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Should Narendra Modi apologizefor Godhra riots?

Last week’s result

YES 73% NO 27%

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

Classifieds ------------------------- 43

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

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HealthScience Post --------- 32-36

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Indian selectedfor environmentaward

MesmerizingBay Area concertby Ilayaraja

MODI'S ADDRESS ATWHARTON CANCELLED

WASHINGTON: GujaratChief Minister Narendra Modi'skeynote address at the presti-gious Wharton India EconomicForum later this month was can-celled after it was stoutly op-posed by sections of Whartonprofessors, students and otherstakeholders.

"Our team felt that the po-tential polarizing reactionsfrom sub-segments of thealumni base, student body, andour supporters, might put MrModi in a compromising posi-tion, which we would like toavoid at all costs, especially inthe spirit of our conference'spurpose," the Forum said in astatement.

A group of Wharton's pro-fessors and students had writ-ten a strongly-worded lettersaying they are outraged tolearn that the Forum has invitedModi as a keynote speaker.

The letter noted, "This isthe same politician who wasrefused a diplomatic visa bythe United States State Depart-ment on March 18, 2005 on theground that he, as Chief Min-ister, did nothing to prevent aseries of orchestrated riotsthat targeted Muslims inGujarat."

WOMEN'S CAUSE: India's Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Women and

Child Development, Krishna Tirath with Executive Director for UN Women, Michelle

Bachelet at United Nations Office in New York. Speaking at the 57th Session of the

Commission of Status of Women at the United Nations, she said violence

against women is often not due to lack of legislative framework

but ineffective implementation. (Details on page 7)Details on page 5

Indian girlhas higher IQthan Einstein

Rao meetsCongressmanTed Poe

Madigan-Quinnshowdown forIllinois governor

Health careoverhaul rolls ondespite budget

Mukherjee gets2nd highestBangla award

Will Chuck Hagel change hismind on India?

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Bollywood:Angry princessSoha Ali Khan, who plays a princess, hasexpressed displeasure at her royalty ref-erences being relentlessly rustled up.

1Cover Story:Snub to Modi

16Community:Madigan for Guv

32Health:Obamacare on rollObama's health care law, a program Re-publicans have spent three years tryingto kill, will roll out despite budget cuts.

30Life Style:

Abhishek Kapoor’s Kai Po Che! is a bighit at the domestic box office and is asuccess even in the overseas markets.

11Techbiz:

Showering accolades, Warren Buffett hasasked shareholders to "bow deeply" ifthey happen to see Ajit Jain.

39Travel:MandiSteeped in the grandeur of its past, Mandihas made a flourishing changeover intoan effervescent and bustling city.

Ajit Jain lauded

Ms. Lisa Madigan is a front runner forlikely Democratic nomination for the Illi-nois governor with 31.9 percent vote.

Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi'saddress at Wharton India EconomicForum has been cancelled.

Kai Po Che!

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Looks like we are not going to hear the end of this or perhaps, it is GujaratChief Minister Narendra Modi who is not going to hear the end of it.

The end of it being his vilification for the 2002 communal riots inGujarat. And the beginning of it would be the latest campaign that scuttled hisscheduled keynote address via video conference at the Wharton India EconomicForum to be held later this month.

What's interesting is that while the University of Pennsylvania itself did not careone way or the other, it is a lobby of liberal-leftist Indian Americans at the Univer-sity that were bothered enough to have Modi dropped from the speakers list.

On earlier occasions, at the first hint of Modi being invited to physicallyattend Indian American - read, Gujarati American - events, certain Indian Mus-lim and Christian organizations in the US used to get into an overdrive topetition the State Department to have his visa application rejected. Sometimes, intheir enthusiasm, they had his visa application "rejected" even when he did notapply for it!

In all this apolitical intellectuals are confused. What if Modi becomes thePrime Minister of India in the next election? Forget the Indian lobbies, wouldforeign governments, especially the United States, invite him for major diplo-matic events or not?

These questions aside, I wonder if Modi's official PR agency, APCO World-wide, which has this impressive list of particularly redoubtable world leaders onits roster of clients, is worth paying for. I mean, they may have given Modi everypopulist keyword andjargon to fill his public speeches; brought some of world'sbiggest investors to Gujarat; and miraculously got even the mainstream Englishlanguage media in India to soften up towards him, but where they have failed isin convincing a rather small band of Indian Americans in the US who repeatedlymanage to keep Modi away from the US.

On his part, Modi appears to be gaining from these slights, but mostly only inGujarat. Whether he can win over the rest of the country or not, only time will tell.

India PostMarch 15, 2013 5

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Modi's address at Wharton cancelledWASHINGTON: Gujarat Chief

Minister Narendra Modi's keynoteaddress at the prestigiousWharton India Economic Forumlater this month was cancelled af-ter it was stoutly opposed by sec-tions of Wharton professors, stu-dents and other stakeholders.

"Our team felt that the poten-tial polarizing reactions from sub-segments of the alumni base, stu-dent body, and our supporters,might put Mr Modi in a compro-

mising position, which we wouldlike to avoid at all costs, especiallyin the spirit of our conference'spurpose," the Forum said in astatement.

A group of Wharton's profes-sors and students had written astrongly-worded letter sayingthey are outraged to learn that theForum has invited Modi as a key-note speaker.

The letter noted, "This is the

same politician who was refuseda diplomatic visa by the UnitedStates State Department onMarch 18, 2005 on the ground thathe, as Chief Minister, did nothingto prevent a series of orchestratedriots that targeted Muslims inGujarat."

Planning Commission DeputyChairman Montek SinghAhluwalia is expected address theForum on March 23.

In its statement, the Forum

said," We do not endorse anypolitical views and do not supportany specific ideology. Our goal asa team is only to stimulate valu-able dialogue on India's growthstory."

Modi was invited to deliver thekeynote address at the Forum tobe held in Philadelphia on March22-23 via videoconference.

"As it stands currently, Mr.Modi's keynote address at

Wharton India Economic Forumhas been cancelled," the state-ment said.

The Forum is an annual stu-dent-run India-centric conferencehosted by the Wharton School ofthe University of Pennsylvania.

In its statement, the Forum saidthe student body was extremelyimpressed with Modi's creden-tials, governance ideologies, andleadership, which was the primaryreason for his invitation.

"However, as a responsiblestudent body within the Univer-sity of Pennsylvania, we mustconsider the impact on multiplestakeholders in our ecosystem,"it said.

The Forum said even as itstood by its decision to inviteModi, "we believe that this courseof action (of canceling his ad-dress) would be the most appro-priate in the light of reactions ofthe multiple stakeholders in-volved."

"Therefore, we as a team, wouldlike to apologies for being a cata-lyst that may have put Mr Modiand the Wharton School admin-istration in a difficult position,"the Forum said.

The Forum said it hoped tohave Modi speak at a "more ap-propriate forum where he can in-teract with students without thedistraction of this kind of atten-tion".

Since its inception in 1996, themeet has emerged as one of thelargest and most prestigious In-dia-focused business confer-

ences that provides a platform forleaders to discuss the opportuni-ties present in India and the chal-lenges that need to be addressed.

Wharton School backscancellation

Meanwhile, ending its silence,Wharton School has backed theorganizing committee of WhartonIndia Economic Forum (WIEF) oncanceling the address of GujaratChief Minister Narendra Modi,but regretted the confusioncaused as a result of the change

in program."The student organizers of the

upcoming Wharton India Eco-nomic Forum have announcedthat they have cancelled the pro-posed keynote address byNarendra Modi," the WhartonSchool said in a statement.

"We appreciate the efforts ourstudents have put forth in orga-nizing this event and regret anyconfusion that may have beencaused by the change in pro-gram," Wharton School said.

A spokesman of the Aam AdmiParty (AAP) in New Delhi saidthat WIEF has invited Activist andpolitician Arvind Kejriwal to re-place Narendra Modi as the key-note speaker. However, a WIFEspokesman, said that no such an-nouncement has been made in thisregard so far.

Gautam Adani pullsout

NEW DELHI: Adani Group hassaid its Chairman Gautam Adanihas pulled out of Wharton India

Economic Forum.The Gujarat-based firm, how-

ever, said Adani had taken him-self out of the event almost a fort-night back in an apparent refer-ence that his absence is not re-lated to the cancellation of Modi'saddress.

"Adani has conveyed his in-ability to join Wharton India Eco-nomic Forum long back (almost afortnight ago) as he has otherpressing commitments," an AdaniGroup spokesperson said.-PTI

The Forum said the student body was ex-tremely impressed with Modi's credentials,governance ideologies, and leadership,which was the primary reason for his invita-tion. "However, as a responsible studentbody within the University of Pennsylvania,we must consider the impact”

Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi

Indian selected for environmentawareness award

WASHINGTON: DrShubhalaxmi Vaylure has beenselected for the US StateDepartment's International Ex-change Alumni Member of theMonth for March for her dedica-tion to build greater environmen-tal awareness in India.

Shubhalaxmi first came to theUS in 2003 as part of the FulbrightIndo-American EnvironmentalLeadership Program which tookher to the University of Montanato study educational nature cen-ters.

Upon returning from this pro-gram, she drew inspiration fromher Fulbright program as sheimplemented innovative educa-tional programs at the MumbaiConservation Education Center.

Dr Shubhalaxmi went on tostudy non-profit management atBoston University through theHubert H Humphrey Program.

This experience enabled her tobring her environmental advo-cacy to a new level.

Returning from the HumphreyProgram, she developed onlinecourses in natural history and

worked in the organization devel-opment sector of the BombayNatural History Society whereshe conducted staff training work-shops and boosted fundraisingand marketing efforts to benefitthe Center.

In 2012, Dr Shubhalaxmi and ateam of her alumni peers won sup-port from the State Department'sBureau of Educational and Cul-tural Affairs Alumni EngagementInnovation Fund to provide man-agement trainings for profession-als from Indian environmentalNGOs.

The team has already trainednearly 150 individuals.

The State Department said itsBureau's Alumni Affairs Division,which supports alumni as theybuild on their exchange experi-ences, confers this award on anoutstanding alumnus or alumnaevery month. -PTI

Returning from theHumphrey Program,she developedonline courses innatural history andworked in the organi-zation developmentsector of the BombayNatural History Soci-ety where she con-ducted staff trainingworkshops

USINPAC surprised atHagel's remarks on India

India Post News Service

WASHINGTON DC: The USIndia Political Action Committee(USINPAC) has expressed sur-prise at the unfortunate remarksby then Sen. Chuck Hagel in 2011wherein he claimed that "India hasover the yearsfinanced prob-lems for Paki-stan." Such astatement isparticularly sur-prising giventhe Obamaadministration'sstrong supportfor India's con-structive role inA f g h a n i s t a nand stronger US-India ties.

USINPAC said it would likeclarifications from Secretary ofDefense Hagel about this issue.

USINPAC Chairman SanjayPuri said, "Secretary Hagel is aveteran foreign policy expert andit would be unfortunate if hewould read differently into India'shumanitarian role in the rebuild-ing of Afghanistan. A stable andprosperous Afghanistan is in the

interest of both India and Paki-stan, and India's actions in thatcountry are a manifestation of thatunderstanding."

‘Secretary Hagel is a veteranforeign policy expert and itwould be unfortunate if he wouldread differently into India's humanitarian role in therebuilding of Afghanistan’


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12-year-old Indian girl hashigher IQ than Einstein

LONDON: A 12-year-old In-dian-origin girl in UK has stunnedeveryone after she scored an in-credible 162 on her IQ test - evenhigher than Einstein and StephenHawking.

Neha Ramu, daughter of an In-dian doctor couple, achieved ascore of 162 on a Mensa IQ test -the highest score possible for herage.

The score puts the teen in thetop one per cent of brightestpeople in the UK and means sheis more intelligent than physicistHawking, Microsoft founder BillGates and scientist AlbertEinstein, who are all thought tohave an IQ of 160.

"Neha scored 162 on theCattell IIIB test, putting her withinthe top one per cent of people inthe country," a spokesman forBritish Mensa said.

Neha's parents lived in Indiabefore moving to Britain whentheir daughter was seven, 'TheTelegraph' reported.

Neha had always performedwell at school, but it was onlywhen she took an entrance examfor her school, achieving a per-fect score of 280/280, that they

realized her potential.She took the test for Mensa, a

society for people with high IQs,two years later, and achieved themaximum possible score for some-one aged under 18.

"At first I did not really realize

what she was capable of as shewasn't being stretched at schooland when she joined primaryschool in the UK in year three wedidn't really understand the sys-tem here," her mother Jayashreesaid.

"I am so proud of her. Althoughshe's been doing well at these kindof tests for sometime now this isjust marvelous. I can't express thefeeling," she said.

Neha plans to follow her par-ents' footsteps into a career inmedicine. She has already set hersight on a place at Harvard aftertaking her SATs - the Americanequivalent of A-levels - andachieved a score of 740 out of 800in a test designed for 18-year-olds.

A devoted Harry Potter fan andkeen swimmer, Neha admitted tohave found the Mensa test "quitehard".

"I'm really, really happy be-cause I found the test quite hardand I wasn't really holding outmuch hope that I'd be a memberof Mensa," she said.

"We might have a little partyor something sometime soon tocelebrate. I haven't told my friendsyet but I've told some of my fam-ily and they are all very happy forme," said Neha.

