AV 14th March 2015

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Pakistan has more nukes than India, shows new infographic

First & Foremost Asian Weekly in Europe

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PM Modi leaves for 3-nation tour

Mother's Day

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Special

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Let noble thoughts come to us from every side

VOL 43. ISSUE 43

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Modi warns Mufti over release of separatist leader

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi sharply criticised J&K chief minister Mufti Mohammad Sayeed and expressed his outrage over the release of separatist leader Masarat Alam as an “unacceptable act” and said that the Central government would take appropriate measures to ensure that the country's unity and integrity are not hurt.

“This government will tolerate no such act which can compromise the country's unity and integrity.

We will take action as laid down under the Constitution,” Modi told protesting opposition

members in Lok Sabha after they sought to corner

the government over the release of Alam, who has

Gandhi statue unveiling open to public Foreign Secretary visits India ahead of Gandhi statue unveiling Rupanjana Dutta

Shri Arun Jaitley, the Indian Finance Minister, is set to unveil the new statue of Mahatma Gandhi this Saturday as part of a two day visit to the UK. The unveiling ceremony in London’s Parliament Square on Saturday 14 March, will be open to members of the public from 9:15 am onwards, who will be the

0208 954 0077 0208 819 8004 5938

first to see the historic statue.

It is understood that Bollywood Superstar Amitabh Bachchan is planning to attend the unveiling and the ceremony will also feature personal reflections from Mahatma Gandhi’s grandson, former Governor of West Bengal, Shri Gopalkrishna Gandhi.

Continued on page 11

been accused of orchestrating largescale street violence across the Valley which left 112 protesters dead in 2010.

Opposition parties were joined by BJP ally AIADMK to condemn the release as “anti-national” and dangerous to the country's integrity.

Opponents also sought to rub in that BJP was part of the J&K coalition, and dared it to pull out of the Mufti-led government or arrest Alam, forcing adjournments in the House.

Modi also distanced his government from the controversial decisions of the J&K government, asserting that Mufti had acted without consulting or informing the Centre.

Modi's intervention, which came after home minister Rajnath Singh termed the J&K government's explanation for Alam's release as unsatisfactory, underlined BJP's embarrassment and the strain in its coalition with PDP and was read as a message to Mufti that it will not put up with more such controversial decisions. Modi appealed for non-partisanship but was combative in responding Continued on page 26

Britain pays tribute to Commonwealth soldiers

Read story on page 8

First Hindu Faith School to open in Croydon

Prime Minister, David Cameron has pledged for 500 free schools to be opened by 2020, one being a Hindu faith school which will have Yoga, Philosophy and

Meditation as part of the curriculum. This will be Croydon's first Hindu faith School and is due to open in 2016.

Continued on page 17

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www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 14th March 2015

Michael Essien

Michael Essien is an international footballer, currently playing for AC Milan Football Club. Popularly known as 'Le Bison' for his strong style of play on the pitch, Michael is also very active off the pitch with his charitable and humanitarian work. Through the Michael Essien Foundation, he has supported water projects, built sanitary facilities, introduced books to help improve literacy and sponsored many kids to learn different skills and vocations. As African Union Peace Ambassador, he instituted the 'Game of Hope,' a charity football game held biennially to help promote peace and security in Africa. He is also working with Solve Sunglasses who are creating the 'ESS' sunglasses and part of the proceeds from its sales will be donated to Water Aid and Michael Essien Foundation for their various projects. Currently, Michael is behind the #UnitedAgstEbola campaign established by Health Africa International which is aimed at educating West Africans about Ebola prevention and supporting the medical efforts in the affected areas. Michael Essien has just been awarded the Humanitarian Campaigner of the Year in the Asian Voice Political & Public Life Awards 2015.

1) What is your current position?

I am playing for AC Milan in Italy. Milan is a great city and I am learning the Italian language as well. I am also focussing on my humanitarian work. It is fulfilling to be able to make a difference in the lives of others. I also enjoy spending time with my family and it’s a joy to see the kids grow and be able to converse with.

2) What are your proudest achievements?

Winning the English Premier League trophies. It was always a dream to win this particular trophy and when the moment came, it was truly a very proud moment of my life.

3) What inspires you?

My desire to give 100% in everything I do inspires me to

Banker Helped Frauds Steal £500K from Wembley

Amit Kansara (38), pictured, who worked in a Barclay's Bank in Wembley has been arrested for helping frauds steal £500,000 from customer accounts.

The former banker has admitted in court for his role in the scam, however, he claims that he only acted under force.

The prosecutor, Richard Bendell claims, “it is quite obvious he was not acting under duress and was in fact a vital participant in this fraud.” The prosecutor further explains that the money would be transferred to essentially fake accounts or to those belonging to people who had disappeared.

There was one exception of a £10,000 transfer to the account of Miles Coni (43). Coni has admitted to money laundering although he is not on trial.

Two customers complained when £30,000 disappeared from their banks account, consequently getting Kansara caught.

The jurors in court were told how Kansara's “unique staff number” was linked to the transfers on all of the seven fraud transactions on the accounts.

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7) And the worst?

Being engrossed in the Ebola campaign, it is heart breaking to see many deaths especially amongst helpless children. As a father, this is really unbearable and spurs me on to knock on as many doors to help save lives today and in future.

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

Jose Mourinho

achieve what I set out to do.

Whether it’s playing football, undertaking charitable activities or simply being a good person, I try to give 100% and that always inspires me. I hate to give less than that. I guess it’s my competitive nature.

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

That will be my injuries I endured at Chelsea. It is always

Kansara resigned from his post, however, it was not until months later that the bank became alert of the raids on accounts of other customers.

Amit Kansara informed the police that he had been approached by two Asian customers who had later took him to a car which contained three black men. They showed him a gun, threatened and ordered him to make these fraudulent transactions. Kansara said he was fearful for the safety of his family.

The trial continues as Kansara has denied five counts of fraud by abuse of position.

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whenever I can

difficult to sit on the side lines during rehab not being able to help a team you love win trophies.

Foreign Surrogacy on a Rise in the UK

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

Aid for Africa. To ensure it is distributed effectively and to the right people to make a real difference in the lives of many sufferers on the continent.

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

Nelson Mandela – I like what he stands for as a person and his philosophies and his life story will be encouraging and will give me hope in a place like that

Fridge Freezers causes Untimely Death

Official figures reveal that the number of British parents who choose foreign surrogates to have their children have risen.

In 2011, 117 parental orders were issued by the family courts; given to some children born under surrogacy. However, the figures which are due to be published show that it rose to 240 last year. In 2013, approximately 1,500 British parents had their child through foreign surrogates.

In Eastern European countries, such as Georgia and Ukraine, women charge around £12,000 to carry and give birth to the child.

However, in India, surrogates charge around £20,000 while in America, it can cost up to £130,000, including insurance and agency fees.

The UK permits surrogacy, however, there is a ban on commercial agencies which makes surrogacy in the UK rare.

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8) What are your long term goals?

When my career is over someday, I hope to focus more on my humanitarian work as well as work in the football industry in some capacity.

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

As a player, I enjoy bringing my many years of experience and giving my best to support the Milan team whenever I am called to play.

As a humanitarian, our current campaign UnitedAgstEbola which seeks to raise funds to educate the entire West Africa about the Ebola disease to avoid more epidemic in the region and save lives both in west Africa and the world at large is one that I take very seriously and enjoy campaigning to make a difference in the lives of others. As a father, I enjoy spending time and taking care of my family

In 2010, Santosh BenjaminMuthiah (36) died after trying to save his family from the fire at home.

There was an inquest at Barnet Coroners Court in August 2014 which mentioned how a faulty defrost timer switch in BenjaminMuthiah's fridge freezer had caused the fire.

After the hearing, coroner Andrew Walker illustrated the lack of any requirement for manufacturers in order to protect the flammable insulation from being caught in fire.

After seven deaths and 71 serious injuries in London since 2010, London fire Brigade have said that most manufacturers are yet to make amendments.

The Deputy Commisioner of London Fire Brigade, Rita Dexter has mentioned that fridge freezers are possibly the most lethal household

Santosh Benjamin-Muthiah

appliances if caught on fire.

She goes on to state, “they contain large amounts of highly flammable foam insulation, often only protected by a thin plastic covering.

This can be a recipe for disaster if a fault occurs or if a fire spreads from somewhere else to the fridge or freezer.”

Firefighters have urged manufacturers to stop risking people's lives with their illdesigned fridge freezers.

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www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 14th March 2015

COMMENT

Budget: India’s chance to fly

Finance Minister Arun Jaitley and his advisers rising manfully to the challenge produced a Budget that will surely be seen down the years as an economic landmark for India. Hardened captains of Indian industry acknowledged that it exceeded their expectations. Kiran Mazumdar Shaw, the feisty head of Bangalore-based Biocom, told reporters that she, a veteran unbeliever in budgets, was moved to cheer this one as something extraordinary. Her peers chipped in with marks of 8-9 out of a maximum 10, high praise for a profession more accustomed to cavil and condemn.

These are the nation’s drivers of wealth, so their voices must of necessity carry greater weight than contrarians given to enjoying the fruits of wealth without experiencing the joys of creating it.

Let us for convenience reduce the Budget to its salient features, 1.GDP growth in 2015-16 projected at between 8-8.5 per cent. 2. Fiscal deficit target 3.9 per cent for 2015-16, as against 4.1 per cent in the current financial year ending 31 March 2015. 3. A 14 per cent tax on services, an increase from the present 12.36 per cent to prepare the country for the seminal game changing General Services Tax (GST), which is expected to become operational throughout India later this year, making it a single uniform marketplace instead of the multitude of inter-state markets with local tax regimes, It is what domestic and foreign investors have been long dreaming about. If the truth be told, the previous UPA government of Manmohan Singh had such legislation in its sights, but lacking a parliamentary majority, was unable to carry through the necessary legislation. 4. Corporate tax tax to be reduced 25 per cent from the present 30 per cent over the next 4 years. 5. Additional surcharge to be levied on income in excess of Rs1crore; wealth tax to be scrapped.

Let us proceed to what is on offer under the following heads: 1.Business A. Rs 70,000 crore increase in infrastructure investment in 2015-16.

B. Setting up a National Investment and Infrastructure Fund C. Mudra Bank with Rs

20,000 crore to refinance micro-finance institutions D. Electronic bill discounting to be set up MSMEs. Economy A. Rs 335 crore transferred as direct subsidy to 11.5 crore LPG consumers B. Allocation of Rs 34,699 crore to MGNREG C. Forward markets to be merged with SEBI. Individuals A. No changes in income tax B. Transport allowance exemption doubled to Rs 1,600 B. Non-disclosure as well as inaccurate disclosures of foreign assets to invite severe penalties C. Tax free infrastructure bonds for rail, roads, irrigation C Rs 2 lakh [200,000] accident cover at Rs 12 per annum premium.

Summing up, Arun Jaitley said: “My proposals lay out the roadmap for accelerating growth, enhancing investment and passing on the benefit of growth to the common man, woman, youth and child.” It is a balanced Budget. The best possible under the present circumstances, has been the general verdict of those who matter most. It is less big bang and more value for the buck. “Big bang reforms as conventionally understood are an unreasonable and unfeasible standard for evaluating the government’s reform actions,” wrote the government’s Chief Economic Adviser Arvind Subramanian in the Economic Review, the curtain raiser to the Budget. Making a case for ‘incrementalism’, Dr Subramanian, continued: “Boldness in areas where policy levers can be more easily pulled by the Centre, combined with incrementalism in other areas is a combination that can cumulate over time to big bang reforms.” The strategy conceptualized by Dr Subramanian is in keeping with Narendra Modi’s ‘Gujarat Model of infrastructure-led economic growth. Finally, the largely incoherent responses to the Budget from the Opposition benches are a telling reflection of economic illiteracy. Sonia Gandhi, the Congress President and MP, wisely kept her peace; the party heir apparent, Rahul Gandhi, did a strategic bunk one knows not where. The piece in a national broadsheet by the Communist leader, Sitaram Yechury, was fit for a museum of antiquities.

Around October 1997, a public meeting was held at the Imperial War Museum in London to commemorate the valour of a small body of 21 Sikh soldiers of the British Indian Army stationed at the key Saragarhi fort on the mountainous terrain bordering Afghanistan, held out against 10,000Afghan Orakzai tribesmen until their ammunition gave out. When a relieving force arrived at the fort, they discovered the corpses of these indomitable warriors who fought to the last man, true to their oath to the Crown, as their descendants were to be on battlefields across Europe, the Middle East and South East Asia through two World Wars.

The United Nations had listed the action of these men of Saragarhi as one of history’s ten greatest actions for courage in adversity, fit to stand alongside Thermopylae in ancient Greece, where a small body of Spartans held up a vastly superior force of invading Persians. The hall in the Imperial War Museum was packed to overflowing with the good and great. The star speaker, Viscount Slim, son of the iconic Field Marshal William Slim, Commander of the 14th Army

which defeated the forces of Imperial Japan in Burma and South East Asia, made a telling presentation of the action at Saragarhi on 12 September 1897 with the aid of maps and photographs. At the end of the evening a representative of the British Sikh Association spoke eloquently of the need to raise a Sikh regiment in the UK from Sikhs living in the country. Promises were made, then grew cold. The project appears to have been revived. Foremost among those wishing to see the creation a UK-based Sikh regiment is Labour MP Virendra Sharma, whose Southall constituency has had a strong Sikh presence in the post-war period. “It will help raise awareness of the contribution of the Sikhs in the past. It will allow them to form a cohesive unit,” he said. If regiments can be named after the Scots, Irish and Welsh, why not for the Sikhs?

“The name of your race has become almost synonymous in the English language with desperate courage and unflinching loyalty,” pronounced the newly arrived 39 year-old Viceroy of India, George Nathaniel Curzon. David Cameron would do well to revive the long dormant Sikh project.

By banning the telecast of a restrained, yet powerful and harrowing film, “India’s Daughter,” now available on YouTube, the Indian government has diminished itself. Leslee Udwin’s film is not Indiacentric; it was made to coincide with International Women’s Day to highlight the pervasive discrimination against women, from the workplace, marketplace, in the domestic and public space. Ms Udwin was given permission by the Tihar jail authorities to interview Mukesh Singh, one of the accused in the notorious gang rape in December 2012. The victim, Nirbhaya, a young Delhi woman died of her horrific injuries. Singh, the driver of the bus in which the rape occurred, was a participant in the vile deed with four associates. He justified the assault, saying that if Nirbhaya hadn’t resisted, she would have lived. One of Singh’s two lawyers, A.P.Singh, was shown in the film saying, “If my daughter or sister engaged in pre-marital activities and disgraced herself and allowed herself to lose face and character by doing such things, I would

most certainly take this sort of sister or daughter to my farmhouse in front of my entire family, I would put petrol on her and set her alight.” The other lawyer, Manohar Lal Sharma appeared to suggest that Nirbhaya was at fault for being out on the streets at a late hour. The Bar Council of India has asked for an explanation from both the lawyers, whose licence to practice in now on the line. Council Chairman Manan Kumar Mishra said: “Prima facie, it is case of professional misconduct…. We have received complaints from several lawyers and women’s organizations.”

India’s Editors Guild has condemned the government’s telecast ban, as have women’s groups across the country. The clinching argument came from Nirbhaya’s anguished father, who said India could not remain in a state of denial because of national prestige. He hoped everyone would see the documentary to understand the true dimension of the scourge. Humanity must take precedence over politics.

All-Sikh regiment for British Army

Banning culture: A ban too far

3 Once you embrace unpleasant news not as a negative but as evidence of a need for change, you aren't defeated by it.

You're learning from it.

- Bill Gates (1999)

Helen Grant MP First World War Minister

NEUVE CHAPELLE I can’t imagine that many people reading this will not be aware that we are currently marking the centenary of the First World War. The conflict itself lasted for four long years, so there will be lots of opportunities before we get to November 2018, a hundred years after the Armistice that ended the war, to think about that time in our history.

But there will be lots of Asian Voice readers, I suspect, who will wonder if any of this has any great relevance to them today.

After all, no one who fought for the Allies back then is still alive.

And for many of you, your forebears may well have been living thousands of miles away from the Western Front when all the horrors of trench warfare were taking place.

But as it happens, this week sees the 100th anniversary of a battle that, in a surprising way, is very important indeed to all of us, and in particular the Asian community.

The battle of Neuve Chapelle was the first organised British counter-offensive of the war. In the event, poor communications and insufficient resources led to ghastly casualties on both sides, and resulted in the capture of barely two square kilometres of land.

But it’s the fact that this battle marked the first time that Indian troops served alongside the British on European soil that marks it out as important for me. And I think it’s a real shame that so few people

realise that the servicemen who fought and, in too many cases, made the ultimate sacrifice included some 1.5 million soldiers and non-combatants from countries now known as India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Nepal.

And it also needs to be remembered that these were not conscripts, press-ganged into joining up. No, nearly every one of them was a volunteer, willingly signing up to fight thousands of miles from home in the name of a King and an Empire that must have seemed as alien to them as the freezing sleet that welcomed them on their arrival in Europe.

The arrival of the Indian’ Army servicemen – the Sepoys, as they were known – had come at a critical moment for the Allies.

So it happened that Muslims, Hindus, Sikhs and soldiers of other faiths fought alongside each other and their British comrades in these appalling conditions.

To test their mettle further, no one had thought to tell them that the summer outfits they came to the front in were unsuitable for a European winter.

In little more than a week, some 4,200 Indians had been killed or wounded in the fighting.

These are difficult times for Britain’s Asian communities.

Mutual respect and understanding on all sides is, I believe, a fitting memorial to the brave Sepoys of Neuve Chapelle today and every day.

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

Top prosecutor resigns after being cleared of alleged impropriety

The head of the Crown Prosecution Service for the north west has resigned after being cleared of alleged impropriety.

An investigation was conducted after allegations that Nazir Afzal, OBE, one of Britain’s highest-profile prosecutors, sent a text message to a defendant in a Manchester court case. He has resigned but the CPS insist his decision to go has nothing to do with the unfounded allegation.

The resignation will be effective from the end of March.

The region’s top prosecutor has been in the spotlight for his high-profile comments on child sexual exploitation and groom-

ing.

Mr Nazir, pictured, took up his post in 2011.

His staff received an email earlier this week saying it had always been his intention to step down in 2015.

In the four-line email, Mr Afzal said there was ‘no secret reason’ why he was leaving after 25 years with the CPS. He was also a guest speaker at a function at The Palace Hotel last

week where he announced he was leaving and was responsible for all criminal prosecutions across G r e a t e r M a n c h e s t e r, Lancashire, and Cumbria.

Nazir has pioneered work to tackle honour-based violence and forced marriage, initially bringing this issue to the top of the public agenda through a CPS conference in 2004. He has the national CPS lead on tackling these crimes and on tackling Violence Against Women (domestic violence, rape and other violent offences in which women are predominantly the victims).

Bogus faith healer's £4 million fraud in US and Canada

Bogus spiritual healer Mohammed Ashrafi conned Canadian and US citizens out of about £4.5 million more than a decade before he arrived in Leicester, authorities believe.

Ashrafi, pictured, was jailed for nine years last month for tricking people in Leicester out of at least £650,000 by using sleight of hand tricks and meaningless prayer sessions to promise his victims big lottery wins.

However, it is alleged Ashrafi – who called himself Kamal-Ji while he was in Leicester – left a trail of victims in North America in a similar fraud spree dating back to the late

1990s.

According to the Toronto Star, Ashrafi is alleged to have conned 34 Canadians of $1.2 million – or approximately £650,000 – and in America he allegedly took $6 million – more than £4 million – from dozens of

‘believers’.

The newspaper, which has been investigating Ashrafi’s activities in North America for several years, reported that US police records show officers in four states have received fraud allegations against Ashrafi. It reports that Ashrafi and an accomplice, who has never been traced, fleeced victims in the states of California, Texas, New Jersey and Illinois.

The Canadian authorities are in the process of applying for the 50-yearold’s extradition to face trial for fraud. It is unclear whether the US authorities intend to pursue him, the Star reported.

Three men who kidnapped, imprisoned, and tortured victim with hammers have sentences cut Three Birmingham men who were jailed after a man was kidnapped, falsely imprisoned and tortured with hammers have had their sentences cut by top judges. The victim was held captive for almost 28 hours, stripped naked, beaten and stabbed after he was kidnapped in Kidderminster in August 2013.

The 37-year-old had been hunted for four years over an alleged debt by one of his kidnappers, Tariq Mahmood. It had led to him being forced to move with his family 17 times to stay out of Mahmood’s clutches.

When Mahmood finally caught up with him, he was subjected to a terrifying ordeal which left him bleeding, bruised and with fractured ankles.

For organising the ordeal, Mahmood, 43, of

Tariq Mahmood

Tehery Mahmood

Castle Hill Drive, Castle Bromwich, was jailed for 17 years at Worcester Crown Court last year.

His 17-year sentence to 16 years and two months.

Paul Che Murray, 43, of Linwood Court, Erdington, had been involved from the beginning and in the violence.

He had his 15-year term for conspiracy to kidnap, false imprisonment and intentional GBH cut to 14 years and four months.

Tehery Mahmood, 39, of Mears Drive,

Stechford, who only got involved after the victim was kidnapped, got 14 years for false imprisonment and intentional GBH. He had his sentence cut to 12 years after the Appeal Court was told he has learning difficulties and was under his brother, Tariq’s, influence.

But Kulbir Singh Bains, 43, of Gilson Road, Coleshill, saw his 17-year sentence for conspiracy to kidnap, false imprisonment and intentional GBH upheld.

Mirror phone hacking: Shobna Gulati's son 'bullied after stories'

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 14th March 2015

Former Coronation Street star Shobna Gulati says her son was bullied at school and ran away from home because of stories Mirror Group journalists wrote after hacking her phone.

The hacked voicemails were "deeply personal", she told the High Court. She had accused her partner of leaking information, causing their relationship to fall "by the wayside", she said.

Ms Gulati, pictured, who played Sunita Alahan in the drama, is among eight high-profile figures claiming damages for hacking.

The actress told the court her phone started to be hacked from 2003, two years after she joined the ITV soap opera.

At one point she wrote to the Press Complaints Commission after an article appeared in the Sunday Mirror about her "secret marriage", she said.

She said the "sala-

cious gossip" about her past led to her son being bullied "quite extensively" the following day at school about who his father was.

"I'm a single mum living on my own with my son. I believed it wasn't in the public interest that the parentage of my child would be debated in a Sunday newspaper, so I wrote this letter. I've always been very careful about answering questions about my son and had never been photographed with him until he was 18," she told the judge, Mr Justice Mann.

She had never talked publicly about her son's father, she said.

"This is personal information. It was extremely private."

The 48-year-old actress, who is currently appearing in Mamma Mia in Liverpool, said she had never been

offered the reality show, but humorously referred to the possibility on voicemails she left.

She said she had not spoken publicly about her disappointment over leaving Coronation Street, but had on voicemail. Nor had she spoken out about the end of her relationship although she left many voicemails for her boyfriend, she said.

The case continues.

Restaurateur Syed's new target to help raise £500,000 for charity Restaurateur Syed Rahman has been hosting fundraising nights since he opened Cuisine of India in Wigston nearly eight years ago.

For the past two years he has also been holding them at his new buffet restaurant Chef & Spice in Hinckley Road, West End, Leicester.

The total raised at his businesses recently passed £200,000 and he has set a new target of reaching £500,000 in the next five years.

Rahman said: "I can't believe we've reached £200,000 and I'm pleased so many people have come forward to organise these events with me. At the moment we're holding four events a month at Chef & Spice and two a month at Cuisine of India so were on course to reach the new target by 2020."

Members of the public organise the nights, inviting family and friends to dine at the restaurants and at least half the money paid for the food goes straight to the organiser's chosen charity.

Syed's events at Chef & Spice all pass on 60 per cent of the takings on to

the charities but despite making a loss on the charity evenings he said he was happy to be giving back to the community.

Charities helped recently include Loros, Menphys, Cancer Research UK, Mind, Rainbows Children's Trust and the air ambulance.

A cannabis grower, who was caught with a stash of the drug in his car, has appeared in court.

Nafa Hassan, 35, was found to have £400 worth of cannabis with him, when he was stopped in a car by the police in Leicester.

Officers searched his home, where they discovered a cannabis

factory with 55 illegal plants being cultivated.

Hassan pleaded guilty to possessing the class B drug on December 21, 2013. He also admitted producing cannabis, between June and December, 2013.

The Leicester Crown Court case was adjourned until March 26, for the

preparation of a pre-sentence report.

Hassan, of Woodfield Road, Balsall Heath, Birmingham, was said to have intended to using some of the cannabis himself, as well as supplying to friends, on a "commercial basis."

He was released on bail.

Cannabis grower caught with stash of drug in his car appears in court

Arun Jaitley to inaugurate Union Bank of India in UK

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 14th March 2015

The Finance Minister of India, Arun Jaitley will be inaugurating the Union Bank of India on 13th March, during his two day visit to the UK. Along with Arun Jaitley, this 95 year old bank will also be inaugurated by Mr Arun Tiwari, the Gobal Chairman and Managing Director of Union Bank of India, as well as the Union Bank of India's board of directors.

Arun Tiwari was born on 1st July 1957. He has a Master of Science degree in Chemistry and has also completed a course in Computer Programming.

Tiwari started his career in Bank of Baroda as a Probationary Officer in 1979. he has worked at almost all major segments in banking, in various sufficiency, such as Zonal Office, Whole sale Banking Branches, General Manager at Corporate Office and MSME and Wealth management.

His occupation at the Bank of Baroda extended over many regions in India as well as overseas.

He was the Chief Executive at the centres in Kuala Lampur and

Arun Jaitley

Singapore. Tiwari was also the head at Greater Mumbai Zone of Bank of Baroda as a General Manager.

On his advancement as an Executive Director, Arun Tiwari joined the Office of Executive Director at Allahabad Bank from 18th June 2012. He handled the portforlios of CREDIT, Credit Monitoring, HR, IT, Risk Management, Finance and Accounts, Inspection, Vigilance and Branch Expansion & Support Services.

Tiwari also did a Study Assignment in USA and Europe for export oriented Small Scale Industries in India, under aegis of World Bank.

Tiwari has undergone

Arun Tiwari

several trainings and courses at illustrious institutes, such as Kellog School of Management of Northwestern University, Chicago; Arthur D'Little, Boston; Indian School of Business, Hyderabad; NIBM, Pune; Bankers' Training College, Mumbai, Indian Institute of Technology, Mumbai, plus many more.

Tiwari was also a Director on the board of All Bank Finance Ltd. He is also currently one of the Directors on the Board of General Insurance Corporation in India (GIC Re).

Arun Tiwari join the Union Bank office as the Chairman and Managing Director of the bank on 26th December 2013.

UK

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Culture Secretary leads Commemoration event at Imperial War Museum North, Manchester The Culture Secretary Sajid Javid led a multifaith cultural evening at IWM North, part of Imperial War Museums, to mark the centenary of the second Battle of Neuve Chapelle – the first major engagement of Indian troops on the Western Front.

