Asian Voice

SEE INSIDE ....

Reprieve for Rajiv Gandhi killers, hanging stayed

For reports see pages 24

VOL 40. ISSUE 18

FIRST & FOREMOST ASIAN WEEKLY IN EUROPE

VOICE

Let noble thoughts come to us from every side

80p

SEE INSIDE ....

Haren Pandya case: HC drops murder charges against 12 accused

For reports see pages 26

3rd September to 9th September 2011

Govt bows, Anna Hazare wins Parliament passes resolution on strong, independent Lokpal Bill

History was made on last Saturday when both the Houses of Indian parliament bowed to Anna Hazare’s campaign, powered by a groundswell of popular support, for a strong and independent Lokpal.

The Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha unanimously resolved that the Standing Committee would consider Anna’s three demands – including the lower bureaucracy in the Lokpal’s purview, a central law for creating Lok Ayuktas in states and a citizen’s charter for government departments provid-

Anna Hazare breaks his fast at the Ram Lila grounds on Sunday

ing public service. This finally paved the way for Anna’s 12-day fast to end.

Having made the monumental blunder of arrest-

ing Anna Hazare and his aides for wishing to undertake a protest fast on corruption, the government has been made to eat hum-

ble pie. This is the first instance of Parliament explicitly agreeing to accommodate demands raised by an 'outsider', that too when the official bill had already been moved. A jubilant Anna Hazare responded to Parliament’s endorsement of his demands by announcing that he will call off his fast.

His aides promptly called upon the people to flock to Ramlila Maidan to participate in this victory of popular will. Team Anna members announced that the government was going back on its word.

Continued on page 26

BJP demands removal of Gujarat governor over Lokayukta appointment Senior BJP leader LK Advani on Tuesday led party MPs from Gujarat protesting outside Parliament House against the appointment of Lokayukta in the state by the governor without consulting the Narendra Modi government and demanded her removal for "bypassing" established norms.

Advani, Haren Pathak

Kamla Beniwal & Modi

and around 15 other BJP MPs from Gujarat protested at the Gandhi statue in Parliament.....

Continued on page 26

Free servicing until 2014 on selected Approved Used C-Class models*.

08000 910 695 or visit our showroom.

Mercedes-Benz Retail Used Cars

"

'

!

' #

!

# %

' " #

'

" #

'

" #

$

"

'

" #

!

' !

&

'

#

! " "

www.mercedes-benzretailusedcars.co.uk

# #

.# 1' ! ' *% ! + ), ' .# .

! + *.# !

0/' 1#

.! &# " 0( # "

.# 1' ! # .

7 #

, , ( ' # . /+

( (

# ! # " # . # *5

(

..

)+ " # (

. ( + + *

*"

# ./ /#

1# &' ! ( # . + *( 4

/& / & 1#

#

! &# "

)' *' ) 0)

"

4 . + ( "

$+ ) /&#

"

/#

+ $ 6 ./ # %' ./ /' + *

/ /&#

, + ' */ + $ . ( # + " #

.+ ( " # $+ #

' "

4

/& # , /# ) #

' *! ( 0.'

1#

*"

" # ( ' 1# # " 4

' "

4

/& ! /+#

+

!

.& +

1# &' ! ( #

" ' .! + 0*/

( /# * /' 1#

' .

1 ' ( ( #

7 #

' . ( ' )' /# "

/+

+ *#

! + */ ! / , #

1# &' ! ( #

" # ' 1 /' 1# .

*"

( (

! + 0, #

)+ " # ( .

#

# 3! ( 0" # "

$+ ) /&#

+ 7 #

# ) .

*"

! + *" ' /' + *.

, , ( 4

' ! /0#

$+

' ( ( 0./ /' + * , 0, + .# . + *( 4

( ( . ) 4 #

# ! + " # "

# %' ./# # "

+ 8

! #

# ! # " # . # *5 # / ' (

+ 0,

/"

+ *%2# ( (

' ( /+ * # 4 *# .

UK

2

Asian Voice - Saturday 3rd September 2011

one to one Keith Vaz MP with Raj Patel Academic, journalist, activist and writer

2) What are your proudest achievements?

Like many working for social justice, I'm still waiting for them.

3) Please tell us about your most recent book?

6) What is the biggest issue of today, in your opinion?

I wrote The Value of Nothing as a guide for people wondering why the economy had crashed, but also what might have been done to prevent the recession, and what might be done differently in the

future. So the book is a survey of modern economics, answering the question "why do things cost what they do?." But it's also a story about the practical ideas that people have to value the world,

Worldwide Financial Impact of Diabetes Roanne Denton

taking tablets to control their blood sugar was Rs 15,550 (£205).

This included the cost of medication and laboratory tests. For those with hypertension or high cholesterol, the annual expenditure was increased by at least Rs 2,000 (£27).

Putting these figures in perspective, this could be up to 34% of a low income family’s earnings.

Undiagnosed or poorly treated diabetes adds to the financial cost and the impact on people’s quality of life. There are an estimated 1 million people in the UK with diabetes that do not yet know it, and diagnosis and continuing care are vital in every country. Silver Star is a local charity with bases in London, Leicester, Manchester and Goa (India), devoted to testing for diabetes and raising diabetes awareness. In the year 2010, Silver Star in

E

LAW

7) What are your long term goals?

To be the kind of parent

8) If you were Prime Minister, what one thing would you change?

I'd banish the idea that there's just one thing that needs to change in order for the world to be better. The problems we face - from climate change to hunger to violence - have many causes. No one policy will make them better. That said, The City and Wall Street are certainly making things worse.

9) If you were marooned on a desert island, which historical figures would you like to spend your time with and why?

I'd want to spend time with Toussaint L'Ouvterture and the Rani of Jhansi, to learn the truth behind legends of how to organize change. And I'd want to spend time Albert Einstein.

If you're trapped on a desert island, why not learn something new? I've always been interested in physics, but never had the chance to grapple with it. Plus, inescapably clever as he was, Einstein understood issues of social justice.

He was, after all, a socialist.

India’s independence celebrated in Luton

Gavin Shuker MP, Cllr Richard Stay with others at Annand Luncheon club celebration

Celebrating India’s independence day thousands of miles away but the spirit was fully present in Luton as the Annand Luncheon club celebrated India’s Independence Day on Monday. Members enjoyed an afternoon ull of music, dancing, authentic Indian food at the Beech Hill Conservative Club in Leagrave Road.

They were joined by

Gavin Shuker MP, Council leader Hazel Simpsons and Cllr Richard Stay.

Founder and Coordinator Nishi Vyas said: “The event was very successful.”

The Community Function Hall was packed with guests celebrating not just India’s independence day but also the success of the Luncheon club.

SOC IE

Contact Mr. Mitesh Patel, Solicitor No Win No Fee

Goa tested 3574 people for diabetes, and 342 of these had a high blood sugar reading, this is 9.6%. The Silver Star team in Goa have a qualified doctor and nurse present to give healthcare advice to anyone who is found to have diabetes. They run a Mobile Diabetes Unit (MDU), which can visit your organisation or place of work. For more information contact Silver Star on 0845 094 9933 or email health@silverstaruk.org.

Particularly in light of recent events in the UK, I'm very concerned that we lack the political vision to imagine a world that's substantially different from the one we're in: a world where we address climate change, inequality, injustice, where we take inter-generational responsibilities seriously, and in which we can look our children in the eye and tell them that we acted in pursuit of their survival, rather than in defence of our comforts.

and educator who makes some headway in meeting the challenges of injustice.

0800 118899 Email: mpatel@levenes.co.uk Website: www.levenes.co.uk Ashley House, 235-239 High Road, Wood Green, London N22 8HF

TY

TH

The NHS spends £1 million an hour treating diabetes and diabetes related conditions, this is £9 billion a year – lucky for the 2.5 million diabetics in the UK that this expense is borne by the NHS, and that healthcare is so readily available - diabetics in some other countries are not quite as fortunate.

In the USA 25.8 million people (8.3% of the population) have diabetes; medical insurance for a diabetic can cost $120 per month, and some insurers may refuse to insure people with a pre-existing medical condition. On top of this, diabetic medications and testing supplies can cost $78 - $150 per month, depending on your insurance. Blood tests every 3 months cost around $100, and doctors’ visits are around $25 each.

For those without

medical insurance, and those who have developed complications due to diabetes, such as heart problems or high cholesterol, the healthcare costs increase significantly. The total cost of diagnosed diabetes in 2007 in the USA was $174 billion, including direct medical costs and indirect costs such as disability and premature death.

Another country with a high diabetic population is India – estimated at 50.8 million people with diabetes. Patients may only have access to a family physician, and these may be trained in the allopathic branch of medicine, or in traditional braches, Ayurveda or homeopathy for example.

A study from MV Hospital for Diabetes in Royapuram which began in September 2009 found that the average annual expenditure of diabetics

I'm still trying to figure out what my career is. As best I can tell, I'm an irritant to powerful people, a student and, occasionally, an educator.

My teachers, and there have been thousands of them.

had money and she did not. I haven't stopped asking those questions. I have found no good answers.

I was around five years old visiting India, when a young girl - she can't have been more that 12 years old - started knocking on the window of our car, asking for money. I began to wail, asking my parents why she was outside the car, and why we were inside, and why we

4) What has been the biggest obstacle in your career?

5) Who has been the biggest influence on your career to date?

Raj Patel is an award winning writer, academic and activist. Educated at Oxford University, the London School of Economics and Cornell University,he is now both a Visiting Scholar at UC Berkeley's Center for African Studies, and an Honorary Research Fellow at the University of KwaZulu-Natal, in Durban, South Africa. He is the author of the internationally acclaimed Stuffed and Starved: The Hidden Battle for the World Food System, and the New York Times and international bestseller, The Value of Nothing. He has also co-authored Food Rebellions, and co-edited Promised Lan. His work on sustainability, food, and economics has been translated into over a dozen languages. He has also published widely in the academic press, with articles in peer-reviewed philosophy, politics, sociology and economics journals. He is an advisor to the United Nations Special Rapporteur on the Right to Food, a regular contributor to the BBC, NPR, CBC, DemocracyNow!, Al Jazeera, and the Guardian.

1) What inspired you to begin working in social justice?

and ourselves, differently.

Personal Injury

SOLICITORS

Asian Voice - Saturday 3rd September 2011

COMMENT

Peaceful revolution: Anna Hazare and India made their point Social activist Anna Hazare and his supporters and the Indian public have done their country a service by bringing to the fore the endemic graft and corruption that sullies public life. Soothing bromides and pieties have been followed with more of the same in a meaningless ritual that has deepened the people's cynicism about government and politics. Faith in the political process and the nation's institutions have been badly eroded, which doesn't augur well for the future of Indian democracy. Just how valuable democratic culture can be was brought home by the determined action of Mr Hazare, who took full advantage of its norms to issue a call to the nation to join him in making a stand against a debilitating scourge. It was a sign of the widespread if dormant concern of the citizenry that they broke their silence, that grumbles of dissatisfaction became rumbles and roars of disapproval. Soon the Indian wave grew in volume till its collective sound exceeded the noise generated by the better known Mexican wave.

India did not come to a halt. The wheels of commerce and industry kept moving, schools and colleges functioned normally, trains and planes, buses and trams, lorries and hand carts were in constant motion, the wonder being that amidst this activity people paused to listen and digest Anna Hazare's argument that graft and corruption had become a menace that threatened the continuing well-being of the polity unless checked and reversed. It was a stirring message that struck a deep public chord. Parliament being tainted by the frequently disgraceful conduct of MPs, some of whom were charged with taking bribes to dispense favours, the time was ripe for direct peaceful

protest.

The private conscience became an instrument of public redress, as Anna Hazare's appeal echoed in every nook and cranny of this ancient land. Not for the first time, the government misjudged the situation. It arrested Anna Hazare for disturbing the peace. It climbed down when the public voice grew ever louder. Mr Hazare was duly released and his hunger strike in full public view in Delhi's Ram Lila ground kept the national decibels rising.

Finally, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh saw reason and offered a debate in Parliament on Anna Hazare's proposals to curb corruption. Their fundamentals are likely to become the bedrock of new anti-corruption legislation, even as certain other aspects of the Hazare document are pruned and refined and made workable.

The tumult instead of weakening India, as faint hearts like TheTimes leader writer of August 29 claimed would be the case, is more likely to cleanse its public life and renew its democratic lease in the long run. The Lok Pal draft bill before Parliament has more teeth than the palsied legislation enacted before. It was against this watered down document that Anna Hazare turned his fire.

His action has been vindicated.

The evils, to which Mr Hazare has made reference, cannot be banished overnight or in weeks and months, for the problem is deeply structural.

But measured in years and tens of years, these ills can be cured, if not wholly or in full measure, very substantially. It will be a long march, of which, hopefully, the first step has been taken. Mr Hazare is now free; more valuable by far: he has given all India a glimpse of true freedom.

Triumphalism over Libya serves little purpose The British media appear to be in overdrive at what is widely perceived as a thundering Nato success and a thunderous vindication of Prime Minister David Cameron's and President Nicolas Sarkozy's judgement. Public memory is often notoriously short, so a brief perusal of similar reports, buttressed by pictures, of American and British troops and their deeds of derring-do in Iraq, not to speak of Afghanistan, should be a salutary reminder of how bad things can get after the first flush of victory. Iraq is a desolation where there is no end to sectarian killings and fratricidal strife. Afghanistan is in even worse plight for all the bland and reassuring declarations of peace in our time.

A Sunday Telegraph editorial claimed that “the number of Libyans who died vas a result of the [Nato] bombing remained small.”This begs the question: how small is 'small'? Considering Nato sorties from the air numbered 7,000, the Libyan dead are probably near 1,000 or over. It is true that not a single Nato soldier has been killed so far. In Iraq the Iraqi dead as a result of American and British military action numbered a cool million; more were made refugees. The numbers of American and British dead monopolized media reports. The fog of war warps popular perception of the facts.

The Telegraph denounced Colonel Gaddafi as a tyrant to be likened to the deranged Roman Emperor Caligula. That the Libyan Colonel was a cruel tyrant few would disagree. Truth is that Nato and the US are partial to tyrants and their

tyranny when it suits their collective purpose.

The media, taking the proper cue, dutifully fall into line. The instances are too numerous to mention, but neither Saudi Arabia and Bahrain, to go no further, are not shining democracies. The Telegraph talks bravely of restoring Libya to full health with Western expertise. At what price?

Concessionary deals for western companies over Libyan oil, following the pattern in Iraq?

The power of Colonel Gaddafi is broken and the fortunes of Libya's National Transitional Council are in the ascendant. Ensconced in power the Council has promised to abide by democratic norms and the rule of law. There is to be a liberal constitution. A French lawyer who as called to Tripoli to advise on its provisions told how its opening article reiterated the sanctity of Sharia law. Wisely, he packed his bags and left for Paris.

The National Transitional Council is made up of disparate groups, some reportedly close to al Qaeda and kindred Islamist elements. Libya is a tribal society, so tribal fissures are likely to add to the burdens of economic and social reconstruction. Western celebration at the apparent outcome of the Libyan conflict is a trifle premature. The case of liberal intervention in foreign wars is yet to be made. Nato's Balkan War has yet to yield a durable peace. It is the same in Iraq and Afghanistan. The Cold War may be over, but a true peace dividend is nowhere in sight.

Meanwhile, America's and Europe's economic travails are a continuing source of political uncertainty. Events in Libya are no reason to crow.

Celebrating a successful Carnival London's August Caribbean street Carnival is the largest of its kind in Europe. It has become part of the capital's social and cultural scene, an exuberant emblem of its robust diversity that is now a cause for civic pride, as Mayor Boris Johnson eloquently proclaimed. After the dreadful riots earlier in the month, Londoners looked to a balm that would go some way to healing wounds. The Carnival with its Calypso beat, its joyous dances and rhythms and crowd participation were reminders that the heart of London was in sound working order.

This is not to say that our problems will disappear after the revels of two afternoons and evenings; they most certainly will not. We will have to work hard at problems arising from poor housing, inadequate education, low incomes, high unemployment and other related ills. But we can best apply remedies when we are in good heart and can see the positive aspects of life around us.

The Carnival helps us acquire a proper perspective, to stiffen our resolve not to surrender to despair. Long may it endure and contribute to our common pool of happiness.

www.abplgroup.com

3

Thought for the Week Our feelings of dissatisfaction, unhappiness, loss of hope and so forth are in fact related to all phenomena. If we do not adopt the right outlook, it is possible that anything and everything could cause us frustration. Yet phenomena are part of reality and we are subject to the laws of existence. So this leaves us only one option: to change our own attitude. By bringing about a change in our outlook towards things and events, all phenomena can become friends or sources of happiness, instead of becoming enemies or sources of frustration.

- The Dalai Lama's Book Of Wisdom (1999)

Sarah Teather MP Liberal Democrat MP for Brent Central and Minister of State for Children and Families

Congratulating Britain’s young people In the last fortnight, many GCSE and A-level students up and down the country will have received their exam results. Although times have changed since I was at school and young people are more likely to receive their results by text message or email than in a stiff brown envelope – I know the sense of nervous expectation will still have been the same.

It’s important, in a month when some young people have received attention for all the wrong reasons, that we take the time to congratulate the vast majority for their hard work.

The results this year were generally positive.

The percentage of young people achieving GCSE grades A*-C has gone up by 0.8 percentage points, from 69.0% to 69.8%.

For some students, their results and ambitions will have set them on a path to A-levels, university or training.

However, for others the future may still look very uncertain. A recent government report on vocational education found that, over the last thirty years, getting a job as a school-leaver has become extremely difficult. What’s more, competition for university places and apprenticeships is now ferociously competitive, risking many young people slipping through the cracks.

For many years, governments of all parties have struggled to put the right support in place to help young people at the difficult points of transition that come after GCSEs and A-levels.

The fluctuating nature of the job market can also make it difficult for parents, who are not sure how best to guide their child through challenges that may be very different to those that existed when they were

young.

That is why this government is doing more to join up the dots and help young people move successfully into the adult world. The first step is making sure that young people have the information, advice and guidance that they need to make good choices about their future.

Under the old ‘Connexions’ system, too many young people were given poor advice or even none at all. We are changing this by giving responsibility for careers services back to schools where everyone can access good advice in a learning environment they feel comfortable in.

We’re also giving tens of thousands more young people the opportunity to get a place as an apprentice. For too long previous governments focused only on university places, meaning that good quality routes into skilled employment were left under-funded. This is now changing. By refocusing money from other areas such as the education maintenance allowance on the most disadvantaged young people, we have freed enough money to fund 30,000 apprenticeship places for 16-18 year olds alone.

Finally, we are well aware that good results at 16 or 18 don’t happen overnight. The government has introduced 15 hours free childcare for the most disadvantaged 2 year-olds. Just as importantly it is giving schools a ‘pupil premium’ - £450 for every pupil on free school meals – to go to measures to help improve their grades and experience of education.

Together, these policies will give all young people the opportunities to succeed whatever, their background and whatever their talents.

LEICESTER

4

Asian Voice - Saturday 3rd September 2011

Grand opening for extra learning centre A special ceremony was held on Thursday, 25th August to celebrate the opening of the first Extra Learning (EXL) centre in Leicester.

Members of the community and students attended the event from 11am onwards at the EXL premises on Copdale Road, Leicester.

A number of special guests were also invited along, these included; immigration lawyer Harjap Singh Bhangal, senior radio presenter at Kohinoor FM Kishore Jain, Dee Bahra and Bhupinder Kaur from Eava FM, Kohinoor FM manager Shingara Singh, Author Parvez, Gurjeet Singh Samra - Secretary at Oadby Gurudwara Leicester, Satnam Singh Chohan and Inspector Bill Knopp.

The company already has two centres based in Birmingham, one in Smethwick and another in Handsworth, specialising in the ESOL for citizenship, which is necessary for all non-British citizens who are attempting to qualify for British citizenship.

Centre manager

Varun Aaron signing autographs for fans

Jasminder Singh Khanna said: “We were planning to open a centre in Leicester for a long time because a lot of people were coming from Leicester to Birmingham for a while and demanding we open something here.”

Established in 2009 EXL also offers a range of other funded and fee-paying courses such as computing, English and driving theory, which can be taught in any of the South Asian languages.

Guests present at the event were treated to some delightful refreshments, after which students were

presented with certificates. The official opening ceremony was conducted by popular Punjabi artist, Nachchatar Gill.

Mr Khanna added: “We’ve got multi-lingual teachers who are very skilful and patient. They make the students feel comfortable and help those who are shy of speaking English, break the ice.”

Shehnaz Manghera, who was one of the students present at the ceremony, said: “They teach very well and make it so easy to understand. I’m thinking about doing some of the other courses too.”

25-year sentence for murderer A Leicester-man has been sentenced to 25-years imprisonment for the murder of a 43-year-old Asianman, after being found guilty at Leicester Crown Court.

Sharn Devan Farrell, of Clifton Road entered the Sea Salt fish Bar on Saffron Lane, where Jagjit Singh (pictured) had been working, with a young boy on the 1st November, 2010 at around 9.15pm.

An argument ensued between Farrell and Singh over the amount of chicken he was served and it spread onto the street.

Farrell left the scene with the child and returned to a house on Clifton Road, where he picked up a knife, before returning to the chip shop,

along with the child.

He stabbed the victim in the left side of his shoulder and kicked and stamped on him before leaving the scene. The knife travelled through his lungs and heart chamber.

Jagjit was taken to the Leicester Royal Infirmary, where he later died from the injuries sustained.

Detective Chief Inspector Neil Castle, who led the investigation team said: “This was clearly a premeditated attack and today’s sentence clearly reflects that.”

Following the conviction, Lakbinder Sandhu, Jagjit’s wife, has issued the following statement: “In November 2010, my life was shattered when Jagjit was killed. I felt dev-

astated and my whole life was taken away from me.

Jagjit was a loving husband and father. He was killed at our own business and this meant that everyday until I could sell the business it was a constant reminder that Jagit was killed there. I had to sell the business at a loss, which doesn’t not bother me, what does is the loss of Jagjit that hits me everyday.”

#!

'/

,+"'1',+'+%

&%

#$/'%#/ 1',+

'('+ 3 )) *,2+1 15-# '/ ,+"'1',+'+% +'1 02--)5 +01 )) $,/ 6 ,+)5 "# ) $,/ &,*# +" 0* )) ,$$'!#0 +01 )) 1',+ #0'%+ 2--)5 '+1#+ +!# &,-0 $$'!#0 #01 2/ +10 #0'"#+1' ) & /* !5 2/%#/5 ,1 ) !)'* 1# !,*$,/1 1&/,2%&,21 1&# 5# / .2,1 1',+ -&,+# ,+

#)

4

,/

333 & +"! '/!,+ !, 2(

$ !

!

The city of Leicester pulled out all the stops to celebrate the arrival of team India for their friendly T20 match against the Leicestershire Foxes.

Thousands of fans started to queue outside the gates of the Grace Road cricket ground on Monday 29th August, around two to three hours before the gates were even due to open to the public.

Over 6,000 spectators were treated to an exciting match where India defeated the domestic T20 champions with a comfortable 15-run victory.

Opener Parthiv Patel was top scorer for the international visitors posting 40 runs off 31 balls in the first half, helping India to reach 161-5 compared with Leicestershire who ended up on 146-7.

Fans turned out in colourful costumes and dhols to celebrate the arrival of the team, with many people eagerly waiting outside the doors once the match had completed to catch a glimpse of their favourite cricketers.

India’s Mahendra Singh Dhoni (pictured) also received an Honorary Doctor of Letters at a ceremony after the game by De Montfort University (DMU). He said: “I am amazed and honoured to receive this award as an honour for not only me as the captain of the Indian

#! "

$ "

%" "!

" " #563&#: 5* '15'.$'3 5 0034 1'/ 5

-#!' ) ,$$#/

,/

Leicester gets hit by the cricketing-bug

$

# #/)#. '/5'3 63/5 #, 30#&8#: &)8#3' +&&-'4'9

" "! > %0634' .'#-

+%,'54 0-& +/ &7#/%' /-: +/%-6&'& 8+5* 5*3'' 8+-- 0/-: $' 4'37'& $'58''/ 5+-- 1.

!

" !+&'03#.# '/50/ #3, #3#&' '/50/ 0#& '/50/ #3308 +%,'54 0-& +/ &7#/%' /-: * #" '450 ".'41/ /4*; 5*/

"

/: 1'340/ 8+4*+/) 50 $3+/) #/& 165 # 1*050)3#1* 0/ 063 41'%+#- 08'310+/5 3'4'/5#5+0/ 0( # -#5' .05*'3 )3#/&.05*'3 (#5*'3 )3#/&(#5*'3 %#/ &0 40 (03 # .+/+.6. &0/#5+0/ 0( ; "' 8+-- '/&'#703 50 -+)*5 # %#/&-' '#-5* #/& #('5: ')6-#5+0/4 1'3.+55+/) / 03&'3 50 #33#/)' (03 5*' 1*050)3#1*4 (03 5*' 3'4'/5#5+0/ 806-& 3'26'45 :06 50 '.#+- .' 5*' 1+%563' 0/ $+/&6.0&+ *05.#+- %0. 03 %#-- .' 0/ 5*' /6.$'3 $'-08 50 #33#/)' (03 5*' 1*050 50 $' 3'%'+7'&

4=54+ /4:+8+9:+* /4 3'1/4- *54':/549 '4* ,58 !6549589./69 '4* ,58 ,;8:.+8 /47;/8= 1/4*2= )54:'): '450 ".'41/ /4*; 5*/ 22 685)++*9 </22 (+ *54':+* :5

+'2/4- /::2+ +'8:9

.'8/:=

.'8/:= 5

cricket team, but for something for the whole team to be proud of.”

Speaking about the award, Vice Chancellor of DMU, Professor Dominic Shellard, said: “De Montfort University is honoured to join with our key partner, Leicestershire County Cricket Club, in recognising Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s significant sporting achievements, in the presence of many of our staff and students.

“This occasion is a distinctive example of DMU’s drive to develop high quality and cultural international partnerships and I am delighted to be able to share it with Leicestershire’s cricket fans.”

Eight Indian international students who are studying at the university also got a chance to meet the skipper, after being selected as winners of a Facebook competition where they had to summarise their best experience at the university in one sentence.

Tarun Chawla, 24, from New Delhi, who is completing his PhD in Cancer Research at DMU and is also the international student ambassador, was one of the lucky students who got picked.

He said: “It just gives me goose bumps to think that I met M.S Dhoni. I will always remember DMU, as this is the first time that I’m watching India play a live cricket match and that too in England.”

Piece of art Earlier on in the week a giant mosaic of the Indian batting legend Sachin Tendulkar was on display at the famous Highcross Shopping Centre.

The 9m by 6m mosaic was created entirely using fabrics, sarees and beads, and was put together by artist Laura Hadland who is famous for creating other quirky mosaics. The materials came from The Fabric Guild, in Cobden Street industrial estate and the saris were from Anokhi House of Sarees on Belgrave Road, Leicester.

Gurvinder Rupra,

Marketing Manager at the Highcross, said: “We chose to create Sachin Tendulkar because he is such an iconic sportsman and has a big following here in Leicester. It was designed to welcome the National Indian Cricket Team to the city before their match at Grace Road on Monday.

“The mosaic reflects Leicester’s rich fabrics and cultural heritage as all the materials used were sourced from local businesses. The reaction from our shoppers has been great with many stopping to take photos.”

5

Asian Voice - Saturday 3rd September 2011

Successful Meghani Mahotsav held in London

Cllr Rabi Martins Watford Borough Council

Politics they say is the art of the possible

Mayaben Dipak performing to a song wriiten by Jhaverchand Meghani

On Sunday 28th August on 115th year of Poet Jhaverchand Meghani’s birthday, Gujarat Samachar and Asian Voice had organised a tribute to

celebrate the contribution of this national poet to India’s independence. It was held at Sangam Women’s Association in Edgware and attended by

more than 500 people including Mr Jitendra Kumar from Indian High Commission.

