluate the family’s need for capital and to compare that need with the capital currently owned. Determining a family’s needs for life insurance requires the planner to identify two family financial needs at the primary wage earner’s death: • Family’s cash needs •Family’s income needs A family’s cash needs generally fall into six categories: • Immediate cash needs to pay final medical expenses, funeral expenses, and estate taxes and other settlement costs; •Consumer debt liquidation needs to pay any credit card balances and other outstanding, nonmortgage loans; •Emergency fund needs to provide funds, as needed, to replace appliances, repair the family automobile, etc.; •Mortgage redemption or rental fund needs to pay the outstanding mortgage balance or to provide ten years of rent payments; •Dependent care fund to provide funds for care of a dependent child or adult; and •Education fund to provide tuition and other education funds for children and, if appropriate, for a surviving spouse. A surviving family’s income needs may be segmented into three periods: •Dependency period, during which dependent children reside at; •The blackout period, which begins for surviving spouses when the deceased worker has no child under age 18 who is entitled to a Social Security child’s benefit. This period ends when Social Security widow’s or widower’s benefits begin at age 60.

Sudhir Mathuria Contact: Sudhir Mathuria Licensed Professional Health Life 360 6650 Southwest Freeway Houston TX 77074 713-771-2900 www.MyMedicarePlanning.com •The survivor’s retirement period, beginning when Social Security retirement benefits begin and ending when the surviving spouse dies. In determining the amount of life insurance individuals need at any point in their lives, they must consider other sources of income or benefits that they may have under other insurance plans, government programs, and retirement plans. These other assets help determine the amount of life insurance necessary. To some extent, they reduce the amount of life insurance needed. Most workers are covered by Social Security or some other government program that provides benefits to surviving spouses with dependent children and to surviving spouses after age 60. Social Security provides income to surviving family members of a covered worker and reduces the amount of capital needed to provide family financial support. An individual can request from the Social Security Administration an estimate of the amount of expected benefits based on what he or she has contributed. In determining how much life insurance is necessary, agents should ask clients to consider the following questions and, in answering them, to assume they died tonight: • How much cash does your family need to liquidate all family debts, including your mortgage? • How much cash is needed to provide an education for your children and, if needed, for your surviving spouse? • How much cash is needed to pay for your funeral, your final medical expenses, and your estate settlement costs, including estate taxes? • How much income does your surviving family need to enable them to live the lifestyle you want for them? • How much Social Security income can be expected while your children are dependent on your surviving spouse? • How much Social Security income can your spouse expect when he or she reaches retirement age? To plan, protect and purchase life insurance from any major company contact Sudhir Mathuria 713-771-2900.

GSK said it would provide the drug at a “not-for-profit price”.

Delays found in drugmakers reporting of serious adverse reactions

ASHINGTON, | AFP 7/27/2015 Drugmakers have delayed reporting serious and unexpected “adverse events” from their drugs, including death, in nearly 10 percent of cases, a study said Monday. US regulations require drugmakers to report such incidents to the Food and Drug Administration within 15 days, but researchers at the University of Minnesota found that they delayed doing so in about one in 10 cases. “Strikingly, AEs (adverse events) with patient death were more likely to be delayed,” the study’s authors said.

“It is possible that manufacturers spend additional time in verifying reports concerning deaths, but this discretion is outside the scope of the current regulatory regime.” The study appeared in JAMA Internal Medicine, whose editor said the delays exposed other patients to serious risks. “Such reporting delays should never occur, as they mean that more patients are exposed to potentially avoidable serious harm, including death,” wrote the journal’s editor, Rita Redberg. She suggested that physicians who report on their patients’ adverse reactions to

drugs should do so directly to the FDA, rather than to the manufacturer. For the study, Pinar KaracaMandic and her co-authors examined serious adverse event reports submitted to the FDA between January 2004 and January 2014. They found that of 1.6 million reports, 160,383 were not received by the FDA within the 15-day time window. Of those, 40,464 involved deaths of patients. Besides death, reports on serious adverse events also could involve cases that were life-threatening, required hospitalization, resulted in disability or in birth defects.

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Microsoft rolls out Windows 10 bid to revive growth for improved security.

The Cortana virtual assistant -- Microsoft’s answer to Apple’s Siri and Google Now -- will also be integrated. And Windows 10 will include the Microsoft Edge browser, a move designed to help the tech giant regain market share lost to rivals such as Mozilla Firefox and Google Chrome. Microsoft hopes to break the cycle in which consumers shun Windows for mobile because it lacks the large catalog of applications found on rival platforms, thus discouraging app makers from creating Windows versions.

