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Sujata Singh to be next Foreign Secretary Details on page 6
Indian youth wins DJ Competition
VOL 18, No. 981
July 5, 2013
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INDIA LAUNCHES OWN GPS SYSTEM
SRIHARIKOTA: Joining a select group of nations, India entered a new era in space applications with its first dedicated navigation satellite being successfully put into orbit by its polar rocket PSLV that will give the country an alternative to US' GPS. In a midnight launch, India's workhorse 44-metres tall Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) blasted off in a perfect text book launch at 11.41 on July 1 carrying the indigenous IRNSS-1A from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre
here, painting a dense golden flame in the dark canvas of the sky. IRNSS-1A is the first of the seven satellites constituting the independent Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System (IRNSS) space segment that is designed to provide accurate position information service to users in the country as well as the region extending up to 1,500 km from its boundary, which is its primary service area. Details on page 5
Bay Area pays tributes to Pt Damodar Shastriji Details on page 16
Con artists target hoteliers and guests Details on page 6
Gov Quinn seeks bigger Asian participation
Details on page 49 Details on page 24
Govt to seek aid to rebuild Uttarakhand
Immigration bill will hit US competitiveness
Details on page 13 Details on page 44
IP environment deteriorating in India: US
CONTENTS Bollywood ---------------------- 28-29 Classifieds ------------------------- 47 Community Post -------------- 16-26
Details on page 5
Date Book -------------------------- 36 Edit Page --------------------------- 54
INDIA POST SURVEY
HealthScience Post --------- 32-35
survey@indiapost.com
Horoscope ------------------------- 52
This week’s question
Immigration Post ------------- 44-46
Will House immigration bill favor Indian companies?
Life Style ----------------------- 49-51 Philosophy ------------------------- 53
Last week’s result
Is the US going to repeat Iraq in Afghanistan? YES 61%
NO 39%
Publisher’s Diary ------------------ 4
FRIEND INDEED: Indian Americans greet Mayor Steve Fulop after he was sworn-in as Jersey City’s 49th Mayor. (Details on page 6)
Certified by “CIRCULATION VERIFICATION COUNCIL Readership 117,765”
Real Estate -------------------- 30-31 TechBiz Post ------------------- 12-14 Travel & Hospitality Post ---- 39-43
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U
S Secretary of State John Kerry definitely lacks charisma. His lacking in the charms department unfortunately becomes more pronounced thanks to the oodles of charisma that Hillary Clinton exuded on the world, while in office as his predecessor. Or is it just that Secretary Kerry just doesn't make for good pictures? Uncharitable as it may be, I ask this question with reference to his recent visit to New Delhi, India. Let alone not making it to any of the 24-hour news channels in the country, the Secretary of State failed to make it to the front pages of any of the national dailies. As they say, he came, he saw, but did in no way conquer, considering it was his first official visit to India as US Secretary of State. And as one of India's national dailies said of New Delhi's general response to Kerry's visit: "We didn't expect much, so we are not disappointed." So while the headline and Breaking News hunters almost ignored Kerry, it was left for the pedantic senior editorial bloggers to pontificate on the floundering IndoUS strategic relationship. Kerry's strongest push during his three-day visit to the Indian capital was on climate change. He had a ready example to cite - the disastrous Uttarakhand floods - for India to do its bit to save the earth. There are several issues between India and the US that could be discussed and acted upon, such as the stalled civil nuclear deal, US talks with the Taliban, US protectionism, Doha, investments, Pakistan, China, Syria… well… and India's pet peeves of US visa regulations. One doesn't know exactly what was discussed during Kerry's talks with his Indian counterparts, but it clearly wasn't earth shatteringly significant. On the eve of Kerry's visit to India, an article on the Brookings website suggested that while Indo-US relations at present are relatively stable and strong, they face the potential danger of drift, disillusionment and the dominance of differences. More importantly, the article says the relationship will suffer from inattention. True. For the Manmohan Singh government, right now, its coalition partners are more important than a strategic partner like America.
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HIGHLIGHTS Bollywood: Size zero, sorry! Sonakshi Sinha has no desire to become size zero and would rather like her body of work to speak on her behalf.
Cover Story: India’s own GPS India puts into orbit its first dedicated navigation satellite that will give the country an alternative to US' GPS.
Community: Remembering Shastriji Community leaders of Bay Area pay tributes to late Principal Priest of Fremont Hindu Temple, Pt Damodar Dutt Shastriji
Immigration: US firms to be hit USIBC says the immigration reforms bill would have an adverse impact on the global competitiveness of US companies
Life Style: Indian DJ wins Indian youth Sahaj Shah wins Boom Entertainment & B96 National DJ Competition in Chicago
Techbiz: Most tracked India, a strategic ally of the US, has emerged as the fifth most tracked country by the American intelligence.
Travel: Yercaud Yercaud, located on the Shevaroy Hills of Tamil Nadu is sometimes referred to as the 'Poor man's Ootacamund'
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India launches own GPS system SRIHARIKOTA: Joining a select group of nations, India entered a new era in space applications with its first dedicated navigation satellite being successfully put into orbit by its polar rocket PSLV that will give the country an alternative to US' GPS. In a midnight launch, India's workhorse 44-metres tall Polar Satellite Launch Vehicle (PSLV) blasted off in a perfect text book launch at 11.41 on July 1 carrying the indigenous IRNSS-1A from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre here, painting a dense golden flame in the dark canvas of the sky.
tem. IRNSS-1A was launched at a cost of approximately Rs 125 crore, he said. "This only proves that PSLV is an extremely reliable vehicle and with this flight, we are also entering into a new era of space application in the country that is the beginning of satellite navigation program," he said after the launch. With ISRO scientists breaking into celebrations, Radhakrishnan said, "I am extremely happy to announce that we had another excellent flight of our PSLV vehicle. This is the 23rd successive successful flight of PSLV and the
It is the first of the seven satellites constituting the IRNSS space segment with three of them in geostationary orbit and four in inclined geosynchronous orbit. IRNSS, which has a mission life of 10 years, has a space and ground segment IRNSS-1A is the first of the seven satellites constituting the independent Indian Regional Navigation Satellite System (IRNSS) space segment that is designed to provide accurate position information service to users in the country as well as the region extending up to 1,500 km from its boundary, which is its primary service area. An elated ISRO chairman K Radhakrishnan said the IRNSS-1A satellite, with a lift-off mass of 1,425 kg. was precisely injected into its intended orbit, 20 minutes after the launch, in the first step for an exclusive navigation sys-
fourth successful flight of extended version of PSLV." IRNSS will be on the lines of United States' Global Positioning System (GPS), Russia's Global Orbiting Navigation Satellite System (GLONASS), European Union's Galileo (GNSS), China's BeiDou satellite navigation system and Japan's Quasi-Zenith Satellite System. IRNSS applications include mapping and geodetic data capture, precise timing, visual and voice navigation for drivers, integration with mobile phones and terrestrial, aerial and marine navigation, terrestrial navigation aid
for hikers and travelers. It is the first of the seven satellites constituting the IRNSS space segment with three of them in geostationary orbit and four in inclined geosynchronous orbit. IRNSS, which has a mission life of 10 years, has a space and ground segment. The next satellite of the series IRNSS-1B is due for launch early 2014. The full constellation of seven satellites is supposed to be in orbit by 2015 and only then will the service of the IRNSS system take off. Over Rs 300 crore has been earmarked for ground segment and almost all the satellites would cost Rs 125 crore each, since all of them would most probably be identical, Radhakrishnan said. The satellite was launched into a sub-Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit with a 284 km perigee (nearest point to Earth) and 20,650 km apogee (farthest point from the Earth) with an inclination of 17.86 degree with respect to the equatorial plane. On the first-ever late night launch by ISRO, an ISRO official said, "The timing of the launch is determined by the orbital parameter and the inclination. The requirements for IRNSS-1A needed a mid-night launch." Earlier, a glitch in one of the electro-hydraulic control actuators in the second stage of PSLVC22 had forced ISRO to postpone the launch of IRNSS-1A on June 12 by a fortnight. It was rescheduled for July 1 after the anomaly was rectified.PTI
India’s first navigational satellite PSLV, the 1,425 kg IRNSS (Indian Regional Navigational Satellite System)-1A, blasts off from Sriharikota, AP, on July 1
IP environment deteriorating in India: US pharma industry WASHINGTON: The US pharma industry has expressed concern over deteriorating intellectual property environment in India, alleging that patent rights in the country are unreasonably denied. "PhRMA remains concerned about the deteriorating intellectual property environment in India," Mark Grayson, PhRMA spokesman told PTI. The remarks by PhRMA or Pharmaceutical Research and Manufacturers of America, representing America's leading biopharmaceutical researchers and biotechnology companies, comes days after the India's Ambassador to the US, Nirupama Rao, wrote to US lawmakers and a Congressional committee held a hearing on the issue. "We have shared our views about the importance of promot-
ing a policy environment that supports continued research and development of new medicines with Ambassador Rao and other members of the Indian Government," Grayson said.
In a letter to US lawmakers last month, Rao had defended India's IP policy arguing that India has a well-settled, stable and robust intellectual property regime. "The three main pillars of this regime are comprehensive laws, detailed rules to back them up, and
strong enforcement mechanisms, including for dispute resolution," she had said. Rao had said of all patents granted for pharmaceutical inventions between 2005 and 2011, more than 85 per cent were owned by foreign companies in India, with US holding 20-30 per cent share of the patents. Noting that the provisions of the Compulsory License enshrined in the India Patent Act are in accordance with the provisions of the TRIPs Agreement and the Paris Convention, she had said that through such licensing mechanisms, all governments balance the rights of the patent holder. "Since its inception, Compulsory Licensing has been an integral part of the patent regime of different countries. Globally, 15 different countries,
developed and developing alike, have issued more than 35 compulsory licenses. India has issued only one Compulsory License," Rao said. However, Rao's letter has failed
view these actions for what they are, industrialist policies to benefit the competitiveness of India's own domestic industry," Roy Waldron, Chief Intellectual Property Officer with Pfizer, told law-
"India's actions to undermine the incentives needed to make investment to develop new medicines, a hostile environment to IP will have a devastating impact on R&D investment in both the US and India� to convince the US pharma industry who continues to push the Obama Administration on India's policies related to the intellectual property regime. "India's protectionist and discriminatory policies which exploit US IP to benefit their own industry requires an equally bold response. It is important that we
makers last week. "India's actions to undermine the incentives needed to make investment to develop new medicines, a hostile environment to IP will have a devastating impact on R&D investment in both the US and India and cause significant harm for US jobs and economic growth," he said. -PTI
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Con artists spread their net to Sujata Singh to be next target hoteliers and guests Foreign Secretary RAMESH SOPARAWALA India Post News Service
CHICAGO: The scam that involved arrest-threat for alleged default in tax payment that many felt was confined to Chicagoland, seems now to be spreading in other parts of the country as many a vacationer living in motels/ hotels, mostly owned by Indians, are also now a target of the scammers with a slight variation - it is now credit card payment. According to Asian American Hotel Owners Association (AAHOA) sources, some of the guests in hotels in recent days have been victims of credit card fraud from con artists who make telephone calls directly to the guest rooms. These criminals are primarily striking guests in the early hours of the morning to catch the guests off guard. The hours after midnight and before 6 am are being reported as the most active for the scammers who will call a guest in their room directly and pose as a member of the hotel's front desk staff. After introducing themselves as member of the front desk staff, they will then request credit card information claiming that their computer system got crashed and that the credit card information on record has been lost. To help make their act more believable, the con artists will apologize profusely for the hour of the phone call and offer some sort of hotel compensation for the trouble in which they have put the guest through. The con artists have chosen this time of the night to call the guest because this is the time
when they are most vulnerable and may not be thinking clearly. The hotel owners and the guests are advised that they a.) Make sure that if the hotel has an auto-attendant system, it does not allow direct dialing to customers' rooms. b) Make sure the system transfers all incoming calls to the front desk or to the PBX to verify the full name of the guest before a call is transferred. c) Be sure to reinforce call connection procedures with all front desk and PBX staff. d) Make it known that the full name of the guest must be
unless he came out with quick payment of thousands of dollars in unpaid taxes. He maintained to the caller that he did not owe any tax to IRS and beside his English was poor. The caller then got him transferred to a lady who spoke chaste Gujarati and she also threatened him immediate arrest by Niles police. She had the audacity to get him connected to the so called 'Niles Police Dept' and a top ranking police officer also repeated the threat. Unnerved, he called his friend for assistance and both
She had the audacity to get him connected to the so called 'Niles Police Dept' and a top ranking police officer also repeated the threat. Unnerved, he called his friend for assistance and both went to the Niles Police station and were assured that no call had emanated from the department confirmed before transferring the call to a guest room. It is also suggested that the hotel staff should regularly test their front desk and PBX procedures so that all items are up to date and in the correct operating procedure. It is important that all hotel staff and owners continue to be very aware of their surroundings. Employees or guests should report any calls they may receive regarding this scam or other fraudulent activity to their local police department. In Chicagoland, one Rajnikant Bharucha working in a hospital and living in Niles suburb was threatened with immediate arrest
went to the Niles Police station and were assured that no call had emanated from the department and they registered his complaint. India Post newspaper had already carried an article two weeks ago warning the Chicagoland Asian Indian population about the scam and not to fall prey to con artists. It is learnt that many of these threat calls emanate from India and the Cook County Sheriff Tom Dart has issued a caution to the potential victims to be careful before making any payment. According to the Sheriff sources, a few have already fallen victim and that they have sent thousands of dollars to these dubious callers.
NEW DELHI: Sujata Singh, currently envoy to Germany, will be India's next Foreign Secretary following an approval of her appointment by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, ending months of speculation on who will head the foreign services. 59-year-old Singh, a 1976 batch IFS officer, was a close contender for the top job along with India's Ambassador to China S Jaishankar, who is a batch junior to her/His name was doing the rounds because of his excellent service record particularly as envoy to China. Due to retire in July next year, Singh will now have a two year extension and will succeed Ranjan Mathai who is set to retire on July 31. Singh, who will be the third woman to head the services after Chokila Iyer and Nirupama Rao, is the daughter of T V Rajeshwar, the former Intelligence Bureau Chief known to be close to the top brass of the Congress. Singh is the wife of former Sec-
retary (East) Sanjay Singh, who retired in April this year. There were reports that she along with other diplomats who are senior to Jaishankar were contemplating resignation in case of
Sujata Singh
his elevation. Finally, the Prime Minister plumped for seniority. Her name was cleared after the Prime Minister returned from his Kashmir visit last week. Though Sujata Singh has not done any diplomatic stint in India's neighborhood, she was undersecretary looking after Nepal from 1982-1985 before her postings in Europe including Italy and France.-PTI
Steven Fulop sworn in Mayor of Jersey City JERSEY CITY: Steven M. Fulop, son of European immigrants and a former Wall Street trader who has pledged to trans-
Minister of State for Power (Independent Charge) Jyotiraditya Scindia speaks at an US-India Business Council (USIBC) event in New York on July 1. India’s Consul General in New York, Ambassador Dnyaneshwar Mulay (left) and Ron Sommers, USIBC President, look on
form Jersey City, was sworn in the city's 49th mayor on July 1. Fulop, 36, said after the ceremony that he "couldn't be more excited." He understands the "unbelievable responsibility" voters have placed in him, he said. "I'm going to do my best to make them proud every single day," he said. Deputy City Clerk Sean Gallagher, who presided over Fulop's 2009 swearing-in after he was re-elected to the Ward E City Council seat, administered the oath of office. Just before the start of the brief ceremony, Gallagher called Fulop "Jersey City's star." "I didn't want to say rising star because he's already risen," he said later. Fulop, formerly a two-term Downtown councilman, rode a wave of change to a decisive win in the May 14 mayoral contest, defeating former Mayor Jerramiah Healy after a bruising campaign in which Fulop focused heavily on the 2009 corruption sweep that landed numerous Healy allies in federal prison on bribery charges.
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Mahatma's 'Satyagraha' first took root in South Africa: Obama JOHANNESBURG: US President Barack Obama donned a teacher's hat to tell his two young daughters how Mahatma Gandhi's 'Satyagraha' had influenced American civil rights leader Martin Luther King to fight injustice. While visiting the Robben Island prison in South Africa where his hero Nelson Mandela spent two thirds of his 27 years in jail, Obama told Sasha and Malia how Mahatma Gandhi started his non-violent political struggle in South Africa. "One thing you guys might not be aware of is that the idea of political non-violence first took root here in South Africa because Mahatma Gandhi was a lawyer here in South Africa," Obama said, according to a White House pool report. "Here is where he did his first political (activism). When he went back to India the principles ultimately led to Indian independence, and what Gandhi did inspired Martin Luther King," said Obama, the first black president
U.S. President Barack Obama greets the public as he arrives to deliver remarks and takes questions at a town hall meeting with young African leaders at the University of Johannesburg Soweto campus, South Africa, June 29
of the US said. In a blue wind breaker and
slacks, the US president along with his wife Michelle and daugh-
Advani praises Patel for integrating Hyderabad with India NEW DELHI: After seeking abrogation of special status for Jammu and Kashmir, BJP leader L K Advani has praised India's first Home Minister Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel for integrating Hyderabad into the Indian Union through use of force despite Jawaharlal Nehru's opposition. In his latest blog posting, Advani refers to a book by V P
decided to use force to subdue the Nizam when he showed reluctance to fall in line. Though Advani has not made an overt attempt in his blog to draw parallels between the cases of Jammu and Kashmir and Hyderabad - both having sizeable Muslim populations, he indicates that the manner in which the southern state was handled was
L K Advani
Menon, who worked under Patel during the integration of 564 princely states into the Union, and says the Home Minister sent in the army despite Nehru's opposition. He further says quoting from another book, M K K Nair's "With No Ill Feeling to Anybody" that Nehru favored the UN route for Hyderabad - as he had done for Jammu and Kashmir - but Patel
exemplary. BJP has often alleged that Nehru's decision to take the Jammu and Kashmir integration issue to the UN was a wrong move. It is against Article 370 of the Constitution which bestows special status on the border state. Advani had demanded revocation of the Article recently, leading to a war of words between him
and Chief Minister Omar Abdullah. In his blog, the BJP leader says the then US Charge d'Affaires in New Delhi apprised the Indian government that the Nizam had written to the President of the US requesting that he should arbitrate and that the latter had refused. Advani also highlights that there was no interference from Pakistan nor were there any communal riots by or against Muslims when Hyderabad was integrated into India. "Opinion among the advisers of the Government of India was not unanimous on the question of what action should be taken in regard to Hyderabad. "The section which favored a policy of drift had a ready excuse in the bogey of large-scale communal disorders which would follow any positive action against Hyderabad. They apprehended that in Hyderabad the Hindus would be butchered in thousands, and that there would be general slaughter of Muslims in India," Advani said, quoting from Menon's book. "There were others who spoke of mass Muslim uprisings in south India. There was not a single communal incident in the whole length and breadth of India throughout the time of the operation," Advani said, adding that Pakistan also did not interfere as some feared.-PTI
ters visited the cell where the antiapartheid leader was jailed.
Obama in his speeches has often said Gandhi has inspired Americans and African Americans, including Martin Luther King. During a school interaction in the US, Obama had said once that if it were possible, he would have loved to have dinner with Mahatma Gandhi. Obama also praised Mandela saying, "Like billions all over the world, I and the American people have drawn strength from the example of this extraordinary leader and the nation that he changed." "Nelson Mandela showed us that one man's courage can move the world, and it calls on us to make choices that reflect not our fears, but our hopes in our own lives, and in the lives of our communities and our countries," Obama said in Cape Town. Earlier, Obama visited Robben Island with his family to reflect on Mandela's lengthy stay there as part of his 27 years in prison before leading South Africa to its first democratic elections in 1994.-PTI
Sooraj Pancholi gets bail; court raps police MUMBAI: Twenty-one days after Sooraj Pancholi (22) was arrested for abetting the suicide of actor Jiah Khan, Bombay High Court on July 1 granted him bail. While ordering his release from prison, Justice Sadhana Jadhav observed that the undated letters
allegedly written by the actor, giving an account of her troubled relationship with Sooraj and an abortion that she underwent. "Her mother (Rabiya) knew that she wrote poems, and wanted to read them out at a condolence meeting. While searching for the poems,
Sooraj Pancholi, son of actors Aditya Pancholi (L) and Zarina Wahab (R), after he was released from Arthur Road Jail in Mumbai on July 2
by Jiah could not be termed suicide notes but extracts from her diary. "No doubt it is an unfortunate incident... She must have been impulsive. The applicant (Sooraj) cannot be solely held responsible for it," the court said. On June 3, 25-year-old Jiah committed suicide at her Juhu residence. Four days later, Jiah's sister Kavita found a six-page letter
Kavita found the letter," said Rabiya's lawyer. The letters were handed over to police on June 8. Juhu police booked Sooraj for abetting Jiah's suicide and placed him under arrest on June 10. Sooraj's counsel Ashok Mundargi said his failed relationship was being exploited and there was no reason to keep him behind bars any longer.
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Snowden seeks asylum in India, 19 other countries WASHINGTON: American whistleblower Edward Snowden, currently sheltered in the transit zone of Moscow airport, has sought asylum in 20 countries, including India. These asylum requests have been filed by Sarah Harrison, legal advisor of Wikileaks in the matter of Snowden, the whistle-blower website said, adding that the first two requests were made to Ecuador, followed by Iceland. "On 30th June 2013 WikiLeaks' legal advisor in the Edward Snowden matter, Sarah
Harrison, submitted by hand a number of requests for asylum and asylum assistance on behalf of Edward J Snowden," Wikileaks said in a statement. "The requests were delivered to an official at the Russian consulate at Sheremetyevo Airport in Moscow late in the evening," it said, adding the documents outline the risks of persecution Snowden faces in the US and have started to be delivered by the Russian consulate to the relevant embassies in Moscow. The requests were made to a number of countries including Austria, Bolivia, Brazil, China, Cuba, Finland, France, Germany, India, Italy, Ireland, Netherlands, Nicaragua, Norway, Poland, Spain, Swiss Confederation, and Venezuela. The Obama Administration has warned
Edward Snowden
countries not to give asylum to Snowden arguing that he is wanted in the US on charges of espionage and leaking classified information. The US said Snowden, whose passport has been revoked, would be given a fair trial and enjoys all the rights of an American citizen. "We're prepared to issue one-entry travel documents. He's still a US citizen. He still enjoys the rights of his US citizenship, which include the right to a free and fair trial for the crimes he's been accused of," State Department spokesperson Patrick Ventrell told reporters. "He (Snowden) enjoys the rights and responsibilities of any US citizen, including the right to a free and fair trial under our Constitution," he said, adding that "He has a country to return to, which is the United States of America." Snowden worked for the NSA before he fled to Hong Kong last month with laptops full of confidential information. He is believed to be currently holed up in the Moscow airport's transit zone since his arrival from Hong Kong on June 23. He is wanted in the US on the charges of espionage and leaking classified documents. Documents leaked by him last month exposed a systematic and large-scale surveillance of phone and internet communications by the NSA around the world. -PTI
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India, Pak agree for third round of talks both sides want to accelerate, and this (meeting) is in response to that." "We have agreed for different groups to meet in the next two to three months. People-to-people contact, visa relaxation regime has already been agreed. Trade meetings will also take place. "There are number of steps being taken up and we hope that the two PMs External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid (right) with Sartaj Aziz, adviser to Prime Minister of Pakistan on National Security and Foreign Affairs
BANDAR SERI BEGAWAN/NEW DELHI: India and Pakistan have agreed to hold a third round of meetings on outstanding bilateral issues in next two to three months, after a small pause in the wake of the beheading of Indian soldiers by Pakistani Army in January. This was announced after a meeting between External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid and Pakistan Prime Minister's Special Adviser on Foreign Affairs Sartaj Aziz on the sidelines of ASEAN Foreign Minister's meet in the capital of Brunei, a first high-level meeting after the new government in Pakistan took over. Speaking to media after the meeting, Aziz said "We have reviewed the various steps in the CBMs (confidence building measures) and in the composite dialogue that has been going on. We discussed ways of fast tracking them, because this is the part
Spy claims must not harm EU-US ties: EU presidency VILNIUS: Lithuania, which took over the rotating EU presidency, said recent allegations that Washington had bugged EU offices must not harm bilateral ties amid landmark free trade talks. "It is understandable that the information that recently emerged raised concern," Lithuanian Foreign Minister Linas Linkevicius told AFP. "However (...) I don't think that it is very productive to discuss media reports or classified documents that nobody has seen," he said in the capital Vilnius. "Both strong political and economic EUUS ties must not be damaged." A report in German weekly Der Spiegel detailed alleged covert surveillance by the US National Security Agency (NSA) of EU diplomatic missions in the United States and in Brussels. US President Barack Obama has promised to respond to all of his European allies' concerns over the alleged bugging once he had all the facts. The European Union, Paris and Berlin have all called for answers following the latest spying claims attributed to fugitive leaker Edward Snowden.-AFP
(Prime Ministers) can meet hopefully on the sidelines of the United Nations General Assembly in September, if not earlier. We are providing great political impetus to this dialogue process," he said. On his part, Khurshid said Pakistan has once again extended an invitation to Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to visit Pakistan and he has responded to it warmly. "Most important is that there is political will on both sides that to take these ties forward. This is important for the relationship and for finding resolution to contentious issues which arise from time to time.