Einstein never took an IQ testas none of the modern intelligencetests existed when he was alive,but experts believe he had an IQof around 160. -PTI

It was only when shetook an entranceexam for her school,achieving a perfectscore of 280/280,that they realized herpotential. She tookthe test for Mensa, asociety for peoplewith high IQs andachieved the maxi-mum possible score

Mukherjee receives Bangladesh's2nd highest award

DHAKA: Bangladesh has con-ferred its second highest awardon President Pranab Mukherjeefor his valuable contribution tothe country's liberation war in1971.

"Your support towards our

War of Liberation in 1971 was forthe cause of humanity and jus-tice... your support gave us cour-age and motivation," PresidentZillur Rahman said after handingover a crest of 'BangladeshMuktijuddho Sanmanona' (Libera-tion War award) to Mukherjee ata ceremony at the Darbar Hall inthe Presidential Palace(Bangabhaban) here.

Mukherjee, 77, received thecrest amid a standing ovation ofmore than 200 local andforeign dignitaries in-cluding Prime MinisterSheikh Hasina.

The President re-sponded to the honorby saying "I feel humbleas I receive this presti-gious award and I feelthat my contributionwas modest".

"As I stand here to-night, I am filled withmemories of the eventsof 1971. I was 36-years-old and an MP when thepeople of Bangladeshengaged themselves intheir liberation struggle," headded.

He recalled that on June 15,1971 he had the privilege to ini-tiate a discussion at Rajya Sabhawhen he suggested that Indiashould accord recognition toBangladesh exile government.

Mukherjee said India has anabiding interest in the all-arounddevelopment of Bangladesh.However, the full potential of ourcooperation is yet to be tapped,he said.

"Our endeavor will be to see

how our bilateral cooperation canbring sustained benefits to ourpeople and improve the quality oftheir lives. This will be the litmustest of the success of our relation-ship," he said.

Hasina described Mukherjeeas "a real friend" of Bangladeshwho "braving all obstacles fromdifferent quarters stood beside uswhen the war was waged at thecall of Father of the NationBangabandhu Sheikh MujiburRahman and played a big role in

mobilizing support of the interna-tional community for our indepen-dence."

"As a nation, it's an immensepride for us to have opportunityto confer the 'BangladeshMuktijuddho Sammanona' onyou." she said. -PTI

President Pranab Mukherjee being presented Liberation War Honour by the

President of Bangladesh Md. Zillur Rahaman in Dhaka, Bangladesh

Mukherjee, 77, received thecrest amid a standing ova-tion of more than 200 localand foreign dignitariesincluding Prime MinisterSheikh Hasina.The President responded tothe honor by saying "I feelhumble as I receive thisprestigious award”

Khaleda condemns attackson Hindus

DHAKA: Bangladesh'smain opposition leaderKhaleda Zia has con-demned recent attacks onHindus in different partsof the country allegedlyby activists of fundamen-talist Jamaat-e-Islami anddemanded punishment toperpetrators of the at-tacks.

She, however, made nomention of BNP allyJamaat-e-Islami which, ac-cording to the victims, un-leashed terror against theHindus, burning downhouses and temples,shortly after a war crimestribunal gave death sen-tence to Jamaat leaderDelawar Hossain Sayedee.

On March 1, Zia, theChairperson ofBangladesh Nationalist Party, hadblamed the government of PrimeMinister Sheikh Hasina for the"planned attack aimed to divertpeople's democratic movementand destroy the country's commu-nal harmony".

Now, days after the atrocitiesagainst minorities, she demandedthat the government identify andpunish the perpetrators through"neutral" investigation and com-pensate the victims.

"I called upon the administra-

tion and law enforcers to preventsuch attacks on minorities with aniron fist," said Khaleda.

Hindus, their houses andtemples had come under attacksin districts like Noakhali, Satkhiraand Sirajganj. -PTI

Khaleda Zia


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Nirupama Rao meets Congressman Ted PoeIndia Post News Service

WASHINGTON DC: Ambas-sador Nirupama Rao met Con-gressman Ted Poe from Texas onFebruary 28 at Capitol Hill inWashington D.C.

Congressman Ted Poe is serv-ing his 5th term in the U.S. Houseof Representatives, representingthe 2nd District of Texas. Heholds a number of important com-mittee assignments in the Con-gress. He sits on the House For-eign Affairs Committee, where heis the Chairman of its Subcommit-tee on Terrorism, Nonproliferationand Trade, as well as a Member ofthe Subcommittee on Europe,Eurasia and Emerging Threats.Congressman Poe is also a Mem-ber of the Committee on the Judi-ciary, where he is the Vice Chair-man of the Subcommittee on Im-migration and Border Security.

Ambassador Rao and Con-gressman Poe discussed the re-cent positive developments in In-dia-U.S. relations, including coop-

eration in counter-terrorism. Un-derscoring the shared values andinterests of the two countries,Congressman Poe expressed con-fidence in the future of the India-U.S. strategic partnership.

He fondly recalled his visit toIndia in September 2012, which hedescribed as "very educational".He agreed with Ambassador Raothat sectors like education, healthand energy had emerged as im-portant pillars of this multi-facetedpartnership. Ambassador Raonoted that Governors of a num-ber of U.S. states were now visit-ing India to explore new opportu-nities for closer cooperation, re-flecting the widening base and thedepth of the India-U.S. partner-ship.

They also exchanged views onthe regional situation in SouthAsia. Congressman Poe said thatthe U.S. looked upon India as ananchor of stability in the regionand as an important partner in pro-moting regional and global peace,security and development.Ambassador Rao with Congressman Ted Poe from Texas at the Capitol Hill in Washington D.C.

'Violence against women due to ineffective implementation'UNITED NATIONS: Violence

against women is often not dueto lack of legislative framework butineffective implementation, UnionMinister for Women and ChildDevelopment Krishna Tirath hastold a UN panel, amid a series ofviolent attacks in India.

"As recent events of horrificviolence against women in Indiaand other parts of the world indi-cate, it is often not the lack of leg-islative framework that hampersour efforts, but rather its ineffec-tive implementation", Tirath said.

"We, of course, need tostrengthen legislative and policyframework as well", she said in herintervention during the HighLevel Round Table at the 57thSession of the Commission of Sta-tus of Women at the United Na-tions headquarters in New York.

Tirath said gender-based "un-equal power structures" and per-ception of the role of women insociety are to be blamed for theviolence.

"The widespread nature of thisproblem is a manifestation of un-equal power structures amongmen and women, and of howwomen's role is perceived", shesaid.

"We need to ensure that thestigmatization of victims, thetrivialization of the crime and im-punity of perpetrators are all

ended," she said.Observing that besides work-

ing towards empowerment ofwomen politically, economicallyand socially, Tirath said one mustdebate the relevance of deeply-held beliefs and social attitudesand modify them so that they arenot a hindrance to social ad-vancement and economicprogress.

Noting that the Indian Govern-ment has recently taken a num-

ber of steps in this regard, shesaid fast track courts have beenset up to try cases pertaining toviolence against women.

"It promulgated an ordinancein February 2013 which broad-ened the definition of sexual as-sault and harassment, and vio-lent behavior and provided forgreater accountability of publicofficials. The Parliament alsoadopted a law in February to com-bat sexual harassment of women

Minister of State (Independent Charge) for Women and Child Development Krishna Tirath at the 57th Session of the UN Commission

on Status of Women, at New York on March 4

in the workplace," she said.Tirath said these measures

complement existing legislativeframework that address the issueof trafficking, sexual offencesagainst children and domesticviolence.

The government is developingprotocols for police, medical func-tionaries and other service pro-viders to improve coordination ofits response to victims of vio-lence, she said. -PTI

Tirath said one must debate the relevance ofdeeply-held beliefs and social attitudes andmodify them so that they are not a hindranceto social advancement


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HIV cured in baby in the US for first timeWASHINGTON: In a break-

through, a two-year-old baby girlin the US born with HIV has been"functionally cured" for the firsttime, scientists have said.

US Researchers said they be-

lieve early intervention - in thiscase within 30 hours of birth - withthree anti-viral drugs was key tothe outcome.

A "functional cure" is when thepresence of the virus is so small,life-long treatment is not neces-sary and standard clinical tests

cannot detect the virus in theblood.

The finding was announced atthe 2013 Conference onRetroviruses and OpportunisticInfections in Atlanta.

Dr Deborah Persaud, lead re-searcher and a virologist at JohnsHopkins University in Baltimore,presented the findings at the Con-ference. The results of the find-ings could possibly lead to a curefor children infected with HIV.

The unidentified girl from Mis-

sissippi was born HIV-positive toa mother who received no prena-tal care and was not diagnosed asHIV-positive herself until just be-fore delivery.

"We didn't have the opportu-nity to treat the mom during thepregnancy as we would like to beable do to prevent transmissionto the baby," said Dr Hannah Gay.

Gay, a pediatric HIV specialistat the University of MississippiMedical Center, was quoted byCNN as saying that the timing ofintervention in this case, beforethe baby was diagnosed HIV-positive, may deserve "more em-phasis than the particular drugsor number of drugs used."

"We are hoping that futurestudies will show that very earlyinstitution of effective therapy willresult in this same outcome con-sistently," she said.

"This is a proof of concept that

HIV can be potentially curable ininfants," she said.

In 2007, Timothy Ray Brownbecame the first person in theworld believed to have recoveredfrom HIV.

His infection was eradi-cated through an elaboratetreatment for leukaemiathat involved the destruc-tion of his immune systemand a stem cell transplantfrom a donor with a rare ge-netic mutation that resistsHIV infection.

In contrast, the case ofthe Mississippi baby in-volved a cocktail of widelyavailable drugs already used totreat HIV infection in infants.

It suggests the treatment wipedout HIV before it could form hide-outs in the body.

These so-called reservoirs ofdormant cells usually rapidly re-

infect anyone who stops medica-tion, Persaud said.

Dr Katherine Luzuriaga, an im-munologist at the University ofMassachusetts who worked

closely with Gay, called the devel-opments fascinating, includingthe fact that the toddler was foundto have no virus in her blood evenafter her mother stopped givingher treatment for eight to 10months. -PTI

Dr Deborah Persaud, lead researcher and avirologist at Johns Hopkins University inBaltimore, presented the findings at theConference. The results of the findings couldpossibly lead to a cure for childreninfected with HIV

China defends heftydefense budget

BEIJING: China has said thatits defensive military policiesplayed a "core role" in main-taining peace and stability inAsia, playing down speculationof a hefty rise in its defensespending amid standoff withJapan and others over disputedislands.

"China's peaceful foreignpolicies and its defensive mili-tary policies are conducive tosecurity and peace of Asia," FuYing, spokesperson for the firstsession of the Na-tional People'sCongress (NPC),told a press confer-ence here ahead ofthe release of bud-getary allocations.

"It's not goodnews to the worldthat a country aslarge as China is un-able to protect it-self," Fu, a formerVice Foreign Minis-ter, said without disclosing thisyear's defense budget allocation,which is a break from the past.

China has increased its de-fense spending manifold in therecent budgets taking it to overUSD 106.4 billion last yearwhich is far above India's thisyear's defense budget of USD37.4 billion.

Many international analystssay China's defense budget isfar higher than it actually an-

nounces though Beijing assertsthat it is the real amount.

Over and above the defensespending China allocated overUSD 110 billion for internal se-curity which meant that thecountry is spending far more onits police forces to maintain atight control over people.

Analysts say that consider-ing that massive defenseprojects China has undertakenincluding to build new aircraftcarriers and the development of

fighters jets to land on the car-riers as well as new missile sys-tems and weaponry, this year'sbudget could be even higher.

China's rapid militarizationcomes in the midst of its ragingdispute with Japan over the is-lands in East China as well asassertiveness in taking controlof the disputed South ChinaSea brushing aside the claimsof several South East AsianCountries. -PTI

China has increased itsdefense spending manifoldin the recent budgets takingit to over USD 106.4 billionlast year which is far aboveIndia's this year's defensebudget of USD 37.4 billion

India-China maritime rivalrynot inevitable: NSA

NEW DELHI: India-China mari-time rivalry is "not inevitable" asboth the countries have a com-mon interest in keeping the sealines of communication open for

their trade and energy flows, Na-tional Security Advisor (NSA)Shiv Shankar Menon said here.

Addressing a gathering here onthe occasion of a book launch, hesaid the navies of the two coun-tries are also cooperative and have

initiated a separate dialogue onmaritime security and cooperation.

"In my view Sino-Indian mari-time rivalry is not inevitable... BothIndia and China have a common

interest in keeping the sea linesof communication through theIndian and western pacific oceansopen. These lines are vital toIndian's trade and energy flows.So are they for China," he said.

Menon also said that in the last

decade presence of both Indiaand China across the Strait ofMalacca have become normal.

"That is reality that has hap-pened simultaneously on bothsides of the Strait without appar-ent frictions. These are naturalconsequences of development ofIndia and China. As we both glo-balize this will happen... I thinkthese are natural consequences,"he said.

The NSA cited their involve-ment in anti-piracy operations ofthe two navies in their increasingcooperation.

"The two navies are also co-operative, whether on anti-piracyoff the Somali coast, the Gulf ofAden and other instances," hesaid.

Last year India and China de-cided to initiate a separate dia-logue on maritime security andcooperation and this should offera way forward for us, he added.

"What is missing in the IndianOcean, the near seas and the West-ern Pacific is the over-arching se-curity architecture, within whichthe naval actors and states con-duct their activities and cooper-ate, mitigating conflicts and avoid-ing competition," Menon said.

He noted that Indian Navy isalso building its capability to de-fend the country's interests.

