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
Vol.10 No. 40 February 10-16, 2018 80 Cents New York Edition Follow us on TheSouthAsianTimes.info

Nikki Haley praises

growing India‑US ties
India's Budget for 2018
Washington DC:
Ambassador to the United
Nations, Nikki Haley has
US

said that the sky is the limit

to push growth, pull FDI
for US‑India ties. She noted India-America business advocacy groups give thumbs up
that President Trump is
fond of the growth of his Washington, DC: T he US‑India
countryʼs relationship with Business Council (USIBC) and US
India, and praised India India Strategic and Partnership
Prime Minister Narendra Forum (USISPF), have both lauded
Modi for his aggressiveness India's 2018‑19 Union Budget pre‑
in pursuing economic and sented on February 1 by Finance
administrative reforms, Minister Arun Jaitley. The budget
reports PTI. Prior to a Jan. U.S. Ambassador to the UN Nikki Haley met will accelerate growth, boost man‑
30 meet ing hosted by Indian Ambassador to the US Navtej Singh ufacturing and make sectors like
Indian Ambassador to the Sarna on Jan. 30 at the Indian embassy health and real estate lucrative for
US, Navtej Singh Sarna, at residence in the presence of prominent foreign investors. Mukesh Aghi,
the Indian embassy resi‑ Indian Americans. (Photo: Indian Embassy) president of USISPF, told PTI, "We
dence, Indian American applaud the budget. The reason
India‑U.S. relationship even as she
Haley noted that it makes sense for plays such a prominent role in the we applaud is that it's going to
acce lerate the g rowth in the Prime Minister Narendra Modi with BJP stalwarts at a meeting
the two democracies to have strong American political sphere,” Sarna
on Feb 1 where he said the budget presented by
ties because they have so much in told PTI. Indian economy.”
Finance Minister Arun Jaitley is pro‑people. (Photo: IANS)
common. The lunch meeting was On its part, USIBC said, the budg‑
Haley was quoted as saying that
attended by some prominent Indian when she entered the Trump et displays the Indian govern‑ access to health care, af fordable dations in these critical areas,"
Americans from across the country administration, she desperately ment's commitment to develop housing, energy and education for said the council's President Nisha
.“It is always a delight to see the wanted to see U.S.‑India relations areas that will benefit its growth all citizens form the backbone of Biswal. "American industry is
sense of pride that Ambassador become very strong, “which wasnʼt and prosperity for many years to any growing economy. The USIBC Continued on page 4
Haley has in her Indian roots, and the case during the last two come. is pleased to see that this Budget See Indian budget
the high value she attaches to the "Infrastructure development, contains many of our recommen‑ details on page 24.
Continued on page 4

Grand Republic Day celebration on Long Island War of the Memos

Amb. Sandeep Chakravorty, Mrs. Chakravorty and all public officials were welcomed with the traditional
garlands by representatives of the 14 organizations of the Coalition of Indian Organizations of Long Island.
New Hyde Park, NY: The Coalition
of Indian Organizations of Long
Island ce le brated the 69th
Republic Day of India on January
31, attended by the Consul
General Sandeep Chakravorty,
judges of NY Supreme Court, elect‑
ed of ficials as well as prominent
members of the Indian community.
T he rare event bring ing 14
Indian org anizat ions of Long
Island under one umbrella along
with the American dignitaries was
the brainchild of Varinder Bhalla,
Chairman of the Indian American
Voters Forum, and was inspired
by Ambassador Chakravorty. The
community responded enthusiasti‑
cally packing the Clinton G Martin
Hall in New Hyde Park to capacity.
Continued on page 4
Washington: President Trump has
claimed complete vindication from
a GOP memo that alleges the FBI
abused its surveillance powers
during the investigation into his
campaign's possible Russia ties.
T he Demo crats on the House
Inte lligence Committee who
opposed release of the memo have President Trump felt vindicated
readied their own counter memo, by GOP memo spearheaded by
which is now w ith Trump to
Rep David Nunes, but Dems have
their rebuttal memo ready.
review and okay for release.
T he four‑page do cument whose opposition research, now
called the Steele dossier, was fund‑
released last Friday and spear‑
headed by David Nunes, head of ed by Democrats. At the same time,
the House Intel Committee, con‑ the memo confirms that the inves‑
tended that the FBI, when it tigation into potential Trump links
applied for a surveillance warrant to Russia actually began several
on a onetime Trump campaign months earlier, and was "trig‑
asso ciate, Carter Page, re lied Continued on page 4
excessively on an ex‑British spy See related stories on page 11.

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TheSouthAsianTimes.info February 10-16, 2018
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
Dr Sudhir Parikh gets Vishwa
Gujarati Samaj award
New York: Physician, philanthro‑
pist and publisher, Padma Shri
Dr. Sudhir M. Parikh of Parikh
Worldwide Media, LLC, was hon‑
ored with the Vishwa Gujarati
Samaj's top award for an NRI on
Feb. 1 in Ahmedabad.
Gujarat Governor O.P. Kohli
presented the Sardar
Vallabhbhai Patel Vishwa
Pratibha International
Personality Award 2017 to Dr.
Parikh on behalf of the Vishwa
Gujarati Samaj (VGS) at a cere‑
mony held in the Gujarat
Chambers of Commerce and
Industry and attended by more
than 300 people from the busi‑
ness world, professionals, acade‑
mia, and government as well as
leading Gujaratis from UK,
Australia, and Germany.
Besides the citation, a memen‑
to and shawl, the award to Dr.
Parikh included and a check of
Rs 250,000, which he donated to
the VGS for its children and
women's empowerment projects.
Dr. Parikh said he was proud to
be in the company of other NRIs
like astronaut Sunita Williams,
Dance USA Dance Season 2 kicked off
New York: On January 31, 5678
Media Group and ZEE TV hosted
members of the media and multi‑
cultural corporate representatives
at the Dance USA Dance (DUD)
press conference to announce the
second season of the popular dance
competition.
The event at the Marriott Marquis
drew numerous media outlets and
select guests who were received on
red carpet. The competitionʼs four
official international celebrities
from the dance industry ‑‑ Matt
Steffanina, Nakul Dev Mahajan,
Lauren Gottlieb and Sarish Khan ‑‑
shared their life journeys while
expressing their excitement on join‑
ing DUD Season 2 as judges.
“This type of content doesnʼt
come around very often, and weʼre
excited to help take it to the next
level”, said Indrajit Majumdar, SVP
at Zee TV Americas, the broadcast
partner of Dance USA Dance. Zee TV
TRISTATE COMMUNITY
Padma Shri Dr. Sudhir M. Parikh received the award
in Ahmedabad on February 1.
Sam Pitroda, Raj Mohan Gandhi
in receiving the award. Dr Parikh
has recently launched the think
tank, Parikh Foundation for
Indiaʼs Global Development,
aimed at discussing and spread‑
ing awareness about India's
emerging global role, and rela‑
tions with the US and other
countries. He also disclosed that
is the biggest South Asian media
platform in the world.
Matt Steffanina, a leader of Hip
Hop, got off his seat to choreograph
some moves to popular Bollywood
music tracks. Nakul Dev Mahajan
emphasized authenticity when
introducing this new rich Bollywood
culture to the US market, and the
challenges he faced when he first
introduced Bollywood music in
Hollywood movies and TV shows.
Lauren spoke about bridging the
gap between the USA and India
through this amazing platform.
Ashwani Kumar, Executive
Producer at DUD and CEO of 5678
Media group, said, “Our hope is that
everyone in attendance – and even
those who are not – will come to
understand the impact this platform
has and will have on bringing about
change in the world.”
Anjana Kumar, Chairperson and
Executive producer, shared her
he will soon launch a new TV
news and entertainment channel
in the US.
Krishnakant Vakharia, presi‑
dent of the VGS, praised Dr
Parikh for his service not only
for the Gujarati community but
humanity at large. He also credit‑
ed Dr. Parikh for furthering US‑
India relations.
Ashwani Kumar, Executive Producer
at DUD, speaking at the event.
vision to contribute to global peace
and a united world through the
platform as it expands to other
countries.
Sunil Hali, Producer of the show,
said, “We want to build a global
platform where Bollywood meets
dancing stars from various coun‑
tries all over the world”.
February 10-16, 2018 3
Indian-American lawyer drafted
GOP memo critical of FBI
New York: Indian‑American lawyer
Kashyap "Kash" Patel is the author
of the controversial Republican
memo critical of the FBI and some
Justice Department officials that is
roiling the American political land‑
scape. Patel drafted the document
that asserts that there were impro‑
prieties in the FBI probe into
alleged connections between
President Trumpʼs campaign and
Kashyap "Kash" Patel works for
the Russian government.
Rep. Devin Nunes, who spear‑
The memo prepared on behalf of
headed the controversial memo.
the GOP members of the House
Intelligence Committee was made ior counter‑terrorism counsel last
public last Friday after Trump April. The crux of the Republican
cleared its release despite opposi‑ memo is the allegation that the FBI
tion from the FBI and the relied on investigations of Trump
Democrats. that was paid for by the Democratic
Patel is on the staff of Rep. Devin National Committee and lawyers
Nunes, the Republican who is chair‑ linked to Hillary Clinton's campaign
man of the committee. when applying to a court for per‑
Quoting sources "familiar with mission to wiretap a Trump adviser,
Carter Page, and that the FBI did
the memo," Daily Beast said that
not disclose this fact to the judge.
Patel "read the highly classified
The anti‑Trump dossier was pre‑
intelligence it's based on, drafted
pared by Christopher Steele, who is
the memo, and then dealt with FBI
described as former British intelli‑
and Justice Department efforts to
gence employee. It was initially
keep it from being released to the
commissioned by a right‑wing web‑
public." He formerly worked for the
site that was against Trump, but
National Security Division of the
dropped it later and the Democrats
Justice Department.
then commissioned it.
He joined the committee as a sen‑
DUD judges Sarish Khan and Nakul Dev Mahajan show off
the audition poster for Season 2 in Times Square
Kunal Kumar, Supervising each city will get a chance to com‑
Producer, said, “Video auditions are pete in the semi‑finals this summer,
accepted through February 15 with in their quest to win the title of
Bollyshake, an internet dance com‑ Dance USA Dance Season 2
munity platform, selecting which Champion.
teams will move on to the regional The 5678 Media Group is a full‑
rounds in 15 tour cities, including service entertainment agency con‑
New York, Chicago, Atlanta, Dallas, necting brand to youth culture.
Toronto and Dubai. Two teams from Contact: danceusadance.us
 4 February 10-16, 2018 TURN PAGE TheSouthAsianTimes.info

Hillary Clinton visiting India in March R-Day

Mumbai: Former US
Secretary of State
Hillary Clinton will be
one of the speakers at
the India Today
Conclave here in
March, organizers said
last week.
'The Great Churn ‑ Triumphs and
Tribulations' will be the theme of
the 17th edition of the conclave to
be held on March 9‑10, the India
Today Conclave organizers said in a
statement. Global thought leaders
will converge at the forum to dis‑
cuss and debate issues from around
the world. celebrated at
Apart from Clinton,
who lost the 2016 Town of
presidential election
to Donald Trump,
Hempstead
speakers will include The celebration of 69th Republic
Congress leader Day of India by the Town of
Shashi T haroor, Hempstead was hosted by its
designer Naeem Khan, Punjab Chief Supervisor, Hon. Laura Gillen, on
Minister Amarinder Singh, and Feb 1 at the Town Hall in
Patidar leader Hardik Patel. Hempstead, NY. Pictured is flag
Clinton has in the past made sev‑ hoisting outside the Town Hall
eral visits to India, both as with Supervisor Laura Gillen, Town
Clerk Silvia Cabana, and members
Secretary of State and as the US
of Indian Veterans Association and
First Lady. The Clinton Foundation
community leaders.
works in villages across India.

India's Budget for 2018
to push growth, pull FDI
Continued from page 1
committed to growing, strengthen‑
ing and sustaining these areas of
collaboration with India," she
added. Biswal said USIBC's goal was
to keep the momentum of the US‑
India commercial partnership by
prioritizing policies that ensure
greater ease of doing business, pro‑
mote certainty, transparency and
predictability in decision‑making.
USISPFʼs Aghi added that a major‑
ity of Indians lived in rural areas
and the whole health program
means that people will have insur‑
ance there which will further drive
growth.
Commitment to build one core
housing is going to create jobs, he
said, adding that putting duty on
completed item will push industry
to manufacture more in India.
Aghi said that the new policies
would give further boost to PM
Modiʼs 'Make in India' program.
"Committing to maintaining a 3.3
per cent fiscal deficit is a strong
message to the world in develop‑
ment in some kind of fiscal disci‑
pline also. I would say it's a good
budget. It's a budget which is inclu‑
sive. So we applauded it," Aghi said.
He said the health care sector will
become lucrative for international
investors and bring in more foreign
direct investment to India. Real
estate is another sector, which will
be lucrative for international play‑
ers, he added.
"On the consumer goods side,
things will move very strongly.
That's where US companies can
play a very strong role," Aghi said.
Aghi said many companies,
including Apple, were looking at
India for manufacturing.
The cost of labor had gone up in
China and they want to be closer to
the consumer market, he said
Nikki Haley praises
growing India‑US ties
Continued from page 1
presidencies.” “It didnʼt make sense
to me because when you look at the
values, theyʼre the same. When you
look at the work ethic and what
they be lieve from a corporate
standpoint ̶ itʼs the same. When
you look at the research and all the
things that we do, these two democ‑
racies have so much in common,”
she was quoted by PTI as saying.
“Weʼre seeing a growing interest,
and a growing relationship and see‑
ing that happen. The president is
very, very fond of what is happen‑
ing with India, growing that
relationship trying to make sure
that we do more with India,” Haley
said.
“I think that skyʼs the limit now.
We are going to continue to try and
show the values of India to the
United States and continue trying
to show the values of the U.S. to
India,” she said
Grand Republic Day
celebration on Long Island
Continued from page 1
The participating organizations
included the Association of Indians
in America represented by its
national President Dr. Urmilesh
Arya, and NY Chapter President
Gobind Munjal; the Arya Samaj of
Long Island represented by its
founder Veer Mukhi; Asa Mai
Temple represented by founder
Gobind Bathija; the Brahmakumaris
of LI; the Federation of Malayalee
Associations represented by its
Chairman Thomas Oommen; the
Gujarati Samaj of New York repre‑
sented by its President Minesh
Patel; Indian American Physicians
of Long Island represented by Dr.
Rakesh Dua & Dr. Ajay Lodha; IALI
represented by its President Gunjan
Rastogi; International Punjabi
Society represented by President
Dr. Rajinder Uppal; RANA repre‑
sented by President Dr. Ajey Jain;
as well as SPARK Youth Club of
New York, the World Spiritual
Awareness Forum Inc. and the
World Malayalee Association.
New York Supreme Court Justices
Denise Sher & Ruth Balkin repre‑
sented the judiciary; NY Senator
Elaine Phillips presented a Senate
Proclamation to Amb. Chakravorty;
Nassau County was represented by
its Legislature Majority Leader Rich
Nicole llo and Legislator Tom
McKevitt. Also in attendance was
Nassau County Comptroller Jack
Schnirman who was applauded for
including a Hindu prayer in his
inaugural program earlier.
The Town of Hempstead was rep‑
resented by Supervisor Laura Gillen
and Town Clerk Sylvia Cabana.
Gillen and a representative of
Oyster Bay Supervisor Joseph
Saladino presented a citation each
to Ambassador Chakravorty honor‑
ing Indiaʼs Republic Day.
Niketa Bhatia, who successfully
petitioned the Syosset School
District to have the Festival of
Diwali designated as an official hol‑
iday was honored with a citation
from the Oyster Bay Township.
The pageantry of the event was
enhanced by bagpipers of Nassau
County Firefighters Band which
had earlier played at the Trump
Presidential Inaugural in
Washington DC.
War of the Memos
Continued from page 1
gered" by information involving a
dif ferent campaign aide, George
Papadopoulos.
The warrant authorizing the FBI
to monitor the communications of
former campaign adviser Carter
Page was not a one‑time request,
but was approved by a judge on
four occasions, the memo says, and
even signed off on by the second‑
ranking of ficial at the Justice
Department, Rod Rosenstein, whom
Trump appointed as deputy attor‑
ney general.
Trump tweeted from Florida,
where he was spending the week‑
end, "This memo totally vindicates
`Trump' in probe. But the Russian
Witch Hunt goes on and on!"
Senior Democrats have warned
President Trump not to use that
controversial memo as a "pretext"
to fire the special counsel, Robert
Mueller, probing alleged Russian
involvement in the 2016 US elec‑
tion. They said the memo's release
was a "shameful effort to discredit"
the FBI and inquiries into Russian
meddling.

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TheSouthAsianTimes.info
New travel and visa
company launched
New Jersey: The Ultimate Travel
and Visa Company was launched
on Feb 1 with the aim to change
the way Indian Americans travel and get
their visas or OCI cards.
The company's CEO Ranjeet Singh said,
“We want our people to experience the
world in its true form and let them know
intimately the country they visit.” He added
that they want to bring on board a flawless
and streamlined process to help people
avail their Indian visa, OCI card and pass‑
port renewals.
From family trips to holidays for solo
travelers; motor cycle tours to wildlife
safaris; trekking mountains or exploring
miles of scenic coastline; self‑guided holi‑
days or small group trips; there is some‑
thing for every kind of traveler with the
Ultimate company, their press release said.
They will provide expert knowledge, excit‑
ing itineraries and outstanding service as
part of their sustainable travel experiences
which take travelers into the heart of the
country theyʼre visiting for the adventure of
a lifetime.
With a satisfied client base of over 5,000
travelers from three different continents,
the Ultimate executives have personally
traveled and lead numerous successful trips
in various regions of the world including
India, Africa, South East Asia, Europe, The
Americas and Australia/NZ.
The companyʼs consular service section is
led by some highly skilled executives who
NJ Tamils celebrate Pongal
West Windsor Township mayor
Hemanth Marathe inaugurated
the festival and read out the
proclamation declaring Pongal as
an important cultural festival of NJTS volunteers serving traditional lunch
the community.
By Suchitra Srinivas
New Jersey: The New Jersey Tamil Sangam
(NJTS) celebrated the cultural harvest festival
Pongal on January 28th in a grand manner
by treating the community members with tra‑
ditional lunch served on banana leaf.
Unlike the buffet tradition personally serv‑
ing guests a fulsome meal guided by elabo‑
rate rules of dos and donʼts is a major part of
Tamil Viundombal culture.
Keeping up with this tradition, New Jersey
Tamil Sangam (NJTS) for the first time treated
about 400 guests a sumptuous lunch on
Vaazai illai (banana leaf). From kids to adults
every one was thrilled to be served by NJTS
president and his team of volunteers. While
childhood memories made many emotional,
the feeling of oneness in a faraway land took
grip of everyone.
NJTS also conducted an elaborate art exhi‑
bition and competition of handicrafts depict‑
TRISTATE COMMUNITY February 10-16, 2018 5
Having worked with leading travel and
visa outsourcing companies for over a
decade, Ranjeet Singh has started the
Ultimate Travel and Visa Company as CEO.
have had first hand experience of dealing
with thousands of Visa/OCI applications in
daily volumes. In the past, the company has
worked closely with diplomatic missions on
several international projects, which not
only gives them an edge above the rest, but
also makes them a reliable and trustworthy
partner who knows the ins and outs of the
whole process.
The Ultimate Company's target is to pro‑
vide world class customer service in travel
and consular segments which at times is dif‑
ficult for everyone to deal with. They also
provide short breaks, group or solo trips to
some of the most exotic destinations in the
world in Africa, Europe, South East Asia and
South America. They want to help people
get out of the routine online and guidebook
travel style, and let them explore the planet.
on banana leaf..
ing Tamil culture. Murals and paintings by
local artists were at display for the contest.
Senior artist from India Kalaimamani
Padmabushan Sangeetha Kalanidhi Sudha
Ragunathan was the special invitee whose
Carnatic music concert in Tamil stole the
show with big thumps up.
The function was made very special with
West Windsor Township mayor Hemanth
Marathe inaugurating the Pongal celebra‑
tions and handing over a proclamation
declaring Pongal as an important cultural
event of the community.As a major break‑
through, this year many state officials across
USA have acknowledged the Tamil harvest
festival and took part in the celebrations
organized by local community organizations.
January 14 every year starting 2018 has
been declared to be the Pongal day in
Virginia. Frisco, Dallas Mayor declared
January to be the Tamil Heritage month.
Time to rejoice for the US Tamil community.
 6 February 10-16, 2018 TRISTATE TheSouthAsianTimes.info

Indian‑origin doctor delivers Judge orders release

baby on Paris to NY flight of immigration activist
New York: An of f‑duty was kidney stones, but

