AV 11th October 2014

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London celebrates Gandhiji's 145th birth anniversary

First & Foremost Asian Weekly in Europe

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London's Regional Pravasi Bharatiya Divas convention is now sold out See Page 18

Ed Miliband visits Navratri celebrations

by Hindus

Karnataka HC denies bail to Jayalalithaa

See Page 16

See Page 24

Modi wields broom to launch 'Swachh Bharat Abhiyan'

Lord Noon amongst Labour Grandees up in arms

See Page 8

VOL 43. ISSUE 23

Let noble thoughts come to us from every side

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11th October to 17th October 2014

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Modi invited to visit UK on January 30

After the successful visit of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to US, the Cameron government has invited Modi to visit London on 30th January 2015. The British government is hoping that if Modi

Continued on page 26

Shrien saga:

the final chapter

The High Court of Cape Town was visibly moved when they saw the police footage of Anni Dewani, late wife of millionaire Shrien Dewani, lying dead in the backseat of a discarded vehicle. The 28 year-old engineer and part-time model was still wearing her black cocktail dress and high evening heels which were smattered with blood. This was a graphic enunciation that the long-awaited trial of slippery businessman Shrien Dewani had finally begun. It has been a drawn-out extradition process to get Shrien, accused of organising the murder of his wife, to come under judicial scrutiny. He has claimed

Shrien Dewani

that he was too mentally unhealthy to testify due to depression and post-traumatic stress disorder.

With Cape Town's second most senior judge Jeanette Traverso presiding over the trial, Dewani has now taken his seat in the courtroom a full four years after his wife's

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Cable India-bound to resolve student visa issues Also to tackle ethnic diversity at top of British companies

Rupanjana Dutta Britain's Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills, Dr Vince Cable, will be visiting India from Friday 10 October till Wednesday 15 October, to resolve visa issues for Indian students, wanting to study in Britain.

Continued on page 8

Anni Dewani

9 civilians killed in Pak firing shooting. Before this, three South African nationals had already been convicted for their part in the murder including taxi driver Zola Tongo with whom Dewani was said to be quite familiar before the incident.

Continued on page 14

A day after the ceasefire violations that killed nine civilians and injured 25, Pakistan continued fire at as many as 40 Border Security Force (BSF) posts late on Monday, reports said.

According to the report, a heavy round of firing was aimed at BSF

posts in Kanachak, Pargwal, Arnia and RS Pura sector. A defence Continued on page 26

2

UK

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 11th October 2014

again, no shortage of motivation!

Smita Tharoor Smita Tharoor grew up in secular India which taught her the value of tolerance and an appreciation of difference. She promotes diversity and cross-cultural competence in line with E&D strategies. Her experience working in the UK and India gives her a unique advantage in understanding the expectations and needs of the different cultures and clients.

She is the founder of Tharoor Associates, a training, coaching and organisational development company, based in London.

1) What is your current position?

Founder and Director of Tharoor Associates. At Tharoor Associates, we work in creative partnership with leaders in companies, government bodies and non-profit organisations to help them build and lead highperforming teams. We are a small group of experienced professionals who bring our expertise in Training, Coaching and Organisational Development to help you achieve specific goals for your organisation. What sets us apart is our unique approach based on the unconscious bias, NLP, story-telling and power of the narrative.

2) What are your proudest achievements?

Bringing up my three sons, aged 24, 22 and 16. They are the future and I’m proud to say that I continue to learn from them and grow with them. I work

with MBA students (tomorrow’s leaders) as well as senior executives in corporate and public sector organisations. I work in India and the UK and yet there is nothing more challenging than working with your own children and setting them on their own personal path of discovery

date?

My husband, Seamus Murphy who believed in me and supported me in my decision to start my own company at a time the country was in recession.

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

Obstacles are excuses. Every career is cyclical, as is life. We have ups and downs and it’s how we deal with the downs that will result in the ups.

6) What is the best aspect about your current role?

To provide training/coaching that genuinely makes a difference to someone in their path to self development and growth. To meet new people at every course who challenge me and from whom I am constantly learning.

To be able to work both in the UK and India. To create a culture that facilitates personal change and help people understand how their roles and processes affect others inside and outside the organisation.

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

7) And the worst?

No guarantee of salary – then

3) What inspires you?

Honesty, Fairness, learning from things I face in my daily life, not taking anything for granted, continuing to be excited about the world around me.

8) What are your long term goals?

I feel very strongly about the Unconscious Bias. Being clear about who you are and what you want allows you to be yourself and will help you get what you want. Otherwise, you will never get beyond obstacles that are most often created by yourself. My ethos is to empower the learner to understand themselves better.

At Tharoor Associates we understand the importance of stories - both personal and corporate - and their role in defining an organisation's identity and practices. Harnessing the power of your story, we help you become more self aware and in tune with the unique capacities and potential of your organisation. This in turn allows you to make positive and dynamic changes, communicate your goals and mission and tap into the deep well potential of you and your employees.

I would love to see more organisations have a culture that supports all employees become more aware of their Unconscious Bias. This will help the growth of an organisation immeasurably.

9) If you were Prime Minister, what one aspect would you change?

The education system with regard to a foreign language. All children should compulsorily learn two modern foreign languages until Year 9 and then choose one of them for GCSE. I went to an English Medium School, Loreto House( run by Irish Catholic nuns) in Calcutta and had to study Bengali and Hindi until Year 9 with Hindi for the final ICSE. Speaking only one language is a disadvantage in today’s world, and deprives you of so many other experiences.

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

I would love a few weeks break on this wonderful desert island.

But soon I would yearn for my friends and family and all the things a city like London offers.

So my wish would be to be marooned with the well-known Arab navigator Ahmad ibn Mājid. He was born in 1421 and it is said he assisted Vasco da Gama to find his way from Africa to India. He was also a thinker, poet and writer. While we have philosophical conversations, we would build a raft that he would navigate to get us back to the world of people and ideas. The world where an Arab helped a Christian to achieve his ambition is the world I want to live in.

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COMMENT

Narendra Modi at the White House

“There comes a tide in the affairs of men/ Which taken at the flood, leads on to fortune……”

Shakespeare’s memorable lines come readily to mind when considering Prime Minister Narendra Modi meteoric rise from tea seller to provincial politician, chief minister, and evolving international statesman. He has scarcely put a foot wrong since his arrival as BJP leader and the thunderous BJP victory in India’s general election earlier this year.

He has proved his mettle as a superb communicator, political strategist and tactician, outthinking and outflanking his opponents into a vainglorious defeat. His American odyssey was an demonstration of his ability to take the sternest challenge, on unfamiliar ground, in his stride. He was in his element in New York’s Central Park and Madison Square Garden, as he addressed vast crowds; he handled his encounter with America’s top business heads with rare aplomb and deftness, impressing men and women not easily impressed and notoriously hard to please. Having surmounted these hurdles, he entered the White House, the citadel of American power and authority, for a meeting with President Barack Obama, pressing the reset button on the stalled Indo-US relationship and getting it moving again. Mr Modi, very much a rising star, grasped his opportunity; he dwelt on the themes of the India story (as he saw it), buoyed by the spectacular success of the country’s Mars Orbiter Mission, but not omitting to dilate on the stupendous obstacles of poverty, deprivation, and social disadvantage that needed to be overcome before India could reach the sunlit uplands of an economically developed nation. On message, he said India was open for business, that its aspirations, while ambitious, were not threatening to a stable global order, that its time-tested values were rooted in freedom of thought and expression, of cultural pluralism, the rule of law and democratic governance. In short, Mr Modi exuded confidence, notwithstanding the daunting obstacles that lay ahead for India and himself. This sense of direction reflected his robust optimism about his country’s prospects going forward. The same cannot be said for Mr Obama, clearly a beleaguered president and serial interventionist with seven wars in Muslim countries to his name. His latest foray against the

Islamic State of Syria, Iraq and Lebanon (ISIL) promises to be as bloody, long and indeterminate as the kindred catastrophes visited upon the Greater Middle East, from Afghanistan to Libya, with no detectable endgame or exit strategy on the radar.

The Indian angle to the mayhem was cogently explained by Brahma Chellaney on the edit page of The Hindu newspaper. He writes: “The US has also contributed to India’s terrorism problem…..large portions of the CIA’s multibillion-dollar military aid for the Afghan rebels in the 1980s were siphoned off by the Pakistan Inter Services Intelligence (IS), to trigger insurgencies in Kashmir and Punjab……

America’s continued [cosseted] ties with the Pakistani military and its ISI spies” have done little for regional peace and stability. Paradoxically, the US and India are on the same page apropos of the current situation in Afghanistan. As elucidated on this page before, issues pertaining to bilateral trade, investment, trouble-free market access and much else in the field, plus greater educational exchanges and science and technology cooperation dominated the Modi-Obama conversation and the India-US delegation-level talks. Intelligence sharing on jihadi terror networks was also discussed and its implementation will be worked out in the weeks and months to come. Mr Modi’s tactful warning that there could be no meaningful distinction between “moderate” and “extremist” jihadis (as is the wont in Washington) was code for much that has gone wrong (and continues to go wrong) with US policy.

Consider US Vice President Joe Biden’s explosive admission that America’s allies such as Turkey, Saudi Arabia and the Gulf sheikhdoms were responsible for arming jihadi groups, in the hope that the Assad regime in Syria could be overthrown.

Yet, confusion worse confounded, these self-same allies constitute the core of the US-led coalition in the war against ISIL! Truth is a full blown Indo-US strategic relationship at this stage is unfeasible; but this does not preclude a calibrated dialogue on areas where there is a recognizable convergence of national interests between the two sides. Realism rather than wishful thinking lies at the core of the Modi-Obama vision statement published in the Washington Post and The Hindu. It provides a viable roadmap to the future.

India’s Mars mission proved to a first-time success, and the cheapest on record. Why so? One major reason was that home-grown technologies were prioritized over expensive foreign imports. Second, the salaries paid to the large corpus of Indian scientists and engineers were modest by American and European standards. Third, the Indian project was kept simple, unlike NASA’s bigger Maven satellite.

India’s Mangalayaan carried a smaller payload by far.

Briton’s top space scientist, Professor Andrew Coates, who will be a principal investigator on Europe’s Mars rover in 2018, said of the Indian project: “They’ve kept it small. The payload weighs only 15kg. Compare that with the complexity in the payload in Maven and that will explain a lot of things about the cost. Of course, that reduced complexity suggests it won’t be as scientifically capable, but India has been smart in targeting some really important areas that will complement what others are doing.”

For instance, Mangalayaan is equipped with an instrument that will try to measure methane in the atmosphere. This is one of the foremost topics in present-day Mars research. Earth’s atmosphere contains billions of tonnes of methane, the vast majority of it originating from microbes found in organisms in the digestive tracts of animals. Hence the speculation that some methane-producing bugs, or methanogens could perhaps exist on Mars if they lived underground away from the planet’s harsh surface conditions. So,

despite Mangalayaan’s small payload, it will actually address some of the biggest questions at the Red Planet. Western scientists are excited also to have the Indian probe on station. The Indian satellite’s measurements of other atmospheric components will dovetail well with Maven and the observations being made by Europe’s Mars Express. “It means we will be getting three-point measurements, which is tremendous,” opines Professor Coates. This will enable scientists to better understand how the planet lost the bulk of its atmosphere billions years ago, and determine what sort of climate it could have once had, and whether or not it was conducive to life. And so to the concluding assessment of Mangalayaan and its works. The familiar handwringing and breast-beating wails of self-styled social activists, much given to deploring the financial waste. They argue that the money could have been better spent ameliorating want and poverty. This is specious exhibitionism of casuistic cant. It’s a position that takes no account of the role of science and technology in improving human lives down the ages. Could India have effectively tackled food scarcity without the Green Revolution which doubled and trebled wheat and rice yields to meet the needs of an expanding population?

Space activity is a wealth generator through new, derivative technologies and services. It contributes immeasurably to the country’s economic strength, is a guarantor of India’s future development.

The Delhi Metro, which was opened to the public a little more than a decade ago and has expanded phenomenally since, has been ranked second among 18 international metro systems for customer satisfaction, according to a survey by the Global Benchmarking Groups, NOVA and CoMet. The Delhi Metro along with the London DLR [not to be confused with the London Underground, which was also graded, but got a lower rating] and Bangkok were the three best performers. Delhi Metro commuters rated ’availability,’ ‘reliability’ and ‘crowding’

as their three most priority areas. The Delhi Metro has lived up to public expectations. It has a high quantum of the best Japanese technology; its management system put in place by its first head, the peerless, E. Sreedharan, has turned out be a model for other metro systems coming up across India, and it has been a life-changing experience for the citizens of India’s sprawling capital, where travel from corner of the city to a far-flung destination was a purgatory best avoided, if possible. The gleaming, high-tech Metro is now Delhi’s blessing, pride and joy.

Evaluating the science of the Mars mission

Delhi Metro second in customer satisfaction

3 Feelings are like children. You don't want to let them drive the car but you don't want to shut them in the trunk either

- From the film "Thanks For Sharing" (2013)

The Rude Indian - we won’t wait in line - to hell with your queues

My speech at the House of Lords Europe India Business Forum, hosted by Baroness Verma, Chaired by Vijay Goel: As I look around this room I am reminded at just how rude are Indians. Just despicably rude. I recall as a child in the 1980s reading the Sunday Times Rich List, and there in the top 10 among all the English names like the Duke of Westminster was an Indian name – Hinduja.

How dare you Mr Hinduja?

You come to this country as a guest and without anyone’s permission just jump into the Rich List. I mean some of these natives had taken generations to get in there and you not only jump in there but stay there to this day when all the others have gone and changed many times over.

It is because of you that people like me decided to go into business. We too thought if that Indian can do it, so can I. You and the other Indian business people like you are to blame for countless businesses who started up because they too aspired, succeeded, employed, profited.

Or you in the audience Mr Kapil Dev. How rude to go and win the World Cup? Did no one tell you you are not supposed to just go and barge in and beat the West Indies? They were undefeated, and you come along and not only beat them but with your pathetic team total of 183 runs, humiliate them! You take a catch running backwards just to show off how good you are. How dare you?

How rude to make us Indians think, at the home of cricket, at Lords, that we own this sport. We are the champions of the world, and can beat anyone at anything? How rude is that?

And you sitting there in front of me Mr Anil Aggarwal of Vedanta. I look at the market cap of your company.

How rude are you to just come from Indian and immediately your company was one of the 100 largest in the UK – in the FTSE 100. Do you not know that some of these British companies have taken generations to get there?

No one told you to wait politely in line? You Indians never queue do you? Always pushing in, jumping ahead. No manners. So rude.

Or you Baroness Verma – for God’s sake a Minister in the Government. How dare you. You don’t see any bloody white people in the Indian Cabinet – so what right do you have taking their Ministerial jobs in this country.

Coming over from the Punjab and making yourself at home. And not just any Ministry – no – a Minister in the one Ministry which is to do with the survival of the Human Race – Climate Change. Should you at least not have been Minister for Ethnic Minority problems? So rude.

Anyway.

I speak to you on the day a small space vehicle orbits a distant red planet. That vehicle was launched by a country that did it on its first attempt and at one tenth the cost of its peers. India is that country and joins the very exclusive club of nations to have undertaken deep space travel.

From sport, to space. From Government to Business – Indian are just not going to wait in line and be polite.

Watch out world – heck, watch out Universe!

ASIAN VOICE is published by Asian Business Publications Ltd Karma Yoga House, 12 Hoxton Market, (Off Coronet Street) London N1 6HW. Tel: 020 7749 4080 Fax: 020 7749 4081 Email: aveditorial@abplgroup.com © Asian Business Publications www.abplgroup.com AsianVoiceNewsweekly

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MIDLANDS VOICE

Family and nation mourn execution of volunteer by Islamic State terrorists

4

Leicester-based aid volunteer Alan Henning was beheaded by IS terrorists on the night of 3rd October.

Co-worker Majid Freeman was volunteering with Henning last Christmas when his friend was taken hostage.

The two were bringing aid to Syria where it was Henning's fourth mission.

Henning was a taxi-driver who 'went on several humanitarian missions to Syria after witnessing first-hand the devastating effects of war on innocent civilians.'

'Alan was a very courageous, selfless individual who always tried to help others' gushed Freeman. Suleman Nagdi, spokesman for the Federation of Muslim Organisations, said: 'If reports about the horrific murder of Alan Henning

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 11th October 2014

tion later that night, just hours after the demonstration. Mr Khan said 'vigils such as the one held in Leicester must continue (…) we must carry on having these public demonstrations in the name of Alan Henning.

He must not die in vain.

The people must stand up and stand together to show that the killing must stop.'

Henning's wife had also appealed for the release of her husband earlier in the week saying quite simply 'he is innocent.' She said the family was trying to reach her husband's captors after hearing an audio message where he was begging for his life.

David Cameron said: 'the murder of Alan Henning is absolutely abhorrent, senseless, com-

Majid Freeman, Alan Henning

are proven to be true then we are indeed most saddened and heartbroken'.

Freeman and Nagdi joined about 40 others at Leicester Clock Tower for a vigil arranged by teacher Riaz Khan that called for Henning's release. People held posters and staged a one-minute silence.

Freeman discovered the video of Henning's execu-

are Krishna Hare Krrishna Krishna Krishna Hare Hare Hare Rama Hare Rama Rama Rama Hare Hare

Diwaali

The 71 year-old Scottish comedian discovered that his maternal great-grandmother had been a British woman who was born in Bangalore, and, that further back in his ancestral line, he also had some Indian blood.

The BBC One programme 'Who do you think you are' went to India to follow the steps of his maternal greatgreat-grandfather, Daniel Doyle, who fought in the Royal Horse Artillery of India in the 19th century.

Doyle was promoted for good conduct but was also an alcoholic who died in poverty after contracting Syphilis. Originally from Glasgow, Connelly was very moved by the whole revelation.

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young beauty and her courageous battle with a rare type of cancer. Gill will be running alongside many national stars in the city marathon.

EDL plans protest in Birmingham

Last year's demonstration

The English Defence League has announced another demonstration in Birmingham city centre on October 11th weekend. The nationalist group sparked controversy last summer when violence exploded along the city's famous Broad Street.

Hundreds of right-wing protestors

gathered in Centenary Square where bottles were launched as arsenal.

West Midlands Police said they had to make 33 arrests for the sake of public order.

This year policeman are seeking to discuss the demonstration with the main organisers for a civil and orderly day.

24 year-old Hamayun Khan, pictured, resident of Castle Bromwich, was found guilty of raping an eighteen-year-old girl who he filmed in her semiunconscious state afterwards. The footage was described as brutal and Khan has received a 10 year jail sentence as well as being registered as a sex offender for life.

Khan was on a work trip to Norwich when he met the vulnerable victim.

Taking advantage of her depressed condition, he lured her to a hotel room where they both drank alcohol before he attacked.

