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.12 No. 10 July 6-12, 2019 80 Cents New York Edition Follow us on TheSouthAsianTimes.info

Trump orders military might

display at July 4 parade in DC
US, India ‘central to
Washington DC: President
Trump is throwing a Fourth
of July celebration that he's
global peace & stability’
promising will be "like no
other." Enamored of military
processions like the annual
Bast ille Day parade in
France, he has soug ht to
incorporate military hard‑
ware into U.S. Independence
Day observances in
Washington, too.
On Thursday, U.S. Army
Tanks and fighter jets will feature in what effectively
tanks will be in the city, and
will be the first military parade since the end of the
Trump will deliver a July 4th first Gulf War in 1991. (Visual : Boston Globe)
speech at the Lincoln
Memorial, which is unusual for an Memorial, not tearing up city streets with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and President Trump, accompanied by
their top aides, met in Osaka on the sidelines of G20. (Photo PIB)
American president. "Big 4th of July in their treads.
D.C. 'Salute to America.' The Pentagon & Pentagon sources say that Marine One, Osaka/Washington: Prime Minister
our great Military Leaders are thrilled to Air Force One and the Blue Angels are Narendra Modi and President Donald Trump 4 PM Modi and President Trump
be doing this & showing to the American expected to be participating as well. last Friday declared that their countries had a ‘productive discussion’
people, among other things, the strongest The FAA says operations will be sus‑ were "central to global peace and stability" on Iran, 5G and national
and most advanced Military anywhere in pended at neighboring Reagan National and pledged to "provide strong leadership to
the World. Incredible Flyovers & biggest Airport during the flyover and fireworks address global challenges and build prosper‑
security, said Ivanka.
ever Fireworks!" the president tweeted display. ity for their citizens in the decades to come", 4 US Senate OKs non‐NATO status
Tuesday. The event effectively marks the first mil‑ according to the White House. for India, wants defense coop‐
He confirmed to reporters later that itary parade since the end of the first Gulf The two leaders exchanged "perspectives
there will be tanks "stationed outside," too. War in 1991. eration to extend to Gulf area.
on progress in the strategic partnership and
But a Defense Department official clari‑ Democrats are concerned that the presi‑ develop new ideas to bring it to the next House said in a readout of their meeting.
fied to CBS that the tanks being featured dent will use his platform ̶ and taxpayer level", at their bilateral meeting here on the They "acknowledged the unprecedented
will be on "static display" near the Lincoln money ̶ to Continued on page 4 sidelines of the G20 Summit, the White breadth and depth of Continued on page 4

India through to Cricket World Cup semis Kamala Harris ties with Joe
Birmingham: India booked their
place in the semi‑finals of the
2019 World Cup with a 28‑run
win over Bangladesh at Edgbaston
on Tuesday. Victory saw two‑time
former champions India join reign‑
ing title‑holders Australia in the
last four with a match to spare. For
the other two semis spots, it is
like ly to be two of the New
Zealand, England and Pakistan
teams, which are next on the
points table.
In this World Cup, India has lost
only once ‑ to England. The Men in
Blues are in such top form that
they may bring home the trophy.
For the second match in a row,
India's Rohit Sharma (Man of the
Biden in Dem 2020 field
Washington DC: Indian American
Sen. Kamala Harris has catapult‑
ed into a virtual tie with former
Vice President Joe Biden in the
race for the Democratic presi‑
dential nomination ̶ and she's
made significant inroads with
black voters ̶ following her
widely praised debate perform‑
ance last week in Miami, a new
Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma & Hardik Pandya celebrate their win over national poll released Tuesday
Bangladesh Tuesday. India are in top form to win the World Cup 2019. showed. T he Quinnipiac
Republican Newt Gingrich has
Match) was dropped in single fig‑ the knockout stages. Defending Continued on page 4 predicted that Indian American
ures and made a hundred. Chasing 314, in‑form Shakib Al Hasan was Senator Kamala Harris will
315 for a win, Bangladesh folded the only real threat for the Indian ALSO SEE PAGE 3 AND 10 emerge the Democratic
FOR RELATED STORIES. nominee for President.
up for 286 as India qualified for Continued on page 4

OP ED 14 BUSINESS 22 HEALTH 26 SPIRITUAL AWARENESS 30 excellence in journalism

TheSouthAsianTimes.info July 6-12, 2019
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
India’s heft forces
China, Pak backing
for UNSC seat
New Delhi assured to get elected by the
General Assembly to succeed Indonesia on the
Security Council in 2021 for a two‐year term.
India’s Permanent Representative to the UN,
Syed Akbaruddin tweeted the news.
By Arul Louis
United Nations: The Asia‑Pacific
Group at the UN has unanimously
supported India for a non‑perma‑
nent seat on the Security Council
after Indiaʼs overwhelming influ‑
ence forced China and Pakistan to
join in the endorsement.
The 55‑member group decided
unanimously last week to endorse
India in next yearʼs contest for the
non‑permanent Asia seat, assuring
New Delhi of its election by the
General Assembly to succeed
Indonesia on the Council in 2021
for a two‑year term.
China and Pakistan were forced
to join the others in the group to
support India because there was no
other country willing to contest the
Asia seat against India given its
influence, making the endorsement
unanimous.
Thanking the countries which
endorsed Indiaʼs candidature,
Top gainer from 1st debate, Kamala Harris surges to No. 2
Washington: T he race for the
Democratic nomination is wide open
as Senators Kamala Harris and
Elizabeth Warren have surged to No
2 and No 3 positions at the expense
of former Vice President Joe Biden
and Sen. Bernie Sanders.
The CNN poll, conducted after the
two‑night Democratic debate, finds
22% of registered voters who are
Democrats or Democratic‑leaning
independents still backing Biden for
the party's presidential nomination,
17% Kamala Harris, 15% Warren
and 14% Bernie Sanders. All others
in the 23‑person field tested stood
below 5%.
That represents a 10‑point decline
in support for Biden since the last
CNN poll in May, while Harris, of
California, has posted a 9‑point
increase, and Warren, of
TRISTATE COMMUNITY
Indiaʼs Permanent Representative
to the UN Syed Akbaruddin tweet‑
ed: “A unanimous step. Asia‑Pacific
Group @UN unanimously endorses
Indiaʼs candidature for a non‑per‑
manent seat of the Security Council
for a 2‑year term in 2021‑22.”
India has served seven times on
the Council, most recently from
2011 to 2012 when Hardeep Puri
was Indiaʼs PR.
India is also pursuing a perma‑
nent seat on the Council in the
ef fort to reform it. Pakistan and
China oppose it.
Indian American Kamala Harris has gained 9 percentage points to claim the second position
as a Democrat candidate for President, only trailing Joe Biden now.
Massachusetts, has boosted her sup‑
port by 8 points. No other candidates
have seen significant movement
since the last poll.
Harris' numbers follow a strong
showing on the second night of the
debates. Among those who watched
or followed news coverage about
them, 41% say Harris did the best
job in the debates, well ahead of the
FIAʼs India Day Parade
curtain raiser held
FIA President Alok Kumar (2nd from left) and his executive committee posing with
Consul General Sandeep Chakravorty at the parade kickoff.
New York: The Federation of Indian
Association (FIA‑NY/NJ/CT) held a
curtain raiser in the Indian
Consulate of its 39th India Day
Parade to be held on August 18 in
Manhattan and unveiled the 2019
theme of 'Support our troops ‑
Salute our troops'.
Addressing the gathering at the
June 26 curtain raiser, Alok Kumar,
President‑FIA, emphasized on the
need to appeal to the Indian com‑
munity to do more in saluting and
supporting the men and women in
uniform. He applauded the hard
work of FIAʼs voluntary team to
bring the parade festivities to
fruition. He thanked Consul
General Sandeep Chakravorty, DCG
Shatrughna Sinha and the CGI‑NY
13% who say Warren had the best
performance and 10% who said
Biden did. The performance of South
Bend, Indiana Mayor Pete Buttigieg
and former secretary of Housing and
Urban Development Julian Castro
was also considered good.
Warren was the lone polling
heavyweight on the stage in the first
night of the Democratic debates on
team for their warm welcome and
the reception extended to FIA for
nearly three decades.
Ambassador Sandeep
Chakravorty emphasized the need
to include youth and the second
generation in the festivities by invit‑
ing more schools to participate. He
counseled introspection on how the
changing and growing community
needs should get reflected in a large
event such as the India Day Parade,
which should become adaptive and
inclusive of the changing times in
its event format.
FIA Chairman Ramesh Patel relat‑
ed how the parade as an event has
evolved and how support from the
community needs to grow to fur‑
ther its reach and grandeur.
Wednesday. She turned in a solid
performance that served as an intro‑
duction to a national audience who
may have been hearing from many
candidates for the first time.
On Thursday night, Harris and
Biden shared the debate stage and
faced off in one of the most memo‑
rable moments of either night.
Harris asked Biden directly about his
July 6-12, 2019 3
Distinguished dignitaries at the
event included FIA Trustee &
Padma Shri Dr. Sudhir Parikh,
Trustee & Padma Shri Dr. HR Shah,
Albert Jasani, Anand Patel, Anil
Bansal, Andy Bhatia.
Alok Kumar acknowledged his
2019 Executive Committee com‑
prising Himanshu Bhatia –
Executive Vice President (who deliv‑
ered the vote of thanks), Immediate
Past President Srujal Parikh, VP ‑
Saurin Parikh, Gen. Secretary Amit
Yadav, Jt. Secretary Mardavi Patel &
Treasurer Amit Ringasia.
The event featured live music and
a Bollywood medley by Nritya
Dance Academy. The emcee of the
evening was upcoming model and
actress Nisha Kalamdani.
opposition to federally mandated
busing as a means to integrate pub‑
lic schools in the 1970s, and about
his comments on working with seg‑
regationist politicians during his
time in the Senate. T he move
appears to have worked in her favor.
Harris and Biden are now about
even in support among self‑identi‑
fied Democrats, white voters,
younger voters, nonwhite women
and those who tuned in to watch the
debates. She outpaces him signifi‑
cantly among liberals and whites
with college degrees. Warren chal‑
lenges Biden and Sanders among
independents, tops Biden and runs
even with Harris and Sanders among
liberals, and earns similar numbers
to Harris among younger voters,
whites and whites with college
degrees.
 4 July 6-12, 2019 TURN PAGE TheSouthAsianTimes.info

US, India ʻcentral to global tisan campaign rally on the Mall at pub‑

Softball tournament to fund peace & stabilityʼ

Continued from page 1
lic expense," as they put it in a letter to
the administration.
"Frankly, that's not what July 4th is
South Asian Sports Scholarship bilateral ties, including economic, trade,
energy, defense and security, counter‑
terrorism, and space", the statement
about,” Hoyer said in an interview with
NBC News.
Hicksville, NY: On June 29, 13
said. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo,
nations competed in a charity soft‑ India through to Cricket
US National Security Adviser John
ball tournament. The proceeds of World Cup semis
Bolton, Commerce Secretary Wilbur
the tournament went to continue to Continued from page 1
Ross, and Ivanka Trump were present at
fund the South Asian Sports bowlers as the Bangladesh batsmen
the bilateral meeting.
Scholarship. This scholarship is came out pretty subdued in their chase.
In a video of Ivanka tweeted by the
given to any high school or college And once Hardik Pandya sent back
White House on Saturday, she said her
student who studies in New York. Shakib for 66, in the 34th over, it was
father and PM Modi had a "productive
This event was organized by advantage India.
discussion" on topics like Iran, 5G and
Ammad Sheikh, a member of the Sabbir Rahman (36 off 36 balls) and
national security during their meeting.
Asian American Advisory Agency. Mohammad Saifuddin (52 not out of f
Modi and Trump are said to have
T he 13 countries included 38 balls) did try their best, but getting
directed officials to resolve trade issues
Afghanistan, Bangladesh, China, 90 runs from the last 10 overs with just
The Indian softball team with lawmakers such that have cropped up in last one year.
India, Pakistan and USA. four wickets in the bag proved to be a
as NY Senator Kevin Thomas and supporters. Indiaʼs S‑400 deal with Russia was not
The teams were in 4 pools. Each bit too much to expect from the
raised.
pool had two matches and then put in a bracket. events like these bring people together. Bangladesh lower‑order.
On the issue of Iran, Modi outlined
This was the second tournament of its kind. Chairman of the Human Rights commission
India's energy concerns as well its con‑
India, captained by Ronak Jain, went 1‑1 in their Bobby Kalotee talked about his commitment to Kamala Harris ties with Joe
cerns regarding peace and stability in
first two matches to make it to the playoffs. In the diversity and to all of the work that he does with Biden in Dem 2020 field
the Persian Gulf region. Meanwhile in
playoffs they lost to Italy. various communities. Dr. Isma Chaudhry, Continued from page 1
Washington, the US Senate has suggest‑
Ronak Jain and the Indian team were honored Chairperson of the Asian American Advisory University poll of Demo crat ic and
ed expanding defense cooperation with
by many dignitaries. New York Senator Kevin Agency, talked about sports as something that Democratic‑leaning voters showed
major defense partner India to the Gulf
Thomas spoke about the importance of sports and brings people together. Biden with 22 percent support and
region by holding joint exercises there,
how it brings people together. He loved the coun‑ T he finals match between USA against Harris with 20 percent ̶ a double‑digit
similar to the ones India, the US as well
tries and cultures coming together. Nassau Afghanistan was curtailed due to rain with jump for her since the university's pre‑
as its allies have held in the Pacific and
County Executive Laura Curran sent citations for Afghanistan ahead 4‑1. vious poll last month.
Indian Ocean regions.
the captains. Event organizer Ammad Sheikh said that the Sens. Elizabeth Warren of
This was one of the items in the six‑
Legislator Elen Birnbaum talked about how scholarship is open for people to apply at Massachusetts and Bernie Sanders of
agenda proposed in the $750‑billion
Nassau has made a commitment to diversity and southasiansportsnetwork.com. Vermont were in third and fourth place
defense budget passed by the Senate
last T hursday to “strengthen and in the poll, with 14 percent and 13 per‑

Trump govt drops citizenship enhance its major defense partnership

with India”.
cent, respectively.
The poll, conducted June 28 to July 1,
also showed that Harris had caught up

question in 2020 census

Washington: The Trump administration has said
the questionnaires for the 2020 census would be
printed without the citizenship question, a move
seen as a major political victory for the opposition
Democratic party, which joined hands with civil
right groups against such a move.
The decision came after a Supreme Court ruling
last week refused to allow the citizenship question
to be added into the census questionnaires.
Trump's opponents said that the citizenship
question, which has not been included since 1950,
would drive many immigrants to avoid answering
out of fear of being caught up in Trump's crack‑
down on illegal immigration.
"The Census Bureau has started the process of
printing the decennial questionnaires without the
question (on citizenship). My focus, and that of the
Bureau and the entire department is to conduct a
complete and accurate census," US Commerce
Secretary Wilbur Ross said in a statement on
Tuesday.
The move was welcomed by the Democratic
party leaders.
Nancy Pelosi, Speaker of the US House of
Representatives, termed the decision as a welcom‑
ing development for the country's democracy.
US lawmakers and the Trump admin‑
istrat ion are thus on course to
“upgrade” New Delhi to a status on par
with NATO allies. Formally known as
the National Defence Authorization Act,
the budget has to be passed by the
House of Representatives which is
scheduled to consider it this month.
Trump orders military might
display at July 4 parade in DC
Continued from page 1
politicize the day. House leaders, includ‑
ing Majority Leader Rep. Steny Hoyer,
D‑Maryland, worry that the events will
give an "appearance of a televised, par‑
with Biden in receiving support from
black Democratic voters ̶ a bloc with
which Biden has done well.
Meanwhile, former Speaker Newt
Gingrich has predicted that Harris will
be the eventual Democratic nominee.
Writing for Newsweek, he argued: “For
the first time, it looks like the finalists in
the struggle for the Democratic nomina‑
tion for president may be two sena‑
tors̶one from each coast. If this is the
case, the choice may come down to
Warren's icy intelligence versus Harris's
passionate crowd pleasing. I would bet
on Harris winning that showdown.”

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TheSouthAsianTimes.info TRISTATE COMMUNITY July 6-12, 2019 5

Indian‑American led NGOʼs mobile app helps

locate accessible friendly buildings in India
Washington, DC: An Indian‑American led
non‑profit organization has launched a
public utility mobile app to locate and
identify disabled‑friendly buildings in
India.
T he NGO, Voice of Specially Abled
People (VOSAP), announced the launch of
mobile app during the United Nations
Conference of State Part ies to the
Convention on the Rights of Persons with
Disabilities or COSP12, early this week.
A mobile app to find accessible places
(for persons with disabilities) is very
important in a country like India, it said.
During the presentation of the app at
the COSP12 conference, the NGO said that
it empowers volunteers to be "changemak‑
ers", creating demand for accessibility.
Representatives of countries at the UN
conference learned about the app and
potential adoption for their citizens with
disabilities.
"Voice of SAP's flagship initiative, the
Voice of SAP mobile app is now becoming
ʻMore than 8,000 volunteers have
pledged to become disability rights
activists in their own communitiesʼ ‑
Pranav Desai, founder,VOSAP
the leading 'public utility app' for finding
accessible places as well as empowering
activism to create a demand for accessibil‑
ity," Manushri Desai and Shivam Saran
said during their presentation at the UN
headquarters in New York early this
month. Desai is an undergraduate student
at the University of Southern California,
while Saran at Emory University.
The mobile app serves as a technology
platform that joins leaders and volunteers
hand‑in‑hand by adding to a growing
dataset of accessible friendly buildings all
over India, they said.
"By inspiring act ionable advo cacy
through technology, Voice of SAP has
urged the Government of India to accept
our init iat ive of Accessible India
Campaign which was then launched
nationwide by Prime Minister Narendra
Modi," they said.
The US‑based NGO has over 8,000 regis‑
tered volunteers across the world and it
plans to expand the concept to other parts
of the world after India.
According to Pranav Desai, founder of
the VOSAP, its more than 8,000 volun‑
teers have pledged to become disability
rights activists in their own communities.
"The Voice of SAP has enabled individu‑
als with assistive devices and kits for self‑
employment to promote the United
Nations Sustainable Development Goals,"
he said.
"India is the first focus country for
VOSAP. By first focusing on India and then
rolling out a similar accessibility and
advocacy network to other nations around
the world," he said.
In their UN address, Manushri and
Sharan said that as members of the
younger generation, they more than ever,
understand the importance of integrating
youth activists into the solution.
The NGO is determined to invoke change
and work closely with academic institu‑
tions to help students recognize their indi‑
vidual social responsibility towards spe‑
cially‑abled people, they said.
"By building a network of activists, we
can ignite mass awareness campaigns and
reinforce the reality that disability is
everybody's concern," they said. (PTI)