Ravi Ragbir in US
Indian‑origin doctor had later found out that she
an "oh boy" story when was 39 weeks pregnant,"
he he lped de liver a he said.
healthy baby boy while Dr Hemal said there New York: A US judge has ordered release
on a trans‑Atlantic flight was no time to land the of leading Indian‑descent immigrant rights
from Paris to New York at plane and the best deci‑ activist Ravi Ragbir from custody, granting
35,000 feet, according to sion was to deliver the him a temporary reprieve from deportation
media reports. baby on‑board. Dr Hemal to his native Trinidad and Tobago, according
W hen a 41‑year‑old used a shoestring to tie to a media report.
went into labour a week and cut the umbilical cord Ragbir, 43, was arrested on January 12
early, Air France flight for baby Jake. during a routine check‑in with Immigration
attendants asked if there "This has been a team and Customs Enforcement (ICE) and ordered
were any do ctors on e f fort and certainly a immediate deportation, irking local commu‑
board. Dr Sij Hemal, a 27‑ flight I will never forget," nity in New York.
year‑old second‑year he said. Althoug h Dr In a seven‑page decision, Manhattan
urolog y resident at Hemal's practice area is Federal Court Judge Katherine Forrest wrote
Dr Sij Hemal is a urology resident
Cleve land Clinic's urolog y, he de livered that Immigration and Customs Enforcement
at Cleveland Clinicʼs Glickman
Glickman Urological and
Urological and Kidney Institute seven babies during med‑ agents had violated Ragbir's rights to due
Kidney Institute, immedi‑ ical school ‑ althoug h process, New York Daily News reported.
ately came forward, Cleveland 19 News never on the floor of a jetliner. Ragbir was arrested during a routine
"The court finds that when this country
reported. We're trained to stay calm and think check‑in with Immigration and Customs
allowed (Ragbir) to become a part of our
Enforcement (ICE) and ordered immedi‑
Dr Hemal started in New Delhi, stopped in clearly in emergency situations," he adds. "I community fabric, allowed him to build a life ate deportation, irking local community
Paris and was heading to New York, where just tried to think ahead to what might go with and among us and to enjoy the liberties in NY. (Image courtesy: ndtv.com)
he would catch a connecting flight to wrong, and come up with a creative solu‑ and freedom that come with that, it commit‑
Cleveland. He was hoping to drink a glass of tion." ted itself to allowance of an orderly depar‑ deportation for nearly a decade, as the
champagne and take a nap on a plane from After Jake arrived, Dr Hemal said he ture when the time came, and it committed result of a 16‑year old conviction for wire
Paris to New York on December 17, but FaceTimed his parents. itself to avoidance of unnecessary cruelty fraud. He was placed into removal proceed‑
instead helped deliver a healthy baby boy "Look I'm flying first class," he told his when the time came," Forrest wrote. ings in 2006 and spent 22 months in immi‑
named Jake during the flight, the report parents. "I wanted to surprise them and tell "By denying (Ragbir) these rights, the gov‑ gration detention before being released in
said. Together with Dr Stefanie Ortolan, a them I was flying first class. I'd never flown ernment has acted wrongly," Forrest added. February 2008.
pediatrician from France, the two managed first class before. And ... umm ... by the way I She wrote that Ragbir was "entitled to the During immigration detention and since
to deliver baby Jake after just 30 minutes of also just delivered a baby! It was one of freedom to say goodbye" ‑ indicating the his release, Ragbir has worked tirelessly to
pushing, Dr Hemal said. He did not know those moments I'll never forget," he said. activist still faces eventual deportation. end the use of immigration detention, stop
that she was pregnant. He said the mom's For his ef forts, Air France delivered a According to New York Immigration deportations, and secure relief for countless
bump was covered with a blanket. travel voucher and a bottle of champagne to Coalition, Ragbir has lived with the threat of individuals.
"As a urologist, I was excited. I thought it Dr Hemal. (PTI)

Schools should support Google AR executive Nikhil

Chandhok joins Facebook
the whole child
By NYC Schools Chancellor absenteeism is down by six percent.
San Francisco: Nikhil Chandhok,
Indian‑origin Director of Product
for Augmented Reality (AR) at
Carmen Fariña We have transformed schools Google, is joining Facebook to lead
into welcoming places that support

P
roviding high‑quality aca‑
demics and meeting the
social‑emotional needs of
children go hand in hand. You sim‑
ply canʼt have one without the
other. New York City has made crit‑
ical investments to deliver a com‑
prehensive framework that increas‑
es opportunities and access to
health and wellness that put stu‑
dents on the path to success.
Weʼve put this vision into action
by building a network of 227
Community Schools – an innovative
strategy that transforms traditional
schools into neighborhood hubs
that provide services like vision
screenings, mental health supports,
after‑school and summer program‑
ing, family activities, counseling,
and more. Community Schools also
work directly with families to
address chronic absenteeism and
make sure kids are in the class‑
room where they can learn. Our
Community Schools mode l is
unique in that these critical servic‑
Carmen Farina (Image: The NYC
Department of Education)
es are not an “add on” to the school
day; Community Based
Organizations are integrated into
the fabric of each school to deliver
for students and families.
A recent study by the Learning
Policy Institute shows that
Community Schools can be an
important part of improving aca‑
demic achievement at high poverty
schools, and weʼre seeing results –
test scores at Community Schools
that have participated in the initia‑
tive for several years are up 11 per‑
cent for English Language Arts and
five percent for Math, and chronic
students and families, where
experts and educators are available
to unpack challenges they may be
facing and come up with tangible
solutions. If students are struggling
to see the front of the classroom or
read a book, we give them free eye‑
glasses. If a family is facing immi‑
gration challenges, we connect
them to lawyers. Where there is
food insecurity, there are food
pantries. Public‑private partner‑
ships have been an important focus
during my time as Chancellor, and
through a wonderful partnership
with Warby Parker, students have
received more than 32,000 pairs of
free glasses since 2015. Another
important partnership is with
Sprint to provide high school stu‑
dents with free Wi‑Fi hotspots, so
k ids can complete their assign‑
ments and study outside of schools
hours, he lping to address the
“homework gap.” Students keep
these hotspots throughout their
time in high school.
product management of its camera
team working on AR.
In a Facebook post on Tuesday,
Chandhok said he is looking for‑
ward to build upon a platform that
allows for the creation and discov‑
ery of global AR experiences every‑
where.
Nikhil Chandhok (Image: Twitter)
"Now, as I join the Camera/AR
ence closer to Android users,
team at Facebook, I'm especially
interested in building more conver‑ Google in August 2017 released a
new software deve lopment kit
sation and momentum in cross‑plat‑
(SDK) called "ARCore."
form camera services," Chandhok
The platform renders AR capabili‑
posted.
ties to existing and future Android
Chandhok worked on Google's
phones.
"ARCore" smartphone AR platform
The company built on the funda‑
and Daydream VR platform.
mental technologies used in Tango,
"While I'm leaving the team at
another AR platform by Google but
Daydream and Google, I'm proud of
ARCore is scalable across the
the work we did together. We gave
Android ecosystem as it doesn't
developers ARCore and expanded
access to augmented reality tools," require any additional hardware.
he said. "We also designed founda‑ "Today is my 1st day at Facebook!
There are massive opportunities
tional aspects of AR platforms and
ahead for AR & I look fwd to joining
explored how people use AR now
Facebook as we bring more AR
and how they'll use it in the future,"
experiences to life ‑ for more peo‑
Chandhok added.
ple!" Chandhok later tweeted.
In a bid to bring the AR experi‑
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
Indians rally outside White
House in support of Trump's
immigration plan
Washington, DC: Several hundred
highly‑skilled Indian workers, in
long agonizing green card wait,
from across the US along with their
children and spouses held a rally in
front of the White House here in
support of President Donald
Trump's plan for a merit‑based
immigration system that among
other things ends chain migration
and diversity lottery visa.
Flying to the US capital from as
far as California, Texas and Chicago
and driving several hundred miles
from places like Florida, New York
and Massachusetts, these highly
skilled Indians, living in the US for
the past several years and in many
cases for more than a decade, urged
Trump to end the per country limit
on legal permanent residency so as
to eliminate the massive Green Card
backlog of highly skilled Indians.
"We are looking strictly for a
merit‑based immigration. That will
bring prosperity and fast economic
growth of the US," Krishna Bansal,
national policy and political direc‑
tor of Republican Hindu Coalition,
told the rally. "We are with
Trump nominates Indian American to
Federal Trade Commission
Washington, DC: On Jan. 25, President
Donald Trump sent the nominations of
four people to serve on the Federal
Trade Commission which includes one
Indian American, Rohit Chopra.
If his nomination is confirmed by the
Senate then Chopra, a Democrat, will
finish out the term which ends Sept. 25,
2019, of Joshua Wright who resigned.
Chopra has a masterʼs degree in busi‑
ness administration from the Wharton
School at the University of Pennsylvania
and is a graduate from Harvard
University.
He currently serves as a senior fel‑
low at the Consumer Federation of America, focusing members and veterans with student loans. He has con‑
on consumer protection issues facing young people and tinued to work to protect the rights of consumers and
military families.
“Rohit is fair‑minded, independent, and committed to tions to the work of the FTC,” said Holly Petraeus,
a marketplace that works for consumers and honest Chopraʼs former colleague.
businesses. He is well‑respected by those with all points
of view, and his experience and character will be valu‑ appointed Chopra as the agencyʼs student loan ombuds‑
able assets in this critical role,” CFA executive director man and in 2016, Chopra served as special adviser to
Stephen Brobeck, said in a statement posted on the John King, the Secretary of Education.
NATIONAL COMMUNITY
President Trump last week used his first
State of the Union address to push for the
merit-based immigration system that
admits skilled people, a proposal that could
benefit technology professionals from
countries like India.
President Trump for taking initia‑ pro‑Trump immigration rallies at
tive towards a merit‑based immigra‑ the White House. According to
tion system," Bansal said, adding Republican Hindu Coalition, there
that his group is working with the are nearly 200,000 children of legal
W hite House and lawmakers immigrants‑in‑line from India, who
towards a comprehensive immigra‑ have never broken the law, but who
tion bill that should include all simply age out at 21 and have to go
these things. back, because their parents have a
Giving green cards to thousands 60 year wait to get their green card
of highly skilled professionals from after it is approved.
India would help them realize their "US Economy if it was to grow
full potential and boost country's four per cent per year will need
growth and prosperity, he said. another 400,000 high‑skilled work‑
The participants, many of them ers added to the work force each
software engineers, at the rally had year. Immigration reform needs to
banner and posters with slogans
like 'Cut Green Card backlog', 'strict‑
address this issue as well. T he
Hindu and Indian community has
ly merit‑based point system', 'end
country limit', 'we need to support
some anxiety re lated
Immigration issues," said Anil
to
legal dreamers' and 'We support Sharma a member of the organizing
Trump.' This was one of the rare team. (PTI)
organizationʼs website.
Brobeck also noted that Chopra is
widely regarded for his expertise in the
student loan market as prior to joining
CFA, Chopra served as the assistant
director at the Consumer Financial
Protection Bureau from 2010 to 2015,
where he oversaw the agencyʼs work on
student financial services issues.
“Iʼm delighted to see Rohit Chopra
nominated to serve as an FTC
Commissioner. He did stellar work at
the Consumer Financial Protection
Rohit Chopra
Bureau, spotlighting abuses that
(Image : huffingtonpost.com)
impacted tens of thousands of service‑
borrowers, and I look forward to his future contribu‑
Jacob Lew, the former Secretary of the Treasury also
February 10-16, 2018
USIBC lauds Indiaʼs
Union Budget
Washington, DC: The US‑India
Business Council (USIBC) has laud‑
ed India's 2018‑19 Union Budget
saying it displays the Indian gov‑
ernment's commitment to develop
areas that will benefit its growth
and prosperity for many years to
come.
"Infrastructure development,
access to health care, af fordable
housing, energy and education for
all citizens form the backbone of
any growing economy. The USIBC
is pleased to see that this Budget
contains many of our recommen‑
dations in these critical areas,"
said the council's President Nisha
Biswal.
"American industry is committed
to growing, strengthening and sus‑
taining these areas of collabora‑
tion with India," she added.
Biswal said USIBC's goal was to
keep the momentum of the US‑
India commercial partnership by
Slain techie Kuchibhotla's widow
attends Trump's State of Union address
New York: Sunayana Dumala,
the w idow of Indian techie
Srinivas Kuchibhotla who was
killed in a hate crime last year in
Kansas, was a Congressional
guest at the State of the Union
address delivered by President
Donald Trump.
Dumala called the Tuesday
night speech "welcoming and
positive" on reforming immigra‑
tion.
"In the very beg inning he
(Trump) said that we all have
our dif ferences but we have to
work in unity and harmony," she
told the Kansas City TV station,
KHSB. "That is welcome."
"And he did address immigra‑
tion and that there is a need to
fix a broken system," she added.
"That is very positive too."
Republican Representative
Kevin Yoder tweeted that he
invited her to the President's
ceremonial speech "in recogni‑
tion for her tireless ef forts to
promote peace and as a message
to the Indian community that
the US is a nation of immigrants
and they are welcome here."
Dumala is at risk of being sent
7
prioritizing policies that ensure
greater ease of doing business,
promote certainty, transparency
and predictability in decision‑mak‑
ing.
"In the last three years, India has
been on a robust path to growth,
backed by a strong economic
reform agenda. USIBC's goal is to
keep up the momentum of the US‑
India commercial partnership to
ultimately unlock greater growth
and investment opportunities for
businesses in both nations," she
said.
Formed in 1975 at the request
of the US and Indian governments,
the USIBC is the premier business
advocacy organization comprised
of 350 top‑tier US and Indian com‑
panies. It is the largest bilateral
trade association in the US, based
in Washington with a global pres‑
ence including in New Delhi and
Mumbai. (IANS)
out of the US because she came
in as a dependent on her hus‑
band's H1‑B temporary profes‑
sional visa but the deportation
has been stayed.
Be fore attending Trump's
address, Dumala met House
Speaker Paul Ryan and Cathy
McMorris Rodgers, the chair of
the House Republican
Conference, and other lawmak‑
ers, according to KHSB's Twitter
feed from Washington.
Kuchibhotla was killed and his
friend Alok Madasani was
injured when a former Navyman
Adam Purinton allegedly fired
on them last February outside a
restaurant in Kansas while
shouting, "Get out of my coun‑
try."
Purinton is awaiting trial on
charges of murder and commit‑
ting a hate crime.
Yoder is the sponsor of a bill
aimed at cutting the delays for
professional Indian applicants
for g reen cards which g ives
them permanent immigration
status. The wait time now is over
11 years and is likely to grow
longer. (IANS)
 8 February 10-16, 2018 NATIONAL TheSouthAsianTimes.info

Sisodia to talk innovation in Delhi's

education system at Harvard
By Vijaylakshmi Nadar
New York: In just under three years, since the
Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) took charge of the
Delhi government in February 2015, their
performance, despite interference by the
Central government, has been satisfactory.
They have especially generated substantial
traction in the education and health sectors,
attracting attention worldwide.
It is no surprise then that the deputy chief
minister of Delhi, Manish Sisodia has been
invited to speak at the India centric confer‑
ence in USA called ʻIndia ‑ Disruptive
Innovationsʼ to be held at Harvard Business
School and Harvard Kennedy School in
Boston on February 10‑11. He will speak at
the conference on the simple but concentrat‑
ed ef forts they took to completely turn
around Delhi's government schools, positively
impacting the lives of almost 16 lakh stu‑
dents.
Representatives from other political parties
like Suresh Prabhu from the BJP and media‑
men like Ravish Kumar have been invited as
well to address the conference.
Manish Sisodia, Deputy Chief Minister of
Delhi, with charge of education depart‑
ment. Their innovative initiative has been to
involve both parents and teachers in the
studentsʼ welfare, thereby making them
equally accountable. (Photo: PTI)
About a 100 AAP volunteers, from across
the USA and Canada, will be sharing space
and ideas with Sisodia, who has been recog‑
nized as the country's most successful educa‑
tion minister. He and party leader and chief
minister of Delhi, Arvind Kejriwal are of the
firm belief that the quickest way to put an
end to widespread poverty in the city and
country, is by ensuring quality education for
the poor children, with which they can make
a significant difference in their lives, in one
generation alone.
The image one gets of government schools
anywhere in the country is of ramshackle
buildings, with poor facilities, missing teach‑
ers, and poor implementation of midday
meals, all contributing to a high dropout rate
among students, with most of them failing to
exhibit age and grade appropriate learning.
Things were no any dif ferent in Delhi
schools when AAP came into power. Sisodia,
who has been a school teacher in the past,
quickly got to work, allocating 25% of the
annual budget, a whopping sum of Rs 11,300
crore and the highest in the country, towards
education alone.
Though AAP has been constantly dead‑
locked with Delhiʼs Lieutenant Governor over
allotment of land to build new schools, there
was no force stopping them from turning the
existing ones around.
AAP governmentʼs biggest success came
from forming the School Management
Committees (SMC), which is mandatory
according to the provisions of the Right to
Education Act 2009, but which was either
defunct or non‑existent before Sisodia took
charge. The SMC's which is a simple concept
of involving both the parents and the teachers
in the studentsʼ welfare, thereby making them
equally accountable, has been so successful
that a team from Harvard university, is study‑
ing its impact.
One of the biggest concerns of these
schools was that 50% of the students of the
1024 government schools dropped out in the
9th grade, or held back. Almost 9.5 lakh stu‑
dents from 6th to 9th grades too lacked the
requisite grade level competence in the lan‑
guages and maths. These students were seg‑
regated into smaller groups, guided by a
teacher, who focused on improving reading
and writing abilities on par with their grades.
All of this was constantly monitored produced
results soon enough with more students
clearing their tenth standard than ever
before, while students in the lesser grades
gained increased competence in their core
subjects.
The author is an AAP volunteer.

FALUʼS BAZAAR – Free Karachi launches next phase

A MUSICAL JOURNEY THROUGH
SOUTH ASIAN CULTURE
New York: Faluʼs Bazaar is a vibrant and
diverse album of Indian childrenʼs music
from Falu, an international artist known for
her unique blending of modern and classical
stylings. This playful yet educational collec‑
tion is the first of its kind, teaching South
Asian culture through a spirited presenta‑
tion to todayʼs youth. Join Falu and her
incredible band on a musical journey cele‑
brating the instruments, languages, sights,
and humanity of a diverse world, out
February 16, 2018. On Faluʼs Bazaar, the
artist explores how arts and roots can be
both cherished and pre‑
served if introduced to
children early on. Falu
believes that by teaching
young children about dif‑
ferent cultures, they will
grow up to respect the
diverse world as a place for
all to live peacefully. Her
play‑based writing style on
these songs keeps the
learning experience natural
and fun, allowing the educa‑
tional elements to come through organical‑
ly. Faluʼs Bazaar represents a complete jour‑
ney through a fictional Indian Hulululu
Bazaar, showcasing the unique aspects of
Indian life. While on the excursion, children
experience South Asian culture from the
vibrant foods and spices at the market and
from the people and languages that they
encounter. They will hear common words in
Hindi and will learn about geography, Indian
rhythms and melodic notes. The trip even
leads them into an Indian kitchen to be
exposed to dif ferent flavors and cooking
An Indian children’s
album brings alive the
sights and sounds
of a diverse world
tools. In keeping with that history, Falu fea‑
tures three generations on this album per‑
forming a variety of ancient vocal stylings.
In fact, the album concludes with a lullaby
that has been passed down through five
generations in Faluʼs family.
In addition to vocal tech‑
niques and themes that may
be new to many listeners
here, there is also a wide
selection of Indian instru‑
ments including the Indian
flute bansuri, tabla and har‑
monium presenting new
and distinct sounds for
fresh ears.
Produced by Grammy‑
winning producer Danny
Blume and by Deep Singh and performed
with her impressive band, the album was
inspired by performances curated by
Carnegie Hall and Lincoln Center Education
in New York City. Bryan Vargas co‑wrote all
the songs with Falu (Falguni Shah), Soumya
Chatterjee joined as co‑writer on “Pots and
Pans” and “Rainbow” and played the violin
and acoustic guitar on the album. Gaurav
Shah played harmonium and bansuri as well
as acting as executive producer. Producers
Deep Singh and Danny Blume assisted as
well with Singh on percussion and tabla and
Blume on bass.
of campaign in Washington DC
Washington, DC: The
Free Karachi
Campaign has initiat‑
ed its next phase.
During this phase,
nearly one hundred
taxis will be running
in the US capital
Washington D.C. dis‑
playing FreeKarachi
banner. T he taxis
route includes impor‑
tant lo cat ions of
White House, Capitol
Hill, State
Department and law‑
makersʼ offices.
The campaign for
Nearly 100 taxis to run around the US capital
the rights of the peo‑
with FreeKarachi banners
ple of urban Sindh
Province of Pakistan had kick started last week tary forces. The aim of the campaign is to con‑
in the US capital on Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. vey the message to the US administration that
Day when taxis displaying Free Karachi ban‑ 70 Million Mohajirs are trusted US allies in the
ners participated in the MLK Day parade. One war against extremism and terrorism. Karachi,
of the leading US newspapers, Washington the port city of Pakistan, needs immediate
Times, also published a special four‑page wrap attention of the US and world community as
highlighting the aims and objectives of the the city faces serious threat from Taliban, ISIS
campaign. and like‑minded extremist forces.”
This campaign is getting worldwide attention Since 1992, well over 22,000 Urdu‑speaking
and US lawmakers are raising voice over Mohajirs have been killed in urban Sindh by
human rights abuses in Karachi. Pakistani security forces. Since 2013 alone,
Talking to media present on the ocassion to hundreds of Mohajirs have gone missing
cover second phase of campaign, Free Karachi whereas tortured dead bodies of Mohajirs are
spokesperson Nadeem Nusrat said: “The Free routinely dumped in Karachiʼs outskirts. While
Karachi Campaign has no political objectives. religious extremist outfits are allowed to freely
Its purpose is to create worldwide awareness preach their twisted ideology of religious
about the plight of the democracy‑loving, secu‑ hatred in Karachi under the protection of Para‑
lar people of Karachi and other urban areas of Military Rangers, the democratically elected
Sindh who have been facing one crack down mainstream political party of Mohajirs, MQM,
after another at the hands of Pakistanʼs mili‑ is facing an announced ban on its activities.
 TheSouthAsianTimes.info NATIONAL COMMUNITY February 10-16, 2018 9

Multifaith observance marks

Mahatma Gandhiʼs 70th Punya Tithi
The volunteers of Shanti Fund successfully hosted an observance event to mark the 70th Punya Tithi (death
anniversary) of Mahatma Gandhi with a multifaith program befitting his dream of communal harmony. The
event held on January 29th at Suffolk County Executive Office Building, Long Island, NY saw participation
from members of various faiths including Christian, Jewish, Hindu, Jains, Bahai, Buddhist and Islam.
The South
Asian Times
brings you
some
glimpses …

Members of Buddhist faith recited prayer in Thai language “Jaya

Members of Bahai faith recited prayer of Abduʼl‑Bahaʼ and readings praying for Paritta” which means blessing from Buddha for the welfare of all living
peace, love and enlightenment. (L to R): Harriet Pasca‑Ortgies, Akbar Owens, beings and enumerated four principles for unity. (L to R): Sky Hughes,
Master of Ceremony Bakul Dr. Ellen Homayoon and Dr. Sanjida Cabot
Matalia of Shanti Fund. May Barton, Phragrupalad Sukit Peangta, Phramaha Suwannarat

A large contingent of priests and soon to be priests offered
“Litany of Humility” praying Christ to remove our fears and
instill good values. (L to R): Deacon Ed Karan, Vinny Sweeny,
Francesca Yellico, Matthew Yellico, Ann Heverin, Bernie Colvin,
Matthew Surico, John Heverin, Karol Garcia, Terry Culhane,
Diana Pizzaro, George Sprance and Father Walter Kedjierski.
Newly elected Supervisor of Town of Huntington Chad Lupinacci
admired the work of Shanti Fund & Long Island Multi Faith Forum
while Dr. Dayashankar Vidyalankar, Assistant Vice Consul
eloquently quoted Vedas in Hindi. (L to R): Dr. Vidyalankar, Chad
Lupinacci, Arvind Vora of Shanti Fund; L. Krishnamurthy, Consul of
Passport & Visa section at NYC Consulate.
Young students of Sai School began with a prayer from
Upanishad and recited Sarva Dharma Prayer under the
guidance of Dr. Suhasini Jonnavithula. (L to R) Jatin Inti,
Saaketh Manepalli, Ananya Inti, Sahana Narayan, Annika
Prabhu, Sreevarshini Karthikeyan, Shreya Narayan, Keertana
Madhira, Priya Prabhu

Jewish community members presented peace prayer with

Members of Islam: Umar Syed said few verses of Koran, Syed Hafizur music and sweet voices. (L to R): Rev. Bill McBride, William
Rahman, President Islamic Association of Long Island (Selden Mosque) Kelleher, James Kelleher and Cantor Irene Failenbogen A section of audience at the event

Jain youth recited sacred Navkar Gathering of Light

mantra followed by Jain prayer
wishing happiness, generosity,
enlightenment and peace for all.
(Front row) Shrey Sheth,
Shraddha Sanghani , Nishi Sheth,
Hriti Sanghvi, Vinisha Sheth, Rishi
Sanghvi , Khushi Shah. (Back row)
Ila Vora, Sonal Lakhani, Neha
Sanghvi, Mansee Shah, Sid Sheth,
Naman Lakhani, Saiyum Sheth,
Yashavi Shah
invoked best of each
faith ending with 16
peace greetings from
different traditions. (L
to R): Aneela Arshed,
Sheryl Brooks, Prayasi
Bagchi, Sheryl Schapiro,
Margaret Fraiser,
Catherine Chapey,
Elizabeth Teplin, Rev.
Evelyn Digsby
 10 February 10-16, 2018 US AFFAIRS TheSouthAsianTimes.info

Trumpʼs address to the nation was all right

By Shivaji Sengupta when it comes to Donald Trump. I had anticipated nothing
less in the conversation that followed. I wasnʼt disappointed.

