AV 4th July 2015

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70 killed as floods hit Saurashtra

First & Foremost Asian Weekly in Europe

London commemorates the 10th anniversary of the 7/7 bombings See Page 25

See Page 17

Labour party hosts leadership and deputy leadership hustings in Harrow

HUMANITY IN DANGER

See Page 16

VOL 44. ISSUE 9

Scottish universities back up calls for visa return

All of Scotland's colleges have joined hands to back the Scottish government's call to reintroduce a post study work visa for Scotland. The news comes as representatives of all major political parties in Scotland met for the first time to work on reintroducing the post study work route to Scotland. Liz Smith (Conservative), John Finnie (Independent), Claire Baker (Labour), and Liam McArthur (Liberal Democrats) met Minister for Europe and I n t e r n a t i o n a l Development Humza Yousaf ahead of a formal meeting of the Cross Party Steering Group later this summer.

A statement of support for reintroducing the visa scheme has now gathered 160 signatures, including 25 of Scotland's publicly funded colleges, the sector body Colleges Scotland, Universities Scotland the representative body for Scotland’s 19 Higher Education Institutions and representatives from across industry.

The National Indian Students Union (UK) have also backed Yousaf’s call for a reintroduction of the visa.

Mr Yousaf reportedly said: “Signatories from all of Scotland’s colleges have now backed our statement of support for the reintroduction of a post study work visa to Scotland.

Continued on page 16

Let noble thoughts come to us from every side

80p

4th July to 10th July 2015

The terror attack in France, Kuwait and Tunisia have raised questions about humanity, prompting concerns about the spreading barbarism across the world

Last week terrorists attacked a chemical plant near Lyon in France, a Shia mosque in Kuwait and tourist beach hotel in Tunisia, leaving a bloody toll on three continents and prompting new concerns about the spreading influence of jihadists. The three separate attacks have collectively claimed 66 lives, at the least.

A van driver with alleged links to Islamist radicals, rammed his car containing flammable liquids, into an area of the Air Products factory, in France. A decapitated body of a 54 year old was found in the area and two others were killed in the act. The suspect, Yassine Salhi, was seized by an alert firefighter, authorities said, and French President Francois Hollande said the attacker's intention had been to cause an explosion. A security alert for the southeast region was raised to its highest level and the US Embassy in Paris warned American citizens to be vigilant. In an audio recording released on Tuesday, the Islamic State called on its supporters to increase attacks during Ramadan and "be keen on waging invasion in this eminent month and commit martyrdom."

A relatively secure Arab country, Kuwait, braved a brutal suicide bombing, the same day, at a Shiite mosque that took 27 lives, including 2 Indians and wounded many others. The Islamic State has released what is

the RIU Imperial Marhaba hotel, near the beach rampage site. Essebsi promised "painful but necessary" measures, adding: "No country is safe from terrorism, and we need a global strategy of all democratic countries."

Britons toll likely to be 30 The number of British people killed in the Tunisia terror attack is expected to rise to at least 30.

The Government has already confirmed 25of the 38 victims who died in the deadly rampage. Another three were from Ireland.

But with Britons apparently paying the heaviest price in Friday's atrocity, Home Secretary

66 killed in attacks in Tunisia, France and Kuwait *** 25 British tourists among the victims in Tunisia, toll may rise a posthumous statement by the militant accounting for the onslaught.

Tunisia is no stranger to Islamic attacks. It witnessed the most devastating attack when a 23 year old opened fire at tourists on the beach at the Imperial Marhaba hotel, killing 38 people, all western tourists, mostly Britons. The beach rampage by the gunman Seifeddine Rezgui seems to have specifically targeted at Britons, with the known numbers of the deceased likely to increase

after the government confirmed 25 of the 38 victims. The attack in Tunisia comes just months after the March 18 massacre at the national Bardo museum in Tunis that killed 22 people, again mostly tourists, and has called into question the newly elected government's ability to protect the country.

"Once again, cowardly and traitorous hands have struck Tunisia, targeting its security and that of its children and visitors," President Beji Caid Essebsi told reporters at

Modi likely to visit UK in November

Continued on page 26

India and Britain are to finalise plans for Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to the UK in November, with a Madison Square Garden- style event at Wembley Stadium expected to be the highlight of the trip.

Full story on page 26

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www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 4th July 2015

Kate Osamor MP for Edmonton

Kate is an activist, left wing politician and mother of one.

Daughter of Martha Osamor (former Deputy Leader of Haringey council, community leader and activist) Kate grew up in north London attending Creighton comprehensive school. Having successfully obtained a BA (Hons) degree from the University of East London in Third World Studies, Kate went on to work for the Big Issue, a magazine sold by homeless and long-term unemployed people. She became the chair of Governors at a local school, while working in the voluntary sector. Kate started her 15 years’ service to the NHS by working at an Out Of Hours Co-Op before moving on to becoming a GP practice manager.

1. What is your current position?

I am the Labour MP for Edmonton.

2. What are your proudest achievements?

Becoming an MP and being a mother

3. What inspires you?

Seeing people reach their potential, especially underdogs and people who are overlooked.

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

Overcoming being a single mum on a low income and get-

ting to where I am today, by challenging myself on greater platforms.

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

My mother, Martha Osamor.

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

Being able to represent all the people of Edmonton.

7.

And worst?

Being in

the

opposition party. #votelabour 8. What are your long term goals?

My current long term goals are to improve Edmonton and the health sector, fight for education, and campaign to endausterity 9. If you were Prime Minister, what one aspect would you change?

I would strive to challenge inequality in society 10. If you were marooned on a desert island, which historical figure would you like to spend your time with and why?

Winnie Mandela, because of her important role in the struggle against apartheid in South Africa.

Loomba Foundation seeks recognition for widows in UN's sustainable development agenda on its 10th anniversary

The Loomba Foundation observed its 10th International Widow’s Day on 23 June with a charity fundraiser dinner at One Great George Street near Parliament Square in Westminster, where over 250 high profile guests were in attendance, including The Loomba Foundation’s President Cherie Blair CBE QC, actress and human rights activist Bianca Jagger, Baroness Betty Boothroyd, Lord Navnit Dholakia, Lord Jim Wallace, Baroness Lindsey Northover, Virendra Sharma MP, Mr. G. P. Hinduja, Mr. Navin Jindal and among several others.

The Loomba Foundation has been marking June 23 as International Widows’ Day since 2005, five years before the Day was officially recognised by the UN in 2010, which marks the fifth anniversary this year. The proceeds of the charity dinner will be used to empower 5,000 widows in the holy Indian city of Varanasi, which has an estimated 38,000 widows in total. In the first phase, The Loomba Foundation aims to provide for sewing machine and garment making training to 1000 widows and is also accepting donations online.

In his message for the occasion, Ban Ki Moon, Secretary General of the United Nations, said, “On International Widows Day, let us resolve to end discriminatory attitudes and take action to ensure that widows of all ages enjoy equal human rights, including the right to

shape their own future and to participate fully in society. Widows are particularly vulnerable. The death of their partner can leave them in precarious living conditions, particularly in areas of conflict, natural disaster and humanitarian crisis. The United Nations is working on specific measures that can help widows, and I urge other partners to join these efforts.”

Rt. Hon. David Cameron MP, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, also conveyed his support through his message, “The Loomba Foundation has worked tirelessly to draw attention to the plight of widows and their children while also providing economic and social support, and education to widows and their families. This is why I am a patron of the Loomba Foundation. I hope the events planned for the 10th anniversary are a great success and would like to convey my thanks to everyone who works for and supports the Loomba Foundation for the incredibly important work it does for the world’s widows and their children.”

At the occasion, The Loomba Foundation also released its 274-page-long Global Widows Report 2015, which provides an overview of the deprivation faced by widows and their children worldwide, primary causes of widowhood in developed and developing countries, challenges and proposed practical solutions. The report estimates that the number of widows in the

the

national priorities force them to further ignore the cause of marginalized widows, which is why the strategic focus for The Loomba Foundation this year will be to try and secure specific recognition for widows in the UN’s post2015 sustainable development agenda.”

The Loomba Foundation’s 2015 Global Widows Report argues that while the UN’s Millennium Development Goals Founder and Chairman Trustee Lord Raj Loomba CBE addressing (or MDGs), set in the audience 2000, helped immenseTrustee Lord Raj Loomba world has gone up by 9% ly in creating a single CBE says, “As the quantisince 2010, and today framework of economic tative numbers of widows there are nearly 258.5 miland social development and their children continlion widows around the goals covering everything ues to swell, the qualitaworld, out of which nearly from reproductive health tive living standards of 100 million live in poverty to the environment, yet it widows are also deterioand 81 million have had to missed out on some key rating especially in regions face some sort of abuse. issues that were interof geopolitical conflicts, During 2010-2015, Middle linked with individual disease outbreaks or natuEast & North Africa are MDGs. As a result, unforral calamities, which is estimated to have seen the tunately, there was no becoming a humanitarian highest percentage focus on specific issues of emergency and significant increase of over 24% in widows in goals such as violation of basic human the number of widows. In Gender Equality and rights. This 2015 Global absolute terms, India, with Empowerment of women, Widows Report by The its 46.45 million widows, which were overshadowed Loomba Foundation has become the country by more well-known updates the data pubwith the largest number of issues. lished in our pioneering widows, displacing China In the post-2015 report in 2010, and aims to the #2 spot (44.59 milSustainable Development to help set an evidencelion). Over 38 million, or Goals (SDGs) framework based agenda for global 14.8%, of widows still live likely to be finalized at a policy and achieve due in extreme poverty worldUN Summit in New York recognition to the oftwide where even their in September this year, ignored deprivation of basic needs go unmet, The Loomba Foundation widows worldwide. It is though this number has is advocating for clear appalling to note that the gone down by 22% since guiding principles to set largest percentage of wid2010. The number of chilthe goals so that the develows of child bearing age, dren of widows has gone opment issues are better and the largest percentage up by 5.7% in the last five addressed by allowing the of widows under the age of years and today stands at inclusion of specific areas sixty, are in the 49 poorest more than half a billion such as widow’s deprivaor most underdeveloped (584.5 million), out of tion.

The Loomba countries identified by the which 1.5 million children Foundation will also United Nations as the die before their fifth birthlaunch a pledge campaign Least Developed day. to seek widespread, global Countries (LDCs). Their Founder and Chairman

public support to get recognition for the cause of widows in the SDGs. In India, Mr. Pratap Singh, Country Head of The Loomba Foundation distributed the ‘certificates of proficiency’ to the widows and destitute inmates of Faridabad jail who have successfully completed training in garment making. The scheme was launched last year jointly by The Loomba Foundation and the India Vision Foundation to empower 120 widows/destitute women including 40 inmates in the female wards of the Gurgaon and Faridabad jails.

The International Widows Day was also observed in Ludhiana district, where the first phase of empowerment project for widows in Punjab is being conducted. In partnership with the Punjab Government, The Loomba Foundation is providing free sewing machine and garment stitching training to 5000 widows in the state. Since the last 18 years, The Loomba Foundation has also been supporting education of the children of impoverished widows in India. In 2014-15, it has funded education of nearly 1700 children in 13 states of India including Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Maharashtra, Tamil Nadu, Uttarakhand, Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Mizoram.

International Widows Day has become a movement. It is being observed by a number of organisations in many developing countries in South Asia and across Africa.

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 4th July 2015

COMMENT

China backs Pakistan on terror mastermind

China stood shoulder to shoulder with its “all weather friend” Pakistan in the UN Security Council even as the other four of its permanent members, the United States, Britain, Russia and France condemned Islamabad for releasing Zakirur-Rehman Lakhvi, the mastermind behind the Mumbai 26/11 terror attack. China’s stand contradicts the understanding reached between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and the Chinese leadership during their talks in Beijing on deepening their commitment to fight terrorism. The Chinese veto was taken up at “the highest level”- which in ordinary language means by Mr Modi (in a telephone call) and External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj in a face-to-face meeting with her Chinese counterpart Wang Yi on the sidelines of a conference in Kathmandu on aid for Nepal following its recent devastating earthquake. Minister Swaraj made it clear that there could be no double standards on terrorism, her remark weighted with special significance after the recent terror attack in China’s Muslim majority province of Xinjiang in which 18 people were reportedly killed. Minister Wang promised to look into her complaint on Lakhvi. There has been much media hype in India on the allegedly new chapter in Sino-Indian relations. Tackling China requires a grasp of grand strategy and a good knowledge and understanding of Chinese history; and of the outlook of its rulers, ancient, modern and contemporary, on foreign countries. As India’s foreign minister in February 1979, Atal Bihari Vajpayee arrived in Beijing on what was described as a ground-breaking visit, only to be told that China had invaded Vietnam.

Humiliated, he took the plane back home from the airport. No lessons, it would appear, have been learned.

For a start, the border issue has relatively little importance per se (China accepted the same McMahon Line with Myanmar without much difficulty, which is also true of its land borders with its 13 other neighbours. The contentious border with India is not the cause but the symptom of SinoIndian tension, So what is it with the Sino-Indian relationship that is proving so intractable? The short answer is Chinese political authority and military power in Tibet. Like Xinjiang, Tibet is is conquered territory and local unrest has long been the

stuff of bad dreams and nightmares among China’s rulers.. What makes Tibet apparently so threatening to Beijing is the presence of the Dalai Lama on Indian soil, his continuing hold on the Tibetan people at home and in exile, compounded by the reverence of Indian public. He fled his homeland for the sanctuary of India, arriving there after a hazardous journey in April 1959. He sought asylum and his request was duly granted under International Law. This resulted in a severe loss of face for Mao’s regime and its successors. The subtext of Chinese diplomacy vis-à-vis India is that New Delhi should expel His Holiness outright or pressure him to leave for another country, preferably some distance from Tibet. That, of course, can never be. India as a Chinese tributary in substance, without the formality of the kowtow, is pure fantasy. Beijing must get real. China’s political autism is an abiding impediment to suspicion-free Sino-Indian relations.

However, bilateral trade and investment continue to thrive. Cooperation in the BRICS venture is an ongoing multilateral reality. That said, there are redlines that prevent true bonding between India and China. Beijing demands every Indian prime minister abjure visits to Arunachal Pradesh, to which it has laid claim. Beijing was miffed that Indian leaders from Arunachal Pradesh joined their peers from other Indian States and called on the Dalai Lama at his seat in Dharamsala to felicitate him on his birthday. There is, and has been in past eras, a recurring absurdity in China’s approaches to foreign powers, all considered ‘barbarians’ of one sort or another, each with its place in the scheme of things. Until Tibet is demilitarized and transformed into a zone of peace, Sino-Indian relations will never be free of tension and mistrust.

That is the bottom line.

India’s leaders must be prepared to play the long game, build up the country’s deterrent capability and cultivate enduring ties with Asian nations, foremost among them Vietnam and Japan, as the cog for its outreach into other critically powerful spheres. As China’s one abiding relationship is with Pakistan, a seedbed and exporter of jihadi terrorism in the region, handling Beijing’s vaulting ambition through an international concert of powers should be eminently possible. India would do well to give it a try and surprise itself.

We must keep our fingers crossed and hope that the British government will spare us the embarrassment of another of its insanities, in this instance, the purported expulsion of Indian nurses in the National Health Service (NHS) under tighter immigration rules. This requires that non-EU immigrants must earn an annual threshold of 35,000 pounds. This is likely to be beyond their limited pockets, but the sum should be easier for migrants from high income countries. The new rules which come into force from 2017, will place the residential rights of non-EU citizens in jeopardy.

Indians constitute the second-largest nursing staff in the UK after the Philippines. With over 15,000 nurses filling shortages within the NHS, Dr Peter Carter, the Chief Executive of the Royal College of Nursing (NCN) said the rules – under which immigrants will be sent home after six years if they do not earn the threshold salary – could increase NHS spending on recruitment from abroad. Short-staffed hospitals would be compelled to look overseas for replacements. Dr Carter

explains: “The UK will be sending away nurses who have contributed to the health service for six years. Losing their skills and knowledge and then having to start the cycle again and recruit to replace them is completely illogical.” Many nurses come to this country after global recruitment trawls

by NHS trusts, which flew out teams of managers to luxury hotels to interview and hire applicants, adding considerably to the expenditure of the cashstrapped NHS. According to one newspaper report, 100 such trips were made last year – a nine-fold rise in just two years.

A groundswell of immigrants risking life and limb to flee countries which Britain, her EU and NATO partners have done much to destroy, the immigration paranoia and increasing threat of jihadi terror is what Americans call “blowback,” has been the result. In short, the self-appointed guardians of global stability, having sown the wind are reaping the whirlwind. The case of the nurses is a piece of the larger picture of cynicism and ineptitude.

India’s Navodaya Schools for the educational uplift of the country’s rural and urban poor is, after long gestation, producing encouraging results. The scheme was the brainchild of the late prime minister, Rajiv Gandhi, in 1986. These government-funded residential institutions were authorized to admit children from locally run government institutions of indifferent quality.. Under the new dispensations pupils worked under a rigorous academic regime.

The project was (and is) far from perfect; critics say its focus is too narrow, that its outreach should be much greater. There is much truth here, but a first significant step to empower the disadvantaged through education is less risky than creating an entire system in one fell swoop, which fails to deliver. From the concrete experience of the present 580 Navodaya schools, surely a platform for expansion with more chances of success. So, what have been the results until now? Youngster living and studying together can be a rewarding

endeavour for all: students, staff, managers and the rest. Pupils received their early education in the mother tongue, with some among them now teaching English at the university level. Others have done well enough to qualify for admission into the demanding Indian Institutes of Technology (IIT). Here, explained Narvodaya mentors, the pupils needed some special tutoring.

They turned to Dakshana Foundation, which helped out without charge. That was in 2007.The breakthrough has resulted in a permanent arrangement under which Dakshana Foundation has taken responsibility for this extra mile of coaching for the IIT entrance examinations. Their rising intake is a wonderful tonic for others in the aspiration queue to perform as well or even better. It is an inspiring example of the upcoming Indian generation embracing a future that works, where education is key to vastly improved opportunities and a more fruitful life.

Possible deportation of Indian nurses

Indian education scheme bearing fruit

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The best way to cheer yourself up is to try to cheer somebody else up - Mark Twain (1835-1910)

“Our London” Navin Shah

GLA Member for Brent and Harrow

Shyamali’s Mountain At a recent private gathering in Harrow the following personal – powerful real story was read out by the host. I was touched by this personal journey expressing emotion, passion and love.

I’m happy to share this with you with the express permission of the author.

I want to talk about a strange story relating a little girl, a very young mother and a mountain peak. In fact all this happened long before most of you were even born.

This was in 1948.

The day before, the young mother was busy baking a large batch of cupcakes. After that she iced them beautifully with rose pink, daffodil yellow and snow white.

This her only daughter’s sixth birthday. She will eat one and rest she will take for other children to Loretto Chalet. The town was Simla, up on the hills. The mother also put the final touches to the lovely blue dress which she stitched herself for her daughter.

The little girl would look lovely in blue, also, that was her favourite colour.

In the household the young mother did everything herself. This was just after the war. Father was the Head of local export import department of Government of India. Lot of future prospect. He had one great drawback. His honesty was as straight and rigid as a barrel of a gun. He had lot of prestige, respect and even love from the department and the community. At home there was lot of love, laughter and happiness. But one commodity was in short supply. Money. And there was an eternal pressure of demand for money

from the extended family. But the young mother coped.

The 15th came. The mother asked the little one to close her eyes and wish whatever she wanted. The girl did that and then asked the mother to close her eyes and come to the window.

When they were there she told her mother ‘I want that’. Mother could not see anything.

She said what? The little one picked her father’s binoculars and asked her mother to look through it. The young mother could only see a mountain peak. She said there is nothing there but only a mountain.

Now the girl said ‘that is what I want’. The mother was exasperated. It’s too big, you will never be able to hold it. The little girl said ‘He is big and strong. He will hold me and carry me. You promised last year whatever I want this year you will give me. You will have to say - I give you that mountain’. Tired mother said ‘all right I give you that mountain’.

Now, the girl came with final demand ‘you will have to say that is Shyamali’s mountain’.

Mother conceded and said that was ‘Shyamali’s mountain’.

The following day little Shyamali was picked up by Rev Mother Marie Therese, together with the whole batch of cupcakes. She could not wait to meet her friends.

They all asked her what she got on her birthday.

With a bright open face she said ‘my mother gave me that mountain’.

Some laughed, some got puzzled some even felt jealous.

Word got around, Shyamali’s now got a mountain.

Continued on page 6

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MIDLANDS VOICE

Father jailed after 14 year old Bangladeshi girl married off to a 30 year old man

A father has been jailed for 14 weeks after his 14 year old daughter was married off to a Bangladeshi man on her birthday. The husband, who is now in Bangladesh, went on later to allegedly assault her sexually.

A Manchester newspaper reported that she was woken up on her 14th birthday and forced to marry a man aged in his 30s in the lounge of her family home. Her father has now been jailed after he admitted child cruelty.

The girl’s husband, now in Bangladesh, went on to have intercourse with her forcefully.

The newspaper reported that she had no idea what was going on during the ceremony, which was performed by an Imam, or the language being spoken, but was ‘pinched’ by a relative at certain points to indicate that she should speak, a court was told.

The Manchester Crown Court heard that she was woken up on the morning of her 14th birthday and asked to stay back at home, while her siblings went off to school. She was then dressed by relatives in wedding finery

and jewelry and married off to the much older man by imams, who conducted the ceremony in Bengali.

It took place at their family home in 2013. She did not understand the language. An aunt stood behind her and pinched her at the appropriate time for her to speak. Once the ceremony finished, she was immediately changed back to normal clothes.

The case came to light when the girl ran away from home and flagged down a passing police car.

Elizabeth Nichols, prosecuting, said there were ‘cultural pressures’ forced on the girl’s father by others and he was ‘not alone’ in facilitating the marriage, but said he was ‘uniquely placed’ to protect her.

BMA celebrates voluntary work of doctors

Building on the success of last year, the British Medical Association (BMA) is again running a competition that celebrates the voluntary work carried out by doctors, and the help they deliver to those in need.

The ‘Doctors as Volunteers’ competition invites doctors from across the UK to share their experiences of the challenging and varied work they have done at home and abroad, by creating a poster to promote their cause and highlight what they have learned.

The posters are being shown in the exhibition area at the BMA’s annual representative meeting in Liverpool this week, where two winners have been chosen.

Dr Faraaz de Belder, an anesthetist from Sheffield, produced one of the winning posters on her voluntary work as a special constable for West Yorkshire police, where she works alongside police officers on routine patrol, planned drug raids and arresting offenders with a warrant.

The second winner is Claire Ferraro, a voluntary doctor from London, who worked in Freetown, Sierra Leone with King’s Sierra Leone Partnership, helping victims who had signs or

symptoms linked to the Ebola crisis.

One of the runners up, was an Indian origin man Dr Anil Joshi from London, who has been volunteering in Asia’s poorest country at the Bairo Pite Clinic in Timor Lest, where she uses her skills and experience to provide care for almost 400 patients a day.

Dr Joshi said that volunteering for the Bairo Pite clinic is very rewarding: “The Timorese people are rebuilding their lives after years of conflict and their ambitious willingness to advance is inspirational.

“The organisation relies on charitable donations, with people volunteering their time.

You can’t put a price on how rewarding the work and experience is."

Dr Ian Wilson, BMA representative body chair, said: “As doctors, we have a unique set of skills and expertise that can be used to help individuals and communities around the world...

“We are tremendously impressed to see so many doctors involved in this and a range of other voluntary activities, and it is a privilege to be able to recognise the importance of undertaking voluntary work.”

Her father, who has no previous convictions, was in Bangladesh at the time she ran away but returned home at once and surrendered. But the court heard that in initial interviews, he reportedly told police that a birthday party had taken place and the Imam attended to give his daughter a blessing.

The defence lawyer reportedly said that her father now ‘displayed real insight’ and posed no threat after being placed on a series of forced marriage courses.

He said: “He did not envisage or wish any harm to come to his daughter.

"He would never have consented, and did not consent, to any physical contact. The marriage, in

my submission, is clearly void. The complainant has not given her consent.

“A message has clearly has to be sent out to communities. Values and beliefs have to be adapted.”

Judge Patrick Field QC said the ceremony was ‘beyond her understanding’ because she didn’t speak Bengali.

He told her father: “It was not your intention that there should be any physical contact between husband and wife until she was 18.

“But this case is brought against you because you are her father. You owe to her certain grave duties.

"Duties to nurture and to protect your daughter during her childhood. You were in breach of those duties. By forcing her into this union you betrayed her.

“It is important to stress that the law of England and Wales is that young girls should be free from such a threat and the courts will be diligent in enforcing this law.”

No charges are being brought against anyone else.

Asian couple jailed for running immigration racket

Shohidul Islam

Anwara, wife of Islam

An Asian couple have been jailed when it was discovered that they ran an immigration racket which allowed migrants to live illegally in Britain, while collecting benefits.

Father of four Shohidul Islam, 41, and his 39-year old wife Anwara were arrested after a Bangladeshi migrant was discovered in a secret hideout in their loft, having outstayed a Government visa for two years, the Daily Mail reported.

Immigration officers raided Islam's extended detached property in Burnley, Lancashire, and discovered Shafik Miah, hiding under a pile of suitcases.

They also found a haul of counterfeit Bangladeshi passports and National insurance cards in the couple's wardrobe, along

with 270 pages of documentation which alleged that a local restaurant owner Abdul Shahid (47), who ran the Sunar Gar restaurant in Bolton, had acted as a sponsor for 12 Bangladeshi nationals between 2005-10 applying for entry clearance to the UK. One man sponsored by Shahid and had been granted a six month family visit visa in February 2007, but was found working in the UK in 2012. He was arrested whilst working in a restaurant in North Wales, where he used a fake passport in the name of Rumel Ahmed.

Shahid was convicted of passport charges and was jailed for 30 months.

His nephew Mohammed Uddin, 42, who failed to turn up for the hearing after being convicted of

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 4th July 2015

Hindu British Army doctor awarded Fellowship of the Royal College of Physicians of Glasgow

Hindu British Army doctor, Colonel Ricky Bhabutta OBE, has been awarded the Fellowship of the Royal College of Physicians of Glasgow.

