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Vol.9 No. 16 August 13-19, 2016 80 Cents

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Michael Phelps
becomes greatest
Olympian ever
As the swimmer breaks a
record from 152 BC, Sania
and Saina keep India in
medals hunt in Rio

Grand Marshal Bobby Deol and coGrand Marshal,

actor Prashantt Gupta (right), marching with the organizers.

5th India Day

Parade in Hicksville
draws thousands
Hicksville, NY: T he 70th
Independence Day of India was
celebrated Aug 6 with a grand
parade by IDPUSA in the
newest Little India here.
Bollywood star Bobby Deol was
the Grand Marshal, and upcom
ing actor Prashantt Guptha the
coGrand Marshal for the
parade that started from Apna
Bazar. More celebs like rockstar
Raghav, choreographer Sandip

By SATimes Team

Soparrkar and dignitaries like

Nassau County Executive Ed
Mangano and Oyster Bay Town
Supervisor John Venditto took
part in the parade and the pro
gram that followed.

Detailed report on
the parade and many
pictures in the next
issue, India Day Special.

Rio de Janeiro: With his surpris

ingly easy win in the 200 M indi
vidual medley on Thursday night,
Michael Phelps won his fourth
gold medal. He thus has won 13th
individual gold (and 22nd gold
overall and 26th medal) surpass
ing Leonidas of Rhodes, who won
12 individual events over four
Olympics.
At 36, five years older than
Phelps, he won his last three golds
in 152 B.C, in races of about 200
and 400 meters and in a shield
carrying race, reports The New

NYC India Day Parade on Aug 21

New York: The 36th India Day
Parade, touted the largest in the
world outside India, is scheduled
for August 21. it shall begin at
noon from 39th Street, go down
Madison Avenue, and culminate
near 26th street where several
food and other stalls will be put up
as well as cultural events presented
till 6 pm.
The India Day Parade, organized
every year by FIAs tristate chapter,
showcases the progress, prosperity
and friendship of the two demo
cratic nations India and USA.
Many dignitaries from India and

Abhishek Bachchan, Grand Marshal, Baba Ramdev and

Acharya Lokesh Muni will be chief guests
the US will be in attendance. The
center of attraction at the parade is
always a mega Bollywood star. This
time the Grand Marshal is Abhishek

Bachchan. Yoga guru Baba Ramdev

and Acharya Lokesh Muni are chief
guests. Chiyaan Vikram, south
Indian superstar, is also chief guest.

York Times. With

this
laure l,
Phe lps also
joined the
track
and
American legend Michael Phelps has won his
field Olympians
13th individual gold in swimming at Rio.
Al Oerter and
Carl Lewis as the only Americans given the circumstances, would be
to win an individual event four almost as impressive.
Meanwhile, star shuttlers Saina
times.
Phelps has two races left still: Nehwal and P.V. Sindhu were the
the 100 fly on Friday and the lone bright spots along with the
4x100 medley on Sunday. So he mixed doubles pair of Sania Mirza
may unbelievably go sixforsix in
Continued on page 4
Rio, a feat that wouldn't match his
More Olympics
eightforeight meet in Beijing but,
coverage pages 1820.

Kashmir talks
with Pak only
about PoK: Rajnath

New Delhi: Union home minister

Rajnath Sing h declared on
Wednesday that no power on
earth can take Kashmir from
India, squarely blaming Pakistan
for whatever is happening in
Kashmir.
He spoke sternly while referring
to a letter by Pakistan Prime
Minister Nawaz Sharif to the UN
on Kashmir plebiscite, saying:
If there will be any talks with
Pakistan, it will be on Pakistan

Shah Rukh
detained at
LA airport
New York: Bollywood mega
star Shah Rukh
Khan, detained at
Los Angeles air
port in the US...
See page 4

Watch out
for our
India Day
Special
August
2026, 2016

Continued on page 4

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August 13-19, 2016

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August 13-19, 2016

Hillary Clinton to meet with Acharya Lokesh

The Jain guru will also participate in India Day Parade in
New York City and in Chicago during his US tour.
By SATimes Team

Hillary Clinton had taken Acharya Lokesh

Munis blessing last year for her run for
White House.

New York: Acharya Dr. Lokesh Muni,

founder President of Ahimsa Vishwa Bharti
and famed Jain personality, will be in the
US for a Peace and Harmony Tour from
August 10 to Sept 6.
On the invitation from Consul General
Chicago, Dr. Ausaf Sayeed, Acharya Lokesh
will be Chief Guest at the Indian Day
Parade and ag hoisting in Chicago on
August 15. The Indian American Business
Council and the community have also
org anized a g rand recept ion for the
Acharya at the Consulate.
On August 13, the Acharya and well
known preacher Shri Ramesh Bhai Ozha
will jointly give a spiritual lecture on
Bhagavad Gita and Uttradhyan at Jain
Centre, Chicago.
The Jain muni will be in New York from
18th to 22nd August, during which he will
participate in the FIA India Day Parade on
21st August in Manhattan. He will visit

Prosecutors want prison for

Ami Beras father for poll fraud
New York: Federal prosecutors are
demanding a prison sentence for
83yearold father of the embat
tled
Indian
American
Congressman, Amerish Ami Bera,
in an election funding fraud case,
even though other ofcials have
recommended only probation
when the court decides the penal
ty next Thursday.
Assistant US Attorney Philip
Ferrari wrote to the Sacramento
federal court in California that
because of "the serious nature" of
his offence," Babulal Bera did not
deserve leniency, the Sacramento
Bee newspaper reported.
Babulal Bera admitted in May
before Judge Troy L. Nunley that
he was guilty of election funding
fraud. The admission or guilty
plea avoided a lengthy trial while
his son, Ami Bera, the only Indian
American in US Congress, faces a
tough battle to retain his seat in
the House of Representatives.
Ferrari wrote that the probation
ofcer had said that sentencing
guidelines called for a prison term

His fathers guilty plea has

affected Ami Beras chances of
retaining his Congressional
seat from California.
of between three years, 10
months and four years, nine
months but recommended that he
serve no time in prison and pay a
ne of only $30,200. The maxi
mum sentence for the two
offences that Babulal Bera admit
ted to would be ve years for each
of them. Both the recommenda
tions of the probation ofcer were
challenged by Ferrrari, who said
the prosecution would agree to a
prison term less than the recom
mended guidelines but would not
spare him incarceration, the news
paper said.

On August 13,
Acharya Lokesh
and Shri Ramesh
Bhai Ozha will
give a spiritual
lecture on
Bhagavad Gita
and Uttradhyan
in Chicago.

Navgrah Temple in Queens on Aug 20 and

will also meet community activists in New
Jersey at the Royal Alberts Palace, Fords.
Acharya Ji will meet Mrs. Hillary Clinton,
the Democratic nominee for President, on
24th August in Silicon Valley, California.
Notably, Mrs. Clinton met him last year to
take his blessing in her bid to be the rst

US President. On 25th August, Acharya Ji

will address the City Council of Milpitas, CA
as Chief Guest.
Paryushan Parv has been organized in
Atlanta by the local Jain Society from 29th
August to 6th September in the auspicious
presence of Acharya Lokesh Muni. During
the festival he will give spiritual lectures.

Jenifer Rajkumar seeks seat

vacated by NY assembly speaker
New York: Jenifer Rajkumar has an
uphill task to win the Democratic pri
mary for New York state Assembly
from 65th District (Lower
Manhattan). The September 13 elec
tion is to ll the seat vacated by con
victed former state Assembly
Speaker Sheldon Silver.
Democratic District Leader Jenifer
Rajkumar, 33, is running against 5
other candidates, one of them elect
ed earlier this year to nish Silvers
remaining term. In April, Alice
Cancel won a special election to
occupy Silvers seat, and has an edge
being the incumbent.
Rajkumar is a civil rights attorney
with degree from Stanford Law
School. Other candidates vying
alongside Rajkumar include commu
nity activist Don Lee; former chair
person of Community Board 3, Gigi
Li; Democratic District Leader Paul
Newell; and former chiefofstaff to
Assemblyman Ron Kim, YuhLine
Niou. Rajkumars campaign has won
this month an unusual endorsement
from former Florida Governor
Charlie Crist, a Republican turned

Jenifer Rajkumar with her

supporters in Manhattan
Democrat who is running for the U.S.
Congress and is endorsed by
President Obama. Jenifer has a clear
vision for the good that government
can do, and has the right priorities.
Shes impressed me with her com
mitment to hard work, and her inde
pendence, Crist is quoted as saying
in a press release. She has the tem
perament to build the coalitions
needed to get things done, and is
running for the right reasons.
Congresswoman Carolyn Maloney,
DNY, also had a good word for
Rajkumar earlier, "Jenifer has been

an outstanding leader for her con

stituency. Manhattan needs more
women like Jenifer. New York State
needs more women like Jenifer. Our
country needs more women like
Jenifer elected on the Democratic
line." Rajkumar reportedly topped in
terms of campaign cash as per the
July 31 nancial report, grossing
more than $204,000.
I believe that local government
can be a platform for innovation and
inspiration, Rajkumar says on her
election website. I am running for
State Assembly to replace the Albany
culture of corruption with a culture
of service. It is time to invest in a
sense of collective destiny, that we
are all in this together across differ
ent ethnicities, economic strata, and
neighborhoods, she added.
Signicantly, over 42 percent of
the population of the 65th District is
of Asian origin, mostly Chinese.
An elected Democratic Leader
three times since 2011, Rajkumar
would become the rst Indian
American, and a millennial, in the
state legislature if elected Sept. 13.

August 13-19, 2016

TURN PAGE

'Every Damn Time,' tweets Shah Rukh

Khan, detained at US airport
New York: Bollywood mega
star Shah Rukh Khan,
detained at Los Angeles air
port in the US for questioning
again, tweeted on Thursday:
"Every damn time!"
A man with the same name
is on a US nofly list of 80,000
people.
Shah Rukh took to Twitter to
voice his exasperation.

I fully understand & respect

security with the way the world
is, but to be detained at US
immigration every damn time
really really sucks.
Shah Rukh Khan (@iamsrk)
August 12, 2016
The brighter side is while

waiting caught some really nice

Pokemons.
Shah Rukh Khan (@iamsrk)
August 12, 2016
US Assistant Secretary of State
Nisha Biswal tweeted an apolo

gy. Sorry for the hassle at the

airport, @iamsrk even
American diplomats get pulled
for extra screening!
Nisha Biswal (@NishaBiswal)
August 12, 2016

Multiple explosions
strike Thai
tourist towns
Bangkok: At least four people were
killed and 15 others injured as mul
tiple explosions struck Thai tourist
towns, police said on Friday. Two
were killed on Thursday one in the
town of Hua Hin, one in Trang
province and two others died in the
second wave of attacks on Friday
morning one in Hua Hin, one in
Surat Thani province, the Guardian
reported. At least eight explosions
hit three cities in a span of 12
hours, police said.
The series of explosions started
on Thursday night in the resort of
Hua Hin. Two bombs placed near a
local a bar called Johnny's 56 went
of f within a few minutes of each

other as foreign tourists were leav

ing to go back to their hotels, CNN
quoted Police Lieutenant Colonel
Samoer Yoosumran as saying.
On Friday morning, six explosions
occurred in three locations.
T he police said they have
detained suspects but the group or
motivation is still unclear, the
Guardian added.
However, spokesman Piyapan
Ping said the intention was to cause
chaos.
Thai Prime Minister Prayut Chan
ocha said some Thais "without
hearts" are making trouble, adding
that the government will do its
utmost to secure the kingdom.

Third Test: Thunderstorms, heavy

rains wash out third day's play
St Lucia: Thunderstorms and incessant rains washed out
the third day's play of the third Test between India and
West Indies at the Darren Sammy National Cricket Stadium
at Gros Islet in this picturesque citystate.
Though overnight rain did stop ahead of the first session,
play could not begin on Thursday as the outfield was
flooded and the pitch was damp under covers.
Before umpires Nigel Llong (England) and Rod Tucker
(Australia) could walk into the ground for a second inspec
tion at 2 p.m. local time (11:30 p.m. IST), heavy downpour
in the afternoon further delayed the match even in the
postlunch session. The West Indies were to resume their
first innings from the overnight 107/1 in 47 overs, with
opener Kraigg Brathwaite (53) and onedown Darren
Bravo (18) at the crease. Replying to India's 353 all out on
Wednesday, West Indies began their first innings on the
second day in the postlunch session, with Brathwaite and
Leon Johnson being cautious of the Indian seam bowling
in windy conditions. India, however, got a breakthrough in
the 24th over when Johnson was run out for 23 in 75 balls
by a quick throw at the bowling end by Lokesh Rahul when
Windies were 59/0.

Chairman and Co-Founder

Kamlesh C. Mehta

Associate Editors:
Hiral Dholakia-Dave

Co-Founder: Saroosh Gull

Contributing Editors: Meenakshi Iyer,

Nilima Madan, Melvin Durai,
Dr Prem Kumar Sharma, Ashok Vyas,
Dr Akshat Jain, Ashok Ojha

President: Arjit Mehta

Mr Khan, one of the most

successful stars in the Hindi
film industry, has previously
been held back at airports in
New York and New Jersey.
American of ficials say that
during immigration checks,
what pops up is a name with
out any other detail to help
draw a distinction.
In April 2012, Khan was
held back for over two hours
at the airport in New York on
a visit to address students at
Yale University.
He had joked later at Yale:
"Whenever I start feeling too
arrogant about myself I take a
trip to America."

TheSouthAsianTimes.info
Michael Phelps becomes
greatest Olympian ever
Continued from page 1
and Rohan Bopanna as India endured anoth
er dismal day at Rio on Thursday. Sania
Mirza and Rohan Bopanna started their cam
paign on a positive note with a straight sets
victory over Sam Stosur and Jonathan Peers
of Australia and entered the quarterfinals.
At the badminton courts, Saina and Sindhu
also won their respective opening matches in
the women's singles event.
But there was disappointment in store for
Indian fans in most of the other events with
archers Deepika Kumari and Laishram
Bombayla Devi crashing out of the women's
individual event while the men's hockey
team went down fighting to the Netherlands.
To add to the dismay, boxer Shiva Thapa,
one of India's medal hopes, saw his cam
paign come to an end after he lost his
Bantam weight (56kg) category bout to
Cuba's Robeisy Ramirez.
As if the failure in the Olympic disciplines
was not enough, Sports Minister Vijay Goel
and Indian officials added to the shame with
the Rio Olympic organizers threatening to
cancel his accreditation accusing them of
"aggressive and rude" behavior.

Kashmir talks with Pak only

about PoK: Rajnath
Continued from page 1
Occupied Kashmir (POK) and not Kashmir.
Responding in the Rajya Sabha to a debate
lasting over eight hours, the longest ever on
Kashmir in Parliament, and after hearing 29
members, the home minister also promised
to consider sending an allparty delegation
to the Valley. The government has decided
to hold an allparty meeting on Friday on
the issue, that will be attended by Prime
Minister Narendra Modi. The home minister
also dispelled deliberate rumours about
the Army taking over control in Kashmir,
saying it was out of the question.

Jaipur (India) Bureau

Prakash Bhandari
Prakash@TheSouthAsianTimes.info

IANS Washington Bureau

Arun Kumar
arun.kumar@ians,in

Photographs: Gunjesh Desai/

masalajunction.com.
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Photo Journalist: Sandeep Girhotra

Cartoonist: Mahendra Shah

Chief Operating Officer:

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Pooja Jain,
Pooja@TheSouthAsianTimes.info

Art and Design: Vladimir Tomovski

Bhagwati Creations,
Dhiraj Kumar

Managing Editor: Parveen Chopra

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TheSouthAsianTimes.info

TRISTATE COMMUNITY

NJ dealer refuses to sell car to IndianAmerican over Taliban concerns, gets sued
New York: An IndianAmerican man has sued
a New Jersey car dealership for $1.26 mil
lion, alleging it refused to sell him a swanky
Mercedes Benz because a manager thought
he came from a "highrisk area" and he might
ship the vehicle to the Taliban.
Surjeet Bassi, 50, claims the manager at
Prestige Motors Inc. told him that he came
from a "highrisk area" where people buy
cars and export them to the Taliban.
Bassi, who has lived in New Jersey for 30
years, said he told the manager he is Indian
and not connected to the Islamic fundamen
talist and terrorist organization, NJ.com quot
ed the recent federal lawsuit as saying.
"Prestige Mercedes Benz values its relation
ships with customers and prospective cus
tomers," spokeswoman Theresa V. Boylan
said in a statement. "As a company, we do not
condone discriminatory practices or conduct.
Out of respect for the process and all parties,
it is our policy not to comment on pending
legal matters."
Bassi said he wanted to trade his Mercedes
Benz ML350 for a newer model. He claims he
spent several hours negotiating the price
with a salesman, passed a credit check,
charged $1,000 to his card for a down pay
ment and called his insurance company to
adjust his policy. But that was when a

Surjeet Bassi says he was denied a Mercedes car

by the dealer (Image credit: ndtv.com)
Prestige manager called Bassi into his office,
the lawsuit says.
"He said, 'I'm sorry I can't sell you the car,'
and then explained why," Bassi told recordon
line.com.
Bassi "explained that he was an East Asian
Indian and that he was not related in any way
to the Taliban," the lawsuit states.
The suit claims Bassi's name did not come
up in any regard to being an exporter of
Mercedes Benz.
St ill, the manager re fused to extend
$83,000 in credit, for which Bassi "was quali
fied and had been approved by the defen
dant," the suit states. The refusal is a viola
tion of the Equal Credit Opportunity Act, the
(PTI)
lawsuit claims.

Washington: A top US
the university's Hindu
university has appoint
community," Rev Gray
ed a first fullt ime
said in a blog post.
director for Hindu Life
T he university has
in recognition of the
some 400 Hindu uni
g row ing number of
versity and faculty
Hindu students at the
members.
university.
From its foundation
"I am pleased to
in 1789, Georgetown,
announce the appoint
the nat ion's oldest
ment of Brahmachari
Catholic and Jesuit
Vrajvihari Sharan as
university, has been
Georgetown's first full
open to students of
Vrajvihari Sharan
t ime Director for
every religious tradi
Hindu Life and the first Hindu priest tion, he wrote.
chaplain in the US," Rev Howard Gray,
Sharan is a Senior Monk at Shri Golok
Interim Vice President for Mission and Dham Ashram (Vrindavan and New
Ministry at university said.
Delhi) where he was initiated in 2003.
Sharan joins the Georgetown He subsequently completed ritual train
University from the University of ing at the Vishwanath Sannyas Ashram
Edinburgh where he served as hon in both Varanasi and Delhi. Since com
orary Hindu Chaplain since 2010.
plet ing his PhD in Sanskrit at
He will also serve as chaplaininresi Edinburgh in 2015, Sharan has also
dence to firstyear students in New served as Lecturer of Asian Religions at
South Hall.
Cardiff University in Wales and Senior
"Sharan was drawn to Georgetown by Teaching Fellow in Sanskrit at the
its commitment to interreligious stu University of London in England.
(PTI)
dent formation, and by the vibrancy of

Siyona Mishra (center) with Spell Bee organizers and sponsors.

nity. It was an honor to be a part of
this great event that helps shape
our future generation of leaders,
said Wonhong Lee, Assistant Vice
President, Diverse Markets,

Georgetown University
appoints 1st director for
Hindu Life, Hindu priest

Siyona Mishra wins 2016 MassMutual

South Asian Spelling Bee
New Brunswick: Siyona Mishra of
Orlando, Florida correctly spelled
the word zubrowka (a dry straw
colored chiefly Russian liqueur of
vodka flavored with herbs) during
the 2016 MassMutual South Asian
Spelling Bee finals to clinch the
title of national champion and took
home a cash prize of $10,000
from MassMutual.
Ananya Kodali from Highland
Village, Texas and Shruthika Padhy
from Cherry Hill, New Jersey were
tied for National RunnerUp at the
MassMutual initiative on Aug.5.
The initiative was organized by
leading multicultural advertising
firm Touchdown Media Inc.
We are truly impressed with
these brilliant and talented
spellers. We understand their suc
cess takes dedicated support from
their parents and families.
MassMutual shares the same pas
sion about bringing financial edu
cation to the South Asian commu

August 13-19, 2016

MassMutual Financial Group.

The special guest at the finals
was last years National Champion,
Shourav Dasari, who helped co
host a portion of the initiative.

Junoon chef Aarthi

Sampath wins culinary
reality show Chopped
New York: Aarthi Sampath, the
Chef De Cuisine (head chef ) of
Miche linstarred che f Vikas
Khanna's Junoon Restaurant in
New York, has won the American
competitionbased reality show
'Chopped.'
She was announced the winner
during the show's episode that
went on air on Tuesday on Food
Network.
React ing to her victory,
Sampath said in a statement:
"Firstly, I feel relieved. It was one
of the toughest things I have
done in my life. Cooking a dish in
20 minutes and then being sub
ject to criticism is not easy."
"I feel accomplished and I am
so excited for this new journey I
am going to start. I feel like I am
one step closer to my goal of
inspiring women in India and

Aarthi Sampath
(Image : Orlandodatenightguide.com)

across the globe."

Sampath's foray into the culi
nary world began with an explo
ration of flavors found in the
diverse kitchens of Mumbai and
eventually led to her current
position as Chef De Cuisine at
(IANS)
Junoon.

