The South Asian Times

e x c e l l e n c e i n j o u r n a l i s m
Vol.10 No. 24 October14-20, 2017 80 Cents New York Edition Follow us on TheSouthAsianTimes.info
 The South Asian Times
e x c e l l e n c e i n j o u r n a l i s m
Vol.10 No. 24 October 14-20, 2017 80 Cents New York Edition Follow us on TheSouthAsianTimes.info

DIWALI LIGHTS UP AMERICA

DIWALI FESTIVALS GALORE, FROM TIMES SQUARE TO DISNEYLAND

l By Parveen Chopra museums. New York, and thousands throng

New York: Indias best known fes

Indeed, a tipping point seems to
have been reached in the past cou
ing the annual Diwali mela in far
away San Antonio, a cityspon
Court wants India to
tival is starting to light up main
stream America. This is the lead
ple of years in the lustrous growth
of the festivals popularity.
sored celebration, that indicate
the king of festivals is here to stay enjoy crackerfree Diwali
in a story not from an Annual Diwali celebration on US soil.
Indian ethnic paper, but Diwali's in the White House and The manysplendorous Indian New Delhi: As the Supreme Court adverse impact of bursting of the
Associated Press. The popularity is on US Capitol in festival is also now looked at if not on Friday refused to mod fire crackers witnessed
story argues that of a piece with Washington DC has embraced by the mainstream com ify its earlier order ban year after year, said
ning the sale of fire that the November 11,
Diwali is no more wide exposure to been important if munity. It is of a piece with the
confined to Indian symbolic. But it is the wider exposure and acceptance of crackers in Delhi and the 2016 order suspend
Indian culture,
immigrant communi surging crowds at Indian culture, particularly NCR, traders, who were ing the licenses
particularly hoping to restart the busi "should be given one
ties but now public AIAs South St Seaport Continued on page 6
Bollywood ness, were disappointed by chance to test itself"
celebrations of the holi Deepavali, with fire
day are starting to pop up in works that can be seen DIWALI SPECIAL the setback. The ban will to see if there would
places ranging from Disneyland from the five boroughs, and lately SECTION be in effect till November 1, with be a positive effect of this, partic
and Times Square to parks and the popular Times Square event in PAGES 2354 the apex court, pointing to the ularly during Diwali.

Trump pushes meritbased Sonia to pass on Congress

immigration, silent on H1B
Washington: While keeping mum on H1B
visas, President Donald Trump has asked
US Congress to introduce a meritbased
immigration system that could benefit
Indians but would also deny green cards
to some relatives of immigrants.
Trump's enforcement plan calling for
stiff immigration reforms unveiled by the
White house on Sunday would continue
to allow the spouses and children of immi
grants to get green cards or permanent
resident status but not their brothers, sis
ters and parents. The goal of the merit
based system that awards green cards
based on factors like education, employa
bility and English Continued on page 6
presidency To Rahul Gandhi
New Delhi: Congress president Sonia
Gandhi on Friday indicated that her son
Rahul will soon take over as party chief.
"You have been asking this for so many
years and it's now happening," a smiling
Sonia told NDTV, pointing at Rahul
Gandhi, now the Congress Vice President.
She was speaking to the channel on the
sidelines of a function here.
Rahul Gandhi, however, refused to dis
cuss the issue. He instead referred to a Rahuls recent US speaking tour was to
controversy over BJP President Amit furbish his image before anointing him
party chief. (Photo Courtesy Reuters)
Shah's son Jay Shah. What about Jay
President Donald Trump Shah's takeover and the huge increase in over as Congress chief from his mother by
his business turnover, he commented. this month end with the party now wrap
SEE DETAILED STORY ON PAGE 12 Rahul Gandhi is widely expected to take ping up an Continued on page 6

HILLARY BOOK 15 SPIRITUAL AWARENESS 44 DIWALI NOSTALGIA 48 BITCOINS 54 excellence in journalism

TheSouthAsianTimes.info DIWALI SPECIAL October 14-20, 2017
TheSouthAsianTimes.info DIWALI SPECIAL October 14-20, 2017
 6 October 14-20, 2017 TURN PAGE TheSouthAsianTimes.info

EU committed to Iran Ndeal,

Bollwyood style dance for Diwali celebration at
Disney California Adventure Park in Anaheim, Calif,
last year. (Photo courtesy Disneyland Resort)
Diwali lights up America
Continued from page 3
Bollywood. The Diwali celebration at Disney
California Adventure Park in Anaheim includes per
formances of traditional Indian dances and a
Bollywood dance party for guests. From Nov 10Jan
7 their Festival of Holidays program is to show cul
tural traditions from around the world.
For Indian Americans it is still not the same festive
feeling as back home. But they are pleased with the
growth of Diwali events in cities big and small a cou
ple of weeks before and after Diwali and the fact that
many school districts are declaring Diwali as a reli
gious holiday so families can celebrate together.
Trump pushes meritbased
immigration, silent on H1B
Continued from page 3
language proficiency is "to promote assimilation
and financial success" the White House said.
A meritbased system is likely to benefit India if
the national quotas limiting green cards to about
20,000 per country per year are also done away
with and they are awarded purely on merit.
Sonia to pass on Congress
presidency To Rahul Gandhi
Continued from page 3
elaborate process of electing state chiefs, mem
bers of central bodies and the president.
The Congress Working Committee, the party's
highest decisionmaking body, is expected to meet
soon to decide the dates for the election of a new
president.
irked by Trump's decision
Brussels: European Union (EU) leaders
have voiced their commitment to the Iran
nuclear deal and its full implementation
by all sides, despite US President Donald
Trump's decision to decertify Iran's com
pliance with the deal.
The leaders of France, Germany and
Britain, in a joint statement issued by 10
Downing Street on Friday, said they were
concerned by the possible implications of
Trump's decision, urging the US
Administration and Congress to consider
the impact on the security of the US and
its allies "before taking any steps that
might undermine the JCPoA, such as re
imposing sanctions on Iran lifted under
the agreement", Xinhua news agency
reported.
The Iran nuclear deal, formally known
as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of
Action (JCPoA), was the culmination of
13 years of diplomacy and was "a major
step" towards ensuring that Iran's
nuclear program is not diverted for mili
tary purposes, the statement stressed.
Noting that the JCPoA was unanimous
ly endorsed by the UN Security Council in
Trump's Obamacare order allows cheaper
insurance plans with fewer benefits
Washington: United States President
Donald Trump has signed an execu
tive order that aims to make lower
premium plans more widely avail
able, including sales of cheaper poli
cies with fewer benefits and fewer
protections for consumers.
The order eases restrictions that
the Affordable Care Act (Obamacare)
placed on the individual health insur
ance market. "This order takes first
steps to make it easier for businesses
to help their workers afford high
Resolution 2231, the leaders of the EU
trio said the International Atomic Energy
Agency "has repeatedly confirmed Iran's
compliance with the JCPoA" through its
longterm verification and monitoring
program.
"Our governments are committed to
ensuring the JCPoA is maintained," the
joint statement said.
Meanwhile, the leaders of the three
countries also said they "share concerns
about Iran's ballistic missile program and
regional activities that also affect our
European security interests."
"We stand ready to take further appro
priate measures to address these issues
in close cooperation with the US and all
relevant partners. We look to Iran to
engage in constructive dialogue to stop
destabilising actions and work towards
negotiated solutions," they added in the
statement.
The Russian Foreign Ministry has
expressed regret over Trump's decision
to decertify Iran's compliance with a
nuclear deal, arguing that Tehran strictly
abides by the landmark agreement.
quality and more flexible healthcare
through reimbursement accounts,"
Trump said.
"With these actions, we are moving
toward lower costs and more options
in the healthcare market and taking
crucial steps towards saving the
American people from the nightmare
of Obamacare," he added.
The order broadly tasks the admin
istration with developing policies to
increase health care competition and
choice in order to improve the quali
Israel has, however, welcomed Trump's
decision to not certify the landmark
nuclear deal with Iran and also hailed his
remarks. Saudi Arabian government has
also welcomed the firm new strategy
towards Iran announced by Trump.
Following Trump's announcement that
he had decided not to certify Iran's com
pliance with the landmark deal, EU
Foreign Policy chief Federica Mogherini
said the EU will continue to fully imple
ment the Iran nuclear deal.
administration to work with Congress
and US allies to address "the deal's many
serious flaws," including "insufficient
enforcement and neartotal silence on
Iran's missile programs".
In case the efforts fail, Trump warned
that "then the (Iran nuclear) agreement
will be terminated".
The decertification would not pull the
US out of the Iran nuclear deal at the
moment, but it would open a 60day win
dow in which US Congress could reim
pose nuclearrelated sanctions on Iran, a
step which would mean the violation of
the deal on the US side.
ty of healthcare and lower prices,
CNN reported.
Annoyed by the failure of a
Republicancontrolled Congress to
repeal and replace Obamacare,
Trump signed the order as a part of
his efforts to dismantle Obamacare.
According to reports, most of the
changes to the current system will
not come until federal agencies adopt
regulations, after giving the public an
opportunity to make comments a
process that could take months.

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TheSouthAsianTimes.info DIWALI SPECIAL October 14-20, 2017
 8 October 14-20, 2017
Storied Kanchipuram saree
brand Nalli now in NJ
By Suchitra Srinivas
New Jersey: Nalli, South Indias favorite
retail store brand for silk sarees, opened
its first outlet in the East Coast in August
2017. The Chennaibased 89yearold
family owned, professionally run shop
finally making its way here will please
the admirers of Kanchipuram silk sarees.
Silk saree and filter cof fee are two
marked identities that no south Indian
would be willing to let go.
The initial response has been warm
and welcoming, said Kamal Tandon,
CEO, Nalli, who is here to oversee initial
set up and operations.
The demand for silk sarees and Nalli
brand is so much that the shop is crowd
ed and customers walk away with satis
factory purchases made, said Tandon.
The customers are not limited to
south Indians alone, we get many
Bengalis and Gujaratis too with the festi
val season beckoning them. The opening
of New Jersey showroom has been well
Brisk sales at the new shop in Edison. Nalli plans to
timed. Since its opening five consign
ments have been air shipped from India,
added Tandon.
Commented a loyal customer This is pretty planning to open shops in Dallas and Chicago
exciting. We no longer have to wait for a trip in the next few months.
to India to buy silk sarees.
Nalli has over 30 shops across India and sarees in contemporary and traditional styles,
three abroad including one in California with prices ranging from $17 to $1000.
Rama Temple will be
built in Ayodhya
in 2018: Swamy
New York: The 22nd Hindu Unity Day was cele
brated in Queens here in the presence of celebrat
ed Hindu leader Dr Subramanian Swamy, as well
as Prof Tathagata Roy, Governor of Tripura, and
Bijoy Krishna Nath, Editor in chief, Jugasankha
Group, at Rajdhani Restaurant on Oct 6.
Dr Swamy vividly narrated the legal battles he
has fought Ram Temple, National Herald case,
and the one against Chidambaram family for cor
ruption.
Talking about Rama Sethu, he said the Supreme
Court had earlier rejected many petitions filed
based on religious sentiments. Finally, he was
approached by VHPRSS leaders Ashok Singhal
and Mohan Bhagwat to take up the case to pre
vent the breakup of Rama Sethu, which, the leg
end has it, was built by Vanaras to cross the
ocean to reach Lanka to defeat Ravana and rescue
Sita Devi. Swamy narrated his efforts to stop the
demolition of Rama Sethu.
Rama Temple will be built in 2018, he declared
to the delight of the audience. He claimed that
over the centuries Muslims have ransacked more
than 40,000 Hindu temples and converted the
original Rama Temple into Babri masjid. He
argued that there is archeological evidence of a
Hindu temple being on the site and even a majori
ty of Muslims do not have a problem with build
ing Rama temple there. Uttar Pradesh Shia Waqf
Board has said that the new mosque could be
moved to a nearby Muslim majority neighbor
hood. Supreme Court is starting hearings in
TRISTATE COMMUNITY TheSouthAsianTimes.info
Nisha Desai Biswal
to head USIBC
Washington, DC: The U.S. Chamber of
Commerce announced that Nisha Desai
Biswal has been appointed President of
the U.S.India Business Council (USIBC).
We are thrilled to welcome Nisha
Biswal to USIBC and to the U.S. Chamber
team, said Myron Brilliant, the Chamber
executive vice president and head of
International Affairs. She is a driven,
visionary leader who has a strong record
of advancing United States business
across the growth markets of Asia and
throughout India. Under her strong lead
ership, were confident the USIBC will Biswal served as Assistant Secretary for
play a critical role growing commercial South and Central Asian Affairs in the
partnership, investment, and innovation
Obama administration
across the worlds oldest and largest expand the firms India and South Asia
democracies. practice.
Biswal served as Assistant Secretary I am honored and excited by the
for South and Central Asian Affairs in opportunity to lead the USIBC and to
the Department of State from 2013 to join the leadership of the U.S. Chamber
2017, where she oversaw the U.S.India of Commerce during a period of historic
strategic partnership. In recognition of opportunity for both countries, said
her efforts, she was confered the presti Biswal.
gious PBD award in January 2017. As one of the most significant and
She previously served as Assistant fastest growing markets, India is an
open in Chicago and Dallas also
Administrator for Asia at the USAID. important economic partner for the
opened 20 years ago. The company is now
Biswal also spent over ten years on United States. Likewise, Indian compa
Capitol Hill, serving on committees in nies are investing in ever greater num
the House. Most recently, she was a sen bers here, she added.
Tandon says they have a good selection of
ior advisor with the Albright Biswal will join the U.S. Chamber
Stonebridge Group, where she helped beginning October 23, 2017.
Prathams DC gala raises
$275 K for education in India
Washington, DC: The Washington DC
chapter of Pratham USA, a fourstar
rated charity that provides quality
education to underprivileged Indian
children, hosted their annual gala on
September 30 at a hotel in Arlington,
VA. The event, which was attended by
more than 360 guests, raised
$275,000 to combat childhood illiter
acy. Actor, writer and filmmaker R.
Madhavan in his keynote address
said, Pratham is doing an extraordi
nary job in making a huge difference
in the lives of people, especially chil
dren and women, in India. The orga
nizations lowcost education pro
grams provide scalable and effective
solutions for improving childrens
Actor R. Madhavan was the keynote
Dr Subramanian Swamy at the 22nd Hindu Unity reading and math skills.
at the event.
Day celebration in New York The audience was visibly moved by
Nisha Sisodiya, a young woman from electrifying, said Chapter President
December and a judgment is expected in June
Rajasthan, who bravely told her story Chethan Rao.
2018. Afterward, it would be possible to build the
of how she overcame an abusive mar Event sponsors included Casepoint,
temple quickly because of the vision of Ashok
riage to become a successful entrepre Harmonia, NETE, Murthy Law Firm,
Singhal who had already arranged prefabricated
neur after discovering Prathams voca Lancesoft, Gates Foundation, PWC,
pieces to build the temple. Swamy said land will
tional program. Pratham provided her Newmark Knight Frank, VTECH
be provided across Sarayu river for Muslims to
seed funding and mentorship to be Solutions, Octo Consulting, and Axar
build their mosque.
able to launch her own beauty salon Hotels and OMM.
Moving on to the case of National Herald, the
where she provides livelihood for Established in the slums of Mumbai
paper started in 1938 with Pt Nehru as President,
other women in the in 1995, Pratham is now one of Indias
Swamy alleged that the system has been abused
community.Rousing performances by largest nongovernmental education
to profit the Nehru family, especially Sonia
a cappella group Penn Masala and organizations, having affected the
Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi. He had filed a case in
songwriter Vasuda Sharma added to lives of more than 50 million under
Delhi High Court in 2012 alleging that they
the energy in the room. From the privileged children so far.
usurped more than Rs. 2,000 crore of property of
beginning to the end, the evening was Visit prathamusa.org
the ailing newspaper.
 10 October 14-20, 2017 TRISTATE COMMUNITY TheSouthAsianTimes.info

Select Costco outlets in New Historian Sunil

Jersey selling fireworks for Diwali
l By Suchitra Srinivas
New York: New Jersey residents of
Indian origin have a special reason to be
happy this Diwali, as they can buy fire
works right in the state from their
favorite Costco outlets.
This will be the first time Costco out
lets will sell fireworks specially for the
Diwali festival.
Since June 2017, when the NJ state
legalized the fireworks possession and
sale, we had planned to give our cus
tomers a treat this Diwali season. We
had little time to plan elaborately for
the sale, we managed to begin with lim
ited varieties this year. We are introduc
ing shipment of sparklers and rising
lights. Going forward we will be doing
this e laborate ly every Diwali, said
Michael De Jesus, Assistant General
Manager at Costco, Lawrenceville, New
Jersey.
We have a whole lot of Indian popu
lation in this region and we made spe
cial request to our head of fice for
adding fireworks. Not all Costco outlets
in the state will sell fireworks but only
se lect outlets. Morg anville, North
Brunswick and Lawrenceville outlets
have stocked them. Next year we
intend to bring more varieties, said
Michael. So glad this year we can buy
fireworks here in New Jersey. As it was
banned in the state we used to travel to
Pennsylvania during Diwali to buy and
play fire crackers. Fireworks is an inte
Sale for Diwali fireworks picks up in Costco outlet in Lawrenceville, NJ
gral part of Diwali celebrations, said
Ankit Agarwal a Costco Customer.
Costco has always been friendly and
caring to the needs of its ethnic popula
tion. Introduction of organic grains,
pulses like Toor Dhal, Channa Dhal,
Samosas, Naan varieties have all been
making Indians feel at home and the
news of fire crackers for Diwali is a real
treat this festive season, said Neena
Swami, an excited customer. Fireworks
are also available for online sale in
Costco websites. Earlier in June this
year Governor Chris Christie legalized
the sale of nonexplosive, non aerial
fireworks such as sparklers and party
poppers, glow worms and smoke devis
es. Along w ith De laware and
Massachusetts, New Jersey earlier had
been having a blanket ban on fireworks.
Selling sparklers could put one under
serious risk of conviction of fourth
degree crime carrying up to 18 months
imprisonment. Even today possession of
explosive aerial fireworks is treated as a
disorderly persons offense and carries
up to $500 fine. Fire crackers, sky rock
ets and bottle rockets still remain in the
banned list. By law sale is limited to cus
tomers 16 years and above.
Amrith conferred
genius award
New York: Sunil Amrith, 38, a historian at Harvard
University living in Cambridge, Massachusetts has been
awarded MacArthur
Fellowship for
Demonstrating the role
of centuries of transna
tional migration in the
presentday social and
cultural dynamics of
South and Southeast
Asia."
Sunil has written
extensively about
migration in India and
Southeast Asia, most
Sunil Amrith
recently in a book about (Image :
the Bay of Bengal, harvardmagazine.com)
which was crossed by
28 million people between 1840 and 1940. The John D.
and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation announced Oct
11 that Amrith is among 24 scholars who have been
awarded a $625,000 fellowship, which they can use to
advance their careers as they see fit. The honor is some
times referred to as a genius grant.
For his next research venture, Amrith said hed like to
try something bold, and perhaps collaborate with a
filmmaker, musician, or photographer.
Im trying to make myself slow down and try to sort
of decide how to use the prize, he said. Its so unex
pected and so lavish. I want to think in the biggest pos
sible terms and make sure Im using this in the most
productive and creative way. MacArthur Genius
award selects each recipients for having "shown
extraordinary originality and dedication in their cre
ative pursuits and a marked capacity for selfdirection."

India-born girl missing in Texas Interfaith institute of LI honors

after late-night punishment
Washington,DC: A threeyear
old Indiaborn girl has gone
missing in the state of Texas
after her father told her to
stand outside their home in the
middle of the night as punish
ment for not drinking her milk,
officials said.
Sherin Mathews was last seen
by her father Wesley outside
the family's backyard in the
900 block of Sunningdale, the
Richardson Police Department
wrote on Facebook.
The girl went missing around
3 a.m. on Saturday after her
father told her to stand by a
tree near an alley outside their
home in Dallas as punishment
for not finishing her milk, Sgt.
Kevin Perlich told Chron.com
on Monday morning.
When Wesley Mathews went
to check on his daughter rough
ly 15 minutes later, she was
gone. Mathews called the police
to report about his missing
daughter five hours later.
Perlich said that his response
was "concerning", adding, "that
does not seem like a normal
Harvard don for pluralism work
response that one would do if
New York: The Interfaith Institute
you have a missing child."
of the Islamic Center of Long Island
He was arrested on a charge
(ICLI ) has presented its second
of abandoning or endangering
annual award to Prof. Diana Eck of
a child on Saturday and was
Harvard University for her seminal
released on bond on Sunday,
work in the field of religious plural
Perlich said.
ism. It also acknowledged her con
Mathews told investigators
tributions to the religious dimen
that coyotes had been seen in
sions of Americas new immigrants:
the alley, but investigators said
Muslim, Hindu, Buddhist, Sikh, Jain
there was no indication that
and Zoroastrian.
one might have dragged the girl
An elite audience representing
away.
different faiths attended the event
Investigators confiscated
at ICLI in Westbury, NY, October 1.
three vehicles, cellphones and
Dr. Eck is a noted writer and pro
laptops from the family to aid
fessor of comparative religion and
the investigation. Sherin
Indian studies, and director of the
Mathews's older sister was
Pluralism Project at Harvard
placed in protective custody on
University.
Monday as the investigation Prof Diana Eck (with plaque) was awarded for her seminal
Dr. Eck, author of A New
continued, NBC News reported. work in the field of religious pluralism
Re lig ious America: How a
According to a police state
Christian Country Has Become pointed out the linkages between ed in the religious diversity we see
ment, Sherin suffered from
the Worlds Most Re lig iously them. She praised the role of ICLI, now, she added
developmental issues and had
Diverse Nation, spoke about build which has g rown as a mo de l The Bill of Rights guarantees
limited verbal communication
ing bridges between communities Islamic center, reaching out to the religious freedom to all in America.
skills. She was last seen wear
and creating an infrastructure to other communities in the area and In his inaugural address back in
ing a pink top, black pyjama
facilitate that. She spoke with dis also for its work as an interfaith 2009, President Obama correctly
bottoms and pink flip flops. The
may about the antiSemitic march center. The immigration bill signed said that we are a country of
Matthews family adopted the
in her ancestral home of Sweden by President Johnson in 1965 Christ ians, Muslims, Hindus,
girl from an orphanage in India
and the antiimmigrant and anti opened the doors for immigration Budd hists, be lievers and non
two years ago. (IANS)
Semitic movements in the US and from all lands, she noted. It result believers..
 12 October 14-20, 2017 NATIONAL COMMUNITY TheSouthAsianTimes.info

Trump asks Congress to enact merit Madhu Valli from

based immigration, silent on H1B visas
New York: While keeping mum on
H1B visas, President Donald Trump
has asked Congress to introduce a
meritbased immigration system
that could benefit Indians but
would also deny green cards to
some relatives of immigrants.
Trump's 70point enforcement
plan calling for stif f immigration
reforms unveiled by the W hite
house on Sunday night would con
tinue to allow the spouses and chil
dren of immigrants to get green
cards or permanent resident status
but not their brothers, sisters and
parents.
The goal of the meritbased sys
tem that awards green cards based
on factors like education, employa
bility and English language profi
ciency is "to promote assimilation
and financial success" the White
House said.
A meritbased system is likely to
benefit India if the national quotas
limiting green cards to about
20,000 per country per year are
also done away with and they are
awarded purely on merit.
Because of the large number of
highly qualified Indians, most of the
professionals from the country face
an 11year wait to get green cards
and a meritbased system could cut
down the delay. Professionals from
all countries except India and three
others do not have to wait for their
green cards.
Trump's wideranging reform
package proposes the stiffest immi
gration reforms ever offered by an
administration and seeks to make
good on his election promise of get
ting tough on immigration.
But it faces strong opposition in
the Congress from Democrats and
some Republicans making it unlike
ly to pass in the near future.
The request to Congress for legis
lation formalises the immigration
reform plan he announced in
August.
The proposals sent on Sunday
deal only with permanent immigra
tion and with illegal immigration,
and not with the temporary H1B
visas given to professionals and
advanced degreeholders from US
universities. One of the items in the
proposal that concerns Indians is
the future of those brought in ille
gally by their parents as children
and have grown up here. It is esti
mated that there about 7,500
Indians in this category referred to
as "Dreamers."
Former President Barack Obama
issued a presidential order allowing
the "Dreamers" to remain in the US
and to work. Trump is rescinding
the order and asking Congress to
pass a law not to allow them to stay
on. Trump wants Congress to enact
laws to circumvent court rulings
against indefinite detention of crim
inals who cannot be deported and
allow the government to keep them
in custody.
Explaining the request for a merit
based immigration system, the
White House said they were to
"establish a pointbased system for
awarding green cards that protects
US workers and taxpayers, encour
ages assimilation, and ensures the
financial selfsuf ficiency of new
comers."
Administration of ficials who
briefed reporters by phone, pointed
out that the US was the only major
industrialized country that did not
have a meritbased immigration sys
tem. The of ficials said that giving
green cards to the extended family
members like siblings and parents
of immigrants created a system of
"chain immigration" as each of them
in turn could sponsor other rela
tives.
T he "chain immigrants" were
mostly lowskilled and they
depressed wages at the expense of
unskilled Americans from minority
communities with whom they com
peted for jobs, they said. (IANS)
Virginia crowned
'Miss India Worldwide'
Madhu Valli (center) (Image : asianage.com)
Washington, DC: Madhu Valli, an
emerging hip hop artist and a stu
dent of criminal law at George
Mason University in Virginia, has
been crowned as Miss India
Worldwide 2017.
Stephanie Madavane from
France was declared runner up at
the 26th edition of the beauty
pageant held in New Jersey on
Sunday. Sangeeta Bahadur from
Guyana took the third spot at the
pageant that had contestants from
18 countries.
"I want to be the next biggest
bridge between Bollywood and
Hollywood," said Ms Valli, 20, a
day after winning the pageant.
Her latest album was released a
day earlier. She said her dream is
to be a recording artist. Music, she
said, is her passion. She started
learning vocals at 8.
The beauty pageant attracts
people of Indian origin from
across the world. It provides a
platform to showcase how Indian
culture has been preserved thou
sands of miles away, she said.
"I definitely want to speak to a
lot of young IndianAmerican
women about women empower
ment and positive selfimage,"
Valli said. I love both my coun
tries, India and the US and I
always wanted to discover a way
to be a leader in both!" she said.
Sarita Pattnaik from Texas was
declared Mrs India Worldwide.
(PTI)

Indias Warren Buffett IndianAmerican entrepreneur

partners with Sankara offers fasttrack mini nuclear
Eye Foundation to reactors to India
benefit the blind Washington, DC: An IndianAmerican
entrepreneur has pitched for fast
structed in India under the Make in
India program.
Mumbai: Rakesh Jhunjhunwala, who is commonly referred to as
Indias Warren Buffett, is keen to give back to the society by con track mini nuclear reactors, saying "You can build these reactors in
structing a free eyecare hos they are economical and could be con large numbers and distribute them
pital, in partnership with structed within two years. across the country," he said arguing
Sankara Eye Foundation. The Negotiations on mega nuclear that such reactors can be the best
225 bed hospital will be set power plants with US companies solution to addressing the energy
up in Panvel, and will oper Westinghouse and General Electric problem of India.
ate 15,000 patients free of are either in doldrums or moving at Asserting that it is better to put five
charge, Rakesh snail's pace. of these modular reactors than a large
Jhunjhunwala told in an "The new generation Small Nuclear 800 MW reactor, Dr Singh said his
interview to CNBC TV18. The Reactor uses light water technology to company is being considered for both
investing maestro whose produce 160 MW and is the future of the Canadian and British SMR pro
portfolio value touched a nuclear energy reactor because of its gram and is at the forefront of the
Krish Singh (Image : philly.com)
staggering Rs 10,000 crore unconditional safety and economy," SMR technology.
in March this year said, Kris Singh, founder and CEO of New be put in a desert, unlike the tradition He said it will be much cheaper in
Rakesh Jhunjhunwala Jerseybased SMR LLC and Holtec al reactors which requires huge price per MW and will be much faster
Onethird of the worlds
blind live in India. There are many cases of undiscovered eyedis International told PTI in a recent amount of water for cooling purposes. to build.
eases in the country. If affects young children as well as elderly, interview. Constructing each of these small "We have also started Holtec Arabia
and the older people usually get cataract. Cataract is an easily New Jersey Governor Chris Christies nuclear reactors costs $1 billion. for SMR deployment in the Middle
solvable problem. If you can get eyesight back, I dont think inaugurated a multimillion dollar But if made in India, the cost could East countries. Many of these SMR
theres anything greater to a human being. Eyesight is greater manufacturing facility last month in be far less, he said. parts will be manufactured in India
than all the wealth! For the investing icon, its a way of paying Camden. "The Indian labor is cheaper...so the and exported to Middle East," he said.
homage to his father. My father was very particular to get these The state government had awarded construction cost would be less. You Holtec Asia, a wholly owned sub
cataract operations done. When he was alive he would get 500 a $260 million and land to develop an should reasonably expect between 20 sidiary of Holtec International, recent
1,000 operations done in a year! Now that hes no more, the SMR construction facility. to 30 per cent reduction in cost as we ly has finished constructing a facility
biggest homage I can pay him is by making a hospital that does a Dr Singh, who came to the United go forward," said Dr Singh, who in Dahej, Gujarat to develop compo
lot of free operations. My father will be more happy with me if States more than four decades ago earned his engineering degree from nents of Small Modular Nuclear
this hospital comes up and does a lot of operations, than any and has multiple patents to his name, BIT Sindri, which is now in Jharkhand. Reactor (SMR160), he noted, adding
amount of wealth I earn, he told the channel. said the new SMR reactors require The company has written a letter to that this $100 million project is just a
(Source: financialexpress.com) only few acres of land. Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the small beginning of his longterm plan
And because it is air cooled, it can SMR 160 with the offer to have it con of manufacturing in India. (PTI)
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
Sanskrit draws learners from many ethnic groups
PARTICIPANTS AT A CONVENTION IN NEW JERSEY ORGANIZED BY SAMSKRUTA BHARATI OF
CALIFORNIA CITED SANSKRIT LEARNING FOR IMPROVING CULTURE, VEDIC VALUES
l Special to
The South Asian Times
Parsippany, NJ: With a long red
tilak on his forehead, lighter skin
and rare name, BhimaKarma
Saragrahi was a cynosure of many
eyes at a recent Sanskrit residential
campcumconvention in held here.
Though it was his first time at such
an event, the 40yearold felt at
ease because of his familiarity with
the ancient language.
After studying up to the 10th
grade and undergoing a course on
the BhagavadGita, he left the US for
India at age 21. Saragrahi believes
that the esoteric and deep culture
of Hinduism required the study of
Sanskrit. He spent several years in
India learning Hindi and further
improving his Sanskrit. Based in
Boston, he makes a living working
in real estate. He is good with
Indian musical instruments, includ
ing mridangam which he played at
the convention last month. During
his spare time, he offers music les
sons. His parents converted to
BAPS Charities donates $165,000 to plant 100,000 trees
Edison, NJ: BAPS Charities support
ed The Nature Conservancy (TNC)
through Walk Green 2017, a series
of walkathons hosted by BAPS
Charities in centers across the
country. On October 7, 2017, BAPS
Charities presented TNC executives
and program leadership with a
check for $165,000. The donation
will help to plant 100,000 trees in
2017 and supports the Plant a
Billion Trees Initiative.
BAPS Charities volunteers and
Board members presented The
Nature Conservancys Troy Ettel,
Director of Forest Conservation;
Myriam Dormer, Urban
Conservation Director; Rachel
Holmes, Urban Forester; Maria
Fisher, Donor Stewardship Officer;
and Erin Daly, Donor Relations
Manager with the check which was
followed by a treeplanting cere
mony.
Over the last six months, BAPS
NATIONAL COMMUNITY
Attendees at the convention (courtesy: Samskruta Bharati)
which they were initiated by a
Rajasthani guru. They also prefer
vegetarian saatvik food.
The Jaahnavi convention, organ
ized by the Californiabased
Samskruta Bharati USA, drew nearly
300 people, including children and
teenagers. In fact, a group of
teenagers, speaking the ancient lan
guage fluently, welcomed the atten
dees with folded hands.
Lalith Gannavaram from
BhimaKarma Saragrahi asserts that Trumbull, Connecticut, is a 12th
the Sanskrit is essential to grade student. Sporting vibhuti on
understanding the esoteric and
his forehead and wearing tradition
deep culture of Hinduism.
al clothes, he looked like a guruku
Hinduism through ISKCON founder lam pupil. He has learned the lan
Swami Prabhupada when they were guage from an early age. It was
teenagers. I am secondgeneration intrinsic, noted the boy, who is
follower of the Sanatana Dharma, planning to study for his bachelors
Saragrahi says. degree in Texas next year.
Another attendee was Sanskrit Chapel Hill, North Carolinabased
student Doriano Miletic (Dayapuri), Chrystina Passanisi said the wisdom
58, an immigrant from Croatia. By that Sanskrit gives is helping in her
attending this kind of conventions, study of Vaastu Sastra and southern
one can learn the language and Indian architecture. Passanisi, who
improve it, she said. The Queens attended the language classes dur
based engineer and his wife follow ing the convention, runs a womens
the precepts of Hinduism into clothing boutique. Nanik Ram, 35, a
Supports Plant-a-Billion Trees Initiative
BAPS Charities volunteers and Board members presented the check to TNC
Charities hosted their annual ticipated in the walks. These annu
walkathons across North America. al Walks have grown to 63 centers
This years national partner and participating this year nationally.
beneficiary, the Nature The Nature Conservancys
Conservancy, continues a partner efforts focus on protecting habi
ship between BAPS Charities and tats and preserving biodiversity
the Conservancy from 2016. This across the world. In addition to tar
year, over 22,000 individuals par geted conservation efforts, The
October 14-20, 2017
physician from Boston, sees ancient
wisdom in the language and plans
to resume his study of Sanskrit
shortly. He expects to attend the
convention next year also.
T he goal of Raghavendra
Kundalagurti, who works at
Barclays, is to study the Vedic litera
ture in its original form. He finds
such a convention helpful.
For retired Voice of America
employee Satish Bhatia, 76, it was
an opportunity to meet with the
speakers. He felt the gathering and
its proceedings were better than
last year. Bhatia urged the organiz
ers to make more videos available
so that more people would get help
learning Sanskrit.
There are about 10,000 fluent
speakers of the language in the
United States and Samskruta
Bharati wants to raise the numbers
exponentially. Jagannath
Bharadwaj, 59, was an attendee
from West Palm Beach, Florida. He
works as an accountant and it was
the second time he participated in a
Sanskrit convention; the previous
Tree plantation followed the check presentation ceremony
Nature Conservancy also invests
in research related to conservation
and climate change to drive their
international efforts.
BAPS Charities uses these oppor
tunities to instill a spirit of service
and commitment to preservation
and environmental responsibility
13
one was in Dallas attended by about
100 people. The Tamil Nadu native
attended an advancedlevel class at
the convention. According to Prof
M.G. Prasad, Sanskrit is an orna
ment one can wear. It improves
ones language and culture, he
added. From younger participants,
Jaahnavi Toolsidas a fifth grader
wants to learn the language to
study the Gita. She echoed a known
fact that Sanskrit is the most scien
tific language. Juhi Chitkara, a sixth
grader, wants to learn it to gain
knowledge of other languages such
as Hindi and German.
For Mexican Vanessa Acevedo,
from Montreal, it was an opportuni
ty to know the language more effec
tively which would help her teach it
in the future. The 37yearold wear
ing traditional Indian dress, who
speaks Spanish, French, English,
Hindi and Sanskrit, is interested in
learning more about India and its
culture and she believes Sanskrit is
a vehicle to achieve it. I am realiz
ing that dream now, she told this
writer.
in community members. Through
participation in events and
fundraising activities like
Walkathons, participants are
actively engaged in conversations
and action around sustainability
and conservation, becoming own
ers rather than bystanders.
 14 October 14-20, 2017 US AFFAIRS TheSouthAsianTimes.info