At a ceremony held at University of Glasgow on Wednesday 10 June 2015, he received the award as part of the Royal College of Physician and Surgeons of Glasgow's annual award ceremony.

He is the son of Roshan Bhabutta, the current President of the Milton Keynes Hindu Association and a former Colonel in the army himself. Ricky was accompanied by his wife Nicola and daughter Miah on this very special day.

Ricky said: “I am delighted that my work has been recognised in this way by the Royal College of Physicians

and Surgeons of Glasgow.”

His award follows significant groundbreaking contribution he has made to health care in the military including a major smoking cessation programme, and the Scottish Physician Assistant project.

Ricky currently lives in Edinburgh with his family and is the Regional Clinical Director for Scotland and Northern Ireland with responsibility for running the medical facilities for the Navy, Army and the Royal Air Force.

He also sits on the Committee of Medical Managers for the British Medical Association and on a GP Working Group for the Faculty of Medical Leadership and Management.

claiming Miah would be in danger if he returned to Bangladesh.

Though it is believed Miah is now back in Bangladesh.

Passing sentence, Recorder Tania Griffiths QC reportedly said the racket was Mohammed Uddin and Abdul Shahid a 'smoothly run identity document operation' which enabled offences was jailed for 13 the couple to 'reap finanand a half months in his cial benefits.' absence.

In mitigation, defence Islam has now also counsel Keith Harrison been jailed for five and a for Mr Islam said that he is half years and his wife highly regarded by his jailed for two years and community and people three months after they from all walks of life. He were both found guilty of has worked for charity, assisting unlawful immilocal community politics gration. He was also found and he was a businessman guilty of possessing false everyone looked upto. passports and she was This offence would be fall convicted of possessing from grace. He is also the identity documents withsole bread winner and out reasonable excuse. absence of any parents will Both said they were acting cause enormous difficulty on 'humanitarian grounds', and hardship to the family.

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 4th July 2015

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UK

Cllr David Perry

Leader of the Council

Harrow full of exciting community festivals During the summer Harrow is full of exciting community festivals, and this year has been no different.

Already this summer I have attended the Harrow Vaisakhi Mela community festival with the Mayor.

Although this is an annual celebration for the Sikh community, residents of all backgrounds and cultures were there in Byron Park to enjoy the food, music and dance. It was a great day out with some impressive and enjoyable traditional dance performances from all those who took part.

The 10th Annual Sports Day at Roger Bannister Sports Centre, hosted by the Sri Lankan Muslim Cultural Centre, has been another enjoyable community event to visit over the past few weeks, with people of all ages taking part in a fun filled day. I would like to say a big thank you to the organisers who do such a great job of bringing the event together every year – It’s great to see our local communities using our local leisure facilities such as the Roger Bannister stadium.

Over the past few weeks there has

been some important community events taking place in Harrow. It was also a pleasure to attend the Mayor’s Annual Civic Service at St Mary’s Church, Harrow-on-the-Hill, and to meet all the local organisations involved in this ceremony.

Our newly elected Mayor, Cllr Krishna Suresh, has already been out and about in the community, from attending the Harrow Shopmobility's 21st Anniversary AGM to the celebration of the day of diversity of Camrose School in Edgware. As we would expect of the Mayor he performed all of his duties at the Civic Service with the dignity we would expect of his position.

The Annual Flag Raising Ceremony in the Civic Centre was also rightfully well attended; it is important that as a Borough we give thanks to our residents who are currently serving in the Armed Services.

These traditional events, as well as all of the community events, are an important part of Harrow’s calendar and I would like to thank everyone involved and who attended.

Tesco receives flak for placing bacon-flavoured crisps in Ramadan stand A Tesco store at Liverpool Street, London has come under major scrutiny after placing bacon-flavoured Pringles in a Ramadan promotional stand.

The consumption of pork is forbidden by those who follow the faith of Islam. Many people have questioned why Tesco decided to use Ramadan to promote their smokey bacon Pringles crisps.

Many people tweeted about the irony of having a pork-flavoured product in a Ramadan stand.

However, 25-year-old Raza Hassan, who spotted the deal at Tesco, found it rather “hilarious”. He said, “They had other flavours as well, it just seemed someone had stacked them in to the

Continued from page 3

Debt-ladened Britons groomed to smuggle illegal immigrants It is said that Britons who are ladened with debt have been targeted and groomed by people traffickers to smuggle illegal migrants from Calais, France.

Mostly students who are facing financial difficulties, or bars and shop ownerswhose business were failing are targeted by gangs to pose as tourists and smuggle people into Britain in their vehicles. The criminals believe that this is less likely to raise suspicion, compared to carrying the illegal migrants in a lorry.

They offer up to £3,000 a trip. Prosecutors have revealed that one in four people who were caught for such activities at the French port were British.

Additionally, around 100 Britons were imprisoned in France for smuggling offences in 2014.

French lawyer, Emmanuelle Osmont, speaks about how the mafia groups target. She said, “The first approach might be in a café. They make friends... and bit by

bit they become interested in them, asking them about their personal and professional situation. It can take weeks, but when they have formed enough of a bond, they present the human trafficking as a way of helping friends or family fleeing war or persecution.”

Osmont also warned of the dangers of getting involved with these gangs.

“They threaten people and their children. Once you start working with them, they'll never let you go.”

Many of the drivers get caught when they

return for a second or third trip. They ultimately serve a prison term of between 6 months and two years.

Basir Haji, from Preston, also tried to smuggle illegal immigrants to the UK. He was caught at the Calais ferry terminal with two Iraqi men who were hiding in his car boot. He had agreed to smuggle them for £500. Basir Haji served 12 months in jail.

Before being jailed, Haji had stated, “I'm in debt. That's why I did it.

I've been playing a lot of money in the casino.”

A 34-year-old woman was found dead on 23rd June 2015, in Gerrards Cross.

Police have revealed the identity of the victim, Anita Kapoor, from Hayes and the case is being treated as murder.

Following the post mortem, the police said that the cause of death was “asphyxiation, due to compress of the neck.”

Kapoor was last seen at 3am on 23rd June, in Southall. Part of the route from Uxbridge to Denham was closed after a dead body was found.

Thames Valley Police arrested a man from Hayes in suspicion of murder. Det Supt Gill Wootton said, “We would like to speak to anyone who recognises Anita and knows of her whereabouts

between 3am yesterday, when she was last seen in Oswald Road, Southall, West London, and 8.36am yesterday when her body was found in Gerrards Cross... We would appeal to anyone who has knowledge of Anita or her movements in the early hours of the 23 June to contact the investigation team.”

Wootton further stated, “Our priorities are to identify and arrest those responsible for Anita’s death and support her family at this difficult time. The family of Anita have asked that the media respect their privacy at this difficult time. Thames Valley Police are working with their counterparts in the Hillingdon and Ealing Boroughs of the Metropolitan Police, both

Victim: Anita Kapoor, from Hayes

in terms of the investigation and also the protection and reassurance of local communities in both force areas.”

If you have any information regarding this case and do not wish to speak to the police, alternatively, you can contact Crimestoppers anonymously on 0800 555 111.

It has been said that one of Prime Minister David Cameron's advisor has given the suggestion of introducing an “entry fee” of £3 million for wealthy foreigners who want to stay in the UK; this would help tame the immigration wave. Sir David Metcalf, chairman of the influential migration advisory committee (MAC), said the sale of 100 fast track “investor visas” each year would raise £3 billion over a decade. Metcalf suggested the funds could be used for immigration “enforce-

ment”, in order to prevent the kind of scenes witnessed in Calais, France, as migrants tried to vehicles to get into the UK. In 2014, 1,018 rich foreigners were granted investor visas. Half were Chinese and 19% were Russians. Metcalf said, “We are paying the Russian oligarchs to come here but getting nothing from it. The system doesn’t work for UK residents in my view. Why don’t we have a system where UK residents can get something?”

Sir David Metcalf

Immigrants camp at the Calais port, France

34-year-old woman from Hayes murdered

Tesco at Liverpool Street, London

Ramadan promotional one by mistake! It didn’t offend me at all – but the irony of it was hilarious.”

The bacon-flavoured Pringles do not actually contain pork and use flavouring to gain their taste. The crisps are suitable for vegans, vegetarians, as well as Muslims.

Tesco has accepted

that this was an inappropriate move. A Tesco spokesperson said, “We are proud to offer a wide range of meals and products to meet the needs of our customers during Ramadan. We recognise these Pringles weren’t in the most suitable place and our store colleagues have now moved them.”

and before she passed away went to attend a funeral at Breakspear Crematorium. Shyamali and her husband reached earlier than the appointed time. It was a warm, sunny day. They went towards the garden to pass the time. With a faraway look she mentioned ‘I would like to come here’.

Her husband said ‘one Day we might come to visit this beautiful garden’.

She muttered ‘you don’t understand’. When she passed away, the husband remembered and understood what she had said.

Shyamali was cremated at Breakspear, strangely enough the tree was allocated by the management as her memorial tree was at the corner where Shyamali went and the same tree she was looking at with the faraway look.

Her ashes were spread in

another garden. The spot and the final resting ground was not selected by the family. With insistence of Melany - a young woman officer, her husband accompanied her there after two years. It is a calm and peaceful place.

By the side there is a bench to sit. While asked how they remembered the spot. Melany replied ‘it is recorded in the computer.

Shyamali’s spot is K8’.

The grief stricken old man got startled. That is Shyamali’s mountain – K8. Still big and strong enough to hold her final remains. Melany asked ‘would you like to go back now’? The old man said ‘No. I would like to stay for a while’. He felt the warmth from the glow of the setting sun.

Happiness came over him. He had a lovely evening.”

Shyamali’s Mountain

Rev Mother Marie Theresa, who was the mother superior of that chalet, called Shyamali and asked her about the birthday gift. Shyamali said “my mother gave me a mountain”. Rev Mother said what is the name of the mountain? Little Shyamali proudly replied ‘Shyamali’s mountain’.

Rev Mother said ‘alright before yesterday that mountain had a name K8’.

Little Shyamali did not like this conversation.

She thought Rev Mother was trying to con her to take the mountain away.

She firmly replied “the name is Shyamali’s mountain and I like this name”.

The little girl is not little anymore. She got married and came over to England. Had children and grandchildren. Got ill

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 4th July 2015

Suggestions on charging the rich £3m for staying in Britain

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 4th July 2015

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As I See It

Like you all, I grieve too

What happened last Friday in over three continents, and what happened in our own London ten years ago next Tuesday (7th July), as well as all such atrocities world wide was and are shocking and painful for all irrespective of his or her religion, gender or colour.

The horrific butchery of British nationals in Tunisia last Friday has been very widely reported. British print media, like its other sources, have reflected the agony, pain and frustration of an average Briton. Let me quote two respectable national dailies.

In it's edit on Saturday, The Times headline was: “Blood stained religion: Islamist terrorists will continue to kill innocents without warning until Islam purges itself from the inside of this vile parody of faith”. In The Sunday Times the comment was much more clear: “Hit them hard and hit them hard again”. In The Telegraph the average sentiment of all those who live in this country were reflected with the comment: “A poisonous ideology”. On Sunday it was followed up in the comment of The Sunday Telegraph: “The West must prepare for a fight that it has to win”.

Most people worldwide have predicted much more bloodshed before it gets better.

Some fear that the Shia minority is bearing the brunt of fellow muslims who call themselves Sunnis. More muslims are killed by their fellow muslims, all in the name of their pure religious beliefs.

I speak as someone who takes pride in his own faith tradition. I am a Hindu. Hindus are very fortunate. I believe in one God with different names. I accept that believers can choose their

preferred deity or ideology. Hinduism is also very clear, even a person who professes to have no belief is also a believer.

Thank goodness. Hindus do not kill other hindus let alone the followers of other faiths or the so called "unbelievers". I am especially going through enormous pain, because I happen to know several victims and some perpetrators of the violence, through some connections.

About 400, mainly Pakistani Muslims, are serving prison sentences for being found guilty of terrorist activities in Britain. Indian Muslims are indeed very few, thank goodness. Why is there so much difference in the behaviour between Indian Muslims and their counterparts from the neighbours of India?

Indeed there has been some Hindus who also hobnobed directly or indirectly with Islamic terrorism. One young man in northwest London, brought up in a traditional Hindu family, converted to Islam and took part in a ghastly attempt. In another case a British Hindu, is serving time in an American jail for attempted terrorist activity. It is sad that such vulnerable, misguided or trusting individuals were brainwashed or inspired by some bigots. I also happen to know families of at least three suicide bombers with connections in India particularly Gujarat. Those two young men who have died in Syria in the past year who were Gujarati Muslims are from hard working, devote and peace loving Muslim families and I know that all their relations and acquaintances look back more in sadness than anger.

Recently I was speaking to some of my Muslim friends who know someone else who

were perpetrators of such heinous crimes against humanity.

Surprisingly, they also wonder whether the terrorists have reached heaven or not with all the different bonuses or attractions repeatedly promised by those who groom them. I don’t.

What I know is that all those who are dead, even the attackers and suicide bombers, have loved ones who miss them.

I have one easy recourse – whenever there is so much pain and agony and other anxieties, I can look at the Srimad Bhagavad Gita. I, as a Hindu, can have my own interpretation. I do not desire moksha or nirvan. I don’t believe in rebirth. I only believe in karma yoga. I, as someone who was privileged to be born a human being, can enjoy and serve best by his own thoughts and words and actions. But at the same time I know the pain and loss of so many people whose loved ones were victims of these dangerous band of terrorists and who give Islam such a bad name.

Islam in it's purest form surely does not preach such inhuman, intolerant, hateful and blood thirsty ideology.

Not in the name of my many many Muslims friends can one justify such religious bigotry and madness. Terrorists can never win. Perhaps the recent upsurge in terrorism reflects their own exhaustion and desperation. They ought to be defeated and, like in the past, they will defeat themselves.

Next week when we pray at the 10th anniversary of what happened in London with our own home grown terrorists, we will all pause, think and try to be better human beings.

- CB

Male graduates earn more than females in their first jobs

According to the Higher Education Statistics Agency, male graduates earn more than women within six months of leaving university.

It is said that three in ten men who left university in 2014 were earning more than £25,000 per annum by January 2015, which is compared with less than a fifth of women.

However, a report by the Office for National Statistics earlier in 2015 showed that women earned more than men until they were 35. But

the Higher Education Statistics Agency figures, which focuses on salaries six months after graduating, suggested male graduates are better at attaining a well-paid first job.

The largest average starting salaries were in medicine and dentistry (£30,000), veterinary science (£26,000) and engineering and technology (£25,000).

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 4th July 2015

Londoners invited to help Conservative party choose its candidate The Conservative Party will be holding a primary to select its candidate for the 2016 London Mayoral Election. Anyone in London who is on the electoral roll will be able to register to vote to help the party choose who will stand for the Conservatives in the election next year.

The current Mayor of London Boris Johnson was selected as the Conservative candidate in 2007 using a primary and the party is again giving all Londoners the opportunity to be involved in the process.

Applications are now open and by the end of July a shortlist of 2-3 candidates will go forward to the primary.

During the summer the shortlisted candidates will campaign across the capital including taking part in several official hustings. Following the online vote, the Conservative candidate will be announced in September.

London Regional Chairman Ian Twinn, said: “Once again we are inviting Londoners to help us choose our candidate for the London Mayoral Election.

Anyone, whether or not they are a party member, can register to vote in the primary. This will give everyone in London ownership of the process.

“In 2016 Londoners will face a choice: we can build on the great achievements under Boris Johnson which has seen more jobs created, transport infrastructure improved and more homes built, or let in a Labour candidate who will only offer more borrowing, more spending and higher taxes – taking London backwards.”

Senior Conservative, Syed Kamall, MEP for London, has officially launched his bid to become the next Mayor of London at the Roehampton estate in South West London.

The MEP choose the Regenerate Project this morning to be the venue for the launch because it summed up so much of Mr Kamall`s philosophy for his bid. Regenerate help youngsters in Roehampton find a new path in life.

In his speech he said, "This is a truly inspirational project and for me which represents in real life what my friends teas-

ingly call 'Kamall Conservatism.'.

Mr Kamall, said it was his parents who instilled so many of the values he holds dear today, "My father came to London in the 1950s to work on the railways and then drove a bus.

My parents faced many challenges, and yes discrimination was one of them. Of course it was.

Life wasn’t easy, but they told me that there was no limit to what you could achieve if you worked hard and believed in yourself.

They shaped my views and indeed my career to date."

He grew up in Edmonton and now lives with his wife and family near Kingston Upon Thames. He currently represents the whole of London as an MEP for London at the European Parliament but says that while he spends a few days every week in Brussels, most of the time he is here in our city, helping projects.

Since the news emerged on Friday morning, Mr Kamall says he has been inundated with messages of support from across London and says he hopes now to represent their needs at City Hall.

The first hearing against Lord Janner of Braunstone (86), in the sex abuse case will be taking place in the criminal courts in August. He will be prosecuted for serious sex offences against children between the 1960s and the 1980s.

This decision goes against Alison Saunders' verdict in April, who stated that it would not be in the public interest to convict Janner due to his severe dementia, even though there was sufficient evidence against him

in the child sex abuse case.

Saunders, the director of public prosecutions (DPP) had rejected the advice of a senior barrister and expert on child abuse cases in reaching her verdict. Her decision was heavily criticised by politicians and victims’ rights groups.

Additionally, many of the alleged victims of Lord Janner demanded their right of review and the DPP appointed an independent QC to reconsider the case. Alison Saunders

London MEP officially launches his bid to become the next Mayor

Lord Janner to be prosecuted for serious sex offences against children

Lord Janner

has refused to stand down and hand in her resignation over the case.

UK

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 4th July 2015

Rani Singh, Special Assignments Editor

Poonam Bevli Sahi; Painting and Designing a Life in Art Born in Ahmedabad in 1958, Poonam Bevli Sahi studied graphic design and set up her own design studio, Facet Design. The company has, over the years, produced corporate dossiers and other communication material. A special interest is the illustration of children’s books.

Poonam has been painting professionally to critical acclaim for several years. She has been exhibited a number of times in India and abroad, with her paintings forming a part of several private collections around the world.

Poonam’s work has been shown at the prestigious Lalit Kala Akademi in Delhi. In 2003, she was given the honour of being the first Indian artist to exhibit her show Frames within Frames at the Sofitel Atrium Gallery at Melbourne, Australia. She participated in a group exhibition at the Centre of Punjabi Literature and Art, New Delhi, and in a

group exhibition in Singapore.

A l l i a n c e Francaise de Delhi exhibited Poonam’s work along with others in their gallery at the opening of their new building.

Poonam said that she chose art as a career as a result of her upbringing.

“I was always in art because of the exposure my mother gave me.

She used to paint and my sister did too. So that was the environment I grew up in,” she said.

Poonam’s desire to paint emerged from a quest for change and self expression. She works best with oil on board as it lends itself to a certain raw texture that she prefers.

Her works reveal her Buddhist leanings and are

Poonam Bevli Sahi

replete with the elements of India: sarees, colours, spirituality and serenity.

There is perhaps a social content embedded within her oeuvre too.

Her paintings emerge as a series on a particular theme, with a leitmotif such as the lotus, frames within frames, masks, angels, and moon etc.

34 school kids in Belgium bus crash, kills driver A bus carrying 34 school pupils from the age of 11 and 13, from a school in Brentwood, Essex, crashed on a Belgian motorway in the morning of 28th June 2015. The crash killed the driver, James 'Geordie' Chance, who was a grandfather-offive. The bus had crashed into a motorway bridge pillar. A 13-year-old boy had to be taken to the intensive care unit as he had fractured his skull in the accident. However, the head of the Brentwood school, Ian Davies said that the boy is out of the ICU as his brain scan was positive.

Another boy, of the age of 12 is being treated in hospital for leg injuries at a hospital in Bruges.

Many students returned back to the UK late Sunday night on a coach arranged by the school. Rajiv Devesh Mehta (13) was also on the bus when the accident took place. He suffered no injuries and has come back home safely.

The Headteacher said, “There was quite a welcoming party when the coach eventually drew up.

I was quite shocked at some of the injuries the teachers had sustained.”

Ian Davies went on to state that counsellors would be available to the pupils and teachers. “I

At the scene of the accident, in Belgium

would expect staff who were involved in the trip and certainly all the children to make use of that

counselling opportunity. I don't think it's a quick fix, its something that will go on for long time."

Poonam is most comfortable with figures and it is the female form that she is compelled to portray. In her canvasses the woman surfaces, sometimes with a Madonna-like intensity, sometimes in the guise of a sadhvi, sometimes wrapped in the solitude of an individual who is content to live within her own isolation.

Poonam explained, “my style is essentially figurative but I do occasionally have adventure in art. I am at the moment working on a series that combines digital with oil, so traditional with funk... but my style remains identifiable.”

B r e a k i n g Australia was not so hard for Poonam, since art and talent travel easily. She explained, “Art is universal.

There was much curiosity about an Indian artist since there have not been many who have exhibited.

But the reactions are pretty much the same as in India.”

She found no particular challenges in setting up her company.

“Clients came mainly through word of mouth.

One satisfied client brings in others.

Now because of the elec-

tronic media, there has been an impact on the printed work though.”

Facet Design does graphic design, printing, publishing, websites, documents, social media, and animation. “We work mainly with the development sector,” Poonam commented.

Poonam’s studio was selected by Lord Desai to design and create the brochure for the unveiling of the Mahatma Gandhi statue earlier this year in Parliament Square. She recalled, “A publisher friend I had worked with on a project recommended us

“My style is essentially figurative but I do occasionally have adventure in art” Poonam Bevli Sahi since they did not have the time to take it on. So, since we love challenges, we took it on. We had a tough deadline but we delivered. I must say, Lord Desai is a completely lovely person, so utterly simple and accessible.”

A lot of design studios in India have folded, but Poonam has kept hers going, running it singlehanded, to boot.

9

“I like to believe that we are an easy studio to work with. We try and become an extension of the organisation we are working with. We are also very particular about meeting our deadlines and quality.

We have great integrity as an organisation. We are still working with our first client...from 20 years ago.”

But there is one challenge.

“Keeping up to date with technology. Our work is technology driven, so it becomes important to have a young mind which is receptive to a rapidly changing world.”

Poonam still paints, but finding time is not easy.

“I have to steal time.

I enjoy it so much and it relaxes me, almost like meditation. I paint in my office, so I always have an incomplete canvas lying around challenging me to finish it.

Poonam Bevli Sahi is always busy, combining work with caring for her family. She looks elegant and calm. She practises yoga regularly in her home and is at a proficient level. She even manages a property portfolio!

“Everyone has 24 hours in a day. Its how you use the time that makes the difference,” she ended, thoughtfully.

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www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 4th July 2015

Subjects for Indian Muslims’ introspection

India’s Proud Achievement-Yoga Day

British Muslims supporting ISIS

India has been and still is the home of many religions. But Muslims are the only people that demanded separate homeland for them and forced partition of India and created Pakistan. In other words Muslims did not consider India as their home. So how many Indian Muslims would now leave India and make Pakistan their home? Why Muslims from Bangladesh and even from Pakistan are coming back to India? If Pakistan was the right thing for Muslims, how come Muslims of Pakistan started killing each other and got herself split into two countries?

Pakistan is now the home of Taliban and al Qaeda and epicentre of international terrorism. It is the country from where thousands of terrorists are sent to different parts of the world to cause mayhem through indiscriminate and brutal killing of completely innocent people.

Therefore, was creation of Pakistan the right thing to do? Is it what they wanted Pakistan to be?

Is it not the time to introspect on how they became Muslims in India and take necessary steps to cooperate with the ruling party BJP and its leader Narendra Modi for social and national unity and right thinking and policy for the good of all concerned? It is time to resolve issues and reject sectarian interest.

Jatindra Saha By email

Indians worldwide must be proud that 21st June has been proclaimed the international day for Yoga. Thousands of people across the town and cities of India and world over celebrated this historical event in style and enthusiasm. Modiji has reached another milestone.

Yoga is a most precious gift to humankind by India. It has been accepted for many years with open mind in west for the holistic benefits of this timeless practice and its compatibility with individuals. It’s a multi-billion pound industry. A famous celebrity Madonna has endorsed yoga.

Yoga offers a simple, accessible and inclusive means to promote physical, spiritual wealth and well-being. It promotes respect for fellow human-being and the planet we share. Yoga is neither a religion, not should be seen as belonging to any particular religion. It’s a science, the science of integrating body, mind and soul. It helps connecting into your inner self, improves concentration, boosts mental power, relieves stress and contributes for longevity.

Let us unite through the medium of Yoga and promote peace and harmony in the world for our common good. Amen.

Your report on the above subject is very significant. David Cameron is hundred percent right in pointing out that British Muslim parents and community as a whole are doing nothing in stopping their wards from joining forces with the ‘ISIS’ in Syria and fighting for them.

Baroness Warsi is taking objection to this statement that Muslims are not doing anything to confront ISIS. Furthermore, she is maintaining that hardly a few hundred British Muslims are supporting ISIS. Unfortunately, it has been a tale repeated by the British Muslims that they have no hand in opposing the British standpoint. By now it is becoming quite evident that there is serious opposition to British participation against Muslims anywhere in the World. British Muslims are very to Muslims everywhere in the worls as they also believe in the Islamic world as one entity.

ISIS is fighting to preserve the Islamic values as they understand it.

Muslims as a whole are quite supportive of their fight against Christianity. If they have to choose between ISIS and British values they will perhaps vote for the former. It is a very well known fact that ‘a Muslim is a Muslim first and last’.

Sorry, not interested

Dinesh Sheth of Ilford highlighted an exasperating problem here last week - the nuisance telephone callers who are either trying to sell you something you don't need or attempting to trap you into a scam and making off with any money you might have. One persistent phone call I receive almost daily is the recorded voice of a posh lady who expresses concern that I have not yet claimed any PPI. I simply put the phone down.