W
ith his State of the Union address on January 30,
Donald Trump arrived at his first landmark as
President. Of ficially, this is an annual message
given by the POTUS to a joint session of Congress, except in
the first year of a new president's term. The address includes
a budget message and an economic report of the nation, and
also allows the President to outline the countryʼs legislative
agenda and national priorities.
The address fulfills rules in Article II, Section 3 of the US
Constitution, requiring the President to periodically "give to
the Congress Information of the State of the Union, and rec‑
ommend to their Consideration such measures as he shall
judge necessary and expedient." In the 18th and 19th cen‑
turies the President primarily only submitted a written report
to Congress. After 1913, Woodrow Wilson, the 28th US
President, began the practice of delivering the address to
Congress in person as a way to rally support for his agenda.
With the advent of radio and television ‑ and now the Internet
‑ the address is now broadcast live across the country on
many networks, and thus is also used by the President as a
platform to speak directly to the American people. This year
45.6 million people watched it.
Thus, unofficially – and traditionally – it has become a self‑
laudatory report card on the presidentʼs achievements in the
year gone by, created by the president himself: something this
president is very good at doing.
Personally, perhaps like many Democrats, I was a reluctant
viewer, primarily because of my bias against this president. As
it turned out, however, this was a standard State of the Union:
the president marching out his own achievements, with almost
no acknowledgement of his administration. Typically Trump,
many “facts” were exaggerated, interspersed with the usual
superlatives like “incredible” and “extraordinary,” superlatives
that, like his “facts” have become a bit of a bore. There was, at
the outset, some attempts at “bipartisanship,” but, alas, one
side of the bipartisan – the Democrats ‑ did not fall for it.
Structurally, Trumpʼs State of the Union can be seen as the
achievements of America for which he, as president, is prima‑
President Trump speaking at his first State of the Union
on January 30.
rily responsible; acknowledgement of noteworthy heroic
deeds of 14 Americans of various ages and ethnicities; a huge‑
ly trumpeted economic report, particularly the landmark Tax
Reform; surprising paucity on foreign af fairs (particularly
relations with Russia) although he did talk tough on terrorism;
and a plea to bipartisanship in getting Congress to pass the
laws he supports on immigration and strengthening the infra‑
structure. I detected a faint whiff of defensiveness when he
announced the end of mandated health insurance, with a side‑
swipe at President Obama, a practice quite uncommon in
SOTU addresses.
By now you may have noticed my resentment toward this
manʼs election to the presidency. But even I have been quite
appalled by the total one‑sidedness of just about everybody
Even I would say that, on face‑value, the speech was all
right. According to a CBS poll, 75% people liked the speech. I
was mildly pleasantly surprised that the speech was not full of
Democrat bashing; Hillary Clinton was not mentioned; and
Obama, only once, obliquely. There were even some effort at
appealing to bipartisanship in Congress to get things done, be
it immigration or spending on infrastructure. To be sure,
Trump's pet projects were there: the “Wall”, Tax Reform and
de‑regularizing the industry. So were the pet peeves: stopping
diversity lottery and chain migration. The latter troubles me
because it would prevent Americans from sponsoring their
siblings, parents, and adult children. On the other hand, he
favors a pathway to citizenship for the children of undocu‑
mented immigrants who were brought to this country as
infants and are now of age. I was relieved to see that our
often‑giddy president is still supporting the permanent settle‑
ment of "the dreamers."
And yet, if you read the newspapers (including this column)
you will be challenged to find fair, objective pieces on any‑
thing the president does. The SOTU was, I think, one of his
best attempts at being middle of the road. It does not deserve
the unabashed open bias the people and press are showing.
My anxiety is about Congress taking up two of the most
important Bills, and passing laws on immigration, especially
protecting the Dreamers, and the push on infrastructure. As
much as I am a Democrat, I donʼt care if these laws are passed
by a Republican government, as long as they are passed. I
wish the Democratic law‑makers we sent to Washington
would think less about themselves and the Mid‑Term elec‑
tions, and more about the people they represent. It is my con‑
viction that if these laws are passed, it is the Democrats who
will benefit more, come election time. To quote the President
himself, let us at least for the time being, put our quarrels
aside and ask our elected representatives and senators to pass
the two laws “where nobody gets everything they want, but
where our country gets the critical reforms it needs.”
The author regularly contributes opinion pieces to The
South Asian Times.

By Arun Kumar

Washington: His supporters may

be a "basket of deplorables", as
presidential rival Hillary
Clinton suggested on the
campaign trail, but
Donald Trump is no
basket case as his
detractors have
insinuated.
Twitter‑
thumb
Trump may
well be the
most
obnoxious
egomaniac
to ever
occupy the
White
House as left liberal media paints
him to be, but he is no "moron" as
his exasperated Secretary of State
Rex Tillerson is alleged to have
once called him.
There is a method to Trump's
madness. His temper tantrums,
intemperate tweets, and juvenile
taunts all have a purpose: Distract,
shoot and scoot. And time and
again, the media has fallen for it
hook, line and sinker.
Take the President's latest rant
against "shithole countries" in
Africa. The alleged remark sent a
nebulous bipartisan deal on
"dreamers" ‑‑ illegal immigrants
Method in his madness: Trump is
having his way on most issues
brought
to the US as
children ‑‑ down
the toilet.
As conservative
Washington Examiner
aptly summed it up:
"Trump was breaking
ground on immigra‑
tion, then it all went to shit."
But probably that's what he want‑
ed to up the ante for a larger immi‑
gration reforms package that he
outlined days after a short‑lived
shutdown of government with
opposition Senate Democratic
leader "Crying Chuck" Schumer
throwing in the towel too soon.
Even as the media upbraided
Trump for his intemperate lan‑
guage, he dangled new hope for the
Dreamers ‑‑ a path to citizenship for
1.8 million of them in return for
$25 billion for his "big beautiful
wall" on the Mexican border and a
News Analysis
merit‑based immigration system.
That's part of the pattern for the
author of "The Art of the Deal".
These very tactics have helped "The
Donald", as his first wife lovingly
called him, notch up in just one
year an impressive list of successes
‑‑ good, bad or ugly! ‑‑ despite the
Russian "cloud" hanging over his
administration.
He has instituted the biggest cor‑
porate tax overhaul in 30 years and
drastically cut red tape by revoking
hundreds of regulations to make it
easier to do business. Trump is also
rapidly reshaping the judiciary by
naming a conservative judge to the
Supreme Court and appointing a
record 12 federal appellate judges
who serve lifelong with hundreds
more to come.
At home he has been rewarded by
a roaring economy and a soaring
stock market. Companies big and
small have outlined plans to bring
back profits stashed abroad and
open new plants, raising minimum
wages and giving $1,000 bonuses
to workers. Among them, Apple has
announced plans to invest a whop‑
ping $350 billion and create
20,000 new jobs in the US over the
next five years.
And corporate titans gathered at
Davos too have started warming up
to the "America First" President
with his declaration that "America
is open for business".
Trump has also upended decades
of US foreign policy, rattling allies
and foes alike. Islamic State has
been virtually crushed, thanks to a
free hand given to the military and
some help from Russia. Trump has
also called Pakistan's bluff and
frozen its funding until it stops har‑
boring terrorists.
He has pulled out of the non‑
binding Paris Climate accord,
approved two controversial oil
pipelines ‑‑ Keystone XL and
Dakota access ‑‑ and opened up
about 90 percent coastal areas for
drilling, throwing environmental
concerns to the winds.
On the campaign trail, Trump had
threatened to tear up the "disas‑
trous" Iran nuclear deal on day one.
But he is unlikely to follow through
even as he has threatened to walk
away from it after signing yet
another waiver on sanctions.
Trump has recognized Jerusalem
as the Israeli capital and
announced plans to move the US
embassy there two decades after
the Senate passed a law and succes‑
sive presidents signing waivers
with little more than murmurs of
disapproval from powerful Muslim
nations.
Whether Trump's actions would
have a disastrous effect on climate
change or would end hopes of a
two‑state solution in Palestine is
moot. The point is Trump is having
his way on all but a few issues.
Trump's tantalizing tweets and
taunts have provided a circulation
spinning bonanza to the "Failing
New York Times" or Very Fake
News CNN or other "Dishonest
media", as he has nicknamed them.
But by falling for them they have
also given The Donald a free pass.
TheSouthAsianTimes.info US AFFAIRS February 10-16, 2018 11

The Republican memo "totally vindicates" me: Trump

Washington: President Donald Trump last
Saturday claimed complete vindication
from a congressional memo that alleges
the FBI abused its surveillance powers dur‑
ing the investigation into his campaign's
possible Russia ties. But the memo also
includes revelations that might complicate
efforts by Trump and his allies to under‑
mine special counsel Robert Mueller's
inquiry, reports AP.
The four‑page document released last
Friday contends that the FBI, when it
applied for a surveillance warrant on a
onetime Trump campaign associate, relied
excessively on an ex‑British spy whose
opposition research was funded by
Democrats. At the same time, the memo
confirms that the investigation into poten‑
tial Trump links to Russia actually began
several months earlier, and was "triggered"
by information involving a different cam‑
paign aide.
Christopher Steele, the former spy who
compiled the allegations, acknowledged
having strong anti‑Trump sentiments. But
he also was a "longtime FBI source" with a
credible track record, according to the
memo from the House Intelligence
Committee chairman, Rep. Devin Nunes, R‑
Calif., and his staff.
The warrant authorizing the FBI to moni‑
tor the communications of former cam‑
paign adviser Carter Page was not a one‑
Guided by Ranking Member of the House
Intelligence Committee Adam Schiff,
Democrats were trying to release their own
memo as a rebuttal to the GOP memo.
time request, but was approved by a judge
on four occasions, the memo says, and
even signed off on by the second‑ranking
official at the Justice Department, Rod
Rosenstein, whom Trump appointed as
deputy attorney general.
Trump, however, tweeted from Florida,
where he was spending the weekend, that
the memo puts him in the clear.
"This memo totally vindicates `Trump' in
probe," he said. "But the Russian Witch
Hunt goes on and on. Their (sic) was no
Collusion and there was no Obstruction
(the word now used because, after one year
of looking endlessly and finding NOTHING,
House Intelligence Committee chair
David Nunes spearheaded the GOP memo,
which the mainstream media considers
underwhelming.
collusion is dead). This is an American dis‑
grace!" The underlying materials that
served as the basis for the warrant applica‑
tion were not made public in the memo. As
a result, the document only further intensi‑
fied a partisan battle over how to interpret
the actions of the FBI and Justice
Department during the early stages of the
counterintelligence investigation that
Mueller later inherited. Even as Democrats
described it as inaccurate, some
Republicans quickly cited the memo ‑‑
released over the objections of the FBI and
Justice Department ‑‑ in their arguments
that Mueller's investigation is politically
tainted. A closer read presents a far more
nuanced picture.
"Having decided to cherry‑pick, the
Nunes team picked a bunch of the wrong
cherries for its own narrative," Matthew
Waxman, a Columbia University law pro‑
fessor and former Bush administration
official, wrote in an email.
The memo's central allegation is that
agents and prosecutors, in applying in
October 2016 to monitor Page's communi‑
cations, failed to tell a judge that the oppo‑
sition research that provided grounds for
the FBI's suspicion received funding from
Hillary Clinton's presidential campaign and
the DNC. Steele's research, according to the
memo, "formed an essential part" of the
warrant application. But it's unclear how
much or what information Steele collected
made it into the application, or how much
has been corroborated. Steele was working
for Fusion GPS, a firm initially hired by the
conservative Washington Free Beacon to
do opposition research on Trump. Steele
didn't begin work on the project until after
Democratic groups took over the funding.
The FBI last week expressed "grave con‑
cerns" about the memo and called it inac‑
curate and incomplete. Democrats said it
was a set of cherry‑picked claims aimed at
smearing law enforcement and that releas‑
ing the memo would damage law enforce‑
ment and intelligence work.

Dems caution Trump not Trump's pick for Singapore

to foil Russia probe
Washington: Senior Democrats
have warned President Donald
Trump not to use a controversial
memo as a "pretext" to fire the
special counsel probing alleged
Russian involvement in the 2016
US election.
Democrats said the memo's
release was a "shameful effort to
discredit" the FBI and inquiries
into Russian meddling.
They warned that such action
could trigger a "constitutional cri‑
sis not seen since the Nixon era",
the BBC reported.
The memo, written by
Republicans, accused the FBI of
abusing its powers.
Trump approved the declassifi‑
cation of the memo on Friday and
said it "revealed a disgraceful
story". Democrats said the release
of the memo was aimed at dis‑
rupting the probe into alleged
links between the Trump cam‑
paign and the Kremlin.
Trump, who has consistently
denied any such collusion, had in
May 2017 even fired former FBI
Director James Comey over the
probe. Comey on Friday tweeted
that the memo was "dishonest
and misleading". The FBI said key
facts had been omitted in the
memo.
In a statement, Senate Minority
Leader Chuck Schumer, House
Minority Nancy Pelosi and eight
other senior Democrats warned
Trump against trying to sack spe‑
cial counsel Robert Mueller or
Deputy Attorney General Rod
Rosenstein.
"We write to inform you that we
would consider such an unwar‑
ranted action as an attempt to
obstruct justice in the Russia
investigation," the statement said.
They said such action could
result in a constitutional crisis not
ambassador withdraws nomination
Washington: President Donald
Trump's pick to be US Ambassador
seen since the 1970s when then
to Singapore, K.T. McFarland, has
President Richard Nixon gave
withdrawn her nomination after it
orders to fire justice officials
had stalled in the Senate, a White
involved in the Watergate scan‑
House official said.
dal.
McFarland's nomination had
The White House later said "no
become embroiled in controversy
changes" would be made at the
over the Trump campaign's con‑
Department of Justice and
tacts with Russian officials, the
Rosenstein was fully expected to
New York Times reported.
continue in his job. K.T. McFarland
Some senators doubted her
Asked about the contents of the
answers when she was asked White House decided to re‑nomi‑
memo, Trump said a lot of people
about her knowledge of the dis‑ nate the former deputy National
should be "ashamed of them‑
cussions between fired National Security Adviser in January
selves".
Security Adviser Michael Flynn despite warnings from Democrats
Although Devin Nunes, who
and then Russian Ambassador to that they were unlikely to support
commissioned the memo, said it
the US Sergey Kislyak. her. McFarland, who formerly
showed "serious violations" of
"Unfortunately, some Democrats served as a commentator on Fox
public trust, not all Republicans
chose to play politics rather than News, has long been controversial,
supported the release of the
move forward with a qualified the Times reported.
memo.
nominee for a critically important When she ran in 2006 for the
Senator John McCain accused
post," Trump said in a statement. US Senate seat then held by
his party colleagues, and Trump,
The Senate eventually sent her Hillary Clinton, McFarland was
of playing into the hands of
nomination back to the White found to have made multiple exag‑
Russian President Vladimir Putin,
House at the end of 2017 and the gerations about her résumé.
BBC reported.
 12 February 10-16, 2018 INDIA TheSouthAsianTimes.info

BJP, Congress spar in Rajya Sabha

New Delhi: The BJP and Congress
sparred in the Rajya Sabha with
Amit Shah say ing that Prime
Minister Narendra Modi has put
an end to the politics of "dynasty,
caste and appeasement" and
Ghulam Nabi Azad stating that
they wanted the "old Bharat" of
Mahatma Gandhi where Hindus
and Muslims could give blood for
each other.
On a day the House witnessed a
lively debate on the President's
address, opposition parties, includ‑
ing Trinamool Congress and NCP,
accused the government of failing
to fulfill its promise of "Sabka
Saath, Sabka Vikas." BJP's ally TDP
said that the Centre was meting
out step‑motherly treatment to
Andhra Pradesh.
BJP chief Amit Shah initiated the
debate in the Upper House on the
mot ion of thanks on the
President's address and in his
maiden speech countered the
Congress over its frequent slam‑
ming of the government over jobs
and GST.
Shah pitched for simultaneous
elections to the Lok Sabha and the
BJP President Amit Shah.
assemblies and accused the
Congress of "opposing" the triple
talaq bill which he said Mo di
had broug ht to g ive rig hts,
equality and social security to
women.
He took on Congress President
Rahul Gandhi over his description
of the Goods and Services Tax as
"Gabbar Singh Tax" and asked "is
this (GST) dacoity?" He said taxes
collected under GST go to fund
programs for the poor besides sol‑
diers.
Admitting that unemployment
was a problem, he claimed it had
been created during 55 years of
Congress rule. He said BJP was
finding a solution through pro‑
grammes such as Skill India, Start‑
up India, Stand‑up India and
Mudra loans.
He also slammed Congress lead‑
ers for their criticism of Modi over
his remarks in an interview that
people earning Rs 200 a day sell‑
ing 'pakodas' (fritters) can be con‑
sidered employed, saying: "Selling
pakodas is not shameful but com‑
paring it with begging was."
"Today if a person is earning
live lihood by se lling pakodas,
tomorrow his son would become a
big industrialist. A tea vendor's son
can became the Prime Minister of
this country," he said.
Citing the BJP's repeated victo‑
ries in several assembly polls, he
said that "people's mandate" was
the best way to judge the perform‑
ance. On the Gujarat result, he took
a veiled dig at Congress saying,
"We can't help it if some people
see victory even in their defeat."
Stating there were "three can‑
cers" ‑ dynastic politics, casteism
and appeasement, he asserted that
"we can proudly say today that
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has
uprooted all of them from the
Indian political system".
On the issue of simultaneous
polls, which found a mention in the
President's address, Shah said that
"it will save money and prevent the
need of frequent elections".
Azad made a strong rebuttal of
the issues raised by Shah and ques‑
tioned the government's vision of
"New India". "We do not want new
Bharat, we want old Bharat where
there is unity between all religions
and Hindus and Muslims give
blood for each other. This was old
Bharat which you polarized to
form government. We want a
Bharat where there is no fear," he
said.
He accused the BJP of seeking to
polarize people and divide the
Muslim community.
"Criminalizing the act of triple
talaq is very dangerous. Earlier
you (BJP) divided Muslims in the
name of Shia and Sunni, now you
are trying to divide husband and
wife. This community is already
poor and backward and are living
under fear after incidents of lynch‑
ings," Azad said.
He also made a veiled reference
to the sudden rise in the turnover
of a company associated with Jay
Shah, son of Amit Shah.

