Vol 9 Issue 21 - September 17-23, 2016

The South Asian Times
e x c e l l e n c e
Vol.9 No. 21 September 17-23, 2016 80 Cents
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AIAs Deepavali Mela

on October 2
By SATimes Team
New York: The Association

of Indians in America, NY
Chapter (AIANY) will be
holding its 29th Annual
Deepavali Festival at the
South Street Seaport in
Manhattan on October 2,
Sunday. This event is one
of the largest in the tri
state area, attracting
75,000100,000 people
from all walks of life.
AIAs Benefit Gala for the 29th Deepavali Festival honored
AIA organized their
Dr Chitranjan S. Ranawat, Dr Samin Sharma, and Kanak Golia on Sept 15.
Annual Benefit Gala under
Neel Sethi,
Mr Sunil Modi on Sept 15 at Swan natives of Rajasthan. They were
who debuted
Club in Roslyn, NY. As President, introduced and admired effusively:
as actor in
Mr Modi has successfully organ Dr Chitranjan S. Ranawat, MD, is a
The
Jungle
ized the Diwali mela in 2013, 2014 world renowned orthopedic sur
Book,
was a
and 2015 too. At the gala, they geon and associated with the
star
attraction
honored three eminent community Hospital for Special Surgery, NY. He
at the
members, who all happen to be
Continued on page 4
AIA gala.
Trump's projects in India India raises

Balochistan at
to impact US foreign
UN, hits out at Pak
policy: Newsweek
Washington: Donald
Trump's investments
in real estate over
seas, including in
Indian cities of Pune
and Gurgaon, could
have implications on
America's foreign
policy
if
the
Republican presiden
tial nominee wins in
Accompanied by Abhishek Lodha, MD of
November and occu
Lodha
Group, Donald Trump announced his
pies the White House
first project in Mumbai in August 2014.
next January, US
(Courtesy: rediff.com)
wee kly Newswee k
said. In its cover story on Wednesday said that as the
Trump's investments in proper Republican National Convention
ties overseas, the magazine on
Continued on page 4
United Nations: Raising the issue

of Balochistan for the first time
before the UN, India has accused
Pakistan of widespread human
rights violations there as well as in
Pakistanoccupied Kashmir (PoK).
In a scathing attack on Pakistan
during the 33rd Session of the UN
Human Rights Council in Geneva,
India said the main reason for dis
turbances in Kashmir is the cross
border terrorism sponsored by
Pakistan that stems from its terri
torial ambitions over the place
that has found concrete expres
sion in repeated armed aggres
sions. Pakistans dismal track
record is well known and many
countries have repeatedly called
Continued on page 4
Prime Minister Narendra Modi with visiting Afghanistan President Ashraf

Ghani at Hyderabad House in New Delhi on Sept 14. (Photo: IANS)
India, Afghanistan
express grave
concern over
terrorism
New Delhi: Without naming
Pakistan, India and Afghanistan
have expressed grave concern over
terrorism in the region while New
Delhi extended Kabul $1 billion in
aid for capacity and capability
building. Briefing the media fol
lowing bilateral talks between
Prime Minister Narendra Modi and
visiting Afghan President Ashraf
Ghani, Foreign Secretary S.
Jaishankar said that a large part of
the discussions was devoted to the
challenge of terrorism.
"The two leaders discussed the
regional situation and expressed
grave concern at the continued use
of terrorism and violence in the
reg ion for achieving polit ical
objectives," he said.
Ghani arrived here in what is his
second official visit to India after
the one in April 2015.
A joint statement issued follow
ing the talks said that the two lead
ers agreed that terrorism "present
ed the single biggest threat to

peace, stability and progress in the
region and beyond".
"Stressing that elimination of all
forms of terrorism, without any
discrimination, is essential, they
called upon all concerned to put
an end to all sponsorship, support,
safe havens and sanctuaries to ter
rorists, including for those who
target Afghanistan and India," the
statement said.
"Both leaders reaf firmed their
resolve to counter terrorism and
strengthen security and defense
cooperation as envisaged in the
IndiaAfg hanistan
Strateg ic
Partnership Agreement."
According to Jaishankar, Ghani
pointed out that this new wave of
terrorism was supported by the
narcotics trade and that it was
very well funded.
"The thrust of the discussion was
that today this wave of terrorism is
Continued on page 4
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TRISTATE COMMUNITY
Sadhguru visiting USA to

launch his new book
Mystic and yogi Sadhguru Jaggi Vasudev
New York: Sadhguru Jaggi Vasudev,

founder of Isha Foundation, is travel
ing to 17 cities in North America to
launch his first book for western
readers, Inner Engineering: A Yogis
Guide to Joy. During these special
interactive events from Sep 17 to Oct
13, 2016, the world renowned yogi
and mystic will offer refreshing and
unique insights into many aspects of
life, ranging from the mundane to the
ultimate. Being in Sadhgurus pres
ence, his devotee say, creates an
extraordinary opportunity to experi
ence ones natural state of freedom,
love and limitless joy. So the book
tour is an opportunity for seekers to
meet and meditate in his presence

and have their questions answered.
He will be in New York on Sept 20
and in New Jersey on Sept 22.
In Inner Engineering, Sadhguru
presents a sophisticated guide to self
empowerment based on the teaching
and principles of classical yoga. This
system is a means to create a frame
work of inner stability, helping those
who practice become architects of a
joyful life. The book tells the story of
his own awakening, from a boy with
an unusual af finity for the natural
world, to a young daredevil who
crossed the Indian continent on his
motorcycle, to the moment of his
Trump invited for IndianAmerican

event against terrorism
Washington: Republican presi
dential nominee Donald Trump
has been invited for an Indian
American event in the US to raise
funds for the victims of terror
ism, the event organizers have
said. T he Humanity United
Against Terror Charity event
would be held in New Jersey on
October 9, the Republican Hindu
Coalition said.
Invited guests include Donald
J Trump who will be the key note
speaker at the event, the organi
sation said in a statement.

The net proceeds of this event
shall go to the victims of terror
all across the world, with particu
lar emphasis on the plight of
500,000 Hindu refugees that are
vict ims of Islamic Extremist
Terrorism, it said.
The Trump Campaign did not
respond to the email asking
about his conrmation attending
the event, which among others
would be addressed by his key
PTI
aide Newt Gingrich.
Donald Trump (Photo: IANS)
enlightenment on a mountaintop in
India, where time stood still, and he
emerged radically changed. Today, he
lights the path for millions around the
world.
My aim in this book is to help
make joy your constant companion.
To make that happen, this book offers
you not a sermon, but a science; not a
teaching, but a technology; not a pre
cept, but a path, says Sadhguru.
Inner Engineering (Spiegel & Grau
Hardcover) will be available for pur
chase in the US and UK from
September 20th. It will be released
globally after March 2017.
For more details: MeetSadhguru.org
Tribute to Pramukh Swami

Maharaj in Long Island on Sept 18
n Sunday, September 18,
BAPS is organizing a tribute
event to honor HH
Pramukh Swami Maharaj's life,
work and values in Melville, NY.
The fth spiritual successor of
Bhagwan Swaminarayan and
leader of the BAPS Swaminarayan
Sanstha departed his mortal body
on August 13 at the age of 95
Called Time less Tribute and
organized by BAPS Shri
Swaminarayan Mandir, Melville, it
will be an opportunity for his fol
lowers to reminisce about their
personal experiences with him
and celebrate the life of a man

who has impacted the lives of mil
lions around the world. The event
also gives devotees an opportunity
to invite their friends, colleagues
and family.
Timeless Tribute to Pramukh
Swami Maharaj will be held at
Hilton Long Island/Huntington.
After the ceremony, attendees
can visit the Melville temple loca
tion. This is the mandir Pramukh
Swami Maharaj inspired to build
and will be dedicated to our com
munity in Long Island on October
9, 2016.
Jenifer Rajkumar loses in New

York state assembly primary
GOPIO to launch Global Indian

Chamber Of Commerce
New
York:
Indian
favored by Sheldon. The
American civil rig hts
winner of the primary is
lawyer Jenifer Rajkumar
certain to emerge victori
narrow ly
lost
the
ous in the November 8
Democratic primary for
general e lect ion in the
the New York State
heavily Democratic down
Assembly on Sept. 13. In
town Manhattan district,
the race to ll the 65th
which is made up of
District seat vacated by
diverse ethnic communi
disg raced former state
ties and a mix of upper
Assembly Speaker Sheldon
and lower income popula
Silver, the winner, Yuh
tions.
Line Niou won 2,742 votes
Rajkumars campaign
Jenifer Rajkumar
(31.55 percent), and
spokesman
Michae l
Rajkumar came in 2nd with 1,612 or Tobman blamed the low voter turnout in
18.55 percent of the vote. There were 4 areas of the district which could have put
more candidats including Alive Cancel Rajkumar over the top.
New York: At the recent

Executive Council is busi
GOP IO General Bo dy
ness oriented and keenly
Meet ing, Dr. T homas
interested to connect with
Abraham was broug ht
businesses with India and
back as the Chairman of
across the world. The new
GOPIO International after
chamber GICC will focus
a lapse of seven years.
on some of Indian Prime
Outgoing Chairman Inder
Ministers initiatives such
Sing h was e lected as
as Make in India, Skill
Executive Trustee of the
India and Digital India.
GOPIO Foundation.
With 70 chapters in 30
GOPIOs General body
countries, name recogni
also adopted a resolution
tion and with extensive
Dr. Thomas Abraham is
to
launch
GOP IO
level of contacts, GOPIO
brought back as Chairman
International Chamber of
hopes to grow this new
Commerce (GICC). It will be worldwide chamber as a globally networked busi
body working within GOPIO. The new ness promotion group.
COMEBACK
CLINTON VOWS:
'I'LL NEVER
WALK AWAY'
Washington: Democratic presiden
tial nominee Hillary Clinton has
vowed that she will never give up as
she hit the campaign trail again fol
lowing a threeday rest after being
diagnosed with pneumonia.
Speaking at a rally in Greensboro,
NC, Clinton said her time off was a
gift, allowing her to reflect on the
campaign, BBC reported.
"People accuse me of all kinds of
things," she said, "but nobody ever
accuses me of quitting and I will
never give up, I'll never walk away,
no matter how tough the going
gets," she told her supporters at
Thursday's rally. Polls indicate a
tightening White House race, with
54 days to the election day
November 8.
The former Secretary of State's
return comes a day after her doctor
said she was "healthy and fit".
"With just two months to go until
the election day, sitting at home
was pretty much the last place I
want to be," Clinton said.
The 68yearold said she felt
"lucky" that she could afford to take
a few days off, compared with the
millions of Americans who could
not. At a brief press conference
afterwards, when Clinton was asked
whether she had shared details of
her pneumonia diagnosis with her
running mate, Tim Kaine, the
Democrat replied that "many senior
staff knew and information was
provided to a number of people".
"This was an ailment that many
people just power through," she
continued, "and that's what I
thought I would do as well."
She then jetted off to a give a
speech at an event in Washington
DC. The race has focused on both
candidates' state of health and med
ical records in recent days.
TURN PAGE
India, Afghanistan express grave con

cern over terrorism
Continued from page 1
actually a common regional problem," the
Foreign Secretary said. India also pledged $1 bil
lion for the support and development of "a uni
fied, sovereign, democratic, peaceful, stable and
prosperous Afghanistan". Modi and Ghani also
discussed the ministerial conference of the Heart
of Asia Istanbul Process on Afghanistan's devel
opment to be held in Amritsar on December 4
and the Brussels Conference on Afghanistan to
be held on October 5.
AIAs Deepavali Mela on Oct 2

has devised many key total knee and hip designs
and has been conferred the Padma Bhushan by
India. Dr Samin Sharma is an interventional car
diology expert, who has an amazing near cent
per cent success rate. He is Director, Clinical and
Interventional Cardiologist and President of
Mount Sinai Heart Network. T he Cardiac
Catheterization Lab at Mount Sinai is named
after him. He has also built a 25bed heart hospi
tal in his native Jaipur. Mr Kanak Golia is a
prominent distributor of branded fragrances. He
is President and CEO of Perfume Center of
America, a thriving global company that he
founded in 1993.
A highlight of the evening was special recogni
tion accorded to Neel Sethi, the star kid from
New York who debuted with a dream role as
Mowgli in Hollywood hit film The Jungle Book.
He spoke with flair about his role in the movie
and replied to questions from the audience with
aplomb. Sethi will also be interacting with audi
ences at the Childrens Area at the Diwali mela
on Oct 2. YouTube sensation Vidya Vox sang a
couple of bhajans at the gala and will also be
performing live at the mela.
The Oct 2 event will be a full day extravaganza
celebrating tradition, culture and oneness with
numerous food and clothing vendors, corporate
booths, a childrens area, health kiosk, perform
ances and activities for the whole family.
This year, as the date coincides with the birth
day of Mahatma Gandhi, there will be a special
tribute paid to the Father of the Nation and an
Essay & Drawing Competition will be held for
the youth to showcase the importance and mean
ing of peace. Live Fireworks from the East River
illuminating the New York City skyline will serve
as the Grand Finale of Diwali mela. The fireworks
sponsors this year are CheapOAir and Qatar
Airways. Other sponsors include Toyota, New

York Life, Swan Club, MoneyGram, Kotak
Mahindra, New York Life, HAB Bank, Navika
Capital, Star Plus, Sony Entertainment, Jus
Punjabi and TV Asia.
More info at www.theaiany.org.
Trump's projects in India to impact US

foreign policy: Newsweek
was about to get underway in July, the Trump
Organization declared it was planning a massive
expansion in the South Asian country. "That is a
chilling example of the many looming conflicts of
interest in a Trump presidency," the weekly
noted. "If he plays tough with India, will the gov
ernment assume it has to clear the way for proj
ects in that 'aggressive pipeline' and kill the
investigations involving Trump's Pune partners?
And if Trump takes a hard line with Pakistan,
will it be for America's strategic interests or to
appease Indian government officials who might
jeopardize his profits from Trump Towers
Pune?" the weekly asked.
According to Newsweek, several Indian politi
cal leaders including from both the BJP and the
Congress have established close relationship
with the Trump family as a result of its real
estate investment in Pune and Gurgaon.
In India, the conflicts between the interests of
the Trump Organization and American foreign
policy are starker, the magazine said.
Trump signed an agreement in 2011 with an
Indian property deve loper called Rohan
Lifescapes that wanted to construct a 65storey
building with his name on it. Leading the talks
for Rohan was Kalpesh Mehta, a director of the
company who would later become the exclusive
representative of Trump's businesses in India,
the weekly said.
However, government regulatory hurdles soon
impeded the project, and Donald Trump Jr flew
to India to plead with Prithviraj Chavan, then
chief minister of Maharashtra, asking that he
remove the hurdles. But Chavan refused to make
an exception for the Trump Organization.
"It would be extremely difficult for a foreign
politician to make that call if he were speaking
to the son of the president of the United States,"
Newsweek said. "Last month, scandal erupted
over the development called Trump Towers Pune
after the state government and local police start
ed looking into discrepancies in the land records
suggesting that the land on which the building
was constructed may not have been legally
Jaipur (India) Bureau

Prakash Bhandari
Prakash@TheSouthAsianTimes.info
Chairman and Co-Founder
Kamlesh C. Mehta
Associate Editors:
Hiral Dholakia-Dave
Co-Founder: Saroosh Gull
Contributing Editors: Meenakshi Iyer,

Nilima Madan, Melvin Durai,
Dr Prem Kumar Sharma, Ashok Vyas,
Dr Akshat Jain, Ashok Ojha
President: Arjit Mehta
obtained by Panchshil," it said. The Indian com
pany says no rules or laws were broken, but if
government of ficials conclude otherwise, the
project's future will be in jeopardy and create
a problem that Indian politicians eager to please
an American president might have to resolve,
Newsweek observed. Through the Pune deal, the
weekly also said the Trump Organization has
developed close ties to India's Nationalist
PTI
Congress Party headed by Sharad Pawar.
India raises Balochistan at UN,

hits out at Pak
upon Pakistan to end crossborder infiltration;
dismantle the terrorism infrastructure; and stop
acting as an epicenter of terrorism, Indias
Ambassador and Permanent Representative at
the U.N. in Geneva Ajit Kumar said.
Indias credentials as a peaceful, democratic,
pluralistic society that is deeply committed to
the welfare of its people are well established and
on the contrary, Pakistan is characterized by
authoritarianism, absence of democratic norms
and widespread human rights violations across
the country including Balochistan, Mr. Kumar
said.
Exercising its right of reply to the statement
made by Pakistan, Kumar said Pakistan is a
country which has systematically abused and
violated the human rights of its own citizens,
including in Balochistan, as well as of the people
of PoK.
The fundamental reason for disturbances in
Kashmir is the crossborder terrorism sponsored
by Pakistan which has provided active support
since 1989 to separatist groups and terrorist ele
ments including those operating from the terri
tory under Pakistans control.
Pakistan has once again sought to mask its
territorial ambitions and use of terrorism as a
state policy under the garb of concern for human
rights. J&K is an integral part of India and will
always remain so. We reject attempts by
Pakistan to denigrate the democratic choice that
has been regularly exercised by the people of
J&K, he said. India strongly rejects Pakistans
continued misuse of the Council to make tenden
tious references about internal matters pertain
ing to the Indian state of J&K, the Ambassador
said. Reiterating that the situation in the Valley
arose from the death of a selfacknowledged
commander of HizbulMujahideen terror group,
India said it was further aggravated by sustained
crossborder terrorism emanating from Pakistan.
IANS Newswire Services

IANS Washington Bureau
Arun Kumar
arun.kumar@ians,in
Photographs: Gunjesh Desai/

masalajunction.com.
Xitij Joshi/xitijphoto.com
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TRISTATE COMMUNITY
Dharun Ravis conviction

reversed, court orders new trial
New York: Indiaborn student
Dharun Ravi, who had served a
20day prison term for spying on
his gay roommate who later com
mitted suicide, won a major legal
reprieve after a New Jersey
appeals court threw out his con
viction and ordered a new trial.
In a 61page ruling, the
Appellate Division of the Superior
Court of New Jersey in Newark
said the jury had found Ravi
guilty of bias intimidation under a
law that was later deemed "consti
tutionally defunct." Ravi, a former
Rutgers University student, was

convicted in March 2012 on 15
counts of bias intimidation, inva
sion of privacy, hindering prose
cution and tampering with evi
dence for spying on the sexual
encounter of his roommate Tyler
Clementi, 18 with another man
through a webcam in September
2010."
Days later, Clementi had com
mitted suicide by jumping off the
George Washington bridge near
New York. Ravi was not charged
with causing or contributing to
Clementi's death. Ravi, now 24,

was sentenced to a month in
Middlesex County jail and was
released in June 2016 after com
pleting 20 days in prison and get
ting five days credit for good
behavior.
Ravi, who had faced up to 10
years in prison, had also been
sentenced to three years' of
supervised release, ordered to do
300 hours of community service
and pay a fine of about 11,000
dollars. Ravi's attorney Steve
Altman told the Wall Street
Journal he was pleased w ith

court's decision.
"We genuinely felt that the
basis of the conviction and
the basis of the pres
entat ion of the
state's case was
wrong," Altman
said.
"Dharun Ravi,
whatever he did
or didn't do, had
no homophobic
motive involved."
Dharun Ravi
(PTI)
(Image courtesy: people.com)
Obama nominates Diane

Gujarati to be federal judge
Washington, DC: President Barack
Obama has nominated a 47yearold
IndianAmerican woman attorney to the
US District Court bench in New York, the
White House has said.
"I am pleased to nominate Diane
Gujarati to serve on the United States
District Court bench. I am confident she
will serve the American people with dis
tinction," Obama said in a statement.
Gujarat i, the Deputy Chie f of the
Criminal Division of the US attorney's
of fice for the southern district of New
York since 2012, has been nominated on
the US District Court for the Eastern
District of New York. She will serve as a
federal judge after approval from the
Senate. She is the daughter of Damodar
Diane Gujarati
(Image courtesy: Indianexpress.com)
M Gujarati, a professor of economics at
the US Military Academy at West Point.
Her father received M.Com degree from
the University of Bombay in 1960 and
Ph.D from the University of Chicago in
1965. Her mother is Ruth Pincus
Gujarati. A wellknown federal prosecu
tor, she served as an Assistant US

Attorney in the Criminal Division since
1999. Prior to her tenure as Deputy Chief
of the Criminal Division from 2008 to
2012, she served as Deputy Chief and
then Chief of the White Plains Division of
the United States Attorney's Of fice for
the Southern District of New York.
From 2006 to 2008, Gujarati was
Deputy Chief of the Appeals Unit in the
Criminal Division of the United States
Attorney's Of fice for the Southern
District of New York.
She began her legal career as a law
clerk to the Honorable John M Walker, Jr
of the United States Court of Appeals for
the Second Circuit from 1995 to 1996.
(PTI)
Millions pay tribute to Pramukh Swami Maharaj