Every day I find myself saying "Sorry, not interested" to a stream of callers and ringing off. People less polite than myself might tell them to "go away" or words to that effect. Internet scams are also flooding people's inboxes and should be deleted without opening them.

Rudy Otter By email

Different view points

In response to Rudy Otter’s letter in AV 27th June 2015 may I say that there are far too many regulars who appear to hog (if I may use this word with respect) the letter pages. They have their thoughts printed every week and some more often than they should. I respect all these intellectual regulars but would love to read different view points from other Asians who read the paper. I hope (whatever the quality of these other letter writers) they will be published.

K Parmar By email

Niranjan Vasant London

India Overseas Trust

I was pleased to read Jyotsna Thanki’s letter about The India Overseas Trust in Asian Voice (Asian Voice 20th June 2015). Clearly there is a concern. Those who play a part in public life, must expect that people are entitled to ask questions and have them answered properly. ....I wish to echo Jyotsna’s comments and praise your columnist Dhiren Katwa.

I hear that his pen is so powerful and sharp that even the so-called pillars of our community shy away from hearing the truth. After all there are our community leaders want to please everyone and maintain their financial interests. As the old Indian saying goes, they tell the policeman to keep watch, while telling the thief to steal. Such is the sorry and selfish society in which we live today.

I have been aware of the series of stories by Dhiren about the India Overseas Trust and in fact I did wonder if the matter had been settled. I applaud Mrs Thanki for prompting this debate and I’m rather shocked that the trustees of The India Overseas Trust have still, two years on, not made their accounts public.

Surely, this must be a legal requisite of charity commission.

I would urge Asian Voice to provide an update on this story as I do believe it is of public interest, especially if the money has been raised in the name of charity. If the charity has already provided the accounts, then I do beg your pardon Sir, but even then a report to reflect this would be much appreciated.

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Ranjit. S. Sohal MD Magiled (UK) Ltd.) Ex- Chair of BCABA Board member of BCCC (Walsall)

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Tunisia: Facts and Fictions

It is time to face reality, blame our naïve fiduciary politicians who sent these tourists to their death, when everyone knows that tourist hotspots like Tunisia, Egypt, Libya and even UAE and Maldives are no longer safe heaven they once were envisaged. Cruise liners abandoned these ports as well as Alexandrea and Suez, after massacre of passengers outside museum in Tunis.

British people misguided by media and politicians have fallen hook, line and sinker to the charm of these sun drenched land whose culture, customs and traditions are million miles apart from ours.

In mid-eighties we used to visit Tunisia often but talking to locals we soon realised that they only tolerated Westenras for employment tourism generated in countries that has nothing much to offer.

Hidden behind plastic smiles, youthful charm and phraseological sentences, there was utter contempt for Western values. Sun-bathing topless Western women were seen as shameless, easy prey, devoid of morals and decency, to be exploited physically and financially at will.

Many middle-aged parsimonious women were excited at the innocuous attention they received from young, flunkey, flamboyant and flirtatious modulating waiters who were old enough to be their grand-sons, falling in the trap of marrying these hucksters, losing respect of their families, their homes and financial security. Then there is no fool like an old fool. There is no presumptuous halfway meeting point. It is time our govern-

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Temple of the Mind

Besides the number zero, without which no modern technology and the benefits which have come with it would have been possible, India’s other gifts to the world are ayurveda and yoga. Recognising the importance of yoga in our everyday life, the United Nations General Assembly declared 21 June as the intrnational day of yoga. To quote Mr Modi, yoga is an invaluable gift of India's ancient tradition to the world. It embodies unity of mind and body; thought and action; restraint and fulfilment; harmony between man and nature.

The two most recognised yoga pactices are Raj Yoga (to do with the mind) and Hatha Yoga (to do with the body). However there is another system of yoga which was introduced to the world by Acharya Maha Pragna, a Jain ascetic. This ancient practice of meditation was practised by Bhagwan Mahavir, Jainism’s 24th and last Tiranthakar Bhagwan, 2600 years ago. It is called Preksh yoga or Preksh Dhyana.

The word “preksha” means to perceive and “dhyana” means deep concentration. Like the Jain ritual of Samayik, by performing preksh dhyana, one can realise an equanimity between mind and body. Preksha is a useful tool in Stress Management. It is the awakening of ones own reasoning mind and thereby controlling ones passions and emotions. It is based on the principle of engaging ones mind by concentrating on the perception rather than on thought. The perception is that of internal phenomena of consciousness and not of external objects.

Dinesh Sheth Newbury Park, Ilford

How to save NHS money

It is overjoying for me to read in your newspaper the full coverage of first International Day of Yoga. This highly commendable idea is credited to Indian prime minister, Shri Narendra Modi.

But why yoga is not practised on daily basis in all UK's workplaces, schools, public parks, care homes for elderly persons and even the hospital wards where the basic yoga movements can be demonstrated in video transmission?

Daily yoga will be of benefit to all ages and save NHS millions of pounds by creating better health foundation for complete community.

Vijay Joshi By email ment stop peddling fiddle-faddle nonsense and call spade a spade.

Bhupendra M Gandhi By email

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Asian grooming gang reports were not revealed due to fear of racial tension

It is said that a report detailing how gangs of Asian men in Birmingham were grooming school girls with alcohol and drugs was not made public as senior officers had warned that such information could arouse racial tensions before the 2010 General Election.

West Midlands Police had been warned that more than 100 predominantly white school

children were at serious risk of child exploitation, as abusers were approaching school pupils at the school gates. Some of the school children at risk were as young as 13.

Police stated that they had identified 75 suspects. It is said that most of the suspects boasted a history of sexual violence and most of whom came from the Pakistani community in Birmingham.

UK

11

Bestway Foundation announces £1.8mn scholarship for Pakistani students in Oxford University

The Bestway Foundation, the philanthropic arm of the Bestway Group has announced details of an exciting new £1.8million endowment fund with the world renowned Oxford University.

The group has teamed up with the university to create a scholarship programme that will see two graduates from Pakistan study at the University every year in perpetuity.

The scholarship, to which the Bestway Foundation has committed £1.1million, will cover all expenses including tuition and accommodation fees and will be open to students wanting to study science, technology, maths and engineering-related disciplines.

Zameer Choudrey, Chief Executive of the Bestway Group and

Sir Anwar Pervez OBE

Zameer Choudrey, Chief Executive of the Bestway Group and Trustee of the Bestway Foundation

Trustee of the Bestway Foundation is delighted with the latest association with the university: “The Bestway Foundation has a proud history of supporting educational scholarships both in the UK and Pakistan. In Pakistan our donations have now exceeded US$3.5m and our latest endowment to Oxford University follows on from our five year agreement with the

University of Bradford to fund five annual scholarships to support postgraduate students applying from Pakistan.”

Mr Choudrey continues, “The Bestway Foundation is determined to contribute to the communities in which we operate with health and education being two core

25-year-old Himesh Patel, forged a degree certificate and worked as a pharmacist at Hawton Medical Centre in 2014. It is said that he was afraid of informing his mother about failing at university.

An investigation took place in November 2014, which ultimately exposed Patel.

Himesh Patel admitted to one count of fraud by false representation, as well as one of forging letters and a degree certificate at Swindon Magistrates Court 3rd June 2015.

Prosecutor James Burnham said, “He [Himesh Patel] made out that he was a fully qualified pharmacist when sadly he had failed his examinations. The certificate and the letters attached to it gave the impression he was qualified for the role. There is substantial breach of trust in terms of public confidence, if people are being dispensed with drugs from someone making out to be a qualified pharmacist.”

Defending Patel, Carolina Bracken said, “This effectively starts with a young man unable to pluck up the courage to tell his parents he has failed to pass his university exams. He is one of seven in the family who have entered the pharmaceutical industry, and when he failed at the end of two years he simply didn't know how to go home and tell his family.”

Bracken further stated, “He created his degree certificate because his mum thought it strange she hadn't seen it. The sentencing guidelines to not cover making a fraud-

New figures published by the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA), have revealed that a third of working graduates took up jobs such as road sweepers, cleaners and office juniors, six months after to graduating from university. There were Over

60,000 students in "nonprofessional" roles, working in domains such as administration and secretarial, skilled trades, service and caring industries and sales and customer service. However, the number represents a slight decline from two years ago. The new fig-

areas for our donations. I am delighted at this new endowment which will give students from Pakistan the opportunity to study at unarguably one of the greatest seats of learning in the world.”

The Bestway Foundation was established in 1987 by the group founder Sir Anwar Pervez OBE. Each year the Bestway Group contributes approximately 2.5% of its profit to the Foundation for its various charitable activities.

Over the years the Bestway Group has donated in excess of £14.1 million in the UK alone to fund the Foundation in its charitable activities and in Pakistan Bestway Cement and United Bank have donated over US$10.5 million.

Controversy uncovered at London 25-year-old forged degree as he Business School event was afraid of telling mum he failed India Club explores truth behind Subhas Chandra Bose’s disappearance

India club members with Anuj Dhar

plane crash in Taipei in The missing Indian leader, 1945, a later inquiry by Netaji Subhas Chandra the Indian government Bose, lived in disguise and concluded in 2006 that died in 1985 as a nameless there was no plane crash. hermit monk in a northern However, still to this day state of India, Anuj Dhar, the Government withIndian author and former holds several classified journalist, claimed at the files concerning the disap‘Modern Indian History pearance of Bose. and Leadership’ event Anuj Dhar claimed his hosted by the India Club at London Business School on Saturday 27 June 2015.

The event, in which Anuj Dhar discussed his latest thinking on modern Indian history and leadership, focussed on the longest running historical controversy of modern India - the Anuj Dhar addressing the audience disappearance of own research had found one of India’s most promiBose had lived in disguise nent and highly respected and died in 1985 as a leaders of the independnameless hermit monk in ence movement, Netaji a northern state of India.

Subhas Chandra Bose.

He said measures needed While it was once to be taken to resolve what thought Netaji Subhas has been one of the Chandra Bose died in a

longest running controversies of modern India: “The demand for declassification of the Netaji files has gone international and vast Indian community living abroad and at home want to know the facts of their beloved leader. I hope the present government would do what previous Indian governments could not.”

Following the event, students from London Business School expressed their own desire to declassify all of the files concerning Netaji.

Arijit Ghosh Dastidar and Nitin Kumar, representatives from the India Club of London Business School, said: “Withholding full declassification is very unfair and morally wrong. India’s modern history need to be rewritten based on transparency and truth. Truth shall prevail.”

Swindon Magistrates Court

ulent representation to your mother.”

Linda Raine, the Chair of the bench stated, “The length of his dishonesty was considerable, and the potential risk to the public was large enough that the public confidence in the pharmacy system was put at risk.”

Himesh Patel was granted conditional bail.

He is not to go to Hawthorn Medical Centre or contact any of the employees, unless it is through solicitors. He is due to return to Swindon Crown Court for sentencing.

New figures show new graduates are jobless

ures also revealed that almost 16,730 were unemployed six months after leaving university.

Overall, around 16,730 UK and EU full-time university leavers (7%) were assumed to be jobless after completing their first degree in the 2013/14 academic year.

12

MEDIA WATCH

International Yoga Day, in the eyes of many at home and abroad, was a gimmick, Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s hobbyhorse, if you like, but it appeared to capture the imagination of vast numbers of people across the world for reasons that were more ordinary than yogic, namely, that the venture was relaxing for overwrought citizens with highly strung nerves who required an opportunity to come to terms with their inner turmoil and the external pressures that had laid many low.

Families, friends, workplace colleagues, neighbours, strangers and possibly passers-by, lay down in seried ranks, drew breath, exhaled, stretched their tired limbs performed the basic asanas, then sat up, took stock and walked away silently: Quite an experience, a public experience at that. Delhi’s Rajpath set the scene with the Indian Prime Minister, ministers, government officials, ordinary citizens, including dozens of school children: seemingly on a giant yoga mat with India Gate in the background lending enchantment to the view.

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 4th July 2015

build several manufacturing units in India, which may spur other electronics companies around the world to do likewise (Mint June 25)

Cisco bets on ‘Make in India’

Cisco, the US-based global technology behemoth, is among the most ‘aggressive’ investors in India, using Indian engineering talent in Research &Development across the world.

Outgoing Cisco Executive CEO, and Chairman, John Chambers said: “I have

Nano car. Then Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi’s promptly invited Ratan Tata to relocate to the small Gujarat town of Sanand. Now, seven years later, Sanand has grown and prospered, its banks have deposits in excess of Rs 3000 crore, while abandoned Singur site is a dereliction (Times of India June 23)

India’s web of radars

Slowly but surely, India’s is putting in place an imposing web of high powered radars around its maritime and land borders to

SoftBank, Bharti, Foxconn tie-up

SoftBank Corporation, the Japanese telecom and internet giant, has teamed up with Sunil Mittal’s Bharti Enterprise and Taiwan-based manufacturing major Foxconn Technology in a joint venture named SBG Cleantech, to produce and promote clean and safe energy in India with a combined investment $20 billion to generate 20 GW of solar power. The deal represents one of the largest Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) projects in the sector. The joint venture will Participants perform yoga at an event to be led by SoftBank , with celebrate the International Yoga Day the two partners as minoriunder the Eiffel Tower in Paris ty shareholders.

Confidence in One saw hundreds of Greeks, men and women, old and young Modi govt and others, neither old nor young, doing their exercises on SoftBank Chairman and CEO, captivating beaches, the pristine Masayoshi Son, told reporters, blue sea behind them, their “This is an endorsement of conminds temporarily free of the fidence in next-generation Indiatravails of the nation’s financial led by the Modi government.” crisis. There were similar sights Under the National Solar in Paris, Washington, New York, Mission, the Indian government Mexico, and the freezing will be targeting solar power Himalayan heights of the generation capacity of 100 GW Siachen Glacier, where Indian by 2022. ((Hindu June 23) solders went through their routines. No harm was done, no Foxcomm could shots were fired or bombs spur growth exploded, Whether Yoga Day has made a deep or lasting The second coming of technoloimpact will be revealed in the gy giant Foxcomm Technology fullness of time. But there was a Co into India is surely a pointer transient peace, for sure. OM to the future of India’s electronShant! (Hindu, Business Week, ics industry. The company is Times of India, Telegraph June presently evaluating plans to 22)

Larsen & Toubro to grow 15-20 per cent

Larsen & Toubro Chairman A.M.Naik is excited at the prospect of making the engineering company’s subsidiary L&T Infotech public; he expressing optimism that its main engineering division is set to grow 15-20 per cent annually, thanks to the unfolding opportunities in infrastructure. He told a reporter that the company’s order intake grew by 22 per cent last December and would “continue to grow between 15 and 20 per cent.

(Mint June 24) Cisco CCEO and Chairman John Chambers with Narendra Modi

PM Modi's International Yoga Day event at Rajpath sets two Guinness World Records

Bhaskar Ramamurthi, the Mentor Director stated that the new IITs would offer B.Tech in four core branches: computer science, civil, electrical and mechanical engineering, with 30 seats allotted for each branch.

Senior faculty members from IIT Madras, Professors P.B. Sunil Kumar and K.N. Satyanarayana will be in charge of IIT Palakkad and IIT Tirupati respectively until new directors are appointed (Times of India June 25)

been very public about the fact that we are betting on India in a big way. We see it as the top emerging market. This country will lead the world in the (evolving) digital revolution.” While some developed countries were going digital step by step, “India was working to digitalize all cities, and villages,” he said.

Modi extolled

Chambers said “Modi is one of the greatest leaders I have seen in my lifetime and let me tell you, I have met a lot of leaders.

He really understands technology.” India would become a “manufacturing powerhouse,” opined Chambers (Times of India June19, Business Week June 20)

safeguard the country’s security.

The aim overall of this extensive system is as follows: To detect and destroy enemy aircraft and ‘rogue’ planes. It will be awhile before the seamless sensor-toshoot loop is operational.

However, the Integrated Command and Control is working in north and west India.

Four new major modes and 10 sub-modes are under construction in eastern, south and central India, and the Andaman and Nicobar islands. Of special importance are the ultra sensitive radars along the mountainous Himalayan borders that can pick up the movement of the smallest planes 300-400kms away. Satellites are key to the successful working of the entire system (Times of India June 24)

NTPC in global orbit

Naval exercises

Public sector power company NTPC, last week, switched on its 800 MW hydel plant in in the Bilaspur district of Himachal Pradesh, making this the fourth such operating plant under its hydel programme. NTPC has traversed the entire gamut of power production, from coalfired and fossil fuel to the present hydro-electric category, marking the company’s expanded fuel base and its mastery of their respective technologies.

The upcoming project on the River Sutlej in Punjab will provide an annual peaking capacity of 3054 GW to the northern grid.

(Times of India June19)

India is to take part in a series of bilateral and multilateral naval exercises in the South China Sea and the Bay of Bengal with Japan, Australia, Indonesia, Thailand, Sri Lanka, Singapore and Myanmar. India will also be engaging with the United States in Operation Malabar, with the UK in Operation Konkan and with Russia in Operation Indra, all in the Arabian Sea. Four Indian warships are currently deployed in the southern stretch of the Indian Ocean, proof of the country’s naval build up to counter China’s heft in these waters (Times of India June 26)

Tale of two cities: Sanand, Singur,

Tata Motors was driven out of Singur in West Bengal several years ago, thanks to then opposition Trinamool Congress leader Mamata Banerjee’s agitation against its presence as manufacturing facility for the production of the pioneering

Two new IITs

Two new Indian Institutes of Technology (IIT) at Tirupati and Pallakad respectively will start functioning from the first week of August. These are the first IITs of the five planned, the other three are scheduled to come up in Goa, Jammu & Kashmir and Chattisgarh. IIT Madras will mentor the new institutes. IIT Madras Director

Political turbulence

There is much political turbulence in India over the Lalit Modi affair, and the BJP-led commemoration of Indira Gandhi’s Emergency rule imposed in June 1975. She was roundly denounced by the faithful and virtuous, with no mention made of the orchestrated sabotage of the rail network by acolytes of opposition George Fernandes, nor was there reference to Jayaprakash Narayan’s call to India’s armed forces and the police to revolt against the government in the months prior to the Emergency. India’s military and diplomatic victory under her indomitable leadership in December 1971 over Pakistan, America and China was Mrs Ganhi’s finest hour. It was India’s, too. Having punished Indira Gandhi for the Emergency by voting her out of office in March 1977, the Indian people voted her back as prime minister with an unprecedented two-thirds majority in parliament in January 1980.

Yoga unacceptable, says Muslim body

The All India Muslim Personal Law Board issued a call to Muslims to abjure Yoga, Surya Namaskar and avoid singing Bande Mataram, composed by the great 19th century Bengali author Bankim Chandra Chatterjee. The board has also called on “secular forces” within the country to participate in anti-yoga day demonstrations around the country. (Hindu June 25).

International Yoga Day was celebrated across Europe, the UK and the United States without fuss and bother. India is a multi-faith country; Pakistan, willed into existence through Partition in August 1947, is assuredly Islamic. To which of these countries does the board belong? It cannot have it both ways.

UK

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 4th July 2015

13

Apologies to the retailers of AV and GS in Leicester

Why The UK and EU is So Important For Global Indian Companies

Don’t let the Greece issue fool you. Don’t let the UK referendum on the EU fool you.

As the UK Government’s Dealmaker responsible for India, Malaysia, Singapore, Southern China (but also dealing with companies from Europe, US, Australia) these are the key lessons of success from a decade of Dealmaking for all companies wishing to go global from a UK base: Lesson 1: Are you ready?

Being ready, willing and able means you don’t need a ‘grant’ to move and build. Let’s be clear grants and free money are in short supply, even if they exist. If you are pitching for capital it will be against a lot of competition and it will be to crowdfunding, angel, HNWs or VCs. The biggest weakness I see in companies is that they are simply not ready, ready to raise money, to sell. If the product needs money to start for sales, then get the financing pitch document ready. If the product has sales, then improve the sale pitch deck.

Lesson 2: Understand Money Pitches Pitching for money is not about money. It is about a partnership. To truly understand what benefit the partner gets and why you’re both a great fit beyond the capital; for instance to their goals, portfolio companies – why it’s a no-brainer for them other than the great returns you are promising.

Lesson 3: Pitch the investment Don’t ramble – if you cannot explain it, why the world needs it, in a 60 seconds, you’re not ready. Pitch by analogy – are you the Uber of Asset management? You must also tell me after you’ve spent the money, what then? Another raise? Think

beyond the immediate sums.

Lesson 4: Focus on what you want, money, deals, skills: with precision How much do you need, for what? It needs to be specific. The pitches that don’t get funded are the ones which ask for more than they immediately need, don’t stage their funding needs, and are not clear in terms of what the money will be used for, how it will lead to sales and a return for the investor.

Lesson 5: Why the UK is best according to the most profitable there For Indian companies the UK is the most popular location in Europe for them to setup. The reasons I am told most successful, profitable companies I have brought to the UK are: a. Ease of business, access to Dealmaker networks to open doors to customers, advise on pitching for capital b. Access to R&D specialists for their business needs, at Universities c. Access to specialist incubators eg Cybersecurity d. Access to networks for business development e. Access to growth capital through loans, equity, angels f. Help with exports through business net works, communities, mentors, UKTI It is critical you maximise the opportunities presented to you when in the UK. Reach out to the mentors, the funding sources, advisors such as the Dealmakers to help with deal structuring from shareholder agreements to due diligence overview on an acquisition.

One in four baby born to mothers outside the UK Latest reports have suggested that the international migration has accounted for an increase in UK's population, making one in every four baby born to a foreign mother.

Estimates suggest "Net international migration in the year to mid-2014 is the highest since the year to mid-2011 and up by 76,300 from 183,400 last year. The median age of the population (the age at which half the population is younger and half the population is older) at mid-2014 was 40 years - the highest ever esti-

mated. The number and proportion of older people continues to rise, with over 11.4 million (17.7% of the population) aged 65 and over in mid-2014, up from 11.1 million (17.4%) last year". "International migration inflow is at its highest since the year to mid-2011, though both international migration inflow and outflow are still below the average for the period.

Comparing the latest population estimates for mid2014 with the mid-2013 estimates shows that the population of England

increased by 450,800 to 54,316,600 accounting for 84% of the UK's population; England's population grew more quickly than any other UK country during the year the population of Scotland increased by 19,900 to 5,347,600 and accounts for 8% of the UK's population". "The population of Wales increased by 9,600 to 3,092,000 and accounts for 5% of the UK's population. The population of Northern Ireland increased by 10,800 to 1,840,500 and accounts for 3% of the UK's population".

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Some two dozen independent shops selling your favourite Asian newsweeklies were served by Mr Raj Surani of Europe Enterprises. Sadly, there were several concerns and complaints about the distribution. Over the last few months we tried our utmost to have the system made much more organised and efficient and we were not successful, to say the least.

Consequently, with utmost regrets, we were forced to terminate our distribution arrangement through the above mentioned person and company. From July 2015 we are having a new distribution system for Leicester retailers.

Unfortunately Mr Surani has failed to supply us with the names, addresses and other relevant details of the shops where Asian Voice and Gujarat

Samachar were being supplied.

Dear Retailers, we are doing our utmost to supply you with our newsweeklies to ensure that our readers are served as efficiently as possible.

Please let us know at the earliest regarding your shop addresses and oblige.

(Contact Person:-Arjun Chokshi, Email:-arjun.chokshi@abplgroup.com, Ph No:-020 7749 4087, (M):-07745 794 885) Once again we are sorry to have a breakdown in our distribution system.

We hope to serve you as best as we can as soon as possible.

Yours gratefully, CB Patel Publisher/Editor Asian Voice/Gujarat Samachar

Man arrested for more than £30,000 council tax scam Viren Amin (39), is said to have allegedly used false identities and stolen cheque books to obtain more than £30,000 of fake council tax refunds.

The court heard how Amin dishonestly gained more than £28,000 from Barnet Council and more than £4,000 from Merton Council. During a seven month long investigation, led by Barnet Council's Corporate Anti-Fraud Team (CAFT), they were able to link Viren Amin to 20 fraudulent transactions in Barnet, as well as seven in Merton.

Amin pleaded guilty to 27 counts of fraud at Harrow Crown Court, and was sentenced to 14 months imprisonment on

Harrow Crown Court

19th June 2015.

While sentencing Amin, Mr Recorder JC Rouse QC said, “You cannot suggest this was just a result of a low moment, it was a concerted effort to deceive the taxpayer out of a substantial sum of money.

This was a fraud carried out over a long period of time and it required considerable planning. In my judgement this is so serious an offence that only

a custodial sentence can be justified.”

Leader of Barnet Council, Councillor R i c h a r d Cornelius said, “This was a highly organised deception to pocket a significant sum of taxpayers’ money. This case sends out the very clear message that anyone attempting to cheat the system will be caught and ultimately dealt with by the courts. The thorough investigation carried out by officers is testament to the hard work and skill of the council’s Corporate Anti-Fraud Team.”

14

UK

GroceryAid the big winner at Bestway Charity Race Day

The Bestway Group held its annual charity race day on the 19th June at Royal Ascot with proceeds going to the grocery industry’s charity, GroceryAid. The annual event, which celebrated its 21st anniversary this year, has raised millions of pounds for worthy causes since its inception and is a key event in the retail calendar.

In his address to the 800-strong audience including Bestway founder and chairman Sir Anwar Pervez HPk, dignitaries, suppliers and Bestway and Batley’s staff, Zameer Choudrey, Bestway Group’s Chief Executive and a trustee of GroceryAid remarked that “It is right and fitting that in our silver jubilee year, we remember all those industry colleagues who have helped shape our key UK business. On behalf of everyone at Bestway, I can tell you that we are delighted to be supporting GroceryAid this

Empowering Donors. Supporting Charities. Help us change the world.

What is Asian Charity Clarity?

When you donate money to charities, how do you know you are giving it to the most effective ones? If you are a charity, how do you stand out and best showcase the great work you do? Empowering Donors. Supporting Charities. That's what Asian Charity Clarity is all about. ACC have come up with a special rating system which assesses a charity across 18 metrics for Financial Health, Accountability and Transparency, and Accessibility.

