Voice of Asia E Paper March 11 2016

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FRIDAY, March 11, 2016

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Vol. 29 No. 11 Friday, March 11, 2016 • Published Weekly from Houston • 713-774-5140 20 Pages ( 2 sections) 50 cents E-mail: voiceasia@aol.com

Telugu Bhavanam project soon to become a reality in Houston

Akshaya Patra USA’s Youth Ambassador program seeks compassionate high achievers

Banquet raises 600K in pledges and $500K to be matched by Chowdary Yalamanchili

by Shobana Muratee

H

OUSTON - It is not too long ago when the historic split of the state of Andhra Pradesh (in South India), come about and Telangana, a new state was born on June 2, 2014. Ironically, while the Telugu speaking people of the two states in India are still dwelling in their regional indifferences, their counterparts here in Houston, are already making headway in the direction of bringing together the entire Telugu community of the United States of America.

Akshaya Patra USA Chairman, Desh Deshpande

S

TONEHAM, MA - In 2014, Akshaya Patra USA launched the Youth Ambassador Program, an elite social justice engagement program for students in the US. Today, Akshaya Patra USA has over 100 youth activists in the Ambassador Program. Akshaya Patra USA is the US branch of a charitable organization in India that provides nutritious school meals to more than 1.5 million children in India’s government schools daily. Akshaya Patra’s

Youth Ambassador Program is actively recruiting compassionate and ambitious young people from across the US to act as representatives for the organization in their communities.

Admission to the Youth Ambassador Program is on an ongoing rolling basis. The program has been expanded and admission is open to middle school, as well as high school students.

Continued on page 5

On Saturday, March 5, Houston’s Telugu community organized a fundraiser Banquet at the India House to kick off its ambitious project to build ‘Telugu Bhavanam’, a community center in Houston that will epitomize the true character and spirit of the Telugu people. It will be a hub that would promote Telugu language, literature, traditions, education as well as serve as a home for celebrations and gatherings.

Continued on page 5

‘Art of Living will build biodiversity park on the Yamuna’

From L-R: Dr. Rajashekar Yalamanchili, TCA President: Mallik(Arjun) Gattamaneni, Chowdary ‘Charlie’ Yalamanchili, Consul General of India, Houston, Parvathaneni Harish and Nandita Harish.

Ravi Shankar told reporters here that not a single tree has been cut in the run up to the World Cultural Festival to be held between March 11-13 and that four trees have only been trimmed in the riverine area.

“Villagers said that their buffaloes never went near the water in the past. Now I have been informed by them that those buffaloes have entered the water. The villagers are very happy.

Art of Living guru Sri Sri Ravi Shankar: “We want a clean Yamuna and we care about the environment”. Photo credit: The Hindu.

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ri Sri Ravi Shankar denies allegations of ecological harm in the run up to the World Cultural Festival.

Art of Living guru Sri Sri Ravi Shankar, under fire for

organising a massive event on the Yamuna floodplain, on Tuesday said his organisation will build a “biodiversity park” in that area and rubbished allegations of ecological harm.

“We will leave the place after making a biodiversity park there. In the past, our volunteers have brought out 512 tonne of garbage from Yamuna. We have not cut any trees, have just trimmed four. We want a clean Yamuna and we care about the environment,” Ravi Shankar said.

The event, slated to take place between March 11-13 Continued on page 8

Telugu Bhavanam task force team, TCA and T AGH members, and supporters at the fundraiser Banquet held on March 5, 2016 at the India House. Photo credit: Sudhakar Roy, Roy Photography.

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OP-ED/COMMENTARY/ANALYSIS

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Haryana Under Seize and the Sikh Community

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Dr. Sulekh C. Jain

by Dr. Sulekh C. Jain Houston, Texas

T

wo weeks ago, the entire state of Haryana in India was under seize (I prefer to call it held at ransom) by the Jaat community there. To get their demand ( to be declared an economically backward community and thus entitled to special benefits such as reserved seats/quota in educational institutions and government services) accepted, practically the entire Jaat community went on an unprecedented rampage. They brought the entire state of Haryana and some parts of India such as Delhi, Rajasthan, Punjab and UP to a complete standstill. It was an inferno. Please note that the Jaat community is fairly well off economically.

It is very hard to describe what did and did not happen during this holocaust. Here is a very brief sampling (collected from media reports and personal phone calls to India) of this lawlessness and hooliganism.

by Hla Hla Htay

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AYPYIDAW, Myanmar | AFP - Myanmar MP Wint Wah Tun cradles the baby she named “Parliament” and explains why she shrugged off conservative attitudes to enter parliament as part of a flood of new women lawmakers for Aung San Suu Kyi’s pro-democracy party.

While she thought hard about whether to stand for election while pregnant with her son, who was born just days before she took her seat, she “cannot accept” the traditional notion that women should give up their career dreams after they become mothers.

“We are perfectly capable,” the 30-year-old told AFP, adding she was determined to try to help bring peace to her conflict-torn eastern Kayah state constituency.

“Wherever in the world, armed conflicts break out between men. Women and mothers are caught in the crossfire of men’s fighting,” she said.

Wint Wah Tun is one of doz-

The chaos of unprecedented looting, burning of public, government and private properties on a massive scale went on unabated for more than 4 days.

There was complete breakdown of law and order. More than 30 people died or killed. Streets, major roads and trains were blocked, schools and hospitals were closed and thousands of people (including women, children, old and sick) were completely stranded at many places and towns in Haryana. Delhi, Up, Punjab and Rajasthan were completely cut off from movement of any goods, services and people. Thousands of factories were closed (including MarutiSazuki Car factory in Gurgaon.

Munak Canal; the source of main water supply to Delhi was cut off thus subjecting Delhi and its entire population to no water for more than 24 hours.

Many people who did not have Jaat surnames and castes were identified, looted and tortured.

Many dozen foreigners trapped in Rohtak feared for their lives and safety. They were airlifted to Delhi by the Indian Army.

The city of Rohtak suffered the biggest devastation. On top of that (according the media and some other reports), many women were openly raped on the roads (particularly

VOICE OF ASIA

ens of women MPs for Suu Kyi’s National League for Democracy who followed the country’s most revered female politician into parliament in the heart of Myanmar’s juntabuilt capital after the country’s freest elections in generations.

Women now make up 14.5 percent of the combined national parliament, a dramatic increase from the previous legislature — the country’s first after the end of outright military rule — which had the lowest percentage in Asia with just 5.9 percent, according to the Asia Foundation’s Myanmar representative Kim N B Ninh.

- Increased opportunity -Despite following in the footsteps of “the Lady” as Suu Kyi is known in Myanmar, many female MPs suffer from a lack of confidence.

A 2015 survey of women in the former parliament suggested they “perceive themselves as being less qualified than they actually are, a perception reinforced by the lack of respect Subscription and Renewal trust affordedForm to women in

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in Murthal) and their clothes and personal items were taken away forcibly. These ghastly occurrences went on and on.

It appeared that the Jaat community had shed all semblance of decency and good and moral behavior.

While all this was going on, I share with you below a text message from one of the victims of this mayhem; “I was at Karnal in Haryana and was stuck for 4 days on G.T Road Highway due to Jaat andolan (agitation). Approximately 5000 people were there helpless with family, kids and elderly people. Nowhere to go in the cold. Then here came, on highways many many Sikhs with their families, serving milk, water and food. They took us to their Gurudwara at Panipat. They gave shelter to everybody, more than 5000 people. Small kids, young girls, boys and elders of the Sikh community prepared and served food and arranged for good hospitality. They asked for and provided all sort of help even medicines. Shops were opened for blankets. Warm blankets food tea milk was served continuously without asking anybody of their caste and creed.

I regret to say that we talk a lot about ‘karuna’ (compassion) and charity and moral values.

Do we do charity without discriminating between caste and creed?

Let us learn a few things from the great community of Sikhs.

I salute their sprit. I am greatly humbled and feel cherished to have been there with these great people.

This is my life time eye opening experience. Don’t have words to express the gratitude.

My salute to the Sikh community. We have yet to learn more from them.

Regards. Prakash Jain.” What happened at Panipat, same service and seva was provided by our Sikh brothers and sisters all over Haryana. Wow, what a great example!

My fellow brothers and sisters; after reading and watching all this, many a times I wonder whether India is just a population (with no common codes of conduct, human decency and behavior) or a nation. Also I feel ashamed that the State Govt. of Haryana caved in and accepted the demands of these hooligans. This sets very bad examples for other communities in India and is a blow to the unity of the country.

Babies and boldness for Myanmar’s new wave of women MPs

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positions of leadership by the society around them,” Ninh said in a recent article.

to the world following the end of decades of junta rule in 2011.

Thandar, a writer and former political prisoner, has needed more confidence than most to sit in a legislature that retains a 25 percent bloc of unelected soldiers.

Those changes have meant increased opportunities for women, with greater freedoms and employment.

The 47-year-old has waged a spirited campaign for the army to hold someone accountable for the death of her husband Pargyi, a freelance reporter who was shot dead while in military custody in a restive eastern region in 2014.

She is the only woman on parliament’s new committee for citizenship rights.

“I have asked them not to leave me behind because of I’m a woman. I told them not to think I cannot work. I’m capable. I told them that I will work double if there is someone who is sick in the group.

I told them like this with my worry if they leave me being as a woman,” she told AFP. Myanmar is in the grips of sweeping changes as it opens

But there have also been significant setbacks, with the army-backed government of President Thein Sein bowing to Buddhist nationalist pressure to push through a raft of controversial laws governing birth spacing and inter-faith marriage that were slammed by rights groups as discriminatory to women and religious minorities.

A recent editorial in the statebacked Global New Light of Myanmar exhorted women to marry early and have more children.

The article was released just as the United Nation’s Population Fund released an open letter in local newspaper the Myanmar Times urging the country to prioritise adolescent girls, “whose ability to achieve their full potential can alter the future course of the country”.

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VOICE OF ASIA 3

FRIDAY, March 11, 2016

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Interfaith program through music for Sri Ramakrishna’s birthday and new resident swami at VSGH park, Kolkata where he used to look after the Institute of Foreign Languages. He was posted as the Assistant Minister at the Vedanta Society of Seattle in 2014. VSGH devotees are really looking forward to his arrival at the center.

To celebrate Sri Ramakrishna’s birthday, VSGH has arranged an all-day event on Sunday, March 20, 2016. The day will begin with Sri Ramakrishna’s worship (puja) starting at 10 AM to be performed by Swami Sarvadevanandaji, Minister, Vedanta Society of Southern California, Hollywood. This will be followed by Arati, Pushpanjali and Homa at 12 noon. Bhog prasad will be served for lunch after the puja.

Swami Vedaswarupanandaji

by Sanchali Basu

F

ive years ago, with great hope and sky high dreams, the Vedanta Society of Greater Houston, VSGH, sent a petition to the Headquarters of the Ramakrishna Math, to affiliate VSGH as a Belur Math Center.

The prayers of the VSGH devotees have finally been heard and their dreams are about to be realized. VSGH is going to be affiliated with Ramakrishna Math and Swami Vedaswarupanandaji is being sent from

Sri Ramakrishna’s birthday celebrations in 2015 at the Vedanta Society of Greater Houston. File.

Belur Math who will soon be taking over the helm of affairs at VSGH. He joined the Ramakrishna Order in 1986 and was first posted at the Editorial

Office of the”Udbodhan” the Bengali journal started by Swami Vivekananda. He received his final vow of Sannyasa from Revered Swami Bhuteshanan-

Local artist releases book on youth

daji Maharaj in 1996. He served at the Ramakrishna Mission in Vrindavan & Hyderabad and was at the Ramakrishna Mission Institute of Culture, Gol-

This year VSGH resumes its Annual Interfaith program which will start at 4 p.m. and will be somewhat different and unique. In general, song is more easily recalled than any sermon, lecture, or class - no matter how powerful or profound the monologue may have been.

Therefore, it should be no surprise that music is a vital part of

worshipping God. Instead of a series of lectures and talks, the theme this year is, “Music as a Form of Worship.” Members of several faiths will be participating in this program and they include Christianity, Sikhism, Judaism, Sufism and Hinduism. They will be presenting brief talks and devotional songs from their individual faiths. A light dinner will follow.

VSGH will also be holding its General Body meeting, open to all members on Saturday, March 19 at 6 p.m. Swami Sarvadevanandaji, during his 3 day stay in Houston will be conducting a two- day retreat on the Rama Gita as well, the first session of which will be on Saturday, March 19 at 7:30 p.m. after the vesper services (Sandhyarati) at 7 p.m. Potluck dinner arrangements have been made for Saturday night. The second session will be held on Monday, March 21 at 7:30 PM. Classes on “The Gospel of Sri Ramakrishna” will be held on Monday and Tuesday morning.

For further details please visit www.houstonvedanta.org

SLPD targeting impaired driving during Spring Break UGAR LAND, TX Sugar Land police are conducting a special drunk driving enforcement initiative through March 21.

S

The enforcement period includes Spring Break and is funded by the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) through a Selective Traffic Enforcement Program (STEP) grant. The STEP grant is administered through H-GAC and provides overtime funds for enhanced DWI enforcement during holiday

weekends when there has traditionally been more alcoholrelated traffic incidents.

“Driving while impaired by alcohol or drugs is not worth the risk,” said Sgt. Daryl Stroud, of SLPD’s traffic division. “You are putting your life and the lives of others on the line.”