New Jersey: Government officials, communi
ty leaders, devotees, and wellwishers gath
ered at the BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir
in Parsippany, NJ to pay tribute to the life of
Pramukh Swami Maharaj on September
10th. T he fifth spiritual successor of
Bhagwan Swaminarayan and leader of the
BAPS Swaminarayan Sanstha departed his
mortal body on August 13, 2016, at the age
of 95. From establishing mandirs (Hindu
temples) across the world to humanitarian
work to creating community infrastructure
for education and healthcare in remote
towns, Pramukh Swami Maharajs contribu
tions to society have spanned across genera
tions. Known by his motto, In the joy of oth
ers, lies our own, he dedicated his life to

serve and inspire others for the greater
good of mankind. Even today, this message
resonates with millions of individuals from
all walks of life and from around the world.
He will always be remembered for his
selfless services to society, impeccable com
mitment to the community, and profound
devotion to the faith that earned him the
respect and reverence of countless world
wide, said Baba Ramdev, a yoga teacher
known for his work in Ayurveda. Attendees
shared memories of their uplifting interac
tions with Pramukh Swami Maharaj, remi
niscing upon the heartfelt connection that
cemented his influence and wisdom in their
lives. Through memorable life experiences

shared by these individuals, attendees were
able to reminisce upon Pramukh Swami
Maharajs compassionate and equipoised
nature.
Speaking on the tribute assembly in
Parsippany, NJ, Council Vice President
Robert J. Peluso said, Swami is always with
in our hearts and its how we follow our
hearts and support our community to honor
our elders and give back to community
Parsippany Mayor James R. Barberio said,
Why I like coming to temple is because you
always make me feel like I am part of your
family. I feel no different if I am with my
own family or I come here.
Stepmom gets 15
years in prison for
abusing, starving
12yearold girl
New York: An Indianorigin woman, found
guilty of brutally abusing and starving her 12
yearold stepdaughter for more than a year
and half, has been sentenced to 15 years in
prison in the US.
Sheetal Ranot, 35, of Queens, was convicted
by a jury in July this year of firstdegree
assault and endangering the welfare of a child.
Queens Supreme Court Justice Richard
Buchter yesterday sentenced Ranot to 15
years in prison.
Ranot's stepdaughter Maya was repeatedly
denied food and so severely battered on one
occasion with a broken metal broom handle
that her wrist was sliced to the bone and
required a lengthy hospitalization and sur
gery. Queens District Attorney Richard Brown
said Ranot was the "epitome of an evil step
mother". Not only did she refuse to provide
basic nourishment for the child but also "wan
tonly beat and abused the girl inflicting pain
still evident by the scars that mark her body
today. The youngster, at 12, weighed just 58
pounds. No child deserves to be treated in this
manner." Maya's biological father Rajesh
Ranot is also charged with assault, unlawful
imprisonment and endangering the welfare of
a child and will be tried at a later date.
Ranot repeatedly hit her stepdaughter on
her body and face, causing bruising and
severe pain. Between December 2012 and
May 2014, she even locked the youngster
inside her bedroom and for extended periods
of time refused to feed her.
Untold Sikh Stories perseverance

in face of backlash post 9/11
New York: A Sikh subway driver who
saved countless lives by reversing a
train headed for ground zero on
9/11 and a decorated SikhAmerican
army veteran are among the several
men and women from the communi
ty profiled in an art exhibition to
showcase their perseverance in the
face of backlash against them after
the terror attack. The photography
exhibition 'Sikh Project' will run
from September 1725 to highlight
the aesthetics of the Sikh articles of
faith, including the turban and
beard. The exhibition is a collabora
tion between civil rights group 'The
Sikh Coalition' and acclaimed British
photographers Amit and Naroop.
Featuring nearly 40 powerful por
traits of SikhAmericans of various
ages, the exhibition will tell the sto
ry of the triumphs and perseverance
of the community that has overcome
great challenges in the 15 years
since the attacks in 2001.
Among those featured in the exhi
bition are Sat Hari Singh, a New York
City train operator who saved count
less lives on the fateful day of 9/11
when he reversed the train headed
for ground zero, sending it in the op
posite direction.
It also features renowned Sikh
American designer and actor Waris
TRISTATE COMMUNITY
The photography exhibition 'Sikh Project' will run from September 1725
Ahluwalia, who was not allowed to
board a plane from Mexico City in
February this year because of his
turban. Also profiled in the exhibi
tion is Ishprit Kaur, a nursing stu
dent in Connecticut and Major Ka
maljeet Singh Kalsi, a Bronze Star
Medal recipient and the first Sikh
American to be granted a religious
accommodation to serve in the US
military since the ban on Sikhs in the
1980s.
Amit and Naroop, in an email re
sponse to Press Trust of India, said
through the exhibition they want to
"break the ignorant stereotypes
made in the US that all Sikhs look
like terrorists." "In this day and age,
with all the technology, information

and resources available to us, for
someone to still make that assump
tion is unbelievable. But yet it hap
pens. It's shocking," they said.
The duo added that the exhibition
wants to enlighten people about the
Sikh faith and encourage them to
embrace their identity with pride,
celebrating diversity.
"We have become a society that
conforms to trends dictated by
celebrities or what we see on social
media, TV and magazines. People
are too afraid to be who they are. We
have tried to show each individual
with a sense of pride in their ap
pearance, in who they are," they said.
Moses presents Christian

Bharatha Natyam
New York: Dr. Babu Moses, a Long the songs. He donated all the pro
Island based leading physiothera ceeds and ticket sales to charity
pist and hypnotherapist present work done by churches and non
ed a unique Christian Bharatha profit organizations
This is the dedication of all my
Natyam at Molloy College in
talents to Jesus Christ in
Rockville Center in New
Bharatha Natyam, the oldest In
York recently.
dian classical dance form. When
Student of dance masters
I was a teenager I was
Sridhar Shanmugam,
haunted by the Indian
Satya Pradeep and
classical music and
Saavitri
Ra
dance that were dedi
manand Dr.
cated to Hindu Gods. I had
Moses narrated how Je
a burning desire to learn
sus when he came
but I was prevented being
to this world as the
a Christian in my home
God of Love experi
town of Vellore in Tamil
enced the same hu
Nadu and it created a
man emotions like hu
burning desire to cre
mans and used
ate
a
Christian
them to strengthen
arengetram (debut
his bondage. Hu
performance). My en
man love is the
deavor has now
most important
created the first
emotional con
Dr Babu Moses
Baratha Natyam
nection human
program that focuses on Christs
beings create in the world.
Receiving the dance form as the teachings, with the ancient roots
divine gift from Hindu classical of Indian classical dance and mu
dance teachers, Babu Moses pre sic, he said. The dance included
sented the program so that Chris emotions of Jesuss mother Mary,
Mary sister of Lazarus, the Samar
tians can enjoy this divine art.
Dr. Moses who is emotionally itan woman, St. John and St.
attached to the art form wrote the James during their experiences
lyrics, composed music and sang with Jesus.
IN BRIEF
Bruhud NY Seniors celebrate

7th anniversary in style
hashikant Patel and Gopi Udeshi of

Bruhud New York Seniors organ
ized a grand celebration of seventh
anniversary on August 23.
Special invitees were Mohd. Hack,
Community coordinator of Queens Bor
ough, David I wiprin, NY Assembly man
, Aliya Latif from Comptroller office of
NYC and dignitaries of Indian commu
nity. Actor Abhishek Bachchan accepted
award from Borough President Melinda
Katz honoring him for his public serv
ice. He addressed the crowd and ex
pressed his gratitude towards New York
Seniors. City of NY Comptroller Scott M.
Vajira temple celebrates

40th anniversary
Stringer awarded commendation to

Bruhud NY Seniors for their selfless
services.
AIANA launches Cultural Club in NJ
ssociation of Indian Americans of

North America (AIANA) under the
leaderships of Sunil Nayak, Praful
Nayak, Anil Patel and other team mem
bers of AIANA launched, AIANA Cul
tural Club on September 10 at the
Nicholas Music Center, New Brunswick,
New Jersey. After years of organizing
the world famous Gujarati conferences,
AIANA took one step further in guaran
tying to enrich and entertain the com
munity with its rich culture, on a long
term basis. Hundreds of lifetime mem
bers and guests gathered in the audito
rium and enjoyed the evening with Sufi
& Lok Sangeet singer Osman Mir in
150 Theraveda Buddhist Monks from across the US attended the event.
Mohamed Hack, Abhishek Bachchan,

Shashikant Patel, David I. Weprin,Gopi
Udeshi and Alia Latif
AIANA members at the launch event

concert with popular orator and author
Jay Vasavada. The program started at
4:30pm and concluded after midnight
at 12:30am.
he Vajiradhammapadip Temple (Vajira

Temple) in Centereach, New York, cele
brated its 40th anniversary on Septem
ber 10th and 11th. The Vajira Temple is the
oldest formally organized Buddhist Temple in
the United States of America. In attendance
were 150 Theraveda Buddhist Monks from
throughout the United States. There are 110
Theraveda Buddhist Temples in the United
States with over 500 monks.
As part of the celebration, there was an in
terfaith dialogue between the 50 or so
monks and the 20 or so members of the Long
Island Multi Faith Forum (LIMFF). The dia
logue was led by Phrakrusiriatthavides, PHD
who is the Secretary General of the Council of
the Thai Bhikkhus in the USA and Arvind
Vora who is the Chairman of the LIMFF.
After opening remarks with a brief intro
duction of Buddhism and celebration by the

secretary general the interactions ensued
with a QA format. Many questions were
asked ranging from the type of food a monk
could eat to the topics that are appropriate
for a monk to discuss from the pulpit. It was
a very positive and informative discussion. All
of the faiths represented by the LIMFF con
gratulated the Vajira Temple and its members
on their celebrations.
The keynote speech was given by the Rev
erend Roderick Pearson, the Executive Direc
tor of Suffolk Countys Office of Minority Af
fairs. Also in attendance were Mrs. Nikki Gins
and Vera HuHyneman of Suffolk Countys
Asian American Advisory Board.
Sgt. Jason Lucia and police officer William
Bubeck both from the Suffolk Countys 6th
Precinct formally attended the celebration.
NATIONAL COMMUNITY
Two Indiaborn MIT scientists win prestigious US awards

Washington,DC:
Two Indo
American
scient ists
from
Massachusetts Inst itute of
Technology (MIT) have been con
ferred with prestigious awards for
their pathbreaking inventions.
Nasikborn Ramesh Raskar, an
imaging scientist and inventor at
MIT, has been awarded the
$500,000 LemelsonMIT Prize
2016, it was announced at
Cambridge, in Massachusetts, on
Tuesday.
Dinesh Bharadia, researcher at
MIT, won the Paul Baran Young
Scholar Award of the USbased
Marconi Society.
Raskar, 46, is the coinventor of
radical imaging solutions includ
ing femtophotography an ultra
fast imaging system that can see
around corners lowcost eye
care solutions for the developing
world, and a camera that allows
Dinesh Bharadia (left) won $500,000 LemelsonMIT Prize 2016,

Ramesh Raskar won the Paul Baran Young Scholar Award of the
Marconi Society. (Image courtesy: ndtv.com)
users to read pages of a book
without opening the cover.
"We are thrilled to honor
Ramesh Raskar, whose break
through research is impacting
how we see the world," said

Dorothy Lemelson, chair of the
Lemelson Foundation, in a state
ment. The technology, currently in
development for commercialisa
Dr Abraham Verghese to receive

National Humanities Medal
Washington, DC: IndianAmerican physi
cianauthor Abraham Verghese, whose
work has emphasised empathy in medi
cine, has been selected for the prestigious
2015 National Humanities Medal, the
White House has announced.
President Barack Obama would confer
the honor upon Verghese, along with 11
others, and the recipients of 2015
National Medal of Arts at ceremony on
September 21.
Currently a professor of medicine at the
Stanford School of Medicine, Verghese, 61,
has authored several acclaimed books,
including "My Own Country" and "Cutting
for Stone."
In a statement, the W hite House
Wednesday said Verghese has been given
the award for reminding "us" that the
patient is the center of the medical enter
prise. "His range of prociency embodies
the diversity of the humanities, from his
efforts to emphasize empathy in medicine,
to his imaginative renderings of the
human drama," the White House said.
"Abraham Verghese is not only an exem
plary clinician, he is an exemplary human
ist," said Stanford President Marc Tessier
Lavigne.
"Every day in the classroom, he teaches
his students that professions such as med
icine benet from an understanding of the
human condition. We are so proud that
Dr Abraham Verghese
his breadth of scholarship has been recog
nized with this honor," TessierLavigne
said. "I am humbled and excited by this
honor," Verghese said in a statement
issued by the Stanford University. He com
pleted his educat ion at the Madras
Medical College.
"T he names of previous recipients
include writers I most admire. It is a won
derful afrmation of a path that in the
early years I wasn't sure was the right
path, even though it was one I felt com
pelled to follow," Verghese, who is also the
Linda R Meier and Joan F Lane Provostial
(PTI)
Professor, said.
tion, uses ultrafast imaging to

capture light at 1 trillion frames
per second, allowing the camera
to create slow motion videos of
light in motion.
"Ramesh's femtophotography
work not only has the potential to
transform industries ranging from
internal medicine to transporta
tion safety, it is also helping to
inspire a new generation of inven
tors to tackle the biggest prob
lems of our t ime," Leme lson
added.
Bharadia, 28, a doctorate from
Stanford University and an alum
nus of the Indian Institute of
Technology (IIT) at Kanpur, Uttar
Pradesh, has been awarded for his
contribution to radio waves.
"Bharadia has been chosen for
the 2016 Paul Baran Young
Scholar Award for his contribu
tion to send and receive radio
(w ire less) signals, including

mobile telephony and data on the
same channe l (wave)," the
Marconi Society said in a state
ment.
"Bharadia's research disproved a
longheld assumption that it is not
possible for a radio to receive and
transmit on the same frequency
band because of the resulting
interference," the statement said.
T he Marconi young scholar
award includes $4,000 prize and
expenses to attend its annual
awards event.
He will receive the award at a
ceremony in Mountain View,
California, on November 2.
Bharadia's technology can be
used in India to build relays which
can listen to signals from a cellu
lar tower, transmit them instantly
and extend the range across the
(IANS)
country.
US TOPS INDIAN PARENTS

CHOICE FOR WARDS TO
STUDY ABROAD: REPORT
Mumbai: Although the US is an expensive
destination, it is the top choice for Indian
parents who would consider university
abroad for their wards, according to a
report. HSBC's 'The Value of Education
Foundations for the future' report has
revealed 58 per cent of the parents had
USA in their top three destinations list
among 50 countries. This, notwithstand
ing that the US is also the most expensive
destination, with average annual tuition
fees of $33,215 per year for international
university students.
The report represents the views of 6,241
parents in 15 countries around the world,
including Australia, Canada, China, Egypt,
France, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia,
Malaysia, Mexico, Singapore, Taiwan,
United Arab Emirates, United Kingdom and
the United States.
"An international university education
for their child is a highly desirable ambi
tion for many parents. However, it comes
at higher costs, with living expenses and
air fares on top of tuition fees," HSBC India
Head of Retail Banking and Wealth
Management S Ramakrishnan said.
For Indian parents, the top three coun
tries where they are most likely to send
their child to university are the USA,
Australia and the UK, the report said.
When parents were asked for the top

three reasons to best explain why they
would chose an international university
education, more than half (57 per cent)
said it was for the international work expe
rience, 57 per cent said it would increase
condence while 53 per cent said it was
for the exposure to new experiences, ideas
and cultures.
The report also revealed that the propor
tion of parents who would consider uni
versity abroad for their child is relatively
high, where almost half of those surveyed
(47 per cent) said they would want to send
their children to universities abroad. The
top three barriers, however, for sending
the child to universities abroad are higher
costs to the parents (43 per cent), higher
costs for the child (29 per cent) and
because the child could get homesick (28
(PTI)
per cent), it added.
NATIONAL COMMUNITY
Four entrepreneurs awarded for building

bridges between India and US
Houston:
Four prominent Indian
Americans and three Americans have been
awarded by a Houstonbased chamber of
commerce for their outstanding work as
entrepreneurs and "building bridges"
between India and the US.
T he awards were g iven by Indo
American Chamber of Commerce of
Greater Houston (IACCGH) at a gala event
in Houston.
The "Young Professional of the Year" was
presented to Malisha Patel, 36, who is the
Chief Operating Of ficer of Memorail
Hermann Hospital Sugarland.
Woman entrepreneur award was pre
sented to Revati Puranik, CFO, Worldwide
Oilfield Machine, a company that specialis
es in manufacturing oil and gas equip

ment. Bhavesh (Bob) Pate l, CEO
LyondellBasell was awarded Business
leader of the year, while entrepreneur of
the year was given to Abezaar S Tayabji,
founder and CEO Shipcom Wireless.
Lifetime Achievement awards were pre
sented to three Americans Marvin Odum,
former She ll USA President, Richard
Hue bner, former president Houston
Minority Supplier Development and Dr
John Mendelsohn, former President M D
Anderson Cancer Center, for bridging bar
riers between India and USA.
A gala event themed "Building Bridges"
was attended by over 700 guests, compris
ing top business leaders, prominent com
David Frawley honors

Sam Kannappan
Mrs. Meenakshi Kannappan, guest,

Sam Kannappan and David Frawley
Houston: Sockalingam Sam
Kannappan was awarded
Life Time Achievement
Award by Hindus Of Greater
Houston on September 10th.
Dr. David Frawley, popularly
known as P t. Vamdev
Shastry a Padma Bhushan
Awardee for his work on
Yoga and Vedanta, present
ed the award to Kannappan.
Sam Kannappan has been
living in Houston for over
forty years. He spearheaded
monumental work in build
ing of Sri Meenakshi Temple,
in Pearland, Texas.
He is the founder of
Bharathi Kalai Manram,
Tamil Cultural Organization
in Houston and is currently
the President, GOP IO

Houston Chapter. He is a
Charter Member of the
Society of Piping Engineers
& Designers.
Texas Governor Rick Perry
appointed Kannappan to the
Texas
Professional
Engineers Board from 2012
to 2017 where he serves as
Enforcement Committee
Chairman. Among his many
contributions for charitable
causes are fundraising for
eye donat ion drive for
Sankara Nethralaya, He is
also the founding member
of Hindus of Greater
Houston. Even at 72 he is
act ive
w ith
many
organizations.
munity members, Counsil General of India

Dr Anupam Ray, University of Houston
Chancellor and President Dr Renu Khator.
Various
e lected
of ficials
like
Cong resswoman Sheila Jackson Lee,
Congressman Al Green and Pete Olson,
Harris County Judge Ed Emmett, Mayor of
Houston Sylvester Turner, Council member
Jack Christie, City of Houston Controller
Chris Brown were also present.
The chief guest and keynote speaker was
Bruce Culpepper, President, Shell USA.
Executive Director of IACCGH Jagdip
Ahluwalia said the Chamber has connected
entrepreneurs, doctors, educators, tech
nocrats in an informal setting to create
lasting business relationships. Consul
General Dr Ray in speech said it is a good

time to be a diplomat in the US and this is
evident from the fact that a few days ago
on the same day the US Secretary of State
was in India and the Indian Defense
Minister was in Washington.
Both countries were talking about issues
like defense, cybersecurity, increase in
trade, he said. "When you do business in
India you are essentially doing business
with a country that is more like the US
than many countries in the world", Ray
said. Houston Mayor Sylvestor Turner said
the Indian presence in Houston makes it
the most diverse city in America.
More than 700 companies in Houston do
business with India.
(PTI)
Tanikella Bharani enthralls Dallas

Telugus with Siva Tatvam
Dallas,
TX:
Te lugu
Association of North
America (TANA) along with
Sanatana
Dharma
Foundation (SDF) and Karya
Siddhi Hanuman Temple
(KSTH) conducted Siva
Tatvam a spiritual discourse
by famous movie actor,
writer and director Sri.
Tanike lla Bharani on
September 10th at KSTH. It
was well received by a house
full of audience who enjoyed
each moment with a lot of
devotion.
Dr.
Prakash
Rao
Ve lagapudi, President of
Global Hindu Heritage
Foundation
(GHHF);
Chairman of (KSTH) reiterat
ed the objective and mission
of GHHF is to protect, pre
serve, promote, and maintain
Sri Tanikella Bharani being felicitated at the event

Hindu culture, Hindu tem
ples, mutts, peethams,
endowments, Trusts and
other institutions globally.
Sri RK Ve llanki, the
President of the Temple gave
overview of the Temple.
Gopal Ponangi, Santa
Dharma Foundation, intro
duced Mr. Tanikella stating
that he hails from a literary
family with a lineage of emi
nent people like Sri.
Viswanatha Satyanarayana
and one of the Telugu poet

duo Tirupathi Venkata
Kavulu Divakarla Tirupati
Sastry. Bharani garu acted in
more than 650 films in vari
ous roles and won presti
gious Nandi awards three
times.
Sri. Tanikella Bharani nar
rated Shiva Tatvam in a col
loquial Te lugu language
filled with a lot of humor and
sang many songs melodious
ly those penned by himself.
He referred and appreciated

the great works of famous
poets like Dhurjati Kavi who
wrote Sri Kalahastiswara
Satakam. Sri Tanike lla
explained and connected
Siva tatvam in our day to day
lives. Two and half hours
long splendid spiritual jour
ney ended with an emotional
touch by Bharani garu
singing his own famous song
Aatagadhara Siva express
ing his devotion to the lord
Siva. Dr. Prasad Thotakura,
former President of TANA,
who is instrumental in invit
ing Bharani garu and arrang
ing this event highlighted
multifaceted talents of Sri
Tanikella who touched so
many hearts with his spiri
tiual, acting and directing
talents.
Indiaspora to organize Inaugural Ball for new US President

Washington, DC: An IndianAmerican
group will organize an inaugural ball
for the 45th President of the US in
January to highlight the importance of
the community in American politics.
To be attended by whos who of the
community, top US lawmakers and pos
sibly the president elect him/herself,
the second presidential ball being
organized by the Indian community on
January 18 would signify the emer
gence of this small but powerful com
munity in a big way, event organizers

said. This would be a bipartisan event
to celebrate the success and signifi
cance of the IndianAmerican commu
nity and to welcome in the new admin
istration, eminent IndianAmerican
investor, philanthropist and Indiaspora
founder MR Rangaswami said.
The inaugural presidential ball was
held in January 2013. He hoped that
with community support, the second
presidential ball might see the atten
dance of the new president and vice

president. Rangaswami hoped that the
general elections would also result in
greater representation of the Indian
Americans in the US Congress.
Kamala Harris is all set to become the
first IndianAmerican to be elected as a
US Senator. In addition to incumbent
Ami Bera, several other Indian
Americans have a much greater chance
of winning the election to the US House
of Representatives.
US Affairs
Trump surges among independent voters Trump condemns

Washington: Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump is
gaining ground on Hillary Clinton,
a new poll revealed on Tuesday.
The NBC News/Survey Monkey Weekly Election Tracking
Poll found Democratic presidential nominee Clinton with a mere
four-point lead on Trump, 48 per
cent to 44 per cent.
The same poll last week found
Clinton with a bigger lead, winning
48 per cent of the voters to