We have 110 charities on ACC right now, and will have around 500 in July. Every week, we will publish a Top 10 list looking at different aspects of Asian charities.

Bottom 10 Charities for Submitting Accounts Late

L to R: Zameer Choudrey, Bestway Group CEO; Derek Thompson, Racing Presenter and Tipster; Gillian Barker, Director General, GroceryAid; Sir Anwar Pervez HPk, Chairman of the Bestway Group

year.”

Gillian Barker, Director General of GroceryAid delivered a passionate speech on the work that the charity undertakes and was delighted that the charity was the main beneficiary.

“GroceryAid makes such

a difference to many individuals who are involved or who have been involved in our industry. On behalf of all at GroceryAid, I would like to relay our sincere thanks to Zameer and Bestway for their incredible gesture and to all

who have supported this fantastic day. The monies raised will go a long way to helping the most vulnerable in our industry and will help the charity continue its great work.”

Further details of monies raised will be announced shortly.

British NRI leads to secure free places for Refugees while the country observes World Refugee Day A delegation led by Lakshmi Kaul, an activist and campaigner based in London met with Hon'ble Minister of State Sh. Pravin Pote Patil to discuss the plight of Hindu minorities in the J&K region including the refugees in West Pakistan.

Mr. Pravin Ramchandra Pote-Patil is the Minister of State for Industries & Mining, Environment, Public Works (excluding Public Undertakings) and the President of P.R.Patil Group of Educational Institute.

Lakshmi Kaul is the Founder of the leading organisation on Kashmiri Hindus, the Kashmiri Pandits Cultural Society, UK, and the Chair of Public Relations for Hindu Forum of Britain (an umbrella body with a membership of over 400 temples and organisations in the UK). For the meeting with the Hon'ble Minister, she was joined

by Siddhartha Acharya, a lawyer, activist and film maker who has made the film "Abandoned Cranes" on the plight of Kashmiri Pandits that was screened at the British Parliament, Prerak Sharma, lawyer & activist and Apoorva Khandeparkar, student and activist.

During the discussion when the delegates

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 4th July 2015

Lakshmi Kaul with Mr. Pravin Pote Patil

brought to the Hon'ble Minister's notice how there were a number of displaced communities of Hindus that could not afford higher education and were living in abysmal condition, Mr. Patil was quick to offer atleast 100 free seats every year to deserving students from the affected communities in the P. R Patil Group of Educational Institute in Amravati, Maharashtra.

The minimum fees per year per student is around INR 80,000 which has been completely waived off for the atleast Hindu Refugee students.

However, boarding and lodging will need to be arranged for the duration of the course.

There are over 50 million people world over who have had to flee their homes owing to human

rights violations.

"I am highly touched and impressed by Hon'ble Minister Sh. Patil's commitment to help out the students in need and keeping them on the career path. Being able to remain on the education and career the refugee families will have hope of a secure future while they seek asylum and justice.

The interaction with the Hon'ble Minister and his understanding of the needs of the communities suffering is notable. I was particularly moved by his devotion and extra effort into ensuring that this discussion concretised into action. We also discussed the need for greater interaction and association between communities in India and the UK," says Lakshmi Kaul who was particularly impressed by

how approachable the Hon'ble Minister of State was to the members of the public.

Hearing the announcement Ms. Trupti Patel, President of Hindu Forum of Britain sent her best wishes to the Hon'ble Minister and has extended an invitation to him to meet with key representatives of the Hindu community in the UK. "We are very grateful to Mr. Patil for his support to the students in need, especially the refugee Hindu communities in West Pakistan," said Ms. Trupti Patel.

The annoucement has been welcomed by the members of the local communities in J&K. The London based Dogra activist, Manu Khajuria commended the effort saying, " Brilliant work! The West Pak Refugee youth are in such dire straits..doing it for them makes it truly historical.. never done before.

Congratulations!"

The team also met the Hon'ble Union Minister for Road Transport, Highways & Shipping, Sh Nitin Gadkari who congratulated the Hon'ble Mr. Patil for his generous support the refugees from J&K region and extended his blessings to this initiative.

These are the Bottom 10 Charities Submitting Accounts Late to the Charity Commission, given by average number of days late in the last five years (where available). This is taken at a specific point in the time. Therefore, if the accounts were still pending since we calculated these figures, then we are underestimating how poor the submissions are days late on average for that charity.

Ravidassia Community Centre 330 291 Patanjali Yog Peeth (UK) Trus 261 London Sri Murugan Temple Human Welfare International Charitable Trust 227 177 Panchamukhee 153 Samakti Mission UK (Satkarma Parivar) Shri Kanagathurkkai Amman (Hindu) Temple Trust 124 National Council Of Hindu Temples UK 114 112 India Association 111 Hindu Swayamsevak Sangh UK

www.asiancharityclarity.org.uk

Teenage singer to raise money for the victims of Nepal Earthquake Teenage singer Shakila Karim will be performing at a series of gigs to raise money for the victims of the Nepal Earthquake.

Seventeen year old Shakila begins her marathon musical effort at the Joyce Frankland Academy in Newport, Essex, on the evening of the 27th June. Shakila’s aim is to perform a ‘Marathon of Gigs’ – that is, to sing at 26 gigs (one gig for each full mile of a marathon) in order to raise money for those in Nepal whose lives have been disrupted by the recent earthquake. She still needs a few more venues to get to the full marathon of gigs – so she’s asking for help from venue owners, operators and charities for Nepal to help achieve her goal.

Her next gig will be at the Hertford Corn Exchange on 2nd July – and this will be followed by a performance at The Rhodes Centre, in Bishops Stortford on the 15th of July.

Shakila, who was inspired to embark on a Marathon of Gigs after seeing this year’s London Marathon, said, “I’m from east London and, every year, we watch the marathon runners. This year, on Marathon Day, the news was full of the terrible earthquake in Nepal – and I thought about what I could do to

Shakila Karim

help alleviate the people’s suffering.

“Although I’m no marathon runner, I thought that I could, at least, perform a ‘Gigathon’ to help raise funds for these people. If I can do these 26 performances, I know it will raise much needed money to help the people of Nepal get their lives back together.

“I have friends who’re from Nepal,” said Shakila, who’s a sixth form student at the Joyce Frankland Academy in Newport, Essex. The academy contains many students who are children of Gurkhas serving with the British armed forces.

“We all know how well the Gurkhas have served – and continue to serve our country. It would be good if we, in Britain, could do something to serve them,” said Shakila.

Twitter: @1Shakila

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www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 4th July 2015

Musical Review

West End It Like Gurinder Chadha

Farhana Shaikh

Inside Fiction Writing

Sunetra Senior

Farhana started up ‘Dahlia Publishing’ after the success of her online magazine ‘The Asian Writer’, which receives a global readership. Based in Leicester, always on a mission to stay true to her roots – the passion for literature as well as her background - she provides a service for budding talent who may not otherwise have the chance to grow. We talked more about the seeds – or excerpts – of writing that she looks to nurture, the position of contemporary ‘ethnic’ fiction in mainstream publishing and the courage to sit down and write without compromising your own voice. An entrepreneur of an editor, Farhana inspires as she works: Rupanjana Dutta

There was a time when an Asian play could only reach as far as the local community centre around the block. But in today's Britain we can proudly watch a musical created by a Brit-Indian director, about a Brit-Indian girl and her football journey, in the heart of West End. On Thursday 25 June, as I walked up to the Phoenix theatre, a meandering queue, mostly comprising of American tourists, waited eagerly to watch Jess-Jule go on their journey from UB2 (Southall) to US, making their dream come true. The musical could not have released at a better time, as Britain prays for it's women's team to win the World Cup in Canada.

Adapted by Gurinder Chadha and Paul Mayeda Berges from the 2002 smash hit film of the same name, Bend it Like Beckham: The Musical follows Jess, a talented young football player torn between following in the footsteps of her hero David Beckham, or living up to family expectations of university, career and marriage.

The diverse and talented cast of the musical included Natalie Dew as football crazy Jess with Lauren Samuels as Jules, a player with the Harriers, a local women’s football team, and Jamie Campbell Bower as their coach Joe. Sophie-Louise Dann plays Paula, Jules’s Mum, with Jamal Andréas as Jess’

good friend Tony. Priya Kalidas plays Pinky, Jess’ sister, with Tony Jayawardena and Natasha Jayetileke as Jess’ parents, Mr and Mrs Bhamra.

Natalie as Jess and Priya Kalidas as Pinky are frankly much more convincing in their roles, than Parminder Nagra and Archie Panjabi in the 2002 film. However the play lacks the film's edge on social issues- the problems of women's empowerment, or that of a British teenager growing up as a part of a conservative Indian family in the west- are not as distinctly and powerfully portrayed, as it was in the film.

The soaring joyous melody scored by Howard Goodall (Love Story, The Hired Man) with the collaboration of pioneer of the British Bhangra sound, composer and performer Kuljit Bhamra and lyrics by Charles Hart (Phantom of the Opera, Aspects of Love, Love Never Dies), the music of Bend It Like Beckham is a successful East-West fusion. The best was the voice of Rekha Sawhney, who not only looked gorgeous in Indian attire, but her sweet and melodious voice, especially during the 'vidai' song was touching beyond words.

Overall a happy watchcolourful, joyous and entertaining- created by Gurinder Chadha magic.

Bend it like Beckham is now playing at the Phoenix Theatre till October 2015. photo courtesy: Ellie Kurttz

How did your Idea for a Publishing press come About?

I noticed that a lot of regional writers seemed to be struggling; it wasn’t so much about them being Asian.

They had the persistence – a quality of all good writers - but didn’t quite understand ‘how’ to write, or, they were distracted by the pressure to pursue a more traditional career: accountancy, medicine. Last year, I worked on a big project with a diversity of female writers to produce an anthology- Beyond the Border. So though we publish maybe one to three books a year, Dahlia looks for the most talented, emerging writers across the country and acts as that spurring force.

In terms of content or an approach, what makes a Submission stand 'Authenticity is out?

I like character-driven an abstract stories rather than those centred on plot. concept' I want something that will take us on a journey.

This week for example, we’re publishing ‘When Ali Met Honour’, a very modern love story. Our first novel was about a woman on a journey to find her bioTake us through your editing logical mother, and another was process? crime fiction. Like all good books, we It’s very hands-on. After picking the want quality writing and something most promising submissions, we go people can relate to. through an intense developing process. A lot of writers have someThere was an article in ‘The thing good to say but don’t know Guardian’ a while back that how best to say it. It can take a couquestioned the obsession with ple of re-writes and I will provide ediauthentic Asian writing; the need torial notes on common mistakes to write within cultural expectations to succeed. What is your take on that?

Authenticity is an abstract concept to try and capture. There is also a difference between writing for the sake of writing and writing what you want.

There is a lot of debate around how the publishing industry works, and yes it is largely white middle-class, but that is not a reliable marker either. Ultimately it comes down to whether you’re in it to sell products or look at writing that really shows people something. Dahlia doesn’t even think about fiction in terms of authenticity; it is not for us to say, or fall in to that trap. Our new book is about someone who falls in love with an Atheist, and some might feel ‘would that really happen?’ but it is a great story; moving and sharp.

Focus on writing well and someone will pick it up.

'Persistence - the quality of all good writers' such as P.O.V shifts, logical inconsistency, or too many sub-plots. It is about keeping both the writer and reader’s interests in mind. We will also go through a couple of readings using critique from independent book lovers and other passionate writers.

Do you think there is a Recurring theme in second generation immigrant writing?

No, I don’t think there is. Everyone is so different. However, as I say, I am interested in regional writing; narratives from local towns and the everyday. Our last novel was set in Manchester. It is good when people can feel confident about writing about their hometowns and not feel swayed to write about London. There’s no difference originality, it’s just refreshing to see.

What is your advice for young people who want to write?

Read widely, literally everything, and keep writing, even if you think you’re not very good because you will get better. http://dahliapublishing.co.uk/

http://theasianwriter.co.uk/2015/01 /the-asian-reader/

Labour party hosts leadership and deputy leadership hustings in Harrow

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UK

On Friday, 26th June, the Labour party organised a BAME hustings for the upcoming Labour leadership and Deputy leadership election at the Masefield Suite in the Harrow Leisure centre, Middlesex.

This was a part of the many such events being organised across the country to give people a chance to engage with the candidates in an open and honest discussion about the party’s General Election defeat and what the priorities should be as it rebuilds for the future.

The 150 or more audience were made up of party members, supporters and interested members of the public from Asian, AfroCaribbean and Chinese communities. The event was co-organised by Asian Voice, em taskforce and supported by BAME Labour- Nigerians for Labour, Turkish Friends for Labour, Bangladeshis for Labour, Lewisham BAME Labour, Voice and Chinese for Labour.

The hustings was held in two parts. The first half of the event was dedicated to the leadership election and the second to the deputy leadership.

Candidates in the leadership hustings included MPs Andy Burnham, Yvette Cooper, Jeremy Corbin and Liz Kendall. Moderator was Rupanjana Dutta, Associate Editor of Asian Voice.

Candidates for the Deputy Leadership included MPs Ben Bradshaw, Stella Creasy, Angela Eagle, Caroline Flint and Tom Watson. This part was moderated by Vikram Dodd, Crime Correspondent of the Guardian.

The audience were allowed to ask questions, though they had to submit them prior to the event and included variety of topicsfrom immigration, to community representation to addressing issues concerning the BAME community.

The vote of thanks was given by CB Patel, Publisher/Editor of Asian Voice.

Rt Hon Keith Vaz, MP kick started the event with a minute silence for those who lost their lives in terrorist attack on Friday and then went to address the audience. He said, “I am pleased to welcome everybody here tonight for the Labour party Leadership and Deputy Leadership Hustings. This is the second ever Labour party hustings held specifically for the BAME community. I am most grateful to Kamaljeet Jandu, Chairman of BAME Labour and June Nelson, Vice Chairman of BAME Labour for all the support they have given.

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 4th July 2015

Andy Burnham MP, Liz Kendall MP, Moderator Rupanjana Dutta, Associate Editor of Asian Voice, Yvette Cooper MP, Jeremy Corbin MP and Rt Hon keith Vaz, MP during the Leadership hustings

ly pleased to talk about the work I've done throughout my career to make our Party's representation more diverse. That said, there is still a lot more to do. If I am elected as Labour's Deputy Leader I will be working to get more BAME people elected to represent Labour on local councils and also in Parliament b e c a u s e Parliament needs to reflect the society we live in. We need people from all different backgrounds. It is something I am committed to making happen."

Tom Watson Stella Creasy, Caroline Flint, Tom Watson, Moderator Vikram Dodd from Guardian, Ben Bradshaw and MP said: "The 75 Angela Eagle during the deputy leadership hustings most diverse constituencies in the UK – there would only have been candidates with training sentation. where 50% of all British two candidates on the and support with selec“All of tonight's candiBAME people live – were deputy leader ballot. So we tions.” dates have a superb record where the Labour vote held all owe Rushanara a huge Andy Burnham said: in representing diverse up best in the general debt of gratitude."

"The loss of BAME support communities. I look forElection.

Angela Eagle said, "I must act as a warning to ward hearing their vision "While millions of othreally enjoyed the BAME Labour that it must never for our party over the ers lost faith, BAME voters’ hustings. The audience take any group of voters for course of this evening.” still kept their trust in asked some very important granted.

Leadership candidate Labour. For that, I want to questions. I was particular"Labour has not been Yvette Copper in a statedoing enough to bring peoment said, “Labour should ple from ethnic minority set a goal to double the communities through to number of BAME MPs in a tion of post-study work positions of leadership at Continued from page 1 Labour majority visas by the UK governlocal level or national level.

Parliament. ment in 2012 has been an We should look at guaran“We have overwhelm“With over a million issue of concern for teeing half the places on ing support for this issue ethnic minority voters Scotland’s colleges. These Labour shortlists to BAME in Scotland, across all choosing the Tories at the visas allowed graduates to people in at Parliamentary major political parties, last election Labour cannot work or set up businesses constituencies where over industry and now be complacent. If Labour is in the UK for 24 months, 50 per cent of the voters are throughout academia. not representative of our which retained skilled and BAME. “Scotland’s needs are voters how can we hope to educated graduates as part "We should look like the different to those in the keep their support? of the labour force. communities we seek to rest of the UK. Scotland “More than 15% of “The re-introduction represent and help everyhas a large, established Labour voters are from of a post-study work visas body to get on. migrant community and BAME communities but would attract more over"Parts of our country are the Scottish Government just 10% of Labour MPs. seas students thus being left behind simply welcomes the contribution “If the number of enhancing the college because of their race or new Scots are making to Labour MPs mirrored the experience for all while what postcode they are our economy and society. proportion of Labour voters retaining skilled graduates born in - this is simply “A post study work there would be at least douwho contribute to our unacceptable and I am comvisa is an important lever ble the number of Labour economy. mitted to keeping this at the for attracting the best MPs in a Labour majority Alastair Sim, Director top of Labour's agenda." international student talParliament.

Universities Scotland, Deputy leader candient, securing essential “There are many causes said: “There is a comdate Ben Bradshaw MP income streams, and for under-representation of pelling case to allow intertold Asian Voice, “"The allowing talented graduBAME communities in national students to work BAME hustings were a fanates to continue contributParliament. So there won’t in Scotland after successtastic opportunity to meet ing to Scotland after their be a simple solution. fully completing their and engage with members studies end.

“As leader I will personstudies. The country on a variety of issues. I have “Once again, I am callally oversee a taskforce – would gain socially, culalways been clear that ing on the UK which will engage with turally and economically politicians must stop acting Government to take BAME members of by being able to retain as if BAME communities Scotland’s needs into Parliament, councillors, international talent. Our are one monolithic block account and deliver on the NEC members and local universities...would give that all vote the same.

Smith Commission recomParty activists, to ensure a international students the There are numerous chalmendation in this area.” step change in support for chance to start their lenges and campaigns to be Shona Struthers, BAME candidates and careers and gain valuable fought for BAME communiChief Executive, Colleges activists. work experience in a ties, and Labour should Scotland said: “The aboli“We need a develop“This is a historic time for the BAME representation in our political system.

There are currently 42 Mps from minority and ethnic backgrounds, up from 27 in 2010. However there is more work to be done in our pursuit of true repre-

ment programme for BAME activists who want to be candidates, and candidates who want the support to win. We should look at how we ensure that shortlists are more representative. And it will report on bursary schemes to support aspiring

always be at the forefront of them. I'd also like to apologise that there is no BAME candidate on either leader or deputy leader ballot. If it wasn't for the principled and selfless decision by my friend and colleague Rushanara Ali to withdraw,

CB Patel, Publisher/Editor of Asian Voice

thank them.

"I think Labour has done a lot in the last 50 years to earn BAME voters’ trust but I also think we should never take this trust for granted.

"On representation, we need to do much more.

Labour now has no Sikh representative, for instance, in any United Kingdom Parliament. That’s not acceptable.

"You can’t expect people to keep supporting you if you don’t represent them.

We have to be a party that looks like the country.

"If Labour MPs reflected the constituencies who elect us, a fifth of all Labour MPs would be from BAME communities.

"I support the commitment to doubling BAME representation in Westminster, and as Deputy Leader I would personally mentor any BAME candidate who wanted my help."

Photo courtesy: Raj D Bakrania, Prmediapix

Scottish universities back up calls for visa return

country they have made their home away from home...”

Sanam Arora, President of the National Indian Students Union (UK)said: “The National Indian Students Union UK fully supports the reintroduction of a Post Study Work Scheme and is thankful to the Scottish Government for their efforts in re-establishing the scheme.

“Changes to immigration rules since 2012 have led to a significant drop in the number of Indian students coming to the UK...In the decision process of choosing a country to study in, the choice of post study work opportunities is a key factor, not because students want to settle abroad, but because of the desire and need to gain relevant work experience.

“We urge the UK government to recognise work experience post education as part of the overall Higher Education package and revive the Post Study Work visa.”

10TH ANNIVERSARY

7/7- A horrific attack that shook the nation

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 4th July 2015

17

7/7: To many, this may just appear to be another date but for the majority of Londoners, it is a traumatic memory that will forever be etched into our minds.

Reshma Trilochun

Ten years on from the deadly bomb attacks that took place on the London underground and on one bus in Tavistock Square, on 7th July 2005, London has evolved as a city, refusing to let such attacks deter the spirit of its people as they forge ahead in life.

The bombings took 52 lives and injured more than 700 people. The bomb attacks not only had a great impact on those who were the victims, but also on the passersby who had seen the aftermath with their own eyes, causing them to be traumatised at what they had seen. Many family members of the victims can still clearly recall the ordeal they had experienced when they heard of the attacks and how hopeless they had felt during that phase.

As much as Britain may be moving forward, it would not be farfetched to claim that many Britons fear that something on the scales of the 7/7 bombings may take place again. Most recently, the Tunisia hotel shooting incident killed 38 people, many were British tourists who were on holiday. Plus, incidents on the tube, such as the grenade fear at South Kensington tube station terrify many travellers. People are con-

Comments on the 7/7 bombings

My brother was stuck at Liverpool Street Station for 12 hours after the bombings. It was difficult to get in contact with him and everyone at home were completely worried.

For a year, I was scared to travel by tube; I avoided it like a plague!

- Shweta Phulwari.

I really hate what these horrendous people have done. They know nothing about Islam and their actions have tarnished our reputation in Britain. It gets difficult at times for me to even mention that I am a Muslim without being frowned upon or looked at with fear.

- Ishmail Qureshi.

I remember the spirit of Londoners after the horrific events. They went on to continue living without fear. Most people went back to travelling by public transport a day after the attacks. It shows that we beat terrorism and we will continue to do so. Nothing can deter our spirit.

- Monica Braganza.

worried about everything from a potential pile-up on the motorway to light bulbs exploding.'

Dahad, however, is grateful for life and hopes to overcome his fears.

We ought to salute the courage of the victims of such a heinous crime as they have bravely chosen to move on and try to live life to the fullest. Many living victims had to suffer severely, some even losing their limbs, however, the incident has surely not shackled their courageous spirit. But one can't help to wonder whether our safety is yet at risk. Could the recent attacks in Tunisia and ongoing bomb-scare around London mean that doomsday isn't that far away for us?

Bomb in a bus at Travistock Square

stantly living in fear, not knowing when a normal commute could end up becoming their last day on earth.

Sajda Mughal, a passenger who was travelling on the Piccadilly line between King's Cross and Russell Square on 7/7 recalls what had happened when she was on the train.

She said, 'We must have been out of Kings’ Cross 10 seconds when the explosion happened. You felt the train shake – I thought we had crashed and derailed.

It was quiet at first and then gradually there was

Sajda Mughal

screaming. My reaction was to be very still... We’d

Sudhesh Dahad

been down there for about 50 minutes when we heard

Names of victims who lost their lives on 7/7 Russell Square

James Adams Ciaran Cassidy Rachel Chung Elizabeth Daplyn Gamze Gunoral Emily Jenkins Adrian Johnson Helen Jones Michael Matsushita James Mayes Behnaz Mozakka Atique Sharifi Monica Suchocka

Mala Trivedi Arthur Frederick Karolina Gluck Mihaela Otto Ihab Slimane Anna Brandt Ojara Ikeagwu Christian Small Philip Beer Samatha Badham Lee Harris Shelley Mather Susan Levy

Tavistock Square

Anat Rosenberg Neetu Jain

Aldgate

Richard Gray Lee Baisden Benedetta Ciaccia Richard Ellery Anne Moffat Fiona Stevenson Carrie Taylor

Edgware Road

Anthony Fatayi-Williams Shyanuja Parathasangary

Michael Brewster Laura Webb Jonathan Downey David Foulkes Colin Morley Jennifer Nicholson

distant cries saying: “It’s the police.” I can’t even describe the relief when we were led down the tracks to safety.'

Mughal also stated how she was horrified and disgusted when she found out that the four attacks were carried out by four Muslim men. She said, 'Being a Muslim myself, I thought: “Well, why? Why would you do that? What ideology did you possess?” If they’d known their religion, it clearly states that to kill one innocent life is killing all humanity. From then on, questions played on my mind. Why didn’t the families of the bombers pick up on any signs that they were being brainwashed? Could they have been helped if something had been detected within the home?'

Another passenger who was also travelling on the Piccadilly line is Sudhesh Dahad. He speaks about how the experience left him traumatised to the extent that he wanted to get away from London.

'After that I wanted to get away from London. I tried to relocate my job to the US. I felt the psychological treatment I was receiving wasn’t working; therapists would throw statistics at me to show my fears were unfounded, but I just became more paranoid. I

Philip Russell Giles Hart Jamie Gordon Shahara Islam

William Wise Miriam Hyman Marie Hartley Gladys Wundowa Sam Ly

Still from video footage taken by emergency services of the Piccadilly line train after the bomb blast.

Photograph: July 7 Inquests/PA

London to hold series of commemorative events Authorities in London are putting together the final plans for a series of commemorative events for the 10th anniversary of the 7/7 bombings.

• Tavistock Square memorial lecture: Tessa Jowell – will give the annual Tavistock Memorial lecture to mark the anniversary of the bombings.

Organisers at the Tavistock Memorial Trust are also hoping to reach its £100,000 target to build a permanent memorial in Tavistock Square. So far the charity has raised £36,000.

• St Paul's service: The survivors and the families of the victims have been invited to attend a service of commemoration in St Paul’s Cathedral at 11am on the day. Staff from TfL, the Metropolitan Police, London Fire Brigade, the London Ambulance Service, British Transport Police and the City of London Police, will also attend.

London mayor Boris Johnson and Prince Andrew are expected to join as well.

• One minute's silence: The entire country is being invited to hold one minute's silence at 11:30am to reflect on the anniversary.

• Hyde Park memorial: On the same day a memorial will be held in Hyde Park at 2:30pm. This event is open to the general public, except few areas will be reserved for the survivors and the victims’ families.

18

Start nominating for the Asian Achievers Awards 2015 UK

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 4th July 2015

Reshma Trilochun

The Asian Achievers Awards (AAA), also known as The People's Choice Awards, organised by Asian Business Publications Limited (ABPL), is a star-studded event where the renown and crème de la crème attend to celebrate and acknowledge the contribution and hard work of the nominees in society. The awards has been taking place annually; this will be the 15th ceremony and will be held at the prestigious Grosvenor House Hotel, on Friday 18th September 2015.

