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Vol.9 No. 24 October 8-14, 2016 80 Cents

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USPS commemorates Diwali

with a Forever Stamp
New York: T he US
Postal Service com
memorated the joyous
Hindu fest ival of
Diwali by dedicating
the Diwali Forever
stamp on October 5.
The firstdayofissue
dedication ceremony
took place at the
Consulate General of
India here.
The Postal Service
is honored to issue
this Forever stamp
that ce le brates the
Amb. Hardeep Singh Puri, Rep Carolyn Maloney, Consul General Riva Ganguly
Festival of Diwali, said
Das, Pritha Mehra of USPS, Ranju Batra, Rep Grace Meng and Ravi Batra cheer as
Pritha Mehra, USPS
the a huge image of the Diwali stamp is unveiled Oct 5 at the Indian consulate.
Vice President Mail
Entry and Payment Technology. Mehra in the dedication ceremo Stamp Project Chair Ranju Batra;
We hope these stamps will light ny were Amb. Riva Ganguly Das, Indias former ambassador to the
up millions of cards and letters as Consul General of India; Diwali
Continued on page 4
they make their journey through
More Diwali stamp event pictures on page 15.
the mailstream. Joining Pritha

Hurricane
hitting Florida,
emergency
declared

Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and army chief Raheel Sharif.

Finally, civilians ask

army to act against
terror in Pakistan
Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif is rattled by

global isolation after India's diplomatic blitz

While China has reiterated its support for

Pakistan for now, it too has indicated a
preference for a change in course by Islamabad

Observers believe Nawaz Sharif sees an opening

to wrest some power from the army at a time
when Army chief Raheel Sharif is due to retire
by the end of the year.

Projected path for the Hurricane

Mathew NY area will be spared.
Jacksonville, FL: The strongest
storm system to threaten the
United States in a decade roared
toward Florida on Thursday, forc
ing thousands from their homes
and prompting dire warnings from
forecasters and public of ficials

The surging crowds at AIAs annual Deepavali Festival rocked

South Street Seaport on October 2. In a grand finale, spectacular
fireworks over the East River lit up the New York sky.

Detailed story on >> pg 17

Continued on page 4

Islamabad: Rattled by global isola

tion after India's diplomatic blitz
over Pakistan's proterror policy,
Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has
told the country's allpowerful ISI
to crack down on terrorists, end
the Mumbai attack trial and the
probe into the Pathankot strike
New Delhi's two key conditions to
resume peace talks w ith
Islamabad.
Sharif's blunt demand came at a
highlevel meeting of civilian offi
cials w ith the InterServices
Intelligence (ISI) chief, Gen. Rizwan

Akhtar, the influential Dawn news

paper reported on Thursday.
But the Pakistan government dis
missed as "not only speculative but
misleading and factually incorrect"
the Dawn report about the meeting
on security issues.
Dawn reported that Foreign
Secretary Aizaz Chaudhry told the
meet ing on Wednesday that
Pakistan faced diplomatic isolation
and its talking points had been met
with indif ference in major world
capitals. Even China, Pakistan's

Continued on page 4

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October 8-14, 2016

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TRISTATE COMMUNITY

October 8-14, 2016

DIWALI RETURNS TO
TIMES SQUARE

Honorees include H.R. Shah, Dr Ajay Lodha, Darshan Singh Bagga and Mukesh Modi.

Indo American Press Club hosting

media conference this weekend
By SATimes Team
New York: The IndoAmerican
Press Club (IAPC) is hosting its
3rd Internat ional Media
Conference on October 89 at
Hilton Stamford Hote l in
Connect icut w ith leading
media professionals, digni
taries and lawmakers from US,
Canada and India.
Speaking at the inaugural
session will be Indias Deputy
Consul General in New York,
Mr Manoj K. Mohapatra, H.R.
Shah, Chairman, TV Asia, Dr.
Ajay Lodha, AAPI National
President, and T homas
Abraham, Chairman, GOPIO.
Over 100 senior print, TV
and web professionals will
deliberate on challenges and
opportunities facing the media
at panel discussions and pre
sentations. A highlight of the
conference is a Presidential
Debate on Oct 9 between Prof.

AD Amar, Founder of Indian

Americans for Trump 2016,
and Congressional candidate
from New Jersey's 7th district,
Peter Jacob. The debate will be
moderated by Prof Indrajit
Saluja, Chief EditorPublisher
of The Indian Panorama news
paper.
Noted media guests and dig
nitaries flying down from India
include Kodiyeri Balakrishnan
(CPMs Kerala chief ), Abdul
Wahab (Rajya Sabha member),
Dr. J Alexander IAS (Ex
Karnataka minister), P.T
Chacko, R.S. Babu, Pradeep
Pillai, Mangad Ratnakaran,
MV Nikesh Kumar, Meera Nair,
J.S Indukumar and N.R
Harikumar. There will also be
couple of sessions in
Malayalam.
At the awards gala dinner on
Oct 9 the IAPC souvenir will be
re leased and the IAPC
Sathkarma Award announced

for a social activist from India,

T heruvoram
Murug an.
Bollywood singer Sharda (of
Titli Udi fame) will regale the
audience in her distinct voice.
IAPC will honor media pro
fessionals and community
leaders from India and
America for their achievements
and service to society such as
Darshan Singh Bagga (Lifetime
Achievement Award for the
real estate visionary) and
Mukesh Mo di (Emerg ing
Leader). Ginsmon Zacharia is
IAPC Chairman, and Parveen
Chopra, current President.
IAPC was formed in 2013
and has 8 chapters by now
with the lofty ideal of provid
ing a common platform to
media professionals of Indian
origin living in North America,
fostering closer bonds with
IAPCs counterparts in India
and to strive for betterment of
society at large.

New York: Event Guru has announced

Diwali at Times Square (DTS) on
October 16. It is presented by &TV, and
powered by Air India and Sling
International. DTS will be a fun
lled day offering an amazing show
case of cultural and dance per
formances, ethnic attractions,
local shopping stalls, and
Indian cuisine all leading
into Light Up Times Square,
an evening concert featuring
performances by popular
artists, of fering opportunities to
interact with musicians and celebrities,
and exploding with the beautiful digital
reworks. An interactive Diya lighting
ceremony, on one of the largest Times
Square digital screens, will brighten the
ambience of the event.
The line up of stars and celebs at DTS
include Shabbir Ahluwalia and Sriti Jha,
the hit pair of Kumkum Bhagya TV seri
al, Zee TVs Saregamapa winner Kushal
Paul Diwali is known to spread the
light of goodness and celebrate the vic

tory of truth. This is the best opportuni

ty to connect with our people and be a
part of something which represents the
rich Indian culture, said Vandana
Sharma,
Reg ional
Manager
Americas, Air India. Indias national
carrier had also parternered
with DTS in 2013 and 2014.
We are very excited to be
a part of DTS 2016, said
Sameer Targe, Head of Sales,
Zee TV USA. It is a perfect
opportunity for us to sup
port the treasured culture of
our community and introduce our new
Hindi GEC & TV.
Sling Internationals VP, Nick Slater,
said, Our South Asian customers are
important to us, and we are committed
to supporting cultural gatherings that
bring families together and strengthen
community values that are demonstrat
ed in these meaningful celebrations and
festivals.
For more information, log on to
www.diwalitimessquare.com

Vandana
Sharma,
Regional
Manager,
Air India
Americas,
with event
organizer
Neeta Bhasin

Huge phone scam targeting Americans unearthed in Mumbai

Call center workers posed as IRS tax collectors to rake in millions
Thane: Thousands of US citizens
may have been targeted in a huge
phone scam run from call centers in
Mumbai, where hundreds of work
ers were allegedly trained to speak
in American accents in order to
steal tens of millions of dollars.
About 700 people are being
investigated over what is believed
to be one of the biggest such scams
in Indias history, which involved
workers posing as IRS ofcials,
according to Paramvir Singh, the
police commissioner of Thane.
Seventy workers have been for
mally arrested and around 630 oth
ers are being investigated, Singh

said. We expect that many more

people will be arrested.
On Tuesday night about 200 of
cers raided nine premises in
Mumbai. According to police, the
call center employees posing as US
ofcials, forced the victims, mostly
loan defaulters, to part with their
condential bank and nancial
details, or threatened them with
penal action. After the scared vic
tims provided the details, the call
center employees managed to
siphon off money from their bank
accounts. As per tentative esti
mates, the daily turnover from
these fraudulent practices is pegged

at a whopping Rs 10 million a day,

even as a probe is on to gure out
the exact amounts that may be
involved and number of people who
have been defrauded.
According to police, many of
these call centers, targeting mainly
US citizens, besides some other
countries, were owned by nine per
sons and operational for over six
months.
The data base from these call cen
ters contained personal and nan
cial details of several thousands of
foreign and even Indian nationals
which were utilized to trap their
victims.

October 8-14, 2016

TURN PAGE

Finally, civilians ask army to act

against terror in Pak

USPS commemorates Diwali with a

Forever Stamp

Continued from page 1

closest ally, had questioned the logic of
repeatedly putting on technical hold a UN ban
on JaisheMohammed leader Masood Azhar,
Chaudhry said, according to Dawn.
Also, amid worsening IndiaPakistan rela
tions, a group of Senators asked Islamabad to
resume its backchannel talks with New Delhi.
And on Thursday, PPP leader Aitzaz Ahsan
denounced the government over its failure to
curb nonstate actors, leading to the country's
diplomatic isolation. The Wednesday meeting
where there was an extraordinary verbal
clash between the ISI chief and Punjab Chief
Minister Shahbaz Sharif, the Prime Minister's
younger brother came amid worsening ties
with India. India called for Pakistan's diplo
matic isolation after the September 18 attack
at an army camp in Kashmir that left 19 sol
diers dead. India says the attackers came
from Pakistan and belonged to the Jaish that
was also blamed for the January 2016
Pathankot attack on an IAF base that killed
seven security personnel.
The Uri attack was followed by the Indian
Army's surgical strikes disputed by
Islamabad dismantling at least seven terror
launch pads and killing a number of terrorists
and their sympathizers across the LoC.
India's diplomatic war on Pakistan led to
the cancellation of the Saarc summit that
Islamabad was to host in November. Major
world countries have supported India's
demand to Pakistan to act against terrorist
groups patronized by the ISI.
Dawn reported that the government on
Wednesday informed the ISI about the "grow
ing international isolation of Pakistan and
sought consensus on several key actions by
the state" to reverse the situation.
The daily said the government, in a "blunt,
orchestrated and unprecedented warning",
asked militaryled intelligence agencies "not
to interfere if law enforcement acts against
militant groups that are banned or until now
considered of flimits for civilian action".
Chaudhry said relations with the US had also
deteriorated and may further deteriorate
because of the American demand that action
be taken against the Haqqani network, which
is active in Afghanistan. The network has
been blamed for attacks on Indian establish
ments in Afghanistan
.IANS

Continued from page 1

start of the American Revolution, destiny has
beckoned the United States and India to be the
closest allies, said Ravi Batra. The Diwali
Forever stamp represents nothing short of
respectful inclusive indivisibility: E Pluribus
Unum within America and between two sov
ereigns. While this journey may have taken
years, the Postal Service has issued a Diwali
stamp that will continue to resonate forever,
said Ranju Batra. Now for the first time there
is a stamp that celebrates Hindus, Sikhs, Jains
and Buddhists as Americans forever. Our
heartfelt thanks to all of those who have sup
ported this stamp.
Carolyn Maloney in her remarks recalled
that the Diwali stamp has taken years of hard
work and advocacy, including thousands of
petition signatures, meetings with Prime
Minister Narendra Modi, appeals to President
Barack Obama, and multiple congressional res
olutions.
She continued, Light has finally triumphed.
Today, Diwali has received its longawaited
commemorative stamp and rightfully joins the
ranks of other major religious and cultural hol
idays such as Christmas, Kwanzaa, Hanukkah
and Eid.
Hardeep Puri said: "It is not just the strength
of the volume of petitions; it is the strong will
and persistent effort which got Ranju success".
Rep Grace Meng (DNY) said that the Indian
community should now push for a Diwali holi
day in schools.
For Ranju Batra, Chair Diwali Stamp
Project, October 5 culminated a long, emotion
al journey. And she shared it with the audience.
For many years, with our miracledaughter
Angela and lawyerson Neal, both born here
and attending school, I became aware that all
religious holidays were celebrated, but not
Diwali. So, in 2010, I thought of campaigning
for a Diwali Stamp. After talking to community
leaders, I learned that many of them had tried
and given up. But they supported my determi
nation to focus on getting the Diwali stamp
and not stop until we got it.
Ranju continued her story: I did the tedious
work of designing all kinds of Paper Petitions,
as well as online. Wherever I went, I would ask
people to sign the paper Petition, or do it
online. Then, Ravi and I decided that I should
partner with Carolyn, who was always a great

supporter of my Diwali celebrations and she

agreed, and true to her word introduced House
Resolutions in Congress, scheduled meetings
with the Postal Service and reached out to the
Citizens Stamp Advisory Committee (CSAC).
Meanwhile, I continued to do the hard grass
roots work and collected tens of thousands of
Paper Petitions. I stopped online petitions as I
was told by the Postal Service that stamps
dont go on emails. Along the way we held
many meetings, and many press conferences
to drum up support. We even got the then
Indian Consul General in New York,
Dnyaneshwar M. Mulay, to write the official
poem of the Diwali Stamp Project: Brighten up
the World / Light up the Nearest Lamp /
Stamp out Clouds of Darkness / Bring in the
Diwali Stamp.
Ranju then thanked all those who had helped
her along the way. The peoples movement
won! Strength of the IndianAmerican commu
nity is visible because we were united behind
the same cause. Even William Gicker, director
of stamp development, said: This was the
biggest push, the most people writing in, and it
was the volume of petitions, and not the high
profile support, that swayed the committee.
And with that USPS gave in to the long pend
ing demand of Indian community in the United
States.
Ranju acknowledgeed Grace Meng, Yvette
Clarke, Shiv Dass, Nita Jain, Surinder Kathuria,
Scott Stringer, Harish Thakkar and Neeta
Bhasin, and many others as well members of
the media for keeping the journey alive for all
of us!
Many thanks to Air India, Indias national
carrier, and its Regional Manager Vandana
Sharma, who joined hands with Diwali Stamp
Project to promote the maximum number of
stamps sold for the First Day as a big thank
you to USPS for giving us our Stamp, Ranju
said.
The Diwali stamp design is a photograph fea
turing a traditional diya (oil lamp) beautifully
lit, sitting on a sparkling gold background.
Diya lamps are usually made from clay with
cotton wicks dipped in a ghee or in vegetable
oils. Sally AndersenBruce of New Milford, CT,
photographed the diya. Greg Breeding of
Charlottesville, VA, designed the stamp and
William J. Gicker of Washington, DC, served as
the projects art director.
Also known as Deepavali, Diwali celebrates
the triumph of good over evil. Spanning five

Jaipur (India) Bureau

Prakash Bhandari
Prakash@TheSouthAsianTimes.info
Chairman and Co-Founder
Kamlesh C. Mehta

Associate Editors:
Hiral Dholakia-Dave

Co-Founder: Saroosh Gull

Contributing Editors: Meenakshi Iyer,

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

President: Arjit Mehta

TheSouthAsianTimes.info
days each autumn, Diwali is considered by
some to be the start of the new year. This year
Diwali falls on October 30.
T he Diwali stamp is being issued as a
Forever stamp. This Forever stamp is always
equal to the value of the current First Class
Mail 1ounce price.
Ordering FirstDayofIssue Postmarks
Customers have 60 days to obtain the first
dayofissue postmark by mail. They may pur
chase new stamps at local Post Offices, at The
Postal Store website at usps.comshop or by
calling 8007826724.

Hurricane hitting Florida,

emergency declared
Continued from page 1
alike. Floridians hunkered down as pelting rain
and punishing wind began to pummel the
state, the first sting of the deadly Hurricane
Mathew expected to grind its way up the coast
overnight and through most of the day Friday.
Gov. Rick Scott (R) repeatedly pleaded with res
idents to take the storm seriously, urging the
1.5 million Floridians in evacuation zones to
leave and describing Hurricane Matthew in
increasingly blunt terms as he tried to describe
the peril. Matthew tore through Haiti this week
and caused nearly 300 deaths just in the
southern part of that country, officials said,
before pushing across the Bahamas and threat
ening to strafe a stretch of the US East Coast
that runs from South Florida to North Carolina.
While the storm had weakened at one point
during its journey, by Thursday it had surged
to a Category 4 hurricane with maximum sus
tained winds of 130 mph. Late Thursday night,
the National Hurricane Center forecast said the
storm could potentially remain just offshore as
it moves alongside Floridas coastline, but
added that Matthew was still likely to produce
devastating impacts from storm surge, extreme
winds, and heavy rains along the states east
ern coast.
As rain began to fall in Florida, all eyes
looked east as the unprecedented storm slowly
approached. Hurricane conditions could
extend into Georgia and South Carolina by
Saturday, the National Hurricane Center
warned.
President Obama has signed emergency dec
larations for Florida, South Carolina and,
Georgia, ordering federal aid and allowing fed
eral authorities to coordinate disaster relief
efforts in those states.

IANS Newswire Services

IANS Washington Bureau
Arun Kumar
arun.kumar@ians,in

Photographs: Gunjesh Desai/

masalajunction.com.
Xitij Joshi/xitijphoto.com

Printing: Five Star Printing, NY

Photo Journalist: Sandeep Girhotra

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TRISTATE COMMUNITY

EKAL VIDYALAYAS NY
MEET CHARTS EXPANSION
New York: Ekal is pulling all
stops on village development in
India and adopting ground
breaking methodology in the
way it operates in ruraltribal
areas thats the message cam
ing out of Ekal Vidyalaya
Foundations (EVF) recent
International Conference in
Orangeburg, NY.
T his 3day conference for
national committees of USA,
India, Canada and other coun
tries, was convened not only for
brainstorming to assess the
progress made so far, but also to
charter EVFs course for 2017.
Until now Ekal had targeted
100,000 villages for integrated
development. Now, Ekal wants to
reach out to all 600,000plus
rural/tribal areas in India.
Considering it is already in
62,000 villages, this was
inevitable. Another reason for
this ambitious undertaking is
that it has picked up tremendous
momentum in recent years in
terms of enterprising entrepre
neurs joining its fold everywhere
with innovative ideas and active

Meeting its
team, PM Modi
applauded Ekal
Vidyalayas work
in rural India and
called it as an
extension of his
Skill India
campaign.
ly pursuing various rural proj
ects. At the conference,
Himanshu Shah, CEO of Shah
Capital and Mohan Wanchoo,
CEO of EC Info Systems, each
pledged $100,000 to $200,000
a year for the next several years
to uplift rural lives. Inspired by
Modis Swachh Bharat initiative,
Ekals clean environment pilot
project is already making its
mark in some rural and tribal
areas. Moreover, water conser
vation, organic farming, cottage
industries that could empower
young girls and women are in
full swing in most of the villages.
There are 53,000 Ekal schools in
operation throughout rural India

that benefit 1.5 million children

half of which are girls.
Lalan Sharmaji, Village
Development Field Director for
EkalIndia, presented numer
ous examples of Ekal Alumnus
who have distinguished them
selves by obtaining prestigious
district and statelevel jobs.
Bajarang Bagraji, CEO of Ekal
Abhiyan (umbrella body of Ekal)
unveiled an ambitious plan of
multifaceted development of vil
lages for 2017. Ekal will add
5,000 new schools specifically in
conflictzones and enhance the
quality of training with digital
technology. He added that ane
mia, prevalent among rural

CM Das invites diaspora

to invest in Jharkhand
New Jersey: Chief Minister Raghubar Das nificant contribution to Americas economic
made an appeal to the IndianAmericans to prosperity over the years, should also play a
visit Jharkhand and collaborate with the role in the development of Jharkhand with
state government to implement its vision of not only their investments but their expert
inclusive industrial growth with an eye
ise as well. An overseas community
on the development of all vital sectors
can and does serve as an impor
including health, education, commerce
tant bridge to access knowl
and industry, Information Technology,
edge, expertise, resources and
agriculture and tourism.
markets for the development of
Das, accompanied by the team of
the state, the CM said.
top bureaucrats of Jharkhand,
Das said that in the almost 20
addressed a gathering of over 500
months that his government has
people hailing from or having a
been in power in the state,
connection with Jharkhand
investments of about Rs
at Royal Albert Palace,
23,000 crore had come in
Fords, NJ, last week and
Jharkhand. Jharkhand is
shared the vision of the
now among the top five
state government in the
states in the country on
CM Raghubar Das mentioned the
presence of Riva Ganguly
ease of doing business.
Global Investor Summit in Ranchi
Das, Consul General of
T he state government
next February.
India in New York. Both
has put in place investor
the intention and policy of the state govern friendly policies. It is taking measures to
ment are good. For the economic develop ensure that all its people get improved
ment of any state, industrial growth plays a power supply. We have set a target of pro
pivotal role. Jharkhand is a land full of ducing 20,000 MW of electricity by 2020,
opportunities and possibilities, whether it is he said. The CM invited potential investors
industry, agriculture, IT or tourism, said to the Global Investor Summit to be held in
Das. Calling on US investors and the Indian Ranchi on 1617 February, 2017 and
diaspora to contribute and invest for the declared to create a separate facilitation cell
economic growth of the state, Das said, for the people having a Jharkhand connec
India and the US have to continue to work tion besides an online portal for the Indian
together to realize the vision of PM American investors. Riva Ganguly appreciat
Narendra Modi and President Obama to ed the proactiveness of the state govern
ensure betterment of society and sustain ment in promoting investment and the
able development for all.
interest of the state and assured all support
The Indian diaspora, which has made sig for the promotion of Jharkhand.

women, would be addressed in

300 villages and soon a pilot
project of telemedicine would
be started in West Bengal. As for
agroprojects, 15,000 nutritional
gardens and 25,000 acres of
organic farming are being added
next year. The EventCommittee,
headed by Dilip Kothekar and
Prajna Khisti, has decided to
stop banking on Bollywood
troupes for fundraising and
present talented artistes from
Ekalvillages to perform regional
folksongs and dances of India,
skits
from
Ramayan
Mahabharat, folklore episodes,
etc. EkalUSA is also starting to
fully utilize Social Media.

