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Vol.10 No. 12 July 22-28, 2017 80 Cents New York Edition Follow us on TheSouthAsianTimes.info

Community bids farewell to Consul General Das Ram Nath Kovind

Prime Minister Narendra Modi congratulates the Presidentelect,

Shri Ram Nath Kovind, in New Delhi on July 20. (Photo: IANS)

14th
Indias Consul General in New York, Amb. Riva Ganguly Das, being
felicitated at the farewell reception for her hosted by FIA.
(Inset) The incoming Consul General Sandeep Chakravorty.
From humble President of India

66%

beginnings to
of votes received

All countries with India on US slams Pak
for 'safe havens'
Sikkim standoff with China to terror groups
New Delhi: Other countries back
India in its standoff with China,
said External Affairs Minister
Sushma Swaraj Thursday about
the dispute at the border in Sikkim
which began more than a month
ago. The minister told Parliament
that "both sides must pull back
troops and work things out with
talks" while stressing that India's
action is motivated by its need to
protect its security near where the
boundaries of China, India and
Bhutan meet.
"If China, unilaterally changes
the status quo of the trijunction
point, it is a straight challenge to
our security," said the foreign min
ister.
The Chinese government accept
ed that diplomatic channels are
open but repeated it will hold talks
with India only after Indian troops
are removed. "Our diplomatic
channel is unimpeded," said a gov
In Indias toughening stand,
Sushma Swaraj said in Parliament
that China should withdraw its
troops from Doklam on the
BhutanChina border if it wanted
New Delhi to pull out its army
from the area. (Photo : PTI)
ernment spokesperson at a press
conference in Beijing Thursday,
but added, "the withdrawal of the
Indian border troops is the precon
dition for any meaningful dialogue
and the communication between
Continued on page 4
Washington: The US has slammed
Pakistan for failing to crackdown
on terror groups operating from
"safe havens" inside its territory,
and said the Nawaz Sharif govern
ment did not take any action
against the LeT and JeM, which
continue to operate openly.
In its annual Country Report on
Countering Terrorism, the US State
Department said though the
Pakistan government supported
political reconciliation between
the Afghan government and the
Afghan Taliban, it "failed to take
significant action to constrain the
ability of the Afghan Taliban and
Haqqani network to operate from
Pakistanbased safe havens and
threaten US and Afghan forces in
Afghanistan.
It said the Pakistan government
"did not take any significant action
Continued on page 4
2nd
Dalit to become
President
President
of India
New Delhi: A man of humble origin
and a lowprofile leader, Ram Nath
Kovind was on Thursday elected
the 14th President of India and
will be the second Dalit to occupy
the top constitutional post.
As nominee of the ruling front
led BJP, Kovind defeated with huge
margin the opposition nominee,
Meira Kumar. In an electoral col
lege of 4,986 voters with a vote
value of 10,98,903 (was 66%), the
former Bihar governor got 2,930
votes carrying a value of 7,00,244,
while the former Lok Sabha
Speaker secured 1,844 votes
with a value of 3,67,314.
Kovind was born 72 years
ago in Paraunkh village in
Continued on page 4

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TheSouthAsianTimes.info July 22-28, 2017
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
FIA hosts farewell reception
for Ambassador Das
Fords, NJ: The Federation of
Indian Associations (FIAtristate),
in collaboration with the Indian
American community, hosted a
farewell reception July 18 for
Ambassador Riva Ganguly Das,
Indias Consul General in New
York, at the Royal Alberts Palace
in Fords, NJ.
Ambassador Das, who assumed
charge in New York in March
2016, was recently named the
new Director General of Indian
Council for Cultural Relations
(ICCR) by the Government of
India, and is scheduled to leave
for New Delhi later this week.
The farewell reception, attended
by more than 250 members of the
Indian community in New York
and New Jersey, was hosted by
FIA and sponsored by H.R. Shah,
Dr Sudhir Parikh, Albert Jasani,
AAPI, Drs Sanjay and Kavita
Gupta, TV9, Anil Bansal, The
Indian Panorama, Malini Shah and
FOKANA (Federation of Kerala
Associations in North America).
Many speakers, including FIA
chairman Ramesh Patel and presi
dent Andy Bhatia, H R Shah, chair
man of TV Asia, and Anil Bansal,
chairman of Indus American Bank,
recounted how Ambassador Das
had steadfastly interacted with
Letter to the Editor
I
have received a fair amount of
negative feedback about IIFA
held last weekend in New York
from my doctor and other friends
who flew in and bought expensive
tickets at $15005000. The gist
of their bad experiences:
1. The promotional package for
warded to them had Shah
Rukh Khan and Priyanka
Chopra as attending the show
along with several Hollywood
stars including Matt Damon
and Julia Roberts. It is hard to
resist the temptation of seeing
SRK and Salman Khan on the
same stage and people bought
tickets, each costing hundreds
or thousands of dollars. But
for Salman, the show had none
of that. This amounts to a
clever but fraudulent market
ing. Many of the ticket buyers
are exploring legal recourse to
TRISTATE COMMUNITY
Riva Ganguly Dass next
posting is as Director General
of Indian Council for Cultural
Relations (ICCR) in New Delhi.
the Indian community. Speakers
also pointed out that she was
instrumental in cosponsoring the
International Yoga Day celebra
tions this year with the New York
get their money back.
2. The VIP tickets $2500 and
above had a preevent cocktail
listed as part of the package.
But to their unpleasant sur
prise, people had to stand in
line and buy an overpriced
beer and chicken fingers, etc.
So much for the VIP treat
ment!
3. The green carpet concept was
essentially a fraud in its own
way. People buying expensive
VIP tickets from $2500 to
$15,000 were given the per
mission to walk on the green
carpet. Dressed up in their
best clothes, they were
unpleasantly surprised to see
that they were walking with
only other fellow attendees on
the grass as their was only a
small piece of carpet. The
celebrities were walking a sep
City Public Advocates Office and
the Parks Department. Despite
her short stint in New York,
Ambassador Das was also credited
with engaging several US
Congressmen and Senators as
well as New York City elected offi
cials.
Ambassador Das joined the
Indian Foreign Service in 1986. A
postgraduate in political science
from Delhi University, Das was a
lecturer at Delhi University before
joining the Indian Foreign Service.
Following her first foreign posting
in Spain, Das has had stints in
Nepal, Bangladesh, China, The
Hague and Romania.
In her remarks, Ambassador Das
lauded the FIA in showcasing
Indian culture to mainstream
communities in New York, aiding
in better understanding of Indian
immigrants. She pointed out that
it was imperative a direct channel
of communication always existed
between the Indian Diaspora and
the Indian Consulate in New York.
I have always tried to encourage
fortnightly meetings between the
Indian Consulate and Indian
organizations, both cultural and
corporate, to be able to under
stand the concerns of the
Diaspora.
IIFA New Yorks promotional VIP package promised an appearance
by Shah Rukh Khan too but he never showed up.
arate green carpet.
4. The show only had one focus,
to be shown on an Indian TV
channel. The two hosts talked
at length with a poorly written
nonentertaining script.
Singers and star line up was
good, but even then Wizcraft
managed to produce a boring
Indian envoy to Peru
appointed New York
Consul General
Sandeep
Chakravorty will
replace Riva
Ganguly Das as
Consul General.
Washington: Indias
Ambassador to Peru Sandeep
Chakravorty has been appointed
as the head of the Indian con
sulate in New York.
The 1996 IFS officer will
replace Riva Ganguly Das as
Consul General in one of the
busiest Indian diplomatic mis
sions overseas. The formal noti
fication was issued by the
Ministry of External Affairs
recently. Chakravorty, 47, was
Indias Deputy High
Commissioner in Dhaka before
show for the most part.
Wizcraft had lot of issues when
they hosted IIFA in USA for the
first time it was in Tampa, FL, in
2014. But people took it as a rook
ie mistakes. However, this repeat
ed and deliberate attempt of mis
leading people to get money and
the mistreatment should not to be
July 22-28, 2017 3
being appointed as Ambassador
to Peru and Bolivia.
He also served in Indias mis
sions in Madrid and Bogota. In
the Ministry of External Affairs
of India, he served on several
desks including working as
Press Relations Officer and to
the minister of state for external
affairs. Chakravorty also served
in the Eurasia Division dealing
with Central Asia and in the East
Asia Division dealing with China,
Japan, Koreas and Mongolia.
(PTI)
ignored and tolerated.
The public sentiment is clear by
the fact that since I initially posted
the above on Facebook
(https://www.facebook.com/DrSan
jayGupta/posts/1021342319887
3318), the video post has had over
40,000 views and has been shared
by around scores of people. Many
IIFA ticket buyers have been able
to get their money back by calling
the credit card company /
Ticketmaster and sharing this post
about false and fraudulent adver
tising by Wizcraft.
Some folks are approaching the
Indian Ambassador in
Washington, FICCI and the office
of attorney general for the fraud
and mistreatment.
Dr. Sanjay Gupta
Executive Producer, HealthTime TV
President, American Pain Association
(Though requested, we did not receive
by press time any response from
IIFA/Wizcraft to the criticism Editor)
 4 July 22-28, 2017
Laying bare roots of the
Kashmir problem
l By Shiv Chopra
New York: In a video produced for
his Princeton, NJ based Infinity
Foundation, Rajiv Malhotra inter
viewd Sushil Pandit and discussed
the deep causes of the Kashmir
problems, including Nehruvian
blunders, Article 370, Pakistan's
interventions, and bad governance
in India.
Sushil Pandit is a journalist and
Rajiv Malhotra (left) and Sushil Pandit
well known activist for Kashmiri
Hindus. He cites being born to
Kashmiri parents led to his purpose of
becoming an activist, Whatever happens
there (in Kashmir) is very close to my heart
and it impacts me and my family and whatev
er I do in life. According to him, the problem
in Kashmir goes back centuries and its image
has been altered to reflect a paradise in com
plete harmony which is just not the case.
Pandit goes on to argue that there were
many exoduses in the history of Kashmir.
There were only three options for the Hindus
living there, either convert to Islam, get killed, to rebuild Kashmir, Pandit claimed.
or run away. People in Kashmir can trace
their backgrounds to the Middle East. Many
even identify themselves as such to rise up
the social ladder.
Rajiv Malhotra talked about Dr. Karan
Singh, the son of the Maharaja of Kashmir,
and how he wanted to be President and
Indian American named PreEminent
Leader in M&A across USA
New York: Sid Khosla, a Partner
with Ernst and Young and NJ res
ident, has been recognized as an
Emerging Leader (40 under 40)
across the country by the M&A
Advisor, which is a preeminent
organization recognizing excel
lence, honoring achievement,
presenting thought leadership
and facilitating connections
Sid Khosla
among the world's leading M&A
(mergers and acquisitions) and dealmaking mergers and acquisitions.
Chairman and Co-Founder
Kamlesh C. Mehta
Co-Founder: Saroosh Gull
President: Arjit Mehta
Chief Operating Officer:
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TURN PAGE
discuss the issue in a video.
argued that Singh has not represented
Kashmir. Karan Singh had power and position
to raise the issue leading to betterment of
Kashmir, but didnt do so. Sushil Pandit
agreed saying that Singh doesnt stand for
anything and has let down everyone. His
father, on the other hand, was a patriot who
fought the British for the freedom of India
and Kashmir. Dr. Karan Singh has failed to
rebuild temples and infrastructure leading to
many public groups forming who are trying
Article 370 came into effect in 1947 and is
a blunder by Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, the
two speakers agreed. It makes Jammu and
Kashmir autonomous from India as the con
stitution does not apply there, leaving the
state a kind of orphan. It could be changed
and should be but nothing has been done.
professionals. Khosla is among
the 40 individuals announced on
June 29th as the preeminent
"Dealmakers" in the country
who will be recognized on
September 19 at the New York
Athletic Club. The annual awards
are given by The M&A Adviser,
founded in 1998 as the first
dedicated media company to
offer insights and intelligence on
Associate Editors:
Hiral Dholakia-Dave
Contributing Editors: Meenakshi Iyer,
Nilima Madan, Melvin Durai,
Dr Prem Kumar Sharma, Ashok Vyas,
Dr Akshat Jain, Ashok Ojha
West Coast Correspondent
Pooja Jain,
Pooja@TheSouthAsianTimes.info
New Delhi Bureau
Meenakshi Iyer
Delhi@TheSouthAsianTimes.info
From humble beginnings to
President of India
Continued from page 1
Kanpur rural of Uttar Pradesh and hails from
the Koli (weaver) community. Always unas
suming, Kovind worked through the ranks to
become a national spokesperson of BJP and
headed the party's Scheduled Caste Morcha
for three years from 1999. He was associated
with the RSS before he joined the BJP. A
lawyer by profession, Kovind had practised at
the Delhi High Court and the Supreme Court
for 16 years. He was also a central govern
ment counsel for some time. Kovind served
two terms as the Rajya Sabha member (1994
2006). He represented India at the United
Nations and addressed UNGA in October
2002.
After his election on Thursday as the
President, an emotional Kovind promised to
protect the Constitution and uphold its val
ues as the President. Recalling his childhood
days, he said: "We lived in a 'kuchha' house
made of mud. The roof couldn't stop the
water trickles during the rainy season. I,
along with my brothers and sisters, used to
stand in a corner and wait for the rain to
stop." "There could be many such Ram Nath
Kovinds who are getting drenched in the rain.
Many are working hard to earn their liveli
hood in this rain. I represent all those hard
working people. This is also a message to
those who earn their livelihood with hard
work and honesty," he said.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi congratulat
ed Kovind on his election. "Gladdened by the
extensive support for Kovindji among MPs
and across various states. I thank members of
the electoral college," he added. BJP
President Amit Shah said, The election of
Ram Nath Kovindji is a victory for the poor,
downtrodden and the marginalized and their
aspirations." There were celebrations in
Paraunkh, Kovind's ancestral village, as the
news of his election broke out. (IANS)
All countries with India on
Sikkim standoff with China
Continued from page 1
the two sides." Despite no signs of a climb
down, Indias National Security Advisor Ajit
Doval will travel to China next week for a
meeting of BRICS the bloc of Brazil, Russia,
India, China and South Africa said the gov
ernment. It did not rule out the possibility of
Jaipur (India) Bureau
Prakash Bhandari
Prakash@TheSouthAsianTimes.info
Photographs: Gunjesh Desai/
masalajunction.com.
Xitij Joshi/xitijphoto.com
Photo Journalist: Sandeep Girhotra
Cartoonist: Mahendra Shah
Art and Design: Dhiraj Kumar Showaan
Vladimir Tomovski
Bhagwati Creations,
Web Editor: Bharat Bhushan Chopra
News Service: HT Media Ltd.
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
a bilateral meeting for him with top Chinese
officials.
China says that on June 16, Indian troops
crossed the border at Sikkim to stop the con
struction of a road that it is entitled to build
on its own turf on a plateau it calls Donglang.
Bhutan and India say the area known as the
Doklam plateau in India is Bhutanese.
"As long as it was between China and
Bhutan, we had nothing to do with it," said
Ms Swaraj in parliament of the competing
claims over the land. "But since this deals
with the trijunction point, it affects our secu
rity position."
Ms Swaraj said in parliament that "India
has not said anything unreasonable" and that
"all countries are in India's support". The
government has been stressing that it is
working diplomatic channels to defuse the
tension; Beijing, on the other hand, has spo
ken harshly with warnings of "serious conse
quences" and has said it will engage in no
dialogue till India pulls back its soldiers a
stand it repeated Thursday.
Ms Swaraj's assertion today on other coun
tries agreeing with India's stand counters
China's claim on Tuesday that foreign diplo
mats in Beijing said they were "shocked" by
India's action. Indian sources have confirmed
that foreign embassies in Delhi have
expressed concern about the simmering ten
sion and have been reassured of Delhi's com
mitment to finding a peaceful solution.Source
NDTV
US slams Pak for 'safe havens' to
terror groups
Continued from page 1
against LashkareTaiba or Jaishe
Mohammed, other than implementing an
ongoing ban against media coverage of their
activities. LeT and JeM continued to hold ral
lies, raise money, recruit, and train in
Pakistan," it said.
In its overview of the South Asian region,
the report said that "Afghanistan, in particu
lar, continued to experience aggressive and
coordinated attacks by the Afghan Taliban,
including the affiliated Haqqani Network
(HQN) and other insurgent and terrorist
groups. A number of these attacks were
planned and launched from safe havens in
Pakistan". It said India continued to experi
ence attacks, including by Maoist insurgents
and Pakistanbased terrorists. (IANS)
IANS Newswire Services
IANS Washington Bureau
Arun Kumar
arun.kumar@ians,in
Printing: Five Star Printing, NY
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TheSouthAsianTimes.info TRISTATE COMMUNITY July 22-28, 2017 5

New York: Democratic Partys

Dem candidate for Nassau County

official nominee for Nassau
County Executive Laura Curran
has promised to launch a new era
of transparency.
I will appoint an independent
inspector general to oversee all
contracts; every county check
written to a vendor will be posted
online. I plan to hire the best and
the brightest to work in our gov
ernment and all hiring decisions
will be made based on what you
know and not on who you know,
she told members of the Indian
American Voters Forum (IAVF) in
the light of recent corruption
scandals in Nassau County and
Town of Oyster Bay.
IAVF interviewed Curran, a
Nassau County legislator, last
week to determine the candidates
election platform, experience and
electability, as well as her under
standing of the issues and con
cerns of the Indian community.
IAVF plans more such interviews.
The interview was moderated
by Varinder Bhalla, chairman of
the Indian American Voters
Forum, along with a panel con
sisting of Dr. Ajay Lodha, former
Executive promises transparency
Democrat Laura Curran (middle) posing with members of the Indian
American Voters Forum who interviewed her.
President of AAPI, Dr. Sunil
Mehra and Beena Kothari, both
former Presidents of IALI, Ratna
Bhalla, former Deputy
Commissioner of Nassau County,
Gunjan Rastogi, Vice President of
IALI, Sunil Modi, former President
AIA NY, and Vijay Verma, a phi
lanthropist and entrepreneur.
When asked about NIFA,
brought in 17 years ago to over
see the county's finances, and her
approach to solving the countys
fiscal problems, Curran, a former
trustee of Baldwin school board,
said, At the governmental level,
we will make our best efforts to
grow the tax base, attract busi
nesses to Nassau County and
develop affordable housing so
our young professionals dont
leave. We will also look at the
entire budget line by line.
All of us like to bet on a win
ning horse. What are your
chances of winning the primary
against George Maragos (County
Comptroller) in September and
then winning against Jack
Martins (Republican nominee) in
the November election? asked
Bhalla. Curran declared, I am the
official nominee of the
Democratic Party and have been
endorsed by Congressman Tom
Suozzi, Congresswoman Kathleen
Rice and former Congressman
Steve Israel, as well as
Assemblyman Charles Lavine and
State Senators Todd Kaminsky
and John Brooks. I also have the
support of the Working Families
Party and several Labor Unions.
On appointing Indian
Americans in her administration
if elected, Curran assured the
panel that all high level appoint
ments will be merit based and not
political and serious considera
tion will be given to qualified
Indian Americans. She also
assured the panel that she would
take steps for increased contract
ing opportunities for minority
businesses.
Indian American Voters Forum
is a bipartisan committee of com
munity activists founded in 2003.
It has conducted debates among
candidates running in the local
elections, and has been instru
mental in recruiting congression
al leaders to join India Caucus in
US Congress.

