Jan 2017

Le TT e RS M ATT e R

NOT DONE!

As one of the most regular readers of your magazine, I am stunned to see December issue so thin. Whatever the reasons may be, but its’ not acceptable. Why, because, NRI Achievers is not only different from run of the mill magazines, it carries flavors, which are rarely seen in other magazines. There is not much to comment on this issue. And one more thing, I got my December copy quite late. Any way you have declared that you have once again become the Official Media Partners of PBD – 2017 to be held in Bengaluru from Jan. 07 to 09. If you are coming I would like to meet you there as I belong to Karnataka & my home town is Bengaluru.

S.C.Lakshminarain, Bengaluru

CONSIDER CONCERNS OF NRIs, PIOs & OCIs

Being a regular reader of your magazine, I wish to suggest you that now you should start thinking of changing the face & content of your magazine on urgent basis. As it’s the beginning of New Year, you should start taking into consideration the concerns, complaints, issues, suggestions of NRIs, PIOs & OCIs in your magazine on regular basis. Please mind it, by carrying only success stories of Indian Diaspora in your magazine, readers will start losing interest because it will look more like a PR magazine than a news magazine.

Nikki

‘Gori’

Chopra, New York, USA

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IMPORTANT DAYS

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December 2016

AJAY SINGH

(Former High Commissioner, Fiji)

RAJEEV GUPTA

B.K. AGGARWAL

SUSHIL TAYAL

CHAKRAVARTHI SUCHINDRAN

VINOD BEHL

RA mAN SWA m I

SANDIP THAKUR

H ARISH SINGH KIROLA m ILI GUPTA

AJEET VER mA S U m IT SINGH

RAJ UPPAL (NORTH A m ERICA)

SANJAY KU mAR (EUROPE)

AJAY AGGARWAL (U K)

PRE m CHAND RA m LOCHUN ( mAURITIUS)

RAJIV KU mAR ( ITALY )

RAVI KU mAR (FRANCE)

BALESH DHANKHAR (AUSTRALASIA) SU mAN KAPOOR (NEW ZEALAND)

LOSHNI NAIDOO (SOUTH AFRICA) S URAJ DA COSTA (UAE)

VIJAY mALIK ( BELGIU m) JYOTHI VENKATESH ( m U m BAI) RAJEEV TYAGI

SU m IT SINGH JAND CHANDER m OHAN AARTI BAGARKA

IS mAIL KHAN (NORTH A m ERICA) DR. HARRY DHANJU (CANADA) m.S. SHALI (UK) mANJIT NIJJAR (UK) m OHAN GUNTI (ASEAN)

mAR YADAV

VYAS

mALIK

CHOPRA

KASHIWALA

smt. (late) Reshma R ani February 15, 1940 — December 01, 2016

Rajeev Gupta Editor

A YEAR OF CONNECTIVITY

The dawn of a new year always arouses Hope. It provides an opportunity to make a fresh start and formulate new plans with renewed energy and greater optimism. It is a time to learn from past mistakes and begin again more intelligently. This applies not only to ordinary men and women but also to governments, organisations big and small and, indeed, mankind as a whole.

In many ways, 2016 was a pivotal year for the entire world, a kind of Reality Check. Brexit and the US presidential elections are the most notable indicators that tectonic changes are taking place globally. Within India, demonetisation has been a profound gamechanger, altering the dynamics of economics, politics and society right down to the grass-roots.

Whether one is talking about the whole wide world or about individual countries like India or even international phenomena such as the rise of global terrorism, mass migration and the looming threat of war, one thing is clear - things will never be the same again. The year 2016 was a turning point. 2017 will the year of struggle to adjust. Old assumptions will no longer hold good. New ways of thinking will have to quickly evolve to gain deeper insight into the nature of the changes and to adapt more rapidly to the new emerging realities.

This is where a magazine like NRI Achievers can play a valuable role. As we enter our fifth year of publication, we have the unique opportunity and distinct advantage to cater to the needs of our readers, who are spread across the five continents and who still retain an umbilical link, an emotional relationship with their motherland, India.

The latest official April 2016 estimate of Overseas Indians shows that there are more than 11 million Non-Resident Indians (11,422,045 to be exact) and over 15 million Persons of Indian Origin (15,454,091 to be precise) in the far corners of the world. These 26,876,136 Overseas Indians live and work in more than 146 different countries where they have assimilated into the local cultures without giving up a yearning to keep in touch with the land of their forefathers.

We at NRI Achiever are singularly equipped to be a point of contact, to be the bridge and the vehicle for communication, information, news and insight. The interactions would not only be with India but also amongst Overseas Indians resident in different countries. In the complex environment that heralds the dawn of 2017 in the post-Brexit, post-Demonetisation era, we are uniquely poised to offer the kind of deep diagnoses and penetrating prescriptions that would, hopefully, aid our readers to decipher events and trends with greater clarity.

This is our New Year Resolution for 2017. Our endeavour will be to widen our coverage, deepen our analysis and strengthen our bonds with Overseas Indians everywhere. We intend to intensify our interaction with the government, especially with key decision-makers handling Overseas Indian Affairs, in order to put before them various problems faced by the Diaspora as well as to provide a forum for two-way communication.

In the January issue we have an exclusive interview with the distinguished diplomat Mr. Dnyeshwar Mulay, who holds the crucial post of Secretary, Consular, Passport, Visa and Overseas Indian Affairs, in the External Affairs Ministry. Readers may find his candid comments and lucid suggestions useful and informative, particularly his emphasis on digital modes now available for facilitating greater engagement.

Secretary Mulay has also outlined the government’s plans to transform the outreach with NRIs and PIOs by expanding the scope of the PBD concept into a virtually year-round programme of topic-specific discussions and interactive events.

What emerges from the interview is that a more holistic approach is being integrated into the effort to improve connectivity with Overseas Indians. Connectivity in all its manifestations - “emotional, cultural, economic, intellectual connectivity, philosophical connectivity, psychological connectivity, including both temporal and spiritual aspects”, to quote his own words.

We wish all our readers, advertisers and stake-holders a happy and profitable New Year and look forward to 2017 being a Year of Connectivity between NRI Achievers and Overseas Indians everywhere.

- Chakravarthi

Suchindran

Office Tel. Ph.No.: +91-80-22374818 Fax No.: +91-80-22374708 Mobile No.: 9731588223

E-mail: dychairman@nriforumkarnataka.org www.nriforumkarnataka.org

I am happy to note that the NRI Achievers, an exclusive magazine for NRIs, PIOs & OCIs, is participating in ‘Pravasi Bharatiya Diwas’ (January 7-9, 2017) Bengaluru, Karnataka as Media Partner. Significantly, the publication is bringing out an exclusive feature to mark the flagship programs of the Government of India & Govt. of Karnataka.

Highlighting opportunity in states for NRIs and PIOs, the publication deserves accolades for covering their commendable contribution in India’s Socio-economic development in diverse sectors and opening new investment avenues & for providing a platform linking largely unknown NRI, PIO & OCI Indians in different countries and continents, by featuring Diaspora contributions, achievements and successes.

I wish the publication a mega success for bridging the gap and disconnect - however small - that exists between India and our Diaspora across the world.

Thanks and regards.

Dr. Arathi Krishna Deputy Chairman Non-Resident Indian Forum, Karnataka Government of Karnataka

NRI Forum Karnataka Government of Karnataka

Dr. Arathi Krishna Deputy Chairman

NRI Forum Karnataka

To, Mr. Rajeev Gupta Editor, NRI Achievers New Delhi, India

On behalf of the Government of the Republic of Suriname, I congratulate NRI Achievers for the excellent dedication towards NRI's and PIO's. Best wishes are being conveyed to NRI Achievers for participating in the 'Pravasi Bharatiya Divas 2017', January 7-9, Bengaluru, Karnataka as Media Partner. Significantly the publication is bringing out an exclusive feature to mark the flagship program of the Government of India.

The publication brings together and links NRI's, PIO's and OCI's from different continents providing a platform to interact and share experiences and thoughts. This year's PBD is special for the honorable Vice President of the Republic of Suriname, H.E. Ashwin Adhin as he is the guest and shall grace the occasion with his presence. Being of Indian origin,the Vice President is an example of how the once 'Grimitiya's' have developed into an integral part of the multi ethnic population of Suriname.

Wishing NRI Achievers success on the publication in bridging the gap between the Indian Diaspora across the globe,we conclude with a sentence in Sarnami: " ãU× Üæð» NRI Achievers ·ð¤ ÕãéUÌ ÕŠææ§üU ¥æñÚU àæéÖ·¤æ×Ùæ Âðâ ·¤çÚUUÜæ ".

Aashna Kanhai Ambassador, Republic of Suriname

HINDUS MOST EDUCATED GROUP IN US, LEAST EDUCATED WORLDWIDE

Hindus in the US are one-up over every other religious group, be it the Muslims, Buddhists, the Christians and the unaffiliated in educational attainment, but come last on a worldwide count, according to a new study by the Pew Research Center. They pushed Jews, who were on top of the global list, to the second position in the US – in a count of those with higher education. The worldwide count was another matter. Hindus were at the bottom of the pyramid, tied with Muslims with an 5.6 average years of formal education. Jews topped with 13.4; Christians were next with 9.3; unaffiliated were 8.8 and the Buddhists 7.9. As dismal as that might

ÚUçÁSÅþðàæÙ

look, there is a good story embedded in these numbers – the share of Hindus with at least some formal schooling has risen by 28 points, from 43% among the oldest Hindus in the study to 71% among the youngest. There is progress also on the gender gap, though it remains high – among the oldest Hindus,

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72% of women and 41% of men had no formal schooling, but the gap is smaller among the youngest, 38% of women and 20% of men have no formal schooling. For purpose of the study, Pew had focussed on “educational attainment in terms of number of years of schooling”, and not on the quality of education or any related parameters, saying educational systems differ across the world. Could income be a factor? Hindus have the second highest annual household income among religious groups in the US after Jews, according to another study by Pew, which noted that there was a strong correlation between education and income.

INDIA TOP COUNTRY OF ORIGIN OF INTERNATIONAL MIGRANTS

India is the top country of origin of international migrants, with 15.6 million Indians living abroad, according to Pew research, international migrants make up 3.3% of the world's population. As of 2015, nearly 3.5 million Indians lived in the UAE, the world's second-largest migration corridor. Unlike the MexicoUS corridor, the numbers of Indians living in the UAE and other Persian Gulf countries have increased substantially during the past decade, from 2 million in 1990 to more than eight million in 2015. “Most have migrated for economic opportunities in these oil-rich countries. Authored by Philip Connor, the report said if the entire world's international migrants (people living in a country that is different from their country or territory of birth) lived in a single country; it would be the world's fifth largest, with around 244 million people.

TRUMP THANKS INDIANS FOR ELECTION VICTORY

United States president-elect Donald Trump has thanked Hindu-Americans for their support in his election, saying he did “great with Hindus”, a community he had earlier said he loved and wooed at an election rally in New Jersey. He meant to thank the Indian American community and started by saying, “We have a lot of people here tonight from the (sic) India.” He then narrowed down to “the Hindus. We did great with the Hindus.” Trump has been travelling to battleground states that he won to thank voters

and supporters, and was in Florida, a key state that he won comfortably. He started by citing African Americans and Hispanics for their support and then Indian Americans, before he segued to “Hindus”. Looking for them in the audience, he said, “Where are they? We have a big group. There they are. I want to thank you. You folks were amazing. They were amazing and voted and they were fantastic.”

NRI Achievers News Network

GOPIO TO HOST CONVENTION IN BENGALURU ON 5TH & 6TH JAN UARY 2017

The Global Organization of People of Indian Origin (GOPIO) is hosting its convention on 5th and 6th of January, 2017 at Hotel Le Meridien, Bengaluru in conjunction with Government of India’s flagship program Pravasi Bharatiya Divas. GOPIO Convention Convener Sunny Kulathakal informed while discussing GOPIO’s agenda this year with us. GOPIO, founded in New York in 1989, has been serving the 30 million global In-

dian communities since last 27 years. He said that on 5th January, Union Minister of State for External Affairs Shri. M. J. Akbar will inaugurate the Convention whereas the Chief Ministers from Southern States of India and other prominent personalities will attend the convention.

On 6th morning Dr. Shashi Tharoor, MP will inaugurate the panel discussion on Diaspora issues. It will be followed by panel dialogue on philanthropy by Lord

INDIAN-ORIGIN SOUTH AFRICAN HUMANITARIAN GETS GLOBAL CITIZEN AWARD

An Indian-origin South African, Imtiaz Sooliman, who founded the internationally-lauded Gift of the Givers Foundation, Africa's largest disaster relief organisation, has recently been awarded the prestigious Global Citizen Award for his “innovative and visionary” contribution to the global community. He was honoured at the end of the 10th annual Global Residence and Citizenship Conference in London, the UK. The award consists of a specially-made commemorative medal, an award certificate signed by the president of the independent Award Committee and a US$ 50,000 monetary prize, of which approximately 50% is contributed to the UN High Commissioner for Refugees. "It will build faith and confidence in others to support African NGOs in the future", says Sooliman. “This is a wonderful opportunity to showcase the continent and all that we can do. Being honored with a prestigious award like this means we have the global stamp of approval which helps build faith and confidence in others to support African NGOs in the future,” said Sooliman on receiving the award. Since his foundation’s beginnings in the early 90’s, Sooliman has grown the Gift of the Givers into Africa’s largest disaster relief organisation, raising more than ZAR 2 billion (US$ 150 million) in life-saving aid for over 40 countries globally, including war-ravaged states like Syria, Libya, Sudan, Somalia, and Bosnia. For his contributions, he has garnered several national and international awards, including National Orders from the President of South Africa.

Dilgit Rana, Lord Raj Loomba and others. The Awards Banquet function at 7 PM on Jan. 6th will be attended by the Governor Vajubhai Vala, Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and other dignitaries. This year’s awardees includes Abraham M. George, New Jersey, Chandu Patel, California, USA, Dr. George Cherian, Bahrain, Vinod Patel, Fiji, Ram Buxani, Dubai, UAE & Naliandra (Jay) Naidu, Durban, South Africa.