Full report next week.

Enjoying audience as Nihir Shah of Asian Voice and Gujarat Samachar waves the flag of India

Shiamak’s Summer Funk wins hearts

Anushka Sharma with Shiamak London Dance Team performing for the Launch of Hero company at O2 Arena on 9th August 2011

If fame, money and credibility have taught Shiamak Davar anything, it is that there is always a way to achieve your goals.

The dancer, choreographer, singer, performer and teacher – known just as Shiamak – has just organised Summer Funk, a series of dance workshops across London that give everyone from primary school pupils to pensioners a taste of Bollywood. Despite being shunned, insulted and ridiculed for starting a dance school in Bombay in his youth, the natural performer never gave up, and now teaches 70,000 pupils across the world.

Shiamak – which means ‘prince’ – says: “When I was younger, people had a problem with men dancing. They said it was disgusting and dance was meant for girls.”

Now, Shiamak has opened schools 13 cities

across India, and in three cities in Canada, Australia and Dubai, and plans more – in Sydney, Singapore, New York and London. The classes are open to anyone, regardless of age, gender, ability or status.

About 250 people took part in the classes in London, and they were so popular that others are being run in Harrow, Wembley, Ilford, Southall, and at the Pineapple Dance Studio in central London. If demand is great enough, classes will start in Hounslow, Finchley, Tooting, Leicester, Manchester and Birmingham. Although Slumdog Millionaire brought intense attention to Mumbai’s vibrant filmmaking industry, Shiamak believes many people have tried to cash in by teaching a cheap imitation of Bollywood dance. He said people have been given a

watered-down version that is not worthy of the original, and stressed the importance of brilliant teachers.

His efforts and unending energy have not gone unnoticed by Middlesex University, which awarded him an honorary doctorate in performing arts recently. It came as a complete shock to the performer, who said he was humbled by the accolade.

At the Beck Theatre on July 24, students from all over London performed in the Summer Funk spectacular under the banner Have Feet, Will Dance.

Shiamak says there were a few students he will keep his eye on and perhaps give them a chance to ignite the Indian film industry.

The Mumbai resident has also worked with Will Smith and Amitabh Bachchan, and performed for Bill Clinton, Michael

That may well be the case but all too often our politicians allow themselves to be driven by events rather than holding fast to their beliefs and convictions This is evident every time a significant event takes place.

The recent riots is a good case in point.

All three major political parties were quick to rush to conclusions as to who was to blame. With surprising unanimity they pointed the finger at black youth gangs and as one agreed that the solution lay in dishing out exemplary sentences to those that were caught No one can deny that some members of black youth gangs were involved in the three days of madness that looted and rampaged our town and cities. But they were not the only ones.

Amongst those charged and sentenced were grown men and women, some even held respectable jobs like teaching assistants The one element they appeared to have in common was greed. A desire to own luxury goods – designer clothes, high

definition televisions and the latest mobile telephones In that respect they were displaying one of the worst aspects of the modern day society – materialism. It is a malaise that afflicts individuals from all walks of life One could say it is a very British decease that successive governments have done little to combat.

The problem is that not everyone has the means to procure the goods they desire. On the contrary those who have are able to get more and those who have not are less able to get it as the rice of essentials – food, electricity, gas, petrol continue to rise at a rate higher than inflation Thus whilst one section of our society is busy enjoying the good life they other section continues struggling to make ends meet. Little wonder then that David Cameron finds some sections of our community are “broken”.

There are indeed sections of the community that live in abject poverty, squalid housing condi-

tions and remain illiterate and lack social skills.

Why then are we surprised that this group grow up alienated from the majority community and with little or no sense of civic duty let alone civic pride?

Question is what is it that needs to be done to engender a sense of community amongst those in our society who live on the fringes?

That is the challenge that government - both national and local – to face up to.

Doing so will require paying more than lip service to the notion that that every citizen wants the same things – a good roof over their heads, two square meals a day, a prospect of a good job and access to health care when they need it.

A bold first step would be for the coalition government to allow local councils to protect the investment in social services for the vulnerable and the young. If this means asking those at the top of the social strata to pay a little more tax so be it. Where there is a will ...

6

UK

Asian Voice - Saturday 3rd September 2011

Cllr Sachin Rajput Conservative Greater London Assembly Candidate For Brent & Harrow

Festival times

By Spriha Srivastava

Asian mothers “at-risk” The Royal Society of Medicine has recently published an editorial in their journal which says that it may be time to start screening “at-risk” mothers for Vitamin D deficiency – in particular, to reduce the incidence of rickets in their babies.

Darker skin and the wearing of concealing clothing are both riskfactors because sunlight generates Vitamin D. Asian women may require vitamin D supplements.

According to the report, at four London hospitals, a review of case records between 1996 and 2001 identified 65 cases of vitamin D deficiency, including rickets and/or symptomatic hypocalcaemia; 39 of the children were

Asian, 24 AfroCaribbean, and 2 Eastern European.3 More recently, an audit of four other London hospitals over a 30-month period between 2006 and 2008 identified 74 infants under the age of one year with symptomatic vitamin D deficiency.

The vitamin comes mainly from sunlight and the article highlights people with dark skin and women who cover up for cultural or religious reasons as the most at risk. The Department of Health (DH) is reviewing the evidence on vitamin D screening.

The editorial, by Dr James Haddow, a US expert in pre-natal screening, describes cases of seizures, heart

failure and rickets in children whose mothers were vitamin D deficient.

He argues it is time to look at screening pregnant women with a blood test, focusing initially on those most at risk.

According to the article; “Any strategy aimed at avoiding symptomatic vitamin D deficiency in offspring would logically include assuring adequacy of maternal vitamin D during pregnancy.”

The department of health has asked the scientific advisory committee to review the evidence on vitamin D requirements for different population groups.

To read the full report, log on to http://jms.rsmjournals.c om/cgi/content/full/18/2 /58

London Mela is back

The London Mela is back at the Gunnersbury Park this year to celebrate the region’s food, music and culture. It’s a sprawling event, with all the colour and chaos of a Bollywood epic. This event will take place on the 4th of September and is the best authenticated and traditional event that usually takes place every year and brings around more than 50,000 visitors on that occasion.

Mela, a hindi word meaning a get together

brings together thousands of Londoners at Gunnersbury Park to celebrate the varied Indian culture in their own way.

Performers will showcase their unique and characteristic culture and music ranging from traditional to the latest trendy, including the vibrant colours and flourishing cultures of the nine exciting zones of the South Asian countries.

Music will be the major part of this event

with songs from conventional pop to longstanding classical music, and don’t be surprised to find the fusion of the West and the East, which is the current trend.

London Mela is more of a heritage event which will bring along the exciting music and dance performances and lots of food to eat.

People come from all parts of the world to take part and enjoy the diverse nature of the Mela.

Record sales for Shahnaz products Shahnaz Hussain products at the Lloyds Pharmacy in Selfridges broke sales record after a client purchased products worth £4000 in August.

Shahnaz Husain has recently launched the Platinum Range, based on nano technology, which is taking international markets by storm. Known for product innovation, Shahnaz Husain has recently received the prestigious Excellence in Beauty Award in Dubai from Human Achievers Foundation.

Let us know what you think.

Email Spriha at spriha@abplgroup.com

The Notting Hill Carnival traditionally held on the last bank holiday weekend in August is a real test this year of whether the police have gained control of the streets following the recent rioting in the United Kingdom. It is welcoming to note so far that despite a few days of rioting around the country earlier in the month much sense of normality has returned and whilst it was thought the Notting Hill Carnival might have been targeted as an excuse for prolific offending by those intent on causing havoc in our city, early reports suggest that this is not the case.

The rioting that took place earlier this month can not in any way be dressed up to be anything other than pre-planned or opportunistic violence, stealing, hooliganism and general vandalism and those who have been arrested so far and those who will be in the future deserve to be convicted and severely punished within sentencing guidelines where they are found guilty of the same to both serve as a deterrent to repeat offending and to instil public confidence.

On news of the rioting having taken place I spoke to many residents in Barnet, Brent and Harrow as well as those whose businesses had been directly affected.

Whilst affected business owners had direct concerns, most ordinary residents were concerned about a repeat of the incidences witnessed by many on television and some were concerned that the Notting Hill Carnival later in the month would be used as an excuse to further riot

given a mass gathering of people would considerably test police resources, notwithstanding record numbers of police under Mayor of London Boris Johnson, and a crowded place always lends itself well to such criminals to blend in and out of the crowd during their offending behaviour.

Despite those concerns I am led to believe at the time of writing that a very small number of people have been arrested this year at the Notting Hill Carnival, mainly for simple drug possession offences only, than were arrested last year during the otherwise enjoyable and cultural public gathering and entertainment. It also appears that public confidence is strong with the event still being well supported. This sends a clear message to rioters that fun, joyous, community activities will not be scuppered by the fear of crime that many of those who rioted sought to instil into the otherwise safe bedrock of British society.

Of particular relief to local businesses affected by the rioting earlier this month is a new fund worth over £3.5 million which is being made available to small and medium-sized businesses in need of emergency financial help following the recent riots. The High Street Fund is a charitable fund offering immediate cash support to help smaller businesses that suffered from the disturbances. It is made up of £3million from Barclays, BP, Capita, Deloitte, Lloyds Banking Group, RBS and Santander and another £500,000 made available by the Mayor of London

Boris Johnson.

The Mayor’s contribution will be ringfenced for London businesses. The companies and City Hall will also offer support services and expertise to help the businesses recover. A handful of London Boroughs have also contributed to the High Street Fund including both Barnet and Brent who have contributed £30,000 each.

As a councillor and cabinet member in the London Borough of Barnet and as the Conservative Greater London Assembly Candidate for Brent and Harrow at next year’s Mayoral and GLA elections I am particularly pleased with the contributions to the fund made by both Barnet and Brent.

With the reference to peaceful public gatherings above I was pleased to attend a cultural and festive gathering this weekend in the form of the Nand Utsav commemorating the sixth day of Lord Krishna’s birth with the Swaminarayan Satsung at Stanmore Temple.

Aside from the fun and frolicking of the event with people clambering upon each other to strike the ‘mutka’ elevated high above the ground on a wire, the general community feeling itself was far more important as it reinforced the assertion that as a group of peaceful communities in the United Kingdom wherever located and for whatever purpose, when faced with adversity such as rioting, we stick together collegiately and remind ourselves that as decent lawabiding citizens of the realm, united we stand and divided we fall.

Mother finds new kidney on the internet Saira Khan will become the first patient in Britain to have an organ transplant from a donor found on the internet. A mother of three is set to become the first patient in Britain to receive an organ from a stranger after advertising for a donor on an American website.

Saira Khan, 37, whose children are aged between one and six, advertised for a kidney through a US charity that made its name by placing pleas for organs in the classified ads alongside childcare and secondhand jewellery.

An American mother was so moved by the prospect of Khan not living to bring up her children that she has offered to donate one of her kid-

neys.

Until now, no patient in Britain has been allowed to go ahead with a transplant after soliciting for an organ from a “good Samaritan” donor. It is legal, but special permission is required from the transplant authorities.

Critics fear the process could create a “beauty parade” where patients with the most poignant cases, but not necessarily the greatest need, could jump the queue for transplants.

This weekend the Human Tissue Authority (HTA) confirmed that it was considering approving the donation of a kidney to Khan by the American mother of two, Dana Klejment, 33.

Saira with family

The operation could open the door to more good Samaritan donors choosing the patients to whom they would prefer to give their organs.

Khan, who has a doctorate in chemistry and taught the subject before becoming a full-time mother, has had chronic kidney disease for 10 years. Her condition deteriorated after the birth of her third child.

UK

Asian Voice - Saturday 3rd September 2011

7

Helping hands for small businesses as they rush to renew insurance The shop keepers have been hit the hardest as many of them have lost everything in the riot of early August.

That includes many of our community members who have been reported to have suffered a substantial loss, while some have been revived by their community and campaigning newspapers like Evening Standard.

Independent retailers have been reassessing their insurance cover following the riots that hit high streets across the country this month.

Simply Business, the insurance firm, said it had received more than double

the normal level of requests for quotes in the week after the riots and the interest had remained high, with calls running at 8pc higher than in July as reported by a daily newspaper.

The firm said off licences, mobile phone shops and grocers had generated the most significant increase in demand, followed by sports shops.

Annis Ghani, who owns Illusion Design Development, a graphic design and stationery business on Coleshill Road in Birmingham was among those calling to extend more cover.

He said the riots,

which affected Birmingham and other UK cities, had made him reexamine his insurance cover.

The incident prompted him to invest 8,000 in CCTV cameras. “I had someone come and ask for 25,000 or else and I had to get my community involved,” said Mr Ghani, whose parents migrated to Britain from Kashmir.

The Law Society has launched a free advice helpline staffed by volunteer lawyers and a fulltime case worker to help business owners affected by the riots with insurance claims and contract, property and employment

issues they may face. The hotline number is: 020 7092 3949.

NFRN National President, Kieran McDonnell told Asian Voice: “We have all been shocked and appalled by the horrifying scenes of marauding mobs rioting and looting with so many independent retailers bearing the brunt of the theft and damage. But these events have demonstrated the true spirit of the NFRN. Our field force and helpline teams moved swiftly to provide help and guidance to members and get them back trading again as quickly as possible. Further information,

Annis Ghani

including guidance on making a claim for theft or

damage is available on our website nfrnonline.com.”

How are the communities and businesses helping each other? n A shopkeeper who saw his store looted live on CCTV during the riots has been given a lifeline thanks to the Evening Standard’s Save Our Shops appeal.

Ash Singadia, 39, was

at home in Croydon with his young family when he heard that a 50-strong mob was at Yoke Menswear, which he opened in the town eight months ago.

He lost stock worth 70,000 but is now one of the first independent retailers to benefit from Royal Bank of Scotland’s 10million fund to help London’s riot-hit small businesses.

He has been given a 10,000 interest-free loan for six months by RBSowned NatWest and said it is a “godsend”. n

A man whose shop was

robbed and wrecked by looters during a night of rioting in Hackney is just 48 hours from re-opening.

Shiva Kandiah, whose tears moved his customers, said the support

Shocked: “Police pushed me against wall” Muhammad Khan, a plumber from Harrow, North London, feels that he is a victim of the police acting beyond their remit as reported by The Times.

He has taken his case to the Independent Police Complaints Commission after officers seized his van keys and handed them to the bailiffs. The incident happened in July when two men in a car, acting for the bailiffs, boxed in Mr Khan, right with his friend Paul Haynes (pictured).

Mr Khan says: “One of the men said he was a bailiff and threatened to seize my van because of alleged unpaid parking penalties which I knew nothing about. When I asked for identification and a warrant to seize my vehicle he failed to show either so I called the police.”

But when three officers arrived they took the bailiff’s side. He said: “The bailiffs later pro-

duced a warrant which I felt was of dubious authenticity. One of the officers threatened to arrest me, then pulled me out of my vehicle, pushed me against a wall and began searching me without saying under what authority he was doing so.

“The officer removed from my passenger’s pocket the keys which I had earlier given him and handed them to the bailiff.

This experience was very distressing and I want answers from the bailiffs

Holiday nightmare With bank holidays coming to an end and the forthcoming Christmas holidays - it’s that time of the year when families go away on holidays.

Booked from months, excited to venture a perfect holiday spot. But what happens when you

arrive at your destination and not let in, despite of correct paper work and denied even food and water? Sounds like your story?

Watch this space for our investigative story in the following issues of Asian Voice.

and the police. All I have had from the bailiffs is a letter on July 11 saying that my van would be scrapped or sold at auction if I failed to pay the sum of £1,388.84 plus storage within seven days from the date of the letter.

What has happened to my vehicle?

“I believe it was seized unlawfully and am now asking for the bailiffs to hand my vehicle back.”

A police spokesman said that since a formal complaint had been made it would be inappropriate to comment.

The bailiffs also refused to comment, though the company allegedly had been instructed by Harrow Council to collect parking penalties relating to Mr Khan’s vehicle.

Mr Khan denies any knowledge of these until his encounter with the bailiff.

from locals and well-wishers from around the country had been so great that he felt like crying all over again.

The hard-working convenience store owner, who lost about 60,000 in goods and damage and was left with just 25p in his pocket, has been backed to the tune of 16,000 by supporters who set up a website to raise funds.

Mr Kandiah, who describes himself as a “servant to the community”, has partially begun trading again by selling newspapers from the pavement outside his

shop as repairs and cleaning continue inside. n A businesses damaged in the riots after “pure luck and the kindness of others” saved his shop from being destroyed.

Father of two Ashit Shah, sells electrical and lighting goods in west Croydon on a street targeted on Monday night.

He is now offering businesses without insurance the chance to take anything from his shop at cost price, in a gesture of solidarity with those who have lost their livelihoods.

He has run ABM Electrical in London Road

with his uncle for 17 years.

The 43-year-old said: “Luck was on my side and I now want to help my fellow Londoners to rebuild their businesses.”

Free curry festival in Leeds Leeds is once again to host the World Curry Festival, following on from its amazing debut last year where over 12,000 visitors flocked to the event.

This year’s 3 day Festival – September 2325 – will be held in the Victoria Gardens.

Festival Director Zulfi Karim, explained: “Last year’s ticketed event was such a huge success, this year we wanted to open the event is even more visitors and decided to offer free access to the events, demonstrations, stalls and souks.

“We know we have a brilliant concept and we wanted to make it as accessible as possible to people in the current economic climate.

“It will be an even bigger and better Festival with many more opportunities to try, taste and buy anything and everything that revolves around curry cuisine.”

Undisputed curry kings such as Vivek Singh and Grand Chef Hemant Oberoi – fresh from cooking for the Obamas - will be hosting live cooking demonstrations, as well as the curry souk & street food section, competitions, a world record attempt, curry-making and cocktail classes for the enthusiast. Regional talent such as Stephanie

Moon from Rudding Park Hotel are also signed up for personal demonstration sessions in the 100seat theatre.

The World Curry Festival is also being joined by the Armed Force’s own The Soldiers’ Charity where they will be promoting their own “Big Curry” Campaign. There will be a team of soldiers from Grantham Royal Logistical Corp(V) cooking curry in their field kitchen. They aim to serve thousands of samples of curry over the three days, winning both hearts, minds and stomachs with their culinary campaigning.

For the first time the Festival will culminate in a fine dining banquet at The Queen’s Hotel, hosted by comedian, chef and all round raconteur Hardeep Singh Kohli. Hardeep hosted a sell-out comedy/cooking evening at the

Hemant Oberoi

World Curry Festival last year and is back by popular demand for the black tie banquet, with food prepared by Grand Chef Hemant Oberoi. Guest speaker is the renowned “Queen of Curry” Perween Warsi, who founded UK chilled food giant, S&A Foods.

8

www.abplgroup.com

Dee Katwa

Asian Voice - Saturday 3rd September 2011

Midland Voice Contact: Dhiren on 07970 911 386 or dhiren.katwa@abplgroup.com

Time and Family: Don’t take them for granted These days nobody, arguably, has time for one another. Yet, ironically, we make time when we want to. We’re smart, but the clock is smarter, it ticks on, regardless. Last Saturday, a prestigious celebration for a rare cause, to recognise the value and importance of time and family, took place in Wakefield, near Leeds.

Organised by Dr Mahendra Patel, pictured, a pharmacist and senior lecturer in Pharmacy at Huddersfield University, the round-table event brought together around 400 guests from across Britain, and beyond.

Held at Queen Elizabeth Grammar School, where Dr Patel is a governor, the evening began with a drinks reception following which guests were led to a marquee.

It was a gathering, a reunion too, of family and friends, one which had been in planning for almost a year. That it took place on the same day as Dr Patel’s son Vivek’s engagement to Tunisha was a coincidence. The date was chosen to honour the birthday of Dr Patel’s father Gulabbhai, who sadly passed away in 1994. His enormously strong-willed mother, Deviben, aged 92, was present, and was introduced as the “backbone

of the family”.

Other family members, including Dr Patel’s wife Manisha, and daughter Meghna, were also introduced as part of Dr Patel’s “heartfelt” and humorous speech.

He thanked guests for attending and told how one friend from France had delayed his return home, and another who had come back early from holiday, to be part of this historic get-together.

Following a fourcourse sumptuous Indian meal, meat and vegetarian, 50 guests were asked to go outside, and were given the chance to each release a Chinese lantern into the sky, while others watched and cheered.

Then, back inside, guests were entertained by a Lancashire-based Indian classical band, Raga Jyoti, featuring artists Rakesh Joshi, Akash Patel, Vijay Venkat and Sundeep Popatkar, on the keyboard, sitar, flute, and table, respec-

India-Pak fun footie match

tively. This was followed by a Western band, one which Vivek is part of and was also performing on the night.

Vivek, in his touching speech, described his parents as “truly inspirational” adding, “some people are fortunate in their lives to meet their heroes. We are extremely fortunate to have been fathered by ours,” which won rapturous applause.

Dr Patel’s ancestral roots lie in Khapadia Matwad, or Kharel, a predominantly Muslim village near Navsari in Gujarat, India. A former president of the Leuva Patidar Samaj, a Hindu community organisation, he graduated in Pharmacy from Bradford University where he was

a lecturer until recently.

He bought his first chemist with a £450 cash deposit borrowed from his brother’s university friend. Since, his achievements have been remarkable. Over the years, he has raised thousands of pounds for various charities, in Britain and overseas, and continues to do so, selflessly. Only a few weeks ago he was honoured for his voluntary work at a reception at 10 Downing Street. He is the only qualified pharmacist of ten first-ever Fellows appointed by the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence, or NICE. Returning to time and family, the focus of the occasion, I asked Dr Patel why: “The world in which we live is very dynamic and competitive. Children are becoming almost robotic. Before we realise, they (children) may be driven to becoming success-hungry, materiallymotivated and ruthless, almost at the sacrifice of enjoying the natural process of growing up.

Parents are in danger of missing out the joys of parenthood big style if they are not careful.”

Don’t you agree?

Opportunists jailed

A charity football match organised in aid of the three men killed in the Birmingham riots has been postponed.

India were due to play Pakistan at Derby County’s Pride Park this Saturday (Sept 3). But the game has been postponed by organisers Touchsky Sports to allow the families to observe an Islamic tradition of 40 days of mourning. A new date for the first in a series match - which aims to raise funds for a new foundation being set up in honour of Haroon Jahan and brothers Shahzad Ali and Abdul Musavir, pictured, as well as promote closer cohesion between Indian and Pakistani communities in Birmingham and the rest of Britain – will be announced soon.

An award-winning Birmingham filmmaker has been jailed for 16 months for looting clothing during the riots.

Aston Walker, pictured, had travelled to the city centre with intent to record the violent disorder. Instead he ended up joining crooks and stealing £200 worth of clothes from H&M. Separately, a promising Coventry student, Ayub Ahmed, 23, pleaded guilty to receiving stolen goods and was given a 20-month sentence. As well as facing punishment from the courts, he lost his place at a top university and the court heard that he had been disinherited by his family.

GCSE Gujarati achievers

Birmingham’s 845-yearold Wholesale Market is under threat of closure. Last week, Birmingham Ladywood MP, Shabana Mahmood, pictured, joined traders to show her support for their ‘Save Our Market’ campaign. Traders have been set a 2013 deadline to leave the market, which is one of only four in the country, the largest too, and directly employs over 4,000 people whilst serving over 13,000 visitors a week.

Three cheers to the following learners from Birmingham who passed their GCSE Gujarati at grade A-star: Mellisa Bulsara, Vraj Chauhan, Sapna Kaul and Shivani Kaul; also, a grade A in the same subject was awarded to Kajal Chauhan. Their tutor, Hemaben Chauhan, said: “I am enormously proud of them. Well done to all.”

TV Symposium

A three-day convention, TV Everywhere: Paths to Growth, hosted by the Royal Television Society will take place at King’s College, Cambridge from 14-16 September. Jeremy Hunt, the Culture Secretary, pictured, is listed as the keynote speaker. An eagle-eyed reader tells me that of the 34 confirmed speakers, none are from an ethnic minority background. Correct. Is this not proof enough that BME license payers are not represented, still, at the highest levels in mainstream British television?

‘Save our Market’ campaign

Fake letter, woman nabbed Mum-of-one Rajinder Sangha who used a fake Wolverhampton University letter to open a student bank account and pocketed more than £18,000 is facing a jail sentence. Sangha, of Tipton, paid false cheques into a Barclays account and then withdrew money, Wolverhampton Crown Court heard. Sangha, who has a previous conviction for fraud, admitted 12 charges of fraud and was remanded on bail until September 23.

News in Brief Paramedic to climb peak Midland paramedic Nigel Davies is preparing to climb Mount Kilimanjaro in aid of Hope House Children’s Hospice. Nigel, 45, from Shrewsbury, will embark on his mission on September 2 and is due to reach the summit of 19,350ft next Friday (Sept 9). He has paid for the trip himself and it is part of his summer holiday.

To sponsor Nigel, visit www.justgiving.com/nigeonkili

Newspaper folds One of Britain’s biggest free weekly newspapers has been closed down by its publisher, Northcliffe Media.

The Nottingham Recorder, which had an average distribution of 145,080 copies a week, fell victim to the company’s wide-ranging review of its portfolio.

New toy store in town A new 23,000 sq ft Toys R Us megastore, the fourth in the West Midlands, is to open at St Andrew’s Shopping Park in Birmingham next Thursday (Sept 8). A total of 50 new jobs will be created.

Just Married....

Congratulations to ITV News editor Deborah Turness, pictured, who tiedthe-knot last Sunday. Described by The Guardian as “the hardest working woman in television news”, Deborah, 44, was working all the way up to the eve of her wedding. Bless her cotton socks.

Cats drowned A “callous” Midland woman who drowned her friend’s cats one at a time has avoided being immediately jailed. Samantha Browning, 21, a metal sorter from West Bromwich was given an 18-week prison sentence, suspended for 24 months, and banned from owning animals for ten years.

Radio host split up BBC WM breakfast presenter Phil Upton, pictured, has split up from his wife Catherine, the mother of his two children. The 44-year-old Birmingham-born presenter told listeners ‘the time was right’ to make the news public.

Top GCSE results Three cheers to all pupils at Waverley School in Small Heath, Birmingham, on passing their GCSEs with flying colours. For the second consecutive year, the school saw a 100% pass rate with all learners achieving at least five A to C grades. Assistant Head Ian Healey described the news as “fantastic”.

Ramdevji Janmotsav

This year’s annual celebration of the 606th birth anniversary “janmotsav” of Ramdevji Maharaj, an Indian saint, pictured, will take place next Thursday (Sept 8) in Birmingham. The 7pm-9pm event at Shree Hindu Community Centre in Tyseley has been organised by Shree Jansari Gnati Mandal, under the guidance of Malambhai Masani, a veteran, selfless volunteer and an ardent devotee of Ramdevji. For background on Ramdevji visit www.ramapir.org

EDUCATION

Asian Voice - Saturday 3rd September 2011

9

Free schools open to serve community against the odds One of the government’s new free schools has been set up by parents in Norwich despairing at the lack of schools that fit in with their working day.

Another in Lancashire specialises in transcendental meditation, while the founder of a third, in London, objects to the “politically correct gobbledegook” of the education establishment.

The first wave of 24 state-funded “free schools”, set up by parents, teachers and charities outside council control, is to open for the autumn term over the next fortnight.

They include Aldborough E-Act primary school, housed in a former community centre in Redbridge, east London, which accepts its first pupils on Thursday.

The schools, set up in response to parental demand, were at the heart

of the Tories’ education plans in last year’s election manifesto. Critics see them as a risky experiment that will starve existing schools of money and pupils, favour the pushy middle classes and open state education to eccentrics and religious extremists.There also have been speculation that the free schools cannot fill in spaces despite of being free.

