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India will
compete
with China in
commerce,
trade:
Modi
Arun K Singh assumes charge as Indias envoy to US
Over 50 Indian-origin candidates in UK election
London: Prime Minister David
Cameron's Conservatives looked
on course Friday for a surprise victory in Britain's general election
that could herald more economic
austerity and redefine the country's
future in Europe, AFP reported.
Exit polls upended pre-election
forecasts of a knife-edge contest
between the Conservatives and
Labour, and also pointed to a land-
US AFFAIRS 9
TAKAT JEWELER 15
MOTHERS DAY 18
SPIRITUAL AWARENESS 30
excellence in journalism
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TRISTATE COMMUNITY
By SATimes
Hon. Nasrin Ahmad, the first South Asian elected official in the
State, spoke at Rotary Club Hicksville South meeting Thursday
hosted by AW Mobile. Pictured (from left) are Salil Zaveri,
President, Rotary - Hicksville South; Jerry Kohli, President of AW
Mobile; Nasrin Ahmad; Kawal Sahni, Director Sales and
Marketing, AW Mobile; and Kamlesh Mehta,
Rotary Dist 7255 Governor (2015-16).
TURN PAGE
Letter to Editor
ast week we celebrated the
Fifth Anniversary of the formal inauguration of our Shri
Shirdi Sai Baba Temple at
Flushing, NY. The inauguration
ceremony was well covered by Mr.
Brahm Kanchibotla in 2010 as
published in The South Asian
Times. As a part of our 5th year
celebration, he presented us an
enlarged and framed copy of the
that report in your paper.
We are grateful to you for publishing the news articles and periodic coverage about the temple
programs. It is only due to the
services of people like you that we
are able to reach our community
far and wide and spread the message of Baba.
-Temple Management,
Shri Shirdi Sai Baba Temple
Flushing, NY
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
India will compete with China in...
Continued from page 1
communicate with each other there should really not be
a need for us to go through a third entity," he said.
"That is the level of relationship that we currently
have."
Tories set for surprise UK election...
Continued from page 1
minister since 2010. Also fighting his old seat of
Leicester East is Keith Vaz of the Labour party who is
the seniormost of the Indian-origin MPs, not to mention
his sister Valerie Vaz, also a Labour candidate.
In this election, one of the biggest losers appeared to
be the Liberal Democrats, who were in coalition with
the Conservatives in the outgoing government but who
were suffering a drubbing in early returns.
While they do not give the Conservatives a clear
majority, if the results are borne out they could put
Britain on a collision course with the European Union
as Cameron has promised an in-out referendum on
membership.
Arun K Singh assumes charge as...
Continued from page 1
Obama at a later date. He replaces Ambassador S.
Jaishankar who has been appointed Foreign Secretary
by the Modi government.
A career foreign service officer of 1979 batch, Singh
till two years ago served as the Deputy Chief of
Mission at the Indian Embassy in Washington for four
and half years. Known for his visionary strategic thinking, Singh during his previous stint in Washington
played a key role in strengthening India-US relationship in the first term of the Obama Administration, during which he oversaw the State Visit of Prime Minister
Manmohan Singh to US in 2009 and India visit of
President Obama in 2010.
Singh also served in New York at the Permanent
Mission of India to the UN from 1993 to 1997.
Salman Khan gets 5 years in jail for hit-&-run...
Continued from page 1
Bombay high court granted interim bail barely hours
after his conviction.
Khan challenged his conviction immediately after he
was convicted by the Mumbai sessions court, along
with a plea seeking bail while the court hears the
appeal.
It is possible the high court will grant him regular bail
while it hears his appeal challenging the conviction and
the five-year jail term. But the court may also cancel
the interim bail granted to Khan, sometimes described
as the enfant terrible of Bollywood.
Cartoonist: Mahendra Shah
Art and Design: Vladimir Tomovski
Bhagwati Creations,
Dhiraj Kumar
Web Editor: B.B.Chopra
News Service: HT Media Ltd.