First of all, there is a need to take peopleto-people contacts forward and to strengthen our institutional contacts," Khurshid said. Asserting that the two countries will want to show specific steps moving forward, the External Affairs Minister said, "We are looking for dates for (meetings of the) Joint Working Groups under the Joint Commission in July and August." Asked about the 26/11 trial in Pakistan, Khurshid said, "This is what we have discussed, and as I have told you. It is time now to move forward."-PTI
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Pak militants increase infiltration bids into J-K NEW DELHI: Pakistan-based militant groups have intensified their infiltration attempts along the border in Jammu and Kashmir where around 300 terrorists continue to be active, according to the Home Ministry. In a presentation at the meeting of the Consultative Committee for Home Ministry, it said efforts from Pakistan and Pakistanoccupied Kashmir based elements to spawn enhanced level of violence in the state by scaling up infiltration and smuggling of arms and ammunition from across the LoC continue. "In 2012, 264 terrorists attempted infiltration from across the LoC as compared to 247 in 2011. Also, there was a rise in instances of successful infiltration
as compared to previous years with 121 terrorists entering Jammu and Kashmir in 2012 as compared to 52 in 2011," the Home Ministry told the Consultative Committee members.
and Kashmir in recent weeks. Though few militants have been successful to sneak into Jammu and Kashmir, most of the infiltration attempts have been foiled by security forces deployed
In a presentation at the meeting of the Consultative Committee for Home Ministry, it said efforts from Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir based elements to spawn enhanced level of violence in the state by scaling up infiltration and smuggling of arms and ammunition from across the LoC continue Meanwhile, ministry sources said there have been increased attempts by militant groups based in PoK to send extremists into Jammu
state and are waiting for opportunities to disturb peace in the state. Besides, there were incidents of violation of ceasefire along the Line of Control by Pakistani troops ostensibly to facilitate infiltration into Jammu and Kashmir. Last fortnight, eight Army soldiers were killed and 11 others injured in a gunfight with a group of terrorists in Bemina on the outskirts of Srinagar. A Junior Commissioned Officer was killed when Pakistan opened heavy fire with automatic weapons and rockets
on Indian posts along the LoC in Poonch sector last month. Pakistani troops had pounded Indian posts along LoC in the Poonch sector with rockets in May. A Brigadier and two jawans were injured when Pakistani troops opened fire on Indian positions along the LoC in Tutmari Gali sector in Jammu and Kashmir. On June 26, two militants were killed as Army troops foiled an infiltration bid along the LoC in Rajouri district of Jammu and Kashmir.-PTI
along the border, sources said citing intelligence inputs. They said as of now around 250 to 300 militants are active in the
White House briefing on Sikh civil rights issues India Post News Service
WASHINGTON, DC: Jakaras were heard in the White House during a briefing on Sikh civil rights issues in the heart of the federal government. This briefing, the second of its kind, was organized in collaboration with the White House Initiative on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders and the White House Office of Public Engagement at the request of the Sikh Coalition. Over 100 activists from around the United States attended the
briefing. Leaders from New York, California, New Jersey, Texas, Ohio, Georgia, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Virginia, and Indiana, traveled to Washington DC for the event. The assembled group included Advocates from the 2011, 2012 and 2013 classes of the Sikh Coalition's Sikh Advocate Academy. The group also included members from the Junior Sikh Coalition, a youth group of emerging activists based in New York City.
The leaders and activists participated in the briefing in the Indian Treaty Room in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building. Commissioner Chai Feldblum of the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission; Kimberly Walton, Assistant Administrator of the Transportation Security Administration; Anurima Bhargava, Chief of the Educational Opportunities Section, of the U.S. Department of Justice; and Grande Lum, Director of the Community Relations Service of the U.S. Department of Justice
talked about the federal government's efforts to combat employment discrimination, airport profiling, and school bullying respectively. In addition, Audrey Buehring, Deputy Director of the White House Initiative on Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders spoke about the work of the Initiative to address Sikh and broader Asian American and Pacific Islander concerns. Finally, Gautam Raghavan and Paul Monteiro of the White
House Office of Public Engagement addressed the participants. In addition to the scheduled speakers, attendees were grateful for the words of Major Kamaljeet Singh Kalsi and Harpreet Singh Mokha, Mid-Atlantic Regional Director of the Community Relations Service at the briefing. The assembled community members enthusiastically questioned federal agency officials after each of their presentations. They shared critical feedback and ideas on how the federal government can better connect with and
serve the Sikh community. The genuine excitement and feeling of momentum among the attendees was inspiring. The assembled Sikhs were grateful to have shared their ideas with toplevel officials and participated in a historic event. The White House and assembled federal agency officials all expressed the hope that this second briefing would continue to build momentum so that Sikhs can be better connected to the White House and their government.
A statue of Indian spiritual leader Chinmoy, along with the Eternal Peace-Flame that was dedicated in Oslo recently
Sharif bats for cooperation, closer ties with India ISLAMABAD: Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif has said that his PML-N party has pursued a policy of friendship and cooperation with India ever since its previous stints in power and will continue to do so to promote peace and prosperity in the region. The Prime Minister expressed these views in a meeting of PakIndia Joint Business Council at the Prime Minister's House, his office said. "It has always been his utmost endeavor to bring the peoples of the two South Asian neighbors closer to each other so that they can benefit from each other's experiences," an official statement said. Expressing his satisfaction over the visit of Indian businessmen under the auspices of PakIndia Joint Business Council, Sharif said, "It is reassuring that
both sides are sitting together and talking to each other." The Prime Minister told the meeting that he had directed Khwaja Muhammad Asif, Minister for Water & Power, to visit India and explore potential areas of cooperation between the two countries. Sharif told the Indian businessmen that his government is following investor-friendly policies. "We are facing acute power shortage in our country and any assistance in the power sector would help us in addressing the issue," he added. Indian members of the Council informed the Prime Minister that being located in the same region and facing similar problems, India can be of great help in providing support in the fields of medical science, higher education and technical and vocational training.PTI
July 5, 2013
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One in 10 will live in climate hotspots by 2100 WASHINGTON: One in 10 people around the world will live in a place where climate change is damaging at least two major sectors such as crop yields, water, ecosystems or health, says an international study. These so-called climate "hotspots" will be most widespread in the southern Amazon, with "severe changes" in water availability, yields and ecosystems, said the study in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, a US journal. The second largest hotspot region is southern Europe, where water shortages and crop failures would lead to hardships for the population, said the study led by Franziska Piontek of Germany's Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research. "Overlapping impacts of climate change in different sectors have the potential to interact and thus multiply pressure on the livelihoods of people in the affected regions," said Piontek. The study included climate impact researchers from Japan, the United States, China, Europe and beyond, and used mathematical modeling programs to project how global warming will change the livelihoods of people around the planet. Different levels of warming were analyzed, with multisector overlap beginning to appear "robustly" at an average warming worldwide of three degrees Celsius above the 1980-2010 average, it said. When that figure was raised to four degrees Celsius above the 1980-2010 average, 11 per cent of the world's population was "subject to severe impacts in at least two of the four impact sectors," it said. Other hotspots included tropical regions of Central America and Africa, as well as the Ethiopian highlands because of the overlapping pressures of malarial spread, suffering crops and ecosystem changes. Northern regions of south Asia were also predicted to suffer because of crop woes combined with either ecosystem changes or water availability.
65,000 Indians in Saudi legally secure RIYADH: Nearly 65,000 Indians in Saudi Arabia have already collected their travel documents and are legally secure in the oil-rich country ahead of the deadline to regularize their residency under an amnesty program. Around 90,000 Indians had approached the Embassy of India for regularization of their documents as part of the amnesty program. There have been calls for extension of the program considering a large number of applications that are yet to be sorted, but no announcement has yet been made to this effect. "No extension has yet been announced so far. However, there is no need for panic as we have already shared with Saudi authorities the list of Indians who approached us to correct their status, which means they are technically not illegal," Sibi George, the Deputy Chief of Mission at the Riyadh Embassy, told PTI. George said a large number of Indians have managed to get their status corrected and secured new jobs as a result of this program. "The number of Indians in Saudi Arabia has actually gone up during this period," he said. The new Saudi labor law called 'Nitaqat' makes it mandatory for local companies to hire one Saudi national for every 10 migrant workers. As a result, a number of people from foreign countries who were working without valid work permits and runaways have come under the scanner. -PTI
"What today is considered extreme could become the new normal," said co-author Qiuhong Tang of the Chinese Academy of Sciences. The analysis found no place on Earth where all four sectors would experience a severe change. Much of Africa, which might be considered a vulnerable part of the planet, did not appear as a hotspot under the model methods used. However, the case might be different if droughts and floods were included as metrics, the authors said. Researchers said the data should help nations plan for significant changes in the decades ahead, either by speeding adaptation strategies or motivating decisions to curb climate change. "It allows for a risk management perspective," said coauthor Alex Ruane of the NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies. "In the hotspot parts of Africa, for instance, even small temperature rises can lead to additional losses that many small farmers simply cannot afford." -AFP
Tech News HP aims to re-enter the smartphone race BEIJING: Technology giant HP is looking at re-entering the smartphone race and is working on launching a new device, which will offer a "differentiated experience" to consumers. Without giving a timeline, HP Senior Director Consumer PC and Media Tablets Asia Pacific Yam Su Yin told PTI that the company is
focusing on all segments including tablet PCs, notebook PCs as well as all-in-ones (AIOs). When asked if a smartphone is in the offing, she said: "The answer is yes but I cannot give a timetable. It would be silly if we say no. HP has to be in the game." The company had bet big on the smartphone ecosystem when it purchased Palm for USD 1.2 billion in April 2010 but the webOSbased devices failed to take off. With the likes of Apple and Samsung seeing a strong spurt in sales pushed by smartphones, HP also seems to be seen cashing in on the opportunity. -PTI
Citigroup to pay USD 968 mln to Fannie Mae NEW YORK: Citigroup has agreed to pay USD 968 million to Fannie Mae to resolve potential future repurchase claims on residential mortgage loans originated between 2000 and 2012. The agreement covers claims for breaches of representations and warranties on 3.7 million loans. The deal doesn't release Citigroup's liability for servicing and other ongoing contractual obligations for the loans. The bank anticipates a USD 245 million residential mortgage reserve for its second quarter, consistent with reserves from recent quarters. The company will report its quarterly results on July 15. Citigroup Inc said it will continue to work with Fannie Mae on buying back any mortgage loans sold to the government-controlled mortgage entity that don't meet its requirements. Citigroup's stock added 30 cents to USD 48.27 in premarket trading. -AP
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Union Minister for Commerce & Industry, Anand Sharma (L) with Tony Fernandes, CEO, AirAsia and Industrialist Ratan Tata during a meeting in New Delhi on July 2
India fifth most tracked country by the American intelligence BERLIN: American intelligence service used bugs, phone taps and cyber monitoring to obtain information from European Union embassies and offices in Washington, New York and Brussels, a German weekly has reported. India, a strategic ally of the US, has emerged as the fifth most tracked country by the American intelligence. A snapshot of the Boundless Informant data, contained in a top secret NSA "global heat map", shows that in March 2013 the agency collected 97 billion pieces of intelligence from computer networks worldwide, Britain's Guardian newspaper had reported recently. It showed that Iran was the country where the largest amount of intelligence was gathered, with more than 14 billion reports in that period, followed by 13.5 billion from Pakistan. Jordan, one of America's closest Arab allies, came third with 12.7 billion, Egypt fourth with 7.6 billion and India fifth with 6.3 billion. The disclosure triggered strong reaction from EU leaders who demanded full and speedy clarification from the US. "Documents from September, 2010 classified as 'top secret' by the National Security Agency, which were leaked by former NSA contractor Edward Snowden, re-
vealed how the agency planted bugs at the EU offices in Washington and in New York and gained
documents on their computers," the news weekly, Der Spiegel, reported in its latest edition.
Angry over the disclosure, European Parliament president Martin Schulz demanded full and speedy clarification from the US, saying "I am deeply worried and shocked about the allegations,, access to their internal computer networks. "This enabled the NSA not only to snoop into the conversations at the EU missions, but also to monitor the emails and internal
"Five years ago, the NSA also planted bugs and infiltrated the computers and telephone networks at the Justus Lipsius Building in Brussels, headquarters of the EU Council of Ministers and
the European Council," the report said. Member-nations keep their offices in this building, which is also the venue for high-level ministerial meetings. EU's counter-espionage officials traced the NSA's infiltration into the building to a closely guarded area used by the American agency's specialists at the NATO headquarters in Brussels, the report said. An NSA document from September 2010 explicitly named the Europeans as a "location target", Der Spiegel said, adding "the attacks on the EU institutions showed yet another level in the broad scope of NSA's spying activities." Documents leaked by whistleblower Snowden early this month exposed a systematic and largescale surveillance of phone and internet communications by the NSA around the world. He had revealed that the British intelligence service GCHQ operated a similar surveillance program codenamed "Tempora" under which it monitored and stored internet and telephone data of millions of users by tapping Transatlantic fiber-optic cables and shared those information with the NSA. Cont’d on page 14
Tata, Ambani, Birla in race for bank license MUMBAI: Tata Sons, India's biggest business group, and firms controlled by billionaires Anil Ambani and Kumar Mangalam Birla are among the 26 companies that have applied for a license to open banks. Ambani's Reliance Capital has applied for a banking license along with Japan's biggest life insurer Nippon Life Insurance Co and Sumitomo Mitsui Trust Holdings Inc. Former Citigroup Inc chief executive Vikram Pandit has teamed
up with JM Financial Ltd. Among public sector entities, India Post and IFCI also submitted applications for bank license while micro finance institutions like Bandhan Financial Services, Janalakshmi Financial Services too expressed their intention to set up a bank.
"The Reserve Bank of India in all received 26 applications," the central bank said after the deadline for applying for a bank license expired. The RBI had issued guidelines for 'Licensing of New Banks in the Private Sector' on February 22 and came out with clarifications
RBI Governor D Subbarao had earlier said that "our effort will be to make that judgment as transparent as objective as contestable as possible�
in the first week of June. It is, however, not yet clear how many new bank licenses will be issued. RBI Governor D Subbarao had earlier said that "our effort will be to make that judgment as transparent as objective as contestable as possible...I want to say that not everybody who is fit and proper will be given a (bank) license because we expect the number of eligible applicants will be much larger than what is meaningful number of licenses we can give".-PTI
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WB debars Chinese company for 'fraud' WASHINGTON: The World Bank has announced to debar a Chinese company for two years on the charges of "fraudulent misconduct" that hit one of its projects in China. The announcement came after
"fraudulent misconduct" impacting the World Bank-financed Shandong Flue Gas Desulphurization Project in China. The project closed on June 30, 2012. The case came to light as a re-
China Energy Conservation and Environmental Protection Group Technology and Investment Co New Hope & Talroad (Beijing) Environmental Technology Co. Ltd. (CECEP New Hope), formerly known as New Hope & Talroad (Beijing) Environmental Technology Co., Ltd acknowledged
sult of a World Bank financial management review that identified discrepancies in documentation submitted for reimbursement, an official release said. The two-year debarment came into effect on June 28, the Bank said. During this period, CECEP New Hope will not qualify for any
contract financed by the World Bank Group. As part of the settlement, the company will also need to demonstrate full and satisfactory compliance with the World Bank Integrity standards. "We are pleased with the outcome of this investigation, the cooperation and active steps taken by the company to comply with the World Bank's integrity standards following its acknowledgement of misconduct," said Leonard McCarthy, World Bank Integrity Vice President. The World Bank Integrity Vice Presidency (INT) is responsible for preventing, deterring and investigating allegations of fraud, collusion and corruption in World Bank projects, capitalizing on the experience of a multi-lingual and highly specialized team of investigators and forensic accountants. In the fiscal year 2013, as many as the Bank had sanctioned 74 entities, including settlements where companies are debarred as a default sanction in addition to committing to cooperation with the Integrity Vice Presidency. These include the Canadian company SNC Lavalin and more than 100 of its affiliates and the Indian company Larsen and Toubro Limited among others.-PTI
American Express fined for encashing stolen cheques NEW DELHI: American Express Banking Corp has been asked by the Delhi State Consumer Commission to pay Rs 80,000 as compensation to a woman for encashing traveler cheques stolen from her despite being informed about the theft. The state commission observed that since the bank allowed encashment of the cheques despite receiving information about the theft, its concerned officials "in conspiracy" with others "deliberately" did not stop payment on the stolen cheques. "When the information was received by the appellant/ opposite party (American Express) with regard to the theft of the traveler cheques, it was incumbent on the part of the appellant to stop the payment, which has not been done. "Obviously, there is sheer negligence on the part of the appellant
and we have no hesitation in saying that (concerned) officials of the appellant bank in conspiracy with others deliberately did not stop the payment and encashed the same," a bench presided by members V K Gupta and S C Jain said.
“Officials of the appellant bank in conspiracy with others deliberately did not stop the payment and encashed the same� The order came on the bank's appeal against the decision of a district forum which had directed American Express to pay Rs 80,000 to the complainant, Delhi
resident Sushma Agarwal. The commission, while dismissing the bank's appeal, noted that the complainant's husband had on July 7, 2003 registered an FIR and also informed American Express about the theft of the cheques, but it still encashed them on July 22, 2003. American Express in its appeal had contended that Agarwal had signed on the cheque and its overleaf and handed it over to some other person (her husband) and in such a case, the bank cannot be blamed. The commission, however, rejected the contention. According to Agarwal's complaint in the district forum, the cheques were stolen from her husband's car while he had stopped over at a chemist shop while on his way to submit the unused cheques at the bank. -PTI
Govt to seek aid to rebuild Uttarakhand NEW DELHI: Government will seek financial aid from multilateral bodies like World Bank and Asian Development Bank for reconstruction and rehabilitation in floodravaged Uttarakhand, Finance Minister P Chidambaram has said. He said funds will not be a constraint for rebuilding the mountainous state which had witnessed the worst ever floods last month that killed several hundreds and destroyed properties worth crores. "We are trying to develop a (financial) package for rehabilitation and reconstruction for which we will go to multilateral bodies, like we did in Tsunami case," Chidambaram told PTI. "Prime Minister has already announced Rs 1,000 crore. Different ministries are using their own funds. Tourism has announced Rs 100 crore. Funds will not be a constraint. I have said it on the first day," the minister said Besides seeking aid from these multilateral agencies, the government will soon sent a joint team of Finance Ministry and Home Ministry to discuss with Uttarakhand state officials the redevelopment plan for the calamity-hit state. "What I have approved is that a team from the Finance Ministry and Home Ministry will go to
Uttarakhand to sit (and discuss) with Uttarakhand Government officers," Chidambaram said. In view of the gravity of the situation, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had last month announced financial support of Rs 1,000 crore to Uttarakhand for disaster relief, of which Rs 145 crore was released immediately. Singh had also announced ex-
P Chidambaram
gratia assistance of Rs 2 lakh each to families of those who had lost their lives and Rs 50,000 each to the injured, from the Prime Ministers National Relief Fund (PMNRF). The government had also decided to provide from the PMNRF, an ex-gratia assistance of Rs 1 lakh each to those whose houses have been completely destroyed and Rs 50,000 each to those whose houses have been damaged.-PTI
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Mercedes Benz plans traffic alert system HYDERABAD: Mercedes Benz is all set to introduce a technology that would enable communication between two cars and also
We are developing an integrated system called 'My Mercedes'. This system gives all participants using an automobile a possibility to
between driver and manufacturer, a top official of the German Luxury car maker said. "You get more and more connectivity between cars as well as between manufacturer and driver.
communicate (with one another). "There will be more and more communications coming up," Eberhard H Kern, Managing Director and CEO, Mercedes Benz India told PTI during his recent visit
Honda Cars domestic sales up three-fold NEW DELHI: Honda Cars India Ltd (HCIL) has reported over three-fold increase in its domestic sales for June 2013 at 9,297 units. The company had sold 2,667 units in the same month last year, HCIL said in a statement. During June, the company sold 1,830 units of its Sedan City and 2,375 units of its small car Brio. It also sold 27 units of premium se-
dan Accord. Besides, HCIL sold 4,965 units of its latest sedan Amaze during last month. The company sold 100 units of
its sports utility vehicle CR-V in June 2013. In addition to these sales, the company also exported a total of 761 units during June 2013. Commenting on the numbers, HCIL Senior Vice President (Marketing and Sales) Jnaneswar Sen said: "We are extremely delighted with the consumer response to Amaze which has surpassed all
expectations and is further gaining momentum. We already have more than 18,000 happy Amaze customers and we hope to add many more going forward." -PTI
here. Kern added that their Research and Development centre in Bangalore would play a key role in developing the technology. According to a press release issued earlier this month by the company, each vehicle will be fitted with Car-to-X communication and it can transmit information on dangers to other road users and therefore contribute to enhancing the road safety. Mercedes Benz passenger cars are able to detect many of these dangers automatically and without the driver being required to take any action. For dangers which are not detected automatically, an efficient manual notification option has been created. At the press of a button, immobile vehicles or animals on the road, wrong-way drivers or shed loads can be notified via the Mercedes Cloud. This then sends a warning message to all vehicles fitted with Car-to-X technology which are in the vicinity of the hazardous location.-PTI
Govt aims to bring over half of India under e-governance NEW DELHI: In a major push to e-governance at grassroot level for transparency, government has decided to cover 339 of around 620 districts by March next year by a system under which government services can be accessed through instruments like mobile phones. The decision was taken at a meeting chaired by Prime Minister Manmohan Singh to discuss provision of government services at district and sub-district levels to citizens in electronic mode across the country. The program is planned to be achieved through measurable outcomes in terms of number of transactions, improved service levels, reduced service time and costs for the government and citizens. Under the e-district program, internet and mobile phones would be used for delivery of government services like ration card, birth certificate and driving licenses in 339 of around 620 districts of the country by March next year. The initiative is a part of eBharat program for which government has received a financial support of around Rs 700 crore from World Bank. -PTI
Delhi Metro takes over operations of Airport Express NEW DELHI: Delhi Metro has taken over operations of Airport Express Line even as Reliance Infra, which ran the line, blamed DMRC's "persistent" failure to cure defects in the civil structure for termination of the concession agreement and claimed termination payment from it. The takeover of the 22.7 km-line was completed three days after Reliance Infrastructure announced its pull out from the service. The Board of Directors of DMRC had met to discuss the letter of Reliance (DAMEPL) dated June 27 intimating that they would stop operating the Airport Line
"The termination clause had to be invoked by DAMEPL, as DMRC had persistently failed to cure the substantial defects in the civil structure designed and built by DMRC, within the period prescribed under the Concession Agreement, and on account of Material Breach and Event of Default by DMRC arising under the Agreement as a result thereof," a RInfra spokesperson said. According to the spokesperson, DMRC failed to make alternate arrangements for taking over the operations of the metro line, even after the termination of the Concession Agreement in October
from the night of June 30, and concluded that the notice was in violation of the Concession Agreement and the ongoing arbitration proceedings. However, the Delhi Airport Metro Express Private Limited (DAMEPL), a Special Purpose Vehicle of Reliance Infrastructure Ltd (RInfra), has said that they terminated the Concession Agreement with DMRC for the airport metro line nearly 9 months back, vide its notice dated 8th October, 2012.
last year, adding DAMEPL was compelled to serve a final notice on DMRC to take over the operations with effect from July one, as it was not possible for them to continue the same indefinitely. DMRC is now liable to pay DAMEPL a Termination Payment equal to 130 percent of the Adjusted Equity and 100 per cent of the Debt Due for the project, as the termination has arisen owing to DMRC's "Event of Default", the RInfra spokesperson claimed. -PTI
India fifth most tracked country by the American intelligence Cont’d from page 12
Angry over the disclosure, European Parliament president Martin Schulz demanded full and speedy clarification from the US, saying "I am deeply worried and shocked about the allegations of US authorities spying on EU offices." "If the allegations prove to be true, it would be an extremely serious matter which will have a severe impact on EU-US relations," Schulz warned. Luxembourg Foreign Minister Jean Asselborn said, "The US would do better to monitor its intelligence services instead of its
allies." He called US spying "out of control" and said that "if these reports are true, it's disgusting." Under its top-secret PRISM program, the NSA collected information from Internet and phone users around the world, with access to data from Google, Yahoo! and other Internet firms. US officials maintain the information gathered is vital in the fight against global terrorism. President Barack Obama had strongly defended sweeping secret surveillance, saying it has helped the US prevent terrorist attacks. -PTI
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Desi News Manglorean Christians announce picnic SURESH SHAH
CHICAGO: Mangalorean Konkan Christian Association (MKCA) has announced organizing its Annual Family Picnic 2013 at Hawthorn Badmington Shelter in Vernon Hills on Saturday July 27 beginning 11 am. Secreatry Steven D'Souza said that it would be a daylong affair filled with fun and fellowship. the game part and the fun would involve limbo, dog-n-bone, sack race, lemon race cricket, volleyball, throw ball, shuttle badminton and many more. The event is free and MKCA invites all to join and have fun.