The first free Hindu school Krishna AvantiPrimary school in Leicester, which has a sister school in London has apparently struggled to fill all its places even though it is based in a city with one of the highest populations of Hindus in Britain, reported The Times. Still it is due to open yoga and meditation along with traditional lessons.

The Krishna-Avanti Primary School in Leicester has had its numbers cut by the

Government but will open on Thursday, teaching yoga and meditation alongside traditional lessons.

However, Michael Gove, the education secretary, believes they will harness the benefits of parental choice to improve educational standards.

The Nishkam school, set up by the Sikh community in Handsworth, Birmingham, typifies the self-help ethos the free schools are meant to harness.

Ranjit Singh Dhanda (pictured), the principaldesignate, told a national daily: “All the tradesmen and builders have given their time for free. We have had students on vacation and people taking time out of their annual leave to come and help us not just painting walls, they have been plastering, building walls, knocking out walls. No more than

Pupil Gurpreet Kaur Ubhi at Nishkam school

10% of the refurbishment has been done by contractors, the rest by volunteers.”

Some have faced bitter local opposition. Bristol free school has been threatened with legal action by local head teachers who accuse it of being “middle class and socially divisive”. It faces losing the building it wanted after the council backed a proposal to open a primary on the same site.

Others who have faced strong opposition include Andrew Snowdon, a busi-

ness consultant from Crawley, West Sussex, who with his wife, Lindsey, is setting up the Discovery primary school in a listed 19th-century villa. It will be based on the Montessori method of allowing children to learn at their own pace.

He said he had been subjected to criticism that was “occasionally upsetting, not pleasant, when it is false and personally directed”.

Etz Chaim, a Jewish school established in the

former Wyevale garden centre in Mill Hill, north London, has faced criticism that it is destroying a cherished community facility.

Some of the schools will have an unconventional approach. They include the Maharishi, a former private school near Ormskirk, Lancashire, which encourages pupils to practise meditation.

“Restful alertness combines profound physiological rest with inner alertness,” Derek Cassells, the head teacher, says in a promotional video.

The West London free school, backed by the writer Toby Young as a “grammar school open to all”, will teach a highly traditional curriculum including Latin. He recently said schools’ “politically correct, gender-neutral gobbledegook” made his flesh creep.

Leicester City’s schools get best GCSE results ever Maths genius at the age of 6 Over half of Leicester’s GCSE students received at least five A* to C grades, making it the highest number ever seen in the city.

Just under 3,400 students across Leicester received their GCSE results on Thursday 25th August with a minimum of 52.1% gaining A* - C compared to last years figure of 48.9%.

Assistant City Mayor Councillor Vi Dempster, who has responsibility for education, said: “The young people of Leicester have once again made the city proud and achieved the best GCSE results we have ever seen. Today is a real celebration of the enormous hard work that has taken place by the students, their teachers and

the council as well as the tremendous support of governors and parents.”

One of the former National Challenge Schools, Babington Community College went from 24% in 2009 to 39% this year, whilst another school, New College improved by over 10% in the last year going from 28% in 2010 to 44% this

year.

Rachel Dickinson, city council strategic director for children, added: “I want to congratulate all the students and their teachers on this year’s results as they clearly demonstrate all their hard work and I am really pleased that some of our schools are showing such dramatic progress.

A six-year-old girl from Rushey Mead in Leicester was amongst hundreds of pupils last week who picked up their GCSE results.

Milly Kotecha, who currently attends Humberstone Infants Primary School, became one of the youngest people in the country to gain a GCSE, picking up a

grade B in maths.

The young girl started attending extra weekly tutorials in January when her father, who is an accountant, realised she was a natural mathematician. Another six-year-old from east London, who was five when she sat the exam, also attempted her maths GCSE and passed with a grade E.

YOUR VOICE

10

Asian Voice - Saturday 3rd September 2011

Sushma and Anna

Keeping order in India

Visa misery leads to curry crisis

Our best friend in HOC

It is disgusting that Sushma Swaraj agreed to Prime Minster Manmohan Singh’s suggestion to appeal Anna Hazare to break his fast without fulfilling his conditions. Sushma Swaraj, it appears has taken the leading role for BJP party on this issue, so she should be very careful that she does not damage the image of the BJP party. Opposition party should support the ruling party only in case there is danger or attack on India from foreign countries. Any other domestic issues the party should stand for the betterment of people’s rights.

The dead wood, the corrupt and inefficient officials and politicians have to go.

Enough is enough, I was very pleased to see thousands of people are envolved to fight for their rights. Any one- Prime Minster or other leaders who were delaying deliberately should be suspects.

If things went wrong at Anna’s end then only people who would have been responsible was Manmohan Singh and Sonia Gandhi. And of course now we can also add the name of Sushma Swaraj.

India has a population of one billion people. All the problems of poverty and unemployment we face here in the UK are magnified many times over in India, yet you rarely see the kind of riots we witnessed last month.The reason is that at the first sign of trouble a curfew is imposed and a severe beating with long sticks awaits anyone who dares to break the curfew. The police would not hesitate to shoot if the need arose.

The second reason is that the family unit remains strong and children are brought up to believe that nothing is going to come easily. A strong work ethic is imbued in children and bringing shame to the family is considered the ultimate disgrace. We have lost the values which once made this country great, such as discipline, courage, compassion and the determination to do the right thing. It sounds old-fashioned but the sanctity of marriage and curbing individual desires for the greater good of society need to be made the norm again.

Your write up on ‘visa misery leads to curry crisis’ ( 27/8/01) is misleading and it is daft on the part of Indian curry restaurant owners including Sanjay Anand to claim that there is a shortage of Indian chefs in this country. We have to understand the difference between a chef and a cook.

Most of the cooks come from Bangladesh with no knowledge of English and they know only chicken tikka masala and Indian meat curries.

They do not know how to cook South Indian and Gujarati vegetarian dishes.

Indian takeaway restaurant owners mostly do not pay decent wages and no pension benefit.

In India chefs in four or five star hotels are paid high salaries when compared to average Indian’s earning. They are well trained and there are a number of cases where they are issued with work permit to come to the UK for a limited period of time.

I have met several of them in top Indian restaurants. There are several well established catering institutes who provide degree and diploma courses.

It is true to say that the owners should bring qualified chefs from India and pay decent wages say with minimum of 20,000 per annum and they should not claim social security benefit.

The restaurant owners should ask the local colleges to run diploma courses in Indian catering and they can ask the institutes to employ top Indian chefs in this country as academics to train them.

There are more than 2 million people who are unemployed in this country and a large percentage of them from Asian community and the restaurant owners should take them and train them.

As so often mentioned in your esteem papers, Asian Voice and Gujarat Samachar, Barry Gardener, MP for Brent North is the best friend Indian community has in House of Commons. (HOC).

Mr. Gardiner, Chairperson of Labour Friends of India has expressed his concern in local papers, at the arrest of Mr. Hazare, in order to stop him from fasting to death which may topple this most corrupt government in the history of independent India. The lame excuse put forward by Congress government is that the fasting is against democratic principle and may do more harm than good. Certainly, it will harm the fat cats who have illegally deposited billions in Swiss accounts, mainly politicians of shady characters.

Barry states that peaceful protest is a democratic right of every citizen, especially in the proud Indian tradition that is a shining example to all emerging democracies. He further states that the Central Government should reconsider its position and act in the spirit of peace, tolerance and reconciliation as befits the home of Mahatma Gandhi who I feel Barry considers as his Guru, his spiritual mentor.

I feel and would like to urge all our local MPs, especially Steve Pound, Bob Blackman, Sarah Teather and Garath Thomas to join Barry and raise the issue in HOC, visit Indian High Commission (IHC) and express their disapproval at the treatment of this noble Gandhian saint who would like to see the passing of anti-corruption Lokpal bill to stop politicians robbing this once proud nation that is detrimental to the economic wellbeing of our motherland Bharat.

Dharam Sahdev Gants Hill

Michchami Dukkadam

Last week, 25 August to 1 September, marked the most auspicious period in the Jain calendar. Jains all over the world celebrated Paryushana - the eight day period of fasting and religious activities. The word Paryusana is derived from two words meaning “a year” and “coming back”: it is a period of repentance for the acts of the previous year and of austerities to help shed the accumulated karma.

During Paryushana, most Jains fast and participate in religious activities like performing Samayik (a ritual practice during which we try to come closer to our soul) and Pratikraman (During Pratikraman we repent for our non-meritorious activities on a daily basis.

We realize our mistakes and ask for forgiveness, which helps us to minimize the intensity of the karmas as well as it helps to get rid of the karmic bondage).

We, members of Shree Jain Sangh East London and Essex celebrated Paryusahana at the Upton Hindu Centre, Upton Park in Newham.

On the last day of Paryushana, called Samvatsari, it is obligatory on Jains to fast and perform an extended version of Pratikraman. At the end of Samvatsari, Jains beg forgiveness from all by greeting them with the words “Michchami Dukkadam”. Michcha = become fruitless (miththya); Mi = mine (by me) Dukkadam = bad deeds. ‘may the bad deeds (dushkrutya) done by me become fruitless’.

This bad deed may be in any way by man (thought), vachan (words) or kaya (action).In other words, forgive me for all the bad deeds, actions, thoughts, or words that may have directly, indirectly, intentionally or unintentionally hurt your feelings.

I too would like to take this opportunity to say “Michchami Dukkadam” to all readers of AV and GS. Dinesh Sheth Newbury Park, Ilford

Nitin Mehta Croydon, Surrey

Make the bill stronger I would not count my chickens before they are hatched. As I recall, it was the Law makers who invited Team Anna to the consultation, way back in April to help in drafting a strong Bill. We now have nine various draft versions of the Bill before the Standing Committee, instead of one strong Bill with the inclusion of Team Anna’s recommendations. A one big joke, I must say. As Anna said after debates in Parliament, “this is half a battle that has been won”. As I have previously stated in my letter, the Committee is made up of politicians from all parties. It is up to them to either make the Bill stronger or weaker by tabling relevant amendments to the Bill and voted on to either accept or reject those amendments. The Bill is therefore, wholly reliant on those elected representatives for the final outcome. It will be very interesting to see what sort of the Bill comes out of that Committee.

However, there is still a hope for a very good and strong Bill, I would recommend you all read and take note of Aamir Khan, the Bollywood actor’s very good/passionate speech which was made on August 27th, which has been articled in the Hindustan Times (http://www.hindustant i m e s . c o m / N e w s Feed/CelebWatch/Aamir-supports-Annaat-Ramlila-Maidan/Article1-738530.aspx ). He has been a ardent supporter of Anna’s campaign from the beginning.

Mohindra Master Via Email

Excellent Meghani Mahotsav Thank you very much for presenting an excellent programme on the 28th August.

I have passion for Gujarati language and music so for me it was such an enjoyable afternoon. I had taught Gujarati for many years in this country and was so proud to listen to the local boys singing in Gujarati.

I had heard a lot of Mayaben’s voice, so to get an opportunity to hear her melodious voice live was a dream come true

Arun Vaidyanathan Via Email

Why not Christian PM? Arun Vaidyanathan in his letter has attacked Rahul Gandhi on Hindu sentiment and treating him as untouchable is sad. It is not a social stigma to be of a mixed background. It is human instinct to escape life threat, considering his dynasty was assassinated, surrounded by hostile and opportunist neighbours and poor US relationship.

He believes he is Indian first and rest is secondary. Is that wrong? Lalloo and Kumara Swami looted wealth as ministers and they have been sidelined. Rahul was not involved in Bofors. It was Rajiv!

Rahul can choose any religion he wants to. If he is a Christian, can we not have a Christian PM? I thought India is a secular country! Rahul is new, unsettled and insecured and needs guidance. It is a pity to drag him into such agonising controversies.

Dr K R N Moorthy Handworth for me. The rest of the music and artist were also fantastic.To listen to Duha sung

by Mr. Vinod Patel was a treat for me.

Kailash Shah Via Email

Please detach the form and send it with your payment or credit card instructions to address below FIRST & FOREMOST ASIAN WEEKLY IN EUROPE

VOICE 0

Page -13

Page -17

Page -18

1 Year 2 Years

Page -30

3( %"14!16 3/ 3(

UK EUROPE WORLD £25 £55 £70 £45 £100 £125

*Subscriptions paid will not be refunded

!1#(

‘Smile Pinky’ too gets the Oscar Boyle says Mumbai dwarfed the statuette

E-mail: support@abplgroup.com

Cricket crazy Indians for the first time was seen so euphoric on Monday morning, as they expected a couple of Oscars. British Indians in the UK, Dharavi slums, the shanty township of Mumbai, a village in Uttar Pradesh and almost the entire Bollywood waited in expectation, glued to their TV sets. They burst into celebrations as one by one, their heroes, the actors of the British Indian film and the music maestro, A R Rahman bagged the top awards in the world of entertainment.

British actress Kate Winslett also won the Oscar after having missed it almost five times earlier.

‘Smile Pinki’, a short documentary on a cleft-lipped Indian girl in Uttar Pradesh directed

by American director Megan Mylan, won the Oscar for the Best Documentary (Short).

-/1% /. 0!'%

!..6

&1/.3 642( !.%2( (%$%+!1 4").! ,) "!#+ 2(/3/2( /"/ !*)5!,! !.!6 %1-!.3 ((%$! !.$ !.') !.%2( /.+!1

!..6

/6,% !.$

4").! ,)

/6,%

Triumph of Lokpal Bill Annaji breaking fast after 12 days was a relief. Agreeing to terms of parliament shows that Anna ji’s campaign is not for recreation, publicity stunt or to cause anarchy: nor to undermine democracy, against parliament, person or party.

Notably there was no violence, arson, deaths, bodily harm, break down of law and order, indicating an astounding civilised maturity of India. The Sanskars speak out loud to so called civilised countries where damaging behaviour is normal.

Fight must go on with same fervour to see that Lokpal bill is passed rapidly and not allowed to be on back burner for another 40 years. Standing committee may make changes, but should not tone down severity of the bill. With due respect, Prime minister and judiciary must be included in the bill, after measuring beneficial effect of catching the small fish.

In the spirit of Gandhi-giri persecution attitude must be avoided. Culprit must be motivated to repent and not given chance to repeat corruption. All future propaganda must be on line of benefit to poor rather than catch and punish ethos, though law must allowed to act impartially and be transparent.

Lokpal bill can rejuvenate the nation as has happened in Hong Kong and Singapore.

Ramesh Jhalla Via Email

Visit our website: www.abplgroup.com

Page -19-21

Health Watch

Bhupendra M Gandhi Via Email

!

UK

Asian Voice - Saturday 3rd September 2011

Girl dies after rubber ball lodges in her throat

Kiran Mir

A seven-year-old girl choked to death in a freak accident after a small rubber ball bounced into her mouth, lodging in her throat.

Kiran Mir, from Saltley, Birmingham, was playing in the family home when the tragedy happened. Her father Shahid Mir, 45, who works as a manager at voluntary organisation East Birmingham Community Forum, explained how he and his wife thumped her on the back and performed the Heimlich manoeuvre in an attempt to dislodge the

Mr Mir and Shakeela Bibi

ball but it remained stuck.

His daughter died two days later in hospital.

Mr Mir said that his daughter’s death had “killed all my happiness”.

He said that he and his wife Shakeela Bibi, aged 34, and their son and two daughters had all been left devastated.

In a statement read out to the inquest, Mrs Bibi said that the day before the accident, which happened on March 1, Kiran “was bouncing the ball between her hand and the floor. I suddenly heard Kiran

cough and immediately looked towards her.”

She said that she tried to make her daughter vomit but, realising that matters had gone beyond her control, she phoned her husband who called an ambulance and returned home.

Returning a verdict of accidental death, Aidan Cotter, the Birmingham Coroner, said: “I cannot believe there is a single parent who has not had to fish something out of a child’s mouth. It was a completely freak accident.”

Doctor cleared of obscene acts charges An anaesthetist has been cleared for a second time of allegations that he used the hands of sedated patients to perform obscene acts on himself.

Dr Narendra Sharma was cleared by a panel of heath watchdogs two years after he was acquitted of criminal charges for the same allegations.

The General Medical Council hearing related to Dr Sharma’s work as an anaesthetist at the Marie Stopes International Clinic in Fallowfield, Manchester.

The GMC claimed he took hold of patients’ hands during abortion procedures, and exposed himself in the operating theatre.

But the panel, chaired

by Dr Alan Montgomery, ruled that seven specific

allegations made against him could not be proved.

The 11-day hearing in Manchester brings to an end a long-running legal battle on the part of Dr Sharma, pictured, who claimed at the GMC that he could not find trousers to fit him.

Dr Sharma, a father-oftwo, told the hearing he had secured his trousers with medical tape because they did not fit but a kicking patient caused them to partially fall.

The allegations were first reported to police by staff at the clinic on Wynnstay Grove in April 2008.

Dr Sharma, who lives in Bowdon, near Altrincham, was charged with three counts of causing a person to engage in

YOUR VOICE PM and Swiss accounts Gandhiji struggled towards Quit India Movement. Anna also assembled so many people to fulfil three conditions against government and its corrupt ministers. My worry is how to get the black money from Swiss bank which is such a huge number.

Ram Jethmalani a couple of months ago made a statement that per family in India can get 2.5 lakhs of rupees if the amount is obtained and disclosed.

Can Manmohan Singh ask the Swiss authorities to send the list of deposits for further action?

How do you distribute large amount of money?

How do you invest and whether the culprits will be punished. How much opposition and challenges

will the PM face from his colleagues? He has to be harsh and take national interest in mind.

Ramesh Moradabadi Southall

Memorable Meghani Mahotsav I attended the program and it was really nice. All the arrangements were perfect.

Initially I thought, there will be a few people only, thinking not people would be interested in Meghani. But the hall was full and people were standing. I sincerely thank all the people who have made this program a memorable event.

Hitesh Hingu Via Email

sexual activity without their consent.

He denied all the charges and was cleared by a jury after a trial at Manchester Crown Court.

The GMC hearing, which ended this week, followed the criminal trial.

Be aware of smuggled tobacco A new survey has found that half (50%) of corner shopkeepers in London are aware of smuggled tobacco being sold in their area. The survey was carried out by the Tobacco Retailers Alliance, which represents 26,000 independent shopkeepers across the UK. Shopkeeper Debbie Corris, the South East spokeswoman for the Tobacco Retailers Alliance commented: “Smokers need to know that if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is.

If you buy from smugglers, you don’t know what you’re going to get.

The cigarettes may turn out to be fake, have rat droppings or saw dust in them and be pretty unpleasant to smoke.”

The black market in smuggled and counterfeit tobacco already causes a loss to the Treasury of 8.2 million each day, and deprives legitimate businesses of trade.

11

Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy to visit Royal Albert Hall This autumn, the sounds of India will fill the Royal Albert Hall, as Bollywood music royalty ShankarEhsaan-Loy appear in the UK for the very first time.

India’s most celebrated film music trio have provided countless soundtracks for many highly-acclaimed Bollywood films, from ‘Kal Ho Naa Ho’ and ‘Dil Chahta Hai’ to ‘My Name is Khan’ and ‘Kabhi Alvida Naa Kehna’. Their most recent film, ‘Zindagi Na Milegi Dobara’, is currently showing in cinemas and has entered the top ten biggest Bollywood films of all time.

They appear in London’s Royal Albert Hall on Sunday 18th September. The evening will begin with Karan Pangali & the KSPARK Dancers kicking off the show. Having already taken the UK’s Asian dance scene by storm, Karan & the KPSARK Dancers are renowned for their culturally enriching, unforgettable, one-of-akind performances.

Audiences can expect spectacular choreogra-

phy, explosive energy and stunning costumes as seen before at the Indian International Film Awards, Sadler’s Wells, Wembley Arena, and most recently on Hrithik Roshan’s international Star TV dance competition, ‘Just Dance’.

Captivating audiences of all ages, perhaps the secret of ShankarEhsaan-Loy’s success lies in their ability to simultaneously create interest among younger audiences (who tend to be more interested in western music and international influences) while incorporating the best of traditional Indian music.

They compose for exotic instrumental palettes, invite up-and-coming vocalists from India’s immensely popular TV talent shows to perform on their soundtracks, and base many of their songs on classical r gas (melodic patterns), thus bringing together the best of old and new, east and west.

Adding further variety to the evening, a specially-commissioned audio-

visual interpretation of Rabindranath Tagore’s ‘Gitanjali’ will be presented after the interval.

Celebrating its twentieth year, the Asian Music Circuit has established itself as the leading promoter of Asian music in the UK. The AMC champions the wonderful variety of music in Asia, by producing both high-calibre concerts and tours and organising education and outreach projects for adults and young people.

‘We’ve put together a really diverse programme to celebrate our twentieth birthday in style’, said CEO of the Asian Music Circuit, Viram Jasani.

‘There’s something which everyone can enjoy – fans of South Asian culture, Bollywood film buffs, Indians living in the UK, and of course anybody looking for something a little different this autumn in London.

Whichever part of India you come from or are interested in, there is an element in Asia Rocks! that everyone will enjoy young and not-soyoung!’.

Brave shopkeeper chases off gang of armed raiders A fearless shopkeeper chased a gang of gun-toting thugs out of his shop despite having a sawn-off shot gun pointed at his head.

Shocking CCTV images show the moment a Ranjit Singh Dhami (pictured) fought back against two balaclava wearing attackers in Birmingham.

Instead of handing over his takings, brave father-of-two Ranjit charged around the counter and forced the pair out of the door.

He said: ‘They messed with the wrong shop keeper.’

Ranjit, 41, who runs Frankley Convenience and News store in Birmingham, was alone in

the shop on Monday when they armed raiders barged in.

‘I have worked hard over 16 years to build my business up, I’d be damned if I let somebody walk in here and take the money.

‘I said to them that I wasn’t going to give anything over. They threw a bag at me and told me to fill it but I refused. I just called their bluff.’

Within minutes police arrived, but following an extensive search of the area, neither of the offenders were found.

A manhunt to track down the duo is now underway by West Midlands Police.

Ranjit has also thanked the his customers

who have not been put off by the terrifying incident in the suburban area.

He added: ‘The local people have been brilliant.

In my time here I have watched three generations grow up - they are not customers but family and friends.

‘I’m really grateful to them for their support. if we all stick together we can root out the badness in society.’

12

MEDIA WATCH

Asian Voice - Saturday 3rd September 2011

Scrutator’s India can be likened to a revolving stage. Certain scenes are disturbing, appalling even, such as the telecom scam, but there are also vistas of hope and uplift. According to a front-page Hindu newspaper report (August 21), the new Tamil Nadu AIDMK government headed

by Chief Minister Jayalalitha is committed to the makeover of the disused state Assembly-Secretariat complex in Chennai to a state-of-the art specialty hospital-cum medical college, the former to be comparable to those at the All India Institute of Medical Sciences (AIIMS) in New Delhi, which the legendary management guru Site of the upcoming medical complex in Chennai Peter Drucker described as the best in the jump from the country's current world. Two such centres of excellence in India would surely GDP of 1.73 trillion at the last do the country proud fiscal ending March 31. India's Just to give readers a sense of what the AIIMS is about, growth has been recent we turn to a Times of India report (August 11) which relates achieved on the back of rapid how AIIMS surgeons conducted an operation on the hernia investment and increasing consumer confidence. of the spinal cord of a 65 year-old patient. The man was “The Indian economy will brought to the hospital with the whole of his spinal cord become a $5.6 trillion economy almost protruding out of its covering (dura) through a small by fiscal 2030, at current market cavity. The patient had started developing progressive paraprice, from $1.73 trillion in fisparesis with sensory loss in both limbs. cal 2010-11,” said Dun & “This is an extremely rare condition called the hernias of India Senior Bradstreet the spinal cord. There are less than 10 cases reported worldEconomist Arun Singh. wide....He is recovering well,” said the neurosurgeon Dr The rate of investment, conSarat Chandra. “The incision was made carefully terminated sumer expenditure and infracord and the portion was then freed along with the spinal structure spending will be the driving force behind the councord. Following this the dura was repaired to avoid further try's economic growth over the problems.” next 10 years, said Mr Singh, Such are standards that will be expected of the upcoming adding that these conclusions hospital in Chennai.

Cloud computing poised for growth Cloud computing in India is expected to take-off in India with the new technology wave.

It will create 100,000 jobs, says a recent study. “Of this projected total cloud computing market of $4.4 billion in India by 2015, private cloud will account for $3.5 billion, generating an additional 100,000 jobs and save about 50 per cent of the cost of IT operations for Indian enterprise,” said the study by Zinnov Management Consulting and global IT firm EMC Corporation.

In cloud computing, multiple servers are are used as a single platform under a secure environment with access to a range of applications and tools for reducing the cost of IT operations. Cloud computing is emerging as the next big IT service for its pay-as-you-go model, which eliminates capital intensive investment by companies, especially for small and medium enterprises.

The annual expenditure on cloud computing by ITR and back office firms, telecoms, manufacturing and government bodies is set to increase to 8.2 per cent in the next five years from the 1.4 per cent today.

“There will be an increased preference for cloud adoption over the next five years in India.

The total cloud ,market, which was about $400 million in 2010, is expected to grow by a whopping 60 per cent annually,” said Zinnov Chief Executive Pari Natrajan in the report. Its findings are based on a survey of information officers and IT decision-makers in India across industry in the period from January to May 2011.

Mobile phones

were part of a D&B report – titled - “India 2020”, which was released last week.

India's mobile subscriber base reached 840.28 million last May, with the Anil Ambani-led Reliance Communications alone adding 2.5 million subscribers.

According to the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI), the wireless user base grew 1.61 per cent with an addition of 13.5 million subscribers, from 826 million in April.

With this, the total number of telephone subscribers, including land line holders, touched 874.68 million. Overall telephony density in India stands at 73.11 per 100 people.

The total number of Reliance Communications subscribers number 141.16 million Bharti Airtel and Vodafone have subscriber bases of $167.07 million and $139.43 million respectively.

Meanwhile, payments and banking transactions through mobile phones in India are expected to touch $350 billion by 2015, according to the Boston Consulting Group, a leading global management firm. This will provide banks, telecom operators device makers and service providers an opportunity to earn incomes through fees totaling some $4.5 billion.

“It is far less costly to offer banking and payment services using mobile technology than to build new bank branches in a country that, outside of the major cities, is still largely rural,” said Boston Consulting Group.

Economy projection Quoting research firm Dun & Bradstreet, NDTV online (August 17) said India was all set to become a $5.6 trillion economy by 2020, a three-fold

will enter service early next year.

INS Satpura is equipped with a suite of indigenous and foreign weapon systems, including Israeli Barak surface-to-air missiles etc (The Hindu August 20) .

The newspaper's Russian correspondent Vladimir Radyuhin (August 18) the public debut of the Sukhoi T-50 Fifth Generation stealth aircraft at the Moscow air show. This warplane, which rivals America's F22, is a joint Russian-Indian project. The Russian version of the plane is a single seater, the a double seater.

Indian Productio is scheduled to begin in 2014-15.

On the sidelines of the air show BrahMos Aerospace signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Moscow Aviation Institute and NPO Corporation to establish a centre of excellence technologies for high-speed aircraft, and missiles. Speaking on the occasion, the BrahMos CEO Dr Sivathanu Pillai said: “It is a remarkable step for BrahMos, NPOM and MAI to come together and work in this field.”

Protecting India

India-Russia cooperation

The world is no fit place for chickens. Peace is the slogan, war, alas, the usual practice.

Having learned its lessons, India looks to its defences, prepared for any contingency in an uncertain neighbourhood. The Indian Army successfully conducted user trial of its BrahMos Block III 2.8 mach supersonic cruise missile which has the capability to strike inaccessible targets in hillocks.

The BrahMos missiles are part of Army, Navy and Air Force for-

Indian Ambassador to Russia, Ajai Malhotra, in an interview to the Moscow-based publication Russia and India Report (August 22) said: “The unique India-Russia partnership extends beyond close and regular political interaction at the summit and other levels to deep-seated, long-term cooperation in such key areas as space, defence, nuclear energy, and science and technology. We will continue to promote coopera-

INS Satpura

mations. A hypersonic variation is under preparation (Indian Express August 12).