August 13-19, 2016

TRISTATE COMMUNITY

TheSouthAsianTimes.info

IN BRIEF

Secaucus street named after

Hindu leader Swamibapa
T

he Swaminarayan Temple of Secaucus,

New Jersey, celebrated its 15th an
niversary last week with hundreds of fol
lowers, and members from the local Indi
anAmerican community attending the
Aug. 67 event.
The celebrations Aug. 6 kicked off with
a flash mob dance to welcome Acharya
Swami and also commemorate the 25th
anniversary celebrations of the Smruti
Mandir, an allmarble, hand carved tem
ple located in Ghodasar, India. The reli
gious discourses, prayer services, a youth
skit, and religious hymns were also part of
the firstday celebrations.
The Aug. 7 program commenced with
religious discourses as well as a grand
annkut, a large offering of food. Muktjee
van Swamibapa Pipe Band escorted
Acharya Swami, Secaucus Mayor Michael
Gonnelli, Secaucus Councilman Rob Con
stantino, Secaucus Councilwoman Susan
Pirro, and Hudson County Sheriff Frank
Schillari to the entrance of the temple for
the opening of Penhorn Avenue which has
been renamed Swamibapa Way to honor
Muktajeevan Swamibapa, the religious
leader who was the first to bring the
Swaminarayan sect to the United States in
the late 1970s.
Balloons and white doves were also re
leased to commemorate the occasion.
The program continued in the temples
community hall, with over 500 individu
als in attendance. The Swaminarayan Gadi
Sansthan donated $1,000 to the Secaucus
Fire Department and $1,000 to the town
ships office of emergency management.

Bangladeshi immigrant calls

on Queens district attorney to
prosecute hate crime
azi Rahman, victim of a hate crime
was joined by his attorney Ali Najmi,
Esq. and leaders of the South Asian and
Queens community in front of the steps
of Queens Criminal Court on August 8th
to call on the Queens District Attorney
to prosecute an assault committed
against Gazi Rahman as a hate crime.
Gazi Rahman, a Bangladeshi immi
grant and resident of Jamaica, Queens,
was viciously assaulted by a random
stranger later identified as Christopher
Porr. The assault occurred on Hillside
Avenue near Parsons Blvd. in Jamaica.
Rahman while subject to racial epithets
about his ethnicity during the assault
was wrongfully arrested at the scene by
the NYPD for assaulting Porr.
Rahman suffered a broken nose and
lacerations to his face during the as

Penhorn Avenue has been renamed

Swamibapa Way to honor
Muktajeevan Swamibapa
Acharya Swami delivered a sermon
preaching peace, love, devotion, and uni
ty. Anyone who travels on Swamibapa
Way will be on their way towards salva
tion, he said. All of this devotional love
that we practice should be done selfless
ly. Our talents are given to us by the Lord
as vehicles of devotion he added. The
twoday festival featured religious dis
courses about peace and unity, perform
ances by North Americas First Indian
American Pipe Band Swamibapa Pipe
Band, cultural concert and skit, tradition
al Indian feasts, and more.

sault. In an investigation lead by Rah

man's attorney, Ali Najmi, surveillance
footage was discovered which com
pletely exonerates Rahman and shows
Porr acting as an unprovoked aggressor.
Witness statements from those pres
ent at the scene were also obtained. Wit
nesses have stated Porr screamed out
"f**k Indians" while committing the as
sault. Witnesses also provided pictures
of Rahman drenched in his own blood
and substantial blood on the ground.
"I am confident all charges against Mr.
Rahman will be dismissed. But we need
to make everyone in our community
feels safe. This assault needs to be treat
ed as a hate crime and we need to make
sure people who commit hate crimes are
held accountable" said Ali Najmi, attor
ney for Rahman.

Virbhadra Patel rst IndianAmerican

to serve on Woodbridge Council
ames Major, a longtime member of
the Woodbridge Township Council,
has resigned and he has been replaced
by the first IndianAmerican to serve
on the Woodbridge Council.
Major will start a new job this month
with the Middlesex County Utilities Au
thority, and he said he is leaving his
Council position after 12 years to
avoid any potential conflicts of inter
est, according to MyCentralJersey.com.
The Middlesex County Utilities Au
thority handles Woodbridge's sewers
and solid waste.
The 4th Ward includes Iselin and
Menlo Park. On Tuesday, the Council

voted to approve Virbhadra "Viru" Pa

tel to fill the vacancy, the paper re
ported.
Patel is reportedly very active in
Woodbridge's thriving Indian business
community and he will be the first In
dianAmerican to serve on the council.
He will be sworn in Sunday following
the India Day Parade on Oak Tree
Road. Patel will serve until the Nov. 8
general election, at which point Wood
bridge residents will get to vote for
who gets to fill out the remaining term,
which runs through Dec. 31, 2017.
Anyone can file a petition to run for
the seat, and the deadline is Sept. 14.

Scholarship program for

diaspora children
re you Indian American? Want to
learn more about your family's cul
ture? Interested in studying abroad in
India and meeting Indian students?
Need a scholarship for higher educa
tion? If so, read more about the Schol
arship Program for Diaspora Children
and stand a chance to study at a top uni
versity in India.
India hosts an amazing range of high
ly developed higher education facilities,
many of which are not well known to
students pursuing undergraduate de
grees in the United States. For this rea
son, the Government of India created
the "Scholarship Program for Diaspora
Children" (SPDC) in the 20062007 ac
ademic year for Persons of Indian Ori
gin (PIOs) and NonResident Indians
(NRIs).

Consul General attended the

17th Heritage of India Festival
at Kensico Dam Plaza, Valhalla,
NY on August 7. The event
was organized by Indian
American Cultural Association
of Westchester, NY

In greater detail, the SPDC aims to as

sist Indian American students to pursue
Under Graduate Courses in Indian Uni
versities/Institutions. The scheme also
aims to strengthen ties between Indian
Diaspora and Indian culture. SPDC is ap
plicable for undergraduate Programs
for Professional and General Courses
(except Medical and other related cours
es) and is available to 150 students. 50
of these seats are reserved for Children
of Indian workers (CIWG).
Financial assistance towards tuition
fees, admission in select institution and
courses, as well as post admission serv
ices are provided. Students accepted
into the program will receive up to
$4,000 per annum in scholarship. To
learn more about the SPDC and apply,
visit: www.mea.gov.in

TheSouthAsianTimes.info

NATIONAL COMMUNITY

Rakhi Sawant wears Modi

dress at Chicago IDay
parade, creates a stir

Rakhi Sawant at preIndependence Day

celebration in Chicago
New York: Rakhi Sawant, who
never fails to attract attention
for more wrong reasons than
rig ht, chose to leverage the
attention Indian Prime Minister
gets in the US, in her favor.
The actress, who was in atten
dance at a preIndependence Day
party in Chicago was seen wear
ing a g arish black number
emblazoned with pictures of
Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Besides the tiny headshots of the
PM, the worst part seems to be

the PM's gure that's placed

strategically enough for his hand
to land right on Rakhi's bust.
And behind, Sawant's butt
bears another image of Modi
with the Prime Minister seem
ingly giving the actress' booty a
rst class rating with his ges
tures.
This twisted show of patriot
ism didnt obviously go down
well with the Twitterati who
reacted with disdain.
(News source: indiatoday.in)

August 13-19, 2016

Intel acquires Naveen Raos

AI startup Nervana
San Francisco: Announcing a big
foray into the world of artificial
intelligence (AI), chip giant Intel
has acquired San Diego, California
b a s ed d ee p l e a r n i n g s t a r t u p
Nervana Systems run by an Indian
origin entrepreneur.
C o m i n g ah e a d of t h e I n t e l
Developer Forum next week, the
acquisition gives Intel a definitive
head start towards advanced data
analytics, computer vision, natural
language processing and machine
learning. Although the financial
details were not disclosed, accord
ing to a Re/Code report, the soft
ware giant is paying more than
$400 million to buy Nervana led
by former Qualcomm researcher
Naveen Rao.
"We will apply Nervana's soft
ware expertise to further optimize
the Intel Math Kernel Library and
its integration into industry stan
dard frameworks," Diane Bryant,
Executive Vice President of Data
Center Group at Intel, said in a
statement on Wednesday.
"Nervana's Engine and silicon
expertise will advance Intel's AI
portfolio and enhance the deep
learning performance and TCO of
our Intel Xeon and Intel Xeon Phi

Intel's Diane
Bryant with
Nervana's
CEO and
cofounder,
Naveen Rao
(Image :
intel.com)

processors," she explained. Intel

processors power nearly 97 per
cent of servers deployed to sup
port machine learning workloads
today.
"Nervana's IP and expertise in
accelerating deep learning algo
rithms will expand Intel's capabili
t ies in the fie ld of AI," Bryant
added. The Intel Xeon processor
E5 family is the most widely
deployed processor for deep learn
ing inference and the recently
launched Intel Xeon Phi processor
delivers the scalable performance
needed for deep learning training.
"While less than 10 per cent of
servers worldwide were deployed
in support of machine learning last
year, the capabilities and insights

it enables makes machine learning

the fastest growing form of AI," the
Intel executive said. "We will con
tinue to invest in leading edge
technologies that complement and
enhance Intel's AI portfolio," she
added. Nervana recently raised
$25 million in venture funding and
also has a contract to work with In
Qtel, the US intelligence communi
ty's venture arm. According to Rao,
the deal did not reflect any hurdles
in getting more capital to stay
independent.
"Raising money was not the
problem. That was going to be rel
atively easy but by selling to Intel
we have access to technology we'd
never dream about," Rao was quot
ed as saying.

4 Indian-origin persons among US'

Kesha Ram defeated in
Vermont Governor primary
top wealth advisors: Forbes
New York: Four Indianorigin persons have
been named among America's top wealth
advisors by Forbes on a list of 200 mem
bers who collectively manage $ 675 billion.
Raj Sharma and Ash Chopra, both work
ing in Merrill Lynch Private Banking &
Investment Group, have been ranked 17th
and 129 respectively on the Forbes 2016
'America's Top Wealth Advisors' list.
While Sonny Kothari of Merrill Lynch
Wealth Management has been ranked 176,
Raju Pathak of Morgan Stanley Wealth
Management is placed at 184.
Forbes said the 200 members on the list
collectively manage $ 675 billion, serving
clients that range from Silicon Valley bil
lionaires and Wall Street titans to small
business owners and family fortunes.
"Most great fortunes have their roots in
hard work, brilliant business decisions or
savvy investing somewhere along the way
(more often than not all three), But once

the money is made, growing, preserving

and passing it on to the next generation
becomes paramount," Forbes said.
"That's where a wealth advisor can come
in handy," it said.
Advisors afliated with big wirehouses
dominate the top of the list, including
Morgan Stanley, Merrill Lynch and UBS
Regarding services, some wealth managers
provide a doitall concierge service, han
dling everything from estate planning and
taxes to paying bills, it said.
Others focus more on investments and
getting clients into exclusive opportunities
like topperforming hedge funds or preIPO
startups.
"Each of the 200 advisors on the list have
one thing in common: they are trusted to
handle the money of wealthy individuals
and families, and will do whatever it takes
to keep that trust," Forbes said.
(PTI)

Washington, DC: Kesha Ram, the great

great granddaughter of Ganga Ram, an
Indian civil engineer known for building
a network of health infrastructures in
both India and Pakistan before partition,
lost the race for a top elected position in
the US State of Vermont.
IndianJewishAmerican Kesha, 29, lost
the Democratic primary for Vermont Lt
Governor to David Zuckerman who won
the election on Tuesday with 45 per cent
of the votes. She came a distant third
with just 18 per cent of the votes.
Kesha was the rst woman of color to
run for statewide ofce in Vermont.
Her father was born in Lahore but
after partition the family moved to India
and grew in Punjab. He came to Los
Angeles for studies as a student where
he met her mother, a Jewish American.
For her studies, Ram moved to the
(PTI)
University of Vermont.

Kesha Ram
(Image : www.kesharam.com)

August 13-19, 2016

NATIONAL COMMUNITY

TheSouthAsianTimes.info

Number of Indian students in US

universities expected to rise by 50 percent
Singapore: The number of Indian
students going overseas for un
dergraduate and postgraduate
studies is expected to increase by
50 per cent over the next five
years due to a manifold increase
in their family incomes, a place
ment expert said here today.
We see, conservatively, a 50
per cent increase in Indian stu
dents going to the US and UK for
undergrad and postgrad studies
over the next five years. This is
strongly supported by the grow
ing disposal income of their fam

ilies," said Rohan Pasari, Co

founder and CEO of Cialfo, a Sin
gaporebased education technol
ogy (edtech).
Cialfo, cofounded by Kolkatta
born Pasari and Singaporean
Stanley Chia, has placed more
than 90 per cent of its students in
top universities in the US and 30
top universities in the UK.
Pasari noted the Indian stu
dents' strong interests in acquir
ing international education and
experiences for placing them
selves in the top range of profes

sionals, both in India and

globally.
He pointed out the 100 per
cent growth seen in Chinese stu
dents that entered universities in
the US to acquire international
education during the early pick
up of Chinese economy. "It is the
same scenario for Indian stu
dents from now," Pasari said.
Cialfo, which is in the midst of
A series fund raising, is linking
up with Delhibased educational
institutions to help Indian stu
dents secure places in the US and

'Indian Americans sleeping

giants in presidential election'
Philadelphia: IndianAmericans are "sleep
ing giants" and can make a "significant dif
ference" in helping first ever woman US
presidential candidate Hillary Clinton
break the ultimate glass ceiling, according
to her Indianorigin supporters.
"IndianAmericans are the sleeping
giants. Indian Americans in this campaign
need to harness and g alvanize the
resources especially in the battle ground
states of Ohio, Pennsylvania, Florida and
Virginia," said IndianAmerican Frank
Islam, a major fund raiser for the Clinton
Campaign. "I personally believe and Hillary
(Clinton) believes that they can make sig
nificant difference, if the people go out and
vote," said Islam who was present at the
Demo crat ic Nat ional Convent ion in
Philadelphia where Clinton was nominat
ed. He said if the IndianAmericans would
go out and vote in these battle ground
States they can play an "important role"
and tip the ballots.
Islam, who was part of the delegation to
travel to India with US President Barack
Obama in January last year, exuded confi
dence that Clinton as president would take
IndiaUS relationship to the next height.
"She would be indispensable partner for
India. She would advocate and embrace
what President Obama has done so far," he
said. "I was so happy to be there at the his
toric moment when Hillary became our
nominee. She has potential to lead the
nation. What is important as an Indian
American is that Hillary is focused on
building bridges. She will go beyond all dif

Frank Islam
(Image : theindianpanorama.com)
ferences and unite people," said
Palaniappan Andiappan, who was a mem
ber of the Credentials Committee.
Andiappan attended the Democratic
National Convention, saying it was a "very
energizing and electrifying experience."
"Hillary Clinton's nomination sends a
powerful message that the America's
major party is ready to give command of
the most powerful nation to a woman. Her
message of unity and holding each other
resonates with majority of Americans,"
said Rajwant Singh, a Sikh community
leader.
New Yorkbased IndianAmerican attor
ney Ravi Batra said US President Barack
Obama in his speech at the convention
"recaptured America's election away from
Trump's Terms of Fear and Hate and back
to the Audacity of Hope for all of the
people."

UK universities, he said.
Cialfo's fund raising is support
ed by Koh Boon Hwee, former
chairman of Singtel, DBS Bank
and Singapore Airlines, as well as
NRI investor Anand Govindaluri
of Govin Capital.
"We are expecting a strong
market support for the A series
funding as our edtech startup
has a potential to tap into the
massive pool of students from In
dia, China and South East Asia,"
Pasari said.
"We will now reach more stu

dents, tapping into the multibil

lion dollar a year opportunity of
helping Asian students find their
ideal university," he said, esti
mating the annual Asian student
market value at $4 billion in the
UK and US universities.
Investors estimate the market
value of global students in the UK
and the US at $80 billion a year.
There were 132,888 Indian
students out of the 627,306
Asian students in the US in 2014
15, according to the Institute of
International Education. PTI

Mindy Kaling eyeing

move to big screen
New York: Actress, writer, and director
Mindy Kaling, made famous on the small
screen by her series about a raunchy Indian
American physician in search of love, is now
looking to enter the big screen.
Not satisfied to rest on her laurels with
The Mindy Project Kaling revealed at a
press conference Aug. 5, at Hulus Television
Critics Association meeting, that she had fin
ished writing a feature length script for the
big screen, etcanada.com reported. She will
play a small part in the movie which will be
set in New York City, and it may be related in
some way or form indirectly to the news
world, she hinted.
Kaling, 37, whose offbeat manner both on
and off screen has endeared her to a loyal
fan following, said she does not have a name
for the movie. Im bad at naming things
thats why my show is called The Mindy
Project,' she quipped.
It is not a romantic comedy as most of
those who follow her would assume, and
that she said, surprised her as well.
I always thought the first thing Id do [for
the big screen] was a romantic comedy and
what I realized was we write that so much on
[The Mindy Project] that I kind of decided
that, you know what, Im going to save that
stuf f for the show and this is about some
thing completely dif ferent, she is quoted
saying in the news report.
Its inspired by movies I love, like
Broadcast News, she said, but added, Its
not in the news world.
Born Vera Chokalingam, in Cambridge,
Massachusetts, Kaling was a longtime script

Mindy Kaling
(Image courtesy: people.com)
writer for the hit TV series The Of fice
where she was the only female writer on
staff at the age of 24. She appeared as Kelly
Kapoor in some of the episodes. Her first
solo venture, The Mindy Project, ran on Fox
for 3 seasons from 2012 to 2015. When Fox
cancelled the contract, Kaling took the series
to Hulu, where it has run since 2015.
Kaling has authored two books, Is
Everyone Hanging Out With Me? (And Other
Concerns) which featured on the New York
Times Best Sellers list, and Why Not Me?.
She was the voice of Disgust in Pixars
awardwinning animated movie, Inside Out.
She made her feature film debut in The 40
YearOld Virgin.

TheSouthAsianTimes.info

August 13-19, 2016

US AFFAIRS

Hillary says Trump incited violence

Washington: Democratic presi
dential nominee Hillary Clinton
said that her Republican rival,
Donald Trump incited violence
when he said gun rights support
ers could stop her from winning.
"Words matter, my friends. And
if you are running to be president
or you are president of the US,
words can have tremendous con
sequences," the former US secre
tary of state said on Wednesday
while addressing a campaign rally
in Des Moines, Iowa.
"Yesterday (Tuesday), we wit
nessed the latest in a long line of
casual comments from Donald
Trump that crossed the line. ...
Every single one of these inci

dences shows us that Donald

Trump simply does not have the
temperament to be president and
commander in chief of the US,"
she said. Clinton insisted that this

One-in-five Republicans want

Trump to drop out: Poll
New York: Nearly onefifth of reg
istered Republicans want Donald
Trump to drop out of the race for
the White House, according to a
Reuters/Ipsos poll released on
Wednesday, reflecting the turmoil
his candidacy has sown within his
party. Some 19 percent think the
New York real estate magnate
should drop out, 70 percent think
he should stay in and 10 percent
say they "don't know," according
to the Aug. 58 poll of 396 regis
tered Republicans. The poll has a
confidence interval of six percent
age points. Among all registered
voters, some 44 percent want
Trump to drop out. That is based
on a survey of 1,162 registered
voters, with a confidence interval
of 3 percentage points. That is 9
points higher than his support for
the presidency in the latest
Reuters/Ipsos tracking poll.
The figures underscored deep
divisions within the Republican
Party over Trump's candidacy. A
number of prominent Republicans
have declined to endorse him in
the Nov. 8 e lection against
Democratic rival Hillary Clinton,

citing his fiery rhetoric and policy

proposals such as building a wall
along the U.S.Mexican border and
temporarily banning Muslims
from entering the country.
Notably, 50 prominent national
security experts signed an open
letter saying they would not vote
for Trump in the fall, saying he
"lacks the character, values, and
experience" to be president.
Trump dismissed the group as
part of the Washington establish
ment that he blames for many of
the United States' problems.
Neither Trump nor Hillary
Clinton enjoys great popularity.
Some 53 percent of Americans
have an unfavorable view of
Clinton too, who has been accused
of mishandling her emails as sec
retary of state, according to
Reuters/Ipsos polling. Nearly 63
percent have an unfavorable view
of Trump.
Clinton led Trump by more than
7 percentage points in a
Reuters/Ipsos poll released on
Tuesday, up from a less than 3
percentagepoint lead late last
week.

WalMart acquires
Jet.com

arlier this week Walmart took its biggest step yet in

its bid to compete
against Amazon in
the world of digital com
merce. The retail giant
announced that it would
be acquiring Jet.com
an onlineonly shopping
site that has been live
for a little over a year for $3 billion in cash, plus up to
$300 million in shares for the founders and others at the
company.

election cycle is not "normal",

adding that she had taken note of
the fact that Republican figures
and voters were joining her cam
paign upon deciding that Trump

does not represent their values.

The New York billionaire once
again found himself in the centre
of controversy after te lling a
North Carolina political rally on
Tuesday that gun rights defend
ers can "do something" to prevent
Clinton from w inning the
November 8 election, a remark
that has been interpreted by
broad groups as a call to use vio
lence.
Trump had said that Clinton, if
e lected, would "abolish" the
Second Amendment to the
Constitution, which establishes
the right to "keep and bear arms".
Those comments immediately
sparked a firestorm of criticism of

More email trouble for

Hillary Clinton
Washington: New emails from
Hillary Clinton released on Tuesday
show her familyrun Clinton
Foundation tried to use her position
as US secretary of state to gain
access to the state department.
The emails, obtained and released
by conservative watchdog Judicial
Watch under the Freedom of
Information Act, were hosted on a
private server Clinton used while in
office.
In one email exchange from 2009,
a top foundation of ficial wrote to
secretary Clintons aides, saying it
was important to take care of a
particular person, whose name had
been redacted.
This person had written an email
to the foundation of ficial with a
subject line that said A favor ,
and thanked him for an eyeopen
ing opportunity to visit Haiti.
Another email from the founda
tion sought to put a billionaire
donor in touch with the American
ambassador in Lebanon in order to
speak to the substance person re
Lebanon.
As you know, hes key guy there

Seddique Mateen, father of Orlando night club gunman Omar Mateen,

was seen at Hillary Clinton rally Monday in Florida, giving Trump sup
porters some fodder against her.
and to us and is loved in Lebanon.
Very imp, the email said.
The Clinton campaign said in a
statement: Neither of these emails
involve the secretary or relate to
the foundations work. They are
communications between her aides
and the Presidents (former presi
dent Bill Clinton, who was the effec
tive head of the foundation) person
al aide, and indeed the recommen
dation was for one of the secretarys
former staf fers who was not
employed by the foundation.

