Voice of Asia Jan 30 2015

VOICE OF ASIA 1

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VOICE OF ASIA

FRIDAY, January 30, 2015

Over 26 years of dedicated service to the community

Vol. 28 No. 5 Friday, January 30, 2015 • Published Weekly from Houston • 713-774-5140 20 Pages ( 2 sections) 50 cents E-mail: editor@voiceofasiaonline.com

India’s 66th Republic Day celebrations in Houston Consul General of India, Houston Parvathaneni Harish unfurls tricolor, hosts reception to Mayor Parker and community members

L-R: Consul General of India, Houston Parvataneni Harish presents Houston’s Mayor, Annise Parker with a pen drive (with information on India to aid her in her upcoming trade delegation trip to India in April) as Mrs. Nandita Parvathaneni and First Lady Kathy Hubbard look on. Photo taken at India’s 66th Republic Day reception on Jan. 26th, 2015. Photo credit Bijay Dixit.

by Shobana Muratee OUSTON – This year’s Indian Republic Day was historical, both for India and the US as it was for the first time in history that the US President was invited to be the Chief Guest at the Republic Day Parade in India. On morning of Monday, January 26th, members of the Indian community, elected officials and friends of India gathered in the front lawns of Consul General Hon. Harish Parvathaneni’s residence in Houston to pay tribute to India’s 66th Republic Day by honoring the flag hosting ceremony. The bright winter sun shone in the eyes as everyone looked up at the tricolor being hoisted by the Consul General accompanied by wife Nandita Parvathaneni and Chief Guest Congressman Pete Olson (R-TX 22nd District), members of the Indian Consulate Office and guests who together sang the Indian National Anthem. As part of the tradition, the Consul General delivered the President of India’s address to the people of India on the eve of the Republic Day of India

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2015. (The speech in its entirety is on page 2).

Congressman Pete Olson was outstandingly gracious to be present at the event when he was to leave in two hours to attend the Congress session in Washington. In his message, he spoke highly of the Consul General calling him a great friend of Houston and America and also said that every single person here wants a more strong and viable relationship between India and America and “that is exciting and special.” He left with a positive note saying, “In 2016, a year from now, we will find America natural gas will leave this country on a ship to arrive in India and sometime next year with your help we will have big Diwali celebration on Capitol Hill.” Consul General, honored him with a shawl and in turn Olson presented him with a picture of himself presenting Prime Minister Narendra Modi with a cowboy hat when he visited American in September last year. Other dignitaries that were present

that morning were Mr. Robert Quarles, Office of Congressman Olson, Mr. Jay Guerrero, Office of Senator John Cornyn.

Continued on page 8

S Jaishankar appointed new Foreign Secretary

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EW DELHI: The Narendra Modi government Wednesday appointed India’s envoy in the US, S. Jaishankar, as the new foreign secretary, replacing incumbent Sujatha Singh six months before her term was to end.

The sudden appointment has echoes of the sudden replacement of India’s then foreign secretary A.P. Venkateswaran by then prime minister Rajiv Gandhi in January 1987.

The appointments committee of the Cabinet, in a decision taken Wednesday, decided to “curtail the tenure” of the incumbent Sujatha Singh, “with immediate effect”.

The committee, in a note put up on the department of personnel and training, also said that Jaishankar, an Indian Foreign Service officer of 1977 batch, has been appointed the new foreign secretary for a period of two years.

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The surprise announcement comes a day after US President Barack Obama left the country after a three-day visit during which, India and the US saw a breakthrough announcement on the stalled civil nuclear deal.

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To celebrate India’s 66th Republic Day, Flag Hoisting and Open House for Indian nationals and friends of India was held on 26th January, 2015 at the residence of Mr. P. Harish, Consul General of India, Houston. In photo, unfurling of National Flag by Consul General at his residence and next to him is Congressman Pete Olson (R-TX 22nd District).

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OP-ED/COMMENTARY/ANALYSIS

VOICE OF ASIA 2

NEW DELHI , India, 25.01.2015

Publisher: Associate Publisher: Editor-in-Chief: Austin Correspondent: Print & Media Marketing: Marketing: Production: Office Manager:

My Fellow Citizens:

Koshy Thomas Sherly Philip Shobana Muratee Sherine Thomas Jacob David Susan Pothanikat AR Vadlamani Priyan Mathew

1.On the eve of the 66th Republic Day, I extend warm greetings to all of you in India and abroad. I convey my special greetings to members of our Armed Forces, Paramilitary Forces and Internal Security Forces.

Columnists: Legal: Richard M. Alderman Legal: Sharlene Sharmila Richards Medical: Kesavan Shan, MD Research: Prof. Meenakshi Bhattacharjee Health Insurance: Sudhir Mathuria Astrology: Hardik Vyas

VoiceofAsiaOnline.com Editor: Online & Newsletter : Shobana Muratee All rights reserved. No material herein or portions thereof may be published without the consent of the publisher.

Voice of Asia assumes no liability resulting from action taken based on the information included herein. Published weekly by Free Press LLC, 8303 SW Freeway, Suite # 325, Houston, TX 77074. Tel: 713-774-5140. Fax: 713-7745143. Email for editorial submissions: voiceasia@aol.com; Email for advertising inquiries and submissions: ads@ voiceofasiagroup.com

Voice of Asia (USPS 010-215) (ISSN#10705058) is published every Friday (for a subscription rate of $30 per year) by Free Press LLC, 8303 SW Freeway, Suite # 325, Houston, TX 77074. Tel: 713-774-5140. Fax: 713774-5143. Periodical postage paid at Houston, Texas.

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It is the policy of Voice of Asia to publish letters to the editor which evidence a variety of viewpoints. The opinions expressed in any particular letter to the editor are not necessarily those of the management. Voice of Asia welcomes letters in reply to issues raised in letters to editor. In as much letters to the editor are not articles written or researched by members of Voice of Asia, it is not the policy of the Voice of Asia to perform any investigation or confirmation of any facts or allegations contained in letters to the editor. Moreover, Voice of Asia reserves the right to edit letters to the editor as necessary to correct errors of fact, punctuation, spelling and to comply with space constraints.

Although paid advertisements may appear in Voice of Asia Group Publications in print, online, or in other electronic formats, the Voice of Asia Group does not endorse the advertised product, service, or company, nor any of the claims made by the advertisement.

EXPRESS

3.Exactly twenty years later, in 1950, we adopted our charter of modernity, the Constitution.

Tragically, Gandhiji had been martyred two years before, but the framework of a Constitution that has made India a role model for today’s world was constructed out of his philosophy. Its essence lay in four principles: democracy; freedom of faith; gender equality; and an economic upsurge for those trapped in the curse of dire poverty. These were made Constitutional obligations. Gandhiji’s talisman for the country’s rulers was simple and powerful and I quote: “Whenever you are in doubt...recall the face of the poorest and the weakest man whom you may have seen and ask yourself...will it lead to swaraj for the hungry and spiritually starving millions?” (unquote). Our resolve to eliminate poverty through inclusive development has to be a step in that direction.

Address by the President of India, Shri Pranab Mukherjee on the eve of the Republic Day of India 2015 of rebound in manufacturing and record agricultural production last year augur well for our economy. Achieving five percent plus growth rates each in the first two quarters of 201415 is a healthy sign for an early reversion to the high growth trajectory of 7-8 percent.

President Of India, Shri Pranab Mukherjee the elected government to fulfill its commitment to the people by using its majority for formulating policies and making laws to implement those policies. The voter has played her part; it is now up to those who have been elected to honour this trust. It was a vote for clean, efficient, effective, gender-sensitive, transparent, accountable and citizen-friendly governance.

Fellow Citizens: 5.There can be no governance without a functioning legislature. The legislature reflects the will of the people. It is the platform where progressive legislation using civilized dialogue must create delivery mechanisms for realizing the aspirations of the people. It calls for reconciling the differences amongst stakeholders and building a consensus for the law to be enacted. Enacting laws without discussion impacts the law-making role of the Parliament. It breaches the trust reposed in it by the people. This is neither good for the democracy nor for the policies relating to those laws.

Fellow Citizens:

Fellow Citizens: 4.The past year has been remarkable in many ways. Particularly because, after three decades the people have voted to power a single party with a majority for a stable government, and in the process freed the country’s governance from the compulsions of coalition politics. Outcome of these Elections has given the mandate to

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2.Twenty Sixth January holds an everlasting place in our national memory because it is the day when modern India was born. Under Mahatma Gandhi’s moral and political leadership, the National Congress passed thePurna Swaraj resolution demanding complete independence from British rule in December 1929. Gandhiji organized nationwide celebrations on 26 January 1930 as Independence Day. From then on, the Nation took a pledge on this day every year to carry on the freedom struggle till we attained it.

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6.Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, Sardar Patel, Subhash Chandra Bose, Bhagat Singh, Rabindranath Tagore, Subramanya Bharati and many more - the vocation and the approach might have been different but they all spoke the same language of patriotism. We owe our freedom to these great warriors of nationalism. We also salute the unsung heroes who have died securing the liberation of Mother India. But it pains me to see that Mother India is not respected by her own children when it comes to the safety of women. Atrocities of rape, murders, harassment on the roads, kidnapping and dowry deaths have made women fearful even in their own homes. Rabindranath Tagore saw women not only as the deities of the household fire,but also the flame of the soul itself.

Where have we failed, as parents, teachers and leaders, that our children have forgotten all tenets of decent behaviour and respect for women? We have enacted many legislations but, as Benjamin Franklin had once said and I quote: “Justice will not be served until those who are unaffected are as outraged as those who are” (unquote).

Every Indian must take a pledge to protect the honour of women from violence of any kind. Only a nation that respects and empowers its women can become a global power.

Fellow Citizens:

7.The Indian Constitution is the holy book of democracy.

It is a lodestar for the socioeconomic transformation of an India whose civilization has celebrated pluralism, advocated tolerance and promoted goodwill between diverse communities. These values, however, need to be preserved with utmost care and vigilance. The freedom inherent in democracy sometimes generates an unhappy by-product when political discourse becomes a competition in hysteria that is abhorrent to our traditional ethos. The violence of the tongue cuts and wounds people’s hearts. Religion, said Gandhiji, is a force for unity; we cannot make it a cause of conflict.

Fellow Citizens: 8.Much is said about India’s soft power. But the most powerful example of India’s soft power, in an international environment where so many countries are sinking into the morass of theocratic violence, lies in our definition of the relationship between faith and polity. We have always reposed our trust in faith-equality where every faith is equal before the law and every culture blends into another to create a positive dynamic.

Wisdom of India teaches us: unity is strength, dominance is weakness.

Fellow Citizens: 9.The multi-nation conflict has converted boundaries into bloodlines, and turned terrorism into an industry of evil. Terrorism and violence are seeping across our borders. While peace, non-violence and good neighbourly intentions should remain the fundamentals of our foreign policy, we cannot afford to be complacent about adversaries who will stop at nothing to disrupt our progress towards a prosperous and equitable India. We have the strength, confidence and determination to defeat architects of this war against our people. Repeated violations of the ceasefire along the Line of Control and terrorist attacks must get an integrated response through incisive diplomacy and impregnable security mechanisms. The world must join India in fighting the menace of terrorism.

Fellow Citizens: 10. Economic progress is also a test of democracy. Year 2015 is a year of hope. Key economic indicators provide for much optimism. Strengthening of the external sector, move towards fiscal consolidation, moderation in price levels, early signs

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11. The success of a society is measured by both survival and strengthening of its values, institutions and instruments of governance. Our national narrative has been shaped by the principles of its past, triumphs of today and is now ready to own the future by powering its latent potential.

Fellow Citizens: 12. Our national ambition is to raise the quality of life of Indians by quantum leaps and raise generations enlightened by learning, patriotism, compassion, honesty and a sense of duty. Thomas Jefferson had said and I quote: “Educate and inform the whole mass of the people... They are the only sure reliance for the preservation of our liberty” (unquote). We must strive for the highest quality in our educational institutions so that we can take our place, within a visible future, among the knowledge leaders of the 21st century. I would urge, in particular, that we lay special stress on the culture of books and reading, which takes knowledge beyond the classroom and frees imagination from stress of the immediate and the utilitarian. We must be a creative people, nourished by innumerable, interlinked rivers of ideas.

Our youth must lead the way to mastery of technology and communication in a universe where the cloud has become a library without frontiers, and vast opportunity awaits within the computer in your palm. The 21st century is within India’s grasp.

Fellow Citizens: 13. This future will remain both visible and elusive if we do not discover the ability to continually cleanse ourselves of retrograde habits and social ills. Over the past century, some have died, others have faded, but many still exist. We are celebrating, this year, the centenary of Gandhiji’s return to India from South Africa. We can never cease to learn from a Mahatma. The first thing he did in 1915 was to keep his eyes open and his lips sealed. It is advisable to follow his example.

While we are, rightly, focused on 1915, perhaps we should cast a glance on what Gandhiji did in 1901, the year when he returned home for his first break.

The annual Congress session was held that year in Calcutta, then the capital of British India. Gandhiji was a delegate.

He went to Ripon College for a meeting. He discovered that the whole place had been dirtied by fellow-delegates. A shocked Gandhiji did not wait for any allotted cleaner. He picked up a broom and cleaned the area.

No one followed his example in 1901. 114 years later, let us follow his example, and become worthy children of a magnificent father.

Jai Hind!

VOICE OF ASIA 3

C OMMUNITY VOICE OF ASIA

FRIDAY, January 30, 2015

Second Front Page

Friday, January 30, 2015 • www.voiceofasiaonline.com • Page 3 • Email: editor@voiceofasiaonline.com • Tel: 713-774-5140

VSGH Youth Convention - A tribute to Swami Vivekananda’s Birth Anniversary Divakaruni were introduced by emcee Dolon Das. The younger group dealt with the topic, “Swami Vivekananda’s Spirituality in childhood.”

There were 3 speakers and each one, considering their tender age had delved deep into the topic and presented anecdotes from Swamiji’s life so well that one could listen to them over and over again.

Swami Vivekananda 12 January 1863 – 4 July 1902

by Sanchali Basu he Youth Convention organized by the Vedanta Society of Greater Houston (VSGH) on January 24, honoring Swami Vivekananda’s birthday was a fitting tribute given by the VSGH devotees to the great scholar, philosopher and thinker at their center in Houston. The event was made even more special with the presence of the special invitee, Swami Sarvapriyananda, who, having already served in the capacity of a Vice Principal, Principal and Registrar of different Ramakrishna Mission Institutions, was an obvious choice to oversee the Youth Convention program at VSGH.

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The afternoon was kicked off by a powerful talk by Sw. Sarvapriyananda on “Education and the Power of Mind” targeted towards the youth and the young at heart. He explained the limits of cognition and the capacity of the brain to process a maximum of 126 bits/second. He took the help of Csíkszentmihályi’s flow graph to draw similarities between Yoga and Flow and stressed the importance of at-

Contestants from left to right - Prathiba Duvuuri, Ananya Dhar, Alolika Sarkar, Gaurav Agrawal, Sagarika Roychoudhury, Milan Mitra and Girisa Sai Yaddanapudi. Photo Credit: Sanchali Basu.

tention, focus and concentration by alluding to Winifred Gallagher’s book “Rapt”. At the end of the talk, the audience was divided up into 4 groups, group leaders were identified and were asked to answer the questions, “What are three advantages of concentration?”, and “How does one apply flow in work study and play?” Enthusiastic group discussions followed and brought out several interesting points. A short guided meditation led by the Swami wrapped up the first half of the convention.