Trumps 42 per cent. Clinton had
a 10-point lead over Trump in the
same poll five weeks ago.
When third-party candidates
are factored in, Clintons lead
slips further, with the Democrat
garnering 42 per cent of the vote,
Trump 40 per cent, Libertarian
Gary Johnson getting 11 per cent
and Green Party candidate Jill
Stein at found per cent.
The poll finds Trump surging

among independent voters, with
the mogul trailing Clinton by only
two points among those voters,
38 per cent to 36 per cent.
Trump used to be down among
independents by double digits,
NBC reports. Voters who describe
themselves as independent are
thought to be crucial to winning
the presidency.
Favorability ratings for the two
main presidential candidates are

similar (38 per cent have a favorable view of Trump, 39 per cent
of Clinton).
And the candidates share a similar unfavorable rating (60 per cent
view Trump unfavourably and 59
per cent have that view of Clinton).
This weeks NBC News/SurveyMonkey online poll surveyed
16,220 registered voters and was
taken between September 5 and 11.
Pneumonia diagnosis,
but Hillary to return
to campaign trail
Trumps paid
Washington: US presidential candidate Hillary Clinton will return

to the campaign trail on Thursday,
spokesman Nick Merrill said.
The Democratic nominee, who
was recently diagnosed with
pneumonia, spent Tuesday at her
home in Chappaqua, NY, where
she watched President Obamas
stump speech in Philadelphia on
her behalf, Merrill said.
She has spent the day catching
up on reading briefings, making
calls, and she watched President
Obamas speech in Philadelphia
on TV, he said.
She is now scheduled to appear
before the Congressional Hispanic Caucus meeting on Thursday
night in Washington.
Clinton abruptly left a September
rejoinder
11 commemoration ceremony on
Sunday after what her campaign
said was an episode of overheating. A video showed a wobbly
Clinton stumbling as she was assisted into her van to depart the
ceremony.
She then went to daughter Chelsea Clintons apartment and later
returned to her home in Chappaqua, where campaign manager
Robby Mook told CNN she was attended to by her doctor.
Clinton was diagnosed with
pneumonia on Friday but decided
to continue on the trail. The incident has prompted further scrutiny
of her health and her campaigns
transparency, and comes less than
two months before Election Day
and as polls show a tightening race.
Abruptly leaving a 9-11 commemoration event in New York,

Hillary Clinton suffered a medical episode
and had to be helped to her van
maternity leave
plan gets Clinton
Donald Trump with Ivanka on his side,

introducing his childcare plan
Washington: Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump
has introduced an unorthodox
childcare plan, becoming a rare
Republican calling for paid maternity leave.
Introduced on Tuesday by his
daughter Ivanka, who asserted
that childcare issues were at the
root of wage inequality by disproportionately affecting women, Trump tried to soften his
image at an event held in Pennsylvania, a former stronghold for
moderate Republicans that has
trended Democratic in recent
years, the Guardian reported.
Trump also asserted that my
opponent has no childcare plan.
Clinton has in fact made a number

of detailed proposals on childcare.
Clinton in June last year first
outlined a program for universal pre-KG and in May this year
proposed to cap childcare costs
at ten per cent of household income and to introduce 12 weeks
of paid family leave.
Maya Harris, a senior policy
adviser to Clinton described
the New York billionaires proposal for paid maternity leave
as not just regressive, deficient,
demeaning and damaging for
women because it only applies
to women and pegged to unemployment benefits, not the actual
workplace salary of the mother.
Snowden makes case for presidential pardon

London: Whistleblower Edward
Snowden believes that President
Barack Obama should pardon him
before he leaves office in January,
arguing that the disclosure by
WikiLeaks of the scale of surveillance by the US and British intelligence agencies was not only
morally right but had left citizens
better off.
In an interview to The Guardian
via video link from Moscow, where
he is in exile, Snowden said any
evaluation of the consequences of

his leak of tens of thousands of National Security Agency and GCHQ
documents in 2013 would show
clearly that people had benefited.
Yes, there are laws on the
books that say one thing but that
is perhaps why the pardon power
exists -- for the exceptions, for
the things that may seem unlawful in letters on a page but when
we look at them morally, when we
look at them ethically, when we
look at the results, it seems these

were necessary things, these were
vital things, Snowden said.
I think when people look at the
calculations of benefit, it is clear
that in the wake of 2013 the laws of
our nation changed. The [US] Congress, the courts and the President
all changed their policies as a result
of these disclosures, he added.
Snowdens supporters, including his US lawyer, have stepped
up a campaign for a presidential
pardon. Snowden is wanted in the

US, where he is accused of violating the Espionage Act and faces at
least 30 years in jail.
Obamas former attorney-general Eric Holder, however, gave an
unexpected boost to the campaign
for Sonwdens pardon in May when
he said Snowden had performed a
public service. The campaign could
receive a further lift from Oliver
Stones film, Snowden, scheduled
for release in the US on Friday.
Clintons
deplorables
label on his
backers
Washington: Republican Donald

Trump is condemning Hillary Clintons remark that half of his supporters could be put in a basket of
deplorables and dismissing her admission she was wrong, saying the
Democrat had committed the worst
mistake of the political season.
For the first time in a long while,
her true feelings came out, showing
bigotry and hatred for millions of
Americans, Trump said last weekend in a statement rejecting her effort to walk back her remarks.
How can she be president of
our country when she has such
contempt and disdain for so many
great Americans?
Trumps statement came after
Clinton had backed off her disdainful description of half of his
supporters. In her initial remarks
Friday night at a private fundraiser in New York City, she said:
To just be grossly generalist, you
could put half of Trumps supporters into what I call the basket of
deplorables. Right? The racist,
sexist, homophobic, xenophobic,
Islamaphobic you name it.
Her remarks drew controversy.
But she later said, Last night I was
grossly generalist and thats never
a good idea. I regret saying half
that was wrong. She added: He
has built his campaign largely on
prejudice and paranoia and given a
national platform to hateful views
and voices, including by retweeting fringe bigots with a few dozen
followers and spreading their message to 11 million people.
Clintons initial remark about
a basket of deplorables recalled
comments about voters also at private fundraisers that have tripped
up past presidential nominees.
Weeks before the 2012 election,
Republican Mitt Romney landed in
hot water for saying that 47 per
cent of the public would vote for
President Barack Obama because
they depended on government
benefits and his job was not to
worry about those people.
During the 2008 Democratic
primary, then-Sen. Obama was
criticized for saying small-town
voters cling to guns or religion
or antipathy to people who arent
like them or anti-immigrant sentiment or anti-trade sentiment as a
way to explain their frustrations.
At the New York restaurant Friday night, Clinton bemoaned the
people she described as deplorables, saying that unfortunately
there are people like that.
10
US AFFAIRS
15 YEARS AFTER 9/11: OBAMA CALLS

FOR UNITY AGAINST TERRORISM
New York: The 15th anniversary of
the horrific 9/11 attacks saw
President Obama's call for unity
against terrorism, Democratic
presidential candidate Hillary
Clinton's fainting and Republican
presidential candidate Donald
Trump's only statement on social
media. President Barack Obama on
Sunday led millions of Americans
in paying moving tribute to the
victims of the 9/11 attacks urging
Americans to stand united against
terrorism.
During a ceremony at the 15th
anniversary of 9/11 attacks at the
Pentagon he said, "together, there
is nothing we Americans cannot
overcome."
At the Pentagon, a trumpet
played as the President took part
in a wreathlaying ceremony.
"We remember, and we w ill
never forget, the nearly 3,000
Mike Pence, the Republican vice presidential nominee, and his wife
Karen visited the 9/11 memorial at the Pentagon on Saturday.
President Obama paid a tribute on Sept 11, Sunday.
beautiful lives taken from us so
crue lly including 184 men,
women and children here, the
youngest just three years old. We
honor the courage of those who
put themselves in harm's way to
save people they never knew,"

Obama said in a statement.
"We come together in prayer and
in gratitude for the strength that
has fortified us across these 15
years. And we renew the love and
5,300 Wells Fargo employees fired

over 2 million phony accounts
New York: Last Thursday, federal
regulators said Wells Fargo (WFC)
employees secretly created millions
of unauthorized bank and credit
card accounts without their cus
tomers knowing it since 2011.
The phony accounts earned the
bank unwarranted fees and allowed
Wells Fargo employees to boost
their sales figures and make more
money.
"Wells Fargo employees secretly
opened unauthorized accounts to hit
sales targets and receive bonuses,"
Richard Cordray, director of the
Consumer Financial Protection
Bureau, said in a statement.
Wells Fargo confirmed to
CNNMoney that it had fired 5,300
employees over the last few years
related to the shady behavior.
Employees went so far as to create
phony PIN numbers and fake email
addresses to enroll customers in
online banking services, the CFPB
said. The scope of the scandal is

shocking. An analysis conducted by
a consulting firm hired by Wells
Fargo concluded that bank employ
ees opened over 1.5 million deposit
accounts that may not have been
authorized. The way it worked was
that employees moved funds from
customers' existing accounts into
newlycreated ones without their
knowledge or consent, regulators
say. The CFPB described this prac
tice as "widespread." Customers
were being charged for insufficient

funds or overdraft fees because
there wasn't enough money in their
original accounts. Additionally,
Wells Fargo employees also submit
ted applications for 565,443 credit
card accounts without their cus
tomers' knowledge or consent.
Roughly 14,000 of those accounts
incurred over $400,000 in fees,
including annual fees, interest
charges and overdraftprotection
fees. The CFPB said Wells Fargo will
pay "full restitutions to all victims."
Wells Fargo is being slapped with
the largest penalty since the CFPB
was founded in 2011. The bank
agreed to pay $185 million in fines,
along with $5 million to refund cus
tomers.
"We regret and take responsibility
for any instances where customers
may have received a product that
they did not request," Wells Fargo
said in a statement.
Household incomes rise 5%, a first since recession

Washington: Median household
income in the United States rose last
year for the first time since the Great
Recession, with Americans now bet
ter able to make ends meet.
According
to
Commerce
Department data released on
Tuesday, the real US median house
hold income rose 5.2 per cent
between 2014 and 2015 to
$56,516. The poverty rate also fell
1.2 per cent to 13.5 per cent, with
43.1 million Americans living in
poverty, 3.5 million fewer than in
2014. "T his is the first annual
A worker stocks incoming goods

at an Amazon Fulfillment
Center, ahead of the
Christmas rush last year.
increase in median household
income since 2007, the year before
the most recent recession," said a
statement from the Census Bureau,

an organ of the Commerce
Department.
However, the statement noted that
household incomes remained 1.6 per
cent lower than in 2007, the year
before the global financial crisis, and
were 2.4 per cent lower than a peak
in 1999.
While there was no significant
improvement in the US income
inequality, the share of the public liv
ing without health insurance fell
from 10.4 per cent to 9.1 per cent, or
29 million people, in 2015.
the faith that binds us together as

one American family," he added.
"It is so important today that we
reaffirm our character as a nation,
of people drawn from every corner
of the world, every color, every
religion, every background," he
said. "Bound by a creed as old as
our founder ... Out of many, we are
one. For we know that our diversi
ty, our patchwork heritage, is not a
weakness, it is still and always will
be one of our greatest strengths,"
Obama said.
Obama also vowed that the US
will never bow to the wishes of ter
rorists who, through their attacks,
hope to change the way Americans
live.
Meanwhile, Donald Trump
released a statement on Facebook
page and offered his condolences
to the victims.
"Fifteen years ago, America suf
fered the worst terrorist attack in

its history. Today, we mourn for all
the lives lost. We mourn for all the
children who had to grow up with
out a mom or dad, and for all the
parents who have had to struggle
on without their children," he
wrote.
He praised the fire fig hters,
police officers and port authority
workers who rushed into danger,
into smoke, into fire to save the
lives of people they had never met
performing their sacred duties
until their last moments on Earth.
Hillary Clinton, who had fainted
at a public event due to "overheat
ing" and was later diagnosed with
pneumonia, said the attack was the
closest thing to "hell" she had ever
seen. She visited the Ground Zero
memorial to pay her respects and
observe the annual moment of
silence but soon fell ill.
TRUMP PAC:
Super Trump Will
Save America
New York: A proTrump Super
PAC will launch a fourday cam
paign blanketing Times Square
and the I4 Corridor in Central
Florida, reported T he East
Orlando Post.
Times Square is visited by hun
dreds of thousands of people
daily, while the Downtown
Orlando area of the I4 corridor
sees similar amounts of drivers
each day. Sources close to the
PAC, which is aligned with Trump
confidant and veteran political
operative Roger Stone, confirmed
the group had two donors come
forward offering the funding for
the primetime push.
The creative depicts the GOP
presidential nominee as "Super
Trump, who is ready to "Make
America Great Again."
It will run as a video advertise
ment in Times Square and static
ad in Central Florida. Committee
to Restore America's Greatness
of ficials said these digital bill
boards are just the beginning of
an "aggressive" push through
emerging advertising and digital
media to he lp Donald Trump
defeat Hillary Clinton in
November. "Donald Trump is
ready to save the middle class,
restore our borders, and snuff out
corrupt politicians in both parties
who prey on American citizens,"
said Roger Stone, confidante and
advisor to Trump for nearly 40
The Committee to Restore

America's Greatness will launch
a massive ad campaign in
Times Square & Central Florida.
years. Seminole County Tax
Collector elect Joel Greenberg,
who waged a Trump'esque cam
paign to defeat a longtime incum
bent of over 27 years, is con
firmed as one of the donors.
San Diego based Dr. Robert
Shillman has donated the funds
for the Times Square effort.
"When I was a kid, Superman
was my idol because he stood for
Truth, Justice, and the American
Way, just like Donald Trump," said
Shillman. The ads were to run in
Times Square in NYC through
Friday night, while the Central
Florida campaign will begin the
INDIA
Maintain peace, SC tells

Karnataka & Tamil Nadu
New Delhi: T he Supreme
Court slammed the Tamil
Nadu and Karnataka govern
ments for their failure to
stop people from taking to
the agitation path after its
order on Cauvery river
water sharing and said it
hoped both states will main
tain peace and respect for
law.
When told about a shut
down and a 'rail roko' stir in
Karnataka and another
bandh in Tamil Nadu, a
bench of Justice Dipak Misra
and Justice Uday Umesh
Lalit said the shutdowns and
agitations could not be
allowed pursuant to the
apex court orders. Having
made its displeasure known
over the events that fol
lowed its September 12
order, Justice Misra said:
"We hope and trust that wis
dom will prevail on both the
All on board missing

AN-32 'presumed
dead', says IAF
People stage a demonstration against releasing of

Cauvery river water to Tamil Nadu in Bengaluru.
states to maintain peace,
harmony, order and calm
and, above all, dignity and
respect for law."
The apex court had asked
the Karnataka government
on September 12 to release
12,000 cusecs of Cauvery
river water to Tamil Nadu
daily, after modifying its ear
lier September 5 order for

the re lease of 15,000
cusecs. Meanwhile, DMK
President M. Karunanidhi
announced his party's sup
port for the September 16
shutdown protest called by
various
organizations
demanding Cauvery river
water from Karnataka.
11
The shutdown protest was

called by various organiza
tions representing the inter
ests of farmers, truck own
ers and traders, among oth
ers, and against the violence
and arson indulged in by
hooligans in Karnataka dam
aging property worth sever
al crores of rupees.
New Delhi: The 29 people

on board the AN32 plane
that went missing over the
Bay of Bengal on July 22
have been "presumed dead"
and their families informed,
Indian Air Force of ficials
said.
Of ficials from both IAF
and Navy however said that
search for debris of the ill
fated aircraft will continue.
T he AN32, which was
going to Port Blair from
Chennai, had on board six
crew members, 15 person
nel from the IAF, army, navy
and Coast Guard, and eight
civilians who were family
members of the personnel.
"The families have been
informed, but the search
still continues," Indian Air
Force spokesperson Wing
Commander
Anupam
Banerjee said.
"Search for the AN32 is
still in progress with ships
from National Institute of
Ocean Technology (NIOT)
and Geological Survey of
India, Samudra Ratnakar
and Sagar Nidhi," a Navy
official said.
The official the Navy, IAF,
and Coast Guard are all
making efforts to search for
the missing plane.
The aircraft, an upgraded
AN32 be long ing to 33
Squadron, took of f from
Tambaram Air Force Station
in Chennai at 8.30 a.m., and
was expected to land at Port
Blair in the Andaman and
Nicobar Islands at 11.30
a.m., in what of ficials said
was a "routine sortie".
Modi reviews preparedness BRICS nations discuss counter

terrorism, cyber & energy security
to roll-out GST
New Delhi: Prime Minister
Narendra Modi has
reviewed the prepared
ness for rollout of the
Goods and Services Tax
(GST) from April 1, 2017,
and asked departments
and ministries concerned
to take all steps to adhere
to the timeline. An official
statement issued on
Thursday said the Prime
Minister held a meeting to
review the preparedness
to roll out the GST. The
Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
meeting was attended by
Finanance Minister Arun Jaitley and both Centre and States, training of
of ficers of Central and State
many others.
"In order to ensure that there is Governments and outreach for
no slippage on date of implementa awareness of trade and industry,"
tion of GST from April 1, 2017, the the release said.
Goods and Services Tax is a com
Prime Minister reviewed the
prehensive
indirect tax on manufac
progress made on various steps
needed for the rollout of GST relat ture, sale and consumption of goods
ing to preparation of Model GST and services throughout India, and
laws and rules to be framed, estab will replace taxes levied by the cen
lishment of IT infrastructure for tral and state governments.
New
Delhi:
BRICS
High
Representatives responsible for
national security met here on
Thursday and discussed issues of
counterterrorism, cyber security
and energy security among others
ahead of the BRICS Summit next
month in Goa. It was the sixth such
meeting of those in charge of nation
al security in Brazil, Russia, India,
China and South Africa (BRICS) and
was presided over by India's
National Security Adviser Ajit Doval.
India assumed chairmanship of
BRICS this year and will host the 8th
Summit meeting in Goa on October
1516. In Thursday's meeting, the
delegation from Brazil was led by
Gen. Sergio Westphalen Etchegoyen,
Minister of State, and Head of the
Cabinet for Institutional Security,
that of Russia by Nikolai P.
Patrushev, Secretary of the country's
Security Council, that of China by
Yang Jiechi, State Councillor, and
that of South Africa by Mbangiseni
David Mahlobo, Minister of State
Security. "Acknowledging the posi

tive contribution of the BRICS group
ing on important global issues, they
deliberated on security issues such
as counterterrorism, cyber security
and energy security," the External
Affairs Ministry said in a statement
following the meeting. "They also
exchanged assessments of recent
developments in the West Asia and
North Africa region," it stated.
In the area of cyber and informa
tion security, the participants agreed
to strengthen joint ef forts on
enhancing cyber security by sharing
information and best practices, com
bating cyber crimes, improving
cooperation between technical and
law enforcement agencies including
joint cyber security research and
development capacity building.
"The High Representatives encour
aged cooperation and exchanging of
best practices, expertise, information
and knowledge on counterterrorism
issues," the statement said. "In this
context, they welcomed the first
meeting of the BRICS Working Group

on CounterTerrorism that was held
a day before," it said.
"They also agreed to expand BRICS
counterterrorism cooperation fur
ther to include measures for denying
terrorists access to finance and ter
rorhardware such as equipment,
arms and ammunition. They under
scored the need for a global legal
regime to deal with the global men
ace of terrorism." The participants
also agreed to explore a regular
energy dialogue between BRICS
countries in order to discuss long
term and mediumterm energy secu
rity issues. "While highlighting the
need for resolution of outstanding
disputes in the WANA region
through dialogue, peaceful means
and in accordance with international
law and the principles of the UN
charter,
the
BRICS
High
Representatives agreed to pool
BRICS's efforts to counter terrorism
& violent extremism emanating from
the region," the statement continued.
12
INDIA
UN rights chief flags Kashmir issue,

India makes strong rebuttal
Geneva/New Delhi: As the Valley
unrest neared 70 days, the UN
Human Rights chief said that an
international probe was "needed
crucially" in Kashmir, even as
India hit back saying the violence
was "choreographed from across
the border". India also questioned
the re ference to Indian and
Pakistanadministered areas, stat
ing that the entire Jammu and
Kashmir is an integral part of
India.
UN Hig h Commissioner for
Human Rig hts Zeid Ra'ad Al
Hussein at the 33rd session of the
Human Rights Council, said he
had requested India and Pakistan
to allow teams from his office to
visit both sides of the Line of
Control "in other words the
IndiaAdministered Jammu and
Kashmir
and
Pakistan
Administered Kashmir". Hussein
said they had received reports of
"excessive" force used against
civilians on the Indian side and
also of "conflicting narratives
from the two sides" about the
unrest, that has seen over 80
deaths so far. "I believe an inde
Heavy deployments of security forces were made by authorities in

Srinagar and other places of the Kashmir Valley where life remained
paralysed for the 69th consecutive day.
pendent, impartial and interna
tional mission is now needed cru
cially and that it should be given
free and complete access to estab
lish an objective assessment of
the claims made by the two
sides," Hussein said, adding that
while Pakistan has acceded to his
request for a visit to its side, "but
in tandem with a mission to the
Indian side", India had yet to do
so. India, in its reply, said that
while it acknowledges the role of

the OHCHR for protect ion of
human rights "more would be
gained if primacy were accorded
to cooperation over confronta
tion" as the guiding principle.
India sharply rebutted the UN
Human Rights chief's reference to
India and Pakistan administered
Kashmir. It said the whole State of
Jammu and Kashmir is an integral
part of India and "Pakistan
remains in illegal occupation of a

part of our territory. The two can
not and should not be equated".
"The neutrality of the phrase
'Indian Administered Kashmir' is,
there fore, art ificial," it said,
adding that Jammu and Kashmir
has an elected democratic gov
ernment, but that is not the case
on the Pakistani side.
It hit out at Pakistan, saying the
current unrest "has been choreo
graphed from across our border
since the death of a known terror
ist belonging to an internationally
proscribed terrorist organization"
in July referring to Hizbul com
mander Burhan Wani. India said
it has shared evidence of terror
ists "who came across the border
with instructions to target our
security forces by mingling with
protest ing crowds and using
human shields". "Terrorism, I
would emphasise, is the most
egregious violation of human
rights," the statement said.
It said that Jammu and Kashmir
has started to move towards nor
malcy after sustained ef forts by
both the Central and state govern
ments, "including the exercise of

maximum restraint" by security
forces, 7,000 of whom have sus
tained injuries.
In a strong rebuttal of the UN
Human Rights chief's request for
unconditional access to both
sides of the LoC, the statement
said "India's robust democratic
institutions and processes have
suf ficient tools for redressal of
grievances".
It stressed on constructive dia
logue and cooperation as best
means for the protection and pro
motion of human rights, adding
"countries often have unique
national circumstances, and it is
important to invest trust in their
efforts".
The statement said that while
India has been appreciative of the
High Commissioner's ef forts at
improving efficiency and stream
lining OHCHR's work, it remains
"concerned at persisting ambigui
ties in OHCHR governance and
administrative arrangements".
"High Commissioner's proposed
Change Initiative requires more
clarity," it said.
India bids adieu to Lord

