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TheSouthAsianTimes.info October 3-9, 2015
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3October 3-9, 2015TheSouthAsianTimes.info TR I S TATE
COMMUNI TY
By Jinal Shah
New York: On Sunday night,
Bollywood star Priyanka Chopra
wowed a different set of audi‑
ences with her acting prowess in
the pilot episode of her first
American series, Quantico. ABCʼs
newest show this season follows
Alex Parrish (played by Chopra)
and a group of fellow FBI recruits
as they endure a training camp in
Quantico, Virginia. The story
moves in flashback, Parrish and
her fellow trainees learn how to
become agents, and flash forward
where she must find a mole in the
FBI who masterminded thebiggest terrorist attack since
9/11 in New York for which she
is framed. According to prelimi‑
nary national estimates from
Nielsen, ABCʼs rookie FBI drama
opened strong to a 1.9 rating and
7.1 million viewers overall.
Recently ABC studios hosted a
press conference where The
South Asian Times caught up
with this Bollywood diva. Hereʼswhat she said:
On arrival of
South Asian actorsShe may not be the first actor of
South Asian origin to play a sig‑
nificant role in an American TV
series, but Priyanka Chopra is
certainly the first bona fide
Bollywood star to bag a prime
time spot as a lead.
In recent years many actors of
Indian origin have made an
impact on American TV including
Kunal Nayyar of "The Big Bang
Theory," Mindy Kaling of "The
Mindy Project," Archie Punjabi of
"The Good Wife," Dev Patel of "Newsroom," Nimrat Kaur
of
"Homeland". However none of
them (with an exception of Mindy
Kaling who is the lead in her
namesake show) have managed
to play a lead role.
A quick check of the Bollywood
fact sheets also suggests that
except for a few actors such as
Irrfan Khan, Aishwarya Rai, Om
Puri and Gulshan Grover, nobodyhas really made it to
mainstream
Hollywood in a big way. Chopraʼs
latest project could change that.
But Priyanka Chopra credits
Anil Kapoor and Irrfan Khan for
creating the space for other
Indian actors to get work in
Hollywood.
“It is a great shift for Indian
actors today. I am grateful to
actors such as Anil Kapoor and
Irrfan Khan who have paved the
way for us to be there by doing
amazing work. I am happy we are
getting the opportunity to show
our talent to the world,” she said.
She praised ABC for promotingdiversity on TV. “Kudos to ABC
for
being the frontrunners in diversi‑
ty, to be able to take a chance like
that and cast me not for anything
else but being the best person for
the job,” Chopra said. “Thatʼs
what I wanted. I just wanted to be
taken seriously as a professional,
to be chosen because of merit and
New York: “Mr. Juned Qaziʼs (for‑
mer President) statement as
regards Congress party and its
Vice‑President Mr. Rahul Gandhi
are his own personal views and
not shared by the members of the
Indian National Overseas
Congress,” said George Abraham,
Chairman of INOC, USA, in a
statement to The South Asian
Times. “It is quite regrettable that
he has misused his position and
privilege to undermine the credi‑
bility of the organization and hurt
the party in India. I deplore his
actions and repudiate his state‑
ments.”
Juned Qazi added to the contro‑
versy raked by BJP in India about
Rahul Gandhiʼs whereabouts.
Qazi was unable to meet the
leader in New York or to locate
him in Aspen, Colorado, where he
had gone to attend ʻWeekend with
Charlie Roseʼ. To settle the con‑
troversy, Rahul on Monday tweet‑
ed a picture of his attending the
conference. The tweet from his
official Twitter handle
@OfficeOfRG read: “Very interest‑
ing discussions on the global
economy & the disruptive power
of tech at the conference in
Aspen.” Taking responsibility for
his statement on Rahulʼs where‑
about, Qazi resigned as INOC
President effective September 28.
Sr. Vice President Mohinder Singh
Gilzian replaced Qazi as interim
President. He has been with INOC
from its inception and served in
various capacities. Prior to migrat‑
ing to the USA, he was active in
the Youth Congress in Punjab.
Skirting another controversy
about whether the INOC chaired
by him or the INOC chaired by
Shudh Parkash Jasuja has the
blessing of the Congress party in
India, Abraham told The South
Asian Times, “We, at the INOC,
have dedicated our time and
efforts since 1998 to support the
Congress party and uphold its val‑
ues and principles. We would like
to see a Democratic and Secular
India not only survives but thrives
and establishes an ever closer
relationship with the USA where
we have made our residence.
Regardless of the obstacles put in
our way, we will continue to strive
in that endeavor in the days and
months ahead.”
Mineola NY: With tropical storm
Joaqui n str ength eni ng in the
Atlantic Ocean to become
Hurricane category 3 and even 4
and Hurricane Season at its
peak, Nassau County Executive
Ed Mangano has urged residents
to update or develop their
Family Emergency Plan,
Emergency Go‑Kit and Family &
Friends Sheltering Plan.
“Superstorm Sandy taught us
that given our location as an
island, we are vulnerable to theAtlantic Ocean and
susceptible
to the powerful and destructive
nature of hurricanes and tropi‑
cal storms such as Joaquin,” he
said. “It is critical that residents
be prepared for and take all
warnings seriously.”
The computer models are
uncertain whether Hurricane
Joaquin on turning north from
the Bahamas, where it was
Thursday, will hit the East Coast
of USA, but if it does, Long Island
will be in its path on Monday‑
Priyanka Chopra's ʻQuanticoʼopens to solid ratings
Juned Qazi (left) resigned asINOC president, replaced
by MS Gilzian.
The Bollywood star who is making her US debut addressed a
pressconference in New York for the new ABC show
Nassau County ExecutiveEd Mangano
Mangano urges residents
to prepare now forHurricane Joaquin
INOC Chair denounces Qazi
comments on Rahul Gandhi
Continued on page 4
Continued on page 4
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New York
The INOC (I), USA delegation,
led by its Chairman Shudh Parkash Singh
last week met Rahul Gandhi, Vice President
of the Indian National Congress, in New
York who was en route to Aspen, Colorado
to attend a conference. INOC (I) President
Lavika Bhagat Singh conveyed her greet‑
ings from Washington DC to Mr Gandhi
and formally invited him to America to
address the diaspora. Shudh Parkash also
circulated a video by Dr. Karan Singh,
Chairman, Foreign Affairs Department of AICC, stating that
INOC (I) led by Lavika is
the only recognized body.
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Associate Editors Jinal Shah,
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Security Council reform must for UN's...
Continued from page 1
notion of sovereign equality of the UN has
permitted the developing world to question
some unfair norms. But it has not permitted a
fundamental challenge to the inequity of a
system built for a world that longer exists."
"Imparting more legitimacy and balance to
the Council would restore its credibility and
equip it to confront the challenges of our
times," she said.Unlike Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe,
who made an open plea for Japan being
made a permanent member, Swaraj did not
mention India and presented the reform in
more universal terms appealing to African
and Latin American countries.
"How can we have a Security Council in
2015 which still reflects the geo‑political
architecture of 1945? How can we have a
Security Council which still does not give
place as a permanent member to Africa and
Latin America?" she asked.
With colonialism still dominating the
world, the UN was founded with 51 members
and the five victorious powers from World
War II were given permanent seats with veto
powers.The UN now has 193 members, the vast
majority of whom are from the developed
world. Except for adding four non‑permanent
seats in 1965, the basic structure of the
Security Council has remained the same.
Swaraj complimented Ugandan Foreign
Minister Sam Kutesa, the president of the last
session of the General Assembly, and
Jamaican Ambassador Courtnay Rattray, who
was appointed by Kutesa to head the reform
negotiations, for their role in achieving a
breakthrough in reforms.
Under their leadership, she said, "we have
achieved what we could not do so over two
decades of discussions a" a text to negotiate,
unanimously adopted by consensus in the
General Assembly"."This first, but critical step, must be
the
springboard for action in this historic 70th
Session of the UNGA," she said.
India is a part of the group known as G4,
which includes Brazil, Germany and Japan,
that work for Security Council reforms. They
mutually support each other's quest for per‑
manent membership.
On a different topic, Swaraj said Pakistan
must "Give up terrorism" before peace talks
can take place. She was responding to
Pakistan Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif's UN
speech where he spoke about demilitarizing
Kashmir.
Russia defends Syria airstrikes amid ..
Continued from page 1
Russian officials extended an olive branch to
moderate rebels fighting the Syrian govern‑ment and said they
could be included in
Moscowʼs plans for an eventual peace settle‑
ment.
Speaking at a news conference in New
York, Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov
said that “the Free Syrian Army should be
part of the political process.”
The comment seemed at odds, however,
with airstrikes conducted against one of the
few areas in the country where moderate
rebels still have a foothold and from which
the Islamic State was ejected more than a
year and a half ago.