The second half was a multimedia presentation contest for the youth in 2 groups. Judges, Swami Sarvapriyananda, Dr. Amrit Achari and Dr. Chitra

Judges from left to right-Dr. Chitra Divakaruni, Dr. Amrit Achari, Swami Sarvapriyananda.

Prestigious Padma Bhushan Award for Dr. David Frawley

The Convention ended with the award distribution ceremony, vote of thanks and a sumptuous meal catered by Gourmet India. It was heartening to see the interest in Swamiji amongst the youngsters.

For information on future programs at VSGH please visit www.houstonvedanta.org

Vedic astrology to the western world.

Frawley has a D.Litt. in Yoga from S-VYASA (Swami Vivekananda Yoga Anusandhana Samsthana) in Bangalore, India. He is the director of the American Institute of Vedic Studies (www.vedanet. com) in Santa Fe, NM, which emphasizes distance learning and online courses. His wife Yogini Shambhavi Devi, an author and Vedic educator joins him in his teachings and programs around the world.

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r. David Frawley has been awarded the prestigious Padma Bhushan award from the government of India. His award was announced as part of the Padma awards list, given in New Delhi on Jan. 26 as part of Republic Day celebrations. The award, which is approved by the Prime Minister, will be officially conferred by the President in a special ceremony later in March or April at Rashtrapati Bhavan.

Frawley, also known as Pandit Vamadeva Shastri, was honored for his work as a Vedic teacher promoting Yoga, Ayurveda, Vedanta, Jyotish and Sanatana Dharma in India and throughout the world. He is the author of more than thirty published books that have gone into more than twenty languages worldwide. He has widely taught and traveled throughout India and has helped establish a number of Vedic organizations in several countries.

He is regarded as one of the pioneers in bringing Ayurvedic medicine and

The older group of four contestants dealt with, “Swamiji’s Accomplishments in the West.” Being more mature, their extensive research brought out some very interesting facts about Swamiji’s various trips to the west and the impact that he’d created starting off with his address at the Parliament of World Religions of, “Sisters and Brothers of America.” They felt that his teachings and messages are still valid to this day and they draw inspiration from them. Each presenter did ample justice to the topic and handled the questions asked by the judges very well. The presentations were followed by a summing up speech by Sw. Sarvapriyananda on Swamiji. He touched on Swamiji’s principles of universality and harmony of religions which are even more relevant in these modern days of global religious strife. The concept of each soul being potentially divine and the 4 paths of Yoga, Jnana, Bhakti, Raja and Karma stressed by Swamiji were also mentioned.

He has visited and taught in Houston at various Hindu centers over the last twenty years. He has worked with such organizations as the Hindu Swayam Sevak Sangha, Vishva Hindu Parishad, Hindu American Foundation, and Swaminarayan BAPS.

Dr. David Frawley

The Padma awards this year included 9 Padma Vibhushan, 20 Padma Bhushan, and 75 Padma Shri awards. Bill and Melinda Gates also received the Padma Bhushan award for their social work. The Padma awards are India’s highest national awards given to individuals for distinguished service to the country. They are mainly for citizens of India and it is rare for foreigners to receive them.

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YOUR IMMIGRATION LAWYER

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

The law protects you from abusive debt collectors Q. I owe money to a credit card company. I lost my job, and although I have found a new one, I no longer afford to pay what they demand. I explained this to the debt collector, but he continues to call me at all hours and harass me. What can I do to make him stop?

A. As a practical matter, the best way to stop these calls may be to not get upset, and make it clear to the debt collector that the calls are not going to get you to pay any sooner.

Speak slowly, and take your time on the phone. Once the debt collector realizes that he is wasting his time, my guess is the calls will stop.

You also need to know your rights under federal law. The law is called the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, and it prohibits a debt collector from calling you before 8am or after 9pm or engaging in any conduct designed to harass, abuse or annoy you.

Specifically the law says a debt collector is prohibited from.

Causing a telephone to ring or engaging any person in telephone conversation repeatedly or continuously with intent to annoy, abuse, or harass any person at the called number.

In my opinion, calling you repeatedly after you have explained you can no longer afford to pay the requested amount constitutes harassment. I suggest you let the debt collector know you know about this law and believe he is harassing you, and insist he stop.

In fact, the law lets you stop all communication by sending the debt collector a letter demanding he stop. For more information about this law, check out my website, www. peopleslawyer.net.

Q. You have written that I get up to three times my damages if someone violates the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act. Can I sue for these damages in justice court?

A. The Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act is our state’s consumer protection law.

Basically, this law protects you if you are misled or deceived. Under the Deceptive Trade Practices Act, you are entitled to recover your economic damage plus up to three times your damages if you show the person acted “knowingly.” This means that the person knew or should have known he was acting wrongfully. For example, if someone makes an innocent misrepresentation, you are not entitled to three times your damages. On the other hand, if the person knew or should have known that what he said was false or deceptive, the court could award additional damages in an amount up to three times your economic damages. Any court, including justice court, may award what is usually referred to as “treble damages.” The bottom line—if you prove your case and show that the person acted “knowingly,” the judge in justice court may award you treble damages.

Q. Can someone who puts a house on the market refuse my offer when I agreed to pay exactly what he was offering to sell it for? Don’t we have a contract?

A. This is a very interesting question, and the answer may surprise you. By advertising the house, the seller is not making an “offer” to sell the house. As far as the law is concerned, he is inviting “offers” from prospective buyers. Your agreement to buy a house is actually the “offer.” The seller may accept it or reject it. By putting the house on the market, the seller is merely soliciting offers; he is not making an offer to sell.

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 ex-husband would pay. Of course, your divorce decree probably gives you the right to seek reimbursement from your ex in the event you pay.

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Answers to your Immigration Questions

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ANSWERS TO QUESTIONS ABOUT AFFIDAVIT OF SUPPORT FOR RELATIVE PETITIONS Q: I am petitioning for my wife’s Permanent Residence. I was informed that I need to provide an Affidavit of Support. Which form do I have to use?

A: You can use the short form Affidavit of Support known as Form I-864EZ if you, the Petitioner will be the only sponsor, the immigrant sponsored is the only one in the underlying petition and you are depending only upon your income from employment to satisfy the requirements under the affidavit of support. If you need a joint sponsor as your income is insufficient or you are relying on other sources of income in addition to income from your employment and there are several intending immigrants, then you must use Form I-864 Affidavit of Support.

Q: What is the purpose of an Affidavit of Support?

A: The Affidavit of Support is a contract between the petitioning family member who is sponsoring the immigrant and the United States Government whereby the sponsoring family member undertakes and promises to provide financial support to the immigrant so that he or she does not become a public charge and be without financial assistance. In addition, the sponsor undertakes to reimburse the US Government if the intending immigrant has utilized any need based public benefits.

Q: How do I determine if my income is sufficient to meet the affidavit of support requirements?

A: You will need to look at most recent Poverty Guidelines. This can be found under Form I-864P at www.uscis.gov, under ‘Forms”. The I-864P lists the respective amounts based on the number of people in the sponsor’s household and the number of family members immigrating. You must be able to show that your income or assets are at least 125% of the Federal Poverty Guidelines level for the appropriate size of household members and the intending immigrant(s). For sponsors on active duty in the Armed Forces who are petitioning for their spouse or child under 21 years old, their income or assets must be at least 100% of the Federal Poverty Guidelines. To illustrate this, for a Petitioner (not on active duty in the Armed Forces) who has a spouse and one dependent child in his or her household and the intending immigrant is his father, the calculation will be like this – look at Form I-864P for 2014 HHS Poverty Guidelines for Affidavit of Support. Assuming you do not live in Alaska or Hawaii, you will look at the top half of the I-864P. Under the column marked 125% of HHS Poverty Guidelines (for all other sponsors), the income to meet the affidavit of support requirements will be $29,812.00 (for 4 persons – 3 household members and 1 intending immigrant).

Q:

What documents do I need to include with the I-864 Affidavit of Support?

A: Together with the completed and signed Affidavit of Support demonstrating that your income is sufficient to meet the income requirements, you will need to submit your Federal Tax Returns for the most recent tax year including the Form(s) W-2 for that year, evidence of your current employment, proof of your US Citizenship or permanent residence and ideally, a copy of the current edition of the poverty guidelines.

Q: My income alone is not enough to satisfy the affidavit of support requirements but if I add my wife’s income, it satisfies the requirement. My wife and I file joint tax returns every year. Please can you give me information how to do the affidavit of support to include her income?

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

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

A: You can use assets such as real estate, saving account funds, stock and bonds which are readily available (readily convertible to cash within one year without creating financial loss or hardship), in addition to income and salary in order to meet the requirements under the affidavit of support. The assets can either be yours, your household member’s or that of the intending immigrant. United States Citizens who are sponsoring their spouse or minor children (under 18 years old) can divide the value of their assets by three rather than five, to make up the deficiency in the income. For example, if the Poverty Guidelines list the amount for the affidavit of support as $19,662 and your salary is only $15,662, you must show 3 x $4000 =$12,000 in assets.

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

My Bio Sharlene Sharmila Richards is a licensed Immigration lawyer practicing in Houston, Texas.

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

Disclaimer: Any advice provided in this article is general in nature and not intended to consti-

T

he Military Accessions Vital to the National Interest (MAVNI) Program authorizes the military to enlist certain legal non-citizens whose skills are considered to be “vital to the national interest.” Enlistment can lead to conditional citizenship. Soldiers who enlist in this program are able to move from non-immigrant visa or asylee/refugee/TPS status directly to citizenship, bypassing the lengthy green card process.

There are reportedly 150 types of roles that the army is looking to fill through the MAVNI program. Only 5 to 6 of these roles involve combat, the rest of the positions are in a support capacity. The army is currently recruiting aliens who speak Arabic, Chinese, Hindi, Nepalese, Persian Dari, Persian Farsi,

Punjabi, Sindhi, Somali, Tagalog, Tamil, Urdu, or Yoruba, as well as a host of other languages.

There can be a four to six years minimum serving time, depending on the type of position an enlisted soldier fills.

A training period of 10 weeks at minimum is included in the four to six years of serving time. There can be up to 8 to 52 weeks of specialized training required.

Alien asylees, refugees, Temporary Protected Status recipients, as well as aliens in most nonimmigrant visa categories, i.e., H, F, E, TN, are eligible to participate in the MAVNI program. Please note, if an alien filed an application for adjustment of status (AOS) while in H nonimmigrant status, but lost that H nonimmigrant status while the AOS application was pending, then the Army

may waive the nonimmigrant status requirement on a case by case basis.

Individuals who have been granted deferred action for childhood arrivals (DACA) are also eligible.

An alien must legally present in the U.S. for at least two years without an absence of over 90 days in order to be eligible. In addition, an alien must be a high school graduate as well as receive qualifying scores on the Armed Forces Qualification Test and a language proficiency test in order to be eligible.

If you believe you may be eligible for this program, you may contact the Army directly. You can contact the Houston Local in charge: SSG Khan, Arsalan ,U.S. Army Recruiter, 281-257-9281, Email: arsalan.a.khan2.mil@ mail.mil

My House... Your House... Our House!

India House Activities

FRIDAY, January 30, 2015

• ZUMBA Fitness Class: Starts Feb 7th, Saturday 9 am to 10 am • India House Charity Clinic: Every Saturday from 9 am to 1 pm - By Appointments Only.

• Free Yoga Classes: Every Tuesday & Thursday from 11 am to 12 pm and Every Saturday from 10 am to 11 am.

• Free Meditation classes: Every Saturday from 11 am to 11:30 am.

• Free Immigration Consultation: Every Saturday from 1 pm to 3pm.

Preferred by appointments (Walk-ins may be rescheduled).

• Free Family Law Consultation: Every Tuesday from 6 pm to 7 pm.

Preferred by appointments (Walk-ins may be rescheduled).

• Free Kidney Smart Classes: 4th Thursday of each month from 12 pm to 1:30 pm.

• After-School Tutorial Program: Every Monday to Friday from 3 pm to 6 pm.

• Sareen Clinic (Harris Health System): Every Monday to Friday from 8 am to 4 pm, and Saturday from 9 am to 11 am.

Bollywood Classes: Sat & Sun. Visit us Online for details: www.indiahouseinc.org For more information and appointments, contact Vipin@indiahouseinc.org or call (713) 929-1900 • 8888 W Bellfort Ave, Houston, TX 77031

COMMUNITY

VOICE OF ASIA 5

FRIDAY, January 30, 2015

India’s 66th Republic Day celebrations by Indo-American Organizations in Houston

India House Inc. Continuing its annual tradition, India’s 66th Republic day was celebrated in a patriotic ceremony on the grounds of India House on Monday, January 26, 2015. The event commemorates the day when India’s constitution came into force on January 26, 1950, completing the country’s transition towards becoming an independent republic and giving people the power to choose their own government. In honor of the day United States, Indian and Texas flags were hoisted outside the front entrance of India House by the President of India House – Jugal Malani, Board of Director - Col Raj Bhalla and President of ICC -Charlie Patel.

Several people from different cultures and ethnicities were gathered on the occasion and together they embodied the patriotic spirit of Independent India. The U.S National Anthem was sung by Michael Miller, Program Manager of India House. The National Anthem of India was proudly sung by all the Indians. The Indian patriotic songs that were played led us all to a nostalgic trip down the memory lane, reminding us of the courageous spirit of freedom fighters.

Representative from Senator Ellis’ Office – Ms Dawn Hurd

MAGH

T

he Malayalee Association of Greater Houston (MAGH) celebrated the Indian Republic Day with a variety of wonderful activities.

The Stafford City Council member, Mr. Ken Mathew, inaugurated the program while Association President, Mr. K. Surendran, presided over the program. Trustee Board Chairman, Mr. M. A. Abraham, Rev. Fr. Roy Thomas, Mr. Anil Aranmula, and Mr. Eso Jacob also delivered speeches on the occasion. As part of the program the Mayalee Association presented a video slide show giving attention to

Community members gather for the flag honoring at the India House. spoke at the event sending greetings and awarded a certificate of recognition for India House at the occasion. Other members that spoke at this occasion were Jugal Malani, Devi Prasad Rungta and Charlie Patel. The Patriotic rendition

of the event was given by Dr. Upadhyay. Delicious snacks and appetizers were provided courtesy Madras Pavilion.

Overall the event connected us with our Indian roots again and reminded us that even though

we are far away for home, the love for our country is embedded in our hearts. For more information on India House and its various programs visit us at www.indiahouse.org or contact vipin@indiahouseinc.org or call at 713-929-1900.

India House President, Jugal Malani unfurls the Indian flag at the India House as Charlie Patel, President of India Culture Center and others cheer. Photos by Bijay Dixit

the Indian national movement.

