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Is the US going to repeat Iraqin Afghanistan?

Last week’s result

YES 33% NO 67%

Certified by “CIRCULATION VERIFICATION COUNCIL Readership 117,765”

CONTENTSBollywood ---------------------- 28-29

Classifieds ------------------------- 51

Community Post -------------- 16-26

Date Book -------------------------- 36

Edit Page --------------------------- 54

HealthScience Post --------- 32-35

Horoscope ------------------------- 52

Immigration Post ------------- 45-47

Life Style ----------------------- 49-50

Philosophy ------------------------- 53

Publisher’s Diary ------------------ 4

Real Estate -------------------- 30-31

TechBiz Post ------------------- 12-14

Travel & Hospitality Post ---- 40-44

Top Stories

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U.S. TO HONOR INDIA’SCONCERNS ON TALIBAN

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HONORING CRICKET ICON OF INDIA: Ro Khanna, Dr Romesh Japra, Rajesh Verma, Shalini Raj Singh, Kapil Dev and EnaSarkar at the Bay Area banquet to honor the legendry cricketer from India. -Pic Neelu Kapoor. (Details on page 17)

Kerry's assurance during Delhi talksNEW DELHI: The US has assured India that its con-

cerns over Taliban insurgents gaining legitimacy withoutsevering their terror links will neither be "overlooked orundermined" during the talks with the Islamic fundamen-talist group.

This emerged after the 4th round of Indo-US StrategicDialogue here that was co-chaired by External Affairs Min-ister Salman Khurshid and his American counterpart JohnKerry and covered key strategic issues of security, de-fense, nuclear cooperation and trade ties.

Khurshid, at a joint press conference with Kerry, said"this (proposed talks with Taliban) is an experiment that isbeing done in order to find an alternative for sustainablepeace in Afghanistan. One cannot disagree with the is-sues or dimensions or aspects which are of concern to us.I must say with gratitude that the Secretary of State him-self earmarked that and said that as they proceed, theywill ensure that none of the concerns of India are over-looked or undermined.

IndiaNow grandshow depicts allfacets of India

Kapil Dev

Lawmakers laudIndian Americansat NFIA meet

100 US CEOswrite to Senateon immigration

Shalli Kumarappointed chiefof GOP council

Death tollclimbs to 822 inUttrakhand

SC dismissesplea againstRanbaxy

India considersintroduction of'Diaspora bonds'

Indian-Americanconvicted ofmurder in US

Does Narendra Modi careabout allies?

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Bollywood:Late frightKareena Kapoor remained oblivious to asnake that slithered into the studio whereshe was shooting Gori Tere Pyaar Mein.

1Cover Story:Kerry in Delhi

16Community:Grand Trade Fair

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100 top American CEOs from technologysector have appealed to Senate to ap-prove the comprehensive immigration bill

49Life Style:

A new film Bhaag Milkha Bhaag portraysMilkha Singh's life as professional tri-umph over personal tragedy

12Techbiz:

On a 3-dimensional stage, DassaultSystemes, the 3D Experience Company,gives art an immersive image.

40Travel:Nubra ValleyNubra Valley, once on the trading routewith eastern Tibet, is the most recentlyopened area of Ladakh.

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IndiaNow 2013 was a grand Trade Fairevent which brought India right here inSilicon Valley for two days

The US has assured India that its con-cerns over Taliban insurgents terror linkswill be honored during talks with them

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Recently, a memorandum of understanding was signed at the Indian Consu-late in New York to establish the Indian Council for Cultural Relations

Chair of Contemporary Indian Studies at Rutgers University. The MoU is partof the Knowledge Initiative signed between President Barack Obama and PrimeMinister Manmohan Singh in 2009.

Rutgers, with the assistance of its partner institution, Tata Institute of SocialSciences in Mumbai, will welcome a distinguished visiting professor from Indiato teach courses, deliver public lectures and engage directly with faculty, staffand students. The initiative aims to increase study abroad opportunities forAmerican students through international service learning, internships and dualdegree opportunities.

That is indeed a welcome initiative, and sure, students of both countries whomay avail of opportunities under this initiative will benefit, but one is compelledto take a cynical view of the overall state of education in the United States and forthat matter in India, that seems increasingly geared to cater to those that alreadyhave a lot of means to access education than those who don't.

The U.S. education system is not as internationally competitive as it used tobe; in fact, the United States has slipped ten spots in both high school and collegegraduation rates over the past three decades, according to a new report from theCouncil on Foreign Relations.

The report states that the real scourge of the US education system today is thegrowing achievement gap between socio-economic groups. The majority of de-veloped countries invest more resources per pupil in lower-income school dis-tricts than in higher-income ones. It is the reverse in the United States. In the last45 years, the gap in real annual per-pupil spending between the most and leastselective colleges has gone up from a little over $13,000 to $80,000. That'salmost criminally discriminatory!

This I am sure is leading to an unbridgeable chasm of knowledge gap be-tween the socio-economic groups. If you ask me, I'd say the knowledge initiative,if anything, should be about reducing the knowledge gap first between the havesand the have-nots and then talk of spreading or exchanging of knowledge.

Appeal by 100

India PostJune 28, 2013 5

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US to honor India's concerns on TalibanNEW DELHI: The US has as-

sured India that its concerns overTaliban insurgents gaining legiti-macy without severing their ter-ror links will neither be "over-looked or undermined" during thetalks with the Islamic fundamen-talist group.

This emerged after the 4thround of Indo-US Strategic Dia-logue here that was co-chaired byExternal Affairs Minister SalmanKhurshid and his American coun-terpart John Kerry and coveredkey strategic issues of security,defense, nuclear cooperation andtrade ties.

Khurshid, at a joint press con-ference with Kerry, said "this (pro-posed talks with Taliban) is anexperiment that is being done inorder to find an alternative forsustainable peace in Afghanistan.One cannot disagree with the is-sues or dimensions or aspectswhich are of concern to us. I mustsay with gratitude that the Secre-tary of State himself earmarkedthat and said that as they proceed,they will ensure that none of theconcerns of India are overlookedor undermined.

"That is a good way of work-ing closely together. It is very cearwhat the objective is and how farthat objective is possible, onlytime will tell. But with caution andcare being approached as an ob-jective, I think it is something thatnobody will have a problem with".

Khurshid was asked if he raisedIndia's concerns over the pro-posed talks with the Taliban inview of the impending withdrawalof US troops from war-torn Af-ghanistan

Certain conditionsOn his part, Kerry made it very

clear that the talks with the Talibanwill only be negotiated under "cer-tain conditions.

Thus far, those conditionshave not yet been met. So, thereare no negotiations at this point.If the conditions are met, thenthere will be negotiations that willtake place. Not with the US butwith the High Peace Council ofAfghanistan."

He also said the requirementsincluded that the constitution ofAfghanistan must be respected,that they (Taliban) do not affiliateor associate themselves, in factdisassociate themselves, from Al-Qaeda, violence and that therights of women, minorities will berespected.

"Now, that is not going tochange. If it is required to bechanged, obviously there will beno agreement. But it is there toexplore the possibilities of havinga peaceful resolution and conclu-

sion of a political process if pos-sible. Ultimately, that will be de-cided by the Afghan people....",Kerry added.

"We will continue under anycircumstances, the US will con-tinue as President Obama hasmade it clear to support the Af-ghan parliament, to support Af-ghan military, to continue to equipand train well beyond the 2014and to continue to have a level offorce on the ground that will con-tinue to conduct anti-terrorism orcounter-terrorism activities.

"The hope is this could pro-vide an avenue for reduction inviolence but there is certainly a

course that we are committed to..."said Kerry.

He also hailed India as thecountry equipped to take on someof the biggest challenges of "ourtime".

Apart from crucial regional is-sues, the two sides covered keystrategic pillars of Indo-US rela-tionship, namely security, eco-nomics and technology; regionalstrategic and political issues andglobal issues.

Civil Nuclear DealKerry, who had five years ago

while in the Senate led a success-

ful floor debate on the Indo-UScivil nuclear deal, also said the twosides hoped that the commercialagreement between the US en-ergy major Westinghouse Elec-tric company (WEC) and NuclearPower Corporation of India Lim-ited (NPCIL) will be signed in Sep-tember.

Prime Minister ManmohanSingh, who has been invited byAmerican President BarackObama, is expected to travel tothe US and hold bilateral talkswith him in September.

The two sides also talkedabout Iran with Kerry termingIndia's reductions in imports of

oil from Iran as an "importantstep" in bringing pressure onTehran over its contentiousnuclear program.

"We are appreciative that In-dia has worked hard to reduce itsdependency on Iranian oil andthat has been an important step,"Kerry said and also asked NewDelhi to urge the Iranians "not tomiscalculate about American andinternational commitment" tostopping Iran from pursuingnuclear weapons.

Iran has been maintaining thatits nuclear program was forpeaceful purposes.

Washington renewed six-month waivers on its Iran sanc-tions for India, China and sevenother economies earlier thismonth in exchange for their agree-ing to reduce purchases of oilfrom Tehran.

Energy securityKerry and Khurshid also reaf-

firmed their countries' strongcommitment to workcollaboratively to help ensureenergy security, combat globalclimate change and support thedevelopment of low-carboneconomies that will create oppor-tunities and fuel job growth inboth countries.

"We have a valuable relation-ship with Iran. We haven't al-lowed our friendship with Iran tocome in our way to objectivecommitment, non-proliferationand our commitment to the IAEAprovisions because of Iran beinga signatory to the NPT,"Khurshid said.

India speaks about thesethings "frankly" on both sideswith friends in the US adminis-tration as well as with the peoplewe interact within the Iraniangovernment, he said, adding theydo have a new head now and wewould work to judge the newPresident's intentions.

The minister also said the twocountries are expanding bilat-eral cooperation to new hori-zons, such as energy, while in-tensifying existing avenues ofcooperation in health, scienceand technology, education,space, defense and the peacefuluses of nuclear energy.

"At the same time, we are verysatisfied with the ongoing paceof our political dialogues whichhave enabled us to intensify bi-lateral consultations on key is-sues in our region and beyond,including in the larger Asiancontext," he said.

"To put that in perspective,we have exchanged as many as112 senior official and high-levelvisits in the year 2012.-PTI

Kerry meets Manmohan SinghNEW DELHI: Ways to further

strengthen the strategic ties be-tween India and the US were dis-cussed when Secretary of StateJohn Kerry met Prime MinisterManmohan Singh here.

Kerry called on Singh after the4th round of India-US StrategicDialogue during which the twosides discussed a range of is-sues including security, defense,nuclear and trade.

Besides reviewing the bilat-eral relations, Singh and Kerrydiscussed the situation in theregion, including Afghanistanfrom where the US-led forces willexit next year.

During the Strategic dialogue,the two countries discussedways to expand and deepen theircooperation in various fields. -PTI

US Secretary of State, John Kerry calling on Prime Minister Manmohan

Singh, in New Delhi on June 24

External Affairs Minister Salman Khurshid with U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry before a meeting in

New Delhi on June 24


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US seeks student exchange programsNEW DELHI: The United

States has stressed on jointlyworking towards increasing skillsof students to face future chal-lenges and said this can be donethrough exchange programs andpartnerships between India andthe US.

"We need to make sure thatnext generation of innovators andentrepreneurs have the skills andtraining," US Secretary of StateJohn Kerry said at the India-USHigher Education Dialogue here.

Those who work in govern-ment and private sectors need tojoin together in order to focus andmeet the challenges in education,he said.

HRD Minister M M PallamRaju and Kerry co-chaired the In-dia-US Higher Education Dia-logue.

During the dialogue, both sidestook up Research and InnovationPartnership under Singh-ObamaKnowledge Initiative, InstitutionalPartnership and Skill Development

as well as promotion of communitycolleges in India and technologyenabled education including mas-

sive open online courses.In continuation of the educa-

tional partnership between the two

nations, the US State Departmentannounced eight institutional part-nership projects for the second

round of Obama-Singh 21st Cen-tury Knowledge Initiative awards.

This initiative strengthens col-laboration and builds partnershipsbetween American and Indian in-stitutions of higher education inpriority fields, US officials said.

Each project will receive anaward of approximately USD250,000 that can be utilized over athree year period, with the objec-tives of cultivating educational re-form, fostering economic growth,generating shared knowledge toaddress global challenges, and de-veloping junior faculty at Indianand American institutions ofhigher learning.

Prime Minister ManmohanSingh and President BarackObama announced the Obama-Singh Initiative in November 2009as an affirmation of their commit-ment to building an enhanced In-dia-US partnership in education.

Each government pledgedUSD 5 million for this endeavor,for a total of USD 10 million. -PTI

US Secretary of State John Kerry and Union Minister for Human Resource Development, M M Pallam Raju pose for a

group photo with officials after signing of MoUs at the India-US Higher Education Dialogue 2013

in New Delhi on June 25

9 innovations get Indo-USMillennium Alliance awards

India, US 'from estranged toengaged democracies'

NEW YORK: India has said itsties with the US have turned from"estranged democracies" to "en-gaged democracies", as it is ex-ploring and absorbing in myriadways its transition from being acountry subjected to select Ameri-can sanctions to becoming a stra-tegic partner.

"From estranged democraciesto engaged democracies, it hasbeen a long and fascinating jour-ney for India and the UnitedStates," External Affairs Minister

Salman Khurshid wrote in an opin-ion piece in the New York Times.

Underlining that India and theworld have changed dramatically inthe past two decades, the ministersaid, "The relationship betweenIndia and the US has strengthenedspectacularly and brought substan-tive gain to both countries."

"It has also given birth to greatexpectations. The managementand fulfillment of those expecta-tions is crucial for the dialogueand partnership between the two

countries," he wrote in the article,coinciding with Secretary of StateJohn Kerry's India visit for the 4thround of Indo-US strategic dia-logue in New Delhi.

Recalling the US sanctionsagainst India in the wake of 1998Pokhran-II nuclear tests, Khurshidsaid, "India is exploring and ab-sorbing in myriad ways its transi-tion from being a country sub-jected to select American sanc-tions to becoming a strategic part-ner of the United States." -PTI

Trade barriers & visa issues discussedNEW DELHI: Pushing for a

bilateral investment treaty, theUS has asked India to removetrade barriers to boost two-wayeconomic ties, while India raisedconcerns over visa problemsfaced by its IT companies.

India also reassured the vis-iting US Secretary of State JohnKerry that it would look into theissue of "trade barriers" and saidthat both the sides would needto keep in mind each-other's con-cerns to reach a "win-win situa-tion" on trade ties.

"We have issues on tradebarriers front and we have beenreassured that the Indian gov-ernment will look into it," Kerrysaid at his joint press conference

with External Affairs MinisterSalman Khurshid.

Kerry, who is here as part of aStrategic Dialogue process be-tween India and the US, furthersaid: "There are mutual concernson both sides and we hope thatthere will be an increase in two-way trade".

On its part, India raised the

concerns over problems beingfaced by Indian IT companieswith regard to changes in theUS regulations for grant of pro-fessional visas.

Khurshid said: "We havebrought to the Secretary's no-tice (visa issue) and he has prom-ised he will do whatever he can".

"Both sides have to factor inconcerns of both sides to cre-ate a win-win situation in tradeties," he said.

Prior to his visit, US compa-nies and lawmakers had urgedKerry to talk tough on policiesregarding India's rejection ofpatent suits against domesticcompanies manufacturing ge-neric drugs for poor people.-PTI

"Both sides have tofactor in concerns ofboth sides to createa win-win situation intrade ties," he said

NEW DELHI: A smart cookstove that generates power, aunique audio-visual learning pro-gram and clean water delivery sys-tems in rural were among projectsselected for the innovationawards jointly instituted by theUS and India.

The Millennium Allianceawards were given away in thepresence of Science and Technol-ogy Minister S Jaipal Reddy, As-sistant to US President for S&TJohn Holdren, FICCImember SaurabhShrivastava among oth-ers, a US embassy state-ment said.

The Alliance is a part-nership between USAID,FICCI, and TechnologyDevelopment Fund of theDepartment of Scienceand Technology to sup-port new innovations.

Of the over 1,400 ap-plications in the firstround, nine awardeeswere announced with theaward amount totaling approxi-mately Rs 8.9 crore.

Secretary of State John Kerrymet some of the innovators sepa-rately where he was given dem-onstration on some of the work-ing models of the products andservices.

Kerry, who is on a three-dayvisit to India, appeared to takekeen interest in smart cook stovewhich uses two innovative gen-

erators based on low-cost thermo-electric modules that generateelectricity from widely used bio-mass.

Waterlife India showed a modelof financially sustainable commu-nity water plants which supplyclean water to villagers at Rs fiveper 20 liters.

Another innovation was asmart micro grid that cuts trans-mission and distribution losses inpower supply to villages.

Two young innovators haddisplayed a product that couldprevent blindness usingsmartphone-based diagnostictechnology for cataracts and othereye conditions.

The product collects images ofthe human eye and transmits themthrough sophisticated applica-tions to the nearest ophthalmiccentre thereby speeding up diag-nosis of any eye ailment. -PTI

Secretary of State John Kerrymet some of the innovatorsseparately where he wasgiven demonstration onsome of the working modelsof the products and ser-vices. Kerry, who is on athree-day visit to India,appeared to take keeninterest in smart cook stove


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Death toll climbs to 822, 8000 still strandedGAUCHAR: Over 8000 people

remained stranded in Uttarakhandwith fresh landslides, cloudburstscoupled with torrential rains ham-pering rescue operations as thedeath toll climbed to 822 with 142bodies being found, including 127in Kedarnath.

Rescue operations were sus-pended in Joshimath due to rainswhile landslips in Tehri district lefta woman and a child dead. Therewere also reports of fresh cloud-burst in Devprayag and heavydownpour in Augustya Muni inRudraprayag.

127 more bodies were recov-ered from Kedarnath area. At least15 corpses were found floating inGanga in different districts of UttarPradesh including Muzaffarnagar,Bulandshahr and Bijnore, takingthe toll in the tragedy to 822, offi-cials said.

Four choppers made sorties toBadrinath and only 60 peoplewere evacuated when the weathercleared around noon, officialssaid, adding over 8000 people re-main to be evacuated.

Foggy and overcast condi-tions in Dehradun had delayedtake off by choppers atSahasradhara helipad and JollyGrant Airport but air rescue op-erations resumed with improve-ment in the weather.

The IAF, Army andUttarakhand administra-tion launched a massiveoperation to send logis-tics like firewood and fuelfor conducting last ritesof those killed in theworst-hit Kedarnath Val-ley.

Multiple agencies un-dertaking relief and res-cue operations are in-creasingly getting wor-ried about the imminentspread of diseases andthe rotting of bodies inthe temple town area asthe tragedy is ten daysold now.

Truck loads of dryDeodar wood and gheehave been dispatched toKedarnath and effortswere underway to con-duct mass ritual crema-tion of bodies strewn over the pre-mises after their identification,post mortem and DNA preserva-tion formalities, a senior policeofficial told PTI.

Rescued people wait for special Indian Air Force chopper to be air-lifted at Guptakashi near flood-hit Kedarnath in Uttrakhand

With the bodies already begin-ning to putrefy, the air is laden witha foul stench giving rise to fearsof an epidemic outbreak in af-fected areas. . The Uttarakhandgovernment has asked DIG policeheadquarters Sanjay Gunjyal andDIG Garhwal range Amit Sinha toensure that the cremation process

is resumed.The IAF also landed its first

big helicopter in the difficultKedarnath area and dropped ma-terial needed for the mass funeral.

Search and rescue operationsin Kedarnath and surrounding ar-eas are over for all practical pur-poses.

"No survivors remain in thejungles around Kedarnath. Theyhave all been brought out,"Ravinath Raman, nodal officer ofrescue operations in Rudraprayag

district, said in Guptkashi.With rain hampering rescue

operations from Badrinath wherethe majority of pilgrims remainstranded, Chief Minister Vijay

Bahuguna appealed to their rela-tives not to run out of patience,saying they are safe with enoughsupplies of food and medicinesmade available to them.

In Patna, Union Home Minis-

ter Sushil Kumar Shinde said thathe had asked the Uttarakhandgovernment not to allow any VIPto land in the flood-ravaged areasto avoid any disturbance to reliefwork. -PTI

UN chief saddenedby loss of life

UNITED NATIONS: UN Secre-tary-General Ban Ki-moon hasvoiced his sadness at the loss oflife and the damage to homes andinfrastructure in India due to dev-astating floods in the northernstate of Uttarakhand.

"He extends his sincere con-dolences to the people and Gov-ernment of India, especially thefamilies of those who have died,

been injured or otherwise affectedin this disaster," said a statementissued by the Secretary-General'sspokesperson.

Ban welcomed the swift re-sponse by India's disaster man-agement authorities and said theUnited Nations stands ready tolend its assistance to emergencyrecovery and rebuilding efforts ifneeded. -PTI

US lawmaker calls forsupport for Uttarakhand

WASHINGTON: Saddened atthe death of hundreds of peopleand pilgrims in Uttarakhand, anAmerican lawmaker has asked theObama Administration to continueto assist India in rescue efforts.

"I am deeply saddened by thesevere flooding in Northern India.The loss of life and extensive dam-age caused by this disaster is ahorrible tragedy," Congress-woman Grace Meng, a member ofthe House Foreign Affairs Com-mittee said.

"I send my thoughts and

prayers to the people of India,particularly those who have lostloved ones in this horrific catas-trophe," she said.

"I urge the US government tocontinue to assist India with itsrescue efforts by providing what-ever resources they require. I praythat rescue crews will continue tofind more survivors," she said.

Meanwhile, the Indian-Ameri-can community across the coun-try launched fund raising drive forthe victims of the Uttarakhandtragedy. -PTI

UN anti-disaster team monitoring India's floodUNITED NATIONS: The UN is

closely monitoring the situationin India's north, where torrentialrains have triggered floods andlandslides that have killed hun-

dreds of people.UN spokesperson Eduardo

del Buey told reporters in NewYork that the UN Disaster Man-agement Team is monitoring the

situation through its field of-fices.

"No request for internationalassistance has been made," hesaid.-PTI

An IAF helicopter dropping wood for creamation near Kedarnath Temple on June 25


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India considers introduction of 'Diaspora bonds'KINGSTON, Jamaica: In a bid to attract

investment from NRIs, India is consideringintroduction of "Diaspora bonds" to facili-tate greater inflow of funds in the infrastruc-ture sector.

Overseas Indian Affairs Minister VayalarRavi said here the government was examin-ing longer-term investment instruments forthe overseas Indians so that the commu-nity can participate and benefit from India's"growth story".

"The bulk of Diaspora investments arein portfolio investments of a short-termnature. We are considering longer term in-

vestment instruments like 'Diaspora bonds'to provide opportunities for overseas Indi-ans," Ravi said addressing the 5th biennialDiaspora conference.

Underlining the need for greater two-wayengagement between India and itsDiaspora, Ravi said government has initi-ated a number of initiatives to ensuregreater participation of the community ineconomy of the country.

"Overseas Indians worldwide who areour brand ambassadors produce an eco-nomic output of about USD 400 billion. TheIndian Diaspora is estimated to generate

an annual income equal to about 25 per centof India's GDP.

Yet, India's growth story so far has beendriven primarily by the energy and enter-prise of its domestic industry. The role ofthe Indian Diaspora in India's economicgrowth holds far greater potential," he said.

Lauding achievements of about 25 mil-lion overseas Indians spread across 130countries, he said the community can serveas an "important bridge" between the"home" and the world.

"Overseas Indians have made signifi-cant contributions to the economies of theircountries of adoption and have added inconsiderable measure to knowledge and

innovation," he said."Diaspora engagement is also seen in

the strong surge in remittances back home,the return of many to live and work in Indiaand in their increasing participation inIndia's development," he said.

As per a World Bank report, India withUSD 69 billion topped the list of countriesreceiving remittances in 2012, followed byChina (USD 60 billion).

"The cumulative Foreign Direct Invest-ment by NRIs is a modest USD 10 billionconstituting less than 5 percent of the totalFDI in India. We have taken steps to en-courage NRI investments in India," he said.-PTI

India, US to exchange informationon corporate frauds

NEW YORK: With an aim to avert pos-sible corporate frauds and safeguard theinterest of investors, India is looking forgreater exchange of information and regu-latory cooperation with the US.

Besides the US government, India willalso engage with the companies, universi-ties and other institutions here for enhancedcooperation in various areas, CorporateAffairs Minister Sachin Pilot said.

An increased interaction at different lev-els would not only boost the bilateral ties,

but also help in building stronger checksagainst corporate frauds in the two coun-tries, the minister told PTI in an interviewhere during his recent visit to the US.

"We need to ensure there is adequatetransparency in the dealings of companies'disclosures, keeping in mind the number ofcorporate frauds that have been unearthedin the recent past both in the US and in In-dia," Pilot said. The Minister said that Indiaand the US would share data to prevent suchfrauds from happening in the future.-PTI


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SC dismisses plea against RanbaxyNEW DELHI: The Supreme Court has

dismissed a PIL seeking a probe againstRanbaxy Laboratories Ltd for allegedlymanufacturing and selling substandardmedicines due to lack of evidence againstthe company.

A bench of justices A K Patnaik andRanjan Gogoi, however, allowed the peti-tioner advocate M L Sharma to file a freshpetition if he finds some evidence againstthe company in support of his allegationthat the company is engaged in manufac-

turing and selling substandard drugs.The bench said that it cannot decide the

plea against the company on the basis of ajudgment passed by a US court againstRanbaxy.

"Your entire argument is based on pro-ceedings in US. We have no jurisdictionover it. Show us material that things arehappening in India and it adversely affectsright to life of people here," the bench ob-served adding, "Where is the materialagainst Ranbaxy".

"No material has been placed to show

that drugs manufactured by any unit ofRanbaxy are substandard, adulterated, spu-rious and that such drugs are prohibitedunder the law. In absence of such material,we cannot entertain the plea," the benchsaid. . n his PIL, Sharma had alleged thatRanbaxy was fined USD 500 million by theUS Food and Drug Administration(USFDA) for making and selling "adulter-ated" drugs. It also sought sealing of all itsmanufacturing units here, including thosein Paonta Sahib in Himachal Pradesh andDewas in Madhya Pradesh.