BAPS Charities hosts Walk

Green 2019 in Flushing, NY
New York: Community members
of all ages came out with their
families to support the annual
BAPS Charities Walk Green
2019 in Flushing, NY on June
23rd . T he event marks the
fourth year that the annual
—”— ƒƒǯ• –‡ƒ…Š‹‰• ‘ˆ Ž‘˜‡ǡ ’‡ƒ…‡ ƒ†
BAPS Charities walkathon will
benefit “T he Nature
Conservancy” and their effort to
conserve the lands and waters
on the earth to sustain life for
upcoming generations. BAPS
Charities continues to con‑
tribute to 100,000 planting
trees, through T he Nature
Conservancy to support their
initiative to plant a billion trees
globally by 2025. In addition to
supporting this global ef fort,
this yearʼs BAPS Charities
walkathon also supported
Queens Public Library.
Altogether, over 500 partici‑
pants attended the walk. New
York State Senator John Liu said
“Coming to support the BAPS
Charities is rewarding, and
New York State Senator John Liu also participated in the event
makes me feel proud and help‑
ing the environment and sup‑
porting the TNC to plant a
Billion Trees campaign. It is a
way to teach our children and to
protect the environment.”
BAPS Charities uses these
opportunities to instill a spirit of
service and commitment to
preservation and environmental
responsibility in community
members. Events such as this
help instill consciousness in
community members surround‑
ing their actions, and, in turn,
helps inspire global harmony
with nature.
Commenting on activities of
BAPS Charities, Dr. Hari Shukla,
Pediatrician in Flushing, NY said,
“I am greatly impressed with by
the logistics and the coordina‑
tion of the BAPS Charities event.
They involve the whole Indian
community to support the glob‑
al environmental cause and
locally the Queens Public
Library.”
PRESS RELEASE
PRESS RELEASE
Scholarships to be awarded to deserving students from Sikh Community
to honor the 550th Birth Anniversary of Guru Nanak Dev Ji
The year 2019 marks the 550th birth anniversary of Shri Guru Nanak Dev Ji, the
great saint and founder of the ‹Š ˆƒ‹–ŠǤ
brotherhood hold universal appeal. The Consulate General of India, New York is celebrating
the 550th birth anniversary of Shri Guru Nanak Dev Ji by organizing a number of events.
To honor this auspicious occasion, Xavier University School of Medicine, Aruba is
offering educational scholarships to deserving students of Sikh heritage; 20 scholarships
for USA, 20 scholarships for Canada & 20 scholarships for India. These recipient students
will be awarded a waiver of 50% off the tuition towards their studies. For more details
’Ž‡ƒ•‡˜‹•‹––Š‡•…Š‘‘Žǯ•‘ˆˆ‹…‹ƒŽ™‡„•‹–‡www.xusom.com
July 2, 2019
New York
Meditation and Healing Concert at
Kennedy Center on July 6
New York: Dr. Ganapathy quility and peace. This special per‑
Sachchidananda Swamiji of Mysore, formance is specifically designed to
India, an internationally renowned bring together individuals from diverse
artist in the field of Music for backgrounds and dif ferent beliefs
Meditation and Healing, will be per‑ thereby providing them with the bene‑
forming at the Concert Hall at the John fits of music and healing,” said Media
F Kennedy Center for the Performing and Policy Consultant, Vishnu
Arts in Washington DC on July 6, 2019 Jayaraman.
at 7 pm. Vishnu, also a member of the organiz‑
The event, Raga Maya Raga Sagara, is The Guinness World Records has ing committee for this concert, said
jointly organized by Datta Yoga Center, recognized Mysoreʼs Dr. Ganapathy that this performance will be attended
DC and Yoga Sangeeta, Sri Swamijiʼs Sachchidananda Swamiji multiple by political personalities, diplomats,
non‑profit organization based in New times for special events focusing prominent members from our commu‑
Jersey. Over 2,000 people from the US on world peace. nity, accomplished musicians, and hun‑
and around the world are expected to “Sri Swamiji has been performing dreds of Sri Swamijiʼs devotees from
attend this event. There is also a public Meditation and Healing concerts all around the world.
welcome function for Sri Swamiji at the over the world for over three decades More information on Sri Swamijiʼs
Gaithersburg High School Performing and has received numerous awards and work and mission can be accessed at
Arts Center, Maryland on July 5th honors. These concerts promote har‑ www.dattapeetham.com and
evening. mony and focus on bringing inner tran‑ www.yogasangeeta.org.
 6 July 6-12, 2019
PSEG trying to restore
power after fierce winds
hit Suffolk county
Commack, NY: Long Islanders are cleaning up from
the wild weekend weather. Officials say the area
between Brentwood and Commack in Suffolk
County was one of the hardest hit areas during the
storm that brought hail and heavy winds. News 12
received many calls and emails about trees falling
onto homes and streets. Many streets were left
impassable.
Suffolk officials say the storm could also be to
blame for a female swimmer drowning in the water
off Fire Island, and say they're working hard to
clean up the damage and get the power back on.
Donna Tedesco says a tree fell onto her neighborʼs
home, and that she has complained to Huntington
officials that the trees need to be pruned or taken
down.
Tedesco says the tree damage hasn't been this bad
since Superstorm Sandy. The National Weather
Service in Upton says the tree damage was caused
by 60 mph straight line winds, not a tornado.
Thousands remain without power across Suffolk
County. Some customers say they've been left with‑
out air conditioning, especially during the hot sum‑
mer nights.
PSEG Long Island says it has brought in more than
400 crews from other utilities like Con Edison to
help.They have set up outreach centers, like one at
the Mayfair Shopping Center in Commack, where
residents can pick up water and ice.
To report an outage call 1‑800‑490‑0075
Meng urges Census Bureau
to engage South Asians in
run up to 2020 census
Washington, DC: U.S. Rep. Grace Meng (D‑NY)
announced that she has sent a letter to U.S. Census
Bureau Director Steven Dillingham urging him to
include the South Asian community in the Census
Bureauʼs outreach leading up to the 2020 Decennial
Census.
The Census Bureau̶through its 2020 Census
Paid Media Campaign̶is presently conducting out‑
reach in English and numerous other languages
including: Spanish, Chinese (Mandarin and
Cantonese), Vietnamese, Korean, Russian, Arabic,
Tagalog, Polish, French, Haitian Creole, Portuguese,
and Japanese. But the South Asian population is not
included despite growing in size from 3.5 million in
2010 to approximately 5.4 million today.
“Iʼm shocked that the Census Bureau failed to
include the South Asian community in its outreach
leading up to the 2020 Decennial Census,” said
Congresswoman Meng. “There are approximately
5.4 million South Asians currently residing in the
United States, including many in my Congressional
district in Queens, and I cannot emphasize enough
how imperative it is that we have an accurate count
of all living individuals.Director Dillingham must
correct this error and immediately include the South
Asian population. We have less than a year before
the census begins on April 1, 2020.”
“Communities and neighborhoods across the
nation have a lot to lose if we fail to engage the
South Asian community in our census outreach,”
said Jo‑Ann Yoo, Executive Director of the Asian
American Federation. “Our census media efforts
must reflect the future we want for our country
which requires us to go beyond the bare minimum
to achieving full inclusion in our outreach. We must
make every effort to ensure that everyone counts.”
Now, we are devoting a full page to local government news, initiatives, and other information of significant importance to our readers.
Requesting all government agencies at state, county and town levels to send their press releases to: editor@thesouthasiantimes.info
LOCAL GOVERNMENT TheSouthAsianTimes.info
Attorney General James launches
Diversity and Inclusion Office
Sandra Grannum appointed head of the new office
New York: T he New York Attorney career, and the urgency to heed that call is
Generalʼs Office announced Friday that it now greater than ever.” “As [James] leads
has created an internal Diversity and that effort from this office,” Grannum con‑
Inclusion Of fice that aims to “foster a tinued, “I am honored and excited to be a
diverse and inclusive workplace that truly part of the work that will impact the lives
represents the people we serve,” accord‑ of so many New Yorkers.”
ing to Attorney General Letitia James. Grannum has expanded the Attorney
The office, which is in its infancy, will be Generalʼs Of ficeʼs diversity ef forts in
headed by Sandra Grannum, a nearly 17‑ recruitment while working as the legal
year veteran of the Attorney Generalʼs recruitment director, the release noted.
Of fice. She will “lead the way to ensure She also has developed and oversaw a
'New York's vitality is in its rich
that the agency better reflects the diversi‑ summer internship program.
diversity '‑‑‑ AG Letitia James
ty of New York state,” James said in a Moreover, she has launched a series of
news release. Inclusion Of fice is an essential step internal diversity programs, the
Grannum has served as the agencyʼs towards that goal, and I am confident that announcement said, such as hosting
legal recruitment director since 2007. Sandra Grannum will foster a diverse and speakers and events highlighting Black
“New Yorkʼs vitality is in its rich diversi‑ inclusive workplace that truly represents History, PRIDE, Asian Pacific History,
ty,” James said in the announcement. “My the people we serve.” Hispanic History and Womenʼs History
office is deeply committed to creating an Grannum, who will become the agencyʼs Month. A Georgetown University Law
environment of acceptance and open‑ first diversity and inclusion officer, said in Center graduate, Grannum previously
mindedness, both internally and through‑ the release that “diversity, equity, and served in the office as acting bureau chief
out the state.” The attorney general added inclusion have been the clarion call of and deputy bureau chief of the Health
that “the creation of the Diversity and Attorney General James throughout her Care Bureau, the release said.
Another insurgent
declares win in
Queens DA race
Queens: Tiffany Cabán ̶ who has
vowed to institute a slate of left‑lean‑
ing criminal‑jus‑
tice reforms and
calls herself a
ʻQueer Latinaʼ̶
declared victory
over establish‑
ment favorite
Queens bor‑
Self‑described
ough President ʻQueer Latinaʼ
Melinda Katz Tiffany Cabán
last Tuesday in
a tight Democratic primary race for
Queens district attorney. Cabán,
endorsed by progressives like Rep.
Alexandria Ocasio‑Cortez and Sen.
Bernie Sanders, got 39.6 percent of
Premier Print Media Partner
the vote to Katzʼs 38.3 percent.
“They said I didnʼt look like a district
attorney. They said I was too young.
They said we could not build a move‑
ment from the grassroots. They said
we could not win ̶ but we did it,
yʼall,” the 31‑year‑old public defender
told supporters at a nightclub in
Woodside.
“We built a campaign to reduce
recidivism, decriminalize poverty, end
mass incarceration, and to protect our
immigrant communities. To keep peo‑
ple rooted in their communities with
the access to support and services.”
Cabán, a democratic socialist, has
said that, if elected, she would not
prosecute farebeaters, sex workers,
johns and some recreational‑drug
crooks; work to close Rikers Island;
and end cash bail.
TheSouthAsianTimes.info NATIONAL July 6-12, 2019 7

Democrats rally behind Kamala

Harris after online racist attacks
Washington, DC: Senator Kamala
Harris, one of only two black presi‑
dential candidates in a field of two
dozen, had a history‑making
moment on the de bate stage
ugly," Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D‑
Mass., tweeted shortly after. "We
all have an obligation to speak out
and say so. And it's within the
power and obligation of tech com‑
Afterward, some people on social
media falsely claimed that Harris
couldn't lay claim to the afflictions
Sikh activists demand
of African Americans.
President Donald Trump's son,
apology from Kamala Harris

Thursday night when she chal‑
lenged former vice president Joe
Biden over racial issues.
But as the reaction to her debate
performance poured in, so did the
racist attacks on social media,
where some accused the California
Demo crat of not being black
enough, and others suggested she
was not really American.
On Twitter, some commenters
suggested Harris was unfairly por‑
tray ing herse lf as African
American, since she is the daughter
of a Jamaican father and an Indian
mother. By Saturday, Harris's cam‑
paign spokeswoman had retweeted
nearly a dozen comments and arti‑
cles de fending her boss, and
Harris's 2020 Democratic chal‑
lengers forcefully condemned the
attacks on social media.
"T his stuf f is really vile and
everyone should speak out against
it," Lily Adams, Harris's spokes‑
woman, wrote on Twitter.
"T he attacks ag ainst
@KamalaHarris are racist and
panies to stop these vile lies dead
in their tracks."
"@KamalaHarris doesn't have s‑‑‑
to prove," tweeted Sen. Cory
Booker, D‑N.J.,
Washington Gov. Jay Inslee
called the attacks "racist and vile."
Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar
wrote: "These troll‑fueled racist
attacks on Senator @KamalaHarris
are unacceptable. We are better
than this (Russia is not) and stand
united against this type of vile
behavior."
Caroline Orr, a behavioral scien‑
tist who studies the spread of disin‑
formation online, noted on Twitter
a surge of re lated ant i‑Harris
tweets that posted w ithin
minutes of each other during the
debate.
At Thursday's debate, Harris told
Biden that his past stance against
federally‑mandating busing black
students to white schools was per‑
sonally hurtful because she had
benefited from that educational
opportunity as a little g irl.
Donald Trump Jr. retweeted, and
then deleted, an alt‑right commen‑
tator named Ali Alexander, stating,
"Kamala Harris is implying she is
descended from American Black
Slaves. She's not. She comes from
Jamaican Slave Owners. That's fine.
She's not an American Black.
Period."
In sharing that message to his
millions of followers, Trump Jr.
tweeted: "Is this true? Wow."
"This is the same type of racist
attacks his father used to attack
Barack Obama," Adams said in
email to The Washington Post. "It
didn't work then and it won't work
now."
Two of Harris's Democratic pri‑
mary opponents reacted to Trump
Jr.'s comment. Sen. Bernie Sanders,
I‑Vt., tweeted: "Donald Trump Jr. is
a racist too. Shocker."
South Bend, Indiana, Mayor Pete
Buttigieg wrote: "The presidential
compet it ive fie ld is stronger
because Kamala Harris has been
powerfully voicing her Black
A
group of Sikh activists
has launched an online
petition asking Indian‑
American Democratic presiden‑
tial candidate Kamala Harris to
apologize to the community for
allegedly defending a discrimi‑
natory policy in 2011.
In a statement, the Sikh
activists alleged that during her
tenure as Californiaʼs Attorney
General, Harris defended a poli‑
cy that prohibited state prison
guards from keeping beards for
religious reasons, even though
exceptions were given for med‑
ical reasons. The case settled
without a policy change in 2011,
prompting the U.S. Department
of Justice to open a civil rights
invest ig at ion and forcing
California Sikhs to successfully
lobby for stronger workplace
religious freedom laws in the
American experience. Her first‑gen‑
erat ion story embo dies the
American dream. It's long past
state the following year.
Kamala Harris lectures her
opponents on civil rights, but
she needs to apologize for tram‑
pling on the civil rights of Sikh
Americans as Californiaʼs attor‑
ney general, Rajdeep Singh Jolly,
a lawyer and political consultant
in Washington, DC, said.
He said that Ms. Harris denied
re lig ious freedom to Sikh‑
Americans even when the
Obama administration was tak‑
ing historic steps to allow it.
Winty Singh, author of the
American Turban blog and com‑
mentator on Sikh American
issues, said Ms. Harrisʼ civil
rights rhetoric will ring hollow
until she addresses her defence
of workplace discrimination
against Sikhs.
Itʼs her opportunity now to
right that wrong, he said.
time to end these racist, birther‑
style attacks."
(Source: Washington Post)

Upset Hindus seek Indian-American man shot dead by off-duty

apology from
Whole Foods for not
being transparent
in food labels
New York: Hindus are upset at supermarket
chain Whole Foods Market (WFM), which claims
to “maintain the strictest quality standards in the
industry” for not being transparent enough in
ingredients listed on some of the products it sells.
Hindu statesman Rajan Zed, in a statement in
Nevada, said that some products sold at WFM
contained gelatin, but source of gelatin was not
mentioned under the “ingredients” on
boxes/packages; which might be beef, pork, etc.
When the source of gelatin is not listed and if it
is beef, it is a serious non‑disclosure af fecting
Hindu devotees and would severely hurt their
feelings when they would come to know that
they were inadvertently consuming beef‑laced
popular food products for years; Zed, who is
President of Universal Society of Hinduism,
stresses.
Consumption of beef is highly conflicting to
Hindu beliefs. Cow, the seat of many deities, is
sacred and has long been venerated in Hinduism;
Rajan Zed points out.
Zed urged WFM to recall all food items contain‑
ing gelatin on which the source of gelatin was
not clearly mentioned; and later replace these
with items which markedly declare the source of
gelatin under the ingredients label. He also
sought an official apology from WFM CEO John
Mackey.
cop inside Costco; parents in critical condition
Atlanta, GA: A 32‑year old Indian‑American
man with intellectual disability was shot and
killed by an off‑duty police officer after an
alleged argument inside a Costco outlet in
Los Angeles on June 14.
Kenneth French, a 32‑year‑old non‑verbal
man with learning disability, was shopping
with his parents at a Costco in Corona, when
an encounter with an off‑duty LAPD officer,
Salvador Sanchez, ultimately left French and
his parents shot. French died on the scene.
His parents, Paola and Russell, are in critical
condition at a local hospital.
According to an online petition created to
get justice for the family, French was a “gen‑
tle giant” – not known to have violent ten‑
dencies. “Store security footage appears to
show Frenchʼs father attempting to get
Kenneth French with his parents (Image courtesy: latimes.com)
between French and Sanchez after his son
made physical contact with Sanchez to out a full criminal investigation. Riverside County District Attorneyʼs Office
explain that it was a misunderstanding and “French did not deserve to die and his who will be evaluating the facts and circum‑
that he was disabled. Sanchez claims he was killer should not be able to avoid the conse‑ stances of this incident,” the report added.
knocked unconscious by French, even quences just because heʼs a cop,” the peti‑ Meanwhile the Riverside County district
though after the incident he was only found tion says. attorneyʼs of fice is reviewing whether to
to have minor injuries,” the petition says. “Investigation has confirmed an of f‑duty criminally charge the of f‑duty LA Police
“Currently, the LAPD is carrying out both Los Angeles Police Department Officer was Department officer.
an internal and criminal investigation into shopping at Costco with his family,” the Typically, such an investigation involving
what happened that day at Costco, though police statement said. police officers often takes months, but with
they have chosen to neither arrest nor sus‑ “The of ficerʼs gun was the only weapon a growing debate over the shooting,
pend Sanchez.” involved in the incident, contrary to earlier Coronaʼs police chief publicly said he was
The petition is demanding justice for reports. As is standard procedure in such prioritizing the investigation and his detec‑
French and his family by calling on the investigations, the Corona Police tives were reviewing evidence including
LAPD to fire and arrest Sanchez and to carry Department is working closely with the security videos and interviewing witnesses.
 8 July 6-12, 2019 NATIONAL COMMUNITY TheSouthAsianTimes.info

10th World Tamil Hindu American Foundation honors

Conference in activists for Kashmiri Pandit rights
Chicago from July 4
New York: The 10th World Tamil
Conference w ill be he ld in
Chicago for four days from July 4.
The ninth edition was held at
Kuala Lumpur in Malaysia in
2015.
The International Association of
Tamil Research (IATR), which has
been organising WTCs for over
five decades, is conducting this
mega event in the USA for the
first time.
Addressing a press conference
in Chennai, Dr M Ponnavaikko,
vice‑president, IATR, said it would
be a big confluence of Tamil
scholars and around 6,000 partic‑
ipants are expected to attend it.
He said the academic committee
for the conference had screened
over 1,150 abstracts received so
far and shortlisted over 80
research papers in various fields,
which would be presented before
the global scholars including Dr
Spencer Wells and Prof Dr L Hart.
He also said date of Tamil gram‑
mar work ʻTholkappiyamʼ was
actually around 5,000 BC. But
because of the ʻinsertionsʼ in the
later period, the date of this great
work is being put around 5th cen‑
tury AD. As the first such ef fort,
after removal of these insertions,
the orig inal text of
ʻTholkappiyamʼ would be released
during the conference.
Tamil Nadu Minister for Tamil
Of ficial Language and Tamil
Culture K Pandiarajan said that as
a concurrent session of this con‑
ference, around 150 Tamil associ‑
ations across the globe from 16
countries where more than one
lakh Tamils live would be deliber‑
ating on key topics.
CM Edappadi K Palaniswami
would make an announcement
within a few days about the finan‑
cial contribution for the confer‑
ence. At least one minister and 25
Tamil scholars from the State
would attend the conference, he
said.
T he minister also said the
Federation of Tamil Sangams of
North America (FeTNA) had so far
invited 89 scholars from Tamil
Nadu and the number might go
up. During the conference, Tamil
Nadu government is planning to
introduce ʻSorkkuvaiʼ project
( Treasury of Tamil words).
“Across the globe, many Tamil
entrepreneurs have been working
for establishing a Tamil Venture
Capital and the final shape for
this is likely to be announced in
Chicago. Many American senators
and secretaries are also likely to
take part,” he added.
A convention of FeTNA will con‑
centrate on “Keezhadi ‑ Nam
Thaai Madi (Keezhadi Excavations
‑ in our Tamil Motherʼs lap) and
would be dedicated to the late
Tamil scholar, Rev GU Pope, dur‑
ing his 200th birth anniversary.
There would be 35 concurrent
sessions which would discuss
organic farming, Tamil music, etc.
An exhibition of rare Tamil books
would also be held and a glossary
of 46,000 Tamil names for chil‑
dren would be released. (Source:
newindianexpress.com)
Washington, DC: T he Hindu
American Foundation (HAF) hon‑
ored three activists for espousing
the rights of Kashmiri Pandits with
the 2019 Award for Advancement of
Hindu Human Rights.
Vijay Sazawal, Deepak Ganju and
Sunil Fotedar were given the awards
at HAF's 16th Annual Capitol
Reception held on Monday for giv‑
ing "a voice to the Kashmiri Pandit
community, whose suffering would
have otherwise gone unnoticed in
the United States" and for "notable
contributions to preserving
Kashmiri culture" according to HAF.
The HAF also honored Democratic
Representative Brad Sherman with
the Friend of the Community award
for his efforts confronting terrorism,
and Sam Brownback, the US
Ambassador‑at‑Large for
International Religious Freedom,
with the Mahatma Gandhi Award for
Advancing Pluralism, at the recep‑
tion held in the Foreign Af fairs
Committee room of the House of
Representatives.
It said that Brownback's "keen
attention and efforts to address the
plight of vulnerable Hindu minori‑
ties in Afghanistan, Bangladesh,
Malaysia, Pakistan, and the Indian
state of Jammu and Kashmir has
helped further the cause of human
rights and freedom of belief world‑
wide." "After 30 years of largely
remaining unheard, we were hon‑
ored to recognize the ef forts of
American policy makers who have
used their platforms to highlight the
need for religious freedom and
human rights for this and other
minority communities," HAF
Executive Director Suhag Shukla
said. About the Kashmiris honored,
Professor Subhash Kak was
honored with HAFʼs Award for
the Advancement of Dharmic
Arts and Science in 2019.
she said: "We're humbled by the self‑
lessness and achievements of these
individuals in protecting, preserving,
and promoting the indigenous cul‑
tural heritage of Kashmir, and in
making incredible advances in a
variety of fields."
Sherman said that the US‑India
strategic relationship is based on
shared democratic values and looks
forward to India being classified as a
major non‑NATO ally.
Brownback said: "The role of the
government is to protect the right to
everyone's religious freedom. You
want to be Hindu, great. You want to
be a Christian, a Muslim, great. As
long as you're peaceful about it, we
will protect your right. This should
be the standard around the world."
About the recipients of the Hindu
Human Rights Award, the HAF said:
"For more than 25 years Vijay
Sazawal (of the Indo‑American
Kashmir Forum) has given a voice to
the Kashmiri Pandit community,
whose suffering would have other‑
wise gone unnoticed in the United
States. "Likewise, Deepak Ganju (of
the ''Shehjar Magazine''), has unflag‑
gingly promoted awareness of the
genocide perpetrated against the
Kashmiri Pandits. Sunil Fotedar has
been a pioneer in creating online
archives of Kashmiri culture, reli‑
gion, and history, as well as the
human rights violations against the
Kashmiri Pandit community."
"For too long the religio‑ethnic
cleansing of the Kashmiri Pandit
community from the Valley of
Kashmir has been overlooked by the
international community," said HAF
Board Member Rajiv Pandit.
"Some three decades ago thou‑
sands of Hindus were killed by their
neighbors and Pakistan‑sponsored
militants, with several hundred
thousand forced to flee under threat
of horrific violence. "All of us would
like to see a time when we are able
to return home safely," he added.
Author Bansi Pandit received the
Dharma Seva Award for promoting
Sanatana Dharma and the Dharmic
community by providing "the com‑
munity with many resources for the
preservation of our religious and
cultural traditions, with a particular
focus on the needs of the second
generation of Hindu Americans,"
HAF said.
The Award for the Advancement
of Dharmic Arts and Science was
given to professors Subhash Kak and
Ashok Koul, and Tiku Kaul. HAF said
Kak of Oklahoma State University
received the award for contributions
to the fields of quantum cryptogra‑
phy, archaeoastronomy, history, phi‑
losophy, and poetry; Koul, a South
Asian languages expert at Brown
University, was honored for contri‑
butions to the field of linguistics,
and Tiku Kaul got the award for pro‑
moting Kashmiri culture through
music and poetry.