Convicted first-time DWI offenders face penalties that include fines up to $2,000, six months in jail and loss of driver’s licenses for up to a year.

The STEP grant also provides overtime for year-round speed compliance in targeted areas, an extra resource that does not affect SLPD’s normal operations.

Speeding continues to be the number one factor contributing to accidents within Sugar Land. The police department uses crash data, speed surveys and information supplied by residents to identify those areas where additional enforcement is needed.

Namo Samrudhi Namo Sanscruti: Yug Parivartan: The book, written by Indravadan Trivedi Myasterji was inaugurated by Anandiben Patel, Chief Minister of Gujarat, India in her office in Gandhi Nagar. This book is about the transformation which will take place amongst the youth of this world.

No you can read all Community articles online Visit: www. voiceofasiaonline.com K. V. Doraiswamy Bhattar 281-489-0464 or 281-948-8368 kvdoraiswamybhattar@yahoo.com | kvdoraiswamy60@gmail.com

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VOICE OF ASIA 4

FRIDAY, March 11, 2016

International Women’s Day

The People’s Lawyer Free Seminar on Women and Finance hosted on IWD www.peopleslawyer.net Richard M. Alderman Interim Dean of the Law Center

Landlord and tenant may negotiate amount of rent Q. Is it against any law to negotiate rental rates? Could it be considered discrimination if a landlord charges different rates for the same size apartment? Is this illegal?

A. Discrimination is basically treating one person better or worse than another. It is discrimination to charge different people different rent for the same apartment. Discrimination, however, is not per se illegal. In fact, it is not uncommon for a seller to charge different prices to different customers. I am sure that many people who buy the same type of car pay very different prices.

What is illegal, however, is discriminating based on something protected by the law. For example, the law prohibits housing discrimination based on race, sex, age, religion, or a disability. If a landlord discriminated based on one of these categories, he has violated the law. Otherwise, he is if free to charge different rents. Of course, you are free to offer less.

Q. My landlord wants an additional $500 deposit to renew my lease. Before I sign it, I would like to know if there are any legal limits on the amount of a deposit.

A. A deposit is a matter of private contract law between you and your landlord. As I said above, the terms of a lese are a matter of negotiation. The landlord may ask for whatever amount he wants for a deposit, and may increase the amount as much as he wants at the end of the lease. Your options are to negotiate a lower deposit, pay what he asks, or move elsewhere Q. Three years ago I was divorced. In the divorce, my husband agreed to pay all the credit card debt. He has now filed bankruptcy and the credit card companies are coming after me to pay. Do I have any liability?

A. The divorce was between you and your husband. It does not affect any liability to other parties. If your name was on the accounts at the time of the divorce, you remain liable for the debts even though the divorce decree said your husband would pay. Of course, if you do pay, you have the right to seek reimbursement from your ex based on the terms of the divorce.

Q. How much notice am I entitled to before I am fired? I showed up for work this morning and was told I was no longer needed. Am I entitled to two week’s notice?

This doesn’t seem fair.

A. As a legal matter, you generally are not entitled to any notice prior to being fired, unless you have an employment contract or union agreement that says otherwise. Your employer may not have treated you fairly, but from a legal standpoint it had the right to do what it did.

Q. I just purchased a house that has unpaid maintenance fees for the past two years.

Am I as the new owner liable for these charges?

A. As a general rule, the prior owner (the seller) is responsible for paying any maintenance fees due at the time of the sale. The property, however, continues to be subject to a lien in the event those fees are not paid. In other words, you may not legally owe the fees, but you might lose your house if you don’t pay them. If you do pay, you could have a claim against the seller to be reimbursed. If a title company assisted you with the sale, it should have taken care of this issue. It may be, however, that your agreement requires that you, rather than the seller, pay the fees. I suggest you review your closing documents and speak with the title company to see how existing maintenance fees were handled.

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Host Ina C. Patel, agent, New York Life Insurance Company (Houston) conducting the Seminar.

H

OUSTON - In lieu of celebrating International Women’s Day 2016, an exclusive Seminar of WOMEN & FINANCE was held for the ladies of the Bhakta Samaj of Houston. Ina C. Patel an agent from New York Life Insurance Company (Houston) conducted a 3 hour Seminar at Mayuri Indian Restaurant on the 6th of March 2016.

The Seminar focused on Women & Finance and it showcased points of interest to Women willing to learn about various financial products and goals.

The main focus of the Seminar was to educate women in handling their finances better and being prepared for the future.

The Seminar was conducted in Gujarati and English so as to appeal to the audience at large.

Ina C. Patel captivated the audience with her presentation and her experiences. She discussed the needs of a will, estate planning, retirement, long term care, life insurance, health insurance among various other topics.

The tremendous turnout of 75 + ladies at the Seminar was a

proof to the changing times and how our Community women are now more interested and adept at making financial decisions for themselves and their families future. Besides talking about finance the women at the Seminar also played interactive games and feasted on a wonderful dinner.

This Seminar was a wonderful example of women empowerment in our Community here in Houston and we are glad we have people like Ina C. Patel taking initiative and hosting such events.

Celebrate Indo-American Heritage Day: Our Roots, Our Voices, Our Heritage, Our Contributions at the Houston Public Library

H

OUSTON – The Foundation for India Studies (FIS) in partnership with the Houston Public Library (HPL) and Houston Community College (HCC) invites the community to an exciting celebration for IndoAmerican Heritage Day, Our Roots, Our voices, Our Heritage, Our Contributions. The Indo-American Heritage Day celebration will take place on Saturday, March 26, 2016 from 1 PM to 4 PM in the Library’s historic Julia Ideson Building, 550 McKinney, 77002.

This event is free and open to the public. An RSVP is highly recommended for the event.

Please email your RSVP to foundationforindiastudies@ gmail.com by Friday, March 11, 2016.

This year’s Indo-American Heritage Day celebration will highlight the Indo-American Oral History Project with the completion of 50 video interviews. This legacy project has been achieved in partnership with HPL and HCC. The event will also celebrate the 10th Anniversary of the Foundation for India Studies.

Free parking will be available for the Indo-American Heritage Day celebration at the Central Library’s underground parking garage, entrance ramp is located on the Lamar St. side of the building. The Central Library is located at 500 McKinney St., 77002. Free parking is also available in the streets.

FIS Founder and Chairman Krishna Vavilala said, “The preservation and promulgation of a community’s history are important aspects of a civilization. Through a decade long service to the community, the Foundation for India Studies (FIS) has accomplished a remarkable series of projects to enrich the understanding of India’s contributions to the world as well as to the understanding of the role of the Indo-American community in Houston that’s a part of the city’s multicultural tapestry.”

The Indo-American Heritage Day celebration will include distinguished speakers: Key Note Speaker: Dr. Stephen Klineberg, “The Changing Face of Houston”, Founding Director of Rice University’s Kinder Institute for Urban Research.

Parvathaneni Harish, Indian Consul General in Houston Sheila Jackson Lee, U.S.

Congresswoman, Al Green, U.S. Congressman, Dr. Jimmy Adams, Houston Community College (HCC) Director of Center for Excellence in Media Arts and Technologynand Aric Nitzberg, Chair of the Center for Excellence, Media Arts and Technology For event details, please contact Krishna Vavilala at 713-795-5169 or Dr. Ponnada Narayana at 281-804-4912.

For sponsorship information, please visit: www.foundationforindiastudies.org.

About the Indo-American Oral History Project The Houston Indo-American Oral History Project is an initiative of the Foundation for India Studies (FIS), which engages the Indo-American community living in Houston to record their life stories and experiences. Interviewees are from the first generation of Indian immigrants that have lived in Houston for more than 25 years.

Even though Indo-Americans make up a small percent of Houston’s population they have made significant contributions to Houston’s economy and quality of life through professional, scientific, technical, religious, artistic, and political involvement.

“The project aims to video record and preserve the histories of the first generation Indian immigrants who migrated from various parts of India and settled in Houston. Their stories are a testament to the significant contributions they have made to Houston’s economy and quality of life. The project will provide a wealth of primary material to historian, sociologist, researchers, educationist, and students. The Oral History Project will also enable our future Indo-American generations to trace back to their roots in India,” said FIS Founding Chairman Krishna Vavilala.

The Indo-American Oral History collection is now archived at the Houston Metropolitan Research Center administered by the Houston Public Library.

FIS Celebrates Ten Years of Contributions to the City of Houston.

In the past ten years, FIS has successfully initiated the establishment of India Studies at the University of Houston. In 2015, FIS received the Martin Luther

King Grand Marshal Award from Charles Stamps, CEO of the MLK Grande Parade, the organization’s highest award for demonstrating the doctrines and principles of Gandhi and King through their daily activities and life styles. In 2011, FIS launched its signature project called “The Indo-American Oral History Project” to collect and archive the life stories of the first generation immigrants from India. This project which was inaugurated by Mayor Annise Parker and has now completed 50 interviews in partnership with the Houston Public Library and the Houston Community College.

FIS has conducted its Distinguished Lecture Series. These lectures cover a wide range of topics that emphasize the diversity in India to foster the creation of distinct cultural connections. Through these lectures FIS provides a connection to Houston with some of India’s most productive minds. Some of the past prominent speakers included: Padma Vibhushan, Prof George Sudarshan, a nominee for Physics Nobel prize; Indian Ambassador to UN TP Sreenivasan; Indian Consul General S.M. Gavai; Houston Mayor Bill White; India’s former Union Law Minister and Bar Council Chairman Ram Jethmalani; former Senior Vice Chancellor and Provost of the University of Houston John Antel; University of Houston Assistant Vice Chancellor for International Studies Jerald W. Strickland; University of Houston Dean of College of Liberal Arts Dr. John Roberts; Delhi University Professor Bharat Gupt; and Indian Painter OM Soorya.

FIS has brought together the Indian and American universities exchange program for students and faculty by facilitating Memorandums of Understanding (MOU) between the universities. An example of such an endeavor was the successful MOU signed between the Central University of Hyderabad and the University of Houston.

About the Foundation for India Studies The Foundation for India Studies (FIS) is a non-profit 501(c3) organization, founded in 2005. The major focus of FIS is to establish educational and cultural connections not only for Indo-Americans, but for anyone interested in learning about India’s diverse cultures, languages and history.

VOICE OF ASIA 5

COMMUNITY

FRIDAY, March 11, 2016

Telugu Bhavanam .... Akshaya Patra USA’s Youth Ambassador Program ....

Continued from page 1

Consul General of India, Houston, Parvathaneni Harish deliveing his message.

Photo credit: Sudhakar Roy Chinasumala, Roy Photography.

Continued from page 1 About 300 people attended the fundraiser and raised about 400,000 that evening. Early efforts raised $200,000 totaling to $600,000 in pledges. It was an ecstatic moment for the organizers when the amount exceeded the matching donation amount of $500,000 pledged by donor Chowdary Yalamanchili, Houston’s leading property businessman, community leader and philanthropist. “I have full faith that we will make it happen,” he said lauding the efforts. “We deserve it, we worked hard, raised good children and it is our responsibility to give something to the future generation,” Yalamanchili said.

Consul General of India, Houston, Parvathaneni Harish was the Chief Guest for the evening. After a friendly introduction by Dr. Rajshekar Yalamanchili, the Consul General spoke of cultural vibrancy and the rich source of talent that the Indian community imparts. Such centers not only provide a platform to showcase talent but encourage talent he said. He mentioned how such centers can become an intellectual hub quoting India International Center in New Delhi as the best example of such a center where the world’s intelligentsia congregates.

Telugu Cultural Association’s (TCA) past president Raj Pasala made a detailed PP presentation explaining the need, concept, the plan process. The project was officially set in motion on August 17, 2015 at the meeting held at

the Mayuri restaurant. With the generous offer of Chowdary Yalamanchili, to match donation of $500,000, the project gained impetus. What followed was the formation of a task force team that held several meetings developing plans and seeking input from the community. Over $200,000 was also raised in several of these informal meetings.

Jagapathi Veerati, another member of the task force outlined the logistics of the project: the funds, estimates, timeline, benefits and maintenance of the project. The land criteria would include that it is located centrally to the Telugu community, would be about 1012 acres to provide for an auditorium (2 acres) with 1200-1500 siting capacity and multipurpose hall with banquet style sitting of 800, miscellaneous (2 acres) for office space, classrooms, library, kitchen and outside parking (4 acres) and cricket ground (4 acres).

The plan is two-phased for the multipurpose facility: $1.5 million for land acquisition and development, $4 million for the first phase and the second phase would require $3.5 million for construction of the facility. The goal is to finalize the technical drawings and permits by the end of 2016 and star the construction by early 2017.

After the presentation was a short Q & A session followed by dinner and light music entertainment. Singers Sharada Akunuri, Akila Mamandu, Krishna Pratur and Suman Mangu sang popular Telugu melodies. The event was supported by the Telugu Cultural

Rhea and Rohan Bansal, from Jacksonville, Florida, are two of these 100 young caring high achievers who exemplify the fiery and generous spirit of Akshaya Patra Youth Ambassadors.

According to Rhea and Rohan: “two highlight events of this school year have been the Car Wash we hosted in partnership with the Hindu Society of Northeast Florida Ripples Youth Committee, and the Eat2Feed event held during the Hindu festival of Navratri.

The Car wash was a thorough success, with over 35 youth and 7 adult volunteers. We danced, sang, and laughed for over 4 hours… Somewhere along the way we washed around 60 cars and raised over $1300! For the Eat2Feed event, we worked with our father and his friends to make and sell Indian fast food at the Hindu Temple. Between the food cooked by volunteers and food donated by a local restaurant, we raised $450.