Macy's is closing
15 percent of its
department stores

Trump both on Twitter and in the

mainline communications media,
and
part icularly
among
Democratic sectors, that the mag
nate had, in effect, issued a veiled
call for violence against the for
mer first lady.
Trump's campaign, however,
responded by saying that the
mogul was re ferring to the
"power of unificat ion" in his
remarks, adding that "Second
Amendment people have amazing
spirit and are tremendously uni
fied, which gives them great polit
ical power. And this year, they
will be voting in record numbers,
and it won't be for Hillary Clinton,
it will be for Donald Trump."

t may be time to say goodbye to your local Macy's.

As sales continue to sag, Macy's Inc. announced
Thursday that it's planning to close 100 of its
department stores, adding to another 40 store closures
announced earlier this year. Macy's sales have declined
six quarters in a row.

Clintons emails from her days at

the state department have cast a
shadow on her White House race
for 18 months now, and show no
signs of going away.
Last week, before the fresh batch
of emails was released, Clinton
faced criticism for flubbing her
reply to a T V interviewer about her
statements on the issue.
I may have shortcircuited it and
for that I, ah, you know, will try to
clarify, she told reporters at a news
conference.

Huffington to leave
news company
rianna Huffington, the Greek American journalist
who founded the Huffington Post, will step down as
editorinchief of the lib
eral online news company to
start a new venture, she and
the company said Thursday.
Her new venture, Thrive
Global, will launch in
November and provide content
and training seminars on well
ness. It closed a new round of
funding, led by other co
founders of the Huffington
Post, she said.

10

August 13-19, 2016

US AFFAIRS

TheSouthAsianTimes.info

PANTS ON FIRE, RUN BABY RUN!

Washington Diary by Arun Kumar
ne was "fired" up, the other had "pants
on fire" as the Republican red and
Democratic blue combatants began
the 100day dash in the White House 2016
"game of throws."
"No more Mr Nice Guy" seriously said
Donald Trump aka "Dangerous Donald" to
rivals as he threw punches at press, pundits,
the president and politicians for piling up on
him for picking up on hapless Pakistani
American parents of a US soldier killed in
Iraq.
"We are going to punch through the
media," declared the brash billionaire brand
ing "the failing" New York Times "totally dis
honest", Washington Post "a little bit better
lately but not good" and "so biased toward
Crooked Hillary" CNN as "Clinton News
Network."
Shooting his mouth, the Republican stan
dardbearer scored a "B'S" eye as he escalat
ed his feud with Khizr Khan, the lawyer from
Pakistan, for daring to question his "sacri
fices" and asking if he had read the American
constitution.
Khan insinuated Trump has a "black soul,"
the media suggested he had gone too far, the
2008 Republican flag bearer John McCain
admonished that he did not have an "unfet
tered license to defame those who are the

Hillary Clintons verbal gymnastics on her

email server earned a perfect four Pinocchios
from the Washington Post and "pants on fire"
from PolitiFact.
best among us."
Playing partisan politics, Barack Obama
with the Singapore Prime Minister standing
by his side used the presidential bully pulpit
to egg Republicans to dump an "unfit"
Trump.

Before the Republicans could blink, a petu

lant Trump threw in a hammer by delaying
his endorsement of House speaker Paul Ryan
and McCain in their reelection bids.
But despite Trump's "strange" and "dis
tressing" run, as Ryan put it, neither dropped
his support for their captain even as some
pundits suggested that after a selfgoal and
Khan's knockout blow, the reality TV star
may be "fired" by the voters.
Others were quick to note that like Maggi
Hot and Sweet sauce "It's dif ferent" for
Teflon Donald. And on the blue side, with her
"verbal gymnastics" Hillary Clinton earned a
perfect four Pinocchios for a whopper or a
big fat lie from the Post and "pants on fire"
from PolitiFact for her tall tales about her
email saga.
Yet brazenly splitting hair, she tripled
down on her claim that FBI Director James
"Comey said my answers were truthful, and
what I've said is consistent with what I have
told the American people."
Maybe she just "shortcircuited" Comey's
comments that "She did not lie to FBI!"
admitted Clinton as she served an ace in the
blame game too.
If for President Harry S. Truman the buck
stopped in the Oval Of fice, in true
Democratic fashion, the 45th presidential

hopeful favored equitable distribution.

The security ball for the 2012 attack on
Benghazi, Libya "was not my ball to carry"
and she relied on the judgment of 300 State
department professionals on email classifica
tion.
In pirouetting too she came out tops. After
declining to release transcripts of her Wall
Street speeches made for $225,000 a pop,
she vowed that "Wall Street can never, ever
be allowed to wreck Main Street again."
Yet here she was in Omaha, Nebraska, cam
paigning with the "Omaha Oracle" Warren
Buffett with a promise that if she wins, she'll
come back soon "and Warren and I will
dance in the streets of Omaha together."
She also counts former New York mayor
Michael R. Bloomberg and Dallas Mavericks
owner Mark Cuban among her other fat cat
backers.
Playing innuendo in tandem with Obama,
she again insinuated that Vladimir Putin's
spooks were behind the computer hacks of
her presidential campaign and two other
party outfits to help Trump.
Her rival's "quite excessive praise for
Putin, his absolute allegiance to a lot of
Russian wish list foreign policy positions,"
she suggested, clinched the issue.
IANS

Hillary vs Trump: Who will be the winner?

Trump is a wild card candidate. But can he prove to be the trump card?
By Dr. Munish Raizada

S presidential elections are just three

months away. USA is a Presidential sys
tem of democracy unlike India which
follows Westminster or parliamentary type of
democracy. Weird but true, in the strongest
democracy of the world, i.e., America, the
President is not elected directly by a popular
vote. A citizen casts the vote for an elector
and the latter in turn elects a President. Out
of 538 electors, a presidential nominee needs
270 votes to be the winner.
Another interesting contrast between the
two systems is that in USA, the President con
stitutes the executive branch and the
Congress functions as the legislative branch.
In the 2 party system of American democracy,
the presidential nominee from each party is
not thrust upon by the so called High
Command(in fact, there is no high command
in parties here). A presidential aspirant has to
seek a win through primary contests (called
Primaries or caucuses) within his own party
a form of inner party democracy that is miss
ing in India. In India, one party that came
close to preaching this concept (they named it
Swaraj) was Aam Aadmi Pary but as soon as
Arvind Kejriwal came in to power in Delhi, he
bluntly took a U turn and systematically killed
this concept.
Thus after months of rigor, virulence, the
atrics and political rhetoric, we now have two
main presidential nominees in the fray:
Donald J Trump and Hillary Clinton.

Libertarian Party has nominated New Mexico

former Governor Gary Johnson as their nomi
nee and Green Partys nominee is Jill Stein.
Libertarian Party an extreme champion of
individual liberty, limited governance and
promarket economy is hoping to entice vot
ers dissatisfied with Trump and Clinton.
This election is one of the most divisive
elections in the US history. Credit goes to Mr.
Trump for running an unconventional cam
paign characterized by politically incorrect
views on several issues that USA faces today.
The multibillionaire businessman is trying to
use the tag of being an outsider from the
political establishment of Washington to his
advantage by championing that things need
to change and they must change NOW. He has
struck the right chord with part of the elec
torate b venting out his feelings on hot button
issues like illegal immigrants, Islamic terror
ism and why the USA is trying to be the chief
tain of the world rather than taking care of its
own pressing issues at home. He is not a typi
cal Republican candidate, so to compensate
for this, he chose Indiana Governor Mike
Pence who famously declared: Im a
Christian, a conservative and a Republican, in
that order.
In the Democratic primaries, Hillary Clinton
was given protracted competition by Bernie
Sanders, who was able to mobilize the youth
of the country by playing socialist tunes
before finally sitting down in support of
Hillary Clinton. Trump pounced upon this by
stating that Bernie had been a victim of elec

toral maneuvers by the Democratic establish

ment. Hillary Clinton carries a big name as
well as a baggage of liabilities. She has been
First Lady (to President Bill Clinton) , and
Secretary of state during Obamas first term.
Trump has nicknamed her Crooked Hillary
alluding to her email server controversy and
failures of US intervention in the Arab world
and ISIS becoming powerful under her watch
as Secretary of State.
Who will win? The National Polling Average
on New York Times website, as of August 8,
Showed Hillary with a 7% vote advantage
over Trump.
Political pundits say that Trump is not only
lagging behind Hillary on fundraising but
also on organizational mobilization, making it

near impossible for him to catch up.

Trump has also alienated women voters,
Black and Hispanic voters. So, the extent of
his considerable support among white voters
will largely decide who sits in the Oval office.
The electoral college is such that Trump
cannot imagine a victory without winning
swing states of Ohio, Pennsylvania and
Florida. Pennsylvania has never voted a
Republican candidate in the last 28 years (but
Trump has made some inroads there). Ohio
has the sitting Republican Governor John
Kasich who lost out in the Republican primar
ies and has refused to endorse Trump thus
far. Obviously, Democratic Party is more het
erogeneous in terms of social, racial and eth
nic representation, while Republican Party
represents supremacy of whites and
Christianity. Hillary will continue to stress
the usual Democratic Party ethos and woo
Hispanic and Black voters and talk of middle
path.
In Republican circles, issues such as abor
tion and gay rights are not in play, thanks to
the uncharacteristic party nominee Trump
who is talking of jobs, making America Great
again and his vigorous outbursts on illegal
immigration, and radical Islam. The possibili
ty of American getting a first ever female
president does not seem have ignited pas
sions. Hilary cannot count on this alone!
Trump is a wild card candidate and that
sums up all. Watch out!
The author is a Chicagobased columnist.
Twitter @drMunishRaizada

TheSouthAsianTimes.info

August 13-19, 2016

INDIA

11

PM to hold allparty meet as Kashmir ignites Parliament

New Delhi: Blaming Pakistan for
instigating trouble in Kashmir, the
government agreed to hold an all
party meeting over the unrest in
the valley as politicians from
across the spectrum sought a
political solution to bring peace to
the restive state.
Rajya Sabha MPs asked the gov
ernment to call the meeting over
the Kashmir situation and then
send a delegation of parliamentar
ians to the valley for talks with a
cross section of the people.
There will be an allparty meet
ing on August 12 (Friday). Prime
Minister Narendra Modi will also
be in the meeting, Home Minister
Rajnath Singh said after a day
long bipartisan discussion on
Kashmir.
He, however, said that a delega
tion to be sent will have to wait
before some normalcy is restored

Policemen on patrol duty near Hazratbal Dargah in troubled Kashmir.

in the valley where over 55 people
have died and thousands injured
in a month of unrest following a
militant commander's killing on
July 8. Whatever is happening in

the Kashmir Valley is sponsored

by Pakistan, Rajnath Singh said.
Nobody in the world can take
Kashmir from us. If there will be
talks with Pakistan, there won't be

a discussion on Kashmir but on

Pakistanoccupied Kashmir."
The Rajya Sabha at the end of
the debate adopted a resolution
expressing concern over Kashmir,
saying it was necessary to take
steps to restore normalcy there
without compromising on national
security.
"This house expresses its con
cern over the disturbance, vio
lence and curfew in the Kashmir
Valley. The house expresses deep
concern and sensitivity towards
the deteriorating situation and the
deaths," said the resolution, read
out by Rajnath Singh in Hindi.
Initiating the debate, Opposition
leader Ghulam Nabi Azad urged
the government to win the hearts
and minds of people of the "inte
gral part of India".
"We always say Kashmir is an
integral part of India. But integral

part should not be on paper only.

There should be the integration of
minds and hearts," Azad said,
expressing concern over the vio
lence and continued lockdown of
the valley.
The Congress leader slammed
the Prime Minister for not speak
ing in parliament about the situa
tion in the valley and choosing a
Madhya Pradesh rally to appeal
for peace in Kashmir.
"If something happens in Africa,
you (Modi) tweet, Pakistan is an
enemy nation and still you speak
when something happens there. It
is good to show sympathy with all.
But the crown of India (Kashmir) is
burning. You must have felt the
heat on your head, if not the
heart."
He said Kashmir wasn't a mere
law and order problem but "a com
plex issue".

Kudankulam
nplant
sign
of
Sukhbir links AAP to
Punjab radicals, AAP IndoRussian friendship: Modi
seeks evidence
Chandigarh: Punjab Deputy Chief
Minister Sukhbir Singh Badal
urged the central government to
thoroughly investigate funding
received by the AAP and its lead
ers, alleging that radicals from
Punjab had aligned themselves
with the outfit.
Badal, the ruling Shiromani
Akali Dal President, said the
Punjab government has already
conveyed information to the
Union Home Minister and the
National Security Adviser about
Pakistan's plans to destabilize
the situation in Punjab before
assembly polls due next year.
The AAP leadership in Punjab
and Delhi hit back, asking Badal
to provide evidence of his allega
tions.
"Leaders of radical groups have
been regularly meeting the con
vener of AAP and Delhi Chief
Minister Arvind Kejriwal. Radical
leaders like Mohkam Singh were
trying their best to utilize the
2017 elections as an opportunity
to destabilize peace and harmony
attained by people of Punjab

Punjab Deputy Chief Minister

Sukhbir Singh Badal.
after great sacrifices," Badal said.
Dismissing Badal's allegations,
Aam Aadmi Party leader and
lawyer H.S. Phoolka said in
Amritsar: "He (Sukhbir Badal)
calls everyone a radical. For him,
even I am a radical."
T he AAP has emerged as a
strong challenger to the
Shiromani Akali DalBJP alliance
government, which is in power
here since 2007, and the
Congress for the assembly elec
tions to be held in February next
year.

Chennai: Prime Minister Narendra

Modi said the commissioning of the
first 1,000 MW unit in Kudankulam
is a mark of another strategic part
nership between India and Russia.
Speaking on the occasion of dedi
cating the first 1,000 MW unit built
with Russian equipment, Modi said
it is only the start of the collabora
tion in the nuclear field between the
two nations.
Modi, Russian President Vladimir
Putin and Tamil Nadu Chief
Minister J.Jayalalithaa jointly dedi
cated to the nation, the 1,000 MW
unit of the Kudankulam Nuclear
Power Project (KNPP).
The dedication of unit happened
via video conferencing with Modi in
New Delhi, Putin in Moscow and
Jayalalithaa in Chennai.
The KNPP is located in Tirunelveli
district in Tamil Nadu, around 650
km from here.
Modi said five more 1,000 MW
units would come up at
Kudankulam, built with Russian
technology and added that India
will build a series of nuclear power
plants.
Appreciating Putin for his focus
and strong leadership, Modi added
that Indian people will associate
with the people of Russia with ease.
Wishing `Long Live IndoRussian

The nuclear plant is

located at Tirunelveli
district in Tamil Nadu.

Friendship' Modi told Putin that he

is looking forward to meet him at
the ensuing G20 meeting in China.
Modi also thanked Jayalalithaa
for her participation in the event. In
his address, Putin said the coopera
tion in the field of nuclear power is
important part of the strategic part
nership between India and Russia.
Putin said Russia is one of the
world leaders in the field of nuclear
technology and the atomic power
plants built by his country are reli
able. According to him, construction
of the next two units at
Kudankulam would begin in
February 2017 and the General
Framework Agreement for two
more units is expected to be signed
between the two nations by the end
of this year. In her address
Jayalalithaa said: The Kudankulam
Nuclear Power Plant is a monument

commemorating the longstanding,

abiding and deep friendship
between Russia and India.
According to her, the successful
commissioning of the Kudankulam
project is an object lesson on how
the fears and apprehensions of the
local population can and should be
allayed, through a process of
engagement and reassurance, and
by building community assets and
infrastructure. Requesting early
commissioning of the second 1,000
MW unit at KNPP, Jayalalithaa
expressed confidence that the
Nuclear Power Corporation of India
Ltd (NPCIL) will maintain the high
est safety standards and also ensure
continuous power generation at the
two units so that Tamil Nadu and
the neighboring states can rely on
Kudankulam as a reliable base load
power station.

12

August 13-19, 2016

TheSouthAsianTimes.info

INDIA

First batch of 25 workers head home from Jeddah

New Delhi/Jeddah: T heir "Gulf
dream" in tatters and facing an
uncertain future, the first batch of
25 crisishit Indian workers left for
New Delhi from the King Abdulaziz
International Airport here.
The workers, who were brought
to the airport in a bus by the
Indian consulate, were seen off by
Consul General Noor Rahman
Sheikh, and senior officials Anand
Kumar and M. Fahmi.
The 25 are among the estimated
7,700 workers of the Saudi Oger
construction company who hit the
headlines when they were affected
by financial crisis because of non
payment of salaries and dues, and
had to be given food and shelter in
some 20 camps.
Their crisis prompted the gov

The 25 are among the estimated 7,700 workers of the

Saudi Oger construction company affected by financial crisis..
ernment to despatch Minister of
State for External Af fairs V.K.
Singh to this country.
The crisis also saw Saudi Arabian

SC refuses
interim bail to
Asaram Bapu

King Salman issuing a series of

directives to address their prob
lems, and earmarking Saudi Riyal
100 million ($26 million) to

address the concerns of the work

ers and end their suffering.
King Salman also directed the
Saudi passport department to facil
itate exit visas and other proce
dures for the distressed workers.
Many of the workers, including
Hindus, at the airport on Thursday
morning were seen carrying the
holy waters of Zamzam in bottles
for friends and re latives back
home. The Saudi Labour Ministry
had announced free passage for
workers who were w illing to
return home.
Though Indian consulate of fi
cials have assured the workers
that they will pursue financial
claims on their behalf, most
appeared confused and apprehen
sive about what lay ahead includ

ing the onward journey to their

states from New Delhi.
"It is saddening to leave Saudi
Arabia as I made some money ear
lier; but now the chances are
grim," said Ram Nivas, a plumber
from Churu district in Rajasthan.
"Due to nonpayment of wages,
there was no meaning in continu
ing the job," said Nasir Raza of
Gaya district in Bihar, who had
returned to Saudi Arabia only
recently after a vacation and is
now leaving for good.
The lists of workers who are
being repatriated at their request
are being prepared by Indian
diplomats in coordination with
Saudi Labour Ministry of ficials.
Many Indian workers are opting to
return home, according to sources.

Post meditation, feeling

energetic: Kejriwal
New Delhi: Delhi Chief Minister Arvind
Kejriwal said he was feeling "very ener
getic" after attending a 10day medita
tion course in Himachal Pradesh.
"Returning back from 10day vipas
sana course. Feeling very fresh and
energetic," Kejriwal tweeted.
Kejriwal had gone to attend the ses
sion at Dharamkot, close to the Dalai
Lama's abode in Himachal Pradesh, on
August 1.
His course beg an on August 2.
During the 10day period, he was not
allowed to meet anyone and denied
access to newspapers and telephones.
Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal.

Selfstyled godman Asaram Bapu.

New Delhi: In a setback to selfstyled godman

Asaram Bapu, who is accused of rape and
murder, the Supreme Court refused to grant
him interim bail on medical grounds.
The court, however, asked the All India
Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) to consti
tute a threemember medical board to exam
ine him for the ailments he is complaining
about.
Refusing to interfere with the Rajasthan
High Court order rejecting Asaram's plea for
bail, the bench of Justice Madan B. Lokur and
Justice R.K. Agrawal asked the AIIMS Director
to constitute a threemember medical board to
examine him.
Asking for the report in 10 days' time, the
bench did not accept Asaram's plea that he be
released on interim bail for a month or two so
that he could travel to Kerala for Panchkarma
Ayurveda treatment.
Appearing for Asaram, senior counsel Raju
Ramachandran assailed the high court order
contending that it has not taken into account
the ailments afflicting the selfstyled godman.
Ramachandran told the apex court that
Asaram had poor control over his urination
and bowel movement and jail doctors have
said that he defecates in bed.

Mumbai hospital CEO, four medicos

nabbed for kidney racket
Mumbai: In a major breakthrough, the Mumbai police have
arrested five medicos, including the CEO and Medical Director
of the reputed L.H. Hiranandani Hospital in Powai, in connec
tion with a racket in kidney sales, officials said.
Hospital CEO Sujit Chatterjee, Medical Director Anurag Naik
and three other medicos Prakash Shetty, Mukesh Shah and
Mukesh Shetye were arrested.
They have been accused of being involved in illegal trade
and sale of kidneys. They were produced before an Andheri
magistrate's court which sent them to police custody till
August 13, the official said.
Earlier, an official spokesperson for Hiranandani Group told
IANS that an internal probe is being conducted, and declined
further comments till the investigation was over.
So far, a total of 15 persons, including the five medicos,
have been arrested in the case which first came to light last
month at the hospital. A few more suspected cases have sur
faced later and police are probing around 30 transplants con
ducted at the hospital in the past one year.
Following the expose, the Maharashtra Directorate of
Health Services set up a committee of medical experts which
found irregularities related to at least four kidney transplant
cases at the hospital.

Based on the probe report of the committee, the police

arrested the five medicos of the 12yearold, 240bed presti
gious hospital, sending shockwaves in the state medical fra
ternity.
The lid was blown off the racket on July 14 when a social
worker, some political activists and members of a trade union
stopped a kidney transplant midway here in which the donor
and recipient were found to be fake husband and wife.
Delving deeper, the police identified Brijendra Bisen, who cre
ated the false documents with the help of two other external
agents.
Incidentally, Bisen had been earlier arrested in 2007 when
one of the biggest kidney saletransplant rackets was busted
nine years ago.
In the current scam, the police had earlier arrested a total
of 10 persons, including Bisen, the fake couple comprising
recipient Brijkishore Jaiswal, a textile businessman from
Surat, and donor Shobha Thakur, who was promised Rs 10
lakh for her kidney, hospital of ficial Nilesh Brijkishore
Jaiswal, and others.
The accused have been charged under Section 12 and 21 of
the Transplantation of Human Organ Act, 1994, and the
Indian Penal Code sections, said the police.