October 8-14, 2016

Honoring heroes of global

campaign against terrorism
New York: A Tribute Ceremony to honor 10
individuals and groups for their extraordinary
contributions to the global campaign against
violent extremism was held on September 22
at The Metropolitan Museum of Art.
The event, emceed by CNNs Wolf Blitzer,
was cohosted by a group of seven women
leaders, including Sara Bloomfield, Director of
the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum; Irina
Bokova, Director General of UNESCO, and
Meera Ghandi, Founder and CEO of The Giving
Back Foundation.
The event included a posthumous tribute to
Elie Wiesel. The important contribution of 3
religious leaders to peace and intercultural
harmony was recognized: Rabbi Arthur
Schneier, Founder and President of the Appeal
of Conscience Foundation; Cardinal Pietro
Parolin, Secretary of State of the Holy See; and
Dr. Ali Gomaa, Grand Mufti Emeritus of Egypt.

Meera Gandhi , seen with Irina Bokova,

Directorgeneral of UNESCO and President
Rosen Plevneliev of Bulgaria, was a cohost
of the event. (Photo: Mohammed Jafar)

October 8-14, 2016

Indian-American
named 'Future
Leader of Audiology'
Houston: An IndianAmerican associate professor at
Lamar University in Texas has been named to the
2016 class of the 'Jerger Future Leaders of Audiolo
gy' by the American Acad
emy of Audiology. Vinaya
Manchaiah is one of only
a dozen individuals se
lected nationwide for the
honor. Audiology is a
branch of science that
studies hearing, balance,
and related disorders.
Vinaya Manchaiah
Originally from South In
(Image courtesy:
financialexpress.com) dia, Manchaiah holds a
PhD in disability re
search from Linkoping University, Sweden.
He also holds a number of degrees including an
MBA from Swansea University, United Kingdom, Doc
tor of Audiology from Nova Southeastern University,
MS in Audiology from the University of Southamp
ton, and a Bachelor's of Science in Speech and Hear
ing from the University of Mysore, India. Manchaiah
is also the cofounder and director for strategic plan
ning for the nonprofit nongovernmental organiza
tion Audiology India, for which he served as presi
dent from 2011 to 2015. The organization seeks to
foster ear and hearing health care in India. The Amer
ican Academy of Audiology is the world's largest pro
fessional organization of audiologists. The members
look to provide hearing care services through educa
tion, research, and increased public awareness of
(PTI)
hearing and balance disorders.

TRISTATE COMMUNITY

TheSouthAsianTimes.info

American Tamil School kids

attend UN Peace Summit
United Nations: The US based volunteers
run Tamil Schools' students voiced the Yad
hum Oore Yavarum Kelir" (every city is our
city, everyone is our kin) message at the UN
during its 71st session on the International
Day of Peace. Valar Tamil Iyakam (VTI), a
nonprofit organization that undertakes
several visionary projects in the field of
Tamil Language and Cultural Education for
the younger generation in US organized
the participation of students from the Tri
State (NY, NJ, and CT) Tamil Schools in the
UN's 71st session inauguration and the In
ternational Day of Peace event held in the
sidelines of General Assembly session. The
students who attended this conference
heard presentations from the U.N Secretary
General and interacted with UN Messengers
of Peace, Goodwill Ambassadors, and young
leaders that aim to inspire youth to become
more involved in creating a more peaceful
world for all. UN Secretary General Ban Ki
moon detailed in his address the 17 Sus
tainable Development Goals (SDGs) the
theme of the 2016 International Day of
Peace to the young students community.
As part of our efforts to give our stu
dents community more exposure to the
global leadership and policy making
process, we took a team of 30 high school
students and teaching volunteers from our
New York, New Jersey and Connecticut

Connecticut Sikhs create

awareness about Sikhism
by distributing food
which is like Vat
Norwich,CT: This
ican for Sikhs
was the third year
but the founda
of Celebrate Di
tion stone was
versity
event
laid down by a
which
brought
Muslim,Guru Teg
more than 20 cul
Bahadur Ji who
tures together un
is ninth Sikh
der one roof and
Guru
scarified
share their food
himself to pro
and culture.
tect Hindu reli
The event is
gion, holy scrip
mainly organized
ture Guru Granth
by Rotary Club
Sahib ji which is
and other institu
considered as a
tions and faith
live guru has
groups support
writings of peo
this event.
ple who followed
Sikh Sewak Soci
dif ferent
reli
ety International
Sikh Sewak Society at '
gion
etc.
USA from Con
Celebrate Diversity' event
Also Guru Gob
necticut also par
ind Singh Ji who gave Sikhs this distinct
ticipated and represented the Sikh faith.
Swaranjit Singh Khalsa President of Sikh appearance with turban and beard and
Sewak Society USA and Member Norwich blessed Sikhs with articles of faith like Kir
Commission of City Planning who usually pan (dagger which stands for justice and
do lot of Sikh awareness activities through peace), Kesh (unshorn hair which helps
turban day, interfaith participations, me spiritually), Kanga (comb which is a re
dia campaigns and billboards was one of minder to be clean), Karra (steel bangle
that Sikhs don't believe in superstitions),
the main organizers of the event.
Khalsa said "Celebrating Diversity is one Kachera (long underpants for modesty)
of the concepts of Sikhi because in Sikhism said "Recognize All Human Race as one."
Khalsa also educated people about
there are a lot of historical events in which
different cultures and religions were given Sikhism through brochures and other edu
equal respect. For example Golden temple cational material.

The students and organizers outside the UN headquarters in NY

Tamil Schools to attend the event. They car
ried our cultural heritage message of Yad
hum Oore Yaavarum Kelir (Every city is our
city, everyone is our kin)" said Dr. Arul Veer
appan, an Ivy League academician and the
President of Valar Tamil Iyakkam.
He said: We hope to get an opportunity
to include other Tamil schools in the east
coast region for this program in 2017 and
even
nationwide
in
later
years.
Gnanasekaran, Coordinator of the event
said, The event helped us in creating inter
est among our Middle and High School stu
dents by sharing the UN event participation
among the parents and teachers.
Let us prepare our students to become the

UN's Young Leaders, Messengers of Peace

and Policy Makers through our collective
effort to uphold our cultural heritage of
"Yadhum Oore Yavarum Kelir" in the global
stage forever, Shivakumar, Organizing Sec
retary of the event said.
More than 55 students and teaching vol
unteers from New York Tamil Academy, Ku
marasamySouth Brunswick, Malrboro,
Plainsboro, Bridgewater, ThiruvalluvarEdi
son and Newark Tamil Schools from New
Jersey, Agaram, Bharathi and Kalvi Tamil
Schools from Connecticut made this year's
UN's International Day of Peace event spe
cial for Tamil community through their par
ticipation.

TheSouthAsianTimes.info

NATIONAL COMMUNITY

October 8-14, 2016

India ratifies Paris climate change deal

New Delhi: India, the world's third largest
emitter of greenhouse gases, formally joined
the Paris agreement on tackling climate
change on Oct 2, the United Nations said,
taking the global pact a step closer to its
enactment.
The deal, agreed by nearly 200 countries
in Paris last December, aims to slash green
house gas emissions by shifting away from
fossil fuels to limit global warming to "well
below" two degrees Celsius compared to
preindustrial times.
But it needs to be formally ratied by
countries representing at least 55 percent of
global carbon dioxide emissions.
"The SecretaryGeneral calls on all Parties
to accelerate their domestic procedures in
order to join the agreement as soon as pos
sible this year," said a spokesman for the
U.N. SecretaryGeneral in a statement.
Next week the European Union is expected
to complete the joint ratication of the cli
mate pact, which will be a major milestone
as it would take approvals past the 55 per
cent mark and put the deal into effect ahead
of the next round of climate talks in
November, in Morocco. The Paris agreement

The instrument of ratification was deposited by India's permanent representative to the UN,
Syed Akbaruddin. He said that India had played a key role in the negotiations and finalization of
the Paris agreement as PM Narendra Modi has a personal commitment to the climate deal.
received a boost last month after the United
States and China, the world's two biggest
emitters, submitted their approvals to the
United Nations. Concerns about the partici

pation of the United States loom over the

deal but cementing the accord before the
U.S. presidential election on Nov. 8 would
make it harder to challenge if Republican

Donald Trump, who has opposed it, beats

Democrat Hillary Clinton, a strong support
er. President Obama welcomed India's rati
cation in a tweet, saying Prime Minister
Narendra Modi and the country was carry
ing on the legacy of Mahatma Gandhi and
his belief "in a world worthy of our chil
dren."
India had called for more work on the
agreement ahead of its ratication on
Sunday, with its environment ministry say
ing the Paris agreement laid a "broad frame
work" but detailed guidelines and rules were
needed for it to become operational.
The ministry also criticized developed
countries, saying their populations "live
extravagant lifestyles with a high carbon
footprint".
It said it was "very crucial" to advance key
issues, including those related to nance
and technology transfer, at the meeting in
Marrakech next month, where India also
plans to urge developed countries to do
more.
"At Morocco India will insist on a concrete
roadmap from developed countries," the
ministry said.

India criticizes UNSC, blasts

Social franchise health program
Beijing for opposing ban on JeM fails to help rural Indian kids
Special to The South Asian Times
United Nations: New Delhi has castigated
the 15member UN Security Council as it is
unable to make decisions with regard to
sanctions on leaders of organizations it
itself designates as terrorist outts after
China put up a hurdle to an effort for a UN
ban against JaisheMohammed (JeM) chief
Masood Azhar.
JeM is a terrorist organization, which has
sent suicide squads into India, particularly
the state of Jammu and Kashmir, against
not only the defense personnel but also
the civilian population.
Syed Akbaruddin, the chief representa
tive of India to the UN, told the General
Assembly this week that the 15member
council, the "principal organ" tasked with
the maintenance of peace and security, has
in many ways become "unresponsive to the
needs of our time and ineffective to meet
the challenges.
Alluding to Beijing, the representative
referred to its technical hold on India's bid
against Azhar, saying the council is a body
that "ponders for six months on whether to
sanction leaders of organizations it has
itself designated as terrorist entities."
He participated in a debate on the report
of the UN chief on the work of the organi

zation. The Indian envoy also called for

reform of the council through expansion
and making some as permanent members.
On March 31, China, which is a perma
nent member of UNSC with a veto, had
blocked India's move to ban Azhar under
the AlQaeda Sanctions Committee of the
council.
Beijing was the sole member in the pow
erful UN body to put a hold on New Delhis
application with all other 14 members of
the Council supporting the bid to place
Azhar on the 1267 sanctions list that
would subject him to an assets freeze and
travel ban.
The Chinese hold had lapsed early this
week, and had China not raised further
objection, the resolution designating Azhar
as a terrorist would have been passed
automatically.
Akbaruddin said in certain instances, the
council does not even begin the nine
month process of identication and listing
of publicly announced leaders of listed
entities.
"At best, it is now a body that can be
described as an interesting and random
mix of adhocism, scrambling and political
paralysis. This global governance architec
ture now calls for comprehensive reform,"
the Indian envoy said.

New York: A social franchising model of

healthcare that aimed to deliver better quali
ty treatment has failed to improve the condi
tion amongst children with diarrhea and
pneumonia in rural India, researchers,
including one of Indianorigin, have said.
In 2013, preventable and treatable illness
es such as diarrhea and pneumonia claimed
the lives of nearly a half a million Indian chil
dren under the age of ve, the study said.
The initiative world health partners
(WHP) sky program which combined fran
chising business models and telemedicine,
was funded with grants exceeding $23 mil
lion from the Bill and Me linda Gates
Foundation and other donors.
The program sought to train and enroll
thousands of informal providers and create a
massive network of franchisees to deliver
more effective healthcare in rural areas of
Bihar in India. "Children in rural Bihar do not
receive the correct treatment, even though
treatment for common illnesses like simple
diarrhea is well known, inexpensive and
widely available," said lead author Manoj
Mohanan, Assistant Professor at the Duke
University.
"The WHP model of social franchising
aimed to signicantly improve rates of
appropriate treatment of childhood diarrhea
and pneumonia," Mohanan added. Between

2011 and 2014, the WHP Sky program

developed a network of about 9,000 fran
chisees, most of whom were informal sector
practitioners.
However, the program's original goal was
to build a network of 20,000 practitioners.
T he research showed that WHP Sky
providers constituted a small share of avail
able health care providers just 6 per cent
of private providers. Among all child visits to
health providers in the study clusters, only
2.9 per cent of children with diarrhea and
2.7 per cent of children with symptoms of
pneumonia were brought to WHP Sky
providers. The net result was that the pro
gram had a zero effect on the likelihood chil
dren would receive proper treatment for the
targeted ailments, or on health care utiliza
tion patterns, the researchers said.
"There are a number of likely reasons why
the program failed to have an impact. Most
importantly, the business model was based
on untested assumptions about demand
not only practitioners' willingness to pay to
join the network, but also the level of
demand for care provided by members in
the network," Mohanan said.
In order to evaluate the impact of the pro
gram, researchers collected data on 36,315
randomly The ndings were published in the
journal October Health Affairs.

October 8-14, 2016

IITian diaspora
asked to make
Startup India
a success
Toronto: India has urged the IITian diaspora to invest in Prime Minister Narendra
Modis Startup India campaign to promote a
culture of innovation in its ancestral land.
Speaking at the 2016 International Conference of the IIT Alumni Canada on October 1,
which brought over 400 IITians from the US,
Canada and Australia to Toronto, Indian Consul
General Dinesh Bhatia urged the IITian diaspora
to make the Startup India campaign a success.
India is now an over $2 trillion economy and
there are huge opportunities for IITians to become part of its success story, Bhatia told the techie conference, which, this year, is focused on
Towards a Sustainable and Prosperous Future:
Focus on Technology, Health and Environment.
Canadian Science Minister Kirsty Duncan,
MPs, and mayors joined in welcoming the
IITian gathering which also included the director of IIT-Hyderabad and the deans of
IITs in Mandi and Chennai. Duncan, who was
dressed in a sari for the occasion, lauded the
role of the IITians in promoting innovation
and entrepreneurship in Canada. She said the
theme of the conference is in tune with agenda of the Canadian government, which wants
to promote innovation and entrepreneurship.
Linda Jaffrey, mayor of the Indian-dominated
city of Brampton on the outskirts of Toronto,
invited the IITians to become partners in the
progress of her city which is one of the fastest
growing in Canada. One of the highlights of the
conference was a live toy-making demonstration by Indias famous IITian Arvind Gupta who
chucked his job with Tatas in 1978 to promote
the love of science and innovation among Indias underprivileged children. Showing his fellow IITians how he engages poor children by
turning discarded household items such as
newspapers, matchboxes, broom sticks, rubber
slippers, electric bulbs, film roll box, and pencil
boxes into toys, Gupta made an impassioned
plea to the IITian diaspora to contribute to the
education of Indias poor children.
Conference co-chair Raghu Nayak said,
IITians stand for innovation and these bright
brains at the conference have highlighted how
we can integrate innovation to solve global
problems of poverty, diseases and pollution.
Since technology caused most of the current
problems facing mankind, we think it is the
technology that will solve these problems.
Canada is home to over 1,000 hugely successful IITians, including billionaire Prem Watsa who is called the Warren Buffett of Canada.

National Community
Washington, DC: Prominent Indian American philanthropist Dr. Suri Sehgal has
urged members of the affluent
Indian American community to
donate at least a part of their
income to philanthropy.
Delivering the third American Bazaar Philanthropy Lecture, here at the Washington
Plaza Hotel on October 1, the
founder of the SM Sehgal Foundation pointed out that roughly
27 percent of the community
members have a median income of $140,000. If that segment of the population committed at least $1,500 a year
which is half of the money
an average American household is giving annually about
$1.8 billion will be available for
philanthropy, he said.
Earlier in the evening, Sehgal
received the 2016 American
Bazaar Philanthropy Award.
Presenting the award, entrepreneur and philanthropist
Frank Islam described Sehgal,
who has committed most of his
wealth to philanthropy in India, as an inspirational figure.

Dr. Suri Seghal receives

Philanthropy Award

Those in this room that are not

yet initiated into philanthropy
dont need to look further for
inspiration, said Islam, a recipient of the award in 2015.
Philanthropy, like business,
is about solving problems, and
What the SM Sehgal Foundation is doing in India is identifying some of the most pressing
problems the country is facing
and coming up with solutions
for them, Islam said. The Sehgal Foundation is trying to
solve, in its own small way, one
of the greatest challenges India
is facing at the moment: the disempowerment of rural India.
The SM Sehgal Foundation,
headquartered in Gurgaon, a
Delhi suburb in the state of
Haryana, is active in around
550 Indian villages. Sehgal,
who came to the United States
in 1959, described his journey
from the pre-Partition Punjab to
building a successful career in

the United States and giving

back to the country of his birth.
The 84-year-old Sehgal, who
holds a PhD in Plant Genetics
from Harvard University and a
diploma in business management from Harvard Business

Dr. Suri Sehgal receiving the award from

Frank Islam in Washington, DC.

Taking pediatric oncology &

hematology to rural India
New York: Indian origin American pediatric super specialist
Dr Akshat Jain and cofounder of
Prarabdha, NY (NPO) spent the
past month in rural Rajasthan
providing free medical services
to children suffering from child-

hood cancer and hemophilia.

He introduced a teaching
curriculum for supportive care
in children undergoing lethal
cancer chemotherapy and conducted research studying the
needs of patients undergoing

School, founded the SM Sehgal

Foundation in the late 1990s.
He and his wife, Edda, allocated most of the money they received after selling their Indiabased company Proagro group
of companies, to philanthropy.

treatment at the government

medical facilities within the
northern states of India. Speaking to medical students and
house staff caring for these patients Dr Jain emphasized the
need of compassion in clinical

practice and keeping up to

date with the rapidly changing
spectrum of newer and safer
therapy options available to
these patients. Speaking to a
leading daily newspaper Rajasthan Patrika, he enlightened the
readers the causes attributed to
the rise of cancers in children
and how novel Immunotherapy is transforming the care of
children with cancer.

Layla Majnun through non-Indian eyes

New York:
Indians, at
least north Indians, know the
tragic love story of Laila Majnun too well, and they would
see it as Bollywood versions
of the legend have shown.
But the classic tale has also
for long pervaded Arabic,
Persian, and Azerbaijani cultures. It is also now a transcultural dance-drama that
had its premiere last week in
Berkeley, Calif. Mark Morris, who has employed several ethnic styles over the
decades, choreographs and
directs it, in collaboration
with the Silk Road Ensemble.