COMMUNITY ACROSS AMERICA
New Hindu temple opens in Carbondale Details on page 26
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Bay Area remembers the great soul Pt Damodar Dutt ShastriJi Pradesh, India, on 14th March 1928. Father Brij Bhushanji was also a good vocalist and had a good knowledge of music. Mother Yashodaji was from a very reputed
and interest in Shero-Shayari (Urdu poetry) because of the local influence of Muslim population. He studied Ghalib and other ace Urdu poets but he got his de-
Gov Quinn seeks bigger Asian participation RAMESH SOPARAWALA India Post News Service
CHICAGO: A series of workshops designed to boost the number of Asian Americans in the state workforce began this week in the Springfield area and Chicago's West Rogers Park. Hosted by the Governor's Asian American Employment Plan Advisory Council in close collaboration with half a dozen Asian organizations like Indo-American Center, Muslim Women Resource Center, the Chicago workshop was held at North town branch Public Library on Wednesday, June 26 at California Avenue. It was well attended by 100 plus members from Asian community who felt enlightened about the process and opportunities for State employment Details on page 24
Northwest Indiana celebrates Temple anniversary Asian Media USA
Dr Japra adressing the condolence meet at the temple
Pt Damodar Shastri Ji (14th March 1928 - 14th June 2013). Pics Neeloo Kapoor
RAKESH KAPOOR India Post News Service
FREMONT: "Character is like a tree and reputation is like its shade." This is an old saying which I memorized since my childhood and have always kept it before me. A tree can be seen as standing sturdy, robust and immovable against all odds of nature like strong winds and storms, rain or shine. Reputation is bound to be there as the shade of a tree, means when there is a tree its shade is there. A person with a strong and good character enjoys a good reputation. To become a
tree it takes a long time. Same is the case of character. It is not built in a day or two. Once character is built, reputation is there like the other side of a coin. This was the case with our respected and Principal Priest of Fremont Hindu Temple, Pandit Shree Damodar Dutt Saraswat Shastriji, popularly known as Shastriji. "Radhey-Radhey Govind, Govind Radhey‌" enchanter of these lines, was born to a well to do and reputed family of Vaidya (Ayurvedic doctor) Brij Bhushan Dutt Saraswat and Yshoda Agnihotri, in a small town named Shamli of Meerut District, Uttar
MERRILLVILLE, Indiana: Bharatiya Temple of North West Indiana located in Merrillville, Indiana, celebrated its 3rd Anniversary on June 14 and 15 at the Yagashala, Temple and IACC Hall. The two days of crowded program attended by hundreds of Indian Americans from Indiana but other neighboring States of Illinois and Michigan was organized by Indian American Cultural Center of Northwest Indiana (IACC) Details on page 26
Rajesh Verma paying tribute to Shastri Ji with Dr Romesh Japra
Rakesh Kapoor paying his homage to Shastri ji
Agnihotri family. Damodarji completed his schooling in Shamli only. He had a fairly good knowledge of Urdu
gree in Sanskrit from the esteemed Government Sanskrit College of Benaras. Cont’d on page 19
Smt Shanta Shastri Ji (wife) & Mahashweta Ojha (daughter)
Dr Romesh Japra who had a long association with him, paying his homage to Shastri Ji
Gajendra Mishra singing bhajan for Shastri Ji
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Maharudrabhishekam at Fremont Hindu Temple RITU MAHESHWARI India Post News Service
FREMONT: Homam, Yagnas and Hymns have over the centuries been used to invoke divine presence and create an ambience
casion as one where chanting of all the devotees became one and invoked divine spirituality that filled the room. It appeared as if every single aspect and moment had divine blessings. The stunning 8ft tall
Priests make preparations for the Homam and Rudrabhishekam
Shivling built by Pt. Vishwaprasadji together with beautiful Utsav Moortis of Shiva and Parvati that miraculously arrived by ship from India just a day before the event, were a testimony to God showering grace for true devotion. H o l y h e r b s (found in Himalayas) and the Poornahuti offerings w e r e flown in specially for this e v e n t from India. T h e Devotees immerse in Vedic chants and hymns event was reminismont Hindu Temple on Saturday cent of the Yagas performed durJune 29 was a one of its kind event ing ancient times as depicted in where divine presence was felt by holy scriptures. Vedic Dharma Samaj (Fremont Hindu Temple) one and all. Rudram chanting by 108 Sai and Sai devotees took over 300 devotees, enchanting attendees on a spiritual journey Namasankeertan by Shekhar to the Vedic times. Bodduppalli and team and the extraordinary pooja and homam by priests Pt. Vishwaprasadji and Pt. Kumararaswamiji filled the atmosphere with divine cosmic energy. Pt. Govindji of Fremont temple deShekhar Bodduppalli and the priests performing scribed this Namasankeertan auspicious ocof peace and tranquility. As Indian community grows in numbers, its presence and involvement in religious and cultural events is increasingly pronounced. Maharudra Homam and Rudrabhishekam program at Fre-
The bhakti, devotion and the reverberating mantras mesmerized the devotees for five to six hours offering spiritual bliss that they have not experienced before. Combined with the heat of the sun, the homam, chanting, and the Namasankirtanam, the offering was literally intense and a tsunami of energy and love for God! Several volunteers and specially Pt. Vishwaprasadji worked tirelessly and made it a memorable offering.
Pt. Govindji, Rajesh Verma, Manorama Joshi and priests conduct Homam
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Sai Parivaar celebrates third anniversary India Post News Service
MILPITAS, CA: The Shirdi Sai Parivaar (SSP) celebrated its third anniversary on June 20. On this day in 2010, SSP moved to this permanent facility in Milpitas and performed Pranaprathista to Baba. Ever since, Shirdi Sai Parivaar has been constantly
growing and the services offered by the Shirdi Sai Parivaar to the community and those in need have been expanding. The primary mission of SSP is to spread the teachings of Shirdi Sai Baba by engaging in community and charitable activities and conducting spiritual and educational programs for all. Shirdi Sai Baba is a charismatic and mystical saint from India who lived between 1838 and 1918 in Shirdi, a small village in Maharashtra, India. He n e v e r preached or provided discourses but he emphasized the unity of all religions and the universality of spirit in all existence. One of the key teachings of Sai Baba was to help the poor and needy. Sai
Baba not only practiced this till he attained Mahasamadhi in 1918 but encouraged his devotees also to follow this practice in their daily life also. On this auspicious occasion, as part of the anniversary celebrations, the Shirdi Sai Center was open all day on Thursday June 20. Devotees came in large numbers from June 20 to June 23 to seek his blessings and got an opportunity to climb the main podium to touch Baba's feet. This is a tradition that SSP has been following every year as part of the anniver-
sary celebrations. On June 22, several religious and spiritual activities were conducted. Following the morning (Kakad) arati, devotees participated in the Ganapathi puja, Punyavhachana, Ankuraarpana, Mandapa Aradhana, and homam. About 108 families participated in the Kalasha abhishekam to Shirdi Sai Baba. The morning celebrations were concluded with Poorna Ahuti and Mangala arati. Devotees were overjoyed to be able to perform the Kalasha Abhishekam for Shirdi Sai Baba. Cont’d on page 21
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Bay Area remembers the great soul Pt Shastri Ji Cont’d from page 16
He did his B.A. with Violin Madhav from Sangeet Mahavidyalaya, Gwalior and M.A. with Vocal Music from Morris Music College, Lucknow. (It is a surprising a co-incidence that I also hail from Meerut and was fond of reading Urdu poetry and doing Hindi theatre. So we used to sit in his office and recite Nazms & Ghazals to each other. During his education Damodarji was married to Shantaji who comes from a very reputed family. She was daughter of Pandit Ayodhya Prasad Sharma who himself was Principal Priest with the King of Gabhana State near Aligarh, U.P., India. That was the reason that his marriage was accomplished in a grand manner and with full pomp and show. Moreover, the fire (Agni) was brought for the ritual, Saat Phere, from Damodar's mother side who was daughter of Agnihotris. So the Pious Agni was brought from the Agnihotri family which is considered as a good omen. After this Damodarji mastered himself in the Holy books Ramayan and Gita. He not only possessed deep knowledge
of these "Granthas" but also developed a unique singing presentation which was very poetic, beautiful and charming. Like grandfather like father like son, Damodarji inherited the singing from the Saraswat family. His lectures were laced with musical rendition of chopais of Ramayan and even shlokas from scriptures. He also wanted to do his masters in English language but could not do so because of upcoming programs and numerous invitations for chanting of mantras, shlokas and above all reciting Ramayana and Gita. Devotees lined up to pay their homage to Shastri Ji (L to R) Krishna Mishra, grand daughter, Deepak Chhabra, Temple event Chair & Mansur Nur, a staunch follower of Shastri Ji
Dr Japra, Vijay Thapar, Neeloo Kapoor and Manorama Joshi with the family
Grandkids of Shastri Ji paying their homage
Ramesh Gullani, Devotee & follower, Leela Mathur, Religious Chair, Dr Romesh Japra, Co-chairman FHT & Rajesh Verma, Chairman FHT (Fremont Hindu Temple)
After completing his education in Music and getting the degree of "Shastri" from Benaras he started touring India singing his melodious style of Ramayan and Gita. In 1958 he was called to Haridwar for Ramayan presentation. After his lyrical presentation the Dave family of Ahmedabad was so mesmerized that they invited him to come along with them to stay with them and sing for them the holy books in Gujarat. They in fact offered to adopt him as they were childless. We do not have a clue that Damodarji was adopted or not but it is a fact that the Dave family was responsible for bringing this "Kohinoor" to Gujarat State with great honor. Shastriji now was transpiring into a great artist of epic teller. The love and affection of Gujarat revealed a star in him. Just because of that he started visiting important cities of the state like Kathiyawad, Porbandar, Bhavnagar, Surat, Bharuch etc. Shastriji was a master of musical presentations and he enthralled the audiences with his euphonious voice. He had a grip on classical ragas and also a different style of music such as ghazals, bhajans and traditional songs. His presentations made the audiences stand hypnotically even in the rains. Tears were brought to the eyes of Pt. Omkar Nath Thakur, winner of 1955 Padma Shree Award and 1956
Sangeet Natak Academy Award and an honorary Doctorate Degree from Benaras Hindu University, when he heard his Ramayana presentation in Bharuch near Ahmedabad. It has been a matter of great honor that Sanand Baba, the king of Sanand, used to invite Shastriji to come to his place and deliver the Ramayan presentations, some time the whole night. He also used to come to Shastriji's place also and that was an honor in its own for him. Once in Ahmedabad, a couple from Africa called Dollar Couple heard Shastriji and strongly insisted that he visit their country. He accepted the invitation and they took him along with them. Shastriji toured the popular cities like Nairobi, Zambia, Uganda etc. and popularized the Ramayana there. In 1972-1973 Damodar Shastriji toured Middle East also. A Gujarati couple invited him and he chanted both Ramayna and Gita to a Sheikh businessman. In 1974 this great epic teller touched down in the US, landing at Baltimore, Maryland State. After settling down there he visited all the big cities of the East Coast like New York, New Jersey, Chicago,
Shastri Ji's family
(L to R ) Leela Mathur, Satya Kalra, Santosh Bhatia, Vijay Thapar, Rajesh Verma & Lalit Mathur
Washington etc. with his charismatic style of telling the saga of Ramayana and Gita. How lucky he would have been to sing those sacred lines repeatedly before the audiences around the globe for which an ordinary person hardly gets some time to just utter if not read. In 1980 he was invited by Benin and Bindu, a couple from London. They specially came to US to take him along with them because they had heard a lot about him and his distinctive style of delivering the sacred epics. After coming back from London, Shastriji took full command of the Fremont temple and became very popular within no time. He started taking interest in all the religious activities and started introducing innovative ideas. Many a times the musical and vocal meets were organized by the temple in his supervision. Later he started giving the pravachans also with the touch of his magic of vocal and musical ability and became a star overnight. People started waiting for the Sundays so that they could hear him not only for his voice but also to have the flavor of his deep knowledge of the Vedas and Upanishads. He kept doing this for years and years and the temple started growing day by day. By 2009-2010 at the age of approximately 80 the ailments had already started. His knees were getting from bad to worse. Cont’d on page 20
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Bay Area remembers the great soul Pt Shastri Ji Cont’d from page 19
He started walking with the help of a stick and then the walker replaced the stick. In mid 2012 his health started deteriorating. He was still coming to the office with the help of his daughter Shweta. In 2012 he was invited to address the North America's Brahmin Sabha at LA. There also he won the hearts of the audience. In India Pt. Damodar Shastriji was honored with the Tulsi Award by none other than Morari Bapuji of Gujarat. In late 2012 Shastriji was admitted to hospital. After nine months hospital stay he came back to his house and everybody was hopeful that he would be alright and very soon his devotees will be able to see him and listen him. But this was not to be. Ten days before his death he was again taken to hospital with a mild heart attack and was put on to life saving belt till the last day of his life - again the 14th day but of June 2013.
Era comes to an end An era has come to an end. The whole temple was in deep grief. Everybody was in a shock. Nobody
ment board members along with all those devotees and friends whom he had touched in his life, were present to say him good-bye for ever. Dr Romesh Japra was the Master of Ceremony. In the beginning he invited the family for the Pagri rituals. Shastriji's son along with the daughters sang bhajans for their departed father. Kusum Behn from Brahakumaris adopted silence and did "Om Shanti Om" meditation. Bharti Joshi sang a Bhajan in Gujarati which was a favorite of Shastriji. Rachna Bhatnagar also sang a bhajan in homage to the divine practitioner of music. Among those present were Sunita Japra, Rajesh Verma, Nandini Verma, Manorama Joshi, Lalit Mathur, Leela Mathur, Vijay Thapar, Govind Pasumarthi, Shalini and Dharminder Dewan, Yogi and Amrit Chugh, Satya Kalra, Kusum Behn from Brhamkumaris, Surendra Sharma, Pt Kalyan Sharma Ji, Pt Bhushan Kesarji, Keshab Chopra, Jerry Ahuja, Raj and Motilal Parimoo, Ram and Rekha Malik, Bharti Joshi, Santosh Bhatia, Mansur Nur, Vikram Kohli, Dr Bhandari, Shashi Relhan, Manali Brahmbhatt, Jeevan Jutshi, Anita
Anirudh Shastri (son), Dr Sushil Ojha & Ravi Jethi (sons in law)
was expecting this because when he came back from the long stay in hospital, the expectations of the devotees were very high about his being cured. However, "Man proposes and God disposes" and see the coincidence that just before Father's Day, the father of Anirudh, Kalpana, Shweta and Vandana left for his heavenly abode. "God saw you getting tired and a cure not to be, so he put his arms around you and whispered…come to me"
Condolence meeting Shastriji was cremated on 16thjune at Chapel of Angels, Fremont CA. On 26th Wednesday, a condolence meeting was organized in the temple. The temple staff, priests, trustees, manage-
Chopra, Sunita Gupta, Shyam Rao, Mrs and Dr Salwan, Rachna Bhatnagar and lots of other devotees. In the middle of the program "Hamare ShastriJi" a small film of 20 minutes was presented by Rakesh Kapoor and Neeloo Kapoor as a homage on behalf of the family and the Temple management in a spellbound atmosphere. Shastriji is survived by his wife, Shanta Shastri. Their eldest child is Anirudh Saraswat Shastri who is married to Reena. Eldest daughter, Kalpana is married to Arun Mishra. They are blessed with two daughters Krishna and Radha. Middle Daughter Mahashweta is married to Dr Sushil Ojha. They are blessed with one son, Vijay. The youngest daughter Vandana is married to Ravi Jethi. They are
blessed with daughter Isha and son Rishi.
Tributes Followings are the views of the family members and friends: Anirudh Shastri (Eldest son): Whatever I am today is all because of his teachings, music, Yoga philosophy, my livelihood everything. What I know and share with my American friends in Yoga is all taught by him. I won't be able to say anything because there is a lot which cannot be summed up in this small meeting. Yes one thing I would like to share is that once I went to my father with a long list of yoga asana on which I was to give a workshop the next day. He defined each asana with so much clarity that it felt like each asana stood right in front of me. I shared that with my students. The workshop was a huge success. Pitaji's physical presence is not with me, but he has left me with so many invaluable and indelible memories. Kalpana Mishra (Daughter): Pitaji, where Ramnaam exists, there you too exist. Pitaji, you are my hero. You are the one who introduced me to my best friend. Bhagvan Shree Krishna. Shweta Ojha (Daughter): I am his number three child. I always wanted my parents to be happy. Since he was in hospital for so long, I always encouraged him to have courage and not to worry about anything. My goal was to keep him worriless. also whenever he asked for anything, like getting food at unusual time I made arrangement. I mean if I heard something from him I just did it no matter it was day or night. One day I heard him talking to my mom, hamari beti shweta sabse alag hai. I am sure he loved all of us, but for me he had some special place in his heart. He always said that Shweta is always right. In last eight months I was with him, but sometimes I had to go to Los Angeles once in a while. He was always sad when I left, and when I came back he said, "Shweta tu aagayi to mujhe lagata hai meri jingdagi aagayi." For me he was a perfect father. I have got all of his goodness, like kindness, mercy on others, respecting others. One thing he said was always welcome a guest, treat them with good food and comfort. I can't explain in words what I have learned from him. I am very proud of myself that I am his daughter. Vandana Jethi (Daughter): My Pitaji was like God to me. His type of personality is found one in a billion. We are fortunate to receive
A disciple family of Shastri Ji
his learnings and teachings in such a simple way that we can apply it in our everyday life. Isha Jethi (Grand daughter): All that I am today is because of
Vijay Ojha (Grandson): Nanaji was a mentor of spiritual concepts, an avid teacher of Hinduism, a preacher of Indian culture, and a talented artist, but to me he was all of that as well as grandfather. His biggest influence on our family was to stay united and to care for one another, as he had done for many years. He has had a great influence of Indian classical music to me, and led me to be a big fan of it. I hope to carry on his legacy of great knowledge, great talent, and pride of our culture. Nanaji's love towards us is priceless and endless. I miss you and love you. Ram Ram Nanaji. Krishna Mishra (Grand daughter): Nanaji, I am very sorry I did not Yogi Chugh, Political Activist & Community spend enough time with Leader, pays his homage you. I will always regret that. You are always in my my Nanaji. My culture, my religion, heart. You brought me close to God my identity all stemmed from his and instilled all values in me. Howgreat teachings. He was my num- ever, words can never describe just ber one fan, always making me feel how much you did for not only on top of the world. The confi- me, but everyone. I love you aldence and strength I have is all ways. Our mother has been a because of his constant encour- Krishna devotee since her childagement and praise. He once told hood after hearing our Nanaji's lecme, "Beta, whatever you do in life, tures. This is why I am honored to make sure you help people." have my name as Krishna today. Radha Mishra (Grand daughter): My Nana Ji was an amazing person. He was extremely talented and spread his love for God through his music and lectures. Thanks to him, I have music in my blood. I never realized how much of an impact he Pt Damodar Dutt Shastri with wife Shanta Shastri has had on my in their young days life. I have a keen These words particularly reso- sense for music, and I am positive nated with me and I will uphold that I received this trait from him. I them as long as I live. Thank you am also very unique compared to Nanaji for making me who I am to- other people who are of my age. day. I promise I will never let you Cont’d on page 23 down. I love you.
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Tracing footsteps of Swami Vivekananda in America India Post News Service
FREMONT: More than a century after Swami Vivekananda traveled to America, youngsters of Indian origin are hitting the trail and visiting places where the Swami visited, stayed and delivered lectures. The program named 'Vivekananda Express' has been facilitated by the Hindu Swayamsevak Sangh USA, to mark his 150th birth anniversary celebrations. Swami Vivekananda, the Hindu monk from India, is widely known to have introduced Yoga to the American masses. His famous speech at the Parliament of World Religions in Chicago in 1893, made him very popular in America. Several prominent Americans including author J D Salinger, philanthropist John D Rockefeller and
the legendary inventor Nikola Tesla were greatly influenced by his teachings. As part of the series of visits
planned, over a hundred young professionals of the Silicon Valley and students of nearby universities and schools visited the First Unitarian Church of Oakland where Swami Vivekananda gave a
speech in the year 1900. The speech is known to have brought many residents of Berkeley in contact with his message and later led
to the establishment of the Vedanta Society at Berkeley. "Swami Vivekananda was indeed one of the foremost cultural ambassadors of Hinduism and India to America. Also his message naturally connects with the youth. This is what makes him an icon to the Indian American youngsters" said Sairam Tyagarajan who works at Cisco and is one of the volunteers who organized the event. In the Church, the participants were shown the wooden chair where Swami Vivekananda sat as he waited for his turn to speak and the podium through which he delivered his speeches. The group later also participated in hiking, team games and group discussions on Swami Vivekananda's message of Dharma and Yoga. "Of late, we have been reading quite a bit about Swami Vivekananda, but it is indeed a special feeling to have visited the place where he spoke, he sat and moved about. It was as if I were experiencing the moment when Swamiji stood up to speak" said Sowmya Bhatia, a high school stu-
Sikh Coalition trains ten activists India Post News Service
WASHINGTON, DC: For the third year in a row, the Sikh Coali-
tion has successfully graduated a new class of professionallytrained community volunteers through the Sikh Advocate Acad-
emy, an intensive advocacy training program in the nation's capital. After completing a rigorous application process, ten activists from around the country received six days of advocacy training, which included a combination of lectures, panel discussions, case study exercises, visits to Congressional offices, and a policy briefing at the White House. The new Sikh Coalition Advocates will join two dozen alumni around the country in amplifying the Sikh voice through government engagement, media engagement, and alliance building.
dent from Cupertino, who is born and brought up in America. "It was a combination of fun and inspiration, but more than all it helped me connect with my roots" said Ramya, an engineering graduate student at San Jose State University. The group plans to visit other places associated with Swami Vivekananda in San Francisco, Oakland and Alameda in the coming days.
Sai Parivaar celebrates third anniversary After offering the afternoon (Madhyan) arati to Baba, devotees enjoyed an elaborate lunch as prasadam that was first offered to Baba. The anniversary celebrations continued in the afternoon with vocal recital, Bharat Natyam and Telugu skit performances by children from our very own local Bay Area community. Finally, in
cated volunteers of SSP. Shirdi Sai Center is the first temple in the entire West Coast that is exclusively dedicated to Shirdi Sai Baba and where all the activities at the center are managed by volunteers. There are no salaried employees at SSP. SSP is a non-profit organization that thrives on the dedicated and selfless services provided by the 400 plus volun-
the evening, devotees sang the glory of Shirdi Sai Baba and concluded the evening with an arati to Baba. The entire activities, including procuring the puja related items, preparing prasadam, clean up before and after the event, was coordinated and performed by the dedi-
teers who go an extra mile to ensure that all activities are performed as per the schedule. SSP truly embodies the concept of Parivaar (family) where all devotees are treated equally and everyone is welcome irrespective of caste, creed or religion to participate in any activities.
Cont’d from page 18
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BAPS hosts Walk in support of Heart Association
India Post News Service
CHINO HILLS, CA: Shailey Patel from Eastvale woke up early on Saturday, June 15. She was thrilled knowing that her efforts were going to make a profound impact in the community. For the last eight weeks Shailey had taken up the cause of raising funds to support the local BAPS Charities Walk and raised over $100! At the age of 5, she was eager to help the cause in any way, and went door
helped support the American Heart Association (AHA) and the Chino Hills Community Foundation (CHCF). This year's walkathon brought together over 600 participants of all ages. The walk was launched with a traditional prayer for world peace followed by opening speeches by members of the city council and fellow dignitaries. The American Heart Association is the nation's oldest, largest voluntary organization devoted to
This year's walkathon brought together over 600 participants of all ages. The walk was launched with a traditional prayer for world peace followed by opening speeches by members to door in her neighborhood collecting donations with her family. She also asked her friends at school as well as her teacher. Everyone was so pleased to see such a young girl take a strong initiative and helped in any way that she could. The 2013 BAPS Charities walk, held at Veterans Park in Chino Hills,
fighting cardiovascular diseases and stroke. It was founded by six cardiologists in 1924. The organization now includes more than 22.5 million volunteers and supporters working tirelessly to eliminate these diseases. They fund innovative research, fight for stronger public health policies and provide lifesaving tools and information to
save and improve lives. Dr Srinivas T. Reddy, Professor of Medicine at UCLA Medical School stated: "These funds help us accomplish our mission statement, to Live and Learn. With the donations, we will be able to help students in their research for new ways of cardiovascular disease prevention." Funds were also raised for the benefit of the local heroes from the Chino Valley Independent Fire District and the San Bernardino County Sheriff's department, who serve to protect the public on a day-to-day basis. Chief Atkinson of the Fire District shared with the audience that "From the donations we received from BAPS Charities, we were able to buy two laptops for our training division, and it greatly helps us out." The major local beneficiary was the Chino Hills Community Foundation. They are committed to enhancing the quality of life in Chino Hills. The Foundation serves as a catalyst and resource for local philanthropy that benefits all citizens of the community in areas such as facilities, education, recreation, the environment. It is also dedicated to strengthening of the community for now and for future generations. Cynthia Moran, Foundations Vice Chair shared with everyone that "With organizations like BAPS Charities, we are able to work towards fulfilling our mission, of enhancing the quality of life in Chino Hills through educational programs and culturally. We are still in the infancy stage of our foundation but there are so many more great things to happen with the foundation, and our motto is, 'working together we can make great things happen in Chino Hills.'" Upon completing the 5K walk, Kirtan Patel proudly stated, "It was great to walk with my friends in this great weather, and at the same time help out numerous ben-
eficiaries that strive to make our community and the world a better place!" Numerous volunteers were also there early to help make the day possible as well as participated in the event. Digant Thakker said, "Participating in events like this walkathon allows me to give back to my community in a meaningful way. The walkathon was a wonderful opportunity for my entire family to come together and contribute to something that would create a positive impact in our com-
munity". Similar walks took place in over 40 cities throughout North America wherein over 13,000 participants walked over 45,000 miles. In addition to annual walkathons, BAPS Charities hosts health fairs, Children's health and safety day programs, education and career development seminars, disaster relief operations, blood drives and much more. BAPS Charities sincerely serves the community, by improving the quality of life of individuals and families.