Windows 10 -- Microsoft skipped directly from Windows 8, which got a lackluster response -- is being offered as a free upgrade for most devices, making it possible to quickly be available on billions of devices (AFP Photo/Jung Yeon-Je) by Rob Lever

ASHINGTON, 7/29/2015 - Microsoft began rolling out its Windows 10 operating system Wednesday, aiming to revive the tech giant’s fortunes, especially in mobile and the “Internet of Things.” The stakes are high for Microsoft as it pushes out the new operating system for both traditional computers and mobile devices such as tablets and smartphones. The US tech giant is hoping the new system can help it gain traction in mobile, where it lags behind Google Android and Apple iOS. “Our vision was one platform, one store, and one experience that extends across the broadest range of devices from the smallest screens to the largest screens to no screens at all,” said Microsoft executive vice president for Windows Terry Myerson in a blog post.

“Windows 10 begins to deliver on our vision for more personal computing. In this world experiences are mobile, moving with you seamlessly and easily across your devices. Interacting with technology is as natural as interacting with people -- using voice, pen, gestures and even gaze for the right interaction, in the right way, at the right time. And in our connected and transparent world, we respect your privacy and help protect your information.” Forrester Research analyst Frank Gillett said Microsoft faces a tough task in catching up with Google and Apple in the mobile space. “Microsoft will face a long road ahead to gain Windows share in mobile,” he said. “While it will win a growing share of enterprise tablet purchases, the plans for Windows 10 don’t show enough potential to create a differentiated mobile experience that will draw

developers and customers away from iOS and Android.” Richard Edwards, analyst at the consultancy Ovum, said Microsoft is looking beyond mobile to emerging technologies including wearables and other connected devices. “This isn’t about recapturing the important mobile operating systems market,” Edwards said. “It’s about gaining a strong foothold in the next multibillion dollar market: the ‘Internet of Things.’” - Skipping to Windows 10 Windows 10 -- Microsoft skipped directly from Windows 8, which got a lackluster response -- is being offered as a free upgrade for most devices, making it possible to be available quickly on billions of devices. It will allow for voice, pen and gesture input, and in some cases biometric identification

Hit apps could ramp up popularity of Windows-driven hardware made by Microsoft and its partners, and increase opportunities for the company to make money from online activities such as search, shopping and software as services in the Internet cloud.

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Indian gold maker buys Swiss refiner Valcambi

UMBAI - India’s largest maker and exporter of gold, Rajesh Exports, announced on Monday it had bought Swiss metal refining giant Valcambi for $400 million in cash. The Indian firm said it had been undeterred by a recent slump in world gold prices to a five-year-low as it announced the takeover in India’s financial capital Mumbai. “This deal will add to Rajesh Exports’ earnings. Valcambi is a profitable, cash-surplus, wellrun firm with no labour issues,” company chairman Rajesh Mehta told reporters. India vies with China as the world’s largest purchaser of gold but sluggish demand, combined with a strong dollar, saw prices fall last week to their lowest level since February 2010.

Mehta said he was confident prices would soon rise again as he stressed that the acquisition of Valcambi, one of the world’s largest gold refiners, would give Rajesh Exports a greater presence in international gold markets. “When people believe the right level is reached, buying will strike back with a vengeance,” he said. India buys around 900 tonnes of gold every year, with many viewing it as the safest way to invest and protect against inflation. But the Indian government is currently trying to reduce the population’s appetite for the precious metal, asking people to deposit their savings in banks and other financial assets instead.

With Windows 10 and other products, Microsoft is shifting away from one-time software sales to a subscription model -or software as a service -- in an effort to better compete in the new tech landscape. Bob O’Donnell at the research firm Technalysis said the new operating system may help stimulate new sales of computers and other hardware -- a phenomenon of the past which has been absent in recent Windows releases. “I’m still hopeful that the PC industry will see some decent upside from Windows 10, particularly in the fourth quarter of this year and into 2016,” he said. “The primary reason for my optimism is that Microsoft has actually integrated quite a few new capabilities into Windows 10 that will benefit from new hardware.”

Federal Reserve holds key US rate unchanged by Paul HANDLEY ASHINGTON, 7/29/2015 - The Federal Reserve kept its benchmark federal funds interest rate unchanged at near-zero percent as expected Wednesday, providing no fresh hints on when a long-awaited rate rise might come. The Federal Open Market Committee said the US economy had expanded “moderately” in recent months and the jobs market had strengthened, but noted continued “soft” business investment and exports. It also said that inflation remained softer than monetary policy makers want to see, though noting that much of the weakness is related to the plunge in energy prices over the past year and to cheaper imports, thanks to the strong dollar. But the FOMC’s brief policy statement, at the end of a twoday meeting, gave no fresh sign of their thinking on when they will embark on an expected series of rate increases. Minor changes in the language of the statement showed only that “the past six weeks data pushed the FOMC a little closer to raising rates,” said economist Chris Low of FTN Financial. “But they are still waiting for more good news before they actually pull the trigger,” he said. The fed funds rate has been held at 0-0.25 percent since late 2008 to help bring the US economy back from deep recession, and Fed Chair Janet Yellen has said twice this month that she expects a rate hike will come by the end of the year. An increase was not expected at this week’s meeting, as recent data, while good, has not been strong enough to completely convince FOMC members that the economy is ready for it. But some thought the panel might tip their hand by changing some of the language in the statement. Instead, the Fed has made clear it wants to see what the two monthly employment reports and other various data up-