Thursdayʼs attacks focused on a strategical‑
ly vital belt of territory in the provinces of
Idlib, Hama and Homs, where steady rebel
gains in recent months have threatened thegovernmentʼs link
between the capital
Damascus and the Assad familyʼs coastal
heartland of Latakia. The nearest Islamic
State‑controlled territory is more than 100
miles away.
Some of the towns struck are strongholds
of a recently formed coalition, Jaish al‑Fateh,
or Army of Conquest, that includes the Syrian
al‑Qaeda affiliate Jabhat al‑Nusra alongside
an assortment of Islamist and moderate fac‑
tions.
Russiaʼs actions, quickly criticized by
Washington, add an unpredictable element to
a multilayered conflict.
In Washington, Pentagon spokesman Peter
Cook reiterated the U.S. assessment that the
Russian planes “do not appear to be hittingtargets in areas
where ISIL is operating.”
“We have encouraged them, once again, to
focus their attention on ISIL,” he added.
Russian officials insisted that the Islamic
State was the main target of the air attacks,
but also acknowledged that Jabhat al‑Nusra
“and other terrorist groups” were being
included in the strikes, according to Lavrov.
nothing else. Iʼm Indian. Iʼm super proud
of it. Iʼm just an actor trying to expand my
creative abilities.”
On breaking stereotypesʻQuanticoʼ also breaks ground in por‑
traying South Asians. In American pop
culture, they are invariably reduced to
absurd caricatures. They are either engi‑
neers, doctors or taxi drivers, newspaper
stand owners, or outsourced call center
clerks with thick accents. “We donʼt just
have to be Apu from the ʻSimpsons,” said
Chopra who is half Indian and half
Caucasian in the show.
The fact that Alex was written as an
“ethnically ambiguous” character drew
Chopra in doing this role. “People who are
not conventional looking are always put
into a box of where they come from or
who they are supposed to be,” she said
adding, “but I strongly believe in Robin
Thickeʼs ʻBlurred Lines.” Alex Parrish is a
gun wielding, ass kicking FBI agent who
owns her sexuality and is not afraid to
hide it. "She's smart, she's sexy, she's intel‑
ligent, she kicks ass, and she's not afraid
to take her life in her own hands. Yet, she
is very feminine, and she's vulnerable,"
Chopra said. "I love that she's a celebra‑
tion of the modern woman. She's not just
an ass‑kicking, feeling‑less robot."
Chopraʼs success in the series can pave
way for more confident roles for women
of color, both behind and in front of the
camera.
TV is a beastWhen asked about her biggest challenge
in playing this role, Chopra said, “Other
than the accent it was the long hours were
tough. No one warned me about it. I have
only done movies in my life. TV is a
beast!”
Continued from page 3
Priyanka Chopra's ʻQuantico opens...
Mangano urges residents to prepare..
Tuesday. The Nassau County Office of
Emergency Management (OEM) has begunimplementing its 120 hour
plan should
Joaquin approach Nassau County. Vital sup‑
plies are now stationed in communities
across the county ‑ available to quickly dis‑
patch life‑saving supplies directly to neigh‑
borhoods in need. Through existing govern‑
mental grant programs, Nassau County has
acquired new equipment which is readily
available if needed by first responders. The
Nassau County Off ice of EmergencyManagement has outlined
evacuations
routes from Coastal Evacuation Areas. To
review Coastal Evacuation Areas, evacuation
routes or learn additional hurricane pre‑
paredness information, please visit the
Nassau County Off ice of Emergency
Management website at http://www.nas‑
saucountyny.gov/OEM.
Rahul Gandhi meets with INOC (I)
leaders in New York
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5October 3-9, 2015TheSouthAsianTimes.info TR I S TATE
COMMUNI TY
Hicksville NY:
The Asamai Hindu Temple of
Hicksville successfully held its 11th Diwali
Mela last Sunday. Hundreds of members of
the Indian community thronged the venue
along Barclay Street across from the templefrom noon to sundown.
President of Asamai
Temple Kashi Sachdeva said that the mela
was much bigger and better this year as it
was held in a bigger parking lot and Barclay
Street was closed for traffic.
Gobind Bathija, former temple presidentand trustee, said what
attracted whole fami‑
lies was the entertainment program, carni‑
val rides for children, food stalls with cui‑
sine from every region of India and vendors
of arts and crafts, jewelry, clothing and
business establishments such as banks,mortgage and insurance
companies. The
mela kickoff was held on Sept 21 in the
presence of Hempstead Councilman
Anthony Santino (who is contesting for
Town Supervisor), management committee
and trustees of the temple as well as promi‑nent members of the
Indian community.
Asamai temple holds Diwali mela in Hicksville
New Jersey Indo‑American Cultural
Foundation of Central Jersey ‑ IACFNJ will
hold its grand Navratri Garba celebration in
South Brunswick on October 16, 17, 23, 24
and 31, 2015, from 8 p.m. to 1:30 a.m. The
first four days of Garba will be at Cross
Roads South Middle School, 195 Major Road
in Monmouth Junction, New Jersey and the
last day October 31st the celebration willtake place at South
Brunswick Highs School,
750 Ridge Road in Monmouth Junction, NJ.
The Navratri celebration marks the festival
of nine nights during which Hindus worship
Goddess of Shakti Durga, Lakshmi and
Saraswati.
IACFNJ will hold this yearʼs Garba in a state
of the art gymnasium at the Middle School
and High School in South Brunswick in a
highly secured environment and culturally
diverse neighborhood where South Asians
are highly populated in surrounding towns of
North Brunswick, Franklin Park, Princeton,
Princeton Junction, Monroe, East Brunswick,
Robbinsville and East and West Windsor.
More than 2000 people are expected to
attend each day to celebrate Hinduʼs reli‑
gious and cultural festival.Once again, famous group of
Mahesh
Mehta and his talented artists from
Bollywood and local singers and musicians of
Entertainment Unlimited will rock the stage
with famous old and new live singing of gar‑
bas, dandiya tunes, famous sanedo and
bhangaras with non‑stop live entertainment
for more than six hours on all five days.
For more info visit www.IACFNJ.org
Westbury NY: Domestic Harmony Foundation
(DHF) is a community based not‑for‑profit
organization in Long Island, working to
empower victims of domestic violence through
support services such as advocacy, counseling,legal
consultations, support groups, crisis
intervention, financial assistance, and leader‑
ship development initiatives. October is
National Domestic Awareness Month. Over the
ye ar s, DH F ha s ho st ed a “W al k to En d
Domestic Violence” in order to reach out to a
diverse array of people of all age groups to
spread awareness about this abuse epidemic.
This year, DHF is organizing its 4th annual
“Walk to End Domestic Violence” at
Eisenhower Park on October 11th, 2015 from
9:30am ‑ 1:00 PM. This walk id co‑sponsored
by HAB bank, Islamic Center of Long Island,Whole Foods Jericho,
Student Leadership
Activities Center at Hofstra University, The
Safe Center of Long Island and National
Council of Jewish Women, Peninsula section.
For more information about Domestic
Harmony Foundation (DHF) and the
Walkathon or to get involved, visit
www.dhfny.org or call (516) 385‑8292.
IACFNJʼs five day Navratrifest starts Oct 16th
New York: The Association of Indians in
America, NY Chapter (AIA‑NY) hostedtheir Benefit Gala at the
Swan Club in
Roslyn, NY, on Sept 27 in support of the
28th Annual Deepavali Festival to takeplace at the South Street
Seaport on
Sunday, Oct 4, famous for its spectacular
display of fireworks.
Among the individuals honored at thegala were hotelier and
president of Vegetarian Vision, Dr. Chandra Mehta and
Dr. Harish Mistry of Lord Shivas
Properties & Vijaydev Mistry Foundation.Dr. Mukul Arya,
Director of Advanced
Endoscopy at the New York Methodist
Hospital was recognized as ʻYoungPhysician Leader.ʼ Special
recognition and
appreciation was proffered on Arunima
Sinha, a Padma Shri awardee. She is thefirst female amputee to
climb Mt. Everest.
Her powerful speech of her courageous
journey was a highlight of the evening.AIAʼs annual
all‑day Deepavali Festival
is one of the largest such event in the tri‑
state area, attracting 75,000 – 100,000
people. The festival will have corporatebooths, food &
clothing vendors, perform‑ances and activities for the whole
family
including a live grand display of fire‑
works.The Association of Indians in America
(AIA) is the oldest not‑for‑profit organiza‑
tion of Asian Indians in America foundedin 1967.
Asamai temple President Kashi Sachdeva lighting the lamp at the
start of the Diwali mela.
AIA‑NY President Sunil Modi speaking at the gala; and (right) a
view of the attendees.