Vegetarian food convention Ajit Jain donates

Berkshire stock
in NYC in Sept to alma maters
Special to
The South Asian Times

New York: To highlight the bene

fits of plantbased food, a twoday
International Vegetarian
Convention will be organized
here in September by Vegetarian
Vision. Last week at a news con
ference and community meeting
at the Consulate General of India,
the organizers said that the
September 910 meet is expected
to draw about 100,000 people.
The Penn Plaza in Madison
Square Garden will be the venue.
The mega event by Vegetarian
Vision, founded in 1992 by com
munity activist Harshad K. Shah,
will feature 25 speakers, includ
ing several from the mainstream
community. Shah first arrived in
the US in 1955 when he hardly
found a vegetarian restaurant in
New York and went back to
India in time. But, returning in
1975, he decided to stay back.
We are glad to celebrate the
silver jubilee of our organization.
It has changed over the years.
Organizers and guests at the convention kickoff on July 14 at the Indian Consulate in New York.
Now it is veganism, he said in his
brief remarks. If everybody
decides to stop eating meat, one
day all slaughterhouses will be
closed.
Chandra Mehta, the current
president, spoke about the bene
fits of plantbased diets on
human health and the effects on
the environment and global
warming. Other speakers point
ed to China cutting down on
meat production by up to 15% by
2030; President Barack Obama
being greeted with a variety of
vegetarian dishes during his
India visit over a year ago; and
how a personal visit to a slaugh
terhouse will make one become a
vegetarian for life.
There are 50 food festivals
held each year in New York City.
During the upcoming $1m con
vention, 70 vendors will display
and sell their products a vast
variety of vegetarian foods. Yoga
will form a part of the program in
a funfilled atmosphere.
Vegetarian Vision has held two
conventions before. The upcom
ing one is expected to be the
largest such gathering. They also
hold annually a turkeyfree vege
tarian dinner, Mr and Mrs
USA foundation
Kolkata: Ajit
Jain, a
Kharagpur
Indian
Institute of
Technology
alumnus and
President of
Berkshire
Hathaway
Vegetarian pageants, essay con
Insurance
tests, yoga and health sessions,
group, has
cruises and cooking demonstra
donated
tions. They also work with air
stocks of the
lines, restaurants, educational
company to
institutions and animalprotec
IITKGP USA
tion groups. The Hoboken, NJ IIT Kharagpur alumnus
Foundation
based organization is thus a vege Ajit Jain
for his alma
tarian think tank. There are 12
mater, the institute said on Thursday.
13% vegetarians in the US and
Jain graduated with B.Tech. in Mechanical
among the youth the percentage
Engineering from the IIT in 1972, and moved
goes up to 18%. The number is
to the United State six years later and earned
steadily rising, the organizers
an MBA from the Harvard University.
report. In India 4243% of the
He then held various positions at top man
population is vegetarian, Indian
agement consultancy McKinsey & Co., before
Minister Prakash Javadekar once
joining Berkshire Hathaway in 1986. (IANS)
told Parliament.
6 July 22-28, 2017 TRISTATE COMMUNITY TheSouthAsianTimes.info

IN BRIEF
Malini Rudra wins Jr Girls 2017 South Asian Spelling Bee Bay
Open Golf Championship Area & Dallas winners announced

Malini with the trophy. (right) Teeing off in style Bay Area winners with Rahul Walia,
founder, South Asian Spelling Bee Dallas winners

M
alini Rudra a rising junior at Syos ment Malini stood Runners Up at the Nas
set High School on Long Island sau County Girls Varsity Championship held

won the 91st Junior Girls Open
Championship held July 11th at Forest Hill
Field CC, Bloomfield, NJ. This is the oldest
junior girls tournament in the US organized
by the Women's Metropolitan Golf Associa
tion.
Besides winning this prestigious tourna
earlier this year and had a top 10 finish at
the NYS Public High School Championship
held at Bethpage State park Yellow course.
Besides golf which is her passion, she is a
state ranked high school debater and aca
demically has maintained A+ in all her sub
jects for the past five years at her school.
C
ontinuing its quest for the best speller
in the community, the 2017 South
Asian Spelling Bee travelled to Califor
nia last week and Texas this past weekend
with stops in the Bay Area and Dallas. With a
huge turnout this year as well, the Bee at
tracted some top talent as well as young and
new spellers that competed for the coveted
prizes and titles.
Emaad Sohail (12) of Bakersfield, California,
was second runner up.
At a hotly contested Bee in Dallas, Pranav
Chemudupaty (13) from Pearland, Texas
bagged the regional champ, and for the first
time in be South Asian Spelling Bee history
Pavani Chittemsetty (11) from Bentonville,
Arkansas and Abhijay Kodali (10) from High
land Village, Texas were declared cofirst

Registration opens for free civics In the Bay Area Regional, Rutvik Gandhas
ri (13) of San Jose, California was the region
runnerups.
The top two spellers of each regional com

classes for naturalization exam al champ, Rishik Gandhasri (11) of San Jose,
California, was the first runner up, and
petition will advance to the finals to be held
in New Jersey in August.

T
he NewYork Historical Society now
offers free civics classes for green
card holders on the path to Ameri
can citizenship. The 33hour course pre
pares permanent residents for the civics
test portion of the United States Citizen
ship and Immigration Services (USCIS)
naturalization process.
lon Foundation, and in partnership with
CUNY Citizenship Now!
Registration is now open for courses
this summer: July 24 September 20,
Mondays and Wednesdays, 6 8 pm; July
Americares responds
25 September 19, Tuesdays and Thurs
days, 6 8 pm; August 12 September 9,
to Assam Floods
Saturdays, 8:30 am 5 pm; September 6

The interactive course covers the 100
questions on the USCIS Civics Test. Partic
ipants will explore the Museum and learn
about American history and government
using objects, paintings, and documents
from the NewYork Historical Society col
lection. The Citizenship Project is made
possible by generous grants from the
Ford Foundation and the Andrew W. Mel
IHCNJ to hold annual health fair on
Aug 13 at Princeton Durga Mandir
n Sunday, August 13th from 8:30
October 4, Wednesdays and Fridays, 9
am 1 pm. Information sessions are pro
vided in English and Spanish every
Wednesday, 68pm; every Thursday,
10am12pm; the second and fourth Satur
day every month, 10am12pm.
To register for an information session and to
learn more, visit: http://nyhistory.org/edu
cation/citizenshipproject
The health fair will be open to all prereg
A
mericares India has deployed medical
teams to treat survivors of severe
flooding in the state of Assam. More
than 700 villages in 26 of Assams 32 dis
tricts have been damaged due to flooding
caused by heavy rainfall. Incessant rains in
recent weeks have disrupted normal life
and have inundated thousands of acres of
agricultural land. The flooding has caused
landslides, blocked highways and damaged
roads and bridges. Without access to safe
drinking water, sanitation and health care Americares volunteer examines patients
facilities, the health of hundreds of thou at a health camp in Nowbaicha Block,
Assam, on July 16th.
sands of people is at risk.
Americares has emergency response Shripad Desai, Americares India managing
teams working in two of Assams worst hit director. Dysentery, skin infections and

O
a.m. to 1 p.m., a health screening
and disease awareness and preven
tion fair will be held at Durga Mandir on
4240 Route 27, Princeton, NJ 08540. The
health fair will be organized by the Indian
Health Camp of New Jersey in collabora
tion with Durga Mandir. Indian Health
Camp of New Jersey will hold this health
camp for the fifth consecutive year at this
location in South Brunswick township.
districtsKarimgunj and Lakhimpur. Doc waterborne diseases are a major issue. We
istered participants above the age of 40
tors and medical volunteers are providing are focused on meeting survivors most im
who are uninsured or underinsured. The
primary care in floodaffected areas mediate health needs. Each year, Ameri
health screening will include blood test,
through health camps in remote villages. cares reaches more than 90 countries and
EKG, physical and dental exams and men
Americares plans to treat approximately all 50 U.S. states with over $600 million in
tal health screening and counseling, vi
4,000 patients through these health camps. innovative health programs and quality
sion screening for glaucoma and diabetic
Additionally, relief will be provided medical aid. Americares is the worlds lead
retinopathy, cardiology and physical ther
through the distribution of health and hy ing nonprofit provider of donated medicine
apy counseling, various types of cancer
giene kits. The heavy rains have height and medical supplies. For more informa
screening and prevention education,
ened health concerns in the state, said tion, visit americares.org.
chronic disease self management.
TheSouthAsianTimes.info NATIONAL COMMUNITY July 22-28, 2017 7

Security, counterterrorism key to

strengthen IndiaUS ties: Gabbard
militarytomilitary engage
ment and exercises between
US and India exceeds any other
partner in the region and it is
only continuing to grow," the
Hawaiian Democrat said at
a FicciIIFA Global
Business Forum here on
Friday.
Gabbard, the rst
Hindu elected to the
US Congresswoman Tulsi Gabbard
Congress, was in conver
New York: A stronger partnership sation with the Indian
in dealing with counterterrorism envoy to the US, Navtej Sarna, at
will give an impetus to IndiaUS the event.
relations, US Congresswoman Tulsi They discussed Prime Minister
Gabbard has said. "The number of Narendra Modi's visit to the US
last month to meet President
Donald Trump and how opportuni
ties must be explored to further
strengthen ties between the two
countries.
Stressing the need to boost
counterterrorism, Gabbard said:
"There is a recognition of the bene
t to continuing to strengthen the
partnership and engagement, to
ensure the countries are stable and
that we deal with unconventional
counterterror threats together...
Because then we will be stronger."
Sarna pointed out at the ongoing
Malabar joint naval exercise, which
is aimed at enhancing interoper
ability between the navies of India,
US and Japan. "Aircraft carriers
from India and US are exercising
together with submarines. This
year, India has been designated as
a major defence partner by the
US... We need to ght this together,
and we appreciate the personal
reactions we got on the recent
attack on pilgrims in India," he
added.
Gabbard also said there's still a
lot of excitement in Washington
around Modi's visit.
"For those of us on the IndiaUS
Caucus and those who have been
working on IndiaUS partnership
for years, everyone is saying it that
these are the most exciting times
for friendship between both the
countries.
She mentioned that economic
partnerships were ourishing and
so too were relationships in tech
nology, education, culture and the
Arts. Sarna appreciated how the
support for IndiaUS engagement
is "bipartisan and across the politi
cal spectrum." He even said that
during Modi's visit to meet Trump,
they "hit it off in terms of under
standing, engaging each other and
listening to each other's concerns."
(IANS)

Indian students worry about Subra Suresh, to head

physical safety in US: Survey
Washington, DC: Indian students have a "high
level of concern" about potential study in the
US and a large number of them worry about
their physical safety and about the feeling of
being welcomed, according to a new survey.
The Institute of International Education (IIE)
suggested that the nal outcome of the US
Supreme Court order in June that temporarily
upheld President Donald Trump's executive
order to restrict entry of nationals from six
Muslim majority countries, weighs on their
mind. With over a million international stu
dents pursuing higher education in the US and
contributing more than $36 billion to the
American economy, the stakes are high, it said.
Founded in 1919, the IIE is a USbased not
forprot working to build peaceful and equi
table societies by advancing scholarship, build
ing economies and promoting access to oppor
tunity. It focuses on International Student
Exchange and Aid, Foreign Affairs, and
International Peace and Security.
The IIE said that the survey results indicate
the highest level of institutional concern
regarding enrollment of students from the
Middle East, followed by India. Thirtyone per
cent of institutions are very concerned that
Middle Eastern students who have accepted
offers of admissions may not arrive on campus
in the fall, and 20 per cent are very concerned
that Indian students may not arrive on cam
pus, it said. "This uncertainty raises valid con
cerns as to whether students from the Middle
East may be deterred from US study," it said.
"Securing and maintaining a visa is reported
as the top concern among these students and
Securing and maintaining a visa is
reported as the top concern among
these students and was reported by
46 per cent of institutions, while
feeling welcome in the United
States was an almost equal
concern, with 41 per cent of
institutions noting so from their
conversations with students.
was reported by 46 per cent of institutions,
while feeling welcome in the United States was
an almost equal concern, with 41 per cent of
institutions noting so from their conversations
with students," it added.
According to the IIE, survey ndings suggest
that Indian students "have a high level of con
cern about potential study in the United States,
80 per cent of institutions responded that
physical safety was the most pronounced con
cern for Indian students, while 31 per cent of
institutions indicated that feeling welcome was
also a concern.
Indian students may not continue to grow
as the second largest international group in US
higher education," IIE said.
"Their concerns may lead some Indian stu
dents to accept admissions offers from other
leading host countries, especially from those
that issue student visas more quickly."
According to the study, there is however lit
tle concern about students from Europe and
Canada arriving on campus in the fall and only
modest concern about students' arrival from
China and Latin America. (PTI)
Singapore's NTU
Singapore: Subra Suresh, well as those in North
an eminent Indianorigin America, Europe, China and
scientist in the US was on India, having actively
Thursday named as the engaged with various public
president of Singapore's and private agencies and
prestigious Nanyang boards, and as a member of a
Technological University. number of national acade
Suresh, 61, will begin mies of science and engi
his term as the fourth neering. He is an educator,
president of the NTU on scientist, advisor, inventor,
January 1, 2018, taking entrepreneur and leader all
over from current presi rolled into one," Koh said.
dent Bertil Andersson. Subra Suresh Suresh is considered one of
Prof Suresh joins NTU the most distinguished scien
from Carnegie Mellon University (CMU) tists in the US, if not the world. He was
where he was president for the last four chosen by former US President Barack
years. Chairman of the NTU Board of Obama to serve as Director of the
Trustees, Koh Boon Hwee (Chairman of National Science Foundation, the agency
Agilent Technologies, Inc, former charged with advancing science and engi
Chairman of both Singapore Airlines and neering research and education in the US
DBS Bank), announced Prof Suresh's between 2010 and 2013. His undergradu
appointment in an email to NTU faculty, ate degree was from the Indian Institute
staff, students and alumni this afternoon, of Technology, Madras in Chennai. In
the NTU said in a statement. "The succes 2013, he was elected to the National
sion planning started last year and in line Academy of Medicine in the US. He is also
with international best practices of uni a member of the National Academy of
versities, NTU had conducted a global Sciences and the National Academy of
search for its next president in Singapore Engineering, making him one of the only
and internationally. The eightmember 19 American scientists to be elected to all
search committee chaired by Koh unani three branches. He also holds the distinc
mously selected Prof Suresh for the top tion of being the rst Asianborn profes
role at NTU, and his appointment has sor to have served as engineering dean of
been strongly endorsed by all members of the famed Massachusetts Institute of
the NTU Board of Trustees," the statement Technology, where he attained his doctor
said. ate in science. In 2011, Suresh was hon
"Prof Suresh understands the Singapore ored with the Padma Shri by the President
higher education and research systems, as of India. (PTI)
 8 July 22-28, 2017 NATIONAL COMMUNITY TheSouthAsianTimes.info

Poster of 'Gandhi's Memorabalia' launched

New Delhi: The makers of award
winning 2016 lm 'Mantostaan'
have come up with another proj
ect, titled 'Gandhis Memorabalia',
that will tell various unknown
aspects of Mahatma Gandhis life
along with 'indepth analysis' of
his work. The poster of the lm
was launched on Monday.
"The main aim behind this lm
is to showcase various sides of
Mahatma Gandhi. We want to tell
all his ideologies not only nonvi
olence which most lmmakers
talk about. We will tell his
thoughts behind whatever he did.
It's an indepth analysis of his
life," Dr. Bhanu Pratap Singh,
who will direct the lm.
"I have received various hon
work. This lm will be made with
an unbiased approach. It's an
unbiased lm," he added.
The poster of the lm, without
giving any details about the lm,
just showcases a sketch of
Mahatma Gandhi. The director
said he has gone through
Gandhi's autobiography 'The
Story of My Experiments with
Truth' for the lm, which will go
on oors in upcoming weeks and
will be shot across various loca
(Image courtesy: newsx.com)
tions in India.
ors, including Limca Book of The IndianAmerican copro
Records and Guinness World duction will showcase how
Records, for my collections on Victoria (played by Daria
Gandhi. I have done Ph.D. in Kosheleva) comes to India from
Gandhian thoughts. I am not a London, meets Singh, and learns
follower, I do analysis of his ideology of Gandhi.
"Daria belongs to Russia and
lives in the US. When we did our
collaboration with a producer
there, then I met Daria. The lm
will show how a foreigner gets
attracted towards an Indian
(Gandhi) and his ideologies,"
Singh said. "Daria doesn't know
anything about India not even
Amitabh Bachchan and Shah
Rukh Khan. So, that's why we
chose her as she is totally dumb
about India. She will be able to
act better this way. We will show
case Gandhi through photo
graphs in the lm," he added.
The trailer of 'Gandhi's
Memorabalia' will be released on
October 2 on the occasion of
Gandhi Jayanti, while the lm
will be released in India and the
US on January 30, 2018.
While 'Gandhi's Memorabalia'
is a lowbudget project and is
being eyed for a release in '300
400 screens in India', Singh said
that he is planning a big budget
lm on Gandhi, which will be
released in 2019 on his 150th
birth anniversary. "Through
'Gandhi's Memorabalia' we want
to gain audiences' condence
and prove that we have knowl
edge about Mahatma Gandhi.
After this one, we will make the
lm 'Gandhi and his Thoughts'
it will be a high budget lm and
will be shot in India as well as
South Africa," Singh said.
(IANS)

Dr. Manu Vora conferred AIBA Indian, IndianAmerican plead

lifetime achievement award
LR: Raman Sidhu, Manoj Sinha, Panna Lal Jaiswal, Dr. R.P. Singh, and Deepak
Pahwa (Inset) Manu K. Vora
Naperville, Ill: The Association of IIT BHU
Alumni (AIBA), Delhi at their 10th IIT BHU
Alumni Awards of Excellence Program
bestowed a lifetime achievement award on
Dr. Manu K. Vora at a glittering ceremony
organized at the PHD Chamber of Commerce,
New Delhi, India. The Ceremony was graced
by Dr. R. P. Singh, Secretary General, Quality
Council of India and Manoj Sinha (IIT BHU
Alumnus), Minister of State, Railways and
Minister, Department of
Telecommunications, Ministry of
Communications. The award was conferred
for Dr. Vora's 28 years of dedicated service to
Blind Foundation for India, USA. Panna Lal
Jaiswal (92 years of age, 1946 Botany, BHU
Alumnus) accepted the honor on Dr. Vora's
behalf. There were 275 plus people attending
and celebrating: Alumni, Awardees, IIT BHU
Faculty, and Jury Members.
For over 47 years Dr Vora has dedicated his
life to community service. In 1989, under his
leadership, the Blind Foundation for India
(BFI) was established to serve over 15 million
visually impaired people in India which
accounts for one third of the world's blind
population.
BFI team has raised over $4 million to sup
port 175,000 free Cataract operations, dis
tributed over 10,000 Braille Kits to blind chil
dren for their education, donated 122 mobile
vans for transporting eye doctors and
patients, and examined over 750,000 school
children for their eye sight and provided nec
essary interventions (http://www.blindfoun
dation.org). So far, over one million adults in
India have their eyesight checked through
BFI.
Dr. Vora has made major contributions in
Social Responsibility area. For over 24 years,
Dr. Vora as an Adjunct Professor has taught
Operations Management courses globally. He
is afliated with over 80 educational institu
tions around the world. He has taught over
10,000 people globally through academic
teaching and executive training.
guilty in call center scam
Washington, DC: An Indian national
and an IndianAmerican man pleaded
guilty to charges of conspiracy behind
their roles in a massive telephone
impersonation and money laundering
fraud in the US perpetrated by India
based call centers.
Montu Barot, 30, an Indian national
residing in Illinois and Indian
American Nilesh Pandya, 54, of Texas,
pleaded guilty to one count each of
conspiracy to commit fraud and money
laundering offences, the US
Department of Justice said on
Wednesday.
Along with the two men, 54 other
individuals and ve Indiabased call
centers were charged in the fraud.
Including this week's pleas, a total of
13 defendants have pleaded guilty so
far in this case. Codefendants
Bharatkumar Patel, Ashvinbhai
Chaudhari, Harsh Patel, Nilam Parikh,
Hardik Patel, Rajubhai Patel, Viraj
Patel, Dilipkumar A. Patel, Fahad Ali,
Bhavesh Patel and Asmitaben Patel
previously pleaded guilty between
April and July 2017.
According to admissions made in the
case, Barot, Pandya and their cocon
spirators perpetrated a scheme in
which individuals from call centers
located in Ahmedabad impersonated
ofcials from the Internal Revenue
Service and US Citizenship and
Immigration Services and engaged in
telephone call scams, in a ruse
designed to defraud victims located
throughout the US. Using information
obtained from data brokers and other
sources, call center operators targeted
US victims who were threatened with
arrest, imprisonment, nes or deporta
tion if they did not pay alleged monies
owed to the government.
Victims who agreed to pay the scam
mers were instructed how to provide
payment, including by purchasing
stored value cards or wiring money.
Upon payment, the call centers would
immediately turn to a network of "run
ners" based in the US to liquidate and
launder the fraudulentlyobtained
funds, the Department of Justice said.
Barot communicated via phone, text
and email in furtherance of the crimi
nal scheme with both domestic and
Indiabased associates.
He and his conspirators used reload
able cards containing funds derived
from victims by scam callers to pur
chase money orders and deposit them
into various bank accounts as directed,
in return for cash payments or com
missions.
Barot also admitted to sending nan
cial ledgers to his conspirators, detail
ing the movement of scam victim
funds. According to the report, Pandya
served as a runner liquidating victim
scam funds within the southern district
of Texas.
At the direction of two of his co
defendants, Pandya used stored value
cards that had been loaded with victim
funds to buy money orders and then
deposit them into various bank
accounts. (IANS)
TheSouthAsianTimes.info NATIONAL COMMUNITY July 22-28, 2017 9

NY Consulate screens docufilm on Maharaja

who was Oskar Schindler to 1000 Polish kids
Documentary Little Poland in India chronicles the seless rescue of Jewish and Christian kids during WWII
New York: The elegant ballroom of
the Indian consulate general in New
York hosted a special event on June
29th which brought two communi
ties, Indians and Jews, together to
witness a hitherto unknown chapter
of history, captured in a documen
tary lm called Little Poland in
India. The doculm, which had a
special screening in New York with
the support of the Indian consulate
general and the American Jewish
Committee, looks back to the dark
chapter of history during World
War II when Hitlers deadly war
machinery rolled over Europe,
spreading terror and destruction on
the continent.
Orphaned Polish children Jews
and Catholics alike faced an
uncertain future, but in the midst of
the gloom a ray of hope appeared
when a kindhearted Maharaja in a
princely state in Gujarat agreed to
accept the Polish children and look
after them.
The emotionally charged subject
of children nding refuge in an
Maharaja Digvijaysinhji Ranjitsinhji Jadeja, also known as Jam Sahib
with some of the Polish children (Image courtesy: thebetterindia.com)
alien culture is deftly handled in
Little Poland in India, produced by
enterprising Delhibased female
Indian lmmaker Anu Radha whose
lms generally deal with childrens
issues. As the horrors of the
Holocaust and WWII unfolded in
Europe, General Wadysaw Sikorski
the rst prime minister of the
Polish Government in Exile and
Commander in Chief of the Polish
armed forces wrote to British
Director Anu Radha
(Image : timesofisrael.com)
prime minister Winston Churchill to sulate in Bombay at the time had
plead for the safety and protection launched a drive to raise awareness
of the starving young children, the in India about Jewish refugees, and
treasure of Poland, as he called had been arranging for their travel
them. Though India was in the to India during the Holocaust.
midst of an independence struggle A group of about 1,000 Polish
against colonial British rule and children departed for India in 1942
faced a famine, the Jam Sahib as from Siberia, where, lost and
Maharaja Digvijaysinhji Ranjitsinhji orphaned in the midst of death and
Jadeja of Nawanagar was affection destruction caused by WWII, they
ately called, stepped in to help in had been shifted after the 1939
the dire situation. The Polish con Soviet invasion of Poland. The chil
dren were welcomed by their bene
factor, the Jam Sahib, but only after
a tortuous journey.
The ships carrying Polish
refugees from the former Soviet
Union, including a large number of
children aged two through 17, were
denied entry when they called on
ports while sailing through Iran to
Bombay (Mumbai), then under
British colonial rule. When the
Maharaja, who was a member of the
Imperial War Council, made aware
of the plight of the children in the
gulags, he became concerned and
established a camp in Balachadi,
about 25 km (15 miles) from the
capital city Jamnagar, for the Polish
arrivals. The camp existed until
early 1946; subsequently, the chil
dren were transferred to the
Valivade camp in Kolhapur. The lm
was jointly produced by
Doordashan (Indias state TV chan
nel), the Government of Gujarat and
the National AudioVisual Institute
and Polish TV.
(News source: timesosrael.com)
 10 July 22-28, 2017 US AFFAIRS TheSouthAsianTimes.info

TrumpTimes: Don't say dasvidaniya yet, Donnie!