The organised by event, Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) as part of the Government’s four-year programme to commemorate the Centenary of the First World War, included traditional Indian dance, presentations from young people in the North West on what they have learnt about the Indian troops involvement, poignant readings and poems, and the reciting of a statement honouring the contribution of Indian troops and committing British Hindus, Muslims and Sikhs to work together for the good of the coun-

try.

The audience of 300 people were made up of military personnel, civic dignitaries, religious leaders from the Hindu, Muslim and Sikh faiths, representatives from the Undivided Indian ExS e r v i c e m e n ’ s Association, the Royal British Legion, schoolchildren from the North West region and representatives from projects around the country looking at the Indian contribution to the First World War. In his speech the Culture Secretary Sajid Javid said: “Events in France a century ago are still relevant in Britain today. It’s important that we continue to tell the incredible story of the Indian Army and we never forget the Battle of Neuve Chapelle.

“Neuve Chapelle is not just the place where the course of the First World War hung in the

balance for four long days. It is also the place where men from across Britain’s empire stood shoulder to shoulder, fighting thousands of miles from home in defence of what was right. Men from modernday India, Pakistan, Bangladesh and Nepal taking up arms alongside soldiers from every corner of the UK.” Havildar (Sergeant) Rajinder Singh Dhatt Vice-Chairman, of the Undivided Indian ExS e r v i c e m e n ’ s Association said: “The Indian Troops played a significant part in the First World War and we welcome the Government's efforts to ensure that the centenary is inclusive of all the faith communities who voluntarily participated in the war and pray that this national commemoration of the Battle of Neuve Chapelle will be a resounding success.”

Jaitley to attend FICCI event and NRI Foundation dinner on Friday the High FICCI, Commission of India and the UK India Business Council are holding an exclusive event on Friday 13 March which will be attended by Shri Arun Jaitley. FICCI President Dr Jyotsna Suri is lead-

ing a high-level delegation of CEOs from India to the UK alongside the visit.

Following that, the Finance Minister will attend a dinner by the NRI Foundation at Taj hotel, where he will be

The felicitated.

Foundation that is chaired by Baroness Sandip Verma’s husband Mr Ashok Kumar Verma, believes in maintaining bonds between India and the people of Indian origin.

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UK

Novelist Accuses Bollywood of Plagiarism

Many Bollywood film producers have been accused by writer and former Conservative MP, Jeffrey Archer of stealing story lines from his novels, without his permission.

Archer's novels are best-sellers in India but he's spoken of the problems that he has with the Bollywood film industry.

When asked by an Indian news website on whether his films could be adapted to make Hollywood thrillers, Archer lashed out, saying, “Well forget Hollywood, just look at your Bollywood! These bunch of thieves have stolen several of my books without so much as a 'by-your-leave'."

He mentioned films, such as the 2011 Yash

Raj Film, Ladies Vs Ricky Bahl, which was similar to his novel, Not a Penny More, Not a Penny Less (1979).

Another film he accused of being plagiarised is the 1987 film, Khudgarz, directed by Rakesh Roshan. He claimed the film plagiarised the story line from his 1979 novel, Kane and Abel.

He stated that there were many other films which had taken his story lines, hence, he is at present looking for Bollywood film companies who would be interested in buying the rights for the first book in his Clifton Chronicles Series, Only Time Will Tell. However, his previous experience with his work being plagiarised

Jeffrey Archer

has left him bitter and cautious of Bollywood producers. Speaking on finding Bollywood film companies to buy the rights for his novel, he lamented, “... and that does not mean some second rate Bollywood idiot who goes around saying he's a Bollywood star producer and then he is not! Such has been my Indian experience many times.”

How Unified is United Kingdom?

Contradicting Britain: How integration becomes difficult when one has an unwelcoming approach

Are we a contradicting nation? One must take pride in being a part of this multicultural society, where everyone is welcome to practice their own religion and be the person they wish to be. Well, this may seem farfetched and slightly exaggerated, but after all the struggles that the first generations of Asians had to bear, they were truly welcomed in an alien land, consequently, making it their own.

However, due to all the mishaps that have been happening in the UK and around the world, many British Asians have had to face the brunt and pay a price of a crime that they have not done. But were we ever really welcomed?

Were we ever considered as a Briton? One may have been born and raised in the UK, yet they may be questioned, “so, where are you from? You don't look like you're from here.”

A modern day example of unwillingness to integrate and an unwelcoming society is of Parmjit Dhanda; the first Britishborn Indian MP as well as first Sikh MP in Britain who faced many hostile people and horrific incidents due to their ignorance. Parmjit Dhanda faced many difficulties as an MP in Gloucester. He would constantly be bombarded with hate mails, referring to him as a “paki” and telling him to “go home”. But what annoyed Dhanda further was when a Conservative Councillor shouted to some Labour activists about him. They shouted, “I'll bet your candidate's grandad wasn't at Dunkirk.” Dhanda states, “that did get under my

Parmjit Dhanda

skin because my grandfather fought with the Royal Bengal Engineers in Burma.”

Another round of “unwelcomeness” came from the late Margaret Thatcher in 2007. Dhanda introduced himself to Thatcher as the MP of Gloucester, to which Thatcher looked around the room and then back at Dhanda, replying, “so, which country are you from?”

But what was a final straw in politics for Dhanda was when he found a severed pig's head outside of his house in 2010. From then on, Dhanda turned his back on politics. The racist demonstrators mistook Dhanda to be a Muslim, hence, the pig's head incident. Nevetherless, had they even sent a severed pigeon or sheep's head, the impact would have been the same. The message from these racists protestors were loud and clear.

Many Muslims believe that the stereotypes that have been associated with Muslims have led to many

radicalisation.

They feel that many terror related news get highlighted, and deservedly so as the world ought to know what has been going.

But they feel that they are being looked at with suspicious gaze.

If one practices their religion in the open, especially if they belong to the Islamic faith, they are deemed as “extremists”. There have been many such cases, such as the Oxford grooming case, where the gang was publicly called a “Pakistani grooming gang” as the majority of the members were of Pakistani ethnicity. However, with the case of Jimmy Savile and his savage behaviour with children, not once do we hear of him being a “white paedophile”. Arguably, it is the way that these crimes have been addressed in the news which makes many believe that Muslim children are further isolated, forced into radicalisation as they are not being welcomed by the Western mainstream; neither in society and neither in the news.

Now, if we talk about immigration in the UK, many people will have their own personal views on this topic. While some believe we ought to encourage people into the country for better prospects, others may be hellbent against anymore “others” coming over. At one time, there were issues regarding the econ-

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 14th March 2015

Cllr Rabi Martins

Watford Borough Council Liberal Democrats Parliamentary Candidate for Hemel Hempstead

Our NHS Deserves Better Treatment

Predictably as the general election looms ever closer all parties seek to persuade voters our National Health Service is safest in their hands That is understandable The is after all the largest employer in the country and some element of its service touches every living person from to grave Understandable it may be it also regrettable because The NHS is too important to play politics with It would be best served if we had a national coalition for it.

After all there is general consensus that increasing demand from our aging population will continue to keep the NHS under huge financial strain. But unlike other departments the problems within it cannot be resolved by cuts and efficiency savings We know this because successive governments have tried and time and again and failed Each time there is a change of government the NHS is subjected to a moving of the deck chairs exercise The latest so called reforms brought in by the Conservatives, despite some gentle protests from the Liberal Democrats increased competition, gave health officials more autonomy and handed control over the purchase of care to groups of local doctors. Few independent analysts say these changes have helped deliver improved heath care or cost reductions True, some aspect, like integration of services and moving some care out of hospitals to home have made a positive difference Now Labour and Liberal Democrats want to merge the NHS with “social care” Such a move would probably involve another reorganisation a huge cost and be unsettling for staff and deliver few improvements Then there is the constant squabbling over budgets NHS spending is up omy of the UK and how bringing in immigrants may affect it further.

However, it only showed fruitful in aiding the economy of UK. Now the issue is more regarding Britain becoming an overpopulated country and something needs to be done about this. But what could be understood is that with the negative depiction of Muslims and Asians in the news, maybe this is the government's attempt to control who comes into this country in order to keep it safe. But is it fair to be painted with the same brush and be discriminated against because of your ethnicity?

Will these undercurrent segregations and prejudices create further feuds and lead to more radicalisations against the “West”? After all the progress society had made, it seems as though we have all taken several steps back, making the atmosphere as unamiable for one another as it may have used to be in the 1950s or 60s, when maybe your first generation of Asian family came over to the UK.

3.6% in real terms since the Conservative-Liberal Democrat coalition government came to power in 2010 But with 3m people still waiting for care, the highest total in six years, more is needed. Even if spending keeps up with inflation, the NHS claims its budget may fall short by £30 billion a year by 2021.In the face of these projections the Parties are busy out bidding each other with spending promises Labour says it would boost the NHS’s budget by £2.5 billion a year if it wins the next election.

The Conservatives say they would continue with real-term increases, which have averaged £1 billion a year so far And the Liberal Democrats say they will spend one billion more than our coalition partners. But according to experts that will not be enough England spends just over 6% of national income on the NHS. If the current rate of demand on our health service continues that figure could rise to 20% and account for half of government spending if there is to be any hope of closing the funding gap. by 2061 say health experts NHS Chief Executive Simon Stevens published a paper last October which contained some interesting proposals on managing our NHS in the years ahead I think this report provides a rare opportunity for the three major Parties to examine the recommendations jointly and then agree a common implementation programme Politicians putting aside Party interest for the sake of the health of the nation and working together to simply to make us all healthier Now that would be something to celebrate regardless of which Party has the most seats on May 8th.

Father Son Fined for Illegal Flat Conversion

Khimji Ramji Patel and his son, Naran Khetani have been fined £12,000 for illegally converting their Neasden house into five flats and renting them out. The pair ignored planning laws and safety regulations to carry out a floundered conversion on the property. As well as the flats, they also built a singlestory extension at the rear of the property. In addition to creating the flats, the pair also built a

single-story rear extension, a rear dormer window and an outbuilding in the back garden without seeking planning permission from Brent Council.

Willesden Magistrates Court were told how the duo ignored several warnings from the council and disregarded an enforcement order.

They were both fined £6,000 each plus £613 towards the cost of council.

Man Smuggles People for £5,000 The National Crime Agency held Khalil Alksaied Ahmed(25), as part of an investigation into a gang that were charging migrants up to £5,000 in order to be smuggled into the UK, via Channel ports.

The migrants consisted of mainly, Albanians, Iraqis and Syrians would be boarded onto lorries at kay-bys and motorway service stations in

Belgium, before trying to get into the UK. Omran Hassan (25), was also arrested and was held in Birmingham.

Both, Ahmed and Hassan are Syrian nationals and appeared before Westminster Magistrates Court. They were remanded in custody and are to appear in court on June 18 for their full extradition hearing.

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 14th March 2015

49% Rise in Unemployment for Ethnic Youths

This National Apprenticeships Week, the Deputy Prime Minister, Nick Clegg will be celebrating the prodigious growth of women taking up apprenticeships over the last five years. The latest figures reveal over a million women started apprenticeships between 2010/11 and 2013/14.

The number of people starting apprenticeships have doubled since 2010, with over 2 million apprenticeships starting in England during this parliament. Since 2010, the number of people starting apprenticeships in business and law each year increased by over 60%, with starts in engineering and manufacturing apprenticeships growing by over 50%.

Nick Clegg states, “these encouraging statistics show that we are starting to see an end to the barely concealed snobbery of people thinking apprenticeships aren’t the path to a good career.

In fact, they are becoming the first choice for earning and learning.”

However, there have been a lot of backlash from the Labour Party, as new figures show that there has been a 49% rise in long-term unemployment for the youth of black and ethnic minorities since 2010, which contradicts the previous figures stated.

The Labour Party pledges to guarantee every young who are out of work for over a year and claiming benefits a paid starter job as well as training, which will help over 3,200 black and ethnic minorities (BAME)

Hospital bosses have apologised to a man over the treatment of his 79-yearold father.

Vrajlal Thakrar, from Belgrave, was admitted to Leicester Royal Infirmary on Tuesday after being taken to A&E by ambulance. He was later admitted to Ward 33 but when his son Nigel arrived on Wednesday morning he found his father had been moved to another ward in the middle of the night without his medication.

Nigel, pictured, also from Belgrave, said: "The out of hours doctor, the ambulance crew and staff on the majors ward in A&E were fantastic. We had to wait three or four hours for a bed but my

father was then taken to Ward 33 where doctors came up with a treatment plan and the nurse said it would be find to come outside visiting hours the next morning as my father's English is not very good."

But when he arrived the next morning he found his father was not there.

Later that afternoon doctors were seeing to Mr Thakrar's father when dinner orders were being taken and which he missed. Instead he was given an egg mayonnaise sandwich which made him sick.

Belinda Hamnet, matron for the short stay unit and discharge lounge at Leicester Royal

The British Heart Foundation (BHF) is encouraging smokers to visit their local stop smoking services ahead of this year’s No Smoking Day on 11 March.

Previous surveys have shown that men in African Caribbean, Pakistani and Bangladeshi communities generally smoke more than men across the population.

This becomes even more worrying when you consider that African Caribbean and South Asian men are also at an increased risk of health problems that are exacerbated by smoking, such as high blood pressure, coronary heart disease and diabetes. Studies

have found that smokers are four times more likely to succeed in quitting with help from NHS stop smoking services than if they go it alone. Smoking can also add to financial worries. A smoker with a 20-a-day habit will spend an average of £255 a month on cigarettes. The BHF offers these top five tips to help you quit smoking: l Make a date to give up and stick to it! This year’s No Smoking Day is Wednesday 11 March. l Make a plan. Think about what could help you stop smoking, such as using a nicotine-replacement product, and have it ready before the date you

MP Sadiq Khan

young people back into work.

Labour's Shadow Work and Pensions Secretary, Rachel Reeves has criticised the Conservative Party's approach. “The 49 per cent rise in the number of black and minority ethnic young people out of work for over a year since 2010 shows the Tory plan is failing. It is a huge waste of the next generation’s skills, potential and talent and it comes at a huge cost to young black and minority ethnic people, their families, taxpayers and the economy.”

Meanwhile, Labour MP, Sadiq Khan spoke up for young people at a local apprenticeship event in Tooting Centre.

MP Sadiq Khan has employed a number of apprenticeships at parliament and also underlined to the guests at the event, “we can help fulfil people’s potential and they can help you fulfil yours.

We’ve all got something to offer...”

Hospital apologises to son over concern about father's treatment

UK

Mother and Lover Kill 8 Year Old Daughter

Ayesha Ali

In August 2013, 8 year old Ayesha Ali was found dead with 50 injuries by the mother, Polly Chowdhury (35) and her vicious lover, Kiki Muddar (43).

It was revealed in court about how Muddar had created fake identities on Facebook and had sent text messages to lure Chowdhury.

Muddar turned Chowdhury against Ayesha as she saw her as a threat. Two fake identities created by Muddar were Jimmy, Chowdhury's cyber boyfriend and Skyman, a Muslim Spirit guide.

Further revelations in court were of how Muddar had inundated Chowdhury with more than 40,000 texts, calling

Left: Polly Chowdhury. Right: Kiki Muddar

Ayesha a witch and having bad blood. One such message stated: “You have no right to ever love or like your evil daughter.”

On 29th August 2013, Muddar had informed the police that Ayesha had died and Chowdhury tried to commit suicide.

When the paramedics arrived, Ayesha was found dead, wearing only a pair of pink pants.

Ayesha has endured a lot of physical, psychological and emotional abuse for months up to her death.

However, Chowdhury and Muddar denied murder, manslaughter and causing the death of Ayesha between 1st March to 29th August 2013.

On 6th March 2015, Polly Chowdhury and Kiki Muddar were convicted of manslaughter.

Chowdhury was sentenced to 13 years in jail as Muddar received 18 as Judge Christopher Moss QC confirmed that she was majorly responsible for the death of Ayesha, also describing Muddar as a “manipulative, wicked woman”.

Additionally, there were clear evidence that Muddar had caused the fatal head injuries of Ayesha.

Judge Moss also commemorated Afsar Ali, Ayesha's father for being courageous in court for having to learn about the horrific details of the death of his daughter be revealed in court.

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Infirmary, said: "We have met with Mr Thakrar's son to discuss his father's care and explained how we have investigated the issues raised. The family was happy with the actions taken and is pleased with our approach on this occasion."

BHF urges men to be proud to be ‘quitters’ this No Smoking Day

plan to stop. l Get support and let your family and friends know that you're quitting. Some people find that talking to friends and relatives who have stopped can be helpful. You can also talk to local smoking cessation team. l Keep busy to help take your mind off cigarettes.

Try to change your routine, and avoid the shop where you normally buy cigarettes. l Treat yourself. If you can, use the money you're saving by not smoking to buy yourself something special. www.nosmokingday.org.uk Twitter: #NoSmokingDay

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Britain pays tribute to Commonwealth soldiers

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UK

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 14th March 2015

‘... for your tomorrow we gave our today.’

Overseas born Victoria cross heroes honoured Baroness Shreela Flather, Chairman of the Memorial gates council addressing the guests at the Memorial Gates

Rupanjana Dutta

and their descendants, members of the Commonwealth family, continue to make to the rich diversity of British society.

Baroness Shreela Flather, Chairman of the Memorial Gates Council said, “The Ceremony taking place today is to mark the Service and Sacrifice made in both World Wars by nearly five million Volunteers from the Indian sub-continent, Africa, the Caribbean and Nepal.

Every year on the second Monday in March, 53 countries join together in celebration of the links they share as members of one diverse and dynamic global family - the modern Commonwealth. This year Commonwealth Day saw the largest gathering at the Memorial Gates, in Constitution Hill, near Buckingham Palace.

M i n i s t e r s , Commonwealth representatives, service personnel, veterans, and children from the City of London School Combined Cadet Force gathered near Hyde Park Corner for the annual service, as the Queen's Life Guard rode by on their way to perform their duties at Horse Guards Parade and the Band of the Coldstream Guards provided musical accompa- Former PM John niment.

Major with This memorial Baroness Flather is dedicated to the people of the Indian sub“As we move through continent, Africa, the the anniversaries of the Caribbean and Nepal who First World War and the served in the Armed significant dates and Forces during the two events we remember that World Wars. Her Majesty the first Standing Army to The Queen officially inaujoin the European conflict gurated the Memorial in 1914 was from India.

Gates on Constitution “This is John Major's Hill in London on 6 third visit to the November 2002 as a lastMemorial, we have to ing memorial to honour recall that, not many peothe five million men and ple have come so many women from the Indian times and first time we subcontinent, Africa, the have a sitting Secretary of Caribbean and Nepal who the State present. volunteered to serve the “My father was a stuEmpire with the Armed dent here and he volunForces during the First teered in the war, inspired and Second World Wars.

by Gandhi's words.

The Gates also celebrate He became a stretcher the contribution that bearer and was posted in these men and women Mesopotamia. For me this

photo credit: Raj Takhar, Xpressions Photography

is an opportunity for us all to remember the contribution of Indians, Africans and West Indians.

“Today's event brought home to me how many people must have suffered in so many ways...

“I am so pleased that you all are here to remember the minorities who were involved in the great war...”

The Rt Hon Eric Pickles MP, Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government said: “In both world wars millions of soldiers from across the Commonwealth fought side-by-side, defending the values of freedom and liberty, and defeating the dark forces of tyranny and oppression.~ Every Commonwealth country shares this proud history, but we also share enduring values, which provide enormous opportunities for future cooperation.”

Field Marshall The Lord Guthrie described the Battle of Neuve Chapelle, which took place a century ago this week, and whose success was largely due to the huge contribution from the Indian Army. He said: “These Memorial Gates recognise how much the United Kingdom and Dominions owe to those loyal members of the Empire who gave their support during those conflicts. We honour their Service and their Sacrifice.”

The Rt Hon Dr Richard Chartres, Bishop of London quoting the Hindu Upinashads spoke about the memorial at Neuve Chappele where Indians marched shoulder to shoulder with their brothers in arms to the battle hymn 'onward Christian soldiers'. As poem goes 'they died with

their faces to the enemy'.

The inscription there reads 'God is one and the victory is His'.

Also present at the service were The Rt Revd and, former Prime Minister John Major, and Lance Sergeant Johnson Beharry VC. Representing His Royal Highness The Prince of Wales, Field Marshal Sir John Chapple laid a wreath. He was followed by Major General Ed Smyth-Osbourne, General Officer

Secretary of State Rt Hon Eric Pickles giving a speech

Commanding the Household Division and Headquarters London District, who laid a wreath on behalf of the Chief of the Defence Staff of the Ministry of Defence and representatives from the Embassies, High Commissions including HE Ranjan Mathai, the High Commissioner of India, associations and organisations representing the diverse communities from whom those who helped to defend our freedom have come.

photo courtesy: Vinookumar Sachania

PM David Cameron addressing the guests as Sergeant Johnson Beharry VC looks on

As part of the events, marking the Centenary of the First World War (1914-1918), a special service to honour the overseas-born Victoria Cross heroes took place at the National Memorial Arboretum on 5th March. A total of 628 Victoria Crosses were awarded of which 145 were for the soldiers who came from the then British Empire, USA, Japan, Germany and Ukraine, who fought for the country not theirs. Each soldier was remembered on a specially designed Commemorative Paving Stone. Eric Pickles MP, the Community Secretary, in welcoming the guests, including the Prime Minister David Cameron, described the event as " a small act of gratitude for those who defended the liberty and freedom from a country that respects different faiths and where bravery knows no national barrier".

The Prime Minister spoke about the soldiers, "who fought for the freedom we all enjoy today with their names carved permanently on the Paving Stones, on the soil of our land. They were great men, a remarkable minority on sea, land and air".

Sergeant Johnson Beharry VC, unveiled the Commemorative plaque, followed by the Last Post and a two minute silence. Representatives of Australia, Canada, Denmark, India, Nepal, New Zealand, Netherlands, Pakistan, Indo-British Heritage Trust and the Prime Minister laid wreaths on the Paving Stones. Among them 21 From India and Pakistan including Khudadad Khan, the first Indian to be awarded the Victoria Cross.

Among the large number of guests from the Armed Services and members of various organisation from all over the country were Major Malcolm Bradbury and Lt. Col.William Prince TD, Secretary and Chairman of The Kai Kai Baluch Club, with very strong connection with India. Lt. Col. William Price, who,was born in India, as was his father, was the only man present who had actually met Khudadad Khan as a six year old, taken by his father. He remembered that Khan looked tall because of his starched- fanned turban but otherwise he was quite small. His link with the historic hero added a personal touch to the event. The VCs are honoured and remembered, not only as warriors winning wars but also winning our hearts and gratitude for their sense of duty and service to the King Emperor. They not only displayed amazing military actions but also a remarkable Indo-British relationship.

UK

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 14th March 2015

Leading Lights

Rani Singh, Special Assignments Editor

Ruby Iyer’s Creator on her Real Self and Alter Ego For International Women’s Day week Asian Voice had to feature a female Leading Light.

Laxmi Hariharan does not disappoint. She is the writer and creator of fictional book character Ruby Iyer.

Let’s find out if Ruby is Laxmi’s alter ego. She told us, “Ruby Iyer is her own person. She leads and I follow. She is strongwilled and spontaneous.

But, often she doesn’t know what she really wants. So, she makes the wrong choices and pays for them too.”

Especially in the week after a controversial film dealing with a vicious crime that killed an innocent woman aired, the idea of a Ruby Iyer feels pertinent.

Laxmi explained.

“I started my career in Bombay as a journalist, and each day of my working life, the commuting was a nightmare. Not a single day would go by without my being brushed

Ruby Iyer

against or commented on by a passer-by. So, when a photojournalist was raped in Bombay in broad daylight a few years ago, it really made me angry. I wished for a strong figure, someone who would stand up to those making life so difficult for ordinary girls.

Ruby Iyer was born of that anger. I wrote Ruby initially as a weekly web-series and from day one people responded to her. It’s what

spurred me on to write her complete story in The Many Lives of Ruby Iyer. I was helpless. Ruby is not.

She is an angry young girl who stands up for herself, and does not worry about the consequences.”

Laxmi described her book.

“The book is a whiteknuckle ride through a disintegrating Bombay, as a terrifying encounter propels our heroine from her

everyday commute into a battle for her own survival and the survival of the city she loves.

It’s about eighteenyear-old Ruby Iyer, who runs away from home only to meet with an accident on the platform of a Bombay train station.

Recovering, she finds she has changed. As she is trying to figure out what’s happening to her, her best friend is kidnapped. So Ruby Iyer teams up with a mysterious cop-gonerogue Vikram Roy, and together they journey through a crumbling Bombay city, to face-off with the mastermind behind the kidnapping, who is also intent on destroying the city. Will Ruby and Vikram save Bombay and Ruby’s friend? And what about their growing feelings for each other?”

Laxmi never said “Mumbai” instead of “Bombay, but she told us why.

“When I write, I tap into my memories of being a teenager, and I grew up in a city called Bombay. So the book is set in Bombay.

I read a lot of fiction set in a futuristic New York or Chicago or indeed London. It made me wonder why no such stories were set in Asian cities? It was natural for me to use Bombay as a backdrop.

The city is urban, contradictory and unforgiving—

the perfect setting for a kick-ass character like Ruby.

Laxmi’s creation is so popular, she said, that it is an obvious jump to moving pictures next.

Ruby Iyer both as a book and/or a movie will appeal to people around the world

“Ruby Iyer both as a book and/or a movie will appeal to people around the world. The themes in the book are universal – they’re about coming of age, about figuring out your place in this world, about following your heart and acting on what you believe in. It’s also about

the dark space that teenagers inhibit. Where they are at the mercy of their parents and teachers.

Where society dictates they learn to behave in a certain way. But really all they want to do is just ... be.”

So it must a logical step for Laxmi to be writing more books on Ruby?

Yes, clearly.

“Right now I am writing the sequel – The Second Life of Ruby Iyer. I also have a prequel out, the Ruby Iyer Diaries.

Ruby wrote her dairies, almost daily, from the age of ten, till she left home at sixteen-and-a-half. It is from here that I picked out scenes from her early life.”

Laxmi Hariharan is a rare writer in that she is a marketer too- she knows how to sell.

“I am both an author and a marketer. So there were two of us writing The Many Lives of Ruby Iyer: 1) The author caught up in creating this hot-headed character that had a mind of her own.

2) And the communicator in me who kept trying to understand what Ruby Iyer stood for. I kept asking myself - why would anyone read Ruby’s story?

What would make them recommend the book? A tough question, but one I needed to answer to have my work stand out.”

Clearly, she’s succeeded.

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UK

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 14th March 2015

Gandhi’s statue

India’s daughter

“Importance of freedom”

Imaginary claims

I was wondering why Shri Narendra Modi, India’s Prime Minister, couldn't come on the 30th Jan. when Gandhi's Statue will be unveiled! Now I am delighted and must thank Asian Voice of the 28th Feb. which gave the great news that Mahatma Gandhi Statue will be unveiled in the London Parliament Square on Saturday, the 14th March, by Shri Arun Jaitley, India Finance Minister.

