The South Asian Times: Russia Is India's Reliable Friend

The South Asian Times
e x c e l l e n c e
Vol.8 No. 34 Dec 26- Jan 1, 2016 60 Cents
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US plans mass deportation

of illegal Central
American migrants
Authorities
face influx of
migrants
escaping
violence in El
Salvador and
Honduras
Washington: To stanch the flow of illegal
mig rants, the US Department of
Homeland Security is preparing a nation
al operation to deport Central American
families in the US who have evaded
removal orders, according to a govern
ment official with knowledge of the plan,
reported the Wall Street Journal
Raids by U.S. Immigration and Customs
Enforcement, a DHS unit, would begin in
January and target hundreds of families
that entered the US illegally and who have
ignored a final order to leave the country,
said the official. Such an order is issued
by a judge in immigration court.
The number of families showing up at
the southwest border has begun to swell
in recent months as gangrelated crime

grips El Salvador and Honduras. The
region has also been plagued by drought.
Typically, the migrants, among them
many women and children, turn them
selves in at the southwest border and
make asylum claims. US authorities then
release them, often to live with relatives
already here, while their cases are adjudi
cated. DHS Secretary Jeh Johnson in
recent months has warned that those
whose claims are denied in immigration
court could be removed from the country.
Immigration and Customs Enforcement
(ICE) didn't confirm plans for an opera
tion to remove immigrants who have
Continued on page 4
US regrets Indian students'

deportation, backs
exchange programs
New Delhi: T he US Embassy here on
Thursday stated that it strongly supports
"educational study and exchange programs
for Indian and US students, as these pro
grams have been a hallmark of our bilateral
relationship for decades" in the backdrop of
some Indian students being deported from
America.
Aware of reports that some students
bound for two California schools were
denied entry by Customs and Border
CHRISTMAS 16
OP ED 20
Protection, the Embassy said in a statement:

"We regret the impact this may have had on
certain students and their families. We are
following this situation closely and have
been in regular communication with the
Department of Homeland Security, as well
as the Government of India. Facts are still
being collected." India has strongly taken
Continued on page 4
Related stories on page 12
LIFESTYLE 27
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Russian President Vladimir Putin begin the 16th
Annual Summit with a restricted meeting, in Moscow, Dec 24.
Russia is Indias
reliable friend:
Modi to Putin
IndoRussian summit to focus on
defense and nuclear energy
Moscow: India sees Russia as a reliable
friend, Prime Minister Narendra Modi told
Russian President Vladimir Putin as the
16th annual summit between the two coun
tries got underway here on Thursday.
After exchanging greetings, Modi said
India and Russia were now cooperating in
the international and political arenas more
actively, TASS news agency reported.
The prime minister said he saw Russia as a
reliable friend that had always supported
India at difficult times, adding that his coun
try aimed to continue its strategic partner
ship with Russia.
Putin, on his part said, "I am pleased to
note that we are consistently and confident
ly developing the privileged strategic part
nership between India and Russia." The
SPIRITUAL AWARENESS 30
Russian president noted that the bilateral

relations were developing in all directions
in international politics, economy and the
humanitarian area.
He added that a number of issues required
special attention, "especially in today's chal
lenging economic environment."
Meanwhile, BBC reported that ModiPutin
Continued on page 4
excellence in journalism
December 26- January 1, 2016
TRISTATE COMMUNITY
Michigan surgeon aims to save lives on Indian roads

Washington: An IndianAmerican
surgeon is hoping to raise $25
million to train 1.5 million rst
responders the rst rescuers to
arrive at an accident scene in
ve years to prevent over 1,000
deaths on Indian roads every day
that cost the nation $50 billion
annually.
Rajasthan Universityeducated
surgeon Dr. Dinesh Vyas, an
assistant professor in the
Department of Surgery at
Michigan State University since
2011, has already trained over
4,000 rst responders in India
using a $200,000 simulator
dummy.
He is leading a strong interna
tional multidisciplinary team to
India from December 26 to
January 4, 2016 to win support
for the program from Indian
auto, IT and healthcare industries
by way of corporate so cial
responsibility (CSR).
"This program will generate $5
Dr. Dinesh Vyas at a training session for trauma first

responders at Rajasthan Police Academy, Jaipur. He wants to
train 1.5 million first responders in India.
billion business for auto, IT and
healthcare industries and will
save a lot of lives," Vyas told

IANS. "Trauma and roadside epi
MOTHER TERESA TO
BE MADE SAINT
Vatican: Mother Teresa of Calcutta, the
Nobel laureate known for dedicating her life
to helping the poorest of the poor, will be
made a saint of the Roman Catholic Church,
the Vatican said last week.
Pope Francis has cleared the way for saint
hood by approving a decree recognizing a
second miracle attributed to her intercession
with God a necessary event for such a
move in the church.
Mother Teresa, who died in 1997 at the
age of 87, become an international icon of
charity in the 20th century but has also been
criticized for trying to convert people to
Christianity.
She was beatied in 2003 by the late Pope
John Paul II. Beatication, which requires
one miracle, is the last step before sainthood,
which requires two.
The church believes saints are holy men
and women who lived extraordinary lives of
virtue and are believed to be in Heaven with
God.
Francis, who has made concern for the
poor a major plank of his papacy, was keen
to make Mother Teresa a saint during the
Churchs current Holy Year, or Jubilee, in
which Catholics are called on to emphasize
the need for mercy and compassion in the
world.
Mother Teresas second miracle involved
the inexplicable healing of a Brazilian man
demic is one of the biggest health

concerns for India," he said.
"Unfortunately, it has been neg
lected for a long time and with a
3% annual increase in deaths, we
have more than 1,000 deaths
everyday and 5,000 severe dis
abilities."
Over the last eight years, Vyas'
team has established ve centers
in Rajasthan which have trained
2,000 rst responders in person
and another 2,000 through an
online course with the help of
200 trainers under its umbrella.
Training 1.5 million rst respon
ders at 50 centers in the next ve
years would stall a 3% increase in
mortality, he said. "Our next ve
year goal will be to reduce the
mortality to 1% annually, at par
with any developed nation."
The idea behind taking an inter
national delegation to India, Vyas
said, was "to address the trauma
problem holistically".
"We are concentrating system
atically on all the aspects of trau

ma, to prevent a burden on the
health system," with a focus on
prehospital care while simulta
neously building a platform on
prevention.
The aim is to develop and build
a contextual training program in
multiple aspects of trauma in var
ious Indian languages starting
with Hindi, Bengali and Telugu.
The delegation includes faculty
from US and Britain, with several
endowed professors from
Pittsburgh, Michigan State and
other universities.
"The technology we are using is
not available even in most of the
centers in the US at this time,"
Vyas said. "We are designing a
program that will eventually help
even developed nations in build
ing a cost efcient program."
During his visit to India, Vyas
would be visiting Jodhpur, Jaipur,
Hyderabad, Manipal, Bangalore,
Karimnagar and New Delhi.
Taller and taller in

Manhattan
An artists impression of the new skyscrapers coming up

in Manhattan, south of Central Park.
A painting of Mother Teresa who did her

humanitarian work in India that brought
her international fame as a living saint.
who was suffering from a viral brain infec
tion that resulted in multiple abscesses with
hydrocephalus, according to Church ofcials.
In Kolkata, Sunita Kumar, spokeswoman
for Mother Teresas Missionaries of Charity
religious order said the nuns were over the
moon when they got the news about Mother
Teresas canonization.
New York: Till two years ago, only ve

skyscrapers in the city topped 1,000 feet.
Now, there are that many super tall tow
ers in the works on 57th Street alone, and
two dozen either under construction or
on the drawing boards across Manhattan
and in Brooklyn.
The city has not seen such an epochal
shift on the skyline since the postwar
boom, and before that, the Jazz Age, New
York Times reported.
This upheaval, fueled by advances in
engineering and an inux of foreign

money, and enabled by lenient zoning
codes, has left residents, politicians and
developers themselves scrambling to
adapt the citys changing prole.
The New York skyline is always in ux,
and not everyone has been happy about
it. In the past, most of the consternation
was directed at ofce towers. Now,
though, as the city competes for verticali
ty with Beijing, Dubai and London, resi
dential towers are reshaping the skyline.
TURN PAGE
Russia is Indias reliable friend...
Children dressed up as Santa Claus ride to school in Patiala, Punjab,

to participate in Christmas celebrations.
Ailing and old, Dawood

likely to name his brother
to head $10B empire
New Delhi: Dawood Ibrahim, the fugi
tive, Karachibased Indian gangster,
is likely to name Anees Ahmed, one
of his brothers, as his successor.
Dawood, who turns 60 this Saturday,
feels his failing health won't allow
him to run his $10 billion multina
t ional empire of drugs, bett ing,
hawala and arms. Word from Karachi
is that there will be an opulent birth
day celebration on Saturday, the
venue for which will be secret to the
US plans mass deportation of illegal...
Dawood Ibrahim
invitees until the last minute, reports
The Times of India.
Americans in Beijing warned of terrorism threat; parts of city locked down

Beijing: The U.S. Embassy in Beijing on
Thursday morning warned citizens of
a Christmastime terrorism threat
against Westerners in one of the citys
most popular expat districts. Beijing
authorities put swaths of the city
under lockdown, stationing armed
guards on street corners and in pedes
Continued from page 1

talks would focus on defense and nuclear energy
cooperation. India has become an even more
important market for Russia since the West
imposed economic sanctions.
Moscow is looking to sell India its sophisticated
S400 antiaircraft systems. A deal to manufacture
military helicopters and build further nuclear
power plants in India could also be signed. Last
year, Russia announced it would help India build at
least 10 more nuclear reactors. It has already built
in a nuclear reactor in Tamil Nadu state. The two
countries have outlined an "ambitious vision" for
nuclear energy and agreed that the new reactors
would be built over the next 20 years. Modi offered
his condolences to Putin over a terrorist attack
against a Russian A321 passenger airliner in the
Sinai and the downing of a Su24 warplane over
Syria saying the Indian people were mourning
together with Russia.
Earlier in the day , Modi visited Russia's National
Crisis Management Centre (NCMC), also known as
EMERCOM, in Moscow and was given a rundown
on how it works.
Modi and Putin are scheduled to meet a delega
tion of Indian and Russian CEOs in the Kremlin.
Modi will address a gathering of Friends of India
and also meet members of the Indian community in
Russia. Modi arrived in Moscow on Wednesday and
was hosted for a private dinner by President Putin.
trian plazas. The U.S. Embassy has

received information of possible
threats against Westerners in the
Sanlitun area of Beijing, on or around
Christmas Day, the embassy said in
an email to American citizens living in
Beijing. U.S. citizens are urged to
exercise heightened vigilance.

evaded removal orders. A spokesperson said that
the agency focuses on individuals who pose a
threat to national security, public safety and border
security.
As Secretary Johnson has consistently said, our
border isn't open to illegal immigration, and if indi
viduals come here illegally, don't qualify for asylum
or other relief, they will be sent back consistent
w ith our laws and our values, the agency
spokesperson said.
The operation, which was first reported by The
Washington Post, has caused controversy in.
Johnsons agency, the official said, with some with
in the agency opposed to deporting people who
have fled violence in their countries of origin. The
official said that the operations goal is twofold: It
aims to send the message to wouldbe crossers that
they won't be allowed to remain in the U.S. It is also
rooted in safety concerns because adults entrust
New Delhi Bureau

Meenakshi Iyer
Delhi@TheSouthAsianTimes.info
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Contributing Editors: Meenakshi Iyer,

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Photographs: Gunjesh Desai/
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Xitij Joshi/xitijphoto.com
Photo Journalist: Sandeep Girhotra
their lives and that of their children to human
smugglers.
Jeh Johnson wants to send a message to Central
Americans: dont come north. But Washington has
nt solved the underlying problem of massive vio
lence in their home countries that is causing them
to come north in the first place, said Margaret
Stock, an immigration attorney in Anchorage.
Though illegal entries overall have dropped
sharply in recent years, the Obama administration
has been bracing for a surge of unaccompanied
children and families from Central America in com
ing months. In recent weeks, it had begun to add
capacity to handle the increase, because migrants
are housed at least temporarily in government
facilities.
More than 12,000 individuals in socalled family
units were apprehended at the border in October
and November, compared with about 4,500 in the
same months last year.
US regrets Indian students...

up with the US deportation of its 14 students from
San Francisco even as two Californiabased univer
sit ies claimed they were not blacklisted by
American authorities, a reason cited to deny entry
to the Indian students.
"We have taken up deportation of Indian students
admitted in SVU San Jose and NPU Freemont with
US State Deptt. Their response is awaited," External
Af fairs Minister Sushma Swaraj said on
Wednesday.
External Affairs Ministry had also issued an advi
sory on Wednesday noting that there have been
several instances of denial of entry by the US
Immigration authorities to Indian students having
valid student visas to pursue studies in two educa
tional institutions, namely, Silicon Valley University
at San Jose and Northwestern Poly technic
University, Fremont.
"Till such time the matter is satisfactorily
resolved, the students seeking admission in afore
mentioned two institutions are advised to defer
their travel to the United States," the MEA advisory
had said.
The US Embassy statement clarified, "We remind
the public that even travelers with a visa can be
denied entry if the immigration officer finds reason
to question the legitimacy of their travel docu
ments or finds that the traveler cannot adequately
answer questions about the purpose of his or her
travel to the United States."
Cartoonist: Mahendra Shah

Art and Design: Vladimir Tomovski
Bhagwati Creations,
Dhiraj Kumar
Web Editor: B.B.Chopra
News Service: HT Media Ltd.
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Arun Kumar
arun.kumar@ians,in
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TRISTATE COMMUNITY
Indian Consulate in NY 58YearOld Sikh man ghts off

hosts a cultural evening
armed robber with a slipper
Dancer Bindiya Prasad performing (right) Sitarist Anjana Roy

New York: T he Consulate
General of India in collaboration
with World Yoga Community
Inc. organized an evening of
Indian classical music and dance
on December 18 in the
Consulate's ballroom. The pro
g ram was attended in large
number by members of the cul
tural community including
prominent New York City
Councilman, Rory Lancman.
Consul General of India in
New
York,
Ambassador
Dnyaneshwar M. Mulay, extend
ed a word of welcome to the
performers and guest. He briefly
described act ivit ies of the

Consulate, including yoga class
es that are being held in the
Consulate. The evening started
with an art slideshow presenta
tion of Anand Patole's painting.
Three artists two musicians
and one classical dancer made
the evening memorable.
Sitarist Anjana Roy along with
Anand Patole on tabla per
formed "Rag a Bageshri."
Bharatnatyam dancer, Bindiya
Prasad presented her formal
solo performance on "Shiv
Bhakti." The evening concluded
with dinner reception.
New York: A 58yearold Indian

American Sikh store owner bravely
fought off a gunwielding masked
assailant by using his slipper,
thwarting an attempted robbery.
Amrik Singh, who managed to
save his hardearned money, had a
narrow escape in the fight as the
assailant opened fire at him but
the bullet missed him.
"I te ll you honestly, I'm not
scared," Singh was quoted as say
ing by abc7ny.com.
There is dramatic surveillance
video from Monday night, when
the masked gunman tried to rob
Singh's gas station convenience
store in Salt Point in Dutchess
County.
The suspect handed the store
owner a bag and Singh began fill
ing it with cash from the register.
There was a scuffle when the gun
man demanded the larger bills he
thought were under the tray.
"He said 'Put the hundred dollar
bill, the hundred dollar bill, and I
said I don't have a hundred dollar
bill," Singh said.
AAPIQLI donates $10 K for

Chennai ood relief
Hicksville, NY: T he American
Association of Physicians of Indian
Origin (AAPI) QLI donated $10,000
towards flood relief in Chennai at a
fund raiser organized by America
Tamil Sangam at Antuns here last
Sunday.
According to Dr Madhu Korrapati,
President of AAPIQLI, Chennai and
its neighborhood witnessed worse
floods in recent times throwing the
city life out of gear for over 10
days. Hundreds were killed in flash
floods and millions rendered home
less. Its our duty to take part in
the massive relief work to mitigate
the problems of those affected, he
said. On behalf of AAPIQLI, Dr
Korrapati, Dr. Vaijinath Chakote,
Presidentelect, Dr Rakesh K Dua,
Vice President, Treasurer Dr.
Himanshu Pandaya, and Dr Bhavani
Srinivasan, committee member, pre
sented the check to John Joseph,
executive vice president, and Jaya
Dr Madhu Korrapati
presenting the check
to the Secretary of
America Tamil
Sangam Jaya
Sundaram while John
Joseph, Dr Bhavani
Srinivasan, Dr.
Vaijinath Chakote, Dr.
Himanshu Pandaya,
Dr Madan Raj and Dr.
Rakesh K Dua look on.
Sundaram, secretary of America
Tamil Sangam. The fund raiser was
cosponsored by IALI, Five Town
Indian Association and Association
of Kerala Medical Graduates
Association (AKMG) of Greater New
York. The monies will be used 100
percent towards the cause. Our tar
get is to collect at least $25, 000,
John Joseph said. Satnam Singh
Parhar, president of IALI, Dr Anila
Midha, President of Five Town
Indian Association and Dr Thomas

Mathew, president of AKMG of
Greater New York, Padma Shri
awardee Dr Dattatreyudu Nori,
leading oncologist spoke and
of fered their financial support to
the flood victims. AKMG Greater
New York was represented by Dr.
Dheeraj Kamalam, Immediate Past
President, and Dr. Radhakrishnan
Palangat, Secretary besides Dr,
Mathew.
A video grab of the scuffle

Singh flung a slipper at the sus
pect, hitting him near the face.
Then Singh rushed the gunman
and forced him out of the store, it
reported. An outside camera
showed him chasing the gunman
as the suspect fired the weapon.
The video was uploaded on You
Tube.
"I fell down, he didn't get me, but
he did shoot it outside in the park
ing lot," Singh said.
T he blast le ft a hole in the
ground. Singh suf fered a scraped

nose and experienced chest pain,
but was not seriously injured.
Singh has owned Route 9 Mini
Mart in Staatsburg for 17 years,
and has been robbed once before.
This time he fought back. He said
he couldn't get a good look at the
suspect, but did manage to grab
his mask.
The New York State Police are
hoping the video will generate
leads.
19 students barred
from boarding Air India
flight to San Francisco
New Delhi: As many as 19 stu
dents from Indias Hyderabad,
Krishna and Guntur districts were
prohibited from boarding an Air
India flight headed for San
Francisco Dec. 20.
Officials said the students were
flying to the U.S. to attend two uni
versities in California blacklisted
by the U.S. government.
According to media reports the
students had taken admission at
Silicon Valley University in San
Jose
and
Northwestern
Polytechnic University in Fremont,
Calif. Our colleagues in the U.S.
informed us that students arriving
there to join the two universities
were being sent back by U.S.
authorities from the airport itself
as the two varsities have been
blacklisted, an official was quoted
as saying in an India Express arti
cle. Two batches of students who
had traveled earlier were detained

for several hours at airports in the
U.S., their student visas revoked
and they were deported. To avoid
such humiliation for the other stu
dents trave ling (Dec. 20), we
decided not to let them board, the
official added. The airline has also
asked its sales staf f not to issue
tickets to students traveling to
California to join the two universi
ties. Upon being prevented from
boarding, the students got into an
altercation with the airline staf f.
Air India has fully refunded the
purchase and waived all cancella
tion and rescheduling fees.
Officials in India have since lashed
back at the incident. We have
taken up the matter very strongly
with the U.S. in both Delhi and
Washington, External Af fairs
Ministry spokesman Vikas Swarup
said in a PTI article Dec. 22.
TRISTATE COMMUNITY
GHS 2016 to focus on womens health and key

areas of noncommunicable diseases in India
Over 500 world leaders in medicine to attend the event Jan 13 in New Delhi
Chicago, IL: American Association of
Physicians of Indian Origin (AAPI) USA will
be celebrating the 10th anniversary of its
Global Health Summit from January 1 3,
2016 at the prestigious ITC Maurya Hotel,
New De lhi. GHS 2016 w ill fo cus on
Womens Health and Key Areas of Non
Communicable Diseases that are extremely
important for India. In addition, a ground
breaking launch of the rst Trauma and
Brain Injury Guidelines for India is planned
for Jan 2 and the Prime Minister Narendra
Modi along with the Union Health Minister,
J.P. Nadda have been invited to launch
these guidelines.
The 10th anniversary Summit, promises
to be one with the greatest impact and sig
nicant contributions towards harnessing
the power of international Indian diaspora
to bring the most innovative, efcient, cost
effective healthcare solutions to India, said
AAPI President Dr. Seema Jain. The mission
of AAPI is to share best practice and expe
riences from leading experts in the world
and develop actionable plans for launching
demonstration projects that enable access
to affordable and quality healthcare for all
AAPI Vice President Dr Gautam Samadder, AAPI President Elect Dr Ajay Lodha,
AAPI President Dr Seema Jain
people. According to Dr. Jain, in order to
accomplish this mission, AAPI is backed by
leading healthcare experts and profession
al associations, including Ministries of
Indian Af fairs and Health and Family
Rao Rampilla to sing a

Telugu song in an
OffBroadway play
New York: For the rst time, a
Festival. Rampilla is known for
leading IndianAmerican theater
his memorable roles in inde
artist Rao Rampilla will sing a
pendent lms and his unique
Telugu song in an Of fBroadway
characters in television series
theater show, T he Mummers
such as 30 Rock, Friday Night
Play that will run from Dec. 16 to
Lights, Sex & the City, The
Jan. 10 in New York.
Bridget Show, Six Feet in Seven
Rampilla, who is part of The
Minutes, among others. He has
Medicine Show Theater Company, IndianAmerican 25 national television commer
theater artist Rao
was inducted into the company by
cials to his credit starting with
Rampilla to sing a
its late artistic director Barbara
2002 VISA Super Bowl
Telugu song in a
Vann. He plays the King of Egypt show titled, The Commercial with Kevin Bacon
in the show, which hearkens back Mummers Play. that initiated his acting career.
to the medieval English tradition
Since graduating with a masters
of mumming, where a band of players degree in law from the Georgia Law
would bring laughter and merriment to the University, Rampilla has been a practicing
masses on the darkest nights of the year.
international lawyer. He has worked on
Given my background of writing poetry numerous civil rights cases. He also worked
in my early college days, I was asked to as a special counsel with the Indonesian
rewrite it in Telugu, said Rampilla.
Mission to the United Nations. After having
I couldnt translate it as it is, so I rewrote undertaken numerous speech classes to
it in Te lugu, my mother tongue. help minimize his strong Indian accent, Rao
Incidentally, I used to publish a newspaper now says, he sees his accent and ethnicity
during the Jai Andhra movement in as an asset. I try to be someone else, and it
Vijayawada in the 70s. I used to write does not work," he said. So I give them who
poems regularly, he said. Rampilla, who I am my accent and my ethnicity. I realized
immigrated to the US in 1983, is a former acting is what is working for me, and I feel
diplomat, an attorney and a political good. I am still transitioning, but I am
activistturnedactor. He was most recently happy being an actor. He said acting, more
cast in a supporting role opposite Adam than anything else, has helped him discover
Sandler in Columbia Pictures Thats My who he really is. Actors study human char
Boy, following which he was invited to acter and, in the process, they learn about
Festival de Cannes and the Sundance themselves, he said.
Welfare, both from a Central and State

level.
The love for our motherland, which has
made us come back to make a positive dif
ference in the healthcare delivery system
in India, Dr. Ajay Lodha, PresidentElect of