Meanwhile, the Navy's strike capability received a boost with the commissioning, by Admiral Nirmal Verma, of INS Satpura last week. It is a stealth frigate, the second of the three-ship Project 17 Shivalik class. Built at Mumbai's state-owned Mazgaon Dockyard, the Satpura is 143 metres long with a 6,200tonne displacement. The third Shivalik vessel INS Sahyadri

tion in these sectors as a matter of high importance. We shall also seek to further expand trade and investment in priority sectors such as oil and gas, pharmaceuticals and information technology......Cooperation would also be enhanced in such fields as biotechnology, medical sciences, agro-chemicals and meteorologyy and enhanced peoplee-to-people exchanges between artistes, entrepreneurs and others.”

Indian market Russian defence analyst Konstantin Makiyenko dwelt on the significance of the Indian market for the Russian defence industry and how best to handle challenges from competitors such as the US, Israel, France and Germany. Joint projects involving risk-sharing was the best route for Russia, he opined.

He said the Fifth Generation stealth Fighter Aircraft (FGFA) was the latest example of costsharing and design cooperation,

Konstantin Makiyenko

but the 'Gold Card' for such a venture was the BrahMos supersonic missile, the force multiplier in service with the three wings of the Indian military.

“Perhaps the project's most valuable result is the accumulated experience of resolving difficult legislative, organisational and financial problems. In the future, this experience can be used for new joint programmes, including the FGFA project.”

Sukhoi upgrade Another contributor (August 23) told of the Irkut company's statement that, as the manufacturer of the Sukhoi 30MKI warplane, which is the mainstay of the Indian Air Force, that the aircraft's forthcoming upgrade would enhance its capabilities to fifth generation standard. Irkut chief Alexei Fyodorov was speaking at the Moscow MAKS air show. The plane will become a platform for the deployment of heavy weapons iincluding the BrahMos, he said. Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL) produces the aircraft under licence. Details of the upgrade are to be discussed at the next Indian-Russian meeting on defence technology cooperation.

Meanwhile, HAL chairman Ashok Nayak, who visited the MAKS air show said, apropos of his company's participation in the design of the T50 Fifth Generation Fighter Aircraft (FGFA), it was “the right thing to do.” India and Russia affixed their signatures to this co-production deal in December 2010 during President Dmitry Medvedev's visit to Delhi for the annual India-Russia. Summit.

Each partner is expected to order 250-300 of these FGFAs for their respective air arms.

UK

Asian Voice - Saturday 3rd September 2011

Political Sketchbook Alpesh Patel’s

The Politics of Language I write, as mentioned earlier in this paper, to you from Verona, Italy. Here there sits a statue of an Englishman, William Shakepeare, who set Romeo and Juliet here.

Over three hundred years ago he wrote 38 plays and over 150 poems. Yet they have been translated into every major living language and performed more often than those of any other playwright.

When we hosted in Oxford for the Oxford Center for Hindu Studies Amitabh Bachchaan, India’s pre-eminent actor, more successful than any actor in history, it was Shakespeare’s folios we showed Mr Bachchaan.

A small town in Italy, formed two thousand years ago, bustles with people all because an Englishman who never visited it, set a play there.

Mr Prime Minister, when you consider whether immigrants into Britain should have to learn English – remember this – the language of Shakespeare needs no laws to protect it. So does British Society need protection through making English compulsory?

It is too easy to turn to

Government to solve all our problems. It leads to a lack of personal responsibility.

As Einstein noted, ‘Laws alone cannot secure freedom of expression; in order that every man present his views without penalty there must be a spirit of tolerance in the entire population.’

A couple of years ago I took my grandmother to the doctor. The doctor before taking some blood asked my grandmother some questions. I translated. The doctor asked my grandmother, ‘how long have you been in this country, and still not learnt the language?’ Well to that doctor I pointed out, my grandmother’s grandson speaks enough English good enough for the both of us, and my grandmother’s husband, my grandfather, fought in a war to ensure that doctor was speaking English not German.

So Prime Minister, do not make us immigrants and children of immigrants feel unwelcome. We have an obligation to treat this country, even though not the land of our ancestors, as a home and the people within it as respected fellow guests, but the country has an obligation in accepting us to

reciprocate in ensuring we are not sent messages of unwelcome.

Just as I would want Gujarati children to know and speak Gujarati, I would not want a law in favour of it. And if you think you can legislate for integration, then you do not have Einstein’s intelligence…but then again, of course few do.

If there were a law that prohibit people hating Britain and committing terror acts then I would be in favour of it…oh wait…there is. So why the language law? Because you find it inconvenient when people speak other languages – yet are in a European Union?

Then why not a law on accents. When the Scots speak English, I can’t understand a word. So maybe a law on their accents then please too, after all how else will they integrate?

Remember, ‘the law, in its majestic equality, forbids the rich as well as the poor to sleep under bridges, to beg in the streets, and to steal bread’. In other words, a law is not fair simply because it is applies to all.

As Shakespeare wrote, ‘first let us kill all the lawyers’.

13

Body discovered on explosion site A body has been found in the remains of a building on Narborough Road, Leicester, which was destroyed by an explosion on Bank Holiday Monday.

It was discovered during site clearance work at about 4.30pm, however at this stage police are not in a position to give further details about the circumstance of the find or to identify the body.

Emergency services were called to reports of an explosion at around 2.23am on Monday, 29th August in and upon atten-

dance it was found that a building, which was being used as a kebab shop, had been demolished.

The cause of the explosion is currently being investigated by Leicestershire Fire and Rescue Service and police. However, at this stage, the incident is believed to be suspicious and a criminal investigation is underway.

A number of adjoining properties have been evacuated as a safety precaution.

Officers are asking

anyone who was in the area at the time of the incident and thinks they may have seen something that could help with the investigation to get in touch.

Six people have so far been arrested in connection with the incident – two men and four women.

Anyone with any information is asked to contact L e i c e s t e r s h i r e Constabulary on Leicester (0116) 222 2222 and quote incident 103 or call Crimestoppers which is anonymous on 0800 555 111.

266,000 asylum seekers stay in Britain illegally A quarter of a million failed asylum seekers who arrived under Labour party are still here thanks to a “shambolic” system that costs the taxpayer almost 2 million a day, a study has found.

The full scale of the last government’s handling of the asylum system is laid bare last week in a detailed review by the campaign group Migration Watch UK. It suggests that about 266,000 cases could have ignore the rulings and stayed here unlawfully.

The survey found that, of the 660,000 asylum cases dealt with between 1997 and 2010, just 40 per cent or 243,000 resulted in

some form of shelter being granted.

However, of the 417,000 decisions to be refused protection, only 151,540 – or 36 per cent – ended in someone leaving or being removed from the country, with the rest either fighting removal or staying illegally.

It means that just one in four asylum decisions made under the last gov-

ernment resulted in a removal.

The study, based on Home Office statistics, concluded that between 1999 and 2010, the asylum system in general cost tax payers at least 8.5 billion.

However, the bill could be nearer 10 billion once the extra years and estimates of legal costs are included.

14

Asian Voice - Saturday 3rd September 2011

Death Announcement

Late Kiritkumar Raojibhai Patel 1st July 1943 to 29th August 2011 We regret to announce the untimely demise of our dear beloved father, Shri Kiritkumar Raojibhai Patel at 1.04AM on Monday 29th August 2011 at Watford General Hospital.

He was taken ill with a chest infection and admitted to hospital on 27th July. Despite pulling through the main infection, he developed a secondary infection late last week and eventually his heart gave way as doctors were about to put him back on a ventilator. He fought valiantly till his last breath.

The funeral will take place on Saturday 3rd September 2011 at 10AM at Golders Green Crematorium, Hoop Lane, London NW11 with final Darshan and eulogies.

We are hosting prayers are between 8 & 9PM daily at our residence, 57 Oakleigh Park North, London N20.

The light has gone from our lives, we have lost everything Mihir & Rikin

mihir@amanoil.com, rikinkpatel1@gmail.com, (R) 020 84458245

UK

Asian Voice - Saturday 3rd September 2011

15

f ashionista

by Shree For more stories visit www.scribbledesk.com

Short Story by Neha Garg

Be a Fashionista, Be You! If you have any questions or a story or a new style to share with us, please write to Shree at aveditorial@abplgroup.com

Tanglefoot To The Rescue Once upon a time, in FaerieRealm, all the faeries sat moping. Every face, be it Brownie, Pixie, Faerie or the Faerie Queen herself, was sad. There wasn't a single smile to be seen anywhere.

It was then that Tanglefoot the Pixie arrived. He had been away on holiday and had only just returned.

'Hello Everyone. I am BACK!' said Tanglefoot, gleefully.

A very few faces looked back at him. Even fewer managed a smile.

Tanglefoot was very surprised. Whatever had happened to all his friends?

'Silky, why is everyone so sad?' said Tanglefoot, shaking his best friend by the shoulder.

'It's the lake, Tanglefoot,' said Silky with tears in her eyes. 'It is drying up. Soon, there will be no water left in the lake and the Mermaids will all die.'

Tanglefoot was horrified. Why, the lake had been fine a week ago.

Whatever had happened to it now? If it dried up then, as Silky said, the Mermaids and the fishes that lived in the lake would all die. That would not do at all. He had to do something to save them.

'Let me have a look,' said Tanglefoot and set off in the direction of the lake. Silky unfurled her wings and flew next to him.

When they reached the lake, Tanglefoot saw the damage. The weeds

and plants usually at the very bottom were now poking out of the half empty lake. The fish had all crowded into the deepest end of the lake and the Mermaids were sitting on the rocks on the furthest bank, sunning themselves.

Upon seeing them, one Mermaid dived into the water and began swimming towards them.

Tanglefoot waited politely until the Mermaid reached them.

'Hello Tanglefoot,' said the Mermaid, shaking her hair out of her eyes. 'I am glad you are here. You are the only one who can help us. It was the Goblins!'

Tanglefoot was shocked.

'It was the Goblins,' said the Mermaid again, now climbing onto a rock jutting out of the bank.

'They sneaked up last night and tried to make off with the Queen Mermaid.'

Tanglefoot suddenly understood. This had all been a trick of the Goblins' to kidnap the Mermaid Queen. They had used their magic to dry the lake up so that they could find the Queen more easily.

Tanglefoot felt very angry. Why those sneaky, rotten Goblins. They will have to be taught a lesson.

He suddenly had an idea. He whistled loudly and Norg the Dragon

showed up.

'Norg, would you be so kind as to stand guard here tonight?' asked Tanglefoot.

Norg nodded.

Grinning to himself, Tanglefoot turned to the Mermaid.

'Don't worry dear Mermaid. Norg will stand guard here tonight, in case the Goblins decide to come back.'

Tanglefoot and Silky hid behind a bush to watch. The Goblins were scared of the Dragon and what's more, they had no idea that the Dragon could breathe fire again.

This should be fun.

Tanglefoot smiled to himself.

That night, when the Goblins came to have another try at finding the Mermaid Queen, what a shock they got! Norg the Dragon was lying in wait. They howled and they shouted, running for their lives. They ran all the way back to GoblinLand.

Laughing, Tanglefoot and Silky emerged from behind the bush.

Tanglefoot took his wand out and cast a spell that filled the lake up to the brim with water again.

The Mermaid jumped back in the water joyfully and waved her thanks.

Bye bye summer Take a tissue and wipe your eyes but summer is almost over. No more beer gardens, no more almost-tans, no more legitimate reasons to buy a 99; it’s done. While the grief might be weighing heavy, you need to grab a hold of yourself and start to look forward instead.

You need some autumnal clothes. It can be hard to make the big switch from sandals and sundresses to booties and bombers.The transition is best done gradually. Your sanity and your purse will thank you.

Firstly, those shorts are going to have to go.

Get a skirt. Or wash and iron that midi you bought a couple of months ago.

It’s ladylike enough to be appropriate for the office and feminine enough for a cosy dinner and drinks.

A Musical Remembrance of Spy Princess

Don’t throw away your bright-coloured pair of trousers yet either. A red pair of jeans will prove invaluable in adding some colour to your autumn-winter look which generally tends to go too dark. Team it with Chelsea boots, the short 60’s inspired ones that look great with everything from shorts on a warmer fall day to dresses and blazers... and a chunky knit.

Talking of knits, this year it’s all about the chunkiness of it. Forget mumsy cardigans and go bobbly popcorn for knits...the bigger the better. If you dan’t however fancy the yeti-look at all, you can never go wrong with cashmere. All the warmth without the bulk, Zara currently has them in a range of colours for approx 60 a pop. The military inspired outerwear that was so big last winter, is showing signs of coming back to life. If you didn’t already last year, get yourself a khakigreen vest to wear over dresses, cinched with a belt and to team with skinny jeans and basic tees.

Also, the most expensive and enduring of outerwear, the leather jacket, has seen a revival in recent years. There are many options including the shearling and biker jackets. The shearling jacket is very on trend but will likely date a lot faster than a good quality biker style jacket. A Biker jacket is structured and

therefore slimming. Make sure you get a jacket that will give you nice squared shoulders, but remember to consider that your shoulders still need to be in proportion with the rest of you! And go easy on the hardware detailing!

Another piece that I think is essential to any cooler months wardrobe is a great silk blouse.

Whether you wear it solo on the warmer days of fall or layer a blazer on top of it once it gets a bit chillier, a versatile blouse is a key item when transitioning to fall. Brands like Equipment and J. Crew are reinstating the importance of a classic blouse, making it easy to find one within any budget. Both neutrals and bold colours/patterns are on my list and I’m convinced that if I start collecting them now, I’ll be wearing them for years to come.

Now, to cheer yourself up, go have the last (or maybe second-last) ice-cream of the year.

Why worry about the waistline when God created layers?!

Sudoku

Madan Gopal Singh performing at the concert

Noor Inayat Khan descendent of Mysore dynasty was remembered in a graceful musical event on Thursday.

Shrabani Basu, writer of Noor’s biography welcomed all the guests, was overwhelmed with the response. She said it is very applauding to have such a warm acceptance by all on a weekday. The show began with the dance performance of Felicia Norton, known as an extraordinary dancer with soft and luxurious moves. Her expressions pantomimed Babuli, (Noor’s childhood name) alive on the stage.

Noor’s father Hazrat

Inayat Khan was a sufi saint who introduced spiritualism through music to the western world.

Indian sufi singer Madan Gopal Singh shared the stage with a guitarist and a Violinist from America, London’s own percussionist Tavlin Singh.

Audience swayed with the beats of the first song of the night “Tere Ishak Nachaya” written by Bulleh Shah and remained in the same momentum till the end.

Besides the deep and pure essence of sufi voice and poetry someone who marked the presence was the percussionist Tavlin and

his duet. Both successfully ensued the cologne of Sufi ambience.

Gurinder Chadda and acting high commissioner of India Rajesh N Prasad also took delight of the evening.

Madan Gopal Singh has sung a song written by London based poet Amarjit Chandan also who listened this from the first row. When the music and words grooved together to create an out of the world atmosphere one of the mystic presentation started with tribute to Guru Rabindranath Tagore, to imagine of Beatles, to Kabir Bani and ended with Bulleh

Radha Abw

Disclaimer: This puzzle is created solely by Radha abw with the help of a pen and paper, understanding the basics of the subject at hand, and any resemblance to a similar puzzle is purely unintended and coincidental.

Shah’s “Bullah ki jana main kuan?”

A complete euphoria of divine sufism has illuminated the faces of audience’ coming out of the venue.

On the event the writer and the founder of the trust signed the books sold on the spot. It could be categorised

as a memorable and very remarkable event in the series of remembering the British’ spy princess.

Shrabani told AV that she is more concern to tell the story to the youngsters on the account of she visits schools and colleges where she marks the page faded in

history books to remember as pride of community. It was a coincidence that the word famous fictional detective Sherlock Holmes used to live in Baker Street where this event took place to pay homage to a real detective of WW II.

16

BoLLYwood

Asian Voice Saturday 3rd September 2011

Haripriya's rain connection

Kollywood actress Haripriya believes that she has a strong connection with rain.

How else would you explain the fact that it always rained when the actress was shooting for her portions for her Tamil film, starring Cheran and Prasanna in the lead.

Says an amused Haripriya, "It all started when I was shooting for my first scene in a church. It started pouring heavily and it almost

became impossible for us to shoot. And then, it rained heavily again when I had to shoot another of my scene in an orphanage. Another time, I was shooting for a montage song in Puducherry, and it started raining cats and dogs. Rain has nothing to do with the film, and after sometime, it got spooky. I thought there was a deep bond between rain and me."

‘Avan Ivan’ heroine to star with Amitabh

Madhushalini who was seen in Bala’s “Avan Ivan” has signed her next project “Department” in Hindi being directed by Ramgopal Varma.

According to sources, “Department” will be a final part of “Sathya” and “Company” and is set against the police and underworld nexus.

Madhushalini’s role will be pivotal and would be that of a female gangster alongside Amitabh Bachchan, Sanjay Dutt and Rana Daggubaati.

Talking about her role, Madhushalini says, “My character is highly daring, ambitious and will stop at nothing to get her way. I am also nice as long as people keep me in good humor and would turn very dangerous if I am antagonized.” She is very excited about the prospect of doing a film by Ramgopal Verma and also to star along side the legendary Amitabh Bachchan.

Yuvan to tie the knot!

Here's the latest buzz on music composer Yuvan Shankar Raja is getting married in the first week of September. Regarding this, he said, "I cannot confirm or deny it. I'll be making an official announcement in the near future." Sources say that the girl, whose name is supposedly Shilpa, is a doctor. "Yuvan is extremely close to her and has been seeing her for quite a

Prachi now ready for an image makeover Tired of playing sedate roles, Prachi Desai is all set to loosen up and let her hair down.

Not only is she ready for a complete makeover, but she's already going into the fun zone big time.

Prachi has lately been struggling with bad press. And the reason for it, according to sources, is Prachi's sudden transition from television to cinema.

Ask Prachi about her relationship status with Ekta, and the girl turns diplomatic. “So much has been said about our soured friendship. But the fact is, we are still the same. Nothing has changed.”

Prachi is at a crucial stage in her career where she is ready for an image makeover. Tired of her prim and conservative image, she is all set to go all-out for a wardrobe revamp, even if it means losing some of her inhibitions.

Says the girl, “I have a sober image and I am proud of it. I wouldn't want to exchange that image just to be considered sexy. Even when I got my big Bollywood break in ‘Rock On’ and then ‘Life Partner’ I played sweet goody goody roles.

But now in my forthcoming films I am all set for a makeover. I am ready to do what the script requires. But I've my inbuilt censor which stops me from doing certain things.”

No time to meet Tom Cruise, says Sonam Kapoor

When people are ready to go to any extent to meet Hollywood heartthrob Tom Cruise, Bollywood actress Sonam Kapoor doesn’t regret her missed chance to meet the actor.

Sonam was in America shooting when she had the chance to meet the actor, who’s her dad Anil Kapoor’s co-star in “Mission Impossible 4.”

“Well, I was busy shooting, while they were in LA, so I just couldn’t get time off to drop in on the sets there,” she adds. “Anyway, I’m more of a Leonardo DiCaprio fan than Tom’s. Wouldn’t want to miss meeting him for anything,” she laughs.

Sonam is probably one of the few actors who has avoided being linked up with any of her co-stars. ‘A blessing’, according to the star, who says that she prefers it that way too.

“I think the chemistry’s better on screen if the pair is not involved off it,” she says. However, Sonam does admit to being good friends with most of her co-stars, including Shahid Kapoor with whom she will soon be seen in “Mausam.”

Though there were reports that Sonam and her co-star Shahid were not in good terms during the production of Mausam, Sonam said that there was never any issue between them to begin with.

Saving my hottest kiss for my wife: Shahid

while," says a source.

"However, he has not introduced her to even his close friends as he wants to do that only at the wedding." This would be the music director's second marriage as his earlier marriage with Sujaya ended in a divorce.

Yuvan, the son of maestro Ilaiyaraaja, is currently one of the much sought-after composers in the industry.

You have kissed your four leading ladies Priyanka, Kareena, Anushka and Sonam. Which lip lock according to you was the hottest? For this question, Shahid says “I have kissed all four on screen. However, I am very uncomfortable shooting for a kissing scene, since there are a lot of people watching you on the sets. So, my hottest kiss is reserved for the one I shall marry.

Shahid Kapoor gets talking to the media about locking lips with co-stars, enjoying his single status and getting back with ex-flames.

Gulshan Grover wins best actor award at NY fest Actor Gulshan Grover has been honoured with the best actor international award at the New York City International Film Festival (NYCIFF) for his performance in the Hollywood film 'Desperate Endeavours'. In the film, directed by FrenchAlgerian director Sam Khassa, Gulshan plays spiritual leader Dada Bhagwan, the man who went to America in the 1970s and enlightened the lives of the Indians there as well as the Americans.

'Gulshan Grover's performance as the Indian holy man is so compelling, sincere and has an aura that the entire jury unanimously voted for Gulshan Grover,” said Roberto Rizzo, CEO and founder of New York City International Film Festival.

Aamir snubs Shah Rukh Khan again The cold war between Aamir Khan and Shah Rukh Khan shows no signs of thawing. The two are well known for taking potshots at each other, especially when either of their films is up for release. Now, the rivalry has been taken a notch up.

Aamir has apparently refused to be a part of UTV Star's show Live My Life, which tracks a celeb's life for a day, simply because it is being produced by SRK's Red Chillies Entertainment!

"They wanted to kickstart the show with Aamir because the concept of the show has been generating a lot of attention, and obviously a big name would give it that much of a boost.

Aamir is doing so well these days that he couldn't have been a better name to commence the show with. But unfortunately things did not work out," says a source. Interestingly, no one thought Aamir would refuse the show as he has a very good relationship with the company.

In fact, some of the actor's biggest films have been co-produced by UTV. But apparently after initially agreeing to be part of Live My Life, the deal fell through when he learnt of SRK's involvement.

The last time we saw the actors on one platform was at the premiere of Aamir's “Three Idiots” in 2009, where both of them maintained that all is well.

But, clearly, with all three Khans (the third being Salman of course) being at loggerheads when it comes to films, it's not a surprise that it trickles down to other areas of work, too.

Money can’t change John Abraham’s principles John Abraham won’t abandon his principles for money and adamant on earning his living exclusively as an actor.

Reportedly, John was offered Rs 60 million to perform at a high profile wedding in Dubai and Delhi. However, the actor turned it down the offer due to his principles.

A source said, "With his academic background, there are certain dos and don'ts that he has in his life. This is definitely a don't. Apart from marriage and birthday parties, John also does not attend award functions. He is not arrogant about it but he does this in all humility.

He is not trying to make a statement through his actions but this is what he firmly believes in. He is very confident about his work, acting and the films he does and he wants to entertain only through his films."

When contacted John Abraham said, "For me it will be unjust to tell the media where the offer came from but these kinds of offers have been coming to me ever since I started my film career. The only difference over the years has been that with the appearances, the money has gone up every year. While lots of people tell me that I am stupid to lose so much money, I still refuse to do it."

When asked about his self-imposed rules, he said, "I never perform as a principle at weddings and birthdays. I don't even go to award functions and I don't endorse alcohol and cigarettes. There are a lot of don'ts that I have."

Minissha Lamba receives threat calls The bubbly Bollywood actress Minissha Lamba became a victim of threat calls recently. Speaking about the incident, her spokesperson said, "Yes, Minissha has been receiving threat calls from unknown numbers. The mystery callers don't want her to attend an IndoAmerican cultural event in New York." A source close to her states, "when she received the first spate of calls, she answered the phone and both callers said the same thing 'Don't attend the event in New York'. Now the actress is in two minds whether to heed the calls or to go for the event."

Asian Voice - Saturday 3rd September 2011

17

Ranbir Kapoor learns Bengali Ranbir Kapoor had to ape a rockstar for Imtiaz Ali's film. Then, the actor had to train to essay a deaf and dumb character for Anurag Basu's “Barfee.” And now, we hear that Ranbir is busy learning Bengali for his role as Kishore Kumar in the biopic, directed by Anurag Basu.

Interestingly, the actor picked up a little bit of Bengali while shooting for Barfee, in Kolkata. He has decided to hire a tutor to be better well-versed with the language. The untitled film produced by Asthavinayak will go on floors in March 2012.

Salman to guard Lady Gaga?

Well, it seems like singer Lady Gaga's trip to India just got more interesting as everyone is taking Salman Khan’s role in ‘Bodyguard’ seriously. The actor has got another request from none other than his niece.

Apparently, Alvira and Atul Agnihotri's younger daughter Alizeh wants him to be Lady Gaga’s bodyguard when she comes to India in October. Not only that, she wants Salman to host a big party for the singer where Alizeh and all her friends will get a chance to meet their favorite singer. “Salman is kind of a guy who can't say no to his family and friends at all. All the kids in the Khan household are huge fans of Lady Gaga and have been requesting Salman to arrange for a meet and since Salman is known to go out of his way for his family's happiness, everyone is pretty convinced that he might make this happen,” says a source.

Kalki Koechlin's shoe fetish!

Kalki Koechlin, who is going to be the next fashion diva in B-town has got herself a new obsession…"Yellow Boots." Kalki used to wear the boots all day long while shooting and went back home wearing the same shoes. She was extremely particular about the boots, says a source. During the shoot, her boots tore and she sat besides the cobbler and made him mend it under her supervision.

They are not regular shoes but are snow boots... and yet they are light, comfortable, and different from what others wear. She loves to flaunt them wherever she goes. Recently she was spotted wearing those yellow boots for a magazine photo shoot.

18

Asian Voice - Saturday 3rd September 2011

Tata Steel gets a pat for creating jobs in US

Dear Financial Voice Reader, Can China save us? Will this volatility continue? Is it now a good time to buy shares? Which ones?

I write to you from Verona, the setting for Shakespeare’s first play, The Two Gentleman of Verona (converted by the BBC into an Indian play, ‘The Two Gentlemen of Valasna’) and Shakespeare’s most famous play, Romeo and Juliet – apparently my friend Shakhar Kapoor plans a Bollywood version.

The markets have been as volatile and tragic and joyous in equal measure as a love story. Oh profit, profit, wherefore art thou profit? Something is rotten in the state of America. The fault is not in our stars. But there is method in the madness and surely we will have our pound of flesh from these markets for we have an itching palm although chaos is come again. So if chance is to crown us, let us move on and avoid the crack of doom, for there is a tide in the affairs of the markets – and taken at its height, as now, may lead to fortune.

That is my belief.

As I said on the BBC recently – even if America produces no growth at all compared to the 1.6% growth that has been forecast – the shortfall is made up for by India’s growth on the world stage of 8%. And America without any growth is still producing global goods and services of $14tr annually – the same as Europe without any growth at all. Let alone that by its 10% annual growth, China produces a new United Kingdom every 4 years. That’s all a lot of good and services and global trading.

So China can cushion the European and American softness. Also remember China needs the rest of the world; China’s exports are 30% of GDP (ie of all goods and services the economy produces), whereas for the US it is a mere 10%. The Chinese are clearly interested in ensuring the rest of the world does not dip into recession because they want a market for their exports. What of volatility? That since 1951 there have been 57 moves which statistically should happen only once every 100 years in the US markets. Four of them have been since August 4 this year. Remember such events statistically are supposed to happen only once every 100 years. The largest move in the recent series came on August 8, when the US markets lost 6.7 percent. That’s the equivalent of a move, which should occur only once every 2 million years.The largest single move since 1951 was on Oct. 19, 1987, when the S&P lost 20.5 percent in a single session. Is this volatility going to continue – oh yes.

So with all this volatility are these equities worth buying? A typical major US company is worth about 10 times its annual profits at the moment. In other words if it makes $1m in profit in a year – you can buy the whole company for $10m. That is on average. That is cheap. In the past such companies in the UK and US have been worth 18 times their annual profits.