In a chilling statement from the victim's mother, the court heard that her daughter had tried to com-

mit suicide and had become very anxious around men. The court ruled that there was a “high risk” that other women would be in danger if Khan walked free.

Detective Constable Paul White, who was in charge of the investigation, stated: “Khan took advantage of a very vulnerable young woman who was going through a particularly difficult time in her life.

Bradford chef turns up the heat celebratin ng 26 years of devotion in Sou uth London ISKCON South London 42 Enmore Road, South Norwood, London ndon SE25 5NG Te el: 07545 318772 | Charity Number 1157355 www.iskconso outhllondon.org Dedicated to His Divine Grace AC Bhaktivedanta Swa D ami Prabhupada Fo ounder Acharya of International Society for Krishna a Consciousness

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Billy Connolly discovers Indian roots on BBC show

Hollyoaks actress Mandip Gill, pictured, is set to run Birmingham's halfmarathon which will take place on the 19th of October. The talented British-Indian plays the character of Phoebe McQueen in the Channel 4 television soap and will now run on behalf of The Alicia Boparai Foundation which raises funds for cancer research. The charity was set up by Boparai's family in memory of the

Birmingham rapist jailed with own evidence

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pletely unforgivable (…) all the assets the government has will be used to try to find and help remaining hostages.'

President Barack Obama also commented, saying it was a 'brutal murder' and a 'great loss' to the Syrian people that he was trying to help. Dr Shuja Shafi, secretary general of the Muslim council tweeted: 'A despicable and offensive act.

He helped Muslims. My thoughts and prayers with his family.'

In a recent video where a US aid worker was taken hostage, BBC security correspondent Gordon Corera said there was a reference to last week's vote by Parliament to authorise air strikes against IS in Iraq. This may also have triggered the execution of Henning.

Mandip Gill to participate in Birmingham Run

Bradford-based restauranteur (or Bradfordeer) Mirash Ali has been nominated for the category of chef of the North in this year's

English Curry Awards.

The owner of Paprika eatery, located in Greengates retail park, is hoping to walk away with the win after all his

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hard work to date. 'I've been a chef for 27 years now,' stated Ali, 'and it would be great to bring this title back to Bradford.'

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Leading Lights

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Rani Singh, Special Assignments Editor

Creating Culinary Waves with Fresh New-Style Cuisine Cinnamon Kitchen Head Chef Abdul Yaseen was born into a family that was historically involved with the railway industry.

Breaking a tradition going back generations, Abdul spurned family expectations and joined the National Institute of Hotel Management and Catering in Bhubaneswar.

After graduating, Abdul went from his first job at The Park group of hotels to the prestigious, Oberoi– owned Rajvilas Hotel in Jaipur: it was here he met the current Cinnamon Club executive chef and CEO, Vivek Singh.

With several years’ experience in the kitchen under his belt, Abdul moved to London. Landing a job with Vivek as he launched The Cinnamon Club in 2001, Abdul worked his way up to become a key member of the 20-strong team.

After seven years, Vivek threw open the doors to

Cinnamon Kitchen and Anise – a more casual sister restaurant – announcing Abdul as its head chef. It is here that Abdul was tasked with championing modern Indian cuisine in the City.

Always developing and reinterpreting dishes from the subcontinent, the menu

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at Cinnamon Kitchen is testament to Abdul’s bold experimentation and fearless innovation.

Abdul has won Cinnamon Kitchen a host of accolades; the British B B Q Championships 2011, and the coveted Canapé Cup at Square Meal Venues & Events 2011, the third win in as many years.

And with an appearance on BBC2’s The Hairy Bikers’ Christmas Party last year, Abdul’s profile has been rising. Thus he has come to the attention of The Asian Voice and Leading Lights.

We spoke to him in a busy week- good head chefs are perpetually in demand and on the go.

Being the ultimate British BBQ champion, Abdul said that he enjoys working with game- a speciality not that many British restaurants have.

“Indian cooking has a huge contribution to make when it comes to BBQ as the spices do wonders.

Cinnamon Kitchen had championed this art, bringing traditional tandoori methods and marinades to life .

“We are one of those rare Indian restaurants that has pushed boundaries on game. We have an extensive game menu in all our restaurants, especially The Cinnamon Club and Cinnamon Kitchen. The game tasting menu at Cinnamon Kitchen reflects techniques and a flavour composition that is second to none.”

Discussing his healthy style of cooking, Abdul explained that it is better, not to overcook vegetables.

He advises grilling and roast meats, rather than currying incurrying 2011; all. them.

“I am a fan of western cooking techniques that allow a chef to think outside the box. They teach

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Desh project to be launched soon

Asian Arts Agency is all set to launch its Desh Project digital exhibition with a day of free talks, artists performances and family-friendly activities in Bristol. The event will be launched on Saturday, 1st November and subsequent exhibition will be run until 22nd November.

Desh, meaning 'Homeland/Motherland' in Hindi, Punjabi and Urdu, is an intergenerational creative heritage project exploring and celebrating South Asian culture in Bristol and beyond, funded by Heritage Lottery Fund and created and produced by Asian Arts Agency.

The exhibition is the result of a series of workshops that began in January 2014. Young British Asians from

of this unique project preserving and celebrating South Asian culture,” Jaswinder said.

On the day of the launch, visitors will be able to listen to a series of talks from individuals and experts and will also have the chance to take part in puppet making and traditional storytelling workshops, and enjoy music and dance performances from a selection of Bristol-based Asian artists. The events are free and open to all age groups.

Talking about the exhibition, a participant said, “'Taking part in the Desh Project has been a great opportunity and it’s very exciting to present my culture and heritage to a wider audience. I can't wait until the launch and exhibition at M Shed in November.”

Bristol and the surrounding areas participated in a series of sessions speaking with Asian elders to collect their oral histories and developing skills in animation, music and filmmaking.

The result is a collection of digital stories told through mixed media, exploring themes of homeland, family, cultural heritage, and the experience of being British Asian from different generational points of view.

Jaswinder Singh, the director of Asian Arts Agency said they were extremely proud to host the exhibition. “‘We are delighted to be launching the Desh Project exhibition at M Shed on 1 November. Working with our partners and the participants since January this year, we are really pleased to share the work

Let us know what you think.

Email Spriha at aveditorial@abplgroup.com our chefs to look after the ingredient and use it in its prime.

“Blanching, slow roasting, poaching, and sousvide are some forms of cooking which could substitute for curry. Stir- frying allows us to retain nutrients to maintain the textures which could be lost in the process.

“Use a prime fish (halibut) to sear and finish with a handpicked spice that compliments its natural texture and flavour.

Carelessly chopping the fish and simmering it to death would ruin this expensive piece of fish.”

Abdul likes to deconstruct traditional Indian dishes and give them a modern look.

“I love the process as it allows me to get rid of the less interesting parts of the recipe and bring in exciting textures to uplift the dish.”

DASTAR-KHAAN is a concept passed on by the moguls and inherited by Indians. Sharing has always

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been key to bringing people together and is seen in almost all the houses in India. Abdul wanted to bring this concept to life so has created the CINNAMON KITCHEN FESTIVE MENU - sharing popular street food, bigger roasts and enjoying desserts with two or more elements. He hopes this will entice diners during the Christmas festive period. The festive menu will go live from the 15th of November.

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Festival of Diwali Time to Celebrate, Give and Make others Happy Be Generous and Help a poor Widow in India There are estimated 42 million widows and 100 million children who suffer in India in silence. Many of them have been targeted for rape, torture, murder and forced into prostitution. They cannot re-marry and often become victims of social isolation, physical and psychological abuse. What is more shocking is how few people are aware of this gross violation of Human Rights.

You can change a poor widow’s life forever. Give her the tools to earn money and become economically empowered. She will be able to educate her children and break the cycle of poverty.

The Loomba Foundation, a UN accredited charity, is empowering over 10,000 impoverished widows by giving them a sewing machine and a two to three months training to make garments. Many of them are now independent and lead of a life of dignity.

Our projects are running in the Union Territory of Pondicherry and in Delhi, Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Bihar and Punjab states

Hon’ble Chief Minister of Punjab launched a Partnership Project for 5000 widows in Ludhiana in Punjab

The cost of training and providing a sewing machine is only £50 Please donate £50 and change the life of not only a widow but also her children and family members We have set up a special JustGiving page for your donation. Please visit this page:

www.bit.ly/diwaliappeal Contact Safdar Shah at: Email: safdar@theloombafoundation.org, Tel: 020 8102 0351, UK Registration No: 1064988

WE WISH A HAPPY DIWALI AND NEW YEAR TO ALL OUR SUPPORTERS, DONORS AND READERS OF ASIAN VOICE

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8

UK

Lord Noon amongst Labour Grandees up in arms

Sunetra Senior Ed Miliband has caused a storm among fellow MPs, and according to the Sunday Times' YouGov poll which shows him trailing behind Cameron, the whole nation with his controversial proposal for 'Mansion Tax.' Together with the failure to address the hot topic of immigration, this was just one of the downfalls from the Labour conference last week.

'Mansion Tax' will affect homes that are valued at more than £2 million and is likely to alienate wealthier voters and investors.

Indian-born business man Lord Noon who has contributed large sums of money to the Labour Party denounced the proposed tax reform as a 'hopeless and desperate idea' that 'is going back to the 1970s.'

Though Miliband promised that the tax would be applied on a sliding scale with those just making the bracket paying less, there are still huge problems with the model in terms of social and structural vision; in a study published in February by the Institute for Fiscal Studies (IFS) Peter Rollings chief executive of Marsh and Pearsons estate agents stated 'any policy initiatives (regarding Mansion

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 11th October 2014

Lord Noon

Tax) should concentrate on nurturing the embryonic buds of growth outside of London, rather than drastically pruning back healthier branches of the market.' Labour's biggest donor, businessman John Mills, also brought to light the concern that 'people who have got mortgages will go into negative equity.'

Lord Noon who had invested more than £850,000 in the Labour party, with £170,000 donated in the past year, was a masthead for many disenchanted members of the cabinet after Miliband's lukewarm address. Noon was backed

by Lord Levy, Tony Blair's chief fund-raiser, who chastised Mansion Tax as 'totally inappropriate and having no validity whatso-

ever.'

Levy also warned that Labour was not making enough of an effort to win over business chiefs whose financial support the party is very much dependent on: 'I want to see a Labour government back in power,' he demanded.

With the Tories on 36%,two points in front of Labour, the YouGov national polls are corroborating the anxiety of MPs: 'We have got to deal with the real deficit, which is the deficit of trust in Labour's approach to the and public economy

Nigel Farage

finances,'a former cabinet minister said.

'Labour really need to buck up,' said Lord Noon who also criticised Miliband for his scant address of the very pertinent issue of immigration:

Ed Miliband

'I am an immigrant myself but the wrong people are coming into this country.

In America you have one conviction and they don't let you in. We want people who contribute to Britain and the economy but not the wrong sort of people. I think this is not acceptable. I like Theresa May who is tough.' John Mann the Labour MP for Basetlaw said the party's blind-spot in immigration policy may cost it the election while another government official commented that Miliband is 'throwing the baby out with the bath water' in his attempt to distance himself from New Labour.

The urgency for sharper policies that will appeal to broader and more influential range of society was excabareted by what the

'The Financial Times' called a very 'polished' conference by Cameron.

Compounded by Home Secretary Theresa May's recent hardline announcement in connection to international threats, the Conservatives are doing their hardest to win back and dig into UKIP voters.

Despite scoring only 7% in the polls, 6 points behind UKIP, Clegg also launched a determined and specific attack for the Lib Dems accusing Cameron of leading 'the nasty party' who was plotting to 'screw the poor.'

Miliband's half-baked proposal for'Mansion Tax' and failure to confront immigration is then very troubling say Labour MPs. It may mean we are looking at a hung parliament in 2015: 'the party's rounding up of a core vote is far too timid' said Labour veteran Lord Prescott. Miliband might as well have said 'go back to your constituencies and prepare for coalition.'

Andrew Mackinlay, who was Labour MP for Thurrock until recently when he lost his seat to an unprecedented surge in UKIP support said 'Ed needs to hone his skills of

David Cameron

presentation.' He said it was a mistake to ignore the South-East and 'the M25 belt of critical marginal seats.' In an exclusive statement to Asian Voice Noon also said 'I had to speak up for my party. You fight with your parents when you care about them. It's the same for my belief in Labour.'

With Labour's slim victory in the recent local elections and the shocking triumph of Farage's anti-immigration party in the EU elections, Miliband direly needs to address the related issues of investors' support, many of whom are British-asians and immigration control which are crucial in combatting the deficit.

4 men arrested in terrorism raid

A 21 year old man was tasered when four suspected Islamist terrorists were arrested in a series of raids across London, but did not require medical attention.

The Scotland Yard officer said, counter terror police arrested the men -

aged between 20 and 21 and at one address were helped by armed officers but no shots were fired.

All men were arrested on suspicion of being concerned in the commission, preparation or instigation of acts of terrorism and have been

taken to police stations in central London and remain in custody.

A number of residential addresses and vehicles are being searched by specialist officers in west and central London as part of the investigation.

Continued from page 1 While the number of Chinese students have gone up, the number of Indian students see a sharp decline after closing down the post work study visa scheme. According to a report earlier this year, the number of Indian students fell from 18,535 in 2010-11 to 13,250 in 2011-12 and further to 10,235 in 2012/13. In 2010-11 the number of Pakistani students was 4,580, but this fell by 38% to 2,825 in 2012/13.

Delivering a speech at the Sarat Bose Memorial lecture at Lincoln's Inn, earlier last month, Dr Cable reportedly told the media that there was tension between his Ministry and the Home Ministry over visa rules.

"There is quite a lot of tension. It is an ideological tussle between the Coalition partners," said Dr Cable.

He further said the Lib Dem party believes in an open and welcoming approach to international students and further added that there was deep dis-

agreement in the Coalition on this aspect.

Students aspire to study in Britain for better exposure and quality education. After tackling the rampant increase in bogus colleges, the Tory government axed the number of foreign students under immigration curb, by introducing strict student bonds and dissolving the PSW scheme.

Discussing this, Dr Cable explained that the student visa has been tightened, but there is a perception issue in India that Britain no longer welcomes students, which is not true at all. It is believed that he is making a special visit to India principally to address this issue, amongst other possible agenda.

Dr Cable also to tackle ethnic diversity at top of British companies Rt Hon Vince Cable is preparing to launch a campaign to increase the number of ethnic minorities at the top of British FTSE companies. Currently one in ten employed people are Black, Asian and Minority Ethnic (BAME) - yet only

1 in 16 of top management positions are held by BAME people.

On the eve of launching the British Black Business awards in East London on Thursday (2 October) Cable revealed he is in discussions with Lenny Henry and former Chair of the Equalities and Human Rights Commission, Trevor Phillips about starting a new business-led campaign.

Commenting, the Liberal Democrat Business Secretary Vince Cable said: “Ethnic minorities are seriously under-represented with just one in sixteen senior management jobs occupied by ethnic minorities.

“Real progress has been made given that the number of women on FTSE 100 boards now stands at 22% and I now want to deliver the same message on ethnic minority representation.

“A campaign will emphasise that improving diversity is good for business, not just for political correctness”.

Cable India-bound to resolve student visa issues

9

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YOUR VOICE

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 11th October 2014

Stalwart Lord Noon

Butter is better

What is religion?

Garbas and Bollywood

I read with interest the very responsible and forward looking article from Lord GK Noon in the Asian Voice of 27th September.

Lord Noon has always been the stalwart in standing for the social issues facing our society. He has been a fine example and a role model of how an immigrant to the UK can achieve material as well political success.

I fully concur with his observations about the actions of the Home Secretary, Teresa May, to silence those who quietly influence others to radicalise and wish to damage the very society they live in and have gained so much from.

As a leading Muslim, Lord Noon has done a commendable job to publicly welcome such initiatives. It is a recognition that that there many Muslims in our society who are of similar thoughts and minds as Lord Noon but remain a silent majority.

In my daily life I meet my Muslim friends and business contacts and I am always impressed by their dedication to religion and sometimes observing that as Hindus, we are not so well dedicated.

Many of them speak of their dissatisfaction of violence and radicalisation that often mars their community. Like Lord Noon, many of them appreciate the values and comforts that they have enjoyed by living in this British society. However, when asked why they do not ‘ stand up and speak out’ they quietly say that if they do that their families and they will get marginalised by local mullahs. They leave in the fear of being branded as society outcasts. So they suffer the pain quietly. This regrettable.

We therefore need to encourage and support the initiatives of important leaders like Lord Noon in the hope that others will follow his lead. As thought processes change and the majority start speaking out, the very small groups who try to damage our society will get over powered for the betterment of the society as a whole.

After favouring margarine over butter for many years because butter is slightly higher in saturated fats at 8 grams compared to 5 grams in margarine, I now understand that margarine is not very good for consumption after all.

Margarine is very high in trans fatty acids so it can increase the total cholesterol and LDL levels in the blood (this is the bad cholesterol) and lowers HDL cholesterol (the good cholesterol).

Researchers have claimed that the chemical composition of margarine is similar to that of plastic and it shares 27 ingredients with paint, and that If a tub of margarine is left open in a shaded area, no flies, not even those pesky fruit flies will go near it. It does not rot or smell differently because it has no nutritional value.

Nothing will grow on it because it is almost plastic.

Butter tastes much better than margarine and it can enhance the flavours of other foods. It has been around for centuries while margarine has been around for less than 100 years. Butter has many nutritional benefits whereas margarine has a few and only because they are added! Butter tastes much better than margarine and it can enhance the flavours of other foods. For many years, we had been spreading margarine on our toast, but if these claims have any validity, we would go back to the use of butter on our toast. No wonder our parents used ghee (clarified butter)on our rotis!

Religion is a code of conduct for an individual and a community, ordained by some Messiah, Prophet, religious leader, holy books and/or by God Himself.

The main are Christian, Hinduism, Islam and Buddhism. They all believe in some almighty power that rules and controls our lives and the univers. They all preach and practise on the same principles which are based on moral and human values. They all have their own places of worship run by their own religious leaders who insist on adherence to their principles like Ten Commandments of Moses (14th Century BC)!

As per the Gita we all are the children of God and all religions are separate ways to the same God. As all fires have some smoke, so every religion has some drawbacks. But Alas! At present so many countries are at war and some are killing even their own people on the basis of Religion.

I am sad and at a loss to understand as to where this world is heading!

Destruction?!!!

Mr. Atul Purohit rightly comments that garbas imitating Bollywood film tunes are an abuse of the divinity of the festival.

Navaratri organisers insist that Navaratri being a worship of energies, hedonism is a bi-product. Worship ethos must be observed by singing divine garbas, sober celebrations and disciplined dancing.

In UK. non Hindus participate in this ritual. Such festivals are branded as pagan and heathen by Semantics’ books.

These religions ban belief of “mother” applied to land of birth/domicile eg “vande matram” / ban worship of idol.