IANS Newswire Services
IANS Washington Bureau
Arun Kumar
arun.kumar@ians,in
Printing: Five Star Printing, NY
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TRISTATE COMMUNITY
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TRISTATE COMMUNITY
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IN BRIEF
he Telugu Literary & Cultural Association (TLCA) on April 25th featured one of the latest successful
Tollywood movies " Yavade Subramanyam" for its members in the Big Cinema, Flushing, NY. The TLCA President
said, "It is always nice to bring a fine
movie to the community members, but it is
truly rare to have the honor of the presence
of both the director and the producer of the
movie with us."
The movie "Yavade Subramanyam"
(Who is Subramanyam?) is a movie about
love, life, power, money and mainly about
"spirituality and self-discovery." The debut
director and scriptwriter Nag Ashwin takes
the audience through a beautiful journey in
pursuit of the answer to one's life time
question, "who am I?" This is the first Tollywood movie mostly shot at the base
camp and at some of the highest points of
Mount Everest. In attempting to prepare
himself, Nag Ashwin trained on an inclined
treadmill for several months prior to the
shoot. Out of the 33 member filming crew,
not all made it through to completion as
several members suffered from altitude
sickness and other ailments. Nag Ashwin
dedicated his debut movie to his deceased
cousin Sirish Bhumi, who was like his
brother.
Dr. Sridevi Bhumi, Dr. Sarat Bhumi,
Mrs. Sadhana & Dr. Malla Reddy, Mr. Mahesh Salladi, and the TLCA Executive
Committee joined President Raji Kuncham
NATIONAL COMMUNITY
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Wei Li is Fulbright-Nehru
Senior Scholar
NATIONAL COMMUNITY
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IN BRIEF
bile are transforming the local services market. Param Parameswaran, Chairman of
Sulekha.com, said, We are pleased to add
GIC to our investor group. Sulekha has architected a remarkably lucrative business
model because of the immediacy, specificity and location-oriented nature of the user
local service needs. Sulekha has been enjoying significant organic growth while being quite capital efficient, making it one of
only a few digital companies in India that
have been profitable.
Promod Haque, Senior Managing Partner
of Norwest Venture Partners, said, Sulekha
is seizing an enormous opportunity in transforming how businesses find local customers and grow and we look forward to
significant scale ahead.
site said. "We didn't realise that it had happened until it was time to clear the scene
and we had one more vehicle than we had
drivers, and that's when the deputies had to
reassess what happened and figure out
where he might be," Maj. Chad Norvell,
with the Fort Bend County Sheriff's Office
was quoted as saying.
A family friend told KPRC 2 News that
Nehra was on his way back home after
picking up dinner for his family when he
encountered the crash.
Investigators said the suspected drunk
driver, Gregory Kure, of Needville, was
arrested. Kure, 30, is charged with driving
under the influence.
"If you can envision a sweet and pure
soul, willing to help anyone in need, who
would open his heart to anyone he saw,
that's Mr. Nehra," a close family friend
Anjali Bakshi-Rami told the news site.
Nehra's wife and two young children are
having a difficult time with this, hoping
and praying for the best and asking anyone
with information about what happened at
the crash site to contact the police, she
said.
US AFFAIRS
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
Pamela Geller
Community College.
Huckabee contested the 2008 Republican
presidential primaries, during which he won
the Iowa caucuses. That win demonstrated his
strong connection with the rural Evangelical
electorate, but he lost momentum while trying
to win over the electorate's most moderate section.The three new candidates join Republican
senators Rand Paul (Kentucky), Ted Cruz
(Texas) and Marco Rubio (Florida) in the bid
to secure their party's presidential candidature.
While analysts see slim chances for any of
the three, their participation reflects the diversity of proposals in the Republican primaries
in the race for the White House.
Heavyweight conservatives, including former Florida governor Jeb Bush and current
Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker are considered to be favorites, though they still have to
announce their candidature.