"The Indian Navy is buildingcapacity to deal directly and,along with friendly navies, in theIndian Ocean to defend the inter-ests of the nation," he said. -PTI

Shiv Shankar Menon

‘In my view Sino-Indian maritime rivalry is notinevitable... Both India and China have acommon interest in keeping the sea lines ofcommunication through the Indian andwestern pacific oceans open’

Dr Deborah Persaud


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Top Stories

Emulate Indian n-liability law:Delhi lawyer tell Japan

Indian-origin lottery winner's death still unclearCHICAGO: Autopsy of Indian-

origin businessman Urooj Khan,who died last year after winning aUSD one million jack pot, revealedno trace of cyanide in his bodyapparently becauseit dissolves quickly,a medical examinersaid here.

"The route of ad-ministration of cya-nide cannot be con-firmed in the au-topsy," Dr StephenCina, the CookCounty Medical ex-aminer, told report-ers at a news confer-ence here.

Cina said the au-topsy revealed noth-ing new to help Chi-cago police in the in-vestigation of themillion-dollar lotterywinner's cyanidepoisoning death in July last year.

He said the body was badlydecomposed and the autopsycould not confirm how the cya-nide entered his body.

The autopsy did reveal 75 percent blockage in one of 46-year-old Khan's coronary arteries, but

NEW DELHI: A Delhi lawyerhas suggested Japanese lawmak-ers to draft their nuclear liabilitylaw on the Indian legislation toensure that suppliers of plantequipment do not go scot free incase of an accident.

Bikash Mohanty made thesesuggestions to Japanese lawmak-ers at a public discussion in theJapanese Parliament building, aGreenpeace statement said.

Japan is in the process ofamending the Act on Compensa-tion for Nuclear Damage, 1961 af-ter it realized that the supplier ofnuclear reactor could not be heldresponsible under its weak liabil-ity laws.

The nuclear liability regimemust provide for supplier liabilityto keep this balance so that all thebenefactors of this dangerous en-terprise share the devastating ef-fects of nuclear disaster as a com-mon burden, Mohanty wasquoted as saying by Greenpeace.

"The Indian law as an exten-sion of the right to life with dig-nity, is a paradigm shift worthemulating," he said.

Kazue Suzuki, a GreenpeaceJapan campaigner, said Japanmust follow India's example, makeall nuclear companies fully ac-countable for the damage theycause, and put its people beforeindustry profit. -PTI

the medical examiner still ruledthat Khan died of cyanide toxic-ity - with heart disease as a "con-tributing factor."

"Once again, the manner of

death is cyanide toxicity.Coronary artery disease is

deemed a contributory condition,and the manner of death is homi-cide," Cina said.

"Cyanide has a short half-lifeand may be lost over the postmor-tem period unless tissues are ad-

equately preserved," he said."In this case, due to advance

putrefaction of the tissues, nocyanide was detectable in the tis-sues or small amounts of gastric

content recovered following exhu-mation of the body."

When asked if Khan could havedied of a heart attack, Cina said,"As a pathologist you have tolook at the totality of the evi-dence. And I don't see how I canignore a lethal level of cyanide in

the blood."The autopsy of Khan's body

was conducted after his bodywas exhumed in January from theRose Hill Cemetery in Chicago.

Khan had come to the US fromhis home in Hyderabad in 1989and set up several dry-cleaningbusinesses in Chicago.

Khan's death was originallyattributed to natural causes.

A relative later requested theCook County Medical Examinertake another look. After examin-ing fluid samples, a lethal level ofcyanide was found and Khan'sdeath was declared a homicide. -PTI

File picture of the award winner


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Top Stories

Indian-origin doctors claim 'inequality' in UK examsLONDON: A group of Indian-

origin physicians has launched alegal action against the regulatorybody for doctors in the UK, alleg-ing that the exam, which confirmsa doctor has satisfactorily com-pleted specialty training and iscompetent to enter independentpractice, is flawed and discrimi-nates against international train-ees.

The British Association ofPhysicians of Indian-Origin(BAPIO) claims there is a "signifi-cant difference in pass rates" be-tween UK and internationalgraduates, including those of In-dian origin.

Their lawyers have started alegal bid against the regulator, theGeneral Medical Council (GMC),and standards body, the RoyalCollege of General Practitioners(RCGP).

"BAPIO is seeking a JudicialReview of the way the RCGP con-ducts the MRCGP exam. Our law-yers claim there is a significantdifference in pass rates which can-not be explained by a lack of anyknowledge, skill or competency onthe part of the International Medi-cal Graduates (IMGs), which in-clude those of Indian origin,"Ramesh Mehta, President ofBAPIO said in a statement.

The BAPIO argues that these

graduates will have alreadypassed the GMC's PLAB test(which includes an English lan-guage test and demonstrates thatgraduates have the necessaryskills and knowledge to practicemedicine in the UK), a rigorousexamination for entry into GPtraining and on-going assess-ments.

RCGP figures show that 65.3 per

cent of IMGs failed their first at-tempt at the Clinical Skills Assess-ment (CSA) component of theMRCGP exam in 2011/12, com-pared with 9.9 per cent of UKgraduates.

In 2010/11, 59.2 per cent ofIMGs failed at the first attempt,

compared with 8.2 per cent of UKgraduates.

In 2008, 43 per cent of IMGsfailed the CSA compared with 8.3per cent of UK graduates.

These doctors are failed in spiteof the fact that they will have hadsupervised training for threeyears during which time each ofthem would have seen on an av-erage 3,000 patients without anycomplaints.

To reach this stage they wouldalso have had good feedback fromtrainers and colleagues and wouldhave passed the theory test.

BAPIO says increasing num-bers of GP trainees have been con-tacting them regarding concernsabout the CSA. This exam is in-tended to mimic practice as a GPand test a trainee's clinical skills.

Each candidate is required tosee a number of patients, each ofwhom is an actor role-playing topresent a clinical case. BAPIO'slawyers argue that opportunity forbias arises in the face-to-face as-sessment trainees undergo duringthe mock consultation.

It appears that during the exama physician's intellectual ability isjudged on the basis of how wellhe or she speaks native English.

BAPIO's case will be that forthese reasons the differential passrates demonstrate unlawful dis-

crimination under the Equality Act2010. Negotiations with the RCGPhave so far failed to resolveBAPIO's concerns.

BAPIO is also pursuing Em-ployment Tribunal action againstthe RCGP for individual GP train-ees who have failed the CSA andbeen removed for training.

It says IMGs who fail are leftwith bleak career prospects.

Once trainees have exhaustedthe number of attempts allowedat the MRCGP examination theyare then ejected from the trainingprogram leaving them with no ca-reer prospects in general practice.

Dr Ramesh Mehta, Presidentof BAPIO said: "Patient safety is

paramount. These doctors havehad extensive interaction over aperiod of many years with theirtrainers and patients without sig-nificant concerns.

"For them to be judged to beso grossly incompetent in a shortexit exam either reflects poorly onyears of training, which is unlikely,or it is because the exit exam isflawed".

"Training a doctor to be a GPcosts the UK tax payer 488,730which seems a profligate waste ofresource considering that an esti-mated 300 doctors have been re-moved from training because oftheir failure to pass the CSA.

Legal remedy has always beenour last resort.

We hope that the Judicial Re-view will help to expose flaws inthe system.

Professor Rajan Madhok,Chairman of BAPIO said:"...OurQC feels that BAPIO has a strongcase, and hopefully justice will bedone and allow these doctors tohelp the NHS in these hard times.Racial discrimination in the NHSis a lose: lose proposition, and thesooner it is addressed the betterit will be for the patients, the ex-chequer and the society at large."

Currently there are over 40,000doctors of Indian-origin workingin the NHS. -PTI

Our lawyers claimthere is a significantdifference in passrates which cannot beexplained by a lackof any knowledge,skill or competencyon the part of theInternational MedicalGraduates (IMGs)

‘Training a doctor tobe a GP costs the UKtax payer 488,730which seems a profli-gate waste of re-source consideringthat an estimated 300doctors have beenremoved from trainingbecause of their fail-ure to pass the CSA’

'Terror safe havens in Pak asignificant challenge'

WASHINGTON: The presenceof terrorist safe havens inPakistan's tribal areas andIslamabad's reluctance to take ac-tion against Haqqani networkposes a significant challenge tothe US in the region, a top Ameri-can Senator has said.

"In many of my meetings, Iraise the Haqqani issue. We dis-cuss the insurgents' safe havensin Pakistan and how to best ad-dress them. They obviously re-main a significant challenge ab-sent a strategic shift in Pakistan'sthinking and ability to take ongroups like the Haqqanis," Sena-tor Robert Menendez, Chairmanof the powerful Senate ForeignRelations Committee.

Menendez, who recently re-placed John Kerry as the Chair-man of the powerful Senate For-eign Relations Committee, has justreturned from his maiden trip toAfghanistan and Pakistan in thisnew capacity.

In Pakistan, Menendez heldmeetings with Pakistan PresidentAsif Ali Zardari, Foreign MinisterHina Rabbani Khar and Army

Chief Ashfaq Pervez Kayani."Afghans and Pakistanis don't

want us to stay as an occupier,which we have no intention ordesire, but they also don't wantus to abandon them," he said.

"....We need to make clear to

our Afghan and Pakistani partnersthat the United States will be com-mitted in Afghanistan even as wedraw our forces and leave behinda residual presence," Menendezsaid.

Meanwhile, another AmericanSenator opposed any move to cutthe US aid to the country arguingthat this would further alienateIslamabad from Washington.

"It is important...that we try tocontinue to maintain some rela-tionship with Pakistanis. I'm notone who thinks we need to cut offaid to the Pakistanis because ofthat. If we cut off aid to them thenthey're going to get their financialresources from somewhere. Andit will just further alienate, in myopinion, the Pakistan-US relation-ship," Republican Senator SaxbyChambliss said.

Responding to questions at theAmerican Enterprise Institute - aWashington-based think-tank -Chambliss feared that the nuclearweapons in Pakistan could landinto wrong hands in case of a ter-rorist takeover of the country.

"What I do have a great fear ofis a terrorist getting their handson tactical nuclear weapons thatwere not dealt with in START anddelivering those weapons to theUnited States or to an asset of theUnited States somewhere.-PTI

If we cut off aid tothem then they'regoing to get theirfinancial resourcesfrom somewhere.And it will just furtheralienate, in my opin-ion, the Pakistan-USrelationship," Repub-lican Senator SaxbyChambliss said

Zardari dismisses US oppositionto Iran-Pak pipeline

LAHORE: No power in theworld can halt the 7.5 billion Iran-Pakistan gas pipeline project,President Asif Ali Zardari has said,dismissing mounting US opposi-tion to the venture that will be for-mally inaugurated on March 11.

"Nobody has the power to haltthis project,"Zardari saidduring an in-t e r a c t i o nwith senioreditors andTV anchorsat his privateresidence inLahore.

Pakistan,he said, is as o v e r e i g nand indepen-dent countryand it wasacting in itsnational interests by going aheadwith the pipeline.

The pipeline will be formallyinaugurated on March 11 in Ira-nian city of Chahbahar and digni-taries from regional countries havebeen invited to the event, Zardarisaid.

Asked about US opposition tothe project, Zardari said Pakistancan make decisions indepen-dently and sign an agreement withany country to tackle its energycrisis. He expressed the hope thatwith time, critics of the project willappreciate Pakistan's growing en-

ergy needs and the requirementof the pipeline.

"Pakistan does not want con-frontation with anyone and firmlybelieves that negotiations and dia-logue are the best tools to creategreater understanding of issues,"he said.-PTI

Asif Ali Zardari

11 India Post March 15, 2013www.indiapost.com

TechBizTech News

In the overall rich list of world's billionaires, asper an annual ranking by business magazineForbes, Mukesh Ambani is ranked 22nd, whilethe second-richest Indian Lakshmi Mittal is at41st position with a networth of USD 16.5 billion

Bow deeply when you seeAjit Jain: Warren Buffett

NEW YORK: Describing him asone of Berkshire Hathaway's terrificmanagers, billionaire investor War-ren Buffett has said that Ajit Jaininsures risks that "no one else hasthe desire or the capital to take on".

Showering accolades, Buffettasked shareholders to "bowdeeply" if they happen to see Jainat the annual meeting.

India-origin Jain, who has beenassociated with Buffett for nearlythree decades, has long beenspeculated to be a potential can-didate to succeed the octogenar-

ian investor at BerkshireHathaway.

Jain runs the ReinsuranceGroup, one of the most profitableventures of the conglomerate.

Noting that Berkshire's out-

standing economics exist onlybecause of some terrific managers,Buffett said that Jain insures risksthat no one else has the desire orthe capital to take on.

"His operation combines ca-pacity, speed, decisiveness and,most important, brains in a man-ner unique in insurance business.

Yet he never exposes Berkshire torisks that are inappropriate in rela-tion to our resources," Buffettwrote in his annual letter to share-holders released on March 1.

Starting from 1985, Jain has cre-ated an insurance business withfloat of USD 35 billion and a sig-nificant cumulative underwritingprofit, a feat that noother insurance CEOhas come close tomatching, the famed in-vestor noted.

"He (Jain) has thusadded a great many bil-lions of dollars to thevalue of Berkshire. Ifyou meet Ajit (Jain) atthe annual meeting, bowdeeply," Buffett said.

Famed for his invest-ment decisions, Buffettsaid that his group ismore conservative inavoiding risk than mostlarge insurers.

"For example, if the insuranceindustry should experience a USD250 billion loss from some mega-catastrophe - a loss about tripleanything it has ever experienced -Berkshire as a whole would likelyrecord a significant profit for theyear because it has so manystreams of earnings.