TheSouthAsianTimes.info

August 13-19, 2016

OP-ED

13

GST: When Modi stressed on

political unanimity, not majority
By Vinod Sharma
rime Minister Narendra
Modi was conciliation per
sonified during his inter
vention in the Lok Sabha debate
on the Constitution amendment
that will enable the roll out of
the goods and services tax (GST).
In the speech that stood out for
its sobriety sans the belligerence
of the past, the PM was generous
in his praise of political parties,
the two Houses and the previous
UPA regime that conceptualized
the omnibus indirect tax. He
hailed the amendments passage
as a victory of the countrys
high democratic traditions.
Parliament set aside political
dif ferences to become the
national forum that it is, Modi
told the House. He said the
unprecedented consensus on
GST would be a great source of

Prime Minister Narendra Modi at a Parliamentary meeting in New Delhi.

energy for the country. It wasnt
a journey to assert majority, it
was a journey to achieve unanim
ity. The objective was to build
trust between the Centre and the
States to strengthen the federal

structure, the PM continued.

The question isnt as to who
won or who lost. Together weve
addressed many drawbacks in
the legislation, he argued, recall
ing his meeting with Congress

president Sonia Gandhi and for

mer PM Manmohan Singh.
In inviting both of them, I gave
equal importance to both
Houses, noted Mo di, taking
exception to the Congresss V
Moily calling Lok Sabha the
junior House in his speech. On
the Congresss claim to original
authorship of the GST, he light
heartedly drew a parallel with
lord Krishna who wasnt brought
up by parents to whom he was
born.
Modi underscored the historici
ty of the occasion by pointing
out that the Quit India movement
was launched on August 8 in
1942. On the same day, our
Parliament is collectively moving
to bring GST.
I thank all parties and state
governments for the legislation
that will end tax terrorism, he
said. In setting the stage for GST

thatll simply the indirect tax

regime, protect small enterprises
and
curtail
corrupt ion,
Parliament was sending out the
message that the consumer was
the king, he averred. Weve
proved that rashtraniti is above
rajniti..
He was disarming in his
response to the Oppositions
darts that he opposed GST as
chief minister of Gujarat. There
were doubts (about the tax
regime). I too had doubts. As PM
it was easier for me to address
issues that had caused me con
cern as CM.
In giving Opposition the credit
for the bills passage, the PM
compensated for not showing up
in the debate in the Upper House
where the NDA lacks a majority.
We can be leg it imate ly
proudEverybody contributed
creatively.

A MONTH ON, WHY KASHMIR UNREST

CONTINUES AFTER 56 DEATHS
By Sarwar Kashani

t has been a month since the

current unrest began in the
Kashmir Valley, shattering
years of relative stability in a
state ravaged by one of the
longestrunning armed conflicts
in the world.
On July 8, when security forces
gunned down Kashmir's rebel
commander Burhan Wani in a
controversial gunfight, nobody
imagined that the turmoil trig
gered by his killing would be so
widespread and extend this long.
But exactly a month since, the
valley remains on the edge. The
profreedom demonstrations and
clashes between protesters and
security forces have become rou
tine. Over 56 persons have died
and more than 5,000 have been
injured many are still in hospi
tals.
T he valley is seething w ith
anger, with many terming it as a
"new phase of freedom struggle"
and a "nowornever" situation.
The valley has suf fered huge
losses with businesses, schools
and offices shut amid continuous
curfew by the government and
shutdown by separatists. India
has blamed Pakistan for foment
ing the unrest. The protests erupt

The valley is seething with anger, with many terming it as a "new phase
of freedom struggle" and a "nowornever" situation.
ed spontaneously after the killing
of Wani a 22yearold social
mediasavvy Hizbul Mujahideen
commander who had a huge fol
lowing among younger Kashmiris.
Tens of thousands of mourners,
who later turned violent with
stonethrowing, rallied across the
valley. They were met with bullets
and pellets by security forces.
Wani was not the first militant
commander killed by security
forces in Kashmir. In fact, he is
considered no match for early
armed militants like Ishfaq Majid,
the founder of Jammu and
Kashmir Liberation Front, and
others, killed in the early years of
militancy that began in the late

1980s. Wani surely was not as

popular as Afzal Guru the 2001
parliament attack convict who
was hanged in Delhi's Tihar Jail
on February 9, 2013.
The killings of these militant
leaders did trigger anger. But
none of the unrest was as violent
and as widespread as the latest
one.
How did the death of this young
militant bring the valley to such a
violent standstill that refuses to
fizzle out even after 31 days?
Political pundits say Wani's
death was just a trigger. T he
anger had been building up over
many controversial issues domi
nating the political narrative in

Kashmir.
Among them, a proIndia politi
cian said, is the "unnatural ruling
alliance" of the Bharatiya Janata
Party (BJP) and regional Peoples
Democratic Party (PDP).
Both fought the 2014 assembly
e lections against each other,
promising to keep each other
away from power in India's only
Muslimmajority state.
While the PDP wooed its voters
with a softseparatist plank of
fighting for "selfrule", the BJP
promised to revoke Article 370 of
the constitution that gives Jammu
and Kashmir a special status in
India. In the end, electoral arith
metic forced both to join hands
and forget their dif ferences. But
people may not have forgotten
the PDP's electoral plank.
"The PDP brought the BJP and
RSS (Rashtriya Swamsevak Sangh)
to rule a state where they could
only dream of getting a foothold.
Now they are ruling us," said
Rashid Ahmed Mir, a Kashmir
University scholar.
"It was molten rock waiting to
erupt. It has been building up
since the hanging of Guru," Mir
told IANS, recalling how a com
mon Kashmiri still feels that the
JaisheMohammed activist didn't
receive a fair trial over his

The views expressed in Op Eds are not necessarily those of The South Asian Times.

involvement in the December 13,

2001, attack on the Indian parlia
ment.
Mushtaq Ahmed Malik, a former
separatist leader, said one cannot
also ignore the BJP's rhetoric and
proposal to build housing
colonies in Kashmir for the fami
lies of retired soldiers and Hindus
who fled the valley fearing for
their lives at the start of the
armed insurgency.
"All these proposals have been
unpopular among Kashmiri
Muslims. And then came the ban
on se lling bee f in Kashmir.
Kashmiris felt they were being
pushed to the wall," Malik said.
Chie f Minister Mehbooba
Mufti's PDP had also promised to
initiate a dialogue between India,
Pakistan and Kashmiris to resolve
the 70yearold territorial dispute
stemming from the IndiaPakistan
partition in 1947.
But the BJP has been continu
ously ruling out any possibility of
talking to Kashmiri separatist
leaders or even to Pakistan.
"These broken electoral promis
es contributed to the anger and
revived the separatist sentiments
after years of relative peace," said
Malik. These issues, he said, have
largely driven the current unrest
in Kashmir.

14

August 13-19, 2016

TheSouthAsianTimes.info

OP-ED

HOW INDIANAMERICANS ARE

discriminated against in the USA
If youre applying to any Ivy
League university and your last
name is Patel, changing it to
Smith might just make the
difference you need to get in.
By Ajay Kothari

ndia is not getting its due in

the world. Indians are not get
ting their due in the world.
Indians are not getting their due
in America. This is all connected.
Let me explain the last part.
In this country ballyhooed by
arguments of equality for all
races and ethnicities, the Asian
Americans (including Indian
Americans) have become the new
race group against whom it is
perfectly acceptable to discrimi
nate. Do not worry much they
will never protest in the streets
and create a scene, so go ahead,
ignore them.
As former president of the
ASEINCC, the national capital
chapter of the ASEI, an organiza
tion of IndianAmerican engi
neers, I was invited by the Asian
American Coalition for Education
(AACE) to speak at the National
Press Club in Washington DC in
May this year.
The ASEINCC is one of the 120
signatories to this complaint of
discrimination against Indian
Americans. I am not a lawyer and
so will refrain from legal aspects,
instead making some philosophi
cal arguments here from my
heart with at least a bit of my
mind. AACE was formed in 2015
after a case against Harvard
University was filed with the
department of education by a
coalit ion of 60plus Asian
American organizations in the
US. In May, it filed a similar case
ag ainst Yale, Brown and
Dartmouth.
If youre applying to any of
these Ivy League institutions and
your last name is Wong or Patel,
changing it to Smith or Lopez
might just make the dif ference
you need to get in (although they
do have caveats to catch such
identity thieves).
They routinely reject "Asian"
applicants in favour of whites

and soughtafter minorities like

AfricanAmericans and now
Hispanic Americans, with lower
test scores and grades.
Enrolment data reveals that
Harvard limits AsianAmericans
to a flat 1518 per cent of the
student body, year after year,
though they increasingly domi
nate the top of the applicant
pool.
To smoke out ethnicity,
Harvard requires applicants to
provide their parents place of
birth, mothers maiden name and
whether their family has ever
changed its surname. T hese
questions, along with an inter
view requirement, were devised
in the 1920s to limit the number
of Jewish students.
Now Asians are the new Jews,
welcome only in limited num
bers. It was deemed unaccept
able then but it has been deemed
perfectly acceptable now to have
the same covenant for Asian
Americans.
Even the US Supreme Court
agreed. So there is an open invi
tation to go ahead and discrimi
nate ag ainst the Asian
Americans; it is kosher to do so.
Many other Ivy League univer
sities have followed suit and
devised their own methods to do
the same.
This is just the tip of the ice
berg. To a large extent, what the
Ivy Leagues are doing is a reflec
tion of what the American socie
ty at large thinks of us and how it
treats us.
AsianAmericans are a visibly
differentlooking minority. When
you see us, you can tell. Forty
years after coming here and 30
years after becoming a citizen, I
am still pegged as a "foreigner"
by many. It is very painful.
New African or European immi
grants of just a few years will be
immediate ly accepted and
believed as Americans and disap
pear in the American society. We

are not afforded the same bene

fit, even if we have been here for
many decades or many genera
tions even. Darn it, we just look
different!
There is now blatant yet subtle
discrimination in this country
against AsianAmericans that
goes unnoticed, unsaid and is
ignored, even more so now than I
remember from 2030 years ago.
I will offer an example: Indian
American kids have dominated
the National Spelling Bee for
many years now. But when
Hollywood made a movie on this
subject, called Akeelah and the
Bee, it was about an African
American contestant. W hy?
Because we can spell but we do
not count.
Another observation: I could
fee l no sympathy for Jada
Pinkett Smith or the "Oscar So
White" protest. I did not know
whether to laugh or cry at this
protest. Forget about not being
nominated for Oscars, we Asian
Americans, the other large visi
ble minority, are not even wel
come in American homes on TV
or movie screens. Forget major
roles, forget "roles with some
meat". We get almost no roles.
Period. Why?
And when we have one Indian
American playing a major role, of
Rajesh Koothrappali on a very
successful The Big Bang Theory,
and more recently with one more
(Priyanka Chopra), Indian
Americans here express supreme
elation at being included.
Really? We have been on earth
just as long as anyone else, and
deserve the same share, even in
the US. We are one of the oldest
and most advanced civilizations.
Why then this squeamishness,
this reticence about asking for a
fair share?
With Hispanic population in
the US at 48.9 million (16.1 per
cent), and AsianAmerican at
15.3 million (5.03 per cent),

making them together almost

one in five Americans (2010
Census), one would think that
about one in five characters on
TV shows or commercials would
be one of them everything else
being equal. Think onefiftieth.
And then there is the category
of Native Americans. This coun
try used to belong to them but
now their presence on screen of
any kind or in other media is
near absolute zero, as if they
have been wiped of f clean and
intentionally so.
Almost onethird to half of the
revenue of a Hollywood movie is
from the worldwide audience.
Well, Hollywood, one out of four
persons in this world is and looks
South Asian (1.75 billion out of
7.2 billion) and one in three
looks East Asian (2.3 billion). You
cannot ignore us nor is it fair.
W hat is happening to us is
much larger, and the media
refuses to talk about it.
Yes, you can come and work
here, perhaps, but, about being
part of the society here, oh, we
are not too sure.
I will recite what Martin Luther
King Jr said. He said he looked
forward to "a day when people
will be judged based on the con
tent of their character rather
than the skin color".
These AsianAmerican students
are trying hard to improve the
content of their character, and
they are still being judged on the
basis of their race by these Ivy
League universities, ef fectively
being punished for their race. I
thought that was how racism was
defined.
I came here w ith $6 in my
pocket. I studied hard, finished a
PhD and became a rocket scien
tist with hard work.
Now I am being effectively told
by Ivy Leagues that it was a mis
take to have worked so hard; the
same goes for my nieces and
nephews, and that they and oth

The views expressed in Op Eds are not necessarily those of The South Asian Times.

ers would be punished for the

same hard work.
We do not want any favors, but
we certainly do not deserve a
punishment. How is that fair in
this country that to be consid
ered at the same level in admis
sion to Harvard, an Asian
American has to have almost 140
points higher than a white, 270
higher than a Hispanic, and 450
higher than an African American
in SAT scores.
Why this punishment? Is it fair
to AsianAmerican youth who
have a dif ferent sieve to go
through and compete against
each other, simply because of
their race?
Another specific example: of
over 700 students in the class of
2015 graduates of Western High
School in Davie, Florida, the top
three were Indian Americans.
Yet, none of them was accepted
by Ivy League universities, while
five nonAsian class members, all
ranked lower or even unranked,
got accepted.
I will admit, IndianAmericans
are not known as the best ath
letes. So if it really was about
diversity, why did they not give
preference to them in their bas
ketball teams or their sailing
teams? But no, there they go by
merit, and rightly so. Then why
not when it comes to academics?
The implication is: we want you
to come here as immigrants and
do well, but hey, if you do well,
we will put barriers in front of
you. We will decide in which field
you are supposed to do well and
how much.
I thought here in this country
EVERYONE had equal opportuni
ties. This is a clear case of where
it is not so.
The writer is President and
Founder of Astrox Corporation,
an Aerospace R&D company
located in suburban Washington
DC.
Courtesy Daily O

TheSouthAsianTimes.info

INDIA DAY CELEBRATIONS

A.R. Rahman concert

at UN for India Day

Consul General
Ambassador Riva
Ganguly Das
posing with
Thomas
Westerman,
Governor of
Pennsylvania, at
the India Day
Parade in
Harrisburg, PA
on August 6.

15

PM Modi wants to
hear from you

Minister of State for External

Affairs, M.J. Akbar will hoist
the tricolor at the Indian
Consulate event.

onsul General Riva Ganguly Das

has thrown an invitation to all
Indian nationals, PIOs, and
friends of India to attend the function
on August 15 at the Indian Consulate
in Manhattan celebrating the 70th
Independence of India. The flag hoist

August 13-19, 2016

ing at 9 in the morning will be in

front of the consulate building.
Ambassador Das will read out the
Presidents message followed by light
refreshments. You need to register by
going to the consulate website to be
able to attend.

he 70th Independence Day of India

will be celebrated at the UN General
Assembly on August 15 with a musi
cal evening by music maestro A.R.
Rahman. The concert will also mark the
50th anniversary of MS Subbulakshmis
performance at the UN. A Photo Exhibition
will be held 1519 August at the UN to
commemorate the birth centenary of the
Carnatic music legend. Minister of State
for External Affairs, M.J. Akbar will attend
the events besides, of course, Indian
Ambassador to the UN, Syed Akbaruddin,
being organized by the Permanent Mission
of India to the UN with the support of
Sankara Nethralaya, an Indiabased civil
society organization.

rime Minister Narendra Modi has

sought ideas and suggestions from
Indians and NRIs for his
Independence Day speech. You can con
tribute on Narendramodi.in or the
MyGov open forum and mobile applica
tion. "All you have to do is to click on the
respective icons and have your say. The
best inputs would be incorporated by
the Prime Minister in his speech on
August 15 from Red Fort.

16

August 13-19, 2016

'Mohenjo Daro' recovers Rs 60

crore before its release
T

he "Mohenjo Daro" team is in a

happy space as even before the
film has hit the screens, it has
managed to recover Rs 60 crore
through its satellite, music and other
rights.
"A major chunk of their investment
has already been recovered. Since
'Mohenjo Daro' is a production film and
not an acquisition, the economics of the
project are fully in control," said a
source close to the film's team.
According to the source, the total cost
of the film, including publicity and
advertising, is Rs 115 crores, and the
makers have already recovered Rs 45
crore from selling of satellite rights and
the remaining Rs 15 crore through
music and other rights.
"Which means that the producers only
need Rs 45 crore in India and Rs 15
crore overseas to break even," the
source said.
Given the excitement around the
return of the successful team of director
Ashutosh Gowariker and Hrithik Roshan
after "Jodhaa Akbar", A.R. Rahman's
soulful music and Hrithik's release after
a gap of two years the number seems
achievable.
The movie, releasing on August 12,
also stars former beauty queen Pooja
Hegde.

TheSouthAsianTimes.info

ULTIMATE BOLLYWOOD

Remo D'souza keen

on Indian version
of 'Avengers'

Avengers" is a popular comic

series by Marvel Comics.
horeographerdirector Remo D'souza, whose
forthcoming movie "A Flying Jatt" is based on
the concept of a superhero, is keen to make a
desi version of Hollywood movie "Avengers".
Asked if a film like Hollywood movie "Avengers"
which has multiple superheroes will ever be made
in Bollywood, Remo said, "I am dying to make that
possible, but that will only be possible once my film
'A Flying Jatt' works." "I hope people make sure this
film works so that audience starts believing that
even we can make great superhero films. I'm defi
nitely making an 'Avengers' after 'A Flying Jatt'."
"Avengers" is a popular comic series by Marvel
Comics which has been made into two films
already. The franchise is popular for the numerous
superheroes such as Iron Man, Captain America,
Thor, Black Widow among others coming together
in the same film.

Actors Hrithik Roshan and Pooja Hegde at their films press conference.

'Rustom' will
save marriages,
stop divorces:
Akshay

Jacqueline keen
to work with
SRK, Aamir

'Maaya' is not soft

porn: Vikram Bhatt

ilmmaker Vikram Bhatt, who

has roped in actress Shama
Sikander for his debut web
series "Maaya" an adult love story
involving BDSM says he did not
set out to make soft porn. Bhatt's
film is said to be about two people
who come together using aliases
and experiment with BDSM
bondage, discipline, dominance,
submission, sadism, masochism.
Asked if Shama was skeptical
about doing the web series, Bhatt
said: "Shama did have a couple of
anxiety attacks, but I told her I am
not making some soft porn. My
point is it to show it aesthetically."
"I am not here to compete with
the porn industry on the internet. It
is an aesthetically made story."
"Maaya" will go live on his own web
channel, VB on the web, in October.

a Gupta during the

, Akshay Kumar and Esh
ruz
D'C
na
Ilea
s
tor
Ac
(L to R)
m.
promotion of film Rusto
ctor Akshay Kumar says that the
subject of his upcoming film
'Rustom' will be loved by women
and also save marriages and stop
divorces.
"It is a different subject, it is based on
reallife stories and it is the first time
somebody is playing a Parsi Navy officer,
neither has anybody played a Parsi main
lead or an officer's role," actor said.
When asked what one thing he would
like to take back from the film, he said, "I
am going to take my uniform. And I am
not only going to take back, on the con
trary, this film is going to give, it is going
to save a lot of marriages and is going to

stop people from taking divorce, you

invest so much into a relationship, so this
film is going to tell you what goes into it."
The film is based on the theme of infi
delity and extramarital relationships,
when Akshay Kumar's character finds his
wife cheating on him and then apparently
kills her lover, leading to a court case,
public sympathy and media trial on prov
ing his guilt or innocence in the matter.
The film is based on the 1959 case of a
naval officer K. M. Nanavati and the mur
der of his wife's lover.
'Rustom', also starring Ileana D'Cruz,
Esha Gupta, Arjan Bajwa, Pavan Malhotra
among others, releases on August 12.

Jacqueline is currently gearing up for her next

release "A Flying Jatt".
ctress Jacqueline Fernandez, who starred
with superstar Salman Khan in the 2014
actioner "Kick", now wants to work with Shah
Rukh Khan and Aamir Khan. Asked if she is keen to
work with Bollywood's other two popular Khans,
Jacqueline said: "Absolutely. I think that is on every
one's wish list... It enriches you as an actor... More
the actors you work with, you learn a lot."
The 30yearold actress, who is currently riding
high on the success of her latest release "Dishoom",
an actionadventure film which also features Varun
Dhawan and John Abraham, says it is a "dream" to
work with superstars like Shah Rukh and Aamir.
"They are legends," she said and added: "It's about
growing and learning as an actor, so definitely, I
would love to work with them."

TheSouthAsianTimes.info

ULTIMATE BOLLYWOOD

Film on Indira Gandhi's

assassination cleared
by censor board

The film stars Soha Ali Khan in a pivotal role.