Trump discusses options on Boy Scouts to start

N. Korea with defense team
Washington: The White House
has said US military leaders had
briefed President Donald Trump
on options regarding North Korea
nuclear issue.
Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis
and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs
of Staf f Joseph Dunford on
Tuesday brie fed Trump on a
range of options to respond to any
form of "aggression" from North
Korea or to prevent the country
"from threatening the US and its
allies with nuclear weapons," said
the White House in a statement,
Xinhua reported.
Tensions had been running high
on the Korean Peninsula since
North Korea conducted its sixth
and most powerful nuclear test
last month.
State Department spokesperson
Heather Nauert said on Tuesday
that while the US has military
options, "diplomacy is the first
approach".
"No one wants to go to war with
another country. We want diplo
macy," Nauert said at a briefing.
"We want a peace ful Korean
Peninsula, and the world agrees
with us on this." "No one prefers
the military response, but that is
President Donald Trump, Secretary of Defense Jim Mattis (middle) and
chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff; Joseph F. Dunford, Jr. (Photo: DoD)
there to back us up if our allies
would need it or if we would need
that," Nauert said.
Pyongyang on September 3 det
onated a hydrogen bomb capable
of being carried by an interconti
nental ballistic missile (ICBM), the
sixth nuclear test it has undertak
en, running counter to relevant
UN Security Council resolutions
and the goal of denuclearizing the
Korean Peninsula.
Reiterating that the "dualtrack
approach" and the "suspension for
suspension" initiative are practical
metho ds to solve the Korean
Peninsula nuclear issue, Chinese
Foreign Ministry spokesperson
Geng Shuang has called on all rel
evant parties to actively support
China's ef forts to push for dia
logue and negotiation, and play a
constructive role for a peaceful
solution of the issue.
accepting girls
Irving, TX: The Boy
Scouts of America
announced on
Wednesday that it
will admit girls into
the Cub Scouts start
ing next year and
establish a new pro
gram for older girls
using the organiza
tions same curricu
lum.
In the historic
move, Cub Scout
dens the smallest
unit will be sin
glegender, either all
boys or all girls. Cub
Scout packs, which are larger and statement. He added that we
include a number of dens, will believe it is critical to evolve how
have the option to welcome both our programs meet the needs of
genders if they choose. families interested in positive and
The Boy Scouts board of direc lifelong experiences for their chil
tors voted unanimously for the dren. We strive to bring what our
change last week. organization does best develop
This decision is true to the ing character and leadership for
BSAs mission and core values out young people to as many fami
lined in the Scout Oath and Law. lies and youth as possible as we
The values of Scouting trust help shape the next generation of
worthy, loyal, helpful, kind, brave leaders.
and reverent, for example are The program for older girls is
important for both young men and expected to start in 2019 and will
women, Michael Surbaugh, the enable girls to earn the coveted
groups chief executive, said in a rank of Eagle Scout.

Weinstein fired from his Americans fear

own firm after sexual World War III: Survey
harassment reports New York: Frequent spats with North Korea
and an alleged reckless attitude displayed
Los Angeles: Movie mogul Harvey by US President Donald Trump have prompt
Weinstein has been terminated as cochair ed the fear of a World War III among most
man of The Weinstein Company following Americans, a survey has revealed.
allegations of sexual harassment published Led by researchers at Chapman University
in the New York Times. in the US, the Survey of American Fears
The board made the decision to oust 2017 showed that the fright of a menacing
Weinstein from his company at a meeting world war looms large.
held on Sunday, according to The It is also a new entrant into the list of Top
Hollywood Reporter. 10 fears since the first survey was conducted
"In light of new information about mis in 2014.
conduct by Harvey Weinstein that has Americans need to unlearn Duck and
Harvey Weinstein has produced several 48 % of Americans fear North Korea using
emerged in the past few days, the directors Cover and replace it with Get inside. Stay nuclear weapons and 41 per cent fear a
popular independent films including Inside. Stay Tuned, said Ann Gordon,
of The Weinstein Company Robert
Pulp Fiction, The Crying Game, and Sex, nuclear attack.
Weinstein have determined, and have Director at the universitys Henley Lab.
Lies, and Videotape. any previous surveys, also figured more
informed Harvey Weinstein, that his Duck and Cover that 70 per cent of
employment with The Weinstein Company Americans are familiar with came up during prominently in the 2017 edition.
70's, when all the rules about behavior and
is terminated, effective immediately," read the Cold War with the USSR, which is now Environment fears included pollution of
workplaces were different. That was the
a statement from the TWC board. obsolete, Gordon said. oceans, rivers and lakes (53.1 per cent), close
culture then." He also said he was taking
The company has also hired a law firm, This fear was corroborated by Republican ly followed by pollution of drinking water
leave of absence from his company in
Debevoise & Plimpton, to investigate the Senator Bob Corker earlier this week. (50.4 per cent), global warming and climate
order to direct his attention to campaign
allegations independently despite his Corker had warned that Trump was treating change (48 per cent) and air pollution (44.9
ing against the National Rifle Association
ouster. The October 5 New York Times his office like a reality show with reckless per cent). Following the reversal of the envi
and President Donald Trump.
article by investigative reporters Jodi threats toward other countries that could set ronmental policies of the previous Barack
The after effects of the scandal have
Kantor and Megan Twohey detailed sexual the nation on the path to World War III, the Obama administrat ion by Trump, the
resulted in several Democratic politicians
harassment claims spanning decades New York Times reported on Monday. researchers felt these green fears grew.
giving away the money that Weinstein had
against Weinstein, including from actress The survey showed that 48 per cent of Three out of five Americans reported fear of
donated to them over the years. Former
Ashley Judd. Two unnamed sources told Americans fear North Korea using nuclear Islamic extremists/Jihadists as a threat to
President Obama and Hillary Clinton also
the newspaper that "Weinstein has weapons and 41 per cent fear a nuclear national security. White supremacists fea
denounced Weinsteins conduct.
reached at least eight settlements with attack. The prospect of a nuclear meltdown tured as a threat to national security among
Following the NYT story, several other
women." Weinstein, in an initial statement, troubles 31 per cent of all Americans. 51 per cent. For the survey, the team included
women have spoken publicly about their
explained, "I came of age in the 60's and Concern and fears about the environment, more than 1,207 adults from across the
encounter with Weinstein.
which had never cracked the Top 10 fears in nation and all walks of life.

What Happened? Postmortem of Hillarys defeat
By Shivaji Sengupta
I n a heated debate on health-
care in early 2010, President
Barack Obama and 2008 presi-
dential candidate John McCain
were aggressively arguing with
each other about whether health-
care should be mandatory for all,
when Mr Obama suddenly inter-
rupted McCain and said, John,
that sounds like campaign talk.
The election is over. I won.
I winced hearing this. It
seemed like Mr. Obama was rub-
bing it in. Mr McCain though
simply laughed and took it in his
stride. He said, I know, Mr Presi-
dent, every day I try to make sense
of your victory and my defeat!
Fast forward seven years. An-
other election has been over. The
candidate some of us thought was
a sure winner as president, lost.
Mr. Trump won. After almost a
year of licking of our collective
wounds, we now get the opportu-
nity to read Mrs. Hillary Clintons
own analysis a post mortem, if
you will of the elections, appro-
priately entitled, What Happened?
(Published by Simon & Schuster)
What happened, indeed? For
those of us who had invested our
hearts and souls and even some
money! in the Democratic can-
didate, this book may create im-
mense curiosity. Before the book
came out last month, she gave
some interviews. In one of them
Hillary campaign underestimated the looming presence of Donald
Trump and how he harnessed the seething anger of a whole mul-
titude of people called derisively by some others as white trash,
those without adequate education and without meaningful jobs.
she described the book as taking
stock of herself, not just in terms
of what to do now.
Actually, as I read the book
I was looking for self-reflection
on her part, a psychological self-
analysis that I am certain Mrs.
Clinton is capable of. I wanted to
know, How could she be blind to
something so obvious as the vast
electorate who voted for her rival?
How did she not, nor anyone else
in her campaign see it coming?
What does this mean about her?
But I didnt get it. The book,
however, is thoroughly readable.
It is seemingly self-critical except
that the references to Trump are
bitter sometimes even nasty. One
can understand the devastation
she must have felt when a victo-
ry party in her election headquar-
ters in Brooklyn turned to shock
and lament. But one would have
thought I did that a seasoned
politician like Mrs. Clinton would
be able to analyze more subtly the
reasons for her defeat.
She begins with:
Its the story of what led
me to this crossroads of
American history and how I
kept going after a shocking
defeat; how I reconnected
with the things that matter
most to me and began to
look ahead with hope,
instead of backward with
regret. Its also the story of
what happened to our country,
why were so divided, and
what we can do about it.
Fair enough. But as the book
progresses from page 1, what you
COMMENT
get instead is a lot of complaints,
about the Russians, the email fi-
asco that she claims (perhaps cor-
rectly) that gutted her chances.
And the part that addresses, Why
we are so divided, she puts the
You expected a seasoned politician like Mrs. Clinton to be able to analyze more subtly the reasons
for her defeat. Instead, what you get are a lot of complaints, about the Russians, the email fiasco
blame squarely on Mr. Trump.
Donald Trump indeed has a lot
to do with the divisive tone of our
country. But what about the Dem-
ocrats? In the book she is also bit-
ter about the way Bernie Sanders
ate into Hillary Clintons votes;
but the states she lost in, especial-
ly Florida and Ohio, Sanders was
not a factor, as he was not in all
the Southern states that went for
Mr. Trump. And despite Sanders,
Clinton still won the plurality of
the popular votes, losing the elec-
tion in the Electoral College. Sand-
ers was not responsible for that.
The anger Mrs. Clinton refers to,
is, according to her owing to:
the audacious information
warfare waged from the
Kremlin, the unprecedented
intervention in our election
by the director of the FBI,
a political press that told
voters that my emails were
the most important story,
and deep currents of anger
and resentment flowing
through our culture
I found myself saying, Here we
go again Its not that the emails
and the Russians were not a fac-
October 14-20, 2017
tor in her defeat. They certainly
were. But it is my belief that the
Democrats are in trouble as a col-
lective. If Hillary Clinton is serious
about the purpose she expressed
in the opening page what hap-
pened to our country[and] what
we can do about it? I am afraid
she and the Democrats will have
to look beyond the emails, beyond
Trump. Or else, why has her party
lost both the recent congressional
by-elections to the Republicans?
She needs to focus on the deep
currents of anger she mentions in
the last sentence just quoted.
Trump certainly fanned the fire,
but he did not start it. The fire is
the searing heat of resentment
that millions of white Americans
have harbored since the days of
the second Bush, through the gov-
ernance of President Obama, down
to now. Obama campaigned against
the wealthy one percent getting
the lions share of economic gains.
Eight years were never going to be
enough to set that right. The Demo-
crats needed to win to continue
some of Obamas policies. Mean-
while, a whole multitude of people
all over the country whom the
people with a superiority complex
call white trash, without adequate
education and without meaningful
jobs, were seething with anger. Don-
ald Trumps campaign strategy was
to wake up this sleeping giant and
get out their votes. And they did.
Hillary Clinton complained
15
about how the Republicans quot-
ed her out of context and turned
these poverty stricken white vot-
ers against her. For example, her
infamous statement, Were going
to turn these coal miners with-
out jobs, that were repeated in
Republican commercials in Penn-
sylvania. The coal mining state is
a case in point. In her book she
quotes the whole section of that
speech where she says because
coal miners will one day be with-
out a job because America is mov-
ing toward clean air energy, she
wants to retrain the miners so that
they continue to be employed.
However, if you read Clintons
speech what jumps out at you is
the abstract nature of her words:
all about policy, renewable energy,
policy about economic opportunity.
Compare this to Donald Trumps
slogan: jobs, jobs, jobs. Mrs. Clinton
was clearly out of touch with the
people and nowhere in her book
does she admit to that.
This is not to say that the book is
not worth reading. It gives us an ac-
curate portrait of where she is from
when she wrote It Takes a Village.
There she was a person; in this
book, she is a politician.
A Long Island based
academic, the writer is a
regular contributor to our
opinion columns.
 16 October 14-20, 2017
Sex with wife below 18 is
rape: Supreme Court
New Delhi: The Supreme Court said sex
with wife below 18 years of age is rape,
striking down the provision of criminal
law that permitted sex with wife aged
between 15 and 18.
The husband is liable to be prosecuted
if the woman files a complaint within a
year of the sexual act, the Supreme Court
said.
The landmark order comes at a time
when the apex court is already hearing
petitions calling for marital rape to be
declared crime and a debate over the age
of consent.
The court, however, made it clear that it
was not saying anything on the larger
issue of marital rape even though the ver
dict would have a prospective af fect on
that.
Rape and child marriage laws of India
disagree on age of consent. Section 375
of the Indian Panel says sex with a girl
Why is PM Modi
silent on Jay Shah
controversy?
Panaji: The Congress questioned Prime
Minister Narendra Modi's silence on the
allegations of
a scam
against BJP
president
Amit Shah's
son, and
demanded
that Shah
step down in
order to facil
itate a probe.
Addressing a
press confer
ence in Panaji BJP president Amit
at the party Shah's son Jay Shah.
state head
quarters All India Congress Committee
spokesperson Priyanka Chaturvedi also
said that the functioning of Jay Shah co
owned company, Temple Enterprise Pvt.
Ltd allegedly mirrored the standard oper
ating procedure of a shell company and
must be investigated as part of the Prime
Minister's campaign against shell compa
nies. "For the sake of probity, for the sake
of what Modi stood for. If there is nothing
to hide, what stops Amit Shah from step
ping down and allowing a probe to hap
pen; a probe which will perhaps clear his
son. But we must always remember,
Caesar's wife should be above suspicion,"
Chaturvedi told reporters. "Why is it that
the Prime Minister is protecting him?
What stops the PM from seeking account
ability from a person he is closest to? And
someone who perhaps compromises his
entire branding of zero tolerance to cor
ruption," she said. An online portal alleged
that Jay Shah's company's turnover grew
from Rs 50,000 to Rs 80.5 crore in a
201516, within one year, after obtaining
an unsecured loan from a non banking
financial institution.
INDIA SPOT NEWS TheSouthAsianTimes.info
Aarushi murder case:
Talwars acquitted
less than 18 is rape but it makes an Lucknow: Dentist couple Allahabad High Court
exception allowing sex with wife who is Rajesh and Nupur Talwar bench of Justices B.K.
15 or above, saying it is not rape even if it were acquitted in the Narayana and A.K.
is without her consent. double murder of their Mishra. Pinaki Misra,
A bench of Justice Madan B. Lokur and daughter Aarushi and another defense counsel,
Justice Deepak Gupta in separate but domestic help Hemraj in said the judgment of the
concurring judgments said the excep 2008 by the Allahabad CBI court was "absolutely
tion was "arbitrary, discriminatory and High Court which gave perverse and the High
capricious". them the benefit of Court has set it aside cor
Justice Lokur said the exception has no doubt, but left questions rectly".
rational nexus with the objective sought unanswered about who The acquittal of the
to be achieved by the different statutes. killed them. Talwars has further deep
Describing as artificial the distinction The couple had been ened the mystery of the
between minor girl and a minor girl in awarded life sentence by May 1617, 2008 mur
child marriage, Justice Lokur said it was a special CBI court in ders.
contrary to the philosophy of many Ghaziabad in 2013. They Aarushi, a teenager,
had appealed against the
Rajesh Talwar being taken was found murdered in
statutes like Prohibit ion of Child to Dasna jail in Ghaziabad.
Marriage Act and Protection of Children decision. Their lawyer her bedroom in Noida's
(Photo: IANS)
from Sexual Offences Act. Rebecca John said the Jalvayu Vihar on May 16.
The court also urged the Centre and the evidence presented by the CBI "did not The body of the domestic help was found
state governments to take proactive steps stand judicial scrutiny and that is the end in a pool of blood a day later on the ter
to discourage child marriages. of it". The couple was acquitted by the race of the house.
Anupam Kher is
new FTII Chairman
New Delhi: Anupam Kher, who gered widespread student largest producers of movies.
has acted in over 500 movies protests. "My husband is a very fine
and is a vocal supporter of "I feel deeply humbled and actor. He has been in the film
Prime Minister Narendra Modi, honored to be apportioned as industry for so many years. He
was named Chairman of the the Chairman of iconic FTII. I is very capable of (being FTII
prestigious Film and Television will perform my duties to the head). "He has been teaching
Institute of India (FTII) in Pune. best of my abilities," Anupam acting for so long. He is the only
The film industry hailed the tweeted. person who earlier headed
move. Anupam himself said he Kirron Kher told Times NOW CBFC, then National School of
will give his best to the role. that Anupam was the right Drama and now has been
Anupam, 62, husband of choice to head the FTII, which appointed Chairman of FTII."
actressandBJP MP Kirron Kher, provides training in acting, Anupam, who began his acting
will succeed the controversial direction and other technical career with "Saaransh" in 1984,
Gajendra Chauhan, whose aspects of film making in a also has his own acting institute Anupam began his acting
appointment in 2014 had trig country which is one of the Actor Prepares. career with Saaransh in 1984.
RSS works with men only in shakhas
Bhopal: The RSS has said it works with men
only in shakhas and shakha work among
women is conducted by its women wing
Rashtriya Sevika Samiti.
The RSS also termed as "deliberately con
cocted and baseless" media reports that said
the RSS will consider the entry of women in
shakhas.
"De liberate ly concocted and base less
reports appeared in some media that RSS will
consider entry of women in shakhas," the RSS
said in a series of tweets.
"What Vaidya said was that RSS works with
men only in shakhas and through them we
connect with their families. Shakha work
among women is conducted by Rashtra
Sevika Samiti.
"In all programs and campaigns in society,
women also are participating. Women create
an atmosphere of cooperation in families to
support RSS," it added.
Media reports quoted RSS chief spokesper
son Manmohan Vaidya as saying on
Wednesday that the RSS will consider holding Congress Vice President Rahul Gandhi sparked off a row with his remarks that there
separate shakhas for women. were no "women in shorts in RSS shakhas".
TheSouthAsianTimes.info DIWALI SPECIAL October 14-20, 2017
 18 October 14-20, 2017 OP-ED TheSouthAsianTimes.info

Pak's terror ties: Can Trump cut the Gordian knot?

l By C. Uday Bhaskar that, as of 2016, the US may have spent up were bombing Afg hanistan, the w ily
to $ 2 trillion towards the Afghan cam General Pervez Musharraf was able to

A
lmost 16 years to the day since the
US embarked upon its war on terror
ism against the Afghan Taliban on
October 7, 2001, as reprisal for the enormi
ty of the 9/11 terrorist attacks, it appears
that a White House administration is again
issuing dire warnings to Rawalpindi (GHQ
of the Pakistan Army) while still dangling
the familiar "carrot".
At a congressional hearing of the US
Senate Foreign Relations Committee in
Washington DC, General Joseph Dunford,
Chairman, US Joints Chie fs of Staf f,
observed candidly: "I think it's clear to me
that the ISI has connections with terrorist
groups." This is not the first time that an
incumbent in his chair has come to such a
determination.
US Defense Secretary Jim Mattis had a
similar assessment, adding that while
Pakistan may have come down on terror
ism, "the ISI appears to run its own foreign
policy". This is an unusually unambiguous
assertion by a senior US offical but General
Mattis added the caveat too: "We need to
try one more time to make this strategy
work with them; by, with and through the
U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson
is slated to visit Pakistan.
Pakistanis. And if our best efforts fail, the
President ( Trump) is prepared to take
whatever steps are necessary."
The war in Afghanistan, where Pakistan
was accorded the status of a major non
NATO ally, has been expensive for the US
both in terms of blood and treasure. A
study by the Brown University estimates
paign, which still remains inconclusive and
messy.
As a benchmark, it may be relevant to
note that India's GDP in 2016 was estimat
ed to be $2.26 trillion. The total number of
people killed since the US led war against
terror began in October 2001 has crossed
370,000 and the number displaced is
upwards of 800,000. And the violence con
tinues.
Will the latest warning by the Trump
team have the desired e f fect on the
Pakistani Inter Services Intelligence (ISI)
and the "deepstate" in that country? It is
difficult to be optimistic.
T he (George W.) Bush and (Barack)
Obama administrations were aware of this
fundamental contradict ion that in
September 2001 before 9/11, Pakistan
was one of just three nations in the world
who recognised the Afghan Taliban and
their regime in Kabul at that time.
Yet the White House chose to overlook
this contradiction and allowed Pakistan to
become a nonNATO ally in the global war
on terror. Further ironies followed, for in
October 2001, when the US and its allies
strike a deal with the Pentagon and safely
withdraw Pakistan army personnel in
Afg hanistan who were assist ing the
Taliban.
T he metaphor hunting with the (US)
hounds and running with the (Taliban) hare
could not be more apt.
But the more relevant question that many
US citizens ask in anger is how the world's
lone superpower could allow such perfidy
to continue for years. This is the question
that President Trump is seeking to answer
and introduce a much needed corrective to
the US South Asia policy.
The critical military equipment that the
Afghan military needs is a complex matter
and India is constrained by its own military
inventory gaps and the dependence on
Russianorigin equipment that cannot be
supplied without involving Moscow in the
deliberations.
Weaning Rawalpindi away from support
ing terror groups will not be a swift binary
choice and the White House has consider
able experience in the matter. Whether
President Trump will be able to cut the
Gordian knot remains moot.

India's judiciary guarding against

authoritarian tendencies
l By Amulya Ganguli verting Muslims to Hinduism. ing the gau rakshaks (cow vigi
This is all the more so because lantes) and on "love jehad" have a
ashtriya Swayamsevak the saf fron objections to inter domestic angle, the pronounce

R Sangh (RSS) chief Mohan

Bhagwat's advice to cow vig
ilantes not to bother over much
about judicial strictures shows a
measure of annoyance with the
roadblocks which the Hindutva
lobby is facing in a secular polity.
The dissatisfaction may have
increased in the saffron camp in
view of two more Supreme Court
pronouncements relating to inter
faith marriages and the fate of the
Rohingyas, the hapless refugees
from Myanmar who have aroused
the saffron brotherhood's ire pre
sumably because they are
Muslims.
On interfaith marriages, the
court has wanted to know in the
context of a Kerala High Court
judgment whether the judiciary
can annul a wedding between two
adults belonging to two different
religions.
It is a rhetorical question which
strikes at the root of a Sangh
Parivar agenda which seeks to
prohibit by fair means and foul
any love af fair or marriage
between a Hindu woman and
Muslim man and, by implication,
between Hindus and Christians as
well or any other religious com
munity. The Parivar's argument is
For the average person, the judiciary continues to stand as a
guardian against authoritarian and intolerant tendencies
in the absence of an effective opposition.
that such nuptials are no more
than a ploy to lure the woman
into a familial arrangement to
facilitate her conversion.
Hence, the phrase "love jehad",
depicting a hapless Hindu woman
who is the victim of a predatory
Muslim male. The apex court's
intervention is in a case in Kerala
where the High Court has nullified
the marriage of a 24yearold
woman with a Muslim while the
Supreme Court had earlier
ordered a National Investigation
Agency (NIA) probe in the matter
although the NIA is supposed to
look into only acts of terror.
Irrespective of the final outcome
of the Supreme Court's examina
tion of the case, the arguments
that have already been aired such
as whether the two prominent
Bharat iya Janata Party (BJP)
politicians who have Hindu wives
can be accused of "love jehad" are
bound to be awkward for the
Parivar.
But what must be no less discon
certing for the latter is that the
undermining of some of the pro
grams, which the saf fron camp
has pursued diligently, can raise
questions about other divisive ini
tiatives like ghar wapsi or con
faith marriages are not unlike the
often violent disapproval of the
antediluvian khap panchayats to
connubial ties between grownups
belonging to different castes and
communities or for being mem
bers of the same gotra.
As is known, one of the main
proponents of the "love jehad"
campaign was Uttar Pradesh Chief
Minister Yogi Adityanath before
he took office.
Besides, the Chief Minister has
come under growing criticism
because of his focus on erasing
Muslim names such as that of
Mughalsarai railway junction and
omitting to mention the Taj Mahal
in a tourist brochure rather than
on saving babies in hospitals or
ensuring that the police show a
modicum of respect for girl stu
dents in Banaras Hindu
University.
Clearly, at a time when Yogi
Adityanath is proving to be as
inef fective a Chief Minister as
Suresh Prabhu was a Railway
Minister, judicial reprimands are
the last thing which the BJP
wants, whether in internal affairs
or in matters which have an exter
nal dimension.
If the judicial diktats on check
ments on the Rohingyas impinge
on issues of national security and
international law and obligations.
The Supreme Court's verdict on
the petition filed before it by two
Rohingya refugees will be known
after some time. But what the
Hindutva group is likely to find
disturbing is how the checks and
balances built into the constitu
tional system can stall its efforts
to take the country in a certain
direction.
The only saving grace is the
independence of the judiciary,
especially at the higher levels,
although this institution, too,
experienced a troubling period
during the emergency of June
1975 to March 1977, when even
the principle of habeas corpus, the
cornerstone of individual freedom,
was suspended.
In the case on gau rakshaks,
love jehad and Rohingyas, the dif
ferences between the judiciary
and the saffron Parivar are obvi
ous.
For the average person, howev
er, the judiciary continues to
stand as a guardian ag ainst
authoritarian and intolerant ten
dencies in the absence of an effec
tive opposition.

The views expressed in Op Eds are not necessarily those of The South Asian Times.
TheSouthAsianTimes.info DIWALI SPECIAL October 14-20, 2017
 20 October 14-20, 2017
Britain owes it to India for 200 years of oppression
By Sudha Kumar
I had the absolute honor and
privilege of spending some time
with Dr. Shashi Tharoor Indian
MP, former UN Undersecretary
General, and author. After taking
part in Melbourne Writers Fes-
tival, Tharoor was at Antidote
Festival of Ideas, Art and Action in
Sydney last month speaking about
his new book Inglorious Empire:
What the British Did to India. The
book, which is the British edition
of An era of Darkness-The British
Empire in India, originated from
his famous Oxford Union speech
delivered in 2015 on the topic
Does Britain owe reparations to
its colonized countries, the fiery
speech that went viral on the inter-
net leading to some million views
on YouTube. Tharoor gave a blis-
tering post-colonial assessment
again in the interview with Ben
Doherty (of The Guardian) at the
Antidote festival in The Sydney
Opera House Drama Theatre.
Tharoors assertion is that al-
though the British could never
make it right because we are past
that time, they could, however,
show atonement for the two hun-
dred years of racist oppression of
a nation and its people. He believes
that Winston Churchill, who was
known as a statesman, should actu-
ally be listed along with Hitler, Mao
and Stalin, as he was singlehand-
edly responsible for the deaths of
about two million Indians in the
Bengal famine of 1943. And Tharo-
or has more than enough evidence
to support his claim.
Of particular focus in the dis-
cussion with Doherty was the Jal-
lianwalla Bagh massacre of 1919,
symptomatic of British law en-
forcement which almost always
was prejudiced against Indians. Fol-
Inglorious Empire: What the British Did to India originated from
the famous, fiery Oxford Union speech Tharoor had given on the
topic Does Britain owe reparations to its colonized countries.
lowing the massacre, the official/s
in charge were affirmed, rewarded
and sent back to the mother coun-
try on a fat pension. Tharoor sug-
gested that as the centenary of
the Jallianwalla Bagh massacre
approaches, considering that the
incident was carried out in the Em-
pires name, an atonement would
be most fitting by a member of the
Royal family akin to the apology
of Willy Brandt at the Warsaw ghet-
to and Justin Trudeau for the Kom-
agata Maru incident in Canada.
Tharoor clarified that his reas-
sessment of Indias colonial past
does not mean that India in any
way should hold any rancor or bit-
terness against Britain. Both are
as heroes, but didnt demonize the
PER SPEC TIVE
sovereign nations today. Bitterness
is non-productive and corrosive.
But wasnt the English language
after all a gift of the British to In-
dians? Tharoor clarified that the
English language, like the railways,
rule of law and democracy, was for
the functioning and strengthening
of British government alone, and
not for India or her people. It was
never intended to educate or enrich
the Indians in any way or form. To-
day, India with its diversity of lan-
guages, does use English as its link
language in the judicial proceed-
ings and education system or else
a Singh would find it difficult to un-
derstand what a Subramaniam said.
Tharoor concluded to a thun-
derous standing ovation. Followed a
book signing session for 45 minutes.
Later I interviewed him. Excerpts:
Thanks to your eloquent Oxford
Union speech followed by your
books, in the recent past many
Indians have become aware of
their colonial past. I realized that
even the educated never knew
that after reading your An Era of
Darkness-The British Empire in
India. How come?
Shashi Tharoor: Well, obviously
many of you didnt pay attention
in History! You got busy with Sci-
ence and Math wanting to be En-
gineers and Doctors!
I was one of the freaks who
was obsessed with History but
jokes apart We never made a
big deal out of it. We (Indians) are
from a forgive and forget culture;
even our official education system
didnt want to make a big deal of
it. We hailed our freedom fighters
ple were relying on.
ones they fought against.
Pandit Nehru described India as
a palimpsest- a work of art that
is the result of contributions by
many added on over an extend-
ed period of time. Would you
give a space in that palimpsest
to the British?
Shashi Tharoor: Yes, definitely.
The British are all part of our
history. They lasted two hundred
years. And those two hundred
years are more recent than two
hundred and fifty years of Mughals
or empires that came before them.
Those two hundred years are rel-
evant to us today and I would say
as far as the British are concerned,
its relevant on very many things
- the sports we play, the language
we speak, the beverage we drink at
4 in the evening. All these things
bear a British impress, and some
would argue that even in our criti-
cisms of the British, we use British
forms of learning, reasoning and
argument as well as language to
challenge themselves.
Australia is re-evaluating the
celebration of Australia Day
(Captain Cooks landing). Can
events like colonial racism that
have caused trans-generational
trauma be corrected?
Shashi Tharoor: To begin with, Aus-
tralia was already discovered by
people living here. So Cook didnt
discover Australia, just as Columbus
didnt discover America as there
were people living there already.
All this is a reflection of the
inadequate frame of reference of
those times, when a Europe- cen-
tred world view was all that peo-
Secondly, even if it is not called
a day of discovery of Australia,
- Shashi Tharoor
Tharoors perspective is
that although the British
could never make it right
because we are past that
time, they could, however,
show atonement, maybe
in the form of reparations,
for the 200 years of racist
oppression of India
and its people.
clearly it was a momentous oc-
casion because in the wake of
Cook came all these people who
transformed this country. Today,
Australia is an overwhelmingly
non-indigenous country. The ex-
perience of indigenous people has
included near genocide in many
cases, deaths, suffering, children
being taken away from parents
and range of human rights issues
which perhaps at that time was
not fully realised as a wrong do-
ing. Every generation seems to act
in its own framework of reference.
Today, it is too late to undo
the damage. The dead cannot be
brought back and childhood cannot
be given back. But at the same time
an acknowledgement of the wrong
done, an apology and an atonement
would be fitting. And I am glad to
see that Australian prime ministers
and leading politicians have felt
possible to stand up and say this.
Considering your depth and
breadth of cumulative knowl-
edge and experience, what is
the most important contributor
to the fabric of a robust thriving
human society?
Shashi Tharoor: RESPECT for oth-
ers. Ultimately, thats what makes
a society work. If you respect oth-
ers for who they are, let them be
who they, dont try and encroach
their space, dont challenge them
all the time, then you have a func-
tioning society. That has been
the greatest strengths of India, of
Hinduism, in the past.
A notion of acceptance, not
toleration. Tolerance is slightly
patronising. It assumes I know
the truth, you are in error, but Ill
allow you to be in error.
Whereas acceptance goes be-
yond tolerance- it says I believe
I have the truth, you believe you
have the truth. I will respect your
truth; you respect my truth.
And that is where India used to
be the strongest. Today we have
people who are sadly moving away.
The Indian
Down Under,
Sydney
TheSouthAsianTimes.info DIWALI SPECIAL October 14-20, 2017
TheSouthAsianTimes.info DIWALI SPECIAL October 14-20, 2017