He alleged that despite Ranbaxy plead-ing guilty to supplying adulterated drugsin the US and it being fined such a hugeamount, the Centre has not taken any ac-tion to prohibit or ban the drugs made bythe company.

He also sought action against Indiandrug regulator, Central Drug StandardsControl Organization (CDSCO), for permit-ting Ranbaxy to sell drugs in India, espe-cially in the wake of the results of theUSFDA probe against the company.-PTI

Indian-Americanconvicted ofmurder in US

WASHINGTON: A 28-year-old Indian-American has been convicted of murder ofanother person from the community out-side a gurdwara in California.

Gurpreet Singh Gosal was convicted ofkilling Parmjit Pamma Singh, 26, outside theBradshaw gurdwara in Sacramento duringa Sikh sports festival on August 31, 2008.

Gosal is facing a possible sentence of35 years to life in prison after a jury at theSacramento Superior Court convicted himof second-degree murder.

"I think the jury did a good job," saidDeputy District Attorney Anthony Ortiz,who had asked the panel for a first-degreeconviction.

"The case had some major issues andthey worked through them, and I think theycame to a just verdict."

The jurors, however, found that Gosalfired a weapon but did not hit anybodyduring a confrontation that broke out be-tween a friend of his and the victim.

Witnesses said it was the friend, identi-fied as Amandeep Singh Dhami, who killedSingh as a result of a long-simmering dis-pute between the two.

Dhami fled with the help of some peoplewho came to his assistance after the shoot-

ing, and he is believed to be living in India,authorities said.

Rick Fender, one of the members of thejury, said the panel was badly split at thebeginning of its deliberations.

Although an aider and abettor can beconsidered just as guilty as the shooter,Fender said "there was softness in people'sjudgment" of Gosal because he didn't ac-tually shoot anybody.

"And time has passed," Fender said. "Helooked like an upstanding young man,dressed for court and his family here.

All of that kind of weighs on people."Gosal's sentencing has been scheduled

for August 9. -PTI

"And time has passed,"Fender said. "He lookedlike an upstanding youngman, dressed for court andhis family here.


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Court decision on ethnicdiversity welcomed

SUDHIR VYAS

WASHINGTON: Asian Ameri-cans have been enthused by a re-cent Supreme Court decision onFisher v. University of Texas atAustin ("Fisher"), which cor-rectly reaffirms that diversity inhigher education is a compellinginterest and that universities canconsider race and ethnicity asfactors in admissions.

Abigail Fisher's legal teamfailed to strike down the Univer-sity of Texas at Austin's ("UT-Austin") admissions policy, butAsian Americans AdvancingJustice is concerned that the Su-preme Court sent the case backto the lower court, ordering it totake a closer look at whether UTAustin's considerationof race was necessary.

Advancing Justicestands by its commit-ment to race-con-scious admissionsprograms and is confi-dent that UT Austin'sconsideration of racein i ts admissionspolicy is constitu-tional.

In a 7-1 vote, the Su-preme Court vacatedthe Fifth Circuit Court of Ap-peals' ruling that had upheld UT-Austin's use of race as a factorin its holistic admissions pro-gram.

In sending the case back tothe Fifth Circuit for reconsidera-tion, the Court specifically didnot overturn its precedent inGrutter v. Bollinger, which rec-ognized that race can be consid-ered as one of many factors tofurther a compelling state inter-est in educational diversity.

Although UT-Austin's admis-sions policy was carefully fash-ioned to comply with the Su-preme Court's Grutter decision,the Court held that UT-Austinstill has to prove that consider-ation of race in its admissionspolicies is necessary to achievethe educational benefits of diver-sity.

Last summer, Advancing Jus-tice and a coalition of more than70 Asian American groups filedan amicus brief with the SupremeCourt in Fisher in support ofrace-conscious admissions pro-grams in higher education.

The brief described how race-conscious admissions programs

have opened up the doors forAsian Americans in higher edu-cation, employment, and govern-ment contracting.

Also it argued that the breadthof challenges faced by the AsianAmerican community, which iscomposed of dozens of distinctethnic groups with greatly differ-ing experiences, socio-economicstatus, and educational attain-ment, cannot be adequately cap-tured without considering race asone factor when their overall ap-plication is individually reviewed.

Dallas & Houston Spellbeewinners announced

India Post News Service

The 2013 MetLife SouthAsian Spelling Bee continued its 12 city tour this

past weekend reaching Texas withevents in Dallas and Houston.

With a huge turnout this yearas well, the bee attracted some toptalent as well as young and newspellers that competed for the cov-eted prizes and titles.

"It is very heartening to seethat each year we get fresh facesand new talent which is a continu-ing testimony to our community'sstrength in this craft," said RahulWalia, Founder - South AsianSpelling Bee.

In Dallas, Chetan Reddy fromPlano, TX was the regional champand Lokesh Nagineni from FlowerMound, TX was the first runnerup while Ansun Sujoe from FortWorth, TX was second runner up.

"All the families should beproud of the skills these children

demonstrated," said MatthewCranston, a registered represen-tative from the Dallas office ofNew England Financial, which isa MetLife company. "By challeng-ing themselves in this manner,these students saw the potentialthat can be unlocked through hardwork, talent and dedication."

In Houston, Shobha Dasarifrom Pearland, TX was the regionalchamp and Shourav Dasari fromPearland, TX was first runner upwhile Himanvi Kopuri from Den-ver, CO was second runner up.

"MetLife congratulates all ofthe families who took part in thisyear's event. We were so pleasedto see how many families partici-pated in both the Dallas and Hous-ton competitions," said OmarSaeed, LUTCF, a financial servicesrepresentative who works atMetLife's Houston office.

Along with MetLife, airline ma-jor Air-India and education com-pany C2Education have also comeon board as sponsors for thisevent.

The winners received cashprizes of $500, $300 and $200 re-spectively.

Children up to 14 years of ageare eligible to participate and thecontest saw spellers of even 6years of age compete and make itpast a few rounds. There are 10more cities on the anvil.

In a 7-1 vote, the SupremeCourt vacated the Fifth Cir-cuit Court of Appeals' rulingthat had upheld UT-Austin'suse of race as a factor in itsholistic admissions program

Entire nation stands united against terrorism: PMKISHTWAR, JK: Prime Minis-

ter Manmohan Singh has said thatthe entire nation stands unitedagainst terrorism which will not beallowed to succeed, a day aftermilitants struck in Srinagar killingeight army men.

"I want to pay my tributes tothe soldiers who laid down theirlives while fighting the terrorists.I would like to make it clear thatthe entire nation stands unitedagainst terrorism and will not al-low their nefarious designs tosucceed," he said.

Noting that security was a pre-requisite for growth, Singh saidthe Centre and Jammu and Kash-mir government will work togethertowards improving the situationin the state for fast and uniform

development."Our analysis is that, security

situation in Jammu and Kashmirhas shown considerable improve-ment. Terrorist-related violence in2012 had shown a sharp declineand was the lowest in last twodecades," he said, laying thefoundation stone of the 850 MWRattle hydroelectric power projecthere along with UPA chairpersonSonia Gandhi.

The Prime Minister said, "TheCentre and the state governmenthave vowed to improve the secu-rity situation in the state to en-sure fast, sustainable and uniformdevelopment in the state."

After several "difficult" years,collective efforts have resulted inputting Jammu and Kashmir on a

faster pace of development, Singhsaid.

The Prime Minister, however,said constant vigil was needed toprevent attacks like the one thattook place at Hyderpora.

Singh and Gandhi paid tributesto the soldiers killed in the mili-tant attack in Srinagar and visitedthe Army Base Hospital atBadamibagh cantonment to in-quire about the condition of in-jured jawans.

On the power front, the PrimeMinister said the Centre will pro-vide all help to Jammu and Kash-mir in overcoming the electricityshortage and announced severalsteps in this direction, includingadditional 150 MW supply fromthe northern grid.-PTI

Prime Minister Manmohan Singh meeting the injured army personnel, at 92

Base Hospital, Srinagar in Jammu and Kashmir on June 25

Dallas winners

Houston winners


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Governance in India has gone wrong: Arun JaitleyLONDON: In an obvious dig at the power ar-

rangement of the UPA government, BJP leaderArun Jaitley has said that governance model inIndia has gone wrong.

"There is the potential for double digit growthbut something has gone wrong with the gover-nance model in India. In any democracy, the PrimeMinister has to be the natural leader of a countryand party," he said.

"But India over the last few years has beenexperimenting with a style of governance that ismore akin to a corporate model, with a board ofdirectors and a professional CEO," he said, in anobvious reference to Congress party chief SoniaGandhi.

Jaitley, the Leader of Opposition in the RajyaSabha, made the remarks while addressing NRIsat a gathering organized by the Overseas Friendsof the BJP (OFBJP) here.

The senior BJP leader blamed the current low growthrates on a lack of leadership within the Congress-led gov-ernment.

Jaitley said that there is a strong desire for change inIndia which will propel the economy towards double digitgrowth figures.

"(Prime Minister) Dr Manmohan Singh is an economist;if this is what an economist can do, one has towonder....India is looking for a change so that we can goback to that strong point in the economic graph," 60-year-old Jaitley said.

He also accused the UPA government of "lethargic de-cision-making" that had resulted in a reverse flight of in-vestment from the country.

"Indian democracy has a great resilience and it will tryand find its own solutions. The country needs to be run bysomeone of proven ability and that is ultimately for thepeople to decide. We need a strong anchor, in terms of aparty and a leader," he said.

"In the next few months of the run up to the elections,we will continue to advance this debate and I am fairlyoptimistic of the outcome," Jaitley said, calling for OFBJP'ssupport in the party's campaign. -PTI

Arun Jaitley

9 Indians rescuedfrom Cypriot ship

DUBAI: Nine Indian crew members of a Cypriot cargoship that sank 1.4 nautical miles from Sultan Qaboos Portin Oman have been rescued.

The Nisar R3 was loaded with 816 tonnes of bitumen.The ship's Iranian captain died while nine Indian crew mem-bers were rescued by the Omani Coast Guard and navalvessels.

The rescue vessels also recovered some of the bitumen,which had spread to the shores, the Times of Oman reportsaid.

According to the report, a control tower received a re-port from the distressed ship in a state of emergency, sinceseawater was flowing onboard, and the ship lacked theequipment to drain water.

Two tugboats were rushed to the site but arrived onlyafter the ship was completely submerged.

Coast Guard officers rescued nine Indians and trans-ferred them to the police hospital for treatment.-PTI

Indian embassyparticipating in SaudiArabia's job fair

DUBAI: The Indian embassy in Riyadh is taking part ina job fair to assist Indians who are looking for work afterbeing affected by the Gulf Kingdom's new labor law.

The 'Job Status Correction Fair' is being organized byRiyadh Chamber of Commerce in Riyadh from June 22-26.

The main aim of the event is to give a chance to thoseworkers who have been affected by the new Nitaqat lawwhich makes it mandatory for local firms to hire one Saudinational for every 10 migrant workers.

Indian expatriates have been badly hit by the law, withseveral of them losing jobs. Over two million Indians arecurrently working in Saudi Arabia.

In a statement, the embassy said 200 companies haveapproached it in the past two months to recruit Indianworkers.

A significant number of Indian workers have alreadyavailed these offers and are in the process of changingtheir company or job, the statement added.

"Indian nationals who have not corrected their job sta-tus till date are urged to avail this opportunity at RiyadhExhibition Center," the embassy added.

At the Indian stall, documents of those wanting to ob-tain new passports will be checked at the counters. -PTI

12 India Post June 28, 2013www.indiapost.com

TechBizTech News

Cont’d on page 14

In Paris, Dassault Systemes givesart a 3D 'dream'

PREETI VERMA LAL

"All of our dreams, that is all of our desires are true and can be achieved. Realitydoesn't need to become real. It is what it is."

Swiss money: Indiaslips to 70thposition

ZURICH/ NEW DELHI: Indiahas slipped to 70th position interms of foreign money lying withthe Swiss banks and accounts fora meager 0.10 per cent of total glo-bal wealth held in the Switzerlandbanking system.

While much hue and cry ismade over huge amounts of illicitwealth stashed by Indians inSwiss banks, the latest officialdata released by Switzerland'scentral bank shows that themoney they owed to Indian cli-ents at the end of last year was1.42 billion Swiss francs (aboutRs 9,000 crore).

While the UK continues to ac-count for the largest chunk ofsuch funds, India has now slippedlower to 70th position -- the low-est rank among all major econo-mies of the world, shows an analy-sis of annual data released bySwiss National Bank (SNB) on allthe banks present in the Europeancountry.

India was ranked 55th for suchfunds a year ago with a totalamount of 2.18 billion Swissfrancs belonging to the Indian in-dividuals.

Among the top-ten jurisdic-tions in terms of source of moneywith Swiss banks, the UK is nowfollowed by the US, West Indies,Jersey, Guernsey, Germany,France, Bahamas, Cayman Is-lands and Hong Kong. -PTI

Mahindra TwoWheelers sets 20pc volume target

MUMBAI: Sounding bullishon its motorcycle business,Mahindra Two Wheelers, which isset to roll out its second 110-ccbike 'Centuro' early next month, hassaid it is eyeing to double exportsover the next one year and is alsolooking at new markets overseas.

"Currently, our exports con-tribute less than 10 per cent. Butwith our product portfolio ex-panding, we expect this to growto 20 per cent over the next oneyear," Mahindra Two WheelersExecutive Vice-President VirenPopli told PTI.

The company, which venturedinto the bike segment early thisyear with 110-cc Pantero, is a mar-ginal player in the 1-million-a-month two-wheeler segment in thedomestic market, where the 100-110cc segment accounts for nearly60 per cent of the volume.

"Exports will always be a criti-cal part of our business and wesee it growing significantly goingforward," he said.-PTI

'Re slide has implications onIndia credit profile'

NEW DELHI: Rupee depreciation is a reflection of macro-economicsituation and will have implications for India's credit profile, said glo-bal rating agency Moody's.

"... It (Rupee slide) is a reflection of macro-economic challenges,which do affect the country's credit profile," Moody's Investors Ser-vice Analyst (Sovereign Risk Group) Atsi Sheth told PTI.

Weakened Rupee touched a life-time low of 59.93 to a dollar lastweek. However, it will not impact India's sovereign debt repaymentcapacity, she said.-PTI

Decades ago, French play-wright Eugene Lonescolent reality a dreamy tru-

ism. A reality that need not pre-tend. It is not fake. Not artificial.Not false. Reality is what it is.

One would expect this 'reality'descriptive from an artist, a dancer,a sculptor, a poet, a dream, a revo-lutionary. But, in Paris, on the nightof June 18 inside Halle Freyssinet,I heard Dassault Systemes, aFrench technology giant, talk ofdreams and reality in a simulatedengineering jargon.

It was the world premiere of Mr& Mrs Dream, a dance-drama inwhich technology laces its shoesand jives with two of France's mosticonic dancers - Marie-ClaudePietragalla and Julien Derouault.That June evening, technologyand art both achieved a revolution-ary dimension: technology wentarty and art turned technical. Thatevening, on the three-dimensionalstage, Dassault Systemes, the 3DExperience Company, gave art a

third character: an immersive image.Art is not Dassault Systemes

forte per se. It is the world leader ofthe global PLM market based uponend-user software revenue. ThePLM software market principallycomprises 3D software for design,

simulation, digital manufacturing,product data management and col-

laboration. With over 150,000 cus-tomers of all sizes, in all industries,in more than 80 countries,Dassault Systemes has helpedcreate everything in a virtual labo-

ratory - aircraft, automobile,Guggenheim Bilbao and evenNano.

For a company whose missionis to help build a better reality, col-laborating with artists keen to givesubstance to an author's imagina-tion seems like an obvious path tofollow. Mehdi Tayoubi, Vice Presi-dent, Digital & Experience Strat-egy, Dassault Systèmes, whodonned the mantle of team leaderand production for Mr & MrsDream, was testing how well thetwo worlds - 3D technology andart - converge.

For the project, Dassault madea simulated theatre which is mo-bile and can be reproduced wher-ever, whatever the venue. It con-sists of 200 square meters of im-ages which immerse the audiencein Julien and Pietra's story as theyinteract with the images. GaelPerrin, artistic director andTayoubi designed the sets foreach scene.

Mehdi Tayoubi, Vice President, Digital & Experience Strategy, DassaultSystèmes, explaining the technology behind Mr & Mrs Dream show

Obama meets Indian-American business leadersWASHINGTON: US Presi-

dent Barack Obama met a groupof top business executives, in-cluding two Indian-Americans,to discuss the landmark compre-hensive immigration reform billthat aims to provide citizenshipto some 11 million illegal immi-grants, including over 240,000Indians.

Addressing the small groupof nine top American CEOs in theRoosevelt room of the WhiteHouse, Obama said that immigra-tion reform would be a boost tothe American economic recovery.

The two Indian-AmericanCEOs who attending the meetingwere Farooq Kathwari, chairman,president and CEO of Ethan AllenInteriors Inc and Sunil Puri,

founder, First Rockford Group.Welcoming these "extraordi-

nary business leaders" Obama said,all of these business leaders rec-

ognize the degree to which immi-gration is a contributor to growth,

a contributor to expansion,a creator of jobs, but theyalso recognize that the im-migration system that wecurrently have is broken.

"We have a system inwhich we bring outstandingyoung people from allacross the world to educatethem here, and unfortu-nately, too often, we sendthem right back so that theycan start companies or helpto grow companies some-where else instead of here,"Obama said.

"We have a situation inwhich millions of individuals are inthe shadow economy, oftentimes

exploited at lower wages, and thathurts those companies that arefollowing the rules, because theyend up being at a disadvantageto some of these less scrupulouscompanies," he added.

The bill, if signed into lawwould provide citizenship tosome 11 million illegal immigrants,including over 240,000 Indians.

"All of us recognize that nowis the time to get comprehensiveimmigration reform done -- onethat involves having very strongborder security; that makes surethat we're holding employers ac-countable to follow the rules; onethat provides earned citizenshipfor those 11 million, so that theyhave to pay back taxes," Obamasaid. -PTI

Barack Obama

13India PostTechBiz PostJune 28, 2013

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US made intensive hackingattacks on China: Snowden

BEIJING: Edward Snowden, aformer CIA contractor who leakedthe controversial US spy program,has made fresh claims about thecountry's hacking attacks against

China, which termed the US as the"biggest villain" in cyber espio-nage.

In his latest claims to the HongKong-based South China Morn-ing Post, Snowden has said thatthe US government is hackingChinese mobile phone companiesto steal millions of text messages.

Snowden's claims came amidreports that he had left HongKong, a special administrative re-gion of China, and was reportedly

bound for Moscow and onwardsto a third destination.

Text messaging is the most pre-ferred communication tool in main-land China, used widely by ordi-

nary peopleand govern-ment offi-cials fromformal workexchangesto smallchats.

Govern-ment datashow thatthe Chineseexchangedalmost 900billion textmessages in2012, up 2.1per centfrom the pre-

vious year.Snowden also claimed to the

paper that the Tsinghua Univer-sity, widely regarded as China'stop education and research insti-tute, was the target of extensivehacking by the US spies this year.

It is not known how many timesthe Tsinghua University, whichcarries out a number of China's re-search programs, has been at-tacked by the US National Secu-rity Agency (NSA) but details

shown to the Post by Snowdenrevealed that one of the most re-cent breaches was as early as inJanuary this year.

The information also showedthat the attacks on Tsinghua Uni-versity were intensive and con-certed efforts.

In one single day of January, atleast 63 computers and servers inTsinghua University have beenhacked by the NSA, the reportsaid.

30-year-old Snowden, who wasaccused by some of the US offi-cials as a possible Chinese spy,said the information he shared onthe Tsinghua University attacksprovided evidence of NSA hack-ing because the specific details ofexternal and internal internet pro-tocol addresses could only havebeen obtained by hacking or withphysical access to the computers.

Reacting to the revelationsmade by Snowden, China termedthe US as the world's "biggest vil-lain" for IT espionage.

"These, along with previousallegations, are clearly troublingsigns. They demonstrate that theUnited States, which has longbeen trying to play innocent as avictim of cyber attacks, has turnedout to be the biggest villain in ourage," the state-run Xinhua newsagency said in commentary. -PTI

Edward Snowden

Tania Chopra among 50Outstanding Asians


NEW YORK: Tania Chopra wasrecently honored at a gala awardceremony at Ciprianni's restaurantin NYC as one of the Honorees ofthe Outstanding 50 Asians in Busi-ness. The Keynote speech was de-livered by Indra Nooyi CEO ofPepsico and Raj Dhanda Co-Head of Equities at MorganStanley.

Tania Chopra has worked forseveral prestigious organiza-tions including SunTrust Bank,Bank of America and currently atCredit Suisse based in New York.Formerly, she was a news anchoron Jus Punjabi TV. The Ambas-sadors of India, China, Pakistan,Korea, Indonesia, Burma, Japanwhere all in attendance.

Ms. Chopra said, "It is myprivilege to be part of a commu-nity where business owners andcorporate professionals are help-ing America thrive. We are con-

tributing to every sector of oureconomy and every corner of oursociety. What is most rewarding

is that in America with hard workand determination the impossibleis possible."

Ms Chopra was previouslyone of the "Top 20 WOWWomen" by Atlanta Woman

Magazine; one of the "Power 30Under 30" by Apex Society andrecipient of the "40 under 40 Upand Comers Award", by the At-lanta Business Chronicle.

Tania Chopra

Ms Chopra waspreviously one of the"Top 20 WOWWomen" by AtlantaWoman Magazine;one of the "Power 30Under 30" by ApexSociety and recipi-ent of the "40 under40 Up and ComersAward", by the At-lanta BusinessChronicle.

New UK visa rules willhurt business: CII

NEW DELHI: Terming the pro-posed new UK visa rules as"highly discriminatory and veryunfortunate", industry body CIIhas said these would lead to nega-tive impact on business and tour-ism inflow from India to that coun-try.

"CII strongly feels that suchblanket rules for vi-sas will negativelyaffect not only busi-nesses, especiallysmall businesses, itwill also furtherbring down thenumber of studentsgoing to the UnitedKingdom (UK) forhigher studies andaffect the tourism in-flow from India toUK," it said.

Besides, the newrules would also nothelp the cause ofearly conclusion of EU-India FTA(Free Trade Agreement), for whichboth the parties are committed, thechamber observed.

Visitors from India, Pakistan,Nigeria and other Asian and Afri-can countries deemed "high-risk"will be forced to pay a hefty cashbond before they can enter the UK.

According to a 'Sunday Times'report, tourists aged 18 and overwould be forced to hand over 3,000pounds (Rs 2.7 lakh) for a six-monthvisit visa, which they will forfeit ifthey overstay in Britain.

"The suggested changes arenot only discriminatory they arealso against the 'special relation-ship' publicized by the UK gov-ernment. We share UK's concern

on illegal immigration but surelythere are other more effective andnon-discriminatory ways to put acheck on it," CII said.

The British government is plan-ning to pilot a scheme from No-vember targeted at visitors fromat least six countries, also includ-ing Bangladesh, Sri Lanka and

Ghana.Last year, 2,96,000 people

granted six-month visas were fromIndia, 101,000 from Nigeria, 53,000from Pakistan and 14,000 each werefrom Sri Lanka and Bangladesh.

Several hundred visitors will beselected from each country for thetrial scheme.

But ministers plan to extend itto all visa types, including workand student visas, and to all coun-tries, although it will not coverevery one of the 2.2 million peoplegranted visas each year.

A similar scheme has alreadybeen rejected in Canada amidclaims that it was unlawful be-cause it discriminated against cat-egories of immigrants. -PTI

India Post TechBiz Post June 28, 2013

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14

In Paris, Dassault Systemes givesart a 3D 'dream'

Cont’d from page 12

Iraq ready to provide asmuch oil as India needs

BAGHDAD: Iraq, currently thesecond largest crude oil supplierto India, has assured it to provideas much oil as it could to fulfill theneeds of the growing Indianeconomy.

"Iraq is willing to assist, to pro-vide or to meet as much as it could(to fulfill) the needs of Indianeconomy," Iraqi Foreign MinisterHoshiyar Zebari told PTI here.

Top Iraqi officials believe thatIndia with its strong economicgrowth will be needing more fuelparticularly crude oil and oil-richIraq is in a unique position to sup-ply and meet that demand.

Iraq produces 3.15 million bar-rels a day of crude and plans todouble the output by 2020.

Pointing out that Iraq has theworld's third largest proven oil re-serves and is now second largestoil supplier to India, Zebari saidIraqi potentials are huge in thecoming decades.

In recent months, Iraq has re-placed sanctions-hit Iran as India'ssecond largest crude oil supplier.

Indian oil refineries purchasednearly 20 per cent of Iraq's crudeoil production last year and they arehoping to take it above 30 per centin future, the sources said.

India has reduced its depen-dence on Iranian oil in the wake ofUS and EU sanctions on the importof oil from the Islamic Republic.

Zebari underlined the impor-tance of External Affairs Minister

Salman Khurshid's two-day offi-cial tour to Iraq, saying, "This visitis very important visit for Iraq-In-dia relations".

Khurshid, who visited Iraq onJune 19-20, was the first senior In-dian minister to tour the war-rav-aged country in last 23 years.Former External Affairs Minister IK Gujral had visited Iraq in 1990.

"This visit will open some majorinroads towards better cooperationbetween the two countries in manyareas of common interests, trade,business, investment and also In-dian expertise for Iraqi economyand in all the areas of mutual co-operation," Zebari said-PTI

Iraqi Foreign Minister Hoshiyar Zebari

Court holds West BengalEntry Tax unconstitutionalKOLKATA: The West Bengal

government's efforts to shore uprevenue collection received a set-back with the Calcutta High Courtholding the entry tax introducedin the 2012-2013 budget as un-constitutional.