I applaud Right Hon British Prime Minister, David Cameron, Lord Meghnad Desai and the whole team of the Gandhi Statue Memorial Trust for making this occasion memorable especially on the Centenary of Gandhi's arrival to India from South Africa. On Gandhi's Principles of Truth, Peace and Nonviolence (Physically, Mentally and Verbally), I am happy that the relations between Britain and India are still going stronger and stronger! On one side will be the Great Nelson Mandela of South Africa who adored him and on the other side Winston Churchill, the Great British Wartime PM who hated Gandhi!

May I say without Gandhi's Statue the London Parliament Square will be 'A Crown without the Kohinoor Diamond!!!'

I am outraged and upset on BBC's decision to move the date of its premiere of above said documentary ahead of International Women's Day. Shame on the BBC and those involved in producing India's daughter which glorifies and justifies one of the men sentenced to death for raping and killing 23 year old woman by saying in his interview by BBC "a girl is far more responsible for rape than a boy.

A decent girl won't roam around at 9:00 at night doing wrong things and wrong clothes”.

Why did the BBC have to go all the way to India to interview him in jail and than produce this documentary instead of looking in their own country's backyard where many rapists and sexual abusers are in jail and at large - some of them holding high profile position and authority like priests/pastors of churches, coaches of sports, managers/bosses of public and private corporations, school teachers and professors, politicians, members of well reputed families and list goes on.

The BBC should have interviewed these people to produce the documentary and also should have gone to other parts of Europe and North America where rape culture is well alive in spite of so-called well educated and advanced countries of the world. On the eve of International Women's day on March 8 and Mother's day in England on March 15 I bow my head to all women and heartily wish Happy Mother’s Day to everyone.

I refer to the issue of Asian Voice of 21st February. I was astounded to read an article by Baroness Zahida Manzoor on ''The Importance of Freedom''. The good Baroness managed to write an entire article covering one third of a page on the Charlie Hebdo attack, Boko Haram, and the Counter Terrorism Bill without once mentioning the word Muslim or Islam.

The article had important points to make but was much diminished by the Baroness' obvious reluctance to make the link between some followers of Islam and these sick atrocities. Any comment Baroness?

Mr Otter queries if reincarnation graduates a soul for existence on other planets.

Please note that Hindu dharma is a way of life. Therefore obedience to laws of spatial habitat is more important than which planets one resides or qualifies for promotion. Laws on different planets may be different; obedience may be voluntary or forced. Our knowledge being confined to planet Earth, talks about migration to other planets is plain conjecture. But lives on non-earthly arenas are mentioned in Hindu scriptures e.g.

Bhoolok, Brahmlok.

Vishnulok, Swargalok, 14 Bhuvanas etc. Earthlings were not allowed on different arenas while living in forms made of earthly physical matter, (incident of Trishanku and Vishwamitra refers.)

Statement that beings from other planets guided earthly religions is hearsay and mere philosophy to push views diverging from mainstream and polarise followers towards new trends of thoughts. But Theosophy mentions brotherhood of elders, masters and perfected beings that influence religiosity and intervene during crises.

Upendra Kapadia By email

Do TV medical soaps increase our expectations?

Surely I am not alone in enjoying medical soaps that receive saturated exposure on our TV. Casualty, Holby City, Doctors and other imported Australian and American soaps occupy prime slots.

While it is fun and even enhance our medical knowledge, it certainly creates false impression, as all Doctors, Consultants, Nurses, Social Workers are portrayed as perceptive philanthropist, caring and at our service 24 hours a day like water on tap?

GPs pay home visits without being asked, accompany patients to hospitals where they are seen on arrival, stay with them for hours and patients just walk in GP surgeries and demand to see GPs on the spot. This is pernicious, could not be further from truth and may raise expectations beyond realm of reality, ultimately end up in sea of despair rather than ocean of hope.

As we know from personal experiences, we have to wait hours in A & E, unable to see our GPs for days, especially for non-urgent treatment, as GPs are over-worked and underfunded, our NHS has become IHS, (International Health Service) soft touch for health tourists due to our self-opinionated plutocratic politicians’ holier than thou attitude.

Perhaps medical soaps should carry “Health Warning” that this is fictional and bears no similarity to real issues in our haemophiliac NHS which is constantly under pressure due to neglect and under-funding. So often hospital admission is perceived to be “High Way to heaven”.

Suresh and Bhavna Patel Markham, Canada

Alabama assault

I was puzzled, indeed perturbed reading Devang Bhatt’s letter in last week’s AV. He somehow tries to blame victim and his family for unprovoked police attack on elderly Sureshbhai Patel. It is common knowledge that American police officers are racist, trigger happy when dealing with non-white citizens. There are numerous cases where white officers have shot dead black persons, even teenagers for being in the wrong place at the wrong time without facing the consequence, although it would be wrong to generalise.

Before police arrest someone, they have to ascertain whether the person is armed, threat to law and order. In Sureshbhai’s case he was simply taking early morning walk in an unfamiliar area.

Even fluency in English does not mean we could understand every dialect. Recently I visited friends in Leeds. There was knock and when I opened the door, I saw postman who was delivering registered letter.

He was friendly who tried to chat but I could not understand a word, as he was speaking in local colloquial Yorkshire dialect and my friend had to intervene.

Does this make me illiterate?

Although police officer may be under arrest, investigation, he will soon be freed, back on duty while the victim may be permanently disabled. Let’s call spade a spade and blame the perpetrator rather than find excuses or fault the victim.

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Bhupendra M. Gandhi By email

ASIAN VOICE

Rajeev Shah By email

Slaughter of cows

The Narendra Modi government should think twice before banning the slaughter of cows in Maharashtra. Cow’s meat (beef) is the cheapest meat in India and all people can afford to eat it, unlike mutton (goat’s meat) which is three times more costly than beef.

I know a lot of Hindus who eat beef, as they find it not only cheap but tasty too unlike mutton and chicken. If the BJP is keen on banning the slaughter of cows, they should first ban the slaughter of goats and chickens. Who is the government to decide what I should eat and what I should not. Let them confront me and I will give them a thorough whacking.

Jubel D’Cruz, Mumbai, India

Callous behaviour of Labour councillors

Following the protest at Eastham town hall, a meeting of local Hindus was held on Sunday 01/03/15 at the Naamdhari Gurudwara in Forest Gate. Some 500 people turned up of all ages and community groups venting their anger at the callous behaviour of the Labour run council so much so that none of the local ward Labour councillors neither the two MPs and worse still nor the only two Gujarati councillors attended.

The council has even denied more than 3,000 Hindus who have enjoyed celebrating Holi in the grounds for over 30 years. The impact on the community is devastating and there was resounding affirmation among he audience who shouted 'kick Labour out'. The gathering was very grateful that PPC for the Conservative party in Newham has taken up their case Although during Nusound Radio phone in when I talked to CB he suggested we should go the deputy leader, one of the two Gujarati councillors however he has already been approahed by phone and email more than ten times without avail. As a Gujarati this person should hang his head in shame in ignoring the emotions of his community at the behest and wishes of his party.

It is clear that Hindus will be marginalised under Labour run administration and Hindus all over the country have choice tactfully to vote in solidarity of the

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Kotda Sangani Taluka

My recent visit to this Taluka was fascinating. Life Project charity had built 57 primary schools in Saurashtra from donor money. I had picked two School Nos. 38 and 46 as a random sample for a surprise visit. The students were mostly from poor background. However they were very energetic and eager to learn.

The teachers and headmasters and indeed even three former headmasters were all making huge efforts to uplift these students.

If we can just make an example of this ONE TALUKA for the whole of Saurashtra by adopting it, then all the 41 villages around the Taluka would benefit.

This could become a model Taluka.

Urban population grew to 50% of world population in 2008. Tata has built five such model townships.

Nagindas Khajuria By email Newham Hindus in the coming election.

For any other religious group this would have been unthinkable not least with the phoney excuses the council have given. Needless to say remember that current child abuse/grooming cases, Trojan horse episodes in schools and mismanagement of funds have mostly occured in Laour run council all of which are against basic Hindu principles of truth, honesty, peace, self sufficiency and tolerance of others Bharat Parmar By email

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www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 14th March 2015

Gandhi statue unveiling open to public

Chancellor Rt Hon George Osborne

Rt Hon Keith Vaz, MP

Bollywood Superstar Amitabh Bachchan

Finance Minister of India Shri Arun Jaitley

Besides other dignitaries, it will be attended by Lord and Lady Desai of the Gandhi Statue Memorial Trust as well.

This will be Shri Jaitley's, whose official role in India is equivalent to the Chancellor of the Exchequer George Osborne in the UK first official visit to the UK as Finance Minister and the programme reflects the broad and deepening relationship enjoyed by India and the UK. This close partnership and co-operation between the UK and India is generating more jobs, growth and security for our two nations.

During his visit, Shri Jaitley will also meet the Chancellor of the Exchequer, George Osborne, and Culture Secretary, Sajid Javid, in order to discuss the development of closer UK-India ties. Shri Jaitley will also meet with top business leaders and investors.

Indian Finance Minister Arun Jaitley said: “It is with great pleasure that I have accepted Prime

Minister Cameron’s invitation to attend the inauguration of the new statue of Gandhi in Parliament Square in London.

Mahatma Gandhi will be honoured in this most prestigious location for his work in peacefully leading India’s struggle for independence.

“The statue will help ensure that the legacy of Gandhi lives on for future generations. It also marks an important, historic moment celebrating the strong bond between our two nations. India and the UK share the same values and we are a partnership of equals. This lasting friendship is just one of many legacies left by Gandhi, which I am keen that we work hard to strengthen further.”

UK Culture Secretary Sajid Javid said: “I am delighted Shri Jaitley is coming to the UK to unveil this historic statue.

The UK and India have strong links and I look forward to discussing ways both our countries can further prosper by work-

34 year old Councillor Zaffar Van Kawala, who represents Labour in the Stonebridge ward was sentenced to a driving ban and community service by Harrow Crown Court.

Van Kawala was convicted of the offences in relation to an attack on 24 year old Councillor Krupa Sheth, a Labour councillor for Wembley.

Van Kawala received a one year driving ban and must also complete 200 hours of community service. At the trial, the jury

were informed that Van Kawala and Sheth were previously in a relationship for two years. On 21st June, both were arguing on Thurlby Road until Van Kawala decided to sit in his car and drive off. As he started to drive away, Sheth ended up on his bonnet. He drove away with her persistently holding onto the bonnet, until she consequently fell and received minor injuries. Van Kawala denies any wrong doings.

However, along with his driv-

Culture Secretary Rt Hon Sajid Javid

ing together. The relationship we have today with India is one that Mahatma Gandhi dreamed of - as friends and equals."

The Rt Hon Keith Vaz MP, Britain’s longest serving Member of Parliament of Asian origin, has tabled an Early Day Motion in the House of Commons to commend the ceremony to unveil the Mahatma Gandhi statue on Parliament Square, due to take place on the 14th March.

Mr Vaz said: “People from around the world will be reminded of Mahatma Gandhi’s incredible legacy on the 14th March, as one of the most influential political figures of all time.

“The ceremony will be deeply symbolic of the cultural and political bonds shared by the United Kingdom and India, as our increasingly interlinked countries continue to forge a close and deeply important relationship.

“The strength of this symbolism is demonstrated by the hundreds of generous donors across the UK and India, who made this ceremony possible.

“I am very proud that we will be joined at the ceremony by the Indian Finance Minister, Arun Jaitley. It is marvellous that somebody so senior is coming to unveil the statue.”

People interested to attend the statue unveiling, for more details please see www.dcms.gov.uk

UK

Foreign Secretary visits India ahead of Gandhi statue unveiling Philip Hammond will visit Chandigarh and Delhi ahead of this weekend’s unveiling of the long-awaited statue of Gandhi in Parliament Square, London.

The Foreign Secretary will reiterate the Prime Minister’s invitation to the Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to visit the UK, and will focus on deepening the warm relationship between India and the UK for the security and growth of both countries.

In Chandigarh, Mr Hammond will open the new British Deputy High Commission, attend the first meeting of the British Business Group, and meet with the Chief Ministers of Punjab and Haryana.

Mr Hammond will then travel to Delhi, visiting the Gandhi Darshan

museum on the 85th anniversary of Gandhi’s departure from Kankipur to begin the Salt March.

He will meet with the Indian Minister for External Affairs, Sushma Swaraj and the Finance Minister, Arun Jaitley.

The Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond said: “I am delighted to be making my first visit to India as Foreign Secretary. The UK’s partnership with India is indispensable for both our countries’ prosperity and security.

“Our partnership is deeply rooted in our overlapping histories, cultures and values. This Saturday, the long-awaited statue of Mahatma Gandhi in London’s Parliament Square will unite citizens from both our democracies in admiration for his teaching of civil rights and non-vio-

11

Foreign Secretary Rt Hon Philip Hammond

lence. “I am particularly pleased to be opening our new Deputy High Commission in Chandigarh. The UK now has more diplomatic missions in India than any other nation does, and more than it has in any other country – a sure sign of the great importance we place on our relationship.”

Councillor receives driving ban and community service

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ing ban and community service, he was ordered to pay Sheth £250 in compensation, a prosecution cost of £4,200 plus a victim surcharge of £60. He will also have to take an extended driving test before being allowed to drive.

Van Kawala has been suspended by the London region of the Labour party however, he can attend full council meetings but cannot participate in any Labour Party meeting groups or discussions.

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MEDIA WATCH

“Good to Great” was the banner headline in the business tabloid Mint. The issue was dated February 28, Budget Day, and it appeared a few hours before Finance Minister made his Budget presentation to Parliament. So why the headline? The headline was simply a reference to the Economic Survey, a curtain raiser delivered to Parliament the day before on February 27. It is a document that is packed with data to give the Budget its proper context – a postscript to the railway budget and an overview of the present state of the economy to enable MPs make informed judgments on the direction to which India is headed.

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 14th March 2015

what the government spends on salaries and administration and the sums spent on arms acquisitions has been weighted for the former, but the anomaly is now being seriously addressed and the ratio is expected, in the long,-term to be redressed in favour of the latter.

IT role in warfare

India’s cause will be greatly helped by its high IT development and the large pool of software professionals, which is doubly important as modern warfare is increasingly turning high-tech in which software plays a critical role. However, the defence sector manufacturing base will need considerable expansion and outreach capability.

Learning curve

Finance Minister Arun Jaitley with team.

According to the Economic Survey, India is poised to return to a phase of high growth, as the government presses ahead with economic reform, helped by declining oil prices and a benign outlook for inflation, which could result in a lower interest rate regime. “The economy is set to grow by 8.1-8.5 per cent in 2015-16, up from an estimated 7.4 per cent in the financial year ending March 31.” The projection is most encouraging. If fulfilled, it could make India the fastest growing economy (among large countries) in the world (Hindu February 28) The Budget itself received an enthusiastic thumbs up from the majority of scribes, and even more so from the captains of Indian industry.

How is this for starters: “It Isn’t Big, But it’s Full of Bang,” the headline to Swaminathan Anklesaria Aiyar’s front page report in the Economic Times (March 1). See Comment page 3 for more

Higher education

Apropos of the Economic Survey, with an eye to increase numbers in India’s skilled labour force, Finance Minister’s Budget has allocated a 22 per cent increase in expenditure on higher education, planning to set up more institutes of excellence in technology and business. “It seems the central government plans to focus more on higher education and try to target 30 million near-productive population in higher education institutes,” said Narayan Ramaswamy, Partner and Head Education Practice at consulting firm KPMG. “These people unless attended to will shift their base outside of India and impact the economy.”

IIMs, IITs on anvil

Pramath Sinha, educationist and founder of the Indian School of Business, Hyderabad, Dean of Ashoka University, said: “The announcement of new top

See comment page 3

schools like IIMs and IITs indicate that they are looking at higher education in a big way.”

While one IIT will come up in Karnataka, the second will be created through an upgrade of the Indian School of Mines, Dhanbad (Jharkhand) to an IIT.

In the next decade or so, during the learning curve, some Indian IT companies are expected to move up the value chain and become independent system integrators across the technology design system integrating value chain, either by themselves or as part of significant consortia. This will drive growth in the defence sector, as companies ramp up their capacities to cater to growing domestic demand (Mint February18)

Fifty new defence companies

Campus of IIT Bombay

This follows the earlier upgrade of the Institute of Technology at Benaras Hindu University to IIT status. Two proposed IIMs will come up in Andhra Pradesh and Jammu and Kashmir respectively. Future plans also involve the setting up of IITs in Jammu and Kashmir, Chhattisgarh,, Goa, Andhra Pradesh and Kerala, making 20 IITs in all. IIMs in Himachal Pradesh, Punjab, Bihar, Odisha and Maharashtra are planned (Mint March 1

Long-term defence

India’s defence expenditure is expected to reach $620 billion, from the current fiscal ending March 31, to 2022, with half of it going into the capital sector (armaments), transforming the country from being mainly a buyer to a major arms supplier to advanced countries. Driven by domestic and external demand the export opportunities for Indian companies in the public and private sectors are increasing exponentially, likely to reach $41 billion by 2022, says a report by the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry, and the financial services firm Centrum Capital Ltd. The gap between

India is to set facilitate the creation of fifty new defence companies in the private sector which, it is hoped, will drive domestic manufacture as part of the ‘Make in India’ project. “We want to treat the private companies in defence on a par with public sector enterprises. We have to focus on building 50 private sector defence companies as champions,” said Amitabh Kant, Secretary, Department of Industrial Policy &U Promotion, speaking at a ‘Make in India’ seminar organized by the University of Chicago (Business Line March 4)

Russian helicopters

One of the defence items in Finance Minister Arun Jaitley’s Budget speech was the allocation of $45 billion to defence, in which Russian cooperation will play a pivotal role. “Russia is letting India make 400 choppers a year, a salute to ‘Make in India,’” wrote the Economic Times (March 1), with the following embellishment: “He’s VVP in real, but for India he has always been VVIP. Vladimir Vladimirovich Putin is being roasted in the West, but for India he remains a trusted ally. Even Barack Obama, as R-Day chief guest, saw with his admiring eyes India’s deep ties with Russia on Rajpath.” [Reference to the massive military hardware of Russian origin on display at Republic Day parade]

Turkey’s footprint in India Turkey is not a country with which India has had close relations, but hasn’t been an antagonistic rival either, occupying a neutral space and thus not high on the radar of policymakers makers in Ankara or New Delhi.

However, things may be changing. Turkish Finance Minister, Mehmet Mehmud, an economist and banker turned politician, was in India recently to build closer commercial ties between the two countries. Turkey has a diversified economy, a sound manufacturing base. He told

Raghuram Rajan

prise. In hindsight, I did not think that a rate cut could be in the offing, as the earlier one in mid-January was just 0.25 per cent.” He pointed out that the coordinated action by the RBI within a week of the Budget would help spur growth.

Unexpected pleasure

Said N. Kamakodi, Chief Executive , City Union Bank, “It is an unexpected pleasure,” which would speed up the the reduction cycle.

For Mehmet Şimşek, Minister of Finance of Turkey, Venkataraman, the with Cyrus P Mistry, Chairman, Tata Sons, at major trigger to drive the headquarters of the Tata group growth could be improvement in public expendireporters, “Based on my interacture than a rate cut. “Once that tions with the Indian business happens private investments community, I think we can work would follow and demand in together in infrastructure.” turn would pick up,” he said.

Business Line February 28) Meanwhile infrastructure captains have hailed the rate cut.

Praveen Sood, Group CFO Office in Kolkata Hindustan Construction Company, said a decent Budget Turkish Chamber of Commerce followed by a rate cut signaled & Industry has opened an office that the government and RBI are in Kolkata to promote trade and no longer about inflation and the investment with India. The development agenda is getting chamber already has offices in due priority (Business Line Delhi, Bangalore, Chennai, March 5) Hyderabad and Mumbai, a clear sign that the Turkey is spreading its commercial wings in Asia’s US patent for Cipla drug third-largest economy, which is set to grow even faster going forMumbai-based Cipla’s ward (Business Line March 4) Stemeutics Research has received a process patent from RBI rate cut welcomed the United States Patent and Trademarks Office for its novel The Reserve Bank of India’s stem cell-based drug (RBI) decision to cut interest Stempeucel. The drug will inithe interest rate by 0.24 per cent, tially be used for the treatment or 25-basis repro rate cut, has of Critical Limb Ischemia, the been welcomed by bankers. companies said in a joint note, Managing Director and Chief adding that the treatment option Executive Officer of Karur Vysya directly addresses the root cause Bank K Venkataraman said, of the disease, unlike those that “coming as it does at a time treat the symptoms and not the when rate yields had started disease (Business Line March 5) moving up was a pleasant sur-

Kejriwal delivers Knockout blows

Arvind Kejriwal, Prashant Bhusan, Yogendra Yadav and Manish Sisodia

Am Aadmi leader and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal has delivered knockout blows against Prashant Bhusan, the well known contrarian lawyer and self-proclaimed human rights bleeding heart, and the veteran self-seeking publicist Yogendra Yadav.

Both were blown away at the party’s National Executive conclave in New Delhi. Kejriwal can now concentrate on fulfilling his party’s pledges to Delhi’s citizenry. (Business Line March 5).

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 14th March 2015

Rapist-Apologists Among Us

This week I will host Arun Jaitley at a dinner on the eve of his unveiling the Mahatma Gandhi Statue in Parliament Square. As rapist-apologists debate that the BBC should not have broadcast ‘India’s Daughter’ because it blackens India’s name, because rape happens in other countries, because the producer is white, because the producer didn’t have permission possibly – I remind them of this – and all those women who have stayed silent on the issue: In 1921 Mahatma Gandhi calls for equal treatment of women. “Of all the evils for which man has made himself responsible, none is so degrading, so shocking or so brutal as his abuse of the better half of humanity — the female sex,” the Mahatma wrote in the Young India Journal.

He objected to child marriage and the dowry system – both are still practiced.

In 1929 Government of British India passed the Child Marriage Restrain Act. It made it illegal for men to marry girls under 18; older men had even steeper penalties. (Some idiot will write in at this point that paedophilia happens in Britain – their point being one should not just point it out in India. These morons would rather we all lived to the lowest common standard anywhere in the world, not the highest).

Unicef recently noted that 43% of the nation’s women aged 20-24 were married before they were 18. They note this contributes to parental prejudice against investing in girl’s education which is seen as a waste of resource.

In 1950, the New Constitution, three years after independence, grants women the right to vote.

In 1953 Vijaya Lakshmi Pandit become the first woman and first Indian President of the United Nations General Assembly.

In 1961 India enacts the Dowry Prohibition Act. According to the police a woman in India is killed every hour over dowry. As India gets wealthier – the number of dowry deaths and demands increases. Wealth does not bring wisdom.

By 1966 India has her first woman PM. By 2013 according to the World Economic Forum India’s women have one of the lowest rates of economic participation and opportunity in the world.

In 1979 Mother Teresa wins the Nobel Peace Prize – the first Indian to do so.

In 1986 Parliament passes the Indecent Representation of Women

(Prohibition) Act. The law prohibits “the depiction in any manner of the figure of a woman; her form or body or any part thereof in such a way as to have the effect of being indecent, or derogatory to, or denigrating women.”

In 1987 Sati is outlawed. It also made it illegal for communities to glorify the act. In 1994, pre-natal gender testing is banned. By 2011 there had been only 55 convictions, yet India has one of the worst male:female ratios.

In 1997 – Kalpana Chawla becomes the first Indian woman in space. 1998 and Sonia Gandhi becomes President of Congress Party.

2005 – the Hindu Succession Act is amended to give women equal inheritance rights to ancestral property. A UN study recently found under 20% believe they will inherit their parental land.

2005 and Parliament also passes the Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act. A study in 2013 found one third of married Indian women reported experiencing physical abuse – slapping being the most common form.

2013 also saw India pass the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition, and Redressal) Act – following a retired Supreme Court judge allegedly abusing his intern.

Of course I have not mentioned a few other Indian women; Sita, Lakshmi, Kittur Chennamma, queen of the princely state Kittur in Karnataka led an armed rebellion against the British. Abbakka Rani, queen of coastal Karnataka, led the defence against invading European armies, notably the Portuguese in the 16th century. Rani Lakshmi Bai, the Queen of Jhansi, led the Indian Rebellion of 1857 against the British.

I have not mentioned that Rig Vedic verses talk of women who married at a mature age and selected their own husbands. But that’s just history now, long dead, who even knows now other than the decline and fall of a civilisation.

We can’t blame the movies (this happened before the movies), we can’t blame the British (their house is in better shape), we can’t blame education (women behave better, and this is a TV addicted society even in villages and that could educate), we can’t blame Pakistan or Muslims (Hindus don’t ape others do they surely?).

There is hope. The hope will have to be the women themselves. If the men were going to do it, they would have already done it. It will be a woman who on achieving power will not turn her back on her own gender.

UK

Shruthi UK honours role model women

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The Mayor of Solihull, Cllr Kate Wild and Satinder Kaur Taunque OBE, West Midlands’ Deputy Lieutenant, were applauded as role models, as part of International Women’s Day. The ladies were garlanded at the Thyagaraja Music Festival in Birmingham last Sunday.

The 9am-4pm event, organised by Shruthi UK, a South Asian arts organisation, was attended by over 100 guests, including many from the Swindon Tamil Association.

Dignitaries included the West Midlands’ LordGuest of honour, our senior news editor Dhiren Katwa Lieutenant Paul presents International Women’s Day award to Mayor of Sabapathy CBE and the Solihull, Cllr Kate Wild Consul General of India, Mr BC Pradhan.

The lively programme, MC’d by Shruthi UK’s founder and d i r e c t o r C h i t h r a Ramakrishnan, featured stage performances by young people aged between 4 and 16, adults, Participants of Bharatnatyam, Indian classical dance speeches, a raffle 1767, he was one of three The annual event draw, a Carnatic music sons and was devoted to marks the birthday of competition, a certificate Thyagaraja, also known as the Hindu God Lord presentation and a South the singing saint.

Born in Rama.

Indian meal.

18 Year Old Girl Raped in Leeds An 18 year old Asian girl was found at a bus stop in Leeds, raped and left to die, lying in a pool of her blood. The police are searching for the offender who would likely to have had blood on his hands and his clothes after the vicious attack. The police are encouraging people to get in touch if they have any information regarding this case. They appealing for people to come forward, including a woman who is believed to have been standing at the bus stop shortly before the attack.

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MOTHER’S DAY SPECIAL

Here we present you some gift ideas and suggestions on where to go, if you choose to dine out on the day with your Mum Maa, Mother, Madre, Maman... whatever the language or culture, the emotions regarding mums will be the same.

Mothers are the driving force of all families and the inspiration behind children doing well in life.

Were it not for our mothers, we would not have been able to achieve most of the things we have in our lives.

Our mothers have sacrificed many things and spent sleepless nights tending to our needs. We even rely on our mums to do the smallest of things for us

even when we grow old because we know she would happily do them for us, without any hesitation. Although mothers should be saluted and celebrated on a daily basis, they get a day dedicated to them every year in March, when she can relax and let her kids pamper her and make her feel the love and respect they have for her. Here we present you some gift ideas and suggestions on where to go, if you choose to dine out on the day with your mum.