"All other major insurers andreinsurers would meanwhile be farin red, with some facing insol-

vency," the letter said.Last year, Berkshire saw an in-

crease of USD 22.8 billion in itsnet worth, after accounting forUSD 1.3 billion that was used forrepurchasing stocks.

Taking a shot at CEOs who saidthey were faced with uncertaintyin terms of capital allocation deci-

sions last year, Buffett said thathe did not share their fears.

"At Berkshire, we didn't sharetheir fears, instead spending arecord USD 9.8 billion on plant andequipment in 2012, about 88 percent of it in the United States.

"That's 19 per cent more thanwe spent in 2011, our previoushigh. Charlie and I love investinglarge sums in worthwhile projects,whatever the pundits are saying,"the letter said. -PTI

Mukesh Ambani India's richest for 6th yearNEW YORK: With networth

of USD 21.5 billion, MukeshAmbani has retained his title asIndia's richest person for sixthyear in a row, while Mexican busi-ness tycoon Carlos Slim hasemerged as wealthiest in the worldfor the fourth consecutive year.

In the overall rich list ofworld's billionaires, as per an an-nual ranking by business maga-zine Forbes, Mukesh Ambani isranked 22nd, while the second-richest Indian Lakshmi Mittal is

at 41st position with a networth ofUSD 16.5 billion.

Slim has topped the rankingswith a networth of USD 73 billion,followed by Bill Gates (USD 67 bil-

lion), Spain's Amancio Ortega(USD 57 billion), Warren Buffett(USD 53.5 billion) and Larry Ellison(USD 43 billion) in top five.

Cont’d on page 12

Warren Buffett

Ajit Jain

Mukesh Ambani

G P Hindujadescribesbudget as bold

LONDON: Describing the In-dian Budget for 2013-14 as "bold",Co-Chairman of the Hinduja GroupG P Hinduja has said that it wouldrestore global investors' interest inIndia as an investment destination.

"This budget is bound to re-store interest in India as an invest-ment destination, amongst globalinvestors," Hinduja said, com-menting on the Budget presentedby Finance Minister PChidambaram.

He said the Finance Ministerhas managed to put investment asa pivot of the economic manage-ment of the country and even de-livered the surprise package of in-vestment allowance.

"By decisive cuts in subsidiesand broadening the tax base, he(Chidambaram) has shown deter-mination to manage the fiscal defi-cit, which has averted the risk of rat-ing downgrades, which would havemost certainly scared away globalinvestors," Hinduja said.-PTI

Microsoftlaunches Office365 for India

NEW DELHI: Software giantMicrosoft has launched its Office365 for businesses in India, whichwill provide seamless sharing ofdata across PCs and mobiles us-ing cloud computing technology.

"Office 365 unlocks social andmobility scenarios that will allowbusinesses and individuals to takefull advantage of cloud comput-ing. It gives them the freedom to

do things, when, where and howthey want," Microsoft India Chair-man Bhaskar Pramanik said.

Since the solutions are cloud-based, users can access theirmails and files through a varietyof devices like desktops, laptopsand mobile phones and work onprojects while on the move, headded.

Cloud computing facilitatessharing of technological resources,software and digital information.Since it is Internet-based, data andsolutions can be accessed fromanywhere using a browser. -PTI

Chief Executive-Automotive Division, Mahindra and Mahindra Limited, Pravin

Shah poses for media during the unveiling of new Maxximo Plus mini-truck

12 India Post TechBiz Post March 15, 2013

www.indiapost.com

There are a total 55 billionairesfrom India on the list of 1,426 per-sons from across the world having aminimum networth of USD 1 billion.

Among the Indians, MukeshAmbani and Lakshmi Mittal arefollowed by Azim Premji, DilipShanghvi, Shashi & Ravi Ruia,Kumar Mangalam Birla, SavitriJindal, Sunil Mittal, Shiv Nadar, KP Singh and Anil Ambani.

Globally, Anil Ambani is ranked233rd (USD 5.2 billion), while theglobal top-100 list has only three

Mukesh Ambani India'srichest for 6th year

Indians - Mukesh Ambani,Lakshmi Mittal and Azim Premji(91st position).

About Mukesh Ambani,Forbes said that his fortune hasdropped by USD one billion overthe past one year, but he "remainsIndia's richest person and his Re-liance Industries remains country'smost valuable company".

On the other hand, his youngerbrother Anil Ambani saw hisnetworth drop by USD 2.6 billionin the past one year, "continuinga three-year decline in his for-tune." -PTI

Cont’d from page 11

Seagate to launch wireless storage devices in IndiaNEW DELHI: Seagate, a US-

based hard disk supplier, has saidit will launch its latest wireless stor-age solutions, which provides au-tomatic backup, remote accessfrom outside a home networkamong other niche features, for theIndian market by April.

This will include the NASDAQ-listed company's next generationnetworked home storage solution,Seagate Central, and wireless stor-age product, Seagate Wireless Plus.

"Smartphones and tablets of-fer amazing new opportunities forSeagate to provide new consumerstorage solutions in an increas-ingly mobile world," Seagate Ex-ecutive Director (Sales) Japan,South Asia, ASEAN and ANZFutoshi Niizuma said.

The concept of wireless stor-age has been developed by thecompany to give consumers free-dom to enjoy their data, movies,photos and music anywhere in theworld, he added.

Seagate's Central Shared Stor-

age has been designed as an easy,centralized backup for each com-puter in the home, even in a mixedplatform environment of WindowsOS and Mac OS X computers.

The company has priced Cen-tral with 2 tera byte (TB) at Rs10,500, 3 TB at Rs 14,400 and 4 TBat Rs 17,700.

Seagate's Wireless Plus is de-signed to wirelessly stream con-tent for up to eight smartphonesor tablets with enough space forup to 500 high-definition movies.Besides, it also includes a 10-hourbattery life.

The Wireless Plus supports allmajor mobile devices, includingiOS and Android devices, Blu-rayplayers and Amazon Kindle HD.

It is priced at Rs 16,000 for 1 TBand Rs 11,500 for 500 giga byte(GB).

The products will be marketedthrough Seagate's distributors inIndia - Redington, Ingram Micro,Supertron Electronics and FortuneMarketing. -PTI

Futoshi Niizuma, Executive Drector, Seagare Technology with Country Manager of Seagate Technology for India,

SAARC, Vietnam, Philippines, Rajesh Khurana, during the launch of Seagate Central shared storage in

New Delhi on March 5

IT industry to focus on mobile tech, big dataBANGALORE: The IT industry

will focus on internet and mobiletechnology, big data and cloudcomputing technologies forspeedy growth in order to achieveUSD 300 billion revenue by 2020,Nasscom has said.

"The IT industry has a visionand aspiration to aggregate USD300 billion revenue by 2020 by fo-cusing on IT products, Internetand mobile technology, big data,cloud computing and 3G/4G tech-nologies, for speedy growth,"NASSCOM Expert CommitteeChairperson N R Narayana Murthytold reporters here.

To achieve the milestone,NASSCOM in July 2012 set up anindependent Expert Committee toaddress key needs of the industryin order to help realize Vision 2020.

The findings and recommenda-tions of the committee report ad-dress the growth opportunity forIT industry by size and potential

as well as key enablers forNASSCOM to partner industry inbuilding future growth opportuni-ties, he said.

Murthy said the report would

help IT industry realize 2020 Visionby not only identifying distinctpriority areas, but putting togetherfocused deliverables for each ofthose areas.

He said seven piv-otal initiatives havebeen highlighted inthe report that will en-able NASSCOMachieve the target.

The report high-lights the initiative ofexpanding focus onindustry segmentsbased on size and po-tential, he said, addingthe potential of IT in-dustry is in Internetand mobile (content

and commerce) segment.It has also recommended recon-

stituting the Executive Council foradequate representation for sevenidentified priority verticals.

The recommendations will beimplemented in a phased mannerand NASSCOM Vice ChairmanKrishnakumar Natarajan will helplead it.

The report also recommendshelping develop capabilities innext generation technologies andplatforms in partnership with theindustry, Murthy said, addingthat NASSCOM will set up fivecenters of excellence in five years.

NASSCOM Chairman NChandrasekaran said the report

also recommends positioning In-dia as an innovative solution pro-vider and destination of choiceand forge partnerships to increaseindustry collaboration.

It lays emphasis on expandingmarket access through countryspecific initiatives and work withgovernments to promote free-trade, he said.

It recommends realignment ofNASSCOM structure to specificverticals (IT and Services, BPM,GICs, ER&D, Internet and Mobile,Products, Domestic Market) andenablers (Global Trade, PolicyAdvocacy, Outreach, Skills andTalent, Regional Connect),Chandrasekaran said. -PTI

N R Narayana Murthy

13India PostTechBiz PostMarch 15, 2013

www.indiapost.com

All-women bank to start operations from NovNEW DELHI: India's first all-

women bank will start operationsfrom November this year throughsix branches spread across thelength and breadth of the coun-try, Finance Minister PChidambaram said here.

"It will be inaugurated in No-vember. Initially we should startwith at least one branch in eachmajor region of this country,South, West, East, Centre, Northand North-east. So that will meanimmediately we should start withsix branches," he told PTI in aninterview.

On whether the idea of awomen's bank had been sug-gested by Congress PresidentSonia Gandhi, Chidambaramsaid: "It is part of the Jaipur Dec-

Therefore, I accepted the ideaand announced a national bankfor women."

He further said he will as-semble the best brains from theindustry to chalk-out a blueprinton the bank by month-end.

"I'm going to ask a couple ofbankers and a couple of othersto sit together and write a blue-print for me.

Hopefully, the blueprint will beready by the end of March andthen we will go ahead and try toimplement it," he said.

The country is all set to getan all-women bank in Novemberthis year with the governmentannouncing an initial capital ofRs 1,000 crore for the purpose.

According to the FinanceMinister, there will be "no prob-lem in getting a license" for theall-women bank as it will be 100per cent owned by the govern-ment of India.

I hope to complete all the pre-paratory work by October, hesaid.

Asked whether there will besome special schemes offered towomen, Chidambaram said:"That will be in the blueprint thatis being written. Let them writethe blueprint and then I will makeit public."

Chidambaram had proposedsetting up of the country's firstall-women bank while presentingthe Budget on February 28.

The proposed bank will lendmostly to women and women-run businesses, provide supportto women Self Help Groups(SHGs) and their livelihood.

Moreover, it will employ pre-dominately women which ad-dresses the gender-related is-sues and empowerment and fi-nancial inclusion. However, it willtake deposits from men andwomen both. -PTI

laration that we should considersetting up a bank for women. It

is completely consistent with myown instincts and leanings.

P Chidambaram

British cos looking foropportunities in IndiaNEW DELHI: British compa-

nies are looking for opportunitiesin India, especially in the infra-structure space that is expected tosee investments worth USD 1 tril-lion in five years, according to glo-bal consultancy Deloitte.

Apart from infrastructure, UKcompanies are also interested toinvest in other high growth poten-tial sectors such as finance, edu-cation and health.

Rising demand from emergingmiddle class population in India

offers good growth opportunities,Deloitte's Vice Chairman (Interna-tional Markets and Lead Partner,Africa and India Services Groups)in the UK Vassi Naidoo said.

"UK has significant capabilityin technology and innovativeskills... these can be used in part-nership with India that goes be-yond trading. We (UK companies)want to share our knowledge andcommercialize it for benefit of boththe countries," he told PTI.

India is expected to see an in-vestment of about USD 1 trillionin the current Five Year Plan (2012-17), with significant contributionexpected from the private sector.

Last month, British Prime Min-ister David Cameron visited Indiaalong with a large delegation ofbusinessmen.

The United Kingdom, includingmany companies from that nation,already have substantial invest-ments in India.

Presently, UK accounts onlyfor about two per centof India's global im-ports, a Deloitte reporthas said.

The Indian middleclass, according toNaidoo, would witnessan unprecedentedgrowth in the near fu-ture. This section ofthe India would thendemand world-classservices in infrastruc-ture, education,healthcare and finan-cial services, he added.

"The (growing)middle class is the cata-lyst," Naidoo said.

Further, according toDeloitte, India's infrastructure sec-tor provide opportunities forworld's manufacturing, energy andtelecommunications players to ac-celerate their presence.

"Indian infrastructure is notworld class and needs to be up-graded, we have a lot of experi-ence in the field...we (UK) wouldlike out builders, technicians towork in collaborative fashion withIndia and lend support in this sec-tor," he added. -PTI

Rising demand from emerg-ing middle class populationin India offers good growthopportunities, Deloitte's ViceChairman (International Mar-kets and Lead Partner, Africaand India Services Groups)in the UK Vassi Naidoo said."UK has significant capabilityin technology and innovativeskills... these can be used inpartnership with India”

Chidambaram’sBudget creditpositive: Moody’s

NEW DELHI: Raising hopesof a sovereign credit upgrade,global rating agency Moody'shas applauded Finance MinisterP Chidambaram's Budget sayingthat it pursues realistic fiscalconsolidation path and is 'creditpositive'.

"India's budget pursues realis-tic fiscal consolidation, a creditpositive for the sovereign", saidMoody's in its credit outlook forthe country.

Chidambaram in his Budget for2013-14 proposed to bring downthe fiscal deficit to 4.8 per cent ofthe Gross Domestic Product(GDP) from 5.2 per cent in the re-vised estimates for the current fi-nancial year.