T paawan tyohaar,
he name of the festival Diwa-
li is derived from the Sanskrit
term deepavali meaning row of
lamps. Diwali, the king of festi-
vals, falls on October 19 this year
and is being celebrated next week
with gusto among all Indians and
their friends and well-wishers re-
siding all over the world.
Its significance spans 4 major
religions of India, namely Hindu-
ism, Buddhism, Jainism and Sikh-
ism. Here is a compilation of the
events that are celebrated:
* Lord Ramas return to Ayod-
hya from 14 years exile along with
wife Sita, brother Lakshman, and
Five days of Diwali
Diwali, the festival that spreads its luminosity across the length and breadth of India and wherever Indians have settled overseas, is celebrated with
crackling intensity. However, each of the five days of Diwali has its unique significance, drawing from different legends and traditions of the Vedic era. The
actual Diwali (Lakshmi Puja), which is celebrated on the darkest, new moon night of the Hindu calendar month of Kartik, falls on October 19 this year.
Day 1 Oct 17:
Dhanteras
Goddess Lakshmi is worshiped
to provide prosperity and well-
being. Dhanteras is considered
very auspicious for buying gold, so
women flock jewelry shops.Dhan-
vantri, physician of the gods, is re-
membered for health and hygiene.
24 October 14-20, 2017
devout Hanuman brought immense
joy to the people who lighted lamps
to illuminate the captial city.
* Lord Vishnu as Vaman avatar
rescued Lakshmi from the prison
of King Bali who was banished to
the underworld on this day.
* The Pandavas returned to
Hastinapur after 12 years of ban-
ishment. Happy citizens lit earth-
en lamps in celebration.
* Bandi Chhorr Divas, festival of
Sikhs, celebrates the release of their
sixth guru - Guru HarGobind Singh
from the Gwalior Fort along with
52 other Hindu princes in 1619.
* Foundation stone of the Gold-
en Temple in Amritsar was laid on
the day of Diwali in 1577.
* Ashok Vijaydashmi celebrates
the conversion of emperor Ashoka to
Buddhism on this day with prayers
and decoration of the monasteries.
* Diwali in Nepal is known as
Tihar and celebrated with splendor.
* Lord Mahavir, the last of the
Day 2 Oct 18:
Chhoti Diwali /
Naraka Chaturdashi
Naraka Chaturdasi marks the
vanquishing of the demon Naraka-
sur by Lord Krishna and his wife
Satyabhama. Narakasur and his
mother Bhudevi or Mother Earth
wished his death to be occasion for
rejoicing, rather than mourning.
F E S T I VA L FACE T S
Jain Tirthankar of the era, attained
eternal bliss of Nirvana or Moksha
on this day at Pavapuri on lunar
Chaturdashi of Kartika on 15 Octo-
ber 527 BC. According to the Kal-
pasutra by Archarya Bhadrabahu,
3rd century BC, many Gods were
present there, illuminating the
darkness with their divine light
* Diwali marks the end of
harvest season in most of India.
Farmers pray for a good harvest
for the year to come.
Hindus pray for removal of all
the darkness and poverty from ev-
eryones lives, and to fill all hearts
with the sparkling golden light of
peace, love, truth, and spiritual joy.
The illumination of homes
with lights, and the skies with
firecrackers, is an expression
of obeisance to the heavens for
the attainment of health, wealth,
knowledge, peace and prosperity.
Deepavali delivers us from Dark-
ness unto Light, to commit our-
Day 3 Oct 19:
Main Deepavali /
Lakshmi Puja
Amavasya or new moon night
marks the worship of Lakshmi, the
goddess of wealth in her most be-
nevolent mood, fulfilling the wishes
of her devotees. Lord Vishnu, in his
dwarfs incarnation, vanquished
the tyrant Bali to rescue her. Bali
was allowed to return to earth
once a year, on this day to light
millions of lamps to dispel dark-
ness and ignorance, and spread
the radiance of love and wisdom.
selves to good deeds, and thus ap-
proach divinity. There are many
more reasons and auspicious
events associated with this very
popular festival of India. Hindi
Greetings (in Roman script):
Diwali ka ye
Jeevan mein laye
khushiyan apaar,
Laxmiji viraje
aapke dwaar,
Shubhkamnayen
hamari kare sweekar,
Aapko aur aapke
pariwar ko Diwali
ki shubhkamnaye.
Day 4 Oct 20: Day 5 Oct 21:
Govardhan Puja / Bhai Dooj
Annakoot Yamraj, the Lord of death vis-
ited and gave his sister Yamuna a
Mount Govardhan lifted by boon that whosoever visits her on
Lord Krishna on one finger formed this day shall be liberated from
an umbrella to protect people of all sins. Traditionally, brothers
Gokul from a deluge sent by Lord visit their sisters.
Indra. Annakoot means mountain Lord Mahavir, the last Tirthan-
of food. Prayers for plentiful are kar of Jainism had attained nir-
offered with obeisance to Lord vana, or heaven. His brother
Krishna on this day. King Nandivardhan was very dis-
tressed, and was comforted by
their sister Sudarshana. Sisters
have been revered since, symbol-
ized by Bhai Dooj. In India, respect
for women is seen in every aspect
of festivals and celebrations. The
creator is shown as sublime, di-
vine, feminine force of Shakti, ven-
erated in several goddess forms
like Durga on a lioness, or Kali, the
fiery dark goddess of power.
TheSouthAsianTimes.info DIWALI SPECIAL October 14-20, 2017
 26 October 14-20, 2017 TRENDS

Will Gold glitter this Diwali?

New Delhi: With Goods and
Services Tax (GST), demonetiza-
tion and Anti-Money Laundering
(AML) regulations coming into
effect, gold will not glitter much
this Diwali, feels Somasundaram
P.R., Managing Director - India of
the World Gold Council (WGC).
Diwali this time has its own
challenges. But I am optimistic
now, as everything has settled
down. It is the AML part which
is probably hurting people at the
moment. Wedding purchases will
be more affected than Dhanteras
buying, Somasundaram told IANS
in an interview here. I still think
there will be a lot of issues with
the authorities, but not so much at
the consumer end. The organised
sector has picked up very well.
Demonetization and AML, though,
are definitely hurting, he added.
Somasundaram said last Diwali
came before demonetization and
after three years India had wit-
nessed good monsoons. So there
was really good demand.
The government has brought
the gems and jewelery industry
under the purview of Prevention
of Money Laundering Act, which
in turn has increased compliance
requirements. The new indirect
tax regime (GST) was rolled out
across the country on July 1, in
which the yellow metal came in
the three per cent bracket.
First half (January-June) im-
ports were 532 tonnes, while
demand was still 298 tonnes. Ac-
tually, pre-GST people imported
as much as they could. But that
didnt get converted into demand,
Somasundaram said.
At present, gold price is hov- At present, gold price is hovering around Rs 29,000 per 10 grams for 22 karat.
ering around Rs 29,000 per 10
grams for 22 karat. Our estimation years of data illustrates that high- 37 per cent compared to overall 2016 (Rs 24,350 crore).
is it will take 12-18 months for GST er taxes act as a headwind to gold Q2 demand of 122.1 tonnes for The WGC has put Indias yel-
to stabilise in this industry as 70 demand. But the tax should also 2016, WGC data showed recently. low metal demand for this calen-
per cent of it is unorganized. He, change the industry to the benefit The total jewelry demand in In- dar year between 650 tonnes and
however, said demand through the of the consumer, WGC said in a dia for Q2 2017 was up by 41 per 750 tonnes.
black channels have gone down. report earlier. cent at 126.7 tonnes as compared Reports said the import bill for
We see consumer behavior Demand for gold in India for to Q2 2016 (89.8 tonne). The value gold in value terms, according to
changing in response to GST. Our the second quarter (April-June) of jewelry demand was Rs 33,000 the Ministry of Commerce, was $23
econometric analysis spanning 26 2017 was at 167.4 tonnes, up by crore, up by 36 per cent from Q2 billion (Rs 1.5 lakh crore) in 2016.

Travelers planning shorter getaway this Diwali

New Delhi: With Diwali fall-
ing closer to the weekend, 73
percent travelers are finding this
as the perfect opportunity to es-
cape from their monotonous city
schedules to indulge in short get-
aways, says a survey conducted
by online travel portal Yatra.com.
The portal conducted its annual
survey highlighting the travel trends
for this festive season on 2700 re-
spondents in which 67 percent re-
spondents said they are planning
to travel during the festival sea-
son, leveraging the long weekends.
Also with festivals like Diwali
and Dussehra closer to the week-
end, 73 percent travelers are see-
ing this as an opportunity to go for
short getaways, said a statement.
Travelers seem to be choosing
accommodation wisely, with 42
percent and 25 percent opting for
3-4 star hotels and budget hotels,
respectively.
Another key observation de-
rived out of the survey was about
Indian travellers preferring to travel
with their families during festivals,
with 63% falling under the catego-
ry. 42 percent of the respondents
said that they are looking at the
festive season as a time to head out
of the city or the country to explore
new destinations and cultures.
The survey also revealed that
Facebook is the most popular so-
cial media platform amongst the
travelers with 83 percent of the
respondents saying they use Face-
book to post vacation updates.
However, 33 percent of the re-
spondents said that they are com-
pletely off social media during a
vacation.

Pamper your beauty conscious friends, family this Diwali

New Delhi: The best way to share festive happiness is by gifting each other exciting things. As the
beauty industry in India is growing every year, this is the time to pamper your loved ones with some out
of the box beauty gifts, say experts. Tarun Joshi, CEO and Founder of Vanity Cask, a beauty subscription
box and Sargam Dhawan, Director of American Vegan beauty and personal care brand, Paul Penders
Botanicals, India doles out the perfect gift this festive season for your near and dear ones.

Beauty boxes: Every girl loves getting pampered by her loved ones during the festive period. There is
no way to make her feel more loved than by providing her a beauty box that fulfils all her skin care
and beauty needs for the hectic festive season. Choose your box carefully and go for the one that of-
fers all-round quality rather than cheap price.

Organic skincare products: The festive season in India is full of responsibilities, hence in order to
take the best care of your skin the best present to give your mother are organic beauty products as
they prevent the skin from looking tired. Organic beauty has garnered a lot of popularity in the re-
cent past, as people are more aware of the adverse affects of chemicals in beauty products.

Sheet masks: These face shaped masks are known to nourish ones skin with all the essential nutri-
ents in the mask. These are perfect for a specially curated gift hamper for the festive season. Compa-
nies are making a lot of high quality masks in Korea, Singapore and other Asian countries.

The perfect fragrance: Who doesnt love to smell good! A refreshing fragrance is much needed for the
upcoming festive season. Pamper your loved ones by gifting them a scent that will leave them feeling reju-
venated. Something soothing, something elegant and something energetic would make the perfect scent.

Lipsticks that bring out the best in you: Festive season means a lot of parties and gatherings. The
perfect lip shade can add the hint of glamour required for your festive look. Gifting a set of beautiful
lipsticks is something that will definitely bring a wide smile on your mom, sister or partners face.
TheSouthAsianTimes.info DIWALI SPECIAL October 14-20, 2017

Chinese products
sales may
decline 4045%
this Diwali
New Delhi: Be it decorative
items like lights, gift items,
lamps and wall hangings or
other product, the sale of
Chinese products is likely to
decline by 4045 per cent this
Diwali as compared to last
year, a survey by Assocham
Social Development
Foundation (ASDF) said here.
"There has been a 4045 per
cent impact on goods like dec
orative lights which records
huge sales during Diwali,
whereas a slight impact has
also been seen on Chinamade
electronic goods like mobile
phones etc. As per the paper,
the demand of electronic items
like LCDs, mobile phones and
others items made in China
has also declined by 1520 per
cent," said Assocham Secretary
General D.S. Rawat.
The industry chamber said it
has interacted with whole
salers, retailers, traders in
cities of Ahmedabad,
Bangalore, Bhopal, Chennai,
Dehradun, Delhi, Hyderabad,
Jaipur, Lucknow and Mumbai
to estimate the demand for
Chinese products across India.
According to an estimate, the
value of Chinese goods sold in
2016 during Diwali was
around Rs 6,500 crore. Out of
the total, over Rs 4,000 crore
was Diwalirelated items such
as toys, fancy lights, gift items,
plastic ware and decorative
goods among many other
items.
The most sought after
Chinese items are fancy lights,
lampshades, Ganesha and
Laxmi idols, rangolis and
crackers. As per findings of the
survey, this Diwali, people are
preferring Indian products
over Chinese goods.
28 October 14-20, 2017
Cracker ban: Sellers move Supreme Court
New Delhi: Traders with tempo
rary licenses moved the Supreme
Court seeking relaxation of the
ban on the sale of firecrackers in
the national capital and the NCR.
Lawyers for the petitioners told
the apex court that after the lift
ing of the November 2016 ban
on September 12 this year, they
had bought firecrackers for sale
but the October 9 ban had
caused them harm. A bench head
ed by Justice Ranjan Gogoi where
the matter was mentioned said
they would discuss it with Justice
A.K. Sikri who has given the
October 9 ruling before listing it.
Recently, the apex court has
ruled that there will be no sale of
firecrackers in Delhi and National
Capital Region during Diwali, as
it restored a November 2016
order banning the sale and stock
ing of firecrackers there.
The bench headed by Justice
A.K. Sikri said: "We are of the
view that the order suspending
Flight tickets drop two weeks prior to festival: Study
New Delhi: Amidst the festive
madness also exist the perennial
late travelers woes but
according to a latest study by
global search engine
Skyscanner, flight prices from
Delhi, Mumbai and
Bengaluru all see a drop
two weeks prior to the can save 20 per
cent, 15 per cent and
festival period before
6 per cent,
sharply rising one
respectively, on
week before departure. flight fares.
With Diwali around the
corner, there are still many
tardy travellers who leave it to
the last moment to book flights
for their break and risk paying
15 per cent more than the aver
age fare by leaving booking
New Delhi: Stating that "crackers
have no religion" and the cracker
ban must not be linked to Diwali
but pollution alone, medical
experts called for a 'Green' Diwali
this year under the ongoing "My
Right To breath" campaign.
Calling for an overall ban on the
crackers, be it for Diwali or the
New Year, experts urged that the
whole issue must not be given a
communal color.
Citing the deaths caused due to
the pollution a claim Union
Environment Ministry had
rebuffed earlier, while also deny
ing some of the international
reports, senior thoracic surgeons,
pulmonologists and paedritri
cians recalled last year's situation
after Diwali, claiming to have lost
some of their patients.
"Last year after Diwali every
hospital, if you look at the casual
TRENDS
Firecrackers being sold at a Jama Masjid market in Delhi.
the licenses should be given one
chance to test itself in order to
find out as to whether there
would be positive effect of this
suspension, particularly during
Diwali period."
However, the court had said
that the September 12 order lift
Travelers
until the last
minute.
Analyzing data from last year's
Diwali travel period, Skyscanner
notes that flight prices from
Delhi, Mumbai and Bengaluru
all see a drop two weeks prior to
ty data or ICU data, recorded a
significant rise in the number of
people coming with complaints to
the emergencies with chest prob
lems and getting
admitted to the
ICUs,"
Arvind Medical
Kumar,
experts call
for 'green'
Chairman,
Centre for
Diwali
Chest Surgery at
Sir Ganga Ram
Hospital, and former Professor of
Surgery at AIIMS, told IANS.
Stating that the crackers has
sulphur, lead and mercury which
get attached to the lungs, he said
that lot of people came with the
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
ing the ban on the sale and stock
ing of firecrackers in Delhi NCR
will be back into effect from
November 1.
Pointing to the adverse impact
of the bursting of the fire crack
ers that is witnessed year after
year, Justice Sikri, speaking for
fares. Also noteworthy is that
the festival before sharply rising
one week before departure, said
a statement.
Taking cue from the searches
of travel from Delhi, Mumbai
and Bengaluru to different des
tinations, travellers can save 20
complaint of chest pain to him
last year.
"On exposure to toxins, people
susceptible to infection, get pneu
monia and it was bad
pneumonia. So
large number
of people
got
admit
ted,
some of
them
died also,"
he said,
adding that
one can always
say that a particular per
son died of pneumonia not pollu
tion, "but how did that person get
pneumonia had the pollution
level not been there". On the
impact on the fireworks industry
workers in Tamil Nadu's
the bench, had said: "The air
quality deteriorates abysmally
and alarmingly and the city
chokes thereby, it leads to closing
the schools and the authorities
are compelled to take various
measures on emergent basis,
when faced with 'health emer
gency' situation."
This very situation, the court
said, had occurred on the very
next morning after Diwali in the
year 2016 and "resulted in pass
ing the order dated November
11, 2016".
"This order prevailed during
the year but the impact and
effect of this order remains to be
tested on Diwali days," the judg
ment had said.
It had said that all the tempo
rary licenses that police had
issued in pursuance to
September 12 order stand sus
pended forthwith "so that there is
no further sale of the crackers in
Delhi and NCR".
per cent, 15 per cent and 6 per
cent, respectively, on flight
travel from Delhi or Mumbai to
other cities is actually cheaper
than from Bengaluru.
In the wake of availability of
flight seats, airport taxes and
length of flights, the study of
Skyscanner's data further
reveals that the same tickets
when booked a day prior to
departure can cost travellers
from Delhi, Mumbai and
Bengaluru upward by 12 per
cent, 6 per cent and 15 per cent,
respectively. Nonetheless,
Bengaluru remains an expensive
route for last minute travellers.
Sivakashi, panellists that included
Neeraj Jain, senior pulmonologist,
Sir Ganga Ram Hospital, Anupam
Sibal, senior paediatrician, Apollo
Hospital and others said that
there must be an alternative way.
"I'm sure something could be
done. When a dam is built, thou
sands of people get relocated, but
you do it, its done for a good
cause.
So similarly, the workers there
can be given some other job. Its a
question of their livelihood, but
its also question of lives of million
of people," said Jain. Of the com
munal angle, Arvind Kumar said:
"This is not about Diwali, this is
about crackers. Cracker does
damage, whether you burst it on
New Year on any other festival, it
will cause damage. We would
request for ban throughout the
year."
TheSouthAsianTimes.info DIWALI SPECIAL October 14-20, 2017

D iwali is the best known of In-
dian festivals in the United
States. The legends connected to
the festival are different for differ-
ent religions. According to Rama-
yana epid, Diwali commemorates
the return of Lord Rama with his
wife Sita and brother Lakshman,
from their 14-year exile after kill-
ing the demon king Ravana. Thus,
it symbolizes the victory of good
over evil and is celebrated with
great fervor by one and all.
In the Indian community in
America, Diwali celebration in-
cludes visiting temples, perform-
ing Lakshmi puja, exchanging
greetings, sharing sweets with
loved ones, attending cultural and
talent shows, musical concerts and
social parties, besides lighting can-
dles, earthen lamps and firecrack-
ers where permissible. The annual
observance demonstrates the rich
history and traditions of the Hindu
faith and provides an occasion for
the followers to remember their
many blessings and celebrate their
hope for a brighter future.
Celebrated by
Sikhs and Jains
Sikhs celebrate Diwali as it
marks the return of the sixth Guru,
Hargobind Rai to Amritsar after he
was freed from the fort of Gwalior
by Emperor Jahangir in October
1619, where he was imprisoned
along with 52 Hindu Kings who
The annual Dallas Diwali event is growing by the year since 2006.
were incarcerated as political pris-
oners. When the emperor decided
to release the Guru, the latter man-
aged to get all the Hindu kings
freed at the same time. Guru Har-
gobind became known as the Bandi
Chhor (Deliverer from prison) and
the event is celebrated as the Bandi
30 October 14-20, 2017
Chhor Divas. The Guru arrived at
Amritsar on the Diwali day and the
Harmandir Sahab (Golden Temple)
was lit with hundreds of lamps to
celebrate his return. Every year, the
Golden Temple is illuminated in a
spectacular display and fireworks
are displayed to commemorate the
memory of Gurus return.
Sikh temples across America
hold religious gatherings to re-
member the legacy of their Guru
who fought for social justice and
got freedom for people who be-
longed to a different faith.
In Jainism, the occasion cel-
ebrates the attainment of Nirvana
by Lord Mahavir.
In cities with significant Indian
American population, Diwali me-
las have become very popular and
attract large gatherings of young
and old. The organizers arrange
for many fun-filled activities such
as magic and puppet shows, henna
painting on palms for ladies, stalls
of Indian sweets and other eat-
ables, handicrafts and other trin-
kets besides showcasing the best of
Indian culture. If and where legally
allowed, the effigies of Ravana, etc.
are burnt to give historical per-
spective to the event and custom-
ary fireworks are displayed to add
splendor to the festivities and in-
crease public participation.
In New York and Dallas
New York chapter of the As-
sociation of Indians in America
(AIA) organizes probably the
largest Diwali mela outside India
with an estimated attendance of
over 100,000 people during the
daylong event at the South Street
Seaport in Manhattan. The asso-
ciation also arranges extravagant
display of live fireworks illuminat-
ing the New York City skyline.
India-American Festivals Inc
has been organizing an annual
Dushahra event in New Jersey for
IN USA
19 years and lately doing a simi-
lar event on Long Island also.
In Times Square in 2013, Di-
wali was celebrated there for the
first time attracting thousands to
the day-long extravaganza, show-
casing Indian culture, cuisine, mu-
sic and fashion. Diwali at Times
Square is presented by Nita Bha-
sins ASB Communications.
Dallas Fort Worth Indian Cul-
tural Society organized Diwali
Mela celebration of epic propor-
tion at Dallas Cowboys Stadium in
Texas ten years ago. The founder,
Satish Gupta, prefers to call the
celebration, Spirit of India, which
President Obama lit the Diwali diya in Oval Office in the last year of his second term on October 30,
2016. President Trump was also reported to be agreeable to hosting a Diwali event.
attracts 40,000 to 50,000 people
who get glimpses of the rich In-
dian culture at play, including the
traditional staging of Ram Lila and
burning of Ravanas effigy. It was
a mammoth event, unique with no
parallel to it in the United States.
The society tries every year to ex-
cel their previous showing by at-
tracting more people and adding
more attractions. Their mela this
year is on Nov 4.
In American universities
There are over 100,000 Indian
students from India in various uni-
versities in America. A large num-
ber of Indian American students
are also enrolled in American
universities. Diwali celebration
in Duke, Princeton, Howard, Rut-
gers, Carnegie Mellon and several
other university campuses brings
Indian student groups together
and helps them stay connected
with their culture and tradition.
At the White House
In 2003, President George W.
By Inder
Singh
Bush agreed to the long-standing
demand of the Indian community
and celebrated Diwali at the White
House in the presence of several
invited Indian community leaders.
Although the president himself
did not participate in the Diwali
festivities, it became an annual
tradition at the White House. The
celebration of Diwali at the White
House also shows the growing
clout of the Indian American com-
munity in the United States.
In 2009, Barack Obama be-
came the first US president to light
a diya oil lamp in the presence of
a Hindu priest in a White House
ceremony for the festival of lights.
In communicating his warm greet-
ings on the occasion, he remarked
that Diwali marked the return of
the Lord Ram from exile when
small lamps lit his way home. In
2010, Vice President Joe Biden
led the commemoration. In 2011,
President Obama again lit the
White House Diya while a Hindu
priest chanted Slokas, or prayers.
In 2016, lighting diya in the Oval
Office of the White House, Presi-
dent Obama said, On behalf of the
entire Obama family, I wish you
and your loved ones peace and
happiness on this Diwali.
Celebration by
US Congress
The US Senate and the House of
Representatives in October 2007
unanimously passed Resolutions
299 and 747 respectively, recog-
nizing the religious and histori-
cal significance of the festival of
Diwali. The passage of the resolu-
tions may be symbolic, but it is a
testament to the increased aware-
ness of the Indian community in
America. The U.S. Congress cele-
brated Diwali, for the first time, on
October 29, 2013, amidst chant-
ing of Vedic mantras by a Hindu
priest. Over two dozen influential
lawmakers along with eminent
Indian-Americans gathered at the
Capitol Hill to light the traditional
diyas. The event was organised
by the two Co-Chairs of the Con-
gressional Caucus on India and In-
dian Americans, Congressmen Joe
Crowley and Peter Roskam, in rec-
ognition of increasing presence of
the Indian-American community.
USPS issues Diwali
Postage Stamp
On October 5, 2016, the US
Postal Service fulfilled the long
standing demand of Indian Ameri-
cans, and released Diwali Postage
stamp commemorating the festi-
val of Diwali. The dedication cer-
emony took place at the Consulate
General of India, New York, in the
presence of Consul General Am-
bassador Riva Ganguly Das, Rep
Carolyn Maloney, Diwali Stamp
Project Chair Ranju Batra, USPS
Vice President for Mail Entry
and Payment Technology Pritha
Mehra, Indias former ambassa-
dor to the UN, Hardeep Singh Puri,
now minister in Modi cabinet,
and many members of the Indian
American community.
Executive Trustee of
GOPIO Foundation, Inder
Singh regularly writes on
Indian diaspora. He is
the author of The Gadar
Heroics life sketches
of over 50 Gadar heroes.
Email: indersingh-usa@
hotmail.com

New York: The Rajasthan As-
sociation of North America (RANA)
celebrated Diwali on October 8
at the Huntington Hilton Hotel.
The gathering included about
360 prominent guests. The occa-
sion reflected a festive mood and
as a part of the celebrations four
people of Rajasthani descent were
honored for their accomplish-
ments: Mrs. Chandra Mehta, Dr Ju-
gal Agrawal, Mrs Sangita Sancheti
and Mrs Sharda Kotahwala.
RANA President Dr. Ajey Jain in
his remarks said that the celebra-
tions reflected RANAs commitment
to womens empowerment. Women
these days worry less about fitting
into glass slippers and more about
shattering glass ceilings. The three
women honorees exemplified this
and have done better than the best, he
pointed out. The celebrations also in-
cluded womens Karva Chauth ritual.
The evening included a perfor-
mance by Samir and Dipali Music
Group from Mumbai. Congressman
Tom Suozzi was the Chief Guest
and said in his remarks that the
oldest and the biggest democracies
Diwali celebrated at Crossroads of the World
New York: On October 7, New
York City witnessed an amazing
congregation of thousands of peo-
ple at the crossroads of the world, to
One of the many scintillating performances at the event
witness the annual calendar event
-- Diwali at Times Square (DTSq).
Sankara Eye Foundation and
EventGuru Inc brought a fun-filled
day that highlighted cultural and
musical performances, Diwali Ba-
zaar and mouth-watering Indian
cuisine, interactive Diya lighting
ceremonies and the worlds best
digital fireworks display.
The vision of the creator of Di-
wali at Times Square Mrs. Neeta
Bhasin to showcase Indias rich
culture, art, heritage and diversity
became reality when various lo-
32 October 14-20, 2017
RANA
RANA Honorees (from left) Mrs. Chandra Mehta, Mrs. Sangita
Sancheti, Dr. Jugal Agrawal, and Mrs. Sharda Kotahwala
cal artists like Avish Jain, Rianjali,
Masala Bhangra, Bollywood Ax-
ion, NYU Garba group, Columbia
Raas Garba and the famed Shia-
mak Davar Group performed.
The Light-Up Times Square
Concert that commenced from
6 PM following the Diya Lighting
Ceremony on stage and on the tall-
est screens of Times Square was
attended by the glitterati and dig-
nitaries such as the Consul General
of India Sandeep Chakravorty, Con-
gresswoman Carolyn Maloney, and
Borough President Gale A. Brewer.
The Light Up Times Square
Concert showcased dazzling per-
formances by marquee names in
the entertainment industry. San-
T R I S TAT E D I WA L I
RANA President Ajey
Jain and a co-founder
K.K. Mehta posing with
Padma Bhushan math
whiz Manjul Bhargava
are joining hands to bring a new of Fields Medal (also called the
and peaceful world order. Padma Mathemetics Nobel), also graced the
Bhushan Manjul Bhargava, world occasion. The function ended with
renowned mathematician, winner a multicourse Rajasthani dinner.
jeeda Sheikh and Aamir Ali, the
romantic duo that has swept India
away with their performances in
Nach Baliye, presented scintillat-
ing dance routines. Chammak Chh-
alo fame maverick singer Hamsika
Iyer made the audiences dance to
her tune as did Hey Baby singer
Raman Mahadevan.
The crowd was left gasping
for more by none other than the
master dancer, the chumeswari
dance show judge and performer
Master Terence Lewis. The event
was brought to an end by the new-
age performer Mickey Singh, who Diwali at Times Square organizer Neeta Bhasin, Congresswoman Carolyn
made the young crowd sing along. Maloney and Consul General Sandeep Chakravorty at the celebration.
Association of Indians in America (AIA)-NY hosted its 30th Deepavali festival in NYC on Oct 1 at South
Street Seaport. The committee (seen on stage) put in countless hours to make the event a success.
 34 October 14-20, 2017 N AV R AT R I

A few glimpses from events held across various cities . . .

(Photo source: Facebook)

N avratri is one of the most im-
portant Hindu festivals dedi-
cated to the worship of Goddess
Durga, the deity of power. Each day
of the nine-day festival is dedicated Falguni
Pathak is
to the worship of different forms
an all time
of Goddess Durga, which unfolds favorite with
the religious importance of the oc- audiences
casion. Goddess of Shakti Durga,
Lakshmi and Saraswati are specifi-
cally worshiped during these days.
Hindus believe Goddess Durga de-
stroys all the evil propensities lurk-
ing in the minds of her devotees,
Goddess Lakshmi implants divine
qualities in the devotees and God-
dess Saraswati bestows true knowl-
edge. The tenth day also known as
Vijaya Dashami commemorates the
victory of good over evil.
The festival is celebrated with SEF
religious fervor across US cities
Dandiya in
Bay Area is a
during the weekends following and
sold out charity
during the auspicious Hindu days. event each
People from all walks of life turn year
up in huge numbers in traditional
attires, which is chaniya-choli for
women and kurta or kediyu dhoti
for men. Dressed in all the finery
they dance to the rhythm of garba
beats and take part in the celebra-
tion. Music groups are specially
invited from India to enthrall the
audiences here. Well known garba
singers such as Falguni Pathak and
Atul Purohit are regulars.
While several non for profit
Crowds
organizations organize the events
throng in
across few weekends some like thousands at
Sankara Eye Foundation (SEF) popular garba
make the most of the opportu- events
nity by organizing a charity event
where the proceeds go to any of
its eye hospitals in India providing
free of cost treatments to margin-
alized sections of the society.