Indian Overseas Congress, USA IACFNJ annual summer

opens new chapter in Michigan picnic at Mercer County
Park on July 28
I
ndo‑American Cultural
F o u n d a t i o n of C e n t r a l
Jersey – IACFNJ will hold
their annual summer picnic at
M e r c e r C o u n t y Pa r k o n
Sunday, July 28, 2019. The
f u n ‑ f i l l ed m o r e t h a n e i g h t
hours of outdoor picnic will be
attended by their members
and non‑members from the
local communities and local
and state public of ficials in
heavily populated towns of
Indian Americans in Central
Jersey.
This yearʼs summer picnic
will have many fun‑filled activ‑
In its continuous efforts to expand IOC, USA offices throughout USA, IOC, USA opened a new chapter ities including games for the
in Michigan on June 22, 2019 and installed Rajwinder Singh Grewal as the chapter president. The kids, bingo, prizes, live DJ and
installation ceremony took place in the Grand Plaza Hotel, Grand Rapids, where over two hundred music and singing.
member participants gathered to witness the installation ceremony of the president. The breakfast, lunch and din‑
ner will be provided free of
charge to all members and at
only $5 for non‑members. The
delicious and mouth‑watering
menu will include breakfast,
tea, lunch, snacks and dinner
and special food for the kids
throughout the day.
Live entertainment will be
provided by young and talent‑
ed DJ Darshan and DJ Ashish
from Desi Experiment LLC.
T h e u p c o m i n g e ve n t s of
I AC F N J will be India
Independence Day celebration
on Sunday, August 18, 2019,
from 11 to 2 p.m., Navratri
Garba on September 27, 28
and October 4, 5, 2019, and
holiday party in November
2019.
TheSouthAsianTimes.info NATIONAL July 6-12, 2019 9

Avi Gupta wins 2019 Teen SHERIN MATHEWS DEATH:

Jeopardy; bags $100k prize money
New York: An Indian‑American youth has
won the 2019 Teen Jeopardy contest taking
the $100,000 prize in America's most‑
watched individual quiz show. Avi Gupta's
victory televised on Friday marks a near‑
clean sweep of popular student contests in
the past year by Indian‑Americans.
He is from Portland, Oregon, and complet‑
ed high school recently, although he was still
a high schooler when the program was pre‑
recorded several weeks ago. He beat out
three other Indian‑American teens in the
contest, which featured a total of 15 stu‑
dents. During the show, he told the host,
Alex Trebek, that people questioned the
value of accumulating a trove of trivia when
they could be googled. But he said that
building a wide range of knowledge was
important because arguments and ideas can
be built only on facts.
The 2018 College Jeopardy, which also
carried a prize of $100,000, was won by
Dhruv Gaur. The 2019 National Geography
Bee, which tests knowledge of geography,
was won by Nihar Janga.
In the 2019 National Spelling Bee last
month seven of the eight co‑winners were of
Avi Guptaʼs victory marks a near clean
sweep of popular student contests in the
past year by Indian‑Americans
Indian descent. In the previous 10 years,
only Indian‑Americans had been winners.
Indian‑Americans have made their mark in
science contests also. Although there were
no winners among them, 16 of the 30 final‑
ists in the nat ion's top contest, the
Regeneron National Science Talent Search,
were on Indian descent.
In the Broadcom Masters science contest
for middle school students, eight of the 30
finalists were Indian‑Americans.
Indian American foster
father gets life in jail
Houston: Wesley Mathews, the Indian‑
American foster father of three‑year‑old
Sherin Mathews, was sentenced to life by a
judge in Dallas on Wednesday for the tragic
death of the Indian toddler in 2017, in a
case that attracted international attention.
Mathews, 39, pleaded guilty Monday to a
lesser charge of injury to a child in Sherin's
death. He was originally charged with capi‑
tal murder by authorities in the state of
Texas.
Mathews stared ahead and did not look at
jurors as the judge sentenced him to life in
prison, US media reports said.
T he 12‑member jury de liberated
Wednesday afternoon for about three hours
before coming to a unanimous decision to
give Mathews a sentence of life in the death
of his adopted daughter, Sherin. He will be
eligible for parole after 30 years' imprison‑
ment. Prosecutors argued that Mathews,
hailing from Kerala, killed Sherin in October
2017. She was adopted by Mathews and his
wife Sini Mathews from an orphanage in
Bihar in 2016. Mathews claimed she acci‑
dentally choked to death on milk.
Prosecutor Sherre Thomas argued that
Mathews' testimony was just another lie.
She said testimony and medical records
show that it was "medically impossible for a
child who is 3 years old to stand up and
choke to death" as Mathews claimed.
"It means he's still a liar. It means he killed
that little girl. And when he killed her, he
panicked," T homas argued, WFAA TV
reported.
She said Mathews also took the time to
clean up himself and turned off the location
tracker on his phone to try to hide what he
had done.
Mathews did not tell investigators where
his daughter's body was.
When her body was found, it was so badly
decomposed that the medical examiner
could not determine an exact cause of death.
"There's nothing left of her, her teeth had
fallen out," Thomas said. "He covered his
crime. He got away with that." (PTI)

DIASPORA

Whistleblower staff that complained India-born Priya Serrao crowned

against chef Karunesh Khanna ''sacked'' Miss Universe Australia 2019
London: Restaurant chain Tamarind
Kitchen has reportedly fired three
employees who complained against
Michelin‑starred Karunesh Khanna, a
chef of Indian‑origin, who used
chicken as an ingredient in vegetari‑
an and vegan dishes without inform‑
ing the customers.
According to a report in Surrey‑
based publication Personnel Today
on Tuesday, the Central London
Employment Tribunal heard that the
staf f concerned were working at
Tamarind Kitchen, "one of three
Tamarind outlets in the capital spe‑
cializing in upmarket Indian cuisine."
The news about Khanna's secret
ingredient broke after six staff mem‑
bers of Tamarind Kitchen com‑
plained that Khanna told one manag‑
er: "Guests don't need to know what
ingredients" were used.
The former assistant manager
Mafis Ali who brought the employ‑
ment tribunal case into the limelight,
lost his job after he alerted bosses
about the use of the chicken cubes.
Restaurant director Fateh
Dhaliwal, however, has denied the
allegations made by the employees.
Ali and five other employees
approached another Tamarind
Kitchen manager Malik who dis‑
cussed the issue with the chefs.
Malik "concluded the chicken stock
was being used under the instruc‑
tions of Khanna, who later allegedly
told Malik that "guests don't need to
know what ingredients" were used.
Malik then raised the issue with
Dhaliwal and was told to keep selling
dishes. "Those members of staff need
to be phased out," Dhaliwal allegedly
told Malik.
Khanna's food has tickled the taste
buds of celebrities like David
Beckham and Oscar‑winning actress
Charlize Theron. A message sent to
Khanna's Instagram account went
unanswered.
One of the first Indian restaurants
in the world to win a Michelin star,
which it holds to this day, the
Tamarind chain of fers top‑class
Indian food in London.
The news instantly led to an outcry
on Twitter.
"Everything is wrong with this.
This is an absolutely clear case of
cheating people by scheming to
make something delicious in such
illegally disingenuous ways. Nobody
is doing a favor letting the other
know. 1stly, it should not be adver‑
tised as vegan. 2nd, customers are
required to know!" a user posted on
Twitter.
"I'm more shocked that a Michelin‑
starred chef uses shop‑bought stock
when they tell the rest of us to make
it at home. Michelin‑starred chef
Karunesh Khanna accused of using
chicken cubes in vegetarian meals,"
another user tweeted.
"@karuneshkhanna Why not use
vegetable stock or even one of the
many faux chicken stocks available?
So irresponsible and disrespectful.
I'm headed to London later this year
and will be skipping
@TamarindMayfair," a user posted.
Melbourne: India born Priya Serrao,
whose family migrated to Australia
from Middle East, has won the Miss
Universe Australia title for 2019.
Serrao edged past 26 other women
from across the country in
Melbourne on Thursday night to win
the title. The 26‑year‑old will now
represent Australia in the Miss
Universe competition later this year.
“I just want to see more diversity and
the fact someone that looks like me
and has my background is here is
amazing,” Serrao said after her win.
A law graduate who currently works
in the Department of Jobs, Precincts,
and regions in Melbourne, Serrao
was born in India. Her family later
moved to Oman and Dubai before
finally settling in Australia.
Serrao said winning the title was a
huge surprise for her as it was her
first beauty pageant contest. “I have
never entered a pageant before and I
have never done modeling before…
So this was a huge surprise. I wanted
to be a part of the experience,” she
Priya
Serrao
added. Western Australiaʼs Bella
Kasimba and another Victorian
Marijana Radmanovic rounded out
2019ʼs top three, placing second and
third. Sharing photos on social, she
wrote, “I still canʼt believe everything
thatʼs happened in the last 24 hours.
A huge thank you for all your sup‑
port so far. I canʼt wait to get started!
“A few days back, while still in the
competition, she had shared a photo
of herself looking lovely in a blush
pink dress, and wrote, “What a great
end to my birthday and an even bet‑
ter start to @missuniverseaustralia.
official nationals week.” (PTI)
 10 July 6-12, 2019 US AFFAIRS TheSouthAsianTimes.info

2020 Democrats spar over race, Trump on debate's 2nd night

Miami: T he second nig ht of the first
Democratic primary debate saw 10 candi‑
dates criticize President Donald Trump and
spar over racial issues, the scope of health‑
care policies and the universality of govern‑
ment assistance programs.
The debate on Thursday night came a day
after the first batch of the 10 presidential
hopefuls squared off in an event hosted by
television network NBC in Miami, as the
party decided to divide the field of 20 candi‑
dates into two groups of 10, reports Efe
news.
Thursday's stage featured former Vice
President Joe Biden, Vermont Senator
Bernie Sanders, California Senator Kamala
Harris, South Bend Indiana Mayor Pete
Butt ig ieg, New York Senator Kirsten
Gillibrand, Colorado Senator Michae l
Bennett, former Colorado Governor John
Hickenlooper, California Representative Eric
Swalwell, activist and author Marianne
Williamson and tech entrepreneur Andrew
Yang. The common denominator between all
candidates was a withering criticism of
Trump's actions in his time in office, as well
as their rejection of the tax cut package
passed by the Republican‑dominated
Congress in 2017 that primarily benefited
Joe Biden and Bernie Sandersʼ frontrunners status is
in jeopardy after the debate last Wednesday.
the wealthiest segments of the American
society and is estimated to carry a loss of
$1.5 trillion to US coffers.
Another target of their ire was Republican
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell,
whose decision to refuse confirmation of
former President Obama's Supreme Court
nominee Merrick Garland in 2016 was wide‑
ly seen among Democrats as a prime exam‑
ple of extreme partisanship and obstruction.
Biden faced challenges from a new genera‑
tion of presidential hopefuls who took aim
at his decades‑long record as a Delaware
senator and questioned whether the party's
Obama‑era policies have gone far enough in
achieving progressive goals, Dow Jones
reported. The arguments pivoted over the
role of government in healthcare and other
issues ‑ and whether the party should
embrace aspects of democratic socialism, a
position repeatedly pushed by Sanders, who
was standing at Biden's left.
In the sharpest exchange of the night,
Harris, who is black and also of Indian
descent, directly told Biden that while she
didn't believe he was a racist, it was hurtful
to hear him warmly recall working with two
deceased segregationist senators. She also
questioned his opposition to federally
ordered busing to integrate schools during
the 1970s.
"There was a little girl in California who
was part of the second class to integrate her
public schools and she was bused to school
every day," Harris said. "That little girl was
me."
Biden sought to defend his record, saying
he was only against "busing ordered by the
Department of Education" but didn't oppose
local integration efforts, and tried to put his
comments about former Senate colleagues
in context.
Two of Biden's chief rivals, Sanders and
Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren, who
appeared in Wednesday night's debate, have
advocated for steep tax increases for the
wealthy and corporations to fund their
sweeping plans for an expansive health‑care
system, college affordability and safeguards
against climate change.
Sanders was pressed on whether he would
raise taxes on middle‑class earners to pay
for his comprehensive proposals to provide
universal health care and free college. "Yes,
they will pay more in taxes," he acknowl‑
edged, "but less in health care for what they
will get."

A BIG NIGHT FOR ELIZABETH WARREN

Miami: The race for the Democratic presi‑
dential nomination shifted into top gear
here last Wednesday, with the first debate of
the 2020 election cycle featuring 10 candi‑
dates.
The one‑sentence summary: Sen. Elizabeth
Warren (Mass.) won.
She was particularly strong in the first
half‑hour of the debate, when her answers
̶ forceful, succinct and substantive ̶ set
her apart from everyone else on stage.
During those crucial opening exchanges,
Warren got to hit some of her favorite
themes, including the misdeeds of the cor‑
porate world (“corruption, pure and simple”)
and her advocacy of "Medicare for All."
In making her case for the latter topic, she
blasted health insurance companies for
what she portrayed as gratuitous profiteer‑
ing.
Other candidates were often asked about
their own positions in relation to Warrenʼs
̶ a move that highlighted her status as the
dominant figure on stage.
Going into the debate, immigration was in
the center of the news agenda for tragic rea‑
sons, notably a heartrending photo of the
late Óscar Ramírez and his infant daughter
Valeria, who drowned together trying to
cross the Rio Grande.
Former Housing and Urban Development
Secretary Julián Castroʼs passion and
detailed knowledge of the issue was readily
apparent. He also got the better of rivals,
Elizabeth Warrenʼs answers ‑‑ forceful, succinct and substantive ̶
notably former Rep. Beto OʼRourke (Texas)
set her apart from everyone else on stage. Tulsi Gabbard also made an
on the topic. impression when asked about possibility of war with Iran. (Photo :AP)

Facebook launches civil rights House Democrats describe harrowing

task force ahead of 2020 polls conditions at Texas border facilities
San Francisco: Facebook has announced a civil
rights task force that would help the social net‑
working giant fight political interference in the
2020 presidential campaign and census.
The task force will have onboard civil rights
expertise to ensure it is effective in addressing
areas like content policy, fairness in artificial
intelligence, privacy, and elections.
"We will work with voting rights experts to
make sure key members of our election team
are trained on trends in voter intimidation and
suppression so they can remove this content
from Facebook more ef fectively," Sheryl
Sandberg, COO at Facebook, said Sunday.
Facebook witnessed heavy political interfer‑
ence from nation‑state actors during the 2016
US presidential election on its platform.
"With both the US Census and the US presi‑
dential elections, 2020 will be big year. An
accurate census count is crucial to govern‑
ments for functions like distributing federal
funds and to businesses and researchers.
"That's why we're going to treat next year's
census like an election ‑‑ with people, policies
and technology in place to protect against cen‑
sus interference," said Sandberg.
Facbook said it now bans praise, support and
representation of white nationalism and white
separatism. To protect elections, said Sandberg,
the company has a team across product, engi‑
neering, data science, policy, legal and opera‑
tions dedicated full time to these efforts. "We
expect to finalize a new policy and its enforce‑
ment before the 2019 gubernatorial elections.
This is a direct response to the types of ads we
saw on Facebook in 2016," she added.
Washington: Despite a me. Of ficers were keeping
ProPublica report detailing women in cells w/ no water &
how some members of a pri‑ had told them to drink out of
vate Border Patrol Facebook the toilets. This was them on
group expressed their dis‑ their GOOD behavior in front of
pleasure about a congression‑ members of Congress.”
al visit to Texas migrant Rep. Judy Chu (D‑Calif.), who
detention centers, more than toured the facility with Ocasio‑
a dozen House members went Cortez, backed up her col‑
through with the plan on league's comments. "If you
Monday. want water, just drink from a
Rep. Alexandria Ocasio‑ Rep. Alexandria Ocasio‑ toilet." That's what border
Cortez (D‑N.Y.), one of the Cortez said women were told patrol told one thirsty woman
main targets of the Facebook to drink out of toilets. we met on today's
group, said that she saw and heard harrowing #DemsAtTheBorder trip. These are the same
things while touring the El Paso facility. She CBP personnel who threatened to throw bur‑
tweeted, “I see why CBP officers were being ritos at members of Congress. Changes must
so physically &sexually threatening towards be made.”
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
Trump's idea to delay Census
unprecedented: experts
Washington: President Donald Trump
last Thursday proposed an extraordinary
delay to the 2020 census after the U.S.
Supreme Court blocked his effort to add
a citizenship question, but legal experts
said such a move would violate the
Constitution, Reuters reports.
The U.S. Constitution directs the census
take place every 10 years, and a delay via
executive action would be unprecedent‑
ed, experts said.
Terri Ann Lowenthal, a former staf f
director of the House of Representatives
subcommittee overseeing the census,
said a delay would run afoul of “the con‑
stitutional requirement for an enumera‑
tion every 10 years” and “the statutory
requirement to … report the state popu‑
lation totals by the end of the census
year.”
“Essentially, we would be facing a con‑
stitutional crisis,” Lowenthal said.
On Twitter after his setback before the
Supreme Court, Trump said, “I have asked
the lawyers if they can delay the Census,
no matter how long, until the United
States Supreme Court is given additional
information from which it can make a
final and decisive decision on this very
critical matter.”
No citizenship question has been a part
US AFFAIRS July 6-12, 2019 11
Huge crowds at New
York Pride parade
of the census since 1950. It was the 50th
Delaying the census by executive action anniversary of
would be “unprecedented,” said Margo the iconic
Anderson, a U.S. census historian and Stonewall riots in
professor at the University of Wisconsin Manhattan,
at Milwaukee. which was a key
The census date of April 1 is written turning point in
the struggle for
into the federal census act and would
equal rights for
need to be changed legislatively for a
the LGBT
delay to be constitutional, she said. community.
The Census bureauʼs own experts have (Photo : AP)
estimated that about 6.5 million people
would not respond to the census if the
New York: As many as 150,000 people Efe news that she felt proud to be present
citizenship question were added.
waved rainbow banners and marched in as the "new ambassador" of the emblem‑
The nationʼs top court said the federal
the WorldPride parade in here to express atic gay bar.
governmentʼs rationale for the question
solidarity with the LGBTQI community. "I think it's very appropriate that we're
“seems to have been contrived” and the
Multicolored floats, stilt‑walkers, drag here today and that we're fighting for
government had not given a reasoned
queens, heterosexuals, lesbians, gays, human rights," Donatella said. Her broth‑
explanation for its actions.
activists, actors, television performers er Gianni, who founded the Versace fash‑
The Supreme Court sent the issue back
and elected politicians were all on hand ion house, was openly gay. He was shot
to the Commerce Department, which is in
in the Big Apple on Sunday to celebrate dead in 1994.
charge of the census, to decide whether
gay pride and the 50th anniversary of the The first Gay Pride parade was staged
to provide a dif ferent rationale for the
iconic Stonewall riots, which was a key in 1970 to commemorate the first
question.
turning point in the struggle for equal anniversary of the Stonewall riots on June
Officials say there is little time remain‑
rights for the community, reports Efe 28, 1969, after police raided the
ing to begin printing materials to meet
news. Governor Andrew Cuomo and Stonewall Inn gay bar resulting in riots
the April 1 deadline for the census. The
Mayor Bill de Blasio were the top political that are widely considered to be a water‑
Census Bureau has said that it must
officials at the parade. shed moment in the modern gay rights
begin printing forms by June 30.
Also on hand was iconic fashion design‑ movement.
The census is mandated under Article
er Donatella Versace, who participated Some three million tourists converged
One, Section Two of the U.S. Constitution.
riding on the Stonewall Inn float and told in the city for the Pride celebrations.
 12 July 6-12, 2019
Parliament nod to extend Nirav's sister's bank
President's rule in J&K account frozen in
New Delhi: President's Rule in
Jammu and Kashmir was on
Monday extended by another six
months, with the Parliament giving
its nod amidst the government's
assertion that it would hold the
Assembly polls in the state by this
year end as and when the Election
Commission (EC) takes a decision
in this regard.
T he Rajya Sabha on Monday
adopted a statuary resolution for
extending the President's Rule in
J&K from July 3. The resolution
was passed by the Lok Sabha on
June 28. J&K is under Central rule
since June 2018, when the
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) pulled
out of the coalition government
with Mehbooba Mufti's Peoples
Democratic Party (PDP).
The Upper House also passed the
amendment bill of the Jammu and
Kashmir Reservation Act, 2004.
Replying to the day‑long debate
in which 27 members took part,
Union Home Minister Amit Shah
said that the government was not
happy to extend the Central rule in
J&K. He also said that the govern‑
ment did not want to govern the
state through remote control, but
this measure had to be taken
because of certain difficulties.
Modi says democracy our culture,
wants water saved
New Delhi: Describing democracy
as a part of India's culture and
heritage, Prime Minister
Narendra Modi said people felt
something was taken away from
them during the 19‑month
Emergency in 1975‑77.
Resuming his 'Mann ki Baat'
radio program after being elected
for a second term, Modi also
urged people to conserve every
drop of water and to make it a
mass movement akin to the
Swachh Bharat mission in the
wake of water shortages in parts
of the country.
Talking about the country's
democratic spirit, Modi said the
Emergency ‑‑ clamped in June
1975 by then Prime Minister
Indira Gandhi ‑‑ was not only
opposed by political parties but
also by the common man.
T he opposit ion to the
Emergency, during which hun‑
dreds of opposit ion party
activists and leaders were jailed,
triggered anger among the peo‑
ple, he said.
"There was restlessness in the
people for lost democracy. We
Jammu & Kashmir is under Central rule since June 2018.
He said the Assembly elections
could not be held with the Lok
Sabha polls because security forces
expressed their inability to provide
security to the candidates whose
number would have been around
1,000.
"In Jammu and Kashmir, it was
not possible to hold Assembly elec‑
tions with the Lok Sabha polls
because 1,000 candidates and
their rallies were to be provided
security. T he security forces
expressed their inability as theyr
wer deployed all over the country
due to the Lok Sabha polls.
Taking a sw ipe at Leader of
Opposition Ghulam Nabi Azad for
saying that the Congress govern‑
ment had held elections in the
state, Shah said, "I don't decide the
poll timing. It is the EC which
decides."
Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
realize the importance of demo‑
crat ic rig hts when these are
taken away from us.
"India can say proudly that
apart from rules and law, democ‑
racy is our heritage and culture.
The common man felt the pain of
the Emergency."
Speaking about the Lok Sabha
elections that have brought him
back to power with a thumping
majority, he said the sheer scale
of the electoral process made
INDIA NEWS
Taking a dig at the Congress,
Shah said the Modi government
wanted to hold simultaneous Lok
Sabha and Assembly polls all over
the country, and not just in Jammu
and Kashmir. "But you only are not
agreeing. If you agree, I will bring
the bill tomorrow," he said.
Shah also said that he felt happy
that all the members of the House
"considered Jammu and Kashmir
as part of the country".
"T his manifests the spirit of
'Jamhooriyat, Insaniyat,
Kashmiriyat'. Modi government's
commitment to the policy of
'Jamhooriyat, Insaniyat,
Kashmiriyat' should not be taken to
mean that the forces who want to
divide India will be spared. They
w ill be g iven an appropriate
response in their own language,"
Shah added.
every Indian proud.
"India just completed the
largest ever election. The scale of
the election was immense. It tells
us about the faith people have in
our democracy," he added.
Mo di resumed his monthly
radio broadcast after a break of
four months due to the Lok
Sabha polls. The Prime Minister
also stressed on the need to save
water.
"There is no one way to con‑
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
Singapore
New Delhi: In a blow to fugitive
diamond jeweler Nirav Modi,
the Enforcement Directorate
on Tuesday said the Singapore
High Court has ordered freez‑
ing of a bank account of Rs 44
crore related to his sister Purvi
Modi and her husband Maiank
Mehta.
A senior ED official told
IANS: "The Singapore High
Court has ordered the freezing
of the balance of $6.122 mil‑
lion (Rs 44.41 crore) in the
bank account maintained in
Singapore by Pavilion Point
Corp, British Virgin Island, a
company beneficially owned
by Maiank Mehta and Purvi
Modi on our request."
The ED, which is investigat‑
ing Nirav Modi in the Punjab
National Bank fraud case, said
it believed that deposits in the
bank account were made from
proceeds of crime illegally
siphoned off by Nirav Modi
from the state‑run Indian bank.
Nirav Modi is currently in a
Modi to attend Guru
Nanak's 550th birth
anniversary celebrations
Chandigarh: Prime Minister
Narendra Modi will attend the
funct ion to mark the 550th
Parkash Purab of Guru Nanak
Dev on November 12 at
Sultanpur Lodhi in Punjab, the
Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) said.
A SAD delegation led by its
President Sukhbir Singh Badal
met the Prime Minister in New
Delhi and invited him to attend
the function. The delegation also
included Shiromani Gurdwara
Parbandhak Committee (SGPC)
President Gobind Sing h
Longowal and Union Minister
Harsimrat Kaur Badal.
The delegation apprised the
Prime Minister about the various
serve water. In dif ferent parts,
dif ferent methods are adopted
but the aim is to conserve every
London jail.
The bank account was
attached by the ED under the
money laundering act.
Last week, the ED attached
four bank accounts of Nirav
Modi and Purvi, a Belgian
national, with a balance of Rs
283 crore as part of its investi‑
gation into the Rs 13,500
crore PNB fraud.
The ED action comes months
after it filed a supplementary
chargesheet against Nirav
Modi's wife Ami Modi, a US
national, for being the benefici‑
ary of alleged purchase of two
apartments at Central Park in
New York using $30 million of
money which her husband
allegedly obtained fraudulently
from PNB through Letters of
Undertaking and Foreign
Letters of Credit.
Nirav Modi and his uncle
Mehul Choksi are under inves‑
tigation by both the CBI and
ED. Choksi is now believed to
be in Antigua.
programs to be held to mark the
550th birth anniversary of Guru
Nanak Dev.
Sukhbir Badal said that Modi
has agreed to attend the func‑
tion and even instructed the
Ministry of External Af fairs to
facilitate the 'nagar kirtan' com‑
mencing from Sri Nankana
Sahib, the birth place of Guru
Nanak Dev in Pakistan, on July
25.
The SAD delegation also told
Modi that Sikh devotes from
across the world wanted to mark
the ce le brat ions by holding
appropriate commemorative
functions at all places visited by
Guru Nanak Dev.
drop of water," Modi said.
He sought ideas from the peo‑
ple about water conservation.
TheSouthAsianTimes.info INDIA NEWS July 6-12, 2019 13