INDIAN-ORIGIN AUSTRALIAN RECEIVES ‘AUSSIE OF THE YEAR’ HONOUR

An Indian-origin Australian cabbie, Tejinder Pal Singh, is being honoured as the “Australian of the Year” for his services to the Sikh community and for positively influencing the lives of people of all colours. TP Singh, the founder of ‘Food Van,’ emblazoned with the sign ‘Free food for hungry and needy people,’ is considered a messiah for the homeless and needy, will be the recipient of the prestigious 2017 Australian of the Year series Award. His award is one of the 4 categories of the ‘Australian of the Year’ awards. Tejinder, post a demanding 12-hour shift driving a taxi, spends five hours cooking up a storm in his kitchen, preparing 80 kilograms of vegetarian curry and rice that he then serves as a free lunch. After arriving in Australia from the Punjab with his family in 2006, he has been racially abused by a passenger, but Singh reacted in a way that led to a gradual change of behavior by people towards all turban wearing people. Singh also found support from the Northern Territory’s chief minister Michael Gunner and soon became a recognizable face who helped fellow humans.

Chandu K. Patel Dr. Abraham M. George Dr. George CherianDr. Ram BuxaniNaliandra NaiduVinod S.Patel

INDIAN-ORIGIN MILLIONAIRE WINS LOcAL cOUNcIL ELEctION IN AUStRALIA

KNOW cANADA’S FIRSt SIKH SENAtOR - SARABJIt SINGH MARWAH

Indian-origin millionaire Intaj Khan has won the local council elections from the Wyndham suburb of Australia's Victoria state. Khan, who is from the Labour Party, will now serve for another four years as a councillor following his successful election from the Harrison Ward of the suburb. Wyndham city council this year recorded the highest number of nominees, a whopping 95 candidates which included over a dozen candidates of Indian background. Across the state, over 2,100 candidates had filed nominations this year for over 600 councillor vacancies across 78 councils. Expressing delight at his win, 44-year-old Khan said, "I feel privileged as I can serve my community and my council for another term. However, it is also a bit disappointing to see no other Indian-origin candidates were elected across the state this year." Khan, also dubbed the richest councillor in west Melbourne, has several controversies surrounding him like his repeated failure to declare property and commercial interests.

Indian-origin Sarabjit Singh Marwah is the first Sikh to go to the Canadian Senate (the upper house), appointed by Canadian PM Justin Trudeau, who lauded Marwah for his efforts in showcasing the "rich diversity of Sikh and South Asian art and culture". The third Sikh in the Canadian parliament after Defence Minister Harjeet Sajjan and Science Minister Navdeep Bains, Sarabjit Singh Marwah Marwah was born in Kolkata, West Bengal. An alumnus of Delhi’s St Stephen’s College and the Delhi School of Economics, he also holds an MBA from the University of California. During late 70s, Marwah had joined Scotia Bank as a financial analyst, who went on to become its COO (Chief operating Officer). He was then appointed the bank’s senior executive vice president, chief financial

officer (CFO), and elevated as the vice chairman and chief administrative officer. In 2008, he was re-designated as vice chairman and COO of the bank –positions he held till his retirement in 2014. Marwah has served on the boards of many iconic institutions like the Toronto Star daily, the Toronto International Film Festival, the CD Howe Institute, the Royal Ontario Museum, the United Way Campaign, and the Hospital for Sick Children.

Republican Nikki Haley, 44, the South Carolina Governor, has been picked by US President Elect Donald Trump as the US Ambassador to the United Nations. Haley’s appointment marks several firsts. The daughter of Indian Sikh immigrants from Punjab, Raj and Ajit Randhawa, Nimrata, or ‘Nikki’ as she is better known, is married to Michael Haley. When confirmed by the Senate, she will be the first woman in his administration from the South Carolina Government. She is also the first woman and the first minority member picked for a Cabinet-level post in Trump’s administration. She is only the second Indian American ever elected governor – the first was Bobby Jindal. Importantly, Ms. Haley will also be the first person to take up this role with no previous foreign policy or diplomatic experience. She will move to New York City for her new job.

KAMALA HARRIS AMONG 2020 DEMOcRAtIc PREZ PROBABLE

Kamala Harris, the first Indian American to be elected to the US Senate, is a potential Democratic presidential candidate for the 2020 elections, a leading American newspaper averred last fortnight. Harris, 51, is one among the six Democratic leaders whom The Washington Post says are top contenders to bag the party's nomination for the 2020 presidential elections. Four of these are women, the other three being outgoing First Lady Michelle Obama, Senator Amy Klobuchar from Minnesota and

Senator Kirsten Gillibrand from New York. Another two potential candidates, both males, are Senator Cory Booker from New Jersey and Governor John

Hickenlooper from Colorado. “Harris will not officially become a US senator from California for more than a month now, but she is already being regarded as national-candidate material in four years,“ Washington Post columnist Chris Cillizza wrote in his article. “Harris represents the largest and most Democratic state in the country , a huge financial launchpad to a presidential bid,“ he said, noting that through mid-October, she had raised more than US$13 million for her Senate candidacy.

NIKKI HALEY IS tRUMP’S AMBASSADOR tO tHE UN

SEEMA VERMA PIcKED FOR tRUMP’S tOP tEAM

US President-elect Donald Trump has tapped an Indian-American for a senior position on his team on 29 November 2016, naming Seema Verma the administrator of the powerful Centres of Medicare and Medicaid Services. He also named Congressman Tom Price the secretary of health and human services. Price will be tasked with dismantling Obamacare, which Trump intends to repeal in full, but has indicated after the election that he may retain portions of President Barack Obama’s legacy healthcare reform. Both

their appointments will have to be confirmed by the Senate. Verma’s appointment makes her the second Indian American in a senior post in the President elect’s team after South Carolina governor Nikki

ScOtLAND YARD DROPS PROBE

Haley, who has been named US ambassador to the United Nations, a cabinet rank position. Verma, an expert on public health policy, has been described as a “powerful healthcare consultant” in Indiana, where she has lived and worked with several governors including Mike Pence, the vice-president-elect, on healthcare reforms. “She has decades of experience advising on Medicare and Medicaid policy and helping states navigate our complicated systems,” the president-elect said about Verma.

INDRA NOOYI JOINS tRUMP'S StRAtEGIc POLIcY FORUM

PepsiCo CEO Indra Nooyi, an IndianAmerican, has been co-opted to be a member of Donald Trump's Strategic and Policy Forum that aims to assist the president-elect in implementing his economic agenda. Chennai-born Nooyi, 61, is currently the only Indian-origin executive in the 19-member President's Strategic and Policy Forum. The forum, composed of some of America's most highly respected and successful business leaders, will meet with the president frequently to share their specific experience and knowledge and assist the president implement his economic agenda. The forum will be chaired by Stephen A Schwarzman, Chairman, CEO and cofounder of Blackstone. As chairman and CEO of PepsiCo, Nooyi heads a company that has more than US$ 63 billion in annual net revenue, out of which more than US$ 35 billion is from the US alone. PepsiCo is the largest US food and beverage company, with about 110,000 employees and 100 plants across the country. During the general election, Nooyi was a Hillary Clinton supporter.

Scotland Yard has dropped investigations on senior Labour MP Keith Vaz, who was at the centre of a tabloid sting operation in September that purportedly showed him talking about drugs in the company of male prostitutes. Vaz, 59, had resigned as chairman of the influential Home Affairs Committee of Parliament in the wake of the sting operation by Sunday Mirror. The Metropolitan Police Service's Special Enquiry Team began an assessment process to see ‘what criminal offences - if any - may have been committed’ by Vaz, in response to a letter asking it to look into the matter when reports of the sting operation were published. The force has said that following the assessment, which included obtaining early investigative advice from the Crown Prosecution Service, they had started an investigation in November. "During the investigation new information was received and additional advice obtained from the CPS, following which the MPS has decided to close the investigation with no person being charged."

INDIAN-ORIGIN DEEPAK OBHRAI cONtENDER FOR cANADA’S tORY LEADERSHIP BANKS ON DIVERSItY

As shades of Donald Trump’s campaign for President in the US colour the leadership race of the Opposition Conservative Party of Canada, one aspirant for the post, Indo-Canadian MP Deepak Obhrai, is taking another tack, embracing a platform based on diversity. When the first of the party’s leadership race debates began 10-11-2016, Obhrai told Indian media: “Canada of 2016 is very diverse, it’s not the same Canada that existed. This fight is going on and which is why I am seen as an outsider because my campaign is based on diversity and inclusiveness.” Two major contenders have taken positions that are considered controversial – former Minister of Labour Kellie Leitch has pitched values-based tests for immigrants, and she was quoted by

CBC as saying: “Screening potential immigrants for anti-Canadian values that include intolerance towards other religions, cultures and sexual orientations, violent and/or misogynist behaviour and/or a lack of acceptance of our Canadian tradition of personal and economic freedoms is a policy proposal that I feel very strongly about.”

NRI Achievers News Network

INtO INDIAN ORIGIN KEItH VAZ

WATER BOOSTER PUMP FOR HOME USE LAUNCHED BY GRUNDFOS

SCALA2, a fully integrated water booster pump launched by Grundfos India. That provides perfect water pressure even with multiple taps and showers running at the same time. “SCALA2 is a water boosting solution designed for easy installation and operation. It is compact enough to fit inside a kitchen cupboard, is very quiet and it covers all domestic boosting needs. With a

LENOVO K6 POWER

built-in sensor, which will constantly measure the discharge pres -

The K6 has respectable specs and works on the Snapdragon 430, which has behaved rather well. With the price of INR. 9,999, there’s 4GB of RAM, 32GB storage, plus a memory card slot if you don't use both SIMs. The 13MP camera isn’t particularly interesting and rather noisy indoors. The Full HD display is adequate and the sound is better than that — it’s deep and full and surprisingly good. The phone works fine, even with videos and games, with enough of a battery to support it through the day.

100 MN RELIANCE JIO'S USERS?

sure and boosts it when needed. It packs pump, motor, tank, sensor, drive and non-return valve into one compact unit. The pump offers lownoise levels as it contains watercooled motor and can support pressure up to three floors and eight taps. It is an extremely reliable and robust booster pump for home owners.” Ranganath NK, MD Grundfos India said.

HERO ZIR 150

Looks like a sports bike ‘Hero ZIR’ is a super cool scooter. Providing the feature to connect your scooter with your smartphone is powered by a 157 cc liquid cooled 2 valve 4 stroke engine, super powerful and super stylish. Feel that you are driving a sports bike while riding this beast known as Hero ZIR 150. With the powerful engine, Hero ZIR is fuel efficient as well. With a price of INR 57,000.

TEXTILE SALES DIVE 50% ON CASH CRUNCH

Riding on the free voice and data offers, Reliance Jio Infocomm's subscriber may touch 100 million by the end of March 2017 said, Nitin Soni, Director at Fitch Ratings and he further added it may even shrink once the telecom operator starts charging its customers. Currently Jio is having around 52-55 million subscribers and it could well increase to 100 million by end of March, but we will need to remember that these are free services.

AMAZON pANtry IN 6 MOrE CItIES !

Amazon recently announced that it will expand its pantry services to six more cities. Earlier Amazon launched its grocery and household products service in Hyderabad and Bengaluru. After the success witnessed in Hyderabad and Bengaluru the expansion of its grocery and household service to six more cities across the country. namely Delhi, Faridabad, Gurgaon, Mumbai, Mysuru and Pune, the company announced.

With a steep fall in sales of nearly 50% over the past 45 days due to the cash crunch in the market, demonetisation has left the financial health of the textiles industry in tatters, according to Nagesh Rajanna, CEO (retail) of the Nusli Wadia-run textile major Bombay Dyeing. "There has been a big impact as textiles industry is a largely cash driven. It is the homemaker who actually buys our products, so a large part of our business too is cash driven and it has been hurt badly over the last 45 days. I think the whole industry (sales) has got hit by over 50% plus as compared to October," says Rajanna. He was however also quick to add that the industry is showing signs of recovery and is hopeful of sales normalising in the next 60-90 days.

NRI Achievers Business Network

TOP POSTINGS AWARDS & HONOR

SHRI DHIRENDRA VEER SINGH TAKES OVER AS THDC INDIA CMD

Shri Dhirendra Veer Singh a civil engineering graduate from NIT Rourkela (1983) has assumed charge as Chairman & Managing Director (CMD) of THDC India Ltd (THDCIL). Prior to taking over as CMD, Singh was holding the charge of Director (Technical) in the company and his tenure as CMD shall be up to April 30 2021. He played a key role in the construction of Tehri powerhouse and was in charge of its planning and construction. He introduced several innovations in implementation that helped THDCIL commission the project in a record period of four years. "As CMD, my objective would be to ensure that THDCIL continues to work as a responsible hydropower developer, and that we can take the same focus on sustainability to all our new endeavours," Dhirendra Veer Singh said.

BEML CMD CONFERRED WITH FELLOWSHIP AWARD & BEML BAGS STAR PERFORMER AWARD

Shri Deepak Kumar Hota, Chairman & Manaing Director, BEML LIMITED, a Public Sector undertaking under the Ministry of Defence, has been conferred with CEPM Fellowship Award-2016 at the 24th Global Symposium organised by Centre for Excellence in Project Management. At the function held at Delhi, the Award was presented to Shri Hota by Shri Amitabh Kant, CEO, NITI Aayog. The Award was bestowed on Shri Hota in recognition of his commitment in transforming and driving organizational capabilities through human centric approach.

BEML Limited, a Public Sector undertaking under the Ministry of Defence, has bagged the Star Performer Award in the export category for the year 2014-15. Deepak Kumar Hota, Chairman and Managing Director, received the Award on behalf of the Company from Suresh Prabhu, Union Minister of Railways, at a function held at New Delhi. Rita A Teaotia, Union Commerce Secretary, was also present on the occasion. The event was organised by EEPC India (formerly Engineering Exports Promotion Council).