Youth Ambassadors Rohan and Rhea Bansal; and of Youth Ambassadors Meghana and Rishika Prakash

“Akshaya Patra is very fortunate to have so many enthusiastic young supporters who are passionate about spreading awareness of the school meal program and helping 1.5 million children in India realize their dreams through education”, Desh Deshpande, Chairman of Akshaya Patra’s Board of Directors remarked.

The Youth Ambassadors Program supports Akshaya Patra USA fundraising and awareness efforts and offers a unique opportunity for middle and high school students to build leadership, networking, and public presentation skills while improving the lives of children in India. Youth Ambassadors are also given the opportunity to participate in an India Service Trip to volunteer with Akshaya Patra’s school meal program.

Association and the Telangana Association of Greater Houston (TAGH).

The Telugu Bhavanam is registered as a non-profit 501 (c) (3) organization to serve Telugu community and beyond. It is an autonomous, non-religious, non-political entity and not affiliated to any organization. For more details and to donate to Telugu Bhavanam visit www.telugubhavan.org

Visiting beneficiaries of our school meal program with their mother Mamatha Prakash Akshaya Patra runs the world’s largest NGO-run school meal programs and serves children in 11,600 schools across India. Akshaya Patra’s meals have contributed to increased enrollment, lower attrition rates, and better student health and academic performance in the schools it serves. Costeffective technology in food preparation and partnerships with the state and federal governments of India, allow Akshaya Patra to support one child with meals at school each day for a year for just $15. Akshaya Patra

USA provides vital funding and helps to create greater awareness of the organization’s work in India.

To learn more about and sign up to become a learn more about the Youth Ambassadors Program, please visit http://www.foodforeducation.org/ youth-ambassadors-program or contact Krista McCarthy, Krista@apusa. org or 781-438-3090 x 7. For more information about Akshaya Patra USA, please visit http://www.foodforeducation.org

COMMUNITY

VOICE OF ASIA 6

HHD to start Zika virus testing for Houston, 17 surrounding counties

T

he Houston Health Department (HHD) is now able to test for the Zika virus in people living in Houston and 17 surrounding counties.

HHD’s laboratory can perform the Zika tests in one day, speeding up turn-around time since the department previously needed to ship testing samples to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) for confirmation.

HHD testing, based on technology provided by the CDC, can distinguish Zika from the related dengue and Chikungunya viruses, which can cause similar symptoms and is carried by the same mosquitos in the same geographic regions.

It uses polymerase chain reaction, or PCR, to simultaneously detect any of the three viruses.

“This is the test of choice to detect the Zika virus in blood within the first seven days af-

ter symptoms appear,” said Dr. Larry Seigler, chief of HHD’s Bureau of Laboratories.

Capacity for local testing begins ahead of the area’s mosquito season, spanning from May through October.

HHD can perform Zika tests on lab specimens submitted by Austin, Brazoria, Chambers, Colorado, Fort Bend, Galveston, Hardin, Harris, Jefferson, Liberty, Matagorda, Montgomery, Orange, San Jacinto, Walker, Waller and Wharton counties. Physicians, however, must contact their local health department or the Texas Department of State Health Services’ Region 6/5S Zoonology Division to secure Zika testing approval.

HHD’s laboratory serves as the CDC’s Laboratory Response Network facility for the surrounding counties. The network is a group of domestic and international laborato-

ries that can respond to public health emergencies.

The Zika virus is spread to people primarily through the bite of an infected Aedes species mosquito. The most common symptoms of Zika are fever, rash, joint pain, and conjunctivitis (red eyes).

The illness is usually mild with symptoms lasting for several days to a week after being bitten by an infected mosquito.

People usually don’t get sick enough to go to the hospital and rarely die of Zika.

Zika virus can spread from a pregnant woman to her baby during pregnancy. It has been linked to microcephaly, a serious birth defect of the brain in babies of mothers who had the virus while pregnant.

There is no vaccine to prevent or medicine available to treat Zika virus. The best way to avoid Zika virus infection is to prevent mosquito bites.

FRIDAY, March 11, 2016

Seniors living with Zika Virus

by Dr. John Measel The world has learned in recent months of a frightening epidemic virus named Zika.

For many of us past childbearing age, the warnings that pregnant women are at risk for deformed children seem like a distant concern. But actually, Zika is a potentially nightmarish problem for older people here in Texas.

For most adults, Zika (named for the forest where it was discovered in Uganda) causes little more than a mild flu-like condition that resolves itself in a few days. But for people with serious underlying disease, Zika can put them at serious risk for severe complications. It’s not altogether unlike the same risks seniors face in contracting the flu.

What’s more, a significant number of Zika patients have demonstrated a generally transient neurological condition called Guillain-Barré syndrome, which can cause varying degrees of paralysis lasting for varied durations. Several deaths have been reported, but at the time of this report, the full extent of the mortality is not

understood.

So what should older people do?

First, it’s important to realize that the virus is spread by various specie of the Aedes mosquito.

Although the mosquito can be found in the United States, it is not typically found in large numbers and is g e n e r a l l y Dr. John Measel limited to southern states. The mosquito generally bites in the daytime and, as with most mosquitoes, it is the female that bites and causes the transmission of the virus to the host. Presently, there is no vaccine or approved treatment.

The best prevention is control of the mosquito population.

That means home and business

Mobile Learning Experience visits Earth Day Celebration

S

ence can engage, experiment and learn through an array of exhibits, computer models and interactive watershed and river models.

UGAR LAND, TX ¬– Water will be highlighted at this year’s Earth Day Celebration with a visit from the Wyland Foundations’ Mobile Learning Experience on Saturday, April 16, from 1-5 p.m. at Sugar Land Town Square near City Hall.

Children and adults will have the opportunity to travel through a watershed and discover an estuary’s food web. Visitors will even be able to create an actual rain storm and other fun experiments!

Sugar Land’s Earth Day Celebration will engage the whole family through interactive exhibits and entertainment. There is no cost to visit the Mobile Learning Experience or have fun at the Earth Day Celebration!

The Wyland Foundations’ Mobile Learning Experience promises to be a fun and enlightening experience for all who come. Visitors attending the Mobile Learning Experi-

The Mobile Learning Experience is a one-of-a-kind learning activity being made available through a partnership between the Sugar Land Public Works Department and Keep Sugar Land Beautiful.

For more information, call the Public Works at (281) 275-2450 or visit www.sugarlandtx.gov.

Mobile Learning Experience

Call Ramesh Cherivirala Ph.D, LUTCF Financial Adviser

owners should remove standing water from their properties, recognizing that even small amounts of standing water can rapidly become a mosquito breeding ground.

Prudent use of mosquito repellant is advisable and careful spraying around a home for mosquitoes should be done. Doit-yourself advocates can spray effectively, but it makes sense to consult with experts, such as an agriculture extension agent or other professional, before spraying. And above all, follow the application instructions with care. Others may prefer to hire a pest control company to conduct scheduled sprayings.

Since there is no vaccine or approved treatment, seniors should keep in touch with their health team and stay abreast of developments about the Zika Virus. The news media is doing a good job of informing the public about this important health issue. But for the absolute latest information, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) has a link to information on their website. It can be found at: http://www.cdc.gov/ zika/index.html Dr. John Measel is a retired immunologist who resides in Tyler, Texas. He is a volunteer with AARP and serves on the AARP Texas Executive Council.

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DIASPORA

VOICE OF ASIA 7

FRIDAY, March 11, 2016

Indian-American leads reIndia’s Foreign Secretary Dr. search team against Clinton, S. Jaishankar to visit USA Sanders

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ASHINGTON: (PTI) - As US presidential election gathers steam, a young IndianAmerican-led research team is set to bring two separate dossiers on Hillary Clinton and Bernie Sanders, the two Democratic Party frontrunners, that would raise serious questions on their candidature.

The voluminous dossier against Clinton is based on publicly available resources and hundreds of petitions filed under the freedom of information act (FOIA) - similar to India’s Right to Information Act - which have been compiled by the Republican Party research team headed by 31-year-old Raj Shah.

“What we are seeing, a candidate (Clinton) after decades of living in a bubble, whether secret service protection, living in highend mansions and nice fundraiser with elite crowd seems to be out of touch and out of step with the struggles of middle-income voters,” Shah told PTI in an interview.

A graduate of the prestigious Cornell University, Shah, was appointed as research director of Republican National Committee (RNC) by its chair Reince Priebus last February.

Shah exuded confidence that the Clinton dossier now almost ready would raise serious questions about her candidature.

Questions about her “character” and “honesty” would keep on lingering, he said, referring to the documents that is now in his possession and would be finally handed over to the Republican presidential nominee, whenever it is decided.

“Somebody who has lived the way she has for so many years, cannot possibly understand the struggles of middle class Americans,” Shah alleged.

Refusing to divulge details of the dossier, Shah indicated that Clinton’s term in the State Department would be one of the main focus areas to attack the former First Lady.

Shah said a similar dossier is ready for Sanders, the Senator from Vermont, the other Democratic presidential candidate.

“Our primary mission in the campaign is to make the case that Clinton and Sanders can take the country further down the wrong direction,” he said.

In fact, Shah is known for specialising in anti-Clinton research.

As co-founder of America Rising PAC, which he co-founded, he wrote a book “Failed Choices: A Critique of the Hillary Clinton State Department,” with coauthors Stephen Thompson and Tim Miller.

“Raj is the expert on the subject of all things Clinton, and his expertise will be an asset to our party,” Priebus said at the time of his appointment last February.

Shah had served as deputy research director at the RNC during the 2012 election cycle.

He also served in various research roles at the White House during President George W Bush’s second term.

As of now, he observed, it would be difficult to say who among Clinton and Sanders would be easier to defeat in the November presidential elections.

“With Sanders there is inexperience factor, his positions are more outside the mainstream,” Shah said in response to a question, adding character questions would linger the most for Clinton.

“We are seeing a pattern in

lateral relations and preparing for India’s participation at the forthcoming Nuclear Security Summit later this month.

public life that stretches back decades now, shifting positions in ways that are politically convenient. Some of the stuff that she is being criticised for the campaign trail whether it is speaking fee, she has a long history with that as well.

“It dates back to 1990s, selling overnight stays in Lincoln bedroom and coffees at the White House,” he alleged.

Shah has been doing “opposition research” for over a decade now.

“We build out a fact-driven case for or against the candidates that we are looking at. What we do in the research team is to put together in the fact sheet,” he said.

He said the document against Clinton would be nearly 1000 pages-long and the research is all based on information that is publicly available.

“We filed hundreds of FOIA to all state and federal offices. That is a process that uncovers new information that may not have been in the public domain. It is a lot about connecting the dots,” he said.

But he ruled out looking into personal and private lives of the opponents.

“We are not looking into personal lives,” he said.

A second generation IndianAmerican, Shah’s parents are from Mumbai having origins in Gujarat.

His father first came to the US for studies in 1970’s then moved back to India. But after marriage his father and mother moved back to the US in late 70’s.

They lived in Chicago and then moved to Connecticut, where Shah was born and raised.

Dr. S. Jaishankar

W

ASHINGTON DC (March 9, 2016_ Foreign Secretary Dr. S. Jaishankar visited Washington D.C. on 6-9 March 2016. The visit was aimed at reviewing the India-U.S. bi-

During his visit, Foreign Secretary had meetings with NSA Ambassador Susan Rice, Secretary of Commerce Penny Pritzker, U.S. Trade Representative Mike Froman, Deputy Secretary of State Antony Blinken, Under Secretary of State Thomas Shannon, Under Secretary of State Rose Gotteemoeller as

well as other senior officials.

The meetings focussed on further consolidating bilateral relations in the year ahead and enhancing convergence on regional and global issues. In this context, both sides agreed to work for achieving concrete results in key areas of bilateral cooperation including defence, trade& investment and civil nuclear energy. Foreign Secretary also previewed with the U.S. interlocutors the 4th Nuclear Security Summit and India’s participation therein.

In the U. S. Congress, Foreign Secretary had meetings with Chairman of Senate Foreign Relations Committee Senator Bob Corker, Chairman of Senate Armed Services Committee Senator John McCain and Chairman of Senate Intelligence Committee Senator Richard Burr to exchange views on bilateral, regional and international issues.

Sacred Heart Hospital fraud: Indian-origin doctor Venkateswara Kuchipudi convicted in kickback scheme in US

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EW YORK: A 69year-old Indian-origin doctor in the US has been convicted of illegally receiving benefits for referring elderly patients to a financially struggling hospital in Chicago.

covered under a federal health care programme.

Venkateswara Kuchipudi of Illinois became the fifth physician and 10th defendant overall to be convicted for taking part in the massive Medicare and Medicaid fraud scheme at the now-shuttered Sacred Heart Hospital.

US District Judge Matthew Kennelly scheduled a sentencing hearing for June.

He was convicted after a five-week trial on one count of conspiracy to defraud the US and nine counts of illegally soliciting or receiving benefits in return for referrals of patients

Each count carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison and a USD 250,000 fine.

From 2001 through April 2013, hospital executives conspired to pay kickbacks and bribes to physicians to induce them to refer patients for services that would be reimbursed by federal insurance programme Medicare and Medicaid.

The scheme earned the fi-

nancially struggling hospital millions of dollars in reimbursements from Medicare and Medicaid.