Such participants are insulting their books/religions. Some participants use this festival to abuse Hindus, Hinduism or casting unsavoury remarks to sully ritual’s atmosphere.

Hindu organisers invite such elements as television, press, activists who instigate hostile episodes. Many Hindu organisations or tolerate/are unwilling or are incapable to eject such miscreants.

Hindus DISPLAY their rituals are paying PRICE of abuse and contamination by anti Hindus/hedonists and vested interests.

I therefore suggest that all Navaratri programmes must be advertised as worship and open to worshipful Hindus only.

This will allow organisers to kick out non Hindus/anti Hindu persons or media.

Commercial/hedonist programmes may be advertised as non religious where civic sense should prevail.

Subhash V Thakrar B Com FCA FRSA Partner, CBW Blackstone Franks Vice President and Past Chairman, London Chamber of Commerce & Industry

Shiv Sena

Shiv Sena has played very important role not only in Maharashtra but served all over in India bringing the pride in Hindus.

I remember there was a time in Punjab when Hindus started fearing so much that there may be another partition in Punjab. Shiv Sena played a very important role.

I am disappointed with the BJP in negotiating with Uddav Thackeray. The BJP must try again and if necessary Modiji should come in to settle the issue.

There is no need to have any kind of friction between the Shiv Sena and the BJP. Uddav being a humble man should directly approach Modiji and compromise with Modiji and let Uddav to rule Maharashtra.

Dinesh Sheth Newbury Park, Ilford

Maharashtra politics in doldrums

Break-up of BJP/SS alliance in Maharashtra is retrograde step. It will hurt BJP at the next election. Uday Thakre blames BJP who wanted to accommodate Sharad Pawar’s NCP. Uday felt it would not only disrupt the alliance but with BJP/Modi/SS riding wave of popularity, they would get overall majority.

NCP supremo Sharad Power is shifty, untrustworthy character who flirts with likely winners, opportunist of the worse type. BJP upped the ante with insatiable demands, 25 more seats. SS conceded 18 and were willing to discuss the rest, along with post of CM, but allegedly BJP brokeoff the discussion, insinuating Uday is too young to be CM, hypocrisy, iconoclast attitude.

While Uday readily answered questions on TV, pleading for continuation of the alliance. No leading BJP members made telephone call to Uday, perhaps leaving it to Amit Shah who is in charge of election strategy. Uday clearly won the media battle with polite, dignified display of a matured politician. Credibility of Amit Shah is now under scrutiny.

Obviously there is undeclared alliance between BJP/NCP who deserted Congress. NCP has started withdrawing their candidates in support of BJP. Politics in India is disillusion, difficult to comprehend. Do politicians never learn?

Subscribe Today Dharam Sahdev Ilford

Asian Voice in UK for only £28.50 for one year

Upendra Kapadia By email

We are currently experiencing a high volume of calls ...

Whenever I call a major business organization or a public sector body, I generally get the above message. I wait for a few minutes while putting the telephone on speaker phone, then I give up without speaking.

Denmark, Finland, Norway and Sweden follow the “social welfare” system of government and have a the tax burden of 52% of their national income; Austria, Belgium, France, Germany, Italy and Netherlands follow the “mixed economy” system and have a tax burden of 49%; while Australia, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, United Kingdom and United States follow the “free market” system of government and their tax burden is 38% of the national income.

The first two groups of countries enjoy higher levels of income, lower rates of poverty and a more equal distribution of wealth. This is very powerful evidence of the advantages of an extensive socialwelfare state or mixed economy systems.

These two groups also have low corruption and high public trust in government institutions.

The World Economic Forum rates the first two groups higher in international competitiveness. They achieve balanced budgets, despite the large social outlays, because the high outlay is matched by adequate taxation.

The above statistics have been the same for 30 years. UK has managed lower taxes, but at the expense of a cumulative budget deficit of 150% of GDP including public private partnership debts and a consumer debt of 150% of GDP on top.

What is better? Raise the right amount of tax annually or accumulate deficits indefinitely?

Bhupendra M Gandhi By email

ASIAN VOICE

Faith Schools

I read with interest the recent article by Baroness Flather. Faith schools have an important role in UK, mainly because many children from different faith backgrounds suffer bulllying, feel isolated and under peer pressure to conform to what is acceptable within British society such as experimenting with cigarettes, alcohol, drugs etc.

Faith Schools play a very important role in providing a cultural and spiritual identity in children sharing similar views, traditions and faith. They can achieve this in an atmosphere that enables them to practice their religious traditions without feeling vulnerable, undermined, or being bullied. Faith Schools give an important understanding of family traditions, a sense of identity and pride in one's culture and religion.

Baroness Flather should focus her emphasis more on ensuring that Faith Schools do not become rigid and marginalised, by supporting and encouraging Faith Schools to widen and reach and work with other Multi-Faith schools and organisations. This can be achieved by ensuring that all Faith Schools have an open culture which learns and respects other faiths, as well as its own, and has regular interactions between other faith schools and understand the celebration of different faiths to widens tolerance.

This will enable a better understanding of the values and beliefs of different faiths.

Nagindas Khajuria By email

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MEDIA WATCH

Narendra Modi came, he saw, he conquered. New York hadn’t seen a public spectacle remotely similar from a foreign politician. Nothing like it had been recorded in the annals of the Big Apple. Madison Square Garden became ‘Modison’ Square Garden, if only for a couple of hours, as India’s Prime Minister held his 18,000-sized audience of Indian Americans in thrall.

With US Congressional elections a little more than a month away, House representatives and Senators lined up to shake his hand and savour the experience.

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 11th October 2014

off exceedingly well. Speaking on camera, a senior US CEO told a TV reporter of his satisfaction at how satisfactorily things went. The prime minister, he said, was an excellent listener; he absorbed the grievances of doing business in India: the capricious tax regime, the absurdly exacting paperwork, dilatory bureaucracy and much else that impeded American companies in their Indian operations. The smiles and positive body language of American executives and their robust expressions of confidence, as they emerged from the meeting, bode well for the future of IndiaUS business cooperation.

(Times of India, Hindu, Business Line, Mint, September 29, 30).

Amazon set to surge

Modi in Madison Square Garden

Coinciding with the above meeting in New York, Jeff Bezos, founder and Chief Executive of Amazon.com, the world’s largest online retailer, said the company would continue to invest heavily in India because of its market offered immense opportunities, which were poised to grow going forward. Bezos was in India recently, having two months earlier promised to pump in a further $2 billion into Amazon’s India business, which was set up in July 2013. “The reason we’re investing so much in India is because it’s already working so well. We must’ve launched just at the right time…..and the team had to keep setting expectations higher and higher,” he said.

Modi with Obama in White House (see comment page 3)

The Modi message (also transmitted through US and global TV networks) was compact and simple: India was on the march; India was a nation whose time had come; that, although the 21st century might well signal Asia’s rise, it would, above all, be India’s century. The speaker was at the right place, at the right time and right on cue.

India’s Mars Orbiter Mission’s epic voyage through outer space had just reached its appointed destination, a glittering endorsement of Indian science, engineering, organization, planning, vision and resolve. The medium was the message, and it echoed from this great American metropolis to every corner of the world. Prime Minister Modi spoke with passion, wit and clarity, aware of his unique platform and perhaps remembering that Swami Vivekenanda some 122 years earlier had electrified his American audience in Chicago with a rousing peroration on India’s civilization, its age-old values, its oneness with humanity and with all living things.

Addressing the great and good of the United States, Narendra Modi was on message with an affirmation that India was open for business, that together, India and America had much to offer each other, that American investments and business and management culture could play a catalytically critical role in

India’s economic and social transformation. For his part, he, Narendra Modi, and the Indian government, would do everything in their power to make the American passage to India smooth, profitable and invigorating.

Beckoning NRIs

Premier Modi announced a raft of measures that would make it easier for Non-Resident Indians (NRIs) to visit and do business in India. Holders of Persons of Indian Origin (PIO) cards would get lifetime Indian visas; NRIs who stay in India over a long period of time would be exempted from reporting periodically to police stations, that PIO cards and Overseas Citizens of India (OCI) cards would be merged into a single document covering both categories, thereby reducing the administrative hassle arising from the extra paperwork. The Indian diaspora, with its wealth of talent and achievement had the capability to help India transform herself into a global giant in every important sphere, said the premier. (Mint, Hindu, Times of India, September 29)

Meeting with US CEOs

Prime Minister Modi’s conference with the heads of America’s top companies went

Jeff Bezos

Bezos is “super excited” at the way things are shaping up in India. The country’s e-commerce market, excluding travel, is expected to surge sevenfold to $22 billion in five years, according to brokerage firm CLSA. By then India is likely to become the world’s third-largest e-commerce market after the US and China. (Mint, Business Line, Times of India September 29)

IT firms gear up for next level

Large and mid-sized Indian software services firms are increasing the pace of partnering with start-ups, choosing even to buy some, following the beaten of investment arms of global technology companies that monitor, collaborate with and pump money into such establishments.

Well on cue, Wipro, India’s third-largest software services firm disclosed that it had made a minority investment in USbased software solutions startup firm Axeda Corp. for $5 million and US-based analytics

start-up Opera Solutions for $30 million. Meanwhile Nasdaq-listed US software services company Cognizant Te c h n o l o g y Solutions Corp. most of whose operations and workforce are Indiabased, has acquired US-headquartered digital video solutions start-up Itaas Inc, while India’s fifth-largest software services firm Tech Mahindra Ltd acquired a 75 per cent stake in USModi and Israeli PM Netanyahu based analytic s start-up Fixstream government and states sessions, Networks for $10 million. (Mint for talks on the Indo-Israel relaSeptember 30) tionship going forward. “Hightech marriage made in heaven” is the title of a report by Israeli Madhya Pradesh science journalist Arsen tops growth chart Ostrovsky. Indo-Israeli trade is burgeoning, $6 billion now, from According to figures released by the $200,000 when the two the Central Statistics Office, countries established diplomatic India’s smaller states and Union ties in January 1992. Their ties territories have led the economic look rosier by the day and week. growth chart for 2013-14, with Puducherry in the south and Mutual interest Meghalaya in the north east clocking an impressive 10 per Ostrovsky writes: “ The Indiacent plus in growth domestic Israel relationship is…..based product (GDP). Among the especially in the field of technollarge states, Madhya Pradesh ogy, where Israeli high-tech and has come out top with 9.64 per innovation meet India’s vast cent growth, replacing Bihar, workforce of highly-educated, which occupied that position for tech savvy, English-speaking the past few years, but has labour is…..a high tech marriage slipped to fourth place with 8.97 made in heaven.” Agriculture per cent, which is still an and water management, where admirable figure. Maharashtra, Israel leads the world, are areas the country’s most industrialof Israeli expertise that could be ized state took fifth place with of exponential benefit to India.

8.36 per cent growth, following a Joint measures on Cyber securidismal 4.47 per cent in 2012-13. ty, deepening anti-terror cooperation are among the many subImproving States jects on the expanding agendas of both countries. India is the Foremost, among the states biggest buyer of Israeli defence climbing the charts, is West equipment. “The sky is the Bengal, which has posted 7.78 limit,” said Netanyahu on the per cent from 5.36 per cent in relationship, whose platform 2012-13 and a dismal 2.71 per avers, Ostrovsky, is the abiding cent in 2011-12, when Chief admiration and friendship of the Minister Mamata Banerjee’s Indian street for the State of Trinamool Congress took power.

Israel. (Pioneer October 3) Neighboring Jharkhand, once considered a backward state, Malignity grew at an encouraging 6.93 per cent, while Tamil Nadu, India’s There is nothing quite like the second-largest industrialized malignity of disappointed state, bounced back to 6.83 per humanity.

The Economist cent from the previous year’s (September 29), long adept in poor 2.2 per cent growth. the black arts of India-baiting, Figures for Gujarat, Kerala, was apoplectically scornful of Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh and the rapturous reception accordHaryana, as of now, were not ed to Premier Modi’s by the available.

Indian-American diaspora in New York, damning it as “the Worst performers kind of obedient hysteria they were meant to have left behind The worst performing states generations ago in the badlands were Chhattisgarh, Uttar of Asia, along with hunger and Pradesh, Rajasthan, Punjab, snakes.” Indians loved killing, which hovered between 2-3.5 as proof this institutionalized per cent growth, while Odisha, media absurdity pointed to the with a truly shocking 1.8 per number of Indian Victoria cent GDP was bottom of the Crosses won in World War II. table. (Times of India, Hindu, Their descendants thankfully October 1) have outgrown the cooliedesigner apparel tailored for Modi-Netanyahu them by the Herrenvolk. The barbarous jihadi legions the US dynamic and UK triumphantly helped to spawn, to great media acclaim, Prime Minister Narendra Modi was sowing the wind. Reaping and his Israeli counterpart, the whirlwind is no longer the Benyamin Netanyahu, met in lot of Indians. Kicking India I New York, on the sidelines of the the therapeutic consolation.

UN General Assembly heads of

13

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www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 11th October 2014

Slickly Ballroom partners with Lucrum Group, launched at Piccadilly

Charusmita

As an initiative to nurture and boost entrepreneurship in Britain, the evening of 24th September saw the launch of Slickly Ballroom, a spectacular dance show set at Le Meridien in London’s Piccadilly. The event marked the show’s partnership with Lucrum Group.

Lucrum Consultancy is an investor in people and it was founded by an Indian entrepreneur, Milind Kangle, to empower aspiring entrepreneurs achieve their dreams and ambitions. The company’s vision is to create business and career opportunities for the youth, women and unemployed who are passionate to learn, grow and contribute positively to the success of our country.

As an initiative to nurture and boost entrepreneurship in Britain, the evening of 24th September saw the launch of Slickly Ballroom, a spectacular dance show set at Le Meridien in London’s Piccadilly. The event marked the show’s partnership with Lucrum Group.

Lucrum Consultancy is an investor in people and it was founded by an Indian entrepreneur, Milind Kangle, to empower aspiring entrepreneurs achieve

Louise Jones

their dreams and ambitions. The company’s vision is to create business and career opportunities for the youth, women and unemployed who are pas-

sionate to learn, grow and contribute positively to the success of our country.

Showcasing dances including Cha Cha, Salsa, Lindyhop and Jive – among many others, the Slickly Ballroom show performed to a host of guests, media and corporate executives. Slickly Ballroom is the brainchild of Louise Jones, a singer and entrepreneur who started the business in 2014. It is crafted and marketed for a wide range of event c e l e b r a t i o n s .

Fascinatingly, Slickly Ballroom is also popular amongst Asian Weddings and the dance group is

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www.acuitus.co.uk

Milind Kangle

Paul Luther

planning a Bollywood themed dance style for the same. As of now too, they have a variety of Asian wedding entertainment ideas which are expected to unfold with its launch.

The event celebrated Jones’ recent partnership with Lucrum Group, whose investments include Slickly Ballroom (Shall We Dance), FixCorp Ltd. (Building & Maintenance Services) and Curry Special (Asian

Gourmet Specialist).

Bringing together two of its ventures, the event was catered by Group’s other success story, Curry Special an Asian Gourmet specialist spearheaded by its CEO Paul Luther. He has over 25 years of experience in the events industry. Paul derives his inspiration from his mother and is an asset to the Group.

Milind Kangle, Founder of Lucrum Group said, “If greater evidence

was needed to prove the magic and innovation present among start-ups and entrepreneurs in Britain today, last night’s event happily obliged. As an entrepreneur, I am incredibly encouraged to recognise the same spark and passion among young businesses that afforded my own success.” Louise Jones added, “I am confident we have found a fantastic partner in Lucrum Group and look forward to the journey ahead.

Continued from page 1 The court has already heard many revealing details including the couple's turbulent relationship, the fact that Shrien was bisexual- he had hired a German male escort- and his lavish spending spree, £200,000 for their wedding in Mumbai, to keep his super-model partner.

Anni was shot dead when the couple were honeymooning in the scenic city of Cape Town.

Shrien alleges that their vehicle was hijacked by a man who held them at gunpoint but later threw him from the car and drove away with Anni.

Explaining to the court how he has been coping

since, he said sombrely: 'my whole world has come crashing down.'

The prosecution is expected to argue that the Bristol-born businessman plotted to have his wife murdered to escape a marriage he was pressured into so that he would be free to embrace his fluid sexuality: 'my sexual interactions with males were mostly physical experiences or email chats with people I met online or in clubs', he said in an anticipated defence, but 'my sexual interactions with females were usually during the course of a relationship which consisted of other activities and emotional attachment.'

Anni's family, who had to leave the courtroom when they saw the morbid police video have appealed to Dewani to 'tell the truth' because 'it has been a period of torture.' Anni's father Vinod Hindocha has stated 'now that I am back here, all I ask for is the full story and justice.' The three convicted South African men are expected to testify against Shrien. Anni's cousin Sneha Hindocha may also be called by the state. She reportedly told police of the couple's troubled relationship before their wedding. The next hearing will take place on Wednesday 8th October as the story continues to unravel.

Countries across the world with a strong traditional chilli culture are now becoming increasingly interested in the UK’s chillies with the Dorset Naga chilli seeds being sold to South America, India, Pakistan and Eastern Europe.

UK’s home grown chilli business is heating up as countries from India and Pakistan to Mexico and America are importing spicy cap-

sicums, Environment Secretary Elizabeth Truss announced last week.

Already this year the value of chilli exports has soared to new heights with £1.3 million exported across the world up 49% from 2010. A total of 617 tonnes of British chillies have now spiced up dishes across the world in 2014 alone.

The UK has now gained a worldwide reputation for its chilli pro-

duction with the Dorset Naga chilli ranking third in the world’s hottest chillies. When first sold it doubled the number of Scoville Heat Units of the previous hottest chilli in the world.

Chillies are the latest success in ever-increasing exports of British food and drink which totalled £18.9 billion in 2013. Our exports include shipments of cheese to France and Yorkshire Tea to China.

Shrien saga: the final chapter

UK chillies spice up households in India

Private tuition college raided in East London A private tuition college in East London was raided as part of a counterterrorism operation. The BBC reported that Siddeeq Academy, in Whitechapel, claims to provide support for parents who wish to educate their children at home.

On 25 September, Academy director

Mizanur Rahman was reportedly one of nine people arrested by officers. Though Tower Hamlets Council has no legal duty or responsibility for the centre, the Council said it had reported its concerns about the tuition centre to the Department for Education.

The Metropolitan Police's Counter Terrorism Command searched various addresses in London during the raids. Eight men were released on bail until January and one man was charged with breaching a notification requirement under counter-terrorism legislation.

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 11th October 2014

15

16

UK

Sanaton Association Durga Puja in Bethnal Green

Rupanjana Dutta London Sharad Utsav, the pujo at Ealing Town Hall has been voted the most popular this year amongst visitors. While durga puja at Camden Town centre continues to be the centre of glamour and star attractions, especially for its connection with the steel tycoon Lakshmi Mittal, but people visiting have claimed that it has become quite impersonal, resulting into more and more people dispersing to other pujos in and around London. The damp and cold weather could not wet Bengali souls, living in Britain, who made sure to enjoy the fun and festivities, to their utmost.