NRI Achievers Corporate Network

On the special occasion of PBD-2017 for which NRI Achievers is the official Media Partner, we feel pride to share some important MILESTONES we have achieved during our journey of little over Four years so far.

1. Official Media Partners of Small and Medium Enterprise International Summit, ‘SME World’, held in March 2014 in Dubai, UAE.

2. One of the special Invitees as India Representative by the Govt. of Mauritius to cover the 180th Anniversary of the Arrival of Indian Indentured Laborers in Mauritius in November 2014. The then Prisedent of mauritius Shri. Rajkeswur Purryag with NRI Achievers Magazine.

3. Print Media Partners of Aero Expo India held on 18-19 November 2016 at IGI, New Delhi.

4. NRI Achievers’ Editor was the only Journalist Invited from India by the Govt. of Republic of Uzbekistan in August 2015 to cover their biennial International Music Festival “Sharq Taronalari”.

5. Official Media Partner, Pravasi Bharatiya Divas 2017, Bengaluru, Karnataka.

6. Official media partner of ‘Gulf Business Card’ directory.

7. Media-Coverage Partners of ITB, Berlin, Germany held from 4th to 8th March 2015.

8. Official Media-Reporting Partner, Pravasi Bharatiya Divas, held in Gandhinagar, Gujarat from 07 to 09 January 2015.

9. Media partner of ‘LUXE’ Wedding & Lifestyle Event, New Jersey, USA held in September 2016 in New Jersey, USA.

10. Participated in International Defence Exhibition (IDEX) 2015, Abu Dhabi, UAE

11. Media Sponsors of Annual Gala 2016, held in September 2016 at The Marigold in Somerset, New Jersey, USA.

12. Participated in “U. P. Pravasi Diwas”-2016 held from 4-6, January 2016 in Agra, the city of Taj.

reaching ouT To The non resi DenT K ann Diga

The Pravasi BharaThiya Divas, a Day To celeBraTe & remin D ourselves of The DemocraTic Princi Ples of our greaT naTion, The sovereign, socialisT, secular, DemocraTic rePuBlic of i n Dia. The governmenT of The i n Dian sTaTe of KarnaTaK a, which is hosTing This eDiTion of The PBD, is Keen To Do all iTs miTe To reviTalize The very i Dea of i n Dian-ness ThaT un DerPins The evenT, During This 14Th Pravasi BharaTiya Divas, ThaT is on in Bengaluru BeTween The 7Th an D 9Th of January 2017.

Dr. Arathi Krishna, Dy Chairperson, NRI Forum led top level Chinese delegation from Chengdu government to meet Karnataka C M. Siddaramaiah (in centre)

speaking at a recently held press briefing in the national capital New Delhi, the newly appointed Deputy Chairperson of the ‘NRI Forum Karnataka,’ Ms. Arathi Krishna said: “Karnataka has taken several leadership initiatives in bringing-in NRI Investors into Karnataka. The Karnataka Government has been a role model for other states on how to engage with NRI investors and strengthen our relationship with our Diaspora. The key success of Karnataka State in attracting the investors is exemplified by being innovative in creating investment opportunities, and nurturing investors by giving them all that is required for faster and scalable growth. We will continue to be innovative and will showcase several new avenues for investing into the state to the NRI community at this PBD 2017 event, which will give one more

opportunity for Kannadigas to actively participate in Karnataka’s development.

“Talking of our Diaspora, about 25 million people of Indian descent live on foreign soil, and the World Bank says that remittances by this Indian Diaspora community worldwide amounted to some US$ 69 Billion in 2015 – constituting the highest in the world. As dispersed as they are across the world carving out a niche for themselves and earning name, fame and fortunes for themselves, our diaspora is to this day firmly bound by the idea of “Indian-ness”. And out of this 25 million, Kannadigas – the people of our state, are an estimated four lakh, and represent Karnataka all over the world. They are known for their high skills and their qualitative contributions to the respective countries where they live.

“The Government of Karnataka is working to proactively leverage our inherent strengths, by providing just the right ecosystem for individuals and industries to grow and prosper here. DIPP figures show that out of the total investment intentions of INR 3.11 lakh crore that India received in the first six months of 2016, Karnataka has a lion’s share – 38.34%amounting to INR 68,000 Crore. Karnataka, with this figure, tops the list of maximum investment intentions received. The same DIPP’s FDI statistics show that Karnataka has attracted more than 5.2 billion US dollars in FDI over the last one year, which has made it the 2nd best State in terms of attracting FDI into the country.”

Talking about the initiative that has seen the formation of the ‘NRI Forum Karnataka,’ she said: “It’s a major initiative of Karnataka State. The forum is dedicated to serve the NRIs and NRKs – to bring them home via many avenues. The forum is currently at work on releasing a ‘NRI Policy,’ meant to cover many aspects of providing innovative services to NRI communities. I would like to express my deep gratitude to the Hon’ble Chief Minister of Karnataka and the Congress leadership, for their faith they have deposed in me, and appoint me as a Deputy Chairman of the NRI Forum of the Government of Karnataka. I take this responsibility given to me as an indication of the extent of trust which the CM has put in me, to steer the NRI Forum towards greater enhancement of the Government of Karnataka’s engagement with NRIs and PIOs in various countries.”

NRI Achievaers News Network

DIWAKAR VAISh

out of the box INVeNtoR INNoVAtoR, RobotICISt

This feature is about Diwakar Vaish, one of India’s most innovative roboticists. At all of 24 years, Diwakar, born 23rd July 1992, is today a prolific inventor, lecturer and head of robotics & research at ‘A-SET Training and Research Institutes, which he founded in 2010. The developer of India's first fully indigenous 3D printed humanoid robot ‘Manav’, the first Indian mind controlled robot, and the world's first production-grade brain-controlled wheelchair, Diwakar is a whiz-kid who is also guest faculty at various IITs (at Roorkee, BHU, Kanpur, Kharagpur, Bombay, Hyderabad, Guwahati & Bhubaneswar), BITS (at Pilani & Goa), BIT Mesra, the NITs (at Warangal, Kurukshetra & Surat), at the IIITs (in Delhi & Jabalpur), and with VIT Vellore. His pathbreaking work has found recognition from India’s past presidents Dr A P J Abdul Kalam and Smt Pratibha Patil, and the UN has found it fit to confer him the “Best Innovative Researcher 2012” award. NRI Achievers caught up with him to create this profile for you...

DDiwakar Vaish is what you would call a ‘prodigy’he was deeply into electronics and the intricacies of how things work as a chile, even in pimary school. When in high school, his passion about electronics was manifested in the projects he entered for inter-

school competitions, which won him and his school many prizes. The school too encouraged him, presenting him with a laptop and paying for his internet connection – to enable him to do even better. Soon after school he built his first ‘dancing robot’ that brought him into the limelight, sort of. After initially contemplating to go to the US for his under-grad programme and then deciding not to, Vaish enrolled for a B.Tech programme at Delhi’s Sharda

University. His old school, soon after, when he was still in college, extended an offer – could he come to hois alma mater to teach, enthuse, encourage and mentor students to pursue robotics? He took it up. And a lot more as well, as this profile will tell you as you read on. Mostly in his own words ...

Ch ILDhooD fASCINAtIoN

“You could call it an outcome of some ‘Out-of-the-box’ thinking that had crept into my mind maybe when I was in my 7th standard, maybe before. I do not remember all that precisely, it was in my childhood and I can’t give it any age. I had this keen fascination for electronic stuff for as long as I recall, from the time when I was just a small kid. I would open up things to find out how they worked. During one of my summer vacations, I got an idea to seriously and systemmatically start learning about electronics – I guess it was around the time when I was in my 5th standard. I came to this institute near my house, primarily because it was very accessible for me, and I started taking up classes – very soon my interest in electronics grew into reality. Gradually I learnt to make out how things actually work and what happens exactly inside electronic gear. By the time I was in my 9th I was a lot more aware of electronics, I had enough confidence to prepare electronics projects for inter-school competitions, of which I won several. My schooling, apropos, was from the Bal Bharti School near Ganga Ram Hospital.

“In appreciation of my enthusiasm, my school gave me a laptop and also paid for my internet – it was their way of enabling me to do even better. I did, and by the time I reached my 11th class, I had already tried out everything that were in the books, and knew what people across the world had done in electronics until then – a growing urge was taking shape in my mind, to use my skill-sets and do something as yet unexplored ... I pondered on it, and once I had a workable idea in my mind, I con-

Photos: Rajeev Tyagi

fided in my dad – described my idea to him and set out the details of all the stuff for which I needed money. My dad, he did not even think about it, he just said ‘okay, go ahead and make it’.

“That was how after my 12th exams I programmed India’s first dancing robot – and that was pretty basic at that point of time. Then, things changed, I first wanted to go the US for further studies – felt in the US I would be able to expand my skills and knowledge of robotics. But I didn’t go – I chose to stay in India and do my research here itself. I joined Sharda University for a B-tech. It was there that I realised that one had to rely on oneself if you want to get ahead in a field like robotics. I found what I was studying those days was prepared some two plus years ago – so I learnt to use available resources to keep abreast with bleeding-edge developments in the world. In the meantime, one fine day I got an offer from my old school – to teach robotics. I took it up, and started teaching robotics – and was paid for it. That’s how I had got to earning money even in my late teens.”

“Soon I started getting calls from more schools for teaching. I gave it a thought and an idea came to my head – why not set up a team to teach electronics and robotics? This idea culminated in what you know today as ‘A-SET Training & Research Institute.’ This is where we prepare teams who spread out and teach robotics in different schools, colleges and institutes. And 2011 it was, when the first IIT reached out to us, it was Rourkee. They called up asking if I could teach their students. After few months IIT kharagpur, BHU, IITs Khanpur, Bombay and Guwahati also joined the ranks of institutes where I was doing guest lectures.”

utILItARIAN RobotS

“It was in 2014 when discussing robotics in real life that we at A-SET got a thought – ‘why isn’t it that we

do not yet have robots around us to do tasks?’ The answer was simple – robots today were too costly. We decided to do something for the society and began working on it. Our output was one the cheapest and lightest robots in this category – ‘Manav.’ You will find that robots with similar features as our ‘Manav’ cost you somewhere between 15-20 Lakh rupees commercially – well, we managed to make ‘Manav’ at much lower costs.

“Manav will cost you a mere 1.5 to 2 Lakh rupees – 10% of what you’ll spend buying a similar one in, say, the US. Our aim was focussed making robots people can easily buy, that are easy to use, maintain and repair. Parts of these robots are all 3D printed. The largest part is replacable at a cost of merely 500 rupees – and it is completely biodegradable. If you own a 3D printer, all you have to do is to give a command and the part will be ready in 2-3 hours. This A-set robot of

ours will be useful for colleges, research universities and research groups.”

Vaish and team took all of two months to design, fabricate, programme and test Manav, using parts that were all made in India. Manav’s outer frame is made of plastic, and it was 3D-printed by ‘Buildkart Retail,’ A-SET’s own 3D printing venture.

“Robotics is like a rocket science – one wrong command and you could jeopardise the whole mission. Keeping that in mind, our robot is so made that it simply will not take a wrong command. Take this motor for instance. It is expensive. Theoretically, technically, it can rotate 360 degrees. But physically it is unable to go beyond preprogrammed fixed movements. And this robot knows its physical limits. So if you give it a wrong command, it will do nothing except warn you about the wrong command.”

Next on Vaish’s and his A-SET team’s agenda was to design and create something for the paralytic patient, whose life is far more difficult than you can imagine. Not being able to move around as freely as we normal people do, a paralytic is practically bound to a wheelchair and dependent on someone to move it and take him places. Vaish’s A-SET team’s efforts resulted in a wheelchair that operated on brain-control technology. Talking about it, Vaish says: “Its like your wish is its command. All you need to do to control this wheelchair are your thoughts – proud to say this is the first time that something of this sort has been done in the world, and is beinbg produced commercially. We have built in a whole battery of checks and balances, because not everyone's brain is alike. We had no choice in this matter, because if we wrote one generic programme, it might not work for everyone. So from our prior experience, we applied the concept

Diwakar Vaish with his Father

of machine learning, through which we understand how the user's brain functions, and then adapt to it automatically. Also, we needed to compensate for changes occuring to the state of mind throughout the day and under different circumstances. With this meant to be a consumer product and not just another lab research tool, it was our endeavour to make it absolutely flawless. This wheelchair of ours has temperature sensors, sound sensors and numerous others, to ensure that everything happens just the way it is desired."

"Sensors work continuously to scan the area around, the surface over which it is moving. The wheelchair can automatically avoid obstacles, rough surfaces and even stairs, just to name a few. It is completely safe even in emergencies. The first reaction of human beings is to close their eyes in case of an emergency – the wheelchair, in such a situation, will come to a complete halt as soon as a person clenches his eyelids, and it will wait for a few seconds so the user can recover. Not only that, the wheelchair has a power switch inspired by fighter jets, so it never gets turned on accidentally."

This A-SET wheelchair costs around

2 Lakh rupees at the moment, but Vaish and team expect the government to take notice of this invention and facilitate making it more affordable and easily available to patients across the country.

Vaish has built over 40 robots till date. These include football-playing robots, writing robots and shadow robots – a robotic arm that imitates a human’s action. Vaish and his team are also working on a wearable mind-sensor headset that can track a person’s attention span and concentration levels, can read brainwaves, and when synced with a robot can accordingly direct the robot to perform tasks without human intervention. He and his team at A-SET are also working on a smart home-automated solution that can sense human feelings and perform jobs without being told – like opening doors, turning the air conditioning on by sensing an increase in body temperature, switching the TV to a channel of choice, etc.

Vaish has for the past three years been working on a life-sized humanoid robot that should soon be available to research institutes in India and abroad. A robot that can work non-stop for 10-15 hours a day and can be programmed to perform tasks that may be hazardous for

humans. “For example, a person could remotely guide the robot in real-time to carry out tasks at nuclear power plants, or a surgeon in the US could perform a procedure in real-time on a patient here in India using such a humanoid robot,” says Vaish.