Evidence at Kuchipudi’s trial revealed that he was one of the hospital’s most prolific sources of patient referrals.

In exchange for his referrals, the hospital provided Kuchipudi with free labour in the form of physician assistants and nurse practitioners.

The hospital allowed Kuchipudi to bill Medicare and Medicaid for the services of the physician assistants and nurse practitioners as if he employed them himself.

SOUTH ASIA

VOICE OF ASIA 8

FRIDAY, March 11, 2016

Myanmar holds its breath for Kidnapped son of slain Pakistan governor found after five years presidential revelation

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SLAMABAD - The kidnapped son of a liberal Pakistani governor assassinated by his bodyguard has been found after five years, senior officials said Tuesday, just over a week after his father’s killer was hanged.

Shahbaz Taseer is “hale and hearty”, military spokesman Asim Baja said, tweeting two images of the bearded and smiling son of Salmaan Taseer that he said were taken in the southwestern city of Quetta late Tuesday.

Taseer had been abducted

by Islamist gunmen from the city of Lahore in August 2011, months after his father was killed for opposing the country’s controversial blasphemy laws.

by Hla-Hla HTAY AYPYIDAW, Myanmar- Aung San Suu Kyi’s pro-democracy party is due to reveal its nominations for Myanmar’s presidency Thursday, after months of fevered speculation over who will be the Nobel laureate’s proxy that has left even her own MPs in the dark.

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Suu Kyi is barred from top political office by a militarydrafted constitution.

But she has vowed to rule “above” the next leader of Myanmar, buoyed by a roaring election victory that gave her party a mandate to comfortably form the country’s first popular government in decades.

In an atmosphere of tense excitement in the junta-built capital Naypyidaw, hundreds of newly-minted lawmakers are preparing to select a replacement for outgoing President Thein Sein, who will hand over to his successor on March 31.

They will chose between three possible candidates -- one each from the NLD-led lower and upper houses and one from the still powerful army.

The names are due to be revealed on Thursday before being put to a vote later.

Her one-time driver, her doctor, her personal assistant and

an elderly general turned democracy activist have all been mooted as possible contenders.

But rank-and-file NLD lawmakers said they were still in the dark about who would be chosen to act as a proxy for Suu Kyi, who is blocked from the presidency because she married and had children with a foreigner.

Speculation swirling among MPs in their barracks-style Naypyidaw dormitories this week was that Htin Kyaw, a genial 69-year-old who helps run Suu Kyi’s charitable foundation and once acted as her driver, was the frontrunner.

“Whoever is nominated by the party, we have to support,” one NLD lower house MP told AFP, on condition of anonymity.

Another MP said lawmakers had been given lessons in how to vote for the candidates on Wednesday, in a week where they have also been subjected to rigorous English proficiency tests as Suu Kyi looks to mold her dozens of first-time parliamentarians into shape.

“I’m excited. It’s the day we have been waiting for,” a third MP said.

Suu Kyi, 70, has not outlined what her precise role will be or how she will be able to play puppet-master to a president.

Some have suggested she could mimic India’s Sonia Gandhi, who wielded huge influence over her Congress party’s administrations despite having no official government role.

There has also been speculation that she could take the role of foreign minister, which would give her a cabinet post as well as a seat at the country’s influential military dominated security council.

But under Myanmar’s complex political system, this would mean ceding her party role.

Suu Kyi has vowed to create a government of national reconciliation and the cabinet is expected to contain figures from across the political spectrum.

She has also held several meetings with army chief Min Aung Hlaing in recent months as she strives to smooth relations with the country’s military, who retain a quarter of parliamentary seats and control the key home, defence, and border ministries.

The former ruling generals held her under house arrest for 15 years and swatted away the NLD’s 1990 election landslide.

But Thein Sein’s quasi-civilian government has ushered in a raft of political and economic reforms and vowed to support a handover of power.

‘Art of Living will build biodiversity park ....

Indian labourers take part in construction work on the banks of the River Yamuna in New Delhi on March 1, 2016 ©Money Sharma (AFP).

Continued from page 1 on the west bank of Yamuna floodplain near DND flyover, has been organised to celebrate 35 years of The Art of Living. It is being supported by the Centre and the Delhi government among others, and is expected to attract around 35 lakh people.

It has come under the scanner of National Green Tribunal after a set of petitions were filed demanding its cancellation over concerns of potential permanent damage to the riverbed.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is scheduled to inaugurate the event on Friday and President Pranab Mukherjee was to attend the valedictory function on Sunday.

However, Mukherjee on Monday pulled out of the event in the wake of controversy citing “unavoidable circumstances”

Some 500,000 people are expected to attend the festival, the organisers told the court, although earlier advertisements suggested it would draw more than three million visitors.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi is also expected to attend, organisers said, although media reports have suggested he may stay away following the controversy.

The festival is billed as a platform “for spiritual and religious leaders, politicians, peacemakers and artists to spread the message of global peace and harmony in diversity”.

The Yamuna river is the largest tributary of the Ganges, considered holy by Hindus.

Despite high levels of pollution, its floodplains are rich in flora and fauna, with more than 320 bird species and 200 types of plants.

said Taseer was moved after Operation Zarb-e-Azb was launched.

“Acting on a tip off, intelligence forces and police went to a compound in the Kuchlak district some 25 kilometres north of Quetta” in the southwestern province of Balochistan, said Aitzaz Goraya, head of the provincial counter-terrorism department, who described Taseer as being in “feeble” health.

“We surrounded the compound and we raided it. We didn’t find anyone. A single person was there and he told us my name is Shahbaz and my father’s name is Salmaan Taseer.”

The governor’s assassin, Mumtaz Qadri, was hanged on February 29 in what analysts described as a “key moment” in Pakistan’s long battle with extremism.

But the owner of a roadside restaurant in Kuchlak told reporters that Taseer was recovered after he came to his restaurant on foot on Tuesday evening, made a phone call and then personnel from paramilitary the Frontier Corps came and picked him up.

The Pakistani Taliban have never officially confirmed their involvement in the kidnapping, but a militant source told AFP Tuesday that an army operation in the tribal areas had made it “difficult” for the group to keep him.

“He had grown long hair with a scruffy beard and was frantically asking for a telephone or mobile phone” the owner of Al-Saleem hotel told reporters in Kuchlak.

“That’s why they preferred to set him free,” the source said.

Militant commanders have privately told AFP in the past Taseer was being kept somewhere in the tribal areas of North and South Waziristan.

Pakistan began its operation to clear Taliban and Al-Qaeda strongholds in North Waziristan in 2014. The source Tuesday

“He ate food here, paid a bill of 350 rupees and then called someone from a waiter’s mobile,” the owner said, adding that minutes later Frontier Corps personnel arrived.

A second militant source said the Taliban had been demanding up to two billion rupees ($20 million) for Taseer’s release.

Security analyst Imtiaz Gul

said it was possible a ransom had been paid and that Taseer had been abandoned by his abductors once they received the money.

- ‘Big day’ for family -Mumtaz Qadri, the police bodyguard who shot the governor 28 times in Islamabad in 2011, was hanged last week in a move analysts said demonstrated the state’s willingness to uphold the rule of law against extremism.

The governor had called for reforms to the country’s controversial blasphemy law, which carries the death penalty and which critics say is largely misused.

But Qadri was hailed as a hero by many conservatives eager to drown out calls to soften the legislation.

Shahbaz Taseer’s brother Shehryar said on Twitter last week the hanging was a victory for Pakistan, but not his family.

“The safe return of my brother is the only victory my family wants,” he wrote.

Shahbaz Taseer’s father-inlaw Salman Ghani also confirmed his freedom to AFP. Former Prime Minister Yousaf Raza Gilani, who belonged to the same Pakistan People’s Party as Salmaan Taseer and whose own son was kidnapped by suspected Taliban militants in May 2013, told Geo News: “It is a very big day for Salman’s family.”

He added: “After this release, I am very hopeful that my own son will be freed.”

Read latest South Asian and US News Online: www. voiceofasiaonline.com

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FRIDAY, March 11, 2016

March is National Social Work Month Join Fort Bend ISD in celebrating the contributions of our District social workers to students, families and the community

F

ORT BEND ISD – Fort Bend ISD is honored to join the country in celebrating National Social Work Month in March. Created by the National Association of Social Workers, the observation is held to educate the community on the often unnoticed ways that social workers contribute to the good of society.

Fort Bend ISD currently has 13 social workers on staff, who work to meet the challenging issues facing our students, while forging solutions to help them reach their full potential. Our skilled social workers support numerous student initiatives including, drop-out prevention for ELL immigrant students, mentoring and after-school programs, transition programs, outreach for college entrance for unaccompanied youth, untraditional family support (for foster parents, homeless or relatives raising children of family members), and truancy, discipline and anti-bullying programs. The team also provides a leadership camp to support Title I schools and provide Peer Mediation training to students and counselors.

“I am so proud to work with the FBISD team of social workers,” said Amanda Hartley, Assistant Director of Special Programs. “Their passion for helping students truly epitomizes the District’s mission to inspire and equip students to pursue futures beyond what they can imagine. The love they have for their vocation and our students inspires courageous leadership and promotes a sense of true teamwork among all those working for what is best for our children.”

When asked what they enjoy most about their role in the District, here is what four of our social workers had to say: “The one thing that I like most about being a social worker is the ability to be creative and innovative in finding ways to help my students and families. If I am able to make at least one student laugh or smile each day, I feel that I have done my job successfully.”

Rod Martin, Licensed Master Social Worker “I entered the social work

profession to make a difference in the lives of children, and I feel blessed to have the privilege of working with them and their parents to teach new skills, offer support, accept them for who they are, and most importantly, provide them with a safe place to fall. I appreciate being a family advocate, while at the same time being a liaison for the school.”

Priti Avantsa, Licensed Master Social Worker “Each year at graduation when I see my students walk across that stage, I feel a sense of pride in my work – and more importantly in my students – because I am instantly reminded that it was only yesterday when the students were doe-eyed freshmen who needed that first spark and support to help get them through their new school and cultural environment.”

Van Hua, Licensed Master Social Worker “I love being a FBISD social worker because of the cohesiveness of our absolutely amazing social work team. We genuinely respect and support each other’s area of expertise and commitment to serving children and families. We have

Pictured (grouped to the left) are: Teplah Toomey, Van Hua, Vanessa Perez; (center group, top row) Davina Myles, Emeka Okonkwo, Priti Avantsa; (bottom row) Connie Lee-Sims, Lindsey Cano, Linda Coleman, Janice Little; and (grouped on the right) Roderick Martin, Dana Guzman Adeoye and LaSonya McArthur. an opportunity to positively impact students, parents and staff members through our school and community collaborations and program development.

Our social work team truly appreciates everyone who assists

and supports us with providing quality services to FBISD children and families.”

Janice Little, Doctor of Management, Licensed Master Social Worker.

WHO advises pregnant women not to travel to Zika oubreak areas GENEVA, Switzerland The World Health Organization on Tuesday advised pregnant women not to travel to areas affected by the Zika virus outbreak, saying the new advice was issued amid mounting evidence that Zika can cause birth defects.

“Pregnant women should be advised not travel to areas of ongoing Zika virus outbreaks,” the UN agency said in a statement released after an emergency committee meeting on the rapid spread of the mosquito-borne virus.

Previous WHO guidelines called for pregnant to be warned of the risk of travel to Zika-hit areas.

“Microcephaly is now only one of several documented birth abnormalities associated with Zika infection during pregnancy,” she said.

WHO noted that the link between Zika and microcephaly, a severe deformation of the brain among newborns, has not yet been definitively proven.

“Grave outcomes include foetal death, placental insufficiency, foetal growth retardation, and injury to the central nervous system,” she added.

But WHO chief Margaret Chan told reporters that “we do not have to wait until we have definitive proof” before advising pregnant women against travel.

Chan described the latest research on Zika as “alarming,” including growing evidence that the virus causes the severe neurological disorder Guillain-Barre Syndrome.

US envoy to UN calls says Savchenko ‘should be free’

U

NITED NATION -The US ambassador to the United Nations said Wednesday that former Ukrainian pilot Nadiya Savchenko had been subjected to a “farcical trial” and called on Russia to immediately release her.

“She belongs back in Ukraine, working alongside her colleagues in the Rada (parliament) to build a better future for her country,” said Samantha Power in a statement.

worsening health.

The 34-year-old military helicopter pilot has been on a dry hunger strike for nearly a week.

“Savchenko – as well as all Ukrainians who are being held illegally by separatists and by Russia – should be free,” said Power.

“We call on Russia to release her at once.”

The US ambassador has been a vocal supporter of Ukraine at the UN Security Council, repeatedly accusing Russia of backing separatists in their campaign against the Kiev government.

Savchenko delivered a final statement in her defence during her trial in a Russian court where she stands accused of killing two Russian journalists during shelling in eastern Ukraine.

Savchenko is seen in Ukraine as a symbol of resistance against the Kremlin, accused of fuelling the conflict that has claimed more than 9,000 lives since April 2014.

Power recalled that she had twice met Savchenko’s mother, Maria, who has expressed alarm over her daughter’s

In September 2014, she was elected to Ukraine’s parliament, the Rada, while behind bars in Russia.

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Paris fashion bows before ‘geriatric starlet’ Iris Apfel, 94

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London Metropolitan Police Assistant Commissioner Mark Rowley said British police had carried out a record number of counter-terrorism arrests last year.