Professional
music bands
have the crowds
swooning in
New Jersey
 36 October 14-20, 2017 DIWALI IN USA TheSouthAsianTimes.info

IN BRIEF
San Antonio to have largest city-
sanctioned Diwali in nation
Canada Post and
India Post mark
T
he City of San Antonio in Texas floating lamps, parade, dance show,
is producing Diwali event on henna/mehendi body designs, cui

November 4, claimed to be the
largest Citysanctioned Diwali in
the nation.. This free sixhour long
event in downtown San Antonio will
reportedly include releasing 2,000
l Oct 13th : UNSRC/SPICEIn
dian Club invites you to a Gar
DIWALI EVENTS
baDandiya*/Salsa Fusion
Bollywood Choreographer Pooja
Dance Night with Indian Latin &
Narang
Ballroom Dance Choreographer,
4:00 pm Indian Music with Raga
Sandip Soparrkar, 6pm in DC1
Kids: Raga Kids introduces kids of
Staff Lounge, One U.N. Plaza, Unit
all ages to Indian Classical Music
ed Nations. In addition, a UN staff
through interactive songs featuring
member, Priya Sehgal, will also be
Indian folk songs, Ragas, and origi
giving a basic garbadandiya dance
nal music.
class. Programme: 6:00 6:30: Net
1:00 pm5:00 pm Ongoing Activi
working; 6:30 7:30: Warm up
ties: arts and crafts inspired by Di
Garba class with Priya Sehgal, UN
wali (8th Floor) which includes
Staff member; 7:30 onwards: Gar
Make your own Diya, Temporary
ba/Salsa fusion workshop by
Tattoos, Rangoli Making
Sandip Sopparrkar
1:00 pm4:00 pm The Art of Henna
l Oct 21st : Asia Society (725
with Atif Toor (Asia Store): Au
Park Avenue, New York, NY) will
thor/Illustrator Atif Toor will dis
have a host of events from 1:00pm
cuss the history and inspiration be
to 5:00pm. It includes Storytelling
hind the ancient art of henna. A
through Movement with Kathak
coloring session to inspire will fol
dancer Parul Shah at 1.15 pm:
low. Copies of Toors books are
Shah will perform a movement
available for signing.
workshop in the spirit of the Diwali
Oct 21st: Diwali Festival set for
festival. The dance features intri
Waubonsie Valley High School
cate rhythmic footwork, mime, and
Aurora's Indian American Commu
storytelling through hand gestures
nity Outreach Advisory Board will
called mudras.
celebrate its annual Diwali Festival
2:30 pm Bollywood and Bhangra
from 5:30 to 9 p.m. Saturday at
Dance with Bollywood Axion: En
Waubonsie Valley High School,
joy some energetic Bollywood and
2590 Ogden Ave. in Aurora.
Bhangra dance performances by
Attended by more than 4,000 peo
Bollywood Axion of New York City
ple last year, Aurora's Diwali festi
and learn some fun moves from
val will feature the diversity of In
sine of India, Bhangra, Indian bazaar
showcasing handmade crafts, fire
works display, etc. Organizers are
expecting over 15,000 participants
from all over Texas.
dia's music, dance, clothing and
cuisine, while also highlighting the
contributions of Indian Americans
locally and nationally, according to
a press release from the city of Au
rora. Waubonsie Valley High
School's Cloud 9 singing group will
perform the National Anthem. Bol
lywoodstyle dance groups and
special presentations will also be
held. Visitors can purchase food,
clothing and jewelry during the
event, according to the release.
The festival will conclude with an
outdoor fireworks display begin
ning at 8:45 p.m.
The celebration is free and open to
the public. (Source: chicagotri
bune.com)
l Oct 27th: Nassau County Exec
utive Edward P Mangano and the
Nassau County Commission on Hu
man Rights with India Association
of Long Island Indian American Fo
rum, invite you to Nassau County
Annual Diwali Celebration at
Theodore Roosevelt Executive &
Legislative Building, 1550 Franklin
Ave, Mineola. Dinner will be
served. RSVP: Indu Jaiswal: 516
8351474 Bina Sabapathy: 516
9652931 Beena Kothari: 631
9881280 Jasbir Singh: 516
8575297
festival of lights
Toronto: Canada Post
and India Post are
joining hands to issue
stamps that celebrate
Diwali, the Festival of
Lights, an important
annual observance
for many Hindus,
Sikhs, Buddhists and
Jains in Canada and
around the world. The joint
stamp issue is a historic first be
tween these postal services and
reflects our countrys diversity
in the year of Canada 150.
The stamps were unveiled at
Toronto City Hall by Canada
Post President and CEO Deepak
Chopra; Vikas Swarup, the High
Commissioner of India to Cana
da; and John Tory, Mayor of
Toronto.
The Diwali stamps express
our pride in Canada being a
land of diverse faiths, customs
and celebrations, says Deepak
Chopra. It is fitting that this
historic first joint issue cele
brates the strong relationship
between Canada and India.
About a month ahead of Diwali
celebrations, which will be held
from October 19 to 23, two do
mesticrate stamps are available
in Canada. A stamp with a red
background is the Canadian de
sign, while one with a gold
background was designed by In
dia Post. The souvenir sheet has
a Canadian international rate
stamp and an Indian stamp.
Designed by Gerald Querubin
of Entro Communications and
India Post, and printed by Lowe
Martin, the Permanent domes
ticrate stamps measure 30 mm
by 35 mm. They are printed in
five colours plus a varnish, and
are available in booklets of 10.
The Official First Day Cover is
cancelled in Toronto, ON.
The Diwali stamps are among
several that reflect Canadas re
ligious diversity 150 years after
Confederation.
(Source: canadapost.ca)

Diwali holiday in NJs Millburn

Schools draft 2018 calendar
A
ccording to the draft calen
dar 201819 Millburn Town
ship Public Schools (MTPS)
in New Jersey will remain closed
on November 7, 2018, the day on
which most popular Hindu festival
Diwali falls next year.
Hindu statesman Rajan Zed, in a
statement in Nevada, urged the
MTPS Board of Education to unan
imously approve this Diwali holi
day included in the calendar draft
when it meets on October 9
evening. Board should respect the
feelings of Hindus, who had been
pushing for Diwali holiday in
MTPS for many years. Zed, who is
President of Universal Society of
Hinduism, indicated that the Hin
du community felt left out in New
Jersey as despite fast changing
state demographics and continu
ing growth of Hindu populations,
only three public school districts
had reportedly declared holiday
for students on October 19, the
date on which Diwali falls this
year. For 2017 in New Jersey,
Glen Rock Public Schools has an
nounced closure of schools and of
fices on Diwali; in West Windsor
Plainsboro Regional School Dis
trict, schools will be closed on Oc
tober 19; and in Piscataway Town
ship Schools, there is No School
for Students on Diwali, reports
suggest. In neighboring New York,
six school districts have declared
holiday for students on October
19, which include: East Meadow
School District, East Williston
Union Free School District, Half
Hollow Hills Central School Dis
trict, Herricks Union Free School
District, Hicksville Union Free
School District and Syosset Central
School District. Another Mineola
Union Free School District an
nounced that no home work or ex
aminations would be given on Di
wali, reports add. In Pennsylvania,
UnionvilleChadds Ford School
District headquartered in Kennett
Square approved closure of
schools on Diwali; while Harvard
Public Schools in Massachusetts
has declared October 19 as early
release day reports note.
Rajan Zed suggested that all oth
er 674 public school districts and
privatecharterindependent
schools in New Jersey should seri
ously look into declaring Diwali as
an official holiday, thus recogniz
ing the intersection of spirituality
and education. Zed noted that
awareness about other religions
thus created by such holidays like
Diwali would make New Jersey
The Hindu Jain Temple of Pittsburgh celebrated Dasera with Ravan Dahan
students wellnurtured, wellbal
on Sept.30, more than 300 devotees attended the event.Center of attrac
anced, and enlightened citizens of
tion was the 12 feet tall Ravan Artwork prepared by our TSAT cartoonist
tomorrow. Mahendra Shah and assembled by Dr. Kaushik Ved.
TheSouthAsianTimes.info DIWALI SPECIAL October 14-20, 2017

Locations in New York:

East Meadow Hicksville Poughkeepsie
Flushing Manhattan Scarsdale
Forest Hills New Hyde Park Valley Stream

By Surekha Vijh
A s they say you can take Indi-
ans away from India but you
cannot take their Indian spirit away
from them. The Indian community
in Washington, as elsewhere in the
US, is eagerly preparing to celebrate
Diwali, the biggest festival of India.
The Trump administration,
which canceled Eid celebration
in the White House, is all set for
grand Diwali celebrations at 1600
Pennsylvania Avenue with about
200 people attending. Republican
Senator Orrin Hatch has written a
letter to the White House chief of
staff, John Kelly, to make this years
Diwali celebration at the White
House a grand affair as many Indi-
an Americans have been enthusias-
tically supporting President Trump
before and after the election.
Diwali celebration has become
an annual affair at the White
House after the initiative taken by
President Obama in 2009.
Diwali celebrations are also
planned on the Capitol Hill in both
the houses. In 2015, Rep. Ami Bera,
then the co-chair of House Caucus
on India and Indian Americans,
brought shine to the celebration
by inviting a big number of sena-
tors and congressmen at Jefferson
building in the Library of Congress.
Tulsi Gabbard, the first Hindu
woman to be elected recently as co-
chair of the India caucus, said Diwa-
li has a lot of meaning for her. She
asked Indian Americans to go deep-
er into the meaning of the festival.
There are many Diwali pro-
grams also being organized
throughout the greater Washing-
ton area, including by DC Mayors
(from left) Hari Bindal, Puneet Ahluwalia and Nistha Raj are pleased that Diwali is celebrated with so many public events.
38 October 14-20, 2017
Swadesh Chatterjee (seen with then prime minister Manmohan Singh & Senator Jesse Helms)
was in the group of Indian Americans that pushed for Diwali celebration in White House.
office. For example, Dulles Expo
center in Chantilly, Virginia held a
big Diwali fair October 7-8.
Fairfax County that boasts the
second largest number, after Sili-
con Valley, of Indians working in
the IT sector, is not lagging be-
hind. Like last three years, we will
celebrate Diwali with the senior
Virginian Republicans and Indian
Americans, said Puneet Ahluwa-
lia, who is Vice Chair of the Fairfax
County Republicans. Personally,
he said Diwali was a joyous festival
that unites people.
Barbara Comstock, represent-
ing the 10th district of Virginia in
C A P I TA L C A M E O S
Congress, wished the Indian com-
munity a happy Diwali, noting that
her district has a thriving Indian
American population with a large
IT community. Many prominent
community members recall that
when they arrived 30-40 years ago,
there were hardly any public Diwali
events, forcing people to celebrate
with their family and friends.
Now Diwali is becoming like
Christmas, said Swadesh Chat-
terjee, who was conferred Padma
Bhushan for building bridges be-
tween India and US. He is happy to
see growing popularity of Diwali
in the last decade. He is proud to
have taken part in pushing White
House to celebrate Diwali.
Frank Islam, an entrepreneur,
philanthropist and civic leader, sees
the Diwali celebration at many im-
portant places as an achievement
for the Indian American community.
We spoke to some other In-
dian Americans also about the ap-
proaching festival. Monika Sam-
tani, a TV journalist, said Diwali
was all about relationships, caring
for others, creating awareness and
that it was a unifying event.
Hari Bindal, a PBD awardee of
2017, said, It is heartening to see
Diwali now celebrated as a major
Ambassador Nirupama Rao
with Congress members at
first Diwali celebration on
Capitol Hill in 2014.
festival in the US. Added the en-
gineer, who has worked for the
US government, For me it is very
happy moment, as most of the
family get together.
Dr. Lalita Kaul, a professor of
nutrition at the Howard medical
school in DC, said the spirit of Di-
wali is joyous, inspiring many non-
Hindus also to celebrate Diwali in
India and now here as well. When
I came here as a student 30 years
ago, there were not many Indians.
Diwali then was an intimate affair
but I used to miss India, Kaul said.
In Washington area, almost all
Indian Americans, including Sikhs,
Muslims and Christians, say they
celebrate Diwali. Many are prepar-
ing by getting their home ready for
the festival. It starts with cleaning.
When you clean your house, you
remove the bad part and bring the
fresher and pure part inside. It is
like a new beginning, said Yashoda
Gavri, who moved here from Af-
ghanistan, People dont really take
a day off on Diwali, October 19 this
year. And thats just fine with priests
such as Jagdish Sharma, of Rajd-
hani Mandir, a temple in Fairfax,
VA. All temples in the area are ex-
pecting big crowds on Diwali night.
Vivek Dwivedi, a NASA engineer
who lives in Maryland, said he will
observe Diwali American-style by
taking a half-day off, praying at a
temple, decorating his house with
Christmas-style lights and visit-
ing friends and family. NASA and
federal offices allow employees to
use earned leave to celebrate reli-
gious holidays, Dwivedi said. Still,
he added, it would be nice if more
Americans knew a little about his
religion and culture. Diwali should
be advertised better, he suggests.
US born Nistha Raj, who does
fusion music and performed at
the Indian Embassy, said, When
I was growing up it used to be all
in the house, now we go out and
enjoy Diwali for days with family
and friends.

akshmi Puja is the main
L event on Diwali day, which
is Amavasya (no moon
night) and falls this year on
October 19. On Diwali, people
worship Lakshmi, the Goddess of
Wealth, for auspicious omens in
family and life as this puja on this
day is considered auspicious.
Since Goddess Lakshmi resides
in places which are clean and tidy,
the first step for the puja is to
make your home and puja room
neat and clean. It is equally impor
tant for you to be neat and clean
and don fresh clothes.
Take a red color cloth and
spread it at the sanctified puja
place. On the cloth place the
deities or laminated pictures of
Lakshmi Narayan, Ganesha and
Saraswati. On the side of the cloth
spread nine small heaps of rice
and keep suparis on top of these
heaps, which stand for nine plan
ets or Navagraha devatas.
Kalasha Stapana: Place a pot
filled with water or rice in front of
the deities and adorn with betel
leaves. Keep a coconut on top of
the filled pot. Dress the pot with
red cloth and tie it around the pot.
Mark Swastik on the pot that rep
W
ho couldnt use a little
more money these
days? Many of us are
still finding it challenging to meet
those monthly bills and the econ
omy isnt always cooperative.
Even for those of us who are
doing pretty well, a little extra
abundance is always nice. If you
think its beyond your power to
grow your wealth, think again.
Working with money mantras can
help you increase your prosperity.
It seems hard to believe that
merely repeating words can
change your thoughts and your
life, but they can. First of all,
mantras help to focus and quiet
the mind. The repetition of a
mantra also works with the Law
of Attraction. By echoing certain
words over and over you create
specific energy vibrations. These
vibrations will then attract what
you seek. Its a case of like
attracts like. Mantras can work as
magnets to align your thoughts
and attract what you want.
Here are a couple of traditional
Indian mantras that are known to
40 October 14-20, 2017
How to do Lakshmi Puja
resents prosperity and purity.
This pot is called Kalash or Purna
Kumbh and it represents the
Universal power or Supreme
Deity.
Decorate the Deities with flow
ers, fruits and turmericvermillion
powder. Place Diwali thali before
the Deities. This thali should con
tain a few golden or silver or sim
ply rupee coins. These coins are
meant as representation of
Goddess Lakshmi.
Now start the puja by taking
water in the palm of your left
hand and sprinkle over the head
to purify yourself. Take sankalpa
by calling out your and your fami
lys name. Request that this puja
please Goddess Lakshmi and
Narayana. Lit ghee lamps and
offer incense.
Ganesh Puja: Do Ganesh puja
now. Offer some flowers and
akshata (unbroken rice) to the
Ganesh idol and place supari.
Meditate on Lord Ganesh and
chant Ganesh sloka or offer
prayer to Lord Ganesh to alleviate
all hurdles in the path of devotion
to Lakshmi and Narayana.
Similarly pray to Goddess
Saraswati to give proper intelli
gence to worship Lordships with
attention and devotion.
Do Kalash puja by offering
akshata, sweets and fruits. Follow
the same puja procedure for
Navagrahas. Sprinkle water
be effective. The first one is a
mantra that calls upon the
Lakshmi, the Goddess of wealth
and prosperity.
OM SHRIM MAHA
LAKSHMIYEI SWAHA
Phonetically it is pronounced:
Om shreem maha lahkshmeeyay
swahha
This mantra translates as hail or
greeting to she who brings every
form of abundance. Although
many invoke the Goddess
Lakshmi for assistance with mate
rial wealth, she is also the bringer
of spiritual wealth and abun
dance.
The second tradition
al mantra is known as
the Buddhist money
mantra.
OM
VASUDHARE
SVAHA
Phonetically it is pro
nounced Om Wa Su Dha Rei
GODDESS WORSHIP
towards all four directions
which represent purifica
tion of 4 dishas of the
Universe.
Lakshmi Puja: Now
take some flower and
rice in hands and close
the eyes and meditate
on Goddess Lakshmi. You
are now invoking Goddess
Lakshmi. If you know mantras,
recite them. Otherwise just simply
meditate on Goddess Lakshmi.
Here is a simple Sanskrit mantra
dedicated to Goddess Lakshmi.
Namosthesthu Maha Maye,
Shree padee, sura poojithe,
Shanka, Chakra, Gadha hasthe,
Maha Lakshmi Namosthuthe
Now sprinkle the flowers and
rice on the idol of Goddess
Lakshmi. Take out the idol of
Goddess Lakshmi and place it on a
Thaali. Clean the idol with water,
Swa Ha.
This mantra is basically a
prayer to the earth Goddess
Vasudhara. It is suggested that
you repeat this mantra 108 times.
Even the Buddha said that anyone
who memorizes this manta or
even listens to it would be blessed
by deities who will shower them
with abundance.
So if youre looking to increase
your personal prosperity, try
working with these money
mantras for a richer life!
Money
mantras
to help
increase your
prosperity
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
then
with milk, curd, ghee,
honey and sugar. Then clean the
idol again with water. Place the
idol back on the Kalash. Now offer
garlands made of marigolds or
leaves of bel tree, sandalwood
paste, kumkum and other daily
puja items including lighting
incense and agarbattis.
Now make offerings of coconut,
fruits, sweets, betel nuts and betel
leaves. Next make of ferings of
Batasha sweets, puf fed rice,
coriander and cumin seeds.
Lastly, perform a silent Arati for
Goddess Lakshmi. And meditate
on Goddess Lakshmi.
Similarly perform Aarti to Lord
Narayana by reciting Jai
Jagadeesh Hare.
Leave the place for some time.
After that take the Aarti, panchmi
tra, coconut and prasad.
Take some of the prasad
(that will stay for long
period of time) and
place it at the
place where
ornaments
and cash is
usually
kept.
Business
people also
worship the
accountbooks
on this day along
with Goddess Lakshmi.
The above is only a guideline.
You can show flexibility in the
puja process. Some of the items
needed might not be readily avail
able. But you can keep the house
and surrounding clean. Finally, if
you cant perform the puja, wher
ever you are simply mediate on
Goddess Lakshmi.
After Lakshmi Puja lamps are lit
all over the house and festivities
begin.
Vol. 10 | No. 24 | October 14-20, 2017 Follow us on TheSouthAsianTimes.info

Hindu Spiritual Leader

His Holiness Mahant Swami Maharaj
Blesses North America
Inspiring Peace, Harmony and Spirituality
B2 October 14 - 20, 2017
On September 21, 2017, His
Holiness Mahant Swami Maharaj,
the spiritual leader of the BAPS
Swaminarayan Sanstha, departed
the United States after having spent
nearly three months bringing
peace, inspiration and spirituality
to thousands of individuals.
Devotees, well-wishers, and
dignitaries from across North
America came together in honor
of His Holiness Mahant Swami
Maharajs first trip to North
America as the spiritual successor
of the BAPS Swaminarayan
Sanstha.
During the three-month visit,
devotees had the opportunity to
celebrate key milestones, including
the 10-year anniversaries of
traditional Hindu mandirs in
Atlanta, Toronto and San Jose, as
Atlanta, GA
- 10th Anniversary Celebration
Chicago, IL
- Guru Purnima Celebration
Toronto, Canada
- 10th Anniversary Celebration
- HH Pramukh Swami Maharajs
Asthipushpa Visarjan at
Niagara Falls
HIS HOLINESS MAHANT SWAMI MAHARAJ
BLESSES NORTH AMERICA
HH Mahant Swami Maharajs
three-month North American tour
well as the inauguration of the
Ghanshyam Maharaj Abhishek
Mandapam and installation of
the first pillars of Swaminarayan
Akshardham (Robbinsville,
NJ). Mahant Swami Maharaj
visited Atlanta, GA; Chicago, IL;
Toronto, Canada; San Jose, CA;
Los Angeles, CA; Houston, TX;
Dallas, TX; Robbinsville, NJ and
Edison, NJ. Across the country,
the environment was filled with
excitement, anticipation, and joy as
the Hindu community welcomed
His Holiness to the respective
BAPS mandirs for the first time as
the spiritual leader of the BAPS
Swaminarayan Sanstha.
In 2014, His Holiness Pramukh
Swami Maharaj visited Robbinsville
to inaugurate the mandir and
bless devotees. After Pramukh
Tour Highlights
San Jose, CA
-10th Anniversary Celebration
Los Angeles, CA
- Cultural Programs
- Rakshabandhan Celebration
Houston, TX
- Brahmaswarup Pramukh
Swami Maharaj Smruti Sabha
- Janmashtami Celebration
An Overview
Swami Maharajs passing in August
2016, His Holiness Mahant Swami
Maharaj succeeded him as the
sixth spiritual successor. Devotees
across North America eagerly
awaited his visit to receive his
blessings and guidance on living
value-based lives. Mahant Swami
Maharaj travels throughout the
world inspiring people through his
insightful spiritual discourses and
disciplined lifestyle. Through his
actions and messages, His Holiness
Mahant Swami Maharaj carries
Pramukh Swami Maharajs legacy
forward with messages of service,
harmony and humility.
Mahant Swami Maharajs visit
also provided an opportunity for
devotees to honor the life and
legacy of Pramukh Swami Maharaj.
During his tour, His Holiness
Dallas, TX
- Cultural Programs
Edison, NJ - 9/11 Peace Prayer
Assembly
Robbinsville, NJ
- Swaminarayan Akshardham
Stambh Pujan
- Ghanshyam Maharaj Abhishek
Mandapam Inauguration
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
Mahant Swami Maharaj scattered
the holy ashes of Pramukh Swami
Maharaj in Niagara Falls (Canada),
and the Hudson River (NY) as a
tribute to his Gurus social and
spiritual service in North America.
Mahant Swami Maharajs visit to
North America culminated in three
months of festivities, numerous
cultural programs, leadership
seminars and inaugurations of new
mandirs. Programs included special
events for youth and children
(Yuvak-Yuvati Day, Kishore-Kishori
Day, and Bal-Balika Day), as well as
a cultural event for women (Mahila
Day). Mahant Swami Maharajs
North American visit also included
cultural programs in the presence
of devotees, swamis, and invited
dignitaries.
- Leadership Seminar
- Akshar-Purushottam Darshan
Declaration
- HH Pramukh Swami Maharajs
Asthipushpa Visarjan at
Hudson River
- Indo-American Community Day
- Jal Jhilani Celebration
TheSouthAsianTimes.info HIS HOLINESS MAHANT SWAMI MAHARAJ
BLESSES NORTH AMERICA October 14 - 20, 2017 B3

Following in the legacy of Gurus Maharaj appreciating Mahant
Swami Maharajs saintliness said
on his 48th birthday in 1968:
I feel at peace when I see Mahant
Swami.
Mahant Swami Maharajs profound
discourses have enlightened
countless devotees and motivated
them to adopt pious, addiction-free
lives. His saintliness and devotion
to Bhagwan Swaminarayan and
gurus Yogiji Maharaj and Pramukh
Swami Maharaj have left lasting
impressions on innumerable
devotees.
departure of Pramukh Swami
Maharaj, Mahant Swami Maharaj
now continues the lifework
and legacy of Pramukh Swami
Maharaj as the sixth and current
spiritual successor of Bhagwan
Swaminarayan.
And so the legacy continues.
Like Pramukh Swami Maharaj,
Mahant Swami Maharaj continues
to travel to different countries to
spread the message of Bhagwan
Swaminarayan - one of peace,
harmony, and spirituality.

Earlier, on July 20, 2012, in the

HH Mahant Swami Maharaj (right) with HH Pramukh Swami Maharaj (left).
His Holiness Mahant Swami
Maharaj, the current spiritual
leader of BAPS Swaminarayan
Sanstha, has been steeped in the
culture and spirituality of this
sect of Hinduism as his parents
Manibhai Patel and Dahiben Patel
were both disciples of the founder
of BAPS, Brahmaswarup Shastriji
Maharaj. Shastriji Maharaj had
blessed the newborn child and
named him Keshav. However, his
family called him by his nickname
Vinu.
Vinu completed his schooling in
an English-medium institution in
Jabalpur. He attended the College
of Agriculture in Anand, Gujarat,
where he graduated with a
Bachelors degree in Agriculture.
presence of senior Swamis in
Ahmedabad, Pramukh Swami
During his college years (1951-
Maharaj revealed that Mahant
52), he met Brahmaswarup Yogiji
Swami Maharaj would be his
Maharaj and was captivated by
spiritual successor upon his own
his love, life, and teachings. Vinu
passing and wrote a handwritten
traveled with Yogiji Maharaj
letter to that effect. Since the
during his summer vacations,
earthly
and it inspired him to enter the
monastic life. In 1961, he was given
bhgwati diksh by Yogiji Maharaj,
and named Keshavjivandas Swami.
He was soon appointed as the
head (mahant) of the BAPS Shri
Swaminarayan Mandir in Mumbai.
Thus he became fondly known as
Mahant Swami a name he carries
to this day.
His outstanding virtues of austerity,
self-control, devotion, humility and
service earned him the blessings
of Yogiji Maharaj and Pramukh
Swami Maharaj. Pramukh Swami HH Mahant Swami Maharaj (right) garlanding HH Yogiji Maharaj (left).

Mahant Swami Maharajs previous visits to North America

1977
Travels with Pramukh Swami
Maharaj from New York to Los
Angeles by car, visiting homes of
devotees
Diwali & Annakut Celebration in
New York, NY
1986
Ground-breaking of BAPS Shri
Swaminarayan Mandir, Houston (old
mandir)
Diwali & Annakut Celebration in Los
Angeles, CA
1990
Travels to 49 states in USA
Cultural Festival of India (CFI)
kickoff ceremony in Manhattan
Murti-Pratishtha of BAPS Shri
Swaminarayan Mandir, Toronto; and
Boston (original mandir)
1991
Cultural Festival of India (CFI) 30-
day festival in Edison, NJ
Pramukh Swami Maharajs Platinum
Tula in Edison, NJ
1995
Rakshabandhan festival in
Atlanta, GA
1997
Travels to 36 centers in North
America
Murti Pratishtha in Birmingham, AL
2002
Diwali & Annakut in Houston, TX
Pramukh Swami Maharajs 82nd
birthday celebrations in San Jose, CA
2011-2012 Murti Pratishtha of BAPS Shri
Swaminarayan Akshardham North Swaminarayan Mandirs in Seattle,
America Shilanys Ceremony in WA; Scarborough, Canada; Kansas
Robbinsville, NJ City, KS; South Boston, MA; and
Diwali & Annakut in Los Angeles Washington, DC
BAPS North American Volunteers
Seminar in Dallas, TX and Houston,
TX
2013
National Bal-Balika; Kishore-Kishori;
and Yuvak-Yuvati Convention (NC13)
in Atlanta, GA
2014
Murti Pratishtha of mandir in
Robbinsville, NJ with Pramukh Swami
Maharaj
Bhumital Pujan Ceremony of
Swaminarayan Akshardham North
America with Pramukh Swami
Maharaj in Robbinsville, NJ

B4 October 14 - 20, 2017
Inspiring
Children & Teens
Our future lies in our children and
youth. Values instilled in our young
people today help them to mold
their lives for a brighter future.
Through the years, BAPS has
continued to promote the personal
development of children and youth
through an emphasis on spiritual,
family and cultural activities.
To celebrate His Holiness Mahant
Swami Maharajs visit, a special
day for children and teens was
organized at all centers visited by
Mahant Swami Maharaj. Children
and teens participated in one-day
events themed Eva Mara Swami
and Je Je Hari E Karyu Het,
respectively.
Led by learned Swamis and
dedicated volunteers, the childrens
program explored the lives of Yogiji
Maharaj and Pramukh Swami
Maharaj and their memorable
interactions with Mahant Swami
Maharaj to highlight the ever-
lasting connection that anchored
their bond of guru-shishya or
teacher-student. Participants
recollected memories from
Pramukh Swami Maharajs life
that illustrated the impact he had
on others and learned that the
same qualities are reflected in
Mahant Swami Maharaj. Examples
of inspiring incidents in Mahant
Swami Maharajs life helped them
understand that he provides the
same love, care, support, and
happiness as Pramukh Swami
HIS HOLINESS MAHANT SWAMI MAHARAJ
BLESSES NORTH AMERICA TheSouthAsianTimes.info
Maharaj. The attendees were
given the opportunity to make a
personalized pratigna, or spiritual
pledge, to their guru to enhance
their pursuits towards personal
development. The program finale
featured live blessings from
Mahant Swami Maharaj, who
encouraged the children to not
only seek spiritual knowledge,
but to practice its application in
daily life by supporting family
unity, compromise, and mutual
understanding.
High school and college-aged
youths delved deep into a
spiritual song entitled Je Je Hari
E Karyu Het to help understand
and strengthen the bond with
their guru. They also engaged in
different arts and crafts projects
to present to His Holiness Mahant
Swami Maharaj as a token of
their bhakti or devotion. This
included making garlands, creating
scrapbooks, as well as memorizing
verses from the Yogi Gita, a small
collection of prayers and spiritual
principles taught by His Holiness
Yogiji Maharaj and highly regarded
by Mahant Swami Maharaj. Each
teen wrote a personal letter to
Mahant Swami Maharaj in which
they expressed all of their feelings
and prayers. In one evening
assembly, Mahant Swami Maharaj
guided them by saying, [In youth]
education and spirituality go hand
in hand. Both are necessary for
success.

B5 October 14 - 20, 2017 HIS HOLINESS MAHANT SWAMI MAHARAJ
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#mahantswami
It was extremely hard for me to
leave your side, but the amount of
memories you have given me, I am
forever grateful. The most beautiful
thing of it all, there are thousands and
thousands of individuals around the
country who feel and felt the same
way as me, whether standing right
next to him or looking at him through
binoculars, his love has no bounds.
I miss you - see you soon.
@jkap06
People ask me where my motivation comes
from, and this right here is my answer.
That feeling of goosebumps & excitement when
you hear that#MahantSwamihas landed and en
route to@BAPSRobbinsville!
@mayankgamin
happy birthday to the only person
that matters. behind that orange
cloth is a heart that has sacrificed
more than we can think, loved
more than we can accept, gave
more than we could take. stop for
a minute and lets thank Him
@just.satsangi.things

@psoni4123
Your love, is everlasting.
Unconditional. Limitless. Forever.
Thankful for Everything hes Without boundaries. Je je hariye
done/prayed for me karyu het, evu kon kare pane re
@shradhaa6
@mirangipatel

Honestly, I m not even a devotee.

But still made time for hear an Experience of a lifetime
inspirational person speak
@sagarb
@vaideli_24

Love his message,

You became like us, so we Be the best, leave the rest.
could understand who you are
@pjd6109
better. Thank you for coming to
North America.

@shahv01 Swami. thanks for flooding every

@bhavi1106
nook of life with purpose and
wonder
Day filled with so much joy and happiness
@aneekp
rupalpatel
@suhanipatel97
Words of course cannot replace personal experiences
Still cannot put into words how I felt, but I experiences of the Satpurush that brought
know that you have a permanent place in indescribable happiness once again...Thankyou
my heart next to Pramukh Swami Maharaj Swamibapa for accepting my seva in your puja...
and this love will never die
@apatel201

a.amin He is what is pure in this world; he

is the real treasure! Im so blessed
The warmth of that glance, and the warmth
to have discovered and attained his
of this hands; weather we are far or near,
blessing during Yuva din, and I will
mends broken hearts and sends love to all
cherish it in my heart forever..

@npatel08

Fireworks may subside, festivities may come to an end, but with a

God realized saint present the celebration is actually eternal
TheSouthAsianTimes.info DIWALI SPECIAL October 14-20, 2017
B8 October 14 - 20, 2017 HIS HOLINESS MAHANT SWAMI MAHARAJ
BLESSES NORTH AMERICA
TheSouthAsianTimes.info

Inspiring
Young Adults
Special seminars for young adults themed Eva Sant Ne Namu Hu
Shish, were held in the presence of His Holiness Mahant Swami
Maharaj. Through the Yuvak-Yuvati Day, attendees were able to
learn more about the life and virtues of Mahant Swami Maharaj.
They explored the virtues of the guru through the reading of a
poetic Swaminarayan scripture, the Bhakatachintamani, and
understood these qualities through examples from the life of
Mahant Swami Maharaj. Attendees were also able to interact
with Mahant Swami Maharaj through various activities including
question and answer sessions to help them develop, foster, and
strengthen their faith.

Satsang Shibirs (Seminars) for Adults

With the advent of adulthood,
people face many sweeping
changes due to responsibilities
of family, career and friends.
It is often the constant of
spirituality and faith in
Bhagwan that helps maintain
stability through the ups and
downs of life. A unique two-day
family shibir took place in the
presence of His Holiness Mahant
Swami Maharaj. Following the
theme of Bhagya Jagya Re,
the shibir helped participants
realize how fortunate they
are for being blessed with the
company of Bhagwan and guru.
Senior Swamis from India
explained how constantly
thinking of the glory of
Bhagwan and guru helps
eradicate base desires. They
also explained how thinking
about the glory of Bhagwan also
implies thinking of the glory of
Bhagwans devotees. That helps
foster a positive outlook on life
and those around us, and also
helps maintain harmony with
family and peers.
Through such seminars,
participants also further
develop understanding and
faith. They also impact the
community as a whole through
seva (selfless service) and
samp (unity). This spirituality
passed down by Bhagwan
Swaminarayan and the lineage
of gurus continues to impact the
lives of countless individuals.
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 HIS HOLINESS MAHANT SWAMI MAHARAJ
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Cambridge University Press releases landmark new book on

Swaminarayan Hindu Theology
Cambridge University Press (CUP),
the worlds oldest publishing
house and one of the most reputed
academic publishers in the world,
has released An Introduction to
Swaminarayan Hindu Theology, a
350-page book in English that provides
a comprehensive doctrinal account of
the Swaminarayan traditions belief
system. Authored by Paramtattvadas
Swami, a sadhu ordained by His
Holiness Pramukh Swami Maharaj,
the publication draws on a rich corpus
of theological literature, including the
teachings of Bhagwan Swaminarayan
himself and classical commentaries
on the Upanishads, Shrimad Bhagavad
Gita and Brahmasutras.
The book was officially released in
the presence of His Holiness Mahant
Swami Maharaj in Robbinsville, USA,
on September 6, 2017, and again in
London, UK, on September 25, 2017.
Esteemed members of the American
and British academy were present, as
was Michael Duncan, Senior Global
Marketing Manager for CUP, from
New York.
Hailed by Cambridge University Press
as a landmark publication, the book
has already received high critical
acclaim from leading international
scholars.