Justice Indira Banerjee, hold-ing the imposition of the WestBengal Tax on Entry of Goods intoLocal Areas Act, 2012, as uncon-stitutional, observed that it wasnot compensatory in nature.

The order referred to a Su-preme Court judgment which saidthat imposition of such taxeshave to be compensatory in na-ture and observed that this was

not followed in case of this Actintroduced by the West Bengalgovernment.

The order also noted that thePresident's assent was not takenfor the Act.

The petition, challenging theconstitutional validity of the Act,was filed in 2012 by several com-panies, including Tata Steel,Hindalco and Bharti Airtel.

The government had last yearpassed the Act to create a com-pulsory entry tax fund in a bid tofill the state's empty coffers.

The Left Front governmenthad abolished a similar tax in1995.-PTI

US court upholds Rajaratnam'sconviction

NEW YORK: Disgracedhedge fund founder RajRajaratnam's conviction for in-sider trading in the biggesthedge fund insider-tradingscheme in US history was up-held by a court here, which re-jected a challenge to the use ofwiretaps in his high-profile trial.

The US Court of Appeals inManhattan confirmed the 2011conviction of the co-founder ofGalleon Group LLC for con-spiracy and securities fraud.

The decision by a unanimousthree-judge panel of the 2nd USCircuit Court of Appeals in NewYork was seen as a victory forfederal prosecutors, who haveused wiretaps to win convic-tions or guilty pleas for dozensof defendants in a wide-ranginginvestigation into insider trad-ing that was unveiled in Octo-ber 2009.

Rajaratnam, 56, a native of SriLanka was convicted of direct-ing the biggest hedge fund in-sider-trading scheme in US his-tory and is serving an 11-yearprison sentence.

During the trial, the federal gov-ernment introduced 45 secret re-cordings, along with documentsand testimony derived from thewiretaps.

Rajarathnam's attorneys told intheir appeal petition that the fed-eral government should have ex-hausted other avenues of inquirybefore resorting to electronic sur-veillance hid from a federal judgethe existence of a related Securi-ties and Exchange Commission in-

vestigation when seeking per-mission for a wiretap.

The prosecutors has allegedthat Rajaratnam made USD 63.8million in illicit profits from 2003

to March 2009 trading onstocks, including ATI Tech-nologies Inc, which wasbought by Advanced Mi-cro Devices Inc; eBay Inc;Goldman Sachs Group Inc;Google Inc; and Intel Corp.

Challenging the use ofwiretaps, Rajaratnamclaimed an FBI agent im-properly omitted informa-tion regarding the reliabil-ity of a cooperating wit-ness when he sought a fed-eral judge's approval fortapping into his calls inMarch 2008, and appealed

trial judge Richard Holwell's de-cision to admit the wiretaps.

Writing for the 2nd Circuit,Judge Jose Cabranes said: "wecannot conclude that the gov-ernment omitted certain infor-mation about the SEC investi-gation with 'reckless disregardfor the truth.'" -PTI

Raj Rajaratnam

Immersive virtual reality andinteractivity specialists led by

Benoit Marini took on the chal-lenge of creating a "magical box"in which the virtual world wouldunfold and into which Mr & MrsDream would be plunged.

Technology and art do not nec-essarily go hand in hand. Certainlynot when both are walking an un-explored, unpaved path. Not sur-prisingly, it took a year for Mr &Mrs Dream to dance out of a draw-

ing board (read computer screen)onto a 3D stage where everythingseems real, but is actually virtual.

In Mr & Mrs Dream, two fic-tional characters whospring from Lonesco'smind create their ownworld that leads to poetry,an unusual world, a bizarreand even funny world.

That world of Mr &Mrs Dream is narratedthrough a series of virtu-ally created images inwhich seasons change,words dance, shadows in-terrogate, snow-flakes shimmer,umbrella im-ages replicateeerily, townsvanish, meteor-ites fly…. Noneof this is actu-

ally happening in 'reality'on stage, they are cre-ated, 'virtual' images withwhich the dancers inter-act seamlessly, effort-lessly. Technology doesnot intrude; it is actuallya dramatic personae inMr & Mrs Dream.

Under the aegis of its Passionfor Innovation program, Dassault

Systemes has gone beyond itspurely technical vocation. In theirKufu Revealed project, they recre-ated Egyptian pyramid; for theirParis innovation, they beamed intothe past and rendered Paris' his-tory in 3D; they are also 3D simu-lating how icebergs can be trans-ported from New Zealand to theCanary Islands. As Tayoubi says,"Everything is possible. No dreamis impossible."

One cannot say with certaintyabout the possibility of everydream, but in Mr & Mrs Dream, re-ality, as Lonesco said, was what

it was. It was 'virtual'. DassaultSystemes gave it a slick 3D expe-rience!

Laurent Garnier who composed and mixedthe soundtrack

www.indiapost.com June 28, 2013

COMMUNITYACROSS AMERICA

Details on page 24

16 India Post

Desi News EnthrallingDance Festival at

Balaji Temple

Details on page 23

Details on page 24

Details on page 20

IndiaNow grand show depictsall facets of India

VIDYA SETHURAMAN


SAN JOSE: India is a diverseland in all aspects, be it race, re-gion, caste, language, climate,

landform, flora and fauna and soon. We have made our lives in Bayarea, but our hearts are for surewith our homeland, "India". Two

passionate Bay Area entrepre-neurs namely Ena Sarkar andShalini Raj Singh have made ourdream come true with their ambi-tious "IndiaNow 2013".

IndiaNow 2013 was a grandTrade Fair event which broughtIndia to our doorsteps right herein Silicon Valley for two days - June22-23rd at Santa Clara County Fair-grounds in San Jose.

The mission of this grand eventwas to bring India and the US to-gether to explore our infinite tradeand tourism opportunities andthey did showcase all facets ofIndia. It was not just a mela. Thisevent provided opportunities forpromotion, trade and investmentin the fields of technology, fash-ion, jewelry, handicrafts and realestate, say Ena and Shalini, orga-nizers of this grand show.

The aim of this trade fair was toestablish a network within the

Northern California region to fa-cilitate a strong trade and com-merce relationship between Indiaand America. The fair featuredabout 100 diversified group ofvendors from both India and UStogether on one platform.

Govt of Haryana, Govt ofRajasthan, Ministry of TourismIndia Incredible India & SwagatamVacations displayed their trade

and tourist op-portunities inthe uniquestate pavilion.There were lotof artists fromIndia display-ing their talentsand crafts dur-ing the event.Wo r k s h o p swere organizedto hone artisticskills of thoseinterested.

Shri KapilDev was theBrand Ambas-sador of IndiaNow 2013 andgraced theopening cer-emony on June21 at San JoseAirport GardenHotel. He is aformer Indiancricketer whocaptained theIndian cricketteam which wonthe 1983 CricketWorld Cup.

Kapil Dev along with other phi-lanthropists started an NGOnamed Khushii (Kinship for Hu-manitarian Social and Holistic In-tervention) in 2005 and heads it asChairman.

Khushii runs three schools forthe less privileged in Delhi andprovides education, mid-daymeals and clothing to them.

Cont’d on page 19

The aim of this tradefair was to establish anetwork within theNorthern Californiaregion to facilitate astrong trade andcommerce relation-ship between Indiaand America. KapilDev was the BrandAmbassador ofIndia Now 2013

Lawmakers laudIndian Americansat NFIA meetSUDHIR VYAS

WASHINGTON DC: In keepingwith its annual tradition, the Na-tional Federation of Indian Ameri-can Associations (NFIA) spon-sored a two-day meet in Washing-ton DC on June 6 and June 7. Itattracted more than 150 of its del-egates from all over the countryand also a host of no-nonsenselawmakers who welcomed appre-ciated efforts of Indian Americansin cementing Indo-US ties and im-proving the lot of society at largehere.

It was an affair to rememberbecause delegates traveling fromvarious parts of the country - Illi-nois, New York, New Jersey, Con-necticut, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Vir-ginia, Maryland and many otherstates - had chanced upon an ex-cellent opportunity to interact andexchange information with theirlawmakers, get intellectually stimu-lated and networked among them-selves.

United Sikh Missionholds sixth annualfundraiserIndia Post News Service

DIAMOND BAR, CA: Fontanabased United Sikh Mission heldits 6th annual fundraiser at theDiamond Palace Friday June 21.

Attended by about 200 invitees,the purpose of this event was toraise funds for the forthcomingeye camps in India scheduled Oct/Nov this year in Punjab, UP andDelhi.

This time the United Sikh Mis-sion (USM) was able to sign upsponsors for 50 camps and it isexpected that USM will be able tohold about at least 55 camps thisfall in different parts of Punjab, UPand Delhi.

Community Walkin support ofCancer Society

SURESH SHAH

CHICAGO, Illinois: On a warm,sunny Sunday morning, over athousand walkers gathered atPottawatomie Park in St. Charles,a northeast Chicago suburb, to bepart of BAPS Charities efforts inraising funds in support of Ameri-can Cancer Society (ACS).

Kapil Dev

India Post 17June 28, 2013 Community Across Americawww.indiapost.com

Legendry Kapil Dev brings alive glory of 1983

Dr Romesh Japra, Rajesh Verma, Shalini Raj Singh, Kapil Dev, Ena Sarkar & Vijay Thapar. Pics Neelu Kapoor

VIDYA SETHURAMAN


FREMONT: The year 1983 mayseem a long, long time ago, butyou wouldn't think so had youbeen at the private dinner hostedby Federation of Indo Americansof Northern California along withthe volunteers of IndiaNow 2013in Fremont on June 23. When the

legendary Indian cricketer KapilDev entered the banquet hall, theentire audience of about 200 Bayarea dignitaries from all walks oflife cheered him as if his 1983 tri-umph of leading India to it's first

World Cup victory had happenedyesterday.

Kapil Dev is one of the great-est pacebowlers In-dia has pro-duced, andd e f i n i t e l ytheir greatestall-rounder.He led Indiaalmost jaun-tily, and byhis all-roundexample, tothe 1983World Cup,and to takethe world-record aggre-gate of Testwickets from Hadlee. There is afetching down-to-earth charm andhumility about him that has in-spired enormous affection over the

years, and it was evident at theevent.

Kapil Dev addressed the gath-ering and said he was excited andthrilled to be a part of IndiaNow2013 which was a complete Indianshow in all aspects. "I feel proudto be among the elite technologi-cal crowd which pulls the UnitedStates," he said. But he did addthat we all loved our country and

wanted to do something andcricket was his forte to show hislove for the nation. He interactedwith the gathering and explainedcricket to the young kids who wereborn in US. Along with other phi-

lanthropis ts ,Kapil started anNGO namedKhushi (Kin-ship for Hu-manitarian So-cial and HolisticIntervention) in2005 and headsit as Chairman.The organiza-tion runs threeschools for theless privilegedin Delhi andprovides edu-cation, mid-day

meals and clothing to them.The event was organized by Dr

Romesh Japra, FIA and was at-

tended by Ro Khanna, RajeshVerma, Ena Sarkar, Shalini RajSingh, sponsors and volunteers ofIndiaNow 2013.

Dr Romesh Japra, Anil Yadav, Ro Khanna, Kapil Dev,

Joe Johal & Rajesh Verma

Vijay Thapar, Kapil Dev, Manorama Joshi & Rajesh Verma

Kapil Dev, Vijaya Aasuri, guest

June 28, 2013India Post18 Community Across Americawww.indiapost.com

Dharma & Yoga Fest in memory of Swami VivekanandaIndia Post News Service

MILPITAS, CA: Prominent leaders of theHindu community came together at theSwagat restaurant in Milpitas and joinedhands to announce Dharma & Yoga fest, afestival to conclude the year-long com-memoration of Swami Vivekananda's 150thbirth anniversary in 2013 and his vision of"Universal Peace through Dharma andYoga." Dharma & Yoga Fest, a day-longfestival will take place at two locations inthe Bay Area on September 14 - MissionCollege in Santa Clara and The AlamedaCounty Fairgrounds in Pleasanton.

Dharma and Yoga Fest will include a va-riety of activities, including practice andphilosophy of Yoga and Meditation. Expertswill share their experiences in Bhakti Yoga(Kirtans), Karma Yoga, Gyana Yoga and RajaYoga. Children will enjoy games in the Hindutheme park, face-painting, henna tattoos andcompetitions. Interactive exhibits will in-clude "Experiencing Hindu/Dharmic Living"and "Life and Message of SwamiVivekananda."

The highlight of the event will be adance-drama presentation, "Krishna Leela"by over 200 kids. The event will endeavor

to create a sense of harmony, mutual re-spect, and spiritual oneness. Dharma andYoga Fest will be a unique event whereDharmic followers of all traditions will come

together and celebrate.A Hindu member of the US House of

Representatives, Tulsi Gabbard will gracethe evening culminating event in Santa

Clara, CA.Joining the announcement of the fest

were Chandru Bhambhra of HinduSwayamsevak Sangh (HSS), Jayaram Komati

of Swagat Restaurant, Raj Bhanot of Sunny-vale Hindu Temple, Ro Khanna - candidatefor Congress, Dr. Romesh Japra of FremontHindu Temple, Anil Annam from Silicon

Andhra, Dharminder Dewan, DeepakChhabra, Haresh Panchal of National Fed-eration of Indian American Association(NFIA), Jeevan Zutshi of Indo-AmericanCommunity Federation, Manorama Joshi,Murali Krishnamurthy of Sankara Eye Foun-dation, Rajan Barma of Ekal Vidyalaya,Rajesh Verma-President of FIA, Reena Raoof TV Asia, Veeru Vuppala, Vijay Thapar ofIndia Post, Vijaya Aasuri of Bay Area TeluguAssociation, Yogi Chugh and many othercommunity leaders.

The Dharmic organizations currently par-ticipating in Dharma and Yoga Fest includeEkal Vidyalaya, Fremont Hindu Temple,Samskrita Bharati, USA Sewa International,Sunnyvale Hindu Temple and Yoga Bharati

HSS has conducted other events in 2013as part of its observance of SwamiVivekananda's 150th birth anniversary, in-cluding the first ever Dharma Bee, a nation-wide quiz competition for school children,and a traveling exhibit on SwamiVivekananda's life visiting major universitycampuses. Dharma and Yoga Fest alsomarks the 120th anniversary of SwamiVivekananda's groundbreaking address atthe World's Parliament of Religions in Chi-cago on September 11, 1893.


Kapil Dev was present at theTrade Fair event and he led aCricket quiz among other pro-grams. He interacted with the Bayarea cricket enthusiasts and gavetips to budding cricketers.

Cultural shows, classical dances,Bollywood and classical music,fashion shows were organized overtwo days across an outdoor andindoor stage, to immerse one in whatIndia has to offer. Bengali folk,

IndiaNow grand showdepicts all facets of India

Bhangra, Bharathanatyam, Kathak,Oriya folk, Bollywood dance werethe highlights of cultural showswhich showcased talents from USand India. Music was at par withdance performances and the audi-ence was quenched in North andSouth Indian classical and semi-clas-sical numbers.

Ena and Shalini thanked thesponsors, volunteers, and IndianState government for their supportto realize their dream and make it agrand success.


Construction begins for new Sai Baba templeVIDYA SETHURAMAN


SUNNYVALE: Shirdi Sai Darbarhas started the construction of SaiBaba temple complex at 255, SanGeronimo Way, Sunnyvale. Thisnew location at Wolfe and ArquesAve intersection is about � milefrom the current location.

Shirdi Sai Darbar is a non-profit

organization based in Bay Areawhich started functioning in Feb-ruary 2011. It is 100% volunteerbase organization and all dona-tions are tax deductible. All activi-ties are managed by SSD Volun-teers. Shirdi Sai Darbar performsSai Abhishek every day afterKakad Aarthi where everyone getschance to do Baba Abhishek.

Shirdi Sai Darbar does SaiBhajan on every Thursday from7:30 pm to 8:30 pm at Shirdi SaiDarbar Temple. They also do re-draw chanting with Sai Abhishekevery Thursday from 6:50 pm to7:30 pm. They distribute Prasadamfor 1500 to 2000 devotees everyThursday.

After receiving the muchawaited temple construction per-

mit from the City of Sunnyvale, thetemple organization has startedthe construction of Sai Babatemple complex. The landlord iswilling to lease the building with abuy option.

The estimated total cost for thisproject is approximately 5.5 mil-lions. The immediate requirementis 2.5 millions so that the balance

can get approved through a lend-ing institution.

We can show the place to devo-tees on any Saturday on demand,says Ashok. The total area is20,000 sq. ft. They will be allocat-ing 10,000 sq. ft for the main prayerhall and the rest for meditation anddining facilities. The facility hasabout 200 parking spaces. Thespace is already pre-approved forreligious activities by City ofSunnyvale.

The organization says it wel-comes donations for the construc-tion of new temple complex. "It istime for us to take ownership andbuild the Best Sai Baba temple inBay area," says Ashok.

They have introduced a uniquedonor program called "Donor Rec-ognition Wall" which will give onea chance to contribute towardsbuilding of Sai temple and havingone's name inscribed on the wall.He said that due to limited spaceon the wall it will be filled quickly.Thus the devotees are encouragedto make the donations as soon aspossible. The program will end onJanuary 31, 2014 or when full ca-pacity is reached.

The estimated total cost for this project isapproximately 5.5 millions. The immediaterequirement is 2.5 millions so that the balancecan get approved through a lendinginstitution. We can show the place to devoteeson any Saturday on demand, says Ashok

Edison partners with customersto conserve energy


ROSEMEAD, CA: As South-ern Californians prepare for sum-mer, Southern California Edison(SCE) is asking customers to beespecially conservation-minded tohelp keep the electric grid stableand reliable during hot weatherwhen energy use spikes, particu-larly without the power generatedfrom the San Onofre nuclear plant.

Last summer, SCE customerssaved 300 megawatts throughconservation measures - enoughto power about 200,000 homes.

"While Edison has been doingall that it can to prepare to supplypower without help from the SanOnofre plant, customer conserva-tion is still a must," said ErwinFurukawa, SCE senior vice presi-dent for customer service. "Nowis the time to enroll in our conser-vation programs and start practic-ing conservation behaviors thatcan make a big difference for thegrid."

SCE is taking measures to makeup for critical power generationresources that will not be availablethis year with the retirement of the

San Onofre nuclear plant. SCEcontinues to make critical infra-structure improvements to itstransmission systems and is bring-ing online 1,900 megawatts of gen-eration - enough to power 1.23million homes at a point in time -from Walnut Creek Energy Park in

the City of Industry, CPV SentinelEnergy Project in the CoachellaValley and the El Segundo Gener-ating Station.

Some ways customers can helpimprove grid reliability and con-trol costs include:

• Enrolling in programs such asthe Summer Discount Plan, whichoffers up to $200 in bill credits forcustomers who allow SCE to tem-porarily disable their central airconditioner

• Opting into Save Power Days,a program that provides bill cred-its in exchange for reducing en-ergy usage during peak periods,from 2-6 p.m., on designated days.

• Keeping the thermostat set to78 or above, using fans to make aroom feel at least 5 degrees cooler,

and drawing drapes during thehottest part of the day.

• Using LED and CFL lightbulbs not only keep bills lower, butthey create less heat than old, in-efficient incandescent bulbs in thehome.

To ensure long-term grid reli-ability, the utility will be closelyworking with the California Inde-pendent System Operator, as wellas the California Energy Commis-sion, California Public UtilitiesCommission, local and stateelected officials, and the commu-nities served to address future en-ergy needs for customers.

To ensure long-term grid reliability, the utilitywill be closely working with the CaliforniaIndependent System Operator, as well as theCalifornia Energy Commission, CaliforniaPublic Utilities Commission, localand state elected officials

www. indiapost .com


United Sikh Mission holds sixth annual fundraiserIndia Post News Service

DIAMOND BAR, CA: Fontanabased United Sikh Mission heldits 6th annual fundraiser at theDiamond Palace Friday June 21.

Attended by about 200 invitees,the purpose of this event was toraise funds for the forthcomingeye camps in India scheduled Oct/Nov this year in Punjab, UP andDelhi.

This time the United Sikh Mis-sion (USM) was able to sign upsponsors for 50 camps and it isexpected that USM will be able tohold about at least 55 camps thisfall in different parts of Punjab, UPand Delhi.

The event was attended byleading luminaries of the commu-nity. In his address CypressMayor Dr Prakash Narain ap-plauded the community and USMfor their efforts and contribution.He also presented a proclamationfrom the City of Cypress to theUnited Sikh Mission.

Dr Piyush Karia of the ArpanFoundation echoed similar senti-ments and expressed the need fora more aggressive approach topromote health care and educationamongst the less fortunate in In-dia. Other speakers too expressedsimilar views.

The event was emceed by thevery talented and versatile AshaSharma.

Plaques and awards were pre-

sented to the sponsors and otherguests along with the local media.There was also a ceremony to re-lease a book on the KartarpurSahib Corridor.

The guests were treated to a

sumptuous dinner.Headed by Jathedar Rashpal

Singh Dhindsa, the United SikhMission has been holding campsin Punjab and other parts of NorthIndia for the past decade.

Last year's camp saw a recordof over 27 thousand OPDs andabout three thousand people un-derwent eye surgery. Along withthis over 13 thousand people re-ceived free eye glasses.

This year USM aims to hold atleast 55 camps in different parts ofPunjab, UP and Delhi.

The United Sikh Mission is aFontana CA based NGO commit-ted to the service of humanity.Along with Eye and Medicalcamps, USM's activities includepromotion of education for thepoor and weaker sections of soci-ety. USM also works to encour-age and assist bright students inattaining their aspirations toqualify and join India's covetedservices like IAS, IPS and IFS.

Other issues include environ-ment and the very key issue of fe-male infanticide.

Also on the agenda is theKartarpur Sahib Corridor. SriKartarpur Sahib is located nearNarowal in Pakistan barely threekilometers away from the bordernear Dera Baba Nanak. It is herethat Sri Guru Nanak Dev spent thelast 18 years of his life. The UnitedSikh Mission is working with theconcerned governments to open acorridor to the shrine so that the

faithful can have easy access to it.The corridor will give a huge

boost to the local economy onboth sides of the border and pro-mote people to people contact and

create an ambience of harmonyand goodwill between the two na-tions. The corridor was unani-mously approved by the PunjabVidhan Sabha in 2010.

Arpan Foundation's Dr Piyush Karia

Recognizing the role of the Media: Jathedar Rashpal Singh with

Riaz Khan and Shashi Trivedi

Camp sponsors

Guests at the event

Also on the agenda is the Kartarpur SahibCorridor. Sri Kartarpur Sahib is located nearNarowal in Pakistan barely three kilometersaway from the border near Dera BabaNanak. It is here that Sri Guru Nanak Devspent the last 18 years of his life

India Post 21June 28, 2013www.indiapost.com


Lawmakers laud Indian Americansat NFIA meet

SUDHIR VYAS

WASHINGTON DC: In keepingwith its annual tradition, the Na-tional Federation of Indian Ameri-can Associations (NFIA) spon-sored a two-day meet in Washing-ton DC on June 6 and June 7. Itattracted more than 150 of its del-egates from all over the countryand also a host of no-nonsenselawmakers who welcomed appre-ciated efforts of Indian Americansin cementing Indo-US ties and im-proving the lot of society at largehere.

It was an affair to rememberbecause delegates traveling fromvarious parts of the country - Illi-nois, New York, New Jersey, Con-necticut, Pennsylvania, Ohio, Vir-ginia, Maryland and many otherstates - had chanced upon an ex-cellent opportunity to interact andexchange information with theirlawmakers, get intellectually stimu-lated and networked among them-selves.

On the morning of June 6, they

were treated with a CongressionalLuncheon at the Rayburn HouseOffice Building, which 11 lawmak-ers (9 Democrats and 2 Republi-cans) attended. NFIA delegatesclosely interacted with their legis-lators, bringing issues of concernof the community to their atten-tion followed by a photographysession with them.

Lawmakers vied with each otherin paying tributes to the IndianAmerican community's contribu-tion to the welfare of society. Theylauded their efforts to enhanceUS-India relations and promisedto work hard to take it to a higherlevel.

Rep. Ed Royce (R-California) a

consistent friend of the IndianAmerican community and a strongadvocate of strengthening US-In-dia relations, expressed his con-cern about forcible conversion ofHindus to Islam in Pakistan. "Fi-nanced by money coming fromGulf countries, the young men arebeing trained as Jehadis instead

of being educated," noted Royce.Praising the good relations be-

tween the United States and In-dia, the Congressman said, "Thishigh-level attention given to In-dia solidifies its place in the uppertier of US partnerships."

Many lawmakers reveled overtheir successful efforts to con-vince Federal Bureau of Investi-gation (FBI) to start collecting dataon hate crimes against Sikhs, Hin-dus, Muslims and people fromother countries. The successfulefforts to achieve this milestonewere led by Representative JosephCrowley (D-NY). "I am thrilled theFBI's law enforcement advisoryboard agrees that the Hate Crimes

Incident Report Forms must beupdated to include at-risk commu-nities," he said.

Congresswoman Judy Chu (D-California) addressed the audienceabout her efforts to get approveda fair immigration bill. Chu hasbeen a longtime advocate for com-prehensive immigration reform andhas become a leading voice fight-ing for family unity to be ad-dressed in the process.

"I will continue fighting to en-sure siblings are able to bring theirbrothers and sisters here as well,"she emphasized. She also askedthe Indian American delegates tocontact their representatives andurge them to act before the inter-est on student loans is doubledfrom 3.4% to 6.8% in July this year.

Rep. Michael Honda (D-Califor-nia) also advocated the approvalof immigration Reform legislation."Now, Congress must move for-ward with a comprehensive immi-gration reform plan, and I will con-tinue to work with my colleaguesto ensure a just, humane and work-able immigration system that hon-ors families, respects human dig-nity, and strengthens oureconomy," he emphasized.