By Arun Kumar him for such an oath. "And I sure as heck
didn't offer one."

W hen Narendra Modi came calling,

Donald Trump "conspired" with his
"true friend" from India to keep the big
Russian bear at bay.
But no such luck for POTUS in Paris where
it followed him like Mary's little lamb. As he
and the French President Emmanuel Macron
emerged after talking about climate pact,
Syria and terrorism, media hounds ha d only
one thing on their minds Russia.
Was Trump's nominee to replace the fired
FBI chief James Comey "wrong" to suggest
that instead of meeting a Russian lawyer
promising dirt on his rival Hillary Clinton,
Don Jr. should have alerted the FBI about it,
shot one.
How "very proud" was he of his choice of
an accomplished lawyer like Christopher
Wray who he believed would be a "great FBI
director", reflected Trump with a masterly
display of the art of deflection.
And "most people would have taken that
meeting" like his son, "a wonderful young
man", did to get some "opposition research,
or even research into your opponent".
"Honestly," the press had made a "very big
deal" about a "very short meeting" at Trump
Tower last year where "zero happened",
asserted Trump, echoing his son.
Macron declined to "interfere in US domes
tic policy" to the delight of Trump, who
could not help interjecting amid laughter,
"What a good answer that was".
But noting France has "a longstanding
relationship with Russia as well", Macron
thought "it's important that both of us have
direct discussion and contact" with Russian
Trump has dismissed his campaigns collusion with Russia as the greatest witch
hunt in political history. But the media appears to be in no mood to say
dasvidaniya to Putin anytime soon! (Photo courtesy Reuters)
President Vladimir Putin.
Back in Washington, pundits talked their
heads off about how Trump had contradict
ed his own FBI nominee and how junior
Don's email chain about the meeting had
brought the Russia story right at the White
House door.
Democrats crying "smoking gun" demand
ed revocation of the security clearance of
Trump's soninlaw Jared Kushner, who too
had briefly sat in on the meeting.
Kushner, they insinuated, had amended his
security clearance form to acknowledge the
meeting only after Don Jr. was caught "Red
Handed", as the Time titled its cover story.
Flying into Paris, Trump had talked at
length about from North Korea to Syria to
healthcare to his big beautiful wall on the
border with Mexico and his "good relation
ship" with all the other 19 members of G20 "
Modi you saw that".
Yet the "failing New York Times", as the
POTUS loves to call it, chose to focus on how
"Trump backed off Putin" over Russia's med
dling in the 2016 US presidential election
after two denials because as he had joked,
"What do you do? End up in a fistfight?"
Wray himself told a Senate panel that
unlike Comey, who claimed that Trump had
demanded a loyalty pledge, no one asked
And on Trump calling the Russia probe as
the "greatest political witch hunt in history",
Wray parried. He did not consider Special
Counsel, former FBI director Robert "Mueller
to be on a witch hunt". And if the President
asked him to drop an investigation or do
something unethical or unlawful, he assert
ed: "First, I would try to talk him out of it,
and if that failed, I would resign."
In contrast, in similar circumstances,
Comey had simply gone home to write a
memo that he gleefully leaked after he was
fired, ostensibly for mishandling the Clinton
email scandal probe. As the chatterati relent
lessly searched for something to hang Don
Jr. for, most legal luminaries saw no crime in
his meeting with a Russian lawyer even in
the "worst case scenario".
Harvard Law School professor emeritus
Alan Dershowitz, for one, affirmed: "You are
allowed legally to use material that was
obtained illegally" by someone else.
"That's what the New York Times did with
the Pentagon Papers, that's what the
Washington Post" and others did with infor
mation leaked by two whistleblowers, he
pointed out.
"If Russia actually did whatever they want
to do, they got to be laughing," declared
Trump, noting "how much time" the media
had spent on what he again dismissed as a
"witch hunt" that was "bad for the country".
But with Putin keeping their pot boiling
the media appears to be in no mood to say
dasvidaniya to him anytime soon!
Arun Kumar writes for IANS from
Washington DC.

Democrats colluded Trump administration

with Ukraine during
2016 election: Spicer
Washington DC: White House Press
Secretary Sean Spicer has accused the
Democrats of "collusion" with Ukraine
during the 2016 presidential election.
Spicer's comments on Monday were
likely based on a January report by
Politico on how some Ukrainian gov
ernment officials sought to help
Hillary Clinton and hurt Donald
Trump, who they viewed as too friend
ly with their "hostile" neighbor Russia,
the Washington Free Beacon news por
tal reported.
The Politico report went on to say
that a UkrainianAmerican operative
who was consulting for the
Democratic National Committee (DNC)
"met top officials in the Ukrainian
Embassy in Washington in an effort to
expose ties between Trump, top cam
paign aide Paul Manafort and Russia".
Manafort resigned from the Trump
campaign in August 2016.
Spicer was asked whether Ukraine
President Petro Poroshenko had dis
cussed making amends for "their
efforts to undermine Trump's cam
paign" when the two leaders met last
month, the news portal reported.
"There's been a lot more interest in
recent days with respect to what the
DNC did in coordination with the
Ukrainian government to try to collude
and achieve a goal of having someone
removed, which ultimately did hap
pen," Spicer said.
"I don't know whether that came up
with the President ... I know that story
and the DNC's collusion with the
Ukrainian government has definitely
gotten a lot more attention since that
meeting, so I'm not sure that it was
necessarily topical at the time," he
said. US Representative Adam Schiff
said that Democrats getting help of
any kind from the Ukrainians was not
"appropriate", and added that the
efforts on their behalf did not compare
to the Kremlin campaign to help
Trump.
Spicer's use of the word "collusion"
was in reference to the ongoing inves
tigation into whether the Trump cam
paign colluded with the Russians to
interfere in the 2016 election and hurt
Clinton's candidacy.
unveils NAFTA
renegotiating goals
Washington DC: President Donald Trump's
administration has unveiled its goals for
renegotiating the North American Free
Trade Agreement (NAFTA), issuing a plan for
how it hopes to rewrite trade terms and
transform the American economy, the media
reported. The administration sent a docu
ment on Monday to the Congress that con
tained a broad list of objectives, including
some goals that have been specically cham
pioned by the President, as well as numer
ous provisions that echo the Trans Pacic
Partnership (TPP), an Obamaera trade
agreement that Trump has disparaged,
reports The Washington Post.
It said the aim is to improve market access
for US manufacturing, agriculture and serv
ices in the threenation deal.
US Trade Representative (USTR) Robert
Lighthizer said an updated agreement will
include a digital economy chapter and will
fold labor and environment obligations,
which have remained outside the main
agreement, into a nal deal, reports The Hill
magazine. Lighthizer said the US will work to
eliminate "unfair subsidies, marketdistort
ing practices by stateowned enterprises"
and will improve intellectual property pro
tections.
"Too many Americans have been hurt by
closed factories, exported jobs and broken
political promises," Lighthizer said in a state
ment. "Under President Trump's leadership,
USTR will negotiate a fair deal."
Talks are expected to start in about a
month.
Trump has called NAFTA the "worst deal
ever" and has threatened to leave the agree
ment.
The combined goods and services trade
decit with Mexico was $55.6 billion in
2016. The US decit in goods was $63.2 bil
lion last year, while the services surplus for
the US was $7.6 billion in 2016.
The US has a $12.5 billion goods and serv
ices surplus with Canada.
The U.S. goods trade decit with Canada
was $12.1 billion in 2016 while the US serv
ices trade surplus was $24.6 billion last
year.
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
Republicans divided, pushed
by Trump on healthcare fix
Washington: Republicans in the
US Congress were in chaos over
health care legislation after a sec
ond attempt to pass a Bill in the
Senate collapsed late on Monday,
with President Donald Trump call
ing for an outrig ht repeal of
Obamacare and others seeking a
change in direction toward bipar
tisanship.
Regretfully, it is now apparent
that the e f fort to repeal and
immediately replace the failure of
Obamacare will not be success
ful, Senate Majority Leader Mitch
McConnell said in a statement.
Two of McConnells Senate con
servatives announced just hours
earlier that they would not sup
port the Republican leaders latest
version of legislation to repeal
port ions of President Barack
Obamas landmark 2010 health
care law and replace them with
new, less costly health care provi
sions. With Republican Senators
Mike Lee and Jerry Moran joining
Trump Jr. to testify
over Russian
election meddling
Washington: Donald Trump Jr.,
the President's eldest son, is slat
ed to testify before a Senate judi
ciary committee on July 26 over
alleged Russian meddling in the
2016 election, the media report
ed. Donald Trump's former cam
paign manager Paul J. Manafort
will also testify alongside Trump
Jr. whereas the President's son
inlaw and senior adviser Jared
Kushner will appear earlier on
July 24, the committee panel
announced on Wednesday.
However, a source told CNN
that Kushner's testimony would
be behind closed doors.
"As Mr. Kushner has been say
ing since March, he has been and
is prepared to voluntarily coop
erate and provide whatever
information he has on the inves
t ig at ions to Cong ress," his
lawyer Abbe Lowell said late
Wednesday in response to the
panel's announcement.
"Working w ith and being
responsive to the schedules of
the committees, we have
arranged Mr. Kushner's inter
view with the Senate for July 24.
He will continue to cooperate
and appreciates the opportunity
to assist in putting this matter to
rest."
Earlier this wee k, Senator
Dianne Feinstein, the top
Democrat on the Senate judici
Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnel is trying to get all his caucus
on board. (Photo courtesy CNN)
Senators Susan Collins and Rand
Paul in opposition and amid a
solid wall of opposition from
Demo crats McConne ll no
longer had enough votes to pass a
Republican health care Bill in the
100member Senate.
It was the latest in a series of
health care setbacks for
Donald Trump Jr appeared on
Foix to defend his
meeting with Russian lawyer
ary committee, said that Justice
Department Special Counse l
Robert Mueller had signed of f
on the committee's request to
interview Manafort and Trump
Jr. in public, CNN reported. The
committee wants to hear from
Trump Jr. about a June 2016
meeting he had with a Russian
attorney Natalia Veselnitskaya
purported to have damaging
information about his father's
Democratic opponent, Hillary
Clinton. Trump Jr. said that
Veselnitskaya turned out not to
have any informat ion about
Clinton.
US AFFAIRS
Republicans, despite their control
of both chambers of Congress and
the White House.
On Wednesday, President
Trump met GOP senators for
lunch at the White House and
exhorted them to repeal and pass
replacement of Obamacare.
(Source: Reuters)
TRUMPS TRAVEL BAN GETS
MORE COURT SUPPORT
Washington: T he US Supreme
Court ruled on Wednesday that
while President Trump's adminis
trat ion can cont inue to bar
refugees from entering the coun
try, of ficials will have to show
greater flexibility in enforcing the
accompanying ban on travelers
from six Muslimmajority coun
tries. The Justice Department had
asked the high court to stay an
order issued last week by a federal
district judge in Hawaii who found
the administration's definition of
close family in allowing exemp
tions to the travel ban was too nar
row, Efe reported.
US District Judge Derrick Watson
also said that the government
could not prohibit entry by
refugees assured of placement in
Kremlin comments on Trump-Putin dinner meeting
Moscow: President Trump and his
Russian counterpart, Vladimir Putin
discussed the adoption of Russian
children by US citizens at the G20
summit in Hamburg, Germany, the
Kremlin said on Thursday.
I confirm that this issue was dis
cussed. Nothing to add, Kremlin
spokesman Dmitry Peskov was
quoted as saying by Tass news
agency. The spokesman denied that
the Dima Yakovlev Law, which bans
US citizens from adopting Russian
orphans, will be revoked, saying
no, it wasnt mentioned. The law,
which Putin signed in December
2012, was widely seen as retalia
Senator McCain
diagnosed with
brain cancer
Washington: Senior US Senator
John McCain is suffering from
brain cancer, his office said on
Wednesday. It was found that
he has brain cancer after he
underwent surgery last week to
remove a blood clot above his
left eye.
Sen. John McCain underwent
a procedure to remove a blood
clot from above his left eye at
Mayo Clinic Hospital in
Phoenix, AZ. Subsequent tissue
pathology revealed that a pri
mary brain tumor known as a
glioblastoma was associated
with the blood clot, read the
statement.
The 80yearold John McCain
was the Republican nominee in
the 2008 presidential election.
He retired from the Navy as a
captain in 1981 and moved to
Arizona, where he entered poli
tics. The Senators doctors say
the US by recognized re fugee
agencies.
The Supreme Court sided with
the Justice Department on the
refugee question, staying that por
tion of Watson's decision, but they
supported the district judge's find
ing on the government's exemp
tion criteria.
More broadly, the nine justices
declined to rule definitively on the
Trump administration's appeal of
Watson's ruling, insisting that the
case would have to follow the
usual course through the federal
appellate courts. Last month, the
Supreme Court set aside injunc
tions issued by federal appellate
courts and said that portions of
Trump's March 6 executive order
could take ef fect. That document
tion to the US Magnitsky Act, which
imposed visa bans and asset freezes
on Russian officials believed to be
responsible for the death of Russian
lawyer Sergei Magnitsky, who died
in a Moscow jail in 2009 after he
accused officials of tax fraud.
The US media reported earlier
this week that Putin and Trump had
an undisclosed dinner in addition to
a twohour official meeting on the
side lines of the G20 summit.
However, Peskov said that it was
not a second, undisclosed meeting
between the Russian and US
Presidents, but just a talk between
the leaders at a dinner for the dele
July 22-28, 2017 11
War hero and Arizona Senator,
John McCain
he is recovering from his sur
gery amazingly well and his
underlying health is excellent,
McCains office said.
President Donald Trump also
released a statement: Senator
John McCain has always been a
fighter. Melania and I send our
thoug hts and prayers to
Senator McCain, Cindy, and
their entire family. Get well
soon.
barred citizens of Iran, Libya,
Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen
from entering the US for 90 days
and excluded all refugees for 120
days. But in allowing the order to
take ef fect, the Supreme Court
said that the travel restrictions
could not be applied to people
with "a credible claim of a bona
fide relationship" with a person or
entity in the United States.
Under the Trump administration
guidelines, spouses, parents, par
entsinlaw, children, sonsinlaw
and daughtersinlaw, fiances and
siblings of those already in the
country can be admitted. But
g randparents, g randchildren,
aunts, uncles, nieces, nephews,
cousins, brothersinlaw and sis
tersinlaw are excluded.
gations heads.
The White House also said that
there had been no second meeting
and it was just a brief conversa
tion over dinner.
Fake News story of secret dinner
with Putin is sick, Trump tweeted
on Wednesday. Shortly after that,
he tweeted: Even a dinner arranged
for top 20 leaders in Germany is
made to look sinister!
Earlier Trump said in an interview
with the New York Times that he
had discussed the adoption of
Russian children by US citizens with
his Russian counterpart at the din
ner in Hamburg.
 12 July 22-28, 2017 INDIA TheSouthAsianTimes.info

Ram Nath Kovind is new President of India

New Delhi: National Democratic
Alliance (NDA) candidate Ram
Nath Kovind was on July 20 elect
ed as the new President of India,
securing a massive margin over his
United Progressive Alliance (UPA)
rival Meira Kumar in a straight
fight.
In an electoral college of 4,986
voters w ith a vote value of
10,98,903, Kovind got 2,930 votes
carrying a value of 7,00,244, while
the former Lok Sabha Speaker
secured 1,844 votes with a value
of 3,67,314.
While Kovind got 65.65 per cent
of the total valid vote value of
10,69,358, Meira Kumar got 34.35
per cent.
Announcing the e lect ion of
Kovind as the 14th President,
Returning Of ficer and Lok Sabha
Secretary General Anoop Mishra
said Kovind had got the required
votes under the quota allotted to
him in the transferable vote sys
tem under the Presidential and
Vice Presidential Elections Act.
"I declare Ram Nath Kovind as
duly e lected to the Of fice of
President," he said.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi
congratulated NDA candidate Ram
Nath Kovind on being elected as
the 14th President of India and
wished him a "fruitful and inspir
ing tenure".
"Congratulations to Shri Ram
Nath Kovind Ji on being elected
the President of India! Best wishes
for a fruitful and inspiring tenure,"
Modi said on Twitter.
"Gladdened by the extensive sup
port for Kovind Ji among MPs and
across various states. I thank mem
bers of the electoral college," he
added.
Modi also said: "I congratulate
Meira Kumarji for her campaign,
which was in spirit of the demo
cratic ethos and values we all are
proud of."
Modi also tweeted two pictures
of his with Kovind and said: "20
years ago and the present... always
been a privilege to know you, While Kovind got 65.65 per cent of the total valid vote value of
10,69,358, Meira Kumar got 34.35 per cent.
President Elect."