SCE tips to conserve as high temperatures continue India Post News Service
ROSEMEAD, CA: With high temperatures forecast throughout the weekend, Southern California Edison (SCE) is urging customers to conserve energy to reduce strain on the electrical system. With very hot weather forecast for the next several days, outages are possible, and SCE has taken steps to prepare for them. Crews are ready to be deployed if outages occur. SCE also reminds customers
about the importance of safety around electrical equipment. If you see a downed or dangling power line, call 911. Don't touch or approach the wire. SCE anticipates having sufficient resources to meet electricity demand. But with energy use rising during extreme heat, conservation can provide an added reserve should an unexpected power emergency occur, such as mechanical problems at a major power plant or wildfires shutting down a major transmission system. Conservation also helps
minimize the impact on the distribution system during high usage. For example, the transformers you see on overhead power lines work like a radiator in your car. With air conditioning running around the clock because of high temperatures, the transformers don't have an opportunity to cool down. Without the ability to cool down, like the radiator in your car, a transformer can fail and cause a power outage. Other conservation tips include:
• Give appliances the afternoon off; peak power usage on weekdays is usually between noon-6 p.m. • When practical at night, use electric fans and open windows instead of using air conditioning. • Set thermostats no lower than 78 degrees. • Close drapes and blinds to keep out direct sunlight during hot periods. • Avoid using evaporative coolers or humidifiers at the same time an air conditioner is running. • Operate swimming pool
equipment and energy-intensive appliances, such as dishwashers, washing machines and dryers, during early morning and evening hours. • Limit the opening and reopening of refrigerators. • When possible, businesses should shift power-intensive work processes to morning or evening hours. • Consider grilling outside or cooking with the microwave to keep your home cooler so your air conditioning doesn't have to work as hard.
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Bay Area remembers the great soul Pt Shastri Ji Cont’d from page 20
I listen to classical Indian music on a daily basis. I couldn't be any more proud than I am that I am his granddaughter. My goal in life now is to spread the knowledge and talent that he has passed on to me. I love you dearly Nana Ji. Rajesh Verma (Chairman Fremont Hindu Temple): I have never experienced a person or priest passing away of Shastriji's stature . This is my first time. If I made any mistake it is inadvertent. Every body knows about him. He was a great soul and lot of people have expressed already about him. I remember one instance. Once I went to Shastriji and asked him to explain about Gita and Moksha in a plain manner. I told him, "If you say any Shloka or Mantra, I may walk away." He said, "OK, you are an engineer so think like this that God is a Super Computer and each soul has its account in this. Within the journey of a soul into this world whatever is done whether good or bad, goes into the computer memory. In the end all the entries are taken into account and the result is declared. Depending on the percentage your next birth or no birth or Moksha is decided. If you have good percentage than re-birth is awarded and in case of 100% result, Moksha is awarded to the soul." I understood that we have to do good Karmas and understand this also that he is not going to come back. He has achieved Moksha with 100% result. We will be lucky if we get even 10% of him. On behalf of the temple and Management I send my homage for respected Shastriji. One instance
Being so big, so vast and so huge in knowledge still attached with our temple, he has done so much for the temple that perhaps nobody can do that. With all this he had reached a level that no other priest can touch the marks he has
“You are an engineer so think like this that God is a Super Computer and each soul has its account in this. Within the journey of a soul into this world whatever is done whether good or bad, goes into the computer memory� created. Dr Japra went down memory lane and said that about 30 years ago we met him at the residence of Gajendra and Veena Mishra for the first time. Then he called us in his Mountain View apartment. There we exchanged some talks. Within those meeting one important fact came out very clearly that no one except him was befitting as Priest of our temple. When we offered him his association with our temple he said, "I am a moving person you cannot tie me up at one place." Still in 1984 he joined the temple and till the rest of his life, he gave so much to us, to our temple and to the community. It is precious. You all know that he had a special kind of skill for singing Ramayan and Gita for
When we offered him his association with our temple he said, "I am a moving person you cannot tie me up at one place." Still in 1984 he joined the temple and till the rest of his life, he gave so much to us, to our temple and to the community which I remember the most is about his humanity. Sometime in the past the financial position was not running well and we were planning to curb some expenses at that time. He offered himself and said, "You can stop my salary if need be." Such a good human being he was. Dr Romesh Japra (Co-Chairman, Fremont Hindu Temple): We are sad that he has expired and left us for his heavenly abode. We do not want to mourn for him but to celebrate it as a festival. He was such a great personality, a learned priest and a philosopher. He is too huge to settle in a meager festival.
which he had toured almost all the world. Hats off to him. I see his life in five different ways: 1. As a family and as a wellwisher. He used to advise on the issues pertaining to the temple. We used to sit in his house along with other trustees to seek his opinion. He always wanted the temple to grow. As a great vocalist and musician he had started giving Pravachans with the Bhajans and the devotees had started waiting eagerly for the Sundays. When the Sunday will come and Shastriji will bring the "Sun "(Light or Knowledge) on that "Day".
2. He was like a big brother to Vaishampayan; Shant Viveka there was a big earthquake and me. Whenever I used to go to his Mahattam Tumhi, Param Hans Guru you even do not know about that. house, Bhabhiji used to give me a Punya Dham Tum. Om Shanti Om. He smiled and kept playing cup of tea and whenever Shastriji Leela Mathur (Religious harmonium and singing. He was so calm and quiet. He wanted me to come to his house, Chair for the last thirty years he used to remind me of that "cup with the temple): He was not an was really a great soul. He knew of tea" and used to say, "Bhai ordinary person. In 1985, 17th Oct that nothing is going to happen Romesh Ji your Bhabhi has made tea for you and she is calling you to have the tea." 3. Third relation is of a doctor and patient. It is taught to us that the relation between the two is not only pertaining to medical issues but it is an emotional relation and harmony should also be cultivated, as it is good for the patient. The patient feels better and medicine also works potentially and positively. Healing power Neeloo Kapoor, Ritu Maheshwari, Lalit Mathur & Rajesh Verma at the Meeting Hall is also catalyzed. 4. As you all know that I am 5.04 pm, there was an earthquake around the temple. Rachna Bhatnagar (Singer & here for the last many years and of 7.1 rector scale in the Bay Area have always studied and spoken and that was the day of Karva devotee): Whenever I used to the English language only. When Chauth. We all ladies were in the come to the temple I used to go to we started the temple then we had main hall of the temple and when his office. One day I asked him to talk to the audiences or devo- we felt something shaky we ran what is the difference between tees and used to speak in English. outside leaving all the pooja thalis Sadhu (Good person) and Asadhu (Bad person)? He said in a very That time Shastriji started giving behind. us pieces of Urdu Shero-Shayri or Outside the weather looked so simple way and spontaneously, some mantras to start with. It bad with the sound of thunder as Sadhu is the person whose comworked magically and we felt bet- something bad is going to hap- pany you do not want to leave and ter in terms of controlling the devo- pen. After few minutes when we Asadhu is the person in whose tees and we were able to deliver felt that it is calming down we went company you do not want to stay. the messages properly. Shastriji inside the temple and heard the What he said was amazing, I mean was so patriotic that he always singing of Shastriji while playing why we could not think of this? urged us to celebrate Indian Inde- the harmonium. We said you are This kind of a person he was and pendence, Republic Day or what- not afraid of all this. Look outside, we used to take these kind of tips soever related with Mother India. Nature was playing havoc and as Prasad with us. He always pushed us to do so. 5. I was a big admirer of his art of vocal and music and wanted to learn from him on a regular basis, but because of busy schedule I could not do it. Now the time has gone with Shastriji, for which I will always repent. On behalf of all of you, Trustees and Management I assure that we will always be with you Bhabhiji and the rest of the family. We will also plan something so that Shastriji can be associated with the temple for ever. We will think how to celebrate his presence, though without him, so that people can remember him for years to come. Once again we want to celebrate him and not mourn as he has lived a fantastic life with all the love and honor from the family, from the temple and its devotees. Shastriji might have gone from this materialistic world but not from our hearts. Gajendra Mishra (In his house Dr Japra met Shastriji for the first time): He sang the following bhajan: Param Hans Guru Punya Dham Tum; Lo Pranam Lo Pranam Shat Koti Shat Koti; Tumhi Gita Tumhi Ramayan; VyasTumhi, Tumhi
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24 India Post
July 5, 2013
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Gov Quinn seeks bigger Asian participation in workforce RAMESH SOPARAWALA India Post News Service
CHICAGO: A series of workshops designed to boost the number of Asian Americans in the state workforce began this week in the Springfield area and Chicago's West Rogers Park. Hosted by the Governor's Asian American Employment Plan
Advisory Council in close collaboration with half a dozen Asian organizations like Indo-American Center, Muslim Women Resource Center, the Chicago workshop was held at North town branch Public Library on Wednesday, June 26 at California Avenue. It was well attended by 100 plus members from Asian community who felt enlightened about the process and op-
Attendees at Chicago Public library inaugural workshop meet
portunities for State employment The free workshops featured speakers from various state agencies describing what jobs are available, what qualifications are required and how to navigate the State's online employment application system. The Director of Asian Affairs for the Governor's office Theresa Mah said that participants found it helpful to have the hiring process explained, especially basic information like the need for every applicant to fill out specific form either online or in hard copy format and that some positions require taking an exam and others are based on experience and training. The representatives from DHS, DCFS, and DHR talked about specific jobs that are available at their agencies and encouraged appli-
Carlos Charneco from the Illinois Dept of Central Management Services (CMS)
Geny Chiaradonna from Illinois Dept of Children and Family Services (DCFS)
cants to be persistent. They highlighted the importance for potential candidates to hear that they should apply for every job that they qualify for, and that the process takes a long time, so that if there is a posting that one sees today and one has not taken a test and been graded, they will not be considered for that job. Another issue discussed was the applicability of degrees or training from foreign institutions and how to translate these courses into the mandatory questions about "credit hours." Agency representatives explained that most foreign degrees have to be certified by a third-party company, but there are some countries from where the degrees are accepted without certification. A CMS career counselor would be able to
help with that process. There are more than a half-million Asian Americans in Illinois. In a message Governor Quinn said that "Asian Americans comprise five percent of Illinois' population yet represent only 2.5 percent of the Illinois government workforce. Our goal is to double the number of Asian Americans in state government to better reflect our diversity and more effectively deliver services to residents who need them." To address the longstanding, under-representation of Asian Americans in the workforce, Governor Quinn pushed for legislation in 2012 to create the Asian American Employment Plan Advisory Council. The Governor charged the newly-appointed members with the tasks of doubling the number of Asian Americans.
Dr Tushar regales seniors with stand up comedy JAYANTI OZA
CHICAGO: Bhartiya Senior Secretary Pursottam Pandya welCitizens of Chicago, (BSCC) a no coming all VIP guests and memprofit body in Illinois, presented bers. President Haribhai Patel wel'Haasya Vyang Eak Doctor Ke comed the artist Dr Tushar Bhai Saang ' a standup comedy act by Shah and presented him with a Dr Tushar Shah from India. shawl. Local singer Dhaval Gandhi The program was in a way spon- sang old Bollywood songs of sored and supported by Air Tours, a front ranking travel firm in Chicago. It lasted for nearly three hours, regaling all those present More then 300 people enjoyed including community leaders and activists from Chicago area like Narendrabhai Patel (Med Star Lab.), Dr Umang Patel (Trustee of Shree Nathji Haweli, Addison, IL.), Pareshbhai Patel & Arjunbhai Dr Tushar Shah, Stand up comedy star, Malavia (Mega Circuit), Show greeted by Bhartiya Senior Citizen's organizer of USA President Haribhai Patel (Manpasand) Bhavna Modi, Nimesh Jani (Board of trustee Mukesh. Bhavna Modi presented Schumburg) and Bharatbhai them flowers. Vice president of Thakkar (Bram Premanand BSCC thanked all committee memAshram). bers who worked to make this proThe program started with BSCC gram a success.
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July 5, 2013
India Post 25
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Kadva Patidar Samaj celebrates 8th Convention NALINI RAJA
MACON, GA: Over 6,000 Kadva Patidar Samaj members from India, USA and Canada converged in Macon, GA to celebrate the 8th National Convention of Kadva Patidar Samaj and 10th Patotsav of the Shree Umiya Mataji Mandir. On the opening morning, Sadhvi Siddheshwari Devi "Didi" (K. P. Barsana Dham, TX), lit a lamp to officially open Kadva Patidar Samaj 8th National Convention. Following her blessings, Mr. Robert Reichert, Mayor of the city of Macon welcomed all to Macon and expressed his willingness to work with community. "India's bilateral engagement with USA has significantly strengthened in the recent years and President Obama had characterized India-US relationship as a defining partnership of the 21st. century. At the heart of the growing relationship between our two democracies is the 3 million Indian American community as you continue to be the bridge of understanding and friendship between India and United States" said Consul General of India-Atlanta Ajit Kumar in his address here.
Ajit Patel, Chairman, Ajit Kumar, CG India, GA, Sanjay Pandya
first day. Couple of members of Gujarat State legislative assembly, couple of ex MLA and ex ministers specially traveled to attend the convention as they belong to "Kadva Patidar" community. They all spoke to the attendees at various times during the three-day convention. More than 150 volunteers who worked tirelessly for past six weeks to make this event successful per-
Female volunteers
He added," Today, India-American community, of which the 10,000 Kadva Patidar families across the US are an important part, has caught the imagination of this country and indeed the world." Georgia Governor Nathan Deal's letter congratulating Kadva Patidar Samaj on their 8th National Convention was read. Chief Minister of Gujarat Narendra Modi and finance minister Nitin Patel had sent their video messages for this convention, which were played. Jasvant Patel, president of Umiya Mataji Mandir, welcomed all the attendees and invited dignitaries from India on stage and recognized them. A panel of four attorneys gave a seminar on immigration issues and changes coming into new immigration bill. Quick translation in Gujarati was provided for the benefit of elderly people. Seminar on "Blood Pressure & Stroke" and "Traveling to India" by Dr Dipesh Patel was also very informative on
sonified the theme of convention "Unity". All the attendees were fed breakfast, lunch, afternoon tea and dinner for three days. Cold water bottles were available all day long to all attendees. All the volunteers in spite of putting in so many hours of labor showed no disgust on their faces. The convention offered free lodging and boarding to all attendees! Besides coming on their own, two coaches came from New Jersey, four from Chicago area and one from Indiana/Ohio. The first day session came to close with Mother Goddess Umiya's aarti and dinner. The first day night was a Garba night. P. Swami Shri Shantimurtidasji from Dabhan, Gujarat lit "Diya"to start second day convention. All the attendees received his blessings. US Congressmen from second district, GA, Sanford D. Bishop Jr addressed the convention and also made a record in the congres-
sional record about 8th Kadva Patidar Samaj Convention in his district and offered a "Certificate of Special Congressional Recognition" to Umiya Mataji Mandir. The "Arya Dance Academy" performed a dance for the audience. Rupal Patel, director of this academy, based in New Jersey belongs to Kadva Patidar community. She was born and raised in Macon, Georgia. She served as a hostess of the convention along with Jayesh Mehta of New Jersey. President of "Vishwa Umiya Parivar" and Hotelier from California, C. K. Patel inaugurated "Gandhi Hall" on Umiya Mataji Mandir premises. Chhotubhai Patel of Chicago inaugurated newly constructed "Sardar Pavilion" on recently acquired land by Umiya Mataji Mandir. Mafatbhai Patel of Patel Brothers and Kalpeshbhai Patel of Raja Food were honored for their generous donation of grocery during convention. Second day evening cultural program "Rishton Ka Mela" was prepared by local talent whose hard work was apparent. "Navchandi" Homa was organized on the last day as a part of 10th Patotsav of Umiya Mataji Mandir. Close to 351 families par-
Patidars in audience. "Generation Gap" may sound clichĂŠ subject, however, it was young adults' turn to discuss their feelings. Questions were coming from audience such as: "Why children take such a long time in deciding their career path?" or "Why a smart, beautiful girl chooses a loafer as a life partner?" It is a choice of an individual was response from young adults. Everyone in the audience had something to add but few of them stood up and argued their side. Some from audience also asked the reason behind rising divorce rate and a very touchy issue like why girl's parents get precedent over parents of boy? The heated debate continues with passionate arguments from both sides. A small girl raises very important issue: why parents give more importance to work over us? Some adults accepted as one of their shortcoming while others argued that children's lifestyle was expensive and someone has to make money to pay bills. Chairman Ajit Patel jumped in the middle of this discussion and said that first generation immigrants' insecurities drive them af-
Youth panel
ter dollar. He agreed with young adults that spending time with children is imperative for better family life. Who is better babysitter - grand parents or alternative? Children like to go out while parents intend to stay home. How to strike a balance? Here was one of the major concerns on floor and on the podium.
Male volunteers
ticipated in a daylong event. Youth panel discussion It was like tables were turned around: Young adults were on the stage and rest of the Kadva
that parents and children should communicate more, spend more time with each other which would reduce these problems. The heated debate raised many issues but some still remained unanswered such as "one learns culture from reading literature" and "how much literary reading do you do?" Bad habits such as smoking, drinking and gambling were called age-old devils. Generally speaking children learn more from their parents' lifestyle more than they admit. It is therefore very important for parents to communicate with their children openly and spend more time with them. Kadva Patidar Samaj, Macon and Chairman Ajit Patel concluded this live debate with heated exchanges from both sides and humorous answers. Matrimonal 2013 Finding a life partner is a very difficult and complex issue. It is not parents but young adults of marrying age also feel the same. This is not just story of Kadva Patidar alone; all other IndianAmerican communities feel the same way. More and more people
It was agreed that growing distance between parents and children should be reduced. And it was responsibility of both parties to work together. Consensus was
have started paying more attention to this issue, as success of this event would be a deciding factor in future. It seems Kadva Patidar Samaj is aware of the impact of this event as they allocated some funds for this event probably for the first time. Compared to their 2005 matrimonial event, this event was more organized. Presence of parents or guardians were eliminated. It was kept away from general public in a nicely decorated separate hall with some soft drinks, fresh fruit, nice music and a club like atmosphere. To protect participants' privacy no one was allowed to take video or take photograph. They also had participants engaged in modern icebreaker and computer matching. The young organizers were well aware of participant's moods and requirements to achieve maximum results. The young organizers, during the event saw some positive signs, but are cautiously awaiting for positive results. Let us wish them best for their efforts.
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26 India Post
July 5, 2013
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Northwest Indiana celebrates Temple anniversary Asian Media USA
MERRILLVILLE, Indiana: Bharatiya Temple of North West Indiana located in Merrillville, Indiana, celebrated its 3rd Anniversary on June 14 and 15 at the Yagashala, Temple and IACC Hall. The two days of crowded program attended by hundreds of Indian Americans from Indiana but other neighboring States of Illinois and Michigan was organized by Indian American Cultural Center of Northwest Indiana (IACC) During the celebrations, Ganpati Pooja, Rakshabandhan and Kalash Pooja was performed with chanting of Mantras and Shlokas in the Yagashala. Deepa Laxmi Pooja were conducted primarily by ladies. After Lalitha Sahasranamamvali chanting and Aarthi in the evening, there was a sumptuous dinner, Prasadam and Ras Garba at the IACC Hall. The program on the second day, Saturday June 15 started at 8 am onwards at Yagashala with
Arati by sponsors and devotees at the temple
Vedaparayanam; Aarthi and Lunch Prasadam. In the evening, there was Kalasha Pooja, Pradakshina and Procession and Abhishekam to deities. At the Temple, Kalash and Dhwajapooja; Dhwaja Aarohana; Astavadan Sewa; Sakal Devta Darshan; Archana; Mahamanglarti; Priest
Yagya at Bharatiya Temple
Venkateswara Suprabhatham; Sookta Parayana; Ganapati Homam; Shri Ramtaraka Homam; Navagraha Homam; Nakshatra Homam; Sarvatra Alaya Devatha Homam and Dorshan;
Sambhavanam; Ashirvadam and Prasad Viniyoga for sponsors were performed with great devotion. The final program was conducted at IACC Hall which included Dinner Mahaprasadam, followed by
entertaining music program by Suraj Patnaik. Shri and Smt Vidyadhar Gandra and Arun and Gayatri Balkrishnan were the key sponsors. There were various sponsors for different Sewas - Maha Yajman; Yajman for 14th, Dr. Harish and Suchita Shah and Maha Yajman and Yajman for 15th Arun Balkrishnan and Gayatri Balkrishnan. The Bharatiya Temple and Indian Cultural Center is built on approximately 14 acres of land. Indian American Cultural Center of Northwest Indiana (IACC) was instrumental in building the Temple to preserve, nourish and advance Indian culture, heritage, spiritual and social values. On May 6 2000, Bhoomi Pooja was performed. The center was opened on March 9, 2002. Plans to expand the existing building and construct a shrine was formally done on June 9, 2009. The grand opening of the Temple - Maha Kumbhabhishekam celebrations were performed on June 18-20 and Jain Prathistha Mahotsav on July 17, 2010. This was the first temple of its kind in the great State of Indiana.
Kalash processi贸n at the anniversary celebrati贸n
Group of organizers, devotees and priests
Bharatiya Temple NW Indiana
New Hindu temple opens in Carbondale India Post News Service
CHICAGO: Carbondale Hindu Temple of Southern Illinois (HTSI), the first one in this part of the state, has opened after threedays of elaborate ceremonies and rituals in Carbondale (Illinois, USA). Grand opening ceremony of 4,000 square-foot HTSI; a project of non-profit Hindu Temple and Cultural Society of Southern Illinois founded in 2009; included Kumbaabhishekam, Araadhana, and various pujas and homams, etc. Besides a place of worship, HTSI will function as a community center also. It also conducts "new vehicle puja", which costs $35 and
lasts 20 minutes; and Pradeep Reddy, a pediatrician Annaprasanam (introducing solid in Marion and president of the food to a child) ritual for $51. temple board of trustees, said the According to temple rules, temple will be a large asset to the "Shorts/short skirts/sleeveless southern Illinois community. tops not allowed" for visitors older Reddy led the movement to crethan nine years. Temple deities i n c l u d e Ganesha, Venkateshswara, Shiva Linga, Durga, Laxmi, Saraswathi, Ram Parivar, Shiv Parivar, Krishna, Karthikeya, Jagannath, Hanuman, Carbondale priest doing arati Shirdi Sai Baba and Nandi.
ate a temple in southern Illinois, donating three acres of land for the temple to be built on. Hinduism as a religion is not as much going to church every Sunday, he said. It is more a way of living as opposed to formalized rules and regulations. The temple will help Hindus in the region get more in touch with their faith, he added. University President Glenn Poshard said the temple is an accomplishment for all Hindus in southern Illinois and shows their dedication to their faith. Mayor Joel Fritzler said the temple helps Carbondale stand out as a diverse city in southern Illinois. The temple, which opens 365 days a year, besides daily Aarathi, also holds weekly abhishekam/
puja every day except Wednesday and special monthly rituals. Pradeep Reddy, Naresh Patel, Padma Chandrashekar and Subhash Sharma are President, Vice President, Secretary and Treasurer respectively of its Board of Trustees. Before this Temple, area Hindus reportedly traveled to St. Louis or Nashville for worship services and gathered at homes. It will also be very convenient for students from India enrolled at Southern Illinois University. Carbondale in Jackson County, founded in 1852 and is known as "Capital of Southern Illinois." It has won All American City Award and Governor's Home Town Award.
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Hindi Lovers Club meet in Skokie SURENDRA ULLAL
CHICAGO: Hindi Lovers Club, a no-profit body set up three years ago to promote Hindi and Indian culture in this part of the world, held its monthly June meeting at Skokie Public Library on Monday June 24 with enthusiastic attendance by its members despite thunderstorm and rain. The meet started with Jodh Singh Rawat giving a little update on the situation in Uttarakhand and everyone observed a minute of silence to pray for the victims of this tragedy. Singh hails from Uttarakhand and is a community activist with propagating the message of Mahatma Gandhi and his non-violence philosophy. Next was a former professor in
SURENDRA ULLAL
CHICAGO: The Blind Foundation for India (BFI) organized a musical evening program at the Avery Coonley School's Performing Arts Center, Downers Grove, a southwest suburb of Chicago. Over 180 people enjoyed the mu-
operation in India compared to $4,000 in the US, a multiplier of 200. BFI was established in 1989 with a mission to prevent and cure blindness and educate and rehabilitate permanently blind people in India. Over the years, the BFI
A section of the members attending the Hindi Lovers Club Meet in Skokie
Delhi, Sudaksa Kapoor. She gave a brief history of how America started observing 'Fathers Day'. It was very interesting for members to understand the significance of this celebration. Two members and office bearers, Purmima Jha and
Speakers at Hindi Lovers Club Meet, Jodh Singh Rawat, Purnima Jha and Vinita Gulbani
Vinita Gulabani, recited poems relevant to Father's Day. The Chief Guest was Raghunandan Prasad Sharma, a visiting writer From India with 168 Hindi books under his belt. He mesmerized everyone with his deep knowledge of Hindi and stories related to Bhagwan Ram. The second Guest of Honor was nutritionist Manmohan Sharma who in his easy to understand style explained in plain language that fat plays a very big role in diabetes. He had model clays to make things understand very easily. The evening ended with the song, "Tumhi ho mata, pita tumhi ho."