The presentation included the experiences of such great leaders of the freedom struggle as Mahatma Ghandhi, Subhash Chandrabose, Sardar Patel, Sarojini Naidu, Asad , and others. The video slide show also contained coverage of the Republic Day parade which amply portrayed the unity and strength of the Indian military forces. After the video slide show, students took part in a lively Quiz Competition on the topic, India: Before and after the Independence. The Association presented cash awards to all the children who partici-

pated in the quiz program. Association Joint secretary, Mr. Jinu Thomas, gave the welcomed to the assembled group, and vice president Mr. Abraham Eapen gave the vote of thanks. Mr. Philip Abraham, Reni Kvalayi, Saleem Arackal, Blessy Abraham, Philip Sebastain, and Mrs. Urmila Kurup provided leadership for various aspects of the program.

Mr. Biju Mohan announced the next program of the Association --- Keralotsaw consists of sports, arts, and cultural activities. This event will be held on March 21st 2015. Everyone is welcome.

Mr. Ken Mathew, Councilmember, City of Stafford delivering his Republic Day message.

COMMUNITY

VOICE OF ASIA 6

Dindigul I. Leoni’s Comedy Hour In Houston

FRIDAY, January 30, 2015

MahaVastu Houston Centre: Transforming lives through Vastu Create your own fate through MahaVastu Houston centre

F

amous worldwide for its scientific and effective Vastu solutions without demolitions, MahaVastu Corporation is going to launch its second centre outside India in Houston on February 5. The inauguration will be done

by VastuShastri Khushdeep Bansal at Holiday Inn -Westchase.

The launch ceremony will be attended by Chetan Patel– Head of Houston MahaVastu Centre and other famous personalities.

Members of the TNF with Mr. Leoni and other quest on the dais.

by Ponni Sivaraman s part of their efforts to raise funds to aid in the education of specialized and needy children of Secondary and Higher Secondary schools from the rural district of Thiruvarur, South India, a “Pattimandram “ or a “Debate in Tamil” was hosted by the Tamil Nadu Foundation’s (TNF) Houston chapter on Friday, January 23, 2015 at Sri Meenakshi Temple, Pearland, Texas.

Dr. Ram Sivaraman, President, TNF Houston Chapter presented TNF activities in detail and the need for raising funds to improve public schools in rural Tamil Nadu.

He highlighted about funding needs for the adopted rural schools in Thiruvarur District. Earlier Mr. Bala J Balachandran, Vice-President / Treasurer, welcomed the audience who turned out in large numbers inspite of being a work day evening.

Mr. Tupil Narasiman, Vice-

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Mr. Sam Kannappan, honors Mr. Leoni. by presenting him with a “ponnadai” and plaque.

President, Bharathi Kalai Mandram (BKM), Dr. P. Vaduganathan, Sri Meenakshi Temple (MTS) and Mr. Srikanth Venugopal, Secretary, MTS complimented the services of TNF Houston Chapter and also for being a cosponsors for the event. This is the first time in Houston that the three local organizations conducted a charity pro-

A section of the audience.

gram jointly. Dr. S.G. Appan, Advisory Board Member, TNF Houston Chapter, mentioned in brief about the 2012 National TNF Conference in Houston. Mr. Sam Kannappan, Advisory Board Member and Honorary President MTS, TNF Houston Chapter, presented a “Ponnadai” and Plank to Mr. Leoni.

The event, with a panel of 6 members was chaired by Kalaimamani DindIgul I. Leoni, a teacher, a great orator and a comedy debates judge. The panel participants were: Natarajan, Govindan, Arul, Srividya, Andrew and Nandhu. Mr. Leoni worked as a science teacher in Saint Mary’s higher secondary school in Dindigul for many years before he quit his job to become a full time Pattimandram judge. He is famous for his humor and for the simple

After launching successfully in the financial capital of India- Mumbai, Chhatisgarh’s capital city – Raipur, city of joy- Kolkata and San Ramon-California, MahaVastu is going to launch its new centre in Houston which is the biggest industrial city of America. MahaVastu has taken a big step towards fulfilment of its mission of spreading more money, love, prosperity and happiness in every home of Houston. Vastu Shastra is an ancient Indian art of creating happiness in buildings, and has always been in huge demand in Texas.

Citing the rising interest of people in Houston MahaVastu Centre Head, Chetan Patel says that he has decided to open MahaVastu centre due to its USP of delivering results without breaking structures. Now, through scientific Vastu of MahaVastu, people of messages he conveys in his Pattimandrams which enlighten the masses. Mr. Leoni was given the ‘Kalaimamani” award by the Government of Tamil Nadu for excellence in the field of arts and Literature. He currently conducts “Nalla Pesunga Nallathaiyae Pesunga” (Speak well & speak about good) a regular pattimanram show on Kalaingar TV.

BRICK POOJA

• JUVENILE

Please make checks payable to “AW Gayatri Pariwar Houston” and mail to: 19515 Cisco Ct. Cypress, Tx 77433 OR donate online (texas.awgp.org) All World Gayatri Pariwar is a Non-Profit 501(C) (3) organization

For more information contact us Sangita & Bharat Tailor Varsha & Mahesh Patel

281-304-0727 281-954-4275

Website: texas.awgp.org | Email: awgp.houston@gmail.com Inspirer & Mentor - All World Gayatri Pariwar, Shantikunj, Haridwar, India

MahaVastu visions to set up 240 centres across the globe in near future.

Starting with a negligible investment, the expected turnover of a MahaVastu Centre can be in billions.

For more information contact: Phone: 832 412 2827, 832 269 9000 Email: ask.hou@mahavastu.com www.mahavastu.com guest to Canada and the US. Huge Thanks to Bharathi Kalai Mandram, Houston and Sri Meenakshi Temple, Pearland Texas, who co-sponsored the program and made it a huge success. Mr. Raj N Thiagarajan, Secretary, delivered the vote of thanks to those who attended, supported, volunteered and specifically the donors who graciously donated for a noble cause.

Free Initial Consultation

• CPS

SHERIN DANIEL, Esq. ATTORNEY

Event Sponsorship Opportunities available for Food and Hall Rental.

The event in Houston drew a house full crowd, even on a cold and rainy night. Mr. Leoni had the audience spellbound and kept them roaring with laughter continuously for about three hours. Needless to say, the event was very entertaining and a huge success. Mr. Govindan Somakanthan, Committee Chair, TNF Houston Chapter coordinated in bringing the chief

• DWI

cordially invites you to come and be a part of the Murti installation preparations of Ma Gayatri by:

Your continued monetary support is highly appreciated to help with the ongoing remodeling project of the temple

MahaVastu Centre also provides scientific Vastu Checkup Reports, Vastu perfect designs for new buildings, tested Vastu

• FEDERAL CRIMINAL

Gayatri Pariwar of Houston

VENUE Sri Ashtalakshmi Temple 10098 Synott Road Sugarland, TX-77498

MahaVastu™ is the leading and established brand in the domain of Vastu. Advising customized Vastu solutions without demolitions is its USP.

Today’s scientific and practical Vastu Shastra – MahaVastu is an outcome of documented research on Vastu based on over 12,000 successful Vastu case studies done in the past two decades

by Vastu Guru Khushdeep Bansal, author of the World’s biggest book on Vastu Shastra – MahaVastu Handbook.

• CRIMINAL

Address of future temple: 20914 Park Row, Katy, Tx 77449

DATE February 7, 2015 Saturday, 4:00 PM Followed by Aarti and Prasad

A 2-days Vastu Foundation Course is also going to be started soon at Houston centre. One will get to learn how to select a Vastu compliant new homes, ideal colour themes as per Vastu, beneficial application of Pyramids, Vastu remedies and books. Apart from these, they will also get practical training on how to see directions with magnetic compass. These will help the people of Texas to live with more money, love and happiness.

www.texaslegalteam.net/sherin-daniel.html

MA GAYATRI temple

Your sacred paper will be installed under Gayatri Ma’s murti, along with your brick

Most of the persons who availed MahaVastu solutions and remedies for their homes, offices and industries in last 20 years, are now achieving highest levels of success.

This Houston centre is a new link in the chain of 240 Centres of MahaVastu Corporation which will facilitate construction of Vastu perfect homes, buildings and businesses in Texas also.

Aggressive Criminal Defense

for upcoming

Performing pooja of a brick in your or a loved one’s name Optional: Write 108 or more Gayatri mantra in red ink.

Houston will get the most effective Vastu solutions and reap amazing benefits of Vastu without making demolitions in their beautiful Homes.

remedies and advanced courses on Vastu and Numerology. Hundreds of Interior Designers, Architects, House wives, Businessmen, Astrologers and Vastu enthusiasts have done MahaVastu Course and are providing professional Vastu services across the globe as certified Vastu experts.

832.273.5692 sherin@TexasLegalTeam.net 405 Main St., Suite#200 Houston, TX 77002

DIASPORA

VOICE OF ASIA 7

OP-ED Obama and Modi Launch Version 2.0 of Indo-American Relations

Chandra K. Mittal

by Chandra K. Mittal, Ph.D. s human history has recorded friendship between two people or nations has its origin in their shared values, commonality of purpose and commitment to mutual respect. And when such friends meet, there is palpable joy and happiness in the air. Such is the case on display today in India during the visit of US President Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama as the Chief Guest for India’s Republic Day Celebration on January 26th. It is filled with pleasantries, State Banquets, parades, honor guards, etc. accorded to a visiting friendly foreign dignitary.

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Besides the atmospherics and optics, as important as these are in the world of diplomacy, the two countries also got down to discussing serious business to lay the foundation for the long-term strategic partnership for mutual benefit in the areas of trade, defense, and energy.

It includes enhanced trade between the two countries, co-development and comanufacturing of defense equipment, transfer of sensitive technologies, Intellectual Property, etc.

The most significant among them being the Civilian Nu-

clear Agreement between United States and India to help the latter jointly build nuclear power plants to meet its ever increasing appetite for power. Being coincident with India’s 66th Republic Day celebrations, all these US-India collaborative partnerships assume a special significance, and could be appropriately termed Version 2.0 of Indo-American relations.

January 26th is a red letter day for India when it became a people Republic in 1950 and adopted its own Constitution after independence from the British colonial rule.

India’s governing document borrowed heavily from the ideas of the US Founding fathers and incorporated them in it. Such common threads of constitutional values established the natural kinship between India and the United States. Even though in the 1940s US President Franklin D. Roosevelt played a critical role in India’s independence from the British, who would have known that it will take 65 years before a US President would be the “Chief Guest” to participate in the celebration of the independence.

But this honor was bestowed upon the US President Obama by the current Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi whose dynamic vision and unmatched personal chemistry with the leader of the free world has made it all possible. The presence of President Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama for the observance of India’s 66th Republic Day is a historic occasion for the two largest democracies to rededicate

themselves to the ideals of Mahatma Gandhi and Dr. Martin Luther King.

The two leaders beamed optimism about the US-India partnership reaching new heights in the future. While addressing the US-India Business CEOs President Obama described the partnership as “India-US true global partnership” that can “set global norms for the world”. He also announced some new initiatives for boosting US-India ties, which included 1 Billion Dollar assistance from US Export Import Bank for co-development in India, 2 Billion for renewable energy projects by US companies, and encouraging Indo-American to invest back home in India in developmental projects, all totaling about 4 Billion US Dollars.

While the world watches with excitement India’s Republic Day celebrations with President Obama in attendance, serious challenges lie ahead for both India and the United States to consummate the newly launched relationship and realize the intended benefits on a long-term basis.

As of now, after a complex legislative process and intense negotiations in both countries, the two leaders have finally agreed to the intergovernmental framework. But important work remains to actually operationalize the Agreement vis-à-vis the commercial viability, which will involve issues related to investment, pricing, costs, suppliers, taxation, consumer liability, material monitoring, etc.

India is a socialistic democracy with Soviet era mindset, which despite economic

reforms, resists change. It is for these reasons, the former Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh, who initiated the Indo-US civilian nuclear agreement, could not bring it to fruition. Indian businesses and commercial enterprises are closely regulated by the government, curtailing the full impact of the marketplace dynamics. There are often price and cost controls in place, especially in the areas of utilities and essential services.

For example, the State owned Nuclear Power Corporation of India Limited will likely be involved in the implementation of the just agreed US-India Nuclear deal, which may present some challenges to US corporations.

US corporations, on the other hand, operate under the US capitalistic system which allows businesses and entrepreneurs more freedom to make business decisions. US corporations are owned by and accountable to the Shareholders, and, hence have to protect their interest. They are not accustomed to being regulated by government for costs and pricing of goods and services.

Apparently, President Obama and Prime Minister Modi finalized the nuclear deal over a cup of tea. But as the metaphor goes, there may be a distance between the cup and the lip when it comes to fruition of the Agreement. So, for the US investor it may be little early to pop the cork and pour the Champagne.

Chandra Mittal is Professor at Houston Community College, and Co-Founder of Indo-American Association, Houston. Blog: http://drchandramittal.wordpress.com, Twitter: @drchandramittal

FRIDAY, January 30, 2015

Indian-origin physician pleads guilty to healthcare fraud

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EW YORK, Jan 28, 2015 - A 44-year-old Indian-origin physician here has pleaded guilty to a USD 83,000 health care fraud and faces up to 10 years in prison and about USD 350,000 fine.

Mahesh Kuthuru pleaded guilty to defrauding federal insurance programme Medicare from 2010 till 2011 during his practice at a city clinic.

He admitted that he submitted bills to Medicare which falsely reflected that he had personally provided or directly supervised other licensed medical personnel providing treatment or services to patients.

However, Kuthuru did not personally provide those services because he was either outside the country or in Las Vegas where he operated another medical office.

As a result of the false claims, Kuthuru received nearly USD 83,000 to which he was not entitled.

In addition, he pleaded guilty to illegally issuing prescriptions for controlled substances from his New York practice.

He admitted that when he was not in his New York offices, clerical staff would partially fill out prescription forms for established patients in advance of the patient’s office visit.

Those prescription forms would then be sent to Kuthuru in Las Vegas where he would sign the undated forms and return them to the clerical staff in New York.

The clerical staff would then date the prescription form and give it to the patient on the day the patient visited the office.

On other occasions, he signed blank, undated prescription forms and left them in his New York offices for issuance to patients there when he was in Las Vegas.

United States District Court Judge David Hurd scheduled sentencing for May this year.

On way to UK, NRI ‘kills’ wife after having 2 kids

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ANGA (Nawanshahr): In a shocking case, an NRI allegedly killed his second wife on the way to Delhi while returning to the UK, dumped her body in a well and then told her family that the victim had fled with her friend after reaching England on January 17.

As police unraveled the case, it came out that the accused, Gurnam Singh Beesla, who hails from Malla Sodhian village of Nawanshahr district, married Narinder

Kaur for children, and after having two sons, he planned to dump her in connivance with his first wife, Satinder Kaur, who had accompanied him on his India tour.

Police have arrested his close friend and accomplice Balbir Singh, who led the cops to the victim’s body dumped in an abandoned well in Karnana village near Banga town on Tuesday.

Gurnam and Satinder have also been booked for murder and destruction of evidence.

(TNN)

COMMUNITY

VOICE OF ASIA 8

FRIDAY, January 30, 2015

India’s 66th Republic Day celebrations in Houston Continued from page 1 The program continued with young children, some of whom despite being a school day took time off to be a part of the celebrations. Students of guru Rajarajeshwari Bhatt, Kirtana, Kruti and Uma Ranganathan and few others sang patriotic songs and Amani Parvathaneni, student of guru Dr. Ratna Kumar presented a classical Kuchupudi dance item “Tilana” on the occasion.