A ground-breaking book that will be widely appreciated by scholars
and believers in India and the West. Written by an erudite insider and
practitioner, it is an excellent example of Hindu theology, as Swami
Paramtattvadas speaks with the authority of his experience, practice, and so
too with the benefit of many years of traditional learning as well as study in
Western academic settings.
Francis X. Clooney, SJ Professor of Divinity and Comparative
Theology, Harvard University, USA
In this welcome introduction to Swaminarayan Hindu Theology, Swami
Paramtattvadas has succeeded in presenting the fundamental beliefs of his
tradition in a lucid, meticulous and methodical exposition. This book, while
standing within Swaminarayan Hinduism, seeks to engage with a broader,
rational discourse and to stimulate discussion beyond the bounds of Hindu
communities.
Gavin Flood FBASenior Research Fellow, University of Oxford,
UK& Visiting Professor of Comparative Religious Studies, Yale-NUS,
Singapore

Womens Cultural Program Mandiram: Param Shantidham

A strong family is the result of
strong relationships between
individual family members. Often
it is this strength, built with the
support of faith in Bhagwan,
that serves as the foundation of
communities at large. Mandirs
serve as a place to share in
tradition and culture within a
spiritual community and reinforce
the bonds built among families.
A special community cultural event,
Mandiram: Param Shantidam,
by women, for women, took place
at the BAPS Mandirs visited by His
Holiness Mahant Swami Maharaj.
Mandiram: Param Shantidam
unfolded as a stage play that
followed the lives of three
characters who are on a quest to
write a book about the source of
happiness and satisfaction. Their
research leads them to a mandir,
where they came across a book
that takes them on a journey
through colorful dances, short skits,
speeches, videos, and devotional
songs. Throughout this exploration,
they came to understand the
impact of mandir and the guru
in their quests for peace and
stability. Each character explored
the ideas of responsibility, cultural
preservation, and togetherness
within families and among each
other as tools to foster peaceful
living.
The Mahila Day festivities
incorporated this guidance and
brought together women of all ages
in devotion as a multigenerational
opportunity to share art, dance,
language, and tradition. The
program was made possible by
hundreds of dedicated women
working together to create
the overall concept, design
the program content, prepare
volunteer participants, as well as
provide audio and visual support
throughout the event. Invoking the
values of unity and teamwork, the
event strengthened relationships
among women within the BAPS
North American community
and introduced BAPSs womens
activities to individuals interested
in learning more.
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 HIS HOLINESS MAHANT SWAMI MAHARAJ
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Raising the First Pillars of

Swaminarayan Akshardham
in Robbinsville, NJ
On September 3-4, 2017, the site
of Swaminarayan Akshardham in
Robbinsville, New Jersey was filled with
sounds of the swamis chanting Vedic
mantras, enthusiastic volunteers and
joyful children. Two days of festivities
were organized to celebrate the
installation of the first marble pillars of
Swaminarayan Akshardham Mahamandir.
Currently under construction,
Swaminarayan Akshardham will
serve as a powerful and insightful
introduction to the Hindu faith as well
as Indian art and architecture. By
expressing shared values and a message
of universal peace, Akshardham will
help foster greater harmony among all
faiths and communities. Built to last a
thousand years, Akshardham will be an
enriching and empowering legacy for the
community and country, helping transmit
universal spiritual values for generations
to come.
Devotees and well-wishers participated
in the ceremonies for the installation of
the first marble pillar of Swaminarayan
Akshardham. On September 4, 2017,
the first pillar was installed by Mahant
Swami Maharaj. Blessing the assembly, he
said, Even our smallest act of devotion
is considered by Bhagwan as a great act
of sacrifice. We pray that thousands of
people benefit from this Mahamandir,
and may all those who come to visit attain
peace and happiness.

Inauguration of Ghanshyam Maharaj HH Pramukh Swami Maharajs

Abhishek Mandapam Asthipushpa Visarjan Ceremonies

On the auspicious day of Jal Jhilani
Ekadashi, September 2, 2017, His
Holiness Mahant Swami Maharaj
performed the Murti Pratishtha
ceremony of Shri Ghanshyam
Maharaj Abhishek Murti and
inaugurated the artistically
mesmeric Shri Ghanshyam Maharaj
Abhishek Mandapam at the BAPS
Shri Swaminarayan Mandir in
Robbinsville, New Jersey.
The Abhishek Mandapam
houses the sacred image of
Shri Ghanshyam Maharaj, the
childhood form of Bhagwan
Swaminarayan, the founder of
the Swaminarayan Sampraday.
The murti depicts a scene from
Bhagwan Swaminarayans
childhood, when he climbed a pipal
tree and looked towards the West,
where He saw aspirants awaiting
spiritual guidance. Mahant Swami
Maharaj expressed his joy on the
occasion by blessing the thousands
of participants. He prayed that may
all who perform abhishek of the
murti, experience inner peace and
spiritual growth, and may their
wishes be fulfilled.
His Holiness Pramukh Swami
Maharajs Asthipushpa Visarjan
took place at the Niagara Falls,
Canada and on the banks of the
Hudson River, New York on July 27
and September 7, 2017 respectively.
His Holiness Mahant Swami
Maharaj, his spiritual successor,
performed the holy ash dispersion
ceremony. Pramukh Swami
Maharaj passed away in Sarangpur,
India, on August 13, 2016, at the
age of 95. He had visited the United
States of America and Canada
fourteen times and twelve times
respectively between 1974-2014.
During his speech, Mahant Swami
Maharaj said that someone with
such an impact on thousands
of individuals never leaves this
earthhis spirit continues to touch
and inspire. He led by example;
his humility, faith in God, and
compassion inspired millions of
devotees and over 1000 swamis
to maintain moral and spiritual
lifestyles. Recognized and respected
as one of Indias greatest spiritual
teachers, he lived by and promoted
the principle: In the joy of others,
lies our own.

TheSouthAsianTimes.info
Declaration of Bhagwan Swaminarayans teachings
as the Akshar-Purushottam Darshan
On the historic day of September
17, 2017, on the holy grounds of
the Swaminarayan Akshardham
devotees, Sanskrit scholars and
swamis gathered to celebrate
three momentous events, the
inauguration of the Swminryan-
siddhnta-sudh; the r K composition of the text, the
Vidvat Parishad recognizing r
Swminryans Vednta as the Darshan, and its characteristic
Akshar-Purushottam Darshan,
as Vedic and distinct from the
other Vedanta darshans and the
official declaration of Bhagwan
Swminryans teachings as the
Akshar-Purushottam Darshan.
The Inauguration of the
Swminryan-siddhnta-
sudh The Prasthnatray-
The evening assembly was
marked with the inauguration
of the Swminryan-siddhnta-
sudh by HH Mahant Swami
Maharaj. Authored by Pujya
Bhadreshdas Swami, an eminent
Sanskrit scholar and ordained
monk of the BAPS Swaminarayan
Sanstha, the text is traditionally
categorized as a vdagrantha a
formal exposition, justification,
and defense of the philosophical
and theological positions of a
darshan. It is composed on the
Akshar-Purushottam Darshan as
it was revealed by Parabrahman
Purushottam Swminryan.
The text presents a sophisticated
treatment of the philosophical
principles of Bhagavn
Swminryan. Among other
things, it grounds these principles
on expositions found within the
Prasthnatray a collective
designation for the Upanishads,
rmadbhagavadgt, and the
Brahmastras.
r K Vidvat Parishads
Recognition of the
Swminryan-siddhnta-sudh
The assembly thereafter continued
by recalling the admiration,
commendation, and recognition
expressed by the r K Vidvat
Parishad for Sadhu Bhadreshdas
creation of the Swminryan-
HIS HOLINESS MAHANT SWAMI MAHARAJ
BLESSES NORTH AMERICA
siddhnta-sudh. Established in
Varanasi, the K Vidvat Parishad
is an authoritative, honorable
council which serves a decisive
role in matters concerning Vedic
principles and its research. In
recognition of the outstanding
novelty of the Akshar-Purushottam
Akshar-Purushottam Siddhnta
(doctrine), the council presented
a letter of endorsement and a
copper-plated letter of declaration
to Mahmahopdyya Sadhu Akshar-Purushottam Darshan is
Bhadreshdas Swami. Notably,
the two documents express the
following:
Swminryan-bhshya and the
Swminryan-siddhnta-sudh
are sacred texts on Parabrahman
Swminryans revealed Akshar-
Purushottam Darshan. These
sacred texts are in every manner
the protectors of the eternal Vedic
religious tradition.
Acclaimed by all scholars,
respected Mahmahopdyya
Sadhu Bhadreshdas is an
acharya and a contemporary
commentator in the lineage
of commentators on the
Prasthnatray.
Within philosophy, just as r
ankaras Vednta is identified
as the Advaita Darshan, r
Rmnujas Vednta is identified
as the Viistdvaita Darshan, r
Madhvas Vednta is identified
as the Dvaita Darshan, r
Vallabhas Vednta is identified as
the uddhdvaita Darshan, and
others are respectively known;
it is in every way appropriate
to identify Sri Swminryans
Vednta by the title: Akshar-
Purushottam Darshan.
We (members of the K Vidvat
Parishad) all collectively endorse
that this Akshar-Purushottam
Siddhnta that has been revealed
by Parabrahman Swminryan
is a Vedic siddhnta that
is distinct from Advaita,
Viistadvaita, and all other
doctrines.
Both the letter of endorsement
and the copper-plated letter
of declaration were offered by
Sadhu Bhadreshdas Swami to
guru Mahant Swami Maharaj.
Speaking on this occasion, Sadhu
Bhadreshdas Swami humbly
credited his scholarly works to
the inspiration he had received
from Pramukh Swami Maharaj
and the blessings of guru Mahant
Swami Maharaj. He added: The
not only confined to such texts, but
is also practiced as a way of life by
thousands of devotees of the BAPS
Swaminarayan Sanstha.
Swminryans Teachings as the
Akshar-Purushottam Darshan
The assembly concluded with
HH Mahant Swami Maharajs
appreciation of the Swminryan-
siddhnta-sudh and Sadhu
Bhadreshdas Swamis humility.
He recalled that the first joined
use of Akshar and Purushottam
was gifted by Shastriji Maharaj,
the third spiritual successor of
Bhagwan Swminryan and the
founder of the BAPS Swaminarayan
Sanstha. He then officially
declared that Parabrahman
Swminryans teachings
would henceforth be recognized
as the Akshar-Purushottam
Siddhnta and that the darshanic
title would be identified as the
Akshar-Purushottam Darshan. In
celebration of these this historic
events, all of those present at the
assembly expressed their deep
admiration.
October 14 - 20, 2017 B15
You will find in Swami
Bhadreshdas bhshya
(commentary) on the
Brahmastras an absolutely lucid,
faithful interpretation of the sutras.
Another thing that characterizes
Bhadreshdas work in contrast to
a typical other sort of comparable
work is the lack of animosity.
Sadhu Bhadreshdas subtle
treatment of raised objections is
conducted in such a manner that
one never realizes that he is really
arguing against anybody.
Professor George Cardona,
Professor Emeritus of
Linguistics and South Asian
studies at the University of
Pennsylvania
Within the history of the Indian
academic tradition it is the first
time that a single person has
authored both a commentary on
the entire Prasthanatrayi and
also a vaadagrantha of ones own
sampradaya. I firmly believe that
this vaadagrantha will achieve
great admiration throughout the
world.
Shri Ramesh Kumar Pandeyji,
Vice-Chancellor of Shri Lal
Bahadur Shastri Rashtriya
Sanskrit University
The Swaminarayan Siddhant
Sudha is written in very lucid, not
unnecessarily complex, Sanskrit.
And the overall style is reminiscent,
to me, of the clarity and eloquence
of the Shankar Acharyas basha
(writing) which lends Bhadresh
Swamijis work a good deal of
gravity authority and power to
those who can read and appreciate
Sanskrit.
Professor Graham Schweig,
Director of Studies in Religion at
Christopher Newport University
This work has not only been
approved, but has been celebrated
by the Shri Kasi Vidvat Parishad.
This is the pandits of Benaras,
Kashi, who for centuries test a
work before they approve it and
test to see if it is worthy of praise;
and in this work it has not only
received praise but it has received
admiration of the highest order.
Professor Deven Patel,
University of Pennsylvania
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Grand 10th Anniversary Celebrations of BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandirs:

Atlanta, Toronto and San Jose

Atlanta Toronto San Jose

The 10th anniversary celebration of
BAPS Mandirs in Atlanta, Toronto
and San Jose took place in the
presence of His Holiness Mahant
Swami Maharaj, devotees, well-
wishers and dignitaries. The Right
Honourable Justin Trudeau, Prime
Minister of Canada attended the
10th anniversary celebrations of the
BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir Devotees shared stories of reaching Pramukh Swami Maharaj and
in Toronto. milestones in their spiritual lives, sharing heartfelt reflections of
growing closer to one another, their first meeting with Mahant
Highlights from the programs
and practicing peaceful living all Swami Maharaj during his current
included video montages of the
inspired and guided by the role of travels. The celebrations concluded
inaugural ceremonies and colorful
mandir in their lives. The event with blessings from Mahant Swami
cultural dances. Guests relived the
was attended by many community Maharaj who encouraged all to
past ten years of each mandirs
and government officials, each uphold unity, maintain faith, and
history as well as the development
recalling fond moments with HH further develop inner spirituality.
of childrens and youth activities.

I hope all Canadians can find the time to come visit this Most cities in the state of Georgia want to be a place where you live,
magnificent site and learn more about the rich history of the Hindu work, and play. But may I offer another alternative, or add to it, and
community right here in Canada at home. that is we need to be a city where there is a place to live, to work, to
Justin Trudeau, Prime Minister of Canada play, and to pray. - Johnny Crist, Mayor of Lilburn

World Peace Prayer on 9/11

On September 11, 2017, His
Holiness Mahant Swami Maharaj
prayed for harmony and world
peace on the 16th anniversary of
9/11 at the New Jersey Convention
& Exposition Center in Edison, New
Jersey.
The program honored the
victims and first responders of
the 9/11 terrorist attack on the
World Trade Center in New York
City. The program focused on
the importance of unity, and
emphasized His Holiness Pramukh
Swami Maharajs message for
interfaith understanding, respect,
and harmony. The program
culminated by calling upon guests,
including community leaders and
government officials, to come to the and also prayed for their families.
stage and to pray for the victims
In his blessings, Mahant Swami
of 9/11, for their families, and for
Maharaj spoke of the importance of
peace across the world. The Vedic
unity in families and communities.
Shantipath, an ancient Sanskrit
He stressed that unity through
prayer for world peace, was
mutual understanding is the
sung by children. Mahant Swami
cornerstone of global peace.
Maharaj showered sanctified rose
petals on the nearly 3,000 names of
the victims displayed on the stage
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Inspiring Community & World Leaders

During His Holiness Mahant
Swami Maharajs tour of North
America, he took part in various
public programs along with tens of
thousands of attendees as well as
numerous special guests including
public officials, community and
world leaders. Interaction and
collaboration between the Indian-
American community and elected
officials help provide a forum
for interfaith understanding
and an avenue to understanding
Hinduism and its practice. Upon
their arrival to the local BAPS
mandir, each guest was greeted
according to Hindu customs and
traditions. Volunteers and swamis
explained cultural practices and
their relevance in modern society,
helping civic leaders to witness the
social experience that is shaped
by spirituality within the BAPS
community. The common thread
among each guests experiences
was witnessing spirituality and
service in action.

Barack Obama, Former President of the United States

On September 5, 2017, Mahant Swami

Maharaj met with former United
States President Barack Obama in
Washington D.C. President Obama
appreciated how BAPS mandirs
have not only served as houses of
worship but also community centers
catering to social and humanitarian
needs as well as fostering vibrant
children and youth programs. They
spoke about how encouraging service
requires encouraging individuals
to see goodness in one another.
Mahant Swami Maharaj specifically
explained the Hindu principle that
each individual soul is divine, and so
service of each individual is a selfless
act of devotion. He was touched by
President Obamas humility, sharing
with the President a verse from a John
Bunyan poem, He that is down, need
fear no fall. He that is low, no pride.
He that is humble, ever shall have God
to be his guide.

Justin Trudeau, Prime Minister of Canada

The Prime Minster of Canada, the
Right Honourable Justin Trudeau,
celebrated the tenth anniversary of
the BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandir
in Toronto with His Holiness Mahant
Swami Maharaj on July 22, 2017.
The two discussed the importance
of service as expressed by Pramukh
Swami Maharajs motto, In the joy of
others lies our own. Mahant Swami
Maharaj appreciated the Prime
Ministers message of inclusiveness
and diversity noting that true
unity comes from our diversity.
Addressing the assembly, the Prime
Minister encouraged all Canadians
to visit the Mandir saying, I hope
all Canadians can find the time to
visit this magnificent site and learn
more about the rich history of the
Hindu community here in Canada.
Both Mahant Swami Maharaj and the
Prime Minister shared messages of
unity with thousands in attendance.
 HIS HOLINESS MAHANT SWAMI MAHARAJ
B19 October 14 - 20, 2017 BLESSES NORTH AMERICA
Public Officials & Community Leaders
Over 137 public officials and candidates for public office joined BAPS
for festivities and programs that highlighted messages of harmony
and service. Mahant Swami Maharajs efforts to share universal Hindu
messages and foster public dialogue on service and the importance of
unity in our communities and in our nation resonated with every dignitary
who attended regardless of their background or affiliations. He shared
Your Holiness, I know that youre telling the
group ds no ds, that is, we conduct ourselves
as servants of servants. And youve made me
feel very welcome because Im a follower of
Jesus and because we have these themes [i.e. of
service] that are unifying themes
Peter Roskam, U.S. Representative (IL-6)
I really believe that... particularly whats
preached by [Mahant] Swami about peace and
unity is very much in tune with what I consider
important American values.
Frank Pallone, U.S. Representative (NJ-6)
This is one of the highlights of my serving
in public office, to have been with [Mahant]
Swami earlier this evening, [and] to know
about his message of humility, being ds no
ds. (humble servant)
Joe Wilson, U.S. Representative (SC-2)
I am proud of what weve been talking about:
unity and peace and (Mahant) Swami, I am
proud to report to you that we have created
here in Robbinsville, Samp (unity).
David Fried, Mayor of the Township of
Robbinsville, NJ
Mahant Swami Maharaj is an individual with
a very, very large heart. A person who cares
deeply about our world, deeply about our
country and also deeply about individuals.
Casey Cagle, Lieutenant Governor, Georgia
Your Holiness, you are divine.
John Millner, Former State Senator of
Illinois
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
the Hindu principle, that each soul is divine and that inherent divinity
should foster respect for all individuals, regardless of the differences that
sometimes divide us. He consistently prayed that public officials would be
able to unite their communities and the nation to work for the good of all.
On September 11, he joined community leaders and public officials to pray
for peace, harmony, and unity in the United States and around the world.
We are here on earth to help each other, the
ideal of samp, unity, the ideal of ds n ds.
Bruce Rauner, Governor of Illinois
We share in [BAPS] mission of establishing
faith, unity and selflessness and we will support
that however we can.
Laura Murphy, State Senator of Illinois,
28th District
Your message of samp and ds n ds can
help [make] our state, country, and whole
world a better place.
Matt Rinaldi, State Representative, 115th
District, TX
The lessons that I learned from my
engagements with Mahant Swami Maharaj
and BAPS is that seeing divinity in all allows
us to treat others as we always wanted to be
treated.
Rick Stopfer, Mayor of Irving, TX
Greatness comes cloaked in humility. When
I met His Holiness Mahant Swami Maharaj
today, I felt humility. I felt simplicity, love,
affection, and caring...
Dr. Anupam Ray,
Consul General of India, Houston
I have learned an important word here
tonight, its called samp which means unity.
It emphasizes the importance of being one
with ourselves, with our family, and with our
community.
Chris Hillman, Manager,
City of Irving, TX

TheSouthAsianTimes.info
Teachings of Mahant Swami Maharaj
His Holiness Mahant Swami Maharaj continues
the teachings and legacy of his guru Pramukh
Swami Maharaj. Drawing upon his years of
experience serving his guru, Mahant Swami
Maharaj shares his years of wisdom with
devotees by the following core teachings:
Positivity (seeing good in all), Shanti (peace)
and Samp (unity). These teachings, as Mahant
Swami Maharaj continuously taught, are the
cornerstones of personal, professional, spiritual
and global growth. As individuals begin living
by these ideals, profound positive impact can
be seen on families and communities across the
world.
Samp (Unity)
Mahant Swami Maharaj teaches the idea of
samp (unity) as a cornerstone to all aspects
of success. It is the key to success in personal,
familial and community-level endeavors.
Where there is samp, there is
progress; where there is no samp
there is regress.
Pearls of wisdom culled from Mahant Swami Maharajs discourses
He who keeps
Bhagwan unity is wise.
resides where Otherwise, he is
there is unity,
good-heartedness,
compassion, and
discipline. One who
possesses humility,
patience, and
forgiveness is above
all three gunas
HIS HOLINESS MAHANT SWAMI MAHARAJ
BLESSES NORTH AMERICA
The message of samp was exemplified by his
gurus, Yogiji Maharaj and Pramukh Swami
Maharaj. Seeing Mahant Swami Maharajs stress
for maintaining harmony, many devotees were
inspired to enhance their way of thinking to
instill and integrate the ideals in their families,
at work and in their communities. As an act of
devotion, volunteers at BAPS mandirs across
North America imbibed the idea into their
lifestyle as they dedicated hundreds of volunteer
hours to plan and execute three months of
celebrations, programs, and events during
Mahant Swami Maharajs visit. By living a
harmonious life, devotees continued the legacy
of Pramukh Swami Maharajs life motto: In the
progress of others, lies our own. In the joy of
others, lies our own.
Positivity (Seeing good in all)
According to Mahant Swami Maharaj, a positive
attitude towards others is essential for growth
because it helps maintain both samp and shanti.
It is often basic human nature to see faults in
The Satpurush With
(Guru) gives us humility, we
true knowledge, can conquer
foolish. enlightens our soul, our mind.
and imparts us
wisdom.
All wisdom He who takes
is encapsulated the refuge of
in unity, good- Bhagwan becomes
heartedness, and fearless.
oneness.
October 14 - 20, 2017 B21
others, but Mahant Swami Maharaj encouraged
devotees to steer away from that potentially
dangerous vortex and see the good in others.
How you see others, that is how you
become, so dont see faults in them.
Look at only the positive.
Shanti (Peace throughout the world)
Mahant Swami Maharaj says that peace in the
world begins at home. He first urged devotees
to maintain peace and harmony within their
homes and their families. He taught that if
there is harmony at home, then there will be
harmony within the community and eventually
throughout the world. To maintain harmony
at home, Mahant Swami Maharaj encouraged
the concept of Ghar Sabha, a daily gathering
in which all family members come together to
pray, learn, and facilitate dialogue.
True success in life is experiencing
peace at heart.
Fault-finding is so
dangerous that it can
burn those it touches. One
should remain fearful of
fault-finding and only see
the good in others.
If we have firm
faith in Bhagwan
and the right
understanding (of
atma), no questions
would arise.
 HIS HOLINESS MAHANT SWAMI MAHARAJ
B22 October 14 - 20, 2017 BLESSES NORTH AMERICA
TheSouthAsianTimes.info

BAPS Mandirs in North America

Established in 1907, the BAPS
Swaminarayan Sanstha (BAPS) is
a worldwide Hindu organization
dedicated to the collective spiritual
and social progress of society by
promoting harmony between
individuals, within families and
amongst diverse communities.
Under the leadership of His
Holiness Pramukh Swami Maharaj
(1971- 2016) and currently His
Holiness Mahant Swami Maharaj,
BAPS North America has been
serving with an emphasis on:
Spirituality, Family Unity, Cultural
Heritage, Humanitarian Services,
Child and Youth Development.
BAPS Shri Swaminarayan Mandirs
have been serving families and
swamis in North America giving
spiritual guidance, the organization
individuals across USA and Canada hosts over 677 weekly satsang
through a number of spiritual and assemblies for children, youth and
cultural activities. adults.
Its 150 centers, including over 100
mandirs, form the hub of its various
initiatives. With over 75 dedicated

baps.org/globalnetwork
CANADA GEORGIA NEW JERSEY SOUTH CAROLINA
baps.org/Calgary baps.org/Albany-GA baps.org/AtlanticCity baps.org/Columbia-SC
baps.org/Toronto baps.org/Atlanta baps.org/CherryHill baps.org/Greenville
baps.org/Scarborough baps.org/Augusta baps.org/Clifton baps.org/Orangeburg
baps.org/Windsor baps.org/Calhoun baps.org/Edison
TENNESSEE
baps.org/Perry baps.org/JerseyCity
baps.org/Chattanooga
baps.org/Savannah baps.org/Parsippany
USA baps.org/Piscataway
baps.org/Columbia-TN
ILLINOIS baps.org/Knoxville
ALABAMA baps.org/Robbinsville
baps.org/Bloomington baps.org/Memphis
baps.org/Birmingham-AL
baps.org/Chicago NEW YORK baps.org/Nashville
baps.org/Dothan
baps.org/Albany-NY
baps.org/Huntsville INDIANA TEXAS
baps.org/LongIsland
baps.org/Montgomery baps.org/Indianapolis baps.org/Austin
baps.org/NewYork
baps.org/ClearLake
ARIZONA KANSAS baps.org/Syracuse
baps.org/CorpusChristi
baps.org/Phoenix baps.org/KansasCity baps.org/Westchester
baps.org/Dallas
baps.org/Tucson
KENTUCKY NORTH CAROLINA baps.org/Houston
ARKANSAS baps.org/Louisville baps.org/Charlotte baps.org/Lubbock
baps.org/LittleRock baps.org/Greensboro baps.org/SanAntonio
LOUISIANA
baps.org/NewOrleans baps.org/Raleigh
CALIFORNIA VIRGINIA
baps.org/Fresno OHIO baps.org/NorthernVirginia
MARYLAND
baps.org/LosAngeles baps.org/Cincinnati baps.org/Richmond
baps.org/WashingtonDC
baps.org/Sacramento baps.org/Cleveland baps.org/Roanoke
baps.org/SanFrancisco MASSACHUSETTS baps.org/Columbus baps.org/VirginiaBeach
baps.org/SanJose baps.org/Boston baps.org/Dayton
baps.org/SouthBoston WASHINGTON
CONNECTICUT OKLAHOMA baps.org/Seattle
baps.org/Springfield
baps.org/Hartford baps.org/OklahomaCity
baps.org/Westborough WISCONSIN
DELAWARE OREGON baps.org/Milwaukee
MICHIGAN
baps.org/Delaware baps.org/Portland
baps.org/Detroit
Traditional Stone Mandir
FLORIDA baps.org/SterlingHeights PENNSYLVANIA
baps.org/Jacksonville baps.org/Allentown
MINNESOTA
baps.org/Melbourne-FL baps.org/Harrisburg
baps.org/Minneapolis
baps.org/Miami baps.org/Lansdale
baps.org/Orlando MISSISSIPPI baps.org/Philadelphia
baps.org/Tampa baps.org/Jackson baps.org/Pittsburgh
MISSOURI baps.org/Scranton
baps.org/StLouis baps.org/Warrington

Houston, TX Atlanta, GA Chicago, IL Los Angeles, CA

TheSouthAsianTimes.info DIWALI SPECIAL October 14-20, 2017
TheSouthAsianTimes.info DIWALI SPECIAL October 14-20, 2017
 42 October 14-20, 2017 RELIGION

Sri Ram Rameti Rame

Raame Manorame
Sahasra Naama Tattulyam
Ramnama varaanane.