After California, Layla and Majnun dance-drama

will travel to Seattle, Ann Arbor, Mich., and
Hanover, N.H. (January 6-7)

A reviewer for The New

York Times says that Mr.
Morris does not so much
tell the Layla-Majnun story as refract it, ritualize it,
multiply it. The emphasis
is all on emotion. Sometimes one couple from the
group represents the hero
and heroine; sometimes
we see five Laylas and five
Majnuns; sometimes one
couple is offset by an ensemble that also at times
suggests society, the lovers parents, the male and
female hearts. Not quite
Bollwyood stuff.

TheSouthAsianTimes.info
Virginia: Republican vice presidential can
didate Mike Pence narrowly beat Senator
Tim Kaine as they sparred on US policies,
the abortion law, the war in Syria and
"safe zones" for refugees in the US in a 90
minute vicepresidential debate, a CNN
poll showed.
De bat ing Kaine on Tuesday nig ht,
Indiana Governor Pence taught a master
class on how it's done. Every time Kaine
attacked, Pence parried and
deftly pivoted to some
thing entirely dif
ferent.
W hen Kaine
demanded that
Pence defend
D o n a l d
T r u m p ' s
secrecy on
his taxes, the
Republican
ducked and
talked
about
how low taxes are
good for economic
growth.
Pences aim was to stabilize
Trump's bid after a turbulent week in
which the billionaire admitted that he
greatly benefited from "unfair" US tax
laws.

Pence
edges
Kaine in
VP debate

By Shivaji Sengupta
hen Hillary Clinton accused
Donald Trump of not pay ing
income taxes "That means he
paid zero for social security, zero for the
army, zero for infrastructure," Mr. Trump
slyly interjected
that
he
was
"smart" not to pay
those taxes. Now,
30something
days be fore the
e lect ions, T he
New York Times
has come out with
seemingly block
buster news that
the Republican nominee for president had
n't paid taxes for 18 years!
I say "seemingly blockbuster" because
what Trump did is not that unusual.
American business people have been avail
ing of this tax protection apparently since
1918, a tax law that allows businesses to
not pay taxes if they can show losses, so
that they can get a chance to recuperate
the loss the following year. If they were
obligated to pay taxes, over and above the
losses, their businesses might never recov
er so the logic goes.
From the point of view of business this
makes sense. However, Trump claimed,
that he had lost $967 million dollars
almost a billion over his casinos, the Plaza
Hotel in New York City, and Trump Shuttle,

October 8-14, 2016

US AFFAIRS

Hillary Clintons running mate, Tim Kaine, and Trumps VP pick, Mike
Pence. Pences performance was better than the Donalds last week.

Whenever Kaine of fered

an extended list of Trump
insults, Pence did not defend.
Instead, he moved to complaining
about Clintons comment: "basket of
deplorables".
Focused on his talking points, never tak
ing the bait, Pences was a bravura per
formance. The high point of the debate
the airline during 1995!
According to The Wall Street
Journal, this loss is literally
hundred times the aver
age loss shown by
American businesses
per year: $96,700!
The IRS, though, is
sat isfied
that
Trump's losses were
real, not trumped up.
T hen what is the
problem?
The problem obviously
is the enormity of Trump's losses.
As Hillary Clinton asked rhetorically,
"What kind of businessman loses a billion
dollars in one year?" The implication clear
ly being that Trump is not as successful a
businessman as he claims to be. Most perti
nently, Democrats and Clinton supporters
are fervently hoping that the news about
Trump not paying taxes, and calling him
self smart because of it, will hurt him in the
ballot box.
Not necessarily.
Trump has two types of supporters: those
who are white and poor and angry with the
United States because of their condition.
They have long ago adopted Trump. They
watch TV, do not read past headlines of
tabloids, and are absolutely convinced
Trump will help them. Trump knows this.
That is why his explanation to them about
his avoidance of taxes was that yes, he
used to do all this shenanigans because he

came when Kaine attacked Trump's for

eign policy chops. He kept shooting with
Trump liners like "I know more than all
the generals about ISIL" ; "I am going to
fire all the generals"; "John McCain is no
hero"; "the generals need to be fired"; and
"NATO is obsolete". Pence deflected to the
Obama administration's foreign policy
record.

ANALYSIS

Kaine often interrupted Pence to ham

mer away at Trump's business ties to
Russian banks, his campaign team's lobby
ing work for a Ukrainian strongman and
the billionaire's eyebrowraising praise for
Russian President Vladimir Putin.
When Pence broached the idea that the
Obama administration had let Russia dom
inate the response to Syrian policy, Kaine
wore an expression that looked vaguely
sad, as though he could not believe Pence
had gone there.
On the abortion policy, Pence said it was
a crucial issue to him and he could never
support a party that would support the
legalization of laterterm abortions. While
Kaine is personally opposed to abortion,
he said it was not his right to impose that
view on the public.
The Democrat paraphrased former US
President Ronald Reagan with regard to
nuclear weapons, saying Trump was the
"fool" or "maniac", who could start a
nuclear war. Pence responded w ith
"Senator that was even beneath you and
Clinton and that's pretty low."
According to the BBC, Pence's goal was
to reassure Republicans panicked by
Trump's debate performance last week
and his bungling in the days that followed
that cooler heads will prevail. And he did
exactly that.

Donald Trumps tax triumphs prove

that he is a shrewd businessman.
What it does not prove is that he
would be a good President in
terms of improving the economy.

Trumpedup tax
triumph

was working for

Trump then. I am
not working for
Trump anymore; I am
working for you! His audience

cheered.
His other kind of supporters are the
business people themselves who have used
tax loopholes the same way Trump has,
except perhaps not to the same degree. If
anything, they would admire him for his
sheer ability to show a billiondollar loss
and get away without paying taxes. To
their eyes, Trump is smart! They, too, will
vote for him. It is possible that a few edu
cated and undecided individuals might get
turned of f with Mr. Trumps creative
accounting and not vote for him, but, over
the long haul, I doubt if Trumps tax issues
will hurt him further in the polls.
Trumps tax triumphs prove that he is a
shrewd businessman, well trained in taking
care first of himself, and then of everyone
else. What it does not prove is that he
would be a good president in terms of
improving the economy. This is because

managing personal wealth is not the same

as shepherding the economics of a whole
country, especially that of America.
In personal business deals, regardless of
how large it is, one has to be mindful of far
less variables than when making deals on
behalf of the USA. Not only is our countrys
economic health extremely complex, with
stakeholders both domestic and abroad,
sometimes we intentionally absorb eco
nomic losses in order to make political
gains. This is what happens in much of US
trade relations with China, or with less
developed countries in Asia and Africa. Our
country is constantly forgiving foreign
debts, incurring huge losses, simply to
increase its influence among them.
Obviously, Trump does not understand or
appreciate that.
Does it mean that if Trump wins, he will
be an unmitigated economic disaster like
some of his detractors say? Not necessari
ly. It all depends on whom Trump selects to
advise him on the economy.
The author is a regular contributor to
The South Asian Times opinion columns.

10

October 8-14, 2016

US AFFAIRS

TheSouthAsianTimes.info

By Robert Golomb
am not at all surprised that this
election is receiving a great deal
of statewide attention, Elaine
Phillips, the Republican candidate
for the New York State District 7
Senate seat in this coming
Novembers election, stated during
a recent interview. Ms. Phillips, the
current 3term mayor of the village
of Flower Hill, who is also running
on the Conservative, Independent,
and Reform Party lines, was stating
the already widely known: The out
come of the race in District 7, one
of the approximately 10 State
Senate races pollsters have labeled
as tossups, could determine
whether the State Senate is con
trolled by Democrats or
Republicans.
As it currently stands, the
Democrats control 32 seats to the
Republicans 31. However,
Democrat Senator Simcha Felder
of the 17th District in Brooklyn
caucuses with Republicans, giving
them a de facto, albeit extremely
fragile, one vote majority. Because
of this close and tenuous political
configuration of the State Senate,
the outcome of the race in the 7th
might well determine which party
will control that legislative body,
after the winners of Novembers
e lection are swornin come
January 2017. Which is the major
reason the campaigns of Phillips
and her Democratic opponent,
local businessman, Roslyn school
board member and party activist
Adam Haber, have drawn the close
attention and careful scrutiny of
political leaders of both parties
statewide.
T here is another factor that
makes the stakes for the outcome
of the Senate races even higher.
With the Democrats holding a 109
41 supermajority in the state
Assembly and with 2term
Democratic Governor Andrew
Cuomo currently holding the exec
utive branch, a Democratic take
over of the Senate would lead in
Albany to what would amount to
be one party rule. Phillips told me
that such an eventuality would be
terrible. Having Democrats con
trol the governorship and both leg
islative bodies would destroy the
system of checks and balances that
are essential to good government.
The results for New York State
would be disastrous, she contend
ed. Phillips, 57, the married mother
of three daughters aged 19, 21 and
23, who is running on a platform
which includes improving the
states economy, lowering property
taxes and ending corruption in
Albany, added, It has been the
Republicans who have been lead
ing the fight to create a business
friendly environment that will cre
ate more highpaying private sec
tor jobs. they have also led the
battle to reduce the burdensome
property taxes that have hit the
middle class the hardest. In addi

Elaine Phillips looks over an elaborately decorated bomb

shelter outside a preschool near Haifa,
during a visit to Israel early this year.

Elaine Phillips speaks with members of the growing

IndianAmerican community in her Senate District. The 7th District
is among the most ethnically diverse on Long Island.

GOP candidate Elaine Phillips:

Hoping to keep NYS Senate
under Republican control
tion, it has been mainly the
Republicans who have fought
Governor Cuomos attempts to end
the investigations into the illegal
political activities that permeate
throughout Albany. I do not even
want to think what could happen
in the future should the Democrats
hold a total monopoly of power in
the state.
The 7th district, which encom
passes the entire town of North
Hempstead and portions of the
towns of Hempstead and Oyster
Bay, all within the boundaries of
Nassau County, contains 32 vil
lages, the largest number of vil
lages of any senate district in the
state. One of those 32 villages is
Flower Hill. Phillips told me that
her record as mayor there is
indicative of how she would serve
if elected to the state senate. As
mayor, she stated, I saw how hard
the middle class in particular was
hurt by high taxes, so I made it my
priority to reduce village taxes in
Flower Hill. Working together
with both Republican and
Democrats, I was able to signifi
cantly reduce taxes in the village,
which made it among the lowest
taxed villages in the region. If
elected, I will fight for and support
legislation that reduces state taxes,
just as I worked in Flower Hill to
reduce the village tax rate for our
citizens. Demographic reports
show that the 7th district is among
the most ethnically diversified in
the state, containing first or second
generation citizens from China,
Korea, India, Pakistan and
Portugal. Alluding to that diversity,
Phillips stated, I feel fortunate to
have the opportunity to run for a
position that would enable me to
represent a whole crosssection of
residents of the district, including
those who come from such

extremely proud and wonderfully

diverse ethnic backgrounds and
are so proud to be Americans.
Beyond this ethnic diversity,
there is also heterogeneity in the
voting patterns of the citizens of
the district: Of the 7ths total pop
ulation of 315,163 citizens, regis
tered Democrats outnumber
Republicans 90,027 to 67,755
(there are 2,230 Conservative and
8,642 Independent registered
party voters, with 57,135 who are
not enrolled).
However, despite this 25%
advantage Democrats hold in the
district, over the recent past voting
cycles, Republicans have dominat
ed them in the state senate elec
tions. The current State Senator
Republican Jack Martins, whose
departure from the race for his
seat to make his current run for
Congress in the 3rd CD first
opened the Republican slate to
Phillips, was first elected in 2008,
and later reelected in 2010, 2012
and 2014. Prior to Martins the
seat belonged to Democrat Craig
Johnson.Johnson was preceded by
three successive Republicans span
ning more than a decade.
Referring to this political
dichotomy, I asked Phillips
whether she was heartened by the
past success of Republicans in the
district or disheartened by the
major advantage in voter registra
tion Democrats hold over her
party. Answering that neither of
those two adjectives describe her
thought process as she conducts
her campaign, Philips stated,
While I am fully aware of both the
party affiliations of the voters and
the political history of the district,
it has very little to do with how I
view or conduct the campaign,
which focuses, not on the past, but
rather on how to improve the lives

of our citizens in the future, begin

ning, I hope, with my election in
November.
Phillips, who told me that her
proeconomic growth, lower prop
erty tax, anticorruption policies
are similar to those Jack Martins
has championed legislatively dur
ing his 8 years in office, said that
there is one particular bill,
S6378A, that will be one of her pri
orities. This bill, which Martins
himself primesponsored, prohibits
any New York State government
entity from engaging in business
and financial transactions with
companies, corporations or indi
viduals that participate in boycotts,
such as Boycott, Divestment, and
Sanctions (BDS), that are aimed at
economically and politically harm
ing the state of Israel.
While S6378A cruised through
the Senate, which passed it in
January 2016 by a vote of 565,
and while Governor Cuomo has
promised to sign the bill into law,
the bills opponents, exclusively
Democrats, in the assembly have
stopped it from even being intro
duced on the floor there. Phillips
told me that she will attempt to use
her position as state senator to win
the support of the bill from its cur
rent opponents in the assembly.
She explained that such communi
cation would not be unusual, as it
is part of the legislative process for
members of one of the two law
making bodies to lobby members
of the other to oppose or support a
particular bill.
Phillips, who is a practicing
Episcopalian, said that she has
hope that once she presents the
background of the antiIsrael boy
cott movement to S6388As assem
bly opponents, she will be able to
convince them to change their
positions. The Arabs just changed

the do not buy from Jews words

of hate that they spread in 1945
about Jews living in then Palestine,
which I will point out, was three
years before there was even a
Jewish state and coincided with the
last year of the genocide of Jews in
Europe, to their new, Do not do
business with Israel.
Phillips told me that a trip she
took to Israel this past summer fur
ther reinforced her already strong
support for the Jewish state. "I saw
how", she said," through the
courage, determination and spirit
of her people, Israel, a very small
nation, has become an internation
al leader in major advances in sci
ence, medicine, environment and
technology advances that have
provided great benefits to people
throughout the world, including
ironically, many of the people of
the same nations that seek Israel's
destruction."
Phillips, who actively began her
campaign for state senate in
August shortly after her return
from Israel, said she has enjoyed
every one of the countless hours
she has spent electioneering. It
has been an honor and privilege to
meet and listen to the great ideas
and legitimate concerns of the
wonderful women and men in the
district. It will be an honor and
privilege to serve them should I be
elected in November.
Whether Phillips or her oppo
nent Adam Haber gets elected to
the 7th Senate District in
November, the outcome of that
contest might play a major role in
how New York State is governed in
the next two years.
Robert Golomb is a nationally
and internationally published
columnist. Email him at
MrBob347@aol.com and follow
him on Twitter@RobertGolomb

TheSouthAsianTimes.info

Trump Foundation told

to stop fundraising
Washington: New York Attorney General's office
on Monday ordered Republican presidential can
didate Donald Trump's foundation to cease
fundraising immediately after a report revealing
that the charity is not properly authorised to
seek public donations.
"The Attorney General's office is the sole regu
lator of charities in New York State, and when
evidence of clear misconduct is brought to our
attention, we take action," Xinhua news agency
quoted Attorney General Eric Schneiderman as
saying. On Monday, the Trump campaign
released a statement questioning the "political
motives" behind the investigation into the foun
dation as Schneiderman is a Democrat.
The Trump Foundation never registered under
article 7A of New York's Executive Law as is
required for any charity asking for more than
25,000 dollars per year from the public. This
means Trump's foundation has avoided any of
the outside audits New York law requires of larg
er charities. Trump was fined for using his foun
dation to donate 25,000 dollars to a political
organisation for Florida Attorney General Pam
Bondi and reporting in its public forms that the
money was for a similarly named charity instead.
Nonprofits are not allowed to make political con
tributions in New York state. The donation took
place in 2013 when Bondi's office was consider
ing whether to open a probe into fraud allega
tions against Trump University. Bondi's office did
not open an investigation afterwards. Bondi and
Trump have both denied the contribution was
connected to the case.

US AFFAIRS

11

Trump admits benefiting

from 'unfair' tax laws
Washington: Republican presidential
nominee Donald Trump has admitted
greatly benefiting from "unfair" US tax
laws, saying that he used them "bril
liantly" to his advantage, but promising
to change them if he becomes the
President. "The unfairness of the tax
laws is unbelievable, it's something I've
been talking about for a long time,
despite frankly being a big beneficiary
of the laws," Efe news quoted Trump as
saying on Monday.
"I'm working for you now, I'm not
working for Trump," he said a state
ment that brought cheers from the
crowd at a campaign rally in Pueblo,
Colorado. According to the billionaire,
because of his past experience with
using the tax laws to his benefit, he
understands the complex system better
than anybody else and is the only per
son who can "fix" it, promising to do
exactly that, although not specifying
exactly what he would do in that regard.
In his first remarks after revelations
about his tax history were published by
The New York Times on Saturday, the
magnate said that he had "brilliantly"
used the US tax laws to legally pay as lit
tle in federal taxes as possible.
Trump waited two days to speak
about the report, in which the paper

KIM KARDASHIAN ROBBED

AT GUNPOINT IN PARIS
Paris:
Reality TV star Kim
Kardashian West was held at gun
point inside her hotel room here and
robbed of jewelry worth several mil
lion euros, police said.
Kim was robbed at gunpoint on
Sunday night at the luxury hotel in
Paris by at least two men dressed as
police of ficers, according to police
officials and her publicist. She was
here to attend the Paris Fashion
Week.
"The loss amounts to several mil
lion euros, mostly jewelry. The total
amount is still being evaluated," a
police official told bbc.com.
According to eonline.com, Kim's
publicist said that the celebrity was
"badly shaken but physically
unharmed".

October 8-14, 2016

Robbers took away Kims jewelry and ring worth

a few million dollars.

Voters concerned about terrorist attacks in US: Poll

Washington: Fifteen years after the US government launched "war on terror" following the
9/11 attacks, a majority of US voters are concerned about possible terrorist strikes in the
country, a new poll said on Monday. According to the new Morning Consult poll, 56 per cent
of the US voters think it is at least somewhat likely that a terrorist attack will occur in the US
over the next few months. While less than half Democrats say that the US is safer now, an
overwhelming majority of Republicans think otherwise, the poll found, with more than
seven in 10 Republicans saying that a terrorist attack is somewhat or very likely, Xinhua
cited the findings. The poll came as the country was on high alert against terror attacks
after three bomb attacks occurred last month. Nearly 29 people were wounded in a blast on
September 17 in New York City, hours after another pipe bomb exploded on the same day
along the route of a Marine charity run in the US state of New Jersey in what authorities
believed was a planned attack.

Trump contributed
nothing for country:
Clinton
mphasizing the need of a law for
the nominees of the two major par
ties to release their tax returns,
Democratic presidential candidate
Hillary Clinton said her Republican
counterpart has contributed nothing for
the country. While referring to the New
York Times report, which noted Donald
Trumps net loss of more than $915 mil
lion in 1995, Clinton said Trump may
not have paid a dime in federal income
taxes for nearly two decades. Clinton
said that while millions of Americans
worked hard to pay their fare share,
Trump contributed nothing for the
country. Trump was taking from
America with both hands and leaving
the rest of us with the bill. What kind of
genius loses a billion dollars in a single
year? she said at a campaign stop in
Toledo, Ohio.

E
A furor erupted after NYT revealed that
Trump may have legally avoided
paying federal taxes for 18 years after
declaring a massive business loss of
$916 million in 1995.
said on Saturday that the mogul may
have legally avoided paying federal
taxes for 18 years thanks to declaring a
huge business loss of $916 million in
1995.
"The media is now obsessed with an
alleged tax violation from the 1990s, at
the end of one of the most brutal eco
nomic downturns in our country's histo
ry," Trump said.
"The conditions facing real estate
developers in that early '90s period
were almost as bad as the Great
Depression of 1929 and far worse than
the Great Recession of 2008 not even

close," he said. He said at the Monday

rally that he pays a lot of money in
other taxes, specifying: "I face enormous
taxes city, state, sales, excise, employ
ee, federal, VAT, different countries."