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 14th March 2015

Mother’s Day

Gift Ideas

l Remember the bangles or the necklace your mum had her eyes on but never got round to buying them? Well, why don't you use this occasion to gift it to her? She will be delighted as well as touched that you remembered something which she had forgotten about. l Why not buy your mum a beautiful sari or salwar? There are some outstanding choices available in Asian boutiques. If you are unable to go shopping yourself, then you can make a purchase online as well.

There are many online shopping websites that sell a range of designer saris at affordable rates. l Flowers and chocolates are the most conventional gifts, but that doesn't mean it is out of season to do so. Your mother would be just as delighted to receive them as her Mothers' day gift. However, if your mum is more into gardening, why not buy her an exotic garden plant instead? She'd be able to plant it in her back garden; plus the plant would last much longer than a bunch of flowers. l Your mum works hard all year round and deserves a little break. Take her to the spa to be pampered. If you're a guy, gift her spa vouchers instead. They will make a great gift as this would give her the opportunity to unwind and have that much needed rest she deserves.

Memsaab Restaurant (Nottingham)

Feast India (Leicester)

Angeethi, Gateshead (Tyne and Wear)

Benares Restaurant and Bar, Mayfair (London)

EastZEast (Birmingham)

Bollywood is high on emotional quotient and ever-ready songs for all possible situations.

We've picked out five songs either filmed on mothers, dedicated to mothers or having mothers singing to their child. Basically, five songs that sum up the essence of motherhood.

l Why not cook something for her? As a student, when I had no money to buy my mum a gift, I used to make Gajar ka Halwa and Puri for her on Mothers' Day and her birthdays. The tradition of cooking something special for her continues even though I do buy her a gift as well. Why not make the extra effort to cook something for your mum. Even a small cake would be able to bring a smile to your mother's lips.

Bollywood Relea se

If you fancy taking your mum out for a movie, preferably a Bollywood film, NH 10 is releasing on 13th March. Anushka Sharma stars in this film and has also produced it. Also starring Neil Bhoopalam and Darshan Kumaar. But be warned- this film is not a family drama; it is a revenge drama.

Mumma from Dasvidaniya (2008). A sweet rendition

by Kailash Kher. The way he sings “Mumma” is adorable.

Lukka Chhupi from Rang De Basanti (2006).

Another emotional song perfectly suiting the situation in the film.

Maa from Taare Zameen Par (2007). This song will definitely make you shed a tear.

Chanda Hai Tu from Aradhana (1969). One of the quintessential Bollywood lullabies.

Tu Mera Laadla from Laadla (1994). The song shows a son's devotion towards his mother.

15

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 14th March 2015

AZIZ ANSARI an effortless ascent Sunetra Senior

The title may sound like a luxury car ad, but in this case the (shiny black) shoe fits.

Energetic and articulate, and looking more dapper than ever, 32 year-old comedy actor and stand-up comedian Aziz Ansari is a good role model for young talent who want to make it in the glitzy yet elusive world of show biz. His fourth stand-up special took place at the renowned Madison Square Garden venue, in New York last week, meeting with a rush of critical acclaim. He has officially broken through the ultimate wall of fame – Hollywood – and coming from a Tamil Muslim background that is really quite impressive; Holler! Flashing on the media platform (not literally – he

"We, as children, have no idea what our parents went through."

clearly decided to move on before he got the chance) with MTV’s hit underground sketch show ‘Human Giant’ in 2007, Aziz now emerges a defined and positive personality in 2015. He is deserving of the status of such contemporary stars and colleagues as SNL’s Amy Poehler with whom he plays an office worker in TV series Parks and Recreation (2009 – 2015), and ‘The Social Network’s’ Jesse Eisenberg whose best friend he is in the 2011 movie ‘30 Minutes or Less’.

A huge part of Aziz’ charm is his strong moral fibre. All good comedy has an awareness of social and everyday issues, stimulating the audience and taking the laughs to a place of greater depth, but this young comic goes further to make these subjects the foundation of his performance. ‘Asian Voice’ had the pleasure of seeing this first-hand when attending his international tour ‘A larger than life event’ in November 2014, which served as a warm-up and taster of his recent NY extraordinaire. Aziz not only discussed topics such as vegetarianism, immigration and feminism, but provided hard facts and actively involved the audience in polls that illuminated the ethical conundrum of the meat industry and the position of women’s freedom: “I have no problem pretending to be a girl’s boyfriend if it means saving her from harassment” he announced at one point during the evening. He then turned to the audience and pulled up a volunteer to practice the scenario through role play.

“So, I’m a creepy stalker guy bothering

your awesome female friend. Now what are you gonna do?”

A second generation immigrant, born to parents who travelled over from Tamil Nadu to South Carolina USA, Aziz also draws on the experience of a bi-cultural identity. However, rather than referring to himself too much – and we will get to the impetus for this later – he movingly discusses the plight of his parents as firstgeneration survivors. “It takes guts to move to another country and start a new life like that” he stated. “And you just know they had S***** friends who gave them a hard time and were like “what, why? It’s not gonna work out…” The sincerity rang true when he actually brought his parents onto the stage (pictured) at Madison Square Garden to thank them publically at the highlight of his career. “We, as children, have no idea what it was like for our parents” he stated in the earlier segment.

“I remember one day when I came back from school and seeing my mom (Fatima, now a medical office worker) sitting there crying. I asked her “mom, what’s going on?” Obviously, she was feeling lonely but I was too young to understand. My dad (Shoukath, a gastroenterologist)

was at work and she was missing India.

She looked at me and said “Well Aziz, did you ever feel that emptiness when there’s no one around to talk to?” And I was like… “erm nope. Nope, I can’t say that I have (…) even now my biggest problem is when my I-Pad dies on a first-class flight between LA and NY.” Aziz’ humour, comprising of improvisation and anecdotes, could easily be dry but his inherent joie de vivre takes it into a realm of dynamism that never fails to liven up the set. He stands out in the most minor of roles; of course ‘TV Guide’ gave him their laudatory nomination of ‘scenestealer’. His part as a racially profiled salesman in the 2009 film ‘Observe and Report’ is a stellar example. The bit where he and the widely- known comedian Seth Rogen have a heated back and forth is just as memorable as the wacky Anna Faris in the supporting role of Rogen’s mis-matched love interest. In ‘Parks and Recreation’, Aziz’ long-running and awardwinning TV show, his sub-story as the aspiring businessman Tom Haverford -

says as he teases Eisenberg’s character about getting with his ex-girlfriend in ‘30 Minutes or Less’. Later, in the run-up to a robbery, he says he will need gloves to cover up those same hands because ‘there’s only like 3 Indian families’ in their town and they are sure to be identified. In a personal sense then, Aziz transcends racial politics. For him, acknowledging the phenomenon when he feels enfranchised, endows it with an unnecessary and almost regressive power. As an accomplished member of the global community – famous review journal ‘The Atlantic’ called his career development ‘meteoritic’ achieving ‘an echelon of success most comedians couldn’t even fantasise about” – he has to a certain degree, broken free of an oppressive political meaning. He can playfully – as opposed to derogatorily - refer to skin colour because he has come full-circle and that can be all it is to him.

But such cosmopolitan ease is hardly learned. More likely, it is the product of a raw and unshakeable spirit that has been there all along; qualities that are priceless

Aziz hugging his parents on stage

who breaks free to start his own clothes company ‘Rent-A-Swag- takes away the whole narrative.

Here, the prominence of Aziz’ unique signature style has a deep relationship with his liberalism.

Unlike many comedians who come from an ethnic minority backFact File ground – and • Aziz stands at 5’6” this is just as much a reflection of tall • He is dating, and in the times as it is a comment on profeslove with, professional aptitudesional chef Courtney Ansari refuses to McBroom box himself into a particular group and • He is a self-procater to either fessed feminist Caucasian or Indian • His comedy role audiences. He simmodel is fellow ply is. His treatment ‘Parks and Rec’ star of a racial self, both in live and filmed Amy Poehler • His favourite movies performances, shows a change include ‘Inception’ from more conand ‘Bridesmaids’ scious subversion • He prefers stand-up to full-blown nonto films because it’s chalance. “Imagine my brown hands “faster.” allll over her” he

as they are, but even more so in the outwardly competitive whirlwind of comedy and entertainment. It is the reason he has such a passionate and multicultural fanbase in the UK and Europe, selling out both his initial London tour dates as well as those added on demand. Fans feel a profound connection to his real and unrestrained character. Time named his one of the 140 best twitter feeds of 2011 due to their intimate yet entertaining nature.

As a result, it seems strange to say Aziz has grown as a person. His famed happy-face pose continues to represent the untarnished care-free attitude that is the formula to his success. Rather he has managed to stay true to himself while keeping an open mind. Indeed, the same smarts he possessed to complete his marketing degree from NYU translate to the quick-wit and confidence of his work with the iconic comedy troupe ‘The Upright Citizens Brigade’, and now the stamina and insightfulness of a performance-based career.’ Ansari is not just a high-achiever but admirable in heart. We want to see him in more leading roles, and garnering further praise. Hopefully the fact that he will be releasing his first book, ‘Modern Romance: an investigation’, on June 16th, is a sign that this is taking off already. @azizansari

16

SPECIAL

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 14th March 2015

Was Nirbhaya really India’s daughter?

Spriha Srivastava

Rupanjana Dutta and Reshma Trilochun Two years after India was shaken by the gang rape and murder of a young Medical student on a Delhi bus, it has been compared with the Rochdale Sex Grooming cases, which had almost 373 victims, including 50 boys. The defence lawyer Michael Magarian, QC, suggested the girls abused in Banbury, Oxfordshire, only reported the crimes so they would not have to take responsibility for having underage sex.

Nine months after the Nirbhaya gang rape, Bollywood actress Kalki Koechlin made a satirical video called 'Rape: It's your fault'. In that few mins video, the actress ridiculed the pervasive patriarchal attitudes, expressed openly by public figures- that blamed urban women and their conduct for the increasing rate of violence against them.

Leslee Udwin's film India's daughter, showed perpetrator Mukesh Singh giving an account of the horrific rape event without showing remorse or feeling as though he was at fault. On the contrary, he went on to blame the victim for not being a “good girl” for roaming the streets after 9pm with a boy.

Additionally, an interview by the lawyer who represented the rapists in court, AP Singh also featured in this film who had previously stated that if his sister or daughter were to engage in pre-marital sex, he would drench them in petrol and set them aflame as their activities would bring shame upon him and the family.

New Delhi has slammed the film as a conspiracy to malign the country and damage its international reputation. Home Minister Rajnath Singh criticised this film in Parliament and is against using this case for commercial profits. Singh further that Udwin breached the terms of agreement as she had not shown the jail officials the unedited footage which she had filmed in the prison.

Indians living around the world, have watched the documentary, and most of them strongly believe that banning it in India is absolutely unacceptable. In a survey by Asian Voice, we received overwhelming responses from women and men all across the globe, including Singapore, India, US and Britain from all walks of life.

Labour MP Valerie Vaz stated, “The film should be shown in India. It showed a responsive police force and a justice system that brought the perpetrators to justice. It brought home the pain of her parents, the brutality of rape and the loss to India of an empowered woman.”

have a life other than being sheltered by husband, father or brother.”

Reading based lawyer Megha Mittal told Asian Voice, “Most men in power in India are narrow minded. If they are ashamed, they should do something about the situation in India and not raise issues with the film. Why didn't they ban Slumdog Millionaire which painted India as a slum and a poor country. Did that boost tourism in the country?”

London based author Laxmi Hariharan said, “They (Indian government) are not right to say that the documentary could be misconstrued as giving a platform to the rapists.... Do they trust

Women's Minister, Seema Malhotra shared that the film depicts “men and women alike must take a stand and it is right that India, now growing as a world economic player, tackles these difficult social issues with confidence. But changing a culture which has all too often seen the perpetrators excused and the woman blamed for what has happened will be a long journey fraught with difficulty.”

Baroness Flather stated, "I have been appalled by the decision of the Indian Government to ban the documentary India's Daughter. I would have thought that this is something which should be shown to as many people, specially young people, as possible. It is imperative that women realise how dreadful and unacceptable the attitude of the men is to them. That women still count for nothing in India and a girl has no right to

people so little in terms of distinguishing between what's right and wrong?

What haunts me most is the face of the girl's mother - She has to live the rest of her life, with the knowledge of what happened to her daughter... I think of a worse fate. The documentary itself is chilling but banning it has simply put the world spotlight on it now.”

Educationalist, Supriyo Chaudhuri told Asian Voice, “The government has a position just like Mukesh Singh, as interviewed in the documentary. If rape has happened, just be quiet about it. If only we can own it up collectively, there is hope that such attitudes will change. The government is in denial, as usual.”

Banker Vishu Kumar said, “It should definitely be aired in India. People who have the means will watch it on the internet anyways. It's the less fortunate people who would

not get to witness a prime example the impact that someone's upbringing can have on their mindset. I don't know the real reasons why it was objected.

If it's anything to do with bad publicity/effect on tourism, then the officials need a wake up call...”

However, US based Krishnakali Dasgupta shared a different view.

She believes the documentary is not fit to be showed on television as it does not comply to the terms of what a documentary should be like. Further on, she believes the film “does not live up to the expectations of the enormity of the case and is not worthy of being aired by a national channel since it was not even a worthy enough tribute to Nirbhaya.”

D a s g u p t a agreed with the objections made by the Indian Government. “The makers clearly have not cared for following any legal rules. As Kavita Krishnan's letter says, there is limits to freedom of speech, how can any legal government give its official sanction to classified material of an ongoing case? I would be surprised if they did.”

To that London based Journalist Lopa Patel added, “Indian government's objection is valid on the grounds that it is giving publicity to a convicted murderer.” She went on to say, “But Mukesh Singh is a misogynistic, immoral, souless rapist and murderer and that is worth airing. The documentary was balanced and did not glamourise them in any way.”

While most may have disagreed with Dasgupta's points and believed that the documentary should have been aired and found the Indian government's objections questionable, all the interviewees have agreed that inspite of the rapid economic growth, and fast moving urbanization, India remains a largely unsafe country for women.

But is safety and menthe only things we need to

The answer is no. While lots of people protested and have been outraged over what happened to her, a huge section still has views that are shameful. The documentary by BBC, titled India’s Daughter, has thrown a number of questions in front of everyone. Do we respect our women? Who do we blame when a crime against a woman is committed? Are we a nation that believes in gender equality?

While a lot of questions remain unanswered, a lot of opinions have also come to light with this documentary, probably the reason the film is banned in India now? The film looks at the way different people think – a rapist, a lawyer, the family of the victim, the family of the convicted and so on. But what it also shows is the way India treats its women – the country with the highest young population.

I decided to ask young women how safe they feel going to India especially after this incident? The answer wasn’t very encouraging.

“I have never been to India,” says 21-year old Amy, adding “but would really like to go sometime. I have read Indian mythological stories and it is so fascinating. But the only think that concerns me is women’s safety. If you go to a place you want to enjoy and be relaxed. My only concern is I will be constantly worried about being safe.”

Another similar view came from Maya, a 35year old French language teacher in the UK – “I want to go, yes! But what about my safety? When I read stories I get scared and then postpone my plan. Maybe one day I will go.”

However, there are a few people who think a lot of this is giving too much negative publicity to India and things are not as bad.

“I have lived in India all my life and even though these incidents are an eye-opener for us, things are not as bad as it is portrayed,” says a 25fear for in India? Ending with a striking interview of Akshay Thakur's wife, the film has opened doors to many more questions about our society. While most family members of the perpetrators seemed sad, Puneeta Devi sat on a doorstep with her young son, flared into anger “Am I not a daughter of this country?” she said. “Don’t

year old journalist in the city. Things might not be as bad but they are bad enough to scare tourists off. I spoke to many friends who although have lived their entire life in India don’t feel as comfortable being out till late in Delhi as they do in other cities in India. So what is it that’s different in cities like Mumbai for instance as compared to Delhi? Women in both these cities are professional and go to work so it’s clearly something to do with law and order in these cities.

I am not saying Mumbai is the safest city in India – there have been many cases in Mumbai too but from the majority of women I spoke to I got a sense that they feel safer in Mumbai as compared to Delhi.

Keeping all that in the background, the brutal question still looming over our heads is when will the government wake up? When will they make rape laws more stringent? And when will people treating men and women equal? The incident has kept India and her citizens awake for a long time now but there still has been no strong response from the government on stringent punishments. The criminals from Nirbhaya case are still in prison despite the death penalty and one of them who was sent to juvenile home will be released in December this year.

Even after the Nirbhaya incident, many more rape cases have happened in India. This just goes on to show that there is still no stringent punishment that deters these young men to become rapists.

One can seriously hope that this incident is not forgotten like the many incidents in the past. I always feel that one rape incident in India brings out many opinions, comments, debates, blog posts, protests and promises from government but it all dies down until a next big crime is committed.

In this case, one can only hope that Nirbhaya’s sacrifice and the voice of thousands of protesters does not go in vain.

I have a right to live? Will there be no more rapes in Delhi? Will you hang all rapists? A woman is protected by her husband. If he’s dead, who will protect her and for whom will she live? I also don’t want to live. Priyanshu, my son, is a child. He understands nothing. I will strangle him to death. What else can I do?”

In Conversation with Baroness Sandip Verma

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 14th March 2015

With the nation gearing up for the upcoming elections, Asian Voice caught up with Baroness Sandip Verma, whose current role is Parliamentary Under-Secretary in the Department of Energy and Climate Change and spoke to her about her role in politics, the lack of ethnic minorities in politics and about disaffected voters. insulated homes? It was those sort of things that made me want to come into active politics.”

Ve r m a goes on to s p e a k about the challenges in getting landlords to comply with the regulations and what

Baroness Verma

From starting her own business at the age of 19 in High Street Fashion, we asked Baroness Verma what made her get into politics. Verma stated, “My catalyst is to actually be able to do what I'm doing today. So in the ministry that I'm in, at the Department of Energy and Climate Change, it is looking at how government policies impact on people and particularly those people that tend to not be so engaged with politics and policies. People will live in houses that could well do with sort of policies around eco around making sure their homes are better insulated, because a lot of our elderly stay at home. So they have to have the heating on, they have to have the light on. How do we make sure that they are better protected against extortionate bills, badly

she aims to do. “I think one of the things that we are going to be doing is looking at the private rented sector to make sure that the landlord are able to bring in those measures that social landlords are able to do as well as private home owners are able to do, so that they can make sure that the home that they rent out to the private sector are at least the sort of standard you would expect a household to be living in. I do think the important thing is that landlords in the private housing sector will be under the same sort of regulation as social landlord to ensure that houses reach particular standards so that people living in properties that is leaky, cold, inefficient and having to suffer quietly without the onus of the landlord having to do something about it.”

She believes that there is still miles to go before one can say that ethnic minorities are fully integrated into politics. “I think we've got a long way to go to make sure that the debate is a more informed debate for all people. But that also means people from the black and minority communities have got to get engaged with the debate.” Further on, “I think the fact that we have 19 [Asian Conservative MPs] is a good place to start from.

But is it enough? No, of course it isn't. But what we need to do is make sure that people are encouraged to come into politics and how do we make that reach better, for all political parties- all political parties have got to answer to that call because we are a very diverse country. We do need to have diversity at the top to ensure that all views are reflected properly.”

Baroness Verma urges people to voice out their opinions and their and state their disapproval on matters in order to make amends and improvements. She also believes that there needs to be more information provided to the general public which would aid them in making a coherent and conclusive decision when it comes to voting. “If you don't go out there and raise your voice in concern then nobody will know why you're disaffected; it's upon us all.

That is why it is really important that media like yourself look at the measures we are taking to make sure that we're actually able to have that informed debate so nobody goes into the voting box not knowing what parties are offering. But the main thing is we mustn't have voter apathy.”

UK

17

Let them know what you think Asian Voice with City Hindus Network and City Sikhs Network are organising a debate in the City with the leading representatives from 5 political parties, to discuss Britain's political future.

Hustings in the City on 9 April, gives you a chance to ask a party representative about the issue that particularly bothers you about your country or your rights.

British Asians form 7% of the UK population and a study by the Centre for Social Markets estimates that Asian Businesses contribute up to 10% to the GDP of our country. This is the only

hustings event in the UK aimed at the many ethnically diverse communities of the UK. The evening will include short talks and a Q&A session/debate with the leading representatives from Conservative, Labour, Liberal Democrats, UKIP and the Green Party. Topics of discussion will include employment, education, transport, welfare, immigration, EU membership amongst others.

The event is open to all people. It is anticipated that the attendees at the event will represent the culturally diverse communities of London.

If you are interested to attend, make sure you RSVP at the earliest at http://www.citysikhs.org. uk/event/hustings-in-thecity-2015/ or http://www.cityhindusnetwork.org.uk/hustingscity/ Let's choose wisely who we vote for. Come, join us on 9th April at 6pm to make your voice heard. Remember, every opinion counts.

with the community both in terms with the Hindu community and also outside of it... the idea is to be reflective of the community."

Mr Gor has also said that Avanti's schools have "some aspects which are unique and innovative" but have an "inclusive" curriculum.

The curriculum at Avanti Schools, with subjects such as Yoga, Philosophy and Meditation has been rated

by Ofsted as “good”.

The Avanti School Trust's other schools are located in Leicester,

Harrow and Redbridge in Surrey.

Along with Avanti school, Wallington County Grammer School Federation has also been given permission to open a non- selective free school for 1,000 students from the age of 11 to 18. This school will serve the regions of Coulsdon, Purley and South Croydon.

The proposed free school, Crystal Palace Primary School which was backed by the Department for Education to open in September 2015 has now been deferred until 2016.

Event: Hustings in the City Time: April 9, 2015 6-9pm Venue: Chartered Insurance Institute, 20 Aldermanbury, London, EC2V 7HY.

First Hindu Faith School to open in Croydon

Continued from page 1

The Avanti Schools Trust, which is based in Middlesex will open a primary school in Croydon in September 2016 which will accommodate 420 pupils.

The Avanti School will not have an admission criteria, however, the other schools from the trust may vary from 60-90% Hindus.

The Avanti School Trust's chief executive, Nitesh Gor has said, "We have been speaking to the community for several years, probably about four years. We have huge links

18

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 14th March 2015

Dear Financial Voice Reader, Will you be better off, with more money in your pocket, with a Conservative Government or a Labour Government? FTSE 100 at an all-time high – British companies worth more than they have ever been worth.

Oil at a low it’s not seen since 2009. And house prices, an asset for many, rising.

Of course rising asset prices are a double edged sword. Those not asset owners miss out on the wealth being generated. But better to have those prices rising and the prospect of joining the asset owning classes than asset prices falling and wealth being depleted.

Wealth is created by owning asset which rise in price.

First we want them rising, next we must ensure you can afford to own them.

To be able to afford to own those assets – you need a higher income in your pocket. How? More jobs, less tax on the lowest earners, and more money – their fair share – from the banks and others making massive profits. But not so much that you strangle them from raising wages for their employees. It’s simple. As for Government - to spend for one off jobs, one off benefit, which does not create a sustainable source of income is fool’s gold; a short term unsustainable boost from spending, but not from investing. You decide which Party is most likely to deliver on the simple truths above.

When I was a politics student at University I was fortunate enough to have 1 to 1 tutorials with probably the leading specialist in General Election of the past 60 years – David Butler. David knew everyone from Winston Churchill to every PM since. He also knew that the best predictor of elections was not personalities, it wasn’t even issues such as immigration. Until the 1980s it was class. Then it was interest rates. Why? Because those things underlined one thing – the money in your pocket. We actually vote on the whole based on whether we feel we will be better off.

In the 1980s I as a school child bought into privatisation stocks – then in the 1990s my first home.

Owning assets which rise in price made me want to vote in a direction which benefited me. When my corporation tax rate went down – I felt the same. It’s a simple truth easily forgotten.

But what about social justice? Of Defence?

Education? NHS? All these things are important. But even with these it comes down to will you be better off?

Sadly, people tend not to vote altruistically – at least that’s what the voting data suggests.

So are we not a society? Caring for each other?

Heck yes we are – but I want to donate the money from my own pocket, from having more income myself and choosing the causes I support – again it comes to my having more money in my pocket.

The question now to ask yourself is: 1. Do you own an asset – a home, a stock owning pension?

2. Do you own a company paying corporation tax?

3. Are you on low income and so hoping for tax exemption?

4. Are you hoping to be an asset owner?

When you answer the above you should find the answer to how to vote. I know what I think.

India's forex reserves up $3.88 bn

India's foreign exchange reserves increased by $3.88 billion to $338.07 billion for the week ended Feb 27, Reserve Bank of India (RBI) data showed. The reserves had increased by $1.02 billion to $334.19 billion in the previous week (Feb 20).

According to the RBI's weekly statistical supplement, foreign currency assets, the biggest component of the forex reserves, rose $3.90 billion at $312.20 billion in the week under review.

The foreign currency assets had risen by $1.04 billion at $308.29 billion in the previous week (Feb

20).

The RBI said the foreign currency assets, expressed in US dollar terms, include the effect of appreciation or depreciation of non-US currencies such as the pound sterling, euro and yen held in reserve.

However, India's reserve position with the International Monetary Fund (IMF) in the week ended Feb 27 decreased by $4.6 million and stood at $1.63 billion.

The value of special drawing rights (SDRs) was lower by $11.4 million in the week under review at $4.06 billion.

Women in Finance

Business Secretary, Vince Cable brought together together many of the 160 women who have been appointed to FTSE100 boards since 2011 for a celebratory event. The celebrations also marked International Women's day which was on 8th March; this emphasises the fundamental preposition of accumulating the amount of women in senior leadership roles.

During the event, the host highlighted the progress of women in FTSE 100 and FTSE 250, as recorded in released figures in October 2014. The statistics showed that female representations on boards in FTSE 100 had increased from 20.7% to 22.8% in March 2014; in FTSE 250, female representation on boards increased from 15.6% to 17.4%. In addition, there were no all-male boards in the FTSE 100. New figures are to be released on 25th March.

These statistics prove

the progression of women in this field; it emphasises the important role women have paid in Finance, something which would not have been a conventional career path associated with women if we were to mention this a few decades ago. The statistics also show the increasing opportunities for businesswomen.

Lord Davies of Abersoch suggests, “we must recognise there is much work to do before we achieve true gender parity and it is vital that companies focus on continued progress, increasing in the number of women appointed as executive directors.

The evidence shows that

companies with balanced boards are able to be more competitive globally.”

Although there are many women who have managed to make a name and place for themselves in the world of finance, something that is equally shocking as well as surprising is the amount of Asian women in the list of CEOs. Currently, there is only one Asian female, Ruby McGregor-Smith, who is the head of a FTSE 250 company.

Ruby McGregor-Smith does not believe being a woman in finance has ever been a disadvantage, however, the questions posed towards her regarding her gender and her work role

does agitate her. She states, “I don't understand why being female is any more relevant than your race, disability or age. If we've got challenges on gender the rest is a lot worse. No one has ever asked me about the challenges of race, they've only ever asked me about the challenges of being a female.”

McGregor-Smith joined the outsourcing company Mitie in 2002 and five years later, she was promoted to run it at the age of 44.

Her achievements are commendable and a source of inspiration for those who aspire to acquire such work lineage. However, the lack of Asian women CEOs does make one wonder whether Asian women are lacking behind and why so.