Yoga facilities at US international airports SURI SWAMY
CHICAGO: Three major airports in USA - Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport, San Francisco International Airport and Burlington International Airport, Vermont - have taken a lead in providing yoga facilities to passengers who are regular Yoga practioners. Welcoming gesture of Dallas, San Francisco and Burlington airports for availability of yoga for passengers, Indian Americans in the country observed that yoga is a world heritage and is a welcome tool for physical well being, mental peace and spiritual advancement although introduced and nourished by Hinduism. No-charge San Francisco International Airport "Yoga Room" is described as "space devoted to relaxation, self-reflection and practicing yoga". No-charge Dallas/ Fort Worth International Airport "Yoga Studio" is fully equipped with yoga mats and urges to "take a minute to relax and stretch between flights". Burlington International Airport's yoga space invites to "stretch out and relax before or between flights and enjoy a calm, quiet space" and it has a "family bathroom with a shower". Sohan Joshi, President of Na-
Blind Foundation for India raises $13,000
tional Federation of Indian Associations, say it would be in the fitness of things if other airports not only in USA but in other countries too provide similar facilities for the passengers many of whom
are fatigued by long travel and globe trotting. Besides, recent studies at the Iowa Vedic University indicate that it helps in reducing the incidence of cardio vascular ailments.
Musical concert by Dr Dipak and Dr Sheela Shah
sical evening with melodious songs by Dr Dipak Shah and Dr Sheela Shah. Young artists from the Soorya Dance School of Northbrook gave enchanting performances to enthrall the audience. Dr Rajendra Dave and Dr Kumar Moolayil served as Emcees for the evening. Through the musical Evening, BFI raised over $13,000 which will be used to fund a medical van in India. Dr Manu Vora, President of BFI, highlighted the plight of over 15 million blind people in India which translates to 1 out of every 3 blind people in the world. In India it costs only $20 per cataract
team has raised over $3.5 million to examine eyesight of over a million people. So far, BFI has conducted over 110,000 free cataract operations, donated 104 medical vans to transport doctors and patients, and distributed over 10,000 Braille Kits to blind children for their education. The current BFI focus is on prevention of blindness through Child Sight Projects. Over 500,000 children in government schools are examined for their eyesight and given necessary glasses, eye drops, Vitamin A, and given cataract surgeries in rare cases.
IACS to host networking meet on July 13 SREENIVAS KATRAGADDA
CHICAGO: Indo American Community Services (IACS), a no profit body of Indian professionals, has slated its first networking meet for Saturday July 13 at Schaumburg Marriott in Schaumburg at 6 p.m. IACS was established in 2010 and is based in the Greater Chicago area. Its mission is to nurture and foster the development of the South Asian community in the region through job fairs, women's empowerment forums, student internships and professional networking opportunities. It seeks to inspire, engage and support future Indian American corporate leaders. Distinguished Indian American Industry leaders in business and technology are expected to attend the July13 meet and they
will share their experiences and best business practices that could help intending entrepreneurs to navigate through corporate world. The Featured Speakers are Sundaram Nagarajan - Executive
Services Technology at Allstate. Anupy Singla - Co-Founder of Indian as Apple Pie, Author, Journalist and TV Personality will act as Moderator Sundaram Nagarajan has worldwide responsibility for ITW
IACS flagship event is its Diversity Job Fair that matches hundreds of qualified job candidates in the Chicago area with some of the region's top employers. It also organizes an annual South Asian Women's Forum Vice President at ITW - Welding Group, Raj Surti - Vice President of Global Customer Delivery at Alcatel-Lucent and Pranav Doctor - Vice President of Sales and
welding, cutting, insulation and heating business while Surti is responsible for the planning and deployment of wireless, wireline, optical and core data integration
services for the America's region Attendance is free for students, $25 for others. It includes light snacks and hour of free cocktails. IACS flagship event is its Diversity Job Fair that matches hundreds of qualified job candidates in the Chicago area with some of the region's top employers. It also organizes an annual South Asian Women's Forum in Chicago featuring panel discussions, workshops and mentoring sessions to help women of South Asian origin develop strategies for achieving success in their careers and in their personal and social lives. As part of its fast growing repertoire of services, IACS actively participates in placing college students in Congressional internships in Washington DC.
TOP TEN HINDI FILM SONGS
1 Tum Tak: Raanjhnaa 2 Sawaar Loon: Lootera 3 Ghanchakkar Babu: Ghanchakkar 4 Manmarziyan: Lootera 5 Illahi: Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani 28 India Post
July 5, 2013
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onakshi Sinha has no desire to become size zero and would rather like her body of work to speak on her behalf. Sonakshi, 26, is seen opposite Ranveer Singh in period drama 'Lootera', where she plays a Bengali girl of 1950s. W h e n
6 Tu Mun Shudi: Raanjhnaa 7 Mera Yaar: Bhaag Milkha Bhaag 8 Bhaag Milkha Bhaag : Bhaag Milkha Bhaag 9 Ay Saki: Raanjhnaa 10 Zinda: Bhaag Milkha Bhaag
asked whether she would like to have a size zero body on TV show 'Comedy Nights with Kapil' by an audience member, Sonakshi shot back, "Do you have a problem with Indian actresses being voluptuous? I am here to act and not be size zero." When asked whether she would like to have a size zero body on TV show 'Comedy Nights with Kapil' by an audience member, Sonakshi shot back, "Do you have a problem with Indian actresses being voluptuous? I am here to act and not be size zero." Sonakshi is promoting the Vikramaditya Motwane film along with Ranveer Singh on the show. Sonakshi is promoting the Vikramaditya Motwane film along with Ranveer Singh on the show.
t was going to be Dhanush versus Dhanush at the Tamil Nadu box office. Ambikapathy, the Tamil version Raanjhanaa was to compete with Dhanush's brand new original Tamil film Maryan, a thriller directed by Bharat Bala which stars Dhanush as a man on a journey of self-discovery. This was the first time that there would have been three Dhanush releases in two weeks, with two of his Tamil films vying for eyeballs during the same Friday. And Dhanush who is a very meticulous career planner, was not pleased. According
to sources every effort was made to avert this clash. "If you look at the history of the Tamil Nadu box office, no Tamil superstar from M G Ramachandran to Sivaji Ganesan to Kamal Haasan to Rajinikanth to Suriya to Vikram to Dhanush has ever released two of their own films during the same Friday or even close to one another. But now the release Maryan has been postponed at the last minute. Confirming this development, Dhanush says, "Only the dubbed Tamil version of Raanjhanaa is releasing this Friday. It's God's will, I guess."
• • • THIS WAS THE FIRST TIME THAT THERE WOULD HAVE BEEN THREE DHANUSH RELEASES IN TWO WEEKS
Bollywood
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eenat Aman is back, this time in the sequel to the gay film Dunno Y Na Jaane Kyun. Zeenat would be seen playing a Pakistani woman. While the film's writer and main lead Kapil Sharma confirms Zeenat's presence in the sequel to the controversial 2010 film, he is tightlipped about the film and the part that Zeenat plays. But sources say Zeenat plays the liberal Pakistani mother of one of the boys in a gay relationship in the film. The film is apparently an Indo-Pak gay love story and Zeenat plays mother of the Pakistani gay protagonist. Actor Kapil Sharma who wrote and produced the first part of the film says, "Zeenatji plays Nazneen, a beautiful dignified liberal Pakistani lady. Her character binds the story together."
A
fter giving many power-packed performances in her decade-long career, Bollywood superstar Kareena Kapoor admits she follows her director's advice religiously on the sets. Kareena, 32, was at the launch of the worldwide trailer of Prakash Jha's "Satyagraha", in which she plays a headstrong journalist. "We are familiar with popular women journalists on TV like Barkha Dutt and Christiane Amanpour. Their personalities influence everyone and I am lucky that I have also got the chance to essay the role of a journalist on screen." "But ultimately I am a director's actor and don't really believe in preparing much; I followed whatever Prakashji wanted from my character. I have always wanted to work in a Prakash Jha film," she said. The film also stars Ajay Devgn, Amitabh Bachchan and Manoj Bajpai. "Satyagraha" centers around the recent phenomenon of mass movements around the world, challenging the establishment and thereby making a change.
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oining the likes of the legendary Helen, Priyanka will soon be seen doing Bollywood's most sensu ous style of dancing, cabaret. While Priyanka was seen in a disco avatar in the song 'Babli Badmaash' in Shootout At Wadala, once again its time for the diva to adorn some jazzy costumes. Buzz is that the song will be shot in a lavish style using some really expensive props. Also, we hear that the actress' outfit will be inspired from vintage fashion and almost the entire cast will be a part of this song.
Realty Tidbits
Casa Grande to construct over 1000 villas CHENNAI: Real estate developer Casa Grande has said it proposed to construct over 1000 villas this fiscal and has projects worth Rs 1,250 crore in the pipeline. "Casa Grande plans to launch more than 1000 villas this fiscal and has projects worth Rs 1,250 crore in the pipeline for financial year 2013-14," the company said after the launch of its project to come up at suburban Perumbakkam. Casa Grande Managing Director Arun Kumar said Avalon is one of the few villa projects in the Sholinganallur belt designed to offer ample spaces in a duplex model and claimed pre-launch sales was very encouraging with more than 30 per cent sold already. The villas range in area between 1,850 square foot to 2,500 square and are priced at Rs 1 crore upwards. The project is scheduled to be completed by January 2015, the statement added. -PTI
Poddar Developers eyes Rs 500-cr revenue MUMBAI: Betting big on the increasing demand for affordable housing, realty firm Poddar Developers expects to double its revenues to Rs 500 crore over the next three years, a top company official has said. "Whatever the definition of affordable housing, there is a huge shortage of such housing stock. Our business is focused on catering to this unmet demand and we expect our revenue to touch nearly Rs 500 crore by FY17," company's Managing Director Rohit Poddar told PTI. The publicly traded Poddar Developers had posted a turnover of Rs 270 crore in 2012-13, up 64 per cent from Rs 164 crore in 2011-12. The company, which is focused on providing affordable housing with apartments in the Rs 7.5-15 lakh range, currently has projects on the outskirts of Mumbai like Karjat, Badlapur, Shahapur, Kalyan, Palghar, Vasai and Panvel. "While our projects in Karjat, Badlapur and Shahapur are completed, the other projects are under execution and are expected to be completed this fiscal," Poddar said, adding that the company will continue to expand its presence in these regions. "We will continue to buy land in these and adjoining areas, as the demand for affordable housing is growing in these regions," he said. -PTI
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Urban youth prefer to invest in real estate NEW DELHI: Real estate seems to be the hottest investment instrument for urban youth in India, with a whopping 85 per cent of those surveyed inclined to put their money into immoveables on hopes of higher and guaranteed returns. "Over 85 per cent of urban working class prefers to invest in real estate saying it is likely to fetch them guaranteed and higher returns," says a survey conducted by industry body Assocham. -PTI
Strategic default: Is it OK to walk away? POLYANA DA COSTA
W
hen David Valadez walked away from his home loans, he drew some criticism. Friends told him: "You have a contract with the lender and it's wrong to quit paying your mortgage just because your property lost value." His response: "Yes, I signed a contract. It's a business contract, and business contracts are broken all the time." The lender foreclosed on Valadez's condominium unit in San Jose, Calif., a few months ago. Looking back, Valadez says he's glad he was able to view the strategic default as a financial decision, not an emotional one. "I'm very relieved that I got that white elephant off my shoulders," he says. Unlike borrowers who can't afford to keep up with their mortgage payments, strategic defaulters have the ability to pay but choose to walk away. Valadez, a retired teacher, says he earns enough to afford the more than $2,000 monthly payments on his two home loans. But he didn't think it made financial sense to sink more money into a property that was valued at $130,000 when his mortgages to-
taled more than $300,000. Valadez's story is familiar to millions of homeowners who are current on their house payments but owe much more on their mortgages than their properties are
"They are looking at their property values and saying 'It's been four or five years and I still have a lot of negative equity, so maybe it makes financial sense to walk,'" says Jon Maddux, co-founder and
More than five years into the housing crisis and despite recent improvements in home prices, these homeowners wonder whether they should continue to pay their mortgages or simply let go and walk away. worth. More than five years into the housing crisis and despite recent improvements in home prices, these homeowners wonder whether they should continue to pay their mortgages or simply let go and walk away.
former CEO of You Walk Away, a company that, for a fee, guides homeowners through strategic default. Unlike in the early days of the financial crisis, underwater homeowners have been putting
their emotions and morality questions aside and are increasingly viewing strategic default as a business decision, Maddux says. "There's definitely less emotion and more strategy in their thinking," he says. Right versus wrong As with Valadez, strategic defaulters often face strong criticism because of the notion that their default hurts neighborhoods and property values even more. But homeowners considering strategic default quickly rebut the morality question by pointing to large institutions that have opted for strategic default on commercial properties and developments. One example often cited by supporters of strategic defaulters is one of the biggest mortgage defaults in history. In 2010, real estate giants Tishman Speyer Properties and BlackRock Realty defaulted on $4.4 billion in loans on two major apartment complexes in New York City's Manhattan, letting the lender take over the properties after the development had lost about half of its value. "It happens all the time," Valadez says. "It's a free economy. This is simply a business decision." Cont’d on page 30
My offer was accepted; how can I back out? STEVE MCLINDEN
Dear Real Estate Adviser, What would happen if I decide to walk away from a homebuying deal due to poor timing and lack of communication with the seller? I just want to back out of the deal. Could I be sued? - Sophia D. Dear Sophia, Yes, you could be sued for "specific performance" for withdrawing from an accepted offer, but that's rare. Seldom are buyers ordered to actually buy a house they don't want, and the odds of that happening are slimming further in today's rebounding sales market. What often happens, though, is sellers will get to keep any earnest money the buyers proffered and some-
times be awarded damages from profits they lost after selling the place for less because they tied it up so long under contract, waiting for the cold-footed buyers to close. But before any of that happens to you, first determine if you have justification to pull out. Check your contract thoroughly. Buyers can legally back out of a home purchase for any number of contingencies, including: • Job loss. • Inability to qualify for a mortgage. • The buyer's failure to sell the old home. • Undisclosed key flaws with the dwelling or the existence of unpermitted work. • The seller's failure to meet
terms for repairing or improving the place. • Inaccurately represented property boundary lines. • Undisclosed easements.
financial grief or a sizable delay, you might have legitimate grounds to exit the deal. Contract laws differ from state to state. Barring those types of conditions, you may have to buck up and at least What often happens, though, sacrifice your earnest is sellers will get to keep any money. Many contracts toearnest money the buyers day call for mediation proffered and sometimes be in such circumstances to handle things more awarded damages civilly and cheaply, a condition I would urge • Clouds on a home's title such all homebuyers and sellers to add as mechanic's liens. to their contracts if it's not there The deal-busting reasons you already. Other contracts simply cite, "poor timing" and "lack of have liquidated-damages clauses communication," are vague. If ac- spelling out how much the seller tions by the other party or their gets if the buyer breaches.-Couragents caused you any traceable tesy Bankrate.com
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Indians among top 5 buying Rupee depreciation may boost NRI investments properties in US WASHINGTON: Indians are among the top five foreign nationals buying real estate in United States, even as there has been a decline in foreigners acquiring properties in the US, a report has said. According to the "2013 Profile
counted for approximately 53 per cent of transactions, with Canada and China the fastest growing sources over the years," the report said. Among the reported destination states for buyers from India, the top states were California, Tennessee, Connecticut and New The five markets of greatest Jersey. interest to potential Indian buyAccording to information from ers are Los Angeles, Orlando, realtor.com as of Chicago, Dallas, and Houston. March 2013, the Based on data from the survey, five markets of greatest interest to potential Inof International Home Buying Ac- dian buyers are Los Angeles, Ortivity" for the 12 months period lando, Chicago, Dallas, and Housending March 2013, realtors re- ton. ported purchases from 68 counBased on data from the survey, tries, but five have historically ac- the bulk of properties purchased counted for the bulk of purchases; by Indian buyers were in the subCanada (23 per cent), China (12 per urban area. cent), Mexico (8 per cent), India (5 Approximately 90 per cent of per cent) and the United Kingdom reported purchases were de(5 per cent). tached single-family properties "These five countries ac- and 7 percent were commercial
properties or land. The median price was USD 300,000, among which approximately 21 per cent of the reported purchases were all-cash, the report said. According to the report for the 12 months period ending March 2103 total international sales were USD 68.2 billion, down approximately USD 14 billion from the previous year. Released by the National Association of Realtors, the report attributed the decline to a number of temporary factors, including economic slowdowns in a number of major foreign economies, tighter US credit standards and unfavorable exchange rates. Of total international transactions, USD 34.8 billion (51 per cent) were attributed to foreign buyers with permanent residences outside the US and USD 33.4 billion (49 percent) were attributed to buyers who are recent immigrants or temporary visa holders residing for more than six months in the US. -PTI
Strategic default: Is it OK to walk away? Cont’d from page 30
Strategic default through business lenses As with every business decision, homeowners should carefully consider the financial consequences of strategic default, says Robert Stone, senior business consultant at Experian's Decision Analytics. Walking away from your mortgage harms your credit substantially, Stone says. A homeowner with a credit score in the high 700s could see a drop of as much as 100 points after going delinquent, he says. Strategic defaulters generally have excellent credit scores up until the time of default, Stone says. "They are sophisticated, rational investors who saw their equity disappear," he says. Alternatives to strategic default Homeowners who want to let go of their mortgages should to try to get a loan modification or reach another agreement with the lender to minimize the impact on their credit score, Stone says. Consider a deed-in-lieu of foreclosure, which involves turning the property over to the lender without going through the foreclosure pro-
cess. Requesting a short sale, foreclosure to be completed. when the lender allows the home"I knew my only clear option owner to sell for less than what is was strategic default, so I prepared owed on the mortgage, also is an myself for that and I made sure I alternative. had money in the bank," he says. "Those are considered to be He says he kept up with slightly better outcomes than a homeowners association payforeclosure," Stone says. ments and insurance while living Trying to work out an agree- at the condo. ment with the lender didn't work Depending on which state you for Valadez. "I called the lender at least five times and each "I called the lender at least time I was told I made five times and each time I too much money," says Valadez, who now was told I made too much works as a salesman. money," says Valadez, who If you walk, plan ahead If you find that your now works as a salesman. only option is to walk away, like Valadez, plan accord- live in, you should consider ingly. whether the lender can sue you to Many strategic defaulters open collect the balance of the loan afnew, high-limit credit card ac- ter the foreclosure is completed. counts before they default. Oth- If the lender sues and obtains a ers get mortgages and buy deficiency judgment against you, cheaper homes before they let go the debt can haunt you for years. of their underwater property, For Valadez, that wasn't an isStone says. sue because California laws proWhen you know your credit hibit lenders from pursuing defiwill be damaged, it's wise to stash ciency judgments on purchase away some money before default, loans. In many states, lenders says Valadez. He saved what have years to file a lawsuit against would go toward his mortgage the borrower.-Courtesy payments while waiting for the Bankrate.com
MUMBAI: The depreciation in rupee provides a psychological boost to both non-resident Indians as well as developers, real estate consultancy firm Cushman & Wakefield said. "If the rupee maintains its current levels, developers could see more interest from NRI buyers as long as the capital value levels are also maintained and do not see a big hike during the period," company's Executive Director (residential) Shveta Jain said in a statement. At current rupee levels and sluggish market conditions in many markets that are expected to remain that way for the next few months, NRIs could possibly benefit substantially from some attractive options available in the markets, she said. However, she felt investments in the sector may not happen immediately. "Though it is commonly felt that with each depreciation cycle, NRIs will find it cheaper to invest
in the sector, this does not happen immediately," Jain said. The primary reason is that there are logistical constraints such as identifying the right property, negotiating a deal, being able to repatriate large sums of money in outright purchases and completing all the necessary documentation and formalities during the
transaction life-cycle, she said. "A typical purchase transaction may take a NRI buyer a period of a month to 3 months. During this period, the rupee may strengthen and the notional advantages that could accrue due to the rupee's depreciation could be lost," she said.. -PTI
Ashiana, Mangalam launch project in Jaipur JAIPUR: Real estate groups Ashiana Housing Ltd and Manglam Builders have announced the launch of their group housing project near Tonk road here. Gulmohar Gardens, spread over 31 acres land, will comprise villas and independent floors and will be completed with an estimated cost of Rs 102 crore in next five years, said Sajeev Rawat, Vice President of Ashiana Housing. He said the first phase of the project will be ready by March, 2015.
The project will house 145 units in phase 1. The size of the apartments will be starting from 110 sq ft to 1,325 ft and of villa will be 1,845 sq ft and 2,470 sq ft, respectively. Rawat informed that the 30 per cent of the total project area will be covered with greenery and will have facilities like swimming pool, billiards and table tennis courts for outdoor games. "Well constructed roads, water and power supply will be among other basic features in the project," he added. -PTI
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Accused woman may get mental health evaluation ELGIN, Ill.: Defense attorneys are seeking a mental health evaluation for an Illinois woman facing charges after her boyfriend fell and died when she hit him on the head with a frying pan. The (Arlington Heights) Daily Herald reports that attorneys for 35-year-old Nora Leach-Peterson of Elgin want her evaluated and could be contemplating an insanity defense. Leach-Peterson faces a firstdegree murder charge in the death of 55-year-old Michael N. Mielczarek. Paramedics found him unresponsive and bleeding from the head in August 2012 following a domestic dispute. She is being held on $750,000 bail. Her next court date is Aug. 23. -AP
St. Vincent Health cuts labor expense INDIANAPOLIS: The second largest health system in Indiana has announced it has reduced its labor expenses by 5 percent after spending a month evaluating and restructuring its workforce. The Indianapolis Business Journal reports St. Vincent Health, an Indianapolis-based network of 22 hospitals, is eliminating about 865 jobs in Indiana. St. Vincent announced last month it would cut an undisclosed number of jobs by June 30 because of increasing economic and competitive pressure on the health care industry. St. Vincent employs about 17,300 at its 22 hospitals. St. Vincent's layoff announcement is the largest single reduction to date among Indiana's largest hospitals. -AP
SC confirms first death due to equine encephalitis COLUMBIA, S.C.: A state official has confirmed the first case of eastern equine encephalitis in South Carolina in 2013. Dr. Boyd Parr, South Carolina State Veterinarian and director of Clemson University Livestock Poultry Health, said a foal from Sumter County that recently died tested positive for the disease. Two adult horses that died at the same farm around the same time are suspected of also having EEE, a mosquito-borne illness in horses that can also affect humans.-AP
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Tobacco control policies to cut deaths by 2050 Details on Page 34
Ten million more people advised to take HIV drugs GENEVA: Nearly 10 million more people infected with the AIDS virus now meet medical standards for receiving HIV drugs, according to revised UN guidelines, which experts say could avert 6.5 million deaths or new infections by 2025. But achieving this goal will be a challenge, as it will add some USD 2 billion a year to the bill to fight the 32-year AIDS epidemic, they acknowledged. "Treating people with HIV earlier ... can both keep them healthy and lowers the amount of virus in the blood, which reduces the risk of passing it to someone else," the World Health Organization (WHO) said in new recommendations for combating the HIV/AIDS pandemic. Around 34 million people worldwide were living with the human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) in 2011, nearly 70 per cent of them in sub-Saharan Africa, according to WHO statistics. The UN agency's previous treatment guidelines, set down in 2010, called for drug initiation when the tally of CD4 cells - the key immune cells targeted by HIV - reached 350 cells or less per
microlitre of blood. Under this benchmark, 16.7 million people in low and middleincome countries were medically eligible last year to receive the
cure it. Despite years of fund-raising and efforts to build medical infrastructure in poor countries, only 9.7 million of the 16.7 mil-
"Treating people with HIV earlier ... can both keep them healthy and lowers the amount of virus in the blood, which reduces the risk of passing it to someone else," the World Health Organization (WHO) said in new recommendations for combating the HIV/AIDS pandemic. drug "cocktail", which rolls back infection although it does not
lion currently get the treatment. WHO said that after weighing
evidence for drug efficacy, benefits for the immune system and potential side effects, it recommended raising the CD4 threshold to 500 cells per microlitre of blood. That means treatment should start at a much earlier stage of infection. This, along with the recommendation to treat all infected pregnant women and children under five - as well as other vulnerable groups, regardless of their cell-count - brings the number of patients who are advised to take these drugs to some 26 million, the WHO said. "These guidelines represent another leap ahead in a trend of ever-higher goals and ever-greater achievements," WHO chief Margaret Chan said. "With nearly 10 million people now on antiretroviral therapy, we see that such prospects - unthinkable just a few years ago - can now fuel the momentum needed to push the HIV epidemic into irreversible decline," she added. -AFP
Indian docs gave smile to 61 Uzbek nationals AMRITSAR: In a goodwill gesture, a 10-member medical team, which included four surgeons, has conducted free-ofcost corrective surgeries on 61 Uzbekistan nationals suffering from cleft lip and palate in Tashkent. All the team members were presented mementos in recognition of the yeoman service by the District Civil Administration Additional Deputy Commissioner Sandeep Rishi here. American NGO 'Smile Train' had selected the Indian team of Amandeep hospital out of 150 hospitals in India empanelled with it, to conduct the surgeries in Uzbekistan.
The surgeries were conducted in the first week of June and the team returned to Amritsar on
American NGO," said Dr Amandeep Kaur, director of the hospital.
