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7/28/2019 6 Vol 6 Epaper
1/31
Washington, DC: The
seven-letter German word
"knaidel" (meaning a type ofdumpling) crowned Arvind
Mahankali, 13, of Bayside
Hills, N.Y., champion of the
86th Scripps National
Spelling Bee, breaking his
streak of bad luck in past
Beirut: Syrian President Bashar al-Assad said
on Thursday Moscow was still committed
to sending him advanced anti-aircraft
weapons, although a source close to
the Russian defense ministry said the
missiles had
Indian Americankids monopoly ofScripps NationalSpelling Beechampionshipcontinues.
The South Asian Timese x c e l l e n c e i n j o u r n a l i s m
Vol.6 No. 6 June 1-7, 2013 60 Cents New York Edition Follow us on TheSouthAsianTimes.info
Fashion 15 Health 27 Spiritual Awareness 30Indo-US Relations 8 excellence in journalism
New York lad Arvind Mahankaliis National Spell Bee champ
Washington: The Secret
Service confirmed on
Thursday that it had inter-
cepted a ricin-laced letter
sent to President Obama.
The letter was similar to the
one sent earlier in the weekto New York City Mayor
Michael Bloomberg over
his stance on gun control.
Secret Service spokesman
Edwin Donovan said the let-
ter had been turned over to
the FBI and the Joint
Terrorism Task Force.
Two other letters laced
with the poisonous toxin
were intercepted on their
way to the president in April
Steering AAPI to great success
AAPI President (2012-13) Dr. Narendra Kumar (left)presenting the gavel to Dr. Jayesh Shah, the incoming presi-dent, at the organizations annual convention in Chicago on
May 27, as a token of passing on the mantle of AAPIsleadership. Stability, unity, restoring AAPIs image, excellent
organization of events, and increased membership havebeen hallmarks of Dr. Kumars Presidency.
Continued on page 4
Continued on page 4Continued on page 4
President Barack Obama and New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg:will not deter from championing stricter gun laws
Arvind Mahankali, 13, of Bayside Hills, NY.
Obama, Bloomberg sentpoison laced letters by
gun rights guys
Russian missiles headed for Syria toweaken Western effort to end civil warPresident
Basharal-Assad is
betterplaced
lately toretain
control overSyria.
Russian S-300 anti-aircraft missile systemwhen delivered would make it far more
dangerous for Western countries to impose
any no-fly zone over Syrian air space.
Detailed article and more pictures on page 16-17
7/28/2019 6 Vol 6 Epaper
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June 1-7, 2013TheSouthAsianTimes.info
7/28/2019 6 Vol 6 Epaper
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3June 1-7, 2013TheSouthAsianTimes.info TRISTATE COMMUNITY
Washington: The American Center
for Law and Justice (ACLJ)
announced Wednesday that it has
filed a federal lawsuit against theIRS on behalf of 25 Tea Party and
conservative organizations regard-
ing the government entity's recent
scandal involving the alleged unfair
targeting and scrutiny of conserva-
tive groups seeking tax exemption
status.
The lawsuit is being filed against
the US Attorney General, Treasury
Secretary, and IRS, and is represent-
ing Tea Party organizations from
various states including Hawaii,
Colorado, California, and Kentucky.
The lawsuit specifically names as
defendants Attorney General Eric
Holder, Treasury Secretary Jacob
Lew, former IRS CommissionerSteven Miller, IRS' Tax Exempt
Division Director Lois Lerner, as
well as "Unknown Named IRS
Officials."
The text of the lawsuit, which has
been made public online, calls for
the court to rule that the Obama
administration violated the First and
Fifth amendments of the USConstitution, the Administrative
Procedure Act as well as the IRS'
own rules and regulations.
The lawsuit also seeks to receive
injunctive relief so that conservative
organizations may no longer be
allegedly targeted.
Additionally, the groups repre-
sented are seeking monetary com-
pensation for damages and, for the
ten conservative organizations being
represented in the lawsuit which
didn't receive tax-exempt status,
they are requesting that they receive
said status.
"The IRS and the federal govern-
ment are not going to get away withthis unlawful targeting of conserva-
tive groups," Jay Sekulow, chief
counsel of the ACLJ, a Washington
D.C.-based human rights firm, said
in a sta tement.
Tea Party groups file massivelawsuit against IRS
New York: Interacting with the
Indian community here on May 27,
Indias Minister for Overseas Indian
Affairs Vayalar Ravi promised to
circulate a comprehensive document
addressing all major issues raised by
NRIs. He was speaking at an inter-active meeting organized by the
Global Organization of People of
Indian Origin (GOPIO) at Utsav
Restaurant and attended by Consul
General Dnyaneshwar Mulay.
GOPIO President Ashook
Ramsaran complimented Minister
Ravi for initiating several programs
benefiting the Overseas Indian com-
munities. GOPIO Secretary J. Nami
Kaur presented a memorandum list-
ing several issues of the PIO/NRI
community including:
Overseas Citizen of India (OCI)
Card reissue problem - when pass-
ports are renewed at age 20 and at
age 50, while at age 20-49 theycarry old passport with U-Visa
along with the new passport. For
PIOs who are unable to obtain origi-
nal documents due to poor records
in countries where Indian laborers
migrated from 1834-1920, should
allow alternative documentation for
PIO Card. MBBS and BDS entrance
exams in India should be held at
convenient time for students in USA
and Europe by the Medical Council
of India. NRI Tax beyond 60-day
stay in India Waiver needed for
families, retirees and emergencies.
Also, uniformity of information,
policies and practices for visas, OCI
cards, etc by Indian missions and
ministries. Provide reciprocity forspouses of temporary foreign work-
ers in India so that H1 visa holders
spouses can also work in the US as
stipulated in the new US
Immigration Bill.
NRI Pro pe rty Right s and Fas t
Track Judiciary A problem affect-
ing NRIs with the increasing num-
ber of Indians emigrating or work-
ing overseas.
GOPIO Founder President Dr.
Thomas Abraham, who moderated
the meeting, said that OCI renewal
has become cumbersome experi-
ence, and process should be made
easier. He asked to maintain status
quo for NRI students admission for
medical studies and requested theMinister to talk to the Health
Ministry and MCI to set up entrance
exam centers in the US and in
Europe.
Minister Ravi said that many
issues raised need to be worked with
other ministries and in particular
Home Ministry which is concerned
about the security of India and ter-
rorists entering India with doctored
documents. But he promised to do
the needful.
Vayalar Ravi promises to address pressing NRI issues
Indias Minister for Overseas Indian Affairs Vayalar Ravi address-ing the meeting, flanked by GOPIO President Ashook Ramsaran,
Consul General Dnyaneshwar Mulay and GOPIO FounderPresident Dr. Thomas Abraham. (Photo: Parveen Chopra)
New Jersey GovernorChris Christie hobnob-
bing with President
Obama is being dubbedbromance where the
governor may be aim-ing at a 2016 bid for
the Oval Office. Obamahad visited the
Hurricane Sandy rav-aged New Jersey shore
last year and he wasthere again Tuesday as
the duo toured theJersey Shore admiring
the recovery efforts.
New York:New York City Mayor
Michael Bloomberg says a poi-
son-laced letter sent to his office
appears to be linked to his high-
profile campaign for gun control.
Bloomberg spoke to reporters
Wednesday after traces of the
deadly poison ricin was discov-
ered on two letters sent to the
mayor. He said at least one of the
letters cited his work for tougher
U.S. gun laws, but that he would
not be deterred.
"Its not the first letter that was
ever sent to anybody," the mayor
said. "In terms of why theyve
done it, I don't know, the letter
obviously referred to our anti-gun
efforts, but there's 12,000 people
that are going to be killed thisyear with guns and 19,000 are
going to commit suicide with guns
and we are not going to walk
away from those efforts."
Bloomberg was a prime organ-
izer of Mayors Against Illegal
Guns, a group formed in 2006
with a meeting of 15 mayors.
The group now comprises more
than 950 mayors from across the
country.
The group stepped up its effortsthis year after a lone gunman
killed 26 people, most of them
young children, in Newtown,
Connecticut. The organization
backed its campaign with a $12
million advertising effort,
financed in part from Bloomberg's
personal fortune.
Bloomberg ricin letterlinked to gun control effort
New York City MayorMichael Bloomberg
US is worlds most competitive againGeneva: The US has topped the 2013world competitiveness ranking of 60
economies, followed by Switzerland
and Hong Kong, a report said
Thursday.