Similar to how women have manage to break this mould and have managed to forged forward in finance, there may be possibilities for women of ethnic minority backgrounds to evolve as well.

Tata Consultancy Services, the leading IT services, consulting and business solutions organisation, has been named as the top employer in Europe for the third consecutive year by a top employers certification agency, citing the Indian IT major as an "exceptional performer" in nine core

human resources areas.

TCS has been certified as top employer in eight European countries - the UK, Belgium, the Netherlands, Germany, Switzerland, Sweden, Denmark and Norway by Top Employers Institute.

The company has been recog-

nised as an exceptional performer across nine core human resources areas talent strategy, workforce planning, onboarding, learning and development, performance management, leadership development, career and succession management, compensation and benefits, and

organisational culture.

The TCS was ranked as the overall number one in a process that assessed 688 organisations across Europe. Only companies that have been certified as a top employer in at least five individual countries in Europe are eligible for the award.

Ruby McGregor-Smith

Vince Cable

TCS ranked as top employer in Europe

Mary Macleod MP for Brentford and Isleworth

Apprenticeship opportunities for British Asians

I passionately believe in giving young people the tools and the opportunities to succeed in life.

But for too long, the route to success was seen through an academic prism - GCSEs, A-levels and university degrees.

That's why I applaud what the Conservatives have done since they came into Government to boost vocational qualifications and apprenticeships - putting them on an equal footing with their academic relations.

Just last month, I was with the Work and Pensions Secretary, Iain Duncan Smith, and the construction company Mace in Osterley, where I met four fantastic apprentices helping to build Sky's new campus.

They are part of the 2,400 bright, engaged

and determined apprentices that have been hired in my constituency since 2010, helping to grow our economy out of Labour's doldrums.

Under this government, 83,470 high quality apprenticeships have been taken up by young Asian people - out of more than 2.1 million created in this parliament so far. Every one of those young people will have the skills to get a job and build a bright future for themselves and their loved ones.

Apprenticeships are increasingly becoming the first choice for businesses, professions and employers.

Why? Because we’ve undertaken reforms right the way through from exams to the apprenticeships them-

selves – that are about quality, not just quantity.

We're targeting apprenticeships where they're needed. And we're motivating businesses to take on young people by cutting taxes and red tape.

A huge incentive has been offering business with 50 or fewer employees up to £1,500 for taking on an apprentice aged between 16 and 24. We're also scrapping National Insurance contributions a tax on jobs - for under 21s from April 2015 and for apprentices under 25 from April 2016.

Crucially, we're giving employers a say in shaping apprenticeships.

At the same time, we've invested £25 million in the Higher Apprenticeships Fund to support up to 10,000 degree-level apprenticeships in areas like aerospace and renewable energy - plus an extra £40 million for 20,000 more by the end of this year. And at school level, apprenticeship providers are now required to offer English and maths teaching, and we've done away with dozens of vocational courses that were not

fit for purpose.

Compare our record in four short years to 13 years under Labour and you'll see just how badly they failed young people going down the vocational route. The independent Wolf Review found at least 350,000 young people were let down under Labour by courses that had “little or no labour market value.” Labour created half the number of apprenticeships in their last term than we've done since 2010. Little wonder youth unemployment increased by 40% on their watch. That's a massive contrast to the 50% reduction in youth unemployment in my constituency since 2010.

Labour's record is one we don't want to see repeated. Which is why come May the choice couldn't be clearer: between a competent C o n s e r v a t i v e Government that will build on its strong record on apprenticeships and create 3 million more as part of our long-term economic plan. Or the chaos of Labour who would put future generations at risk.

REAL ESTATE VOICE

Stepping out of the comfort zone

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 14th March 2015

Suresh Vagjiani

Sow & Reap A Property Investment Company

19

Today we hope to exchange on a property in Bryanston Square, in truth we have held on to this contract far too long, our attention had been taken away by other deals; I'm actually surprised we managed to keep hold of this as there were far higher offers on the table.

One of the reasons why we managed to hang on was the agent was favourable to our offer. This is an important point in any negotiation.

This is a probate property, meaning the sale was as a consequence of the elderly lady who died there. This means the property is generally out dated, untouched and requires modernisation; often, but not always, prerequisites for getting a deal.

We h a d s e c u r e d t w o b u y e r s f o r t h i s p ro p e r t y. O n e b u y i n g b l i n d , t h e o t h e r h a s s e e n t h e p ro p e r t y, I g u e s s t h i s w a s a l i t t l e l i k e p l a y i n g p o k e r. T h e c h a p w h o s a w t h e p ro p e r t y n a t u r a l l y l o v e d t h e p r o p e r t y, t h i s w a s n o s u r p r i s e , a s t h i s p ro p e rt y h a s m a n y f e a t u re s w h i c h a re r a re t o f i n d . Fu r t h e r m o r e h e h a d a l s o p u rc h a s e d a n o t h e r p ro p e r t y f r o m u s f a c i n g a S q u a re s i m i l a r l y w i t h b e a u t i f u l f e a t u r e s , a n d h a d s e e n t h e p r i c e ro c k e t w i t h i n t h e s p a c e o f o n l y o n e y e a r.

His issues were finding the most efficient way of purchasing the property, buying from offshore means the stamp duty is 15% and there are no benefits when selling the property, as the capital gains exemption for offshore companies have now disappeared. Whilst this buyer was pondering, the buyer who was coming in blind got his ducks in line and is in the process of transferring the exchange monies across to the lawyer and getting ready to exchange on the deal.

Here we have two relatives who have joined forces and are purchasing the property in order to be able to afford a property of this amount. It is better to have half a property like this than to have a whole one in a lesser area. The gain you make by partnering up will be far greater than going solo. Of course this works well only if you have a water tight agreement between the parties involved covering off all possible eventualities.

For one of them this will be the first time they have bought through us, though they have been tracking us for many many years, showing interest and then quieting down again. This type of behavior is exhibited by many investors who see the importance of investing in property, take a step but then sit back down again.

And all the while the prices go in mostly one direction and that’s upwards. This procrastination costs money, more money is lost by procrastination than making a wrong decision when it comes to property.

The other party involved in the deal has made money already by purchasing through us. The property they bought was an ex council located in Camden in June 2012 for £275k, the current value is around £475k. This will be remortgaged in order to part fund this new purchase.

The pro perty has go ne u p by £200k with in three years.

Un su rprisingly the clien t has taken the decision to o ff load a few rand om propert ies he had purchased in Nort h L ond on to in vest more in more c entral location s.

Most Asians tend to purchase where they live, often starting with their own property and turning it into a buy to let investment when they trade upwards. Having made money in this location and feeling comfortable in this zone they venture out and buy more of the same as they know the streets and the prices and they build a relationship with the agents. There is much merit to knowing your patch and sticking to what you know especially if it works. But in the same token it’s also good to keep your eyes open to greater possibilities.

The majority of clients who invest in central locations never buy outside in the outer parts of London again. Making profit can be a drug and once you have had a strong dosage it’s difficult for you to go back on a lesser dose again. This is why they stick to these locations, this level of dosage is hard to find anywhere else.

T h i s p ro p e r t y w a s a l w a y s re c o m m e n d e d a s a b u y a n d h o l d p ro p e r t y. T h e r e i s m o n e y t o b e m a d e b y re s e l l i n g b u t n o t t o o m u c h . Yo u w i l l b e c o m i n g a w a y w i t h t h e c r u m b s r a t h e r t h a n t h e w h o l e c a k e . T h e c u r re n t e n v i ro n m e n t i s n o t t h e b e s t f o r p ro p e r t y p r i c e s a t t h e m o m e n t . I n v e s t o rs d o n o t l i k e i n s t a b i l i t y a n d v a r i a b l e s .

Even if t he v ariabl es t urn o ut t o be b ad it i s no t an i s s u e , i t i s t h e u n c e rt a i n t y w h i c h m a k e s p e o p l e n e rv ous. T hi s i s prec isely why one sh oul d expl oit th is situa t i o n a n d p u rc h a s e , i t w i l l n o t s t a y a ro u n d f o r t o o l o n g .

The Real Deal

Hampstead, London, NW3 Purchase Price: £675k

I have no doubt once this property has been refurbished it will be valued at a minimum of £1.6m later on this year. As it’s a buy and hold the plan will be to convert to a two bedroom and rent out and gain an income. This will merely pay the mortgage and nothing more as the yield in these locations have not kept up with the capital values and so a rental yield of 2-3% is the norm.

We have been trying to push for a delayed completion but the response from the vendors hasn’t been encouraging. So it’s best to be quiet, get the money to the lawyers and then talk.

We recently got a full three months on a property we exchanged on using the same method, this was when the agent was advising us there was no way the vendor would agree to this and we would lose the sale and they may lose the instruction.

Money has its own power to convince, it needs no one talking for it; it also speaks many languages and has great powers of persuasion. Many rulers of nations and up keepers of religious faiths have been swayed by its power, what to speak of us lesser mortals.

 l l l l l

A large one bedroom raised ground floor flat Share of freehold High ceilings Can be converted into a two bedroom flat This is coming in at around £950 per sq. ft. while properties in this location are being sold for around £1,200 per sq. ft. l Expected value after conversion to be around £850k l Close to the leisure facilities of Finchley Road and Hampstead Heath l Very good long term buy and 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 Buying a property is a package deal, like getting married! Don't look at it from only one angle, if you concentrate only on yield you may find the capital value not increasing.

l Property prices in good locations tend to be high, but these are the areas where you get the maximum capital appreciation. So it’s better to save or club together to ensure you purchase a diamond.

20

LEGAL VOICE

RBI surprises again with rate cut

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) unexpectedly lowered its policy rate for the second time this year, backing a government that is pushing to revive economic growth as inflation cools. Although markets had broadly expected the RBI to reduce rates again after a cut in January, few had expected a move just days after the government unveiled a budget that took a slower path to lowering the fiscal deficit.

The reduction in the RBI's policy repo rate by 25 basis points to 7.5 per cent sent Indian bond prices to 20-month highs.

"Given low capacity utilisation and still-weak indicators of production and credit off-take, it is appropriate for the Reserve Bank to be pre-emptive in its policy action to utilise

Wipro is world's most ethical firm

India's software major Wipro Ltd said it had been recognised as the world's most ethical company by US-based Ethisphere Institute for the fourth consecutive year. "We have been named as the world's most ethical company by the Ethisphere for our commitment to ethical leadership," the company said in a statement. The Institute, which advances standards of ethical business practices, assesses global organisations having material impact on the way business is conducted by fostering a culture of ethics and transparency at every level. "The recognition underscores our commitment to leading ethical business standards and practices ensuring longterm value to key stakeholders, including customers, employees, suppliers, regulators and investors," Wipro's chief sustainability officer Anurag Behar said.

The assessment is based upon the Institute's ethics quotient (EQ) framework developed over years of research to provide a means to evaluate a company's performance in an objective and consistent way. "Ethics, integrity and responsible citizenship are a foundational first principle and at the core of how we think and act. The recognition for the fourth time in succession is an reaffirmation of what we stand for," Behar said.

The EQ framework and methodology is determined, vetted and refined by the expert advice and insights from Ethisphere's network of thought leaders. "Earning this recognition involves collective action of a global workforce from the top down.

We congratulate Wipro for this extraordinary achievement," Ethisphere's chief executive Timothy Erblich said.

Raghuram Rajan

available space for monetary accommodation," RBI Governor Raghuram Rajan said in a statement.

Rajan aired doubts over the credibility of official data after recent changes to methodology showed India's economy grew 7.5 per cent in the last quarter, faster than China. "Nevertheless, the picture of a steadily recovering economy appears right," he said.

The RBI had first lowered interest rates this year on Jan. 15, in a similarly unexpected move that signalled the start of a new easing cycle. Both rate cuts took place outside of the central bank's scheduled policy review meetings.

The benefits of lower official rates have still to pass through to borrowers, however, as commercial banks have been hesitant about lowering their lending rates. Analysts said the latest rate reduction showed the RBI's trust in the 10-month-old government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi to maintain fiscal discipline even though it will take longer to reach its deficit goals.

"The Reserve Bank of India is expressing its con-

fidence on the inflation outlook," said Radhika Rao, economist at DBS. "This also means that despite a higher fiscal deficit, the quality of fiscal consolidation has satisfied central bank expectations."

The budget laid out plans to reduce the fiscal deficit to 3.9 per cent of gross domestic product, in the 2015/16 financial year, and bring it down to 3 per cent by 2017/18 - a year later than an earlier road map had targeted.

Describing the deficit reduction plan as "very prudent", junior finance minister Jayant Sinha said the government was striking a balance between making more gradual reductions in the deficit and investing in infrastructure and key sectors.

Mukesh Ambani

Dilip Shanghvi

Shanghvi replaces Mukesh Ambani as richest Indian

Dilip Shanghvi of Sun Pharmaceuticals, with a net worth of $ 21.5 billion, surpassed Mukesh Ambani as the world’s richest Indian, few days after the Reliance Industries Ltd. chief was ranked India’s wealthiest for the eighth consecutive year.

A real-time update by the business magazine Forbes reworked the rankings. On the global rich list, Shanghvi moved up to the 37th position, while Ambani slipped to the 43rd.

Earlier, Forbes released its annual rich list for 2015, ranking Ambani at the 39th position and Shanghvi at the 44th. Azim Premji of Wipro was ranked 48th, from which he has moved up one place now.

Shanghvi’s net worth stood at $ 21.5 billion, following a sharp rally in the share prices of his group companies.

India is fourth in world billionaires' list According to the Forbes rich list for the year 2015, India is home to the fourth largest number of billionaires across the world. US tops the charts followed by China and Germany.

However, there are only five Indians figuring among

the 100 wealthiest across the world. Registering a significant jump over the last year when there were 56 billionaires with a collective net worth of $191.5 billion, the number of Indian billionaires has increased to 90 with a total wealth of $294 billion.

In comparison, the US has as many as 536 billionaires, followed by 213 from China and 103 from Germany.

Meanwhile, the ranks of the world's wealthiest defied global economic turmoil and expanded yet again despite plunging oil prices and a weakened euro. There were a record 1,826 billionaires with an aggregate networth of $7.05 trillion, up from $6.4 trillion a year ago, according to Forbes.

The total number of

world's billionaires includes 290 newcomers, 71 of whom hail from China.

Youth are on the rise as a record 46 among the ranks are under 40 years.

Among the BRIC countries India is home to the second largest number of billionaires after China.

China had 213 super rich people, worth $565 billion, followed by India (90, $294 billion), Brazil (54, $181 billion) and Russia (88, $337 billion).

Moreover, five Indian women have made it to the Forbes list of the world's billionaires that saw a record number of women this year. The number of Indian women in this year's list witnessed an increase over last year, when only two Indian women were included on the Forbes billionaire list.

India's union minister for commerce and industry Nirmala Sitharaman said exports play a key role in ensuring success of the 'Make in India' initiative.

“Manufacturing in India can be much more than what it is today, from the point of view of what it contributes towards the GDP. When I say manufacturing in India, both in volume and value, I include our exporters, who even in difficult times have kept their nose above water," said Sitharaman at the ECGC Dun and

Bradstreet Export Performance Award ceremony in Mumbai.

The Minister reiterated government's commitment to 'ease of doing business' and assured the gathering that similar measures will be extended to the export sector as well. For this purpose, the Minister said, she is planning to constitute of Committee, that can suggest thrust areas and key measures which can yield quick results as well as help formulate a long term export strategy.

"This is a government that is fully willing to hear, fully willing to listen and fully willing to act," she added.

The Minister also asserted while a lot is being said, a lot is being done also at the government level. She said the ebiz portal launched recently by finance minister Arun Jaitley was a great boon for the manufacturers and exporters.

Another portal helps exporters gather information about which product is in demand where.

Exports key to success of 'Make in India' initiative: Sitharaman

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 14th March 2015

Maria Fernandes

An end to rights of appeal

Recent changes to the • Long residence (para 276B) Immigration Rules introlife duced to mirror the new • Private (Paragraph 276 ADE Immigration Act 2014 or para 276DE) have brought in sweeping members changes which retain • Family under Part 8 where power in the hands of the the sponsor is present Home Office by removand settled. Those ing rights of appeal in who received settlenearly every area and by ment through the watering the ability to point based system raise human rights withwill be excluded) in an application. The regulations are extremely • Asylum confusing to understand. • Appendix FM (family members except those There are 2 dates that who obtain leave to are important the 2nd remain as a result of March 2015 and the 6th bereavement or April 2015. domestic violence).

Points Based Cases (With regard to this From the 2nd March particular category 2015 there will be no there are doubts rights of appeal for all the which need to be clarpoints based categories, ified) in Tiers 1, 2 and 5. There Where there is no were only rights of appeal available to in country right of appeal, there will applicants and this has be an Administrative now extended to all Review and Judicial cases. The Tier 4 catego- Review at the High Court ry lost their right of which is an expensive, appeal in October 2014. does not consider the Instead there will be a merits of a claim and right to an costs can be imposed if Administrative Review the applicant is unsucwhich is a process that is cessful.

It appears that it will carried by the Home Office itself and this be necessary to consider process prevents the rais- at the time an application ing of human rights has to be made whether there are human rights issues. reasons and whether this Appeals The new scheme no application should be longer focuses on the made. Failure to do so type of immigration deci- will mean any refusal will sion made but rather on not be amenable to an (although the type of claim was appeal made that led to the deci- Administrative Review sion. Rights of appeal will still be available but will only exist for either is not an independent applications which have process). There are also a specific human rights difficulties with a human claim or certain applica- rights application as it tions listed below which will not attract an according to the Home Administrative Review.

There are difficult Office have an implied human rights claim. It times ahead with the will no longer be possible watering down of rights to rely on human rights of appeal to almost a in addition to other trickle. The period ahead is likely to be a very chalclaims.

From the 6th April lenging one. There are 2015, appeals will be other changes which will available only for particu- be discussed in next week’s article. lar categories: To contact Maria Fernandes, please email at: info@fernandesvaz.com

Rajat Gupta files fresh plea in court

India-born former Goldman Sachs director Rajat Gupta - currently serving a two-year jail term on insider trading charges has filed a fresh plea in a US court seeking his conviction overturned as prosecutors failed to show he received personal benefits for passing information.

The IIT and Harvard-educated 66-year-old former McKinsey head has asked the Manhattan federal

court for an order “vacating his sentence, setting aside the judgment against him, and discharging him from prison.”

In the plea, Gupta has argued that the government did not provide evidence to prove he received personal benefits in exchange for passing confidential Goldman Sachs information to hedge fund founder and billionaire friend Raj Rajaratnam.

CURRENCY VOICE

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 14th March 2015

21

Foreign Exchange

Paresh Davdra is the Dealing Director of RationalFX,

UK interest rate kept unchanged Currency Specialists.

Growth in Britain's manufacturing sector hit a seven-month high according to data released.

The UK manufacturing PMI rose to 54.1 in February up from 53.1 in January, suggesting economic conditions picked up last month. One note of caution, consumer goods rather than heavy-duty machinery led the increase this suggests it may not be a sustainable recovery.

Growth in Britain's construction industry improved to a four-month high last month suggesting Britain's economy started 2015 strongly.

However building firms hired staff at the slowest pace in more than a year. The UK construction purchasing managers' index (PMI) rose to 60.1 reaching its highest level since October 2014. A fall in output in construction was a drag on Britain's gross domestic product growth in the fourth quarter of 2014, but economists said they expected the weakness in the industry would prove shortlived, which it appears to have been.

UK interest rates have been kept unchanged again by the Bank of England, They have now been at their record low of 0.5% for six years. Rates were

first cut to 0.5% in March 2009. Recent growth in the economy has prompted speculation that rates will start to rise again in the near future. Continuing low inflation, now at 0.3%, gives policymakers little reason to raise the cost of borrowing. The Bank also kept the size of its quantitative easing (QE) programme unchanged at £375bn.

Inflation is expected to remain low and could even turn negative briefly largely to a nearhalving in the price of oil since last summer. Mark Carney has even talked about lowering interest rates further to a new record low, should prices remain near flat for longer than expected. Minutes of last month's MPC meeting showed members voted no for a change to interest rates. There was a debate revealing a three-way split between the nine members as to their future direction, with two arguing there could be a case to raise rates later this year.

The Eurozone unemployment rate fell to a 33-month low, indicating Europe's labour market may be turning a corner. The unemployment rate fell to 11.2% in January, down from 11.3% in December. The

Eurostat report states that the number of unemployed people in the euro area fell by 140,000 in January. However, unemployment in the Eurozone remains widely varied with unemployment levels in Spain are at 23.4% in comparison to Germany at 4.7%.

Also inflation in the Eurozone rose to -0.3% last month, showing prices did not fall as fast as expected. This is a big jump up on the -0.6% decline recorded in January. The report stated that service sector prices rose by 1.1%, alcohol and tobacco prices rose by 0.5%, meaning the decline is mainly due to falling energy prices, which should give the Eurozone economy a boost as consumers will have more money in their pockets. Fears that Europe is being dragged into a deflationary downturn may have been overstated.

The European Central Bank has raised this year's eurozone growth forecast to 1.5%, up from 1% previously. Mario Draghi said economic growth in the eurozone would strengthen slowly to reach 2.1% by 2017. He said there would be low negative inflation in the months ahead before prices

began to rise in late 2015, with 1.8% inflation in 2017. The bank kept the eurozone's key interest rate unchanged at 0.05%, as expected.

The ECB QE scheme will inject at least €1.1 trillion (£834bn) into the eurozone economy by purchasing €60bn of assets a month until September 2016, Mr Draghi added. It will start on Monday 9th march. He also said Greece could not rely on the ECB to raise the limits on Athens of short-term debt, and that the rules also meant the ECB could not buy Greek bonds under its new asset-buying programme.

In the US the number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment benefits last week rose to its highest level since May, which could raise concerns about some weakness in the labour market. Other data on Thursday showed non-farm productivity contracted more sharply than previously thought in the fourth quarter as output failed to keep up with a jump in hours. Initial claims for state unemployment benefits increased by 7,000 to a seasonally adjusted 320,000 for the week ending Feb 28, the highest reading since mid-May.

Weekly Currencies As of Tuesday 10th March 2015 @ 5pm

GBP - INR = 94.87

USD - INR = 62.84 EUR - INR = 67.35 GBP - USD = 1.51 GBP - EUR = 1.41

EUR - USD = 1.07 GBP - AED = 5.54

GBP - CAD = 1.91

GBP - NZD = 2.08

GBP - AUD = 1.98

GBP - ZAR = 18.63

GBP - HUF = 433.18

www.rationalfx.com

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22

WORLD

Pakistan has more nukes than India, shows new infographic

Washington: Pakistan had about 120 atomic weapons, 10 more than India, in its nuclear arsenal last year, according to a new interactive infographic unveiled by the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists.

Designed by the Bulletin, founded in 1945

by University of Chicago scientists who had helped develop the first atomic weapons in the Manhattan Project, the infographic tracks the number and history of nuclear weapons in the nine nuclear weapon states.

The Nuclear Notebook Interactive Infographic provides a visual representation of the Bulletin's famed Nuclear Notebook, which since 1987 has tracked the number and type of the world's nuclear arsenals.

Having reached a peak of over 65,000 in the late 1980s, the number of

Hindu prayer opens Idaho senate session

New York: For the first time the opening prayer for the Idaho state senate was said by a Hindu cleric amid protests by some senators who claimed the United States was a Christian nation and denounced Hinduism, local media reported. Universal Society of Hinduism president Rajan Zed, who said the prayer in Sanskrit and English, made a call for the legislators to “act selflessly without any thought of personal profit” because “selfish action imprisons the world.” He was invited

by Senate President ProTem Brent Hill to be a guest chaplain and deliver the invocation which is usually made by a Christian chaplain at the start of the day’s legislative session in Boise. According to The Idaho Statesman, when protests were made before the session. Hill said: “I reviewed the prayer. It did not seem offensive in any way.” He added: “It refers to ‘deity supreme’.” Senator Steve Vick, who walked out of the Senate chamber before Zed’s invocation said that Hindu prayers should not be allowed because the US was “built on the JudeoChristian, not only religion, but work ethic, and I don’t want to see that undermined”, the Statesman reported.

Hindus “have a caste system,” he added. “They worship cows.” He was one of the three Republican senators to boycott the prayer. Senator Sheryl Nuxoll said she believed the United States is a Christian nation and “Hindu is a false faith with false gods,” according to the newspaper.

nuclear warheads has dropped significantly to a little over 10,000, but more countries now possess them, it shows.

According to the infographic, the United States and Russia both have about 5,000 weapons each.

France has 300, China 250, the United Kingdom 225 and Israel 80. North Korea has only conducted nuclear tests in 2006, 2009 and 2013.

"I don't think people

truly understand just how many of these weapons there are in the world," said Rachel Bronson, executive director of the Bulletin. "The Interactive is a way to see, immediately, who has nuclear weapons and when they got them, and how those numbers relate to each other. It is a startling experience, looking at those comparisons."

The authors of the Nuclear Notebook are Hans M. Kristensen and

Robert S. Norris, both with the Federation of American Scientists. In the most recent edition of the Nuclear Notebook, the authors discuss the Notebook's 28 year history and describe how sometimes host countries learned of foreign nuclear weapons on their soil from the Nuclear Notebook.

Over 28 years of weapons analysis, the Nuclear Notebook column has revealed surprise nuclear activity and spoton arsenal estimates while becoming a daily resource for scholars, activists and journalists.

"We wanted a way to communicate those numbers visually, because the world we live may be datadriven, it's also visual," said John Mecklin, editor of the Bulletin. "The new infographic makes this vital information even more accessible."

Colombo: A Sri Lankan court has banned the feared brother of former president Mahinda Rajapaksa from foreign travel, police said on Tuesday, over allegations he used a commercial floating armoury as weaponry for a "private army". The move against former defence secretary Gotabaya Rajapaksa is the toughest sanction yet on a member of the family that ruled the Indian Ocean island until a surprise election defeat in January.

It is part of a wide probe of alleged corrupt deals and repression by the

former president and his relatives. Police this year seized more than 3,000 weapons in 20 containers from the armoury, run by private security firm Avant Garde Maritime Services (Pvt) Ltd and docked in the southern port of Galle.

"The Galle magistrate imposed a travel ban on three people: former secretary of defence Gotabaya Rajapaksa; former navy commander and adviser of Avant Garde, Satilaka Dissanayake; and another director of Avant Garde," acting police spokesman Ruwan Gunasekara said.

The armoury was a commercial venture that stored weapons for maritime security guards stationed on ships that pass near Sri Lanka, located on one of the world's busiest sea routes. The loosely regulated practice of arming merchant ships has flourished in recent years in response to the threat of piracy.

Gotabaya Rajapaksa, who oversaw the military defeat of Tamil Tiger separatists, is also being investigated by police over abductions, assaults and murders during his brother's time in office.