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FRIDAY, July 31, 2015

dates show before its next meeting, on September 16-17. - Waiting for more data Despite some calls to hold off until 2016, FOMC members appear anxious to break the ice with the first increase, even as they assure markets that increases after that are likely to come in slow steps. Key data has recently been closer to what the Fed said it wants to see to “normalize” monetary policy after years of easy money. The unemployment rate fell to 5.3 percent in June, from 10 percent at the 2009 peak. Inflation, as measured by core consumer prices, picked up to 1.8 percent in June year-overyear, nearing the FOMC target of around two percent. While expressing confidence in a pickup in economic activ-

ity in the second half of the year, Yellen has also singled out some weaknesses that leave her less than convinced about the coming months. In July comments she pointed out that the labor force participation rate is still extremely low at 62.6 percent; that part-time employment remains high; and that wage growth remains slow despite strong job creation, suggesting that there remains significant slack in the jobs market. The FOMC statement reiterated that raising rates will be appropriate “when it has seen some further improvement in the labor market and is reasonably confident that inflation will move back to its two percent objective over the medium term.” “The Fed, as usual, is keeping its options open,” said Pantheon Macroeconomics economist Ian Shepherdson.

Nokia unveils virtual reality camera for filmmakers

ELSINKI, Finland | Finnish telecoms equipment maker Nokia unveiled Wednesday its new virtual-reality camera for professional filmmakers and content creators. “We’re thrilled to introduce OZO to the content creation world, and to define a completely new category of virtual reality capture and playback solutions,” Ramzi Haidamus, president of Nokia Technologies, said in a statement. The ball-shaped gadget captures 3D footage for content creation for devices such as the increasingly popular headsets that let users immerse themselves in virtual games. Nokia was the world’s top mobile phone maker between 1998 and 2011 but, after failing to respond to the rapid rise of smartphones, the Finnish company sold its handset unit to Microsoft in 2014.

Since then the company has concentrated on its network infrastructure business. Now Nokia Technologies, the company’s advanced technology and licensing business, is eying a comeback to devices with its new camera. But in mid-July the company announced it was looking at reentering the mobile phone market by striking a licensing deal with another firm by the end of 2016. Nokia said the OZO camera has eight synchronised sensors and will capture spatial audio through eight integrated microphones. The device is being developed at the company’s facilities in Tampere, Finland. Nokia said the camera will be manufactured in Finland, without specifying where.

HOROSCOPE

VOICE OF ASIA 18

FRIDAY, July 31, 2015

Your Horoscope for the Week of July 31, 2015 READ YOUR COMPLETE HOROSCOPE

by Hardik Vyas, Astrologer Cell : 832-298-9950

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Libra (R,T) 23 Sept to 22 Oct

Aries (A,L,E) 21 March to 20 April Get back on the horse that threw you off. You and only you know why you feel so pressured. Try to be a good host at home or a helpful guest while visiting. Don’t allow pettiness turn into hasty words or rash decisions. The extra stress you feel may cause you to be more bull headed than usual. That could really cause someone close to you to get their feelings hurt. Emotional turmoil will result in more stress. Use your strong personality as a social anchor.

Understand, the fact that if you are honest in your deeds, strong backing will come from higher ups. When you believe in yourself, you are highly believable to others, as well. Your professional air will influence others to your way of thinking. Communicate your thoughts and listen for new ways to achieve those goals. Kindred spirits will bond in a flurry of ideas and proposals. You have your special moments, even when others don’t understand, they still follow your lead.

Scorpio (N,Y) 23 Oct to 21 Nov

Taurus (B,V,U) 21 April to 20 May Pull ahead of everyone else in the race. Be true to your own feelings. Your purpose is to make other’s lives more interesting. Take the time you need to analyze all of your options before closing a deal or proposing a new scheme. Seek out the advice of an understanding mentor who understands your strengths and can help you to clear the path. You’ll be able to regain your comfort zone, once you decide which path you’re going to take.