According to the IMD business
school in Switzerland, the US
regained the top spot this year after
being ranked second in 2012 due to its
rebounding financial sector, high tech-
nological innovation and successful
companies. Switzerland rose to the
second place this year from last year's
third. In Europe, against the context of
a stalled eurozone, Sweden and
Germany were the most competitive
besides Switzerland.
In Asia, China and Japan also saw
their competitiveness ranking rise by
two and three notches to the 21st and
24th place respectively.
BRICS economies including India
experienced mixed fortunes but
remain lands of opportunities".
Stronger than the storm
7/28/2019 6 Vol 6 Epaper
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4 June 1-7, 2013 TheSouthAsianTimes.infoTURN PAGE
Obama, Bloomberg sent poison laced...
Continued from page 1
and have been linked back to a
Washington man, Matthew Ryan Buquet,
who was charged last week.
CNN, citing a source with knowledge
of the letters to Bloomberg and his gun-
control group, said those letters include
this warning: "You will have to kill me
and my family before you get my guns.
Anyone wants to come to my house willget shot in the face. The right to bear arms
is my constitutional God-given right and I
will exercise that right till the day I die."
The letters "obviously referred to our
anti-gun efforts, but there's 12,000 people
that are going to get killed this year with
guns and 19,000 that are going to commit
suicide with guns, and we're not going to
walk away from those efforts,"
Bloomberg said, adding he didn't "feel
threatened."
The letters addressed to Bloomberg and
Mark Glaze, director of Mayors Against
Illegal Guns, both tested positive for
ricin, New York Police Department
spokesman Paul Browne said.
New York lad Arvind Mahankali ...
Continued from page 1
years with spelling words of German ori-
gin.
"I thought a German curse has turned
into a German blessing," Arvind said as
he cradled the trophy Thursday evening at
the nationally televised event held in the
capital. He also took home $30,000 in
cash. The Nathaniel Hawthorne Middle
School 74 student of Grade 8 is a speaker
of Telugu and Spanish and hopes to one
day pursue a career as a physicist.
His victory continues Indian-
Americans' winning streak at the Bee.
There have been five in a row and 10 of
14, a run that began in 1999 when Nupur
Lala captured the title and was later fea-
tured in the documentary "Spellbound."
At least 8 of the 11 finalists this time
were Indian Americans. As were the last
three to remain standing after elimination
rounds. Pranav Sivakumar got out with
cyanophycean. Sriram Hathwar spelt
ptyalagogue wrong. Some 281 students
competed in this years Bee held in
Washington, D.C. They came from all 50
states and eight foreign countries, and
ranged in age from 8 to 14. A new rule
was added to this years bee, in which
contestants take a vocabulary test in the
early rounds.
Russian missiles headed for ...
Continued from page 1
yet to arrive. The prospect of the S-300
missiles arriving is a serious worry forWestern and regional countries opposing
Assad which have called on Moscow not
to send them.
The S-300 missiles would make it far
more dangerous for Western countries to
impose any future no-fly zone over
Syrian air space, and could even be used
to shoot down aircraft deep over the air
space of neighbors like Israel or Turkey.
The two-year-old civil war, which has
killed more than 80,000 people, has
reached one of its bloodiest phases with a
counter-offensive by Assad's forces,
backed open ly by allies from iran and
neighboring Lebanon's Hezbollah Shi'ite
militia. With his Western-backed Syrian
opponents mired in squabbles, Assadsounded confident of his position.
Speaking to Hezbollah's al-Manar televi-
sion, he said he would attend peace talks
in Geneva convened by Washington and
Moscow, but expected to keep fighting.
US, Russian and UN officials will meet
on June 5 to make arrangements for a
peace conference, known as "Geneva 2"
after a first conference last year in the
Swiss city, which produced an interna-
tional agreement to set up a "transitional
government" but no agreement on
whether Assad would remain a part of it.
If the latest U.S. initiative aims to win
over Moscow to the position that Assad
must leave power, it seems to have failed.
Moscow spoke out on Thursday against
the Syrian opposition's insistence on
Assad's removal as a precondition for
talks and criticized Washington for refus-
ing to rule out imposing a no-fly zone to
help the rebels.
Syria's foreign minister also laid out a
hard line Wednesday, saying Assad will
remain president at least until elections in
2014 and might seek another term.
New Delhi: Facing flak over
his extended stay in the US fol-
lowing the Maoist attack in
Chhattisgarh, Home Minister
Sushilkumar Shinde Thursday
said he was consulting an eye
doctor.Shinde told reporters that he
had an appointment with an eye
specialist May 28 and he
returned to the country soon
after. He said he had received
permission to stay in the US till
May 29. He said in between,
there was two-day weekend
and the US Memorial Day May
27, which was a public holiday.
The minister, who will visit
Chhattisgarh Friday, said politi-
cal leaders working to strength-
en democracy in the Maoist
affected areas will be provided
security.
Shinde condemned the attack
by the Maoists in Chhattisgarh
in which 28 people, including
two senior state Congress lead-
ers, were killed. He said the
government had information
that the Maoists may try to tar-get urban centers.
Asked if the BJP government
in the state had failed to protect
the Congress leaders, Shinde
said a judicial inquiry was on.
He said the government may
have to review its counter strat-
egy according to changing tac-
tics of the Maoists.
Shinde was in the US to lead
a delegation for homeland
security dialogue.
Stayed back in US to consult eye doctor: Shinde
Home MinisterSushilkumar Shinde
New York: MoneyGram
International, Inc. (NYSE:
MGI), a leading global
money transfer company,
announced moving its stock
listing to the NASDAQ
Global Select Market from
the New York Stock
Exchange, effective May 13,
2013. The company will con-
tinue trading under the ticker
symbol MGI.
Upon being listed on the
NASDAQ, MoneyGram joins
the worlds most innovative
companies, said Pamela H.
Patsley, chairman and CEO.NASDAQ is a global leader
in advanced trading technolo-
gies, which will provide our
shareholders with cost-effi-
cient trading opportunities.
As an innovative leader in the
money transfer and payments
industry, we are excited to be
a part of the NASDAQ.We welcome MoneyGram
to our growing list of leading
companies that are innovators
in their industries, said
Bruce Aust, executive vice
president, NASDAQ OMX.
MoneyGram offers bill pay-
ment services in the US and
Canada and money transferservices worldwide through a
global network of more than
310,000 agent locations
including retailers, interna-
tional post offices and finan-
cial institutions in 197
countries and territories.
MoneyGram moves to NASDAQ from NYSE
Pamela H. Patsley (middle), chief of MoneyGram, atNasdaq Opening Bell ceremony on May 22.
7/28/2019 6 Vol 6 Epaper
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5June 1-7, 2013TheSouthAsianTimes.info TRISTATE COMMUNITY
Washington, DC:Nearly six in ten
adults in the South Asian region and
Indonesia sent or received a paymentor remittance in 2012 with a majori-
ty doing so informally, according to
a new Gallup study.
In terms of hard numbers 800 mil-
lion South Asians and Indonesians
transferred money with 512 million
people sending or receiving cash in
person or sending it informally in
some other way, according to the
study funded by the Bill & Melinda
Gates Foundation.
Remittances or payments could
have been domestic or international;
sent to friends or family, a school, or
other institution; or received from
the government, a non-government
employer, or from the sale of crops,produce, or livestock.
Sri Lanka and Indonesia had the
highest number of respondents re-
porting such payment or remittance
activity, at 84 percent and 83 percent,
respectively, in the 12 months before
the survey.
Those in Afghanistan were the
least likely to report these types of
transactions, with 46 percent re-
sponding that they had either re-
ceived or made a money-based trans-
action.
About three in 10 South Asian and
Indonesian respondents (32 percent)
made at least one payment to a
school, company, or other institution,
making this type of payment the
most common across all transaction
types surveyed.The majority of these school/com-
pany/institution transactions were
cash only (84 percent) in nature, and
Sri Lankans (60 percent) and Indians
(57 percent) led in conducting these
types of transactions.
There is thus a largely untapped
market of 512 million people in
South Asia and Indonesia who cur-
rently conduct informal cash-based
transactions, the study concluded.
That people are frequently using
options to transfer money with inher-
ent risk illustrates the importance of
providing safer, better options to
transfer money, it said.
Noting that 83 percent of surveyrespondents have access to a mobile
phone, the study concluded that mo-
bile-based banking options may be a
prime target for increasing formal
transactions, the study said. With
only six percent having access to In-
ternet, Internet-based banking op-
tions or transfer capabilities only
have the potential to reach a small
segment of the highest educated and
wealthiest of the population at this
time, Gallup said.Results are based
on face-to-face interviews with
1,000 adults, aged 15 and older, con-
ducted September-October 2012, in
five South Asian countries and In-
donesia, plus 2,540 adults in India.