Rumia, a visitor at the Ealing pujo with husband, a toddler and friends said, "I used to be a regular visitor of the Camden pujo every year. But this year I found that it has become very impersonal. London Sharad Utsav is very homely. Hence I have been frequenting it this year."

Another visitor, 30 years old Suchira said, "I am a bit disappointed with the ice

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 11th October 2014

London bids farewell to Ma Durga London Sharad Utsav at Ealing Town Hall

cold khichuri bhog they served us at the Ealing pujo on Saturday 4th October. I wasn't planning to go to the Camden pujo this year, but unfortunately had to drag my friends there. Just for the sake of some 'gorom (warm) khichudi bhog'."

25 years old Sourav, who has recently moved to

ing. The association serving the Hindu community for the last 30 years.”

Panchamukhee durga utsav, held at Harrow Arts Centre, is very well known for its cultural activities.

Panchamukhee, a non profit organisation was founded in London in 2006 by a group of like minded enthusiasts.

Bengalis' Panchamda.

Mohini, a local around Mitcham visited South London Durga puja.

Impressed with all the festivities, she thinks this is one of the best pujos in South London. While this year in most of London's venues, pujo started from October 2nd, South

Durga puja by Panchamukhee at Harrow Arts Centre

London said, "I went to the pujo at Bethnal Green by Sanaton Association this year. My first. Loved it".

Sanaton Association is a Bangladeshi Hindu community organisation set up in 1983. It currently has a membership of nearly 900 people and is the only Hindu organisation in Tower Hamlets area, that has a very high population of Bangladeshi Muslims liv-

The key objectives of Panchamukhee are to promote the arts and cultural heritage of the Indian subcontinent and explore how different people and cultures can work together in todays multicultural UK. On 5th October it had Spondon presenting an evening filled with Bollywood music and dance, paying a special tribute to R D Burman-

London Durga puja stuck to the original time schedule, with pujo starting from Tuesday 30th September.

This is one of the longest running Durga pujo in the area.

Kamal, who went to the Tooting Duga puja with family, said it was the best pujo around their area.

Started from September 30th, the organisers made sure the puja timings coin-

Leader of Her Majesty's Opposition visits Navratri celebrations by Hindus

L-R: Bhanu Vekaria, Haribhai Halai, Samji Gorasia, Vanita Hirani (SKLPC-UK) Secretary, Hiru Bhudia – Trustee/Treasurer, Kailash Kerai Vice President, Rt. Hon. Ed Miliband, Mavji Vekaria – President, Vinod Halai – Trustee, Suryakant Varsani – Assist Treasurer, Cllr. Krupesh Hirani, Velji Vekaria – General Secretary, Umesh Patel, Ravi Patel, Kiran Pindoria, Shivlal Vekaria-Trustee, Shashi Vekaria – Patron, Dhiru Vekaria. Second Row: Bharat Vekaria, Kishore Nardani, Murji Varsani, Devshi Halai, Meghji Pindoria, Prakash Halai, Chandrakant Halai

On 2nd October 2014, Rt Hon Ed Miliband MP attended Navratri celebrations in Harrow and Ealing.

Mr Miliband was joined by MPs such as Keith Vaz, Gareth Thomas, Virendra Sharma, Barry Gardiner, Steve Pound and PPCs such as Rupa Huq and Uma Kumaran at the Shree Kadwa Patidar Samaj (UK), Harrow Leisure Centre and Shree Kutch Leva Patel Community (UK) Mr Miliband said: “I feel privileged to have attended my first ever Navratri celebrations in Harrow and Ealing. I know how important this festival

Durga puja at the Camden centre

South London Durga Puja

cided with the actual dates in India. Tooting Durga Puja is a landmark of an Asian Charity Organisation based in the heart of Tooting, South London. It started celebrating Durga

was celebrated at the Jasmins Banqueting Hall at Upper Tooting Road.

Most of the pujos finished with 'sidoor (vermillion) khela' on Sunday morning, as married women

Puja since the year 1987 with a handful of inspiring and active Bengalis which has now grown to a mammoth shape involving hundreds of people. This year it

in white and red sarees enjoyed the old tradition, and children sneaked in that last ladoo before they go back to school after a weekend full of fun.

Tooting Durga Puja

GCS Brighton celebrates Navratri

Gujarati Cultural Society of Brighton organised the annual Navratri celebrations and Gandhi Jayanti at the Hove Town Hall.

The large Indian community in Brighton Hove and Sussex was able to participate and enjoy this devotional traditional religious event and also

enjoyed the colourful Garba and raas under the organisation of Mr Dhirubhai Lamba, President of GCS. Present were community members from from Crawley, professionals and renowned visiting artist Mr Vinodbhai Patel from Rajkot, Gujarat.

Brahmin Society North London organised Dandiya and Raas Garba for members.

Devotees on the eighth

day of Navratri, enjoyed the night, wearing red and green- the most auspicious colours adorn by ladies.

Rt Hon Ed Miliband with MPs such as with Barry Gardiner, Gareth Thomas, Virendra Sharma, Steve Pound, PPCs such as Rupa Huq, Uma Kumaran and others

is to British Hindus and it is only right that we are able to celebrate this great festival.

Navratri celebrates strength but also togetherness – a theme which the

Labour Party holds dear.

The British Hindu community contributes significantly to our economy, our businesses, media and so much more.

The rich traditions and

cultures of the British Hindu community, such as Navratri celebrations, brings welcome diversity to our nation.

Photo credit: Amit Patel of Count Photography

UK

London celebrates Gandhiji's 145th birth anniversary

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 11th October 2014

On 2nd October, London marked Mahatma Gandhi's 145th birth anniversary with speeches, bhajans and vedic prayers at Tavistock Square.

The event was attended by the High Commissioner of India HE Ranjan Mathai, Mayor of Camden- Councillor Lazzaro Pietragnoli, Deputy Mayor of Ealing, British-Indian MPs and Peers such as Shailesh Vara, Virendra Sharma, Lord Ranbir Suri, Lord Hameed, Chairman of the India League CB Patel, Indian bank heads and other representatives from the Indian community in Britain.

The celebration started with floral tributes followed by speeches by the present dignitaries.

CB Patel, the Chairman of India League told the present audience, “We come here every year twice and it gives us a pause to think what we can do in our small way. 65-70 years when Dr Tarapada Basu, Lord Fenner Brockway, Krishna Menon and others of India League approached the British government, and it was the Government's own vision to respect the person who almost demolished the British empire.

Today Mahatma has started walking all the way to Houses of Parliament and in few months we will see him there as well.

“The celebrations of 2 October and 30 January could not have happened without the support of the Indian High Commissioner and Indian High Commission. India League got

Gandhiji's 145th birthday. It is an honour where the statue was unveiled in 1968. Since then many trees, monuments in squares have been dedicated for peace. This square since then has become a place where people from Camden or London come to celebrate peace.

Celebrating the life of Gandhi, is celebrating the peace and democracy in the world today.”

Shailesh Vara, MP said “It's a great privilege to be here.

Mahatma Gandhi a CB Patel, HE Ranjan Mathai, Shailesh Vara, MP, Virendra Sharma MP, Mayor of great humanitarian who Camden, Lord Hameed, Lord Suri, Pritam Lal and other dignitaries has left behind a mesdirected all of us to do and the statue erected in Tavistock sage of peace and non violenceGandhiji believed you must be Square, but its the members of that echoes in four corners of the the change you want to see in the the Indian high commission, staff world. Great leaders such as world. He began at the most and others who maintain this Martin Luther King, Nelson humble level and said can't we do statue and clean it every year.I Mandela and many others have something by keeping India believe Gandhi's message is gettaken to heart Gandhi's messagecleaner, start with our homes our ting louder clearer more and and have tried to put it into pracways of lives? The PM has startmore all over the world and that tice. ed a campaign and where some is why we are here. Jai Bapu.”

“I went to Gandhi's ashram people have taken on the broom HE Ranjan Mathai said, “It is in Ahmedabad, during my India and cleaning the outskirts of a wonderful occasion for us to be visit, where he lived and worked, their own houses, some are helpassociated with the India League, where leaders of the independing with public events, all govwith the Mayoralty of this town ence movement came to see him. ernment offices are having an who remember this extraordinary That was one of the most moving inspection to see whether basic human being and come here for moment of my life. standard of cleanliness is mainhis birthday. As CB said it's a “I look forward to another tained. We read out a pledge matter of pleasure and it is good additional statue in Parliament today at the Indian High to come and reflect and some Square, where Mahatma Gandhi Commission and we will continaspects on Mahatma's message. I will stand with other great world ue as a continuing exercise. would like to reflect on one leaders. That statue will become The Mayor of Camden said, theme, what the honourable another place representative of “It's an honour to celebrate Prime Minister of India has the message of peace and non-

violence of this great human being.”

Lord Hameed said, “This great man Mahatma Gandhi, we can say so much about him, but not say enough. As he rightly said, no caste, creed or colour shall survive in a great nation, any distinction is fairless and to be avoided, democracy should sustain itself, and so should ordinary men. Gandhi stood up for many very ordinary people whom we should not forget.”

Virendra Sharma, MP said, “It's always a great honour to pay respect to the memory of Mahatma Gandhi and meet lot of friends who believe in Gandhi's message. The message Bapu gave before India's independencewhat kind of India we want to see after freedom, so that India can remain and become the greatest power. I am glad to see that all leaders in India and in other parts of the world, have paid respect to Gandhiji's philosophy.”

Lord Suri, said, “Mahatma Gandhi started his political journey from South Africa. He fought the war of independence without using a gun, with the use of his peaceful philosophy. I have spoken on Gandhiji in East Africa, and I would repeat what I said there. Mahatmaji has learnt his ideologies from all religions. He took a hint from Guru Tegh Bahadur's philosophy- he does not scare anybody, nether he is scared of anybody.”

Photo courtesy: Raj D Bakrania, Prmediapix

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18

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 11th October 2014

Dear Financial Voice Reader,

So What’s Stopping You Getting More Users?

Like all business people I look on in wonder at my innovations, and think how can I get more users. In my case this is finance. I look at my Private Equity Fund and its returns over a period including the credit crunch when whole banks failed, and I ask, how do we get more institutions interested in our 17% annual returns?

Or I think about how the Pound keeps falling against the US Dollar and I think we kept calling it right, so how come given we are right at least 8 times out of 10 over the past year, more people don’t use our newsletter? Or given my software has outperformed Buffett by a huge margin over the past 10 years, I don’t have a monopoly on investment software?

Our conclusion is we need to simplify and educate.

As with most businesses the innovative product and its price may beat the competition but unless people feel its easy to do, even if it is something good for them like making money – they won’t do it.

We called the direction right all the time – but what is the point if people don’t know where to start. The real genius of Apple was making something so simple it had no manual. So we’re going to educate. People read about finance but have no idea what to do, or how to do it.

So just as I went on a driving speed awareness course, because I clearly needed educating about speed, despite thinking I knew it all, so we are going to create a trading course to teach people and at the end of the day leave them with an iPad fully working and set up so they can do it themselves. We will teach them the risks and how to reduce them, just as in driving, so it is no longer a gamble, but something beneficial.

Ample research shows people do not have the right amount of savings, investments, and that proves the level of financial education is very poor. We want Britain, a leading player in the world markets to be at the forefront through education. We will convert the problem of education into a business solution by taking the solutions others have already applied in their own fields – like Apple in computing with their iPad. We take every hurdle, every excuse and remove it.

It’s too risky, It’s too complicated, it’s too costly, it’s too time consuming – we remove each of these because with cheap simple quick education showing clear benefits and returns – there are no excuses to this problem or any business problem.

Stuck in your own business? List the customer excuses and then just attack them, one by one.

Sahara chief Subrata Roy back in jail cell

Subrata Roy, the jailed head of Sahara conglomerate, is back in a cell after living in a makeshift prison office for two months while working on the sale of three luxury hotels in New York and London, a deal that is still hanging.

The Supreme Court had allowed the tycoon to use an office, phone, Internet connection and three secretaries in the Delhi prison to facilitate the sale of three hotels including Grosvenor House in London and the Plaza in

New York.

Roy needs to raise 100 billion rupees ($1.6 billion) from the hotel sales to have a chance of obtaining release on bail. He has been moved back to a cell after a court-imposed deadline for the use of the office expired, although the businessman had requested more time, Tihar Jail spokesman Mukesh Prasad said. "He was asking officials. We told him we don't have the power to extend those facilities," the spokesman said.

London's Regional Pravasi Bharatiya Divas convention is now sold out

Rupanjana Dutta

The Regional Pravasi Bharatiya Divas (RPBD) convention in London which takes place from October 16 to 18, 2014, is now sold out.

Pravasi Bharatiya Divas has been celebrated in India on January 9th each year since 2003, to mark the contributions of the overseas Indian community in the development of India. Next year it will be held in Gandhinagar, Gujarat.

This convention abroad, organised by the Ministry of Overseas Indian Affairs, is not only for the Indian community, but for all persons who are interested in plugging into India’s growing relationship with the UK and Europe. Over 1,000 delegates are expected to attend.

On 16th October, Overseas Indian Facilitation Centre (OIFC) will organise ‘Diaspora Engagement Meet’, in association with the Ministry of Overseas Indian Affairs (MOIA), the High Commission of India, London and the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII). The business discussions will focus on following sectors such as: Infrastructure development in India, Energy distribution generation & Renewable energy, Opportunities for investors and Opportunities in skill development. Joining for this, will be Senior Government of India offi-

cials such as: Secretary, Ministry of Overseas Indian Affairs, Secretary, Industry and Secretary, Ministry of Renewables, Senior representatives of the government from Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion, Senior officials from Metro Rail, Clean Ganga project and senior representatives of the Governments of Punjab, Kerala and Bihar.

Senior industry leaders from India include, Mr Deep Kapuria, Chairman CII MSME Council; Mr Sunil Wadhwa, CEO IL&FS Energy Development Co; Mr Kanwar Vivek, Senior President Yes Bank; Mr Kapil Dev Arora, Vice President, Kotak Mahindra Bank and senior representatives from LIC and SBI. Among the projects to be discussed will be: Projects on Skills development, Renewable Energy projects, Mumbai Bengaluru Economic Corridor/ Chennai – Bengaluru Industrial Corridor & other industrial corridors, Metro rail in India and Clean Ganga project.

On 17th and 18th session topics will widely include: • Role and contribution of Indian Diaspora to the British/European societies and economies • How can the Diaspora and the Government of India leverage each other’s strengths to mutual benefit in the framework of IndiaUK strategic partnership?

• ICT and Financial services, Investments in India: The way forward, Role of social media and youth in promoting Diaspora’s links with India • Opportunities and challenges in India-UK collaboration in trade and investments, including in third countries • NRI/PIO businesses in European countries: Achievements and constraints • Scope and potential of Diaspora’s engagement in Education, Research and Innovation in India • Issues of concern to Indian Diaspora and possible solutions (ii) Role and contribution of Diaspora’s cultural identity in promoting people-to-people contacts.

Speakers will include prominent dignitaries from the UK and India, promi-

nent members of the Indian community, British and Indian business representatives, academics and media persons. On 17th October, it will also be attended by Indian Minister of External Affairs, Mrs Sushma Swaraj. That day will conclude with the Diaspora Reception in the evening, that is privately hosted by Her Majesty’s Government in the Foreign Office Durbar Court to celebrate the UK’s Indian Diaspora.

This is a special invite only event and has no direct organisational connection with the 3- day RPBD event.

The inaugural Dadabhai Naoroji Awards will be presented at this Reception. Launched by the Deputy Prime Minister during his recent visit to India, the Awards are to celebrate the work of individuals who have furthered UK-India relations in culture, commerce or education.

On 18th the RPBD will conclude with a gala dinner, that will be open to all members registered and attending the 3- day convention.

London is the most popular city in the world to work in, an international survey of more than 200,000 people found, with nearly one in six of those questioned wanting to move to the British capital to secure employment.

The study by The Boston Consulting Group and totaljobs.com found respondents from 189

countries ranked London above New York and Paris, while Britain was second behind the United States as the most appealing country for international job seekers.

While the survey described by its compilers as the most expansive study conducted on worker mobility - found that almost two thirds of job seekers were willing to

move abroad to work, within Britain only 44 per cent of people want to move overseas for work.

"This report cements London's reputation as a truly global city," said Mike Booker, of totaljobs.com. "Not only does it offer a wealth of job opportunities in a range of industries, but it boasts some of the world's top cultural attractions, so

it's no surprise that people across the globe want to come and work here."

The survey of a mixture of the employed, unemployed, selfemployed and students included a mix of people actively looking for a job, those not actively looking but open to opportunities and workers not looking for a new job at the moment.

Priti Patel MP

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www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 11th October 2014

19

Doing nothing means you’re digging deeper

Suresh Vagjiani

Sow & Reap A Property Investment Company

A contact I met many years ago got in touch with me a few months back, he had landed himself in a hole and wanted help getting out of it. When you are in a hole with a mortgage on your head doing nothing means the hole is getting deeper and deeper.

The property at one point in time was fully paid up and had no debt whatsoever. A manager and his colleague from a well known high street bank came to see him a number of years ago and convinced him of the merits of taking a cross currency mortgage. During this period the base rate reached as high as 5.75% from July to November 2007, much higher than the current 0.5%.

Gi ven t his bac kd rop a pro du ct whic h g ave you a lowe r rat e of i nt ere st in an ot her c ou nt ry su ch as Swit ze rl and or Japan loo ked ve ry att ract ive , e spe cial ly in an e nviron men t whe re the int ere st rat es loo ked as th ou gh t hey co uld rise eve n fu rthe r, and t his pro du ct starte d bec omin g popul ar. He re yo u cou ld swap l oc k int o a rate in th ese re spe ct ive co un tries an d leave yo ur ho me e nviron men t, wh ich se eme d l ike an at tract ive pro positi on - on th e su rface . W hat was no t emphasise d was the massive c urren cy exch an ge risk associate d with suc h a transit ion wh ich wo u ld bec ome abu ndan tly c lear t o t hose who to ok part in this type o f mo rtg ag e as t ime wen t o n.

The rate he was given was 1.99% per annum. As time progressed the amount of money he borrowed actually increased instead of decreasing due to the currency exchange rates going the wrong way.

In time he fell into serious arrears and in order to get some short term respite he took another loan, what’s known as a second charge, which is offered by a separate lender and sits on top of the first loan.

This loan was given at a rate of 2.5% per month. It was anticipated this loan would be paid back within a short period of time - which again did not happen. Hence his hole was getter deeper.

other areas. I was also reminded of this on a visit to Surrey where I had an in depth report on St George’s Hill, and the surrounding area from a property veteran who has been developing in the local areas for over a decade, it was an eye opener for me and something I was blissfully unaware of.