INDIA TALKS TOUGH, ASKS Kovind's

CHINA TO WITHDRAW TROOPS village bursts
New Delhi: In a toughening of its stand,
India asked China to withdraw its troops
from Doklam on the BhutanChina bor
der if it wanted New Delhi to pull out its
Army from the area.
In the first exhaustive Indian comment
on the border row between India and
China that began over a month ago,
External Affairs Minister Sushma Swaraj
accused China of unilaterally trying to
change the status quo on the frontier
with Bhutan.
This is what had sparked off the stand
of f between the Indian and Chinese
armies, she told the Rajya Sabha.
She said while China was saying that
India should withdraw its troops from
Doklam for negotiations to begin, "we are
saying that if a dialogue is to be held,
then both should w ithdraw (their
troops)".
The Chinese action "is a challenge to
our security", the Minister said, adding
India was not doing anything unreason
India seeking peaceful
resolution of issues with
External Affairs Minister
Sushma Swaraj.
able.The standof f started more than a
month ago when Indian troops stopped
Chinese soldiers from building a road on
the trijunction of India, Bhutan and
China.
This has severely affected SinoIndian
ties, with Chinese experts threatening a
war if New Delhi did not buckle.
Sushma Swaraj accused China of violat
ing the terms of a written agreement
reached between India, China and
Bhutan in 2012.
"Over the years, China has been trying
to get closer and closer to where the tri
junction point ends. It has done things
like repair roads, retar them and things
like that."
She described what was dif ferent
about the June 16 incident that led to the
standoff.
"This time though, they came with bull
dozers and construction equipment with
the aim of breaching the point where the
trijunction ends. That is a threat to our
security," she said.
This time, China wanted to "unilaterally
change the status quo" at the Sikkim
TibetBhutan trijunction, she said.
"As long as it was between China and
Bhutan about their border dispute, we
had no problem. But when it comes to tri
junction, our interests came into the pic
ture.
out into
celebrations
Kanpur: Paraunkh, the ancestral village of
National Democratic Alliance's (NDA)
Presidential nominee Ram Nath Kovind, burst
into celebrations as soon as he was declared
elected by Returning Officer and Lok Sabha
Secretary General Anoop Mishra.
Paraunkh residents, irrespective of their age,
were seen greeting one another, distributing
sweets and celebrating with 'gulal', while the
children danced their excitement out.
The entire village was glued to their televi
sion and radio sets since morning anticipating
the "good news", and celebrations started once
the first round of vote count was announced,
which showed him leading ahead of Meira
Kumar.
Speaking to NDTV, Kovind's elder brother
Pyarelal said he had not met his brother for
the last several years.
Asked about how he felt now that a Dalit
face had become the President of the country,
Pyarelal said: "It feels good that he reached
there."
Kovind was born on October 1, 1945, in
Uttar Pradesh's Kanpur Dehat district, and got

China: MEA "They want to come down to Batang La.

If China unilaterally changes the status
Beijing: China said a meeting between Chinese President Xi Jinping and quo at the trijunction, it will pose a
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the G20 Summit was unlikely as direct threat to our security.
Indian troops "had damaged the political foundations of bilateral relations "Foreign countries are with us. They
between China and India". feel that China is being aggressive with a
Informed sources said the "atmosphere is not right" for the meeting small country like Bhutan. Bhutan has
between the two leaders because of the current standoff between Indian and protested, including in writing. All the
Chinese troops in the Sikkim sector. countries feel India's stand is right and
Beijing has said that the unconditional withdrawal of Indian troops from the law is with us," the Minister said.
Doklam remained a precondition for any meaningful dialogue. "As for the On China's One Belt One Road (OBOR)
arrangement of the bilateral meeting (at G20) between President Xi and project, Sushma Swaraj said India had
Prime Minister Modi, I have to point out that recently Indian troops tres opposed it right from the beginning.
passed into China and obstructed normal activities of Chinese troops in the "As soon as we learned that they are
Doklam region," said Foreign Ministry spokesperson Geng Shuang. making CPEC a part of OBOR, we regis
"This endangers China's sovereignty and territorial integrity and damaged tered our protest," the Minister said,
the political foundations of bilateral relations between China and India," Geng referring to the ChinaPakistan Economic
said. "We hope India can immediately withdraw border troops to the Indian Corridor which passes through Pakistan
side of the boundary," he added. "I think this is the precondition for any administered Kashmir that India calls its
meaningful peace talks between the two sides." territory.
his primary education in the village.
Kovind's sisterinlaw said that she was
happy that he had become the President of the
country.
Asked when she was expecting his arrival in
the village, she said: "We don't know when he
will arrive here, but soon after completing the
formalities of the President's House, he should
come here."
Kovind, 71, has served as a Rajya Sabha
member twice between 1994 and 2000, and
2000 and 2006.
He was appointed the Governor of Bihar in
2015 before the assembly elections there. He
resigned from the post after Bharatiya Janata
Party (BJP) President Amit Shah named him
as the ruling alliance's candidate for
presidency.
Earlier, he also served as the national
spokesperson of the BJP.
TheSouthAsianTimes.info INDIA July 22-28, 2017 13

Mayawati's resignation Protect Hindus in

Pakistan: Daily
from Rajya Sabha accepted Islamabad: A leading Pakistani
newspaper urged the government
Hindu community under unprece
dented pressure...
to provide protection to Hindus in "The spread of the madrassah
New Delhi: BSP chief Mayawati's
the background of increasing culture has led to a wave of funda
resignation from the Rajya Sabha
cases of forcible conversion to mentalism in which conversion to
was accepted after she reported
Islam. Islam, whether by force or other
ly gave a fresh letter to Chairman
The Dawn said in an editorial wise, has become a means to an
Hamid Ansari.
that the part of the Thar desert end.
Sources said she had to give a
that lies within Pakistan had long "For one, the conversion of
fresh oneline letter as is
been a bastion of communal har Hindu girls many of them under
required under the rules after
mony. "Given there is near parity age and young women, is often
her earlier missive in three pages
between the Hindu and Muslim used to legitimize' their kidnap
was considered a conditional
populations in the area, that ping and rape.
offer which could not be accept
peaceful coexistence has been an "Cowed into submission, and
ed.
example for other Pakistanis to afraid of rejection by their com
Mayawati quit the Rajya Sabha
emulate," it said. munity if they return, they can do
on Tuesday, hours after she was
"However, there have been indi little else but say their conversion
stopped by Deputy Chairman P.J.
cations for a while now that Thar's was voluntary.
Kurien from speaking beyond the
benign social ethos is undergoing "How else can one explain that
stipulated time on the violence
a change, a change that bodes ill young girls and women of mar
against Dalits in Saharanpur dis
for the future of those who call it riageable age comprise the vast
trict of Uttar Pradesh. Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) supremo Mayawati at Parliament in New home and one that may well have majority of such cases? Moreover,
Mayawati, whose sixyear term Delhi. (Photo: IANS) wider repercussions for the rest of if they do convert willingly, why is
was to end in April next year,
cannot represent the section of her resignation. On Wednesday, the country." The Dawn said an it they never contact their families
said it served her no purpose to
the society I belong to, if I am not Kurien and leaders of several investigative report about forced again?"
cont inue when she was not
allowed to put across my views parties appealed to her to with conversions of Hindus it carried The daily accused "certain ele
allowed to speak for the
on atrocities on Dalits, then there draw the resignation, saying her detailed how "certain mullahs and ments" of of fering material
depressed sections of people
is no point in stay ing in the presence was essential in the feudals are exploiting poverty and inducement to impoverished
whom she represents.
House," she said before giving House. class distinctions to put Thar's Hindus to embrace Islam.
"If I am not allowed to talk, if I

IndiGo lift ban on TDP Right to privacy is inherent

MP Diwakar Reddy in Constitution, SC told
New Delhi: Budget pas
New Delhi: Senior counsel Gopal
senger carrier IndiGo
Subramanium told the Supreme
said it has decided to
Court that the right to privacy is a
revoke the ban on fly
preexisting natural right which is
i n g T D P M P J. C .
inherent in the Const itut ion
Diwakar Reddy on its
though not explicitly mentioned.
flights.
Subramanium is leading the
"Senior IndiGo of fi
argument on behalf of the peti
cials today met
tioners who have challenged the
Honourable Member
Aadhaar scheme on the grounds
of Parliament Diwakar
of its being violative of the right
Reddy, at a lunch host
to privacy.
ed by senior Member
Subramanium said that "The
of Pa r l i a m e n t Y. S .
right to privacy is recognized as a
Chaudhary, to resolve The apex court has commenced hearing on the question whether
fundamental right under Article
the issue of Honorable right to privacy was a fundamental right.
21 of the Constitution. The con
Member Diwakar
cept of privacy is embedded in Abdul Nazeer. Taking forward the late in the day to contend that pri
Reddy's ban on IndiGo
liberty as well as honor of a per argument that privacy is a funda vacy is not a fundamental right.
flights," the airline said TDP MP J.C. Diwakar Reddy. son." mental rig ht, senior counse l So I do accept that probably pri
in a statement.
His arguments came as the apex Shyam Divan told the bench that vacy is a fundamental right."
"The issue is amica airport after he was denied a
court commenced hearing on the even Union Finance Minister Jaitley had told the Rajya Sabha
bly resolved between the two boarding pass for an IndiGo
question whether right to privacy Arun Jaitley during a debate on that "It is now accepted that pri
and IndiGo has decided to lift flight as he had not showed
was a fundamental right. the Aadhaar Bill in the Rajya vacy is a part of individual liber
the said ban with immediate up in time.
A ninejudge constitution bench Sabha had asserted that privacy ty" and referring to Article 21 he
effect and Reddy is withdraw T he Te lugu Desam Party
headed by Chief Justice Jagdish was a fundamental right linked to said "Let us assume that privacy
ing the case he has filed." lawmaker from Anantapur
Singh Khehar is examining the right of liberty under Article 21 is a part of liberty and no person
The airline added that it has was also said to have dam
nature of privacy as a right in of the Constitution. shall be deprived of privacy with
informed the Federation of aged a printer and misbe
context of two judgments of 1954 Responding to a question dur out due process of law".
Indian Airlines (FIA) about its haved with IndiGo staff.
and other in 1962 which had held ing debate in the Rajya Sabha on Having quoted the Union
decision. T he MP had apparently
that right to privacy was not a March 16, 2016, Finance Minister Finance Minister in support of his
As of June 16, all the major r e p o r t ed a t t h e ch ec k i n
fundamental right. Jaitley had said that the top court contention that privacy was a fun
seven domestic airlines Air counter 28 minutes before the
Besides, Chief Justice Khehar, was considering the conflicting damental right, Divan said that in
India, Jet Airways, IndiGo, scheduled departure of the
other judges on the bench are judgments on privacy and the past 40 years since the mid
SpiceJet, GoAir, Vistara and flight against the regulation of
Justice J. Chelameswar, Justice whether it was a fundamental 1970s dif ferent benches of the
AirAsia India had barred the 45 minutes. As the airline
S.A. Bobde, Justice R.K. Agrawal, right or not. top court have consistently held
TDP MP from their flights. staf f told him they could not
Justice Rohinton Fali Nariman, Having said that Jaitley told the that privacy was a fundamental
It was alleged that Diwakar issue him a boarding pass, he
Justice Abhay Manohar Sapre, Rajya Sabha that "The present bill right.
Reddy on June 15 created got angry and entered into a
Justice D.Y. Chandrachud, Justice (Aadhaar) presupposes and is He urged the bench to reaffirm
ruckus at the Visakhapatnam heated argument with them.
Sanjay Kishan Kaul and Justice S. based on a premise that it is too this right.
 14 July 22-28, 2017 OP-ED TheSouthAsianTimes.info

Venkaiah Naidu: From RSS to BJP's

most recognized southern face
New Delhi: Muppavarapu Venkaiah Naidu
entered the RSS by accident his links began
in childhood when he chanced upon a
'shakha' while playing. Within some decades,
he was the BJP's best known leader from
southern India, one famous for witty onelin
ers. A key member of Prime Minister
Narendra Modi's cabinet, the now 68year
old cut his political teeth during the
"Emergency" of 197577 when he went
underground against the government of
Indira Gandhi and eventually got jailed.
He remained underground until his arrest,
distributing antigovernment literature in
educational institutions in Andhra Pradesh
and Tamil Nadu, travelling on a scooter
along with a woman activist on pillion in a
bid not to arouse suspicion.
He was accused of disturbing a meeting of
Sanjay Gandhi and handcuffed during transit
from one jail to the other.
Naidu hit the national scene when he was
one of the prominent opposition spokesper
sons along with S. Jaipal Reddy, who was
then in Janata Party, during the campaign by
N.T. Rama Rao after his dismissal as the
Andhra Pradesh Chief Minister by Indira
Gandhi in the 1980s.
Even though the Bharatiya Janata Party
was on a weak wicket in southern India,
Naidu embraced it tightly.
A quickwitted and effective communicator
Prime Minister Narendra Modi with BJP chief Amit Shah and NDA's candidate for the Vice
Presidential election M. Venkaiah Naidu at BJP headquarters in New Delhi. (Photo: IANS)
steeped in RSS/BJP ideology, Naidu rose
from the ranks to become the party
President and a Union Minister. If all goes
well, he will be India's next Vice President.
Naidu has been a troubleshooter for the
government as also one of its best communi
cators with his alliterative and catchy one
liners. He has friends across political parties.
It will help him as Chairman of the Rajya
Sabha where the BJP still does not have a
majority.
Naidu is quick to respond to criticism from
the opposition.
He has handled key organisational assign
ments in the BJP and became its President in
2002.
Naidu had three continuous terms in the
Rajya Sabha from Karnataka from 1998 to
2016, when he shifted to Rajasthan to get a
fourth term.
He was Rural Development Minister during
the first NDA government led by Atal Bihari
Vajpayee, his inspiration along with senior
party leader L.K. Advani.
With Modi scripting BJP's success in 2014,
Naidu described him as the most popular
Indian leader, the most credible political per
sonality and among the top 10 leaders of the
world. He is credited with coining the
acronym MODI Making Of Developed India,
a BJP favourite.
Born on July 1, 1949 in Nellore district of
Andhra Pradesh, Naidu was President of the
Students Union, V.R. College, Nellore. In
197374, he was president of the Students
Union of Andhra University Colleges.
Naidu pursued law and was involved in the
movement launched by Jayaprakash
Narayan.
He was President of the youth wing of the
Janata Party in Andhra Pradesh from 1977
to 1980. After Emergency, he was elected to
the Andhra Pradesh assembly in 1978 and
was a legislator till 1985.
After the BJP was formed in 1980, he
became Vice president of its youth wing.
He was leader of the BJP Legislature Party
in Andhra Pradesh, state general secretary
and state unit chief.
Naidu was the BJP General Secretary in
19932000 and its spokesperson in
between. He has been a part of apex commit
tees of the party, including its parliamentary
board and Central Election Committee.
Naidu is currently the Minister for
Information and Broadcasting, Urban
Development and Housing and Urban
Poverty Alleviation. He was the
Parliamentary Affairs Minister for the first
two years in the Modi government.

IS NITISH KUMAR ON A LOSING WICKET?

l By Amulya Ganguli
itish Kumar is in a bind. He
N knows that the mahagath
bandhan or grand alliance in
Bihar is fraying at the edges, but
he doesn't know which way to
turn.
If he responds to the Bharatiya
Janata Party's (BJP) overtures to
join the saffron brigade either for
mally or informally with the BJP
propping up his government with
outside support, he will be
accused of crass opportunism.
He also knows that in the BJP's
company, he will have to play sec
ond fiddle to the Narendra Modi
Amit Shah duo and forget about a
major role in national affairs. For
all practical purposes, he will have
to remain confined to Bihar for
the rest of his career.
However, if he remains with
Lalu Prasad Yadav and Co, he will
be staring at a probable defeat in
the next election and the loss of
his reputation as a good gover
nance man.
His predicament is due to a mis
calculation of Modi's appeal for
the average voter. When Nitish
Kumar realised it after his party's
poor performance in 2014, he
Bihar Chief Minister Nitish Kumar.
quit the Chief Minister's post. on the other hand, constitute 11
Since then, he has managed to per cent, the largest group among
claw his way back into power, but the backward castes.
he has never been happy with his Because of Nitish Kumar's vul
companions on that uphill trek, nerability on the caste front, he
especially after Laloo Prasad's has tried to shore up his position
Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) pipped by wooing the rural and lower
him at the post by becoming the middle class women via his prohi
first party in the Bihar alliance. bition policy. But that has not
Much of Nitish Kumar's prob been enough to make him feel
lems stem from his relatively secure.
weak political position visavis However, the blow to his posi
the RJD, the party of the dominant tion is not the result of his unsta
Yadavs, whereas Nitish Kumar's ble base. It is the fallout of the
own base of support comprises revival of Lalu Prasad's familiar
the Kurmis, who make up six per image of being less than honest in
cent of Bihar's population. Yadavs, his transactions in public life.
To make matters worse, his son,
Tejashwi, who is the Deputy Chief
Minister (and is seen by his moth
er, Rabri Devi, as a future Chief
Minister), has been charged with
sleaze by the Central Bureau of
Investigation (CBI).
Lalu Prasad has predictably
accused the CBI of targeting him
at the BJP's behest. But Nitish
Kumar has refrained from stand
ing by his cabinet colleague and
alliance partner, wanting him to
prove his innocence. Nitish
Kumar's stand might have been
applauded on the grounds of rec
titude if he had demonstrated that
he remained firmly in the antiBJP
camp.
But by choosing to support
Ramnath Kovind, the BJP's choice
for the President's post instead of
the opposition candidate, Bihar ki
beti (Bihar's daughter) Meira
Kumar, on the rather unconvinc
ing plea that she is bound to lose,
Nitish Kumar has raised doubts
about his loyalty to the "secular"
cause and is suspected of trying to
play both sides.
Perhaps realizing his mistake,
he has now extended support to
the opposition's vicepresidential
nominee, Gopal Krishna Gandhi.
But the damage has been done to
his position in the antiBJP camp.
All of this will be music to the
BJP's ears because the Bihar Chief
Minister is virtually the only one
among the saffron brigade's
opponents who does not carry a
dynastic baggage and is known
for his clean image and adminis
trative ability.
The problem with Nitish Kumar,
the Congress and others in the
antiBJP camp is that their com
mitment to reforms is open to
question as they seem to continue
to adhere to the Soviet era con
cept of a controlled economy,
which no longer inspires the vot
ers, especially the younger gener
ation.
Their only chance of making an
impact on the electoral scene is by
coming together so that their
respective vote shares add up to a
substantial percentage.
But a combination of such a
nature, which is based almost
solely on caste calculations, is
inherently unstable since it will be
unrealistic to expect, say, the
Yadavs and Dalits to sup together.
For the present, therefore, Nitish
Kumar appears to be on a losing
wicket.

The views expressed in Op Eds are not necessarily those of The South Asian Times.
 HONORS July 22-28, 2017 15

ISRO, Baahubali honored at TIMES

NOWs NRI of the Year Awards
Mumbai: TIMES NOW, Indias No. 1
news channel, and ICICI Bank, Indias larg-
est private sector bank by consolidated
assets, jointly hosted the 4th edition of
TIMES NOW ICICI Bank NRI of the Year
Awards powered by Global Indian Interna-
tional School on 11th July in Mumbai to
salute the spirit of the Global Indian.
The awards this year were open to all
NRIs, OCIs and PIOs residing in USA, Can-
ada, UK, Middle East, Singapore, Australia
and New Zealand. The high profile jury
comprised popular author Amish Tripathi,
celebrated lyricist Prasoon Joshi, Satish
Mahashinde, columnist Bachi Karkaria, and
veteran journalist Kumar Ketkar.
Ms. Chanda Kochhar, MD & CEO, ICICI
Bank, presented some of the key awards:
Global Indian Award for Sports and for Sci-
ence, Indias Global Icon Award and the Glob-
al India Impact Award 2017. The gala event
was hosted by TV actor Karan Tacker and TV
presenter & singer Sophie Choudry. Eminent
personalities like Baahubali actress Taman-
naah Bhatia, Baahubali writer Vijayendra
Prasad, actress Sana Khan, choreographer
Terence Lewis were in attendance a sere the
newly crowned Femina Miss India 2017
Manushi Chhillar, Sana Dua 1st Runner Up
and Priyanka Kumari 2nd Runner Up.
The awards went to 23 individuals un-
der 11 different categories Entrepreneur,
Professional, Academics, Art & Culture,
Philanthropy, Special Jury Award, Indias
Global Icon Award, Global Indian Awards
Sports, Global Indian Awards - Science.
NRI of the Year is Indias most distinc-
tive awards recognizing the outstanding
achievements of the Indian Diaspora glob-
ally. With their grit and perseverance, NRIs
have achieved tremendous success in vari-
ous fields in the countries they have chosen
to adopt as their homes. Many NRIs are
accomplished politicians, scientists, sports-
men, businessmen, professionals and acade-
micians in various countries.
MK Anand, MD and CEO, TIMES NET-
WORK said, As Indias leading English
broadcast network with over 100 million
viewers in India and presence in 100 coun-
tries globally, Times Network has the best
credentials to globally survey and recog-
nize outstanding Indians and present them
to our society as our true gems. The NRI
of the Year Awards is an important compo-
nent of our engagement with a critical con-
stituency, not just as a Media group, but
also for the Country and its global agenda.
We hope to contribute towards building
and strengthening the ties Global Indians
have with their motherland and act as a
force multiplier in their endeavor to con-
tribute to nation building. 25,000 unique visitors on www.nriofthe- cologists, CEOs of global businesses and a
Vijay Chandok, Executive Director, year.com. We received more than 7000 former White House intern, and some very
ICICI Bank, and Naveen Chandra, Head- registrations online and the multiple Jury rich and accomplished Indians. We hope
International Business, TIMES NETWORK, rounds have ensured that the winners are to take this further into more markets and
also spoke at the event. Said Naveen of high quality. Among the winners this reach out and cover more Indian Diaspora
Chandra, We received an overwhelming year are accomplished Neurologists, On- over the years ahead.