The gurus were honored by the Consul General who also presented the students with certificates of appreciation. Refreshments were served at the end of the program.

A dinner reception commemorating India’s 66th Republic Day was held the same evening at the Hilton Hotel where close to 500 members of the India American community attended.

The Mayor of Houston Annise Parker, was the Chief Guest and she was accompanied by the First Lady, Kathy Hubbard.

Harris County Judge Ed Emmett, also a very close friend of the Indian Americans here was there to give his message. Other elected officials included: Mr. Jay Guerrero, Office of Senator John Cornyn, Mr. David Sawyer, Office of Senator Ted Cruz, Mr. Kelly Waterman, Office of Congressman Brian Babin, Mr. Mac Flores, Office of Congressman Pete Olson, Ms. Tonya Williams, Office of Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee, Ms. Catherine Le, Office of Congressman Al Green and Hon. Mayor Pro-Tem Ed Gonzalez, City of Houston.

Welcoming the guest, Consul General P Harish said that the day was a very auspicious.

“There are a couple of firsts in this visit,” he said “This is the first US President to have visited India twice during his tenure and also the first US President to be the Chief Guest (at the Republic Day Parade).” “At the same time,” he said, “We also have a Prime Minister who is he first Prime Minister to have been born in free India, he also the first Prime Minister in 30 years to have come to power with majority.” P Harish spoke how with the new government dawned a new era with focus on the two campaigns: “Make in India” and Namami Gange Program to cleanse the holy river Ganges. “During his visit to US

Consul General P. Harish welcoming the guests at the reception. he (PM, Narendra Modi) spoke about the energy of youth, the enterprise of our businesses and the indigenous of Indian farmers that must take us into a new era where every Indian will have the potential to reach their full capabilities,” he reiterated. P Harish also spoke of the values of the Indian constitution that binds Indians and Americans, a relationship that we have been cherishing all these years.

There will be no more ‘Red Tape only Red Carpet’ the Modi government promises which is one the strong reasons for the Mayor of Houston to plans to take a trade delegation to India in April this year. P Harish presented Mayor Parker with a pen drive that had all the necessary information about India that would help her immensely.

Speaking on the occasion, Mayor Parker who rarely attends any country’s national events said that, she was very excited to go to India being her first time visit there. “We had planned much earlier to “Make in India” campaign,” she said, “but our efforts are going to coincide perfectly.” “As mentioned earlier by the Prime Minister stating that there’s going to be no Red Tape only Red Carpet, we are going, embracing fully that concept, we believe that there are limitless opportunities in India and Houston and for India in Houston,” she

Amani Parvathaneni presents a classical dance

Dr. Kamlesh Lulla being honored by the Consul General. said. The Mayor said that she has been working closely with a number of members in the local community in putting an ‘appropriate trade delegation together’ she said and encouraged anyone who is interested to contact the City of Houston. “With 80000 Houstonians, I cannot imagine a better relationship in the way we have today but I believe that this trade delegation will increase our relation and take us to new heights,” the mayor said.

She specially thanked the Indo American Chamber of Commerce for their support to the Trade Delegation and extended her appreciation to the India Culture Center and other members like Booby Singh for their input. The Mayor later presented the Consul General with a

proclamation to commemorate the occasion.

Harris County Judge Ed Emmette, who also in India recently with a delegation from Houston, that was largely facilitated by the Indo American Chamber of Commerce, (IACCGH) of Greater Houston, gave an insight of his trip and said that for a person who has being visiting India for the last 20 years, it was amazing how much things have changed. “Every time I come back with the same feeling that there is something magical about India,” he said. “In the way they cling to the past and keep their eyes solidly focused on the future.” He also said that India is going to be a maritime nation in the future. Judge Em-

Young artists who performed at the reception. mette is known to have given Bhoomi’, (birth place) Amervaluable tips to the Mayor on ica (Houston) was his ‘Karma Bhoomi” where he had spent her upcoming visit to India. over 30 years and did all his reOn the occasion, the Consul search and studies. He thanked General honored Dr. Kamlesh the Indian community for their Lulla, a noted NASA scientist support during his year here. who was awarded the Pravasi A very successful evening was Divas Sanman in India for his concluded with a good spread contribution. Dr. Lulla said that of India food catered by Udipi while Gujarat it was his ‘Janma Restaurant.

MahaVastu Launching in Houston, Texas

By World Renowned VastuShastri Khushdeep Bansal Come and Meet the “GURU” himself VastuShastri Khushdeep Bansal

VastuShastri Khushdeep Bansal is the foremost Vastu Consultant of the country from over two decades now. An electronics engineer and Doctor of Science (D.Sc.) on Vastu Shastra Khushdeep’s major areas of interest and research have been – ‘to study the effects of land, building and stars on subconscious mind, thinking and feelings.

His Vastu remedies have helped thousands of companies and individuals to achieve success and growth in business, political and personal life.

On the basis of more than 10,000 successful Vastu case studies, documented through his scientific research, he has distilled a 4-Step Vastu application method, popularly known as ‘MahaVastu’. People from different parts of the world come to New Delhi to learn this method and start their own Vastu Practice.

In 1997, Khushdeep located a major Vastu fault in the Indian Parliament House. This fault was causing instability of the Indian Government which he corrected later.

Author of the world’s acclaimed book on Vastu Shastra, Dr. Bansal is also credited with writing India Today Bestseller book ‘MahaVastu’ and popular book series – ‘Vastu Shastra: the Alchemy of Space’. Khushdeep is committed to make the best Vastu services available for every home on Earth.

After Mumbai, Delhi, Noida, Raipur, Kolkata, San Ramon centre, California, the second center of USA, Houston Center is the second link in the chain of MahaVastu Corporation which will facilitate construction of Vastu perfect homes, buildings and businesses.

It’s a dream come true and a blessing for the Texas area. With this establishment, people can gain true practical knowledge of “ Vastu” and live with more Love, happiness and prosperity.

We would like to invite you to attend the grand Launch Of MahaVastu™ Houston (Texas) Center On Thursday, 5th February,2015 from: 10:30 am to 1.00 pm Hosted by

Chetan Patel

Head/Vastu Acharya of MahaVastu Centre, Houston Off:832-412-2827 | Cell: 832-269-9000 email at: chetan.patel@mahavastu.in or ask.hou@mahavastu.in Chetan Patel

Due to his short visit from February 3, 2015 to February 5,2015, limited one-on-one appointments are available with Vastu Shastri Shree Khushdeep Bansal Ji 9900 Westpark Dr., Suite # 126 Houston, TX 77063

Come and Meet the “GURU” himself To schedule your appointment Call: 832-269-9000 For more information Email at: chetan.patel@mahavastu.com raj.shah@mahavastu.com

SOUTH ASIA

VOICE OF ASIA 9

Cartoonist, R.K. Laxman

M

UMBAI, AFP (1/26/2015)- R.K. Laxman, the renowned Indian cartoonist whose sketches appeared on the front page of The Times of India for more than five decades, died Monday aged 94.

Laxman’s cartoon strip satirised Indian life and politics through the eyes of the “common man”, a silent observer who he said “stands for all Indians”.

He suffered multiple organ failure after being admitted to

FRIDAY, January 30, 2015

Indian cartoonist R.K. Laxman dies aged 94

Pakistan wants normal ties with India: Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif

hospital on January 17, his doctors told the Press Trust of India news agency.

24, 1921 in the southern city of Mysore and began sketching when he was only five.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi led the tributes, saying “India will miss you”.

India gave him the Padma Vibhushan, the country’s second highest civilian award, in 2005, and in 2001 an eight-foot-tall bronze statue of the “common man” was unveiled in the southern city of Pune.

SLAMABAD: Pakistan wants “normal” ties with India on the basis of “mutual respect and sovereign equality”, Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif said today, describing India as an important neighbour.

“We are grateful to you for adding the much needed humour in our lives & always bringing smiles on our faces,” Modi tweeted.

Laxman was born on October

The bespectacled cartoonist had stopped drawing a few years earlier due to ill health.

I

“India is an important neighbour for us and we would like to have normal relations with the country on the basis of mutual respect and sovereign equality,”

India sends foreign minister to China after Obama visit

N

EW DELHI, | 1/28/2015 - India’s foreign minister will travel to China this weekend, New Delhi said on Wednesday, a day after Barack Obama ended a visit aimed at renew-

ing US ties with the South Asian country.

Sushma Swaraj will hold threeway talks with her Chinese and Russian counterparts during the trip, her first official visit since she took office last year, the Indian foreign India’s foreign minister , Sushma Swaraj ministry said. region must be upheld.

The talks follow a highprofile visit to New Delhi by the US president aimed at cementing ties between the two countries, which share an interest in curbing China’s growing regional influence.

Chinese foreign ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said they were aimed at enhancing “political trust”.

“China and India are two largest developing countries and major emerging economies,” she said.

“We are enhancing our mutual political trust and practical cooperation in various fields.”

Although neither side mentioned China by name during Obama’s three-day visit, the US president welcomed what he called a “greater role for India in the Asia Pacific” and said freedom of navigation in the

Beijing claims sovereignty over large swathes of the South China Sea, home to maritime lanes that are vital to global trade.

India’s new Prime Minister Narendra Modi is widely seen as taking a more assertive line on China than the previous government.

But experts say he will be careful not to alienate China, whose investment he desperately needs as he tries to boost India’s economy.

Obama and Modi took pains to demonstrate their personal rapport during the US president’s visit.

China’s state news agency Xinhua said it was a “superficial rapprochement”, pointing to persistent differences on issues such as climate change.

Sharif told P a k i s t a n ’s High Commissioner to India Abdul Basit during a meeting with him at PM’s House.

B a s i t briefed him on the status of the Pakistan-India relations, according to an official statement.

Pakistan’s Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif

The Prime Minister reiterated that Pakistan wants good neighbourly relations with all countries of the region, it said.

The Prime Minister reiterated that Pakistan wants good neighbourly relations with all countries of the region, it said.

The Prime Minister said it is important that two countries resolve all their outstanding

issues including Jammu and Kashmir in order to have viable peace in the region.

India cancelled Foreign Secretary-level talks with Pakistan after Basit held talks with Kashmiri separatists just before the parleys in Islamabad August last year.

Since then both countries have maintained that they are willing to engage in a meaningful dialogue provided the other side takes the initiative.

Pakistan opposes new India-US nuclear deal

I

SLAMABAD, 1/27/2015.

- Pakistan Tuesday said it opposed a new nuclear deal signed between the US and India during a recent trip to New Delhi by President Barak Obama, saying it was detrimental to stability in South Asia.

The US and India reached an agreement Sunday during Obama’s visit to New Delhi, breaking the deadlock that has stalled a civilian nuclear power agreement for years.

The US and India in 2008 signed a landmark deal giving India access to civilian nuclear technology, but it had been held up since by US concerns over India’s strict laws on liability in the event of a nuclear accident.

“The operationalisation of Indo-US nuclear deal for political and economic expediencies would have a detrimental impact on deterrence stability in South Asia,” advisor to Prime Minister on foreign affairs Sartaj Aziz

said in a statement Tuesday.

Aziz described the new deal with India as “another countryspecific exemption from Nuclear Suppliers’ Group (NSG) rules” that would undermine the credibility of the watchdog, weaken the non-proliferation regime and “further compound the already fragile strategic stability environment in South Asia”.

“Pakistan remains opposed to policies of selectivity and discrimination,” he added.

He said Pakistan would continue to maintain its constructive engagement with NSG and other export control regimes to build its case for membership.

Aziz also referred to Pakistan’s policy on reforms in the UN security Council, saying: “Pakistan favours a comprehensive reform of the Security Council to make this principal organ of the UN more representative, democratic, effective, transparent and accountable”.

WORLD/US

VOICE OF ASIA 10

Obama warns India over religious divisions | Says Washington and Delhi can be ‘best partners’

FRIDAY, January 30, 2015

Dubai overtakes Heathrow as top international airport

A man walks towards the departure lounge at Dubai International Airport’s Terminal 3, in a picture dated October 9, 2008 (AFP Photo/Marwaan Naamani).

by Ali Khalil U.S. President Barack Obama and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi wave to the people as they on India’s Republic Day at the presidential palace in New Delhi Monday.

N

ew Delhi, India | AFP | Tuesday 1/27/2015 US President Barack Obama warned India Tuesday it would not succeed if it splintered along religious lines, sounding a note of caution after two days of mostly upbeat talks with the country’s Hindu nationalist leader.

Obama told an audience of mostly young Indians that everyone should be able to practise their faith without fear of persecution, recalling that the mainly Hindu country’s constitution enshrined freedom of religion.

“Nowhere is that more important than India, nowhere is it going to be more necessary for that foundational value to be upheld,” he said.

“India will succeed so long as it is not splintered along lines of religious faith.”

India is a secular country, but its history is marked with outbreaks of religious violence, notably against its sizeable Muslim minority.

The issue of religious freedom has become particularly contentious since the election last year of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, a fervent Hindu nationalist.

The United States blacklisted Modi following anti-Muslim violence that left at least 1,000 people dead in Gujarat, where he was state chief minister before winning last year’s election.

Modi, leader of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), denies any wrongdoing and the Indian

courts have cleared him of all charges.

But the failure of his administration to control the violence and his refusal to apologise have left a legacy of distrust and suspicion.

Modi has also been heavily criticised for failing to speak out against a BJP lawmaker who recently called for Hindu women to have at least four children to “protect” their religion and supported a recent spate of ‘reconversions’ to Hinduism.

Modi and Obama have been at pains to stress their rapport throughout the three-day visit, which came just months after the US president hosted India’s new premier in Washington.

Read latest on World online www.voiceofasiaonline.com

D

ubai airport has soared ahead of London’s Heathrow, riding a boom in long-haul flights between Asia and the West to become the world’s top international travel hub, it said Tuesday.

Traffic at the airport increased 6.1 percent last year to 70.47 million passengers, Dubai Airports said, adding that it expected a further surge in traveller numbers in 2015.

Dubai International is home to Emirates, the Middle East’s largest carrier, which along with Abu Dhabi’s Etihad and Qatar Airways has seized a significant portion of travel between the West, Asia and Australasia.

“This historic milestone is the culmination of over five decades of double-digit average growth,” Dubai Airports Chairman Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed al-Maktoum said in a statement.

“The shared goal is to make Dubai a global centre of aviation and we are nearing that goal,” he said.

Dubai Airports CEO Paul Griffiths said Dubai International would boost its annual capacity to 90 million passengers this year with the opening of Concourse D -- a new hall for arrivals and departures.

Oil-poor Dubai has spent years trying to diversify its economy with core sectors now including trade, transport and tourism.

Aided by a rapid expansion in capacity, aviation is expected to account for more than a third of the emirate’s GDP by 2020.

passengers a year.

Heathrow handled 68.1 million international passengers in 2014, according to airport figures.

The British hub still outclassed Dubai International in overall numbers, handling 73.4 million passengers if travellers on domestic flights are included.

Superjumbo passenger boom Dubai’s increase in passenger numbers comes despite a slight fall in the number of flights taking off in 2014, due to 80-day runway refurbishment project.