The current owner of this property has managed to keep the bank at bay surviving one attempt of eviction by claiming he had a buyer in the horizon, which failed to perform. But now he has been given notice of eviction a second time, and time is running out fast and the bank as no patience any more. Hence he has approached us, to exchange on the deal without much fanfare. When he first approached me he was calling me several times, even on a Sunday, in his desperation to ensure the deal gets done.

The price we have offered and which has been accepted is £2m well below the offers received for £2.8m.

The seco nd charge l en de r n ee ds to t ake th e permission fro m t he f irst len d er t o re giste r t he ir c harg e, th is i s su pposed to be d on e via t hei r n omin ate d so licit or. In t his sce nario t his did no t h appe n, t he lawye r mad e a mistake an d re le ase d t he f un ds t o th e cl ien t wit hou t g et tin g t he pe rmission fro m the first l en de r. The ref ore the sec on d charge le nd er has no c laim f or t he ret urn of t hei r mon ey, in f ac t the y wen t t o cou rt to try and claim bu t t heir cl ai m was struc k ou t by a cou rt.

The property itself consists of a rundown freehold house, with a generous amount of land around it. The property is large enough to convert into three flats with enough space around it to build another two flats as new builds. This site has massive development potential with an end value of £5m conservatively; it had been receiving offers of circa £2.8m as recently as a couple of months ago from various agents. The property is in the very posh area of Richmond, where prices like this are common place. Admittedly I have developed a blinkered vision being stuck in the central London vicinity where you sometimes fail to appreciate the beauty and demand which exists in

In m y min d th ere are a fe w ways to carve t his de al up. On e is t o exchan ge at £2m whic h is t he price I of fere d an d rese ll at £2. 5m+ , which mean s f rom £200k yo u have just mad e £500k with in a cou ple of mon th s. T his is assu ming t he buyers are ou t t he re in t his lo cati on wh o c an pe rfo rm fast en ou gh and i n cash, if n ot in c ash t heir len d ers will n ee d to be happy t o loan mo ne y o n a fl ip, as no t all le nd ers are .

Most hig h stre et len de rs are no t, th is is the hit an d ru n met hod .

The Real Deal

Another way is to obtain the planning permission for the conversion and the new build and then resell it on to a local developer post planning. The final route is to go through and complete the development, of course the first question you should be asking is not about the development but about yourself: What is your cash flow like? Do you want to get involved in a development which isn't quite in your locality? It is better, as with most things, to have an inside out approach rather than an outside in one.

You don’t always have to decide right now as to which route you will take, it is sometimes beneficial just to keep all the doors open, but to be prepared for the ‘worst’ case scenario, which is to complete and develop the site.

This is a deal which is currently on the table and should exchange by next week at the latest. If you like the sound of this investment why not give the office a call?

Ealing, London, W7 Purchase Price: £370k l A large two bedroom mid terrace house l Freehold

l Currently generating £1,300 per month rental income l Similar properties are being sold for around £420k l Very good property for long term hold Call us now to secure this deal!

0207 993 0103

We provide a turnkey solution. Contact us now:

Specialists in

Central London Property Sourcing

info@sowandreap.co.uk

www.sowandreap.co.uk

55 Bryanston Street, Marble Arch Tower, London, W1H 7AA

Follow us online:

Sowandreapuk

SowandReapProperties

Tips of the Week l Always have an alternative exit strategy when doing property deals, as things may not always go to plan. l While using mortgages for buy and flip deals, the most important fees are the arrangement fees and the exit fees, not necessarily the interest rates.

20

LEGAL VOICE

India likely to join Chinapromoted Infrastructure Bank

Despite some reservations, India is expected to join Asian Infrastructure Investment Bank (AIIB) as the second largest shareholder in what is being seen as a move by the government to ensure that it has a say in running the new multilateral lending institution being created at China’s behest.

“We are discussing some of the concerns and we hope to resolve them soon,” a senior Indian official said, adding that India may get around 19% voting rights based on the size of its economy, compared to China’s 42%.

The bank is expected to start with an authorized capital of $50 billion and will boost infrastructure financing in the region. It will rival the Asian Development Bank

(ADB), where Japan and the US have larger shareholding than China, which has emerged as a major global force in recent years. When China discussed the idea of the bank last summer, India and Japan were kept out of the closed door meeting with 16 countries on the sidelines of the ADB’s annual meeting.

Subsequently, Chinese president Xi Jinping extended an offer to Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the sidelines of the BRICS Summit in Brazil.

Although several people in the government were initially against the idea, the mood changed when they realized that most of India’s neighbours would be shareholders. Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 11th October 2014

are expected to join the bank. Already China is playing a significant role in developing a port and road network in Pakistan.

Similarly, China and Bangladesh have sealed an agreement for a power plant in India’s eastern neighbour and a Chinese economic and investment zone in Chittagong. But, domination by a few countries and governance standards are concerns within the government, said an official, in what was a reference to China.

Chinese authorities, sources said, have told their Indian counterparts that the concerns can be addressed once there is a commitment from India to join the new multilateral bank. But officials fear that by committing to shareholding, India will

end up endorsing AIIB’s structure the way China wants it. Others, however, said the issues can also be addressed when the articles of association are being finalized. At the same time, government officials said AIIB may provide low-cost funds for infrastructure creation in India, something that the existing multilateral bodies had failed to do. For instance, the government has been pushing for a Global Infrastructure Facility (GIF) in the World Bank but it has failed to take off. “If the existing institutions are unable to or unwilling to intervene on behalf of emerging markets then a new institution is needed,” said a source backing the plan for India to participate in AIIB as a shareholder.

quarter of current fiscal.

India had clocked sub-5 per cent growth in the previous two fiscals. It grew 4.5 per cent in 2012-13 and 4.7 per cent in 201314.

Fitch said lifting GDP growth to substantially higher levels would require large productivity gains through implementation of reforms related

to governance, product and labour markets, as well as reduction of infrastructure bottlenecks. It said India would be the only BRIC nation where growth picks up in 2014 and further accelerates in 2015 owing to an expected improvement in business environment.

The agency has a stable outlook on India's 'BBB-' rating. Fitch said in the longer run, a credible low inflation environment would benefit growth by improving the investment environment. WPI inflation fell to a 5-year low of 3.74 per cent while the retail inflation was at 7.8 per cent in August.

Mining) have been going on for many months. JSW people have visited them also," said the source, who declined to be named.

Debt-laden London Mining said recently it was in talks with a potential investor

for funds, but the funding would take a number of weeks to implement.

Like other junior iron ore miners, London Mining is battling record low prices for the steelmaking raw material in the face of stagnant demand from the world's top consumer, China, and oversupply from the biggest players in the industry.

A JSW spokesman did not immediately reply to a request for comment.

London Mining was not immediately available for comment. JSW is controlled by billionaire Sajjan Jindal.

India to grow 5.6% this fiscal, 6.5% in FY'16: Fitch

India's growth is expected to accelerate to 5.6 per cent in the current fiscal and further to 6.5 per cent in 2015-16, buoyed by strong investments and political certainty, rating agency Fitch said.

"The new government has started rolling out a number of policies, which may improve the efficiency of the bureaucracy and strengthen the investment climate," Fitch said.

Fitch expects GDP growth to pick up to 5.6 per cent in FY15 (ending in March) and 6.5 per cent in both FY16 and FY17, the agency said in its global economic outlook report. "Investment

is likely to rise now that political uncertainty has disappeared since the new government came to power last May," it added.

RBI has projected a 5.5 per cent GDP growth for the current fiscal and 6.3 per cent for 2015-16.

Fitch further said the expected pick-up is supported by the 5.7 per cent GDP growth in April-June

Steelmaker JSW in talks to buy London Mining

JSW Steel Ltd, India's third-largest steelmaker, is in talks to buy Sierra Leonefocused iron ore miner London Mining Plc, reports said. The news sent shares in AIM-listed London Mining up almost 18 per cent.

London Mining, which has been hit by a falling iron ore price and the Ebola crisis that has gripped the region, would come "cheap" given its market value of $10 million, one of the sources said, adding the deal would help JSW meet some of its demand for steelmaking ingredient iron ore.

Action against illegal mining in India has led to a sharp fall in domestic iron ore output, forcing JSW to import heavily. It plans to ship in 10 million tonnes of iron ore this fiscal year ending March 31.

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Maria Fernandes

The drum beat for Investors

The election drum roll is in motion and the Home Office, like all other departments must be preparing for the inevitable.

There was a time when there was a clamour for Investors and Entrepreneurs and political leaders on all sides including the Prime Minister himself made several personal appeals to invite investment. That was then. With the rise in applications for Entrepreneurs, the immigration authorities have gone into over drive but in a negative manner.

Suddenly it has been alleged in larger and larger numbers of cases that the rise in numbers must amount to abuse. The number of interviews have gone up and the reasons for refusal are usually based around the fact that the Entrepreneur does not know enough detail about the figures and is therefore not a genuine applicant.

Applications have been refused in some cases because the applicant did not know what the minimum wage was.

The interviews are flawed because they are in many cases based on value judgements. They are also based on a cursory understanding of how businesses in India and Pakistan are conducted. There is a failure in understanding that, at the stage of making the application, the business plan is simply a plan and need not be the final business that the applicant engages in. It has been said that the primary motive for these applications is to live here

rather than invest! If an Entrepreneur does not want to live here and make it his/her home it is unlikely that they would want to invest. Although the law does not contain exclusions of types of business other than property management or development, in reality a plan to open a restaurant coffee shop is likely to be frowned upon. The hospitality industry has suffered immensely in the last few years with the number and types of staff severely restricted. This discrimination extends to investors too who want to invest in hospitality related businesses. There is an unwritten rule that these businesses should be discouraged.

For those who still want to enter as investors where currently they need to show the availability of £1 million and invest £750,000, time is fast running out. The rules are expected to change this month. The investment amount is likely to change to £2 million as recommended by the Migration Advisory Committee and there are likely to be restrictions on the type of investments that will be permitted.

So as we go deeper into election mode it is hard to work out what it is he Government wants.

Investment but not in certain industries or certain types of people. Already the number so students from India has fallen as they seek other countries to study. The same fate will fall upon the other areas including the investors.

To contact Maria Fernandes, please email at: info@fernandesvaz.com

Microsoft to set up cloud data centres in India

Microsoft will have local data centres for its commercial cloud services in India by the end of 2015, CEO Satya Nadella announced in New Delhi.

Nadella did not disclose the amount invested in the project or the number of hires that will need to be

made for the data centres.

“As we get started, you will be able to see the scale of the data centres. We’re pretty excited about the scale. 900 million end points will drive this,” said Nadella, referring to the number of mobile phone users in India.

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CURRENCY VOICE

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 11th October 2014

21

Foreign Exchange

Paresh Davdra is the Dealing Director of RationalFX, Currency Specialists.

Fridays figures show slowdown in mortgage approvals The Bank of England reported mortgage approvals for house purchases eased back to 64,212 from 66,100 in July and 66,923 in June. These figures were released after Friday's reports showing a slowdown in September.

New rules implemented by the Bank of England mean lenders are to be prevented from allocating more than 15% of new residential mortgages to individuals borrowing four and a half times their income or greater. Policy makers have acknowledged the limit will only have an impact if house prices rise more than 20% between now and early 2017.

The property market also appears to be giving some hope to first time buyers with house price growth slowing in September. The nationwide house price index fell 0.2% from August to September, this figure marked the first monthly fall in the index for 17 months.

It seems banks tighter lending criteria and the prospect of an interest rate rises dampening demand.

In the US last week con-

sumer confidence hit a four month low. The Confidence Board’s monthly survey of morale dipped to 86.0 from 93.4 in August with Consumers saying they were more worried about job prospects and likely future economic conditions.

However better news in the labour market for the US, with the private sector adding 213,000 new jobs last month; this was slightly ahead of expectations.

The number of Americans filing applications for unemployment benefits unexpectedly fell last week; a sign the job market is sustaining progress.

Jobless claims dropped by 8,000 to 287,000 in the week ended September 27th, from a revised 295,000 in the prior period.

Firings are hovering close to decade lows as employers benefiting from rising demand to retain staff, laying the ground for more hiring and wage gains. A report today is projected to show employers added to payrolls in September and the jobless rate held at a

Monday October 6th

six-year low.

The Dollar strengthened on Friday after the much anticipated nonfarm payroll employment figure increased by 248,000 in September and the unemployment rate declined to 5.9 percent.

Employment increased in professional and business services, retail trade and health care giving a welcome boost to the economy.

The report also showed that average hourly earnings were stagnant in September from a month earlier, while the participation rate, which measures the number of Americans employed or looking for a job as a share of the working-age population, decreased to 62.7 percent, the lowest since February 1978, from 62.8 percent a month before.

Germanys unemployment rate unexpectedly rose for a second month as seasonal factors combined with economic risks from the Ukraine crisis to a faltering euro-area recovery contributed to a poor jobless figure. The number of people out of work climbed a seasonally adjusted 12,000 to 2.92

million in September Economists forecast a decline of 2,000. While this is a disappointing figure the jobless rate was unchanged at 6.7 percent, the lowest level in more than two decades.

Pressure continues to mounting on the European Central Bank to take fresh action after inflation in the euro area fell to just 0.3% this month, and core inflation weakened to 0.7%. Off the back of this the euro fell to fresh two-year lows against both the US dollar and the pound, as the market anticipates more easing from the ECB Unemployment remained unchanged at 11.5 across the single currency region, while slightly better than the 12% set last year the figure is still far to high. There are sharp differences between Member States The lowest unemployment rates were recorded in Austria (4.7%) and Germany (4.9%), according to Eurostat’s methodology and the highest in Greece (27.0% in June 2014) and Spain (24.4%).

Weekly Currencies As of Tuesday 7th October 2014 @ 4.30pm

GBP - INR = 98.55

USD - INR = 61.25 EUR - INR = 77.38 GBP - USD = 1.61 GBP - EUR = 1.27

EUR - USD = 1.26 GBP - AED = 5.91

GBP - CAD = 1.80

GBP - NZD = 2.05

GBP - AUD = 1.82

GBP - ZAR = 17.86

GBP - HUF = 391.92

www.rationalfx.com

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

Monday October 6th

22

WORLD

Stellar International Art Foundation debuts at St Moritz Art Masters 2014

London: On the 22 August, the beautiful Engadin opened its doors to an exhibition of Contemporary Art from India hailing the seventh St Moritz Art Masters exhibition.

The event boasted 30,000 visitors, introducing to the area some of India’s most prestigious artists, including but not limited to Manish Nai, Nalini Milani, Shilpa Gupta and Dubodh Gupta. Through guided Walks of Art, visitors from around the globe were guided through site-specific art interventions, which brought Indian life to the Alpine setting.

At the very centre of this buzzing exhibition stood a seminal exhibition of works from the Stellar

Daniel Kurjakovic (Curator/Laudatio), Alix Guillaume (CEO Cartier Suisse), Nalini Malani (Artist), Käthy Dobers (Boutique Director Cartier St.Moritz), Reiner Opoku (Founder/Artistic Director St.Moritz Art Masters). Nalini Milani receiving the St Moritz Art Masters Award on the opening Bollywood Gala Evening at the Hotel Kempinski, St. Moritz (Photo Courtesy: Giancarlo Cattaneo)

International Art Foundation’s art collection – a three-artist show which linked contemporary to modern, India to Europe, and the spiritual to the secular.

The first room showcased a group of watercolours by Paresh Maity, who lives and works in Delhi. Paresh’s work is famous for his vibrant colours and luminosity.

Bhanu Choudhrie, Anita Choudhrie, Simrin Choudhrie, Kishore Singh, Sharmila Tagore (Bollywood Actress), Sudhir Choudhrie. Kishore Singh offering the first copy of M F Husain, The Journey of a Legend to Mrs. Sharmila Tagore, at the launch of the book at Nira Alpina during St. Moritz Art Masters (Photo Courtesy: Giancarlo Cattaneo)

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 11th October 2014

What made this selection important was the variety of locations the artist depicted. Just as the Indian art brought the east to the Alps, Paresh’s vibrant style brought India to his depictions of Venice, Japan, Iceland and Alaska.

Escaping from secular and worldly visions, a second space presented the work of Maity’s wife Jayasri Burman who brought to life the spiritual in both literal and stylistic manner.

The gem of the entire presentation – was the exhibition of over nearly 100 works by the late, great M F Husain. At its heart, literally in the centre of the room, stood the famed Maria Collection. A group of 80 works which Husain gifted to the woman he termed the ‘purest’ love of his life – Maria Jaroslav Zurkova – who was his translator on his first visit to Prague for an exhibition there in 1956. It was the first time this series has ever been made available to the public eye.

This tribute as an exhibition highlighted the launch of the first publication since Husain’s tragic passing in 2011.

Commissioned by Stellar International Art Foundation, M F Husain: The Journey of a Legend, was written by Kishore Singh, Head of Exhibitions and Publications for Delhi Art Gallery.

The book is a prodigious volume, including all of the nearly 300 works by Husain in the Stellar International Art Foundation collection.

Equal to the power of the plates, is within this book a most eloquent biography of the artist and the beautiful story of his relationship to the Choudhrie Family, founders of the Stellar International Art Foundation. It is truly an enchanting text, which deserves the same painstaking attention as the mesmerising images of the artist’s work itself.

The publication was launched at the Nira Alpina Hotel overlooking St. Moritz on the morning of the 24 August.

Surrounded by the beautiful landscape, the first book was introduced by Kishore Singh and then officially presented and debuted by Bollywood starlet Sharmila Tagore, one of Husain’s greatest advocates and friends.

In the words of founder Mrs. Anita Choudhrie: “For us, I think all this effort that we have made for the Art Masters for 2014 is all based on our absolute love for M F Husain...all this that we are doing is in his memory.”

In Brief

Bank savers to get special protection

London: The Bank of England has proposed to give special protection to bank customers who deposit large temporary sums in their accounts. Under the financial regulator’s plans, “temporary high balances” of as much as £1 million will qualify for the full deposit protection that applies only to the first £85,000 of money in a bank.

British birth rates among highest in EU

London: According to new figures, the birth rates in some parts of UK are highest in the EU. Large-scale migration has been cited as the reason for the baby boom. Blackburn and Darwen were among the top four areas of the EU for under-15s, with 22.2 per cent of its population being under that age in 2013.

In 2010, birth rates in parts of east inner London were almost 20 per 1,000 population compared with the national average of 12.9. Other high birth rates were found in inner and outer London, Bradford, Birmingham, southern areas of Greater Manchester and parts of Northern Ireland.

Many MPs exceeding alcohol intake guidelines

London: According to a health survey, one in five MPs exceeded healthy drinking guidelines. With numerous bars, restaurants and cafes selling alcohol in the Palace of Westminster, more than a fifth (21%) of female MPs and nearly as many male (19%) members admit exceeding Department of Health safe weekly alcohol intake guidelines. For men, that means drinking more than 28 units of alcohol.