Ganesh after 11 days
Mamata asks Tatas to

set up auto hub
Mumbai/New Delhi: Maharashtra

and other part of the cities bid
adieu to Lord Ganesh the ele
phantheaded god on Anant
Chaturdashi as the curtains fell on
the 11day Ganeshotsav festivities.
After performing the farewell
'Uttar Pooja', thousands of big,
medium and small idols of Lord
Ganesh were taken to various
immersion points here for immer
sion amidst cries of 'Ganpati
Bappa Morya, Pudchya Varshi
Lavkar Ya'.
The processions were accompa
nied by dancers, musical bands
Ganesha idol immersions underway on the
and DJs. People threw colours and
banks of the Yamuna river in New Delhi.
flowers on the participants and
the idols as they snaked their way through squads, drones and other security gadgets.
congested areas of southcentral Mumbai and The BMC deployed firemen, divers, navy and
Coast Guard to monitor the immersion
other places.
The festival, initiated in an open public for process.
Helicopters, speed boats and naval ships
mat in 1892 by Mumbai's Bhausaheb Laxman
Javale alias Bhau Rangari, entered the 125th were ready to tackle any contingency along
the coast.
year.
The day started with heavy rains engulfing
It was popularized on a mass scale by free
dom fighter Lokmanya Bal Gangadhar Tilak Mumbai and other parts of the coastal Konkan
from 1893 in Pune to unite the people against region, slowing down the processions carrying
the idols.
the British Raj.
The popular immersion points for the large
Mumbai Police, Brihanmumbai Municipal
Corporation (BMC), the navy and Coast Guard idols are the Arabian Sea, the Sanjay Gandhi
made elaborate arrangements for a smooth National Park, the various beaches and creeks
conduct of the immersion at all natural and in Mumbai, scores of artificial water bodies
created by the BMC for immersion, lakes, wells
artificially created water bodies in the state.
There were CCTVs, metal detectors, dog and ponds.
Singur (West Bengal): West

day sitin protest in 2008
Bengal Chief Minister Mamata
demanding 400 acres out of
Banerjee invited the Tatas to
the total 997.11 acres acquired
set up an auto hub in the state
for the Tata Motors' Nano proj
as she redeemed a pledge
ect be returned to the "unwill
made years back by returning
ing farmers".
9,117 land records to farmers
A visiblye lated Banerjee
and compensating 800 from
asserted that she had kept her
whom land had been forcibly
promise. "We had promised to
taken for the Group's Nano
return land. Now we have
West Bengal Chief
project in Hooghly district's
redeemed
our pledge. Singur is
Minister Mamata
Singur. Amid euphoric chants
a
landmark
in world history."
Banerjee.
and songs eulogising her and
Refering to the August 31
her government, lakhs watched as Banerjee Supreme Corut verdict which had struck
personally handed out the documents to down the land acquisition made by the erst
many of the farmers who responded with while Left Front government and ordered
warm smiles and touched her feet in grati the land be returned to the cultivators,
tude at the Singur Diwas venue at Sanapara Banerjee said though the apex judiciary had
of Hooghly district.
given ten weeks to complete the land survey,
It was the same spot of the Durgapur her government will complete the process in
Expressway where Banerjee had held a 16 seveneight weeks.
Navjot Singh Sidhu resigns from BJP

New Delhi: Cricketerturnedpolitician Navjot Singh Sidhu formally resigned from the
Bharatiya Janata Party and said it was a "painful decision" for him. "I hereby resign from
the party membership of the Bharatiya Janata Party," Sidhu said in a tweet, in which he
posted his handwritten letter to BJP national president Amit Shah. "Long association,
painful decision... my wife, children and party not alone Punjab. Punjab first, Punjab
Punjabiyat and every Punjabi must win," he wrote. Sidhu had on September 8 formally
announced a new political front 'AwaazePunjab' saying that his fight was against the
system and the leaders who had "ruined" Punjab putting an end to the speculation of
him joining the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP).
Meanwhile, a member of Sidhu's family told IANS that his wife Navjot Kaur Sidhu would
also resign from the party shortly after meeting the senior party leadership in Delhi.
OP-ED
13
Behind Karnataka's anger:

Rainfall deficits in 90% of state
Bengaluru has been on the boil after Supreme Court order to release water of the Cauvery river to neighbor Tamil Nadu.
By Prabhu Mallikarjunan
arnataka's angst and anger
over a Supreme Court (SC)
order to release water of the
Cauvery river to neighbor Tamil
Nadu is rooted in the failure of the
monsoon in the state, a hidden vari
ation of India's statistically normal
monsoon.
Reservoirs in the Cauvery catch
ment are half as full as they should
be, 42 per cent of minor irrigation
tanks are dry statewide and 90 per
cent of Karnataka's talukas subdi
visions of districts recorded
deficit rainfall in August. The water
in Karnataka's reservoirs must now
be shared between farmers in
Karnataka and Tamil Nadu and
meet Karnataka's own drinking
water needs.
Overall, the state was 16 per cent
short of normal rainfall between
June 1, 2016, and September 5,
2016, according to data from the
Karnataka State Natural Disaster
Monitoring Centre (KSNDMC).
The Meteorological Department
classifies this as a "normal" deficit,
but rainfall was intermittent and
uncertain through the monsoons.

After two consecutive droughts,
India received normal rainfall 2
per cent less than the 100year
average by the end of August
2016, but within that normality,
more than a third of the country is
short of rain, according to India
Meteorological Department (IMD)
data.
Protests erupted in parts of
MysoreMandya
reg ion
on
September 6 following the SC order
and the government's decision to
release water to Tamil Nadu. The
government has sought a modifica
tion of the order.
In August, Karnataka's four zones
south and north interior, the
southern Malnad region and the
coast recorded a 39 per cent
deficit in rainfall.
The Malnad region, which is criti
cal for the Cauvery's catchment
area, received 977 mm in August,
against the normal 1,369 mm, a 29
per cent deficit.
The situation worsened over the
monsoon: 101 of 176 talukas in
Karnataka recorded deficit rainfall
(20 to 59 per cent), while 55
talukas recorded scanty rainfall (

60 to 99 per cent) in August 2016.
The August rains are critical to
the sowing of important crops, such
as paddy, ragi, maize and sugar
cane. With no more than four
weeks left for the end of southwest
monsoon, farmers are struggling.
Water levels of reservoirs in the
Cauvery catchment area, including
the Krishna Raja Sagara (KRS) dam
in Mandya district, Kabini in
Mysore, Harangi in Kodagu and
Hemavathi in Hassan were less
than normal (based on a 15year
average) and less than the levels in
2015, according to KSNDMC data
on September 3.
Of 3,598 minor irrigation tanks
in the state, 42 per cent are dry and
no more than 12 per cent of tanks
are more than half full, according
to KSNDMC data.
T he water leve l at KRS on
September 3 was 17.96 tmcft
(thousand million cubic feet),
against its capacity of 49.45 tmcft,
lower than last year's level over the
same period (25.30 tmcft). KRS is
normally full by this time.
The SC's order to release 15,000
cusecs to Tamil Nadu over 10 days

would mean the state has to release
13.6 tmcft of water, 24 per cent of
the water now available in the
Cauvery basin reservoirs.
The situation in nine other reser
voirs statewide was no better,
except for Krishna Basin reservoir's
Almatt i dam, in northern
Karnataka, which is full;
Ghataprabha dam, which is at 87
per cent of its capacity; and
Narayanapuram dam which is at 96
per cent of its capacity.
This could worsen Karnataka's
drinking water situation in the
coming days. Farmers' representa
tives argued that their livelihoods
are at stake if Karnataka releases
more water.
"We (farmers) have reduced sug
arcane cultivation in 70 per cent of
the area as it is waterintensive and
have opted for paddy cultivation,"
Karnataka Rajya Raitha Sangha
(KarnatakaState
Farmers'
Association) leader and member of
leg islat ive
assembly
K.S.
Puttannaiah told 101reporters.com.
"If the government cannot release
water even for this, what will the
farmers of this region do for a

living?"
For decades, the two state gov
ernments have been fighting for
water based on the rains that are
unpredictable. They should find a
permanent solution to the problem
and consult farmer leaders before
taking any decision.
In Mandya, where protests
against the SC order are intense,
sowing has been less than 25 per
cent of normal as on August 22,
2016, according to Karnataka
Agriculture Department data.
"With deficit rainfall across the
state in August, there will be a
reduction in proportionate yield
and overall production," said H.
Shivanna, Vice Chance llor,
University of Agricultural Sciences,
Bengaluru. "In the Cauvery basin,
they are transplanting paddy (into
fields) now, as it requires lesser
water than sugarcane. Sowing is
already delayed, and if it does not
rain for another 10 days, farmers in
the state will be severely hit."
IANS, in arrangement with

IndiaSpend.org
Is technology a boon or bane for teenagers?

By Lina Ashar
s an educator I am often
asked: "Is technology a boon
or a bane?" We need to
understand that human beings
are lazy by nature and would love
it if other people did all their
work. The introduction of technol
ogy has done precisely that. If you
notice, over the years we have
stopped writing letters; we now
write informal emails. We do not
remember phone numbers, we
depend on our phones to remem
ber them for us. We do not
remember birthdates, Facebook
does that for us and we also wish
people online now instead of mak
ing that twominute personal
phone call. We do not make the
ef fort of remembering spelling,
MS word corrects us if we are
wrong. We now talk to people 10
miles from us and forget to talk to
people sitting right next to us. We
tell the whole world where we are
and what we are doing.
Technology is making our chil
dren dumber and, as parents, we
need to train our children to use it
wisely. Teenagers are the biggest
Children at a Kangaroo Kids Preschool.

victims and addicts of technology.
They are desperate to stay con
nected. They're afraid to be left
out, as they feel they will miss
something. This leads to a con
stant feeling of needing to be "on".
It is like a substance addiction.
Children are so overloaded with
information that they cannot
focus, thereby they retain very lit
tle.
Teenagers are looking for
instant gratification and accept
ance of who they are from their

peers and Social media gives them
that platform. Every picture or
post they upload gets them a few
likes and comments. This boosts
their morale and that triggers the
release of Dopamine, the feel
good chemical. This becomes a
pattern that leads to addiction.
Having said all this, technology
is also a boon. It has connected
people from all over the world.
Years ago, friends would lose
touch with each other because

there were limited modes of com
munication. However, today you
can keep in touch with all your
friends all over the world via
whatsapp, viber, skype, Facebook
and the like.
Here are a few tips you can use
with your teenagers:
4Limit screen time, not just the
use of the internet. Excessive
exposure to any act ivity w ill
become a bane; hence it is impor
tant to limit screen time. Speak to
your children and come to a
mutual consensus on the number
of hours they would like to spend
in front of a screen (TV, video
games, laptop or phones). Plan
out other activities they can do
with the spare time they have.
4Guide them to use technology
for construct ive purposes.
Technology can be used for read
ing, enhancing analytical skills,
editing videos and more. We, as
parents, need to guide them and
keep them engaged at every step.
4Encourage physical interac
tion to develop interpersonal
skills. Encourage your children to
interact with other children.
The views expressed in Op Eds are not necessarily those of The South Asian Times.
4Fix time for the family. Use

this time for various activities,
outdoor as well as indoors. There
has to be a fixed time of the day
when the full family sits together
and interacts. You can play board
games, have a storytelling ses
sion, draw, head to a nearby park,
among others.
4Limit access to sensitive sites,
chat rooms and the like. It is very
important to put child locks on
sensitive sites and chat rooms,
because you cannot be monitor
ing what your child is doing 24/7
and you need to make sure of
your child's safety.
4Put your phones and laptops
down when talking to your chil
dren. Children learn from their
parents. If you want children to
pay attention to what you are say
ing, you need to build that habit
by giving them complete atten
tion when they are talking to you.
(Lina Ashar is the founder of a

chain of Kangaroo Kids Pre
schools and Billabong High
International Schools across 29
different cities in India, as well as
in the Maldives, Qatar and Dubai)
14
OP-ED
Absent 9/11, would ISIS be?

By John Bahadur Lamb
ever forget is the oftenrepeated

refrain when talking about the attacks
of September 11, 2001, in the US. Yet,
it often seems an empty phrase brought out
yearly for memorial services and invoked by
politicians seeking to justify the latest round
of new counterterrorism measures. Despite
the phrase perhaps being overused, the
attacks themselves should never be forgotten
as they marked a key turning point in mod
ern history and has, arguably, led to the birth
of a much more dangerous enemy in the
form of Daesh (the selfproclaimed Islamic
State of Iraq and the Levant or ISIS).
Not since Pearl Harbor had the worlds
only superpower been attacked within its
domestic borders and what was so surprising
was that the attacks were not carried out by
another state, but by a then littleknown ter
rorist group Al Qaida.
The attacks were carried out by just 19
men who hijacked four domestic flights
operating in the US and successfully flew two
of those into the World Trade Center twin
towers in New York, one into the Pentagon
and the fourth only missed another target
due to the heroic actions of the passengers
and crew on board, who caused it to crash
into a field in Pennsylvania. The actions of
these few would turn 9/11 into a day that
Responding to terrorism with force can

have farreaching effects that are hard to
predict, as proliferation of ISIS shows.
changed history by leading to two America
led invasions as part of the Global War on
Terrorism Afghanistan and then Iraq.
While the Afghan campaign was initially
successful and had the backing of the inter
national community, the Iraq campaign led
to a longrunning insurgency and wide
spread sectarian violence in the country.
With the removal of former Iraq president
Saddam Hussain and the deBaathification of
the Iraqi police and military units, the
Americans and British forces both created a
power vacuum and deposited hundreds of
highly trained soldiers on to Iraqi streets.
Many of these jobless individuals joined the
growing insurgency, which was fighting
against western occupation. While many dif

ferent groups existed, one group in particu
lar stood out Al Qaida in Iraq (AQI), origi
nally founded in 1999.
Despite these losses, the continued pres
ence of American and British troops in Iraq
led many to join AQI and it rose into promi
nence and infamy as it carried out attacks
against coalition troops and atrocities
against the local population. This promi
nence allowed it to form the Mujahideen
Shura Council in 2004 as an umbrella organ
ization encompassing all of the Sunni groups
present in Iraq. Under the guidance of Abu
Musab Al Zarqawi, the group became more
and more sectarian. This eventually led to an
exit from Al Qaida and renaming of the
group as Islamic State of Iraq (ISI) in 2006.
The group ef fectively controlled most of
Iraq and likely had a loose membership of
300,000 to 500,000 fighters and allied
tribesmen who saw it as a means of protect
ing themselves from an ineffective Iraqi gov
ernment and the growing power of Iranian
backed militias. Sectarian violence continued
and the group survived attempts by
AmericanBritish forces to dismantle it.
The Arab Spring then arrived and the
Syrian civil war started. This provided an
ideal opportunity for the group to expand
across the border into Syria and enlarge its
geographic footprint. Between 2011 and
2013, this is exactly what the group did,

before declaring a worldwide Caliphate in
June 2014 and changing its name to Daesh.
Daesh has since gone on to inspire nearly
half a dozen attacks beyond the borders of
Iraq and Syria, in both Europe and the
Middle East. It is arguable that had 9/11
never happened then the specific circum
stances that led to the formation of AQI
would never have occurred and Daesh would
not have been in existence today. Thus, we
should never forget 9/11 partly to
remember and honor the victims, but also as
a reminder that responding to terrorism with
force can have farreaching effects that are
hard to predict.
Fortunately, we are unlikely to see a spec
tacular attack like 9/11 carried out again as
Daesh appears to be focused on retaining the
land it controls in Iraq and Syria. However,
Daesh is more dangerous because of its abili
ty to inspire those with little or no history of
extremist violence to carry out lowlevel
attacks, such as the one against Charlie
Hebdo, in Bataclan and in Nice. The legacy of
9/11 is not just memorials to those who
died, but an ongoing struggle to detect, dis
rupt and neutralize plots inspired by Daesh.
John Bahadur Lamb is a lecturer in
Criminology and Security Studies at
Birmingham City University, UK.
Source: IANS
THE TWOPARTY SYSTEM HAS FAILED

By Gary Johnson
More Americans consider themselves

"independents" than are aligned with
either of the two main political parties.
They want an alternative: a common
sense approach that combines fiscal dis
cipline with social inclusion, says the
Libertarian Party's nominee for president.
hortly after drafting the Massachusetts

Constitution, John Adams expressed his
greatest fear for the nation: "There is
nothing which I dread so much as a division
of the republic into two great parties, each
arranged under its leader. . . . This . . . is to be
dreaded as the greatest political evil."
He wasn't alone. James Madison warned
against the dangers of factionalism. And in
his farewell address, George Washington
called "party dissension" a kind of "frightful
despotism," warning that a party leader
would be prone to pursue his own agenda "to
the purposes of his own elevation, on the
ruins of public liberty."
Almost in spite of themselves, the founders
allied themselves into political parties: First
the Federalists against the Democratic
Republicans, then the Whigs against the
Democrats.
That second party alignment collapsed
under the weight of slavery when a third
party, the Republican Party, rose up with a
fresh message unencumbered by the past.
Has the twoparty division that the
founders railed against become today's politi
cal status quo? It doesn't have to be. With the
Republicans and the Democrats having nomi
nated their most polarizing presidential can
didates in more than a generation, now is the
moment for a third way.
My running mate, Bill Weld, and I were
both twoterm Republican governors in heavi
ly Democratic states. Both of us won reelec
tion overwhelmingly. We did this by govern
ing as fiscal conservatives and social liberals.

That's where most Americans want their gov
ernment to be.
Political parties aren't necessarily evil
unless they lead to the level of dysfunction
that we have today. Elected of ficials in
Washington cannot even agree on a real
budget and haven't for years. That's their
most straightforward responsibility.
These partisans place loyalty to their team
over loyalty to the nation's needs. It's eerie to
see Republicans under Donald Trump
denounce free trade and limited government.
It's unsettling to see how comfortable
Democrats have gotten with Hillary Clinton's
approach to Middle East regime change as
secretary of state. The two major parties have
failed to meet the needs of the nation. It's
time to try something different.
Fortunately, most Americans aren't buying
it. More people consider themselves "inde
pendents" than are aligned with either of the

two largest political parties. They want an
alternative: a commonsense approach that
combines fiscal discipline with social inclu
sion. As presidential and vicepresidential
candidates, that's our message. A nonpartisan
approach in the Oval Office would do won
ders to defuse the harsh partisanship that
we've seen develop in recent years. Think of it
as a new form of checks and balances, with
different parties controlling the executive and
legislative branches.
In the Federalist Papers, James Madison
warned about the dangers of factionalism. His
proposed solution was to divide power within
the government. That can be frustrating to
some because it makes the federal govern
ment inefficient by design. It keeps one per
son, or one party, from accumulating absolute
power.
Yet the two larger political parties have
worked hard to try to create their own tyran
nical majorities. The majorities alternate, but
the basic premise doesn't change.
So consider a system in which a president
from a bona fide third party enters the mix.
With a chief executive free of any obligation
to either party, the focus will be on the busi
ness of the nation, not on propping up a
The views expressed in Op Eds are not necessarily those of The South Asian Times.
crumbling party apparatus.