AAPI, said. GHS has come to be recognized
for the many initiatives it has given birth to
and the numerous joint recommendations
of the standard of care for major diseases
affecting the people of India.
The scientic program developed by
leading experts with the contributions of a
Scientic Advisory Board and International
Scientic Committee, had for the very rst
time, live streaming of sessions, which
were viewed live by physicians from
around the world, Dr. Gautam Samadder,
Vice President of AAP I, said. T he
Conference in collaboration with over 10
professional associations from all over the
world, accredited from Accreditation
Council for Continuing Medical Education
for 14 hours of credits will be applied to
participants. Scientic sessions, including
high priority areas such as Cardiology,
Maternal & Child Health, Diabetes,
Oncology, Surgery, Mental Health, HIT,
Allergy, Immunology & Lung Health and
Gastroenterology, Transplant and impact
of comorbidities, will be part of the presen
tations held during the Summit.
IN BRIEF
The Metropolitan Museum

showcases exhibition on Lord Vishnu
he Metropolitan Museum
tures of Narasimhas in sand
of Art in New York (MET),
stone and wood, Hiranyaka
one of the world's largest
shipu in wood, Prahalada in
and finest art museums, is ex
wood, Ganesha in wood, Vishnu
hibiting Encountering Vishnu:
in bronze, standing Vishnu in
The Lion Avatar in Indian Tem
copper, Vishnu rescuing Gajen
ple Drama till June 5 next.
dra in stone, Vishnu slaying Hi
Dramas presented during reli
ranyakashipu in stone, standing
gious festivals in southern In
fourarmed Vishnu in terracotta,
One of the wood
dia are an important aspect of
Yoga
Narasimha in copper alloy;
sculptures on
popular Hindu celebration.
besides
Vaikuntha Vishnu mask
display
This exhibition highlights five
in bronze. In addition, there are
rare wooden sculptural masks that repre paintings of Narasimha, Bhima, Krishna,
sent a largely unrecorded category of late Putana, RamaSitaLakshmana, Matsya
medieval Indian devotional art, MET an Avatara, Balaskandha, Assembly of Rama,
nouncement says. Artifacts shown go as VishnuGaruda Wahan, Shri Shesha
far as 5th century. Exhibits include sculp narayana and Hiranyaksha.
A curtain raiser to IndiaSoft 2016

held at Indian Consulate
s a prelude to "Indiasoft 2016" the
Consulate General of India in asso
ciation with the Electronics and
Software Export Promotion Council (ESC),
New Delhi, organized curtain raiser dis
cussion and presentation on Indiasoft
2016 on December 21. Indiasoft 2016
comprising of international exhibition &
conference, organized by ESC, will pay a
pivotal role in strengthening business
linkages between Indian IT industry and
global acumen. Nalin Kohli (Chairman In
diasoft) and Deepak Sareen (Director

ESC) spoke on the upcoming exhibition
and conference to be held in Mumbai be
tween March 34, 2016. There will be
around 150 Indian IT companies display
ing their innovations including software
development, software products embed
ded systems, information security, web &
mobile marketing, etc. They urged the
participants to utilize this opportunity to
establish linkages with small and medium
enterprises of India.
NATIONAL COMMUNITY
Mauli Agrawal named fellow of

US Academy of Inventors
USF starts APJ

Abdul Kalam
Fellowship
New Delhi: An American university has started
doctoral grants for Indian students to honor late
former president of India APJ Abdul Kalam who
visited the institution in 2012.
University of South Florida (USF) launched the
Kalam Fellowship worth $156,000 for students
who wish to pursue PhD in specied elds of sci
ence and engineering at the institution. "Dr Kalam
left an indelible mark on the academic community,
one that will now sustain over time through this
most prestigious Kalam Fellowship," Ralph Wilcox,
the head of USF, said in New Delhi on Wednesday
at the global higher education summit of the
Confederation of Indian Industry (CII).
Fellowship holders would receive a tuition fee
waiver amounting to $84,500 in four years, plus a
stipend of $18,000 per year, he said.
USF already has 800 Indian students enrolled for
this year and expects the fellowship, which takes
effect in 20162017, to attract more.
NEW YORK: An Indian

American researcher has
been named as a fellow of
US's National Academy of
Inventors (NAI) in recogni
tion of his work in inventing
pathbreaking health care
technologies, a media report
said.
Mauli Agrawal, vice presi
dent for research at the
University of Texas at San
Antonio, will be formally
inducted into NAI in April,
San Antonio Express News
reported on Monday.
"It is a great honor. Some
of the greats, at least in my
eld, are members of this
academy," said Ag rawal,
whose research has resulted
in 28 patents 14 have
already been issued and 14
Mauli Agrawal, UTSA Vice

President for Research
are pending. NAI named the
56yearold researcher as a
fellow for his outstanding
work
in
orthopaedic
implants, cardiovascular bio
materials and diabetic foot
products.
"I think that he personally
really has had the ability to
think outside the box to turn
problems around in terms of
PADMASREE WARRIOR
NAMED US CEO OF
CHINESE COMPANY
New York: Indiaborn Padmasree
Warrior, one of Silicon Valley's high
prole women executives, has been
appointed as the US CEO of a Chinese
rm which is building an electric car
to compete with American electric car
manufacturer Tesla.
Warrior, 55, w ill be the Chie f
Development Ofcer and CEO of the
US startup NextEV.
A technology industry veteran,
Warrior was most recently Cisco's
Chief Technology and Strategy Ofcer
and had stepped down from the posi
tion in June this year.
Warrior's track record as a technology
visionary is "undisputed" and her knowledge
of the global markets and business acumen
are "surpassed only by her ability to lead dis
tributed teams of engineers and developers
toward a common goal," NextEV's Founder
and Chairman William Li said in a statement.
"Her passion for technology and the posi
tive impact it can have on humanity, aligns
well with the core values of NextEV as we
build the rst userenterprise. NextEV's glob
al team is comprised of the best minds
Padmasree Warrior
from the automotive, software and user expe
rience domains," Li said.
"We will leverage leading edge technologies
to deliver worldclass products to global con
sumers," he added.
Warrior, considered one of Silicon Valley's
most highprole women executives, has in
the past been named by Forbes among the
world's 100 most powerful women. She is an
alumnus of the IITDe lhi and Corne ll
University, has regularly received various
leadership awards.
their clinical applications,"

said Steven Bailey, a long
time colleague of Agrawal.
"He's been incredibly
insightful in terms of not
only what can be demon
strated in an academic and
research environment but,
more importantly, what will
translate in terms of mean
ingful patient progress as
well."
Over the years, his bio
engineering research group
has launched three compa
nies in San Antonio.
An alumnus of the Indian
Inst itute of Technolog y
Kanpur, Agrawal with his
team is currently working
with another San Antonio
startup, Cardiovate Inc.,
which aims to repair dam
aged arteries. The technolo

g y involves placing a
biodegradable plastic or
polymer tube inside an
artery to spur the body's
ability to naturally repair
the artery.
Ag rawal's team is also
working on implantable
bloo d pressure sensors,
which could allow bloo d
pressure readings on
patients with chronic heart
disease to be relayed to a
doctor's ofce without the
patient having to go in for
an exam.
NAI is a nonprot organi
zation which recognizes and
encourages inventors who
have a patent issued from
the
US
Patent
and
Trademark Ofce.
Sam Kannappan named

Secretary Of Texas'
Engineering Board
Houston: An Indian
American has been
appointed
as
the
Secretary of the Texas
Board of Professional
Engineers that licenses
qualied engineers and
regulates the practice of
professional engineer
ing in the US state.
So ckaling am "Sam"
Kannappan, a profes
sional engineer and sen
ior design engineer for
S N C L a v a l i n
Sockalingam Sam Kannappan
Hydro carbons
and
Chemicals, has been appointed as the ed eng ineers, enforce the Texas
Secretary of the Texas Board of Engineering Practice Act and to regulate
Professional Engineers (TBPE) in Austin. the practice of professional engineering
Houstonbased Kannappan also serves in Texas.
Kannappan is a mechanical engineer
as a board member of the Society of
Piping Engineers and Designers and an ing graduate of Annamalai University in
advisory board member of the Asia Tamil Nadu and received his MS in
mechanical eng ineering at the
Society's Texas center.
The IndianAmerican engineer will be University of Texas in Aust in.
signing all newlyissued licenses, TBPE Throughout his career, Kannappan has
received a number of honors and
said in a statement.
T he board issues, monitors and awards, including an award from Crystal
renews roughly 57,000 licenses for Dynamics group of NASA's Goddard
engineers. The board's role in the pro Space Flight Center in Maryland for
tection of the public is to license quali improving laser measurement accuracy.
Obama to present National Medal

of Science to Dr Rakesh Jain
"our nation's high
Washington, DC:
est honors for
President Barack
achievement and
Obama will present
leadership
in
the National Medal
advancing the fields
of Science to Dr.
of science and tech
Rakesh K. Jain, an
nology."
IndianAmerican
Jain is regarded as
professor at Harvard
a pioneer in the area
Medical School and
of tumor microenvi
director of tumor
ronment and widely
biology laboratory at
recognized for his
Massachusetts
Dr Rakesh Jain
seminal discoveries
General Hospital.
Jain, a B. Tech in Chemical in tumor biology, drug delivery, in
Engineering from Indian Institute of vivo imaging, bioengineering, and
TechnologyKanpur, will receive the benchtobedside translation.
These include uncovering the barri
honor along with 16 other winners of
the National Medal of Science and ers to the delivery and ef ficacy of
National Medal of Technology and molecular and nanomedicines in
Innovation at a White House ceremo tumors; developing new strategies to
overcome these barriers; and then
ny early next year.
A White House announcement on translating these strategies from
Tuesday described the medals as bench to bedside.
Sanjay Pradhan to lead Open

Government Partnership
Washington: Sanjay Pradhan, an Indian

American World Bank of ficial, has been
tapped to lead an international initiative to
promote government transparency, accounta
bility and responsiveness to citizens.
Pradhan, who currently is Vice President for
Change, Leadership and Innovation at the
World Bank, would assume the new charge by
mid2016.
The Open Government Partnership (OGP)
was launched by eight Heads of State at the
UN General Assembly in 2011, and in just
four years, 69 countries have joined the part
nership, along with hundreds of civil society
groups and several multilateral organizations.
"Sanjay will help ensure that OGP continues
to succeed in its mission to promote govern
ment transparency, accountability and
responsiveness to citizens," a statement said.
Pradhan, who holds a PhD and a Bachelor's
degree from Harvard University, will lead the
OGP Support Unit, and will report to an inter
national Steering Committee of 11 govern
ments and 11 civil society leaders.
2015 in Retrospect
IndiaUS relations: A year of

'Modbama bromance'
A
"budding bromance" between India and the US or

"Modbama" as Foreign Policy called it, under Prime
Minister Narendra Modi and President Barack Obama,
took their ties to a new high in the year gone by.
The year began with Modi, once a persona non grata in
the US, staging what was called a "diplomatic coup" with an
invitation to Obama to be the first US president to be the
chief guest at India's Republic Day.
Beyond the symbolism, Obama's "game changing" second
visit to India in four years saw "Barack" warming up to Modi
and sent what the US called an "important message" to the
world about their commitment to realize the full potential of
IndiaUS relationship.
The White House's first National Security Strategy since
2010 reflected the changing relationship with Obama say
ing the US was "primed to unlock the potential of its rela
tionship with India" as part of its rebalance to Asia and the
Pacific. Nine months later, Modi returned the compliment
with yet another hugely successful visit to the US with a
warm hug for Obama, a courtship with Silicon Valley and a
love fest with the Indian diaspora.
But even before Modi and Obama had their fifth bilateral
meeting in New York, the two nations, at their first strategic
and commercial dialogue, reached five key agreements.
Topping the list was a decision to step up their counter
terrorism efforts with Washington, for once, recognizing the
threat posed by South Asian terror groups, including
Pakistan based LashkareTaiba, responsible for the 2008
Mumbai terror attack, and the D company.
Defence Minister Manohar Parrikar ended the year on
another high note. "Gelling well" with his US counterpart
Ashton Carter, they agreed to further expand their growing
defence partnership to make it what Carter called an
"anchor of global security."
As Carter welcomed India's rise in the AsiaPacific region,
the two countries committed to identify additional projects
for possible codevelopment and coproduction of high tech
nology items.
Meanwhile, Obama called his "friend and partner" Modi a
couple of times on a new hotline, first to win his support for
the Paris climate deal and then to thank him for India's posi
NATIONAL COMMUNITY
Sanjay Pradhan
"My longstanding passion for how open
government can transform the lives of mil
lions around the globe has led me directly to
OGP," Pradhan said.
"OGP represents a historic opportunity to
advance the open government agenda
through a unique platform built on peer learn
ing and the collaboration between govern
ment and civil society around the world," he
said in a statement.
March of Dimes
honors Universal TV
president Bela Bajaria
President
Obama seen
enjoying a cup of
chai with Prime
Minister Modi
during the for
mers visit to
India early this
year
tive role in reaching the historic accord. At his yearend vic

tory lap, Obama highlighted American leadership in bring
ing China, India and Brazil on board for the Paris climate
deal among his successes of 2015 from thawing relations
with Cuba to halting Iran's nuclear program. The White
House also acknowledged India's "substantial sacrifice" in
backing the sanctions against Iran that helped Washington
seal the deal with Tehran.
Obama also scored big victories with the Supreme Court
upholding his signature healthcare law and marriages
between same sex couples in all the 50 states.
But even as reports suggested that gun violence in
America claims a thousand times more lives than Americans
killed through terrorist attacks in a decade, Obama failed to
win support for passing tough gun laws in the face of a pow
erful gun lobby.
Meanwhile, as the great American election carnival started
rolling, brash billionaire Donald Trump shot up to the top of
the Republican field despite his outrageous comments about
barring all Muslims from the US or building a wall to keep
"rapist" Mexicans out.
While Trump seems to have torpedoed the presidential
ambitions of Jeb Bush, son of a former president and broth
er of another, selfstyled democratic socialist Bernie Sanders
was posing a tough challenge to Hillary Clinton's second
"rendezvous with destiny."
But whosoever American voters choose as the new tenant
of the White House next November, one thing is clear:
Relations between India and the US are poised for a takeoff
given solid bipartisan support for this.
Mindy Kaling presented the Inspiring Woman of the Year

award to Bela Bajaria (right) at the event. The duo seen
here before the event.
New York: Universal Television president Bela Bajaria was
named Inspiring Woman of the Year at the March of Dimes
annual Celebration of Babies luncheon at Beverly Wilshire in
California. Actress Jessica Alba received the Grace Kelly
award. Nonprofit March of Dimes works to improve the
health of mothers and babies.
Mindy Kaling presented the Inspiring Woman of the Year
Award, joking that she first met honoree Bajaria at a meet
ing of the Indian mafia that secretly runs Hollywood.
Kaling said that Bajaria was a remarkable person, noting
how [y]ears before television was as diverse as it is now,
Bela was my champion. Even though I did not look like any
other leading lady on television. Maybe thats because there
werent a lot of studio heads that looked like Bela.
Despite being a powerful Hollywood exec, Bajaria spoke to
the Hollywood Reporter about her most important job: being
a mom. I think its amazing that [the kids] see a mom who
goes to work, whos passionate about her work and thats
important, but is involved in a lot of different charities, but is
also at home, at a soccer game, and hanging out playing
Monopoly. I think its important to see that all of those things
are possible, she said. The luncheon, which was emceed by
Nick Cannon, celebrated people who had become parents in
2015, including celebs such as Naya Rivera and her husband
Ryan Dorsey, Dave and Odette Annable, Tracy Anderson and
Molly Sims. Sims and her husband, producer Scott Stuber,
presented the Prematurity Champion Award to Dr. Michele
Hakakha, the report said.
NATIONAL
AMERICAN SIKHS AND MUSLIMS TARGETED

AFTER SAN BERNARDINO KILLINGS
New York: Hate crimes ag ainst
Muslim Americans and mosques
across the United States have tripled
in the wake of the terrorist attacks
in Paris and San Bernardino,
California, with dozens occurring
within just a month, according to
new data.
The spike includes assaults on
hijabwearing students; arsons and
vandalism at mosques; and shoot
ings and death threats at Islamic
owned businesses, an analysis by a
California State University research
group has found.
Armaan Sarai (left) and his cousin Ginee Haer. Armaan was jailed for
The Gurudwara vandalized in California with antiISIS graffiti
The analysis is the first to docu
three days for joking about a bomb in his backpack to his classmate.
ment the rise, amid a crescendo of
antiIslamic statements from politi
parking lot. President of the Sikh Gurdwara, men were told the only way they were going They would describe him really funny, nice,
cians.
Inderjot Singh said, We are concerned about to see the BroncosChargers game was to do and a caring human being, she informed.
"The terrorist attacks, coupled with the the safety and security of our community as they were told.
Previously in November an elderly Sikh
ubiquity of these antiMuslim stereotypes members. We are of the opinion that this is a
Keeping calm, the four friends were eventu man was filmed while sleeping on a flight by
seeping into the mainstream, have embold hate crime and that this is a direct result of a ally allowed inside Qualcomm Stadium still a copassenger who posted the video online
ened people to act upon this fear and anger," possible backlash from the San Bernardino wearing their turbans, but their humiliation with a title 'Would You Feel Safe' and a
Brian Levin, a criminologist at California
was notyet complete.
description that says "flying with bin laden."
State University, San Bernardino told the New
As they were leaving, their car was subject
Darshan Singh, who was traveling on a
York Times.
ed to a search by a bombsniffing dog after a Jetblue flight from New York to California,
Levin runs a hatecrimes research group at
member of the public phoned police because didn't exchange words with the man sitting
the university, the Center for the Study of
they saw the men 'suspiciously' putting a bag next to him and was surprised when he saw
Hate and Extremism, which produced the
inside the trunk.
his video online, Sikh advocacy group United
analysis and provided the results to the New
'It's bad, I mean, this is embarrassing for Sikhs said.
York Times.
me,' Malhi told 10 News.
T he 39second video of Mr Sing h, a
In recent years, there has been an average
'We are Americans at the end of the day. California resident, has been viewed over
of 12.6 suspected hate crimes against
And we are not supposed to be afraid of fel 83,000 times since it was posted on Youtube
Muslims in the United States a month, based
low Americans.'
on December 9.
on FBI data analyzed by the research group.
This past week a 12yearold Texas boy
Mr Singh's 20yearold daughter informed
But the rate of attacks has tripled since the
was kept in jail for three days for joking to a the group that a video of her father sleeping
attacks in Paris on November 13 by Islamic
classmate that he has a bomb in his back on the JetBlue flight, recorded by the man sit
State operatives, with 38 attacks regarded as
pack, the boy's cousin wrote in a Facebook ting next to him, was circulating on the inter
antiIslamic in nature, according to the analy
post.
net, said Manwinder Singh, Director, United
sis, which was based on reports from the
"A bully in class thought it would be funny Sikhs.
Elderly Sikh man filmed on Jetblue flight
news media and civil rights groups.
to accuse him (Armaan Singh Sarai) of having
"This act of ignorance is the latest in a
Eighteen of the episodes have come since
a bomb, and so the principal, without any series of antiSikh hostility in the days follow
the shooting in San Bernardino on December killings. Sikhs have faced hate crimes and questioning, interrogation, or notification to ing the horrific shooting in San Bernardino,
2 by a Muslim couple who were supporters violence in the past due to their outer his parents, called the police," Armaan Sarai's California on December 2," he said.
of the Islamic State, also known as ISIS or appearances and a Sikh temple was attacked cousin Ginee Haer wrote.
Hundreds of people have commented on
ISIL, which left 14 people dead.
by a gunman in Oak Creek, Wisconsin in
He was released on Monday, Ms Haer the video, most of them condemning the per
A week after the Paris attacks, a sixth 2012 and six Sikh members lost their lives in wrote in the post shared by thousands of son who filmed it, with more than 1,170 peo
grade girl in the Bronx was reportedly that shooting. Sikh men wear turban and people. Armaan's parents got worried about ple hitting the "dislike" button.
attacked by three boys who tried to take off beard and often become a target of hate due him last Friday when he did not return from
"Sikhs are known to be fearless warriors
the hijab she was wearing, punched her and to ignorance about Sikh religion and its ori school. They approached police in the area and ones who are willing to give up their
called her "ISIS."
gin in America. There have been numerous and came to know that he was sent to a juve lives for others, so you should feel safe," one
Days later, a college student in a parking cases of Sikh community members facing vio nile facility, she said.
person commented on the video.
lot in San Diego reported a similar assault, lence since 9/11 and the first hate crime in
Police rushed to Nichols Junior High School
The Sikh group is trying to get the video
with her attacker yelling antiMuslim slurs.
the aftermath of 9/11 resulted a killing of in Dallas, Texas, after a student told a teacher removed from the Youtube.
In Pittsburgh, a passenger in a cab shot the Sikh man in Phoenix, Arizona.
that Armaan was planning to blow up the
"Incidents like this are shocking. No one,
driver, who was Muslim, in the back after the
Dr. Rajwant Singh, Chairman of the Sikh school, media reports said.
Sikh, Muslim, or otherwise should be afraid
passenger angrily asked him about ISIS and Council on Religion and Education based in
Armaan's family, however, said he was to travel. These types of incidents only weak
mocked the Prophet Muhammad, the authori Washington, contacted the White House and framed.
en the fabric of our nation," said Jaspreet
ties said. And in Anaheim, California, a bullet senior White House of ficials immediately
"Armaan was born and raised in Texas by a Kaur, Staff attorney of the group.
riddled copy of the Quran was left outside an contacted the Gurdwara president Inderjot loving Sikh family. In his spare time, he loves
"It's everyone's responsibility to be aware
Islamic clothing store.
Singh.
spending time with his family, watching tv, of acts of ignorance around them and to
The most recent episode cataloged by the
Dr. Singh said, The Sikh community across and playing video games," the post read.
report them when they see them.
San Bernardino research g roup came the nation is in a heightened state of alert
"In his family are his mom, dad, two sisters
Only then can we unify ourselves against
Tuesday, when a man reportedly pulled a and is deeply troubled by this latest incident. and a brother who love him more than life, hate, ignorance and discrimination," she
knife on a Muslim woman at a carwash and We are appealing to all Sikh place of congre after all he's the baby in the family," said the added.
threatened her. He was arrested, as the gation to be in touch with the local law post.
In September, a SikhAmerican was
attackers have been in a number of other enforcement agencies as well with the elect
"His family moved to Dallas, Texas about viciously assaulted in a suburb outside of
cases, but many of the episodes remain ed officials.
three to four months ago, and being the new Chicago after being called "Bin Laden". In
under investigation by federal and local
A week later three Sikh Americans were kid wasn't that easy for him. It made it espe 2014, Sandeep Singh, a Sikh American in
authorities.
harassed by security staff and denied entry cially hard since he is not able to get out New York City, was run over and dragged 30
A Sikh Gurdwara (house of worship) based to watch an NFL game in San Diego because much, due to a heart condition he was born feet after being called a "terrorist."
in Buena Park in Los Angeles suburbs, was they were wearing turbans.
with," Armaan's cousin wrote.
USbased Sikhs have launched a national
vandalized during early hours and a hateful
Even though Verinder Malhi explained to a
He cannot do a lot of extracurricular activ campaign to tackle the growing mispercep
g raf fit i was seen on the walls of the guard that his religion prohibited him and his ities. But his love for family and friends has tions about their community post 9/11 ter
Gurdwara and also a truck parked in the friends from removing their headgear, the always been enough to keep his heart filled. ror attacks.
10
December 26-January 1, 2016
US AFFAIRS
SpaceX s reusable
rockets are a giant leap
for space travel
Cape Canaveral, Florida:
Elon Musk and his SpaceX
team have edged closer to
making space travel more
af fordable after success
fully launching and return
ing a rocket to Earth.
Musk has said the ability
to reuse a rocket which
dramat ically
reduces
launch cost is something
that will help revolutionize
commercial space travel.
"I think this is a critical
step along the way
towards being able to
A timelapse image of the Falcon 9's vertical liftoff
establish a city on Mars,"
and (right corner) landing.
Musk said on a call with
reporters Monday night after the Falcon 9 as a commercial airplane could reduce the
successfully landed upright on a launch pad cost of access to space by a factor of one hun
dred.
at Cape Canaveral in Florida.
While many other rockets burn up on re
The company has previously attempted the
feat three times, coming close to landing on a entry, SpaceX designed the Falcon 9 to be
bull'seye on a floating barge. The landing able to withstand the heat and land vertically
Monday night was the first time SpaceX tried so the rocket can be used again on a future
to return the Falcon 9 to a target on land. It launch. The landing is a huge victory for
was also the first time a rocket successfully Musk and his team, who were sidelined after
launched a payload into space and returned the explosion of the Falcon 9 rocket in June
to Earth intact. Musk has previously said he as it carried the Dragon capsule to the
believes reusing rockets which cost as much International Space Station.
CLINTON, TRUMP WAR OF