When we jokingly asked him if these efforts of his at miniaturisation, braincontrol, etc., that too with the imperative of low-costs built in, was aimed at thwarting competition, his spontaneous reply was a mere smile. Then he said: “... honestly speaking, we do not really care what the competition is doing, we are not even focused on any type of competition with others, or focusing on what other people doing. No, that’s not important for us. We are just trying to deliver what society needs.”

“Even there, there is no ulterior motive, no ultimate aim. Like for example, before making the robot – the robot was my ultimate aim. And once the robot was made, our ultimate aim changed – it was now to make it much better. These days we are working on building a prosthetic hand using mechatronics and robotics technologies. On that project our ultimate aim is to provide a solution to people who lack hands so that they can do some meaningful work. Apropos the prosthetic hand, we are planning to launch it this Diwali, and we expect monthly orders to the tune of 500 to 1000 units. As of now, the prosthetic hands will cost 15,000 rupees per hand, and it will very easily work for 5-10 years, and is also completely repairable.“

“End of the day, I would say my ultimate aim is to take robots to every home, to all those people who actually need it. And of course, to make robots more economical, durable and accessible for everyone in the society.” Here’s to hoping he succeeds in his endeavour.

Chakravarthi Suchindran

The writer is an technocrat who dabbles in journalism print & broadcast photography & creative visual arts.

SUNNY KULATHAKAL

A MAN WHO BRAVES CHALLENGES

Bangalore-based NRI Sunny Kulathakal has a knack and penchant for treading roads less taken. A self-made man, always keen to explore new realms, one who can spot an opportunity ahead of others and work tirelessly to achieve goals. That is Sunny who had set an amazing record in networking in an era sans computers. An organizer extraordinaire, writer, journalist and social activist, he immensely values the trait of reaching out to people and zealously preserving the links. His friendships span continents and races. This amazing capacity to win friends has drawn him to the Diaspora making him a familiar face at international gatherings of people of Indian origin. The writer, who has been associated with Sunny Kulathakal for a long time, reminisces about him for the readers of NRI Achievers...

The disarming smile that can floor anyone is Sunny’s unique trait. What has drawn me to Sunny is his enviable trait to build friendships and nurture it even under adverse circumstances. The trait of retaining friendships for decades is difficult to emulate. Over the years he has amassed a string of amazing enduring contacts that range from neighborhood shopkeepers to national and international figures. He has been on equal terms with Kings, Prime Ministers, Ambassadors, industrial magnates and media moguls across the globe. As one who realized the value of networking in the pre-computer era, success in his ventures was assured. The runaway success of his ‘Gulf

Who's Who’ can be traced to his trait of putting premium on personal contacts.

His first trip to Dubai on a reporting assignment in 1977 was a game-changer. The plight of expatriate Indians braving the inhospitable environment of the desert drew him closer to the diaspora causes. His stories on the expatriate Indians toiling in the desert to uplift their families back home created ripples in India. I find Sunny's infinite capacity to come to the aid of people in need quite astonishing. Be it the case of someone caught in bureaucratic red tape, a person at the receiving end of police high handedness, even a distressed parent looking for his lost son or a Gulf expatriate struggling to make a living, Sunny is always there to lend a helping hand. Sunny recalls an incident in Houston during his visit there when an elderly woman hailing from Kerala spotted him at a gathering and profusely thanked him for restoring her missing son some thirty years earlier. Those are the moments that he cherishes most. Hailing from a family of priests, compassion comes naturally to him.

Former Meghalaya Governor M M Jacob vividly remembers how he used to ride pillion on Sunny's rickety scooter years ago during a visit to Bangalore. Whenever he visits Bangalore he invariably stays with Sunny discarding official trappings. There are also several other politicians who enjoy Sunny's hospitality frequently. I have fond memories of the time I have spent with Sunny at his farm

HiS fi RST TRip TO DUBAi ON A REpORTi NG ASSiGNMENT i N 1977 WAS A GAMECHANGER . THE pLiGHT Of ExpATRiATE iNDiANS BRAVi NG THE i NHOSpiTABLE ENVi RONMENT Of THE DESERT DREW H iM CLOSER TO THE DiASpORA CAUSES. HiS STORi ES ON THE ExpATRiATE iNDiANS TOi Li NG i N THE DESERT TO U pLifT THEi R fAMi Li ES BACK HOME CREATED RippLES i N iNDiA.

near Bangalore.A Supreme Court judge hailing from Karnataka often says that Sunny was instrumental in his continuation as a judge.

A born organizer, writer, journalist and social activist, he immensely values the trait of reaching out to people and zealously guarding the links. This amazing capacity has drawn him to the Diaspora making him a familiar face at international gatherings of people of Indian origin. Before the advent of Internet and social media he treasured the value of reaching out to people. This has stood him in good stead culminating in the success of Gulf Who’s Who Directory which has established itself as an effective tool in networking. Published from Bahrain, an oasis of progress in the Gulf region and a melting pot of different cultures, the Directory has become indispensable for millions in the region. In a reader-friendly format, the Directory provides a mountain of information on the people who have contributed in some way to the development and prosperity of the Gulf countries. The publication has managed to bring together industrialists, policymakers, professionals, diplomats and ministers from diverse backgrounds and nationalities under one masthead. It offers info on anyone who matters, whom to contact in an organization and how to explore business opportunities in the region.

Based out of Bahrain as the Global Ambassador of the GOPIO, Sunny is actively involved in alleviating the misery of expatriates. The success of the Kochi convention of GOPIO owes a lot to Sunny. As the then Vice President of GOPIO International and chairman of the Organizing Committee, his tireless efforts in forming various GOPIO chapters including those in London, Bangalore and Kochi culminated in organizing the successful jambo-

ree of PIOs and NRIs in Kochi two years ago. Sunny's penchant for braving adversities with confidence is something worthy of emulation by the younger generation. In the seventies without the help of even a telephone directory venturing into a project like Gulf Who's Who and making it a success needed rare audacity. He is second to none in spotting an opportunity ahead and exploiting it to the hilt. He is a self-made man who is always eager to explore new realms. At heart a Central Travancore farmer, Sunny cherishes his strong family bonds with his wife Elizabeth acting as a pillar of strength in all his ventures. He may be turning 70 but he has the zest for life and vigor that will be the envy of a 21-year-old.

M K Chandra Bose is a Bangalore -based senior journalist with almost four decades of exposure to mainstream print media

sUrina narULa

Organising charities in big way

ayoung woman of Indian origin who has in the last 10 years become a big name in London’s high society is Surina Narula. Her husband, Harpinder Singh Narula (H.S. to his wife and friends) is among the new Indian multi-millionaires in England, Surina is the woman behind his rise to riches and fame. She is also into organising charities in a big way and is known for throwing lavish parties in her stately mansion Hyjer Hall, a listed historic home standing around acres of lawns and gardens in Hertfordshire about half-an-hour’s drive from North London. Her three sons went to renowned public schools, Harrow and Rugby. The eldest is now studying in the Imperial College.

Surina was born in Amritsar in 1958 and sent to school in Mussoorie. Her father was in the Railways. At 18, she married Harpinder Singh Narula on his assurance that he was looking for a life-partner who would help him in his business and not a housekeeper who would only look after his kitchen, household and children. She continued her studies after her marriage. She also took over managing her husband’s business.

H.S. Narula landed lucrative building contracts in Libya. Living in a severely segregated society was not very cosy, but there was handsome money to be made. The Narulas invested their earnings in buying real estate in England and India. They bought a chain of medium-sized hotels in London and a country home from Vijay Mallaya, (The liquor magnate of Karnataka) and shopping complexes in Delhi. Whatever they took on, they looked after with

meticulous care and made it prosper. They liked living in style: one Rolls Royce in England, another in Delhi. They moved in high society but never lost sight of their lesser privileged fellow citizens.

Although Surina had lost several relations in the Partition massacres of 1947, she had no animus against Muslims or Pakistan. A lot of the valuable real estate was burnt down in the anti-Sikh violence of November 1984, but it did not turn her anti-Hindu or anti-Indian. However, they felt they could only prosper in a society free of violence.

A personal tragedy re-inforced their conviction. Surina’s elder sister who was a mother-figure to her was murdered along with her two children by their father in Bihar. It took 10 years to bring this man to justice and be hanged for triple-murder. England became their real home. One branch of the family continued to work in Delhi, a second in Libya and yet a third in the USA.

Surina heads the International Childcare Trust which looks after children of the poor; it has centres in India, Sri Lanka and Kenya. She also raised money for the exhibition of relics of Sikh Gurus to mark the 300th Anniversary of the Khalsa organised by the Victoria and Albert Museum: she hosted a fund-raising dinner — £ 200 for each meal ticket and raised £ 8000 (Rs 5½ lakhs). Another venture of hers was to raise money for a hospital in Lahore and for deprived street children in India, Sri Lanka and Bangla-

desh. Through this initiative, she succeeded in getting Pakistanis, Indians, Bangladeshis and Brits together — on a joint enterprise.

Talking about her future plans, Surina says: "I want to settle my three sons in businesses of their choosing. Then I will return to India because it is there I belong. I have retained my Indian nationality and passport and not opted for British citizenship because I am and will remain an Indian citizen. I will keep my options open to help my husband and sons whenever they need me. But the poor of India will ever remain my top priority."

Surina Narulahas devoted almost two decades to highlight the plight of street children globally and has even provided them a platform at the United Nations. An MBA and a Master’s in Social Anthropology at University College London, she has raised large funds for charitable causes through numerous high profile events. Combining her commitment to street children with her passion for the arts, she also produced a play to raise money for Salaam Balak Trust, a charity for street children in India.

A recipient of several awards for her philanthropic work, she was commended for The Beacon Prize for her contribution to charitable and social causes in 2003. Surina

was honoured with the Asian of the Year Award in 2005 and with an MBE in 2008. She has held several key positions including being the President of the Consortium for Street Children (CSC) which provides vol-

untary consultancy to NGOs internationally to being a member of the board of directors of PLAN International UK, a patron of PLAN INDIA and honorary patron of PLAN USA, to being on the Campaign Executive Committee for University College London. Surina is also an Advisor to the DSC Jaipur Literature Festival, a Trustee of ‘Unlimited’ which encourages enterprises in India and a Patron of several initiatives including Hope for Children, International Childcare Trust, Independent Film Makers Association, World Action Forum and Motti Rotti.

NRI Achievers UK Bureau

DIASPORA CONNECT ENTERS NEW AGE

Dnyaneshwar Mulay is a career diplomat with a difference. Currently the Secretary for Overseas Indian Affairs in the Ministry of External Affairs, he is also a renowned writer and thought-leader, with 15 of his inspirational books having been translated from the original Marathi into Urdu, Kannada, Arabic, Dhivehi and Hindi. His seminal work ‘Mati, Pankh Ani Akash’ has been included in the curriculum for graduate students in the North Maharashtra University. As an IFS officer of the 1983 batch, he has worked in Indian Missions in Tokyo, Moscow and Port Louis. He served as Minister in Damascus and was India’s longest serving High Commissioner to Male (Maldives). He assumed charge as Secretary (Consular, Passport, Visa and Overseas Indian Affairs) in July, 2016.

In this thought-provoking interview with Rajeev Gupta, Editor of NRI Achievers, Secretary Mulay asserts that engagement with the Indian Diaspora is entering an exciting new age of electronic connectivity and explains how the Pravasi Bharatiya Divas concept has undergone a sea change.

Your Ministry has focused on creating connectivity with the world, including the Indian Diaspora abroad. You yourself have emphasised the need to inject economic substance to interactions with the outside world. This implies promoting growth in tourism, growth in trade and growth in personal and corporate investments. How can we make the Diaspora an empowered tool in this regard? NRIs keen on investing in India are often hindered by complex regulations and red tapism. How can such hurdles be removed?

Red tapism is a word that has been used too often. If you see the overall policies of the government of India particularly under the new regimes, there has been a sea change. It’s about creating a welcoming environment in the country. From zero or just one country on our list for Visa on Arrival, we have moved to more than 155 countries. In my view this is a major step.

India which used to be considered a restrictive country has rapidly opened its doors to nationals of more than 155 countries through the electronic tourist visa. Many people may not have fully understood the importance of this,

but through my interactions with our missions and through interactions with bureau of immigration, that lots of people are actually now using this route because they don’t have to go to the embassy - they can pay online. This is symbolic of the new age we are entering and this will ultimately contribute to business growth. Business promotion doesn’t only mean changing the norms or raising the cap, which the government is in any case doing.

To make investments attractive, the country as a whole has to be attractive, people as a whole must display a kind of welcoming disposition, we should inculcate the spirit of “Atithi devo bhava”, in which that ‘Atithi’ could be an investor, tourist, Overseas Indian, FII investor or anybody who comes to seek knowledge.

Again, business does not mean just investment. We get

confused when we think of business as only trade, commerce and investment.

The Prime Minister, while speaking in New York, told the Indian Diaspora that whenever you go to India take five people along with you to India. So he was indirectly promoting not only tourism but also business to create interest in India. The first business friendly step is to create a friendly impression and perception outside the country.

The Visa on Arrival facility is not available in countries like Canada, US, UK, Australia and New Zealand where a large number of NRIs are located. Does

the government have in mind any provision in this regard in the New Year?

No, I am not referring to the specific countries that you are mentioning. But the government is continuously expanding the list of ‘electronic tourist visa’.

But the majority of NRIs live in these countries?

You know how many countries are there in the world - around 198 countries out of which 155 are covered. What does this mean? The majority of countries are covered. What I am trying to say is that this is not the only area where

we have worked. We have worked to simplify the OCI and PIO system. Despite some transitional issues, the aim is to provide a uniform facility for OCIs and PIOs, to bring them all on same platter, at the same level, with no discrimination.

There is a constant churning here to think ways of getting the Diaspora connected in a better way. We do not work only because PBD is coming. PBD is just a part of whole. There is a constant engagement with many components and PBD is one very important part of that.

So is there any plan to take some new initiatives in addition to PBD, which is a biennial event and nothing substantial comes into the light in the intervening two years about what is actually happening between Indian Diaspora and Indian Government?