But he warned that the Islamist group had broadened its focus from military and police targets, noting the Paris attacks last year when gunmen attacked bars, a concert hall and a stadium, killing 130 people.

“In recent months we’ve seen a broadening of that, much more plans to attack Western lifestyle, and obviously the Paris attacks in November,”

urged young women at one gathering to abandon the modern “uniform of black tights or jeans with a sweater, boots and a leather bomber jacket.”

by Fiachra GIBBONS

M

ove over models of the moment Gigi Hadid and Kendall Jenner. The real star of Paris fashion week is a wise-cracking 94-year-old New Yorker.

“Someone once told me, ‘You are not pretty, and you never will be,’” Iris Apfel joked to reporters as she was whisked with the occasional aid of a wheelchair between a reception in her honour and yet another catwalk show.

“But it doesn’t matter. You have something else -- you have style.”

The flamboyant interior designer who was a fixture on front rows of Paris fashion shows for half a century is again the toast of the town.

Her very individual style is the subject an exhibition at the posh Parisian

department store, Le Bon Marche, and she is the star of a new advertising campaign for the carmaker Citroen, as well as the face of the Australian label Blue Illusion’s “Ageless” range.

A fashion institution immediately recognisable by her oversized owlish glasses, Apfel’s fame spread beyond the style pages after the success of Albert Maysles’ 2014 documentary about her, “Iris”.

It helped to turn her into what she calls a “geriatric starlet”, with everyone from Alexander Wang to rapper Kanye West declaring themselves fans of the world’s chicest nonagenarian best known for her love of baubles.

In a year when mature women have been a common sight on the Paris catwalk, dominating the Undercover and

Manish Arora shows, Apfel trailblazed for the much older woman.

- ‘She’s an inspiration’ -”She represents the epitome of style and elegance.

She’s perfection,” American model Leigh Lezark told a French TV channel after meeting her at the Dries Van Noten show.

The Belgian designer was equally effusive, telling her that he was “thinking about you” when he was creating his much-praised collection.

“She is a idol and an infinite source of inspiration for me,” he told Canal+.

“I want everyone to live like her with grace and style. She wears the most amazing things. And she never wears the same thing twice.”

Never one to shy away from colour or unconventional silhouettes, Apfel

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UK terror chief warns IS targeting ‘Western lifestyle’ ritain’s most senior counter-terrorism police officer warned on Monday of the risk of further “spectacular” attacks by the Islamic State group as it trains its sights on “Western lifestyle” targets.

Iris Apfel, pictured on December 3, 2014, is the subject an exhibition at the posh Parisian department store, Le Bon Marche, and she is the star of a new advertising campaign for the carmaker Citroen. © Getty/AFP/File / by Fiachra Gibbons.

FRIDAY, March 11, 2016

Instead she told them to “dare to be different. Be yourselves, be individual.

“If you wear something and it doesn’t work, don’t worry,” she quipped, “the style police are not going to arrest you.”

Museums have been falling over themselves for years to get their hands on the huge collection of couture Apfel has amassed over nearly seven decades, filling two floors of her Park Avenue apartment with work by the great designers of the 20th century.

New York’s Metropolitan Museum staged the first major retrospective of her wardrobe in 2005, with Apfel admitting she was as likely to pick up interesting jewellery in a Harlem junkshop as in Tiffany’s.

The key to enjoying life, she said, was to never stop working. “I haven’t,” she told guests at a reception in her honour at the American embassy in Paris.

Rowley told reporters.

“Going from that narrow focus on police and military as symbols of the state to something much broader.

“And you see a terrorist group which has big ambitions for enormous and spectacular attacks, not just the types that we’ve seen foiled to date.”

Police have previously said they foiled seven plots between late 2014 and early 2016.

Across Britain, police made a record 339 arrests related to counter-terrorism in 2015, around half of which resulted in charges being brought.

Arrests in the past three years are 57 percent higher than in the previous three years.

Some 77 percent of arrests last year were British nationals, while 14 percent were female and 13 percent were aged 20 and under -- a new trend that reflects specific targeting by IS group jihadists of vulnerable groups on social media.

Britain has suffered only one fatal incident of international terrorism since the July 7, 2005 attacks on the London transport system that killed 52 people.

In 2013, two Muslim converts butchered soldier Lee Rigby near his London barracks in broad daylight.

Rowley said Britain had some advantages over other Western countries in fighting terrorism, notably its experience with dealing with paramilitary groups linked to the conflict in Northern Ireland and tough laws on gun control that made it difficult to obtain firearms.

The Metropolitan Police announced after the Paris attacks that it was training another 600 firearms officers, taking the total number to 2,800, out of a 31,000-strong force.

British authorities have since 2014 assessed the country’s threat from international terrorism to be severe, the fourth of five levels meaning an attack is highly likely.

Met adds modern jewel to famed New York art scene

by Jennie MATTHEW

ferent, more conceptual direction but artists are still asking exactly the same questions,” said Bayer.

N

ew York is adding to its glittering portfolio of art museums with a new gallery dedicated to modern and contemporary art -- The Met Breuer, which opens with a retrospective of a little known Indian artist.

The other exhibition is the first retrospective in a US museum of Indian artist Nasreen Mohamedi, looking back on her delicate, meditative art from the beginning of her career in the 1960s until her death in 1990.

The gallery is housed in the modernist icon that Hungarian-born Bauhaus architect Marcel Breuer built in 1966 on Madison Avenue for the Whitney Museum of American Art, which last year moved downtown to a spanking new site.

Born in Karachi, which is today in modern-day Pakistan, she grew up and worked in India, but remained obscure throughout her lifetime.

“It’s a giant step for us,” said Kiran Nadar, a prominent Indian art collector who owns several Mohamedi works in the exhibition and who six years ago opened the Kiran Nadar Museum of Art New Delhi.

When the Breuer opens to the public on March 18, it will become the third site for the famed Metropolitan Museum of Art -- the city’s most frequented museum. Last year it welcomed a record 6.3 million visitors to its Fifth Avenue address and Cloisters celebrating Medieval art in northern Manhattan.

“This is a masterpiece of mid-century architecture and we are going to be reactivating it with a new curatorial spirit,” Met director Thomas Campbell told reporters, calling it a “significant moment for the city.”

The project is the brainchild of billionaire philanthropist Leonard Lauder, the son of cosmetics legend Estee who has endowed the Met with millions of dollars to further its modern and contemporary art and scholarship.

His gifts plug a gap in the Met’s otherwise rich 5,000 year history of art, even if America’s cultural capital is already heaving with contemporary and modern art. Besides the Whitney and a host of smaller galleries, the Museum of Modern Art and the Guggenheim have some of the finest collections in the world.

The Met says the Breuer will compliment, rather than compete with, what’s already on offer by linking the present to its almost unparalleled his-

“Indian art is perceived as very figurative, so to see abstraction in the purest sense coming out of India is going to be an eye opener for people here,” she added. “I think it’s going to start a new recognition of Indian art.”

Vijay Iyer (L) and Mark Turner perform for members of the media as they get a look at the Met Breuer, The Metropolitan Museum of Art’s new space dedicated to modern and contemporary art in New York (AFP Photo/Don Emmert ). torical archives.

unfinished.

ment of European paintings.

“What our peers do is show modern and contemporary art in the context of the modern and contemporary.

What the Met does, uniquely, is that we have the historical traditions that modern and contemporary artists are either embracing or reacting against,” said Campbell. It’s “a different experience,” he added.

Nearly 40 percent of the works come from the Met’s own collection and the rest is on loan from more than 100 lenders, including a Vincent van Gogh canvas from Helsinki and a Titian from the Czech Republic.

The exhibition, which unites greats such as Rembrandt, Turner and Cezanne with abstract artists such as Jackson Pollock, draws keen parallels between the Old Masters, and the modern and contemporary world.

- Eye opener -”I think people will come away from this exhibition very stimulated by the idea that they have been immersed in the world of making art,” said Andrea Bayer, curator in the depart-

“They sometimes go off in a dif-

That history is on display in one of two inaugural exhibitions: “Unfinished: Thoughts Left Visible” which showcases more than 190 works from the Renaissance to the present that have been seemingly or deliberately

Interest in Indian art is on the rise in the West. Mohamedi’s work has been shown before in the States. Last winter, the Guggenheim mounted a retrospective of Indian modernist V.S. Gaitonde. Other artists have been shown in Europe.

Brinda Kumar, a research assistant at the Met, said there was a need to embrace movements of modernism beyond the Western canon.

“I think exhibitions like this really help in doing that,” she told AFP. “I think people are curious to know, ‘well what was going on there? What is going on there?’”

HEALTH, SC & TECH

VOICE OF ASIA 12

FRIDAY, March 11, 2016

Foreign patients turn to India in search of cut-price cures cially unfeasible -- Gilead paid $11 billion to buy the developer of Sovaldi in 2012.

by Emily Ford When doctors told Australian Greg Jefferys he had Hepatitis C and the disease was destroying his liver, the devastating diagnosis was compounded by the cost of a cure.

But after losing several highprofile patent battles, it appears drugmakers can do little to combat the Indian government’s will or that of overseas patients determined to import drugs.

Unable to afford Sovaldi, hailed as a miracle drug, the 61-year-old flew to India, one of a growing army of patients seeking out low-cost, life-saving medicines on the subcontinent.

Gilead spokesman Nick Francis told AFP the company was “aware such activity may occur”.

Perhaps the riskiest route is online pharmacies -- a search on e-marketplace IndiaMart turns up dozens claiming to sell generics -- with no guarantee against counterfeits.

Their illnesses vary -- Hepatitis C, cancer and HIV are among the most common -- but they are almost always desperate, seeing in India their only hope to save their life or that of a loved one.

They contact underground “buyers clubs”, make the trip to India to buy from a legitimate distributor or seek out shady online pharmacies promising mail-order cures.

“The doctors told me ‘you’ve got Hepatitis C, you’ve probably got liver cancer’,” recalled Jefferys, a PhD student.

“The chatter was around the new generic versions of Sovaldi being released in India. I hopped on a plane to Chennai and in about two days I had an appointment with a specialist,” he said.

India earned a nickname as “the pharmacy to the developing world” for its tough stance on patents.

Successive governments have taken a view that patents should be granted only for major innovations, not updates to existing compounds -- allowing domestic manufacturers to make generic versions of drugs at vastly lower cost.

Sovaldi, chemically known as sofosbuvir, is made by US pharmaceutical giant Gilead and costs $84,000 for a 12week cycle of treatment in the United States.

Rejected for a patent in India, generic drug makers, some licensed by Gilead, produce versions such as Mylan’s MyHep, that cost less than $900 a cycle.

“This is something I observe more and more,” said

A growing army of patients are seeking out low-cost, life-saving medicines in India (AFP Photo/ Prakash Singh).

Leena Menghaney, who runs Medecins Sans Frontieres’ Access Campaign in India, which works to broaden access to drugs.

“All kinds of people and patients across the world are starting to access medicines from India. They travel themselves, or they contact a friend,” she said.

More than 130 million people live with chronic Hepatitis C worldwide, according to the World Health Organization, and 500,000 die each year from related liver diseases.

Since writing a blog, Jefferys receives 150 emails a day from people in the US, Britain and elsewhere asking for help.

“India’s production of these generic Hep. C drugs is saving thousands of lives a week.”

- ‘Delhi buyers club’ - When Loon Gangte, a Delhi-based HIV activist was diagnosed with the virus in 1997, the price of treatment was far beyond his reach.

customs, and fined. Most countries allow patients to import small amounts of medicines only for personal use.

Campaigning by activists like Gangte for better access to HIV treatments helped give rise to so-called buyers clubs, made famous by the 2013 Hollywood film.

“When I saw Dallas Buyers Club, I laughed,” said Meera (not her real name) who helps one Delhi club by ferrying drugs illegally in her suitcase whenever she travels.

“I hate the term ‘drug tourism’. This is about saving lives.”

Dinesh (not his real name), a long-time HIV campaigner, began working full-time for the same buyers club in August, helping people obtain medicines for a nominal fee.

He is not sure how people find him -- he has no online presence -- but gets requests from as far afield as Austria and Indonesia.

But the advent of generic Indian anti-retrovirals saved his life -- and made the country a global centre for cheap, lifesaving HIV drugs.

“My family were a bit reluctant, there is always a grey area in this, but I fear only the one above. I feel completely that this is right.”

Gangte is open about carrying medicines overseas for others and says in a decade he has been stopped just once, at Thai

- Pharma battle -Pharmaceutical firms say India’s disregard for patents will stifle innovation or make drugs commer-

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But legal channels are springing up, including Delhi-based Ikris Pharma Network, set up in August 2014, which does not sell drugs but connects patients

to genuine distributors.

Founder Praveen Sikri receives 70 calls a day from people struggling to access drugs, including generic Veenat, for cancer.

“Either the drug is not available or it is very expensive,” Sikri said.

“We help the patient to get the product in a legalised manner.”

One recent email is from a young man in San Francisco whose grandad desperately needs medicine for a stomach tumour.

In India, one way or another, he will probably be able to find it.

“There are many, many people doing this,” Sikri said.

When it’s warm in Texas, snakes are on the move, said Texas A&M expert Texas A&M University COLLEGE STATION, March 1, 2016 –When it’s warm in Texas that means people should watch out for snakes. It’s the time of year when snakes slither away from their comfortable winter surroundings and are on the move. Dr. Jill Heatley, associate professor of veterinary medicine at the Texas A&M College of Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Sciences (CVM), said active snakes could mean bad news for people and their pets. Heatley and veterinarians in the Small Animal Hospital at the CVM are expecting to see an increase in snakebite cases.