So far, the Democrats have come up with
only two candidates: former secretary of state,
Hillary Clinton, and independent Senator from
Vermont, Bernie Sanders, a self-proclaimed
Socialist.
10
US AFFAIRS
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
including work done by Nobel Prize-winning economist Joseph Stiglitz and the
Roosevelt Institute, said the senator and
mayor, shows clearly that an increasing disparity between rich and poor, cronyism and
an economic system that works only for
those at the top are bad for the middle class
and bad for our economy.
They then lay out a plan to fix Americas
middle class and economy as a whole, which
includes raising the minimum wage,
strengthening unions collective bargaining
powers, passing equal pay legislation, a paid
family leave requirement, repairing the
flawed student loan system, focusing on
technological research and innovation,
fixing our crumbling infrastructure, passing
trade policies that benefit American workers, strengthening Social Security, and
reforming the tax code to end tax breaks to
billionaires and their corporations.
Rebuilding our middle class wont be easy,
but real change rarely is, Warren and de
Blasio concluded. Its time to be bold. The
American Dream depends on it.
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
INDIA
11
Pranab Mukherjee to visit Russia Sonia launches fiercest attack on Modi government
9) to commemorate
Russia's victory in the
Second World War,
Foreign Secretary S.
Jaishankar told media
persons here.
On the occasion, a
75-member Indian
Army contingent from
the Grenadiers, an
infantry regiment, will
take part in a military
parade in Moscow.
Mukherjee, who will
be accompanied by
union minister Manoj
Sinha on this trip, will
hold bilateral talks with
his Russian counterpart
Vladimir Putin and will
meet top officials of
Russian universities
along with a delegation
President Pranab Mukherjee.
of vice chancellors of
important Indian uniNew Delhi: President Pranab
Mukherjee will embark on a five- versities, who will also be travelday state visit to Russia on May 7, ing with him.
During the presidential visit,
the external affairs ministry said.
On his first official visit as pres- India will conclude nine agreeident, Mukherjee will participate ments with Russia in science and
in the celebrations of the 70th technology as well as higher
anniversary of Victory Day (May education.
ernment is providing 'achche din' only for crony capitalists. Under the pretext of 'Make in India', the government is planning to dilute the rights and interests of
workers and laborers. Do they make nothing in India?"
Gandhi asked.
In a personal attack on Modi, Gandhi accused him of
playing domestic politics on foreign soil, citing his criticism of the previous Congress-led UPA government and
then prime minister Manmohan Singh in France.
12
INDIA
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
SC suspends defamation
suit against Rahul
Rahul Gandhi
OP-ED
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
13
The views expressed in Op Eds are not necessarily those of The South Asian Times.
SEPT 2015
14
OP-ED
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
By Chaitanya Mallapur
Saudi Royalty which never conducted diplomacy above the sound of whispers
are today in battle albeit from the air in Yemen.
The views expressed in Op Eds are not necessarily those of The South Asian Times.
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
FASHION
15
Sourcing some of the best emeralds, tanzanite and diamonds in the world, Takat designs
sparkle with good taste, refinement and sophistication, making them highly coveted by
celebrities who flaunt them on the red carpet and in TV shows. Last week, Takat held a
special viewing of its exquisite collection in New York
Coming from a traditional family
dealing in precious stones in India,
New York based Rayaz Ahmed has
crafted Takat into a glamorous brand
in America since year 2000.
By Jinal Shah
hat started as a small family business in Jaipur in India, Takat has
today grown into a global fine
jewelry brand. Celebrities such as Joan
Rivers, Minnie Driver, Gale Anne, Lily
Collins and Melissa Clair are just some of its
prominent discerning end users.
On April 29, Takat in New York organized
a special viewing of its exquisite collection.