1st October, a movie

based on the assassination
of the country's former
Prime Minister Indira Gandhi
and its aftermath, has been
cleared by the Revising
Committee of Central Board of
Film Certification (CBFC) after a
fourmonth wait and nine major
cuts, the makers have said.
The film, written and produced
by Harry Sachdeva, features
Soha Ali Khan and Vir Das. It is
based on Indira Gandhi's assassi

nation by her two Sikh body

guards and its aftermath.
Sachdeva, who had to make
some modifications in the film,
said: It took time, but we were
eventually able to convince the
censor board to retain the scenes
which brought out the realism of
the story and which were impor
tant to the narrative."
"There's a reason for bringing
this subject to the screen and
justice needs to be done to the
subject.

ncredible India has

incredible stories
and one of them
is adroitly cap
tured in this sen
sit ive ly por
trayed biopic,
"Budhia Singh:
Born To Run".
T his
human
interest story ema
nating out of Orissa, is a
saga of a prodigy marathon runner,
Budhia Singh (Mayur Patole) who was
once considered "The Pride of Orissa" and
"a hope for India's 2016 Olympic Medal,
in marathon."
The film depicts the trials and tribula
tions of; the young boy who, "at the age of
five, ran marathons like a professional",
and his overtly ambitious coach Biranchi
Das (Manoj Bajpayee).
The narration begins in May 2006. In a
slum area of Bhubaneshwar, Judo instruc

August 13-19, 2016

17

'Freaky Ali' will have

you in splits: Salman
ovie "Freaky Ali", starring Nawazuddin
Siddiqui and Amy Jackson, will have you in
splits, said Salman Khan during the trailer
launch of his home production.
"People will roll on floors after watching this film
because its gags, punches and performances are phe
nomenal. And it is a very different type of film.
Nawazuddin plays this undergarment
entrepreneur/small time goon, who is cricket cham
pion of his street, and by a freak accident, he gets a
chance to play golf and starts his career as golfer,"
said Salman about the movie and its plot.
In "Freaky Ali", Nawazuddin plays Ali, a poor man
whose his journey starts from being a nobody to
being the master of a sport which is considered a rich
man's game. The film will trace the story of an extor
tionist who turns into a star golf player in a bid to
win the love of his life.
Sohail Khan, who shot the film in 38 days and cred
its his entire team for completing the shot within
given time frame, said: "We were very well prepared
for this film, we used to start early in the morning
and we shot at exclusive locations. We hired a golf
expert, as the game could get very complicated."
Salman also goes went on record to praise
Nawazuddin, with whom he had shared screen space
in "Kick" and "Bajrangi Bhaijaan".
"We had a good relationship since Kick. I think
slowly he is turning into Salman and I am turning
into Nawaz," he said.
The movie, which also stars Arbaaz Khan, Jas
Arora, Seema Biswas, Nikitin Dheer, and Asif Basra in
pivotal roles, is slated for September 9 release
and will clash at boxoffice with Katrina Kaif
Actors Nawazuddin Siddiqui and Amy Jackson during the
and Sidharth Malhotra's "Baar Baar Dekho".
trailer launch of film Freaky Ali.

Naseeruddin does not like successful people: Javed Akhtar

yricistscriptwriter Javed Akhtar is the latest from the Hindi film industry to criti
cize Naseeruddin Shah for his comments that Rajesh Khanna was responsible for
bringing mediocrity in Bollywood in the 1970s. Its simple Naseeruddin Shah
does not like successful people. I have never heard him praise any successful person. He
criticizes Dilip Kumar; he criticizes Amitabh Bachchan, said Akhtar.
Shahs comments had stirred a hornets nest with Akhtars former scriptwriting partner
Salim Khan attributing the veteran actors remarks to frustration and bitterness. In an
interview, Shah had said that 70s was the time when mediocrity came in Hindi films and
also when Khanna joined the industry, who according to him was a poor actor.

'Budhia Singh Born To Run':

Incredible tale,
honestly told
Review
The film is an inspirational, soulstirring story of Odisha's 5 yearold boy wonder.
tor Biranchi takes centrestage by thwart
ing a clash between the police and the
slum dwellers. Later, by happenstance, he
rescues a 5 year old Budhia from the
clutches of an abusive drunkard, who had
purchased him from his povertystricken,
w idowed mother Sukant i ( Tillotama
Shome). He returns the child to the moth

er. But since Sukanti is unable to take care

of the little one, she hands him back to
Biranchi, who takes him to his homecum
Judotraining school, where he hosts other
homeless kids too.
It is here that Biranchi stumbles upon
Budhia's talent and grooms him to get the
recognition he deserves. But how fate or

riter
Lyricist & scriptw
ar
ht
Javed Ak

random circumstances throw the rising

star into the abyss of oblivion forms the
crux of the tale.
This is not only a powerful story that
engages the audience. It is welltold too.
With simplicity and a realistic approach,
WriterDirector Soumendra Padhi's script
is balanced and taut with all the elements
of a touching drama.
Padhi manages to portray; human apa
thy, exploitation, greed and politics with
equal measure. In fact it overturns a can of
worms, that exposes the disturbing state
of affairs especially in this case.
His characters are welletched and the
dialogues are crisp and rustic and they are
brought to life with strong performances.
Manoj Bajpayee nails his character of
the determined and pushy Biranchi Das to
perfection. You adore him when he is a
compassionate wellwisher, loath him
when he is blinded with his ambitious goal
and pity him when he is emotionally
drained.

18

August 13-19, 2016

OLYMPICS

TheSouthAsianTimes.info

A glittering ceremony incorporating Brazil's popular music forms of

samba, bossa nova and hip-hop kicked off Rio Olympics.
By Hardev Sanotra
in Rio de Janeiro

ith a glittering ceremony incorpo

rating Brazil's popular music
forms of samba, bossa nova and
hiphop, its diverse but vibrant history, a
commitment to the environment and super
model Giselle Bundchen making the last but
longest catwalk of her career, the 31st
Olympics got underway here.
For the first time refugees were recognized
as a separate team with International
Olympic Committee President, Thomas Bach,
saying "we do not just tolerate diversity, but
welcome it as an enrichment to our unity",
before Acting President of Brazil, Michel
Temer, declared the 31st Olympic Games
open here to a capacity crowd at the famed
Maracana Stadium.
An Olympic Laurel, a special recognition,
was given to Kipchoge Keino, chairman of
the Kenyan Olympic committee for his con
tribution to education, development and the
games. The theme of the Olympic Games cer
emony called on Earthlings to replant and
save the planet. "It's not enough to stop
harming the planet, it is time to begin heal
ing it," said the literature explaining the
game, saying promoting world peace is the
basis of the Olympic spirit.
Samba drums and dancing ushered in the
games, with Brazil in a mood to throw a
great party in the next 17 days, overlooking
months of negative news and troubles which
at times threatened to derail the biggest
games show on the Earth.
Preparations woes and political upheaval
has underlined the run up to the games, but
on its opening day Brazilians were celebrat
Rio de Janeiro: As you move around the
Olympic city, you see huge mushrooming
clouds of white covering wide areas, espe
cially near the many small hills covered by
greenery, often in the evening.
These are from the spraying carried out
regularly by city authorities to bring down
the incidence of mosquito bites in Rio and
to allay fears triggered by tales of the Zika
virus.
The tales had created panic ahead of the
opening of the 31st Olympic Games here,
with some athletes deciding not to turn up.
Zika virus results in birth defects among
babies whose mothers have been afflicted
with it. The virus can also be transmitted
through sexual contact.
But the incidence of Zika seems to have
been overblown. And so have the fears.
s athletes with the mandatory mosquito
repellents landed in Rio, most found no rea
son to worry about Zika. "I don't see any evi

A view of artists performing during the Opening Ceremony of the Rio 2016 Olympic
Games at the Maracana Stadium in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
ing, aiming to make the Olympics a success.
Fireworks at the end lighted up the spirits of
those gathered to witness the show.
Temer was not introduced in the beginning
though there was a mention that he would
be. Traditionally, the head of state or govern
ment is introduced in such a ceremony.
President Dilma Rousseff was suspended fol
lowing moves to impeach her by the legisla
tors over a massive accounting scandal. Bach
alluded to the troubles by saying "you have
managed this at a very dif ficult time in
Brazilian history".
The three and a half hour ceremony, which
opened at 8.00 p.m. Brazilian time (4.30 a.m.
IST ), reproduced patterns created by
Brazilian artist Athos Bulcao through volun
teers who turned their metallic paper into
exotic shapes depicting what the organisers
said where the indigenous geometry, African
patterns and traditional Portuguese tile
design. Soon the floor of the large stadium,
which housed over 60,000 people, was cov
dence of mos
quitoes hav
ing the
run of
t h e
place.
There
was con
cern, but I
think this was
blown out of proportion," India's Chef de
Mission, Rakesh Gupta, told IANS.
He said enough precaution was taken as
mosquito repellent cream and ointments
were supplied to the athletes and they were
advised to keep windows closed and as far
as possible wear fullsleeved attire. "But
what we have seen in the last few days since
we have come is that the fears probably
have no basis." As Indians get into the thick
of the world's most challenging sporting
event, with some early eliminations, Zika

ered with shapes from sea and forests,

reminding the packed audience of the need
to conserve. It harked back to a time when
Brazil was entirely covered by forests. Sea
ice melt and impact of climate change came
back in the presentation with hope being
depicted in the greening of the cities and
rural areas by plantation of seeds by volun
teers. Right till the end, when the green
Olympic rings were revealed by mirrorhug
ging volunteers, the green theme carried on.
The greenery soon enough gave way to
geometric patterns to show that nature had
been taken over by the geometry of agricul
ture, mining, roads and city plans not
something unique to Brazil but a pattern
seen the world over.
The patterns and the people also pointed
to the birth of nation forged from the
encounter of natives, Europeans and African
which also absorbed many waves of migra
tion, including those from the Middle East
and Asia. The organizers said they had jetti

Where
are the
mosquitoes,
ask athletes

The Indian contingent at Games village.

seems to have receded into the background.
"We had to take normal precautions, as

Abhinav Bindra, the Olympic champion

shooter, was the flag bearer for India.
soned the hightech approach and depend
ence on e lectronic and mechanatronic
ef fects, changing the paradigm of Olympic
ceremonies with an "analogue inventiveness"
making the most of the "low tech spirit, the
richness of Brazilian popular culture and the
energy and passion of thousands of volun
teers". The loudest and longest public ova
tion, a standing tribute, was reserved for the
Brazilian contingent, of course. It came last
in the march past being the host nation, as is
the tradition.
Abhinav Bindra, the Olympic champion
shooter, was the flag bearer for India. Over
twenty officials also joined the contingent.
Earlier, before the formal beginning of the
ceremony, in a possible tribute to Indian
ethos, presenters paid homage to "love and
compassion" by reciting Om repeatedly as
the stands were filling up.
many stories had emanated from Rio about
the virus before we came," said team doctor
Raj Kumar Singh Negi.
Winter in Brazil helps, which means it is
not the peak breeding season of the Aedes
Aegypti mosquito, the vector for Zika. The
sharp decline from a large number of cases
during summer was largely because of the
efforts made by city authorities.
Doctors from the Centres for Disease
Control, the leading public health institution
in the US, told reporters on conference call
that travelers to Rio faced greater danger of
being hit by a vehicle than contracting Zika.
Pregnant women, though, were advised to
stay away as a precaution. Negi, a muscu
loskeletal radiologist by expertise, said pre
cautions were necessary, but athletes have
much more on their minds, like how to win
a medal rather than worry about a threat
which did not seem to exist, at least in any
serious form.

TheSouthAsianTimes.info

August 13-19, 2016

OLYMPICS

19

Rio Olympics: Deepika, Bombayla,

Manoj provide cheer

Woman archer Laishram Bombayla Devi and boxer Manoj Kumar.

Rio de Janeiro: Woman archers Laishram
Bombayla Devi and Deepika Kumari along
with boxer Manoj Kumar were the only
bright spots in an overall disappointing
day for India at the Rio Olympics, with
medal hopeful Jitu Rai, judoka Avtar Singh
and weightlifter Satish Shivalingam crash
ing out of their respective disciplines.
Bombayla and Deepika advanced into
the 1/8 Eliminat ions round of the
women's individual archery competion
while Manoj stunned 2012 London
Olympics bronze medallist Evaldas
Petrauskas of Lithuania by a split decision
in the Round of 32 of the men's Light

BADMINTON:
JWALA-ASHWINI
LOSE GROUP OPENER
Rio de Janeiro: India's women bad
minton pair of Jwala Gutta and Ashwini
Ponnapa lost their opening Group A
match against the top seeds Ayaka
Takahashi and Misaki Matsutomo of
Japan in straight games 1521, 1021
here on Thursday.
With a necktoneck competition in
the early stages of the first game, the
Indian pair started giving away some
loose points, losing the first game 15
21 in 19 minutes.
In the second game, the world No.1
pair of Takahashi and Matsutomo com
plete ly dominated the court w ith
attacking play, leading 157 and finally
thrashing the Indians 2110 in 17 min
utes.
Jwala and Ashwini will be playing
their next match on Friday against the
Netherlands pair of Eefje Muskens and
Selena Piek.

Welterweight (64kg) category here.

Bombayla beat Taipei's ShihChia Lin
108101 via 2724, 2724, 2627, 2826
at the Sambodromo.
Earlier, she defeated Austria's Laurence
Baldauff 10598 in the 1/32 eliminations
in the women's individual round match.
Deepika also displayed red hot form,
defeating the higher ranked Kristine
Esebua of Georgia in the 1/32 eliminators
be fore gett ing the better of Italy's
Guendalina Sartori of Italy in the 1/16
eliminators.
The 22yearold from Ranchi defeated
Esebua 64 before overcoming a shaky

start to claim a 62 verdict against Sartori.

Later in the day, Manoj displayed excel
lent defence and counterpunching skills
to beat Petrauskas by split decision in the
Round of 32 of the men's Lig ht
Welterweight (64kg) category at the
Riocentrio Pavilion.
Up against the bronze medallist of the
2012 London Olympics, Manoj dominated
all three rounds to carve out a 2928, 29
28, 2829 verdict and advance to the pre
quarterfinals.
The Indian will next meet Fazluddin
Gaiznazarov of Uzbekistan in the Round of
16 on August 14.

Shooter Jitu Rai finished 12th in the 50

metre Pistol qualification round, failing to
reach the finals that will be competed by
eight competitors.
Weightlifter Satish Shivalingam crashed
out of the men's 77 kg elimination round,
only managing to lift a total of 329 kg,
which was not close to the best lift of 346
kg in his group.
Next to come up with a poor show was
judoka Avtar Singh, who lost to Popole
Misenga of the Refugee Olympic Team in
the 90Kg elimination Round of 32. Avtar,
from Punjab, lost by a single point follow
ing the end of five minutes of regular time.

At 25, Phelps only a medal away

from India's Olympic tally
Rio de Janeiro: Swimming legend Michael
Phelps' 21st Olympics gold has taken his
overall tally in the Summer Olympics to 25
just short of India's 26 medal haul since
it started participating in the Games in
1900.
Phelps won his 20th gold on Tuesday in
the 200 metre butterfly (1:53.36), his
favourite event, and then led his team to
victory in the 4x200m freestyle relay
(7:00.66) for his 21st gold.
The 31yearold came to Brazil as the
most decorated Olympian in history and is
adding to his legacy at his final Games his
fifth after which he will retire.
He quit after the 2012 London Games
but came out of retirement to participate in
Rio. Of Phelp's 25 Olympic medals, 21 are
gold, two silver and two bronze.
India, with a population of over 1.2 bil
lion, has accumulated 26 medals since its
Olympic journey began in 1900. These
include eight golds in men's hockey includ
ing six consecutive golds from 19281956

Swimming legend Michael Phelps.

and then in 1964 and 1980, and a sole
individual gold by shooter Abhinav Bindra
in the men's 10m air rifle in 2008 Beijing
Games. There are also six silvers and 11
bronze to India's name. Phelps though has

a realistic chance of going ahead of India as

he is still to participate in two categories at
Rio, starting with Wednesday's 200m indi
vidual medley, followed by Thursday's
100m butterfly.

20

August 13-19, 2016

TheSouthAsianTimes.info

OLYMPICS

Gymnast Dipa creates history

by entering Olympic final
Rio de Janeiro: Dipa Karmakar cre
ated history by becoming the first
Indian gymnast to enter the
Olympic finals at the Rio Olympic
Centre here.
The 22yearold qualified for the
final round in the individual vault
final of artistic gymnastics after fin
ishing eighth on the standings.
Competing in the third subdivi
sion, Dipa had an average score of
51.665.
She managed to perform her
muchvaunted 'Produnova' vault
cleanly to score 14.850 on the
vault, 11.666 on the uneven bars
12.866 in balance beam and
12.033 in floor exercises.
The Tripura gymnast scored exe
cuted the 'Produnova' in her first
attempt on the vault to 15.100 with
8.1 for execution and 7.00 for diffi
culty. She scored 14.6 in her second
attempt with 8.6 for execution and
6.00 for difficulty.
In uneven bars, Deepa scored
7.166 for execution and 4.5 for dif
ficulty. In balance beam, she scored
7.566 for execution and 5.3 for dif
ficulty while in floor exercises her
scores read 7.133 for execution and
5.2 for difficulty with a penalty of
0.3. By time she finished, Deepa was
sixth in vaults and 27th overall and

(As on
Thursday)
Country
US
China
Japan
Australia
Hungary
Russia
South Korea
Italy
Great Britain
India

Gold
11
10
6
5
5
4
4
3
3
0

Silver
11
5
1
2
1
7
2
6
3
0

Bronze
10
8
11
5
1
4
3
2
6
0

CRICKET
WINDIES SKITTLE
INDIA FOR 353

Dipa Karmakar will compete in the finals on August 14.

had to endure a nervous wait of five
hours for the other two subdivi
sions to finish. The top eight qualify
for the final.
Dipa's chances seemed bleak after
she fell to seventh when Simone
Biles of the US scored 16.050 in the
vault event. She dropped another
rung to eighth when Canada's
Shallon Olsen's terrific ef fort of

14.950 on the vault rejiged the

overall standings further. However,
with no other competitor managing
to surpass her score in individual
vault, Dipa managed to enter indi
vidual vault final and grab a piece
of history.
Brazil's Rebeca Andrade topped
the overall standings with 58.732
overall. She scored 15.566 on the

vault, 14.933 on the uneven bars,

14.2 on the balance beam and
14.033 on the floor exercise. The
Russian duo of Seda Tutkhalian
(58.207 overall) and Aliya
Mustafina (58.098 overall) finished
second and third respectively on
the overall standings.
Dipa will compete in the finals on
August 14.

Indian boxing contingent embroiled

in jersey controversy at Rio
Rio de Janeiro: Indian boxers have
overnight been given new jerseys
after International Olympic
Committee (IOC) objected to the
lack of the country's name on the
reverse side. "There was no ques
tion of being banned. After all we
played the first day with the jersey
without India's name on it," said G.S.
Sandhu, boxing head coach, here.
The IOC objected that Indian play
ers were going into the ring without
the "IND" showing on their back.
According to the norms, all players
must sport the name of the country
on their jersey.
Minister of Youth and Sports
Vijay Goel on Wednesday evening
took a meeting and asked officials
to rectify the matter immediately.
Names were then got written on the
boxing vests locally.
"The issue is resolved now, but it's
an unnecessary controversy since
we did have two bouts before today

Medal standings

Indian boxer Vikas Krishan.

without the name," Sandhu told
IANS. He said India had been under
a ban from International Boxing
Association (AIBA) and players from
the country were not allowed to use
the name in some of the matches
earlier.
"We were under the impression
that the same norms would be
applicable. However, after the min

ister gave directions, the needful

has been done," Sandhu said.
India's bantamweight (56 kg)
boxer Shiva Thapa is scheduled to
begin his Olympic campaign later
on Thursday against Cuba's Robeisy
Ramirez.
T he Indian Amateur Boxing
Federation had been banned by the
AIBA in 2012 for "possible manipu

lation" in its elections. Indian box

ers have been given ad hoc permis
sion to fight from time to time. The
federation had held elections since
then but they were not accepted by
the AIBA. New elections have been
announced to be held after the
Olympics. Sandhu was heard
screaming at the officials responsi
ble for the lack of jerseys with
India's name on it. This happened
after the match which Manoj Kumar
won against his Lithuanian counter
part Evaldas Petrauskas by a split
decision in the Round of 32 of
men's Light Welterweight (64kg)
category at Riocentre Pavilion.
Of ficials were in a tizzy on
Wednesday evening with number of
calls being exchanged on "possible
ban" by the IOC of the Indian box
ers. "If there was a possibility of a
ban, how is it that our boxers had
two successful bouts before today,"
Sandhu asked.