Yes, the whole vision of the Ministry is to expand and be more creative in our engagement with our Diaspora. As a result, since we had our last PBD in 2015 in Ahmedabad, we have had as many as ten panel discussions. We call them PBD monthly panel discussion and we choose one topic, one theme for each, like for instance ‘Holistic Health’ or “Education”. We had one discussion on “How to improve Passport, Visa and other Consular services”. There was another session devoted to “Startups”.

Is the PBD concept undergoing a change?

It was noticed that the PBD was getting repetitive and it was getting less and less outcome-oriented. So our honourable Minister opted for a rethink and a revamp of the approach. There are many ways of revamping and remodelling the concept and strategy. Firstly, it has been decided to hold the event once in two years to make it more substantive. Secondly, the intervening period is used for improving the policy structure and framework and much more.

Thirdly, we have 8 to 10 schemes –Know India Program, Scholarship Schemes for Diaspora, Study India Program, Overseas Indians Facilitation Cen-

Photo: Rajeev Tyagi

OPEN LETTER TO INDIAN GOVERNMENT

WHY WE NRIs IMPORT MORE FROM CHINA?

I am a Non resident Indian residing in Australia for over 11 years, I own a trading company where we import pesticides from India and China for the Australian market. 95% of our products are imported from China and 5% from India.

Being an Indian our company is very passionate about supporting Indian businesses. However we constantly face hurdles. I would just like to highlight some points here

- No free trade agreement between India and Australia. Due to the absence of a free trade agreement all imported goods from India attract a duty of minimum 5% which makes Indian products more expensive and less favorable. Since China and Australia have a free trade agreement goods from China do not attract any duty making China more competitive which helps them to increase their production capacity hence bringing in more jobs and growth into Chinese economy.

- No tax rebates for Indian companies. Chinese government is very supportive of it's businesses giving them rebates on export which brings in more investment and increase foreign currency reserves. On the contrary Indian government imposes more taxes that not only makes Indian origin goods less competitive but also discourages foreign investment

- Indian government needs to invest in shipping ports and high speed transportation so the goods can be imported and exported at a brisk pace. Lead times on goods from India range between 10-12 weeks minimum on the contrary the same goods from China have a lead time of maximum 4 weeks. A common perception about India in the western world is that things move at a very slow pace in India which discourages businesses in Australia hence they are not always eager to trade with India.

- Living in Australia we notice every citizen and government is sympathetic towards their farmers and very proud of their farming industry, on the contrary in India even though farming still constitutes about 63% of Indian GDP ( I might be wrong here) still our farmers are In the worst condition possible. This information in the western media leaves a very bad impression about India as all major companies have to prove that they are playing a part in the corporate social responsibility

Why is the government not doing any campaign where every Indian citizen is empathetic and considers this a responsibility to help improve the plight of our farmers so they can progress and India can become self sufficient and a net exporter of agriculture products.

I would be happy to support in any way possible to contribute that will help in the progress of India and its citizens. Thanks

tre (OIFC), India Development Foundation for Overseas Indians, etc. All these schemes have been revamped to make them more effective, more transparent and more outcome-oriented.

We are regularly monitoring how much is the pendency as far as issuing of passports is concerned. For example, in the Jalandhar passport office, the pendency rate is zero and many others like Bhubaneswar. Earlier, this pendency rate used to be in several thousands, for a variety of reasons. So, we all revamping this and making it peoplefriendly. Today our Diaspora policy is much more efficient and very people friendly.

The PBD has often been labelled a government sponsored jamboree where NRIs from around the world are fed dollops of inducements to return home in a rather more secular replay of Ghar Wapsi. How would you react to this perception?

Perceptions, we can’t help. What we know is we are working very hard so that people abroad can feel comfortable and confident in connecting with India. We have to ensure that environment here is safe for them, their welfare is taking care of and they are given necessary incentives.

PBD is called a gathering of the rich who know NRIs. Is that true?

I don’t see such things. We do not announce that PBD is only for rich people.

Although the people selected for awards are usually from the affluent classes?

I don’t agree. There is a good jury system in place and the criteria is very clear - based on geographical distribution, strength of Diaspora, gender balancebroadly to see where they hail from within India. The jury is chaired by the Honourable Vice President of India. So you can see there is no question of compromising on quality and standard. Of course, it is our endeavour to constantly strive to improve the process.

Do you provide any special facilities to the participants in the form of finance, hotel and tickets?

Well, you know it’s a huge fair. The government spends a lot of money on it and charges registration fees which in today’s context I believe are very nominal.

There are lakhs of NRIs in the middleincome bracket, especially those working in Gulf countries, who contribute greatly to India’s economy but are unable to take part in PBD because of the cost factor and other hurdles. Is the government considering any steps to facilitate their participation in greater numbers?

We have to take a rational view. We cannot invite everybody, nor is it possible for everybody to participate. We have certainly taken inputs from our own embassies in these countries. We try to give them as much representation in various panel discussions that are currently going on. We have now introduced the scheme of scholarship whereby 50 seats are reserved only for the children of our Diaspora in Gulf Countries; it is a unique step which has been introduced recently.

A message has gone very clear and loud to everybody in the world that India cares for its citizens and it cares certainly more for its overseas citizens. Those who are in trouble, who are in stress know that India is always ready to help them out, to evacuate them, to bring them back respectfully and giving them the dignity. Whether it mortal remains, whether it is dead bodies and we are with people on the spot. And this is also increased the respect for India in the mind of outsiders.

There are more than 1.75 crore NRIs around the world, but this message of PBD and regional PBDs goes to only a few thousand NRIs. Is this fair to say?

We advertise in all possible ways and our embassies circulate the information widely. Most of the people who are overseas open their embassies

website at least once in a while; not all but many-many people do see the all government schemes for OCI listed there. Sometimes, I find complaints from even literate and educated people that they were not aware about PBD. I would only ask them why they do not even visit their own country’s embassy website, where all relevant information is regularly updated. We also publicize press releases on Facebook and Twitter. I feel that the community and the media should also propagate such information for their own good and for the good of the country.

Now that almost all the States have taken to hosting their own ”Investor Summits” over the last few years, can we expect to see the PBD to move in directions apart from Investment, Make In India, etc, and focus on addressing Diaspora issues, as it was originally conceived to?

We don’t focus just on investments. We have a holistic approach to the Di-

aspora and the primary focus is their connectivity with the India. Connectivity could be emotional, cultural, economic, intellectual connectivity, philosophical connectivity, psychological connectivity, including both temporal and spiritual aspects.

So it really is how you look at it - by and large PBDs have succeeded in conveying the message of India to the overseas Indians. And now it’s up to us to take it to a new level where the engagement becomes substantive. That’s why the PBD 2017 theme is “Redefining Diaspora Engagement”. Has making visa facilities easier made a measurable difference?

Yes, no doubt a larger number of people are now going through the electronic tourist visa because they find it far easier to go to online to book, to pay and to arrive. It has opened a simple way to travel to India. Our youth go abroad for studies, their expertise is harnessed and they contribute to the economic growth of the countries they reside in. Is the government thinking in terms of wooing that talent back to India?

A. There is already a “GIAN” program by HRD ministry as it is a portal for the people who want to come back to the country and that channel is already provided. We have created a separate portal for student registration so that we know how many students are there and what they are doing. We are getting in touch with them and updating them about the development of India. And we also creating another portal so that more overseas Indians can register more conveniently through Aadhar cards.

The author is a veteran journalist who had been associated with many electronic channels before starting NRI Achievers magazine. He may be reached at: editor@nriachievers.in

Photo: Rajeev Tyagi

NEW WAVE OF REFORMS AND CHANGING FACE OF INDIAN ECONOMY

With the change in regime there is a pertinent remodel to India’s investment approach. Most of these initiatives are indeed novel –while few are considered bold. The bold policy initiatives such as the demonetization are essentially an outcome of the regime vision to provide a "bigger spurt" to the economy by plugging leakages. NRI Achievers presents an overview here.

with a self-sufficient agriculture sector, a multi-faceted Industrial sector and a developing financial sector India, a trillion dollar economy is offering new business opportunities for the Indians as well as the world. According to the NITI Aayog CEO Amitabh Kant, the chief of government think-tank, “While we are growing at about 7.5 - 7.6%, India must be very hungry and ambitious for growth of 9 - 10%". The structural reforms aim to achieve high rate of growth. India also needs to have consistency and predictability in the policy regime, coupled with other factor of market reforms. As far as the latest campaign Demonetization is concerned Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi is being referred to as a radical reformer. So when, the new model provides an exhaustive list of economic, en-

vironmental and social measures – lets us briefly summarize them here:

Jan Dhan Yojana – Perhaps of the initial scheme by the Modi government, the Jan Dhan Yojana or the ‘Free’ bank account for poorest Indian, allowed everyone to open an account in a bank and only in a fortnight after the launch, the yojana entered the Guinness Book of World Records for the maximum number of accounts opened in a week. This scheme is considered as a big boost in moving towards direct subsidy transfer and plugging the leakages. No doubt, the Pradhan Mantri Jan Dhan Yojana has met with huge success ever since it was launched by Indian Prime Minister. The Government has even left no stone unturned in ensuring success of the scheme. Perhaps when demonetization now in full swing, one can estimate that the Jan Dhan Yogana was not introduced in isolation.

Make-In-India Scheme - Make-inIndia was launched in 2014 as an ambi-

tious initiative to encourage multi-national, as well as national companies to manufacture their products in India. The main reason for launching this initiative was to pave way for Foreign Direct Investments (FDI) by luring them to the most productive economy of the world. To highlight the fact, the net FDI inflows into India hit an all-time high in January 2016, at $3.0 billion on a 12-month moving average basis. The Government has liberalized foreign direct investment norms for NRIs and overseas citizens of India (OCI) as it aims to increase capital flows into the country. According to the

PM, “The amendment in FDI for OCIs, NRIs & PIOs will lead to greater forex remittances & investment.”

Stand-Up India- This scheme was launched in early 2016 and was aimed to support entrepreneurship among women and SC and ST (Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes) communities. Under this scheme, loan between Rs. 10-100

lakhs were provided for setting up any new enterprise. The Standup India scheme sets a target of creating 2.5 lakh such entrepreneurs across the country. Bankruptcy code –To lower down the non-performing assets the government made few amendments of existing bankruptcy laws and now the Code creates time-bound processes for insol-

vency resolution of companies and individuals.

Demonetization – Announcing this radical move, which will change the content of domestic lockers forever, the Indian PM said on the night of 8th December, “For years, this country has felt that corruption, black money and terrorism are festering sores, holding us back in the race towards development.” He said. “To break the grip of corruption and black money, we have decided that the currency notes of Rs. 500 & 1,000 presently in use will no longer be legal tender from midnight tonight.” Added Finance Minister Arun Jaitley, “The goal of this is to clean transactions, [to] clean money.” Who can disagree that demonization is a shock therapy conducted by the government to eradicate black money, counter tax evasion and destroy counterfeit currency. This radical and sudden movement was to stop counterfeiting of the current banknotes allegedly used for funding terrorism, as well as a crackdown on black money in the country and no doubt the effects are widely seen and praised globally. Those not having any account with bank are queuing up to open an account, a step towards financial inclusion. This move has also shown effects on drug market, smuggling, human trafficking, prostitution and other means of corruption. Though the cons are also present, no doubt a shock therapy without institutional transformation will have a limited impact, and lost with time. The Indian reality is that many trades and areas are still cash-based and “cannot be digitized just by willing it.” But there are pros also, which outweighs the cons - hence a thumbs up for this movement.

Amitabh Kant, CEO, Niti Aayog

Women upliftment is nearly impossible if issues such as illiteracy, inequality, sexual harassment and female infanticide are not combated in the right manner

Now coming to some of social reforms PM Modi has initiated

BEtI-BACHAO AND BEtI-PADAO SCHEME

There’s a powerful saying, “When you educate a man, you educate a man but when you educate a woman, you educate a generation”. This is because of the benefits of educating girls permeates the entire family and have far-reaching impacts within the entire society. In 2015, the Indian government launched its flagship scheme ‘Beti Bachao, Beti Padhao’ (Save daughters, educate daughters). The scheme aims to battle malnutrition, improve gender ratio and provide education, maternity benefit apart from perking up the efficiency of several welfare schemes.

customers who earn more than Rs. 10 lakh per annum. The amount saved from here was used to give over five lakh new LPG connections to those who used firewood or kerosene stoves for cooking. This reform instilled a wave of positive thoughts for India across the world. This was more of a social reform, with a pertinent economic angle.

SWACHH BHARAt MISSION

Women upliftment is nearly impossible if issues such as illiteracy, inequality, sexual harassment and female infanticide are not combated in the right manner.

Then there was an addition to the scheme in form of the Sukanya Samriddhi Scheme. This scheme was launched to meet the expense of the Girl child’s higher education and marriage.

LPG Su BSIDY REFORMS

This reform was initially started as a ‘Give-ItUp’ campaign, later the Petroleum and Natural Gas Ministry stopped/cut the LPG subsidy to

Sanitation ministry's Swachh Bharat mission got wide public support. Under this mission not the cleaning the locality is counted but the government is also building more toilets and is taking important steps towards waste management and waste segregation. However, the real success will happen only when manual scavenging is totally eradicated.

OtHER WELFARE SCHEMES

A slew of insurance schemes namely crop insurance for farmers, Atal Pension Yojana for the unorganized sector, affordable health insurance coverage, and the Jan Aushadhi Yojana for retail sales of generic drugs have also been introduced. Kisan Vikas Patra has

been reintroduced. To improve investment scenario in the country, India is also seeking to terminate bilateral investment protection treaty (BITs) signed with 57 countries and sign joint interpretative statements. There should also be mention of UDAY– Under this UDAY scheme, the Power Ministry plans to aid discoms and State governments to raise up to Rs. 1.75 lakh crore through bonds to improve the health of power distribution sector and Aadhaar – Though, Aadhar was introduced during the previous Government but this government saved Aadhaar from turning to a white elephant by passing the Aadhaar Bill.