(From left) Chanda Kochhar - MD & CEO, ICICI Bank, Snooker champ Pankaj (From left) Vijay Chandok- Executive director, ICICI Bank, MK Anand, Vijayendra
Advani- Winner of Global Indian Icon under sports category, Manushi Chillar - Prasad - Writer of Baahubali, Tamannaah Bhatia Baahubali star, Chanda
Femina Miss India World, and MK Anand - MD and CEO, TIMES Network. Kochhar, and Naveen Chandra- TIMES NOW International business Head.

(From left) Dr Mylswamy Annadurai- Director, ISRO, A.S. Kiran Kumar - (From left) Anup Bagchi - Executive Director, ICICI Bank, Lt. Gen Sudhir
Chairperson, ISRO, Chanda Kochhar, Dr Koppillil Radhakrishnan Sharma, GIIS, Shri Thanedar - Winner of Entrepreneur Category from USA,
- Former Chairperson, ISRO, and MK Anand. Sana Dua - Femina Miss India 2017 first runner up.
16 July 22-28, 2017
IIFA 2017
Shahid, Alia Best Actors, Neerja Best Film
I n a city that never sleeps, the Metlife
Stadium came alive with the IIFA Awards
celebration in New York, with Shahid Ka-
poor and Alia Bhatt becoming proud win-
ners of the Best Actor trophies for their
remarkable work in Udta Punjab.
Given that it came for a film which was
mired in controversy with the censor board
over its theme and content, made the success
sweeter for the stars -- even Diljit Dosanjh
walked away with the Best Debutante - Male
Actor for his performance in the film.
All three of them were emotional about
winning the award for a film which let main-
stream performers take up something risky.
The Best Picture honor went to Sonam
Kapoor starrer Neerja, based on the real
life story of Neerja Bhanot, an air hostess
who lost her life while trying to save others
on a hijacked flight at Karachi. Actor Jim
Sarbh won the Best Performance in a Nega-
tive role for his act in the movie.
Aniruddha Roy Chowdhury walked away
with the Best Direction award for Pink, a
Alia turned emotional on winning the award.
Bollywood
hard-hitting drama which put forth the mes-
sage that when a woman says no, it is a no.
Actress Taapsee Pannu, who played
a pivotal role in Pink, was named the
Woman Of The Year, while music maestro
A.R. Rahman was given a Special Award in
recognition of his contribution to film mu-
sic since 25 years at the event, which was
largely attended by the NRI community.
In the Best Supporting Actor category,
Shabana Azmi and Anupam Kher were
honored for Neerja and M.S. Dhoni: The
Untold Story; Varun Dhawan was lauded
for his comic timing in Dishoom; and
Disha Patani was encouraged with an
award for her debut movie M.S. Dhoni:
The Untold Story. The music category
saw Pritam winning the Best Music Direc-
tion for Ae Dil Hai Mushkil, and Amitabh
Bhattacharya bagging the Best Lyrics ac-
colade for Channa mereya. The perfor-
mances by Alia, Katrina Kaif, Shahid, Var-
un, Sushant Singh Rajput, Kriti Sanon and
Salman kept the pace of the event going.
Karan, Varun, Saif slammed
for Nepotism chant
Actors Varun Dhawan, Saif Ali Khan and filmmaker Karan Johar.
A fter sparking off a controversy with his
nepotism debate at the IIFA Awards in
New Jersey over the weekend, filmmaker
Karan Johar, actors Saif Ali Khan and Varun
Dhawan received flak on social media with
Twitteraties calling their act disappointing.
Karan and Saif, who were hosting the
gala, revisited the much-talked about issue
that started in Bollywood when Queen
star Kangana Ranaut branded Karan as a
flagbearer of nepotism on his chat show.
When Varun joined the two actors on
the stage at the Metlife Stadium to receive
the Best Performance in a Comic Role for
Dishoom, Saif joked that the actor had
made it big in the industry because of his
father, director David Dhawan.
You are here because of your papa,
Saif quipped. Varun said: And youre here
because of your mummy (veteran actress
Sharmila Tagore). Karan then promptly
added: I am here because of my papa (late
filmmaker Yash Johar). They then said in
unison: Nepotism rocks.
Risk over F
repetition:
Shahid on
his evolution
Actor Shahid with wife Mira at the
green carpet of IIFA 2017.
On Twitter, a string of criticism followed,
describing what the personalities said as
unfunny. Those tweeting included Congress
leader Abhishek Manu Singhvi and AIB mem-
ber Tanmay Bhatt. Here are some tweets:
Abhishek Singhvi: Id like to see the likes
of Karan Johar, Saif and Varun Dhawan try
their nepotism humor when Kangana is in
their presence.
Tanmay Bhat: I just realized they legit
yelled Nepotism Rocks at the end of it and
I cannot stop face palming.
How is it an insult to Kangana If any-
thing its a crass/tacky display of how
shamelessly nepotistic Bollywood, one of
the users posted.
Added another user, Last night Karan
Johar was shamelessly chanting nepotism
rocks. So it means he admits that he has no
talent and hes just a piece of shit.
Totally not expected from you Varun Dha-
wan, seriously you said nepotism rocks. In-
sulting a lady in such a big stage simply not
acceptable. Im disappointed, said a user.
rom the much-loved chocolate boy
of Ishq Vishq to the effortless por-
trayal of intense roles in Haider, Udta
Punjab and Rangoon, Shahid Kapoors
evolution as an actor comes from the fact
that he prefers to take risks.
I think its a reflection of how an ac-
tor evolves over time, Shahid said as he
pondered over how a certain maturity
has set in not just in his choices, but
performances too.
Its important to be open to rediscover-
ing yourself. I think if any actor stops feel-
ing the need to rediscover himself or limits
his own potential, he becomes stale.
Of course, its very important to be
successful, because thats when the best
opportunities come to you. But how you
choose to be successful is a very personal
choice... And my choice is to try and do
things that havent been done before.
The satisfaction that you get by achiev-
ing something risky or different, is way
more than repeating yourself just because
its popular, said the son of veteran and
nuanced actor Pankaj Kapur. Over the
years, Shahid has impressed viewers and
critics alike with films like Jab We Met,
Kaminey,Udta Punjab -- which got mired
in controversy for its subject, content and
title and saw Shahid essay a maverick drug
addict and singer to perfection.

REVIEW
Ranbir as Jagga
is brilliant and
he is aptly
supported by
Katrina.
Jagga Jasoos : Weak
narrative dampens
stunning visuals
D esigned as a comic book character and
mounted as a musical, Jagga Jasoos
with its episodic adventure tales is a fiction
fantasy that is visually appealing. The visu-
als in the film are striking and surreal. The
lighting, textures and tone of the frames
fluctuate between the darkish, atmospher-
ic hues seen in Harry Potter films and the
bright vibrant palettes seen in Disney films.
The narrative begins as an origin story,
with Shruti Sengupta (Katrina Kaif) introduc-
ing the comics and the character, Jagga Ja-
soos (Ranbir Kapoor) to some kids at an event.
Indu Sarkar row: Bhandarkar
asks Rahul to take action
Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi and filmmaker Madhur Bhandarkar.
N ational Award winning filmmaker
Madhur Bhandarkar urged Congress
Vice President Rahul Gandhi to take action
against the local Congress party workers,
who are sending threats to the director
regarding the release of his forthcoming
film Indu Sarkar. Bhandarkar was forced
to cancel the promotional activities of his
film in Nagpur and Pune last week after
receiving threats from the party workers.
I requested Rahul Gandhi on Twit-
ter to keep a check on his party workers
who are protesting against my film. Lots
of people have made documentaries on the
Bollywood
Ranbir Kapoor as Jagga is brilliant. He
lives his character on screen, which is spar-
kling and lively. He is aptly supported by Ka-
trina Kaif as the London returned journalist
Shruti Sengupta, who is hunting for leads in
her story on the war against global terrorism.
The plot of the film is sketchy and begins
on a shaky note, but the scenes roll out seam-
lessly in dream-like sequences thanks to the
brilliant editing by Akiv Ali and Ajay Sharma.
Overall, with a run time of two hours and
forty five minutes, there are moments when you
inadvertently end up snatching forty winks.
Emergency. Congress is rattled since the
trailer is out, Bhandarkar told news chan-
nel CNN-News18.
The higher authorities in Congress
have to play a major role and hold a press
briefing to say that they condemn such
acts. Do you want to run a parallel cen-
sor? Some Congress party workers have
distanced themselves from me since the
trailer of the film has come out, he added.
Indu Sarkar, set against the backdrop
of the 1975-77 Emergency, has characters
inspired by the late Prime Minister Indira
Gandhi and her late son Sanjay Gandhi.
July 22-28, 2017 17
Rahman trolled
for singing Tamil
songs in London
O scar-winning composer A.R. Rah-
man, who hails from Tamil Nadu, got
slammed on social media for performing
fan posted on Twitter. Lovely to see A.R.
Rahman, but all the songs are in Tamil! What
about your Hindi/Bollywood fans?
Tamil songs at the Wembley Stadium. While After the reported walkout, a statement
some were left disappointed, others stood was later issued on a Facebook page - A R
by his songs selection as they believe music Rahman Live - UK on July 10, saying: Hi Lon-
has no language barrier. Rahmans Netru, don. Thanks for the tremendous support and
Indru, Naalai (Yesterday, Today, Tomor- response. However, we have been getting a
row) gig at the London event on July 8 few complaints on language bias which is
didnt hit the right chord with all his fans, rather unfortunate as this was an Indian
especially his Bollywood-song admirers. show and music doesnt have any barriers.
According to reports, some left the concert There were some who supported him.
after Rahman started singing Tamil songs. One wrote: Everyone in the world knew
A.R. Rahman concert: Never seen so much that music doesnt have a language but
disappointment and mass walkouts. Approxi- Hindi wala guys say music in Hindi lan-
mately one per cent of songs in Hindi, one guage. AR Rahman.
Some fans left
Rahmans concert
after he sang
Tamil songs.
Filmmaker moves
court against
Toilet: Ek Prem Katha
A Jaipur-based filmmaker, Praatik Shar-
ma, has moved the court against the
makers of Akshay Kumar-starrer Toilet:
tion in the same year but they could not re-
lease it for lack of money for distribution.
After struggling for two years, his team was
Ek Prem Katha for allegedly lifting the ready to release it on July 28 this year. But
punchline and the subject from his film distributors have backed out saying our film
Gutrun Gutar Gun. is similar to Toilet.... They said even if they
A copyright infringement case was filed put it up, they would remove it from screens
by Sharma against Plan C Studios, an alli- if asked to. This is unfair, Sharma said.
ance between Reliance Entertainment and
Friday Filmworks helmed by Neeraj Pandey
and Shital Bhatia, and Viacom18 on July 7
in a Jaipur Metropolitan Court. The court
has issued a notice returnable on July 22.
Plan C is producing it and Viacom18 is
serving as a producer and presenter. There
is one line in my movie - aurat shadi karke
ghar mai aati hai, usko toilet nahi milta, baw-
al hota hai, ant mai pati usko toilet bana kar
deta hai. (a woman gets married and then
doesnt find a toilet at home, creates a scene
and ultimately a toilet is constructed).
Because of this line the distributors are
telling me my film is the same film as Toilet:
Ek Prem Katha, Sharma, who had finished
making Gutrun Gutar Gun in 2015, said.
His film, he says, had got a certificate A still from the film Toilet:
from the Central Board of Film Certifica- Ek Prem Katha.
 18 July 22-28, 2017
Rambagh Palace adorns
worlds best hotel lists
The Jaipur jewel is listed among top 10 heritage
hotels and top 50 best hotels in the world.
By Prakash Bhandari
Jaipur : Rambagh Palace, Jaipur has
been ranked amongst the top 50 in The
Top 100 Hotels in the World by Travel +
Leisure 2017. Ranked 43, the hotel scored
96.41 out of 100 marks.
Every year, Travel + Leisure invites its
trusted, globe-trotting readers to rate the
various experiences on their most recent
trips. The data is then analyzed to identify
the leaders that are shaping travel across
different categories that include destination
spas, hotels, hotel brands, islands, among
The awesome bedroom of the Grand Presidential Suite - Sukh Niwas.
New Delhi: Smart dressing boosts up the
confidence and helps in rendering an aura
filled with passion and right attitude in of-
fice but at the same time looking sharp and
relaxed is a key aspect in todays work wear
fashion. From blending white and black to
going for neutral or classic color scheme
can make you look different and classy.
Tabby Bhatia, Director, Voganow.com,
LIFESTYLE
others. Among hotels, Jaipurs Rambagh
Palace has been rated highly for its commit-
ment to quality across facilities, location,
service, food, and overall value for money,
by more than 3,00,000 respondents.
Rambagh Palaces Area Director Jaipur
and General Manager, Manish Gupta said,
We are honored to be a part of this presti-
gious list of the Worlds Best Hotels. We thank
all the guests who voted for us. Rambagh
Palace offers a unique blend of traditional
Indian hospitality infused with the local
Rajasthani culture to its discerning guests.
It is to be noted that this year Rambagh
Palace also ranked 16th in India in Trip Advi-
Originally built in 1835, Rambagh Palace in Jaipur has stepped gracefully through
many royal transitions and retained its grandeur post-1947.
Men, dress up right for work
Saggar Mehra, Creative Director of brand
Sunil Mehra, and Salesh Grover, business
head OSL Luxury, talk about latest trend-
ing office wear look.
To keep things more conservative, opt
The menu of Suvarna Mahal, the best 5 star restaurant
in Jaipur, is as opulent as its ambiance.
for patterns with a neutral or classic color
scheme. This will tie your looks together
more and will prove useful for versatility.
Mixing differently textured shirts with tai-
lored pants will also switch your looks up.
Shirts are really the focal point of business
casual looks, so ensure they fit well.
The work jackets main function is in
practicality maneuverability, and it definite-
ly adds an interesting twist to your attire.
Blending white or black round neck t-
shirt with window checked coat is also an
interesting way and you can complete the
look with tassel loafers or suede shoes.
A sharp yet trendy look is a club printed
shirt with a slim lapel jacket and a sleek
tie. It is the ultimate combination that will
make sure you are taken seriously.
Checkerd or pinstriped trousers with
solid shirts are also a great pick and to
make solid shirts interesting add details
like printed inside collar band, contrast-
sors Travellers Choice Awards and was also
rated amongst top 10 Heritage Hotels in the
world by Travel Weekly, UK for the year 2017.
Rambagh Palace is a living legend in Jai-
pur. Originally built in 1835, Rambagh Pal-
ace, Jaipur has stepped gracefully through
many royal transitions. In the finest tradi-
tion of Rajput hospitality, the Rambagh Pal-
ace offers its guests a taste of royal living - a
luxury and extravagance that was once the
sole preserve of kings. Its elegantly appoint-
ed rooms, marbled corridors, and majestic
gardens reverberate with history.
ing colored button placket or a double cuff
with quirky cufflinks.
Corporate guys who travel a lot for meet-
ings can opt for a basket weaved office lap-
top bags in shades of tan or dark brown that
can add a suave touch to the overall look.
Leather shoes are considered to be an un-
deniable part of a mans wardrobe. Brogues
are one of the promising shoe style, popped
up in early 1900s in Ireland, this shoe style
is setting impressive fashion trends at the
workplace. Brogues in tones of tans, black,
olives and grey are absolute timeless add-on
to a mans wardrobe this season.
Also, a pair of double monk strap shoes
handcrafted and hand painted in genuine
leather with finesse gives a flawless styling
appeal. Perfect for office and formal occa-
sions, these pairs can be paired with chinos
and crisp shirts. Break the monotony of laces
shoes and go for a monk strap style to give
impeccable impression at your workplace.
-- IANS
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
Supreme Court asks
government to decide on
statutory regime for NRI voting
New Delhi: The Supreme Court
on Friday asked the Central gov
ernment to take a call whether it
wanted to amend the
Representation of People Act or
its Rules to decide on the modali
ties of NRI voting in elections
from their overseas locations.
Giving the government "one
further opportunity" to decide
on the modalities of NRI voting
and how it would be done, the
bench of Chief Justice Jagdish
Sing h Khehar and Just ice
D.Y.Chandrachud asked it to
come back to the court with its
response on July 21. "What are
you doing, amending the Act or
the Rules. Do whatever you want
to do...," the bench told the gov
Student wins NRI award for
Sharjah cleanup campaign
Dubai: An Indian students suc
cessful environmental campaign
in Sharjah has helped him bag
the NRI of the Year Award 2017
in Mumbai, India.
Eig hteenyearold Abhinav
Singla, who graduated in 2016
from our Own Eng lish Hig h
School, Sharjah, received the
prest ig ious award in the
Academics Category in the
awards fourth edition on July
11.
Presented by Times Now, ICICI
Bank and GIIS (Global Indian
International School), the award
recognises the deserving spirit of
those globetrotting Indians who
have made a change by their
work and action reaching the
pinnacles of success globally by
rising every day.
Sing la launched Clean Up
Sharjah Campaign in 2014 to
make Sharjah a more cleaner and
greener city, he told Gulf News
from India.
His initiative started as a small
idea, which was later expanded
into three editions and is still
being continued by hundreds of
students living in Sharjah. The
ernment. Appearing for one of
the petitioners, senior counsel
Mukul Rohatgi told the bench
that modalities of NRI voting can
be done by amending the Rules
and would not require amending
the law.
T he bench noted that by
amending the Section 20 and 20
(A) of the Representation of
People Act the government has,
in principle, accepted the NRI
right to vote. It was also noted
that government has in principle
agreed with the report on the
modalities of NRI voting pre
pared by the Elect ion
Commission after talking to vari
ous stakeholders including polit
ical parties and the NRIs. (IANS)
Abhinav Singla
monthlong campaign mainly
included four events recycling,
cleanup, plant seeding and
awareness spreading.
I received a lot of support
from students, more than I had
ever expected. We had recycling
drives in which we collected [a
large number] of items for recy
cling and deposited them with
the local waste management
company, Beeah, said Singla,
who is continuing his education
in India after being raised in the
UAE. One of the activities was to
go to areas where cleaning was
DIASPORA
'Superwoman' Lilly Singh appointed
UNICEF's Global Goodwill Ambassador
New Delhi: UNICEF on July 15
appointed Indianorigin Canadian
YouTube star Lilly Singh as its
newest Global Goodwill
Ambassador at a special event here.
Lilly was in the capital to support
UNICEF's Youth4Change initiative, a
program for youth that brings them
together to support their peers and
communities in taking action on
issues such as health, hygiene, child
labor and gender equality.
"I'm honored to join UNICEF as a
Goodwill Ambassador and to use
my voice to support its mission of
reaching every child. It's time to
stand for what your kids want and
not society," Lilly said.
T he YouTuber, famous as
'Superwoman', said she would come
up with few videos in Hindi and
would try to put Hindi subtitles in
her English videos to increase the
quite necessary and we helped in
making these areas look clean
again. We used to get frequent
requests from residents at times
to visit their areas, he added.
T he first edition of Singlas
campaign in 2014 saw more
than 500 students participating
and the number kept growing, he
said.
We had hundreds of students
showing their support in the
cleanup events. When the second
edition was launched, there were
more than 1,500 people and in
the following year, when I was
already in India, many students
still wanted to run the event.
Sing la, currently study ing
chemical engineering, won the
award in a tie between him and
another Dubaibased Indian
teenager, Simran Vedvyas. He
said it was a big honor winning
the prize. Singla has previously
been chosen for other awards. He
received the International Diana
Award from then British Prime
Minister David Cameron and
Sharjah Environment Awareness
Award 2015.
(News source: gulfnews.com)
July 22-28, 2017 19
Indianorigin Canadian YouTube star Lilly Singh (right)
(Image courtesy: hindustantimes.com)
reach of her vlogs and channel. urge millions of her followers to
As the UNICEF ambassador Lilly, work for children's rights.
who has 11.9 around million sub T he 28yearold star has also
scribers on the video sharing web started a new initiative on social
site, will use her channel to show media #GirlLove which aims to
case the organization's work and end girlongirl hate. (PTI)
Arpan Doshi, UKs
youngest ever doctor
London: An Indianori
gin doctor is set to
being taught, so I
skipped a year," he
become Britain's said. He started apply
youngest physician to ing to universities just
start work at a hospi weeks after his 17th
tal in northeast birthday and despite a
England. Arpan Doshi rejection from one uni
graduated with a versity, three others
Bachelor of Medicine of fered him places.
and Bache lor of T he University of
Surgery degree from Shef fie ld was so
the University of impressed with his
Arpan Doshi
Sheffield on Monday credentials that they
aged 21 and 335 days gave him a scholar
and is due to start work as a junior ship worth 13,000 pounds.
doctor in York next month. He will He received financial support
beat the previous record of the from his parents, took up parttime
youngest doctor to start work in the jobs as a lunch supervisor at a local
UK by 17 days. school and in the careers service to
"I didn't realize I was the youngest fund his degree.
person to qualify until a friend "My dream is to become a heart
checked on the internet. I haven't surgeon but it is a very competitive
even told my parents yet but I know field. It is not really a surprise I
they will be very proud," the Sun have ended up as a doctor," he said.
quoted Indiaborn Doshi as saying. The previous youngest doctor to
Doshi went to a local school in qualify was Rachael Faye Hill, who
Gandhinagar, Gujarat, until he was received her medical degree from
13. Then his mechanical engineer Manchester University when she
father, Bharat Doshi, got a job in was 21 and 352 days in 2010.
AixenProvence as part of an inter Arpan Doshi is now set to over
national project, and the whole fam take that record when he starts his
ily moved to France. twoyear training as a junior doctor
"The following year I realized that at York Teaching Hospital in
I already knew a lot of what was August.
 20 July 22-28, 2017
LoC firing: India, Pak
armies warn each other
New Delhi/Jammu: The armies of
India and Pakistan warned each
other of retaliation against any
military aggression along the Line
of Control (LoC) as border tension
escalated after a fiveyearold girl
and a soldier were killed in Jammu
and Kashmir in heavy shelling by
Pakistani forces.
The latest in a series of ceasefire
violations came even as two senior
military commanders of the two
sides held talks to deescalate the
tension, a day after four Pakistani
soldiers and a civilian were killed
after the Indian Army allegedly tar
geted a Pakistan Army vehicle
across the LoC which divides
Jammu and Kashmir between them
in Pakistanadministered A.K. Bhatt, pointed out that "all the
Kashmir.
The Pakistan shelling hit a girl,
who was identified as Saida of
Balakote in Poonch district. The
soldier was killed in Rajouri dis
trict's Tarkundi area.
As the border tension raged, the
Directors General of Military
Operation (DGMO) of India and
Pakistan spoke over the hotline.
T he D GMOs usually speak on
Tuesdays but Monday's was an
Panamagate:
'Sharif didn't
conceal any assets'
Islamabad: A day after Pakistan's
Supreme Court inquired about
Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif 's
money trail, his counse l said
details of all his assets had been
presented to the Joint
Investigation Team (JIT).
Sharif had provided details of all
assets and sources of income in
the form of tax returns that was
mandated to probe allegations of
money laundering against the
Sharif family, Dawn online quoted
senior counsel Khawaja Harris as
telling the threemember apex
bench.
On the court's observation that
Sharif had remained evasive in
answering the JIT's questions,
Harris said the team had not
inquired about any other proper
ties, maintaining that his client had
not concealed any assets, nor did
he own any benami properties.
Harris argued that according to
the laws of the Nat ional
Accountability Bureau (NAB), "an
individual cannot be held account
able for the properties and assets
that are in the name of his wife
and children".
He maintained that the Prime
Minister's relatives had also not
concealed any assets.
Indian soldiers carry body of jawan killed in cross border firing.
unscheduled conversat ion on
Pakistan's request.
The Indian DGMO, Lt. General
ceasefire violations" were being
initiated by the Pakistan Army,
according to an Indian Army state
ment.
The DGMO also noted that firing
by Indian troops was initiated
against armed intruders trying to
sneak into India "from close prox
imity of Pakistan posts".
"The Indian Army reserves the
right to retaliate appropriately to
any incident of violation of cease
PM Sharif has remained evasive in
answering questions put forward
by the probe team.
During an earlier hearing, the
court had asked about Sharif 's
money trail, saying: "We've been
waiting for it since day one." The
Prime Minister and his family
members had remained evasive in
answering the questions put for
ward by the JIT, it added.
T he bench had resumed the
Panamagate case recently, nearly
three months after ordering the
formation of a JIT to investigate
the allegations of money launder
ing against the Sharif family.
SUBCONTINENT TheSouthAsianTimes.info
Sri Lanka Economic
Summit 2017 to
discuss B&R
Colombo: The Sri Lanka
Economic Summit to be
held later in July will dis
cuss how Sri Lanka can
tap opportunities out of
the Belt and Road
Initiative, a Ceylon
Chamber of Commerce
statement said.
Proposed by China in
2013, the Belt and Road
initiative refers to the
Silk Road Economic Belt
and the 21st Century
fire but is sincere in its ef fort to
Maritime Silk Road, aim
maintain peace provided there was
ing at building a trade
reciprocity." Sri Lankan President Maithripala Sirisena
and infrastructure net addressing the 2016 summit.
During the talks, the Pakistan
work connecting Asia
DGMO, Maj Gen Sahir Shamshad
with Europe and Africa along the held in Colombo on July 25 and
Mirza, raised the issues of target
ancient trade routes of Silk 26 with the aim of discussing
ing of Pakistani troops resulting in
Road, Xinhua news agency ways to strengthen the island's
the death of four soldiers and a
reported. The session titled "Belt economy. The twoday annual
civilian in Athmuqam sector of
and Road Initiative summit, organized by the Ceylon
Pakistanadministered Kashmir
Transformative Opportunity for Chamber of Commerce, will have
recently.
Sri Lanka" will talk on the poten over 40 top resource persons,
The two armies have repeatedly
tial investment opportunities for such as sectoral experts, indus
exchanged heavy fire this summer
Sri Lanka from the Belt and try practitioners, government
along the winding LoC that has left
Road Initiative. The Sri Lanka officials and ministers taking
many soldiers and civilians dead
Economic Summit 2017 will be part.
on both sides.
CHINESE ARMY HOLDS
LIVEFIRE DRILL IN TIBET
Beijing: Amid the continuing bor
der standof f with India, China
has conducted a livefire drill in
Tibet in what one observer said
was a like ly warning to New
Delhi.
A fullystaf fed and equipped
brigade engaged in various drills
involving the rapid movement of
troops, use of digital devices and
combined attacks by multiple
forces, according to a China
Central Television station (CCTV)
report.
The report did not give precise
details of where or when the
exercise was held though it came
as Chinese and Indian troops
remain locked in their worst
standof f in decades on the tri
junction with Bhutan, the South
China Morning Post reported.
In a twominute clip of the The drill is seen as a warning to India.
exercises broadcast by the TV has long been stationed around covering a dozen elements was
station, the People's Liberation the middle and lower reaches of testimony to the PLA's combined
Army (PLA) soldiers were seen the Yarlung Zangbo river and is strike capability," the report said.
launching an assault on an responsible for frontline combat India and China have been
"enemy position" using machine missions. locked for over a month in a bor
guns, rocket launchers and mor T he river is lo cated in the der standof f between their sol
tars. They also used airdefense upper stream of the diers in a trijunction also involv
radar to guide antiaircraft guns Brahmaputra, which flows ing Bhutan.
in shoot ing down "enemy throug h China, India and The South China Morning Post
planes", said the daily. Another Bangladesh. India shares a long quoted an observer as saying
drill involved the use of antitank border w ith China's Tibetan that the show of strength was
grenades and missiles. According region. The drills lasted for 11 likely intended as a warning to
to the CCTV report, the brigade hours. "T he 11hour exercise India.
TheSouthAsianTimes.info INTERNATIONAL July 22-28, 2017 21