The first priority of the JohnsonWeld
administration will be submitting to Congress
a balanced budget. As governors, we held true
to promising that taxes would go down, not
up. We'll end up cutting spending by roughly
20 percent in order to match it to current tax
receipts. My default is to question federal
spending and to require every year that each
agency justify its budget anew. As governor, I
vetoed more than 750 bills, often special
interest payoffs, and I won't hesitate to veto
such bills from Congress.
That said, Bill and I are reasonable and real
istic executives. We will accomplish the free
market, fiscally conservative agenda of limit
ing government and increasing trade, while
pursuing longoverdue immigration and crim
inaljustice reform.
We'll do this through having both
Republicans and Democrats in the Cabinet
and working simultaneously with the leaders
of those parties. Seeing that, by working
together, the best ideas of each party will
receive a fair hearing, both will see real move
ment toward addressing challenges they care
about, not just winnertakeall partisan grid
lock. A great deal could be accomplished by
having thirdparty leadership dedicated to
finding the common ground that has so often
eluded the parties in recent years: on balanc
ing the budget, curbing taxes, protecting our
privacy and reforming our criminaljustice
system.
Gary Johnson is the Libertarian Party's
nominee for president.
Courtesy: The Washington Post
15
Spiritual Science
Famous Astro-Numerologist
visiting New York
He will be in New York from Sep
30 - Oct 16, 2016, staying at Hilton Long Island/ Huntington.
Dr Sanjay Sethi
Worlds No.1 AstroNumerologist
(As per Google Rating)
n his first consulting visit

to America, Dr Sanjay Sethi
is a renowned astrologernumerologist-Vastu consultant, who
is much sought after in India and
abroad for his accurate predictions,
guaranteed solutions and effective
remedies, ensuring results.
New Delhi-based Dr Sethi is an MA
(English), MBA (Finance), and a Gold
Medalist in Numerology. He brings
together 30 years of experience in
astrology and numerology with deep
study of other related fields, and
recommends gemstones, rudraksha, and Sri Yantra with confidence.
Extracts from an interview he

gave to The South Asian Times:
What are the common issues that
bring people to you?
Dr Sanjay Sethi: The most common issues and problems that
bring people to me are related to
their career (business/jobs), fluctuations in finances, severe relationships problems, serious or
even terminal diseases, childrens
education, late marriage, cases of
infidelity, settling abroad, etc.
Which problems you are more successful in solving for your clients?
Dr Sethi: I take all problems
faced by people at par and give
them equal importance as I get
clients from various walks of life.
I have a successful track record of
solving all problems and providing
my clients with utmost satisfaction.
Is it astrology or numerology
that is central to your practice?
Dr Sethi: I am an Astro Numerologist as I have mastery over both
the sciences. I mix and double
check with both through math-
ematical calculations. I am also a

qualified scientific Vastu expert
practicing for many years. I recommend remedies to the clients
as per my study and calculations
of their not-so-favorable numbers,
retrograde or debilitated planets as
well as specific problems identified
through my craft. A lot of thinking
and expertise goes into recommending a remedy to a client as the
diagnosis (shafa) or siddhi which
I am bestowed with should be
more than 100% so as to be very,
very effective for assured results.
Do you believe in destiny?
If yes, how can it be changed by
any remedy?
Dr Sethi: Yes, of course, every
event happening in an individuals
life is destined. I am no God, nor
Superhuman, I am just good with
my craft and mathematical calculations, recommending cures,
which are scientific in nature. Yet,
for 30 years people have been saying that I create magic with planets and numbers put together.
I am good with my diagnosis
(predictions) and catch the root
cause of problems -- planetary as
well as numerological. Once the
problems nature (timing, cause,

effect) is identified, the task of suggesting remedies becomes simpler.
Many celebs have given you
testimonials. What about politicians, scientists, rationalists?
Dr Sethi: Yes, besides film stars,
film producers, cricketers and industrialists, many politicians and
rationalists too have consulted me
in the past. My profession is highly
confidential and a lot of people want
to keep it a secret as the most intimate and intriguing problems are
being discussed and remedies suggested. Yet, some people are very
open about visiting me and they
recommend their near and dear
ones to consult me if they are in a
dilemma or facing a major problem.
Can numerology tell me which
lottery numbers will win in the
next draw?
Dr Sethi: General predictions are
not accurate because an Astro-Numerologist needs details of an individual (date, time, and place) to do
the calculations and give accurate
predictions. So, winning lottery
numbers, horse races or results of
games cannot be predicted.
Feng shui is known the world
over, but why Vastu Shastra remains confined to India?
Dr Sethi: Feng shui remedies are
simple like placement of various
items in your homes and offices

depending on the problem. But the
science of Vastu Shastra is deep
in nature as it involves study of
the structure (even if in blueprint
stage) and location as well as the
elements of Vastu (earth, air, water,
fire and space). But even in India,
there are very few effective Vastu
Shastra experts, so its popularity
outside India is growing slowly,
but eventually it will happen.
You have ISO certificattion - is it
for the products or the services
you offer?
Dr Sethi: The ISO:9001:2008 is
for services as well as products.
How did you yourself get into
these esoteric fields?
Dr Sethi: My journey started 30
years back when I was working for
a company in London. From young
age I was good with numbers. So,
while in London, I took some lessons in numerology from an eminent British lady. After that I took
specialized training in astrology
and numerology. And once your
predictions for people start coming out right, it gives you a boost
and confidence to take it up as a
full time profession.
For more details about me and

my career please visit our website
www.purelifebysanjaysethi.com.
To book appointments, India mobile: +91 9810386031; US cell (from Sept 29): 1-210.610.9144;
email: sanjaysethinumerology@gmail.com.
SanjaySethiPureLife
Lucid lecture on the spiritual path

By SATimes Team
Queens Village, NY: Swami Maheshwarananda, founder of Yoga
in Daily Life, gave a lucid talk on
Yoga for Peace and Well-Being on
September 13 at Shri Saneeswara
Temple in Queens Village, NY.
In his hour long talk, the spiritual mater demystified kundalini power and process. He said
kundalinis awakening and ascent
is nothing to fear about in fact,
the subjective experience seekers
have is of peace and bliss. Speaking in English with a smattering
of Hindi (there were some Indian
origin people too in the audience),
the swami from India said kundalini is not a serpent, but somehow it
is depicted as two serpents crisscrossing each other in the middle
at vortexes called chakras.
When asked by The South Asian
Times about the practical part of
his teaching, Swamiji said, the first
step to embarking on the spiritual
path is our diet - it has to be vegetarian and organic (no junk food).
Next comes breathing and asanas, and then meditation. He also

emphasized the need for a guru.
After the enlightening talk, vegetarian dinner was enjoyed by about
two score attendees. The evening
program was partially sponsored
by The South Asian Times.
The next day Swami ji was
scheduled to give a talk on Yoga
for Body and Beyond at Shiv Shakti
Peeth Hindu Temple in Hollis, NY.
Vishwaguru Mahamandaleshwar Paramhans Swami Maheshwarananda comes from a highly
esteemed lineage of spiritual
masters. He developed Yoga in
Daily Life as an authentic practice
based on the ancient wisdom of
yoga, adapted to meet the needs
of modern life. Developed in consultation with doctors and physiotherapists, it offers the full benefits of yoga promoting not only
strength, relaxation, and flexibility but also overall health and harmony of the body, mind, and soul.
Swami ji has also designed many
other humanitarian projects.
Yoga in Daily Life is a non-profit,
community-based, service organization in Consultative Status

with the United Nations Economic
and Social Council (ECOSOC).

Their main ashram in India is in
Jadan, in Pali district of Rajasthan.
The global organizations New

York center is in Whitestone.
Website: yogaindailylifeus.org
Swami Maheshwarananda is the founder of Yoga in Daily Life, an international organization.
16
ULTIMATE BOLLYWOOD
Kapil Sharma, Irrfan Khan

booked for illegal construction
our days after he com
plained about corrup
t ion
in
the
BrihanMumbai Municipal
Corporation, the BMC filed a
complaint against comedian
Kapil Sharma for alleged ille
gal construction activities. A
complaint was also filed
against actor Irrfan Khan.
BMC SubEngineer from
South Ward, A.D. Jagtap
lodged the complaint with
Oshiwara Police Stat ion
under various sections of the
Maharashtra Regional and
Town Planning Act, said
Mumbai Police spokesperson
DCP Ashok Dudhe.
Sharma lives on a 9th floor
flat and Khan stays on 5th
floor apartment of DHL
Enclave in posh Oshiwara
area on New Link Road, said
Dudhe.
Last Friday, Kapil stirred a
hornet's nest by tweeting to

PM Narendra Mo di that
thoug h he pays Rs crore
income tax since five years,
he was forced to cough out a
bribe of Rs 5 lakh for his
office works.
Chief Minister Devendra
Fadnavis
immediate ly
offered to help in the matter
even as it assumed political
overtones.
The BMC requested Kapil
to name the of ficials who
demanded illegal gratifica
tion and also accused him of
indulging in unauthorized
constructions.
This was stated in a notice
to Kapil, and later even Khan
came under the BMC spot
light.
Ritesh & Nargis play lead roles in the film Banjo.
If convicted, the two

celebrities may spend
upto three years in jail.
irector Nitya Mehra's

"Baar Baar Dekho" is a
romantic film that is
uniquely conceptualized. It
is technically wellpackaged
to give a holographic view of
life, but the meandering nar
rative adds no meaning to
the composition.
Themed live life for the
moment, the film gives an
insight into the life of Jai
Varma (Sidharth Malhotra) a
professor
in
Vedic
Mathematics.
A day before his wedding,
to his childhood friend Diya
Kapoor, an artist, realization
dawns on him that his views
on life and his dreams differ
from his fiancee's. And, by
sheer deus ex machina, a
plot device, he gets trans
ported in time, presenting
his life forward.
He realizes this when his
mother tells him, "Woh hi din
baar, baar jeena ka mauka kisko milta
hai?" How he tries to recti
fy his mistakes, by
re living
the
moments, forms
the crux of
the plot.
Adroitly
crafted and
formulaic in
nature, the
script unravels
the plot in a non
linear manner. T he
characterization and emo
tional manipulation, especially Jai's, is
the highlight of the film.
The messages, strewn across the nar
rative, have a mixed flavor that has
Riteish Deshmukh
easy to work with:
Nargis Fakhri
ctress Nargis Fakhri says her "Banjo" costar

Riteish Deshmukh is an easy actor to work
with. "Working with Riteish is a blessing
because he is such a wonderful person and a great
actor. He is very caring and easy to work with. We
had a lot of fun during the shoot. I am very lucky,"
she said at an event at the Big FM radio station.
The modelturnedactress says she has also learnt
a little bit of Marathi for the film.
Asked about the ongoing Ganesh festival, the
"Housefull 3" actress said: "I think all festivals are
very exciting. Ganesh Chaturthi is the most thrilling.
And now being a part of the film and promotion dur
ing this festival time, it is fun."
Crass lyrics make

Prasoon Joshi feel
frustrated
Actors Sidharth Malhotra and Katrina Kaif at the films promotion.
been oft seen. But the dialogue,
"Without balance, like in
mathematics, no equa
tion in life is per
fect," is a perfect
analogy, that
highlights the
argument of
the
film's
premise.
T he treat
ment is akin to
an abridged ver
sion of a wellwritten
literary novel. For the first
thirty minutes, the narrative rambles
on a generic path with elaborate, high
pitch, wedding preparations et al. Then
all of a sudden, the tone of the narrative
Baar
Baar Dekho:
Unique concept
robust
performances
changes giving you snippets of Jai's life,

on his honeymoon and when he is 36,
46 and 60 years old.
Visually, the film is glossy and mag
nificent. T he futuristic production
designs along with the prosthetic make
up are sleek and painstakingly elabo
rate, giving a realistic feel to the time
and characters.
Sidharth Malhotra excels as Jai. He
emotes ef fortlessly and convincingly
portrays his dilemmas, making us
believe, in his character.
Katrina Kaif as Diya Kapoor is a pleas
ant surprise. She compliments Sidharth
by delivering an equally robust per
formance especially expressing how
she pines for his attention. Together,
their onscreen chemistry is palpable.
yricistscreenwriter and ad guru Prasoon Joshi

says his blood boils when he listens to "crass
songs and lyrics". "My blood boils. I feel frus
trated and unhappy when I hear crass lyrics and
crass songs. For enter
tainment, you can't
compromise on any
thing," Joshi said.
He shared that he
likes his songs includ
ing 'Hawan karenge',
'Masti ki paatshala' and
'Genda
Phool'.
"Everybody dances to
them without compro
Joshi made his debut as
mising on anything."
film lyricist with the
Joshi also feels it's the
film Lajja.
audience who can
bring a change if they refuse to accept "crass
music". "I believe the audience has to make the
choice. I think they have the power. The day they
will start rejecting all these crass things, you will
see the change," the 46yearold said.
ULTIMATE BOLLYWOOD
I am a girl child;
would love to have a
girl: Kareena Kapoor
ctress Kareena Kapoor,
who came to extend her
support for the Global
Citizen movement in India
says she is a girl child she
would love to have a girl.
The actress shared
some frivolous ques
tion that's she is
being bombarded
with these days
like whether she
is having a girl
child or a boy
child which
disturbs her.
"Wherever I
go these days
there is just one
question asked which I
think quite intrusive but, still I
am asked both me and Saif
whether it is a boy or is it a girl?
Kareena Kapoor is expecting

her first child with husband
Saif Ali Khan.
Have you found out? And I am like

excuse me what difference does it make.
I am a girl child I would love to have a
girl what is the difference. Probably I
have done more for my parents than a
son would," Kareena Kapoor said at an
event.
Kareena Kapoor is expecting her first
child with husband Saif Ali Khan.
Global Citizen India is a platform
which will comprise a distinctive mix of
events, grassroots activism, media cam
paigning and online activation, to cat
alyze India's journey towards achieving
the Global Goals for Sustainable
Development and to bring about the end
of extreme poverty.
Kareena further added, "We are still in
a nation where we have been asked oh
you are getting married and still going
to work, oh you are having a child are
you till going to work. These questions
upset me. When I was asked if I would
like to be part of this initiative my first
reaction was as an expectant mother on
this journey nothing would make me
happier than being part of a movement."
Emraan started watching horror films from age seven

ctor Emraan Hashmi says he was a
bit of a twisted kid as he started
watching horror films at a very
young age. "I was bit of a twisted kid who
used to watch horror films from age
seven. I don't feel as scared as the average
person but I still do feel it," Emraan said.
He was in the city to promote his forth
coming film "Raaz Reboot". Asked on the
content, the actor vouched for the film in
terms of highlighting the fright quotient
as well as showcasing a love story.
"It is unlike anything you have ever

seen. It is primarily a love story and
revolves around the interpersonal rela
tionships of three people. But the core
story is about horror," he explained.
Directed by Vikram Bhatt, "Raaz
Reboot" is the fourth installment in the
popular "Raaz" franchise. It also features
Kriti Kharbanda and Gaurav Arora.
The film will release on September 16.
17
Tough to enter
Bollywood: Kirti
Kirti will be seen in movie "Pink".

ctress Kirti Kulhari, who made it big
in Bollywood with her 2011 released
film "Shaitan", says she is not at a
level where she will be flooded with offers.
Kirti, who will be next seen in "Pink", says
she is hoping things will change for her
after the release of the film. "It's tough to
crack in Bollywood. When you start doing
sensible films than others then they (peo
ple) categorize you as serious actor and
that also doesn't work for you. I am not at
a level where I will be flooded with offers,"
Kirti said in an interview.
"Hopefully, things will change after
'Pink'. It is one film after 'Shaitan' where I
am hoping things will change for me," she
added. "Pink" is produced by "Piku" direc
tor Shoojit Sircar and has been directed by
Aniruddha Roy Chowdhury. The film also
stars Amitabh Bachchan and Taapsee
Pannu. Kirti says she will be seen playing a
girl from Lucknow in the film.
Akon may sing

for 'Tum Bin 2'
Emraan will be seen in

horror flick Raaz Reboot.
egastar
A m i t a bh
Bachchan
says his forth
coming
lm
"Pink" is nei
ther
about
w o m e n ' s
empowerment
nor on rape but a
social thriller and
one that touches
upon many aspects of
what morals and society norms and prac
tices women in India experience. Talking
about his interactions with the media
regarding the film that features him in the
role of a lawyer, he posted on his blog on
Sunday: "The question of the context and
the premise of the film shall always be of
prime interest, and many dwe ll their
queries on that ... much is not spelt out
because of the nature of the story and, of
'Pink'
a social
thriller:
Big B
The Amitabh Bachchanstarrer

Pink will release on Sept 16.
course, the nature of its genre a social

thriller!"
So why a social thriller?
"Well, because the story is in the thriller
genre and while we are busy narrating the
story, there shall be occasion to swiftly brush
past the issue of society and morals and con
duct."
He also said that there was a "sense of sur
prise" when the trailer recently released and
the "harsh verbology was heard".
"There is a sense of wanting why ever this
was spoken, especially through my mouth for
they have never heard ... When words are
spoken, they must have a reason. There must
be circumstance.
"They are in defense or prosecution, and
have the researched clearance not just from
the CBFC, but also from the records of past
reallife cases, from study of the legal proce
dures from dif ferent courts of law and
through the discussions on court protocol
with the legal luminaries of the country."
Directed by Aniruddha Roy Chowdhary, the
thriller is set in Delhi. Coproduced by Shoojit
Sircar, "Pink" will release on September 16.
Akon has crooned the famous Bollywood

number Chammak challo from Ra.One.
opular American singerrapper Akon is
likely to collaborate with Anubhav
Sinha for the Bollywood filmmaker's
upcoming film "Tum Bin 2". If sources are to
be believed, Sinha is keen on bringing back
Akon to India.
He had roped in the "Lonely" hitmaker for
Bollywood superstar Shahrukh Khan's
"Ra.One" for the song "Chammak challo".
And if all goes well, the artiste may sing
for "Tum Bin 2". According to a source, the
track in question titled "Tumhare siva kuch
na" from "Tum Bin" will be recreated and
used as the end credit song in "Tum Bin 2".
Akon was shortlisted from a list that includ
ed international names like Taio Cruz, Usher
and Robin Thicke because of his wide audi
ence base in India, his love for Bollywood
and his familiarity with Sinha.
19
Lens Eye
Capturing and captivating

Indias finest photographer Raghu Rais new book People gives more than a glimpse of his rich oeuvre.
he subjects may be famous

or unknown, but the master
photographer Raghu Rais
images of them are so arresting
that they stamp themselves immediately on the viewers gaze.
He achieves it by catching the essential truth of them in a way that
renders them unforgettable. He
says, When I take a persons portrait, I am trying to capture the
aura of that person, the persons
spirit in the picture. I am trying
to get the truth of that person to
emerge in the photograph.
In the new book People, published by Aleph Book Company,

Delhi based Raghu Rai has released an arresting collection of
portraits of personalities ranging from Mrs Indira Gandhi to
Amitabh Bachchan and Mother
Teresa to the Dalai Lama. In the
Introduction, the celebrated lensman writes about his love for candid and monochrome images and
his most-loved subjects.
Raghu Rai in his own words
On black
and white
photography
With her lined face and crumpled white sari with blue border, Mother Teresa was a
photographers delight, but nobody could do better than Raghu Rai.
It depends on each subject I am

handling, especially in portraiture.
You dont want any distraction of
color unless it is controlled it
takes away from the strength of the
person youre taking a picture of.
On his muse
The Dalai Lama. Being a religious
leader, he lives in a space of compassion and commitment to mankind.
I have never seen or met God, but
I am sure Buddha, Christ or Guru
Nanak must have been like him.
A horde of Congress leaders look like supplicants

showing Indias Iron Lady Mrs Indira Gandhis power.
Sitar maestro Ravi Shankar in a boat on the Ganges

with the backdrop of Varanasi ghats.
On Mother
Teresa
In 1970, I met Mother Teresa
for the first time, the beginning of
a lifelong association that would
have a profound influence on me
as a human being, as well as a
photographer.
On
portraiture
Throw the thinking out of
your head, and let your heart connect with the spirit and energy being transmitted through the aura
of the person. When you capture
that, the portrait is done.
The Dalai Lama fixing his radio in 1979.
On people hed
have loved
to click
Actress Sharmila Tagore with cricketer husband Tiger
Pataudi. (right) Painter Jehangir Sabavala and wife Shirin
Megastar Amitabh Bachchan glaring at the camera

flanked by directors Prakash Mehra and Manmohan Desai
very dramatic and filmy.
Mahatma Gandhi, Jawaharlal

Nehru, Osho, and more of Satyajit
Ray, Mother Teresa and His Holiness the Dalai Lama.
20
Once a mechanic, Indian businessman

now owns 22 apartments in Burj Khalifa
Dubai: An Indian mechanicturned
businessman owns 22 incredible
apartments in Dubai's Burj Khalifa,
a media report said on Sunday.
George V Nereparambil says he is
not stopping at 22 and will contin
ue to buy more if he gets a "good
deal." "If I get a good deal, I'll buy
more. I am a dreamer and I never
stop dreaming," he told Khaleej
Times.
The Keralaborn is believed to be
one of the largest private owners
within the Burj Khalifa, the world's
tallest structure.
His stake in the property came
about when a relative teased him
about the 828metre building.
"A relative of mine jokingly told
me: See this Burj Khalifa, you can
not enter it," he said.
After seeing an advertisement in a
newspaper about an apartment for
rent in the building in 2010,
Nereaparambil rented the apart
ment the same day and started liv
ing in it from the next day.
Now, six years on with 22 of the
900 apartments at perhaps the
Gulf 's poshest address under his
belt, he said five are rented, and as
for the rest, he's "waiting for the
Miss Japan won

by half Indian
Priyanka Yoshikawa
riyanka Yoshikawa, 22, an
avid kick boxer and who
also has an elephant train
ing licence, said she would use
her win to "change perceptions."
"We are Japanese," Yoshikawa
told AFP news agency. "Yes, my
dad is Indian and I'm proud of it,
I'm proud that I have Indian in
me. But that doesn't mean I'm not
Japanese."
Yoshikawa is being criticized
for having an Indian father and
some Indians have taken to social
media to advise the Japanese to
"get over it". One Twitter user
said she won because she "must
have deserved it" while another
said "after Gautam Budd ha,
Yoshikawa is the only Indian to
make it big in Japan."
George V Nereparambil says he will continue

to buy more if he gets a "good deal."
right tenant", the report quoted him
as saying. In an incredible sounding
ragstoriches story, Nereaparambil
realised there was huge scope for
an air conditioning business in the
hot climate of the desert after first
touched down in Sharjah back in
1976. Nereparambil, who helped
his father trade cash crops and
made money from waste at the age
of 11, then went about setting up
the beginnings of his now mini
empire, GEO Group of Companies.
"People in my hometown used to

trade cotton, but they'd throw away
the cotton seeds. Not many people
knew at that time that you could
make gum from those seeds," he
said.
Sifting through the dirt and sand
to gather up the disregarded seeds,
he said he would often make a "90
per cent profit selling them on."
"I'd do the same with tamarind
seeds too. I'd sell the empty shells
on as cattle feed," he added.
Indianorigin man drives solar

autorickshaw from India to UK
London: Indianorigin engineer
Naveen Rabelli drove 10,000km on a
solarpowered autorickshaw from
India to London to create awareness
about alternative mobility solutions
using renewable energy for passen
ger vehicles in Asian and European
countries. The auto, also known as
'tuktuk' in some parts of the world,
had set of f from Bengaluru in
February. Rabelli, 35, arrived at
Dover ferry crossing in the UK on
Monday, five days later than expect
ed because he was robbed during a
toilet break last week as he
approached the ferry crossing from
France. The dieselpowered autorick
shaw cost him $1,500 to buy. He
spent an additional $11,500 to get it
ready for the zeroemission adven
ture titled 'Tejas'. "The purpose of
this journey is to create awareness of
alternative mobility solutions for
passenger vehicles in Asian and
European countries using renewable
DIASPORA
Naveen Rabelli in his tuk tuk

energy mix of solar and electricity,"
explains Rabelli, who refused to let
the robbery in France get him down.
"My passport and wallet were
stolen when I parked to go to the toi
let at a fast food restaurant at
Sarcelles, about 45 km west of Paris.
I reported it to the police, where
there were some language issues but
after a few hours they found an offi
cer who could speak English. They
are very helpful and sorry when they
heard that I was about to finish my
trip," he said.
Indiaborn Rabelli, who now holds
an Australian passport, was able to
acquire an emergency travel docu
ment and complete his journey.
He plans to drive up to
Buckingham Palace in London this
week and also hopes to attend the
Low Carbon Vehicle Event 2016 in
Millbrook, Bedfordshire.
"T he aim was to highlight an
entirely Indian solution to the world
and show the benefits of using a pro
totype that is reliable, feasible and
affordable," said Rabelli. The special
lymodified autorickshaw, which is
equipped with a bed, food cupboard
and solarpowered cooker, was
shipped from India to Bandar Abbas
in Iran from where he kickstarted
the overland mission to drive
through Iran, Turkey, Bulgaria,
Serbia, Austria, Switzerland,
Germany and France before arriving
(PTI)
in the UK.
Priyanka Yoshikawa/Twitterpic
AAP overseas
volunteers cheer for
'Kisan Manifesto'
New York: Aam Aadmi Party over
seas volunteers expressed their
joy in social media platforms on
Sunday after the party chief
Arvind Kejriwal released much
awaited 'Kisan Manifesto' in
Punjab earlier that day. In the wee
hours of Europe and North
America, many volunteers stayed
awake to watch the rally being
telecast live on Facebook and
were seen sharing positive com
ments. Satbir Singh Brar, AAP
member and outreach coordinator
of USA, from New York, said
"Punjab is land of farmers and
farming is divine. It is a moral
obligation for all of us to work for
the cause of farmers and I am
very happy that AAP came out
with a good 'Kisan manifesto'
which address many key, long
time demands of farming commu
nity". Some key points that were
creating buzz included "Increasing
productivity and expanding irriga
tion, Rs. 20,000/acre for crop loss
to farmers, Free Medical
Treatment in Government hospi
tals and cashless treatment up to