Modi says VIP

brats have no
place in BJP
New Delhi: Prime Minister
Narendra Modi on Tuesday
condemned party leader
Kailash Vijayvargiya's son
Akash Vijayvargiya for attack‑
ing a government employee
with a bat, saying "beta kisi
ka bhi ho, aise logo ki party
see nikal dena chahiye"
(regardless of whose son he
is, such people should be
sacked from the party).
Modi's remarks came dur‑
ing the BJP Parliamentary
Party meeting in Parliament.
Modi said: "We do not want
any leaders who spoil the
party's image. Whosoever's
son, such leaders should be
removed from the party."
Mo di was re ferring to
Akash Vijayvargiya, a BJP
MLA from Indore who
attacked a municipal of ficial
during a demotion drive on
June 26.
Modi also slammed party
leaders for giving a rousing
we lcome to Akash
Vijayvargiya after he was
released from jail and said:
"Those who welcomed him,
such leaders should also be
sacked from the party."
Akash Vijayvarg iya was
arrested and later granted
bail.
Record July rains paralyze Mumbai
20 killed in Mumbai,
Pune wall crashes
owing to incessant
record rains
Mumbai,: The Maharashtra govern‑
ment declared a precautionary pub‑
lic holiday on Tuesday in Mumbai
after the Central Railway (CR) sus‑
pended services at several spots
between Mumbai‑Thane and subur‑
ban train services were disrupted
on the Western Railway due to
incessant record rain, officials said.
At average 375 mm, Monday's
was the maximum July rain that
Mumbai has seen over a 24‑hour
period breaking records since
1974.
The CR train services, which were
earlier suspended between Thane‑
Kurla, were suspended from
Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj
Terminus to Thane due to tracks
getting submerged at various loca‑
tions on the route and delays were
reported on WR suburban network.
Long‑distance trains from differ‑
ent parts of India, expected to reach
Mumbai, have also been stranded at
various locations en route, details of
which were awaited.
Flight operations at Mumbai's
Chhatrapati Shivaji International
Airport were severely hit due to
heavy rains, while a Spicejet air‑
craft, carrying 167 passengers,
overshot the runway shortly before
midnight.
A view of the flooded railway tracks at Mumbai's Sion station
on July 1. (Photo: IANS)
Till noon today, at least 55 incom‑
ing flights were diverted, including
26 international. There were 13 go‑
arounds, and cancellations of 18
incoming flights including four
international and 24 departures
including four international, said a
spokesperson for Mumbai
International Airport Ltd (MIAL).
Road traffic also continued to be
sluggish for the second consecutive
day in the city and the suburbs as
many areas were waterlogged and
the subways in Andheri, Jogeshwari,
Vile Parle and Dahisar flooded.
A road caved in near a construc‑
tion site in Chandivali and locals
claimed that some people may have
been washed away in the incident. A
few vehicles and autorickshaws
were stuck in the cave‑in, which was
at least 10 feet deep, said a local
resident Pradeep Menon.
Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis
has appealed to people not to step
out unless absolutely necessary in
view of the continued downpour.
"In the past 12 hours, the city has
received an unprecedented 300 to
400 mm rain, the highest in the
past decade. The existing drainage
systems are unable to cope with
such a heavy downpour, coupled
with a high tide this afternoon,"
Fadnavis told mediapersons.
With roads and trains ‑‑ the main
lifelines of millions of commuters in
Mumbai ‑‑ remaining practically out
of bounds, the state government
declared a precautionary holiday
for the city on Tuesday.
Fadnavis visited the BMC Disaster
Monsoon
to hit Delhi
in 72 hours:
IMD
New Delhi: Monsoon is likely
to hit the national capital in
the next 72 hours, beginning
with light showers on Tuesday
night, the India Meteorological
Department (IMD) said.
T he IMD said lig ht rains
were expected on Wednesday
and Thursday after which the
delayed monsoon will set in.
With the rains, there would
be a slight dip in the tempera‑
ture, said IMD's Kuldeep
Srivastava. The maximum tem‑
perature on Tuesday was
recorded at 40 degrees Celsius
and the minimum at 30
degrees Celsius.
Cell and those injured in the Malad
wall crash tragedy in hospitals.
Since dawn, heavy rain continued
to lash the city, Thane, Raigad and
Palghar districts with the IMD fore‑
casting more rains till Friday,
besides continuing downpour in
Nashik and parts of Western
Maharashtra, Ratnagiri and
Sindhudurg.

Help India develop capabilities as

major defense partner: US Senate
New York: T he US Senate has
urged the government to
"strengthen and enhance its major
defense partnership with India"
and help develop its capabilities.
The proposals for enhancing
defense and strategic ties between
India and the United States were
included in the $750 billion
defense budget passed by the
Senate on T hursday. Formally
known as the National Defense
Authorization Act (NDAA), it is yet
to be passed by the House of
Representatives, which is sched‑
uled to consider it this month.
The defense budget passed by
the Senate said: "It is the sense of
the Senate that the United States
should strengthen and enhance its
major defense partnership with
India" and listed six specific
actions it wanted US President
Donald Trump's Administration to
take. It wanted the administration
to strengthen and expand the
scope of India's designation as a
While India and the US have been holding joint exercises in the
Pacific and Indian Ocean regions, the Senate urged to increase
them and also conduct them in the Persian Gulf.
major defense partner. India was
accorded the status in 2016 by
former President Barack Obama
and built upon by Trump. That
status is shared by the North
Atlant ic Treaty Org anizat ion
(NATO) countries and other close
US allies like Japan and Australia.
The Senate asked Washington to
explore "additional steps to imple‑
ment the major defence partner
designation to better facilitate
interoperability, information shar‑
ing, and appropriate technology
transfers" and to undertake
"strategic initiatives to help devel‑
op the defence capabilities of
India".
It also urged for "increasing the
frequency and scope of
exchanges" between senior civil‑
ian officials and military officers
"to support the development and
implementat ion of the major
defence partnership".
While India and the US have
been holding joint exercises in the
Pacific and Indian Ocean regions,
the Senate urged to increase them
and also conduct them in the
Persian Gulf.
The suggestion of expanding
joint exercises to the Persian Gulf
is significant as the area has
emerged as a hotspot with rising
tensions between the US and Iran
and attacks on oil tankers in
recent weeks. India has independ‑
ently deployed two naval vessels
in the region to protect its ship‑
ping interests.
While the US is pursuing negoti‑
ations with the Taliban for a peace
accord, the Senate suggested tak‑
ing "cooperative ef forts to pro‑
mote stability and security in
Afghanistan".
Amid increased attacks by the
terror group in Afghanistan, India
has expressed unease with the
pace of US‑Taliban negotiations
and urged Washington to be cau‑
tious.
In a recognition of the shared
democratic values and commit‑
ment to free navigation, another
suggestion in the budget docu‑
ment is to increase engagement
with India in multilateral frame‑
works "to promote regional secu‑
rity and defend shared values and
common interests in the rules‑
based order". It said the quadrilat‑
eral dialogue among the US, India,
Japan and Australia should be
enhanced.
 14 July 6-12, 2019 OP-ED TheSouthAsianTimes.info

Can end state of US‑Iran clash be better than JCPoA?

By Maj Gen (Retd) some suspicion, minor allegations and strategic balancing for its allies/strategic
S.B. Asthana counter allegations. President Trump deliv‑ partners. The rhetoric will soon be seen fol‑
ered his election promise by walking out of lowing a US‑North Korean downward curve.

P
resident Trump signed an executive
order on June 24, imposing addition‑
al economic sanct ions on Iran.
Apparently, in retaliation to shooting down
of the US drone by Iran over its airspace last
week (which US claims to be in international
airspace), which has left US red‑faced, war
gaming all options on the table from mili‑
tary retaliation to additional curbs, sanc‑
tions, talks and possibly another deal.
The US claims to have exercised restraint,
after ordering cyber‑attacks on Iranian mis‑
siles, which Iran denies to have any effect.
The immediate trigger was a strike on
merchant ships, for which the US blamed
Iran but Iran denied any role in it. No con‑
clusive evidence appeared to confirm it to
be a hostile act by Iran. It makes Strait of
Hormuz another flash point in the global
arena, more so when Iran finds support
from some of the US competitors. These
triggers are only a by‑ product of greater US
agenda to ʻContain/Change behavior of Iran',
where Israel and Saudi Arabia are direct
beneficiaries, because Iran has no capability
to strike the mainland of US.
Earlier presidents like President Clinton
and President Obama did not consider strik‑
ing Iran as a worthwhile option, instead US
worked very hard to get Joint
Comprehensive Plan of Action ( JCPoA)
signed in 2015 with Iran (commonly known
as Iran nuclear deal), even at the cost of dif‑
fering with some of its allies and strategic
partners. It's a subject of discussion in hind‑
sight, as to why President Trump found it
It's a subject of discussion in hindsight,
as to why President Trump found it
necessary to pull out of the Iran nuclear
deal and re‑impose sanctions on Iran.
necessary to pull out of it, and re‑impose
sanctions on Iran to moderate its behavior,
to help some of its allies? Did he have a bet‑
ter plan to achieve what US wanted to, or it
was just an e lection promise; hence a
domestic compulsion? Has he entered a
minefield by pushing Iran to the wall, from
which it's not easy for both countries to
retract. JCPoA was signed to reach an end
state wherein Iran gives up the means to
make nuclear weapons and the US and allies
agree to reduce sanctions on Iran in return.
The Republicans were not too happy with
JCPoA at that time and made it an election
issue. The IAEA had not reported any con‑
clusive breach of the agreement by Iran,
which implies that it was workable, with
the deal. Additional sanctions were imposed
based on the narrative of US and Israel that
Iran was enriching Uranium beyond the
agreed limit.
The fresh wish list of US and Israel which
they want Iran to follow seems to be a tall
order for any meaningful negotiations. It
includes ceasing its nuclear weapons pro‑
gram, uranium enrichment and nuclear
capable ballistic missile systems permanent‑
ly, under international verification with
unqualified access to international inspec‑
tors. It also desired Iran to pull out com‑
pletely from Syria, end its support to Houthi
militants in Yemen, Taliban in Afghanistan
and allow disarming of Shia militants in
Iraq. It also wanted Iran to cease backing
Hezbollah in Lebanon, Hamas in Gaza and
Palestinians.
US will like to step up economic, diplomat‑
ic and information warfare to include elec‑
tronic and cyber war. The sabre rattling may
not end up in conventional war.
The US has past experience of starting a
conflict in the Middle East, but later finding
conflict termination dif ficult, leading to
more chaos. With such bitter experience it
may not start it again. Iran is not a threat to
its mainland; hence during the run‑up for
election, President Trump may not like to
get entangled in one more flashpoint for
someone else, besides North Korea, South
China Sea and ongoing trade war with
China. The war will push an alliance of
China, Russia, Iran, North Korea and
Pakistan, besides creating a problem of
The Iranian actions also seem to indicate
impatience. Even if Iran feels that it been
pushed to the wall, I see no justification in
threatening the world with 60 days ultima‑
tum to commence dangerous level of enrich‑
ment, if the deal is not protected by then. It
seems to be an over‑reaction, when other
partners of the deal like EU have not walked
out of it and criticised US action.
President Trump's idea of prioritising US
military hardware sale to Saudi Arabia over
further probe into Washington Post colum‑
nist Jamal Khashoggi's murder will embold‑
en Saudi Arabia. The rise in oil prices result‑
ing further downslide in global economy
will be a natural outcome.
India imports 84 per cent of its crude oil
requirement. Iran had been the third largest
supplier of crude to India. The crude oil sup‑
plied by Iran was the cheapest for India, as
Iran had agreed to accept payment in rupee
terms. Any alternate arrangement will force
India to buy oil in dollar terms, causing a
heavy drain in foreign exchange, pushing
the oil prices up. These incidents will affect
Indian investment in Chahbahar port of Iran
adversely. The EU has not withdrawn from
the Iran Deal so far, and I sincerely feel that
compromises are possible. T he Trump
Administration may eventually find that the
original deal was actually not as bad to
achieve its strategic interests, as it was made
out to be, more so when Iranian Supreme
leader, Khomenei had asserted for years that
Iran neither needs nor wants nuclear
weapons.

The new narrative: Good governance is good politics

By Sidharth Nath textbook example. coming of age of social media,
Singh The redressal of public griev‑ people can make more informed
ances assures the citizens that choices in many areas.

I
tʼs the economy, stupid”, a
phrase coined by campaign
strategist James Carville dur‑
ing Bill Clintonʼs 1992 presiden‑
tial campaign, was never synony‑
mous with the Indian elections
until 2019. For developed coun‑
tries, the economy has always
been the fulcrum of politics. In
India, “voters do not cast their
vote, but they vote their caste” is
a popular saying. The 2019 elec‑
tions have introduced a new nar‑
rative ̶ good economics is good
politics through social empower‑
ment.
Putting the citizen first is the
guiding principle of good gover‑
nance. It is this ideology that
brings stakeholders, the govern‑
ment and the citizens closer to
each other. Good governance is
the key to a countryʼs prosperity
and progress. For this to happen,
it is important that the citizens
become active participants in
governance. Swachh Bharat is a
their vote has not gone wasted.
Technology is an important tool
for goo d governance as it
ensures transparency and
accountability which result in the
betterment and welfare of all cit‑
izens. It also leads to the simplifi‑
cation of processes. The best
example is the self‑certification
of startups introduced by the
Narendra Mo di government,
exhibiting trust in their citizens.
Digital India ensures that gov‑
ernment services are available to
the citizen with little human
interference.
These features of good gover‑
nance were the hallmark of the
Modi‑led National Democratic
Alliance‑I government. Social
empowerment, which came
through good economics, is now
good politics.
Voters choose a stable govern‑
ment with a strong, decisive lead‑
ership. Now, development has
become the buzzword. With the
Understanding this, Modi has
mastered the skill of optimizing
social media as a tool to connect
with the people.
For the first time, we are seeing
a government that is determined
to improve the socioeconomic
status of the people.
The new narrative for political
parties has become development.
The focus of voters is now per‑
formance and the economy has
become an undisputable way to
indicate growth and success. The
electorate feels a direct connect
to something tangible.
(Sidharth Nath Singh is Cabinet
minister for health (UP) and a
government spokesperson.
The op‑ed appeared in The
Hindustan Times)
For the first time, we are seeing a
government that is determined
to improve the socioeconomic
status of the people.