US imposes new Russia ready to

sanctions on Iran
over missile tests
Washington: The US government slapped
sanctions on 18 Iranian entities and indi
viduals linked to Iran's ballistic missile pro
gram and other nonnuclear activities.
According to a statement by the US
Treasury Department, 16 Iranian entities
and individuals, including ones engaged in
activities in support of Iran's military or
the country's Islamic Revolutionary Guard
Corps, were designated for "engaging in
support of illicit Iranian actors or transna
tional criminal activity", Xinhua news
agency reported.
According to the Treasury Department
statement, two other Iranian organizations
involved in Iran's ballistic missile program
were also targeted.
The new round of sanctions came hours
after US President Donald Trump's admin
istration declared for a second time that
Iran was complying with a 2015 nuclear
deal but also called Iran "one of the most
dangerous threats to US interests and to
Iranian Foreign Minister
Mohammad Javad Zarif.
regional stability". Meanwhile, Iranian
Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif
said that Iran received "contradictory sig
nals" from the Trump administration and
confirmed he has had no contact with his
American counterpart Rex Tillerson, CNN
reported.
retaliate if US continues
diplomatic hostility
Moscow: Moscow reserves the right to
impose titfortat measures if Washington
does not remove obstacles to activities of
Russian diplomatic institutions, the
Foreign Ministry said.
Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergey
Ryabkov he ld consultations with US
Under Secretary of State Thomas Shannon
in Washington on bilateral ties, including
burning issues regarding the illegal
seizure of Russian property in the US by
the former Barack Obama administration,
Xinhua news agency reported.
"T he Russian side stressed that if
Washington did not eliminate this and
Russian Deputy Foreign Minister
other irritants, including the continued
Sergey Ryabkov.
ef forts to hinder the functioning of
Russian diplomatic missions, it had the drawn again to the fact that Russia was in
right to respond on the basis of the princi favor of resuming regular dialogue on this
ple of reciprocity," a ministry statement issue, which was interrupted by the previ
said. ous US leadership, adding that now it was
It also said the attention of the US was Washington's turn to act.

Seoul proposes military Israel has no sovereignty

talks with Pyongyang over AlAqsa: Palestinian PM
Seoul: South Korea offered to hold
military discussions with North
Korea for the first time in nearly
three years in an effort to reduce
tensions on the Korean peninsula.
Seoul's proposal, which comes
after months of repeated nuclear
weapons tests by Pyong yang,
would be the first government
level talks between the two Koreas
since 2015, reports Efe news.
South Korea has suggested hold
ing a meeting in the socalled Joint
Security Area in the Korean
Demilitarized zone, the defacto
border between the two countries,
according to Deputy De fense
Minister Suh Choosuk.
It is the first formal offer of mili
tary talks since South Korean
President Moon Jaein came to
power in May, who pledged to
reduce friction and engage with
Pyongyang during his successful
election campaign.
Last week during a trip to Berlin,
Moon delivered a speech in which
he stressed the importance of dia
logue in the face of increasing ten
sions and the North's nucleariza
tion. At a press conference, South
Korea's Unification minister Cho
Myounggyon expressed hope that
Pyongyang would respond posi
tively to the proposal, and under
lined the importance of military
authorities from both sides coop
erating to reduce the risk of inci
dents that could further escalate
bilateral tensions.
The proposed meeting would
aim to end "all acts of hostility"
South Korean President Moon
Jaein has pledged to reduce fric
tion with the North.
along the border.
Seoul has not provided any infor
mation on an agenda, nor has it
indicated what rank of representa
tives would attend the proposed
meeting. If Seoul's offer is accept
ed by Pyongyang, it would be the
first meeting of the two countries'
military authorities since October
2014.
In addit ion to the potent ial
reopening military talks, the South
Korean Red Cross proposed talks
with Pyongyang to once again
organize reunions of families who
were separated during the Korean
War (19501953).
The Red Cross has proposed the
reunions for October, during the
Chuseok holiday.
The armed conflict between both
countries ended with a ceasefire
in 1953, but no formal peace
treaty was ever signed, meaning
the neighboring countries techni
cally remain at war.
Jerusalem: The Palestinian Prime
Minister Rami Hamdallah said
that Israel has no sovereignty
over alAqsa Mosque.
Hamdallah called on the inter
national community and Islamic
countries to intervene to halt vio
lations made by the government
of the Israeli occupation against
the revered place, Efe reported.
"The entire world should know
that Israe l, as the o ccupy ing
power, does not have any lawful
authority over Jerusalem and its
Muslim and Christ ian holy
places," the prime minister said.
The Palestinian authorities and
the international community do
not recognize Israeli sovereignty
Plan to amend Venezuelan
constitution rejected
Caracas: A vast majority of
Venezuelan voters, 98.4 percent,
rejected the President's proposal
to form a National Constituent
Assembly to amend the country's
Constitution in an opposition
backed referendum. A total of
7,186,170 Venezuelans partici
pated in the unof ficial referen
dum despite it not being backed
by the government, reports Efe
news.
In the referendum, Venezuelans
were asked to respond "yes" or
"no" to three questions.
T hey were asked if they
PM Hamdallah held Israel
responsible for mounting tensions.
over East Jerusalem, occupied in
1967, and later annexed by
Israel. Hamdallah called for secur
ing international protection for
President Maduro's call to amend
the constitution has led to
widespread protests.
approve the new Constituent
Assembly proposed by President
Nicolas Maduro; if they want the
armed forces to protect the con
the Palestinians, referring to
Israeli security measures taken
around Jerusalem's Temple
Mount since a recent attack,
when three Israeli Arabs killed
two Israeli policemen.
The Temple Mount, which con
tains alAqsa Mosque and the
Dome of the Rock, was closed for
48 hours, but was reopened on
Sunday after new security meas
ures were taken, including the
installation of metal detectors at
the entrances to the holy com
pound.
T he prime minister said he
holds Israe l responsible for
increasing tensions over these
decisions.
stitution of 1999; and if they
want the formation of a national
unity government and fresh elec
tions.
Results showed 98.5 per cent of
respondents voted in favor of the
armed forces protecting the con
stitution following the decisions
of the opposit ioncontrolled
National Assembly, which was
declared in contempt by the
Supreme Court last year, strip
ping it of its powers. T he
President's call to amend the con
stitution has led to widespread
protests condemning the move.
 22 July 22-28, 2017
Mahindra Group to double US
investment in next 5 years
New York: Indian conglomerate
Mahindra Group plans to double
its investment in the US within
the next five years, the group's
top executives have said.
Mahindra has invested $1 bil
lion in the US market to date,
employ ing about 3,000
Americans and generating annu
al revenue of $2.6 billion, Xinhua
news agency cited Mahindra and
Mahindra Managing Director
Pawan Goenka as saying.
Goenka said the company plans
to invest another billion dollars
in the next five years as well as
doubling its US headcount as it
looks to expand operations.
Also on Monday, the group's e
bike and escooter brand GenZe
announced partnership with the
logistics platform Postmates to
bring zeroemission transporta
tion solutions to New York city
and San Francisco. With an initial
Rs 11.23 crore fake currency
detected post note ban: Jaitley
New Delhi: Fake currency
totalling Rs 11.23 crore has been
detected since demonetization,
Finance Minister Arun Jaitley
said. Data available from the
National Crime Records Bureau
(NCRB) indicates that 1.58 lakh
notes of fake currency, having a
face value of Rs 11.23 crore, have
Outlook for manufacturing improves slightly in Q1 2017-18: Survey
New Delhi: Industry lobby Ficci
said that India's manufacturing
sector outlook improved slightly
during the first quarter (Q1) of
the current fiscal.
The latest quarterly survey of
manufacturing sector showed
that percentage of respondents
"reporting higher production" in
Q1 increased visvis previous
quarter.
"Ficci survey suggests that the
percentage of respondents
reporting lower production has
reduced considerably over the
previous quarter, thereby indi
Mahindra has invested $1 billion in the US market to date,
employing about 3,000 Americans.
deployment of the GenZe 2.0e
model eScooter and eBike in the
countries' major delivery mar
kets, Postmates plans to expand
the partnership to additional
been detected in 29 states post
demonetisation until July 14,
Jaitley said in a written reply to
the Rajya Sabha.
A mobile app has been launched
by Reserve Bank of India (RBI),
which allows the users to see the
features of Mahatma Gand hi
(New) Series Rs 500 and 2,000
cating a more positive outlook
in months to come," the survey
said.
"The proportion of respon
dents reporting higher output
growth during the AprilJune
201718 quarter has risen
slightly from 47 per cent in
JanuaryMarch 201617 to 49
per cent."
The survey disclosed that per
centage of respondents "report
ing negative growth" came
down to 17 per cent in April
June 201718 from 27 per cent
as reported in the previous
BUSINESS
locations in its more than 200
city network over the next year.
The electric vehicles will help
couriers to speed up delivery by
about 20 per cent.
notes to check their authenticity.
T he app can be downloaded
from the Play Store/App Store in
android/iPhone respectively.
The Minister also said that bank
notes with writing on them are
treated as soiled notes and can be
deposited in bank accounts or
exchanged at any bank branch.
quarter. "However, the cause for
worry was the rising cost of pro
duction (for a little over two
thirds of the respondents)," the
survey noted.
"The cost of production as a
percentage of sales for product
for manufacturers in the survey
has risen significantly as 69 per
cent respondents in Q1 2017
18, against 60 per cent respon
dents, reported cost escalation
in last quarter. This is primarily
due to rise in minimum wages
and raw material cost."
In terms of exports, the survey
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
POSITIVE GLOBAL CUES,
FOREIGN FUNDS' INFLOWS
LIFT INDIAN EQUITIES
Mumbai: Positive global cues, cou
pled with inflows of foreign funds
and healthy buying in healthcare,
metal and banking stocks, lifted
the Indian equity markets a day
after they suffered steepest fall of
the current fiscal.
The wider Nifty of the National
Stock Exchange (NSE) closed just a
point behind the 9,900mark. It
closed at 9,899.60 points higher
by 72.45 points, or 0.74 per cent
from its previous session's close.
The 30scrip Sensitive Index
(Sensex) of the BSE, which opened
at 31,882.80 points, closed at
31,955.35 points up 244.36
points, or 0.77 per cent, from the
previous close at 31,710.99 points.
The Sensex touched a high of
31,978.89 points and a low of
31,793.72 points during intraday
trade. The BSE market breadth was
bullish with 1,717 advances and
985 declines. In terms of the
On the currency front, the rupee strengthened by nine paise to
64.29 to a US dollar from its previous close at 64.38.
pointed out that Q1 outlook had
marginally improved as percent
age of respondents expecting a
fall during the quarter under
review came down from 22.8
per cent in Q4 (201617) to
18.5 per cent.
"Hiring outlook for the sector
remains subdued in near future
as 73 per cent of the sample
participants in Q1 201718 said
that they are unlikely to hire
additional workforce in next
three months," the survey said.
"However, when compared on
a sequential basis, this propor
broader markets, the BSE midcap
index rose by 1.01 per cent and
the smallcap index by 0.99 per
cent.
"Markets rallied higher on
Wednesday after the sharp correc
tion seen on Tuesday. Upmove in
the frontline indices was triggered
by gains in ITC, TCS (Tata
Consultancy Services) and Reliance
Industries," Deepak Jasani, Head of
Retail Research, HDFC Securities,
told IANS.
"The rally came on the back of
positive global cues. Asian shares
edged higher as optimism on
China's economy underpinned
Asian shares and commodities.
European indices like FTSE 100,
CAC 40 and DAX traded higher,"
Jasani added.
On the currency front, the rupee
strengthened by nine paise to
64.29 to a US dollar from its previ
ous close at 64.38.
tion reflects a mild improvement
over the previous quarter when
77 per cent of the respondents
were reportedly averse to hire
additional workforce."
In addition, the survey predict
ed moderate growth in metals,
leather, footwear, machine tools
and capital goods sector during
the Q1 201718.
"Low growth is expected in
sectors like chemicals, automo
tive, textiles and cement. Only in
case of electronics and electri
cals high growth is expected for
Q1 201718," the survey said.
TheSouthAsianTimes.info July 22-28, 2017
 24 July 22-28, 2017 SPORTS TheSouthAsianTimes.info

Kohli says no extra pressure with Shastri

Mumbai: Indian cricket captain

Shastri gets 'core team'

