New Delhi: BJP general secre-

tary Amit Shahs elevation as the

party president is as good as final
and an announcement can be
expected any time, according to
party sources. Shah, a close aide
of Prime Minister Narendra
Modi, has been in charge of the
party in Uttar Pradesh where the
BJP won 71 of the 80 Lok Sabha
seats.
After party president Rajnath
Singh joined the government as
Home Minister, the BJP has been
in consultation with its ideologi-
cal mentor, the RSS, to find a
replacement. Other contenders
for the post have been J.P. Nadda
and Om Mathur, from Himachal
Pradesh and Rajasthan respec-
New York: The US Supreme Court
ruled June 25 that New York-based
Aereo, an internet company started
by Indian American Chet Kanojia
has to pay broadcasters when it
takes TV programs from the air-
waves and allows subscribers to
watch them on any devices.
In a 6-3 decision, the justices
ruled that Aereo violates broadcast-
ers copyrights by taking the sig-
nals for free. The ruling allows TV
networks to continue to reap large
fees from cable and satellite sys-
tems that transmit their program-
ming.
Kanojia said in a statement that
the company would continue to
fight. Todays decision by the
Supreme Court is a massive set-
back for the American consumer.
Weve said all along that we
worked diligently to create a tech-
nology that complies with the law,
but todays decision sends a chill-
ing message to the technology
industry, he argued.
Had Aereo and other similar
companies been allowed to operate
without paying for programming,
more people would be likely to
drop cable services, meaning
broadcasters would get less income
for the rights to transmit their pro-
grams.
Available in New York, Boston,
Houston and Atlanta and seven
other metro areas, Aereo uses thou-
sands of dime-size antennas to cap-
ture TV signals and transmit them
to subscribers who pay as little as
$8 a month for the service.
Company executives and promi-
nent Aereo investor Barry Diller
previously said their business
The South Asian Times
e x c e l l e n c e i n j o u r n a l i s m
excellence in journalism
MEDICINE 15 OP ED 12 DIASPORA 14 SPIRITUAL AWARENESS 30
Recife, Brazil: The US may have
lost a game Thursday, but it won
both a huge amount of respect and
a spot in the World Cups second
round despite dropping a 1-0 deci-
sion to Germany in the group-play
final for both teams. On goals aver-
age, US beat Portugal to third
polace though both had 4 points
each. In a game marred by rain and
a soggy turf, the U.S. stayed
close enough to the
worlds No. 2 team to finish
second in its group, allowing it to
advance to meet the winner of
Group H in the knockout round
Tuesday in Salvador. The final
Group H standings were deter-
mined in Thursdays late games
when Belgium beat South Korea
1-0, and Algeria and Russia drew
1-1, so Belgium and Algeria
advance.
Germany, the group winner, will
play Algeria which finished sec-
ond. This marks the third time in
four World Cups that the US has
advanced beyond the group stage.
Powerhouse Germany, meanwhile,
has reached the semifinals in six of
the last eight World Cups.
Everyone said we had no chance,
but we took the chance and we
move on and now we really want
to prove a point, US coach
Klinsmann said afterward.
The commitment was great, I
Continued on page 4
Modi confidante Amit Shah
set to be BJP president
Vol.7 No. 9 June 28-July 4, 2014 60 Cents New York Edition Follow us on TheSouthAsianTimes.info
Continued on page 4
Continued on page 4
Indian American
Chaitanya Chet
Kanojia showing an
Aereo antenna, small enough
to fit on the tip of a finger.
US advances
to knockout
round in
World Cup
The US team posing before their World Cup match with Germany Thursday.
Amit Shah, a close aide of
Prime Minister Narendra
Modi, was made in charge of
the party in Uttar Pradesh
where the BJP won 71 of the
80 Lok Sabha seats.
Kanojias Aereo would have put cable TV out of
business, but loses at Supreme Court
June 28-July 4, 2014 TheSouthAsianTimes.info
3 June 28-July 4 , 2014 TheSouthAsianTimes.info TRISTATE COMMUNITY
By Ashok Ojha
Edison, NJ: Ending
the uncertainty over
the fate of India Day
parade in Edison NJ,
the administration of
Edison Township in
New Jersey has de-
cided in favor of In-
dian Business Asso-
ciation (IBA) by al-
lowing it to organize
parade celebrating
Indias Independ-
ence Day through
the Oak Tree Road
leading towards Iselin-Woodbridge
section of the Indian owned mar-
ketplace. Accordingly, the board of
IBA, a representative body of New
Jerseys Indian owned businesses,
announced at on 19th June the pa-
rade date as 10h August. The kick
off meeting was attended by hun-
dreds of IBA supporters, public of-
ficials and business professionals.
Since 2012 Edison Township had
allowed another organization to
hold a parade along Oak Tree
Road, confining the older IBA pa-
rade to the Iselin section of Oak
Tree Road. IBA filed lawsuits de-
manding the reversal of that order.
The local Indian community was
deeply divided over two parades
taking place the same day in the
same area.
Most people viewed it as a sym-
bol of disunity within the commu-
nity, pushing community leaders
like Councilman Dr. Sudhanshu
Prasad and Peter Kothari to pas-
sionately advocate for unity.
According to Satish Poondi,
IBAs legal advisor, Edison Town-
ship agreed to issue the permit in
favor of IBA for at least seven
years. Sapna Shah, Edison council-
woman, announced at the meeting
that the Townships order repre-
sented its support for unity in the
Indian American community. We
should respond by organizing a
spectacular show on 10th August.
The local community will enjoy
the extended length of the parade
along Oak Tree Road this year and
be proud of our heritage, said
Dhiren Amin, president of IBA.
This years parade will clearly
demonstrate the power and
strength of the community, said
Assemblyman Raj Mukherjee.
New York:
Srikanth Srini-
vasan, the first
South Asian ori-
gin federal judge
in the US, is the
India Abroad
Person of the
Year 2013. Judge
Sri catapulted
into greatness when, as an Assistant
to the Solicitor General, he became
the first Indian American to argue
before the US Supreme Court in
November 2002. He went on to
serve as Principal Deputy Solicitor
General before becoming the first
South Asian American to be nomi-
nated as a federal judge in the DC
Court of Appeals, Americas sec-
ond highest court.
He was not only confirmed 97-0
by the US Senate in May 2013, the
first confirmation to this court in
seven years, but also instantly
earned the buzz of a US Supreme
Court nominee-in-waiting.
Judge Sri formally accepted the
highest honor of India Abroad last
Friday at a ceremony at The Pierre
heres. The India Abroad Person of
the Year Awards honored 11
achievers in eight categories.
Arogyaswami J Paulraj, profes-
sor emeritus at Stanford University,
was the recipient of Lifetime
Achievement award. He trans-
formed the Indian Navys sonar
system before coming to Stanford
at age 48 and revolutionizing wire-
less technology. Kumar Barve, who
became in 1990 the first Indian
American to be elected to a state
legislature (Maryland), received
Lifetime Service to the Communi-
ty award. Anuradha Bhagwati, a
former Marine, won the Publish-
ers Special Award for Excellence.
The award for Community Service
went to Mallika Dutt and Deepa
Iyer. Arvind Mahankali (Scripps
National Spelling Bee 2013) and
Sathwik Karnik (winner of the Na-
tional Geographic Bee 2013) were
given the Special Award for
Achievement.
New Delhi: Prime Minister Narendra Modi, marking his one
month in office, said in a blog post on June 26 that every
decision taken by his government has been guided solely by
national interest and his numerous meetings with ministers
and officials have led to the regime coming up with excel-
lent road maps for moving ahead.
Modi, who was sworn in May 26 after the BJPs stunning
victory in the elections, said he does not have the luxury of a
honeymoon period.
In the last month, our entire team has devoted every single
moment for the welfare of the people. Every decision we
took has been guided solely by national interest, he wrote.
Modi said at the time of taking over, he was assailed with
the thought that he was new to the place and some people
believed that I would take at least a year or even two to learn
the intricacies of the working of the central government.
Fortunately, a month later that thought does not exist any
longer in my mind. My confidence and determination has
increased tremendously and I credit a substantial part of this
to the collective experience and wisdom of my ministerial
colleagues and also to my experiences as a four time chief
minister. The affection of the people and support from offi-
cials has also added to this confidence in large measure, he
said in his blog post, whose link was posted on his Twitter
handle.
The prime minister said that he has been meeting ministers
and officials from various departments over the past few days
and listening to their presentations, which have enabled a
wonderful exchange of thoughts and ideas and we have come
up with excellent road maps for the various ministries and
departments.
Modi said that several chief ministers have met him in the
past month and extended their good wishes and spoken about
issues concerning their states. I look forward to working
closely with them in the times to come, he said.
I feel there are areas where surely we need to improve. A
big challenge I am facing in Delhi is to convey to a select
group of people about our intentions and sincerity to bring a
positive change in this country. These are people who are
both within and outside the government system.
There have been some instances in the last month with
which our Government had nothing to do yet these contro-
versies have persisted. I dont blame anybody but I surely
feel that we need to strengthen systems whereby the right
things are communicated to the right people at the right time.
Hopefully things will change then, he wrote.
Referring to the so-called honeymoon period of his gov-
ernment, Modi wrote: Previous governments had the luxury
of extending this honeymoon period up to a 100 days and
even beyond. Not unexpectedly I dont have any such luxury.
Forget 100 days, the series of allegations began in less than a
hundred hours. But when one is working with the sole aim of
serving the nation determinately, these things do not matter.
That is why I keep working and that is most satisfying.
Judge Sri Srinivasan is India
Abroad Person of the Year
Edison Township decides IBA as sole
organizer for India Day parade
August 10 was declared as the parade date at IBAs kick-off meeting
Srikanth Srinivasan, (right) Prof Arogyaswami
Paulraj, recipient of Lifetime Achievement award
No honeymoon period luxury, all steps in national interest: Modi
Prime
Minister
Narendra
Modi reflects
on completing
one month in
office
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4 June 28-July 4, 2014 TheSouthAsianTimes.info TURN PAGE
Washington: The US on
Wednesday slapped sanctions on
two key figures of Pakistan-based
terrorist group Lashkar-e-Taiba
(LeT), blamed for the deadly 2008
Mumbai terror attack in which near-
ly 170 people were killed and hun-
dreds injured. The Department of
Treasury added Nazir Ahmad
Chaudhry and Muhammad Hussein
Gill, who have served as vice presi-
dent and CFO of the LeT respective-
ly, to its list of specially designated
global terrorists, Xinhua reported.
The sanctions ensure freeze of their
assets on US soil and bar American
citizens from doing business with
them. "In targeting LeT leadership,
today' s action demonstrates our
unrelenting commitment to combat-
ing terrorism by disrupting terrorist
groups' financial activities," David
Cohen, treasury department under-
secretary for terrorism and financial
intelligence, said in a statement.
The US State Department listed
LeT as a foreign terrorist organiza-
tion in December 2001, and the
group was added to the UN sanc-
tions list in 2005.
The Treasury Department said the
group was responsible for the
November 2008 terrorist attack in
Mumbai.
Dhaka: India Thursday eased visa norms
and agreed to supply more power to
Bangladesh as part of decisions to scale up
bilateral ties, with External Affairs Minister
Sushma Swaraj saying only an equitable
partnership with Dhaka could ensure a
prosperous South Asia.
In measures aimed at firming up rela-
tions, Sushma Swaraj held comprehensive
discussions with Prime Minister Sheikh
Hasina and her Bangladeshi counterpart
which an official said were "constructive
and productive, fruitful and successful".
On the second and penultimate day of her
visit, the Indian minister told a think tank
here that Prime Minister Narendra Modi's
new government was focused on "produc-
tive partnerships" with its immediate neigh-
bors.
"We are convinced that India's develop-
ment cannot be complete and sustainable
unless we succeed in building productive
partnerships with our immediate neigh-
bours," she said.
In her first trip abroad as foreign minister,
Sushma Swaraj told Dhaka that
Bangladeshi nationals below 13 and above
65 years of age would be eligible for five-
year multiple entry visas as against the cur-
rent period of one year.
External affairs ministry spokesman Syed
Akbaruddin also said that India had agreed
to supply an additional 100 MW of power
from the Palatana project in Tripura to
Bangladesh.
Sushma Swaraj also confirmed India's
willingness to increase the frequency of the
Maitree Express train service and the num-
ber of air-conditioned coaches between the
two countries.
She also proposed that India and
Bangladesh should work on a possible
Dhaka-Shillong-Guwahati bus service.
Sushma Swaraj promised to build better
ties with Bangladesh on all fields including
trade, investment, transport, capacity build-
ing, environment-friendly practices and
means that promote equitable development
in the region. Earlier Thursday, the
Bangladeshi foreign minister quoted
Sushma Swaraj as saying that India was
trying to reach a consensus on a water shar-
ing formula for the Teesta river so that a
treaty could soon be signed.
Bdnews24.com quoted him as saying that
Sushma Swaraj was hopeful about imple-
menting the long-pending Land Boundary
Agreement "very soon". He said Sushma
Swaraj had sought a special economic zone
for Indian investors. The two ministers also
discussed matters like security, trade, bor-
der issues and counter-terrorism.
US advances to knockout ...
Continued from page 1
wish we had more possession and created more
chances but maybe we are saving that for the
next one.
It is huge, huge step and now we can't wait
for the round of 16."
The only score Germany would need to win
the group came in the 55th minute. U.S. keeper
Tim Howard made a spectacular diving save on
a shot by Per Mertesacker only to see the
rebound bounce out to an unmarked Thomas
Mueller at the edge of the 18-yard box. From
there Mueller bent a right-footed shot just inside
the far post for his third goal in as many games.
The U.S. pushed for the tying goal in stoppage
time but Alejandro Bedoya's open shot was
stopped by a sliding German defender and sec-
ond later a Clint Dempsey head went over the
net by inches.
Kanojias Aereo would have...
Continued from page 1
model would not survive a loss at the Supreme
Court. The National Association of Broadcasters
praised the court for rejecting Aereos argument
that the lawsuit was an attack on innovation.
Kanojia, who holds more than 14 patents in
fields ranging from robotics to data communica-
tions systems, is an innovative leader known for
pushing beyond the conventional and develop-
ing breakthrough solutions.
He holds a master' s degree in Computer
Systems Engineering from Northeastern
University and a bachelor' s degree in
Mechanical Engineering from the National
Institute of Technology in Bhopal.
Modi condante Amit Shah...
Continued from page 1
tively. The main contention against Shah has
been that if he becomes president, both the
Prime Minister and the party chief would be
from the same state -- Gujarat. But a senior
party source indicated that it is no longer con-
sidered a roadblock for Shah..
Amit Shahs strategic acumen has been a big
asset for the party in the Lok Sabha elections
but what weighs against him is a pending charge
in the Tulasiram Prajapati fake encounter case.
Shahs plea for discharge from the case was
pending for the final order that was expected
any time, but the transfer on Wednesday of the
judge who heard it will delay it now.
US sanctions two LeT leaders
blamed for Mumbai attacks
Cabinet clears China MoU for
industrial parks
New Delhi: The Indian government has given in principle
approval to an MoU to allow China to set up industrial parks
the country. The move comes ahead of the five-day visit of
Vice-President Hamid Ansari to China from Thursday. China,
which has established five industrial parks in ASEAN coun-
tries like Cambodia, Indonesia and Vietnam, is keen to set up
similar industrial parks in India. The states being examined
for the purpose include Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh and
Haryana.
The details of the MoU for setting up industrial parks would
be available after the signing of the memorandum, Law and
Telecom Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said after a cabinet
meeting headed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The
industrial parks are expected to include special economic
zones and manufacturing zones. Commerce and industry
Minister Nirmala Sitharaman is accompanying Ansari to
China. Sitharaman is to hold talks with her Chinese counter-
part Gao Hucheng to discuss bilateral trade and investment,
which is heavily tilted in China's favour.
India announces concessions to cement ties with Bangladesh
External Affairs Minister Sushma
Swaraj met Bangladesh PM Sheikh
Hasina in Dhaka.
5 June 28-July 4, 2014 TheSouthAsianTimes.info TRISTATE COMMUNITY
New Jersey: Share and Care, a New Jersey
based nonprofit organization, partnering
with communities, philanthropists and local
charitable organizations, is hosting events in
the Tri State area to create awareness and
fundraising for various causes such as
healthcare, womens empowerment and ed-
ucation. First event in a series was kicked off
on Fathers day, June 15, with an Art Com-
petition for kids. 150 young kids (ages 5-14)
showcased their creativity and talent at Its
Time to Create Your Masterpiece depicting
Colors of India. SCF also presented a short
video I have a Dream for kids to learn
about children in India and their needs. Event
was organized and managed by Aha Designs.
The purpose of the Art Competition was to
raise awareness of parents and children that
their support to the Foundation benefits under-
privileged and changes lives. Winners walked
away with prizes such as X-Box, Nintendo
2DS, WII and Galaxy Tab, Kindle Fire and
IPOD Touch. For more info on the organization
and its events visit www.shareandcare.org
New York: U.S. Rep. Grace Meng (D-NY)
presented Indian-American student Soham
Daga with the Congressional Award Gold
Medal, Congress highest award for youth.
Daga is among 14 Indian American students
from the Tristate area to be awarded the
medal. The list includes Akilesh Tangella,
Ward Melville High School, South Setauket,
New York; Noshin Khan, Central Islip Senior
High School, Islip, New York; and Suveer De-
sai, New Hartford High School, New Hart-
ford, New York, Sahaj Viradia, University of
Miami, from Holmdel, N.J.; Neha Gupta, In-
dian Hills High School, Franklin Lakes; Raja
Atluri, West Morris Mendham High School,
Chester; and Hari Ravichandran, New Jersey
Institute of Technology, Holmdel, NJ; Puspa
Chamlagai, Furness High School, Philadel-
phia; Hari Gautam, Pennsylvania State Uni-
versity, Philadelphia; Saraswati Nepal, South
Philadelphia High School; Bishnu Rimal,
South Philadelphia High School; Govinda
Subedi, Pennsylvania State University,
Philadelphia; and Laxmi Dulal, Pennsylvania
State University, Philadelphia.
Meng awarded the 17-year-old Daga with
the honor during a special ceremony on Capi-
tol Hill that recognized all 283 Congressional
Award Gold Medal recipients from across the
country. To earn the award, individuals must
spend two years or more completing at least
400 hours of community service, 200 hours of
both personal development and physical fit-
ness activities, and a four-night expedition or
exploration.
Soham is an exceptional young man who
worked tirelessly to help others and achieve
very challenging goals, said Meng. Im
proud of Soham for earning this huge honor,
and its a privilege to congratulate him.
Daga who resides in Mengs district in
Forest Hills, New York fulfilled his commu-
nity service by volunteering for Boy Scouts
service projects in New York City, particular-
ly in the borough of Queens. He cleaned parks
and cleaned and painted churches, senior citi-
zen facilities, and public schools. He also
helped install and maintain landscaping. In ad-
dition, he spent a summer serving communi-
ties in India by organizing medical camps and
teaching students. For his personal develop-
ment, Daga engaged in policy debate and be-
came captain of his high school policy debate
team.
To maintain his physical fitness, he pursued
his fervor for cycling and swimming.
For his expedition, Daga embarked with
his father on a six-day hike on the Ap-
palachian Trail where he learned skills such as
camping.
The Congressional Award Gold Medal, a
public-private partnership established by Con-
gress in 1979, is open to all youth ages 14 to
23. The ceremony in Washington, D.C. took
place this past Thursday afternoon.
Daga is set to graduate from Stuyvesant
High School at the end of the month, and plans
to attend Princeton University in the fall. He
expects to major in financial engineering.
In addition to earning the Congressional
Award Gold Medal, Daga was a finalist in the
2014 Intel Science competition (where he met
President Obama). He was also honored by the
Society of Science. Further, he took part in the
Intel International Science and Engineering
Fair earlier this year where he won first prize
for global statistics and third prize for social
science and economics research.
Vinod Dadlani pleads guilty in
$200 m credit card fraud scheme
New York: An Indian businessman, in-
volved in one of the largest credit card fraud
schemes ever prosecuted by US federal au-
thorities, has admitted to his role in the con-
spiracy and now faces a maximum penalty of
30 years in prison and a US$ 1 million fine.
The banking fraud amounted to US$ 200
million in losses to businesses and financial
institutions. The guilty, Vinod Dadlani (51)
of New Jersey, is scheduled for sentencing in
September.
Dadlani, who owns a jewelry store, plead-
ed guilty before US District Judge Anne
Thompson in Trenton federal court to an in-
formation charging him with one count of
conspiracy to commit bank fraud.
He used his business to further one of the
largest credit card fraud schemes ever
charged by the Justice Department, and is the
17th conspirator to plead guilty in the case,
New Jersey US Attorney Paul Fishman said
in a statement.
Dadlani was indicted in October 2013 as
part of a conspiracy to fabricate more than
7,000 false identities to obtain tens of thou-
sands of credit cards. His associates doctored
credit reports to pump up the spending and
borrowing power associated with the cards.
They then borrowed or spent as much as they
could, based on the phony credit history, but
did not repay the debts. These debts were in-
curred at Dadlani's jewelry store, among
many other locations, where he would allow
fraudulently obtained credit cards to be
swiped in phony transactions.
Meng awards Indian American students with Congressional Medal
VENUE:
New Jersey Performing Arts Center,
1 Center St., Newark, New Jersey
DATE AND TIME:
Saturday, July 12, 2014
3 PM to 8 PM
Followed by Gurudevs personal
blessings and Prasad (dinner).
Registration is required for this
complimentary (no-charge) event.
TO REGISTER, VISIT
www.GuruPoornima2014.com
Or CALL
Rakesh Bhargava (516) 484-0018,
Bharti Doshi (516) 282-4353,
Suman Kumar (201) 562-2788.
Event Promotion
Do you know how fortunate are
those who get the blessings of
a Satguru on Guru Poornima?