October 8-14, 2016 TheSouthAsianTimes.info

12

Pak officer admits India carried surgical strikes

New Delhi: A senior Pakistan
police of ficer has admitted that
India indeed carried out surgical
strikes in Pakistanadministered
Kashmir and killed at least five
soldiers and several militants in
an operation that Islamabad
denies happened.
Ghulam
Akbar,
the
Superintendent of Police (Special
Branch) of the Mirpur Range in
Paksitani Kashmir, told CNN
News18 TV channe l that the
strikes took place at many sec
tors on the early hours of
September 29. The news channel
said that one of its journalists,
Manoj Gupta, posed as Inspector
General of Police Mushtaq while
speaking to Akbar over te le
phone.
The channel aired excerpts of
the conversation, quoting Akbar
as saying that he personally
knew about the strikes.
The Indian operation, he said,
occurred at Samana in Bhimber,
Hazira in Poonch, Dudhniyal in
Neelam and Kayani in Hathian
Bala, the border sectors on the
Pakistani side of the Line of
Control (LoC).
Akbar said the Pakistan Army
cordoned of f all these areas
immediate ly after the Indian
incursion.
"Sir, that was night... you can
say roughly 34 hours... between
2 a.m. and 4 or 5 a.m... T he

Soldiers in action during an encounter with militants in north

Kashmir's Kupwara district on Oct 6. (Photo: IANS)
attack continued between that
time. "There were attacks on sep
arate places... Several places
were attacked... They also met
(with) resistance," Akbar said.
The news channel said Akbar
stated that the Pakistan Army
was caught unawares by the
Indian attack and lost five sol

diers. The channel said it had the

names of the slain Pakistani sol
diers but didn't reveal them.
The Mirpur police of ficer also
claimed that the bodies of an
unknown number of terrorists
were quickly removed by the
Pakistani military and taken
away in ambulances.

Pak PM tells military to

act against terror
Islamabad: Faced with growing
global isolation and pressure to act
against terror originating from
Pakistan, Prime Minister Nawaz
Sharif has bluntly asked the mili
tary leadership, including the ISI,
to act against terrorist groups and
conclude soon the probes into the
2008 Mumbai and 2016
Pathankot attacks. Pakistan's influ
ential Dawn newspaper, citing
unnamed sources, said the civilian
government, in a "blunt, orchestrat
ed and unprecedented warning",
asked militaryled intelligence
agencies "not to interfere if law
enforcement acts against militant
groups that are banned or until
now considered offlimits for civil
ian action".
"Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has
directed that fresh attempts be
made to conclude the Pathankot
investigation and restart the stalled
Mumbai attacksrelated trials in a
Rawalpindi antiterrorism court,"
the newspaper said.
It said that the government has

Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has bluntly asked the military leadership,
including the ISI, to act against terrorist groups.
informed the military leadership of
"a growing international isolation
of Pakistan and sought consensus
on several key act ions by the
state". The government asked spy
agency InterService Intelligence
(ISI) chief Gen. Rizwan Akhtar and
National Security Adviser Nasser
Janjua to travel to each of the four
Pakistani provinces with a message

for ISI's sector commanders.

The decisions were taken after
an extraordinary verbal confronta
tion between Punjab Chief Minister
Shahbaz Sharif and the spy agency
chief, the newspaper said. It said
that the account was based on con
versations with Dawn of individu
als present in crucial meetings
Nawaz Sharif held this week.

He said the bodies many have

been buried in villages.
Akbar also revealed that the
Pakistani Army facilitates the
movement of terrorists in for
ward areas and arranges for
their crossing over to India, the
channel said.
"The army brings them, sir... it
is in their hands," Akbar said.
He said he doesn't know about
the accurate number of terrorists
killed because the Pakistan Army
protects the jihadi infrastructure
from even the local authorities
and police.
The admission by the senior
police of ficer came even as
Pakistan has repeatedly trashed
Indian claims that its comman
dos crossed the LoC and
destroyed seven terror launch
pads and killed an unknown
number of militants.
Pakistan even took a group of
local and foreign journalists to
some areas near the LoC to claim
that the surgical strikes never
happened.
The Indian Army carried out
the operat ion to avenge the
September 18 killing of 19
Indian soldiers in a terror attack
on a military base in Jammu and
Kashmir.
India said the suicide attackers
were
from
the
Jaishe
Mohammed (JeM) and infiltrated
from Pakistan.

Kejriwal
again urges
government
to expose Pak
New Delhi: Delhi Chief Minister
Arvind Kejriwal again urged
the Centre to expose Pakistan
internationally, while hailing
the media for exposing its false
propaganda on surgical strikes.
"So happy that some media
exposing Pakistan's false prop
aganda. I congratulate them.
Urge Indian govt (government)
to likewise expose Pakistan
internationally," Kejriwal tweet
ed. He quoted a report of a
news channel which claimed
that an of ficer in Pakistan
administered Kashmir had
accepted that surgical strikes
took place.
Kejriwal in a video message
requested Prime Minister
Narendra Mo di to expose
Pakistan's false propaganda
when before a delegation of
international media it denied
the Indian surgical strikes.
The Chief Minister, in spite of
dif ferences with him on other
matters, had earlier hailed the
Prime Minister's strict meas
ures against Pakistan.

Three Pak terrorists killed

in army camp attack
Srinagar: Three Pakistani terror
ists were killed on Thursday in a
gunfight that erupted after they
attacked a counterinsurgency
Rashtriya Rifles (RR) camp in
north Kashmir's Kupwara district,
an army of ficer said. Heavily
armed terrorists dressed in army
fatigues attacked the 30 RR camp
situated in Langate town of
Kupwara district at 5.10 a.m. on
T hursday, but the attack was
foiled. "Our sentries, who were on
high alert carried out retaliatory
fire to deny terrorists who entered
our fencing. Our quick reaction
team was activated. They localized
the area where the terrorists were
spotted, and after that they car
ried out sanitisation of the area.
Three Pakistani terrorists were
eliminated," Colonel Rajiv Saharan
of 30 RR told the media in
Handwara.
The army of ficer said a huge
quantity of arms and ammunition
and communication devices were
recovered from the slain terror
ists. "These terrorists were carry
ing huge quantity of arms and

ammunition and other war like

stores, including three AK 47
rifles, two under barrel grenade
launchers, large quantity of small
arms, ammunition and grenades,
GPS radio sets, maps, metric
sheets and food and communica
tions stores," he said.
The security personnel are still
carrying out combing and search
operations.
"Operation is still continuing,
sanitisation of the area is not yet
complete," added the of ficer.
Colonel Rajesh Kalia, spokesman
of the Indian Army's Srinagar
headquartered 15 Corps, told
IANS earlier that alert guards at
the 30 RR camp in Langate locat
ed close to a civilian facility foiled
the terrorists' attempt to enter the
camp by breaching its security
periphery.
On October 3, a BSF trooper was
killed and another injured when
separatist militants attacked the
camp of 47 RR in Janbazpora area
of Baramulla town.
The guerrillas, however, man
aged to escape.

TheSouthAsianTimes.info

INDIA

October 8-14, 2016

13

India, Sri Lanka share concerns Terror foremost challenge for

Asean countries: Parrikar
about crossborder terror
New Delhi: India and Sri Lanka have shared
concerns over crossborder terrorism in a
meeting between Prime Minister Narendra
Modi and his Sri Lankan counterpart Ranil
Wickremesinghe.
"Prime
Ministers
Mo di
and
Wickremesinghe shared concerns at the
spread of crossborder terrorism in the
region and reaffirmed that they were of one
mind on the need to counter this menace,
which was affecting progress in entire South
Asia," sources here on Wednesday said fol
lowing the meeting. India last month pulled
out of the South Asian Association for
Regional Cooperation (Saarc) Summit that
was scheduled to be held in Islamabad in
November citing Pakistan's sponsorship of
terrorism in the region.
New De lhi's move came after the
September 18 crossborder terror attack on
an army base at Uri in Jammu and Kashmir
that claimed the lives of 19 Indian soldiers.
Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Bhutan fol
lowed suit citing the same reason, virtually
isolating Pakistan in the region.
Sri Lanka expressed the view that the
Saarc Summit would not be possible in the
absence of India.
According to the sources, Mo di and
Wickremesinghe reviewed progress in bilat
eral ef forts to forge closer cooperation in
economic, defence and security matters.
Both leaders agreed on more active partici

Prime Minister Narendra Modi with his

Sri Lankan counterpart Ranil
Wickremesinghe in Delhi. (Photo: IANS)
pation by Indian industry in developmental
priorities in Sri Lanka
During the course of the day,
Wickremesinghe also held meetings with
External Af fairs Minister Sushma Swaraj,
Minister for Road Transport, Highways and
Shipping Nitin Gadkari and Minister of State
for Petroleum and Natural Gas Dharmendra
Pradhan.
In the evening, Wickremesinghe called on
President Pranab Mukherjee and both sides
reiterated the urgency to counter cross bor
der terrorism through united action, includ
ing at the UN through early adoption of the
Indiainitiated Comprehensive Convention
on Counter Terrorism and strengthening
internal security systems.

New Delhi: Defense Minister

Manohar Parrikar called ter
rorism the "foremost chal
lenge" for the southeast
Asian countries, adding that
there is a need to delegit
imise it as an instrument of
state policy. Parrikar said:
"Terrorism remains foremost
challenge to our (Asean)
region. We need to oppose
terrorism resolutely every
where, delegitimise it as an
instrument of state policy,
and cooperate unreservedly
to locate and destroy terror

ist networks."
He was speaking at the
20th Asean Reg ional
Forum Heads of Defence
Universities meet here.
"T he security frame
works in our (Asean)
region still does not give
enough attention to ter
rorism. This must change,"
he said according to an
official statement.

Union Minister for Defense

Manohar Parrikar.
(Photo: IANS)
As a part of the
ongoing
Namast France
festival, Embassy
of India, Paris
presented an
evening of
contemporary
Indian dance by
Indian dance
icon, Padma Shri
Astad Deboo at
the prestigious
Opra Bastille
in Paris on
October 3.

14

October 8-14, 2016

INDIA

TheSouthAsianTimes.info

Pak surgical strikes video given to PMO

New Delhi: As the demand for
sharing evidence of the surgical
strikes grew louder, Minister of
State for Home Af fairs Hansraj
Gangaram Ahir said the footage
has already been handed over to
the Prime Minister's Of fice by
the Army.
T he Minister said a call on
making the video public rests
with Prime Minister Narendra
Modi.
"The video footage has been
handed over to the government
by the Army," Ahir told IANS on
phone from Mumbai.
Asked if the government
planned to share the video, he
said: "No such decision has been
taken yet, a call can only be
taken by the Prime Minister."
"A nation has its own policies
and one needs to pract ise
restraint. People like Sanjay
Nirupam and Arvind Kejriwal lis
ten to Pakistan. The DGMO did
the briefing and everyone in
India believes it," the Minister

Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh visits a forward location

at Drass in Jammu and Kashmir.
said. Meanwhile, a meeting of the
Cabinet Committee on Security
(CCS), chaired by Prime Minister
Modi, was held on Wednesday
during which the situation along
the Line of Control was reviewed.
Of ficials from the De fence
Ministry, meanwhile, said there

were no discussions on releasing

the video.
The officials did not specify if a
final stand on the issue has been
taken.
Former Army Chief General J.J.
Singh (retd), meanwhile, said
sharing a footage will not be in

Madras HC trashes PIL

on Jayalalithaa's health
Chennai: The Madras High Court
has dismissed the public interest
litigation (PIL) filed by social
activist Traffic Ramaswamy seek
ing informat ion about Tamil
Nadu
Chie f
Minister
J.
Jayalalithaa's health condition.
The court dismissed the case as
the one filed for seeking publici
ty. In the wake of various rumors
about Jayalalithaa's health,
Traffic Ramaswamy filed the PIL
see king the real status of
Jayalalithaa's health.
The 68yearold Chief Minister
was admitted to Apollo Hospitals
on September 22 for fever and
dehydration.
While Apollo Hospitals initially
said Jayalalithaa was cured of
fever, later it said she was being
treated for infection. She was
advised some more days' stay in
the hospital.
Meanwhile, according to
reports, a threedoctor team from

Rumors are
making rounds
regarding
Tamil Nadu
Chief Minister
J. Jayalalithaa's
health.

All India Institute of Medical

Sciences (AIIMS), De lhi, w ill
examine Jayalalithaa.
The reports said pulmonologist
G.C. Khilnani, cardiologist Nitish
Naik and anaesthet ist Anjan
Trikha from AIIMS will examine
Jayalalithaa.
However, of ficials of Apollo
Hospitals and the state govern
ment were not available to com
ment on these reports.
The AIIMS medical team comes

after British doctor Richard Beale,

consultant in Intensive Care
Medicine at Guy's and St. Thomas
Hospital, London, examined
Jayalalithaa.
According to Apollo Hospitals,
the treatment plan was based on
detailed discussions with Beale.
The treatment plan included
appropriate antibiotics, respirato
ry support and other allied clini
cal measures presently being
continued to treat the infection.

national interest.
"I want to te ll it loud and
clear... these are secret and dis
creet operations which are sup
posed to be executed with preci
sion, and our people are sup
posed to come back leaving as
far as possible no evidence
behind," Singh told IANS.
"In today's age, there is enough
electronic equipment to track
and record to tell what they have
achieved, but it is not in national
interest to put it in public
domain. It has never been done
in the past... in fact, it is not even
supposed to be talked about. We
must be mature enough as a
country to be able to ensure that
this kind of pressure is not put
on the government or the army
to produce videos," the former
Army chief told IANS.
India has said a surgical strike
was carried out during the night
intervening September 28 and
29 to destroy terrorist launch
pads across the LoC.

Pakistan has, however, claimed

that no such attack took place.
In India, some political leaders,
including Delhi Chief Minister
Arvind Kejriwal and Congress
leader Sanjay Nirupam have
demanded that the government
release evidence of the strike.
The situation has been tense
on the IndiaPakistan border
since the September 18 terror
attack at an army camp in Uri
town of Jammu and Kashmir
which left 19 soldiers dead. India
blamed Pakistanbased Jaishe
Mohammad militant group for
the attack.
Re lat ions between the two
neighbouring nations have dete
riorated since the surg ical
strikes.
On Tuesday, Indian Army
alleged that Pakistan troops
opened unprovoked heavy firing
in at least three places along the
LoC and along the International
Border in Akhnoor sector in
Jammu.

Indian communication satellite

GSAT-18 put into orbit
Chennai: An Indian communica
tion satellite GSAT18 was suc
cessfully put into orbit by Ariane 5
rocket belonging to French com
pany Arianespace, Indian space
agency said. The rocket lifted off
from its spaceport in Kourou
(French Guiana).
According to Indian Space
Research Organisation (ISRO) its
Master Control Facility (MCF) at
Hassan in Karnataka took control
of GSAT18 and performed the ini
tial orbit raising activities by firing
the motors onboard the satellite.
The satellite was placed in a cir
cular geostationary orbit, ISRO
said. GSAT18 is India's latest com
munication sate llite with 48
transponders that receive and
transmit communication signals.
The 3,404 kg satellite will pro
vide services in normal Cband,
upper extended Cband and Ku
bands of the frequency spectrum.
The satellite carries Kuband bea
con as well to help in accurately
pointing ground antennas towards
the satellite. Its designed inorbit

operational life is about 15 years.

"It is now the fifth time this year
that ArianeA5 has performed flaw
lessly, and this launch celebrates
as well its 74th success in a row,
now equalling (that of the prede
cessor) ArianeA4," Arianespace's
Chairman Stephane Israel was
quoted as saying in a statement
issued by the company. Apart
from the Indian communication
satellite, the Ariane 5 rocket put
into orbit Australian Sky Muster II
satellite. Overall, Arianespace has
won 86 percent of all geostation
ary launch contracts the country
has opened to nonIndian launch
systems including those for
GSAT11 and GSAT17, to be lofted
on future missions from the
Spaceport in French Guiana, the
company said. Carrying 12
transponders in Kuband and
another 24 in Cband, GSAT18
will provide telecommunications
services for India once in its final
orbital position (74 deg. East),
strengthening ISRO's current fleet
of 14 operational satellites.

TheSouthAsianTimes.info

COMMUNITY

At the Diwali stamp dedication ceremony Oct 5, emceed by Ravi Batra, there was
standing room only in the Indian consulate ballroom.

Speaking at the dedication ceremony (from left) Ranju Batra, Chair Diwali Stamp Project, Rep Carolyn
Maloney, Rep Grace Meng, and Pritha Mehra USPS Vice President Mail Entry and Payment Technology

October 8-14, 2016

15

Air India offer of free tickets to India for raffle winners made the
Diwali stamp sales fly. Air Indias Regional Manager Americas,
Vandana Sharma, is second from right.

People thronged the first floor of the Indian consulate in New York
to purchase Diwali stamps and get first day covers cancelled.
An estimated 100,000 stamps got sold at the outset.

(Photos: Mohammed Jafar)

16

October 8-14, 2016

TheSouthAsianTimes.info

CELEBRATING GANDHI

Celebrating Gandhi Jayanti by promoting

culture of Peace & Nonviolence
Hauppauge, NY: Volunteers of
Shanti Fund honored Mahatma
Gandhi this year by inviting
and ce le brat ing Peace and
Wisdom program in many
schools in Nassau & Suf folk
counties of Long Island. Some
200 students joined with their
parents, teachers and adminis
trators of at least 10 school dis
tricts on October1 at the H. Lee
Dennison
Building
in
Hauppauge, NY. This adds up to
almost 70 schools and thou
sands of youngsters participat
i n g. A l o n g w i t h h o n o r i n g
Gandhi, they were honoring all
the world peace leaders by cel
e b r a t i n g t h e i r m e s s a ge s of
peace and understanding and
exploring the insight of United
Nations

Sustainable
Development Goals.
Morning started with a fun
yoga session and mindful walk
ing meditation lead by yoga
teacher, Ms. Mariko Fusillo. Dr.
Panna Shah coordinated sever
al musical presentations from
dif ferent schools having 1040
students for each item. Music
of peace was diverse compris
ing a Zulu peace song to teach
ing peace by Red Grammar and
Imagine by John Lennon.
One of the important ses
sions of this morning was dis
cussion by several youth

One of the dozen peace presentations by students of Long Island schools.

groups from dif ferent schools,
almost 70 schools involving
thousands of students, on how
their schools celebrated peace,
their understanding of peace
and wisdom as well as their
exploration of Sustainable
Development Goals of the UN.
P a r t i c i p a t i n g s ch o o l s w e r e
Saxton Middle School, John W.
Dodd Middle School and high
schools Kings Park, Patchogue
Medford, William Floyd and
Amityville.
Many schools submitted stu
dents artwork ranging on the
theme of Peace and Wisdom.
The award ceremony will be

presided by Suf folk County

Executive Steve Bellone.
At this event, Commissioner
of the Department of Public
Works, Gil Anderson, and Dr.
K i sh o r e
K u n ch a m ,
Superintendent of the Freeport
Schools, spoke and led all to
take a Pledge of Nonviolence.

At cake cutting ceremony

(from left) Mrs. Lockel, CEO of Red
Cross; Rev. Pina, Executive director
of Long Island Council of
Churches; Supervisor Santino; Mr
Nair, Consul Community Affairs;
Mr Raia, NYS Assemblyman; John
Miller and Arvind Vora.

On Bapus 147th Birth Anniversary

Gandhis life in color

Patriarch of three generations connectivities to Gandhiji,

Shri Nagindas Matalia signing the Mahatma book

Students of Flushing Sai Center presented a skit on Gandhis life and message.

olunteers of Shanti Fund cele

brated Mahatma Gandhis birth
day over two days with a multi
tude of activities involving students,
youth and adults alike. On October 1
school students of Long Island
dwelled on peace leaders of the world
with main focus on Gandhiji. On
October 2, over 150 people enjoyed
presentations. Korean and Brazilian
singers presented Raghu Pati Raghav
to Let There Be Peace while Neel
Pahlajani, a young rapper had his cre

Dr. Panna Shah accepting proclamation on behalf of

Volunteers of Shanti Fund from Hempstead Town
Supervisor Anthony Santino.

ation Pray Along, a variation of Bapus

favorite bhajan Vaishnava Jan Toh. A
dozen youth from Flushing Sai Center
presented a skit promoting Gandhis
life and message. Honored guests
were: NYS Assemblyman Andrew Raia;
CEO of Long Island Red Cross Neela
Mukherjee Lockel; Executive Director
of Long Island Council of Churches,
Rev. Dyanne Pina; Supervisor of
Hempstead Anthony Santino; and
Consul of Community Af fairs K.
Devadasan Nair.

he UN has promoted October 2,

Gandhijis birthday, as International
Day of Nonviolence since 2007.
This year on Oct 2, Indian Prime Minister
Narendra Modi launched a historical
book on the Mahatma in New Delhi. The
800page large size books uniqueness is
that many historical black & white photo
graphs have been painstakingly convert
ed into color. In USA, it was launched at
the events organized by the Volunteers of
Shanti Fund. On Oct 1, students of Long
Island schools, teachers, parents and

administrator each wrote their name in

color on a separate page while a photo is
taken and the with a repeat process on
Oct 2. Arvind Vora apprised the audi
ence that India and the US were working
hard to prevent another major IndoPak
war. Also noteworthy is that India ratified
Paris climate change pact on October 2
at the behest of PM Narendra Modi to
memorialize one more practical way of
remembering the Mahatma who lived
with minimal possessions, what is now
called minimum carbon footprint.