South Asians rely on informalmoney transfers: Gallup
Washington, DC: Highlighting the achievements of im-
migrant innovators and entrepreneurs, the White House
on Wednesday presented three Indian-Americans with
prestigious Champions of Change awards.
The three Indian Americans among the 11 recipients
are Shradha Agarwal from Chicago, Riddhiman Das
from Kansas, and Amar Sawhney from Massachusetts.
The Indian-Americans and others were felicitated at the
"Champions of Change" event at the White House that
highlighted immigrant innovators and entrepreneurs - the
best and brightest from around the world who are help-ing create American jobs, grow the economy, and make
the US more competitive, an official statement said.
"Immigrants have long made America more prosperous
and innovative, and the Champions we are celebrating to-
day represent the very best in leadership, entrepreneur-
ship, and public service," said the US Chief Technology
Officer Todd Park.
"We are proud to recognize these leaders who work
every day to grow our economy, advance science and
technology, and support their home communities," Park
said. The Champions of Change program was created as
an opportunity for the White House to feature groups of
Americans - individuals, businesses and organizations -
who are doing extraordinary things to empower and in-
spire members of their communities.
Shradha Agarwal from Chicago is co-founder of Con-
textMedia and she always had a passion for communica-
tion and launched her first media enterprise at age nine in
India.
"While building ContextMedia from the ground up, she
branded the healthcare media company as "for-benefit"-
a successful for-profit enterprise that exists for social
benefit-and focused on organizational culture architec-
ture," the White House said.
Based in Chicago and New York City, Agarwal is also
an angel investor, conference speaker and startup advisor.
Riddhiman Das from Kansas came to the United States in
2008 to pursue an American college education and stud-ied Computer Science, Mathematics and Entrepreneur-
ship. "As an undergraduate student, he co-founded three
startup tech companies and is also heavily involved with
a Kansas City-based technology startup that has com-
mercialized the Eyeprint Verification System as a simple,
safe replacement for entering passwords on smart-
phones," the White House said.
An inventor and serial entrepreneur in the field of med-
ical devices, Amar Sawhney holds over 120 patents,
which form the basis for several first-of-a-kind medical
devices that have helped millions of patients worldwide.
"He has founded six companies, which account for
over 1,600 jobs created and over $ 1.5 billion in revenue
to date. Amar helps foster entrepreneurship by mentoring
young innovators and creating companies through Incept,
a medical device incubator he helped co-found," the
White House said.
New York: A total of 15 Indian-American stu-
dents, including six girls, have made it to the na-
tional Spelling Bee semifinals, making it almost
one-third of the total 42 candidates who have
qualified.
The girls who succeeded include Himanvi Kop-uri from Colorado, Nikitha Chandran from Flori-
da, Vanya Shivashankar from Kansas, Neha Se-
shadri from Michigan, Shobha Dasari from Texas
and Vismaya Kharkar from Utah.
Vanya is already making her third appearance in
the Scripps National Spelling Bee. Her sister
Kavya was a four-time participant and the 2009 na-
tional champion. Vanya competed in the 2010 na-
tional finals and tied for tenth place at last year's
Bee. The boys who made it to the semifinals after
the day-long competitions are Pranav Shivakumar
from Illinois, Kuvam Shahane from Michigan,
Gokul Venkatachalam from Misouri, Ryan De-
vanandan, Sriram Hathwar and Arvind Mahankalifrom New York, Ashwin Veeramani from Ohio,
Aditya Rao from New Jersey, and Chetan Reddy
from Texas.
However, Tara Singh, 8, the youngest in the com-
petition, could not make it to the semi-finals.
In all there were nearly 50 Indian Americans who
came to Washington to take part in this prestigious
national-level competition.
15 Indian-American students qualify
for Spelling Bee semis
White House honors Indian-Americans as 'Champions of Change'
Shradha Agarwal Riddhiman Das Amar Sawhney
To commemorate the 10th anniversary of the InternationalDay of United Nations Peacekeepers on May 29, the
Permanent Mission of India to the UN organized a function atwhich the Under-Secretary-General, DPKO, Ambassador HervLadsous and Under-Secretary-General, DFS, Ms. Ameerah Haqparticipated, along with members of the diplomatic communi-ty, representatives of the media and civil society. Seen in thephoto Ambassador Asoke Mukerji with Amb Ladsous and Ms.Amira Haq viewing the picture exhibition highlighting contri-
bution of Indian peacekeepers held as a part of the event.
7/28/2019 6 Vol 6 Epaper
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6 June 1-7, 2013 TheSouthAsianTimes.infoNATIONAL COMMUNITY
IN BRIEF
Actress & MLA Jayasudha captivates Chicago with her
inspiring faith testimony
Smt. Jayasudha a reigning south-Indian
movie actress and a prominent Anthra
Pradesh state legislator [MLA] capti-vated the Chicago audience with her pro-
foundly soul-stirring testimony of her person-
al faith at packed pews of the Grace Lutheran
Church in Westchester, Illinois on May 22,
2013. This community event of significance
hosted under the aegis of United Telugu Chris-
tians of Chicago [UTCC] drew a great host of
fans, guests, lay leaders and pastors to hear her
awe-inspiring story that changed her life.
I want to be like Mother Teresa and I want
to serve the Lord solemnly declared Smt.
Jayasudha in her testimony narrative amidst
resonating applause and pledged that she
would like to embark on a journey of altruism
to help the poor and the neediest with her
Shine Development Trust charitable organiza-
tion (India). Articulating her personal story of
faith, identity and spiritual triumph, Smt.
Jayasudha gave an overview and described
how her life slowly evolved into a new-found
Christian faith that stirred the depths of her
mind and spirit.
Zee America creates exclusive network for
South Asian American youth
Philadelphia Telangana Association celebrates cultural night
Locally produced content to engage viewers
Zee Americas entertainment network
ZING is now the first and foremost
South Asian music channel targeting
the 18-34 set. ZING features locally produced
content with prominent South Asian celebri-
ties and serves as a platform for emerging
artists (actors, comedians, musicians, and
bands) to springboard to fame.
Started in 2011, ZING features a wide range
of top-rated programming in addition to its
Bollywood music line-up, which engages the
growing youth population in the US and
Canada.
ZEE Americas GM, Sameer Targe said,
ZING is our sincere effort to expand the pie
of viewership toward the assimilated South
Asians, who have a desire to consume South
Asian/Bollywood content that they can relateto. Locally Grown gives budding artists a
chance to rise up from their smaller commu-
nities and gain nationwide appeal for their mu-
sic. ZING has aligned with the top 20 univer-
sities with the largest South Asian student
populations for Campus Life programs, in-
cluding reality based dance competitions like
Raasadelphia (Raas is a traditional folk
dance from Gujarat) which is held at an Ivy-
league institution every year. So many second
generation South Asians have aspirations to
make it big in Bollywood but lack the access
and connections. Bollywood Dreams is a real-
ity series where ZING brings Bollywood in-
dustry leaders to the US to teach aspiring film-
makers and actors first hand. With the pletho-
ra of South Asian Film Festivals on the East
and West coasts, the network has created a
platform to highlight local independent films
including shorts, long features,and documen-
taries alike; and Look Whos Watching ZINGfeatures celebrity interviews from the most
prominent South Asian Americans on
television.
Philadelphia Telangana Association
(PTA) celebrated its second Telangana
Cultural Night on Saturday May 18,
2013, with greater enthusiasm and gaiety.
More than 400 guests with their family andchildren participated in this event making it a
grand success.
The event reflected the uniqueness of Telan-
gana Culture and hospitality. Guests were wel-
comed and greeted by the PTA core team
members in traditional Telangana dress Pan-
cha kurta and were served a delicious din-
ner with Telangana dishes like pappu- pachi
pulusu, Kodi Kura, Double-ka-meeta and
many more.
Portraits of Telangana Pramukhulu" (lumi-
naries) by the artist Venkat Ramana Nellutla
was exhibited by Sreedhar Gudala at the event
and received accolades from all the guests.
Pavan Tirunahari made opening remarks of
welcoming guests. The performance show
was coordinated by lead anchors Leena Kol-luru, Madhavi Kamatala and Nishta Venkan-
nagari and teen anchors Chitra Mosarla,
Sameer Shaik and Priyanka Baireddy.
Kids of various age groups enthralled with
wonderful songs and dances. Kids from
Mana Badi performed a fun-filled skit,
called Radio Jalebi.
Sudheer Raju has presented PTA activities
since the last Telangana Night. He explained
about PTA developmental initiative in rural
schools in every district in each month.