That’s all for this week. In the words of Shakespeare, ‘parting is such sweet sorrow’.

Alpesh Patel (alpesh.patel@tradermind.com) www.alpeshblog.com

Indian cabinet likely to approve FDI in multi-brand retail

Seeking to tap the vast foreign direct investment (FDI) for developing infrastructure, the Government of India is likely to give a go ahead to 51 per cent FDI in multi-brand retail after the conclusion of the Parliament session, although with a changed definition of back-end infrastructure investment.

The Government has already started working on a Cabinet note for permitting 51 per cent FDI in multi-brand retail and the exercise is in the final stages. The cabinet note, being prepared by the industry ministry led by department of industrial policy and promotion (DIPP) is basically based on the recommendations of the Committee of Secretaries (CoS).

“We are in the final stages of putting in place a

cabinet note for the consideration of the union cabinet. We are working at a fast pace to ensure that investment momentum remains upbeat. The massive investment of funds required in the rural belt and the back-end infrastructure will form the basis of the FDI permission for multi-brand retail,” a senior ministry official remarked.

Union commerce and industry minister, Anand Sharma, said the Parliament was in session and he was not in a position to discuss anything pertaining to such policy decisions. “We are aware of the global economic climate and need for India to grab the opportunities coming its way. We will keep the sensitivities of all sections in mind whenever any policy is framed in future,'' Mr. Sharma remarked.

A top Obama Administration official last week praised Tata Steel as a shining example of foreign direct investment (FDI) in the US that has created jobs in the economy.

"It's a story worth listening to, a story that needs more characters like Tata Steel," Acting US Commerce Secretary Rebecca Blank said after a tour of Thomas Steel Strip Corporation, a member of the Tata Steel Europe Group and a manufacturer of cold-rolled strips usually used as steel castings for batteries.

In her remarks, Blank highlighted the significance of FDI, citing Tata Steel as an example of foreign companies whose investments in the US

strengthen economic growth and job creation.

With FDI supporting more than 5 million American jobs, Blank discussed a new government-wide initiative, dubbed SelectUSA, that seeks to cut federal red tape for domestic and foreign investors, remove barriers to new investment and boost business growth in the United States.

"In order to create all the jobs we need, we have to attract more businesses like Tata to our shores and do more to keep great US firms here," Blank said.

"That's why SelectUSA was created. It's the first

government-wide initiative to attract and retain new business investment investment such as Tata Steel - and the jobs that come with it in the United States. SelectUSA is vital to help more businesses grow and create long-lasting economic

Piramal plans big overseas expansion Indian company Piramal, which recently invested $650m in Vodafone, plans big overseas expansion. It plans to invest at least $1.5bn in its overseas pharmaceuticals business as it seeks to become India’s first global drug developer.

Ajay Piramal, chairman of the family-owned company, said that it planned to acquire several ailing midsized biotech companies and patents as well as enter joint ventures with big pharmaceutical groups that are struggling to develop new drugs in western markets because of rising costs. He said that he had already been in talks with a number of big pharmaceutical groups in the US and Europe and hoped to announce the first major deal within the next six to 12 months. He declined to name the groups involved. “We do not want to become an Indian drugs outsourcer … we want to become a

Ajay Piramal

major player … which means we will buy and form partnerships with existing global companies,” he added.

Piramal Life Sciences, one of the group’s subsidiaries, has already been working to develop 14 molecules it currently controls into new drugs in areas including cancer, diabetes, inflammation and infectious diseases.

“The country historically lacked the expertise to perform clinical trials because most companies only tested different processes for producing copycat versions of west-

ern products and the rules were quite lenient,” a report from PwC said.

“What we are planning to do has never been done before, we’ll see more Indian companies tying up with or buying patents from global pharma groups.”

Mr Piramal said that he remained committed to India as a growth market – where the consumption of drugs is expected to boom as the nation’s middle class expands. But he stressed that the group would be mainly focus on its overthe-counter business.

He also said that it would keep only the 5.5 per cent stake it acquired in Vodafone Essar, the Indian subsidiary of the UK group, for a short period.

Piramal had been granted options under which it could sell its Vodafone Essar stake to the UK group for $900m in two years’ time, according to people close to the matter.

US rating may be cut to AA within two years: S&P Standard & Poor's said it was an "oversimplification" to blame its stripping the US of the top AAA sovereign rating for recent market volatility, adding that many investors agreed with its action. Markets were also responding to a weaker global growth outlook, David Beers, global head of sovereign and international public finance ratings at S&P, told reporters in Singapore.

The company is untroubled by dissenting views on its decision, he said in response to questions. His comments follow criticisms by investors including Warren Buffett, the world's most successful investor, who said that the US should be "quadruple-A " and the decision doesn't reflect any inability of the US to pay its debts.

The market value of

global stocks plunged by $2.5 trillion on the first trading day after S&P on Aug. 5 cut the US by one level to AA+, citing the political failure to reduce record deficits. "It's at the very least an oversimplification to say that all this is happening because of S&P's change of opinion," Beers said. Amid evidence of slowing world economy, "markets digesting all these news have concluded that the near, perhaps medium-term, outlook for global growth has become less certain. This was all happening before the downgrade and has continued after some of the noise around the downgrade," Beers said.

The Obama administration criticised the S&P move, with the treasury department telling the company it had overesti-

mated future national debt by $2 trillion. S&P said the discrepancy didn't affect its decision, and based its conclusion on the US government becoming "less stable, less effective and less predictable." The US growth trajectory faces downside risks, and the medium-term fiscal adjustment in the world's biggest economy may be impacted by a slowdown, Beers said.

An AAA rating for the US isn't likely in the near term, he said.

S&P kept the outlook on the US debt rating at "negative" on Aug. 5. The ranking may be cut to AA within two years if spending reductions are lower than agreed to, interest rates rise or "new fiscal pressures" result in higher general government debt, the New Yorkbased firm said.

value in the US," she said.

"Today, we have USD 2.3 trillion of foreign direct investment in America.

And foreign firms that locate in the US are more likely to export and typically pay their workers higher wages on average," she said.

"This foreign investment is supporting more than 5 million jobs throughout the 50 US states, including those right here at Thomas Steel Strip. That's why we want to attract more firms, such as Tata, to America," Blank said.

"It's easy to see why they would want to be here. The American workforce is one of the best educated, most productive and most innovative in the world," she said.

Apple boss Steve Jobs to be replaced by Tim Cook

Steve Jobs

Apple co-founder Steve Jobs has resigned as chief executive of the technology giant and will be replaced by chief operating officer Tim Cook.

Mr Jobs, who underwent a liver transplant following pancreatic cancer, said he could no longer meet his chief executive's duties and expectations.

The Silicon Valley legend will become chairman of the firm.

The 56-year-old has been on medical leave for an undisclosed condition since 17 January.

In a short letter to the board of Apple, Mr Jobs wrote: "I have always said if there ever came a day when I could no longer meet my duties and expectations as Apple's chief executive, I would be the first to let you know.

Unfortunately, that day has come. I hereby resign as chief executive of Apple. I believe Apple's brightest and most innovative days are ahead of it.

And I look forward to watching and contributing to its success in a new role. I have made some of the best friends of my life at Apple, and I thank you all for the many years of being able to work alongside you."

FINANCIAL VOICE

Asian Voice - Saturday 3rd September 2011

19

Where’s The Margin?

Suresh Vagjiani Managing Director Sow & Reap A Property Investment & Financing company.

This week we will be looking at a freehold block being sold in Maida Vale, currently configured as three one bedroom flats coming up in auction. This property is a whole freehold block, a rarity to obtain as most have been bought and butchered into smaller pieces and sold on already.

This is a chance to purchase one wholesale and sell on the individual flats at retail value.

The resell values are very strong in this road and there exist very recent examples of properties which are currently on the market or are in the process of being sold which serve to give an up to date indication of current price.

The angle would be simply: purchase, refurbish and resell or keep and refinance after six months. The resell of a two bedroom flat starts at £375,000. Although these are one bedroom properties they are extremely large and can be reconfigured to two bedroom properties.The block was built at a time when properties did not command the premium they do now and so they have generous proportions.

Even if we take a conservative assumption and value the top two properties as one bedroom properties and the bottom as a two bed garden flat, the end value judging by what is currently on the market will be £375,000 for a two bedroom garden flat and £315,000 for the top two one bedroom flats. Adding all of these up the total end value will be over £1m. So picking this up at a maximum of £800,000 means there is a reasonable margin given we have only assumed two one bedroom flats on the upper floors which is very conservative. An allowance for refurbishment has been made for £100,000.

There is the option of an extension on the bottom floors subject to planning which can be explored later and would further improve the figures given.

The property market is just getting into the swing of things, after everybody has returned from their summer holidays and so as far as activity goes the wave is just rising again.

If you take into account this property will be funded at 60% your input will be £360,000 inclusive of the refurbishment.

The property benefits from high ceilings and bay windows on the ground and first floors, it is a Victorian building. A Victorian building gets its name from having been built during the rule of Queen Victoria which lasted from 1837 to 1901. What promoted mass building during this period was the availability for cheaply produced bricks which were durable and long lasting, with an improved transportation system this allowed homogenous bricks made in cheaper parts of the country to be able to be transported all over the UK. The bay window is a prominent feature of properties built during this period.

Typical Characteristics of Victorian houses n Bay windows (they stick out) n Iron Railings n Flemish brick bonding n Patterns in the brickwork made from coloured bricks n Stained glass in doorways and windows. n Roofs made of slate. n No garage n Sash windows (they open by sliding the window up) This property is coming up for auction on the 6th September 2011 and will be Lot no 4. If you would like help in purchasing or would like further information on this property please call our office on the number below.

In our hunt for development properties we sometimes come across properties where the purchase and resale figures do not make sense,

meaning the idea of purchasing a property is to make a profit. When you add the purchase price to the refurbishment cost there should be a margin before you get the valuation price. Time to time we have found properties are sold where this is not the case, sometimes this perplexed me as it did not make sense for someone to take on this project with a non-existent profit margin.

A recent example was a three bedroom period conversion on the top end of Gloucester terrace. The property was 1200 sq ft, it was on the market for £950,000, the property required complete refurbishment and required probably £200,000 to do it up to an excellent standard deserving of the area.

The property went for £975,000, in excess of its asking price. The end resell on a property in this location is around £1000 per Sq Ft. Therefore by the time you pay the stamp duty of £40,000 this deal did not make sense.

Even if we half the refurbishment value to £100,000 the cost then comes to £1.175m. From a purchase and sell point of view it doesn’t stack up.

There can be two reasons why this would make some sort of sense.

One is the property was purchased by an end user and therefore was an emotional purchase and it had nothing to do with profits. It was bought for aesthetic reasons and due to the level of demand the buyer paid over the odds which happens in the current market.

The second reason is this, the property was purchased by an investor, who has purchased this speculatively on the assumption of a price rise.

By the time the property is refurbished say over a six month period the property price would have risen. This is easy to see as these properties on the market are hard to come by. This is a trait which looks as though it will increase. Decent properties in strong locations not only hold their prices but increase in value.

This is a phenomenon which I have seen again and again in areas we operate in.

Victorian Block Auction Date 6th September 2011 Approx Profit £100,000 Investment £350,000 Time period 6 months We provide a turnkey solution. Contact us now: Specialists in: l Property Sourcing l Mortgages l Commercial Finance l India Properties

UK Sales 0207 313 4595 India Sales 0203 384 5323 Westbourne House, 14-16 Westbourne Grove, London, W2 5RH

Tips of the Week l Decide what kind of investor you are a buy to let one or buy to sell one l If you cannot negotiate on price do so on the contract terms people notice these less as there's no number attached to them

20

fInAnCIAl voice

Asian Voice - Saturday 3rd September 2011

Amit Patel has over 15 years experience in the field of Leadership and Human Resource Management

Victory is not always the End

maria@abplgroup.com

Maria Fernandes

Changes to Student Immigration Rules – A warning to employers The rules on students have changed dramatically over the past 2 years or so and each change has introduced restrictions on the students right to work. At present, the visits by the UK Border Agency appear to be concentrating on the rights of students to work and accordingly employers should be very careful about the employment of students as civil penalties are being imposed in many cases involving students.

Most students who entered the UK before the 4th July 2011 had permission which allowed them to work during their studies. How much time they are allowed to work depends upon when they were granted permission.

• For those who applied before the 31st March 2009 Students were allowed to work up to 20 hours a week during term time. They could also work full time during the holidays, or work placements which were part of a sandwich course and internships.

• Those who made their application between 3rd March 2010 and before 6th April 2010 During term time students can work for up to 20 hours a week if studying at degree level or above.

Up to 20 hours a week if studying for a Foundation Degree course (a Foundation Degree course leads to qualification at Level 5 or above of the National Q u a l i f i c a t i o n s Framework) or 10 hours

3rd March 2010 they would be allowed to work if the student had permission to be in the UK for 12 months or more.

• If the student made their applications on or after 3rd March 2010 and before 4th July 2011 the dependant would be given permission if the main applicant has permission to be in the UK for 12 months or more and the course is at degree level or meets the UK Border Agency’s definition of a Foundation Degree.

• After the 4th July 2011 they will only be able to work if the student is either a government sponsored student taking a course that is over 6 months long or is taking up a post graduate course that is at least 12 months long and is studying at a institution that meets the definition of a Higher Education Institution.

Increasingly the employer is held responsible for cases in which students are found to be working without permission. Accordingly it is prudent for an employer to take all possible steps to prevent the nightmare of bureaucracy that can occur if a civil penalty is issued against an employer or to be in a position to justify their decision.

Maria Fernandes has been in practice exclusively in immigration for the past 25 years.

Fernandes Vaz is based at 87 Wembley Hill Road Wembley in Wembley and can be contacted by telephone on 02087330123, by email on info@fernandesvaz.com.

on any other course.

• Applications between 6th April 2010 and before 4th July 2011 During term time students can work for up to 20 hours if studying at degree level or above or on a Foundation Degree course and up to 10 hours if studying any other type of course.

• Applications made after 4th July 2011 Applicants can work during term time for up to 20 hours a week studying at degree level or above at a Higher Education Institution (a recognised body such as a University or one that receives public funding from specific funding bodies) or up to 10 hours a week if studying a course that is below degree level at a Higher Education Institution.

Term time: Term time is defined by the institutions calendar. It is therefore advisable for an employer to request a student to provide a timetable to enable the employer to be certain that the applicant is able to work the hours set.

There are particular problems for those who are supposed to research and write a dissertation or thesis. Despite the fact that there are no classes as such students are restricted to either 20 (or 10) hours a week during this time. Once the essay, dissertation or thesis is submitted, an applicant can work until the results if the length of their visa permits it.

• Family members right to work If applicants made their applications before

India’s forex reserves up by $1.6 billion India’s foreign exchange reserves surged $1.615 billion to $318.22 billion on the back of a sharp rise in foreign currency assets (FCAs) for the week ended August 19.

The total foreign exchange reserves had slipped by $621 million to $316.605 billion in the week before.

FCAs, the biggest component of the foreign reserves, rose by $1.584 billion to $285.251 billion for the reporting week, the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) said in its weekly data released last week.

FCAs, expressed in US dollar terms, include the effect of appreciation or depreciation of the non-

US currencies, such as the euro, the pound and the yen, held in the reserves.

The gold reserves remained unchanged at $25.349 billion, the data showed.

Meanwhile, both the special drawing rights (SDRs) and reserve position in the IMF were up during the week.

*& ) %

(

%*

The culmination of world war two triggered joyous celebrations throughout the allied countries.

Amidst the overwhelming sense of relief and jubilation, Churchill gave caution about the spectre of Soviet imperialism, “It is my duty however, for I am sure you would wish me to state the facts as I see them to you, to place before you certain facts about the present position in Europe. From Stettin in the Baltic to Trieste in the Adriatic, an iron curtain has descended across the Continent.

Behind that line lie all the capitals of the ancient states of Central and Eastern Europe…Police governments are prevailing in nearly every case…I have felt bound to portray the shadow which, alike in the west and in the east, falls upon the world.”

Churchill understood that victory did not mean peace. Great leaders are those who always maintain focus on the long term goals and without

allowing themselves to be swept up in the euphoria of short term victories. Around the same time as Churchill’s speech, India was herself close to independence and self rule. Gandhi also preached that even after gaining Independence, difficult challenges remained on the road ahead. However, for him speeches alone were not sufficient to get people to heed his call. He had to resort to fasting to capture attention.

In the past weeks we have witnessed Anna Hazare resort to fasting to ensure that his message was heeded. While some may criticise his methods, none can question his motives. With the Indian government finally relenting (not agreeing) to ‘consider’ his demands for a strong and robust Lokpal bill, the majority of Indians are celebrating (Sibal, Chidambaram and crew exempted). As he ended his fast Anna Hazare reminded the population

By Amit Patel

that only half the work was complete. No resolution has been passed, no law implemented. Now is not the time to stand down, now is the time to push onwards.

I feel it appropriate to quote Churchill’s prescription for the onward course…”It is because I am sure that our fortunes are still in our own hands and that we hold the power to save the future, that I feel the duty to speak out now that I have the occasion and the opportunity to do so...Our difficulties and dangers will not be removed by closing our eyes to them. They will not be removed by mere waiting to see what happens; nor will they be removed by a policy of appeasement. What is needed is a settlement, and the longer this is delayed, the more difficult it will be and the greater our dangers will become.” Aage bado.

Moody's cuts Japan rating Moody's Investors Service cut its rating on Japan's government debt by one notch to Aa3 last week, blaming a build-up of debt since the 2009 global recession and revolvingdoor political leadership that has hampered effective economic strategies.

Japan is preparing to elect its sixth leader in five years to replace unpopular Prime Minister Naoto Kan, under fire for his handling of the response to a March tsunami and subsequent radiation crisis at a crippled nuclear power plant.

The downgrade, while not out of the blue, served as another reminder of the debt burdens that nearly all of the world's major advanced economies shoulder, even as policymakers struggle to agree on ways to stimulate subpar growth without massive new spending.

The United States lost its top-tier AAA rating from Standard & Poor's earlier this month, and Moody's warned in June that it may downgrade Italy as Europe's sovereign

& +$ %* &(

comment on Moody's downgrade. But he said: "Recent JGB auctions have met favorable demand and I don't see any change in market confidence in JGBs." Analysts said the downgrade was hardly a surprise and the reaction in financial markets was muted.

"I had expected that the rating cut would have taken place after the election for the leadership of the (ruling) Democratic Party of Japan. But looking at the candidates, there seems to be nobody among them who would seriously tackle financial reform, so that's why Moody's went ahead and cut the rating," said Yuuki Sakurai, CEO and president of Fukoku Capital Management Inc. The risks of an upgrade and a downgrade are equally balanced but it would take a significant development to get the ratings agency to move in either direction, Tom Byrne, Moody's senior vice president and regional credit officer, told reporters.

debt crisis festers.

Moody's new rating on Japan's debt is three notches below coveted AAA status, which Tokyo lost in 1998, but is still classified as high grade. Japan is now the same level as China, which surpassed it last year to become the world's second-largest economy, and one notch below Italy and Spain.

"Over the past five years, frequent changes in (Japan's) administrations have prevented the government from implementing long-term economic and fiscal strategies into effective and durable policies," Moody's said.

Moody's had warned in May that it might downgrade Japan's Aa2 rating due to heightened concerns about faltering growth prospects and a weak policy response to rein in bulging public debt, already twice the size of its $5 trillion economy.

Finance Minister Yoshihiko Noda, a fiscal conservative who has joined the race to succeed Kan, refrained from direct

(

# *&

&(# ," , !' !,0% !

"()* #" !* &+(" () )%.

#

*/)-'*1 /-%)!--

,&

'% !

3

+(&' */)-'*1

* %

2

( %' - '!- "%,-."'%#$.!/ )!.

"*, + , !'-

*0!

&%'*-

FINANCIAL VOICE

Asian Voice - Saturday 3rd September 2011

21

Foreign Exchange Rajesh Agrawal is the Chairman & CEO of RationalFX, Currency Specialists.

For any further information call 020 7220 8181 or e-mail info@rationalfx.com

Sterling Remains the Strongest of the Major Economies.

Weekly Currencies As of Tuesday 30th August 2011 @ 4 pm GBP - INR = 74.84

In recent weeks, the UK economy has performed relatively well in comparison to the US and Europe. During the week we saw strong Public sector, housing and jobless claim data all beating expectations.

Over the week there seemed more concern surrounding the debt problems in Europe and the US, taking its toll on the majors with both losing ground and the Pound looking more attractive to investors. Friday saw the release of UK GDP figures; this grew slightly from a previous reading of 0.4% to a constructive 1.0%. However, these figures were overshadowed by the US Federal Reserve meeting where there was speculation that the FED would implement another thrust of Quantitative Easing (QE) to help stimulate the economy. To the contrary, Bernanke offered no firm comments of QE which strengthen the US Dollar with risk aversion overpowering all other factors.

German ZEW fell and EU PMI appeared to be better on Tuesday, the Euro withstood the impact against the major’s, notably helped by US dollar weakness.

However, the

Consumer Index release dropped Euro during the second part of the day. From the middle to the end of the week, we saw a Euro weakened. Indeed, the market is concerning about whether Finland is going to participate Greece’s second bailout. European members disagreed about a new bail out, and this lack of agreement dropped the single currency. In addition, bad figures continued to weaken the Euro against the majors. Industrial new orders for YoY and MoM both came in below expectations sending growth in Europe into more doubts. However, the ECB talks about buying Italian and Spanish bond supported the Euro, and gave more confidence to investor about the debt crisis issue. At the end of the week investors were looking forward to the FED’s speech. Big moves were observed during and after the conference. The Euro strengthened against dollar and sterling thanks to a risk appetite revival.

EUR/USD traded above the 1.45 levels Friday night and GBP/EUR around 1.1260.

We began the week in the US with very little data being

USD - INR = 46.02 EUR - INR = 66.31 GBP - USD = 1.44 GBP - EUR = 1.13 EUR - USD = 1.44 GBP - AED = 5.97 GBP - CAD = 1.59 GBP - NZD = 1.91 GBP - AUD = 1.53 released, with the main focus that traders were waiting for the outcome from Ben Benanke’s speech regarding any possible QE3 talk. U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman stopped short of signaling further action to boost the U.S. recovery, but said it was critical for the economy's health to reduce unemployment. Bernanke said the central bank had marked down its outlook for U.S. economic growth and made clear that the policy focus was still on spurring a stronger recovery.

However he didnt provide any fresh details on steps the Fed would take to ensure this. This saw the greenback gain against the British pound in late afternoon trade, trading as high as 1.6207 before retreating to just over 1.6300 in London trade.

The greenback has strengthened since last Friday’s low of 1.6618 against the pound, but for how long will these levels remain before the banks start taking up large positions either way?

GBP - ZAR = 11.52 GBP - HUF = 307.02

www.rationalfx.com Information provided by RationalFX. None of the information on this page constitutes, nor should be construed as financial advice. The exchange rates used are the commercial foreign exchange rates provided by RationalFX. For a live quote or to find out more about how RationalFX can help you, call us on 0207 220 8181.

22

PakistaN-BagladesH-sRi laNka

Asian Voice - Saturday 3rd September 2011

Pak court orders seizure of Musharraf's property In focus Islamabad: A Pakistani court ordered the confiscation of exiled former president Pervez Musharraf's property and the freezing of his Pakistan bank accounts over accusations that he failed to provide security for assassinated former prime minister Benazir Bhutto, a lawyer said on Sunday.

The charismatic Bhutto was the first female prime minister in the Muslim world. She was killed in December 2007, when Musharraf was president, in a gun and suicide bomb attack after an election rally in the city of Rawalpindi after she had returned from years of selfimposed exile.

An anti-terrorism court in February issued an arrest warrant for

Pervez Musharraf

Musharraf, now living in self-exile in Dubai, and then declared him a fugitive of law after he failed to respond.

The court on Saturday ordered the seizure of his entire property and the freezing of bank accounts in Pakistan after he again failed to respond to accusations.

"The court issued orders because he is accused in the case and has been failing to appear before the court,"

Chaudhry Zulfiqar Ali, a government prosecutor, said.

The confiscated property included a farmhouse in Islamabad and several residential plots as well as bank accounts worth 90 million rupees ($1 million), he added.

The trial is being held behind closed door in a jail in Rawalpindi because of security reasons. Five suspected Islamist militants and two police officers are also being tried in the case.

Musharraf's aides rejected the accusations as "baseless" and "politicallymotivated".

"This case is basically being manoeuvred for political benefits...and to divert attention from political and economic instabil-

Amnesty urges Bangladesh to stop unlawful killings by police Dhaka: Human rights group Amnesty International has urged the Bangladeshi government to stop unlawful killings by its special police force, the Rapid Action Battalion (RAB).

In a new report, the group has urged the government to honour their pledge to end extra-judicial executions.

The force has been implicated in the killing of at least 700 people since its inception in 2004, the report says.

The government has yet to respond to the Amnesty report. RAB justifies the killings as accidental or as a result of officers acting in self-defence.

But, in reality, many victims are killed following their arrest, the Amnesty report alleges.

In a report in May, Human Rights Watch too catalogued a series of

human rights violations blamed on the elite force in the past few years.

The government has always denied the accusations against RAB. 'Unlawful killings' "Hardly a week goes by in Bangladesh without someone being shot by RAB with the authorities saying they were killed or injured in 'crossfire' or a 'gun-fight'," Abbas Faiz, Amnesty International's Bangladesh researcher, said.

"However the authorities choose to describe such incidents as accidental."

The group says investigations into the killings are either carried out by RAB or a governmentappointed judicial body and they have never resulted in prosecution.

It says that RAB has consistently denied responsibility for unlawful killings and the authorities

have accepted their claims.

Former detainees also told Amnesty that they were tortured in custody, suffering beatings, food and sleep deprivation, and electric shocks.

The report says that at least 200 alleged RAB killings have occurred since January 2009 when the Awami League government came to power, despite Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina's pledge to end extra-judicial killings.

In the past the authorities have said the police force only acts against "criminals" and most deaths occur during shootouts between them and law enforcers.

Over the years, RAB has developed a fearsome reputation while at the same time being credited with reducing crime and acting against Islamist militancy.

ity and deteriorating law and order situation in the country," Musharraf's spokesman, Fawad Chaudhry, said.

Musharraf, who himself was target of at least two bomb attacks, has denied suggestions that he, his security agencies or military were involved in Bhutto's murder.

His government had blamed Pakistani Taliban leader Baitullah Mehsud for the killing.

A report by a UN commission of inquiry released last year said any credible investigation should not rule out the possibility that members of Pakistan's military and security establishment were involved in the killing, though it did not say who it believed was guilty.

Taliban strike Pak border, kill 36 soldiers Peshawar: At least three dozen soldiers were killed and scores injured when hundreds of Taliban insurgents holed up in Afghanistan launched a predawn cross-border raid on Pakistani checkpoints in the country's northwestern Chitral district. This was the latest in a series of attacks that militants have carried inside Pakistan from their bases in Afghanistan's Nuristan and Kunar provinces bordering Chitral.

The cross-border raids have raised tension between the two countries. A Pakistan military statement said terrorists have organized themselves in Kunar and Nuristan with the support of local Afghan authorities. It said Pakistan Taliban commanders Fazullah and Faqir Mohammad-led insurgents from Swat, Dir and Bajur had attacked the security posts.

Flash floods Hina Rabbani's charm fails to excite the Chinese Beijing: Hina Rabbani kill at least 33 Khar, Pakistan’s foreign minister, who caused a in NW Pakistan flutter in many Indian

Islamabad: Flash floods triggered by monsoon rains wiped out a village in northwest Pakistan, killing at least 33 people, a government official said.

Rescue officials were looking for survivors after at least 63 people went missing when heavy rains caused a river to burst its banks in the remote Kohistan district in the K h y b e r - Pa k h t u n k h w a province. "We have recovered 33 bodies,” an administrator of the area said. Last year, monsoon rains caused the worst floods in Pakistan's history, with the country's northwestern areas among the worst hit.