Kamlesh Mehta, Director of Business and Economic Development,
Nassau County,presented citation to the President of Asamai Temple
Trust Board Kashi Sachdeva
on behalf of County Executive Ed Mangano.
AIA holds successful benefitgala for its Deepavali Festival
DHF Walk to End Domestic Violence on Oct 11
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6 October 3-9, 2015 TheSouthAsianTimes.info TR I S
TATE COMMUNI TY
N e w Y o r k During his vis it to
America, Prime Minister Narendra
Modi appealed to NRIs to give back
to India with not only investment,
but also with knowledge, technolo‑
gy and experience. Top NRI experts
from America met him to discuss
large scale projects with significant
social importance.
Pramit Maakoday, DirectorUnitedHealth Group, worldʼs largest
healthcare company, Kanchan
Banerjee, Chairman of New Global
Indian and Convenor of Forum for
Global Leadership of India, a net‑
working and knowledge share plat‑
form of top scientists and technolo‑
gy experts, and Prem Bhandari,
Chairman Jaipur Foot USA Inc., dis‑
cussed with the prime minister a
comprehensive plan to overhaul
and transform Indiaʼs healthcare
system following the mantra given
by the Prime Minister of “Speed,
Scale and Seva (service)”. The key
to this plan is integrative approach
between traditional medicine and
modern medicine using innovative
technology from around the world,
capacity building of research cen‑
ters, skills development for AYUSH
and modern medicine doctors,
entrepreneurship in this sector and
nationwide Telemedicine imple‑
mentation.
Banerjee also updated the PMabout Samarth Swabhiman, a mass
entrepreneurship development and
incubation project for the under‑
privileged section in India. They
also presented their work for
'Digital Indiaʼ in digital literacy to
educate hundreds of thousands of
women and handicapped people in
India.
Modi appreciated their efforts
and will meet the full team of
experts involved in these projects in
near future. The group is working
with experts from top American
institutes including Harvard, MIT
and Stanford.
New Jersey People with common
heritage of Madhya Pradesh (MP)
and residing in NY‑NJ area came
together and celebrated their first
Friends of MP Family Picnic in
New Jersey on Sept 20.
The day long picnic was a grand
success, with participation from
people of all parts of the tristate
area, and with origins in Indore,
Bhopal, Gwalior, Khandwa, Dewas
and other towns of MP. The pleas‑ant sunny weather and
ambience
of Liberty State Park right next to
Statue of Liberty added to the fun
atmosphere. The Friends of MP
Conclave in New York in early
2015 gave a booster to the NRIs
from MP to coalesce for a friendly
family get‑together. With over
110 attendees of all ages, the day
started with Indore's traditional
Poha ‑ made on the site ‑ accom‑
panied by Jalebi/Kachori. Lunch
again was MP's signature
Choorma ‑ Dal ‑ Batee. The plan‑
ning and execution for the event
was managed by a Core Team of Ji te nd ra Mu chh al ,
Ra ke sh
Bharagava, Dr R Kakani, Rajiv
Goyal, Rajesh Mittal, Raj Bansal,
Pankaj Gupta andNavneet Trivedi.
Ranju & Ravi Batra met Prime Minister Narendra Modi at UNGA
on Sept 25, along withAmb. Asoke Kumar Mukerji. Ranju Batra, as
chair of Diwali Stamp Project, updated the PM
on her efforts, along with Rep. Carolyn Maloney, to get a Diwali
Stamp issued by USPostal Service. Modi recalled their discussion a
year ago when he came to New York.
When asked by Ranju, Modi agreed to write a letter to President
Obama for the cause.
Cherie Blair, UKʼs former first lady, celebrated her 61st
birthday at the Manhattan home of Meera Gandhi, CEO of The
Giving Back Foundation, on Sept 27, along with her husband,former
British Prime Minister Tony Blair and daughter Barrister Kathryn
Blair. The Giving
Back Foundation gala dinner is on Oct 8 at The Carlyle Hotel,
NYC.
(Photo: Mohammed Jaffer‑SnapsIndia)
Friends of MP host first ʻDal Batee Poheʼ picnic in NJ
New York “Religion should never
be a foundation for a nation‑state
and nationalism should not be
based on any religion,” said Prof.
Bhalchandra Mungekar, Rajya
Sabha MP and agricultural econo‑
mist. He was speaking to a gath‑
ering of Indian National Overseas
Congress members on Sept 24 ata restaurant in Glen Oaks, NY.
“It is the policy of secularism
the Congress party enunciated
that kept India together since
Independence and some recent
happenings under the Modi
administration are quite worri‑
some,” he added.
“The planning commissions
over the years provided a strong
foundation for growth and the
disbanding of the commission by
the Modi Government is short‑
sighted,” said Dr. Mungekar, who
has served on the planning com‑
mission and been Vice‑Chancellor
of Mumbai University.
Kodikunnil Suresh, Lok Sabha
MP, spoke at length about the
growth and development of the
past 60 years that ushered India
to stand tall among the family of
the industrialized nations, while
giving credit for it to Congress
Party. ʻDigital Indiaʼ is not a new
initiative, but an ongoing devel‑
opment project initiated by the
Rajiv Gandhi administration in
the 1980s,” he added. He encour‑
aged the NRIs to get involved and
promote growth and opportuni‑
ties in India. George Abraham,
Chairman of INOC, and other
INOC leaders also spoke at the
event.
NRI experts discuss India'shealthcare system with Modi
Over 110 people attended the event
Rajya Sabha MP and economist Prof. Mungekaraddressed an INOC
event in NY.
'Religion should never befoundation for a nation‑state'
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Washington DC:
Kartik Chandran, an
Indian‑American associate professor of
earth and environmental engineering atColumbia Engineering, has
been named a
2015 MacArthur Fellow with a "genius
grant" of $625,000 with no strings attached.
Chandran, an IIT Roorkee graduate, has
won the fellowship for his work in "trans‑
forming wastewater from a pollutant requir‑
ing disposal to a resource for useful prod‑
ucts, such as commodity chemicals, energy
sources, and fertilizers."
He joins a distinguished group of 24 tal‑
ented people who have all demonstrated
exceptional originality and dedication to
their creative pursuits, as well as a marked
capacity for self‑direction. The fellows may
use the $625,000 stipend as they see fit.
"When I received the call telling me that I
had been awarded a MacArthur Fellowship, I
was rather overwhelmed," Chandran said."I'd just returned to New
York from India
after a 24‑hour flight and couldn't believe
what I was hearing."
He called the fellowship a "great honor
which carries with it immense responsibility
and provides ever more motivation to con‑
tinue expanding my scientific horizons and
boundaries and help solve global societal
and human challenges."
Chandran's research on the global nitro‑
gen cycle and engineered wastewater treat‑
ment has been widely recognized.
In 2011 he received a $1.5 million grant
from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to
develop a transformative new model in
water and sanitation in Africa.
His work is focused on integrating micro‑
bial ecology, molecular biology, and engi‑neering to transform
wastewater, sewage,
and other "waste" streams from problematic
pollutants to valuable resources in addition
to clean water.
Chandran's approach to transform waste‑
water into fertilisers, chemicals, and energy
sources also takes into account today's cli‑
mate, energy, and nutrient challenges.
Chandran, who joined the Engineering
School in 2005, has also won the Water
Environment Research Foundation Paul L.
Busch Award (2010), a National Science
Foundation CAREER Award (2009), and a
National Academies of Science Fellowship
(2007).
W a s h i n g t o n D C : An Indian
American has been named chief of
the education and training wing of
US Maritime Administration
(MARAD), a media report said.
Shashi Kumar, currently dean of
US Merchant Marine Academy at
Kings Point, New York, has been
appointed the deputy associate
administrator and national coordi‑
nator for maritime education and
training of the Maritime
Administration, newsindiatimes.
com reported on Tuesday.
Kumar will assume his new role in
October this year. He will lead
MARAD's efforts to build a pipeline
of future merchant mariners and
working with state maritime acade‑
mies to address the intersection
between state and federal maritime
education, including ship require‑
ments, a US Merchant Marine
Academy (USMMA) statement said.
"After serving at the US Merchant
Marine Academy since January
2007 as the academic dean, and as
interim superintendent three times,
I am moving on to pursue other
challenges," Kumar was quoted as
saying.
The Maritime Administration is
the agency within the US
Department of Transportation deal‑
ing with waterborne transportation
and its seamless integration with
other segments of the transporta‑
tion system, as well as maintaining
the viability of the US merchant
marine.
"His commitment to delivering a
world‑class education has been an
inspiration to the Kings Point facul‑
ty, staff, Midshipmen and alumni
who have had the opportunity to
work with him," USMMA
Superintendent Rear Admiral James
A. Helis said. Kumar has graduated
from Indian Maritime Academy
with a masters from the Maine
Maritime Academy and a Ph.D from
the University of Wales.