Get the personal blessings of Satguru Brahmrishi
Sri Guruvanand Ji Swami Gurudev on this Guru
Poornima and become that fortunate person!
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few living Satgurus. He has
invoked all Chakras of his
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FREE buses from Long Island, Queens, Edison,
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Medal is Congress highest award for youth
Share and Cares art event draws enthusiastic response
One of the prize winning masterpiece
"Naach 360 2014
me s me r i z e s :
Nritya Creations
D a n c e
A c a d e m y s
Broadway style
concert was
hel d at North
Brunswick High
School , New
Jersey on June
21st. The show
began with the
junior kids fol-
lowed with the
adult's category during the four hour program. For much jam packed audito-
rium, the show added new sequences from classical - Bharatanatyam, Indian
Semi- Classical, Fusion and Western dance techniques that including Ballet,
Jazz and Hip Hop and Bollywood styles. (Photo by: Abhilash Christy)
Daga and Meng during the ceremony
in Washington, D.C. Also pictured:
Rep. Joe Crowley (D-Queens/Bronx).
6 June 28-July 4, 2014 TheSouthAsianTimes.info TRISTATE COMMUNITY
IN BRIEF
New Delhi: After declining for some years, the
number of Indian students heading to the Unit-
ed States for graduate and undergraduate stud-
ies is surging. A major factor is the lack of qual-
ity universities in India to cater to a huge, young
population.
Hundreds of students have been lining up at
the American Embassy in New Delhi this sum-
mer to get a visa to study in a college in the
United States. Besides Delhi, they come from
smaller cities such as Jaipur and Lucknow in
northern India.
Some are headed for undergraduate studies in
commerce and engineering, others are going to
pursue a masters in American universities.
One student explains the reason of his choice,
The flexibility of subjects, and the practical
learning you get there. It is because of the expo-
sure you get in the U.S. I do not think any oth-
er country can provide you with the exposure.
Another student says, It was my dream, it
was like my ambition do my higher studies in
U.S.
Indian students account for about 12 percent
of foreign students in the United States - the sec-
ond highest after China.
But their numbers dipped between 2009 and
2012, when the American economy slowed due
to the global financial crisis. Officials at the
American Embassy in New Delhi say numbers
are surging again, 40 percent more student visas
have been issued since October 2013.
New York: The Memorial
Sloan Kettering Cancer Center
(MKSCC) honored Dr. Datta-
treyudu Nori, its Chief of
Brachytherapy Service, with its
Distinguished Service Award at
the International Brachytherapy
Symposium on May 22-23.
Nori, who is widely consid-
ered one of the top cancer treat-
ment physicians in the US, was
feted for his outstanding con-
tributions and pioneering work
at MSKCC, the hospital said,
in a statement. Previously he
was named one of the top doc-
tors in all of America for can-
cer treatment, by The Ladies
Home Journal magazine.
Originally from India, Nori
completed his undergraduate
coursework at Andhra Univer-
sity, received his M.B.B.S. de-
gree from the Kurnool Medical
College, and earned his med-
ical doctorate degree from Os-
mania University, also in In-
dia.] Currently, Nori is at the
New York Presbyterian Weill
Cornell Medical Center, where
he is a professor and vice-chair
of the Department of Radiation
Oncology.
He is also the chairman of
Radiation Oncology at New
York Hospital Queens.
More Indian students heading to America
Oncologist Dattatreyudu Nori feted for
outstanding contributions
Four Indian-Americans killed in car
accident in Texas
A K Mago felicitated
for strengthening Indo-US ties
F
our Indian-Americans, including
two women, were killed and an-
other was injured in a car crash
in the US state of Texas, media report-
ed. The car driver, Devendraprasad Pa-
tel, as well as three backseat passen-
gers - Kokila Patel, Ansuyaben Patel
and Jayanthilal Bhatt - died at the
scene when a suspected drunk driver
Million Zeghergis ran a red light and
slammed into their car in southwest
Harris county in Texas late Sunday,
The Houston Chronicle reported Mon-
day. Deputies said Zeghergis showed
signs of impairment and was arrested
and charged with four counts of intox-
ication manslaughter.
Shanumati Bhatt, another passenger
in the car, was injured and was rushed
to Memorial Hermann hospital in sta-
ble condition, the report said.
Deputies said the suspect driver was
driving a 2009 Dodge van eastbound
on Beechnut when he ran a red light
and slammed into a 2002 Honda Civic
that was travelling northbound on Syn-
ott. They were all found at the scene
"with no signs of life", according to a
release from the Harris County Sher-
iff's Department.
A
n eminent Indian-
American has been fe-
licitated by top Ameri-
can lawmakers for his contribu-
tion to strengthening Indo-US
ties.
A K Mago, the chairman of a
Dallas-based business and in-
vestment consulting company,
was felicitated at an event organized by
the US India Chamber of Commerce in
Dallas.
If it werent for A K Mago, I would
have not had the occasion to visit In-
dia, top Republican Senator John
Cornyn.
Cornyn, who is co-Chair of the Sen-
ate Indian Caucus, and co-founded it
with then Senator Hillary Clinton at-
tributed the formation of this only
country-specic Caucus to Mago.
AK more than anybody I know, has
nourished and encouraged peo-
ple like me and acknowledge
the contribution that the Indian
American community has
made in the United States, he
said. Praising the contribution
of Mago in India-US ties,
Congressman Pete Sessions
said he played a key role in
Texan understanding the people from
this part of the world.
There are days and nights when AK
would travel and talk and be proud of
the country that he knows and loves
well, he said.
The Indian Ambassador to the US, S
Jaishankar, in a video message said,
He is a success story in the United
States, a wonderful example of equali-
ty of opportunity that this society sym-
bolizes. Mago is a recipient of the
Padmashri Award.
Inaugural Wellness Festival on
June 28 in East Windsor
Manoranjan Sen passes away
M
ayor Janice Mironov will be
inaugurating the rst Wellness
Festival on June 28 at 10 am
in East Windsor Target Center parking
lot, New Jersey.
During the daylong free-for-all event,
several experts in the health eld will be
on-hand to discuss topics ranging from
natural health, to body fat composition
to Jyothi meditation.
Events include:
- Dr. Dave Wendel of the Natural
Health and Wellness Center will be con-
ducting health care screenings covering
blood pressure checks, body mass in-
dex, body fat analysis, stress analysis
and breast cancer information.
- Retro Fitness Expert Trainers will
demonstrate total-body workouts, boot
camps and offer Body Fat Composition
analysis in addition to answering tness
questions.
- Sprayology offers the latest ad-
vancement in homeopathic and vitamin
oral sprays, and will demonstrate how
attendees can deal with health issues us-
ing homeopathy.
- Jim Rose, M. Ed, has been a medi-
tation practitioner and international
speaker for more than 30 years. As a
member of the Science of Spirituality, a
global non-prot, non-denominational
organization, Jim will lead hands-on
workshops focused on Jyothi meditation
and spirituality, and their application to
daily life.
- Hand & Stone will be conducting
free chair massages, free skin scans, and
offering the latest in facial care advice.
Brand experts will provide guidance on
the various types of massages and facial
care services to best benet the body.
I
n a major loss to the Indian com-
munity, Jersey Citys former
Deputy Mayor and leading commu-
nity leader Manoranjan Sen, popularly
known as Mono Sen and Monoda
passed away in the morning of June 25.
A K Mago
Rupal Shah Palanki confirmed
Connecticut Superior Court Judge
New York: With her confir-
mation as a judge for the Tol-
land District Superior Court in
Connecticut, Rupal Shah
Palanki, becomes the first In-
dian-Indian American to be
appointed to the Superior
Court in the state. The 41-
year-old Shah-Palanki of West
Hartford, Connecticut was, on
March 14, appointed to the
post by Gov. Daniel Malloy
on a slate that included sever-
al other diverse nominations
and was confirmed by the
Connecticut General Assem-
bly on April 29. Her term will expire in 2022.
Earlier, Shah- Palanki worked as an assistant
attorney general with the Connecticut Attor-
ney Generals Office, where she has served
since 2003. During her first five years with the
office, she worked primarily in the areas of the
Tobacco Master Settlement Agreement and re-
lated enforcement and on predatory lending
issues, according to her bio data on the North
American South Asian Bar Association web-
site. Shah-Palanki also repre-
sented the Departments of
Banking, Revenue Services,
Insurance and Economic and
Community Development
and the Office of Policy and
Management on litigation-re-
lated matters before state trial,
state appellate and federal
courts and on contractual mat-
ters. Prior to joining the Attor-
ney Generals Office, she
practiced with the firms of
Bingham McCutcheon and
Cohn, Birnbaum and Shea,
where she practiced in the ar-
eas of cross border insolvency, financial trans-
actions and commercial litigation.
She graduated from Glastonbury High
School in 1991 and received her B.A. from
College of the Holy Cross in 1995 and her J.D.
from Georgetown University Law Center in
1999.
Her husband Chandramohan Palanki is an
IT professional. The couple has two children
Maya and Mohan.
Rupal Shah Palanki
Dr Dattatreyudu Nori
7 June 28- July 4, 2014 TheSouthAsianTimes.info NATIONAL COMMUNITY
Abu Dhabi: Miss India U.S. Monica Gill
was crowned Miss India Worldwide 2014
here June 20, with the second place going to
Miss India Switzerland and third to Miss In-
dia Bahrain.
More than 40 contestants of Indian origin
settled in various countries across the globe
between the ages of 17 and 27 years, un-
married and citizens, residents, or born in
the country they represent, participated in
the Miss India Worldwide pageant.
The finale took place at the Al Raha Beach
Resort, Abu Dhabi in UAE, where Gill was
announced as the winner. She was crowned
by Miss India Worldwide 2013 Nehal
Bhogaita.
The pageant included rounds like evening
gown, Indian dress, a talent contest and
question-and-answer sections.
The winner took home a cash prize of
$8000 and various sponsored gifts, includ-
ing photo sessions and modeling assign-
ments apart from the crown.
Gill is a graduate of Boston University,
where she studied biology, psychology and
womens studies.
Washington, DC: Indian missions in the US
have turned to social media like Facebook
and Twitter as they scrambled to clear up a
visa mess in the wake of a change of con-
tractors for processing consular services.
Following complaints galore against the
previous service provider BLS Internation-
al, the Indian embassy here awarded the new
contract for providing visa and other con-
sular services to Cox & Kings Global Serv-
ices from May 21.
The switch, however, made the ordeal of
travelers to India, particularly from the West
Coast, worse in the initial days.
Outrage and anger over delays boiled over
into fights on at least two occasions at the
outsourcing agency's office in San Francis-
co last month, according to a media report.
"Is the Indian Consulate in SFO complicit
in stealing US passport... maybe not but
should not the DHS look into this," tweeted
one angry traveler.
"There would be no emergency if you bo-
zos would just process a normal visa appli-
cation," he said in another tweet.
The Indian consulate general in San Fran-
cisco Friday reassured those who had ap-
plied with the previous service provider BLS
International for Overseas Citizenship of In-
dia (OCI) that their applications have been
taken over processing by the mission itself
for processing.
Earlier, to deal with the crisis, the Indian
embassy in Washington DC and other Indi-
an consulates in the US started moving own
staff to consular service outsourcing centers
to help the applicants.
The missions also started providing visa
services to all Urgent/Emergency cases di-
rectly and set up helplines for complaints
against the previous and new service
provider. The Indian "embassy and con-
sulates taking extraordinary steps to respond
to recent Consular complaints. Write to Con-
sularHelpline@indiagov.org," said a twitter
message.
"Senior officers would be visiting the con-
sular service outsourcing centers to monitor
the progress in service," the embassy as-
sured in another.The Indian embassy here
also advised travelers to send their com-
plaints about returned unprocessed applica-
tions despite payment to ConsularCom-
plaints@indiagov.org with full details.
Indian missions scramble
to clean up visa mess
AAPI creates endowment for medical research
Washington, DC: The American
Association of Physicians of
Indian Origin (AAPI), one of the
most influential professional bod-
ies in the US, has set up a fund to
encourage young medical
researchers of Indian origin with
an endowment created by a Texas
plastic surgeon, Dr. Rajaram Bala.
The income from perpetual
endowment will be used for
research award for the best
research presentation at the AAPI
convention, in San Antonio, Texas,
from June 25-29, the association
president Jayesh Shah announced.
Thanking Bala on behalf of the
executive committee and the AAPI
family, Shah citing Microsoft co-
founder Bill Gates said, "I believe
in innovation and that the way you
get innovation is you fund
research and you learn the basic
facts."
He also urged other physicians
of Indian origin to consider an
endowment to AAPI to encourage
young investigators to pursue the
academic pathway."Philanthropy
and charity differ," said Bala who
was born in Mayiladuthurai, in
Tamil Nadu. "Charity relieves the
pains of social problems, whereas
philanthropy attempts to solve
those problems at their root caus-
es."
Bala's endowment is aimed at
encouraging the application of the
scientific method, a harnessing of
curiosity, encouraging young
physicians to engage in scientific
research. Bala, whose father was a
farmer with high school education
and mother a homemaker was the
first in his family to go to college
and the first physician.
After finishing high school in
Mayavaram and medical school in
Stanley Medical College, he did
his post-graduation in surgery in
India and came to the US in the
1960s. Starting from Westchester
College, Valhalla, he trained at the
Johns Hopkins University Medical
School in Baltimore from 1968 to
71. He has been chief of plastic
surgery at the Christus Santa Rosa
Medical center for over 35 years
and has focused on plastic surgery
for children.
Indian American Monica Gill crowned
Miss India Worldwide 2014
Monica Gill
(center) is
crowned
Miss India
Worldwide
June 20 in
Abu Dhabi,
United
Arab
Emirates.
New Delhi: The Washington
Leadership Program (WLP), the
premier leadership development
program for young South Asian
Americans, has started its sixth
year with ten more summer
scholars who will intern Capitol
Hill. This summer's class looks
just as exceptional as past class-
es with students from Harvard,
Yale, University of Pittsburgh,
and North Carolina State
University. They will work with
Members of Congress and advis-
ers in the Obama Administration, said a WLP press
release. The ten selected this year are: Areeba Kamal,
interning at the White House Initiative on Asian
Americans & Pacific Islanders; Batul Contractor,
interning at USAID; Kaushik Rao, interning with the
Department of Labor; Meera Patel, interning with
Congressman Ami Bera; Krishnan Sethumadhavan,
interning with Congresswoman Grace Meng; Christina
Lalani, interning at the World Bank; Vidhaath Sripathi,
interning for Senator Kirsten Gillibrand; Priya
Sundaresan, interning with Congressman Mike Honda;
Ernest Rajakone, is interning with Congressman Joe
Crowley and Nisha Deolalikar, interning at the
Department of Labor. Each year,
the WLP selects ten top-notch
South Asian American students for
the opportunity to intern in con-
gressional offices and federal
agencies on Capitol Hill. In addi-
tion to the internship, participants
attend special meetings and events
to fully expose them to the South
Asian American political diaspora.
The 2014 Scholars of WLP already
have exclusive meetings lined up
with Assistant Secretary of State,
Nisha Desai Biswal; former White
House adviser Sonal Shah; Faiz Shakir who is a senior
adviser to Senator Harry Reid; a dinner with
Congressman Ami Bera and Congressman Mike
Honda, as well as Judge Sree Sreenivasan. The WLP
was founded in August 2008 in memory of publisher
and philanthropist Gopal Raju, who sponsored a pro-
gram that placed over 170 students in Congressional
internships over 15 years. Alumni of Raju's program
created the WLP seeking to honor his legacy and con-
tinue this vital program for the community. "Whether
in elected office, law, or entertainment, our alumni
have gone on to do great things, " said Harin
Contractor, chair for the WLP.
WLP- Building next generation of
South Asian leaders in US
Some of the 2014 WLP Scholars
with Congressman Ed Royce at the
annual Priya Dayananda DC Intern
Welcome party.
8 June 28- July 4, 2014 TheSouthAsianTimes.info NATIONAL COMMUNITY
Washington, DC: Expressing deep
concern over human rights viola-
tions in the Sindh province of Pak-
istan, influential American lawmak-
ers have asked Prime Minister
Nawaz Sharif to protect Hindus,
Christians and other religious mi-
norities in the country.
"We are urging Prime Minister
Sharif to do everything in his power
to protect the Sindh community, as
well as religious minorities, from at-
tacks," Congressman Brad Sherman
said as he and four other members
of the US House of Representatives
wrote a letter in this regard to
Sharif.
"The Sindhi community includes
tens of millions of people in Pak-
istan who are striving to preserve
their language and culture but Sind-
hi activists are subject to enforced
disappearances and sometimes tar-
geted killings," said Sherman. The
four other lawmakers are Kerry
Bentivolio, Adam Schiff, Tulsi Gab-
bard and Tom Petri.
"Violence against minorities
everywhere is an unacceptable vio-
lation of human rights," said Con-
gresswoman Tulsi Gabbard, of the
House Foreign Affairs Committee.
"In Pakistan, we have heard re-
ports of torture, executions and dis-
appearances of peaceful and politi-
cally active Sindhis and Balochs
who are Hindu, Christian, Shia and
other religious minorities.
"These religiously and politically
motivated attacks are abhorrent and
I strongly urge Prime Minister
Nawaz Sharif to take action to ad-
dress these troubling offences. The
Government of Pakistan must stand
up for human rights, and against vi-
olent radicals who seek to persecute
and kill those with differing be-
liefs," Gabbard said.
Washington, DC: In a huge blow to
an India-born technocrat's streaming
television startup Aereo, the US
Supreme Court ruled 6-3 in favor of
America's biggest television broad-
casters saying it violates the Copy-
right Act. Using thousands of minia-
ture TV antennas, the online TV plat-
form founded by Chaitanya 'Chet'
Kanojia Aereo scoops up the freely
available signals of local stations in
cities like New York, Boston and At-
lanta. A group of broadcasters sued
Aereo in early 2012 before it had
even launched in its first market,
New York, according to CBS News.
The broadcasters asserted that
Aereo violated copyright laws by al-
lowing "public performances" of
their TV shows. Aereo said it was
only enabling private screenings, just
like off-the-shelf TV antennas do.
The US Supreme Court, which
heard the case in April, Wednesday
rejected Aereo's argument that it is
only a provider of equipment and de-
cided that, for purposes of copyright
law, the service should effectively be
treated like a cable company.
The ruling, as cited by CBS, states
that "given Aereo's overwhelming
likeness to the cable companies tar-
geted by the 1976 amendments, this
sole technological difference be-
tween Aereo and traditional cable
companies does not make a critical
difference here".
At issue in the case was what con-
stitutes a "public performance" of
copyrighted material, a key standard
under the law. Broadcasters involved
in the case -- CBS, the parent com-
pany of CBSNews.com; Comcast,
21st Century Fox and Walt Disney --
argue that Aereo is illegally taking
their content.
In its defence, Aereo cited a 2008
Cablevision case in which a federal
court ruled that remote DVR storage
systems don't infringe copyright pro-
tections.
Broadcasters claimed that Aereo is
more like a cable subscription than a
DVR service, arguing that the com-
pany goes beyond simply providing
equipment for watching TV.
According to CBS, Aereo support-
ers, including Barry Diller, CEO of
IAC/InterActiveCorp (IACI), con-
tend that a ruling against the service
would have an adverse impact on a
range of important new technologies,
including "cloud" computing.
But the Supreme Court Wednesday
said in its ruling that it believed its
decision was limited and would not
imperil emerging technologies.
The National Association of
Broadcasters concurred in its state-
ment: "Aereo characterized our law-
suit as an attack on innovation; that
claim is demonstrably false."
Washington, DC: Indian-American groups
have launched a campaign to win more law-
makers' support for a move to invite Indian
Prime Minister Narendra Modi to address a
joint session of US Congress when he visits
US in September.
The ball was set rolling last week with Ed
Royce, Republican chairman of the House of
Representatives Foreign Affairs Committee
and a fellow House member George Holding
writing to House Speaker John Boehner with
the suggestion.
"As you know, India is a critical partner of
the United States. In every aspect - whether it
be in political, economic or security relations -
the United States has no more important part-
ner in South Asia," they wrote.
Following up on the letter, the US India Po-
litical Action Committee (USINPAC), which
calls itself the voice of Indian- Americans, has
launched a "state-by-state grassroots cam-
paign" to win support for a Congressional in-
vitation to Modi.
Three former Indian Prime Ministers, Rajiv
Gandhi, Atal Bihari Vajpayee and Manmohan
Singh have all been accorded this honor, not-
ed USINPAC Chairman Sanjay Puri thanking
Royce for his move.
USINPAC activists and chapter leaders in
North Carolina, Indiana and New York among
others have actively reached out to members
of Congress in their states to win their support
for such a Congressional invitation, USINPAC
said. Bridging Nations Foundation, a nonprof-
it policy and advocacy organization founded
by Indian-American entrepreneur Prakash
Ambegaonkar, to "promote shared prosperity
by developing international dialogue through
collaboration and learning," has also initiated
a similar move.
By granting Prime Minister Modi the honor
of addressing a joint meeting of Congress, the
US would show to the Indian people and the
world our sincerity in rebooting and elevating
US-India relations, it said.
The Speaker's office has not yet announced
a response to the two lawmakers' letter, but an
invitation to Modi is considered highly likely
given how US leaders from President Barack
Obama down have reached out to the Indian
leader since his resounding victory.
Lawmakers ask Sharif to
protect religious minorities
Indian-Americans lobby for US
Congress invitation for Modi
Express deep concern over human
rights violation in Sindh province
Technocrat Chet Kanojia loses battle
with top US broadcasters
Chet Kanojia
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi
Three former PMs Rajiv Gandhi, Atal Bihari Vajpayee and
Manmohan Singh have all been accorded this honor
Washington : Cellphones and smartphones
generally cannot be searched by police without
a warrant during arrests, the Supreme Court
ruled unanimously Wednesday in a major vic-
tory for privacy rights.