The views expressed in Op Eds are not necessarily those of The South Asian Times.
TheSouthAsianTimes.info July 6-12, 2019
 16 July 6-12, 2019
Being an outsider sets me free: 'Spider‑Man: Far From Home'
Hollywood's Andrij Parekh to open in India a day earlier
A T
ndrij Parekh feels his Gujarati roots
make him good at business, and his
Slavic soul infuses an emotional ele‑
ment to his creative work. The filmmaker
says being of a mixed race has led him to a
cultural place of being an 'outsider' in
Hollywood, and that sets him free from many
prejudices.
Parekh, of Ukrainian and Indian descent,
has worked on "Half Nelson", "Sugar", "Blue
Valentine", "The Zookeeper's Wife", "13
Reasons Why", "Madame Bovary" and "Show
Me a Hero". He served as director and cine‑
matographer on the HBO series "Succession",
which airs in India on Star World.
"Being ʻmixed race' and ʻother' has lent me
the unique cultural place of being an outsider
‑‑ and as an outsider, I think that I've always
ʻwatched'," Parekh told IANS while looking
back at his journey in the industry.
"That's what makes me a good cinematog‑
rapher and director ‑‑ I simply watch without
trying to interfere too much (with actors).
And people can't pin me down with stereo‑
types or prejudices. So in many ways I'm
free," he added. Parekh was born in Boston
and raised in Minneapolis. "Because I'm
mixed race, I'm not sure that people do or can
stereotype me. They often have no idea
where I'm from or what I am," he said.
How do you think the culture of India and
Ukraine influences your work?
"I have the combination of Indo and Slavic
roots. My Gujarati side ensures I'm good at
business, and my Slavic soul has a strong
emotional element," he said. After spending
20 years in Hollywood as a cinematographer,
Enrique Iglesias calls India
one of his favorite places
S
panish singer Enrique Iglesias,
who is known for his songs like
"Bailando" and "Hero", considers
India one of his favorite places in the
world.
Sharing a throwback video from his
India visit, Iglesias took to Twitter and
wrote: "One of my favorite places in the
world! I love you India... can't wait to be
back."
Enrique Iglesias is known for songs like ʻBailandoʼ.
ULTIMATE BOLLYWOOD
Filmmaker
Andrij Parekh
wants
to tell stories
with social
value.
Parekh feels the world behind the camera is
getting diverse, "especially in New York City",
where he lives and works.
As a director, Parekh has helmed short
films like "Dead Roosters", "Zimove Vesilya".
He directed an episode of show "Watchmen"
and three episodes of "Succession", which fol‑
lows the lives of the Roy family as they con‑
template their future once their aging father
(essayed by Brian Cox) begins to step back
from the media and entertainment conglom‑
erate. Parekh wants to tell stories with "sub‑
jects that have some social value, that pass
some social critique and comment on the
human condition".
What's next?
"I'm currently shooting (as cinematograph‑
er) a film for a friend in NYC. I'll be directing
two episodes of ʻA Brave New World' in
London in the fall, a TV series based on the
Aldous Huxley novel."
In the video, Iglesias is seen giving an
interview to a reporter in a car in
Spanish and suddenly an Indian fan
comes near him riding on a bike and
compliments the 44‑year‑old singer.
Enrique's fans from India were
touched by his gesture.
One of the social media users com‑
mented: "We can't wait too. Please come
soon! Love from India."
om Holland's "Spider‑Man: Far
From Home" will arrive in India a
day earlier than scheduled ‑ all
thanks to the widespread fan frenzy for
the film in the country. The film, which
was scheduled to release on July 5, will
now open on July 4, a Sony Pictures
Entertainment India statement said.
The film will release in English, Hindi,
Tamil and Telugu. Holland was introduced
as Spider‑Man in "Captain America: Civil
War" in 2016. He got his first solo movie
with "Spider‑Man: Homecoming", and will
be back as the superhero with his second
The film will
open on July 4.
'ARTICLE 15': A HARD‑
HITTING, EYE OPENER
D
irector
Anubhav
Sinha's
"Article 15", is a
hard‑hitting, wake‑
up call to those who
unknowingly and
unwittingly indulge
in caste and political
polarization.
The film is
designed as an inves‑
tigative drama,
involving IPS officer
Ayan Ranjan
(Ayushmann
The film is actor Ayushmann Khurranaʼs canvas.
Khurrana), who is
posted in a small town in rural India. On
taking charge of the police station, he
realizes that the place is infested with
caste discrimination. This coolly passion‑
ate film mostly deals with
REVIEW
Ayan's thoughts rather
than his life. It provides
an involving examination
and analysis of the ideas
and ideals that consume his every waking
moment.
Also, he brings to the fore that Article
15 of the Constitution is way more than
mere words to him when he counters his
senior (Nassar) who tries to suppress him,
during an inquiry. This scene is inspiring
and makes you root for Ayan.
The film is definitely Ayushmann's can‑
vas. With a well‑coiffured mane,
Ayushmann is initially not too impressive
as an IPS officer, but then his character
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
solo movie "Spider‑Man: Far From Home".
Jon Watts' film follows the aftermath of
"Avengers: Endgame". The trailer shows
how Holland as Peter Parker and Spider‑
Man is dealing with the death of Iron
Man/Tony Stark.
On the change of the release date, Vivek
Krishnani, Managing Director, Sony
Pictures Entertainment India, said:
"Spider‑Man is the most loved superhero
in India, and with such unprecedented
anticipation and hype around 'Spider‑Man:
Far From Home', we have decided to
release it a day prior on July 4."
grows on you and you get engrossed with
the narrative as you are charged with
whatever he does.
Every character is well‑
etched and the actors leave
an imprint on your mind
with their earnest perform‑
ances. That's all because the
script is so tight and well‑packaged with
the right amount of seriousness, drama
and light‑hearted moments. Visually, the
film is dark and intense. It has a brooding
feel that makes you uncomfortable and
the film, appealing. Ewan Mulligan's cine‑
matography is flawless. Every frame is
impressive as it captures the beauty of the
locales and the miseries of the downtrod‑
den with equal fervour. The uninterrupted
shot of a sewage cleaner dunking himself
into an overflowing, murky drain, is the
one image that sticks with you forever.
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
'Dangal' girl Zaira
quits Bollywood
Z T
aira Wasim, the Kashmiri girl who
became famous overnight after her
superb debut in Aamir Khan's
Bollywood blockbuster "Dangal" said she has
decided to say goodbye to her film career as
"relationship with my religion threatened".
In a detailed post on her Facebook page
the 18‑year‑old cited religious reasons for
her decision to quit her promising career in
Bollywood.
"Five years ago I made a decision that
changed my life forever. As I stepped my foot
in Bollywood, it opened doors of massive
popularity for me.
"However, that's never something that I set
out to do or become, especially with regards
to my ideas of success and failure, which I
had just started to explore and understand.
"As I complete 5 years today, I want to con‑
fess that I am not truly happy with this iden‑
tity, that is, my line of work.
"For a very long time now it has felt like I
have struggled to become someone else.
"As I had just started to explore and make
sense of the things to which I dedicated my
time, efforts and emotions and tried to grab
hold of a new lifestyle ‑‑ it was only for me to
realize that though I may fit here perfectly, I
do not belong here.
"This field indeed brought a lot of love,
support, and applause my way, but what it
also did was to lead me to a path of igno‑
rance, as I silently and unconsciously transi‑
tioned out of 'Imaan' (a Muslim's steadfast
path in Allah's devotion).
Wasim will be next seen in ʻThe Sky is
Pinkʼ, which also stars Priyanka Chopra
I’d probably think twice:
Raveena on doing ‘Mohra’ songs
B
ollywood actor Raveena Tandon,
who featured in Mohraʼs ʻtip tip
barsa paaniʼ says she would think
twice if she is asked to dance to lyrics like
those in the film that also had another hit
number, ʻtu cheez badi hai…ʼ.
ʻTip tip barsa paaniʼ is being recreated
for Akshay Kumarʼs ʻSooryavanshiʼ where
Katrina Kaif will step into Raveenaʼs shoes,
the Hindustan Times reported.
Speaking to Asian Age in an interview,
Raveena said, “Mohra had other hit num‑
bers, notably ʻtu cheez badi hai mastʼ.
Today, if I am asked to dance to those
lyrics, Iʼd probably think twice. Those were
different times. As for ʻtip barsa paniʼ, we
ULTIMATE BOLLYWOOD
Actress Zaira Wasim will be
next seen in ʻThe Sky is Pinkʼ.
Jonas and Farhan Akhtar. The shooting of the
film was completed in March and the cast
and crew recently celebrated its wrap‑up
party in Mumbai where Zaira was also
present.
A still from
song ʻtip tip
barsa…ʼ
starring
actors
Raveena
Tandon and
Akshay
Kumar.
shot it like any rain song in our films
where the heroine gets drenched in a chif‑
fon saree”. Raveena added that she was ini‑
tially inhibited by the erotic mood of the
song but said that the song was not vulgar
or suggestive. “I was never comfortable
doing provocative songs. But this time, I
was convinced that it would be okay. And,
it was. The song was fabulous and the cho‑
reography, though erotic, was never sug‑
gestive or vulgar,” she said.
Asked if the number is her favorite rain
song, Raveena said, “No, no. That would be
too narcissistic. My favorite rain song is
ʻhaye haye yeh majbooriʼ from ʻRoti Kapada
Aur Makaanʼ.”
July 6-12, 2019 17
We were told it was over
for us at 40: Naomi Watts
here was a time when actresses
were told their career would be
over at 40 in Hollywood, but not
anymore. "The Loudest Voice" star
Naomi Watts feels a lot has changed for
women in the industry.
The Oscar‑nominated actress says
women want to look good and want to
be taken seriously ‑‑ and there is no
reason that the two can't co‑exist.
Actors are often under pressure to
look a certain way which is deemed
important to sell their image. But has
the pressure changed for women over
all these years?
"I think that has always been there,
definitely. And you know, there was a
time when we were told that come the
age of 40, it was all over...and that has
changed," Watts said during "The
Loudest Voice" press conference call in
which IANS represented India exclu‑
sively. "In terms of being told that we
have to look good, I think we want to
look good, but we want to be taken
seriously and there's no reason
that the two things can't co‑
exist.
"For the red carpet, yes, I
want to look my absolute best
and I use professional help to
create something that looks
good, but it has not been so
because I've been instructed to. I
make that choice myself. I'm in
charge of the decision making as
to how I present myself," added
the 50‑year‑old.
Oscar‑nominated
With two Oscar nominations, her actress Naormi Watts.
work profile shines with box‑office
hits like 'King Kong', 'The Ring', 'The journalist Gretchen Carlson in Showtime
limited series "The Loudest Voice",
Divergent' series, and roles in critically
acclaimed films like 'Birdman',
'Mulholland Drive' and '21 Grams'.
which dramatizes the rise and fall of
Carlson's former boss, Fox News creator
Now, she will be seen living the life of Roger Ailes.
Vicky to play India's
first Field Marshal
"Uri: The Surgical Strike" actor Vicky
Kaushal has been roped in to play Sam
Manekshaw ‑‑ the first Field Marshal of
India ‑‑ in Meghna Gulzar's upcoming
movie.
Manekshaw led the country to victory
against Pakistan in 1971.
He was the first Indian Army officer to be
promoted to the rank of Field Marshal.
On the death anniversary of the iconic
man recently, Producer Ronnie Screwvala's
RSVP unveiled Vicky's look in the film that
goes on floors late next year.
Meghna, who will be directing Vicky for
the second time after their hit film ʻRaaziʼ,
Actor Vicky Kaushalʼs first look as Field
said: "This film has been brewing between
Marshal Sam Manekshaw.
RSVP and me, for some time now. With
Vicky now coming on board to play Field ting the opportunity to portray the life of
Marshal Sam Manekshaw, it has begun to Sam Manekshaw. "We are thrilled to bring
simmer. Looking forward to things to come forward the story of this fearless patriot and
to fruition one step at a time." the first Field Marshal of India," added the
For Vicky, it's an absolute honor to be get‑ actor.
 18 July 6-12, 2019 US INDEPENDENCE DAY TheSouthAsianTimes.info

The first fireworks show will be

Trump’s 4th of July from behind the Lincoln Memorial

around 9 p.m. ET and the second
show, traditionally launched from
the reflecting pool, will be from the
West Potomac Park. The Interior
Washington, DC: President Donald Department announced in a state‑
Trump's July Fourth celebration on ment Friday that the additional fire‑
the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, works, valued at $750,000, were
DC, will include a ticketed area in donated. The Washington Post

Tanks and fighter jets to be

front of the Lincoln Memorial where
he'll deliver remarks.
The perimeter of the restricted
area will be "immediately around the
steps of the Lincoln Memorial, and
about midway down through the
Reflecting Pool," said Matthew
Miller, special agent in charge of the
US Secret Service Washington Field
Office, in a news conference Friday
with local and federal officials on the
July Fourth celebrations in the
nation's capital.
The White House confirmed to
CNN on Saturday that there will be a
ticketed area for VIPs, friends, family
and members of the military. Those
tickets come at no cost, but the
White House did not say how it
would specifically be allocated. The
White House added that the entire
event is free for the general public
with no ticket requirement.
Miller said the Secret Service will
provide security for Trump's "Salute
to America" event, but that the White
House is issuing the tickets. Since
attending the Bastille Day parade in
Paris in 2017, Trump has pushed for
a military display in Washington, DC,
on display at the parade in DC
similar to one he witnessed in
France. Early last year, Trump's
administration was planning for a
military parade for Veterans Day, but
the event was canceled due to its
high costs and Trump blamed local
Washington officials.
In February, Trump told Americans
via Twitter to "HOLD THE DATE!" for
his July Fourth plans: "Major fire‑
works display, entertainment and an
address by your favorite President,
me!"
Trump and other recent presidents
have previously held events at the
White House to mark the holiday,
but typically have not attended the
festivities on the National Mall.
The "Salute to America" event will
take place from 6:30 p.m. to 7:30
p.m. ET at the Lincoln Memorial,
ahead of the annually televised July
Fourth concert near the US Capitol
building. The President's event will
include an address from Trump,
music from military bands and mili‑
tary flyovers. The Blue Angels, the
US Navy's flight demonstration team,
will participate, and the plane used
as Air Force One will also fly above
the National Mall. Since Trump will
be on the ground watching rather
than on the plane, the aircraft won't
officially be Air Force One.
There will also be two fireworks
displays lasting a total of 35 min‑
utes, the longest show in the nation's
capital, according to the National
Park Service.
recently reported that the District of
Columbia was forced to dip into its
Emergency Planning and Security
fund to cover the security costs for
the President's July Fourth address,
because the federal government has
been lacking in funds due to its $7
million in debt for the 2017 inaugu‑
ration. Washington, DC, mayor
Muriel Bowser opposed Trump's
changes to the July Fourth celebra‑
tion format in an interview with the
Post in May, telling the newspaper
she prefers it remains the way it has
been in years past.
In her interview with the Post,
Bowser expressed concerns that the
increased security presence with
Trump's attendance could strain
local law enforcement and hamper
the experience of the many tourists
who visit DC during the Fourth of
July celebrations.
At Friday's news conference,
Bowser said, "Obviously, this year's
activities are going to look a little dif‑
ferent than in years past." But, she
stressed, "there is no better team to
support and to plan for these events
than the Washington, DC, area."

43rd annual Macyʼs 4th of July fireworks

to launch from Brooklyn Bridge
T
he annual Macyʼs 4th of July fireworks show
will be launching from the Brooklyn Bridge
this year. The 43rd Annual Macyʼs 4th of July
Fireworks will launch from the Brooklyn Bridge and
four barges along the lower East River, Macyʼs said in
a release Thursday.
The fireworks display will kick off around 9:20 p.m.
on July 4. Last year, the fireworks launched from
barges off of Midtown Manhattan. “Macyʼs 4th of July
Fireworks will light up the New York City skyline
once again with the nationʼs best and largest
Independence Day celebration,” executive producer
Susan Tercero said in a statement.
“We are excited to once again work with our part‑
ners in the City of New York to make the iconic
Brooklyn Bridge the star of our show.”
The fireworks last launched from the Brooklyn
Bridge in 2014, according to the release.

I-Day Historical Facts By Mahendra Shah

8 Only two people actually signed the Declaration of Independence
on July 4th: John Hancock and Charles Thomson, secretary of
Congress. Most of the others signed on
August 2.

8 One US president, Calvin

Coolidge, was born on July 4.

8 Three US presidents have died on

July 4 ̶ John Adams, Thomas
Jefferson, and James Monroe. In a
bizarre twist of fate, Adams and
Jefferson both died on July 4,
1826, the fiftieth anniversary
of the country they helped
found. Monroe died in 1831.

8 July 4 wasn't deemed a federal holiday until 1870, nearly 100

years after the nation was founded.

8 Americans consume around 155 million hot dogs on the Fourth of

July each year. They also spend $92 million on chips, $167.5 mil‑
lion on watermelon, and $341.4 million on beer.
TheSouthAsianTimes.info July 6-12, 2019
 20 July 6-12, 2019 SUBCONTINENT TheSouthAsianTimes.info

R&AW cripples China‑Pak Imran Khan likely to

nexus in Arabian Sea region
New Delhi: In a bid to check growing
influence of China‑Pakistan nexus in
the Indian Ocean, India's external
intelligence agency, Research and
Analysis Wing (R&AW) is bolstering
up its maritime intelligence network,
laying more emphasis on the
Arabian Sea region. Eight months
ago, in the tenure of the then
President of Maldives, Abdullah
Yameen, capital city Male had
become overseas hub of Pakistan's
spy agency, the Inter Services
Intelligence (ISI).
A secret report of RA&W reveals
that Indian agency successfully
thwarted ISI designs in the strategic
island of Maldives. The ISI, backed
by Ministry of State Security, MSS
(Chinese spy agency) and involving a
few close aides of former Maldives
President Abdullah Yameen, was
encouraging anti‑India activities
being operated from Pakistan's
embassy located in Male, report says.
Yameen was allegedly close to a sen‑
ior Pakistan diplomat and was later
trapped by the Chinese agency.
The report says that during the
tenure of Abdullah Yameen,
President of Maldives (2013‑2018),
the Chinese gained military, econom‑
ic and political influence in the
strategic island. Yameen's activities
did not find favors with India.
A highly placed source in the gov‑
ernment told IANS that Chinese
India's external intelligence agency is laying more
emphasis on the Arabian Sea region.
invested more than 2 billion dollars
in large‑scale infrastructure projects,
but the money pumped in by Beijing
was more in the form of a loan.
Yameen entertained several Chinese
companies and even leased small
islands to them. According to a
source, the situation changed once
Ibrahim Mohammed Solih took over
as Maldives' new President. "Finally
Prime Minister Narendra Modi's
recent visit to Maldives (June 8 and
9) was a morale booster for India's
security and intelligence agencies.
National Security Advisor Ajit Doval
was the key person in planning this
first foreign visit of Modi in his sec‑
ond term, a source said.
Sources said that former president
Yameen was also close to Pakistan
visit US from July 20
Islamabad: Pakistan Prime reporters that Khan would be
Minister Imran Khan is likely to visiting Washington on the invi‑
visit the US from July 20 during tation of Trump, who wanted to
which he is expected to hold discuss "important regional
face‑to‑face talks with US issues".
President Donald Trump for the This would be the first high‑
first time since he assumed level engagement between the
office last year, the media two countries under the Trump
reported. administration's tenure and
Khan will be accompanied by comes at a time when talks
Foreign Minister Shah Mehmood between the US and the Afghan
Qureshi and other leaders during Taliban are entering a decisive
his five‑day visit to the US, Geo phase.
News reported citing sources. Relations between Islamabad
Khan's trip, originally planned and Washington have remained
in June, was postponed due to strained since Trump took
Pakistan's federal budget 2019 charge of the White House as he
and other prior domestic is highly critical of Pakistan's
and had allegedly facilitated ISI to
engagements, according to the role in Afghanistan and the over‑
increase its presence in the island
Express Tribune. Qureshi told all war on terror.
country. During Yameen's tenure,
Pakistan Embassy at Lily Magu area
in Male had become an overseas hub
of ISI, engaged in hatching conspira‑
cies against India. In fact Pakistan's
ambassador played a key role in
bringing Beijing closer to Yameen.
Turning the tide against Yameen,
pro‑India leader Ibrahim Mohammed
Solih took an anti‑China stance in
last year's election and succeeded in
his mission. Sources said once Solih
took over the reins in Male, ISI's
growing influence in the Maldives
was gradually neutralized. Besides
Maldives, R&AW is also stepping up PM Imran Khanʼs visit comes in the wake
its vigil of Chinese vessels around of strained US‑Pakistan ties.
Seychelles and Mauritius.

No immediate terrorism threat in SL: Army Chief

Colombo: Sri Lanka's Army Chief Mahesh
Senanayake said there was no immediate
terrorism threat in the country following
the Easter Sunday terror bombings which
killed more than 250 people and injured
over hundreds, but security forces would
continue to remain vigilant, the media
reported. Senanayake, testifying before
the Special Parliamentary Committee
probing the suicide attacks on April 21,
said that army forces, police and intelli‑
gence agencies were ensuring that all
attempts to revive terrorism had been
thwarted.
He added since the deadly attacks, coor‑
dination between the military, police and
intelligent agencies was strengthened and
they were coordinating with foreign intel‑
ligence agencies as well.
"We meet regularly and have been able
to create an integrated intelligence net‑
work with inputs from foreign intelligence
agencies as well," Senanayake was quoted
as saying by Xinhua news agency.
"Security forces have been able to con‑
tain the situation and have reached a criti‑
cal juncture where sweeping arrests have
been made and links to the banned organ‑
izations have been weakened.
The security forces are now maintaining
their state of alertness," he added.
Sri Lankan Army Chief Mahesh Senanayake.