London Heathrow by contrast has struggled to grow, with a commission still studying proposals to increase capacity there and at Gatwick airport, south of London.

Emirates Airline in particular has bought more wide-bodied aircraft, including the world’s largest fleet of Airbus A380 superjumbos, helping the average number of passengers per flight at Dubai to grow to more than 200.

The two are among five airports serving the UK capital that form the busiest hub in the world with around 135 million

Dubai’s surge in traffic “is no doubt due to the massive A380 fleet at Emirates,” said aviation expert Addison Schonland.

VOICE OF ASIA 11

LIFESTYLE

FRIDAY, January 30, 2015

ONLINE .COM voiceofasiaonline.com

Vol. 28 No. 5 Friday, January 30, 2015 Section 2 Page 11

Email: editor@voiceofasiaonline.com Tel: 713-774-5140

Americans still confusing Sikhs for Muslims: study

by Robert MACPHERSON

“I feel there is still a lot of ignorance,” said Arizona businessman Rana Singh Sodhi, who lost two brothers in the aftermath of the 9/11 attacks in New York and Washington.

M

ore than a decade after 9/11, Americans who come across a turbanwearing Sikh are still prone to mistaking him for a Muslim, according to a study released Monday.

- Slain soon after 9/11 -

Sixty percent of Americans who participated in the study by the non-profit National Sikh Campaign admitted to knowing nothing about the Sikhs who live, study and work in their midst.

One of the brothers, Arizona gas station owner Balbir Singh Sodhi, was slain four days after 9/11 by a white American who reportedly bragged that he wanted to go out and “shoot some towelheads” to avenge the attacks.

When shown a photo of a smiling older Sikh male in a red turban, 28 percent of respondents thought he was Middle Eastern and 20 percent believed he was Muslim.

The gunman, Frank Silva Roque, got a death sentence for his actions that was later reduced to life imprisonment.

Thirty-five percent thought he might be from India, or of Indian descent. Only 11 percent correctly identified him as Sikh.

A second brother, Sukhpal Sodhi, died in 2012 after he was hit, apparently by a stray bullet from a gang fight, in his San Francisco taxi cab.

Shown a fashionable young woman with knee-length hair -- the Sikh faith discourages hair-cutting for either sex -- 20 percent described her as Middle Eastern. No one thought she was Sikh.

In August 2012, a white supremacist and US army veteran fatally shot six people and wounded four others at a Sikh temple in Oak Creek, Wisconsin before taking his own life.

Indian Sikhs in Mumbai on May 12, 2009 (AFP Photo/Indranil Mukherjee).

It was the worst attack on a place of worship in the United States since the 1963 bombing of an African American church in Birmingham, Alabama that left four dead and 22 injured.

“We have been very much part of the American fabric, and yet we are not well known, and often misunderstood,” said Rajwant Singh, cofounder and senior adviser of the National Sikh Campaign.

Jaswant Singh Sachdev, a prominent member of the Sikh community in Arizona, said he remembered a time when Sikhs were viewed as “nobility” in American society.

“Frankly speaking, we are just tired of being the target and we want to be understood.”

The first Sikhs emigrated to the United States from what was then British-ruled India a century ago.

The mood changed, he said, during the 1979-81 Iranian hostage crisis when supreme leader Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini was cast as a villain in US media.

Today, the Sikh American community numbers between 200,000 and 500,000. Estimates vary because the US Census Bureau collects no data on religious affiliation.

But in the wake of the September 11 attacks in 2001, Sikhs have found themselves targeted -- with sometimes bloody results -- by Americans who presume anyone in a turban must be a Muslim.

Sikhs wear their turbans in a peaked style; Iranian clergy wrap theirs in a flat, circular fashion, but many Americans failed to notice a difference.

“When they see it, even the children, it is always the turban that causes suspicion and fear in those who see it for the first time,” he said.

File Pictures of victims of the shooting at the Sikh Temple of Wisconsin mark the one-year anniversary of the shooting rampage that killed six poeple, August 5, 2013 in Oak Creek, Wisconsin.

- Starting point -

An inviting hand: Calligrapher to the fashion world

by Anne-Laure Mondesert

P

aris, France | AFP - His hand is steady and sure as it delicately traces the contours of the biggest names in the world of style: the celebrities, the magazine editors, the clients.

Nicolas Ouchenir is a calligrapher, a member of a rarified profession whose ink appears on the must-have invitations of Europe’s fashion shows.

He may not personally meet all the VIPs attending the catwalk parades. But his personalised flourish to them, deliberately evoking the elegance of times past is carried close in their hands, in handbags, in tailored breast pockets.

With Paris Fashion Week

The National Sikh Campaign commissioned its study, based on interviews with more than 1,100 Americans, as a starting point to raise public awareness of the Sikh community at the national and local levels.

about to kick off on Wednesday, Ouchenir is being kept busy. The phone rings incessantly in his office with the fashion houses’ press and publicity people calling to reserve his service -- most at the last minute.

One encouraging finding: Americans aged 16 through 34, including Millennials, are more inclined than other subgroups to hold positive feelings about Sikhs.

“You have to react fast,” says the 36-year-old, who is dressed in jeans and a white shirt, and sat behind a desk upon which piles of invitations await. Next to them are pots filled with quill pens, pens of whittled reeds and calligraphers’ instruments, all of them on a stained leather desk pad.

He knows well the codes and hierarchies of the fashion world, having eased ink onto countless cards that serve as coveted entry passes to the biggest fashion events in the world.

“What tragic is that we hold incredibly progressive values,” said Gurwin Singh Ahuja, also a cofounder of the National Sikh Campaign, whose report appears online at sikhcampaign.org.

“Sikhs believe that men and women are equal and that all faiths have the right to practice (their faith),” he said.

“We have to do a better job of communicating those things.”

(AFP).

French calligrapher Nicolas Ouchenir works in his studio in Paris on January 14, 2015

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VOICE OF ASIA 12

HEALTH, SC & TECH

FRIDAY, January 30, 2015

Plastic chemicals linked War against IS group spreads to Twitter: expert to earlier menopause

M

W

IAMI, AFP | 1/28/2015 - Women whose bodies contained high levels of certain chemicals found in plastics and cosmetics experienced menopause two to four years earlier than women with lower amounts in their systems, US researchers said Wednesday.

While the study in the journal PLOS ONE did not prove that the chemical exposures caused earlier menopause, study authors said the associations they uncovered merit further research.

“Chemicals linked to earlier menopause may lead to an early decline in ovarian function, and our results suggest we as a society should be concerned,” said senior author Amber Cooper, an assistant professor of obstetrics and gynecology at the Washington University School of Medicine.

The findings were based on a nationally representative sample of 1,442 menopausal women, whose average age was 61.

None of the women were taking estrogen-replacement therapies, nor had they undergone surgery to remove their ovaries.

‘Lizard Squad’ hackers target Malaysia Airlines website

K

UALA LUMPUR, AFP- The Malaysia Airlines website was commandeered Monday by hackers who referenced the Islamic State jihadists and claimed to be from the “Lizard Squad”, a group known for previous denial-of-service attacks.

The website’s front page was replaced with an image of a tuxedo-wearing lizard, and read “Hacked by LIZARD SQUAD -- OFFICIAL CYBER CALIPHATE”.

It also carried the headline “404 - Plane Not Found”, an apparent reference to the airlines’ puzzling loss of flight MH370 last year with 239 people aboard.

Media reports said versions of the takeover in some regions included the wording “ISIS will prevail”.

The airline did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The Lizard Squad is a group of hackers that has caused havoc in the online world before, taking credit for attacks that took down the Sony PlayStation Network and Microsoft’s Xbox Live network last month.

The Islamic State, an extremist Sunni Muslim group, has seized large swathes of Syria and Iraq, where it has declared an Islamic “caliphate”.

It has drawn thousands of fighters from across the globe to its anti-Western cause, and shocked the world with its video-taped executions of journalists and other foreigners it has captured, the most recent being a Japanese security contractor it claimed Sunday to have beheaded.

A second Japanese captive being held by the militants has also been threatened with execution.

The IS group, which uses social media in recruiting and spreading its message, is believed to harbour ambitions of launching a cyber-war against the West.

It is unclear why Malaysia Airlines was targeted.

But concern has been rising in Malaysia after scores of its citizens were lured to the IS cause in the Middle East. Malaysian authorities last week said they have detained 120 people suspected of having IS sympathies or planning to travel to Syria.

ASHINGTON, AFP - The fight against Islamic State jihadists is taking place online as well on the battlefield, with 18,000 Twitter accounts linked to the group suspended in recent months, according to a US expert.

Women whose bodies contained high levels of certain chemicals found in plastics and cosmetics experienced menopause two to four years earlier than women with lower amounts in their systems, US researchers said Wednesday (AFP Photo/Cristina Quicler) Researchers examined the women’s blood and urine for signs of 111 chemicals that are suspected of interfering with the natural production and distribution of hormones in the body, the study said.

They found 15 chemicals that were significantly associated with earlier menopause and declines in ovarian function.

They included nine polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), three pesticides, two phthalates --- which are typically found in plastics, common household items, pharmaceuticals, lotions, perfumes, makeup, nail polish, liquid soap and hair spray -- and a toxic chemical known as a furan “that warrant closer evaluation,” the study said.

Ovarian function is important because without it, women are

infertile and may be at risk for earlier development of heart disease, osteoporosis and other health problems.

“Many of these chemical exposures are beyond our control because they are in the soil, water and air,” Cooper said.

“But we can educate ourselves about our day-to-day chemical exposures and become more aware of the plastics and other household products we use.”

She recommended people use glass or paper containers when microwaving food, and minimize their exposure to harmful chemicals in the cosmetics and personal care products they choose.

The study was funded by the US National Institutes of Health.

IS supporters “are under significant pressure, with the most active and viral users taking the brunt of the suspensions” J. M. Berger, a fellow at the Brookings Institution who tracks militants on social media, told lawmakers on Tuesday.

Twitter has suspended nearly 800 confirmed IS accounts since the fall of last year but this “may be the tip of the iceberg,” as almost 18,000 accounts “related” to the jihadist network were suspended over the same time period, according to a forthcoming survey

by Berger and another expert, Jonathon Morgan.

Although tens of thousands of Twitter accounts remain online, advocates for the IS group online have called the suspensions “devastating,” Berger told the House Committee on Foreign Affairs.

The IS group had been able to operate on social media with relative ease until recently.

But -- after IS released a grisly video in August of the beheading of American journalist James Foley -- Twitter, Facebook and YouTube have instituted stricter rules to ferret out posts that support “terrorism,” he said.

The fight against Islamic State jihadists is taking place online as well on the battlefield, with 18,000 Twitter accounts linked to the group suspended in recent months, according to a US expert The suspensions have targeted the most active Twitter accounts, hampering the IS group’s propaganda efforts, but has left intact less active accounts -- enabling spy agencies to monitor the group’s backers, according to Berger.

“I believe the current environment is approaching the right balance of pressure on ISIS networks, degrading its ability to achieve its goals while still allowing the United States to exploit open source intelligence from the network of members and supporters online,” he said.

There are at least 45,000 Twitter accounts used by IS supporters, including those created and suspended in recent months, he said.

The IS group has shown a particular acumen when it comes

to exploiting social media, Berger said, and US commanders leading an international air war against the jihadists in Iraq and Syria have voiced concern over the effect of their propaganda.

According to Berger, the most active Twitter accounts “act in a coordinated way to amplify ISIS’s message, tweeting links to ISIS propaganda and hashtags at an unnaturally fast pace, which cause them to place higher in search results and results in content being aggregated by third parties.”

The IS extremists also use numerous “bots,” computer-directed Twitter accounts, that automatically send out content to spread their message, he said.

The study Berger cited was commissioned by Google Ideas and is due to be published in March.

LEISURE

VOICE OF ASIA 13

FRIDAY, January 30, 2015

Obamas cancel visit to Taj Mahal

BOOKS:

Rediscover your original self with 100 meditations

F

rom the depths of innermost self, writer Vidya Gargote presents a staircase of meditations to ascend in her new book An Indian worker cleans a water pond inside the grounds of the Taj Mahal, on January 21, 2015 (AFP Photo/Chandan Khanna)

N

EW DELHI (AFP) US President Barack Obama has cancelled plans to visit the Taj Mahal during his upcoming trip to India, a local government official told AFP on Saturday.

Obama was scheduled to go to India’s famed monument to love with First Lady Michelle Obama on Tuesday, at the end of a three-day visit to the country.

Hundreds of cleaners had been hired to spruce up the white marbled mausoleum in preparation for the couple’s arrival.

But the area’s top admin-

istrative official said he had been informed that the trip was off.

“The proposed visit of Mr. Obama has been cancelled,” Pradeep Bhatnagar told AFP, confirming Indian media reports.

“No specific reason was given to us, but it is believed that the change of regime in Saudi Arabia could be one of the reasons.”

The Hindustan Times website had earlier reported that Obama would cut short his India visit to travel to Saudi Arabia following the death of King Abdullah.

The White House did not immediately return calls for comment.

Obama will hold talks with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi and be chief guest at the Republic Day parade during his second visit to India since taking office.

Analysts say the invitation to attend Monday’s Republic Day celebrations highlights a new closeness between the world’s two largest democracies.

In an interview published Friday, Obama said “the stars are aligned” to enable the

United States and India to forge a global partnership.

The cancellation of the Taj Mahal visit will deprive the country’s top tourist attraction of publicity at a time when the government is trying to boost visitor numbers.

Twitter users rushed to thank the president for orchestrating a clean-up of the mausoleum in the town of Agra, built by Mughal emperor Shah Jahan for his beloved empress who died during childbirth in 1631.

“It was just Obama’s clever plan to get Agra cleaned up.

Thank you Obama,” posted one under the name Anamika.

Factbox: India’s Taj Mahal Confrontational novelist

A

GRA,- India -US President Barack Obama is expected to tour the Taj Mahal as part of his threeday visit to India to strengthen ties. Here are some facts about the 17th-century monument to love.

1992.

LOVE: The Taj was built by Mughal emperor Shah Jahan as a tomb for his beloved wife Mumtaz Mahal, who died giving birth in 1631.

JEWELS: The monument is inlaid with precious stones including turquoise from Tibet, lapis lazuli from Afghanistan and sapphires from Sri Lanka.

The gateway is lined with copper and decorated with 1,000 silver coins.

NUMBERS: Some 20,000 labourers, sculptors, calligraphers and stone cutters, along with 1,000 elephants, took 16 years to construct the monument.

VISITORS: The Taj has drawn a string of world leaders and royalty including then Pakistan president Pervez Musharraf and US president Bill Clinton, while Diana, the late British princess, was famously photographed alone on a marble seat there in

ISLAM: The intricate carvings on the white marble walls of the Taj are calligraphic engravings of verses of the Koran, the Muslim holy book. It also has four minarets and a mosque.

COW DUNG: In 1996 the Supreme Court ordered a ban on industries using coal within a 10,400 square kilometre (4,015 square mile) area of the Taj to protect it from pollution.

This year, authorities banned the burning of cow dung near the Taj on fears of turning the monument yellow.

wins new French book award aimed at English market

PARIS - A former prostitute who became an award-winning novelist and filmmaker, Virginie Despentes, has won a new prize dedicated to boosting the stature of French writers in the Englishspeaking world.