"This plan of modest fiscal con-solidation is credit positive for thesovereign because, against abackdrop of subdued GDP growthand upcoming elections, it is a re-alistic effort to correct India's mac-roeconomic imbalances", the rat-ing agency said.

Earlier, ratings agencies likeStandard and Poor's and Fitch hadthreatened to downgrade India'ssovereign credit rating to junkgrade in view of the worsening fis-cal position of the government.They also are likely to come outwith fresh assessment in the back-drop of the Budget proposals.

Moody's had assigned BAA3rating to India, which indicatesinvestment grade rating withstable outlook.

The report further said that fis-cal consolidation proposed byChidambaram could pave the wayfor monetary easing, which wouldrevive growth.-PTI

14 India Post TechBiz Post March 15, 2013

www.indiapost.com

Govt urged to increase limitof duty free gold for NRIs

WASHINGTON: An IndianAmerican organization has askedthe Indian government to increasethe limit of duty free gold that anNRI couple can bring to India.

The North American PunjabiAssociation (NAPA) in a state-ment has asked the Indian gov-ernment to increase the limit to Rs3 lakh from the current Rs 1.5 lakh.

"The proposed increasing limitof duty-free import of jewellerythrough passenger baggage to Rs50,000 for men and Rs 1,00,000 forwomen will not prevent harass-ment to travelers but will also playan important role in increasing thecorruption at the airports," NAPAspokesman Satnam Singh Chahalsaid.

"If the government of India is

serious to attract Non ResidentIndian to invest and contribute inthe all over development of Indiathen it should make it sure thatthere should not be any kind ofharassment to NRI Visiting India,"he said.

NAPA also asked the govern-ment to make equity investmentmore attractive and Equity SavingsScheme should be liberalized toenable the first time investor toinvest in mutual funds. -PTI

Govt to take over possessionof RIM infrastructure

NEW DELHI: The Governmentplans to take possession of theserver and other infrastructureplaced by BlackBerry in Mumbaito test the solution offered by thesmart phone maker for legal inter-ception of Internet communica-tion.

According to an internal noteof Telecom Ministry, prepared af-ter testing the interception of vari-ous services of BlackBerry bycentral security agencies, it wasrecommended to "initiate a pro-cess to take over the possessionof RIM infrastructure created atWestern CoastalIndian cityMumbai forwhich a suitableagreement maybe entered be-tween Depart-ment of Telecom-munication andCanada-basedResearch In Mo-tion (RIM),manufacturer ofthe smartphone.

After initially being reluctant insharing information, RIM has nowbeen complying with the require-ments of the government to en-sure that all its services are inter-cepted in readable format and inreal time, as and when required bythe security agencies.

Giving details of the findingsof the tests carried out, the secu-rity agencies said there was anurgent need for decrypting theinternet browsing services beingoffered on the smart phone byApril this year as the RIM teamhad been able to provide only atemporary solution to this.

The 'attachments' with the

emails generated under theBlackBerry Internet Services (BIS)from the smart phone also couldnot be downloaded in real time, itwas stated.

It was also recommended thatthere was a need for negotiatingwith RIM to provide Personal Iden-tification Number (PIN) and Inter-national Mobile Equipment Iden-tification (IMEI) list for all theBlackBerry handsets.

"With respect to PIN to IMEIresolution, the tested solution isapparently satisfactory for all thehandsets officially shipped to In-

dia. With regard to handsetsshipped to other countries, RIMintimated that PIN to IMEI corre-lation in such cases can be ob-tained through BlackBerry Publicsafety office (PSO)," the note said,adding, "We may negotiate withRIM to provide the entire IMEI-PIN correlation data of other coun-tries."

In the meantime, telecom ser-vice providers have been asked tocomplete testing of their equip-ment at the earliest so that the se-curity agencies are satisfied withlegal interception of mails andmessages as and when required. -PTI

134 mn children in India likelyto be online by 2017

HYDERABAD: The number ofchildren in the country expectedto come online by 2017 is likely tomore than triple to 134 million fromabout 40 million last year, accord-ing to a study by Boston Consult-ing Group (BCG).

"For India, the study expects95 million new children to comeonline by 2017 (in other words, themajority of the new children com-

ing online will be in India)."In total, the study expects 134

million Indian children to be onlineby 2017, up from 39.5 million in2012," the study, which was con-ducted by BCG for Europeantelecom major Telenor, said.

A total of 176 million childrenwill be online by 2017 in Telenor's11 markets plus Russia, and themajority of these children will beusing a mobile device as their firstpoint of access, the study said.

Telenor Group president and

CEO Jon Fredrik Baksaas said:"We see that the benefits ofinternet far outweigh the harm thatcan result from it, but we cannotafford to be complacent."

"We commissioned this studyin an effort to increase transpar-ency about risks to youth that re-sult from increased access, whilesimultaneously analyzing the bestways to deal with this from a

telecom perspective. Our conclu-sion is that resilience building isthe most effective means to pre-pare youth to face the onlineworld."

More than 14 million children(in 12 markets) may potentially beexposed to harmful online contentand as many as 35 million (in 12markets) children may have expe-rienced some form of cyber bully-ing, the study said.

Knut Haans, the Global Leaderof BCG's Strategy Practice, said the

study defined resilience as achild's ability to be exposed to riskwithout harm, and to cope and re-cover faster if harm occurs.

"Factors such as educationlevels, online experience over timeand a country's institutionalstrength in protecting its citizensall contribute to the resilience ofan individual.

"While the legal framework inthe country is an important start-ing point, the study concludes thatmore is required in order to reducerisk, and, in particular, increase re-silience among youth," Haans saidin a release. -PTI

CSIR to provide indigenoustechnologies in villages

NEW DELHI: Rural folks maysoon be able to earn some supple-mentary income using technologyinterventions from the country'sleading laboratories.

The Council of Scientific andIndustrial Research (CSIR) is send-ing its scientists to villages to iden-tify technologies that would helppeople earn some extra income.

Under the CSIR-800 program,the TechVill initiative will maketechnologies developed at CSIR's37 laboratories available to the vil-lages.

"We have some amazing tech-nologies like extracting oil fromaromatic flowers, encouraging

Tulsi cultivation in areas of watershortage, simple techniques todelay ripening of fruits," SamirBrahmachari, Director-General,CSIR, told PTI.

The CSIR plans to set up 25TechVills to begin with and later

take the initiative to at least 100locations.

Brahmachari said similar tech-nology interventions were alreadybenefiting horticulturists in Kash-mir, who were now exporting lav-ender oil, extracted using CSIRtechnologies, instead of flowers.

At the beginning, five TechVillsare coming up at two locations inWest Bengal, one each in TamilNadu, Odisha and AndhraPradesh.

"Students pursuing doctoralresearch at CSIR academy will beposted at TechVills for a period ofeight weeks as part of their pro-gram," Brahmachari said.-PTI

At the beginning, fiveTechVills are comingup at two locations inWest Bengal, one eachin Tamil Nadu, Odishaand Andhra Pradesh

www.indiapost.com March 15, 2013

COMMUNITYACROSS AMERICA

Details on page 2516 India Post

Desi NewsFree will or

God is doer;which is

true?

Details on page 21

Details on page 18

It is Madigan-Quinn showdownin Illinois governor race

SURENDRA ULLAL

CHICAGO: The result of firstgubernatorial poll of 1,255 likelyIllinois Democratic primary votersout in January has elated many asupporter of Illinois Attorney Gen-eral Lisa Madigan.

Ms. Madigan is a front runnerfor likely Democratic nominationfor the Illinois governor with 31.9percent voting in her favor and22.9 percent supporting incum-bent Gov. Pat Quinn. A somewhatsurprise entry of former US Com-merce Secretary Bill Daley twomonths ago was feared to hurtMadigan's bid but he polled only11.9 percent.

The overall outlook is still hazyas a considerable 28.4 percent ofvoters were still undecided. Andthat could topple anybody'sapplecart. The survey, from thePaul Simon Public Policy Instituteat Southern Illinois University alsoshows a similar result.

Ms Madigan is silent on thispredict but big supporters of Ms.Madigan were joyous. MujeebOsman, one of her foremost sup-porters, said "Our community islooking for a change and it can beachieved under the strong leader-ship and direction from Ms.Madigan." He commendedMadigan for bringing a high level

before the U.S. Supreme Court (Il-linois v. Caballes) in which theCourt upheld the ability of lawenforcement to detect the pres-ence of illegal drugs during trafficstops. Under her leadership, theAttorney General's office has ar-gued five cases before the U.S.Supreme Court.

Ms. Madigan has demon-strated principled leadership, headded, putting policy before poli-tics and focusing on her work.Under Madigan's leadership, theConsumer Protection Division hasestablished a national reputationfor aggressively safeguardingconsumers from financial fraudand unsafe products. Madiganhas dedicated the energy and re-sources of her office to protectingchildren and women from the dan-gers of sexual predators. Addition-ally, Madigan has been widelypraised for implementing a seriesof proactive law enforcementstrategies to protect seniors innursing homes and to combat thespread of methamphetaminethroughout the state.

From a fiscal standpoint, theAttorney General's office has gen-erated more than $8 billion for thestate since Madigan took office in2003.

Lisa Madigan with Mujeeb Osman

of activism to the office of IllinoisAttorney General.

According to Ms. Madigan's

website, Madigan is the first Illi-nois Attorney General in over 25years to personally argue a case

NYC unfair to Queens businesses: ValloneIndia Post News Service

NEW YORK: Council MemberPeter F. Vallone Jr. has applaudedPublic Advocate Bill de Blasio forhis report proving that Queensbusinesses have been overly in-spected and unfairly fined by theCity - a problem Vallone has beenconstantly calling attention toand working to eliminate.

According to the study, theDepartment of Consumer Affairsmore than doubled its inspec-tions of businesses in Queensbetween 2010 and 2012, with bor-ough shops being fined 22 per-cent more than those in Manhat-

tan. Furthermore, seven of the 10neighborhoodsissued the mostviolations fromthe Health De-partment are inQueens, basedon the report.

Vallone, whoran his family'slaw firm forover a decade,has been along-time pro-ponent of eas-ing government regulations onsmall businesses and replacingobsolete violations and fines -

which he believes hinders thegrowth of thebusinesses -with verbalwarnings. As amember of theCity Council'sHealth Commit-tee, the CouncilMember willalso be a co-sponsor ofSpeaker Chris-tine Quinn's leg-islation reduc-

ing fines for restaurants for non-health violations and streamliningthe appeals process for busi-

nesses."As one of the only small

business people in office, I havelong been saying that Queensbusinesses have been unfairlyhurt by over aggressive enforce-ment for years. But now, thanksto Public Advocate Bill deBlasio, we have the indisputablefacts to back it up," said CouncilMember Vallone. "Small busi-nesses are the backbone ofQueens, and they provide thejobs and pay the taxes that sup-port this City. Businesses shouldbe helped in keeping their doorsopen - not fined until their doorsclose."

Peter F. Vallone Jr

MesmerizingIlayaraja concertin Bay areaVIDYA SETHURAMAN


SAN JOSE: Isaignani Ilayarajais synonymous with divine music.For him, creating music is almostlike feeling God and it takes thelistener on an ethereal trip. His liveconcert was a dream come true forthe vast community of Indian mu-sic lovers, and numerous fans ofMaestro Ilaiyaraja in the USA,particularly in the West Coast.

Bay area was fortunate to ex-perience his magical music with hislive orchestration comprising 90plus world renowned musicians atHP Pavilion, San Jose on March 1.The grand event was organizedby Swagat Entertainments, BayArea Telugu Association (BATA)and Kalalaya. With an estimated8500 music lovers in attendance,Maestro Ilaiyaraja made a celebra-tion of Tamil and Telugu music.

A Pakistani girl'sdream & missioncelebratedAsian Media USA

ROLLING MEADOWS: HumanDevelopment Foundation (HDF)and Kulsoom Foundation cel-ebrated 'Rahmania for Sonia' onSaturday February 23 at MeadowsClub, Rolling Meadows, a north-west suburb of Chicago.

Hosted by Kulsoom Founda-tion and attended by over 400people, the theme of the eveningwas 'A Girl, A Dream, A Mission'.It was about Sonia Shah whowanted to help poor girls of a smallvillage in Pakistan by building aschool but could not complete hermission due to a tragic accident insummer of 2012.

Role of Seniorsin upholdingHinduism

AISHWARYA ARAVIND

Swami Vivekananda oncestated "Hinduism is themother of all religions".

Having existed for over four mil-lennia, this may very well be thecase as Hinduism has etched itsown very rich history, steeped invisual and oral tradition. From thegreat statues in the Caverns ofElephanta that bring to life thetales of Lord Shiva to the ancienttemples on the seven hills ofTirupathi, our forefathers crafteda vast legacy dedicated to pre-serving the Hindu culture andmythos.

Details on page 22

India Post 17March 15, 2013 Community Across Americawww.indiapost.com

Air India recognizes travel agents with annual awardsA SIDDIQUI & RAMESH SOPARAWALA

CHICAGO: At a gala dinner banquet heldon March 1 at Meadows Club, Air IndiaChicago office presented annual sales per-formance awards to its appointed travelagents (consolidators) recognizing their rolein promoting the national Indian airliner inthis part of the world .

The event was attended by a large num-ber of travel agents from across Midwestand other invited guests. Katherine Thorat,

Air India Sales Manager, welcomed theguests and emceed the event. Air IndiaChicago Manager Rishikant Singh thankedtravel agents for their support. He empha-sized that honoring travel agents with salesperformance awards is an acknowledgementof their support.