Virat Kohli feels that he will not
be under any added pressure to
perform with Ravi Shastri, consid
ered to be his favourite choice for
the post of head coach, back in
the team replacing Anil Kumble.
India enjoyed a successful spell
under Kumble but the legspin
legend's contract was not
renewed amid a supposedly sour
relationship with his captain.
Now that Kohli and Shastri have
come together again, the per
formances will be further scruti
nized. But at the predeparture
press conference ahead of the
tour of Sri Lanka, Kohli on
Wednesday said that he is not dis
tracted by the offfield drama that
surrounded the appointment of
the coaching staf f which is now
Shastri's "core team".
"I don't think there is added
pressure. What has to happen will
happen. Criticism and being criti
cized is nothing new to us.
Whatever is happening of f the
field doesn't bother us. I do not
take any added pressure. I started
as a player and you only focus on
the series that you have to play,"
he said as the team embarks on a
tour featuring three Tests, five
OneDay Internationals (ODIs)
and a oneof f Twenty20
International.
"I only have the bat in hand. I
only focus on doing what is in my
hand and that is to play.
Skipper Virat Kohli with Ravi Shastri. (Photo: IANS)
Speculation is not in my control.
My job is to bring the best out on
the field and make this team do
well."
On the team's equation with
Shastri, Kohli said: "We have
worked together earlier as well so
I don't think much effort will be
required to understand each
other."
Shastri elaborated upon how he
will go about his job. "I carry on
from where I left. The fabric of
Indian cricket will remain, these
Ravi Shastris and Anil Kumbles
will come and go. I don't come
with any baggage. The team has
done exceedingly well over three
years. If they are No.1 today, they
(the players) are the people who
deserve the credit," Shastri said.
"As a player, when you play the
game, you want the mind to be
very clear. You don't want any
distraction and that happens with
a good support staff. My job is to
do just that. I want the players to
only think about their roles."
Shastri ag ain de fended the
selection of Bharat Arun as bowl
ing coach. "There is a track record
15 years he has been coaching.
(His coaching career) It's out
standing right from the junior
teams, the 'A' teams to the junior
World Cup teams. He knows these
boys better than I do," he said.
"If Bharat Arun's name was
someone else, you would have put
it on top of the tree. His strengths
are for everyone to see." Kohli
recollected his first Test series
win as India captain in 2015
against Sri Lanka. A young Indian
Mumbai: Virtually snubbing the
CAC selection of Rahul Dravid and
Zaheer Khan as overseas consult
ants, newlyappointed head coach
of the Indian cricket team Ravi
Shastri on Tuesday had his way
when the BCCI announced the
return of Bharat Arun as bowling
coach. At a media conference,
Board of Control for Cricket in
India (BCCI) acting Secretary
Amitabh Choudhary also declared
the elevation of Sanjay Bangar as
assistant coach and retained R.
Sridhar as the fielding coach till
the 2019 ICC World Cup.
"I was clear in my head about
my core team. And what you just
heard is my core team," Shastri
told reporters after the announce
ment by the BCCI in his presence.
aThe media conference took place
after Shastri met the newly
formed fourmember BCCI com
mittee for the purpose of deciding
the coaches, comprising acting
President C.K. Khanna, acting
team lost the first of the three
match series but came back to
win the next two to mark the
side's first away Test series win in
four years. "That was a landmark
tour for us. Because if you look at
the average age, that tour for us
was the start of the belief system
Secretary Amitabh Choudhary,
Committee of Administrators
(CoA) member Diana Edulji and
board CEO Rahul Johri.
Shastri's remarks on Tuesday
left it unclear on the roles of for
mer India stalwarts Rahul Dravid
and Zaheer Khan who were
announced as overseas batting
and bowling consultants respec
tively by the Cricket Advisory
Committee (CAC), comprising
Sachin Tendulkar, Sourav Ganguly
and V.V.S. Laxman. For the record,
Shastri said he has talked to both
the former players. "All depends
on their availability. It depends on
individuals, the number of days
they want to give but their inputs
will be invaluable and they are
most welcome. I have spoken to
both of them personally," former
India allrounder Shastri said.
Replying to questions,
Choudhary dismissed the view
that the CAC's announcement on
Dravid and Zaheer was a fiasco.
that we can win away from home
and we do have the culture creat
ed to win away from home," he
remembered.
"We showed that we have the
ability and we can win from any
situation fighting back from diffi
cult moments."

Federer rises to 3rd Bolt to run 100, 4100 relay

in ATP rankings after in final World Championships
Wimbledon win London: Jamaican star Usain Bolt
has confirmed that he will com
pete in the 100 metres and
Madrid: Winning his eig hth
4100m relay race at the IAAF
Wimbledon title allowed Swiss
World Championships here next
Roger Federer, the most
month. The 100 meters and 200
acclaimed player in Grand Slams
meters world record holder Bolt
with 19 titles, to earn a spot in
said in a press conference that he
the top three of the men's
will only run in the 100 and
Asso ciat ion of Tennis
4100 relay in his last world
Professionals (ATP) world sin
championship appearance, before
gles rankings, with 6,545 points.
he hangs up his running shoes,
Briton Andy Murray and
Efe news agency quoted the
Spanish Rafael Nadal kept their
Internat ional Asso ciat ion of
places at first and second, even
Athletics Federations (IAAF) as
though they left the tournament
say ing on their so cial media
at the quarterfinal stage and
account. "My aim is to win in
round of 16 respectively, reports
London. I want to retire on a win
Efe. The 35yearold Swiss won
ning note," Bolt said in a press
five of the 14 tournaments in
conference prior to the Monaco
which he has participated in the
Diamond League Meeting.
current season, two Grand Slams
"I feel good now. I had a major
(Australian Open and
setback at the beginning of the
Wimbledon) and two 1,000
year with the death of my good
Masters (Indian We lls and
friend," he added.
Miami) in addition to Halle.
Asked about his decision to
Federer's opponent in
Roger Federer won men's retire this year, he said: "I decided
Sunday's Wimbledon final Marin
Wimbledon title. it's time to retire because I've
Cilic of Croatia is sixth in the list.
accomplished all my goals." Usain Bolt.
TheSouthAsianTimes.info BOOKS July 22-28, 2017 25

LITERARY TOURISM:
Visiting places that inspired iconic literature
l By Vikas Datta shouldn't be "unexpected".
"All the world is a reliquary, filled

T he unsettling story of an evil

Transylvanian aristocrat's
depredations was brought home
in all senses to the readers by a
British coastal resort, Gabriel Garcia
Marquez's fictional Colombian set
ting of his bestknown works actual
ly exists and San Francisco high
lights the spot of a murder catalyz
ing one of the most famous crime
noir novels.
Literature may be the ultimate
epitome of inspired imagination,
but it is somewhere tied to reality
though its settings, characters or
plot. And as these examples and
others show, the first tends to take
more prominence. There is scarcely
a place in the world which has not
figured in some story, and converse
ly, many places have inspired some
of the most iconic fiction of all gen
res. The dreaming spires and clois
ters of Oxford, the "foreboding
forests, striking towers, and even
some genuine castles" between
Germany's Frankfurt and Bremen,
the hedonistic playground of the
French Riviera, the "brash, kitschy,
postwar" Western US seen from its
backroads, the grandeur of St
Petersburg, the "dangerous, dirty
and seductive" streets of Naples and
more survive well beyond their
depictions, actual or adapted from
the works of Lewis Carroll to
Alexander Pushkin to Elena
Ferrante.
The New York Times
Footsteps;
Three Rivers Press/Penguin
Random House;
Pages: 304; Price: Rs 499
And there are people who revel in
visiting these places to try to get
insights into how they may have
inspired these writers, as this
anthology of literary travel writings
from The New York Times' popular
"Footsteps" travel feature brings
out.
Noting that all travelers may have
once strayed "onto turf that an
artist, including those who paint
pictures with words, once trod..",
Monica Drake, the editor of the New
York Times' travel section, says it
with fields, forests and city plazas
that lead visionaries among us to
create work that endures the ages.
We travelers are but devotees who
touch these monuments and in
place of prayers meditate on how
someone else came to be who they
are and create what they did.
"We inevitably look and wonder.
Did the sweep of this hill and the
mist of the morning somehow ignite
a spark. Was this place more inci
dental than inspirational?
Examining these questions has been
the defining task of 'Footsteps' since
1981, when The New York Times
ran it as a shortlived series," she
says.
'Footsteps', she adds, appeared
sporadically in subsequent years
before becoming a fullfledged fea
ture and it is some of its pieces from
the new millennium that feature
here.
But Drake notes it is always not
about the inspiration, for many of
the pieces, including a few featured
here, deal with writers' impressions
of places ranging from Mark Twain
on a vacation in laidback Hawaii to
Arthur Rimbaud recuperating in
Ethiopian market town with cob
bled streets to Orhan Pamuk intro
ducing his Istanbul.
"What unifies them is a single
guiding principle: Each story should
leave the readers with a new per
spective on an artist and the place
Bram Stokers Dracula was inspired by the ruins of Whitby Abbey, an
abandoned monastery in England.
that has somehow been a muse," she
says, and the anthology well meets
the criterion.
And in three dozenodd delightful
ly incisive, thoroughly informative
and endearing pieces spanning
cities, regions and routes over five
continents by a range of writers
retracing the footsteps of a favorite
author, there is something for read
ers across genres.
Here are traced the settings that
inspired works from "Alice in
Wonderland" to Ferrante's
acclaimed Neapolitan coming of age
quartet, from the Brothers Grimm's
fairytales to the gritty crime stories
of Dashiell Hammett, and from the
singular "romance" of Vladimir
Nabokov's "Lolita" to the surreal
stories of Jorge Luis Borges.
And while there are many obvious
spots like Rome, Paris, the coastal
English "Wessex" of Thomas Hardy
and the Madrid of Ernest
Hemingway, there are many others
not so obvious, including Alice
Munro's Vancouver, Antigua, Pablo
Neruda's Chile and even Saigon/Ho
Chi Minh City and a Sri Lankan
resort.
There is much to learn, including
how Hardy invented the phrase
"cliffhanger", how Hemingway
cooked and what has survived war
and revolution in St Petersburg.
A point to introspect for us can be
why no Indian spot makes the cut,
but that is ameliorated by the thrill
of these essays meant "for the avid
readers who can travel by simply
turning a page" but also enjoyable
for other travelers armchair or
potential.

Wanted to mess with distinction between fiction

and nonfiction: Amitava Kumar
l By Saket Suman texture of campus life and the charismatic professor oversee
ing these young men and women, Ehsaan Ali. Manifest in his