In response to changing economic realities and multiple crises, investment policy-making is experiencing a paradigm shift. Post the

new regime in 2014, there has been a renewed push to improve the investment scenario in the country, which was marred by policy paralysis for several years before. The emphases of all these measures are on bottom-up approach and making the country to move towards cooperative federalism. The participation of States as observed by the Government is an important step towards developed economy.

The new wave of reforms undersigned by many new campaigns as listed above are changing the Indian economy face forever, more so as the behavior among stakeholders are also changing.

Systemic or deep rooted social issues and corruption cannot be fixed without big bold reforms, and one should also not expect that the government will solve all these social and economic ills, the people must provide full cooperation in eradicating them. But for sure if these steps are implemented efficiently – the corruption will go on a long vacation & the opportunities for investment in India as a whole & states will definitely take a boost.

To improve investment scenario in the country, India is also seeking to terminate bilateral investment protection treaty (BITs) signed with 57 countries and sign joint interpretative statements

Ashwani Srivastava

The author is a Senior Research Lead on policy and energy topics & M.Tech. in Chemical Engineering from the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT), Kanpur

HEROES AND VILLAINS OF THE BANKING SYSTEM

The back-breaking burden on bank employees after demonetisation of high denomination rupee notes is a story of heroes and villains.

On the one side is the incredible devotion to duty, working long hours to cope up with the pressures of dispensing cash to thousands of customers on a scale never experienced before. And on the other are the streetsmart staffers, sensing a golden opportunity to get rich quick beyond their wildest dreams. A piquant situation. The author writes about the scenario, with some bon mot...

The total lack of planning and preparation before plunging the nation into a cash crunch of epic dimensions also has two sides to it. Some are still under the illusion that it is the duty of all citizens to bear the hardship with a patriotic smile in the fond hope that corruption will be eradicated from the motherland. Others view it as a hasty decision taken by the Prime Minister for motives that may have little to do with flushing out black money from the economy.

Whatever the intentions or the ultimate outcome, the burden of coping with the desperate cries for cash has falled on the shoulders of anonymous men and women - cashiers and clerks, officers and managers – working in tens of thousands of bank branches in rural, semi-urban, peri-urban, urban and metropolitan areas across the length and breadth of India. Unsung heroes of demonetisation, some of them however see the chaos and confusion as a chance to become instant millionaires by helping convert hoards of black money into legitimate currency.

Bank employees of all grades and designations have been under tremendous pressure ever since demonetisation was announced on November 8. They had never imagined that they would have to work so hard, for such

long hours and for so many days and weeks at a stretch. They had no idea that there would be so much tension, so much multi-tasking, so few occasional words of praise and so many angry costumers to soothe. Above all, they had never realized that the big bosses in their own bank headquarters and in the mighty RBI could be so incapable of crisis management. The truth is that the image of the RBI has fallen in the eyes of even the most loyal and uncomplaining of bank employees.

In bank branches all over the country, especially in smaller banks branches and the far-flung ones where no officer likes to be transferred, there is an acute shortage of staff. In spite of this, the vast majority of bank employees entrusted with manning the counters have valiantly risen to the challenge of trying to cope with the complex task of catering to the never-ending rush of people, counting currency notes, verifying account details and making entries.

Behind the scenes, away from direct public gaze, are the officers and assistants, tearing their hair keeping track of transactions, making sense of the latest instructions in the rules and limits, anxiously waiting for the arrival of ATM technicians and sending SOS messages

and reminders to their regional superiors for urgent cash replenishments.

In the midst of this, laid down procedures and security norms are invariably observed in the breach. Everyone on the payroll, including the gunmen and the sub-staff in the lowest Grades, has to be lend a hand in a multitude of tasks they have never done before and for which they have had no previous training. A common sight is that of a security guard sitting inside the cashiers cage, with his long double-barrelled firearm leaning against the wall, helping the chief cashier count bundles of soiled banknotes.

Counting cash is not as easy as it looks. It is often the case that a bundle counted twice always seems to contain a different number of notes. Cash counting machines frequently malfunction and manual counting becomes necessary. It is not surprising, therefore, that mistakes happen, even in normal situations. The reality is that in the nightmarish atmosphere prevailing inside all bank branches during the past three weeks, mistakes are happening on a massive scale. Under the excruciating pressure of impatient customers waiting to deposit their old 500 and 1000 rupee notes, normal precautions become impossible. Speed tends to become a higher priority than Accuracy.

For cashiers, this can have serious consequences. Under tremendous stress, cashiers can hardly concentrate in such an atmosphere. But the rules are strict. They will have to pay from their own pockets for any shortfalls when the currency notes are tallied every evening before closing.

The excuse that the errors were committed due to “high level of stress” does not protect them from the consequences. No point in pleading that as compared to the normal volume of 50 to 60 transactions a day, there are now upwards of 450 transactions. Not only do they have to make up for shortfalls, they also have to do so the same day before going home. What is worse is that in most branches, every employee is forced to double up as a cashier. Fearing angry customers, employees from peon to a manager are working as cashiers, and they often make mistakes while dealing with the crowd which leads to their own financial loss.

According to the RBI’s own figures, in the first ten days alone, banks across the country had received Rs 5,44,571 crore in deposits and old notes submitted for exchange. This included deposits of Rs 5,11,565 crore and exchanged currency notes of Rs 33,006 crore. These are huge numbers of currency notes of various denominations. In the 20 days since then, the volume of cash

A LARGE N uMBER OF cOMpLAINTS ARE AGAINST BANK MANAGEMENTS FOR NOT TAKING INTO cONSIDERATION THE H uMAN FAcTOR OF EMpLOYEES wORKING u NDER HIGH STRESS

being handled would have trebled.

What has not been brought to the notice of the public is that so far thousands of complaints have been lodged by banking staff across the country. Some of the complaints pertain to disputes between staff members, some are related to bad behaviour of customers and some are protests against being held responsible for missing money.

A large number of complaints are against bank managements for not taking

apart from banks and post offices, the task of cash disbursements should be also entrusted to other government agencies like the Railways, LIC offices and other Government departments with direct dealing with the public. This would have increased the number of outlets and contact points for the public and considerably eased the burden on the banks.

conditions. On the other side of the picture are the numerous malpractices being systematically committed in thousands of bank branches. Without evidence it is difficult to tabulate the various ways in which old notes are being laundered with the active connivance of bank employees.

into consideration the human factor of employees working under high stress. As things stand, in many cases, bank employees often have to resort to desperate measures to mend their mistakes and avoid deductions from their personal salaries. When the daily accounts are found not to tally, there is a sense of deep resentment and even panic. Cashiers often borrow money from their colleagues to settle the accounts before leaving the bank. In case an official fails to do this, proceedings can be initiated against him.

According to rough estimates, the 10 lakhs bank employees have catered to almost 50 crore people in these past four weeks. One of the demands being made by bank employees associations is that

There are many new forms of pressure at the teller counters, where long lines of customers who have been waiting for hours sometimes make unreasonable demands or use rude language. They do not take in account that the clerks and cashiers are involved in multitasking at a break neck speed - checking forms, scrutinising identity proofs, verifying old notes that have been deposited and ensuring that cash withdrawals are within the prescribed daily and weekly limits. Cases of impatient and irritated customers tending to let off steam have become a daily occurrence in most banks. Some customers even claim that they have not been paid and the cashier gets confused, and ends up paying the same customer twice over.

These are cases of genuine errors being committed under stressful working

It is an open secret, however, that there are many black sheep who receive large volumes of illicit notes from black money holders and exchange them for new notes at a discount. Some of the old notes are deposited in newly created fictitious accounts or in existing Jan Dhan accounts with low balances. The inquiry that has reportedly been ordered into the suspiciously large volume of deposits in Jan Dhan accounts is an indication that this is one of the ways in which this is being done.

Insiders say the few stray reports that have come to the surface are only the tip of the iceberg. The list of strange goingson are legion – stories being told of largevolume transactions in some branches long after closing hours, terse announcements by some banks that some staffers have been suspended, the bizarre case of a taxi driver in Delhi suddenly finding a credit of Rs 8000 crore in his account, the frequent modification of rules by the RBI aimed at “plugging loopholes”, the mysterious disappearance of one-rupee notes, etc.. Clearly, ingenious ways are being found to beat the system, details of which may never come to light without a full investigation. Till then, all that can be said with tragic certainty is that many of the big fish in the black money ocean have already been able to swim to safety, and only the small fry have been caught in the net.

The author is a veteran journalist, political commentator & satirist par-excellence

Raman Swami

JAYALALITHAA AN ICON IS NO MORE

It was only after her death that the rest of India has come to realize the true dimensions of Jayalalithaa’s greatness. A majority of the 88 million people of Tamil Nadu saw it, felt it and were under its spell for four decades. The tragedy is that, during her lifetime, the majority of her own countrymen were not fully aware of the intensity of her charismatic personality, the depth of her strength as a woman of substance and the clarity of her vision as a political leader.

As the late Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu was laid to rest with full state honours at Marina beach, in the presence of dignitaries and commoners, mainstream India became conscious, almost for the first time and much too late, of her intrinsic worth. It is said that Fame is the Recompense, not of the Living, but of the Dead. So it has proved in the case of Jayalalithaa. It is only after her passing away forever that

she has been elevated to the stature of a national leader and not just a regional satrap.

As the sandalwood coffin containing her mortal remains was lowered to its last resting place next to the memorial of another amazing southern stalwart, her mentor M. G. Ramachandran, a sense of profound understanding flashed momentarily in the minds of millions of fellow-citizens in the North, West and East of the vast expanse of the land that is known as India. Many, perhaps, realized for the first time that the leader they had been yearning for to provide justice and good governance for the whole country, had been there before their very eyes all these years, and they had not noticed it.

For mainstream India, the past few days have been like a belated awakening. Till now it had never been acknowledged that behind the aloof and haughty exterior, Jayalalithaa was a

leader of deep compassion and genuine grace. That when the Tamil people called her “Ämma”, it was much more that an endearing nickname, but it captured the spirit of the relationship between her and her adoring public, that of a benevolent and protective mother who understood their needs.

That there was something deeper than over-zealous party propaganda in the title of “Puratchi Thalaivi” that was bestowed on her – she was indeed a Revolutionary Leader in word and action and her pro-poor Welfare policies were more radical and revolutionary than merely populist. Again, too late for her and perhaps too late for India as a whole, it is also beginning to dawn on the national conscious that Jayalalithaa’s development model for Tamil Nadu could well be the Model of Development that India has been looking for. Her economic policies have evolved through the years, with the

experience of her many tenures as Chief Ministers, into a complex and intricate package of targeting and catering to individual sections of the diverse population of the State.

Each strand of her policy prescriptions was tailor-made for specific demands, sector by sector – big industry, small business, foreign investment, agriculture, rural industries, urban poor,

basic schooling and higher education, primary health and advanced medical care, et al, the list of individual interests is endless. Each strand is separate and yet woven seamlessly into the overall tapestry of holistic economic policy.

Contrary to the myth about the benefits of the Gujarat model of development, future rulers in Delhi may well find that the Tamil Nadu model of development may be more appropriate for India with suitable adaptations and fine-tuning.

Now that the visionary leader who embroidered this elaborate socio-economic fabric of multi-faceted policies is no more, it may not be politically incorrect to state that it is a matter of eternal regret that the country never got the opportunity to experience Jayalalithaa at the helm of national affairs. The flood of tributes and wave of eulogies after her passing away may have washed away many of the misconceptions about Jayalalithaa’s persona and watered down many of the harsher truths of her past life and present politics. This is as it should be. But her legacy would be more worthwhile if the good that she leaves behind lives after her, rather than being interred in her mortal remains on Marina Beach and quickly forgotten.

At the very least it should be remembered that among the many qualities of head and heart which this truly remarkable and colourful woman of substance displayed during her lifetime, three aspects stood out – her incredible charisma, her astounding leadership skills and the sheer strength and courage of her personality. Beyond her exquisite good looks and regal bearing, she exuded a glow and a radiance that could only have come from deep inside. Those who think that beauty is only skin-deep have still not understood Jayalalithaa. And never will.

Raman Swami

CURRENCY DEMONETISATION

SHORT TERM LOSS, LONG TERM GAIN

The landmark move by the Modi government to demonetise high value currency notes to stamp out black money will have a far-reaching impact on the capital-intensive Indian real estate sector, where almost one-third of all transactions still involve unaccounted (aka ‘black’) money. Though initially this bold move of the government is most likely to hit the sentiment of a real estate market already reeling under recession badly in the short-term, the sector is most likely to reap good benefits from the greater transparency ushered in by the governments socalled ‘surgical-strike’ against the parallel economy and black money in the medium to long-term. An outlook.

The Indian government, in the last couple of years, has initiated a number of key reforms in the real estate sector – the ‘Real Estate Regulation Act (RERA)’, the ‘GST,’ the ‘REITs’, the ‘Benami Transactions (Prohibition) Amedment Act, 2016,’ etc., apart from the ushering in of various reforms related to Foreign Direct Investment; all of them with the one primary objective of bringing in a high degree of transparency in dealings. Enthused by this slew of ongoing reforms, many foreign investors are already betting big on the Indian real estate sector. In a recent development, glo-

bal private equity player ‘Xander’ has formed a joint venture with the Dutch Pension Fund Manager ‘APG Asset Management,’ to deploy a sumptuous US$ 1 billion into real estate in India. Much to the relief of our cash-strapped and debtridden real estate developers in the country, institutional financing will also come with lesser risk weightage going forward from here.

It is understood that the impact of the government's crackdown on the parallel economy and unaccounted cash will be felt all the more in the real estate sector, as the consumption trends for such ‘black’

money has been high and of significant value in the real estate sector until now. A cash component of 20-30 percent in property transactions has more or less been a norm till recently, largely due to the difference between collectorate rates and the market rates of property. This has often been even higher in land transactions and property transactions in smaller cities. At the initial stage of any real estate project, it is land purchase that has the highest component – 40 percent or more – of unaccounted money. Also, payments by investors who put money into housing and construction projects at the pre-

launch or early-launch stages have been found to have a considerable cash component. Cash transactions are also prevalent for building material purchases and payments made to construction workers. While most if not all secondary market transactions essentially involve cash payouts, in primary markets, however, the cash involvement is more often than not absent, especially in residential real estate – as home purchases are usually financed through mortgages. In the ‘affordable homes’ segment, xcash payments are totally non-existent as the the ticket sizes are too small to even consider cash payments. Contrarily though, the cash component is relatively high in high-end housing. It is also been noticed that developers do tend to offer offer price discounts even in in primary sales, if some part of property value is being paid to them in cash.