Ruling on two cases from California and
Massachusetts, the justices acknowledged both
a right to privacy and a need to investigate
crimes. But they came down squarely on the
side of privacy rights.
"Modern cellphones, as a category, implicate
privacy concerns far beyond those implicated
by the search of a cigarette pack, a wallet or a
purse," Chief Justice John Roberts wrote for
the court.
"We cannot deny that our decision today will
have an impact on the ability of law enforce-
ment to combat crime," he said. "Privacy
comes at a cost."
The justices struck down an extensive smart-
phone search in California that had been up-
held by the state Court of Appeals, as well as a
more limited probe of an old flip-top cellphone
in Massachusetts that a federal judge already
had thrown out.
Currently, police can search a person under
arrest and whatever physical items are within
reach to find weapons and preserve evidence
that might be destroyed. But the justices noted
that vast amounts of sensitive data on modern
smartphones raise new privacy concerns that
differentiate them from other items.
To liken physical objects to digital data, as
federal and state government officials did in
justifying cellphone searches, Roberts said, "is
like saying a ride on horseback is materially in-
distinguishable from a flight to the moon. Both
are ways of getting from point A to point B, but
little else justifies lumping them together."
Roberts said police still can examine "the
physical aspects of a phone to ensure that it
will not be used as a weapon." But once se-
cured, he said, "data on the phone can endan-
ger no one" and the arrested person will not be
able to "delete incriminating data."
G
oogle Inc has quietly launched its own
domain registration service. And just
like many other Googles services,
Google Domains is starting in beta, which
means that if you want to try it out, then youll
need to get an invitation code. You must have
an invitation code to access the site and pur-
chase domains from Google.
This is definitely exciting news for webmas-
ters and small businesses, as theyll soon be
able to buy domains from Google; however,
Google Inc wont be hosting your website.
The search giant will only be handling domain
registration. For hosting, the company has part-
nered with Shopify, Squarespace, Weebly and
Wix. These services help end users build a
website, usually within just a few minutes and
without any coding required.
With Google Domains, you can create up to
100 email aliases using your domain. You will
also be able to forward a domain to another.
For example, you can forward a visitor from
www.example.net to www.example.com.
Google Inc also says that when you register
a domain with them, youll be using the same
DNS servers as Google. This means your do-
main will connect quickly and reliably to your
website, giving it the Google edge.
Right now Google Domains isnt fully de-
veloped yet, and Google says that were giv-
ing a small group of people the ability to buy
and transfer domains through it and send feed-
back on their experience. Users will need an
invitation code to try it out. The company says
that theyre planning to make it available more
widely soon.
Now that Google Inc is entering in this new
domain registration field, other registrars like
GoDaddy and Namecheap will soon be getting
some real competition from Google.
US AFFAIRS 9 June 28- July 4, 2014 TheSouthAsianTimes.info
Supreme Court says police must get
warrants for cellphone searches
Google domain registration service being tested
New York State Senate coalition ends
Albany, NY: A breakaway
faction of Democrats that
shares leadership with Repub-
licans in the New York state
Senate said Wednesday that it
would reunite with the main-
line Democrats, potentially
shifting the power dynamic in
Albany.
The new alliance wouldnt
come until after the elections
in November and likely
wouldnt affect any legislation
this year because lawmakers
are on recess until January.
The deal was negotiated in
large part by New York City
Mayor Bill de Blasio and his
top aides and Gov. Andrew
Cuomo, and would set the
stage for Democratic control of
both chambers of the legisla-
ture in 2015. Cuomo, a Demo-
crat facing re-election this year, praised the
decision, saying that there is no doubt there
are progressive goals that we have yet to
achieve and that we must accomplish next
January.
The arrangement is contingent on the result
of the legislative elections, though it is un-
likely that Senate Republicans, with 29
members in the 63-member
chamber, could pick up
enough seats to ensure a ma-
jority in January.
The current power-sharing
coalition between Republicans
and the breakaway faction,
known as the Independent
Democratic Conference
(IDC), has led to passage of
some liberal agenda items
such as gun-control laws after
the Connecticut school shoot-
ing. It also has permitted Cuo-
mo to successfully advance a
centrist fiscal agenda, including
a series of tax cuts. And it al-
lowed the governor and legisla-
tors to give their achievements
a bipartisan veneer. In an inter-
view, Sen. Jeffrey D. Klein, the
leader of the IDC, said the lead-
ership arrangement with the
mainline Democrats would mirror the one he
now has with Republicans, meaning both
leaders would need to agree to bring pieces
of legislation to a floor vote.
I thought it was important that the IDC
lives on and remains intact, but clearly we
were disappointed by some of the things we
couldnt accomplish this year, Klein said.
Kevin McCarthy to replace
Eric Cantor as House
Majority Leader
Washington: House Republicans have elect-
ed Rep. Kevin McCarthy, R-Calif., as their
new Majority
Leader, replacing
Rep. Eric Cantor,
who announced last
week he was step-
ping down from the
top leadership post
after suffering an
embarrassing pri-
mary defeat at the
hands of a Tea Party
challenger. "I'll make
one promise," McCarthy told reporters after
the vote last week. "I will work every single
day to make sure this conference has the
courage to lead with the wisdom to listen.
And we'll turn this country around."
Republicans gathered behind closed doors
for the balloting, but a vote total will not be
disclosed because it's a secret ballot.
House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio,
stays in place. Meanwhile, Rep. Steve
Scalise of Louisiana was elected Majority
Whip (the post McCarthy is leaving). Re-
publicans, stung by Cantor's defeat two
weeks ago, knew they had to elect someone
who is friendly with the Tea Party, who the
most conservative members of the House
like. They needed a Red State Republican in
leadership, several lawmakers tell ABC
News, and Scalise is the guy.
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Kevin McCarthy
The deal was negotiated
in large part by Gov.
Andrew Cuomo, a
Democrat facing
re-election this year. It
will give Democrats
control of both
legislative houses in
Albany.
Independent Democrats shun GOP as threats
of Primary elections loom large
GoDaddy and other domain registrars are about to get some serious competition
10 June 28-July 4, 2014 TheSouthAsianTimes.info INDIA
By Arun Kumar
Washington: As India's new Prime Minister
Narendra Modi completes a month in office, the
US appears "pleasantly surprised" at his govern-
ment's response to American outreach, proving
wrong doomsayers who expected a rough road
ahead. Many an analyst had suggested that the
2005 US revocation of Modi's visa for his
alleged inaction during the 2002 Gujarat riots
would cloud India-US ties, particularly since
Washington had been a bit late in reaching out to
him. "I believe Washington has largely been
pleasantly surprised at how responsive the new
Indian Government has been to American out-
reach," Richard M. Rossow, Wadhwani Chair in
US India Policy Studies at the Centre for
Strategic and International Studies said.
"Less than a month after the election result, we
are checking schedules for a head-of-state meet-
ing in Washington, DC," he said taking note of a
proposed summit meeting between Modi and
President Obama in September. Alyssa Ayres, a
senior fellow for India, Pakistan, and South Asia
at the Council on Foreign Relations, agrees.
"From my perspective, Washington has respond-
ed to India's change of government by reaching
out to Modi and decisively welcoming him to
Washington."
However, in Rossow' view "the 'comfort level'
of cooperation (with the new Modi government)
has yet to be determined." "The trajectory of our
relationship is not set in stone, and much will
depend on personal rapport between cabinet and
sub-cabinet officials," he said hoping that "our
expectations for the relationship can be
matched."
"The US Government felt quite let down about
the possibilities of a deep strategic partnership
following the failure to pass a clean Civilian
Nuclear Cooperation Bill in 2010, and the
Medium Multi-Role Combat Aircraft decision a
year later which removed the two American plat-
forms from the bidding contest," Rossow said.
"At that point the relationship became more
transactional," he noted. "I suspect Mr. Modi will
be quite a transformational figure; I hope our
Government will be prepared to engage deeply
once again if/when we have an opening, "
Rossow said. "I suspect we will not have to wait
long." Ayres on her part suggested that "for next
steps, it will be good to see Washington develop
policy proposals to respond to the ambitions and
interests of the new Indian government."
In a new policy publication released on
Wednesday Ayres has recommended that
Washington should champion Indian member-
ship in the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation
(APEC) as a means to get the economic relation-
ship back on track.
"By supporting India's long-standing request as
a new trade-oriented government takes charge in
New Delhi, Washington can take an important
step toward reorienting economic ties with India
just as they become more important," she wrote.
New Delhi: Ignoring UGC's direc-
tive to start the admission process
for undergraduate courses this
morning, Delhi University
Thursday threw the ball back in the
Commission's court by sending it a
proposal suggested by academi-
cians to resolve the issue.
The UGC had set a deadline of
Thursday morning for DU to roll
back the controversial four-year
undergraduate program and start
admission for the old three-year
structure.
In response, the DU sent a letter
to the Commission which said "the
university is of the opinion that
given the situation where admis-
sions are being delayed, time is the
essence and hence this blended
proposal submitted by some emi-
nent persons to the UGC and DU
may provide the necessary way
forward.
"This proposal entails admitting
all students to a three-year under-
graduate course with honours and
will also obviate the need to call
for fresh registrations. We await
your response in order to convene
the statutory bodies at the earliest
in the best interest of the students
and the academic community," the
letter signed by DU Registrar Alka
Sharma read.
Speaking to media persons, DU's
Media Coordinator Malay Neerav
said, "We received a new proposal
wherein the honors degree will be
given in 3 years.
We won' t need much time to
implement this proposal. We have
written a letter to UGC stating the
same. We are now awaiting UGC's
response on the new proposal from
UGC."
Lucknow: Even as the besieged 41-year-
old chief minister Akhilesh Yadav firefights
criticism in the aftermath of the Lok Sabha
drubbing the Samajwadi Party (SP)
received last month, the jury is out on his
possible eclipse by his overbearing uncles
and demanding father and party chief
Mulayam Singh Yadav.
And so, even as he tries hard to infuse
some semblance of control in the moribund
bureaucracy and party leadership, changing
his cabinet colleagues, sacking ministers
and transferring bureaucrats, it appears to
be too little and too late. That Akhilesh is
slowly being sidelined from important
decision-making was evident last week
when in his third budget, he was "coerced"
to bury his pet projects - Kanya Vidya
Dhan, free laptops to those clearing Class
12 and an unemployment allowance - for
which no funds were allotted for 2014-15.
This is a significant signal from the SP
leadership, admits a state leader close to the
CM. While there have been charges of
backseat driving ever since the environment
engineer-turned-politician took over as the
state's youngest chief minister in 2012, the
budget this time round is the most "emphat-
ic document" of the SP leadership's "rest-
lessness and open assertiveness" against
Akhilesh's scheme of things and style of
functioning, said a knowledgeable source.
Akhilesh Yadav is also being blamed for
the drift in the bureaucracy. "The chief
minister is a nice boss but not a tough task
master," a senior IAS officer noted, adding
that most officials take him "lightly and
non-seriously". More than 250 IAS, IPS,
PCS and PPS officials have been trans-
ferred in the last one month. The govern-
ment under Akhilesh Yadav would be deci-
mated in the 2017 assembly polls," said
Swamy Prasad Maurya of the BSP and
leader of the opposition in the state assem-
bly. Politically too Akhilesh's leadership
has failed to inspire confidence in the
cadres. He holds the state president's post
and the recent poor showing at the Lok
Sabha polls cannot be glossed over, a senior
SP leader said. A resurgent BJP, fresh from
its landslide of 71 of the 80 Lok Sabha seats
in the state, is breathing down the govern-
ment's neck, holding demonstrations on the
power crisis gripping the state and plung-
ing the state assembly into turmoil over
failing law and order in the state. The SP
could manage only five seats, with the
Congress and the Aapna Dal claiming two
each. Akhilesh Yadav's ambitious plans for
infrastructure development too have not
borne enough fruit. The IT city in Lucknow
got delayed for several months for want of
bidders, the eight-lane "game changer"
expressway between Agra and Lucknow
remained a non-starter with private compa-
nies not showing interest. The project has
been allocated more than Rs.3,000 crore in
the 2014-15 budget.
IT companies are seething in anger with
the shelving of the laptop scheme, while
another ambitious scheme of free tablet PCs
for those who pass Class 10 never saw the
light of the day. The exit of a friendly gov-
ernor and a "hostile" government taking
over in Delhi have added to Akhileshs wor-
ries. With such odds stacked against him,
recent pronouncements of police modern-
ization, overhaul of the power sector and
re-energizing the bureaucracy look hollow
and worthless for now! The only consola-
tion: assembly polls are still two years
away.
National Herald case:
Sonia, Rahul summoned
for misappropriating
newspapers funds
Delhi: A court here Thursday
issued summons to Congress
chief Sonia Gandhi and party
vice president Rahul Gandhi
for misappropriating the funds
of the National Herald news-
paper that was shut down some
years ago. Metropolitan magis-
trate Gomati Manocha, while
issuing the summons, said: I
have found prima facie evi-
dence against all the accused.
The court has directed them
to appear before it on August
7. Apart from Sonia Gandhi
and Rahul Gandhi, the court
has also summoned senior
Congress leaders Motilal Vora
and Oscar Fernandes.
The summons was issued on
a private complaint filed by
BJP leader Subramanian
Swamy.
Speaking to reporters,
Swamy said: This is a fraud,
criminal breach of trust as they
have managed to misappropri-
ate Rs. 2,000 crore rupees.
The National Herald news-
paper was established in 1938
by Jawaharlal Nehru and was
shut down in 2008.
DU sends proposal to UGC, admission process still on hold
DU students demanding roll back of four-year undergraduate
program in New Delhi on Monday.
Is Uttar Pradesh slipping out of Akhilesh's hands?
UP chief minister Akhilesh Yadav
Washington 'pleasantly surprised' at Modi's responsiveness
Prime Minister Narendra Modi
Congress chief Sonia Gandhi
and Rahul Gandhi
INDIA
Zurich: In a major boost to Indias
fight against black money, Switzerland
has prepared a list of Indians suspected
to have stashed untaxed wealth in
Swiss banks and is sharing these
details with the Indian government.
The names of these Indian individu-
als and entities came under the scanner
of Swiss authorities during an ongoing
exercise to identify the real beneficiar-
ies of funds held in various banks oper-
ating in Switzerland, a senior Swiss
government official said.
These individuals and entities are
suspected to have held untaxed money
in Swiss banks through structures like
trusts, domiciliary companies and other
legal entities based out of countries
other than India, the official told PTI.
The official declined to reveal the
identity of these persons and entities,
as also the amount of money held by
them in Swiss banks, citing confiden-
tiality clauses in the bilateral informa-
tion exchange treaty between the two
countries. The official further said
Swiss authorities were keen to work
with the new government in India and
they would also provide all necessary
support to the newly set up Special
Investigation Team on black money.
He, however, dismissed claims that
black money stashed in Swiss banks by
Indians could run into trillions of dol-
lars, as the latest Swiss National Bank
data pegs the total foreign client money
across 283 banks in Switzerland at
$1.6 trillion. The Switzerland govern-
ment dismissed the PTI report.
"Since a high-level Swiss delegation
met with its India counterparts in New
Delhi in February 2014, no further
official meeting has taken place. There
is no new development to be reported,"
IANS reported a Swiss finance min-
istry statement as saying.
Also, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley
said India would approach Switzerland
to expedite the process of revealing
details of "unaccounted money" held
by Indians in Swiss banks.
"We have not received any official
communication from Swiss authorities
so far about sharing bank account
details of Indians (who have) deposited
unaccounted money there," Jaitley told
reporters.
Justice M.B. Shah, who heads the
SIT on black money in India, said the
list would be verified and action would
be taken against those found to have
kept unaccountable money.
It is not a list of only black money.
It is a list of those persons who are also
legally vested. It is a combined list. We
are asking for the list of the said per-
sons. Then we will verify. Then action
is taken, Justice Shah also said.
Sushma Swaraj arrives
in Dhaka on two-day visit,
Teesta, LBA to be discussed
Dhaka/New Delhi: External Affairs Minister Sushma
Swaraj Wednesday evening arrived in Dhaka on a two-
day visit to Bangladesh,
her first stand-alone for-
eign visit since taking
over, that is part of the
Modi government's out-
reach to India's neigh-
bors. The visit is expect-
ed to see two key out-
standing issues taken up
- the Teesta water shar-
ing deal and the Land
Boundary Agreement --
both of which have been
hanging fire. Ahead of
the visit, Sushma
Swaraj called up West
Bengal Chief Minister
and Trinamool Congress
supremo Mamata
Banerjee to brief her about the trip and as "preparations
for the visit". Mamata had refused to go ahead with the
Teesta water sharing deal with Bangladesh in 2011. The
Indian delegation is expected to raise issues like illegal
migration and market access. Sushma Swaraj will be
meeting her Bangladeshi counterpart Abul Hassan
Mahmood Ali, and call on President Abdul Hamid and
Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.
External Affairs Minister
Sushma Swaraj
11 June 28-July 4, 2014 TheSouthAsianTimes.info
Stepwell in Gujarat declared World Heritage Site by UNESCO
Aamir meets PM to discuss issues
raised by Satyamev Jayate
New Delhi: Actor-producer Aamir Khan Monday met Prime
Minister Narendra Modi and discussed social issues raised by
the former's TV show Satyamev Jayate. Aamir tweeted:
"Shared with him (PM) the overwhelming support that we got
from people across the country through Vote for Change
Campaign... on SMJ (Satyamev Jayate) on the various issues
that we tackled in our show. He has assured me that he will
look into all the matters." The first season of Satyamev Jayate
went on air on Star Plus May 2012 while the second season
was aired in March 2014 and ended in April. Now the actor is
working on the third season of the show, where he brings to
the fore startling facts and figures about issues concerning the
Indian society. Be it dowry, rape, bribery, corruption or crimi-
nalization of politics - Aamir has so far dealt with a wide
range of social issues.
New Delhi: Rani Ki Vav, or Queen's
Stepwell, in Gujarat's Patan town has
been added to UNESCOs list of World
Heritage sites, an official statement said
Sunday.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi wel-
comed the decision, calling it a "matter
of great pride" for the state.
"Rani Ki Vav is an excellent symbol
of our great art and culture," Modi
tweeted. "Rani Ki Vav has been
approved for inscription on the World
Heritage list," the Ministry of Culture
said, adding the decision was taken at
the global bodys session in Doha.
"UNESCO has recognized this mas-
terpiece as an exceptional example of
technological development in utilizing
ground water resources in a single com-
ponent, water management system and
it illustrates the exceptional capacity to
break large spaces
into smaller volumes
following ideal aes-
thetic proportions," it
added. "The ancient
stepwell was built in
the 11th century and
is an example of a
unique Indian subter-
ranean architectural
structure. Its seven
stories of ornamented
panels of sculptures
and relief represent
the height of the
Maru-Gurjara style,"
said the release.
"Following the flooding and disappear-
ance of the Saraswati river due to geot-
ectonic changes, the property was
buried under layers of silt for almost
seven centuries and has been preserved
underneath in an exceptional state of
conservation by the Archaeological
Survey of India," the release added.
New Delhi: The Cabinet Committee on
Economic Affairs (CCEA) on
Wednesday deferred a decision on the
new price for domestic natural gas
awaited by producers by three months,
pending a review of the price approved
by the previous government."The cabi-
net has decided there is need for com-
prehensive discussion and consultation
with all stakeholders keeping in mind
the interests of the common man. We
have deferred the matter for three
months, " Petroleum Minister
Dharmendra Pradhan told mediapersons
here after the CCEA meet.
The meeting was called to consider the
new gas price notified by the UPA gov-
ernment which could not be implement-
ed owing to the election model code of
conduct. In April, the petroleum min-
istry had told Reliance Industries, which
is supplying gas from its eastern off-
shore fields at the old price of $4.2 per
unit even after it expired on March 31,
that the new rate will be implemented
from July 1. The Election Commission
had then asked the government to defer
announcing the new price of natural gas
produced by companies till after the
general elections had been completed.
After assuming office, the new govern-
ment has been exploring whether modi-
fications can be made in the implemen-
tation of the Rangarajan formula which
recommends pricing rates at an average
cost of importing LNG into India and
rates prevailing at international hubs in
the US and Britain as well as price of
gas imported into Japan.
Rani Ki Vav Stepwell in Patan
Switzerland ready with list of Indians
with suspect black money
New gas price after three months: Cabinet
Actor Aamir Khan with the prime minister
By Parmod Kumar
T
he Narendra Modi govern-
ment - like any other new dis-
pensation - is offloading the
bureaucrats who had served under
the Congress led UPA-II and has
reportedly asked some governors
and other political appointees occu-
pying constitutional positions to
step down. Shunting out babudom is
not a problem as their positing is at
the discretion of the government but
a problem has arisen as eight gover-
nors are resisting calls to voluntarily
quit.
While two Governors - B.L. Joshi
of Uttar Pradesh and Shekhar Dutt
of Chhattisgarh - have resigned, oth-
ers are resisting the pressure to vol-
untarily step down. Politically
speaking, it has been a practice in
India for the ruling party to rest the
political left-outs or political bag-
gage at the Raj Bhavans.
On the 41st day after becoming
the prime minister on May 22, 2004,
Manmohan Singh shunted out four
Governors appointed by the prede-
cessor government. They were
removed for their political affiliation
with the BJP and Article 156 of the
constitution was cited to remove all
the four in one stroke. Article 156
spells the term of the office of the
Governor. Clause (1) of the Article
156 says that a governor shall hold
office at the pleasure of the
President.
What prevents Modi government
from doing what was done by the
Congress-led UPA? After all politi-
cal retribution is integral to real
politic.
Soon after the governors were
removed, a PIL was moved in the
Supreme Court which was heard by
the constitution bench.
The five-judge bench on May 7,
2010 said that with the change of
government at the Centre a
Governor could not be removed
merely because he is not on the
same political or ideological page as
that of the government. The court
further held that though for remov-
ing a governor no reasons had to be
assigned, this could not be "irrele-
vant, arbitrary, whimsical, or mala
fide". If this was so, court would
step in.