Takat, which means strength in Hindustani,
was founded in 1955 in the Pink City by Haji
Nisar Ahmed Takat, descendant of an ancient
Indian family of precious stone craftsmen. In
1976, with the help of his sons Siraj Ahmed
and Rafeeq Ahmed, he set up a small office
for trading in the Jaipur from where they
started exhibiting at gems and jewelry trade
shows around the world. In 1996, the company opened their first trade office in Bangkok.
In the year 2000, Rayaz Ahmed, grandson of
the founder, opened the companys trade
office in New York City. In 2005, he established a studio for designing and creating
jewelry in the Big Apple.
The high quality colored stones for which
Rayaz Ahmed is known, brings wonderful
depth and beauty to every piece with combinations of emeralds, rubies, sapphires, tanzanite set off with a thick smattering of
sparkle from clusters of diamonds. Most of
the jewelry collection at the private viewing
included emeralds, tanzanite and pearls.
Takats designs featured stones that
demand attention simply by virtue of their
size, rarity and quality. One show-stopping
pendant at the showing stars a Columbian
emerald that weighs an astonishing 108.88
carats. The stone is set among 25.25 carats of
round marquis, and pear cut diamonds. The
chain supporting this exceptional pendent is
impressive as well with 47.02 carats of round
and marquis cut diamonds. The necklace
alone is worth $4.5 million.
Style expert Michael O'Connor, who
worked with the celebrities to coordinate
their red carpet looks, said, Takat uses some
of the best emeralds, tanzanite and diamonds
in the world.
O'Connor has curated a selection of oneof-a-kind jewelry pieces from Takat for
celebrities to borrow for the red carpet to
appearances in TV shows. He is responsible
for the Joan Rivers look at her last appearance in the Tonight Show, Minnie Drivers
look at the Golden Globe Awards 2014 and
many more Hollywood celebrities.
These (Takats) pieces are highly coveted
16
ULTIMATE BOLLYWOOD
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
Salman Khan in a
aijaan.'
poster of 'Bajrangi Bh
Salman
has Rs.200
crore riding
on him
is the amount riding on
him at present, industry
expert Amod Mehra said.
The actor, who will turn
50 later this year, is
believed to have stopped
accepting any new projects
till the verdict was pronounced.
Indian Penal Code: Section 304 (culpable homicide not amounting to murder)
which attracts upto 10 years in prison;
Section 279 (rash and negligent driving)
which stipulates six months jail; Sections
337 & 338 (causing hurt by act endangering life & causing grievous hurt) with punishment upto two years; Section 427
(causing damage to property) with maximum punishment of upto two years
Motor Vehicles Act: Sections 34, 181
(driving vehicle in contravention of rules)
and 185 (driving at great speed after consuming alcohol) with cancellation of driving license
Bombay Prohibition Act: Driving
under influence of alcohol with maximum
six months in jail
April 20: Judge Deshpande sets date
May 6, 2015 for verdict
Defence counsel Shrikant Shivade
forcefully argues against prosecution
charges and closes arguments
March 25: Special Public Prosecutor
Pradeep Gharat closed his case against
Salman after examining 27 witnesses during the re-trial
April 2014: First witness Samba
Gowda deposes in the re-trial, which continues before the Sessions Court with regular hearings
December 2013: Mumbai Sessions
Court orders a fresh trial against the actor
and recording of fresh evidence from all
witnesses who had also deposed before the
Metropolitan Magistrate court.
July 23, 2013: Sessions court frames
charges against Salman invoking the
enhanced charge of culpable homicide not
amounting to murder
December 2012: Bandra
Metropolitan Magistrate Court rules that a
case has been made out under Sec. 304
and commits the trial to the Sessions Court
March 2011: The prosecution seeks
enhanced charges against Salman
May 2007: Chemical analysis report
suggested that Salman was drunk at the
time of the accident
October 2006: Bandra Metropolitan
Magistrate Court frames charges against
the actor under Section 304 of the IPC and
other sections
December 2003: In a breather for
Salman, Supreme Court rules that the
magistrate should, after perusal of all the
evidence, decide whether to invoke harsher sections of IPC
October 21, 2002: The Bandra
police file charge-sheet, slapping Section
304 on Salman
September 28, 2002: Around 2 a.m.