WORDS GETS HOT
Hillary Clinton's camp refused Tuesday to respond to Donald Trump's

comment that she "got schlonged" in the 2008 presidential contest by
Obama, calling it "degrading language" that others should condemn.
Washington: A war of words between
Republican and Democratic presidential
frontrunners Donald Trump and Hillary
Clinton has intensified after her charge
that he has become a recruiting tool for
ISIS. Trump demanded an apology for
Clinton's claim at Saturday night's
Democratic debate that the real estate
Trump's rhetoric against Muslims is
being used as propaganda by terrorist
groups, though there is no evidence
Islamic State has put him in videos.
"I will demand an apology from
Hillary. She should apologize," Trump
said on NBC News. "She lies about
emails," he said. "She lies about
Whitewater. She lies about everything.
She will be a disaster as president of the

United States." Clintons spokesman said
Monday: "Hillary Clinton will not be
apologizing to Donald Trump for cor
rectly pointing out how his hateful rhet
oric only helps ISIS recruit more terror
ists." Clinton came under heavy criticism
from factcheckers when she said at
Saturday night's debate that ISIS is
"showing videos of Donald Trump insult
ing Islam and Muslims in order to
recruit more radical jihadists."
White House and National Security
Council officials told ABC News they are
unaware of any examples of ISIS includ
ing Trump in the terrorist group's
videos.
JINDAL DEFENDS HIS RECORD IN

LAST INTERVIEW AS GOVERNOR
Last Friday President Obama screened the new Star Wars film The
Force Awakens at White House before heading to Hawaii for his
annual Christmas holiday.
OBAMA COUNTS HIS

TOP 10 OF 2015
Washington: In his last weekly
address of the year, President
Obama of fered his roundup of
the top 10 things that happened
in 2015, all of which should
make us optimistic about the
prospects for 2016. This past
year has been one where weve
seen unprecedented progress in
areas ranging from the Iran deal
to marriage equality to conclud
ing a historic trade agreement.
The year 2015 brought eco
nomic growth, with our unem
ployment rate dropping to 5%;

millions of Americans getting
health care; the normalization of
our relations with Cuba and a
newly opened U.S. Embassy in
Havana; and a historic agree
ment in Paris to take real action
on climate change as well as US
leading a global coalition to fight
terrorism. T he President
acknowledged the significant
progress of the past year, and
looked forward to 2016 and all
we have yet to accomplish.
Baton Rouge, La: Days before he

walks out of the governor's man
sion, Bobby Jindal spoke to a local
news paper about his tenure as
Louisiana's governor.
T he Republican, who just
wrapped up a failed bid for presi
dent, believes he leaves the state
better than when he came into
office in 2008.
WDSU reporter Travers Mackel
said Jindal realizes his approval rat
ings are low, but doesn't seem to be
fazed by it. The governor said he's
made good decisions despite what
critics, political pundits and voters
have said about his term in office.
W hen Jindal took of fice in
January 2008, he was the nation's
first Indian American governor and
the youngest governor in the coun
try. He also inherited an almost bil
lion dollar budget surplus that has
now evaporated.
The state's budget is balanced, but
the deficit is running well into the
hundreds of millions and some
believe Jindal is to blame.
"There's a lot of rhetoric. Look at
the facts. We've got a balanced
budget. We've balanced the budget
every year, we've been here for
eight years, without raising taxes
(and) we've had eight credit
Gov. Bobby Jindal will work more actively for America Next, a think
tank that he founded in 2013 to push conservative ideas. Here he is
seen ina 2014 photograph with his family daughter Selia, wife
Supriya, and sons Shaan and Slade.,
upgrades the highest credit rat
ings our state has had in decades,"
Jindal said. "So the budget is bal
anced and we've done it without
raising taxes. Yeah, we've had to
make cuts."
Jindal said there are 30,000 fewer
state employees than when he took
office. He said the number of state
employees is the fewest in decades.
"Our budget is 26 percent smaller
than it was before," Jindal said.
"There will always be folks that
want to spend more. I think that's a
mistake."
No governor in America has made
more cuts to higher education over
the last eight years than Jindal.
Lawmakers believe the governor is

offbase on how he has tried to bal
ance the budget.
Before he left his office, which is
cleared out, Jindal signed his desk.
It's been a tradition for outgoing
governors.
"How does history remember
Bobby Jindal?" the reporter asked.
"Well look, the pundits will get to
decide that. I'm not the kind of per
son that sits around thinking about
these things or having regrets. My
hope would be that at least folks
would look back and say, 'You know
what, he got elected to take on the
big challenges and he did that.'"
Jindal said.
INDIA
11
Parliament adjourned, Ram temple

issue rocks Rajya Sabha
New Delhi: Parliament's winter session
ended this week with both the houses
adjourned sine die amid opposition uproar
over various issues including the Ram tem
ple construction in Ayodhya and alleged
financial irregularities in Delhi's cricket
board.
Rajya Sabha Chairman Hamid Ansari
asked members to "introspect" over the state
of affairs in the house. Lok Sabha Speaker
Sumitra Mahajan hoped the parliamentari
ans would "take a conscious decision to
ensure less disruptions".
The upper house, however, passed the
Commercial Courts, Commercial Division
and Commercial Appellate Division of High
Courts Bill, the Arbitration and Conciliation
(Amendment) Bill and Atomic Energ y
(Amendment) Bill without discussion.
T he Rajya Sabha's proceedings were
briefly disrupted twice in the prelunch ses
sion over the issues of a Ram temple in
Ayodhya and the ongoing Delhi and District
Cricket Association (DDCA) row before tak
ing up the three bills for passing.
Soon after the upper house met for the
day, Janata DalUnited member K.C. Tyagi
Both the houses adjourned sine die amid opposition uproar over various issues including
the Ram temple construction in Ayodhya.
raised the issue of stones being transported
and carved for constructing the proposed
Ram temple at Ayodhya in Uttar Pradesh.
"A similar situation (to what prevailed ear
lier) is being created in Ayodhya once again.
Tension is being incited," Tyagi said.
Members of the Samajwadi Party (SP),
Maharashtra to challenge
Salman's acquittal in SC
Mumbai: The Maharashtra gov
ernment has informed the
Bombay High Court that it will
appeal in the Supreme Court
ag ainst the acquittal of
Bollywood star Salman Khan in
the 2002 accident case.
A special leave petition (SLP)
challenging the actor's acquittal
will be filed soon before the
apex court, said government
pleader A. Vagyani during the
hearing of a public interest liti
gation (PIL) filed by journalist
activist Nikhil Wagle seeking
compensation for the accident
victims.
Vagyani said the state law
and judiciary department had
granted sanction to file the SLP
in the Supreme Court against
the high court verdict, which
would be done in due course.
In Nagpur, Chief Minister
Devendra Fadnavis reiterated
that the state government will
study the verdict and then take
a decision to challenge it.
Almost a decade ago, Salman
had deposited the compensa
tion amounts for the victims as
per the high court's directions,
and Wag le's P IL revolves
around enhancement of punish
ment in drunken driving cases
and related procedures to serve
as an effective deterrent.
The Bombay High Court had
set aside a sessions court judg
ment and acquitted the 49
Bollywood star Salman Khan.

yearold actor of all charges
including 'culpable homicide
not amounting to murder' on
December 10.
Justice A.R. Joshi also held
that the prosecution failed to
prove that Salman was either
drunk or driving at the time of
the accident in the early hours
of September 28, 2002, which
left one pavement dweller dead,
and four others injured in
Bandra area.
The high court ruling came
on an appeal filed by Salman,
challenging the verdict of the
sessions court last May which
had found him guilty on various
counts and awarded him a five
year jail term for the accident.
Meanwhile, leg al experts,
social activists, former police
of ficials and others welcomed
the state government's decision
to challenge the high court ver
dict acquitting the actor.
Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) and the Congress

too supported him.
BSP leader Mayawat i accused the
Bharatiya Janata Party and the Rashtriya
Swayamsevak Sangh of trying to derive
political mileage by again raking up the Ram
temple issue. "There should not be anything
that is in contempt of the Supreme Court.

It's the responsibility of the Uttar Pradesh
government to maintain law and order," she
said. Minister of State for Parliamentary
Affairs Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi replied, saying
stones are being polished since 1990, and
"the site is around oneandahalf km from
the disputed site. Second, both the govern
ment and the BJP firmly believe the court's
decision should be respected and we will
respect it". "There is no restriction on carv
ing of stones; it does not mean the Ram tem
ple is being constructed," he said.
However, members of the Congress and SP
trooped near the chairman's podium and
raised antigovernment slogans.
Deputy Chairman P.J. Kurien adjourned
the house for 10 minutes.
Earlier in the day, the Speaker assured
Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge that she
will expunge two words from her remarks
made on Tuesday about members raising
slogans near the Speaker's podium.
Kharge said the remarks which do not
have any national interest, they have only
vested interest were about the Congress
party and had caused hurt.
BJP suspends defiant Azad

for taking on Jaitley
New Delhi: The BJP has suspend
ed its MP Kirti Azad, who has
alleged largescale corruption in
Delhi's cricket body when it was
headed by now Finance Minister
Arun Jaitley. Azad termed the
action "unfortunate" and vowed to
fight on.
"He has been suspended with
immediate ef fect for antiparty
activities," Bharatiya Janata Party
general secretary Anil Jain told
IANS, reading out an official state
ment.
The action came eight years
after Azad unleashed a campaign
to expose what he said was mas
sive corruption in the Delhi and
District Cricket Asso ciat ion
(DDCA), which Jaitley headed for
13 years till 2013.
The action against Azad drew
immediate criticism from Delhi
Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal,
who said the suspension had
"totally exposed" the BJP. Azad
has been punished for battling
corruption, he said.
Congress leader Digvijay Singh
demanded to know if Azad had
been suspended for speaking out
against corruption.
BJP
spokesman
G.V.L.
Narasimha Rao said the party
acted against Azad, a threetime
Lok Sabha member from
Darbhanga in Bihar, for taking an
"antiBJP line".
Party sources said a show cause
BJP MP Kirti Azad.

notice was issued to Azad asking
him to explain his "antiparty con
duct".
Azad, a member of the 1983
Indian cricket team which won the
World Cup, is the first BJP MP to
be suspended since Narendra
Modi became the prime minister
in May last year.
In Ahmedabad, Azad said it was
unfortunate he had been suspend
ed for "speaking the truth" about
corruption in Delhi's cricket body.
"What antiparty activity have I
done?" Azad asked as journalists
sought his reaction. "I have served
my party faithfully. I never called
Jaitley corrupt. I only exposed
corruption."
He said he had never targeted
Jaitley "although much of the
wrongdoing took place during his

tenure" as DDCA head.
Azad also denied that he was
act ing in collusion w ith the
Congress or the Aam Aadmi Party
(AAP) which too have taken on
Jaitley over the DDCA issue. "It is
they who have taken up my issue."
Asked about his future program,
a visibly defiant Azad said: "See,
what happens now. T he fun
starts."
Son of former Bihar chief minis
ter Bhagwat Jha Azad, the
younger Azad has for years car
ried on a campaign against what
he said was major financial irregu
larities in the DDCA.
Althoug h Azad's campaign
against the alleged corruption in
the DDCA began years ago, mat
ters came to a head after Kejriwal
took up the issue in a major way
following a CBI raid on the Delhi
Secretariat this month.
Despite denials by the CBI that it
never searched Kejriwal's of fice
and it was after his principal sec
retary Rajendra Kumar for corrup
tion, the AAP leader has said that
CBI officials did enter his room in
search of a file on the DDCA and
Jaitley.
On his part, Jaitley has filed a
defamation suit against Kejriwal
and other Aam Aadmi Party lead
ers and sought Rs.10 crore in
damages. Azad then went public
and asked Jaitley to sue him too.
12
INDIA
PUTIN GIFTS MODI GANDHI'S NOTES, INDIAN SWORD

Moscow: Russian President
Vladimir Putin presented visiting
Indian Prime Minister Narendra
Modi a page from the diary of
Mahatma Gandhi and an 18th
century Indian sword, an of ficial
statement said.
Putin presented the items to
Modi while hosting the latter for a
private dinner on Wednesday
evening
President Putin presented to
the Prime Minister a page from
the diary of Mahatma Gandhi. The
page contains Gandhiji's hand
written notes, the Prime
Minister's Of fice said in a state
ment.
Putin also gifted Modi a late
18th century Indian sword from
Bengal province that features
intricate silver artwork.
Mo di arrived in Moscow on
Wednesday to a red carpet wel
come for a twoday visit during
which he will attend the 16th
IndiaRussia annual summit meet
ing.
During this visit, a raft of agree
ments spanning a broad spectrum
Modi visits Russian crisis

management center
Russian President Vladimir Putin with Narendra Modi in Moscow.

of sectors are expected to be
signed following summitlevel
talks on Thursday between the
two countries with trade being a
major focus area.
Modi and Putin are scheduled to
meet a delegation of Indian and
Russian CEOs in the Kremlin.
Modi will address a gathering of
Friends of India and also meet
members of the Indian communi

ty in Russia.
The prime minister's itinerary
includes a visit to Russia's
Nat ional Crisis Management
Centre (NCMC) in Moscow on
Thursday.
The NCMC is a multilevel coor
dination centre designed to pro
vide interagency coordination
Moscow:
Prime
Minister
Narendra Modi visited Russia's
National Crisis Management
Center (NCMC), also known as
EMERCOM, in Moscow.
A morning for learning. PM
@narendramodi takes a tour of
EMERCOM, a state of the art cri
sis management facility, exter
nal af fairs ministry spokesman
Vikas Swarup tweeted along with
pictures of Modi at the center.
Ready
for
emergency
response. 240000 employees
from EMERCOM r on operational
duty daily, using 62000 equip
ment units, Swarup said in
another tweet
T he NCMC is a mult ileve l
coordination centre designed to
and alert the people about the
threat of emergency situations.
T he capabilities of the NCMC
provide interagency coordina

tion and alert people about the
threat of emergency situations.
The capabilities of the NCMC
include stateofart real time
monitoring, data collect ion,
analysis and modelling. It uses
global navigation satellite sys
tems and global monitoring tech
nologies based on remote sens
ing.NCMC processes information
from across Russia and is capa
ble of monitoring industrial facil
ities, crowded areas, tsunami
threats and other natural disas
ters. A raft of agreements span
ning a broad spectrum of sectors
are expected to be signed follow
ing the summitlevel talks with
trade being a major focus area.
include stateofart real time mon
itoring, data collection, analysis
and modelling.
Closely following
Why are Indian students being
students' deportation
deported from US?
issue: US embassy
New Delhi: The United States
embassy has said it is closely fol
lowing the situation after a group
of Indian students who went
abroad to study in two education
al institutions in California were
deported.
"The embassy is aware of the
reports that some students
bound for two California schools
were denied entry by the
Customs and Border Protection.
We regret the impact this may
have had on certain students and
their families," an embassy state
ment said.
"We are following this situation
closely and have been in regular
communicat ion
w ith
the
Department of Home land
Security as well as the govern
ment of India," it added.
Stating that facts in the matter
were being collected, the
embassy statement said that
"even travellers with a visa can
be denied entry if the immigra
tion officer finds reason to ques
tion the legitimacy of their travel
documents or finds that the trav
eller cannot adequately answer
questions about the purpose of
his or her travel to the United
States".
T he Customs and Border
Protection is the largest federal
law enforcement agency of the
United States' Department of

Homeland Security.
Fourteen Indian students had
gone to join the Silicon Valley
University at San Jose and
Northwestern
Poly technic
University at Fremont but were
deported by US authorities.
In a statement, national carrier
Air India said it received a com
munication on December 19
from the Customs and Border
Protection that the two universi
ties were under scrutiny and the
students who arrived in San
Francisco were not allowed to
enter the US and were deported
back to India.
The Indian government has
said it has taken up this matter
with the US government. The US
authorities have been asked to
explain the reasons for the denial
of entry on a largescale to Indian
students holding valid visas, the
government said.
The embassy statement said:
"We also remind students consid
ering studying in the United
States of the free services provid
ed by Education USA."
"Educat ion USA's centres
throughout India and its website
can assist students in choosing
the most appropriate school for
their course of study and person
al situation," it added.
Washington: India has questioned the deportation of

some students from India when they came to the US
with valid student visas to study at two Silicon Valley
institutions which have denied being "blacklisted.
"There is definitely a glitch within the US system",
sources said pointing out that the US consulate in
Hyderabad issued F1 student visas and they carried
the requisite I20 forms issued by the educational insti
tutions certifying their admission.
The Indian Embassy here has taken up the matter
with the State Department, the National Security
Council and the Department of Homeland Security.
Their response is still awaited.
Sources also said that a couple of Indian consular
of ficers who had gone to the San Francisco airport
were not allowed to meet the Indian students who had
been denied entry to the US and put back on flights to
India.
On reports that some students had been denied entry
because they had failed to satisfactorily answer immi
gration officers' questions at the port of entry, sources
said there could be one or two such cases, but whole
sale deportation of students pointed to a problem in the
US system itself.
The sources also pointed out that the 14 Indian stu
dents from India who were deported last week and 19
others not allowed to board their Air India flights to San
Francisco had all sought admission to Silicon Valley
University (SVU) in San Jose and Northwestern
Polytechnic in Fremont.
The two schools, meanwhile, asserted that they had
not been "blacklisted" and US Customs and Border
Protection of ficers were just implementing stricter
screening security measures, which are not specific to
their students, but to all international students entering
the US.
Advising all new and returning students to bring orig
inal documentation, SVU said "there were rumours
reported by the media in India stating that SVU is being
targeted by the US Customs and Border Protection
(CBP)." This, it said, was "Due to the fact that there were
some new SVU students being removed or deported
back to India because they were not able to answer the
questions adequately to the satisfaction of the inspec
tors at the port of entry."
SVU said it did not "welcome those who intend to
abuse their F1 VISAs and have other intentions besides
studying in our university.'
NPU president Peter Hsieh assured "students, fami
lies, and friends" that "my team and I are deeply con
cerned and doing our best to clear NPU's name and
fight for your rights."
As "definitive proof that NPU is NOT blacklisted," it
provided "evidence of a sample of new students that
continue to enter the US with F1 visas with NPU as the
designated school."
"The samples show entry on the December 20, 21
and 22, which are all dates after the false information
reported in the media in India," it said.
Students flew on Emirates, Etihad, and Singapore
Airlines, NPU said claiming "Most students had to go
through secondary inspections, but a few did not (only
5 minutes of questioning)."
It had also demanded that Air India allow all NPU stu
dents to board and will contact any airline that causes
such problems for our students.
TECHNOLOGY
13
From internet.org to drones,