Rishikant also introduced Riwo Norbhu,Regional Manager Americas, who had flownin from New York for the event. Both

Rishikant and Riwo Norbhu pre-sented awards to winningagents along with KatherineThorat and other staff membersof AI Chicago office.

The Online booking portalOrbit topped among all agentsfollowed by Air Tours. DevonTravel and Sky Bird Travelachieved over 3 million salesperformance. Krisbi Travel,Aero Travel, RK Travel, EviaTravel, Direct Express Tours,Riya Travel, Skylink Travel and

Natraj Travel had alsonotched commendable per-formances.

While the award presen-tation was ceremonial as ever,the entire event was wellplanned in a different way.The guests were given thechoice to occupy the table ina surprise manner. Dinnertables were named after In-dian cities. Soon after theaward ceremony, KatherineThorat announced a visual

quiz and asked all the tables to par-ticipate.

The visual quiz was a beautifulcompilation of world tourist desti-nations. Twenty picture slides wereshown for each beautiful tourist orother wonderful destination of theworld. Each table was given Quizanswer sheet to identify the touristdestinations. The Quiz was most in-teresting and every table partici-pated in it.

Members of Evia Travel and RKTravel from Hyderabad desk wonthe visual quiz with correct answers.The second quiz and game was an-nounced after the dinner. Both

Rishikant and Katherinepresented the secondgame. Gifts were givento winners of both thequiz and game. The en-tire event was a refresh-ing treat for the guestsas many tapped the floorfor a quick dance on mu-sic tunes.

Air India Chicago Manager Rishikant Singh

addressing the gathering Air India Chicago staff Birju Bhagat of Krisbi

Vivek Sevak of

Skybird Travel

Benson Samuel of

Riya Travel

Pravinaben Patel of Air Tour & Mafat Bhai Patel of Air Tour

with Air India sales Chief Katherine Thorat

Deepak Shah of Natraj, Abdul Siddiqui of Evia Travel

K Chawla

of Devon

Travel

Cont’d on page 18

March 15, 2013India Post18 Community Across Americawww.indiapost.com

Most seniors and owners of all travelagents were present for the event.

Mafat Patel of Air Tours, VikrambhaiSevak and Masoodbhai of Skybird Travel,Birju Bhagat of Krisbi Travel, Chawla ofDevon Travel, Asgharali of Aero Travel,Rizwan of RK Travel, Siddiqui Abdul of EviaTravel, Deepak Shah of Natraj Travel, Princeof Imperial Travel, Anis of Maharaja Traveland others were accompanied by all theirstaff members.

Air India recognizes travel agentswith annual awards

Asgarali of Aero Travel


A Pakistani girl's dream & mission celebrated

Sonia Shah with school children in Pakistan

Asian Media USA

ROLLING MEADOWS: Human Devel-opment Foundation (HDF) and KulsoomFoundation celebrated 'Rahmania for Sonia'on Saturday February 23 at Meadows Club,Rolling Meadows, a northwest suburb ofChicago.

Hosted by Kulsoom Foundation and at-tended by over 400 people, the theme of theevening was 'A Girl, A Dream, A Mission'. It

Shah Memorial School in villageKangra in rural North West ofPakistan.

Of Pashtun heritage, Sonialived and studied in four coun-tries, Thailand, England, USand finally graduated a yearearly from Zurich InternationalSchool in Switzerland. Anhonor student, she was amongthe youngest interns atObama's campaign headquar-ters in 2012. In his condolenceletter President Obama says'though Sonia was the one ofthe youngest intern, she wasmost determined'. Her motherIram made a passionate pictureof a girl who loved humanityand wanted to make a differ-ence.

Hamza Hayaauddin gave thewelcome address. Dr MianArshad Jan, the keynotespeaker, recounted how, in-stead of crying and moping, hisyounger sister Iram threw her-self into Sonia's project.

The fund raising and live auction wasconducted by Nabeela Rasheed and DrMujahid Ghazi. All different items put outfor auction were sold.

Kulsoom Foundation and HDF share thecommitment to help the disadvantaged inPakistan. HDF combats extreme poverty by

was about Sonia Shah who wanted to helppoor girls of a small village in Pakistan bybuilding a school but could not completeher mission due to a tragic accident in sum-mer of 2012. The fundraiser included liveand silent auction, a dance performance bySonia's friend Shimoli Shah and choreo-graphed dance performance by Dhrishti Artat A.R. Rahman music, which kept peopleengage and glued to the stage till midnight.All the proceeds will go to building Sonia

"Helping people help themselves." Dona-tions are tax deductible: https://www.facebook.com/KulsoomFoundation

Visiting actor and Kathak exponent AditiBhagwat wowed the audience with her daz-zling choreography on Rahman's signaturetune Manmohana from the period classicJodha Akbar.

Sonia's mother Iram Shah explaining her daughter's dream

Madan Kulkarni, Shebani Kulkarni with artists of The Tribute to Oscar winning

composer AR Rahman


'Gujjubhai' comedy earns an encoreHARISH RAO

widely read India Post newspa-pers. Bhavana Modi ofManapasand pointed out that oneof the inducing factors was to helpSeniors in Chicagoland.

Despite inclement weather, theshow attracted 600 plus drama lov-ers from across Chicago and theauditorium was overflowing withenthusiastic audience.

The play penned by PravinSolanki and directed by SiddharthRanderia had a talented cast in-

cluding Siddharth Randeria, TejasVyas, Kiran Malvanker, ChitrakShah, Jyuthika Shah, Ketan Joshi,Sameer Uurav, Jay Pandya andRohinton Chesan.

The drama was a roller coasterride of laughter with the themebased on a Gujjubhai's journey toget rich quick. His motto is PaisoMaro Parmeshwar (Money is MyGod). He tries every trick to amassmoney and finds himself gettingtrapped by it.

Gujubhai drama cast. Pics Asian Media USA

CHICAGO: A family friendlyGujarati comedy "Gujjubhai NiGolmaal" staged on Friday, Feb-ruary 22 at Jain Center auditoriumin Bartlett, turned out to be a big

hit with the viewers. There was achorus of demands for its re-stag-ing at an appropriate date in thenear future.

Sensing a huge response,

Manpasand and Suga Builders,the organizers, announced host-ing the drama one more time at thesame venue this month in leaguewith Gujarati Divya Bhaskar and

Sponsors of the play


Rajan Zed honored by NevadaMuslim community


NEVADA: In a remarkable in-terfaith gesture, Northern NevadaMuslim Community honoredHindu leader Rajan Zed with a "let-ter of appreciation", for promot-ing interfaith dialogue.

The "letter of appreciation"was presented by Northern Ne-vada Muslim Community Presi-dent Dr Sherif Elfass to Zed, whois President of Universal Societyof Hinduism, at an interfaithclergy reception accorded inZed's honor in Nevada (USA) re-cently.

Signed by Elfass, the letterstates, "This is letter of apprecia-tion is presented on behalf of theMuslims in Northern Nevada toMr. Rajan Zed in recognition forhis exceptional effort in promot-ing interfaith dialogue nationallyand internationally."

"Mr Zed's initiative to pro-mote interfaith dialogue all overthe world will ultimately bringpeace and harmony among thepeople. And, we, the Northern

Nevada Muslim Community, arethankful for his work", it adds.

"Rajan Zed has taken up inter-faith, religion, environment,Roma (Gypsies) and other causesall over the world. He was invited

by President of European Parlia-ment in Brussels (Belgium) for ameeting to promote interfaith dia-logue."

Bestowed with "World Inter-faith Leader Award"; Zed is Se-

nior Fellow and Religious Advi-sor to New York headquarteredFoundation for Religious Diplo-macy, Spiritual Advisor to Na-tional Association of Interchurch& Interfaith Families, etc.

Dr. Sherif Elfass (left) and Rajan Zed (right) after presentation of the letter at Zed's interfaith reception.

Pic Debbie McCarthy

MangaloreanChristians tocelebrate EasterHARISH RAO

CHICAGO: MangaloreanKonkan Christian Association(MKCA), Chicago has slated Eas-ter Celebration on Holy SaturdayMarch 30, at Courtland SquareClub House, Des Plaines, a north-

west suburb of Chicago.The Holy Mass will include

Easter Vigil consisting of blessingof incense, water and fire. Theprogram will start sharp at 6:00 pmfollowed by Easter Bunny arrival,sumptuous dinner and dance.There will be open bar (compli-ments from MKCA), variety enter-tainments including live KonkaniBaila.


Ilayaraja mesmerizes Bay areawith San Jose live concertVIDYA SETHURAMAN


SAN JOSE: Isaignani Ilayarajais synonymous with divine music.For him, creating music is almostlike feeling God and it takes thelistener on an ethereal trip. His live

concert was a dream come true forthe vast community of Indian mu-sic lovers, and numerous fans ofMaestro Ilaiyaraja in the USA,particularly in the West Coast.

Bay area was fortunate to ex-perience his magical music with hislive orchestration comprising 90

plus world renowned musicians atHP Pavilion, San Jose on March 1.The grand event was organizedby Swagat Entertainments, BayArea Telugu Association (BATA)

and Kalalaya. With an estimated8500 music lovers in attendance,Maestro Ilaiyaraja made a celebra-tion of Tamil and Telugu music.

Ilaiyaraja has composed over4500 songs and provided scoresfor more than 950 Indian films invarious languages in a musical

career spanning more than 30years. In 2003, according to a BBCInternational poll, people from 155countries voted his composition"Rakkamma Kaiya Thattu" fromThalapathi, fourth in the world'stop 10 most popular songs of alltime.

Ilaiyaraja is a master craftsmanwho can leave a mesmerizing ef-fect on his audience and candrench them in an incessantshower of ambrosia. He is one of

the very few composers who con-tinues to write his musical notespreferring the style over the tech-nological tools and performs witha live orchestra at stage. His mu-sic is such that it cannot bebrought within a specific genre ortrend. The Friday night musical

journey transformed the audienceto different realms of blissfulspace, far from the mundane world.

The five-hour non-stop musi-cal delight was an audio and vi-sual treat for his fans.

Cont’d on page 22


Benefits of gluten richwheat free grains

CHITRA THAKUR

TLS coach

Nutritious facts about Rye

In last week's article we saw theadvantages of gluten free,wheat free grains .The gluten

rich wheat free grains are the bestsource of carbohydrates, proteinas well as minerals. Gluten is likeglue and can cause stickiness inthe intestines. However due to theprotein value, fiber content as wellas low glycemic impact, they areincluded in nutritious foods. Thegluten rich wheat free grains thatwe consume are barley and rye.

Nutritious facts about Barley:

1.00 cup (200.00 grams) Nutrient % Daily Value Fiber 54.4%,

Selenium 52%,Tryptophan 37.5%,Copper 1.5%, Manganese 31%,Phosphorus 23%

Barley is naturally high in mal-tose, a sugar that is used for mal-tose syrup. When fermented, bar-ley is used as an ingredient in beerand other alcoholic beverages.

Barley fights Diabetes and Arthri-tis. Barley is fiber for bowel regu-larity, lower cholesterol, & intesti-nal protection. It has additionalprotection against Atherosclero-sis and has significant cardio-vascular benefits for postmeno-pausal women. A typical pearl bar-ley packet has the following nutri-tion facts:

This grain was coevolved withwheat and barley in southern

Europe and nearby parts of Asia.Being high in protein gluten andfiber, it has low glycemic impact;importantly because it is difficultto separate the germ and bran fromthe endosperm of grain. Its flourusually retains a large quantity ofnutrients in contrast to refinedwheat flour.

In 1.00 cup (200.00 grams) Nu-trient % Daily Value Rye seeds areManganese 72%, Fiber 33.6%,Tryptophan 18.7%, Phospho-rus18.5%, Magnesium 15.3% andCalories (188)10%Rye's fiber promotes weight loss

Rye is a good source of fiberwhich has exceptionally high wa-ter-binding capacity and quicklygives a feeling a fullness and sati-ety, making rye bread a real helpfor anyone trying to lose weight.One-third of a cup of uncookedrye berries (which yields about 1cup cooked) provides 34% of thedaily value for fiber.

Benefits of RyeRye helps prevent gallstones,

lower Type 2 Diabetes risk, hencea better grain choice for personswith Diabetes. It fights cardiovas-cular disease, promotes gas-trointestinal health, cardiovascu-

lar benefits for postmenopausalwomen and has an anti-cancer ac-tivity

Typical nutrion facts of Rye areas follows:

The rye breads are dense and are popular in western diet. Althoughnutritious, it is very important to identify the allergies or body reac-tions after the consumption of these grains and document and consulta physician if necessary.

One stop shop for allyour medical needs

VIDYA SETHURAMAN


LIVERMORE, CA: The Medi-cine Shoppe Pharmacy inLivermore is a one stop shop forall your medical needs. "We are atraditional pharmacy; a medicalsupply resource; and we are certi-fied as a compounding pharmacy,serving the population who can nolonger take pills and/or those whowant a custom treatment with adose they actually need" said PritiChatwani, Pharmacist and Owner.

"We are dedicated to being amedical resource for our commu-nity. The pharmacy staff has awealth of knowledge. They arehere to provide you with healthinformation, wellness programs

and as a valuable resource to as-sist you in managing your healthcare between doctor's visits."

The Medicine Shoppe Phar-macy in Livermore offers special-ized diabetic care and medicalequipment (wheel chairs, breastpumps, hospital beds and electricscooters) for rent or purchase.