5 Lakh/year in private hospitals
for every farmer, Ecofriendly
methods of irrigation" among oth
ers.
"Being a daughter of a farmer, I
am familiar with all troubles my
father had to go through. Fighting
through those dif ficult circum
stances, my father felt that farm
ing has become unviable and
decided to send his son and
daughter abroad. I don't want any
other farmer parents to be away
from their children in elderly age.
I welcome this profarmer, agri
culturefriendly manifesto of AAP
and will work for its victory in
upcoming e lections," said
Khushmeet Kaur Sidhu from New
Zealand.
Many overseas volunteers,
including AAP Canada convener
Jaskirat Mann, had traveled to
Punjab and are volunteering on
the ground and many more over
seas supporters are expected to
join the campaign in next few
weeks till elections.
SUBCONTINENT
US against Balochistan's
independence
Washington: T he US
has said it is against
independence for the
Pakistani province of
Balo chistan
where
there have been allega
tions of human rights
violat ions that were
flagged by Prime
Minister Narendra
Mo di
in
his
Independence
Day
speech.
"The government... US
government respects
the unity and territorial
integrity of Pakistan,
US State Department spokesman John Kirby.
and we do not support
independence for Balochistan," US State Balochistan, Gilgit, Baltistan and occupied
Department spokesperson John Kirby said Kashmir have thanked me a lot in the past
few days. I am grateful to them," Modi said
in his daily press briefing.
He said this in response to a question on referring to his comments earlier in the
Prime Minister Modi's remarks on August month at an allparty meeting on reported
15 about human rig hts violat ions in excesses in Pakistan's largest province and
in the part of Kashmir it holds.
Balochistan.
He said the way the people of these
In a first for any Indian Prime Minister in
an August 15 Independence Day speech, Pakistani regions "wished me well, gives me
Modi referred to human rights violations in great joy". In thanking an Indian Prime
Balochistan and the part of Kashmir that Minister, "they have thanked the whole pop
ulation of India", he said. "I want to of fer
Pakistan controls.
"T he world is watching. People of gratitude to these people."
21
TALIBAN LEADER
TALKS OF BUILDING
DIPLOMATIC RELATIONS
Kabul: Afghan Taliban leader Mullah
Haibatullah Akhundzada said the militant
group wants to build a relationship with the
world that would allay international con
cerns about violence in the country.
The country has in recent years seen an
upsurge in violence and an increase in civil
ian casualties, Efe news reported.
"We want to have relations with the world
and answer their questions and mitigate
their concerns so that we will protect our
country from being harmed by others in the
future, and others will also not be harmed
by our country," he said.
Akhundzada said the group "has been con
tinuing to make diplomatic efforts aimed at
resolving the issue".
"We have nominated the political of fice
for this purpose as well as for maintenance
of relations with the world and pertinent
entities (for peaceful and diplomatic
efforts)," he said.
The Taliban has a political group in Qatar
that has in the past made attempts to hold
peace talks.
However, after being appointed the
Taliban's leader in May, Haibatullah said
Mullah Haibatullah Akhundzada was

appointed Taliban's leader in May, 2016.
he would follow in the footsteps of his pred
ecessor Mullah Akhtar Mansour and not join
any peace talks with the Afghan govern
ment. "Now that we have control over many
areas of the country, it is time for us to reap
the fruit of the 15yearlong jihad" since the
USled invasion toppled the Taliban regime
in 2001, said the leader in his message.
According to US sources, the Taliban cur
rently controls around one third of the
country, amid increasing violence and civil
ian deaths since the NATO military mission
ended on January 1 last year.
No controversial pact China, Pak must be ready for

setbacks to CPEC: Daily
will be signed with
India: Prachanda
Prachanda will review and implement old agreements with India.

Kathmandu: Ahead of his India
visit, Prime Minister Pushpa
Kamal Dahal 'Prachanda' said
that "no controversial agreement"
will be signed during the fourday
state visit this week.
"No agreement against national
interest will be signed," he said at
the International Relations and
Labour Committee of the
Legislature, adding that "the visit
is being undertaken by the Prime
Minister of Nepal not Pushpa
Kamal or Prachanda. So, such
things cannot be thoug ht of
even." Prachanda is also under
pressure from various quarters
not to sign any controversial

agreements during the visit.
"I'm confident that the visit
would not only normalize the
relations that experienced some
bitterness in the past, but also
build a strong foundation for
mutual trust," he said.
The Prime Minister made it
clear before the house panel that
he would not be signing any new
agreements, but reviewing and
implementing the old agree
ments. T he Prime Minister is
scheduled to leave for India on
September 15 and return on
September 18.
Beijing: T he ChinaPakistan
Economic Corridor (CPEC) is
unlikely to be "plain sailing" for
both countries and they should
brace themselves for "potential
setbacks", a Chinese daily said.
An oped in the Global Times
said the rising cost of protecting
Chinese workers on the $46 bil
lion project in Pakistan was
"becoming (a) big problem in
ef ficiently pushing forward the
projects".
The staterun daily also sug
gested that China should shift its
fo cus from the reg ion to
Southeast Asia as "it would be
unwise to put all its eggs in one
basket".
The writeup came in the wake
of Indian media reports saying
some 15,000 Pakistani soldiers
were guarding about 7,000
Chinese working on the CPEC in
the face of growing number of
attacks on the project.
"The CPEC has long been seen
as symbolic of SinoPakistan eco
nomic cooperation. It is unlikely
that China will change its sup
portive attitude on the CPEC in
the short term, but the increas
ing cost of security is becoming a
big problem in ef ficiently push
ing forward the projects," the
Times said.
The proposed CPEC, which will
China has
invested
heavily in
Pakistans
Gwadar port.
connect China's largest province

Xinjiang with Pakistan's Gwadar
port in Balochistan, is key to
Beijing's ambitious One Road
One Belt project.
T he CPEC passes throug h
Gilg itBalt istan,
Pakistani
Kashmir claimed by India
and Balochistan, home to a long
running insurgency.
"It is unlikely to be plain sailing
for China and Pakistan in their
attempts to push forward the
CPEC due to challenges such as a
complex regional environment,
and people in the two countries
should be prepared for potential
setbacks," the daily said.
It warned that Beijing and
Islamabad should be ready to
cope "ethnic conflicts and con
frontations that may arise in
restive Balochistan.
"This does not mean that China
should give up on the idea of the

CPEC because of the present
challenges. However, China may
not want to put too much focus
on the region.
The daily, run by the ruling
Communist Party, suggested that
Beijing should think beyond
Pakistan in terms of economic
cooperation its allweather ally
in South Asia.
"Beijing should consider giving
more attention to its economic
cooperat ion w ith Southeast
Asian countries.
The CPEC has long been seen
as a flagship project in China's
Belt and Road initiative, but the
initiative's strategic focus may
need to shift gradually toward
Southeast Asia, where there is a
wide infrastructure funding gap
but a relatively stable regional
environment.
22 September 17-23, 2016
INTERNATIONAL
NEW UNGA PRESIDENT FOR ACTION

ON SECURITY COUNCIL REFORM
United Nations: Expressing his com
mitment to Security Council reform,
new General Assembly President
Peter Thomson has called on the
international community to move
forward together in bringing about
the change.
"The membership is unanimous in
agreeing that reform is necessary to
align the Security Council with the
realities of the 21st century, not
least of which will be the security
consequences of climate change," he
said after taking the oath of office.
"The community as a whole must
move forward together in resolving
reform," he said. "I am committed to
facilitating this movement in the
71st session" of the Assembly which
started on Tuesday.
Council reform is high on India's
UN agenda as it aspires to a perma
nent seat on the UN's highest deci
sionmaking body. The justconclud
ed assembly session that began in
New General Assembly President Peter Thomson.

September picked up the reform
agenda in earnest and held several
sessions of Intergovernmental
Negotiations (IGN), as the process is
known, but it lost steam.
Now it is up to Thomson to give it
another boost. "It's called UN
Security Council Reform, not UN

'Security Council Do Nothing'," he
told the media after his swearingin.
"There will be no surprises," he
said. "I will be consulting very wide
ly on this as well as appointing
leadership for the IGN process."
New EU copyright laws to ensure

fair play for news publishers
London: In a bid to address the
needs of the evolving digital news
era, European Commission on
Wednesday unveiled new proposals
to protect the copyright of news
organisations, web publishers,
authors and others working in the
creative fields.
The proposals aims to make EU
laws fit for purpose in a digital envi
ronment.
I want journalists, publishers and
authors to be paid fairly for their
work, whether it is made in studios
or living rooms, whether it is dis
seminated of fline or online,
whether it is published via a copy
ing machine or commercially hyper
linked on the web, said European
Commission President JeanClaude
Juncker In his State of the Union
address.
The new directive will give to

news publishers the degree of copy
right protection that was afforded
to authors, performers, the music
industry, filmmakers and broad
casters in the earlier 2001 directive,
The Irish Times reported.
T he commission proposes to
introduce a new related right for
publishers, similar to the right that
already exists under EU law for film
producers, record (phonogram) pro
ducers and other players in the cre
ative industries like broadcasters,
Juncker said.
The new proposals are somewhat
disturbing for social media giants
like Facebook and Google.
The Google News service relies
wholly on reproducing information
gathered, processed and published
initially by news organisations, and
by Facebook which sees itself as the

worlds information platform but is
also based on information originat
ed by others, the Irish Times said.
Digital technologies are changing
the way music, films, TV, radio,
books and the press are produced,
distributed and accessed.
New online services such as
music streaming, videoondemand
platforms and news aggregators
have become very popular, while
consumers increasingly expect to
access cultural content on the move
and across borders, the EU state
ment said.
The proposals also impact mobile
messaging service WhatsApp and
video phone platform Skype as the
European Commission has pro
posed tight privacy and security for
these services.
China PM to attend UN conference, visit Canada, Cuba

Beijing: Chinese Prime Minister Li
Keqiang will attend the 71st session
of the United Nations General
Assembly and will also pay official
visits to Canada and Cuba, authori
ties said. "He was invited by UN
SecretaryGeneral Ban Kimoon,
Canadian Prime Minister Justin
Trudeau and President of the Cuban
Council of State and Council of
Ministers Raul Castro Ruz. His trip
will last from September 18 to 28,"
Xinhua news agency quoted
Foreign Ministry spokesperson Hua
Chunying as saying. According to
Vice Foreign Minister Li Baodong,

Prime Minister Li, while addressing
the general debate of the UN
General Assembly session, will out
line China's stance on global gover
nance and international order and
its measures to cope with global
challenges.
He will also hold talks with state
leaders of other countries during
his stay in New York.
"The importance China attaches
to the development of bilateral rela
tions with Canada will inject a
strong impetus into future develop
ment," Li Baodong said while talk

ing about Prime Minister Li's visit
to the North American country.
Cuba, the first country in the
Latin American and Caribbean
region to have diplomatic ties with
China, is the last stop on Li's visit.
Li will discuss with President Raul
Castro on how to strengthen the
ChinaCuba friendship and coopera
tion, Vice Foreign Minister Wang
Chao said. The two sides will also
sign cooperation documents in
areas such as the economy, technol
ogy, energy and nuclear power.
The head of the IGN, Sylvie Lucas

of Luxembourg, is leaving the UN as
her country's permanent represen
tative and Thomson will have to
appoint her successor.
Council reform "is something
where the whole membership (is
invested in)", Thomson said. "This is
such an important issue for the
house. The whole membership has
to move forward together on this."
Thomson recently visited New
De lhi to meet Prime Minister
Narendra Modi and External Affairs
Minister Sushma Swaraj.
His
predecessor
Mogens
Lykketoft told his concluding meet
ing of the assembly session: "If you
are serious about reform, all key
players including the permanent
five (council members) have to
change the script and be willing to
compromise. "The work this year,
facilitated by Ambassador Lucas of
Luxembourg and building on last
year's (negotiating) text and annex,

points to a common understanding
at least that we need an enlarged
council better reflecting the
geopolitical realities of the 21st
century," Lykketoft said.
Earlier, at a news conference,
Lykketoft said he felt personally
impatient with the glacial pace of
the reform negotiations, which he
attributed to the need for a two
thirds majority in the assembly to
amend the UN charter and the rati
fication by permanent members
Britain, China, France, Russia and
the US for changes to the council.
"Most people realise how much of
a Catch 22 it is," he said. "But what
has happened over this year is still I
think some small but important
steps forward. (It's) a realization
that we need a Security Council
reform so that the council at last
better reflects the realities of the
21st century."
China warns
Taiwan over inviting
Dalai Lama
The Dalai Lama.

Beijing: China warned Taiwan
that allowing the Dalai Lama to
visit the island, which Beijing
claims as its own, will "severely
impact" ties.
The Dalai Lama, called a "trai
tor" by China for his views on
Tibet, has been invited to Taiwan
by one of its highprofile law
makers, Freddy Lim, who met the
Tibetan leader in India last week.
"The intention of some forces
in Taiwan to collude with sepa
ratists seeking Tibet independ
ence and to create disturbances
will have a severe impact on rela
tions across the Taiwan Strait,"
Ma Xiaoguangan, of ficial in
charge of China's Taiwan Affairs,
told the media here.
"We firmly oppose the Dalai
Lama's visit to Taiwan in any

form," Ma added. T he t ies
between China and Taiwan have
soured after the newlyelected
Taiwan President Tsai Ingwen
declared she did not recognise
the "One China" principle.
Following her refusal to do so,
Beijing cut all its communication
with Taipei.
If the Dalai Lama visits Taiwan,
it can escalate the tension
between the two entities.
China has accused the Dalai
Lama of fomenting trouble in
Tibet to separate it from the
mainland. The Buddhist spiritual
leader fled to India after a failed
uprising in Tibet in 1959.
He has lived in exile in India
since then.
India to lead world in key

categories: US envoy
New Delhi: US Ambassador to
India Richard R. Verma said that
by 2030, India w ill lead the
world in key categories, includ
ing by becoming the third largest
economy. "The great promise in
our (IndiaUS) partnership lies
not only in our work together,
but also in India's rising influ
ence and confidence on the glob
al stage, which of course is gen
erated from strength here at
home," Verma, who is of Indian
origin, said while delivering the
17th Annual Justice Bodh Raj
Sawhney Memorial Trust Oration
at the National Law University
here.
"By 2030 less than 15 years
from now India will lead the
world in key categories: it will be
the most populous nation, with
the largest middle class, the
largest number of college gradu
ates, the third largest economy,
the most patent holders, and
most megacities," he said speak
ing on the theme of "Advancing
our Shared Values".
"You will lead the world in
internet and smart phone users.
Development and infrastructure
growth will be phenomenal, just
imagine how much will change
given that twothirds of the infra
structure and cities of modern
India are yet to be built".
Speaking on IndiaUS ties, he
said that the relationship has
been "on a strong trajectory for
BUSINESS
US Ambassador to India Richard R. Verma.

the past decade, has made great
strides in the past two years in
particular". "Our two leaders,
Prime Minister (Narendra) Modi
and (US) President (Barack)
Obama have met eight times,
including last week in China and
then again in Laos," he stated.
"We have well over 100 initia
tives that were launched in three
big bilateral summits and there
are nearly 40 governmentto
government working groups that
meet regularly on everything
from global health and defense
to cyber security."
Cit ing the reasons for the
growth in ties between the two
sides, one was the "certain chem
istry between our two leaders,

that's for sure". "Second, so many
people of goodwill have been
working on this relationship for
decades and it's their hard work
that has begun to pay of f," the
Ambassador said.
"And, third, our peopletopeo
ple t ies have only g rown
stronger there are now some
three million Americans of
Indian descent in the United
States. They serve as a natural
bridge for so much of what we
do."
Verma described the Indian
Constitution as a document that
is the foundation for the shared
values between India and the US.
23
INDIA'S THREE
WOMEN BANKERS IN
FORTUNE'S LIST
New York: State Bank of India's
chairperson
Arund hat i
Bhattacharya, ICICI Bank's chief
Chanda Kochhar and Axis Bank
CEO Shikha Sharma ranked in
the top twenty of the '50 Most
Powerful Women International'
list released by Fortune.
T he list, which considered
women based outside the US,
placed Bhatacharya at the second
spot while Kochhar was ranked
at fifth. Sharma was on 19th
position.
Eurozone's largest bank by
market value, Banco Santander's
Group Executive Chairman Ana
Botin topped the list.
Elaborating the profile of SBI
chie f,
Fortune
said:
"Bhattacharya's profile has risen
during her threeyear tenure
atop India's largest bank, a 210
yearold institution."
The SBI Chairperson, who was
speculated to succeed Raghuram
Rajan, as governor of the Reserve
Bank of India, orchestrated SBI's
merger with six other groups.
Once the merger completes, the
bank will become one of largest
lenders in Asia.
"She has continued her high
profile battle with the bank's bad
loans, while courting overseas
partners invest in the stressed
assets," Fortune said.
Beside, ICICI Bank's Managing
Director and CEO Kochhar was
acknowledged as a "visionary"
even by rival bankers.
Last week, PepsiCo CEO Indra
Nooyi was ranked second and
was the only woman of Indian
origin in Fortune's list of the 50
most powerful women in the US.
ICICI Bank's chief Chanda Kochhar and State Bank of

India's chairperson Arundhati Bhattacharya.
HP bullish on 'Digital India', eyes smaller towns for growth

Boston (Massachusetts): The laptop and
printer major HP Inc is committed to the
Indian government's 'Digital India' initia
tive and is working closely with various
state governments to empower the rural
people in tier II and tier III cities where the
future growth lies, top HP executives have
said.
"Although HP already has a strong pres
ence panIndia, it is now spreading into
tier II, III and even IV cities to empower
small and medium businesses (SMBs) and
bring its low cost, disruptive technology
right at their doorsteps," Richard Bailey,
President, Asia Pacific and Japan at HP
Inc, told IANS in an interview. "We are
working very closely with the Narendra

Modi government's 'Digital India' initiative
and is in touch with state governments to
realise the dream of connecting India with
our lowcost, disruptive offerings," Bailey
added.
HP has acquired Samsung Electronics Co
Ltd's printer business for $1.05 billion,
besides launching 16 new A3 LaserJet and
PageWide Platforms based on the power
ful mult ifunct ion print ing (MFPs)
technology.
The acquisition positions HP to disrupt
the $55 billion copier industry a seg
ment that has not been innovated in
decades. "We are currently working with
our channel partners in India to under

stand the A3 market better," Bailey said.
According to Gurpreet Brar, Director,
Commercial Channel Sales, Printing and
Personal Systems (HP India) with the GST
coming soon, the consumption of informa
tion technology is going to grow exponen
tially and HP is ready the fill the gap.
"The time is really bullish. We are wit
nessing the growth across the country and
are focused on top 30 states where retail
is really going to expand," Brar told IANS.
According to a latest report from the
International Data Corporation (IDC), HP
achieved 44.7 percent shipment share in
Q1 2016 and remained as the market
leader in India.
In the laser segment, HP continued to be
the market leader with 57.7 percent mar
ket share, followed by Canon and Samsung
at the second and third position, respec
tively.
The 16 new LaserJet and PageWide
printers based on the MFP technology are
set to change the printing landscape in the
country.
"Some of the printers will be available in
India in middle and towards the end of
2017. We are focused on the growing
market in the country where we are
already number one in the LaserJet print
ing space," Bailey told IANS.
24 September 17-23, 2016
SPORTS
JAVELIN THROWER JHAJHARIA BETTERS