The awards recognises the outstanding work from the individuals from across all walks of life within the Asian community, and acknowledge the accomplishments of the finest in the UK's Asian community. Each year, the awards illustrates and celebrates a certain aspect of society, and this year there will be an emphasis on Uniformed and Civil Services. Men and women from ethnic minorities in Britain make up 5.6% of the Armed Forces and 2.9% of the ministry of Defence Civil Service. There has also been a good number of British-Asians representation in Civil services, especially in areas such as the Home Office, MOD and CPS over the last few years. The awards has chosen to pay tribute to the achievements of those in the Armed Forces and Civil Services by making this year's theme for the awards as Uniform

and Civil Services.

There are ten categories for the Asian Achievers Awards and this week, we will have a look at the Entrepreneur and Professional category. There are certain criteria which are essential in ensuring the apt person receives the award. For the Entrepreneur of the Year, the awardee would have a proven track record of operating a successful business enterprise. For Professional of the Year, the awardee would be a someone who has scaled the heights of their chosen profession, be it in the field of medicine, law, education, science, banking, finance or in another field.

There were many esteemed nominees from different respective fields and some of the winners include Dr Richie Nanda, and Prof. Sir Tejinder Singh Virdee, FRS. Richie Nanda is an entrepreneur and an internation-

al security magnate, while Tejinder Singh Virdee is an experimental physicist and Professor of Physics at Imperial College London.

Every year, the awards selects a particular charity and encourages people to donate towards a good cause which would benefit the people in need. Last year, the chosen charity was the Cherie Blair Foundation and through the awards it raised a staggering £100,000. This year's sponsored

charity is The Loomba Foundation- aiming to promote the welfare and economic empowerment of disadvantage widows and educating their children. The Loomba Foundation was established in the UK as a charitable Trust Deed on 26 June 1997, by Lord Raj Loomba CBE and his wife Veena, Lady Loomba.

The readers have the opportunity to nominate who they believe deserves an award in their respective field, and an

independent panel of judges deliberate and choose the winners. ABPL Group has no say in who becomes a recipient of an award, and neither will they entertain any dialogue with the members of the public regarding the judging process.

To nominate an achiever of your choice, simply fill in the form below and send it to us by 24th July 2015.

Or you could simply visit www.asianachieversawards.com and nominate.

PRESENTS

NOMINATION FORM

The prestigious Asian Achievers Awards is hosted every year by UK’s leading news weeklies Asian Voice and Gujarat Samachar to honour British Asians par excellence. If there is someone you know who has broken boundaries and deserves recognition for their unique contribution to the community and the nation then please nominate them for one of the awards listed below.

Make sure that you fill in this application form and send it on or before 24th July, 2015 by post, fax or email to Mr. L George, Tel: 020 7749 4013, Fax 020 7749 4081, Email: aaa@abplgroup.com. If you are sending it by post the address is Mr. L George, ABPL Group, Karma Yoga House, 12 Hoxton Market, London N1 6HW.

Please 4 tick the appropriate category Uniformed and Civil Services For outstanding achievements in uniformed and civil services or contribution to the community through any of the above services.

Entrepreneur of the Year Awarded to an entrepreneur with a proven track record of operating a successful business enterprise.

Professional of the Year Professionals in the field of medicine, law, education, banking, finance and others, who have scaled the heights of their chosen profession.

Achievement in Media, Arts and Culture Someone who has made a mark in media including print and broadcast media; cinema, art and culture.

Achievement in Community Service In recognition for an individuals service to community.

Woman of the Year The award will recognise and honour a woman who has made a significant mark in any chosen field.

Sports Personality of the Year Awarded for excellence in sports.

Business Person of the Year Awarded to a business person who is a success in every sense of the word and can demonstrate a genuine passion for social issues.

International Personality of the Year Awarded to those who have acclaimed popularity internationally for his/her contribution in any particular sector and is recognised for their timeless philanthropic activities.

Lifetime Achievement Award To honour those individuals, who during their lifetime, have made immense contributions in any given field. This remarkable individual can be marked as an example for the younger generation.

Application Form Full Name of the Person you are Nominating: __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ His/Her Contact Details (Tel & email): ___________________________________________________Occupation of the Nominee: ___________________________________________ Please attach the Nominees's CV which includes the following information (Please do not exceed a limit of 1000 words) (1) Personal background (2) Most important career achievements till date.

(3) Nominee's contribution to the community and nation.

(4) Future Plans, ambitions and visions.

Summary-

(5) Any notable obstacles in the Nominee's career that has helped him/her to reach where they are today.

(Please include a summary in not more than 150 words why the nominee is worthy of winning the particular award in a separate sheet)

Your name and contact details: ______________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Your current Occupation/Company: ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Your contact ____________________________________________________________ Email: ____________________________________________________________________________ Sponsor

Sponsored charity

Media Partners

REAL ESTATE VOICE

Haunted…and not wanted!

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 4th July 2015

Suresh Vagjiani

Sow & Reap A Property Investment Company

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Whilst having a drink in Starbucks in Colaba, Mumbai, there was a couple next to me having a conversation, the topic turned to property and I couldn’t help but interject. Like most Indians they were happy to start up animate conversation with strangers, so I wasn’t given the cold shoulder and told to mind my own business.

It turns out the gentleman is a RICS qualified surveyor hailing from both Nottingham and Manchester universities. Having studied architecture in the UK he is now applying his knowledge in India. He lives in Bandra but he and his fiancé come to Colaba once a month just to roam the streets and enjoy the town’s ambience.

Understandable, as it has a charm which is difficult to find anywhere else, a mix of the old and the new, every other property is a heritage property, which is the equivalent of a listed property in the UK. Mumbai is tough market to operate in; like approximately 50% of Indians he works for himself. He does a little work on an employed basis, nothing in India is fixed here you can be both. His work comes mainly from Rajasthan and Jaipur. I asked him why his work is not in Mumbai, logically this is where the money and action is. His answer was this is dominated by the big boys and it’s a very difficult market to penetrate. The smaller jobs are done cheaply and there is no lack of manpower; and the ones which require professionalism are covered by the larger firms.

In his experience anyone who invests in property in Mumbai almost does so with the anticipation that problems will arise.

The propert y in t he c it y is alre ady own ed most ly by the previou s gen eration , and Indians like pro pe rty, the re fore they te nd never to sell . As what will t hey do wit h t he f und s? P roperty is a g ood pl ace to keep t hem. This is in the In dian blo od an d psyche, fro m the times o f t he Mahabharat and beyond pro pe rty and land are seen as the main sign s of a man ’s wealth.

location of Jaipur and till date remains empty. It’s in an area called Bani Park opposite the Pink Square in Jaipur. I asked why on earth was it not sold off plan ages ago or stopped at that point, he said the builder was probably hoping people would forget and carried on building all the way to completion.

I asked what if someone was ready to buy the building at say 20% of the value? The building is worth zero to the builder anyhow. He suggested that would be too low, I counteracted that this is more than it’s worth to the builder now. He suggested a strike price of 50% would be more acceptable. Apparently the builder has written off selling the building.

I suggested perhaps it could be bought and the spirits could be exorcized and using some of the most prominent tantrics in India we could neutralise the ghostly influences; and then have a PR firm to publicise the building again.

I mentioned to him I had written about a property in Mumbai which could not be sold due to apparent paranormal activity. In this regard he also had a ghostly tale to tell.

Indians are prone to fear and superstition as well as being fatalistic; a property is probably one of the largest investments they are likely to make so even the slightest notion that there could possibly be something wrong will scare them away in a herd mentality from the property.

It’s not just a property in question when you speak of a supernatural and malevolent influence, it is feared their whole destiny could be altered, and not just theirs but also that of many generations down the line.

It is therefore better not to get involved in a property which may have the slightest suspicion of being haunted, the upside may possibly be profitable, but the down side is downright disastrous on many levels.

They both felt this wou ld not wo rk. I point ed to the fact that Rustomjee had d one the exact same thing with a ‘proble m’ bu il ding in Mumbai, whic h I wrote abo ut in l ast wee k’s art icle. However ne ither of the m we re persu ad ed.

They pointed o ut that Mu mbaikars have a diffe re nt spirit , they move on, the y don ’t st ay fixate d on the same issue .

Testimony to this was du ring the bomb blast in 2008, peo ple carried on using the train s two ho urs aft er the bo mb blasts, whilst the hostage situ at io n was still g oing on.

If any rumou r is started that a pro pe rty may be possessed , the trouble is you cann ot prove it one way or ano ther. The media h ere is mo stl y bo ught and this k ind o f stor y may be st arted and fue lled by an other party who may have a vest ed in terest. It is sensational and so helps to sell ple nty of ne wspapers.

During my interaction with Mumbaikars it seems they are a lot more streetwise than in the UK, most of whom accept official versions given to them without any questions like sheep. Here, they know almost everything has an element of a scam in it and nothing is accepted at face value. The difference in Mumbai is they know they’re probably being played.

Going back to the ghostly tale, the building in question is in a top

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Then there is the fact that property in Mumbai is in scarce supply, and the population dense and getting denser, as a collective they cannot afford to stay fixated on stories like this for too long.

In Jaipur land is in abundance, they have plenty of supply of property and so have other options, perhaps the current builder will have to wait for an entire generation to die and a new one to be born before his building will be sold. It seems he may be stuck with this lump of property for a while.

It is difficult to ascertain what the actual price paid for a property is, often brokers quote a higher price to what the seller wants to the prospective buyer and simply pocket the difference. There are no laws to constrain who they make their money from - they can eat from both sides. In the UK you cannot make from both the buyer and seller in a transaction; it needs to be disclosed.

In an economy where many transactions are still done in both black and white it’s difficult to know what’s actually going on even if you’re are a localite.

Any mortgage, or home loan as they like to call it in India, can only be based on the white element of the transaction.

Here’s a saying I have overused, but nonetheless, it’s a good mantra to keep repeating, you should grow your flowers where you can water them. Home is still London and this is where even if things do not go to plan the property can be handled, the market is fluid, transparent, and there are multiple ways out with a little creativity.

Of course there is the sentiment of owning something in one’s home land. This is more to do with emotions and it’s ok to park some of your money, but not the bulk. Demand for Indian property comes mostly from the locals, some from NRIs; London demand is truly global and with good reason.

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20

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 4th July 2015

Dear Financial Voice Reader, I write to you from India, over from Dubai, via Qatar! As Europe worries about the Greek crisis, the rest of the world, especially these three countries are making a fortune with new companies coming to market.

Should you buy some shares in Facebook? How do you judge if a company is overvalued anyway? Just wait until someone raises more than Facebook did and I am India looking for the next Facebook.

Well the company will raise $10billion – that’s the most by a technology company ever. More than Google raised. It values the company as a whole at just under $100 billion. But is it overvalued as a company – as a stock? That was the issue with Facebook.

That is the issue with the markets at the moment – are they overvalued and so likely to crash – thanks also to a healthy push from Greece?

There are only ever two reasons to buy a stock; either for the short-term where you think future expectations are not priced into the company’s share price and it will lead to surprises that will cause the shares to rise.

Or you think for the long term all the revenues it will generate, dividends it will pay, share prices rises it will as a consequence generate, are today being discounted too greatly and therefore the stock is undervalued. This is what we fund managers call the net present value or discount cashflow model. The way it works is this – you treat a stock like any asset eg a house. What is all the income you will ever earn from it? That is then valued at having it today, because £10 in a year is not worth the same as having £10 today.

Let’s take the short-term. Granted, at the IPO (initial public offering), when it first hits the market, it will rise, because retail investors, renowned for being wrong, will drive it higher. But then what? The clever institutions and smart money will start moving it lower I suspect. So ride the bandwagon, but just make sure you jump before the cliff – just like in the good ol’ dot-com era days.

What of the long-term. The maths is tricky.

Essentially it comes down to how do you value a company? A company is simply worth, as mentioned above, the net present value of all its future cash flows discounted to today. That means we need to know a discount rate – which can be thought of as the return someone wans for investing in something as risky as shares. Let’s say this is 10% per annum. And we also need to have an idea of growth of the company. Let’s say sales growth for the next seven years is maintained at Google’s average over the past 8 years which is roughly what Facebook grew last year – namely 80% per annum. What is the company worth? By my estimated around $75 billion – assuming sales growth of 80% per annum – which Google has maintained.

But most people in valuing Indian or British companies don’t do this. So if there is a crash, it will be because we are happy to follow the heard, not look at hard numbers. In India, they definitely are buying overvalued companies. Don’t do it!

SC sets terms for Sahara chief's release

India's Supreme Court has asked jailed Sahara chief Subrata Roy to pay Rs 50 billion in cash and a bank guarantee of an equal amount to secure his release. The order, however, looks dicey as Roy's senior advocate Kapil Sibal told the court there was difficulty in furnishing the bank guarantee, as one of the financial institutions had backed out.

A bench of justices T S Thakur, A R Dave and A K Sikri while pronouncing its order said, “We have accepted the format of bank guarantees.” The court also asked the 65year-old, who has been in Tihar jail since March 4,

2014, to pay Rs 360 billion to market regulator SEBI within 18 months and in nine instalments from the date of his release.

It allowed SEBI to encash the bank guarantees to be furnished by the Sahara chief, in case he defaults in the payments of two instalments. The bench further said that if Roy defaults in payments in three instalments, then he will have to surrender himself back to the jail.

“We direct them to deposit their passport with the court. They shall not leave the country without prior permission of this court,” the bench said.

India among top 10 FDI recipients

India has broken into the top 10 recipients of foreign direct investment in 2014, the UNCTAD informed in its World Investment Report, 2015. Weighing on the 15th position for the last two years, India moved to the 9th rank with a 22 per cent rise in FDI inflows to $ 34 billion. It is, however, the only BRIC country that hasn't yet crossed the $ 50 billion a year FDI mark.

“Till the time an MP is afraid to appear to encourage FDI or business in India, the high favourability ratings will not convert

into high inflows and they will remain low,” UNCTAD’s Premila Nazareth Satyanand said, releasing the report.

China became the largest recipient of FDI in 2014 with $129 billion inflows as, at 39 per cent, Hong Kong saw the biggest surge in inflows during the year. Russia took a hit as foreign investors exited its oil sector and other projects after Western countries slapped economic sanctions on it.

India, however, dropped out of the top 20 countries in the outward

FDI flows.

The report also found, developing countries lost $100 billion in tax revenues owing to investors routing FDI through tax havens such as Mauritius, and has asked for multilateral action to address the issue. It also records a big surge in investments from China into every region of the world, especially in India’s neighbourhood.

FDI inflows to Pakistan increased by 31 per cent to $1.7 billion as a result of rising Chinese FDI flows in services.

In Sri Lanka, where

China has become the largest source of FDI in recent years, FDI flows from it rose. For example, a joint venture between two local companies and China Merchants Holdings (International) Company has invested $500 million in Colombo International Container Terminals, the largest foreign investment project in Sri Lanka. After two years of construction, the port started operation in August 2014.

A China-Sri Lanka FTA will be signed in June 2015

food processing units in Newport, Barking and Sunderland and is the largest supplier to UK Indian restaurants and takeaways.

More recently Shelim Hussain MBE has been preparing to launch a new enterprise Kukd.com (a

new online takeaway ordering and table reservation service) in the autumn. Kukd.com will be developed by the industry, for the industry, so wants to work with independent local high street restaurant and takeaway businesses now to ensure they create the e-commerce and support services they need to compete in the ever growing online ordering industry.

Shelim Hussain was appointed a Member of the British Empire in 2003 for his services to business in Wales and in the same year won the Eastern Eye Young Achiever Award, presented by HRH the Prince of Wales.

The EY Entrepreneur of the Year Programme is

about discovering exceptional companies and business leaders and is committed to supporting entrepreneurs. There were a total of 132 finalists who together, employ a total of 81,200 people and achieve a combined revenue of £8.7bn across the UK. The Programme is endorsed by Social Enterprise UK, the CBI and the Department for Innovation and Skills.

Shelim Hussain MBE commented, “I am delighted to have won the EY London & South Entrepreneur of the Year award. The EY awards are highly respected amongst entrepreneurs of all ages and it is an honour to be recognised for my work founding Euro Foods and Kukd.com”.

Shelim Hussain MBE wins London & South Entrepreneur of the Year Award

Shelim Hussain MBE, owner of the Euro Foods Group and Founder of Kukd.com won the EY London & South Entrepreneur of the Year Award 2015 last night at a ceremony at the Tate Modern.

Shelim Hussain MBE is a Bangladeshi-born British entrepreneur. He has worked in restaurants since the age of 11 and started the Euro Foods Group at the age of 17 with a £20 investment.

Euro Foods Group is now a leading international manufacturer and distributor of frozen and fresh foods, with a UK turnover in excess of £104 million and a worldwide turnover of $200 million. It employs over 200 staff and has

Indian companies in the UK concerned over restrictions on labour mobility

Rupanjana Dutta

The Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) has expressed deep concern over the recent announcement made by UK Prime Minister David Cameron which would have the effect of restricting mobility of skilled professionals into UK from non-EU countries, including India.

Commenting on the issue, Sumit Mazumder, President, CII said, “There are over 800 Indian companies operating in the UK, contributing to the overall economy and innovation, paying taxes, hiring locally and upskilling local talent. While several companies offer their own training programs, but when it comes to highskilled work and specialised knowledge of company operations, the Intra-Company Transfer route becomes crucial.

Many companies avail the ICT visa and their operations may be severely dis-

Sumit Mazumdar

rupted.”

“We understand the concern on immigration and skills shortage in the UK. This is a huge opportunity for India and the UK to work together in strengthening skills capability and developing a globally competitive workforce. We must not undermine the contributions of Indian companies in the UK, who are keen to partner in this process.” he added.

The development is particularly disturbing in light of Grant Thornton’s recent study conducted in

collaboration with CII, which highlights the growing contribution of Indian companies towards investment and job creation in the UK. The report shows that top Indian companies in the UK have a combined turnover of GBP 22 billion and together they employ over 110,000 people.

As the Migration Advisory Committee (MAC) has been tasked with advising the UK Government on a new “skills levy”, raising salary thresholds for migrant workers, and reforms to

skills shortage criteria, the CII is proposing a business discussion for the MAC with Indian companies currently operating in the UK. “It would be important for the UK Government to get a deeper understanding of how this would hit the real stakeholders in the India-UK economic relationship – both Indian and British companies. We are keen to showcase how Indian companies in the UK bring in the best talent to boost economic growth and innovation and in fact, create more jobs locally. We will approach the UK Government for a business meeting to apprise them on this issue,” said Prashant Jhawar, Chairman of CII’s India Business Forum in the UK. The news comes ahead of the UK visit of the CII’s annual CEOs delegation and has caused significant concern among the business community.

CURRENCY VOICE

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 4th July 2015

21

Foreign Exchange

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

Greece left with very little options Over the weekend Greek banks and the stock exchange will be shut for at least a week after creditors refused to extend the country's bailout and savers queued to withdraw cash, taking Athens' stand-off with the European Union and the International Monetary Fund to a dangerous new level. Greece's banks have been kept afloat by emergency funding from the European Central Bank and are on the front line as Athens moves towards defaulting on a 1.6 billion euros payment due to the International Monetary Fund on Tuesday.

Greece's left-wing Syriza government had for months been negotiating a deal to release funding in time for its IMF payment. Then suddenly, in the early hours of Saturday, Tspiras asked for extra time to enable Greeks to vote in a referendum on the terms of the deal.

Creditors turned down this request, leaving little option for Greece but to default, piling further pressure on the country's banking system.

Creditors want Greece to cut pensions and raise taxes in

ways that Tsipras has long argued would deepen one of the worst economic crises of modern times in a country where a quarter of the workforce is already unemployed. Many leading economists have voiced sympathy with the Greek government's argument that further cuts in spending risk choking off the growth which would give Greece some prospect of servicing debts worth nearly twice its annual national income.

International Monetary Fund boss Christine Lagarde said that if the July 5 vote produced "a resounding yes" to remain in the euro and fix the Greek economy then the creditors would be willing to make an effort.

In other European news last week German business morale weakened for a second straight month in June, suggesting concerns about the Greek debt crisis are hitting the mood amongst companies across Europe's largest economy. IFO's business climate index dropped to 107.4 in June from 108.5 in May. That was its weakest read-

ing since February this year.

Also the index for the Euro area factory and services unexpectedly rose to the highest in more than four years this month as growth gained momentum in Germany and France. France’s gauge of the two industries climbed to the highest since 2011 and growth in Germany also strengthened.

European Central Bank stimulus and a weaker euro helped boost euro-area growth to 0.4 percent in the first quarter.

In the US Orders for business equipment rose in May for just the second time this year, indicating demand for American-made manufactured goods is stabilizing. Orders for non-military capital goods excluding aircraft rose 0.4 percent last month after a 0.3 percent decline in April, orders for all durable goods declined 1.8 percent.

Exports will probably take longer to rebound as the dollar’s appreciation makes American-made goods less competitive globally. A pick-up in business investment would go a long way towards boosting

growth in the world’s largest economy, which suffered a setback in the first quarter amid harsh winter weather, a strong dollar and delays at ports.

It was also reported the world’s largest economy shrank less in the first quarter than previously estimated, aided by a bigger gain in consumer spending. GDP in the U.S. only fell at a 0.2 percent annualized rate, revised from a previously reported 0.7 percent drop. The harsh winter weather and port delays that damped growth at the start of the year have given way to increases in consumer spending and housing, boosting Federal Reserve projections that the setback was temporary.

Still hindering growth in the US are lower oil prices which is hitting investment in the energy industry. Also a strong dollar continues to hurt exporters.

It was a quiet week for the UK however property sales data has provided more evidence that the UK housing market is moving more slowly than a year ago. A total of 98,540 homes were sold in May, down 35 from the same time last year

Weekly Currencies As of Tuesday 30th June 2015 @ 2pm

GBP - INR = 100.24 USD - INR = 63.61 EUR - INR = 71.39 GBP - USD = 1.58 GBP - EUR = 140

EUR - USD = 1.12 GBP - AED = 5.79

GBP - CAD = 1.96

GBP - NZD = 2.32

GBP - AUD = 2.04

GBP - ZAR = 19.17

GBP - HUF = 442.30

www.rationalfx.com

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

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BUSINESS

22

Bharti Airtel becomes No. 3 mobile operator in world

India's Sunil Mittal-led Bharti Airtel has become the world's third largest mobile operator with 303 million subscribers. With operations in 20 countries, Bharti Airtel, which is present in India, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and Africa, has "become the third largest mobile operator in the world in terms of subscribers," the company said in a statement.

Quoting latest data

China Mobile, according to WCIS, is the top mobile operator in the world with 626.27 million subscribers.

Vodafone Group of UK ranks second with 403.08 million subscribers.

China Unicom is ranked fourth with 299.09 million subscribers, followed by America Movil with 274.14 million users.

"Airtel began operations in November 1995 in New Delhi (India) and in

published by World Cellular Information Service (WCIS), it said Airtel has over 303 million mobile subscribers across its operations and has moved up one position in the global rankings.

less than two decades it has emerged as one of the top brands in the emerging markets with an unmatched scale and diversity of operations," the statement said.

The company said it has pioneered the low-cost business model based on outsourcing that has allowed it to expand its services rapidly and give customers affordable access to mobile telephony.

Ashok Lakhani awarded at the EY London and South Entrepreneur of the year 2015

Ashok Lakhani founder and Chief Executive Officer of Kolak Snack Foods Ltd was a winner at the prestigious EY London and South Entrepreneur of The year awards 2015.

On winning, Mr Lakhani told the Asian Voice, “I am very proud to win such a fabulous award especially considering the wide range of excellent entries reflecting the quality and strength of the London and South business sector and its renowned entrepreneurial spirt.

“This is fantastic news and reflects on the hard work of the Kolak team .Our success is built upon

and are known as one of the most successful snack manufacturers in the UK market place. The business supplies the majority of the high street retailers with Kolak branded and retailer own label snacks.

The company has delivered 30 years of unbroken

focusing on the needs of high street retail customers and developing a strong team here at Kolak .We are happy with our continued progress ,especially in such a tough economic climate.”

Kolak Snack Foods were established in 1984

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growth and is recognised as a quality producer of competitively priced products. Dedication to its delivering for customers and speed to market has driven Kolak’s growth ahead of the snack category. Kolak moved to its current site in 1995, starting with a staff of 100 and now employs more than a 1,000 people.

The company’s turnover has almost trebled from £32 million in 2008 to over £100 million today. Since starting his company Kolak Snack Foods in 1984, Ashok has achieved 30 years of unbroken growth, from producing 28,000 packets of crisps and snacks a week to more than 25 million and supplying all the major supermarket chains with own-label snacks.

Ashok has invested £17.5 million in the past two years including the opening of a state-of-the-art factory producing extruded snacks and flavoured crisps Ashok’s accomplishments has been most notable over the last five years as he has bucked the trend in food and drink manufacturing to achieve double-digit growth each year. Today Kolak has been driven to even greater heights by his natural entrepreneurial spirt as he has led Kolak into new markets with new customers and new exciting innovative products.

Ashok still remains extremely ambitious and with his brother Business Director Bharat and son, Managing Director Rikin Lakhani he aims to continue strengthening Kolak’s position as one of the foremost privately owned crisp and snacks producers in the UK. EY Entrepreneur Of The Year is the most prestigious business award for entrepreneurs .It has been running for 17 years in the UK. The award makes a difference through the unique way it encourages entrepreneurial activity amongst those with potential and recognises the contribution of people like Ashok who inspire others with their vision, leadership and achievement.

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 4th July 2015

India's Amrut Fusion is one of world's best whiskies

Amrut Fusion, an Indian single malt, has emerged as one of the treasured whiskies in the world. In 2010, whisky connoisseur Jim Murray declared the Bangalore single malt the world's third-best whisky in that year's edition of his annual Whisky Bible. This liquid gold was also the only Indian single malt to make it to the shelves of Harrods' Whiskies around The World section in October 2011.