The constitution bench said, "A
Governor cannot be removed on the
ground that he is out of sync with
the policies and ideologies of the
Union Government or the party in
power at the Centre. Nor can he be
removed on the ground that the
Union Government has lost confi-
dence in him. It follows therefore
that change in government at Centre
is not a ground for removal of
Governors holding office to make
way for others favored by the new
government."
The court further held: "As there
is no need to assign reasons, any
removal as a consequence of with-
drawal of the pleasure will be
assumed to be valid and will be
open to only a limited judicial
review. If the aggrieved person is
able to demonstrate prima facie that
his removal was either arbitrary,
mala fide, capricious or whimsical,
the court will call upon the Union
Government to disclose to the court,
the material upon which the
President had taken the decision to
withdraw the pleasure."
"If the Union Government does
not disclose any reason, or if the
reasons disclosed are found to be
irrelevant, arbitrary, whimsical, or
mala fide, the court will interfere",
the constitution bench had said.
It is this pronouncement that is
coming in the way of the Modi gov-
ernment doing what Manmohan
Singh's government did. The first
hurdle that the new government
faces is that it can't remove the UPA
appointed governors merely because
they don't share the political or ideo-
logical colors of the Modi govern-
ment or the BJP.
The second is that government
will have to persuade President
Pranab Mukherjee that its reasons
for seeking the withdrawal of pleas-
ure was not "irrelevant, arbitrary,
whimsical, or mala fide" - an uphill
task as Mukherjee is prone to take
an independent call.
The question of a governor was
also considered by Justice R.S.
Sarkaria that went into Union-States
relations. Justice Sarkaria in his
report recommended that "the
Governors tenure of office of five
years in a State should not be dis-
turbed except very rarely and that
too for some extremely compelling
reason. It is indeed very necessary
to assure a measure of security of
tenure to the Governor's office."
The National Commission to
Review the Working of the
Constitution headed by Chief
Justice M.N. Venkatachaliah that
went into the working of Indian con-
stitution recommended its amend-
ment so that a governor's appoint-
ment should be entrusted to a com-
mittee comprising the prime minis-
ter, the home minister, the speaker
of the Lok Sabha and the chief min-
ister of the concerned state.
Favoring a fixed tern for the gov-
ernor, the Commission recommend-
ed the deletion of Article 165(1) that
says that the Governor holds office
"during the pleasure of the presi-
dent".
As usual, political exigencies
weighed upon the recommendations
that would have gone a long way in
strengthening the institution of gov-
ernor,
Our political class has often
demonstrated that it has no qualms
in allowing their immediate interests
from overshadowing the democratic
institutions - so vital for the demo-
cratic functioning of the state.
Thus, it may be necessary to once
again visit the recommendations of
the Justice Sarkaria report and the
Justice Venkatachaliah report so that
there could be an institutional
framework for the appointment of a
governor with a fixed tenure.
The Supreme Court ruled in 2010 that a new government at the Centre could not remove a governor
merely because he is not on the same political or ideological page as that of the government. This is coming
in the way of the Modi government doing what Manmohan Singh's government did in 2004.
The views expressed in Op Eds are not necessarily those of The South Asian Times.
By Syed Ubaidur Rahman
N
arendra Modis historic win
shocked the so-called
Muslim leaders who
expected a miracle victory for non-
BJP, non-Congress parties in the
Lok Sabha battle. But common
Muslims are not that amazed. They
say the Congress had no chance of
coming back to power after the
blunders it made at the expense of
those who voted for it in two con-
secutive elections. The average
Muslim's refrain is the same as that
of the "aam aadmi" that the
Congress lost because of rising
food prices and corruption.
There are many Muslims too who
are welcoming the defeat of the
Congress. Muslims are hoping that
the Modi government will be secu-
lar and will take care of all sections
of society and not implement the
RSS' divisive agenda. The way
Modi has spoken about inclusive
development and against sectarian-
ism has given hope to Indian
Muslims that he is serious in what
he claimed during the election cam-
paign.
Rashid Shaz, a staunch Islamist
who runs the Milli Parliament and
is a professor at the Aligarh Muslim
University, has welcomed Modi's
massive election victory.
"Nehru's secularism was like a
mirage, a trail of false hopes. The
minority status created a psycho-
logical shell in the minds of Indian
Muslims... Now, the dark era of
pseudo-secularism is over," he said
recently. Shaz is the author of more
than a dozen books on Islamic ren-
aissance.
There are others, too, who have
said that Muslims need to rethink
their strategy vis-a-vis Modi.
The Jamiat Ulema-e-Hind, a
nationalist Muslim organization
that has always talked of inclusion,
has decided it will stop attacking
the new prime minister over the
past though it will continue to fight
the cases against victims of the
Gujarat riots in courts. This is a
welcome decision.
But notwithstanding the change
of mood towards Modi, Muslims
are feeling let down that he gave
only one Muslim representation in
his cabinet, that too at the head of
the least important ministry (Najma
Heptulla: Minority affairs).
Muslims are looking forward to
see what Modi does to help the
community that has been suspicious
about him for a long time. It wants
to see if he will follow "raj dharma"
(the code of governance) and help
all sections of society to grow.
Muslim leaders will do well to be
optimistic about what Modi does as
the prime minister and not remain
sulking in their private gatherings.
They need to reach out to the man
who has been made responsible for
the fate of 1.2 billion people for the
next five years. The earlier they do
this, the better it will be for every-
one.
Syed Ubaidur Rahman is the
author of "Understanding the
Muslim Leadership in India.
Need for institutional framework for appointing governors
UP Governor BL Joshi was the first to resign voluntarily, but
Governors like Sheila Dikshit (appointed Kerala governor as
recently as March 2014) are resisting pressure from the Modi gov-
ernment to step down.
Muslims and Modi: Need of change in thinking
Muslim leaders will do
well to be optimistic
about what Modi does
as the prime minister
and not remain sulking
in their private
gatherings.
12 June 28-July 4, 2014 TheSouthAsianTimes.info OP-ED
The views expressed in Op Eds are not necessarily those of The South Asian Times.
By Prashant Sood and
Anjali Ojha
New Delhi: It has been an energetic
start to the new government but
challenges are already beginning to
show. Prime Minister Narendra
Modi has led the efforts to stream-
line governance by pitching for
speedy decision-making in his first
month in office and taken the first of
"tough" measures as his government
tries to revive a sluggish economy
and nudge some Congress
appointees to quit gubernatorial
offices.
Modi has sought to live up to his
avowed goal of "minimum govern-
ment, maximum governance" by
seeking to change the official work
culture and style of governance: -
the PMO is becoming the nerve-
centre of governance, the "group of
ministers" of the UPA government
disbanded, and Modi keeping all
key policy issues in his remit.
But the moves that earned Modi
positive media coverage were shad-
owed by challenges including the
kidnapping of Indians in Iraq, rise in
inflation and predictions of a defi-
cient monsoon. The government, in
its first month, also effected an
unpopular decision of hiking rail
passenger fares by a steep 14 %
before presenting its first fiscal
budget July 10.
BJP vice president Mukhtar Abbas
Nqvi said that more tough steps
would follow in national interest:
"The UPA left the economy in
shambles, so there will be some
decisions which will not be very
popular."
The government's apparent inten-
tion to replace Congress appointees
in gubernatorial and other institu-
tional posts raised the political tem-
perature. While the Congress
protested, there were murmurs that
this was one of Modi's methods to
ensure lesser friction in decision-
making and implementation.
The BJP denied there was any
message to governors and heads of
organizations like the National
Disaster Management Authority and
the National Commission for
Women to quit.
Modi has sought to inject a new
working spirit in a sluggish bureau-
cracy by meeting the secretaries, the
topmost bureaucrats in the ministry,
and telling them that they should not
hesitate in taking hard decisions and
he would stand by them.
The Modi government, in its first
cabinet meeting, decided to form an
SIT to unearth the billions in unac-
counted money stashed outside the
country. This has been one of the
BJP's poll promises. On its success
will hinge a lot of the government's
credibility, though analysts say it is
easier said than done.
Modi also faces the immediate
challenge of ensuring safe release of
Indians held hostage by suspected
militants of the Islamic State of Iraq
and Greater Syria (ISIS). It is the
first foreign policy test of the gov-
ernment, and Modi himself has been
chairing high-level meetings on the
issue and monitoring the situation
closely.
Among Modi's early initiatives
was to ask his ministers to prepare
their "timetable" for the first 100
days. Every ministry has been told
to give an action plan and a deliver-
able report which would be moni-
tored by the PMO.
Modi has also initiated a new for-
eign policy outreach by inviting
leaders from SAARC countries for
his swearing-in. He chose Bhutan, a
neighbor with which India shares
age-old ties, as his first foreign des-
tination. Chinese Foreign Minister
Wang Yi flew to Delhi to meet
Modi.
Former home secretary G.K. Pillai
said it was too early to comment but
it appeared that the Modi-led gov-
ernment was moving at a faster pace
than the previous dispensation.
He said the government was in the
process of finalizing the budget
which will spell out its thinking in
areas such as growth, investment
climate and foreign direct invest-
ment.
A senior railway official also said
Modi's becoming PM had ushered
in speed in governance. "Both avail-
ability and visibility of ministers
have increased in offices."
Vinay Sahasrabudhe, convenor of
the BJP's good governance cell, said
big things cannot be done in a
month but the new government has
generated hope that "ache din aaye
hain".
"The earlier government had lost
confidence of the people. People
feel the new government has honest
objectives, they will do justice,"
Sahasrabudhe added.
However, Congress spokesperson
Shobha Oza said there was no single
area where the Modi government
had made a difference.
"Whether it is inflation or
women's security, the government
has not stuck to its promises.
Inflation has risen. The government
is supporting a minister facing alle-
gations of involvement in a rape
case. Railway fares have been
hiked. Modi is centralizing power,"
Oza said.
Prime Minister Modi chose Bhutan, a neighbor with which
India shares age-old ties, as his first foreign destination.
One Month Report Card of Modi government
Challenges mount after fresh beginning
SEP.
13 June 28- July 4, 2014 TheSouthAsianTimes.info OP-ED
14 June 28- July 4, 2014 TheSouthAsianTimes.info DIASPORA
By Prakash Bhandari from Kabul
Kabul: The Sikhs in Afghanistan whose
number has dwindled in the past three
decades drastically because of wars and who
are estimated to number 3,000 spread out in
Kabul, Jalalabad, Kandhar and Herat. The
largest number of Sikh are in Kabul fol-
lowed by Jalalabad. During the 1980s, in
Soviets attack on Afghanistan, many
Afghan Sikhs fled to India. After the fall of
the Najibullah government in 1992, Sikh
Gurdwaras throughout the country were
destroyed in the Afghan Civil War of that
decade.
Under the Taliban the Sikhs were a rela-
tively tolerated religious minority and
allowed to practice their religion. However,
cremation of the dead was prohibited by the
Taliban and cremation grounds vandalized.
In addition, Sikhs were required to wear yel-
low patches or veils to identify themselves.
Sikhs continue to find it difficult to cre-
mate their dead and cremation has become a
big problem for the Sikh community as their
cremation grounds have been appropriated
by the local Muslims.
Said Rajesh Singh, a herbal medicine sell-
er, We find it difficult to cremate our dead.
The cremation ground, several hectare large,
which belonged to the Sikh community in
Qalacha area of Kabul used by both the
Sikhs and Hindus has been largely acquired
by people particularly the migrants from the
rural areas to Kabul. These people do not
allow us last rites as they feel that the bil-
lowing smoke was inauspicious and bad for
health. Once we had to take a dead body to
Jalalabad for cremation. Recently when the
Sikh people tried to cremate a religious
leader they were beaten up and police had to
intervene.
The historic Gurdwara Karte Parwan and
adjoining shire in the Kabul are under threat
to be destroyed for city's development.
Sikhs in Afghanistan are culturally diverse
and they speak various languages and
dialects. The Kandharis speak Sirakai while
the Kabulis speak Kabuli, a dialect of
Punjabi. There are Sindhi speaking Sikhs
and a very small group of people speak
Punjabi. Large number of Sikhs and Hindus,
who used to live in complete harmony here
find that living in Afghanistan is not safe
and large number of them have migrated to
India and now there is a craze to migrate to
Germany.
Chandigarh/Jalandhar: Promised a
good life in rich havens like Dubai
(United Arab Emirates), Kuwait and
Jordan, hordes of gullible youth from
Punjab and Haryana are allowing them-
selves to be trapped by travel agents in
the state and their links in these countries
and to work in miserable conditions in
conflict-torn Iraq.
With the number of people from Punjab
and Haryana stuck in Iraq after the recent
sectarian flare-up going up to nearly 700,
the old story of failed "phoren (foreign)
dreams" and lost big bucks is being
retold.
"Many youth are promised jobs in
Dubai, Kuwait and Jordan but they are
taken by the travel agents to Iraq instead.
Once the youth reach there, they do not
have the option of returning. It is a miser-
able trap. The youth spend lakhs of
rupees of hard earned money or sell land
to go abroad, and end up in a life of hell,"
says Paramjit Singh, who returned from
Iraq after working there for over two
years.
Bhagwant Mann, the Aam Aadmi Party
(AAP) Lok Sabha member from Sangrur,
has taken to the social media and set up a
helpline to reach out to youths stranded
inside Iraq and also connect to their fami-
lies in Punjab.
He said the actual number of people
from Punjab stuck in Iraq could be much
higher.
"Though I don't have the actual figure, I
am told that up to 4,000 Indians, mostly
Punjabis, are stuck in Iraq," Mann said.
"Majority of the youth are taken to
Dubai, Jordan and Kuwait and then sold
off to companies in Iraq," he added.
The Punjab government has already
submitted a list of 514 people from
Punjab who are stranded in Iraq.
Going abroad is a common fad among
youths from Punjab, especially in the
Doaba region (the area between Sutlej
and Beas rivers) comprising the districts
of Jalandhar, Hoshiarpur, Nawan Shahr
and Kapurthala.
"Rural youths and also those from
smaller towns just want to go abroad by
any means. They see no future and
employment for themselves in Punjab.
Despite big promises, the Punjab govern-
ment does little for them. The levels of
frustration are high," says Satnam Singh,
a Jalandhar-based travel agent.
"The unscrupulous travel agents take
advantage of this situation and exploit
such youth. They swindle them of lakhs
of rupees and dump them in countries
like Iraq," he said.
According to reports, 40 Indians, most-
ly Punjabis, have been taken hostage in
Iraq's Mosul town by militants. Their fate
is unknown since they were abducted
June 11.
New Delhi: It has an Indian diaspora
numbering 30, 000 and houses 300
Indian business enterprises. And now
Nottingham city in England is wooing
Indian business, especially from north-
ern India, in an effort to build on its
India links, says a top Nottingham City
Council official.
"We have a lot of British Indian busi-
nesspersons from Punjab and Haryana in
Nottingham. We want to strengthen the
investment bridge between these Indian
states, as well as Chandigarh and Delhi
with Nottingham," says David Bishop,
corporate director, development,
Nottingham City Council.
Bishop, who visited the two north
Indian states and the Indian capital with
a six-member team, said they want to
build a "two-way investment bridge"
between Nottingham and India, mainly
northern India.
The six-member team includes some
British Indian members. "The NRIs have
money which they want to invest in
India," said Bishop.
Bishop said that Indian investment was
welcome in property development in
Nottingham, which has a population of
1.3 million. He said that Nottingham
University provides a talent pool of
60,000 students that businesspersons can
utilize.
The city council is keen to push busi-
ness in three areas, life sciences, clean
technology and education and informa-
tion technology.
Under life sciences, Bishop mentioned
nanotechnology, health and beauty prod-
ucts and pharma. "Under clean technolo-
gy is waste treatment, in which area the
city council can offer its expertise."
"We welcome Indian business to set up
in these sectors and partner with existing
business.. the locals will get jobs,"
Bishop said.
He said his talks in Punjab and
Haryana and Chandigarh, where the
team met senior officials, were good and
they got "very positive response."
The proposal to come to India to open
up investment and trade links was sug-
gested by some prominent Indian dias-
pora members, he said.
'Phoren' dreams and big-buck
hopes end in Iraq misery
The numbers have dwindled to 3000
over past three decades
Nottingham has 30,000 strong
Indian Diaspora
Worsening plight of Sikhs
in Afghanistan
Dipika Damerla becomes second
Indo-Canadian minister in Ontario
Toronto: Dipika Damerla, Member of Provincial
Parliament (MPP) from
Mississauga East-Cooksville, is
the new Indo-Canadian minister in
Ontario, NewsEastWest reported.
Dipika is one of the eight women
appointed ministers on Tuesday by
Premier Kathleen Wynne who led
the ruling Liberal Party to a major-
ity in the just concluded provincial
elections in Ontario. Dipika, who is a two-time
MPP, will be associate to the new health minister
Eric Hoskins, and look after Long-Term Care and
Wellness. Her appointment assumes significance
as Dipika will assist her boss in supervising the
$50-billion health care system in Ontario. Harinder
Takhar, currently an MPP, was the first-ever Indo-
Canadian to become a minister in Ontario in May
2006. Before Dipika, Harinder Takhar was the
first-ever Indo-Canadian to become a cabinet min-
ister in Ontario which is now home to more than
half a million Indo-Canadians. Takhar is currently
an MPP from Mississauga-Erindale.
Nottingham leverages Indian diaspora for India tie-ups
MEDICINE June 28-July 4, 2014 TheSouthAsianTimes.info 15
By Nupur Joshi
New York: The Xavier University
School of Medicine (XUSOM), Aruba
celebrated its annual Commencement
Ceremony at the Hillwood Commons
Cinema at Long Island University
C.W. Post on June 19, graduating 56
doctors.
Distinguished guests at the event
included Chancellor Dr. J.G. Bhat,
Chairman Edwin Casey, President
Ravishankar Bhooplapur, Trustees Dr.
Dayan Naik, Dr. Obi Nwasokwa,
Kamlesh Mehta, G.S. Narula, and the
Clinical Chairs of XUSOM. Dr.
Dubey, the Dean of Basic Sciences,
and Dr. Neelam Dwivedi bestowed the
hoods upon the graduates.
In his keynote address, Dr. Moro O.
Salifu, Chairman of the Dept of
Medicine, Chief of Nephrology at
SUNY Downstate Medical Center,
commended the students for their
achievements and reminded them to
never accept failure as an option.
Citing his personal experience with
research in nephrology and choosing
that as a career, Dr. Salifu advised the
graduates to always be prepared to
seize any opportunities that came their
way.
Special recognition was given to
Valedictorian Pawandeep Dhillon,
M.D. and Salutatorian Amanda Wolf,
M.D. for their outstanding academic
performance at XUSOM. In their
speecesh, the two girls reminded their
peers that with their newly acquired
degrees, comes great responsibility.
President Bhooplapur spoke about
ongoing medical innovations, changes
in the healthcare system, and advised
the graduates to remain prepared for
changes and embrace them as they
come.
Dr. Bhat reminded the new medical
graduates that although available tech-
nology has increased, care for the
patient is key to being a successful
physician.
The Xavier University School of
Medicine became operational with its
first enrolling class in Sept 2005. It has
since expanded its campus in Aruba
from its initial stages and been accred-
ited by The Caribbean Accreditation
Authority for Education in Medicine
and Other Health Professions (CAAM-
HP). Its mission is to recruit, train, and
graduate more students from culturally
diverse backgrounds for service as pri-
mary care physicians and nurses. Since
its establishment, XUSOM has become
a popular destination for medical stud-
ies in the Caribbean.
Contact for Xavier admissions office
in New York: 1000 Woodbury Road,
Suite 109, Woodbury, NY 11797. Ph:
516-333-2224, Fax: 516-921-1070.
Graduates pose proudly on stage shortly after the ceremony. (Photos: Xitij Joshi www.xitijphoto.com)
XUSOMs faculty posing before the ceremony.
Annita Afxentiou
Manal Ahmad
Syed Hamza Ahmad
Shawn Alam
Nehal Aleemuddin
Nabeel Ali
Jamal Aqeel
Amsa Arshad
Nisa Arshad
Shola Aruleba
Amany Bashir
Maria Belaev
Hafsa Bhatti
Husnain Bukhari
Dave Chopra
Pawandeep Dhillon
Lorena Do Ponte
Preeya Dykstra
Marlow Easterling
Eleanor Eustace
Timothy Franklin
Faraz Javed
Muneer Kaba
Khuram Khan
Saba Khan
Sandeep Khurana
Adam Laitman
Michelle Lim
Sixto Medina
Monica Mikhail
Kunal Mistry
Asma Mogharbel
Deepa Mohan
Atif Muhammad
Palak Patel
Mitali Patel
Mayan Patel
Cristina Penon
Vipin Philip
Seshu Pisipati
Ashvin Punnyamurthi
Monique Saran
Purvi Shah
Mrigank Shail
Sunil Shingala
Sharanjit Singh
Ranjeeta Singh
Shariff Somani
Gregory Stushnoff
Sindhura Suryadevara
Chandan Upadhyaya
Heshan Wijegunaratne
Amanda Wolf
Saba Zahid
Sophia Zia
Lionel Znaty
Xavier University School of Medicine, Aruba, graduates 56 doctors
Chancellor Dr. J. G. Bhat
addressing graduates.
Edwin Casey, Chairman of
XUSOM, addressing graduates.
XUSOM President
Ravishankar Bhooplapur
speaks to graduates.
Valedictorian Pawandeep
Dhillon, M.D.
Keynote Speaker
Dr. Moro Salifu.
Salutatorian Amanda Wolf,
M.D., addressing peers.
June 28-July 4, 2014 TheSouthAsianTimes.info
18 June 28-July 4, 2014 TheSouthAsianTimes.info ULTIMATE BOLLYWOOD
Mumbai : The "new face" of
"Kaun Banega Crorepati" will
go on air in August, accord-
ing to Bollywood megastar
Amitabh Bachchan, the host
of the popular game show.