St. Lucia: After Ravichandran Ashwin

and Wriddhaman Saha hit centuries
in the postlunch session, West
Indies bundled out India for 353 in
the first innings and were 16 for no
loss at tea in the third Test match at
the Darren Sammy National Cricket
stadium here.
Surviving the nervous nineties for
too long and after getting stuck at
99 for six overs, Ashwin crossed the
100mark in style by lofting a
Roston Chase ball to six at long off in
the 117th over of the innings, taking
the score to 323 for 5 wickets. This
is Ashwin's second Test century in
this series after 113 in the first Test
at Antigua on July 20 and fourth
against the Windies.
Three overs later, Saha too hit his
maiden Test hundred with two runs
of a Chase ball to the cover drive in
the 121st over, taking the overall
score to 332 for 5. Incidentally, Saha
is the fourth Indian wicketkeeper
after Vijay Manjrekar, M.S. Dhoni
and Ajay Ratra to hit a Test century
in the away from home series. In the
following over (122), Saha nicked
the ball from Alzarri Joseph to be
caught by stumper Shane Dowrich
for 104 in 227 balls with 13 bound
aries, which is the highest in this
innings. Ashwin's sixer is the only
one in the Indian innings. His
marathon innings ended on a high
note of 118 runs in 297 balls with
six boundaries. The centurion duo
also set a record 213run partner
ship for the sixth wicket against the
Windies. With the star middle order
batsmen back in the pavilion, the
tailenders did not last long after
Ravindra Jadeja left for 6run,
caught behind by keeper Dowrich of
a Cummins' ball, as Bhuveneshwar
Kumar and Ishant Sharma got out for
ducks, while Mohammed Sami
remained not out with nil score.
India lost its last 5 wickets for a pal
try 37 runs

TheSouthAsianTimes.info

DIASPORA

August 13-19, 2016

21

10yearold Rhea named 'Child Genius 2016' in UK

Rhea

London: A 10yearold Indian

origin girl has been crowned
as Britain's brightest child
after she won a popular
television quiz competi
tion in the UK.
Rhea shot ahead in
Tuesday's final of 'Child
Genius 2016' on
Channe l 4 w ith six
correct answers and
then drew equal with
her opponent Saf fy
on nine points as
they entered
the
final
headto
h e a d
question

Canada recognizes Komagata Maru

venue as site of historic significance
Toronto: After Prime Minister Justin
Trudeau's apology in the House of
Commons in May for the tragic
1914 Komagata Maru incident,
Canada of ficially recognized its
venue as a site of national historic
significance.
Defence Minister Harjit Singh
Sajjan unveiled a commemorative
plaque on Sunday at the venue of
the Komagata Maru episode in
Vancouver over 102 years ago.
T he Komagata Maru was a
Japanese ship hired by wealthy Sikh
Gurdit Singh from Malaysia to bring
376 persons, mostly Punjabis, from
India to Canada to challenge the
racist laws of the time. The ship
anchored in Vancouver in May
1914, but the passengers were not
allowed to disembark.
The ship was forcibly returned to
India after two months of standoff.
On arrival in Kolkata, as many as 20
passengers were killed by British

Indian police.
"On this day, 102 years ago, the
Canadian Government shamefully
turned away 376 immigrants
because of their country of origin.
Today, as a representative of the
Canadian Government, I am hon
oured to stand with the South Asian
community and recognize the
Komagata Maru Incident as an
event of national historic signifi
cance which helped shaped the val
ues, including multiculturalism,
that have become a source of
strength for our country today,"
Sajjan said at the inauguration of
the plaque. The Komagata Maru
tragedy, along with the laws in force
at the time that allowed Canada to
be indif ferent to the plight of the
ship's passengers, signifies a
moment of great importance in the
history of immigration and race
relations in Canada, said a govern
ment statement on Sunday. (IANS)

7,000 Indians get Malaysian citizenship

Kuala Lumpur: After years of battling bureaucracy, about 7,000 Indians
who were born in Malaya before its independence from Britain have at last
obtained Malaysian citizenship. S Subramaniam, president of the country's
largest ethnic Indian political party Malaysian Indian Congress (MIC), said
about 7,000 Indians have obtained citizenship so far but a lot more people
have yet to register.
"On average, probably more than 15,000 Indians have yet to register to
obtain the citizenship. So, this process will be continued to solve this issue.
"We will find ways to solve this immediately," he said after attending a
religious ceremony 'Kalvi Yathirai' organized by the Sri Murugan Centre in
(PTI)
Kuala Lumpur on Sunday.

round.
Rhea, who moved to the UK
with her family from the US six
years ago and now lives in west
London, correctly spelled the
word "eleemosynary", meaning
relating to charity, to claim the
title at the end of four weeks of
tough question rounds.
"It's meant getting up early,
going to sleep late, studying. It
just feels really, really great,"
Rhea said after her win.
Her mother Sonal, who gave up
her job as an obstetrician to train
Rhea, had stepped in to contest an
incorrect answer that she had
given during her specialist subject
round on Florence Nightingale's

influence on military and health

care reform.
Independent adjudicator Olivia
van der Werf f agreed the ques
tion had been too general and
accepted Rhea's answer of Dr
Duncan Menzies to the question:
"To which medical of ficer did
Florence Nightingale report to in
the Crimea?" It meant that Rhea
avoided a t iebreak w ith
Birminghamborn Stephen, who
was ranked third, with Saffy and
Rhea securing their place in the
final.
The move triggered some social
media backlash against Sonal,
who was branded as too "pushy."
One Twitter comment read:

"Rhea is such a smart young lady

but her mother is shocking! This
isn't about you..." "Rhea's parents
are ridiculously pushy, poor kid,"
read another tweet.
Earlier, Sonal had rejected con
cerns that prog rams such as
'Child Genius' can put too much
pressure on youngsters.
"Rhea loved doing it. The show
gives them a chance to be with
kids like them, to be in that room
and feel normal," she said.
T he quiz show is hosted by
Richard Osman, who described
this year's show as "the greatest
final in the history of Child
Genius."
(PTI)

Neetu Chandra leads India

Day parade in Toronto
Toronto: T housands of Indo
Canadians joined in advance cele
brations of India's Independence
Day here on Monday as Bollywood
actress Neetu Chandra led the com
munity parade in the heart of the
biggest city of Canada.
As its Grand Parade Marshal,
Neetu led the India Day parade
which included nine colorful floats
for the first time in five years.
Indian television actor and host
Shabir Ahluwalia was the chief
guest. "Last year, I was the Grand
Parade Marshal in New York, and
this year I am honored to be here
with you for India Day in Toronto,"
said Neetu who surprised everyone
when she said she holds two black
belts in Taekwondo.
Put together by Panorama India
with the support of the Indian
Consulate General and the Canadian
Imperial Bank of Commerce (CIBC),
the daylong cultural extravaganza
showcased India's diversity through
about 250 artists with their diverse
performances.
Opening the celebrations with the
unfurling of the Indian flag and the
singing of the Indian and Canadian
national anthem, Indian consul gen
eral Dinesh Bhatia said this celebra
tions is not just about India's 69th
Independence Day but also about
the celebrations of the world's old
est civilization and its diversity. The
Indian consul general said when he

Consulate General of India, Toronto celebrated India Day at Toronto

Dundas Square on 7 August 2016 on the occasion of 69th Anniversary
of Independence Day. The event marked a large gathering of around
1520 thousand Indians and IndoCanadians.
took charge at the Toronto con
sulate five months ago, he wanted
to ramp up the India Day celebra
tions to make them as big as in New
York.
"Toronto has the largest concen
tration of the Indian diaspora any
where in North America. So why
shouldn't
be
the
India
Independence Day celebrations be
the biggest here?" he said.
Andhraborn Dipika Damerla, who
is minister for seniors in the
Ontario ministry, said every day
should be a day of celebrations for
the Indians. "India has so much to
celebrate because it is one of the
oldest civilizations of the world.
Sixtynine years is just a blip on this
ancient civilization," she said.
Damerla also read the message

from her Premier Kathleen Wynne

for the occasion. Ontario opposition
leader Patrick Brown, who is con
sidered the closest friend of India in
Canadian politics, was dressed in
Modilike jacket for the occasion.
And he didn't miss to point this out
to the audience who applauded in
his praise.
Brown said he is a great fan of
Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
"That's why I am wearing the Modi
jacket today," he said.
The crowd cheered when Brown
said: "I have been to India not one
time, not two times, not three
times...I have been to India sixteen
times."
"In 2011, they made me an hon
orary citizen of Gujarat...so I am half
Gujju.," he added.
(IANS)

22

August 13-19, 2016

SUBCONTINENT

Prachanda to address
Nepal indigenous
community's demands
Kathmandu: The newly
e lected Nepali Prime
Minister Pushpa Kamal
Dahal
"Prachanda"
expressed his commit
ment to amend the
Constitution to address
the demands of all
indigenous communi
ties. Addressing a pro
gram organized by the
Nepal Federat ion of
I n d i g e n o u s
Nepal's newly elected PM Puspa Kamal
Nationalities here to
Dahal who is also known as Prachanda.
mark
the
22nd
International Day of the World's ments to the Constitution in
Indigenous People, Prachanda order to address their rights
said the government will put and demands.
The Prime Minister promised
maximum ef forts to make the
Constitution acceptable to all that the International Day of the
World's Indigenous People will
quarters of society.
"Nepal is moving ahead in a be celebrated jointly by the gov
critical time, but the govern ernment and the federation
ment w ill make an honest from the next year.
Stating that the Constitution
attempt to address the senti
ments of people in the promulgated in September last
Constitution through amend year is incomplete, the indige
ment," Prachanda said while nous nationalities have been
commiserating with the indige demanding the identity based
nous nationalities, who have federalism to be incorporated in
been demanding the amend the statute.

Don't adopt selective approach

to fighting terror: US to Pak
Islamabad: After it announced
withholding $300 million military
aid to Islamabad, the US has urged
Pakistan to target all militant
groups and not adopt a "selective
approach" to combating terror.
"Pakistan has taken and is taking
steps to counter terrorist violence,
and certainly focusing on those
groups that threaten Pakistan or
its stability. The military has shut
down some of these safe havens,"
US State Department deputy
spokesperson Mark Toner said
during a briefing.
He noted that the Pakistani mili
tary had shut down some terrorist
safe havens in the Federally
Administered Tribal Areas, and
had restored "government control"
in parts of the country that were
used as terrorist safe havens for
years. These are important steps
that have contributed to security
interests in the region. And they've
come at a cost of Pakistani lives
lost, he said, adding So I guess, to
put it briefly or summarize it,
they've made progress. "They're
going after groups, but selectively.
We need to see them go after all
groups," Toner added. Replying to

'India's focus on South China

Sea will harm ties with China'
Beijing: India's focus on the South
China Sea will harm its ties with
China and create obstacles for
Indian businessmen, said a state
run daily.
In an editorial, the Global Times
said India should "avoid unneces
sary entanglement" with China
over the dispute of South China
Sea during the upcoming visit of
Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi.
The tabloid said instead of being
worried over falling exports to
China, Indians were more focused
on the South China Sea.
"India may want to avoid unnec
essary entanglement with China
over the South China Sea debate
during Wang's visit if the country
wishes to create a good atmos
phere for economic cooperation,
which would include reducing tar
if fs on madeinIndia products
exported to China amid the ongo
ing free trade talk known as the
Reg ional
Comprehensive
Economic Partnership," the daily
said.
Wang is to visit India India from
August 1214 where he will dis
cuss the upcoming G 20 summit
in China and BRICS Summit in
India. "It is puzzling that India is
focusing on the South China Sea

TheSouthAsianTimes.info

As of now Pakistan is targeting only selective terror groups.

a question about the Pentagon's
decision to withhold $300 million
of defense aid to Pakistan over its
alleged reluctance to act against
the Haqqani network, Toner said
that unlike the Pentagon, the State
Department had continued its
assistance and some of that includ
ed security assistance.
Asked if the State Department
agreed with the Pentagon's assess
ment that Pakistan was not doing
enough to eliminate the Haqqani
network, he said: We've urged the
government of Pakistan to address

this and to pursue closer counter

terrorism cooperat ion w ith
Afghanistan against all groups that
pose a longterm security threat to
the region, not just to Pakistan.
The Pentagon refused the $300
million aid, in a sign of unhappi
ness with Islamabad for not acting
against the Haqqani network.
Defense Secretary Ashton B.
Carter had decided against making
a certification to Congress stating
that Pakistan is taking suf ficient
action against the militant organi
zation.

Khaleda Zia to
appear before
courts in 12 cases

Chinese President Xi Jinping and Indian PM Narendra Modi.

issue at this moment, a move that
mig ht risk unnecessary side
ef fects to SinoIndian ties and
potentially set up obstacles for
Indian exporters hoping to
increase their presence in China,
now the world's secondlargest
importer."
"Considering that India does not
face territorial disputes with
China in the South China Sea, is it
worth letting the South China Sea
issue become another factor that
will impact India's cooperation
with China? India should consider
this," it said. After a UN court
rejected China's claims over the
South China Sea, justifying the
contention of the Philippines,

India asked all the parties to show

utmost respect to the verdict and
solved the dispute peacefully.
China has rejected the ruling.
"India's exports to China have
dropped 16.7 percent yearon
year in the first seven months of
the year, Chinese customs data
showed Monday, suggesting that a
large number of Indian enterpris
es are having a hard time explor
ing the Chinese market amid sim
mering tensions between the two
countries," said the daily.
"India is expected to allow only
mo derate tarif f reduct ion on
madeinChina products under the
talks in a bid to preserve its
domestic industries.

Bangladesh's former PM and BNP Chairperson Khaleda Zia.

Dhaka: Bangladesh Nationalist
Party (BNP) Chairperson and
former Prime Minister Khaleda
Zia is to appear before various
courts in Dhaka in connection
with 12 dif ferent cases led
against her.
Of the lawsuits, nine were
led for the 2015 arson attack
in Darussalam area and one for
sedition. She will also appear
before a special court in con
nection with the Barapukuria
coal mine graft case and the

Niko graft case.

With regard to the sedition
case led on January 25 this
year, the BNP chairperson will
appear
be fore
Dhaka
Metropolitan Sessions judge
Md Kamrul Hossain Mollah.
Khaleda's chie f counse l
Sanaullah Mia told the Dhaka
Tribune that she will also sur
render and le bail petitions in
nine cases, eight of which are
led against her under Special
Powers Act.

TheSouthAsianTimes.info

INTERNATIONAL

Putin meets Erdogan first time

after Russian jet was downed
Moscow: Turkish President
Recep Tay ip Ergo dan met
Russian President Vladimir Putin
to give a fresh start to the bilat
eral relations of the two coun
tries which nosedived after
Turkish military downed a
Russian fig hter jet last
November.
This was the two leaders' first
meeting since the downing of the
Russian fighter jet by Turkey on
November 23 last year, RT news
reported.
"Your visit, which comes amid a
very complicated situation in
Turkey, indicates that all of us
want to revive our dialogue and
restore relations for the sake of
the Turkish and Russian peo
ples," Put in said, g reet ing
Erdogan in St Petersburg.
Erdogan said he appreciates
Putin's willingness to meet him
in person.
The two leaders are expected
to come out with a "roadmap" to
help bring RussiaTurkey rela
tions to a new level.
Putin said he was "one of the
first [heads of state] who called
President [Erdogan] and reaf

Ties between Moscow and

Ankara hit rock bottom when
Turkish Air Force downed a
Russian fighter jet.
firmed support for overcoming
the domestic political crisis relat
ed to the [military] coup". "This
will be a historic visit, a fresh
start. I believe that a new page
will be opened during the negoti
ations with my friend Vladimir
[Put in]," Erdog an said. "T he

Syrian crisis will be discussed in

depth and we hope that Turkey's
position will become more con
structive," Yury Ushakov, Putin's
foreign policy aide, has said.
According to a Russian analyst,
Erdogan "has realized that to
fight the IS is equally important
and Turkey cannot do it alone,
and with the European countries
Ankara was not getting enough
help".
"Western countries, including
the NATO, have not been able to
bring peace and stability to Syria.
So this is why Erdogan has prob
ably shifted to Russia to get
much more support from Putin."
Ties between Moscow and
Ankara hit rock bottom when
Turkish Air Force downed a
Russian fighter jet which, accord
ing to Ankara, was in Turkish air
space while Russia insists the jet
was in Syria. One of the two
pilots was killed, as was a marine
who took part in a rescue opera
tion.
Re lat ions between the two
countries began to thaw in late
June after Erdogan sent an apol
ogy letter to the Kremlin.

August 13-19, 2016

23

Portuguese exPM keeps

lead in race for UN chief
United Nations: Portugal's
former Prime Minister
Antonio Guterres main
tained his lead in the sec
ond round of informal vot
ing by the Security
Council for Secretary
General, confounding
expectat ions that a
woman would ascend to
the world's top diplomatic
job. But this time he also
Antonio Guterres has received 11 posi
received two neg at ive
tive and two negative votes.
votes and could be out of
the running if one of them was place from the third last time.
The president of the General
from a permanent member.
T he 14 men represent ing Assembly Mogens Lykketoft
their countries on the 15mem declared, "The lack of trans
ber council gave the second parency is undignied for the
spot to another man, Vuk UN and for the candidates."
T he election process set a
Jeremic, the former Serbian for
eign minister. The only woman precedent for openness when it
on the Council is US Permanent began with all the candidates
Representat ive
Samantha were announced publicly and
Power. Moving up to the third made to face questions from the
spot in the informal balloting UN members as well as from
called the straw pool was civil society groups.
Gutteres, who has also been
Susana Malcorra, the Argentine
foreign minister and former the UN High Commissioner for
chie f of staf f of Secretary Refugees, received 11 positive
General Ban Kimoon. Irina and two negative votes, while in
Bokova of Bulgaria, who heads the last round he did not get
UNESCO, slipped to the fth any "discourage ballots.

'MH370 fell out of sky

after engine failure'

Gaofen3 is China's first low orbit remote sensing satellite.

Beijing: China launched a new
hig hresolut ion
Synthet ic
Aperture Radar (SAR) imaging
sate llite in northern Shanxi
province.
T he Gaofen3 sate llite was
launched of f on the back of a
Long March 4C rocket from the
Taiyuan Satellite Launch Centre,
Xinhua news agency cited the
centre as revealing. It was the
233rd ight mission by a Long
March carrier rocket.
As China's rst SAR imaging
satellite that is accurate to one
metre in distance, it covers the
globe with an allweather, 24

hour observation service and will

be used for disaster warning,
weather forecast ing, water
resource assessments, and the
protection of maritime rights.
With 12 imaging modes, the
highdenition observation satel
lite is capable of taking wide pic
tures of the Earth and photo
graphing detailed scenarios of
specic areas.
Gaofen3 is also China's rst
low orbit remote sensing satellite
that has a lifespan of eight years.
It is able to provide highdeni
tion remote sensing data for its
users over long periods of time.

Canberra: Australian defense

scientists who analyzed signals
from missing Malaysia Airlines
flight MH370 have revealed the
Boeing 777 fell very fast before
crashing into the Indian Ocean
of f the coast of Western
Australia.
Australian media reported
that data analysis and manufac
turer simulations showed it was
likely the aircraft lost engine
power before falling out of the
sky at a rate of up to 20,000
feet per minute on March 8,
2014, Xinhua news agency
reported.
An aircraft attempting a regu
lar landing or a crash landing
in water would descend at a
rate of around 2,000 feet per
minute, raising doubts over pre
vious predictions that the plane
"landed" intact in the water
before breaking up, the analysts
said. Australian scient ists
believed that prior to its final
moments, the jet made a num
ber of automated "handshake"
signals with satellites on the
ground near Perth in Western
Australia. After six of those
handshakes, a seventh, outof
sequence signal came from the

MH370 was a scheduled passenger flight which disappeared on

March 8, 2014.
jet, indicating engine failure
likely from lack of fuel.
The data gives life to the theo
ry that MH370 fell out of the
sky, and did not glide to a final
crashlanding spot in the Indian
Ocean.
Australian Transport Safety
Bureau (ATSB) chief commis
sioner Greg Hood said the scien
tists' analysis of the signals

closely matched a flight sce

nario in which there was no
pilot at the controls at the point
of impact in contrast to previ
ous theories about how MH370
went down.
Hoo d said the signal data
meant MH370 likely crashed in
the 120,000squarekm search
area now being combed by
Australian authorities.

24

August 13-19, 2016

TheSouthAsianTimes.info

BUSINESS

Interest rates remain

Innovation key to achieving
Digital India: Telecom Minister unchanged in India
New Delhi: T here is need for
innovation in the Information
and Communication Technology
(ICT ) sector as India cannot
af ford to emulate deve loped
economies due to limited
resources, Communicat ions
Minister Manoj Sinha said here.
He called for holistic planning
rather than piecemeal approach
to achieve the vision of Digital
India.
Addressing a seminar organ
ized by the National Institute of
Communication Finance on "ICT
emerging technologies & USOF
(Universal Service Obligation
Fund) for Digital India", Sinha
warned that if India lags in catch
ing up with emerging technolo
g ies in the coming 15 to 20
years, the very existence of the
country will be at stake.
The minister asked the officials
and other stakeholders to "Walk
the Talk" for achieving the Prime
Minister's vision of transforming
India through digital revolution.
He said it is our bounden duty to
dig itally empower the huge
chunk of population particularly

Union Minister of State for Communications (Independent Charge)

and Railways Manoj Sinha.
in rural areas who are st ill
deprived of IT revolution and he
underlined that the Government
alone cannot do this and called
for cooperat ion of all. Sinha
expected that by March 2017,
one lakh gram panchayats (GPs)
will be connected through optical
fibre cable to set up a network
infrastructure to serve the rural

masses. He said there was need

for finding appropriate technolo
gies whether network infra
structure or digital highway for
the deprived sections of society.
Telecom Secretary J.S. Deepak,
who was also present at the
event, said the finance ministry
was very conservative in alloca
tion of funds under USOF.

Mumbai: Reserve Bank of India

(RBI) Governor Raghuram Rajan
kept key policy rates unchanged
in his last monetary policy review
with little elbow room for easing
due to the country's retail infla
tion inching closer to the upper
tolerance level of 6 per cent.
The repurchase (repo) rate, or
the interest commercial banks pay
the central bank for shortterm
loans, remains unchanged at 6.5
per cent. The cash reserve ratio
(CRR) that scheduled banks have
to keep in liquid funds also
remains unaltered at 4 per cent of
deposits.
In the previous policy update,
too, conducted on June 7, the poli
cy rates were left unaltered.
"Recent sharperthananticipat
ed increase in food prices has
pushed up the projected trajectory
of inflation over the rest of the
year," Rajan said. Strong improve
ment in sowing on the back of
good monsoon rains and supply
side management auger well for
food inflation outlook, he added.
"In view of this configuration of
risks, it's appropriate for the

Reserve Bank to keep the policy

repo rate unchanged at this junc
ture, while awaiting space for
action. The stance of monetary
policy remains accommodative
and will continue to emphasise
adequate provision of liquidity."
Rajan also said easy liquidity
conditions are now prompting
banks to modestly transmit the
past policy rate cuts of the central
bank on to customers and that
proactive liquidity management
by them should facilitate more
such passthrough.
The stock markets, which had
opened on a positive note on
Tuesday, took a sharp dip after
the policy announcement. But
they recovered some ground
eventually. The sensitive index
(Sensex) of the BSE had opened
nearly 110 points, or 3.8 percent
up, but soon fell into the negative
zone. At 11 a.m, when the policy
was announced, it fell nearly 85
points, but recovered ground
immediately.
It eventually closed 97.41
points or 0.35 per cent down at
28,085.16 points.

Will try to keep GST target of April 1, 2017: Meghwal

New Delhi: The government has set a
April 1, 2017 target for implementing
t h e G o o d s a n d S e r v i c e s Ta x ( G S T )
regime and was hopeful of achieving
this Union Minister of State for Finance
Arjun Ram Meghwal said here.
"We are targeting April 1, 2017, for
GST implementation. And we are work
ing towards it and hopefully will
achieve it," Meghwal said on the side
lines of the 2nd Indian Cost Accounts
Service Day event.
Meghwal said that after 50 per cent of
the states rat ify the const itut ional
amendment bill, three laws central
GST, interstate GST and state GST will
be formulated.
As many as 60,000 of ficials will be
trained to implement the GST, he added.
"There will be challenges to imple
ment the GST because of the number of
taxes that will be subsumed and on
building a consensus," Central Board of
Excise and Custom Chairman Najib Shah
said during a panel discussion on the

Union Minister of State for Finance Arjun Ram Meghwal.