17

October 8-14, 2016

Festival

AIAs 29th Diwali rocks South Street Seaport

New York: The Association of Indians in America (AIA-NY) celebrated
their 29th Annual Deepavali Festival
at the South Street Seaport her on
October 2. Tens of thousands of people enjoyed Indian culture, food, heritage, live performances and a spectacular display of Live Fireworks.
Naach Inferno, the inter-collegiate
dance competition now in its third
year, saw first-time entrants Rutgers
Bhangra as the winner this year.
Arya International had the crowd
dance with Bollywood moves. North
American artist Mickey Singh had
the youth audience light up South
Street Seaport with glow sticks and
applause. The Jungle Book fame
Neel Sethi in his interaction revealed how he became Hollywoods
most adorable new star.
With the event falling on the birth
anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi,
there was a special tribute paid to
him along with Essay & Drawing Competition on the importance of Peace.
Gracing the VIP Hour were Consul
General Riva Ganguly Das, Manhattan
Borough President Gale Brewer, Public Advocate Letitia James and many
business and community leaders.
Live Fireworks sponsored by
CheapOair & Qatar Airways from the
East River illuminated the skyline in
a Grand Finale. Toyota, Pepsi, New
York Life, Swan Club, MoneyGram,
Kotak Bank, HAB Bank, Navika Capital, Star Plus, Sony Entertainment,
Jus Punjabi and TV Asia also helped.
AIA is one of the oldest organizations of Indian Americans founded
in 1967.
For more info, www.theaiany.org

AIA-NY team posing with President Sunil Modi (middle).

The Jungle Books Neel Sethi was a star attraction

Vendors did brisk business as crowds surged.

Dushahra celebrated in Edison

Navrang Dance Academy enacted the Ramleela.

The 25-ft Ravan effigy brought from India.

Bollywood choreographer Sandip Soparrkar at the lamlighting.

Edison, NJ: Thousands cheered as the 25-ft

Ravan effigy burst into flames to celebrate the
Victory of Good over Evil. Followed spectacular
fireworks at Lake Papaianni Park concluding
the 18th Grand Dushahra Festival on October 1.
The Festival was inaugurated in the auspicious presence of Shri Devkinandan Thakurji
Maharaj, Chief Guest Bollywood choreographer
Sandip Soparrkar, Congressman Frank Pallone,
Councilman Ajay Patil, Dr. Sudhanshu Prasad,
accompanied by festival Chairperson Chanchal
Gupta, and other dignitaries and lawmakers.
The festival started with a cultural program.
The dazzling Ram Leela performance was
presented by over 85 performers of Navrang
Dance Academy with beautiful costumes and
props, and sound and light effects. The 25-ft
Ravan effigy had came all the way from India.
Vendors did brisk business. Raffle prizes
from air tickets to gold coins and flat screen
TVs were the latest addition to the event.
The New Jerseys Dushahra was started in
1999 by the Founder and Chairman, Mangal
Gupta and the festival has since grown exponentially. The sponsors included Zee TV,
&TV, Middlesex County Cultural & Heritage
Commission, New York Life, TV Asia, 8kRadioEBC, Radio Zindagi, Indus American Bank,
Air India, Suhag Jewelers, Narula insurance,
The South Asian Times, etc.
Email: dushahra.usa@gmail.com

18

October 8-14, 2016

TheSouthAsianTimes.info

ULTIMATE BOLLYWOOD

Temporary ban on Pak

artistes in India

YRF to launch 'Bekre'

trailer at Eiffel Tower

he Indian Motion Pictures

Producers' Association (IMPPA)
announced it has decided to ban
Pakistani artistes and technicians from
working in India until the hostilities
between the two countries subside.
Filmmaker Ashoke Pandit, Vice
President, IMPPA issued an official state
ment, signed by IMPPA President T.P.
Aggarwal, in this regard.
It read: "IMPPA at its Seventy Seventh
Annual General Meeting on September
29, 2016 unanimously resolved to appeal
all IMPPA members to henceforth in
future not to work with any artistes,
singers and technicians from Pakistan
until the situation of hostilities between
Pakistan and
India subsides
and the govern
ment of India
Shiv Sena workers tear a poster of Pak singer
declares that all
Rahat Fateh Ali Khan in Ahmedabad.
is well with
and Kashmir,
Navnirman Sena (MNS) gave an ultima
Pakistan and
which
killed
tum to Pakistani artistes to leave India,
o Indian TV channel can be viewed in the
India.
18
Indian
sol
and even threatened the release of films
country after October 15, the Pakistan
"The resolu
diers.
featuring Pakistani actors.
Electronic Media Regulatory Authority
tion was
Pandit
said
Among the films are Karan Johar's "Ae
(PEMRA) has said, a media report said. According to
passed by all
that
this
deci
Dil
Hai Mushkil", starring Pakistan's
The Nation, Pakistani people have demanded
members
sion
will
be
heartthrob
Fawad Khan, and Shah Rukh
action be taken against "all Indian channels".
present in one
applicable
for
Khan's
"Raees",
which will mark Mahira
According to the reports, crackdown will be
voice and all
new
projects.
He
Khan's
Bollywood
foray.
held against all cable operators in the
IMPPA members
said
the
IMPPA
will
Asked
if
IMPPA's
resolution is motivated
country in case the orders are
are hereby requested
in
no
way
impede
the
by
the
MNS
in
anyway,
Pandit said: "It has
not followed.
to refrain working with
release of any movies
nothing to do with politics. We are not
Pakistani artistes, singers or
which are slated to hit the
going to trouble any filmmaker who has
technicians till further instructions."
screens and feature Pakistani actors.
already worked with a Pakistani actor in a
The decisions have come in the wake of
This resolution is the second such direc
yet to be released film, but we are oppos
the September 18 attack in Uri, Jammu
tive after the political party Maharashtra
ing any new projects with them."

All Indian channels

banned in Pak

Fawad won't be first

guest on 'Koffee...':
Karan Johar

ilmmaker Karan Johar says Pakistani star Fawad Khan

won't be seen as the first guest on his popular chat
show "Koffee With Karan". It was speculated that
Fawad would be the first guest on the chat show. Asked
whether he will begin the show's fifth edition with the
"Khoobsurat" actor, Karan said at the 7th Jagran Film
Festival: "No. I haven't yet reached the combination. There
has been a lot of conjecture about that. We are zeroing on
episode one and will answer soon." In its past seasons, the
show has been graced by celebrities like Amitabh
Bachchan, Shah Rukh Khan, Kajol, Rani Mukerji, Kareena
Kapoor, Saif Ali Khan, Sanjay Leela Bhansali, Gurinder
Chadha, Farah Khan, Anil Kapoor and Alia Bhatt.

ollywood superstar
Salman Khan questioned
the campaign against
Pakistani actors working in
India, saying they were not ter
rorists. "They are artistes.
What do you think... Are
artistes terrorists?" Salman
asked at a press conference in
New Delhi.
"They come to India with
visa. Who gives them the visa?
Our (Indian) government gives
them visa. The government
gives them work permit,"
Salman added.

roduction banner Yash Raj Films (YRF) will

unveil the trailer of filmmaker Aditya Chopra's
upcoming movie "Befikre" at the Eiffel Tower
here. The trailer for the Ranveer Singh and Vaani
Kapoorstarrer will be launched in collaboration
with French authorities on October 10. Ranveer and
Vaani will turn up in style for this first of its kind
evening, saluting a fresh, celebratory and youthful
love story, read a statement from the banner.
"Befikre", set to release on December 9, captures the
Parisian spirit of freedom and impulsive living.

Indian designers to walk on

Eiffel Tower for rst time

he fashion industry will witness the India and

global collections for the first time rver on the
first level of the Iconic Eiffel Tower in Paris.
Called the French European Indian Fashion Week,
it is an Initiative by World News Network to be held
from October 2123. The season will showcase the
ramp walk shows for Indian designer Rocky S,
Poonam Bhagat and others. Our vision is to pro
mote, nurture and incubate emerging talents from
India that can cater to a global audience and we are
also getting designers from Italy, Paris, London,
Netherlands, Switzerland, South Africa, Zurich, India
and other countries, said French European Indian
Fashion Week President Satish Reddy.

Tiger Shroff pays tribute

to MJ in 'Munna Michael'

Are Pak
artistes
terrorists,
asks Salman

supporting terror after

Salman was accused of
istes.
his comments on Pak art
i Mushkil,
the release of Ae Dil Ha
Johar is gearing up for
.
an
Kh
which features Fawad

Ranveer Singh with Vaani Kapoor.

But the veteran actor did

not specifically question the
moves in Bollywood to ban
Pakistanis from working in
films being made in India.
Salman was in the national
capital to launch a "Being
Human" jewellery line.
Commenting on the surgical
strikes India carried out on ter
rorists across the Line of
Control, Salman said: "The ideal
situation would have been of
peace. Now when this has hap
pened, then obviously there
will be reaction to this action.

iger Shroff, who is currently shooting for

director Sabbir Khan's "Munna Michael", has
paid tribute to the late King of Pop Michael
Jackson by replicating his moves in the film. And
the first look of the movie shows the actor is trying
to give his best shot to emulate MJ.
Tiger is seen wearing a hat and striking a pose
similar to the signature Michael Jackson pose.
Three massive sets reflecting Mumbai's nightlife
were created at a studio here for
a special song, which will
feature over 400 dancers
and will be choreo
graphed by Ganesh
Acharya, read a state
ment. The special
song, which will be
incorporating moves
from some of Hollywood's
finest background
artistes, will open the
Tiger will be imitating
film. "Michael Jackson
some of MJ's most iconic
is the greatest and
.
dance moves
this entire film is ded
icated to him. It's a new journey and I hope he's
watching," Tiger said in a statement. Tiger will be
imitating some of MJ's most iconic dance moves,
including the `toestand', `crotch grab', `moonwalk',
`feet shuffle', `MJ spin', `antigravity lean',
`sideslide', 'robot' and `jacket throwback'.

TheSouthAsianTimes.info

ULTIMATE BOLLYWOOD

October 8-14, 2016

19

Hrithik controversy: Nawazuddin denies sisterin

Why daddies
law's allegations of torture
always save sons? A

Kangana was present at an event to launch

Chetan Bhagat's new novel

nown to speak her heart out,

actress Kangana Ranaut
vented her anger publicly on
the Roshans questioning that why
Hrithik Roshan's father had to
come for his rescue after issues
between her and the actor sur
faced earlier this year.
Ranaut asked indirectly "why
Indian men cannot stand up for
themselves and a father is defend
ing his son".
On being asked about Rakesh
Roshan's comment that someone
is spreading lies against them, the
"Queen" actress replied immedi
ately, "No but I want to know why

can't Indian men stand up for

themselves. He is a 43yearold
son. Why his father has to come
for his rescue always?"
"For how long they will keep
hiding behind their influential big
names of father. He is an adult and
he can pretty much handle his
own controversies in show busi
ness. It is just a simple controver
sy. Why daddies have to always
save their sons, I don't understand
this," the actress added further.
Actress Kangana Ranaut was pres
ent at an event to launch Chetan
Bhagat as new novel "One Indian
girl".

ctor Nawazuddin
Siddiqui denied
terinlaw
allegations of tor
Nawazuddins sis
tor
ture made against him
alleged that the ac
.
up
r
he
beat
and his family by his sis
terinlaw, and said that
she has done it for pub
licity as he is a "soft tar
get".
In a complaint to
Muzaffarnagar district
Superintendent of Police
(Rural) Rakesh Jolly in
Uttar Pradesh, the woman
who married Nawazuddin's
younger brother
Minauzzidin Siddiqui on
May 31, 2016, has alleged
that her inlaws have been
asking for dowry and mis
behaving with her.
She has also alleged that
Nawazuddin beat her up on
this. I'm an actor, so that could
September 28 when she was three
also be a reason for her allega
months pregnant.
tions. Had it happened with a com
In his defense, Nawazuddin pub
mon man, it would not have made
licly released a CCTV footage of
headlines."
September 28 and said that the
Explaining the footage,
real culprit behind all this is her
Nawazuddin said that his sisterin
uncle. "I am just contradicting all
law's uncle and his wife came at
the allegations that have been
his place with a "proper plan of
made against me," Nawazuddin
robbery".
said. At a press conference,
"They said that when the whole
Nawazuddin said: "I'm falsely
incident happened, the CCTV cam
charged by my sisterinlaw
era was switched off and we
because I am a soft target for her.
hit them. But thankfully CCTV
She wants to get publicity from all
camera was on. So, clearly they are

proved wrong here," Nawazuddin

said. "Secondly, they said that I hit
that woman in her stomach.
However, in the CCTV footage that
I have issued publicly on YouTube,
you can clearly see that I have not
even touched her."
"Thirdly, they said when we were
beating them, they were shouting
and all our neighbors came in.
However, again you can see that
when they robbed us and were
fleeing, except for the family
nobody else was there," he added.
He said the police is now investi
gating the whole case.

Gopichand biopic to be made in 3 languages

ational Awardwinning director

Praveen Sattaru's film on the former
Indian badminton champion Pullela
Gopichand will be made in Telugu, Hindi
and English, says a source. "The plan was
always to make the yetuntitled film in
three languages. Since Gopichand is
widely popular, the makers have

Badminton Chief national

coach Pullela Gopichand.

decided to make the film in Telugu, Hindi

and English. The preproduction work has
already started and the project will go on
the floors next year," a source from the
film's unit said. Actor Sudheer Babu, a for
mer Badminton player who had trained
under Gopichand, will play the role of his
guru on the big screen. Sattaru will com
mence work on the biopic after he com
pletes working on the yetuntitled Telugu
project with actor Rajasekhar.

Dhoni biopic chugs along touching right nerve

his biopic is far from inspi

rational. Nevertheless, it
reveals the trials and tribu
lations of the unassuming Indian
Captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni
who rose meteorically, only on
the basis of his merit.
Wellmounted with moderate
production values, the film docu
ments the cricketer's life. But the
script lacks the chutzpah of his
personality. Moving in a lacklus
ter manner on an even keel, the
narrative lacks drama.
T he film de lves on Dhoni's
child hoo d and how he got
absorbed in cricket, his struggle
in balancing his work life and

his passion, his brief romance,

his sincerity to the game and
everything he did in life. On the
cricketing front, it covers the
laidback attitude of the bureau
crats, politics of the game and
Dhoni's tenure as the captain of
the team.
With a run time of 3 hours and
10 minutes, the film is extremely
lengthy. The dialogues are bland
and the ones that strike a chord
like "We are all servants and
we all are doing national duty"
has been used as promotional
material and seems forced in the
narrative.
Sushant Singh Rajput as M.S.

Dhoni is convincing. What works

for Sushant is his nonstar per
sona, since he does not come
with the star baggage, he fits the
role perfectly.
Kiara Advani and Disha Patani
are endearing as Dhoni's love
interests, Sakshi and Priyanka.
Overall, the film is not as excit
ing as a oneday cricket match.
Instead, it is like a Test series
that definitely touches the right
nerve.

Cricketer MS Dhoni and actor

Sushant Singh Rajput
during the trailer launch of the film.

Review

20

October 8-14, 2016

TheSouthAsianTimes.info

OP-ED

'Surgical strikes' will reap Modi rich political benefits

By Amulya Ganguli
uring the Kargil conflict in
1999, India did not cross
the Line of Control (LoC). If
it has behaved dif ferently this
time, the reason is that Pakistan's
reputation has nosedived in the
last decade and a half. From
being an "international migraine",

as former US Secretary of State

Madeleine Albright called it, to a
country which keeps "snakes in
its backyard", as another
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton
said, Pakistan has been steadily
undermining its own position as a
respectable member of the world
community.
India's image, on the other
hand, has been on the rise. It is
also being widely recognized
that India has been facing a
relentless Pakistani effort to
destabilize it via the targeting
of parliament in December
2001 by jehadis to decimate
the country's top political
leadership, to a commando
style terrorist operation in
Mumbai in November 2008,
and then to the recent succes
sion of attacks on military
camps in Pathankot, Uri and
elsewhere.
Few in the world will
doubt, therefore, that
India's patience has
b e e n

exhausted. Moreover, it is being

recognised that Pakistan is keep
ing the Kashmir issue alive only
to muddy the waters considering
that Prime Minister Narendra
Modi travelled the extra mile in
search of a solution, as his flying
visit to Lahore last December
showed.
India can therefore be fairly
confident that its military
response
on
Wednesday/Thursday night to
the constant Pakistani provoca
tions will be seen as an unavoid
able riposte to a neighbour which
has been resorting to unremitting
terror for more than a decade. In
authorizing the surgical strikes
by the Indian Army on the terror
camps across the LoC, Modi can
be said to have found the answer
to eliminate the "snakes" which
Pakistan harbors in its backyard

In authorizing the surgical strikes

by the Indian Army on the terror
camps across the LoC, Narendra
Modi can be said to have found
the answer to eliminate the
"snakes" which Pakistan harbors in
its backyard for biting India.

for biting India. If the earlier

fears of a nuclear confrontation
have abated this time, the expla
nation lies in India's decision to
designate such strikes as one
t ime operat ions whenever
Pakistan carries out a terrorist
attack. Given this assurance of
restraint, Pakistan will be hard
put to try and expand the theater
of war.
At the same time, a prompt
Indian response to an act of jeha
di mayhem will carry a stamp of
legitimacy of a kind which Israeli
reactions to Palestinian terrorism
do.
But there is a difference. While
the Israeli acts unfortunately
tend to hurt civilians as well, the
precise Indian operations against
the launch pads of the Pakistani
terrorists and their backers along
the LoC will kill only the "snakes".
There is little doubt that if India
can continue to act with such pre
cision, the Pakistani backers of
the jehadis the army and the
InterServices Intelligence (ISI)
will be at a loss about the efficacy
of their next anarchic attempt like
sending fidayeens or suicide
squads into an Indian metropolis.
It goes without saying that
Modi's image will be burnished
beyond measure by his success
in finding the right answer to

Pakistani intransigence and bel

ligerence, not to mention its fool
ishness in testing the world's
patience by joining the ISIS as a
terror Frankenstein.
As for Modi, it is not only that
he will be virtually beyond chal
lenge in the political field in the
foreseeable future in the same
way that Indira Gand hi was
hailed as Goddess Durga by Atal
Behari Vajpayee after the libera
tion of Bangladesh; his decisive
ness will also be an object of
admiration.
The accolades for him will be
all the greater because, first, he
tried to reach out to Pakistani
Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif by
visit ing him at his home in
Lahore at short notice without
standing on ceremony.
And, secondly, by calling for a
"war" against poverty by both the
countries even after the Uri
tragedy. In doing so, Modi dis
played a maturity which hardlin
ers in the saf fron brotherhood
did not show because of their sole
emphasis on an outright con
frontation.
The result is Modi's emergence
as a largerthanlife figure, who
can ensure the BJP's political
hegemony over the next 1520
years as historian Ramachandra
Guha has predicted.

In din of IndoPak war drums, some real losers

By Saeed Naqvi
haila died in a Karachi hospital
on the day when the army
camp in Uri was attacked.
Threatening war drums kept her
brother, Nazim, a dear cousin of
mine, from traveling for the last
rites. That was the best he could
have done. Forbidding paper work
would have come in the way of
Shaila's burial in the family grave
yard in Mustafabad near Rae Bareli.
So she was buried in Karachi. Nazim
wept on my shoulder in New Delhi.
In Dubai, my cousin Shireen's
dilemma is of a dif ferent order.
With some ef fort, she could have
attended the funeral in Karachi. She
decided not to. Shireen lives with a
paranoia: she is averse to having
her Indian passport stamped by
Pakistani immigration. Thereby
hangs a tale.
Daughter of Left liberal author,
my uncle, Saiyyid Mohammad
Mehdi, Shireen did her Master's in
Sociology from JNU, married a
Pakistani cousin Abbas, and had a
daughter, Mariam. Given her back
ground, Shireen was obstinately
opposed to giving up her "secular"
Indian identity for a Pakistani one.