About 2,000 people, mostly in the northwest, were killed and 18 million affected by the floods, with some 11 million left homeless.

hearts because of her youth, beauty and fashion sense failed to move the Chinese heart even after she met her counterpart, Yang Jiechi last week.

She has not even made it to the several high-selling fashion magazines in China including Shishang Cosmopolitan and Vision.

A search on China's biggest portal, Baidu, threw up a blank.

"I have not heard about her. Who is she?" Guzel Yalkun, a 40-year old Muslim woman living near Niujie Mosque, Beijing's biggest and oldest mosque, said. She hails from Xinjiang, the province bordering Pakistan, and knows about Benezir Bhutto. But she has not heard about Khar and her designer clothes.

CCTV9, the English news channel from the

Pak okays MFN status to India

Islamabad: In a move likely to boost trade ties and people-to-people contact, Pakistan has agreed to grant the Most Favoured Nation (MFN) status to India, a media report said. India has already conferred MFN status on Pakistan and has been seeking reciprocity. A senior official of the ministry of trade said on the condition of anonymity that the status of MFN would be granted during the current year. Pakistan has in return asked for immediate lifting of non-tariff restrictions on its exports to India. Sources said that trade and commerce minister Makhdoom Amin Fahim would soon announce basic changes in Pakistan’s trade policy. Indian commerce minister Anand Sharma has invited his Pakistani counterpart Fahim, a senior leader of the ruling Pakistan People’s Party, to visit New Delhi for the meeting.

India frees 7 Pak prisoners Wagah: India repatriated seven Pakistani nationals who were lodged in different jails through the Wagah border check post. Although most of the prisoners had completed their jail terms, their release was delayed due to delay in verification and confirmation of their identities.

The released Pakistani nationals said it was important for India and Pakistan to maintain cordial relations. "I think both India and Pakistan should have cordial relations. I have served a sentence of six and a half years at the Tihar jail and now I am finally returning home," said Muhammad Azhar Rafi, a released Pakistani prisoner.

They were lodged in the jails of Jammu and Kashmir, Maharashtra, Gujarat and Punjab.

100 arrested in Lanka for attacking security men Colombo: Sri Lankan authorities last week arrested more than 100 people that threw rocks at police and soldiers who stopped them from chasing men thought to be "grease devils," or nighttime prowlers who have sparked an island wide spate of deadly violence. At least five people including a police officer have been killed over the past two weeks in bouts of vigilantism and clashes, prompting deployment of the army and opposition accusations that the government may use the panic to keep wartime emergency laws in place.

Pak govt bans private internet browsing Karachi: The Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) has directed all Internet Service Providers (ISPs) to prevent internet users from using technology that would allow them to privately browse the internet.

A PTA spokesman said that the directive was intended only to stop militants from using secure Internet connections to communicate with each other, but admitted that this could only be done by preventing all Internet users in Pakistan from using virtual private networks ( VPNs). A VPN allows two or more users to share data without letting anyone else monitor it.

American kidnapped in Pak freed Lahore: Using tips from arrested suspects, police last week freed a US development expert who was kidnapped almost two weeks ago in the eastern Pakistani city of Lahore, a senior police official said. Police traced the whereabouts of Warren Weinstein, 70, to Khushab city and freed him from the kidnappers, said Lahore police chief Malik Ahmed Raza. Weinstein was abducted on August 13 after gunmen tricked his guards and broke into his home. He is the country director in Pakistan for J E Austin Associates, a US-based firm that advises a range of Pakistani business and government sectors.

Son of slain Pak governor kidnapped

Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao with Hina Rabbani Khar

official Central China Television, did not mention her visit. Even the millions of micro-bloggers, who react to news developments, initially ignored her visit. China's newspapers have also largely ignored Khar.

Khar challenges Chinese experts' view Meanwhile, Khar said that she was seeking China's understanding about the country's difficulties in dealing with terrorist

groups. This was apparently her reply to Chinese anxiety over the export of terror from Pakistan to its border region of Xinjiang.

"Pakistan just seeks the world's understanding for the current challenges that Pakistan is going through....we are the ones and our people are the ones that are paying the price who are experiencing the brunt of it," Khar told newsmen after meeting Chinese leaders.

Lahore: Gunmen have kidnapped the son of a Pakistani governor who was killed by an Islamist extremist earlier this year. Police said the governor's son, Shahbaz Taseer, was taken from his car by armed men in the eastern city of Lahore. The abducted man's brother, Shaheryar Taseer, confirmed the kidnapping.

In January, an Islamist militant killed Punjab governor Salman Taseer. The killer confessed after the arrest, saying he murdered Taseer because of his opposition to laws that carry the death penalty for blaspheming Islam.

Sri Lanka lifts emergency Colombo: Sri Lanka president Mahinda Rajapaksa last week declared an end to strict wartime emergency regulations imposed in 2005, noting there have not been any terror attacks since the end of a 25-year war against Tamil Tiger separatists in May 2009. "To carry forward the day-to-day activities in a democratic way, I propose there is no need of a emergency regulations anymore," Rajapaksa told the parliament. "There has been no terrorist activities since the end of the war in May 2009," Rajapaksa said. "I am satisfied that extension of emergency is not required anymore. So I inform (parliament) that we will not extend the emergency anymore."

wOrld

Asian Voice - Saturday 3rd September 2011

Four Indian Americans among top fund raisers for Obama

In FOcus 4 Indians among MIT’s top 35 innovators

Massachusetts: Two Indians and two persons of Indian origin figure among top 35 innovators under-35 in the latest list of Massachusetts Institute of Technology’s (MIT) Technology Review, the world’s oldest technology magazine established in 1899. The Indians are Chennai-based Ajit Narayanan of Invention Labs and Aishwarya Ratan, now based in Yale University. Two winners of Indian origin include Bhaskar Krishnamachari, 33, University of Southern California who has been selected for his work on smarter wireless networks and Piya Sorcar, 33, for Teachaids software that can be localised to teach taboo topics.

Washington: Four Indian Americans have emerged among the key fund raisers for Barack Obama, raising almost 1 mn dollars among themselves for the US President's re-election campaign.

According to OpenSecrets.Org, a sum of $ 35 mn of the total $ 86 mn raised by the Obama's campaign so far, has come from 244 individuals.

Among them, the four top Indian American 'bundlers' - Azita Raji, Shefali Razdan Duggal, Deven Parekh and Kavita Tankha -

Bhattarai sworn in as Nepal PM Kathmandu: A day after getting elected, Maoist vicechairman Baburam Bhattarai was sworn in as Nepal's 35th prime minister. The 57-year-old was administered oath of office and secrecy by President Ram Baran Yadav at a brief function held at Sheetal Niwas, the official residence of the President. The new PM administered oath to president of Madhesi Peoples' Rights Forum (Democratic) Bijay Kumar Gachchadhar as the country’s new deputy prime minister and home minister. No other minister was sworn in. Sources close to the PM said that other members of the cabinet would be sworn in within a few days.

Beijing: Chinese scientists have completed a comprehensive satellite study of cross-border Tibetan rivers determining their exact sources besides measuring the length of their drainage basins to build a number of water projects in Tibet, including a dam on Brhamaputra.

Besides mapping out the course of Brahmaputra, the photographic analysis using expeditions and satellite imagery, the researchers from the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS) also collected details about the flow of Indus which flows

Tokyo: The Japanese parliament's lower house voted in Yoshihiko Noda as the nation's sixth prime minister in five years. Noda, 54, a fiscal hawk who edged out a rival in a ruling party run-off vote, is finance minister in the outgoing administration of his predecessor Naoto Kan.

Gaddafi's men pushed out of Tripoli Tripoli: Tripoli is now a rebel-held city, the calmest it has been in the capital since Muammar Gaddafi's opponents swept in nearly a week ago. Some even celebrated in the streets, marching and chanting, “Hold your head high! You are a free Libyan.'' Hundreds of decomposing bodies were piled up in and near an abandoned hospital next to the Gaddafi compound, revealing some of the war's brutality. One hospital room had 21 bodies lying on gurneys. The floors were covered with shattered glass and bloodstains, and medical equipment was strewn about.

3#*/#4#/#, 13)#0+4'4

#/6*# "#)012#7+5 #04-#3

&' #" #" " && + % ! & ! & #% " !( "#$ ) ' "& % #" (" , ' $' &' "# %

#3#/ 6,:# " ' & (&$ #(& (%(! "'% #

60&#:

"

#"

*62'0&3#$*#+ #0&:#

, '* "#$ ) '

#(% $% ) "& % &

'# &

' %

&& " & %#! '( (" '# % ! " $% & "'

5* '25'/$'3

&%- ( ) &&" * .&+( (# )* ' ( *+" $ #. + )*) +'*& $ $ () #& " )% ") - ## ) (, $ #) *& ) (,

/ *

* (

%&' , *

*) &, (

13 /13' +0(13/#5+10 %105#%5 3#(6.$*#+

#7#.

3#7+0$*#+ ;# 3 '/#+. '.'$4,#01+ *15/#+. %1 6-

#45 10&10 #0& 44'9

+5#

3#*/#4#/#, 13)#0+;'4

:#0 "#)0#

#3#/ 6,:# *62'0&3#$*#+ #0&:# !:#4#4#0 +3#,4' *' 4+/2.' +05'323'5#5+10 1( *#)8#& +5# #.- +0 0).+4* #0&

+0&+

" "

#

$

#" + )* &% ( $ '( ) # " # !" # *& '( ) *& #" # !" " " *& '( ) *& #" *& + )* &% ( " " *& #" *& + )* &% ( *& '( ) &%- ( ) ! % . %& * # % (*.

13 /13' +0(13/#5+10 105#%5 6$*#4*$*#+ *#-'3 '.

!'06' #" '

,'

':510 %

Barack Obama

alone have raised about 1 mn among themselves.

In American political lexicon, 'bundlers' refers to the individuals who help raise money through their friends after they exhaust their limit of personal contribution. As per latest

available figures, California-based investor Azita Raji has helped contribute at least half a mn for Obama's re-election campaign. She is a member of the Democratic National Committee and the National Advisory Board.

China maps Brahmaputra, Indus for dams

Japan gets its 6th PM in five years

#45 10&10 #0& 44'9

23

1#& 10&10 ! , " !#%, # '

%

% "'&

through India and Pakistan besides Salween and Irrawaddy rivers.

Salween and Irrawaddy flows through Myanmar.

Previously, the sources of four rivers were never clearly designated, and differing accounts regarding their lengths and drainage areas confused researchers for many years due to restrictions of natural conditions and surveying and mapping technologies, Liu Shaochuang, a researcher with the Institute of Remote Sensing Applications under the CAS, told Xinhua news agency.

The result of their analysis and field investi-

gations showed that the Brahmaputra River, called Yarlungzangbo in Tibetan language, originates on the Angsi Glacier, located on the northern side of the Himalayas in Burang County of Tibet not Chema-yungdung glacier, which previously identified by geographer Swami Pranavananda in the 1930s, Liu said.

The river is 3,848 km long, and its drainage area is 712,035 square km according to the new findings, while previous documents showed its length varied from 2,900 to 3,350 km and its drainage area between 520,000 and 1.73 million square kms.

Raji is followed by New York's Deven Parekh of the Insight Venture Partners, who helped raise between $ 200,000 and $ 500,000.

Parekh serves on the Advisory Board of US Export-Import Bank and the Technical Advisory Board of the Federal Communications Commission.

Shefali Razdan Duggal and Kavita Tankha - both from California - have each raised between $ 50,000 to $ 100,000, latest campaign fund statistics reveal.

Hurricane Irene batters US, 38 killed Washington: More than five million homes and businesses are still without power with upstate New York and Vermont flooded in the aftermath of hurricane Irene that claimed 38 lives in 11 states across the US East Coast. With no commuter rail trains running to New York City from Connecticut, New Jersey and Westchester County on Monday morning, many residents of the suburbs faced a day stranded at home, tens of thousands of them without electricity, media reports said. New Jersey Transit, which did not operate any trains into New York City on Monday.

24

INDIA

Asian Voice - Saturday 3rd September 2011

Pushing boundaries By Aman Singh

Blue Airmail Envelope

Am I the only person who rues the sorry, brutal demise of the blue airmail envelope? The crusty, smudged, smelly parcel of news of family disputes, male births and deaths that would arrive from my village intermittently to my childhood home?

The eponymous airmail had no chance against the advent of cheap mobile telephony, and a rise in social media that leaves Indians logging into the most facebook accounts per unit population than any other nation That said, I must confess there was something of mystery in news taking, as in Victorian times, itself some time to arrive.

So the central question for me is whether the explosion in social media provides the same tangible benefits, some would say lifeline, that airmails and crackly phonecalls did in the past.

It is undeniable,according to many I have polled, that the stories, views and information contained within airmails and visits back home represented quality social contact. Who knew when the next blue envelope would arrive?

Would the bribe to the village telephone-wallah would pay off? How rough were the state of the metaphorical seas across which the words would need to cross? Who knew whether the family would still be on speaking terms when our parents, and at a push we youngsters, returned from our two-week sojourns?

Although a badge of honour for our young adults today, does a social network measured by the number facebook friends represent quality social context?There are two keys way it could:if today's young adults were teaching their elders, and leveraging any improved computer literacy to enhance the generation's virtual diasporic contact.

Secondly,if social media was being used to build bridges between first and second generations themselves and thus increase cultural awareness of our young adults both at home and abroad.

I think that based on the above two tests social media leaves airmail in its shadows: the use of social media by first generation south asians, including my facebook-addict mother-in-law, had risen six fold in the last two years, although still relatively low. So young adults are playing some part in educating their parents and their friends about email and social media.

We all need to do more.

More importantly, the quality of

social media contact-when it comes to those young facebookers amongst usthe exchange of ideas and news with our South Asian contemporaries has lead to both good and bad. Positive in that a few clicks or pokes can break down barriers in a matter of seconds.

Without the shared photos of today, my young Punjabi contemporaries of yesteryear dreamt of reaching the streets of London, supposedly lined with gold. My parents felt a guilt and indeed pressure to help them migrate.

Look at the situation now; the clubs of Bombay are livelier than ours in London, the youngsters benefitting from the spoils of the Indian tiger economy no longer look West for inspiration or style tips.

Views have also been moderated, for good and for bad through social media. Seeing the same genders and different castes copulate, procreate, marry and divorce has moderated beliefs back in India and in the UK. There has also, according to a recent Times of India poll, been a radical shift towards liberalism across the south asian diaspora when it comes to divorce, mental health and other social issues. The main driving force has undoubtedly been the explosion in use of social media.

The explosion in the sharing of information from south asia to its diasporas across the globe is also interesting. Previously the metaphoric blue envelope, but more broadly culturally-bound information itself was controlled by the punjabi or hindispeaker, often the parent who controlled its dissemination down the family unit or community. This lead to an abundance of Chinese, or indeed Indian, whispers, the worst kind. There are no such barriers left, and openness pervades through photographs and twitter feeds.

So, my lesson for the young facebook addicts, my twitter followers, is to continue to exploit social media for all its worth. To definitely use it to build links with their parents, contemporaries back home and across the globe. But think outside the box a little too, it is fine to follow an idol, a columnist, a mentor, but social media does not replace real-time, live social skills. The power to capture the imagination of a room full of people is not learnt through twitter.

But here's to the end of the blue airmail envelope.

Members of the Joint Standing, Sitting, Sleeping and Outstanding Committees meet here for briefings

(Courtesy: The Times of India)

Former DMK minister jailed in land grab case Former Tamil Nadu minister K N Nehru of the DMK who was arrested in a land grab case has been and remanded to 15 days judicial custody. Nehru who was taken into custody from Tiruchirapalli was moved to Cuddalore prison. Nehru's arrest came after the arrest of two former DMK ministers Veerapandi Arumugam and N K K P Raja. Arumugam was arrested on July 30 while Raja, who is now out on bail, was arrested on Aug 4. Nehru, a former transport minister, was arrested on a complaint by K Srinivasan, a doctor, for forcibly acquiring his land of around 13,000 sq ft on which the DMK district office was then built.

In divine light

By Rajen Vakil

Temptation of Rishyashringa The king gave the old courtesan all she needed, including a lot of wealth, to bring Rishyashringa to his kingdom. The old courtesan gathered around her a few young and beautiful women and together with them went into the forest to entice the rishi’s son, Rishyashringa.

The crafty courtesan made a beautiful houseboat filled with fragrant flowers and plants. It also had the choicest foods and morsels. Along with the young girls, she took the houseboat up the river into the forest and anchored it very near to Vibhandak rishi’s ashram.

The old prostitute waited till Vibhandak went into the forest to look for fruit and his son Rishyashringa was alone in the ashram. She then sent her clever daughter to the ashram to win over Rishyashringa with her charms. The beautiful young daughter went to the ashram where Rishyashringa was sitting in deep meditation. She touched the feet of the rishi’s son and asked him how he was and whether he was getting enough of fruit in the forest. The young rishi opened his eyes and was shocked to see another human, and

that too a beautiful woman. It was the first time he had seen anyone except his father. The innocent Rishyashringa thought the young lady to be another rishi and with respect washed her feet and made her sit on a deer skin and asked her “O great sadhu, please tell me where your ashram is?” The girl replied, “My ashram is beyond this mountain here, I have taken a vow not to allow anyone to wash my feet or bow to me. So do not bow before me but do allow me to embrace you.”

The girl then gave Rishyashringa rare fruits and exotic foods to eat.

She also gave him wine to drink and the innocent rishi, who had never seen anything like this, came under the spell of her charms. She also danced for him and kept touching his body and embracing him. She then left, leaving

All past articles on the Mahabharata can be accessed from http://epaper.asianvoice.com or from http://www.3stepbreath.com/mahabharata.html

Reprieve for Rajiv Gandhi killers, hanging stayed

Rajiv Gandhi

The Madras High Court on Tuesday stayed for eight weeks the hanging of the three convicts sentenced to death for conspiring to assassinate former prime minister Rajiv Gandhi.

Hearing the petitions filed by Murugan alias Sriharan, T Suthendraraja alias Santhan and A G Perarivalan alias Arivu that their death sentence be commuted, the high court ordered an interim stay on the hanging pending disposal of the case.

The court has ordered notice to the union government returnable in eight weeks.

On Aug 11, President Pratibha Patil rejected the mercy petitions of Murugan, Santhan and Perarivalan all linked to the Liberation

the young rishi in deep thought about her. He still thought her to be a charming rishi and as yet no awareness of women had come to him, yet he was left with an unexplained feeling of happiness and joy.

When rishi Vibhandak returned from the forest, he saw that his son was lost in deep thought and kept looking up to the sky, calling out to someone.

He was shocked to see that the boy had not arranged the deerskin for his evening rituals and had also not put wood into the agnihotra. He told his son that he seemed lost in a dream and that he had changed completely. He asked the son whether someone else had come to the ashram that day.

The son replied that a handsome Bhramin rishi had come. He was shining like the sun and his eyes were like beautiful lotuses. His hair was long and beautiful and a lovely fragrance came from his body.

We shall continue in the next article with the story and its interpretation.

Tigers of Tamil Eelam (LTTE) - and sentenced them to death for their involvement in Gandhi's 1991 assassination.

Rajiv Gandhi, who was prime minister 1984-89, was killed by a suicide bomber called Dhanu at an election rally in Sriperumbudur near Chennai May 21. Fourteen other people also lost their lives in the blast.

The three condemned prisoners, who were due to hang Sept 9, had on Monday moved the high court to commute their sentence to life imprisonment.

Arguing for Perarivalan, senior counsel Ram Jethmalani said the clemency petition was rejected by the Indian president after 11 years and the delay is prima facie wrong.

He said a notice seeking explanation for the delay should be sent.

Urging speedy disposal of mercy petitions, Jethmalani had said earlier that if there was a delay of two years, then the death sentence would be commuted to life imprisonment. This provision was later changed.

Tree falls, kills Mumbai equity firm CEO

Ved Prakash Arya

A top official of a private equity firm was killed after a coconut tree fell on him in a municipal garden during a morning walk in suburban Andheri. The incident took place on when Ved Prakash Arya (41), Managing Director, Milestone Capital, went for a walk with his wife and was severely injured after the tree fell on him, said an official from the Disaster Control Room of BMC. Ved was immediately rushed to the nearby hospital where he died a few minutes after his admission, the BMC official said. Authorities said the tree might have fallen due to high velocity winds and added that there was no negligence by the civic body, as the tree was not identified among the vulnerable ones.

INDIA

Asian Voice - Saturday 3rd September 2011

25

Somali pirates' Pakistan China deploys nuclear missiles on India border trust continues to strain China is sharpening its link confirmed the bilateral relationclaws. From long-range

It is now official: Somali pirates are being trained in Pakistan to carry out a proxy war against India.

Though Indian security agencies had been hinting at a Pakistani link to Somali pirates for long, material evidence to support this assertion has been recently recovered.

The evidence was obtained from nine foreign nationals caught from a hijacked Iranian vessel MV Nafis-1, by the Indian Navy 170 nautical miles off Mumbai on August 14.

The vessel was brought to Porbandar on August 15 and those arrested - five Yemenis, two Tanzanians, one Kenyan and one Somali national - were handed over to Porbandar police for interrogation.

Gujarat customs officials had seized a large quantity of food items from the vessel and also found that rice packets and juice pouches bore names of Pakistani companies with addresses written in Urdu.

Gujarat customs officials also recovered two AK-47s, a pistol and a cache of foreign currency including $ 86,000 and 1,500 Saudi Riyals.

Officials seized bags full of tea leaves, which customs officials believe, were

chewed by the pirates to stay awake.

"On several occasions we seized weapons and magazines from pirates or hijacked ships in Indian waters. These weapons bore the stamp of Pakistani ordnance factories. In this case, the guns have no label but the food items are packed and manufactured in Pakistan.

Smugglers are not generally found carrying such a large amount of foreign currency," said a senior customs official.

The fact that the foreign nationals were traveling in a low-speed, big-size merchant vessel unlike Somali pirates who use high-speed boats, gave the arrested athe benefit of the doubt, said customs officials.

"We are taking no chances and are taking help of respective foreign embassies to know if those arrested have a criminal record. We have three Arabic translators who are helping us with the interrogation. The arrested have confessed that they are smugglers and operate in Arabic countries, and were lost in waters before they were intercepted by Indian forces," said Dipen Bhadran, Porbandar superintendant of police.

Former Kerala CM to take royal family to SC

V S Achuthanandan

Former Kerala chief minister V S Achuthanandan said he would approach the Supreme Court against the Travancore Royal Family.

Last week, the veteran CPI-M leader had alleged that the head of the erstwhile Travancore Royal Family had attempted to smuggle out precious articles from the Sree Padmanabhaswamy temple, where huge treasure trove was found in secret vaults recently.

Achuthanandan said his step followed complaints from temple

employees. "I will move the Supreme Court. I hope the Court will order an inquiry into these allegations so that the real culprits are brought to book," Achuthanandan was quoted as saying by a news website.

The former CM had last week accused family head, Uthradam Thirunal Marathandavarma, of playing a 'double role' by portraying himself to be the protector of the temple wealth while attempting to take out the wealth.

"Don't you know that Marthanda Varma goes to the temple every day?

When he returns he carries a tiffin box. The general perception is that he brings the 'payasam'. But it is not that. Instead, it is jewels," Achuthanandan had said.

The Supreme Court had of late ordered an audit of the temple treasure reportedly worth over millions of rupees.

nuclear missiles and an expanding blue water navy to potent space and cyber warfare abilities, China will have a “modern’’ military capable of prolonged high-intensity combat operations by the end of this decade.

Pentagon’s latest assessment of the expanding military might of China, released last week, paints a scary picture of the frenetic pace at which the 2.25-million People’s Liberation Army (PLA) is being modernized, in the backdrop of uncertainty over its longterm intentions.

Though the US report

Soon, it would be a borderless world for Indian and Pakistan businessmen. The two countries have agreed to consider easing business visa rules from issuing multi-centre documents to longer duration stay and no requirement to report to the police. Pakistan is expected to come up with the contours of the liberalized regime and India will match it, said a senior government official.

In addition, the Indian government has agreed to consider lifting the blanket ban on investment from across the border, while it has asked Islamabad to move to "normal trade".

During official-level talks last week, sources said there were indications that Pakistan would grant most-favoured nation status to India and also implement its commitments under the South Asian Free Trade Agreement that entails lowering of duties and allowing import of commodities, barring a small negative list. At present, Pakistan follows a system of positive list which means only a handful of

Tel: 020 8205 1200 / 7898 Fax: 020 8200 7426 www.dimpleselfdrive.com Email:dimplemotors@aol.com 19 Varley Parade, Edgware Road, London NW9 6RR

products can be imported from India. As a result, a bulk of products is traded through third countries such as the United Arab Emirates.

Sources said India has said that there was no point of Pakistan signing Safta if the terms of the agreement were not implemented. Recent talks, at the level of commerce secretary and at official level, have resulted in positive atmosphere being created and this will be followed by talks at the level of trade ministers from the two countries. By midOctober, Pakistan is expected to ease trade curbs and also come up with easier visa rules.

In case of investment, officials said there was no specific interest from a company in India or Pakistan but the two sides were of the view that there was need to remove the blanket ban. The industry

# " #

$ !

# #

!

Profesional

Ajay, Kajol lend support to girl child campaign

department, which deals with foreign direct investment, has been asked to look into the policy and see if investment from Pakistan can come through after proper vetting. In case of security concerns the same could be factored in.

With security agencies opposing investment by even large multinationals with presence in Pakistan, it is unlikely that they will soften their position even after the legal requirements are lowered. But the move is expected to improve overall sentiment.

The Maharashtra government’s "save the girl child campaign" received a shot in the arm with Bollywood couple Ajay Devgn and Kajol agreeing to be brand ambassadors for the drive.

What's more, the stars have offered to produce a short film to create awareness on the issue. Last month, the state health department approached the actors and sought their help in arresting the sharp decline in the population of the girl child in Maharashtra.

%

! # $"

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

!

DIMPLE VANS - CARS - MINIBUS Mini Bus (8-17 Seater) 8 Seater from £60 12 Seater from £65 15 Seater from £70 17 Seater from £80 Small Cars from £25 Medium Cars from £30 Large Cars from £35 Large Vans from £40

PLA has replaced its older liquid-fuelled, nuclearcapable CSS-2 intermediate range ballistic missiles with the “more advanced’’ solid-fuelled CSS-5 medium-range ballistic missile systems along the Line of Actual Control (LAC) to “strengthen its deterrent posture’’ against India.

“A high level of mis-

Easier visa rules for India, Pak businessmen

DIMPLE SELF DRIVE HIRE LTD Competitive prices No hidden extras Unlimited mileage 3 days & over Special weekend rates Minibuses 8, 12, 15 & 17 seaters Vans & estate cars

holds that thwarting any American intervention in Taiwan remains PLA’s “main strategic direction,’’ New Delhi can ill-afford to ignore China’s increasing trans-border military capabilities, its assiduous strategic encircling of India and hardening posture in the border talks.

The report itself notes

ship…India remains concerned over China’s close military relationship with Pakistan and Beijing’s growing footprint in the Indian Ocean, Central Asia and Africa,’’ says the report.

China can now move over 30 divisions (each with over 15,000 soldiers) to the LAC within a month to outnumber Indian forces due to the huge military infrastructure buildup in Tibet.

China also helps Pakistan to boost its military capabilities, with the clear intention to bog down India in South Asia.

$

! #

" " #% # ! ! % ! ( !( ! " " !" ' )

( $!

&#

% !

#

##!

!" $!

## ! #

-$ ) /-$) -- / '$ .$*)- . ,( *" */*2.*) ,& . !! *,*) . ., *) *) *,

.