GST at the event. "The broad under
standing is that all indirect taxes will be

subsumed into the GST but the final

decision in this regard and the tax rate

will be taken by the GST Council,"

Sharma said.
The empowered committee on GST,
which is headed by West Bengal Finance
Minister Amit Mitra and has state
finance ministers as its members, will
be converted into the GST Council and is
expected to retain all members.
Another challenging task is to inte
grate the IT structures of the Reserve
Bank of India,
G S T N ( G o o d s a n d S e r v i c e s Ta x
Network) and ministries, B.N. Sharma,
Additional Secretary, Department of
Revenue, said.
GSTN, a nonprofit company, was
formed in 2013 to prepare the IT
framework for GST.
On the dual control issue, Shah said
there is expected to be a single control,
either of the Centre or the states.
"We are working towards single con
trol either it will be the states or the
Centre. We do not wish to unleash two
tax authorities on taxpayers," Shah said.

TheSouthAsianTimes.info

August 13-19, 2016

FEATURES

25

India's future development is assured

By Amit Kapoor

he fable of the hare being defeated by

the tortoise sounds familiar and is
near universal. It is also used in the
title of his recent book by T.N. Ninan, who
uses it in the context of India to assess its
longterm growth and competitiveness.
India has, at various points, has been
referred to as a slumbering elephant, a
roaring tiger and now by Ninan as the slow
and steady tortoise. It is because it is seen
as a country with an above average track
record of growth since its 'reforms by
stealth' began in the 1980s. It is also an
economy that seems to be on the brink of
transformational change.
Some of this has already started happen
ing. The nation seems to be going through
an interesting phase in its economic devel
opment. Recently Parliament passed a bill
on the Goods and Services tax, which takes
India closer to the dream of creating a com
mon unified market.
This column in not on GST but on the
broader and substantial issues of India's
political economy. Ninan's book and Vijay
Joshi's very recent one on India's long road
ahead seem to take a broad sweep of India's
political economy at present and its future
course over the next few decades.
Vijay Joshi's "India's Long Road Ahead" is
written more from an academic, theoretical
and conceptual viewpoint. It tries to explain
the role of the state and the market and
how their performance fares in the case of
India. The chapter on education and health

care is particularly revealing and gives the entering the global value chains and an
case of 'government failure' and makes the improved investment climate are cited as
case for better monitoring and careful other areas requiring critical scrutiny. In
analysis before increasing spending which spite of this India may not be able to
achieve the 'super fast growth'
has been the common wisdom in policy
de fined as per capita
prescriptions for these sectors.
income growth of 6 percent
In simple language, the
or above for three decades.
author describes the
It is because only three
objective of India's
countries have achieved this
economic deve lop
so far China (19772010,
ment as 'rapid, inclu
sive, stable and sus
8.1 percent) South Korea
tainable g rowth of
(196291, 6.9 percent) and
national income with
Taiwan (196294, 6.8 per
in a political frame
cent).
work of liberal democ
Ninan's book, "The Turn of
racy'. The main point
the Tortoise" is written in a
of the book is what it
more journalistic style and in
would take for India
the manner of him being a
to become a prosper
more act ive chronicler of
ous country over the
times. He tries to frame a
next few decades.
coherent framework about
The main pre
key issues and performance in
scription is that
key areas of national interest.
the mar
These include the manu
kets
are
facturing sector where
thoroughly As conveyed by the title of the book, senior edi India has underper
d i s t o r t e d tor T.N. Ninan argues that Indian economy is on formed, and continues to
the brink of transformational change.
and for the
do so, due to the earlier
country to
license and quota raj.
achieve the monumental task of rapid Also, described are individual stories of
growth, it would need to unleash the cre what works in India despite the odds like
ative energy of its workforce along with the story of Baba Kalyani to get Bharat
correcting the distortions of land, labor and Forge to at least be in a position to manu
capital markets.
facture guns for defense sector in India.
That will lead to productivity growth.
Similarly, Mangalyaan, Kumbh Mela and
Along with this, streamlining trade policy, the 2014 parliamentary elections (the

world's largest) are seen to have worked

due to them being pursued in mission
mode. Ninan, like Joshi, contends that India
has an underperforming state, which is also
the case for failure of the government to
provide basic services, and is rife with cor
ruption. An example of public services
being provided privately is in the case of
healthcare sector, where 60 per cent of the
hospital beds are now privately owned.
Ninan ends the book with three mega
trends and a question on India's liberal
democracy.
The three megatrends over the next 10
years to look out for are: First, change in
the scale of markets. This is because India's
middle class will increase from 340 million
in 2015 to 800 million by 2025. Second,
shrinkage of state in sectors that are domi
nated by the public sector including bank
ing and insurance, defence and even energy
and mining. Third, shifting centers of gravi
ty from New Delhi to state capitals and
even at the third tier of governance at the
level of urban agglomerations.
The book ends on a positive note by men
tioning that the spirit of the present age is
of greater freedom and the surface churn
within the rumblings of a liberal democracy
cannot hurt the country's stability. In that
sense, it truly is the turn of the tortoise. The
two books overall of fer rich insights for
readers looking for understanding the pres
ent and future of India.

Amit Kapoor is Chair, Institute for

Competitiveness & Editor of Thinkers.

India at top of Wikipedia's priorities

Wikipedia is available in 22 Indian languages, with Tulu becoming the 23rd. There are
another 18 Indian language Wikipedias in the incubator stage.

ndia is expected to remain the

"No. 1 most strategic region" in
the global plans of Wikipedia,
according to a top of ficial of the
free Internet encyclopedia that
allows its users to edit most of its
content.
"We're working on our new glob
al strategy. In 2010, we identified
India as the number one most
strategic region, and I expect India
to continue to have pride of place,"
Asaf Bartov, who looks after
Emerging Wikimedia Communities
worldw ide,
told
IANS
in
Chandigarh.
Bartov said the challenge for
Wikipedia the largest, most
popular general reference work on
the Internet, and among the top 10
mostvisited sites in the world
was coping with India's "huge size
and diversity".
"Hindi Wikipedians as a commu
nity have such a hard time meeting
up across different states and even
countries," he said, even as the
WikiConference India 2016 ended

in ChandigarhMohali last week

end. Bartov said the "subjective"
challenges included arguments
among those volunteering on this
giant global project, the emphasis
on status and authority, especially
given that the project is sometimes
seen as selfgoverning or leader
less. Moreover, he suggested, peer
collaborat ion mig ht be a less
acceptable trend in India.
Partnerships with museums and

universities who are natural

allies for a project like the
Wikipedia could be a bit of a
challenge here, he added.
Instead of taking an approach of
seeing themselves as 'guardians' of
culture, museums working with
Wikipedia could also fulfill their
mission of reaching out to commu
nities, Bartov suggested, citing the
example of the British Museum.
But he said he was 'very

impressed' with the work of the

Tamil Wikipedia, which worked in
a "selforganizing and very com
munityoriented spirit".
They had even raised funds to
buy a computer for a teammem
ber who simply could not afford it,
and the State government Tamil
Virtual Academy (tamilvu.org) had
made much progress in digitizing
Tamil literature "en masse".
Likewise, the Punjabi Wikipedia
had revitalized itself over the last
two years with a "young and ener
getic" group, in an "amazing" way.
They managed to attain 30 per
cent growth in content too.
Also, with Malayalam, there was
a lot of "selforganizing, mutual
help and specialising". Their wiki
samamga mahotsav meetings were
a useful outreach to elementary
schools.
"Since young children might not
be comfortable in writing, they're
getting the kids to contribute by
way of drawings," he said.
Figures emerg ing at the

WikiConference, meanwhile, sug

gest that compared to the English
Wikipedia's total strength of five
million articles, Hindi had 106,000
and Urdu had 105,000 articles.
Tamil had a little over 88,000, and
Telugu, almost 64,000.
From the subcontinent, Nepali
came in with a credible 72,744
articles, while the other wikipedias
came in with lesser figures.
Hindi, Sindhi and Gujarati had
the lowest number of editors per
million speakers with 0.2, 0.1
and 0.2 editors per million respec
tively. At the other end were lan
guages like Malayalam with two
editors per million, Nepal and
Tamil with one editor each per mil
lion speakers. The Wikipedia is the
seventh most visited site in India,
and by some estimates, the sixth
most popular in the world. Some
1.8 million sites link to the
Wikipedia, according to alexa.com,
that provides commercial web traf
fic data and analytics, giving a hint
IANS
of its clout in cyberspace.

26

August 13-19, 2016

TheSouthAsianTimes.info

SELF HELP

Families are tapping more scholarships

Bring the family
and grants to pay for college
together for meal time

amilies spent less outof

pocket for college in academ
ic year 201516 compared to
last year, as they took advantage
of more scholarships and grants to
foot the bill, according to How
America Pays for College 2016,
the national study from Sallie Mae,
the countrys largest private stu
dent lender, and Ipsos, a global
independent market research com
pany. Scholarships and grants cov
ered 34 percent of college costs,
according to the report, the largest
percentage of any resource over
the last five years. Approximately,
half of families used a scholarship
or grant to help pay for college.
Families wrote smaller checks
for college this year as they looked
less to their wallets and more
toward free money to make col
lege happen, says Raymond
Quinlan, CEO, Sallie Mae, a compa
ny focused on helping families
save, plan and pay for college.
Scholarships and grants have
become an increasingly important
part of the payforcollege mix, and
its encouraging to see organiza
tions, schools, and the government
stepping up to provide them.
4 Bachelors, the new norm:
Families are firmly in agreement
on the value of college: 98 percent
believe its an investment in their
students future and 90 percent
expect their student to earn a
bachelors degree. Whats more, 54
percent of families expect their
student to earn a graduate degree.

etween work and

schoolyear com
mitments, it can be
dif ficult to carve out
time to sit down at the
table and enjoy a home
cooked dinner as a fami
ly, but it is well worth
the effort. In addition to
of fering an opportunity
to bond, eating together and engag
ing in conversation can have a
deeper influence on children.
Follow these tips to bring the family
together and create a lasting tradi
tion.
Mark the calendar: Create a
monthly calendar that incorporates
a few meals a week in which every
one can be present when there are
no sports, activities or afterwork
functions. Research shows that chil
dren benefit when the family eats
together at least three times a week.
In fact, reported improvements
range from healthy eating habits to
improved literacy and verbal skills,
according to the Family Dinner
Project. If three dinners is a stretch
for your busy family, consider
morning brunches or evening
desserts.
Create a familyfriendly menu:
Integrate family favorites to create
excitement around supper, such as
a weekly pizza night. Make home
made crust as a team and craft per
sonal pies incorporating fresh top
pings, such as bell peppers, onions,
spinach, zucchini and tomatoes. To
further maximize time, create dish

Families are putting their money

where their mouth is the vast
majority are willing to stretch
financially to make college hap
pen.
4Making college more affordable:
Nearly all families took at least one
costsaving measure, while most
took five or more. These measures
include cutting personal spending,
working while in school, living at
home, and taking acce lerated
coursework to graduate faster.
Additionally, four in five students
attended college in their home
state, and one in three started at
community college. Eightyfive
percent of families completed the
FAFSA.
4Borrowing not a forgone conclu
sion: Fewer than half of families
borrowed last year. In fact, the
proportions of funding from family
savings and income and scholar
ships and grants were twice as

high as the proportion of funds

borrowed. Student borrowing paid
13 percent of all college costs,
down from 16 percent last year.
4Cost important, but not top fac
tor: Sixtyseven percent of families
narrow college choices based on
cost, but when it comes to making
the final decision, this takes a back
seat. Primary reasons in choosing
a college are split evenly between
academic program and personal
choice, which includes campus cul
ture, extracurricular activities and
student population. Cost ranked
third at 27 percent.
4Planning still pays off: Only 40
percent of families have a plan to
pay for college but in families
with plans, students are more like
ly to pursue bachelors degrees,
there is more willingness and abili
ty to spend on college, and stu
dents borrow 40 percent less than
those from families without plans.

es on a weekend to freeze and thaw

when ready. Try a simple tortilla
soup that can be prepared in min
utes using a highperformance
blender, such as a Vitamix.
Have Handson Meal Prep:
Incorporate kids into every step of
meal prep in a safe and easy way.
Drop vegetables into the blender to
chop for pizza or salad toppings,
tortilla soup or even a Taco Tuesday
fiesta. Then, allow kids to add these
veggies to the recipe. Engage your
children further by having them set
timers and watch for meals to cook.
As a final step, allow them to add
spices and fresh herbs before set
ting dinner on the table.
Turn Off Electronics: Make the table
an electronicfree zone. Turn of f
cell phones and television shows to
make room for facetoface commu
nication. Removing cell phones
from the equation can positively
influence the quality of conversa
tion, while helping kids to gain a
better understanding of social cues,
facial expressions and changes in
tone that lead to more fruitful inter
actions, according to a study by
researchers at Virginia Tech.

Top 3 reasons not to waste food

ore than onethird of all food pro
duced in the United States goes
uneaten, according to the Academy
of Nutrition and Dietetics. This waste con
tributes to problems ranging from hunger
and malnutrition to environmental and eco
nomic concerns.
From the farm, through the production
and distribution process, to the grocery
store, to the home wherever there is food,
there is unfortunately food waste, says
Lauri Wright, registered dietitian nutrition
ist and Academy spokesperson. In a world
of limited resources and growing popula
tions, wasting food is a luxury we cant
afford.
Reducing, reusing, and recycling wasted
food can assist with feeding the estimated
49 million Americans who are foodinse
cure, reduce agricultural pressures on the
environment and increase business efficien
cies for those producing and selling food.

Environmental Concerns
The majority of wasted food ends up in
landfills and then breaks down to produce
methane and carbon dioxide emissions,
which contribute to climate change. Food in

landfills contributes to nearly onequarter

of all methane emissions in the United
States. Composting food and diverting it
from entering landfills helps prevent the
creation of global greenhouse gas emissions
and protects the environment.

Economic Concerns
Wasted food is not only detrimental to the
environment but also costs consumers,
businesses and taxpayers substantial
amounts of money. An American family of

four throws out an average $1,484 worth of

edible food a year, while nationally, the
costs associated with food waste exceeds $1
billion annually in local tax funds.

Social Concerns
While millions of Americans worry how
they will feed their children, the amount of
safe edible food wasted in the Unites States
continues to soar. If Americans wasted just
15 percent less food, it would be enough to
feed 25 million people. Instead of throwing

away untouched food, support the food

insecure by donating it to food banks.
Reduce Food Waste at Home
Consumers are responsible for the majori
ty of food waste in the United States and
can play a major role in its reduction.
Reduce food waste by being a smarter
shopper. Only buy the amount of perishable
foods that you will be able to eat in a week,
Wright says. If you do have leftovers, and
they are still safe to eat, donate them. If
they are not safe to eat, compost them.
While not all wasted food is edible, much of
it can be recovered and repurposed.
Registered dietitian nutritionists are
uniquely qualified to help reduce food loss
and waste by educating individuals, fami
lies, communities, business and industry.
For more information on reducing food
waste, check out the Academy of Nutrition
and Dietetics Foundations Future of Food
initiative and the Foundations 2016 State
of Americas Wasted Food Report.
Food waste is a global problem with solu
tions at the local and even individual level.
Get the entire family involved in taking
steps to reduce waste in your home.
Stories: StatePoint

TheSouthAsianTimes.info

LIFESTYLE

August 13-19, 2016

27

Bullying bosses turn

Phelps resorts to cupping
employees
into
bullies
too
therapy to ease muscle pain
Washington, DC: When Michael
Phelps took to the water to swim
in the 4x100meter relay Sunday,
many noticed weird purple cir
cles covering his right shoulder.
The dots are the result of cup
ping, the latest alternative thera
py elite athletes are using to try
to recover faster and perform
better.
But as with a lot of alternative
therapies, the science on these
medicinal hickeys is pretty incon
clusive, suggesting you may not
need to sprint of f to a cupping
practitioner to try it out on your
sore muscles.
Phelps got those marks from
glass or plastic vacuum cups that
were placed on his skin by his
personal trainer.
The practice involves very sim
ple tools: plastic or glass cups
and a vacuum pump. The process
is very simple as well: The cups
are placed over muscles, and
then, using the pump, you create
an area of vacuum pressure that
draws bloo d to the surface,
breaks capillaries, and forms the
perfect purple circle on the skin.
A mechanical vacuum isnt
always needed; sometimes the

Cupping is latest alternative therapy elite athletes are trying

(Image courtesy: standard.co.uk)
cups are heated and then placed
on the skin. As the cups cool, the
air inside them contracts, form
ing the negative pressure needed
to bring blood to the surface.
Cupping has been around for
centuries in traditional Chinese
medicine; its also used in the
Middle East.
Chinese medicine practitioners
would say it helps open up chan
nels of qi, or the bodys life force.

Want a better memory?

Eat Mediterranean diet

Sydney: A Mediterranean diet can

improve your cognitive function, reduce
chances of Alzheimer and improve heart
conditions, shows a new study. The main
foods in the Mediterranean diet
(MedDiet) include plant foods, such as
leafy greens, fresh fruit and vegetables,
cereals, beans, seeds, nuts, and legumes.
The MedDiet is also low in dairy, has
minimal use of red meat, and uses olive
oil as its major source of fat.
The study, published in the journal
Frontiers in Nutrition the researchers
investigated if and how a MedDiet may
impact cognitive processes over time.
"The most surprising result was that
the positive effects were found in coun
tries around the whole world. So, regard
less of being located outside of what is
considered the Mediterranean region,
the positive cognitive effects of a higher
adherence to a MedDiet were similar in
all evaluated papers," said Roy Hardman,
researcher at Swineburne University. The
study revealed that MedDiet had positive
effects on attention, language and mem
ory in particular, including improve
ments in delayed recognition and visual
constructs.
The MedDiet offers the opportunity to
change some of the modifiable risk fac
tors like reducing inflammatory respons
es, increasing micronutrients, improving
vitamin and mineral imbalances, chang
ing lipid profiles by using olive oils as the
main source of dietary fats.

Athletes claim it aids healing,

recovery, and blood flow and
reduces pain.
Phelps has apparently been
cupping for some t ime. T his
photo on his Instagram page was
taken about a year ago.
Phelps isnt the only American
athlete adorned with the spots
Alexander Naddour, an American
gymnast, has been seen with the
purple blotches too.

New York: If you are bogged down

by sarcasm and bullying coming
from your seniors at job, read on.
According to the researchers, such
rude behavior is common at a
politicallycharged workplace and
this incivility is fast spreading.
Experiencing such rude behav
ior reduces employees' selfcon
trol and leads them to act in a sim
ilar uncivil manner, say Russell
Johnson and colleagues from
Michigan State University.
"People who are recipients of
incivility at work feel mentally
fatigued because uncivil behaviors
are somewhat ambiguous and
require employees to figure out
whether there was any abusive
intent," said Johnson, associate
professor of management.
"This mental fatigue, in turn, led
them to act uncivil toward other
workers. In other words, they paid
the incivility forward," he noted in
a paper appeared in the Journal of
Applied Psychology.
While curt remarks and other
forms of incivility do not involve
openly hostile behavior such as
bullying and threats, they are a
frequent occurrence in the work
place and have a significant effect
on employees. According to esti

mates, workplace incivility has

doubled over the past two decades
and has an average annual impact
on companies of $14,000 per
employee due to loss of produc
tion and work time.
For the study, 70 employees
filled out a survey relating to inci
vility and its effects three times a
day for 10 consecutive workdays.
Interestingly, the researchers
found that "incivility spirals"
when acts of incivility lead to sub
sequent acts of incivility can
occur unintentionally.
"When employees are mentally
fatigued, it is more dif ficult for
them to keep their negative
impulses and emotions in check,
which leads them to be conde
scending and rude to colleagues,"
Johnson noted.
This happens even for employ
ees who desire to be agreeable
and polite; they simply lack the
energy to suppress curt and impa
tient responses.
The study also found that inci
vility spirals occurred in work
places that were perceived as
political (where coworkers "do
what is best for them, not what is
best for the organization").
(IANS)

Khadi Day to be announced soon: Ritu Beri

New Delhi: Ace designer Ritu
Beri, who is trying to give Khadi
a makeover so it sets foot in the
global scenario, says a Khadi
Day will be celebrated soon as a
homage to Mahatma Gandhi's
contribution to the "signature
fabric of India."
It wasn't long ago that some
of the Indians flaunted their
best handloom pieces and
shared their photographs sup
porting the #IWearHandloom
campaign online. Will there be a
similar campaign or a National
Khadi Day?
"The Khadi Day is going to be
announced soon as a homage
towards Mahatma Gandhi's con
tributions to the fabric," Beri
told IANS here.
Excited about it, but don't
have anything made of Khadi?
Get your hands on some of the
pieces from Beri's latest collec
tion. T he Khadi and Village
Industries Commission (KVIC)
recently launched the Exclusive
Ritu Beri's Khadi Collection
here.
"Khadi is the oldest and a tra
ditional form of handspun fab
ric of India. The endeavor is to
try to give Khadi a makeover to
set its foot in the global sce

The Khadi and Village Industries Commission (KVIC) recently

launched the Exclusive Ritu Beri's Khadi Collection in New Delhi
(Image courtesy: dtnext.in)
nario and to introduce stateof
the art designs and styles in
garments made in Khadi," she
said. Her new collection con
sists of IndoWestern silhou
ettes and reflects the Indian
charm with a modern flavor.
The silhouettes are a mix of our
rich tradition with a contempo
rary look. The collection is an
eclectic blend of ghagras, sal
wars, jackets and tops.
Was is it a deliberate decision
to launch it a few days prior to
Independence Day?
"Yes, we had planned to
launch it around this date. It

would be ideal for people to

wear and promote Khadi on this
special day for their country as
appealed by our Prime Minister
Narendra Modi to have at least
one Khadi g arment in their
wardrobe," said the advisor for
Khadi promotion.
She has more plans to make
the fabric a wardrobe staple.
"We plan to do lots of activi
ties and take various initiatives
including fashion shows show
casing khadi creations. We plan
to do shows for kids and adults
in Khadi. We w ill be doing
impressive promot ions and

exhibitions related to Khadi,"

shared the internat ionally
known designer.
Beri, who has an experience of
25 years in designing clothes
for international and national
ce lebrities including Nicole
Kidman, Madhuri DixitNene
and Katrina Kaif, believes Khadi
is a powerful preindependence
fabric of India.
"I believe Khadi is the signa
ture fabric of India. It is the old
est handspun fabric which has
been widely used for genera
tions in India. The endeavor is
to encourage national and inter
national fashion designers to
create their collections using
Khadi. We need to be proud of
this fabric and create an exclu
sivity that is so well deserved,"
she said.
Beri has also been roped in to
design a new uniform for Indian
Railways' staf f. How is that
shaping up?
"For now, we are researching
on various possibilities and try
ing to see what best fabric
would work given the climatic
conditions. We are making uni
forms and bags for various
institutions. There is a lot in the
pipeline."