It is believed that in Varanasi

Lord Vishvanath imparts Rams
name to each and every being at
the time of death. Not only hu-
man beings, even gods have been
blessed by Rams name like the Ramayan enacted before Diwali is the eponymous story of Lord Ram.
well-known story of the competi- But Saint Tulasidas proclaimed that the name of Ram is mightier than the
tion between Ganesha and Muru- Lord Ram himself as evidenced in the miracles wrought by Hanuman.
ga. When Muruga diligently cir-
By Kanaka cumambulated his parents on his the bridge was built. mendicant, once he was hungry some food. Birbal did not want
Ramkrishna peacock with great speed, Ganesha When Lord Ram was leaving and thirsty in an unknown place to go and quietly started Ram-
wrote RAM on the sand and went his mortal body, he asked Hanu- when a man hurriedly came to the nam japa. Akbar told him that
round it, as it was equivalent to man to go into deep samadhi and swami, carrying water and a pack mere chanting would not bring

W hat is in a name? A rose

would smell the same by
any other name. Once the name is
going round the whole world. Siva
was immensely pleased and made
attain the eternal Bliss of Brah-
man. Hanuman declined saying
of food. Surprised, Vivekananda
told the stranger, You must have
any food and he left by himself.
After a while, he saw a village at
him the leader of all his ganas and that he would prefer to live on mistaken me for somebody else. a distance and came to a house
given to an object, the association he got the name Ganapathy. this earth, where Ram was born, The man insisted that there was where the family members were
is inevitable. But Ram is not just When Ravana abducted Sita and and His name ever playing on his no mistake and explained to him very happy to serve the food for
a name. It has deep significance, kept her in his Ashoka vatika in lips is bliss to him. Hearing this, what happened. After finishing the emperor. After the meal, Ak-
its own glory, power and strength. Lanka, Sita was thinking and chant- Ram asked Hanuman, Why is it his morning job in his sweetmeat bar took some food for Birbal
As soon as the name is mentioned, ing Rams name day and night. you value my name more than shop, he went home, and was hav- also and came back. He gave the
of course, the image of Lord Ram The name of Ram is mightier me? Hanuman replied, My Lord, ing a post-lunch nap when he had food to Birbal and told him he got
arises in ones mind. Ram nam is than Ram himself, said saint Tu- You are only a mortal incarna- a vision of Sri Ram, pointing out the food by self-effort. Birbal qui-
one of the sweetest and most pop- lasidas. It is not easy for ordinary tion, whereas your name and the swami to him, telling him that etly ate the food and said, Today
ular utterings in Indian psyche. persons to know the greatness of deeds are eternal. Hence your his devotee was starving without the emperor had to beg for food,
Even Alexander the Great said be- Rams name -- Valmiki and Hanu- name on this earth is eternal. As food since the previous day, and while Ram got me food through
fore leaving India, that his impres- man. Valmiki recited it backwards, long as Rams name is chanted on he should prepare some food and the emperor. That is the power of
sions about India was Rams MA-RA, and it still became RA-MA, this earth, Hanuman will be al- run to the station to feed him. Ram nam.
name and Ganga water. and he got salvation. ways present at such places. The man thought it was only a Ram nam is the only solution to
The name Ram existed from It was through the power of dream and went back to his nap. the eternal problems of human life.
time immemorial, even before Rams name that Hanuman was But again Sri Ram appeared and The ultimate answer to the ques-
Dasarathas son Ram was born. able to cross the wide ocean of
The names grace urged him to take the food im- tion of helplessness that one may
Sage Vashishta meditated on the several miles in just one leap in our times mediately. Vivekananda was very have to face in life is when all other
name Ram. Sage Manu said that to Lanka and was able to find much moved and accepted the powers have failed, meditation on
Ram nam has links to all other the abducted Sita there. When While mythologies and scrip- food with deep gratitude. His Lotus feet, thinking of Him, and
mantras that ever existed. It is said
that the Pranava or Omkara has
originated from the name Ram.
When Dasaratha wanted his fam-
ily priest Vashistha to name his
babies, he named the first baby
Ram, who is one of the ten incar-
nations of Vishnu, and popularly
worshipped by many Hindus.
The two main strands in the
Hindu pantheon are the worship
of Narayana (Vishnu) and Shiva.
The moola mantra for Narayana
is, Om Namo Narayana and the
moola Mantra for Siva is Om
Namah Sivaya. In the Narayana
mantra, the life of the mantra lies
in the letters ra and in the Shiva
mantra, the life of the mantra lies
in the letters ma. The Divine se-
cret lies in combining the life giv-
ing letters Ra and Ma from these
two mantras and forming RAM for
the Nirguna Parabrahma, which
has no name or form or quality.
By naming the Nameless as
Ram, it is the only mantra that
is called Taraka Mantra -- tarak
means that helps to cross, to cross
the ocean of samsara. Chanting the
name Ram, with love and faith,
gives strength to overcome the
problems of life. Those who pray
with steadfast devotion can obtain the vaanaras were building the tures are abundant with the glory Another incident happened chanting His name is the only way.
the knowledge of the Supreme. bridge on the ocean to go to Lan- of Rams name and His grace, in during the period of Emperor Ak- It provides mental poise and seren-
Parvathi wanted to hear from ka, the rocks drowned in the wa- modern age also we hear the ex- bars rule. Once, Akbar and his ity, which cannot be obtained by
Lord Shiva, the easy method to ter. Hanuman simply said, chant periences of His devotees, who trusted minister Birbal while go- any other means. He alone provides
chant the thousand names of Vish- Rams divine name and the rocks were blessed by His grace. Swami ing on some royal duty, had to help for the helpless, power for the
nu. Lord Shiva told her the beautiful would not sink. The vanaras com- Vivekananda was an unknown pass through a forest. Tired and powerless, security for the inse-
name Ram, Ram, Ram, is equivalent plied and immediately the rocks monk before going to America. hungry, they rested under a tree. cure; He is the everlasting treasure
to chanting one thousand names of floated, they were convinced of During his travels through the After a while, Akbar suggested for all. He is the Sat-Chit-Ananda,
Vishnu. (Vishnu Sahasranama.) the efficacy of Rams name and length and breadth of India as a that they should go and look for ever enshrined in our hearts.
TheSouthAsianTimes.info DIWALI SPECIAL October 14-20, 2017

Happy Diwali Opening Soon In

Richmond Hill, NY

By Sant Rajinder Singh Ji Maharaj
44 October 14-20, 2017
The Light of Divine glows continually within us. There is a flame that can empower us
with wisdom, eternal happiness, all-embracing love, freedom from fear, and immorality.
O ne of the festivals of autumn
is Diwali, which is celebrated
as the festival of lights. There is
a beautiful verse by Kabir Sahib
referring to the diya, or the lamps
lit on Diwali, which says:
Like the blind uselessly light-
ing a diya when they cannot even
see, the secret of our true self
lies within our house, yet we are
seeking outside.
Hidden within each of us is a
spark of the Divine. Breath-taking
regions of beauty, unimaginable
vistas of sights and sounds, infi-
nite wisdom, and all-embracing
love invite us within. The Light of
Divine glows continually. There
is a flame that can empower us
S p i r i t ua l i t y
with wisdom, eternal happiness,
all-embracing love, freedom from
fear, and immorality. This flame il-
lumines our heart and mind with
answers to questions that have
mystified humankind for ages.
It is not a gift reserved for a
few; it is available to everyone. We
have to look within to bask in the
eternal sunshine. Through medita-
tion, we can see and hear the light
and sound current within. We sit
comfortably in the silence of our
soul and look within to bask in the
wonders of luminous vistas within.
Like a ray of light leads back to the
sun, the inner journey leads us to
the Source of the current of light
and sound, the abode of the Divine.
Just as we light a fire to warm
us without, we need to ignite the
spiritual fire within. Once that
spark is lit, we need to tend it to
keep it glowing. As it illumines us
within, we shine forth our eternal
light with a luminosity that radi-
ates to all we meet until the entire
world is flooded with the Light of
the Divine and is bathed in eternal
love, peace, and bliss.
Kabir Sahibs conclusion is that
we have the Light or diya within us,
but seek it outside. The soul has the
spark of God within, but seeks ful-
fillment in the outer realm. It is like
a blind person who lights a diya or
a lamp when they cannot even see
the light. This forgetfulness of God
causes the soul to seek only in the
outer world for that happiness and
bliss already within. Kabir Sahib
is saying that the situation is not
hopeless. We can escape this cycle
with knowledge of a spiritual teach-
er or Master. Masters come to this
world to remind us that our true
home is in God. They want to awak-
en us to realize we are not the body
and mind, but the soul. They come
to free us from this state of forget-
fulness to take us back to the Lord.
Sant Rajinder Singh Ji
Maharaj is the founder
of Sawan Kirpal Ruhani
Mission / Science of Spiri-
tuality with international
headquarters on New
Delhi, India. Contact
www.sos.org

W hen I came to New York in
1975, we celebrated Diwali
but it was nothing like the way
we did in India. Its only when my
kids started school, I was struck by
how other religions were celebrat-
ed during the school year, while
Diwali was completely ignored.
America has been home to all re-
ligious groups, with freedom and
equality. Indeed, all religions ma-
jor holidays were celebrated with
a school holiday and a USPS stamp
- all, that is except Diwali - a glar-
ing omission. I felt it was not fair.
I wanted my kids to stay home on
Diwali, but then they would miss
school. If I sent them to school,
they would miss Diwali at home.
I chose to send them to school,
when I should not have to choose
between education and Diwali. It
should be like Christmas - a cel-
ebration without missing school.
Well, this is what sparked my
Culture and festivals unite
Hindu-Muslims - Aleya Jung
B ollywood is not necessarily a
good barometer to judge the
secular climate of India, but what
problems of India has Hindi films
not solved with a quick number by
a Lata or a Noor Jehan, what enmi-
ties in Dostana have not been sung
away by a Rafi or a Kishore?
Off-screen too every single
member of the filmy community
celebrates every Indian festival:
If Aamir Khan hosts a Diwali
party, a Sanjay Dutt may have an
46 October 14-20, 2017
Diwali Stamp celebrates living
heritage of a billion people
determination to go for Diwali
Stamp. With help of many I started
the drive of collecting signatures, a
tedious job but I incorporated this
grassroots efforts into my daily life.
My tens of thousands of paper peti-
tions were signed not only by Hin-
dus, Sikhs, Jains and Buddhists, but
also by Christians, Jews, Muslims,
and every other faith - with the
grace of God and a lot of support
from people like you and me and
powerful people.
While my Diwali Stamp journey
took 7 years, Diwali Stamp is here
Forever, and it will be a matter of
pride for generations to come. In
this digital age a small piece of pa-
per -- called Forever Diwali Stamp
- celebrates the living heritage of
over one billion people. This cel-
ebration is not only of a religion
or a nation, but it is of the spirit
of harmonious inclusiveness and
cultural understanding that all re-
ligions deserve in America.
The Diwali Stamp was dedicat-
ed on October 5, 2016. It is an ac-
knowledgement of our community
as Americans. That I was personal-
ly able to sell 170,000 Stamps for
Iftari party and a Salman Khan
will ceremoniously bring Ga-
napati home. A Hrithik will wed
Suzanne and a Shah Rukh, Gauri
and Rekha? Well, she is the ulti-
mate Umrao Jaan. Colas, Car and
Communal Harmony by Bharti S.
Pradhan is an excellent illustra-
tion of this, go grab a copy quick.
I grew up in Bombay and for
us children all that mattered was
the rich foods and mouth-water-
ing sweets that accompany festi-
FIR ST PER SON
Day One made our Diwali Stamp
the #1 bestseller in USPS history.
Then on December 5, 2016 at the
United Nations, I was humbled by
the honor bestowed by 24 coun-
tries, led by co-organizers Belarus
and India, for their celebration of
my journey and the Stamp. Recent-
ly, Canada made history by issuing
with India, a Joint Diwali Stamp.
Of course, Diwali as a school
holiday across America is long
overdue, even as my kids are all
grown now; but, it will happen
soon. Last November, I, along
with my husband, Ravi, testified
in the NYC Council to compel
NYC to make Diwali a legal school
holiday so no parent need pick be-
tween faith and education.
One of the most amazing fac-
ets about America and Americans
is the generosity of spirit of every
culture and every faith, and the
mutual respect given by one faith
to another.
So I and my family wish you, and
your family, a very HAPPY DIWALI
in New York and in every other part
of the United States of America; and
indeed, across the world.
girls or girly boys (of course, we
grew out of that terminology and
Jung is Home Health
Care Administrator,
Metropolitan Jewish
Health Care System
vals. It was only later in my early
20s that I thanked my parents for
letting us have fun without reli-
gious restrictions. We sometimes
muddy our thought process by
mixing culture with religion. A
Muslim may pray in the same
fashion and read the same scrip-
tures all over the world, but what
she eats, wears, speaks differs
from region to region, continent
to continent. So while an Arab
will not celebrate Diwali, an In-
The Ganga-Jamuni
Tehzeeb is part of
my DNA like it is part
of millions of Muslims
all over India.
- Ranju Batra
Ranju Batra spearheaded the long campaign to get
USPS to release the Diwali Stamp last year.
dian Muslim most certainly will,
and at the very least participate
in one fashion or the other.
One was brave and tough if
one could let the atom bomb
burst in ones hands, swollen fin-
gers and frayed finger nails were
routinely displayed as badges
of honor. Phoojharhis were for
would abhor using it now).
Kesar pedha and ladoo, glim-
mering jalebis and glistening gulab
jamuns-- does zaika have a religion?
Chakrees and anaars and bot-
tle rockets and unending laris that
would echo long into the nights
-- the cacophony had no language
and the glittering lights no religion.
Meo or Mewati Muslims be-
lieve they are descendants of
Lord Rama. This unique Muslim
(over 400,000) community that
hails from northwestern India
are famous for their narration of
folk songs and oral story telling
of the Mahabharata (Pandun Ka
Kada). They celebrate Holi, Diwali
etc. with the same gusto as the
next Hindu. We all have some of
the Mewati in us, as I learned as I
gathered my bearings.
I grew up with the most diverse
group I have encountered. There
Chair, Diwali
Foundation
USA, Inc.
was Firdos Mukadum, Rajesh Kale,
Sanjeev Dsouza, Harshvardhan
Singh and Aslam Adam. School
was a mixture of the same. There
was a small temple on top of a
rather craggy and scary hillock
neighboring our school. In the
15-minute recess we would man-
age to eat our vada pao and run up
that hill, ring the temple bell, get a
tikka if the Pandit was there, and
be back before the bell rang.
I have had more Bhang on Holi
day than any, more Gulab jamuns
and jalebis (my friends will attest
to this), burst more atom bombs
in my hands and secretly twirled
the Phooljharhis. Ganga Jamuna
was not just a street drink we rel-
ished from the local Bhaiya.
The Ganga-Jamuni Tehzeeb
is part of my DNA like it is part of
millions of Muslims all over India.
A Hindu may not pray the Namaz,
a Muslim may not do puja and ring
a temple bell, but culturally we are
entwined. There is a reason the
meeting of Ganga and Jamuna is
regarded as a Hindu-Muslim fu-
sion. Culture! Biryani is a unique
Indian preparation. A Muslim Uy-
ghur of China will be flabbergasted
if you ask her to make it.
This Tehzeeb, this unique cul-
ture, this Ganga-Jamuni intertwin-
ing may have originated in the
palaces of the Nawabs of Awadh . .
Somehow it found its way to Bom-
bay, and to Delhi and to Bangalore
and to Hyderabad and elsewhere.
TheSouthAsianTimes.info DIWALI SPECIAL October 14-20, 2017
 48 October 14-20, 2017 FIR ST PER SON

Diwali nostalgia brought

from Chennai - Suchitra Srinivas
to hear used to be just that one
remark, What an amazing dress
you have bought. Buying Diwali
dress was also so special because
the first day after the festival
we got to wear the new dress to
almost like a competition. You
needed to give extra time for the
traditional oil bath with Shikakai
powder. Small pots of sacred wa-
ter brought from the mighty river
Ganges will have to be specifical-
Modern day Diwali has changed
drastically. Deleterious effects of air
and noise pollution and necessary
legislations restricting firecrackers
has made us lose interest in burst-
ing them. The advent of television
We still look forward to the day
because it is still special. We know
Lord Krishna killed the demon
Narakasuran on this day. Only thing
still relevant in our celebrations is
the insistence that we stay away

D iwali is a very special festi-

val for the south Indians. But
silly me. I just remember it as an
school, breaking from the routine
of wearing our uniforms.
The next thrill for Diwali is of
ly used on this day. The cracker
sound will confirm that youre the
first to be awake and it was almost
and special programs stole our time
from family and relatives visit. Pho-
tos being shared with Whatsapp
from the evil thoughts forever.
Happy Diwali readers!

occasion where I get the costliest
dress ever purchased during the
year. What a fun to wait for. Of
course, sweets and crackers like
never before mark the celebra-
tion. I remember preparations
begin months ahead when friends
at school start discussing the
plan to buy a new dress. I always
wanted to wear the prettiest and
most unique and latest dress for
Diwali. Making shopping plans,
choosing a date for the purchase,
fixing a time for uncles and aunts
and cousins besides mom and
dad to go for elaborate family
Diwali shopping used to be fun.
Purchases followed by lunch or
dinner at a restaurant used to
be another thrill with all cousins
gathering for loads of fun, un-
stoppable laughter and giggles.
The climax would be on the
day of Diwali when we parade
to friends and relatives houses
wearing the Diwali dress, greeting
them with sweets. All I would like
course the sweets. Making a list of
homemade sweets to suit each and
every ones taste was my grandmas
favorite job. To amend this list used
to be mine. My mom was to budget
for the sweets and make the pro-
vision list that used to be lengthy
during the Diwali months. The
store man home delivers the pack-
ets of flour and oil and soon we will
start smelling the sweets and savo-
ries being made in the kitchen. I am
sure I heard no one saying a word
about sugar and calories those days
that I was enjoying my Jelabis and
Jamoons with no regret. Sitting by
my side, my grandpa was not just
encouraging me to eat more but
actually he was competing with
me in finishing the trays of sweets
and savories that came out of the
kitchen. This used to be our routine
for a week before and after Diwali.
Of course, without crackers
our Diwali was incomplete. On Di-
wali day to get up first in the fam-
ily and in the neighborhood was
difficult to fall asleep the previous and Skype took away the pride of
night in the fear we will be late to receiving accolades for the awe-
Suchitra Srinivas is
wake up in the morning. some dress we wore. Our extra a freelance business
What a heroic feeling I had knowledge about health has kept us journalist based in
every time I lighted the wicks away from making Diwali sweets. Princeton, NJ.
of the crackers. The sounds and
lights had something unique to
communicate to me. At the end
of Diwali night if your house had As a young girl I
the most of trash from crackers always wanted to
burst you are believed to have cel-
wear the prettiest
ebrated Diwali in the most grand
and happy manner. Almost every and most unique
family works through the year to and latest dress
make this happen. Father used to for Diwali.
be a silent spectator facilitating
all these the compulsories for our
celebration. Getting home with the
Diwali bonus was the best thing to
happen to him. Not for the money
but the recognition and reward for
his yearlong work was the treat.
Temple visits and the story of Lord
Krishna killing the evil Naraka-
suran and insistence that we stay
away from the demon attributes
concluded Diwali.

Diwali message : Light Sunil Tolani, California based social entre-

preneur and CEO of Prince Organization
which is into hospitality, and his wife Neelam

always prevails - Sunil Tolani

doing seva at a Sikh temple. He has pledged
to contribute his unique, God-given gifts and
blessings to have an extraordinary positive
impact on the lives of others and the world.

M yself and Neelam, Krish &

Aryan are wishing a Happy
Diwali to you ALL who are celebrat-
ing the festival of lights here in the
United States and worldwide. May
this occasion of Diwali become the
sweetest time of the year. May you
all be blessed with beautiful mo-
ments of love, cheer, joy and to-
getherness. I feel eternally grateful
and hopeful. I believe for Hindus,
Jains, Sikhs and Buddhists, light-
ing the lampthe Diyais a
chance to remember that even in
the midst of darkness light will
ultimately prevail. Knowledge will
defeat ignorance, and compassion
will triumph over despair. Diwali
is also a reminder that we must
each do our part to achieve that
victory, by dedicating ourselves
to service to others as SERVICE is
the real path to real significance.
As we affirm our commitments to
one another and strive to lift each
other up, then together we will
continue moving closer to that
brighter future we all seek -- full
of fun, prosperity and success.
Diwali reminds us the virtues
as per Hindu faith of compassion,
kindness, empathy and forgive-
ness. To always see the good in
others, believe the best in people
even sometimes when it is hard, to
give a second chance and believe
that none of Gods children are
irredeemable and that love and
faith could work wonders. Diwali
becomes memorable with celebra-
tions, with love of family, by feast-
ing amid community with fun and
with blessings of God. May our fes-
tivities last for the longest time.
May you all continue to spread
light, enlightenment and share
Gods blessings with the world,
serving and honoring God through
serving people. We pray that this
SAMVAT 2074-HINDU NEW YEAR
bring oceans of laughter, wonderful
memories, which you will cherish in
your pure hearts the entire lifetime,
living to create an eternal legacy.

T he Festival of Lights is an
exciting time for me and my
extended family -- both in India
and here in the US. I immigrated
from Mumbai in 1983 and started
working for Citi two years later. I
am now a branch manager for the
last 16-17 years. Though the fes-
tival generally is celebrated for a
W e immigrated to this country
12 years ago. In the initial
years we missed the Diwali atmo-
sphere in our adopted country a
lot. But in recent years the Indian-
American community on Long Is-
land, where we work and live, has
D iwali is one of the national
holidays in Guyana, my na-
tive land. Indian immigrants ar-
rived in the then British colony to
seek a better life. They did not an-
ticipate the tremendous struggle
they would have had to put up in
50 October 14-20, 2017
Despite missing home,
desi spirit never dies
day or two, for us in the extended
family, the celebrations span 5-10
days. At our family business in
Mumbai, we used to do Lakshmi
Puja with 50-60 people being
present. Diwali sweets and special
delicacies, as well as the fireworks
used to mark the occasion.
Back then in my hometown,
there used to be great surround-
ings. Shops, establishments and
even government offices used to
be decorated for days. For us and
many of our friends and neigh-
bors, the occasion was also the
beginning of the New Year.
We missed it once, now
Diwali is widespread here too
become more active. Community
organizations like the AIA and the
Telugu Literary and Cultural As-
sociation are doing a great job in
making sure that the Diwali spirit is
here to stay. For the last three years
or so, we do not miss it much.
The way the festival is celebrat-
ed back home and in this country
is certainly different as you do not
have a universal holiday here. I call
my family back home to greet them
on the occasion. In the evening we
We celebrate, but community
spirit is missing here
order to re-create, to some extent,
the life they took for granted in
their motherland Bharat.
In the early stages of immigra-
tion, the Indians -- or East Indians
as we are still called by many in the
West Indies (or the Caribbean) -- or-
ganized themselves into communi-
ties and began celebrating all the
major festivals of Bharat. It was not
easy, however. They persevered and
finally when British Guiana became
independent Guyana, one of the first
FIR ST PER SON
Here in the New York area and
elsewhere in the US, things are dif-
ferent. Yeah, we miss that vigor and
familiar milieu very much. Howev-
er, when we visit Indian neighbor-
hoods and individual households
we still feel it is Diwali all around.
We celebrate it for five days.
Going to such houses of worship
as Ganesh temple, Satyanarayan
Mandir and the Saibaba temple
forms part of our Diwali rituals.
Though we do miss the fireworks
as such, firecrackers are lighted
at our sisters home. Dishes pre-
pared for the occasion are no ex-
visit temples and perform Lakshmi
Puja. Such activity is more visible
among the community either dur-
ing the weekend prior to the actual
Diwali day or the weekend follow-
ing the day. It sometimes spreads
over four or five weekends. Tem-
ples and households display ran-
goli to add to the festive colors.
At our office, we desis in par-
ticular do organize pot luck
and invite our fellow American
employees to share the meal and
achievements for Hindus was get-
ting Diwali and Phagwa (Holi) to be
nationally recognized as holidays.
Everyone takes great pride in
cleaning their homes and business-
es in preparation for Diwali; even
non-Hindus do it. The prevailing
belief is that the Divine Mother will
visit on that night of Diwali and will
bless those whose homes are clean
and tidy. Most homes will have
pooja, hawan or prayer for Mother
Lakshmi after which the earthen di-
- Sandy Bhatia
Branch manager,
Citibank, Jackson Heights.
ception. At our branch, the spirit
is certainly visible. Many of the
employees, who speak 13-14 lan-
guages, are desis who wear tradi-
tional attire. A significant chunk of
our clients is also desi.
I have two daughters: the older
one speaks Kutchi while the other Sandy Bhatia with
her daughters
understands the Gujarati dialect. But
both show interest for things Indian.
discuss the day with them. We do
have dinners with close friends - Satish Marada
and families. Schools in Hicksville,
Syosset and Jericho observe a hol-
iday on Diwali day. But we would Director for Platform
like other cities and counties also Technology, Corporate
to do the same. Children wait for
the festival days and Diwali is no
exception. I am glad that vari-
Engineering and Tech-
nology at Altice USA
ous community organizations are (formerly Cablevision),
focusing on our culture and lan- Long Island
guages so that children do not feel
that they are left behind.
- Rishi Ram Persaud
yas are lit. People will then display New York City Transit
them in various innovative and in- official and also priest
tricate shapes and decorations. The
devout will fast, eating only sweet Having lived nearly a quarter
foods. The special food is kheer and century in New York, I still miss
dhood peeti (made with milk, wheat something in celebrating Diwali.
flour dough and sugar -- all boiled We still clean, decorate and light
together). While there is no tradi- diyas in our homes and do pooja,
tion of fireworks display, the Diwali hawan and prayer, but the com-
motorcades culminating in places munity spirit is missing.
where there are bhajans, plays and
discourses. They have become an in- Compiled by our
separable part of Diwali celebrations. Special Correspondent
TheSouthAsianTimes.info DIWALI SPECIAL October 14-20, 2017

T
he festive season is just
around the corner and the
cheer of Diwali has already
pervaded every aspect of our lives.
If like us, youre rushing against
time to spring clean your home
and get everything in order before
the auspicious festive period
begins, weve got you some quick
tips to help you with your task.
Many homes in India undertake
a spring cleaning before Diwali.
There are several reasons for this.
The religious belief is that
Goddess Lakshmi pays a visit on
this day and must be welcomed
into a clean environment. Another
school of thought suggests that it
is wise to do away with clutter as
open spaces allow a free flow of
energy. Whatever the reason, a
yearly airing makes for healthy
living.
Clean up your abode to welcome
Goddess Lakshmi in all her
resplendence!
Read on
FENG SHUI AIDS
IN DIWALI
The tradition of springcleaning
and decluttering finds a reso
nance in Feng Shui, which is also
a strong advocate of decluttering
your living spaces and keeping
them tidy to facilitate flow of good
energy.
Feng Shui, the Chinese equiva
lent of Indian Vastu Shastra, is an
ancient art which believes in the
total harmony of five elements:
fire, earth, metal, water and air. It
believes in complete harmony
between a person and his sur
roundings.
Here are some Feng Shui tips for
Diwali:
Identify Clutter: Jami Lin, a
famous Feng Shui expert, recom
mends that you should examine
each object lying around and ask:
does it have a functional purpose,
is it beautiful? If nyet on both, you
should simply throw it away. Also,
52 October 14-20, 2017
Declutter your house, life with
Feng Shui & Vastu tips
if a particular thing remains in the
same place for long, it starts drain
ing the energy from that place. So
rearrange your furniture a little,
bring in new curtains, cushions
and may be a carpet and see how
your house looks refreshingly dif
ferent.
Cleanse Your Home: You can
cleanse the energy of your home
by burning sage or sandalwood.
Make sure to walk slowly around
your home and allow the burning
aroma to seep into each corner
and crevice.
Color: Diwali is a time to
strengthen social and familial
bonds, you can use color strategi
cally to enhance the appropriate
atmosphere of each room in your
house so that it is conducive to
healthy relationships. In Feng
Shui, colors like red and yellow are
energizing and could be suitable
for a kitchen where you start your
mornings or for a home office.
Orange helps with harmony and
bringing people together so it
could be suitable for common
areas like the living room. Blue is a
soothing color and would be per
Garden bursting with colorful flowers, homes filled with mouth
watering delicacies, fireworks light up the sky, streets decorated with
diyas and colorful rangolis made on the floors reflect the richness of
togetherness, memories and connection to our Indian roots.
SELF HELP
A fine example of feng shui perfect living room
fect for a bedroom or bathroom.
WORKING WITH FIVE
ELEMENTS
i) Fire: Light symbolizes yinyang
in synchrony which brings happi
ness and good fortune. Diwali
diyas and candles are harnessing
the power of fire in any case. In
addition, ditch the artificial lights.
ii) Earth: Sweet smelling flowers
and fruits are considered to be
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
symbols of earth and you should
use them all around your house.
Get rid of the tacky plastic flowers
and make way for fresh blossoms.
Small herb plants in your kitchen
will add a wonderful aroma.
Similarly, in the bathroom use
herbs and plants and not chemical
deodorants. Plants add a green
touch to your house and in Feng
Shui, green color diffuses stress
and brings in peace and quiet.
iii) Water: Rangolis and floating
candles not only look pretty, but
also introduce the element of
water in your home. Using an
indoor water fountain is also a
good idea. Also ensure that water
is not leaking anywhere as it cre
ates disharmony. So ask a plumber
to check all your taps and faucets
around Diwali time.
iv) Metal: Metal dcor items are in
vogue these and days and you
must definitely invest in some
pretty candle stands, engraved
vases, cutlery and even furniture.
However, skip anything with
pointed edges. Sharp edges and
corners obstruct the flow of ener
gy and hence circular and oval
shapes are to be preferred.
v) Air: Your house should always
smell fresh and clean air should
circulate through your house.
Open all the windows and doors
and turn off your air conditioner
this Diwali. Let natural air and
breeze waft into your house and
bring in good energy.
VASTU TIPS FOR A
HAPPY DIWALI
Vastu Shastra is the Indian art and
science of buildings and interiors.
Diwali marks the beginning of the
Hindu New Year as well as new
cycles, where you should shed old
things and make way for new
opportunities. Here are a few sug
gestions to help make your life bet
ter in coming days as per Vastu.
l An image of Lakshmi and
Ganesh placed on the front
door enhances positive energy
and dispels negativity.
l Make rangoli at the entrance,
with colored powder mixed with
rock salt, to invite Lakshmi.
l A string of marigold flowers
and mango leaves tied to the
frame of the main door repre
sents nature's abundance and
attracts good luck.
l In vaastu, north is known as
Kuberasthana and bestows
wealth and power. It is the
best place for a safe box. To
retain wealth, place a statuette
of Lakshmi in the safe with
your valuables.
TheSouthAsianTimes.info DIWALI SPECIAL October 14-20, 2017

By Suchitra Srinivas
I f you are one of those still want-
ing to hold on to your purse to
count your cash, well you may
have to think. If you are the type
who wants to touch and feel your
economic worth by smelling the
new currency notes in your pock-
ets or wanting to walk around
with a sleek plastic card to swipe
away all your expenses, then its
mandated you rethink. The divine
power of the goddess of wealth
today is only an experience; you
cannot see or touch Lakshmi in
the 21st century. Is she transform-
ing herself to take a new avatar of
formless, seamless, boundary less
power of exchange? Is her new
avatar to be called cryptocur-
rency and her most favorite form
Bitcoins? Here it goes . . .
In 2009 when the design for
a new form of exchange was in-
troduced by programming wiz-
ards; not many economic experts
thought that we were part of new
history. Today the situation seems
to have turned drastically that the
big bosses of the world are looking
at cryptocurrency market with an
intent. Should we or should we
not has remained the question in
the minds of both the regulators
and the consumers. As the ques-
tions of skepticism kept spread-
ing, Bitcoins seems to have gained
a firm footing on the ground with
In early 2016, Bitcoin was trading at less than $400, now its value has crossed $4400, bringing its 18-month gain to 1,000 per cent.
54 October 14-20, 2017
its market value steadily increas-
ing. What was mere $0.08 in 2009
is today trading over $4400, with
a total market capitalization ex-
ceeding the $ 70 billion mark. As
I continue to write this feature, the
figures seems to move northward
multiplying many fold. Over 200
thousand transactions are traded
every day in Bitcoins. Can this
mean real healthy growth for the
economy at large, nobody knows.
Bitcoin is all the money sit-
ting in the laptop! The story is
very interesting to watch. In the
year 2009 Satoshi Nakamoto
and Martti Malmi wrote algorithm
that gave birth to the new form
of digital currency; peer-to-peer
form of exchange guided purely by
the market. Just like no one owns
email as a technology no one
owns or controls the cryptocurren-
cies or the digital currency market.
To a common man Bitcoin is
nothing more than a mobile app or
computer program that provides a
personal Bitcoin wallet and allows
a user to send and receive bitcoins
with them. Bitcoin network is shar-
ing the Block Chain, a public led-
ger that records every transaction
allowing a users computer to veri-
fy the validity of each transaction.
The authenticity of each transac-
tion is protected by digital signa-
tures. Anyone can process transac-
tions, earn a reward in bitcoins for
this service through mining.
A user is free to use Bitcoins
using the private key to buy a
commodity, or make a payment
for a service, or send money to a
friend or family. Selling Bitcoins
on the exchange will earn its sell-
ing amount in the local currency.
There are businesses that ac-
cept bitcoins as payment method.
You could pay hotel bills from Ex-
pedia by paying in Bitcoins. Pur-
chases through Amazon.com can
be paid though egiftcards bought
by using Bitcoins. eGifter.com al-
lows shoppers to pay for any of 150
This has made this best known cryptocurrency a dinner table topic.
CRY P TO C U R R E N C Y
Decoding the
e-mantra of wealth
Is Bitcoin poised to be the new era currency?
digital gift cards in Bitcoin using
their mobile app for iOS or Android.
Today the market has come
out with over 1000 digital curren-
cies. Bitcoins are the oldest and
most popular followed by Ethe-
reum trading at around $300.
As along as the list of retail ac-
ceptors is large, we will have the
digital currency finding its pur-
pose as a medium of exchange. But
in reality, we still see the average
American on the street using only
dollar bills to pay at Starbucks or
for his Subway sandwich.
Not the retail acceptance but its
speculative trading power makes
Bitcoins an interesting investment
option. In 2016 the value of Bitcoin
increased 122 per cent from $432
to $960 when S&P 500 total return
was approximately 12 percent.
In June 2017, the Bitcoins
market price rose as high as
$3000, experts including JP Mor-
gan Chases Chief Executive, James
Dimon, warned for a collapse but
today in October just in the quar-
ter the value crossed $4400. But
in early 2016, bitcoin was trad-
ing at less than $400, bringing its
18-month gain to 1,000 per cent.
Interestingly it is reported that
Goldman Sachs Inc is considering
opening Bitcoin-trading operations.
Traditional economists and
monetary pundits have taught us
that a currencys standing is mea-
sured by how well it serves as a unit
of account, medium of exchange,
and store of value. Where does the
Bitcoin stand in this evaluation?
Obviously, the striking feature
for Bitcoin is that there is no sov-
ereign support, it is not a legal
tender but it commands value for
exchange. It is on a global lab in
an experimental stage.
Traditional Currency is factored
by trade contracts, GDP rates, for-
eign exchange movements, sov-
ereignty status and a whole lot of
factors. It is true that when the
world went from gold standard to
paper currency the anxiety among
the market was spread through de-
cades. It was hard for the world to
accept moving from precious met-
al to paper then to plastic. Today
many out there cannot accept the
risky proposition that a bunch of
hackers can produce Bitcoins, cir-
culate and control the market that
is not regulated.
New York is more progressive in
showing early interest in regulations.
Today Bitcoins gains through
trade is taxed. There is a market
place for Bitcoin, there are ex-
changes, every transaction is re-
corded. There is a fairly robust
process that is being used today.
But just because the process is not
recognized by central bank does it
make it unacceptable? Many start-
ups and innovation companies
providing the support ecosystem
for Bitcoin trade are exploding the
market place signaling a sustained
growth for the new medium.
For its success Bitcoin market-
place requires the computer algo-
rithm to stay transparent and fool
proof. But who should give this
guarantee? We are just off from
the Equifax security breach.
The usage of Bitcoins has to
spread beyond the narrow band
of enthusiasts to the broader mar-
ketplace and the infrastructure
for securing the new currency sta-
tus. Majority still believes in the
dollar as medium of exchange and
it will not be an exaggeration to
say they have not recognized the
existence of Bitcoins in the chain.
Experts do notice the real con-
cern being on issue of the internet
coin offerings (ICO). Without going
into formal investment banking
channels, many startup compa-
nies are today raising money from
ICOs. Since ICOs are not permitted
in the US terrain, these companies
prefer to raise ICOs in Singapore
and Switzerland through Bitcoins
and convert it into dollar or euro.
In an unregulated market place li-
quidity crisis may arise in such sit-
uations that could lead to a system
crackdown. Sure, at that stage if
Bitcoin boom is just a bubble it will
burst as a natural consequence of
the free market.
Never mind, todays truth is
that the Bitcoins are super star
market performers. If you are
quick to roll your sleeves and get
into trade you may make fortunes
before the market correction
steps in. Of course, this Diwali it is
your choice to continue Lakshmi
puja with traditional gold backed
dollar coins or use your secret
digital crypto code to please the
almighty Goddess of wealth.
TheSouthAsianTimes.info DIWALI SPECIAL October 14-20, 2017