INDIA ENTERS NEW TECHNOLOGY ERA
By Nishant Arora
New Delhi: While "net neutrality" and its

ensuing debate kept Indian policymakers and
the social media busy for most part of the
year, what took the country to the centre
stage was a statement from social networking
giant Facebook's founder Mark Zuckerberg
that if the world needs to be connected then it
is very important to connect the billionplus
people in India.
"It is central to our plans of connecting the
next billion people and then the whole world,"
Zuckerberg said during the townhall meeting
held at the Indian Institute of Technology
(IIT) in New Delhi in October during his maid
en visit to India.
Facebook rechristened its free internet plat
form internet.org which it developed in con
junction with Reliance Communications
Network as "Free Basics by Facebook" in
September. Today, nearly 15 million people in
24 nations have access to internet as a result
of Facebook's free internet efforts.
Although India has no regulations yet on
"net neutrality" a draft report on this from the
department of telecommunications (DoT) is
with the government for clearance.
"Net neutrality" means that governments
and internet service providers treat all data
on the internet equally and, therefore, not dif
ferentially charge users, content, platforms,
Prime Minister Narendra Modi with

Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg.
sites, applications or mode of communication.
Amid the debate, Satya Nadella, the Indian
born chief executive of USbased technology
major Microsoft, visited India in November
and announced a string of partnerships, pro
grammes and products to help Indian organi
sations and governments explore unchartered
business areas and enrich customer and citi
zen experiences.
Referring to the newlylaunched local
Microsoft Cloud, Nadella said during a confer
ence in Mumbai: "With Microsoft Cloud and
Surface Pro 4, our customers here in India

have the digital technology they need to seize
incredible new growth and opportunity on a
global scale."
Just a month back in San Francisco, top
Oracle executive Thomas Kurian announced
that the leading cloud services provider fully
supports the latest digital initiatives launched
by the Indian government.
"Oracle is committed towards Prime
Minister Narendra Modi's ambitious 'Digital
India' initiative. In the days to come, the world
will see Oracle investing in more Indian cities
to open new product development centres,"
Indianborn Kurian, Oracle's president of
product development, announced.
Oracle has already hired 2,300 engineers in
product development in India this year. The
company has 12 development centres in
India, including facilities in many emerging
cities like Vijayawada, Thiruvananthapuram,
Noida and Ahmedabad.
Cloud computing is a general term for the
delivery of hosted services over the Internet.
It enables companies to consume compute
resources as a utility just like electricity
rather than having to build and maintain
computing infrastructures inhouse.
When it came to wearable technology in
India, the year saw some tough competition
to the leader Apple. While Apple smartwatch
was finally launched in India this year, at
around Rs.30,000, it still burnt a hole in peo

ple's pocket.
Later this year, Lenovoowned Motorola
introduced five new variants of its android
wear Moto 360 (2nd Gen) collection for the
Indian consumers.
The Rs.19,999 Moto 360 smartwatch gives
users complete control right from the wrist so
you can stay in the moment without constant
ly grabbing your phone from your pocket or
purse.
The new Gear 2 smartwatch from Samsung
was also billed as an evolved smartwatch that
can be used to answer calls while driving.
Titan, India's largest watchmaker, also
announced a "smartwatch" jointly designed
and built with global computing major HP Inc
in India and select international markets by
December.
Although Apple launched two iPhones with
new touch technology, a 13inch iPad and an
enhanced Apple TV this year, its smartwatch
especially Watch OS 2.0 is still an ultimate
wearable experience.
Not just smartwatches, Panasonic launched
a wearable, ultracompact, lightweight and
tough camera for the Indian market in
November.
Next tech trend that took the country by
storm this year was the launch of "Mobile
Wallet" or "credit card killer" as some
referred it to.
14
OP-ED
Indian Americans pack more heft

in Modi's shadow in 2015
By Arun Kumar
Washington: The influential Indian
American community packed more
heft in 2015 as America wooed
"India's reformerinchief" Narendra
Modi, as President Barack Obama
called his "good friend" amid anoth
er love fest with the Indian diaspo
ra.
Beyond power meetings with
Obama and other world leaders at
the UN, as the Indian prime minister
on his second odyssey to America
courted big business and tech titans
of Silicon Valley, he found several
desi faces across the table. Among
them were Ajay Banga, chairman of
the USIndia Business Council
(USIBC) representing more than
300 of the largest international
companies investing in India,
Microsoft chief executive Satya
Nadella and Google's newlyminted
chief, Sundar Pichai.
Obama, who has the largest num
ber of Indian Americans in his
administration, also added
MasterCard CEO Banga to his ever
expanding Indian talent pool by
naming him as a member of the
Advisory Committee for Trade
Policy and Negotiations.
As India and the US together bat
tle the scourge of terrorism, Obama
named Rashad Hussain, a Muslim of
Indian heritage, as US Special Envoy
Prime Minister Narendra Modi with Satya Nadella, Sundar Pichai and
others in San Jose, California.
and Coordinator for Strategic
Counter
Terrorism Communications. Son
of immigrant parents from India,
Hussain had since 2010 served as
US Special Envoy to the 57member
Organisation
for
Islamic
Cooperation (OIC) to build partner
ships with Muslim communities
around the world.
Again, as the White House looked
for its first chief data scientist,
Obama turned to Dhanurjay 'DJ'
Patil to help shape policies and
practices to help the US remain a
leader in technology and innova
tion. Rajiv Shah, another son of
immigrant Indian parents, left the
US Agency for International
Development (USAID) after five
years at the helm of the agency
engaged in a mission of ending
extreme poverty and promoting

resilient, democratic societies.
Other Obama appointees included
Swati A. Dandekar as US director of
the Asian Development Bank, Arun
Majumdar, an Indian Institute of
TechnologyBombay alumnus as
one of four US science envoys, and
Atul Keshap as ambassador to Sri
Lanka and the Maldives.
Keshap was the second person of
Indian descent to be posted to the
region after Richard Rahul Verma
was appointed US ambassador to
India, while Nisha Desai Biswal
heads the State Department's South
Asia bureau. Obama presented the
2014 National Medal of Arts and
Humanities to Pulitzer Prize win
ning IndianAmerican author
Jhumpa Lahiri. Modi, along with
Nadella, Chanda Kochhar (manag
ing director and CEO of ICICI Bank)

and Vikram Patel (cofounder of the
NGO Sangath), also made it to the
Time magazine's list of the World's
100 most influential people.
Foreign Policy magazine's list of
100 Leading Global Thinkers fea
tured Nina Tandon, cofounder of
Epibone, New York city, and India
born Zainab Ghadiyali, an engineer
at Facebook, "for cracking the STEM
ceiling".
Also included were Rajan
Anandan, managing director of
Google, Southeast Asia and India,
and Ayesha Khanna, founder of the
Civic Accelerator, an investment
fund for socially conscious enter
prises. Bhagwati Agrawal was listed
among CNN's Top 10 Heroes of
2015 for bringing safe drinking
water to more than 10,000
droughtstricken people in his
native Rajasthan.
A New York couple, Chandrika
and Ranjan Tandon, announced a
$100 million gift to the New York
University School of Engineering in
what is believed to be the largest
philanthropic gift by a member of
the IndianAmerican community.
In the political arena, swinging
against 'hyphenated Americans',
Bobby Jindal made a historic but
shortlived run for the US presiden
tial race, while California Attorney
General Kamala Harris, a "good
friend" of Obama, threw her hat in

the ring for the US Senate.
With a whopping 29.4 percent
increase, a record high of 132,888
Indian students studying in the US
in 201415 academic year con
tributed $3.6 billion to the US econ
omy. Renu Khator was elected chair
of the Board of Directors of the
American Council on Education
(ACE), the major coordinating body
for US colleges and universities.
But it wasn't all hunky dory for
IndianAmericans. They too had
their share of bad news.
A visiting Indian grandfather was
slammed to the ground by an
Alabama police of ficer. But the
of fending cop went scot free with
two mistrials leaving the South
Asian community organisations out
raged. Terrorist attacks in Paris and
California led to a rise in hate
crimes against Muslims as well as
Sikhs, who are often mistaken for
Muslims because of their beards
and turbans. National Sikh
Campaign (NSC) and 15 diverse civil
rights and faithbased organisations
joined up to address hateful rheto
ric against religious minorities.
The White House teamed up with
a Sikh and an Asia Pacific communi
ty group to launch a public aware
ness campaign to address bullying
in six languages including Hindi,
Punjabi and Urdu.
ISRO: A YEAR OF COMMERCIAL LAUNCHES

By
Venkatachari
Jagannathan
Chennai: The year 2015 could
be termed as one of commercial
launches for the Indian Space
Research Organisation (ISRO),
while steps have been taken to
spread the usage of space tech
nology within India.
During the year, the Indian
space agency launched 17 for
eign satellites as against three
Indian ones from its rocket port
in Sriharikota in And hra
Pradesh.
Last month, India also
launched its GSAT15 communi
cation satellite using the Ariane
rocket of the European space
agency, taking the total number
of satellite launches in 2015 to
21 (17 foreign, four Indian).
India w ill send aloft two
telecommunication satellites
GSAT17 and GSAT18 on the
Ariane 5 rocket in 2016 and
2017.
However, it terms of the for
India will send aloft two telecommunication satellites GSAT17 and

GSAT18 on the Ariane 5 rocket in 2016 and 2017.
eign tonnage, ISRO had trans
ported around 2,148 kg, which is
much below the GSAT15's three
tonne weight.
According to space agency
officials, India has contracted to
launch over 20 satellites a mix
of nano, micro and normal sized
ones over the next three years.
According to ISRO chairman
A.S. Kiran Kumar, the immediate
focus is on completing the sec
ond vehicle (rocket) assembly

line that would enable increasing
the launch frequency.
In terms of rockets used, 19
satellites were launched with the
polar satellite launch vehicle
(PSLV) and one communication
satellite the GSAT6 with a
geosynchronous satellite launch
vehicle (GSLV).
During the year, India joined a
select group of nations the US,
Japan and Russia, as also Europe

with the successful launch of
the Astrostat space observatory.
India also moved a step forward
towards its own satellite naviga
tion systems by launching the
IRNSS1D in March.
On July 13, India launched its
satellitebased air navigation
services GAGAN (GPS Aided Geo
Augmented Navigation Satellite
System) and in the pro cess
joined a select group of the US
and Japan, as also the European
Union (EU) that have a similar
system.
GAGAN is meant to provide
accurate navigation services
over the Bay of Bengal, southeast
Asia, the Indian Ocean, Middle
East and African region.
In another plus, the space
agency successfully tested the
restarting of the PSLV rocket
after its engine was cut off dur
ing the mission to launch six
Sing aporean sate llites on
December 16. This would enable
ISRO to launch multiple satellites
The views expressed in Op Eds are not necessarily those of The South Asian Times.
in dif ferent orbits with a single

rocket.
And, to increase the usage of
Indian space technology a meet
ing of central government min
istries were held in New Delhi
during the year where ISRO
showcased its products and serv
ices and their uses.
Besides, with the launch of the
GAGAN and IRNSS (Indian
Regional Navigation Satellite
System) projects, ISRO and the
Airports Authority of India
org anised a usermeet in
Bengaluru for these services.
The year 2015 also saw the
Netherlandsbased International
Criminal Court (ICC) tribunal
deciding against ISRO's commer
cial arm Antrix Corporation for
cance lling a $300 million
(Rs.2,000 crore) deal w ith
Beng aluru
based
Devas
Multimedia Ltd. This involved a
12year lease of 90 percent of
transponder space on two satel
lites, GSAT6 and GSAT6A that
were yet to go aloft at the time.
FEATURES
15
JJS showcases and boosts jewelry trade

By Prakash Bhandari
Jaipur: The gems and jewelry industry in
India is facing recessionary trends and
export is down almost 20%. But at the 13th
edition of Jaipur Jewellery Show (JJS) over
730 booths displaying creations with
exquisite jewelry, gems and pearls showed
the grit and determination of the industry
to fight the down trend.
Over 35,000 visitors made the 4day
show from December 1923 a huge suc
cess. Visitors saw their favorite jewelry
items, tried and purchased as well. There
were luxury items as well as decorative
items for office and home.
Inaugurat ing the JJS at the Jaipur
Exhibitions and Convention Centre (JECC),
Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje Scindia
said that the dream of late Rashmikant
Durlabh, who pioneered the show, has real
ly been realized w ith the number of
exhibitors growing each year.
She said during the Rajasthan Resurgent
was the best opportunity to showcase the
potential in the gem and jewelry sector,
but this sector hardly needs any intro
duction. Scindia said designing is cru
cial in creating jewelry and in this fast
changing design scenario, only modern
approach and the judicious
use of technology would
help the age old craft to
thrive in future. She
Continued on page 25...

Bollywood actress
Amrita Rao is the
brand ambassador
of Jaipur Jewellery
Show.
Rajasthans Chief Minister Vasundhara Raje inaugurating the Jaipur Jewellery Show.
India's biggest B2B & B2C jewelry show

based on theme: Ruby Red, Rare & Royal.
Workshops on the craft & trade Fusion, modular in 2016
he Jaipur Design Festival witnessed workshops by experts

from the industry on topics like design creation, design trends
as well as brands promotion for students of jewelry design,
jewelry start ups as well as jewelry enthusiasts.
In his workshop,
artist Surender Singh advised out of the box thinking. Students used
recyclable material such as beads, buttons, ice cream sticks, and
thermocol balls to create innovative jewelry designs on canvas.
Anastassiya Savchenko, Creative Director of Nutcrackers, gave
valuable tips on StartUp communication strategy: a Start Up
should begin with a vision of a brand: A brand is a set of val
ues, emotions and philosophy. She then went on to highlight
the increasing importance of brand communication through
social media channels. She said that the jewelers must focus on
selling their brand rather than selling their products
on social media channels. In the session on E
Commerce for Designers, Mithun Sacheti of
Caratlane.com, opined that todays consumer
is far more knowledgeable thanks to his
Cellphone, Google and Facebook. Since the
real opportunity now lies with the masses,
he advised making jewelry items in the
Rs. 10, 000 range and not costing
Rs 1 lakh.
he year 2016 will see revolutionary new trend with

fusion jewelry blending the traditional with the
modern making
its mark.
Celebrity
award winning designer
and consultant Pallavi
Foley said at the JJS that
new ideas would sur
face and the designers
will play with different
colored stones and pearls
to design stunning prod
ucts. Earrings and rings
will see fusion at its best
and women will sport
mismatched earrings.
Wearing single earring
will come into vogue and
Designer Pallavi Foley predicts
it will be rich in design
the jewelry trends in 2016
and heavier in weight,
with diamonds, colored
stones or pearls making it resplendent. The traditional
Mang Teeka would become internationally fashionable as
ear ring piece. The traditional Continued on page 25...
Lions sharing joy of holiday season with less fortunate

By SATimes Team
very holiday season is a
good time to start thinking
about helping others and
providing the experience and joy
of the holidays especially to chil
dren. A time when our thoughts
turn to parents/caretakers who
may struggle to provide a special
gift for their children during the
holiday season. This very thought
inspired District Governor
Tejinder (TJ) S. Anand of Lions
District 20K2, Nassau County and
Bermuda Lions, to initiate the 1st
annual Polar Express Children's
Annual Holiday Event.
On December 19, Lions District
20K2 hosted the holiday party
for the underprivileged children
in Nassau County. It was held at
The Brookside School in North
Lions District 20K2 Governor Tejinder (TJ) S. Anand (third from right)
with Town of Hempstead Clerk Nasrin Ahmad and others.
Merrick. Sponsors contributed
600 gifts for the kids to make
their Christmas special. The Lions
served 100 children from the
Nassau County Shelter and 100
special needs children from the

school district. The children were
greeted at the entrance with live
lamb and goats, whom they could
Continued on page 25...
Lions District 20K2 held the holiday party for 100 children from the
Nassau County Shelter and another 100 special needs school children.
16
CHRISTMAS
CHRISTMAS
17
How Xmas tradition evolved in USA

By Michael Friedman
hristmas, celebrated by most Christians on December 25,
commemorates the birth of Jesus of Nazareth. Americans,
like many of the worlds peoples, have developed their
own Christmas traditions and observances, and these have
changed greatly over time. Today, most Americans blend reli
gious and secular customs with their own family traditions.
The early New England Puritans frowned on boisterous
Christmas celebrations. In 1659, the Massachusetts colony
briey criminalized observance of the day, and Christmas re
mained a regular workday in much of New England and Penn
sylvania. Other parts of British North America, however,
celebrated with gusto, with costumed revelers passing door to
door and receiving small gifts of food and drink.
The modern, more commercialized Christmas began to
emerge in the 19th century, with the new custom of purchasing
gifts for young children. Seasonal Christmas shopping began
to assume economic importance.
Other Christmas traditions similarly began during the 19th
century. Santa Claus derived from the Dutch Sinter Klaas and
the German Saint Nicholas assumed the persona of a jolly
dispenser of gifts and pilot of a reindeerdrawn sleigh through
such works as the 1823 poem A Visit from Saint Nicholas by
Clement Clarke Moore and an 1863 Harpers Weekly portrait
by illustrator Thomas Nast.
By Vikas Datta
t is the world's most wellknown religious and cul
tural festival, celebrated worldwide including even
by those who are not adherents of the faith. Many
sentiments and customs attached to it have become
common worldwide even where there is no snow,
evergreen conifers to hang lights and decorations
on, or a chimney for a nocturnal giftgiver to
enter. But Christmas celebrations, as we know
them today, are quite recent developments
and it is some 19th century authors who
were responsible.
Celebrated from the third century A.D.
onwards, the festival was however
banned in Britain in the mid17th cen
tury after the advent of the Puritans,
led by Oliver Cromwell (the closest
the country came to be being ruled
by Taliban/Ayotallah, as John O'
Farell notes in his irreverent his
tory of England). Though
celebrations revived after a
generation, it was not the
same.
In US too, Puritans banned
Christmas, and after the 13
colonies won independ
ence, fell out of favor as a
"British custom".
So how did the idea of
Christmas time as a holi
day season, the home
celebrations and feast,
the giftgiving and ex
changes, the idea of a "Christ
mas spirit" exemplifying
forgiveness, charity, generosity and redemption, Santa

Claus and all come?
Three authors two Americans and one British had
quite a part to play.
The first was American writer Washington Irving (1783
1859), known mostly for Rip Van Winkle and The Legend
of the Sleepy Hollow, but also an essayist, biographer, his
torian, and diplomat.
The two tales alluded to appear in his "The Sketch Book
of Geoffrey Crayon, Gent." (1820), a collection of nearly
three dozen essays and short stories, of which just half a
dozen relate to America.
Among the others are several about 'Crayon', Irving's
lightlydisguised literary alter ego, in Britain where he also
attends the traditional warmhearted Christmas celebra
tions. These are "Christmas" , where Crayon reflects on the
festival's meaning and its celebration, "The StageCoach",
about travelling to a country manor, Bracebridge Hall, and
being invited to stay for Christmas, "Christmas Eve", on cel
ebrations at Squire Bracebridge's home, "Christmas Day",
having the 'old, traditional' festivities continue at Brace
bridge Hall, and finally, "Christmas Dinner", where Crayon
enjoys oldfashioned hospitality at the Bracebridge Christ
mas dinner table.
The book, originally published in serial form in 181920,
was immensely popular and slowly led to revival of Amer
icans' interest in Christmas.
It was also helped when the poem "A Visit From St.
Nicholas", by an anonymous author, was published in
1822. Better known by its first line: "Twas the Night Be
fore Christmas", it sees a man, wakened by noises while his
wife and children sleep on the evening before Christmas,
looking out and seeing St. Nicholas' eight reindeerpulled
flying sleigh land on his roof. Nicholas enters through the
chimney with a sack of toys, and the father sees him filling
the children's Christmas stockings, and they share a con
spiratorial moment before the saint bounds up the chim
ney again, after wishing everyone: "Happy Christmas".