Nepal holds first ever dialogue

to formulate new foreign policy
Kathmandu: Nepal organized a national
dialogue to formulate a new foreign poli‑
cy suited to the current world situation in
line with the letter and spirit of the coun‑
try's constitution promulgated in 2015,
Xinhua reported.
Nepalʼs Prime Minister K P Sharma Oli
of ficially inaugurated the one‑day pro‑
gram organized in the Nepali capital
Nepalʼs PM K P Sharma Oli inaugurated
the one‑day program.
Kathmandu amid the presence of cabinet
ministers, senior leaders from various
political parties, parliamentarians, diplo‑
mats, entrepreneurs, civil society mem‑
bers, academicians and media persons.
Addressing the event, Oli said that
national interest is at the center of for‑
eign policy of Nepal. "We want to have
friendly ties with all countries around the
world including our immediate neighbors
on the basis of sovereign equality, mutual
benefit, mutual trust and goodwill," he
said.
This is the first ever dialogue on for‑
eign policy organized by the government
since it came to power in February 2018
following the provincial and general elec‑
tions that marked the end of the pro‑
longed political transition in the country.
The government organized the national
dialogue on foreign policy amid realiza‑
tion that the country needs to have a new
foreign policy orientation especially after
the promulgation of the new constitution
and the country getting an environment
of political stability, officials said.
TheSouthAsianTimes.info INTERNATIONAL July 6-12, 2019 21

Trump briefly steps into N Korea, meets Kim

Seoul: US President Donald Trump became
the first sitting American leader to step foot
into North Korea after he briefly entered the
country before holding a bilateral meeting
w ith Pyong yang's Kim Jong‑un at the
Demilitarized Zone (DMZ), that divides the
two Koreas.
Trump, who is on a two‑day visit to South
Korea, first walked toward the Military
Demarcation Line (MDL), which divides the
truce village of Panmunjom, also called the
Joint Security Area. Then Kim showed up
and approached Trump, reports Yonhap
News Agency.
They shook hands and crossed the line
together into the northern side. They posed
for photos before walking across it into
South Korea.
Trump told the media that it was a "great
honor to cross that line (DMZ)".
This was the first time for leaders of the
two nat ions to hold a meet ing at
Panmunjom since the Korean War ended
with the Armistice Agreement in 1953.
Kim, meanwhile, deemed the meeting "as a
"historic moment", adding that the crossing
reflected his decision to open a new future
in Pyongyang‑Washington relations.
They were later joined by South Korean
President Moon Jae‑in. The three leaders
walked into the Freedom House, a building
on the southern side.
Kim and Trump were seated together for
joint press availability and apparently held
closed‑door bilateral talks.
Following the bilateral talks, Trump told
the media that he agreed with Kim to restart
talks after nuclear negotiations stalled earli‑
er this year after the two leaders met for a
second time in Hanoi, Vietnam. Kim and
Trump first came face‑to‑face during their
historic summit last June in Singapore.
"We just had a very, very good meeting
with Chairman Kim," Trump said after part‑
ing with the North Korean leader at the
DMZ.
Trump has also invited Kim to
Washington, but it was not immediately
clear if the latter has accepted the invitation.
If Kim accepts the invitation, it would be
the first time a North Korean leader will visit
the US. US President Donald Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong‑un.

India, US pledge 'strong Khashoggi's killers will pay

leadership to address
global challenges'
Osaka: Indian Prime
Minister Narendra Modi
and US President Donald
Trump declared that
their countries were
"central to global peace
and stability" and
pledged to "provide
strong leadership to
address g lobal chal‑
lenges and build pros‑
perity for their citizens
in the decades to come",
according to the White
House. The two leaders
price: Turkish President
Istanbul: Turkish President
Recep Tayyip Erdogan has lashed
out at the murderers of Saudi
journalist Jamal Khashoggi who
was killed in the kingdom's
Istanbul consulate last year.
"(They will) pay the price and
be held accountable," he said, fol‑
lowing release of a UN expert's
report which held Saudi Arabia
responsible in the murder case.
Khashoggi, a Washington Post
columnist and a critic of Saudi
Crown Prince Mohammed bin
Salman, was killed and reported‑
ly dismembered in October 2018
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
by a team of 15 agents sent from
Riyadh. His body has not been
found till now. Speaking at an
event in Istanbul, Erdogan said
that the report proved that Saudi
Arabia was guilty and had prior
know ledge of the murder,
Anadolu news agency reported.
UN special rapporteur Agnes
Callamard said in the report that
she had found "credible evi‑
dence" to further probe Saudi
of ficials, including the Crown
Prince for the journalist's killing.
Saudi Arabia has so far rejected Turkish President
the report. Recep Tayyip Erdogan.

Hunt could withhold part

exchanged "perspectives
on progress in the strategic part‑ with Japanese Prime Minister
nership and develop new ideas to Shinzo Abe. After the trilateral
bring it to the next level", at their meeting, Modi tweeted: "Today's
bilateral meeting here on the meet ing of the JAI ( Japan,
sidelines of the G20 Summit, the America, India) Trilateral was a
White House said in a readout of productive one. We had extensive
of Brexit 'divorce bill'
their meeting. discussions on the Indo‑Pacific London: British Prime Ministerial legally required of us."
T hey "acknow ledged the region, improving connectivity hopeful Jeremy Hunt has said that Hunt's remark comes after his
unprecedented breadth and depth and infrastructure development". he would consider withholding rival, former Brit ish Foreign
of bilateral ties, including eco‑ A White House statement of the some of the UK's 39 billion pounds Secretary Boris Johnson told Sky
nomic, trade, energy, defense and trilateral meeting said the leaders European Union (EU) "divorce bill" News that he would "suspend" the
security, counter‑terrorism, and "reaf firmed the critical impor‑ in the event of a no‑deal Brexit. money until the UK got a new deal.
space", the statement said. tance of strengthening US‑India‑ The Foreign Secretary told the He said he believed the EU would
"The leaders af firmed that, as Japan cooperation to reinforce Sunday Times he would not hand give ground to the UK as it had a
responsible democracies, a close shared core democratic values, over "a penny more than is legally "powerful incentive" to avoid a no‑
partnership between the US and which promote global security required of us", reports the BBC. deal exit.
India is central to global peace and prosperity". On the issue of the UK's "divorce Hunt and Johnson will partici‑
and stability. T hey reiterated "T hey agreed to meet every bill", Hunt told the Sunday Times pate in 15 hustings across the
their commitment to provide year to ensure successful cooper‑ that "anyone who thinks I am country as Conservative members
strong leadership to address ation in multiple areas, including going to write a blank cheque to decide on their party's next leader
global challenges and build pros‑ maritime security, quality infra‑ the European Union is sorely mis‑ ‑ and the next UK prime minister.
perity for their citizens in the structure, and advancing peace taken". "As a businessman I always T he 160,000 members w ill
decades to come," it added. and prosperity in the Indian paid my bills. That being said, if begin voting next week and the
Before their bilateral meeting, Ocean and Pacific region and British Prime Ministerial‑hopeful we leave without a deal I will not w inner is expected to be
Modi and Trump held a meeting beyond." Jeremy Hunt. hand over a penny more than is announced on July 23.
 22 July 6-12, 2019 BUSINESS TheSouthAsianTimes.info

Trump, Xi to restart US-China trade talks

Osaka: US President Donald
Trump and his Chinese counter‑
part Xi Jinping have agreed to
resume trade negotiations in an
e f fort to end the impasse
between the world's two largest
economies, with Beijing saying
that now Washington will not
impose any new tarif fs on its
goods.
Speaking to the media after his
highly anticipated meeting with
Xi on the sidelines of the ongoing
G20 summit here, Trump said:
"We had a very good meeting
w ith President Xi of China.
Excellent, I would say excellent.
As good as it was going to be.
"We discussed a lot of things
and we're right back on track
and we'll see what happens," he
said, without elaborating.
According to Trump,
Washington would not imple‑
ment new tariffs on $300 billion
of Chinese imports "at least for
the time being" and that negotia‑
tions to end their year‑long trade
war would resume, the South
China Morning Post reported.
The US and China have been
fighting a damaging trade war
over the last year. Trump accuses
China of stealing intellectual
property and forcing US firms to
Chinese President Xi Jinping with US President
Donald Trump in Osaka, Japan. (Xinhua/IANS)
share trade secrets in order to do
business in China.
Beijing, in turn, says
Washington's demands for busi‑
ness reform are "unreasonable".
The feud escalated in the months
leading up to the summit after
talks between the two countries
collapsed in May. According to
Xinhua, Trump and Xi agreed to
carry out the consultations "on
the basis of equality and mutual
respect", a condition put forward
by the Chinese leader for reach‑
ing a deal in earlier trade negoti‑
ations.
Xi said that despite changes
that have taken place interna‑
US firms can sell technology
to Huawei: Trump
Osaka: In a much‑needed
respite to Huawei that stands
to lose nearly $30 billion in
two years ow ing to the US
trade ban, President Donald
Trump on Saturday said
American firms could start sell‑
ing technology to the Chinese
te lecommunications equip‑
ment giant as long as the sales
did not involve equipment that
threaten the national security.
According to the South China
Morning Post, Trump, said the
decision on whether to take
Huawei of f the Commerce
Department's ent it ies list
would be left to a later date,
adding he will have a meeting
tionally and between China‑US
relations over the past 40 years,
"one basic fact remains
unchanged: China and the US
both benefit from cooperation
and lose in confrontation".
The truce suggests that the two
sides will not impose fresh meas‑
ures to worsen the situation, but
it remains to be seen whether
on the same subject next week.
"We are leaving Huawei
towards the end. We are seeing
what goes w ith the trade
agreement," Trump said during
a press conference in Osaka
following the Group of 20 sum‑
mit, suggesting that fully lifting
the ban on Huawei would rest
on a deal to end the trade war.
On May 15, Trump had
blacklisted Huawei w ith a
national security order; the US
had publicly asked its allies to
steer clear of using Huawei
products over concerns that
the equipment could be used
by the Chinese government to
obtain private information.
they are really ready to make
concessions to reach a final deal.
The last chapter of escalation
in the conflict unfolded in May
when the US raised tariffs to 25
per cent on Chinese imports
worth $200 billion, to which
Beijing responded by raising tar‑
if fs on US products worth $60
billion.

US-China trade truce doesn't Budget discussion may

change outlook: Moody's start from July 8: Ministry
Mumbai: Moody's on Monday said that

Trade talks
New Delhi: Parliament is
the agreement reached between the US
likely to start discussion
and China at the G20 Summit to restart
on the General Budget
trade talks will be a partial relief for the
stock market but doesn't fundamentally with US bear on July 8 while voting
on Demands for Grants

change its outlook for the global econo‑
my. Moody's said it maintains its baseline
view that the tariffs implemented to date
will shave 0.1 percentage point of f US
growth and about 0.2 percentage points
of f China's growth this year through
direct trade channels.
"Although the agreement will likely par‑
tially relieve recent negative sentiment in
the financial markets and support near‑
term growth, it stops short of removing
exist ing tarif fs," Michae l Taylor,
Managing Director, Moody's Investors
Service, said.
"However, we expect China will contin‑
ue to ease policy in an effort to offset the
impact of the existing tarif fs and that
major central banks will maintain their
bias towards more accommodative poli‑
cy," he added.
Moody's said that few details of the
agreement have been disclosed so far, the
truce on further tariff escalation appears
to indicate that both sides have a desire
to make progress in resolving their cur‑
rent disputes, underpinned by the US'
relaxation of the restrictions it had placed
on Huawei (unrated).
"However, significant obstacles remain
to obtaining a long‑term agreement, due
no fruit
New Delhi: Being America's second‑
leading importer of fresh apples, India
might have dealt a major blow to the
US industry by imposing tariffs on the
fruit.
Jim Bair, the president and CEO of
the US Apple Association said: "India
was exploding as a market for import‑
ed apples. Then, when the tariffs went
into effect, it fell off the cliff."
India announced June 15 it would
impose a 20 percent tariff on US
apples ‑‑ along with 27 other products
including almonds, walnuts and
lentils.
The tariff mainly impacts growers in
Washington state, which produces the
vast majority of America's apples.
to the lack of an agreed mechanism for
dispute settlement, and the considerable
dif ferences that exist between the two
sides on core issues such as technology,
intellectual property, industrial policies,
and the creation of a level playing field
for foreign firms operating in China," it
added.
is likely between July
11‑17 as the Narendra
Modi government pres‑
ents the first Budget of
the second term on
July 5.
"The tentative dates
for discussion and vot‑
ing on demands‑for‑
grants for 2O19‑20 are
expected between July
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman would
11‑17. The general dis‑
present the general budget on July 5.
cussion on Budget is ten‑
tatively scheduled on July 8," a commu‑ higher government spending in a year
nication from the Finance Ministry's when revenues are on the downside. Job
Budget division said. creation is missing with unemployment
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman at the highest 6.1 per cent.
faces an uphill task. She has to rescue Sitharaman also has to meet a tough
Asia's third‑largest economy from the disinvestment target in a slowing econo‑
brink of a major slowdown. In May, my and tough market to expand the
India lost its spot as the fastest‑growing government kitty in a year when tax
major economy in the world though revenue are almost certain to be lower.
government said it still is the fastest The government is looking to garner Rs
growing. India's GDP slipped to a 5.8 90,000 crore from disinvestment, up
per cent growth in the last quarter of from Rs 85,000 crore it got last year.
FY19, down from 6.6 per cent in the Besides lay ing the roadmap, the
previous quarter, and lower than the 6.4 Finance Minister's challenge will be a
per cent growth registered by China. tightrope walk between containing the
The consumption demand and invest‑ fiscal slippage and handling growth
ment cycles are the lowest pressing for slowdown.
TheSouthAsianTimes.info SPORTS July 6-12, 2019 23

England beat India to

keep semis hopes alive
Cricket World Cup 2019 Table
Team P W L T NR Pts NRR

Birmingham: The stage was set for
a vintage M.S. Dhoni finish as India
needed 104 of f the last 10 overs
with the former India skipper just in
and warming up at the Edgbaston
Cricket Ground on Sunday.
But his attempt to take the game
deep saw India left with 57 needed
of f the last 18 balls. In the end,
India finished on 306/5 as England
registered a 31‑run win, their first
over India in 27 years in World
Cups. The win saw England stay
alive with a chance to qualify for
the semi‑final stages as Rohit
Sharma's 102 went in vain.
Chasing 338 for a win was never
going to be easy, especially when
India lost opener K.L. Rahul for a
duck with the score on 8. But with
skipper Virat Kohli joining the in‑
form Rohit Sharma in the middle, it
was all about buying time in the
middle as they blunted the English
attack with their perfect mix of cau‑
tion and aggression. While they
sent every bad ball to the boundary,
they looked to pick the ones and
twos when the England bowlers
bowled a tight line.
It all looked hunky dory as Kohli
and Rohit cruised to their respective
fifties ‑ Kohli's fifth in a row ‑ till
Liam Plunkett dismissed the India
skipper against the run of play in
the 29th over for a 76‑ball 66.
Pitching on the fifth stump, the
bowler induced the wide drive and
The England team celebrates after winning the match against India
at Edgbaston stadium in Birmingham. (Photo: Surjeet Yadav/IANS)
James Vince ‑ substitute for Jason
Roy ‑‑ picked a diving catch. The
138‑run partnership coming to an
abrupt end.
With the score reading 146/2,
Rishabh Pant walked in to join
Rohit. While Pant looked anxious to
start with, a lot of counseling from
Rohit finally saw him settle down,
but Rohit was the next one to throw
his wicket away after doing all the
hard work and reaching his 25th
ODI hundred as he went for a wild
hoick off Chris Woakes. The score
read 198/3 with 140 needed of f
13.5 overs.
Hardik Pandya joined Pant and
the two did put on some display as
they looked to take the attack to the
English bowlers, but one shot too
many finally saw Pant (32) perish
as Woakes picked a blinder at the
long leg boundary. After that, it was
Australia 8 7 1 0 0 14 1
India 7 5 1 0 1 11 0.854
New Zealand 8 5 2 0 1 11 0.572
England 8 5 3 0 0 10 1
Pakistan 8 4 3 0 1 9 ‑0.792
Bangladesh 7 3 3 0 1 7 ‑0.133
Sri Lanka 7 2 3 0 2 6 ‑1.186
South Africa 8 2 5 0 1 5 ‑0.08
Windies 7 1 5 0 1 3 ‑0.32
Afghanistan 8 0 7 0 0 0 ‑1.418
on Dhoni and Pandya to see India
home, but an attempt to hit
Plunkett out of the park saw
Pandya (45) dismissed in the 45th
Waqar questions Team
over with India still needing anoth‑
er 71 runs of f 31 balls. Kedar India's sportsmanship
Jadhav walked in to join Dhoni in
New Delhi: Former Pakistan in Blue might intentionally lose
the middle, but the England bowlers
speedster Waqar Younis has to England to oust Pakistan from
kept bowling a tight line as the duo
questioned the sportsmanship of the tournament.
failed to score at around 15 runs
Virat Kohli's men following their Had India won Sunday's game,
every over. While Dhoni finished
31‑run loss to England in the it would have made it much easi‑
with an unbeaten 31‑ball 42, Kedar
ongoing World Cup. er for Pakistan to enter the semi‑
was unbeaten on 12 off 31 balls.
"It's not who you are...What finals as they would then have to
Earlier, it was all about being slow
you do in life defines who you beat Bangladesh to make it to the
and steady as the English batsmen
are...Me not bothered if Pakistan knockouts.
started cautiously and then
gets to the semis or not but one However, now besides beating
launched into a late‑innings flourish
thing is for sure...Sportsmanship Bangladesh, Pakistan will have to
in their must‑win game. Riding on
of few Champions got tested and bank upon the result of the
the back of a brilliant 160‑run
they failed badly," said Waqar on England‑New Zealand match and
opening stand between centurion
Twitter. Earlier, former Pakistan hope that the Black Caps defeat
Jonny Bairstow (111) and Jason
cricketers Basit Ali and Sikander the T hree Lions in their last
Roy (66), Eng land finished on
Bakht had alleged that the Men encounter on Wednesday.
337/7 in their 50 overs.

Not the best of times to be Dhoni

New Delhi: If there's one per‑
son who has faced maximum
ire following India's defeat to
England in Sunday's World
Cup game, it is M.S. Dhoni.
Dhoni, who remained
unbeaten at 42 from 31 balls,
is once again facing some real‑
ly harsh criticism from former
cricketers and fans. His sports‑
manship has been questioned
following his restricted bat‑
ting approach during India's
chase of 338 at Edgbaston.
One can argue that the vet‑
eran cricketer didn't go as
hard as expected in the last
five overs of the chase and
alongside Kedar Jadhav, the
duo scored 39 runs of f the
final 31 balls, which included
20 singles and seven dot deliv‑
eries. "I am completely baf‑
fled. What's going on! This is
not what India needed. They
need runs. W hat are they
doing? Some Indian fans are
leaving now. Surely they must
want to see Dhoni go for his
shots, even if he slogs it off in
the air. It's a World Cup game,
top two sides, give it a go!
Indian fans would want their
side to do a little bit more.
T hey want their side to go
down with a fight. Risk it to
win it," said former England
skipper Nasser Hussain who
was commentating towards
the last stage of the game.
But was only Dhoni respon‑
sible for the defeat?
During the chase, India ‑‑
after losing K.L. Rahul ‑‑
resorted to a rather safe
approach of keeping wickets
in hand and therefore not try‑
ing to cash‑in on the first pow‑
erplay.
Both Virat Kohli and Rohit
Sharma, ranked number one
and two in ODI rankings,
found it dif ficult to score
freely and managed just 28
runs in the first 10 overs.
Especially Rohit, who looked
out of sorts in the initial phase
of his innings and got beaten
on numerous occasions ‑‑ just
did not seem to time the ball.
Also, the slowing wicket did‑
n't help his cause, something
which skipper Virat Kohli
understoo d and acknow l‑
edged.
Dhoni, is surely, a legend of
the game, but at the same
time, it's really hard to be
Dhoni in the current scenario. MS Dhoni. (Photo: Surjeet Yadav/IANS)
 24 July 6-12, 2019 FEATURES TheSouthAsianTimes.info

Recipe to build a world of compassion & kindness

By SATimes Team

A
s a writer and a Rotarian,
Quddus Mohammed want‑
ed to aim for the lofty goal
of building a world of compassion
and kindness. So he embraced a
novel approach to promote his
voice and the ethos of Rotary: the
enjoyment of food as a medium to
bring societal change. He perfectly
embodied and illustrated his gen‑
erosity of spirit through a 180‑
page coffee table book with a col‑
lection of time‑honored culinary
traditions from around the world,
“Home Cooking: Recipes for
Multicultural Gatherings”.
Says Quddus Mohammed, a
founding member of Rotary Club
of Hicksville South Club (RCHS),
New York, “For me authoring the
book is more than just finding cre‑
ative and intuitive ways of cook‑
ing. It is a superb medium for
introducing the message of bring‑
ing people together for a look at
the sanctity of family, shared com‑
munal experiences and collective
fulfillment through the experience
of food.”
Not many in to dayʼs t ime‑
crunched world would be keen on
taking such an approach to mobi‑
lize and galvanize support for a
humanitarian cause. Quddus did.
He devoted a whole lot of his time
and energy to this project for over
a year.
His resilient passion comes from
his strong belief that the human
experience is all about making a
Quddus Mohammed (left) along with other members of
RCHS working in the soup kitchen he supports.
Home Cooking: Recipes for Multicultural Gatherings, is
Hyderabad, and now lives in lection of delightful and diverse
written by Quddus Mohammed and published by the
Bethpage on Long Island. His cele‑ recipes to include in your culinary
Rotary Club of Hicksville South, NY. All proceeds from the book
will be donated to a food and hunger‑relief charity. bratory spirit and hospitality mir‑ library, or give as a gift to some‑
ror the beauty of his rich heritage. one special. The recipes are easy
deeper connect ion w ith each His culturally authentic travels to follow, with step‑by‑step direc‑
other. He said in a TV interview,
Purchase online: have made him curious to keep tions for preparing classic dishes
www.rotaryofhicksvillesouth.com
“Sharing food has always been an exploring dif ferent cultures and from around the world. In this
essential part of the human story.
Contact: their time‑honored culinary tradi‑ book, you will find time‑honored
Quddus Mohammed,
It is transformational and highest tions. The three‑term Rotaryʼs Persian de licacies, hearty
Rotary Club of Hicksville South;
form of karma. With passion for Assistant District Governor and Moroccan Tajine, Incan inspired
Cell 516‑342 0706
cooking, you should love to feed recipient of Rotary Internationalʼs cuisine from Latin America, signa‑
the world. It enlightens your soul unique idea of creating empathy hig hest award, Paul Harris ture dishes from East Asia, as well
and gives a meaning to life”. in others has already received Fellow, Quddus has initiated the as more light and delicate bistro‑
More importantly, Quddus will overwhelming support.” Food for the Hungry Project. The style meals for the modern foodie.
donate 100% proceeds from the His daug hter, Samreen program has served thousands of Whether you use these recipes for
book to food and hunger‑relief Mohammed, designed the cover local families in need in the poor‑ important family celebrations or
charity. Explains he, “I find it easi‑ and overall layout of the book, est areas of New York. Inspired by intimate gatherings among your
er to ask somebody to buy my while philanthropist and RCHS its success, he is working to start multicultural friends, they are
book that benefits a charity than members Kalpana Pate l, Dr. a second kitchen. bound to nourish your heart and
secure a purchase that lines my Shashi Jhamb and Kamlesh Mehta evoke deep memories.
About the Book
own pockets. I also love being supported in the publishing. The book has no price tag. The
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cause I am passionate about. This $25.00.