A Happy
Very Republic
Happy Happy Diwali
DiwaliDay

Philadelphia: Media is the
strongest weapon of the present
age, said Mr. P. Sreeramakrishnan,
Speaker of the Kerala Legislative
Assembly, in his inaugural address
of the 4th International Media Con-
ference hosted by the Indo-Ameri-
can Press Club (IAPC) at the Radis-
son Hotel and Convention Center in
Philadelphia on 7th October.
He opined that USA holds the
largest number of NRIs associat-
ing with exemplary journalism
and other professions in the media
industry. IAPC, formed in 2013,
consists of a cohesive and vibrant
group of journalists, media profes-
sionals and freelancers working in
print, broadcast and online media
in North America. With hundreds of
members in 11 chapters across the
US and Canada, it is an effective and
credible platform for Indian Ameri-
can media professionals to network.
According to its officials, IAPC has
(from left) 1. Kerala Assembly Speaker P. Sreeramakrishnan gave the inaugural address. 2. Former Educa-
tion Minister of Kerala M.A. Baby inaugurating the Valedictory Meeting. 3. IAPC Chairman Babu Stephen
addressing the meet. 4. IAPC founder and former chairman, Ginsmon Zacharia, speaking at the conference.
envisioned for itself, a significant
role in recognizing and nurturing
the true potential of journalists
and media professionals in North
America, while collaborating with
media fraternity across the globe.
Over 250 delegates and guests attended the conference.
56 October 14-20, 2017 MEDIA
IAPC successfully hosts 4 th
media conference in Philly
At the fourth International
Media Conference, IAPC renewed
its commitment to the well-being
of media fraternity and reaffirmed
its resolve to be positive change
agents in the society.
The Media Conference held
over the weekend with over 250
delegates and guests had produc-
tive seminars, discussions, roundta-
bles, youth forum, business session
and entertainment programs. Dr.
Babu Stephen, Chairman of IAPC,
in his presidential address stressed
that America is a country that pro-
vides everything to those who can
work hard, and as dedicated media
professionals, IAPC members must
try to uphold the right values.
He added that the IAPC is still in
the growth mode and could envis-
age and execute many projects for
the betterment of the community.
New Jersey Councilman Sterley
IAPC officials, dignitaries and guests at the lamp lighting ceremony
Stanley congratulated the profound
of the conference held in Philadelphia over the Columbus Day weekend.
efforts of IAPC during the last four
years, even though the media in- Pravasi issues and concerns were lai (The New Indian Express) and stream writing and journalism.
dustry as a whole is going through discussed. Panelists included Saji Dominic (Media Advisor). At the closing ceremony and
a challenging phase. IAPC founder prominent media personalities The informative presentation gala banquet, Speaker P. Sreera-
and former Chairman Ginsmon like C.L.Thomas (Media One), on immigration by Attorney Onkar makrishnan, CPM Politburo mem-
Zacharia hailed the growing stature Mangad Ratnakaran (Asianet Sharma was a highlight of the Con- ber M/A. Baby, Pennsylvania State
Representative Scott Petri along
with several community leaders
were present. Baby said that the
media industry is being engulfed by
the power of vested interests and is
losing its credibility, and IAPC must
stand for true and unbiased jour-
nalism in the days to come.
IAPC excellence awards were
presented to those who made
significant contributions to me-
dia and to community leaders for
their service to the society. IAPC
souvenir 2017 was released by
the Speaker. IAPCs Vice-Chair-
ference. Yet another attraction was person Vineetha Nair, Executive
the Youth Forum where Speaker Vice President Korason Varghese,
P. Sreeramakrishnan and former General Secretary Eapen George,
of IAPC and its initiatives to train News), Pramod Raman (Manora- Education Minister of Kerala, M.A. Treasurer Biju Chacko, New York
the youth to be active participants ma TV News), J.S. Indukumar Baby presented certificates of ap- Chapter President Mathewkutty
in mainstream journalism. (Jai Hind TV), Dr. Francis Cleetus preciation to children for their Easo, Philadelphia Chapter Presi-
During the seminars, topics (Rashtradeepika), Sunil Kuzham- talent and participation in the dent Reji Philip, the National coor-
such as current trends in media, pala (Deepika), P.T. Chacko (KPCC conference. The workshop encour- dinator from Canada Ashly Joseph
the safety of journalists in India, Media Coordinator) Pradeep Pil- aged youngsters to step into main- also addressed the conference.
New York Chapter President Mathewkutty Easo speaking at a seminar.
TheSouthAsianTimes.info DIWALI SPECIAL October 14-20, 2017
 58 October 14-20, 2017
India loses fastest
growing economy rank
United Nations: India has lost its
rank as the world's fastest growing
major economy in the International
Monetary Fund's (IMF) tally after it
slashed India's growth projection
for 2017 by 0.5 percent to 6.7 per
cent.
But an IMF of ficial briefing the
media about the World Economic
Outlook report called it a "blip" in a
longer term positive picture for
India.
T he report projected India to
regain the top spot next year with a
7.4 percent gross domestic product
(GDP) growth rate.
In the medium term, India's
growth rate could reach 8 percent
he lped by several structural
reforms, including the Goods and
Services Tax (GST), that are under
way, the report said.
For now, China has edged slightly
ahead to be the growth champion
with a projected growth rate of 6.8
percent, according to the latest IMF
report. IMF's 6.7 percent growth
rate projection is in line with the
Reserve Bank of India's forecast.
But they are at the low end of the
spectrum of estimates made by the
IMF and four other international
organizations with the UN
Department of Economic and Social
Af fairs (UNDESA) putting it at 7.3
Days of depending on
US are over: Pak PM
Islamabad: Pakistan Prime
Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi
has said the days of Islamabads
dependence on Washington to
meet its military requirements
have ended.
In an interview to Arab News,
the Prime Minister said the world
should recognize Pakistan's
efforts in fighting the "world's
war" on terror. "If one source
dries up, we have no option but to
go to another source. It may cost
more, it may consume more
resources, but we have to fight
that war, and that's what we
emphasized to all the people that
we met."
"We have major US weapons
systems in our military, but we've
also diversified (our arsenal). We
have Chinese and European sys
tems. Recently, for the first time
we inducted Russian attack heli
copters," Abbasi said.
Responding to a question, the
Prime Minister said that US'
newly devised policy to include
India for peacebuilding in
percent.
The IMF's previous projections
for 2017 made in April and July
had put India's economic growth
rate at 7.2 percent.
Explaining the cut, the report said
that India's growth momentum
slowed because of "the lingering
impact" of last year's demonetiza
tion "as well as uncertainty related
to the midyear introduction of the
countrywide Goods and Services
Tax". Although the report blamed
the GST as a factor in lowering the
growth projection for this year, the
IMF said that it "is among several
key structural reforms under imple
mentation that are expected to help
push growth above 8 percent in the
Abbasi said Pak will now reach
out to sources of military
supplies other than US.
Afghanistan will be detrimental
for the region.
"We don't believe that injecting
India into the PakistanUS rela
tionship will help resolve any
thing, especially in Afghanistan,
where we don't see any role for
India. India has a relationship
with the US, and that is between
them and the US," Abbasi said.
BUSINESS
IMF Research
Director Maurice
Obstfeld
released the
World Economic
Outlook report.
medium term".
Globally, the economic picture has
brightened a bit, with the world
growth for this year projected at
3.6 percent, up from last year's 3.2
percent. For next year it was pro
jected at 3.7 percent.
Re leasing the report in
Washington, IMF Research Director
Maurice Obstfeld said: "The global
recovery is continuing, and at a
faster pace. The picture is very dif
ferent from early last year, when
the world economy faced faltering
growth and financial market turbu
lence. We see an accelerating cycli
cal upswing boosting Europe, China,
Japan, and the United States, as well
as emerging Asia."
SUBCONTINENT
Road building in Doklam
will be longterm trend
Beijing: China will continue to build
the road in Doklam and India's
strong reaction to the "logical" con
struction is "eccentric", a Chinese
daily said.
T he Indian media last week
reported that China was widening
the existing road 10 km from the
site in Doklam where Indian and
Chinese troops were locked in a 73
day standof f. India's External
Affairs Ministry, however, said sta
tus quo prevailed on the plateau.
The staterun Global Times said in
an editorial that the Indian media
reports were questionable as it is
not the right season for construc
tion work.
It said Doklam belonged to China
and "during the Doklam faceof f,
Beijing intensified efforts to devel
op infrastructure in the region and
claim to the territory where the bor
road construction there will be a
ders of these countries meet.
longterm trend".
Indian and Chinese troops were
locked in standoff at Doklam in the
Sikkim section of the boundary over
the road construction. The Indian
Army halted the road work, citing
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
Public opinion
changed in favor of
FDI in defense: Jaitley
New York: The Indian
government has been
able to change
domestic public opin
ion in favor of invit
ing foreign invest
ment into sectors of
production that were
earlier considered
out of bounds both
for ideological as well
as security reasons,
Finance Minister
Jaitley said that the govt has simplified
Arun Jaitley has said.
procedures for FDI entry into India.
"We have been able
to invest FDI (foreign direct cial visit to the US during which
investment) in almost every sec he will attend the annual meet
tor of the economy," Jaitley said ings of the World Bank and the
at an investors roundtable here International Monetary Fund to
jointly organized by the be held in Washington.
Confederation of Indian Industry The Finance Minister also said
and the USIndia Business that his government had further
Council. simplified procedures for FDI
"Areas that were earlier consid entry into India.
ered sacrosanct, like defense "Ninetyfive per cent of FDI
manufacturing, we have been anyway comes in through the
able to convince public opinion automatic route. In my last budg
that it is better to invite foreign et, I had spoken about doing
expertise to set up manufactur away with the Foreign
ing in India," he said. Investment Promotion Board," he
"Suddenly we find a lot of joint said, adding that the body which
ventures coming up (with foreign sanctioned FDI proposals had
firms) for defense investment." outlived its purpose because of
Jaitley is on a weeklong offi liberalization in FDI rules.
Fresh reports about China's road building have caused concerns in India.
security concerns and Bhutan's "China's infrastructure construc
tion in the Doklam region is logical
but India's strong reaction is eccen
The issue was resolved on August tric," the daily said.
28, with both sides "disengaging" The editorial said: "India's con
from the site of the faceoff. cerns about the Siliguri Corridor's
The fresh reports about China's security are understandable but
road building have caused concerns. New Delhi cannot mess around."
TheSouthAsianTimes.info DIWALI SPECIAL October 14-20, 2017
 60 October 14-20, 2017
Catalonia independence declaration
from Spain on hold
Madrid: Catalan leaders have
signed a declaration of independ
ence from Spain but suspended it
to allow talks with the govern
ment in Madrid.
Catalan President Carles
Puigdemont and other regional
leaders have signed a declaration
of independence from Spain, fol
lowing the disputed referendum.
However, they say the move will
not be implemented for several
weeks to allow talks with the gov
ernment in Madrid, BBC reported.
T he do cument calls for
Catalonia to be recognized as an
"independent and sovereign
state". The move was immediately
dismissed by the Spanish central
government in Madrid.
An October 1 referendum in the
northeastern province which
Catalan leaders say resulted in a
Yes vote for independence was
declared invalid by Spain's
US policy toward North
Korea has failed: Trump
Trump did not say whether he was preparing to
take military action against North Korea.
Iran denies 'prepared' for
talks on missile program
Iranian Foreign Ministry
spokesman Bahram Qasemi.
INTERNATIONAL
President Puigdemont said Catalonia was being
denied the right to selfdetermination.
Constitutional Court. the vote. The referendum resulted
Earlier, Puigdemont told the in almost 90 per cent of voters
Catalan parliament in Barcelona backing independence, Catalan
that the region had won the right of ficials say. But antiindepend
to be independent as a result of ence voters largely boycotted the
Washington: US President Donald Trump said the
US policy toward North Korea has been a failure for
a quarter of a century, allowing Pyongyang to
develop atomic weapons.
"Our country has been unsuccessfully dealing
with North Korea for 25 years, giving billions of
dollars & getting nothing. Policy didn't work!"
Trump said in a Twitter post, Efe news reported.
North Korean leader Kim Jongun said his coun
try's nuclear weapons program provided the best
option for defending sovereignty and countering
threats from the US.
Trump did not say whether he was preparing to
take military action against North Korea, a possibili
ty he has raised several times.Since taking office,
Trump has taken a hardline position against
Pyongyang, while North Korea has continued to
stage missile tests, firing intercontinental ballistic
missiles that can reach US territories.
Tehran: Iran's Foreign Ministry conventional defense program,"
spokesman "categorically" denied said Qasemi. The western media
the reports that Tehran is ready to quoted an unnamed source as say
talk with powers over its ballistic ing that Iran has suggested to six
missile program. Iran has repeated world powers that it may be open to
ly announced that "its defense pro talks about its ballistic missile arse
gram will never be subject to nego nal, seeking to reduce tension over
tiations," Xinhua cited IRNA news the disputed program.
agency that quoted spokesman Iran and the US are at logger
Bahram Qasemi as saying. heads over Iran's missile program.
Developing "missile program is Over the past months, Washington
Iran's inalienable right and will has imposed sanctions on some
determinedly be continued in line Iranian and international entities
with the country's strategic and linked with Tehran's missile tests.
TheSouthAsianTimes.info
ballot which had a reported
turnout of 43 per cent and there
were several reports of irregulari
ties.
National police were involved in
violent scenes as they manhan
dled voters while implementing
the legal ruling banning the refer
endum.
The declaration reads: "We call
on all states and international
organizations to recognize the
Catalan republic as an independ
ent and sovereign state.
Puigdemont told the regional
parliament that the "people's will"
was to break away from Madrid,
but he also said he wanted to "de
escalate" the tension around the
issue.
"We are all part of the same
community and we need to go for today is that of a person who does
ward together. The only way for
ward is democracy and peace," he going, nor who he wants to go
told deputies. But he also said
Iraqi PM predicts defeat
of IS in Iraq this year
Baghdad: Iraqi Prime Minister
Haider alAbadi expected the
Islamic State (IS) militants in Iraq
will be completely defeated this
year.
In a televised press conference
after his weekly cabinet meeting,
Abadi hailed the victories of the
Iraqi security forces against IS
group, especially in the last offen
sive in Hawijah Pocket in the west
ern part of Iraq's ethnically mixed
province of Kirkuk, Xinhua news
agency reported.
"The Iraqi joint forces liberated
areas (near Hawijah) which any
forces did not reach since the era of
the former regime. Today, horror
dominates Daesh (IS group) every
where (in Iraq), and as we promised
this year will be the complete end of
IS terrorist group in Iraq," Abadi
said.
As for the referendum crisis with
the Kurdish semiautonomous
region, Abadi reaffirmed Baghdad's
stance "not to discuss the referen
dum with anyone or negotiate
before it is cancelled."
"We cannot stand with arms fold
ed in front of attempts to break up
the country's unity. Any dialogue
should be based on Iraq's unity, the
constitution and the rejection of the
referendum," Abadi said.
Abadi also called on the Kurdish
security forces, known as
Peshmerga, "not to clash with the
federal forces in the disputed areas
(mainly controlled by Peshmerga),
as the security responsibility is the
duty of the federal government."
Catalonia was being denied the
right to selfdetermination, and
paying too much in taxes to the
central government in Madrid.
Spain's Deputy Prime Minister
Soraya Saenz de Santamaria
responded to
Tuesday'sdevelopments by saying:
"Neither Puigdemont nor anybody
else can claim... to impose media
t ion. "Any dialogue between
democrats has to take place with
in the law."
She added: "After having come
so far, and taken Catalonia to the
greatest level of tension in its his
tory, President Puigdemont has
now subjected his autonomous
region to its greatest level of
uncertainty.
"The speech the president... gave
not know where he is, where he's
there with."
PM Abadi hailed the victories
of the Iraqi security forces
against the IS.
Abadi's comments came as the
Iraqi security forces are carrying
out an of fensive to dislodge the
extremist IS militants from the city
of Hawijah and surrounding areas
in west of Kirkuk.
The city of Kirkuk is part of the
disputed areas claimed by both
Baghdad and the Kurdish region.
Most of the disputed areas are
under control of the Peshmerga.
The operation to free Hawijah
came as tensions are running high
between Baghdad government and
the semiautonomous region of
Kurdistan after the Kurdish region
held a controversial referendum on
independence of Kurdistan and dis
puted areas in the oilrich province
of Kirkuk and parts of Nineveh,
Diyala and Salahudin provinces.
T he referendum was wide ly
opposed because it would threaten
the integrity of Iraq and it could
undermine fight against IS.
TheSouthAsianTimes.info DIWALI SPECIAL October 14-20, 2017
 62 October 14-20, 2017 SPORTS TheSouthAsianTimes.info

U17 World Cup: India end on poor note

New Delhi: India ended their
campaign on a poor note, suffer
ing a heavy 04 defeat to Ghana
in their last Group A match of
the FIFA U17 World Cup here.
Ghana skipper Eric Ay iah
(43rd, 52nd minutes) struck a
brace, bulging the net on either
side of the break before Richard
Danso (86th) and Emmanue l
Toku (87th) scored in quick suc
cession towards the end.
Ghana finished the group stage
w ith six points from three
matches. They took the top spot
in the group due to a superior
goal difference ahead of the US
and Colombia who also finished
with six points each.
India ended their maiden
appearance at a football World
Cup in any age group without
opening their account and only
one goal to show for their
efforts.
Ghana dominated right from
the start but were held at bay by
some tough, stubborn defending
by the Indians. The home team
Ghana players in action during a FIFA U17 World Cup Group A match
against India in New Delhi. (Photo: P. Sarkar/IANS)
however, ran out of ideas in the
final third, showing a distinct
lack of composure when in pos
session and committed a lot of
missed passes and errors as a
result, losing the ball easily. Lack
of combination and poor aware
ness upfront repeatedly saw
Indian players in possession but
with no team mates in good posi
tions to pass to.
T heir job was made even
tougher by a we llorganised
Ghana defence which allowed
them very little time and space,
while showcasing exce llent
skills, tactical awareness and
athlet ic ability. Ghana rig ht
'India must feel proud
despite loss to Colombia'
Kolkata: Mexico coach Mario Arteaga hailed India's spirited display
against Colombia in a Group A tie in New Delhi, saying the hosts, who
are playing their first World Cup at any level, can take pride in their
performance.
India lost by a slender 12 margin to all but bow out of the competi
tion but gave a good account of themselves. Jeakson Thounaojam
etched his name in India's football history in the 82nd minute when
he headed in off a Sanjeev Stalin corner to become the first player
from his country to score at a World Cup.
"We had the chance to have India and Mexico couple of months ago
in a training camp. We were really surprised about the big level of
the Indian team," Arteaga told reporters on the eve of their second
Group F FIFA U17 World Cup clash against England.
winger Sadiq Ibrahim was a con superb technique and dribbling
stant threat down the flanks skills to trouble the Indian
with his speed and accurate balls defence.
into the Indian penalty box. Only some desperate defend
Rashid Alhassan was also ing by the hosts prevented them
excellent on the left wing and from conceding more goals.
Ayiah in the centre had a con Central defenders Anwar Ali
stant stream of excellent passes and Jitendra Singh put in a tire
and crosses as he used his less performance for India.

India aim to clinch T20I US disappointed at failure

series against Australia
Hyderabad: After receiving an eightwicket
thrashing in the second Twenty20
to qualify for World Cup
New York: United States So ccer
Federation president Sunil Gulati has
called the U.S.'s failure to qualify for
the 2018 World Cup "a huge disap
pointment," and said the team's poor
Veteran
India pacer CONCACAF campaign this cycle was
Ashish "not good enough."
Nehra said T he U.S. were eliminated from a
he will call place in the World Cup finals in Russia
an end to next summer after a disastrous 21
his cricket loss at lastplaced Trinidad and
career on Tobago, marking the first time since
November 1986 the Americans will not take part
1. (Photo: in the sport's biggest event.
Surjeet
We certainly expected to qualify,
Yadav/IANS)
throughout the process, and especially
after Friday night," Gulati said, refer
ring to last week's 40 qualifying
defeat of Panama in Orlando.
"It's a huge disappointment for
in the second T20I.
India skipper Virat Kohli will seek to con
everybody; the players, the staf f, the
coaches, the federation. It's not good
enough."
In addition to Gulati, former U.S.
internationals Cobi Jones and Marcelo
Balboa piled on with their own criti
cism of the team's performance.
"It's a cycle where the players were
saying that it was the most talented
team that they'd ever seen in U.S. his
tory. But this was a team that didn't
have heart," Balboa was quoted as say
ing in an ESPN report.
"They were fighting tonight for a
place in the World Cup and there were
players jogging on the field, there
were guys not sliding and not giving
100 percent of themselves. That hurts
me. What I saw in the field in the first
half hurts me, he added.

Maneka Gandhi to work

International (T20I), India will aim for a
better show when they take on Australia in
their third and final cricket match at the
Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium here.
Leftarm speedster Jason Behrendorff had
wiped away India's topfour in Guwahati as
the hosts were bundled out for 118 in the
second match of the T20I series. Legspin
ner Adam Zampa, too, had foxed the Indians
with his guile and variety.
India will hope that the batting failure
was a oneoff incident and their batsmen
will come out all guns blazing in the deci
sive tie.
Australia had lost the OneDay
International (ODI) series 14 and
Thursday's match presents a great opportu
nity for them to take a trophy back home.
They will be full of confidence after the win
tinue his winning run in terms of series
wins.
The hosts will heavily rely on their hard
hitting batsmen Shikhar Dhawan, Rohit
Sharma, Virat Kohli, Mahendra Singh Dhoni
and Hardik Pandya. Manish Pandey and
Kedar Jadhav will add depth to the Indian
batting lineup.
On the bowling front, skipper Virat Kohli
might also fancy playing veteran pacer
Ashish Nehra, who will retire from interna
tional cricket on November 1 in a T20I
against New Zealand in Delhi.
The Indian bowling will be spearheaded
by pacers Jasprit Bumrah and Bhuvneshwar
Kumar. Wristspinners Yuzvendra Chahal
and Kuldeep Yadav will look to providing
the brakes on the Australian batting in the
middle overs.
with Sports Ministry
New Delhi: Women and Child Development
Minister Maneka Gandhi has announced
that she would be working with the
Ministry of Youth Affairs and Sports to
empower women. "Sports can play a vital
role in transforming and empowering lives
of women and girls. Today, we recognise it
as a platform for girls to demonstrate their
skills and achieve their aspirations" she
said, adding it was this reason that the two
Ministries have decided to work together
to "promote greater participation of
women in sports". In her address at an
event organised by her Ministry and
UNICEF to celebrate International Day of
the Girl Child, she said that a campaign will
be launched to motivate girls and women
to take up sports. "More importantly,
sports infrastructure for girls is proposed
to be developed for which the (Women)
Ministry is willing to contribute funds," she
said. UNICEF India representative Yasmin
Ali Haque told IANS: "Girl Child Day is a
long term commitment of multisectoral
partners to continue to draw attention to
all girls' needs and opportunities."
"Three priorities that can change the
paradigm completely are girls' education,
preventing their early marriage and
enabling their safe mobility," she added.
TheSouthAsianTimes.info DIWALI SPECIAL October 14-20, 2017
64 October 14-20, 2017
T Don't miss your Diwali date
his Diwali weekend has just got big
ger. Superstar Aamir Khan has decid
ed to release his new film "Secret
Superstar" on Diwali same day when a
sequel to the popular comedy film 'Golmaal'
will also be released.
Traditionally, it has been witnessed that
the festive period of Diwali has room for two
or more releases.
Produced by Aamir Khan and Kiran Rao
under the banner Aamir Khan Productions,
Zee Studios and Akash Chawla, "Secret
Superstar" is written and directed by Advait
Chandan.
Khan and India cricket captain Virat Kohli
will come together for a chat show for a
Diwali special. For the first time, the audi
ence will get to witness Aamir and Kohli at
their candid best.
Khan, fondly known as Bollywood's Mr
Perfectionist, says playing the colorful char
acter Shakti Kumaarr in "Secret Superstar" is
one of his toughest roles.
Aamir recently tweeted a video that
showed how he transformed from the sin
cere and principled Mahavir Phogat from his
blockbuster film "Dangal" to the outrageous
Shakti Kumaarr for his role in "Secret
Superstar".
Actress Zaira Wasim, who plays Insia, com
ments on his "weird shoes and jeans". Her co
star Meher Vij says the beard is dif ferent.
Talking about the character played by Aamir,
producer and his wife Kiran Rao says: "He is
a music director who is having a bad time.
Such characters are not written on a daily
basis."
Aamir is also seen getting himself clicked
with girls. He says: "He flirts with girls also.
Shakti has all the bad qualities that one can
think of."
"Secret Superstar" will also release in
Turkey on the same date as in India.
The film, featuring Zaira Wasim, will be
out on October 19 in India and Turkey.
BOLLYWOOD TheSouthAsianTimes.info
with Aamir, Ajay
SUPERSTAR AAMIR KHAN'S 'SECRET SUPERSTAR' TO CLASH WITH
AJAY DEVGNSTARRER HILARIOUS FLICK 'GOLMAAL AGAIN'
In "Secret Superstar", Zaira, who hails from Shetty Films and Manglmurti Films, "Golmaal
Kashmir, plays a teenage girl named Insia Again" features Ajay
who dreams of becoming a singer. The film is
about how she fulfils
her dreams by keep
ing her identity hid
den.
Apart from Turkey,
the film will also
release in the UK, US,
Canada, Australia, New
Zealand, Singapore,
UAE/GCC and Pakistan.
It is distributed interna
tionally by Zee Studios
International.
Meanwhile, 'Golmaal
Again' is the fourth install
ment in the 'Golmaal' fran
chise.
Rohit Shetty returns with
Ajay Devgn to revive the hit
actioncomedy franchise that
has served them tremendous
success in the past. multi
T he makers of comedy starrer entertainer even before
entertainer "Golmaal Again", D e v g n , reading the script.
presented by Re liance Parineeti Chopra, Arshad Warsi, Tusshar "This is a special film for me because
Entertainment, has opened ticket bookings Kapoor, Shreyas Talpade, Kunal Kemmu and whenever I watched the film, it was a laugh
for the film a month prior to its release on Tabu.Director Shetty says it took him long to riot for me. Whenever I met Rohit at parties,
October 20. come up with a new movie under the I said that I want to be a part of this fran
Produced in collaboration with Rohit "Golmaal" franchise because he didn't want chise. I was ready to even do a cameo. I
to cheat the audience with a bad story. would like to say, that this is one of the films
Asked why it took him seven years to bring where I did not hear the script before shoot
the fourth "Golmaal" film, Shetty told the ing because I knew they have something
media: "We were waiting for the right story. good for me... It was like a picnic." Parineeti,
We didn't want to cheat the audience with a who too is new to the franchise, said: "It was
bad story under the 'Golmaal' brand. So we a surreal moment for me to be a part of this
worked hard to crack this story and when it film because I can remember I was giving
finally happened, we made the film." Actor exams in school when the first 'Golmaal'
Arshad Warsi, who has been a part of come released. So yes, it is special! I was in New
dy films, says making comedy entertainers is York when I got a call that Rohit sir wants to
difficult. meet me. First, I didn't believe it but I want to
Actress Tabu says she signed the thank Rohit sir, for casting me in the film."
TheSouthAsianTimes.info DIWALI SPECIAL October 14-20, 2017
 66 October 14-20, 2017
On the phOne with
Nightingale of India
A rare, exclusive interview with a living legend, Lata Mangeshkar
I magine the Nightingale of India Lata Mangeshkar, her-
self, on the other end of your phone line, her melodious
voice ringing in your ear. Your whole life will be fulfilled,
a never to forget experience. After trying for an interview
with the legend for months, fate finally knocked on my
door. She agreed to do a phone interview early this year.
Namaskar Kaisi hai aap, she began. It was a breath-
less, timeless moment for me. I quickly got over my goose-
bumps and got into the conversation straight away.
Lata Mangeshkar is a living legend of Bollywood play-
back singing who has earned many sobriquets like Melody
Queen, Malika-e-Tarranum. I have always wanted to write
about Lata didis musical journey so that todays genera-
tion would also come to know about Indian music and how
it has evolved through the ages. Hailing from Indore in
Madhya Pradesh, Lata Mangeshkar has been singing pro-
fessionally from the age of 13. She has lent her voice to
four generations of film and rendered some 50,000 songs.
In 1974, she was listed in the Guinness Book of Records
for her 25,000 songs she had recorded until then.
Lata ji has been awarded the Bharat Ratna, Dadasaheb
Phalke award and multiple other national film awards.
Here is how Lata didi gave me a candid interview - about
her singing career, her interests and much more:
What is the biggest difference between music now
and when you began your career? What do
you have to say about todays songs?
Lata Mangeshkar: There is a big difference between
what I sang earlier and what is being made now. I am not
saying this contemporary music is bad but there are too
many beats. The Sur (notes) and Kavita (Poetry) are also
not as good. Everything is different and fairly strange to-
day as compared to the golden days. New songs dont last
for long in our minds. The earlier songs had a lot of mean-
ing. Lyrics made sense and tunes had more melody. I feel
they were composed from the heart. Older songs are clas-
sics and have lived on forever. I remember with musicians
like Madan Mohan, S.D. Burman, Jaidev, Salil Chowdhary,
Latas Ae Mere Vatan ke Logo brought tears to Pt Nehrus eyes.
Music
Whats the secret of your magnificent soulful voice?
Lata Mangeshkar: (Laughs) My voice is a gift from God
and my parents. God has given me more than I deserve.
Whether it was Pyar kiya to darna kya from Mughal-
e-Azam or Lag ja gale or Baahon mein chale aao,
your renditions have touched generations of music lovers.
Which is your favorite song?
Lata Mangeshkar: It is difficult (laughs). I cant recol-
By Manju Mittal lect my favorites very easily. I must say all songs are close
to my heart. In those days, apart from having great musi-
cians, we had amazing songwriters. Thats why old songs
are evergreen. Music in those days used to be very impor-
tant. Mujhe Naushad ji ke gaane, kucch Salil Chowdhary
we would sit and rehearse one song for days and this was ji ke, kucch Shankar Jaikishan ji ke hain, Kucch Madan
when there were 8-9 songs in every film. That sense of
camaraderie is denied to todays singers.
Mohan ji ke hain, Jaidev ji ke, ek gaana kehna mushkil
hai. Rafi saab, Kishore da, Manna De, Mukesh, Asha they
were all so inspiring and motivating, they had their own
Lata didi, you were very selective with your songs. style. We all learnt while we worked.
Tell us more about it.
Lata Mangeshkar: Songs in those days were very Other than music, what are your interests?
good songs, so there was no question of choosing. Yet, Lata Mangeshkar: I love reading books and clicking
composers always kept my preferences in mind, what I pictures. Though photography is my passion, nowadays
was comfortable with, the lyrics and the tunes. They al- I have stopped clicking pictures because I do not under-
ways gave me songs that kept my voice and skills in mind. stand the functioning of a digital camera. I dont like color
I always made sure the words were not
cheap and also the tune was within my
comfort zone. I am meant for softer,
romantic songs. I just couldnt connect
with cabaret kind of songs.
You have sung for actresses from
Madhubala to Preity Zinta..
Lata Mangeshkar: I feel good that I
have lent my voice to four generations
of heroines and I must say they have
done justice to my songs.
Lata didi, Ae mere watan ke logo is
a song that brought tears to our late
Prime Minister Pt Jawahar Lal Nehrus
eyes in 1962. How was the experience?
Lata Mangeshkar: Initially, I did not
know Ae mere watan ke logo will be-
come so popular when I sang the song
as part of Republic Day celebrations in
front of Pandit Nehru 53 years ago. He
was very sad over the India-China war
and he looked downcast. I had not imag-
ined that my song will acquire an iconic
status and become hugely popular in the
country and also abroad. The song was
composed by C. Ramachandra, in honor
of Indian soldiers who had lost their lives
in the 1962 war with China.
pictures. I used to like my old black and white camera.
What advice would you give to young singers?
Lata Mangeshkar: I think playback singing has a lot
to do with voice acting. I would suggest to all the young-
sters to understand the character, situation and the story
behind the songs. That is when you can add soul to the
rendition which, I think, is missing in todays music. They
must learn classical music and they must not get carried
away by overnight success. Humility is the key to longev-
ity. Spare some time to understand Indian classical music.
I keep telling singers of today that it is very important to
have knowledge of classical music first. Otherwise, you
are just singing for the sake of singing.
What is your message to your fans outside India?
Lata Mangeshkar: Always respect your parents, elders,
guru (teacher), do not forget your motherland India. Main
aap sabki bahut shukar guzaar hun (I am thankful to all of
you) and I am happy that even today you all have kept me
in your hearts. Yeh bhagwan ki kripa hai mujh par that I
still continue to get this kind of affection. I request every-
one, Love each other, care for each other, live with peace
and harmony so you can make the world more beautiful.
Courtesy TIDU, Sydney
TheSouthAsianTimes.info DIWALI SPECIAL October 14-20, 2017
 68 October 14-20, 2017 I n s p i r at i o n