Washington DC:
Asians will
exceed Hispanic immigrants to
become the largest immigrant
group by 2055, a study said.If the current demographic
trends continue, Asian immigrants
are projected to become the
largest immigrant group by 2055
and make up 38 per cent of the
total foreign‑born population by
2065, Pew Research Center's latest
analysis said on Monday, reported
Xinhua. While 47 per cent of US
immigrants are Hispanic as of
2015, the proportion is predicted
to drop to 31 per cent by 2065,said the Pew report, citing
the
gradual slowdown of the influx of
immigrants from Latin America as
the basis for the projec ion.
The Pew report said that by
2065, Hispanics will still remain a
large share of the US population at
24 per cent, up from 18 per cent
in 2015, while Asian immigrants
will make up 14 percent of the
overall US population, up from six
percent now. As the share of Asianand Hispanic immigrants in
the
next decades grows, the propor‑
tion of non‑Hispanic whites is pro‑
jected to become less than 50 per
cent by 2055, which means that no
racial or ethnic group will consti‑
tute a majority of the US popula‑
tion by then.
Toronto : For Indians and other
South Asians, the risks of develop‑
ing Type‑2 diabetes begin immedi‑
ately at birth, warns a study by
Indian‑origin researchers.
When the researchers compared
nearly 800 pregnant South Asian
and white Caucasian women in
Canada, they found that although
the babies born to South Asian
mothers were significantly small‑er, they had more adipose or
fat
tissue, and a higher waist circum‑
ference ‑ known risk factors for
Type‑2 diabetes.
"The increase we observed in fat
tissue is clearly influenced by
South Asian ethnicity, the moth‑
er's body fat and high blood sugar
levels," said principal investigator
Sonia Anand, professor of medi‑
cine and epidemiology at
McMaster University in Hamilton,
Canada.
The findings suggest that South
Asian women who minimize their
risk of gestational diabetes and
avoid excessive weight gain inpregnancy may help to prevent
diabetes in their own children.
"South Asian pregnant women
should be considered high risk for
gestational diabetes and routinely
screened in pregnancy," Anand
said. "Prevention may be an
important way to break the trans‑
mission among generations," she
pointed out.
South Asians are long known to
suffer from substantially higher
rates of both diabetes and heart
disease.
"Our research re‑emphasizes the
importance of diabetes prevention
efforts in South Asians from very
early childhood onwards, in order
to reduce the eventual burden of diabetes and
cardiovascular dis‑
ease in South Asian adults," one of
the researchers Milan Gupta, asso‑
ciate clinical professor of medi‑
cine at McMaster University
noted.
The researchers have now
recruited an additional 1,000
South Asian mothers and their
babies in the Greater Toronto
region for further study.
They are also involved in a col‑
laborative study in Bangalore
where they will compare rural and
urban groups, which will then be
compared to Canadian urban
South Asians.Researchers also intend to
examine how growth in the first
year of life may influence future
risk of elevated glucose and other
cardiovascular risk factors.
The study was published online
in the International Journal of
Obesity.
7October 3-9, 2015TheSouthAsianTimes.info NAT I ONAL
COMMUNI TY
Diabetes risk for SouthAsians begins at birth
Kartik Chandran
Shashi Kumar
PROF KARTIK CHANDRAN WINS $625,000MACARTHUR "GENIUS" GRANT
Shashi Kumar named chief of USMaritime's education, training
Asians to become largest US immigrant group: Pew Study
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8/20/2019 Vol.8 Issue 22 - Oct 03-Oct 09, 2015
8/32
8 October 3-9, 2015 TheSouthAsianTimes.info NAT
IONAL COM M U NITY
N e w Y o r k Cox & Kings Global
Services (CKGS) has announced the
successful completion of 30 visa
camps across 20 locations in theUnited States of America.
These
camps have facilitated the Visa, OCI
& Renunciation servicing of thou‑
sands of applicants over a period of
six months. The visa camps com‑
menced from the city of Iselin, New
Jersey on February 28th and con‑
cluded in San Francisco Bay Area on
September 12th. Over 5,000 appli‑
cants were serviced and advised
about their documentation enabling
them to complete their applications
with CKGS.
The Visa Camps started from New
York Jurisdiction in February 2015
supported by Consulate General of
India, New York. Congratulating
Cox & Kings Global Services (CKGS),
Consul General Mr Dnyaneshwar
Mulay said ʻ"The Visa camps have
played a critical role in bringing the
community closer to the Indian
Consulate. The outreach eff orts
mean that Consular services are a
pleasant experience now."
Speaking on the occasion, Mr.
Kiran Nambiar, Vice President &
Country Manager, CKGS said, “The
primary aim behind setting up the
visa camps across various locations
was to bring in an element of con‑
venience to those who wish to trav‑
el to India from the United States.
We are happy to announce that we
have successfully serviced applica‑
tions of over 5000 applicants attheir door step within a span of
six
months. We would like to sincerely
thank the Embassy of India,
Washington D.C. and the Consulate
General of India in New York,
Chicago, Houston, San Francisco
and Atlanta.”
He further added, “We kicked off
our visa camps in February this
ye ar in as so ci at io n wi th Th e
Federation of Indian Associations
(FIA) of the Tristate of New York,
New Jersey and Connecticut; the
support we have seen from local
Indian Associations and the
Community has been overwhelm‑
ing”
"From the time CKGS took over
the highly stressed and 'stand off‑ish' situation when
incomplete and
pending application process and
sensitive documentation being left
in a state of limbo was the norm,
CKGS from the onset has estab‑
lished the right attitude, priority
and commitment to serve the com‑
munity.
They have expeditiously cleared
the backlogs and have brought the
visa/oci to unprecedented ease and
pace along with exceptional cus‑
tomer service all with a smile,” said
Ankur Vaidya, President ‑ FIA‑NY‑
NJ‑CT.
N e w Y o r k Worldʼs yo un ge st No be l
Peace Prize winner
Malala Yousafzai and
her father, Pakistanidiplomat Ziauddin
Yousafzai attendedthe star‑studded “He
Named Me Malala”premiere here at
Ziegfeld Theater on
Sept 24.Malala, who is also
the subject of the documentary,
was seen dressed in blue and greenscarf wrapped around her head
as
she was joined by the likes of Scarlett Johansson, Ivanka
Trump,
Elizabeth Shue and Grammy winner
Alicia Keyes.The film, directed by critically
acclaimed documentary filmmakerDavis Guggenheim (
ʻAnInconvenient Truthʼ, ʻWaiting for
Supermanʼ), opens in theaters Oct2, with National Geographic set
to
air the film next year.
The film shows how Malala, andher family are committed to
fight‑
ing for education for all girls world‑
wide. The 87‑minute documentaryopens with an animated
sequence
recounting the story of the Malalaiof Mariwand, the legendary
Afghan
martyr who died fighting against
British invaders in the 1880 Battleof Maiwand, after whom
Ziauddin
named his daughter.Asked by
Guggenheim if he
knew that giving his
only daughter thatname would make
her di fferent fromother women in Swat,
Ziauddin says: "You'reright." The film
briefly shows the
grim circumstancesof the October 2012
attack on Malala in her native Swat
Valley. The then 15‑year‑old (sheturned 18 this July)
miraculously
survived and is now a leading cam‑
paigner for girlsʼ education globallyas co‑founder of the Malala
Fund.
“I am those 66 million girls whoare deprived of education,” she
says
in the film. “Iʼm not a lone voice, Iʼmmany and our voices are
our mostpowerful weapons. One child, one
teacher, one book and one pen ‑‑
they can change the world.”The film also gives an inside
glimpse into this extraordinary young girlʼ s life – from
her close
relationship with her father, to her
impassioned speeches at the UN, toher everyday life with her
parents
and brothers.
Malala says she would give any‑thing to see her home in Swat
again, despite the threats byTaliban.
Washington DC: An Indian‑American
man has sued professional American
football team San Francisco 49ers and
the companies that run California's
Levi's stadium, a media report said.
Kiran Patel, 32, has held them respon‑
sible for an attack by violent fans that
left him with a severe brain injury last
year.
Patel was attacked by two brothers
just before the kickoff of the October 5,2014, game
against the Kansas City
Chiefs at the stadium, sfgate.com cited
Patel's lawyer William Smith as saying
on Tuesday. "The environment of the
49ers attracts a bad crowd," Smith said,
adding that people "get drunk in the
parking lot and come into the stadium
acting aggressively. You shouldn't go to
the bathroom and come back with a
brain injury." Patel and his cousin,
Amish Patel, have sought unspecified
damages against the companies that
operate the stadium, saying the security
was inadequate to protect them from
drunk and violent fans. The restroom
attack on the Patels was captured on
video and posted on YouTube but was
later removed. Kiran Patel was hospital‑
ized for several weeks after the attack.He suffered bleeding on
the brain and
underwent surgery to remove part of
his skull to relieve swelling.