#

26

InDIA

Asian Voice - Saturday 3rd September 2011

In focus Ahmedabad airport goes Wi-Fi

You can now avoid ennui while waiting at Ahmedabad airport when flights are running late. Now you will be able to access internet on your laptop and cellphone sitting inside the domestic terminal and that too without any charges. Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel International airport officials announced that BSNL has completed the project of providing Wi-Fi connection at domestic terminal (T1). The officials said that the facility would soon be extended to international terminal (T2). "As part of the national drive to provide Wi-Fi connections at all major airports, BSNL was awarded the work for creating the necessary infrastructure at Ahmedabad airport. In a few days the facility will be extended to all the passengers for free," said an Ahmedabad airport official.

Amar Singh charged in cash-for-vote scam

Asian Voice-Gujarat Samachar’s special issue “Medical Tourism Destination India was launched by Sterling Group Of Hospitals Chief Executive Officer Rajiv Sharma (centre) on 27th August. Those graced the dais - AB Publication (India) Private Ltd Chief Executive Director Kamlesh Amin (left ) and well known cancer specialist Dr. Jayesh Patel (right). Large number of surgeons, doctors and other dignitaries attended the event organised in Cambay Sapphire Hotel, Ahmedabad.

(Detailed report on the event will be in the next issue of Asian Voice) - Photo by Jhatakia Studio.

Privilege notices against Om Puri, Kiran Bedi Members in both Houses of Parliament have given Privilege notices against actor Om Puri and civil rights activist Kiran Bedi for using "derogatory and defamatory" language against politicians and the matter is under consideration of the Chair.

In the Rajya Sabha, a member also attacked lawyer activist Prashant Bhushan for reportedly saying that legislations are passed by Parliament after taking bribe.

Lok Sabha Speaker Meira Kumar said in the House that notices for moving a Privilege Motion against Mr. Puri and Ms. Bedi have been received.

Haren Pandya case: HC drops murder charges against 12 accused Slamming the Central Bureau of Investigation for its “washed up” and “blinkered” investigations in the 2003 Haren Pandya murder case, the Gujarat High Court dropped murder charges against all the 12 accused in the case.

However, the charges of attempt to murder will remain on all the accused.

This means that the appeal of the accused in the sensational murder case is partially allowed, special public prosecutor J M Panchal said.

A Division Bench of the High Court comprising Justices D H Vaghela and J C Upadhyay said the

investigations by the Central agency in the case were “washed up, blinkered and had left lot to desire.”

Criticising the CBI, the court further said the investigating officer should be made accountable for such lapses, which has caused injustice to the accused and wastage of public

resources.

The court said the trial court’s order was set aside since the investigation agency could not prove murder charges. At the trial court the accused were convicted of murder with criminal conspiracy.

Mr Panchal said that following the court verdict, the sentence of most of the accused, except prime accused Ashgar Ali, is likely to be reduced.

Mr Pandya, former Minister of State for Home, was shot dead on March 26, 2003, near Law Garden area of Ahmedabad when he had gone for a morning walk.

BJP demands removal of Gujarat governor over Lokayukta appointment Continued from page 1 complex against the appointment of R A Mehta as the Lokayukta by governor Kamla Beniwal.

"We are going to meet the President on September 1 or 2 when she returns to the capital.

All norms were ignored by the governor like consultation with the chief minister before the appointment or taking the advice of his cabinet on the issue. The Lokayukta was appointed by the governor bypassing all established norms," Advani told reporters.

The MPs shouted slogans against the governor demanding her recall.

Some of them held placards saying, "Dual policy on Gujarat will not be tolerated", "Recall Gujarat governor", "murder of democracy" and "Rajyapal Bhawan has become Congress Bhawan (governor's House has become Congress Bhawan).

Asked if the BJP would demand Beniwal's removal as governor, Advani said,

"Yes. We are going to meet the President over this."

In reply to another question, the senior BJP leader said, "It is a very serious matter and we condemn it. It is an attack on the federal structure of the country. It has never happened before."

Earlier, BJP gave notices in both Houses of Parliament for suspension of Question Hour to discuss the issue which it claims is violation of Article 163 of the Constitution that states the governor should act according to the advice of the council of ministers.

Lokayukta in Gujarat Earlier the Governor has appointed Justice R A Mehta as the Lokayukta setting the stage for confrontation with Gujarat government.

The BJP government, which till now seemed in no hurry to appoint the Lokayukta, took no time in moving the High Court against the unprecedented move, saying it was “against

the spirit of Constitution and precedence”.

Barely two days ago, the state government had set up a five-member cabinet committee to make suggestions in the Gujarat Lokayukta Act, in view of the proposed Lokayukta Bill in Parliament.

The Congress described the move as an attempt to delay the appointment of Lokayukta, when the High Court was already seized of the matter following a public interest litigation on the issue. The appointment of the cabinet committee had come within days of the High Court issuing a show cause notice to the state government to furnish an affidavit on the status of the Lokayukta’s appointment.

Sources, meanwhile, disclose that Raj Bhawan and the government have been engaged in a tussle over the issue of appointment for quite some time.

And with Dr Kamla initiating the move, it now has reached a flashpoint.

Meanwhile, chief minister Narendra Modi appointed an inquiry commission to be headed by retired Supreme Court justice M B Shah to probe allegations of corruption leveled by the Congress against his own government.

“The high-level group has been formed with an aim to strengthen the democratic institution of Lokayukta in the state,” Gujarat government spokesperson and Health Minister Jaynarayan Vyas said. “The group will suggest changes on the basis of the provisions of Lokpal Bill if it is agreed upon by the Government of India and Team Anna Hazare and if passed by the Parliament,” said Vyas.

The panel will be headed by Finance Minister Vaju Vala, and besides Vyas, will have Law Minister Dilip Sanghani, Minister of state for Law Pradipsinh Jadeja and Minister of State for Planning Ranjit Gilitwala as its members.

Delhi Police filed a charge sheet in a court against six people, including former Samajwadi Party leader Amar Singh, in the cash-for-vote scandal. The charge sheet also named sitting Bharatiya Janata Party MP Ashok Argal, former BJP MPs Fagan Singh Kulaste and Mahavir Bhagora, Amar Singh's former aide Sanjeev Saxena and arrested middleman Sohail Hindustani.

They have been charged with various offences under the Prevention of Corruption Act. Slammed by the Supreme Court for a shoddy probe into the scandal, police made the first arrest in the case on July 17.

Mangalore crash: Kerala HC stays compensation

In a setback for families of victims of last year's Mangalore air crash, a division bench of the Kerala High Court last week overruled a single judge bench order asking Air India to pay Rs 7500,000 as minimum compensation to families of victims. The single judge bench had ruled that Air India is liable to pay 'no fault liability' to each of the victims as laid down in the Montreal convention to which India is a signatory.

Overruling the single judge bench order, the court held that Air India is not liable to pay 'no fault liability' and has asked the airline and the crash victims to negotiate and reach a settlement regarding the compensation.

SC dismisses Justice Dinakaran’s plea The Supreme Court of India dismissed former Chief Justice of Sikkim High Court P D Dinakaran’s plea challenging the Rajya Sabha-appointed committee’s decision to frame charges against him by allegedly exceeding its jurisdiction. A Bench headed by Justice G S Singhvi also rejected his contention that the panel has no power to conduct preliminary inquiry against him. Justice Dinakaran, who resigned from the post in view of impeachment proceedings against him, had contended the committee had exceeded its jurisdiction by framing 14 charges on the basis of fresh complaints whereas there were only 12 charges at the time when the motion was introduced in Parliament.

Yeddyurappa's bail plea rejected The Karnataka high court on Monday rejected the anticipatory bail petition of former chief minister BS Yeddyurappa in land scam and graft cases. Rejecting the bail plea, Justice N. Narayana Swamy directed Yeddyurappa to be present in the Lokayukta (ombudsman) court later in the day in response to the summons issued by its judge N.K. Sudhindra Rao Aug 8. Though Yeddyurappa was to appear in the trial court Saturday, his counsel pleaded for his exemption as he was suffering from fever.

Govt bows, Anna Hazare wins Continued from page 1 It was later learnt that the agreed upon draft resolution was changed and this almost scuppered the deal.

Eventually Prime Minister Manmohan Singh stepped in, and with the help of top BJP leaders and his own colleagues, pushed through an acceptable resolution.

Fast only deferred, fight goes on: Anna As promised Anna broke his 12-day fast on Sunday morning in front of another mammoth crowd at the Ramlila Ground, promising them he would be back for more struggles.

The 74-year-old crusader said his next target were electoral reforms.

He, however, cautioned that the fight for the Jan Lokpal Bill was far from over. “I have only deferred my agitation. I will not rest until all the changes that I look to see are achieved,” he said. At the same time, Anna laid out his future agenda of action. He said his fight would now be for the right to recall and the right to reject elected representatives.

Earlier, Anna supporter Arvind Kejriwal set the tone by pitching for strong electoral reforms. Viewed as a hardliner in Team Anna, Kejriwal was magnanimous in the moment of victory. He had a thank you for everyone, with Prime Minister Manmohan Singh coming in for special appreciation.

INDIA

Asian Voice - Saturday 3rd September 2011

Pravasi Bharatiya Diwas to be held in Jaipur

With an aim to address issues concerning overseas Indians and attract entrepreneurs, the 'world's largest diaspora meet' Pravasi Bharatiya Divas will be held in Jaipur in January next year.

"Jaipur is the destination of our next Pravasi Bharatiya Divas celebrations. It will be held from January 7-9," Minister for Overseas Indian Affairs Vayalar Ravi said.

The function will be inaugurated by prime minister Manmohan Singh and President Pratibha Patil will deliver the valedictory address. The chief guest of the three-day event will be prime minister of Trinidad and Tobago Kamla Persad-Bissessar.

The theme of the event will be 'Global India: Inclusive Growth'.

"The economic growth of India should not benefit only one section of the society. Everybody should be part of this growth story. We will discuss how PIOs can contribute in the inclusive growth of

India," Ravi said.

There will also be two pre-conference seminars on 'Solar Energy Investment and R&D' and 'Social Entrepreneurship Water'.

The Union minister said the government is targeting 1,500 delegates from 51 countries. "We are also expecting a large number of youth participation in the event," he said.

The minister said despite slowdown in western nation, "We are expecting more delegations from that part of the world.

Other than that we are also expecting good numbers from Africa."

Thanking Ravi for awarding the hosting of event to Jaipur, Rajasthan industries minister Rajendra Pareek said, "They are planning to provide 20 per cent discount to the participants of the event in rent for ITDC hotels and fare for Palace on Wheels.'

Established in 2003, 'Pravasi Bharatiya Divas' is sponsored by the Ministry of Overseas Indian Affairs of the Government of India and the Confederation of Indian Industry. There are nearly 25 million PIOs in 150 nations of the world.

Raja wants Manmohan Singh as witness in 2G case

Rosaiah named new Tamil Nadu governor

Jailed former telecom minister A Raja told a Delhi court that he would get prime minister Manmohan Singh, then finance minister P Chidambaram and present telecom minister Kapil Sibal summoned as witnesses to prove government did not incur any loss in the 2G allocation.

"Aaj main bata dena chahta hu ki main Prime Minister, tabke finance minister or vartman ke telecom minister ko battor gawah banaunga (Today, I want to state that I would get the prime minister, the then finance minister and the present telecom minister summoned as witnesses)," senior advocate Sushil Kumar, appearing for Raja, told Special CBI Judge OP Saini.

The moment it is established that there was no loss to the state exchequer, the whole case of cheating and conspiracy in the spectrum allocation will go, he said, claiming that the prime minister and two

Former Andhra Pradesh chief minister K Rosaiah was appointed as the new Tamil Nadu governor while Jharkhand governor M O H Farook was shifted to Kerala in a slew of announcements for gubernatorial posts by President Pratibha Patil.

Konijeti Rosaiah (78) replaces Surjit Singh Barnala who took over the post on June 20, 2006.

The President has also given additional charge of Goa to Maharashtra governor K Sankaranarayanan.

Sankaranarayan and Farook will carry on their new assignments till the end of their terms, it said.

Their terms will end in January, 2015.

President has also appointed Ram Naresh Yadav as governor of Madhya Pradesh, Vakkom Purushothaman as governor of Mizoram and Syed Ahmed as governor of Jharkhand.

Sonia seventh most powerful woman; says Forbes

Congress party president Sonia Gandhi figures as the seventh most powerful woman of the world in the Forbes list which is topped

by German Chancellor Angela Merkel and US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.

The 64-year-old Sonia Gandhi, who is recouping from surgery in a US hospital, is ranked seventh, just ahead of US First Lady Michelle Obama in a list of 100 most powerful women of the world released by the Forbes magazine.

Indian-American Indra Nooyi, the head of soft drink giant PepsiCo, has been ranked fourth, followed by Sheryl Sandberg, COO of Facebook and Melinda Gates co-chair and co-founder of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

Two Indian corporate executives Chandra Kochhar of the ICICI (43rd) and Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw of Biocon (99th) have figured in this list in which the

third place is occupied by President Dilma Rousseff, who became Brazil's first woman president.

"Lauded for overseeing heavy economic growth, she is also criticized for tolerating political corruption and failing to forge connections with India's fastest-growing demographic--younger voters," said Forbes about Sonia Gandhi.

"Gandhi is an avid scholar of the arts, and holds a degree in oil painting conservation. She recently underwent surgery in the US," it added.

"The managing director and CEO of India's secondlargest bank, Chanda Kochhar rules over assets of $118 billion and profits of $1.35 million," Forbes said.

"India's first biotech entrepreneur, Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw founded Biocon in 1978 at just 25.

Since then Biocon has become only the second Indian firm to list a USD 1 billion IPO on its first day of trading," it added.

German Chancellor Merkel is head of the one real global economy in Europe and is the "undisputed" leader of the EU. US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton moved up to No 2 from last year's No 5. More popular than her husband, Michelle Obama's approval ratings hover near 70 per cent while President Barack Obama's are less than 40 per cent.

27

A Raja and Manmohan Singh

based Etisalat and Norway-based Telenor respectively and maintained that there was no criminality involved in those transactions.

"First of all there was no sale of licences, then the offloading of equities was within the limit of 74%. Moreover, the transactions were cleared at the highest level (the Foreign Investment Promotion Board)," he said.

other ministers would be able to establish that.

He said Raja would move an application under section 91 of the CrPC for getting certain documents from the CBI which had so far not been brought before the court.

The defence counsel also raised the issue of offloading of equity by Swan Telecom Pvt Ltd and Unitech (Tamil Nadu) Wireless Pvt Ltd to Dubai-

)&

3) 3)

&,

% $ 0 + ",%

&03&-#&1

) +

$$

% $ 0

" $ * /

)"+"*! *" &* 2 )'% $$ . $#* ' $" 2 ) +' !'&',) + +! +! *" & !" - )* . ) * ! "&"+" +"- ) ' &"* * +!'* .!'* / (+"'& $ .')# % # * & &')%',* & ** &+" $ '&+)" ,+"'& +' +! . $+! ! $+! & "&+ $$ +, $ . $$ "& ' )"+ "& ! ."$$ ++ & 0 & "%() **"- )) 0 ' !" ! & + .')+! "& "-" , $* "& ,*+)0 (+ "&* !" ! $ - $ "*"'& % # )* ( )$"% &+ )" &* '%%,&"+0 $ )* & * &"') ()' **"'& $*

$ ' + & 1 $

*

"$$ "& 0',)

+ "$*

"& $

" # + 1

$'.

%

"+$

'%( &0 ) ** $

' "$

% "$ $ ' &

( " 0 " %') +! & '& +

&

$% %" (

&

.$"2& /'

( '

$%

& !

#' " (

1&%*3 "

$

&! %

"1% "7-&.3 ,&"2&

%

! &

&!

/63/.

"3&(/17 0/.2/12

'%

%% '

&! % &

",, !$

" $!'" !

2*". 42*.&22 4#,*$"3*/.2 3% "1+&3 '' /1/.&3 311&&3 /.%/. ''*$*",

&%*" "13.&1

)"1*37 /' )& !&"1

''*$*", "3&1&12

5&.3

"."(&% #7

28

CoMMunIty / TRAvel

Paryushan:

A time for Jains to seek forgiveness Paryushan Parva is an annual religious festival of the Jains. Considered auspicious and sacred, it is observed to deepen ones awareness as a physical being in conjunction with spiritual observations.

Paryushan Parva began on 25th Aug and ended on 2nd Sept with the celebration of Samvatsari on the last day.

Paryushan is that time of the year when Jains throng derasar (temples).

Paryushan, which derives its meaning from par (all kinds) and ushan (to burn) all karmas, will be observed by renunciation, austerities and donation.

Significance of Fasting: In Jainism, fasting is considered as a spiritual activity, that purifies the soul, improve morality, spiritual power, increase knowledge and strengthen relationships. The purpose is to purify our souls by staying closer to our own souls, looking at our faults and asking for forgiveness for the mistakes and taking vows to mini-

mize our faults. During the fasting one has to completely abstain from food and even water.

Depending on one's capability, fasting can be between 8 and 31 days.

It is also a time for the Jains to review their action towards animals, environment and every kind of soul. Jains try not to eat any root vegetable during this period, though few avoid them throughout their life.

They do not use potato, onion and garlic. In fact they even avoid usage of brinjal, okrar or any other green vegetable. Pulses and fruits are the main diet during the period. If they are not fasting they will make vegetables made of papad-methi, vadi or banana instead of green vegetables.

In the morning they visit derasars where pravachans and snatra pujas are performed.

Discourses on Bhagwan Mahavira's birth, his teaching are also conducted which take one to 'devotional high'.

The Namokar Mantra

is chanted everyday.

Forgiveness is an important aspect of the celebration. At the end of fasting, they seek forgiveness for any wrongdoings they may have committed during the previous year.

Samatsavari is the last day of this festival and this day Jains observe fasting. On the day of Samatsvari, Jains seek forgiveness from

people they came in contact during the previous year. It doesn’t matter in which sect or caste they belong to.

Granting pardon or forgiveness • The meaning of forgiveness is tolerance.

• To believe that tolerance is one’s responsibility and to oppose the negative forces of animosity is forgiveness.

• Tolerance is to overlook the source of the negative forces of anger.

• Forgiveness is the weapon of the strong willed.

Samvatsari Micchami Dukkadam This is the last day of Paryushan of Jain devotees and is celebrated as Samvatsari. Paryushan starting from 12th day of Shravan Vad, and ending on 4th day of bright half of Bhadrapad month is considered the most important festival of Jains.

Jains begin their Samvatsari day with Pratikraman in early morning followed by various poojs and prayers.

Pratikraman means turning back. It is a form of meditation called Samyika where one reflects his spiritual journey and renews his faith.

On the day of Samvatsari annual Pratikraman ( literally introspection) is performed and all Jains seek forgiveness from all creatures of the world whom they may have harmed knowingly or unknowingly by uttering the words Micchâmi dukkaḍam. “ M i c h h a m i Dukkadam” is an ancient Prakrit phrase meaning “I beg your forgiveness”.

People visit their friends and relatives to greet “Michhami Dukkadam” and pledge that no private dispute or quarrel may be taken beyond this day of “Samvatsari”.

On this pious day of Samvatsari, Jains keep fasting and next day they take breakfast which is known as Parna.

asian voice - Saturday 3rd September 2011

Purvi’s travel bag

By Purvi Apurva Shah

Must see place in India: Goa

If you think that India offers only its rich cultural heritage, regal monuments, religious pilgrimage and outstanding festivals then you've not fully explored the country yet.

According to recent surveys and popularity ratings, the beaches of India are fast becoming a popular destinations. So an Indian vacation without beaches is quite an incomplete one.

Most scenic beaches of India can be found on the west coast, these beaches offer not only extravagant parties but also a private getaway for people who want a quieter vacation.

One place you do not want to miss in India is Goa, it is the most favoured destination to relax amidst sun, sea and sand. The Portuguese term used for Goa is “susegad”, which means “laid-backness,” a place perfect for letting your hair down and getting away from daily routine of 9 to 5 grind, sipping the local brew of cashew or coconut feni, and watching your cares melt away.

Nestled between Karnataka and Maharashtra, Goa, is the smallest state in India but it is the richest one, and no doubt one of the most beautiful place on the West Coast. It is famous for its long stretch of beaches which are 40 in number. It is the hippy capital of the east, with this former Portuguese colony that still has that old charm with bohemian lifestyle. Go by a motorbike or else hop in a car, it is 14 hours drive from Mumbai. Train travelling will take bit less but easiest is of course, catching a flight that makes you reach Goa in less than an hour from Mumbai. nature’s darling: The rainy season here is prettiest, go to drench in rain at Anjuna beach, one of the most popular beaches, it is time of a life to walk between tall palm trees.

Baga beach though crowded, is lot of fun as it has many adventure activities like windsurfing and jet skiing. If you are underwater diving lover, Calanguta beach is ideal with all aquatic attrac-

tions. Dona Paula Beach is home to a bird sanctuary, where you can spot migratory birds during the winter months.

World heritage site: The Bon Jesus Basilica, which holds the remains of St. Francis Xavier widely regarded as the patron saint of Goa. One thing you should not forget to shop is the famous cashew nut, it is in abundance and is very good in taste.

Take lots of them with you when you go back.

They are available at Panjim or Mapusa market.

Shop through the night at Saturday Night Markets with hundreds of great stalls, lots of delicious food and live music to enjoy.

Casino Royale is the largest floating Casino in Goa, a gaming floor and sundeck to freak out for.

Top 10 things to do in Goa • Do not miss to see spectacular Dudhsagar Falls, it is India’s second highest waterfall.

• Full Moon Parties are trance parties popular amongst the younger generation.

• Wax World is definitely to be seen. Here you will view life size wax statues of historical figures, even an adaptation of

Michelangelo’s last supper!

• Crocodile watching is done in the Cambarjua canal, a very unique experience where they can be seen in the wild and are surprisingly okay with human presence.

• A night cruise is a great thing to do with a group of friends. You can hop on a boat and listen to music, drink and dance the night away in luxury.

• Its fun to bath in salty sea water. It will do wonders to your body. Seawater

has many benefits.

• Goa has a lot to offer - ranging from Konkani to Portuguese and even Parsi food. Sea food, especially Goan Fish curry with Rice, are must try-out recipes.

Also visit their local cafes where they serve excellent coffee with donuts.

• Cavala is one of the resorts overlooking the beach, enjoy a feni mix drink, a delicious liquor made from the almond apples, the official drink of Goa. • Count the churches.

There are so many beautiful church buildings in Goa, you'll lose count.

Head to old Goa for a few of the biggest and best.

• Pamper yourself.

There are many excellent spas in Goa now, that'll leave you feeling in tip-top shape from head to toe.

HealtH WAtch

Asian Voice - Saturday 3rd September 2011

Eating of biscuits, cakes regularly may cause womb cancer

Women who snack on biscuits and cakes regularly are at an increased risk of developing womb cancer, a new study has claimed.

The 10-year study that looked at the eating habits of more than 60,000 women in Sweden found that those who treated themselves two to three times a week were 33% more likely to suffer the disease. It also found that the risk of developing a tumour jumped by 42% among those who eat them more than three times a week.

Also known as endometrial cancer, the tumours in the womb affects around 6,400 women a year and kills an estimated 1,000 annually in the UK alone. The risks

are known to increase with weight gain, but a team at the Karolinska Institute in Stockholm wanted to see if there was a direct link between the amount of sweet foods eaten and the onset of cancer.

They studied data from thousands of women who completed questionnaires on diet, lifestyle, weight and general health in 1987. Ten years later, those still alive were given the same questions again.

After comparing the data with those earlier findings, the researchers found a total of 729 women went on to develop the diseases in the 18 years from the start of the study.

They found little or no increase in risk from eat-

Say 'No' to exercise sometimes

Constantly pushing yourself to the gym? We tell you when to avoid exercising and simply take it easy.

You have probably heard it before. It's important to keep yourself fit and healthy by exercising every day. However, people who are fitness freaks can take it a little too far.

Experts say while exercise is good, there are times when it's best to just sit back at home and relax.

If you're unwell: Doctors suggest that it's best to avoid the gym, even if you have a simple cold. The workout will put a strain on your immune system and lengthen the recovery period. When you're feeling sick, you may be concentrating on your illness, rather than

your gym routine.

If you're tired and stressed: Yes, the gym is a great place to release stress, but sometimes your body may just need a break. Exercising under too much tension can cause injury.

If you're injured: You may not realise it, but a small injury can become something serious if taken too lightly.

If you have a hangover: Had a late night and got a bit drunk? Skip your workout the morning immediately after. Alcohol has a dehydrating effect on the body and it takes the body about an hour to process one unit of alcohol. If you're still drunk, avoid the gym and fuel your body with a healthy breakfast.

ing certain high-sugar items such as sweets, soft drinks, jam or marmalade.

But women who frequently snacked on sweet cakes, buns or biscuits were up to 42% more likely to get cancer.

The researchers said: "These data may prove to be of major public health significance if they are confirmed by other studies in other populations."

The study looked at how often volunteers ate such treats but not specifically how much. However, those exceeding a total sugar intake of more than 35 grammes of sugar a day equivalent to about seven teaspoons - faced a 36 per cent increase in tumour risk.

According to scientists, sugary diets affect cancer risk in several ways. One is that sugar overload makes the body release more insulin, which can stimulate the excessive growth of cells in the endometrial, the lining of the womb.

Another is that it boosts levels of the hormone oestrogen that has already been shown to trigger the uncontrolled growth of cells - a key characteristic of cancer.

Coriander helps cure food poisoning, infections

Scientists from the University of Beira Interior in Portugal have found that oil from a common Indian spice is toxic to a broad range of harmful bacteria and its use in foods and in clinical agents could prevent food-borne illnesses and even treat antibioticresistant infections.

The researchers tested coriander oil against 12 bacterial strains, including Escherichia coli, Salmonella enterica, Bacillus cereus and meticillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA). Of the tested strains, all showed reduced growth, and most were killed, by solutions containing 1.6 per cent coriander oil or less.

This study not only shows that coriander oil also has an antibacterial effect, but provides an explanation for how it works, which was not previously understood.

“The results indicate that coriander oil damages the membrane surrounding the bacterial cell. This disrupts the barrier between the cell and its environment and inhibits essential processes including respiration, which ultimately leads to death of the bacterial cell,” explained Dr Fernanda Domingues who led the study.

29

Any quest ions writ e to m amta @thinkspalon

By Mamta Saha don.com

Psychologist

How to deal with passive aggressive people As a British Asian Psychologist I find many of my clients being on the receiving end of some odd behaviours – from their kids, partners and work colleagues. As Asians a lot of the values that we are brought up with resonate around harmony and peace. This is all well and good, but these values make it awfully difficult and frustrating to deal with challenging behaviours of others that could be deemed as ‘passive aggressive’.

Passive aggressive behaviour could be described as: a constant pessimistic attitude, someone who puts the efforts of other people down, individuals who complain that they don’t feel understood, people who avoid eye contact and engagement and choosing to not communicate rather then communicate openly and honestly. Also the extreme of having the values of ‘harmony and peace’ could also lead to passive aggressive behaviour as often people find it difficult to communicate exactly what they are thinking and feeling and this may lead to them ‘shutting themselves away and blocking everyone out’. If this all sounds familiar read on for some insight on how to deal with this positively.

The first thing to do is to not assume responsibility for someone else’s ‘stinking mood’. If they are in a bad mood and are being evasive – they have chosen to be in that place.

They may feel that if was

you that put them there, but ultimately – ‘we create how we feel’ so stop feeling guilty and remove yourself from their bubble and surroundings of blame, guilt and victim mentality’. Guilt is a selfcreated emotion and it adds absolutely no value to your mental, emotional, spiritual and physical vitality. Remain peaceful and calm yourself and keep yourself in a detached place – for your own wellbeing and peace of mind. Weigh up the pros and cons of absorbing somebody else’s anxiety and think about whether it is really worth it – what would it give you?

Refuse to play along with passive aggressive behaviour. Stick to the facts about their behaviour and express how it makes you feel, you need to do this when you are in a calm state of mind otherwise what you say will land of deaf ears. You could use this framework: Describe the action, how it made you feel and what you would prefer in the future.