A jury of French writers and English and American literary agents voted to give the first Anais Nin Prize to Despentes for her latest novel, “Vernon Subutex 1”, a fast-paced thriller set in a typically grimy underworld.

The award is named after France’s famed mid-twentiethcentury writer Anais Nin who was one of the few to write in both English and French and be translated in both directions.

Despentes, 45, is well-known in France for a controversial and confrontational series of books and films informed by her past

work in a massage parlour in the southern city of Lyons.

SAN JOSE, Calif. (January 5, 2014) – Poet Vidya Gargote introduces 100 ways to elevate your mood with MUTE: Poems That Saved My Life!, a collection of meditations and poems that guide readers to a higher state of consciousness by reconnecting them with their innermost self.

Gargote wrote MUTE: Poems That Saved My Life! during a time in her life when she became depressed in the wake of working long hours and parenting a newborn. She used creative writing and journal therapy as a tool to return to her true self, reaching her goal of happiness and emerging with the vision of helping others in this universe through her story.

“Although this book came out of a low time, it’s not a book about depression,” she explained. “I want my journey to be a guide to anyone who wants to better their life. Use my staircase of meditations to elevate your happiness, and then add your own stairs to the summit.”

Gargote’s verses of exultation combats the notion that we cannot alter our own state of being, but demonstrates practical steps to elevate one’s mood and combat depression and seasonal affective disorder with simple, small actions.

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Young Life

VOICE OF ASIA 14

Friday, January 30, 2015

Section 2

Page 14

Email: editor@voiceofasiaonline.com

FRIDAY, January 30, 2015

Tel: 713-774-5140

Harris County Judge, Sandill talks to YLDP students on leadership

Top contenders of Lifetime Show “Child Genius”

by Shravya Prabhu

ifetime’s all-new competition series “Child Genius” (#ChildGenius) that airs Tuesdays at 10/9c, centers on America’s most extraordinary and gifted children and their families as they prepare for a national intelligence competition. In cooperation with American Mensa, the competition takes place over eight weeks and tests the nation’s brightest young minds on their knowledge of Math, Spelling, Geography, Memory, the Human Body, U.S. Presidents, Vocabulary, Current Events, Zoology, Astronomy and Space, Inventions, Literature and the Arts, Earth Science and Logic.

T

he Government/Politics session of YLDP at the Harris County Civil Courthouse last Saturday was very inspiring and was full of takeaways for young people. Judge Ravi K Sandill, the speaker for this session, is a great example of a Level 5 leader, one that is selfless and committed to reaching his goals, because of the challenges he has overcome to become the only South Asian elected to a countywide office in Harris County.

Judge Sandill’s life parallels that of Darwin E. Smith, chief executive of paper products company Kimberly-Clark. Just as Smith continued to lead his company when he was told by doctors that he had less than a year to live, Judge Sandill persisted towards his goal even after a two year battle with cancer. The fact that he was much younger than his opponent, an incumbent of 28 years, did not stop Judge Sandill; he was eventually elected into court, where he is serving as an excellent judge. The fact that Judge Sandill conquered this challenge, especially after a battle with cancer, shows how strong determination can help us succeed. His story inspires us to

Harris County Civil Judge Ravi K Sandill seen delivering a talk to the students of YLDP. not give up on achieving our goals in the face of adversity.

Judge Sandill has also shown that South Asians can overcome race related struggles by understanding and working with others. When Judge Sandill ran for election, he identified common concerns of his constituents and addressed them.

So, his supporters overlooked

his race and voted for him on the basis of his ideas and what he was able to contribute. In other words, it is about what we know, and how well we can present what we know. If I am the only South Asian in a room, I now know not to feel out of place because it is just a matter of understanding the issue at hand and confidently expressing oneself.

Lastly, it is also important to consider that Judge Sandill possessed the most important attribute of a Level 5 leaderHumility. He presented with confidence but without showing excessive pride. He is open to the ideas of others. His message to young future leaders is to that determination and passion are enough to ensure success.

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Katherine 11, Rancho Palos Verdes, CA Mother: Maggie He, Homemaker Father: Andy He, Management Consultant Interests: Flute, piano, dance Favorite Subject: Math

Tanishq 10, Sacramento, CA

Obamas Honor Work Of 12-Year-Old Child Slave Turned Activist During India Trip

by Robbie Couch (HP). romoting gender equality was vital in President Obama’s message to India, so it made sense that a 12-year-old female activist who has overcome incredible odds was there to draw attention to the American leader’s message.

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During a stop on the Obamas’ trip to the South Asian country on Tuesday, photographers caught a smiley exchange between Michelle Obama and 12year-old Payal Jangid, a victim of slavery turned children’s rights advocate, ABC News reported.

Payal and two another children who escaped slavery met with the Obamas at the Siri Fort Auditorium in New Delhi alongside Kailash Satyarthi, who won the Nobel Peace Prize last year with Malala Yousafzai for his work promoting children’s rights, according to the Associated Press.

Satyarthi’s NGO, Bachpan Bachao Andolan, is responsible for rescuing Payal.

During the weeklong trip, the president met with Indian officials to focus on mutual goals of enhancing clean energy practices, discussed global trade and partook in the country’s Republic Day festivities, according to the White House.

Mother: Taji Abraham, Veterinarian turned stay-at-home mom and home school teacher Father: Bijou Abraham, Software Engineer Goals: Scientist Doctor and the President of the USA! Interests: Chess, swimming, dancing, soccer At the age of 10, Tanishq has already appeared on “The Queen Latifah Show” to discuss his solar discoveries. He became a Mensa member at the age of four and began attending college courses with his mother at the age of 7. Tanishq’s mother has given up her career to focus on the education of her two children. Tanishq spoke at a TED conference explaining the exoplanets and supernovas he has already discovered and climate change. He is also the youngest poster presenter and speaker at a NASA conference in NASA Ames.

Why he’ll win?

Already a public “Kid Genius,” Tanishq is already being flown around the world for appearances, lectures and the talk show circuit. Comfortable speaking with large audiences and among people well beyond his years, competing with his peers is like a walk in the park!

And to share a heartfelt moment with the first lady, too.

President and Michelle Obama meet with Kailash Satyarthi, third from right, his wife Sumedha Satyarth, left, with Payal Jangid, right, at the Siri Fort Auditorium in New Delhi, India, Tuesday, Jan. 27, 2015. (AP Photo/Carolyn Kaster) But he ended the visit on gender equality.

“We know from experience that nations are more successful when their women are successful,” Obama said in a speech on Tuesday to mostly students and media representatives, according to Reuters.

murdered in December 2012.

The incident sparked protests and called for improvement for women in regards to health, education and employment.

Payal leads the Child Parliament in her Indian village where many people live in poverty and girls are often forced into child marriage -- according to the World’s Children’s Prize.

As the leader of the group, Payal is fighting for positive change, and demanding men

respect women for the betterment of all.

“We visit children at home and explain to their parents why school is important,” Payal, who wants to become a teacher some day, said. “We also tell fathers not to beat their children or wives. If they behave in a loving way, life is better for everyone.”

Graham 10, Verdigris, Oklahoma

Probe links sugary drinks with earlier menstruation

When Graham was 5 he tested in the top .1 percentile.

From that test score, Graham was accepted into the Davidson’s Young Scholars program.

Graham currently is two grades ahead of where he should be and there’s no slowing down for him in the near future. His mom is his constant advocate and fought for two years

ARIS, AFP, 1/28/2015 Girls who consume lots of sugary drinks start menstruating at a younger age, a study said Wednesday.

The findings are important because early onset of menstruation is linked to a higher risk of breast cancer in later life, the paper said, although other experts saw flaws in the probe.

Writing in the journal Human Reproduction, researchers said they had monitored the health of more than 5,500 American girls between 1996 and 2001. They had been part of a wider study involv-

consumed “is likely low” compared with that of other groups, the researchers said.

Sweetened beverages comprised non-diet sodas, non-carbonated fruit-based drinks and sweetened ice tea. A serving was classified as one can or glass.

Independent commentators were cautious of the findings, pointing in particular at the source of the data.

It was the girls themselves, or their parents, who reported on body size and drink consumption -- a method famously prone to error.

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The outlet reported that gender equality has become a hot-button issue in India after a woman was gang raped and

ing nearly 17,000 children.

The girls were aged between nine and 14 when they joined the project and had not yet started their periods.

During the five-year study, those who drank between one-and-ahalf servings of sweetened drinks per day had their first period 2.7 months earlier than those who had two or fewer sweet drinks a week, the investigators found.

The earlier menstruation occurred regardless of the girls’ height-to-weight ratio -- their body mass index (BMI) -- their calorie intake and exercise.

“Our study adds to increasing concern about the widespread consumption of sugar-sweetened drinks in the USA and elsewhere,” said Karin Michels of Harvard Medical School, who led the probe.

The average age for first menstruation was 12 years and seven months.

A 2.7-month earlier onset translates into a “modest impact” on breast cancer risk, the study said.

Previous work had found that starting menstruating one year earlier increases the cancer risk by about five percent.

Courtesy: The Huffington Post.

Doctors are already concerned about a separate issue -- the everearlier onset of puberty in young girls, which remains unexplained.

The latest study was based on statistics, and was not powered to explore the causes.

The authors point to previous research that says high, swift doses of sugar cause a rapid increase in levels of the hormone insulin, which in turn has a knock-on effect on concentrations of sex hormones.

The group of girls in the study was 93 percent white, and the amount of sweetened drinks they

Why he’ll win?

Graham is a serious contender because of his ability to retain facts across all subjects. He is very competitive but also has an outgoing personality that always wins him points.

Hosted by Leland Melvin, former NASA astronaut, the show features 20 boys and girls ages 8 to 12 from across the country, all competing for a $100,000 college fund and the

title of Child Genius 2014.

YLDP students were invited to visit Harris County Civil Courthouseby Hon. Judge Sandill as part of their program.

convincing the principal that Graham could take advanced courses. He drives his family crazy with his non-stop facts about varying subjects. He hopes to one day use his capabilities and love of geography and weather to help people in natural disasters.

Although Katherine excels at every subject, her favorite subjects are math, science and language arts. She is currently enrolled as a sixth grader, but is taking eighth grade math. She has won several math competitions at school at all levels: school, district, and Los Angeles County. Katherine was elected school president at her elementary school. She is passionate about the banning of animal testing, and can speak Chinese. Outside of school, she allocates her time to playing instruments such as the flute and piano.

Why she’ll win?

Katherine is good at everything. During her first year of debate, her team got 11th place out of 50 teams in a middle school tournament.

Vanya 12, Olathe, KS Mother: Sandy Shivashankar, Software QA Manager Father: Mirle Shivashankar, Consulting IT Manager & Quality Assurance Control Goals: Cardiac Surgeon Interests: Acting, singing, piano, bike riding, swimming, brain games, playing with her dog Vanya is a loveable little chatterbox with an insatiable thirst for knowledge. She has been an aggressive reader and speller since the age of five.

Her personal collective of novels expands more than 200 novels, reading each at least four times. Her sister is the 2009 Scripps champion and her idol who she looks up to.

Why she’ll win?

Having participated in hundreds of competitions over the years, Vanya has a firm grasp on what it takes to win! She is on a personal mission to win… so bring it!

“It’s fair to ask whether the selfreporting on height is a bit overestimated and whether on weight it is under-estimated,” said Michel Colle, a paediatrician in Bordeaux, southwestern France.

“If so, this would completely distort the BMI and thus the conclusions themselves.”

Ieuan Hughes, a paediatrician at Britain’s University of Cambridge, said the study also failed to factor in the children’s location, parents’ occupation and whether they were migrants -- other potential factors.

“The reference to breast cancer is overly alarmist,” he added.

VOICE OF ASIA 15

BOLLYWOOD MASALA

FRIDAY, January 30, 2015

Friday, January 30, 2015

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Email: editor@voiceofasiaonline.com

Its a simple wedding for the Nawab girl!

Soha Ali Khan weds Kunal Khemu on January 25, 2015

Tel: 713-774-5140

Overwhelmed By Padma Vibhushan Award: Big B

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UMBAI: Megastar Amitabh Bachchan today said he is honoured to be chosen for the Padma Vibhushan, the second highest civilian award of the country, and overwhelmed by the affection of the people.

The 72-year-old national award winning actor, who is also the recipient of the Padma Bhushan and Padma Shree, said he has no words to express his gratitude.

“The Government of India has decorated me today with the highest Padma Award of the country, the Padma Vibhushan...I have no words to express my gratitude to the powers that be and am most humbled and overwhelmed by the generosity of the people that decide or sit on judgement on this...’” Bachchan posted on his blog early this morning.

Padma Vibhushan, Amitabh Bachchan The ‘Shamitabh’ star said with this honour, they now have seven such awards of the highest national acclaim in his family.

“My Father : Padma Shree, Padma Bhushan. Jaya: Padma Shree, Aishwarya : Padma Shree, AB: Padma Shree, Padma Bhushan, Padma Vibhushan. In one family this must be

perhaps the only reference or case in the country,” Bachchan wrote.

The actor thanked his fans for making him what he is today.

“I feel blessed and honoured, fortunate and humbled, overwhelmed and submerged by the affection and love of the people...,” Bachchan said.

Sridevi returns to Tamil cinema with ‘Puli’

Newly weds Soha Ali Khan and Kunal Khemu looked royal at their wedding reception which was attended by their family and close friends. Soha Ali Khan tied the knot with her fiance and longtime beau Kunal Khemu in a small ceremony on Sunday. (Source: Varinder Chawla) Sridevi started her career as a child artist in MA Thirumugham’s devotional Thunaivan at the age of four.

Bollywood diva Sridevi is all set to make her Tamil film comeback with Vijay starrer fantasy drama ‘Puli’ after a gap of more than two decades.

Sridevi, 51, whose last cinema outing was ‘English Vinglish’, said she is enjoying her shooting schedules.

Haasan and Sudip.

Malayalam and Kannada films.

The wife of Boney Kapoor started her career as a child artist in MA Thirumugham’s devotional Thunaivan at the age of four, and continued to act as a child artiste in Tamil, Telugu,

She made her Bollywood debut as a child artiste in the hit 1975 film ‘Julie’ and played her first adult role at age 13 with the Tamil film ‘Moondru Mudichu’.

“It gives me immense happiness to announce the title of my new Tamil film PULI. It’s been a wonderful experience working with the cast and crew,” Sridevi posted on Twitter.

Sridevi is slated to play Hansika Motwani’s mother in the film, which also stars Shruti L-R: Brides’s sister Saba and mother Sharmila Tagore, Soha Ali Khan and Kunal Khemu, Soha’s elder brother Saif Ali Khan, sister in law Kareena Kapoor, (Phot credit:Varinder Chawla)

B

ollywood actors Soha Ali Khan and Kunal Khemu tied the knot in a small wedding ceremony on Sunday. After a long romance the couple tied knot last weekend. The marriage was a close affair in the attendance of close family and friends.

Among all the invitees who were a part of the wedding, it was brother Saif Ali Khan and sister-in-law Kareena Kapoor who received all the guests, playing the perfect hosts. The

couple also looked adorable together, especially with their dresses complimenting each other.