OWN RECORD TO WIN GOLD
Rio de Janeiro: India's Devendra category and is likely to become
Jhajharia cemented his legend World No.1 after his latest world
status as he bettered his own record setting gold medal feat.
world record to win the gold
World No.1 China's Chunliang
medal in the men's javelin throw Guo claimed silver with
F46 event at the ongoing 2016 a throw of 59.93
Rio Paralympics.
metres followed by
Jhajharia also won the gold Sri Lanka's Dinesh
medal in the javelin event at the H e r a t h
2004 Athens Paralympics with a Priyantha, with a
record throw of 62.15 metres, personal best
becoming only the second gold mark
of
medallist at the Paralympics for 5 8 . 2 3 .
his country, and improved upon
the mark with a throw of 63.97
metres at the Olympic Stadium
(Engenhao) here.
Jhajharia set the new
benchmark in his third
attempt. The 36year
old is currently
Devendra
ranked third in
Jhajharia.
the world in this
Kerber beats
Karolina Pliskova
in US Open final
New York: World
No2 seed Germany's
Ange lique Kerber
on Saturday beat
Czech
player
Karolina Pliskova 6
3, 46, 64 in the US
Open women's final
match here. Kerber
w ill inherit No1
ranking
from
Serena Williams.
Kerber, 28, won in
New York to add the
US Open to her vic
tory
at
the
Australian Open in
January,
BBC
reported. Pliskova's
semifinal w in over Serena
Williams had already ensured
the German will top the new
rankings on Monday.
"All my dreams came true
today and I am just trying to
enjoy the moment. It is incredi
ble. I'm standing here with a sec
ond Grand Slam trophy and it
means so much to me," Kerber
was quoted as saying.
Pliskova, 24, went into the final
with a WTA Tourleading 447
aces this year. The Czech made
17 unforced errors in the first
set but fought back with 17 win
ners in the second before power
ing 31 ahead in the decider.
The German leveled at 33 and
then roared as a blistering fore
hand winner helped her move
Angelique Kerber.
ahead once again.
Kerber is the first German to
win the US Open since Steffi Graf
in 1996.
Chennai: T he US won the gold
medal on a better tiebreak score
over Ukraine while the topseeded
Russia won bronze at the 2016
World Chess Olympiad open cate
gory at Baku, Azerbaijan.
The gold medal in the women's
category went to China, Poland
claimed silver while the bronze
went to Ukraine. The ninthseeded
Indian open team secured a credi
ble fourth position while the fifth
seeded Indian eves stood fifth.
However the Indian team is not
returning empty handed.
In the special rating categories,
All attempted the throw six

times. Jhajharia start
ed with an ef fort of
57.25 metres and
improved it in the
second attempt with
a throw of 60.70m
be fore hurling the
javelin that went to the
historic mark of 63.97m
the throw that eventually
sealed his gold medal.
He competed in the event
alongside fe llow Indians
Rinku Hoo da and Sundar
Singh Gurjar.
Rinku finished fifth with a
personal best of 54.39m, in six
attempts while Sundar Singh
Gurjar didn't start the event.
Jhajharia, who is from Churu
district in Rajasthan, took India's
tally at this edit ion of the
Shotputter Deepa bags

silver at Rio Paralympics
Rio de Janeiro: India's Deepa
Malik bagged a silver medal in
the women's shotput F53 event
at the 2016 Rio Paralympics
Games, clinching the silver
with a personal best throw of
4.61 metres here.
Fatema Nedham of Bahrain
won the gold medal with a
throw of 4.76m while Dimitra
Korokida of Greece bagged the
bronze w ith an attempt of
Paralympics to four medals
two golds, one silver and a
bronze. India has bagged an
overall total of 12 medals,
4.28m which was her best

effort this season.
After bagging the silver, an
excited Deepa said she wants
to use the medal to support
women w ith disabilit ies in
India.
The 45yearold, who is the
oldest in the Indian contingent
in Rio to win a medal, called it
a "proud moment" for her and
the family.
including four golds, four silvers
and an equal number of bronze
medals since 1968 .
Wawrinka beats Djokovic to

win US Open men's title
New York: Thirdseeded Stanislas
Wawrinka of Switzerland over
whe lmed World No.1 Novak
Djokovic 67 (17), 64, 75, 63 at
the Flushing Meadows here to
clinch his first US Open tennis title
and his third Grand Slam title.
Wawrinka, who fired 46 winners,
including three aces, while saving
an impressive 14 of 17 break
points, prevailed after three hours
and 55 minutes on Sunday.
After Djokovic took the first set in
a tiebreak, the Swiss showed his
true mettle, breaking the defending
champion early in the second, third
and fourth sets.
His steely resolve was on full dis
play as he maintained his compo
sure throughout the encounter,
eventually triumphing on his sec
ond match point.
It was the 31yearold Swiss' third
Grand Slam title in as many major
final appearances, after he won the
Australian Open in 2014 and the
Thirdseeded Stanislas Wawrinka

of Switzerland.
French Open in 2015, reports
Xinhua. Wawrinka now becomes
one of eight men to win at least
three Grand Slam finals without los
ing. He also becomes one of just five
players who have won at least two

Slams at age of 30 or older.
"This is amazing. I came here
without expecting to win it, but
every time I stepped on the court I
was trying to win every match. I
think I played quite a lot of tennis
these two weeks. I'm completely
empty," Wawrinka said after the
match. Prior to the final, 12time
Grand Slam champion Djokovic had
a career 194 edge over Wawrinka.
But the two players have been very
evenly matched over their past five
Grand Slam clashes, with Djokovic
winning two contests at the
Australian Open and one at the US
Open, all in five sets, and Wawrinka
defeating the Serbian in five sets in
Australia and in four sets in the
2015 French Open final. In a match
chock full of great rallies and excel
lent shot placement at Arthur Ashe
Stadium, topseeded defending
champion Djokovic took the first set
in a tiebreaker 67(1).
Chess Olympiad: Gold for US

rewarding lowerrated teams that
over performed, there were medals
for India, Iran, the third team of
Azerbaijan, Sudan and Chinese
Taipei (Open section), as well as
for Russia, Belarus, Malaysia, Syria
and Indonesia, said an of ficial
statement. T he curtains came
down on the Chess Olympiad on
Tuesday after a grue lling 11
rounds. On the final round in the
open section, the US beat Canada
while Ukraine and Russia humbled
Slovenia and Italy respectively.

For India, it was a do or die
round as it had an outside chance
to figure in the medal list subject
to two conditions.
First, they had to win their match
against Norway while Russia had
to lose against Italy. Both didn't
happen as India drew with Norway
and Russia won against Italy.
India threw away even its out
side chance early in the match
when Grandmaster (GM) S.P.
Sethuraman turned adventurous

on the 16th move, only to give up
his bishop for a pawn with a hope
of equalising the piece position a
couple of moves later.
Sethuraman's opponent saw
through the move early enough to
retain the piece advantage and
forced the Indian to resign.
It was a costly loss for India as
they had to win the match to stay
in contention for a chance to win
the bronze medal.
HEALTH
25
HAVES AND HAVENOTS DISPARITY

IN HEALTHCARE IN INDIA, CHINA
By Renee Mehrra
ndia and China are the worlds
two most populated nations that
have been experiencing impres
sive rapid economic growth, global
ization and urbanization in recent
decades. At the same time, both
betray widening inequalities
between the haves and the have
nots, except that the trajectories
of India and China are very dissimi
lar including their political struc
ture, policies and ethnic composi
tion. Both are going through epi
demiological transition from the
preponderance of infectious dis
eases to the emergence of chronic
illnesses. These changing trends in
health care and the new demands
are putting immense pressure on
their delivery systems.
In China research has character
ized the transition from diseases of
poverty to diseases of af fluence.
The downside of globalization, the
accelerated growth in its popula
tion, social, economic and geo
graphical polarization, and an age
ing nation have led to increased
inequalities in Chinese peoples
health. Moreover, diseases of
poverty have reemerged and
China is faced with a new set of
challenges of infectious illnesses
that include SARS and HIV/AIDS
alongside chronic diseases such as
cancer, heart disease and stroke
that have become the leading cause
of illness and death.
Compared to China, a substantial
proportion of India's population
lives in areas where the epidemio
logical transition has not taken
place and the government spending
virulent version of the Zika

virus that has swept the
globe is headed for India,
where an older, more benign strain
is likely to be quietly residing with
in some Indians, possibly preparing
genetic ground for a quick, new
secondcoming, experts have
warned.
In India, the Zika virus which
has no cure or vaccine was first
found in Pune 64 years ago, as part
of a survey that was testing immu
nity to Japanese and Russian vari
eties of a virusborne brain infec
tion called encephalitis, according
to a forthcoming paper authored
by WHO scientists.
The paper comes soon after a
study in Lancet which used travel
patterns to predict that India
where more than 67,000 air travel
ers arrive every year and four
other countries (China, Philippines,
Indonesia and Thailand) were most
at risk for yearround transmission
of the Zika virus. China has more
Though China's
population is 1.
37 billion compared to India's
1.31 billion, it
spends nearly
five times more on health care and does better on
overall health outcomes compared to India.
is focused on addressing the under
lying causes of infectious diseases
and inadequate health care such as
poverty, poor sanitation and malnu
trition.
Health care delivery system, mor
tality rate and disease profile are
vastly different across both coun
tries. In 2004 China reintroduced
the right to medical care and com
pared to India it has a significantly
higher percentage of people with
guaranteed health care. Though
China's population is 1. 37 billion
compared to India's 1.31 billion, it
spends nearly five times more on
health care than its neighbor.
According to the statistics drawn
from the World Bank and the UN,
there are substantial dif ferences
between the overall health out
comes between India and China in
life expectancy, infant mortality and
early mortality. T he gap in life
expectancy at birth in China is 73.5
years against India's 64.4 years.
The infant mortality rate is 50 per
thousand in India, compared with
just 17 in China. The proportion of
children dying within 28 days of

birth is three times higher in India
than in China.
The improvements in China's
health outcomes can be attributed
to many factors. The government's
approach has been on prevention
rather than on curative treatment
and most importantly on the dis
semination of health education .
These policies are regarded as cost
ef fective approaches to improving
the population health. In addition,
the government spends around 5.5
percent of its GDP on health care
while India spends around 4 per
cent. Chinas adult literacy rate is
94 percent, compared with Indias
74 percent.
Interestingly, Kerala is a role
model that has made impressive
strides in the health care system
that have considerably reduced the
cost of patient care, and the burden
on secondary and tertiary care facil
ities. Its decentralized governance,
investment in a strong health care
infrastructure and social develop
ment initiatives has helped to pro
vide access for basic services at the

community level and expanded pri
mary health care coverage in pre
ventive and curative services with
positive outcomes. Furthermore, its
policies for safe drinking water in
Trivandrum, the state capital, and
emphasis on primary education, has
aided in an environment for a
strong and effective health care sys
tem. This had led to positive health
outcomes comparable to many
developed countries despite its low
per capita income. According to
WHO, life expectancy in Kerala is
70.93 years as opposed to rest of
India which is at 64.9 years, infant
mortality rate is 5.6/1000 live
births as compared to the nation's
average of 72/1000 live births and
the maternal mortality rate stands
at 0.8/1000 live births to
4.37/1000 live births compared to
the rest of the country .
Some of Kerala's progressive ini
tiatives for the vulnerable popula
tion is the development of geri
atric care wards to meet the
demands of its aging population,
Zika heads for India, older

strain lurks since 1952
people, but more people are at risk

in India.
A virus that hasn't been particu
larly dangerous since it was first
discovered in a rhesus monkey in
Uganda's Zika forest in 1947 (the
first human case was reported in
Nigeria seven years later), Zika has
grabbed global attention because
the virulent form more than a
million infections have been report
ed from Brazil is linked to micro
cephaly, abnormally small heads
and brains in fetuses. After first
emerging on a remote Pacific
island in 2007, the new strain,

borne by the female Aedes mosqui
toes and air travel, and detected in
Brazil in May 2015, has swept
through 26 countries in the
Americas, Cape Verde in Africa and
Singapore, where 200 infections
were reported within eight days.
Currently, 58 countries and territo
ries are affected by the Zika virus,
according to CDC.
On September 5, 2016, the
Philippines confirmed its first Zika
infection. "The original African
strain went to Asia between 1954
and 2000, that did not cause
microcephaly," Peter Hotez, the
dean of the National School of
Tropical Medicine, at Baylor
College of Medicine in Houston,
said, explaining Zika's march.
"The shift to the pandemic strain

happened in 2007 to Micronesia
and in 2013 to French Polynesia.
This is sometimes called the Asian
strain, which went Eastward into
the New World. Now the Asian
strain is headed to Africa continu
ing East back to India."
The National Centre for Disease
Control, the National Institute of
Virology (NIV), and the Integrated
Disease Surveillance Program
(IDSP) did not respond to requests
for comment on the possible entry
of Zika into India.
India contains Zika's "disease
ecology" Aedes aegypti and
Aedes albopictus mosquitoes,
crowding, poverty, lack of sanita
tion and hygiene, travelers and visi
tors and warming that prolongs
Adolescent Friendly Health Clinics

(AFHCs), Pain and Palliative Care
networks serving more than 12 mil
lion people and investing in health
information systems for the sur
veillance of infectious diseases.
Ironic then that Kerala has the high
est morbidity rate in India especial
ly in chronic illnesses. The rise of
noncommunicable diseases compa
rable to that in the US is a disturb
ing trend. In addition, Kerala is fac
ing an acute shortage of doctors. A
study conducted by IMS showed
that some of its cities had 0.2 doc
tors for every 1,000 people. This
could be due to the fact that half of
its healthcare is driven by holistic
treatments and complementary
medicine.
India and China ranked 95th and
75th respectively in the Social
Progress Indexs Health and
Wellness segment. Policies in India
must place emphasis not on the cur
ative side of the health care system
but on prevention, through vacci
nation, sanitation improvements
and better food security. Given the
size of Indias population and its
geographical distribution, this is a
major challenge. Coordination of
sustained political will and height
ened social pressure can ensure the
redistribution of resources for the
disadvantaged millions that are
victims of disease and shortened
life expectancy both in China and
India. A new approach in health pol
icy that is aligned with the local
characteristics of both the countries
can lead to a more equitable distri
bution of resources and bring a sub
stantial change in the population
health of both the countries.
mosquito season. It will only take
an infected person to travel to
India and then be bitten by the
tiger mosquito.
Aedes aegypti is now found main
ly in homes and other buildings,
protected from monsoon winds and
other factors that slowed its spread
when it was a forestdwelling crea
ture. It is active during the day, and
it is a master of evolution.
For India to be af fected by the
virus, it would need large popula
tions of susceptible people living in
close proximity to large popula
tions of Aedes aegypti or Aedes
albopictus mosquitoes.
Zika's cousin, chikungunya, first
had a major outbreak across India
barring Kerala which had no Aedes
aegypti mosquitoes then between
1964 and 1967.
Chikungunya faded from public
and scientific memory, and when it
returned in 2002. Biological events
are unpredictable, but government
IANS
responses should not be.
AI-powered bots to change customers

experience: Satya Nadella
New York: Artificial Intelligence

(AI)powered bots will become the
next interface, shaping our inter
actions with the applications and
devices we re ly on and
Microsofts latest solutions are set
to change the way HP interacts
with its customers and partners,
Indianborn Microsoft CEO Satya
Nadella has said.
Bots are now learning in
human context and the relevant
thing for us is to make them intel
ligent as we learn from cus
tomers experience. Our solutions
are going to g ive HP a 360
degree view of its customer serv
ices, Nadella announced at HPs
Global Partner Conference (GPC)
2016 at the Boston Conference
and Exhibition Centre (BCEC)
here.
HP announced a sixyear agree
ment to deploy Microsoft
Dynamics customer relation man
agement (CRM) online in order to
enhance collaboration across
marketing, sales and service oper
ations.
With Dynamics, as we ll as
Azure, Of fice 365 and other
Microsoft Cloud solutions, HP has
Satya Nadella
(Image courtesy: etimg.com)
invested in the sales and service
collaboration platform to deliver
a seamless sales experience for
customers and partners.
This brings us a cloudbased
solution that de livers a more
ef fective and ef ficient collabora
tion engine across our business,
said Jon Flaxman, Chief Operating
Officer, HP.
In July, Microsoft unveiled
plans to intro duce a new
approach to business process
applicat ions w ith Microsoft
Dynamics 365 to help manage
specific business functions.
We are building platforms to
help customers. Going forward,
we are looking at retail, banking
Traditional fashion
calendar is over,
says Ralph Lauren
Ralph Lauren
(Image courtesy:
abc7ny.com)
New York: Ace fashion designer

Ralph Lauren says that it is
important to adapt with the
changing times where internet
and social media are a major
part of people's lives.
The 76yearold is planning
to follow the likes of Tom Ford,
Tommy Hilfiger, and Burberry's
Christopher Bailey, in making
his collection available to buy
as soon as his New York
Fashion Week runway show is
over on Wednesday, reports
femalefirst.co.uk.
He also thinks it is important
the fashion world adapts to
changing technology. "Showing
clothes, then delivering them
six months later... it's over. With

the internet, social media... you
have to change," Lauren told
Vogue magazine.
Lauren isn't fazed by the huge
change to his business model
because he has always been
open to adapting and evolving.
"I've always looked at the
business as an evolution. We're
never standing still, and we're
never
chasing
anyone.
Everything is a new chapter," he
said.
"I've been through it before,
when nothing moves. When
everything is available, how do
you do specialness? How do
you create magic?" he added.
LIFESTYLE
and health care sectors to digitize

everything that touches human
life. Information technology is no
longer just an enabler of of fice
work. We now aim to deliver best
services to our consumers, the
top Microsoft executive told the
gathering.
NonIT fields are going digital
in a big way. Internetconnected
cars, elevators, smart cities you
name it. Internet of Things (IoT)
is the future and we at Microsoft
are ready for the upcoming chal
lenges, he added.
At Microsofts Worldw ide
Partner Conference in August,
Nadella had said that AIpowered
chatbots will fundamentally rev
olut ionize how comput ing is
experienced by everybo dy.
According to him, there are near
ly 360 million monthly active
devices on Windows 10 adoption
cycle.
Enterprise is what I am more
excited about. With HPs well laid
out security track and our strong
platform, I see tremendous oppor
tunity to get more enterprises get
on to Windows 10 w ith new
devices, Nadella noted.
27
It's men who get pay

hike when asked for,
not women
London: Women as often as men
ask for a wage hike but it's the
males who are more likely to get
it than the females, a study has
found. The authors examined the
claim that female employees
hold back their desire for wage
hike due to fear of upsetting
their boss.
"Having seen these findings, I
think we have to accept that
there is some element of pure
discrimination against women,"
said Andrew Oswald, Professor
at University of Warwick, in
Britain, in a statement. Various
ideas have previously been sug
gested as to why women might
be re luctant to ask for an
increase in their pay packet.
According to the study, the rea
sons are that women don't want
to deviate from a perceived
female stereotype and they may
fear being less popular at work.
Using a randomly chosen sample
of 4,600 workers across more
than 800 employers, the
research did a statistical test of
the idea that women get paid
less because they are not as

pushy as men.
In the survey, individuals were
asked a set of questions about
whether their pay is set by nego
tiation with the company, or it is
successfully obtained by a wage
rise, or they preferred not to
negotiate a pay rise as they were
concerned about their relation
ships and about their levels of
job satisfaction.
Using statistical methods, the
analysis revealed that it is the
number of hours worked
because parttime workers feel
hesitant to 'ask.'
The analysis also took into
account the nature of the
employer, the industry, and the
characteristics and qualifications
of workers.
When men and women were
compared, the former were a
quarter more likely to be suc
cessful in obtaining a pay hike
by 20 per cent of their present
pay scale while only 16 per cent
of females managed to secure an
increase in their wage.
Eating food off the floor

is not safe at all
New York: Food, once dropped
on the floor, is not safe to eat,
however quickly you pick it up,
warns a new study that debunks
the widely accepted notion that it
is all right to scoop up food and
eat it within a "safe" fivesecond
window.
Moisture, type of surface and
contacttime all contribute to
crosscontamination. In some
instances, the transfer begins in
less than one second, the study
said.
"T he popular notion of the
'fivesecond rule' is that food
dropped on the floor, but picked
up quickly, is safe to eat because
bacteria need time to transfer,"
said Donald Schaffner, Professor
at the Rutgers University.
"We decided to look into this
because the practice is so wide
spread. The topic might appear
'light' but we wanted our results
backed by solid science,"
Schaffner noted.
The researchers tested four
surfaces stainless steel, ceram
ic tile, wood and carpet and
four different foods watermel
on, bread, bread and butter, and
gummy candy.
They also looked at four differ
ent contact times less than one
(Image courtesy:
news.rutgers.edu)
second, five, 30 and 300 seconds.
They used two media tryptic
soy broth or peptone buffer to
grow Enterobacter aerogenes, a
nonpathogenic "cousin" of
Salmonella naturally occurring in
the human digestive system.
Transfer scenarios were evalu
ated for each surface type, food
type, contact time and bacterial
prep; surfaces were inoculated
with bacteria and allowed to
completely dry before food sam
ples were dropped and left to
remain for specified periods.
All totaled 128 scenarios were
replicated 20 times each, yield
ing 2,560 measurements. Post
transfer surface and food sam
ples were analyzed for contami
nation.
Not surprisingly, watermelon
had the most contamination,
gummy candy the least, showed
the findings published online in
the American So ciety for
Microbiology's journal, Applied
and Environmental Microbiology.
"Transfer of bacteria from sur
faces to foo d appears to be
af fected most by moisture,"
Schaffner said.
"Bacteria don't have legs, they
move with the moisture, and the
wetter the food, the higher the
risk of transfer," Schaf fner
explained.
"Bacteria can contaminate
instantaneously," Schaf fner
warned.
28
HUMOR
Funny Side by Nury Vittachi
10 DADDY AND CHILD

CONVERSATIONS
ids ask tough ques
tions.
Like: Do fish get thirsty?
I replied that they do, and
the most common cause of
preventable fish death are
the greedy ones drinking
up all the water in their
tanks.
***
And why isnt there a
country
called
Old
Zealand? the child contin
ues (questions rarely have logical connec
tions).
It sank, I said. Which is why they had to
build a new one.
***
Its tough being a dad because we naturally
fall into the role of Font of All Knowledge,
despite having a fraction of the memory stor
age capacity of the average woman, smart
phone or pedometer.
***
Still, if the kids are asking you questions, at
least they are not telling other people stuff
about you.
Childrens natural truthfulness (reinforced
by thoughtless educators and Sunday school
teachers) really makes parenting difficult.
All parents have memories of lines they still
cringe at:
***
My Dads so fat that if you hit his tummy
once, it just keeps on wobbling for ages.
***
BEST
RATE
FOR
INDIA
AND
PAKISTAN
New York Head Quarter
422S Broadway
HICKSVILLE
NY 11801
5168271010
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.
Mom and Dad let me watch TV as much as

I like on Saturday evenings because thats
when they do wrestling practice in their
room.
***
Mom cant come to the phone because
shes doing a poo and told me to tell you that
she is having a shower.
***
Yet I console myself with the fact that at
least I dont try to combine the roles of dad
and criminal, as one man did.
A jewe lry shop security guard who
approached a pair of shoppers heard the six
yearold daughter scolding her father, accord
ing to a news story sent to me by a reader.
Dad! Stop breaking into jewelry cases, she
said.
An arrest followed.
***
That report reminded me of a case a few
years ago when police went to arrest a
woman at her home but couldnt find her.
Shes upstairs, hiding under the bed, her
giggling child explained. Ill show you.
***
But the good news is that you can, SOME
TIMES, outsmart children.
When one of mine demanded a nightlight
because she was scared of monsters, I told
her that she could not have one as night
lights made it much easier for monsters to
find children.
They have special machines that detect
night lights from far away, I said. And they
tell all their monster friends.
***
In my household, I try to maintain a policy
in which Dad is okay to accept general and
technical questions.
Such as: Daddy, why do teachers only give
you grades A, B, C, D or F? What happened to
all the Es?
They ran out, I said. They gave them all
to me when I was at school.
***
But I do think Dads are entitled to deflect
questions that relate to sex, gender, relation
ships, etc, because guys are not good at talk
ing about that stuff.
***
Such as: Since Donald Duck never wears
trousers, how come he wears a towel when he
comes out of the shower?
Thats a body parts question. Go ask your
mom.
***
ASTROLOGY
29
Chandigarh, India: +91-172- 256 2832, 257 2874