Currently, Amrut Fusion is sold in 22 countries, including the UK, US, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, Singapore and South Africa. "We always knew it was good," says Rakshit Jagdale, the executive director of Amrut Distilleries, whose grandfather Radhakrishna Jagdale, named and set up the distillery in 1948, "but we were honoured that India made it to the list of best whiskies in the world. Amrut means elixir of life and we love it that the name represents India."

Also remarkable are some of the marketing strategies that Amrut employed early in their journey. In 2002, when Rakshit was pursuing an MBA in Newcastle, his father Neelakanta Rao Jagdale suggested that he test the market for Amrut. Rakshit went to over 250 Indian restaurants and high end bars and pubs in the UK,

armed with Amrut Fusion. "The response was fantastic," he says.

"Many compared it to a 12-15 year whisky."

Amrut's official launch took place in 2004, in Glasgow's Cafe India. Rakshit says, "Scotland loved it." Back home, however, whisky connoisseurs were complaining to Rakshit.

"Why do I have to travel all the way to London or the US to get a local product?" Rakshit says launching abroad before launching in India was intentional. He says, "We knew that once it was attested by the best, the rest would follow."

Amrut was launched in Mumbai in November 2013 and they are also set to launch their rum called Two Indies soon.

Rakshit says, "Even though the percentage of whisky drinkers in India is small, they are knowledgeable about whisky."

We will clink our tumblers to that. Amrut Fusion is available for Rs 3,750 at wine stores across Mumbai.

India's rural economy to remain subdued: Moody's

Credit rating agency Moody's Investors Service (MIS said it expects India's rural economy to remain subdued through the fiscal year ending March 2016. It said that this forecast would materialise, particularly, if the risk of belowaverage monsoon rainfall takes shape.

"A sustained soft patch for India's rural economy would weigh on private consumption and non-performing assets in the agricultural sector, a credit negative for the sovereign and banks," said Rahul Ghosh, MIS vice-president and senior research analyst. The analysis was published in the latest edition of Inside India, a quarterly publication of MIS. According to the report, rural income growth in India has been stuck in the mid to low single digits in 2015 to date, well off the 20 per centplus rates clocked in 2011.

The slower rural income growth is partly the result of increased fiscal restraint by the central government, that MIS

believes is unlikely to change in the coming quarters. The publication also includes key takeaways from a number of audience polls carried out during the first annual Moody's and ICRA India Credit Conference in Mumbai, that took place in May. According to the poll results, the consensus view on India's economic growth prospects is relatively optimistic, very much in keeping with Moody's baseline scenario of headline economic expansion of 7.5 per cent in FY2016. This forecast represents the highest projection amongst G20 economies, and provides a key pillar of support for the Baa3 sovereign rating and positive outlook.

"Notwithstanding these growth expectations, our polling results pointed to some disappointment amongst the audience with regard to the pace of reform under the administration of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and increasing concerns about the risk of policy stagnation," MIS said.

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 4th July 2015

In Brief

Lankan parliament dissolved, Sirisena seeking fresh mandate for reforms

Colombo: Sri Lanka's president has dissolved parliament last week, a government spokesman said, in an effort to consolidate power and push through political reforms. Two government officials said elections would be held to elect a new parliament on August 17. President Maithripala Sirisena, who was elected in a January 8 poll, needs parliamentary support to push through reforms he has promised, including limits on the powers of the executive presidency. The timing of the parliamentary elections is also important. The United Nations Human Rights Council is expected to release a report in September on human rights abuses during the final phase of the war against the Tamil insurgency in 2009. The report could affect an attempt by Sirisena's predecessor, Mahinda Rajapaksa to stage a comeback. His supporters say he may bid for the prime ministership.

Gurudwara holds Iftar for Muslims in UAE

Dubai: A Gurudwara in Jebel Ali, UAE, organised an Iftar party, for the second consecutive time, inviting the people from Al Manar, a Quran Study Centre, as the guests of honour. Ten guests were present, including Islamic speaker Ahmad Hamid and Al Manar Centre representative Abdul Hadi.

Hamid said they completed the “crux of the mission”, which was “to share the principles of why they fast.

This is the best time to share the principles of religion with everyone in this part of the world,” he said.

Surinder Singh Kandhari, chairman of the Guru Nanak Darbar, also invited about 20 other Muslim friends.

Pak heat wave toll touches 1,150

Karachi: Power outages have just added to the existing anguish of the people in Pakistan as the country braves its deadliest heatwave, topping a record of 1,100 deaths. The highest temperature recorded was at a dangerous 121 degrees in Karachi. “The deadly heat wave that has killed several hundred people in Karachi, is clearly a harbinger of things to come with the changing climate,” Saleemul Huq, director of the International Centre for Climate Change and Development in Bangladesh said. More than 14,000 people have had to be admitted hospitals and the morgues are overflowing.

IMF approves $506m bailout for Pakistan

Islamabad: The International Monetary Fund has approved the release of a $ 506 million loan tranche for Pakistan, as part of a three year bailout programme to support the country's economic reforms and growth.

The Executive Board took the decision after the seventh review of the country's economy for JanuaryMarch of the current year.

Taliban ambush kills 11 Afghan soldiers

Herat (Afghanistan): Taliban gunmen ambushed an army supply convoy from 207th Corps while it was travelling through Karokh district in Heart province.

Eleven soldiers were killed while they were travelling in pickup trucks, Ehsanullah Hayat, spokesman for the governor of the western province of Herat said.

US supreme court allows same-sex marriage

Washington: In a 5-4 ruling the US supreme court has allowed the same-sex couples to marry. The decision settled one of the biggest civil rights concerns of the era. America became the 21st country to legalise same sex marriage who will now enjoy the same legal rights and benefits as married heterosexual couples nationwide and will be recognized on official documents such as birth and death certificates. In an emotional moment shown on television, President Barack Obama thanked lead plaintiff of the case Jim Obergefell saying, “I just wanted to say congratulations. Your leadership on this has changed the country.”

116 feared killed in Indonesia plane crash

Medan (Indonesia): At least 116 people were feared killed after an Indonesian air force transport plane crashed into a major city shortly after take-off and exploded in a fireball, officials said. Buildings were left in ruins and cars reduced to flaming wrecks when the Hercules C-130 came down in a residential area of Medan, a city of two million on the island of Sumatra.

Air force chief Agus Supriatna said the manifest showed there were 113 people on board the plane - 12 crew and 101 passengers - when it crashed, and he did not believe any had survived. "No, no. No survivors, I have just returned from the site," he said.

WORLD

23

Jindal joins US presidential race

Washington: Louisiana Governor Bobby Jindal has joined the race for US presidency in 2016, giving himself a mountain to climb from the bottom of a full pack of Republican candidates. “My name is Bobby Jindal and I am running for President of the United States of America,” Jindal, who became the first person of Indian-American heritage to run for US president, said on his website.

His website featured videos of Jindal and his wife, Supriya, telling their three children that he was going to be a candidate and promising his daughter they would get a puppy if they moved to the White House. Once seen as a rising Republican star, Jindal has struggled with a fiscal crisis and a slump in popularity in his home state

and usually ranks near the bottom in polls of Republicans seeking the nomination for the November 2016 presidential election. Jindal, a twoterm governor who also represented Louisiana in the US House of Representatives, joins 12 other Republicans in the race, including former Florida Governor Jeb

Bush. Others, including Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker, are expected to join soon.

Hillary Clinton on course to win According to a new poll, Hillary Clinton is the firm favourite to be chosen as the Democratic Party nominee for the presidential polls and go on to be elected as the first woman

president of America.

A Wall Street Journal/NBC News poll taken in the days after Clinton held her first public rally earlier this month, showed the former secretary of state garnering broad support for being chosen the Democratic presidential nominee.

Three-quarters of Democratic primary voters said Clinton was their top pick to be the nominee, compared with the 15 per cent who selected Bernie Sanders.

Clinton, 67, enters the 2016 contest with unusually broad support from fellow Democrats with some 92 per cent of Democratic primary voters saying they could see themselves supporting her and just 8 per cent saying they could not, according to the poll.

Kathmandu: India has pledged $1 billion in assistance to quake-ravaged Nepal for its massive reconstruction programme at the Donors' Conference in Kathmandu. “This pledge is over and above our existing bilateral developmental assistance of another 1 billion US dol-

lars over the next five years, 45 per cent of which would be grant,” India's external affairs minister Sushma Swaraj said.

She further said, “Today I convey to you the deep and abiding commitment of the Government and 1.25 billion people of India and the personal

commitment of Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi to stand shoulder to shoulder with you as you seek to wipe the tears of every Nepali.” The international conference on Nepal's reconstruction was organised by the Nepalese government to raise funds to rebuild the country that was wrecked

two months back by a 7.9 magnitude earthquake, killing 9,000 people and injuring 23,000. The meet was attended by several countries, including China, Britain, Norway, Japan, Sri Lanka, the European Union and organisations like the UN, World Bank and the Asian Development Bank.

By Rani Singh

ing schools and health centres have been destroyed.

The Help Nepal Network was at the forefront of providing relief to survivors of the earthquake. With this concert they aimed to raise funds that will significantly aid the rebuilding process in Nepal. The band on stage consisted of highly skilled musicians, some of them doubling up on their instruments. On stage, playing beautifully at various times, were; a saxophonist and flautist, a keyboard/pianist, a violinist, two drummers, and four guitarists, two of them

also lead singers. The band on its own produced some of the nicest, upbeat and most melodic tunes of the evening.

The Rt Hon Hugo Swire MP, Minister of State at the FCO, sent a message in the programme for the event, as did Tej. B. Chhetri, Charge d’Affaires at the Nepalese Embassy, London.

Help Nepal Network was in the forefront of providing relief to earthquake survivors. HeNN volunteers travelled to Gorkha, Sindhupalchok, Dolakha and other districts with life saving medicines,

tents, food and other essential items. “We are proud to reach out to affected Nepalese communities during this time of an unprecedented national emergency,” said Arun Singh Basnet, chair of the Help Nepal Network Nepal chapter, who coordinated the relief works in Kathmandu, despite being injured himself.

“After deducting expenses, we will send the profits earned from the Concert to Gorkha district and help in rebuilding of schools, health centres etc after consulting local communities,” said Dr Pranab Gyawali, chair of the Help Nepal Network UK chapter. Yogeshwar Amatya, a well known singer and key personality behind the event, wrote in the programme about the genesis of the concert and the hurdles that needed to be overcome in the creation of the musical event, not least because he found himself five weeks from the performance date without a major sponsor and had to take remedial action. Among those he thanked were the Nakar brothers. He, his wife and all his team of well wishers pulled off an enchanting and memorable event that made this attendee happy and sad.

Sad for the victims ever present in our minds but happy at the lovely music played as tribute to them.

Bobby Jindal

India pledges $1 bn aid to quake-hit Nepal

A Fundraising Evening for Gorkha

Sunday, June 28, 2015, the Royal Albert Hall in London was packed with a 99% Nepali audience of loudly cheering enthusiasts, many of them dressed to the nines. One by one, acts came on stage and held the cheering British Nepalis mesmerised or had them singing along. The public gestured towards the stage, registering their oneness with the familiar and evocative songs. They had paid between £25 and £100 for tickets for the fundraiser.

The Help Nepal Network (HeNN) presented a special musical concert in aid of the earthquake survivors of the Gorkha district in Nepal.

Many senior and wellknown Nepali singers, including Deep Shrestha, Om Bikram Bista, Yogeshwar Amatya, Dipak Thapa Magar, Jems Pradhan, Sujil Karmacharya and Trishna Gurung performed during the night.

The host of Kantipur TV’s popular talk show Fireside, Bhusan Dahal hosted much of the event's proceedings.

The district of Gorkha was within the epicentre of the 7.8 magnitude earthquake that hit Nepal on April 25, 2015. More than 8,000 people have died and thousands of others have been injured. Over 500,000 buildings, includ-

"Sitting amongst the Nepali community and the youth, enquiries were made as to whether I was a Nepali. When they found out that I was a Gujarati from the Dharmic community, the youth expressed their thanks and gratitude to me for taking the time to attend and lending support. They informed me that the singers such as Deepak Thapa, Sujil Karmarchary and others are equivalent to Bollywood singers; jokingly they called it “Nollywood”.

"The beauty was that I was not able to understand what was being said but appreciated that music transcends borders, cultures, beliefs and touches a person’s

humanity.

"It would have been nice to see more of the Gujarati, Punjabi and the Dharmic communities attend the evening to lend their support to the earthquake victims who were predominantly from the Dharmic communities in Nepal.

"Dharmic communities need to reach out to build bridges and communities, creating a pluralistic dharmic community, which is relevant to a modern and developing world and by being the world’s conscious.

"Monies were raised to build two schools in remote and isolated parts of Nepal for at least over 2000 children."

- Minesh Patel, Law Partnership Solicitors

24

INDIA

BJP trying to pacify Andhra and Telangana CMs

Hyderabad: The BJP has now intervened in the ongoing battle between the chief ministers of Andhra Pradesh and Telangana, over the cashfor-vote and phone tapping cases. AP chief minister and TDP president N Chandrababu Naidu wants coalition partner BJP to play the mediator, while Telangana chief minister K Chandrashekhar Rao seems unyielding.

“Naidu has made life difficult for us by raising

the issue of Section 8. As the ruling party at the Centre, the BJP cannot remain silent for long. We want to mediate and convince the two chief ministers to bury their hatchets.

However, we are finding it difficult as sentiments are flying high,” a senior BJP leader said.

Naidu has been pressuring Governor ESL Narasimhan to invoke Section 8 of the AP Reorganisation Act, thereby taking direct control of

Madras HC confirms 10year jail term for rapist

Chennai: Merely a few days after he suggested a compromise and a mediated amicable settlement in a rape case, Justice P Devdass of the Madras high court has upheld a 10- year jail term for a rapist in another case.

He said, “In these days, increasingly women and children are becoming the target of lust of men. It is a motiveless crime. It is a beast behaviour... Such kind of criminal behaviour does not deserve sympathy. Such kind of vultures cannot be spared lightly.”

He confirmed conviction of 25 year old P Senthil Kumar and also refused to intervene in the 10 year sentence and Rs 1,000 fine imposed on him by a sessions court in

Erode.

“In the administration of criminal justice, pitiable plight of the victims cannot be lost sight of.

Trauma left on them will last long in their memory, and it will have psychological impact on their moral and physical activities.

The painful event will refuse to fade away from their memory. The victim in a murder case dies once for all, but the victim in sexual violence case dies every day, every minute,” the Judge observed.

Justice Devadass had recently attracted widespread criticism when he talked of giving an opportunity to a man, found guilty of raping a 15 year old girl, to 'settle' the matter by mediation.

law and order in Hyderabad. BJP central leadership sent petroleum minister Dharmendra Pradhan to Hyderabad to work out a rapprochement between Naidu and Rao. While Pradhan had a breakfast session with Naidu in Visakhapatnam, his luncheon meeting with Rao had to be cancelled as the latter was upset with the Central government's stand on Section 8.

“Union home minister Rajnath Singh said that

the cash-for-vote case and Section 8 are different issues. The BJP has to make this clear to Naidu and rein him in. Even finance minister Arun Jaitley had said in Parliament that the governor cannot have powers of the state. When this is the case, the BJP has to make its partner TDP realise this legal position before trying for a rapprochement,” Keshav Rao, Telangana Rashtra Samiti secretary-general said.

Jayalalithaa wins RK Nagar by-election

Chennai: Tamil Nadu chief minister Jayalalithaa on Tuesday won the byelection to Dr Radhakrishnan Nagar Assembly constituency, defeating CPI candidate C Mahendran by a huge margin of 150,000 votes.

Mahendran secured 9,710 votes.

Securing all postal votes, Jayalalithaa continued to lead with a relatively high margin from the first round to 17th round of counting. The former MLA from this constituency, P Vetrivel, received the certificate of election in Form 22, declaring Jayalalithaa elected. A record 74.4 per cent turnout of voters marked the by-election.

The Election Commission

ordered re-poll in one of the booths after an observer reported that the presiding officer allowed some voters “not duly enrolled in the electoral roll”. Turnout in the repoll was 85.54 per cent.

Vetrivel vacated the seat in May to enable Jayalalithaa to seek reelection post her acquittal by the Karnataka High Court in a disproportionate assets case. AIADMK cadres celebrated their leader's victory by bursting crackers, distributing sweets.

Chandigarh: The Punjab School Education Board was in for a serious shock when 220 teachers from government schools failed to explain the poor results of the Class 10 students in English. The Board had called the teachers for a meeting in Mohali town to inquire why more than 80,000 students failed to clear the English test.

Education minister Dalit Singh Cheema was present at the meeting where all the teachers were given a proforma to explain the reasons for the poor performance, only to be left at his wits' end dealing with the educators.

When one teacher remarked that, “English are international language,” he glaringly pointed out the grammatical error in the four lettered sentence. To which the teacher argued he had forgotten to bring his reading glasses. A fuming Cheema was seen asking, “What is the relation between the spectacles and the grammar.”

Amongst other reasons given by the teachers were, “The main reason is our school has situated remote area.” “Posts need to be fulfilled.” “It class was

very weak from 6 by chance.” Not just the grammar, the spellings were a major disaster as well, with 'practical' spelt as 'precticls', 'should' as 'shoud', 'lack' as 'leak' and 'vacant' as 'vacent'.

A startled minister told the teachers, “Now I realise that the students are not at fault. In fact, teachers are responsible.

Those being taught by such teachers should not even dream of passing the exams.”

Cheema has constituted a committee comprising educationists to chalk out a long term plan to improve their language skills, and their first task would be to study the problem in depth and then work out a crash course for the teachers. Also, the schools board will work out details of a long term training programme for English teachers, which will be personally monitored by the education minister.

Don’t malign Punjab on drug Punjab teachers going back issue, Badal tells politicians to school to learn English

Sangrur (Punjab): Punjab chief minister Parkash Singh Badal has asked political parties to refrain from maligning the state, just days after Union home minister Rajnath Singh asked the state government to fight against drug menace.

Following Rajnath's statement, Bharatiya Janta Party vice president Avinash Rai also wrote to the state, asking them to regulate the sale of liquor at vends across the state and restrict its availability and ‘uninhibited’ flow. “The state is fighting a national battle against this serious problem. I invite all political parties to extend support to the government and not malign the state using propaganda,” Badal said.

“Punjab is fighting the nation's war against drugs, yet, a few political parties are maligning the image of the hard-working Punjabi.

This is even as Punjab does not even produce any drugs.” Badal, in town for a sangat darshan programme in Dhuri assembly segment, spoke to reporters on the sidelines of the event. At the sangat darshan event, he announced that a special school would be launched

Parkash Singh Badal

in the Sangrur district to impart quality education to students from the economically weaker category, but who have secured above 80% marks in Class 10 from government schools.

On the rising incidence of farm suicides in the state, Badal again put the ball into the Centre’s court. “The poor plight of farmers is deplorable and unfortunate. Agriculture is no more a remunerative profession. The Central government can easily fix the prices of agricultural inputs and consequently of the crops. Remedial measures from the union government can help farmers get better value for their crop and labour,” he said, adding that a joint committee of the Centre, the state and the farmers was needed to come up with viable and practical solutions to farmers’ woes.

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 4th July 2015

South Brief

Hi-tech ‘vanity’ buses for CMs of Telangana, AP

Hyderabad: Telangana and Andhra Pradesh chief ministers K Chandrasekhar Rao and N Chandrababu Naidu, are getting themselves state-of-the-art buses.

“The idea is to have all the facilities so the chief ministers can use the bus as an office on the move.”

The vehicle will have a functional but comfortable bedroom, will be bullet-proof and its floor reinforced so as to make it blast-proof. KCR will be using the bus extensively for his 'Harita Haram' programme tours.

Sources said the road trips would enable KCR to also see how the drinking water grid and Mission Kakatiya programmes are being implemented.

Steffi Graf to be Kerala's ayurveda brand ambassador

Thiruvananthapuram: God's own country- Kerala, has decided to appoint tennis legend Steffi Graf as its ayurveda brand ambassador. While announcing the decision of the cabinet, chief minister Oommen Chandy said, “sanction has been given for the tourism department to see that talks are held with her agents to ensure she endorses Kerala tourism and ayurveda.”

The tourism department had already held discussions and has reached an agreement with the former world number one tennis player. She will be roped in for the 'Visit Kerala' Season of Surprises 2015-16.

Jayalalithaa launches Chennai Metro Rail

Chennai: Chennai joined the likes of Delhi, Kolkata, Bengaluru, Mumbai and Jaipur, after Tamil Nadu chief minister J Jayalalithaa inaugurated Chennai Metro Rail Limited's passenger services between Alandur and Koyambedu. She flagged off the train through video conference, after which, it left Alandur station and reached Koyambedu. The Rs 146 billion project was approved by the previous Congress-led UPA regime in 2009, with the work beginning later that year. The metro rail is expected to cover 32 stations in the coming years and has been designed to connect Chennai Airport, Chennai Central railway station, Egmore Station, CMBT and MRTS.

North Brief

Student fakes her abduction to check efficiency of police

Faridkot: A student of Guru Gobind Singh Medical College and Hospital, Faridkot, faked her own abduction to “check the efficiency of police department.” The girl called up her friends and told them she was abducted, which lead to the friends approaching the police, who sprung into action. They retrieved her from the Jalandhar bus station after they were informed the girl was dropped there by her abductors. On being questioned, the girl revealed she had concocted the story to see whether the police can recover her. No actions have been taken against her, and she was handed over to her parents in Hoshiarpur.

TADA convict Khera brought to Punjab from Karnataka

Amritsar: Gurdeep Singh Khera, convicted in two separate cases under TADA in 1996 and 2001, was brought to Punjab from Karnataka. He had petitioned the Karnataka government on December 12, 2013, asking for a transfer, after which the Punjab Government gave a no objection certificate last year.

Punjab officials have been pursuing the Karnataka government to speed up his transfer ever since. A native of Jallupur Khera village in Amritsar, Khera was booked under Terrorist and Disruptive Activities (TADA) Prevention Act and later sentenced to life imprisonment in two different cases registered in 1996 in New Delhi and Karnataka and handed out a life term under TADA by a court in Karnataka on December 15 in 1991. He was brought in the wee hours to avoid confrontation with Hindu radical groups who had threatened to stage a protest.

Youth Akali Dal leader commits suicide, seven booked

Ludhiana: Santokh Singh Sukhana, national general secretary of the Youth Akali Dal, was found hanging in a bathroom of a hotel, with a suicide note in his pocket. Later the police recovered another note from his residence. Seven people, including two senior leaders of the ruling Akali Dal have been booked, following the note, for the abutment of the suicide.

Sukhana had recently been arrested by Delhi police in a fraud case of Rs 3500,000 and had been brought to the city for further investigation and was staying in the hotel with the police. A case of negligence has been filed against three members of the Delhi police team.

INDIA

70 killed as floods hit Saurashtra

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 4th July 2015

At least 70 people were killed, including 26 in Saurashtra region, when heavy rains lashed Gujarat last week. The state emergency control room recorded 26 deaths in Amreli, the worst-affected district of the region, four in Devbhoomi-Dwarka, three each in Bhavnaagr, Junagadh and Surendranagar, two each in Dahod, Mehsana, Morbi and Surat, and one each in Kheda, Porbandar and Valsad.

The rainfall on Wednesday last crossed 200 mm at several places.

Amreli had an average 127 mm, with Bagsara block recording 25.44 inches (646 mm) and Dhari block 20.44 inches (519 mm). In Bhavnagar district, Palitana had 14 inches, Jesar 10 inches and Bhavnagar 8 inches.

Amreli, Bhavnagar and Rajkot had the highest rainfall in Saurashtra.

Surat in South Gujarat exceeded those districts with 177 mm and saw two deaths. In North Gujarat, Idar too had 177 mm rainfall while Ahmedabad had 130 mm and Gandhinagar 97 mm; however, there were no casualties in these districts.

Amreli’s Bagasara block alone accounted for 18 deaths, 13 of them in the collapse of two houses and the other five in Pithadiya village, where a

Jains to get minority status in Gujarat

The Jain community in Gujarat will get minority status by the end of July, social justice and empowerment minister Ramanlal Vora said. The Union ministry of minority affairs during the Congress-led UPA government, had accorded the status to the Jains through a notification in January 2014.

Gujarat is, however, yet to do the same. “The earlier Central government had given the minority status to Jains. Now, the state government has initiated the process to notify Jain community as minority in Gujarat. We are taking this matter very positively and recently held a meeting in this regard,” the minister said. “I believe that a positive decision in this regard will be taken by July-end,” he added. The status allotted by the government will be beneficial to the community as they will be able to profit off different government schemes and programmes.

They would also get a share in Central funds earmarked for welfare programmes and scholarships for the minorities and can also manage and administer their own educational institutions.

In a first, 109 sent to jail for urinating in public

Modi sarkar's 'Swachh Bharat Abhiyaan' has sent the country on a strict cleanliness drive, and for the first time in India, Agra division of Indian railways put 109 people in jail for 24 hours after they were caught urinating on railway property.

Repulsed by the stench of urine and ugly red pan stains on the corners of almost every government building, senior superintendent of police, GRP, Gopeshnath Khanna ordered his men to conduct a drive against such people and penalise them.

“In a special drive conducted at several stations of Agra division, including Agra Cantt, Agra Fort, Idgah, Raja Ki Mandi and Tundla, 109 men were sent to jail for 24 hours and were penalised up to Rs 500 for urinating in public places on railway properties in front of women and

children. They were also fined for creating public nuisance by consuming alcohol or spitting pan masala from the window of trains in public place.

The drive is a part of Prime Minister Narendra Modi's initiative of 'Swachh Bharat' campaign. The offenders were charged under Section 34 of the Police Act (Punishment for certain offences such as inconvenience, annoyance to passengers or residents in public places, roads, etc.).”

“The message behind such a drive is to convey people, that enough is enough. For more than six decades, our adamant social behaviour has not changed. This city hosts millions of tourist every year, we just can't be negligent and irresponsible when comes to showing etiquettes in public fora.”

bus of Gujarat State Road Transport Corporation was washed away.