Amador Rebollero was sentenced to
five years in state prison on two felony
assault charges, while his brother Dario
was given 30 days in county jail and
three years of probation.
Indian‑American man sues
San Francisco 49ers
Visa Camp conducted at Indus American Bank, Iselin branch,
NJ
CKGS successfully conductsover 30 visa camps
Gurdwara Sahib Glen Cove, "Mata Sahib Kaur" Long Island
celebrated Guru Ram Das Ji's Gurugaddi Divas on September
27th. The event began with Prabhat Pheri and
ended with Asa ki Vaar.
ʻHe Named Me Malalaʼpremieres in New York
-
8/20/2019 Vol.8 Issue 22 - Oct 03-Oct 09, 2015
9/32
9TheSouthAsianTimes.info
New York
Former U.S.
President Bill Clinton, hus‑
band of Democratic presi‑
dential hopeful Hillary
Clinton, took a swing at
Republican front‑runner
Donald Trump, saying he
was running a “fact‑free”
campaign in an interview
Tuesday with CNN's Erin
Burnett. Clinton also
defended his wife, high‑
lighting the work she did
as secretary of state in
imposing sanctions
against Iran.Trump criticized Hillary Clintonʼs tenure
at the State Department (2009‑13) Monday
in a CNN interview, saying, “When we look
at whatʼs going on in the world, when we
look at what Hillary did as secretary of
state, she goes down as perhaps the worst
secretary of state in history. ... If you look
throughout the world during her reign and
the reign of Obama, the whole world is
blowing up,” Trump said. “We have lost our
friendships. We have lost everything.”
The former president fired back in
defense of his wife in his Tuesday night
interview.
"Well the thing about branding is, you
don't have to be ‑‑ you can be fact‑free,"
Clinton said.The former president also commented on
Trumpʼs need to offer more policy propos‑
als of his own.
"You have to be able to brand yourself.
You have to be able to
be identified," the for‑
mer president said,
adding he thinks Trump
has a chance to win the
Republican nomination,
CNN reported. "But at
some point you also
have to say what are
yo u go in g to do . You
can't just spend all your
time saying everything
everybody else did was
wrong, and they were all
doofuses."
Clinton highlighted hiswifeʼs efforts to execute successful
sanc‑
tions that advanced negotiations over the
controversial Iran nuclear deal, saying even
Republicans would admit the sanctions on
Iran were well done.
The former president also praised her
work on the new Strategic Arms Reduction
Treaty with Russia.
In response to his wifeʼs struggles in the
polls ‑‑ her popularity has plummeted amid
the controversy regarding her use of a pri‑
vate email server during her tenure as sec‑
retary of state ‑‑ Clinton said: "If I were sit‑
ting in your chair and you were sitting
here, and you wanted to run for office, and
I had four or five months to make sure
nothing but the opposition's negativeclaims on you were run, and
I presume
your guilt with every question, and I beat
up on you, do you think I could run your
favorables down?"
New York Donald Trump is hop‑ing his golden touch in
business
will pay off for millions of tax
paying Americans. The billion‑
aire real estate mogul unveiled
his tax plan on Monday during a
press conference at Trump
Tower in New York. Under his
proposal, Trump says he will
lower tax rates for the middle
class, simplify the tax code and
grow the economy “at a level it
hasnʼt seen in decades” without
adding to the countryʼs debt.
“Itʼs a tax reform that I think
will make America strong and
great again,” said Mr. Trump. “It
will be simple, it will be easy, itwill be fair, it will be
graduated.
As you get up in income you pay
a little more.”
This is the complete break‑
down of Trumpʼs plan:
Individual tax brackets will be
consolidated from seven to four:
25%, 20%, 10% and 0%. Singles
earning less than $25,000 or
married couples earning less
than $50,000 will not be
required to pay any income tax.According to the Trump cam‑
paign, it would reduce taxes to
zero for approximately 31 mil‑
lion households. The marriage
penalty tax, the alternative mini‑
mum tax and the death tax will
be eliminated.
Trump also says his proposal
will remove or reduce most of
the deductions and loopholes
available to special interest
groups and the “very rich.” It will
protect charitable giving, mort‑
gage interest deductions and
end the current tax treatment of
“carried interest” which allows
most investment‑fund managersto pay lower taxes on a
majority
of their compensation. In addi‑
tion, his proposal will lower the
tax rate on all businesses to
15%, down from the current
35% and a one‑time 10% tax rate
for corporations bringing money
back to America from overseas.
The GOP front‑runner says in
a nutshell, his plan is all about
business and job creation.
Washington Congress on
Wednesday approved a short‑term
spending bill that will prevent agovernment shutdown and
fund
federal agencies through mid‑
December.
Lawmakers didnʼt give them‑
selves much time to spare with
funding for the government set to
run out midweek. Attention now
turns to December when House
Republicans will have a new slate
of leaders who are being urged by
conservatives to take a more
aggressive approach with
President Obama over issues such
as government spending and abor‑
tion, raising the possibility there
will be another tense standoff that
could lead to a shutdown.The Senate passed the stop‑gap
funding bill earlier in the day on
78 to 20 vote and the House
cleared it later in the afternoon on
a 277 to 151 vote. Obama is
expected to sign the legislation
into law.
The bill would extend current
spending levels through Dec. 11
and does not include language to
cut off funding for Planned
Parenthood, despite pressure from
conservatives who have been heav‑
ily critical of the group after the
recent release of videos by an anti‑
abortion group alleging it illegally
sold fetus tissues for profit.
Negotiations on a full‑year
appropriations package are expect‑
ed to begin soon, with Senate
Majority Leader Mitch McConnell
(R‑Ky.) pushing for a deal to set
government spending levels for
the next two fiscal years to avoid
another messy funding fight next year ahead of the 2016
presiden‑
tial and congressional elections.
Democrats, including Senate
Minority Leader Harry Reid (D‑
Nev.), have signaled they are open
to negotiating spending targets for
the next two years and they are
pushing to wrap up the work
quickly.
Many Democrats have said that
they would like to negotiate with
House Speaker John Boehner (R‑
Ohio) before he steps down at the
end of October, worried that the
leadership team elected after his
departure will be far less willing to
negotiate.Boehner has said he would like
to complete work on as many
issues as possible before he leaves
Congress and Democrats hope a
larger deal on fiscal issues, which
would also include increasing the
debt limit, can be struck in the next
few weeks.
Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy
(R‑Calif.) has been positioning him‑
self to take Boehnerʼs post.
Washington The head of Planned
Parenthood clashed with congressional
Republicans on Capitol Hill Tuesday over
the group's taxpayer funding, while using
her appearance to attack the group behind
a series of disturbing videos showing her
organization's workers discussing fetal tis‑
sue harvesting.
Cecile Richards, speaking before the
House Oversight and Government Reform
Committee, claimed the videos were
"deceptively edited" and "heavily doc‑
tored."
Committee Chairman Jason Chaffetz, R‑Utah seemed to brush off
the claims of
doctoring as he excoriated Planned
Parenthood for its allegedly "insatiable"
desire for taxpayer dollars. Under ques‑
tioning from Chaffetz, Richards acknowl‑
edged her annual compensation is
$520,000.
Richards, meanwhile, adamantly defend‑
ed Planned Parenthood, saying she's
"proud to be here" and stressing that their
clinics largely provide birth control, can‑
cer screenings and other health care serv‑
ices.
The videos showing conversations on
fetal tissue harvesting, she said, were part
of a "smear campaign" to "entrap" doctors
into breaking the law.She said less than 1 percent of their
clin‑
ics facilitate donations for fetal tissue
research, and they do so legally.
Under pressure from right-wingconservatives to negotiate
harder with Democrats, HouseSpeaker John Boehner
announced his resignation fromthe position but promised totake
care of some lingering
tough issues before steppingdown in October end.
Former President Bill Clinton
Donald Trump unveilsplan to slash taxes for thepoor ‑‑ and the
wealthy
Congress clears legislationto avert a shutdown
Planned Parenthoodunder fire in Congress
Bill Clinton slams 'fact‑free' Donald
Trump: Defends Hillary in CNN interview
October 3-9, 2015U S AFFA I RS
In New York on Sept 25, Pope Francis attended a multi-religious
service at 9/11Memorial and Museum, World Trade Center. Among the
religious leaders repre-senting Buddhist, Protestant, Hindu,
Jewish, Muslim and Sikh faiths were Dr Uma
Mysorekar, President of the Hindu temple Society of North
America, and Dr.Satpal Singh, a professor at the University of
Buffalo.