Indians cautioned against Indian Army shall give

traveling to Maldives proper reply to
New Delhi : With Maldivian President

Abdulla Yameen declaring a state of
emergency amid a political crisis in the
country, the Indian government has cau‑
tioned citizens against traveling to the
Maldives.
"The prevailing political developments
in Maldives and the resultant law and
order situation is a matter of concern for
the government of India," the External
Affairs Ministry said in a statement.
"Indian nationals are, therefore, advised
to defer all non‑essential travels to Male
and other atolls until further notice.
"Indian expatriates in Maldives are also
alerted to the need for heightened securi‑
ty awareness, and urged to exercise due
caution in public and avoid public gather‑
ings." Yameen of ficially announced that
the Maldives was in a state of emergency
for the duration of 15 days starting on
Monday night.
The state of emergency gives security
officials extra powers to arrest suspects,
the BBC reported.
The Maldives has been facing days of
unrest after the Supreme Court issued a
ruling last week to release top opposition
polit ical leaders including former
President Mohamed Nasheed and former
Vice President Ahmed Adeeb, saying they
must be freed until fair trials could be
conducted without undue influence.
The government has already suspended
Parliament and ordered the army to resist
any moves by the Supreme Court to
impeach the President.
India called for peace and stability in
the Indian Ocean archipelago nation.
President of Maldives Abdulla Yameen
Abdul Gayoom.
"In the spirit of democracy and rule of
law, it is imperative for all organs of the
government of Maldives to respect and
abide by the order of the apex court," the
External Affairs said in a statement.
It also called upon the Maldivian
authorities to ensure the safety and secu‑
rity of the Indian expatriates in Maldives
under all circumstances.
"As a close and friendly neighbor, India
wishes to see a stable, peaceful and pros‑
perous Maldives," the statement said.
Pakistan: Rajnath
New Delhi: Union Home
Minister Rajnath Singh con‑
demned the cross‑border firing
by Pakistan in which four
Indian soldiers, including a
Captain, were killed, saying he
has full faith in the valor of the
Indian Army and they shall
"g ive proper reply" to the
neighbor.
"Have full faith in the valor of
our soldiers, and they shall
give proper reply," Rajnath
Singh told reporters.
Earlier, Minister of State for
Home Af fairs Hansraj Ahir
also condemned Sunday's Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh.
ceasefire violation in Jammu
and Kashmir's Rajouri and Poonch Referring to the 2016 surgical strikes,
districts saying that it shall "cost Pakistan the Minister said, "When the Army carried
dearly". out surgical strikes it didn't tell the media
"Pakistan has been violating ceasefire about it. Similarly they shall act according‑
along the LoC. And this year the number of ly at the right time."
ceasefire violations are high," Ahir said. He said India has been following interna‑
"Yesterday (Sunday) also, they again vio‑ tional laws. "There is a Hindi saying in
lated cease fire. We w ill not forg ive Bihar 'latkhor' (addicted to being beaten),
Pakistan's actions," the Minister said. and similarly Pakistan is 'latkhor' and thus
"The ceasefire violations would prove to proper reply would be given to them," he
be Pakistan's foolishness and will cost added.
them dearly," he added. The Minister's remarks came in the wake
Union Minister for MSME, Giriraj Singh of the increased cross border firing in
also slammed Pakistan for the ceasefire Kashmir valley.
violations and said, "Have faith in the On Sunday, four Indian soldiers were
Indian Army. When the right time comes killed and four others were injured in firing
they shall give a proper reply to them." in Rajouri and Poonch districts.
TheSouthAsianTimes.info INDIA February 10-16, 2018 13

Hackers compromise
Jadhav now facing trial on
Kher, Ram Madhav's
Twitter accounts terrorism, sabotage charges
Islamabad: Alleged Indian spy
New Delhi: Twitter temporarily Kulbhushan Jadhav, sentenced to
shut down the accounts of veter‑ death by a Pakistani military tribu‑
an actor Anupam Kher, RSS nal for spying, is now facing trial on
leader and BJP General terrorism and sabotage charges too,
Secretary Ram Madhav and sen‑ Dawn quoted an official as saying.
ior Indian journalist and The Pakistan government has also
Member of Parliament Swapan sought access to 13 Indian officials
Dasgupta after they were to get information in the Jadhav
allegedly hacked by pro‑ case ‑ a fact that is supposedly also
Pakistani Turkish cyber army mentioned in the counter‑memorial
Ayyildiz Tim. submitted by Pakistan at the
"Our teams are working to Veteran actor Anupam Kher. International Court of Justice (ICJ),
resolve an issue affecting a small the official told Dawn news.
number of Indian users. We will notify affected account holders But New De lhi has remained Kulbhushan Jadhav met his family at the Pakistan Foreign Office in
directly. Reminder: do not click on links in DMs coming from Islamabad on December 25.
"stubbornly uncooperative", he
unknown accounts," Twitter posted on @TwitterSupport handle. added. ment, and issuance of the passport His appeals against the conviction
Kher's account handle was changed from @anupampkher to According to the official, Jadhav, in the name of Mubarak Hussain have been rejected by the military
@anupampkhertc and his tweets bore unusual messages. The mes‑ 47, has multiple cases against him Patel. appÂellate court and his mercy peti‑
sages were later deleted. in which he had been indicted on According to Pakistan, Jadhav tion is lying with Pakistan Army
When people tried to access Dasgupta's account, a message read, terror and sabotage‑related charges. was captured by its security forces Chief General Qamar Bajwa, reports
"Caution: This account is temporarily restricted. You're seeing this The cases were progressing, he on March 3, 2016, in Balochistan. Dawn news.
warning because there has been some unusual activity from this said, emphasising the one relating In April 2017, a Field General On December 25 last year,
account. Do you still want to view it?" to spying had only concluded. Court Martial (FGCM) sentenced Pakistan arranged a meet ing
When users went ahead to see the profile, they could see nothing The of ficial did not disclose the Jadhav to death after being found between Jadhav and his family ‑‑
but promoted posts. Ram Madhav's account displayed a message names of the 13 Indian individuals. guilty of espionage. India has said through a glass panel ‑‑ but did not
saying, "Your account has been hacked by Turkish cyber army "We want to reach Jadhav's han‑ that Jadhav is innocent and has allow a private discussion.
Ayyildiz Tim. Your DM correspondence and important data have dlers," he told Dawn news. maintained that he was kidnapped The ICJ is currently hearing an
been captured. I Love Pakistan." Pakistan has also sought infor‑ from Iran where he had gone for Indian pet it ion challeng ing
After the accounts were hacked, #AnupamKher became one of mation about his Navy service file, handling his businesses after super‑ Pakistan's refusal to grant consular
the top trending hashtags on the micro‑blogging site with 1,221 bank record of his pension pay‑ annuation from the Indian Navy. access to Jadhav.
tweets bearing the actors name.
14 February 10-16, 2018 OP-ED TheSouthAsianTimes.info

Budget 2018‑19: Balancing populism with economics

Amit Kapoor and family per year for medical reim‑ Rs 20,000 crores had the tax
Chirag Yadav bursement under Nat ional reduction been done for all firms
Health Protection Scheme for alike.

T
he Budget is finally out
and to put it simply,
Finance Minister Arun
Jaitley did not disappoint. In fact,
a majority of it was along expect‑
ed lines. Most importantly, as
promised, the government man‑
aged to do a commendable job of
balancing economic populism
w ith prudent economics.
However, as is always the case,
the good did come with a tinge of
bad.
It was a no‑brainer that the
Budget would focus on the agri‑
cultural sector after BJP's elec‑
toral performance in rural
Gujarat. Jaitley went a step fur‑
ther and, in a major departure
from the past, began his Budget
speech with the government's
plan for the farming community.
He unveiled a litany of measures
in line with the government's aim
of doubling farmer incomes by
2022.
First, the Budget allowed for
setting the minimum support
price (MSP) at 1.5 times the pro‑
duction cost for kharif crops.
Even thoug h this support to
Finance Minister Arun Jaitley after presenting Union
Budget 2018‑19 in Parliament. (Photo: IANS)
farmers will help increase their
incomes, there are two questions
that need to be asked. Will the
ef fect of this jump in MSP be
inflationary? Also, will it take
away the incentive to reduce pro‑
duction costs? The answer to
both of these questions is proba‑
bly in the affirmative. Only time
will tell if the move has any such
negative externalities for the
economy, but the government
should be prepared with com‑
mensurate remedies to tackle the
eventuality.
The second significant move on
the agricultural front has been a
push to boost agri‑business activ‑
it ies across the country and
improve agricultural markets.
Allocation has been doubled for
enhancing food processing and
specialised agro‑processing net‑
works from Rs 700 crore to Rs
1,400 crore.
Another major highlight of the
budget has been its focus on the
social sector. Healthcare and
education received their fair
share of budgetary focus. In fact,
Mr. Jaitley took pride in
announcing the "world's largest
healthcare prog ramme" that
would provide Rs 5 lakhs per
around 10 crore families across
India. This is a positive move by
the government towards univer‑
sal health coverage in the future.
As for education, digitalisation of
education and training of teach‑
ers was given a boost.
In monetary terms, the
increase in budgetary allocation
from last year is about 3.84 per‑
cent and that for healthcare is
about 2.76 percent. This seems
like a significant boost in
absolute terms, but it pales in
comparison when seen in light of
the overall GDP growth of 6.75
percent. As for taxes, the corpo‑
rate sector, which was expecting
a tax cut on commensurate lines
as that of the US economy, was
partly obliged.
Corporate tax for all companies
with a turnover of Rs 250 crores
or less was reduced to 25 per
cent. This proved to be a major
disappointment to large firms
which will still be taxed at 30 per
cent. However, it was under‑
standable on the government's
part as the revenue forgone
would have been an astounding
On a related note, a significant
miss by the Budget has been on
the investment front. Over the
last six years, the investment
across the country has been on a
declining trend falling to 29 per‑
cent as per last CSO estimates.
No major announcement was
made to reverse this trend expect
indirect measures like higher
infrastructure allocation, which
might be expected to crowd in
private investment.
However, considering the fact
that investment has seen a struc‑
tural decline over the last few
years a lot could have been done
to revive investment sentiments.
Tthe Budget paints a promising
picture of a government that saw
it fit not to resort to populist
ploys even after it received an
election scare not long ago. Even
though a lot was left wanting,
especially on the investment
front, the Budget managed to
address quite a few economic
challenges that India faces. By
targeting the rural economy and
the poor, it can be said that it
was a Budget for the masses.

Outcome in Rajasthan: Is the Modi magic fading?

By Amulya Ganguli psychopathic wrath of anti‑Muslim elements
was evident in the killing of a migrant labour‑

T
he signs which were available about
the decline in the influence of the
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in
Gujarat's rural areas during the state assem‑
bly elections have been substantiated by the
drubbing which the BJP has received at the
Congress's hands in the bye lections in
Rajasthan, where the saf fron party is in
power.
Earlier, the Congress had shown that it
might well be on the comeback trail by its
success in the Chitrakoot assembly byelection
in another BJP‑ruled state, Madhya Pradesh.
In all these byelections, it was not so much
the Congress's victory which was noteworthy
as the impressive margins of its success.
Although it is too early to say whether these
election trends point to an ebbing of the saf‑
fron tide after the overwhelming nature of the
wave in 2014 and again in Uttar Pradesh last
year, there is little doubt that the BJP has rea‑
sons to be concerned.
In fact, the emphasis placed on the rural
areas in the latest budget is an indication that
the party has taken its setbacks in the Gujarat
countryside seriously and is trying to make
amends by reaching out to the vulnerable sec‑
tions. The proposed health insurance cover
for 500 million, 40 per cent of the population,
is not unlike the previous government's food
security programme for 67 per cent of the
people. More than what happened in Gujarat,
Rajasthan Congress unit President Sachin Pilot celebrates the
win in Jaipur. (Photo: Ravishankar Vyas/IANS)
where at least the urbanites stood behind the over the "Padmaavat" film.
BJP, what the Rajasthan outcome has shown But that can only be one of the reasons.
is that all the sections have voted against the What must have also undermined the BJP's
ruling party. prospects is the violence unleashed by either
The widespread nature of the discontent cow vigilantes or individuals railing against
underlines a deep and extensive popular the minorities. While the lawlessness of the
unhappiness with governance although a min‑ gau rakshaks was exemplified by the lynching
ister has sought to explain the party's defeats of a Muslim cattle trader although he was car‑
by referring to the grievances of the Rajputs rying the required permits for his trade, the
er from West Bengal.
Both these heinous crimes were filmed and
repeatedly shown on television, but while the
murderers of the cattle trader, Pehlu Khan,
have gone scot‑free because of the inability of
the police to provide credible evidence
although the lynching took place in broad
daylight in front of cameras, at least the killer
of Afrazul Khan, the migrant labourer, has
been arrested.
While any other government would have
expressed deep shock and dismay over the
horrific incidents, the Vasundhara Raje gov‑
ernment in Rajasthan has largely remained
unperturbed, a trait of indifference to near‑
anarchic conditions demonstrated by several
other BJP‑led governments as well such as in
Haryana.
W hat cannot but be worrying for the
Narendra Modi‑Amit Shah duo is that the vir‑
tually unchecked violence of saffron groups
like the gau rakshaks or the opponents of love
jehad is beginning to take its toll on the BJP's
electoral fortunes, notwithstanding all the
talk about "Sabka Saath, Sabka Vikas" or
development for all.
After the humiliating setback in 2014, the
Congress is showing signs of revival. But it
will be making a mistake if it hopes to make
electoral gains solely on the basis of the BJP's
inability or unwillingness to control its mili‑
tant followers.

The views expressed in Op Eds are not necessarily those of The South Asian Times.
TheSouthAsianTimes.info ENTERTAINMENT February 10-16, 2018 15

Miss World Manushi Chhillar Miss India

Manushi
Chhillar
won the

to grace women Miss World

crown last
November.

empowerment event
New York: Miss World 2017 Manushi Chhillar will
be gracing the South Asian Women Empowerment
Gala 2018 on March 7th at Leonardʼs in Great
Neck. Manushi Chhillar won the coveted Miss
World title 17 years after Priyanka Chopra won
the same. Earlier, Aishwarya Rai had also worn the
Miss World crown.
Title sponsor and fashion designer Premal
Badiani says, “Today women have excelled in all
domains and we have a lot to learn from each
other. We believe in our uniqueness and are
happy to be part of this event showcasing women
who have made a big difference.” This prestigious
black‑tie gala is presented by Bindu Kohli
Entertainment, an event management and produc‑
tion company based in New York. Bindu Kohli, a
household name on the East Coast, is a well‑
known TV host and a promoter of high quality
events. She hosted actress Shilpa Shetty last year
in various cities in US with multiple events for
women empowerment. "This premium event will
be ideal to present and felicitate Manushi
Chhillar in USA among high profile guests and
several women achievers,” said Bindu Kohli. She
continued, "I believe in quality and class and I am
sure to make it a memorable event, and would
also like to extend my heartfelt gratitude to a few
special supporters: Shaheen, Leonardʼs Palazzo, Bollywood actor
Munawar & Andrews Santillo LLP and AR Helping Prashantt Guptha
will be emceeing
Hands, to name a few. "
the night and honor
Prashantt Guptha, noted Bollywood actor who is
Manushi with New
from New York, will be emceeing the night and York's special love
honor Manushi with New York's special love and and pride
pride.

Each dance group exhibited an abundance of talent, innovative choreography and immense pride in Indianʼs magnificent culture.

FIA celebrates R‑Day with dance competition

New Brunswick, NJ: The Federation
of Indian Associations (FIA) of NY‑
NJ‑CT celebrated India's 69th
Republic Day with its annual dance
competition, "Dance Pe Chance
(DPC)", at the prestigious State
Theatre her on January 27. Many
dignitaries and celebrities attended
the sold out show. FIA has been cel‑
ebrating Indiaʼs Republic Day for
over 40 years now, meticulously
promoting the various dance styles
of India. Fourteen dance schools
participated with over 580 second
generation Indian children in this
yearʼs competition. Audience was Aatma Performing Arts won the ʻBest of the Best' trophy and $1500 cash prize.
amazed by the enthralling and cap‑
tivating performances of the kids
in 26 different groups. This time,
at the request of incoming
President Srujal Parikh, FIA also Srujal Parikh
invited a group of special needs (third from
right), President
kids (SKN) to show their dancing
FIA‑tristate, and
moves. For their five minute per‑
his team were
formance everyone in the hall for‑ sworn in by
got that these kids have any limita‑ Consul General
tions. The all women team, led by Sandeep
Chairperson Jyoti Brahmbhatt, Chakravorty
behind DPC was commended by
Srujal Parikh.
 16 February 10-16, 2018 FASHION TheSouthAsianTimes.info

Lolling in lehengas at Lakme Fashion Week

Mumbai: There was a glut of glitz and glam‑
or at the Lakme Fashion Week Actress
Summer/Resort 2018 in Mumbai. The looks Tamannaah
Bhatia walked
̶ from edgy and cool separates to sophisti‑
in a gold
cated gowns weʼre sure to see on the next
embellished
red carpet best‑dressed list ̶ were breath‑
red lehenga
taking and immaculate. And of course, good from designer
or bad, Bollwyood stars have become a sta‑ Ashwini
ple at leading fashion shows in India in Reddyʼs collec‑
recent years. tion titled
Many regulars at fashion shows noted the Tilottama,
not‑to‑be‑missed dream‑worthy lehengas inspired by the
this season. While designers like Payal celestial beauty
Singhal and Reshma Kunhi dazzled us with of apsaras.
their head‑turning romantic lehengas in
dreamy chiffon and silk fabrics, beaded and Tennis star Sania
embroidered ensembles from Anushree
Mirza in a
signature blush
Reddy and House of Kotwara certainly had
pink‑hued
us wishing for the next wedding season to
creation by
come already. From a show‑stopping red designer
and gold‑hued Ashwini Reddy Anushree Reddy.
lehenga on actor The threadwork
Tamannaah Bhatia that and zardozi
gave serious ʻnew‑ embroidery with
age princessʼ vibes fine pearl and
to a heavily‑ sequin make
embellished this voluminous
Jayanti Reddy lehenga nothing
lehenga on
short of whimsy.
actor Shilpa
Shetty that
was just
complete
magic,
Upcoming
here are actress Kiara
our some Advani wore a
fav picks floral and
from the feminine
five day lehenga set
spectacular from designer
in early Julie Shah.
February.

(Photos IANS and

agencies)

Actress and TV personality Shilpa Shetty wore an OK this is not a lehenga, but eye catching
Actress Kriti Sanon was the ensemble sported by Taapsee Pannu,
exquisitely embroidered ivory lehenga with a
Former Miss Universe and film star Sushmita showstopper in a shimmery showstopper for Ritu Kumar, who displayed
scalloped hem and a matching beaded and
Sen stunned in a pristine white ensemble, don‑ dress for fashion designer her line, titled 'Hip Hop Baroque',
embellished blouse, teamed with a rich, ruffled
ning a bridal look, by Muzaffar and Meera Ali. Tarun Tahiliani. a blend of street and rap culture.
dupatta, from Jayanti Reddyʼs collection.
TheSouthAsianTimes.info FASHION February 10-16, 2018 17

Something for men too at LFW

Mumbai: After years of glamorous women's wear, designer duo Falguni and Shane Peacock debuted their menswear collection at the
Lakme Fashion Week Summer/Resort 2018 from Jan 31 to ‑Feb 4. Their showstopper was filmmaker Karan Johar, who walked sport‑
ing two jackets one after the other, and completed his look with silver hair. Titled Louche, the collection was inspired by the shiny era
of 1970s and constituted color pallet of grey, blingy black and dark blue and had ranged from sequined jackets, embellishments on
the bombers and 3‑piece suits. Here are four looks from menʼs designers at the LFW we liked. (Photos: IANS)

Fresh from his outing as a Rajput royal in

Padmaavat, Shahid Kapoor with his real life Former Indian football captain Bhaichung
Filmmaker Karan Johar, sporting silver A real life blue blood, Saif Ali Khan
wife Mira Rajput walked the ramp for fashion Bhutia walked the ramp for label Kuzu by
hair, was the showstopper for Falguni looked royal in an ensemble by
designer Anita Dongre. designer Karma Sonam.
and Shane Peacock. designer Shantanu & Nikhil.

World's largest river

island is in Assam
A
ssam's Majuli faces flood fury ‑‑ and
the threat of erosion ‑‑ whenever the
mighty Brahmaputra river swells. So
take a break from your high‑tech lifestyle
and hop on that double decker boat to live
the simple life in the world's largest river
island before it loses the title due to oero‑
sion.
Cruises on luxury vessels can take you to
your destination, but it is best to travel like
locals on a rickety motor boat, which can
also carry cars and bikes from Neemati ghat
to Kamalabari ghat.
After the half‑hour ferry ride, you will
reach the shrinking island, which is located
over 300 km from Guwahati, Assam's main
city, and is home to two lakh people.
Visitors can stay in various resorts, with
only basic amenities. While driving to your
accommodation, you will see paddy and
mustard fields, and bamboo plantations
along the roads.
Out of the various house forms, the bam‑
boo stilt houses ‑‑ with an open fireplace in
the middle ‑‑ of the Mishing tribe, are unique,
and you will see women working on looms
made with bamboos and a cycle's wheel.
Then there is this tradition of mask‑mak‑
ing. Explaining the process of mask‑making,
popular mask artiste Hem Chandra
Goswami's brother Tilak Goswami said: "The
masks are made of mud, cotton cloth, cow
dung and vegetable colours. One mask takes
about 15 to 20 days to make. Our entire fam‑
ily knows how to make masks. We have been
making masks for the last six generations."

TRAVEL

A view of Majauli, 352 sq km island on the river Brhamputra.

 18 February 10-16, 2018 ULTIMATE BOLLYWOOD TheSouthAsianTimes.info

KARNI SENA DECLARES Will Priyanka

WITHDRAWAL OF PROTEST be Markle's
AGAINST 'PADMAAVAT' bridesmaid?
I
ndian actress Priyanka Chopra, who has been
rumored to be one of the bridesmaid at actress
Meghan Markle's royal wedding with Prince
Harry, kept the speculation live by saying "people will
know if they see me".
The actress stayed tight‑lipped about the ceremony on
May 19 but was vocal about her belief that Markle will
help modernize the British monarchy, reports
usmagazine.com.
"She's an icon, truly, that girls can look up to, that
women can look up to. She's normal, she's sweet, she's
nice, she thinks about the world, wants to change it and
this was even before any of this happened," Priyanka
told Harper's Bazaar Arabia magazine. "So, I do think
Meghan being a part of the royal family is a big step in
the direction of so many things; of women, of feminism,
of diversity, of race, of the monarchy versus
Actress Deepika Padukone feasts over a Rajasthani thali as she celebrates
'Padmaavat's' success. everyone else…," added the "Quantico" star.
A file photo of actress Priyanka Chopra

T
On her being the bridesmaid, Priyanka said: "If
he Shri Rajput Karni Sena announced you see me there, you'll know."
at a wedding reception.
it has decided to take back its protest 'Padmaavat' crosses
against the release of Sanjay Leela Rs 150 cr in opening
Bhansali's "Padmaavat", stating the movie
glorifies the valor of the Rajputs.
week in India Tom Cruise ready to leave
Shri Rashtriya Rajput Karni Sena's
Mumbai leader Yogendra Singh Katar said
P admaavat" registered collections to
the tune of Rs 150 crore plus in its
opening week in India despite not releas‑
Scientology for daughter
that on the directions of organization's

A
ing in some states. ctor Tom Cruise is reportedly ready for divorce in July 2012, ending their five‑
national President Sukhdev Singh
The period drama had marched past the to leave Scientology as he and‑a‑half years of marriage.
Gogamadi, a few members watched the
Rs 100 crore figure in its opening weekend has not been able to meet Following her divorce from
movie in Mumbai, and found that that the
since releasing on January 25, with paid his daughter Suri for five years Tom, Holmes returned to the
movie glorifies the valor and sacrifice of
previews that gave its earning a Rs 5 crore due to the Church of Catholic Church.
Rajput and every Rajput will be feeling
jumpstart a day before. According to Scientology's strict rules. In September 2017, it was
proud after watching the film.
Viacom18 Motion Pictures, which pro‑ "If he wants her back, he'll reported that "Katie has grown
There is no such objectionable scene
duced the movie with BhansaliProductions, have to walk away from the so tired, disappointed, and frus‑
between Delhi Sultanate ruler Alauddin
"Padmaavat" had a cumulative collection of church, which has been a huge trated with Tom's absence as a
Khilji and Queen Padmini of Mewar which
Rs 155.5 crore till January 31. part of his life, to say the least. father". "Tom does not make
hurts the sentiments of Rajputs, he said in a
"'Padmaavat' is unstoppable. Crosses Rs Leaving Scientology would be time for Suri and she has
letter, declaring that the Karni Sena takes
150 crore mark," trade analyst Taran Hollywood actor Tom
back their protest and will help the adminis‑ the toughest decision he will learned to deal with not having
Adarsh tweeted. Cruise joined
tration to release the film in Rajasthan, ever have to make," a source her father around," said the
It has received mixed reviews, with some Scientology in 1990.
Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat as well as across told HollywoodLife magazine. source. Tom joined Scientology
appreciating the movie for its visual bril‑ His former wife and actress Katie Holmes in 1990 and has been an outspoken advo‑
all cinema houses in India.
liance and impeccable performances, while has full custody of Suri after the actress filed cate for the religion ever since.
The Karni Sena had been demanding a
some slamming it for glorifying the prac‑
ban on the period film on the grounds that
tice of Jauhar (self‑immolation) and for
queen Padmini in poor light. Sushmita walks to the tunes
it "distorts" historical facts and projects
showcasing Alauddin Khilji as demon‑like.