At least 30 villages in Amreli and Porbandar were cut off. Road links from Amreli to Dhari and Bagasara remained snapped, with a bridge over the Shetrunji river damaged. Six major state highways connecting Amreli city to its talukas have been damaged. In Rajkot, 1,700 houses have collapsed or been washed

25

away. Jetpur town was flooded by water gushing in at 200,000 cusec after all 29 gates of Bhadar dam, Saurashtra’s largest, were opened. Links to Porbandar were snapped when water released from the Bhadar dam marooned parts of 34 villages.

With several electric poles uprooted, many parts of Amreli district reeled under power cuts.

Crop damage across the state is being estimated,

with compensation to be decided within a week.

Chief minister Anandiben Patel, who made an aerial survey of Amreli district and Gondal in Rajkot, declared Rs 400,000 as compensation to the kin of each of the deceased.

Around 200,000 food packets were distributed, some of these packets were air-dropped on 29 villages of Amreli.

Around 4,000 people were evacuated from 17 villages downstream of the Bhadar dam. IAF helicopters rescued over 100 people from various parts of Amreli, with four helicopters pressed into service.

These included 48 from Amreli’s Gavadka village, including 23 passengers, the driver and the conductor of a state transport bus that had been swept away.

From Jetpur town, 90 people were rescued by NDRF and the Rajkot fire brigade.

his arrest.

Abhishek Banerjee made some inflammatory statements which can instigate violence.” Comments and

criticism under #AbhishekBanerjee trended all day on the micro-blogging site Twitter.

Comment by Mamata’s nephew triggers controversy

In yet another display of aggression that points towards intolerance, Trinamool Congress MP and chief minister Mamata Banerjee's nephew, Abhishek Banerjee, has threatened to “gouge out eyes and chop off hands” of those who criticise the people of the state.

The 27 year old MP from Diamond Harbour Lok Sabha constituency made the remarks at a party workers' rally in Basirhat, North 24Parganas. Hinting at the chief minister's relentless support, he said, “So long as Mamata Banerjee is there, whoever dares to glare at the people of Bengal, we can gouge their eyes out and throw them on the road. If hands are raised, we can chop off the hands.”

He later softened his statement and said, “We have to keep in mind that in a democracy people have the last word. So we do not want anything that may harm the people.”

The comment however, did not go well down the opposition's throat and they openly criticise the young MP. BJP State President Rahul Sinha said, “I will be moving high court and demand

26

INDIA

India and Britain are moving to finalise plans for Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to the UK in November, with a Madison Square Gardenstyle event at Wembley Stadium expected be the showpiece of the trip.

Sources said that Indian foreign secretary S Jaishankar is scheduled to travel to London this month to finalise details of the visit, after which a formal invitation will be extended by the David Cameron government.

Modi’s address to about 20,000 NRIs at New York’s iconic Madison Square Garden was the highlight of his visit to the US last September. The Wembley Stadium has a capacity of 90,000.

The British government was keen to host Modi for the inauguration of Mahatma Gandhi’s stat-

Continued from page 1 Theresa May has been visiting the country. She joined others to pay her respect to the victims on the beach in Sousse, before a meeting with Tunisian government officials.

Speaking after the talks with the country's interior ministry, she said: "What happened was a despicable act of cruelty.

How could a place of such beauty, of such relaxation and happiness be turned into such a scene of brutality and destruction?

Sadly, we know at least 25 British tourists died in this terrorist attack. But we know also that that number will rise. I have heard of the stories, the horror stories, of people who went through this, and our thoughts are with the victims and their families. We are very clear that the terrorists will not win. We will be united in working together to defeat them.

But united also in working to defend our values."

Prime Minister David Cameron said the threat posed by the Islamist extremists needs to be countered with a “full spectrum response” and that it was important to show “unshakeable resolve” in the face of terror. He further said the organisation has “declared war on Britain and they are attacking our people at home and overseas.”

“We are a target.

Frankly, we cannot hide from this thinking if you step back you become less of a target. They are attacking our way of life and what we stand for, and so we have to stand united with those that share our values,” he said.

Cameron signalled less official tolerance in Britain of those who supported the aims of the so-called Islamic State, also known as Isis. Cameron named

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 4th July 2015

Modi likely to visit UK in November

ue in London in March.

But with British elections scheduled for May, the Indian side chose to wait for a new government to be installed before Modi's visit. Finance minister Arun Jaitley had then made the trip to London to inaugurate the statue at Parliament Square in London.

According to sources,

the British government was disappointed that Modi could not visit London in the first year of his rule when he has visited all major world capitals, including Washington DC, Paris, Beijing, Tokyo, Canberra, Toronto and Bonn. The Cameron government is keen to make up for this delay by pulling out all stops to make

Modi’s visit a memorable success, sources added.

The British were hoping to host Modi as early as July, but sources said the visit would happen only after the Bihar assembly elections.

Although the agenda for Modi's visit will be finalised during the foreign secretary’s visit to London, the British are likely to offer partner city status to five cities as part of Modi’s 100 Smart Cities project, expertise for the Clean Ganga mission and help in creating a financial city.

November is the month when Britain celebrates the end of the First World War in which nearly 1.5 million Indians fought as part of the British Indian Army.

The last prime ministerial visit to that country was by Manmohan Singh

in 2006. Since then, UKIndia relations have plateaued, but now they are expected to be reinvigorated by Modi’s forthcoming visit. No major agreement has been signed between the two countries in recent years.

During Modi's visit, the two prime ministers are likely to announce the ‘twinning’ of some British and Indian cities, particularly in the context of the Indian government’s plans for ‘smart cities’.

Currently, Rajkot is ‘twinned’ with Leicester, which has a large population of Gujarati-origin people.

Contributing to the Modi government’s ‘skills’ agenda and participating in efforts to clean the Ganga are expected to figure on the agenda.

Modi is likely to reiterate India’s demand to

HUMANITY IN DANGER

Hotel staff forms human shield

A survivor of the massacre in Tunisia has revealed local hotel staff members formed a human shield on the beach in a heroic bid to protect tourists from the rampaging gunman.

John Yeoman, 46, said Muslim staff members from the Bellevue Hotel told the gunman he would have to kill them first as they formed a human barricade between the shooter and Western tourists. It is just one of many incredible tales of survival to emerge in the aftermath of the deadly attack in which British survivors have described playing dead as Rezgui 'executed' wounded tourists.

Hizb’ut Tahrir – a group that is banned in many countries, including Germany, but operates freely in the UK - as an example of an organisation that pretended to speak for the entire Muslim community but shared many of the assumptions of the extremists.

“Isis is a poisonous death cult that is seducing too many young minds in Europe, in America, in the Middle East and elsewhere, and this is going to be the struggle of our generation and we have to fight it with everything we can,” he said.

Asked if British Muslims had not been tough enough in condemn-

ing terrorism, Cameron said: “No, I don’t believe that is the case... the point I am making is there are some organisations and some people who buy not the terrorism, but they buy a lot of the extremist nar-

rative. To those people we have got to say that is not an acceptable view.

“We are not going to engage with people who believe there ought to be a caliphate and women should be subjugated. My point is some organisations set themselves up as representative of Muslim communities when actually they are not. Do not treat them as spokespeople for all of the community.”

Security has been stepped up across Britain in the wake of the Tunisian attack, with visible and covert counter-terrorist policing at major public events, such as the W i m b l e d o n Championships.

As many as 600 officers and support staff are involved, making it the largest anti-terror operation since the London attacks of July 2005.

Names of some of the victims The family of Janet and John Stocker have released a statement, confirming that the couple from Crawley were killed in the attack. It is with regret and great sadness that we can now confirm that our parents Janet and John Stocker have tragically lost their lives as a result of Friday’s atrocities. Our father, 74, was retired printer, born and bred in Peckham and was a proud father of us 5 children and 10 grandchildren.

Our mother, 63, was born and raised with her two brothers in Fulham and was a fun-loving and devoted mother to us children, and loved nothing more than being than

clamp down on anti-India forces functioning and raising funds in Britain, and the extradition of individuals such as Tiger Hanif, Ravi Shankaran and Raymond Varley.

Since 2006, British prime ministers have visited India four times (Gordon Brown in 2008 and David Cameron three times), reflecting something of a ‘one-way traffic’.

The 2004 Joint Declaration between the two countries envisaged annual summits.

Cameron, who met Modi in Australia during the G20 meeting in October last, has often declared his eagerness to welcome Modi in London.

His government (2010-15) had reversed the previous Labour government’s decision to boycott Gujarat after the 2002 riots in the state.

being around all of the grandchildren, as well as a best friend to anyone who knew and appreciated her kind, understanding and loving character.

John Welch, 74, and Eileen Swannack, 70, have now been confirmed dead, according to the Bath Chronice. They were previously considered missing. The couple from Wiltshere had visited the resort in Sousse on multiple occasions. Welch was a retired plumber.

Chris Dyer, an 32-yearold engineer from Watford, is the latest victim identified in the attack. His wife Gina Van Dort was severely wounded, but survived.

She was reportedly found clutching her husband's lifeless body.

John Stollery, a 58year-old social worker from Nottinghamshire, has been named by Nottinghamshire Council Council as a further victim of the Tunisia beach massacre.

In a statement his wife Cheryl said: "We, his family, are proud of him and deeply saddened that he was taken from us in such a horrific and tragic way."

Repatriations of Britons killed are expected to begin on Wednesday, Downing Street has said.

The Government is "working closely" with the families of those killed in Sousse, and has offered to arrange for the bodies of their loved ones to be flown by RAF plane to Brize Norton in Oxfordshire before being transported on to their home areas. The repatriation process is expected to take a number of days.

All wounded Britons have now been brought back to the UK, with four severely injured holidaymakers flown home in an RAF C17 transport plane accompanied by "medevac" teams.

27

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 4th July 2015 Ayesha Raheja

TOP THREE THINGS TO DO WITH YOUR YOUNG ONES

Youth Circus Experience Days Turn your youngsters into performing monkeys at these circus skills workshops teaching everything from juggling and diabolo to tightwire walking and trapeze. Book in advance.

Saturday June 27 2015 Saturday July 18 2015 National Centre for Circus Arts, Old Street

Chetan Bhagat • Me and Earl and the Dying Girl by Jesse Andrews Our top three summer must see plays 1.

Bend it like Beckham 2.

Stomp 3.

Seven brides for seven brothers (16 July 2015 - 29 August 2015 Open Air Theatre)

www.nationalcircus.org.uk/experiencecircus/experience-days/youth-experience-days

Horrible goodies at Hoxton Street Monster Supplies

Take your darling little one’s mind off picking and eating bogies by taking him or her along to this wonderfully fun emporium – a place that would happily sit on Harry Potter’s Diagon Alley. Rows of edible treats from ‘Bah! Humbugs’ to ‘Cubed Earwax’ sound way more disgusting than they taste.

159 Hoxton Street

With summer coming up, the sun coming out and the kids home all day, we've put together a few things to keep them busy all summer long, no matter their age!

Notting Hill Carnival

www.monstersupplies.org

randomly bouncing about the place (or ‘freejumping’ as they call it) there’ll also be fitness classes, dodgeball games and even some professional tuition if you want to perfect your somersaults. And it doesn’t just cater for an entire generation of emotionally regressive twenty-somethings desperate to relive their childhoods – there are plenty of events for teenagers too. If you’d rather munch than jump, Oxygen are promising homemade pizza, quality coffee and wi-fi in their viewing gallery.

Opens on Monday July 20 Kendal Avenue,West Acton

Let a mad scientist make you an ice cream Next time the kids beg for a 99 Flake cone, wow them with a trip to the fabulously fun Chin Chin Labs in Camden Market.

Flavours vary weekly and might include ingredients to suit adult tastes but there are also sweet treats for all. The ice cream is frozen in front of you in a cloud of liquid nitrogen-generated steam, and pimp your tub with a veritable chemistry set of sprinkles and sauces – you too can be a molecular gastronomist.

49-50 Camden Lock Place, London, NW1 8AF, UK

www.chinchinlabs.com

TOP THREE ACTIVITIES FOR KIDS OF ALL AGES Festival of love

The Southbank Centre's having quite the love-in this summer with the return of their Festival of Love – two months' worth of installations, activities, pop-ups and performances that celebrate humankind's most overwhelming emotion.

The installations and a range of exhibitions will be revealed on the opening weekend, during which many family-friendly free events are also scheduled. Some weekends will explore specific themes;Urban Weekend (Aug 8-9), and Big Wedding Weekend (29-10), and scheduled events like the famous Appearing Rooms(Jeppe Hein's interactive fountain; walls of water rise and fall randomly to create a series of constantly changing 'rooms'), free singing and dancing performances and workshops

by Love Larks (August 15) and free artistled craft workshops, poetry and dance every Friday in the Royal Festival Hall (11am-4pm). An urban beach has been built beside the river for anybody inspired to build a sandcastle.

Until Monday August 31 2015 Southbank Centre, Belvedere Rd www.southbankcentre.co.uk/love

Since Notting Hill Carnival debuted in 1964, the event has grown, attracting ever more revellers with its spectacle of floats featuring calypso, mas and pan bands as well as a series of sound systems for alfresco dancing. You can be sure of dense crowds and a vibrant celebration of music, movement and masquerade together with Caribbean food stalls serving up jerk chicken and fried plantain. The more familyfriendly Sunday is the best day to take children to the Carnival, with the main parade on Monday normally winding a path from Great Western Road, along Chepstow Road and Westbourne Grove to Ladbroke Grove.

Notting Hill, Westbourne Park www.thenottinghillcarnival.com

Ride London A weekend-long feast of cycling sport and leisure that sees an eight mile loop of roads around central London closed to regular traffic so that bike-enthusiasts can get a clear run at it. The Prudential RideLondon FreeCycle takes place on August 1 and enables cyclists of all ages and abilities to take a safe spin around town. Later the same day there will be a Grand Prix event around St James’s Park with races for young Olympic hopefuls and professional female cyclists. The world's top 150 male cyclists will also be having a go in the Prudential RideLondon-SurreyClassic, so you can cheer them on too.

Saturday August 1 2015 - Sunday August 2 2015 www.prudentialridelondon.co.uk

TOP THREE PLACES TO TAKE YOUR TEENAGERS

Trampoline Mania Oxygen, a new 27,000 square foot ‘trampoline park’ opening in west London, is a room of wall-to-wall trampolines.Other than

Bunker 51

www.oxygenfreejumping.co.uk

Must watch movies this summer

1. Inside out 2 .Mission Impossible: 5 3. Amy 4. Fan 5. Bajrangi Bhaijaan 6. Me and Earl and the Dying Girl

Seven albums to watch out for this summer This industrial-looking underground bunker in Greenwich is the atmospheric setting for a game of laser tag or paintball. Your mission is to save the world from impending nuclear disaster, which you do by getting kitted out in protective equipment and being armed with either an infra-red laser gun or a (gentle) paintball gun.

3 Herringham Rd London, SE7 8NJ

Wireless For the second year running, Finsbury Park plays host to an eyepopping line-up of hip hop, R&B and dance music royalty. Drake’s the big Friday headliner, while EDM dons Avicii and Guetta take on Saturday and Sunday nights respectively. That’s not to mention young stars from both sides of the Atlantic such as August Alsina and George The Poet, plus hip hop veterans Grandmaster Flash and Arrested Development, and R&B queen Mary J Blige.

Friday July 3 2015 - Sunday July 5 2015 Seven Sisters Rd, London £62.50-£69.50 www.wirelessfestival.co.uk

Top six YA novels to read this summer • The Art of Being Normal by Lisa Williamson • Finding Audrey by Sophie Kinsella • Tales from Modern India: An anthology by the students of Delhi University by Jyoti Singh • 'Never Always Sometimes' by Adi Alsaid • Two States: The Story of My Marriage by

1.

2.

3.

4.

5.

6.

7.

Of Monsters and Men- Beneath the Skin Adam Lambert- The Original High Owl City- Mobile Orchestra Grace Potter- Midnight New Politics- Vikings Rudimental- We the Generation Disclosure- Caracal

One cool trick to survive the summer Why drink regular water when you can drink healthy home made tastier version? All you have to do is the following: • Take a cupcake tray (muffin pan) and fill the holes with water • Slice a lemon and place a slice in each hole • Put in the freezer until it becomes ice • Add to water • You could also do this with oranges; maybe even throw in some mint or sliced strawberries!

If this isn't enough, go on our website to see thirteen DIY projects your youngsters can do at home!

28

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 4th July 2015

My competition is with myself: Keerthy Suresh S

outh Indian actress, Keerthi Suresh believes actors cannot be compared because there is something different about each one of them, which is why she competes with none other than herself. “I’d like to compete with myself. More than comparing with somebody else, I’d prefer comparing my own work from film to film. I believe each actor is versatile and different so you can’t compare them.

All I need to worry about is have I done better than my previous film or not,” Keerthy said in an interview.

The actress who already has five projects in hand, awaits the release of her Tamil debut, 'Idhu Enna Maayam'. She is already feeling the pressure, but is happy to be welcomed into the industry even before her first film released. “I have to admit that as much as I’m happy about my career now, I’m slightly scared, too.”

She said.

“The entry was, of course, easy, thanks to my parents and their connections, but to sustain is what mattered the most. I always wanted to act, but not because my parents were associated with the industry. Luckily, the offers came to me but not vice versa.”

She is the daughter of yesteryear actress Menaka and wellknown Malayalam producer Suresh Kumar and started her career as a child artist in a Malayalam film, 'Pilots'.

'Guddu Rangeela'

Amy becomes the busiest star B ritish born actress Amy Jackson has become the busiest lass in Kollywood after the grand success of 'I.' She is currently shuttling between the shooting locations of 'Geththu' and 'Velai Illa Pattadhari 2' the films in which she will be seen romancing Udayanidhi Stalin and Dhanush respectively.

She has also signed as one of the two heroines for Vijay in the film to be directed by Atlee. Speaking about the character she is playing in 'VIP 2', Amy said "I am acting a Tamil girl. The role is highly challenging for me as its a realistic character with scope to perform with emotions without glamour and dance numbers."

The 'Madarasapattinam' star has also confirmed that the shoot for the first half of this Velraj directed flick has been completed and the second half of the film is currently being shot. The film stars Samantha as another heroine.

Satheesh, Radhika, K S Ravikumar and others play important characters in this film produced by Dhanush under his Wunderbar Films banner. Dhanush's lucky charm Anirudh is scoring the music for this flick. The film is expected to hit the screens by the end of this year.

'Lingaa' controversies to be spoofed as film R

ajnikanth starrer 'Lingaa' has been in the news for all the wrong reasons, and now they will be put together into a spoof, featuring actor 'Powerstar' Srinivasan in the lead. “It's going to be made on the lines of the film 'Tamizh Padam', a spoof that took a dig at several popular Tamil films without hurting the sentiments of anybody associated with it. An official announcement regarding this project will be made soon,” a source reported.

The film will be produced

by Singaravelan, one of the

An ambition, a plan, a kidnapping and a see-saw tale of victory and defeat, all leading to a dramatic climax.

directors of 'Lingaa'. Srinivasan confirmed the reports saying, “Yes, I've signed the project, but I'm not allowed to say anything more.”

Directed by K S Ravikumar, 'Lingaa', released on Rajnikanth's birthday last year, suffered a huge loss resulting in heavy losses for its distributors who later demanded to be compensated. The actor was forced to intervene and was even made to pay over Rs 100 million.

Shahid invites Saif, Kareena for his wedding

Tamanaah joins Vishal in ‘Sandakozhi 2'?

D

irector N Lingusamy is making the sequel to his super hit movie 'Sandakozhi' which has Vishal and Rajkiran reprising their roles with Meera Jasmine also making a special appearance.

The team had approached Samantha to do the female lead in the film, but due to clash of dates she had to decline. Now reliable sources say that talks are on with Tamanaah and she is on the verge of signing ‘Sandakozhi 2’. This will be the first time Tamanaah is pairing up with Vishal and will be a reunion for her with Lingusamy, the director of her superhit film ‘Paiyaa’.

'ABCD 2' on way to grand success

'Second Hand Husband''

P

roduced by GB Entertainment and directed by Smeep Kang, 'Second Hand Husband' is the debut film of

B

ollywood comedy 'Guddu Rangeela' is based on two cousins trying to make ends meet in their crime-laden surroundings. Arshad Warsi and Amit Sadh play orchestra singers in the day and informants at night. The story also touches the real-life Manoj-Babli honour killing case of 2007. Produced by Sangeeta Ahir and presented by Fox Star Studios, the music is by Amit Trivedi along with lyricist Irshad Kamil.

Govinda's daughter, Tina Ahuja, who stars opposite Punjabi pop star Gippy Grewal. Gurpreet and Rajbir want to get married, with the one thing stopping them being the alimony Rajbir has to pay his ex-wife Neha, every month.

Aware that the alimony will stop once she gets married to somebody else, Gurpreet and Rajbir set into a journey to find 'The One' for his ex-wife. The movie also features veteran actor Dharmendra and Geeta Basra.

A

day after Kareena Kapoor said she would attend Shahid Kapoor's wedding if invited, the Bollywood actor formally invited her and husband Saif Ali Khan.

They were the first to receive the invitation, which isn't much of a surprise as both the actors are working together for 'Rangoon'.

In an interview, Kareena revealed she was aware of the current “soon to be wedded” status of her ex-beau, with a girl who has no links whatsoever with the glitz of Bollywood. Shahid Kapoor will tie the knots with Mira Rajput, an undergraduate student of Lady Shri Ram College, New Delhi.

W

alt Disney and UTV Motion Pictures' Remo D'Souza directed “ABCD 2” has paved its way to a grand success. After an opening of Rs 460 million, the movie has maintained itself very well, including the week days. It is likely to emerge as the second Rs 100 Crore plus movie of 2015, after “Tanu Weds Manu Returns.” The Varun Dhawan, Shraddha Kapoor and Prabhu Deva starrer is also doing very well in the overseas, grossing $ 1.45 million from the UK and $ 445,000 from the US, in the opening weekend itself.

29

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 4th July 2015

Parineeti lashes out at daily for reporting 'rift' with Sonakshi

A

fter a daily printed a story about Parineeti Chopra being upset and angry over Sonakshi Sinha's act at the IIFA Awards, the actress lashed out at the paper in a series of tweets. The newspaper had reported, “Parineeti was very upset and angry with Sonakshi's act. She felt that she could have done a good job on stage with the mic too. On seeing Sonakshi perform to her Lootera song, she was literally fuming.” The report also said the actress didn't appreciate the fact she was not approached to sing at the IIFA Awards 2015. Being a trained classical singer, the opportunity to perform in Malaysia went to Sonakshi, who surprised the audience by singing 'Sawaar Loon' from her film 'Lootera'.

An irritated Parineeti took to the microblogging website to vent her anger.

Her tweets read: “Dear DNA,what is the point of asking for my quote when you're going to print a negative story anyway?

Better to ignore your messages then! Its so disheartening to see a story that is absolutely untrue, even when I have respectfully answered your query! So disappointed. #DNA” “Don't try and spoil our relationships with each other. All us actors are friends.

We support each other. BELIEVE IT ONCE AND FOR ALL!@dna” “I still respect your newspaper very much, my reaction is ONLY to this story. @dna” Reports of her sister Priyanka Chopra being upset with Anushka Sharma made headlines earlier.

Bhandarkar's 'Calendar Girls' trailer

T

railer of Madhur Bhandarkar's upcoming film “Calendar Girls” will be out in the coming week. Confirming the news, one of the lead actresses of the movie, Kyra Dutt said, “The trailer will be out next week. The teaser campaign and the first poster are out and the trailer is coming next week. The release of the film is on 7th August, 2015.” The movie also stars Akanksha Puri, Avani Modi, Ruhi Singh and Satarupa Pyne, and is produced by Mangal Murti Films Pvt. Ltd. and Bhandarkar Entertainment. “Calendar Girls” will mark the debut of all the actresses in Bollywood.

B

Akshay and Sidharth face-off as ‘Brothers'

race yourselves for powerful and deadly performances by Bollywood actors Akshay Kumar and Siddharth Malhotra as they play estranged brothers in the soon to be released 'Brothers'. The story revolves around a broken family, set in a world of martial arts and underground street fighting. Akshay Kumar plays the role of David, an exfighter turned school teacher who works hard, with his wife Jenny, to make ends meet and provide for his ailing daughter.

Malhotra as Monty, David's younger brother who struggles with his lonely complex existence and is active in the

underbelly of street fighting.

The role of Akshay's wife is played by Jacqueline Fernandes.

Their father, Gary Fernandes, is played by actor

Jackie Shroff who returns home after 10 years in prison to find the past still haunting his family. The movie promises the audience, a roller-coaster trip of emotions that sur-

round the family, succoured by tensions between the brothers.

Directed by Karan Malhotra of 'Agneepath' fame, the movie is produced by Karan Johar, under his Dharma Productions, along with Lionsgate Films and Endemol India. The trailer began trending on Twitter, post its release with the hashtag, #BrothersTrailer.

Celebrities like Arjun Rampal, Riteish Deshmukh and Punit Malhotra hailed the movie trailer, calling the one to watch. Hitting the theatres on August 14, this time, it is blood versus blood.

No song or dance number Alia is mad at her cousin Mohit Suri! for Katrina and Saif in 'Phantom'

S

aif Ali Khan and Katrina Kaif starrer “Phantom” won't have the actors frolicking and engaging in song and dance. Based on the book “Mumbai Avengers” by author S Hussain Zaidi, the film lines on an army officer out to seek revenge on the terrorists who masterminded the 26/11 Mumbai attack.

Scheduled to release a month after “Bajrangi Bhaijaan,” both the Kabir Khan films are poles apart.

A source said, “While in BB, Kabir champions the cause of cross-border friendship by showing an Indian Hanuman bhakt helping a lost Pakistani girl find her way back home, “Phantom” sees Saif track down and kill Pakistani ISI agents who masterminded the Mumbai attacks.”

Kabir Khan refrained from commenting on the story lines of the films, but said, “ All I’ll say is 'Bajrangi Bhaijaan' and 'Phantom' are two completely different films.