Salman Khan's Toyota Land Cruiser rams
into a roadside bakery in Bandra West,
close to his Galaxy Apartments seafront
home. Five people sleeping are injured,
one of whom later dies.
ULTIMATE BOLLYWOOD
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
or from
Ranbir Kapo
vet.'
el
V
y
ba
'Bom
17
Review
'Gabbar Is
Back' - Akshay
redefines
superhero
et's
g i v e
the drivel' its
due. Films about heroes who harangue
and punish the corrupt go back to the
time when Guru Dutt turned his back on
a hopeless humanity in "Pyaasa". Since
then, corruption has grown epidemic.
And so have films on the theme.
What sets "Gabbar is Back" apart in
the genre is its unabashedly massy tone.
Here is a film about a man who decides
to take charge of a social order on the
brink of anarchy when all the formal
faculties fail. He doesn't believe in reprimanding the corrupt. He believes in punishing them with death.
So, we have bribe-happy district collectors and other law enforcers hanging
limp on trees and hoardings.
Ouch!
Yup, this Gabbar means business. And
to the character's good fortune, he is
played by the very watchable Akshay
Kumar. For my money and time, Akshay
is by far the most complete star-actor
package among contemporary A-lister
heroes in Bollywood. The way in which
he delivers his lines on the rampancy of
corruption, his demeanour and his wry
detached disdain for the corrupt, are all
brought to the surface with a forceful
equilibrium constantly at play.
This is a star-actor at the pinnacle of
his power. Akshay exudes the kind of
18
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
t age nine I begged my mother for a puppy. A lifelong vegetarian, and animal-lover-from-a-distance, my mother had never before lived with, let
alone raised a dog. Juggling running a charity, a home, and
my own academics and extracurriculars - my mom had
hardly enough time for a weekend movie. Yet after four
decades of no pets, it took her less than six months to agree
to my wish.
My sister Abracadabra, a long haired German pointer, is
now eight years old and has received more mothers love
and attention than anyone I know apart from myself and
thats only because I had a head start.
My mother not only lives for others, but also finds joy in
sacrifice. She has always been, and will continue to be, the
most impressive person I have ever known.
-Akash Mishra Ondaatje
Studying at McGill University, Montreal, Canada
Continued on page 19
FEATURE
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
19
Some pop culture celebrities have lately been seen sporting the bindi, which was traditionally worn by women in India in
the middle of the eyebrows to embody ajna chakra, or the third-eye.
name is a tribute to not only the team's ageold pride and personality, but also to the
honorable achievements and personal
strength of Native Americans.
Fans of the Redskins state that the team is
not decreasing the value of Native
American traditions, but instead is expressing its appreciation of the culture through its
incorporation of a Native American term
that did not always have a negative connotation in society.
The debate over whether it should be
acceptable for women of all cultures to wear
bindis as decorative marks matches a similar tone as emanated by the debate over
renaming the Washington Redskins. Those
who are offended by non-South Asian
females wearing bindis claim that these
women are disintegrating the authenticity
and value of the bindi by wearing it for decorative purposes.
The bindi was traditionally worn to
embody ajna chakra, or the third-eye that
can see beyond traditional dimensions into
future wisdom. Though an abstract concept,
the location of the bindi in the center of the
forehead gives concrete meaning to this
idea, as it represents balance. Those who
DIASPORA
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
to
Poland/Israel," he wrote in one
message.
In another, he said: "Britain's
youngest Jewish MP, Luciana
Berger, is facing criticism over
her record of...loyalties."
The reference to divided
ate effect."
UKIP leader Nigel Farage
apologized for the comments
attributed to Sen and those posted on his Twitter account.