Lanka court bars Rajapaksa's brother from foreign travel

India takes up fishermen issue after Lanka threat

Colombo: A day after Sri Lankan Prime Minister Ranil Wickremesinghe said that Indian fishermen may be shot if they “intruded” into his country’s waters, India's external affairs minister Sushma Swaraj raised the matter with the Sri Lankan government and emphasised that it was a “humanitarian” and “livelihood” issue for the fishermen. Swaraj raised the matter with Lankan leaders, including Wickremesinghe, whom she met.. “She was frank and asked the Sri Lankan leadership to take a considerate view for the Indian fishermen. She also proposed a meeting between the fishermens’ associations after Indian PM Narendra Modi’s visit,” said a top government source. The Sri Lankan government has maintained the position that the Indian fishermen

Sushma Swaraj and Ranil Wickremesinghe

have been violating the international maritime boundary and coming to the Lankan waters, and this was not the first time that the Lankan government has raised this issue with the Indian side. New Delhi, however, has always insisted that it is a “livelihood” issue for these fishermen.

In an interview to a Tamil news channel, Wickramesinghe said the Sri Lankan navy is only acting as per law when it fires at Indian fishermen

entering Lankan waters.

“If someone tries to break into my house, I can shoot. If he gets killed, law allows me to do that,” he told Thanthi TV. “This is our waters.

Fishermen of Jaffna should be allowed to fish.

We stopped them from fishing. That’s why the Indian fishermen came in.

They (Jaffna fishermen) are willing to have a deal.

Let’s have a reasonable settlement but not at the cost of the livelihood of northern fishermen.”

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 14th March 2015

In Brief

New York Hindu leaders upset over not including Diwali as holiday

New York: Hindu community leaders in the US have expressed disappointment over a decision by the city administration here of excluding Diwali from its list of school holidays. They have accused the mayor of falling short of his responsibility to equally represent all New Yorkers. New York City mayor Bill de Blasio announced that the city is adding the Muslim holidays of Eid ul-Fitr and Eid al-Adha as holidays in its public school calendar as "respect for one of the great faiths of this earth" and as an "acknowledgement that in a strong society all faiths needed to be respected". The mayor, however, excluded Diwali from the public school holiday calendar, despite growing calls by the Hindu community to observe the festival given that hundreds of thousands of Indians living in the area celebrate it.

Leaders at the advocacy organisation Hindu American Foundation (HAF) expressed deep disappointment with de Blasio's decision to exclude Diwali from the 2015-16 public school calendars. "While the addition of two Muslim holidays is commendable, the Mayor's decision to exclude Diwali, a festival that is celebrated by thousands of Hindu, Jain, and Sikhs in NYC is beyond disappointing," HAF's NYC-based Senior Director Sheetal Shah said

Young Sikh boy racially abused in US

New York: In a shocking case of racism, a young Sikh boy in the US state of Georgia has been called a "terrorist" by a group of school children, with the video of the abuse now going viral on the internet. In the video posted on Inquisitr, the bespectacled Sikh boy is seen sitting in what appears to be a school bus and is surrounded by students. He whispers to the camera: "The kids are being racist to me." A young girl sitting behind him then shouts "terrorist! terrorist!" and points her finger at the boy, who remains calm and even shouts "who cares" when the kids hurl abuses at him

Man slashes face of US envoy in South Korea

Seoul: US ambassador to South Korea Mark Lippert underwent two and a half hours of surgery after he was slashed in the face by a Korean nationalist in an attack at a breakfast forum in Seoul to discuss Korean reunification. Lippert, 42, was bleeding from deep wounds to his face and wrist but was able to walk after the attack. Doctors said later his condition was stable after “very successful“ surgery that required 80 stitches in his face. The assailant was caught and identified by police as 55year-old Kim Ki-jong. In 2010, Kim tried to attack the Japanese ambassador to South Korea by throwing a piece of concrete and was given a suspended jail term, according to police. The attack was a protest against joint military exercises by South Korean and US troops, which Kim said interfered with reconciliation between North and South Korea, according to police following an interrogation.

Pak ropes in new prosecutor in Lakhvi case

Islamabad: The Pakistan government has decided to add another prosecutor to deal with Lashkar commander Zaki-ur Rehman Lakhvi's case of masterminding the November 2008 Mumbai attacks keeping in mind the fact that the man behind the carnage has stepped up efforts for his acquittal.

According to a report, Misbahul Hassan Qazi, a prominent Lahore-based lawyer, if appointed, would be the third special prosecutor brought in to jump start the long-dragging Mumbai attacks case. “The interior secretary had given approval for the appointment of advocate Qazi as special prosecutor and has forwarded a summary to the law ministry to issue a notification,” a government official said.

China to hike defence budget by 10% this year

Beijing: China will raise its defence budget by around 10 per cent this year, a top official said, emphasizing that "lagging behind" leaves the country "vulnerable to attacks". China's defence budget rose by 12.2 per cent last year, riding on a multi-year run of double-digit increases. Fu Ying, the spokeswoman for the annual session of the country's top legislature, announced the hike in the defence budget a day ahead of the Third Session of the 12th National People's Congress (NPC).

However, it would also be the fifth year in a row of double-digit increases, despite slowing economic growth that fell to 7.4 per cent last year and is expected to further decline in 2015. Fu said as a big country, China needs an army that can safeguard its national security and people. "To tell the truth, there is still a gap between China's armed forces (and foreign counterparts) in terms of overall military equipment.

We still need more time," Fu was quoted as saying by the state-run Xinhua news agency.

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 14th March 2015

In Brief

Bangla PM narrowly escapes blast

Dhaka: Bangladesh Prime Minister Shiekh Hasina had a narrow escape when several bombs exploded in a busy commercial area in Dhaka minutes after her convoy passed through it. Several crude bombs exploded in Dhaka's Karwan Bazar only 10 minutes after Hasina's convoy passed towards a rally organized by the ruling Awami League in the capital's Suhrawardy Udyan, to mark the anniversary of the historic public address by the father of the nation Sheikh Mujibur Rahman in 1971.

One police official received minor injuries. The blasts occurred amid an ongoing transport blockade and a shutdown across Bangladesh.

Death sentence for Salman Taseer's killer Mumtaz Qadri upheld

Islamabad: A Pakistani court upheld the death sentence for the killer of the governor of Pakistan`s largest province after he had called for reform of a law against blasphemy, media said. The ruling was a surprise to many who had expected the killer`s sentence might be reduced amid growing threats to lawyers and judges hearing blasphemy-related cases. Mumtaz Qadri was a bodyguard for Punjab Governor Salman Taseer and was convicted of shooting him dead in Islamabad in January 2011. Taseer was an outspoken critic of predominantly Muslim Pakistan`s harsh blasphemy law - which carries the death penalty. Qadri is viewed as a hero by many people who thought Taseer himself was a blasphemer by calling for the law`s reform. The killing highlighted a growing gulf between conservatives and more liberal elements in society. Some lawyers threw rose petals at Qadri when he arrived in court days after the killing.

Pak students give protection for Hindus to celebrate Holi

Karachi: Pakistani students formed a human shield for Hindus celebrating Holi at a temple in Karachi to protect and show solidarity with the minority community. The National Students Federation (NSF) formed the shield at Swami Narayan Temple as part of an attempt to promote interfaith coexistence and cooperation among different religious and ethnic groups. A member of the NSF describes the union as a “progressive leftist organisation” dating back to the Ayub Khan era. “When we showed solidarity with Shias at the Imambargah it’s only fair that as a group, we extend the same courtesy to all Hindus in Pakistan who face a lot of persecution of different kinds,” general secretary Fawwad Hasan was quoted as saying. Hasan cited the desecration of Hindu temples, forcible religious conversion of girls and suppression of culture and religious practices as reasons for showing solidarity with and protecting Hindus.

Pakistani man convicted in US for alQaida plot

New York: A Pakistani man was convicted in US on charges of participating in an al Qaida plot to attack targets in Europe and the United States. Abid Naseer, 28, was found guilty by a federal jury in Brooklyn of providing and conspiring to provide material support to al Qaida and conspiring to use a destructive device.

Naseer remained expressionless as the jury returned the verdict after less than two days of deliberation. He faces life in prison. His lawyer said after the conviction that he would appeal. US prosecutors said Naseer headed an al Qaida cell plotting to bomb a shopping center in Manchester, England, in April 2009.

Saudi Arabia replaces India as world's biggest arms importer

London: Saudi Arabia has reportedly replaced India as the world's biggest arms importer last year as concerns about Iran's nuclear ambitions raised tensions in the Middle East. According to the data released by IHS, a leading analyst of the global arms trade, Saudi Arabia's spending rose from 54 per cent to 6.5 billion dollars last year, while India spent 5.8 billion dollars on imports. IHS estimated that the imports will grow by 52 per cent to 9.8 billion dollars this year, accounting for one dollar of every seven dollars spent globally. Ben Moores, the report's author, remarked that the outcome was definitely "unprecedented."

Sri Lanka threatens Chinese firm with legal action

Colombo: Sri Lanka will take legal action against a Chinese firm for not halting work on a $1.5-billion luxury real estate project until a probe is completed, a government minister said. Sri Lanka's new government is reviewing the award of the project to China Communications Construction Co Ltd over allegations the previous administration breached laws and sidestepped environmental rules for the deal. The project, which risks getting involved in a diplomatic row, involves development of a port city on reclaimed land in the capital Colombo, complete with shopping malls, a water sports area, golf course, hotels, apartments and marinas.

WORLD - INDIA

23

Australia assures through probe into Indian techie's murder

New Delhi/Sydney: New South Wales Premier Mike Baird assured India that the fatal attack on an Indian woman IT professional in a Sydney suburb is being probed by police with utmost seriousness even as a special detective squad was formed to pursue the investigations.

Describing the attack on 41-year-old Prabha Arun Kumar as a "sad event", the ministry of external affairs ministry spokesperson Syed Akbaruddin said the assurance was given by

Prabha Arun Kumar Baird during a telephonic conversation with Sanjay

Washington: US President Barack Obama has chosen Sikh American CEO Ajay Banga for a major administration position on his Advisory Committee for Trade and Policy Negotiations. Ajay Banga is currently the chairman for the US India Business Council and came to India as part of Obama’s CEOs delegation.

The White House confirmed that Ajay Banga will be part of the Advisory Committee.

President Obama was quoted saying “The talent and expertise these individuals bring to their roles will serve our nation well.

I am grateful for their service, and look forward to working with them.”

Ajay Banga has an MBA from the IIM Ahmedabad and since 2009 is the CEO of MasterCard. Before joining MasterCard Ajay Banga held the following Positions: Senior Management Citigroup (1996-2009); Director For Marketing and Business Development at Pepsi Rest; He served as Director for Marketing and Business Development at PepsiCo Restaurants International India from 1994 to 1996.

Banga began his career at Nestle India, where he served in various sales and management roles from 1981 to 1994. He is a member of the Board of Directors of MasterCard and The Dow Chemical Company. He received an BA degree from St Stephen’s College of Delhi University .

Prior to joining MasterCard in 2009, Banga was chief executive officer of Citigroup Asia Pacific responsible for all businesses in the region, including institutional banking, alternative investments, wealth management, consumer banking and credit cards. He joined Citigroup in 1996 and held a variety of senior management roles in the United States, Asia

Ajay Banga Pacific, and the Europe, Middle East and Africa regions. He was also responsible for Citi’s brand marketing and from 2005-2009 oversaw its efforts in microfinance.

Banga began his career at Nestlé, India, where for 13 years he worked on assignments spanning sales, marketing and general management. He also spent two years at PepsiCo, where he was instrumental in launching its fast food franchises in India as the economy liberalized.

Banga is a member of the Board of Overseers of the Weill Cornell Medical College and on the Board of the American Red Cross. He is currently chairman of the US-India Business Council and was also appointed a member of the US-India CEO Forum. He serves as a member of the Executive Committee of the Business Roundtable.

Banga is also a member of the International Business Council of the World Economic Forum. He is also vice chair of the Business Council.

In addition, he is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations, the International Advisory Board of the Moscow School of Management (SKOLKOVO), the board of the Financial Services Roundtable, the Economic Club of New York, the New York City Ballet and the Partnership for New York City. He also is a fellow of the Foreign Policy Association and was awarded the Foreign Policy Association Medal in 2012.

Obama chooses Ajay Banga for key position

Sudhir, consul general of India in Sydney.

India's external affairs minister Sushma Swaraj said she was pained to know about the murder and that she was in constant touch with India's consulate in Sydney which is providing all help.

Australian police release CCTV footage Australian police released the CCTV footage of Prabha walking from a train station just before she was fatally stabbed and appealed to people for information to crack the baffling case.

The New South Wales police launched a probe following the stabbing of Prabha, who was on the phone with her husband in India, when the "horrific" attack happened on Saturday in Westmead, a suburb of Sydney.

Police said the emergency services responded to reports of a seriously injured woman on a public walkway between

Argyle Street, Parramatta, and Amos Street, Westmead, on Saturday.

Ambulance Paramedics treated the woman at the scene before transporting her to Westmead Hospital, where she died on Sunday.

Confirming her identity, the police statement said, it was believed that Prabha got off a train at Parramatta Railway Station about 9 pm, before walking along Argyle Street and turning left onto the walkway.

Police believe she was attacked while on the walkway.

Prabha was employed with Bengaluru-based tech firm MindTree. She was on phone with her husband who lives Bengaluru with their 10year-old daughter, when she was stabbed.

Chillingly, the husband heard her tell him "I think I've been stabbed", before she collapsed in a pool of blood. The line then went dead.

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24

INDIA

Mahayagam for return of Jaya as TN CM

Chennai: A special puja - ‘Sri Satha Chandi mahayagam’ was conducted for the welfare of AIADMK supremo and former chief minister J Jayalalithaa in Madurai.

Madurai Mayor V V Rajan Chellappa led a large contingent of men and women at Tamukkam Grounds last week. The special puja began with the slogan, “All for our Amma’s wellness and her return as chief minister,” coinciding with her birth star, Maham. Elaborating on the puja, Chellappa said that 108 homa kundams had been placed and pujas started with 150 Sivacharyas drawn from

Jayalalithaa major temples of the state, led by the head priest of Meenakshi Sundareswarar Temple here. “By performing the Chandi yagam at a single location on a large scale with 108 homa kundams, it is a belief that all wishes will be fulfilled,” a Sivacharya said.

The huge homa kun-

dams, specially made for the puja, were drawn from different places of worship. Apart from praying for good health and long life of Jayalalithaa, the AIADMK cadres have been performing pujas across the State. Those who witnessed the puja included chief minister O Paneerselvam’s son, electricity minister Natham R Viswanathan, cooperation minister Sellur K Raju, MLAs, MPs and councillors.

Earlier in the day, 10,000 women offered pongal at the Mariamman Temple. The DMK and CPI (M) functionaries questioned the per-

formance of homams and other prayers by those claiming to represent the Dravidian movement.

Former DMK MLA V Velusamy said the state government had forgotten to perform its duties to people.

All the ministers and MLAs were either in temples offering pujas or distributing ‘biriyani’ for the welfare of their leader. “People should realise that they made a mistake in 2011 and they should correct themselves in the 2016 Assembly elections,” said Vijayarajan, district secretary of Communist Party of India (Marxist).

become the surrogate mother, since it would save the couple about Rs 400,000.

They discussed it within the family and the woman’s mother came forward. This was also the second such incident in India when a woman gave birth to her grandchild.

The woman, who had attained menopause, was put on hormonal treatment for 2 months to restore her menstrual cycle. In the fourth month, the embryo was implanted in her uterus.

Nine months later, she gave birth to a girl and even breast-fed her granddaughter for about four months.

Chennai: P Vinodhini of Thethagudi near Vedaranyam, a postgraduate, is climbing 40 coconut trees every day with an equipment designed by Coconut Development Board, Kochi. She earns Rs. 1,600 a day by charging Rs 40 a tree thanks to M S Swaminathan Research Foundation and the board.

“I used to climb only 15 trees a day and earned Rs 600 a day. But now I could climb 40 trees a day with the help of the tree climbing equipment. It is easy to climb the tree with this unit.

Moreover, the board has extended the insurance cover to the tune of Rs 200,000. I need not pay any premium,” said Vinodhini.

The MSSR Foundation had trained 120 persons including 18 women from

T h e t h a g u d i , Kariyapattinam and Thanikottakam under a programme to retaining youth in agriculture, launched by the Ministry of Agriculture.

V Selvam, Director, Integrated Coastal Zone Management Project, MSSRF, said the aim was to focus on coconut plantation as well as harvesting.

None is willing to climb coconut tree. However, the equipment has come as a boon to youths in rural areas as they could earn Rs 30,000 a month. Response from the women was notable since 18 women have undergone training for six days, organised by the MSSRF. The participants were taught on raising coconut plants, harvesting as well as marketing strategy.

Chandigarh: The state unit of BJP asked its elected representatives of different municipal councils and corporations in Punjab to work hard to meet the expectations of the people. In a meeting to assess the results of recently concluded civic polls, Punjab BJP president Kamal Sharma also congratulated workers for the party's "historical" win in these elections.

"The stupendous win of the party is a stamp over the good governance provided by the Union Government led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi that has increased faith of the people towards BJP," he said in a statement.

The newly-elected mem-

bers of different councils and corporations should work overnight for the people of the state so that the party get the chance to fulfil the aspirations of voters, he said. Barring few seats, BJP had contested civic polls in alliance with SAD. He said the party was holding deliberations to find out reasons behind its defeat in municipal council and corporation wards where the party had lost.

The meeting was attended by Cabinet Ministers Chunni Lal, Anil Joshi, former minister Tikshan Sud, state general secretary Rakesh Rathore, CPS Som Parkash, and state office bearers Mohan Lal, were also present in the meeting.

61-year-old woman gives birth to her own grandchild

Chennai: A 61-year-old woman gave birth to her own grandchild in Chennai only to aid her youngest daughter who was unable to conceive due to a medical complication.

The lady had in November last year gave birth to a girl, weighing 2.7 kg, through caesarean procedure. Two years ago, the woman’s 27year-old daughter, Seethalakshmi, had conceived after her marriage. In the seventh month of pregnancy, she developed some complications leading to doctors removing her uterus to save her life.

Doctors at Akash Fertility Centre and Hospital in Chennai, where the young lady was treated, said that the couple first tried to find a surrogate but their attempt failed. Doctors then suggested that a family member can

HC upholds conviction of Chautala, his son

New Delhi: Delhi High Court has upheld the 10-year jail term awarded to former Haryana Chief Minister Om Prakash Chautala, his son Ajay Chautala and three others for corruption in a teachers' recruitment scam case.

Justice Siddharth Mridul also upheld the 10-year sentence of Sher Singh Badshami and two IAS officers Vidya Dhar and Sanjiv Kumar, saying they "vilified" the process of recruiting teachers and "marred" the exercise by "corruption".

The judge also said that the convicts "challenged the ethical standards of other public servants" and "pressurised" others to do their bidding. The high court also modified to two years the sentence of the remaining 50 convicts. It disposed of all the bail applications pending before it and directed them to surrender.

It also said that those who have already served their two year sentence, will be released. The 78-year-old Chautala had on February 7 moved the high court challenging his conviction and sentence, seeking suspension of his jail term on the ground that "he was unwell and suffering from various

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 14th March 2015

Om Prakash Chautala ailments".

The INLD chief, his MLA son Ajay Chautala and 53 others, including two IAS officers, were convicted on January 16 by the trial court for illegally recruiting 3,206 junior basic trained (JBT) teachers in Haryana in 2000.

The court had awarded 10 years imprisonment to Chautalas and three others Sanjiv Kumar, the then director of primary education, Chautala's former Officer on Special Duty Vidya Dhar, both IAS officers, and political adviser to the then Haryana CM Sher Singh Badshami. All the 55 accused had been convicted and sentenced under sections 120B (criminal conspiracy), 418 (cheating), 467 (forgery), 471 (using forged documents as genuine) of the IPC and provisions of the Prevention of Corruption Act.

She climbs coconut trees for her livelihood

BJP tells its councillors to work hard to meet expectations

South Brief

Hyderabad best city to live in India: Study

Hyderabad: Hyderabad has emerged as the best city in India when it comes to offering the best quality of living standards in Mercer's Quality of Living Report 2015. Ranked 138th globally by the Mercer report, Hyderabad beat Pune (145th) to the top spot in India and left India's IT hub Bengaluru (146th), Chennai (151st), commercial capital Mumbai (152nd) and India's political capital New Delhi (154th) behind in the quality of living sweepstakes. "Indian cities have not made much progress on the quality of living scale, scoring nearly the same as they did last year. However, over time, Hyderabad has emerged as a city of choice due to factors such as improved options for international schools.

10 TDP MLAs suspended from Telangana Assembly

Hyderabad: Ten agitating Telugu Desam Party MLAs, including the floor leader Errabelli Dayakar Rao, were suspended from the rest of the session by Telangana Speaker S. Madhusudhana Chary after they refused to tender an apology for protest during the Governor’s address to the joint session of TS Legislature on Saturday last.

As soon as the House commenced its sitting on Monday, the TDP legislators were on their feet demanding Government protection for the rights of the SCs and STs. They rushed into the Well of the House seeking justice for them.

Karnataka HC declines to defer SSP's arguments in Jaya case

Bengaluru: The Karnataka High Court has declined to postpone arguments of Special Public Prosecutor (SPP) in the appeals filed by AIADMK General Secretary Jayalalithaa and others against their conviction in the disproportionate assets case. DMK leader K Anbazhagan had filed a memo before Justice C R Kumaraswamy, who is hearing the appeals, seeking postponement of arguments of SPP G. Bhavani Singh till the Supreme Court heard Anbazhagan’s special leave petitions.

North Brief

Akali Dal embarrasses BJP

New Delhi/Chandigarh: Delivering a blow to the BJP, the Shiromani Akali Dal has passed a resolution opposing the proposed land acquisition bill, saying the bill “lacks fool proof safeguards for compensating the farmers with adequate actual market value of land.”

The SAD's move is bound to compound the Narendra Modi government's problems in Parliament, coming as it does after a similar resistance by another BJP ally, the Shiv Sena.

At a meeting held in Delhi, the SAD's core committee passed the resolution against the bill even as Modi went on to clear the air in the f Rajya Sabha over corporate role in the land acquisition process. The resolution said it should be made mandatory to get consent of majority of farmers and land owners for acquisition.

Teen gang-raped in Haryana commits suicide

New Delhi: A teenager in Haryana who was allegedly gang-raped last month is believed to have committed suicide. The young girl, who was from Gohana in Sonepat district, was deeply upset after the police converted the gang-rape case into rape and arrested only one of the accused, her family alleges. Her relatives say the police forged her statement, and most of the accused were roaming free. The girl was allegedly raped on February 6.

HC orders marriage registration for those above 21

Chandigarh: Coming down heavily on certificates not being issued, the Punjab and Haryana High Court has ordered marriage registration officers to register marriages of couples who are over 21 years of age.

The high court ordered that directions be issued to all Registrars of Marriages in Punjab

not to raise any objections while registering the marriage of two adults who have completed 21 years at the time of getting their marriage registered, even if they were minor at the time of marriage.

The high court has directed them to register such a marriage immediately without any delay, a

Punjab government spokesperson said.

The high court order came on a writ petition filed by an individual who was refused a marriage registration certificate on the ground that he was not 21 years old when he got married.

The court said that if the person seeking registration had attained the

age of 21 years when seeking the certificate, the same should be given to him.

The court observed that disobedience of the orders and refusal to register the marriage on these grounds would invite action of contempt against such officer and will be viewed strictly, the spokesperson said.

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 14th March 2015

Kejri gets two of his critics ousted from AAP panel

The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) leader Arvind Kejriwal stamped his dominance over the party when two of his critics, Prashant Bhushan and Yogendra Yadav, were removed from the Political Affairs Committee, while his own offer of resignation as national convenor of AAP was unanimously turned down.

While one chapter of the bitter feud in AAP might have ended now, it may not be the end of the story. The decision to remove Bhushan and Yadav wasn't unanimous in fact, as many as eight voted against it while 11 voted for - indicating that there are a number of people in the PAC who share some of the concerns raised by the BhushanYadav duo.

Kejriwal himself stayed away from the meeting, possibly because of his poor health (he went to Bengaluru for naturopathy treatment of his very high sugar levels), but more likely to make the point that he was above the squabbling lot - in other words, truly the first among the so-called equals.

Kejriwal also avoided engaging with the Bhushan-Yadav duo on any of the issues raised by them. Even the duo, or one of them, is learnt to have sought a one-on-one meeting with Kejriwal but there was no response to the overture. At the end, he apparently insisted on their removal from the PAC as a precondition for his staying as the national convener. A fresh letter of resignation as national convener only reiterated his firm stand. There were serious efforts to bring about a reconciliation between Yadav, Bhushan and Kejriwal

before PAC meeting. Many options were considered, including one where the duo would offer some kind of apology. Most senior leaders found this reasonable as they also didn't want the party's unity to be affected in any way.

However, when the leaders reached Kejriwal, he insisted on the duo's removal from PAC, indicating a rather quick graduation of AAP to hard-nosed power politics. Sources said that while many recognized that the issues raised by the duo were important and needed to be addressed, their presence in the PAC was untenable after the recent war of words.

At the meeting, Bhushan and Yadav suggested that the PAC be reconstituted, allowing new members to come in.

This was, however, opposed by the Kejriwal loyalists, who insisted on a resolution seeking the removal of the duo. The resolution was moved by deputy CM Manish Sisodia and put to vote and the duo lost 8-11. Interestingly, some senior AAP leaders like Anand Kumar, Ajit Jha and Rakesh Sinha voted against their removal while Mumbai's Mayank Gandhi and treasurer Krishnakant Sevada abstained.

Sources said that con-

sidering that the resolution was backed by Kejriwal it was a democratic process of open voting that was followed without fear of recrimination.

Kejriwal loyalists criticised Bhushan and Yadav at the meeting for not showing confidence in the Delhi election team. They pointed out that this lack of confidence was despite the team crafting a stunning win for AAP in the election. The duo's continuing criticism of the team only showed that they were out of synch with the popular mood.

AAP has accused Yadav and Bhushan of conspiring to unseat Kejriwal and working against the party's interests. Both leaders have, in the past few days, alleged that the threeyear-old party has strayed from the core ideals of internal democracy and transparency that set it apart. The leadership battle was played out through several internal notes flying between two camps.

"I am deeply hurt and pained by what is going on in the party... I refuse to be drawn in this ugly battle," Kejriwal had tweeted, breaking his silence on the deep cracks in his party.

Mayank Gandhi criticises sacking of Yadav, Bhushan Meanwhile, AAP

An Indian student's internship request was rejected by a professor in Germany citing "rape problem" in India, prompting a sharp reaction from the German envoy to India who condemned it saying India was not a "country of rapists".

Professor BeckSickinger of Leipzig University in Free State of Saxony had rejected the internship application, saying she does not accept any Indian male student for internship. "Unfortunately I don't accept any Indian male students for internships. We hear a lot about the rape problem in India which I cannot support. I have many female students in my group, so I think this attitude is something I cannot support," Sickinger said in a reported email.

German professor rejects Indian intern due to

'rape problem' Taking note of the incident, German Ambassador to India Michael Steiner wrote a strong-worded letter to the professor following which she apologised for her "unwarranted remarks" in the rejection letter to the student whose identity is not known. "I have made a mistake. I sincerely apologise to everyone whose feelings I have hurt," Sickinger was quoted as saying by the German embassy in New Delhi. In his letter, Steiner said, "Let's be clear: India is not a country of rapists."