Now that the government is earnestly cracking down on black money, the cash component in property transactions will invariably go down significantly. The endresult of this will manifest as a drop in land prices, with most if not all land deals seeing a substantial dip. It is worthwhile noting that developers are already avoiding outright purchase of land for new projects, and instead going in for joint development agreements with land owners. They are also finding it difficult to monetize their land bank to cut down debt obligations. Debt-ridden developers will, in the short-term, face cash-flow issues. And given the currently prevalent high inventory and cash crunch scenario, they may well have to resort to price-cutting to push up sales, much to the delight of potential property buyers. Speculative and inflated pricing will take a solid beating in the secondary or pre-owned properties segment, especially in markets that thrive on speculative investments. This too will benefit home-buyers as interest rates are already showing a downtrend – with an 1.5 percentage point plunge in the last one to one-and-a-half years. Going forward, with

currency demonetisation further improving the liquidity of banks, further interest rate cuts are most likely, which will indeed serve well to make homes more affordable. We can expect a boost to home sales, which have so far seen a 15 percent hike across top 8 cities in Q2 FY17. Once RERA (the Real Estate Regulation Act) becomes operational and home buyers get protection of their investment, sales will further pick up, especially the affordable housing segment, adding much heft to the government's mission of ‘Housing for All by 2021’.

Not merely top cities, but also the tier 2 and 3 cities, where the government is focusing

on 'Housing for All' and ‘Smart City’ projects, are expected to gain. Many big organised players have of late shown interet in entering these cities, from their platforms of corporate social responsibility (CSR). Some of these cities which offer good job opportunities (especially in IT) and have good physical and social infrastructure are already on the radar of many domestic and global funds. Demonetisation will further boost investors confidence in the long run. And since corruption and approvals bottlenecks are major factors responsible for price inflation, demonetisation coupled with the government's next big reform move to introduce single-window clearance systems, will make property eminently affordable for masses. And not withstanding initial setbacks as the sector reorganises itself, real estate will be transformed into a more efficient, evolved, corporatised, fair and transparent asset class, well on its way on a long-term sustainable growth path.

Vinod Behl

The author is a senior media professional & the consulting editor of NRI Achievers magazine. He may be reached at: vb@nriachievers.in

ÚUæÁÙèçÌ™æ, ¿ÌéÚU ·¤êÅUÙèçÌ™æ, Âý·¤æ´Ç ¥ÍüàææS˜æè ·Ô¤ M¤Â ×ð´ Öè çßEç߁ØæÌ ãé°Ð §ÌÙè âçÎØæ¡ »éÁÚUÙð ·Ô¤ ÕæÎ ¥æÁ Öè ØçÎ ¿æ‡æ€UØ mæÚUæ ÕÌæ° »° çâhæ´Ì ¥õÚU ÙèçÌØæ¡ Âýæâ´ç»·¤ ãñ´ Ìô ×æ˜æ §âçÜ°° ç·¤ ©‹ãô´Ùð ¥ÂÙð »ãÙ ¥ŠØØÙ, ç¿´ÌÙ ¥õÚU ÁèßæÙæÙéÖßô´ âð ¥çÁüÌ ¥×êËØ ™ææÙ ·¤ô° ÂêÚUè ÌÚUã çÙM¤SßæÍü ãô·¤ÚU ×æÙßèØ ·¤ËØæ‡æ ·Ô¤ ©gðàØ âð ¥çÖÃØQ¤ ç·¤Øæ. Âðàæ ãñ v| ¥ŠØæØô´ ßæÜè '¿æ‡æ€UØ ÙèçÌ ' ·¤æ ‚ØæÚUãßæ¡ ¥ŠØæØÐ ãÚU ¥´·¤ ×ð´ ã× °·¤ ¥ŠØæØ ÂÚU ÙÁÚU ÇæÜÌð ãñ´Ð ©ÎæÚUÌæ, ß¿Ùô´ ×ð´ ×ÏéÚUÌæ, âæãâ, ¥æ¿ÚU‡æ ×ð´ çßßð·¤ Øð ÕæÌð ·¤ô§ü Âæ Ùãè´ â·¤Ìæ Øð ×êÜ ×ð´ ãôÙè ¿æçã°.

Generosity, pleasing address, courage and propriety of conduct are not acquired, but are inbred qualities. Áô ¥ÂÙð â×æÁ ·¤ô ÀôǸ·¤ÚU ÎêâÚUð â×æÁ ·¤ô Áæ ç×ÜÌæ ãñ, ßã ©âè ÚUæÁæ ·¤è ÌÚUã ÙC ãô ÁæÌæ ãñ Áô ¥Ï×ü ·Ô¤ ×æ»ü ÂÚU ¿ÜÌæ ãñ.

He who forsakes his own community and joins another perishes as the king who embraces an unrighteous path. ãæÍè ·¤æ àæÚUèÚU ç·¤ÌÙæ çßàææÜ ãñ Üðç·¤Ù °·¤ ÀôÅUð âð ¥´·¤éàæ âð çÙØ´ç˜æÌ ãô ÁæÌæ ãñ. °·¤ ÎèØæ ƒæÙ𠥋Ϸ¤æÚU ·¤æ Ùæàæ ·¤ÚUÌæ ãñ, €UØæ ¥¡ÏðÚUð âð ÎèØæ ÕǸæ ãñ. °·¤ ·¤Ç¸·¤Ìè ãé§ü çÕÁÜè °·¤ ÂãæǸ ·¤ô ÌôǸ ÎðÌè ãñ, €UØæ çÕÁÜè ÂãæǸ çÁÌÙè çßàææÜ ãñ. Áè Ùãè´. çÕÜ·¤éÜ Ùãè´. ßãè ÕǸæ ãñ çÁâ·¤è àæçQ¤ Àæ ÁæÌè ãñ. §ââð ·¤ô§ü Ȥ·ü¤ Ùãè´ ÂǸÌæ ç·¤ ¥æ·¤æÚU ç·¤ÌÙæ ãñ.

The elephant has a huge body but is controlled by the ankusha (goad): yet, is the goad as large as the elephant? A

lighted candle banishes darkness: is the candle as vast as the darkness. A mountain is broken even by a thunderbolt: is the thunderbolt therefore as big as the mountain? No, he whose power prevails is really mighty; what is there in bulk? Áô ƒæÚU »ëãSÍè ·Ô¤ ·¤æ× ×ð´ Ü»æ ÚUãÌæ ãñ ßã ·¤Öè ™ææÙ Âýæ# Ùãè´ ·¤ÚU â·¤Ìæ. ×æòâ ¹æÙð ßæÜð ·Ô¤ OÎØ ×ð´ ÎØæ Ùãè´ ãô â·¤Ìè. ÜôÖè ÃØçQ¤ ·¤Öè âˆØ Öæá‡æ Ùãè´ ·¤ÚU â·¤Ìæ. ¥õÚU °·¤ çàæ·¤æÚUè ×ð´ ·¤Öè àæéhÌæ Ùãè´ ãô â·¤Ìè.

He who is engrossed in family life will never acquire knowledge; there can be no mercy in the eater of flesh; the greedy man will not be truthful; and purity will not be found in a woman and a hunter. °·¤ ÎéC ÃØçQ¤ ×ð´ ·¤Öè ÂçߘæÌæ ©UçÎÌ Ùãè´ ãô â·¤Ìè ©âð ¿æãð Áñâð â×Ûææ Üô. Ùè× ·¤æ ßëÿæ ·¤Öè ×èÆæ Ùãè´ ãô â·¤Ìæ ¥æ ¿æãð ©â·¤è çàæ¹æ âð ×êÜ Ì·¤ ƒæè ¥õÚU àæP¤ÚU çÀǸ·¤ Îð´.

The wicked man will not attain sanctity even if he is instructed in different ways, and the neem tree will not become sweet even if it is sprinkled from the top to the roots with milk and ghee. ¥æ ¿æãð âõ ÕæÚU Âçߘæ ÁÜ ×ð´ FæÙ ·¤ÚÔ´U, ¥æ ¥ÂÙð ×Ù ·¤æ ×ñÜ Ùãè´ Ïô â·¤Ìð. ©âè Âý·¤æÚU çÁâ Âý·¤æÚU ×çÎÚUæ ·¤æ Âæ˜æ Âçߘæ Ùãè´ ãô â·¤Ìæ ¿æãð ¥æ ©âð »ÚU× ·¤ÚU·Ô¤ âæÚUè ×çÎÚUæ ·¤è Öæ ÕÙæ Îð´.

Mental dirt cannot be washed away even by one-hundred baths in the sacred waters, just as a wine pot cannot be purified even by evaporating all the wine by fire. §â×ð´ ·¤ô§ü ¥æpØü Ùãè´ ·¤è ÃØçQ¤ ©Ù ÕæÌæð´ ·Ô¤ ÂýçÌ ¥ÙéλæÚU ·¤ãÌæ ãñ çÁâ·¤æ ©âð ·¤ô§ü ™ææÙ Ùãè´. ©âè Âý·¤æÚU Áñâð °·¤ Á´»Üè çàæ·¤æÚUè ·¤è Â%è ãæÍè ·Ô¤ âÚU ·¤æ ×ç‡æ Èð´¤·¤·¤ÚU »ê´Áð ·¤è ×æÜæ ÏæÚU‡æ ·¤ÚUÌè ãñ.

It is not strange if a man reviles (Degrades) a thing of which he has no knowledge, just as a wild hunter's wife throws away the pearl that is found in the head of an elephant, and picks up a gunj(a type of seed which poor tribals wear as ornaments). Áô ÃØçQ¤ °·¤ âæÜ Ì·¤ ÖôÁÙ ·¤ÚUÌð â×Ø Ö»ßæÙ÷ ·¤æ ŠØæÙ ·¤ÚUð»æ ¥õÚU ×é´ãU âð ·¤éÀ Ùãè´ ÕôÜð»æ ©âð °·¤ ãÁæÚU ·¤ÚUôǸ ßáü Ì·¤ Sß»ü Üô·¤ ·¤è Âýæç# ãô»è.

He who for one year eats his meals silently (inwardly meditating upon the Lord's prasadam); attains to the heavenly plan-

ets for a thousand crore of years. ( Note: one crore equals ten million)

°·¤ çßlæÍèü Âê‡æü M¤Â âð çِ٠çÜç¹Ì ÕæÌæð´ ·¤æ ˆØæ» ·¤ÚUð. v. ·¤æ× w. ·ý¤ôÏ x. ÜôÖ y. SßæçÎC ÖôÁÙ ·¤è ¥Âðÿææ z. àæÚUèÚU ·¤æ oë´»æÚU {. ¥ˆØæçÏ·¤ çÁ™ææâæ |. ¥çÏ·¤ çÙÎýæ }. àæÚUèÚU çÙßæüã ·Ô¤ çÜ° ¥ˆØæçÏ·¤ ÂýØæâ.

The student (brahmacari) should completely renounce the following eight things -- his lust, anger, greed, desire for sweets, sense of decorating the body, excessive curiosity, excessive sleep, and excessive endeavour for bodily maintenance. ßãè âãè ×ð´ Õýæ±×‡æ ãñ Áô ·Ô¤ßÜ °·¤ ÕæÚU ·Ô¤ ÖôÁÙ âð â´ÌéC ÚUãð, çÁâ ÂÚU { â´S·¤æÚU ç·¤Øð »° ãUæð´, Áô ¥ÂÙè Â%è ·Ô¤ âæÍ ×ãèÙð ×ð´ ·Ô¤ßÜ °·¤ çÎÙ â×æ»× ·¤ÚUð. ×æãßæÚUè â×æ# ãôÙð ·Ô¤ ÎêâÚUð çÎÙ.

He alone is a true brahmana (dvija or "twice-born") who is satisfied with one meal a day, who has the six samskaras (or acts of purification such as garbhadhana, etc.) performed for him, and who cohabits with his wife only once in a month on an auspicious day after her menses.

ßã Õýæ±×‡æ Áô Îé·¤æÙÎæÚUè ×ð´ Ü»æ ãñ, ¥âÜ ×ð´ ßñàØ ãè ãñ.

The brahmana who is engrossed in worldly affairs, brings up cows and is engaged in trade is really called a vaishya. çِ٠SÌÚU ·Ô¤ Üô»æð´ âð çÁâ ÃØßâæØ ×ð´ â´Â·¤ü ¥æÌæ ãñ, ßã ÃØßâæØ Õýæ±×‡æ ·¤ô àæéÎý ÕÙæ ÎðÌæ

ãñ.

The brahmana who deals in lac-die, articles, oil, indigo, silken cloth, honey, clarified butter, liquor, and flesh is called a shudra.

ßã Õýæ±×‡æ Áô ÎêâÚUæð´ ·Ô¤ ·¤æ× ×𴠥Ǹ´»ð ÇæÜÌæ ãñ, Áô ΐÖè ãñ, SßæÍèü ãñ, Ïô¹ðÕæÁ ãñ, ÎêâÚUæð´ âð ƒæë‡ææ ·¤ÚUÌæ ãñ ¥õÚU ÕôÜÌð â×Ø ×é´ãU ×ð´ ç×Ææâ ¥õÚU OÎØ ×ð´ ·ýé¤ÚUÌæ ÚU¹Ìæ ãñ, ßã °·¤ çÕ„è ·Ô¤ â×æÙ ãñ.

The brahmana who thwarts the doings of others, who is hypocritical, selfish, and a deceitful hater, and while speaking mildly cherishes cruelty in his heart, is called a cat. °·¤ Õýæ±×‡æ Áô ÌæÜæÕ ·¤ô, ·é´¤° ·¤ô, Å´U·¤è ·¤ô, Õ»è¿ð ·¤ô ¥õÚU ×´çÎÚU ·¤ô ÙC ·¤ÚUÌæ ãñ, ß㠐Üð‘À ãñ.