Rep. Chris Van Hollen (D-Mary-land) also addressed the issue ofincreased rates of student loans.He said, "Just a few weeks ago,our Republican colleagues votedfor the Republican budget thatcalled for a doubling of interestrates on student loans - on 7 mil-lion American students. And theyvoted against the Democratic al-ternative budget, which wouldhave prevented that increase instudent loan interest rates."

He emphasized that the ratesshould not go up in order to keepeducation affordable. He recalledthat he went to school inKodaikanal, Tamil Nadu, India and

has had strong linkage with thatcountry.

Rep. John Sarbanes (D-Mary-land), son of the former SenatorPaul Sarbanes said, "Indian Ameri-can community has distinguisheditself in every field of endeavorsuch as medicine, politics, trade,and commerce. "As Greek Ameri-can, I can safely say that Greece isthe oldest democracy and India isthe largest (most populous) de-mocracy."

Rep. Rob Woodall (R-Georgia),Co-author of the New York Timesbest-selling books, Fair Tax andTruth, said he was doubly happy

to be at the meet because he wasnot only meeting the IndianAmerican community, but also gota chance to give award to myfriend, Subash Razdan. He waspresented with a plaque by theNFIA. Just a few months ago, the

Government of India honored himwith a Bhartiya Samman Award atthe Pravasi Bhartiya Divas.

Congresswoman TulsiGabbard, the first Hindu memberof the House of Representatives,as usual stole the hearts of allthose in attendance with herstraight from the heart speech. Sheapplauded the appointment of SriSrinivasan, first South Asian per-son to the US Court of Appeals."This is a historical event and Iam convinced that Sri will offer aunique perspective and add diver-sity that is long overdue in ourjustice system. He already has adistinguished and proven recordof commitment to public service,and I look forward to his contribu-tions to the bench."

The other members of theHouse of Representatives whoappeared at this event were Gre-gory Meek (D-New York) andGrace Meng (D-New York). Bothof these members of the Houseacknowledged their friendshipwith the chairman of the NFIAFoundation.

By all accounts, the Congres-sional luncheon was a successfulaffair. A respectable number oflawmakers showed up and theytalked about the important issues.

The event was coordinated byDrs Parthasarthy Pillai, RajenAnand and Joydeb Roy under theleadership of Sohan Joshi, presi-dent of NFIA, Lal Motwani, Chairof the NFIA Foundation, andSatheesan Nair, NFIA secretary.

NFIA delegates at White House

Rep Tulsi Gabbard addressing NFIA Meet

A group of NFIA Delegates in front of White House


Community Walk in support of Cancer SocietySURESH SHAH

CHICAGO, Illinois: On a warm,sunny Sunday morning, over athousand walkers gathered atPottawatomie Park in St. Charles,a northeast Chicago suburb, to bepart of BAPS Charities efforts inraising funds in support of Ameri-can Cancer Society (ACS).

The Community Walk 2013and had participants from age 6 to60. Six year-old Rushi Patel, whoraised one of the most sponsor-ships, was excited to attend theBAPS Charities walkathon in sup-port of the American Cancer Soci-ety. Over the last few weeks, hehad walked miles door-to-doorraising funds for the walkathon.First time walker, Hetal Patel, at-tended the walkathon with herfamily, said, "We would definitelybe a part of this walk again. Mykids and I felt proud to play a smallpart in support of such a great

cause."Volunteers and participants, all

wearing baby blue Walk 2013 t-shirts eagerly walked the 5K route

with enthusiasm. KateMonteleone, Regional Vice Presi-dent of the American Cancer Soci-ety, was amazed with the partici-

pant turn-out, stating, "It's greatto see everyone from BAPS Chari-ties unified by their t-shirts andparticipating in such a well-orga-nized walkathon for a great cause."

Binal Amin, a young cancersurvivor, praised the BAPS com-munity and ACS for being therefor her in her time of need. Shesaid "Both organizations fosterthis spirit of service and havehelped me become the confidentwoman I am today."

Corporate sponsors includedGEICO, New York Life, Atlas Oil -BP, Graham C Stores and othersfrom the area and national. Thebooths were a good post-walk at-traction for one and all, while mak-ing a go at the corn off the cob,

or tasting out the tangy Mexicandishes fanned out by the volun-teers.

As a member of the communityand someone who has been di-rectly touched by cancer, JohnColon, VP of Sales and Supportat Atlas Oil-BP, noted that thisevent held special importance tohis family. "My wife battled can-cer and is now in remission so thisevent is personal. When my kidsasked me what I wanted to do forFather's Day, I said I wanted toparticipate in the BAPS Walk forCancer."

Similar walks took place in over40 cities throughout NorthAmerica and over 13,000 partici-pants walked over 45,000 miles.

The start of BAPS Walkathon for Cancer

Participants, many old, middle aged and young

Shalli Kumar appointed chiefof Republican council

SURI SWAMY

CHICAGO: National Republi-can Congressional Committee(NRCC) has announced that ShalliKumar of Chi-cago will headthe newly setup IndianAmerican Ex-ecutive Councilthat will facili-tate communi-cation betweenNRCC and theIndian Ameri-can communityin order tostrengthen rela-tionships withIndian Ameri-cans and advicethe RepublicanParty on key is-sues important to the community.

Kumar is an engineer CEO ofAVG Advanced Technologies,headquartered in Carol Stream, anorthwest suburb or Chicago. He

previously served on PresidentRonald Reagan's Business Advi-sory Council in the early eighties.

As the Chairmanof NRCC's IAEC,Kumar will playan integral role infostering rela-tions between theNRCC and the In-dian-Americancommunity.

The NRCC willseek his input re-garding how toincrease Republi-can outreach ef-forts in the com-ing elections andidentify potentialc a n d i d a t e s .NRCC appreci-

ates that Kumar has agreed to donthe responsibility as Chairman ofthe Council and thanked him forall he has done to improve the livesof Americans.

Shalli Kumar

Dr Neelam Kumar headsMichigan health care board

ASHOK JAIN MD

DETROIT: A front ranking In-dian American physician and acommunity activist, Dr. NeelamKumar hasbeen ap-p o i n t e dChairman oft h eO a k w o o dHealthcareFoundationBoard, andshe wouldassume thecharge ef-fective im-mediately.

OakwoodHealthcareSystem is ar e g i o n a lhealth caren e t w o r kand is oneof the most

comprehensive health care deliv-ery systems in southeasternMichigan. In this role, Dr Kumar

will become an ex-officio memberof the Oakwood Healthcare, Inc.Board.

Dr Kumar has over 20 years ofexperience working with theOakwood Foundation Board andhas been a generous donor, bothpersonally, and through hergroup.

She has actively participated inall Foundation events and hasserved as Honorary Chair of"Wine for the Spirit." She is alsoactive on the Oakwood HealthcareFoundation Executive Committee,Oakwood Healthcare Inc. Strate-gic Planning Committee, and theOakwood Healthcare System Qual-ity Committee.

Dr Kumar has also been a mem-ber of the Oakwood HealthcareFoundation Philanthropic Physi-cian Advisory Committee, actingas Chairperson for the past yearand one-half.Dr Neelam Kumar


Enthralling Dance Festival at Balaji TempleUSHA PARITI

CHICAGO: The Cultural Com-mittee of Sri Venkateswara SwamiTemple in Aurora, presented anenthralling two day dance festival"Nrithya Samarpanam - IndianDance festival" recently.

Performances by Midwestdance schools and visitingtroupes from across the countrymesmerized all those present at thefestival. The prestigious dancefestival attracted more than 150participants fromacross the coun-try and India.

Individual per-formances byS a m n v i t h aRanjan andKrishnanand Nairwere well re-ceived. The tal-ented youngdancers upliftedthe spirit of theaudience withtheir skillfulrhythm and ex-pressions.

Highlightingthe festival was aprofessional fea-tured presenta-tion by Sri J.SuryanarayanaMurthy, a sev-enth generationP e r f o r m e rTeacher belong-ing to one of the15 original tradi-tional Bhagavatula families ofdancers and teachers ofKuchipudi village in Andhra. SriMurthy has received severalawards and is the recipient of the

title of "Natya Purna" from theDhananjayans and the "Yuva KalaBharathi" award from the BharatKalachar, Madras.

"Annamayya NrityaNeerajanam" - a beautifulBharatanatyam Production by Smt.Sujatha Srinivasan, Artistic Direc-tor of Shri Kalaa Mandir, andShriya Srinivasan, an internation-ally renowned Bharathanatyamexponent, known for her classi-

cism and creative choreography,was yet another highlight.

Sujatha learnt the art under emi-nent gurus and as a performer, shebrings over 30 years of perform-

ing experience to the art. She haswon many awards and titles in In-dia and has presented her recitalsin India, Sri Lanka, Paris, Geneva,Canada, apart from several citiesin the USA.

"Dashaavataram," another fea-tured Bharatanatyam performanceby Students of Vanitha Veeravalli,was presented with elegance andwas received very well. Vanithahas received much appreciationfrom critics and audiences for itsrich and evocative aesthetics.

Participating schools included:Nrithyanjali School of Dance,

Artistic Director, SushmitaArunkumar; Nrithya SangeethSchool of Dance, Artistic Director,Sowmya Kumaran; of Utkala Cen-tre for Odissi, Artistic Director,Ipsitha Satpathy; KuchipudiNatya Vihar, Artistic Director,Sobha Tammana; Laasyam Schoolof Dance, Artistic Director, HemaYaddanapudi; Noopura DanceAcademy, Artistic Director,Mahalakshmi Varadhan;Kalarpana School of Dance, Artis-tic Director, Radhika Raghuvir;Nrithya Geetanjali Dance Acad-

emy, Artistic Director, AnupamaRajesh; Students of BharatanjaliSchool of Dance, Artistic Direc-tor, Sandhya Radhakrishnan; Asha

Acharya Performing Arts, ArtisticDirector, Asha Acharya Adiga; SriRanga School of Dance, ArtisticDirector, Srivani Vokkarane;Devaki Janakiraman and NatyaBala Kuchipudi Dance Academy,Artistic Director, LavanyaLathaJonnalagadda.

The vibrant performances by all

these participants enthralled theaudience. The event was ablycompeered by the cultural commit-tee members Srilakshmi

Dronamraju, Shree Gurusamy andNalini Yedavalli.

The Cultural Committee chairUsha Pariti, in her vote of thanks,commended the dedicated effortsof the Balaji Temple Cultural com-mittee members in bringing forthsuch high quality presentations toChicago art lovers.

J.Suryanarayana Murthy from India

Sujatha Srinivasan and Shriya Srinivasan

Students of Bharatam Academy of Dance arts

Father's Day at HariOm Temple

Asian Media USA

CHICAGO: Hari Om Mandir inMedinah, a northwest Chicagosuburb, celebrated, " Father's Day" on Friday, 14 June that wasplanned and executed by a teamof Seniors. It was truly a fun-filledevening with lots of music andentertainment.

Emceed well by Vadheraji, theprogram started with Guru

Vandana by Pt. Yogesh Pandyaand Dinesh Kumar, followed by asong by Malti Sharma singing"Jabse Hui Hai Shadi Afatmen PadGaya Hun'.

Arun Chaddha presented hisown poems including a poem de-picting arguments between agrandmother and grand-daughterhighlighting generational gap.

Cont’d on page 25 Qawali team members


Jokes presented by Anita Rawaland ghazal followed by Madhuand another by Hardev Raj re-freshed the audience. VimalSharma delighted the audiencewith passionate ghazals.

Dr Dhingra presented a healthtalk referring to heart and brain.Ayodhiaji Salwan presentedSacchi Batein in his own entertain-ing style.

The last item was by Om andKanan Dhingra and their team - aQawwali. Krishan Tejpal, Chair-man of Seniors Group, in his thank-you speech praised all those whoworked for the program.

Father's Day at Hari Om TempleCont’d from page 24

Huge participation at Hari Om Mandir to celebrate Father’s Day

Meditation & healing concert by Swami GanapathyJAGAN BUKKARAJU

CHICAGO: Sri GanapathySachchidananda Swamiji ofMysore, is slated to perform dur-ing a 'Meditation and Healing,' con-cert at the Downers Grove NorthHigh School Auditorium, inDownersgrove, a northwest Chi-cago suburb on July 20 at 6-30 pm.

This free for all concert orga-nized by Yoga Sangeeta, Inc willhave ragas inspired through RagaRagini Vidya, an ancient traditionrevived by Sri. Swamiji.

By accessing the yogic wis-dom of this tradition and blend-ing the classic art of raga with ref-erences to contemporary musicfrom all cultures, Sri Swamijiwould dive into the cosmic oceanof Nada (sound). From the end-less combination of possibilities,Sri Swamiji would create musicthat affects various naadis (en-ergy channels) and awakens theprana (life force) energy pulsat-ing within each of us.

In the concert, Sri Swamiji willbe playing healing ragas on an elec-tronic synthesizer accompanied bymusicians on Indian classical in-struments. Sri Swamiji sees heal-

ing with music as a yogic practice.Yoga teaches that the astral bodyhas 72000 nervelets and 14 majornerves. Each nerve vibrates at its

own frequency. Music soothes thenerves and helps them to vibrateat the proper rate. The concert willbe preceded by an interfaith prayerwith representatives from variousreligions

Music becomes a therapy,Swami Ji asserts, when the healer,musicians and listeners all deeplyconcentrate on the sound. He

stresses on concentration on thepart of the healer musician andthe listener. "Physical health re-sults from a healthy mind," SriSwamiji says. Sri Swamiji furthersays that "Music of the right

type helps in achieving relaxationby soothing the nerves, andthrough that comes peace andstillness of the mind."

Congressman Bill Foster,mayors and other elected repre-sentatives from surroundingcommunities are expected to at-tend the concert on July 20. Inaddition attendees from across

the United States and other partsof the world are also expected toattend and experience this won-derful and rare concert.

Sri Swamiji gave his first con-cert in Amsterdam in 1987. Sincethen he has given hundreds ofmusic for meditation and heal-ing concerts, introducing nu-merous listeners to the value ofmusic as a therapeutic tool. SriSwamiji has played at renownedconcert auditoriums, includingthe Chicago Symphony Orches-tra Hall, the Lincoln Center forthe Performing Arts in New York,the Nymphenburg Palace inMunich, the Royal Albert Hallin London, and the Esplanadein Singapore.

YogaSangeeta Inc founded in2007 has set its mission to pro-mote fine arts, with a particularemphasis on healing and medita-tion music, for the betterment of

humanity at large. It seeks to fos-ter unity and peace through music,which transcends the barriers oflanguage, religion, gender, traditionand nationalities. Pre-registration isrequired for this free concert.

Music becomes atherapy, Swami Ji as-serts, when the healer,musicians and listenersall deeply concentrateon the sound. Hestresses on concentra-tion on the part of thehealer musician andthe listener. "Physicalhealth results from ahealthy mind," SriSwamiji says

Sri Ganapthy Swami

Music hall called Nada Mantapa at Mysore Ashram - all created by Sri Swamiji


St Louis fundraiser helps raise $50kSURI SWAMY

ST LOUIS: Mahatma GandhiCultural Center (MGC), in collabo-ration with the India Associationof St. Louis (IAS) hosted a fund-raising dinner at its facility in St.Louis on Friday June 15 with 200plus members and guests attend-ing it.

The event helped raise $50,000for its various activities, includingstructural maintenance, up-keepand renovation. The event startedat 6pm with cocktails and snacksin a social hour in the lower levelof MGC, where community mem-bers mingled with each other.

The dinner event started onthe upper level of MGC at 7pmwith opening remarks by Presi-dent of MGC, Anjan Roy andPresident Elect of IAS Sendhil

Rathinasabapathy. Dr VijayaKumar Buddhiraju and AshwinPatel served as the Masters ofCeremony for the event. Theytouched upon the history andcurrent state of MGC.

MGC and IAS felicitated theirfounder members Drs Nitai &Sudha Saha, and Communityleader Drs Sharad and SmitaParikh and Drs Vardhachary bypresenting them with a plaque andbouquet. This was followed by

ents of this local musical group ledby Divya and Anand Navadikar,captured and thoroughly enter-tained the audience for over twohours with golden oldies Hindimovie songs.

MGC is a not-for-profit commu-nity center that was built by thejoint efforts of various Indian-American community memberswith major contributions from DrsUday & Ira Dash with support ofIndian community at that time.

The center was inauguratedcouple of decades ago by thenAmbassador of India to the UnitedStates, Dr Abid Hussain, on Au-gust 19, 1990. Since then, MGC hasbeen a very popular communitycenter that is increasingly beingused by the local Indian-Americancommunity of the greater St. Louis

pledges and fund-raising whereattendees actively participated insupport of MGC.

Dinner was followed by a livemusical performance, "SurmayeeShaam" by a local group. Extraor-dinary vocal and instrumental tal-

region at a nominal rental price fortheir personal and/or publicevents.

MGC also serves as electioncenter and hosts health fairs, visacamps India Association and BalVihar activities.

A section of guests and members attending fundraiser for Mahatma Gandhi Center

Dr Sharad Parikh, Ashwin Patel, Dr Budhi Raju and IAS president-elect Sendil Rathinasabapathy & MGC chairman

Anjan Roy addressing the fundraiser

Prayer by Rangachari & Mrs Chandra Sridharan

Musical event artists

Methodist College facilitates Hindu prayer stationIndia Post News Service

TENNESSEE: Martin Method-ist College (MMC), a United Meth-odist Church institution in Pulaski,

Tennessee, has a "Hindu station"in its 24-hour interfaith prayerroom.

This prayer room, at the cornerof Criswell Hall, has Christian and

Madhu Patel and Rajan Zed

Jewish stations also. "The inter-faith prayer room is a safe placefor students to be with their God,"MMC Campus Minister ReverendLaura J. Kirkpatrick McMasters

was quoted assaying.

ApplaudingMMC, RajanZed, President ofUniversal Soci-ety of Hinduism,described it as "astep in the rightdirection" com-mending the col-lege for recogniz-ing the intersec-tion of spiritual-ity and educa-tion, an integral

part of teach-ings in Hindu-ism.

Madhu Patel,founder presi-dent of NRIPress Club, Chi-cago, said thatuniversities andcolleges, bothpublic and pri-vate, should take a cue from thisand respond to the spiritual needsof diverse student bodies in theircampus. "Making provision fordedicated prayer and meditationrooms for quiet reflection, festi-vals and spiritual exercises wouldhelp students in their personalgrowth." He said

Byron R. Trauger and Ted

Brown are Trustees Chair andPresident respectively of MMC,which was founded in 1870.

Mission of United MethodistChurch, 11-million-strong globalchurch created in 1968, is to "makedisciples of Jesus Christ for thetransformation of the world" andit emphasizes on "Christian liv-ing".

MMC college Prayer Hall

TOP TENHINDI FILM SONGS

1 Sawaar Loon: Lootera2 Ghanchakkar Babu:Ghanchakkar3 Manmarziyan: Lootera4 Ilahi: Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani5 Tum Tak: Raanjhnaa6 Kabira: Yeh Jawaani HaiDeewani7 Allah Meherbaan: Ghanchakkar8 Raanjhanaa: Raanjhanaa9 Sunn Raha Hai: Aashiqui 210 Tu Mun Shudi: Raanjhnaa

India Post28 June 28, 2013www.indiapost.com

They worked together in blockbuster 'Aashiqui 2' and instantly

clicked with each other. Yes, we aretaking about the new lovebirds of tin-sel town, Shraddha Kapoor andAditya Roy Kapur. They are said tobe dating and very much in love. Theirlove story took off on the set of'Aashiqui 2' and with the end of theshoot, they became one.

They enjoyed the success of the filmtogether as a couple and both are verymuch attracted towards each other. Inan interview, Aditya expressed his lik-ing for the actress, "I can understandwhy people think we are together, aswe are really good friends and are re-ally really close and go out for dinnerand movies together. She is a nice per-son and is a good actress and is greatfun to be around with."

They are often caught together onvarious occasions and share a goodcamaraderie. Aditya in the past haddated Rhea Chakraborty.

Priyanka Chopra who had her plate full withmovies and her international album suddenly

faced a setback in her personal life with her father'sdeath. While everyone in the Bollywood fraternitywas expecting Priyanka to take a break, she shockedall by expressing her desire to resume work.

Priyanka was set to shoot for the Mary Kombiopic with Bhansali but because of the tragedy,the shooting was postponed. Bhansali had givenPriyanka all the time she needed to recoup fromthe trauma but the actress was stubborn aboutgetting back to work as she believed that thiswould be her father's desire too. Priyanka whohas been practicing boxing for a while, has startedshooting for the film.

WHILE EVERYONE IN THE BOLLYWOOD FRATERNITY WASEXPECTING PRIYANKA TO TAKE A BREAK, SHE SHOCKED

ALL BY EXPRESSING HER DESIRE TO RESUME WORK

While it's obvious of a film's cast and crew to be-aware of a reptile on the set, Kareena Kapoorremained oblivious to a snake that slithered into

the studio where she was shooting Gori Tere Pyaar Mein.So much so that she didn't even care to know what

the commotion was about, preferring to sit in a cornerwith her feet resting on another chair. Strange, since therewere a few hundred people at the shoot and they wererunning all over the place for fear of being attacked bythe snake.

It was only when her hairstylist Pompi showed her apicture of the snake on his mobile that Bebo freaked out andscreamed. Only to be told, that there was no point in herscreaming so late because the snake had been driven out.

After that, throughout the day,director Punit Malhotra was

trying to scare everyone atthe location, telling

them that thesnake wasunder theirchair. ButKareena wasn'tamused.

India Post 29June 28, 2013

www.indiapost.com

Bollywood

During the shooting for 'Krrish 3' Hrithik Roshan munched on asecret cookie which helped to provide him with the necessary strength and stamina required for the acting. Also

this cookie kept his cravings for sugar at bay. It kept him fulland satisfied.

His diet consultant, Marika Johansson invented thesecookies especially for him looking at his requirementsof high protein and low carb diet. Marika has sharedthe recipe for the "secret protein cookies" thatHrithik consumed during shoots. Now hiswhole family enjoys this cookie.

MARIKA JOHANSSON INVENTED THESE COOKIESESPECIALLY FOR HIM LOOKING AT HIS REQUIREMENTS

Actress, singer and music composer Shruti Haasan willbe seen in two upcoming films that release on the sameday - Nikhil Advani's D-Day and Prabhu Deva's

Ramaiya Vastavaiya.Shruti who is the daughter of famous actors Kamal Haasan

and Sarika has made a name for herself in the South film indus-try, but is yet to find her footing in Bollywood. Her earlier filmsLuck and Dil Toh Baccha Hai Ji received lukewarm responses.However, she remains undeterred and is excited about her twofilms.

"I'm very excited because it's very rarely that an actor hastwo releases on the same day. It's also amazing because

they are two completely different characters".And with the pressures that Bollywood

brings, it's only natural for actors to feelinsecure but Shruti does not succumb to

this. "There is a healthy pressure but theunrealistic pressure to perform like KamalHassan is really unnatural because he's been in

the business for 50 years so I don't even takeit seriously. I don't know why but I've never

really feared fading away from the limelight.I'm here for the long run".

"I'M VERY EXCITED BECAUSE IT'S VERY RARELYTHAT AN ACTOR HAS TWO RELEASES ON THE SAME

DAY. IT'S ALSO AMAZING BECAUSE THEY ARE TWOCOMPLETELY DIFFERENT CHARACTERS"

"I'M VERY EXCITED BECAUSE IT'S VERY RARELYTHAT AN ACTOR HAS TWO RELEASES ON THE SAME

DAY. IT'S ALSO AMAZING BECAUSE THEY ARE TWOCOMPLETELY DIFFERENT CHARACTERS"

India Post June 28 , 2013www.indiapost.com

Real Estate30

Realty Tidbits Govt relaxes exit norms forroad developers

Cont’d on page 31

Remodel for less with reclaimed materialsDONNA FUSCALDO

Remodeling your homedoesn't have to break thebank. Buying reclaimed

materials, whether it's a door ormolding, can save you 40 percentto 60 percent off the cost. It canalso be a greener way of remodel-ing since the reclaimed materialswon't end up in a landfill.

"There's a wide range of sal-vaged materials available," saysCarrie Ferrence, director of busi-ness development at Second Use,the Seattle store that sells re-claimed building materials. "Mostof the materials are contemporarymaterials and typically sell for 40percent less than new ones."

For many homeowners, theeasiest way to get remodeling ma-terials is to visit Home Depot. Butfor those who don't mind doing alittle hunting and want to savemoney, buying reclaimed materi-als may be the way to go. Here arefive things you need to know.

Finding what you want couldtake time

When shopping for reclaimedmaterials, you'll need to give your-

self plenty of time to do some hunt-ing. Chances are you won't findall the doors or tile needed for ahouse remodeling in the first visitto the salvage store.

"Like any secondhand indus-try, come with your measurements,

come with some creativity andcome with a truck. You might haveto go back to find what you're look-ing for," says Leslie Kirkland, execu-

tive director of The Loading Dock,the Baltimore nonprofit reclaimedbuilding supplies store.

Kirkland says consumers saveon average two-thirds off the retailprice for materials, which is typicallya combination of new and old items.

Everything and the kitchensink

Salvage stores, which can befound across the country, arestocked with materials recoveredfrom the deconstruction ofhomes, buildings and schools,and from homeowner dona-tions. For example, Habitat forHumanity, the nonprofit basedin Americus, Ga., aimed at in-creasing affordable housing,runs salvage stores across thecountry under the nameReStore.

"It's like a secondhand HomeDepot," says Kirkland.

While interior and exteriordoors are common finds at sal-vage stores, consumers also canbuy light fixtures, sinks, cabi-nets, molding, tiles and manyother things needed for remod-eling a home. Many salvagestores are updated regularly.

Home prices inflated, says HDFC chiefNEW DELHI: Terming the

home prices as highly inflated inthe country, including in smallercities, industry leader DeepakParekh has asked builders to fo-cus on affordable housing, ratherthan luxury homes, and said it isa dangerous thing to lend ag-gressively to developers.