All the local community organization lead-
ers from TDF, Telangana NRI Association
(TeNA), TGDV, ATA, TANA, NATA, NATS,
Chinmaya Mission and Shreyobhilashi, wereinvited on to the stage and were recognized for
their services. The souvenir magazine Singi-
di, was released by the Chief Guest Shri
Chanda Ramulu and other community leaders.
Smt. Jayasudha seen with key leaders[L to R] Johnson Sukka, VijenderDoma, Keerthi K. Ravoori, Adam
Dekkapaty, Vasanth Charles & Dr.Heyer Paul Devarapalli
Children enthralled all withdance and music show
Digital money transfer company Xoom ropes in
Amitabh Bachchan as brand ambassador
Xoom Corporation, adigital money transfer
provider, announces
Bollywood superstar Amitabh
Bachchan as its brand ambas-
sador to launch Xooms revo-
lutionary speed of bank de-
posits to India within four
hours.
Amitabh Bachchan is the
ultimate Indian icon and he is
the perfect ambassador for
Xoom, says Julian King, Xooms Senior Vice
President of Marketing and Corporate Devel-
opment. Amitabh Bachchan, a trusted
spokesperson to Indians, is starring in the new
Xoom campaign that launches the Xoom
bank deposit within four hours service.I am very excited to be part of the Xoom
family. I highly recommend people use
Xoom.com to send money from U.S. to India.
No matter where you live, taking care of your
family is an important part ofour Indian culture. Now
Xoom has reduced the trans-
fer time of bank deposits to
just four hours, making it
easier for our families and
us, says Amitabh Bachchan,
fondly known as Big B!
With Xoom, people can
send money to all banks in
India using their computers
or mobile devices from any
Internet-enabled location. Banks serviced in-
clude ICICI, Punjab National Bank, HDFC,
SBI, Axis Bank, Citibank and many more.
Xoom processes transactions in India through
Punjab National Bank, one of Indias largest
and most trusted banks.Xoom is a fast-rising money transfer com-
pany and went public on February 15, 2013,
which was the first tech IPO on the NASDAQ
Stock Market this year.
INOC condemns Chhattisgarh attack by Naxals
The Indian National Overseas Congress
(I) USA strongly condemned the bar-
baric attack on a bus in Bastar, Chhat-
tisgarh by Naxals on a convoy carrying Con-
gress leaders.This Maoist mayhem nearly
wiped out the Congress leadership in Chhat-
tisgarh and INOC(I) USA deeply regrets this
massive loss of life. We concur with Prime
Minister Manmohan Singh who has often de-
scribed Naxalism as the biggest security
challenge facing the country and we strongly
agree with his instant order to NIA to probe
this Maoist attack it said in a press statement.
No stone should be left unturned to investigate
this vicious attack and the perpetrators should
be brought to justice, it added.
Health Fair at Balaji Temple in Bridgewater, NJ on June 23
On Sunday, June 23, 2013, from 8:30
a.m. to 1 p.m., a health screening and
disease awareness and prevention fair
will be held at Shree Venkateswara Temple inBridgewater, New Jersey. The health fair will
be organized by the Indian Health Camp of
New Jersey (IHCNJ) and supported by Shree
Venkateswara Temple. IHCNJ will hold this
health camp for the 12th consecutive year in
Bridgewater.
The health fair will be open to all pre-regis-
tered participants between the ages of 45 and
64 without any medical insurance. The health
screening will include blood test, EKG, vision
screening for glaucoma and diabetic retinopa-
thy, physical examination, cardiology and
physical therapy counseling, various types of
cancer screening and prevention education,
chronic disease self management via ask yourdoctor, dietary and diabetes counseling and
pharmacy counseling. Approximately 25-30
physicians and other allied health care profes-
sionals from various specialties will provide
their services on this day.
The registration form to participate in this
health fair is available on organization website
at www.IHCNJ.org or Gujarat Darpan and
Tiranga. The deadline to receive the complet-
ed form to IHCNJ, P.O. Box 5686, Hillsbor-
ough, NJ 08844 is by June 10, 2013.
On Saturday, May 18, New York City's 7th Annual Dance Parade brought theworld's only parade celebrating the diversity of dance on the world stage of
Broadway, to thousands of spectators. Under the theme of Unity through Dance,the city's artistic communities brought over 10,000 dancers and nearly 200
dance groups showcased more than 75 ethnic and dance styles. Megha Kalia,founder, NYC Bhangra (left) represented Bhangra folk dance style at the event.
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7June 1-7, 2013TheSouthAsianTimes.info NATIONAL COMMUNITY
Washington, DC: The European
Union honored on May 29 India-
born inventor Ajay Bhatt-led team
at the US tech-giant Intel that
developed the Universal Serial Bus(USB) technology, one of the most
important advances in computing
since the silicon chip.
The European Patent Office
announced the winners of the
European Inventor Award 2013,
which honors outstanding inventors
for their contribution to social, eco-
nomic and technological progress.
Some 500 guests attended the
award ceremony at the Beurs van
Berlage in Amsterdam, including
Princess Beatrix of the Netherlands
and Michel Barnier, the European
Commissioner for Internal Market
and Services.
Ajay V Bhatt-led team, compris-
ing of Bala Sudarshan Cadambi,
Jeff Morriss, Shaun Knoll, Shelagh
Callahan of the United States won
the award for inventors from Non-
European Countries, for creatingand developing USB technology,
one of the most important advances
in computing since the silicon chip.
An industry standard today, USB
not only allows users to more easily
connect devices to a computer, it
also streamlines work for hardware
and software developers.
It is found in billions of electronic
devices all over the world, from
webcams to cell phones and memo-
ry sticks.
56-year-old Bhatt is an Indian-
American computer architect who
helped define and develop several
widely used technologies, including
USB, Accelerated Graphics Port,
PCI Express, Platform Power man-
agement architecture and various
chipset improvements.
After completing his graduation
in Vadodara, India, Bhatt complet-ed his master's degree in New York.
Bhatt joined Intel in 1990. He cur-
rently holds 31 US patents.
The European Inventor Award is
presented annually by the European
Patent Office, supported by
European Union to inventors who
have made a significant contribu-
tion to innovation, economy and
society in Europe. Inventions from
all technological fields are consid-
ered for this award. There is no
cash prize associated with the
award.
The 2013 awards were presented
in five categories, in addition to the
Popular Prize for the first time.Ajay Bhatt
Indian inventor honored by EU for developing popular USB
Washington, DC: The Graduate
Management Admission Council,
which owns the prestigious GMAT
exam for admissions to B-schools
across the world, has announced the
appointment of Sangeet Chowfla as
its new president and CEO.
Chowfla, who began his career in
New De lh i wi th IB M, jo in s th e
league of Indian-Americans ruling
the management education sector in
the US, including Soumitra Dutta
(Cornell University), Nitin Nohria(Harvard B-School), Dipak Jain
(Kellogg, INSEAD), Sunil Kumar
(University of Chicago's Booth
School of Business).
Following this trend of US B-
schools plumping for Indian-origin
heads, the Graduate Management
Admission Council (GMAC)
appointed Chowfla to helm the pres-
tigious company taking over from
David A. Wilson, who served the
company as CEO and president for
the past 18 years.
Chowfla will take charge as presi-
dent in September and assume the
CEO's role on January 1, 2014.
"I know for myself that taking the
GMAT exam and the opportunities itopened up for me were life-chang-
ing," said Chowfla, highlighting the
significance of the exam, which
management aspirants from across
the world take to realize their
dreams, just as he himself had done.
"My job will be to take the strong
foundation GMAC 2.0, if you will
build on it, shape i t for the future
and establish a new, even stronger
GMAC: GMAC 3.0. I am excited by
the challenge and gratified that the
board has chosen to entrust me with
this great company, its terrific man-
agement team and its world-class
staff," Chowfla added talking about
his challenges.
An Indian by birth, Chowfla is a
US citizen currently living in India.
He will relocate to Northern Virginia
from New Delhi to assume this new
responsibilities.
"Sangeet Chowfla is just the kind
of chief executive the GMAC board
had in mind when we began our
CEO search earlier this year," said
James Bradford, outgoing chairman
of the board of GMAC and dean andRalph Owen Professor of
Management at the Owen School of
Management, Vanderbilt University.
After graduating in BA (econom-
ics) from St. Stephen's College, he
did his MBA with specialization in
marketing and finance from the
Faculty of Management Studies,
Delhi University.
Chowfla's career took off in New
Delhi with IBM and then he went on
to spend 18 years with Hewlett-
Packard. His next post was Timeline
Ventures where he was a partner in
the venture capital firm with experi-
ence of both acquisition and post-
acquisition management issues.