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8/20/2019 Vol.8 Issue 22 - Oct 03-Oct 09, 2015
10/32
United Nations India has rejected Pakistan
Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif's "peace initia‑
tive" saying that de‑terrorizing Pakistan is
the answer, not demilitarizing Kashmir.
After raising the Kashmir issue at the
General Assembly, Sharif proposed a four‑
point peace init iat ive for India that
embraces demilitarizing Kashmir, renounc‑
ing the use or threat of use of force, with‑
drawal from Siachen Glacier and formaliz‑
ing ceasefire along the Line of Control.
In a rapid response, External Affairs
Ministry Spokesman Vikas Swarup tweeted,
“To de‑militarize Kashmir is not the answer,
to de‑terrorize Pakistan is.”
“Peace can be achieved through dialogue,
not disengagement,” Nawaz said in his
address to the General Assembly.
“Cooperation, not confrontation, shoulddefine our
relationship.”
But before proposing the peace initiative,
Nawaz made the acrimonious reference to
Kashmir, equating it with Palestinian and
portraying it as a religious issue.
“Muslims are suffering across the world:
Palestinians and Kashmiris oppressed by
foreign occupation,” he said.
“The international community mustredress these injustices
against the Muslim
people.” Swarup replied in a Tweet,
“Pak(istan) PM gets foreign occupation
right, occupier wrong. We urge early vaca‑
tion of Pak(istan) occupied Kashmir.”
Ju st af te r tr yi ng to in te rn at io na li ze
Kashmir, Nawaz tried to couch the peace
proposal as a bilateral move since India's
condition is that the Kashmir dispute is a
bilateral one and there should be no outside
involvement. However, it did include a
request to increase the UN Millitary
Observers Group in India and Pakistan
(UNMOGIP). Although, Nawaz tried to strike
a conciliatory note with his proposal and its
phrasing, he insisted elsewhere in his
speech on “consultations with Kashmiris,
who are an integral part of the dispute.”
New Delhi considers Kashmir an integral
part of India and any such move an interfer‑
ence in internal affairs and counterproduc‑
tive to a dialogue. Recent attempts at hold‑
ing bilateral talks have been sabotaged by
Pakistan bringing in the Kashmir questionor engaging Kashmiri
separatists. Sharif
referred to the recent ceasefire violations
along the Line of Control and asserted,
“Wisdom dictates that our immediate neigh‑
bor refrains from fomenting instability in
Pakistan.” He said that “the two countries
should address and resolve the causes of
tension and take all possible measures to
avert further escalation” and for this he
asserted he was making the peace initiative
proposal.
These were the four points in his proposal
Pakistan and India formalize and
respect the 2003 understanding for a com‑
plete ceasefire on the Line of Control in
Kashmir with increased monitoring by the
UNMOGIP
Pakistan and India reaffirm that they
will not resort to the use or the threat of use
of force under any circumstances.
Demilitarize Kashmir
Unconditional mutual withdrawal from
Siachen Glacier,
“An easing of threat perceptions throughsuch peace efforts will
make it possible for
Pakistan and India to agree on a broad
range of measures to address the peril
posed by offensive and advanced weapons
systems,” Sharif said.
India rejects Sharif's 'peace initiative'to demilitarize
Kashmir
Pakistan PM Nawaz Sharif addresses 70thSession of the UNGA.
Patna RJD chief Lalu Prasad said
the BJP‑led National Democractic
Alliance (NDA) is contesting Bihar
assembly polls like hosting a wed‑
ding without bridegroom, which
the grand alliance has in Nitish
Kumar. Taking a swipe at the
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)‑led
NDA alliance for not declaring anychief ministerial candidate
ahead
of the state assembly polls, Lalu
Prasad at a rally in Jamui district
said: "We, the grand alliance, have
dulha (bridegroom) Nitish Kumar.
But BJP‑led NDA has no dulha."
The former Bihar chief minister,
who has a way with words, said
people would reject such a mar‑
riage party which lacks the bride‑
groom. The grand alliance of the
Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), Janata
Dal‑United (JD‑U), and Congresshas declared present Bihar
Chief
Minister Nitish Kumar as its chief
ministerial candidate for the
upcoming state assembly polls.
Nitish Kumar is our 'dulha',
BJP has none: Lalu
10 October 3-9, 2015 TheSouthAsianTimes.info I ND
IA
New Delhi
Patidar Anamat
Andolan Samiti leader Hardik Patel
has announced the formation of a
new group, Akhil Bhartiya Patel
Navnirman Sena, with the aim to
unite the Kurmi, Gujjar, Marathaand Patel communities.
Patel, who has been spearhead‑
ing protests in Gujarat to demand
reservations for the Patel commu‑
nity, said at a press conference
here that the new organization
would try to mobilize support of
these communities on the issue of
reservation.
Akhilesh Katiyar will be the gen‑
eral secretary of ABPNS.
Katiyar was earlier with the
Rashtriya Lok Samata Party, which
was led by Union Minister
Upendra Kushwaha. The former
was expelled from RLSP after he
organized Patel's first public meet‑ing here.
Patel plans to organize a
'Mahasabha' (grand meeting) in
the national capital next month to
further his cause.
"The Akhil Bhartiya Patel
Navnirman Sena will fight for the
cause of farmers, laborers and
youth of the country. We'll organ‑
ize a huge rally of all the communi‑
ties from Delhi, Rajasthan andneighboring states at Ramlila
Maidan next month," he said.
Patidar Anamat Andolan Samitileader Hardik Patel.
Mumba i A special court has
awarded death penalty to five peo‑
ple and life in prison to seven oth‑
ers, all convicted for the July 11,
2006, serial blasts on Mumbai's
suburban trains which killed 189
people, in one of the worst attacks
on the city's crowded public trans‑
port system.
On September 11, Special
Maharashtra Control of Organised
Crime Act (MCOCA) Judge Y.D.
Shinde found all the 12 people
guilty of their role in serial blastsin the suburban trains,
which also
injured 817 commuters rushing
home during the peak hours that
rainy evening.
Those awarded the death penal‑
ty were Kamal A. Ansari, 37;
Ehtesham K. Siddiqui, 30; Faisal
Attaur Rehman Sheikh, 36; Asif
Khan alias Junaid, 38; Naved
Hussain Khan, 30. The seven who
were awarded life term in jail
were medico Tanvir A. Ansari, 37;
Mohammed Sajid Ansari, 34;
Sheikh Mohammed Ali Alam
Sheikh, 40; Mohammed Majid
Shafi, 30; Muzammil Sheikh, 27;
Soheil Mohammed Sheikh, 43; andZamir Ahmed Sheikh, 36.
During
the prolonged arguments of near‑
ly three weeks on the quantum of
sentence, Special Public
Prosecutor Raja Thakre demanded
death penalty for eight of the 12
convicts, terming them "mer‑
chants of death". A teacher, Abdul
Wahid Sheikh, was the lone
accused who was acquitted in the
case, while another prime accused,
Azam Chima, alleged to be linked
with the Lashkar‑e‑Taiba (LeT), is
among the 17 who are missing
and on the run. They include 13
Pakistani nationals.
Special Judge Shinde found that
M. Faisal Attaur Rehman Shaikh,
who was awarded death penalty,
went to Pakistan twice for train‑
ing. Similarly, Kamal A. Ansari wasalso trained in Pakistan,
transport‑
ed Pakistanis from the Nepal bor‑
der to Mumbai, procured explo‑
sive material and planted the
bomb which exploded in the sub‑
urban train at Matunga.
Naved Hussain Khan surveyed
the trains, transported a bomb
from Govandi to Bandra, planted
one bomb on the train which
exploded at Khar station.
Asif Khan alias Junaid procured
the explosive material used to
make the bomb, and planted one
which exploded in the train at
Borivali. Ehtesham K. Siddiqui, the
Maharashtra joint secretary of
banned organization SIMI, recced
local trains, transported
Pakistanis to Mumbra in Thane
district, was present when thebombs were made at a house in
Govandi, and planted the bomb
which exploded in the train at
Mira Road.
Hardik Patel announcesformation of new group
Ehtesham Siddiqui being escorted by the police to the court
wherehe was awarded death sentence.
MUMBAI TRAIN BLASTS:
FIVE GET DEATH, SEVEN GET
LIFE IN PRISON7/11
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11October 3-9, 2015TheSouthAsianTimes.info I ND
IA
New Delhi Prime Minister Narendra Modi
said the growth of India and China presents
an opportunity to realize our dream of an
Asian century. He greeted the people of
China on their National Day.
In his message, Modi said: "There have
been strong linkages between our nations
for years. Together we can make this world
a much better place. The growth of India
and China offers a great opportunity to
realise our dream of an Asian century."