Aamir accepts 'Pad Man Challenge', of 'Umrao Jaan' at LFW

poses with sanitary pad
F
ormer beauty queen Sushmita Sen
was a delight to watch when she

S
uperstar Aamir Khan on accepted
the #PadManChallenge, sharing on
social media a photograph in which
he holds up a sanitary pad.
"Thank you Twinkle Khanna. Yes, that's a
pad in my hand and there's nothing to be
ashamed about. It's natural! Period. 'Pad
Man' challenge," Aamir tweeted.
The actor also challenged superstars Shah
Rukh Khan, Salman Khan and megastar
Amitabh Bachchan to complete the chal‑
lenge by holding a sanitary napkin and
sharing a photograph.
"Copy, paste this and Challenge your
friends to take a photo with a pad. Here I
am Challenging Amitabh Bachchan, Shah
Rukh Khan and Salman Khan," Aamir
added. The challenge comes close on the
heels of the release of "Pad Man", a film
revolving around menstrual cycles.
Directed by R. Balki, it stars Akshay Kumar,
close on the heels of ʻPad Manʼsʼ release.
Radhika Apte and Sonam Kapoor.
regally floated down the ramp on
"Umrao Jaan" hit song "In aankhon ki masti"
wearing a lehenga, glittering choli and
diaphanous dual dupattas by brand Kotwara
by Meera and Muzaffar Ali at Lakme
Fashion Week Summer/Resort 2018.
The designers showcased a collection
titled "Samanzar ‑ A Garden of Flowers" for
their Kotwara label.
Sushmita looked no less than a bride with
million dollar smile when she showed her
elegance on the runway while taking the
walk.
"Magical was the feeling while walking the
runway. I always love walking Athe runway
in Mumbai. I feel like I am home with my
family and people are hooting for me.
Looking royal is very easy with House of
Kotwara," she said.
Actor Aamir Khanʼs challenge comes Actress Sushmita Sen at the Lakme Fashion
Week Summer/Resort 2018.
TheSouthAsianTimes.info ULTIMATE BOLLYWOOD February 10-16, 2018 19

SRK, Katrina, Anushka Swara slams filmmaker for

take rickshaw ride his 'low and sick' comments
S
wara Bhasker has condemned film‑
maker Vivek Agnihotri as "low and
sick" after he suggested the actress
take a trip to Bastar, Chhattisgarh to under‑
stand "how the 'real vagina'" feels like.
Ever since Swara has, in a scathing com‑
ment on "Padmaavat", said that the film
made her feel reduced to a "vagina only"
due to the self‑immolation climax scene, she
has been heavily trolled on social media.
After her Twitter war of words with singer
Suchitra Krishnamoorthi, Swara faced the
ire of Agnihotri.
"We have interviewed many ʻex‑naxal'
women in Bastar. Each has gut‑wrenching
stories to tell, full of abuse, rape and misog‑
yny. If they marry, they aren't allowed to
have children. I think fake feminist Swara
Bhasker must make a trip to understand
how the 'real vagina' feels like," Agnihotri
wrote.
"What women need to understand that it's
because of the fake feminists like Swara that

S
Actors SRK, Anushka Sharma and Katrina Kaif will be seen in movie ʻZeroʼ.
uperstar Shah Rukh Khan went on a
rickshaw ride with his "Zero" co‑stars
Anushka Sharma and Katrina Kaif on
the set.
Shah Rukh tweeted a photograph in
which he is seen riding a rickshaw with
Katrina and Anushka as passengers. They
seem to be enjoying the ride.
"Best memories begin with insane ideas.
Girls taking me along for a ride called
'Zero'. Aanand L. Rai, Katrina and Anushka
Sharma," Shah Rukh captioned the image.
The three stars are shooting for film‑
maker Aanand L. Rai's upcoming movie
"Zero".
The film's teaser showcased Shah Rukh
as a vertically challenged man who seems
to be fond of Bollywood.
Red Chillies Entertainment and Colour
Yellow Productions have come together
for the film, produced by Gauri Khan. It
will release on December 21.
the feminist movement gets jeopardized.
You just can't piss off people and win the
most critical war of modern times ‑ the gen‑
der empathy," he added.
Swara replied: "I'm sorry did you just sug‑
gest that I go get myself raped? Like seri‑
ously? You typed out this tweet Vivek? I'd
say pretty low and sick even by your own
abysmal standards of conduct and civility."
At an event, Swara had justified herself for
raising questions through her open letter.
"I had a few questions in mind which I felt
Swara has been in the eye of a
storm following her comments
on film ʻPadmaavatʼ.
was very legit questions, so I asked it. If peo‑
ple do not agree, that's completely fine with
me. We live in a democracy, so it's a nice
thing that we have difference in opinions on
issues and I think we should have debate
and discussions because art always has that
intent," she said.

Working abroad is a blessing, A.R. Rahman's score to be

but tricky too: Nimrat Kaur played at Oscar Concert
A ctress Nimrat Kaur, who has fea‑
tured in international shows like
"Homeland" and "Wayward Pines",
says working abroad has its pros and cons
‑‑ but she has no complaints.
The actress, currently basking in the
glory of the success of her web series "The
Test Case", says she has not been fortunate
with projects getting over quickly and that
is the reason why her list of Bollywood
films is short.
In an interview before walking the Lakme
Fashion Week Spring‑Summer 2018 ramp,
Nimrat said: "I think what happens with me
or what's tricky with me is that I have the
opportunity to work abroad... This is both a
blessing or it can be a little tricky some‑
times because when you go abroad, you
give away more than half of your year here,
and to then come back and get into the
scheme of things takes time.
"That's the only thing that I struggle with
sometimes. I have given equal time abroad
and here, so what has happened is that the
projects that I have taken here, have taken
a little bit longer to culminate into their
final product.
"That's the only thing I need to balance.
But I think it's a good problem too and it is
not something that I ever complain about.
It does become tricky but it's not some‑
thing unwanted ever. I have not been fortu‑
nate with projects getting over very quick‑
ly." In "The Test Case", the actress plays an
Nimrat Kaur is known for movies like ʻThe
Lunchboxʼ and ʻAirliftʼ.
army officer named Shikha Sharma. She is
happy with the response.
"When I heard about web series, I really
found it very attractive as a proposition
because it is very rare where you get to be
part of a narrative that has the liberty to be
told over a period of four‑and‑a‑half to five
hours,” she said.
O
scar‑winning composer
A.R. Rahman's hit score
from "Slumdog Millionaire"
has been included in the line‑up
planned for the Oscar Concert.
In the run‑up to the 90th annual
Oscars, the Academy of Motion
Picture Arts and Sciences is collabo‑
rating with the Los Angeles
Philharmonic for The Oscar
Concert on February 28 at Walt
Disney Concert Hall, reports vari‑
ety.com.
It will include the world premiere
of suites arranged from all five orig‑
inal score Oscar nominees:
"Dunkirk" by Hans Zimmer,
"Phantom Thread" by Jonny
Greenwood, "The Shape of Water"
by Alexandre Desplat, "Star Wars:
The Last Jedi" by John Williams,
and "Three Billboards Outside
Ebbing, Missouri" by Carter
Burwell. Oscar‑winning composer
The Oscar Concert is
Michael Giacchino and Oscar‑win‑
scheduled for Feb 28.
ning director Pete Docter will also
present a live demonstration of the scor‑ Rachel Portman and Rahman, with
ing process, followed by musical selec‑ accompanying film clips.
tions from Pixar's "Up" and additional Indian music maestro Rahman
scores revolving around sounds of brought home two Oscars for the "Jai
home, fear, love, courage and the chase. ho" composition for British filmmaker
The L.A. Philharmonic will also play Danny Boyle's film "Slumdog
scores from famed composers including Millionaire" at the 81st Academy
Tan Dun, Quincy Jones, Mica Levi, Awards.
 20 February 10-16, 2018 DIASPORA TheSouthAsianTimes.info

Sikh soldiers to get new Steel tycoon to bid for French

war memorial in London
London: The UK government
has agreed to support and fund
a national memorial to honor
the sacrifices and contribution
of Sikh soldiers who fought for
Britain and its allies during the
two World Wars.
More than 83,000 turbaned
Sikh soldiers gave their lives and
more than 100,000 were
injured during the wars.
"We are indebted to all those
servicemen who volunteered to
serve and fought to defend the
freedoms we enjoy today," said
UK communities secretary Sajid
Javid as he announced govern‑
ment backing for the new
memorial in London.
"A Sikh war memorial in our
nation's capital will honor their
sacrifice and ensure that this
part of our shared history is
never forgotten. So, I'm delight‑
ed to get behind this campaign
and ensure its success," he said.
The campaign for a new Sikh
war memorial was led by
Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi,
The campaign was led by
Tanmanjeet Singh Dhesi,
Britain's first turbaned Sikh MP. party support from over 260
(Image courtesy: india.com)
Britain's first turbaned Sikh MP,
who now has the support of the
UK's Ministry of Housing,
Communities and Local
Government to help set up a
Working Group to find a suit‑
able location.
Once an appropriate site has
been identified and detailed
plans agreed, the ministry has
agreed to provide funding
assets to secure 1600 jobs
London: UK‑based Indian‑origin steel
tycoon Sanjeev Gupta's Liberty House
[French President] Macron government
make France an exciting and attractive
towards the project. "The part
Group is set to make an "unconditional place for industrial investors such as us
played by Sikh servicemen
and comprehensive offer" for the assets and we want to be part of the energetic
really stands out a contribu‑
of two flagship French steel new environment that is
tion that is all the more
businesses. emerging," he noted.
remarkable when you consid‑
The offer, to be made in Under the proposal,
er that these brave men trav‑
court next week, is aimed at Liberty has committed to
eled thousands of miles to
securing the jobs of close to protect the jobs of over
fight for a country that wasn't
1,600 employees at six 1,500 permanent employ‑
their own," said Javid.
operations across France, as ees and around 60 appren‑
Over 27,000 people had
well as many supplier jobs. tices and pursue a wide‑
signed an online petition by
Liberty plans to invest more ranging development plan
Dhesi, the Labor party MP for
than $ 366 millions over which complements its
Slough who also submitted an Sanjeev Gupta
five years to stabilize and existing specialty steels
Early Day Motion (EDM) in the (Image : abc.net.au)
grow the business, including business.
House of Commons on the
capital investment of $ 122 million to The company will apply its GreenSteel
issue, which attracted cross‑
upgrade the sites and expand output. sustainable production strategy to the
MPs.
"The market synergies between Asco French operations utilizing recycled
Industries and our existing specialty metal in the manufacture of technically
"Given that the Sikh communi‑
steels business are compelling and we advanced and engineering products.
ty, which is very proud of its mil‑
know that, by working together and Liberty's latest announcement follows
itary traditions, there has been a
complementing each other in the mar‑ a recent statement that the company
demand for more than a decade
ket, both businesses will grow and pros‑ has made a binding offer to acquire the
for a Sikh memorial in a prime
per," Gupta said. 570‑worker Aluminium Dunkerque ‑
central location in London,"
He said the move will lead to Liberty, Europe's largest aluminium smelter ‑
Dhesi said. "Britain owes a huge
part of a wider GFG Alliance, imple‑ from Rio Tinto as part of a 2‑billion‑
debt to the Sikh service men and
menting its GreenSteel and euro investment that will create thou‑
women who fought alongside
GreenAluminium strategies in France. sands of new jobs at the site and in the
British troops in the First and
"The pro‑business policies of the wider economy. (PTI)
Second World Wars.

Indian‑origin principal
attacked for Hijab ban gets
UK government support
London: An Indian‑origin school principal, who
was likened to German dictator Adolf Hitler for
banning wearing hijab by girls under eight, got
crucial support from the UK's schools watchdog
which said it will back heads who take "tough
decisions" in the interests of their pupils.
Principal of the east London's St Stephen's
School, Neena Lall had last month decided to
impose a the ban on girls under eight on the
grounds that Islamic teaching did not require
girls to wear it until reaching puberty.
But she was forced to reverse decision after a
social media campaign, which included her being
likened to German dictator Adolf Hitler.
The school in a statement said that the decision
has been reversed, a move that followed the resig‑
nation of the chair of governors, Arif Qawi.
Speaking in favour of Lall, chief of the Office for
Standards in Education, Children's Services and
Skills (Ofsted), Amanda Spielman warned that
religious extremists were "perverting" education.
Ofsted is a non‑ministerial department of the UK
government, reporting to Parliament. "I want to
be absolutely clear, Ofsted will always back heads
who take tough decisions in the interests of their
pupils," Spielman said in a speech to a Church of
England schools conference.
Olympics-bound Dutch skater Anice Das
to visit India in search of her biological mother
I
tʼs a story straight out of a Bollywood
potboiler and could well have a happy
ending given the protagonistʼs resolve.
Mumbai‑born Dutch speed skater Anice
Das, who will be in action for her adopted
country during next monthʼs Winter
Olympics, is planning to visit the country
of her origin in search of her biological
parents after giving her best in South
Korea.
The resolve to find her mother got
stronger after the 32‑year‑old topped the
500m race at Winter Olympics qualifying
event in The Netherlands. Anice has never
been to India ever since she was adopted
by a Dutch couple as an eight‑month‑old
along with her twin sister.
It was only when she turned 5, Anice
learnt about her roots in Mumbai from her
foster parents. All the concerted efforts of
the twins to find their biological mother
eversince have not yielded much success
and they are now determined to take the
search to where it all started.
“I think at the age of 5 or 6. Our parents
spoke about it with us it was very natural
and kind. Weʼve tried to find our biological
Anice Das
(image courtesy: wikimedia.org)
mother through a Dutch TV program,
unfortunately without success. After this
Olympic season we will plan our trip to
India and of course, our birth city
Mumbai,” Anice told PTI.
She never visited India all these years
and hardly has any memory of her family,
so why take the emotional journey now?
“It is right that I have not visited yet but I
feel a strong connection with India. Our
roots are there and we still have family in
Mumbai (which we will find),” she says.
Anice says she is very close to her twin
sister, who could have been an athlete like
her. She says their Dutch parents donʼt
seem like ʻfoster parentsʼ. In fact, they are
very supportive of the twinsʼ desire to
trace their roots in India.
Aniceʼs appearance is very Indian but to
spot the inseparable connect with India,
her ʻBengaliʼ last name Das should be
enough. But it turns out to be a common
Dutch surname.
“The story about our last name Das is
easy. Our father is called Karel Herman
Das and he married our mother; Ria
Domburg (now Ria Das Domburg).”
For now, all her focus is on the
Pyeongchang Games from February 9‑25.
A medal could be a long shot so the aim is
to be her personal best.
“To beat my personal best. That is 38.42
(at sea level), the time I skated at the quali‑
fications. My personal best in general (on a
track at high altitude) is 37.8. It would be
fantastic to beat that time of course,” she
concludes. (PTI)
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
Maldives Army surrounds Parliament 4 Indian soldiers killed
amidst political turmoil
Male: The Maldives Army sur‑
rounded the island's Parliament
as opposition lawmakers tried to
make their way into the premises
following the resignation of the
Parliamentary Secretary General.
The media reported that some
opposition lawmakers had been
allowed to enter the premises,
despite the heavy military pres‑
ence, Xinhua reported.
Parliamentary Secretary General
Ahmed Mohamed announced his
resignation without citing any
specific reason. The move came
after the first parliamentary ses‑
sion for 2018 was cancelled
indefinitely due to security con‑
cerns. The Maldives has been
On I-Day, Sri Lanka vows to
achieve economic freedom
Colorful celebrations mark Sri Lankaʼs 70th Independence Day.
Colombo: Sri Lanka celebrated
the 70th anniversary of its
Independence here on Feb 4 with
grand military parades and atten‑
dance of political leaders.
Sri Lanka tri‑forces held a col‑
orful grand parade along the
Galle Road, close to the Colombo
Harbour to celebrate the 70th
anniversary of independence
from British colonial rule in
1948, Xinhua reported.
In his speech, President
Maithripala Sirisena said Sri
Lanka would gain complete inde‑
pendence only after achieving
complete economic and cultural
SUBCONTINENT
in Pakistan firing on LoC
The
parliamentary
session was
cancelled
indefinitely
due to
security
concerns.
‘President not attempting to flee country’
Male: Maldives President Yameen Abdul Gayoom is not attempting
to flee the country, his spokesperson has said, refuting rumors
that the leader was planning on travelling to Singapore amid the
turmoil after the top court's landmark order to free former
President Mohamed Nasheed along with other high‑profile prison‑
ers. Gayoom's spokesperson Ibrahim Muaz Ali tweeted that the
"talk was all false and that the picture of a ticket being spread in
the social media, purportedly belong to President Yameen, was fal‑
sified". He called "the rumors a deliberate attempt to spread fear
and panic".
plunged into a fresh round of Attorney General Mohamed Anil
political turmoil after the told reporters that the govern‑
Supreme Court ordered the imme‑ ment has received information
diate release of jailed political that a Supreme Court order to
leaders including self‑‑exiled for‑ arrest President Yameen was
mer president Mohamed Nasheed. imminent.
OLI, SUSHMA PLEDGE TO
BETTER NEPAL‑INDIA TIES
Kathmandu: Indian External Affairs
Minister Sushma Swaraj wrapped
up her two‑day political visit to
Nepal where she got wide assur‑
ance that the new government in
Kathmandu, set to be headed by
CPN‑UML chief K.P. Sharma Oli, will
work closely with New Delhi.
India's outreach to Nepal's Prime
Minister in waiting Oli, with whom
Sushma Swaraj held two meetings,
saw both sides agreeing to work
together for the betterment of
Nepal‑India relations in the "new
changed context".
freedom. The year 2018 will be a
The assurance of betterment in
crucial year for Sri Lanka in
ties came during her three impor‑
achieving economic freedom, and tant political engagements in
the government must ensure the Kathmandu where she met key
country achieves its long term political actors of Nepal ‑ K.P Oli,
goals, said the president. Pushpa Kamal Dahal 'Prachanda',
"We must remember that true chairman of the CPN(Maoist
freedom does not comprise only Center), and Madhes based leaders
of political freedom. As a country, ‑ who are respectively forming gov‑
our future successes lie in our ernments at the Centre and seven
commitment to achieving long Provinces. Two Madhes‑based par‑
term goals with firm determina‑ ties will form government in
tion, as we have done in the past," Province no 2 at the Madhesi heart‑
Sirisena said. He paid tribute to land.
the patriots who had sacrificed The objective of Sushma Swaraj's
their lives in achieving the coun‑ visit was to reach out to Oli, who
try's freedom over the years. has had a "patchy and acrimonious"
February 10-16, 2018 21
Jammu: Four Indian
soldiers, including a
22‑year‑old officer,
were killed and four
other persons were
injured in Pakistani fir‑
ing on the Line of
Control (LoC) in
Jammu and Kashmir's
Rajouri and Poonch
districts, Army officials
said.
Indian Army also said
that "heavy damage"
was inflicted on An Indian Army jawan takes position
as India, Pakistan trade fire.
Pakistan Army posts in
retaliatory action. from Haryana's Gurugram, he is
A statement said Pakistan survived by his mother Sunita.
Army initiated "unprovoked" and The others were Riflemen
"indiscriminate" firing around Ramavatar, 27 from Baraka vil‑
3.30 p.m. in Bhimber Gali sector lage in Madhya Pradesh's
in Rajouri. Gwalior, Subham Singh, 23 from
"Indian Army retaliated strong‑ Jammu and Kashmir's Kathua,
ly and effectively and heavy and Havilder Roshan Lal, 43 of
damage has been inflicted on Jammu and Kashmir's Samba.
Pakistani Army posts," said a "Martyrdom of Indian Army
defense statement. soldiers will not go in vain. The
"However, in the exchange of unprovoked action by Pakistani
fire, one officer and three jawans Army will be given a befitting
were grievously injured and suc‑ response," the statement added.
cumbed to their injuries..." According to Indian army offi‑
The killed soldiers include cials, the firing started around
Captain Kapil Kundu, who would 11 am with Pakistani soldiers
have celebrated his 23rd birth‑ using small arms, automatics
day on February 10. Hailing and mortars.
Indian External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj and
Nepal's PM‑in‑waiting K.P. Sharma Oli.
relationship with India since 2015, together for the betterment of the
and who New Delhi is apprehensive Nepal‑India relations in the new
may tilt towards China as he had changed context. While congratu‑
done during his last tenure as lating the UML for its victory and
Prime Minister. people's mandate, Sushma Swaraj
Oli held one‑on‑one meeting with extended congratulations to the
Sushma Swaraj for over an hour UML and its leadership saying that
and held delegation level talks with Nepal is getting a stable govern‑
top UML brass, demonstrating his ment and we want to work with the
desire to mend ties with India in new government in Nepal," he said.
the changed context. Sushma Swaraj expressed pleas‑
UML's secretary Pradip Gywali ure over the successful holding of
put out the perspectives of the out‑ elections at the local levels,
come of the meeting. "Both Oli and Provincial Assembly and Federal
Sushma have agreed to work Parliament in Nepal.
 22 February 10-16, 2018 INTERNATIONAL TheSouthAsianTimes.info

Thousands protest in Greece Kuwait assumes UNSC

over Macedoniaʼs name
People were seen brandishing national flags outside the Greek parliament.
Athens: Hundreds of thousands of people of
all ages came out in protest in the Greek
capital Athens over a long‑running dispute
with a neighboring country whose official
name includes the word "Macedonia".
Protesters flocked to Athens from all over
the country, on buses chartered by local
bishops and mayors, in cars and on public
transport, Efe news agency reported.
Amid shouts of "Macedonia is Greece,
Greece is Macedonia" and "Hands of f
Macedonia," the demonstrators expressed
their rejection of any possible solution to a
dispute with the government of the Former
Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia that
involved using the word "Macedonia", a
presidency, invites
Palestine to address it
United Nations: Kuwait, which assumed the bership in the Council "include of course
presidency of the Security Council, is invit‑ the issues of our region as we are the Arab
ing Palestine President representative and the
Mahmoud Abbas to closest to them geo‑
address the top decision‑ graphically, including ‑
making body of the UN. Palestine, Iraq, Syria,
Abbas is scheduled to Yemen, Libya," Al‑Otaibi
address the Council on said.
February 20, at a Council Abbas will be speaking
session on the Middle to the Council at a time
East, Kuwait's Permanent of heightened tension
Representative Mansour between the US and the
term they see belonging exclusively to the Ayyad Al‑Otaibi told the Palestinians following
northern Greek region of the same name. media after he took over President Donald
Scores of people were seen brandishing the leadership of the Trump's decision in
national flags outside the Greek parliament Council. December to recognize
building in Syntagma Square. He said that it would Jerusalem as the capital
Among those present at the rally were "be a good thing" for of Israel and move his
Council members to hear Palestinian President Mahmoud country's embassy there.
leader the far‑right Golden Dawn party
Nikolaos Michaloliakos and former the Palestinian President Abbas will be speaking at a time of After Trump
in person. "He is the heightened tension between the announced his decision,
Conservative Prime Minister, Andonis US and Palestine.
Samaras, as well as bishops and mayors. President of the state Abbas said that
Police put the number of participants at and he is directly concerned by the topic Washington can no longer play a mediat‑
about 140,000, while the organizers esti‑ that will be discussed." ing role in the region, putting an end for
mated 1.5 million had turned out for the Kuwait, which won election to the now to the initiative launched by Trump
action. Since FYROM declared its independ‑ Council in June 2017, is returning to it through his son‑in‑law Jared Kushner to
ence in 1991, Greece has been opposed to after 40 years and is the sole Arab mem‑ broker a peace between Israel and the
its official name. ber. The priorities set for Kuwait's mem‑ Palestinians.