Besides pre-surgery preparation, the team performed surgeries for 13-hours daily over four days, following which they rendered post operative care and interactive sessions and workshops with local doctors June 10. "In Uzbekistan, the team was welcomed by Ministry of Health. A centre for cut cleft and palate surgeries was set up under the
While talking to media persons at a press conference, Dr Soni, who was in the team, said," out of 100 patients recognized for surgery including revision sur-
gery, the team found 61 persons, including 24 women, on whom surgery was required and the rest were given preliminary treatment". Besides pre-surgery preparation, the team performed surgeries for 13-hours daily over four days, following which they rendered post operative care and interactive sessions and workshops with local doctors for setting up a centre that would cater to the demand for such surgeries, in the region itself. The patients who were operated upon were in the age group between 4-month-old to 30-year-old. -PTI
July 5, 2013
Health Science Post www.indiapost.com
Men more likely to die of skin cancer than women NEW YORK: Young men are 55 per cent more likely to die of skin cancer than women, regardless of the severity of the tumor, a new study has found. The finding suggests there are fundamental biological differences between melanoma in men and women. Looking at melanoma cases among a population of young, white men and women over 20 years, the researchers found that men accounted for 40 per cent of the can-
cer cases, and 64 per cent of the deaths, 'LiveScience' reported. Overall, men were 55 per cent more likely to die of melanoma than women of the same age, after adjusting for other factors such as a tumor's type, thickness and location, researchers said. Experts said that the study revealed a "striking disparity" between men and women in terms of survival.
"The findings are so consistent that they imply a fundamental biological difference in 'male' versus 'female' melanoma," said editorial authors Dr David Fisher, a dermatologist at Harvard Medical School and Alan Geller, a lecturer at Harvard School of Public Health. "We thought that it would be novel and interesting to look at a younger population. Younger people don't tend to see a doctor as frequently," said study researcher Dr Susan Swetter, a professor of dermatology at Stanford University. Researchers included about 26,000 white adolescents and young adults ages 15 to 39, who were diagnosed with melanoma between 1989 and 2009. White people are far more likely to develop melanoma than those of other races. During the study period, 1,561 patients died from melanoma. Men were more likely to die in each category of the tumor, and each age group, the study showed. Among patients who had an additional cancer besides melanoma, men were twice as likely to die. Women's survival advantage may be due to habits such as better health maintenance or more visits to the doctor, which helps detect tumors when they are smaller and more curable, researchers said. -PTI
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Tobacco control policies to cut deaths by 2050
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bout 7.4 million people will be saved from premature death by 2050 due to the tobacco control measures, which have been put in place in 41 countries between 2007 and 2010, a new study has revealed. The study demonstrates the success of the World Health Organization Framework Convention on Tobacco Control (WHO FCTC) in reducing tobacco use and, thus, saving lives. Lead author David Levy, PhD, professor of oncology at Georgetown Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center in Washington, said that it is a spectacular finding that by implementing these simple tobacco control policies, governments can save so many lives. Known as "MPOWER," the measures correspond to one or more of the demand reduction provisions included in the WHO FCTC: Monitoring tobacco use and prevention policies, Protecting people from tobacco smoke, Offering help to quit tobacco use, Warning people about the dangers of tobacco, Enforcing bans
on tobacco advertising, Promotion and sponsorship, and Raising taxes on tobacco. The authors did a modeling exercise and projected the number of premature deaths that would be averted by 2050 through the implementation of one or more of these measures. Levy said that in addition to some 7.4 million l i v e s saved, the tobacco control policies that they exami n e d could lead to other health benefits like lesser adverse birth outcomes related to maternal smoking, including low birth weight, and reduced health-care costs and less loss of productivity due to less smoking-related disease. If these high-impact tobacco
control measures were implemented even more widely, millions more smoking-related deaths would be averted, Douglas Bettcher, MD, director of the department of non-communicable diseases at WHO, said. Bettcher said that the tobacco use is the single most preventable cause of death in the world, with
six million smoking-attributable deaths per year today, and these deaths are projected to rise to eight million a year by 2030, if current trends continue. The study has been published in the Bulletin of the World Health Organization.
New theory blames 'gene activation' for cancer Scientists have proposed a radical new theory that cancer may be caused by a set of genes that have been passed on from our early ancestors and are "switched on" in the initial stages of an organism's life as cells differentiate into specialist forms. The genes that are involved in the early development of the embryo and that are silenced, or switched off, thereafter become inappropriately reactivated in the adult as a result of some sort of trigger or damage, such as chemicals, radiation or inflammation, researchers suggest. Orthodox explanations suppose that cancer results from an accumulation of random genetic mutations, with the cancer starting from scratch each time it manifests. In the journal Physics World, Paul Davies, principal investigator at Arizona State University's Center for Convergence of Physical Sciences and Cancer Biology, explains the new theory. The theory, drawn together with Charles Line weaver of the Australian National University, suggests that cancer is a throwback to an ancient genetic "sub-
routine" where the mechanisms that usually instruct cells when to multiply and die malfunctions, thus forcing the cells to revert back to a default option that was programmed into their ancestors long ago. "To use a computer analogy, cancer is like Windows defaulting to 'safe mode' after suffering an insult of some sort," Davies said. The result of this malfunction is the start of a cascade of events that we identify as cancer - a runaway proliferation of cells that form a tumor, which eventually becomes mobile itself, spreading to other parts of the body and invading and colonizing. "Very roughly, the earlier the embryonic stage, the more basic and ancient will be the genes guiding development, and the more carefully conserved and widely distributed they will be among species," Davies said. Several research teams around the world are currently providing experimental evidence that shows the similarities between the expression of genes in a tumor and an embryo, adding weight to Davies and Lineweaver's theory.-PTI
Mississippi lawmakers keep Eating fish can lower Medicaid alive risk of breast cancer JACKSON, Miss.: Mississippi lawmakers adjourned their twoday special session after passing bills to keep Medicaid alive and funded for the new fiscal year. Republicans hold the majority in the House and Senate, and they blocked Democrats' efforts to ex-
David Blount
tend Medicaid to another 300,000 low-income people - additional coverage that is an option under the federal health overhaul that President Barack Obama signed in 2010
Republican Gov. Phil Bryant praised legislators for their work, saying that the renewal of Medicaid was ``a victory for the vulnerable.'' He also said he was happy that he and lawmakers ``stopped expansion of Obamacare,'' which he considers expensive and risky. ``We got accomplished what we wanted,'' Bryant said outside the House chamber, his shirt sleeves rolled up after watching debate. Medicaid is a government health insurance program for the needy and it already covers more than 644,000 of the nearly 3 million residents of Mississippi, one of the poorest states in the nation. House Bill 1 keeps Medicaid alive, and Bryant said he is signing it.
Lawmakers ended up in special session because they finished their three-month regular session in early April without funding Medicaid or passing a bill to keep it alive beyond June 30, the end of the current budget year. They spent much of the regular session in a partisan squabble over expansion. Only a governor can call a special session and he controls the agenda. Much of the session was taken up with bursts of work in one chamber or the other, followed by long hours of waiting and uncertainty. Lawmakers waited several hours for Bryant to add the hospital tax to the session's agenda. They had expected to handle the hospital tax in a separate bill. Finally, without waiting for Bryant any longer, Lt. Gov. Tate Reeves gaveled the Senate to order after 7 p.m. and quickly pulled up the reauthorization bill the chamber had passed hours earlier, House Bill 1. Senators revised the bill to add the hospital tax.
LONDON: A high intake of fatty acids found in fish is associated with a 14 per cent reduction in the risk of breast cancer in later life, a new study has claimed. According to the study published on bmj.com, each 0.1 g per day or 0.1 per cent energy per day increment of intake of n-3 polyunsaturated fatty acid (n-3 PUFA) derived from fish was associated with a 5 per cent reduction in breast cancer risk. To achieve this risk reduction, intake of oily fish such as salmon, tuna or sardines should be 1-2 portions per person per week. Researchers from Zhejiang University in China set out to investigate the association between fish and n-3 PUFA intake and the risk of breast cancer. Levels were measured from both dietary
sources and blood tests. They reviewed and analyzed the results of 26 studies from the US, Europe and Asia involving over 800,000 participants and over 20,000 cases of breast cancer. Marine n-3 PUFA was associ-
ated with a 14 per cent reduction of breast cancer between the highest and lowest category of marine n-3 PUFA intake. The risk was lowest in Asian populations, probably because fish intake is much higher in Asia than in western countries, authors said.-PTI
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Indiana hospitals anxiously await Medicaid ruling EVANSVILLE, Ind.: It probably sounded like a good trade-off at the time: Hospitals would give up $155 billion in Medicare and other government payments to help provide more money for a Medicaid coverage expansion that begins in January. But subsequent events have put the deal in doubt in Indiana. Hospitals could be left with nothing to show for the payment reductions, which began with the Affordable Care Act in 2010, if the federal government doesn't accept Gov. Mike Pence's idea for administering the Medicaid coverage expansion. The hospital losses are not chump change: Deaconess Health System in Evansville reports losing more than $3.8 million since 2010. St. Mary's Health System reported the information wasn't available. The payment reductions will escalate next year and continue through 2020. Hospitals statewide also expect to lose more than $100 million annually when Medicaid Disproportionate Share Hospital funding cuts included in the Affordable Care Act fully phase in later this decade, the Evansville Courier & Press reported. The state's DSH allotments - more than $214 million annually - are intended to cover the costs of care to low-income patients that are not paid by Medicare, Medicaid, the Children's Health Insurance Program or other health insurance. Meanwhile, Indiana hospitals have received no commensurate offsetting benefit of new Medicaid and health insurance ex-
change patients - and they won't until this January at the earliest, assuming the federal government says yes to Pence. If the question remains unresolved, there will be no Medicaid expansion in Indiana - and hospitals in the state will continue to lose government payments without offsetting Medicaid expansion funds - until it is resolved. This wasn't what Congress envisioned
waiver to expand the state-developed Healthy Indiana Plan as the vehicle to cover the 406,000-plus uninsured but newly eligible Hoosiers who could qualify - and use federal Medicaid funding to pay for it. Unlike traditional Medicaid, the Healthy Indiana Plan requires participants to contribute up to 5 percent of their personal income to a health savings account, which is also partially funded by the state. Only after that savings account is exhausted Hospitals statewide also expect to lose does a more traditional health insurmore than $100 million annually when program kick in. Medicaid Disproportionate Share Hospital ance Not surprisingly, funding cuts included in the Affordable getting a Medicaid coverage expansion Care Act fully phase in later this decade, is a major legislative the Evansville Courier & Press reported. priority for the Indiana Hospital Assowhen it passed the Affordable Care Act in ciation. The Indianapolis-based nonprofit 2010. professional trade association has been Although the U.S. Supreme Court up- lobbying hard for an expansion either held the health care law in 2012, it also ruled through traditional Medicaid or what that Congress exceeded its constitutional Pence is pursuing. authority by trying to pressure states into The hospital association commissioned participating in the Medicaid coverage ex- a study estimating that a Medicaid expanpansion with threats to eliminate other sion would create more than 30,000 jobs Medicaid funding. That gave states the through 2020 and draw nearly $10.5 bilright to make their own decisions about lion in total federal funding to the state. participating in the expansion. The state's share of the cost would be $503 Pence, a Republican, is leery of expand- million through 2020. ing Medicaid coverage through the tradiThe Medicaid coverage expansion tional, fully government-funded program. He is asking the federal government for a
Oregon museum tells story of mental health care SALEM, Ore.: They called them ``lunatics'' and ``idiots'' and, of course, in a famous book and Oscar-winning film both created right here in Oregon, people who lived in a ``Cuckoo's Nest.'' Now, visitors to the new Oregon State Hospital Museum of Mental Health can decide for themselves as they peruse the histories of some of the thousands of patients along with decades' worth of other artifacts who have walked through the hospital's doors during its 130year history. Kathryn Dysart, a volunteer at the museum and one of 15 members on its board, hopes it will simultaneously educate the masses and help remove the stigma often attached to those who suffer from various illnesses of the mind. ``Our goal is to tell the story of the people who lived and worked in the hospital,'' Dysart said during a tour of the museum. ``And, also, to raise the issues of mental illness. There is no one in the world who hasn't been touched by mental illness or
doesn't know someone who has been touched by it.'' The museum opened on Oct. 6, about six months after the final buildings of the new, state-of-the-art Oregon State Hospital were completed during an impressive remodeling project. The museum is housed in the only part of the original hospital, which opened in 1883 as the Oregon State Insane Asylum that remains. It is on the first floor of the red-brick Kirkbride U Building on the hospital's campus, which lies just north of the Oregon State Penitentiary. Just north of the hospital, across Center Street, is the Dome Building that once belonged to OSH but is now part of the state Department of Corrections. The Dome Building is where moviegoers first laid eyes on the handcuffed character of R.P. McMurphy - played by Jack Nicholson in the 1975 film ``One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest,'' based on Ken Kesey's 1962 novel of the same name - as he arrived at the hospital from prison for evaluation.-AP
would certainly bring short-term benefits to hospitals. It would mean a higher federal matching rate, for one thing. The proportion of newly eligible individuals' coverage costs paid by the federal government would be 100 percent in the first three years after the expansion. Federal financial support would decrease as the rate declined to 90 percent in 2020, with the state paying 10 percent. With the new insured patients, hospitals also presumably would have less bad debt and would provide less charity care. But there are skeptics. U.S. Rep. Larry Bucshon acknowledges Indiana hospitals would get generous federal funding with a traditional Medicaid expansion, but he is not so sure the numbers add up to their advantage in the end. Bucshon, a former heart surgeon, says states should have the flexibility to design programs like the Healthy Indiana Plan to help manage their Medicaid dollars. The Republican congressman has one major objection - one that speaks to his long-standing opposition to Democratic President Barack Obama and the Affordable Care Act, which Bucshon has voted several times to repeal. He points to the planned reduction of the federal matching rate to 90 percent in 2020, calling it a precursor of a larger disengagement to come.-AP
Datebook
36 India Post
NEW JERSEY Upcoming Sat, July 13
• Sham E Ghazal An Evening Of Ghazal
NEW YORK Upcoming Sat, July 6
• Sunidhi Chauhan Live In New york
Venue: Edison Hotel, 3050,Woodbridge Ave, Edison, NJ 08837 Time: 8:00 pm Contact: 732-857-0581
Venue: Colden Center , 6530 Kissena Blvd, Flushing, NY 11367 Time: 8:00 pm Contact: 718-639-9200
Sat July 13
Sat, July 13
Venue: Garden State Exhibit Center, 50 Atrium Time: 11:00 am Contact: 848-219-9118
Venue: The New York Public Library for the Performing Arts, Lincoln Center Plaza, NY 10023 Time: 6:30 pm Contact: 703-665-6591
Fri July 19
Sun, July 14
• 14th Annual Indian American Festival
• Gujjubhai in Golmaal Live in New Jersey Venue: Woodbridge High School, 1, Samuel Lupo Place, Woodbridge, NJ 07095 Lupo Time: 8:00 pm Contact: 732-921-7350
• Culture of the Spirit - India Lucia Concert
• The Essence of The Gita: Chapters 13-18 Venue:Shri Shirdi Sai baba Temple, 46-16 Robins Time: 2:00 pm Contact: 718-321-9243
July 5, 2013
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NORTHERN CALIFORNIA
SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA
Upcoming
Upcoming
Fri, July 12 • MM Keeravani Live In
Fri, Age 2
Venue: SRedondo Beach Performing Arts Center, 1935 Manhattan Beach Blvd, Redondo Beach, CA 90278 Time: 7:30 pm Contact: 310-400-0370
Venue: Place of work or residence , 100 South Main Street, Carson, CA 90745 Time: 2:00 pm
Concert
Fri, July 12 • TriValley Musical Evening
- event for music lovers & singers Venue: Cafe Tandoor, 420 Market Pl, San Ramon, CA 94583 Time: 7:30 pm Contact: 510-823-3410
Sun, July 14 • Ganesha+The Woodcutter And The River Goddess
Venue: Barnsdall Gallery Theatre, 4800 Hollywood Blvd, , Hollywood, CA 90027 Time: 4:00 pm Contact: 818-599-1936
Thu, July 15 • Art of Living Course Venue: Woodside Performing Arts Center, 199 Churchill Ave, Woodside, CA 94062 Time: 6:00 pm Contact: 408-982-7266
Sat, July 27 • Shri Krishna Madhuram Venue: Jordan High School Auditorium, 6500 Atlantic Ave, Long Beach, CA 90805 Time: 7:30 pm Contact: 310-753-8990
Sat, Aug 3 • Jaane Kahan Gaye Won Din Venue: Royal Delhi Palace, 22323 Sherman Way, Canoga Park, CA 91303 Time: 6:30 to 8:00 pm Contact: 805-404-9836
• The Moment of Calm - Global Forgiveness Moment
Sun, June 24-August 8 • Ohlone for Kids (and Teens)
Summer Enrichment Program
Venue: Office of College Advancement Ohlone College Contact: 510-742-2304
ATLANTA Upcoming Fri, July 5
• Atlanta Telugu Christhava Samavesam Venue: Peachtree Corners Baptist Church, 4480 Peachtree Corners Cir, Norcross, GA 30092 Time: 6:00pm Contact: 609-851-5057
Sun, July 7
• Sathvaro Shri Radhe Shyamno Venue: Gwinnett Performing Arts Center, 6400 Sugarloaf Pkwy, Duluth, GA 30097 Time: 5:00pm Contact: 678-463-6613
Sat, July 13
•Miss India - Georgia Venue: Robert Ferst center for the arts, 350 Ferst Dr NW, Atlanta, GA 30313 Time: 5:00pm Contact: 404-317-5474
ILLINOIS Upcoming • J K Yog Satsang and Bal Mukund Hindi Classes are held every 2nd and 4rth Sunday of Month Chicago Satsang Information: J K Yog, Chicago - Swami Mukundananda Venue: Clarion Inn/Waterford Banquets, Board Room, 933 South Riverside Drive, Elmhurst, IL 60126 Time: 3:30pm-5:30pm Contact: Ajay & Arti Chandhok @ 630-561-4807 Website: www.jkyog.org
1st and 3rd Sunday of Month • Chicago Children's Bal Mukund Character Building Program and Hindi Literacy Classes Venue: Vogelei Center, 650 W. Higgins Road, Hoffmann Estates, IL 60192 (Next to Nissan Dealership) Contact: Ajay & Arti Chandhok @ 630-561-4807 Website: www.jkyog.org/bal-mukund
Sat, July 13 • VIBRATIONS: A Global Fusion Musical Experience Venue: Chicago Symphony Orchestra Hall, 220 S Michigan Ave, Chicago, Il 60604 Time: 6:30 pm Contact: 708-408-2488
Sat, July 20
Sat, July 13
• Sant Rajinder Singh Ji Maharaj
Venue: Ferst Center for the Arts, 349 Ferst Dr, Atlanta, GA 30332 Time: 5:00 pm Contact: 404-317-5474
Venue: DThe Hindu Temple of Greater Chicago, 10915 Lemont Rd, Lemont, IL 60439 Time: 1:30pm Contact: 630-955-1200
• IACA Ms India Georgia/Ms Teen India Georgia
July 5, 2013
India Post 37
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YERCAUD IS FAST GAINING POPULARITY AMONG THE LOCALS AND FOREIGN TOURISTS. THE NAME YERCAUD IS DERIVED FROM TWO TAMIL WORDS - 'YERI' (LAKE) AND 'KADU' (FOREST). YERCAUD IS KNOWN FOR ITS PLANTATIONS MAJORLY OF COFFEE, ORANGE, JACKFRUIT, GUAVA, CARDAMOM AND BLACK PEPPER.
Y
ercaud, located on the Shevaroy Hills of Tamil Nadu, is a hill station in the Eastern Ghats. Lo cated at a height of 1515 meters, its striking sce nic beauty and pleasant weather brings in many tourists. Sometimes it is referred to as the 'Poor man's Ootacamund', because things here are more affordable as compared to the other famous hill stations like Ooty. Yercaud is fast gaining popularity among the locals and foreign tourists. The name Yercaud is derived from two Tamil words - 'Yeri' (lake) and 'Kadu' (forest). Yercaud is known for its plantations majorly of coffee, orange, jackfruit, guava, cardamom and black pepper. Coffee is the main
produce and was brought to Yercaud by the Scottish Collector M. D. Cockburn in 1820 from Africa. There is also a reserve forest, which has the woods and wildlife in the original unexploited state. The forests of Yercaud have an abundance of sandalwood, teak and silver oaks. From wild animals like bison, deer, foxes, mongooses, snakes, squirrels to birds like bulbuls, kites, sparrows and swallows can be found in these forests. Even though Yercaud is a hill station it never gets extreme temperatures, making it easier to pack clothes for the tourists and avoid those heavy winter wear which is difficult to carry. Apart from sightseeing tourists can opt for trekking
around Yercaud, and if visiting during the month of May, the Summer Festival is a must see which is a spectacle consisting of fairs, boat races, flower and dog shows. Yercaud also has a few historical sites for those who find history fascinating. Although the ancient history of Yercaud is mostly unknown, it is believed that during the reign of the Telugu kings Yercaud had its first settlement. During the British rule, Yercaud was discovered in 1842 by Sir Thomas Munroe, who was then the Governor of the Madras Presidency. Cont’d on page 40
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Travel & Hospitality Post
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Yercaud:A less explored hill station Cont’d from page 39
Although Yercaud is not an exceptional shopping destination, it does have a few things to offer to the tourists. Some of the favorites are natural oils, perfumes, skincare products, fresh packs of locally produced pepper, cardamom and coffee. Finding accommodation in Yercaud is a cake walk. With plenty of hotel options, one can choose anything from budget hotels, luxurious resorts and even home stays. Tourist places in and around Yercaud With vast serene valleys and picturesque landscape, Yercaud has many attractions in store for the tourists. From temples to caves to waterfalls to exquisite views of the valley from the hill top, there is something about Yercaud that puts a smile on people's faces. The Yercaud town, located
Yercaud view from Lady’s Seat
about 4700 ft above sea level, is a popular attraction. Home too many seminaries and convents, Yercaud town is nice for an evening stroll. Two of the most famous attractions in the Yercaud town are the beautifully built and maintained Sacred Heart Convent and Montfort School. Another popular attraction is the Lady's seat, Gent's Seat and Children's Seat, which are basically a group of natural rocks on top of the Yercaud Hills. They look like seats and overlook the Ghat road, Mettur Dam and Salem. According to the stories, an English lady would often bask in the setting sun while appreciating the beautiful view that can be seen from this spot. This is how this place got its name. There is a viewing tower complete with a telescope which is open for visits during the day. Some of the most
popular tourist attractions in Yercaud are Big Lake, Bear's Cave, Lady's Seat, Gent's Seat and Children's Seat, Arthur's Seat, Anna Park, Botanical Garden Montfort School, Servarayan Temple Sri Raja Rajeswari Temple and Tipperary View Point. The best time to visit Yercaud is October to June, avoiding the monsoon. How to reach Yercaud Travelers planning a trip to Yercaud can reach the destination via air, rail and road.
July 5, 2013
Travel & Hospitality Post
India Post
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Taj Mahal ranked third among top landmarks in world NEW YORK: Travelers from across the globe have ranked India's Taj Mahal among the top three landmarks in the world, a leading travel website has announced. According to TripAdvisor's 2013 Travelers Choice Attractions Awards, Taj Mahal was ranked third in the list of Top 25 landmarks. The top two places were taken by Machu Picchu in Peru and Angkor Wat in Cambodia respectively. "The winners of Travelers' Choice Attractions awards were determined based on the quality and quantity of traveler reviews of attractions," said a company statement. Taj Mahal, listed among the new seven wonders of the world, is renowned the world over for its architecture and aesthetic beauty. Built by Mughal emperor Shah Jahan in memory of his late wife Mumtaz Mahal, the white marble mausoleum in the northern Indian city of Agra is also a symbol of enduring love. In 1983, it became a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The Taj Mahal attracts 2-4 million visitors annually, with more than 200,000 from overseas.
It shares the latest honor alongside Petra World Heritage Site in Jordan and Bayon Temple in Cambodia, which are ranked fourth and fifth respectively in the list of 25 top landmarks in the world. -PTI
Abu Dhabi mosque among world's top 25 attractions DUBAI: The Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque in Abu Dhabi has been ranked among the world's top 25 landmark attractions based on reviews and feedback by travelers. The mosque in UAE's capital shares the spotlight with noted places including the Taj Mahal in
ter told the news agency. He was talking about the TripAdvisor's 2013 Travelers Choice Awards announced recently. "This is particularly pleasing as the rankings are solely based on reviews and recommendations by the vast TripAdvisor traveling community, thus confirming its place as one of the most important cultural tourism destinations," he added. " T h e Sheikh Zayed G r a n d Mosque Center offers serThe Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque vices for worIndia, Machu Picchu in Peru and shippers, domestic and internaPetra in Jordan, according to tional visitors alike, all year round. UAE's official news agency Wam. In 2012, 4.7 million visitors were "TripAdvisor recently named welcomed to the mosque from all the Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque over the world," Al Obaidli said. as one of the world's most talked The mosque accommodates about attractions," Yousif Al more than 40,000 worshippers Obaidli, Director General of the 10,000 in the internal areas and Sheikh Zayed Grand Mosque Cen- 30,000 in the external areas. -PTI
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GTDC introduces Himachal Tourism announces river-rafting in Goa monsoon discount PANAJI: Goa Tourism Development Corporation (GTDC) has announced a river-rafting facility on Mhadei River in Sattari taluka to attract tourists.