This poem helped to create a standard image of Santa
Claus, including his appearance ("dress'd all in fur, from
his head to his foot", "His eyes how they twinkled! His
dimples: how merry,/His cheeks were like roses, his nose
like a cherry" and "He had a broad face, and a little round
belly/That shook when he laugh'd, like a bowl full of jelly"),
the night he visits, his method of transportation, the num
ber and names of his reindeer ("Now! Dasher, now! Dancer,
now! Prancer and Vixen,/On! Comet, on! Cupid, on! Don
der and Blitzen"); and that he brings toys to children.
The author was Clement Clarke Moore (17791863), a
professor of oriental and Greek literature, as well as divin
ity and Biblical learning at a leading Protestant seminary
in New York, who in 1837, acknowledged he was the au
thor and had written it for his children.
But the author who is most closely associated with the
Christmas spirit is Charles Dickens (181270), who did the
most to create it, especially through his novella "A Christ
mas Carol", published on this day in 1843.
The story of a bitter old miser named Ebenezer Scrooge
("Bah! Humbug!") and his transformation into a gentler,
kindlier man after being visited by the ghosts of his for
mer business partner and of Christmas Past, Present and
Yet to Come, it was written in a bid to deal with his mount
ing debts and not only became a resounding success but
made Christmas what it is today. (Read Les Standiford's
"The Man Who Invented Christmas: How Charles Dickens's
A Christmas Carol Rescued His Career and Revived Our
Holiday Spirit", 2008).
But Dickens had more writings on Christmas "The Story
of the Goblins Who Stole a Sexton" in "The Pickwick Pa
pers", "The Chimes", "The Cricket on the Hearth", "The Bat
tle of Life" and various stories in journals "Household
Words" and "A Round of Stories by the Christmas Fire".
Now you know whom to thank when you wake up on
Christmas and find your sock filled!
Barack Obama with Santa Claus and other performers sing

on stage during the National Christmas Tree Lighting
ceremony at the Ellipse in Washington DC, Dec. 3, 2015.
Christmas trees are believed to date back to Martin Luther,
the 16thcentury German cleric. According to legend, Luther
brought home to his children a r tree one Christmas Eve to re
mind them of the wonders of Gods creation. The custom spread
to Britain and the United States in the 19th century. Today,
many Americans either purchase a cut, fresh evergreen tree or
a reusable aluminum and plastic model. The Christmas tree is
decorated with lights and ornaments. In many families, Christ
mas gifts appear under the tree on the morning of December
25, deposited there by family members, or, as smaller children

might believe, by Santa Claus.
With Christmas shopping vitally important to retailers,
Christmas has expanded into a season of its own. The day after
Thanksgiving is known as Black Friday. An important shop
ping day, it pushes some businesses into protability for the
year, or in the black, and can account for a substantial pro
portion of annual prots.
This extended Christmas season, from Thanksgiving until
Christmas, is about far more than shopping. For many Ameri
cans, it is a time of goodwill and an occasion for charitable
work. NonChristian holidays celebrated at roughly the same
time of year most prominently the AfricanAmerican Kwan
zaa and the Jewish Hanukkah blend into a broader holiday
season. Christmasthemed programs such as the 1946 lm Its
a Wonderful Life and the animated Rudolph the RedNosed
Reindeer often appear on television. An increasing number of
radio stations now adjust their formats to feature Christmas
music, sometimes exclusively, during the four to six weeks be
fore December 25. The holidays original religious meaning re
mains for many its most important element. Churches hold
wellattended Christmas Eve candlelight or midnight services.
Some include a Mass of the Nativity or a dramatization of the
birth of Jesus. As with so many aspects of U.S. cultural life,
Christmas in the United States reects the values of a free and
diverse people.
18
ilwale", with Shah Rukh Khan and Kajol in the lead,

after a long gap, seems reason enough to go and
watch this film. With the two legendary Dilwalas,
one expects the same magic from this duo on screen. And
they don't disappoint, albeit in a smaller segment.
Raj (Shah Rukh Khan) aka Kali lives a peaceful life with
his younger brother Vir (Varun Dhwan) on whom he
dotes. Together, they run a garage where they modify and
repair cars, giving them a makeover. His two friends,
Anwar (Pankaj Tripathi) and Shakti (Mukesh Tiwari) are
an intrinsic part of his life and are privy to his dubious
past of 15 years ago, which he has buried and about which
no one else knows.
With King Khan and director Rohit Shetty, one expects
mega entertainment. "Dilwale" is a formulaic film, replete
with all the ingredients of a typical Rohit Shetty film Goa,
cars overturning, fastpaced action and bright candy
coloured sets. But the film lacks soul and freshness.
The story and setting transport you back to the 1990s
and the lack of novelty and newness in the script and
treatment, is what lets you down. The dialogues abound
ing in pun, which are supposed to be funny, are really not
so. A few situational comedy scenes evoke laughter, but
don't really entertain or amuse you for too long.
Shah Rukh lights up the screen with this presence
undoubtedly and is the rasion d'etre to watch the film, but
the script does not back him enough. He fights, falls in
love, indulges in action, romances his lady love, but one
has seen him do all this so many times before. The fault
lies with the writing and his characterisation. He delivers
sincerely, what is expected of him.
Kajol too is competent as always, but as Meera Khan's
love interest, she seems to be stuck somewhere in the
1990s as her character lacks lustre. She looks radiant, per
forms competently and matches Shah Rukh in histrionics.
Varun as Vir, exudes energy, but overacts in several
scenes. The music, apart from "Gerua", which is beautifully
pictured, is disappointing.
"Dilwale" is strictly for Shah Rukh Khan's fans. They are
bound to overlook everything else.
'DILWALE' SRK WOWS IN

THIS FORMULAIC SAGA
The star cast of 'Dilwale'.
'Bajirao Mastani'
A visually captivating
masterpiece
'Star Wars...' a masterful

continuation of old franchise
By Shiv Chopra
tar Wars: The Force Awakens
released last Thursday with a
gale force and broke almost
every single weekend box of fice
record on the book. It grossed
$248 million in four days just in
the US. Worldwide it grossed $529
million.
So, what makes the movie so spe
cial? Does it bring upon the nostal
gia of the earlier films or is it just a
great movie by itself? The Force
Awakens brings on a new slew of
characters along with old and
familiar faces. Using the same aged
actors of the original trilogy going
back to 1977, we get a good under
standing of the skip in time.
The special effects this time are
far greater than in any of the previ
ous movies o the franchise, keeping
with the standards of the industry
and technological advancements.
Yet, there is a continuation with the
original movies. It goes so far as to
reuse the childish cross fade transi
tions and the overall style of the
earlier installments. The Force
Awakens starts with the same
scroll screen as the previous
movies and tells us that after the
demise of The Empire, a new threat,
The New Order, has risen to take
ULTIMATE BOLLYWOOD
A scene from Star Wars:

The Force Awakens
power and it must be dealt with. It
follows Finn, a stormtrooper, wish
ing to do the right thing, played by
John Boyega, and Rey, an isolated
scavenger played by Daisy Ridley,
on a desert planet. Everything
turns upside down when they come
to possess a map to find Luke
Skywalker, the main character of
the original trilogy. They team up
with Harrison Ford as Han Solo and
Carrie Fisher as Leia to protect the
map and fight the new order. With
a strong female lead in Rey, the
franchise seems to be moving in
the right direction. It focuses less
on the old generation and looks
towards the future with a new slew
of characters that we will grow to
love and see in the sequels. The
Disney films director J.J. Abrams is
heir apparent to both Steven
Spielberg and George Lucas. More,
he is a superfan of Star Wars. So
this is his tribute.
anjay Lee la Bhansali's

"Bajirao Mastani", based on
the novel "Rau" authored by
N.S. Inamdar, is a fictionalised
romance drama that encapsulates
the 20 year reign of the Maratha
warrior Bajirao and his relation
ship with his second wife Mastani.
The film begins with Bajirao's
appointment as Peshwa in the
court of Chhattrapati Shahu in
Satara. The narration thereafter
leads you into his expeditions, his
encounter with Mastani and their
subsequent, intense romance.
Mounted on a magnificent scale
w ith we lletched characters,
resplendent sets and period cos
tumes, the director, intricately
and flawlessly, transports you to
the era of the Peshwas, circa
17201740.
What makes the film stand out
is Bhansali's direction. He astutely
manages to guide his team to
deliver the best. Be it in perform
ances, music, visuals or action, his
inimitable stamp is written over
every frame of the film.
The performances by the char
A scene from 'Bajirao Mastani'

acters are captivating. Bajirao
Mastani is Ranveer Singh's can
vas. Deepika Padukone as the
defiant and confident warrior
Mastani, madly in love w ith
Bajirao, is effortlessly convincing.
Her performance resonates with
the right attitude, both as a war
rior and as Bajirao's love interest,
making her stand out.
Priyanka Chopra in her navaris
the nine yard saris, as the obvi
ously hurt Kashibai Bajirao's
first wife, though a bit dramatic, is

herself, glossedup and preten
tious. But nevertheless, she essays
her role ably.
Visually, the film is mesmeriz
ing. T he computer generated
images seamlessly interlace cine
matographer Sudeep Chatterjee's
frames.
Overall, "Bajirao Mastani" is a
spectacular masterpiece which
will stay with you much after you
leave the cinema hall.
ULTIMATE BOLLYWOOD
19
Orlando Bloom deported

from Delhi, returns later
A
rejected evisa landed

Hollywood actor Orlando
Bloom in trouble in India.
He was deported to the UK from
Delhi because his evisa had
been rejected. However, he
returned to Delhi after External
Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj
intervened in the matter.
As per a report in The Indian
Express, Bloom was supposed to
be a state guest of the Uttar
Pradesh government, and he was
expected to visit the Taj Mahal
during his stay in India as well,
but his evisa application was
rejected by the Indian authori
ties.
Bloom, who arrived in India at
1:30 in the night, had to leave
the country around 4 am. Later,
Sushma Swaraj took notice of
the matter and the actor was
issued a fresh visa which made
his stay in India possible.
Vikas Swarup, Official
Spokesperson and Joint
Secretary of the Ministry of
External Affairs, was quoted by
Hollywood actor Orlando Bloom with politician

Amar Singh at the Taj Mahal.
Mumbai Mirror as saying,
When one applies for an elec
tronic visa, one receives a mail
saying whether the visa has been
issued or rejected. I think he
must have landed without the
confirmation email or forgotten
to check whether the visa has
been granted or not. It takes a
minimum of 72 hours and a
maximum of four days for the

visa to be processed, at the end
of which, your visa is accepted or
rejected.
Bloom is the chief attraction of
Indian filmmaker Sheetal
Talvars Romans, and he is
expected to meet some
Bollywood heavyweights as part
of a campaign.
The winner Pia Alonzo Wurtzbach of the Philippines.
Eva Longoria completes

golden triangle trip in India
'm in heaven, Hollywood actress Eva
Longoria has exclaimed in reference to
her India trip! Right from relishing Indian
cuisines, exploring the wildlife of India to
falling in love with the historical side of the
nation, the "Desperate Housewives" star is
smitten by the country's culture and beauty.
Longoria, who is here to celebrate her
recent engagement to television profession
al Jose Antonio Baston, started her trip with
Delhi, went to Agra and then to Rajasthan,
where she visited Ranthambore and Jaipur
thereby, completing the golden triangle of
the country's tourism map.
In Jaipur, the actress enjoyed the flavors of
south India by savoring idli, dosa and utta
pam.
"I can't stop eating! #IndianBreakfast," she
tweeted with an image.
During her sojourn in the Pink City a fre
quented spot for foreign visitors Longoria
explored the Hawa Mahal. She called it
"beautiful".
Well, it's not only the food and ancient
buildings that caught Longoria's fancy. She
also found a friend in an Indian elephant,
and also had goosebumps after seeing an
Indian tiger at the Ranthambore National
Park.
"My new friend! #India #Elephants. I want
to take him home with me! #India #Reserve,"
she tweeted.
In another post she shared: "Yep. That's a
tiger. Right in front of us just chillin' #India
#RanthambhoreTigerReserve."
According to reports, Longoria will be in
India till Christmas.
Philippines beauty
crowned Miss Universe
2015 after botch up
Las Vegas: Pia Alonzo
Wurtzbach of the Philippines
was crowned Miss Universe
2015, but only after some
stage drama. The ceremony's
host Steve Harvey mistakenly
mixed up the winners' names at
the event, where India failed to
clinch the title for the 15th
straight year.
Wurtzbach beat as many as
79 contestants, including
India's Urvashi Rautela who
didn't find a spot even in the
top 15, here.
The top three contestants
included beauties from the
Philippines, Colombia and the
US, who beat others in rounds
like national costume, swimsuit
and evening wear.
Earlier while announcing the
results, Miss US Olivia Jordan
was placed third and
Wurtzbach was announced as
the first runnerup. As a result,
there was a mix up in the
crowning ceremony too.
Miss Colombia Ariadna
Guiterrez jumped with joy after
the host took her country's
name as the winner. She was
Actor Eva Longoria in India.
crowned by another Colombian

beauty Paulina Vega, who
had clinched the crown in
2014. It could have been two
Miss Universe titles in a row
for Colombia but soon after
Guiterrez took her first walk as
the winner, the host admitted
to have made a mistake in
announcing the winners.
"I will take the responsibility
for this. It's on the card. Don't
hold it against the ladies. Still a
great night," Harvey told the
audience.
Vega then returned to the
stage, took away the crown
from Guiterrez and placed it on
the head of Wurtzbach, who
looked equally shocked as the
others.
Wurtzbach, who believes that
she is "confidently beautiful
with a heart", thinks that the
title is an honor with responsi
bilities. She wants to create
awareness about HIV.
India last won the Miss
Universe title in 2000. Lara
Dutta, now an actressproduc
er, had brought the crown
home.
20
OP-ED
Perversion of Islam caused by

WahabiSaudi combine
An armed struggle against ISIS must be relentlessly pursued. But a more difficult and
indispensable task today is to fight against the indoctrination and perversion of Islam
that created ISIS. Unfortunately, I do not see any meaningful and sincere strategy
being worked out at any level against this murderous frenzy.
By S Irfan Habib
or over a thousand years,
the Harmain (holy places)
had been inclusive of all
Muslims, with shrines for the
Shia and other Islamic sects.
However, this eclecticism and
pluralism was an anathema to
the Wahabis, and they were com
mitted to its eradication.
On 13 November 2015, a
series of coordinated militant
attacks in Paris shook the world.
The attacks, reportedly the dead
liest in France since the Second
World War, followed soon after
many European countries had
opened their doors to the trau
matized and homeless refugees
from Syria and Iraq, many of
whom are Muslims. Although
many nations in the European
Union expressed discomfort with
the decision, this was largely
seen as a great humanitarian
gesture on the part of the EU.
Some even saw it as an expres
sion of guilt for the Wests vio
lent involvement in the ongoing
conflicts for decades. Over the
last month, countries such as the
United States of America and
Canada announced that they
would be joining the European
nations in granting asylum to
refugees.
However, the path forward is
unclear. Two fronts require seri
ous action. The first and fore
most challenge is the one that
faces not only Muslim nations
but all Muslims: to unambiguous
ly confront the custodians of the
Islamic faith, who have hijacked
the narrative of Islam. The sec
ond is that in order to decimate
the threat of Islamic fundamen
talism, the West must shelve
their strategic and economic
interests in west Asia.
Islamic faith, as it stands now,
has been vandalized. The vandals
of the faith are the ame custodi
ans of the holy places of Islam
who ganged up with the funda
mentalist Sunni Muslim preacher
Abdul Wahab almost 200 ago.
Wahab be lieved that Islam
should be returned to the origi
nal principles that were followed
Nobody seems
willing or
daring to take
on Sunni
fundamentalism
perversion that
created ISIS
by the first three generations of
Muslims, and rejected many com
mon practices that the faith had
come to include over time. The
Ottomans, who controlled the
region then, may be answerable
for the many atrocities they com
mitted during their rule, but the
Islam they professed and propa
gated was based on the tradition
al heterodox Bektashi Sufi think
ing, a dervish order of Islam.
Their outlook was loose, and was
accommodative of diverse local
cultural practices. It is still prac
t iced and venerated in the
regions of the Balkans and the
erstwhile Russian states in cen
tral Asia. The battle between the
subsequent WahabiSaudi com
bine and the Ottomans was not
merely a fight for territorial con
trol, but also a fight to save tradi
tional Islam from the depreda
t ions of the combine. T he
defaced Islam peddled by the
Islamic State and other funda
mentalists today originated two
hundred years ago, and mayhem
and mass murders are the ugliest
manifestations of this corruption.
To understand the criminaliza
tion of Islam, we must delve into
the rise of the WahhabiSaudi
combine. T he Ottomans per
ceived the emerging combine
from Najd, the most backward
region of Arabia, as a serious
threat. Inspired by the 14th cen
tury scholar IbnTaymayya, who
hated the Shias and Sufis, Wahab
also decried them to be grave
worshippers. He also declared
war against Greek philosophy,
which inspired the Baitul Hikma

(House of Wisdom), a major
intellectual centre during the
Abbasid period, to generate a
huge corpus of scientific litera
ture between the 8th and 11th
centuries. Wahab took this revi
sionism forward in his main
work, The Book of Monotheism,
laying down the framework of a
sectarian and hateful Islam. The
Prophets personality and his
dedication to compassion and
mercy were amputated from the
body of Islam. Wahab denounced
his opponents, and all Muslims
not willing to accept his views, as
idolaters and apostates. He
believed that all Muslims had
fallen into unbelief and that if
they refused to follow him, they
should be killed, their women
violated and their possessions
confiscated. Shias, Sufis, and
other Muslimswho were
heretical according to his doc
trinewere to be exterminated,
and all other faiths were to be
humiliated or decimated. With
this awful dogma, the basis for
the future Islamic fundamental
ism, and ultimately terrorism,
was laid.
Abdul Wahab and his doctrine
were challenged and repudiated
by many scholars of Islam, who
found it to be in conflict with
Quran and w ith all the four
schools of Islam. Even his family
warned Muslims to be wary of
him. His brother Suleiman
accused him of trying to add a
sixth pillar to Islam: the infallibil
ity of Abdul Wahhab.
This terrible doctrine would

have remained marginal, and an
obscure part of Islamic history,
had Abdul Wahab not received
support from Ibn Saud, the first
monarch of the House of Saud
and the founder of Saudi Arabia.
The Wahhabi doctrine could be
inducted into the mainstream
only if the combine was able to
wrest control of the holy places
from the Ottoman empire. The
WahabSaud alliance initially
conquered a few local settle
ments and imposed their doc
trine on them. T heir visceral
hatred for the Shias led them to
attack the Shia holy city of
Karbala in 1801, killing thou
sands of people, wrecking and
looting the tomb of Husain, the
grandson of the Prophet. Their
attacks continued during the
19th century, with a resolve to
drive out the Bektashis, Qadiris
and other dervishes out of the
vicinity of Mecca and Medina.
For over a thousand years, the
Harmain (holy places) had been
inclusive of all Muslims, with
shrines for the Shia and other
Islamic sects. However, this
eclecticism and pluralism was an
anathema to the Wahabis, and
they were committed to its eradi
cation. The Islamic State today is
inspired by this diabolical Islam
of the 18th century. However,
they are armed with modern
metho ds of expansion and
destruction, such as the internet,
social media, and stateoftheart
weaponry.
The West is also deeply impli
The views expressed in Op Eds are not necessarily those of The South Asian Times.
cated in the promotion of this

project. T he Brit ish, already
under stress due to the rise of
nationalisms in their occupied
territories, discovered in the
WahabiSaudi combine a poten
tial ally in the fight against the
Ottomans. The British collabora
tion finally led to the victory of
the combine and the final
takeover of the holy places in
1924. This nexus continued, and
was even strengthened after the
oil boom in the region in the
1970s. The business and strate
gic interests have blinded the
EuroAmerican world, overlook
ing the Wahhabi zealotry and its
global implications.
Once the Saudis became custo
dians of the Harmain, they
acquired legitimacy and respect
to speak for Islam. Of the
Muslims who had been going for
the annual Hajj pilgrimage, few
saw through the WahabiSaudi
gameplan and the innovations
they had brought about. Today,
any deviation from the Saudi
petroIslam is seen as moving
away from Islam itself, which I
perceive as terribly farcical.
T here is a consensus among
most schools of Islam that the
Islamic State is a terrorist front
that has nothing to do with the
faith, but no one dares to ques
tion the WahhabiSaudi combine
for inspiring and funding such
criminal gangs in the name of
Islam.
Neither Muslims nor the West
can af ford to beat around the
bush any longer. An armed strug
gle against the Islamic State is
unavoidable and must be relent
lessly pursued. However, a more
dif ficult and indispensable task
to day is to fig ht ag ainst the
indoctrination and perversion of
Islam. Unfortunately, I do not see
any meaning ful and sincere
strategy being worked out at any
level against this murderous
frenzy.
S Irfan Habib is the Maulana

Azad Chair at the National
University of Educational
Planning and Administration,
New Delhi.
DIASPORA
Lord Raj Loomba calls for

Widows' Commission in India
London: India must set up a
commission to protect the well
being of its nearly 48 million
widows, an Indianorigin mem
ber of Britain's House of Lords
has said.
Raj Loomba, founder of the
Loomba Foundation which cam
paigns for widows' rights around
the world, was speaking at the
press launch of a new 'World
Widows Report', which will be
of ficially presented at a United
Nations meeting in New York on
Friday.
"A commission for widows is an
ideal forum to shelter and pro
tect widows in India...it (a com
mission) will be a deterrent to
people who abuse widows," said
Loomba, the 72yearold
founderchairman
trustee of the Loomba
Foundation.
He will be present
ing the new report to UN

SecretaryGeneral Ban KiMoon,
who has been a supporter of the
foundation's ef forts to put the
plight of widows on the global
map. The report highlights that
discrimination against widows is
not confined to India or South
Asia but is "deep
rooted feature
of gender
discrimina
t ion all
over the
world,
though its
form and
impacts dif
fer".
It calls for the issue to be

addressed with specific action in
order to meet the UN's
Sustainable Development Goals.
The Loomba Foundation, which
led a mission for June 23 to be
recognized as Internat ional
Widows' Day by the UN, recently
raised funds to empower 5,000
widows in Varanasi, which is
home to an estimated 38,000
widows.
In the first phase, the Loomba
Foundation aims to provide for
sewing machines and garment
making training to the widows
in Uttar Pradesh.
Raj Loomba,
founder,
Loomba
Foundation
21
Two BritishIndians plan road

trip to Amritsar for charity
London: Two Brit ishIndian
friends plan to raise 25,000
pounds for the Brit ish Heart
Foundation (BHF) by attempting
to drive a car from Gravesend
town in Britain to Amritsar in
record time, a media report said
on Tuesday.
On February 1, Jagjit Singh
Grewal and Rapinder Sing h
Cheema will set off in a sport utili
ty vehicle from Gravesend's Guru
Nanak Darbar Gurdwara on
Saddington Street, trave lling
through 17 countries before final
ly reaching the Golden Temple in
Amritsar in 14 days, kentonline
reported. The duo hopes to set a
new record for crosscontinental
travel in the shortest time and be
recognized by the Limca Book of
Records in India. They hope to
drive up to 2,400 km a day on the
European leg be fore slow ing
down to about 480 km once they
reach more dif ficult terrain in

Asia.
"We will be sleeping in hotels
and we will not break any speed
limits," Grewal was quoted as say
ing. "The Limca Book of Records
currently has a record set in 2013
for 16 countries in 40 days," he
added.
Grewal and Cheema planned the
challenging trip in 2011 "just for
fun."But it changed to a fundraiser
for the BHF Mending Broken
Hearts Appeal after Grewal's
father died of a massive heart
attack in February 2012.
A website www.justgiving.com
/gravesendtoamritsar has been
set up to help the duo receive
money from donors for the trip.
The BHF Mending Broken Hearts
Appeal was set up in 2011 and
aims to raise 50 million pounds
for research into regenerative
medicine and pioneering work.
Paris remembers the Indianorigin footballer Dhanda

gets Liverpool contract
Unknown Indian Soldier
Paris: In a moving ceremony, organized
here for the first time, martyred Indian
soldiers were remembered at the iconic
Arc de Triomphe, which is home to the
Flame in the Memory of the Unknown
Soldier.
The flame has been rekindled by the
French army every single day since
November 1923, even during the
Second World War when Paris was
occupied by the Germans. However, so
far it had never been done in the mem
ory of Indian soldiers, even though
over 10,000 of them laid down their
lives in defence of France and other
allied nations in the First World War,
which had seen over 130,000 Indian
soldiers arrive in France to battle the
Germans. T he proof of the valiant
Indian soldiers lies in Neuve Chapelle, a
small village on the border w ith
Belgium, where 4,200 Indian soldiers
were killed in intense fighting that last
ed over three days. The Indian armies
finally drove out the German occupiers
and gained control of this strategic vil
lage. To commemorate these soldiers,
the Indian community got together
with the Indian embassy here, to organ
ize a ceremony for the first time. The
init iat ive was taken by Rajaram