Life lessons from my grandmother

E arly morning one day last month, as I got up, I was reminded of my
By Ashok Vyas
grandmother, whose pet phrase was, Rakhpat Rakhaapt. In essence,
it means: if you do your part in terms of sustaining beauty and strength It was another era, another country, but thinking of the practical
in relationships, the other side will also respond in equal measure. wisdom in Kakijis two mantra like refrains still gives me goosebumps.
Kakiji! That is how everyone addressed Shyam Pyari Vyas, wife of Shri
Indra Raj Ji Vyas. Someone said, she is Jagat Kaki, meaning, she is aunty
for the whole world. Kaki is a very affectionate term used for aunty, anoth- Her style was, If you say, I will ask them to stay for dinner before leav- say again and again. She used to
er word in Hindi is Chachi. Well, Kakiji was not literate in the literal sense, ing. It will be good, what do you think? This was asked discreetly; so repeat it like a mantra on various
but the principles of life that she learnt from life carried timeless essence. her management style was love, communication, respect and praise. occasions, Man ke haare haar hai,
She carried herself with simplicity and dignity; she was not willing to let It still amazes me how Kakiji, whose formal education may not have Man ke jeete jeet, which means, If
traditions of demonstrating grief supersede the moments of joy. Today gone beyond fifth grade, possessed wisdom and ability to create and you give in, in your mind, you have
as I remember her words I believe I couldnt quite catch her philosophy. sustain love in a large family. I have heard stories from the time I was lost; but if you overcome mentally,
She was loving for all, she loved me and I used to get the sense not even born and my grandfather was living in Jaipur. He was a sim- you would be victorious.
that there is someone so considerate about my well-being and cares ple, loving and transparent person; eager to help beyond his capacity. Kakiji lived by a few principles
whether I ate or not and would like to see me happy. This feeling is em-
powering, as I look at my life, I realize, not just me, there are very few
individuals, who have the capacity and open space within to give this
feeling of consistent considerateness to another human being.
I think, I dont believe in the principle of reciprocity. Personally speak-
ing, I feel, each one behaves in his/her own way. If you do something for
somebody, it is better not to expect anything in return from them. Dont
get me wrong. I am not saying, dont be nice or loving, I am just saying,
dont expect anything from others at par with what you have done or
are doing for them. My thinking is, each one has a different degree of
sensitivity. Somebody may respond with multiples of your nice gesture,
Others will be unmoved; they would treat you being nice as their right.
They may notice your extra efforts to help them or that extra mile of run
as a sign of your foolishness or emotional weakness. They may continue
to behave the way they have groomed their internal system.
Back to Raakhpat Rakhapat, it perhaps means: Do unto others, what
you would like them to do unto you. Yet, I know Kakiji used the word
Raakhpat Rakhaapat to build network of caring and loving relation-
ships among family members. She also wanted her children and grand-
children to be caring and loving. This mantra was her way of teaching
that dont expect without doing. Well, I might have received it differ-
ently but there is no dearth of love and respect for Kakiji in my heart.
She shared a sense of joy towards life in her approach towards all events
of life. She could crack jokes, age or education level of the listener no
bar. She had innate faith in God and Bhagwad Gita about the latter, if
and when she wanted us children to read the Gita to her, it was our duty
to oblige and we felt good about it. I, in partcualr, had the opportunity of
reading Gita, Srimad Bhaagwat and Devi Bhagwat to her.
Moving forward a few years. I was working at All India Radio, Jodh-
pur. This was long after my grandfather had left his mortal frame. I was
new in the family life, my wife Sheila was raised in Bombay and Jodh-
pur was a new place for her. My grandmother, Kakiji, could connect
with her very well; both of us were fond of her. We cherish memories So, he was very popular and a series of visitors from Jodhpur used to and she taught them through her
of the days when she stayed with us. She would tell Sheila at 4 PM after seek out Babu Saabs house as the place in Jaipur to stay when they life. I remember her with love & joy
tea, If you dont read Gita to me, I will go to Ashoks uncles house. We were visiting on some errand. Babu Saab, Shri Indra Raj ji Vyas, would & a sense of pride that my Dadi was
would, of course, humor her to continue staying with us. Kakijis ap- not say no to anybody. Some vistrs were well known to him, others such a great and noble soul, loving,
proach was so imbued with loving understanding that Sheila would ac- would show up with a friend or relatives reference. They were all wel- caring, inspiring and positive hu-
tually feel good about doing Kakjis bidding. She would take her Bahu comed without consideration of the available space at home. Result? man being with lot of strength to
in confidence before asking any guests to have lunch or dinner with us. Sometimes after finishing cooking and cleaning in the kitchen, my Dadi withstand challenges of life.
would left with no proper place to sleep. So, I offer to you Kakijis two
These were not the days of properly earmarked private space as mantras or life lessons: Raakhpat
bedroom, only for the householder husband-wife. The entire house Rakhapat and Man ke haare haar
and all rooms were open for all. It sounds very strange to us now. hai, Man ke jeete jeet with laugh-
So when a few decades later, my father started maintaining this sense ter and blessings from her.
of private bedroom space for him, this was something new and people Jai Shri Krishna!
would snigger about it. Well, back to Kakiji. Imagine a lady who has
worked the whole day in the user-unfriendly kitchen, and just when she
is ready to call it a day, there is no place for her to sleep in the house.
What will she do? Will she wake up her husband, throw tantrums
and make sure that this is not repeated? But no. Kakiji would quietly
come back to the kitchen, spread the brown sack called Bori in the
kitchen and get a few hours sleep. She would wake up before guests
stirred so they wouldnt know, that she didnt have a proper place to
sleep. I am sure these incidents were few and far between. But thinking
of her ability to sacrifice her comforts willingly and cheerfully to take
care of the guests still gives me goose bumps. Looked from the prism of
current viewpoints, Kakiji sleeping on the kitchen floor would be con-
sidered cruel on the part of my grandfather. Voices of protest would be
raised about what she had gone through. But she never complained and
didnt carry any grudge from that period. Generations later, we have
changed, our value system has changed: we now believe, as in western
societies, give preference to Individual and not the Society. Let me The writer is a poet, priest and
come back to Kakiji, and recollect one more line that all of us heard her Program Director, ITV.
TheSouthAsianTimes.info DIWALI SPECIAL October 14-20, 2017
70 October 14-20, 2017 THE NOBELS TheSouthAsianTimes.info

Antinukes group, An artist of the disconnected world

l By Vikas Datta a performance, where he finds himself
LITERATURE NOBEL
ICAN, awarded besieged by people he has no recollec

A
living example that literary art tion of, accosting him with a raft of
has no national landscapes or appointments and promises he has no
Oslo, Norway: The Nobel
limitations, Japaneseborn memory of or can possibly fulfill in his
Peace Prize was on Friday PEACE NOBEL British writer Kazuo Ishiguro, the brief stay.
awarded to the Genevabased
of nuclear weapons". 2017 Nobel Literature laureate, is Then there is his darkly dystopian
International Campaign to
The organization said that it possibly its first recipient whose range "Never Let Me Go" (2005) which mem
Abolish Nuclear Weapons
was a "great honor" to be rec of evocative works is not in his moth orably combines the British boarding
(ICAN), an official announce
ognized for its role as a driv er tongue and deals with situations school tale tradition with the com
ment said.
ing force behind the UN and settings from far beyond his old moditization of the human body.
The award had been made
Treaty on the Prohibition of and new homelands and times. Author and columnist Kiran Manral
in recognition of the group's
Nuclear Weapons, which Spanning reminiscences of high life says what marks Ishiguro out is the
work "to draw
was adopted on in the turbulent 1930s through the focus on "the individual placed at the
attention to the
July 7 with the eyes of an English country house but center around which the universe and
catastrophic
support of ler in the acclaimed Bookerwinning its chaos unfolds".
humanitari Japanese born British writer
122 nations "The Remains of the Day" (1989), the Born in Nagasaki in 1954, Ishiguro
an conse Kazuo Ishiguro
but not US, question of personal guilt a painter grew up in England where his family
quences of writes in English.
UK, France, turnedpropagandist confronts in moved in 1959, and began writing
any use of nuclear
Russia and postwar Japan in "Artist of the their inability to fully comprehend or after doing his Masters in 1980. His
weapons and for
China. The Floating World" (1986), or other change their lot in life. first work, "A Pale View of the Hills"
its groundbreaking
treaty pro works set in Europe, colonized China, It is possibly this sentiment of a (1982), came out the same year in
efforts to achieve a
hibits a cata Arthurian Britain or in a dystopian gradual, and even nostalgic, alienation which he himself became a British citi
treatybased prohibition
logue of future, Ishiguro's small corpus is dis which the Swedish Academy cited as it zen.
of such weapons".
nuclear tinguished by its variety as well as lauded Ishiguro for having "uncovered W hile his first two works have
"We live in a world where
weaponrelated activity, some customary motifs and style. the abyss beneath our illusory sense Japanese themes, "A Pale View.." was
the risk of nuclear weapons
including undertaking devel The narration in all but one of his of connection with the world" in his an indicator of his craft and vision.
being used is greater than it
opment, testing, production, seven books is in the first person, and "novels of great emotional force". T hough dealing with a Japanese
has been for a long time.
manufacturing, acquiring, the works usually deal with the past of While "The Remains of the Day", woman discussing the suicide of her
Some states are modernizing
possessing or stockpiling the protagonists. As he noted in an about the dignified and proper butler eldest daughter with her younger
their nuclear arsenals, and
nuclear weapons. "The belief interview, he was more "interested in pondering over his past and wonder child, it takes place in England where
there is a real danger that
of some governments that memory because it's a filter through ing about his future after a life com the older woman is living. "Artist...",
more countries will try to pro
nuclear weapons are a legiti which we see our lives, and because plete ly devoted to the service of his second book, is set in an unnamed
cure nuclear weapons, as
mate and essential source of it's foggy and obscure, the opportuni another person, remains Ishiguro's town in post World War II Japan.
exemplified by North Korea,"
security is not only misguid ties for selfdeception are there. In the most famous perhaps after its 1993 Then came "Remains..." which cement
the statement said.
ed, but also dangerous, for it end, as a writer, I'm more interested in film adaptation his other books also ed Ishiguro's position.
ICAN, a coalition of NGOs in
incites proliferation and what people tell themselves happened deal with this motif in unusual ways. There was a long hiatus after "Never
100 countries dedicated to
undermines disarmament," rather than what actually happened". A personal favorite would be the Let Me Go", but "The Buried Giant"
achieving a prohibition of
ICAN said in a statement. "All Then the endings are never cut and surrealistic, dreamlike and much (2015) literally broke new ground in
nuclear weapons, said the
nations should reject these dried, with the protagonists gradually panned by baffled critics and readers substance and style, as well as its set
"award shines a needed light
weapons completely before revealing their failings but without "The Unconsoled" (1995). It is the ting a fantasy, postArthurian
on the path the ban treaty
they are ever used again. clearly stating they're even aware of story of concert pianist Ryder's visit to Britain. And soon, Ishiguro may sur
provides towards a world free
them, and thus ending up resigned to an unnamed Central European city for prise us again.

l By Abhas Mitra

T
he Nobel Prize for Physics
was awarded this time to
three American physicists
"for decisive contribution to Laser
Interferometry Gravitat ional
Observatory (LIGO) detector and
observat ion of g ravitat ional
waves", a sort of extremely faint
ripples propagating through the
very fabric of spacetime resulting
from most powerful cosmic catas
trophes.
While everybody would be in
awe for the success of the
mechanical and optical engineer
ing behind LIGO, the claim for
decisive discovery of gravitational
waves did not appear convincing
to all.
The maiden detection of gravita
t ional waves o ccurred on
September 14, 2015 and was
announced few months later. This
event was due to a catastrophic
collision between a pair of unusu
ally massive black holes, a kind of
extremely compact objects whose
gravity is so strong that nothing,
not even light, can escape from
them.
However, having examined the
same LIGO data, a group of astro
physicists from The Niels Bohr
Is Nobel for discovery of
gravitational waves premature?
Barry Barish and Kip Thorne, of Caltech, winners of the
Nobel Physics Prize. (Photo: PTI)
Institute & Discovery Center,
Denmark, concluded that the
claim was somewhat suspect as
the LIGO team had failed to
remove noise from the data. This
group published this conclusion in
August in the highimpact Journal
of Cosmology & Astroparticle
Physics.
They found similar presence of
noise for two more events of grav
itational waves detected by LIGO.
Following the reanalysis of LIGO
events, Sabine Hossenfelder, a
German theoretical physicist, even
wrote a blog titled: "Was It All Just
Noise? Independent Analysis
Casts Doubt On LIGO's
PHYSICS NOBEL
Detections." Gravitational waves
are ripples so weak that even the
proverbial "needle in the
haystack" fails to adequate ly
describe them. Accordingly, a
team of 1,000 physicists has been
toiling for decades to improve the
sensitivity of the gravitational
wave detectors. By 2015, the sen
sitivity of an advanced version of
LIGO seemed to be just adequate
for this purpose.
However, a supersensit ive
detector is like a doubleedged
sword: It picks up not just the fee
ble gravitational waves but even
more, the faintest of noises too.
Therefore, while the LIGO team
made the utmost effort to indeed
eliminate all known sources of
noises, there could still be some
poorly understoo d or even
unknown noises contaminating
the LIGO signal.
One such potential source of
uncontrollable noise could be
"Schumann resonances" global
electromagnetic resonances gen
erated and excited by lightning
discharges in the cavity formed by
the Earth's surface and the iono
sphere.
The claim by LIGO team that the
gravitational waves detected by it
were due to collision of black
holes has also been questioned
in a paper in Physical Review
Letters by a team of general rel
at ivists from Portug al who
showed that the LIGO signal, even
if true, need not be due to collision
of "exact" black holes. On the
other hand, stars almost as com
pact as black holes but from
which light may just be able to
escape could also generate simi
lar signals.
Abhas Mitra is adjunct professor
in Homi Bhabha National Science
Institute, Mumbai.
TheSouthAsianTimes.info DIWALI SPECIAL October 14-20, 2017
 72 October 14-20, 2017 SELF HELP TheSouthAsianTimes.info

Mickey Mehta's top five mantras

to lead a better life
l By Saket Suman ebrate all that you are without this.
putting on personality masks to 3. Yog is and Zen masters
wellknown holistic health survive," he said. breathe the universe in with every

A and fitness guru, Mickey

Mehta is out with his self
he lp book, "T he Shoonyam
Quotient", and his ideas, he said,
will leave you energized, fulfilled
and peaceful.
In an interview w ith IANS,
Mehta shared his top five mantras
for people to follow so as to lead a
better life.
His own life, he said, has always
been a journey of personal growth
and evolut ion and he firmly
believes that when a person stops
pushing his limits he stops living.
A roving childhood robbed him
of the comfort and security that a
10yearold desires. "But my stints
at the boarding schools seeded the
passion to pursue fitness and
embark upon a spiritual lifestyle
at the age of 16. My active physi
cal endeavors helped me don mul
tiple hats as health club coach to
fitness trainer to martial arts
instructor in my early innings.
"The turning point was my pro
gram of teaching swimming in
under 24 hours; this opened por
Mickey Mehta (right) has been a mentor to some of India's top
industrialists, politicians, celebrities and supermodels.
tals to the glamour industry and
the Miss India pageant, following
which Bollywood beckoned to
coach and train reigning super
stars on health, wellness and, of
course, fitness. Being the pioneer
of revolutionary fitness and well
ness programs, I started getting a
lot of media attention, which even
tually led to corporate collabora
tions," Mehta said.
Every human is caught in the
web of "personality polarities",
said Mehta. People are enslaved
by multiple roles and facades that
they maintain to deliver their soci
etal responsibilities. At any single
point they play the roles of father,
mother, brother, sister, husband,
wife, employee, boss, friends, men
tor and many, many more.
"While we struggle to maneuver
around these complex personality
polarities, we often lose ourselves
in this matrix. My book teaches
you how to evolve beyond this
maze of polarities and root into
your authentic being how to cel the bed is the secret of achieving
Mehta has been a mentor to
some of India's top industrialists,
senior politicians, media barons,
entertainment industry celebri
ties, international supermodels
and senior of ficers of the Indian
Police Force.
Here are Mehta's top five tips to
help you lead a better life:
1. Go beyond nourishing your
body via food; nourish your mind
and soul with cosmic nutrition.
Your body only reacts to the food
you give it; but it responds to cos
mic nutrition. This responsiveness
is what allows you to experience
oneness with the infinite power of
the universe.
2. Today the average human is
struggling to live a quality life as
he's lost in the chasemaze of
ambition and aspirations; he must
learn to attain rejuvenating and
recharging rest every single day
instead of just falling asleep out of
sheer exhaustion. The art of being
in "shoonyamness" (state of men
tal emptiness) just before hitting
the state of "shoonyamness".
breath they take; this is the secret
to their bliss. In my book I show
you how to stop breathing seman
tically just inhalation and exha
lation and practise "awareha
lat ion" instead to absorb the
power of cosmic energy to nour
ish your body and transport your
mind to sheer blissfulness.
4. Food and sex are probably the
most primal needs of today's
social animal; but when you prac
tise the power of sex for more
than just procreation or pleasure,
you will unleash the raw primal
creative energy contained within
you. This is when sex ceases being
an ephemeral energy dump and
evolves into being a worship of
your own cosmic power of being
infinitum.
5. Finally, remember, only once
you enter "T he Shoonyam
Quotient" will you be able to raise
your "heroness" from the state of
absolute zeroness. This state of
being you must find yourself in
every single minute of your life

Playing video games JEWELRY FAUX PAS TO AVOID

may help quickly V
ikalp Bothara, Founder of online plat
form Jewellerkaka.com, and Siddharth
life as a set.
l Never wear jewelry that is too tight for
Garg, Director, S2R Jewelers, list down comfort. No piece of jewelry that makes

analyze situations some blunders to avoid.

l Wearing big danglers with a neckpiece
your neck, arm or finger bulge out is visu
ally pleasing, leave alone being comfort
having layers and multiple bracelets is a able.

T
ired of watching your child play
video games? Instead, join them, as
researchers have found that playing
video games can help boost memory in
the young as well as in the elderly.
Our study shows that gamers are bet
ter in analyzing a situation quickly, to
generate new knowledge, and to catego
rize facts especially in situations with
high uncertainties, said lead author
Sabrina Schenk from RuhrUniversitt,
Bochum, Germany.
During the test of gamers and non
gamers, the gamers performed signifi
cantly better and showed an increased
brain activity in the brain areas relevant
to learning. This kind of learning is linked
to an increased activity in the hippocam
pus a brain region that plays a key role
in learning and memory.
We think that playing video games
trains certain brain regions like the hip
pocampus. That is not only important for
young people, but also for older people;
this is because changes in the hippocam
pus can lead to a decrease in memory
performance. Maybe, we can treat that
with video games in the future, Schenk
added.
Both teams did the socalled weather
prediction task, a wellestablished test to
investigate the learning of probabilities.
The researchers simultaneously recorded
the brain activity of the participants via
magnetic resonance imaging.
The participants were shown a combi
nation of three cue cards with dif ferent
symbols. They should estimate whether
the card combination predicted sun or
rain and got a feedback if their choice
was right or wrong. T hey gradually
learned, on the basis of the feedback,
which card combination stands for which
weather prediction.
The combinations were thereby linked
to higher or lower probabilities for sun
and rain. After completing the task, the
study participants filled out a question
naire to sample their acquired knowledge
about the cue card combinations. Also,
the gamers were notably better in com
bining the cue cards with the weather
predictions than the control group.
complete no. So learn to keep it simple. l Do not continue wearing precious jewelry
Avoid wearing big earrings if you are wear without touching up its polish and rhodium
ing a statement neckpiece. once in a while. Like everything else, metal
l Dont wear multiple hair accessories. Too too is subject to wear and tear, it will fade,
much stuff on your head looks messy. Your get bruised, probably even chip, or have
hair shouldnt be the first, second, or even the chemical reaction to perfumes or
third focal point. It should be your face, henna.
your ring, and your dress. Instead of using
Overacces
fresh flowers use artificial flowers or acces sorizing, multi
sories as fresh flowers will be smelly and ple hair acces
dry by day end. sories and out
l Dont neglect the neckline. The right of trend pieces
neckpiece can enhance your look for the are some of
day, and certain neckpieces highlight the com
unique features or draw the eye upwards mon jewel
toward your face. Strapless and sweetheart ry mistakes
dresses really show off your neck, shoul that one
ders, and chest, so play that up by choosing should
avoid, say
a neckpiece that falls just below the col
experts.
larbone. If your dress has a
high neck, you can balance
and elongate the torso with
a longer neckpiece.
l A sing le jewe lry piece
makes a statement of your
fashion. Refrain from wear
ing a heavy neckpiece with
matching chandelier earrings.
Theyre meant to be worn sepa
rately even if they came into your
TheSouthAsianTimes.info DIWALI SPECIAL October 14-20, 2017
74 October 14-20, 2017 HUMOR TheSouthAsianTimes.info

Funny Side by Nury Vittachi

How to slip away from bad dates

Author: "You missed my book launch." Me:
"Yeah, I know, sorry, I died, wasn't resusci
tated until afterwards."
This columnist has never been good at
excuses. So I was interested to hear from a
reader named Gayatri that sensible people
review their calendars regularly and pre
pare escape plans.
Her top tips for slipping away: Do not
pretend to get a phone call it's much
harder to carry of f than you think. Also,
do not try to escape from an unwanted
date by pretending you are "just going to
the toilet". Your date may watch the toilet
door, and rest rooms rarely have windows
big enough to climb out of.
Instead, text a prearranged key word to
a friend who will ring you with a fake
emergency such as: "Come home quickly,
your brother cut his head of f and you
have to hold it while surgeons sew it back
on." There are even apps (such as "Bad
Date Rescue") that you discreetly click to
receive a prerecorded "you are needed"
message.
An alternative escape strategy is to say
something that makes your date nervous
enough to want to end the evening. 1) "I'm
(Photo :
youtube.com)
not contagious any more, hopefully." 2)
"The voices in my head told me you are
the Chosen One." 3) "My 30 cats are going
to love you." 4) "So. What shall we call our
kids?"
Escape plans were on my mind after
readers sent me a huge flood of recent
news items (two) involving people making
illplanned attempts at disappearing.
The first was about a suspected car thief
"discreet" escape.
on the run from police in Saskatchewan on
September 27. He tried to escape by
climbing a tall tree. Trees are never good
escape routes, as the likelihood of finding
alternative exit routes up there are pretty
low. He stayed there for several hours,
news services reported, but came down
when a neighbor offered him a taco.
The second report was from China Daily
in the first week of October. A man tried to
escape his hotel bill by slipping out of his
guestroom window. The hotel was a sky
scraper, so he ended up dangling from
telephone wires over the centre of the
road, 19 stories in the air, bringing that
part of the Chinese city of Guizhou to a
standstill. Thanks to the wonders of the
Internet, it is possible that a significant
part of the world's population watched his
T hese are worthy additions to this
columnist's "most illconsidered escapes"
file, although they don't replace the cur
rent top story in that cabinet, which is a
1990s report about a thief in Japan who
tried to escape from pursuers by sprinting
into the main hall of a police training
school. "Nice of him to give the trainees
some handson practice," the chief instruc
tor said.
Gayatri also had a failed escape story of
her own. "I abandoned a nerdy group of
friends to go to a party which turned out
to be even duller. Worst of all, the first
group ended up launching a really cool
startup."
Then she had to go. Her phone rang. Or
was it an app?

Laughter is the Best Medicine

BEST
RATE
FOR
INDIA
AND
PAKISTAN

New York Head Quarter

422S Broadway
HICKSVILLE
NY 11801
By Mahendra Shah
5168271010
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.
76 October 14-20, 2017
By Dr Prem Kumar Sharma
ARIES: You will be successful in regaining
your professional touch. Friends
and family members would
encourage to work harder.
Improvement in finances is
certain. A romantic week as you
receive all praises from partner.
Good time to divert attention to spirituality
to enhance mental toughness. Breathtaking
beautiful site scenes are your lovers desire.
There are chances of getting good amount
from an older property of yours. Keeping a
close watch on your emotions would be in
your interest.
LEO: Calculated risks at professional front
will be rewarded with success.
Family members appreciate the
changes made in & around the
house. Longterm investment
in stocks & mutual funds will
enable to earn profits. Love part
ner would be extremely supportive and in a
loving mood. A cheerful state of mind brings
mental peace. An interesting cruise ship is
next place for your vacation. You might
apply for bank loan as to get back the pos
session of your mortgaged property. A secret
personal wish is likely to be fulfilled.
SAGITTARIUS: Promotion is likely to make
you vulnerable, as everyone is
watching you closely and failure
could be embarrassing and
expensive. You are likely to plan
a short trip with family.
Investment made in this week
would enhance prosperity & financial security.
Love companion will be eager to meet you in
this week. Your confidence & energy will be
high. Its time to travel with innovative imagi
nation. Your investment can be done on a
cheap or smaller piece of land. Voluntary work
would enable positively evaluating yourself.
Annual Predictions: For those born in this week
14th October, 2017
Governed by number 5 and the planet Mercu
ry, you are active, authoritative, dashing, confi
dent, helpful, sincere and kindhearted person.
You like to enjoy life to the fullest. You are not
very good in expressing your emotions to your
lover and your tendency to behave extravagant
and lazy always attracts criticism from those
around you. This is going to be an extremely re
warding period for women. Favorable stars will
bring you prosperity and good fortune. A spec
tacular leap in your professional career is fore
seen provided you make use of the opportunities
that arise before you. Good flow of finances will
improve your living comforts and savings. An in
fatuation with the opposite sex will come as a
surprise and it will take some time before you
start thinking straight again. The health of your
parents will cause some concern, but dont wor
ry unnecessarily. The months of June, August,
November and February will be highly important.
15th October, 2017
Influenced by number 6 and the Planet Venus,
you are enthusiastic, loyal, charming, witty and
helpful in nature. You have a very sharp memory,
and your grasping power is really wonderful. You
can easily hold position of leadership and au
thority but you loose good opportunities due to
your tendency to behave moody, stubborn and
vindictive at times.
This year there will be a rise in your expenses
making it difficult for you to save. Although slow
progress of work and disagreements over small
issues will irritate you and even show on your
health, but towards the yearend, you will be
pleased and satisfied with your achievements. In
vestments made during this period will bring in
ASTROLOGY
Stars Foretell: October 14-20, 2017
TAURUS : Your inner values coupled with a
positive attitude will bring suc
cess at work. Have fun in the
company of relatives. Real
estate investment would be
lucrative. Love life brightens
your week. With a positive out
look & confidence, you succeed in impress
ing people around you.
If you want to enjoy a hassle free trip then
plan your expenses in advance. Your plan to
own a house is ought to be in the right way.
Performing a ritual ceremony would highly
benefit.
VIRGO: Selfconfidence helps in making an
impact at professional front in this
week. You are likely to hear a
good news from close relatives.
Group involvement will be
entertaining but expensive, espe
cially if you try to be extra gener
ous. You find pleasure and enjoy ecstasies of
love in the arms of partner. A pleasure trip
gives the muchneeded tonic to health. Time to
relax and enjoy your visit to a relatives place.
The plot you were looking for can be prof
itable from investment point of view. Creative
work gives respite from a hectic lifestyle.
CAPRICORN : Good week for computer pro
fessionals as they realise their
dreams. Unexpected visit by old
friend could give you a pleasant
surprise. An improvement in
financial position would enable
to make important purchases.
Proposing might benefit, as chances of suc
ceeding in love are high. A week when smile
will perpetually be on your face and strangers
will seem familiar. Family can be helpful on
acquiring your property or plot. Your innova
tive style and creativity come as a pleasant
relief to people.
good returns, though not immediately but even
tually. Students will perform well in academics
and will be rewarded for their contribution to
wards extra curricular activities. Spouse remains
cooperative despite your erratic behavior. The
months of April, October, December and Febru
ary will be important.
16th October, 2017
Governed by Number 7 and the planet Nep
tune, you are independent, creative, confident,
practical and a systematic person. You are high
ly ambitious and want to be very rich and famous,
but at times you need to check your tendency to
wards stubbornness and to ignore the opinion of
others. This year financial gains will be from var
ious fronts but uncertainty regarding your part
ner is likely to be one black spot on your chart of
success and achievements. Do not trust others
more than required. Time management and plan
ning will be of immense importance. Socializing,
parties and pleasure jaunts will be quite regular
and pleasurable. Wedding bells will ring for those
eligible and others will find romance to keep
them going. Your over involvement in work will
bring in some dismay and resentment among
family members. The months of May, August, No
vember and January will be highly significant.
17th October, 2017
Ruled by number 8 and the planet Saturn. You
are ambitious, energetic, confident sober and a
simple person. You possess sharp memory and
are always interested in improving your knowl
edge and skill, but your progress gets hampered
because of your tendency to behave erratic and
stubborn at times.
Opportunities to lift your living standard will
Chandigarh, India: +91-172- 256 2832, 257 2874;
Delhi, India: +91-11- 2644 9898, 2648 9899;
psharma@premastrologer.com; www.premastrologer.com
GEMINI: Responding positively & quickly to
new ideas in business will go in
your favour. Charming nature
and pleasant personality would
make you the attraction of fami
ly function in this week.
Investment in stocks & mutual funds
would help in earning profits. Your wit & charm
would help in catching the attention of opposite
sex. Mental alertness would enable to solve a
tricky problem. A fun filled holiday at an
amusement & theme park with your family is
there. Plan to invest in cafeteria or a bakery
shop; it might create new opportunities for you.
LIBRA: Valuable support from a colleague
would help in professional mat
ters. An old friend makes a
pleasant visit later in the week.
Speculation coupled with some
unexpected gains improves
financial health. Cutting down the
number of parties and pleasure jaunts would
help in keeping in good mood. Journey to
some famous historical place sounds exciting
to your kids. It is better to try for your office
accommodation as soon as possible.
Indications of developing an interest in litera
ture on sharing the company of intellectuals.
AQUARIUS: An excellent time for developing
professional contacts. Good advice
from family members will help
in reducing mental
tension/pressure. You are likely
to earn monetary profits
through most unexpected
sources. Search for a true romantic friend
might end in this week. Your energy level will
be high. Better to channelise it in a positive
direction. Be ready to hang out with your
friends. Its time to invest in property and get
most profitable method to maximize your
bank balance.
come through new contacts that you develop this
year. You need to concentrate your maximum ef
forts into career improvement, as it will yield de
sired results. You will do extremely well socially
if you travel and get involved in clubs and social
events. Distant pilgrimage is on the cards for
some of you. Spouse and children will be sup
portive but health of your parents will be a mat
ter of concern. The months of April, July, Novem
ber and February will bring in the desired result.
18th October, 2017
Influenced by number 9 and the planet Mars,
you are highly ambitious, dignified, independent,
courageous, outgoing, and an enthusiastic per
son. You are a born leader and you have no trou
ble in motivating and leading others, but you
need to check your tendency to behave erratic,
impatient and arrogant at times.
This year you should not be too generous with
your time and money. Use the opportunities that
come your way to improve your earnings and liv
ing standard. Your confidence and morale will be
high and you are likely to win favours during this
period. New partnership will be lucrative and in
vestment will yield gains. You will strengthen
your position in the social circle. If you propose
any new ideas, you will be surprised, as many im
portant people will back your thoughts. Partici
pating in cultural activities will be educating as
well as entertaining. The months of April, July
and December will be important.
19th October, 2017
Dominated by number 1 and the Sun, you are
original, confident, honest, methodical and a sys
tematic person. You have deep interest in spiri
tuality and always search to find inner peace. You
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CANCER: Business partners would be enthusi
astic about new plans & ventures.
Your ef forts bring success &
happiness at family front.
Monetary position is likely to
improve on recovering of
delayed payments. Romance is like
ly to intensify through recreational activities
& entertainment. Charity work undertaken
will bring mental peace & comfort. Pack your
bags and some eatables and go out for a pic
nic. Selling your plot might increase your
bank balance. In a friend circle you impress
others with polite & charming behaviour.
SCORPIO : Journey undertaken for business
purpose might fail to bring
expected results. Evening
enjoyed with family and close
relatives brings immense pleas
ure. A new source of income will
generate through influential con
tacts. A special message from beloved/lover
lifts spirits. A beneficial week to work on
things that will improve your health.
Romance is in full bloom, a journey full of
pleasure is your crave. Time to think about
your investment plans, as investing residen
tially might be profitable.
PISCES: Senior colleagues cooperation
brings success at professional
front. Sudden good news in the
evening will bring cheers for
the entire family. A sudden
inflow of funds will take care
of your bills and immediate
expenses. Blossoming love life brings happi
ness. Positive outlook impresses those
around you besides keeping you fit & fine.
By travelling you will learn about new
places, ultimately its a great deal for your
self. Investing overseas can provide you new
business opportunities.
are deeply admired by people around you, but
you need to check your tendency to behave im
patient, extravagant and moody at times.
Professional gains are all most certain but rise
in expenses will bother your mind. There will be
moments when your achievements will exceed
your expectations, but most of the times you will
have to put in your maximum to achieve bare
necessary results. People who have stood besides
you till now will continue their support. Rela
tionship with your spouse will be highly cordial
and on an even footing, but you need to control
yourself from being to stubborn, which will cre
ate uneasy moments at home. Romantic alliances
will prosper and strengthen. The months of June,
September, November and February will be sig
nificant.
20th October, 2017
Ruled by number 2 and the Moon, you are
imaginative, simple, noble, friendly and highly
disciplined person. You can easily accomplish dif
ficult tasks with your dedication and hard work,
but you need to control your tendency to behave
cynical, stubborn and introvert at times.
Pending problems will get sorted out. This new
phase in your life will bring you rewards and
recognition. Your financial position will also im
prove and you will feel more secured and satis
fied with whatever you do. Family and friends
will be there for you when you need them. Legal
matters will be complicating and you should
avoid standing guarantee for others, as it will
cause embarrassment and many legal problems.
Matrimonial alliances for few lovebirds. Pilgrim
age and religious activities will bring peace of
mind. The months of May, July, October and Jan
uary will be significant.
TheSouthAsianTimes.info DIWALI SPECIAL October 14-20, 2017