Parekh, Chairman of thecountry's largest housing fi-nance company HDFC, alsoasked the home buyers to becautious of 'too-good-to-be-true'offers from the property devel-opers and warned them againstschemes where builders claim ofpaying interest on the borrow-ers' loans.

The eminent banker alsoasked the financing companiesto stay away from innovative and

aggressive loans, including teaserrates where the interest rates risegradually andlending moneyto developersat the same rateas being of-fered on indi-vidual homeloans.

While laud-ing the growthin the home fi-nance marketover the years,Parekh in hisannual letter toshareholdersof HDFC said:"As a basic te-net, construc-tion finance entails higher risks

and, therefore, such risks have tobe built into the pricing.

"Construc-tion financeshould not,through anyi n n o v a t i v estructuring beavailable todevelopers atthe rate of in-terest beingoffered on in-dividual homeloans. Further,complete up-fronting ofconstructionfinance to de-v e l o p e r s ,even before

the ground is broken is danger-

ous," he said.Parekh also said the country

continues to face an acute hous-ing shortage, but prices continueto remain high.

"Having spent so many yearsin this business, one recognizesthat one's voice can never beloud enough when so manyvested interests exist as far asland markets are concerned.Nonetheless, I am of the firmbelief that one must not give upor be beaten down to silence.

"At the cost of perhaps nowsounding like a broken record, Icontinue to hold the stance thatincreasing supply is the only wayhome prices can come down inIndia. Even in Tier II and Tier IIIcities, home prices are inflated,"he said.-PTI

Deepak Parekh

Assotech to investRs 100 crore onapartments in Shirdi

NEW DELHI: Assotech Realtyhas said it will invest about Rs 100crore to develop a service apart-ment project at Shirdi inMaharashtra.

The company would develop125 serviced apartments in the 2.5-acre project 'Sandal Suites'.

In a statement, Assotech Realtysaid it has launched premier ser-vice residences at Shirdi "at anapproximate cost of Rs 100 crore."

These apartments would caterto the needs of pilgrims travelingto Shirdi and expecting comfortand luxury at affordable cost.

Just walking distance fromShirdi Shrine, the project will havea small Sai Temple and SatsangHall along with Pooja area andmeditation centers, it added.

"This is an opportunity to notonly own a home in the spiritualtown but also make it earn valu-able income from the asset so cre-ated. The investment is meant tobring recurring returns to the tuneof 18-20 per cent Y-o-Y basis withexpected daily rental between 5-6thousand approximately,"Assotech Realty Managing Direc-tor Neeraj Gulati said.

Ball set rolling for2nd phase ofRapid Metro link

Construction for the secondphase of the Rapid Metro Rail

Project, the first privately fundedMetro project in India, has got amajor push.

IL&FS Engineering said it hasreceived Rs. 266.50 crore contractfor the construction of elevatedviaducts for the project.

The company received a Letterof Award (LoA) for the construc-tion of the viaduct along the GolfCourse Road betweenSikanderpur Metro station andSector 56/57 near Golf Course Ex-tension T-junction.

It would take around 24 monthsto complete this project, whichwould cost Rs. 2,143 crore.

On January 3, the Haryana gov-ernment had signed the conces-sionaire agreement with the pro-moter special purpose vehiclecompany RMG Limited. The 6.7-km stretch would have six sta-tions. Some of these stationswould have parking lots as well.

NEW DELHI: To revive the highways sector and at-tract developers, the government has approved a pro-posal for allowing companies to exit projects "harmoni-ously" without attracting punitive measures.

"The Cabinet Committee on Economic Affairs (CCEA)has approved the proposal to facilitate harmonious substi-tution of concessionaire in ongoing and completed Na-tional Highway Projects," an official statement said. -PTI

India Post 31June 28 , 2013 Real Estate Postwww.indiapost.com

Perusing salvage stores isn'tthe only way to find reusable ma-terials. Online marketplaces likeCraigslist have building merchan-dise as well as a free section wherepeople give things away. SecondUse also operates an online sal-vage store.

As an alternative, visiting thelocal dump or salvage yard, al-though messy, can be a great wayto find salvage materials.

Buyer beware: hazardous ma-terials

Consumers should use cautionwhen remodeling with reclaimedmaterials because some are old andmay include hazardous materials.While salvage stores don't sellanything with asbestos in it, anold door or bathtub may havebeen painted with lead paint. IfSecond Use suspects the item haslead paint, it will put a sticker onit, Ferrence says.

Most stores will test the items,especially if it's an appliance, be-fore putting it on sale. Even so,it's usually up to the buyer to be-ware of the potential for hazard-ous materials.

Distinctive design, but does itfit?

Sometimes using reclaimed ma-terials ends up costing you more,especially if it's more labor inten-sive to get the materials to fit intothe existing home. Take doors, forexample. In one case, the home-owner bought salvaged doors, butthe labor associated with the in-stallation canceled out the sav-

ings, says Paul "Paolo" Scardina,owner of Paolo Design Group, adesign company, in Portland, Ore.

"The doors were a good bar-gain, but when the contractor in-stalled them he had to trim themand retrofit each door," saysScardina. "So, the cost of labor toinstall the doors increased the con-struction side (of the budget)."

If the parts fit and the reclaimedmaterials blend in, homeownerswill often be rewarded with a dis-tinctive remodeling design as wellas cost savings. "When you're

working with salvaged materials,you get really interesting de-signs," says Scardina. "Whether(the cost saving) washes out de-pends on a case-by-case basis."

Reclaimed materials: agreener way to save

If a remodeling bargain isn'twhat you are after, using reclaimedmaterials has another benefit. It

helps protect the environment. Ac-cording to the Building MaterialsReuse Association, the Beaverton,Ore., industry association, usingreclaimed materials reduces theconsumption of new resources,cuts down on the use of landfillsand cuts pollution.

"If you go the salvage route,you're reducing the amount ofwaste in the landfills, savingmoney and are able to build some-thing that's different than whateveryone else is building," saysFerrence.-Courtesy Bankrate.com

Tier 2 and Tier 3 cities need focus for growth India Post News Service

NEW DELHI: The Real Estateindustry is a key industry to whichthe growth of India's GDP is di-rectly linked. To discuss the com-plexity in the industry Confedera-tion of Indian Industry (CII), or-ganized its flagship 'CII Real Es-tate Conclave 'with the theme 'Em-bracing The Complexity of IndianReal Estate'.

"Is the real estate industrycomplex or complicated? It is im-portant to have this clarity abouteach aspect we deal with in theindustry because solutions willflow from this," began Mr. FirdoseVandrevala, Chairman, CII Na-tional Committee on Real Estate &Housing and Chairman & Manag-ing Director HIRCO Develop-ments Pvt Ltd. "Corruption iscomplex. Supply chain is complexand disorganized. Construction iscomplicated. Demand is complexwith a lot of speculative short terminvestors, long term investor, rentalmarkets and genuine actual users.Financial markets are complexwhile transactions are compli-cated," he continued.

Mr. Vandrevala added, "Youhave to look at the system in partsand at the same time you have tolook at the whole because solving

problems of the parts cannot nec-essarily solve the problem of thewhole. Understanding this willensure that we do not apply thewrong approach to the right prob-lem that happens when we mixup."

CII and International propertyconsultancy Jones Lang LaSalleIndia, in partnership released itsreport 'Emerging Investment

Hotspots - Mining OpportunitiesFrom the Complex Real Estate Ter-rain of India' at the summit. JonesLang LaSalle India, as Knowledge

Partner for theSummit, designedthis report to dove-tail with theevent's theme -Embracing theComplexity of In-dian Real Estate:Adopting a Prag-matic Approachfor 2013 and Be-yond.

Mr. Anuj Puri,Chairman CII RealEstate Conclaveand Chairman &Country Head,

Jones Lang LaSalle India said, "In-dia has its own unique and inte-gral complexities, and doing busi-ness here is no exception to thisfact. Corporations strive for in-creased efficiency and productiv-ity amidst these complexities - andreal estate is an integral ingredi-ent in the formation and growth ofall businesses.

"On the flip-side of the real es-

tate sector's inherent uncertaintiesare the opportunities created bythem in the real estate sector. In-vestors stand to capitalize signifi-cantly from these opportunities.However, in such an environmentof uncertainty, returns throughcapital appreciation and securityof the invested capital are obvi-ously prime concerns. The perti-nent question of where to investneeds to be answered. This reportseeks to do just that."

Mr. Puri added, "The industryneeds to come together and put ina lot of thoughts about the issuesinvolved like the availability ofspace for sale despite increasingrent, expected growth of tier 2 andtier 3 cities not having fructified,unsold inventory being at an alltime high even as prices continue

to rise etc."Mr. Lalit Kumar Jain, Chairman,

Kumar Urban Development Ltd.,said, "Firstly, in this country thereis a stigma about the housing in-dustry. Then there is a policy pa-ralysis where only a few states talkabout land reforms. Today in anyproject 70-80% of the cost is ofland. How do you then expectproperty prices to go down? Sothe main issue is about land costreforms."

He went on to add, "We want aregulator but 90% of regulationtoday is about delay. The regula-tor needs to think about how thenew bill will benefit all the stakeholders involved. Governmentpolicy needs to include morethought from the corporate sec-tor."

"India has its own unique andintegral complexities, anddoing business here is noexception to this fact.,,

Phase I of Ahmedabadmetro project by 2017

AHMEDABAD: The firstphase of the Rs 19,000 crore metrorail project between Ahmedabadand Gandhinagar, spanning over83 kms, is scheduled for comple-tion in 2017.

"Request for Proposals (RFPs)of all major systems and procure-ment have already been floatedand tenders related to civil con-struction are being processed," anofficial at Metrolink Express forGandhinagar and Ahmedabad(MEGA), a company formed toexecute the project, said preferringanonymity.

"The first phase of the projectwill be completed in 2017 and therest in 2021," he said.

MEGA is a state-formed spe-cial purpose vehicle (SPV) for theproject execution, with an autho-rized capital of Rs 200 crore andinitial paid-up capital of Rs 10crore.

The project covers around 83kms connecting important pointsof Ahmedabad like Kalupur rail-way station, civil hospital, airport

and reaching to Gandhinagar forconnecting GIFT city, state secre-tariat and Akshardam.

"This project will includearound 64 kms of elevated and 19kms of underground corridor. Theelevated corridor constructionwork will be taken up first on pri-ority," sources said. However, thestate proposed 50:50 joint ventureproject with Centre currentlyawaits detailed project report(DPR) approval from the stategovernment.

"The project DPRs are underconsideration of the stategovernment…and a decision isyet to be taken," principal secre-tary urban development G R Aloriasaid. "After approval of state gov-ernment, the DPRs would be sentto Centre," he said, adding that JVproposal can only then be formal-ized.

Conceptualized in 2003, the petproject of Gujarat chief ministerNarendra Modi was put on fasttrack by the state government in2009.

Remodel for less withreclaimed materials

"The doors were a good bargain, but whenthe contractor installed them he had totrim them and retrofit each door," saysScardina. "So, the cost of labor to installthe doors increased,,


www.indiapost.com32 India Post June 28, 2013

Health ScienceHealth Line

Doctors makeprogress toward

'artificial pancreas'Details on Page 33

Shortage of docs to worsen withfederal health care reforms

Many US states alreadyhave a shortage of primary-care physicians,

and their problems could getworse when federal health carereforms go into effect in January.Millions of newly insured Ameri-cans are likely to seek care for thefirst time in years, possiblyswamping health care systemsthat already are short-staffed.

In some states, legislators arelooking for ways to deal with pos-sible physician shortages. Somelawmakers are crafting bills thatwould help increase the numberof physicians or grant medicaldecision-making authority topharmacists and other health careworkers. The following are Asso-ciated Press reports from sevenStates:Arkansas doctorsexpect more demand

LITTLE ROCK, Ark.: Somehealth care professionals fear therewon't be enough primary care pro-fessionals to meet demand nextyear as newly insured Arkansansgain coverage under the federalhealth care law.

``The underlying purpose of the

(Affordable Care Act) is to makehealth care more accessible to morepeople,'' said Paul Cunningham, ex-ecutive vice president of the Ar-kansas Hospital Association. ̀ `Butas there is more demand for ser-vices, that will create more demandon a supply of practitioners to pro-vide those services.''

Across the country, attempts

to address the provider gap havetaken on increased urgency aheadof the law's full implementationJan. 1, but many of the potentialsolutions face a backlash from in-fluential groups or will take yearsto bear fruit.

Nearly one in five Americansalready lives in a region desig-nated as having a shortage of pri-mary care physicians, and thenumber of doctors entering thefield isn't expected keep pace withdemand.

Here in Arkansas, where insur-ance companies plan to sell theirpolicies to more than 500,000 resi-

dents through an online market-place created under the federalhealth care law, there is a shortageof primary health care profession-als. Demand for medical servicesfrom those providers is only ex-pected to increase with the imple-

mentation of the federal health carelaw.

``Under a scenario of expandedhealth care coverage in 2014through the Affordable Care Act(ACA), the available workforce isprojected to not meet demand,''according to an April brief from theArkansas Center for Health Im-provement.

Beyond the overall primary carepractitioner shortage, doctorsaren't spread evenly throughoutthe state.

There's a concentration of pri-mary care clinicians - primary carephysicians, advanced practicenurses and physician assistants -in central Arkansas, while there's amoderate undersupply in thenorthwest and northeast parts ofthe state and a more drasticundersupply in the southeast andsouthwest regions, according tothe April brief from the ArkansasCenter for Health Improvement.

``We have a shortage statewide.We don't have a shortage every-where,'' said Craig Wilson, directorof the Access to Quality Care Ini-tiative with the ACHI. ̀ `We do havea severe mal-distribution issue.''

Cont'd on Page 34

Low-fat chocolates taking world by stormLONDON: In some good

news for chocoholics, an Indian-origin chocolatier claims tohave created low-fat chocolatesthat contain as little as 20 calo-ries a bar.

London-based AneeshPopat's recipe ditches high-calo-rie ingredients such as butter,cream and eggs.

Instead, 25-year-old Popat, amaths graduate, combines fla-vor-infused water with cocoa tocreate The Chocolatier, whichcontain as little as 20 calories abar, 'The Daily Express' reported.

Popat claims his chocolate isas tasty as sugar-packed rivalsand comes in flavors from fizzycola and strawberry mint to chaitea and apple pie.

"If everything in the world

was made of chocolate I'd haveeaten it by now. My love of choco-

late led me to devote and applymy mathematical and scientificbackgrounds to create the mostunique flavor combinations with

utmost precision and creativity,"he said.

"Chocolate is good for you ifmade in the right way," he said.

Popat's low-fat chocolates arealready taking the culinary world

by storm. After support fromthousands of visitors to his stallat the BBC Good Food Show inBirmingham, he is hoping hischocolate will hit the open mar-ket.

It is already supplied toMichelin star restaurant Apiciusin Cranbrook, Kent, and five starhotel Le Meridien in London.

"As these chocolates boastsuch a low calorie level and highwater content it can be advanta-geous to people seeking a lessnaughty treat. But we mustn'tforget that chocolate is an occa-sional treat," nutritional expert DrSarah Schenker, of the BritishDietetic Association, said.

The chocolates cost 11.95pounds for six truffles and 7.95pounds for a bar. -PTI

Ohio healthofficials urge goodfair hygiene

COLUMBUS, Ohio: Ohio offi-cials urge people to wash handsand take other hygiene precau-tions while visiting county fairsthis summer.

Several county fairs in Ohioand Indiana were linked to swineflu cases last year, with at least 11Ohioans hospitalized after con-tracting the virus. The Centers forDisease Control said 10 childrenwere hospitalized after visitingOhio fairs, and a 61-year-oldwoman from Madison Countydied after having contact withhogs at the Ross County Fair. Of-ficials say she had underlyingconditions including heart diseaseand high blood pressure.

The Ohio Departments ofHealth and Agriculture say theyhave worked with fairs, youth or-ganizations and veterinarians toincrease hand-sanitizing andwashing stations. They say olderadults, pregnant women, youngchildren and people with weak-ened immune systems can be vul-nerable.

Health officials also adviseleaving strollers outside animalexhibits, and suggest that thoseconsidered vulnerable stay out ofanimal areas.

Ohio's health department di-rector cautioned that some ill-nesses, such as the flu virus, arecommonly carried by livestockand can be directly transmittedbetween animals and humans inthe same way those illnesses areoften transmitted betweenpeople. -PTI

Sun Pharma getsnod to sellRiluzole tablets

NEW DELHI: India's Sun Phar-maceutical Industries andGlenmark Generics have got ap-proval from US health regulatorto sell generic versions of nervoussystem disorder treatment drugRiluzole.

As per the United States Foodand Drug Administration(USFDA) web site, the approvalswere given for generic Riluzole oraltablets in the strength of 50 mg.

Riluzole is indicated for treat-ment of amyotrophic lateral scle-rosis. As per IMS Health sales datafor the 12 month period endedMarch 2013, Riluzole had garneredsales of USD 64 million in the USmarket.

Glenmark Generics is a subsid-iary of Glenmark Pharma and fo-cuses on developing, manufactur-ing, selling and the distribution ofgenerics through wholesalers, re-tailers and pharmacy chains.-PTI

"As these chocolates boast such a low calo-rie level and high water content it can beadvantageous to people seeking a lessnaughty treat. But we mustn't forget thatchocolate is an occasional treat,,

India Post 33Health Science Postwww.indiapost.com

June 28, 2013

Doctors make progress toward 'artificial pancreas'Doctors are reporting a major step to-

ward an ̀ àrtificial pancreas,'' a device thatwould constantly monitor blood sugar inpeople with diabetes and automaticallysupply insulin as needed.

A key component of such a system - aninsulin pump programmed to shut down ifblood-sugar dips too low while people aresleeping - worked as intended in a three-month study of 247 patients.

This ̀ `smart pump,'' made by Minneapo-lis-based Medtronic Inc., is already sold inEurope, and the U.S. Food and Drug Ad-ministration is reviewing it now. Whether italso can be programmed to mimic a realpancreas and constantly adjust insulinbased on continuous readings from ablood-sugar monitor requires more testing,but doctors say the new study suggeststhat's a realistic goal.

``This is the first step in the develop-ment of the artificial pancreas,'' said Dr. Ri-chard Bergenstal, diabetes chief at ParkNicollet, a large clinic in St. Louis Park,Minnesota. ``Before we said it's a dream.We have the first part of it now and I reallythink it will be developed.''

He led the company-sponsored studyand gave results at an American DiabetesAssociation conference in Chicago. Theyalso were published online by the NewEngland Journal of Medicine.

The study involved people with Type 1diabetes, the kind usually diagnosed dur-ing childhood. About 5 percent of the 26

million Americans with diabetes have thistype. Their bodies don't make insulin, ahormone needed to turn food into energy.That causes high blood-sugar levels andraises the risk for heart disease and manyother health problems.

Some people with the more common

Type 2 diabetes, the kind linked to obesity,also need insulin and might also benefitfrom a device like an artificial pancreas. Fornow, though, it's aimed at people with Type1 diabetes who must inject insulin severaltimes a day or get it through a pump with anarrow tube that goes under the skin. Thepump is about the size of a cellphone andcan be worn on a belt or kept in a pocket.

The pumps give a steady amount of in-sulin, and patients must monitor their sugarlevels and give themselves more insulin atmeals or whenever needed to keep blood

sugar from getting too high.A big danger is having too much insulin

in the body overnight, when blood-sugarlevels naturally fall. People can go into co-mas, suffer seizures and even die. Parentsof children with diabetes often worry somuch about this that they sneak into their

bedrooms at night to checktheir child's blood-sugarmonitor.

In the study, all patientshad sensors that continu-ously monitored their bloodsugar. Half of them had or-dinary insulin pumps andthe others had pumps pro-grammed to stop supplyinginsulin for two hours whenblood-sugar fell to a certainthreshold.

Over three months, low-sugar episodes were re-

duced by about one-third in people usingthe pump with the shut-off feature. Impor-tantly, these people had no cases of se-verely low blood sugar - the most danger-ous kind that require medical aid or helpfrom another person. There were four casesin the group using the standard pump.

`Às a first step, I think we should all bevery excited that it works,'' an independentexpert, Dr. Irl Hirsch of the University of

Washington in Seattle, said of the program-mable pump.

The next step is to test having it turn offsooner, before sugar falls so much, and tohave it automatically supply insulin to pre-vent high blood sugar, too.

Dr. Anne Peters, a diabetes specialist atthe University of Southern California, saidthe study ̀ `represents a major step forward''for an artificial pancreas.

One participant, Spears Mallis, 34, amanager for a cancer center in Gainesville,Georgia, wishes these devices were avail-able now. He typically gets low-sugar about8 to 10 times a week, at least once a weekwhile he's asleep.

`Ì would set an alarm in the middle ofthe night just to be sure I was OK. That willcause you to not get a good night of rest,''he said.

His ̀ `smart pump'' stopped giving insu-lin several times during the study when hissugar fell low, and he wasn't always awareof it. That's a well-known problem for peoplewith Type 1 diabetes - over time, ̀ `you be-come less and less sensitive to feeling thelow blood sugars'' and don't recognizesymptoms in time to drink juice or do some-thing else to raise sugar a bit, he said.

Besides Medtronic, Johnson & Johnsonand several other research groups are work-ing on artificial pancreas devices. -AP

End of sex worker pledge in AIDSfunds lifts stigma: experts

WASHINGTON: US groups that workto end HIV around the world no longer willbe forced to take a pledge against prostitu-tion, after the Supreme Court ruled it is aviolation of freespeech.

Global health advo-cates said the decisionlifts the stigma sur-rounding sex workersand their role in theworld's three-decade-long HIV epidemic,and will allow scien-tists to talk moreopenly about effectiveways to combat thevirus.

"We know thatstigma plays a huge role in driving the glo-bal AIDS epidemic and this was a very stig-matizing law against a population that isone of the most vulnerable in the epidemic,"said Chris Collins, director of public policyat amfAR, the Foundation for AIDS Re-search.

In 2003, programs that received US fundsunder the President's Emergency Plan forAIDS Relief (PEPFAR), a global programdevised by former president George W.Bush, were required to make an anti-prosti-tution pledge in order to receive funds.

The US high court has ruled in favor of

public health groups who challenged thecondition. Chief Justice John Roberts saidit went against First Amendment protec-tions because it required groups "to pledge

allegiance to thegovernment's policy oferadicating prostitu-tion."

A second restrictionadded by Congress re-mains, stating that noPEPFAR funds can "beused to promote or ad-vocate the legalizationor practice of prostitu-tion or sex trafficking."

Population Action In-ternational presidentSuzanne Ehlers said that

the program's anti-prostitution pledge wasa "harmful policy" that had damaged anti-AIDS efforts around the world.

"Our colleague organizations havedocumented numerous examples of thepledge's harmful effects, such as a con-dom shortage among sex workers in Mali,the withholding of safe sex informationfrom young male sex workers in Cambo-dia, and the closure of community-basedhealth centers in Bangladesh," she said.

"Evidence, not ideology, should drivepolicy governing public health pro-grams." -AFP

Taking blood sample from a diabetes patient

India Post Health Science Post34

www.indiapost.com

June 28, 2013

Indiana tangles with shortage of rural doctors

Nevada doctor shortages likely to get worseCARSON CITY, Nev.: There are

not enough doctors in Nevada,and the shortage is likely to getworse as tens of thousands ofpeople become newly insured un-der the federal health care over-haul.

A study released this year byJohn Packham, health policy re-searcher at the University of Ne-vada School of Medicine, rankedNevada 46th in the nation for itsshare of primary care doctors, fam-ily care specialists and pediatri-cians. The state ranked last in gen-eral and orthopedic surgeons, nextto last for psychiatrists and 42ndfor obstetricians and gynecolo-gists.

`Àny growth during the lastdecade in the number of licenseesin medicine ... have been insuffi-cient to meet population growthand demand,'' said Larry Matheis,

executive director of the NevadaState Medical Association. ``Theshortages are affecting availabil-ity of specialty care in Medicaidand Medicare and primary care allaround. The expanded coveragecoming in 2014-2015 will surely ex-acerbate this.''

Under the federal health carelaw, Nevada's Medicaid enroll-ments are projected to swell from313,000 to about 490,000 by 2015.The increasing caseloads includepeople who currently are eligiblebut not enrolled, and those whoare expected to sign up as eligibil-ity thresholds are expanded tomeet a mandate to have health in-surance.

``With national work shortages,it's not likely that Nevada can re-cruit to fill our needs,'' Matheissaid.

Recruiting has always been an

ongoing challenge in Nevada's ru-ral areas, said Kerry Ann Aguirre,director of business developmentat Northeastern Nevada RegionalHospital, a 45-bed facility in Elko.

``We're always trying to recruit,she said. ̀ Ìt's just very, very diffi-cult to keep physicians in the ru-ral communities. It's a nice com-munity but they're not really want-ing to settle into the rurals.''

Aguirre agreed that implement-ing the Affordable Care Act willbring new challenges.

`Ìt's interesting because theACA was passed to increase ac-cess to health care while reducingcosts. But in the rurals, that meansthere's a decrease in payments tophysicians and hospitals'' becauseof reduced rates.

``That means they're going tobe pressed to keep their practicesopen,'' Aguirre said. -AP

``The focus is to create atraining and recruitment pro-gram which literally start ingrade school and ask, `Haveyou ever thought about be-coming a doctor when yougrow up?,,

Rural WA clinics working to end doctor shortages

Wilson and others say that asArkansans, particularly those inrural areas, gain insurance, doc-tors and other health care profes-sionals may have an incentive tohelp fill the gap for oftenunderserved rural areas.

However, the new health carelaw is not seen as a silver bullet toaddress the doctor shortage.

`Ì don't think that the Afford-

Shortage of docs to worsen withfederal health care reforms

Minnesota faces shortage ofprimary care doctors

Cont'd from Page 32

INDIANAPOLIS: Health careadvocates in Indiana are lookingat an improved training system forphysicians and an expanded con-cept of what it means to see a doc-tor to help serve what's expectedto be a crush of new patients seek-ing care starting next year.