Church trustee admits to defrauding fellow parishioners

London: Patrick Coppeard, 49, a former church trustee and magistrate, has admitted to defrauding his fellow parishioners of millions of pounds in a scam which went on for years, eventually ending when he gave himself up. Patrick used to work at investment bank Merrill Lynch, but now faces a “substantial” prison sentence for the seven figure swindle. The majority of his 61 victims are believed to be parishioners at St John’s Church in Buckhurst Hill, Essex.

Kenyan President steps down to face court

New York: Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta has announced that he would be stepping from the post and would face the court which is hearing serious charges against him. Five charges of crimes against humanity are linked to Kenyatta’s alleged involvement in funding and directing violence that killed 1,300 people in the weeks following disputed 2007 elections. Gangs allegedly under his direction carried out rape and murder, including the incineration of dozens of Kenyans who sought shelter in a church.

Some victims were hacked to death and four were beheaded. More than 600,000 people were left homeless. He denied the accusation at a preliminary hearing at the ICC last September.

Ministers want retirement age to be raised

London: A document has revealed that ministers want the retirement age of employees to rise by six months every year so that pensioners would have more money once they stop working. The government says the move is crucial to offset the growing elderly care and pension costs – as well as bringing in more tax receipts. The Department of Work and Pensions has for the first time set specific targets to increase the average age at which workers retire.

New York Times apologises for mocking India's Mars mission

New Delhi: The New York Times has apologised after having been severely criticised by many readers over a demeaning, ‘racist’ cartoon ridiculing India’s successful Mars mission. India garnered worldwide appreciation as it triumphed in its first interplanetary attempt by putting a satellite into orbit around Mars but in all the obsession around the 'Mangalyaan' a cartoon carried by The New York Times, that showed an Indian farmer with a cow knocking at the door of a room marked 'Elite Space Club', came in for severe censure for being racist. The caricature shows two members of the 'Elite Space Club' reading a newspaper on India's feat and look perturbed with the Indian farmer knocking at their door. The cartoon was criticised for overlooking the importance of the Mars mission that is seen by many as a major boost in India's space programme.

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 11th October 2014

23

24

INDIA

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 11th October 2014

Karnataka HC denies bail to Jayalalithaa

Bangalore: The Karnataka High Court has refused to grant bail to former Tamil Nadu chief minister J Jayalalithaa, who was sentenced to four years in jail in a high-profile corruption case that has lasted nearly two decades. Justice A V Chandrashekara, who heard Jayalalithaa's petition, also declined to suspend the fouryear jail term even after Special Public Prosecutor G Bhavani Singh submitted he had no objection to the bail.

Earlier reports had stated that Jayalalithaa had been granted 'conditional bail' leading to AIADMK supporters celebrating by bursting crackers and dancing.

However, their joy was shortlived as the Karnataka HC

verdict finally said that Jayalalithaa would have to stay in jail and there was no reason to grant her bail.

Ram Jethmalani, Jayalalithaa's lawyer, had sought immediate bail for her on health grounds that she

has diabetes, low blood pressure and acute back pain, and is aged. In his 90-minute deposition, Jethmalani also assured the judge that his client (Jayalalithaa) would abide by any condition put forth for bail, as she was a law-abiding citizen and would not disappear or escape from the country.

Tamil Nadu Chief Minister O. Panneerselvam urged people to remain calm after the denial of bail to Jayalalithaa. He also asked people not to hold protests in ways that would affect the life of ordinary citizens and said the government should not be blamed for demonstrations organised by Jayalalithaa supporters.

A special court on

September 27 found Jayalalithaa guilty of disproportionately amassing about Rs 660 million outside her known sources of income.

The bail petitions were posted for hearing by regular bench on Tuesday by a special bench of the high court on Oct 1 due to week-long public holidays for the Dasara festival after the vacation bench on Sept 30 adjourned these to Oct 6 before the state government declared holiday for Monday on account of Eid-ul-Zuha.

Meanwhile, the Madras High Court has directed the the Tamil Nadu Government to ensure public safety and maintain public law and order so that no untoward incidents take place.

Rajinikanth about the book when Rajinikanth returned. They discussed the political situation.

A senior BJP leader said the party felt the situation as ideal for roping in someone like Rajinikanth, who has mass appeal. Recalling Rajinikanth’s support to the DMK-TMC combine in 1996, the leader said the actor’s backing could be a huge boost to the party’s fortunes in Tamil Nadu.

“Both the AIADMK and the DMK are facing corruption charges. We believe there will be a huge leadership vacuum in the next Assembly election,” the leader said.

Hyderabad: Andhra Pradesh chief minister N Chandrababu Naidu is in no hurry to move out of his favourite city of Hyderabad and in fact is planning to refurbish his Jubilee Hills residence. In a politically loaded statement that is likely to spark angry reactions in the Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) camp, Naidu declared, "I have been living in Hyderabad for the past 30 years and I will continue to live here in the future."

Speaking at a postDasara 'Alai Balai' (gettogether) hosted by BJP's Secunderbad MP Bandaru Dattatreya, Naidu called upon Telugu speaking people to live in harmony, irrespective of their Seemandhra or Telangana roots. While the statement may not amuse his bete noire and Telangana chief minister K Chandrasekhar Rao, who wants to see the

Chandrababu Naidu AP government packing its bag and moving out of Hyderabad soon, Dattatreya made the two chief ministers hug each other and pose for photographs at the get-together. Interestingly, Chandrasekhar Rao had come early and was on his way out when Naidu walked into the venue. As they crossed their paths, the BJP MP stopped them, and the two chief ministers were forced to exchange pleasantries. Though KCR was taken aback on suddenly seeing Naidu walk in, the latter went ahead to hug him.

coming polls and Hisar: Indian are trying to Prime Minister approve such Narendra Modi matters," he said. urged the Election The Rs 580 milCommission to lion land deal take "appropriate between Vadra's action" over the company and Haryana governDLF was canment's approval of celled in October a controversial Narendra Modi 2012 by Ashok landdeal between Khemka, a senior IAS officer Congress president Sonia in Haryana.

Gandhi's son-in-law Robert Ridiculing the Congress, Vadra and realty giant DLF. Modi said: "The Congress Modi said it was for the should be ashamed. It has poll panel to take cognizance not given an account of its and "appropriate action" in 60 years of sins while in the this matter since the government. But they are Bhupinder Singh Hooda questioning my government government had violated the after just 60 days." model code of conduct by Throw out dynastic poligranting the approval ahead tics: Addressing an election of the Oct 15 assembly elecmeeting in Kurukshetra, tions. "It looks as if the Modi asked the electorate to 'danda' (pressure) has come throw out dynastic politics from the top. The Election and nepotism and elect a Commission should take BJP government with majorcognizance and appropriate ity, saying he did not want action in this regard," Modi the support of “dangerous” told a BJP election rally in people lodged in Tihar Jail, this Haryana town. "This apparently referring to foraction shows that Hooda mer chief minister Om and the Congress have Prakash Chautala. accepted defeat in the forth-

Uchana Kalan (Jind): Indian National Lok Dal (INLD) chief Om Parkash Chautala last week went on a surprise nine-hour election road show in Jind, days after the Delhi high court had issued a notice to CBI on a petition which alleged he was misusing his bail conditions. He has been given bail on medical grounds and told to surrender on October 17.

Seated on a hydraulic chair that lifted him at every public appearance, the 79year-old Jat leader travelled in a modified green Mercedes bus converted into a rath. He covered 36 villages that are part of his grandson and Hisar MP Dushyant Chautala's constituency - Uchana Kalan.

In January last year, Chautala, his son Ajay and eight others were awarded 10 years jail for illegally recruiting 3,206 junior basic teachers in 2000. Many believe that if Chautala senior's appeal against his conviction in the Delhi high

Jayalalithaa

BJP trying to rope in Rajinikanth

Chennai: Sensing a political opportunity in Tamil Nadu following the conviction of AIADMK general secretary Jayalalithaa, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has intensified its efforts to make superstar Rajinikanth join the party.

During a Navarathri visit to Rajinikanth’s residence last week, Tamilisai Soundararajan, president of the BJP state unit, tossed the idea of the popular actor supporting the party to his wife, Lata Rajinikanth, party sources said. BJP sources said that Soundararajan visited the actor’s house on an invitation from Rajinikanth's wife.

The actor was, however, away shooting for his next movie. Soundararajan invited Rajinikanth to release a book on Prime Minister Narendra Modi, currently being given the final touches. She told the family that she would visit again to talk

Modi attacks Hooda over Vadra-DLF land deal

Naidu has no plans to move out of Hyderabad

Chautala campaigns for 9 hours while on bail

court is upheld, then Dushyant would vacate this seat for him, allowing him to become chief minister again. Jind remained tense as his acolytes and security staff in civies guarded his rath, restricting any physical interaction with his supporters, amid fears of the court revoking his bail orders. However, at every few minutes interval, he would clasp the microphone, wave at villagers, and openly seek votes to bring his party to power in Haryana and make him chief minister.

"Once I become CM, I will ensure your life becomes comfortable for seven generations of your family. To win rights, you need to snatch them.''

South Brief

Customs men find 1kg of gold in flyer’s belly

Chennai: Customs authorities nabbed a 35year-old native of Myanmar when he arrived from Kuala Lumpur and found that he had consumed 1kg of gold pellets. It took the authorities seven hours to retrieve the stones after the doctors gave him an enema. Sources said Hawai Du arrived in the city on a visit visa. Customs authorities who have upped the ante since recent large scale seizures suspected the passenger of carrying gold.

They stopped him and he began arguing about being unwell and having stomach ache.

He was taken to a hospital and a scan showed small tablets of gold inside his stomach.

Doctors recovered 124 gold tablets weighing one kilogram and worth Rs 3000,000. On interrogation, he confessed to his role in the smuggling. He said he as asked to carry the gold to the city by someone in Myanmar.

Telangana stir cases against 690 persons lifted

Hyderabad: The Telangana government has decided to withdraw cases against 690 people which were filed during the agitation for separate state of Telangana. Orders lifting the cases were signed by home minister and formal government orders to this effect were expected soon. The lifting of cases was one of Telangana Rashtra Samithi's poll promises and was included in its election manifesto.

However, there were still some pending cases against persons who either destroyed or caused damage to central government property during the agitation that have not been lifted. According to officials, this would take some time as central government entities that were targeted would have to give consent.

North Brief

Cong tries to woo farmers, other sections

Chandigarh: Congress, seeking a third term in a row in Haryana, released its election manifesto for the October 15 polls, attempting to woo farmers and other sections, even as chief minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda promised to put the state on higher growth trajectory. Seeking mandate in the name of development while promising to carry out welfare projects in various fields, the 23-page manifesto lays thrust on agriculture and horticulture, irrigation, energy, industry, trade, commerce, FDI, health, besides employment, women empowerment, scheduled caste and backward classes, urban and rural development and education, with a promise to set up an university in every district.

Will treat cow slaughter like murder: Haryana BJP chief

Chandigarh: BJP Haryana chief Ram Bilas Sharma has promised to treat cow slaughter as a crime as heinous as murder. If elected, he said at the manifesto release function, the existing law would be amended to raise the punishment for cow slaughter from five years imprisonment to penalties that come with murder. The party's manifesto committee chairman Ganeshi Lal hesitated when asked if the amended law would invite life imprisonment and death penalty. "Why are you insisting that I say we will bring cow slaughter under Section 302?" he asked. "You should understand our sentiments."

Haryana minister, MLAs indicted

Chandigarh: In a setback to the Congress, Lokayukta justice (retd) Pritam Pal, indicted Haryana health minister Narender Singh, chief parliamentary secretary Vinod Bhayana and MLAs Jarnail Singh, Naresh Selwal and Ram Niwas Ghorela in the cash-for-change-of-landuse (CLU) certificates scam and asked police to probe the case. Disposing of complaints filed by INLD MLAs, the Lokyukta asked additional director general of police (ADGP) V Kamraj to investigate the case and directed the minister, CPS and MLAs to appear before the investigation officer on October 22. The ADGP has also been asked to complete the probe within three months.

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 11th October 2014

GLITTERING

HONG KONG H

ong Kong is one of the most buzzing, vibrant Asian cities to visit, easily recognizable for its stunning glittering skyline and deep natural harbour.

The three main regions to visit are Hong Kong Island, Kowloon and the New Territories. The best time to go is October through to March with mild weather and minimal rainfall. The New Territories is still relatively untouched by tourism but if you want a real flavour of rural life, book a day tour to see the local culture or a boat tour to see the smaller islands. On Hong Kong Island, visit the Peak, take a sampan (boat ride) for a fascinating insight into the fishing culture, see the coastal gem Repulse Bay and enjoy a spot of bargaining at Stanley market. Lan Kwai Fong is the area for urban chic with top notch hotels, restaurants offering international cuisines and great bar hopping offering all types of music and cocktails with fantastic happy hour promotions.

To visit the mainland, take a Star Ferry over to Kowloon (attached to the mainland), the hotspot for tourists with the famous Tsim Sha Tsui (the Golden Mile) offering a plethora of hotels to stay in, great shopping and nightlife.

Visit the iconic landmark, the Clock Tower and a must see is the ‘Symphony of Lights’ laser show in the evenings,

where the best place to watch is along the Avenue of Stars (alongside Bruce Lee's statue), Hong Kong's version of Hollywood's Walk of Fame. Afterwards for an authentic Dim Sum dinner, try Serenade restaurant at the Hong Kong Cultural Centre, then stroll up Nathan Road for designer shopping malls or haggle away at cheap street markets shooting off from the main road. There is a beautiful jade market bursting with jewellery dedicated to this green gem-

stone, as well as numerous clothes, bags, leather and handicrafts markets.

Getting around Kowloon is easy with an efficient metro service (MTR) and cabs are not too expensive. To escape from the hustle and bustle of this happening city, visit Lantau Island for long sandy beaches, parks, beautiful nature walks and hikes. For families, Hong Kong also offers an amazing Disneyland for a day of thrilling rides and adventure.

To truly explore Hong Kong, you need a minimum of a week, so a 7 night stay including flights and hotel from just £765pp would be an ideal choice for your next holiday. For your tailormade holiday, call Brightsun Travel on 0208 819 0531 or visit www.brightsun.co.uk

TRAVEL - INDIA

25

Modi wields broom to launch 'Swachh Bharat Abhiyan'

Indian Prime Minister Narenda Modi on last Thursday visited Valmiki Basti where he wielded the broom as a token gesture to mark 'Swachh Bharat Abhiyan'. On his arrival here at Valmiki Sadan, a housing colony, he was received by BJP MP Meenakshi Lekhi and greeted by children with a 'tilak' who were present at the venue. Later, he was seen having a conversation with the janitors who also participated in the cleanliness drive along with him.

The chosen venue is the one which boasts the legacy of having once been the place where Mahatma Gandhi lived in a hutment. Earlier in the morning Modi also paid a surprise visit at Mandir Marg police station while he was on his way to Valmiki Basti. The nationwide Swachh Bharat campaign focuses on sanitation, hygiene and waste management.

The launch was preceded by cleanliness campaign week beginning September 25 which saw central government offices being spruced up by discarding or overhauling old furniture and sending old files to record rooms.

Salman, Tendulkar to spread Clean India message: The Prime Minister

nominated actors Salman Khan and Priyanka Chopra, cricketer Sachin Tendulkar and industrialist Anil Ambani among nine people to spread the message of Clean India.

Modi has said the Swachh Bharat Abhiyan he launched earlier in the day should clean up the country by 2019, the 150th anniversary of Mahatma Gandhi.

At a gathering, Modi asked them to nominate more people for the task.

“I have invited nine people and asked them to come to public places and work towards a clean India," Modi said. The others in the group of nine are Goa Governor Mridula Sinha, Congress MP Shashi Tharoor, yoga guru Baba Ramdev, actor-producer Kamal Haasan and the team of television serial Taarak Mehta Ka Ooltah Chashmah. "These nine people can nominate

nine more people, and they can clean and upload videos," said the prime minister.

India Inc joins Clean India campaign: India Inc and public sector undertakings (PSUs) joined the Clean India campaign by pledging support and financial aid under corporate social responsibility (CSR) initiatives. Industry body Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) launched 'Mission Sanitation of Schools (SoS)' drive under which it will work with companies to construct toilets across the country.

"We have set up a mechanism to create awareness and encourage industry participation through our network of 64 offices in India, spread across 26 states and two union territories," said Sumit Mazumder, president designate, CII, and chairman, TIL Ltd.

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INDIA

How would have the Sardar reacted?

Kamal Rao

There are some community organisations who are behaving in some strange manner. In a country like Great Britain all organisations are supposed to follow the Aims and Objectives of their constitution or charter. Most organisations adhere to this cardinal responsibility but some do not. Today, as an experienced journalist of 24 years in both India and the UK, I am very sad and deeply pained to talk about an organisation which is behaving in a very strange manner, to say the least.

Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel was independent India’s first Deputy Prime Minister as well as the Home Minister.

His unique and permanent legacy is the integration of 550 princely states into the Union of India within a very short time and in a very peaceful and constitutional manner. He was known as the Iron Man of india. To spread his message of unity, activism and national dedication, the Sardar Patel Memorial Society (UK) was established in 1984/85. New Life (the predecessor of Asian Voice) and Gujarat Samachar were of some service in its formation and CB Patel was the founder member - though he did not take any officers position. The Society has its own track record going back over thirty years and Asian Voice/Gujarat Samachar will put on the website all the extensive reports in the near future.

Mr Pravin G Patel, Chairman of the Society since the middle of 2013 wrote to CB Patel on 21st July 2014 and informed him that because they are not satisfied with the publicity from the two newsweeklies and are also

P G Patel, Chairman of SPMS

very concerned about the criticism of the Society, CB Patel is no longer welcome as a member of the Sardar Patel Memorial Society (UK).

Chairman PG Patel also told CB that this decision was unanimously taken at the Executive Committee meeting of the Sardar Patel Memorial Society (SPMS) held on 30th June 2014 and will take effect after 21 days from that date. CB Patel was shocked and felt hurt by this decision. There was no previous indication or any notice and also from his knowledge CB has found this decision unconstitutional and completely harmful to the aims of the SPMS. CB wrote to PG Patel requesting some information i.e. agenda for the Executive Committee meeting, the date it was circulated, the names of the proposer and seconder of the resolution to terminate membership of CB Patel, the minutes of the meeting, the list of the Executive Committee members who were present and voted in favour or against for the resolution and also asked for a copy of the Constitution or Trust Deed of the Society which was followed by the Executive Committee on 30th June for their deliberations.