The 71-year-old took to his
Facebook page to make the
announcement Monday night.
"Yeh hai KBC ka naya aakaar...
the new face of KBC starting in
August...now been on since 2000,
with a break in between and one sea-
son done by Shah Rukh Khan," he
posted on his official Facebook page. Big
B, despite his stardom, manages to establish a warm and
strong connect with the myriad contestants who come from
different nooks and corners of the country to try their luck to
become a 'crorepati'. This becomes an attraction to viewers
across all demographics. "Yahaan sirf paise hi nahin jeete
jaate...yahan dil bhi jeete jaate hain (You not just win money
here, you win hearts too). At least my heart is always won
over by the contestants! love all of you," added the actor,
who changed the face of Indian television when he began
hosting "Kaun Banega Crorepati" in 2000. The show, which
is shot at the Yash Raj Films studio here, will be aired on
Sony Entertainment Television. An Indian version of the
globally popular "Who Wants To Be A Millionaire", the
show has a huge fan following.
M
umbai police Tuesday started
recording the statement of
Bollywood actress Preity
Zinta who has accused her former
boyfriend and business partner, industri-
alist Ness Wadia, of allegedly molesting
and threatening her.
The actress came in the evening to the
Wankhede Stadium where the alleged
incident involving Wadia took place
May 30 and was closeted with the inves-
tigators till quite late.
Among other things, the police ques-
tioning is expected to reconstruct the
sequence of events that night during an
IPL match played by their jointly-owned
King XI Punjab Team.
Police are also likely to
visit couple of places in
the stadium where the
alleged incident took place as part of the
investigations, and get the names of
more witnesses who were present at that
time.
The 39-year old actress had submitted
a written complaint to the Marine Lines
Police station in Mumbai on June 12,
making various allegations against
Wadia, who denied them as "false and
baseless."
Later, police recorded the statements
of at least half a dozen other people,
including some eyewitnesses in the case.
Soon after lodging her police com-
plaint, Preity left for a foreign tour and
returned to Mumbai Sunday.
Police officials remained tightlipped
on the line of questioning, further
action and investigation.
A
ctor Ranbir Kapoor rues that
rumours about his personal
life have turned his life into a
"reality show". He says he feels
"bad" for his parents, who have to
face the embarrassment as a result of
loose talk. "There were so many sto-
ries that I am leaving my parents; my
dad has asked me to get out of the
house, and all of that...So I feel really
bad that my life has become like a
reality show," the 32-year-old said
here Monday at a Hero Maestro
event. "My parents are old and I don't
want them to read such stuff about
me because it' s embarrassing for
them," added the son of veteran
actors Rishi and Neetu Kapoor.
Recently, there were reports that
Ranbir is moving out of his parents'
house. But setting the record straight,
he said: "The house I live in is going
for redevelopment, and when that
happens, people who are living there
have to move out." There was also
news that he is moving in with
rumoured lady love Katrina Kaif.
To that, Ranbir said: "Who I am
moving in with, I would like to keep
that personal because I am unmarried
and the day I am married, you all will
know." Ranbir has finished shooting
for Anurag Kashyap' s "Bombay
Velvet". He is currently shooting for
"Jagga Jasoos" with Katrina.
'KBC 8' to start in August, reveals Big B
Ranbir:
'My life has
become a
reality
show'
Ranbir Kapoor
Amitabh Bachchan
ULTIMATE BOLLYWOOD 19 June 28- July 4, 2014 TheSouthAsianTimes.info
B
o l l y -
wood star Aamir Khan,
who chooses to give a miss to
fi l m award funct i ons,
decided to turn up for
t he St ar Pari vaar
Awards event here
recently. The host
of "Sat yamev
Jayat e" sai d t he
small screen medi-
um is vital to him.
"For me, being a part
of TV is very impor-
tant. My films are (for)
entertainment but through
TV, I am bringing
forward social
c a u s e s
a n d
(to)
move towards a better future,"
Aamir said here.
He is currently working on
the third season of "Satyamev
Jayate", via which he raises
important social issues of
the country.
"We are currently work-
ing on the third season of
'Satyamev Jayate'. We are
researching on the topics
and it is going good," the
48-year-old said.
What brought him to the Star
Pari vaar Awards hel d here
Sunday? "I have been working
with Star for many months and
when they invited me, I was
happy t o come, " he added.
"Satyamev Jayate" sea-
son one went on air on
Star Plus May 2012
whi l e t he second
season was aired in
March 2014 and
ended i n Apri l .
The Star Parivaar
Awards wi l l be
telecast June 29.
T
he dhak-dhak girl talks about her two
sons, their health care and much
more Bollywood beauty Madhuri
Dixit, a doting mother to two sons Arin
and Raayan is strict when it comes to their
healthcare. She says she never lets them go
to bed without brushing their teeth no mat-
ter how tired they are.
There is one thing that I am really strict
about my kids and that is (making sure that
they are) brushing teeth twice a day. No
matter how tired they are or how late they
are arriving after attending birthday parties,
I make sure that they brush their teeth,
Madhuri told in an interview over phone
from Mumbai.
I think that is very important. Brushing
teeth for two minutes every morning and
night is very important, said the actress,
who is the face of oral care brand Oral B.
Madhuri, who married Sriram Nene, a
doctor, in 1999, also feels that a family is
very important in Indian culture and it is
necessary to have a healthy family. A
healthy smile shows a happy family because
they all represent health when they smile
healthy. So I think it is very important for a
family to establish a good smile, said
Madhuri, who was recently shooting for a
new Oral B toothpaste ad campaign.
H
ollywood actor Michael Douglas says fatherhood is a
"gorgeous feeling" and adds
that with children, "there is
no judgment"."There's no way to
articulate or define the joys of
fatherhood. It's just a gorgeous,
wonderful feeling of unequivocal
love. With children, there is no
judgment, both in your love for
them and their love for you," the
69-year-old told people magazine
in an interview. The two-time
Oscar winner focuses on family,
from his 13-year-old son Dylan's bar mitzvah to strengthening
his marriage to Catherine Zeta-Jones, 44. The couple, who decid-
ed to spend time apart a year ago, have stepped out hand in hand
several times in recent months.
Actor Brad Pitt to be George
Clooney's best man
A
ctor Brad Pitt will be George Clooney's best man at his
wedding. The
M o n u m e n t s
Men actor is set to tie the
knot with girlfriend Amal
Alamuddin later this year,
and his aunt Starla thinks
his Burn After Reading
co-star will be by his side
at the ceremony, reports
contactmusic. com. ' ' I
would say he'd choose Brad
Pitt for his best man. They are good friends, I would think
that's who he'd choose, said Starla. Starla also revealed her
nephew is set to marry the 36-year-old lawyer in Italy, with his
parents Nick and Nina Clooney planning a trip to Europe to
help with the wedding preparations for his big day. ''I did hear
Cincinnati, since it's not that far from Kentucky - that's one of
the places they were considering - but apparently Cincinnati
didn't win, it's not going to be the place. I do know that Nick
and Nina are planning a trip over to Italy in the next week or so
to, I guess, scope out some stuff, she said.
Madhuri Dixit with her family.
Being
part of TV
important for me:
Aamir Khan
N
ewcomer Abhinay Vaddi, grandson
of legendary actors Savitri and
Gemini Ganesan, agreed to play
mathematics genius Srinivasa Ramanujan
in the upcoming Tamil-English biopic
"Ramanujan" because he felt it's "the best
debut" he could get as an actor. "When I
decided to act, I wanted to only work in art-
based films. After my first film in Telugu, I
waited for two years to get an art-based
project but I couldn't find one script. When
I finally got 'Ramanujan', I felt it's the best
debut I could get as an actor," Abhinay told
IANS in an interview here.
"I'm not against commercial cinema
because you cant have much of a choice in
our industry. If you want to be versatile as
an actor, you need to do different films.
'Ramanujan' came to me when I was least
expecting it and I realized I need to be open
to all kinds of cinema," he added.
Many would not call "Ramanujan" a
dream debut for a newcomer from a star
family, but Abhinay thinks otherwise.
"Everybody wants a star-studded launch
with a successful director and popular cast.
I feel all that's there in this film as well. It's
being directed by a National Award-win-
ning filmmaker, features a host of very
popular and experienced actors and above
all I get to play Ramanujan, for which top
Tamil actors vied," he said. Directed by
Gnana Rajasekaran, "Ramanujan" is the
story of the mathematician from his early
days in Kumbakonam to Cambridge
University, London. A biopic usually
involves a lot of research, but Abhinay was
asked to blindly follow his director's
instructions.
"After I was narrated the story, I
researched and came across so many things
about Ramanujan that was not part of the
story I heard. I went back and told my
director about it but he asked me to stop
reading from other sources as he feared it
would confuse me," Abhinay said.
'Ramanujan' best
debut I could get
as an actor:
Abhinay Vaddi
Madhuri Dixit: I am really strict with my kids
Fatherhood wonderful feeling of
unequivocal love: Michael Douglas
By Prakash Bhandari from
Kabul
Kabul: Many Afghans who lost
their limbs in land mine blasts in
the war and militant attacks and are
facing grave hardships as handi-
capped are finding the famous
Jaipur Foot as a great relief.
The artificial limbs are provided
by the Bhagwan Mahaveer Viklang
Sahayata Samity (BMVSS) based
at Jaipur. BMVSS is holding a
camp in Kabuls Khair Khana. On
one single day, 65 handicapped
were attended to at the camp and
some of them walked with the arti-
ficial limb the very next day with
confidence and a smile. Till the
camp wraps up on July 7, the
BMVSS hopes to provide fitments
to 1,000 amputees free of cost. The
camp has the active support of the
Afghanistans Ministry of Labor,
Social welfare, Martyrs and
Disabled.
Said a beneficiary, Abdul, 48, I
was totally disturbed when I lost
my one leg in landmine blast four
years ago and became handicapped
with almost zero mobility. Making
a living was difficult and challeng-
ing, yet I managed to earn some
money by selling fruits along a
roadside and now I am happy when
I will be able to move independent-
ly without sticks. He brought
three other amputees along with
him to get fitted with the light
weight Jaipur foot, which is high
on technology and low on cost.
Mirwaiz, 24, said as a soldier he
had not even in his wildest dreams
imagined that his life would take a
sad and painful turn. While sta-
tioned in a troubled area in
Kandahar, he lost one leg in a mas-
sive blast. To add to my miseries I
lost my parents and being the only
offspring had to face these difficult
times alone, he recounted.
And as Mirwaiz waited for his
turn to for measurement of the foot
taken by the Jaipur Foot team, he
said with a smile, Now I am
assured that I will get a prosthetic
which would not only allow me to
walk easily, but I would be able to
even run. Now I can even find a
bride for myself.
This is the fifth visit of Jaipur
Foot team to Kabul. On earlier four
visits, on the spot fitment were pro-
vided to over 3000 people.
The objective of such a camp is
to help amputees not only stand or
move but to reintegrate them into
society with dignity. We aim to
socially, economically and physi-
cally rehabilitate, D.R. Mehta,
founder and chief patron of the
organization, said.
Islamabad: At least 41 people
were injured when a bomb ripped
through a Sufi shrine on the out-
skirts of the Pakistani capital.
The blast occurred June 20 in
Pandorian village, about 15 kilo-
meters of from here, as devotees
gathered to mark the death anniver-
sary of a local sufi saint.
About 300 people were present
in the premises of the building
when the low intensity improvised
explosive device went off, a police
official said. Another police offi-
cial said 41 people were injured,
who were shifted to three hospitals
of Islamabad and the neighboring
city of Rawalpindi.
No one has claimed responsibili-
ty for the attack that came after
police launched a search operation
yesterday to comb the suburban
villages of Islamabad amid reports
of presence of militants.
Pakistan has already increased
the security around the capital after
the launch of a military operation
in North Waziristan on Sunday in
which over 200 militants have been
killed.
Islamabad: Pakistan has sought
extradition of outlawed Tehreek-e-
Taliban Pakistan (TTP) chief
Mullah Fazlullah from Afghanistan
and dismantling of the militant
group' s hideouts in Kunar and
Nooristan provinces.
Mahmood Khan Achakzai, a
renowned Pushtun leader, made the
request for the extradition on
behalf of Prime Minister Nawaz
Sharif when he met Afghan
President Hamid Karzai in Kabul
on Wednesday, The Express
Tribune reported.
The foreign office confirmed that
Achakzai, accompanied by foreign
secretary Aizaz Ahmed Chaudhry,
visited Afghanistan as a special
envoy of the Prime Minister to
seek Kabul's cooperation against
terrorism.
A government official familiar
with the development said that
Pakistan asked Karzai government
to stop supporting the TTP and
extradite its fugitive chief hiding in
Afghanistan.
The official said that Pakistan
had compelling evidence suggest-
ing that Mullah Fazlullah and other
TTP commanders were enjoying
"patronage" of Afghanistan's intel-
ligence agency.
It was decided that an Afghan
delegation would also soon visit
Islamabad to carry a special letter
from President Karzai that would
list some proposals and would also
discuss future plans with Pakistani
side, the paper said.
Fazlullah, nicknamed the
"Mullah Radio", became the TTP
chief in November last year after
the killing of his predecessor
Hakimullah Mehsud in a US drone
attack. During the weekly briefing
at the Foreign office yesterday,
spokesperson Tasnim Aslam said
that Afghan authorities had assured
their cooperation to Pakistan.
Following Achakzai' s visit to
Kabul, Afghan President Karzai
telephoned Prime Minister Sharif
and discussed the anti-terror coop-
eration between the two neighbors.
"Sharif agreed with all parts of
an Afghan that both countries
should jointly fight with all terror-
ists. Safe havens of terrorists
should be dismantled and there
should be a road-map to coordinate
the joint struggle," a statement
from Karzai's office said.
Pakistan has launched a massive
operation against Taliban in the
North Waziristan but there is
increasing worry over reports that
militants are easily crossing over
towards Afghan side and taking
shelter there.
Pakistan has asked Afghanistan
to seal common borders to stop the
escape of militants from Pakistani
territory.
Washington, DC: A key
Congressional committee has
reduced the US aid money to
Pakistan for the year 2015 by
$65.8 million as proposed by
US President Barack Obama in
his annual budget.
Approving State Department's
2015 budget of $48.285 billion,
the powerful Senate Committee
on Appropriations approved a
total of $959. 7 million for
Pakistan which is $65.8 million
less than Obama's request of
$1.03 billion.
Of this, amount up to $816
million for assistance programs,
an official statement said.
The bill increased funding for
polio prevention programs to
$59 million, including $7.5 mil-
lion in Afghanistan and Pakistan
to support a multilateral cam-
paign to eliminate the disease,
which is $9 million above the
President's request, it said.
The Committee has also
requested the Secretary of State
to consult with the Committee
on plans for winding down the
Office of the Special
Representative for Afghanistan
and Pakistan (SRAP).
It supported the reincorpora-
tion of SRAP within the Bureau
of South and Central Asian
Affairs.
The Senate Appropriations
Committee directed that pro-
grams in Pakistan target unem-
ployment, illiteracy, and disen-
franchisement among the most
impoverished individuals and
communities.
Recognizing Malala
Yousafzai's courageous advoca-
cy for girls' education, the bill
provided $3 million in addition
to increase the number of schol-
arships under the Merit and
Needs-Based Scholarship
Program.
No less than 50% of the schol-
arships should be awarded to
Pakistani women, it said.
Asking the State Department
to ensure that the US aid money
is not used in the Iran-Pak gas
pipeline, the Senate
Appropriations Committee
urged the Secretary of State to
make the release of Warren
Weinstein who was kidnapped
by extremists in Lahore in 2011,
a priority in the bilateral rela-
tionship with Pakistan.
D.R. Mehta, the founder of BMVSS, the makers of the Jaipur
Foot, is seeing an amputee walk after getting the Jaipur Foot at
Kabul last week.
Jaiput Foot brings smiles to
Afghan amputees
41 injured in bomb blast at
Islamabad shrine
The Senate approved a total of
$959.7 million for Pakistan
US Congressional Committee
reduces Pak aid by $65.8 million
Pakistan seeks extradition of
Taliban chief from Afghanistan
TTP chief Mullah Fazlullah
No one has claimed responsibility for the attack
SUBCONTINENT 20 June 28-July 4, 2014 TheSouthAsianTimes.info
INTERNATIONAL
Baghdad: Reports that Syrian
warplanes carried out a cross-
border attack on Iraqi towns this
week is further evidence of the
blurring between the two coun-
tries' borders as they face an
offensive by Islamic extremists.
At least 57 Iraqi civilians
were killed and more than 120
others were wounded by what
local officials say were Syrian
warplanes that struck several
border areas of Anbar province
Tuesday.
These border cities are among
those under the control of the
Islamic State of Iraq and Syria,
or ISIS, which seeks to create
an Islamic caliphate that
encompasses portions of Iraq in
Syria.
Reports of the Syrian incur-
sion into Iraq is a reminder that
the civil war in Syria and the
unrest in Iraq are not isolated,
but linked in ways that threaten
the security of both.
Sabah Karkhout, head of
Iraq's Anbar provincial council,
told CNN that Tuesday' s air
attacks struck markets and fuel
stations in areas such as Rutba,
al-Walid and Al-Qaim.
Karkhout said he was certain
the warplanes were Syrian
because they bore the image of
the Syrian flag.
"Also, the planes flew directly
from Syrian airspace and went
back to Syria," he said.
Iraq' s military spokesman,
Maj. Gen. Qassim Atta, denied
reports that Syrian warplanes
struck inside Iraq' s border
towns.
"We know our airspace. We
have not recorded or registered
infiltration of our air space from
foreign jets, and all the war-
planes and helicopters flying
over Iraq airspace are Iraqis,"
he told CNN.
The head of the United
Nations Assistance Mission for
Iraq, Nickolay Mladenov, told
reporters Wednesday that the
warplanes that bombed the Iraqi
cities were not Iraqi jets, but he
did not have information
beyond that.
21 June 28-July 4, 2014 TheSouthAsianTimes.info
London: Rebekah Brooks,
the former boss of Rupert
Murdoch's British newspaper
arm, was acquitted on
Tuesday of orchestrating a
campaign to hack into
phones and bribe officials in
the hunt for exclusive news.
A jury at London' s Old
Bailey court cleared Brooks
unanimously but found Andy
Coulson, Prime Minister
David Cameron' s former
media chief and ex-editor of
one of Murdoch' s British
titles, guilty of being part of
the phone-hacking conspiracy
after a trial that has lasted
nearly eight months.
The conviction in one of the most expen-
sive trials in British legal his-
tory forced Cameron to apol-
ogize for hiring Coulson as
his media chief. "I'm extreme-
ly sorry that I employed him,
it was the wrong decision,"
said the British leader.
On hearing of her acquittal
in court, Brooks looked
stunned and drew a sharp
intake of breath before being
led away by a nurse. Wearing
a white jumper and dark blue
trousers, she later walked free
from the court through a
scrum of photographers,
clutching the hand of her hus-
band Charlie who was also
cleared of any attempt to hin-
der the investigation.
Baghdad: Iraqi Prime Minister
Nuri al-Maliki vowed Wednesday
to go ahead with the roadmap of
the political process, rejecting any
attempt by political rivals to form
a government of national salva-
tion to deal with the country's
deteriorating security situation.
"Despite the cruelty of the battle
against terrorism, we will remain
faithful to the will of the people in
promoting the democratic experi-
ment and in the protection of the
political process," Maliki said
during his weekly televised
speech.
"We will attend the first session
of the Council of Representatives
in line with the constitutional
requirements," Maliki said refer-
ring to the first session of the
newly-elected parliament, which
has to be convened within 15
days after the federal court rati-
fies the final result of the elec-
tions.
On June 16, the Iraqi federal
court ratified the results of the
April 30 parliamentary elections
for all the Iraqi provinces, mark-
ing the first step toward forming
the new Iraqi government.
Maliki ruled out the calls by
some political rivals, including
the Sunni Speaker Osama al-
Nujaifi and the Shiite secular
Ayad Allawi, for Maliki's govern-
ment to quit and form a govern-
ment of national salvation to con-
front a Sunni militant offensive
that has overrun large parts of the
country, according to Xinhua.
"It is no secret for all Iraqis the
dangerous goals behind calls for
the formation of a national salva-
tion government.
This is an attempt by those who
disrespect the constitution in
order to eliminate the democratic
experiment and circumvent the
constitutional requirements,"
Maliki said.
However, Maliki called on the
Iraqi political blocs to "put aside
the differences and to unify our
efforts to start a new page of seri-
ous dialogue".
A statement of the office of Vice
President Khudair al-Khzaie, a
Shiite, said that "the presidency is
committed to the political and
democratic path of the political
process of the country as well as
constitutional timings".
Syrian warplanes strike in
Iraq, killing 57 civilians
Iraq PM vows to go ahead with political process
Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki, right, and U.S. Secretary of
State John Kerry meet at the Prime Minister's Office in Baghdad,
Iraq, June 23, 2014.
Rebekah Brooks was the
editor of the News of the
World when
illegal phone hacking
was carried out by the
newspaper.
Iran secretly sending drones and supplies into Iraq
Brussels: Iran is directing surveillance drones over Iraq from an airfield in Baghdad and
is secretly supplying Iraq with tons of military equipment, supplies and other assistance,
American officials said. Tehran has also deployed an intelligence unit there to intercept
communications, the officials said. The secret Iranian programs are part of a broader
effort by Tehran to gather intelligence and help Prime Minister Nuri Kamal al-Malikis
government in its struggle against Sunni militants with the Islamic State in Iraq and
Syria. Gen. Qassim Suleimani, the head of Irans paramilitary Quds Force, has visited
Iraq at least twice to help Iraqi military advisers plot strategy. And Iran has deployed
about a dozen other Quds Force officers to advise Iraqi commanders, and help mobilize
more than 2,000 Shiite militiamen from southern Iraq, US officials said. Iranian transport
planes have also been making two daily flights of military equipment and supplies to
Baghdad 70 tons per flight for Iraqi security forces.