“If you believe your pet has been bitten by a snake, you need to seek veterinary care and the doctor can determine what kind of treatment is necessary,” Heatley explains.

A snakebite on a human can be painful — and also expensive. It is not uncommon for a person bit by a venomous snake to have hospital bills up to $50,000. Hospital treatments can range from one day to several weeks, and include care for damaged tissues and antivenom treatments that can run into the thousands of dollars, according to Heatley.

Although snakes are found in most parts of the world — Ireland, Iceland and New Zealand are some of the few snake-free countries — only four types of snakes found in Texas are venomous: the coral snake, copperhead, rattlesnake and cottonmouth (also called water

moccasin).

“The thing to remember about snakes is that they generally want to be left alone,” Heatley says. “They are probably more afraid of you than you are of them.”

“Of the four types of venomous snakes in Texas, the coral, copperhead, and rattlesnake are almost never aggressive unless they are provoked,” Heatley adds. “The cottonmouth has been known to be a little on the aggressive side, so you should be a little more wary of it, especially if you are near a creek or lake where they are frequently seen.”

Heatley says an inquisitive pet could also be a snakebite victim. If bitten, a dog usually suffers the bite on its face or nose, while cats tend to be nicked on their paws.

“The area that has been bitten will usually begin to swell almost immediately, which is a tell-tale sign of a snake bite,” Heatley notes. Venom can spread quickly inside the animal, potentially resulting in kidney failure within 12 to 24 hours.

It is important to know that not all snakebites are the same.

“Sometimes an animal or person will get just a small amount of venom from a bite, and sometimes it’s much more,” Heatley says. “There is also such a thing as a ‘dry bite’ in which no venom is injected at all. Interestingly enough, larger snakes

tend to have lesser amounts of venom than smaller ones.”

Although many of us may be fearful of snakes, snakes do have a useful purpose — they control the rodent, lizard and even bug populations.

“One of the questions we often get in the veterinary hospital is, ‘How can you tell a venomous snake from a harmless one?’” Heatley said. “The answer is that it is difficult because there are numerous types of snakes that are not venomous that look very similar to a venomous one.” Heatley suggests looking for a triangular-shaped head in identifying poisonous snakes but does not encourage getting too close.

Another frequently asked question in the Small Animal Hospital is how to keep snakes away. Heatley explains that most chemicals tested to do this are also quite toxic to pets and people. “It is better to be mindful of our surroundings, especially in places with pets and children. Try to create an open habitat, which will be less attractive to snakes,” she says.

“When cleaning up brush and leaf piles, it’s a great idea to wear closed toed boots, heavy pants and garden gloves for protection against snake bites,” Heatley adds.

For more information, Heatley suggests the Texas Parks and Wildlife site at http://tpwd. texas.gov/education/resources/ texas-junior-naturalists/snakesalive.

Indian state launches search for mythical ‘resurrection’ herb

Himalayan state officials believe they can locate Sanjeevani Booti, used by the monkey god Hanuman to bring Lakshmana back to life in the Ramayana, with additional resources

by Andrew Marszal,

N

EW DELHI - An Indian state has stepped up its search for a mythological herb famous for its power to resurrect people from the dead.

Officials from the state of Uttarakhand believe that Sanjeevani Booti, a plant used by the monkey god Hanuman to bring Lakshmana back to life in the ancient text Ramayana, may lie hidden among the hundreds of indigenous herbs of the Himalayas.

“We strongly believe that the herb exists in Chamoli area of Uttarakhand, but we need funds and expertise to carry our research,” Surendra Singh Negi, the state’s minister for alternative medicine, told the Hindustan Times newspaper.

He said a formal application for resources to help hunt for the elusive herb would be sent to the central government shortly.

• ‘Cancer curing’ cow urine available in India

Hindu monkey god Hanuman is said to have used Sanjeevani Booti Photo: Alamy. of the 5,000-year-old discipline of Ayuverda use the name Sanjeevani, none exactly match the ancient texts’ descriptions of the plant, which some texts claim can glow in the dark.

Tests are being conducted at India’s National Botanical Research Institute on Selaginella Bryopteris, a plant traditionally used medicinally during extreme heat and to treat conditions such as jaundice.

The search for Sanjeevani Booti, which ancient texts say is found in a remote mountainous location, has fascinated Indian botanists for centuries.

Its ability to lie “dead” for months in time of drought before springing back to brightgreen life has led many to connect it to the mythical Sanjeevani.

While many medicines already offered by practitioners

In 2014, scientists in Kashmir claimed that a “wonder herb”

called Rhodiola had unique medicinal properties that could help soldiers adapt to the hostile, low oxygen environment, again prompting many to speculate that the quest for Sanjeevani had ended.

But focus on the Chamoli district of Uttarakhand increased after a team backed by Swami Ramdev, India’s most revered yoga guru, claimed to have spotted the plant in 2008.

Ayuverdic medicine, along with other ancient Indian medicine systems such as yoga and homoeopathy, is enjoying a renaissance under the country’s Hindu nationalist BJP government, which created a separate “Ayush” ministry in 2014.

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Game over? New AI challenge to human smarts

by Pascale MOLLARD / Mariëtte Le Roux ARIS - Every two years or so, computer speed and memory capacity doubles -- a headspinning pace that experts say could see machines become smarter than humans within decades.

P

This week, one test of how far Artificial Intelligence (AI) has come will happen in Seoul: a five-day battle between man and machine for supremacy in the 3,000-year-

the programme seemed to work “far more efficiently” than he thought at first, and “I may not beat AlphaGo by such a large margin”.

imagination”.

- Man vs Machine -Gameplaying is a crucial measure of AI progress -- it shows that a machine can execute a certain “intellectual” task better than the humans who created it.

For some, it means a world in which robots take care of our sick, fly and drive us around safely, stock our fridges, plan our holidays, and do hazardous jobs humans should not or will not do.

Key moments included IBM’s Deep Blue defeating chess Grandmaster Garry

For others, it evokes apocalyptic images in which hostile machines are in charge.

- Master or servant? -What if we manage to build a truly smart machine?

Anuraag Deepak, 6th grader at Sartartia Middle school in Sugar Land, TX. Student’s Name: Anuraag Deepak Parents’ Names: Latha Deepak & Deepak Balachandar School Name And Address: Sartartia Middle School, Sugar Land, TX Grade Level: 6th Grade he National Geographic Society, in their Press Release stated that Anuraag Deepak is one of the semifinalists eligible to compete in the 2016 Texas National Geographic State Bee,.

The contest will be held at Dallas, TX on Friday, April 1, 2016.

T

Further, it mentions that this is the second level of the National Geographic Bee competition, which is now in its 28 th year. School Bees were held in schools with fourth- through eighth-grade students throughout the state to determine each school champion. School champions then took an online qualifying test.

The National Geographic Society has invited up to 100 of

the top-scoring students in each of the 50 states, District of Columbia, Department of Defense Dependents Schools and U.S. territories to compete in the state Bees.

Each state champion will receive $100, the National Geographic book “The National Parks: An Illustrated History” and a medal, and will journey to Washington, D.C., to represent their state in the National Geographic Bee Championship at National Geographic Society headquarters, May 22-25, 2016.

The national champion will receive a $50,000 college scholarship and lifetime membership in the National Geographic Society. The national champion will also travel (along with one parent or guardian), all expenses paid, on a Lindblad expedition to Southeast Alaska aboard National Geographic Sea Lion, including Glacier Bay National Park, in recognition of the 100th anniversary of the National Park Service. Travel for the trip is provided by Lindblad Expeditions and National Geographic. Visit www.natgeobee. org for more information on the

Spend your Saturdays at HCC Weekend College

H

OUSTON [March 2, 2016] – Career, family, and finances.

For many people, those are the main obstacles to getting a higher education. But Houston Community College (HCC) has an affordable solution: the HCC Weekend College.

“The HCC Weekend College breaks away from the typical class schedule and provides busy working adults an excellent alternative to engage in a program of study experience focused on their success,” said Dr. Roberto Rodriguez, dean, Business Center of Excellence.

Designed for working adults who want a college degree, the HCC Weekend College offers students the opportunity to receive an Associate’s Degree in two years by attending school only on Saturdays. If you need college for job advancement or transfer to a four-year university, don’t just take a class, complete a program and earn a degree.

Here is what you need to know about the HCC Weekend

College:

Starts August 22, 2016 Eight-week sessions Two courses each session Hybrid format Financial Aid available Classes meet 9-12 & 1-4 (with hour break for lunch) Free tutoring available “We want to be sensitive to the working adult population,” said Dr. Cheryl Peters, executive director, HCC Weekend and Honors Colleges. “Our goal is to make the path to college completion more efficient in terms of time and money.”

The benefits of attending HCC Weekend College include: Small classes Personalized academic advising Degree completion in two years Networking opportunities Central location Free and convenient parking To learn more about the HCC Weekend College degrees and certificates, visit hccs.edu/ weekendcollege.

National Geographic Bee. The 2016 National Geographic Bee Championship final round, moderated for the first time by journalist and humorist Mo Rocca, will air on the National Geographic Channel and Nat Geo WILD on Friday, May 27, at 8 p.m. ET, and later on public television stations. Check local television listings for air date and time in your area.

How would you fare as a Bee contestant? At the school Bees this year, students had to answer such questions as: To fish in Lake Winnipesaukee [wi-neh-peh-SAW-kee] and ski near Franconia Notch, you would travel to which state— New Hampshire or South Dakota? New Hampshire Visitors to Biscayne National Park in Florida can go fishing and lobstering along the shore of which kind of habitat—mangrove or desert? Mangrove Sea kayakers can explore hundreds of islands off the Dalmatian coast of which European country south of Slovenia? Croatia For centuries, the Chinese emperors lived in seclusion in the Forbidden City, which is located within what present-day city? Beijing.

ABOUT THE NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC SOCIETY National Geographic is a global nonprofit membership organization driven by a passionate belief in the power of science, exploration and storytelling to change the world. We fund hundreds of research and conservation projects around the globe each year. With the support of our members and donors, we work to inspire, illuminate and teach through scientific expeditions, award-winning journalism, education initiatives and more. For more information, visit www.nationalgeographic. org.

Share your child’s success story with our readers all over the world! All articles printed in this Newsweekly will be posted Online: www. voiceofasiaonline. com

Lee Se-dol has for a decade held the world crown Go, a board game widely played for centuries in East Asia.

old Chinese board game Go. Said to be the most complex game ever designed, with an incomputable number of move options, Go requires human-like “intuition” to prevail.

“If the machine wins, it will be an important symbolic moment,” AI expert Jean-Gabriel Ganascia of the Pierre and Marie Curie University in Paris told AFP. “Until now, the game of Go has been problematic for computers as there are too many possible moves to develop an all-encompassing database of possibilities, as for chess.”

Go reputedly has more possible board configurations than there are atoms in the Universe.

Mastery of the game by a computer was thought to be at least a decade away until last October, when Google’s AlphaGo programme beat Europe’s human champion, Fan Hui. Google has now upped the stakes, and will put its machine through the ultimate wringer in a marathon match starting Wednesday against South Korean Lee Se-dol, who has held the world crown for a decade.

Initially confident of winning by 5-0, or 4-1 at worst, and taking home the $1 million (908,000 euro) prize money, Lee’s courage seemed to have started waning by Tuesday.

He told reporters in Seoul

Kasparov in 1997, and the Watson supercomputer outwitting humans in the TV quiz show Jeopardy in 2011.

But AlphaGo is different.

It is partly self-taught -- having played millions of games against itself after initial programming to hone its tactics through trial and error.

“AlphaGo is really more interesting than either Deep Blue or Watson, because the algorithms it uses are potentially more general-purpose,” said Nick Bostrom of Oxford University’s Future of Humanity Institute.

Creating “general” or multipurpose, rather than “narrow”, task-specific intelligence, is the ultimate goal in AI -something resembling human reasoning based on a variety of inputs, and self-learning from experience.

“So, if the machine can do new things when needed, then it has ‘true’ intelligence’,” Bostrom’s colleague Anders Sandberg told AFP. In the case of Go, Google developers realised a more “human-like” approach would win over brute computing power.

AlphaGo uses two sets of “deep neural networks” containing millions of connections similar to neurons in the brain.

It is able to predict a winner from each move, thus reducing the search base to manageable levels -- something co-creator David Silver has described as “more akin to

Physicist Stephen Hawking is among the leading voices of caution, warning last May that smart computers may out-smart and out-manipulate humans, one day “potentially subduing us with weapons we cannot even understand.”

For Sandberg, it will be up to us to build “values” into the operating system of intelligent computers.

There are more than 10 million robots in the world today, according to Bostrom -- everything from rescuers and surgical assistants, homecleaners, route-finders, lawnmowers and factory workers, even pets.

But while machines may beat us at Checkers or maths, some experts think robots may never rival humans in some aspects of “true” intelligence.

Things like “common sense” or humour may never be reproducible, said Ganascia.

“We can imagine that in the future, ever more tasks will be executed by machines better than by humans,” he said.

“But that does not mean that machines will be able to automate everything that our cognitive faculties allow us to do. In my view, this is a limitation that keeps the scientific discipline of AI in check.”