Such information should be readily available to the Society Chairman

and committee members who were also sent CB Patel’s response to the Chairman. The committee members who were listed in Mr PG Patel’s letter are: Pravin G Patel (Chairman), Krishna Pujara (Secretary General), CJ Rabheru (Vice Chairman - who has resigned), GP Desai (Treasurer), Ghanshyam Amin, Jayanti Patel and Jitu Patel (all three trustees) Executive Committee members: Mahendra Jadeja, Anjana Patel, Diptesh Patel, GM Patel, Kala Patel, Rajesh Patel, Ranjanbala Patel, Ramji Chauhan, and Mr Praful RC Patel as well as Mr Kanti Nagda (NCGO) who is not a committee member of SPMS. Organisations are not run simply for publicity.

They are supposed to follow the aims and objectives and act accordingly and the guiding principal is the constitution. If any organisation feels aggrieved by any media attention they have ample options to correct the situation, but to simply dismiss a founding member completely unconstitutionally does not augur well for the organisation or for the community. For three months neither Chairman PG Patel or any of the executive committee member have publicly responded to the two communications from Mr CB Patel.

I am compelled to publish this news item as I find it is of major importance for our community’s well being. I would request the readers as well as all those associated with the SPMS to write to me with their response at kamal.rao@abplgroup.co m or by fax on 020 7749 4981 or by post to the Asian Voice/Gujarat Samachar offices at the earliest.

Modi to hold Man ki Baat sessions

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his address on AIR on Friday urged people to write to him about inspiring incidents which he said he would share during his regular Man ki Baat sessions on radio.

"I have received interesting suggestions from people... This country is for everyone, it is important to connect with the people... Someone suggested that there should be emphasis on cottage industries, someone else suggested that there should be exams from Class 5 onwards...," the prime minister said.

"I urge people to send me real inspiring incidents with proof. I will share them with the country...," he said. He said if each citizen walks one step then

together they could walk 1.25 billion steps to take the country forward to progress and prosperity.

"This is my first beginning.

I shall keep sharing my thoughts in this manner with you people... The thoughts that came to me, I shared with you," the prime minister said.

"If anyone of you wants to share with me their thoughts about the country and suggestions, please do share," Modi said. "I really enjoyed talking to

you," he said.

Sharing his thoughts in his first such address, titled 'Man ki baat', the prime minister said "if we buy one item", it could be a bedsheet, a handkerchief, or anything, but if it is a khadi item, it would help light a lamp in a poor family's house. The prime minister said that the Khadi Gramudyog Bhavans are giving a special discount in the festival season so people should take advantage of it.

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 11th October 2014

India- at home and abroad Indian Journalist provides an in-depth look at India

L to R: Batuk Gathani, CB Patel, Ashok Tandon, and Kailash Buddhawar

On Monday Mr Ashok Tandon - former chief correspondent of the Press Trust of India in UK, former Chairman of the Indian Journalists' Association and the press advisor to former Prime Minister Atal Bihari

Vajpayee for six years visited Karma Yoga House and extensively discussed the recent general election in India and other related matters with Mr Kailash Buddhawar (the former Head of the BBC’s Overseas Hindi and Tamil

section) and Mr Batuk Gathani (a former leader of the Indian Journalist Association) and Mr CB Patel, Publisher/Editor of Asian Voice and Gujarat Samachar.

During the recent elections in India, Mr Tandon provided yeoman service to the Media Cell of the BJP which was coordinated by Mr Manoj Ladwa. After the formation of the Modi government, Mr Tandon is now the advisor to Mr Nitin Gadkari, who is Cabinet Minister for Road Transport, Highways and Shipping of the Government of India.

Karma Yoga Foundation’s support of the Lohana community centres

The Lohanas form proportionally a moderate number of British Gujaratis. Their achievements in education, professions, entrepreneurship, community activism and philanthropy is second to none.

Recently the community opened two purpose built community centres one in Harrow in northwest London and the second in Croydon, Surrey.

These modern premises will facilitate incremental services provided by the Lohana communities and are available to other communities as and when available. As a token of appreciation and humble expression of solidarity Karma Yoga Foundation contributed £5,001 to each organisation.

Kanti Nagda handing over the cheque to Vinod Thakrar, President of the Lohana Community North London.

Pictured from left are CB Patel, Deepak Jatania (Immediate Past President), Vinod Thakrar, Kanti Nagda, Kishor Parmar and Dinesh Thakrar

Continued from page 1 comes to London on 30th January, he would be asked to unveil the statue of Mahatma Gandhi at the Parliament Square. The Cameron government is hoping that by unveiling Gandhi's statue, the influential Indian community, especially the Gujarati community, would vote for the Conservative party in the May 2015 general election. There were around

700,000 Gujaratis in and around London and statue politics would spur the Gujaratis to vote for Tories.

After the 2002 communal riots in Gujarat, the Labour government had snapped all relations with Modi. After the Cameron government came to power, they tried to mend relations with Modi. In 2013 when Modi was the Chief Minister of Gujarat,

the British High Commissioner James Bevan came to Gandhinagar meet Modi and mend relations. By asking Modi to unveil the statue, the Cameron government thinks that the relations between the two countries would be stronger. But Modi visit may not be possible on January 30 in view of the Republic Day function in Delhi on 26th January.

Continued from page 1 spokesperson was quoted as saying the BSF troops retaliated to the fresh ceasefire violation from across the border in a befitting manner.

Though no BSF personnel were injured, three civilians in Arnia received minor injuries. Nine civilians were killed and at least 25 wounded on Monday in fighting along a stretch of the disputed border between India and Pakistan in the Kashmir region, the heaviest toll since India called off a round of peace talks last month. Pakistani forces shelled the village of Arnia about three km (two miles) from the border in the early

hours of Monday, killing five and wounding at least two dozen civilians, according to Rakesh Kumar, an inspector general of the Indian border security forces. India's Border Security Forces (BSF) killed four Pakistani civilians, including two children and a woman.

The attacks coincided with the Eid al-Adha festival, celebrated by Muslims in both countries. Another Indian officer, LieutenantColonel Brijesh Panday, said the army later shot dead three Pakistani-based militants trying to cross into India further along the heavily militarized LoC. Two militants escaped back to Pakistan, he said. The

latest round of mortar and gunfire began on Friday, when Pakistan's army said it responded to "unprovoked firing" from the Indian side. India's defence minister Arun Jaitley said the army would retaliate to the latest violence. "Let everybody be assured that our armed forces, our paramilitary forces are fully ready and they are responding to each of these provocations," Jaitley said.

Pakistan's army separately attacked 10 Indian army posts along the LoC, according to Indian army officials in Kashmir.

Gunfire continued between the two sides in those areas on Monday, they said.

Kanti Nagda presenting a cheque on behalf of Karma Yoga Foundation to Piyush Chotai, President of the Lohana Community South London. Also seen are CB Patel, Publisher/Editor of Asian Voice/Gujarat Samachar and Advertising Manager Kishor Parmar

Modi invited to visit UK on January 30

9 civilians killed in Pak firing

27

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 11th October 2014

HEALTH WATCH

Sushma’s Health & Beauty Blog

Some foods that can give you a headache

S

uffering from headaches or migraines every now and then? Well, you're not alone as many people complain of such problems. Leaving aside obvious reasons like sinusitis, stress and mental tension, little do people know that their diet could be a culprit too. Surprised? We tell why you should be more watchful of what you eat to avoid that throbbing pain in your head.

Diet: A headache is a discomfort or a pressurelike sensation in the head.

A migraine is a common type of headache that usually occurs on one side of the head. Dietician Dr Sunita Dube agrees that one's diet can affect headaches and says, "A family history of migraine, apart from stress, food and beverages may be responsible for up to 30 per cent of migraines. If you consider some other triggers such as hormonal changes, stress, sleeping habits, and depression, it's possible that the percentage is actually higher." One of the most common reasons for headaches due to dietary changes is suddenly switching to a very low calorie diet, in other words, crash dieting. Agrees consultant nutritionist Niti Desai, "This can lead to headaches, especially if these diets cut down or eliminate carbohydrates completely. The brain can only use carbohydrates as fuel. Headaches can also

set in due to low blood sugar levels. Also, if you start skipping meals or have long intervals between your meals, headache sets in. Even a very low water intake can trigger headaches."

Tyramine, a culprit: Tyramine is an amino acid that has been thought to trigger headaches by reducing serotonin levels in the brain and affecting the dilation of blood vessels.

Because of their connection to migraines, tyramine containing foods are important triggers. These include red wine, cheeses, chocolate, alcoholic beverages, and certain processed meats.

Alcoholic beverages: Dr Dube says that red wine contains tyramine, phytochemicals called phenols, which may be the real triggers. For some people, drinking any kind of alcohol can bring on a migraine. Other com-

pounds in beer, whiskey, and wine that deplete levels of serotonin (the happy hormone) in the brain could also be triggering migraines.

Chocolates: They can act as migraine triggers because they too contain tyramine. But at the same time, the connection could be that women tend to crave chocolate during stress and hormonal changes, both of which also may trigger headaches. The amount of chocolate can be an issue too, as migraine patients with the diets highest in fat tended to have more frequent headaches.

Coffee: Sudden withdrawal of coffee consumption can trigger headaches.

Clinical nutritionist Dr Nupur Krishnan explains, "Coffee is mildly addictive and it temporarily enhances mental alertness and concentration. Sudden withdrawal can often cause

headaches, irritability and other symptoms that vary in severity from person to person." For example, in some people who are sensitive to caffeine, it can trigger migraine headaches, while in others it might actually abort a migraine by relaxing the constricted blood vessels that are causing the throbbing head.

Sugar: Natural sugar is important because all plants and animal store energy chemically as sugar.

All form of natural sugar provide about the same energy value - four calorie per gram. Natural sugar is better than artificial sweeteners. Desai says that a very small percentage of people intolerant to the sweeteners suffer from headaches. However, this is more common with the sweetener aspartame and not with the newer sweeteners that use sucralose.

deposits are left to clog up arteries. Scientists believe that oleate helps the body produce enzymes which

break down fat so the heart is once again able to absorb it. When oleate was pumped through a failing heart, scientists saw an “immediate” improvement in how the heart contracted and pumped blood.

But, when animal fats were pumped through the heart, the heart disease worsened and more toxic fat was produced. The study is backed by previous research which shows a diet high in olive oil can have the same affect as statins in reducing the risk of a heart attack.

Olive oil could help to reverse heart failure

O

leate - the fat found in olive oil - could help a diseased heart pump blood more effectively and use body fat as fuel, researchers at the University of Illinois have found. The most common reason a person may suffer from heart failure is when the muscle becomes damaged, including after a heart attack, through drug or alcohol abuse, and high blood pressure.

Shortness of breath, both during activity or rest; swelling of the feet, ankles, stomach and lower back; and fatigue are all symptoms of heart failure.

Currently, there is no way to reverse heart disease, and a combination of med-

To Our Readers

We are publishing these items in good faith, kindly consult your Doctor before you try to implement it. We do not hold any responsibility for its efficacy...

ication and lifestyle changes help patients manage their symptoms and keep their condition stable.

Animal fats, found in butter, were found to make heart disease worse.

Scientists made their findings based on previous studies which show that a healthy heart absorbs fat to keep pumping, but if damaged the muscle can no longer process or store fat – starving it of energy.

This means the heart is unable to work hard enough, and toxic fat

Illuminate Your Inner Self this Diwali What a busy month! With Diwali and Indian New Year around the corner, our thoughts turn to preparations of course but also it is a time to reflect and perhaps make changes in our lives as well as new beginnings.

The light of lights, the self-luminous inner light of the Self is ever shining steadily in the chamber of Sushma Bhanot your heart. Sit quietly.

Pharmacist, Ayurvedic and Close your eyes. Withdraw Homeopathic Consultant, the senses. Fix the mind on Lecturer and Author. Heads Research and Development this supreme light and enjoy the real Deepavali, by at Coolherbals attaining illumination of the soul.

A central belief is that there is something beyond the physical body and mind which is pure, infinite, and eternal, called the Atma or soul. The celebration of Diwali as the "victory of good over evil", refers to the light of higher knowledge dispelling all ignorance, the ignorance that masks one's true nature. With this awakening comes compassion and the awareness of the oneness of all things, and knowledge overcomes ignorance. Diwali is the celebration of this Inner Light over spiritual darkness, knowledge over ignorance, right over wrong, good over evil.

Some of the initiatives going on are STOPTOBER, -stopping smoking for the month of OCTOBER. People who manage to stop smoking for more than 28 days are 5x more likely to give up smoking for good. Ask your local pharmacist for help. Also you may want to participate in SOBER OCTOBER – eliminate alcohol this month and raise money for Mc Millan Cancer - www.gosober.org.uk.

Coolherbals are proud to be sponsoring the WELLBEING ZONE at Diwali On Trafalgar Square on Sunday 12th October - one of the biggest events in Europe for Hindus, Sikhs and Jains. This event is organised by the Mayor of London with DIL (Diwali In London Committee). It promises to be a spectacular bonanza of events.

Coolherbals is offering all the readers some very special ayurvedic well-being treats and a copy of the Asian Voice or Gujarat Samachar to read our article.

We will be having relaxing Free Mini Ayurvedic Head Massages and Coolherbals Chin Firming Beauty Treatment. A qualified Nutrigro® Hair Loss Consultant will be on site to advise on hair loss and hair thinning problems. Come and see Ravi Bhanot for a free consultation. He will also be personally signing copies of his book Hair Today…Hair Tomorrow. For a FREE Invite to ‘6 Ways Guaranteed To Stop Hair Loss’ Road Show in Central London, Harrow, Ilford fill in the coupon below.

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www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 11th October 2014

Hansika donates for flood relief

A R Rahman ventures into production?

A

R Rahman, though busy with films of all languages all over the world, has mulling the idea of being the producer of a Hindi film in the near future. One of the major reasons for this decision is that his son is getting a lot of offers to act in films already. When asked about his production debut, Rahman said, "My first production will be a musical. We should start work on it in a

H

ansika is known for her philanthropic activities. Every birthday of hers, she adopts children and takes care of their expenses. Now, she has donated a few lakhs towards the recent Kashmir floods' rehabilitation efforts.

Not just Hansika, even her family members have provided some warm clothing for the affected people in Kashmir.

Meanwhile, Hansika's most recent release, “Aranmanai” is running to packed houses. She will be next seen in Jayam Ravi's “Romeo - Juliet” and Arya's “Meaghamann.”

'Ekkees Toppon Ki Salaami'

“Ekkees Toppon Ki Salaami” is directed by Ravindra Gautam and has been produced by Anurradha Prasad and Abhinav Shukla.

Anupam Kher and Neha Dhupia play the leading roles. Two sons set out to get their

couple of months. Yes, he has been offered roles in various films, but both my wife and I are not keen on it right now. We want him to learn the skills first, realise his potential and then make decisions about his career. It would be very easy for him to get stardom being my son, but we want him to make a mark on his own and have an independent identity."

One more legend for Dhanush

D

hanush's stock continues to rise with every passing movie. After notching up a blockbuster success in Tamil, with “Velai Illa Pattadhaari,” an exciting news comes out now that Dhanush would be sharing the screen space with yesteryear sensation and an evergreen beauty Rekha in his second Hindi film, “Shamitabh.”

“Raanjhanaa,” his first in Hindi, has already made him a sensation across the country.

Shamitabh, directed by Balki, has another legend in the form of Amitabh Bachchan along with the likes of Dhanush and Akshara Haasan. Now, Rekha adds more acting muscle to this film, with P C Sreeram's cinematography and Ilayaraja's music. Shamitabh is set for release on February 6, 2015.

Simbu and Trisha just can't get enough of the classic VTV “V

innai Thaandi Varuvaaya” will always remain a special movie for everyone concerned, be it director Gautham Menon or the lead pair Simbu and Trisha. The film, with outstanding music by A R Rahman, enjoys a cult following among movie goers with lovers of romance flicks taking an extra-special liking for this realistic urban movie. The film was again screened on TV for the umpteenth time and the lead pair, Simbu and Trisha, apparently went on a trip down memory lane and shared the same in their respective Twitter feeds. Simbu - "Was watching #Vtv after a very long time ... So much memories :) #magical" Trisha - "VTV on tele againTimes wen i lurvee clogged n crammed timelines" With Simbu again reuniting with Gautham Menon for a similar realistic movie, the expectations are already soaring. Pallavi would be his onscreen pair this time around.

'East is East' shines at Trafalgar Transformed’s Season 2

father what he dreamt of all through his life – the ultimate sign of respect.

High on thrill and laughter, this film takes the audience through the unbelievable attempt of the sons to provide their father an 'Ekkees Toppon Ki Salaami.'

The father is a common man who fails to earn his bit of appreciation despite being completely honest during his life-long service as a government employee. The sons are willing to go the extra mile to get their father his only wish. But will they succeed in their endeavour?

Charusmita

O

pening at the Trafalgar Studios in October 2014 is Jamie Lloyd’s Trafalgar Transformed Season 2.

Trafalgar Transformed is a season of politically-charged, socially conscious theatre in the West End, located in the iconic Trafalgar Studios on Whitehall. The season begins with the play “East is East,” starring Jane Horrocks and Ayub Khan Din and directed by Sam Yates.

A Pakistani Muslim, Zahir ‘George’ Khan has been living in England since 1937 and is married to a British Roman Catholic woman of Irish descent for 25 years. They, together with their 7 children, run a fish-n-chips shop. The play deals with the dilemmas and familial conflicts of the characters and tackles the issue of cultural and negoti-

ations of identity in the youth.

“East is East” is not exactly an adaptation of a film by the same name, written by Ayub himself. So what is to look forward to in this production? Ayub himself is playing the role of George Khan, played by the veteran Hindi film actor Om Puri in the film. But con-

trary to the expected, given that the play is autobiographical, Ayub says, “My detachment from the role of George Khan was always there because I had to look at the play from many different perspectives.”

In his interview to 'Asian Voice', both Ayub and Amit Shah (who plays the role of Abdul Khan, George’s son) echo the same message to the British Asian families living in the UK- “You have to allow your children to grow without imposing your ideas on them forcefully. They have to find their own way to wade through life. Once you embrace your uniqueness about who you are, it gives confidence and empowers you.”

Ayub also recognises the concerns of women in British Asian Societies, “The situation of women in British Asian societies was always problematic but it is

only recently that their issues have started to be highlighted. Issues like domestic violence and honour killings need to be emphasised through performances to make the society more aware of what is going on.”

There are many such stories behind the production of “East is East”. As Shah remembers, “While watching “East is East”, the film, I never thought I would get to work with Om Puri and that dream came true when I was offered ‘The Hundred Foot Journey’ and he played my father.”

Having performed in the West End, London, Amit Shah recalls, “The West End experience was starkly different in terms of its size, style and a focus on musicals but East is East is much more naturalistic.

It changed my life. It had a lot of scope for improvisation.

In short, it was liberating.”

29

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 11th October 2014

Shah Rukh receives Global Diversity Award

Emotional team 'Happy New Tanveer Mann

T

he biggest concert extravaganza of its kind took place on Sunday evening, at the O2 arena, when the biggest stars in Bollywood performed to a sell-out audience. It marked a decade since superstar Shah Rukh Khan took to the London stage for the 2004 mega hit concert Temptations.