Millions of people withouthealth insurance nationwide areset to gain coverage in 2014 as partof the federal health care overhaul,commonly referred to as`Òbamacare.'' As in many states,that will exacerbate problems in In-diana surrounding access to carein rural communities where is thereis already a shortage of doctors andother health care providers.

`Ì think there's especially con-cern about the looming retirementof a lot of older physicians, andthe expectation is because of that,and the expansion of health care,those factors will combine to makethe existing shortage even more

acute,'' said state Rep. Ed Clere, R-New Albany, the chairman of theHouse Public Health Committee.

The state only recently deter-mined the depth of the shortage.The passage of the health care lawin 2010 exposed the lack of infor-mation in the state about avail-ability of health care, and it tooktwo years to compile a compre-hensive report, said David Roos,executive director of the advo-cacy group Covering Kids andFamilies of Indiana.

Indiana has 3,951 primary care``clinicians,'' a catch-all descrip-tion that includes physicians,physician's assistants and nursepractitioners, according to an Au-gust 2012 report written by re-searchers with the Indiana Cen-ter for Health Workforce Studiesand Bowen Research Center atthe Indiana University School ofMedicine.

The goal for states is to have

100 primary care physicians avail-able for every 100,000 residents.Researchers found Indiana onlyhad 51 and the number drops pre-cipitously in rural communities,

said Dr. Richard Kiovsky, directorof the Indiana Area Health Edu-cation Centers.

Kiovsky said one possible so-lution is to start training doctorsin the areas where there are acuteshortages. Doctors are more likelyto stay in a community where theygrew up and went through theirmedical training than they are to

move back home to practice aftertraining somewhere else, he said.

As a result, groups such as theIndiana Rural Health Associationare trying to get students in rural

communities inter-ested in medicine at anearly age and guidethem along throughmedical school.

``The focus is tocreate a training andrecruitment programwhich literally start ingrade school and ask,`Have you ever

thought about becoming a doctorwhen you grow up?''' Roos said.

Another answer is to adjustattitudes about who patientsshould see when sick. Kiovskysaid if a physician's assistant cando the job as well as a fully-trainedphysician, that should be an op-tion. Clere points to the industryterm ̀ èxtenders,'' or workers who

literally extend the ability of doc-tors to take care of more patients.

``What's important is that wemake sure patients are receivinghigh quality care from an appro-priate provider,'' Clere said. ``Sothere's a screening process thatgoes on. If the issue is beyondthe scope of a physician's assis-tant and a nurse practitioner, thenwe need to make sure there is aphysician available to see the pa-tient.''

In the meantime, Kiovsky saidhe is working with state lawmak-ers to further study the issue andpropose changes which will makeit easier to train more physician'sassistants and nurse practitioners.

``The future of health care isgoing to be team-based,'' he said.``Not every person who comes inis going to need the physician'sservices, there are some officesthat can be easily handled by aphysician's assistant.'' -AP

MINNEAPOLIS: Primary carephysicians are more readily avail-able in Minnesota than most ofthe country, but experts say thestate facesa loomingshor t ageand onlypartly be-cause ofthe federalhealth careoverhaulthat willextend coverage to around300,000 uninsured residents.

Minnesota ranks ninth nation-ally in total active primary carephysicians per 100,000 people,with 4,938 doctors to serve nearly5.3 million people as of 2010, ac-cording to American Medical As-sociation data. To the extent that

access to primary care physiciansis a problem in the state, figuresfrom the U.S. Department of Healthand Human Services point to thestate's Indian reservations and

s o m esparselyp o p u -l a t e dcountiesin farnorthernM i n n e -sota.

T h eMinnesotans who will gain cov-erage under the Affordable CareAct aren't the main worry for MarkSchoenbaum, director of the Of-fice of Rural Health and PrimaryCare at the Minnesota Departmentof Health. It's that, on average,Minnesotans - and their doctors -are getting older. -AP

able Care Act is going to alleviatethe current and looming physicianshortage,'' said Dr. Dan Rahn, chan-cellor at the University of Arkan-sas for Medical Sciences. ̀ Ìt's goodfor patients in providing financialaccess, but the limitation may nowbe ... health professional supply.''

Arkansas is one of severalstates using a partnership modelbetween the state and federal gov-ernment for running its health in-surance exchange. -AP

SEATTLE: Hospitals and clin-ics in central Washington are try-ing to get out in front of expecteddoctor shortages when nationalhealth care reform takes full effectnext year.

Washington officials expectmore than 325,000 state residentsto become eligible for health in-surance after an expected expan-sion of Medicaid eligibility in thestate. Thousands more are ex-pected to buy health insurancethrough the state's new health in-surance exchange, which opensin October.

The expected influx of new pa-tients is expected to put even more

pressure on communities thatdon't have enough doctors.

The American Medical Asso-ciation says Washington ranks

13th nationally intotal active pri-mary care physi-cians per 100,000,with 5,971 doctorsto serve more than6.7 million peopleas of 2010. Thesedoctors are notdistributed evenlyacross the state,with rural areas ex-

periencing the most severe short-ages. -AP

Minnesota ranks ninth na-tionally in total active pri-mary care physicians per100,000 people, with 4,938doctors to serve nearly 5.3million people

India Post 35Health Science Postwww.indiapost.com

June 28, 2013

Rural Oklahoma hospitals struggle to recruit docs

Wisconsin at less risk ofdoc shortages

OKLAHOMA CITY: Access to physi-cians in Oklahoma, especially in rural partsof the state, could become even more lim-ited when the federal health care law kicksin next year and thousands of previouslyuninsured Oklahomans obtain coverage.

Shortages of primary care physiciansacross the state could lead to higher pa-tient loads, delays in visits to the doctorand more reliance on other health profes-sionals such as nurse practitioners andphysicians assistants when the new healthcare law goes into effect on Jan. 1, officialssaid.

`Àll of a sudden there's an increase inthe number of patients that have insurance,''said Jim Bishop, deputy executive directorof the Physician Manpower Training Com-mission, a state agency that administersprograms designed to improve medical care

in rural and underserved areas of the state.``There's going to be so many people

flooding doctor's offices,'' Bishop said. ̀ Ìt'snot going to make physicians happy.''

In 2010, Oklahoma ranked 43rd in thenation in the number of primary care physi-cians practicing in the state with 2,817, orabout 76 doctors per 100,000 residents, ac-cording to the Association of AmericanMedical Colleges.

Andy Fosmire, managing director of theRural Health Association of Oklahoma, saidthe shortage of primary care providers isworse in rural parts of the state, where ac-cess to health care could become more dif-ficult under the health care law.

``There's a lot of fear that 2014 is go-ing to hit and all of a sudden 30 millionpeople are going to appear at a primarycare physician's doorstep,'' Fosmire said.

``The potential is there. They'll have tofill that gap.''

The state already offers a variety ofprograms to provide financial incentivesfor physicians who practice inunderserved areas of the state. They in-

clude a scholarship program that pro-vides $60,000 over four years to primarycare providers who practice in rural ar-eas of the state and a medical loan repay-ment program which provides up to$160,000 over four years to help physi-cians in underserved areas repay theirstudent loans.

The programs help fill doctor short-ages in rural communities where hospi-tals are threatened with having to shutdown, officials said.

`Ìt's very difficult to get successfulrecruitment in our rural areas,'' said TeresaHuggins, CEO of the Stigler Health andWellness Center, a non-profit health care

center in Stigler, population 2,685.Huggins said two medical doctors andtwo osteopathic physicians staff the cen-ter and it is recruiting a primary care phy-sician to staff its clinic in Eufaula.

`À lot of it is because of the remotearea. Just the lack ofaccess to the sameamenities in thelarger towns, ' 'Huggins said.

``Part of it is per-ception,'' said DeanTurner, administra-tor at Perry Memo-rial Hospital inPerry, population5,126. ̀ Ìt is differ-

ent than say going to Oklahoma City.'' TheNoble County city has two medical doc-tors and the hospital is recruiting for afamily practice physician.

Health care administrators said it helpsto recruit physicians with family ties torural areas that are underserved, butCharles H. Greene Jr., administrator of theCordell Memorial Hospital in WashitaCounty, said that does not always work.Of six students from Cordell who are inmedical school, ``none of them are com-ing back,'' Greene said.

``No one wants to come out in the ru-ral setting. It's very difficult,'' he said. -AP

`There's a lot of fear that 2014 is going tohit and all of a sudden 30 million peopleare going to appear at a primary carephysician's doorstep,'' Fosmire said.``The potential is there. They'll have to fillthat gap.''The state already offers a varietyof programs to provide financial incentivesfor physicians,,

MILWAUKEE: Wisconsin has done abetter job of holding onto its primary carephysicians than most other states have,and new programs for aspiring doctorshave positioned the state to weather apossible shortage when the nationalhealth care overhaul takes effect nextyear.

But Wisconsin appears to be in goodshape. The state ranks 14th in the U.S.with 86 primary-care physicians per100,000 residents, better than the nationalaverage of79 pri-mary-cared o c t o r s .The Wis-c o n s i np i p e l i n efor pro-d u c i n gmore doc-tors is ex-p a n d i n gand pro-grams arein place toe n c o u r -age doc-tors to practice in the rural areas that aretraditionally underserved.

A November 2011 report by the Wis-consin Hospital Association said Wis-consin needs about 100 more physiciansper year. Plans underway could accountfor at least half that number.

The Medical College of Wisconsin, aprivate medical school with about 800 stu-dents in Milwaukee, is opening satellitecampuses in Green Bay and Wausau.Those campuses are expected to open inJuly 2015 with 15 students at each, even-tually growing to 25 students.

The new programs are slated to wrapup in three years instead of four. Students

would attend classes through summersand holidays, but they'd avoid the ex-pense of paying a fourth year of tuition,room and board, said John Raymond, themedical school's president and CEO.

The goal of the new campuses is torecruit students who want to practice inrural areas and train them with experiencesmirroring what they can expect to seewhen they graduate, he said.

It's not always easy to convince stu-dents to practice primary care or work in

rural areas,R a y m o n dsaid. Thea v e r a g em e d i c a lschool stu-dent gradu-a t e s$150,000 indebt andwill oftenspecializeor move toh i g h e r -paying ur-ban areasso they can

get out of debt faster, he said.That's why the state's other medical

school, the University of Wisconsin-Madison, has two programs to specifi-cally serve students interested in prac-ticing rural medicine. The programs pro-vide specialized training and hands-onexperience in small communities.

Jonathan Jaffery, a medical directorwith the UW Medical Foundation, saidhe was satisfied with the state's level ofprimary-care physician staffing. He saidhe was more concerned about the peoplewho still won't have health care accesseven after the health care overhaul goesinto effect.-AP

June 28, 201336 India Post

www.indiapost.comDatebook

NORTHERN CALIFORNIAUpcoming

SOUTHERN CALIFORNIAUpcoming

Sat, June 29• Shankar Eshaan LoyVenue: San Jose Center of Performing Arts,255 Almaden Blvd, San Jose, CA 95113Time: 7:00 pmContact: 510-565-9518

Sat, July 6• Eastern Erotika Nights -Bollywood dance clubVenue: Eastern Erotika Nights ,101 Brentwood Dr, South San Francisco,CA 94080Time: 8:30 pmContact: 650-483-4841

Fri, July 12• TriValley Musical Evening - event for music lovers &singersVenue: Cafe Tandoor, 420 Market Pl,San Ramon, CA 94583Time: 7:30 pmContact: 510-823-3410

Sun, July 14• Ganesha+The WoodcutterAnd The River GoddessVenue: Barnsdall Gallery Theatre, 4800Hollywood Blvd, , Hollywood, CA 90027Time: 4:00 pmContact: 818-599-1936

Thu, July 15• Art of Living CourseVenue: Woodside Performing Arts Center,199 Churchill Ave, Woodside, CA 94062Time: 6:00 pmContact: 408-982-7266

Sat, Aug 3• Jaane Kahan Gaye Won DinVenue: Royal Delhi Palace, 22323 ShermanWay, Canoga Park, CA 91303Time: 6:30 to 8:00 pmContact: 805-404-9836

ATLANTAUpcoming

Sat, June 29• Kucch Baatein Gaate GaateVenue: Sardar Patel Bhavan, 5331 RoyalWoods Pkwy, Tucker, GA 30084Time: 8:00pmContact: 404-934-9991

Sun, June 30•Tama Fund Raising MusicalVenue: The Ferst Center of Arts, 349 FerstDr NW, Atlanta, GA 30313Time: 2:00pmContact: 404-946-8262

Sun, Jul 23•Singing Sensation 2013Venue: mpact Conference Center, 5675Jimmy Carter Blvd, Norcross, GA 30071Time: 3:00pmContact: 678-463-6613

Sat, July 13• IACA Ms India Georgia/MsTeen India GeorgiaVenue: Ferst Center for the Arts, 349 FerstDr, Atlanta, GA 30332Time: 5:00 pmContact: 404-317-5474

Fri, jun 28• Ohlone College: Disney'sMulanVenue: Smith Center Outdoor Amphitheatreat Ohlone College43600 Mission Boulevard, FremontContact: (510) 659-6031

Sun, June 24-August 8• Ohlone for Kids (and Teens)Summer Enrichment ProgramVenue: Office of College AdvancementOhlone CollegeContact: 510-742-2304

• J K Yog Satsang and BalMukund Hindi Classes are heldevery 2nd and 4rth Sunday ofMonthChicago Satsang Information:J K Yog, Chicago - Swami MukundanandaVenue: Clarion Inn/Waterford Banquets,Board Room, 933 South RiversideDrive, Elmhurst, IL 60126Time: 3:30pm-5:30pmContact: Ajay & Arti Chandhok@ 630-561-4807Website: www.jkyog.org

1st and 3rd Sunday of Month• Chicago Children'sBal MukundCharacter Building Programand Hindi Literacy ClassesVenue: Vogelei Center, 650 W. HigginsRoad, Hoffmann Estates, IL 60192 (Nextto Nissan Dealership)Contact: Ajay & Arti Chandhok @630-561-4807Website: www.jkyog.org/bal-mukund

June 28-30• Purusha-SuktamA Week-end Retreat withSwami BrahmarupanandaVenue: Vivekananda Monastery & Retreat6723 122nd Ave., Ganges, MI 49408Time: 8:00 pmContact: (269) 543-4545

Sun, June 30• Pij Picnic 2013Venue: Deer Grove East Forest Preserve,Palatine, Quintin & Dundee, Palatine,IL 60305Time: 9:00amContact: 6309267110

ILLINOISUpcoming

NEW JERSEYUpcoming

NEW YORKUpcoming

Fri, June 28• Shri Krishna Madhura SathvaroShri Radhe Shyamno DhwitiyaVenue: Hindu Temple Auditorium -NY,143 - 09 Holly Avenue, New York, NY 11355Time: 8:00 pmContact: 718-639-9200

Thu, July 4• DJ Rekha Presents BasementBhangraVenue: Le Poisson Rouge, 158 BleeckerStreet, New York, NY 10012Time: 7:00 amContact: 718-207-0058

Sun, July 14• The Essence of The Gita:Chapters 13-18Venue:Shri Shirdi Sai baba Temple,46-16 RobinsTime: 2:00 pmContact: 718-321-9243

Fri June 28• Ajmad Sabri Qawali NightVenue: Edison Hotel, 3050 Woodbridge Ave, Edison, NJ 08837Time: 8:00 pmContact: 732-277-6687

Sun June 30• Sparkle Indian Night OutEventsVenue: Radisson Hotel, 21 KingsbridgeRd, Pi3:00 pmContact: 848-219-9118

Fri July 19• Gujjubhai in Golmaal Live inNew JerseyVenue: Woodbridge High School, 1, SamuelLupo Place, Woodbridge, NJ 07095 LupoTime: 8:00 pmContact: 732-921-7350

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Nubra Valley, once on the trading route that connected eastern Tibet with Turkistan via thefamous Karakoram Pass, is the most recentlyopened area of Ladakh. Nubra invites you to a

trip back in time into a nearly forgotten 'Shangri La'. Withbreathtaking views and delightfully hospitable inhabit-ants, it is quite an experience.

Best time to visit: Ladakh's harsh winter makes thiscrossing possible only during the summer months-fromJune to August. The valley itself lies at a lower elevationthan the Leh Valley, making it very fertile with cultivationof grains and fruits like peaches.

Tourist attractionsDiskit is the administrative center of the Nubra Valley. It

nestles on the edge of a desert on the Shyok-side valley,eight hours away, on the other side of the Khardong La (Lameans Pass). To reach this place one should carry alongplenty of water, because the increase in height by over2000 meters, can give anybody severe headache and nau-sea. The road is paved till south Pulu, a military check post,where the permits are checked and the details entered. Thisis an unforgettable excursion that makes Indiana Joneslook like a kindergarten excursion.

Surrounded by majestic Himalayas, it has the distinctsmell of smoky kitchens, goats, chang (local brew) andbutter tea and the fatal edge of the 100-meter sheer cliffsalways closer than one really appreciates. One can spotvarious modes of transportation hundred meters below, attheir final resting place.

LADAKH'S HARSH WINTER MAKES THIS CROSSING POSSIBLE ONLY DURING THESUMMER MONTHS-FROM JUNE TO AUGUST. THE VALLEY ITSELF LIES AT A LOWERELEVATION THAN THE LEH VALLEY, MAKING IT VERY FERTILE WITHCULTIVATION OF GRAINS AND FRUITS LIKE PEACHES.

Cont’d on page 41

India PostJune 28, 2013 41Travel & Hospitality Postwww.indiapost.com

Nubra ValleyA nearly forgotten 'Shangri La'

Surrounded by the rising moun-tains of Himalayas and superbviews down the Leh valley, the thrillis replaced by a feeling of utmostbeauty. Snow lingers all year roundon the mountains with prayer-flagtopped peaks. A breathtaking ex-perience indeed.

Descending into the valley, onlythe first few km are tricky. Soon,following a mellow stream, onewould come into a surprisinglygreen landscape withrugged stone forma-tions rising up into thesky with the peaks inthe background. Theylook like they havebeen poured over withsugar. A real fairy talelandscape. As drasti-cally as the landscapehad changed from'moon-land' on top of theKhardong La to a green oasis, onewould enter a desert, easily com-parable to the Thar in Rajasthan.

Diskit seems like a ghost town,an oasis of tranquility. An enjoy-able day's walk brings one toSomoor, half way to Panamik.Army trucks are the only means oftransportation in the valley.

A Ladakhi meal is served sit-ting around the massive blackstove in the kitchen, the most im-portant room in any Ladakhihouse. It is the place to warm upon a freezing winter night, the placewhere the family meets, the home-work is done and the prayers aresaid.

Tiger is only another three kmtowards Panamik. It makes an easyafternoon stroll, inhaling thebeauty and the calmness of theimpressive, stimulating country-side. Coming across a local, onecan be sure to be greeted with awarm smile and a joyful Julee.

The furthest place the permit

allows one to visit in the valley isPanamik, the last settlement of anysize before the Tibetan border. It'snot very wise to proceed furtherthan the provided barrier at thenorthern edge of the town sincethis is a rather sensitive borderarea. It is completely controlled bythe Indian Army, usually with veryfriendly soldiers.

The 250 years old Ensa Gompa,nestled on top of a rock overlook-ing snow-peaked mountainsacross the valley is much further

away than it looks. It takes at leasta six-hour walk to reach, which in-volves crossing the river atHargam. The hot springs on theoutskirts of Panamik invite one fora literally sizzling bath experience,which will most probably be thefirst contact with hot water sinceone leaves Leh.

The Nubra Valley is one of thelast treasures of our planet, livingin sheer isolation for most of theyear in the heart of the greatHimalayas. A real Shangri La, withno 'Baywatch', no mobile phonesand no Ray Ban sunglasses.How to reach

Road: There are regular busesrun by the Jammu and KashmirState Transport Corporation tocover the distance of 150 km fromLeh to Diskit, the administrativeheadquarters. The roads are main-tained by the army and suddenchanges in weather are common.One should be prepared to facenatural hazards when visitingNubra Valley.


An enjoyable day's walkbrings one to Somoor, halfway to Panamik. Armytrucks are the only means oftransportation in the valley

India Post June 28, 201342 Travel & Hospitality Postwww.indiapost.com

Florida couple sails around the world for 14 yearsMELBOURNE, Fla.: In the winter of 1999,

Rick and Suza Goltz - newly married and earlyretired from their jobs as engineers for thespace shuttle program - set sail from Cape

Canaveral with two cats on a 44-foot sail-boat named Voyager on what they dreamedmight be an around-the-world adventure.

Bill Clinton was president. John Glennhad just returned to space on shuttle Dis-covery. Cameras still required film.

Fourteen-and-a-half years, two presi-dents and 52,000 nautical miles later, thecouple are back home, having fulfilled adream to circumnavigate the globe.

Tired, yes. Savoring sleep in a CaliforniaKing bed. Enjoying the taste of a BLT? Defi-nitely. ``Do you know how many ingredi-ents are in a BLT? The stars have to align tohave them all at the same time,'' Rick, 55,joked.

``Who knew we were going to be gone14 years? ... Who knew we were going tospend all those nights awake at sea,'' Ricksaid. `Ìn hindsight, I wouldn't trade the

memories for anything in the world. But Iwould never do it again.''

Their trip, documented by stories so nu-merous the couple tire of telling them, tookthe Goltzes and their cats, Schumi andSenna, from the swimming pool-like watersof the Bahamas, down the island chain ofthe Caribbean to the bustling Panama Ca-nal. On a 23-day, 2,900-mile sail ̀ àcross theBig Blue'' from the Galapagos Islands offthe western coast of South America to theMarquesas Islands in the South PacificOcean. They headed north to the MarshallIslands and then across 3,000 miles ofMicronesia to Palau, the Philippines and

Borneo.The Goltzes were in Singapore when the

2008 financial crisis hit, stranding thousandsof ships.

They enjoyed theexotic beauty of south-east Asia, and survivedgale-force winds onthe Bay of Bengal asthey crossed to SriLanka. The coupletrekked 1,500 miles upthe west coast of Indiato Mumbai, only toturn back south due tothe pirate threat on theroute to the Mediterra-nean Sea.

They overcame thewhimsy of Mother Na-ture to round SouthAfrica's Cape of GoodHope. Then, they

hustled across the southern Atlantic, up theBrazilian coast and, eventually, back home.

They learned much about themselves,each other and the world.

The Goltzes saw the largely positivecreep of technology (women in traditionaldress, i.e. topless, sitting behind comput-ers at a high school in Micronesia) and thenegative consequences of global warming(taro, a food staple on some western Pacificislands, under threat due to rising waters).

They met queens of far-flung islands, aformer prime minister and millionaireyachtsman. They got up close to penguinsin South Africa, rode an elephant in Thai-land and walked dusty streets inMozambique.

They found that tuna were not biting asoften as you'd think; sometimes, the Goltzeswent 1,000 miles between a catch. And they

confirmed that weather is king; it dictateswhen you sail and when you rest, demand-ing your attention and respect.

The couple's odd shifts while working inthe shuttle program (she worked third shift,he second) made the 24-hour captain du-ties on a ``long passage'' - where puttingdown an anchor is not an option - a littleeasier. She volunteered for nights so he(Voyager's ``captain'') could be alert dur-ing the critical daytime hours when Rickoften mixed sailing with handyman repairson the boat.

They endured big seas; sometimes, 18-foot waves.

`Ìt's just uncomfortable,'' Rick saidabout the long passages through openwaters. `Ìt's rough, and it's wet, and it'shard to sleep, and you always have to havesomebody in the cock-pit, so you're wet andcold and when you godown, you're coveredin salt water ... there'snothing pleasantabout being at sea.''

The sailing, Suza, 54,added, `ìs a means toget to the place. Onceyou get to the place,that's when it's special.''

The idea of a cir-cumnavigation begangradually.

The couple startedwith a 34-footer theynamed Jazz (with the Jin the shape of a saxo-phone), which the pair lived on from 1985to 1989 while working at KSC; twice, theysailed to the Bahamas. It was a trial run: forthem as a couple, as sailors, as possiblearound-the-world cruisers.

It went well. So theyplanned, and contin-ued to save money.

By 1998, they wereready. To get married.To quit their jobs (theytapped into one of their401k plans). To set off.Officially, they did it allon one day: Jan. 2,1999. Wedding, retire-ment party, bon voy-age celebration. Shewas 40. He was 41.

Jazz had served thecouple well, but they needed a ``blue wa-ter boat,'' an ocean-going vessel. They'dfound it in the Reliance 44: named CanajanA (owned by a Canadian couple. Get it?Canadian, eh?). ``We changed that namereal fast,'' Rick said.

The newlyweds ``cut their teeth'' in theBahamas, getting used to Voyager andcruising life. As they tooled around theEastern Caribbean, they could drop anchorevery night. In the daytime, they snorkeledand went ashore tohike or explore.

``My favorite part ofcruising is right afterthe anchor goesdown,'' Rick said.

They made Voyageras homey as possible:spice racks, packedbook shelves, watercol-ors hanging in the cabinwalls. The yacht had arefrigerator and freezer.Rick could drink his rum-and-Coke over ice. Butthey had to collect rain-water to drink. They got used to duckingand climbing to get around their home.

As they island hopped, they worked upto two, three, five-day crossings and con-templated heading across the Pacific. Butthey weren't ready. Because, with sailing,once you venture into the Pacific, it's pretty

much a one-way trip. Turning back is hor-rendously rough.

They needed more sailing time to feelcomfortable.

By December 2000, they were ready: aneight-hour trip through the Panama Canal.`Àn engineering marvel,'' said Suza, a me-chanical engineer.

And that's when the cruising really

started. Panama to the Galapagos: 800 miles.Then another 23 days at sea. One of themalways awake. No land visible. Just the twoof them.