Though the event was a private affair, still it got a massive media coverage, like the previous Pataudi wedding (Saif-Kareena) it became one of the happening events of B-town. The pictures of newlywed couple went viral on social networking site Twitter.

Soha Ali Khan took to Twit-

ter to post her wedding pictures along with a caption, “I married my best friend today”.

Kunal Khemu also thanked his fans for blessing him on his big day. He tweeted, “A very big thank you to all of you for all the love and blessings. It’s Official now!!”.

B-town celebrities like Karan Johar, Malaika Arora Khan, Amrita Arora, Sophie Choudry and Karisma Kapoor among others attended the star stud-

ded ceremony. Salman Khan’s sister Arpita Khan posted few pictures of reception ceremony of Soha Ali Khan and Kunal Khemu on Twitter.

After enjoying big fat wedding with Kunal Khemu, Soha Ali Khan thanked her fans for the love and blessings. She tweeted, “Thank you all for your warm wishes and blessings, it’s time to put my feet up for a few days. Let it all sink in!”. Courtesy: Business Recorder.

I didn’t act well enough in HNY, don’t deserve an award: Shah Rukh

B

ollywood Badshah Shah Rukh Khan has a shocking and honest confession to make. And it’s about award functions.

for acting in Happy New Year (2014). Yes, the film has done very well but as an actor, I don’t deserve to be nominated.”

The Chennai Express actor says he did not act “well enough” in 2014 and so, he “doesn’t deserve being nominated for an award”.

The Shah Rukh and Deepika Padukone starrer was expected to do well across theatres but the kind of business the movie showed on the first day itself was nothing short of phenomenal. The movie broke all first day records and made about Rs 45 crore with Rs 42. 62 crore in Hindi, Rs 1.43 crore in Telugu and Rs 92 lakhs in Tamil, Bollywood trade analyst Taran Adarsh had

SRK’s name is missing from the nominee list for an upcoming awards show.

When asked by a Mumbai tabloid to react to this, the 49-year-old said, “I don’t think I should be nominated

tweeted.

Produced by Red Chillies Entertainments Pvt Ltd, this Farah Khan-directed movie collected Rs 350 crore worldwide in three weeks since it was released just before Diwali in 2014.

After breaking box office records, Shah Rukh and his Happy New Year team had one more reason to celebrate: The library of the Academy of Motion Picture Arts & Sciences had selected the film’s screenplay for its permanent Motion Picture Scripts Core Collection.

In the past, scripts of Rajkumar Hirani’s 3 Idiots

(2009), Lage Raho Munnabhai (2006), Vidhu Vinod Chopra’s Eklavya (2007) and Tigman-

shu Dhulia’s Bullet Raja (2013) had been added to the library.

HEALTHY LIVING HEALTH

VOICE OF ASIA 16

Friday, January 30, 2015

Section 2

Page 16

FRIDAY, January 30, 2015

Email: editor@voiceofasiaonline.com

Houston Methodist Sugar Land Hospital develops Fort Bend’s most advanced cardiac care program

Tel: 713-774-5140

Choosing the Right Health Insurance Plan Choosing the right plan means understanding your medical needs, including what healthcare providers and treatments you’ll use, and then figuring out your budget and if you are eligible for cost assistance. That will narrow down which tier of metal plan to get, then you’ll compare benefits of those plans.

As a rule of thumb we suggest a Silver HMO if you qualify for cost assistance.

The more cost assistance you qualify for the more we suggest it as only Silver plans are eligible for Cost Sharing Reduction subsidies.

Actuarial value

Heart & Vascular Center Physicians: Nicolas Daoura, M.D.; B. Keith Ellis, M.D.; Htut Win, M.D., Yassir Sonbol, M.D.; Uttam Tripathy, M.D.; Kesavan Shan, M.D.

SUGAR LAND—(January 27, 2015) — Houston Methodist Sugar Land Hospital’s Heart & Vascular Center offers the most advanced cardiac care program in the area – making it possible for residents to receive advanced, sophisticated care close to home.

“We’ve built a comprehensive program that provides the same level of care and treatment a patient can expect from a medical center hospital,” says B. Keith Ellis, M.D., boardcertified interventional cardiologist on staff at Houston Methodist Sugar Land. “And we do so in an accessible location that makes it easy for friends and family members to provide support while a patient is being treated, and convenient for patients to return to see their physician for follow-up care.”

The hospital’s Heart & Vascular Center provides a wide range of cardiology and cardiovascular surgical services, all performed by experienced, board-certified specialists backed by the latest technology and state-of-the-art facilities.

Most importantly, the Heart & Vascular Center’s cardiologists, electrophysiologists, cardiovascular surgeons, cardiovascular anesthesiologists and other specialists take a collaborative, team approach to patient care – working in concert to develop individualized treatment plans that can produce the best outcomes.

Heart & Vascular Center physicians specialize in: •

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Cardiothoracic

sur-

gery – coronary bypass and valve repair procedures, including the most complex cases • Interventional cardiology – invasive and noninvasive procedures, including coronary angioplasty, echocardiograms, stress tests and more o Radial artery approach to diagnostic imaging and coronary angioplasty. This technique provides a safer alternative to the traditional femoral artery (groin) access that also allows for early ambulation.

The procedure is highly beneficial for the patient who cannot tolerate lying flat.

• Electrophysiology – installation and monitoring of pacemakers and defibrillators and surgical ablation to improve heart function • fects

Structural heart de-

• State-of-the-art vascular interventional procedures • Stroke prevention, hypertension and other chronic diseases Heart & Vascular Center physicians often collaborate to provide hybrid coronary intervention for patients with double- or triple-vessel coronary artery disease. The hybrid approach includes both angioplasty and minimally invasive bypass surgery performed in the same specially designed operating room, one after the other. Compared with the traditional approach of performing each procedure separately over the span of several days, the combined inter-

vention is much less stressful on the patient’s heart and often leads to quicker recoveries and less time in the hospital.

“Many people don’t realize that Houston Methodist Sugar Land is the only institution in the area to have 24-hours-a-day, seven-days-a-week coverage with both interventional cardiologists and cardiac surgeons,” says Uttam Tripathy, M.D., board-certified cardiothoracic surgeon on staff at Houston Methodist Sugar Land. “When a patient presents here, we are prepared to respond immediately to provide the proper care any time of the day or night.”

In fact, Houston Methodist Sugar Land is an accredited Chest Pain Center – a designation earned from the National Society of Chest Pain Centers that is reserved for hospitals that demonstrate the highest level of expertise in treating heart attack patients. Heart attack patients brought to Houston Methodist Sugar Land are typically treated in the hospital’s modern Cath Lab in less than an hour after arrival, which is well below the national standard of 90 minutes.

The center’s heart team, a multidisciplinary group that oversees care, meets regularly to discuss complex cases and develop individualized plans for patients.

“The collaborative approach here is a real benefit to patients, because our physicians share information and ideas and really work as a team to ensure that we are giving patients the

best possible opportunity for a successful outcome,” says Jennifer Pazderny, Heart & Vascular Center nurse navigator. “Our heart team puts in a lot of extra time to review and discuss cases, but the end result is definitely worth it.”

Once patients enter the program, the Heart & Vascular Center provides a care “navigator” who assists in pre-op and post-op education and support, helping patients and their family members understand their individual procedures and answering questions as needed.

It’s not uncommon for Houston Methodist Sugar Land physicians to hear from patients who don’t realize that the Heart & Vascular Center regularly handles even the most complex cardiac surgeries and other procedures.

“We continue to bring the services once only available in the medical center to Fort Bend and surrounding counties,” says Dr. Ellis. “We have an excellent team of experienced, knowledgeable physicians and the best facilities and technology, so it’s a natural evolution that provides a great deal of value to our patients.”

For a referral to a Heart & Vascular Center physician at Houston Methodist Sugar Land, please call 281-274-7500. You can learn more about Houston Methodist Sugar Land Hospital at houstonmethodist.org/sugarland or visit our Facebook page at FB.com/methodistsugarland for the latest news, events and information.

Before you read this section it is very important that you understand actuarial value.

Actuarial value is the average amount a plan will pay for covered services for everyone using the plan, it is not what the plan will pay you specifically. Premiums and costs not covered by your plan don’t factor into determining actuarial value, only costs insurers pay count.

Types of Metal Plans Each metal plan has a minimum average actuarial value which can be used to tell how good a plan is, what type of subsidies it qualifies you for based on income, and if it provides minimum value.

NOTE: All marketplace plans have a maximum outof-pocket cost no more than $6,600 for an individual and $13,200 for a family for 2015 and must provide at least ten essential benefits as part of their covered benefits.

1. Bronze plans split covered expenses 60-40 on average.

Bronze plans are the cheapest plans. All employer plans and non-catastrophic marketplace plans must provide at least the value of a bronze plan.

For a Bronze plan with 60% actuarial the insurer will, on average, pay 60 % of covered health expenses while the policy holder must come up with the other 40%. In other words a plan with 60% actuarial value covers 60% of out-of-pocket costs on average for all policy holders, not just you.

Bronze plans have the most basic benefits and most limited networks of doctors and hospitals. The actuarial value reflects this since that percentage is determined by the average expenses your insurer will have.

A Bronze plan is a good choice for those who don’t plan on using many medical services. Many low-income Americans may qualify for free or very low-cost Bronze plans. That being said in

Sudhir Mathuria Contact: Sudhir Mathuria Licensed Professional Health Life 360 6650 Southwest Freeway Houston TX 77074 713-771-2900 www.MyMedicarePlanning.com many cases a Silver plan will provide better value as Bronze plans won’t qualify for Cost Sharing Reduction subsidies (CSR). You will be getting a low premium in exchange for the fact that you will pay more out-of-pocket and have a more narrow network.

More than 50% of all medical costs are incurred by a very few unfortunate people.

Since your deductible will be high and all plans have the same maximum limits on the amount you can pay in a year, most of the costs you pay for a Bronze plan will go to the unfortunate people who get cancer or have a bad accident and reach their cost sharing limit.

2. Silver plans split covered expenses 70-30 on average.

Silver plans are “the marketplace standard” meaning that premium caps are based on the cost of Silver plans. A Silver plan on the marketplace can’t cost more than 9.5% of your income if you make less than 400% of the Federal Poverty Level (FPL) due to Advanced Premium Tax Credits.

The less you make, the lower your premium cap is.

Like Bronze Plans, the actual value of Silver plans can range. They simply must have at least a 70% actuarial value.

Silver plans are the only plans eligible for Cost Sharing Reduction subsidies (CSR) A Silver level plan is a good choice for individuals and families who have access to marketplace subsidies, especially CSR subsidies. If you make below 250% FPL the chances you won’t find your best plan to be a marketplace Silver plan is slim. Go with an HMO when in doubt, you’ll need referrals, but this will be your cheapest option. Like with any other plan, make sure your medical needs are covered in-network.

Continued next week on Gold Plans and more.

Contact Sudhir Mathuria @ 713-771-2900.

UN guidelines on physical activity under scrutiny

ARIS, France | AFP | 1/21/2015 - UN recommendations that people should do at least twoand-a-half hours’ physical activity a week are unworkable for some individuals, health experts argued Wednesday.

In 2013, the World Health Organization (WHO) published a “Global Action Plan” seeking to reduce incidence of lifestyle diseases by 2025.

It identified four areas where doctors’ recommendations to patients could make a difference: smoking, alcohol abuse, unhealthy diet and physical inactivity.

On the latter goal, the agency set a target of 150 minutes of “moderate intensity” activity per week for people over 18. This can include walking or cycling to work and household chores, not just exercise through sport.

According to the WHO’s Global Health Data for 2008, more than a third of people aged over 15 -- 35.6 percent -- fail to meet the benchmark, although there are wide variations among countries.

Specialists argued in the online British journal BMJ Wednesday that the target was focussed far too narrowly on people who already did some sort of physical activity.

It did not speak to sedentary people for whom a goal of 150 minutes of walking, cycling, swimming or jogging per week may seem discouragingly over-ambitious, they contended.

“Getting inactive people to do a little bit of physical activity, even if they don’t meet the recommendations, might provide greater population health gains,” said Philipe de Souto Barreto at the University Hospital of Toulouse in southwest France.

People who are fully sedentary are likelier to develop cancer, obesity and diabetes than people who are more active.

Barreto pointed to a 2007 study of more than a quarter of a million Americans aged 50 to 71.

It found that less than an hour of moderate exercise per week -- or 20 minutes or more

of vigorous exercise less than once a week -- reduced the risk of early death from all causes by at least 15 and 23 percent respectively.

In a second BMJ analysis, four health specialists in the United States and Australia argued that physicians should interpret the WHO guidelines differently for older adults, who spend a much bigger part of the day sitting or lying down.

North Houston Internal Medicine We Want To Be Your Doctor For Life • Primary Care Physician • Diabetes and Thyroid Management • Hypertension and Cholesterol Management • Heart Disease • Stomach, Bowel & Colon Disease Same Day Appointments • Health Screening/ Physicals Available • Health & Asthma Management

Instead of pushing the 150minute message to this age group, it might be smarter to encourage periods of light, daily activity, they said.

This could include standing up or stretching one’s legs during advertising breaks on television, or pacing while on the telephone.

“We are not proposing that the 150-minute-a-week standard be abandoned,” said the team led by Phillip Sparling, a professor of physiology at the Georgia Institute of Technology in Atlanta.

But an incremental approach for attaining it could be sounder advice for the elderly, they said.

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Tel: 713-774-5140

Fed upbeat on U.S. economy Modi promises business-friendly despite global turmoil India to US executives

The United States Federal Reserve Board building is shown in Washington October 28, 2014.

Credit: Reuters/Gary Cameron

by Michael Flaherty And Howard Schneider

W

ASHINGTON Wed Jan 28, 2015 - (Reuters) - The Federal Reserve on Wednesday said the U.S. economy was expanding “at a solid pace” as it largely looked through weakness overseas in a signal that it remains on track to raise interest rates later this year.

The U.S. central bank repeated it would be “patient” in deciding when to raise benchmark borrowing costs from zero, where they have been stuck since late-2008.

However, after a two-day meeting, policymakers struck an upbeat tone on the U.S. economy’s prospects and held to their view that energy-led weakness in inflation would dissipate.

“Economic activity has been expanding at a solid pace,” the Fed’s policy-setting panel said in a statement that marked an upgrade to its prior assessment of a “moderate pace” of growth.

“Labor market conditions have improved further, with strong job gains and a lower unemployment rate,” it said.

“Recent declines in energy prices have boosted household purchasing power.”

low. The dollar strengthened against a broad index of foreign currencies.

In making its announcement, the Fed largely skirted over slumping economies in Europe and Asia, saying only that it would take “financial and international developments” into account when determining when to raise rates.

In their last statement in December, the Fed had only noted “financial developments.”

Many Fed officials have pointed to a possible rate increase around mid-year, but they again left the door open to a later move. “The committee judges that it can be patient in beginning to normalize the stance of monetary policy,” Fed said.

The U.S. central bank’s stance stands in sharp contrast to many of its peers in developed countries, which have recently eased monetary policy to boost their struggling economies. The policy divergence has helped push the U.S. dollar to multi-year highs.