It's as easy as calling to trans-fer a prescription or inquire aboutmedical equipment. The Pharmacyprovides free, no cost medicinedelivery within the Livermore area.Prescriptions can be mailed to yourhome or office.

For more information aboutthese or other services offered byThe Medicine Shoppe pharmacyand medical supply team inLivermore, call at 925.443.8088.

Role of Seniors inupholding Hinduism

AISHWARYA ARAVIND

Swami Vivekananda oncestated "Hinduism is themother of all religions".

Having existed for over four mil-lennia, this may very well be thecase as Hinduism has etched itsown very rich history, steepedin visual and oral tradition. Fromthe great statues in the Cavernsof Elephanta thatbring to life the talesof Lord Shiva to theancient temples onthe seven hills ofTirupathi, our forefa-thers crafted a vastlegacy dedicated topreserving the Hinduculture and mythos.They supplementedtheir stonework withthe power of the spo-ken word to passdown our traditionsover time from par-ents to children, gu-rus (teachers) toshishyas (students),and most importantly, elders toadolescents.

However, as the 21st centuryworld moves towards greatersecularization and religious dis-connect, today's youth areslowly losing this intrinsic con-nection to the past, leaving onlythe older generations to remem-

ber the truths of our great reli-gion. Thus, as custodians of anamazing faith, senior citizens arethe key to ensuring that themeaning and purpose of Hindu-ism continues to play avital rolein the lives of future generations.

Personally, my Hindu beliefshave been carefully molded

since my early childhoodthrough my numerous interac-tions with my extended family inIndia. The family elders, in par-ticular my grandmothers, haveleft an indelible mark on whatHinduism means to me.

Aishwarya Aravind

Cont’d on page 26


Most of the songs resonated well to everyone, as thetunes were popular in both languages. The show openedwith a rich musical interlude by Ilayaraja with his signature"Janani Janani" whetting the appetite of the crowd for adivine treat. Following his best in class performance was a

Ilayaraja mesmerizes Bay area with San Jose live concert

mind-blowing rendition by Singer Karthik.Ilaiyaraja had lined up heavy-hitting legends

S.P.Balasubrahmanyam, Hariharan, Mano, Chitra,Bhavadarini, Yuvan Shankar Raja, Geeta Madhuri, all sing-ing their best hits of the maestro. Listening toS.P.Balasubrahmanyam live with Ilayaraja's orchestra was ablessing and life time opportunity for the Bay area Indiancommunity. Legends Chitra, Mano and Hariharan renderedhit melodies from evergreen 80s. Singers walked throughtheir memory lane and spoke about their association withthe Maestro and lavished heaps of praise on his perfectionand professionalism.

The highlight of the night was amazingly synchronizedorchestra, rich in strings and percussion. The musical treatended with a rewrite to one of his famous tunes fromNayagan and he appreciated all those Telugu and Tamilfans who have made a home for themselves in United States,for sharing this historic night with him, which was certainlyone to remember for all those present. The timeless feel of ittranscends all kinds of literal and metaphorical boundaries.With over 30 years of delivering musical treat to his fans, hestill holds his fort and enjoys a huge and loyal patronage.


March 15, 2013India Post24

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Free will or God is doer; which is true?SWAMI MUKUNDANANDA

A very common questionthat most people ask is, "ifGod really is our true well

wisher why did He create us soulsand bring us into the world, wherethere is so much of suffering andmisery?"

To answer this question SwamiMukundanada tells a story of a fif-teen year old boy who was the sonof a very rich man. One day, theboy was alone in his father's of-fice, when he saw a fifteen-yearold newspaper. It had an articletitled, "Billionaire adopts orphanchild." The boy was stunned tosee his father's name mentionedthere. When his father returned,the son accosted him, "Father isthis article true?"

The father replied, "My son! Itis true."

"Does that mean I am not yourchild?"

"That is right, you are not mychild."

The son was shocked. "Thenwhy did you adopt me?"

The father explained, "Son, I ama billionaire. I had no shortage ofmoney, and everything that moneycould buy. However, I did not haveanyone with whom I could sharemy wealth. I adopted you so thatI could give you everything that Ipossess."

Similarly, God is perfect andcomplete in Himself and the pos-sessor of unlimited opulence. Hecreates us so that He may be ableto share all that He possesses withus. However, He can only do sowhen we truly love Him.

Those souls who have learntto love God are with Him in Hiseternal abode. We conditionedsouls are here in the material realmbecause we have turned our backstowards Him. God hopes andwaits for the day when we too willperfect our love for Him and attain

Him for the rest of eternity.It for us to realize that the Su-

preme Lord has given this humanbirth as an opportunity to loveHim and attain divine bliss forever.But in mundane life we forget thisgoal and are often confused abouthow to perform our actions. Most

often people wonder if God is ourcreator. He is also responsible forthe actions we perform, they mayeven use this as an excuse to per-form wrong actions. Here it is im-portant for spiritual aspirants to

understand how God gives us theability to perform actions but alsohow every individual possessesfree will to use that ability to per-form their actions.

Here are answers to some fre-quently asked questions on thetopic of 'free will vs. God is doer'to dispel any doubts or confusionspiritual aspirants may face.Question: Is God who is seated inour hearts the doer of all actions?What is our responsibility assouls if He is not the doer of ouractions?

Swami Mukundananda: Manypeople diminish the need for self-effort in their minds by saying,"Nothing is in our hands. God isseated within us. He is the doer ofall our actions, and we act as Heinspires us." However, this phi-losophy is not really true, as the

following points will illustrate:1. If God were the doer of all

our actions, we would never havecommitted any mistakes. All of ouractions would have been perfect,since God can never make a blun-

der. The fact that we make innu-merable mistakes implies that weare performing actions with ourown free will.

2. If God were the doer of ouractions, we would not have to bearthe karmic reactions. Why wouldwe suffer for actions that God didthrough us? He would either bearthe karmic reactions on His own,or forgive Himself. But there isthe Law of Karma, "As you do, soyou shall reap." This implies thatwe ourselves are the doers of ouractions.

3. God is impartial towards allsouls and perfectly just. If He wasthe doer of our actions, He wouldeither have made everyone dogood works and become saints;or He would have made everyonedo bad actions and become de-mons. But there is so much ofvariety in the world. One is a saint,like Prahalad, while the other is ademon, like Hiranyakashipu. Thisvariety implies that we have thefreedom to choose our own ac-tions, and we are responsible forthem, not God.

4. If God were the inspirer ofour actions, there would havebeen no need for Him to reveal theVedas or any other scriptures.There would be no need for Himto explain to us the path to perfec-tion. He would simply have to saytwo sentences: "O souls, I am the

doer of everything. So there is noneed for you to understand whatproper and improper action is."

It is true that God is seatedwithin us, and He gives us thepower to act. However, what we

do with that power is decided byour own free will. This is just asthe powerhouse supplies electric-ity to your house. If it did not givethe power, you would not havebeen able to use any electric ap-pliances in your home. However,once you do have that power, whatyou do with it, is your own choice.You could operate the fan, lightthe lamp, or heat/cool the house,as you wish.

Similarly, God gives our eyesthe power to see. If He did notgive us this power, we would not

have been able to see anything.But once we do have this power,what we see is in our own hands.You could go to the temple andsee the Deities, or you could seedirty pictures on the internet. Godis merely giving you the power tosee. What you decide to see is

your own choice, decided by yourfree will.

Hence, we must not blame Godfor our mistakes. If we do some-thing wrong, we should take re-sponsibility for the error and striveto correct it as we are the doer ofour actions.Q: If we souls are the doers of ouractions. Then why have theBhakti Saints written padas (de-votional songs), saying that theyare only instruments in the handsof God, and that He is a real doerof their karmas?

SM: The concepts karm (ac-tion) and karm phal (fruit of thoseactions) need to be understoodseparately for two categories -before surrender to God and aftersurrender to God.

Consider the first category -those souls who have not surren-dered to God. They are under thegrip of the unforgiving ego thatmakes them feel that they are thedoers. Also, they harbor personaldesires independent of the will ofGod. In this state, God does notinspire their actions. He givesthem the power to act, notes theirkarmas, and gives the fruits at theappropriate time. This has beenexplained in detail in the previousanswer.

Now consider the second cat-egory - those souls who are sur-rendered to the Almighty. Theyare free from the pride of doership.Also, they make God's desire astheir own desire. In this state, thesoul becomes the non-doer, andGod becomes the Director for thatsurrendered soul. Hence, the God-realized souls are able to say:

Na mai kiya na kari sakon,sahib karta mor.

Karata karavata aapa hai,Tulasi Tulasi shor.

Saint Tulsidas says: "I neitherwrote the Ramayan, nor do I have

the ability to write it. Shree Ramwas himself the writer, yet peoplesay that Tulsidas has done it."We must bear in mind that thisstatement applies only to the sec-ond category, i.e. the God-realizedsaints.

If God were the doer of our actions, wewould not have to bear the karmic reactions.Why would we suffer for actions that God didthrough us? He would either bear the karmicreactions on His own, or forgive Himself. Butthere is the Law of Karma, "As you do, soyou shall reap." This implies that we our-selves are the doers of our actions.

God gives our eyes the power to see. If Hedid not give us this power, we would nothave been able to see anything. But oncewe do have this power, what we see is in ourown hands. You could go to the temple andsee the Deities, or you could see dirty pic-tures on the internet. God is merely givingyou the power to see.

Cont’d on page 26

Swami Mukundananda


Their mealtime and bedtimetales of Rama's exploits underSage Vishwamitra and of thePandavas in exile helped makethe religion more accessible tome as a child. Even now, aftermany years, I think of thosetales and cannot help butfondly remember her moonlight-bathed smile and the moralsthese stories taught me.

Indeed, my grandparentsthemselves were exemplary rolemodels of Hindu virtues in howthey treated others with respectand always had a helping handfor those in need. Their imple-mentation of the writings in thesacred texts hasplayed a vital role inmy upbringing as aHindu with strongfamily values andmorals.

This concept ofpowerful Hindu rolemodels has been fur-ther demonstratedthrough the actionsof my parents' highschool teachers inIndia who, to this day, maintainthe gurushishya relationshipwith their students.

As both nurturing and culti-vating forces, these individualsare much like the ancient sageVashista through shaping thelives of their wards to not onlyachieve great things in life butalso to give back to the com-munity so that others may suc-ceed as well. This benevolentbehavior extols the spirit of Hin-duism while sustaining the reli-gion for future generations.

Even here in California,Hindu seniors proactively, andwithout any expectations ofreciprocity, spend their time andeffort to help their peers' leadfuller and richer lives. Despite

Role of Seniors inupholding Hinduism

being of an advanced age, theyhave seemingly increased thepace at which they pursue greatendeavors even though itwould have been much easierfor them to have just stayed athome with their families. Thesepeople are indeed great rolemodels.

Such narratives illustratethe significant role played bysenior citizens in upholdingthe true meaning of Hinduismand ensuring that it maintainsa key role in the minds ofyounger generations. Usingtheir exuberance as our guide,my peers and I are eager tofollow their lead to make surethat the flame of Hinduism re-

mains as bright as ever andthat when the time comes, wetoo will pass the torch to fu-ture generations after havinglived our lives with the samesense of service and pride thathave immortalized generationsof Hindus.

Aishwarya Aravind is a ris-ing junior at a Fremont HighSchool. She is the recipient ofYouth Awardfrom Indian-American Women Empowered(FIA Wing) She volunteers forICC Senior programs orga-nized by Indian CommunityCenter

(http://www.indiacc.org/)Milpitas and other nearby se-nior centers([email protected])


Using their exuberance asour guide, my peers and Iare eager to follow theirlead to make sure that theflame of Hinduism remainsas bright as ever

The path for moving from thefirst category to the second cat-egory is to perform actions as ifthey are dependent upon us, andat the same time, to internally prac-tice to think that God is the doer.Sage Vasishtha has expressed thisvery beautifully, in his advice toLord Ram:

Karta bahirkartantr viharraghav (Yog Vasishtha)

"O Ram! Act carefully, as if theresults are dependent upon you.But from within, practice to thinkthat God is the real doer." So atpresent, we will have to keep bothprinciples in mind, as we journeyfrom the materially bound state tothe God-realized state.Q: If God had not given us anyfree will, He could have forcedus all to love Him. Then there

Free will or God is doer; which is true?would be no scope for bondagein the world of Maya. Why didHe create Maya and let us haveother options?

SM: Love is only possiblewhere there is an option to choosefrom. A machine cannot love; atemplate cannot love. They haveno choice. The emotion of love isonly possible for someone whopossesses a free will.

The presence of Maya gives ussouls various options. When wereject Maya in favor of God, weexpress our love for Him. In fact,the more difficult the choice, thehigher is the quality of love pos-sible. Similarly, the more attrac-tive the temptation of Maya, themore is the opportunity for us toexpress our love for God, by re-jecting the temptations andchoosing Him. Ramana Maharishiwas asked, "Why did God create

Maya?" He answered, "To thickenthe plot."

The presence of Maya is thusessential for the soul to learn lovefor God.Q: Does Maya encourage us todo all bad karmas? If yes why?

SM: The material energy Mayadefinitely presents an option forthe soul to act in forgetfulness ofGod. But at the same time, Mayaplays another role as well. Whenwe are lured by its temptations andendeavor to embrace it, Mayapunishes us and gives us distress.In this manner, it teaches us to loveGod and nothing else.