US statements on Russia's N Korea earned $200m

nuclear posture slammed flouting sanctions: UN report
Moscow: Russia has rejected
Washington's statements New York: North Korea earned ted to the UN Security Council, said North Korea "is already flouting the
made in its 2018 Nuclear $200 million last year by exporting the North "continued to export most recent resolutions by exploit‑
Posture Review that banned commodities in breach of almost all the commodities prohibit‑ ing global oil supply chains, com‑
Moscow refuses to further international sanctions, according ed in the resolutions... between plicit foreign nationals, of fshore
decrease its nuclear capabil‑ to a UN report. January and September 2017". company registries and the interna‑
ities. The report by a panel of experts It said shipments of coal had been tional banking system", the docu‑
"While just having a flick said many countries including delivered to China, Malaysia, South ment stated.
through the document, one China, Russia and Malaysia had Korea, Russia and Vietnam in Monitors also suggested that
can not ice that its con‑ failed to stop the illegal exports, the breach of sanctions using "a combi‑ Pyongyang supplied weapons to
frontational charge and anti‑ BBC reported. nation of multiple evasion tech‑ Syria and Myanmar.
Russian focus stare in the Pyongyang is subject to sanctions niques, routes and deceptive tac‑ "Myanmar and Syria continued to
face," the Russian Foreign from the US, UN and EU over its tics". co‑operate with North Korea's main
Russian President Vladimir Putin.
Ministry said in a statement, nuclear and ballistic missile pro‑ China has consistently denied arms exporter, Komid, despite it
Xinhua news agency reported. "The of negotiated reductions and to grams. breaching sanctions. being on a UN sanctions blacklist,"
document's statement that Russia pursue reductions in non‑strategic But the report, which was submit‑ Investigators highlighted that the report said.
allegedly refuses to further reduce nuclear forces," it added.
its nuclear capabilities is yet anoth‑ The Russian Foreign Ministry
er example of the blatant 'falsifica‑ said it has nothing in common with
tion'," the statement said. the actual state of af fairs.
The US said in its 2018 Nuclear "Certainly, we will be compelled to
Posture Review that Russia contin‑ take into considerat ion the
ues to violate a series of arms con‑ approaches introduced now by
trol treaties and commitments. Washington and to take necessary
"In the nuclear context, the most steps in order to ensure own secu‑ North Korean
significant Russian violat ion rity," it noted. leader Kim
involves a system banned by the The Russian Foreign Ministry Jong Un
(center) with
Intermediate‑range Nuclear Forces urged the US to "team up to look
Korean
Treaty," said the 74‑page US for solutions to the problems that
People's Army
nuclear policy report. have been accumulating in the
Tank Crew.
"In a broader context, Russia is field of strategic stability."
either rejecting or avoiding its obli‑ The US report reaffirms commit‑
gations and commitments under ments to non‑proliferation treaties
numerous agreements, and has but emphasizes the need to
rebuf fed US ef forts to follow the enhance capabilities to match with
New Strategic Arms Reduction Russia, showing supports for US
Treaty (START) with another round nuclear modernization projects.
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
U19 World Cup: Manjot
guides clinical India to win
Tauranga (New Zealand):
Promising opener Manjot Kalra
played a starring role with an
unbeaten century as India over‑
powered Australia by eight wick‑
ets in the final to claim the ICC
U19 World Cup for a record
fourth time here.
The opener batted through the
innings for his 101 runs off 102
deliveries as the Indians romped
past the modest target of 217
runs with 67 balls to spare.
T he Indians were dominant
throughout the tournament, win‑
ning all their six matches in com‑
prehensive fashion on their way
to the title.
Harvik Desai played an excellent
supporting role at the other end
and was not out on 47 runs off 61
balls. Desai brought up the title
win in style, smashing a boundary
of f Australian pacer Will
Sutherland through the off‑side.
Kalra was adjudged the man of
the match while compatriot
Shubman Gill took home the play‑
er of the tournament award.
Indiaʼs South African success
By Shivaji Sengupta
T
wo matches into the 6‑
match ODI series, and after
completing a highly com‑
petitive Test Match series, India
seems to be living up to its resolve
that this time around they are
going to stay toe‑to‑toe and slug it
out on foreign soil. They lost a
very close Test series 2‑1. In the
ODIs, they are up 2‑0, backing up
the constant refrain that we hear
from the Indian cricket manage‑
ment that the Indian team, playing
abroad, will be far stronger this
time around.
Up to now, their reputation as
tourists has been tenuous at best.
The last five years has been better
than the last 10. Under Dhoni their
record of victories abroad read
just six, against 13 losses includ‑
ing 0‑4 ag ainst Eng land and
Australia. Recently, under Virat
Kohli, India has won eight Tests on
foreign soil. Some of this may be
the luck of the draw (pun intend‑
ed). When Dhoni captained India,
teams like Sri Lanka and the West
Indies were a lot stronger than
they are now. Nevertheless, Kohliʼs
Indian team seems to be far more
aggressive in its approach to the
game than Dhoniʼs was.
Cricket enthusiasts, and not just
from India, were buzzing in antici‑
pation of Indiaʼs tour of South
Manjot Kalra played a starring role with an unbeaten century at 101.
"Great feeling. Enjoyed a lot.
Conditions were very good. It was
a flat wicket to bat on. In the
team, it's been a great environ‑
ment," an overjoyed Kalra told the
media after the final.
India thus became the first
nation to win the ICC U19 World
Cup four times. They had earlier
Indian skipper Virat Kohli celebrates his half century during the 1st ODI
match between India and South Africa in Durban. (Photo: BCCI/IANS)
Africa. India happens to be the No.
1 team in the world in Test Cricket,
South Africa, 2. In ODIs, South
Africa is No. 1, and India, 2. So you
can appreciate why this series of
cricket matches in all three for‑
mats (the last one being T‑20).
India had played the last 13 Tests
at home where they are almost
unbeatable.
Those who question Indiaʼs No. 1
status were even more interested
in seeing their performance in
South Africa. There was one more
caveat: the Indian team, historical‑
ly, has been notoriously suscepti‑
ble to quality fast bowling. And
Proteas have some of the worldʼs
SPORTS
won the title in 2000, 2008 and
2012.
Australia are second on the list
with three titles.
T his is the second time that
India have defeated Australia in
the final. They had earlier defeat‑
ed the boys from Down Under in
the final of the 2012 edition.
most lethal pacers. Finally, they
were humiliated losing 0‑3 in India
recently, succumbing to wily spin
bowling.
Cricket pundits were sitting up
on their ring‑side seats to watch
this battle.
Well, itʼs true, Kohliʼs men lost
the Test series, 2‑1; but all three
Tests were keenly, and evenly,
fought. In the first Test India came
oh‑so‑close to winning, but they
collapsed for 135 in the fourth
inning when the pitch was “a mine
field” for batsmen. In the second
Test, too, the home team was
ahead by only 28 runs in the first
inning. The second inning, howev‑
February 10-16, 2018
Philadelphia Eagles
won Super Bowl
Minneapolis: The Eagles defeated
the Patriots with final score of
41‑33, winning their first ever
Super Bowl championship on
Sunday. Eagles fans swarm the
streets to celebrate team's victo‑
ry over Patriots.
The Patriots were 4.5 favorites
to beat the Eagles. If they had
won, they would have walked
away with the franchise's sixth
Super Bowl championship.
Patriots erased a 29‑19 third‑
quarter deficit to take a 33‑32
lead early in the fourth quarter.
Brady threw three second‑half
touchdowns to spark the rally.
er, was no contest. India lost by
135 runs. But it was in the third
Test, amidst sharp criticism by the
press and nay‑sayers, with the
series gone, that the Indian team
came back and snatched victory by
63 runs. So, the series ended the
same way as with the past Indian
teams – by losing. After all the pos‑
turing by Ravi Shastri, the coach,
the result was no different from
that of the past Indian teams.
Or is it so?
I beg to differ. There were three
notable dif ferences that separate
this team than the ones in the past.
This team is far superior in ground
fielding, running and catching than
anything I have seen in recent
years. Players are far more physi‑
cally fit than their previous coun‑
terparts. Secondly, cricket lovers
everywhere are sitting up and
noticing Indiaʼs battery of five fast
bowlers, a first. Yes, there have
been the Zaheer Khans, Sreenaths
and the Sreesanths, but four fast
bowlers in the team, relentlessly
attacking – the Proteas were not
totally prepared for it. Their cap‑
tain said after the last Test that
“these fast bowlers are very, very
good.” And finally, the third big dif‑
ference is the captain himself,
Virat Kohli.
Kohliʼs energy, aggression, skill
as a fielder, batsman and captain,
were definitely factors in shaping
23
After the Patriots took their
first lead of the game, at 33‑32
with 9:22 remaining, the Eagles
could have wilted. But quarter‑
back Nick Foles led the Eagles on
a 14‑play, 75 yard touchdown
drive to retake the lead with 2:21
remaining on an 11‑yard pass
from Foles to tight end Zach Ertz.
Nick Foles started this season
as a backup quarterback, and he
ended it as Super Bowl MVP.
Foles threw for 373 yards and
three touchdowns, with one
interception (that was not his
fault) and also caught a touch‑
down in the Eagles upset win.
The Eagles
defeated the
Patriots with
final score of
41‑33,
winning
their first ever
Super Bowl
championship.
this Indian team. For instance, in
the three Tests, over six innings,
there was only one century: Kohliʼs
153 in Cape Town. (He followed it
up with another unbeaten century
in the first ODI which India won.)
He is leading the team with verve,
excellent planning and execution.
He plays only to win. While Dhoni
used to talk about process, Kohli
emphasizes results. For him, the
only result is victory. Losing is
very tough for him. He can be
magnanimous as he did after the
loss to Pakistan in the Championʼs
Trophy final; he can keep up a
brave face after a shocking loss to
Australia in Bengaluru. But here in
South Africa, he was angry after
losing the first two Tests. Some
would say, he was angry at the
reporters. True, but I would attrib‑
ute his anger to losing. “There is a
sort of madness,” he said, “that
drives you to win even in the most
adverse conditions. We need that
madness.”
With people like Kohli at the
helm, Indian cricket is rising. Far
away in New Zealand, almost on
the other side of the world, Indian
cricketers under 19 brought home
the World Cup last week. T he
Indian womenʼs team beat both
Australia and England (two former
champions) in the ICC Trophy last
summer. They lost in the final
against Eng land, the eventual
champions. Kohli is not directly
responsible for all of this success.
But he has probably inspired
Indian cricket in general for it to
climb these heights.
 24 February 10-16, 2018 INDIA’S UNION BUDGET TheSouthAsianTimes.info

FM Jaitley extends sops to poor,

squeezes middle class in budget
New Delhi: With an eye on the
next Lok Sabha elections, Finance
Minister Arun Jaitley in his 2018‑
19 budget proposed a major
health insurance scheme for the
poor, a higher minimum support
price and a step up of Rs 1 lakh
crore as institutional credit for
farmers along with a spend of
nearly Rs 6 lakh crore on infra‑
structure development.
To pay for this seeming bout of
generosity, albeit with votebanks
in mind, the finance minister has
mopped up huge sums through
three or four simple steps, mostly
aimed at the middle class. While
providing some sops to salaried
individuals and pensioners, it has
aimed to raise Rs 11,000 crore by
increasing cess on income of indi‑
viduals, from three to four per
cent. Additionally, it has aimed to
raise money by imposing a 10 per
cent Social Welfare Surcharge on
all imported goods.
At the same time, the finance
minister has eyed the share‑own‑
ing and investing class by remov‑
ing an exemption on long term
capital gains to possibly raise
over Rs 36,000 crore in a full year
‑‑ by taxing at 10 per cent shares
ise before coming to power in
2014, the Finance Minister
announced that the Minimum
Support Price (MSP) for unan‑
nounced kharif crops will be 1.5
times the input cost and stepped
up the institutional credit for the
sector to Rs 11 lakh crore ‑‑ 1 lakh
crore more than last year.
Leaving the individual taxation
slabs and rates untouched, Jaitley
in his last full budget before the
2019 elections proposed to rein‑
troduce a standard deduction of
Rs 40,000 for salaried tax payers
in lieu of present exemption of
transport allowance and reim‑
bursement of miscellaneous med‑
Finance Minister Arun Jaitley addresses a press conference after the
presentation of Union Budget 2018‑19, in New Delhi. (Photo: IANS) ical expenses that will involve a
revenue sacrifice of Rs 8,000
he ld for more than a year, Similarly, the Social Welfare crore to benefit 2.5 crore people.
exempting only profit of up to Rs Surcharge of 10 per cent on all In a bid to help senior citizens,
1 lakh. The stock markets reacted customs duties replaces the edu‑ the budget proposes to increase
sharply initially to the move, later cation cess on imported goods. He the exemption of interest income
recovering. also raised the customs duty on on deposits with banks and post
The four per cent health and mobile phones by 5 per cent to 20 offices from Rs 10,000 to 50,000
eduction cess replaces the 2 per per cent. He also levied a 15 per and there will be no TDS deducted
cent cess for primary education cent duty on some of the parts on them. T he limit for health
and 1 per cent cess for secondary and accessories of mobile phones insurance premium and medical
and higher education on individu‑ and TV sets to promote creation expenditure w ill go up to Rs
als and corporates to take care of of more jobs under the "Make in 50,000 from Rs 30,000.
the needs of education and health India" program. In keeping w ith his earlier
of BPL and rural families. In line with the BJP's poll prom‑ announcement of reducing corpo‑
rate taxation rate, the Finance
Minister reduced the rate for all
companies with turnover of up to
Rs 250 crore, up from Rs 50
crore. He said this would take care
of almost 99 per cent of the com‑
panies and would have a negative
impact of Rs 7,000 crore on gov‑
ernment finances. Only about 250
companies would have a turnover
above the cut‑off level and would
continue to pay 30 per cent tax.
An ID on lines of Aadhaar would
also be set up for companies,
Jaitley said.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi
hailed the Finance Minister for
presenting an all‑friendly budget
2018‑19 with the focus on agri‑
culture, health and small busi‑
nesses. "This budget is farmer‑
friendly, common citizen‑friendly,
business environment‑friendly
and development‑friendly."
The Finance Minister indicated
a slippage in fiscal deficit for the
current year revising it from 3.2
per cent to 3.5 per cent and from
3 per cent to 3.3 per cent (Rs 5.95
lakh crore) of the GDP next year,
implying that the government will
be borrowing more to balance its
books.

Chidambaram Railways get largest‑ever

slams Union
Budget
New Delhi: Congress leader P. Chidambaram
slammed the Union Budget, terming the prom‑
ise of Rs 5 lakh for health care for poor fami‑
lies as "a big jumla", and said there was
"tokenism" on creating jobs and nothing to
indicate rise in farmers income.
There was also no tax relief to the average
tax payer and no measures to boost exports
while expressing his disappointment about
some major schemes having reduced outlays.
"It is the last full budget of this government,
and I should add ʻthank god for that," the for‑
mer Union Finance Minister told reporters
here. Referring to the proposed national health
protection scheme, he said it will entail huge
expenditure but no money has been provided
for it.
"The promise of Rs 5 lakh per family for sec‑
ondary and tertiary healthcare is a big 'jumla'.
T he target g roup is 10 crore families.
Assuming each family will avail of Rs 50,000 ‑
one tenth of Rs 5 lakh ‑ the amount required
per year will be Rs 5 lakh crore," he said.
He said if the insurance companies will foot
the bill, the estimated premium at Rs 5,000 to
Rs 15,000 per family will require an outgo
from Rs 50,000 crore to Rs 1.5 lakh crore per
year. "Is the Finance Minister serious?" he
asked.
allocation of Rs 1.48 lakh crore
New Delhi: Stressing on boosting the safety
aspect of Railways and its carrying capaci‑
ty, Finance Minister Arun Jaitley
announced the largest‑ever allocation of Rs
1.48 lakh crore capital expenditure for the
Indian Railways in 2018‑19.
"Railways capex for 2018‑19 has been
pegged at Rs 1,48,528 crore," Jaitley said in
his Budget speech. T he amount is Rs
17,000 crore higher than the previous
year's budget.
In 2017‑18 Union Budget, the total capex
of Railways was pegged at Rs 1,31,000
crore. Jaitley said that modern‑train sets
with state‑of‑the‑art amenities and features
would be commissioned during 2018‑19. The 92‑year‑old practice of a separate Railway Budget was discontinued from
The 92‑year‑old practice of a separate last year and was merged with the Union Budget.
Railway Budget was discontinued from last
ment in the achievement of physical targets trains will be progressively provided with
year and was merged with the Union
by railways. We are moving fast towards wifi," he said.
Budget.
optimal electrification of railway network. The government will also install CCTVs
The Finance Minister said that enhancing
About 4,000 km are targeted for commis‑ at all stations and on trains to enhance
the carrying capacity has been a major
sioning during 2017‑18," he said. security of passengers.
focus of the government. "A large part of
The Finance Minister said that work on Speaking about the 508 km Mumbai‑
the capex is devoted to railways capacity
the Eastern and Western Dedicated Freight Ahmedabad High Speed Rail Project, Jaitley
creation," he said.
Corridors was also in full swing. said, "Foundation for the bullet train proj‑
"Doubling of 18,000 km and work on
The Finance Minister said that redevelop‑ ect, country's first high speed rail project,
5,000 km of third and fourth lines to con‑
ment of 600 major railway stations is being was laid on September 14, 2017.
vert them into broad gauge will eliminate
taken up by Indian Railway Station "An Institute is coming up at Vadodara
capacity constraint. It will also transform
Development Corporation Limited. "All sta‑ (Gujarat) to train manpower required for
almost the entire network into broad
tions with more than 25,000 footfalls will high speed rail projects," the Finance
gauge," Jaitley said.
have escalators. All railway stations and Minister added.
"There has also been significant improve‑
TheSouthAsianTimes.info BUSINESS & IMMIGRATION February 10-16, 2018 25

Global cues unleash bears, Jerome Powell sworn

Sensex plunges
Mumbai: A massive downturn in the US and
East Asian stock markets unleashed a sell‑
ing frenzy in the Indian equity markets dur‑
ing the morning trade session on February
6. The two main indices of the Indian equity
market ‑‑ S&P BSE Sensex and NSE Nifty50 ‑
‑ corrected by around 3.30 per cent each,
with the Sensex plunging by over 1,000
points.
Market observers pointed‑out that factors
like the budgetary proposal to tax long‑term
gains on shares and concerns over the cen‑
tral government's fiscal prudence measures
amplified the global downturn.
Just after the pre‑open session, the barom‑
eter 30‑scrip Sensitive Index of the BSE
traded more than 1,000 points or 2.90 per
cent lower from Monday's close.
Similarly, the wider Nifty50 of the
National Stock Exchange receded deep into
the red. It plunged by over 300 points or
3.00 per cent.
At 10.30 a.m., the Sensex traded lower by
1,074.79 points or 3.09 per cent to
33,682.37 points from its previous close of
34,757.16 points.
The NSE Nifty50 traded lower by 320.80
points or 3.01 per cent at 10,345.75 points.
"The unprecedented downfall in Dow yes‑
terday (Monday) and combination of other
negative factors like the high fiscal deficit
projected and proposal on LTCG and fear of
the stand that the RBI (Reserve Bank of
More "volatility" was expected on the
Indian stock market.
India) will take during Wednesday's review
has led to this melt‑down or selling panic,"
Deepak Jasani, Head, Retail Research, HDFC
Securities, told IANS.
According to Dhruv Desai, Director and
Chief Operating Officer of Tradebulls, more
"volatility" is expected and can last till
Thursday.
in as US Fed chief
Washington: Jerome Powell took the
oath of office as Chairman of the US
Federal Reserve, succeeding Janet
Yellen.
"Today, unemployment is low, the
economy is growing, and inflation is low.
Through our decisions on monetary pol‑
icy, we will support continued economic
growth, a healthy job market, and price
stability," said Powell after being sworn
in to lead the US central bank, Xinhua
news agency reported.
Powell, who is the 16th person to hold
the position, was nominated by US
President Donald Trump in November
last year. US Senate approved him in late
Jerome Powell
(Right) takes
the oath of
office as
Chairman of
the US Federal
Reserve,
succeeding
Janet Yellen, in
Washington.
(Xinhua/Ting
Shen/IANS)
January to lead the central bank in a
term of four years.
"My colleagues and I will remain vigi‑
lant, and we are prepared to respond to
evolving risks," Powell said.
The new Fed head faces an immediate
challenge from the wobbly market, as
the US stocks opened sharply lower on
Monday after a heavy sell‑off on Friday.
One of the worries from the market is
that the Fed, under Powell, will acceler‑
ate its interest rate hikes, undermining
the momentum of a bull market.
Economists widely expect the Fed to
hike interest rates three times this year,
with the first coming in March.