For example: When you shouted at me and told me to go away it made me feel unloved and disrespected because I wanted to help, in future I would appreciate it if you watched your tone when communicating to me.

Simple, but effective. Also this way of saying things gives the person some options for what they can do instead. Often passive aggressive individuals are not even aware of the impact that are having and

how detrimental it can be to those around them.

Lastly, ensure that you confront these negative behaviours. If you don’t you let the individual know they can carry on like that with you and their negative behaviour is reinforced.

When you change the world changes around you. So if you’re constantly forgiving this bad behaviour maybe it is time for you to think about the type of respect and value that you expect from this relationship.

Speak from your heart; life is too short to be fearful.

Nobody is going to respect you if you don’t respect yourself. So think about a way forward and make a commitment to yourself about the steps you are going to take to not be in a place where you have to deal with such passive aggressive behaviours.

Remember, we all have choices – sometimes you need to think outside of your comfort zone and box to find them.

I am running an event on September 17th in London. To register your interest email: mamta@thinkspalondon.c om. Keep up to date by ‘liking’ the Think Spa London page on Facebook and following us on Twitter. Also register on www.thinkspalondon.com for free articles.

Remember you have all it takes to live happily and peacefully – so think twice before you allow anything negative to get the better of you. I send you all peace and energy.

Daily consumption of cheese can cause cancer Daily intake of cheese can increase the risk of bladder cancer. Eating more than 53g – roughly the same size as a small chocolate bar – raises the chance of the disease by 50 per cent.

On the other hand, a daily portion of olive oil, can more than halve the risk of getting the disease.

Researchers set out to discover if saturated fats, such as those found in meat and dairy products, made cancer more likely and healthier fats, such as olive oil, offered some protection.

They studied the eating habits of 200 bladder cancer victims and compared them with 386 volunteers who had not developed tumours.

The results showed eating cheese had little effect unless the amount exceeded 53g a day. After that, the risk went up by more than half.

But the Dutch and Belgian researchers stressed the number of people in the study may be too small to conclude that cheese is a major health threat and called for further investigations to verify their findings.

Other foods, such as fish, chicken, eggs and margarine, appeared to have little effect.

It was found that a potentially protective effect from a high intake of olive oil and a suggestive increased risk from high

cheese consumption.

Eating more than 53g cheese, which is roughly the same weight as a small chocolate bar, raises an individual’s chance of developing the disease by 50 percent, according to findings of the new study, carried out by a team of Dutch and Belgian researchers.

In their study, the research team found that the risk increased by more than 50 percent in those who ate more than 53 grams of cheese a day.

30

UK

Asian Voice - Saturday 3rd September 2011

CB Live is only a Gujarati programme in UK on MATV SKY 793 This week actress and comedian Bhavini Jani will be interviewed in CB Live.

In the second half, the drama 'Sathavaro Radheshamno' will be analysed and discussed.

This discussion will also be joined by the playwriter Bhanubhai Pandya.

If you do not have a SKY, go to www.tvunetworks.com and watch CB Live on TVU Player Channel 75203

For more information e-mail: cblive_matv@yahoo.co.uk

Sneh Joshi - 020 8518 5500

7pm to 8pm

Coming Events We wish all our reders Michchami Dukkadam and A Shubh Ganesh Chathurthi l Shree Jalaram Seva Trust presents Ganesh Visargen at Southend - on - Sea Sunday 11th September 2011 10.30am until 18.00pm, Southend-on-Sea, Essex SS3 9AF Telephone: 020 8569 5710. Email: jalaramjupadihounslow@hotmail.co.uk l Shree Ramdev Jayanti Mahotsav, Saturday 10th September 2011, 5pm-9pm, 43 Cleveland Road, Ilford, IG1 1EE. Contact: 020 8748 6049 l Ram Katha- Vedic Festival. 8:15-5pm, New Bingley Hall, Birmingham B18 5Be. September 10. Contact: 01215059207 l Lions King of Kingsbury are holding a Mukesh & Rafi Night music by Muktar Shah on 16th Sept 2011 at Harrow Leisure Centre from 7.30pm to late night dinner provided. All proceeds from the event will go to building class rooms in Kakamegha School in Kenya. Contact: Dinesh on 0208 424 8686 l Open Forum and discussion: What is Hinduism Saturday 20th, 27th August & 3rd, 10th September 2011 from 8.30pm to 9.30pm, Shree Jalaram Mandir Greenford on 0208 578 8088 / 9285 l Exhibition Digital Prints : Artist Rabindranath Tagore, September 6, 2011, 5:15pm-8:15pm. The Indian Council for Cultural Relations has put together an international touring exhibition of digital prints of a selection of his paintings, as an expression of yet another facet of his creativity, with the support of Rabindra Bharati University, Kolkata and Ministry of External Affairs, amongst others.

The first glimpse of Tagore’s visual expressions can be traced back to 1924, on the pages of his poems collected as Purabi. His pictorial language imparted a new dimension to modern Indian paintings. His concepts of creativity, philosophy, literature, art and society continue to

Life appears to be focusing your mind on practical matters. So you will need to organise your time carefully if you are to avoid an "all work and no play" situation. Resist making any hasty moves when it come to finances - this is a time to focus on consolidation of current assets rather than attempting to make any new investments.

ARIES Mar 21 - Apr 20

inspire the world even today. Open until 10 September during working hours. Nehru Centre, 8 South Audley Street, London. l Shree Jalaram Mandir Greenford and The Board of Trustees welcome you all for Darshan forthcoming events - Navratri Festival: Wednesday 28th September to Thursday 6th October 2011 from 8pm to 10pm - Durga ashtami havan: Tuesday 4th October 2011 from 11am to 4pm Contact: 0208 578 8088, Shree Jalaram Mandir, 39-45 Oldfield Lane South, Greenford, Middlesex UB6 9LB l Shree Digambar jain Association : Paryushan Parva 2nd - 11th September 2011, - Thursday 1st September 2011 20.00 - 20.30: Jinendra Bhakti 20.30 - 21.30: Pundit Virendraji's Swadhyay - Friday 2nd - Saturday 10 September 2011: 8:15am21:45pm - Tuesday 13th September 2011- - Kshamavani Day8:15am-11:30pm - Dhwaja Rohan & Swami Vatsalya Bhojan, Sunday 18th September 2011, 8:15-2pm at Harrow Teachers College, Tudor Road, Harrow, HA3 5PQ l Asia House, 3 New Cavendish Street, London W1G 7LP - Auntie netta and The Trouble with Asian Men- Double Bill Special! from Tamasha Theatre Company, Thursday 08 Sep, 2011 6:45 PM - Film Screening: Everywhere and Nowhere with postscreening talk with Director Menhaj Huda, Friday 30 Sep, 2011 6:45 PM - Where China Meets India - Burma and the New Crossroads of Asia By Thant Myint-U. Wednesday 21 Sep, 2011 6:45 PM

You will be pleased to see that your social life livens up during this week. Its influence will help you to maintain a high energy level and achieve positive results in anything that requires drive and initiative. If you are involved in a fairly competitive field of activity, you will come out on top.

TAURUS Apr 21 - May 21

is a good time to GEMINI May 22 - June 22 get This away from usual

routines and seek a retreat for a few days. All the better if you are interested in such things as meditation, yoga and therapies that help you to get in closer touch with your inner self. This will have a beneficial effect on your physical and psychological well-being.

Decision making will prove to be a bit of a bind because of your wavering mind - seek professional advice and then steam ahead. Be careful with your expenditure as you have a tendency to be extravagant. Relationships need to be scrutinised carefully. Try to stand back and get a more objective view of the pattern of your life.

CANCER Jun 22 - Jul 22

Extra energy and drive will serve you well in getting things accomplished. There appears to be a more successful trend coming into effect. Amorous affairs continue to be highlighted - whether or not this leads to a lasting relationship depends much on your own personal maturity and circumstances.

LEO Jul 23 - Aug 23

You have everything to gain by following creative inclinations. If you have new ideas, now is the time to put them into practice. Whatever your present interests you are likely to find that new doors open and the way ahead offers increased scope for expressing your real self. A great time to meet and interact with people.

VIRGO Aug 24 - Sep 23

Venus the planet of love is the moving force in regard to amorous experience, giving more than just a hint that links between lovers will be rather intense and passionate. Legal or official matters are likely to occupy your time. Jupiter, the planet of luck and expansion has moved into your solar 8th house.

LIBRA Sep 24 - Oct 23

With Venus in your solar 11th house, this is a good time for your social as well as your love life. If you’re single you are likely to meet the person of your dreams. You could also benefit at work through a promotion. Organise your time so that it is not taken up entirely by the demands of other people.

SCORPIO Oct 24- Nov 22

Editor: CB Patel Associate Editor: Rupanjana Dutta Tel: 020 7749 4098 - Email: rupanjana.dutta@abplgroup.com Senior News Editor: Dhiren Katwa Freelance Correspondent: Rudy Otter Chief of Operations ABPL: Liji George Tel: 020 7749 4013 Email: george@abplgroup.com Chief Financial Officer: Surendra Patel Tel: 020 7749 4093 - Mobile: 07875 229 220 Email: surendra.patel@abplgroup.com Accounts Executive: Akshay Desai Tel: 020 7749 4087 Email:accounts@abplgroup.com Advertising Managers: Alka Shah Tel: 020 7749 4002 - Mobile: 07944 151 893 Email: alka.shah@abplgroup.com Kishor Parmar Tel: 020 7749 4095 - Mobile: 07875 229 088 Email: kishor.parmar@abplgroup.com Media Consultant: Rovin John George - Email: rovin.george@abplgroup.com Tel: 020 7749 4097 - Mobile: 07875 229 219 Business Development Managers: Urja Patel - Email: urja.patel@abplgroup.com Nikhil Gor - Email: nikhil.gor@abplgroup.com Tel: 020 7749 4009 - Mobile: 07875 229 200 Design and Layout: Harish Dahya & Ajay Kumar Tel: 020 7749 4086 Email: graphics@abplgroup.com Customer Service: Ragini Nayak Tel: 020 7749 4080 - Email: support@abplgroup.com (BPO) AB Publication (India) Pvt. Ltd.

207 Shalibhadra Complex, Opp. Jain Derasar, Nr. Nehru Nagar Circle, Ambawadi, Ahmedabad Tel/Fax: +91 79 2646 6061 Chief Executive Director: Kamlesh Amin Tel: +91 922 710 4308 Email: kamleshamin123@yahoo.co.in Editorial Co-Ordinator (BPO): Nilesh Parmar (M) +919426636912 Consulting Editor (BPO): Bhupatbhai Parekh, Ahmedabad, Gujarat Tel: +91 79 2630 4142 Mumbai: Kanti Bhatt, Hemraj Shah (Jumbo Advertiser) Horizon Advertising & Marketing: 205 Shalibhadra Complex, Opp. Jain Derasar, Nr. Nehru Nagar Circle, Ambawadi, Ahmedabad Tel / Fax: +91 79 2646 5960 (M) +91 9913346487 Email: horizonadvt2009@yahoo.in Neeta Patel, (Advertising Manager) (M) +91 98255 11702 International Advertisement Representative: Jain Group(South India) Tel: +91 44 42041122/3/4 Fax: +91 44 25362973 Mumbai: +91 222471 4122 Email: jainmedia@eth.net

Asian Voice Main Office Karma Yoga House, 12 Hoxton Market, (Off Coronet Street) London N1 6HW. Tel: 020 7749 4080, Fax: 020 7749 4081 www.abplgroup.com © Asian Business Publications

Asian Voice switchboard: 020 7749 4000 Gujarat Samachar switchboard: 020 7749 4080 Sales: 020 7749 4085

It would be a mistake to blame the other person if your experience of love turns out to be disappointing.

It is said that if you do not learn from past experience you will be condemned to repeat it until you do learn.

The time is now right to sort things out. The hard part is that you will have to be honest with yourself.

SAGITTARIUS Nov 23 - Dec 21

Regardless of the limits, you have the capacity to turn the course of your life in a more fulfilling direction. Saturn in Libra, the sign of balance, will help you organize your priorities and systematically put them into practice. People entering your life now will encourage you to move beyond your established boundaries of safety.

Don't be afraid to act AQUARIUS Jan 21 - Feb 19 forcefully if your instinct tells you it's time for change. This week the focus is your house of family and home. Besides spending more time tending to domestic affairs, the focus can be on cultivating and nourishing your inner foundations, so to speak.

CAPRICORN Dec 22 - Jan 20

PISCES Feb 20 - Mar 20 Your thinking is inspired, so listen to your thoughts. This may be a time of expansion and improved opportunity and it would be unwise to let yourself become complacent. A good time for restructuring and rethinking your aims and interests.

Affairs of the heart are likely to flourish.

Sport woRLD

Asian Voice - Saturday 3r September 2011

Gagan Narang conferred Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award

India’s ace shooter Gagan Narang, who notched up four gold medals at last year's Commonwealth Games, was on Monday conferred the country's highest sporting honour - the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna award - in a glittering ceremony at the Rashtrapati Bhawan.

The 28-year-old rifle shooter, who was the first Indian marksman to qualify for next year's London Olympics with a bronze in the World Championships last year, was an automatic choice for the prestigious award.

Narang, who was disgruntled at being "ignored" for the award last year, collected the trophy that consists of a medal, citation and cash prize of Rs 750,000 from President Pratibha Patil.

Among the Arjuna awardees, the most high-profile among the ones chosen this year - Indian pace spearhead Zaheer Khan - could not attend the function as he was recently operated upon on his injured ankle in England.

Others who were also not present due to varied reasons were tennis ace Somdev Devvarman, gymnast Ashish Kumar and discus thrower Vikas Gowda.

Badminton ace Jwala Gutta and India's first woman world champion

President Pratibha Patil presenting the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna award to Gagan Narang at the Rashtrapati Bhawan

Tejaswini Sawant, who clinched the top honours in the 50m rifle prone event, were among the star athletes who received the Arjuna award.

Suranjoy Singh (Boxing), Sunil Chhetri ( Football) and Rajpal Singh (Hockey), also collected their trophies personally.

Rahul Banerjee (Archery), Preeja Sreedharan (Athletics), Vikas Gowda (Athletics), Virdhawal Khade (Swimming), Ashish Kumar

(Gymnastics), Ravi Kumar (Weightlifting), Ravinder Singh (Wrestling), Sandhya Rani (Wushu), Prasanta Karmakar (Swimming), Sanjay Kumar (Volleyball), Rakesh Kumar (Kabaddi) and Tejaswini (Kabaddi) also received the award for their achievements in the last three years.

Normally not more than 15 Arjuna awards are given in a calendar year. But keeping in view the performance of Indian sportspersons in the Commonwealth, Asian Games and Olympic Games during a particular year, the awards exceeding 15 in number are allowed with proper justification and approval of the Sports Ministry.

Dronacharya Award, the top recognition for coaches in the country, was conferred on five including Inukurthi Venkateshwara Rao (Boxing), Devender Kumar Rathore (Gymnastics), Ramphal (Wrestling), Kuntal Roy (Athletics), Rajinder Singh (Hockey).

Dhyan Chand Award, given for the life-time contribution to sports development, was conferred on Shabbir Ali (Football), Sushil Kohli (Swimming) and Rajkumar (Wrestling).

BCCI rejects government's MS Dhoni's hands are sore, move to bring it under RTI says Paul Nixon

The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) on Tuesday has rejected the sports ministry’s move to bring the cricket board under the RTI. The cricket board's vice president Rajeev Shukla said that the BCCI is not keen on the move of coming under the RTI and also refused to comment on the specifics of the new sports bill.

Shukla added that the organisations that take government grants should come under the act and not the BCCI. However, top government sources say its an act

to control cricket in India.

The new sports bill, which was prepared after receiving comments and suggestions from various stakeholders and the public, seeks to have BCCI as national sports federation (NSF) and wants it to function as a "public authority" and "comply with the requirements specified in the Right to Information Act".

If BCCI becomes an NSF, it would be bound to provide information under the RTI and would also be forced to follow the antidoping rules as specified by the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA).

These proposals of the Bill have been vehemently opposed by the BCCI and some sports bodies, including the Indian Olympic Association (IOA), which want to continue functioning in an autonomous manner, free from public scrutiny and accountability.

Former England wicketkeeper Paul Nixon has said that looking at Indian captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni's current form behind the stumps, it can be said that he could be suffering from sore hands.

"M S Dhoni is a world class player. He is a great leader of men. He is the strongest character of men in the game. He had not had his best of series so far and that's cricket and that's life. I am looking forward to chat to him over the next few days because it looks to me as he is keeping wickets I look at his hand position and foot placement as we all do with each other and it looks like for me he has got sore hands," said Nixon.

Nixon said that in order to get rid of such injuries, elite players needed rest, and added that this could be done by preparing other talents and giving them an opportunity when seniors are rested.

He said that the only way to get rid of soreness was to give your hands complete rest.

Praising star Indian cricketer Sachin Tendulkar, Nixon said that he was lucky to play with him when the batting maestro played for Yorkshire in early 90s.

He said sharing the same dressing room with Rahul Dravid in 2000 when he played for Kent was also great experience.

English conditions are difficult to play in: Brett Lee The Indian team might have been pilloried for suffering a 4-0 loss in the Test series against England but Australian pacer Brett Lee sympathised with Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s men by saying he knew how difficult the conditions can be in “Old Blighty.”

Asked about the whitewash suffered by Dhoni’s men against England, Lee said while India would be hurt by the rout, he was certain the team would bounce back.

“The loss is going to hurt India. But they are very difficult conditions to play with the ball seaming and swinging around, which we found out in the 2005 Ashes series.

I am not surprised they (England) are playing very

well,” he said on the sidelines of a promotional event he appeared for an Indian company.

Lee was referring to the 1-2 defeat suffered by the then high-flying team led by Ricky Ponting against the Michael Vaughan-led

England after the Aussies had gone 1-0 up by winning the series opener at Lord’s.

“England played really well and you would point your fingers at India when they lose 4-0 and India hasn’t played the best cricket.

But look at the other side of

the fence as well and think may be England has played some very, very good cricket.

But I think they (India) will bounce back,” he added.

Looking ahead to Team India’s visit to Australia later this year for a four-Test rubber followed by a triangular ODI series, Lee said though he is no longer a part of the Test squad, he wanted the rubber to be a competitive one.

“India are visiting Australia later this year and though I am not part of the Test squad I hope Australia do well and it (series) is competitive,” said the 34year-old New South Welshman, who had grabbed 310 wickets from 76 Tests before quitting the longest format of the game.

31

Bhutia retires from international football Indian striker Bhaichung Bhutia has announced his retirement from international football, ending a 16year career with the national team for which he played a record 109 games.

The 34-year-old Bhutia made his announcement at a news conference last week. The highest profile player in India, Bhutia scored 43 goals for India and nominates the AFC Challenge Cup victory in 2008 as the high point of his career. The former India captain has been struggling with a calf injury in the past year. He played only a limited role at this year's Asian Cup and was forced to pull out of an upcoming tour of England.

Sachin lone Indian in playing 11 of ICC test team Sachin Tendulkar is the only Indian cricketer to make the cut in the International Cricket Council's (ICC) Test Team of 2011 announced last week while the presence of five English players reaffirms the side's rise to the top of the rankings. Indian seamer Zaheer Khan has been named the 12th man of the side chosen by a specially-appointed selection panel chaired by West Indian batting legend Clive Lloyd.

The 12-man line-up was chosen along with the short-lists for the ICC Awards 2011 which are due to be held in London on Sept 12.

Tendulkar makes the line-up for the third year in a row - having appeared in the Team of 2009 and 2010 - while South Africans Hashim Amla and Jacques Kallis, along with Sri Lanka's Kumar Sangakkara, and England duo of Graeme Swann and James Anderson all appear for the second year in a row.

Jonathan Trott, Alastair Cook and Stuart Broad are the other English cricketers who find a place in the playing eleven.

South African speedster Dale Steyn has earned a place in the Team for the fourth successive year. He was also featured in the Team of 2008, 2009 and 2010.

Former Sri Lanka skipper Sangakkara is named as captain of the team.

"The selection of this year's Test team was a difficult one with so many worthy candidates available to fill just 12 places. The team has a formidable line-up that bats well down the order and has bowlers with the ability and form to dismiss any opposition twice on any surface," said Clive Lloyd.

Lloyd was joined on the panel by former South Africa spin bowler Paul Adams, former Pakistan batsman Zaheer Abbas, former New Zealand bowler-turned-commentator Danny Morrison and former England batsman Mike Gatting.

The ICC Test team of the year (in batting order): Alastair Cook (Eng), Hashim Amla (SA), Jonathan Trott (Eng), Sachin Tendulkar (Ind), Kumar Sangakkara (SL - wicketkeeper/captain), AB de Villiers (SA), Jacques Kallis (SA), Stuart Broad (Eng), Graeme Swann (Eng), Dale Steyn (SA), James Anderson (Eng), Zaheer Khan (Ind) (12th man)

Liverpool to set up football academies in India

Liverpool says it's going to open academies in India in an initial bid to reach out to fans in Asia and ultimately beyond. The first academy in India will be set up in New Delhi this October with former England and Liverpool midfielder Steve McMahon as the chief coach.

Liverpool's International Football Academy chief Steve Turner says the club is aiming to set up similar academies in China next, and explore possibilities in North America, South America and Southeast Asia. Turner said the club planned to have "footprints in every continent in the next three years."

32

Dutch top FIFA rankings without kicking a ball Netherlands went top of the FIFA world rankings for the first time last week without playing a match in the last month.

Although their friendly against England was cancelled because of the London riots, Netherlands benefited as previous leaders Spain were beaten by Italy to lose their place at the top.

World and European champions Spain had led for one year. The Dutch became the seventh team to head the rankings since they were introduced in 1993 after Argentina, Brazil, France, Germany, Italy and Spain. Brazil's 3-2 friendly defeat by Germany cost them two places as they dropped from fourth to sixth, meaning that Uruguay, who remained fifth, became South America's highest-ranked team.

Rankings (last month's positions in brackets) 1. (2) Netherlands, 2. (1) Spain, 3. (3) Germany, 4. (6) England, 5. (5) Uruguay, 6. (4) Brazil, 7. (8) Italy, 8. (7) Portugal, 9. (10) Argentina. 10. (9) Croatia

Sammy retained as Windies captain for T20s against England

Four uncapped players have been called up to a new-look West Indies 14-man squad for the Twenty20 double header against England next month with the selectors re-appointing Darren Sammy as the captain.

Opening batsmen Miles Bascombe and Johnson Charles, along with all-rounder Nkrumah Bonner and wicketkeeper Derwin Christian, have all been picked for the first time while all-rounder Dwayne Smith makes a comeback.

The side will be without international T20 stars Chris Gayle, Dwayne Bravo and Kieron Pollard, none of whom were eligible after missing the Caribbean T20 Championship.

No Trinidad and Tobago players were considered because of their participation in the Champions League next month.

Chairman of selectors Clyde Butts said he was confident the new players in the squad would perform up to scratch.

The squad: Darren Sammy (captain), Christopher Barnwell, Miles Bascombe, Devendra Bishoo, Nkrumah Bonner, Johnson Charles, Derwin Christian, Fidel Edwards, Danza Hyatt, Ashley Nurse, Andre Russell, Marlon Samuels, Krishmar Santokie, Dwayne Smith.

Asian Voice - Saturday 3rd September 2011

Lessons of India's debacle

By Premen Addy

It would be no bad thing for the honchos of the BCCI to be tried by the International Criminal Court at the Hague. A jail term of solitary confinement for a year or two, if need be, would be no bad thing either. The cricket board, or crooked board, as some believe to be the more appropriate title, is a cabal of politicians, business tycoons, lawyers and accountants: a replay of a thirties Hollywood saga of crime and punishment.

Gnashing teeth, false and genuine, will not put Indian cricket back on its doddering feet. An effective cricket team is the sum of its parts, as is every workable machine. The Indian side in England had rusting and busted components in Harbhajan Singh, Suresh Raina, Gautam Gambhir and possibly one or two others, were unfit for purpose. Harbhajan has long been a talent that has waxed and waned. Not since his meteoric Test debut in 2001 has his light shone consistently.

Raina was awful in South Africa, he was just as awful in England. Gambhir was noticeably reluctant to step up to the plate, preferring instead to leave the heroic Rahul Dravid to shoulder the double burden of facing the new ball. Suffice it to say, the Indian bowling was threadbare, as was the Indian batting. India were 262 for 3 at the Oval; barely an hour later they were 283 all out. There were signs of this infirmity in the World Cup in the earlier rounds, when India collapsed alarmingly against England and South Africa. But having won the World Cup, nobody was prepared to conduct the necessary autopsy. Selectors, commentators and administrators were

Mahendra Singh Dhoni

wont to let sleeping dogs lie.

India's abject performances in England were a wake-up call on the rot that had taken hold. Team captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni, who had looked a lion once, was now a disoriented lamb led to the slaughter. His form with the bat had largely disintegrated, his work with the gloves behind the wicket was below par and his tactics steadfastly sterile. He was running on empty. However, his previous record as captain has been laudable, so perhaps he deserves a reprieve and given a chance to show his mettle in a possible Indian revival. We shall have to wait and see whether he measures up.

Rumours are afloat that the selection process will henceforward be opened to public scrutiny on video. Transparency is the name of the game. There was a smack

of cronyism in the selection of players for the England tour.

Indian cricket has been seriously damaged by the gold rush of the 20/Twenty game, of which the frenetic IPL is the prime example. Spin bowling, it would appear, is a disappearing art.

Where are the Bedis, Prasannas and Chandrssekhars who were once the glory of India? Talent there certainly is. Legspinners Rahul Sharna and Piyus Chawla, left arm purveyors Pragyan Ohja and Abdullah and off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin have failed to catch the selectors' eye for no fault of their own, autism at present being beyond the reach of medical science.

Indian cricket, like Indian politics, is rotten to the core and rotting. It is in urgent need of something akin to divine help.

England rest Kevin Pietersen for India one-day series England batsman Kevin Pietersen will be rested from the squad for next month's one-day series against India, the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB) said on its website (www.ecb.co.uk) on Friday. Pietersen's absence from the 14-man squad affords an opportunity to Durham's Ben Stokes who made his debut in the one-day international win against Ireland earlier.

"The decision to omit Kevin Pietersen from the oneday squad is in line with our policy of sensibly managing player workloads and will give the opportunity to another batsman to test himself batting at number four," national selector Geoff Miller

said on the website.

The selectors also named a 13-man squad for the Twenty20 fixture against India at Old Trafford on Wednesday, which included

the uncapped pair of Somerset's Jos Buttler and Nottinghamshire's Alex Hales. The one-day series runs from Sept. 3-16.

England Twenty20 squad: Stuart Broad, Ravi Bopara, Tim Bresnan, Jos Buttler, Jade Dernbach, Steven Finn, Alex Hales, Craig Kieswetter, Eoin Morgan, Samit Patel, Kevin Pietersen, Ben Stokes and Graeme Swann.

England ODI squad: Alastair Cook, James Anderson, Ian Bell, Ravi Bopara, Tim Bresnan, Stuart Broad, Jade Dernbach, Steven Finn, Craig Kieswetter, Eoin Morgan, Samit Patel, Ben Stokes, Graeme Swann and Jonathan Trott.

Messi wins UEFA Best Player in Europe award Lionel Messi has won the inaugural UEFA Best Player in Europe award for the 201011 season. Messi beat his Barcelona teammate Xavi Hernandez and Cristiano Ronaldo of Real Madrid in a poll of journalists from across Europe. Argentina forward Messi scored 53 goals as he and Xavi led Barcelona to the Champions League and Spanish titles.

A panel of 53 journalists drawn from each of UEFA's member nations voted ahead of the draw for this season's Champions League group stage. UEFA created the honor after "France Football" magazine combined its traditional European award with FIFA's world player prize.