Mariam, born in India, equally stub

bornly clung on to her Indian pass
port.
These compulsions forced Abbas
to find work as a banker in neutral
territory Cayman Islands. In the
balmy weather, when Shireen was
in the family way again, she decid
ed to hop across to Florida for good
gynaecological support. Thus came
Rabab into this world, not only
pampered by the most opulent
medical facilities but also with
access to a gift from the gods an
American passport. She was born in
America.
In Herbert's great poem, T he
Pulley, God exhausts all his treas
ures on man but keeps for himself
the "Rest". This has multiple mean

ings. In other words, God's gifts will

come with "repining restlessness"
so that man does not forget Him.
Well, Shireen had her share of
God's convoluted gifts. A tall, lovely,
28yearold, on a wheelchair, immo
bile and comprehensively chal
lenged, is Rabab, carrying the
world's most priceless travel docu
ment an American passport.
For long years, Dubai has been
their chosen "neutral" territory
from where they branch out to rela
tives resident in either of the coun
tries for which their papers are
valid.
To make life easier for her
beloved Rabab, Shireen has kept an
option in New De lhi near our
daughters, her adoring nieces. The

problem is that Rabab needs a visa,

which is dif ficult to obtain when
IndoPakistan temperatures are
high. But she has an American pass
port. That does not matter. Her
father is a Pakistan citizen. Period.
But she is challenged. Doesn't mat
ter. God's other gifts to Shireen
were soon to be packaged with fur
ther complications. T he older
daughter did superbly at university
in Canada, fe ll in love with a
Haitian filmmaker with a Canadian
passport. It therefore made sense
for her to acquire a Canadian pass
port, supremely confident of her
Indian attachment. She was born in
India and if an Indian passport is
no longer her "birthright", (she
thought) at least an OCI or an
Overseas Citizen of India identity
card would be hers for the asking.
I realise more than most people
that these are abnormal times. In
fact my career as a foreign corre
spondent would have been impossi
ble without unstinted help, on a
personal basis, from friends in the
foreign of fice. Additionally, visas
for friends and relatives, on both
sides of the border, were there for
the asking. My friends were a
strand in the vast mosaic that kept

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

the nation's sanity. Thanks to them

visiting relatives from Pakistan
envied us for the friends we had.
"Bhaiyya, can we buy land here?" It
all seems so distant in time.
When some of us accompanied
the India's then External Af fairs
Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee to
Pakistan, I invited colleagues K.K.
Katyal and M.L. Kotru, among oth
ers, to visit relatives in Karachi. The
idea was to share with them the
Mohajir experience. A teenage
cousin of mine took my breath
away: "Bhaiyya, are they Hindus?"
"Yes, but why do you ask?"
"Because they look just like you."
The boot was on the other foot
those days.
My mother, an eternal optimist, a
great favorite of Shaila, Nazim,
Shireen, Abbas, indeed our entire
universe, died three years ago,
determined to believe that sooner
or later mists will lift and peace will
descend. The following couplet was
an article of faith with her:
Banda maza us milap mein hai,
Jo sulah ho jaaee, jung ho kar?
(There is great pleasure in the
togetherness
Which happens after a big quar
rel.)

21

October 8-14, 2016

DIASPORA

PBK, a memorial for those

who went abroad: Sushma

Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the inauguration of the Pravasi Bhartiya Kendra, at
Chanakyapuri, in New Delhi on October 02. Union Minister for External Affairs
Sushma Swaraj and the Ministers of State for External Affairs, General (Retd.)
V.K. Singh and M.J. Akbar are also seen. (Image: Pib.nic.in)

Sukhmani Khaira,
Neha Soudagar to

represent Australia at
worldwide pageants
New York: Twenty-three
year old Miss India Australia 2016 winner Sukhmani
Khaira from Sydney will
represent Australia in the
Miss India Worldwide grand
finale in New Jersey on October 9th competing against
30 countries.
Khaira was selected on
the basis of her overall performance at the official auditions and the talent workshops at Miss India Australia
2016 pageant. In addition to
English, Sukhmani can speak
two more languages - Punjabi and Hindi.
Sukhmani Khaira is being
sponsored and mentored
by Sydney based image
and Bollywood consultant
Raj Suri and will be exclusively represented via Raj
Suri associate talent office
in Mumbai.
Sukhmani will have the
opportunity to network with
the worldwide delegates, attend industry events, training and workshops.

Some of the Bollywood

and TV celebrities who
will be attending in the
US are: Meenakshi Shesadri prominent Bollywood
actor, Mia Sharma TV
actor, lead actor of Jamai
Raja as Roshni on ZEE TV,
Manav Gohil TV actor and
anchor,Sandeep Soparrkar
Ace dance and fashion
choreographer, Alecia Raut
prominent model and
ramp trainer and Deepak
Chopra Creative Director
of various entertainment
channels in India.
Woman of Purpose Mrs
India Worldwide Australia
2016 is 28 years old Australian Neha Soudagar of
Caulfield North, Melbourne
who will now be competing
at Mrs India Worldwide.
Woman of Purpose is a
social enterprise initiative
which empowers women
through training, workshops on self image, confidence, identity, and gender
equality in Australia.

New Delhi: After the inauguration of the Pravasi Bhartiya Kendra here, External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj on Sunday
said this centre is a memorial for
those who went abroad to earn a
living for themselves.
This is no ordinary building.
This is a memorial for our forefathers who went abroad. This
is rememberance for them, its
a proof of our tradition, said
Swaraj, thanking Prime Minister
Narendra Modi for inaugurating
the Pravasi Bhartiya Kendra.
Swaraj said the center represented the beauty and diversity
of our heritage as well as Indias
modernity.
There are many facilities in
this center for the pravasis (diaspora). They can stay in this
building as well. It incorporates
art and culture of every state of
India, she added. (IANS)

Indian-origin lawyer
in line for shadow
cabinet role in UK

London: An Indian-origin human

rights lawyer in the UK is reportedly in
line for a prominent role in Labour leader Jeremy Corbyns shadow cabinet.
Shami Chakrabarti, who recently
became a Labor member of the House
of Lords and also chaired the partys
anti-Semitism inquiry, is likely to be
appointed shadow attorney general,
The New Statesman said in a report.
Corbyn, re-elected as Labor party
leader after over- coming an attempted coup by some members of his party, is expected to unveil his shadow
cabinet by next week.
Some Labor MPs who had quit the
shadow cabinet in late June in a revolt against him are expected to return to the front benches and others

who had not previously served are also

expected to join. Baroness Chakrabarti, a leading human rights campaigner
and former director of rights body
Liberty, is expected to step into the
role which has been unfilled since
Karl Turner resigned in June.
Earlier this week, Corbyn said he
will appoint a very, very effective
front bench team within the next
fortnight to take the fight to the Conservative party.
I will be appointing ahead of the
return of Parliament [October 10]
to ensure that we have an effective
shadow cabinet. We are filling the
positions but we are not announcing
anything this week. It is all going to
come later on, Corbyn said. (PTI)

Shami Chakrabarti (Image courtesy: womensprizeforfiction.co.uk)

Will do everything to bring

back stranded
Indians in
Saudi: VK Singh
Thiruvananthapuram: Minister of state for External Affairs
VK Singh on Tuesday said that
the Centre would do everything
to get exit visas for Indian workers stranded in Saudi Arabia, who
had lost their jobs due to the economic slowdown there.
However, he said he did not
have the exact figures about how
many Indians returned to the
home country so far.
We have got around 30-40
lakh Indians working in Saudi
Arabia in various fields. There is
a problem out there in various
companies because of economic
slowdown.
And that is why certain companies have not paid their workers,
he told reporters on the sidelines
of an inspection at the regional
passport office in the city.
Stating that the construction
sector was the most affected due
to the slowdown, he said major companies, including Binladin Group, Saudi Oger and Saad
Group, where a large number of
Indians are working, were facing
problems.
For Saudi Oger group is concerned, people who wanted to
come back have already started.
Government of Saudi Arabia give
them free air passage, he said.
But in the case of Saad Group,
things are different. For exit visa,
you need NOC of the company.
And the company is refusing to
do anything. Now the matter has
been taken by the Labor ministry
of Saudi Arabia to the royal court
to decide what action can be taken on it, he said.
The minister said the workers
would start returning the moment
they begin getting the exit visas.
Stating that there are some
problems for getting exit visas for
those who work in the case of Binladin group also, he said the government was trying everything to
sort out the problem and bring
back the workers. (PTI)

22

October 8-14, 2016

Sharifs blunt message to army:

Act against militants now
Islamabad: Prime Minister Nawaz
Sharif has directed authorities to
conclude the probe into the
Pathankot attack and resume the
stalled Mumbai attacks case after
the civilian leadership warned the
military that Pakistan faces grow
ing international isolation, accord
ing to a media report.
The civilian government delivered
a blunt, orchestrated and unprece
dented warning to the military
leadership and sought consensus
on several key actions, including
action against banned militant
groups, the Dawn newspaper quot
ed unnamed individuals, who were
involved in the meetings between
the civil and military leadership, as
saying. Sharif has directed that
fresh attempts be made to conclude
the Pathankot investigation and
restart the stalled Mumbai attacks
related trials, the report said. Inter
Services Intelligence chief Lt Gen
Rizwan Akhtar and national securi
ty advisor Nasser Janjua will travel
to the four provinces with a mes
sage for provincial apex committees
and ISI sector commanders mili
taryled intelligence agencies are
not to interfere if law enforcement
acts against militant groups that
are banned or until now considered
offlimits for civilian action.

TheSouthAsianTimes.info

SUBCONTINENT

Eyewitnesses in Pak confirm surgical strikes: Report

US refrains from commenting
on surgical strikes
he US has refrained from commenting on the surgical strikes carried
out by the Indian Army on terror launch pads across the Line of
Control (LoC) in Jammu and Kashmir last week while calling for
calm and restraint. "We're not going to speak to specific reports of inci
dents along the border," Elizabeth Trudeau, Director of the US State
Department Press Office, said at the daily press briefing.
"We urge calm and restraint on both sides," she said, adding that the
Indian and Pakistani armies were in touch with each other.

Lt. Gen. Ranbir Singh addresses a press conference in New Delhi.

New Delhi: Eyewitnesses from
across the LoC have confirmed
brief but intense firing during
India's surg ical strikes of
September 29 and how the bodies
of those killed were loaded onto
trucks for secret burial, The Indian
Express reported.
According to the report, the eye
witnesses were contacted through
their kin on the Indian side and the
communication took place through
a "commercially available encrypt
ed chat system". Their accounts
corroborate what India has main
tained on the strikes which
Pakistan denies.
Not revealing the identities of

the eyewitnesses, the report said

detailed account of the strikes
came from two witnesses who vis
ited Dudhnial, a small hamlet
around four kilometers from the
Line of Control (LoC).
The eyewitnesses reported see
ing a gutted building across the Al
Haawi bridge from the hamlet's
main bazaar, where a military out
post and a compound used by the
Lashkar were both sited, said the
report.
AlHaawi bridge is reportedly the
last point where infiltrating groups
are loaded with supplies before
beginning their climb up to the
LoC towards Kupwara in Jammu

Sharif should quit, says Imran

Islamabad: Pakistani opposition leader
Imran Khan said Prime Minister Nawaz
Sharif must quit over charges of money
laundering.
The cricketerturnedpolitician justified
the Pakistan TehreekeInsaaf's (PTI) deci
sion to boycott a joint session of
Parliament to discuss the Kashmir issue.
"Nothing new will be achieved that was
not achieved with PTI's active participa
tion" earlier, Khan tweeted. "But I want to
ask how any politician with a moral com
pass can accept a PM who has been
caught money laundering in Panama
Papers. "Mian Panama Sharif has been
caught money laundering, tax evading
and hiding of assets, thereby losing all
moral legitimacy to be Prime Minister," he

Pakistan TehreekeInsaf
Chairman Imran Khan.
added. Khan said Sharif had only two
options now: either to present himself for
accountability or to resign like the Prime
Minister of Iceland did.

China again blocks bid to declare Masood Azhar terrorist

Beijing: In a move that will create ten
sions with India, China has extended its
decision to put a technical hold on the
United Nations declaring Pakistanbased
JaisheMohammed's chief Massod Azhar
a terrorist.
This extension comes on the eve of the
lapsing of its earlier decision in April to
block action against Azhar, which would
have now automatically led to Azhar,
whom India brands the mastermind
behind the Pathankot attacks, being
declared a terrorist.
An official in the Chinese government
confirmed that technical hold on declar
ing Azhar as a terrorist has been extend
ed. In April, China had blocked India's
move to label Azhar, a decision had

India brands Masood Azhar as the mas

termind behind Pathankot attacks.
angered New Delhi which has been trying
to convince Beijing to reconsider the
decision.

and Kashmir.
Eyew itnesses also said they
heard a loud explosion but did not
come out to see what was going
on. The report also said five to six
bodies were loaded on to a truck
early next morning and possibly
transported to the nearest major
Lashkar camp at Chalhana.
Another eyewitness was quoted
as saying that the Friday prayers
at a Lashkaraf filiated mosque in
Chalhana ended with a cleric vow
ing to avenge the deaths of men
killed the previous day. T he
Lashkar men also blamed the
Pakistan Army for failing to defend
the border. The report, however,
added that the number of casual
ties were lower than the figure of
3840 attributed to of ficials is

some reports.
Leepa, a complex of some 25
hamlets located at the bottom of
the Qazi Nag stream flowing down
from the mountains above
Naugam, on the Indian side of the
LoC, was among the "launchpads"
targeted in the crossLoC raids,
one eyewitness said.
T houg h the eyew itness was
unable to visit this area, he said he
spoke to villagers who had seen a
Lashkaroccupied, threestoried
wooden building destroyed by
Indian troops near the hamlet of
Khairati Bagh, the report said.
Quoting local residents, the eye
witness said "threefour" Lashkar
operatives were thought to have
been killed, while others fled into
the adjoining forests.

TheSouthAsianTimes.info

INTERNATIONAL

October 8-14, 2016

23

ExPortugal PM emerges as
frontrunner for UN chief post
Special to The South
Asian Times
United Nations: Antnio Guterres,
the former prime minister of
Portugal, has emerged as the
clear favorite to become the next
UN chief after the sixth secret bal
lot held on October 5 by the 15
member Security Council, the
most important of the world
bodys organs.
Ambassador Vitaly Churkin of
Russia, which holds the Security
Council presidency for October,
told President of the General
Assembly, Peter Thomson, that
the sixth informal straw poll for
the SecretaryGeneral position
took place earlier in the day and
Guterres emerged as the most
preferred candidate.

On October 6, UNSC met and

voted formally. The vote made it
official that the Portuguese leader
is the preferred choice of the key
UN body. The councils choice
would then be formally submitted
to the 193member Assembly for
its confirmation.
Besides Guterres, who served as
the UN High Commissioner for
Refugees from 2005 through
2015, there were a dozen other
candidates in the running to suc
ceed the current UN Secretary
General, Ban Kimoon, who leaves
office at the yearend.
The secretarygeneral, tradition
ally decided behind closed doors
by a few powerful countries, has
for the first t ime in history,
involved public discussions with
each candidate campaigning for

the worlds top diplomatic post.

The socalled informal briefings
among the candidates, UN mem
ber nations and civil society rep
resentatives began on 12 April,
when the first three candidates
presented their vision statements
and answered questions on how
they would promote sustainable
development, improve ef forts to
create peace, protect human
rights, and deal with huge human
itarian catastrophes should they
be selected to lead the organiza
tion.
In July, the UN held its first
globally televised and webcast
town hallstyle debate in the
General Assembly, where the con
firmed candidates at the time
took questions from diplomats
and the public at large.

Antnio Guterres, the former prime minister of Portugal

Philippines president threatens IS chief seriously ill after

assassin poisons' food
to 'break up' with US
Manila: Philippines President
Rodrigo Duterte said that he would
"eventually" cut ties with the United
States.
Duterte again hit out at the United
States and its President, the
European Union and the United
Nations for using human rights to
criticize his campaign to curb the
illicit drug menace in the
Philippines, Xinhua news agency
reported. "I am very emotional
because America has certainly
failed us," Duterte added.
"I will be reconfiguring my for
eign policy," Duterte said in a
speech before the Jewish
Association of the Philippines in
Makati City.
He added, "Eventually I might in
my time break up with America. I

Duterte said he has no plan to

stop his rant against his critics.
would rather go to Russia and to
China." In another speech earlier,
Duterte vowed to continue the war
on drugs amidst the "hypocrisy" of
the US, the EU and the UN.
"I will not stop despite the
hypocrisy of the EU, and America
and Obama. They seem to refuse to

understand," Duterte said.

Duterte said he has no plan to
stop his rant against his critics.
Duterte again apologized to the
Jewish community. "I am not one of
the racist member of this republic,"
Xinhua news agency quoted him as
saying. "But it was only because
that they pictured me to be killing
so many persons of the drug prob
lem. And I would say that it is true
but not all were killed with their
hands tied behind their backs. That
would have been an exaggeration,"
he explained.
On October 2, Duterte apologized
to the Jewish community who were
outraged by his comments that
made reference to Adolf Hitler who
ordered the coldblooded killings of
the Jews.

Russia delivers S-300 missile system to Syria

Moscow: A battery of Russian S300
air defense missile launchers has
been transported to Syria, Russias
Defense Ministry said in a state
ment. Its sole purpose is to defend a
Russian naval base and warships,
the ministry added.
T he information about the S
300's deployment was confirmed
by ministry spokesman Igor
Konashenkov. "Indeed, the Syrian
Arab Republic received an S300
antiaircraft missile system. This
system is designed to ensure the
safety of the naval base in (Syrian
city of) Tartus and ships located in
the coastal area (in Syria)..." he was
quoted by RT online as saying.
Konashenkov said it is unclear why

Russian defense ministry

spokesman Igor Konashenkov.
the deployment of the missile sys
tem has created such a fuss in the
West. "The S300 is a purely defen
sive system and poses no threat," he
said. He recalled that before the
deployment of S300, Russia had
delivered Fort air defense missile

systems to Syria.
T he statement comes after a
report by Fox news that a Russian
S300 was deployed to Syria. The
media cited three US officials who
claimed that Moscow "continues to
ramp up its military operations in
Syria." In November 2015, Moscow
deployed its newest S400 air
defense missile system to
Khmeimim in Syria as part of a
security boost following the down
ing of a Russian jet by Turkey near
the border with that country. At the
time, Russian President Vladimir
Putin said that the S400 systems
are not targeting Russia's partners,
"with whom we fight terrorists in
Syria together."

Baghdad: The Islamic State (IS)

terrorist group ringleader Abu
Bakr alBaghdadi was reported
ly seriously ill after having his
food poisoned by an assassin, a
media report said.
Meals prepared for Baghdadi
and three other commanders of
the terrorist organization were
allegedly poisoned in Nineveh's
Be'aaj district, the Daily Mail
reported.
It quoted an Iraqi news
agency as saying that four mili
tants, including Baghdadi, were
suf fering from "severe poison
ing" and "have been transferred
to an unknown location under
strict measures".
T he IS terror g roup has
reportedly launched a cam
paign of arrests to track down
those responsible for poisoning
the food.
The identities of the three
other commanders is unknown.
Baghdadi is credited with
transforming the breakaway al
Qaeda group and turning it into
the independent IS group that
is arguably the most powerful
and wealthiest jihadi organiza
tion in the world.
AlBaghdadi's movements are
known only by his inner circle,
and the Caliph, as he is known
to his followers, is constantly
on the move, changing loca
tions in Iraq and Syria to avoid
airstrikes.
Under the leadership of
Baghdadi, the group spearhead
ed a militant of fensive that
expanded into Syria in 2013

Baghdadi has been wounded

multiple times in air strikes.
and overran much of Iraq's
Arab heartland.
Baghdadi has been wounded
multiple times in air strikes and
been reported dead, but has re
surfaced each time.
Earlier this year, there were
reports he had been killed by
USled coalition air strikes, but
they turned out to be inaccu
rate, the Daily Mail reported.
Baghdadi whose real name
is Ibrahim Awad Ibrahim is
thought to have been born in
Samarra, north of Baghdad, in
1971.
In October 2011, the US offi
cially designated Baghdadi as
"terrorist" and of fered a $10
million reward for information
leading to his capture or death.
Under Baghdadi's leadership,
IS militants have shocked the
world w ith their sadist ic
beheadings of captured foreign
journalists and civilians.