He said: "We've got over 5,000
people standing for us at this
election, and less than a handful
have caused us a problem.
"UKIP is a non-sectarian, nonracist party and we have actually
got a remarkable number of people standing for us from every
single walk of life, from every
religion and every ethnic group
in this country."
The news of Sen's suspension
comes after Janice Atkinson, one
of the leading figures in the
party and a parliamentary candidate, was expelled from UKIP
over fake expenses claims.
The anti-immigration UKIP is
against the UK's membership of
the European Union (EU).
It currently has no major presence in the British Parliament
and is not expected to register
any major impact in the May 7
elections either.
SUBCONTINENT
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
21
Toll from Nepal quake Nepal asks foreign rescue teams to leave
escalates to 7,557
Sindhupalchowk district recorded 2,911
casualties, while Kathmandu witnessed 1,202
US Marines begin
relief operations
Kathmandu: US military aircraft, heavy equipment and air trafc controllers
will start arriving in Nepal as part of an American relief operation following the
devastating earthquake, a senior US ofcer said.
Brigadier General Paul Kennedy of the US Marine Corps told Reuters that the
six military aircraft, including two helicopters, will arrive from Saturday,
accompanied by 100 marines and lifting equipment under an agreement
reached with Nepal's government earlier in the week.
The US military would help manage the growing piles of relief supplies clogging Nepal's only international airport in Kathmandu, which has struggled to
distribute the aid arriving from around the world since the earthquake. "You
don't want to build up a mountain of supplies," Kennedy said.
Kennedy's own ight was close to "a fuel emergency" because it had to spend
some time circling over Kathmandu after a long ight from his base in
Okinawa, Japan he said. "Nepal serves as the worst-case scenario for military
planners," Kennedy said. "It is land-locked and there are very few useable airelds that will handle military-sized aircraft."
Kennedy did not say how extensive the US presence in Nepal would grow
after the initial arrival of four vertical take-off Osprey aircraft, two Bell Hueys
and equipment such as forklift trucks to help move relief supplies at the airport.
Soldiers carrying portable radars and including airstrip repair experts, will be
sent to enable two provincial airports to receive heavy transport ights day and
night. The airports being considered include one at trekking destination
Pokhara and another near the birthplace of Buddha.
22
SUBCONTINENT
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
US gave Pak arms worth $5.4 bn since 2001: Report US posts hefty bounty
on four key IS figures
India has time and again opposed the sale of such equipment to
Pakistan as it apprehends that Islamabad may eventually use
them against India.
Washington: The
State Department is
seeking tips that can
lead to the arrest of
Abd al-Rahman
Mustafa al-Qaduli,
Abu Mohammed alAdnani, Tarkhan
Ta y u m u r a z o v i c h
Batirashvili and Tariq Bin-alTahar Bin al Falih al-Awni alHarzi.
The US administration has
posted a bounty of $20 million
for information on four key figures of the Islamic State (IS), an
extremist group it is fighting in
Iraq and Syria.
The State Department is seeking tips that can lead to the
arrest of Abd al-Rahman
Mustafa al-Qaduli, Abu
Mohammed al-Adnani, Tarkhan
Tayumurazovich Batirashvili
and Tariq Bin-al-Tahar Bin al
Falih al-Awni al-Harzi.
Al-Qaduli, once a deputy to
the leader of Al Qaeda in Iraq
Abu Musab al-Zarqawi,
rejoined the IS following his
release from prison in early
2012 and is operating from
Reconstruction key to next Nepal may call off this year's Everest expeditions
stage of Nepal recovery: UN
said.
Since April 29, aid agencies
have distributed 52,000 tarpaulins in 29 earthquake-affected
districts, and more than 230,000
more are en route to Nepal. The
distribution of more than 2,000
tons of food has also begun
across 15 districts, said
Dujarric. Moreover, the UN
Development Programme said
that alongside humanitarian
relief, reconstruction is needed
to start in Nepal.