Munuswamy, secretary general of
GOPIO International, the organization
that brings together persons of Indian
origin in various countries around the
world.
"In this centenary year of the World
War I, we have organized several
events to honor Indian soldiers and
that is why we approached the French
defence ministry to allow us commem
orate the ceremony at this unique mon
ument. This is the first time in the his
tory of France that the Indian commu
nity is remembering its soldiers,"
Munuswamy said.
For this o ccasion, GOP IO chose
December 16, which is also celebrated
as the VDay in 1971 war with Pakistan
and which led to the creat ion of
Bangladesh. The flame was lit by Indian
Ambassador Mohan Kumar in the pres
ence of over 400 members of the
Indian diaspora, who had gathered not
only from France but also from Britain,
Guadeloupe and Mauritius, among
other countries. Notable among those
present were GOPIO International pres
ident Diljit Rana GOPIO International
chairman Mahen Utchanah.
Liverpool: Yan Dhanda has become the first

player of Indian heritage to sign a profession
al contract with English football powerhouse
Liverpool.
The England youth international recently
turned 17 and has entered into a twoanda
halfyear contract with the Anfield club,
bbc.co.uk reported .
Dhanda was born in Birmingham. He joined
Liverpool's academy in July 2013 from West
Bromwich Albion club.
The attacking midfielder has played for
England at the Under16 and Under17 levels
and won the upandcoming player category
at the Asian Football Awards in 2013.
Yan Dhanda
Indianorigin woman stabs drug

store employee in Toronto
Toronto: A 40yearold Indianorigin woman
faces murder charges for stabbing to death a
woman in the heart of Toronto, police said.
Rohinie Bisesar stabbed the victim at a
Shoppers Drug Mart in Toronto's financial
district last Friday.
The victim was rushed to a hospital where
she succumbed to her injuries on Thursday.
The Indianorigin woman was arrested on

Tuesday and charged with attempted murder.
Police said she did not know her victim.
Since the victim has died, Bisesar will now
face firstdegree murder charges.
A business graduate from the prestigious
York University of Toronto, Bisesar has held
many jobs in Toronto's financial district.
22
SUBCONTINENT
US ASKS INDIA, PAKISTAN TO RESOLVE

ISSUES BILATERALLY
Washington: Acknowledging "legit
imate terrorism concerns and
threats" in South Asia, US says it
continues to welcome and encour
age ef forts by India and Pakistan
to work bilaterally to solve very
dif ficult, complicated issues
between them.
"Every polit ical leader has
responsibilities .especially ones
that are dealing here with sensitive
re lat ions," State Department
spokesman John Kirby told
reporters Monday in response to a
question.
Asked about reports that
Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz
Sharif has asked his ministers not
to make antiIndia statements, the
spokesperson said he had not seen
the comments.
"You have a responsibility to pre
Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif with Narendra Modi

serve security and stability. At the
same time. you also have a respon
sibility, we believe, to preserve

freedom of speech and freedom of
Pak ad featuring Nargis

Fakhri sparks outrage online
Bollywood actress Nargis Fakhri
Islamabad: Bollywood actress

Nargis Fakhri's advertisement on
the front page of leading
Pakistani Urdu newspaper Jang
has created a stir over social
media where people have con
demned it by calling the adver
tisement cheap and absurd.
Many, including journalists,
took to Twitter to condemn the
obscenity of the ad that simply
shows Nargis lying down with a
phone in her hand while donning
a red dress, the Express Tribune
reported. Pakistani investigative
journalist Ansar Abbasi was the
first one to condemn the ad on
the microblogging site while
others later joined him.
Here's what they have tweeted:
Abbasi: My strong protest to top
Jang group management for this
absurd front page ad in today's
Jang.
Matiullah Jan: @AnsarAAbbasi

you are right, her beautiful body
curves have nothing to do with
3G phone and its 'cheap price'. I
fully agree with you dear.
Athar Ali Khan: Dayummm
@NargisFakhri
Omno: Why did you dirty the
newspaper by putting Nargis's
photograph on it?
Muhammed
Amer:
@
AnsarAAbbasi why newspapers
are trying to be like playboy or
wee kend type of mag azine?
These kind of ads look good in
magazine not on NP.
Mirza Lamer King: Today they
have put Narg is's image.
Tomorrow they will show Sunny
Leone.
Kadar Khan: @AnsarAAbbasi
Front page ad looks absurd but
corruption, loot and plunder of
the government is acceptable.
Lanka hopeful EU fishing ban

will be lifted by 2016
Colombo: Sri Lanka is expecting
a fishing ban imposed by the
European Parliament to be lifted
by the middle of next year, local
media reported on Tuesday.
"During the coming months,
the proposal to lift the fishing
ban will be presented to the
European Parliament," Fisheries
Minister Mahinda Amaraweera
was quoted by Xinhua news
agency as saying.
"We are losing over $100 mil
lion per year because of this ban.
So we are expecting a favourable

response from them before the
Sinhala and Tamil New Year
(local new year) in 2016."
Amaraweera added that they
have installed Vessel Monitoring
Systems on the vessels operating
in international waters in order
to stop fishing in prohibited
areas.
Sri Lanka's fish exports to the
European Union make up 68 per
cent of its total fish exports,
which brings in $160 million
annually.
The remaining 32 percent is
sent to the US, Japan and other
nonEU countries.
T he EU ban took e f fect in
January 2015, over the failure of
the previous government to pre
vent local fishermen from violat
ing international fisheries laws.
The new government, however,
said that it has taken action to
ensure that the fishermen com
ply with all the conditions laid
down by the EU.
expression," he said.
"I would just say we continue to
we lcome e f forts by India and
Pakistan to work bilaterally to
solve these very dif ficult, compli
cated issues," Kirby said.
"And so that they have started to
do that and appear to be genuinely
interested in fostering greater
understanding between the two
countries, that's welcome, he said.
"And we continue to encourage
that."
But "there's always a balance to
be struck here. And without having
more detail about his comments or
the context in which they were
made, I'd really be loath to go fur
ther than that."
Asked about Pakistani Nobel
prizewinner Malala Yousufzai's
reported comments that at least
269 schools and other educational

institutions in Pakistan were run
by Mumbai attack mastermind
Hafiz Saeed, Kirby said he could
not speak to those specific allega
tions as he had not seen the report.
But "we want both countries to
work through the tensions them
selves," he said noting, "There are
legitimate terrorism concerns and
threats and challenges in that part
of the world."
"We want everybody to con
tribute because everybody can be
a victim Pakistan no less of ter
rorism and certainly India," he
said.
"So it's important that both sides
work together to communicate,
coordinate, cooperate as much as
they can against this common
threat," Kirby added.
India hails Nepal's steps

to defuse political crisis
Due to the
ongoing
agitation,
thousands of
Nepalbound
cargo vehicles
have not been
able to enter
Nepal from India
since the last four
months.
New Delhi/Kathmandu: India
has welcomed the steps taken
by the Nepalese government to
resolve the fourmonthold polit
ical impasse following the adop
tion of a new constitution by the
Himalayan nation in September.
External Af fairs Minister
Sushma Swaraj was informed by
Nepal's Deputy Prime Minister
and Foreign Minister Kamal
T hapa on Monday that the
Nepalese cabinet has taken
some important decisions to
address and resolve demands
reg arding the const itut ion
raised by agitating Madhes
based parties, the ministry said
in a statement.
"T hese decisions include
amendments to the Constitution
on participation in the state
organs on the basis of propor
tionate inclusiveness and delin
eation of electoral constituen
cies on the basis of population,"
it said. "T he demarcation of
provinces is also to be
addressed through an appropri
ate arrangement in the constitu
tion on the basis of political con
sensus.
Similarly,
other
demands, including citizenship,
are to be resolved through nego

t iat ions and consensus."
According to the statement,
India welcomed these develop
ments as positive steps that help
create the basis for a resolution
of the current impasse in Nepal.
"As a neig hbour and we ll
wisher, India was deeply con
cerned at the unrest stemming
from internal dif ferences in
Nepal on the constitution. We
urge all Nepali political forces to
now demonstrate the necessary
maturity and flexibility to find a
sat isfactory solut ion to the
Constitutional issues through
construct ive dialogue in an
agreed time frame," it stated.
"We are confident that a
return to normalcy in Nepal
would create a more secure and
predictable climate for unim
peded commerce between our
two countries."
Due to the ongoing agitation,
thousands of Nepalbound cargo
vehicles have not been able to
enter Nepal from India since the
last four months. As a result,
Nepal is facing serious shortage
of essential supplies like food,
medicines, fuel and other items.
INTERNATIONAL
23
British terror plotter detained indenitely

London: A British man who plotted
to kill Prince Charles has been
detained indenitely under the
mental health act, the media
reported.
Mark Colborne, 29, dubbed "gin
ger extremist" by local media, fan
tasized about shooting the Prince
of Wales so that "redhaired"
Prince Harry could be king.
T he man likened himse lf to
Norwegian mass killer Anders
Breivik and made notes in his diary
of his plan to assassinate Prince
Charles with a high powered sniper
rie, reports said.
He also bought the ingredients
for deadly poison cyanide over the
internet and sto ck piled dust
masks, metal lter funnels, plastic
syringes and latex gloves.
"I don't want to be a serial killer.
I'm more of an Anders Breivik. I
have left potential targets open... I
was waiting for an opportunity to
kill one of them. Let it be Prince
France says it foiled

jihadi attack near Orleans
Mark Colborne, 29
Charles, which would be good," he
wrote in his notebook.
Following a retrial at the Old
Bailey, England and Wales's crimi
nal court, Colborne was found
guilty by a majority of preparing
terrorist acts before he was arrest
ed on June 3, 2014, after his family
disclosed the chemicals and hand
written papers stored in his room.
Greek Parliament
legalizes samesex
civil partnerships
The new legislation is expected to take effect early next year.

Athens: Greece's parliament has
overwhelmingly approved legisla
tion legalizing civil partnerships
for gay couples, two years after the
country was condemned by a
European human rights court for
discrimination.
In a result announced early
Wednesday, lawmakers voted 193
56 in favor of the bill to extend
civil partnerships to samesex cou
ples, but provisions regarding fam
ily law that could pave the way for
adoption applications by gay cou
ples were dropped before the vote.
Conservative bishops in Greece's
powerful Orthodox Church vehe
mently opposed the law, arguing
that it undermined the institution
of family.
"Homosexuality is a deviation
from the laws of nature. It is a
social crime, a sin. T hose who
experience or support it are not
normal people," said Bishop
Amvrosios of the southern town of
Kalavryta, where church be lls

tolled Tuesday in opposition to the
bill.
In a 2013 ruling, the Council of
Europe's Court of Human Rights
found that Greek legislation was
discriminatory and ordered Greece
to pay damages to the gay couples
who brought the lawsuit.
Civil partnerships, introduced in
2008, are favored by couples seek
ing legal rights without getting
married or who are deterred by
lengthy divorce procedures. But
samesex couples were barred
from civil partnerships.
Lawmakers from the governing
leftist Syriza party backed the bill,
standing to clap when it passed,
while the main opposition conser
vatives were split on the vote.
The new legislation allowing civil
partnerships for samesex couples
is expected to take ef fect early
next year once it is published in
the government gazette.
The jury convicted him on the

basis that he possessed notes
copied from internet sources such
as The Terrorist Handbook and
book about production of viable
explosives.
However, the jury re jected
aspects of the allegations that he
intended to use the chemicals and
paraphernalia as part of the terror
Paris: French authorities say

they thwarted a jihadi attack
last week in an area near the
central French city Orleans.
Interior minister Bernard
Cazeneuve said that on a visit
near Toulouse that the planned
attack targeted "soldiers, police
and representat ives of the
state," and that two French citi
zens aged 20 and 24 were
arrested on Dec. 19.
Cazeneuve said that the two
plot. Judge commented the case as
a "very strange" case involving a
"very strange person," who felt
alienated and marginalized for
being a white, gingerhaired man
and was also suffering from agora
were in contact with a French

jihadi in Syria and that an inves
tigation is going to establish the
exact links between the thwart
ed attack and the jihadi.
Cazeneuve said this brings the
total number of foiled attacks in
France to 10 since 2013. He
also said that 3,414 people have
been turned away from France's
borders since a state of emer
gency was declared after last
month's Paris attacks.
phobia and depression.
The court heard that Colborne
was "sane" but had a personality
disorder with a degree of psychosis
which warranted continued treat
ment in Hampshire.
US presidential election engaged

Facebook users the most in 2015
New York: The US presidential
election was the most talkedabout
global topic on Facebook in 2015,
the social media site has revealed
in its "Year in Review" top 10 list.
While the November 13 attack in
Paris was the second most talked
about topic on the social network
ing site, the Syrian civil war and
refugee crisis and Nepal earth
quakes were placed at the third
and fourth spots, respectively.
The Greek debt crisis took the
fth position on the list, followed
by marriage equality and ght
against Islamic State (IS) on sixth
and seventh spots, respectively.
"As 2015 comes to a close, we

remember what was on our minds
this year and the dif ference we
made by coming together. We're
taking a look back on the moments
in 2015 that moved us and
inspired us to take action," said
Facebook in a post.
Charlie Hebdo attack, Baltimore
protests and Charleston shooting
and ag debate claimed the last
three spots on the list.
Other than this, Facebook also
provided top 10 lists, including top
movies, TV shows, athletes and
new games.
"Star Wars: The Force Awakens"
US president to
open highlevel
meeting at UN on
refugees
United Nations: The US President Barack Obama will
open a highlevel meeting on refugees in September
2016 at the United Nations, when world leaders will be
here to attend the annual debate of the UN General
Assembly.
Samantha Power, the US UN ambassador who holds
the rotating council presidency for December, made
the statement here on Monday as a massive inux of
refugees were reported in Africa, the Middle East and
Europe over the past months.
The US plan needs to be coordinated with the UN,
which does not make response to it at the press time,
Xinhua reported.
The US is one of the ve permanent members of the
15nation Security Council, the other four vetowield
ing members are Britain, China, France and Russia.
was the most talkedabout movie

in 2015 followed by "Furious 7" on
the second and "Jurassic World"
on third spots.
"Game of Thrones" headed the
list of TV shows while "T he
Walking Dead" and "T he Daily
Show" grabbed second and third
spots, respectively.
In athletes' list, boxer Floyd
Mayweather, Jr topped the list
with boxer Manny Pacquiao and
American mixed martial art artist
Ronda Rousey taking the second
and third places, respectively.
Lione l Messi and Crist iano
Ronaldo followed.
UN security council
to vote on support
for Libya peace deal
United Nations: The UN security council was
expected to vote on a resolution supporting a
new UNbrokered deal to form a unity govern
ment in Libya.
Diplomats say discussions continue Tuesday.
A draft of the resolution obtained by The
Associated Press makes no move to lift the arms
embargo that is meant to clamp down on the
ow of arms to militia groups.
Oilrich Libya slid into chaos after the 2011
toppling and killing of dictator Muammar
Gadda and ended up split between two rival
governments. The Islamic State group has
recently exploited the chaos to gain territory.
The country's rival factions last week signed a
deal to form a unity government that is meant
to bring about peace. Other political factions
and heavily armed militias have expressed
opposition.
24
BUSINESS
BANKRUPTCY BILL PROGRESSIVE,

SHOULDN'T BE DELAYED: JAITLEY
New Delhi: Finance Minister Arun Jaitley
introduced in the Lok Sabha the Insolvency
and Bankruptcy Bill, 2015, which proposes
a single bankruptcy code with deadlines for
processing insolvency cases, saying pro
gressive legislation for reform should not
be delayed by referring it to various parlia
mentary committees for scrutiny.
"I don't want to see it passed as a Money
Bill, without proper discussion. But I also
can't afford to have it go from committee to
committee as people continue to suf fer
because of political chess playing," he told
the Lok Sabha.
"This is a progressive piece of legislation
with the aim that assets lying in business
that can't function don't get wasted, while
stakeholders like workmen and creditors
get first right on these assets. "Just as entry
into business should be easy..rather than
assets being wasted, an easy exit also
should be made available," the finance min
ister added. Elaborating on the progressive
Finance Minister Arun Jaitley.

nature of the new bankruptcy code, Jaitley
said the order of priority had been changed
in the bill's "waterfall provision", whereby
workmen and secured creditors would have
first right on the assets, before the tax

authorities. The bankruptcy bill also pro
vides for creation of an Insolvency and
Bankruptcy Fund and an Insolvency and
Smartphones pip home

broadband connection
in US: Pew survey
Washington: Smartphones have
slowed down broadband connec
tions in the US homes where people
now relay more on their smart
phones for online access, a new sur
vey has revealed.
Conducted by Washingtonbased
think tank Pew Research Center, the
survey found that home broadband
now stands at 67 percent in US
homes, down slightly from 70 per
cent in 2013 a small but statistical
ly significant dif ference which could represent a
blip or might be a more prolonged reality.
This change moves home broadband adoption to
where it was in 2012.
"Today, smartphone adoption has reached parity
with home broadband adoption (68 percent of
Americans now report that they own a smart
phone) and 13 percent of Americans are "smart
phoneonly" up from 8 percent in 2013," the find
ings showed.
Some of the most significant changes in these
adoption patterns are taking place among African
Americans, those with relatively low household
incomes and those living in rural areas.
Nearly 15 percent of American adults report they

have become "cord cutters" meaning they have
abandoned paid cable or satellite television service.
"Many of these 'cord cutters' say that the availabili
ty of televised content from the internet and other
sources is a factor in their move away from sub
scription television services," the survey pointed
out.
Overall, "advanced internet access" those with
either a smartphone or a home broadband sub
scription has changed little since 2013.
Some 80 percent of adults have either a smart
phone or a home broadband subscription in 2015,
compared with 78 percent who said this in 2013.
Bankruptcy Board of India to regulate insol

vency professional, agencies and informa
tion utilities. The proposed law aims to
reduce delays in resolution of insolvency
cases and improve recoveries of amount
lent to companies. The draft bill has pro
posed a timeline of 180 days, extendable
by another 90 days, to resolve cases of
bankruptcy. The new bankruptcy code will
help India in the World Bank's Ease of
Doing Business ranking. India is currently
ranked at 136 on this count in the 189
country ranking. The current set of compet
ing codes on the matter often results in the
bankruptcy process dragging on for years,
inflating costs for the parties concerned.
Resolving a bankruptcy case can take on an
average over four years in India. The bill is
a money bill, and Rajya Sabha will have a
limited role in its passing, unlike the Goods
and Services Tax (GST) Bill that has stalled
because the ruling NDA does not have the
numbers in the upper house.
'US visa fee hike discriminatory

for Indian IT firms'
New Delhi: The steep hike in H1B
and L1 visa fee by the US govern
ment on the software engineers
Indian IT firms fly out for onshore
projects was discriminatory and
would hamper US economic growth,
a leading Indian industry trade
body said.
"Such legislation, amending the
James Zadroga 9/11 Health and
Compensation Act of 2010, will
hamper growth of the US economy
and will be discriminatory to Indian
IT firms," the Federation of Indian
Chambers of Commerce and
Industry (Ficci) said in a statement
here.
US President Barack Obama on
Dec 19 signed into law a $1.8tril
lion spending package, which
includes a hefty $4,000 fee for cer
tain categories of H1B visa and
$4,500 for L1 visa.
Companies having over 50
employees and more than 50 per
cent of their US employees on H1B
and L1 visas will have to pay the
new fee when the next visa applica
tion session kicks of f on April 1,
2016. "Indian IT industry is of the
view that the additional fee is unjus

tified, similar to the earlier border
security and the Health and
Compensat ion Act, which have
nothing to do with the technology
industry," the statement asserted.
Noting that such protectionist
laws not only impacted the business
of the Indian IT sector but also lim
ited access to skilled IT personnel
for US firms, Ficci said adding that
the increasing costs of hiring skilled
personnel and services would influ
ence US technology firms to consid
er moving IT operations overseas,
thereby reducing US jobs and tax
revenues.
T his year's Cong ressional
approved quota of 65,000 H1B
visas was filled up in the first few
days of the start of the application
process on April 1.
"In our view, linking unemploy
ment and H1B visa issue with 9/11
Health and Compensation Act is
unfair and should be dealt inde
pendently with a broader outlook
considering the overall impact on
both economies," the statement reit
erated.
SPORTS
Australia vulnerable, India have

good chance: Laxman
New Delhi: Indian batting legend V.V.S.
Laxman believes India have a very good
chance of doing well in the limitedover
series in Australia in January as the home
team appears vulnerable.
"This Australian team is definitely quite
beatable and vulnerable. T hey have a
depleted side. They do not have two key
players Michael Clarke, who led them to
World Cup victory, and Mitchell Johnson,
who was lately one of the world's most
lethal bowlers," Laxman said.
"They also do not have Mitchell Starc,
Shane Watson looks iffy and will be under
pressure to perform, Steven Smith is
injured and they have no Brad Haddin. The
only real danger will be David Warner. The
key is to make him go for cover drives and
not pitch anything short to him. He is one
of the most dangerous batsmen in the
world today and the real substance in their
batting lineup." India will tour Australia
from January 12 to 31 to play five OneDay
Internationals (ODI) and three Twenty20
India will tour Australia from January 12 to 31

to play five OneDay Internationals (ODI) and
three Twenty20 Internationals.
Internationals. "India have a very good
chance. Our bowling is doing really well
and Ravichandran Ashwin is bowling the
best he has ever bowled in his life. India
have quality plus the balance of the side is

very good," said Laxman, who will be part
of broadcaster Star Sports' commentary
team for the tour.
The former wristy righthanded batsman
lauded the Indian selectors for the squad
they picked for the Australia series.
However, he thought excluding explosive
lefthander Suresh Raina was a bit harsh.
"One batsman who was treated harshly
was Raina by not getting selected. It is diffi
cult for a person who bats at No.6 or 7 to
come out when the asking rate is 810 runs
per over," the 41yearold said.
As Mahendra Singh Dhoni has retired
from the longest format of the game, he
does not play cricket regularly. Laxman
feels this will make India's limited overs
skipper struggle a bit when he goes out to
bat.
The 134Test match veteran added that
India's success will rest largely on the
shoulders of Test captain Virat Kohli and
middleorder batsman Ajinkya Rahane.
SaniaMartina named ITF World Champions