24

October 8-14, 2016

BUSINESS

IT dept for 'strict confidentiality'

on black money scheme
New Delhi: Rebutting fraudulent
messages circulating on social
media about the issue of a list of
regionwise declarations made
under the black money scheme,
Central Board of Direct Taxes
(CBDT) said it was committed to
strict confidentiality.
"CBDT clarifies that no of ficial
list of regionwise declarations
has been issued. The Income Tax
Department is committed to
maintaining strict confidentiality
of declarations made under the
Income Declaration Scheme (IDS)
2016," a statement from the
Finance Ministry said.
The government asked people
not to pay any heed to such
fraudulent messages circulating
on social media.
While announcing the results of
the IDS at a press conference in
the national capital, Finance
Minister Arun Jaitley stressed
that no breakup of these declara
tions on the basis of cities or
states shall be released in order
to ensure absolute secrecy with
respect to the identity of the
declarants.
Unaccounted wealth worth
approximately Rs 65,250 crore
was declared by 64,275 people
under the Scheme. Given the tax
rate, penalty and surcharge of 45

Modi walks the

talk on black
money: Jaitley

Finance Minister Arun Jaitley.

per cent, this can fetch the gov
ernment a little under Rs 30,000
crore.
"Roughly, the declarations work
out to Rs one crore per declarant.
Some will be higher, some will be
lower," Jaitley said, but ruled out
any revelation of the names of
the people who have availed of
the scheme. "We won't give any
specific informat ion on tax
declarants."
"In such large numbers people
came to disclose income in eight
figures. They have realised that

New Delhi: Crediting Prime

Minister Narendra Modi with
"walking the talk" on black
money, Finance Minister Arun
Jaitley said the Income
Disclosure Scheme (IDS) 2016
had elicited "a very large
response." In a blog post titled
"The campaign against black
money", he said that Modi has
consistently taken a tough posi
tion against black money and "is
now walking the talk". The minis
ter said that investigations by
Income Tax authorities in the last
two years have resulted in detec
tion of undisclosed income of Rs
56,378 crore, while the IDS 2016
has resulted in over 64,275 peo
ple declaring undisclosed income
of over Rs 65,250 crore and final
figures are likely to be revised
upwards.
they will benefit by tax compli
ance. Considering all the steps
taken by government cumulative
ly, these are very significant
amounts," the Finance Minister
said.

TheSouthAsianTimes.info

Indian GDP growth

to remain robust at
7.6%: World Bank
Washington: The World Bank has
said India's GDP growth will
remain robust at 7.6 per cent in
2016 and 7.7 per cent in 2017.
"In India, GDP growth will
remain strong at 7.6 per cent in
2016 and 7.7 per cent in 2017,
supported by expectations of a
rebound in agriculture, civil serv
ice pay reforms supporting con
sumption, increasingly positive
contributions from exports and a
recovery of private investment in
the medium term," the multilater
al lender said in its latest report
on South Asia Economic Focus
released here on Monday.
"However, India faces the chal
lenge of further accelerating the
responsiveness of poverty reduc
tion to growth, promoting inclu
sion, and extending gains to a
broader range of human develop
ment outcomes related to health,
nutrition, education and gender,"
the report said.
According to the World Bank,
Indian economic growth remained
robust, which is expected to sup
port continued poverty reduction,
as in the past. "This year is expect
ed to see some convergence in

rural and urban economies, sup

ported by stimulating policies,
such as passage of GST (Goods
and Services Tax) and civil pay
revisions, along with good mon
soon," the report said.
The central government has set
the target of April 1, 2017, for
implementing the GST for a thor
ough overhaul of the Indian indi
rect tax regime.
"Optimism on the growth front
needs to be balanced with caution
when translating to broadbased
poverty reduction. Despite the
recent success in poverty reduc
tion, gains have been uneven, with
greater progress in states and
social groups that were already
betteroff," the report said.
"India faces the challenge of fur
ther accelerating the responsive
ness of poverty reduction to
growth, enforcing inclusion of
presently excluded groups (such
as, women and scheduled tribes),
and extending gains to a broader
range of human development out
comes related to health, nutrition,
education and gender, where the
country continues to rank poorly,"
it added.

Monetary policy panel meet debuts

with 25 basis points rate cut
Mumbai: T he Monetary Policy
Committee of the Reserve Bank of
India (RBI) cut a key lending rate by
25 basis points at the conclusion of
its first meeting over two days,
bringing much relief to commercial
banks and India Inc.
With the decision, the repurchase
rate, or the shortterm lending rate
charged by the central bank on bor
rowings by commercial banks,
stands lowered to 6.25 per cent.
The reverse repurchase rate also
automatically stands lowered to
5.75 per cent.
This was the first meeting of the
new policy panel, constituted by the
government with the primary man
date to ensure a retail inflation of 4

With the decision, the repurchase rate, or the short-term

lending rate charged by the
central bank on borrowings
by commercial banks, stands
lowered to 6.25 per cent.
The reverse repurchase rate
also automatically stands
lowered to 5.75 per cent.

India Inc. welcomed the RBI's decision and said that more than the quan
tum of the rate cut, the central bank has sent a very positive message.

per cent, plus or minus two percent

age points. T he panel said in a
statement that the decision taken
was consistent with an accommoda
tive stance, with the objective of
achieving the inflation target.
All six members of the panel,
chaired by RBI Governor Urjit Patel,

voted in favor of the monetary poli

cy decisions the minutes of which
will be released on October 18.
The markets responded to the
decision with a spike in key indices.
T he sensitive index of the BSE
which was ruling at around 28,250
points just ahead of the announce
ment, rose to around 28,380 points.
The key index eventually ended
the day's trade higher by 91.26
points, or 0.32 per cent to
28,334.55 points.
T he key policy rate was last
reduced in April. At that time the
central bank had cut its key lending
rate by 25 basis points in the first
monetary policy review during the
current fiscal.

TheSouthAsianTimes.info

SPORTS

BCCI threatens to cancel

New Zealand tour
New Delhi: The Board of Control
for Cricket in India (BCCI) reacted
dramatically to the Justice R.M.
Lodha Committee's direction to
banks to freeze its accounts,
threatening to call off the remain
ing matches of New Zealand's
ongoing tour of India. BCCI
President Anurag T hakur has
asserted that it may not be possi
ble to hold the rest of the matches
in the series, including one Test
and five oneday matches as he is
unable to withdraw any money
since the banks have frozen their
accounts completely.
"The only way the third Test in
Indore can proceed is if the players
and state association agree to par
ticipate without taking any fees,
since the BCCI is not in a position
to do financial transactions at all.
"It is shameful for Team India,
who have recently claimed the top
spot in the ICC Test rankings, and
number two in the world
Twenty20 rankings, to face this
sort of financial restraint in front

BCCI President Anurag Thakur.

of the whole world. It is shameful
that the board is being questioned
for raising players' salaries despite
their impressive performances
earning them top spot in the ICC
Test rankings," Thakur told the
media.
"The BCCI has done a lot for
Indian cricket over the years
including successfully organizing
the Indian Premier League (IPL). I
want to ask that has the BCCI not
done anything for Indian cricket in
order to bring it to the stage where
it is now?" he added.
"Cricket cannot run without

India clinch NZ
series, climb to No.1
ranking in Tests
Kolkata: Ravichandran
Ashwin and Ravindra
Jadeja spun India to an
unassailable 20 series
lead and the No.1 Test
ranking, pinning New
Zealand down in a rivet
ing seesaw af fair, to
win the second cricket
Test by 178 runs on the
fourth day here.
Chasing a stif f 376
Indian team celebrates after winning
run target, the visitors
the second Test against New Zealand
initially showed grit but
at Eden Gardens in Kolkata.
then fell to the guile of
the Indian slow bowlers
at the top order. But post lunch, in
once again similar to the first Test form Indian spinners Ashwin (382)
at Kanpur that they lost by 197 and Jadeja (341) made mischief in
runs managing a meager 197 in tandem, to peg back New Zealand to
their second outing before a 135 for three at tea. The visitors
turnout of around 12,000 specta collapsed in the last session, losing
tors at the Eden Gardens.
their remaining seven wickets for
India thus reclaimed the numero only 62 runs.
uno Test team status, which they
Mohammed Shami (346) joined
had enjoyed for a short period while India's party with his raw pace and
during their tour to the West Indies, swing to shave off the lower order.
by dethroning archrivals Pakistan. Bhuvneshwar Kumar (128) claimed
In the morning, Man of the Match the remaining wicket.
Wriddhiman Saha struck his second
Latham departed soon after tea,
unbeaten halfcentury to help India starting the slide. Ashwin's mastery
post 263. New Zealand had scored over his craft was on show as he
204 in their first essay in reply to floated an inviting delivery which
India's 316. The tourists started forced the opener to drive away
their run chase well, riding on open from his body giving a nick to wick
er Tom Latham's (74 not out; 144 etkeeper Saha. Mitchell Santner (9)
balls, 8x4), his ninth halfcentury and B.J. Watling (1) followed suit in
and contributions from Martin quick succession, Shami accounting
Guptill (24) and Henry Nicolls (24) for both.

money. We don't take money from

the government. We are not
allowed to make payments. I can't
say anything about the IndiaNew
Zealand series. We leave it to the
respect ive state asso ciat ions
whether they can host the New
Zealand matches, whether they are
ready to organize the matches
without any money."
T hakur also stated that the
Indian team may have to pull out
of the Champions Trophy to be
held in England next year if the
recommendations by the Lodha
panel are fully implemented.
According to the recommenda
tions by the Lodha Committee,
there has to be a 15day window
be fore and after the IPL. T he
Champions Trophy is scheduled
from June 118 next year while the
IPL is likely to end in the last week
of May. "We have let the
International Cricket Council (ICC)
know about India's position. Rest
is up to ICC Chairman Shashank
Manohar, Thakur said.

October 8-14, 2016

25

Sushant to watch 'M.S.

Dhoni...' with family

Actor Sushant Singh Rajput and

cricket player Mahendra Singh
Dhoni during the promotion of
film M S Dhoni in Mumbai.
Mumbai: Sushant Singh Rajput
w ill watch "M.S. Dhoni: T he
Untold Story" with his family this
week. The actor who plays Dhoni
in the film so far has stopped
them from watching the film.
"It's true I've stopped my fami
ly from watching the film. I'll go
to Delhi this week and watch it
w ith them. T hey are very
annoyed because everyone is
talking to them about 'Dhoni' and
they are yet to see it," laughs
Sushant.
Sushant's sister Mitu Singh

was a nationallevel cricketer

before she got married and opted
for domesticity and motherhood.
The actor is ecstatic about the
unstoppable success of Neeraj
Pandey's directorial. But he is
loath to take credit for the film's
success.
"Oh,it's because of Dhoni's pop
ularity and director Neeraj
Pandey's magic touch. When
emotions resonate, it's an incred
ible feeling. It is the best reward
for an actor, much more than any
box office numbers," he said.

TheSouthAsianTimes.info

October 8-14, 2016

27

LIFESTYLE

October 8-14, 2016

Eight dental fillings can

up mercury levels in blood

Indians love to travel

during festive season
-

s u r v

New Delhi: Most Indians prefer to travel

abroad during Eid, Dusshera, Christmas,
New Year or summer vacations and youngsters are now going solo to explore newer
places, a survey revealed on Tuesday.
Solo traveling is increasingly becoming
common among the Asian urban population
which prefers to take quick decisions instead
of a long pre-planned travel, said the survey
conducted by Airbnb, a web portal for travel.
When it comes to international destina-

tions, London, Paris, New York, Bangkok, Amsterdam, Dubai, Rome, Copenhagen, Bali and
Singapore are mostly preferred by Indians.
While for domestic destinations, Goa,
Mumbai, New Delhi, Pondicherry, Lonavala, Hyderabad, Kolkata and Chennai top the
chart, the survey said.
When it comes to domestic travel, Indians dont like to spend more than three
days while for international destinations,
they spend around six days, it added.

Designer gym for

children opens in Delhi

New Delh: Worried about the rising

cases of diabetes, obesity and television addiction among kids, a Delhi-based doctor
and mother has created a first-of-its-kind
designer gym for children -- Zig Zag Zoom.
The citys first gymnasium exclusively
for kids it has professionally-designed
equipment like treadmills, steppers, exercise cycles, rowers, etc. It offers an array of
activities as well as healthy snacks, and is
expected to bring a huge cheer to its target
clientele (aged between 1 and 10 years).
Drawing inspiration from the Montessori concepts, the center can be a welcome
alternative to parks in this dengue-infested

season, says Tarandeep Kaur, Director of

Zig Zag Zoom.
We have used concepts like hinge and
joint, learning numbers through abacus
and magnetic games, identifying shapes
and learning sounds, etc., Kaur said.
The idea behind this is to aid the overall
development of the child through various
activities like dance, Zumba, story-telling
sessions and science labs, she said.
We also plan to conduct workshops for
kids and parents relating to issues like anger management in kids, substance abuse,
bullying, low self-esteem, celebrating failure, she added.

New York: Tooth decay is one of the most

prevalent chronic diseases worldwide. Dental amalgam -- the fillings used for surface
restorations consisting of a mixture of
mercury, silver, tin and other metals -- may
significantly increase mercury levels in the
body, a study has found.
Dental amalgam has been the go-to dental filling material for more than 150 years,
because it is affordable and durable.
However, about half of the compound
contains mercury, a heavy metal known to
be toxic at high levels, causing brain, heart,
kidney, lung and immune system damage,
the researchers said.
If you have one dental filling, maybe its
OK. But if you have more than eight dental
fillings, the potential risk for adverse effect
is higher, said Xiaozhong John Yu, Assistant Professor at the University of Georgia.
Individuals with more than eight fillings
had about 150 per cent more mercury in
their blood than those with none.
Yu said this result suggests the human
gut microbiota -- a collection of microorganisms living in the intestines -- may
transform different forms of mercury.
Further, the study found that a significant in-

Things to keep in mind

while traveling with dogs

(Image courtesy: datemypet.com)

New Delhi: Do not feed your dog right before he sits in the car and do not drive too fast
when you are traveling with your pets, says
an expert. Swati Tondon, expert of whatspup.
in, a website providing pet supplies, services
and accessories, shared tips to keep in mind
while traveling with your four-legged friends.
Motion sickness: Like humans, dogs
too feel sick in the stomach in a moving car.
Half an hour before taking him in the car,
you should give him a medicine for motion
sickness. Consult the vet about what medicine to give. The vet will prescribe the medicine depending on the size and the weight
of your dog.
Vet alert: Our dogs mostly stay at
home and dont travel a lot. The only time

Humans need more rest for better well-being

London: What will you do to find yourself

at complete rest: Reading, being with nature,
being on your own, listening to music or doing nothing in particular? Better choose one
fast for your own well-being as you grow old.
According to the worlds largest survey of
more than 18,000 people from 134 different
countries on this topic, over two thirds (68
per cent) of the public would like more rest.
Nearly a third (32 per cent) of respondents
said they need more rest than the average

person, while 10 per cent think they need less.

The survey shows that peoples ability to
take rest, and their levels of well-being, are
related. These findings combat a common,
moralizing connection between rest and laziness, said lead researcher Felicity Callard, social scientist at Durham University in Britain.
Rest -- a much broader category than
sleep -- has physical, mental and spiritual
components, the study said.
The online survey -- rest test -- found that

crease in methyl mercury, the most toxic form

of mercury, is also related to dental fillings.
This methyl mercury may cause damage
even at low levels, the researchers warned.
In addition, the researchers also looked at
dental composite resins, a mercury-free alternative for dental fillings that can release small
amounts of bisphenol A, or BPA, which may
cause developmental or reproductive damage.
The research, which analyzed data from
nearly 15,000 individuals, was the first to control for age, education, ethnicity, race, gender,
smoking and seafood consumption -- a known
contributor to mercury levels in the body.
The results were published online in the journal Ecotoxicology and Environmental Safety.

those who felt they needed more rest

scored lower in terms of well-being.
Similarly, those who responded saying
they think they get more rest than average
or do not feel the need for more rest, had
well-being scores twice as high as those
who wanted more rest. This suggests that
the perception of rest matters, as well as
the reality, the researchers observed.
In addition, people found reading (58 per
cent), being in the natural environment (53.1

they get into the car is to go to the vet and

start associating cars with vet visits. Make
them believe that they are not going to
the vet and occasionally take them out for
drives or to parks.
Food: Do not feed the dog right before
it sits in the car. Feed him at least an hour
before traveling. Always remember to keep
the portion small. The same rule applies
for water. Do not give him too much water
right before the drive.
Walks: Before you make him sit in the
car, take him for a good walk so that he
gets tired and fall asleep in the car.
Travel bags: Make a travel bag for the pet.
The bag should contain a first aid kit, water,
treats, bowl, wet and dry tissues, potty scooper, lint roller and a seat protector for the car.
Drive: Do not drive too fast and be careful with the bumps and speed breakers.
Windows up: Even if your pet enjoys
with the windows down, do not let him
hang out as it is dangerous. The pet might
get excited and can try to jump out.
Pet breaks: If you are traveling for a
long distance take a break in every half an
hour, take your dog out of the car and make
him walk a little.
per cent), being on their own (52.1 per cent),
listening to music (40.6 per cent), doing nothing in particular (40 per cent) as the top five
most restful activities that is often done alone.
The survey was presented during BBC
Radio 4s program -- The Anatomy of Rest.

28

October 8-14, 2016

TheSouthAsianTimes.info

HUMOR

Funny Side by Nury Vittachi

10 reasons why the

death of the comma
is a disaster

O A READER named Melissa writes to say

her friend was at a talk about global
resources and someone put up a
Powerpoint slide which said:
The average North American consumes
more than 400 Africans.
She asked: Is it a badly written sentence or
cannibalism?
I hope its the first, Melissa but honestly,
these days who knows?
***
Modern writing confuses me. A while ago, I
was given an unpublished manuscript which
began:
This book is dedicated to my parents,
Mahatma Gandhi and Lady Gaga.
Surely, that cant be right?
***
A quick call to a university teacher of
English led me to a possible answer.
Punctuation misplacement is leading to
comma abandonment, said the tutor, who did

not want her name included on such a contro

versial subject as grammar.
Research shows that the majority of text
messages senders today USE NO COMMAS AT
ALL.
***
This is bad. Commas count.
Remember that news story in which the
presence/ absence of a comma in a legal
statute allowed AirAsia to win the right to
land in India?
The teacher told me about a parallel case
involving the punctuation in a UK legal
statute which led to Sir Roger Casement in
1916 going down in history as the man
hanged by a comma.
***
I started looking out for sentences with
missing commas or related construction
issues. Consider this real text message, sent
by a young person (who shall be nameless) to
his friends:

Watching a movie in which Joseph Gordon

Levitt has copious amounts of gay sex with
my parents. Awkward doesnt begin to
describe it. Awkward is right! I strongly rec
ommend turning off your minds eye before
contemplating that message.
***
The same might be said for the next example.
A colleague showed me a Sky News screen
shot from December 10, 2013:
Top Stories: World leaders at Mandela trib
ute, ObamaCastro handshake and samesex
marriage date set.
In this case, the missing comma made a
short list of boring news stories into a pair of
items, the second of which was on the surpris
ing side, to say the least.
***
Comma abandonment is spreading to the
printed media as well.
In one of the celebrity gossip magazines, a
caption about the actors Josh Hutcherson and
Heath Ledger said:
Hutcherson has a new house as well as a

new nose which used to be owned by Ledger.