Rafting involves navigating rough river waters in an inflatable raft. GTDC chairman Nilesh Cabral said the facility will be available from July to October subject to availability of rapids and adequate
water currents and suitable weather. "White water-rafting would be carried out in accordance with internationally accepted norms. The
instructors are highly-trained and operations would be run with `safety first' policy," he said. The rafting will start at Ustem village and end at Sonal village, covering a distance of about ten kilometers in 90 minutes. -PTI
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SHIMLA: With summer tourist season cut short by early rains, Himachal Pradesh Tourism Development Corporation has announced monsoon discount for accommodation in all its hotels from July 1 to September 13, 2013 to attract visitors. The discount, however, would
not be applicable on three days from August 9 to 11, Managing Director, HPTDC, Subhashis Panda said. The discount would be 35 to 40 per cent in Shimla and Dalhousie Chamba, complex, 30 to 35 per cent in Chail complex, 35 per cent
in Barog, Parwanoo and Rampur complex and 30 to 40 per cent in Mandi- Kullu-Manali and Dharamsala-Palampur complexes. However, no discount will be available on dormitory accommodation and Hotel Iravati and Hotel Champak in Chamba during Minjar Fair from July 28 to August 5. -PTI
Tourism value more important than visitor numbers KOTTAYAM: A meet on Responsible Tourism has underscored the importance of maintaining environmental and cultural sustainability with the involvement of local communities while seeking to achieve high growth in the sector. The meet, which concluded at the lake-side resort Kumarakom
near here, wanted the governments to evaluate the success of tourism initiatives not by the number of visitor arrivals alone but by the value these tourists bring to the local economies at each destination. A common refrain of the threeday meet had been on achieving the environmental sustainability,
economic growth and socio-cultural conservation. Summing up the proceedings at the concluding session, Harold Goodwin, professor at Leeds Metropolitan University and the director of the International Centre for Responsible Tourism, said the Responsible Tourism (RT) movement in Kerala was in great shape at the moment. Achievements over the past five years have included enduring partnerships between panchayats, self-help groups, the local communities and the industry and "demonstrable and measurable benefits going to local communities." The conference was organized by the Department of Tourism in partnership with RTSchool@KITTS. There was a suggestion to set up a specialized Sustainability University in Kerala to focus on academics and research related to the subject. Some of the delegates in the conference's open forum suggested development of "geriatric tourism" as part of RT in view of the changing demographics around the globe. -PTI
Travel & Hospitality Post
July 5, 2013
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AirAsia to carve new market in India MUMBAI: AirAsia India, which is planning to start operations in the country with three planes later this year, says it will add at least 10 planes annually and was looking at carving out "a new market" here. "The airline is here not to take anybody else's business market share away, but to create a new market in this 1.2-billion market," AirAsia Group Chief Executive Tony Fernandes said. He was addressing the media during his maiden visit after the airlines announced its joint venture with the Tatas and Delhi busi-
Tony Fernandes
nessman Arun Bhatia in February. Stating that he has not faced any bureaucratic hurdles so far, Fernandes, flanked by his deputy Kamarudin Merananun and India chief Mittu Chandilya, also said that Aviation Minister Ajit Singh, after the announcement of the 49:30:21 joint venture,
had said he would have been happy had Tatas themselves launched the airline instead of it being done through a foreign joint venture. When asked how he will achieve scale and success with just three planes and that too connecting only southern region, Fernandes said: "We will aggressively expand the fleet size and are looking to add at least 10 planes a year." On pricing strategy, Fernandes said AirAsia will want to offer the lowest possible fares in this market. The AirAsia Group CEO added that with a huge online population in the country, he is hopeful of achieving scale through lower priced tickets and cutting costs by offering most of the tickets online, keeping the agents away as much as possible. Almost 90 per cent tickets are still sold through agents in India, while the Kuala Lumpur-based AirAsia sells over 80 per cent online, through its own website. Fernandes said when he launched the airline nearly 12 years ago there was nothing called e-commerce in Malaysia, but he is entering India at a time when the e-commerce is booming. Chandilya said his challenges are more internal than external in the sense that cost management is the biggest challenge given his "mandate to turn profitable from day one". To a question on whether AirAsia is willing to offer higher packages to IndiGo pilots based on the reports that many of them have applied in the new airline, Fernandes said there is no substance to the report.-PTI
J&K issues spot permits to unregistered pilgrims SRINAGAR: With heavy rush of unregistered Amarnath yatris making way to Pahalgam and Baltal base camps, Jammu and Kashmir tourism department has started issuing on-the-spot-permissions to tourists and pilgrims.
"In order to facilitate the tourists and locals to visit to Pahalgam and Sonmarg, the Department of Tourism has started onthe-spot-permissions at Tourist Reception Centre Srinagar," an official release of the
tourism department said. The release said tourists and locals other than Amarnath yatris, who want to visit these places for a day trip, should contact the Tourism Department to obtain the permission in order to avoid any inconvenience. Official sources said the decision to issue permission letters to tourists for visiting Pahalgam and Sonamarg was taken as large number of unregistered Amarnath pilgrims were reaching these places as tourists and trying to proceed for the yatra. More than 23,000 unregistered pilgrims or those with registration for later dates were turned back from various access control gates in the first two days of the yatra. Sources said a significant number of pilgrims succeeded in breaking through the access control gate at Chandanwari on first day of the pilgrimage. -PTI
Chiranjveevi calls for 'responsible' practices in tourism KOTTAYAM: There is a need to develop tourism spots in a responsible manner keeping the destinations clean and ecologically unharmed by following responsible practices, Minister of State for Tourism K Chiranjeevi has said. In a message sent to the international meet on Responsible Tourism being held at the famous lakeside resort Kumarakom near here, Chiranjeevi said there were several ecological issues to be addressed urgently in the tourism sector. "Our concerns today include overreaching carrying capacity, the unhygienic conditions of our destinations and lack of proper coordination in waste management practices," he said in a message, read out at the inaugural session of the meet. Lauding Kerala's initiatives to develop tourism in a responsible manner, he said his ministry would support such efforts wholeheartedly. "The protection of Silent Valley reserve, development of the Muziris project, and improvements made in backwater tourism are some of the examples we are all proud of," he said. Similar initiatives in Andhra Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Gujarat and Tamil Nadu
had demonstrated to the world the positive effects of sustainable tourism development, he said. Kerala Tourism Minister A P Anil Kumar said Kumarakom has made remarkable progress on socio-economic fronts it was chosen as one of four destinations in the
K Chiranjeevi
state to pilot RT practices. CPI (M) leader Sitaram Yechury, Chairman, Parliamentary Standing Committee on Transport, Tourism and Culture said all debates on RT over the past decade have recognized that it cannot be achieved without sustainable development. He said Kumarakom could be taken as an example of the spirit of RT in that it has created a better place to live for the local people and a better place to visit for tourists.-PTI
In Brief TCS says bill will impact US firms too MUMBAI: Software major Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), has said the comprehensive immigration bill passed by the US Senate will have a bearing not only on domestic companies but would also impact the US firms. "The comprehensive immigration bill will not only impact companies like us, but all US companies (will also be impacted)," TCS Managing Director and Chief Executive N Chandrasekaran told reporters on the sidelines of company's annual general meeting here. He, however, said TCS is carefully observing the development, adding that "The bill has to go through multiple stages, further process is lengthy and it has passed through only the first stage". The US Senate passed the landmark comprehensive immigration reform bill that will provide a pathway to citizenship to some 11 million illegal immigrants, including over 240,000 Indians, but it retained killer provisions when it comes to H-1B Visas that would badly hit Indian companies in the US. Earlier, addressing shareholders as the Chairman for the first time, Cyrus Mistry said that despite volatile economic environment, the global markets offer substantial opportunities.-PTI
NYC man pleads guilty in Chinese immigration scam NEW YORK: A New York City man has pleaded guilty to charges he defrauded numerous Chinese immigrants, claiming to help them with immigration paperwork he never filed. Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance says Dao Feng Lin also collected $40,000 in Medicaid and food stamp benefits he was not entitled to. Lin pleaded guilty to scheme to defraud in the first degree, welfare fraud in the third degree and offering a false instrument for filing in the first degree. Attorney information for Lin was not immediately available. He is expected to be sentenced on September 24. Vance says Lin charged a fee of $1,350 per Chinese immigrant, claiming he could assist them with applications for lawful status and work authorization. Vance says he also underreported his income to qualify for benefits. -AP
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July 5, 2013
Who is an H-1B skilled worker dependent employer-II Details on page 46
Immigration bill to hit competitiveness of US firms, says USIBC WASHINGTON: The landmark immigration reforms bill, which has been passed by the US Senate, would have an adverse impact on the global competitiveness of US companies and badly hit Indian IT companies, a top American business advocacy organization has said. These concerns arise mainly because the bill retains several killer provisions, particularly those related to the H-1B visas, which allows US employers to temporarily employ foreign workers in specialty occupations. "The Bill unfairly targets American companies trying to remain globally competitive by reducing their ability to contract with global IT service providers and restricting their access to the international expertise they need," USIBC president Ron Somers told PTI. "Such restrictions could stifle US innovation, slow local job creation and force companies to move jobs overseas," Somers warned after the Senate passed
the bill, which was hailed by President Barack Obama as bringing one closer to fixing the broken immigration system.
to the international expertise they need to continue to drive forward economic growth and job creation. It hired the services of major law firm Patton Boggs for lobbying at the scale of the US-India civil nuclear advocacy effort, augmented by a public relations campaign spearheaded by APCO Worldwide. "The USIBC Coalition prefers H R 2131, the SKILLS Visa Act, that was passed USIBC president Ron Somers out of commitEarly this month, USIBC had tee in the House, which does not announced the establishment of follow the problematic approach of the Coalition for Jobs & Growth the Senate Bill, which will hamper to help ensure that American busi- American companies' competitivenesses of all types have access ness," said Somers.
Early this month, USIBC announced the establishment of the Coalition for Jobs & Growth to help ensure that American businesses of all types have access to the international expertise they need to continue to drive forward economic growth and job creation. Specifically, the Border Security, Economic Opportunity, and Immigration Modernization Act (S 744) imposes new and onerous restrictions and higher fees on H1B and L1 visa programs on the international IT services sector and would create an uneven playing field that will harm US clients, including the majority of Fortune 500 companies. Members of the Coalition for Jobs and Growth (CJG) are now working with the Obama Administration and Congress to eliminate narrow protectionist provisions in the current legislation that will hamper economic growth and impede American competitiveness by creating unnecessary bureaucracy. -PTI
Immigration bill faces obstacles in House WASHINGTON: The focus of hotly contested immigration legislation swung from the Senate to the House, where conservative Republicans hold power. There is no bipartisan template to serve as a starting point and the two parties stress widely different priorities. ``It's a very long and winding road to immigration reform,'' said Rep. Tom Cole, an Oklahoma Republican who said it could be late this year or perhaps early in 2014 before the outcome is known. His own constituents are ``very skeptical, mostly opposed,'' he said. Supporters of the Senate's approach sought to rally support for its promise of citizenship for those who have lived in the United States unlawfully, a key provision alongside steps to reduce future illegal immigration. ``The Republican Party still
doesn't understand the depth...of this movement and just how much the American people want com-
Tom Cole
prehensive immigration reform,'' Rep. Luis Gutierrez, D-Ill., said. ``We need to make sure they come
to this understanding.'' But Rep. Matt Salmon, R-Ariz., said in an interview that any bill that results in citizenship was a nonstarter. He called the approach ``patently unfair'' to those trying to ``do it the legal way.'' Within hours after the Democratic-controlled Senate approved its bill on a 6832 vote, President Barack Obama telephoned with congratulations for several members of the bipartisan Gang of Eight who negotiated an early draft of the bill that passed. Traveling in Africa, he also called House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, and Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi of Cali-
fornia from Africa, urging them to pass an immigration bill. Yet not even a firm timetable has been set. The House Republican rank and file is scheduled to hold a closed-door meeting on the issue shortly after returning from a July 4 vacation, and Boehner has said previously he hopes legislation on the topic can be passed by the end of the month. Aides also say it is possible the issue wouldn't come to the floor until the leadership had successfully resurrected a farm bill that was defeated last week. In contrast to the all-in-one approach favored by the Senate, the House Judiciary Committee has approved a series of singleissue bills in recent days, none including a path to citizenship that Obama and Democrats have set as a top priority. Cont'd on Page 46
Immigration Post
July 5, 2013
India Post 45
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Who is an H-1B skilled worker dependent employer-II GARY ENDELMAN & CYRUS D. MEHTA
Continued from last week
T
he SWDE definition was in troduced to catch USbased tech companies than the Indian IT companies, as the latter are in any event dependent employers. In a twist of fate, while the Indian IT companies have been most affected by the H-1B provisions in the bill, the SWDE concept may wind up most severely affecting the very IT giants
permanently in the US as demonstrated by a pending or approved labor certification that was filed by a "covered employer." An intending immigrant can also be the beneficiary of a pending or approved I-140 petition A "covered employer," as amended by Hatch, is an employer who during the year before filing the labor certification on behalf of the intending immigrant, has filed an immigrant visa petition for 90 per-
A "covered employer," as amended by Hatch, is an employer who during the year before filing the labor certification on behalf of the intending immigrant, has filed an immigrant visa petition for 90 percent of current employees who were beneficiaries of approved labor certifications in this country who looked to Senator Hatch for legislative relief. The end result may well be to subject them to recruitment obligations that would otherwise not have applied under the traditional H-1B dependent employer definition. Such are the unintended consequences of a compromise that Senator Hatch had to make with other Gang of 8 members, such as Senator Durbin, who have been vehemently opposed to the H-1B visa program. In exchange for a more liberal recruitment regime, the law will make more employers SWDEs and subject them to the restrictive recruitment procedures. Not only may Facebook and Google, to name but two of many such companies, have to adjust to this unwelcome and rude surprise, but it is likely that many IT startups, the very entrepreneurs that the Obama Administration claims to want to encourage, will find their growth stymied by the SWDE recruitment obligations that likely were never intended by Senator Hatch to apply to them at all. This bring us finally to the definitions of "covered employer" and "intending immigrant." A SWDE will not be subject to the more onerous recruitment requirement, and a DE as well as an SWDE will not be subject to the anti-displacement attestations if they fall under the definition of "covered employer" and are filing an H-1B visa for an "intending immigrant." The Hatch amendment slightly modified the definition of a "covered employer," in fact making it easier for a SWDE or DE to get out of the more restrictive requirements. An "intending immigrant" is one who intends to live and work
grants for the purposes of determining whether an employer is an H-1B dependent company or an L visa dependent company. Intending immigrants are defined as persons for whom their employer has started the green card process, including those for whom an Immigrant Petition for Alien Worker (Form I-140) or Application to Register Permanent Residence or Adjust Status (Form I-485) has been filed. However, employers may only take advantage of this counting rule if the employer has actually filed immigrant status petitions for not less than 90 percent of current employees for whom the company filed labor certifications in the previous year." Despite this language in the report, it can still be argued that Congress has intended that an employer who has approved labor certifications in the "look back" period follow through with the green card process (as opposed to nominally only filing labor certifications), and thus the requirement that the employer has filed I140 petitions for not less than 90% of the relevant approved labor certifications. Congress just does not want an employer to push paper and file labor certifications, but to actually carry through with the green card process for its employees. However, if there is no filed or approved labor certification during the relevant period, an employer should still be treated as a "covered employer." If interpreted literally, only a covered employer can invoke the "intending immigrant" exception. Because the Hatch-Schumer amendment narrowed the defini-
considered as "intending immigrants" as no labor certifications need to be filed on their behalf. The very people we need to keep most will not benefit. At a time when there are more green card routes around PERM, can it possibly be that H-1B status will be withheld, or made more difficult, from those who take advantage of these new options? Surely this cannot be the intended result of such imprecise drafting. The most
filing an H-1B petition, and may rather go through the recruitment requirement for an SWDE under the H-1B provision. Moreover, for a permanent labor certification, the employer has to demonstrate that there were no minimally qualified US workers who applied for the job, which is even more onerous than the recruitment requirement for a SWDE, where the standard is equally or better qualified.
The very people we need to keep most will not benefit. At a time when there are more green card routes around PERM, can it possibly be that H-1B status will be withheld, or made more difficult, from those who take advantage of these new options?
vociferous critics of the H-1B programs, such as the IEEE, claim to cent of current employees who favor unlimited green cards for were beneficiaries of approved laadvanced US STEM degree holdbor certifications during the one ers. year ending six months before the Will it be necessary for them to petition in question is filed. forego, or so drastically curtail, the How does this work? The emH category entirely in order to arployer who is filing an H-1B on rive the finish line? Despite this, behalf of an "intending immigrant" as explained above, we believe that (for whom a labor certification or an employer who files no labor an I-140 petition has been filed or certifications can still seek protecapproved) needs to look back six tion under the chimera of "covered months. employer." If the employer had approved Moreover, despite not having labor certifications during the one to file a labor certification for the year period ending six months priority worker, the employer may prior to filing the H-1B petition, and have filed labor certifications for filed immigrant visa petitions for other sponsored employees so 90% of them during that look back that the mantle of "covered emperiod six months prior, the employer" does not have to be alien ployer qualifies as a covered emcentered so long as it applies genployer. erally to the employer in question. One can conceivably argue that Doubtless, it may take a technical if the employer did not have any amendapproved labor certifiment to cations during that look simplify back period, it might still While an employer may ultimately desire to the matqualify as a covered em- file for green cards on behalf of their emter and ployer. The covered to bring employer definition ap- ployees, the H-1B visa, like dating before clarity to plies only to approved marriage, allows time for both the employer the perlabor certifications, out plexed. of which 90% have I- and employee to try each other out before Not140s filed on their behalf. making a commitment withSo, if there are no apstanding proved labor certifications or no labor certifications tion of "covered employer" to re- the exception that has been creeven filed, the employer may still quire a labor certification as a con- ated for employers to get out of be a covered employer, provided dition precedent to an I-140 sub- the more restrictive H-1B requirethe beneficiary of the H-1B peti- mission, the eligibility of any I-140 ments, it would not be easy for tion currently has an approved or petition that does not depend on an employer to file a labor certifipending labor certification or I-140 a labor certification approval is cation in order to create an inpetition filed on his/her behalf. suddenly and surprisingly called tending immigrant. It takes 60+ days of recruitment before an The Senate Judiciary into question. Committee's report on BSEOIMA Thus, outstanding researchers, employer can file a PERM labor has some alarming language re- persons of extraordinary ability, certification. An employer who wishes to garding the "covered employer" beneficiaries of approved national definition: interest waivers, multinational quickly hire an H-1B worker, may "Intending immigrants are not managers, and advanced US de- not be able to wait for that long counted as H-1B or L non-immi- gree STEM holders, may never be to file a labor certification before
On the other hand, a SWDE would not have a choice and may be compelled to file a labor certification to establish that the worker is an "intending immigrant." For instance, an employer whose business model relies on outplacement of employees to client sites will need to first have an "intending immigrant" before it can file an H-1B visa petition. While an employer may ultimately desire to file for green cards on behalf of their employees, the H-1B visa, like dating before marriage, allows time for both the employer and employee to try each other out before making a commitment to sponsor the worker for permanent residence and expend resources, including considerable governmental resources to process and adjudicate a labor certification application. BSEOIMA will turn this logical progression upside down. Employers will be forced to start the green card processing for potential H-1B workers even before they have come on board under the H-1B visa, where they can be tested out first. BSEOIMA is transformational as it gives more emphasis to green card sponsorship than temporary sponsorship. Employers will look to ways to avoid the H-1B process altogether, as well as the PERM labor certification process. They will be able to directly sponsor STEM advanced degree students on an F-1 visa for a green card without even having to go through the labor certification process. A merits based point system will kick in four years after BSEOIMA takes effect, which will also allow employers to bypass the H-1B and PERM labor certification. Cont'd on Page 46
Immigration Post
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Immigration bill faces obstacles in House Cont'd from Page 44
One, harshly condemned by Democrats, provides for a crackdown on immigrants living in the United States illegally. Another sets up a temporary program for farm workers to come to the United States, but without the opportunity for citizenship the Senatepassed measure includes. A third, which drew several Democratic votes, requires establishment of a mandatory program within two years for companies to verify the legal status of their workers. The Senate bill sets a four-year phase-in, although supporters of the legislation have also signaled they are agreeable to tighter requirements. A fourth increases the number of visas for highly-skilled workers.
Rep. Zoe Lofgren, D-Calif., criticized the approach followed so far by House Republicans. ``We have taken up a series of small-bore partisan bills that are in some cases bizarre,'' she said at a panel dis-
right with the law.'' Also appearing on the panel, Republican Rep. Mario Diaz-Balart of Florida said the House must find a solution for the estimated 11 million immigrants now living in the
``You may have different views on different aspects of this issue, but all of us share the same goal, and that is to take 11 million people out of the shadows, secure our borders and make sure that this is the nation of opportunity and freedom,'' said Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz. cussion hosted by Bloomberg Government and the National Restaurant Association. ``We have not touched the whole issue of how you get 11 million people
PRADEEP ROY-SINGH B.A. LL.B. M.B.A. J.D. Attorney-at-Law
United States unlawfully. ``Ignoring that reality does not make it go away,'' he said. Lofgren and Diaz-Balart are part of a bipartisan group that has tried
to struggled unsuccessfully so far to produce legislation roughly comparable to the one drafted by the Gang of Eight in the Senate. In their discussions to date, the lawmakers have agreed to a pathway to citizenship over 15 years, two years longer than the Senate legislation provides. Their efforts at an overall compromise have stumbled over details of a guest worker program and other issues. The situation was far different in the Senate, where the Gang of Eight drafted legislation, shepherded it through the Senate Judiciary Committee and then helped negotiate tough border security requirements that helped swell Republican support. As the measure was passing the Senate, members of the Gang
of Eight were urging the House to be ready to compromise. ``You may have different views on different aspects of this issue, but all of us share the same goal, and that is to take 11 million people out of the shadows, secure our borders and make sure that this is the nation of opportunity and freedom,'' said Sen. John McCain, R-Ariz. The bill passed by the Senate devotes $46 billion to border security improvements, including calling for a doubling of the border patrol stationed on the U.S.Mexico border and the completion of 700 miles of fencing. No immigrant currently in the United States illegally could qualify for a permanent resident green card until those border enhancements and others were in place. -AP
Who is an H-1B skilled worker dependent employer-II
Former Assistant StateÂ’s Attorney
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Even for those employers who must resort to the H-1B visa, they may not have to depend on the H-1B visa for too long as one of the provisions in the Hatch amendment will allow a foreign national to apply for adjustment of status even before the priority date becomes current. If the foreign national gets an employment authorization after filing for adjustment of status, it may obviate the need to apply for a renewal of the H-1B status. Finally, BSEOIMA may have unintended consequences for the Indian heritage IT firms, which it seeks to disrupt and put out of business. These firms, besides being forced to file for more green cards, will change their business models and will hire more US workers or will merge with firms that would reduce their dependence on H-1B workers. Thus, in the long run, these firms may be more competitive in the US rather than weakened.
If BSEOIMA does take effect, how will it impact existing H-1B workers? The new recruitment and displacement provisions won't kick in for existing workers. So, even if an employer files an extension for existing employees, these new provisions will not apply even after enactment. On the other hand, the ban on
The whole idea of a temporary visa is to provide employers with flexibility to bring in much needed foreign skilled workers. outplacement will take effect even for existing employees with respect to any application filed after enactment. It would thus be incumbent on employers to start planning
in advance and file labor certifications on behalf of H-1B employees they were in any event planning to file in the future. This would allow a SWDE to become a covered employer and thus be able to file H-1B visas under the more liberal provisions. Still, BSEOIMA has made the H-1B visa, which was already complex, even more maddeningly difficult. The whole idea of a temporary visa is to provide employers with flexibility to bring in much needed foreign skilled workers. BSEOIMA utterly and completely fails in this department, and it remains to be seen whether employers will be able to cope with this new temporary visa regime, or whether the drumbeat for further reform will begin soon after the law's enactment. Concluded * Cyrus D Mehta, may be contacted at 212-425-0555 or info@cyrusmehta.com
July 5, 2013
Classifieds
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CHICAGO COMPANY NEEDS
PERSONAL ASSISTANT A Chicago company is looking for
PERSONAL ASSISTANT. The position will not disturb your present job, Applicant Must be English speaking,computer literate with good typing skills. Age: 18yrs & above can apply. salary is $350 per week. Email at
jameswilsonsales@aol.com for Questions
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India Post
July 5, 2013
SURENDRA ULLAL
CHICAGO: The B96 Summberbash was held on Saturday June 15 as a yearly concert in Bridgeview, IL at Toyota Park which showcases performances from the Nation's top Pop and hip/hop artists. The 2013 Summerbash consisted of acts from NE-YO, Demi Lavato, Macklemore, Ryan Lewis, Avril Lavigne, Afrojack, Cher Lloyd and many more. Prior to the show, The Pre Bash Stage at the B96 Pepsi Summerbash hosted the Boom Entertainment & B96 National DJ Competition, where DJs from across the nation, squared off to be the number one contender to represent their city after submitting their entry videos for selection. After hundreds of entries, five were selected to qualify into the Semi-Finals. The competitors were Kwest (CA), B (IL), SoReal (IL), Midas Touch (TX), and Mr Shaw Sahaj with parents and brother
Indian Youth Sahaj of Chicagoland at DJ Competition
(IL). The Semi-Finals round took place live at Toyota Park in the presence of Celebrity Judges such as DJ Flipside (Jumpsmokers & B96 Mixmaster), Trentino (2013 National Redbull Thre3Style DJ Battle Winner), DJ Speed, Marquee (Jumpsmokers) + many more. The enthused crowd of 5000+ screaming fans applauded the top two contestants remaining. Once the competition was over, one DJ that walked away as winner was Chicago idol, DJ Shaw Sahaj Shah, an Indian youth. Talking to the media, Sahaj Shah said that born in Chicago to Indian origin parents, he was proud to be a Chicagoan. Sahaj had come second in last year competition and he observed "the last year experience helped me prepare better this year and the presence of my family members proved a big motivating factor too." He observed that the stereo type image of Indian Americans "is that of doctors, lawyers, computer professionals good at math, and science and here I am a DJ, reflecting my passion for music. Winning this battle is a way to tell people that we can excel in other areas too." He profusely thanked Boom Entertainment and the entire crew for making this event a success on a grand scale.