Arranged marriages evolving to semi-arranged in India: UN report

The UN Women report, 'Progress of World's Women, 2019‐20: Families in a Changing World', also has bad news
that dowry practice and ostentatious weddings are spreading because of economic liberalization in the country.
United Nations: While arranged marriages
remain the norm in India, they are evolving
into a system of semi‑arranged marriages
giving women more freedom and making
them less vulnerable to domestic violence,
according to a UN report.
The report, "Progress of World's Women,
2019‑20: Families in a Changing World",
released last week, however, blamed econom‑
ic liberalization in India for the spread of the
dowry practice to more communities and for
ostentatious weddings.
The report, which dealt with several
aspects of marriage, said: "Arranged marriage
remains commonplace", but, "the practice,
however, has evolved over time and has been
partially replaced by semi‑arranged mar‑
riages, particularly in urban areas".
In semi‑arranged marriages, "families are
involved in suggesting potential matches, but
women choose whether to marry and who to
partner with" in contrast to the traditional
parent‑arranged marriages where women
often have little say and meet the groom only
on the wedding day, the report said.
"Women in semi‑ and self‑arranged mar‑
riages are three times as likely as those in
family‑arranged marriages to exercise
agency on key areas of decision‑making ‑
including on expenditures, when to have chil‑
dren (and how many) and contraception ‑
and twice as likely to be able to visit friends
and relatives unescorted". "Those in semi‑
arranged marriages are also less likely to
experience marital violence compared to
those in traditional parent‑arranged mar‑
riages", it added.
The report was prepared by UN Women,
the world body's group for gender equality
and empowerment of women.
Releasing the report, its Executive Director
Phumzile Mlambo‑Ngcuka said that there
was a concerted effort to deny women their
rights "in the name of protecting 'family val‑
ues'". But, she said: "This report counters that
pushback by showing that families, in all
their diversity, can be critical drivers of gen‑
der equality, provided decision‑makers deliv‑
er policies rooted in the reality of how people
live today, with women's rights at their core."
The report said that despite feminist cam‑
paigns and legal prohibition, the practice of
dowry was spreading in India.
"Dowry has shifted from a signifier of mar‑
riage to a central condition for a daughter's
eligibility", the report said.
"Gifts that were once voluntary and/or
nominal have become compulsory and have
spiraled up in value".
"Economic liberalization and commercial‑
ization have contributed to the spread of the
practice from upper‑ to middle‑ and lower‑
caste Hindus, as well as to Christians,
Muslims and tribal groups," the report assert‑
ed.
Dowry practice also leads to violence and
"husbands are the most common perpetra‑
tors and mothers‑in‑law are often implicat‑
ed", the report said. "The status and econom‑
ic position of families are linked with wed‑
dings as a public display of wealth", it added.
It noted that there were differences in the
status of women in the South and North of
India. The area that includes India follows a
patriarchal family system, but "a somewhat
different and less rigid set of gender rela‑
tions characterizes the kinship systems in
South India and South‑Eastern Asia", the
report said.
In families in the South, the report said that
"a greater degree of public mobility is
allowed for women. This translates into
women's higher rates of employment,
whether in agriculture, marketing or manu‑
facturing, and greater responsibility for man‑
aging their household's finances".
In these areas women have some rights of
inheritance, greater flexibility in where they
live and to continue their interaction with
their own relatives. The number of divorces
has doubled over the past two decades,
although it is still minuscule with only 1.1
per cent of women divorced and most of
them in the urban areas. It noted that "the
right to maintenance is weakly enforced" and
divorced women are dependent on their par‑
ents, brothers or other relatives.
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
Did Tagore define the Bengalis?
By Basab Dasgupta
O
n a recent flight from LA
to New York I happened
to sit next to a Gujarati
gentleman. We exchanged pleas‑
antries and introduced ourselves
to each other. His name was
Hansmukhbhai Patel. I expressed
my admiration for the astute
business sense of the Gujaratis.
He reciprocated by compliment‑
ing the Bengalis, saying: “The
Bengalis are really intellectual
people”.
I had heard similar comments
on many occasions before. The
Bengalis are considered to be,
not necessarily intelligent, but
“intellectual”. It probably means
that we are typically educated,
well‑read, analytical, involved in
fine arts in some way, socialist in
political persuasion and proba‑
bly associated with academia. It
is rather remarkable that the
Bengalis are not really into start‑
ing or owning businesses, manu‑
facturing industries, jobs involv‑
ing physical labor and in general,
into any profession that are
“hands on” and where success or
failure lies directly in oneʼs own
efforts. We are content to be in
passive roles such as teaching
professions, service sectors and
at best, in a medical field.
It is also noteworthy that we
are more timid, physically weak,
insecure, serious and less adven‑
turous, and certainly less money‑
minded than people from other
parts of India. We find it difficult
to leave West Bengal and relo‑
cate to other parts of India, not
to mention moving to a foreign
country. We are happy with the
daily dose of rice, fish and
sweets, cooked by wife or moth‑
er, oblivious to the fact that this
diet makes our bodies deficient
in muscle tone and vulnerable to
type II diabetes later in life.
We refer to other Indians as
“non‑Bengalis” – implying our
own superiority and most of us
cannot converse in Hindi. We
tend to be highly emotional and
are offended easily. Our favorite
pastime is criticizing others and
being engaged in meaningless
“addas”. We are also more into
religious festivities with the four‑
day long Durga Puja literally and
figuratively taking the center
stage.
Rabindranath Tagore had a
great line about us: “Sopto koti
santanere hey mugdho janani,
rekhechho bangali kore manush
karani” (Hey enchanted mother!
You have kept your seventy mil‑
lion children as Bengalis; you
have not raised them to be
human beings”). He cleverly and
correctly equated the Bengalis
with incomplete human beings.
T hey are all immature and
Tagore blamed it all on the moth‑
ers!
I started to wonder why we are
like this. More I thought, more I
became convinced that in addi‑
tion to our mothers Tagore him‑
self was responsible for this fate
of Bengalis or at least, of a cou‑
ple of generations of Bengalis in
the 20th century. He almost sin‑
gle‑handedly reshaped our cul‑
ture into a form which promoted
the development of what we call
a “Bengali”.
Let us quickly review Tagoreʼs
influence on our lives from our
Rabindranath’s overarching influence built a mold for
Bengalis: we grew up to be inherently emotional, attached to
our homes, scholarly, philosophical if not spiritual, introverted
if not feminine, romantic but not intensely passionate, lacking
motivation for building wealth, averse to manual labor and
physical conflicts, and devoted to a culture of performing arts.
childhood. We had to read and
memorize his poems as part of
our curricula from elementary
school. Tagore songs were a sta‑
ple for almost every single social
occasion, be it a musical festival
or a college reunion; his songs
were in the soundtracks of
almost all Bengali movies. His
short stories and novels had to
be a part of a literary collection
in every household. Movies
galore were based on them and
some of them were remade. Any
aspiring actor or actress had to
be good in playing some charac‑
ter from a Tagore play. His
dance dramas created a new
genre. Ability to recite some
lines from his works was consid‑
ered a measure of oneʼs literary
knowledge. His portraits deco‑
CULTURE
rated walls of almost every sin‑
gle Bengali home. His name is
associated with streets, parks
and buildings. The Viswa Bharati
University, established by Tagore
in Santiniketan, was considered a
unique concept in education. His
paintings were unique in style
and captivated many artists.
He was also a major political
voice. His actions like renounc‑
ing knighthood in protest of the
Jallianwala Bagh massacre and
writing inspiring songs like “jodi
Tor Dak Shune Keu Na Ase Tobe
Ekla Cholo Re” (If no one
responds to your call, then go
your own way alone) are leg‑
endary.
So it is no exaggeration to say
that Tagore had just as much, if
not bigger, influence on us when
we were growing up than our
mothers. He was a polymath but
his winning of the Nobel Prize in
1913 as the first non‑westerner
raised him to a very hig h
pedestal. So, we were pro‑
grammed into not only admiring
his works, but making them part
of our life in as many ways as
possible. This influence started
to shape the personality of
Bengalis.
Now let us examine how that
influence af fected us. T hree
words that come to my mind
when I think of Tagoreʼs works
are “Spirituality”, “Melancholy”
and “Femininity”. Be it a Tagore
song you are listening to or a
poem or story you are reading or
a play you are watching, you will
feel at least one of these charac‑
teristics. Note also a distinct
lack of masculinity, worldliness
and pure outburst of joy. He did
not write any adventure novel, a
really inane story or a song that
makes you feel the rhythm of
music. His songs were strong on
lyrics, which were beautiful and
simply g reat, but the tunes
seemed to be almost after‑
thoughts with a monotonous
repetitiveness.
There is definitely a feminine
undertone in most of Tagoreʼs
work. Look at Santiniketan – an
educational system full of songs,
dances, classes under trees, frol‑
icking in gardens. Even a song
like “Jodi tor daak shune …"
lacks the tone of a solemn patri‑
otic call for a solo adventurous
journey. A large number of his
songs and stories are simply
tear‑jerkers, which appeal more
to women than men. He did not
write about wealth, war, violence,
or even passionate romance.
Can you tell from his works
that he lived through two world
wars and the independence
movement that subsumed India.
He traveled to 30 countries, but
he rarely based any of his stories
or characters on those countries
July 6-12, 2019 25
or their people. He seemed to
have a bias against formally
dressing up. I never saw any pic‑
ture of him in anything other
than that the “trade marked”
long robe. He was married for 19
years and had five children, yet
not much is discussed in our
social circles about his wife or
children; or about his love life,
before and during his marriage
or even after his wifeʼs death.
As a result, the mold of
Bengalis was built, basically
incorporating these traits. We
grew up to be inherently emo‑
tional, attached to our homes,
scholarly, philosophical if not
spiritual, introverted if not femi‑
nine, romantic but not intensely
passionate, serious and without a
keen sense of humor, without
motivation for building wealth,
averse to manual labor and phys‑
ical conflicts, and devoted to a
culture of music and performing
arts; something that my Gujarati
fellow passenger called “intellec‑
tual”.
Did the fact that he lost his
mother in early childhood and
was raised by servants, affect his
view about women? Was the
line “rekhechho bangali kore….”
a subtle expression of jealousy
on his part because he did not
have a mother and perhaps he
convinced himself that he grew
up to be a “complete man”
because of that!
The fact is that Rabindranath
was born in a wealthy family, he
was a loner who never had to
work for living his entire life and
was completely out of touch with
common people. He wrote his
poems, stories and novels with
an incredible imagination, based
on what he saw from the outside
and the Bengalis assumed his
depiction of the society to be the
reality and emulated the social
behavior created by him!
Some of my Tagore‑fanatic
friends have pointed out that our
personalities have been shaped
by pre‑Tagore cultural tradition,
diet and climate. I beg to differ;
just look at people of China,
Japan, Vietnam and other Asian
countries, not to mention the
rest of India where culture,
weather and nutrition are not
too different from those in West
Bengal and you will understand
my point. I wonder how the
Bengalis of my generation would
have been like had Rabindranath
never been born!
Basab Dasgupta has a doctor‑
ate in physics from University of
Wisconsin and worked with Sony
as Vice President of an operating
division.
Retired, he now he lives in San
Clemente, CA.
26 July 6-12 2019 HEALTH TheSouthAsianTimes.info

Cell phone use grows horns? Study debunked

Washington DC: A 2018 article
published in Nature: Scientific
Reports resurfaced last week
with a worrisome warning: cran‑
ing our necks to stare at smart
devices is causing horn like pro‑
trusions to show up on the back
of our heads. However, the study
didnʼt actually measure ce ll
phone usage at all and used a
populat ion of chiropract ic
patients already experiencing
neck pain, with no healthy indi‑
viduals as a control method,
reported The Smithsonian.
T he study gained attention
because it was included in a larg‑
er BBC story published on June
13 about the ways in which mod‑
ern life is altering the human
skeleton. Australian media and
The Washington Post highlighted
the article, running foreboding
headlines like: “Horns are grow‑
ing on young peopleʼs skulls.
The 2018 paper discussed an
alarming prevalence of a a bony
projection of f the back of the
skull just above the neck in
young people. Authors of the
study David Shahar and Mark
Sayers, both biomechanics
experts at the University of
Sunshine Coast in Australia,
claimed that “…the use of mod‑
ern technologies and hand‑held
devices may be primarily respon‑
sible for these postures and sub‑
sequent development of adaptive
robust cranial features in our
sample.”
But there are many g laring
issues in Shahar and Sayersʼ
study. For one, Shahar claims that
he had only been seeing these
types of growths in patients over
the past decade, and the BBC
report states, “Until recently, this
type of growth was thought to be
extremely rare.” But others̶par‑
ticularly anthropologists and
archaeologists̶are saying not
so.
John Hawks, a paleoanthropol‑
og ist at the University of
Wisconsin, adds on Twitter, “The
external occipital protuberance is
a well‑studied trait in anthropolo‑
gy, and we know a lot about its
frequency in dif ferent popula‑
tions. This paper cites none of
that.”
Killgrove, who is also an archae‑
ologist at the University of North
Carolina Chapel Hill, notes that
their finding that the bumps are
more common in men has been
well known “for centuries” and
that these protrusions are often
used to identify male skeletons.
Nivien Speith, a bioarchaeologist
from the University of Derby,
explains that there are many
ways for one to obtain these
skeletal markers.
“Iʼve seen plenty of enlarged
EOPS in the early Medieval skills
Iʼve studied,” she told Killgrove.
“It could be genetic, or even just a
simple bony outgrowth that has
unknown etiology. Often, they
can occur through trauma to the
area as well.”
Experts also flagged the issue
that all of the individuals in the
study̶1,200 in total aged 18 to
86̶were patients at the same
chiropractic clinic. Presumably,
writes Killgrove, that means the
sample consists of people who
were already suffering from neck
pain and seeking treatment. The
study should have included peo‑
ple who had no pain to begin
with as well.
T he authors didnʼt actually
measure the cell phone usage of
their subjects at all, making their
claim entirely speculative, as
Nsikan Akpan, a science editor at
PBS Newshour who also has a
PhD in pathobiolog y, te lls
Killgrove.
Other experts question the con‑
cept of phone‑induced bone
growth entirely, explaining that
poor posture is more likely to
cause things like muscle stress
not horns.

Americans are still Working out at home

eating too much processed
meat despite health risks
New York:
Americans are
eating the same
amount of lunch
meats, hot dogs,
and other
processed
meats now as
they were 18
years ago.
High con‑
sumption of
processed
meats has been
linked to a number of health
problems including obesity and
an increased risk of some can‑
cers. Despite more and more
studies highlighting and con‑
firming these health risks,
researchers from Tufts
University discovered that on
average, Americans are still eat‑
ing too much processed meat.
A study, published in the
Journal of the Academy of
Nutrition and Dietetics, found
that along with processed
meats, Americans are eating the
same amount of fish and shell‑
fish as they were in 1999.
However, the researchers did
find that overall red meat con‑
sumption has decreased in
recent years due to people eat‑
ing more chicken. For the first
time, poultry consumption in
the US has surpassed
as effective as gyming
London: If you are not finding time to hit the gym, do
not worry. Researchers have found that working out
at home not only saves your time, cost and access but
also increases adherence. The study, published in The
Journal of Physiology, investigated a home‑based
high‑intensity interval training (Home‑HIT) program
and studied its benefits for clinically obese individuals
with an elevated risk of heart disease.
The research team were interested in whether
Home‑HIT is a time‑efficient strategy that helps to
reduce other common exercise barriers such as diffi‑
culty with access to exercise facilities due to travel were measured in these participants, including body
time and cost. “An exercise regimen such as Home‑ composition, cardiovascular disease risk and the abili‑
HIT that reduces barriers to exercise such as time, ty to regulate glucose.
unprocessed red meat. For the cost, and access, and increases adherence in previous‑ They were categorized in three groups ̶ those who
study, the researchers reviewed ly inactive individuals gives people a more attainable did supervised, lab‑based cycling HIT program; those
data from around 44,000 US exercise goal and thus could help improve the health who did UK government‑recommended 150 minutes
adults who were part of the of countless individuals,” said study author Sam Scott of moderate intensity exercise; and those who did
National Health and Nutrition from Liverpool John Moores University. home‑based HIT program of simple body weight exer‑
Examination Survey from 1999 For the study, 32 obese people completed a 12‑ cises suitable for people with low fitness and low
through 2016. week exercise program. A range of health markers mobility and performed without equipment.
The researchers were able to
identify diet trends in the US
over the past 18 years and
found that seafood consump‑
tion has remained unchanged
and is still lower than recom‑
mended.
Less than 15 percent of the
study participants met the rec‑
ommended guidelines for fish
and seafood consumption in
their diets. In 2016 processed
meat consumption was around
187 grams per week with lunch
meat, sausage, and hot dogs
reported as the top consumed
meats.
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
By Sidhi Jain
M
umbai‑based
Shantadevi, once a
meek woman disowned
by her husband, soon sat atop a
colossal drug empire she built
over decades. Her real‑life story
opens the new thriller 'Queens of
Crime' where Sushant Singh, host
of crime‑based TV series
'Savdhaan India', and his co‑
author Kulpreet Yadav decipher
what sends women down the
road of crime. Asked if women,
who generally tend to make
headlines for being victims and
survivors of crimes, are seen with
a less suspicious eye, Yadav
answered in the affirmative.
"There's a tendency for crimi‑
nals to push desperate and poor
women into crime because the
police are less likely to suspect
them," Yadav, who served two
decades with the Navy, said.
"Investigating agencies usually
don't suspect women to commit
crimes. But that has changed in
the recent past. Almost all the
women in this book committed
crimes for three reasons: abject
poverty forced upon them due to
family problems (husbands or
lovers), or greed, or lack of atten‑
T
he EB‑4 visa is an employ‑
ment‑based immigrant
visa for special religious
employees. Ministers/Priests and
non‑ministers in religious voca‑
tions and occupations may enter
to or adjust status in the U.S. to
perform religious work as a full‑
time compensated employee.
There is a cap of 5,000 employ‑
ees who may be issued a visa
under the EB‑4 category if they
will be employed as a non‑minis‑
ter. There is no cap for employ‑
ees who will be employed as a
minister. Non‑minister special
immigrant religious employees
include those within a religious
vocation or occupation engaging
in either a professional or non‑
Ministers/Priests and non‑ministers in religious vocations and
occupations may enter to or adjust status in the U.S. to perform
religious work as a full‑time compensated employee.
Crime not men's monopoly,
Sushant Singh on debut crime book
Based on painstaking research, these are raw, violent and seemingly
unbelievable but true stories of India's women criminals.
tion/love."
A criminal bent of mind is not
the monopoly of men, added his
co‑author Singh. The television
and film actor also said that
when a woman decides to do
away with the social constructs
EB-4 Visa: Religious Workers
Not to be confused with a similar but non‐immigrant category of
visa for religious workers called the R‐1 Visa.
VISA
TALK
professional role.
In order to qualify as a special
immigrant religious employee,
the foreign individual must:
CRIME
of being dependent on men, "just
like in every other field, she
could outdo men in crimes as
well". 'Queens of Crimes', a
Penguin title that released
recently, features "raw, violent
and seemingly unbelievable" but
IMMIGRATION
8 Have been a member of a
religious denomination for at
least two years immediately
before the filing of a petition. The
religious denomination must be a
bona‑fide non‑profit religious
organization in the United States.
8 Come to the U.S. to work in a
full time, compensated posi‑
tion as either
8 A minister of that religious
denomination;
8 A religious vocation either in
a professional or nonprofes‑
sional position; or
8 A religious occupation either
in a professional or nonpro‑
fessional position
8 Employed for either a
8 Bona fide non‑profit religious
organization in the U.S.; or
8 Bona fide organization that is
associated with the religious
denomination in the U.S.
8 Have been employed in one of
the above position after the
age of 14, either abroad or in
the U.S., for two continuous
years immediately before the
filing of a petition.
Both the employing non‑profit
religious organization and the
religious employee must provide
true renditions of India's 10
women criminals.
As per the authors, it is based
on deep research ‑‑ offline and
online reports, court judgments,
meetings with policemen and
legal experts. While the book
shows women to be susceptible
to the same vices as male crimi‑
nals, Yadav chipped in to high‑
light subtle differences in how
the two genders commit crimes.
"Women even as criminals are
less aggressive. Most of the
crimes, therefore, when commit‑
ted by women, are well thought‑
out, not instinctive," the co‑
author, who has earlier penned
'Murder in Paharganj' and 'The
Girl Who Loved a Spy' said.
He added that these stories are
rare exceptions. For Singh, the
supporting documents along with
the proper forms. The religious
organization must provide proof
of tax‑exempt status and proof of
salaried or non‑salaried compen‑
sation. The religious employee
must provide proof of member‑
ship, documentation showing
that religious worker is qualified
to perform the duties of the pro‑
posed position, and proof of pre‑
vious religious work.
There is a similar non‑immi‑
grant category of visa for reli‑
gious workers called the R‑1 Visa.
Please note that while the two
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.
July 6-12, 2019 27
book drew immensely from his
experience of hosting 'Savdhaan
India' TV serial for over seven
years. In his words, it gave him a
"new perspective towards crimes,
criminals, victims and the larger
social impact of every crime".
The actor's message with his
debut book? "Crime is almost
always a choice."
Interestingly, 'Queens of Crime'
also draws attention to a lesser‑
known study field ‑ female crimi‑
nology. While experts are still
trying to understand why women
commit crimes and how are they
different than men in their moti‑
vations, methodology and imple‑
mentation, the book presents 10
hair‑raising thrilling stories
where women criminals take
center stage.
categories are related and simi‑
lar, they are parallel and anyone
or organization considering
bringing religious workers to
their religious institution or enti‑
ties should review them carefully
with an experience immigration
professional who understands
the process of foreign national
religious workers.
Any dependents of EB‑4 nonim‑
migrants, spouse and unmarried
children under the age of 21, will
need to apply for derivative fami‑
ly visas once the principal appli‑
cant is approved.
 28 July 6-12, 2019 HUMOR TheSouthAsianTimes.info