For Lee, it now seems “inevitable” that AI will ultimately defeat humans at Go. “But robots will never understand the beauty of the game the same way that we humans do,” he said.

VOICE OF ASIA 15

Section 2

FRIDAY, March 11, 2016

B ollywood M asala Bollywood Masala

Email: editor@voiceofasiaonline.com

Actor, politician Balakrishna forced to apologize for sexist comments

F

aced with outrage on social platforms for Telugu actor and Telugu Desam Party legislator Nandamuri Balakrishna’s sexist comments directed at his women colleagues, the TDP on Tuesday was forced to issue an apology of sorts.

The Hindupur MLA, also brother-in-law of AP Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu, was under fire from various political parties and women organisations for saying that his fans will be disappointed if he simply “ran behind actresses” and liked it when he “kissed a girl or made her pregnant.”.

“I have always tried to do different roles. If I simply run behind the actresses, my fans will be disappointed. They like it when I either kiss the girl or make her pregnant. I too act naughty with the actresses, I pinch them sometimes,” he reportedly said.

Balakrishna was speaking at the audio launch of the film Savitri on March 4.

Tel: 713-774-5140

The Kapil Sharma Show will have SRK as first guest, comedy Nights Flops

N Balakrishna

After a storm of criticism for the remarks, on Tuesday, a statement from TDP said: “Balakrishna regrets over his remarks and apologises if they hurt the feelings of any section. He made those remarks as part of fun (during the movie function) and did not aim at anyone. He also said that he inherited the culture of respecting women from his father NT Rama Rao.” A police complaint was lodged against the MLA by a section of lawyers for alleged-

ly passing “vulgar” comments against women at a movie audio release function.

“We have received a complaint against Balakrishna alleging that he made some vulgar comments against women at an audio release function for a movie held three days ago.

We are seeking legal opinion on the issue,” Saroornagar police inspector S Lingaiah said yesterday.

Meanwhile, Opposition YSR Congress party has demanded an apology from the CM and Balakrishna on the issue.

Matondkar’s Stunning Bridal Look

U

rmila Matondkar is the latest actress to get hitched in B-town. The Rangeela (1995) girl tied the knot with Kashmiri businessman and model Mohsin Akhtar Mir on 3 March, 2016 in a quiet wedding.

The actress looked stunning in a red embroidered Manish Malhotra lehenga and traditional heavy jewellery complemented by the green bangles customarily worn

by Maharashtrian brides.

Kapil Sharma and Shah Rukh Khan.

M

UMBAI - Shah Rukh and Kapil apparently have big plans for the inaugural episode of Kapil’s new show.

Says a source, “SRK will be there to promote his new film Fan. But it won’t be a simple promotional episode.

Shah Rukh will be presented on the show in a completely different light.One thing Kapil won’t do is take potshots at Comedy Nights. In fact there will be mention of Kapil’s earlier show

The show seems to be hitting rock-bottom with a discernible scarcity of star-guests. Last week there a bunch of television actors from Colors’ soaps trying to raise laughter with host Krushna Abhishek by doing the naagindance and other listless antics. This week a bunch of singers including Himesh Reshammiya and Sunidhi Chauhanshowed up.

Says a source in the know,

“Comedy Nights has suffered a serious setback after Kapil Sharma’s departure. KrushnaAbhishek is doing the same thing on both the show on Saturday and Sunday. Last week the starlet Adaa who is a regular stand-up comedian on Comedy Bachao on Saturday showed up as Krushna Abhishek’s guest on Comedy Nights the next night.

The show is rapidly losing its spark.”

So guess who’s having the last laugh?

Priyanka, Irrfan to lend voice for ‘Jungle Book’ Hindi version

M

UMBAI, Mar 7 (PTI) Bollywood stars Priyanka Chopra, Irrfan Khan Nana Patekar, Om Puri and Shefali Shah are set to lend their voice for the Hindi version of Disney’s upcoming American liveaction epic release “The Jungle Book”.

The original film is a re-imagining of Walt Disney’s 1967 animated movie of the same name and stars Indian-American actor Neel Sethi as Mowgli.

Bollywood star Urmila Matondkar

at all.”

It features the voice talents of Bill Murray, Ben Kingsley, Idris Elba, Lupita Nyong’o, Scarlett Johansson, Giancarlo Esposito and Christopher Walken.

In the Hindi version, Priyanka will voice Kaa, the python, which has been voiced by Johansson in the international film.

Irrfan will lend his voice to the friendly bear Baloo, while “Dil Dhadakne Do” actress Shefali Shah will dub for Raksha, the wolf.

Veteran actor Puri, who has been often honored for his performances in India and abroad, will lend his voice to Bagheera, the Black Panther.

The Studio has also approached powerful performer Nana Patekar, who recently wowed critics and audience with his riveting performance in Marathi film “Natsamrat”, to once again lend his voice to Shere Khan.

Back in the early 90s, Nana had dubbed for the fearsome tiger in the animated series, “Jungle Book: The Adventures of Mowgli” that was aired on Doordarshan.

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“The Jungle Book is so very special to India, and we want our audience enjoy Disney’s all-new live-action adaptation.

We wanted nothing but the best for the Hindi version of the film.

“We are so excited to have such veterans and A list actors come together to voice and bring alive these beloved characters making it like a hi scale Hindi film,” said Amrita Pandey, Vice-President - Studios, Disney India.

“The Jungle Book” has been directed by “Iron Man” helmer Jon Favreau, and inspired by Rudy Kipling s adventure stories based in India and Disney’s animated version.

The Indian audience will get to watch the movie on April 8, a week before US release.

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VOICE OF ASIA 16

FRIDAY, March 11, 2016

HEALTHY LIVING VOICE OF ASIA

Section 2

Email: voiceasia@aol.com

Eating peanuts helps infants avoid allergy, even after pause

by Kerry SHERIDAN

F

eeding infants small amounts of mashed-up peanuts early in life may help them avoid developing allergies, even if they stop eating peanuts for a year in early childhood, researchers said Friday.

The findings in the New England Journal of Medicine have prompted global health authorities to reconsider long-held advice that babies should avoid certain foods, amid a rise in potentially fatal peanut allergies among youths in recent years.

“The early introduction of peanut to the diets of infants at high-risk of developing peanut allergy significantly reduces the risk of peanut allergy until six years of age, even if they stop eating peanut around the age of five,” said the study, led by King’s College London.

The findings offer a follow-up to groundbreaking results announced last year from a study known as the Learning Early About Peanut Allergy (LEAP) trial, which included more than 600 children.

It found that high-risk babies who ate peanuts by age 11 months experienced a substantially lower rate of peanut allergy by age five than infants who avoided peanuts.

The latest study, called LEAP-On, includes evidence gleaned from following 550 children age five to six,

some of whom stopped eating peanuts, while others carried on.

A halt for a year resulted in “no statistically significant increase in allergy,” said the study, noting that three youths who ate peanuts and three who avoided peanuts developed allergies between age five and six.

“Overall, the study saw a 74 percent relative reduction in the prevalence of peanut allergy in those who consumed peanut compared to those who avoided.”

Peanut allergy was far more common (18.6 percent) in children who avoided peanuts during the trial, than those who ate peanuts (4.8 percent).

- Calls for change -The LEAP research has led to calls for change in feeding recommendations for babies.

Until now officials have urged parents to avoid giving nuts to infants and toddlers -- particularly those with other conditions such as eczema -- until the age of two or three.

One in 13 children in the United States (eight percent) suffers from a food allergy, and the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has said food allergies among children rose about 50 percent from 1997 to 2011, for reasons that are unclear.

Peanut allergies affect as many as one in 50 children in Britain, and are a growing concern in parts of Africa and

Q and A about Health Care Information Forms for Individuals ...Continued

Asia as well.

The US National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Diseases on Friday asked for public comments by April 18 to help craft new US guidelines to address the prevention of peanut allergy.

“In the past we had recommended that complete avoidance was best but clearly now, that paradigm has to change,” said Punita Ponda, assistant chief in the Division of Allergy and Immunology at Northwell Health in Great Neck, New York.

“We are just beginning to have reports from studies like this one that give allergists some scientifically grounded data to use when they make recommendations,” added Ponda, who was not involved in the study.

Experts agree that many questions remain to be answered before parents can know how to adjust their children’s feeding habits to match the latest science, and that a doctor’s advice should be sought in the meantime.

“For instance, what are the correct amounts of foods needed to induce tolerance, and what is the age where it is too late to induce tolerance?” said Barry Kay, emeritus professor of allergy and clinical immunology at Imperial College London.

“So, don’t try this at home yet,” he added.

More evidence that aspirin lowers risk of cancer: study

by Kerry SHERIDAN

M

IAMI - People who take aspirin regularly have a significantly lower risk of cancer, particularly involving the colon and gastrointestinal tract, according to US research published on Thursday.

The findings in the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) Oncology suggest that aspirin use should complement -- not replace -- already established preventive screening measures such as colonoscopies.

“We now can recommend that many individuals consider taking aspirin to reduce their risk of colorectal cancer -- particularly those with other reasons for regular use, such as heart disease prevention,” said senior author Andrew Chan of the Massachusetts General Hospital.

“Our findings imply that aspirin use would be expected to prevent a significant number of colorectal cancers above and beyond those that would be prevented by screening and may have even greater benefit in settings in which the resources to devote to cancer screening are lacking.”

Previous research has shown that regular aspirin use can help prevent colorectal cancer.

However, the wider effect of aspirin on all cancers was less clear.

So the researchers looked at 32 years worth of data from nearly 136,000 nurses and health professionals who answered health surveys.

People who took either a regular aspirin or a low-dose aspirin at least twice per week showed a three percent lower risk of any type of cancer than those who did not report regular as- Photo: AFP pirin use.

The protective benefit of aspirin “appeared after five years of continuous use at dosages ranging from 0.5 to 1.5 standard tablets a week or one low-dose tablet a day,” said the study.

However, when researchers looked specifically at common cancers such as breast, lung and prostate cancer, they found no risk reduction from aspirin use.

Aspirin use reduced the risk of colorectal cancer by 19 percent and the risk of any gastrointestinal cancer by 15 percent.

The research was based on observational studies, so it is not as strong as a randomized controlled trial.

Regular aspirin use “could prevent close to 30,000 gastrointestinal tract tumors in the US each year,” said the study.

The team also calculated that aspirin use could “prevent an additional 7,500 colorectal tumors among US adults over 50 who have endoscopic screening and 9,800 among the almost 30 million who are not screened.”

Aspirin also carries certain risks, such as bleeding and stroke, and cannot be tolerated by everyone.

The US Preventive Services Task Force recommends aspirin to prevent colorectal cancer and cardiovascular disease among many US adults.

According to Ernest Hawk of the University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, the study “is important because it suggests that aspirin use may complement colorectal cancer screening,” he wrote in an accompanying editorial.

Aspirin also “may have an absolute benefit regardless” of whether patients have been screened by traditional methods, “a critical insight that few other studies have provided thus far,” added Hawk, who was not involved in the study.

Primary Care Physician

Our current hours are Monday thru Friday 8am till 5pm.

Tel: 713-774-5140

11. How are the forms different?

• The forms are provided by different entities.

- Form 1095-A, Health Insurance Marketplace Statement, is provided by the Marketplace to individuals who enrolled or who have enrolled a family member in health coverage through the Marketplace.

- Form 1095-B, Health Coverage, is provided by insurance companies and other coverage providers. However, if your coverage was insurance purchased through the Marketplace or was a type of coverage referred to as “self-insured coverage” that was provided by an applicable large employer, you will receive a different form.

- Form 1095-C, EmployerProvided Health Insurance Offer and Coverage, is issued by applicable large employers to their full-time employees and, in some cases, to other employees.

• The forms are provided to different groups of people.

• Form 1095-A - Only individuals who enroll in coverage through the Marketplace will get this form.

• Form 1095-B – Individuals who have health coverage outside of the Marketplace will get this form (except for employees of applicable large employers that provide selfinsured coverage, who will receive Form 1095-C instead).

• Form 1095-C - Individuals who work full-time for applicable large employers will get this form.

Also, part-time employees also will get this form if they enroll in selfinsured coverage provided by an applicable large employer.

• The forms contain some different information. Form 1095-A, Form 1095-B, and some Forms 1095-C show who in your family enrolled in health coverage and for what months.

Form 1095-A also provides premium information and other information you will need to reconcile advance payments of premium tax credit and claim the premium tax credit on Form 8962. And Form 1095-C shows coverage that your employer offered to you even if you chose not to take that coverage.

12. What do I need to do with these forms?

• You will use the information on these forms to verify that you, your spouse and any dependents had coverage for each month during the year.

• Like last year, if you and your family members had minimum essential coverage for every month of the year, you will check a box on your return to report that coverage. If you or any family members did not have coverage for the entire year, a coverage exemption may apply for the months without coverage. If you or any family members did not have coverage or an exemption, you may have to make an individual shared responsibility payment.

• If you or anyone in your family receives a Form 1095-A from the Marketplace, you will use the information on the form to complete a Form 8962 to reconcile any advance payments of the premium tax credit or to claim the premium tax credit.

• Do not file these forms with your tax return. Keep them in your records with your other important tax documents.

13. What should I do if: • I have a question about the form I received, • I think I should have gotten a form but did not get it, • I need a replacement form, or • I believe the form I received has an error?