You can immediately see what is wrong
with that sentence. Yep, Michael Jackson is
missing.
***
A reader tells me of a store where bosses
decided they would offer no public toilet facil
ities except for emergency use by needy peo
ple, such as youngsters and the elderly.
The sign they put up said:
ATTENTION:
TOILET ONLY FOR
ELDERLY
DISABLED
PREGNANT
CHILDREN
Technically speaking, no one in the world
qualifies to use that toilet.
***
In my neighborhood, a shop called Hang
Ten (a surfing term which means hanging on
by your toes) gave birth to a new branch for
children, which they called Hang Ten Kids.
Not nice.
***

Laughter is the Best Medicine

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

5168271010

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

TheSouthAsianTimes.info

ASTROLOGY

October 8-14, 2016

29

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

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

By Dr Prem Kumar Sharma

OCTOBER 814, 2016

ARIES: Promotions and monetary bene
fits for dedicated professionals. You are
likely to plan a short trip with family. A
new source of income will generate through
influential contacts. Love life brings immense
romantic pleasure. Creative hobbies are likely
to keep you relaxed. Time to relax and enjoy
your visit to a relatives place. Lifestyle home is
what you are looking for? You need to be very
cautious with whatever you do or say this
week.
TAURUS: Pending proposals will get
implemented with the help of seniors.
Unexpected visit by old friend could
give you a pleasant surprise. Investment made
this week would enhance prosperity and finan
cial security.
Traveling proves a blessing in disguise by
bringing a love in your life. With a positive
outlook & confidence, you succeed in impress
ing people around you. Journey to some
famous historical place sounds exciting to
your kids. Deals on commercial property can
tend to be at full boom. If possible, help
whosoever comes to you this week.
GEMINI: Good week for implementing
new plans and ventures. Good advice
from family members will he lp in
reducing mental tension/pressure. An
improvement in financial position would
enable to make important purchases. You are
likely to get a new friendship opportunity in
the evening. Mental alertness would enable to
solve a tricky problem. Romance is in full
bloom, a journey full of pleasure is your crave.
Investing residentially is one thing you can
rely on. Chances of the people who havent
been on goo d terms w ith you w ill see k
company.

CANCER: Subordinates/coworkers
would be very helpful. Sudden good
news in the evening will bring cheers
for the entire family. You are likely to earn
monetary profits through most unexpected
sources. New romance that some of you are
going to experience would take the worries off
mind. A cheerful state of mind brings mental
peace. Its time to travel with innovative imagi
nation. Investment on overseas property has
to be considered seriously. this weeks success
mantra: dont make commitments unless sure
to honour them.
LEO: Traveling brings new overseas
business opportunities. Your ef forts
bring success & happiness at family
front. A sudden inflow of funds will take care
of your bills and immediate expenses. You
enjoy a memorable time with partner to
cement the lovely bond. Good time to divert
attention to spirituality to enhance mental
toughness.
Are you longing to go on a vacation then be
ready for it? Time to spend money on your
homely accommodations. If possible avoid dis
appointment on failures.
VIRGO: Auspicious week to start a new
venture. You achieve success in person
al work with the timely help & support
provided by family members. Monetary posi
tion is likely to improve on recovering of
delayed payments. You will be attracted to
someone special.
A pleasure trip gives the muchneeded tonic to
health. Be ready to hang out with your friends.
A good week to make some investment on
kitchen items.
You need to follow others guidance carefully
to your benefit.

LIBRA: Professional attitude at work

brings success. Misunderstandings
with near ones in the family will get
cleared. Investment in antiques & jewelry
brings monetary gains and improvement in
financial position. Warm romantic thoughts
occupy mind.
Cutting down the number of parties and
pleasure jaunts would help in keeping in
good mood. By traveling you will learn about
new places, ultimately its a great deal for
yourself. You might be purchasing a refriger
ator or any other gadget for your house.
Make sure you dont allow materialistic needs
to ruin happiness.
SCORPIO: Seniors colleagues are like
ly to lend a helping hand. Children
would do their best to keep you happy.
Long pending arrears and dues will finally be
recovered. Your charm & generosity bring
new romantic opportunities for you. A bene
ficial week to work on things that will
improve your health. Pack your bags and
some eatables and go out for a picnic.
Purchasing of electrical appliances can be
done. Avoid allowing critical people to influ
ence you.
SAGITTARIUS: Hard work & dedica
tion would win the trust of seniors at
work. You are likely to be benefited
as family members positively respond. this
week investment concerning residence will
be profitable.
Love life brightens your week. Your confi
dence and energy will be high this week.
Many people want to fly international and
you are one of them. A good deal for residen
tial property is ahead. Time to forget past to
brace up for new challenges.

CAPRICORN: Mental clarity would

remove past business confusions.
Parents and friends will do their best to
keep you happy. Financial hassles seem to get
over as someone lends a timely helping hand.
Your wit & charm would help in catching the
attention of opposite sex. A week when smile will
perpetually be on your face and strangers will
seem familiar. By traveling youll learn about
new places and cultures, which is ultimately a
great deal about yourself. Time to make invest
ments on farmlands. You must test your hopes
and take realistic steps to realise them.
AQUARIUS: Travel undertaken for
establishing new contacts and business
expansion will be very fruitful. A prom
ising week to plan things for your progeny.
Promising week to invest surplus money in real
estate. Love partner would be extremely sup
portive and in a loving mood. Your energy level
will be high. Better to channelise it in a positive
direction. You and your loved ones been busy
for quite sometimes and have finally decided to
go on a vacation. Your investment plans are at
full boom and you might succeed in them. You
find time for socializing and following up with
things that you love doing the most.
PISCES: Your artistic & creative ability
would attract a lot of appreciation. You
would be the center of attraction at a
social gathering that you attend especially with
family. A sound financial health would enable to
invest on lucrative schemes. A romantic week as
you receive all praises from partner. Positive
outlook impresses those around you besides
keeping you fit & fine. Your next journey is to a
place which is full of natural beauty and ravish
ing. Your girlfriends desire for an apartment
might lead to its destination.

ANNUAL PREDICTIONS: FOR THOSE BORN IN THIS WEEK

8th October, 2016
Ruled planet: Saturn Ruled by no: 8
Traits in you: Your ruling planet Saturn makes you hum
ble, honest, focused, practical, realistic and enthusiastic.
You are blessed with enormous talent & imagination.
Along with the positive characters in you, there are some
negative aspects in your nature. You need to work on
your nature of being envious, unreliable, and indiscipline.
Health this year: You will enjoy a normal health this
year. Though you will not have any major health issues,
you need to take proper medication. You may practice
yoga and meditation for better results.
Finance this year: You may try your entrepreneurship
skills this year and you will be successful unexpectedly.
You will be able to get many projects, which you help
you establish as a good businessperson. You should go
for investments in real estate and stock market.
Career this year: You may get the chance to complete all
your previous assignments and this will enhance your
respect as a brilliant performer in your professional cir
cuit. If you are into a profession that demands creativity,
then you will be very successful this year as far as your
career is concerned.
Romance this year: Your relationship with your spouse
or partner will blossom this year. If you are not married,
you may have to wait for few more years though you are
eligible for marriage.
9th October, 2016
Ruled planet: Mars Ruled by no: 9
Traits in you: Being influenced by Mars, you are
believed to be the master of a charismatic personality.
You are courteous, courageous, energetic, realistic, mod
est, and responsive. You follow religion very keenly.
However, you have few problems in your attitude and
that needs to be worked on for the betterment of your
individuality.
Health this year: As far as your health is concerned this
year, you may not remain healthy throughout the year.
There will be few hiccups in your health as you may suf
fer from many minor diseases. If you want to stay
healthy, you should go for proper medication and a
healthy diet plan. You have to leave consuming alcohol
and smoking cigarettes.
Finance this year: Your financial condition will be pretty
good as the movements of your stars are favorable for
making money this year. You may go for any investment
on real estate or gold. Do not trust anyone when part
nerships are concerned. You should not lend or borrow
money as it will create disputes.
Career this year: If you are a working professional, you
may face various profession related problems this year.
You need to handle all the issues diplomatically else you

may lose your job. You may create wonder in the cre
ativity field if you are a writer, singer or actor.
Romance this year: Your plans to go for holidays with
your partner may not work because of huge work pres
sure and this may create disturbance in your marital life.
You need to take care of the emotional requirements of
your partner to lead a peaceful life this year.
10th October, 2016
Ruled planet: Sun Ruled by no: 1
Traits in you: Due to the positive effects of your ruling
planet Sun, you will have the characteristics of a good
human being. By nature, you are accountable, unique,
courageous, committed, competitive, coordinated and
intelligent. You should work on your negative personali
ty traits such as selfishness, dependency and pessimism.
Health this year: You need to take an appropriate care
of your health. You may fall sick in the middle months of
the year though those will not be serious. If you are a
sportsperson, you need to be very careful for your diet
and nutrition to perform better in your sporting events.
Finance this year: You may get benefits from your
investments 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. However, you should veri
fy the financial background of your partner for your
financial security.
Career this year: The nature of your professional work
will allow you find many new job opportunities with
high salaries. You should take up a new job to flourish in
your career. You will gain required expertise in your
profession and perform better than ever.
Romance this year: You will spend a peaceful life with your
love interest this year. You will lead a blissful life with your
beloved with lots of love, care, concern, & support.
11th October, 2016
Ruled planet: Moon Ruled by no: 2
Traits in you: Your ruler, the Moon makes you a very
friendly individual. You are simple, confident, realistic,
sincere, and optimistic. You are very innovative and try
to perform your work in a different and efficient way.
You need to work hard on your characteristics of being
jealous and insensitive at times.
Health this year: Your health will remain fine. However,
you may suffer from various minor diseases say cough,
cold, body pain, loss of sleep and so on. To enjoy a very
healthy life, you need to get a good control on your diet.
You have to stay away from alcohol and cigarettes to
avoid any organ dysfunction.
Finance this year: Your past investments may yield a lot
of money for you this year. You need to be extra cau
tions while investing huge amounts as it is a bit risky to

put money on unpredictable things. Overall, you will

enjoy a strong financial condition.
Career this year: You will be successful professionally
this year. You will be additional responsibility and you
will well execute them to perfection. Your success may
get you various awards and rewards as well. You may
share your ideas with the higher management as it
would help you grow quickly.
Romance this year: If you are yet to be in a relationship,
this year is the ideal time to find a partner. You will get
ample support from your spouse in any critical decision
you have to take. You should show your love to your
partner as it strengthens your relationship.
12th October, 2016
Ruled planet: Jupiter Ruled by no: 3
Traits in you: Being ruled by Jupiter, you are courteous,
courageous, decisive, ambitious, disciplined, and realis
tic. You are gifted with high imagination power, opti
mism, and enthusiasm. However, behaving restless and
dominating may hamper your characteristics at times.
You need to work on your personality to make yourself
better as an individual.
Health this year: Your health will remain good through
out the year. You need to take utmost care of your
health to maintain it and remain fit. The health of your
family members might be a concern for you this year.
Try and avoid your bad habits and start practicing yoga
for the betterment of your health.
Finance this year: Monetary benefits will be tough to
achieve this year. You may not get expected financial
support from your family. Your past investments will not
work this year as expected. However, you may go for
new short term investments, which will gain you enough
money. If you are planning to set up a business, it is
advisable not to go for any partnerships.
Career this year: You will be highly appreciated by your
employer for your excellent performance. With the
increased workload, you may also be of fered an
increased salary. You should learn to handle pressure
situations from your seniors. You may go for a job
change later this year.
Romance this year: Your romantic life will become stag
nant this year as you may not give enough time to your
beloved. If you are unmarried and planning to marry
this year, it may not happen because of the negative
movements of your stars and planets.
13th October, 2016
Ruled planet: Uranus Ruled by no: 4
Traits in you: Uranus, being your dominating planet
helps you become dynamic and creative. You are posi
tive, realistic, responsive, and sincere. You need to work
and overcome the weaknesses in your personality to

attract more people towards you.

Health this year: Your health would remain very good
this year. However, you need to go for regular yoga exer
cises. You should not ignore your healthy diet plan to
remain in shape. Go for regular medical checkups to
avoid any hiccups further.
Finance this year: You may go for a property transaction
this year and this will bring you a lot of money. You need
to be decisive to invest on real estate or gold as there are
risks involved. Do not trust any of your new partners as
they may cheat you. You may spend enough money on
buying a vehicle or renovating your property.
Career this year: Being a hardworking professional, you
may create wonders for your organization. You need to
learn more and look for better options. You may not get
your expected promotion or salary hike in spite of your
hard work and efficiency.
Romance this year: If you are yet to be in a relationship,
this year is the ideal time to find a partner. You will get
ample support from your spouse in any critical decision
you have to take. You should show your love to your
partner as it strengthens your relationship.
14th October, 2016
Ruled planet: Mercury Ruled by no: 5
Traits in you: Your ruling planet Mercury makes you
realistic, reliable, sincere, and optimistic. You are the
master of an excellent memory power and charismatic
characteristics. You need not get nervous at tough time
as it may create a question mark on your capabilities.
Health this year: You need to stop your bad habits such
as smoking and consuming alcohol to remain healthy.
You should take expert advice from a doctor to avoid
health related issues. You should take your medicines at
time to avoid further complicacy in your health. Take
care of the health of your spouse and parents as well.
Finance this year: You will earn a lot of money from your
past investment this year. However, you should invest
your money after going through the market thoroughly.
Do not lend or money this year. You may spend a lot of
money on buying comfort and luxury for your family
members.
Career this year: This year you will reach to the peak of
your professional career and it will offer you huge finan
cial benefits. This year will be pretty rewarding for
female employees. You may get a better performance
appraisal as well as salary hike as compared to your
expectations.
Romance this year: For your marital relationship, this
year will be pretty fruitful for you. If you are still single,
you may get into a romantic alliance towards the end of
the year. If you are already in a relationship, you may
plan to convert your relationship into marriage.

30

October 8-14, 2016

SPIRITUAL AWARENESS

TheSouthAsianTimes.info

Concluding part of the discourse 'Don't stop until the goal is reached'

The gift of initiation

from the Masters
By Sant Rajinder Singh
Ji Maharaj

he language of love of which

Sant Darshan Sing h Ji
speaks in this verse is
unspoken and unwritten. It is not
something that can be adequately
described. It can only be experi
enced. How can one describe what
it is like to eat chocolate? We can
use the word sweet for it, but one
can only know it when one tastes
the cho colate for ones se lf.
Similarly, love has to be experi
enced, not described. People have
tried to describe it, but those who
have experienced it readily admit
that words and language do not
do justice to it. They are only pale
comparisons. Similarly, tasting
divine love defies any words. It is
an experience far greater than
worldly love. Hazur did not have
to teach this experience by words
or language. By giving people a
contact w ith this divine love
through his eyes, through his
radiation, and through contact
with the inner Light and Sound,
they were able to learn the divine
language. T hat language is of
godly love.
Why be content with the fleet
ing happiness of this world, when
we can bask in the ecstasy of
divine love of God within? Let us
not stop, but keep moving until
we merge with the source of bliss
itself.
Another verse by Sant Darshan
Singh Ji Maharaj says:
By setting an example of ideal
and simple life,
You have lifted the veils of illu
sion from the face of the earth.
Sant Darshan Singh Ji is describ

ing how Hazur showed us how we

should lead an ideal life. Masters
do not so much teach by preach
ing, but by leading an ideal life
themselves so we can learn from
their example. Hazur lived and
breathed spirituality in everything
he did. He was a devoted disciple
of his own Master, Baba Jaimal
Singh Ji Maharaj. Hazur spent
time in meditation and selfless
service. His whole life was devoted
to the service of God and his fel
low human beings. He was the
embodiment of all the divine
virtues. He practiced nonviolence,
truthfulness, chastity, humility,
love for all, and selfless service.
He spent time in the practice of
bhajan, or meditation on the inner
Sound, and simran, or meditation
on the inner Light.
By the example of Hazurs life,
many were inspired to lead such a
life. His divine virtues radiated to
others, filling others with peace
and upliftment. When we come in
contact with a person who makes
us feel a sense of love and peace,
we often ask what it is they have
that enables them to do so. We
see how they live, and we are
inspired to lead such a pure and
devoted life ourselves. Through
Hazur, about a hundred and twen
tyfive thousand people took initi
ation into Naam. T his contact
helps lift the veil of illusion. Our
eyes, which were blind to the
inner Light, can finally see. Our
ears, which were previously deaf
to the Celestial Melodies within,
can finally hear. This is the great
ness of a living Master.
If we are seekers or we are
already initiated, we do not want
to stop at being complacent at our
current rate of progress. We want
to perfect our meditation and our
ethical life, so we can experience
the ultimate goal of union of our

By Sant Rajinder Singh

Ji Maharaj

e often fall
into
the
habit of misjudg
ing others. We
can be quick to criticize or pass
judgment without knowing the
background of a persons life or
situation. It is remarkable how
wrong we can be.
When we do not know why peo
ple act as they do, we jump to con
clusions. Someone might even be
trying to help us or make things

soul with God.

Another verse of Sant Darshan
Singh Ji Maharaj says:
Your intoxicated eyes are over
flowing cups of divine Wine.
You have set aplunder the treas
ures of spirituality through Your
enlivening glances.
It is amazing how the verses
written to describe saints and
Masters from all ages use similar
descriptions. Those who received
the glances of Hazur experienced
them as overflow ing cups of
divine Wine. What is that divine
Wine? It is the wine of Gods love.
It is the ecstasy and bliss of godly
love pouring through those eyes.
T hose who experience such a
g lance are capt ivated and
entranced.
They can go on looking at those
eyes for hours and hours without
end and never tire. Others may
wonder how people go on staring
at the Master for hours, transfixed
as if they were statues. But those
glances have caused the souls of
those disciples to be transported
to realms within. In such a state,
how could one even move ones
body? One is above bodycon
sciousness at suchlike moments.
Thus, the soul has been absorbed
deeply into the intoxication they
experienced from the glance. They
may look like frozen statues to
others, but their soul is very much
alive and dancing in the intoxica
tion of such a glance.
Through those glances, millions
can receive divine intoxication.
Thus, one finds an entire assem
bly captivated by those glances. It
is such a blessing to receive the
glance of a Master. We should
cherish and treasure every
moment in which we can bathe in
his glances. That is why we see
people standing for hours, waiting
for even one passing glance as the

By setting an example of ideal and simple life,

You have lifted the veils of illusion from the face of the earth.
Sant Darshan Singh Ji Maharaj says in honor of his Master
Hazur Baba Sawan Singh Ji Maharaj
Master arrives or leaves, or trav
els from one place to another.
That is why few want to leave the
Masters presence. T heir soul
knows that it has a chance to be
uplifted and lost in that bliss, and
does not want to pass up that
opportunity. It knows that those
glances bring some of the greatest
and most intoxicating moments
one can have in life. T hrough
those glances, every soul in cre
ation can receive upliftment.
The next two lines of verse by
Sant Darshan Singh Ji Maharaj
conclude with:
It is our good fortune that in
this ephemeral existence you have
initiated us into the mysteries of
eternal life.
It is the wonder of your everlast
ing grace, O Master Divine, that

you have brought about commun

ion between the soul and its
Creator.
Sant Darshan Singh Ji is con
cluding with the gratitude he feels
for the gift of initiation Hazur has
given to him. He recognizes that
through that gift of initiation,
Hazur has enabled the soul to
attain communion with God.
This is a gift that all perfect
Masters give. Through their grace,
each can receive the gift of initia
tion and make contact with the
Light and Sound of God, so our
soul can journey back to its true
Home and reunite with God.
Let us be thankful that Hazur
opened the spiritual floodgates
making it possible for all of us to
have access to the gift of Naam,
the Light and Sound of God.

JUMPING TO CONCLUSIONS

better, yet instead of taking the

time to ask why something is
being done, we berate them.
As we go about our work, we
need to think twice before we crit
icize or pass judgment on some
one. When we dont know the
whole storythe motives or rea
sons a person has for doing some
thingit is better to take a few
minutes to stop and ask about it.
Many times, we will find that the
person is trying to do something

helpful. We can be so wrapped up

in our own lives that we do not
take the time to find out more.
When a person criticizes some
one, others tend to jump on the
bandwagon to join in. Yet they do
not know the situation either, and
soon many are spreading false
information.
It is better to resolve a problem
right away, learn the situation,
and fix it before it escalates into
something bigger and worse than

what it started out to be.

We need to refrain from judging
others. If we get caught up in
doing this, then we have filled our
minds with thoughts that are not
true and that take us away from
our own inner peace. Whatever
we do comes back to us, so we
risk reaping the fruits of our
thoug hts, words, and deeds,
whether positive or negative.
When we criticize others, we are
bound to get the fruit of our

actions, for we have hurt them by

our words.
To keep peace of mind in our
daily life and to meditate with a
calm mind, it is bene ficial to
develop the habit of not jumping
to conclusions lest we misjudge
others. Instead, let us be loving
and caring and find out what the
persons real story is. This will
contribute to our own inner peace
and spread out to our environ
ment and the world.

TheSouthAsianTimes.info

October 8-14, 2016