He left Timeline Partners in 2007
to become the chief strategy officer
and executive vice-president of
mobile services and global market
units of Comviva Technologies, anIndian telecommunications software
company. "Mr Chowfla is joining
GMAC at a time of great opportunity
as well as change in the graduate
management education market-
place," said Dina Dommett, incom-
ing Chair of the GMAC Board (July
2013) and executive director, leader-
ship programs, London Business
School.
"The globalization of management
education has been a constant, yet
today that globalization is occurring
at a faster pace and with technology
pla yin g an eve r gre ater ro le. Mr.
Chowfla's experience as a technolo-
gy executive, his international expe-
rience as a manager and leader, cou-pled with his understanding of global
markets, are perfectly suited to the
challenges facing GMAC, and I look
forward to working with him. The
London Business School is commit-
ted to helping GMAC navigate the
changing marketplace, and Mr.
Chowfla is a terrific choice to lead
that effort," Dommett said.
Texas baby locked in hot car for
hours dies, mother arrestedWashington, DC: An Indian
American baby girl died one day fol-
lowing her first birthday, allegedly
because her mother left her locked
for four hours in a hot car May 17,
outside a Dallas, Texas elementary
school where she worked.
Vibha Marks, the mother of baby
Victoria, was arrested May 17 after-
noon and charged with second
degree felony child abandonment.She posted a bail of $50,000 and was
released the same day.
According to Marks arrest war-
rant, Exenia Gomez, a 17-year-old
teachers aide at Frank Guzick
Elementary School, saw baby
Victoria locked in the car, on a swel-
tering hot day. She immediately
called 911, and then tried to rescue
the tiny girl by smashing a window
with a 2x4 plank, as instructed by the
emergency operator.
"I just came out of my truck and I
see something pink and I see there is
a baby in there," Gomez told WFAA
news. "I looked straight at the baby
and it wasn't moving or anything."Police noted that the temperature
was 86 degrees outside the car, and
much hotter in the car, which had no
ventilation. Gomez got the baby out,
and told police arriving at the scene
that the little girl was unresponsive,
with foam coming out of her mouth.
Arriving at the scene, Dallas County
police officers Dianna Blevins and
Ashley Olford found Victoria in an
unconscious state; her lips had
turned blue, her skin was ashen and
hot to the touch, and foam was com-
ing out of her mouth, according to
the arrest warrant.
Paramedics performed CPR on
Victoria, en route to nearby Baylor
Medical Center. The baby was pro-
nounced dead upon arrival.
Police arrested Vibha Marks, 42, at
the school. Before she was arrested,
Marks according to her arrest war-
rant asked police: Is something
wrong? What did I do? Whats
wrong? Im a good person; did I
do wrong? Marks asked officers,
inquiring about her husband, and her
daughters day care center.
Marks was then taken into custody
and interviewed at the Dallas Child
Advocacy Center; she told law offi-
cials there that she was certain she
had dropped Victoria off at her day-
care center that morning, before
going to work at Frank Guzick.
Sangeet Chowfla to head GMATs parent firm
Baby Victoria
Sangeet Chowfla
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8 June 1-7, 2013 TheSouthAsianTimes.infoNATIONAL COMMUNITY
Q: How did your interaction
with the Indian Minister of
Ext ernal Aff ai rs and la ter the
Foreign Secretary go? Its in the
run-up to the Secretary of States
visit.
A : Yes. We had a terrific meet-
ing, both with the Minister of
External Affairs as well as the
Foreign Secretary. I will see also
National Security Advisor Menon
and the Deputy [Chairman] of the
Planning Commission Ahulwalia.
So it is just a terrific set of meet-ings here in India, as it always is,
as good friend always have a com-
prehensive, deep relationship.
In the last year, there have been
42 senior meetings between the
U.S. and India, let alone many
many sub-group meetings. And
that really speaks to the nature not
only of the Strategic Dialogue
well have at the end of June
be tw ee n Se cr et ar y Ke rr y an d
Minister Khurshid but the entire
breadth and depth of the U.S.-India
relationship.
Q: So in these few hours you are
pa ck in g -- fr om ec on om y to
strategic affairs to diplomacy -- all
of that in?
A: All of that and more. There
are really four pillars when we
look at the breadth of the relation-
ship: 1) global economic, which is
very important because we all want
India to prosper, the United States
to prosper, the world economy to
pro spe r so we can all rai se our
families to have a great future; 2) A
global security dialogue, which
really gets to how the U.S. and
India are working together, not
only regionally but all over the
world for peace and security; 3)
regional cooperation - India has
really been a leader in ensuring thetransition and stability in
Afghanistan and the region as a
whole, economically and in terms
of security; and 4) energy, which is
so important to all of us - climate
change, clean energy. This has
been a long relationship between
the U.S. and India, which has been
the leader in renewables.
Q: Lets pick up on these one by
one. The strategic partnership.
One key area, of course, is the
outstanding issue of the civil and
nuclear deal between India and
the U.S. Any progress on that?
Because the U.S. wants to put the
nuclear power issues on the table,have the liability issues resolved.
Any discussions?
A: We are very committed to the
development of our civil nuclear
relationship. We made tremendous
strides over the last years. I would
suspect that when the Strategic
Dialogue happens we will make
even further progress.
Its interesting, Secretary Kerry
who will be coming here at the end
of June for the Strategic Dialogue,
came here at a point when the civil
nuclear deal didnt look like it was
going to get through. He was a
United States Senator at the time.
He came, he met with everyone in
Indian society and in the govern-
ment. He went back home and he
became a bipartisan strong advo-
cate for the civil nuclear deal. So I
know he will want to see it take
one more step in its realization and
Im sure that will occur.
Q: The other big area, of
course, is what U.S. is keen, as we
see it, to push its strategic defense
deals. Already a big market, India,
$9 billion or so. Going forward,
will that be also on the table? Was
that issue also discussed?
A: Very much on the table. Very
much discussed. Important for
Indias economy, important for theUnited States economy. Deputy
Secretary of Defense Ash Carter
along with National Security
Advisor Menon and others in the
Indian government are trying to
move forward on this defense
trade.
The interesting part is there is a
new surveillance aircraft that is
going to be delivered to the Indian
Navy. Youve purchased eight. The
first one has been on time delivery.
In fact, the Indian Navy got it
bef ore the U.S . Nav y did . So I
think our defense cooperation is
important, growing. There are
other sales coming. But we want to
work on co-production and co-development because that will
strengthen both of our economies
and both of our security.
Q: On the issue of energy, that
also is work in progress, but we
believe that the U.S. Department
of Energy is in principle or more
than that okayed the sale of lique-
fied gas?
A: More than that. The
Department of Energy has
announced that there will be sales
of LNG to non-FTA countries. Its
a very transparent process. One can
in fact go to Department of Energy
web site and see, I think its 16
pos sible deals and the order in
which they will be considered.
This will take some time, but I
think it speaks very well to what
the future might look like in the
U.S.-India LNG relationship.
Q: Energys a core issue with
India for a good reason. We are
energy hungry, energy deficient,
and Iran has been one of the big
sources from whom we were get-
ting our oil and then the U.S.-Iran
thing got [complicated], for lack
of a better word. There were sanc-
tions. We have our own interests
in Iran. Its been a partner in so
many ways in the regional setup.Is there any possibility of a waiver
happening for more Indian oil
imports? How do you really see
this? Its not just energy.
A: You know the issue around
Iranian oil is not a U.S. issue. Its
an international community issue.
The international community --
and India has very much been part
of that because Indias a non-pro-
liferation leader and has just a per-
fect record on non-proliferation --
has said to Iran that it must answer
the questions of the international
community about its nuclear pro-
gram. Are they trying to acquire a
nuclear weapon? They have not
answered the question.I lead the U.S. delegation to
P5+1 talks. The P5+1 have put a
credible proposal down on the
table to Iran and Iran has not really
responded to that proposal in any
substantive way. We want negotia-
tions to work, but while were
working on the diplomacy side we
also want to say to Iran youre
going to pay a cost of being further
isolated if you do not answer the
questions. And reducing the pur-
chase of Iranian oil is one of those
sanctions.
India has really come through. I
know this is difficult in terms of
energy security for India. But India
has really come through in reduc-
ing those imports.
All of those sanctions can be lift-
ed. It is in the hands of Iran to
make that happen. Im sure that
hopefully the Supreme Leader will
take the strategic decision to in fact
work this through with the interna-
tional community.