Delhi, India: +91-11- 2644 9898, 2648 9899
psharma@premastrologer.com; www.premastrologer.com
By Dr Prem Kumar Sharma
SEPTEMBER 1723, 2016

ARIES: Your greatest gains will come
through your creative ideas at profession
al front. this week you move with new
excitement & confidence as you receive support
from family and friends. Long pending arrears
and dues will finally be recovered. Romance
touches new heights, as partner positively
responds. Meditation and yoga prove beneficial
for spiritual as well as physical gains. Take some
time to travel with your spouse for romance and
seduction. Its time to make some property
investments for your kids. Polite behav
iour will be appreciated by showering
verbal praise on you.
TAURUS: Success is certain provided you work
as a team. Family front seems to go smoothly as
you receive their full support to your plans. this
week investment concerning residence will be
profitable. You are likely to find someone with
whom you will enjoy the ecstasies of love. A very
healthy week when your cheerfulness gives the
desired tonic and confidence. You can make your
vacation extra special by planning it with your
family and friends. Purchasing of ficial acces
sories can lead to improve growth of your office.
Promising week to pamper yourself and doing
things that you enjoy the most.
GEMINI: You will be on the seventh heav
en when you receive recognition for your
achievements at work. You find relief, comfort
and af fection in the company of family mem
bers. Financial hassles seem to get over as some
one lends a timely helping hand. Love comes
your way as friendship turns into romance. You
are likely to maintain good health that would
also give you success. Spiritual vacation is a
quest for life, plan it and enjoy it with your fami
ly. Inheriting property from your relatives seems
to be ahead. Verbal communication will be your
biggest asset this week.
CANCER: Your creativity will amaze

people around you besides enhancing
career prospects. Time spent with rela
tives will be to your advantage. Promising week
to invest surplus money in real estate. You are
likely find comfort in the arms of romantic
partner. A continuous positive thinking gets
rewarded as you succeed in whatever you do
this week. Vacation full of beauty and history as
well as exciting is waiting for you. Your income
can be doubled by renting your house or a part
of your house. Your valuable advice would help
someone in distress this week.
LEO: New job opportunities for some
will be better than expected. Family
members will be very positive & sup
portive to your plans.
A sound financial health would enable to invest
on lucrative schemes. Love and romantic
encounter will this week keep you in a cheerful
state. Creative hobbies are likely to keep you
relaxed. Traveling on your own, with a friend or
with the whole family will be exciting and com
fortable too. It would be beneficial if you plan
to buy a small property. this week you will get
lot of interesting invitations including a
surprise gift.
VIRGO: At work you are likely to win
appreciat ion and awards for past
efforts. Relatives will be willing to lend
a helping hand at the time of need. Your bril
liant ideas would help in bringing financial
gains. Sudden romantic encounter is foreseen
this week. With a positive outlook & confi
dence, you succeed in impressing people
around you. Travel in comfort with kids to an
adventurous place might be possible. Real
estate is one thing on which you can rely on to
invest. Your magneticoutgoing personality will
impress others.
LIBRA: Timely and swift action would

give an edge over others at professional
front. New relationship at family front
will be long lasting & highly beneficial. A promis
ing week to earn profits in real estate and finan
cial transactions. A promising week for romance
when your innovation infuses a new spirit in it.
Mental alertness would enable to solve a tricky
problem. A trip that stimulates and gives oppor
tunity for work is coming ahead. Investment on
construction business would flourish your
income. Your magnetic, outgoing personality will
put you into the limelight in social function.
SCORPIO: Colleagues and subordinates
will lend a helping hand enabling to
complete the work on time. Guests visit
would make it a pleasant & wonderful week. An
improvement in monetary position makes it
convenient to purchase essential items. Partner
brings immense romantic pleasure even if work
pressure occupies your mind A cheerful state of
mind brings mental peace. A luxurious getaway
type vacation with your spouse waiting for you.
Dealings for older properties can be in process.
If you have been waiting for interesting things
happening in your life, then you are sure to find
some relief this week.
SAGITTARIUS: Success in completing
difficult assignments brings a lot of lau
rels at work. You will be in the mood to
celebrate with family and friends this week.
This week longterm investment would enable
to make substantial gains. Romance rules heart
& mind this week. Good time to divert attention
to spirituality to enhance mental toughness.
Thrilling experience is on your way, as your
trip is full of excitement Your possession for
acquiring a plot might be achieved. You find
yourself in the spotlight when your help is pub
licly acknowledged.
CAPRICORN: Selfconfident would

enable to convey your point of view
with ease a workplace. Good advice
from family members brings gains. Financial
hassles will be eased out with the help of your
friends. Romantic imagination occupies mind
forcing to go out of the way to please partner. A
pleasure trip gives the muchneeded tonic to
health. Pack your bags as a happy, funfilled
holiday is looking forward. If you invest on
smaller properties then it can be beneficiary for
future investments. Volunteering work that you
do this week will not only help the needy but
also help in enhancing selfesteem.
AQUARIUS : Mental clarity gives a
decisive edge over all competitors at
professional front. The company of
family friends will keep you in a happy &
relaxed mood.
Certain important plans will be executed,
bringing fresh financial gains. Cupids arrows
would make your heart flutter high. Cutting
down the number of parties and pleasure
jaunts would help in keeping in good mood. An
enriching vacation full of fun is what you need.
Your plan to own a house is ought to be in the
right way. Your ability to help needy people will
bring respect.
PISCES : Calculated risks would enables
to complete the project on t ime.
Parental guidance in your decision
would immensely help. Speculations are likely
to bring monetary profits. You are likely to
enjoy a pleasure trip that will rejuvenate your
passions. A beneficial week to work on things
that will improve your health. Time to make
your vacation a dream come true. Plan to invest
in cafeteria or a bakery shop; it might create
new opportunities for you. You receive impor
tant invitation from an unexpected friend.
ANNUAL PREDICTIONS: FOR THOSE BORN IN THIS WEEK

17th September, 2016
Ruled planet: Saturn Ruled by no: 8
Traits in you: Your ruling planet Saturn makes you humble,
honest, focused, practical, realistic and enthusiastic. You
are blessed with enormous talent and imagination. Along
with the positive characters in you, there are some nega
tive aspects in your nature. You need to work on your
nature of being envious, unreliable, and indiscipline.
Health this year: You will enjoy a normal health this year.
Though you will not have any major health issues, you
need to take proper medication. You may practice yoga
and meditation for better results.
Finance this year: You may try your entrepreneurship
skills this year and you will be successful unexpectedly.
You will be able to get many projects, which you help you
establish as a good businessperson. You should go for
investments in real estate and stock market.
Career this year: You may get the chance to complete all
your previous assignments and this will enhance your
respect as a brilliant performer in your professional circuit.
If you are into a profession that demands creativity, then
you will be very successful this year as far as your career is
concerned.
Romance this year: Your relationship with your spouse or
partner will blossom this year. If you are not married, you
may have to wait for few more years though you are eligi
ble for marriage.
Ruled planet: Mars Ruled by no: 9
Traits in you: Being influenced by Mars, you are believed
to be the master of a charismatic personality. You are cour
teous, courageous, energetic, realistic, modest, and respon
sive. You follow religion very keenly. However, you have
few problems in your attitude and that needs to be worked
on for the betterment of your individuality.
Health this year: As far as your health is concerned this
year, you may not remain healthy throughout the year.
There will be few hiccups in your health as you may suffer
from many minor diseases. If you want to stay healthy, you
should go for proper medication and a healthy diet plan.
You have to leave consuming alcohol and smoking ciga
rettes.
Finance this year: Your financial condition will be pretty
good as the movements of your stars are favorable for
making money this year. You may go for any investment
on real estate or gold. Do not trust anyone when partner
ships are concerned. You should not lend or borrow money
as it will create disputes.
Career this year: If you are a working professional, you
may face various profession related problems this year.
You need to handle all the issues diplomatically else you
may lose your job. You may create wonder in the creativity
field if you are a writer, singer or actor.
Romance this year: Your plans to go for holidays with your
partner may not work because of huge work pressure and
this may create disturbance in your marital life. You need
to take care of the emotional requirements of your partner
to lead a peaceful life this year.
Ruled planet: Sun Ruled by no: 1
Traits in you: Your ruling planet the Sun blesses you with a
unique character. You are pretty confident, creative, intel
lectual, optimistic, and enthusiastic. You are gifted with an
artistic perception. You are very much social and like to
make new contacts wherever you go. However, you need
to control your mood swings and selfishness.
Health this year: You will enjoy a normal health this year.
Though you will not have any major health issues, you
need to take proper medication. You may practice yoga
and meditation for better results.
Finance this year: You will be among major financial gains
this year. You may go for a real estate transaction later this
year and this will bring you a lot of money to cherish. You
may start up a new business. If you are already into busi
ness, you may plan for expanding its territory this year.
Career this year: Professionally, you are a very smart and
efficient worker. So you may need to clarify doubts and
help you peers and juniors in their work. People in your
professional circuit will seek your help at every crucial sit
uation. You may get promoted as a result of your spectacu
lar performance throughout the year. You may be assigned
a new responsibility this year. You may go for a job change
as well as there will be plenty of opportunities available.
Romance this year: Your romantic relationship will reach
new heights this year. You may get married this year, if
you are unmarried yet. You need to take care of the emo
tional requirements of your partner to strengthen your
relationship.
Ruled planet: Moon Ruled by no: 2
Traits in you: Your ruler, the Moon makes you a very
friendly individual. You are simple, confident, realistic, sin
cere, and optimistic. You are very innovative and try to per
form your work in a different and efficient way. You need
to work hard on your characteristics of being jealous and
insensitive at times.
Health this year: You will enjoy a pretty good health this
year. You need to take care of the health of your family
members. You need to take extra care of your health if you
are having some chronic diseases. You may go for domes
tic healthcare instead of allopathic medicines as it will give
better results for your ailments & save your money as well.
Finance this year: This year will see an increase in your

earnings. However, you will end up spending a lot of
money on your family. You will spend enough money to
buy luxury and comforts and this will affect your savings.
You may get into new partnerships to start new ventures
towards the end of the year.
Career this year: You will be very impressive in your pro
fessional circuit this year. However, you need to work
smart and perform well to grow as a perfectionist. You
should take quick decisions to excel in your field. You may
have to help your ordinates to drive productivity.
Romance this year: The emotional attachment with your
spouse or partner may blossom this year with lot of love,
care, and concern. If you are not married, then you may go
for a romantic relationship. You will enjoy a very blissful
time with your beloved.
21st September, 2016
Ruled planet: Jupiter Ruled by no: 3
Traits in you: Being ruled by Jupiter, you are courteous,
courageous, decisive, ambitious, disciplined, and realistic.
You are gifted with high imagination power, optimism, and
enthusiasm. However, behaving restless and dominating
may hamper your characteristics at times. You need to
work on your personality to make yourself better as an
individual.
Health this year: You may undergo few minor health issues
this year, which may bother you for a long time. You can
go for yoga or meditation to restore your good health. You
need to take required medication by consulting a doctor.
Finance this year: As far as finance is concerned, you will
be earning a lot of money. You will be assigned to new
projects and those will be highly yielding for you. You will
gain enough profits from your past investments. Your
improved financial status may bring you lot of happiness
and joy later this year.
Career this year: You will be given more responsibility this
year as you have proved yourself to be an ef ficient
resource for your employer. You may expect a promotion
or salary hike later this year. You should guide your ordi
nates to perform better and bring unexpected results for
your organization.
Romance this year: Your relationship with your partner
may reach to new heights this year as your love, trust, care
and concern will develop towards your beloved. You may
get married towards the end of this year if you are yet to
marry.
22nd September, 2016
Ruled planet: Uranus Ruled by no: 4
Traits in you: The influence of your ruling planet Uranus
makes you active, practical, enthusiastic, courageous,
ambitious, and highly philosophical. You are very proud of
your traditions, culture and rituals. You are highly reli

gious and have a very sharp mind. However, you need to
work on your impatient and stubborn behavior.
Health this year: Your health will remain good throughout
the year. You need to take utmost care of your health to
maintain it and remain fit. The health of your family mem
bers might be a concern for you this year. Try and avoid
your bad habits and start practicing yoga for the better
ment of your health.
Finance this year: You will be fortunate enough this year to
be among financial gains. All you need to do is to grab
opportunities to earn money. You will find plenty of earn
ing opportunities around you. However, you have to work
hard to gain that money. Overall, this year will give you
financial stability and security.
Career this year: You will get enough opportunities in your
professional life to prove yourself. You will create a better
impression on your seniors or higher management, which
may result in promotion. You should work efficiently to
maintain your respect at your workspace.
Romance this year: You will share a blissful romantic rela
tionship with your spouse or partner. Your marriage is on
cards if you are yet to marry. You will find your partner
supportive enough in every crucial situation.
23rd September, 2016
Ruled planet: Mercury Ruled by no: 5
Traits in you: Your ruling planet Mercury makes you realis
tic, reliable, sincere, and optimistic. You are the master of
an excellent memory power and charismatic characteris
tics. You need not get nervous at tough time as it may cre
ate a question mark on your capabilities.
Health this year: Your health will remain good throughout
the year. You need to take utmost care of your health to
maintain it and remain fit. The health of your family mem
bers might be a concern for you this year. Try and avoid
your bad habits and start practicing yoga for the better
ment of your health.
Finance this year: You may get benefits from your invest
ments later this year. This year seems to be an ideal one to
start investing in business, land or gold. Your efforts to
earn money may pay off this time. You may go for new
partnerships. However, you should verify the financial
background of your partner for your financial security.
Career this year: If you are a working professional, you
may face various profession related problems this year.
You need to handle all the issues diplomatically else you
may lose your job. You may create wonder in the creativity
field if you are a writer, singer or actor.
Romance this year: You will find your partner to be a huge
emotional support for you during the tough times of your
life. You may get involved in a matrimonial alliance.
30
SPIRITUAL AWARENESS
Finding fulfillment in this world
By Sant Rajinder Singh

Ji Maharaj
ost people are trying to
fulfill their desires. We
might have a desire to
buy a car; we might have a desire
to buy a house; we might have a
desire to study history or the sci
ences, or we might desire any
objects of this world. Our empha
sis is on being able to fulfill those
desires.
Life goes on in a way in which
By Sant Rajinder Singh

Ji Maharaj
we are always trying to fulfill one

desire after another after another.
What happens is that desires do
not end. When one is fulfilled,
then we have another desire. As
we try to fulfill that one, then we
have another desire, then another.
Life just keeps on passing by.
We are searching for happiness
all over the world.Little do we
realise that the true wealth,true
happiness,and true love are wait
ing within us.We think that happi
ness is outside ourselves.We think
it lies in wealth,name and
fame,possessions and relation
ships.
Since our human system is set
up to fo cus on fulfilling our
desires, what is needed is the right
kind of desire. First, we need to
choose a goal. And the right goal
is to choose God, to have the
merger of our soul in the
Lord.God lies within us.God's love
is within.There is nothing in the

outer world that can compare to
that. We spend our precious life
breaths pursuing the fulfillment of
our every wish in the worldly
sphere.
In the end we find that none of
those wishes brings us the happi

ness, love, and contentment we
really want.Instead of seeking the
true treasures outside ourselves
,we should sit in meditation and
find the true wealth within. If we
would stick to being conscious of
our true self, as soul, we would

find more love and happiness
than we can have from the fulfill
ment of any desire in the world.
Then we will find our lives filled
with love,bliss,and eternal peace
and happiness.
LEARN TO LET GO AND BE FREE
This article has been selected and reprinted from Sant Rajinder Singh Ji Maharajs book, Spiritual Pearls for
Enlightened Living, an inspirational collection of stories from the worlds great wisdom traditions.
nce upon a time, there was

a man who lived alone. He
kept his money in a special
jar so that no one could steal it.
One day, while the man was out
farming his land, a thief broke
into his house. Looking for some
thing to steal, he came across a
heavy stone jar. He could barely
jiggle it to hear the coins inside.
He could not lift the jar. So the
man stuck his hand in the jar to
take out the money. His hand fit
perfectly into the jar.
T he man g rabbed as much
money as he could, holding it in
his fist. But when he tried to pull
out his hand, it would not come
out. He tried his hardest to pull
out his hand, but the fist made his
hand wider. While holding the
money, he could not get it through
the neck of the jar. He let go of the
money and his hand was freed to
come out of the jar. But he was
intent upon having the money, so
he tried again and again. Each
time he enclosed the coins in his
fist, his hand was too wide to be
removed from the jar.
Suddenly, he heard the owner
coming home. He knew that if he
did not get his hand out of the jar,
he would be caught. But he was so
intent upon trying to get the
money out that he would not give
up. The result was that the man
came in, caught him, and had him
arrested.
We too are like the thief in the
story. Desires cause us to be
caught with our hand in the jar.
Desires keep us bound to this

world. It is only by letting go of
the things of this world that we
can be free. We need to stop
clutching for whatever binds us as
prisoners of our desires so we can
enjoy true freedom. We need to
stop clutching and let go. Then we
will find the joy of freedom.
What kind of joy did the thief
have in his pursuit of the money?
Instead he ended up a prisoner in
the jail. We too are like prisoners
in the jail of this physical world.
We spend all our time going after
things that will not give us happi
ness. Whatever material gains we
have in the world can lead us to
more bondage if we are attached
to them. For example, if we want a

big house, we have to work longer
hours to pay for its mortgage.
Then we need to fill it up with
more and more furniture. That
will take more time to work to pay
for it, shop to buy it, and then to
clean and repair every thing.
Before we know it, the house that
was supposed to bring us pleasure
has made us a slave to it. We no
longer have time for our family,
our children, or pursuits that will
g ive us more fulfillment. We
spend all our time going after
things that may not give us true
and lasting happiness.
Similarly, we may want to buy a
computer to keep up with the lat
est technology. We then find our

selves working harder to buy all
the right software and equipment
to make it work. Soon we realize
that we are not happy with a sim
ple computer. We want to
upgrade to a faster and more elab
orate computer. Next, we find the
computer that was supposed to
save us time is taking up all our
time. We end up spending hours
learning to use the computer. We
spend hours exploring the
Internet. The email system that
was supposed to make communi
cations faster is taking more and
more of our time. Suddenly, we
find fifty people emailing us daily
and they expect an instantaneous
response. If we do not respond

right away they accuse us of being
nonresponsive and indif ferent.
Soon, we are spending hours on
the computer. We have become
slaves to our possessions.
How can we end our bondage?
We need to let go and be free.
When we can let go of our desires
for impermanent gains, we can be
free. Then, our soul can experi
ence the love and beauty that God
has to of fer. True happiness
comes when we connect with the
source of joy within usour soul
and God. To do so, we must turn
our attention from the worldly
enticements and listen to our soul.
Beautiful melodies of God are
playing within us all the time.
Light and love are shining within
us. By turning our attention from
the world, we are releasing our
hold on the coins that keep our
hand stuck in the jar. By letting
go, we are gaining eternal free
dom. By sitting in meditation, free
from all worldly desires and
attachments, we can let go and
find ourselves free to soar back to
God.
Sant Rajinder Singh Ji Maharaj

is an internationally recognized
spiritual leader and Master of
Jyoti Meditation who affirms the
transcendent oneness at the heart
of all religions and mystic traditions, emphasizing ethical living
and meditation as building blocks
for achieving inner and outer
peace. www.sos.org.

Vol 9 Issue 21 - September 17-23, 2016

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Vol 9 Issue 21 - September 17-23, 2016

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The South Asian Times

Vol.9 No. 21 September 17-23, 2016 80 Cents

New York Edition Follow us on

AIAs Deepavali Mela

New York: The Association

Trump's projects in India India raises

United Nations: Raising the issue

Prime Minister Narendra Modi with visiting Afghanistan President Ashraf

ed the single biggest threat to

OWN YOUR FUTURE

x More than 60 undergraduate and graduate degrees

September 17-23, 2016

September 17-23, 2016

Sadhguru visiting USA to

Mystic and yogi Sadhguru Jaggi Vasudev

New York: Sadhguru Jaggi Vasudev,

meet and meditate in his presence

Trump invited for IndianAmerican

sation said in a statement.

Donald Trump (Photo: IANS)

Tribute to Pramukh Swami

and celebrate the life of a man

Jenifer Rajkumar loses in New

GOPIO to launch Global Indian

New York: At the recent

September 17-23, 2016

India, Afghanistan express grave con

AIAs Deepavali Mela on Oct 2

Airways. Other sponsors include Toyota, New

Trump's projects in India to impact US

Jaipur (India) Bureau

Co-Founder: Saroosh Gull

Contributing Editors: Meenakshi Iyer,

President: Arjit Mehta

India raises Balochistan at UN,

IANS Newswire Services

Photographs: Gunjesh Desai/

Printing: Five Star Printing, NY

Photo Journalist: Sandeep Girhotra

Cartoonist: Mahendra Shah

Chief Operating Officer:

West Coast Correspondent

Art and Design: Dhiraj Kumar Showaan

Managing Editor: Parveen Chopra

New Delhi Bureau

Web Editor: Bharat Bhushan Chopra

September 17-23, 2016

Dharun Ravis conviction

Rutgers University student, was

Clementi's death. Ravi, now 24,

Journal he was pleased w ith

Obama nominates Diane

tor, she served as an Assistant US

Millions pay tribute to Pramukh Swami Maharaj

ers, lies our own, he dedicated his life to

lives. Through memorable life experiences

September 17-23, 2016

Untold Sikh Stories perseverance

with all the technology, information

Moses presents Christian

Bruhud NY Seniors celebrate

hashikant Patel and Gopi Udeshi of

Vajira temple celebrates

Stringer awarded commendation to