Rebekah cleared, Coulson guilty in
UK phone-hacking trial
Global Economy Prize for
India's biotech queen
Bangalore: India's biotechnology
queen and Biocon chairperson
Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw has been
awarded the coveted Global
Economy Prize for business by
the Kiel Institute in Germany dur-
ing its centenary celebrations.
"Mazumdar-Shaw is the first
Indian woman and fourth Indian
to be conferred this prize," the
Bangalore-based biotech compa-
ny said in a statement here
Monday.
The German institute is an
international centre for research
in global economic affairs, eco-
nomic policy consulting and eco-
nomic education.
"The award, set up in 2005, is
bestowed on pioneers finding
solutions to global economic
problems by influencing and
implementing economic or trade
systems based on individual ini-
tiative," the statement said.
The annual prize is awarded to
three individuals - a high-ranking
policy maker, a renowned econo-
mist and an outstanding entrepre-
neur.
After receiving the prize at Kiel
Sunday, Shaw said: "I am hon-
oured to receive this prestigious
award and consider it a privilege
to be in the company of great
economists, world leaders and
entrepreneurs."
Liberia President Ellen
Johnson-Sirleaf and University of
Chicago professor Richard H.
Thaler were the other two who
were conferred the honour along
with Shaw for 2014.
Nobel laureate Amartya Sen,
Kalyani group chairman Baba N.
Kalyani and Bharti group chair-
man Bharti Mittal are three
Indians who received the prize in
the past. Shaw pioneered biotech-
nology in India and started
Biocon as a novel enzymes com-
pany, which evolved into the
country's largest biopharmaceuti-
cal enterprise committed to
affordable innovation. With the
largest scientific talent pool, the
company is engaged in research
to develop novel and differentiat-
ed biopharmaceuticals aimed at
reducing the cost of treatment for
cancer, diabetes and autoimmune
disorders for patients worldwide.
New Delhi: The road transport
and highways ministry Tuesday
said it has approved highway proj-
ects worth over Rs.40,000 crore to
be implemented in Jammu and
Kashmir, Himachal Pradesh,
Uttarakhand and the northeastern
region. "We have approved proj-
ects worth Rs.20,000 crore for
Jammu and Kashmir. They include
two-laning and four-laning of
national highways in the state,
some road projects in Leh and
Ladakh and we will coordinate
with the Public Works Department
for these projects, " Road
Transport and Highways Minister
Nitin Gadkari told reporters here.
He said these projects will be
completed in the next two-and-a-
half years and will encourage
tourism in the state.
Gadkari also announced projects
worth Rs. 15, 000 crore in the
northeast region comprising
Assam, Manipur, Meghalaya,
Mizoram, Arunachal Pradesh,
Nagaland and Tripura.
"Within three months, we will
start work on those projects and
preparation of detailed project
reports has already started," he
said.
Regarding Uttarakhand, which
faced massive floods last year,
Gadkari said: "We will set up a
new highway network in the state
and will invest Rs.6,000 crore for
that."
The government plans to build
one-way roads in the hill state of
Himachal Pradesh.
"It is difficult to widen the exist-
ing roads, specifically between
Kullu and Manali. Therefore, we
have suggested that there will be
one-way roads in the area, "
Gadkari said. The minister
reviewed over 250 road projects
worth about Rs.60,000 crore and
said the ministry is trying to expe-
dite the clearances for projects
stuck due to land acquisition and
environment clearance issues.
Mumbai: After Bihar and Uttar Pradesh,
Maharashtra will have its own Buddhist cir-
cuit tours with 25 major destinations, in a bid
to attract more tourists to the state, a top offi-
cial said here Tuesday.
The Buddhist circuit has been finalized by
the Maharashtra Tourism Development
Corporation (MTDC) and will start from the
Sanchi Stupa replica adorning the port town
of Nallasopara in Thane district, said MTDC
managing director Jagdish Patil.
"We chose the stupa in Nallasopara
because it is from here that Emperor
Ashoka' s son Mahendra and daughter
Sanghamitra are believed to have left for Sri
Lanka to spread Buddhism," Patil said.
The Buddhist Circuit Maharashtra tour -
the commencement dates and duration of
which are being finalized - will proceed from
Thane to Mumbai, which has several major
Buddhist religious and tourist attractions.
These include the Kanheri Caves, the world's
tallest pagoda in Gorai (both in Borivli sub-
urb), the Chaityabhoomi in Dadar and the
Elephanta Island Buddhist caves, 10 km off
Mumbai in the Arabian Sea.
The next attractions would be in Raigad,
Satara, Pune, Nashik, Aurangabad, and
Nagpur (besides Thane and Mumbai), cover-
ing 25 major destinations spread across eight
districts. According to Patil, the starting
point - Nallasopara - has great historical sig-
nificance as the ancient port had trade links
with Mesopotamia, Arabia, Greece, Rome
and Africa, among others in its 5,000-year
existence, with a mention also in the Vedas
and ancient Greek writngs.
Purna Maitrayaniputra, a rich merchant
from the town, had journeyed to Shravasti in
Uttar Pradesh, attended a discourse by
Gautam Buddha who lived there for 27
years.
Later, Maitrayaniputra renounced his
wealth and became a Buddhist monk,
returned to his hometown Nallasopara to
propound Buddhism and built a Buddh Vihar
here which had eight sandalwood gates.
He invited Buddha to inaugurate the
Buddh Vihar, which the founder of
Buddhism honored and travelled to
Nallasopara with 500 disciples and stayed
here for a week.
After his visit, Buddha gifted his begging
bowl to Maitrayaniputra, now a monk, which
was discovered in April 1882 by Pandit
Bhagwanlal Indrajit here.
Much later, after Emperor Ashoka became
a Buddhist, he built a stupa here with 14
inscriptions, eight of which were discovered
in 1882 by Pandit Indrajit near Lake Bhatela
here. Another inscription - the ninth - was
discovered by a historian N.A. Gore in 1956
from Bhuigaon nearby.
After Thane and Mumbai, the Buddhist
circuit will cover the world-renowned Ajanta
and Ellora Caves in Aurangabad and other
prominent sites in surrounding districts
before terminating at Dikshabhoomi in
Nagpur.
Biocon chairperson Kiran
Mazumdar-Shaw
It will have 25 major destinations
including world's tallest
pagoda in Gorai
Maharashtra to launch Buddhist circuit tourism soon
New Delhi: The budget session of parlia-
ment will commence from July 7 and con-
tinue till Aug 14, said an official release
Tuesday. "Subject to exigencies of busi-
ness, the session is scheduled to conclude
on Aug 14," said a press communique of
the Rajya Sabha secretariat. The first gen-
eral budget of Prime Minister Narendra
Modi's government is likely to be present-
ed July 10 according to indications by
Finance Minister Arun Jaitley in a media
interaction Tuesday. The rail budget will
be presented July 8 followed by the
release of the Economic Survey on July 9.
Approval for the vote-on-account sought
by the previous government ends July 31.
The full budget must be cleared by parlia-
ment before the expiry of this period.
Air India joins Star Alliance
New Delhi: Air India has joined the Star
Alliance group of airlines, a spokesman of
the national carrier said Tuesday. After
talks in London Monday, Air India and
Star Alliance officials arrived at the deci-
sion on the airline' s affiliation. The
Alliance membership will allow Air India
to share routes with the other airlines to
more than 1,200 destinations and in the
process will help improve its revenue.
Highway projects worth
Rs.40,000 crore approved
Budget session of parliament
from July 7
BUSINESS 22 June 28-July 4, 2014 TheSouthAsianTimes.info
SPORTS 23 June 28-July 4, 2014 TheSouthAsianTimes.info
Melbourne: N. Srinivasan has been con-
firmed as the ICC's first chairman after
constitutional changes to the governing
body were passed at the annual conference
in Melbourne on Thursday.
Smooth passage of the changes devised
by the "Big Three" of India, England and
Australia had been expected after a set of
broad resolutions were approved by Full
Member nations earlier this year.
Srinivasan had been barred from his role
as BCCI president due to an India Supreme
court investigation into IPL corruption but
had spent the preceding two days, with
Australia's Wally Edwards and England's
Giles Clarke, explaining the new landscape
to delegates, including Associate and
Affiliate members.
As for whether Srinivasan was the right
man to lead world cricket into the future,
having long stated his primary responsibili-
ty as a representative of the BCCI, the
India Cements and Chennai Super Kings
owner argued that he should be judged on
what he achieved over the term of his
chairmanship.
"I believe that some of the criticism is not
fair to me and is not well-founded. Beyond
that all I can say is that over a long period
of time I have been involved with cricket
and its administration, and one must judge
me by results," he said. "It is the first day,
I've just been elected, and one has to wait
and see as to what is the effect I have on
the ICC and on cricket, before you make
that judgment."
The BCCI termed Srinivasan's appoint-
ment "a proud and historic moment for
Indian cricket".
New York:
With LeBron
James opting
out of his con
tract with
Miami Heat,
t e a m s
t h r o u g h o u t
the NBA are
p r e p a r i n g
pitches to
make a run for
him.
He has report-
edly five pre-
ferred destinations. Though a return to
Miami is no lock, the Heat might still be the
front-runner for James.
In fact, Heat's confidence in retaining
James is buoyed by its belief that his options
are relatively limited to: Cleveland
Cavaliers, Houston Rockets, Chicago Bulls
and Los Angeles Clippers.
C a r m e l o
A n t h o n y
opted out of
the final year
of his contract
with the
Knicks in
order to test
free agency,
and ESPN
reported that
as many as
seven teams
are planning on
chasing after
him. The Bulls, Rockets, Mavericks and
Lakers are all expected to try and steal
Anthony from the Knicks, with the Heat and
Hawks also in contention. Anthony is cer-
tainly not interested in joining James, Wade,
etc. He could still return to New York, and
the Knicks can offer $33 million more than
any other team.
N. Srinivasan
G
roup play got the 2014
FIFA World Cup off to a
thrilling start, but the inten-
sity is set to kick up a notch as the
knockout stage plays out.
A few of the top-ranked squads
failed to advance out of their
groups. Defending champions
Spain were eliminated by the time
their second match was complete.
England and Italy were both elimi-
nated before the round of 16 even
arrived.
On the other hand, a few of the
pre-tournament favorites had no
trouble advancing to the round of
16. Host nation Brazil, led by
Neymar, won Group A. The
Netherlands, who lost to Spain in
the 2010 World Cup Final, made a
statement by owning Group B.
The "Group of Death" lived up to
the hype. Entering the final day of
group play, all four squads in
Group GGermany, the United
States, Ghana and Portugalhave
a chance to advance on to the
knockout stage.
In the international spotlight,
superstars have the ability to shine
even brighter. Lionel Messi (four
goals) rose to the occasion to lead
Argentina to a perfect 3-0 record in
Group F.
Although he hasn' t found the
back of the net himself, Cristiano
Ronaldo kept his team's dreams
alive with a beautiful cross in the
final minute of extra time against
the United States.
The bracket for the round of 16 is
beginning to take shape. There are
still some spots up for grab, but the
remaining open spots will be
decided by the end of the day on
Thursday.
L
ionel Messi's World Cup
double for Argentina in
Wednesday's 3-2 victory
over Nigeria sug-
gests the four-time
World Player of
the Year may be ready to take
his place among the all-time
greats of the game.
The 27-year-old has amassed
a glittering haul of trophies with
Barcelona, netting 354 goals in
425 official games for the La
Liga side and helping them win
three Champions League
crowns. Until the finals in
Brazil, however, he had yet to
shine on soccer's biggest stage
following subdued performanc-
es on his previous two appear-
ances. Messi' s patchy World
Cup form called into question
whether he would ever quite
claim his spot in a pantheon that
includes the likes of compatriot
Diego Maradona, Brazils Pele
and Johan Cruyff of the
Netherlands.
The comparison with
Maradona, whose brilliance
almost single-handedly pro-
pelled Argentina to victory in
Mexico in 1986, is the one
inevitably made most often.
Both men are short in stature,
predominantly left-footed and
blessed with incredible skills
that can unlock the most stub-
born defences. Messi had a rela-
tively poor season with Barca
by his sky-high standards, miss-
ing two months through injury
before the New Year but still
managing to rack up 41 goals in
46 appearances in all competi-
tions. It is a tally most players
can only dream of yet there
were still suggestions he was
not giving his all for his club
and saving himself for the
World Cup. He did at times look
a shadow of his normal zippy
self, especially towards the end
of a season Barca ended without
major silverware, but he seems
to have recovered his energy in
Brazil at just the right time for
his country. If Argentina are to
win the World Cup they still
need to fix the glaring problems
in defence and midfield that
were again exposed by the
Nigerians in Porto Alegre.
However, with Messi in the side
and firing on all cylinders, fans
back home will be confident
they can score more goals than
they inevitably leak.
N. Srinivasan confirmed as ICC chairman
Options for LeBron James and
Anthony as free agents
Heats mainstay
LeBron James
Knicks star Carmelo
Anthony
Luis Suarez may be banned from
World Cup for biting opponent
Natal, Brazil: Biting opponents,
racist comments -- all that looked
to be behind Luis Suarez, as soc-
cer's bad boy was maturing into a
star for his club and country.
Then, the old habit that most peo-
ple leave behind in nursery
school cropped up again in front
of an audience of millions. Faced
with a smothering and frustrating
Italian defense in a must-win
World Cup game Tuesday, the Uruguayan superstar responded with his
front teeth. It came at about the 80th minute when Suarez and Italian
defender Giorgio Chiellini got tangled up in front of Italy's goal. The
apparent chomp happened in an instant, but was caught by television
cameras and became a worldwide sensation -- and could lead to Suarez
being kicked out of the World Cup. The referee didn't see a bite, and no
foul was called despite Chiellini pleading and pulling down his jersey to
show a red mark on his shoulder. About a minute later, Uruguay scored
the winning goal in a 1-0 game that sent Italy home. Uruguay will con-
tinue playing, but the federation that runs the World Cup will investi-
gate and may suspend Suarez, who has twice before been disciplined
for biting opponents in league games.
Uruguay
's Luis
Suarez
holds
his teeth
during a
match
with
Italy in
Natal
June 24.
Messi ready to join the
game's all-time greats
Argentina's Lionel Messi
celebrates after scoring
against Nigeria June 25.
24 June 28-July 4, 2014 TheSouthAsianTimes.info FEATURES
By Renee Mehrra
A
utism and autism spectrum disorder
(ASD) is a range of complex neu-
rodevelopment disorders, character-
ized in varying degrees by difficulties in ver-
bal and nonverbal communication, impaired
social interaction and repetitive behavior.
ASD varies significantly in character and
severity, and occurs in all ethnic and socio-
economic groups. The Center for Disease
Control and Prevention states that 1 out of 88
children will be affected by ASD with males
four times more likely to be diagnosed than
females. Autism is more common than child-
hood cancer, juvenile diabetes, and pediatric
AIDS combined. Raising a child with autism
is challenging and the stress is compounded
for immigrant communities grappling with
socio-economic issues and archaic societal
norms. From denial to acknowledgement to
acceptance can be a long and winding road
for many caregivers. This can cause delays
in diagnosis as well as in early intervention.
With South Asian families there is no
common set of beliefs and attitudes on
autism. The experiences vary tremendously
determined on the extent of acculturation,
knowledge of the legal system, socio-eco-
nomic status, language barriers and cultural
taboos. Domestic violence can further exac-
erbate issues and predispose the autistic child
to trauma and self-inflicted injuries. The lack
of clarity on autism and ASD triggers flawed
thinking and perceptions fluctuate from
believing the child to be mentally retarded
who has to be institutionalized to total denial
of the disorder.
The more educated parents utilize the
resources the city offers to get early interven-
tion and have better outcomes.
The belief patterns are cultural yet have
common denominators with other immigrant
communities. When the child starts to show
signs of delayed speech and slow physical
growth, parents view this as a temporary
phase. As the childs behavior persists and
starts to interfere with social interaction,
there is fear, discomfort and unease.
However, some parents continue to think that
the child is a slow learner and would eventu-
ally catch up with time. At this juncture,
some, but not all, educated and astute parents
seek diagnosis and treatment for their child.
Some parents on the lower rung of the socio-
economic status go through social withdraw-
al and prolonged stress delaying treatment
while in some families marital tension and
abuse results in trauma for their child.
Clarity in thinking brings a deeper awareness
for more help and support. At times this real-
ization comes late and unfortunately the
child cannot achieve his/her full potential.
Family values, perceptions and attitudes
play a dominant role in the assessment, diag-
nosis and successful treatment plan for a
child with autism. It is also important to
understand and address the interrelationship
of culture and language for an effective treat-
ment plan for children coming from minority
cultures. Families of different cultures
respond differently to similar delays placing
different emphasis on language and social
skills. Policy, pedagogy and practices should
strategize a culture specific approach for the
optimal utilization of health care services for
these children.
To have positive outcomes, effective scaf-
folding is needed so families can talk about
Autism and ASD candidly. A critical mass of
the educated is essential for acceptance and
early identification of autism. Since it is
often difficult and subjective to know where
the child is on the spectrum, immigrant chil-
dren should be evaluated in their own lan-
guage for an accurate assessment. The mate-
rials in different South Asian languages
would enhance the awareness of parents and
help them to recognize behaviors that are
delayed and different. This would encourage
them to become reliable informants and con-
tribute immensely in early detection and in
the continuing core research area in ASD.
Resource centers run by South Asian care-
givers can become safe havens for both par-
ents and kids.
Meditation is evidence based holistic solu-
tion valued in the East for centuries to nour-
ish and relax body, mind and spirit. Medical
research indicates that it is an effective
adjunctive treatment for physical, emotional
and mental conditions and can help children
with autism to be more focused and calm.
Integration of arts, music and theater for
active participation and therapeutic healing
is evident in Autism the Musical, an inspira-
tional documentary, a moving testament to
the perseverance and triumphs of autistic
children who given the right opportunity are
able to realize their potential. It redefines our
understanding about ASD and gives a vision
of hope to parents and a brighter future for
children on the spectrum.
To lead a successful change in policy and
pedagogy, educators must weigh in the com-
plexities of diversity and be committed to
being culturally responsive. In the
Knowledge Era, global competence comes
when education is inclusive and transcends
borders, customs and values in a school cul-
ture where children with autism and ASD
feel safe and secure. Pedagogy is effective
when principals, teachers and parents are
aligned with the goals and dreams of chil-
dren with special needs and when an innova-
tive approach is applied in their trajectories
of development.
This would enable active learning, social
justice and equity in special education where
autistic and ASD children do not feel alienat-
ed from their own culture or the culture of
their classroom.
With South Asian families there is no common set of beliefs
and attitudes on autism. The experiences vary depending on
the extent of acculturation, knowledge of the legal system,
socio-economic status, language barriers and cultural taboos.
Living with Autism
By Jinal Shah
A
son sharing a light moment
with his mother, a family
huddling on a couch for
family photo, folks taking a meal
together -- these may be common
scenes in many households. But to
the families featured in the photos,
exhibited at the Museum of
Chinese in America (MOCA) in
New York , a moment like this
takes a lot of effort to reach because
they all have to learn to accommo-
date their lesbian, gay, bisexual,
transgender and queer (LGBTQ)
members.
The photos on display at MOCA
are part of the Asian Pride Project,
a program initiated by Asian les-
bian advocate organization Q-Wave
and South Asian Lesbian Gay
Association (SALGA), to help fam-
ilies go through the coming out
process and accept their LGBTQ
members while exploring the
dynamics of family acceptance and
love. The month long exhibit Our
Portraits, Our Families, unveiled
June 13, features photos that cap-
ture the family bonds and tender
moments in multigenerational
Asian families. The goal of the
exhibition, where socially engaged
professional artists were paired
with individuals and families, was
to increase visibility and empower
Asian & Pacific Islander (API)
LGBTQ individuals and families
through the use of visual media and
arts. Asian Pride Project was
founded on the belief that families
go through a coming out process,
too. We are an LGBT arts and advo-
cacy group that uses multimedia art
forms -- such as video and photog-
raphy -- to tell the stories of API
individuals, and their families and
communities, said Suma Reddy,
director of the Project.
Three Indian Americans volun-
teered to be photographed with
families to show their solidarity
with the cause. Photographer
Nelson Chan captured Navin
Dargani and Navin Manglanis
visual narrative in Manhattan and
photographer Alexis Padrigal Lim
captured loving moments with
Mashuq Deen and his partner
Elizabeth Clark and her family.
Being gay and South Asian some-
times is painful and heart wrench-
ing, because they not only have to
deal with their internal denials and
that of the familys but also with
societys reprobation and cultural
expectations. It is a challenge that
tests family bonds.
Mashuq Deen relates his experi-
ence thus: I dont come from a
family that talks about things, so
nothing has ever been resolved. We
just muddle past the hard bits and
into the next bits and hope for the
best. But how do families open a
line of communication after their
child has come out?
It is telling that so many South
Asian gay and lesbians are still in
the closet. The reason? They fear
family and community rejection.
They don't want to be shunned, or
be made to feel ashamed of who
they are. They don't want to feel
that their parents are disappointed
in them, said Reddy. However,
some families are coming out
strong. We realize how brave, and
unconditional our parents love for
us is, especially in the face of a
community that sometimes called
our union unacceptable and dis-
graceful, said Navin Manglani.
Portraits of love and acceptance
The month long exhibition Our Portraits, Our Families at MOCA in New York is part of a program initiated by
Q-Wave and SALGA to help families go through the coming out process and accept their LGBTQ members.
Navin with his mother. Transgender Mashuq Deen & his partner Elizabeth Clark & her family.
SPIRITUALITY 25 June 28-July 4, 2014 TheSouthAsianTimes.info
Guru greater than
God?
A once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for you to meet a
Satguru on the auspicious day of Guru Poornima on
July 12 in the New York metropolitan area.