"In India, the Nirbhaya case has triggered a lively honest, sustained and very healthy public debate - a public debate of a quality that wouldn't be possible in many other countries.

"The Indian Government and Indian

civil society organisations are very committed to tackling the issue.

Yesterday we celebrated International Women's Day at the German Embassy in Delhi with many local activists including many men," he said in the letter.

He said the Nirbhaya rape case has refocused attention on the issue of violence against women.

"Rape is indeed a serious issue in India as in most countries, including Germany."

"Your oversimplifying and discriminating generalization is an offence to these women and men ardently committed to furthering women empowerment in India; and it is an offence to millions of lawabiding, tolerant, openminded and hard-working Indians,"

Kejariwal, Prashant Bhushant and Yogendra Yadav

German prof apologises for rejecting Indian intern over 'rape problem'

leader Mayank Gandhi writes in a blog post that he was taken aback by the ouster of Yadav and Bhushan from the PAC. He adds that majority of AAP volunteers from all over the world did not want Yadav and Bhushan to be removed from the PAC. Gandhi also claimed that on the night of 26 February, Kejriwal, during a party National Executive meet, "conveyed that he will not be able to work as Convenor, if these two members (Yadav and Bhushan) were part of the PAC. That was the background of the NE on 4th March."

Gandhi also apologised for "breaking the diktat of not speaking to anyone outside on what transpired in the National Executive meeting."

"Last night I was told that disciplinary action would be taken against me, if I revealed anything. So be it – my first allegiance is to the higher truth. Here is an essence of the meeting with regards to removal of YY and PB, based on my understanding. I would request NE to release the minutes of the meeting," Gandhi said in his blog post.

Gandhi also said that he abstained from voting during the meeting because he wanted Kejriwal to have no hurdles while working with the PAC. "Arvind needs a smooth working in the PAC. So, I agreed that PB and YY may be out of PAC and take some alternate important roles," he said.

INDIA - UK

Emwazi kidnapped and stripped boys at gunpoint

New reports suggest that Mohammed Emwazi, the Isis terrorist famously known as “Jihadi John” had kidnapped and ordered two schoolboys to strip to their underwear at gunpoint before abandoning them on the motorway.

The attacked was organised to seek revenge on the boys for attacking his brother and friend at the Emwazi family home in northwest London.

A friend of Mohammed Emwazi's younger brother, Omar revealed that they were attacked by two men over a “postcode”dispute between two gangs. “There was a big fight. They threw a brick at my head and broke my arm. Omar was punched in the face a few times and beaten up”. The next day, Mohammed Emwazi and “two religious guys with beards” went around searching for the attackers.

The friend further stated that Emwazi found the attackers and “threatened them with a gun, made them take all their clothes off and drove off”. He further added, “they dumped them on the M1 motorway.

They weren’t attacked physically but they were threatened. It was a message. I saw the guys the next day at school and they apologised to me.

Mohammed was a bit of a hard nut. He wasn’t into gangs but people were wary of him. They were pretty scared.”

It is said that the incident happened two years

25

after Emwazi joined a socalled jihad terror network of older men called the London Boys, swiftly after starting his computer degree at the University of Westminster.

It is believed that a year later, Mohammed Emwazi fled the UK by hiding in the back of a freight lorry on a cross-Channel ferry.

This has raised speculations since there are hardly any checks carried out on departure; rather, the focus is more on preventing people from entering Britain.

A source from Whitehall states, “We don’t really have any checks on lorries leaving. In terms of searches they would only be because there was intelligence that people were being moved”.

There are thermal imaging devices and vibration monitors to detect illegal migrants in Belgium and France, but none are used at British sea ports.

There were twenty eight illegal migrants, which include Bangladeshis, Afghans and Pakistanis were found hidden in a Polish lorry on a P&O ferry going to France in July 2014.

Modi's Lanka visit to focus on investment, people to people contact

India's foreign secretary S Jaishankar said Prime Minister Narendra Modi's bilateral visit to Sri Lanka would focus on scaling up investment projects, expanding people to people contact and making travel between the two countries easy.

"The Prime Minister's visit to Sri Lanka will be a bilateral visit after 28 years. We have a broad substantive relation, we want to expand our people to people contact. This is the fourth visit between Sri Lanka and India in a short span, which says a lot," said Jaishankar.

Jaishankar said trade between India and Sri Lanka is at USD 5.2 billion. "Expanding infrastructure, creating employment in Sri Lanka is way to go. We have had some significant investment projects with Sri Lanka, we are looking to scale that up," said Jaishankar. "We want to make travel easy between India and Sri Lanka, the regulations and the mechanisms," he

Narendra Modi

added.

The foreign secretary also announced that Prime Minister Modi would hand over homes built by India in Jaffna for the displaced people.

"The Prime Minister will hand over homes built by us in Jaffna for displaced people. So far, we have built 27,000

houses and the ones that are going to be handed over by the Prime Minister are those houses," he added.

Prime Minister Modi is expected to arrive in Sri Lanka on a two-day visit on March 13. During his visit, he will address the Sri Lankan Parliament besides visiting the Maha Bodhi Society and Jaffna.

Prime Minister Modi had earlier expressed confidence that his visit to Sri Lanka would make the relations between New Delhi and Colombo even stronger in the years to come.

CHANGE OF NAME

I, Kalpana Bharat, holder of Indian Passport no: F9297517, issued on 03/04/2007 in London, hereby Give notice of my intention to change my name to Kalpna Bharat.

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INDIA

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 14th March 2015

'India’s Daughter' documentary receives PM Modi leaves for 3-nation tour star-studded premiere in US Fight sexual violence globally with Priya's Shakti

“India’s Daughter”, a rape documentary banned from airing in India received its US premiere at a star-studded event that included actresses Meryl Streep and Freida Pinto.

The screening of “India’s Daughter” at Baruch College began on Monday with a vigil as Oscar-winner Streep lit about a dozen candles honouring the Indian medical student who died after being gang-raped on a bus in 2012. Organizers said about 650 people attended the event.

“Tonight we light these candles to honour the value and the work of Jyoti Singh’s short, promising life,” Streep said. “She was India’s daughter. Tonight she’s our daughter too.”

The woman was attacked when she and a male companion boarded a private bus in Delhi. The documentary details a brutal account of how six men beat her friend and then gang-raped her in the bus before tossing her onto the street.

She was found naked on the side of the road and later died of her injuries.

Four men were convicted and sentenced to death for the rape and murder.

The victim’s parents have publicly named their daughter and have said they want the world to know about her plight.

“Ultimately, this is a film that needs to go out,” said Pinto, the Indian actress known for her role in “Slumdog Millionaire,” who does not appear in the film. “This is not a shameIndia documentary.” The film’s US premiere follows a week of controversy in India. The uproar centred around comments made by one of the convicted rapists interviewed for the film.

He blamed the victim for taking a bus late in the evening.

“India’s Daughter” was screened first in Britain last week by the BBC. Indian viewers cannot see it on the BBC website, but it can be seen on YouTube. “This film in no way is propagating violence in order to solve the problem. In fact, what we’re saying is let’s do this in the most civilized possible way ever,” Pinto said before the film’s screening.

Continued from page 1 to the taunts from opponents about BJP being a coalition partner of PDP, and the charge that the actions of its coalition partner has forced him into silence.

The tough stance was also articulated by Rajnath Singh who said the Centre had sought clarifications from the J&K government over Alam's release and would not hesitate to issue an advisory if it came to that.

“I want to assure the House that we will not refrain from issuing strongest advisory to the state government if required,” Singh said.

Significantly, even as he quoted from the J&K government's statement defending Alam's release on the ground that he had been granted bail and that the high court had quashed his preventive detention under Public Safety Act, Singh emphasized that the secessionist faced 27 criminal cases including one of sedition. entre not consulted: Modi Modi said the Centre was not consulted by the J&K government on the decision to release Alam.

"Whatever action is being taken in J&K is being taken without consulting coalition partner or with central government," he said. The Prime Minister conceded the Centre had to take some blame since it was in coalition in Jammu & Kashmir. But he assured the House that no step which undermined unity of the country would be tolerated.

"We have asked for a clar-

ification on the Alam issue, when it comes we will inform the house," the Prime Minister said.

BJP lodges protest with Mufti BJP legislators in Jammu and Kashmir lodged a strong protest with Mufti over the release of Alam and demanded his re-arrest.

The party also took exception to the "misinformation campaign" that the decision to release Alam was taken after consulting it. The MLAs led by state BJP general secretary Rajiv Jasrotia met Sayeed at his residence and submitted a memorandum.

"We have lodged a strong protest with the Chief Minister and expressed our deep concern over the unilateral decision (of release of the Masarat Alam)," Jasrotia told reporters later. He said that Mufti assured them that their concerns would be addressed.

The BJP also asked Mufti to consider rearrest of Alam in view of the statements made by him soon after his release.

"BJP strongly opposes and rejects the decision to release Alam and believes that the conduct of Alam, after his release and the statements made by him and situation existing now, are fresh inputs to consider his fresh detention under PSA immediately in the interest of the security of the state," Jasrotia said.

"Alam remaining at large any more will be detrimental to the security of the state and worsen the security scenario," he

claimed.The BJP also sought immediate probe into all pending FIRs against Alam, the challans of which have not been presented, he said.

BJP youth wing holds protest Jammu and Kashmir unit of the BJP's youth wing held a protest in Jammu against the release of Alam. "The protest was led by the state general secretary of the BJP youth wing and I was also part of it," senior BJP leader Yudhvir Sethi said.

Terming Alam as antinational who would further fuel militancy in Jammu and Kashmir, the protesters demanded his immediate arrest.

"We will never tolerate the release of an antinational leader who is a threat to the national security," a protester said.

He said the youth wing of the party would increase its agitation in the days to come if Mufti does not order the re-arrest of Alam.

J&K govt decides not to release any more political prisoners The Jammu and Kashmir government announced that there would be no further release of militants or political prisoners. “There is no such thing,” State Home Secretary Suresh Kumar said in reply to a question whether the Mufti government will continue with the release of militants and political prisoners.

In an interview, Muft said, “This guy was under preventive detention since beginning of 2010.

How long can he be con-

tinued under PSA? You have to abide by the rule of the country,” he said.

“Now media is making an issue out of it. Whom to explain what,” he said.

Referring to the release of Pakistani nationals, he said “It is a routine process. Those Pakistan nationals completed jail term and were repatriated back to Pakistan. There is no connection with this issue to the release of the militants.”

“We have released 3 to 4 Pakistanis some time back for their repatriation after completion of their jail term. The deportation papers of some Bangladeshi national have arrived and they will be released in April,” he said.

He said that every year Pakistanis and Bangladeshis, who complete imprisonment are repatriated back to Pakistan via Wagah border and other places and that is a routine thing.

BJP said it had no objections if PDP wanted to release other such leaders, but called for a proper system to be adopted to review their cases, even as it threatened to pull out of the ruling alliance in Jammu and Kashmir if the regional party went ahead with its “hidden agenda.”

“It (state government) should adopt a system (on the release of separatist leaders)... Our understanding is that this (Alam’s release) had to happen and we do not deny it. But there is a system (for it),” Ashok Koul, BJP state general secretary, said.

Priya's Shakti is an innovative comic book perfectly designed for children and teenagers to learn about gender-based sexual violence and gender equality.

A cultural shift had to happen especially views towards the role of women in modern society. That is at the root of the innovative comic book and multimedia project – Priya's Shakti. The project centers on the Goddess Parvati and Priya, a mortal woman and survivor of rape, who becomes the catalyst for change. Central to the project is an augmented reality comic book, exhibitions, and street art – the first of its kind with international outreach and social engagement.

The comic books started a national debate in India on how society treats rape survivors and patriar-

chal views. The main character in the comic book, Priya, has become a global phenomena and one of the "top ten female comic book characters to watch out for in the future.” You can download the comic book for free.

The project is supported by the Tribeca Film Institute’s New Media Fund and the Ford Foundation & incubated at the ‘Made in NY’ Media Center by IFP. Named "Gender Equality Champion" by UN Women.

To view Priya’s Shakti Visit: www.priyashakti.com

TURMOIL IN JAMMU & KASHMIR

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday left for his fiveday visit to three key Indian Ocean countries which includes Seychelles, Mauritius and Sri Lanka.

India's national security adviser Ajit Doval and foreign secretary S Jaishankar are accompanying the Prime Minister.

Seychelles will be Prime Minister's first stop.

Seeking to ramp up India's influence along a strategic maritime route, Modi said it attaches "paramount importance" to strengthening relations with countries in the Indian Ocean region.

Modi, who will be the first Indian Prime Minister to travel to Seychelles in 33 years and to Sri Lanka in 28 years, is expected to tap into the "substantive" goodwill and historical linkages between India and the three Indian Ocean economies which offer new possibilities of cooperation in defence

and economic spheres.

As his visit to the three island countries comes against the backdrop of China's increasing focus on the Indian Ocean region, Modi is expected to renew its commitment to the ocean economies where India envisages its role as a net security provider.

“My visit to the three Indian Ocean Island countries reflects our foreign policy priorities in India's immediate and extended neighbourhood.

India attaches paramount importance to strengthening relations with this region, which is vital for India's security and progress," he said in a predeparture statement.

The Prime Minister also said that India had strong, multifaceted and important relationship with each of the three countries he is visiting, observing,"they all occupy a very important place in our foreign policy."

A solar powered aircraft Solar Impulse 2 landed in Ahmedabad on Tuesday night as part of a bid to become the first plane to fly around the world on power derived solely from the sun. The next stop of the aircraft is Varanasi, where it would stop overnight before taking off again. It has been built not just to fly around the world without an iota of fuel, but also carry a message demonstrating effectiveness of clean technologies and importance of sustainability.

The aircraft took off from Muscat (Oman) on Monday and flew over Pakistan before entering Indian airspace over the Arabian Sea towards Gujarat, an official of the Aditya Birla Group, which is hosting the flight in India, said.

"It is flying at a speed of around 60 kmph - or

roughly equivalent to a scooter - under different weather conditions," the official said. Pilot Bertrand Piccard kept the aircraft close to the Pakistani coast on the 1,465km journey over the Arabian Sea to Ahmedabad from the Omani capital.

The sea legs pose the greatest challenge for the Solar Impulse team as any loss of power over the water would leave the pilot no alternative but to bail out and await rescue by boat. Much bigger crossings lie ahead as Piccard and fellow Swiss aviator Andre Borschberg, who alternate at the controls of the single-seat aircraft, traverse the great oceans.

The longest single leg will see one of them fly solo non-stop for five days and nights across the Pacific from Nanjing, China to Hawaii, a distance of 8,500km.

Solar plane lands in Ahmedabad

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Get workers healthy with office-hour lifestyle exercises Want to see your employees healthy and in shape?

Get them to do some lifestyle exercises well within the office premises.

A healthy lifestyle intervention programme administered at the workplace significantly reduces risk factors for diabetes and heart disease, shows a new study.

The programme was administered at the workplace and developed by University of Pittsburgh Graduate School of Public Health.

"Health care expenditures associated with diabetes are spiralling, causing widespread concern, particularly for employers who worry about their employees' health and productivity," said lead author M. Kaye Kramer from

University of Pittsburgh.

The programme comprised 22 sessions over a one-year period and aimed at helping people make lifestyle changes to improve health.

Over the course of a year, participants lost an average of five percent of their body weight (10 pounds) and shrunk their

waistlines by about two inches.

They also increased their physical activity almost two-fold.

Of the participants, 96 percent said they felt it was beneficial to offer the programme at the worksite, and 99 percent said they would recommend it to their co-workers.

researchers gave metformin and varying doses of onion extract -- 200, 400 and 600 milligrams per kilograms of body weight daily (mg/kg/day) - to see if it would enhance the drug’s effects.

percent, respectively, compared with “baseline” levels at the start of the study before the rodents received onion extract, Ojieh reported.

It reportedly lowered the total cholesterol level in diabetic rats, with the two larger doses again having the greatest effects.

Onion extract led to an increase in average weight among nondiabetic rats but not diabetic rats.

“Onion is not high in calories. However, it seems to increase the metabolic rate and, with that, to increase the appetite, leading to an increase in feeding,” Ojieh said.

Onion extract lowers high blood sugar, cholesterol

Combined with the antidiabetic drug metformin, an onion extract can help lower high blood glucose (sugar) and total cholesterol levels among diabetics, says a study.

The onion extract used for the experiment in rats was a crude preparation from onion bulb.

“We need to investigate the mechanism by which onion brought about the blood glucose reduction,” said lead investigator Anthony Ojieh from the Delta State University in Abraka, Nigeria. ”We do not yet have an explanation,” Ojieh noted.

To rats with medically induced diabetes, the

Two doses of onion extract, 400 and 600 mg/kg/day, strongly reduced fasting blood sugar levels in diabetic rats by 50 percent and 35

Avoid sitting for long hours for a healthy heart

Sitting for long hours everyday is associated with increased coronary artery calcification that can increase the risk of a heart attack, new research says.

The results suggest that exercise may not entirely counteract the negative effects of a mostly sedentary lifestyle on coronary artery calcium.

“It’s clear that exercise is important to reduce your cardiovascular risk and improve your fitness level,” said study’s lead author Jacquelyn Kulinski.

“But this study suggests that reducing how much you sit every day may represent a more novel, companion strategy (in addition to exercise) to help reduce your cardiovascular risk,” Kulinski,

an assistant professor of cardiovascular medicine at the Medical College of Wisconsin, US, added.

This study offers a unique perspective on the effects of sedentary behaviour because it links sitting with an early marker for heart disease risk. oronary artery calcification, measured through a non-invasive CT heart scan, indicates the amount of calcium contained in plaques within the heart’s arteries.

Analysing heart scans and physical activity

records of more than 2,000 adults living in Dallas, the researchers found each hour of sedentary time per day on average was associated with a 14 per cent increase in coronary artery calcification burden.

The association was independent of exercise activity and other traditional heart disease risk factors.

New plum found to be new superfood A plum, which was 'accidentally created' , has been touted as the next superfood to rival the acai berry.

The Australian Queen Garnet contains some of the highest levels of antioxidants ever found in a fruit and has just gone on sale in the UK. According to studies the fruit has five to ten times more anthocyanins than a normal plum.

Anthocyanins provide the dark colours of many fruits and vegetables, such as blueberries and red peppers.

Research suggests that the plant antioxidants, which mop up harmful molecules, can help protect arteries and prevent the DNA damage

that leads to cancer.

The plum was accidentally created during a breeding programme for a disease-resistant version of the common plum in Queensland, Australia.

It is currently undergoing trials in studies with obese rats, and early results relating to the fruit's potential to aid weight loss have been

positive, reports say.

Anthocyanins provide the dark colours of many fruits and vegetables, such as blueberries and red peppers. They have high levels of antioxidants which appeare to reduce inflammation and reduce the effects of arthritis in the body.

The compounds in the antioxidants have similar effects as drugs such as aspirin and ibuprofen.

Similar levels of anthocyanins in berries usually made them inedible, but the Queen Garnet is incredibly sweet and a 'delicious addition to the fruit bowl' with a 'delicious jammy taste - similar to that of a black fig'.

Mediterranean diet 'better than exercise' A Mediterranean diet is more protective against heart disease than exercise, a new study has revealed.

Those who stuck to the diet, consisting of fresh fruit and vegetables, whole grains, nuts, beans, olive oil, fish and even a glass of red wine were 47 per cent less likely to develop heart disease over a 10 year period.

The study, from Harokopio University in Athens, is the first to track 10-year heart disease risk in a general population.

The study, presented at the American College of

Cardiology's annual conference, is based on data from a representative sample of more than 2,500 Greek adults, Nearly one in five of

the men and 12 per cent of the women developed or died from heart disease, including stroke, coronary heart disease and heart attack.

Losing 30 minutes of sleep daily triggers weight gain Losing as little as half an hour of sleep per day on weekdays can have longterm consequences for body weight and metabolism, new research has found.

The findings suggest that people who accumulate sleep debt during weekdays and make up for lost sleep over the weekend may risk metabolic disruption, which may promote the onset of Type 2 diabetes.

The researchers recruited 522 patients with newly diagnosed Type 2 diabetes mellitus in the Early Activity in Diabetes trial and ran-

CHANGE OF NAME

I, Soorya Prem Nair, holder of Indian Passport no: H4593477, issued on 07/01/2010 in London , hereby change my name to Dhanalakshmi Prem Nair.

domised them into one of three groups: usual care, physical activity intervention, or diet and physical activity intervention.

Participants completed seven-day sleep diaries and calculated their week-

day sleep debt.

At baseline, compared with participants who had no weekday sleep debt, those who had weekday sleep debt were 72% more likely to be obese, and by the sixmonth mark, weekday sleep debt was significantly associated with obesity and insulin resistance.

At 12 months, for every 30 minutes of weekday sleep debt at baseline, the risk of obesity and insulin resistance was significantly increased by 17% and 39%, respectively.

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Tamanaah opening shop with Udhyanidhi Stalin

Reshma learns horse riding for U ‘Appavum Veenjam’

T

elugu actress Reshma, who is known for her work in “Ee Rojullo”, has learnt horse riding for her upcoming Malayalam film “ A p p a v u m Veenjam”. “I was required to learn horse riding for the film. I can’t tell you why but the experience was scary, but thanks to my trainer I did well in the training,” Reshma said. Reshma has high respect for Malayalam industry. “I’m extremely happy to be part of the Malayalam industry.

They make amazing realistic films than any other industries.

I’m essaying a different role in the film and feel lucky to be sharing screen space with experienced actors like Prathap Pothen and Ramya Krishnan,” she said. Prathap and Ramya play Reshma’s parents in the film, which is currently on floors in Cochin, Kerala. Reshma also has a film each in Kannada, Tamil and Hindi in her kitty.

dhayanidhi Stalin and Nayanthara are pairing up for the second time in Red Giant Movies “Nanbenda” directed by Jagadish, an erstwhile associate of director M Rajesh. Needless to say that Santhanam is the titular ‘Nanban.’ The supporting cast includes high profile names such as Karunakaran, Manobala, Sherin, Rajendran, Pooja Ramachandran among others.

Music is by Udhayanidhi Stalin regular Harris Jayaraj and the songs have topped the 'tamil itunes' list.

Cinematographer Balasubramanian and editor Harsh Vardhan are the other notable crew members.

Amy Jackson’s neardeath experience

A

ctress Amy Jackson, while shooting for an untitled Tamil action drama, miraculously escaped a fatal fall from a cliff thanks to the timely intervention of her co-star Karunakaran, who saved her.

Being directed by Thirukumaran, the film features Udhayanidhi Stalin in the lead. “Udhay and I were on our bike, while Amy was driving another two-wheeler. As we started shooting, Amy lost control of her vehicle and started drifting towards the edge of the cliff. I quickly got down from my bike and stopped her bike from falling down,” Karunakaran said. Amy was in momentary shock but she eventually completed the shot. The team has successfully completed the first schedule and Amy has returned to Mumbai to start working on her Hindi projects.

'Dharam Sankat Mein'

he mixing has started and going on in full swing for Manirathnam’s “OK Kanmani” starring Dulquer Salman and Nithya Menon eyeing an April release. Back in 2000 the Manirathnam-A R Rahman-P C Sriram combination made box office history with “Alaipayuthey,” and 15 years later their coming together has fans waiting anxiously for a repeat.

Chunawala and Shariq Patel under the banners Viacom 18 Motion Pictures and Trigno Media. Paresh Rawal plays the role of Dharam Pal, a Hindu man, who goes through an identity crisis and soon he comes to know that originally he was born to a Muslim family. His struggling journey then starts to search his real father. The movie is said to be a remake of the 2010 British comedy film “The Infidel.”

'Main Aur Charles'

appears in a shop opening scene.

Manirathnam chooses Nani of 'Naan E' fame

T

“Main Aur Charles” is a biopic of an infamous conman Charles Sobhraj. The thriller film is directed by Prawaal Raman. Stars in pivotal roles in the movie are Randeep Hooda, Adil Hussain and Richa Chadda. The storyline of the film moves around the “Bikini Killer” of the 70s and focus on Tihar jail break of 1986.

“'Dharam Sankat Mein” is a comedy film directed by Fuwad Khan. The leading stars in the movie are Paresh Rawal, Naseeruddin Shah, and Annu Kapoor.

The film is produced by Sajjad

Tamanaah is also doing a cameo role as herself and she

'NH10'

“NH10” is Anushka Sharma’s upcoming thriller film, starring Anushka Sharma and Neil Bhoopalam in pivotal roles. The movie marks the production debut of Anushka. Navdeep Singh is the director of the movie. The movie is all about a young couple whose road trip goes twisted after an encounter with a group of violent criminals. The name of the film NH10 refers to the 403 km long National Highway 10 which starts from Delhi and ends at the Pakistan border in Punjab passing through Haryana via Bahadurgarh, Rohtak, Hisar, Fatehabad, Sirsa in its way.

Prakash Raj is playing an important role after a gap and one more big name who is attached to the project recently is Telugu actor Nani of “Naan E” fame. Since “OK Kanmani” is a trilingual in Tamil, Malayalam and Telugu, Nani is going to provide the voice for hero Dulquer Salman in the Telugu version of this romantic film with the Manirathnam touch.

Akshay Kumar to do ‘Airlift’ free of charge

B

ollywood’s action hero Akshay Kumar, who will be seen playing the role of a UAE billionaire in “Airlift,” will not charge a penny as remuneration.

Reports suggest that Akshay will instead share 80 per cent of the profit as his fees.

Confirming the same, a source close to the project said, “Akshay has many movies in hand but in Airlift he sees the potential. The film which will be made at a budget of Rs 300 million will be seeing a lot of growth at the box office. Hence, Akshay has decided to share the profits instead of charging fees as remuneration.”

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R

Even God can’t bring 3 Khans together: Farah

ecently, there were hopes and speculations that Farah Khan might do the unthinkable – bring the three Khans of Bollywood or at least two under one roof in her cookery reality show ‘Farah Ki Daawat’, but the choreographer-turned-filmmaker and TV show host has quashed all those.

Farah Khan has gone on record and said that even God can’t bring the ‘Khan Trinity’ together, leave alone the mere mortals.

Farah says, “I think even God can’t bring them together so I am not even attempting that. I tried to bring them together eight years back for the title track of ‘Om Shanti Om’ but even that didn’t happen.”

Farah has, however, not lost hope completely, as she says, “Let’s see, fingers crossed, if I’m able to cast Shah Rukh, Salman and

Dev Patel to venture into film making

Aamir together, it’ll be fabulous. Chances are less but may be some day I might just get

lucky, so never say no.” Earlier, Farah did manage to bring SRK and Salman together and made them grove in the title track of

Priyanka Chopra to make her TV debut in Hollywood

B

Anupam Kher is still a ‘mumma’s boy’

ollywood actress Priyanka Chopra will soon be joining the ranks of Hollywood TV superstars Sofia Vergara (Modern Family), Sandra Oh (Grey's Anatomy) and Kerry Washington (Scandal). The actress in a hush hush meeting signed a deal with American studio ABC's Executive Vice President of Casting Keli Lee. A source reveals that Keli and Priyanka had a meeting where they discussed the way forward and how they will showcase her in Hollywood.