50 India Post
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Indian Icon competition hitting new high ASIAN MEDIA USA & SURI SWAMY
CHICAGO: With an all-round approval under its belt during its first audition a month ago at Ashyana Banquet in Downers
IEM President Brij Sharma along with his executive board and Chief Guest Sunil Shah, founder of FIA, started the opening ceremony
memorable moment was a kindergarten boy who sang his entire song without a glitch. It was so cute to see such young kids par-
Participants and audience with IEM Management Team
Grove, the second round of Karaoke singing competition held by Chicago Indian Icon largely for hidden talents among Indian Americans in Chicagoland also met with huge success Launched by the Chicagobased company Indian Event Management Inc (IEM), the second of the three auditions on June 23 had contestants from different suburbs of Chicago, southern Illinois and neighboring states of Wisconsin and Indiana. The program was watched by thousands on the internet in real-time, in the United States and other regions of the world including India and Africa.
ticipating in the CII, a truly historic moment! Pratibha Jairath, the Vice President of IEM, inspired the contestants and spoke about the wonderful mission. She said "We would not have been able to achieve this success if it wasn't for our President Brij Sharma's support". A unique focus is on Group Performance. Pratibha suggested the participants to present creative group items along with their friends so as to contribute to the judging criteria of 'performance' and 'wow factor'. "It gives incomparable opportunity to get into semi-finals where audience voting counts for 50 percent of the scoring units. Bring all your friends to vote for you" she said. In fact, at the second audition, when a group sang "Shola jo Bhadke" in Hawaiian outfits with straw hats and displayed expression and a few dance steps while they were singing, they not only received an enthusiastic applause
drop of images of the legendary Hindi musical icons, high tech cameras to capture and broadcast the events as they would take place, a hall that was acoustically optimal, all of these elements contributed to the making of an ideal place for such an event to take place here in Chicago, and the performers and the audience loved it! The fire of musical-passion is rapidly engulfing many far and wide and the rumor has it that some people are planning to fly from Canada to take part in the third audition of CII. The actress Chinmayee Bhatt and TV personality Saurine Thakkar were the two beautifully dressed Emcees. Raju Bankapur, director of entertainment and planning, walked the audience and participants through the format of the competition. Judges were Hitesh Master, Mani Majumdar, Richard Christian and Vaishali Dhande When viewing the group structure, there are nine different
by lighting the lamp. Brij Sharma was enthusiastic about the success of the first audition. "The magnanimous set up, the quality of participants, the feedback from judges, the interaction from master of ceremonies, attentive audience, and food was all raved about. But, this is just a shadow of what is coming in the future" he said. The second audition brought even more caliber and talent as witnessed by the audience. Prasanjit Guptasarma, Pranjali Desai, Gautam Khanna, Praveen Jaligama, Pratik Munshi and Utpal Munshi were some of the favorites and received standing ovation. Another
Participant Three Judges Hitesh Master, Mani Majumdar and Richard Christian
Shola Jo Bhadke - Nehali Dhutia, Bharat Dhutia & Subhash Singal
from audience, but Nehali Dhutia, her father-in-law Bharat Dhutia and Subhash Singal team became a role model example for Group item presentation. The beautifully lit CII trophy was displayed on the stage for everyone to see and continued true effort from the participants gets the person one step closer to winning the trophy, and being crowned the title of CII for the entire world to see. The professionally set up stage with the back-
categories, namely, under 12 solo, solo male, solo female, duet, and the exciting category of group. There are two separate divisions namely, 13 to 30 and 30+ year age, thus comprising a menu list for the music lovers to choose from. Some take part in multiple categories expressing and displaying their musical singing talents in different dimensions. Brij Shrama announced plans to replicate CII in New York, Atlanta, Los Angles, and San Francisco.
July 5, 2013
India Post 51 www.indiapost.com
Shankar, Ehsaan, Loy rock Bay Area RITU MAHESHWARI India Post News Service
SAN JOSE: American Association of Physicians of Indian Origin (AAPIO) is an umbrella organization for all Indian origin physicians. It has chapters in over 30 cities. It has been acting as glue for all Indian origin physicians for over 30 years. This year's focus area for AAPIO was fight against childhood obesity. As part of annual
fund raiser for the cause cultural event was held on June 30 in San Jose. Dr. Kranthi Achanta, Dr. Hemant Dhingra, Dr. Vijay Tiwari and Dr. Akhil Wadhera were among leading Bay area doctors who made the event in San Jose possible. Shankar, Ehsaan and Loy trio performed to a packed San Jose Performing Arts Center. They gave a stunning performance at the concert. In a refreshing change to local trend, the trio The organizing committee
Shubha Mudgal at her best Asian Media USA
CHICAGO: Padma Shri Shubha Mudgal was at her best while presenting a live concert to a very appreciative classical Indian music lovers at Reva and David Logan Center of the Arts, University of Chicago (UC), as part of the Eye
her own rendering of a poem by Kabir, the ever popular medieval saint of Banaras, who fostered communal harmony through his teachings and exemplary life. Patent attorney Shiv Naimpally had flown all the way from Austin, Texas, in the morning just to hear Mudgal, and was returning
(L to R) Aneesh Pradhan (tabla), Shubha Mudgal (vocal), and (harmonium)
on India Festival (EIF) 2013. Introduced by EIF President Anuradha Behari as one of the foremost Hindustani classical vocalists, Mudgal sought to help the cause of communal harmony. She was accompanied by Aneesh Pradhan on the tabla and Sudhir Nayak on the harmonium. Her concert officially marked the closing, at the UC Smart Museum of Art, of the exhibition on "The Sahmat Collective: Art and Activism in India since 1989," which was inaugurated on Feb 13, 2013. Mudgal began with a long khayal in the afternoon rag Multani and continued with two thumris of which the first was in rag Khamaaj. She concluded with
home the same evening. The Sahmat exhibition was devoted to the efforts of intellectuals, activists, and artists of diverse religious and ethnic backgrounds to counter the growth
of communal forces and resulting attempts to rationalize and even legitimize violence. Mudgal has been awarded the 1996 National Film Award for Best Non-Feature Film Music Direction for the movie Amrit Beej ("Seed of Immortality"), the 1998 Gold Plaque Award for Special Achievement in Music at the 34th Chicago International Film Festival for her music in the film Dance of the Wind (1997) and the Padma Shri in 2000. Mudgal, a disciple of Pandit Ramashreya Jha, received training in thumri from Naina Devi. In the 1990s, she started experimenting with other forms of music, including pop and fusion The concert was jointly presented by Eye on India, the Smart Museum of Art and Natya Dance Theatre, with additional support provided by the University of Chicago's Committee on Southern Asian Studies and the Reva and David Logan Center for the Arts.
Audience listening to Shubha Mudgal at the UC Logan Center for the Arts.
started the performance at 7pm, Bay area is fast becoming a culright on schedule. They pertural hub and melting pot of all formed all the hit songs that kept discerning and quality musical the audience spellbound. Some events. of the hit songs that enthralled Such events that combine art the audience were from "Dil with fund raising for a cause Chahta hai", "Dus" and "Kal Ho serve the dual purpose of bringNa Ho" ing community together culturDr. Jayesh Shah, President ally as well as promoting well beAAPI said, "It took a long time to ing and health. plan the series of SEL concerts. Shankar, Ehsaan and Loy performed in nine cities, with San Jose being last leg of the tour. AAPI's focus this year is fight against child obesity and AAPI is gearing up to take up the cause in a big way. Being able to fight child obesity will be like "an ounce of prevention is worth pound of cure. The event combined entertainment along with educational seminar in nine cities." Such large scale events show significantly increasing influence of Indian community Shankar Mahadevan on the stage in US in all spheres of life.
Horoscope
52 India Post
July 5, 2013
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Your Weekly Future by Pandit Parashar
JULY 5 TH - JULY 11 TH , 2013 (March 21 to April 20)
S
aturn in seventh sign will make you work extra hard from now and on. You will need to develop more patience. Soon you will reap rich rewards for the hard work being performed this week. Strong wordings will get the job done and you will recover what belonged to you in first place. Eye sight may start to give some trouble.
(July 23 to August 22)
P
eople involved in research and development work will see sudden success. An important person will make an offer that will be hard to turn down. Finances issues will start resolving and soon you will be free of many small debts. You may come out with flying colors in a c highly competitive exam. Spouse will give many good ideas.
(April 21 to May 20)
R
unning around will not go waste but you will end up making useful contacts that are going to help you in near future. People in business will see new clients and business growing this week. You will be writing a big check to government also this week. Any relationship started at this point can become permanent in time to come.
(August 23 to September 22)
Y
ou may find it difficult to defend your self properly in any ongoing legal matter. You may be spending more time in office or away from home in other state. You will need to overcome one more hurdle before deal is finalized. Major changes in career just around the corner. You may be in touch with an old confidant for advice.
(May 21 to June 20)
B
ank balance will grow and from now and on expenses will come down a lot too. You may be suggested minor surgery as a permanent solution to overcome an old health issue. You will come across an interesting personality during the course of a business meeting. Children will finalize a short vacation. You may dispose off some stocks.
(September 23 to October 22)
O
pportunity will come from distant place and will be hard to ig nore. Confusion will clear and you will see lots of money coming your way. An important issue involving your child may take little longer to settle. All meetings will go well and you will get the assurance quickly. Value of stocks recently purchased will appreciate considerably.
(June 21 to July 22)
Y
ou will start to feel better and more confident. There will be several fortunate developments in life. You may be offered a dream opportunity in career. Since the luck is on side, you will get many jobs done without any difficulty. You will recover money long overdue and may dispose off some stocks for a decent profit.
(October 23 to November 22)
Y
ou may end up just renewing the contract for the time being. Property related papers will get finalized too. Time is ripe to cash those profit making stocks. Some one in the organization will move out making room for your promotion. You will meet few political figures at the party. Do not take a chance with changing weather. (November 23 to December 22)
L
ong cherished desires can get fulfilled if you are ready to pay a price. A close friend will call to seek your advice and may offer a part in the venture. Some one close will make wrong allegation just to put you down. You will be slowly working towards an upcoming trip also. You will make final payment on couple of old bills this week. (December 22 to January 19)
O
pportunity will be offered on a silver platter. Do not let past scare you. Take your chance, it's a sure thing. You will write a check to government but hold it for some time before mailing it out. Some of you may replace your old vehicle with a newer and expensive model. You may be seriously thinking of legal action to prove your point. (January 20 to February 18)
Y
ou will go on an important trip. You will need to pour in more money into your business or project. Gambling instincts will surface and you will not be scared to take few risks this week. Rewards will be huge. Some of you will start shopping for an upcoming trip. Drive carefully and look out for traffic cops, small error will cost you. (February 19 to March 20)
Y
ou will be able to control and trim your expenses. People in business will get rid of old and find new and better suppliers. You will be still double minded about making an offer on a property. Some of you will be taking a break from busy schedule and go on a trip with family soon. It will be better to dispose off money making stocks.
Pandit Parashar, CEO & COO Astro Scan USA is also available for individual consultations. He can be reached at: parashar@parashar.com
510-886-4370 website: www.parashar.com
Philosophy
July 5, 2013
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Page Sponsored by Sahanis JULIE THAYER
U
.G. doesn't know who or what he is or what effect he is having on others, nor even if he is enlightened. He says if you are enlightened, you can't know it. I think I am beginning to understand his desire to demonstrate to the world, or to whoever is interested, that what happened to him, his return to the natural state has no religious content at all, has nothing to do with holiness or holy men, or the great vastness, or anything. It is just his body functioning in its perfect, unique way, doing what comes naturally to it. This is a major message, as most people are so obsessed with becoming, self-improvement, seeking salvation and the like, always with the assumption that there is something wrong. U.G. says there is nothing wrong except our idea that something is wrong. On the other hand, he says the world, or at least human life is probably doomed, that its annihilation is practically assured. But that the process might be slowed down by the recognition of mutual terror, that killing one's neighbor is killing oneself. This might seem to imply that there is something wrong, but to the contrary, there is no way for us to know what Nature intends. The human mind may be in itself, in its very evolution towards inappro-
I
n an extraordinary interview in a book about his life entitled 'Nothing Ever Happened' by David Godman, Papaji talks about his teaching and the people who received it…or not. David: "You used to give experiences to a lot of people. Why did you do it if you knew that the effect would not be permanent?" Papaji: "I did it to get rid of the leeches who were sticking to me, never allowing me to rest or be by myself. It was a very good way of getting rid of all these leeches in a polite way. I knew that in doing this I was giving lollipops to the ignorant and innocent, but this is what these people wanted. When I tried to give $100 bills to them, they rejected them. They thought that they were just pieces of paper. So I gave them lollipops instead. David: Many of the people you gave lollipops to left Lucknow thinking that they were enlightened. Does the fact that they accepted the lollipop and left indicate that they were not worthy to receive the $100 bills? Papaji: "If one is not a holy person, one is not worthy to receive the real teaching. Many people think that they have at-
priate usage, a self-destruct mechanism reflecting the larger picture that what is born must die. Including, ultimately, a species. I experience U.G., as most people do once you get past his rejecting, negative first impression to seekers, as compassionate and loving, yet impersonal. He would slash out those adjectives, but then I would be left with the realization that there are no
human life. He gives endlessly of himself and it is touching yet overwhelming to be around him. I feel fortunate indeed and thank God my neurosis didn't keep me from making the moves I did to be with him, like offering my apartment, coming out here. Moorty also mentioned in the car that the very quality that U.G. emphasizes about you is the qual-
Krishnamurti, on the mind and why we have it if it is against nature. U.G. says it is perhaps part of nature's self-destruct, realigning principal. In the afternoon Douglas, who was with U.G. in Switzerland when he had his Calamity in 1967, began describing this time from memory. How he had been with U.G. when he went to hear the J. Krishnamurti lecture in Saanan that seemed to
Enlightenment has nothing to do with holiness
U.G. Krishnamurti
words to describe this man adequately. The words are only pointers to what he is, to his impact. Terry described him as a Colossus and that sounds about right. Whatever it is, it is immense and volcanic and silent and Plutonic, destructive and tender and delicate - he is a beautiful man with no pretenses or affectations. His speech and repetition of stories and metaphors are the manifestations of his energy, his way of responding to the stimulus of tained the final state of full and complete liberation. They have fooled themselves, and they have fooled many other people but they have not fooled me. A person in this state is like a fake coin. It may look like the real thing. It can be passed around and used by ignorant people who use it to buy things with. People who have it in their pocket can
There is nothing wrong except our idea that something is wrong. On the other hand, he says the world, or at least human life is probably doomed, that its annihilation is practically assured. ity that will become unraveled, and in my case it is perhaps his saying over and over again, "She's so efficient...." U.G. called at 7:30 yesterday morning. I was in the shower and when I called him back right after, he apologized for disturbing me! These manners are so impeccable and simplicity so striking in a man with such fire and power. I taped some good conversations between U.G. and Terry on sex and Bob and U.G. on J. in fake experiences. I have never passed on the truth to those whom I could see were fake coins. These people may look like gold and they may glitter like gold, but they have no real value. There are many people who can put on a show and fool other people into believing they are enlightened." "Why does hearing the truth only work in a small percentage
set things off, U.G.'s realization that he was already in the state J.K. was describing. How Valentine thought U.G. was dying and called Douglas, panicked, and how Douglas went into U.G.'s room and found him rigid, bent like a bow, but past the point of dying. He said the siddhi, the spiritual power in the room, was so intense it nearly knocked him over. Excerpted from 'Travels with UG.' The 95th birth anniversary of U.G. will be observed on July 9 out?" Papaji: "Nobody is worthy to receive them. Because it has been my experience that everybody has proved to be arrogant and egotistic… I don't think anyone is worthy to receive them." Papaji's insistence that a seeker of enlightenment be qualified is in harmony with the teachings of traditional Vedanta. Why should
Nobody has been worthy of receiving the whole Truth
Papaji
boast of having a genuine coin, but it is not real. But it has no value. When it is finally discovered to be a fake, the person who is circulating it, claiming that it is real, is subject to the penalties of the law. "In the spiritual world, the law of karma catches up and deals with all people who are trafficking
“It was a very good way of getting rid of all these leeches in a polite way. I knew that in doing this I was giving lollipops to the ignorant and innocent, but this is what these people wanted.” of cases? The simple answer to that is that only a small percentage of people are interested in the truth." David: "Many people have heard you say, 'I have not given my final teachings to anyone'. What are these final teachings, and why are you not giving them
one be qualified? Because enlightenment…the knowledge that one is whole and complete actionless Awareness and not this body mind…will only arise in a pure mind. Excerpted from 'The Horse's Mouth - An essay on the 'Lineage' Game' by James Swartz
If you seek the grace of God with your whole heart,Then you may be assured that the grace of God is also seeking you. -Sri Ramana Maharshi
Once you realize that the road is the goal and that you are always on the road, not to reach a goal, but to enjoy its beauty and its wisdom, life ceases to be a task and becomes natural and simple, in itself an ecstasy. - Sri Nisargadatta Maharaj
We tried reasoning our way to Him: it did not work; but the moment we gave up, no obstacle remained - Sufi Poet Hakim Sanai
Does the rose have to do something? No, the purpose of a rose is to be a rose. Your purpose is to be yourself. -Thich Nhat Hanh
I, Lalla, willingly entered through the garden-gate, There, O Joy! I found Shiva united with Shakti; There and then I got absorbed drinking at the Lake of Nectar. Immune to harm am I, dead as I am to the world, though still alive. - 14th century Kashmiri Poet-Seer Lalla
You Insure all your Valuables, all are replaceable except YOU! So Insure yourself FIRST. Call Sahanis, (Arish, Priya or Shiv) for your Insurance needs 718- 271- 0453. Serving for last 35 yrs
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Disaster mis-management: Nature's fury and our failure D SUBA CHANDRAN
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et us get our questions correct in analyzing disaster management. Do the natural disasters kill more? Or our failure to manage the disasters increases the casualty rate? Any analysis of disaster management in our part of the world entire South Asia, starting from the earthquakes in Kashmir to the recent floods (flash or otherwise), including the cloudburst in Ladakh, floods in Orissa and Pakistan, cyclones in Myanmar and the building collapse in Bangladesh, will reveal, not many people got killed in the first day, or the second. No doubt, the immediate aftermath has always been gory and heart rending, given the visual expression in our electronic and social media, what really kills (in literal and figurative terms) is what happens during the next ten days or two weeks. Clearly, natural disasters per se do not kill people in South Asia in large numbers. It is our failure to manage the disasters in terms of immediate rescue and the subsequent relief and rehabilitation kills more. While we may not be able to fight Nature, we can certainly increase our successes in managing the disasters, by learning from our collective failures in South Asia at sub-regional, national and re-
some NGO work. We as an individual and a society have externalized these warnings and activism, as happening elsewhere. Given the extent of human and material damage, and its impact on the economy of families and the nation, there has to be more focus on natural disasters and management in our curriculum. Lack of awareness at the societal level is a major reason for our failure to be well prepared to meet disaster exigencies. While there are not many initiatives on creating this awareness, whatever is available, we do not take them seriously. When was the last fire drill we had in our building or in our environment? When was the last evacuation plan we worked of an emergency, even at the mental level? Forget about preparing for the disasters, why is that, we don't even give way to an ambulance vehicle that is demanding our attention on the road, asking for way? Second, an analysis of how well prepared are our State and the Agencies. In India, at the national level, there is National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) constituted by a statute. Founded in 2005 and headed by none other than the Prime Minister, the NDMA which is the apex body of managing disasters, promises us in the home page of its website: We will ensure your safety.
Lack of awareness at the societal level is a major reason for our failure to be well prepared to meet disaster exigencies. While there are not many initiatives on creating this awareness, whatever is available, we do not take them seriously gional levels. So, what lessons could be learnt? How can we manage our disasters better in future, and reduce the number of casualties? Clearly, these lessons should be at individual, societal, sub-regional, State and regional levels. First, an analysis of disaster prevention and preparation: can the disasters be prevented? Environmentalists and ecologists at the global and regional levels have been warning repeatedly about our abuse of nature. For soil erosion to sea rising, multiple effects of climate change and its disastrous fallouts have been researched well. Unfortunately, the above warnings and research has not moved beyond the books, reports and
What has been the record of the NDMA so far in fulfilling its promise in a disaster situation so far, since 2005? True, it may not be useful to shift the blame for failure to one institution, when the responsibility is shared by many of us in managing the disasters. But having created a huge institution and given an important mandate to protect the people in a disaster situation, it is imperative to have an independent critique of this institution - in terms of what have been the Standard Operating Procedures, and how far they have been implemented in a disaster situation. And more importantly, what has been the net result? The NDMA at the national level is supposed to have been followed up by every State with its own
SDMA. This is where the NDMA is facing a serious challenge, to have partners at the State; it is the State, which has a huge network from the district headquarters to the village administration. The NDMA will not be able to reach directly to every village in a given disaster environment. This is where the State governments have to augment their disaster management authorities. While funding is an issue, the larger problems include the capacity and right attitude in creating these SDMAs. While there is a Disaster Response Force at the national level the NDRF, what is the status of the SDRFs at the State levels? Even in those States where there is a SDMA and SDRF, how big are they? If the numbers are an issue, attitude and enthusiasm within these institutions, especially at the leadership levels are another issue. Serving in these institutions should not be seen as punishment posting; nor should we crowd these institutions with retired bureaucrats. There is enough young blood in this country's bureaucracy both at the national and state levels, who can do a better job. While the seniors do have the experience, let us train our young officers to take charge in managing the disasters. Two photographs uploaded in the Social media in recent months will explain the above issue: the Indian Prime Minister "visiting" the disaster areas by an aeroplane and the Thailand Prime Minister helping flood victims standing in knee deep waters! In fact, in the Indian context, we should request our leaders to not "visit" the disaster site; we end up wasting our limited manpower in securing their safety, than actually using more productively in helping the victims. Third, and most importantly, is related to how the society could help the State in a disaster situation. The NDMA does talk about State-Society partnership in managing the disasters. The biggest strength that the society has is youth bulge - almost in all parts of the country and in rest of South Asia as well. If one has to observe the passion in the Facebook, one could reasonably conclude that this force, a potent weapon in fighting disaster is under used or un-utilized. This is where our NSS and NCC, and their multiple variants in schools and colleges could be made use of in an effective manner. The writer is Director, IPCS
Immigration woes
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mmigration was not a big issue as long as western economies were doing well. But with their own economies in doldrums, many in the West have come to believe their problems have been exacerbated by immigrants who are eating into their welfare programs and the country's resources. Not only in America, even in Europe, particularly the United Kingdom this sentiment is taking hold that to revive the economy and provide more jobs to the existing citizens, immigration has to be curbed, particularly illegal immigration. That explains why the United Kingdom has recently introduced a controversial new visa bond scheme that would force visitors from "high risk" countries such as India to pay ÂŁ3,000 (Rs 2.7 lakh) for a six-month visa, which they will forfeit if they overstay in that country. What surprises is that the UK has clubbed India with countries like Nigeria, Ghana, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka in the latest policy decision. What has to be understood is that it is illegal immigration which is the focus of these measures. And India is the origin of a large proportion of illegal immigrants. It is time India also did something to curb illegal immigration. In the US, however, with a rare bipartisan majority the Senate approved measures that would grant citizenship to an estimated 11 million undocumented immigrants. The vote of 68 senators supporting the final bill included 13 Republicans. The measure now goes to the House of Representatives where a Republican majority is promising to make its passage difficult. Still it is a significant advance on tackling a major issue confronting the Obama administration. The legislation seeks to provide a gradual path to citizenship for those who entered the country illegally while establishing tougher border controls to prevent future unauthorized entry. The Senate approved bill however has alarmed Indian outsourcing companies which will be harmed by its provisions. US-based multinational firms would have a better shot at large outsourcing contracts coming up for renewal. The bill has provisions that make it more difficult and expensive for Indian software exporters to remain competitive in a crowded market. What worries them is the provision that restricts companies with over 15% US staff on visas from placing their employees at client locations. Indian IT providers see the legislation as biased and favoring US rivals, which have expanded aggressively in India but continue to have large workforce in the US, making them relatively immune to the harsh provisions in the bill. Since the bill has still to be passed by the House, Indian companies are hoping that the last word has not been said on the provisions relating to outsourcing. Their hope hinges on that fact that the House of Representatives' judiciary committee approved an immigration bill focused on high-skilled workers that is favorable to the software industry. The House is also considering its own version of a comprehensive immigration reform bill where the provisions relating to work visas are less restrictive and punitive compared to the Senate's version. The Senate version of the bill mandates higher fees for additional visa applications from companies where over 50% of US staff are already on a temporary work visa. Such companies will also be prevented from placing their staff at client locations, making it harder for Indian IT firms which depend on such a model in the US. India's IT industry body Nasscom is still hopeful that the final contour of the bill would be much more balanced than it is at present. As a reminder to the lawmakers who passed the bill in its present form in the Senate, Nasscom President Som Mittal pointed out, "It fails to recognize the vital services global IT services companies deliver; the innovation and competitiveness they have spurred in thousands of US businesses, and the investments these global IT services companies make in the US." All hopes are now invested in the House of Representatives version of the bill.
July 5, 2013
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