He recalled Chinese President Xi Jinping's
visit to India in September 2014 and his
visit to China in May 2015 and said the
meeting "covered significant ground in
advancing our partnership". "I warmly
recall my talks with President Xi and
Premier Li," he added. "I am confident that
our ties will become stronger in the years
to come.
May our two nations continue working
together for the common development and
prosperity of humanity," Modi said. The
Chinese government passed a resolution on
December 2, 1949, and declared October 1
as the National Day.
New Delhi The Supreme
Court asked Lipika Mitra,
the estranged wife of former
Delhi law minister Somnath
Bharti whether she was
inclined to join mediation
efforts as offered by her
husband to resolve all issues
between them.
An apex court bench of
Chief Justice H.L. Dattu and
Justice Amitava Roy issued
notice, asking Lipika to
respond by Monday as it
fixed the next hearing for 10.30 a.m on
October 5.
Issuing notice to Lipika Mitra, the court
declined, for now, the plea by Somnath
Bharti for interim bail. However, the court
indicated that it may consider the plea for
interim bail on Monday.
"We always keep our mind open. Not only
mind, but even the heart," Chief Justice
Dattu said as senior counsel Gopal
Subramanium appearing for Bharti told the
court to keep their mind "open to consider
the plea at a later stage on Monday".
"We have other powers. Under Article 142,
we can grant bail here itself," Chief Justice
Dattu told Subramanium as he recounted
the sequence of events from September 28
when the court asked Aam Aadmi Party leg‑
islator Somnath Bharti to first surrender as
police were seeking his custody.
Subramanium wondered if such a course
on part of police was warranted when the
apex court was seized of the matter and the
same was listed for hearing today
(Thursday). He said that contrary to the
apex court guidelines, Bharti was not
allowed to access his lawyer and was shifted
from one police station to another after he
surrendered.
In the course of the hearing, Attorney
General Mukul Rohatgi appearing for Delhi
Police opposed the interim bail plea to
Bharti, saying that the original plea for
anticipatory bail had become infructuous
after Bharti's surrender and remand in
police custody.
Patna
Union Finance Minister Arun Jaitley
released the BJP's 'vision document' for
the Bihar assembly elections in the pres‑
ence of two union ministers and senior
party leaders here.
"Jaitley released the vision document a
day ahead of Prime Minister Narendra
Modi's rally in Banka," Bharatiya Janata
Party leader Bhupender Yadav, who is in
charge of the party affairs in Bihar, said.Yadav said the
document focuses on
women's empowerment, education, jobs
for youth and infrastructure development.
"The vision document has a clear‑cut
plan to develop Bihar in the next five years
if the BJP‑led National Democratic Alliance
wins the polls and forms the next govern‑
ment," he said.
The party's main plank is "development
in Bihar", he said.
Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, in his vision
document for the next five years, spoke of
his seven‑point agenda to develop Bihar.
This included free Wi‑Fi in college and uni‑
versity campuses, a student credit card
scheme for loans to pursue higher andprofessional education, and
an unemploy‑
ment allowance.
The Nitish Kumar document also prom‑
ised electricity and toilets in every home,
and piped water that would benefit 16
lakh families.
SC asks Bharti's wife if she
wants to resolve issues
BJP 'VISION DOCUMENT'
FOR BIHAR POLLS HARPS
ON DEVELOPMENT
India, China growth will helpdream of Asian century: Modi
Narendra Modi with Chinese President Xi Jinpingwhen the latter
visited India last year.
Lipika Mitra and former Delhi law minister Somnath Bharti.
Corporate Office: 385 Seneca Avenue, Ridgewood NY 11385
718.821.3182, www.AtlanticDialysis.com
UnionFinanceMinister
Arun Jaitley
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12 October 3-9, 2015
TheSouthAsianTimes.info OP-ED
By Mayank Chhaya
All prime ministerial visits are
calibrated for a specific
goal, be it economic, diplo‑
matic, political or cultural. That is
true of all Indian prime ministers
but it is especially true of
Narendra Modi. Once you get past
his gushing, uncritical fan base,
those goals become sharper.
A striking example of that is his
visit to Silicon Valley in general
and Tesla Energy headquarters
and Facebook town hall meeting
in particular. The prime minister's
choice of South African‑bornCanadian‑American technology
entrepreneur Elon Musk's facility
in Silicon Valley was significant
for its potential whose details are
not well known to many.
The name Tesla, of course, is
Musk's tribute to the Serbian‑born
American Nikola Tesla (July 10,
1856 to January 7, 1943), widely
regarded as the father of the elec‑
trical age given his pioneering
work in alternating current and
induction motor in the late 19th
and early 20th century. He was by
a wide consensus a true‑blue
genius whose range of scientific
vision stretched from presaginghand‑held devices carrying
data
we now call smart phones to
robotics and limitless free energy.
Perhaps the primary objective
of the prime ministerial visit can
be found in a backgrounder on
the company's website where it
explains: "Tesla Powerwall is a
rechargeable lithium‑ion battery
designed to store energy at a resi‑
dential level for load shifting,
backup power and self‑consump‑
tion of solar power generation.
Powerwall consists of Tesla's lithi‑
um‑ion battery pack, liquid ther‑
mal control system and software
that receives dispatch commands
from a solar inverter. The unitmounts seamlessly on a wall
and
is integrated with the local grid to
harness excess power and give
customers the flexibility to draw
energy from their own reserve."
It is not clear what specifically
Musk and Modi might have dis‑
cussed but it may not be a bad
idea to consider a Tesla pilot proj‑
ect anywhere in India. Given
India's relatively low and careful
per capita power consumption
(700 kWh per capita in 2012,
according to the World Bank com‑
pared to 12,954 kWh in the
United States) Powerwall or a
cheaper version of it could be a
potentially game‑changing solu‑tion. That explains the prime
min‑
ister's engagement with Musk,
who is often jocularly compared
to the Marvel comic book super‑
hero Iron Man also known as
Tony Stark because of Musk's var‑
ied entrepreneurial interests,
including rocket science and
space travel.
Modi's town hall style meeting
with Facebook founder Mark
Zuckerberg was perhaps closer to
his larger socio‑cultural and politi‑
cal goals of keeping his vast fol‑
lowing on social media abreast of
the goings‑on in his government
in the face of creeping doubts
over its performance so far. Being
the first social media‑savvy politi‑
cian of India with a keen eye forwhat to let consumers enjoy,
the
prime minister was at home at
Facebook's headquarters. He said
many interesting things but what
perhaps stood out from a political
standpoint was his observation
that social media had created an
environment where instead of fac‑
ing the electorate every five years
politicians now face it every five
minutes with millions parsing
every word and offering their
snap judgment.
In yet another brilliant repack‑
aging of the Manmohan Singh
government's ambitious plan to
connect 600,000 villages and250,000 panchayats the current
prime minster has managed to
very successfully sell his "Digital
India" vision which draws on
many of the same ideas. Making
broadband connectivity universal
in India through optical fiber was
a key feature of the last govern‑
ment's plan, some of which was
already in various stages of imple‑
mentation when it lost the 2014
general election. It is to Modi's
credit though that he has generat‑
ed remarkable enthusiasm about
it to the extent that Facebook
offered its users a way to add a
semi‑transparent screen on their
profile pictures in the colours of
the Indian flag. It is part of
Facebook's "Support Digital India"campaign.
Modi's interaction with
Zuckerberg was one more
instance of the prime minister's
ability to strike an instant rapport
with his audience. What brought
the house down was his emotional
reference to the sacrifice that his
91‑year‑old mother made to raise
him and his siblings. He broke
down while reminiscing his child‑
hood and its hardships. He was
responding to a question from
Zuckerberg about his parents and
personal life.
In the 31‑year‑old Zuckerberg,
the 65‑year‑old prime ministerappears to have found a muse
whose youth can only help Modi
expand his global appeal.
MODI'S VISIT TO SILICON VALLEY
Beyond the hype were clear goals
The views expressed in Op Eds are not necessarily those of The
South Asian Times.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi with Elon Muskat Tesla Motors
headquarters.
By N Madhavan
Last week marked the comple‑
tion of a year since Prime
Minister Narendra Modi
launched his ambitious “Make in
India” initiative to boost manufac‑turing in India ‑‑ and by
most
accounts, its success so far is at
best mixed.
Everything from land acquisition
to infrastructure and global eco‑
nomic conditions seem to suggest
that it wonʼt be easy to sustain the
momentum. China recently deval‑
ued its yuan ‑‑ which makes it
more competitive ‑‑ and is sitting
on huge capacities in manufactur‑
ing.
On the other hand, as Modi flew
into the Silicon Valley at the week‑
end after meeting Fortune 500
CEOs on the East Coast of the US, it
was clear that the rockstar recep‑tion he got in California‑‑
and the
speech he made ‑‑ showed that his
other big gambits, “Digital India”
and its accompaniment, “StartupIndia,” are on stronger
ground.