Priyanka first met Keli at the SAMMA (South Asians in Media, Marketing & Entertainment Summit) conference and later stayed in touch through their agents. The two were headline speakers at the summit. Lee is a big name in the West for scouting talent and casting female leads in strong roles in shows like “Scandal” and “Grey's Anatomy.”

Priyanka will make her debut in the upcoming ABC drama “Quantico,” centering on the FBI, and featuring an international starcast of other established actors.

How big or central Priyanka's role in “Quantico” is not known.

According to reports, she will play

Katrina is Anushka's favourite co-star

A

nupam Kher might have stumped you with his acting skills many a time and he is sure to bowl you over once again; this time with sheer cuteness. The veteran actor took to Twitter to post a lovely moment he shared with his mother recently. Apparently, Anupam Kher’s mother wanted to buy him a shirt and took him to shop around. And he, being an obedient son, relived his childhood memory, as the last time they went for shopping was when Kher was 14. Not only does this present Anupam Kher’s love for his mother, but also proves the fact that he was, is and always be the quintessential ‘mumma’s boy’.

her 2007 movie ‘Om Shanti Om’, which saw 28 other B-Town stars shake a leg together.

B

ollywood actress Anushka Sharma revealed that Katrina Kaif is her favourite co-star. She was quoted as saying that Katrina is her favourite co-star as she is a real person and not pretentious. She asserted that she had a great time with Katrina and also that she shares a great rapport with the actress. Anushka also said that Katrina is the prettiest and sexiest actress.

the role of Alex, one of the leads who discovers that the romantic interest she met on a flight (Jake McLaughlin) is actually an FBI agent. The serial itself centres on the life of agents at FBI (Quantico in Virginia is the HQ of FBI and also has a marine base), among whom is a sleeper terrorist who played a role in 9/11.

If Priyanka's role stretches deep into the drama and the serial gets extended into future seasons on the lines of franchises such as “Homeland,” “24,” “The Americans,” and similar thriller dramas, she'll be onto an epic journey in entertainment. Although several Indian-origin actors have begun to appear in TV serials (Dev Patel in Newsroom, Sakina Jaffrey in House of Cards, Annet Mahendru in The Americans, Kunal Nayyar in The Big Bang Theory, Mindy Kaling in The Office, Aziz Ansari in Parks and Recreations, Senthil Ramamurthy in Heroes and Covert Affairs, Parmindar Nagra in ER, Anil Kapoor in 24 and Archana Panjabi in The Good Wife, among others), no Bollywood star has made the cut in a sustained way.

Mallika Sherawat loves to play Indira Gandhi

A

fter starring in “Dirty Politics,” actor Mallika Sherawat says she would love to feature in a biopic on late Indian prime minister Indira Gandhi.

"Biopics are very challenging. I have not really thought about it but, if given a chance I would love to play Indira Gandhi," Mallika said in reply to a query.

"I really enjoyed Bhaag Milkha Bhaag, one of the best biopics, and was very impressed by it." Directed by K C Bokadia, “Dirty Politics” also features Naseeruddin Shah, Om Puri and Anupam Kher. There were reports that Mallika had shifted her base to the US. Clarifying this, she said: "I'm very much here and have not shifted to America. I am hoping this film will open doors for me and hope directors take me seriously and offer me performance-oriented roles."

B

ritish actor of Indian descent Dev Patel is ready to take the next step in the world of filmmaking. He’s working on his own projects to narrate stories revolving around India and even has plans to introduce an Indian superhero to the world with his movie.

“One of them is a gangster film based in Mumbai. Another one is basically like kind of a superhero film with a very unlikely hero in it. The hero will be an Indian,” Dev said.

When asked about what aspect of filmmaking is he trailing into with the projects, the 24-year-old actor who catapulted to global recognition with the Oscar winning “Slumdog Millionaire” said, “I will be producing and acting in the projects.” After “Slumdog Millionaire”, in which he traced the life of a Mumbai slum dweller, Dev went on to do projects like “The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel” and “The Last Airbender”.

His latest release in the US is “Chappie”, a film about a robot that can feel and think. The film will hit Indian screens on March 13. When asked about acting in Bollywood films, Dev said, “if the script is challenging, then I will absolutely do the movie.” A Bollywood film, without a dance sequence, seems incomplete.

But Dev has no qualms about admitting that dancing is not his forte despite having grooved to A R Rahman’s Oscar winning number “Jai ho” at the end of “Slumdog Millionaire”. “I’m really bad at dancing,” Dev confessed.

‘Satyam Shivam Sundaram’ look for Sunny Leone

T

Series’ upcoming movie “Ek Paheli Leela” is surely one of the most anticipated films of 2015 as the first look of ‘Leela’ had created a mass frenzy where Sunny was seen sitting on a throne as the royal princess. A new look of Sunny in the movie has been launched, which is inspired by the “Satyam Shivam Sundaram” look of yesteryear actress Zeenat Aman. It is a period drama and Sunny will be seen in many avatars and this is one of them. Directed

by Bobby Khan, the movie is scheduled to release on April 10, 2015.

30

UK

India’s Daughter: What is our responsibility?

Nishma Jethwa Programme Manager Shiva Foundation

You may have heard this week about the controversial and heart-wrenching BBC documentary by Leslee Udwin, India's Daughter, currently banned in India. The documentary features indepth and unprecedented interviews with those convicted for the rape and murder of Jyoti Singh in December 2012. The film is difficult to watch and, according to Udwin, was traumatising to make but it provides an incredible and unique opportunity for change. We all know that one film can’t change everything for women across the world on its own, but we know too that one film combined with our collective insights, networks, energy and commitment might be the beginning of a very powerful engine for change.

GSMP Foundation and Shiva Foundation are

hosting a private screening of the film on Tuesday 31st March, followed by a discussion with the Director, Udwin, and supporters of the film, Meera Syal and Kathy Lette.

They are using this opportunity to bring together determined and successful women who dare to stand for something they believe in and make a difference above and beyond their day to day roles. So the question remains, what is our responsibility to India’s daughters?

We say that this is an opportunity for us all to reflect on the world we want to live in. This is the time to take responsibility for the society we embody.

And, most importantly, this is the time to stand up and stand for real change in the institutions, beliefs and systems that allow this horrific crime to exist.

For further information, please contact info@shivafoundation.org .uk or visit www.shiva.co.uk/shivafoundation.

London Asian Film Festival 2015 schedule announced 'Dukhtar', 'Margarita With A Straw' and 'Bhopal: A Prayer for Rain' among outstanding schedule of independent South Asian films to be screened as part of 17th annual LAFF. Organisers have announced the full roster of films and special events for this year's London Asian Film Festival (LAFF) - Europe's oldest showcase for South Asian cinema. The Festival takes place across London from 19 March to 28 March and features a string of exciting and acclaimed independent feature films, masterclasses, special screenings, debates and the Festival's celebrated short films competition.

This year's Festival highlights include critically acclaimed films such as

'Margarita With A Straw', 'Bhopal - A Prayer for Rain', 'Dukhtar', 'Rang Rasiya' and 'The World Before Her'.

The 17th edition London Asian Film Festival is once again organised by Tongues on Fire, which has built an unparalleled reputation for promoting independent cinema as well as providing a showcase for female filmmakers.

In keeping with that ethos, LAFF 2015 celebrates 'The Power of Women', a theme that is reflected in this year's roster of special guests who include such filmmakers as Farah Khan, Nisha Pahuja and Afia Nathaniel.

For special events and screenings, visit www.tonguesonfire.com

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Asian Voice and Gujarat Samachar to pay tributes to Octogenarians in Leicester After showing our tributes to the Octogenarians in 2011 and November 2014, in events with ‘Sangat Centre’ and in January 2015 with the ‘Lohana Community South London’, Asian Voice and Gujarat Samachar will once again pay a tribute to all the people aged eighty years or above with cooperation from Shree Sanatan Mandir, Leicester on Saturday, 21st March 2015 at 2.30 PM to 7PM at Mahatma Gandhi Hall, Shree Sanatan Mandir, Weymouth Street, Off Catherine Street, Leicester LE4 6FQ. Welcoming and honouring elderly people is a matter of privilege for us and we believe we will truly be blessed by their presence on this occasion.

During this get-together, we will enjoy Bhakti Sangeet by Chandubhai Mattani and group followed by real vegan delicacies. There will also be vital information available regarding healthy lifestyles for the elderly.

If there is anyone aged 80 years or above in your family or amongst friends,

please send us their short bio-data and photo via fax on 020 7749 4081 or via email to kamal.rao@abplgroup.co m or by post to Kamal Rao, Gujarat Samachar, Karmayoga House, 12, Hoxton Market, London N1 6HW on or before 17th March 2015.

The elderly are welcome to bring friends and family along.

Please let us know how many people will come to the event for catering and other purposes.

Date: Saturday, 21st March 2015 Time: 2.30 PM to 6.30.

PM Venue: Mahatma Gandhi Hall, Shree Sanatan Mandir, Weymouth Street, Off Catherine Street, Leicester LE4 6FQ. For more information call Ramanbhai Barber MBE DL, President, Shree Sanatan Mandir – Tel: 0116 266 1402 E mail: sanatanmandir@hotmail.co.uk and Kamal Rao: 020 7749 4001 Mobile: 07875 229 211.

Coming Events

l Mother's Day with Shin-DCS, Saturday 14 March, Collier Row Road, Romford, Essex RM5 2NH. Contact: 020 8924 4000 l Senior Citizens Club, Healthy Living Project, Lecture on, Alzheimer's & Dementia at Sangam, 210 Burnt Oak Broadway, Edgware, Middx HA8 0AP, 17th March 2015, 1.15pm – 3.30pm l OBV ‘Reclaiming Democracy’ tour Wednesday 11 March, Liverpool (Outside John Lewis, Liverpool, One Shopping Centre, 70 Paradise Street, L1 3EU)

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 14th March 2015

ARIES Mar 21 - Apr 20 Your mind is focused on private matters and past issues while Mercury transits the twelfth house of your solar chart. This is a time when you are least likely to express yourself freely. You're examining the past for answers. This is a good time for quiet contemplation, and meditation.

Mercury continues to journey through your solar eleventh house. This is a time when various networking activities are much appreciated and offer you learning experiences. Your ideas are progressive and you are also interested in spending time with people who are like-minded.

TAURUS Apr 21 - May 21

transits GEMINI May 22 - June 22 yourMercury solar tenth house.

This is an excellent period for developing career and professional plans or strategies. Although approachable and ready to communicate, you are less inclined towards frivolous matters now. Good time to seek promotions to improve your status.

Venus and Mars grace your solar tenth house now. During this cycle, you are very well received on the job. Venus is charming and friendly and her presence in your career sector brings you lots of romantic opportunities, or simply more chances to socialize and network.

CANCER Jun 22 - Jul 22

LEO Jul 23 - Aug 23

Venus and Mars continue to grace your solar ninth house. During this cycle, your ideals in love are set high. You could also enjoy a trip, or a new adventure of sorts. In fact, you are attracted to anything that is non-routine. It's a good period for personal charm and attractiveness in general.

Venus and Mars continue to move through your solar eighth house. You are attracted to the deeper elements of relationships and social interactions now. Mysteries fascinate you and you question other people’s motives for their actions. It's also a strong cycle for discovering your own hidden talents.

VIRGO Aug 24 - Sep 23

Beautiful energy is with you for selfexpression and spirit as Venus, your ruling planet and Mars transit your opposite sign. Others are likely to find you inspiring and they see you in a good light. There can be renewed interest in, and commitment to, health improvement programs.

LIBRA Sep 24 - Oct 23

Venus graces your solar sixth house now.

Establishing a happy and harmonious work environment through friendly relations with co-workers comes into focus now. You're most successful doing tasks that involve cooperation and team harmony. Romantic and social activities may revolve around your working environment.

SCORPIO Oct 24- Nov 22

Venus and Mars continue to trek through your solar 5th house of romance.

Meaningful and harmonious relationships--both social and romantic--define you during this cycle.

If single, you are more willing than normal to enter into a committed relationship. In general, you are adaptable when it comes to your affections.

SAGITTARIUS Nov 23 - Dec 21

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Venus transits your solar fourth house now. During this cycle, you are especially fond of spending more time at home around the family. You are more receptive and tend to be sentimental or nostalgic now. Loyalty and sensitivity in your relationships are more important to you than typically.

CAPRICORN Dec 22 - Jan 20

Venus and Mars are transiting your solar third house now, indicating a more light-hearted and intellectual approach to love and pleasure.

You enjoy talking about what interests you, and you see value in the exchange of ideas.

Sometimes this transit brings benefit through siblings, communications, or short trips.

AQUARIUS Jan 21 - Feb 19

PISCES Feb 20 - Mar 20

With Mercury in your solar first house, your disposition is more intellectual than usual and self-expression comes easily. It is an especially fruitful time for any endeavor that requires communications. Your demeanor is more youthful and easy going so others will find it easy to talk with you.

SPORT WORLD

Viv Richards pips Sachin Tendulkar as greatest ODI player

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 14th March 2015

West Indian batting great Viv Richards has been voted as the greatest ODI player in the history of the game ahead of India's cricket legend Sachin Tendulkar in an online poll. With an astonishing 29 of 50 jurors picking him as the best ODI player of all time, Richards won by a landslide in an exercise conducted by ESPNcricinfo's magazine 'Cricket Monthly'.

Tendulkar, the mostprolific one-day batsman of all time, narrowly beat former Pakistan skipper Wasim Akram. The last two positions in the top five were taken by Australia's Adam Gilchrist and current Indian ODI skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni.

Through the late '70s and '80s, Richards dominated the one-day arena like no other cricketer, and helped his side to two World Cup victories in 1975 and 1979. In terms of longevity and batting stats Tendulkar has no equal.

Arguably the greatest batsman in contemporary cricket, Tendulkar rewrote many

Viv records during a glorious career spanning 23 years.

He amassed a mammoth 18,426 runs in 463 onedayers at an average of 44.83. The diminutive right-hander has an astonishing 49 hundreds in the format, including a double hundred - the first in this form of the game.

Tendulkar also has a mammoth tally of 96 ODI 50s to his credit.

ESPNcricinfo's editorin-chief Sambit Bal said, "No one does numbers better than us. But we also

Richards and Sachin Tendulkar received votes six know that numbers don't Australians, five Indians, always tell the full story. four Pakistanis, two West Which is why we rely on the Indians, two South cumulative wisdom of Africans, a Sri Lankan and those who should know for an Englishman. The top 11 our awards. "And the World can be assembled into a Cup was a good occasion to dream team: Gilchrist, assemble a grand jury Tendulkar, Ricky Ponting, drawn from different eras Richards, Jacques Kallis, and countries - to pick the Dhoni, Sanath Jayasuriya, greatest ever one-day crickKapil Dev, Akram, Shane eter. It's hard to argue with Warne and Joel Garner. the top five the poll has The 50-member jury thrown up: between them included legendary crickthey encapsulate the best of eters Ian Chappell, Clive ODI cricket across the ages Lloyd, Rahul Dravid, and also its evolution."

Ponting and Graeme Smith.

In all, 21 cricketers

Ray launches his book on World Cup cricket in London Rupanjana Dutta

Veteran Sports journalist Ashis Ray along with Bloomsbury Publishing launched his book 'Cricket World Cup: The Indian Challenge', on February 25th at London's Nehru Centre in presence of HE Ranjan Mathai, the Indian High Commissioner, Lord Swarj Paul, Gopichand Hinduja, CB Patel and many other dignitaries.

This was followed by a Q&A with James Astill, Political Editor of the Economist, where Ray discussed his book, the changing scene of Indian cricket, the historic 1983 victory, Indian cricket team Captains over the years and the current World Cup. In India, Ray's work was specially applauded by the Indian President Pranab Mukherjee. On Saturday 14 February, the President of India Pranab Mukherjee formally received a copy of the recently released book at a brief ceremony at Rashtrapati Bhavan (President's House). The presentation was made by Madan Lal, one of the heroes of the Indian side that won the 1983 Cricket World Cup, in the presence of the author. The President commended the author for providing a history of the World Cup from an Indian perspective.

He also thanked Madan Lal for triggering a "turning point" for India in cricket by famously dismissing Vivian Richards, the West Indian master batsman, in the World Cup final at Lord's in 1983.

Mr Mukherjee recalled

Ashis Ray, James Astill and Sangeeta Bahadur, Director, Nehru Centre exclusively, when asked Indira Gandhi, then India's who is Ray's favourite Prime Minister, phoned amongst Ganguly and him late a night Indian time Dhoni as a Captain, Ashis after India's 1983 victory to said with a smile, share the good news. He "Ganguly's record as capwas then the Union tain in test cricket outside Finance Minister.

India proves he was a better Author Ashis Ray said, tactician than Dhoni."

"It is a great honour to be Explaining, he referred granted an audience by the to Chapter 6 of his book, President of India. and added,"While his critics Therefore, I consider myself said he was asking for it, fortunate that he did so and the BCCI's treatment of formally received a copy of Ganguly is indefensible. my book. I hope the kind Any cricketer deserves gesture on the part of the courtesy if he is to be omitPresident encourages peoted from the national side, ple to read the book and especially if he's been the encounter or relive for country's most successful themselves India's history skipper ever (which he was in the Cricket World Cup." at that point)."

The Acting High "Ganguly was unCommissioner of India to parochial. Practically none Australia, Manika Jain also of the players successfully launched Ashis Ray’s book drafted in or recalled during in Melbourne on Saturday his tenure (as captain) was 20 February, congratulated from his part of the country. him on writing the book He had a hunch that and Bloomsbury for pubHarbhajan Singh would lishing the work. “I have serve him well. The Sikh great pleasure in launching responded by capturing 28 this book in Australia,” said wickets in two tests against Jain.

Australia as India stormed Speaking to Asian Voice

to victory in 2001.

“Only Mahendra Singh Dhoni hailed from Ganguly's zone, but not from his state of Bengal.

Few will argue against this choice, for this Jharkhand batsman-wicketkeeper's eruptive strokeplay has added a new dimension to India's batting and calmness as captain in limited overs cricket."

Speaking about India's Captain M S Dhoni, he referred to Chapter 8 of his book, which he wrote just before Christmas. “As for India, their unimpressive display in 1992 (in the World Cup) is not necessarily an indication of their present aptitude.

The Indians are today an organised detachment, instilled with calibre and confidence. They are also stewarded by motivating personal example - as testified

by Mahendra Dhoni taking the bull by the horns in the final at the Wankhede Stadium four years ago to deliver a coup de grace.

“The limited overs format does not demand an exceptional strategic brain, for there is virtually a preconceived formula for captaincy on the field," said Ray. About the book: Cricket World Cup: The Indian Challenge is the most comprehensive offering on the subject; as eminently readable as essential reference. It covers all 10 previous World Cups in detail from an Indian perspective, highlighting the 1983 and 2011 competitions, which India won.

Photo courtesy: Raj D Bakrania, Prmediapix

31

Saina fails to win All England championship

Olympic bronze medallist Saina Nehwal’s quest for becoming the first Indian woman to win the prestigious All England badminton championship ended in agony after she suffered a heart-breaking loss to Spain’s Carolina Marin in the summit clash at Birmingham.

The World No. 3 Indian let go of a huge opportunity to script history as she squandered an opening game lead to go down 21-16 14-21 721 to the reigning world champion in the women’s singles final that lasted for little

over an hour.

Saina, thus, failed to emulate her long-time coach Pullella Gopichand (2001) and legendary Prakash Padukone (1980), who had won the prestigious title in the past.

Saina, who has been competing at the All England since 2007, had never lost to Carolina and looked on course for an encore before the World No. 6 Spaniard scripted a remarkable comeback in the second game to put paid to the Indian’s hopes at the Barclaycard Arena.

World Cup 2015 Results

Date

Teams

4 March Pakistan v/s UAE PAK won by 129 runs Brief scores: PAK 339/6 (50 overs); UAE 210/8 (50 overs) 4 March Australia v/s Afghanistan AUS won by 275 runs Brief scores: AUS 417/6 (50 overs); AFG 142/10 (37.3 overs) 5 March Scotland v/s Bangladesh BAN won by 6 wickets Brief scores: BAN 322/4 (48.1 overs); SCO 318/8 (50 overs) 6 March West Indies v/s India IND won by 4 wickets Brief scores: IND 185/6 (39.1 overs); WI 182/10 (44.2 overs) 7 March Pakistan v/s South Africa PAK won by 29 runs Brief scores: PAK 222/10 (46.4 overs); SA 202/10 (33.3 overs) 7 March Ireland v/s Zimbabwe IRE won by 5 wickets Brief scores: IRE 331/8 (50 overs); ZIM 326/10 (49.3 overs) 8 March Afghanistan v/s New Zealand NZ won by 6 wickets Brief scores: NZ 188/4 (36.1 overs); AFG 186/10 (47.4 overs) 8 March Australia v/s Sri Lanka AUS won by 64 runs Brief scores: AUS 376/9 (50 overs); SLK 312/9 (46.2 overs) 9 March Bangladesh v/s England BAN won by 15 runs Brief scores: BAN 275/7 (50 overs); ENG 260/10 (48.3 overs) 10 March Ireland v/s India IND won by 8 wickets Brief scores: IND 260/2 (36.5 overs); IRE 259/10 (49 overs)

ICC Cricket World Cup 2015

Teams

Match Won Group A New Zealand 5 5 Australia 5 3 Bangladesh 5 3 Sri Lanka 5 3 England 5 1 Afghanistan 5 1 Scotland 4 0 Group B India 5 5 South Africa 5 3 Pakistan 5 3 Ireland 5 3 West Indies 5 2 Zimbabwe 5 1 UAE 4 0

Lost

Points

0 2 2 2 3 4 4

10 6 6 6 4 2 0

0 1 1 2 4 4 4

10 7 7 6 2 2 0

32

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 14th March 2015

India beat Ireland by 8 wickets

India defeated Ireland by eight wickets in a Pool B cricket World Cup match at Seddon Park, in Hamilton on Tuesday. Opting to bat, Ireland were cruising at one stage with scorecard reading 206 for three but Indian bowlers made a fantastic comeback, claiming six wickets for 32 runs in a phase of 6.3 overs. In an astonishing record, India now have bowled out opposition for the fifth time in a row. Niall O’Brien was the top scorer for Ireland with 75 while skipper William Porterfield scored 67 off 93 balls. The middle and lower order collapse hurt Ireland as Ravichandran Ashwin (2/38), Mohammed Shami (3/41), Umesh Yadav (1/34) and Suresh Raina (1/40) struck at the crucial moment.

For India, Shikhar Dhawan and Rohit Sharma stitched a record 174-run opening stand.

Virat Kohli and Ajinkya Rahane remained unbeaten on 44 and 33 respectively to take India to victory target of 260 in just 36.5 overs.

Defeat West Indies: Earlier India sealed their place in the quarter-finals stages with a nervy run chase against West Indies

in Perth. MS Dhoni helped to steer his team to a fourwicket victory in a lowscoring pool B match.

India, who bowled West Indies out for 182, therefore remain one of two unbeaten teams in the tournament – New Zealand are the other – after scrambling the win with 10.5 overs to spare on a typically bouncy pitch at the Waca.

Bangladesh knock out England: Mohammad Mahmudullah became the first Bangladesh batsman to score a World Cup century as woeful England crashed out of the tournament with a 15-run loss to the Tigers. Mahmudullah scored 103 and brother-inlaw Mushfiqur Rahim made 89 as the Tigers recovered from eight for two to post a challenging 275 for seven after being sent in to bat. England, needing a win to stay afloat after winning just one of their previous four matches, were bowled out for 260 as seamer Rubel Hossain claimed four wickets and wicket-keeper Rahim held four catches. Ian Bell made 63 but England slipped to 163 for six before Jos Buttler (65 off 52 balls) and Chris Woakes (42 not

out) briefly revived their hope with a 75-run stand for the seventh wicket. But the dismissals of Buttler and Chris Jordan off successive balls in the 46th over turned the match Bangladesh's way.

Brilliant run chase: Kyle Coetzer’s career-best 156 went in vain as Bangladesh scripted a brilliant chase to notch up a comprehensive six-wicket win over Scotland in their pool A match earlier.

Chasing 319 to win, Bangladesh cruised to a seemingly stiff target with 11 balls to spare, riding on four individual fifties by Tamim Iqbal (95), Mahmudullah (62), Mushfiqur Rahim (60) and Shakib Al Hasan (52 not out).

Australia overcome Sri

Lanka: Glenn Maxwell hit the second-fastest century in World Cup history as Australia beat Sri Lanka by 64 runs to advance to the quarter-finals. Maxwell's first one-day international ton, reached off 51 balls, inspired Australia's total of 376-9. Sri Lanka fell short in a spirited run chase despite a third consecutive World Cup century from Kumar Sangakkara and a quickfire 52 from Dinesh Chandimal.

Break India's record: Earlier Australia hit the highest World Cup score in tournament history when they made 417/6 against Afghanistan at Perth. The four-time champions went past the previous best of 413/5 made by India against Bermuda in 2007. It was

the third 400-plus total at the World Cup 2015 after South Africa twice went through the barrier - 408/5 against the West Indies and 411/4 in the game with Ireland.

David Warner made Australia's highest World Cup individual score of 178 beating the 158 of Matthew Hayden against West Indies at Antigua in 2007.

Bowlers script easy win for NZ: Daniel Vettori stole the limelight during New Zealand's match against Afghanistan with a stunning spell of four for 18. His spell wreaked havoc at the top, reducing Afghanistan to 59 for 6 before a superb fightback scripted by an 86-run stand between Najibullah Zadran (56) and Samiuallah Shenwari (54) saw them post a total of 186 in 47.4 overs. Chasing a tricky total, New Zealand were off to the kind of start that is expected from them.

Brendon McCullum, despite facing some testing overs from Hamid Hasan, started off in blistering fashion slamming 42 in just 19 deliveries. The NZ skipper hit six fours, and a six off Mohammad Nabi before perishing attempting an encore.

Pakistan stun South Africa: Pakistan's trio of left-arm pacemen bowled their team to a thrilling 29run win over South Africa on the Duckworth/Lewis method as they revived their bid for a World Cup quarterfinal place in Auckland on Saturday.

Rahat Ali grabbed a careerbest three for 40, while Mohammad Irfan (three for 52) and Wahab Riaz (three for 45) were also in the wickets as South Africa, chasing a revised target of 232 in 47 overs, were dismissed for 202 in 33.3 overs.

Crush shoddy UAE: Earlier Pakistan have moved to fourth spot in Pool B table with a comprehensive win over the United Arab Emirates by 129 runs in their World Cup tie in Napier. Put in to bat first, Pakistan crossed the 300-run milestone for the first time in this year's tournament as they went on to post a challenging target of 339 runs.

Chasing the target, UAE were reeling at 25-3 in the 10th over before Shaiman Anwar (62) and Khurram Khan (43) provided some resistance as they put on 83 runs for the fourth wicket.