In any of these situations, you should contact the provider of the form (or the entity that you think should have provided you a form, if you think you should have gotten a form but did not get it):

Sudhir Mathuria

Contact: Sudhir Mathuria Licensed Professional Health Life 360 6650 Southwest Freeway Houston TX 77074 713-771-2900 www.MyMedicarePlanning.com • For questions about the Form 1095-A, contact the Marketplace.

• For questions about the Form 1095-B, contact the coverage provider (see line 18 of the Form 1095-B for a contact telephone number).

• For questions about the Form 1095-C, contact your employer (see line 10 of Form 1095-C for a contact telephone number).

How the Forms Relate to Your Tax Return 14. Can I file my tax return if I have not received any or all of these forms?

If you enrolled in coverage through the Marketplace you will need the information on Form 1095-A to complete Form 8962 to reconcile any advance payments of the premium tax credit or claim the premium tax credit, and to file a complete and accurate tax return. If you need a copy of your Form 1095-A, you should go to HealthCare.gov or your state Marketplace website and log into your Marketplace account, or call your Marketplace call center. Although information from the Form 1095-C – information about an offer of employer provided coverage - can assist you in determining eligibility for the premium tax credit, it is not necessary to have Form 1095-C to file your return. See Publication 974 for additional information on claiming the premium tax credit.

You do not have to wait for either Form 1095-B or 1095-C from your coverage provider or employer to file your individual income tax return. You can use other forms of documentation, in lieu of the Form 1095 information returns to prepare your tax return. Other forms of documentation that would provide proof of your insurance coverage include: • insurance cards, • explanation of benefits • statements from your insurer, • W-2 or payroll statements reflecting health insurance deductions, • records of advance payments of the premium tax credit and • other statements indicating that you, or a member of your family, had health care coverage.

If you and your entire family were covered for the entire year, you may check the full-year coverage box on your return. If you or your family members did not have coverage for one or more months of the calendar year, you may claim an exemption or make an individual shared responsibility payment.

You will not need to send the IRS proof of your health coverage. However, you should keep any documentation with your other tax records. This includes records of your family’s employer-provided coverage, premiums paid, and type of coverage. More next week.

For Health, Life and Retirement Planning contact Sudhir Mathuria @ 713-771-2900.

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VOICE OF ASIA 17

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FRIDAY, March 11, 2016

Business VOICE OF ASIA

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Indian Accent opens first Oil strength lifts Dow; tech restaurant in US in New York shares lag

N

EW YORK: Indian Accent, voted India’s best restaurant for two years in a row, has opened its first international location here offering inventive Indian cuisine that combines global ingredients and techniques with authentic Indian flavours.

The restaurant founded by renowned restaurateur Rohit Khattar and helmed by celebrated Chef Manish Mehrotra, has been receiving rave reviews ever since it opened late last month and has already hosted Oscar-winning composer r A R Rahman among its early diners.

none have been as exciting and promising as New York City. We have just opened and hope that New York too shall embrace our inventive Indian cuisine,” said Khattar, Chairman of Old World Hospitality, which operates two convention and performing arts centres and two hotels in the NCR region and over 40 restaurants across India.

Khattar told PTI that he along with Mehrotra worked for several months to design a menu that caters to the international diner in New York City but at the same time has the rich flavours of cuisine from all corners of India.

“We have been evaluating multiple opportunities to open another Indian Accent, but

The 60-seat modern Indian restaurant in midtown Manhattan is fast becoming a

preferred destination for fine dining in New York City and Rahman was among the early celebrated diners at the new international location, Khattar said.

A team of chefs from the original Indian Accent are assisting Mehrotra in the kitchen in New York as the restaurant establishes a foothold in the city’s competitive fine dining market.

“It’s a great time for modern Indian food, both in India and overseas. We are delighted with the way our beautiful interiors have shaped up and excited that our food is being appreciated so much in New York,” Mehrotra, who is Corporate Chef Luxury Dining at Old World Hospitality, said.

N

EW YORK, AFP - A big surge in oil prices pushed petroleum stocks higher Monday, while the Nasdaq dropped on weakness in Facebook and some other major tech names.

The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 67.18 points (0.40 percent) to 17,073.95.

The broad-based S&P 500 added 1.77 (0.09 percent) at 2,001.76, while the techrich Nasdaq Composite Index dipped 8.77 (0.19 percent) to 4,708.25.

Dow members ExxonMobil and Chevron jumped 2.6 percent and 3.1 percent, respectively, following a 5.5 percent jump in oil prices, as the pe-

Google opens access to mobile phone service Project Fi

S

AN FRANCISCO, Google on Monday opened its Project Fi mobile phone service to anyone in the United States using its latest model Nexus smartphones.

The public launch of Project Fi marked the end of a 10-month, invitation-only test phase and comes as the Internet giant’s first foray in being a mobile phone service provider.

“We’re excited to be exiting our invitation-only mode and opening up Project Fi so that people across the US can now sign up for service without

having to wait in-line for an invite,” product manager Simon Arscott said in a blog post.

“With Project Fi, we deliver fast wireless service with the flexibility to use it where you want -- even internationally -and a monthly bill that’s simple and easy to understand.”

Project Fi is only available for Nexus 6P, Nexus 5X, and Nexus 6 smartphones from Google and work with a special SIM card that supports connections to multiple cellular networks.

Project Fi enabled smartphones can link to one of two

Other commodity-linked companies also gained, including Dow member Caterpillar, up 2.7 percent, United States Steel, up 4.6 percent, and aluminum producer Alcoa, up 4.9 percent.

But Facebook dropped 2.5 percent, Netflix 6.0 percent and Google parent Alphabet and Amazon both 2.2 percent, as investors rotated into commodity investments from stocks that have outperformed, said Michael James, managing director of equity trading at Wedbush Securities.

“We continue to be in a market of rotation,” James said.

“Things that have performed well that are overowned are being sold, or trimmed.”

Apple lost 1.1 percent after the US Supreme Court upheld lower-court rulings that it was part of a price-fixing conspir-

4G LTE networks or to Wi-Fi, automatically selecting optimal connections and switching from one to another without interrupting service, according to Google.

$20 monthly for unlimited domestic voice calls as well as unlimited domestic and international text messaging. Fi boasts cellular coverage in more than 120 countries.

“As you go about your day, Project Fi automatically connects you to more than a million free, open Wi-Fi hotspots we’ve verified as fast and reliable,” Google said in a blog post.

Data service costs $10 per gigabyte, with people only charged for what they use.

“Once you’re connected, we help secure your data through encryption.”

The move by Google is seen as a way to lure consumers away from Apple and promote Google-branded Android phones with an a low-cost mobile plan.

Basic Project Fi plans cost

troleum market continued to strengthen on hopes of a deal by producers to limit output.

Google promoted Fi service with discounted prices on Nexus 5X smartphones.

FREE

acy for electronic books. The court’s decision clears the way for a $450 million settlement to be paid by Apple.

Dow member DuPont rose 2.4 percent following a report that German chemical company BASF is considering a counterbid for the US company, potentially overtaking DuPont’s planned merger with Dow Chemical. Dow lost 1.1 percent.

Furniture and home-furnishings retailer Pier 1 Imports jumped 29.2 percent after announcing that it expects fourthquarter comparable sells dipped 0.7 percent, better than the prior projection of a decline of between two and four percent.

Valeant Pharmaceuticals rose 7.1 percent after announcing it will release fourth-quarter earnings on March 15. Valeant previously withdrew its financial forecast amid an internal review of its accounting practices and said it was under investigation by US regulators.

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HOROSCOPE

VOICE OF ASIA 18

FRIDAY, March 11, 2016

Your Horoscope for the Week of March 11, 2016 READ YOUR COMPLETE HOROSCOPE

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

ONLINE WWW.VOICEOFASIAONLINE.COM

Libra (R,T) 23 Sept to 22 Oct

Aries (A,L,E) 21 March to 20 April This time, Your need patience & understanding. Use these valuable virtues to get you through others’ moods. Those around you may start the week with enthusiasm, then lose their way in the process. You can get others to do things for you if you use your charm. Dealing with “wishy-washy” people may test your patience. Try to keep your workload to a normal level, no more long hours. You need your rest, even if you see yourself as too tough to quit.

The intuitive and psychic perceptions you receive from many sources. An intense conversation could be important to you. Re evaluate your past, try to bring out your best qualities, set aside your insecurities. Communications & understanding will increase greatly. Plan outings with family or friends with fun filled conversation. Your knowledge & good sense will help more than you expect. Competition could help your team, especially if you approach it in a positive manner.

Scorpio (N,Y) 23 Oct to 21 Nov

Taurus (B,V,U) 21 April to 20 May The flow of energy will be different, it will be cheerful due to good news you will get either for yourself or your family members. A new Partnerships or engagement possibilities. This is not just about romance; it can also be about friendship and professional partnership. Your involvement with family situation could prove to be very interesting.

You may want to watch what you say, though. Your words could be misinterpreted. Your intuitive insights and healing energies can be used positively to help others.

New dynamic cycle of change that is about ready to begin. Unpredictable events may disrupt your routine greatly. You may find it hard to get a clear response from a co-worker, mate. You need the information & you need it now, but somehow it may not be forthcoming. Try asking again, with finer delicacy. It may just be that, there’s more here than meets the eye. An act of kindness or gesture of caring can melt the resistance and get you what you want.

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

Gemini (K,CHH,GH) 21 May to 20 June Growth in your emotional stability. You don’t have to accept whatever comes your way, but neither should you reject innovation as a matter of course. You may also have the gift of being able to push others in the direction you want them to go. You understand how to use the energy of the team, and this enables you to stretch a dollar with great success. Take some time out to do things with children. You may just find they really need more than you imagined.

The information that you’ve been seeking for weeks may come to you now, but it still A sense of getting yourself organized. Your life has been far too busy lately. Try not to sweep your problems under the rug. Expect disagreements with your partner if financial irresponsibility has left you in a tight spot. The key might be to set limitations on each other’s spending habits. Perhaps you were supposed to take care of this situation long time ago. Slow down and deal with it now. Then you’ll get this problem behind you forever.

Capricorn (KH,J) 22 Dec to 20 Jan

Cancer (D,H) 21 June to 22 July You are ready to take on difficult tasks. Your job may demand that you pay attention to every detail. You prefer to deal with the big picture. A close friend or partner could get on your nerves now. They may be worried about a minor matter that frustrates you.

Don’t allow your emotions to make decisions for you. It may cause trouble to control your actions or re-actions. Your emotional well-being will depend on how well you deal with a recent family situation.

You may feel sleeping disorders, although it’s temporary, try to listen peaceful music in the night, it will surely help you out. You will be ruled by Responsibilities & getting back to basics issues. You need to have a conversation with one who wants to hang on to your generous hospitality, forever. Some uncertainty may cause you to take time to make decisions. Your ability to work through complex situations can come in very handy. You need to eliminate distractions and get straight to the heart of the matter.

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

Leo (M) 23 July to 22 August You may face some Stressful domestic & personal affairs. Spend time by yourself if at all possible. Your usual cool may not be evident and your emotions could be extreme. Erratic behavior may cause isolation. Allow others to do their own thing. When communicating with children, try to put yourself in their position. It’ll help you take a fresher perspective on the whole situation. You’ll experience a growing awareness of who you are and what you need.

You will need to have different approach like…. Partnerships, teamwork & working towards your mutual goals. You know it is impossible to accomplish anything if you try to do it alone. Bring your leadership qualities to the surface & help organize your mutual efforts. Arguments with family or friends may really set you off. Try hard not to instigate unnecessary friction with anyone. It would be best for you to stay put & avoid conversations that are controversial to start with.

Pisces (D,CH,Z) 20 Feb to 20 March

Virgo (P) 23 August to 22 September Emotions, psychic powers & your ability to use your visions to see in the past events.

You may be able to see & analyze much more than the rest of us. You’ll be able to tap into this part of your psyche with little effort. Your perspective will allow you to notice the big patterns that often may be lost in the shuffle of day-to-day life. Children & loved ones may be on your mind more. Try to get more involved in organizations that help children who are experiencing difficulties.

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Promises of business or financial opportunities. You may encounter problems with authority figures that could lead to confinement or delays. Your imagination can help you come up with some high profit ideas. Even you still have things to learn. Taking part in a class or workshop is one way to help this happen. Make sure all of your personal papers & data are in order. Pay close attention to detail & don’t put serious issues on the back-burner. If you see the challenge as a puzzle, you’ll be able to put the pieces together.

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VOICE OF ASIA 19

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Promotions Intern KTRK-TV, the ABC Owned station located in Houston, TX is accepting applications for a paid PROMOTIONS INTERN for the upcoming semester. Internships are available to currently enrolled undergraduate college students in their junior or senior year pursuing careers in the television/media field and must receive college credit for the internship. The internship program is designed to provide students with an on-site educational experience that complements their academic studies. Interns will have an opportunity to observe and participate in the daily work and operations of a major market, television station. As a promotions intern, you will have the opportunity to learn how to write, shoot, produce and edit news and programming

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Visit us online www.

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promotions as well as create digital ads, social videos, and original content that keeps audiences engaged in our local news products. The ideal candidate will be a team player with a strong interest in local news branding and promotion, journalism, and digital marketing trends. Non-linear editing knowledge and a thorough understanding and enjoyment of social media platforms are a tremendous plus. To be considered interested applicants must apply online at www.disneycareers.com, Job Req #345381BR. Please upload a cover letter, your resume outlining other internships, degrees earned, work experience, related clubs and

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FRIDAY, March 11, 2016