London: The International Tennis Federation (ITF) named
the IndoSwiss pair of Sania Mirza and Martina Hingis as
the 2015 ITF women's doubles World Champions.
American Serena Williams and Serbian Novak Djokovic
were named the women's and men's singles World
Champions, respectively. Serena earned the title for the
sixth time while this is the fifth occasion that Djokovic
received the honor. Dutch JeanJulien Rojer and
Romania's Horia Tecau were announced as the men's
doubles champions. Martina has become an ITF World
Champion 15 years after last being named as the title
holder in singles in 2000. Martina and Sania only joined
forces in March but proved a force to be reckoned with
this year, winning two Grand Slam titles at Wimbledon
and US Open, and seven further tournaments.
They won their last 22 matches from the start of the US
Open through wins in Asia at Guangzhou, Wuhan, Beijing
and the WTA Finals in Singapore, ending the year with a
557 record.
JJS showcases and boosts jewelry...

underlined the importance of certification of diamonds
and colored gem stones to gain the confidence and trust
of the customer. The CM is pleased that the Gem &
Jewellery Export Promotion Council (GJEPC) is to provide
Jaipur with a machine to facilitate the process of certifi
cation scientifically.
The Chairman of the GJEPC, Praveen Shankar Pandya,
said that after the India International Jewellery Show
(IIJS) of Mumbai, JJS has become the second biggest such
show in the country.
Pandya said jewelry making has grown to $ 40 billion
industry employing one million people. He said the coun
try produces one billion pieces of diamond annually.
Pandya said the colored gemstone industry of Jaipur
provides employment to 2.5 lakh persons, but Jaipur has
to fully exploit its potential and it should embark and ven
ture across the world.
He said like Mumbais SEZ for diamonds, there should
be an SEZ in Jaipur for the colored gem stones.
Pandya added that the Indian diamond industry has
been threatened by the Chinese synthetic diamonds. To
threat can be staved off by adopting scientific methods of
certification.
Bhaskar Bhatt, MD of Titan Industries, said that the
The IndoSwiss pair of Sania Mirza and Martina Hingis.
demand for gold is reducing and there is need for enlight

ening the youth on the virtues of precious and semipre
cious stones. He said there is need for improving the
branding of Indian jewelry also.
Vimal Chand Surana, convenor of JSS, said ruby was
made the theme this year as its a stone that is rare, red
and royal.
Ajay Kala, spokesperson of JJS, said that in coming
years JJS would become truly an international show with
large scale international representation. He said that
young designers have been encouraged by providing
them free booths to display their work.
Fusion, modular in 2016...

jhumka and the Umrao Jaan brand of jhumka, which is
worn sideways, will be seen in its new identity as intrigu
ing ornamentation. predicted Pallavi.
Multilayered and multiple rings would replaced tradition
al rings. Pallavi said modularity will enable a single jewel
ry piece with detachable mechanism to be used as a neck
lace or parts of it as earrings or pendent.
She said like tattoos, the broach will enter the world of
jewelry fashion with women and men wearing broach
pits.
Wearing a broach by a woman would see a sea change
25
Schumacher can
walk, claims
magazine;
manager denies
Bedridden Formula One legend

Michael Schumacher
Berlin: Bedridden Formula One legend
Michael Schumacher is now able to take
"tentative" steps with the aid of a carer
and has regained slight movement in one
arm, according to German magazine
Bunte.
The front page of Bunte headlined "He
can move again" has been published
days before the second anniversary of his
devastating ski accident in the French
Alps. But his management has emphatical
ly denied the reports.
"Unfortunately, we are forced by a
recent press report to clarify that the
assertion that Michael could move again
is not true. Such speculation is irresponsi
ble, because given the seriousness of his
injuries, his privacy is very important for
Michael," Schumacher's long time manag
er, Sabine Kehm, was quoted as saying by
dailymail.co.uk on Tuesday.
"Unfortunately they also give false
hopes to many involved people."
Bunte says it is standing by its story and
has no intention of removing it from new
stands.
with women even wearing the broach on the bottom of

their skirt, on their upper part of their clothes and even
on their shoulders , necks and even as an anklet.
Lions sharing joy of holiday season with...

pet and feed. Inside, Disney characters greeted them and
they were given tickets to avail Nassau County kids photo
ID, coloring book, face painting, Lions information booth,
Book fairy, arts & crafts, food (hot dogs, pasta, sandwich
es, water and juices). The final stop, a visit with Santa for
their Christmas gift.
District Governor TJ Anand states, "We believe all kids
deserve to get some Christmas gifts, regardless of their
parents ability to purchase them. My theme for this year
is Inspire Our Youth many school youth volunteered
their services, which not only inspired our youth but
adults as well."
1st Vice District Governor Lion Nina Lanci and Gurmeet
Roy assembled an amazing team of dedicated Lions,
friends and volunteers for the event.
County Executive Hon Ed Mangano partnered with
Lions to have Department of Social Services and Bellmore
central and North Bellmore school districts send the kids
from the shelter program whom the Lions were able to
assist.
26
HEALTH
Alternative cold and flu Adele gives up tea,

and smoking
remedies to try this season
W
hile flu and cold are com

mon to every region of
the world, dif ferent cul
tures have developed their own
solutions to tackle the alltoofamil
iar and dreadful symptoms.
Today its thought that 70 per
cent of your immune system lies in
your digestive tract, so many of
these alternative healing methods
rely on food for its curative proper
ties. While some alternative treat
ments have not been evaluated by
the Food and Drug Administration
for efficacy, many people swear by
them. If you are suffering this cold
and flu season, incorporating these
remedies into your getwell plan
could be worth a shot.
2 In Japan: Hot green tea is
poured over a crushed ume, which
is an alkalinerich Japanese pickled
plum. Drinking this umeboshi tea,
full of iron and potassium, is said
to help ease fever associated with
the flu.
2 In the Dominican Republic: A
paste of honey, finely chopped
onion and garlic, and the juice of at
least half of a lime, is taken before
bedtime. The garlic and lime juice,
rich in vitamin C, boosts immunity.
2 In France : For those with the
flu, a homeopathic approach is
taken using Oscillococcinum. This
unusually named medicine has
been a favorite flu fighter of the
French for more than 70 years.
Clinical studies show that it

reduces the duration and the sever
ity of fever, chills, fatigue, headache
and body aches. It is recommended
that you take it at the first sign of
flu symptoms.
2 In China: A restorative dish is
made from healing fritillaria bulbs
(Chuan bei mu) and an Asian pear.
The center of the pear is scooped
out to form a bowl. A teaspoon of
honey is mixed with fritillaria
extract, which is then poured into
the pear.
The covered dish is steamed for
45 minutes to create a warm elixir
to soothe the throat. For maximum
ef fect, a honeysuckle and licorice
root tea chaser provides added
immune support.
2 In South America: A plate of
sliced onions is placed on a night
stand overnight. The scent from a

freshly chopped onion helps break
up mucus and congestion, just as it
causes the eyes to water and nose
to run while cooking. Loaded with
sulphur compounds, onions also
improve circulation.
For more helpful tips about the
flu, visit www.Oscillo.com for
access to a fourpart podcast series
Tackling the Flu, Naturally.
Experts explain how the flu virus
works in the body and why having
a strong immune system is so
important; how flu spreads; when
children should stay home from
school; and more.
Fee ling under the weather?
Beyond your goto medications, get
inspired by the whole world for
treatments that are said to alleviate
symptoms and restore wellness.
the infection. The TB skin test

requires an injection of antigens to
see how the patients body reacts,
multiple doctors visits and can
result in false positives, especially
in those who have been vaccinated
for TB in the past.
Luckily another option for the
detection of TB infection a TB
Blood Test is now being offered
and represents a major scientific
advance over its predecessor, giv
ing greater accuracy and a more
dependable result.
Reliable results from the TB
Blood Test can be obtained within
24 hours and provided by tele
phone, offering the convenience of
a single visit, and confidence in an
objective, laboratorybased result.
More information can be found at
www.TheTBBloodTest.com.
As a parent or caretaker, your
children and loved ones come first,
and when it comes to their health,
you dont want any surprises. Talk
to your doctor about better testing
methods for TB infection that offer
greater reliability and convenience.
recommends adults shouldn't

have more than 30 gm of added
sugar a day, which equates to
around 7 teaspoons.
Adele has also revealed that she
finally quit smoking, fearing that
the bad habit might kill her.
"If I'd carried on smoking, I'd
probably have died from a smok
ingrelated illness, and I think
that's really bad," Adele told mir
ror.co.uk.
"If I was dying from lung cancer
I would have potentially given it
to myself and that wouldn't be
something I'd be proud of," she
added.
The 'Hello' hitmaker had been
smoking 25 cigarettes a day when
she had to cancel shows in 2011
after losing her voice.
And after an operation, doctors
told her that her career could be
over if she did not stop smoking.
Bid adieu to cramps

during your periods
WHAT TO KNOW ABOUT

TUBERCULOSIS TESTING
FOR YOUR CHILDREN
uberculosis (TB) is a serious,
highly contagious disease
that kills about 1.5 million
people each year worldwide and
has become the worlds leading
infectious disease killer, according
to a new report from the World
Health Organization.
TB usually begins as a latent
infection, which can be silent for
weeks, months or years before
developing into an active conta
gious disease characterized by
chronic cough, fever, unexplained
weight loss, night sweats and
coughing up blood. With this in
mind, regular testing for the early
stage of TB infection is important,
especially in children whose
immune systems are not fully
developed and thereby have a
higher risk of it progressing into
an active and possibly deadly dis
ease. However, inaccurate, time
consuming and outdated are the
three terms most often used to
describe the 110yearold TB skin
test, which is the most commonly
used test to aid in the diagnosis of
fter making a muchawaited

comeback with her latest
sing les He llo, W hen We
Were Young and Million Years
Ago, British singer Adele has now
decided to take the health route.
And what better way to do that
than to reconsider some basics.
Our daily doses of caf feine, for
instance.
T he British singer has now
declared that she has given up
drinking 10 cups of tea a day. As a
result, she has cut out 20 tea
spoons of sugar from her diet.
"I used to drink 10 cups a day
with two sugars in each, so I was
on 20 sugars a day. Now I don't
drink it and I have more energy
than ever," Adele told The Sun
newspaper,
reports
femalefirst.co.uk. According to the
Britain's National Health Service
(NHS) website, the government
et respite from the monthly

menstrual cramps by using a
hot water bag on your lower
abdomen and lower back, and by
avoiding dairy products, meats and
legumes as these can cause bloat
ing and worsen the pain, says an
expert. Indira Ganeshan, director of
capitalbased Irene IVF Centre, has
shared how to ease the pain:
* Hot water bag on your lower
abdomen and lower back, and tak
ing a hot shower offers instant pain
relief.
* Drinking teas like ginger tea,
jasmine tea and chamomile is not
only antiinflammatory, but also
keeps you well hydrated to tackle
the blood loss. Girls who have
water retention can try dandelion
tea.
* Take supplements like vitamin
B, E, C and Folates, which help in
relieving the menstrual pain.
* Consume a diet rich in fiber
like fruits and green leafy vegeta
bles which has high content of vita
mins and antioxidants. An intake
of Aloe Vera juice and papaya is
very helpful for the cramps.

* Avoid dairy products, meats
and legumes as these cause bloat
ing and worsen the cramps.
* Avoid cof fee, as caf feine
increases gastritis and causes anxi
ety and may increase cramping as
it constricts the blood vessels.
* Avoid alcohol and smoking.
* Light exercise and soft yogic
posture and stretching will provide
relief from body pain associated
with cramps.
* Indulging in massages can be
very relaxing and relieve cramps.
Lavender oil application in lower
abdomen is also very helpful.

* Acupressure is said to help
girls tide over the rough time, and
provide relief from cramps.
* Painkillers like Acetaminophen
(paracetamol), Mefanemic acid can
help the girls in relieving cramps
and also decrease the amount of
blood that is lost.
* Oral contraceptive pills: Girls
who are resistant to home thera
pies and other alternate therapies
can consult a gynecologist for trial
of oral contraceptives, which caus
es the cycle to become anovulatory
and thus prevent the cramps.
LIFESTYLE
27
Now, Facebook A champagne guide for

tells you where New Years celebrations
to party
N
hat if Facebook already

knows what you like,
where you live, who you
hang out with and recommends
to you what to do? The social
media giant's new feature does
this only.
Face book has a new event
browsing experience for its Apple
iOS users. With this feature,
rather than suggesting events on
random dates, the iOS users can
now specify and recommend any
task for a specific day, weekend,
or next week, Tech Crunch report
ed on Saturday.
It has also incorporated a
"Suggested For You" sect ion
based on all of Facebook's data
about the account holder.

Under the "Suggested For You"
section, a categorized suggestions
list w ith sect ions, including
Music, Food and Drinks, Nightlife,
Sports and Fitness, Fine Arts and
Crafts, Community, Film and
Photography, Performing Arts,
and Causes could be found.
You can choose any section and
Facebook will flash options for
you w ith all the informat ion
about the event.
For example, if you want to go
for a concert, gallery opening, or
wine and cheese, FB can recom
mend where to go. These can all
be sorted by date to find the right
place for the right time.
ew Years Eve means gather

ing with close friends and
family, making resolutions
for next year, and of course, cele
brating with bubbly!
However, when it comes to choos
ing the right bottle for the festivi
ties, some might not know where to
start. Chantelle Pabros, fine wine
consultant at Morrell & Company
Wine in NYC, offers advice on how
to choose the right bottle of bubbles
for every type of New Years cele
bration.
There are many dif ferent kinds
of sparkling wine available, such as
Cava, Prosecco, etc. Yet, I always
advise customers to go with the
bubbly classic on New Years:
Champagne. What better way to
start the year on a good note than
by treating yourself to something
special and iconic? says Pabros.
To be considered Champagne, a
wine must hail from the
Champagne region in France, using
a combination of Chardonnay, Pinot
Noir, or Pinot Meunier varietals,
and undergoing strict winemaking
restrictions, such as minimal years
of aging. T here are many
Champagnes on the market.
Chantelles top pick?
Champagne Taittinger; its one of
the last remaining family owned
and operated marque Champagne
houses, she says. They are known
for the consistent quality of their

Champagne and the deep care and
experience put behind every bottle.
Their signature style is Chardonnay
driven, which offers an expressive,
toasty style that is both elegant and
delicious. Last but not least, you can
find it in most wine stores.
Looking for a Champagne to
serve at a large New Years party
with friends and family? Pabros rec
ommends Champagne Taittingers
flagship wine, Brut La Francais NV.
If youre new to Champagne,
start with this wine. Its a dry, clas
sic style, widely available, and pairs
well with every type of food. Your
guests will thank you for making
their night so memorable!
Perhaps you find yourself invited
to a midnight dessert party? Bring a
bottle of Champagne Taittinger
Nocturne NV.
This is a sec style Champagne,
meaning it has just a touch of
sweetness that begs to be paired
with desserts. It will go perfectly
with any type of dessert, from a
raspberry tarte to chocolate cake
pops. If you have a sweet tooth, this
Champagne is for you, says
Chantelle.
If you really want a wow factor,
you cant go wrong with
Champagne Taittingers tte de
cuvee. It has a cult following
amongst sommeliers because over
the last 50 years it is one of the
most consistent in quality for this
type of Champagne and it comes in
a beautiful bottle. It will most cer
tainly of fer a most memorable
Champagne experience, adds
Pabros.
CARING FOR ELDERLY RELATIVES:

MAKING IT EASIER ON YOUR FAMILY
t can be dif ficult for families
when an e lderly loved one
starts to weaken physically and
mentally. While nursing homes
are an option, most are extremely
expensive, and most seniors
would prefer to remain in familiar
surroundings. Fortunately, there
are now more choices available
that can provide seniors the free
dom to continue living safely in
their own home.
The average cost of an assisted
living facility is $43,200 annually,
and the cost of a nursing home
with private room can cost over
$90,000 a year, according to the
2015 Genworth Cost of Care
Survey. Such a huge, ongoing
expense can have an enormous
impact on the average family,
whether they have prepared
financially or not.
Even for families where such
costs are not prohibitive, parents
are often reluctant to leave homes
filled with years of memories, and

be placed into an unfamiliar envi
ronment, living with strangers,
says health care systems expert
Jack Zhang, President and CEO of
the fastgrowing health technolo
gy company, Vitall Inc.
Caring for older parents and rel
atives doesnt necessarily need to
involve relocation or spending
tens of thousands of dollars annu
ally. Zhang says there are a few
important things to consider.

Communication Updates
New technologies make looking
after and staying connected to the
seniors in your life easier and
more af fordable. For example,
HeyMomDad, the worlds first
twoway communication and well
ness monitoring system, allows
loved ones to see and hear in real
time that elderly relatives are safe
simply by opening an app on
their smartphones.
Seniors need only press one but
ton to talk to loved ones, notify
them that help is needed, or to
just say hello. Likewise, with one
tap, users can instantly see, hear
and talk back to parents through
the highquality HD video and
twoway audio component. The
camera can be controlled through
the smartphone and directed to
any location in the room, permit
ting a 270degree view. It also
includes night vision optics for
clear viewing in dark rooms.
Beyond Monitoring
Most seniors are reluctant to
call 911 in an emergency because
theyre embarrassed or dont want
to cause a fuss or incur an
expense which can be as high as
$1,200, even for false alarms
where paramedics were dis
patched, says Zhang.
HeyMomDad gives seniors two
dif ferent alert options. They can
choose to alert only family and

friends, or alert family, friends
and 911. In addit ion, the
HeyMomDad Bed Monitor tracks
heart rate, breathing rate and
movement at night.
Maintaining Independence
For many seniors, one of the
most difficult parts of aging is the
loss of independence.
When possible, families should
consider making homes senior
friendly, adding safety bars in the
shower and bath, eliminating trip
ping hazards, improving lighting
in hallways and outdoor walk
ways, and making kitchens more
accessible with countertops and
cabinets that can rise or lower
with the push of a button.
And new twoway communica
tion and monitoring systems can
add further peace of mind. More
informat ion can be found at
www.HeyMomDad.com or 1800
3520887.
28
HUMOR
Humor with Melvin Durai
Chennai Residents Bounce Back From Floods

T
he floodwaters in Chennai have finally

subsided, thankfully. Watching the TV
news reports, all I could do was shake my
head and wonder what it would be like to
have so much rain that your entire city turns
into a lake. I couldnt imagine how people
dealt with the water, so I decided to call two
of my cousins and ask them.
Cousin Anand: The flooding was terrible,
but at least I picked up some new hobbies.
Me: What hobbies?
Anand: Swimming and boating.
Me: You learned how to swim?
Anand: I knew how to swim before, but I
never got an opportunity like this.
Me: What do you mean?
Anand: Well, in the past, I would swim at
a small swimming pool in my apartment
complex. But the flood allowed me to do
some longdistance swimming. I tried to
swim across the entire city, but it wasnt
easy.
Me: Was the current too strong? Was
there too much debris in the water?
Anand: No, people kept trying to rescue
me. You wont believe how many good
Samaritans there are in Chennai. T hey
thought I was being swept away, but I was
just doing the breaststroke. Every time I
passed people on the road, they would try to
grab me. One man even threw a rope at me.

Me: Did you grab it?
Anand: No, I just kept swimming, so he
shouted, Shall I inform your next of kin?
Me: Did anyone else swim?
Anand: Yes, I saw many people swimming.
In fact, I will not be surprised if Chennai, as
a result of this flood, manages to send a
swimmer to the Olympic Games.
Me: What about boating? When did you
do that?
Anand: I went boating several times with
my friends.
Me: Where did you get the boat from?
Anand: Well, it wasnt an actual boat. It
was the bonnet of an old Honda that we
found floating in the water. We just jumped
in it and started paddling.
Me: What did you use as oars?
Anand: Cricket bats.
Me: And did you get very far on the
boat?
Anand: Yes, we traveled all over our
neighborhood. We even rescued three indi
viduals.
Me: They must have been very grateful.
Anand: The dog was definitely grateful.
Im not sure about the goat and the rat.
Me: You rescued a rat?
Anand: Why not? Is a rats life less pre
cious than a dogs?