28

August 13-19, 2016

TheSouthAsianTimes.info

HUMOR

ALL TRUMPED UP
Donald Trumps candidacy this election season has made media ratings great
again. The cartoonists are also having a field day at his expense. Cartoons mocking
his Democratic rival in the race for the White House are, however, few and far
between. Here are some of the best we could find from the campaign trail.

A F Branco

Dan Wasserman Boston Globe

Mike Lester

Hartford Courant

The Denver Post

Columbia Tribune, Missouri

Laughter is the Best Medicine

BEST
RATE
FOR
INDIA
AND
PAKISTAN
New York Head Quarter
422S Broadway
HICKSVILLE
NY 11801

5168271010

by Mahendra Shah
Mahendra Shah is an architect by education, entrepreneur by profession, artist and
humorist, cartoonist and writer by hobby. He has been recording the plight of the
immigrant Indians for the past many years in his cartoons. Hailing from Gujarat,
he lives in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

TheSouthAsianTimes.info

ASTROLOGY

August 13-19, 2016

29

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

Delhi, India: +91-11- 2644 9898, 2648 9899
psharma@premastrologer.com; www.premastrologer.com

By Dr Prem Kumar Sharma

AUGUST 1319, 2016

ARIES: Timely and swift action would
give an edge over others at professional
front. Good advice from family members
will help in reducing mental tension/pressure.
New moneymaking opportunities will be lucra
tive. Blossoming love life brings happiness.
Creative hobbies are likely to keep you relaxed.
Af fordable luxury vacation will explore your
desires. Its time to invest in property and get
most profitable method to maximize your bank
balance. Time to bring changes by adopting a
new & more balanced attitude in daily life.
TAURUS: Colleagues and subordinates
will lend a helping hand enabling to
complete the work on time. Sudden
good news in the evening will bring cheers for
the entire family. You get some financial
rewards as dedication & hard work gets
noticed.
Romance is likely to intensify through recre
ational activities & entertainment. With a posi
tive outlook & confidence, you succeed in
impressing people around you. Perfect get
away time for you and your partner. Investing
overseas can provide you new business oppor
tunities. Cut yourself away from ideas & beliefs
that have outlived their utility.
GEMINI: Success in completing difficult
assignments brings a lot of laurels at
work. Your efforts bring success & hap
piness at family front. Monetary gains are like
ly to be from more than one source. Romantic
opportunity comes your way as your sparkling
sunshine smile injures a lively & tender heart.
Mental alertness would enable to solve a tricky
problem. A group of friends or your partner is
looking forward for a vacation with you.
Selling your plot might increase your bank bal
ance. A simple effort would be needed to break
old habits.

CANCER: Selfconfident would enable

to convey your point of view with ease
a workplace. You achieve success in
personal work with the timely help & support
provided by family members. A new financial
deal gets finalized paving the way for fresh
money. Romance touches new heights, as part
ner positively responds. A cheerful state of
mind brings mental peace. A leisure trip will
prove to be a premium time for you. Buyers
will get attracted to your property as your
property value is good. Make sure you avoid
rash decisions.
LEO: Mental clarity gives a decisive
edge over all competitors at profession
al front. Misunderstandings with near
ones in the family will get cleared. Financial
position will improve later in the week. You are
likely to find someone with whom you will
enjoy the ecstasies of love. Good time to divert
attention to spirituality to enhance mental
toughness. You might get a chance for business
trip, which will help you in new connections. If
you wish to achieve a good deal in property
then try at commercial basis. You need to take
a decision after a careful thinking but act
quickly.
VIRGO: Calculated risks would enables
to complete the project on t ime.
Children would do their best to keep
you happy. Real estate investment would be
lucrative.
Love comes your way as friendship turns into
romance. A pleasure trip gives the muchneed
ed tonic to health. Traveling overseas would be
an experience full of spark that enlightens
your imagination. Develop an attitude to be
successful on your property investment plans.
Dont forget to engage yourself in some cre
ative work.

13th August, 2016

Ruled planet: Uranus Ruled by no: 4
Traits in you: Being an active, sensible, enthusias
tic, authoritative, and energetic person, you have
enough capability to perform very well in your
professional career.
Health this year: You will find improvements in
your health though working long at office.
Finance this year: Some of you may visit abroad
for business trips as you areplanning to enhance
your business territory. You will get success in
you new ventures and this will make you finan
cially stable.
Career this year: Your intelligence will enable you
create wonders in your profession. However, you
should work on your impatience, whim and
stubbornness. You should plan something to exe
cute your plans in this year. You will find luck and
success easily this year if you g rab the
opportunities at right times. You will find good
opportunities by developing new relationships
and attachments.
Romance this year: Some of you may get married
to your desired partners this year.
Lucky month: January , February and April

may be lucky for you as you will have an emo

tional and romantic attachment.
Lucky month: November , April and June

LIBRA: A firm commitment will not

only enable to achieve professional
targets but also to realise your dreams.
You are likely to be benefited as family mem
bers positively respond. Investment in stocks &
mutual funds would help in earning profits.
You are likely find comfort in the arms of
romantic partner. Cutting down the number of
parties and pleasure jaunts would help in keep
ing in good mood. Travel plans for better com
munication will be helpful for new horizons. If
you are looking for a surefine method to earn
on your property, student rental could be
exactly what you need. Be happy no matter
what the situation is. This is the secret of
enjoying a successful life.
SCORPIO: Cooperative nature brings
desired results at professional front.
Parents and friends will do their best to
keep you happy. Longterm investment in
stocks & mutual funds will enable to earn prof
its. Love and romantic encounter will this week
keep you in a cheerful state. A beneficial week
to work on things that will improve your
health. Business or vacation traveling is what
you needed right now. Looking to buy proper
ty, then go for commercial one. this week you
would need mind more than heart to save
reputation.
SAGITTARIUS: For some change of job
would bring mental satisfaction. A
promising week to plan things for your
progeny. Improvement in finances is certain.
Sudden romantic encounter is foreseen this
week.
Your confidence and energy will be high this
week. Implementation of new ideas to travel
will be beneficiary for you on work front. Good
time to purchase a property. Personal prob
lems would require taking cautious moves.

CAPRICORN : Your inner values cou

pled with a positive attitude will bring
success at work. You would be the cen
ter of attraction at a social gathering that you
attend especially with family. Speculation cou
pled with some unexpected gains improves
financial health. A promising week for romance
when your innovation infuses a new spirit in it.
A week when smile will perpetually be on your
face and strangers will seem familiar. Travel
plans for ambitions are in full bloom. A good
deal for your new property is ready to be
made. Maintain a distance form from gossips
and rumours.
AQUARIUS: Responding positively &
quickly to new ideas in business will go
in your favour. You would prefer to
relax and enjoy the company of family members
in the evening. A new source of income will gen
erate through influential contacts. Partner
brings immense romantic pleasure even if work
pressure occupies your mind Your energy level
will be high. Better to channelise it in a positive
direction. A beckon destination sounds tempt
ing to you. Buying overseas property will be
beneficiary for you. Make sure you avoid pick
ing up an argument especially on petty issues.
PISCES: Calculated risks at professional
front will be rewarded with success. this
week you move with new excitement &
confidence as you receive support from family
and friends. Investment made this week would
enhance prosperity and financial security.
Romance rules heart & mind this week. Positive
outlook impresses those around you besides
keeping you fit & fine. Planning a trip for your
love will embrace you and your spouse. You can
apply for your home loan. If possible, make
efforts to interact with strangers and if needed
lend a helping hand to them.

ANNUAL PREDICTIONS: FOR THOSE BORN IN THIS WEEK

14th August, 2016

Ruled planet: Mercury Ruled by no: 5
Traits in you: Your guiding star, Mercury makes
you practical, intelligent, distinguished, respon
sive, unique and dashing individual. You possess
friendly and cooperative. However, you should
control your being impatient and shorttempered
ness.
Health this year: You may remain tensed for the
health of your spouse.
Finance this year: You will be in financial gain
this year as your business will grow. This will
enhance your confidence. You will be able to set
tle down your legal matters this year and find
peace from the results.
Career this year: You will find new proposals and
work assignments this year. Some of you may get
good increments and promotions as well in your
professional life. If you are a sportsman or an
artist, you can expect fame towards the end of the
year.
Romance this year: Your relationship with your
partner might get ruined due to minor issues. If
you have never been in a relationship, this year

15th August, 2016

Ruled planet: Venus Ruled by no: 6
Traits in you: Venus being your ruling planet
of fers you with a charismatic personality and
intelligence. You will always find peace of mind.
Health this year: You may find blessings of a
sacred person to remain physically and mentally
healthy.
Finance this year: You may find your friends help
ful enough to support you financially. You may
get influence from one of your female friends,
which will bring new dimensions to your life. You
have to ignore them who approach you for loans
and financial assistance.
Career this year: As a vivid learner, you will get
the chance to move ahead of others when it
comes to new technology. However, you have to
work on your nature of being lazy, moody. You
should control yourself from interfering in the
affairs of others.
Romance this year: Your partner will be with you
in every situation you are in. You will be relieved
with the helping hand of your partner.
Lucky month: October, January , April and July
16th August, 2016
Ruled planet: Neptune Ruled by no: 7
Traits in you: Your ruling planet Neptune makes
you full of energy, ambition, and honesty. You like
to enjoy independence in your life to the maxi
mum. You have a sharp memory to memorize
whatever you study. Being innovative and born
talented, you have all the capabilities to impress
others. However, you need work on your nature
of behaving impatient and unpredictable.
Health this year: You may need to take extra care
of your health as the movement of your planet
may make you fall sick throughout this year. It is
advised to practice yoga and meditation in a regu
lar basis. It will not only improve your mental
health but also make you physically fit.
Finance this year: If you are into business, this
year will prove to be very lucky for you as you
will expand your business by launching new and
profitable ideas. You will gain enough money if
you invest in stocks.

Career this year: You have the best time to take

important decisions for your professional life this
year. It is advisable for you to gather knowledge
and information on various topics. You need to
make new and long lasting contacts to get help in
future. You will try your level best to achieve your
desired goals.
Romance this year: Your romantic affiliation with
your partner may make your bond more stronger.
You may plan to get married this year.
Lucky month: September , May and June
17th August, 2016
Ruled planet: Saturn Ruled by no: 8
Traits in you: You are bestowed with the charac
teristics such as energetic, realistic, dependable,
hardworking, and highly disciplined. Your duties
and responsibilities bear the most value than any
thing else in your life. However, you have to look
after your nature of behaving stubborn and show
ing jealousy at wrong situations.
Health this year: You will enjoy a sound health.
However, you may suffere from minor backaches
due to sitting more time in work.
Finance this year: T hough there will be an
improvement in your financial status this year,
you will end up increasing your expenses as well.
If your decision of investing comes correct, you
may be benefited or else you may lose your
money. Many of your friend and relatives may
visit you this year. They may bring you gifts in
form of money.
Career this year: You need to concentrate on proj
ects that would bring long term gains rather than
bothering about small projects. Some of you may
get opportunities to get new employments.
Romance this year: You may find this year roman
tic enough to make your year pleasing and happy.
Lucky month: September, November, March and
April
18th August, 2016
Ruled planet: Mars Ruled by no: 9
Traits in you: Being under the influence of Mars,
you are blessed with dignity, sensitiveness,
courage, confidence and diplomacy. You are born
simple and helpful. You need to work on your
nature of becoming impatient.
Health this year: You will take help of spirituality
later this year for the betterment of your mental

health. However, you w ill remain healthy

physically.
Finance this year: You should not spend too much
money to buy luxury. This may land you in finan
cial crisis later in the year. The peace at your
home may get ruined to financial crisis and
health issues. Though you may face a dif ficult
time regarding to money earlier this year, you
will find a solution or a new source of income
later, which would solve your financial problems.
Career this year: You may bring huge changes in
your professional life this year. You may expect a
transfer or promotion in the middle of this year.
Those who are on a foreign trip in the second half
of the year will find the trip enjoyable and excit
ing.
Romance this year: You will be enjoying a dis
turbed relationship with your partner as you
would not be able to show required care and con
cern. If you are unmarried, you may decide to
remain so for at least two years.
Lucky month: December , January and April
19th August, 2016
Ruled planet: Sun Ruled by no: 1
Traits in you: Your star Sun makes you active,
dynamic, confident, responsible and a talented.
You have the scope to learn new things and cre
ate new ideas. However, you have to take care of
your nature of behaving improvident and domi
nating.
Health this year: You will remain healthy provid
ed you get your checkup done regularly.
Finance this year: You will find new money mak
ing opportunities pretty result oriented if you
concentrate on you work and give your best. Your
assumptions on pretty things may not help you
gain anything rather it would make you feel mis
erable later. You may invest on land or house for
better returns.
Career this year: You will not take enough time to
complete your pending tasks this year. You will
find your job interesting enough. You may excel
in your domain and get appreciated from your
higher management with a better salary hike.
Romance this year: You will enjoy a very good
relationship with your spouse this year. Your
romantic relationships will be strengthened this
year.
Lucky month: September, December and January

30

August 13-19, 2016

SPIRITUAL AWARENESS

TheSouthAsianTimes.info

Chapter excerpt from the book: Empowering Your Soul through Meditation

Know the true nature of your soul

By Sant Rajinder Singh

Ji Maharaj

ithin us are riches greater

than any we can ever
accumulate on earth. We
have inside us a source of knowl
edge from which all other knowl
edge flows.
A love far greater and fulfilling
than any we can know in the outer
world is waiting to embrace us
with open arms within. At our core
is a strength and power that can
enable us to overcome any fear.
Underlying our separateness as
individuals is a connectedness and
oneness to all life. Awaiting us
inside is a bliss and joy so fulfilling
that we need no other outer intoxi
cants to make us happy. All these
gifts lie within us in the empow
ered soul.
The soul is a source of tremen
dous wisdom, love, and power, yet
we remain ignorant of its treasures
when we allow it to be overpow
ered by the mind, the senses, and
the physical body. When the mind
and body assert power over the
soul, the soul forgets itself. But the
empowered soul is our true nature,
and it is time we reclaim the soul
so that its gifts can enrich our life.
T here are two ways through
which to view ourse lves w ith
regard to the soul.
The first is to view ourselves pri
marily as a body and mind. When
we see ourselves in this manner,
we say that we are a mind and
body that have a soul.
The second is to see ourselves
primarily as a soul. W hen we
change perspective and identify
with the soul, we say that we are a
soul who has or wears a mind and
body. To assess how we look at
ourselves is one of our goals. If we
think we are a mind and body,
then ours is a journey to find the
soul. If we realize that we are the
soul, which has been given a mind
and body to maneuver through the
physical world, then our goal is to
further empower the soul. By
empowering the soul we recover
its natural control over the mind
and senses.
The aim of Empowering Your
Soul through Meditation is to help
reacquaint us with the qualities of
the soul and provide direction for
its empowerment.
The souls power has been for

gotten. The mind, the senses, the

body, and the pulls of the physical
world have placed the soul in a
state of forgetfulness from which
we must awaken. W hen we
empower our soul, its wisdom,
immortality, love, fearlessness,
connectedness, and bliss add a
new dimension to our life.
Many people live and die without
ever realizing the full power and
potential of their soul. At some
time in their life, they may begin to
wonder about the soul, about God,
and about the purpose of their
existence. This search for meaning
and purposethe spiritual quest
is one that people pursue in indi
vidual ways. Some seek answers in
scripture while others search in
places of worship. Some go beyond
their own re ligion to find the
answers of fered in other faiths.
Whichever method one adopts, the
direction one follows to find the
answers to lifes quest ions is
known as the spiritual path. It is
the spiritual path that leads us to
the realization of our inner self, to
the soul.
Many people pass through life
never realizing who they are and
never certain about the purpose of
their existence. In times of trouble
or in the face of death, they may
raise these questions but may not
follow them through to a fulfilling
conclusion or else may abandon
the process when the bad times
pass. But those who have a burn
ing desire to find the answers to
the mysteries of life can find them.
Fortunately, there are people in
the world who have found spiritual
fulfillment and can guide us. If we
look through history we find that
in every generation there have
been people who have realized
themselves as soul and have real
ized God. Some of their wisdom
and experiences have been record
ed in history and, in some cases, a
religion has been created from
their teachings. Other realized
souls have come and gone but
have le ft behind no records
because they did not found a reli
gion or leave behind any scrip
tures.
Some of them we know of
through references by other peo
ple who wrote about them. One
thing is clear: these realized souls
have the ability to teach us how to
realize ourselves. If we find such a
being, we can learn how we, too,
can discover our soul and its
attributes. True knowledge comes
from seeing and experiencing on
our own. We may read what others
write or listen to what others say,
but we cannot be fully satisfied
until we experience it for our
selves.
This book touches on the two
aspects of spiritual knowledge that

The soul is a source of tremendous

wisdom, love, and power, yet we remain
ignorant of its treasures when we allow
it to be overpowered by the mind, the
senses, and the physical body. When the
mind and body assert power over the
soul, the soul forgets itself. But the
empowered soul is our true nature,
and it is time we reclaim the soul so
that its gifts can enrich our life.
can help us realize our soul: the
theoretical knowledge, and the
personal or practical knowledge.
The theoretical side consists of
what other realized people have
said about the soul (such as what
are some of the qualitieswisdom,
immortality, fearlessness, love,
connectedness, and bliss). The per
sonal or practical side consists of a
technique that I learned from a
fully realized being. I wish to share
this technique to help others real
ize their soul on their own.
On the theoretical side, a basic
agreement among enlightened
souls is that we are not just a phys
ical body, but we are also the soul
or spirit behind the body. It is the
soul that that gives us life. When
the soul is in the body, we are
physically alive. When the soul
leaves the body at the time of
death, the body ceases to exist. The
body may perish, but the soul that
inhabits it is immortal.
The soul continues to exist after
our physical death.
We are aware of our physical
body because we can look at it,
feel it, and listen to sounds coming
from it. However, where and what
is the soul? How can we recognize
it? What are its characteristics and
qualities? This book provides a
way for us to accomplish two
tasks: the theoretical understand
ing of our true selves as soul; and
the practical technique for the
realization of our soul and the
empowering of it to guide our
lives.

Some of us may spend our lives

searching for knowledge in the
world outside.
Little do we know that the
source of all answers, the universal
wisdom, lies within us. Some of us
may find that at times our life is
thwarted by fear and anxiety,
hopelessness and depression, yet
we have a source of fearlessness
within us that can help us over
come any inner turmoil. We fear
our own death and the passing
away of our loved ones. We are
petrified of the unknown and what
awaits us beyond this life. But we
do not realize that immortality is
ours. We crave love and seek it
many places. But there is an
unconditional love that is ours
awaiting us with open arms. We
need only turn in the right direc
tion to find it. We feel alone and
unconnected in this world. But
there is a place of unity and con
nectedness within us. If we could
but only tap it we would find the
richness of relationships with oth
ers, with nature, and with all life.
Exploration within will help us
discover our own potential. Once
we learn to tap into our inner
resources, we experience a pro
found transformation that will
enrich all areas of our lifefrom
personal relations, to physical,
mental and emotional health, to
our work, to our spiritual growth,
and the attainment of our lifes
goals. This transformation can
bring peace and joy into our lives
and can contribute to a peaceful,

loving world. The Empowered Soul

is a manual for daily living and
personal discovery.
From the outset, we should
define certain terminology to
ensure that there is no confusion
in how words are being used
throughout the book. The term
soul is de fined as our true
essence or spiritual sidethe part
of us that lives beyond the death of
our physical body. The soul exists
whether it has a body or mind.
When it enters this world, it is
given a body and mind. As human
beings, we are thus embodied
souls or souls with a body and
mind.
The terms we or us refer to
us as human beings or embodied
souls. The process of finding the
soul is referred to as tapping into
or discovering our soul within us.
When we finally do discover our
soul and identify with it as being
our true nature, then the soul is
referred to as the empowered
soul, a soul that has recognized
itself and is aware that it is the
essence of who we really are, that
it is the guiding power behind the
body and mind.
True joy is not as elusive as we
think. We can find lasting happi
ness if we only look in the right
place. Within us lies the unlimited
power and energy of the empow
ered soul. Its rich qualities include
wisdom, fearlessness, immortality,
unconditional love, connectedness,
and bliss. Tapping into the soul
and its power can enrich and
transform our life.
We remain ignorant of these
inner gifts because blockages keep
us from tapping into them. How
can we remove these blockages?
W hat pro cess do we need to
employ to discover all that we
seek? There are simple techniques
for accessing the riches of our
soul. We need not search the four
corners of the earth. We need not
travel into outer space.
These techniques can be prac
ticed in the comfort of our home.
Once we learn to tap into our
inner resources, we can experience
a profound transformation that
can enrich all areas of our life
personal relations; physical, men
tal, and emotional health; profes
sional work; spiritual growth; and
the attainments of our lifes goals.
This transformation cannot only
bring peace and joy to our lives,
but can also contribute to a peace
ful, loving world.
The aim of the book is to provide
a means by which we can reidenti
fy with the soul, (i.e. realize that
the mind and body are merely our
souls outer coverings through
which it can live and work in this
physical world) and to empower
the soul to guide our life.

TheSouthAsianTimes.info

August 13-19, 2016