`Ì like it. To me, it is meditative,'' Suzasaid. ``She does it much better than I do,''Rick admitted. ̀ Ì just sit there and feel sorryfor myself, look at my watch and thinkabout when I can go to sleep.''

Twice, the pair took breaks in their sail-ing trip to work and raise money, both times

as civilian contractors at a U.S. Army baseon Kwajalein Atoll in the Marshall Islands.The first time for just over two years toMarch 2004, the second from 2005 to 2008.

Then the pair headed toward Micronesiaand Southeast Asia. Exotic. Beautiful. Ahighlight of the trip, they recalled.-AP

Suza Goltz in South Africa with penguins Rick and Suza Goltz ride an elephant in Thailand

Rick and Suza Goltz aboard their sailboat, Voyager, docked at

Harbortown Marina on Merritt Island

India PostJune 28, 2013 43Travel & Hospitality Postwww.indiapost.com

Tourism for fun has destroyed Kedarnath: Chief PriestGUPTAKASHI: Increasing tourism for

recreational purpose and ruthless commer-cialism are to be blamed for the destructioncaused in Kedarnath, believes VageeshlingMaharaj, chief purohit of Kedarnath dham.

"So many people visit Kedarnath whohave no feeling of piety or devotion. Theygo to Kedarnath only to have fun and enjoythemselves. With a mindset which has noth-ing to do with faith and worship," saidVageeshling Swami, chief purohit of thedham.

"Lord Shiva is a 'bairagya'. He has noth-ing to do with materialism and desire. Peoplecome here in the wrong spirit.

"Just as Lord Shiva has discarded ev-erything, so should the people come herehaving given up all worldly thoughts, tocleanse themselves," said Swamiji, who isat present residing at the Vishwanath templein Guptkashi.

Swamiji was inside the temple on June17 when the great wave of rocks, ice chunksand boulders came crashing down the lakewhich is about one-km behind the temple.

"We could see boulders breaking off anda mass of water descending at a furiouspace. The wave reached the temple withinseconds. Some of the boulders even hit thetemple, which shook for a few moments. Butit passed just as quickly," he recounted.

"A wave 40-feet high engulfed the templeand flowed away.

The cascade of water seemed as high asthe spire of the temple," Swamiji added.

He left the temple on June 19, when thearmy evacuated some members of the temple

staff to Fhata."Fifteen of the temple staff are still miss-

ing. We were evacuated in batches; apartfrom the 15 all are safe," Swamiji said.

Although the temple structure remains

unharmed, the compound is now a moundof rubble. "The way the temple, and the area,was before June 17, it will take 20 years forKedarnath to look like that again. The cloud-burst sent us back by more than a century,"he said.

Sitting beside Vageeshling Swami, chiefpujari of the Vishwanath temple here,Shashidharling swami, said: "Space of 80-mshould be left free on each side of the

temple. In front they should leave a stretchof 150-m of free space.

"There was a time when the Kedarnathtemple was visible from 3-km away. But overthe years, with all the encroachment by

shops, you have to go right up to the templebefore it is visible," he added.

Describing the divine retribution as apunishment for human excesses,Shashidharling swami said: "Yes this is amessage from above. The message is in thedestruction that rained from the skies. Themessage is in the temple standing intact af-

ter all that," he said."The temple was not destroyed because

the Lord did not want to shatter faith. Abroken temple would have broken people'sfaith, their very spirit. So the temple emerged

unscathed but all else around it was wipedclean," he added.

"But God is merciful. If thousands per-ished, then lakhs survived. People shouldthink on this calamity and look within,"Shashidarling swami said as Vageeshlingswami nodded his head in approval. -PTI

Kedarnath temple before flood Kedarnath temple after flood

'Statements of threat toAmarnath yatra uncalled for'SRINAGAR: The tourism fraternity in

Kashmir Valley has voiced concern over thestatements of Union Home Minister andArmy Chief on the threat to annual Amarnathyatra, saying it would "sabotage" tourismseason in the state.

Union Home Minister Sushil KumarShinde had recently said that there is a threatto Amarnath yatra, while Chief of Army StaffGeneral Bikram Singh had acknowledged the

same."These are untimely and uncalled state-

ments. It is being done to scare away yatrisand tourists," president Travel Agents As-sociation of Kashmir (TAAK), Rauf

Tramboo told PTI."Government and security agencies sani-

ties the yatra routes months before the startof the pilgrimage and what does it mean toraise hue and cry now. It is being done tomalign Kashmiris and we condemn it," hesaid.

"Such statements could have a hugenegative impact on tourism. Already we areseeing a lot of cancellations," he said.

Supporting Tramboo'sconcern, president Kash-mir Hotels and RestaurantAssociation (KHARA),Showkat Chowdhary saidthe statements can havea "disastrous" effect ontourism in the Valley.

"These are wrongstatements. They canhave a disastrous effect ontourist arrivals. It wouldsabotage tourism seasonin the state," Chowdharysaid.

He said Kashmiris havealways welcomed yatriseven when the situation

was very bad."We have always welcomed yatris. We

honor them. Even during 2008 and 2010,when the situation was very bad, no yatriwas touched," he said. -PTI

Tulsa airport runway reopensafter reconstruction

TF Green Airport passengertravels up 7 percent

TULSA, Okla.: Tulsa InternationalAirport's primary commercial runway hasreopened following a six-month reconstruc-tion project.

The $20.3 million project is the thirdphase of a four-phase program to completelyreconstruct the nearly 10,000-foot runway.

The final phase is to reconstruct the inter-section of two runways at the airport and isto begin next year.

Airport officials say the total project isestimated to cost $55 million and is beinglargely funded by Federal Aviation Admin-istration grants. -AP

WARWICK, R.I.: The number of passen-gers at Rhode Island's T.F. Green Airporthas risen, with new figures showing a jumpof more than 7 percent inMay compared to a yearago.

Statistics released bythe Rhode Island AirportCorp. show that 340,649passengers traveledthrough the state's mainairport in Warwick lastmonth. That was up from317,482 a year earlier.

The number of pas-sengers at T.F. Green hasbeen on a steady declineoverall. The airport saw a6 percent drop last year

compared with 2011.People who make round trips are counted

twice in the statistics. -AP

India Post June 28, 201344 Travel & Hospitality Postwww.indiapost.com

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Tourism projects worth 827 crsanctioned: Chiranjeevi

GUNTUR, Andhra Pradesh:Union Tourism Minister TChiranjeevi has claimed to havesanctioned projects, schemes andworks valued at Rs 824 crore dur-ing the last six months since heassumed office.

He said this while speaking atthe valedictory meeting of the two-day Surya Lanka Beach festival atGuntur district's Baptla town here.

Chiranjeevi underscored theneed to develop beaches as holi-day resorts and agreed to considera request to construct a touristguest house at the Surya Lankabeach.

"We should take care of ar-chaeological structures and pre-serve them. They are witnesses toour history, culture and tradi-tions," he said. -PTI

Tourism Ministry for Visa-on-Arrival for ChineseNEW DELHI: Keen to ease

travel facilities for Chinese nation-als, India's Tourism Ministry hasproposed Visa-on-Arrival provi-sion for them as it senses hugepotential for exchanges in this sec-tor.

China is among 30 countries forwhich the Tourism Ministry wantsVisa-on-Arrival facility, a proposalif endorsed, will raise to 41 thenumber of countries that will havesuch a facility.

"We have proposed Visa-on-Arrival (VoA) facility for 30 coun-tries including Germany, France,Korea, Russia and China," Tour-ism Minister K Chiranjeevi told

PTI in an interview.Referring to China, he said there

is "very good potential" as far astourism is concerned.

The proposal has to be clearedby Home Ministry, he said.

Under the VoA facility, a trav-eler can go straight to the intendedcountry and get visa at the airportitself.

Asked whether the VoA facilitywould be on reciprocal basis, theactor-turned-minister said, "Wewant reciprocal as well, but that isthe next step. First, we want towelcome them."

Currently, India has extendedVoA facilities to 11 countries in-

cluding Singapore, Japan, NewZealand, Vietnam and Philippines.

Chiranjeevi said easing of visaregime would help boost foreigntourist arrivals. The aim is to en-sure that India has at least one percent share in international touristarrivals, he said. India's share inworld tourist arrivals, at present,is about 0.64 per cent.

Tourism had led to earnings tothe tune of Rs 94,487 crore as for-eign exchange last fiscal as thesector witnessed growth of 4.3 percent last year with 65,77,745 for-eigners visiting India against63,09,222 tourists the previousyear. -PTI Tourism Minister K Chiranjeevi

Indians to top visitors toAbu Dhabi in 2014

NEW DELHI: Abu Dhabi, thelargest of the seven emirates com-prising UAE, is expecting Indiansto account for the largest chunkof visitors in 2014 as it hard sellsitself as a business and leisuredestination.

"We expect India to be the larg-est source market for Abu Dhabiin 2014. At present, the Indian mar-ket is the second highest sourcemarket (after UK) and we are tar-geting for thenumber onep o s i t i o n , "B e j a nD i n s h a w ,Abu DhabiTourism &Culture Au-t h o r i t y(TCA) Coun-try ManagerIndia, toldPTI.

TCA AbuD h a b icounts tour-ist arrivalsbased on ho-tel stays andhas been fo-cusing onleisure andb u s i n e s straffic.

"We shallcontinue tos u p p o r tthese seg-m e n t sthrough focused promotionalstrategies," he said, adding in 2012,a total of 1,38,768 Indian visitorsstayed in Abu Dhabi.

"This year, 50,057 Indian guestshave stayed in Abu Dhabi till April,an increase of 18 per cent over thesame period last year," Dinshaw

said.TCA Abu Dhabi is confident

that Indians will largely contributeto Abu Dhabi achieving its overalltarget of hosting 2.5 million hotelguests in 2013.

Considering the vast untappedIndian potential and the enhancedconnectivity, he added: "We canpredict an upsurge of traffic to thedestination in the near future, andthis connectivity would further

enhance the role of Indian arriv-als."

An increase in number of In-dian visitors has been achievedby focusing on the leisure andmeetings, incentives, confer-ences, and exhibitions (MICE)segments, he added.

When asked about the spe-cific initiatives being planned byTCA Abu Dhabi for promotingthe emirate as a preferred destina-tion, Dinshaw said: "Our focus ison consumer awareness and tradeengagement while creating a nichepositioning for the destination inthe process."

TCA Abu Dhabi is also plan-ning to have consumer engagementprograms, industry activations and

educational activities to promotethe destination through roadshows, joint promotions and tradefair participations in various partsof India.

It is also liaising with the Indiancorporate to promote Abu Dhabi forMICE, he added. -PTI

45 India Post June 28, 2013www.indiapost.com

In Brief ImmigrationDetails on page 46

India amongnations facinghefty visa fee

to UK

100 US CEOs urge Senate toapprove immigration reform

WASHINGTON: More than100 top American CEOs from tech-nology sector, including thosefrom Facebook, Google andMicrosoft, have appealed to theSenate to approve the comprehen-sive immigration bill, which theysaid will open a new path to thecountry's innovation and eco-nomic strength.

In a letter to all members of theSenate, the CEOs said theystrongly believe the reforms in thebill, that impact high skilled immi-gration including key improve-ments in the availability of bothgreen cards and H-1B visas, willhelp address the national talentshortage in the near-term.

In addition, it will also create along-term pipeline of Americanworkers through establishing amuch-needed new fund for sci-ence, technology, engineering andmath (STEM) education, includingcomputer science education, said

the letter from more than 100 ex-ecutives from the technology sec-tor and leading innovation advo-

cacy organisations.The comprehensive immigra-

tion bill (S.744) will also protectand better prepare American work-ers, and enable employers and en-trepreneurs of all sizes in every

state to recruit and retain theworld's best talent, the letter said.

"Senate approval of S.744 is es-sential foro u reconomyto con-tinue tofoster in-n o v a t i o nand in-v i g o r a t emany USb u s i n e s ss e c t o r sthrough aneduca tedand highlys k i l l e dworkforce

of domestic and foreign-born tal-ent," it said.

"Absent reform, if every Ameri-can graduate receiving an ad-vanced STEM degree gets a job,the US is estimated to face at least

200,000 unfilled advanced-degreeSTEM jobs by 2018.

These unfilled jobs representlost opportunities for our coun-try, but with S.744, we can fillthese jobs, create new ones andinvest in a future of economicgrowth," the letter said.

The CEOs said this 'criticallyimportant' legislation would helpensure that America continues tobe the location of the world's mostinnovative and fastest growingindustries - those that rely on in-tellectual property and highlyeducated talent.

"Your support for S.744 will al-low America to better realise op-portunities for innovation and jobcreation today, as well as secureour economic strength in the fu-ture," the letter said, while ap-plauding the effort of the biparti-san group of eight Senators indrafting a 'path-breaking' immigra-tion bill. -PTI

Border security amendment offered in SenateWASHINGTON: An agree-

ment to vastly increase fencing,patrols and high-tech monitoringalong the U.S.-Mexico borderwas formally unveiled in the Sen-ate, providing powerful momen-tum to a far-reaching immigrationbill backed by the White House.

With the border securityamendment finalized, the immi-gration legislation immediatelypicked up an additional likelyRepublican supporter: Sen. LisaMurkowski of Alaska, whosigned on as a co-sponsor of theamendment.

``This amendment will put torest any remaining credible con-cerns about the border, aboutborder security,'' Senate Major-ity Leader Harry Reid, D-Nev.,said on the Senate floor as he filedthe measure and announced pro-cedural steps to bring it to a voteearly next week. ̀ `The oppositionof a small group is not going tostop this bill from moving for-ward,'' Reid said.

The deal doubling Border Pa-trol agents and adding hundreds

of miles of fencing along theSouthwest border had alreadywon support from four other un-decided Republican senators whoare nowlikely to backthe immigra-tion billwhen itcomes to a fi-nal vote.The legisla-tion openingthe door tocitizenshipfor millionsnow appearswithin reachof securingthe broad bi-partisan ma-jority that itsauthors sayis needed to ensure serious con-sideration by the GOP-controlledHouse.

However, the outcome there re-mains far from certain becausemany conservatives are opposedto offering citizenship to people

who came to this country illegally.``We really have tried to secure

the border in a way that we hopecan get bipartisan support and that

Americanswant,'' Sen.J o h nHoeven, R-N.D., an au-thor of theamendment,told The As-s o c i a t e dPress in aphone inter-view. ̀ `We'rehopeful tohave a goodb ipa r t i s anmajority.''

Sen. JohnMcCain, R-Ariz., said on

Fox News Channel that ̀ ìf there'sanyone who still will argue that theborder is not secure after this, thenborder security is not their reasonfor opposing a path to citizenshipfor the people who are in this coun-try illegally.''

`Ìs it more than I would haverecommended? Honestly, yes,''McCain said. ``But we've got togive people confidence.''

Hoeven developed theamendment along with Republi-can Sen. Bob Corker of Tennes-see, in consultation with McCain,Sens. Lindsey Graham, R-S.C.,Chuck Schumer, D-N.Y., andother members of the so-calledGang of Eight senators whowrote the immigration bill. It pre-vents immigrants now here ille-gally from attaining permanentresident status until a series ofsteps have been taken to securethe border.

These include doubling theBorder Patrol with 20,000 newagents, 18 new unmanned sur-veillance drones, 350 miles ofnew pedestrian fencing to addto 350 miles already in place andan array of fixed and mobile de-vices to maintain vigilance, in-cluding high-tech tools such asinfrared ground sensors and air-borne radar.

Cont'd on Page 46

Sen. Lisa Murkowski

Arpaio's lawyersappeal racial-profiling ruling

PHOENIX: Attorneys for anArizona sheriff are appealing afederal judge's ruling that theMaricopa County Sheriff's Officeracially profiled Latinos in its im-migration enforcement.

U.S. District Judge MurraySnow ruled last month that SheriffJoe Arpaio's office systematicallysingled out Latinos in its immigra-tion patrols and deputies unrea-sonably prolonged the detentionsof people who were pulled over.

Arapio's lawyers filed a noticeof appeal with the 9th U.S. CircuitCourt of Appeals.

It lists seven specific issues theSheriff's Office is challenging inSnow's May 24 ruling, which camemore than eight months after aseven-day, non-jury trial in Phoe-nix.-PTI

Central Illinoishistorical groupdedicates marker

MACKINAW, Ill: Central Illi-nois community is getting readyto dedicate a memorial on thegrave of a mysterious German im-migrant who lived in a woodedcabin near Mackinaw for 40 yearsbefore his death in 1936.

The (Bloomington) Pantagraphreports Charlie Schultz was knownaround the community as `ÒurHermit.''

Born in Bavaria in 1852, Schultzmoved to Tazewell County in 1894.He raised chickens, gathered andsold nuts and berries and oftenhad stacks of magazines andnewspapers in the cabin he builthimself.

Officials with the MackinawHistorical Collection say when hewent to town, Schultz was oftenspotted wearing bib overalls andcarrying a gunny sack. -AP

Snyder says effortaids immigrantprofessionals

LANSING, Mich.: Gov. RickSnyder has announced a partner-ship designed to help skilled im-migrants and refugees living inMichigan integrate into theworkforce.

Snyder's office says the pro-gram involves the nonprofit groupUpwardly Global and the Michi-gan Department of Licensing andRegulatory Affairs.

The governor says the depart-ment is issuing 10 online guides thatexplain Michigan's professional li-censing requirements for individu-als who were educated or havework experience overseas.-AP

US Senate

India Post46 June 28, 2013Immigration Postwww.indiapost.com

The new provisions would beput in place over a decade, in linewith the 10-year path to a perma-nent resident green card that thebill sets out for immigrants here il-legally. During that time, the immi-grants could live and work legallyin a provisional status.

Hoeven said the 10-year cost ofthe border security amendment in-cluded $25 billion for the additionalBorder Patrol agents, $3 billion forfencing and $3.2 billion for othermeasures.

It's ``border security on ste-roids,'' said Corker, who along withHoeven had been uncommitted onthe immigration bill. Both are nowprepared to support it, assumingtheir amendment is adopted.Sens. Dean Heller, R-Nev., andMark Kirk, R-Ill., also announcedtheir support for the deal.

White House press secretaryJay Carney said the border deal``would constitute a breakthrough''on immigration. ``We're pleasedthat Republicans and Democrats

Obama touts eco benefits ofimmigration overhaul

WASHINGTON: US PresidentBarack Obama has touted the po-tential economic benefits of a ma-jor immigration overhaul cur-rently under debate in Congressas he sought support for the land-mark bill.

The reforms under debatewould provide a pathway to citi-zenship for the 11 million undocu-mented immigrants in the country,reduce unlawful entries and reviseguest worker programs for agricul-ture and high-tech industries.

Immigration is a priority forObama's second term, but the over-haul had been put in jeopardy af-ter Republicans demandedtougher border security as a pre-condition to curb future arrivalsof undocumented migrants.

In his weekly radio and Internetaddress, Obama highlighted twoindependent reports predictingpositive economic impacts fromthe immigration reform.

"A report from the Congres-sional Budget Office definitivelyshowed that this bipartisan,commonsense bill will help themiddle class grow our economyand shrink our deficits, by makingsure that every worker in America

plays by the same set of rules andpays taxes like everyone else,"Obama said.

"Another report from the inde-pendent office that monitors So-cial Security's finances ... says thatthis immigration bill would actu-

ally strengthen the long-termhealth and solvency of Social Se-curity for future generations," headded.

The bill would help with "at-tracting the highly skilled entre-preneurs and engineers who growour economy for everyone," he in-

sisted.Meanwhile, Republicans used

their weekly address to speak, forthe third week in a row, about stu-dent loan interest rates.

Without legislation, rates willdouble on July 1 for many student

loans."Our students

deserve better,"said John Kline,chairman of theHouse Education& the WorkforceCommittee.

"What we needis a long-term so-lution that getsWashington out ofthe business ofsetting rates alto-gether," he added.

A GOP pro-posal would linkinterest rates to

economic factors instead of leav-ing it up to Congress, somethingObama has advocated as well.

But the two sides differ on howhigh the rate could rise and howearly it should be set, with Repub-licans calling for it not to lock inuntil graduation. -AFP

Border security amendmentoffered in Senate

continue to work together towardcomprehensive immigration re-form,'' he said.

The deal on border security cametogether quickly over the past sev-eral days after talks had boggeddown over Republicans' insistencethat green cards be made conditionalon catching or turning back 90 per-cent of would-be border crossers.Schumer, other Democrats andObama himself rejected this trigger,which they feared could delay thepath to citizenship for years.

Obama made his objectionsknown in a phone call to Schumerfrom Air Force One during his tripto Europe for the Group of Eightsummit earlier in the week, accord-ing to a Senate aide who spoke oncondition of anonymity to discussprivate deliberations.

The breakthrough came whenthe Congressional Budget Officereleased a report finding that thebill would cut billions of dollars fromthe deficit. Schumer's top immigra-tion aide, Leon Fresco, had the ideaof devoting some of those billionsto a dramatic border buildup. -AP

Cont'd from Page 45

Barack Obama

Who is an H-1B skilled worker dependent employer?GARY ENDELMAN & CYRUS D. MEHTA

Since we last wrote about theH-1B visa provisions inSenate Immigration Bill, S.

744, Workable Or Unworkable?The H-1B And L-1 Visa ProvisionsIn BSEOIMA, S. 744, there havebeen several changes to this por-tion of the bill. The amendmentproposed by Senator Hatch (afterreaching a compromise with Sena-tor Schumer), which passed the Ju-diciary Committee, sought to wa-ter down some of the restrictionsthat would otherwise make the H-1B visa program unworkable.

Seeking to advance the interestsof the many high tech companiesthat have settled in Utah, an ac-commodation with Senator Hatchimplicitly held out the promise ofattracting other GOP Senators tovote for the bill when it reached theSenate floor. A bi-partisan Senatebill that passed with 70 votes mightserve to provide political cover forembattled Speaker John Boehnerto maneuver around the objec-tions of Republican obstruction-ists and pass CIR with the aid ofDemocratic votes.

The main concern of many tech-nology companies in Silicon Val-ley was that the new recruitmentrequirement would make it impos-

sible for them to use the H-1B visaprogram, despite the increase inthe H-1B visa cap. Under the bill'soriginal provision, the employerwould first have to offer the job toany US worker who applied, whois equally or better qualified thanthe nonimmigrant H-1B worker.

It was feared that this would al-low the Department of Labor(DOL) to micromanage theemployer's recruitment processes,and also determine who an equallyor better qualified US workerwould be rather than leave it tothe employer's best judgment.

To the extent that the Hatchamendment shifted power over theH-1B away from the DOL in favorof more market-oriented forces, itrepresents a significant attempt torely upon such influences ratherthan direct federal regulation as theoperating principle of protectionfor US workers in the immigrationcontext.

As a result of the Hatch amend-ment, an employer who is not anH-1B Skilled Worker DependentEmployer (SWDE) or a DependentEmployer (DE), which we will ex-plain below, is required to use re-cruitment procedures that meet in-dustry wide standards and offer

compensation that is at least asgreat as that required to be offeredto H-1B non-immigrants. It nolonger requires such an employerto offer the job to an equally orbetter qualified US worker. Still, it

is hard to determine how thiswould be interpreted by the DOL.

Does the employer need to es-tablish that there were no quali-fied US workers who applied ordoes the employer only need todemonstrate that it does normallyalso recruit US workers for thesame position? We believe that thelatter interpretation is more con-sistent with the language of theHatch amendment.

An employer that is not aSWDE and not a DE will not besubject to the non-displacementattestation unless it files the peti-

tion with the intent or purpose ofdisplacing a specific US worker forthe position to be occupied by thebeneficiary, or workers are dis-placed who provide services atworksites owned, operated, or

controlled by a Federal, State, orlocal government entity that di-rects and controls the work of theH-1B worker, or workers are dis-placed who are employed as pub-lic school kindergarten elementary,middle school or secondaryschool teachers

But here's the catch. The Hatchamendment also creates a newconcept - the SWDE. The SWDEis different from the H-1B depen-dent employer (DE) as we haveknown it under the existing law.An SWDE is "an employer whoemployees H-1B non-immigrantsin the United States in a numberthat in total is equal to at least 15percent of the number of its fulltime equivalent employees in the

United States employment in oc-cupations contained within Occu-pational Information Network Da-tabase (O*Net) Job Zones 4 andJob Zones 5."

Under this definition, many em-ployers will be SWDE even if theyare not dependent employers. Evenif they hire thousands of US work-ers at lower skill levels, one needsto count how many workers arehired at Job Zone 4 and 5, and if thenumber of H-1B workers exceed15% of that number, the employerbecomes a SWDE.

One can imagine the kind of in-tricate investigations and calcula-tions that an immigration attorneymay need to make on behalf of anemployer client to find out howmany people it hires at Levels 4 and5 so as to determine whether theemployer is a SWDE or not. Aslong as an employer employs evenone US worker at a Level 4 or 5 po-sitions, the hiring of an H-1B workerwill render this employer a SWDE(as the hiring of this one H-1Bworker will be more than 15% ofthe number of employees hired inLevel 4 or 5).

Once the employer is a SWDE,such an employer would be re-quired to have offered the job toany US worker who applies and isequally or better qualified for thejob than the H-1B worker.

One can imagine the kind of intricate investi-gations and calculations that an immigrationattorney may need to make on behalf of anemployer client to find out how many peopleit hires at Levels 4 and 5 so as to determinewhether the employer is a SWDE or not.

Cont'd on Page 47

India Post47 June 28, 2013Immigration Postwww.indiapost.com

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India among nations facing hefty visa fee to UKLONDON: Visitors from India,

Pakistan, Nigeria and other Asianand African countries deemed"high-risk" will be forced to pay ahefty cash bond of 3,000 poundsbefore they can enter the UK.

According to a 'Sunday Times'report, the British government isplanning to pilot a scheme fromNovember targeted at visitorsfrom at least six countries, also in-cluding Bangladesh, Sri Lankaand Ghana.