Q: Because one view in Delhi is
that India wants to really expand
its ties, and it is expanding with
the U.S. Its crucial, very impor-
tant. At the same time Iran has its
own role for India in the geopolit-
ical setup in the region. Whether
you look at it from the prism ofKa bu l or Is la ma ba d, en er gy ,
Central Asia, and somewhere
there is a section, which feels that
we kind of lose out on that tradi-
tional relationship because of
whats happening internationally.
And thats one cost one has to pay
for Indo-U.S. relations.
A: The United States has said
that we understand that Iran has a
relationship here in Asia and in
Central Asia. And certainly has an
ongoing and traditional relation-
ship with many countries in the
area. Have been players in the
development of the region going
forward.
But on the other hand, we all
have to be cognizant of what Iran
is doing in terms of attempting toacquire a nuclear weapon, actual-
ly fomenting further civil war in
Syria by sending in their own
IRGC Quds force, by being state
sponsors of terrorism. So we have
to deal with that side of the equa-
tion, which has grown larger and
larger. Terror is something that
India understands, sadly, all too
well and has been a great counter-
terrorism partner with the United
States to deal with threats in the
region and throughout the world.
Thats something we need to con-
tinue to do.
Q: On the issue of counter-ter-rorism, the Indian Home
Mi ni st er wa s ther e me et in g
Homeland Security officials and
sen ior peo ple the re. Any thing
further issue there ? One issue
here always has been Headley,
Rana, more access to them. And
overall, more cooperation on the
issue of terror.
A: I think as you said, we just
had a Homeland Security
Dialogue in Washington. We will
continue this dialogue as part of
the Strategic Dialogue that we
have, and this is a really important
channel because we both have
experienced terrorism. We bothwant to stop it and deepen our
relationship, both regionally and
in the world. And I think thats
quite important.
Where David Headley is con-
cerned, U.S. courts have now sen-
tenced him to 35 years. I think
that Indian viewers will well
understand that although many
many Indian lives were lost in the
horrible Mumbai attack, six
Americans died as well. So we
have interest and we care deeply
too, for ourselves and for India.
Before he was sentenced, India
had access to Mr. Headley and I
know theres a request for contin-
ued access of some sort and thatwill get worked through in what-
ever way is appropriate in the
Homeland Security channel and
with our Department of Justice.
Wendy R Sherman, Under Secretary for Political Affairs
Under Secretary for Political
Affairs, Wendy R. Sherman,
who is in India in the run-up to
the Secretary of States visit, spoke
to Doordarshan News in New
Delhi on a host of topics concern-
ing the two nations. Excerptsfrom the interview
Economy, security, regional cooperation and
energy are pillars of Indo-US relationship
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9June 1-7, 2013TheSouthAsianTimes.info US AFFAIRS
New York: Calling it perhaps
the biggest money laundering
scheme in US history, federal
prosecutors charged seven peo-ple Tue sda y wit h run nin g an
online, underworld bank that
handled $6 bil l ion for drug
dealers, child pornographers,
identity thieves and other crimi-
nals around the world.
The case was aimed at
Liberty Reserve, a currency
transfer and payment processing
company based in Costa Rica
that authorities say allowed cus-
tomers to move money anony-
mously from one account to
another via the Internet with
almost no questions asked.
US officials said the enter-
prise was staggeri ng in scope:
Over roughly seven years,Liberty Reserve processed 55
million illicit transactions
worldwide for 1 million users,
including 200,000 in the US.
The network "became the
bank of choice for the criminal
underworld," U.S. Attorney
Preet Bharara said in announc-
ing the unsealing of an indict-
ment against the defendants,
including Liberty Revenue
founder Arthur Budovsky, an
American who renounced his
US citizenship after deciding to
set up in Costa Rica.
Liberty Reserve allowed users
to open accounts using f ictitious
names, including "RussianHacker" and "Hacker Account."
An undercover investigator was
able to register using the name
"Joe Bogus" and the address
"123 Fake Main Street" in
"Completely Made Up City,New York," and then cond uct
transactions he recorded as
"ATM skimming network" and
"for the cocaine."
"The coin of the realm was
anonymity," Bharara said. "It
was the opposite of a know-
your-customer policy."
The network charged a 1 per-
cent fee on transactions through
middlemen known as exchang-
ers, who converted real curren-
cy into virtual funds and then
back into cash.
In the indictment, prosecutors
called the network "one of the
principal means by which cyber
criminals around the world dis-
tribute, store and launder pro-
ceeds of their illegal activity ...
including credit card fraud,
identity theft, investment fraud,
computer hacking, child
pornography and narcotics traf-ficking."
Budovsky and another defen-
dant, identified as Azzeddine el
Amine, were arrested Friday at
a Madrid airport while trying to
return to Costa Rica. They were
ordered jailed while they await
a hearing on extradition to the
U.S. Two other men, including
Liberty Reserve co-founder
Vladimir Kats, were arrested
last week in New York City. A
notice pasted across Liberty
Reserve's website Tuesday
morning said the domain "has
been seized by the United States
Global Illicit Financial Team."
Attempts to reach Liberty
Reserve by phone and email
were unsuccessful.
Feds bust $6 billion globalmoney-laundering operation
Two politicos in news
Chinese hackers compromise US weapon designs: ReportWashington: Chinese hackers have compro-
mised the designs for many of America's mostsensitive advanced weapons systems, accord-
ing to a media report citing a confidentialreport prepared for US defense officials.
Among more than two dozen major weaponssystems whose designs were breached were
programs critical to US missile defenses andcombat aircraft and ships, the Washington Post
reported citing a report by the Defense ScienceBoard.
The electronic intrusions gave China access
to advanced technology that could acceleratethe development of its weapons systems andweaken the US military advantage in a future
conflict, warned unnamed experts cited by theinfluential US daily.
Citing a confidential list of compromised
weapons designs, the Post said some of theweapons form the backbone of the US defense
department's regional missile defense for Asia,Europe and the Persian Gulf.
The designs included those for the advancedPatriot missile system, known as PAC-3; an
army system for shooting down ballistic mis-siles, known as the Terminal High Altitude
Area Defense, or THAAD; and the Navy'sAegis ballistic-missile defense system, it said.
Also identified in the report are vital combat
aircraft and ships, including the F/A-18 fighterjet, the V-22 Osprey, the Black Hawk helicop-ter and the navy's new Littoral Combat Ship,
which is designed to patrol waters close toshore, the Post said.
JC Penney yanks out kettle with moustacheCulver City, Calif.: Tempest in a teapotthat
could be the headline of this news story thatdeveloped over the memorial Day weekend. A
billboard ad for the Michael Graves Design Bellsand Whistles Stainless Steel Tea Kettle ($40)
was seen along Interstate 405 near here andcaused several to take to social media to post
pictures and discuss whether the tea kettle wasintentionally made to resemble Adolf Hitler.
By Tuesday, the kettle had gone viral and wassold out on JC Penneys site.
By Wednesday morning, the tea kettle wasyanked from JC Penney site, and the billboard
taken down where the advertisement was firstspotted. The company said on Twitter that the tea
kettles resemblance to Hitler was unintentional.
If we had designed it to look like something, wewould have gone with a snowman or something
fun :) , the company tweeted.
RepresentativeMichele Bachmann,Republican ofMinnesota,
announced in a videoearly Wednesday thatshe would not seek afifth term in Congressnext year. Her statusas a leading voice ofthe Tea Party move-ment in Congress hasfaded in the wake of afailed presidential bidand a widening inves-tigation into her cam-paign spending.
Rhode Island Gov.Lincoln Chafee, the
only IndependentGovernor, is joining
the Democratic Partyahead of his bid for a
second term. Heserved in the US
Senate as aRepublican but left theGOP in 2007 the year
after he lost re-elec-tion to the Senate. Hewas elected governor
of the small northeast-ern state in 2010.
US Attorney Preet Bharara for the Southern District ofNew York explaining the operation of Liberty Reserve
company based in Costa Rica.
Tinpot dictator!: The kettle in question
and the historys most hated man.
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10 June 1-7, 2013 TheSouthAsianTimes.infoUS AFFAIRS
Good home and consumer confidencereports rally US marketsNew York: Home values nationally and locally hit
their highest level in six years during the first quarterand consumer confidence strengthened in May, factors
that combined on May 28 to propel the Dow to anoth-
er record high.
During the first quarter, the Standard & Poor's/Case-
Shiller Home Price Index for the nation increased by
10.9 percent from a year earlier, its biggest gain since
April 2006, the company said Tuesday.
The gain for the Los Angeles area was more robust -
a jump of 16.6 percent and the largest increase since
September 2006.
Prices have been increasing for about a year now, a
good signal that the housing recovery has some steam.