By Parveen Chopra
K
abir was a level-headed
saint-poet, almost an icono-
clast, who cut through
much mumbo-jumbo surrounding
religion and spirituality. So one lis-
tens intently when he proclaims,
Guru Gobind dono khare, kake
lagon paye, Balihari guru aapne
jin Gobind diyo milaye (Both
God and Guru are standing in front
of me, who should I prostate to? I
choose the Guru, of course,
because I owe everything to one
who was instrumental in my meet-
ing God.)
Guru Gita (part of Skanda
Purana) goes one further, and
equates guru with God.
Gurur Brahma gurur Vishnu
gurur Devo Maheshwarah, Guru
sakshat par Brahman tasmai shri
guruvai namnah. (Guru is the
creator Brahma, Guru is the pre-
server Vishnu, as well as the
destroyer Siva. Guru is verily the
Supreme Spirit I offer my salu-
tations to this Guru.)
These days we often hear of a
marketing guru, a media guru, and
so on. But here, of course, we are
talking about guru as in spiritual
teacher. Etymologically, in
Sanskrit the syllable gu () means
shadows, and the syllable ru (),
one who disperses them. So the
guru has the power and the where-
withal to disperse the darkness of
ignorance and bring us into the
light of knowledge of the True Self.
In simple terms, a guru is an
enlightened master who helps us to
tune in to the voice of God within
our hearts and silences the voices
of lust, anger, greed, envy, illusion
and madness. He helps us to see the
Lord within the hearts of humans
and other beings. The guru does not
tell us what to do but clears the dust
on the mirror of our hearts so the
reflection of the Lord can shine
through us.
Why do we need a guru? If you
want to learn mathematics or any
academic subject, you go to school
and learn from the teachers of those
disciplines. If you want to learn
music, you go to a music teacher.
Similarly, to pursue spirituality,
you will progress faster if you learn
from a spiritual teacher.
The Indian system, wisely
enough, has even earmarked a Day
of the Guru in the calendar: Guru
Poornima, which falls on the full
moon day in the Hindu month of
Ashad (July-August). It falls on
12th July this year as per the
English calendar. Guru Poornima
is the day to feel grateful for the
great knowledge you have received
from your Master. Gratitude and
humility together blossom a gen-
uine prayer inside you!
You may be wondering can one
find a Satguru in America of all
places! Well, people living in the
New York metropolitan area and
those who can travel here are fortu-
nate to be able to celebrate Guru
Poornima 2014 in the divine pres-
ence of an enlightened master and
perfect Satguru, Brahmrishi Sri
Guruvanand Ji Swami. He is one
of the few living Satgurus who
have invoked all chakras of their
Kundalini. His devotees, who call
him Gurudev, point out that on
Guru Poornima his divine power is
at its peak. That day he gives his
blessing in the form of shaktipat
personally to each and every one
present. Such a precious blessing
given on Guru Poornima goes a
long way for those receiving it to
bring long lasting peace and happi-
ness in their lives.
Hear Diane, a devotee of
Gurudev, relate her own shaktipat
experience: After meeting
Gurudev I was touched by him and
my meditation the next morning
was different. I worked through
some old unrest and fears during
meditation. He is a powerful figure
for good in the world.
Adds Apra Bhandari of Los
Angeles, Just being in his pres-
ence makes me feel like I can get
through any obstacle that comes
my way. He guides us towards a
more balanced and aware lifestyle.
His aura has the power to make
everything around us happy and
positive.
For those who have not yet come
in contact with Sri Guruvanand ji,
he has made his lifes mission to
help and guide us all, irrespective
of caste, creed or religious belief,
along the path he has treaded. A
disciple of revered Yogiraj Devraha
Baba, who lived to the age of 250,
Sri Guruvanand Swami attained his
spiritual powers after 45 years of
rigorous sadhana. A renowned
scholar of Hinduism, Jainism and
Indian philosophy, Guruji also has
a deep understanding of
Christianity, Islam, Sikhism,
Jainism, and Buddhism. So, he is
able to explain and relate the spiri-
tual process to the tradition a devo-
tee belongs to.
Interested in cherishing some
spiritual bliss? Guru Poornima
2014 with Sri Guruvanand Swami
will be celebrated at the magnifi-
cent New Jersey Performing Arts
Center in Newark, New Jersey, on
Saturday, July 12 (3 PM to 8 PM)
followed by Gurudevs personal
blessings and Prasad (dinner). The
event has been made free, courtesy
of World Spiritual Awareness
Forum, but registration is
required.
To register, visit
www.GuruPoornima2014.com, or
call, Bharti Doshi (516) 282-4353,
Suman Kumar (201) 562-2788, or
Rakesh Bhargava (516) 484-0018.
Guru Poornima 2014 with Sri Guruvanand Swami will be
celebrated at the New Jersey Performing Arts Center in
Newark, NJ, on July 12 followed by Gurudevs
personal blessings and Prasad (dinner).
HEALTH 26 June 28-July 4, 2014 TheSouthAsianTimes.info
I
f you eat a healthful diet, you
may think youre in the clear
when it comes to supplying your
body with vital nutrients. But some
experts say that even the most well-
rounded meal plans fall short.
To get the amount of nutrients
you need to thrive, you cant rely on
food alone. You really have to turn to
dietary supplements, says Michael
A. Smith M.D., host of Healthy
Talk on RadioMD.com and senior
health scientist with Life Extension
in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.
If youve ever walked through the
supplement section of a natural foods
store or done a quick search online,
you know it can be easy to become
overwhelmed by the choices.
Making matters more confusing,
everyone has different nutritional
needs. With the exception of a few
foundational nutrients, theres no
such thing as a one-size-fits-all sup-
plement regimen, says
Smith, whose new book
and educational tool,
The Supplement
Pyramid, seeks to help
readers design a nutri-
tional regimen that meets
their unique needs. Like
food, its helpful to think
of your supplement
needs in a tiered pyramid
structure: the foundation-
al supplements we all
need, personalized sup-
plements based on your
needs and optimal sup-
plements for living
healthier, longer.
Smith is offering
guidelines for getting
started:
Bootleg products on
the market can do more
harm than good. Invest in
high-quality nutritional
supplements. Stick with a
company that has an
established track record
of using only pure, potent
raw materials.
There are essential
foundational supple-
ments that should build
the base of most peoples plans, no
matter what their unique needs are,
Smith says. These include an ideally
dosed multivitamin/mineral, omega-
3 fatty acids, coenzyme Q10 (as
ubiquinol) and probiotics. Check
with your doctor before starting a
supplement regimen.
Everybody has their own per-
sonal medical history and health
needs. With do-it-yourself detective
work, you can arm yourself with the
facts you need to personalize your
supplement plan for disease preven-
tion. Beyond taking a personal and
family medical inventory, certain
laboratory tests can help you discov-
er out whats going on inside your
body. Additionally, The Supplement
Pyramid contains a series of med-
ical quizzes based on clinical risk
assessments in different areas includ-
ing heart health, cognitive function
and immune strength.
H
eart health should be a year-round
consideration for anybody looking to
lead a healthy life. While that may
sound like a daunting task, better heart health
can be possible with a few steps in the right
direction. Iconic television, stage and screen
actor, Tony Danza, makes his health a top pri-
ority, even when facing a busy schedule.
Danza, who knows the importance of diet,
exercise and doing good to feel good, offers
his go-to tips for fitting health and wellness
into your daily lifestyle:
Turn Your Daily Habits Into Exercise.
Most people know that exercise, in addition to
a healthy diet, also plays a key role in improv-
ing your overall health. However, many peo-
ple have trouble fitting exercise into their
busy schedule or think they have to look to
costly private training options to see results.
What most dont realize is fitting in exercise
can be as easy and cost-efficient as taking the
stairs instead of the elevator or going for a
walk on your lunch break.
Encourage others, like your friends or fami-
ly, to join you on these mini exercise sessions.
Having a support system of people who are
looking for ways to be healthier can help pro-
vide motivation to keep going on your jour-
ney to better health.
Get Your Fiber Up. Fiber is a crucial
component to our diet, but most Americans
are not getting the recommended daily
amount of 25 to 38 grams of fiber, according
to the American Dietetic Association. Many
people know that fiber can help promote
digestive health, but few know that it can also
promote heart health.
Diets low in saturated fat and cholesterol
that include 7 gm of soluble fiber per day
from psyllium husk, as in Metamucil (also as
in Indian Isabgol), may reduce the risk of
heart disease by lowering cholesterol. One
adult dose of Metamucil has at least 2.1
grams of this soluble fiber. Metamucil has
been an important part of my health regimen
for over 20 years. Its a simple way to get
multiple health benefits and an extra fiber
boost since it can be hard to get all the fiber
you need from food alone, says Danza.
Do Good; Feel Good. Overall health and
wellness also comes from how you feel about
yourself as an individual. Danza makes giving
back to the community a regular practice and
lists it among his healthy habits.
Giving back is good for the soul and really
warms the heart. You will be amazed to see
how much you do for yourself as a person,
when you are helping and giving back to oth-
ers, says Danza.
Like food, its helpful to think of
your supplement needs in
a tiered pyramid structure.
L
ove ham or salami for your
breakfast daily? Better cut
down the intake for the
health of your heart. An alarming
research indicates that men who
regularly eat moderate amounts
of processed red meat such as
cold cuts (ham/salami), sausage,
bacon and hot dogs are at higher
risk of heart failure and death.
Processed meats are preserved by
smoking, curing, salting or
adding preservatives. "Processed
red meat commonly contains
sodium, nitrates, phosphates and
other food additives, and smoked
and grilled meats also contain polycyclic
aromatic hydrocarbons, all of which may
contribute to the increased heart failure
risk," claimed Alicja Wolk, a professor
from the Institute of Environmental
Medicine at Karolinska Institutet in
Stockholm, Sweden.
Unprocessed meat is free from food addi-
tives and usually has a lower amount of
sodium, Wolk added.
"To reduce your risk of heart failure and
other cardiovascular diseases, we suggest
to avoid processed red meat and limit the
amount of unprocessed red meat to one to
two servings per week or less," explained
Joanna Kaluza, an assistant professor at
Warsaw University of Life Sciences in
Poland.
"Eat a diet rich in fruit, vegetables, whole
grain products, nuts and increase your serv-
ings of fish," Kaluza added.
To reach this conclusion, researchers
analyzed a cohort of Swedish
men study that included 37,035
men 45-79 years old with no his-
tory of heart failure. Participants
completed a questionnaire on
food intake and other lifestyle
factors in 1998. After almost 12
years of follow-up, researchers
found that heart failure was diag-
nosed in 2,891men and 266 died
from heart failure. Men who ate
the most processed red meat (75
grams per day or more) had a 28
per cent higher risk of heart fail-
ure compared to men who ate the
least (25 grams per day or less)
after adjusting for multiple lifestyle vari-
ables. Men who ate the most processed red
meat had more than a two-fold increased
risk of death from heart failure compared
to men in the lowest category. For each 50
gram (1-2 slices of ham) increase in daily
consumption of processed meat, the risk of
heart failure incidence increased by eight
percent and the risk of death from heart
failure by 38 per cent, researchers noted.
The risk of heart failure or death among
those who ate unprocessed red meat did not
increase. Researchers said they expect to
find similar associations in a current study
conducted with women. "For people who
eat meat, choose lean meats and poultry
without skin and eat fish at least twice a
week - preferably fish high in omega-3
fatty acids such as salmon, trout and her-
ring," researchers concluded in an
American Heart Association journal
Circulation: Heart Failure.
Are you taking the right vitamins and nutrients?
Three ways to get healthier, from the inside out
Fitting in exercise can be as easy and
cost-efficient as taking the stairs
instead of the elevator or going for a
walk on your lunch break.
Processed red meat raises heart failure risk in men
Cold cuts
(ham/salami),
sausage, bacon
and hot dogs
are highly
avoidable.
SELF HELP 27 June 28- July 4, 2014 TheSouthAsianTimes.info
W
hen it comes to getting a job or
doing business, social media and
other forms of electronic commu-
nication are a great networking tool.
However, there will never be a substitute for
communicating face-to-face.
In 2013, 68 million business professionals
attended business-to-business exhibitions,
according to the Center for Exhibition
Industry Research (www.CEIR.org). And its
no wonder that this industry contributes
more than $79.3 billion directly to the gross
domestic product in attendee and exhibitor
spending.
All working professionals stand to gain
from attending exhibitions and events as
buyers, exhibitors, or simply as general
attendees. Whether youre at a major trade
show looking for candidates to help expand
your business, or youre a job seeker attend-
ing a local business conference, exhibitions
bring the right audiences together.
Exhibitions are a key networking tool, as
well as a valuable resource for gaining
insights in your field, growing professionally
through education or training, or simply by
observing what other companies and leaders
in your field are doing, says David DuBois,
President & CEO, International Association
of Exhibitions and Events (IAEE).
Whatever your goals are, there are univer-
sal ways to maximize your presence at
industry events:
Be Prepared
Learn about event attendees and engage
with them online in advance so that when
you meet in person, youre simply continu-
ing the dialogue. Trade show organizers
often provide planning resources, like
mobile apps and scheduling tools that make
these conversations easier.
It is helpful to create a list of who you plan
to connect with beforehand and what you
want to get out of your experience.
Are you starting a business? See if the
event features a startup session. Most events
have space on the exhibit floor dedicated to
startups as well. Are you interested in
expanding your professional skills set? Look
into the education sessions available.
The most important thing is confidence
and preparation, so engage with your sur-
roundings and ask questions. Everyone there
is focused on gaining the most out of their
experience, so be sure you do the same,
says DuBois.
New Career Path
While employment rates are on the rise,
theyre still lower than prior to the recession.
Despite the numbers, the exhibitions and
events industry is thriving, supporting 1.8
million jobs across the country, according to
the Convention Industry Council.
Whether your experience is in research,
food and beverage management, event plan-
ning or sales, the exhibitions and events
industry may be an ideal sector to forge a
new career.
Learn
You may no longer be in school, but thats
no excuse to discontinue career training or
your education. Take advantage of work-
shops, seminars and the other opportunities
to expand your skills and earn new certifica-
tions that exhibitions and events provide. At
the very least, such experiences can provide
an opening with key contacts.
More information about the benefits of
exhibitions and event attendance, as well as
statistics about the industry can be found at
www.IAEE.com.
I
f you own a small business, you know
that online visibility is one of the keys to
success. And these days, harnessing the
Web is crucial to any marketing plan.
While most small business owners know
they need a strong Web presence, many of
them are not taking enough action to build
and maintain it, says Tim Carroll, Vice
President of Small Business Engagement at
Deluxe Corp., a provider of marketing serv-
ices and products for small businesses. In
fact, of those small business owners who put
a high level of importance on Web presence,
70 percent spend less than one hour a week
maintaining it, according to a new Deluxe
study. In contrast, only 1.2 percent spend 10
or more hours each week on their Web main-
tenance. Its important to learn how to use
the Internet to keep your business top of
mind with prospective customers, says
Carroll. He offers some top tips for maxi-
mizing your companys presence online.
Interact: Since current and prospective
consumers use social media, you cant neg-
lect this marketing approach. Social media
marketing isnt just about gaining followers.
It becomes a vehicle for sharing your com-
panys message as well as driving traffic to
your website.
Dont be afraid to use Twitter, Facebook
and other social media sites to ask customers
for feedback and show your personality. Use
calls to action to acquire new followers,
engage them further and encourage reviews
of your services.
Many small businesses turn to consultants
or social media services for help developing
and executing a social media strategy. When
effective, these efforts will place a brand in
front of its target audience. Small business
owners should look for a service that also
tracks results in order to gain insight into
how its customers engage online.
Website: Today, a business without a
website is a business without a face, says
Carroll. A clean, easy-to-navigate, and
mobile-friendly online presence is one your
customers will remember.
Unfortunately, less than a third of small
business owners think they are proficient or
extremely proficient at maintaining their
individual company websites, which is why
many seek outside help developing a site and
building content.
Search engines: With 91 percent of
Internet users utilizing search engines,
according to the Deluxe-commissioned
study, search engine optimization can be
your key to better visibility online. After all,
a website is hardly useful if no one can find
it. Additionally, consider search engine mar-
keting services to help your online advertis-
ing and to make use of local searches by
more effectively targeting your customer
audience.
Email marketing: Small business email
marketing is the centerpiece of any effort to
stay in touch with existing customers, while
reaching out and finding new ones. Use it to
promote new items and offer special dis-
counts to loyal customers or simply to keep
in touch.
Small business owners know they need to
be online. It just takes commitment and the
right tools to capitalize on the potential.
How to network your way to a great new job
I
n summer, keeping kids busy means
camp, pool time and outdoor games. But
all that sun, fun and physical activity
should also be well-balanced with mental
exercise.
With that in mind, here are several ways
kids and parents can use the Internet to
focus on education when class is not in ses-
sion:
Online Tutoring
Nothing beats one-on-one learning time to
improve grades and build confidence and
yet most kids learn in large groups all
school year. Students can get that one-to-
one time this summer with online tutoring.
Available 24/7 with expert tutors in more
than 40 subjects, Tutor.com is a great way to
help students brush up on concepts and keep
their skills sharp all in a secure online learn-
ing environment that is accessible from any
computer or mobile device.
Personalized College Prep
Its never too early to work on college
applications. Investigate online services,
tools and resources that can assist, such as
Parchment. The companys newest tool,
College Match, uses a proprietary algorithm
to generate personalized college recommen-
dations, enabling students to discover
schools for which they may be well-posi-
tioned to be accepted. Parchment also
makes ordering, tracking and sending tran-
scripts to schools an easy, online process.
Visit www.Parchment.com to get started.
Summer Reading
Free summer reading resources can help
avoid summer slump. Check out
Scholastics suite of free tools available at
www.Scholastic.com/summer.
Consider registering children in grades K-
8 for the Scholastic Summer Reading
Challenge, a free, global online reading pro-
gram. Kids can log reading minutes, win
prizes and help beat last years summer
reading world record of 176,438,473 min-
utes read.
You can use the summer calendar app on
the Scholastic Parents Facebook page,
which features expert tips, articles and
activities. Every Friday, parents can enter
for the chance to win a Freebie Friday prize,
including great books for
kids.
Monitor childrens
progress and log reading
minutes on-the-go using
the free Scholastic Reading
Timer app.
Additionally, summer-
friendly literature recom-
mendations are available
from Scholastic experts.
Their book list features
more than 700 books for
children in Pre-K-8,
including this year s
Reading Under the Stars
themed list, which show-
cases books about space, stars and astrono-
my, as well as spooky stories to read by a
campfire.
Learning on-the-Go
Even in summer, parents and kids are
busy. Luckily, GreatSchools.org, a nonprofit
website for parents that has reviews of more
than 200,000 prek-12 schools, is launching
smartphone-friendly tools like GreatKids,
which provides advice and activities that
can be used in just a few minutes. Its free,
personalized stream of reading activities for
parents and kids is a nice antidote to sum-
mer brain drain, and its mobile-based activi-
ties build reading comprehension, knowl-
edge and perseverance.
A bit of learning and preparation during
the dog days of summer will serve kids well
when they return from break.
How your online presence
works to grow your business
M
y dazzling career as a professional
counterfeiter started one Friday
when I used a tiny image of a ban-
knote to complete a piece of advertising art-
work for a friend.
A couple of weeks later, the lawyers from
HSBC complained that I had illegally dupli-
cated their currency even though the
mud on the bottom of my shoe would have
been smart enough to realize it wasn't a real
banknote.
A couple of months after that, I wrote a
newspaper report about new banknote
designs. HSBC complained again, even
though I was printing a press release from
HSBC about HSBC banknotes!
That was when I realized bank staff were
clearly sniffing too many chemicals wafting
up from the printing department.
I used advanced spiritual techniques
(kicking furniture) to defray my
aggrieved feelings, but since then I have
always felt an affinity with counterfeiters,
particularly those from Vietnam, as they do
no harm since their currency isn't actually
worth anything.
***
The other day, I came across a two-dong
note from my first visit to that country in
the 1980s. Since it takes 200 dong to make
one US cent, I just need to find another 99
two-dong notes and then I can go out and
buy something, a molecule perhaps.
How much is a molecule these days?
Probably more than one US cent, thanks to
the scourge of inflation!
***
On that first visit to Vietnam, I remember
wondering how people bought homes in
Vietnam. The price of a house would surely
be a pile of dong considerably bigger than
most homes.
Why not skip the purchase entirely and
just live in a structure made of "bricks" of
banknotes?
It would be cheaper, more distinctive and
you could avoid dealing with smarmy real-
tors.
***
A friend who knows my dark past as a
counterfeiter sent me a recent report from
the Darlington and Stockton Times, a
British newspaper.
A counterfeiter walked into a shop and
asked staff to change a large denomination
banknote.
"It's not fake!" he announced, merrily.
Staff immediately realized that it was fake
and called police.
This is Mr Jams Law of
Irony: Things you have to
tell people are true aren't.
That guy should have
heeded that classic line from
the Bible: "The wise man
knoweth when to speak and
when to shutteth up.
***
Perhaps the most ironic
tale from my counterfeiting
files is another true story
from Vietnam, but from the
1990s.
A forger from Ho Chi
Minh City used a piece of
cheap iron to make a coun-
terfeit piece of "precious metal" and sold it
to a group of investors for a large bundle of
cash.
But when he got back home, he found
they paid him with counterfeit money.
I know it's mean to laugh at people, but I
couldn't stop myself. He was hopping mad,
no doubt telling his family members: "You
can't trust anybody these days.
Having finished this post, I shall now
reward myself with a visit to the coffee
shop, stopping at an ATM on the way.
Or maybe the photocopier.
***
SPECIAL NOTE TO COMMENTATORS:
In recent months, many regular comment-
writers have moved over to commenting on
the Facebook version of this column -- I get
between 10 and 400 comments on the FB
version. This includes many regulars from
this website, including Karuna, Jason, etc.