Tourists aged 18 and overwould be forced to hand over3,000 pounds for a six-month visitvisa, which they will forfeit if they

overstay in Britain.Initially the scheme will target

hundreds of visitors, but the planis to extend it to several thou-sand, according to the front-pagereport in the newspaper.

It claims that the move by UKHome Secretary Theresa May isdesigned to show that PrimeMinister David Cameron's Con-servative party is serious aboutcutting immigration and abusesof the system and counter by-election gains by the populistanti-immigration party UnitedKingdom Independence Party(UKIP).

Cameron's election pledge wasto cut annual net migration be-low 100,000 by2015.

"This is thenext step inmaking sureour immigra-tion system ismore selective,bringing downnet migrationfrom the hun-dreds of thou-sands to thetens of thou-sands while still welcoming the

brightest and the best to Britain,"May has been quoted as saying.

"In the long run we're inter-ested in a system of bonds thatdeters overstaying and recoverscosts if a foreign national has usedour public services.

"A Home Office official said thesix countries highlighted werethose with "the most significant risk

The SWDE is not based on agradation like the traditional De-pendent Employer (DE) as definedin Section 212n (3) of the Immigra-tion and Nationality Act:

• An employer is consideredH-1B-dependent if it has: 25 orfewer full-time equivalent employ-ees and at least eight H-1B nonim-migrant workers; or

• 26-50 full-time equivalent em-ployees and at least 13 H-1B non-immigrant workers; or

• 51 or more full-time equiva-lent employees of whom 15 per-cent or more are H-1B.

To qualify as an SWDE, you donot have the less than 25, 12-50and 50+ to do the calculation. Un-der the new SWDE definitionwhere you need 15%, even if youhave 1 employee in Job Zone 4 or5, and hire one H-1B, you becomea SWDE.

This never happened under theDE definition, as you needed tohave 7 H-1Bs if less than 25, or 12H-1Bs if between 25 and 50, or 15%after that. Unlike the DE category,which was supposed to be the ex-ception rather than the norm, theSWDE is more easily satisfied pre-cisely.

Our colleague David Isaacsonproperly points out that, because

of the different rules for smallnumbers, it will be relatively easyfor a small employer to be a SWDEbut not a DE.

If an employer has 20 or 25 full-time equivalent employees(FTEEs), and 5 of them are H-1Bswho are not intending immigrants,then that employer will be a SWDEeven if all of its U.S. workers are inJob Zone 4 or 5, because the 5 H-1Bs are necessarily more than 15%of however many of the 20 or 25total FTEEs are in Job Zones 4 or5, but that employer won't be a DEbecause it has fewer than 7 non-intending-immigrant H-1Bs andone must have more than 7 to be aDE.

It is also possible to be a SWDEand not a dependent employer asa large employer, if your total num-ber of H-1B employees who arenot intending immigrants is morethan 15% of your total "numberthat in total is equal to at least 15percent of the number of its full-time equivalent employees in theUnited States employed in occu-pations contained within Occupa-tional Information Network Data-base (O*NET) Job Zone 4 and JobZone 5" but is less than 15% ofyour overall FTEEs, because ofyour employees in Job Zones 1through 3 who count towards thedenominator of the DE calculation

but not the denominator of theSWDE calculation.

Is a dependent employer in amore advantageous position thana SWDE after the Hatch amend-ment? As a practical matter, it wouldbe very difficult for an employer tobe a dependent employer withoutbeing a SWDE.

So long as an employer hires atleast one US worker in a Job Zone4 or 5 positions, as noted earlier,the hiring of even one H-1B workerwould make this employer a SWDE.

But there may exist a companythat does not hire anyone in a Level4 or 5 Job Zone. Although Level 4or 5 Job Zones generally requirebachelor's degrees, or higher, thereare many Level 3 occupations inO*Net that may require bachelor'sdegrees some times, but not all ofthe time.

For instances, Business andOperations Managers, LodgingManagers or Food Service Man-agers are in Zone 3, which canqualify under the H-1B visa, andone can conceive of a hotel estab-lishment hiring both US workersand H-1Bs for such positions thatare only in Zone 3.

To be continued

of abuse".Last year, 2,96,000 people

granted six-month visas were fromIndia, 101,000 from Nigeria, 53,000from Pakistan and 14,000 each werefrom Sri Lanka and Bangladesh.

Several hundred visitors will beselected from each country for thetrial scheme.

But ministers plan to extend itto all visa types, including work andstudent visas, and to all countries,although it will not cover every oneof the 2.2 million people grantedvisas each year.

Visitors from the rest of the Eu-ropean Union (EU) will be exempt,because they do not require visas.

A second category will coverlower risk countries such as Kenya,where British officials believe theapplicant to be genuine but have"residual doubts" about their in-tentions to return home. -PTI

Who is an H-1B skilled workerdependent employer?

Cont'd from Page 46

* Cyrus D Mehta, may be contactedat 212-425-0555 or

[email protected]


June 28, 201348

www.indiapost.com49 India Post June 28, 2013


In true Olympic spirit, athlete MilkhaSingh, aka 'The Flying Sikh' is set toachieve new feats once again when his

incredible life story is given the silverscreen treatment in Viacom18 Motion Pic-tures' film Bhaag Milkha Bhaag, releasingon 12th July.

Many recall Milkha Singh as a worldchampion in the 400 meters, who infa-

mously lost the penultimate race of his life -the 400 meters final at the Rome Olympics -but won in life.

Milkha Singh's life is a portrait of profes-sional triumph over personal tragedy. Thefilm attempts to understand a catastrophicloss that was deemed a sure victory andexplores through the darkness of disgraceMilkha Singh's redemption and catharsisthat came when he confronted his past.

Cont’d on page 50

June 28, 2013India Post

www.indiapost.com

50


If he isn't raising the profile ofGround Zero, J Hampstead,Rado and Mountain Dew,

Bollywood superstar HrithikRoshan is reaping the benefits ofhis iconic international status byreceiving the highest bid at a fund

raising event to help special chil-dren in Dubai.

The music and acting maestro'sjacket has beaten model DeepikaPadukone's red cocktail dress, a

Salwar Kameez designed byManish Malhotra and worn byKareena Kapoor, a blue shirt andpair of trousers worn by SalmanKhan, a leather jacket worn byRanbir Kapoor in Rockstar amongother Bollywood A-listers memo-rabilia for the highest bid at a pres-tigious charity auction.

It was a black leatherjacket from HrithikRoshan's personal col-lection that fetched asignificant Dh 11,000which was the highestbid of the Bollywood lotshowcasing just howadoring HrithikRoshan's fans are.

Hrithik Roshan is cur-rently filming for the Indian film re-make of Knight And Day withKatrina Kaif titled "Bang Bang", andwill be resuming his superhero char-acter in Krrish 3, out this Diwali 2013.

Hrithik jacket getshighest bid

It was a black leather jacketfrom Hrithik Roshan's per-sonal collection that fetcheda significant Dh 11,000which was the highest bid ofthe Bollywood lot

This iridescent tale windsthrough the plagues of a bloodycivil war where Milkha's familywere brutally killed during the tu-multuous India-Pakistan Partitionera resulting in a lost childhood,

Milkha Singh's incrediblelife story

homelessness, a life of pettycrime, right through to victorieshard won and easily lost.

The film draws an intricateimage of human trials, setbacksand fate leveraged against thesheer power of will as MilkhaSingh evocatively illustrates

that true victory lies in racingwith one's troubles and not inrunning away from them.

The film stars India's mostversatile multi-star, the criticallyacclaimed actor, producer,singer, writer, director and mu-sician Farhan Akhtar who es-says the role of Milkha Singhfor what is described as Farhan'smost demanding performance todate.

He is joined by SonamKapoor, Art Malik, RebeccaBreeds and is directed byRakeysh Omprakash Mehra.

The inspirational story ispenned by Prasoon Joshi andthe soundtrack is composed bythe award-winning trio Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy.


India Post 51

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Horoscope52

Your Weekly FutureJUNE 28TH - JULY 4TH, 2013

by Pandit Parashar

(March 21 to April 20)

Get together will be entertaining and every body will appreciate

the arrangement. Sales will keep improving and few new cus-

tomers will give you good business. You may try to cut down on

caffeine or nicotine consumption. Value of your stocks will appreci-

ate considerably. It will be better to dispose them off now.

(November 23 to December 22)

You are going to put all worries aside and enjoy with close family

and friends. A big promotion or raise is also on the horizon. You

may be seriously looking to replace one of your vehicle. You will

become very ambitious and will not be scared to make a risky move

in career and really hit the bulls eye.

(December 22 to January 19)

You will hear couple of encouraging news during the week. New

opportunity will knock at your door and you will not take much

time to go for it. Some of you may have your eyes set on a nice

piece of property and start the paper work also. You will be invited to

a small get together by a friend this week.

(January 20 to February 18)

You will be very fortunate as far as money matters are concerned.

Exalted Venus in second can get you big chunk of easy money.

Stocks will also appreciate and you may dispose them off for a de-

cent profit. You may put your needs aside and go out of your way to

help a needy friend or sibling this week.

(February 19 to March 20)

Enjoy your life but within legal parameters. Some trouble brewing

up from a female so watch out. There is a strong chance of

promotion or raise in near future. Some of you may be advised minor

surgery to tackle some health problem. You may appear for some

very competitive exam this week and will come out with flying colors.

(May 21 to June 20)

Do not think too much and stick to your guns. Planets will help

you take the right decisions and make correct choices. A child

may get accepted in desired college. You will start to enjoy the com-

pany of a new colleague. Keep working on your business plans as

the right tools will become available to you in near future.

(July 23 to August 22)

Few important developments in career will cause lots of excite-

ment in life. A female could be instrumental in your success.

Business will pick up all of a sudden and new subordinates will take

lots of load off your hands. Some of you may be getting ready to

move to different state. You may visit a holy place with family.

(September 23 to October 22)

You will be working extra hard to meet the deadline. Hard work will

not go waste and soon you will be moving one step up the lad-

der. A sibling will call to seek your advice on an important matter.

Business will improve and any journey undertaken this week will be

fruitful. Relationship will keep getting stronger.

(April 21 to May 20)

There will be some interesting developments in career to your ad-

vantage. Money wise you will continue to do well and stay com-

fortable after paying all bills. Idea of going on a long distance trip will

cross your mind and you will start making enquiries. You may call

an old friend to inquire about his health also.

(June 21 to July 22)

You will need more than your earlier budget to fulfill your commit-

ments this week. Some of you will be moving to better location

soon. You will continue to work on your diversification plans and the

developments will be encouraging. You will get ready to go on a

short trip with a child. You will make some useful friends this week.

(August 23 to September 22)

You may be thinking of shutting down one of your project chewing

up all your savings. Retrograde Saturn in second will keep you

on the edge as far as the finances are concerned. You may meet an

interesting personality at the meeting or during the course of the

business trip. People prone to litigation should be careful.

(October 23 to November 22)

There will be lots of activities in life this week. Some of you may

grab the offer and make a quick switch to new job. Financial

benefits will not be too much but it will be closer to home. Some

money could go towards legal bills or paying a fine. New relationship

will be exciting and keep you busy.

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Philosophy

Two wonderful facts of life:Death & Freedom

We are inherently good butcorrupted by society

Swami Vivekananda

Jean-Jacques Rousseau

You only lose what youcling to.

-Gautama Buddha

If we learn to open ourhearts, anyone, includ-ing the people whodrive us crazy, can beour teacher.

-Pema Chödrön

Many people think ex-citement is happi-ness.... But when youare excited you are notpeaceful. True happi-ness is based onpeace.

-Thich Nhat Hanh

Man suffers only be-cause he takes seri-ously what the godsmade for fun.

-Alan Watts

it is impossible to buildone's own happinesson the unhappiness ofothers. This perspec-tive is at the heart ofBuddhist teachings.

-Daisaku Ikeda

We are not going incircles, we are goingupwards. The path is aspiral; we have alreadyclimbed many steps.

-Hermann Hesse

Treat every moment asyour last. It is not prepa-ration for somethingelse.

-Shunryu Suzuki

There is in us and in the universe somethingwhich is permanent and free, showing thatthe basal constitutional belief of thehuman mind is not a delusion

“Mentally, the Romantics prefer feeling tothought, more specifically emotion tocalculation; imagination to literal commonsense, intuition to intellect."

SWAMI VIVEKANANDA

In the great Sanskrit epic, theMahabharata, the story is toldhow the hero, Yudhishthira,

when asked by Dharma to tell whatwas the most wonderful thing inthe world, replied, that it was thepersistent belief of mankind in theirown deathlessness in spite oftheir witnessing death every-where around them almost everymoment of their lives.

And, in fact, this is the moststupendous wonder in human life- the inability of our mind to con-ceive our own annihilation. Evento imagine my own annihilation Ishall have to stand by and lookon as a witness.

Although it is perfectly truethat when the human mind tran-scends its own limitations, it findsthe duality reduced to an indivis-ible unity; on this side of the un-conditioned, the whole objectiveworld - that is to say, the world weknow - is and can be subject, andtherefore, before we would be ableto conceive the annihilation of thesubject we are bound to conceivethe annihilation of the object.

So far it is plain enough. Butnow comes the difficulty. I can-not think of myself ordinarily asanything else but a body. My ideaof my own permanence includesmy idea of myself as a body. Butthe body is obviously imperma-nent, as is the whole of nature - a

constantly vanishing quantity.Where, then, is this perma-

nence?There is one more wonderful

phenomenon connected with ourlives, without which 'who will beable to live, who will be able toenjoy life a moment? - the idea offreedom.

This is the idea that guideseach footstep of ours, makes ourrelations to each other - nay, is the

very warp and woof in the fabricof human life. But then what isfree? The body, or even the mind?It is apparent to all that they areas much bound by law as any-thing else in the universe.

Now the problem resolves it-self into this dilemma: Either thewhole universe is a mass of never-ceasing change and nothing more,irrevocably bound by the law ofcausation, not one particle hav-ing a unity of itself, yet is curi-ously producing an in-eradicable

delusion of permanence and free-dom - or, there is in us and in theuniverse something which is per-manent and free, showing that thebasal constitutional belief of thehuman mind is not a delusion.

It is the duty of science to ex-plain facts by bringing them to ahigher generalization. Any expla-nation, therefore, that first wantsto destroy a part of the fact givento be explained, in order to fit it-

self to the remainder, is not scien-tific, whatever else it may be.

So, any explanation that wantsto overlook the fact of this per-sistent and all-necessary idea offreedom, commits the above-men-tioned mistake of denying a por-tion of the fact, in order to explainthe rest, and is therefore, wrong.

The only other alternativepossible, then, is to acknowl-edge, in harmony with our na-ture, that there is something inus which is free and permanent.

But it is not the body; neitheris it the mind. The body is dyingevery minute. The mind is con-stantly changing. The body is acombination, and so is the mind;and as such can never reach to astate beyond all change.

But beyond this momentarysheathing of gross matter, be-yond even the finer covering ofthe mind is the Atman, the trueSelf of man, the permanent, the

ever-free.It is his freedom that is perco-

lating through layers of thoughtand matter, and, in spite of thecolorings of name and form, isever asserting its unshackled ex-istence. It is his deathlessness,his bliss, his peace, his divinitythat shines out and makes itselffelt in spite of the thick layers ofignorance.

The 111th death anniversaryof Swami Vivekananda will beobserved on July 4

Jean-Jacques Rousseau ar-gued that we are inherentlygood, but we become cor-

rupted by the evils of society. Inlater life he wished to live a simplelife, to be close to nature and toenjoy what it gives us. Throughattending to nature we are morelikely to live a life of virtue.Rousseau was interested inpeople being natural.

"We are born capable of sen-sation and from birth are affectedin diverse ways by the objectsaround us. As soon as we becomeconscious of our sensations weare inclined to seek or to avoidthe objects which produce them:at first, because they are agree-able or disagreeable to us, laterbecause we discover that they suitor do not suit us, and ultimatelybecause of the judgments we passon them by reference to the ideaof happiness of perfection we getfrom reason.

These inclinations extend andstrengthen with the growth ofsensibility and intelligence, butunder the pressure of habit theyare changed to some extent withour opinions.

The inclinations before thischange are what I call our nature.In my view everything ought tobe in conformity with these origi-

nal inclinations." (Émile, Book 1)His later writings, especially

Reveries of the Solitary Walker,show both his isolation and alien-ation, and some paths into happi-ness. 'Everything is in constantflux on this earth, he writes (1979:88):

"But if there is a state wherethe soul can find a resting-placesecure enough to establish itselfand concentrate its entire being

there, with no need to rememberthe past or reach into the future,where time is nothing to it, wherethe present runs on indefinitelybut this duration goes unnoticed,with no sign of the passing of time,and no other feeling of depriva-tion or enjoyment, pleasure orpain, desire or fear than the simplefeeling of existence, a feeling that

fills our soul entirely, as long asthis state lasts, we can call our-selves happy, not with a poor, in-complete and relative happinesssuch as we find in the pleasuresof life, but with a sufficient, com-plete and perfect happiness whichleaves no emptiness to be filledin the soul.

“Such is the state which I of-ten experienced on the Island OfSaint-Pierre in my solitary rever-

ies, whether I lay in a boat anddrifted where the water carried me,or sat by the shores of the stormylake, or elsewhere, on the banksof a lovely river or a stream mur-muring over the stones."(Rousseau 1979: 88 - 89)

Rousseau's is sometimes de-scribed as a romantic vision.

"The 'Romantic' is said to fa-

vor the concrete over the ab-stract, variety over uniformity, theinfinite over the finite,; nature overculture, convention and artifice;the organic over the mechanical;freedom over constraint, rules andlimitations.

In human terms it prefers theunique individual to the averageperson, the free creative geniusto the prudent person of goodsense, the particular community

or nation to humanity at large.Mentally, the Romantics preferfeeling to thought, more specifi-cally emotion to calculation;imagination to literal commonsense, intuition to intellect."(Quinton 1996: 778)

The 301st birth anniversary ofJean-Jacques Rousseau will beobserved on June 28.

54 Edit Pagewww.indiapost.com

June 28, 2013India Post

Kerry visitJohn Kerry's visit to India has not evoked as much interest as

would have that of Hillary Clinton, the former Secretary ofState. Unlike Hillary, Kerry is perceived to be pro-Pakistan. It

has taken him a long time to schedule an India visit whereas hehas often visited Pakistan, many times before taking over hispresent job. He believes Pakistan's assistance is necessary for theUS to carry out its mission to quit Afghanistan and for that itcould even sup with the devil, that is talk to the Taliban and eventhe dreaded Haqqani network.

The Taliban has been allowed to set up an office in Doha, Qatarwhere the US hopes to engage in dialogue with it. India is op-posed to giving any quarters to the Taliban which had ruled Af-ghanistan earlier with an obscurantist zeal and is responsible forseveral deadly attacks on Indian institutions in Afghanistan. Arapprochement with the Taliban could bring back the barbaricregime that spawned terrorism and attacks in Kashmir region.

Kerry was in New Delhi for his maiden Indo-US strategic dia-logue which was unfortunately drowned in the storm overWashington's attempts to hold open talks with the Taliban. TheUS seems keen to withdraw from Afghanistan at all costs. It mighteven allow Pakistan to broker a deal which could bring back theTaliban to rule in Afghanistan. India has conveyed its strong op-position to such talks which could rehabilitate the Taliban; a de-velopment that New Delhi sees as a major threat to its securityand a fillip for the backers in Pakistan of Taliban style violence.

On his part, Kerry tried to reassure India saying that the talkswith the Taliban would happen under "certain conditions." Hespelled out the conditions as - respect the Afghan constitution,disassociate from al-Qaeda and renounce violence." If these con-ditions are not met, "obviously there will be no agreement." Thepurpose for the talks initiative, he said, is to explore the possibili-ties of having a peaceful resolution and conclusion of a politicalprocess. He also sought to emphasize that "ultimately it will bedecided by the Afghan people."

Afghanistan President Hamid Karzai angrily took back his as-sent for the talks when he found the Taliban office in Qatar put-ting up a board as "Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan." It took somepersuasion from Kerry to bring him back on board. This showshow tough is the task ahead for the US. The Taliban is not aboutto renounce violence as proved by a recent attack on a US baseand Afghan facilities.

Vivek Katju, a former Indian Ambassador to Afghanistan, hasin an article in Hindu advised India not to allow itself to be ex-cluded from international diplomacy over Afghanistan, as was thecase in the 1990s. Following the Kerry visit, India must urgentlyhold consultations with Russia, Iran and the Central Asian stateson developments in Afghanistan. While remaining realistic andflexible, India must point out to all that Taliban's vision of thecountry is flawed being exclusionary and not inclusive ofAfghanistan's diversities.

On a positive note, Kerry signaled US keenness to host PrimeMinister Manmohan Singh in September-October with a view tofinalizing the commercial pact between the nuclear power compa-nies of the two nations. It was indicated that the US side is tryingto put a time frame for the nuclear deal to be commerciallyoperationalized before or during the PM's visit. US Vice PresidentJoe Biden will be coming to India in late July as a build up to thePM's visit.

The issue of growing American aggressiveness overoutsourcing and immigration was also taken up. This is hurtingIndia. It will also hurt American businesses in the long run, as hasbeen highlighted by 100 American CEOs in an appeal to the Con-gress to pass the Immigration bill and facilitate more H1B visas ifAmerica is not to lose its competitive edge in the global market.

US volte face on talks withAfghan Taliban

AJIT KUMAR SINGH

On June 18, while open-ing their office in Qatarin Doha, the AfghanTaliban declared that

they were ready to talk with theUS. The US reciprocated instantly,announcing that its officials wouldreach Doha 'within days' for thetalks.

Whether the talks will reallytake place and the potential fortheir success are a different mat-ter; what is of immediate impor-tance is the volte face of the US.On October 27, 2011, the then USSecretary of State, Hillary Clinton,referring to talks with Taliban hadobserved, "We have been clearabout the necessary outcomes ofany negotiation. Insurgents mustrenounce violence, abandon alQaeda, and abide by the constitu-tion of Afghanistan, including itsprotections forwomen and minori-ties. If insurgentscannot meet thosered-lines, they willface continued andunrelenting as-sault."

However, it nowseems that the ap-parent precondi-tions have them-selves become theobject of the nego-tiation. Jennifer RenePsaki, spokespersonfor the US Depart-ment of State, stated,on June 19, 2013,"We don't expectthat they would de-cry al-Qaida and de-nounce terrorism im-mediately off the top - this is theend goal."

What prompted the US to getinto talks with the Taliban is hardlya secret. Indeed, there has beenlittle improvement in the securitysituation in Afghanistan. Accord-ing to the United Nations Assis-tance Mission in Afghanistan(UNAMA) Annual Report 2012,released in February 2013, theCountry recorded 6,131 civiliancasualties (2,179 civilian deathsand 3,952 injuries), as comparedto 5,636 civilian casualties (2,208civilian deaths and 3,428 injuries)attributed to Anti-Government El-ements.

Similarly, UNAMA documented782 improvised explosive device(IED) incidents which resulted in2,531 civilian casualties (868 civil-ian deaths and 1,663 injuries) ascompared to 2,460 civilian casual-ties (949 civilian deaths and 1,511injured) in an unspecified number

of IED attacks in 2011.Ironically, while Washington

was expressing satisfaction overthe proposed Doha talks, theTaliban was attacking an Ameri-can base outside Kabul, killingfour soldiers in rocket fire.

Elaborating on the 'Doha State-ment', which indicated that theTaliban would continue to fightthe US in Afghanistan, the Talibanspokesman bragged, "TheMujahideen of the Islamic emiratefrom the other side also have takenall the preparations that will be ef-fective for the destruction ofAmerica's nests."

The peace initiative led by theUS must be assessed within theperceived short and long term in-terests of the troubled superpower.Media reports suggest that an im-mediate US goal is to secure the

release of US soldier, BoweBergdahl, who is in Taliban cus-tody since June 2009, in return forthe release of five Taliban prison-ers from Guantanamo Bay.

Over the long term, the US seeksan assurance from the Taliban thatits Forces will not attack convoyscarrying equipment and weaponsof US Forces who are preparing toleave Afghanistan.

The US's latest outreach toTaliban is also to do with its real-ization that it needs Pakistan's helpto exit from the land-locked Af-ghanistan at any cost. In return, itis trying to give some legitimacyto Pakistan's Taliban proxies - the'Pakiban' as some commentatorsnow describe them - in Kabul, viatheir recognition in Doha.

Kabul did make an indirect ref-erence to Pakistan's role in thecontext of the Doha office contro-versy, noting, "The latest devel-opments show that foreign hands

are behind the Taliban's Qatar of-fice."

The US, however, publicly ac-knowledged, on June 21 the 'con-structive role' played by Pakistanin bringing Taliban and the USadministration closer to reconcili-ation.

US Ambassador to PakistanRichard Olson stated, "We areworking closely with Pakistan.Pakistan played a constructive rolein the opening of Taliban office inDoha. This is a big step and wegreatly appreciate Pakistan's sup-port."

The present US initiatives aredriven, overwhelmingly, by fearsof a chaotic flight of its Forces inthe last phases of the drawdown,under focused attack by theTaliban. In its moment of despera-tion Washington has, once again,

fallen back on its unreliable 'prin-cipal ally', Pakistan, restoring theprime supporter of the Taliban andof terrorism in Afghanistan to acentral role at the most sensitivephase of the 'transition'.

Though there are argumentsthat "the Taliban is changing", asclaimed by Masoom Stanikzai,head of the Afghan Government'sHigh Peace Council secretariat, itis useful to recall that the MalimShah Wali, the head of the HighPece Council in the southern Prov-ince of Helmand, was killed by theTaliban as recently as on May 1,2013.

The US faith in Pakistan and a'peaceful' Taliban is wishful think-ing, and will only plunge Afghani-stan, and the wider South Asianregion, into a deeper and lastingchaos.

The writer is Research Fellow;Institute for Conflict Manage-ment

The newly opned Afghan Taliban office in Doha, Qatar


June 28, 201356

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