"It's certainly fair to say the data is very clear that
we're off the (price) bottom and there is not going to
be a double dip," said Craig Lazzara, senior director of
index investment strategy at Standard & Poors.
"Prices are accelerating, and that's a good sign," he
said. More encouraging news came Tuesday from the
Conference Board, a non-profit group that conducts a
monthly consumer attitude survey.
The New York-based research center said that its
Consumer Confidence Index for May rose to 76.2
from 69 in April and from 64.9 a year ago.
This month's index was the highest since 76.4 in
February 2008, two
years after the GreatRecession began
unfolding, the board
said. The index starts
with a benchmark
value of 100 in the year
1985.
The confidence index
for California
increased to 80 this
month from 74.1 in April.
The outlook for the labor market was also more
upbeat. Those expecting more jobs in the months
ahead improved to 16.8 percent from 14.3 percent,
while those expecting fewer jobs decreased to 19.7
percent from 21.8 percent.
The home price report was released before the mar-
kets opened and it jolted investors into action. The
rally gained momentum after the confidence report
came out.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average rose 106.26 to
close at 15,409.39, another record Tuesday, bouncing
back from a loss the week before . The Standard &
Poor's 500 rose 10.6 to 1,660.06 and the Nasdaq
gained 29.75 to close at 3,488.89.
Millions join protests against Monsanto production policiesSt Louis, MO: Marches and rallies against the agri-
cultural corporation Monsanto were held across the
US and in dozens of other countries last Saturday.
Protesters said they wanted to call attention to the dan-
gers posed by genetically modified food and the food
giants like Monsanto that produce it. Monsanto Co,
based in St Louis, said in its defense that its seeds
improve agriculture by helping farmers produce more
from their land while conserving resources such as
water and energy.
According to AleterNet.org, the global day of protest
against Monsanto drew two million people in cities
around the world. Demonstrators in the US called for
the labeling of genetically-modified organisms.
Protest organizers say that genetically-modified food
can lead to cancer and birth defects.
It was empowering and inspiring to see so many
people, from different walks of life, put aside their dif-
ferences and come together today, Tami Canal, the
Utah-based activist who organized the campaign, told
the Chicago Sun-Times. We will continue until
Monsanto complies with consumer demand. They are
poisoning our children, poisoning our planet. If we
dont act, whos going to?
Thousands of bridges across thecountry are at risk of collapse
Seattle, WA: A highway overpass
in southeast Missouri collapsed
Saturday after two freight trains
collided, injuring seven people.
Taking place mere days after an
Interstate highway bridge 60
miles north of Seattle collapsed, it
served as a reminder that, thou-
sands of bridges across the coun-
try could be at risk of collapse
from one freak accident or mis-
take. These structures, known as
fracture critical in the industry,
are kept standing by design and
dont have the redundant protec-
tions of modern bridges.
Millions of drivers cross these
fracture critical structures every
day and they probably dont even
know it.
Officials spend the little money
they have for infrastructure on
repairing bridges that are struc-
turally deficient, but those arent
the only ones at risk of collapse.
Case in point, the Mt Vernon,
WA, bridge that collapsed
Thursday was not structurally
deficient.
Washington state officials insist
the bridge was inspected twice
last year and its likely the bridge
gave out because of the impact
from a truck that was carrying an
oversize load that was likely too
tall for the structure.
The collapse in Washington
needs to serve as a wake-up call,
says the chairman of the National
Transportation Safety Board.
"This is a really significant event
and we need to learn from it, not
just in Washington but around the
country," Debbie Hersman said.
The collapsed bridge at Mt Vernon, Washington
Protest organizers say that genetically-modi-fied food as produced by corporations like
Monsanto can lead to cancer and birth defects.
Obama visits tornado-ravaged Oklahoma
Washington: President Barack
Obama Sunday called on
Americans to help rebuild the
tornado-ravaged Oklahoma City
area during a visit to places hit
by a deadly twister last week.
The president caught a
glimpse of the damage from the
air before Air Force One landed
in Oklahoma, Xinhua reported.
Obama began touring some of
the hardest-hit areas and met
officials and residents in the
Oklahoma City suburb of
Moore, a town of some 41,000
people.
The tornado, classified as anEF-5 or the strongest storm on
Earth with winds of speed of
more than 300 km per hour,
killed 24 people and injured 377
others.
As many as 12,000 homes
were damaged. Official statistics
estimated the damage caused by
the tornado at $2 billion.
Speaking in front of the
wreckage of the Plaza Towers
Elementary School, where seven
children died in the tornado,
Obama urged Americans to help
in the storm relief and recon-
struction efforts.
"It's going to take a long time
for this community to rebuild, so
I want to urge every American to
step up," the president said.
He asked the public to donate
via the American Red Cross
website.Oklahoma Governor Mary
Fallin said the state needs quick
action from the Federal
Emergency Management
Agency (FEMA) to help Moore
town.
Most Americans still oppose Obamacare: pollWashington, DC: A majority of
Americans still oppose President
Obama's signature health care
reform, dubbed Obamacare, three
years after it became law, accord-ing to a new survey.
But a CNN/ORC International
poll released Monday also indi-
cates that more than a quarter of
those who oppose the Affordable
Care Act, say they don't support
the measure because it doesn't go
far enough.
According to the poll, 43 per-
cent of the public says it supports
the health care law, a figure that's
mostly unchanged in CNN
pol lin g sin ce the measur e was
passed in 2010 by a Con gress
then controlled by Democrats and
signed into law by Obama.
Fifty-four percent of those
questioned say they oppose the
law, also relatively unchanged
since 2010.The survey indicates that 35
percen t oppose the hea lth car e
law because it's too liberal, with
16 percent saying they oppose the
measure because it isn't liberal
enough.
The wide partisan divide over
the law remains. Nearly three
quarters of Democrats say they
favor the Affordable Care Act.
That number drops to 16 percent
among Republicans.
"Not surprisingly, the Obama
coalition is most supportive of
Obamacare," says CNN Polling
Director Keating Holland.
"A majority of younger
Americans favor the new health
care law; support among other
age groups falls as low as 31 per-cent among senior citizens.
"Only a third of whites support
the law, compared to six in 10
non-whites. Obamacare also wins
majority support in urban areas
and in the Northeast, the bluest
region of the country," he notes.
The CNN poll, conducted May
17 and 18, right after the
Republican-controlled House
voted to symbolically repeal the
entire law for the third time in
three years, surveyed 923 adults.
It has a three-point margin of
error.
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11June 1-7, 2013TheSouthAsianTimes.info INDIA
New Delhi: The Congress
accused the BJP and the
Maoists of being hand in
glove in Chhattisgarh and
asked Chief Minister Raman
Singh to resign in the wake
of the attack on a Congressconvoy in the state.
"The BJP and the Maoists
are working together to
serve each others' purpose.
The BJP has not responded
to questions raised by us.
They are silent because they
have a vested interest,"
Congress spokesperson
Bhakta Charan Das told
reporters. "The chief minis-ter should own responsibility
for the incident and resign."
He said that the state gov-
ernment would benefit from
the attack in Sukma district
May 25 as Congress workers
will find it difficult to min-
gle with people and voters
would be intimidated to
come out.
"Due to mass mobilisation,people had started coming to
our rallies in the past one
year. The Maoists did not
like this," Das said.
BJP, Maoists work together inChhattisgarh: Congress
Raipur/New Delhi: Sleuths of the
NIA surveyed the site of deadly
Maoist attack in Chhattisgarh and
spoke to the injured in a hospital
in Raipur even as the defense
ministry ruled out any army role
in fighting the rebels and the
union home ministry asked the
troubled states to review politi-
cians' security.
National Investigation Agency
(NIA) members arrived in
Chhattigarh's Sukma district and
inspected the Dharbha Ghati
Valley where the Maoists' attack
on Congress leaders left nearly 30
people dead, including the party's
state chief and the 'Salwa Judum'
founder, an official said in Raipur.
A group of NIA investigators
also spoke to some of the injured
survivors of the attack in a hospi-
tal in Raipur around 7 p.m., hesaid.
A huge contingent of paramili-
tary was present at the attack spot,
over 350 km from Raipur, and
some teams of the troopers even
went into the forest in pursuit of
the Maoists involved in the
Saturday attack, an officials said.
"There is a possibility that the
Maoists involved in the attack
would have crossed into neighbor-
ing Andhra Pradesh," said a police
official in Sukma.
A massive anti-Maoist combing
operation is likely, he said.