While 'Bajrangi Bhaijaan' is a full-

I

on masala film with lots of music and singing, 'Phantom' has no lipsync songs. It’s intended as a far more serious exploration of a political issue.”

So while Salman, with Bajrangi Bhaijaan is set to delight and appeal to our neighbour, Saif Ali Khan is hardly even trying.

War of words between Imran and director Rahul Rawail

“I

s Rahul Rawail still around?”

Imran Khan's response to a question in an interview, that suggested the director had tried to create rift between him and Ranbir Kapoor in the past, has triggered strong reactions from the director and his nephew, Rajat Rawail, who played Tsunami Singh in “Bodyguard.” The senior director tweeted, “My sympathies with this mentally challenged person.” Rajat Rawail chastised the actor in statement on Facebook. He made comments like, “Imran Khan needs a reality check. It was Aamir Khan that went from pillar to post promoting 'Jaane Tu...Ya Jaane Na' and his goodwill and credibility got the audience into the theatres.” And, “Its extremely sad to hear Imraan Khan made a statement like this about Rahul Rawail.”

n a recent interview, “Hamari Adhuri Kahani” director Mohit Suri said he was sceptical about working with cousin Alia Bhatt.

“I'd love to work with her. I am very close to Alia and to Sidharth Malhotra, who I worked with in “Ek Villain,” so they are both very special to me. Alia is a brilliant actress. If I have to work with her, the standard and quality of work has to be really high,” he said.

Suri, who shares compatibility with Emraan Hashmi and has delivered

several hits with the actor, said the 22 year old is often upset with him as he did not cast her in his films.

“She keeps fighting with me. She tells me that I am working with other actors and making them stars, except for her. Her constant complaint is that I make everyone look pretty. I am really keen on working with her but I don't know when that will be. Writing something for her doesn't come naturally for me. I guess it's because I am not used to working with stars.”

'Raees' will be Nagesh Kukunoor’s ‘Dhanak’ honoured released on schedule: Producer in Poland

A

fter winning two honours at Berlinale, 'Dhanak' has now received the Best Film Award at the Sneakers Children’s Festival, in Poland. Coproduced by Manish Mundra, Nagesh Kukunoor and Elahe Hoptoole, this isn't the first international award won by the film. It was screened at the International Film Festival in Los Angeles and at the Toronto International Film Festival, Kids. Kukunoor of 'Iqbal' and 'Dor' fame is elated over the award and said it was 'a validation from another part of the world.' “Every time we win an award, it makes us feel good as it is a validation from another part of the world.

When we won an award in Berlin, it was truly gratifying that my vision has reached a good and satisfying end. It states a new beginning,” he said.

R

i t e s h Sidhwani took to Twitter to announce Shah Rukh Khan starrer 'Raees' will be released on Eid next year, on schedule. “We had announced in February that we will be releasing our film on Eid 2016 and we are on schedule to release it as planned. Bollywood had been buzzing with speculation that the makers of 'Raees' would change the scheduled date after Salman starring 'Sultan's' release dates was announced. Ritesh, along with Farhan Akhtar and Gauri Khan are producing the film under Excel Entertainment and Red Chillies Entertainment banners. 'Sultan' is produced by Aditya Chopra and writtendirected by Ali Abbas Zafar.

30

UK

Coming Events

l Hanuman Chalisa. Sunday 5th July 2015, 11am5pm. Social Club Hall, Northwick Park Hospital, Watford Road, Harrow, HA1 3UJ. 020 8459 5758. l Commercial Property Auction. Thursday 9th July 2015, www.acuitus.co.uk 020 7034 4855. l Dar Es Salaam Reunion Dinner & Dance.

Saturday 8th August 2015, 7pm- 1am. The Clay Oven Banquet Suite, Ealing Road, opposite Alperton Tube Station, Wembley, HA0 4LW. 01256 364 618. l Bhagwat Saptah. Monday 13th July- Sunday 19th July. National Association of Patidar Samaj, 26B Tooting High Street, London, SW17 0RG. l Gujjubhai Retire Thai Chhe. Friday 17th July, Hayes. 020 8422 8988. Saturday 18th July, Leicester. 0116 261 6000. Sunday 19th July, Harrow. 07973 287 434. l MYCA Gujarati School Celebrates 40 Years.

Sunday 12th July, 2pm- 6pm. Alperton High School, Stanley Avenue, Wembley, HA0 4JE. 020 8998 9629. l Coach Trip to Clacton on Sea. Sunday 12th July.

The Wanza Samaj UK, P.O. Bo 673 Wembley, Middlesex, HA0 3ZJ. 07846 297 045. l Shree Ram Charitra Manus Gnan Yagna.

Saturday 4th July- Sunday 12th July, 2pm- 5pm.

Shree Ram Krishna Centre, Alfred Street, Loughborough, LE11 1NG. 01509 218 274. l Bob Blackman's Business Club. Wednesday 15th July, 8am- 9:30am. Best Western Cumberland Hotel, St Johns Road, Harrow, HA1 2EF. mina_parmar@hotmail.com l A Melodious Night of Music in aid of Nepal Earthquake Relief Fund. Friday 10th July, 7:30pm.

Orchardson Avenue, Leicester, LE4 6DP. 0116 261 6000. l Protecting Our Children From Grooming & Entrapment. Saturday 11th July, 4:30pm.

Birmingham Pragati Mandal,10 Sampson Road, Sparkbrook, Birmingham, B11 1JL. 07804 567 765. l Satsang Vicharan. Monday 6th July- Monday 13th July. Satsang Sabha, 89 Village Way, Neasden, London, NW10 0LN. 020 8838 4900. l Hindu Lifestyle Seminar. Friday 10th July, 5pm10pm. Saturday 11th July, 12pm- 10pm.

Sunday 12th July, 8:30am- 7pm. l Musical Performance & Exhibition: The Benares Baaj Story- A Journey of a Musical Tradition.

Monday 6th July, 6pm. 'Prateeka'- An Evening of Bharatnatyam with Kiranmayee M. Friday 10th July, 6:30pm. The Nehru Centre, 8 South Audley Street, London, W1K 1HF. 020 7491 3567. l Reengineering Within. Wednesday 8th July, 6:30pm- 8:30pm. State Bank of India (Association of Indian Banks), 15 King Street, London, EC2V 8EA. l Prayerful Living- Bhakti Yog. Thursday 9th & Friday 10th July, 7pm- 9pm. Patidar Association, Federation of Patidar Association, 22 London Road, Wembley, HA9 7EX. Editor: CB Patel Associate Editor: Rupanjana Dutta Tel: 020 7749 4098 - Email: rupanjana.dutta@abplgroup.com Senior News Editor: Dhiren Katwa Freelance Correspondent: Rudy Otter Chief Operating Officer: Liji George Tel: 020 7749 4013 Email: george@abplgroup.com Advertising Manager: Kishor Parmar Tel: 020 7749 4095 - Mobile: 07875 229 088 Email: kishor.parmar@abplgroup.com Business Development Managers: Rovin J George - Email: rovin.george@abplgroup.com Tel: 020 7749 4097 - Mobile: 07875 229 219 Urja Patel - Email: urja.patel@abplgroup.com Sales Executive: Daxa Gami - Email: daxa.gami@abplgroup.com Tel: 020 7749 4089 - Mobile: 07875 229 111 Graphic Designers: Harish Dahya & Ajay Kumar Tel: 020 7749 4086 Email: graphics@abplgroup.com Customer Service: Ragini Nayak Tel: 020 7749 4080 - Email: support@abplgroup.com Leicester Distributors: Europe Enterprise, Raj Surani Tel: 01530 481600 (BPO) AB Publication (India) Pvt. Ltd. 207 Shalibhadra Complex, Opp. Jain Derasar, Nr. Nehru Nagar Circle, Ambawadi, Ahmedabad.

Tel. +91 79 2646 5960 Bureau Chief: Nilesh Parmar (M) +91 94266 36912 Email: nilesh.parmar@abplgroup.com

COMPETITION

WIN 2 TICKETS

for the Gujarati play “Gujju Bhai Banya Dabang” Asian Voice is giving the opportunity for someone to win two tickets for the Gujarati play, “Gujju Bhai Banya Dabang”.

The play will be taking place on Friday 24th July, in Birmingham. To win tickets to experience this play at The REP, Birmingham, please answer this simple question: Who is the lead actor of the play, “Gujju Bhai Banya Dabang”? (a) Devang Patel (b) Siddharth Randeria (c) Paresh Rawal Send your answers with your full name, address and contact details to reshma.trilochun@abplgroup.com. As the subject of the email, please mention “Gujju Bhai Birmingham”. The closing date for the competition is Monday 6th July 2015.

COMPETITION

We are giving two lucky winners the chance to win either one signed or one unsigned copy of Meera Syal's novel, The House of Hidden Mothers. All you have to do is answer this simple question:

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 4th July 2015

Saturn re-enters Scorpio in retrograde motion on the 14th June and it remains in the sign up to September 17, 2015. Saturn rules your professional sector in your solar chart, and its presence in your solar eighth house can indicate how well you manage others' resources. During this cycle you also need to deal with deep rooted emotions regarding your sexual relationships.

ARIES Mar 21 - Apr 20

TAURUS Apr 21 - May 21

Saturn re-enters Scorpio in retrograde motion on the 14th June and it remains in the sign up to September 17, 2015. Saturn is now transiting your solar seventh house.

Relationships with others are very significant now. Saturn makes you re-assess relationships and those built on weak foundations have to go. This is a time to grow spiritually and be more independent.

GEMINI May 22 - June 22

Saturn re-enters Scorpio in retrograde motion on the 14th June and it remains in the sign up to September 17, 2015. This transit is in your 6th house of health, work and daily routine. You need to re-assess your health as this is a good time for starting new healthy regimes as exercising, eating nutritious food and generally re-organizing your daily schedule.

CANCER Jun 22 - Jul 22 Saturn re-enters Scorpio in retrograde motion on the 14th June and it remains in the sign up to September 17, 2015. With Saturn, moving through the 5th house of creativity in your chart, you might initially feel restricted and confined in expressing yourself. You will re-evaluate your talents express yourself in a more practical, useful manner. Romances will also go through a tough time.

LEO Jul 23 - Aug 23 Saturn re-enters Scorpio in retrograde motion on the 14th June and it remains in the sign up to September 17, 2015. This transit falls in your solar 4th house. During this cycle, you are working on establishing your identity and exploring your roots. Saturn has a powerful and life-changing influence. This is a learning process but at the same time there will emerge a structure to your life.

Name Meera Syal's debut Novel. (a)The House of Hidden Mothers (b) Life Isn't All Ha Ha Hee Hee (c) Anita and Me. Please send your answer with your full name, address and contact details to reshma.trilochun@abplgroup.com. As the subject of the email, please mention “Meera Syal”. The closing date for this competition is 13th July 2015.

VIRGO Aug 24 - Sep 23 Saturn re-enters Scorpio in retrograde motion on the 14th June and it remains in the sign up to September 17, 2015. Saturn is now transiting your solar third house. This is a time to learn to network with people around you and at the same time gain information.

You will at first struggle to structure your time and effort but soon learn to manage time to suit your lifestyle.

LIBRA Sep 24 - Oct 23 Saturn re-enters Scorpio in retrograde motion on the 14th June and it remains in the sign up to September 17, 2015. Saturn is now transiting your solar second house. .Use this transit for getting yourself onto solid financial ground. Work out budgets and be sensible in spending your money. Financial success will be steady rather than remarkable .Some of you may invest in a property.

SCORPIO Oct 24- Nov 22

Saturn re-enters Scorpio in retrograde motion on the 14th June and it remains in the sign up to September 17, 2015. Saturn is now transiting your solar first house. The first house rules our personal self.

During this transit your outlook on life changes as you adopt a more mature and responsible attitude. At times progress may be slow but don’t let that bother you.

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SAGITTARIUS Nov 23 - Dec 21 Saturn re-enters Scorpio in retrograde motion on the 14th June and it remains in the sign up to September 17, 2015. Saturn is now transiting your solar 12th house and it signals the end of a cycle.

You need to tie up loose ends and finish with the past that has plagued you. You will go through a transformation which will test you but you will be the better for it.

CAPRICORN Dec 22 - Jan 20 Saturn re-enters Scorpio in retrograde motion on the 14th June and it remains in the sign up to September 17, 2015. Saturn is now transiting your solar 11th house. You will re-assess friendships and the role you play in other people’s lives. During this transit you will take charge of your life and accomplish much along the way as your ruler Saturn has exchanged places with Pluto.

AQUARIUS Jan 21 - Feb 19 Saturn re-enters Scorpio in retrograde motion on the 14th June and it remains in the sign up to September 17, 2015. Saturn is now transiting your solar 10th house. You will shoulder immense responsibilities and work very hard. Now is your chance to build a secure foundation in your professional life. Take care not to take on too much at any given time.

Saturn re-enters Scorpio in retrograde motion on the 14th June and it remains in the sign up to September 17, 2015. Saturn is now transiting your solar 9th house. The ninth house signifies higher learning and expanding your horizons but Saturn here restricts and impedes your progress. You will go through a mental tug-of-war but you will emerge the wiser for your experience.

PISCES Feb 20 - Mar 20

Satnam Singh becomes the first Indian to be picked for NBA

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 4th July 2015

The 19 year old Satnam Singh Bhamara, who hails from a remote village in Punjab became the first Indian basketball player to be drafted in the National Basketball Association (NBA) after being picked

by Dallas Mavericks.

The 7 feet 2 inch tall Satnam Singh was selected amongst the 60 young men who will play basketball in the NBA next season. Gursimran “Sim” Bhullar was the first player of Indian origin to play in the NBA when he turned out for the Kings in three games in April.

Since their inaugural 1980-81 season, The Dallas Mavericks have won three division titles (1987, 2007, 2010), two conference championships (2006, 2011), and one NBA Championship (2011).

Satnam Singh said his entry would open the doors for more Indians to

“The feeling is of course unreal but it has happened and I feel that my entry will certainly open the doors for many aspiring basketballers in India to dream big,” said an elated Satnam.

“At least there is somebody with whom the youngsters back home can identify, somebody who is playing in the NBA. Now a road has opened up for them from which they Satnam Singh Bhamara can come up. The play basketball at the highgame will certainly grow est level in America. in India in the coming Having represented the years. You see the popularnational team, Satnam ity of cricket now but in moved to Florida for trainfuture basketball will also ing before making his be popular back home,” he presence felt in the NBA added. circuit. The 19-year-old Hailing from a small believes that many hoopvillage called ‘Ballo Ke’ sters can take a leaf out of near Ludhiana, the 7 feet his book to dream big.

2 inches player has made

it to the home of basketball in the world and Satnam admitted that there was lot of anxiety before the result of the draft came in. Satnam was picked in the 52nd draft and second list of the NBA. “Forget about sleep, I haven’t even eaten anything because of the anxiety. There were no nerves as such but just that feeling that I should make it into the draft. I was certainly hopeful after coming this far but there is always a big if. But by the grace of God I have realised my dream,” he said with a big laugh.

Coming from a farmer’s family, Satnam came to the US in September 2010 as part of a scholarship program between IMG and Reliance. The 110 kg player thanked his family and his first guide for making his dream a reality.

200th Test, is the lone Indian player to be figuring in the top-10 list, while there are four Australian, three South African and two Sri Lankan cricketers.

"After 10 days of counting down and no end of deliberations, cricket.com.au released its final countdown of the 100 best Test players since 2000. Readers debated the

him placed, while batting giants Ricky Ponting and Jacques Kallis were separated on countback, with the Australian just edging out his Proteas counterpart," it further said.

The 42-year-old Tendulkar, who is the only batsman to have hit 100 international centuries, holds the record for highest run scorer in both Tests and One-Day Internationals.

The Poll result: 1.

Sachin Tendulkar (Ind) 23%, 2.

Kumar Sangakkara (SL) 14%, 3.

Adam Gilchrist (Aus) 13%, 4. Ricky Ponting (Aus) 11%, 5. Jacques Kallis (SA) 11%, 6. AB de Villiers (SA) 10%, 7.

Shane Warne (Aus) 9%, 8.

Glenn McGrath (Aus) 5%, 9. Muttiah Muralitharan (SL) 3%, 10. Dale Steyn (SA) 1%.

Sachin voted best Test player of 21st century

Former Indian skipper Sachin Tendulkar has been voted the 'Best Test player' of the 21st century in an online poll conducted by Cricket Australia's website. He got the highest number of votes to emerge on top of the list of the 100 best Test players since 2000, in a poll conducted by cricket.com.au.

Sri Lanka's Kumar Sangakkara is in the second position, followed by Adam Gilchrist of Australia in the third position. Tendulkar earned 23 per cent of votes, with more than 16,000 fans participating in the survey.

Sangakkara got 14 per cent votes after CA released the top-100 Test players' list since 2000 on its website.

Tendulkar, who retired from international cricket in 2013 after playing his

top 10, just as you did players 11 through 100, but we also provided an opportunity for you to decide your No.1 Test player of the century," CA's website stated.

"Tendulkar, the little master who remains an iconic figure in the sport, was a runaway winner, jumping four places from where cricket.com.au had

India score a consolation victory over Bangladesh Though Bangladesh gave some anxious moments to India, the visitors rode a decent batting performance to prevent a clean sweep by the hosts.

Suresh Raina proved to be India's best bowler on the night. Bangladesh batsmen's attempt to overhaul India's substantial tally of 317 for 6 ended at 240 in 47 overs. Needing over six runs an over to complete a Banglawash, the hosts were off to a brisk start despite losing opener Tamim Iqbal cheaply.

The free-stroking Soumya Sarkar hit five boundaries and two sixes in a quickfire 40 off 34 balls before becoming Dhawal Kulkarni's second victim.

Litton Das and Mushfiqur Rahim brought up the 100 of the innings in only 15.1

overs.

With Umesh Yadav, Bhuvneshwar Kumar and R Ashwin failing to make any impression in the first spell, Suresh Raina heeded to his captain's call by getting Mushfiqur (24) on the cut and Shakib Al Hasan on the slog, and Axar Patel castling Litton (34) in quick succession.

But another round of poor bowling revived

Bangla hopes as Nasir Hossain (32) and Sabbir Rahman (43) added 49 runs off 38 balls. Binny finally justified his inclusion by rattling Sabbir's stumps to virtually seal the deal.

Earlier, Indian batsmen produced a muchimproved show against a Bangladesh attack. None of them looked comfortable against Mustafizur

Rahman's off-cutters, but they mostly survived by luck to post a healthy total. The Indian innings was built around a freespirited knock of 69 by skipper MS Dhoni and his 93run stand for the fourth wicket with Ambati Rayudu (44).

Even though opener Shikhar Dhawan, once again, topscored with 75, his third soft dismissal in-a-row put a question mark over his ability to bat through the innings.

Virat Kohli, who has only played cameos of late, once again titillated with a 35-ball 25.

However, with Suresh Raina (38) producing a turbo-charged knock at the death, India looked comfortably placed at the break.

SPORT WORLD

Lanka beat Pakistan to level series

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Sri Lanka have levelled the 3-test series by defeating Pakistan in the second test. Needing 153 to win on the final day, the Sri Lankan batsmen reached the victory target in 26.3 overs before lunch at the P Sara Oval.

Opener Dimuth Karunaratne smashed a half-century to help Sri Lanka complete a seven-wicket win over Pakistan to level the three-match series 1-1.

Karunaratne was out for 50, trapped lbw by leg spinner Yasir Shah after adding 72 runs for the third wicket with captain Angelo Mathews, who remained unbeaten on 43.

Kithruwan Vithanage was promoted up the batting order to hasten the chase and made a brisk 34 off 23 before being caught in the deep by Mohammad Hafeez off leftarm spinner Zulfiqar Babar. Kumar Sangakkara, playing his final innings against Pakistan, was out for a first-ball duck, caught at forward short-leg off Shah. Shah returned figures of 2-55 and claimed eight wickets in the match. Seam bowler Dhammika Prasad on Sunday took four wickets for Sri Lanka to help dismiss Pakistan for 329 in its second innings, despite a fighting 117 from Azhar Ali. Prasad was named player of the match for his eight wickets in the match.

Ali and opener Ahmed Shehzad brought Pakistan back into the match in the second innings after conceding a 177-run first-innings lead. Pakistan was dismissed for a paltry 138 in the first innings and Sri Lanka replied with 315. Ali and Shehzad (69) added 120 for the second wicket, but the rest of the batting faltered against the Sri Lankan seamers. Pakistan had won the first test in Galle by 10 wickets. The third and series-deciding match of the series will start on Friday in Pallekele near the hill city of Kandy.

India retain second spot in ICC ODI rankings

India managed to retain its second position despite losing the three-match series 1-2 to Bangladesh, who moved a place to seventh in the latest ICC ODI rankings. The 2-1 series win in Mirpur has put Bangladesh on 93 points five behind sixth-ranked England and five ahead of eighth-ranked West Indies. Bangladesh now look set to qualify ahead of the West Indies, who have no FTP ODI series planned until the cut-off date. India's losing the series means only 28 points separate second-ranked India from ninth-ranked Pakistan.

Pakistan's Zaheer named new ICC president

Former Pakistan captain Zaheer Abbas was named president of the International Cricket Council for the next year at the annual conference of the sport's world governing body in Barbados. Zaheer, 67, filled the vacancy in the largely honorary role left by Mustafa Kamal, who resigned in April after falling out with the ICC's Indian chairman N Srinivasan. Zaheer, one of his country's finest batsmen who played 78 tests and 62 one day internationals from 1969 to 1985, is likely to prove a less controversial holder of the office. "I feel truly honoured and humbled to be appointed as the president of the governing body of our great game," he said. "This is the sport which has given us friendship, respect, recognition and an opportunity to serve our countries in different capacities.

Personally speaking, it has given me more than I can ever possibly repay."

Leander scores a century with doubles partners

Indian tennis player Leander Paes has reached a milestone in men's doubles by partnering with 100 different players. Teaming up with Spain's Marcel Granollers at the Nottingham grasscourt tournament, veteran Paes, a doubles specialist, reached the century milestone in men's doubles. Some might raise their eyebrows and suggest Paes just struggles to commit, but constant hopping about between different partners is actually not that unusual. He is the 47th player to notch up 100 different partners but few can boast his success rate.

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SPORT

www.abplgroup.com - Asian Voice 4th July 2015

Rahane to lead India for Zimbabwe tour

Ajinkya Rahane will lead the 15 member Indian squad for the tour of Zimbabwe as India have rested senior players like captain M S Dhoni, Virat Kohli, Suresh Raina, Rohit Sharma, Umesh Yadav and R Ashwin.

Veteran off-spinner Harbhajan Singh staged a comeback to the ODI squad after a gap of four years as a second-string team was named for next month’s tour of Zimbabwe with the selectors opting to rest most of the senior players.

Batsman Robin Uthappa also made a return to the ODI side, while paceman Sandeep Sharma and leg-spinner Karn Sharma were included in the team. Opener Murali Vijay, Ambati Rayudu and Bhuvneshwar Kumar were among the senior players picked in the squad announced by BCCI Secretary Anurag Thakur after the selection committee meeting.

Manoj Tiwary, who had been struggling with injuries for a some time, has been recalled into the

side largely benefiting from the absence of the senior players.

“The Indian team did not do well in Bangladesh.

(But) we have to move forward and considering the domestic cricket to be played, we have picked this side, looking at the 2016 T20 World C u p , ” Chairman of s e l e c t o r s Sandeep Patil told reporters.

“We had picked the best possible team that played at the World Cup and keeping the future series in mind, whether it is Sri Lanka, or South Africa home series, Tw e n t y 2 0 World Cup or the Australia series, we have

decided to rest a few players, who need urgent rest,” he said.

The team comprises three specialist spinners in Harbhajan, Axar Patel and Karn Sharma, while the pace department will be spearheaded by Bhuvneshwar Kumar with Mohit, Sandeep Sharma and Stuart Binny for company.

“We cannot say on long term basis but looking at Harbhajan’s performance in the last series, we feel that he deserves a chance on this tour,” Patil said about Harbhajan, who returned to the Test side in the tour of Bangladesh.

“The selectors’ job is to pick the best possible combination. The rest is left to the team management. Once we select the team, it is left to the captain to make up the playing XI,” he added.

The batting will largely rest on Rahane, Vijay, Rayudu, Tiwary, Manish Pandey and Kedar Jadhav.

“It is a good team and picking youngsters is the way forward,” Thakur

said. Most of the senior players like regular ODI skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni, Test captain Virat Kohli, opener Shikhar Dhawan, Rohit Sharma, off-spinner R Ashwin, have been rested for the series.

On Rahane being handed the captaincy, Patil said, “We are happy with the way his career is shaping up. He has been the most consistent batsman for India and we want to see his other aspects.

So, we have given him this opportunity and we will keep backing him,” India are scheduled to play three ODIs in Harare (July 10, 12 and 14) followed by a couple of Twenty20 Internationals (July 17 and 19).

India Squad: Ajinkya Rahane (Captain), Murali Vijay, Ambati Rayudu, Manoj Tiwary, Kedar Jadhav, Robin Uthappa, Manish Pandey, Harbhajan Singh, Axar Patel, Karn Sharma, Dhawal Kulkarni, Stuart Binny, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Mohit Sharma, Sandeep Sharma.

Jwala-Ashwini pair wins Canada Open

Indian shuttlers Jwala Gutta and Ashwini Ponnappa won the Canada Open women's doubles title after upstaging the top-seeded Dutch pair of Eefje Muskens and Selena Piek in the summit clash at Calgary. The third-seeded Indian pair triumphed 2119, 21-16 in the contest which lasted 35 minutes.

In a closely-contested opening game, Jwala and Ashwini broke away from the 19-19 and converted the lone game point opportunity to grab the initiative.

The Indians dominated the second game and raced to a 5-0 lead before going from 10-6 to 15-6 up. However, Muskens and Piek fought back to win nine points straight and tie the game at 15-15. But Jwala and Ashwini did not let the advantage slip and won 6 of the next 7 points to clinch the title.