“You would have thought that if you were going to really postpone (a rate hike) to 2016 there would have been some more emphasis on international events and the dollar,” said John Silva, an economist at Wells Fargo in Charlotte, North Carolina.

The S&P 500 stock index turned negative after the statement was released, while the yield on the 30-year U.S. Treasury bond returned to a record

The central bank acknowledged inflation had declined further below its 2 percent target and that market-based price gauges had fallen substantially - a more negative assessment than in December.

The latest statement follows a policy shift begun in December when the Fed first said it would take a patient approach to raising rates. At that time, Fed Chair Janet Yellen made clear that “patient” meant at least two meetings.

In December, the Fed said that approach was consistent with its previous guidance of keeping rates near zero for a “considerable time.” The statement on Wednesday removed the reference to its former guidance.

The statement was adopted without dissent.

US existing-home sales pick up in December

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ASHINGTON, AFP | 1/23/2015 US existing-home sales rebounded in December from a November slump, led by gains in the key single-family home sector, the National Association of Realtors said Friday.

Total sales of used homes rose 2.4 percent from November to an annual rate of 5.04 million in December, climbing above the five-million mark for the sixth time in seven months despite low inventory on the market, NAR said.

Total inventory at the end of December tumbled 11.1 percent to 1.85 million existing homes, a 4.4 month supply at the current sales pace, slowing from 5.1 months in November.

“A drop in housing supply in December raises some affordability concerns in the months ahead as minimal selection and the potential for faster price appreciation could offset the demand from buyers encouraged by a stronger economy and sub-4 percent interest rates,” said Lawrence Yun, NAR’s chief economist.

The median price for an existing home rose to $209,500 in December, up 6.0 percent from a year ago. Prices have risen year-over-year for 34 months in a row.

For all of 2014, existinghome sales totaled 4.93 million, down 3.1 percent from 2013. The median home price hit $208,500, the highest level since 2007 and up 5.8 percent year-over-year.

Sales of single-family homes, the largest share of the market, rose 3.5 percent in December, and were up 4.0 percent from a year ago. Condominium and co-op sales slumped 5.0 percent last month and were unchanged on an annual basis.

“The underlying path of activity looks about flat, consistent with the low and steady trend in mortgage applications. Rapid payroll growth is increasing the pool of potential homebuyers but mortgage lending conditions are still tight and we see little nearterms scope for a real revival in housing activity,” said Ian Shepherdson of Pantheon Macroeconomics.

“Homes are still selling a bit more quickly than a year ago but overall, the market is moving sideways.”

American Express to launch services in Cuba Washington,- American Express said Wednesday that it plans to launch services for its credit card users in Cuba, after Washington and Havana agreed to establish relations following a half-century feeze.

Moving in the steps of rival MasterCard, an American Express spokeswoman said the company had plans to begin business activities in Cuba, “consistent with the president’s announced policy change,” though no specific date for a launch is set.

US President Barack Obama’s historic move in December to

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi (R) shakes hands with US President Barack Obama prior to a meeting in New Delhi on January 25, 2015 (AFP Photo/Prakash Singh)

by Christian OTTON Prime Minister Narendra Modi vowed to banish India’s reputation as a tough place to do business Monday, telling US President Barack Obama and American CEOs that he would ease off on taxes and encourage innovation.

As he promised a more “competitive” tax regime, Modi also pledged to address concerns about intellectual property that have long irked potential investors in Asia’s third-largest economy.

Obama, who is in the middle of a three-day visit to India, hailed the new change in tone at the top of India Inc but said there were still “too many obstacles” for businesses wanting to break into the vast market.

Under the previous left-leaning Congress government, investors frequently complained about a hostile business climate in India, frustrated by bureaucracy and corruption. In the last World Bank rankings on the ease of doing business rankings, India placed 142nd out of 189 countries.

But in his speech to a joint group of US and Indian businessmen, the new right-wing prime minister said he aimed to have his country up in the top 50 and promised his audience that things would change drastically.

“You will find an environment that is not only open, but also welcoming,” he said in the address to executives such as PepsiCo chairman Indra Nooyi and MasterCard president Ajay Banga.

“We will guide you and walk with you in your projects.

“You will find a climate that encourages investment and rewards enterprise. It will nurture innovation and protect your intellectual property.

was that the tax regime was both aggressive and arbitrary.

- Tax disputes British mobile giant Vodafone is currently embroiled in a bitter, $2.4-billion battle with India’s tax authorities, while Finnish company Nokia had a plant in India seized over a tax dispute.

Vodafone is battling the demand for back taxes over its $10.7-billion purchase of Indian mobile operations in 2007 from Hong Kong-based Hutchison Whampoa, while India’s tax authorities have also locked horns with Royal Dutch Shell, IBM and other international companies.

In his speech, Modi acknowledged that the tax rules had been too harsh and that he planned to lessen the burden.

“We have removed some of the excesses of the past. We will soon address the remaining uncertainties.”

Modi sees attracting more foreign investment as key to putting India on the path to sustainable growth and has been extensively promoting a “Make in India” campaign designed to turn the country into a manufacturing hub.

The stark change from Congress has been welcomed by Obama who outlined investments worth some $4 billion, including an announcement that the US Trade and Development Agency would provide $2 billion for renewable energy projects.

But the US president said there should be no illusions about the scale of the task ahead, adding that their economic relationship “is defined by so much untapped potential”.

“We have to keep working to make it easier to do business in both of our countries,” said Obama.

“It will make it easy to do business,” said Modi, who was elected last May after promising to transform the Indian economy after growth rates had tailed off to their slowest rate in a decade.

“There are still too many barriers, hoops to jump through.

One of the main gripes by foreign businesses under Congress

“We have got to do better.”

“We hear this consistently from business leaders such as you,” Obama added, speaking alongside Modi.

VOICE OF ASIA

Speaking last week, the US ambassador to New Delhi said bilateral trade was now running at around 100 billion dollars a year -- five times the level of a decade ago.

But Ambassador Richard Verma also said there was potential for the levels of bilateral trade to grow by another five times.

Before becoming prime minister, Modi spent more than a decade as chief minister of the thriving coastal state of Gujarat which won a reputation under his stewardship as India’s most investor-friendly place.

“Everything we wish to do involves enterprise and investments, but even more -- innovation and imagination,” said Modi.

MANAGEMENT TIP OF THE DAY FROM HBR.ORG Set a Bedtime and Stick to It for Better Productivity Many of us don’t get enough sleep. And this isn’t just an inconvenience — it worsens our mood, weakens our memory, scatters our focus, and makes us more susceptible to anxiety. To perform at our best, we need rest. Enough said.

Since most of us can’t sleep in later, the only option is to get to bed earlier. And yet we don’t. We stay up late because it’s our only downtime. Start tracking how you spend your time after work.

Think about what you can cut back on (mindless Facebook scanning), so you can do the activities you enjoy (watching TV) earlier. Identify an exact time when you want to be in bed. Then give yourself 30 minutes to wind down before attempting sleep.

Create a relaxing presleep ritual. Read something that makes you happy, lower the temperature, and avoid blue light (the kind emanating from your smartphone and computer screen).

Adapted from “How to Spend the Last 10 Minutes of Your Day” by Ron Friedman.

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open the doors to better political, social and business ties with the Caribbean island nation is expected to, at first, give a boost to travel to the country long under a US embargo.

Obama said US banks would

be able to offer various services including use of their credit cards in Cuba.

MasterCard said last week that it would begin processing customer transactions from Cuba in March.

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HOROSCOPE

VOICE OF ASIA 18

FRIDAY, January 30, 2015

Your Horoscope for the Week of January 30, 2015

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

READ YOUR COMPLETE HOROSCOPE ONLINE WWW.VOICEOFASIAONLINE.COM

Libra (R,T) 23 Sept to 22 Oct

Aries (A,L,E) 21 March to 20 April Put a positive spin on everything you do. Your role feels well established in the community. Good luck will smooth over any of the rough spots you hit. Your energy is far too electric to spend on routine everyday business. A new chapter of your life is about to begin. Someone new may appear on the scene, looking for attention and admiration. Be realistic and don’t make promise that you can’t deliver. Make plans to do something special with friends or family. They’ll appreciate the gesture and treasure it forever.

Pull ahead of everyone else in the race. You are the authority on matters of domestic comfort and joy. Bring along your sense of home wherever you go. Fresh ideas and interesting people will appear from nowhere. Don’t allow them to distract you from your winning strategy. Emotional distractions may threaten to weaken your impact on others. Seek out the advice of an understanding mentor who understands your strengths and can help you to clear the path.

Scorpio (N,Y)23 Oct to 21 Nov

Taurus (B,V,U) 21 April to 20 May Keep your finger on the pulse and your feet firmly on the ground. You have to be ready for sudden changes and must avoid taking sides. Your leadership fills a void instead of just boosting your ego. Your sunny personality is your ticket to discovery. Your cheerful dedication to the cause will be noticed by both peers and higher ups. If you are quick to react, you’ll be able to tackle problems before they become issues. You’ll have the strength to turn things around alone, if necessary.

Slow down the pace and concentrate on one thing at a time. Emotional logic is nonexistent, but with a more strategic plan, you’ll be able to reach new areas of understanding.

If challenged, you’ll be glad to oblige. Is it you or them? One way or another, someone is going to get hurt. Rumors or secrets can be very harmful to other’s reputations. Focus on the truth rather than passing along misinformation. Hold your head high, knowing that you have not caused the damage.

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

Gemini (K,CHH,GH) 21 May to 20 June Face your fear of being alone, You may feel overwhelmed, but you’ll still be able to stand up for your beliefs. You’d prefer to delegate orders to others but if you must, you’ll put your time in the trenches. Whatever it takes to feel part of the team. You’ve done very well with what you have to work with, but now it’s time to do even better. Use your sense of humor rather than trying to make a serious point. You have to keep them interested or they’ll look elsewhere. Past experience has shown you that you have to be careful in relationships.

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

Your reach will become more fluid and less structured.

Capricorn (KH,J) 22 Dec to 20 Jan

Cancer (D,H) 21 June to 22 July You may sense that there may be something missing from the mix. Your intuitive feelings may cause you to want to scream. Hold your tongue, as negative displays of emotion will only hurt your reputation. Others may try to introduce themselves as friends, but they are not sincere. Only you know if you’re walking into their trap. Independent thinkers will find different ways to get their ideas across. If the time is right, the magic will happen. Try your best to separate your personal and professional lives.

You need to do some changes in your family structure will now help you to cope with other changes in your professional life. You might still be able to profit from this experience if you try early in the week. You can share joint responsibilities without feeling all the stress on your shoulders. You just have to remember what your real priorities are.

A vital relationship will thrive with a burst of fresh energy. Start from the beginning and see what you can build from there. Your presence will be required to complete the cycle.

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

Leo (M) 23 July to 22 August Need to work out details on your own, You may be wearing your emotions on your sleeve, so react only if you are ready to listen to others feelings, as well. Only give your heart to those who take you at face value. Others will try to be part of the judging committee but you need to make your own decisions. Create a diversion to keep them busy, while you work alone. Once you get lost in the details, you won’t be able to hear anything else.

Brilliant ideas will have a way of arriving out of necessity.

Need to ignore your worries and let your sense of adventure take over. Go for it without any further hesitation. Things will turn out exactly the way you wanted them to. Communication will help you to be more objective in your thinking. Someone with a heart of gold will smile on your efforts and help make things happen in a big way. Think things through before announcing your grand plans. Others can help you to tune the finer details later but, you can only rely on yourself to get the job done right.

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

Virgo (P) 23 August to 22 September Get back on the horse that threw you off. You and only you know why you feel so pressured. Try to be a good host at home or a helpful guest while visiting. Don’t allow pettiness turn into hasty words or rash decisions. The extra stress you feel may cause you to be more bull headed than usual. That could really cause someone close to you to get their feelings hurt. Emotional turmoil will result in more stress. Use your strong personality as a social anchor. Your charm will help keep them focused on the business at hand. Try your best to be a little more flexible and a little more tolerant of others and you’ll feel more in tune with yourself.

QR

Take on more responsibilities in your life. Opportunities to expand your horizons and your income will arrive on the scene from nowhere. Someone who had taught you lessons in the past will now help you to show your worth. Get out there and prove yourself to the real world. Use your past experiences to build your confidence and overcome any obstacle put in your way. A good relationship will provide you with a solid anchor, as your success also depends on your loved ones. Emotional investments appear to run DEEP and somewhat ‘expensive’ for many, particularly those with youth in the house, as expense for domestic needs, clothing, education, sports/hobbies, food, appliance, repairs of ANYTHING related to ‘water’...

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Part Time Accountant

Seeking a Gujarati Live-In

Property Management Company in Houston is looking for a part-time accountant with the following qualifications:

for cooking & light house-keeping in Houston, Texas for a Gujarati family.

Minimum base salary of $2,200 with additional incentives of $50/week for performance based bonus.

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Good compensation for an experienced person

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Now You Know!

Amazing facts from all over the WORLD!

• Pop corn was invented by the Aztec Indians.

• An average person will spend 25 years asleep.

• Hippopotamuses have killed more people in Africa than any other animal.

• Bats always turn left when exiting a cave.

• Reindeer hair is hollow inside like a tube.

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The three main feature articles we need writers for are: • Alzheimers • Cardiology • Diabetes - Limit 500 words with photos & illustrations.

Our deadline for the first issue is February 19, 2015.

If you have always wanted to write and offer expert advice to families, regarding your area of medical specialization, this is your chance to do so.

We are looking for writers for these topics as well: 21. Dermatology - Skin Care.

22. Hospice Care – Terminal Illness.

23. Physiotherapy - Pain Management.

24. Chiropractic – Alternative therapy.

25. Acupuncture – Alternative therapy.

26. Understanding Woman Infertility.

27. Erectile Dysfunction.

28. Male Infertility.

29. Menopause.

30. Anti-aging Techniques.

31. Yoga - New age Exercise.

32. Organic foods.

33. Obesity & Weight Loss Surgery.

34. Sleep Apnea & Snoring.

35. The Science of Prosthetics.

36. Opthalmology.

37. Glaucoma.

38. Gastroenterology.

39. Other Medical Topics of Interest.

Author of the Articles must follow these guidelines: 1. Main Feature articles limit to 500 words with photos.

2. Author bio (5 lines) and photo must be supplied.

3. Article must have original content and insight.

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2. Healing properties of Spices 3. Cancer - Types, Advancements.

4. Affordable Healthcare.

5. Wealth management & Transfer.

6. Dental hygeine.

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8. Pharmacy - Managing multiple prescriptions.

9. Dementia RFID Tags.

10. Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis.

12. Sleeping disorders.

13. Osteoporosis - Types, Risks.

14 Arthritis – Symptoms, Types.

15. Coping with Allergies.

16. Kidney Dialysis, Acute renal failures.

17. Parkinson’s Disease.

18. Multiple Sclerosis.

19. Ob-Gyn Woman Wellness issues.

20. Neurological Disorders.

FRIDAY, January 30, 2015

Here’s your chance to be a Vocabulary Sleuth!

Irascible - easily angered.

Rancor - resentment; animosity; bad feeling.

Voluble - talkative.

Bane - troublesome influence.

Bard - poet.

Ogle - stare at; observe in an obvious manner.

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VOICE OF ASIA 20

FRIDAY, January 30, 2015