The brahmana who destroys a pond, a well, a tank, a garden and a temple is called a mleccha. ßã Õýæ±×‡æ Áô Ö»ßæÙ÷ ·¤è ×êçÌü ·¤è âÂÎæ ¿éÚUæÌæ ãñ ¥õÚU ßã ¥æŠØæçˆ×·¤ »éL¤ Áô ÎêâÚÔU ·¤è Â%è ·Ô¤ âæÍ â×æ»× ·¤ÚUÌæ ãñ ¥õÚU Áô ¥ÂÙæ »éÁæÚUæ ·¤ÚUÙð ·Ô¤ çÜ° ·¤éÀ Öè ¥õÚU âÕ ·¤éÀ ¹æÌæ ãñ ßã ¿æ´ÇæÜ ãñ.

The brahmana who steals the property of the Deities and the spiritual preceptor, who cohabits with another's wife, and who maintains himself by eating anything and everything is called a chandala. °·¤ »é‡æßæÙ ÃØçQ¤ ·¤ô ßã âÕ ·¤éÀ ÎæÙ ×ð´ ÎðÙæ ¿æçã° Áô ©â·¤è ¥æßàØ·¤Ìæ âð ¥çÏ·¤ ãñ. ·Ô¤ßÜ ÎæÙ ·Ô¤ ·¤æÚU‡æ ãè ·¤‡æü, ÕæÜè ¥õÚU ÚUæÁæ çß·ý¤×æçÎˆØ ¥æÁ Ì·¤ ¿Ü ÚUãð ãñ´U. Îðç¹Øð ©Ù ×Ïé ×灹Øô´ ·¤ô Áô ¥ÂÙð ÂñÚU Îé¹ âð ÏÚUÌè ÂÚU ÂÅU·¤ ÚUãè ãñ. ßô ¥ÂÙð ¥æ âð ·¤ãÌè ãñ "¥æç¹ÚU ×ð´ âÕ ¿Üæ ãè »Øæ. ã×Ùð ã×æÚUð àæãÎ ·¤ô Áô Õ¿æ ·¤ÚU ÚU¹æ Íæ, Ùæ ãè ÎæÙ çÎØæ ¥õÚU Ùæ ãè ¹éÎ ¹æØæ. ¥Öè °·¤ ÂÜ ×ð´ ãè ·¤ô§ü ã×âð âÕ ÀèÙ ·¤ÚU ¿Üæ »Øæ"

The meritorious should give away in charity all that they have in excess of their needs. By charity only Karna, Bali and King Vikramaditya survive even today. Just see the plight of the honeybees beating their legs in despair upon the earth. They are saying to themselves, "Alas! We neither enjoyed our stored-up honey nor gave it in charity, and now someone has taken it from us in an instant."

Source: www.hindisathityadarpan.com

May the new year brings 'you a vision of the beyond'

the New Year is a tremendous opportunity and possibility for newer visions of life. Unfortunately, if you feel the world around you, you will see that your experience is a cacophony of voices, thoughts and emotions. With all the conveniences and facilities we have thanks to science and technology, the human being today remains in absolute confusion – an utter mess. When man is mired in this level of confusion, the pain and suffering that he creates for himself and for others is untold. This is the reality today. There is no clarity. Most people in the world live their lives without even understanding what it is that they really want for themselves. Or if they do know, they neither have the will nor the vision to create it. Most of the time, they are just settling for whatever is within their reach and easy to get. If something is easily attainable, people go for it without seeing whether they really need it in their lives.

At any given moment, if you go only by your experience of the past, or if you trust only your logical mind to decide what is possible, it will always point you towards a mediocre possibility. We are always trying to create our lives based on the current reality around us.

But where we want to go tomorrow need not necessarily be connected to where we are right now – what we want the most in life need not have anything to do with our present situation. If we enslave our visions to current situations, then we are once again settling for what is attainable, what is easy.

If a man has a vision of the highest possibility for himself and the world around him, it is not beyond man’s ca-

that you have a vision and you give your life for it. This is also one of the easiest ways to attain the highest. It is a spiritual process by itself. You give yourself to what you want without caring whether it is going to happen or not.

pacity to create it. For a person whose vision is clear and who seeks it every moment of his life, the highest things will come and fall at his feet. It is only because man is a bundle of confusions that what he really wants never comes to him. When you have a vision, you are not concerned about whether it is easy or difficult, whether it is attainable or unattainable. In short, you are not concerned about the result. It is just

People are always asking about destiny. ‘But Sadhguru, how much of my destiny can I control?’ I always reply: ‘Your destiny is your creation.’ Even now you are creating it – unconsciously. Every thought, every emotion, every impulse, every reaction that you generate within yourself is creating the course of your destiny. This life doesn't ignore anything. Everything that you do, the life within you takes seriously. Everything that you say, think, feel, every impulse, every reaction within you is being recorded. Life is not making a selective recording; it is just recording everything. Because everything is recorded, this huge heap of information within you, without any particular direction or awareness, is creating a whole lot of confusion. So if the question is ‘what will happen to me,’ the answer is, ‘whatever you create will happen to you.’ But don't wait for it to happen to you. Make it happen.

I was once at an international confer-

ence on how to alleviate poverty on the planet. Lots of responsible people were participating, including several Nobel laureates. At one point, a participant said, 'Why are we trying to solve these problems? Isn't all this divine will?’ And I said, “Yes, If somebody else is dying, somebody else is hungry, it must be a divine plan. But if your stomach is hungry, if your child is dying of hunger, you'll have your own plan, isn't it?”

So wherever we have to do something about our lives, we have taken it into our hands. Wherever we don't want to take it into our hands, we talk about divine will or destiny. Now when I talk of yoga, I am talking about a science where you can take the very process of life and death into your hands. Even now you are choosing your life, but you are choosing unconsciously. That is what karma means. It means you are creating your destiny in total chaos, in total awareness. But whatever you do unconsciously you can also do consciously. That makes a world of difference. It’s the difference between ignorance and enlightenment.

Taking destiny into your hands does not mean everything will happen your way. The outside will never happen hundred percent your way because

there are too many other variables involved. Wanting the outside to happen your way is not about creating destiny; it is about conquest, tyranny, dictatorship. Creating destiny does not mean you have to control everybody’s life on this planet. It is just that you create the possibility for every human being to blossom into his ultimate nature. ‘What about the stars, the planets? Don’t they decide our destinies?’ This is another question people ask. I tell them, if your destiny is decided by the planets and stars, it means you cannot

even commit suicide! At least others can commit suicide if they are fed up with life. You can’t even do that because the stars first have to approve. Even that freedom is denied to you. Then it’s really a horror-scope, isn’t it?

What should be deciding the course of human nature? Should inanimate objects decide? Or should you, as a human being, decide? If you are well established in yourself, let every planet go where ever the hell it wants to go, you will still go where you want to go.

It would be better if people were less concerned about other planets, and a little more concerned about this one. If they were more concerned about the well-being of this planet, at least we would live a little better! It is time to create a vision of what you think is the highest and simply seek it with undivided attention. This is a simple way of knowing life here and beyond. Blessed is the one who has such clarity in vision. May the New Year bring you a vision of the beyond.

Sadhguru Jaggi Vasudev

The author is a prominent Indian spiritual leader, a self-realised yogi, mystic, seer and visionary. Prolific author, poet, and an internationallyacclaimed speaker. You can learn more @ isha.sadhguru.org.

l What is that one unique spark because of which you have such a huge fan following, especially among the youth?

No matter what the age group of your fans, you need to connect with them and make them feel that you relate to them so that they can relate to you too. I think I have so many youngsters for fans because I try connecting with them as much as possible in every way. After all, I am whatever I am today because of my fans, because of the love they keep giving me every single day.

l In recent times, many singers and actors have collaborated with international artists. Are there any plans on releasing an international album with some abroad artists?

I follow the path that Mr. Bachchan, Shah Rukh Khan, Salman Khan and Aamir Khan have chosen. They haven’t collaborated with any international artistes to become what they are today. I prefer increasing my fan following in my own country and making it as strong as possible instead of collaborating with international artistes.

l Why did you chose to be a part of the music reality show The Voice India on &TV? How does it feel to be the coach of a reality music show?

Voice India is an exceptional show not only in terms of its worldwide popularity but also the format, which has never ever been done before on Indian television. I have seen some of the previous seasons and I was hooked on to the show instantly. Besides, the show hunts for a singer purely based on vocals and as a singer I would love to extend support to all newcomers in building their careers. The bonus is that I got to work with my friends – Sunidhi, Shaan and Himesh from the

industry as the other coaches.

l What were your judging parameters in “The Voice India”?

There was no ‘judging’ in The Voice India. We were not judges but coaches who honed the talent of the aspiring singers. I looked out for a voice that would strike an instant chord with me. I completely believe in versatility so someone who can sing all the genres equally well will make a cut for me.

l What kind of talent did you look out for in your team?

A singer who will not only be outstanding and be able to sing every genre under the sun from Sufi, pop, classical to rock but who will also set the stage on

the liberty to choose the type of Bollywood song they wish to sing?

Honestly, I can’t talk on everyone’s behalf. But as far as I am concerned, I think have been very lucky in this matter. I am offered the kind of songs that suit my voice and style. Composers make songs keeping my voice and style in mind - that the singer only has to be Mika for this song.

l After Loot and Balwinder Singh Famous Ho Gaya, are you planning to do more films a an actor?

I don’t have any specific plans for doing a movie. I would choose one only if time permits because if I give my time to a movie, I face losses in my shows. So if the movie does not clash with my shows, I wouldn’t mind doing it.

l You have

fire a brilliant performance. Apart from being electrifying, I wanted a voice that will be real and strike a chord instantaneously.

l Your take on singing reality shows (beneficial in making a singing career)

I firmly believe that singing reality shows are very beneficial. You get a platform to reach out to the industry and showcase your talent. If you've got talent that can be used in Bollywood, not only will you be spotted but also given an opportunity.

l Apart from the chartbuster tracks, you are known for your energetic live performances. Where do you find more ease and comfort – singing at a live stage or in a recording studio?

I’m passionate about singing. So it doesn’t matter where I am - live at a concert or recording inside a studio - as long as I am singing I’m comfortable. I love doing both equally.

l Do you think that singers don't have

worked with Salman Khan (Kick) and Shah Rukh Khan (Happy New Year) when do we see you teaming up with Aamir Khan?

Oh, I would love to work with the third mighty Khan – Aamir. Even if it was not for a Bollywood project, let me tell you that I have worked with Aamir Khan in the past. My first world tour was with him and I look forward to working with him again.

l Tell us about your upcoming projects

After being very thorough with our coaching and mentoring. I don’t want to compromise on anything else by taking something some other show too.

Jyothi Venkatesh

The writer is a well-known & established film critic.

Mika Singh, singer, songwriter, composer and performer with a wide catalogue of songs, prominent among which are "Bas Ek King" (Singh Is Kinng), "Mauja Hi Mauja" (Jab We Met), "Ibn-eBatuta" (Ishqiya), and "Dhanno" (Houseful); took time out to speak to NRI Achievers about his work and his approach to it. Excerpts from the dialogue we had with him …

AAMIR & DANGAL GIRLS FELICITATE KUSHTI COMPETITION WINNERS

Lokmat, Maharashtra’s and Goa’s daily hosted Lokmat Chi Dangal Kushti Competition – an all Maharashtra women wrestling match in Kolhapur, the Kushti city of Maharashtra. Aamir Khan felicitated the winner of the competition and also shared his experience

URVASHI RAUTELA’S HASEENO KA DEEWANA GETS BIG B PRAISE

Shahid Kapoor and Deepika Padukone are busy shooting in full flow for Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s upcoming ‘Padmavati’. The duo is continuously doing night shifts and the shooting is going in full flow. Sanjay Leela Bhasali is happy with the sizzling chemistry shared between the lead actors Shahid Kapoor and Deepika Padukone and the way the shoot is going.”Going by Shahid’s Instagram it looks like the actor is working on his body. He is busy shooting for Padmavati at night and through the day is working on his body.

Urvashi Rautela, who has impressed the audiences with her moves in the revamped version of Amitabh Bachchan's iconic song Haseeno Ka Deewana, recently met the megastar at Think With Me Summit 2016. Big B, who is known to acknowledge newcomers, hugged Urvashi and exchanged words with her. Urvashi was delighted to meet Amitabh as she had dedicated her song from Kaabil to him.

MONICA RAVAN SEDUCES IN TWINKLE TWINKLE…

Ajab

The film is based on an income tax Dy commissioner at Ranchi, Ajay Singh who is a handicapped. Though he is physically challenged, with great ambition & strong will power he has got his goal. Film is written & directed by Rishi Mishra. Ajab Singh Ki Gajab

Monica Ravan took part in a seductive dance number ' Twinkle Twinkle Little Star' for KEEP SAFE DISTANCE recently. The film which is an action-romanticmusical drama is being produced by Mahesh Sharma and Vishnu Sharma and is written and directed by Raama Mehra. The film is now 60% complete.

NRI Achievers Mumbai Bureau

of the movie, his first visit to Kolhapur and lots more with over 2000 people who came for the event at Lokmat printing press in Kolhapur. Nitish Tiwari the director of Dangal, Sanya Malhotra and Fatima Shaikh – the Dangal girls were also present in the event.

Singh Ki Gajab Kahani 1st look & Music Launched by director Mahesh Bhatt. Mukesh Bhatt, Director Praksh Jha, Tigmanshu Dhulia were also present.

Kahani is releasing in Jan 2017.

MAHESH BHATT LAUNCHES MUSIC OF AJAB SINGH KI GAJAB KAHANI

SHAHID-DEEPIKA’S SIZZLING CHEMISTRY IN SANJAY LEELA BHANSALI’S PADMAVATI

Postal regd. No. G-3/DN/297/2016-2018

Date of Publication: 5th of every Month

Date of Posting: 8th & 9th of every Month