In manufacturing, China jumped
ahead with all the right moves in
the 1980s, and India is a latestarter. On the other hand,
Indiaʼs
IT revolution started by software
service companies and govern‑
ment establishments such as the
Centre for Development of
Advanced Computing and Centre
for the Development of Telematics
in the same period gave a special
digital advantage for India.It is a happy coincidence that
high‑tech CEOs such as Microsoftʼs
Satya Nadella and Googleʼs Sundar
Pichai are Indians. But more
important, fields such as cloud
computing, e‑governance, the
Internet of Things (in which even
machines will have Internet
addresses and talk to each other)
are emerging areas for innovation.
The smartphone boom in India is
giving natural traction to social
media and knowledge‑driven serv‑
ices.
The significance of all this is that
it is easier for India to push ahead
and create mill ions of jobs inemerging areas where it can
lead
the competition than play catch‑up
in old‑world manufacturing based
mostly on wages ‑‑ and involving
higher costs.
The strange blessing is that
Digital India can create jobs that in
turn force manufacturers to look
to India ‑‑ as a market where it willmanufacture for local
consump‑
tion more than an export hub. This
is already happening with mobile
phones, and this is where the
action is more likely to be.
One only has to look at the
mushrooming venture funds and
startups in India that stand in
stark contrast to smokestack
industries beseeching the Reserve
Bank for interest rate cuts to get
the drift: Digital India will pip
Make In India.
In Modiʼs favored Facebook
idiom, the Digital India initiative is
one fit for a “Like” while “Make in
India” is more of a “Poke”.(The article appeared in
Hindustan Times)
Why Digital India may pip Make in India
Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg hugs Narendra Modiat Facebook's
Town Hall meeting.
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TheSouthAsianTimes.info October 3-9, 2015
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14 October 3-9, 2015 TheSouthAsianTimes.info D
IASPORA
London: A British‑Indian delivery
van driver has been named the
recipient of this year's 'Pride of Britain Award' for
risking his life to
prevent a road accident that could
have resulted in multiple fatalities, a
media report said.
Dee Patel, being hailed a "hero",
will receive the award in the out‑
standing bravery category in a glit‑
tering ceremony at the Grosvenor
House in London's Park Lane on
Monday night, the Mirror reported.
Patel, who works for Camberley
town‑based ventilation specialists
Zehnder Group UK, was on a rou‑
tine job on May 18 when he spotted
a car ahead of him lose control on
the M25 motorway. The 48‑year‑old
dad of two watched in horror as thecar swerved into the central
barrier
and bounced off it before coming
back on to the carriageway at a
high speed. The car hit the barrier a
second time, before swerving across
four lanes of traffic and on to the
hard shoulder. Patel sprang into
action after realizing that the driver,
a young woman, was unconscious
and a high‑speed pile‑up seemed
inevitable, according to the daily.
As the braveheart pushed the caragainst the crash barrier, it
grinded
to a screeching halt, finally slowing
to a complete stop straddling the
fast lane and the central reserva‑
tion. Police later praised Patel's
courage, saying: "Instead of a multi‑
vehicle collision with potential seri‑
ous injuries, it has ended up with no
injuries and just damage to vehicles
which can be repaired or replaced
thanks to your quick thinking."
Founded in 1999, the 'Pride of Britain Awards' are
presented to the
country's unsung heroes. The win‑
ners are decided by a panel of dis‑
tinguished judges and is jointly sup‑
ported by the Daily Mirror, Lidl, ITV,
Daybreak and the Prince's Trust.
This year, the awards will be
handed out by Prince Charles.
Singapore Senior counsel
Davinder Singh has been namedSingapore's best dispute lawyer
at an awards ceremony in Hong
Kong, a media report said.
The 58‑year‑old lawyer, who
heads Singapore‑based law firm
Drew & Napier, was honored
with the 'Disputes Star of the
Year' award at the Asialaw Asia‑
Pacific (APAC) Dispute
Resolution Awards on Thursday,
The Straits Times reported on
Friday.
His firm also won the 'Law
Firm of the Year' award at the
ceremony. The firm was also
adjudged the best in Singapore
for domestic arbitration, thedaily said.
Asialaw is a research organiza‑
tion that has produced 20 annu‑
al editions of Asialaw Profiles,
which provides a guide to lead‑
ing domestic and regional law
firms in the Asia‑Pacific region.
The awards recognizes 12
practice areas across 14 coun‑
tries in the Asia‑Pacific region.
Singh was among eightlawyers from local and interna‑
tional law firms who were nomi‑
nated for the award. One of his
recent high‑profile cases
involved Singapore's Prime
Minister Lee Hsien Loong in a
defamation suit against blogger
Roy Ngerng.
Hindus in Trinidad
bid fond farewell to
Lord anesh
Port of Spain:
Thousands of Hindus
in Trinidad and Tobago converged
at beaches and along river banks to
immerse the idols of Lord Ganesh,marking the end of a
10‑day‑long
festival honoring the elephant‑
headed god. The immersion took
place on Sunday following the
worldwide observance of Ganesh
Utsav which began on September
16. The end of the celebration was
preceded with special prayer ses‑
sions, satsangs and yajnas at over
400 temples & at private residences
in the Caribbean nation. Hindus had
abstained from all forms of alcohol,
meat and merriment for several
weeks preceding this period. Pundit
Seereeram Maharaj, spiritual leader
of the Caparo Shiva Kailash Mandir
said: "In the midst of all this reli‑gious fervor, we must
ensure that
all idols are environmentally‑friend‑
ly to help create a cleaner and
healthier society." Out of a popula‑
tion of 1.3 mill ion people in
Trinidad and Tobago, 44 percent
are East Indians ‑‑ but just about 25
percent are devout Hindus.
Toronto: After Yoga and alternativemedicine, Shiv Yog is now
gaining
fast acceptability in North America.
Shiv Yog ‑ also called inner yoga
as opposed to external yoga or
hatha yoga or plain yoga ‑ is about
unleashing dormant self‑healing
powers, says Shiv Yog exponent
guru Avdhoot Baba Shivanand who
taught its techniques to over 250
American doctors at the f irst
Global Shiv Yog integrative Science
Beyond Science Conference at
Trenton in New Jersey recently.
The Shiv Yog guru, who then flew
to Toronto with some of the
American doctors to interact with
the Indo‑Canadian community,stressed that Shiv Yog
techniques
unleash the power of self‑healing.
If we have the power create a dis‑
ease, we also have the power to
cure it. He said the human body is
made of 50 trillion cells and every
second, 5 million cells die. But if we
can create new cells faster than
dying cel ls , our heal th wil limprove.
``When a person falls sick, his
v ibrat ional cel lu lar frequency
decreases. But with Shiv Yog medi‑
tation, sick cells frequency returns
to normal and cures the person,ʼʼ
the Shiv Yog maestro told the
packed audience at the Sringeri
Vidya Bharat i Foundat ion inToronto.
Indian‑American cardiologist
Bindu Kansupada, who is one of
the doctors who combine Shiv Yog
techniques with modern medicine
and accompanied Avidhoot
Shivanand to Toronto, said doctors
have seen amazing results in their
patients.``We have measured significant
improvement in patients who prac‑
tised Shiv Yog. Morbidity, mortality
and hospitalization have come
down. Even the readmission rate
for heart failure and unstable angi‑
na has come down significantly,ʼʼ
said Dr Kansupada, who is based at
Langhorne in Pennsylvania, in his
presentation about the impact of
Shiv Yog techniques on patients.
``Modern western medicine is
great for acute care, but for chronic
care management such as diabetes,
depression, heart problems, auto‑
immune disorders and cancer,
combining western medicine withShiv Yog prevents
complications,
enhances recovery and provides
possible cure for incurable condi‑
tions.ʼʼ He said most American doc‑
tors who are familiar with integra‑
t ive Shiv Yog principles have
reported significant benefits for
themselves and their patients.
Counsel Davinder Singhnamed Singapore's best
dispute lawyer
British‑Indian 'hero' toget bravery award
Davinder Singh
Avdhoot Baba Shivanand in Toronto
Dee Patel prevented a multi‑vehicle collision with potential
seriousinjuries (Photo: www.mirror.co.uk)
SHIV YOG BECOMING POPULAR WITH
DOCTORS IN NORTH AMERICA
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15TheSouthAsianTimes.info MODI I N NEW Y ORK October 3-9,
2015
New York
Prime Minister
Narendra Modi wrapped up his
five‑day US visit, ending with a
summit meeting with US
President Barack Obama that
focused on climate change and
gave another push to India's
demand for reform of the UN
Security Council at a separate UN
summit on Peacekeeping.Modi's America visit saw him
also travel to the West Coast, visit‑
ing San Jose, where he interacted
with the leaders of US te
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