Voluntary departure: Does it do more harm than good?

By Michael Phulwani, Esq. & If a foreign national chooses to and the immigrant may argue that not leaving the U.S. will not apply.
Dev B. Viswanath, Esq. accept voluntary departure they they are not subject to the conse‑ INA § 240B(d)(2) also allows
should earnestly be focused on quences of overstaying. If an immi‑ Violence Against Women Act self‑

V TALK
oluntary departure is an
order allowing an immigrant
to depart from the United
States by a certain day without an
order of removal. Meaning that the
foreign national may “Voluntarily
Depart” the U.S. without carrying
the ramifications of a deportation
order. A voluntary departure may
be ordered before removal proceed‑
ing are initiated, before completion
of proceeding, and at the conclusion
of proceedings. The voluntary
departure order will state the
amount of time the immigrant has
to leave the United States; this time
begins to run on the date of the
order. If the immigrant chooses to
appeal an immigration judgeʼs deci‑
sion to the Board of Immigration
Appeals (BIA), the voluntary depar‑
ture time does not run until a “final”
decision is made. If the BIA rejects
the appeal, then the voluntary
departure will be reinstated for the
same amount of time initially
ordered by the immigration judge.
An order of voluntary departure
can be terminated automatically if
the immigrant files a petition for
review of the judgment or any other
judicial challenge and then the
alternate order of removal will be in
effect. However, if the immigrant
leaves the U.S. within 30 days of fil‑
ing a petition for review and pro‑
vides proof of departure to DHS, the
departure will not be considered a
removal.
An order to voluntary departure
can also be terminated automatical‑
ly if the immigrant files a motion to
reopen or reconsider the immigra‑
tion judgeʼs decision. The filing of
the motion automatically ceases the
voluntary departure order and the
alternate order of removal will be in
effect. Once a voluntary departure
order is terminated neither an
immigration judge nor the BIA can
reinstate, toll, or stay voluntary
departure, except as allowed under
8 C.F.R. § 1240.26(h). Under 8
C.F.R. § 1240.26(h) an immigration
judge or the BIA can restore volun‑
tary departure if the immigrant suc‑
cessfully reopens their case before
the expiration of the original period
of voluntary departure. The total
time for voluntary departure cannot
pass 120 days. If an immigrant files
a motion to reopen or reconsider
after their voluntary departure time
expires then it will be considered as
overstaying their voluntary depar‑
ture period.
departing the U.S. before the time
frame ordered by the court. If an
immigrant does not depart within
the specified time they may be sub‑
ject to a monetary fine of up to
$5,000 and will be barred for ten
years from being granted cancella‑
tion of removal, adjustment of sta‑
tus, change of status, registry, and
voluntary departure. Once an immi‑
grant fails to depart, the voluntary
departure order automatically
becomes a removal order and they
will accrue unlawful presence, and
may be subject to the three or ten‑
year bar under INA § 212(a)(9)(B)
in addition to all the other ramifica‑
tions that stem from the removal.
In a few circumstances the failure
to leave the U.S. once the voluntary
departure order expires will not
result in civil penalties for the for‑
eign national. If the immigrant or
the attorney representing the immi‑
grant did not receive proper notice
of the voluntary departure order,
the immigrant may argue that they
are not subject to the consequences
of overstaying. If an immigrant did
not request voluntary departure, did
not have an opportunity to decline,
or if there was no strict compliance
with eligibility and notice require‑
ments, the voluntary departure
order may be considered invalid
grant was not informed of the petitioners who overstay a period of
penalties of failure to depart or if voluntary departure remain quali‑
the immigration judge did not pro‑ fied for cancellation of removal and
vide notice of the requirement to adjustment of status if it can be
provide proof to the BIA within 30 shown that extreme cruelty or bat‑
days that a voluntary departure tery was at least one main reason
bond was paid, then the immigrant for the overstay passed the depar‑
may be granted a new period of vol‑ ture date.
untary departure. But those in The greatest benefit of voluntary
removal should be cautious of departure is that after departing the
jumping into any of these argu‑ U.S. the immigrant is not automati‑
ments and must consult with an cally inadmissible from the U.S. for
experiences attorney practicing a set number of years. A voluntary
Immigration Law. departure should not be accepted
In addition, according to Matter unless the immigrant intends to
of Zmijewska, if an immigrant leave because then they will have to
“through no fault of his or her own, face a removal order, possible mon‑
is unaware of the voluntary depar‑ etary penalties, and automatic ten‑
ture order or is physically unable to year bar to some types of immigra‑
depart” then the consequences of tion relief.
Dev Banad Viswanath is the Principal
Attorney of The Banad Law Offices PC in the
United States, and Banad Immigration in
India for which Attorney Michael Phulwani is
also affiliated as Of Counsel. With Offices in
Manhattan, Queens, Bangalore, and Mumbai,
the firm is able to assist clients with all facets
of the immigration process, including
Employment Visas, Consular Visa Assistance,
Student Visas, Removal & Deportation, US
Citizenship and Green Card Applications
based on Family or Employment. Dev B.
Viswanath can be reached at
Dev@Banadlaw.com and 718‑361‑5999.
 26 February 10-16, 2018
A
ccording to the American
Diabetes Association (ADA),
approximately 30.3 million
Americans are living with diabetes,
which affects people of all ages.
Diabetes requires time and ener‑
gy to manage but there are many
simple things people can do to help
make living with the disease easier.
Here are five life hacks for those liv‑
ing with diabetes.
4 Get Moving : Experts say that
exercise helps maintain stable
blood glucose levels, but not every‑
one loves the gym. Whether itʼs
learning ballroom dancing or join‑
ing a basketball league, enjoyable
hobbies can boost motivation to
exercise. A fitness tracker that
counts steps is a good way to dis‑
cover how much movement youʼre
getting and allows you to make
changes if necessary.
4 Travel Smart. Donʼt let the logis‑
tics of travel put a damper on your
next trip or vacation. It just requires
a bit of additional preparation. The
Daily turmeric intake
boosts memory,
uplifts mood: Study
E
ating turmeric
daily may
boost your
memory and uplift
your mood, a study
suggests.
Found in turmeric,
curcumin has previ‑
ously been shown to
have anti‑inflammato‑
ry and antioxidant properties.
It also has been suggested as a
possible reason that senior citi‑
zens in India, where curcumin is
a dietary staple, have a lower
prevalence of Alzheimer's dis‑
ease and better cognitive per‑
formance.
"Exactly how curcumin exerts
its effects is not certain, but it
may be due to its ability to
reduce brain inflammation,
which has been linked to both
Alzheimer's disease and major
depression," said Gary Small,
from the University of
California, Los Angeles in the
US. The study, published in the
American Journal of Geriatric
Psychiatry, involved 40 adults
between the ages of 50 and 90
years who had mild memory
complaints.
They were randomly assigned
to receive either a placebo or 90
mg of curcumin twice daily for
18 months. All 40 subjects
received standardized cognitive
assessments at the start of the
study and at six‑month inter‑
vals, and monitoring of curcum‑
in levels in their blood at the
start of the study and after 18
months. Thirty of the volunteers
underwent positron emission
5 hacks for living with diabetes
ADA recommends having a medical
exam prior to a trip and bringing at
least twice as much medication and
supplies as you think you need. If
you are flying, be sure to keep your
medical supplies in your carry‑on
tomography, or PET scans, to
determine the levels of amyloid
and tau in their brains at the
start of the study and after 18
months.
The people who took curcum‑
in experienced significant
improvements in their memory
and attention abilities, while the
subjects who received placebo
did not, Small said.
In memory tests, the people
taking curcumin improved by
28 per cent over the 18 months.
Those taking curcumin also
had mild improvements in
mood, and their brain PET scans
showed significantly less amy‑
loid and tau signals in the
amygdala and hypothalamus
than those who took placebos.
The amygdala and hypothala‑
mus are regions of the brain
that control several memory
and emotional functions.
Four people taking curcumin,
and two taking placebos, experi‑
enced mild side effects such as
abdominal pain and nausea, the
researchers said.
"These results suggest that
taking this relatively safe form
of curcumin could provide
meaningful cognitive benefits
over the years," said Small.
HEALTH
baggage.
4 Rethink your diabetes manage‑
ment. Consider new medical
advancements that can help make
diabetes a smaller part of your life.
For example, the Omnipod Insulin
IS SUGAR THE CAUSE OF YOUR
WEIGHT GAIN? TIPS TO CUT BACK
F
ebruary is American Heart
Month and a great opportunity
to focus on your cardiovascu‑
lar health. According to the American
Heart Association, cardiovascular dis‑
ease accounts for about one of every
three deaths.
Taking care of your heart starts
with your diet and making healthy
changes. Cutting down on sugar,
which experts say most Americans
consume far too much of on a daily
basis, is the perfect place to start.
Processed sugars add empty calories
to your diet and can disrupt your
metabolism, making weight loss or
maintenance difficult and posing seri‑
ous health risks.
Americans on average get about 16
percent of their daily calories from
added sugars, according to an Food
and Drug Administration report, but
the USDAʼs dietary guidelines recom‑
mend less than one‑third of that
amount. And itʼs not just the usual
suspects like candy, cookies and cake
that can cause the sugar surplus.
“Foods like white bread and bagels
break down the same as added sugar,
so, itʼs about the types of carbs youʼre
eating, too. In fact, I would say fats
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
Management System, a wearable
insulin pump, eliminates the need
for injections. Its small, lightweight
design gives people living with dia‑
betes more freedom and flexibility,
and, unlike traditional pumps, has
no tubes to disconnect. Offering up
to 72 hours of nonstop insulin, the
Pod is water‑resistant and is the
only tubeless insulin pump available
in the U.S. A great option for both
adults and children, it is discreet,
easy‑to‑use, and allows users to take
part in just about any activity.
“Diabetes limits you as a person,”
said Ross Baker, an Omnipod user.
“I thought using an insulin pump
would control my life more – nee‑
dles, cords, machines. Then I started
using the Omnipod System, which
takes away the typical limitations of
a tubed pump, liberating me to con‑
arenʼt making us fat, sugar is.” says
Dr. Arthur Agatston, founder of the
South Beach Diet.
To avoid extra sugar in your diet
and get on a path to greater health,
consider these simple strategies.
4 Shop the Perimeter. Sticking to the
perimeter of the grocery store is a
good rule of thumb, as this tends to be
where youʼll find the least processed
foods, such as vegetables, fruit, dairy,
meat and seafood, most of which are
free of added sugar.
4 Read Food Labels. Seek out foods
containing little to no sugar, being
careful to read labels. You may have
to look hard though, as sugar is ubiq‑
uitous in American foods. Bear in
mind that ingredient listings on pack‑
aged foods are in order of volume.
4 Learn Sugarʼs Other Names.
“Pretty much anything ending in ʻoseʼ
is a sugar. And whether itʼs fructose,
dextrose or sucrose, it will end up as a
sugar in your body,” says Mandi
Knowles, Registered Dietitian at South
Beach Diet. Avoid them if you want to
eat less sugar.
4 Buy Unsweetened Foods. Look for
food labels that say the food is
unsweetened. Not “naturally sweet‑
trol my diabetes without setbacks.”
4 Diabetes communities. They
exist online and locally, and include
specialized support groups for
everyone from children to college
students to adults. Finding the right
group can help make living with
diabetes something you donʼt have
to face alone.
4 Use Apps. Free apps available on
iPhone and Android phones can
make tracking important metrics
easier and more streamlined, and
can help patients more easily share
their data with their healthcare
providers. Find and monitor carbs,
track glucose levels, fitness, vital
stats and more. To make life with
diabetes more manageable, discover
the habits, tools and support sys‑
tems that work for you and your
lifestyle. StatePoint
ened.” Unsweetened. That means
there wonʼt be anything lurking in
there that could throw you off.
4 Make Sugar Swaps. Simple swaps
can help you save on sugar. Swap
soda for unsweetened iced tea and
save 31 grams of sugar. Swap non‑fat
flavored yogurt for Greek yogurt with
fresh strawberries and save 19 grams
of sugar. Swap your favorite vanilla
latte for black coffee with a splash of
cream and save 35 grams of sugar.
4 Try Something New. Consider a
diet plan that focuses on good carbs,
good fats, healthy protein and high
fiber, such as the South Beach Diet,
which is proven to have a positive
impact on heart health, weight loss
and belly fat. Delivering on average
just 1 percent of calories from added
sugars, it was the first plan to propose
dieters focus less on cutting out fats
and carbs and focus more on consid‑
ering the quality of the fats and carbs
theyʼre eating.
A healthy diet and lifestyle are
among your best defenses to help
fight cardiovascular disease. This
American Heart Month, you can help
improve your heart health and overall
health by reducing sugar in your diet.
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
Discussing the Perils of Celebrity ‑ Soha Ali Khan and Sharmila Tagore
in conversation with Sanjoy K Roy.
JLF: Literature as it relates to life
By Prakash Bhandari
Jaipur: The Zee Jaipur Literature
Festival late last month that has
established itself as the leading
festival of the world lacked quality
speakers and authors this this
time. Dance, history and civiliza‑
tion, Bollywood, terror‑
ism and investigative
journalism ‑ all were
there but not enough
marquee names to give
the tonic that the visi‑
tors wanted.Yet the JLF
drew staggering crowds on all
days. The hosts had featured
author and MP Shashi Tharoor in
all nine sessions and he was the
only draw.
Peter Bergen, the only journalist
granted access to the Abbottabad
compound before the Pakistani
government demolished it, was
there.
The writer of ʻManhunt:
Pakistan and the Search for Bin
Ladenʼ, revealed that Bin Laden
intended to target President
Obama and General David
Petraeus to lead the US into a crisis
and alter the warʼs path. “With the
10th anniversary of 9/11
approaching, he felt he hadnʼt real‑
ly done anything against his
biggest enemy.”
Keynote speaker Pico Iyer said,
“If London was the capital of 19th
century writing in English and New
York of the 20th, the capital of
21st century writing in English so
far is Mumbai.” The Empire Writes
Back, he quipped.
As one who has lived all over the
world, Pico Iyer spoke on ʻCharting
a World Without Bordersʼ and
opined, “For more and more of us,
home has really, less to do with a
piece of soil than, you could say,
with a piece of soul.” .
In an era of increasing travel
bans and walls, Iyer reminded us
that most people crossing borders
were doing so to overcome dispari‑
ty between the disadvantaged and
the privileged. “Literature is more
indispensable than ever, precisely
because the imagination is no
respecter of boundaries or fences,”
he argued.
The Written World: The Power of
Stories to Shape People, History
and Civilisation found renowned
philosopher and literary critic
Martin Puchner in con‑
versation with the Indian
American professor
Homi K. Bhabha who
brought up the question
of the politics of world
literature, which accord‑
ing to the former, “is in congru‑
ence with the politics of post‑colo‑
nial literature. The politics is inter‑
ventionist in the sense that it dis‑
covers and establishes previously
unacknowledged texts adding new
voices beyond the canon. The cre‑
ation of a new narrative becomes
integral”. Puchner gave the exam‑
ple of the recent publication of the
African Epic of Sundiata which was
previously only transmitted orally,
and points to a growing interest in
the oral tradition of texts.
Creating a novel is a distinctive
art and a gift which needs to be
honed. Five great exponents of the
genre took to deconstructing what
it takes to craft one in The Art of
the Novel: On Writing Fiction. “It is
a feeling for life, for language and
a need to tell a story,” said modera‑
tor and author, Chandrahas
Choudhury in conversation with
Amy Tan, Chika Unigwe, Helen
Fielding, Joshua Ferris and Michael
Ondaatje. Amy Tan revealed that
after her first book that came to
her naturally, she had to struggle
to produce work that effortlessly.
Having felt the same, Joshua Ferris
found himself “pulling his teeth” to
create stories with ease after his
first book. Health International,
Innovations in Healthcare : The
India Example featured American
biologist William A. Haseltine, best
known for his work on HIV/AIDS
and the human genome. He
praised India for innovating treat‑
ment methods and medical
BOOKS
Congress MP and author Shashi Tharoor was the main draw at the Jaipur Literature
Pico Iyer (Right) and Patrick French at the JLF.
research, even though it continues
to have an international percep‑
tion of being backwards in provid‑
ing health care. However, he cited
India as one of the countries that
has contrasting attributes in terms
of providing affordable medica‑
tion, but with a huge number of
untreated patients.
The Feminine Gaze: Women
Writing Memoir highlighted how
memoir writing is a powerful medi‑
um to articulate traumas and histo‑
ries that cannot or should not be
fictionalized, particularly for
women writers who are often side‑
lined in favor of male voices and
other normative narratives. A dis‑
tinguished panel of writers exam‑
ined this issue.
An Invite‑only session for the
shortlisted writers of Jaipur
Bookmarkʼs New Writers
Mentorship Programme, and win‑
ners of the JLF Writing
Competition, featured a panel dis‑
cussion where professionals talked
about the intricacies of the pub‑
lishing and pitching process.
Panelists Urvashi Butalia, Mita
Kapur and Manasi Subramaniam
gave good advice to writers.
This time, to reinforce its com‑
mitment to reach out to children
through literature, the JLF present‑
ed several acclaimed childrenʼs
authors such as Anthony Horowitz,
Julia Donaldson, Satish Mehta,
Sudha Murthy in exciting sessions
and conversations.
Creator of the legendary Alex
February 10-16, 2018
Festival held late last month.
Rider series, Anthony Horowitz
OBE spoke from the heart with
writer Paro Anand. Recently, the
estate of Arthur Conan Doyle
announced that Horowitz was to
pen a new Sherlock Holmes novel,
to be titled the House of Silk. Julia
Donaldson, author of the best‑
selling childrenʼs series The
Gruffalo, who has created a vibrant
and exuberant parallel world for
young readers, was also presented.
Hamid Karzaiʼs The Great
Survivor had a packed audience as
the former President of
Afghanistan shared his perspec‑
tives on his country and its rela‑
tion with India. In conversation
with Dalrymple, he spoke about
the impact of the Soviet invasion in
Afghanistan, recounting how after
much difficulty getting back to his
country, he walked for 36 hours to
reach Kabul. He was shattered to
see the state it was in. The Taliban,
Karzai said, were an outcome of
American involvement in
Afghanistan and Pakistan. He
remarked acidly, “If you nurture
vipers in your backyard you will be
bitten!”
Michael Rezendes, Pulitzer win‑
ner for his investigative work as a
member of The Boston Globeʼs leg‑
endary Spotlight team, highlighted
the importance of a free press in a
democracy: “Investigative journal‑
ism is essential to democracy. The
job of a journalist is to always
question authority. Don't take any‑
one's word for anything.
27
Investigative journalism is expen‑
sive. It is important that people
keep supporting big news organi‑
zations."
Fimmaker Anurag Kashyap paid
homage to the role of cinema in
social change, saying, “I credit the
daring of earlier filmmakers, and
am grateful to the upcoming gen‑
eration, who will in their turn con‑
tribute to positive change through
cinema. Creating change is like
felling a banyan tree little by little,
with small blows, until it finally
falls.”
Vishal Bhardwaj ruminated on
the challenges of adapting
Shakespearean plays into film. In
another session, he candidly went
into a personal journey of love,
denial and self discovery. The audi‑
ence got a glimpse into the mind of
the genius who apart from being a
music composer, film director and
singer has recently published a
poetry book titled Nude.
Manto: The Man and the Legend
with Nandita Das and Nawazuddin
Siddiqui drew huge crowds and
vocal audience participation.
China was in the spotlight with
The Day of the Dragon: China and
the Future of Asia, and reportage
of conflict and war in The
Frontline Club saw leading interna‑
tional war correspondents demys‑
tifying their fascinating career of
chance and risk‑taking.
The Mahakavi Kanhaiyalal Sethia
Award for Poetry, supported by the
ZEE Jaipur Literature Festival, was
awarded to Punjabi poet and
writer Surjit Patar.
At The Music Stage, literature
joined hands with music, as audi‑
ences were regaled to the haunting
tunes of Real Sugar featuring
Paban Das Baul and Sam Mills, and
Shilpa Rao and Talvin Singh. As
part of the Heritage Evenings,
Hawa Mahal hosted the worldwide
premiere of The Troth: Usne Kaha
Tha, a dance and music perform‑
ance of a tale of love and loss, nar‑
rated through accompanying mul‑
timedia by UK‑based Akedemi.
28 February 10-16, 2018 HUMOR TheSouthAsianTimes.info

Funny Side by Nury Vittachi

7 things which are too

successful for their own good

(Image : truestress
management.com)

BEST
RATE
B
oys and girls, remember that it is
FOR extremely stupid and dangerous to
pour explosive fuel on to the flames
INDIA of a backyard bonfire or barbecue. Let
DADDY do it.
AND I know a father‑of‑three who did this and
created a fireball of Hollywood proportions
PAKISTAN that instantly vaporized the bonfire and a
nearby tree. The children loved it. (The
mothers less so.)
I was reminded of that anecdote by a news
New York Head Quarter
item which soon grew into a list of seven
422‑S Broadway examples of things which are too successful
HICKSVILLE for their own good.
1) A "stress‑releasing" massage chair
NY 11801 relaxed a shopper so much that he fell into a
516‑827‑1010 deep sleep ‑‑ and missed the closing of the
shop and departure of all staff. When he
eventually woke up in the chair it was dark,
the electronics shop in Japan was locked,
and police had to be called to let him out.
"It was a good advertisement for the
chair," said reader Mark Chinney, who sent
me the news item.
2) It reminded me of that super‑scary
ghost movie "Bhoot" launched in India in
2003, after which a cinemagoer was found
dead of a heart attack. In a rare case of good
taste, filmmakers resisted the temptation to
capitalize on it with a challenge: "HE didn't
make it ‑‑ will YOU survive our movie?"
3) Then there was a Hong Kong emigra‑
tion advisor whose business appeared to
contain the seeds of its own destruction.
"We're losing all our clients," he told me in
his third year of operation. "They're moving
away."
4) "At the end of last year, the Delhi
municipal authorities announced that their
anti‑plastic bag campaign had been so suc‑
cessful they had collected 1,200 kilos of
polythene bags," said Amithaba Kumar, a
reader from that city. "Then they admitted
that they had nowhere to put them and were
planning to throw them into a landfill!" Ah.
Right.
5) A reader of the Reddit website sent a