F iction and nonfiction, the two conventional genres of liter

ature, are distinct in their narratives, structure and style.
But acclaimed writer Amitava Kumar has challenged this
fixed distinction in his new novel, saying he wanted to mess
with it.
The most outstanding feature of The Lovers is that this
decidedly modern novel is an intriguing mix of story and
reportage, anecdote and annotation as well as picture and
text.
Novels describe what it means to be alive at a given
moment. My reportage attempts to convey that feeling of liv
ing on a university campus in the US in the early nineties, or
writing a novel at the current moment. Also, I very much
wanted to play with, or mess with, the somewhat fixed distinc
tion between fiction and nonfiction, says Kumar.
So, what Im saying is that in some places the reportage is
there to disrupt the idea that what you are reading is an
entirely madeup story, says Kumar, who has previously writ
ten A Matter of Rats: A Short Biography of Patna; Home
Products, which was shortlisted for the Crossword Prize; and
A Foreigner Carrying in the Crook of His Arm a Tiny Bomb.
Although he is not the first writer to have used this tech
nique, what sets him apart is the ease with which he melds the
two to give a direction to the plot. The novel is about a man in
search of a love story. This man, our narrator, is Kailash a
new immigrant in the US, eager to shine.
In his account of his years at a university in New York, the
Amitava Kumars new book The Lovers
is an intriguing mix of story and
reportage, anecdote and annotation
as well as picture and text.
narrator takes us through the arc of youth and love. There is
discovery and disappointment. There are the brilliant women,
Jennifer and Nina, and Cai Yan. And then, there is the political
first years and first loves is the wild enthusiasm of youth, its
idealism, chaotic desires and confusions.
The character of Ehsaan Ali is based on the scholar Eqbal
Ahmad who was born in Gaya (Bihar) and then came to the US
via Pakistan. He had a storied and celebrated life. I wanted to
tell his story and I think that might have been the beginning
of this novel. But to give that portrait a certain kind of depth, I
surrounded it with stories of students students whose lives
had been similar to mine, says the author, who is a professor
of English at Vassar College in the US.
Asked if it was actually necessary to mess with the fixed
distinction between fiction and nonfiction, the author said it
is now too late in the day to invest our belief entirely in fic
tion or makebelieve. He also hopes that young readers
would be curious to learn about the experiences of Indian stu
dents in America, the acquisition of new knowledge, not just in
the classroom but outside it and also the discovery of love.
As a gifted writer and storyteller, what is his favorite aspect
of writing?
To give what is imagined or madeup the feel of the real,
and to do so in a way that is intelligent and provokes thought.
I mean, even fake news tries to convince us of its reality but it
does so mostly by appealing to your preconceived notions,
your shared biases or your prejudice. How to do the opposite?
To create a sense of the real and then challenge your biases. I
think that is my favorite aspect of writing, and that is what Ive
tried to do in The Lovers, he says. IANS
TheSouthAsianTimes.info July 22-28, 2017
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
An Enlightened Existence
Pujya Gurudevshri Rakeshbhai pays tribute to Shrimad Rajchandraji, expressing how He, not
only illumined His own life, but served as a beacon of light for numerous others.
By Pujya Gurudevshri Rakeshbhai
significant and meaningful
A aphorism in the
Mahabharata states that it is
far more worthwhile to live a short
but luminous life, rather than one
that is long, but smokefilled and
dreary. A long life of darkness is
meaningless. With teary eyes,
clouded vision and no light, the
latent nectar will not manifest.
The Enlightened Ones therefore
exclaim, Awaken! You have lived
in darkness for too long. There is
fire hidden within you. Within you
is such an essence that can take
you to the zenith. The Supreme lies
within you.
LIVE A PROFOUND LIFE
What is the purpose of life? Can
breathing alone be termed as life?
Eating when you are hungry, sleep
ing when you are drowsy, getting
angry when such emotions arise,
chasing power, position, name and
fame, is this life? This is rotting
away, not living life. After a few
years no one will even recall who
you were. Your own later genera
tions will have forgotten your
name! Your life will be in vain. It
will not take a long time to go from
the cradle to the crematorium and
this invaluable life will be squan
dered.
Life need not be long, but it must
have depth. Science tries to
increase your lifespan; dharma
tries to make it profound. For this,
one must stop brooding over the
past, dreaming of the future and
remain focused in the present.
An illumined life is led by one
who frees his consciousness from
memories of the past, fancies of
the future and steadies it in the
present. His passions are exhaust
ed; he realises his supreme nature
and abides in it. In the brilliant
radiance of his life, others too find
their direction. Shrimad
Rajchandrajis life exemplifies this.
AN EXEMPLARY
ROLE MODEL
A glimpse into the life of
Shrimad Rajchandraji will bring
about an understanding of His
magnificence. It will arouse won
der at how a human can be so
great! But if He could do it, and if
such greatness could manifest in
Him, then such a phenomenon is
possible in you too. If you conse
crate Shrimad Rajchandraji in your
heart and allow Him to spread, cer
tainly your life too can become like
His.
SPIRITUALITY July 22-28, 2017 27
This can transpire only when one
understands Shrimad
Rajchandrajis life as well as his
own. The magnanimous difference
between the two arouses a feeling
of humility as well as hope and
inspiration, guiding one in the
right direction. However, should
one stop at extolling Shrimad
Rajchandrajis virtues without
imbibing them, or raising the stan
dard of his life, he will not benefit
spiritually. We tend to eulogize
Him, but not follow in His foot
steps. True devotion unto Him is to
recognize His real identity and About
enlighten our life.
eration, one realizes its essence
the Author and the
A STATE PAR EXCELLENCE and correctness. Mission:
A mother might seem like she is Propounding the path of Bhagwan
How wondrous is Shrimad
busy working but her heart is Mahavira, the founder of Shrimad
Rajchandrajis state! What divinity,
always with her child. She does Rajchandra Mission Dharampur, Pujya
greatness and purity!
many things, but her fondness is
There is such divine intoxication Gurudevshri Rakeshbhai is a spiritual visionary
for her child alone. No matter
that it does not ever diminish. It and a modern day mystic. An embodiment of univer-
where she goes, her inclination and
becomes the way of life. The intoxi sal compassion, He has touched thousands of lives in
interest are only in her child. This
cation from anything else or any
may not be plainly perceptible but various countries through enlightening discourses and
other achievement does not last
on close observation, one realizes an array of meditation retreats steering a multitude of
forever. Time and again it fades
that her whole being is filled with
away and we become low and mis souls towards the spiritual way of life. His preaching
her child. In the same way the
erable and need to get intoxicated inspires one to rise above religious dogma and focus
being of the Enlightened is filled
again to feel high. How long will on the Eternal. His divine benevolence has uplifted
with the Self. Wherever He may be,
we keep building a house of cards?
whichever activity He may be numerous underprivileged lives through the
How long do we want our paper
doing but his eagerness, his inter ten-fold Love and Care program.
boat to remain afloat? Let us drink
est is not in the act at hand.
such an elixir that its rapture never For more information, visit: www.shri-
Because of His effortlessness, one
ebbs. If we indulge in the nectar of
is not able to catch His inner indif madrajchandramission.org
mence
the Self, then the whole life Email: usa@shrimadrajchan-
ference, but He is reveling in the ment of ness
becomes a dance.
Self alone. the spiritual dramission.org to sur
The Enlightened One reveling in
The Enlightened abide in the journey. Though render
this state lives in the world but
state of nondoing, though they the destination is yet completely,
remains unaffected, untouched by
perform actions. The Enlightened far, and out of sight, He an incessant long
it. No activity poses a hindrance to
One walks, but while walking is has seen it. It is towards Him, that ing to experience the Self. Such
His abidance in the Self. No activity
identified with that which does not we move. This movement of an was the satsang of Shrimad
binds Him with karma. Therefore it
walk and only knows. He speaks unlit lamp towards a lit one is Rajchandraji whose mortal coil
is said that even the worldly activi
but is established in that which known as satsang. manifested on Kartik Purnima (full
ties of an Enlightened One are the
remains silent. He eats and yet is Satsang is a contagious environ moon day of the first month of Jain
cause for exhaustion of His karma.
united with that essence which ment, spreading the fragrance of calendar). Though His life was
THE VALUE LIES IN AWARE needs no food. the Self, of dharma. It is being in short, it was a life of brilliance,
NESS A BLESSING TO the company of one who has radiance, profundity. It served as a
attained the Self. Someone sitting guiding light for many others.
The value is not in the external THE WORLD
next to a gambler, soon finds him Through the radiance of His illu
activity, but is in the inner aware
The company of such a Master is self gambling; so also the company mined life,
ness. In every activity it is impor
very rare. In whose eyes you can of the Enlightened inspires a May we uplift ourselves and
tant to check whether it is happen
see divinity, in whose words you yearning for the Divine, an eager make our life divine and radiant.
ing with awareness or without
have faith, in whose company the
awareness. For the ignorant, activi
desire and deep yearning for the
ty alone is important. And so even
if he keeps changing his activities,
experience of Pure Consciousness Life need not be long, but it must
arises; such a man of wisdom is
he still remains unaware. But with
rare. You will certainly see a shad have depth. Science tries to
out awareness, everything is just a
flight of fancy, completely worth
ow of that divine world in the eyes
of the one who is united with Pure
increase your life-span; dharma
less. The Enlightened One eats and
yet is fasting; the ignorant may be
Consciousness. If you ever experi tries to make it profound. For this,
ence the fragrance of Pure
fasting and yet he is eating. The
Consciousness in someone, catch one must stop brooding over the
point behind this is awareness of
the Self. On cursory glance it may
hold of His lotusfeet and beg for
His shelter.
past, dreaming of the future and
appear that there is a bias towards
the Enlightened, but on deep delib
Meeting one who has experi remain focused in the present.
enced the Divine marks the com
 28 July 22-28, 2017
A superpowered bug to inspire us all
y wife and her friends were discussing
M the topic "What is the deepest ques
tion ever", so I gave them my choice: "What
superhero would you be?"
The women sneered that my favored issue
was not clever nor existential, but the guys
in the room backed me, agreeing that choos
ing a superpower was an important subject
deserving serious consideration. This may
be a Guy Thing.
I know two lads who have been having a
passionate twoyear debate over whether it
would be better to be a Beetleman or a
Lizardman. T hey init ially supported
Lizardman, as lizards can move each eye
independently, can detach their tails, and
have tongues which strike faster than the
eye can see. But after much heartsearching,
they switched to Beetleman, as beetles gen
erate their own body armor, outlived the
dinosaurs, and will likely inherit the Earth,
possibly some time this year, judging by
trends in global politics.
Superhero fans of either sex struggling
with this crucial issue will be interested to
hear that there's a new candidate for best
new origin concept: Tardigrade Man or
Woman. I learned about this from a writer
friend who reads incredibly boring scientific
BEST
RATE
FOR
INDIA
AND
PAKISTAN
New York Head Quarter
422S Broadway
HICKSVILLE
NY 11801
5168271010
HUMOR
Funny Side by Nury Vittachi
(Image courtesy: cbr.com)
papers as a source of inspiration.
A tardigrade is a very small bug with
astonishing superpowers.
1) It can survive at minus 272 Kelvin, an
unbelievably cold temperature found only in
deep space ice planets and the heart cavities
of nationalist politicians.
2) You can more or less kill a tardigrade
and dry it out and then bring it back to life,
months later, an ability hitherto seen only in
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
superhero literature is to have regular
human characters inside large machines, as
seen in Gundam. It frankly astonishes me
that science today is focused on useless
things like travelling to the stars instead of
making the world a better place by develop
ing cool machines which we can climb inside
and use to hit each other.
When I mentioned this, a friend told me
about two machineusing brothers in the
United States who recently had an argu
ment. Stanley Emanuel was in a crane and
his brother Peter was in a frontend loader
when the row escalated and turned into a
battle. Who won? Peter's frontend loader
eventually tipped the crane over, but Stanley
jumped out and had his brother arrested,
according to news reports.
Someone showed me a video from China
this writer's harddrinking greatuncles and of guys fighting from inside construction
a certain vintage of journalist. equipment, so I guess this is a Thing now.
3) Tardigrades can stay alive on foodfree The abovementioned wives thought hav
diets for up to 30 years, a trait that reminds ing fisticuffs from inside machines was dan
me of my wife and her friends, many of gerous and irresponsible, but the mental
whom have forsworn foo d, living for image prompted one of the guys to raise a
decades only on herbal tea and traces of new philosophical question: "What construc
frosted lipstick. tion vehicle would you be?" Oh, that's deep.
Using bugs as a source of powers is a clas We'll get back to you in a couple of years,
sic tradition, although the recent fashion in maybe.
Laughter is the Best Medicine
By Mahendra Shah
Mahendra Shah is an architect by education, entrepreneur by profession, artist
and humorist, cartoonist and writer by hobby. He has been recording the plight
of the immigrant Indians for the past many years in his cartoons.
Hailing from Gujarat, he lives in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
By Dr Prem Kumar Sharma
JULY 2228, 2017
ARIES: A very good week to apply for
overseas job. You would be the center of
attraction at a social gathering that you
attend especially with family. A very successful
week as far as monetary position is concerned.
Blossoming love life brings happiness.
Meditation and selfrealization prove benecial.
Thrilling experience is on your way, as your trip
is full of excitement Too much of buying and
selling of property is a danger to your bank bal
ance. Dont get surprised if you have to shoulder
the legal problems in this week.
TAURUS: Support and appreciation from
seniors would raise your morale and con
dence. Parents and friends will do their
best to keep you happy. Improvement in
nances makes it convenient in clearing long
pending dues & bills. Love companion will be
eager to meet you during this week. Positive out
look impresses those around you besides keep
ing you t & ne. A little planning and research
is whats needed to experience an enjoyable
week. It might be the right time to sale your
empty plot as property rates are at peak.
Interactions with strangers would bring a newer
kind of joy.
GEMINI: Tough situations at workplace
would give you the opportunity to grow.
A promising week to plan things for your
progeny. Dig deep beneath the surface to nd
out more about the investment scheme that
seems to be attracting you. However consult
experts be fore making any commitment.
Proposing might benet, as chances of succeed
ing in love are high. Hypertension patients,
make sure you take a lowfat & low sodium diet
combined with medication to get rid of the prob
lem. Ensure that your trip will be one you enjoy
and not one that you endure. Your plan for a
new house will be in process very soon. Failures
are likely to be stepping stones for success.
CANCER: Traveling brings new over
seas business opportunities. Family
front seems to go smoothly as you
receive their full support to your plans. Increase
in income from past investment is foreseen.
Romantic opportunity comes your way as your
sparkling sunshine smile injures a lively & ten
der heart. A very healthy week lled with happi
ness & vitality. Go through all the pros and cons
before you plan a trip. Investment on construc
tion business might give fruitful results. Watch
out for individual who might try to mislead /give
false information.
LEO: You fail to achieve the desired
results on trying to search shortcuts to
professional problems. Feeling of isola
tion might prevent from taking sensible deci
sions at domestic front. Successful execution of
brilliant ideas would help in earning nancial
prots. Search for a true romantic friend might
end in this week. Charity work undertaken will
bring mental peace & comfort. A luxurious get
away type vacation with your spouse waiting for
you. Your loan procedures for pursuing a plot
will be in process. You will devote time to
improve behavior and learn new things.
VIRGO: Medical transcription profession
als are likely to nd it difcult to achieve
their targets. Parents are likely to be
cooperative despite your erratic behavior.
Indications of earning nancial prots through
commissions, dividends or royalties.Time now to
strive to bring back harmony in romantic rela
tions. You will have ample time to do things to
improve your health. The deals which you are
looking forward might be de layed due to
increase in property rates. A very successful
week, for devoting time & energy in helping
others.
ASTROLOGY
LIBRA: Promotions and monetary bene
ts for dedicated professionals. Time to
get involved into activities that would
help in bringing contact with close relatives. Avoid
overspending in order to impress others. Romance
will ourish provided you take care of partner.
Sound physical health will enable to participate in
outdoor activities. An enriching vacation full of
fun is what you need. Investment has to be made
keeping in mind about the area where your plot is.
Restrain yourself from getting involved in matters
that doesnt concern you at all.
SCORPIO: Pending proposals will get
implemented with the help of seniors.
You would prefer to relax and enjoy the
company of family members in the evening.
Important people will be ready to nance any
thing that has a special class to it. Romance is
likely to intensify through recreational activities
& entertainment. You need to take complete rest
to regain energy, as a feeble body weakens the
mind. Time to make your vacation a dream come
true. Investment in hotel industry can be the
right choice to be made. Planning to visit a pil
grimage is on the cards.
SAGITTARIUS: Business results are like
ly to remain far below your expecta
tions. This week you will move with
new excitement & condence as you receive sup
port from family and friends. Property dealings
would materialize helping in bringing fabulous
gains. You are likely to suffer heartache on sepa
ration from love partner. Some of you are likely
to suffer from inferiority complex. Traveling reg
ularly might be injurious for your well being.
Spending too much on lifestyle homes, will ruin
your relations and bank balance. Habit of blindly
following others could land you in some trouble.
CAPRICORN: You will be highly benet
ed by making the fullest use of commu
nication skills and the ability to handle
any pressurized situation. Make sure you do
something exciting and different with people at
home. Be sure where you put hardearned
money because only wise investments will fetch
returns. If possible plan something interesting
with lover/beloved for future. You will be suc
cessful in getting rid from tensions. Affordable
luxury vacation will explore your desires. Being
too choosy in investing plans can lose the prop
erty you are looking for. God helps those who
help themselves is the secret mantra of solving
personal problems.
AQUARIUS: Good week for implement
ing new plans and ventures.
Performing rituals/auspicious cere
monies at home prove high benecial. You are
likely to earn monetary gains through various
sources. Prepare yourself to face the onslaught
of cupids arrows. A sparkling laughter lled
week when most things proceed, as you desire.
Perfect getaway time for you and your partner.
Your investment on overseas plans might give
some impact on your bank balance. Do not
reveal information that is personal & conden
tial even to the dearest friends.
PISCES: Subordinates/coworkers would
be very helpful. Disagreements with chil
dren bring arguments and could be very
frustrating. Although your nancial position
improves but the outow of money will still cre
ate hindrance in executing projects. Love is a
serious business; therefore dont take it for
granted. Your enormous condence would help
in enjoying a healthy life. A group of friends or
your partner is looking forward for a vacation
with you. Dealings in property matters might
depress you in context with nancial matters.
You might have to make some changes in sched
ule for socializing.
Chandigarh, India: +91-172- 256 2832, 257 2874
Delhi, India: +91-11- 2644 9898, 2648 9899
psharma@premastrologer.com; www.premastrologer.com
ANNUAL PREDICTIONS: FOR THOSE BORN IN THIS WEEK
22nd July, 2017
Ruled by number 4 and planet Uranus and
supported by Mercury also, you are cool head
ed lad and jolts everybody mind by your intel
lectual way of talking. You are dif ficult to
please but some of your friends find the way to
get you. You are likely to get a friend who
might ring the marriage bells on your door.
Every night is followed by a day is what you
have to believe in. Your effort will ignite a ray
of hope to end all your worries. Source of
income itself comes to you but you need to
grab the opportunity also. You always believe
in taking decision on the spot, a bit of delay
and your temperature will be like Delhis sum
mer. Your grilling attitude makes you a deep
thinker. You tend to go to the root of the prob
lem and then sort it out. You always display a
character that is optimistic and positive in your
life. Avoid sitting idle as idle mind is devils
abode. Serenity is high on your cards which
takes you a ride on some peaceful and exotic
trip with your family. Dont count your chicken
before they hatch is what is your motto of your
life. Prosperous months: July, December,
February and May.
23rd July, 2017
Steered by number 5 and Mercury, for stu
dents and professional, studies and work will
make you so much busy bodied that you have
no time to breathe. Through your aspirations
you will thrall everybody around you. One of
your outstanding ability is to spot early on spot
your area of comfort, groom it and do the task
in the best way you can. Your speeches will
bind your coworkers who at times come for
some inhouse training about life philosophy.
In the entire campaign of life till now you
debar yourself from any clashes at home or at
your workplace. You always bounce back with
great thrust when faced with challenges face to
face. Running time will bring lot of triumph and
success for you before signing off. Auspicious
and significant months would be November,
December, March and April.
24th July, 2017
Favored by number 6 Venus and overpow
ered by Mercury, upcoming year brings lot of
name and fame for you. You will rise like shin
ing star. Success fills your basket with love and
af fection as everyone pulled towards you.
Seems you would be too much popular among
opposite sex. Feeling of an affair or infatuation
is waiting for you. Your air is filled with posi
tive vibrations around you. Well contented
married life will be there for you. You will get
full support, cooperation and loyal from your
spouse. Any person of water element or any
thing of water element would be beneficial for
your business ventures. Any sea city would
bring a lot of happiness in your upcoming life.
September, October, February and June will be
lucky for you.
25th July, 2017
Regularized by number 7, carry forwarded
by planet Neptune and accompanied by
Mercury, re liability is in your bloo d.
Optimistically you will talk to yourself that its
your time now. You need not to have pushed
from anybody instead your honed skills and
keen retention is your assets. You need to
check your fluctuating and sprawling mode.
You are jack of all the trades. People will notice
you wherever you visit. You try to reclaim your
yesteryear charm because of your bewilder
trait and succeed in it. If you are anchoring in
some channel then time will bring you to have
July 22-28, 2017 29
well conceived interactive session with some
high profiled people. Your expertise will be
required while doing so. You are modern and a
strong follower of western culture where there
is no room for superstitions. Your revolution
ary ideas may create a controversial image of
yours but ultimately you will be benefited from
that too. A friend in need is friend in deed is
what you symbolize. Everyone will come to you
as they feel a ray of hope of sorting out their
problems in you. November, January, February
and April brings harmony for you.
26th July, 2017
Regulated by number 8, and ordered by
Saturn and Mercury, spending on luxurious
items will be high on your cards. You are likely
to explore an altogether a dif ferent field of
Interior decorator. This new avenue might
force you to buy a house which jolts your bank
balance a little bit. You try to catch up all the
facilities in it be it amazement or amusement.
Adoring beauty is in your soul. You will soon
take a trip across the country to sign on new
ventures which takes you ahead of your rival
ries. You fate will gives you a long ride of glory
and success. Surely you will attain your targets
if work with full consciousness. Dont try to be
over smart in front your lover. Think again and
again before committing anything and once
committed, be stick to your words. Relish the
adventure of India and foreign countries by
taking a long holiday tour. Amid business will
also be in your mind and may be you will get
some new idea to implement. So keep your
eyes and ears open. January, May and July are
result oriented time for you.
27th July, 2017
Ruled by number 9 and promising planets
are Mars and Mercury, you may face back to
back problems but the potential in you takes
the centre stage and your reign continues over
hurdles. You are likely to take early advantage
of all the options that comes to your way to
attain the obvious target i.e. success. You keep
on doing the good work and try to emulate it
time and again. Hunt to improve your sullen
behavior will show some sign of prosperity. At
times you lost in pleasant thoughts which
recharged your battery. Messy matters may put
you in tensed bracket but encouraging smiles
from your loved ones reassure you. Your intent
for your relatives is always pure and transpar
ent but you will get nothing out of it except
criticism. Your revolutionary act makes you a
good warrior. You act as a backbone for the
society. You are simple and straightforward by
nature. October, December, April and May will
prove beneficial for you.
28th July, 2017
Directed by the number 1 and the planet Sun,
you are filled with leadership and managerial
qualities. A reservoir of talent, potential and
wit is you. When it comes to beat you at work
place, nobody can do that as you are beyond
comparison and simply invincible. You would
also raise your bar by doing consistently good
work. At times you show your introvert side
and that side of yours needs to be modified, so
that your close ones wont misinterpret you. Go
and express your feelings with any hesitation
in love matters. You could associate or get con
nected with any social service organization.
You would also take some strong decision inde
pendently this year. Chances to get a big break
in entertainment industry are very high.
September, February, April and June will show
er the blessings.
30 July 22-28, 2017 SPIRITUAL AWARENESS TheSouthAsianTimes.info

HAPPINESS IS A STATE OF MIND

By Sant Rajinder
Singh Ji Maharaj
ife is filled with many challenges
L and sometimes, under pressure,
people crack. They feel they can no
longer stand all the problems facing
them. Sometimes people feel they
have the worst job in the world.
Others feel they have the worst
health problems; they feel no one
could be plagued with as many
physical problems as they have. At
some time in our lives, we feel that
no one could have things as bad as
we have.
There is a folk tale about a wise
man who lived in a forest. People
would travel far and wide to seek
him out for answers to their prob
lems. One day, a woman came to
him for advice.
He said, My dear, what can I do
for you?
She said, Things are terrible at
home. I live in a small hut with my
husband and two children. The hut
is barely large enough for the four
than before. Your advice did not
work.
He thought for a moment and
asked, Do you have any chickens?
Yes, she said.
He told her, Take them into the
hut with you for a week. She did
not understand how this would
help, but since he was a wise man,
and everybody in her village found
his advice helpful, she thought she
would give this a try.
When she returned home, she col
lected all the chickens from the
backyard and moved them into the
house. For the next week, the chick
ens were flying around the hut,
landing on everything and making a
mess of the place.
After a week, she returned and
cried, in tears, You must be crazy.
Your advice is terrible. It is impossi
ble to live in the hut now. The cow
turns around and knocks into us.
The chickens fly all around the hut.
My inlaws are always choking from
the smell and complaining about
how bad it is living with us. The chil
dren find chicken feathers falling
into their food. My husband is con
stantly fighting with me over the liv
ing conditions in our home and
says, It is all your fault!
The wise man thought for a
moment and said, My dear, go
home and try one more thing. Take
the cow and the chickens out of
your hut. Then, come back to me in
a week.
The woman was fed up with his
Next time we think things are going badly
and that God is not properly listening to us,
we should sit back, take a deep breath, and
relax. We should give God a chance to let
things happen and observe patiently. We
will find when all is said and done that God
worked things out for the best in the end.
advice but thought she would give it cult life is without
one last chance. She returned home them. We always
and pulled the cow out of the house. feel the grass is
She took the chickens out and greener on the
returned them to the backyard. other side.
A week later, the woman returned The woman learned that what she own and prayed to God to return
to the wise man.
How are things now? he asked.
thought was bad was actually not so
bad when she saw how much worse
things to the way they were.
Next time we think things are
Thank you so much! You are things could be. It is human nature going badly and that God is not
truly wise. Since I removed the cow to think that everybody else has it properly listening to us, we should
and chickens from the hut I feel so so good and it is only we who are sit back, take a deep breath, and
much happier. Things have become suffering. relax. We should give God a chance
so peaceful. We think we know what is best to let things happen and observe
The wise man smiled. The woman for us. How many times have we patiently. We will find when all is
returned home and lived happily tried to intervene with our two cents said and done that God worked
with her husband, her children, and to find that when we tried to change things out for the best in the end. If
her inlaws. our situation, we made things we reflect, we would find that if God
This story illustrates that we are worse? Then, we regret what we had listened to our complaints and
often unhappy with our situation have done and wish we could make let us do things our own way, things
until we find that things could things go back to the way they were. may not have been in our best inter
always be worse. We think our job is On the spiritual path, one of the est at all.
horrible, until we lose it and find lessons we need to learn is accept Happiness is a state of mind. If we
that life is harder without an ing the will of the Lord. Life would think that God is not doing what is
income. We think our health is bad be so much easier if we accept that best for us, we will always be unhap
until we spend time in a hospital God knows what is best for us. If we py. If we would realize that we are
and find people in worse condition examined the times in our lives that living according to what God wishes
than we are. We think our family we interfered with Gods will, we for us and that God is giving us what
members are bad until we find our may have discovered that we is best for us, we would always be
selves alone and realize how diffi messed things up terribly on our happy and content.

Teaching by
of us. I wanted a bigger house but ll too often people are quick to pass teens had role models and began to be disci
my husband is not doing well at
work and cannot afford anything
A judgment on others without knowing plined.
their full story. They may be quick to criti In the same way, as parents, we teach our

larger. As times are bad, my hus
bands father lost his job, so his par
ents had to move in with us. We
were already crowded before but
now with six of us living together in
that small space, it is unbearable. I
cannot take it anymore. I feel like
screaming!
The wise man thought for a
moment and asked, Do you have a
cow?
The woman said, Yes, we do.
He said, I advise you to bring the
cow into the hut to live with you for
a week and then come back to see
me. The woman was puzzled. She
thought that since he was a wise
man, there must be some magic in
bringing the cow into the house, so
she did what he said.
The next week was horrible. It was
so crowded in the house that every
time the cow turned around, all the
six family members had to change
their seats. When they tried to sleep,
the smell was intolerable and it
would moo throughout the night,
waking them all up.
After the week passed, the woman
returned to the wise man and began
shouting at him, What have you
done? I came to you to make things
better and now I am more miserable
cize someones actions, believing that their
perspective is correct and that they under
stand all the circumstances. In turn, how
many of us are willing to withhold judgment
and put ourselves in the shoes of another per
son? How many times have we passed judg
ment on others only to later find that they
had a good reason that justified their actions?
Along the same lines, if we want others to
change their ways, telling them will have little
effect unless we are examples of that behav
ior.
In this connection, there is a true story
from the animal kingdom about a team of re
searchers who had gone to Africa to study the
behavior of elephants. They came across an
area in which a pack of elephants was run
ning wild. As the research team set up tele
scopic cameras to observe the animals from a
distance, they saw that every day the ele
phants were fighting with each other, running
over trees and destroying their environment.
They had studied other elephant packs before
and never saw such chaotic and wild behav
ior. On further investigation they discovered
that the group was composed of all teenage
male elephants. There were no adult male ele
phants in the group. When they checked with
the local inhabitants in the village why there
were no adult male elephants in the pack, the
villagers explained that poachers came into
the village and killed all the male adults for
their ivory.
example
On the spiritual path,
two qualities to inculcate
are patience and
understanding. These
are aspects of leading a
nonviolent life.
The researchers saw that the teenage male
elephants had no adult male role models from
which to learn. Curious to see if it truly made
a difference, they arranged to have some
male elephants brought in from another area.
The first thing the male adults did was to flap
their ears and raise their trunks. Next, they
began to make loud trumpeting sounds. In
the beginning, there was no change and the
teen elephants continued to run wild and
fight each other. However, after a few days in
which the adults flapped their ears, raised
their trunks, and made loud noises, the teen
elephants began to settle down. Over time,
they became well behaved and their wild ac
tions subsided.
The researchers realized that on their own,
the teen elephants had no role models and
did not know how to behave. Once the male
adults were introduced into their pack, the
children through loving discipline and by
setting an example. Our children do not be
lieve in our words alone but in what they
see us do. They copy our own good and bad
habits because that is the example we set.
Similarly, when we are in a position to train
or teach otherswhether we are teachers,
parents, employers, or citizens imploring oth
ers to be conscientiouswe must first set an
example ourselves. That is the only way to
bring about change, teaching by example
rather than by mere words. If we want to see
a positive change in others and in our family,
neighborhood, community, society, or coun
try, then we need to set an example. In the
words of Mahatma Gandhi, Be the change
you want to see in the world.
On the spiritual path, two qualities to incul
cate are patience and understanding. These
are aspects of leading a nonviolent life. Those
who are nonviolent are patient. They do not
rush to criticize or accuse someone. With em
pathy they try to think of how the world
looks through other peoples eyes. If each of
us could treat others with patience, love, and
understanding, this world would be more
peaceful and loving. When we are patient and
understanding, we never have to go to sleep
at night worrying if we did the right thing.
We will know that when we have patience
and understanding, we are acting in a noble
way.
(For more visit www.sos.org)
TheSouthAsianTimes.info July 22-28, 2017
TheSouthAsianTimes.info July 22-28, 2017