INTERNATIONAL
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
23
The
right-wing
UK
Independence Party is expected to
bag just two or three seats but can
be a spoiler for the Conservatives
in many seats. The Scottish
Nationalist Party, which has
sought independence from the
union, is predicted to win almost
all the 59 seats in Scotland.
A survey conducted by BBC
Asian Network/ICM has shown
that nearly a quarter of Asian voters are yet to make up their minds
about the ballot. The survey also
found that, of those who had
decided, 39 percent said they may
change their minds before polling
day.
The survey indicates that the
Asian vote in Britain, traditionally considered to lean towards
Labour, is still up for grabs.
Asians constitute just about five
percent of the British population
but they are crucial in 168 marginal
seats
including
Southampton, Oxford, Sherwood,
The Islamic State (IS) has taken responsibility for the attack.
Fourth-time Israel PM
Benjamin Netanyahu
BUSINESS
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
Lok Sabha clears way for pan-India goods and services tax
New Delhi: The Lok Sabha gave
its consent to a far-reaching
amendment to the constitution to
pave the way for a pan-India
goods and services tax regime and
create a unified market across the
country, doing away with multiplicity of central and state levies.
The Constitution (One Hundred
and Twenty Second Amendment)
Bill, 2014, was passed by a division with 336 ayes, 11 against and
10 abstentions. Lok Sabha
Speaker Sumitra Mahajan
announced the bill was approved
with two-thirds majority of the
house, as required.
Earlier, replying to the debate on
the amendment bill, Finance
Minister Arun Jaitley refuted
opposition claims that the government was pushing through some
amendments to some provisions
The main purpose of the bill is a unified regime that will subsume
most indirect taxes levied by the central and state governments.
parliamentary panel.
The finance minister said the
same recommendations of the parliamentary panel, when the original bill was referred to it, were
incorporated in the amended version and that the opposition had no
reason to fault the government on
this count.
One such amendment, he cited
as an example, was to set up a
goods and services tax council,
with representations from the central and the state governments, to
oversee any dispute, rather than
leave it to a panel led by a retired
Supreme Court judge.
Jaitley also warned that referring
the amendment bill back to the relevant Standing Committee of
Parliament would result in missing
the target date for its implementation from April 1 next year,
despite the broad consensus that
had already been achieved after
extensive consultations.
The constitutional amendment
bill needs to be passed by a twothird majority in both houses of
parliament and by the legislatures
of half of the states in the country
to become a law.
The main purpose of the bill is a
unified regime that will subsume
most indirect taxes levied by the
central and state governments
such as excise duty, service tax,
value added tax, sales tax and
octroi to facilitate a common market across the country.
"There would be more no tax on
tax," the finance minister said
referring to how these levies were
leading to duplication, escalating
the final price paid by customers,
stoking inflation, standing in the
way of efficient supply chains and
preventing economies of scale.
SPORTS
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
25
Floyd Mayweather with his title belts after defeating Manny Pacquiao
of the Philippines in Nevada last weekend.
26
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
SELF HELP
Three steps to
improve your credit
ood credit is a key ingredient in succeeding financially; yet building a
strong foundation takes time. If
you are new to credit or are working to improve it, there are many
steps you can take to put you on a
path to stronger credit.
Here are three essential steps
that help you get started:
Check your credit report:
Experts recommend checking your
credit report at least once a year.
Your credit report contains details
of your credit history, including
balances, credit limit and payment
status. Lenders, apartment managers and some employers may
check your credit report to see how
responsible you are with money.
When you check your report,
make sure it contains current and
accurate information. If you find
errors, correct them as soon as possible because they may negatively
impact your credit score and even
indicate possible identity theft.
You can request a free copy of
your credit report from each of
three major credit reporting agencies -- Equifax, Experian and
TransUnion -- once each year at
www.AnnualCreditReport.com or
call toll-free 1-877-322-8228.