Laughter is the Best Medicine

link to a post by a US woman who joined a
weight loss group and managed to shed 100
lbs ‑‑ after which the other members wanted
her to leave because she made everyone else
feel like a failure.
6) Another sad example came from a
By Mahendra stressed woman who pre‑paid for a course
Shah of relaxation therapy sessions at an expen‑
sive hotel spa in Jakarta.
"I slept through the first two sessions, so I
Mahendra Shah is
drank a pint of coffee before the third ‑ but
an architect by
still slept through it," sighed the woman,
education,
Jacqueline Wan. "It was probably very good
entrepreneur by
but I can't remember any of it."
profession, So basically she paid a fortune for the
artist and same Saturday afternoon nap this columnist
humorist, achieves on the sofa for nothing. I expressed
cartoonist and my deep sorrow for her by pointing, laugh‑
writer by hobby. ing, and feeling smug.
He has been 7) "Surely the ultimate example of being
recording the too successful is IKEA," said a colleague,
plight of the referring to the Swedish furniture shop now
] immigrant found in most countries. "Roughly once a
Indians for the month, somewhere in the world, people are
past many years found to have slept overnight in IKEA bed‑
in his cartoons. room display."
Hailing from True. I once saw people in a Chinese IKEA
Gujarat, he lives store having lunch in the dining room dis‑
in Pittsburgh, play.
Pennsylvania. Column done, now it's time for a sleep. I
recommend the IKEA Stockholm 2017 sofa
in blue velvet. Good night.
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
By Dr Prem Kumar Sharma
FEBRUARY 10‑16, 2018
ARIES: If you donʼt have the will,
donʼt expect to be shown the
way. Things may not go as antic‑
ipated at work and put you in a spot.
Something may be amiss on the aca‑
demic front and prove a disadvantage
for you. Losses cannot be ruled out in
a new venture. Your firm resolve to
stay fit will do a whale of a good to
your health. A much anticipated gath‑
ering may turn out to be a damp
squib.
TAURUS: Expenses mount, but
they w ill all be for a goo d
cause! Your self‑confidence will
see you through a trying phase in your
professional life. Networking assumes
importance on the academic front to
link up with important people. Beating
the path to total fitness may be on
your mind and promises excellent
health.
Planning out something on the roman‑
tic front with the one you love is possi‑
ble. A joint vacation with your near
and dear ones is possible.
GEMINI: The more you try to
curb someone, more stubborn
he or she seems to become, so
soften your stand a bit. You are likely
to get a clean chit in something gone
wrong on the professional front. Good
contacts are likely to do wonders for
you on the academic front. Some of
you are set to grow financially strong.
Mental tensions are likely to become a
thing of the past, as you move towards
peace and tranquility.
CANCER: This is the time to
reconsider whatever decisions
you have taken to be on the
safe ground. You may have to take
your chances on the professional
front. Donʼt let anyone sweet‑talk you
into parting with something important
on the academic front. You will be able
to ease a tight situation on the finan‑
cial front by cutting corners. Those
trying to come back in shape can ill
afford to miss out on workouts. Donʼt
let a fight escalate.
LEO: Favourable outcome of a
legal matter can be expected.
An opportunity to travel exten‑
sively may afford you a chance to visit
many exotic places. Chance to add to
your list of properties by buying an
apartment or a freehold house is indi‑
cated. Remaining stoic and neutral in
any adverse situation on the profes‑
sional front will work in your favour.
Your decisions on the home front may
not be agreed to by others, so take
everyoneʼs opinion.
VIRGO: Tension on the social
front regarding an event will
begin to disappear, as help
comes your way. Past arrears may be
received and promise to beef up your
bank account. An ailment troubling
you for long is likely to disappear
soon. Distractions threaten to under‑
mine your focus on the academic
front. An initiative taken by you on the
professional front may not be
approved by higher ups and may put
you in difficulties. A tiff with spouse is
possible.
LIBRA: Whatever you do, you
are likely to impress those
who matter! An exciting out‑
ing with friends may not turn out to
be so. Desist from bickering about
someone or something. A family mem‑
ber is likely to bank upon you for
small errands. You are likely to come
out with flying colours on the academ‑
ic front. Love may beckon, but you will
be able to retain your focus. Concerted
efforts may be able to get rid of an ail‑
ment.
SCORPIO: This is the period
when you need to catch up on
things at work. Winning brown‑
ie points is possible on the academic
front. A new friendship shows all signs
of turning into romance, so keep your
fingers crossed! You may receive the
possession letter for a property
booked by you. Opting for moderate
living will help you retain good health.
Rising expenses may cause concern,
but donʼt worry you have enough
financial strength to absorb it.
SAGITTARIUS: A long journey
is in store for some. Some of
you are likely to break free
and start living on your own. Good job
and pay packet will motivate you to
venture into business or speculation.
Domineering nature of a parent may
not go down well with you. Someone
from the opposite camp may offer you
friendship, but you may smell a rat!
Selective eating will keep you fit as a
fiddle. Start preparing for a future
commitment now.
CAPRICORN: If you get spare
time, donʼt waste it on mun‑
dane things as there is lot to be
done. A romantic situation may devel‑
op at workplace, so now it is up to you
how far you want to take it! An over‑
seas vacation is on the cards and will
prove enjoyable. Your efforts to own
property are likely to prove fruitful.
Meeting someone you have not met in
years seems possible. Eat right to
remain fit and healthy.
AQUARIUS: There is someone
who is waiting for your con‑
sent, so donʼt disappoint him
or her! You will be able to garner sup‑
port for something you have undertak‑
en on the professional front. Not get‑
ting the desired result on the academ‑
ic front may disappoint you.
Rise in expenses may get you worried
and prompt you to an extra source of
earning. Stepping up the pace on the
workout front will prove more benefi‑
cial. You are set to enjoy an exciting
trip.
PISCES: There are people who
may promise their support, but
may not honour their word, so
donʼt rely too much on anyone. You
will feel mentally at ease by sharing
your innermost feelings with someone
you are close to.
A brush with law is possible, but you
are likely to come out unscathed. You
will be able to clarify a misunderstand‑
ing over an issue by remaining matter
of fact about it. A relaxing time is in
the offing.
ASTROLOGY
Chandigarh, India: +91-172- 256 2832, 257 2874
Delhi, India: +91-11- 2644 9898, 2648 9899
psharma@premastrologer.com; www.premastrologer.com
ANNUAL PREDICTIONS: FOR THOSE BORN IN THIS WEEK
10th February, 2018
Traits in you: Being governed by the
Sun, you are endowed with uniqueness
and philosophy. You are courageous,
daring, courteous, affectionate, decisive,
and very determined. You need to work
on your impatience and short tempered
nature.
Health this year: You may remain
worried for the health of your spouse.
Your health will remain fine though it
needs extra care. You should regularly
visit to your doctor for checkups. Try to
secure your parentʼs health as they may
suffer from minor ailments throughout
this year.
Finance this year: Financial gains are
sure for you this year as you may get
into new business ventures. However,
try to avoid partnerships as much as
you can. You may get benefited from
your past investments or sale of pater‑
nal land or property. You may go for
renovation of your house and that will
make you spend enough money. You
may go for business trips later in the
year and you will succeed in bringing
new business.
Career this year: The nature of your
professional work will allow you find
many new job opportunities with high
salaries. You should take up a new job
to flourish in your career. You will gain
required expertise in your profession
and perform better than ever.
Romance this year: You will be in a
peaceful relationship with your beloved
this year. You should take care not to
get involved in any kind of confronta‑
tion or argument with your partner.
You may get into marital relationship
this year if you are yet to marry.
11th February, 2018
Traits in you: The influence of your
ruling planet Moon makes you simple,
dynamic, charismatic, creative, reliable
and focused. You need to control your
frequent mood swings and stubborn‑
ness to become a better individual.
Health this year: You will enjoy an
overall good health this year though
you may go through minor health
issues throughout the year. You should
practice yoga and meditation for better
result. Your parents may fall sick and
this might make you tensed. Take spe‑
cial care of your spouseʼs health. Take a
normal diet and medicines to remain
healthy.
Finance this year: Your past invest‑
ments may yield a lot of money for you
this year. You need to be extra cautions
while investing huge amounts as it is a
bit risky to put money on unpredictable
things. Overall, you will enjoy a strong
financial condition.
Career this year: You will enjoy a
great professional career this year. If
you are involved in arts or creative
field, this year will be very good for
you. You will reach new heights in your
career and you will gain enough recog‑
nition. You may seek help from an
experienced person to succeed in your
career.
Romance this year: You will spend a
peaceful life with your spouse. If you
are unmarried, you may get into a mat‑
rimonial relationship towards the end
of this year.
12th February, 2018
Traits in you: As you are influenced
by planet Jupiter, you are dignified, reli‑
gious, mentally strong, enthusiastic,
lovable, respectable, determined, devot‑
ed, and courteous. You are self depend‑
ent and have a great leadership quality.
You are able to take quick decisions.
However, you need to take care of you
nature of being arrogant and stubborn.
Health this year: Your health will
remain good throughout the year.
However, you need to go for regular fit‑
February 10-16, 2018
ness programs or practice yoga and
meditation for better results. Do not
avoid your regular medication. Look
out the health of your family members
as they may fall ill frequently.
Finance this year: Sudden gain in
money may surprise you. Your pending
legal issues will get resolved this year
and provide you with ample of money.
You may go for new investments this
year as this year seems to be profitable
for you. Do not trust strangers in busi‑
ness. Do not lend any money this year
as you face a straight loss.
Career this year: You will be over
ambitious as far as your career goals
are concerned. Take time to plan your
career. Do not be in a hurry for a job
change. You will improve your skills
and expertise. You will find your work
pretty interesting and it will give you
the job satisfaction you wanted.
Romance this year: Your romantic
life would be at its peak this year
around. Try to sort things out if you
have any problem with your spouse or
partner. Do not initiate an argument
with your beloved as it may result in
weakening your relationship.
13th February, 2018
Traits in you: As you are ruled by
planet Uranus, you are highly energetic,
generous, focused, friendly, humble,
honest, hard working and optimistic.
You are endowed with the ability to
deal with various kinds of people. You
should control your mood swings and
stubbornness to be a better individual.
Health this year: You may suf fer
from stress related sickness throughout
the year. Do not work overtime and
take unnecessary stress. You should see
a doctor regularly to get relieved from
your health issues. Try meditation to
avoid your problems. You should also
take care of the health of you parents.
Finance this year: Financial gains will
be plenty for you this year as your past
investments would pay of f. You may
start few new business ventures. You
may expand your business in foreign as
well. Do not trust new people as they
may prove untrustworthy. Do not lend a
big amount of money.
Career this year: Being a hardwork‑
ing professional, you may create won‑
ders for your organization. You need to
learn more and look for better options.
You may not get your expected promo‑
tion or salary hike in spite of your hard
work and efficiency.
Romance this year: You may get mar‑
ried to your long time partner this year.
If you are already married, this year
will bring you the joy of being in a mar‑
ital relationship. Do not create any
unpleasant situation at home as it may
weaken your relationship with your
spouse.
14th February, 2018
Traits in you: The influence of your
ruling planet Mercury makes you
dynamic, unique, smart, confident,
workaholic, knowledgeable, and highly
independent. You being very social
loved by your friends and you are capa‑
ble of making friends very soon. You
should not become introvert and work
on your frequent mood swings.
Health this year: You need to stop
your bad habits such as smoking and
consuming alcohol to remain healthy.
You should take expert advice from a
doctor to avoid health related issues.
You should take your medicines at time
to avoid further complicacy in your
health. Take care of the health of your
spouse and parents as well.
Finance this year: Your new business
alliances and partnerships will help you
earn financial stability this year. You
will receive all the pending payments
and money you gave away as loans in
29
the past. You should go for investing in
real estates and share market.
Career this year: You will find your
profession hectic enough as you have
to do overtime due to the project
requirements. Your confidence and
determination will be at peak so you
will perform better than ever this year.
You may not like the behavior of your
seniors. You need to deal diplomatically
with the unpleasant situations arising
at your workspace.
Romance this year: Your spouse will
be supportive enough throughout the
year in crucial times. You can rely on
your partner for any kind of support
may be financial or emotional. You
should get married this year as this is
the best time for you.
15th February, 2018
Traits in you: As you are influenced
by your ruling planet Venus, you are
very energetic, joyful, optimistic, practi‑
cal, realistic, punctual, determined and
kindhearted. Your he lpful nature
toward all help you earn friends and
popularity wherever you go. Your
friends are quite fond of your company.
Health this year: You will remain fit
and fine throughout this year. However,
the health issues of your family mem‑
bers may put you in immense pressure.
You need to secure the health of your
family member by investing some
money every year.
Finance this year: You will be in ample
financial gains this year. Your new busi‑
ness ventures will be successful this
year. You should go for new partnerships
and businesses as your star favors your
luck this year. You may go for invest‑
ments in any sector. Do not spend
unnecessarily in luxury & comfort.
Career this year: Your communica‑
tions skills will be proved instrumental
in the overall improvement of your pro‑
fessional career. You will be able to
make enough contacts and you will get
regular projects and assignments. You
may get promotions and salary hike
towards the end of the year.
Romance this year: If you are yet to
be in a romantic relationship, this is the
ideal time to go for one. You will enjoy
a pleasurable relationship with your
spouse or partner.
16th February, 2018
Traits in you: As your governing
planet is Neptune, you are simple, digni‑
fied, unique, charismatic, reliable, trust‑
worthy and confident. You have a great
leadership skill and you are very cre‑
ative. You should not be pessimistic and
show your stubbornness.
Health this year: As far as your
health is considered you may go
through minor health issues this year.
However, regular medical checkups and
proper medication will solve this prob‑
lem. You may go for Yoga and medita‑
tion classes to remain healthy.
Finance this year: Your financial con‑
ditions will be very stagnant this year.
As you will not earn much or spend
much, you will lead a peaceful life in
money matters. You may invest for
future. Do not lend or borrow money
from your friends or colleagues.
Career this year: With an enhanced
confidence and brushed up skills, you
will become very successful profession‑
ally. You will do justice to the role
assigned to you. You may get promo‑
tion or a hike in your current salary. If
you are in creativity field, this year will
bring you much more success and
recognition.
Romance this year: Your marital life
would be a peaceful one this year. Your
partner will be supportive enough in
every tough situation. You should get
married this year if you have not mar‑
ried yet.
30 February 10-16, 2018
By Sant Rajinder
Singh Ji Maharaj
T
he catalyst that ignites our
spark to connect with the
Divine is a divine Engineer.
Right now there is static interfer‑
ing with the connection between
the soul and God. We cannot
communicate with God because
on our own we do not know how
to eliminate the interference to
open the lines of communication.
Just as we are untrained to con‑
nect a radio station with a radio
or a computer with the Internet,
similarly, we are untrained to
connect our spark to the Divine.
To make the connection between
our soul and God, we need train‑
ing. We need to call someone who
is computer literate to hook us up
to the Internet. We need to call a
cable technician to hook our tele‑
vision to cable TV. In the field of
spirituality, if we were able to
connect our soul to God our‑
selves, each would have done so
by now. Yet, few people know
how to do it. To connect with
God, we need an expert. That per‑
son who can make that connec‑
tion for us is a spiritual Master.
A spiritual Master teaches a
form of meditation that does
more than help us feel peaceful
and calm; he connects our soul
with God. The meditation con‑
nects us to a current of light and
sound emanating from God that
is already reverberating within
us. We just need to learn how to
tap into it to see and hear it. A
Master is a catalyst who makes
that internal connection for us.
He teaches us how to meditate to
stay in tune with the light and
sound current, which takes us
through the astral, causal, and
supracausal regions until the soul
merges back with God in Sach
Khand.
The divine Engineer attunes
our instrument‑the soul‑to
receive the spiritual communica‑
tion from God. As in science, the
process must be done correctly to
work. Even in the worldly sphere,
when we go to a teacher, there is
an understanding that the
teacher has something to offer to
the student. It may be intellectual
knowledge or career training. It
could be techniques of playing a
sport or skills in the performing
SPIRITUAL AWARENESS
The Spiritual Catalyst
arts. Any student who goes to an
instructor and is eager and ready
to learn will gain something.
However, if a student is egotisti‑
cal and thinks he or she knows
more than the teacher, little will
be gained. When we have the atti‑
tude that we have nothing to
learn, we close ourselves off from
receiving what the teacher has to
give. We then remain at a stand‑
still as far as our own develop‑
ment is concerned.
Great scientist Isaac Newton
once spoke of the vastness of
knowledge. He remarked that he
(Image courtesy: thespiritualindian.com)m
The Master is a catalyst that connects us to the spark of the
Divine. When performing certain scientific experiments, we add a
catalyst to cause a chemical reaction; similarly, the Master is a
catalyst that makes the connection between our soul and God.
The process by which he makes that connection to experience the
light and sound of God within us is called initiation.
was just picking up pebbles from
the seashore of time. If such an
intellectual giant as Newton felt
as if he were still a student with
much more to learn, then how
can anyone of lesser stature feel
so proud of his or her learning?
There is an anecdote about for‑
mer United States President
Teddy Roosevelt. He was a great
nature lover. In the evenings, he
would spend time talking with a
friend, and afterwards they
would take a walk together. One
night, as they went for a walk,
they looked up at the starry night
sky. They noticed how vast space
was and how many stars there
were. They looked with wonder
at the Milky Way, the Big Dipper,
the Little Dipper, and the vast‑
ness of space, and were in such
awe that they walked in silence.
Finally, Teddy Roosevelt spoke
what both of them had on their
mind, saying, "Well, I think we
are small enough now. Letʼs call it
a night.”
Most people act and feel as if
the whole universe circles around
them. In reality, we are a small
part of the whole. When our
heads become swollen, thinking
we are better than everyone else
including God, we can no longer
be open to learning and receiv‑
ing. We become small and con‑
gealed and do not learn and
grow. To increase knowledge,
sharpen our skills, and improve
our techniques in any worldly
field, we need to be open to
receive what the instructor has to
give. This principle is equally
valid when we look at the spiritu‑
al sciences. When we go to a spir‑
itual Adept to learn how to real‑
ize ourselves and realize God, we
need to approach him with a will‑
ingness to learn. What a Master
has to give is unique. It is not
available from anyone else in this
world. From all other instructors
we gain esoteric knowledge,
which is knowledge of the outer
world. From a Master we gain
esoteric knowledge, or knowl‑
edge of the inner world.
The Master is a catalyst that
connects us to the spark of the
Divine. When performing certain
scientific experiments, we add a
catalyst to cause a chemical reac‑
tion; similarly, the Master is a cat‑
alyst that makes the connection
between our soul and God. The
process by which he makes that
connection to experience the
light and sound of God within us
is called initiation. At initiation,
he opens our inner eye to see the
light of God and opens our inner
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
ear to hear the sound of God
within. He gives us a spiritual
boost so we can withdraw our
attention from the body to focus
at the single or third eye between
and behind the two eyebrows to
experience inner light. We
become absorbed into the light
and witness inner vistas such as
flashes of light, pinpoints of light,
lights of various colors and the
inner sky, stars, a moon, and a
sun. That boost then leads us to
the radiant or ethereal form of
the Master, who serves as our
inner Guide. In the presence of
the radiant form we travel
beyond the physical realm to
experience the astral, causal, and
supracausal realms, until we
merge back in God in the highest
spiritual realm of Sach Khand.
Souls experience upliftment to
reconnect with God in two ways:
through the radiation of a Master
that emanates from his physical
presence, and through his
charged attention sent to us even
from around the world. Those
who are receptive receive the full
dose of divinity whether in his
presence of not. The spiritual
boost either from the spiritual
radiation in his physical presence,
or from his charged attention
which we receive in meditation,
helps us enjoy inner experiences.
The emptier we are of distracting
thoughts during our meditation,
the greater the benefit we receive
from a Master, because we are
open to receive the spiritual radi‑
ation.
We can receive the spiritual
boost from the Master through
his eyes. That glance is called the
darshan of the Master. It is so
powerful it can uplift our soul to
the third eye to connect with the
light and sound within. The
glance of grace gives more bliss
than intoxicating drugs and alco‑
hol and has no harmful side
effects to our body, mind, society,
or relationships. Physical intoxi‑
cants may temporarily make us
forget our pains, but when these
wear off, we need another fix.
The spiritual intoxication of a
glance of grace uplifts us immedi‑
ately and takes us to a state of
consciousness higher than any
we can reach in this world. It
takes us to a state of bliss more
intense than any in this physical
realm.
Through his charged attention,
we can receive that glance direct‑
ly whether in his presence or dur‑
ing meditation even when we are
physically ten thousand miles
away from him, because that
glance is not emanating from the
physical form of the Master. The
charging is coming from the
Divine through the catalyst of the
Master. The beauty of this glance
is that it stays with us. It is free
and available to us anytime we go
within during mediation.
The Master is not the physical
body, but a catalyst through
which the Divine can flow to us. It
is always radiating divine love.
We can experience that power of
divine love when we turn our
attention from the world to the
channel of God within. The
Master is that divine Engineer,
who through the glance of grace,
helps us switch our channel from
the world outside to God within.
On our own, we are tuned out. If
we are open to receive the spiri‑
tual radiation and the glance of
grace of the Master, we will
become tuned in to the channel
of God. Through initiation by a
spiritual Master, the spark of the
Divine is ignited so that through
meditation on the light and
sound current we journey
through higher spiritual realms
until our soul reconnects with
God.
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.
TheSouthAsianTimes.info February 10-16, 2018
TheSouthAsianTimes.info February 10-16, 2018