While Anand was busy swimming and
boating, my other cousin was busy looking
for another place to live.
Cousin Kumar: Let me give you a piece of
advice, Melvin: if you rent an apartment in
Chennai, do not rent one on the first floor.
Mine got thoroughly flooded. Everything
was underwater, even my TV.
Me: That must have been very hard.
Kumar: Yes, it was extremely difficult. To
make matters worse, India was playing
South Africa in cricket. Have you ever tried
to watch a cricket match underwater?
Me: No, I never have. What did you do?
Kumar: Well, I went to my friends apart
ment. Lucky bastard lives on the fifth floor.
All these years, he has been envious of me,
because I dont have to use a lift to get to my
apartment. But when the rains came, his

envy just dissolved in the water.
Me: So have you found another place to
live?
Kumar: No luck yet. All the apartments on
top floors are in high demand. I may have to
wait for a few months, until everyone has
forgotten about the flood.
Me: You think theyll forget so soon? This
was the Flood of the Century. You wont get
another flood like this for at least five or 10
years.
Kumar: Thats true. Maybe I should stay
put for a few more years.
Me: You can also protect yourself against
flooding.
Kumar: By getting flood insurance?
Me: No, by getting a ceiling mount for
your TV. Trust me, you wont regret it.
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.
ASTROLOGY
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
DECEMBER 26JANUARY 1, 2016

ARIES: A missed opportunity would hard
to regain especially at professional front.
Good advice from family members will
help in reducing mental tension/pressure.
Indications of earning financial profits through
commissions, dividends or royalties. Romantic
entanglement would add spice to your happi
ness. High time for you to realize your true
potentials.
A short trip with lavishing experiences is the
right thing for you. Its time to invest in property
and get most profitable method to maximize
your bank balance. Boundless creativity and
enthusiasm would enable to make some suc
cessful experiments.
TAURUS: Selfconfidence helps in mak
ing an impact at professional front this
week. Sudden good news in the evening
will bring cheers for the entire family. Important
people will be ready to finance anything that
has a special class to it. Chances of your love life
turning into lifelong bond are high on the card.
Chances of recovering from physical ailment are
high. Pack your bags and be ready for an amaz
ing holiday. Investing overseas can provide you
new business opportunities. Your sense of
humour is likely to bring appreciation.
GEMINI: If possible, devote time and pro
fessional acumen to achieve the desired
results. You find family members very
supportive but highly demanding. Property deal
ings would materialize helping in bringing fabu
lous gains.
Exciting week as your long pending wait for
af firmat ion is going to materialize.
Inexhaustible energy enables to participate in
outdoor activities. Just take a walk in the coun
tryside and experience new things. Selling your
plot might increase your bank balance. As far as
possible avoid unnecessary risks.
CANCER: Valuable support from a col

league would help in professional mat
ters. Your efforts bring success & hap
piness at family front. High time to get rid from
the tendency to live for the week and wasting
too much time and money on entertainment.
Enjoying the company of partner in a lively
restaurant would bring immense romantic
pleasure. You attain a bloom in health on shar
ing happiness with others. Time to go for a
memorable trip. Buyers will get attracted to
your property as your property value is good.
You find many good things happening at the
same time to you this week.
LEO: Good week for computer profes
sionals as they realise their dreams. You
achieve success in personal work with
the timely help & support provided by family
members. Bank dealing needs to be handled
very carefully. The presence of love would make
you feel life meaningful. A cheerful state of mind
would allow enjoying the perfect health. Time to
spend money on not a vacation but a luxury
vacation. If you wish to achieve a good deal in
property then try at commercial basis. Your
active & exploring nature would help in making
your mark.
VIRGO: An excellent time for developing
professional
contacts.
Misunderstandings with near ones in
the family will get cleared. You are likely to earn
monetary gains through various sources. Love
life brings some memorable moments that you
could cherish rest of your life. Divine knowledge
from a saintly person provides solace & comfort.
If adventure is your style of holidaying, then
plan it and move around. Develop an attitude to
be successful on your property investment
plans. Honesty and tothepointapproach will
be your biggest asset this week.
LIBRA: Enjoy your work to keep interest

alive. Children would do their best to
keep you happy. Increase in income
from past investment is foreseen. Your flashing
smile would work as the best antidote for
romantic partners unhappiness. Meditation and
yoga prove beneficial for spiritual as well as
physical gains. A beautiful vacation you awaited
for is on your cards. If you are looking for a
surefine method to earn on your property, stu
dent rental could be exactly what you need. The
week could bring a big surprise in the form of
news about your selection for a big event.
SCORPIO: You need to sharpen your
leadership qualities to steer the profes
sional boat. You are likely to be benefited
as family members posit ive ly respond.
Monetary gains from unplanned sources will
brighten your week. Sharing candyfloss and tof
fees with lover/beloved would bring unlimited
joy. A very healthy week when your cheerful
ness gives the desired tonic and confidence.
Destination with a great deal is on your way, be
ready for traveling. Looking to buy property,
then go for commercial one. People who are not
on good terms with you will seek your compa
ny/help.
SAGITTARIUS: Senior colleagues coop
eration brings success at professional
front. If possible, plan something excit
ing & entertaining with family members. New
moneymaking opportunities will be lucrative.
Company of love partner would inspire to take
initiatives this week. You need to develop self
trust to encourage yourself to fight illness. Be
ready to travel with a challenge, new connec
tions will help you. Valuation is must before you
purchase a plot. Ability to tackle tough situa
tions/problems by acting swiftly is likely to
bring recognition.
CAPRICORN : Business partners would

be enthusiastic about new plans & ven
tures. Dont forget to spend quality time
in the company of family friends you care. You
get some financial rewards as dedication & hard
work gets noticed. Love works like a panacea as
you find sanity. You are likely to maintain good
health that would also give you success. Shape
your travel plans in such a way that they are not
stressful. Good time to purchase a property.
Caring for others feelings/emotions would bring
much joy to you.
AQUARIUS : Female colleagues would
help in completing pending work.
Parents and friends will do their best to
keep you happy. Monetary gains are likely to be
from more than one source. Love partner touch
es soul that would take imagination to unlimited
heights. A continuous positive thinking gets
rewarded as you succeed in whatever you do
this week. If you want to enjoy a hassle free trip
then plan your expenses in advance. A good deal
for your new property is ready to be made. Your
style & unique way of doing things would inter
est the people.
PISCES : A promising week for ambitious
professionals to demonstrate technical
skills & abilities. A promising week to
plan things for your progeny. Dig deep beneath
the surface to find out more about the investment
scheme that seems to be attracting you. However
consult experts before making any commitment.
Someones timely help would enable visualizing
succeeding in love. Creative hobbies are likely to
keep you relaxed. Traveling abroad can be excit
ing adventure that will be remembered forever.
Buying overseas property will be beneficiary for
you. You are certain to gain knowledge if you
keep mind open and believe that it is never too
late to learn new skills.
ANNUAL PREDICTIONS: FOR THOSE BORN IN THIS WEEK

26th December, 2015
Ruled planet: Saturn Ruled by no: 8
Traits in you: Being number 8, you are a person who loves
challenges in life and always come out as a winner which
ever task you take in hand. You are very practical, system
atic and friendly person who is always there to help needy
people. You determination and sincerity at work will fetch
you both good finances and respect in society.
Health this year: This year you will start your day with a
positive attitude and a preventive care, which would bring
immense relief from your ailments. It will be in your inter
est to continue to enable yourself to enjoy a healthy life.
Finance this year: This year monetary gains in the form of
shares dividend will definitely improve your financial
health. Investing it for further income would not be a pru
dent option. Rather spend it in purchasing a new home
appliance, which would be a better investment.
Career this year: You are full of energy and enthusiasm, and
would like to undertake big projects. In the coming year,
you will have to give up your lethargic tendency, if you have
to achieve success in the projects you have taken in hands.
You will get many opportunities, and it is up to you, how
much advantage you can take of these opportunities.
Romance this year: You will go all out to give the best to
your family members. You do not like to reveal your senti
ments and emotions, even to your loved ones. Sometimes,
this creates misunderstandings. Sp, try to express your
love and emotions, this will do wonders for you. You are
easily attracted towards the opposite sex.
Lucky month: May, November, January and April
27th December, 2015
Ruled planet: Mars Ruled by no: 9
Traits in you: Being number 9, you are one of the most
energetic, courageous and brilliant person, who success
fully completes the work taken in hand. You can be called
cleanliness freak person. You always help those who need
your help. You love to be in the company of those people
who are intellignet and sophisticated. You are good at
evaluating any situation and work accordingly.
Health this year: This year make sure you make your
mind receptive to all the good things you will see in your
environment. To motivate yourself join some yoga or aero
bics classes. Keep your smile going which would work like
a troubleshooter against depression.
Finance this year: This year you need to reinvent your
business strategies to gain new opportunities. Taking
advice from friends would allow you to spend the money
on some lucrative projects. Initiate any action only after
making sure that this will be profitable to you.
Career this year: This year your imagination and new
ideas will catch the attention of your seniors, who will be
impressed with your creativity. You might also try to domi
nate over others, by imposing your views on your col
leagues. This might upset them, so be careful towards

your attitude.
Romance this year: In love matters, you will have to be
very careful this year. Take a step forward, only when you
are sure of a positive response from the other end. A little
care for the sentiments of your love partner or your
spouse, will do wonders to bring harmony and peace in
your married life.
Lucky month: August, December and February
28th December, 2015
Ruled planet: Sun Ruled by no: 1
Traits in you: Being number 1, you are a person who loves
originality in whatever work you do. By nature you are an
authoritative person and so you always take charge of
things which also makes you responsible person. If you
take some task in hand, you are determined to finish it.
You are very soft spoken and kind hearted person.
Health this year: This year your health will generally
remain fine but don't take it for granted. Avoid eating
exposed food and try not to indulgence in negative think
ing, as this might hamper your physical and mental health.
Finance this year: Loan from bank for shortterm invest
ment will prove beneficial. If possible, invest the money in
reputed firms to yield good returns. Carelessness on your
part could cost, so go through all the documents carefully
before taking a lone.
Career this year: This year be assured that you will go all
out to achieve, what you want to. You will achieve prosperity
in whatever projects you take in hand. You will be able to
complete these projects with full sincerity and dedication.
Romance this year: You are unable to express your emo
tions, and keep your feelings to yourself. But this year
don't hesitate in expressing yourself, else someone else
will take your love away from you. Try to mingle more
freely with your special friend.
Lucky month: May, August, September and December
29th December, 2015
Ruled planet: Moon Ruled by no: 2
Traits in you: Being number 2, you are a person with high
confidence, imagination and the one who is always ready
to help others. Anyone can trust you blindly as you are
very balanced person in nature. Though you are reserved
personality, but when it comes to do some task, you are
independent and complete your work with full determina
tion and honesty.
Health this year: This is a high time for you to realise that
its useless to unnecessarily magnify the problems. I only
takes out the juice of life and leaves us dry. Try to be posi
tive in life. You will have to control your moody nature, to
enjoy good mental and physical health.
Finance this year: You will be blessed with good fortune
and good money this year. Spending money on entertain
ment would bring unlimited joy. However it would be in

your interest to control your tendency to live for the day.
You will make some serious ef forts to generate extra
income to balance budget.
Career this year: Your ability to think deeply & then take any
action, will be an asset for you in the coming year. Leadership
qualities of business managers will come to test. You are like
ly to establish yourself a good manager as you have art to
manage people and situation without any problem.
Romance this year: If you are in love then don't forget that
you should spend quality time in understanding each
other. Keep in mind that love is a matter of heart and is a
given expression between two souls. You will see your love
flourish this year and will have maturity in your romance.
Lucky month: August, November and March
30th December, 2015
Ruled planet: Jupiter Ruled by no: 3
Traits in you: Being number 3, you are confident, ambi
tious and independent person who loves to work with
optimistic attitude. You are a born leader, and you are
always appreciated for your work, whether it is at home or
work place. Your efforts are always sincere and thats why
you balance your personal and professional life very
smoothly.
Health this year: This year your great sense of humour
would help you in keeping youeself happy. If possible, make
others realise to develop this skill by making them under
stand that happiness does not lie in possession of thing but
is inside of us. Seeing peole happy, will make you happy.
Finance this year: Financially, it will be a good year, for
most of you. If interested in putting money on stock
exchange transactions, discuss the matter with an expert.
Their guidance would help you to make the best invest
ment. However avoid a middleman in transaction because
it could impinge on your profits.
Career this year: Your vivid imagination and a huge cre
ative sense will make you a successful as a writer, actor or
a musician. Those of you in the teaching and the writing
line, could expect to see success, in whatever project you
undertake, in the coming year. You will travel to distant
lands in the coming year.
Romance this year: This year you will be enjoying your
love life to the fullest. You and your partner will under
stand eachother's need and would pay attention to each
other's interest. Those who want to get married, will get
hitched this year. If you are looking for a love partner,
then you might find the person of your dream.
Lucky month: July, December and March
31st December, 2015
Ruled planet: Uranus Ruled by no: 4
Traits in you: Being number 4, you are a person who likes
to take responsibility and do your work with full dedica
tion and honesty. You are a very down to earth person

with religious beliefs. This year you might plan to go for a
pilgrimage. Sometimes you become bossy, jealous or stub
born, which you should avoid to lead a happy life with
smiling people around you.
Health this year: Health of a person depends on one's
thinking. Remember that one's thinking has reflection on
one's body. If we think positively we will enjoy a sound
health, whereas negative thinking will only put adverse
affects on our body.
Finance this year: The coming year, will be financially
good for most of you. With your will power and practical
attitude, you will be able to make the most of the opportu
nities which come your way, giving you monetary gains.
Career this year: Realistic and with a very practical
approach towards life, most of you are successful in your
professional front. The coming year, will see you achieve
new heights of excellence, in whatever new project you
take in hand.
Romance this year: This year don't allow your personal
problems creep into your romantic affair. Always remem
ber that love is a given expression between two partners.
So just enjoy each other's company. If you are already
married, then take some time out from your busy schedule
to be with your soul mate.
Lucky month: June, August and May
1st January, 2016
Ruled planet: Sun Ruled by no: 1
Traits in you: Your governing planet the Sun makes you
unique, dynamic, responsible, reliable & down to earth.
You are always prepared to take new challenges in your
life. However, you are very dominating and insensitive in
nature.
Health this year: You may enjoy a great health this year.
However, that does not mean you will start neglecting
your health. You need to take care of your diet and nutri
tion to maintain a good health. You may practice some
exercises to remain fit.
Finance this year: You may get benefits from your invest
ments later this year. This year seems to be an ideal one to
start investing in business, land or gold. Your efforts to
earn money may pay off this time. You may go for new
partnerships.
Career this year: You are quite capable of handling critical
issues in your professional life. You will succeed in your
attempts of performing well in your work. You will get
appreciations from your peers, seniors, and the higher man
agement. You should help others to make your presence felt.
Romance this year: Your relationship with your spouse or
partner will be good enough despite of minor misunder
standings. You may plan to get engaged with your long
time love towards the final months of the year.
Lucky month: February , April, August and November
30
SPIRITUAL AWARENESS
LIFE ITSELF IS RESTLESS FOR

PEACE IN THE WORLD
By Sant Rajinder Singh Ji

Maharaj
ystic poetry and literature is rich in

verses addressing the way to a
peaceful, calm life. One of the great
est mystic poetsaints of the past century,
Sant Darshan Singh Ji Maharaj, has written a
verse that captures the way to lead lives in
which we reduce stress and anger to produce
calm and peace within ourselves and for the
whole world.
The verse by Sant Darshan Singh Ji says:
Let this world become a temple of love and
peace.
Let love and Truth illumine the world,
And the adversaries of peace awaken to its
Light.
This sacred land of God has been trampled
with the burden of oppression.
By Sant Rajinder Singh

Ji Maharaj
hen we start out on a spiri

tual path, there are two
elements involved in learn
ing the spiritual teachings. One is
the theoretical side in which we sat
isfy our minds questions, and the
other is the practical side in which
we experience the spiritual truths
for ourselves in the depths of our
soul. While it is important to be well
versed in both aspects, there comes
a point in which we must focus our
attention on doing the actual prac
tice of meditation to gain true expe
rience. Overemphasis on the theo
retical side can take our attention
too far away from the practices we
need to perform. While we must
satisfy the mind and have our ques
tions answered, we do not want to
get trapped into mental wrangling,
for that is like a spider web in which
we may get stuck.
To illustrate this point, look at the
wisdom of the great Lord Buddha.
Buddha spent fortyfive years self
lessly teaching the spiritual truths.
He wanted to help suf fering souls
gain enlightenment and escape the
karmic wheel of life that binds them
to this world.
Buddha was full of compassion
and served humanity without any
concern for his own comfort. He
sacrificed himself so that others
could find the road to Nirvana. It is
said Buddha toured for eight
Life is not a dagger stained with the blood

of hatred;
It is a branch filled with the flowers of
love and compassion.
Life itself is restless for peace in the world.
Let its noble dream materialize.
May the garden be illumined with wave
afterwave of Light.
May the wealth of love grow greater and
greater and enrich every heart.
These verses capture the essence of what I
consider the purpose of life and have been
the inspiration of my life. These penetrating
words by Sant Darshan Singh Ji Maharaj, a
past master of meditation on the inner Light
and Sound, illumine a way to achieve peace
through uncovering the Divine within. Once
this uplifting peace permeates our being, it
can spread to others, bathing this planet in
peace.
These verses describe the unity at the
heart of all creation. The poet realizes that
the same Light of God within us is also in all
others, making us one human family. Even
science points to our ones through the
Genome project. Scientists have found that
more than 99% of the genes of all human
beings are the same, with only less than 1%
being different, accounting for differences in
our hair, skin, and eye color, or our size and
shape. When we realize we are all one family,
Sant Darshan Singh Ji Maharaj

we would not cause pain or suffering to oth
ers. As we would not want to hurt our par
ents or children, we would not want to hurt
any other human being. The walls that divide
us through nationality, social status, or
appearance tumble down as we realize that
we are all children of the one Creative
Power.
Through meditation on the inner Light and
Sound within each of us, we can have a first
hand experience of our unity. Through
absorption into this Light and Sound current,

we experience consciousness of higher spiri
tual realms. This inner journey leads back to
the source of this current and we experience
oneness with the Creator. Saints and mystics
have described within us a series of realms.
Beyond the physical realm, there is the
astral, causal, and supracausal realms, and a
purely spiritual realm, called Sach Khand.
Each realm contains greater and greater
light, celestial music, joy, and love. We ulti
mately merge back in the source of all con
sciousness, love, and light. Then, we recog
nize that all humans and all forms of life are
created by the Divine and comprise one fam
ily. This nondenominational meditation prac
tice, called Shabd Meditation, or meditation
on the Light and Sound, can be performed by
people of all cultures.
The introductory form of meditation,
called Jyoti Meditation can be practiced by
any one at any place. The more time we
spend in meditation, the more we realize the
unity within each. Spiritual progress is
enhanced by an ethical life of nonviolence,
truthfulness, humility, love for all, and self
less service.
As we gaze at the wonders within through
meditation, we can experience the inner
light, enjoy its nourishing peace and bliss,
and radiate that loving luminosity to all.
KNOWLEDGE VS EXPERIENCE
months out of each year to teach
people the way to salvation.
The only time he did not tour was
during the rainy season, in which he
stayed in one place. He gave out his
teachings to everyone, irrespective
of their caste, religion, color, or
social status. He gave all an equal
chance to find the way to enlighten
ment.
One day, a disciple by the name of
Malunkyaputta wanted an interview
with Lord Buddha. Malunkyaputta
had a restless mind, and during his
meditations he was always ponder
ing questions such as, Is the world
infinite or finite? Or, is the soul
identical with the human body?
Instead of meditating and stilling
the mind, he ended up spending his
meditation time thinking about
these philosophical questions. So,
during his interview with Buddha,
the disciple told Buddha of the diffi
culties he had in his meditations.
The disciple said, O Blessed One,
please answer these questions. If
you do, I will remain on the spiritual
path. If you do not answer these
questions, I will leave your Holy
Order.
Buddha
replied,
O
Malunkyaputta, did I ever ask you
to take up this path and did I prom
ise you that I would answer these
intellectual wranglings? The disci
ple sheepishly replied, No.
Buddha spent forty-five

years selflessly teaching
the spiritual truths. He
wanted to help suffering
souls gain enlightenment and escape the
karmic wheel of life that
binds them to this world.
Buddha loving ly explained,
Whoever worries about these mean
ing less speculations such as
whether the world is infinite or
finite, or whether the soul looks like
the body, is taking away time from
the spiritual practices. It is just like
someone who is shot by an arrow
who instead of letting the doctor
treat him to get out the poison
starts saying, I will not allow my
wound to be treated until I know
who is the man who shot me, what
kind of person is he, is he tall or
short, what type of bow and arrow

did he use, or what color is his skin.
The key is to get treatment first.
Similarly, if we say we will not do
our spiritual practices until we get
answers to these mental questions
about whether the universe is eter
nal or not, and other such ques
tions, then one may pass ones
whole life and never reach the spiri
tual goal.
Buddha further explained, I teach
what is important to know and not
what is unimportant. I want to help
people solve the problems of sor
row and suffering in this life.
What is useful is how to lead the
spiritual life leading to enlighten
ment.
To further illustrate this point,
one day, while in the Simsapa forest
near Kosambi, Buddha was sitting
with his disciples. Buddha picked up
a few leaves and asked his disciples,
What is your opinion?
W hich is more? Is it the few
leaves in my hand, or the leaves in
the forest around us?
The disciples said, O blessed one,
you have very few leaves in your
hand, while there are many more in
the forest. Buddha then told them,
It is the same with my teachings.
Of everything I know, I have only
told you a little. What I have not
told you is much more, like the
leaves in the forest. Why did I not
tell you everything I know? The rea

son is that all that information is
not useful. That information that
will not lead to enlightenment, I
have not told you. I have only told
you that which you need to know to
gain the spiritual experience and
find salvation.
As we think about our own lives,
many get involved in intellectual
pursuits. But there comes a point
when we find that the mind will
never stop its wrangling. We have
to discriminate which questions will
help our spiritual progress and
which ones are merely to satisfy the
intellects curiosity. There are thou
sands of pages written in all reli
gions on the theoretical side of mys
ticism. If we were to start reading
all those pages now, we might never
finish them all in our short life span.
People who are steeped in the theo
retical side of religion can spend
years debating each point found in
the scriptural writings and never
find any solution. In this short time
that we have, it is far better to
spend time in our spiritual practices
so that we can rise above our limit
ed intellect and come in contact
with our soul. Then, we will not
have to wonder about the answers,
for we will know them for certain
and see them for ourselves. Our
soul has all the answers,because
our soul is one with the Lord.

The South Asian Times: Russia Is India's Reliable Friend

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The South Asian Times

Vol.8 No. 34 Dec 26- Jan 1, 2016 60 Cents

New York Edition

US plans mass deportation

in recent months as gangrelated crime

US regrets Indian students'

Protection, the Embassy said in a statement:

Russian president noted that the bilateral

December 26- January 1, 2016

December 26- January 1, 2016

Michigan surgeon aims to save lives on Indian roads

Dr. Dinesh Vyas at a training session for trauma first

save a lot of lives," Vyas told

demic is one of the biggest health

atically on all the aspects of trau

Taller and taller in

An artists impression of the new skyscrapers coming up

A painting of Mother Teresa who did her

New York: Till two years ago, only ve

engineering and an inux of foreign

December 26- January 1, 2016

Children dressed up as Santa Claus ride to school in Patiala, Punjab,

Ailing and old, Dawood

US plans mass deportation of illegal...

Americans in Beijing warned of terrorism threat; parts of city locked down

Continued from page 1

trian plazas. The U.S. Embassy has

Continued from page 1

New Delhi Bureau

Managing Editor: Parveen Chopra

President: Arjit Mehta

Contributing Editors: Meenakshi Iyer,

Strategy and Marketing

US regrets Indian students...

Cartoonist: Mahendra Shah

December 26- January 1, 2016

Indian Consulate in NY 58YearOld Sikh man ghts off

Dancer Bindiya Prasad performing (right) Sitarist Anjana Roy

described act ivit ies of the

New York: A 58yearold Indian

AAPIQLI donates $10 K for

Indian Association and Dr Thomas

A video grab of the scuffle

ground. Singh suf fered a scraped

had traveled earlier were detained

December 26- January 1, 2016

GHS 2016 to focus on womens health and key

Rao Rampilla to sing a

Welfare, both from a Central and State

in India, Dr. Ajay Lodha, PresidentElect of

The Metropolitan Museum

A curtain raiser to IndiaSoft 2016

diasoft) and Deepak Sareen (Director

Mauli Agrawal named fellow of

USF starts APJ

NEW YORK: An Indian

Mauli Agrawal, UTSA Vice

December 26- January 1, 2016

their clinical applications,"

aged arteries. The technolo

Sam Kannappan named

December 26- January 1, 2016

Obama to present National Medal