Humor with Melvin Durai

THAT WE DONʼT NEED

M
y wife and I recently moved
from one house to another.
The two houses are three
miles apart within the same college
town, but it was nevertheless a
stressful move. Thatʼs because weʼve
accumulated too many possessions
in our 17 years of marriage. Only
three of our possessions are price‑
less, and moving them was fairly
easy. All we had to do was say, “Kids,
the ice cream has moved to the new
house!” Unfortunately, these three
valuable possessions have posses‑
sions of their own, and it was up to
us to make sure they were moved.
We are a family of five, which means
that we had to move five times as
much junk as a single person would.
Not all of our stuff is junk, of course,
but as I moved our clothes, books,
furniture and an assortment of other
items, I realized that Iʼd be quite
happy to live with only one‑fifth of it.
Yes, I could easily manage without
all the belongings of other family
members.
Actually, most of my belongings
are as unnecessary as my wifeʼs or
childrenʼs stuff. We could get rid of
them and still be quite content – at
least until we visit a friendʼs home
and see all their stuff. And then weʼll
be eager to get more stuff. Isnʼt that
what life is all about – accumulating
stuff? The more stuff you own, the
happier you will be.
“When you die, you canʼt take it
with you,” someone will inevitably
say. Thatʼs true, but you can at least
leave it for your kids, so they can
have the pleasure of organizing an
estate sale.
Until then, youʼll just have to haul
all your belongings from one house
to another, while wondering why
you need all this stuff. You realize
that your belongings fall into six
main categories:
1. Clothes. Some of your clothes
you wear regularly, some you wear
only on special occasions, and some
you never wear. The latter includes
clothes that donʼt fit you anymore,
but youʼve been saving for years,
just in case a miracle happens and
you wake up one day 20 pounds
slimmer.
2. Shoes, sandals and slippers.
You need shoes to match every out‑
fit, of course, and shoes for every
type of weather: sunny shoes, rainy
shoes, snow shoes, hurricane shoes.
Some of your footwear, you never
wear. But you donʼt feel guilty about
this, because they still serve an
important purpose, whenever the
kids misbehave.
3. Furniture. All you need to get
through life are two pieces of furni‑
ture: a chair and a TV stand.
Everything else is superfluous. Sofas
are nice to have, but they are a pain
to move. Thatʼs partly because sofa
manufacturers are a sneaky bunch.
They create sofas that expand gradu‑
ally with age, making them easy to
move into a home, but almost impos‑
sible to move out. Sofa manufactur‑
ers are hoping youʼll just leave your
sofa in the old home and buy a new
one. I outsmarted them though. I cut
my sofa in half, moved it out, and
glued it back together in the new
home.
4. Kitchen utensils. All you need
to cook is a pot, but you own a dozen
pots of different sizes. You also own
a variety of pans, including one cast‑
iron pan thatʼs so heavy, the only
time youʼve lifted it higher than your
head was the unfortunate night in
2015 when you mistook your
spouse for a burglar.
5. Memorabilia. You have several
boxes of memorabilia, which
includes not just photos of your chil‑
dren, but also all their certificates,
medals, trophies and concert pro‑
grams. Youʼve saved all their art‑
work, even the “napkin art” that your
daughter made with ketchup and
mustard at McDonaldʼs.
6. Books. You own hundreds of
books, some of which are extremely
heavy. You moved your piano easily,
but needed extra help to move Leo
Tolstoyʼs “War and Peace” and
Vikram Sethʼs “A Suitable Boy.” On
the bright side, you can get rid of all
your furniture, sit on “War and
Peace” and set your TV on “A
Suitable Boy.”
As my wife always says, books can
bring you more happiness than fur‑
niture.

Laughter is the Best Medicine

By
Mahendra
Shah

Mahendra
Shah is an
architect by
education,
BEST entrepreneur
by
RATE profession,
artist and
FOR humorist,
cartoonist
INDIA and writer by
hobby. He has
AND been recording
the plight of
PAKISTAN the immigrant
Indians for the
past many
New York Head Quarter
years in his
cartoons.
422‑S Broadway Hailing from
HICKSVILLE Gujarat, he
NY 11801
lives in
Pittsburgh,
516‑827‑1010 Pennsylvania.
TheSouthAsianTimes.info ASTROLOGY July 6-12, 2019 29

Chandigarh, India: +91-172- 256 2832, 257 2874

By Dr Prem Kumar Sharma Delhi, India: +91-11- 2644 9898, 2648 9899
psharma@premastrologer.com; w.premastrologer.com

JULY 6‑12, 2019

Aries: Those aspiring for a particular
profession may have mixed luck. This
is not the period to demand a perk on
the work front. You may be in the mood to
splurge, rather than window shopping, but
donʼt exceed the budget! Your attempts to
win over love will not go in vain. Consider
an advice well, before taking action. Those
in the travel sector can find the business
improving.
Taurus: An exciting courtship is in
store for those engaged to get mar‑
ried soon. Some of you are likely to
acquire property in the form of a plot or
an apartment. Your spiritual bent of mind
may prove a great source of strength to
someone close. Loverʼs romantic ideas may
simply amaze you, so just follow the direc‑
tions! Professional advice will prove a
great help in choosing the right course.
Gemini: This is an excellent time for
those having romantic inclinations.
A legal victory is foreseen for some.
Extending the fig leaf to someone not in
talking terms with you will be a step in the
right direction. Family front will remain
mo derate. You can get in two minds
regarding an investment. Those seeking
placement can get an of fer they simply
canʼt refuse!
Cancer: An approaching deadline can
make you nervous. Following some‑
one blindly on the professional or
academic front may not be in your favour.
You can become a victim of back stabbing at
work if you are not careful. Those in proper‑
ty business can find the week profitable.
Whatever you do on the fitness front, it will
come as a boon to you in keeping you fit.
Leo: A ray of hope is likely for those
who are heavily involved in betting
or speculation. Some of you may
change your career midway. Be extra judi‑
cious in making an expensive purchase,
find out the market price first. Lethargy on
the fitness front may not be in your inter‑
est. Spouse and other family members may
force you for a change of scene to get a
breath of fresh air.
Virgo: Those preparing for a crucial
competition will do well not to leave
anything to chance during their
preparation. A loss making venture is like‑
ly to turn profitable, as you are able to take
constructive steps. Romantic overtures get
positive response, so rejoice! You may
have a hand in the achievements of a fami‑
ly youngster. Chances of coming back in
shape look promising, as you stay away
from unhealthy practices.
Libra: Making the right choice of
employment will not be too diffi‑
cult for those passing out. Lonely
hearts can rejoice as love comes knocking
at their door! A co‑worker will prove a
great help in wrapping up some long
pending work on the professional front.
Guard against seasonal ailments. Window
shopping with partner may prove enjoy‑
able, but a bit heavy on the pocket.
Scorpio: An inner fear to perform
well is likely to grip some students
and even affect their mental health.
Monetary front remains strong. Creative
work is likely to ignite your rich imagina‑
tion. Much coordination will be required in
an urgent task, which will take up most of
your productive time. Exercising without
adequate warming up can lay you up in
bed.
Sagittarius: Job prospects increase
manifold for those even with a little
less qualification. Hardworking
nature and good communication skills will
make you an automatic choice for heading
a project at work. Things brighten on the
financial front.
So you can be forced into keeping a social
commitment, but it will be not as bad as it
had initially appeared.
Capricorn: Spirituality may have a
special pull for you in the coming
week. People are likely to seek your
expertise in professional matters. Those ail‑
ing will be able to start a normal life. Timely
initiative will help revive your flagging love
life. A property booked long ago may come
into your possession now. You will manage
to deal ef fectively with something that is
posing difficulties on the academic font.
Aquarius: Performance on the pro‑
fessional and academic front will
remain on the track in the coming
week. Good monetary acumen will help in
surmounting all the odds on the financial
front. Encouragement and concern of your
well‑wishers will help you tide over a per‑
sonal problem. Making fitness your priori‑
ty now will benefit you immensely on the
health front.
Pisces: Intelligent investments on
your part will help restore financial
health. Acquiring an added skill at
work is likely to boost your career. You
may feel good about something you have
achieved in your personal capacity. Your
power of motivation promises to get many
volunteers for a social cause. Romance
seems on the upswing, so make time to be
together with lover.

6th July, 2019 in the writing field will reach

Dominated by the planet
Venus, you are also influenced
by Mercury and the number 6.
You are independent and full of
self‑confidence. You will move in
an intellectual crowd, in the year
ahead of you. This will be benefi‑
cial to you in all ways. Your per‑
sonality and positive attitude to
life, will allow you to have a vast
circle of friends around you. In
the coming year, proximity to a
water body will bring you pros‑
perity. You should try to get a
position in a city or town, near a
riverside or a seaside. Those of
you, who are single, can expect
to tie the nuptial knot. You will
prosper and achieve success
after your marriage. New
schemes and projects are waiting
to be undertaken. All you need to
do is push yourself ahead and
make the best of opportunities
that are waiting for you. The
months of July, September and
December will be very signifi‑
cant.
7th July, 2019
You are dominated by the plan‑
et Neptune and governed by the
planet Mercury. The number 7
also dominates you. You are hon‑
est faithful and good‑natured.
You have the ability of taking
charge over a difficult situation.
Those of you in the field of writ‑
ing and oratory can expect to
achieve success, in their profes‑
sional field, in the year ahead of
you.
You have the ability to control
your emotions. You can hide
ANNUAL PREDICTIONS: FOR THOSE BORN IN THIS WEEK
your thoughts and feelings no
matter how upset you are. The
coming year will see you travel a
lot. Visits to foreign countries is
also possible. You should use
your extensive memory, to your
advantage. But a word of caution
– give up your fickle minded atti‑
tude to life. You tend to get
inconsistent and thus create
problems for yourself. In love
matters, you will be careful, and
will not take the first step, if you
are not sure of a posit ive
response. The months of June
and September w ill be very
eventful.
8th July, 2019
You are governed by the num‑
ber 8 and the planet Saturn. You
are also dominated by the planet
Mercury. The coming year will
see you executing big projects
into action. This will not only
bring you success, but will also
give you a sense of satisfaction,
but you are advised to control
your restless nature. You expect
things to happen in double quick
time. Learn to relax and let time
take its own course. This will
relieve you from unnecessary
stress.
You will also be lucky in finan‑
cial matters, in the year ahead of
you. Neatness is a passion for
you. The opposite sex will be
attracted to your neat and per‑
fect sense of dressing. But you
are advised, to be careful in love
matters. Take a step forward,
only when you are sure of a posi‑
tive response. Most of you will
travel a lot in the coming year.
Pleasure trips with friends is
foreseen. The months of May,
October and November will be
very important.
9th July, 2019
You are governed by the num‑
ber 9 and dominated by the plan‑
et Mars. You are also influenced
by the planet Mercury. Sacrifice
and care for the needy, is what
gives you ultimate satisfaction.
You will be involved in voluntary
work, which will help the handi‑
capped and you will be appreci‑
ated for your good deeds, in the
year ahead of you. But you tend
to become a little dogmatic in
your views and ideas. You will
have to learn to control this trait.
Trivial matters may disturb you.
Learn to relax and let small mat‑
ters sort themselves out on their
own.
This will keep you away from
stress and strain. Your personali‑
ty will attract the opposite sex.
You do not like many people
around you. But you will be able
to make few but good friends, in
the coming year. You will be pre‑
pared to do your best for your
friends and loved ones. T he
months of July, September and
November will be very eventful.
10th July, 2019
Governed by the number 1 and
the Sun, you are also dominated
by the planet Mercury. You are a
faithful friend and can be trusted
to keep secrets of those who con‑
fide in you. Systematic and sin‑
cerity, will lead you to newer
heights of success, in your pro‑
fessional front, in the year ahead
of you. An ability to be good at
anything that you undertake is
likely to catch the attention of
your seniors, and you will be
rewarded for your ef forts. The
year ahead of you, will be finan‑
cial profitable. Those of you in
business are likely to undertake
important projects, and achieve
success in the same. Some of you
are likely to get attracted to the
opposite sex, and probably make
a special friend, in the year
ahead of you. A word of advice to
you – try to avoid taking hasty
decisions or take the law in your
hands. T he months of July,
November and January will be
very significant.
11th July, 2019
Governed by the number 2,
you are also governed by the
planet Moon and dominated by
Mercury. Hard working by
nature, you are also sincere and
honest to your work. You will not
compromise on sincerely or hon‑
esty. Any job, undertaken by you
will be done to perfection, in the
year ahead of you.
This will bring you fame and
recognition. You will be able to
make the rig ht decisions in
important matters. Those of you
newer heights of success, in the
year ahead of you. But you tend
to worry over trivial matters.
This only creates tension and
stress not only for you, but also
for your family members. You
will have to learn to relax and let
small problems sort out them‑
selves. You also tend to become a
little selfish at times. This is not
very we ll received by your
friends. T he months of June,
December and March will be
very important.
12th July, 2019
You are governed by the num‑
ber 3 and by the planet Jupiter.
You are also dominated by the
planet Mercury. You are firm in
your words and deeds. An intro‑
vert by nature, you do not exhibit
your feelings easily. In fact, you
try to maintain a distance from
those who talk too much. The
coming year will see you lead a
luxurious life. Financially, it will
be a good year for you. But you
will have to keep a control on
your habit of finding faults with
others.
Try to overlook trivial faults in
your friends and relatives. Those
of you, who are to be married
this year, can expect to achieve
success and happiness in your
married life. You tend to worry
too much over small matters.
Learn to relax and let small mat‑
ters sort out themselves. This
will help you to keep away from
stress and strain. The months of
April, August and January will be
very significant.
 30 July 6-12, 2019 SPIRITUAL AWARENESS TheSouthAsianTimes.info

Why should we be
grateful to God?
there is no good in our life. We
By Sant Rajinder Singh may have been healthy for forty
Ji Maharaj years, but the one major illness
we have we say, "Why is this hap‑

L
et us recount the many
things for which we owe
our gratitude to God, the
Giver. First, we are extremely for‑
tunate that our soul was born into
a human body. If we look around
at all the various species of life,
we see what a difficult existence
they have. They have a life in
which they have to find shelter
from the elements and live in fear
of predators. While many people
treat their pets as well as their
own family members, pets are
still enslaved. Even though there
are now pet beauty salons, pet
therapists, and pet yoga classes
of fered, animals lack the faculty
that we have in which we can be
conscious of who we are. Their
lives are restricted to feelings and
survival instincts. They cannot
contemplate who they are, why
they are here, and where they are
going. We are fortunate that we
have been born into the only
species who can know ourselves
and know Go d. For this, we
should thank God.
How many thank God for our
health? W hen we are in the
throes of a serious illness or have
an accident and are in pain, we
send loud prayers to God to help
us, to take away our pain and heal
us. Yet, how many of us send
prayers to God in gratitude for
our health? We may utter a
"Thank God," when our illness or
our pain ends, but then we often
do not thank God for each day
thereafter that we are healthy.
We may fee l that Go d only
exists when everything goes our
way. We ignore the good things
such as our physical gifts, intel‑
lectual gifts, and emotional gifts
from God. We forget that every‑
thing we receive comes from God.
Instead, we set up a condition
that we only believe there is a
God if we get whatever we want.
We take for granted what God has
given to us and focus on what
God has not given to us.
We may have had a job for
twenty‑five years, but the one
time we are laid off due to a com‑
pany downsizing we say there is
no God. We may have had a lov‑
ing family relationship for fifty
years, but when one member
passes away, we forget how long
we enjoyed his or her company
and instead blame God or say
pening to me? There must not be
any God." We may win all our
sports games, but the one loss
causes us to say, "God doesn't
care about me." Think about the
plight of God. With all that has
been given to us, we blame God
when one thing goes wrong. How
would we think God feels when
that happens? Few are grateful to
God for the good they receive so
that when something goes wrong
they tell God, "It's okay, God. I still
love You, I am grateful to You,
and I know You are there. What
happened must have been some‑
thing that was best for me, or was
due to my karma that I created, or
is a part of nature and life and is
okay, under Your will." How many
people take such a grateful atti‑
tude to God?
There are people who undergo
a tremendous amount of pain yet
remain grateful and thank God on
days they are pain‑free. Most take
good health for granted. Even if
we have some physical problems
or some pain we have to live with,
we should thank God for what we
still can do, whether it is waking
up in the morning, or going to
work, or finding some moments
of enjoyment in our lives. If we
spend time complaining to God
about our physical condition,
even though we can still function,
we should look at those who have
serious handicaps that make
them dependent on others, and
then reevaluate our own situa‑
tion. Some people have handi‑
caps, yet are so grateful they are
alive or that their suffering is not
worse. They are grateful to God
for whatever blessings they do
have. Let us thank God for our
health and be grateful our ail‑
ments are not worse than they
are. For each day that we are able
to do our work, enjoy our family
and friends, and meditate, thank
God.
Have we ever thanked God for
our spouse, our parents, or our
children? We often find reasons
to complain about those in our
family, but we seldom realize how
helpful it is to have a family. Some
may be living alone now, but
when they were growing up, they
lived with the family. Think about
how difficult life would be with‑
out parents, a caretaker, siblings,
a spouse, children, or relatives.
SPIRITUALLY
we are blessed. Our
soul is a part of God.
Each of us is blessed
with a way to find
God who sits within
us. In this search,
some people stop at
the level of going to
their places of
worship & reading
scriptures. For them,
this is a beginning of
a connection with
God. Outer religious
practices provide
some time in which
people can think
about God, sing God's
praises, and worship.
These gifts focus our
attention on God.
Friends can help us only so far,
but family members are commit‑
ted to being there for us through
thick and thin. When we are sick,
they help us. When we have no
money, they are there. They are
there to listen to our problems
and to help us. We often find a
reason to complain to God about
our family members, but how
many thank God that we have
them? Often, we only appreciate
them when we lose them through
death or separation. Let us take
time to thank God for them and
also show them how much we
appreciate them.
We also have received spiritual
gifts. This includes the gift of our
soul longing for God. Many may
feel God has forsaken them. They
do not feel God in their lives.
Some even deny the existence of
God. Why?
When we are so focused on our
outer life, we do not see what is
coming to us from our inner life.
We are only facing in one direc‑
tion.
Spiritually, we are blessed. Our
soul is a part of God. Each of us is
blessed with a way to find God
who sits within us. In this search,
some people stop at the level of
going to their places of worship
and reading scriptures. For them,
this is a beginning of a connec‑
tion with God. Outer religious
practices provide some time in
which people can think about
God, sing God's praises, and wor‑
ship. These gifts focus our atten‑
tion on God. However, for our
soul to directly experience God
requires more than outer wor‑
ship. There is a part of us that
wants to know God and is not sat‑
isfied with only reading about
God in scriptures or doing outer
practices to worship God. When
we have a spiritual awakening in
which we realize the need to find
God, we begin to yearn to receive
a firsthand experience of the
spark of the Divine. We start a
search for God and cannot rest
until we meet God. We are no
longer satisfied with the attrac‑
tions of this world; we want some‑
thing lasting.
Go d is g racious and works
throug h spiritual Masters.
Masters point the way back to
God's Abode. A spiritual Master
roams the earth ready to show
seekers the way back to God.
Masters are like lig hthouses
beaming out rays to invite our
lost ships back to a safe harbor. If
our eyes are facing the darkness
and mist of the seas, we do not
see the lighthouse. The moment
we are threatened by storms,
we turn our eyes in every direc‑
tion, seeking the guiding light of
the lighthouse. That moment is
our spiritual awakening when we
realize we cannot brave the
stormy seas of life alone and need
help. We do not know how to
access God. The Master is a cata‑
lyst who puts us in touch with
God through a process of initia‑
t ion into the inner lig ht and
sound and teaches meditation on
that current. Through meditation,
our soul can travel on that divine
current back to its true Source.
If we have asked the questions
about who we are, if there is God,
and what the purpose of life is,
we should be grateful to God. If
God has put us in touch with a liv‑
ing Master, we can express
gratitude.
(For more visit www.sos.org)
TheSouthAsianTimes.info July 6-12, 2019
TheSouthAsianTimes.info July 6-12, 2019

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