Defence Minister A.K. Antony
told reporters in Tamil Nadu that
the deployment of the army in
anti-Maoist operations was not
possible. Speaking to reporters at
Thanjavur, around 340 km from
Chennai, Antony said the real
answer to the problem was to
strengthen police and paramilitary
forces to counter the rebels.
Congress president Sonia
Gandhi and vice president Rahul
Gandhi led party workers in New
Delhi in paying homage to party
colleagues killed in Chattisgarh.
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)
president Rajnath Singh said that
a court-monitored Special
Investigation Team should investi-
gate the killing of Congress lead-
ers in Chhattisgarh.
In Mumbai, Shiv Sena president
Uddhav Thackeray wrote in an
editorial piece in the party's
mouthpiece Saamna saying that
there was a need to "crush" the
terror unleashed by "Maoist
devils".
Chhattisgarh attack: NIA probe on
New Delhi: The anti-Maoist operations in
Bastar region of Chhattisgarh are set to be
augmented with the air force putting in place a
squadron of its latest Mi-17 V-5 helicopters in
Nagpur for the assistance of security forces.
The Bastar region had witnessed a brutal
attack by the Maoists on a Congress convoy
last week in Chhattisgarh.
The squadron, which would be in place by
next month, will help reduce time in providing
air support during day and night for evacua-
tion and other needs.
Speaking to reporters on the sidelines of a
Defence Research and Development
Organization (DRDO) function here, Air
Chief Marshal N.A.K. Browne said the
squadron will be "an add-on fully operational
day-and-night unit".
He said technology should be used as an aid
in tackling Maoist violence.
He said there was need to deploy systems in
the Maoist-hit areas which would provide bet-
ter surveillance capabilities to the forces.
Browne said the new squadron will provide
support to anti-Naxal operations by the forces
on ground in Bastar region of Chhattisgarh
and other areas.
He said the base of the new unit would be
closer to Jagdalpur and will have lesser
response time.
New IAF chopper unit tohelp fight Maoists
Bangkok: Prime Minister Manmohan Singh
arrived here on a two-day official visit to
Thailand on May 30.
India and Thailand are to sign seven treaties,
Ministry of External Affairs (MEA)
spokesman Syed Akbaruddin said.
Both countries will also sign an extradition
treaty.
Another treaty to be conclded Thursday will
be on the sentences of prisoners from both
countries. Under this, a prisoner of one coun-
try serving a prison sentence in the other will
have the option of serving the term in his
home country.
Other accords relate to culture, space and
issues of mutual interest.
Manmohan Singh and Thai Premier
Yingluck Shinawatra will review the develop-
ment of existing bilateral cooperation and also
explore new areas of cooperation.
The Indian prime minister flew to Thailand
on the conclusion of a three-day official visit
to Japan.
He was received at the Don Muang
International Airport here by Thai Deputy
Prime Minister Yukol Limlamthong, who also
serves as minister for agriculture and coopera-
tives, and his wife. Minister for Information
and Communications Technology Group
Captain Andith Nokornthap was also present.
Manmohan Singh will return to India on
Friday afternoon
Manmohan in Bangkok, seven
accords to be signed
The convoy of vehicles which were ambushed in Bastar.Maoists attacked Congress leaders' convoy that left 30 people
dead, including party's state chief.
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh being received by Thailand leaders at the DonMueang Airport in Bangkok on May 30
Gurgaon: Congress leader V.C.
Shukla, who was critically injured
in the Maoist attack on party lead-
ers in Chhattisgarh last week, con-
tinues to remain critical, doctors
attending on him here said.
"He is still critical but conscious.He has been put on ventilator and
administered strong antibiotics to
contain the infection. We are close-
ly monitoring him," a doctor treat-
ing Shukla at Medanta Medicity.
Doctors had performed
exploratory laparotomy surgery (a
diagnostic tool that allows physi-
cians to examine the abdominal
organs) when he was admitted to
the hospital. Shukla, 84, a former
union minister, received three bul-
let injuries and lost a lot of blood
in the attack on a Congress convoy
in Chhattisgarh's Bastar region
Saturday. About 30 people, includ-
ing two senior leaders, were killed
in the attack.Shukla was flown in an air
ambulance to Delhi, and taken to
Medanta Medicity in Gurgaon,
where a multi-disciplinary team of
doctors is treating him.
Prime Minister Manmohan
Singh, Congress chief Sonia
Gandhi and senior Bharatiya
Janata Party (BJP) leader L.K.
Advani visited him in the hospital
Sunday.
Shukla still
critical: Doctors
Congress leaderV.C. Shukla
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12 June 1-7, 2013 TheSouthAsianTimes.infoINDIA
Kolkata: Rituparno Ghosh, one
of the strongest Indian filmmakers
in the post-Satyajit Ray period
who excelled in analyzing human
relationships and societal issues,
died here. He was 49.
Rituparno, who was suffering
from pancreatitis, passed away at
his South Kolkata residence in
sleep around 7.30 a.m. following
a massive cardiac arrest, film
industry sources said.
Chief Minister Mamata
Banerjee rushed to his residence.
"Rituparno's comparison is only
Rituparno," said Banerjee, deeply
mourning his death.
A bachelor, he was a versatile
and innovative genius. While his
films won 12 National Awards
besides claiming the honours at
national film festivals, Ghosh got
acclaim for his acting in movies
like "Memories in March", and
wrote scripts, which were hailed
by the critics.
Born Aug 31, 1963, in Kolkata,
Ghosh started his career in the
world of advertisement, and shift-
ed to celluloid in 1992 with theBengali movie "Hirer Angti".
But he shot into prominence
with the 1994 offering "Unishe
April", that bagged the National
Award for best feature film and
won Debashree Roy the honours
in the best actress category.
His other National Award win-
ning Bengali films are "Dahan",
"Bariwali", "Asukh", "Utsab",
"Shubho Mahurat", "Chokher
Bali", "Dosar", "Shob Charitro
Kalponik" and "Abohoman".
Kirron Kher starrer "Bariwali"
also took away the NETPAC
award at the Berlin International
Film Festival in 2000.
Rituparno's last release
"Chitrangada" (2012), where he
also acted, won the Special jury
honours at the National Film
Awards.In 2007, Ghosh made his only
English move "The Last Lear",
that starred Bollywood megastar
Amitabh Bacchan. It won the
National Award for the best fea-
ture film in English.
He also directed two Hindi
movies - "Raincoat" (2004) and
"Sunglass" (2012). The former
was adjudged the winner of the
best feature film in Hindi at the
National Awards.
Besides "Chitrangada", Ghosh
acted in the movies "Ekti Premer
Golpo" and "Memories in
March".
A learned man, Ghosh had his
schooling from South Point - that
for years found a place in the
Guinness Book of World Records
(as it was then called) for its num-
ber of students - and later pursuedeconomics at Jadavpur University.
He also wrote lucid and fluent
prose, and his Bengali column in a
local daily was widely read.
Rituparno Ghosh's death shocks nation
'India, Japan civilN-deal may happen'
Rituparno Ghosh receiving 'Bangabibhusan' award from WestBengal Governor M K Narayanan and Chief Minister Mamata
Banerjee in Kolkata on May 20.
Tokyo: Japan indicated that an
agreement on civil nuclear coop-
eration with India could happen in
"shorter than two years", but both
sides seemed to tread cautiously
in the matter given their respec-
tive stands on the contentious
issues of Non-proliferation Treaty
(NPT) and the Comprehensive
Test Ban Treaty (CTBT).
Tonohika Taniguchi, councillor
and a member of the Japanese
prime minis ter' s stra tegic team,
said that "both countries have
agreed to an early commencement
and conclusion of an agreement"
on the civil-nuclear cooperation.
Though he refused to give a def-
inite time frame for the agreement
to take place, Taniguchi said that
it could happen in "shorter than
two years".
Led by Prime Minister
Manmohan Singh, who is on a
three-day visit to Japan, the Indian
delegation was hoping for results
on this front by the end of this
year after his bilateral meeting
with Japanese counterpart Shinzo
Abe.
But the Japanese side said that it
was working with India "to pre-
pa re th e gr ou nd fo r Indi a to
become a member of the interna-
tional export control regime" like
the nuclear suppliers group
(NSG).
"Prime Minister Abe recognized
India's sound non-proliferation
record," Taniguchi said.
India has not signed the NPT
and the CTBT while Japan con-
siders itself as "one of the more
faithful members of the NPT".
But Japan has said that this "does
not directly matter in the India
and Japan relationship".
Taniguchi agreed that the civil-
nuclear deal and the NPT were
interconnected but added that
"substantial departure had been
made from the past".
Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and his Japanesecounterpart Shinzo Abe in Tokyo
Japan, India partners i