The eagerly anticipated Lycamobile Slam+ The Tour was kick-started with a special press conference at the five-star Montcalm Hotel in Marble Arch. In attendance was Shah Rukh Khan, Deepika Padukone, Abishek Bachchan, Sonu Sood, Boman Irani, Director Farah Khan and newcomer Vivaan Shah, all who feature in the new film Happy New Year, releasing on 23 October. The show was an added achievement for Shah Rukh, who was honoured with the Global Diversity Award 2014 by the British parliament, for his contribution to cinema, on Saturday 4 October.

At the press conference, Shah Rukh said, “I am very grateful and extremely humbled by all the achievements that have been bestowed upon me.

Sometimes I feel like I don’t deserve them but I’m just very thankful that I’m in the position where people say they want to pick me.”

Co-star Abishek Bachchan extended his congratulations to Shah Rukh at the conference and said, “He continues to make us very

BY Jaya Kumar

P

you have a team like this…

I think its just a good excuse really to enjoy yourself. We’ve been hanging out together for the last year making this film, so it was easy to be with a set of people who are like family.”

When asked what they would miss most from their journey together, Shah Rukh quickly replied, “I think we all will say the same, we are going to miss each other. The madness of Farah on set, she’s an amazingly wonderful director.

We fight with her, argue with her but we love her.

have a lot of fun on stage.”

Newcomer Vivaan Shah spoke of the honour it was to work with such talented actors. “Working on the film has been an absolutely life-changing experience so touring with them has just taken it to another level, because to stand on stage and to perform with them...it’s the most amaz-

Shah Rukh receives global diversity award from Speaker of House of Commons - Rt Hon John Bercow

Shah Rukh Khan with Rt Hon Keith Vaz, MP

proud as Indians.”

Speaking about the Tour and his return to the UK stage, Shah Rukh said, “I am blessed to get a lot of love and support from people around the world. This is our way of giving this love back and thanking you all. I’ve never performed at the O2 so it will be the first time and inshallah it will be great.” Abishek added, “the last time I was at the O2, I was with family and now I’ve come with an even bigger family. It’s a lot of fun.

We’ve had a wonderful time making the film, and we

But really this is going to be sad, the whole feeling on Saturday that we won’t be seeing each other afterwards…” To which director Farah Khan, became tearful. Calling for a tissue, she abruptly said, “I just realised its coming to an end!” Sonu Sood added, “I think, as they say, we’ve saved the best until last.

This is officially the last big bang before the release and it’s going to be very emotional, I think we’ve all been going through little moments with the box of tissues because this is the

ing experience. It’s a huge honour to be here.” When asked if it was easier to work with Shah Rukh for the second time, Deepika Padukone said, “yes, it does make it easier because every time you work on a film with a new co-star, you go through the process of getting to know them. With Shah Rukh, we have that comfortable relationship where if he says something to me, I’ll never question him.’ Speaking about the film, Shah Rukh said, “It’s been great fun, when you make a film like this and

culmination.”

The mood quickly lightened up, however, when the actors were asked what each of them brings to the show. Boman laughingly replied, “I bring the sex appeal!”

When asked how she chooses her roles, Deepika said, “Every film we do is an independent decision.

For me primarily, because it is a script I enjoy, it’s a story I want to tell, I want to be a part of an exciting project.

There’s nothing more important than enjoying the process of making a

Team Happy New Year with Lycamobile Chairman Subaskaran Allirajah and others (Photo Courtesy: Raj D Bakrania, Prmediapix)

film.” Abishek added, “I feel every film has its own destiny and trajectory and you shouldn’t chose a film based on what the marketing is. You chose a film because the character inspires you. Sometimes, with me more than other people, I chose films because if it’s got my friends in it, I want to be a part of it. We’re not in control of the fate of our films, but we are in control of making the process of making that film very memorable.”

“Happy New Year” team has visited the headquarters of Google and Twitter in San Jose, USA. Director Farah Khan, actress Deepika Padukone, actors Shah Rukh Khan, Abhishek Bachchan, Boman Irani and Vivaan Shah went to Google HQ first in the Silicon Valley. The next stop for the team was the Twitter HQ.

All roads lead to 'Dear Father' ships that exist among the older and the younger generations. The Mankad family is like any other family. Ajay is a lawyer and Alka teaches mathematics in a college.

They live an ordinary life with an average Khushi

opular Indian actor Paresh Rawal is back in London, Leicester, Manchester, Birmingham and Croydon to perform on stage a successful Hindi play- “Dear Father.” Raval plays the dual role of a father and a policemansomething only he can pull it off, exuding his natural sense of humour and humanity. Originally staged in Gujarati and directed by Dinkar Janiplay, the play's plot is equally fascinating. It is the story of the Mankad family- Manu, the father, his son Ajay and daughter-inlaw Alka. The play depicts a realistic theme that explores the conflicts that emerge in almost every home in India or Britain from the relation-

(joy) and an average Ghum (sorrow) as Ajay comically points out in one of his dialogues. But their ordinary lives with apparent average joys and sorrows are suddenly affected by a shake-up in the form of Alka cunningly accusing dear father Manu of creating a conflict

between the young married couple and thereby sowing the seeds of division in the father-son relationship.

Interestingly, Alka is far from a kind of villain of the play. In fact she is the one who makes sure her fatherin-law takes his medicines regularly and personally gives his insulin injections every day. And so on, the drama develops with typical moments and incidents that shape ordinary urban lives.

It takes in realities of marriage, soaring bills, manipulative lawyers, corrupt politicians, etc.

Moreover “Dear Father” probes into some actions, some secrets and some mysteries that we all at some stage or the other seem to hide. With well-directed pace, filled with an enjoy-

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able comic sense and combined with characters' emotions, the play is sheer entertainment all the way.

And perhaps the most entertaining is the Father himself played by Rawal.

Talking about the play, Raval said: “A good play should remain in your heart even after the curtains come down. There are some things that inspire you so much that you want them to be part of your life.”

Place and timings: Fairfield Halls, Croydon, Friday, 10 Oct 8.15 pm; Demonfort Hall, Leicester, Saturday 11 Oct, 7.30 pm; Eventim Apollo, London, Sunday, 12 Oct 7.30 pm; Tower Ball Room, Birmingham, 18 Oct, 8 pm; O2 Apollo, Manchester, Sunday 19 Oct 7 pm.

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UK

Sewa Week Samosa event for Britons

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 11th October 2014

Sewa Week started in Ilford 13 years ago. This then became Sewa Day as the popularity increased.

Last year saw 75,000 participate in 25 countries.

On Sunday Britons witnessed the launch of Sewa Week Samosa Event.

Its objective was to improve relations and understanding between communities, friends and colleagues, give joy and raise money for charity. It is a way to show the community at large the selfless or sewa contribution of British Hindus.

The uniqueness of the Sewa Week's initiative is that there is no set costs for the samosas or drink...people can put in as little or as much as they like.

Samosa Events this week will be at Monday Clayhall Nursery, Tuesday NHS Communty Health Team, Wed Natwest Barking and Thursday

Lincolns Inn Homeless Place.

There will be at least one Samosa Event per month- first Wednesday usually. Bookings have

already been taken for the next 6 months.

If you would like to organise such an event please email info@sewaweek.org. uk

Liberal Democrat MP Sarah Teathers will host the Annual Dinner on Tuesday 21 October at the Blue Room Indian Restaurant in Wembley Hill Road, opposite the iconic Wembley National Stadium. Guest speaker will be CB Patel of Asian Voice and Gujarat Samachar, who will review the contribution of the Liberal Democrats and challenge them on the issues of concern to the

UK Asian Community, given his prominence and expertise in Asian affairs.

The other speaker at the popular annual event will be Danny Alexander the Liberal Democrat Cabinet Minister responsible for UK Treasury Issues who will talk about the ongoing battle to tackle the UK deficit and the plans to improve UKs competitiveness and economic performance.

Sarah Teather, the

Liberal Democrat Member of Parliament and a former Education Minister is retiring from Parliament after 12 successful years.

Her replacement as a Liberal Democrat Candidate for the marginal Brent Central seat is Ibrahim Taguri who was brought up in Brent and has in his time worked for various charities.

"We are delighted that C B Patel has agreed to be

the independent voice at Sarah Teather's Annual Dinner and to challenge the Liberal Democrats on issues affecting a large section of the Brent community" said Paul Lorber, a former Leader of Brent Council.

The tickets for the dinner cost ÂŁ35 for an Indian meal including drinks. For more information contact paullorber@hotmail.com or 06917094239.

ARIES Mar 21 - Apr 20 The planet Mercury turns retrograde in your eighth house of joint resources, taxes, wills, legacies and alimony, creating confusion and complications for you during the next two weeks. Saturn, is also in your solar 8th house, so make sure you have plenty of focus when making decisions.

Your closest relationships come under scrutiny as Mercury, the planet of communications goes retrograde in your seventh house of marriage and partnerships. There can be a lot of misunderstandings and confused signals. You'll need to listen carefully to what your partner is saying. Try to resolve issues diplomatically, instead of being rash.

TAURUS Apr 21 - May 21

The next two weeks may bring confusion and misunderstandings at work and troubles with your health as Mercury turns retrograde in your sixth house. You'll need to pay more attention to detail and double check everything before finalising important matters. Health problems should also be taken seriously.

GEMINI May 22 - June 22

Sarah Teathers to host annual dinner in Wembley

Coming Events

l Diwali with dinner and enterainment. Sunday 12 October 2014, 4-10pm at Cromton School, N12 0QG l Diwali with Veg dinner and emtertainment Saturday 18th October, 6pm at Archbishop Lanfranc School in Croydon. Book your ticket early.

Nabhinandan Das 07545 318772 l Dinner/Dance Diwali celebration, Whitmore Higfh School, HA2 0AD, 2 Nov, contact: 020 8452 0350 l Diwali and New year celebrations, Tue 21 October 24 October. Shree Jalaram Mandir, Greenford, UB6 9LB. Contact: 020 8578 8088 l Nagrecha Charitable Trust presents Evening of Old Hindi, Gujarati songs and jokes by Vikram Nizama's Khelaiyy Group Mumbai at Nagrecha Hall, E15 1DT, 6:30pm-late. Contact: 020 8555 0318 l Ustad Nishat Khan at the Cagdon Hall, SW1X 9DQ, 12 October, 7pm. Contact: 020 7730 4500 Editor: CB Patel Associate Editor: Rupanjana Dutta Tel: 020 7749 4098 - Email: rupanjana.dutta@abplgroup.com Senior News Editor: Dhiren Katwa Freelance Correspondent: Rudy Otter Chief Operating Officer: Liji George Tel: 020 7749 4013 Email: george@abplgroup.com Chief Accountant: Akshay Desai Tel: 020 7749 4087 Email:accounts@abplgroup.com Advertising Manager: Kishor Parmar Tel: 020 7749 4095 - Mobile: 07875 229 088 Email: kishor.parmar@abplgroup.com Business Development Managers: Rovin J George - Email: rovin.george@abplgroup.com Tel: 020 7749 4097 - Mobile: 07875 229 219 Urja Patel - Email: urja.patel@abplgroup.com Graphic Designers: Harish Dahya & Ajay Kumar Tel: 020 7749 4086 Email: graphics@abplgroup.com Customer Service: Ragini Nayak Tel: 020 7749 4080 - Email: support@abplgroup.com (BPO) AB Publication (India) Pvt. Ltd. 207 Shalibhadra Complex, Opp. Jain Derasar, Nr. Nehru Nagar Circle, Ambawadi, Ahmedabad.

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For our dear subscribers

Asian Voice and Gujarat Samachar will be published as usual till 18th October 2014. For the 25th October issue, in place of the regular newspaper, you will receive an exclusive copy of our Diwali magazine, absolutely FREE of cost for our subscribers. The regular issue of the paper will resume from 2 November.

Mercury retrograde Occurs in your solar fifth house. Extra care should be exercised when it comes to matters surrounding romance, children, and creativity. Be as non-judgemental as possible and you should avoid jumping to any premature decisions. This is a period of review and rest.

Speculation and gambling are not advised right now.

CANCER Jun 22 - Jul 22

LEO Jul 23 - Aug 23

Mercury retrograde occurs in your solar fourth house. Extra care should be exercised when it comes to family relations, real estate matters, and domestic issues. Be as diplomatic as you can with family members. Try to put off major decision-making with regards to home improvement, moving, and family matters for the time being.

VIRGO Aug 24 - Sep 23

Mercury is retrograde in your solar third house this time, extra care should be exercised when it comes to composing letters, emails, making phone calls, and with communications in general. Issues with siblings or neighbours - these should be resolved amicably. Relationships are also sensitive, try to resolve issues amicably.

Retrograde Mercury transit occurs in your solar second house this time, extra care should be exercised when it comes to new financial initiatives.

There may be the need to resolve old, nagging issues regarding personal finances. Take this time to re-budget and re-think how you want to spend your cash during this period.

LIBRA Sep 24 - Oct 23

SCORPIO Oct 24- Nov 22

Mercury, the planet of communications is retrograde in your solar first house this time, extra care should be exercised when it comes to your body language. Others may misinterpret whatever you say and you should be aware that you can give off mixed signals. Good time to review the manner in which you come across to others.

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SAGITTARIUS Nov 23 - Dec 21

Retrograde transit of Mercury occurs in your solar twelfth house this time, extra care should be exercised when it comes to private and personal matters. Be as non-judgemental as you can, but do keep an eye out for deceptiveness and falseness in others. Good time for yoga and meditation.

CAPRICORN Dec 22 - Jan 20

It's a good time for getting on with your work colleagues, as Venus embraces your 10th house. Bear in mind that Mercury turns retrograde in your eleventh house of friends and associates as well. The next few weeks would serve you well if you spend more time listening than speaking.

AQUARIUS Jan 21 - Feb 19

Mercury, the planet of communications turns retrograde in your tenth house of career and status, slowing down your progress at work. It is important for you to be steadfast and focused as misunderstandings and confusion reign. Stay as organized as possible while retrograde Mercury, does its best to trip you up.

PISCES Feb 20 - Mar 20 Mercury turns retrograde in your ninth house of travel and adventure, slowing down your pace for the next two weeks. Double check your passport and tickets before you embark on any long distance journeys !

Don't be afraid to take on extra responsibilities at work as it could lead to better prospects.

SPORT WORLD

31

India end Asian Games with reduced medal tally

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 11th October 2014

The medal count went down but Indian sports still had lots to celebrate with the men's hockey team coming good after a long time to strike gold even as the legend of MC Mary Kom got bigger in a mixed Asian Games campaign for the country's athletes in Incheon, South Korea.

Pistol shooter Jitu Rai and freestyle grappler Yogeshwar Dutt were among the other heroes of the Games, where the Indian contingent entered with the aim to better or equal the record medal haul of 65 fetched in 2010.

India secured 11 gold medals, three fewer than what they collected in China four years ago, 10 silver and 36 bronze for a total haul of 57.

Four of those gold medals came in athletics (two) and kabaddi (two) while archery, boxing, hockey, shooting, squash, tennis and wrestling accounted for the rest. The gold medal haul also placed India in the eighth position on the medals table, two rungs below where they had finished in China.

At the end of all competitions in this edition of the Asian Games, the 541strong Indian sporting contingent has once again secured the top 10 place out of the same number of

nations and regions.

In Incheon, the first golden touch to India's campaign came from talented army shooter Jitu Rai who handled the pressure well to nail the men's 50m pistol crown on the very first day. The yellow metal tally got rounded off by the double team gold won in kabaddi.

As the country's campaign was tapering off, India's men's hockey squad led by Sardar Singh brought immeasurable joy by reclaiming the gold via the penalty shootout in a nail-biting and action packed final against arch foes Pakistan. India won the shoot-out 4-2 after the South Asian rivals were level 1-1 at the end of the four quarters, a new concept introduced in world hockey in Incheon.

This was a huge moment for the struggling game in India, the tri-

umphant team and its support staff led by Terry Walsh, as well as for the innumerable and disheartened supporters of hockey who wanted nothing less than the gold last won in 1998 at Bangkok. The well-coveted triumph also piloted India directly into the Rio Olympic Games competition without the trouble of going through the slippery qualifiers.

It was also for the first time since 1966 that India emerged winner in the high-pressure Games final against Pakistan.

In between these cherished successes came memorable gold medals in other disciplines - fetched by compound men's team archers, 'Magnificent Mary Kom', Yogeshwar Dutt, men's squash team spearheaded

by Saurav Ghosal, tennis mixed doubles pair of Sania Mirza and Saket Myneni, woman discus

thrower Seema Punia and the 4x400m relay team.

In shooting, Rai, the World No. 5, showed tremendous grit and concentration to beat back the challenge from strong contenders like Wang Zhiwei of China and South Korean two-time Olympic champion and reigning world champion Jongoh to win the gold. He thus became only the second Indian pistol shooter to clinch an Asian Games title after Jaspal Rana and the fourth shooter overall after shot gun experts Randhir Singh in 1978 and Ronjan Sodhi in 2010.

Two other major letdowns were star shuttlers Saina Nehwal and P V Sindhu who helped the country win the women's team bronze before producing a flop show in individual events that followed. Tennis, in which medal chances took a big

hit even before the Games began with the unavailability Somdev Devvarman, Leander Paes and Rohan Bopanna, came up with a good show. Spearheaded by top woman star Sania Mirza, to pick up one gold, a silver and three bronze medals. Sania helped the team win the gold and bronze in mixed doubles and women's doubles respectively. The silver was won in men's doubles by Myneni, Sania's mixed doubles partner, and Sanam Singh. The other two bronze were won by Yuki Bhambri (men's singles) and Bhambri-Sharan Divij (men's doubles).

Star woman boxer Mary Kom shone as a beacon light inside the ring to win her maiden title in the women's flyweight class.

However, the controversy surrounding her teammate L Sarita Devi, who was robbed of a certain place in

the women's lightweight final by poor ringside judging and then refused to accept the bronze medal at the ceremony, took away a lot of attention that the Manipuri deserved.

In total contrast to the women, who bagged one gold medal and two bronze, the male boxers put up a dismal show by adding just two bronze to the tally that stood finally at one gold medal and four bronze, a far cry from their 2-4 heist in 2010. Seema Punia, left out of the last two Games for different reasons, proved a point here by clinching the gold medal in the women's discus throw. The only other gold medal in athletics was captured by the 4x400m relay squad which also bettered the previous mark set by its predecessors in Guangzhou and kept the title in India's hands.

The silver count increased by two after Manju Bala's women's hammer throw bronze got upgraded to silver after a positive dope test of a higher-placed Chinese.

There were athletes like half miler Tintu Luka, silver medallist in women's 800m, and woman bronze medal winning javelin thrower Annu Rani who set up new personal marks or came close to their personal bests while climbing the medal rostrum.

32

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 11th October 2014

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