You need to feel more secure. Your insecurities stem from other’s lack of responsibility. You can share joint responsibilities without feeling all the stress on your shoulders. You just have to remember what your real priorities are. A vital relationship will thrive with a burst of fresh energy. Start from the beginning and see what you can build from there. Your presence will be required to complete the cycle. If you want true peace of mind, the only choice you have is to be patient.

Sagittarius (BH,F,DH,TH) 22 Nov to 21 Dec

Gemini (K,CHH,GH) 21 May to 20 June Put a positive spin on everything you do. Strong physical sensations could hamper your judgment. Be honest about your emotions but don’t be too explicit. Not everyone will understand your feelings. It’s amazing how effective you can be when given free rein. Your role feels well established in the community. Good luck will smooth over any of the rough spots you hit, this week. Your energy is far too electric to spend on routine everyday business.

Opportunities to expand your horizons and your income will arrive on the scene this week from nowhere. Someone who had taught you lessons in the past will now help you to show your worth. Get out there and prove yourself to the real world. Use your past experiences to build your confidence and overcome any obstacle put in your way. A good relationship will provide you with a solid anchor, as your success also depends on your loved ones. Communication will help you to be more objective in your thinking.

Capricorn (KH,J) 22 Dec to 20 Jan

Cancer (D,H) 21 June to 22 July You need to work out details on your own. A new chapter of your life is about to begin. Someone new may appear on the scene, looking for attention and admiration. Be realistic and don’t make promise that you can’t deliver. Make plans to do something special with friends or family. They’ll appreciate the gesture and treasure it forever. You may be wearing your emotions on your sleeve, so react only if you are ready to listen to others feelings, as well.

Use your imagination in a more practical way. Normal is for people who lack creative imagination. Despite all of your troubles, you’ll manage to impress someone who thinks that you are special. A little stress is sometimes a good motivator for you. You’d feel empty if you weren’t learning something new all the time. You have your own ideas about how the world should evolve. A sudden change of course won’t throw you off the track. Your reach will become more fluid and less structured.

Aquarius (G,S,SH) 21 Jan to 19 Feb

Leo (M) 23 July to 22 August Very important realization that you only give your heart to those who take you at face value. Others will try to be part of the judging committee but you need to make your own decisions. Create a diversion to keep them busy, while you work alone. Once you get lost in the details, you won’t be able to hear anything else. Brilliant ideas will have a way of arriving out of necessity. You’ll be right on target and nothing will cause you to lose your aim.

Virgo (P) 23 August to 22 September Your ability to sense that there may be something missing from the mix. Your intuitive feelings may cause you to want to scream. Hold your tongue, as negative displays of emotion will only hurt your reputation. Others may try to introduce themselves as friends, but they are not sincere. Only you know if you’re walking into their trap. Independent thinkers will find different ways to get their ideas across. If the time is right, the magic will happen.

Slow down the pace and concentrate on one thing at a time. Emotional logic is nonexistent, but with a more strategic plan, you’ll be able to reach new areas of understanding. If challenged, you’ll be glad to oblige. Is it you or them? One way or another, someone is going to get hurt. Rumors or secrets can be very harmful to other’s reputations. Focus on the truth rather than passing along misinformation. Hold your head high, knowing that you have not caused the damage. Someone may be trying to confuse the issues.

Pisces (D,CH,Z) 20 Feb to 20 March Face your fear of being alone. You may feel overwhelmed, but you’ll still be able to stand up for your beliefs. You’d prefer to delegate orders to others but if you must, you’ll put your time in the trenches. Whatever it takes to feel part of the team. You’ve done very well with what you have to work with, but now it’s time to do even better. Use your sense of humor rather than trying to make a serious point. You have to keep them interested or they’ll look elsewhere. Past experience has shown you that you have to be careful in relationships.

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Amazing facts ow ou from all over the WORLD! now!

• At birth Dalmations are always white • Scorpions glow under ultra violet light

CLASSIFIEDS MANAGEMENT TIP OF THE DAY FROM HBR.ORG Get the Credit You Deserve There’s nothing more infuriating than when someone takes credit for your work or introduces your idea in a meeting. But it’s important to avoid making a scene. Not every piece of work has to have your name on it. Ask yourself: How much does this really matter? Will it negatively impact my career? And instead of making accusations, ask your colleague why he took ownership. Maybe the person will acknowledge his mistake and make things right by emailing the group to give you credit. But if you feel like you’re being systematically undermined, talk to your boss. Rather than complaining, frame it as an effort to create a better working relationship. And next time, be proactive. Lay out who will present ideas to coworkers, who will field questions, and who will email the senior team. Clearly outlining your duties will make sure you get the credit you deserve.

When you ﬁnd some time, READ!

READ DAILY!

Adapted from “How to Respond When Someone Takes Credit for Your Work,” by Amy Gallo.

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VOICE OF ASIA 20

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Second issue has released

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