Make sure youre paying your
bills on time: Life happens and you
may find yourself forgetting to pay
a bill on time. Because your payment history is one of the biggest
factors in your credit score, its
important that you stay organized
and keep track of all your bills.
This applies to more than just credit card bills, but also when it comes
to rent, utilities and cell phone
payments.
Using free online tools, often
yummy together.
Tell the Birds
Does your mom love the outdoors? Pick out a unique birdhouse
and bird seed for her, so she can
enjoy the natural sounds of the season. You could even turn it into an
art and crafts project and make a
birdhouse together.
This Mothers Day, show Mom
how much you care, while making
memories you can cherish for years
to come.
Grab all the essentials like charcoal, chips, dip, sodas and bottled
waters. Dont forget to get extra
paper products like plates and napkins -- they will go fast at an outdoor party.
You can also save time by downloading DG digital coupons to
enjoy all the savings on your
favorite summer items without the
coupon clipping. With everything
from food and drink to lawn and
garden accessories, a discount
retailer like Dollar General can be a
one stop shop for all of your party
needs.
With a little creativity and some
planning ahead, the perfect summer
party doesnt have to break the
bank.
(StatePoint)
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
SCI-TECH
27
India tops list of drone-importing nations; wide use after Nepal quake
New Delhi: The decision by
India's National Disaster
Response Force (NDRF) to use
drones to help Nepal map the
scale of devastation caused by last
month's earthquake indicates how
India has enthusiastically taken to
these pilot-less aircraft.
With 22.5 percent the world's
unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV)
imports, between 1985 and 2014,
India ranks first among droneimporting nations, followed by
the UK and France. UAVs, or
drones as they are commonly
known, are pilotless aerial vehicles used for reconnaissance, surveillance, intelligence gathering
and aerial combat missions.
The advantage of UAVs is that
they come at a fraction of the cost
of manned aircraft with no risk to
human lives. The data here relate
to
drone/UAV
transfers
(imports/exports) between countries. There are also drones that
have been indigenously developed, so the actual number of
UAVs possessed by each nation
may be different.
A total of 1,574 UAV transfers
have taken place across the world
The Indian Air Force and Navy are already operating about a
few score Heron drones in a number of squadrons.
Daily Mail.
"Demand is increasingly catching up. It is growing again and
again, and it is harder and harder to
keep ahead. We have done very
well for many years to keep ahead.
But we are getting to that point
where we can't keep going forever," he added.
The boom of internet television,
streaming services and ever-more
powerful computers has increased
the strain on our communications
infrastructure.
guided missiles.
Lakshya: Remotely operated
and used as a target to train gun
and missile crew and air-defence
pilots for the three services.
The use of drones/UAVs in
India is mainly confined to surveillance and reconnaissance,
unlike the US, which uses armed
drones in Pakistan, Afghanistan
and Yemen, according to Sameer
Patil, associate fellow on national
security, ethnic and terrorism
studies at Gateway House and former assistant director at the
National Security Council
Secretariat in the Prime Minister's
Office.
Drones used along the IndiaPakistan border are simpler than
the ones used on the Chinese border in Ladakh, where they require
long endurance and high-altitude
capability, Patil said.
UAV squadrons in India mainly
operate with Herons and Searcher
MK IIs from Israel. However,
there are also some UAVs/drones
that have been indigenously
developed or are under development. As use grows, more drones
are coming, also the armed ones.
28
HUMOR
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
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.
ASTROLOGY
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
29
30
SPIRITUAL AWARENESS
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
a week.
The woman was fed up with his
advice but thought she would give
it one last chance. She returned
home and pulled the cow out of the
house. She took the chickens out
and returned them to the backyard.
A week later, the woman returned
to the wise man.
How are things now? he asked.
Thank you so much! You are
truly wise. Since I removed the cow
and chickens from the hut I feel so
much happier. Things have become
so peaceful.
The wise man smiled. The
woman returned home and lived
happily with her husband, her chil-
Teaching By Example