Feel free to join that one, too, in case you
like more commenting traffic. If you are not
a Facebook person, of course, you can con-
tinue to comment here as normal -- we still
have lots of readers here, too.
All Facebook friends lists have restric-
tions -- you can't have more than 5,000 peo-
ple on it, and mine is approaching the limit.
But anybody who is a regular commenter
here I will automatically approve, even if it
means taking other people off my Facebook
list!
28 June 28- July 4, 2014 TheSouthAsianTimes.info HUMOR
Funny Bone by Nury Vittachi
Laughter is the Best Medicine
Confession: my career as a counterfeiter
by Mahendra Shah
Mahendra Shah is an architect by education, entrepreneur by profession, artist and
humorist, cartoonist and writer by hobby. He has been recording the plight of the immigrant
Indians for the past many years in his cartoons. Hailing from Gujarat, he lives in Pittsburgh,
Pennsylvania.
28th June, 2014 Ruled planet: Sun Ruled by no: 1
Traits in you: Due to the positive effects of your ruling
planet Sun, you will have the characteristics of a good hu-
man being. By nature, you are accountable, unique,
courageous, committed, competitive, coordinated and in-
telligent. You should work on your negative personality
traits such as selfishness, dependency and pessimism.
Health this year: You will enjoy a good health through-
out this year but provided you go for regular medical
checkups and take proper medication prescribed by the
doctor.
Finance this year: Your financial conditions will be very
good this year as you will be working hard to reach your
goal. Your past property dispute will get solved and it will
earn you a lot of money. If you are into business, you may
go for new ventures as those seem to be very profitable
this year.
Career this year: You will enjoy a good professional at-
mosphere this year. You will be appreciated by your sen-
iors and higher management. This may bring you promo-
tions and salary hike. You need to concentrate more on
your work to get a better position in your profession. You
may go for a job change this year. However, you should
not decide anything hastily.
Romance this year: You will share a good relationship
with your spouse. You may decide to turn your relation-
ship into marriage if you are not married yet. However,
you need to understand your beloved and provide the re-
quired emotional support for the betterment of your rela-
tionship.
Lucky month: June, November, February and May
29th June, 2014 Ruled planet: 2 Ruled by no: Moon
Traits in you: As you are under the influence of the
Moon, you are generous, courteous, caring, cooperative,
decisive, and determined. Being a very friendly person,
you make friends easily and you believe in loyalty for
friends. You should not behave stubborn and dishonest at
times for the betterment of your personality.
Health this year: You will enjoy a pretty good health this
year though you may go through few minor diseases. Go
for regular medical checkups to retain your good health.
Take care of the health of your family members. Do not
ignore any health related issue as it may lead to further
disturbances.
Finance this year: You will be fortunate enough this year
to be among financial gains. All you need to do is to grab
opportunities to earn money. You will find plenty of earn-
ing opportunities around you. However, you have to work
hard to gain that money. Overall, this year will give you
financial stability and security.
Career this year: You will gain a lot of professional
knowledge this year. You may think for a job change this
year. You may not get the job satisfaction in the organi-
zation you currently work for. You may not get the ex-
pected appraisal, which would urge you to switch to an-
other company.
Romance this year: You may get some good news from
your spouse or partner later this week. This will make
your relationship grow stronger. You may have to travel
to distant places to spend time youre your partner and
maintain a good relationship.
Lucky month: July, September, January and April
30th June, 2014 Ruled planet: Jupiter Ruled by no: 3
Traits in you: As your governing planet is Jupiter, you
are intelligent, dignified, dynamic, simple, ambitious, and
optimistic. You are very whimsical towards your work.
However, you need to eradicate few negative character-
istics such as jealousy, rude, irresponsibility.
Health this year: You may go through few minor health
issues, which will create unwanted tensions for you
throughout the year. To avoid falling sick frequently, you
need to get your medical checkup done periodically.
Finance this year: You will get financial benefits if you
have invested in past. For future financial gains, you may
invest on real estate and stock market. You should study
the market well before investing on anything. Do not be
in a hurry to invest as it may go in loss.
Career this year: You will be successful in every project
you take up this year. You may be adjudged the best em-
ployee by your higher management because of your effi-
ciency, hard work, and timely delivery. You may need to
negotiate with different types of customer and learn a lot
about handling a project independently.
Romance this year: As far as your relationships are con-
cerned, you will enjoy a good time this year. You will find
your spouse or partner supportive enough in your diffi-
cult time. You will be able to solve any problem that
comes in your way to achieve something. If you are un-
married, there is a healthy chance for you getting married
this year.
Lucky month: September, October, March and June
1st July, 2014 Ruled planet: Sun Ruled by no: 1
Traits in you: Being ruled by the Sun and number 1, you
are original, authoritative, dignified, and determined. As
you are sensitive for your relationships, your friends and
family may consider you to be an asset in their lives.
However, you need to take care of your nature of spend-
ing unnecessarily and your dominating character.
Health this year: You will remain healthy throughout
the year provided you go for regular medical checkups.
Finance this year: If you are a professional, you will be
among financial benefits.
Career this year: You may get excellent returns from
your investments in business and it may improve your
standard of living by making you spend a more luxuri-
ous life.
Romance this year: You will find yourself in romantic
peak this year and marriage may happen for few.
Lucky month: September, December, April and June
2nd July, 2014 Ruled planet: Moon Ruled by no :2
Traits in you: you are blessed with a lively, creative,
practical and trustworthy nature. You epitomize simplic-
ity and leadership. You possess enough capability to per-
form your job that requires huge responsibility and
courage. You have to work on your nature of becoming
impatient and spending unnecessarily.
Health this year: You might undergo tension and nerv-
ousness as your spouse might fall sick. You need not
bother for a long time as your spouse would recover
soon.
Finance this year: You may find yourself in a busy
schedule as you may have to solve various matters relat-
ed to property, business, and new business initiatives.
This may make ypou earn lot of money if you succeed.
You may concede a huge amount of money on renova-
tion or construction activities during the ending months
of the year.
Career this year: Your efforts are not destined to go un-
noticed and unrewarded this year should you to concen-
trate on your goals and put qualitative effort. Your skills
will get recognition and appreciation from your col-
leagues.
Romance this year: Your romantic life would be filled
with love and affection by your partner. Overall your ro-
mantic life would remain blissful forever.
Lucky month: October, November, March and July
3rd July, 2014 Ruled planet: Jupiter Ruled by no :3
Traits in you: You are blessed with positive traits like
confidence and optimism. You are independent as you
have high ambitions in your life. You enjoy your dignity
whatever the situation may be. You are quite religious by
nature and you trust on God.
Health this year: Backache, stiff neck or body pains will
prove to be obstacles for you to spend a healthy life.
Finance this year: You may help your earning improve
by implementing new plans in your business. You may
start various new and profitable ventures. You may find
your speculations worthy enough to improve your finan-
cial status you may get a chance to travel foreign coun-
tries for business purpose or you may plan a personal trip
with family to spend your holidays.
Career this year: Being a perfectionist in your profes-
sion, you will get ample recognition. However, you need
to control your emotions of being extravagant, dominat-
ing and fickle-minded to forward your career. You may
take frequent critical decisions in your professional life
this year.
Romance this year: Your partner may expect you to
spend more time at home. However, this may create dis-
turbances as you will be busy throughout this year.
Lucky month: July, October, January and May
4th July, 2014 Ruled planet: Uranus Ruled by no :4
Traits in you: You are the owner of a responsible, disci-
plined, sociable, organized and creative personality. You
hold religious beliefs and philosophy at high esteem. You
should avoid being jealous, stubborn and self centered at
times to improve your personal traits.
Health this year: You may undergo stress for your par-
ents health. However, your health will remain good.
Finance this year: You will earn a handsome amount of
money from your previous investments. The legal issues
will be solved in your favor to provide you with mone-
tary benefits. You may plan for a business trip to a dis-
tant place to enhance the territory of your business.
Career this year: If you are a sportsperson or artist or
writer, this year will be fruitful for you. You would be
oozing with confidence to make tough tasks easy.
Romance this year: You will enjoy a blissful
relationship with your partner with ample love, care and
support.
Lucky month: December, February, June and July
By Dr Prem Kumar Sharma
Chandigarh, India: +91-172- 256 2832, 257 2874
Delhi, India: +91-11- 2644 9898, 2648 9899
psharma@premastrologer.com; www.premastrologer.com
Stars Foretell: June 28-July 4, 2014 Annual Predictions: For those born in this week
29
ARIES: Business partners behave sup-
portive on executing strategies to sort
out pending problems. You achieve suc-
cess in personal work with the timely help &
support provided by family members. Long
pending arrears and dues will finally be recov-
ered. You find pleasure and enjoy ecstasies of
love in the arms of partner. A week when smile
will perpetually be on your face and strangers
will seem familiar. Travel plan with a colleague
might lead to a new relationship. Their might
be a chance of acquiring a plot from your
closed relative. Self-discipline enables easily
managing emotions.
TAURUS: Innovative ideas & technical
expertise would enable to win the confi-
dence of seniors at professional front.
Misunderstandings with near ones in the family
will get cleared. Investment concerning resi-
dence will be profitable. Avoid temper flair up
especially in romance in this week. Your ener-
gy level will be high. Better to channelise it in
a positive direction. Small picnic organized by
your company is good to change your mood.
You might deal in some ancestral property or
any other parental property. Learning the art of
life would make life easier and peaceful.
GEMINI: Handling subordinates might
be a little tough in this week. Children
would do their best to keep you happy.
Financial hassles seem to get over as someone
lends a timely helping hand. You enjoy a lovely
time as Cupid is on your side in this week.
Positive outlook impresses those around you
besides keeping you fit & fine. Official jour-
neys prove to be more fruitful for you. A deal
regarding residential property can start moving
on its right path. You succeed in getting rid of
bad habits.
CANCER: Service people, artists and
those in creative field will get several
new opportunities. You are likely to be
benefited as family members positively
respond. Promising week to invest surplus
money in real estate. A special message from
beloved/lover lifts spirits. Charity work under-
taken will bring mental peace & comfort. Fly
away with your dreams, new business horizons
are ready to explore. Discussing property mat-
ters with parents can help for better innova-
tions. A reunion with friends is on the card.
LEO: Your greatest gains will come
through your creative ideas at profes-
sional front. Dont forget to spend quali-
ty time in the company of family friends you
care. Instead of wasting time, better to get
involved in something to improve your finan-
cial position. Love companion will be eager to
meet you in this week. Meditation and self-
realization prove beneficial. A fun- filled holi-
day at an amusement and theme park with your
family is there. Planning a property might
explore new horizons for you and your family.
Keeping patience coupled with commonsense
and understanding brings success.
VIRGO: Success is certain provided
you work as a team. Parents and friends
will do their best to keep you happy. A
sound financial health would enable to invest
on lucrative schemes. You are likely to find
someone with whom you will enjoy the
ecstasies of love. You will have ample time to
do things to improve your health. An interest-
ing cruise ship is next place for your vacation.
Your friends and family will be of great sup-
port if you are trying for an office. Time to
guard against mischievous interference in oth-
ers work.
LIBRA: You will be on the seventh
heaven when you receive recognition
for your achievements at work. A promising
week to plan things for your progeny. Your
brilliant ideas would help in bringing financial
gains. Love comes your way as friendship
turns into romance. Sound physical health will
enable to participate in outdoor activities.
Breathtaking beautiful site scenes are your
lovers desire. Its time to make some property
investments for your kids. Following honest
and to-the-point approach help in achieving
personal goals.
SCORPIO : Your creativity will amaze
people around you besides enhancing
career prospects. You would be the cen-
ter of attraction at a social gathering that you
attend especially with family. A promising
week to earn profits in real estate and financial
transactions. You are likely find comfort in the
arms of romantic partner. You will be success-
ful in getting rid from tensions. Time to relax
and enjoy your visit to a relatives place.
Purchasing official accessories can lead to
improve growth of your office. You bring the
positive attitude of `Yes in life.
SAGITTARIUS: New job opportuni-
ties for some will be better than expect-
ed. If possible share the company of
close relatives who understand your feelings
and needs. An improvement in monetary posi-
tion makes it convenient to purchase essential
items. Love and romantic encounter will keep
you in a cheerful state. A sparkling laughter
filled week when most things proceed, as you
desire. If you want to travel start planning your
trip now. Inheriting property from your rela-
tives seems to be ahead. You find yourself open
to suggestions, cooperation and doing things in
a better way.
CAPRICORN : At work you are likely
to win appreciation and awards for past
efforts. You would prefer to relax and
enjoy the company of family members in the
evening. Long-term investment would enable
to make substantial gains. Sudden romantic
encounter is foreseen in this week. Your enor-
mous confidence would help in enjoying a
healthy life. Before you travel examine your-
self and your traveling partner, to determine
what you expect from your vacation. Your
income can be doubled by renting your house
or a part of your house. Bold innovation and
continuous efforts enable making a steady
progress at personal front.
AQUARIUS: Timely and swift action
would give an edge over others at pro-
fessional front. In this week you move
with new excitement & confidence as you
receive support from family and friends.
Financial hassles will be eased out with the help
of your friends. A promising week for romance
when your innovation infuses a new spirit in it.
A very healthy week filled with happiness &
vitality. Journey to some famous historical place
sounds exciting to your kids. It would be benefi-
cial if you plan to buy a small property. A hum-
ble behaviour would touch others souls.
PISCES: Business partners would be
enthusiastic about new plans & ven-
tures. Family front seems to go smooth-
ly as you receive their full support to your
plans. Certain important plans will be execut-
ed, bringing fresh financial gains. Partner
brings immense romantic pleasure even if work
pressure occupies your mind Pleasure trip
would help in maintaining sound health in this
week. Romance is in full bloom, a journey full
of pleasure is your crave. Looking to buy prop-
erty, then go for commercial one. You find
yourself full of good ideas and your choice of
activities brings gains beyond expectations.
June 28-July 4, 2014 TheSouthAsianTimes.info ASTROLOGY
30 June 28-July 4, 2014 TheSouthAsianTimes.info SPIRITUAL AWARENESS
Chapter excerpt from the book: Empowering Your Soul through Meditation
The empowered soul
W
ithin us are riches greater than any
we can ever accumulate on earth.
We have inside us a source of
knowledge from which all other knowledge
flows.
A love far greater and fulfilling than any
we can know in the outer world is waiting to
embrace us with open arms within. At our
core is a strength and power that can enable
us to overcome any fear. Underlying our sep-
arateness as individuals is a connectedness
and oneness to all life. Awaiting us inside is a
bliss and joy so fulfilling that we need no
other outer intoxicants to make us happy. All
these gifts lie within us in the empowered
soul.
The soul is a source of tremendous wis-
dom, love, and power, yet we remain igno-
rant of its treasures when we allow it to be
overpowered by the mind, the senses, and the
physical body. When the mind and body
assert power over the soul, the soul forgets
itself. But the empowered soul is our true
nature, and it is time we reclaim the soul so
that its gifts can enrich our life.
There are two ways through which to view
ourselves with regard to the soul.
The first is to view ourselves primarily as a
body and mind. When we see ourselves in
this manner, we say that we are a mind and
body that have a soul.
The second is to see ourselves primarily as
a soul. When we change perspective and
identify with the soul, we say that we are a
soul who has or wears a mind and body. To
assess how we look at ourselves is one of our
goals. If we think we are a mind and body,
then ours is a journey to find the soul. If we
realize that we are the soul, which has been
given a mind and body to maneuver through
the physical world, then our goal is to further
empower the soul. By empowering the soul
we recover its natural control over the mind
and senses.
The aim of Empowering Your Soul through
Meditation is to help reacquaint us with the
qualities of the soul and provide direction for
its empowerment.
The souls power has been forgotten. The
mind, the senses, the body, and the pulls of
the physical world have placed the soul in a
state of forgetfulness from which we must
awaken. When we empower our soul, its wis-
dom, immortality, love, fearlessness, con-
nectedness, and bliss add a new dimension to
our life.
Many people live and die without ever real-
izing the full power and potential of their
soul. At some time in their life, they may
begin to wonder about the soul, about God,
and about the purpose of their existence. This
search for meaning and purposethe spiritu-
al questis one that people pursue in indi-
vidual ways. Some seek answers in scripture
while others search in places of worship.
Some go beyond their own religion to find
the answers offered in other faiths.
Whichever method one adopts, the direction
one follows to find the answers to lifes ques-
tions is known as the spiritual path. It is the
spiritual path that leads us to the realization
of our inner self, to the soul.
Many people pass through life never realiz-
ing who they are and never certain about the
purpose of their existence. In times of trouble
or in the face of death, they may raise these
questions but may not follow them through to
a fulfilling conclusion or else may abandon
the process when the bad times pass. But
those who have a burning desire to find the
answers to the mysteries of life can find
them.
Fortunately, there are people in the world
who have found spiritual fulfillment and can
guide us. If we look through history we find
that in every generation there have been peo-
ple who have realized themselves as soul and
have realized God. Some of their wisdom and
experiences have been recorded in history
and, in some cases, a religion has been creat-
ed from their teachings. Other realized souls
have come and gone but have left behind no
records because they did not found a religion
or leave behind any scriptures.
Some of them we know of through refer-
ences by other people who wrote about them.
One thing is clear: these realized souls have
the ability to teach us how to realize our-
selves. If we find such a being, we can learn
how we, too, can discover our soul and its
attributes. True knowledge comes from see-
ing and experiencing on our own. We may
read what others write or listen to what others
say, but we cannot be fully satisfied until we
experience it for ourselves.
This book touches on the two aspects of
spiritual knowledge that can help us realize
our soul: the theoretical knowledge, and the
personal or practical knowledge. The theoret-
ical side consists of what other realized peo-
ple have said about the soul (such as what are
some of the qualitieswisdom, immortality,
fearlessness, love, connectedness, and bliss).
The personal or practical side consists of a
technique that I learned from a fully realized
being. I wish to share this technique to help
others realize their soul on their own.
On the theoretical side, a basic agreement
among enlightened souls is that we are not
just a physical body, but we are also the soul
or spirit behind the body. It is the soul that
that gives us life. When the soul is in the
body, we are physically alive. When the soul
leaves the body at the time of death, the body
ceases to exist. The body may perish, but the
soul that inhabits it is immortal.
The soul continues to exist after our physi-
cal death.
We are aware of our physical body because
we can look at it, feel it, and listen to sounds
coming from it. However, where and what is
the soul? How can we recognize it? What are
its characteristics and qualities? This book
provides a way for us to accomplish two
tasks: the theoretical understanding of our
true selves as soul; and the practical tech-
nique for the realization of our soul and the
empowering of it to guide our lives.
Some of us may spend our lives searching
for knowledge in the world outside.
Little do we know that the source of all
answers, the universal wisdom, lies within
us. Some of us may find that at times our life
is thwarted by fear and anxiety, hopelessness
and depression, yet we have a source of fear-
lessness within us that can help us overcome
any inner turmoil. We fear our own death and
the passing away of our loved ones. We are
petrified of the unknown and what awaits us
beyond this life. But we do not realize that
immortality is ours. We crave love and seek it
many places. But there is an unconditional
love that is ours awaiting us with open arms.
We need only turn in the right direction to
find it. We feel alone and unconnected in this
world. But there is a place of unity and con-
nectedness within us. If we could but only tap
it we would find the richness of relationships
with others, with nature, and with all life.
Exploration within will help us discover
our own potential. Once we learn to tap into
our inner resources, we experience a pro-
found transformation that will enrich all areas
of our lifefrom personal relations, to physi-
cal, mental and emotional health, to our
work, to our spiritual growth, and the attain-
ment of our lifes goals. This transformation
can bring peace and joy into our lives and can
contribute to a peaceful, loving world. The
Empowered Soul is a manual for daily living
and personal discovery.
From the outset, we should define certain
terminology to ensure that there is no confu-
sion in how words are being used throughout
the book. The term soul is defined as our
true essence or spiritual sidethe part of us
that lives beyond the death of our physical
body. The soul exists whether it has a body or
mind. When it enters this world, it is given a
body and mind. As human beings, we are
thus embodied souls or souls with a body
and mind.
The terms we or us refer to us as
human beings or embodied souls. The
process of finding the soul is referred to as
tapping into or discovering our soul with-
in us. When we finally do discover our soul
and identify with it as being our true nature,
then the soul is referred to as the empow-
ered soul, a soul that has recognized itself
and is aware that it is the essence of who we
really are, that it is the guiding power behind
the body and mind.
True joy is not as elusive as we think. We
can find lasting happiness if we only look in
the right place. Within us lies the unlimited
power and energy of the empowered soul. Its
rich qualities include wisdom, fearlessness,
immortality, unconditional love, connected-
ness, and bliss. Tapping into the soul and its
power can enrich and transform our life.
We remain ignorant of these inner gifts
because blockages keep us from tapping into
them. How can we remove these blockages?
What process do we need to employ to dis-
cover all that we seek?
There are simple techniques for accessing
the riches of our soul. We need not search the
four corners of the earth. We need not travel
into outer space. These techniques can be
practiced in the comfort of our home.
Once we learn to tap into our inner
resources, we can experience a profound
transformation that can enrich all areas of our
lifepersonal relations; physical, mental,
and emotional health; professional work;
spiritual growth; and the attainments of our
lifes goals. This transformation cannot only
bring peace and joy to our lives, but can also
contribute to a peaceful, loving world.
The aim of the book is to provide a means
by which we can re-identify with the soul,
(i.e. realize that the mind and body are mere-
ly our souls outer coverings through which it
can live and work in this physical world) and
to empower the soul to guide our life.
By Sant Rajinder Singh
Ji Maharaj
Sant Rajinder Singh Ji Maharaj is an
internationally recognized spiritual leader
and Master of Jyoti Meditation who
affirms the transcendent oneness at the
heart of all religions and mystic traditions,
emphasizing ethical living and meditation
as building blocks for achieving inner and
outer peace. www.sos.org.
June 28-July 4, 2014 TheSouthAsianTimes.info
June 28-July 4, 2014 TheSouthAsianTimes.info