Although Maya does offertemptations for us to indulge in, itis not an enemy of God. TheRamayan says:

So dasi raghubir… "Maya is a servant of God, and

its service is to torment souls who

are forgetful of Him. Hence, Mayawill only release us when we sur-render to its Master, ShreeKrishna."

Swami Mukundananda is aworld renowned spiritual teacherfrom India, and is the senior dis-ciple of Jagadguru ShreeKripaluji Maharaj and founder ofJK Yog. He has received his de-grees in engineering from world

renowned institutes in India, IITand IIM. He has inspired peopleall over the world on the path ofspirituality, holistic health, yoga,meditation, service to society andGod realization. This year,Swamiji will be conductingweeklong programs in 30+ citiesof USA from April onwards. Formore information visit: http://www.jkyog.org/events


TOP TENHINDI FILM SONGS

March 15, 2013India Post www.indiapost.com28

1 Jiya Lage Na: Talaash2 Ishq Shava: Jab Tak Hai Jaan3 Dagabaaz Re: Dabangg 24 Fevicol Se: Dabangg 25 Matru Ki Bijlee Ka Mandola:Matru Ki Bijlee Ka Mandola6 Oye Boy Charlie: JMatru Ki BijleeKa Mandola7 Darmiyan: Inkaar8 Jee Le Zaraa: Talaash9 Khamakha: Matru Ki Bijlee KaMandola10 Heer: Jab Tak Hai Jaan

Don't rub in the royalty, please!That seems to have been SohaAli Khan's underlying statement

when at a public event promoting hernew film Sahib Biwi Aur Gangster Re-turns, she made her displeasure clear ather royalty references being relentlesslyrustled up.

Apparently, director TigmanshuDhulia said at the event that he choseSoha to play a princess in his film asshe looked every inch the royalty inroyal finery.

To this, the sharp-tongued Soha retorted, "Oh yes, I even sleep in royal clothes."Explaining her snappy response Soha says, "It is true. When I was asked if I was comfortable playing my

character because of my royal background I did respond that way. But I was being facetious in merelystating how 'unroyal' my dress sense is. As a matter of fact I am so bohemian in my dress code that onlyrecently have I started wearing shoes instead of chappals. So I was actually making fun of myself!"

Having said this Soha adds she is very proud of her royal antecedents. "I embrace my identity. It is aprivilege to come from the background that I do. And it is this background that put me in TigmanshuDhulia's mind for my part as the princess in Sahib Biwi Aur Gangster Returns. I am grateful for it."

New begum Kareena Kapoor Khan could soon joinBollywood's yummy-mummy club. Rumor has it thatBebo is expecting her first child with husband Nawab of

Pataudi Saif Ali Khan.Speculations about Kareena's pregnancy are doing the rounds

since September last year, but this time, it's coming from noneother than actor Arbaaz Khan and gang.

If gossip mongers are to be believed then these days, HeroineNo 1 Kareena is taking a lot of precautions to avoid shutterbugswhenever she steps out for an event. According to reports, theactress even rejected many offers of item numbers and stageshows recently, giving fuel to the current rumor.

In February last year, Bebo had sparked pregnancy rumorwhen she was clicked at the Mumbai airport covering her bellywith a shawl. She was spotted wearing an oversized olive greenT-shirt and it appeared as if the actress was trying to hidesomething.

The actress even lost Sanjay Leela Bhansali's ambitiousproject Ram Leela over pregnancy clause. After Aishwarya RaiBachchan's pregnancy news left Madhur Bhandarkar with nochoice but to find another leading lady for his film, Heroine,Bhansali also decided not to risk his film and introduced the nopregnancy clause, which Kareena refused to sign.

PREG

NANC

YRU

MO

R?

India Post 29March 15, 2013

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Bollywood

Pakistani bombshell Veena Malik who turned 29 recently,had some naughty plans for her birthday this time. Thestarlet created a new record of most number of kisses at the

Guinness Book of World Records, leaving behind Bollywood'sDabangg Khan.

While Veena received 137 kisses in one minute, Sallu had arecord of getting 108 kisses only. The twist in the story; Veenawas the lucky girl to receive kisses from young boys, while Salmanreceived them from children.

But to many fans disappointment, Veena allowed fans to kissher on hand. She tweeted: "I made it...flattened Dabang khan'sGuinness record of 108...recvd 137 kisses in a mint...And u got itall wrong it waz on my hand!"

The newbie in tinsel town, Veena did all this publicity stunt topromote her upcoming film, The City That Never Sleeps. Thecontestants of a reality show, The City that Never Sleeps-Bollywood Hunt, showered her with kisses to help her create thenew record.

Sonam Kapoor, who is shooting in Delhinow, says that she is in the most satisfy-ing phase of her career. With films such

as Raanjhnaa, Bhaag Milkha Bhaag, a YashRaj Films untitled project and Khoobsuraton her plate, the actor says she couldn'thave asked for more.

"Right now I'm really happy withthe stuff that I'm doing. A year-and-a-half ago, I took stock of the situ-ation, and gathered that I was do-ing a lot of work I wasn't comfort-able doing. I kind of lost my direc-tion but I am back now," she tells us,and explains, "I'm really proud to bea part of my next four films. These aremore me; I'm being an artist and not amovie star in these films. I am comfort-able and happy with this work."

On her Delhi connect, the actor, wholaunched author Anuja Chauhan's newbook, says, "My characters have beenbased in Old Delhi (Delhi 6), South Delhi(Aisha), and in the YRF film, in Gurgaon.Delhi and I have a connection."

recordKISSINGKISSINGKISSINGKISSINGKISSING

BACK ONTRACK

Actor John Abraham seems to be in a greatphase both professionally and personally,and is holding no grudges against former

girlfriend Bipasha Basu even as she still appearsbitter from their breakup two years ago.

"I don't regret my past. I don't speak negativelyabout my past relationships. Also, I am someonewho doesn't pay attention to what is written aboutme. I don't watch TV and even if I do, I watch sportschannels," said the actor in a chat with select jour-nalists.

Riding high on the success of Race 2, Johncouldn't stop gushing about his current girlfriendPriya Runchal. Talking about Priya, who is in Lon-don to pursue MBA, the 40-year-old said, "I am in avery happy space at the moment. The best partabout Priya is that she is extremely supportive. Asshe prefers to be away from the public eye, I try toguard her privacy. Both of us give each other space.Touchwood, things are beautiful and simple. I canbe myself with her. She is a very sorted and maturegirl. Her simplicity is amazing."

While his ex, Bips, reacts to questions aboutJohn with "Who? I don't know that person," heremains blissfully apathetic towards her and veryengrossed in his own new love life.JOHN IN BLISSJOHN IN BLISS

www.indiapost.com30 India Post March 15, 2013

Abhishek Kapoor's Kai Po Che! is abig hit at the domestic box officeand is a success even in the over-

seas markets.A big screen adaptation of Chetan

Bhagat's novel The 3 Mistakes of My Life,the film is produced by UTV Motion Pic-tures. Made at a budget of Rs.12 crore itfeatures Sushant Singh Rajput, Amit Sadhand Raj Kumar Yadav.

title and are curious to know what it means.But once they know its meaning, it stayswith them since it's catchy, unique, andmetaphorically suits the story of the film,

very significant events in Gujarat that tookplace between 2000 and 2002 - first theearthquake, and then the riots. The boys'friendship is affected by these two events.Much more than the bromance is the factthat it's a very Indian film. From bromance,it escalates into something much biggerthat also encompasses religion and poli-tics, but always held together by the threadof friendship.

As for adapting Chetan Bhagat's book,Abhishek said, "I enjoy reading Chetan'sbooks. I think he writes very simply andeffectively. I liked Two States, and I wasoffered to make a film on it. But there wasnothing very substantial in there to sink myteeth into. I read The 3 Mistakes of my Life,and found parts of it very fascinating andthe characters interesting. The fact that herefers to real events in the book made it evenmore attractive. His book gave me the idea,and then I added a lot to it. In many ways, Ithink my film comes closest to Titanic in itsstructure and content. The ship did sink andthe love story was woven around it andmade believable too. My film also blendsfiction with facts to create a story that iscredible, real, and very significant. Thisseemed like an ambitious project to take on,and challenging too.

Chetan Bhagat's viewWriter Chetan Bhagat says, "The fact

that the protagonists are not played by es-

tablished names was a general concern, ini-tially. I was always confident.

"Lots of films have been made on friend-ship, but ours is as real as it can get. Thereare no flashy convertible cars and rich kidsgoing to discotheques. It is very Indian anddeals with the everyday pressures that ev-eryone faces - making a career, achievingyour goals and keeping your parents happy.The film conveys that real friendship is allabout standing up for each other when thegoing gets tough. When we started out,many people were not sure how the filmwould work with newcomers, but we werealways confident," he explains.

Bhagat took two years to write the screen-play of the film, which has music composedby Amit Trivedi. "Though it was my book,to limit myself to two hours of movie timewas a challenge. It is a simple story, but ithas big backdrops. A lot of what India caresabout is in it and that had to be handledwith care," he says.

which is youth-centric."It is much more than the inter-personal

relationship between the three characters.The film is set against the backdrop of two

Bhagat's sonmakes hisdebut

Kai Po Che! is a special film forChetan Bhagat not only as anauthor but also as a father, as

his eight-year-old son Ishaan makes hisacting debut with the film.

"They needed an eight-year-old boyfor a very crucial role in the film. I havetwin sons Ishaan and Sham and Ishaanhas played a small role in the film. Abhishekhas honored an author and a father bythis," Bhagat said in an interview.

"Abhishek made Ishaan perform forat least 35 times as he is quite a perfec-tionist. This is a very special film for meas a father," he added.

However, his kids' education still re-mains top priority for the author.

"Both me and my wife are educated.Our priority will always be their educa-tion then later they can make their ownchoice," Bhagat said.

"'Kai Po Che!' is about theinnocence of youth andtheir coming of age... nota witch hunt... accept itfor what it is... and youmight see the light,"he tweeted

A scene from the film

"Kai Po Che! has received an incrediblepositive word of mouth in all overseas mar-kets. We are very happy to see a movie ofthis genre with new cast perform well in the-atres across the world. Our marketing ef-forts and the word of mouth on the moviehave made this happen," said AmritaPandey, Executive Director - Syndication,International Distribution and Disney Me-dia Distribution, Studios, Disney UTV

Director Abhishek Kapoor describes "KaiPo Che!" as a film for youth.

"'Kai Po Che!' is about the innocence ofyouth and their coming of age... not a witchhunt... accept it for what it is... and you mightsee the light," he tweeted.

Asked to describe what Kai Po Chemeans, Kapoor says "it is a victory call. InGujarat, as in other parts of the country, onthe occasion of Makar Sankranti kites areflown, and when one kite flier cuts anotherflier's kite, the war cry that goes out is KaiPo Che. Not many people understand the

Abhishek Kapoor

March 15, 2013 India Post

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31

Veteran actress Rajasulochanapasses away

CHENNAI: Veteran actress andclassical dancer Rajasulochana,who starred in Tamil, Telugu,Hindi, Kannada and Malayalammovies in the 50s and 60s, passedaway in Chennai on March 5. Shewas 78 and had renal problems.

"Rajasulochana was known forher dancing. Every film of her had asong and dance number by her," saidRandor Guy, film historian. The ac-tor, who was from Vijayawada, de-buted in Kannada film 'Gunasagari'in 1953. She went on to act in morethan 250 films in all Indian languagesand shared screen space with starslike MG Ramachandran, SivajiGanesan, NT Rama Rao, Nageswara

Rao and Rajkumar."She grew up in Triplicane af-

ter her father got transferred here.She learnt Bharatanatyam from

Lalithamma and K NDhandayuthapani Pillai andKuchipudi from Vempati ChinnaSatyam. Her dancing skills led herto movies," said Guy.

One of the first movies that gother noticed in the Tamil industry was'Pennarasi'. "This had several songand dance sequences that were shotin Coimbatore. She became verypopular," said Guy. But what gaveher stardom was her role in 'ThaiPirandhal Vazhi Pirakkum' (1958), di-rected by AK Velan. The songs be-came instant hits and Rajasulochanawent on to act in more movies.

"She ruled the roost for a whilealong with fellow actor Devika. Shewas known for her portrayal of so-phisticated, well-bred women," saidactor and historian Mohan Raman.At a recent interaction at a film club,the veteran said her primary inter-est remained dance, said Raman.

Rajasulochana set up a danceschool, which is sustained by herdisciples. "She was more of ateacher there. Also, she didn't actafter retiring from the movie indus-try more than 20 years ago. Shewas more into social work thesedays," said Krishna, her son-in-law. Friends like Randor Guy saidthat she remained her warm, cheer-ful self despite health problems.

Rajasulochana is survived byher son Shyam Sundar and daugh-ters Sree and Devi.

Love at first sight with Andrew:Cate Blanchett

Babies walk the ramp at Beri showThis fashion show was

child's play - quite literallyso. They walked the ramp,

some sassily, some unsure, somenervous, but all of them as cute asa button, nevertheless. This is theBaby Beri 2013 show that we'retalking about, helmed by designerRitu Beri, for the charity founda-tion Blessed Hearts Foundation.

Swedish luxury carmaker VolvoAuto India had partnered with Rituas the official car partner for thisshow that saw AbhishekBachchan as the chief guest.

There was a short auction of aT-shirt in aid of the foundation, that

finally went to Jay Panda whoraised his hand for `5 lakh. Later,Sudeep Narayan, marketing andPR director, Volvo Auto India, said,"Our association was but natural,as our cars also spell luxury and

comfort. And above all, safety.There are very few things that youneed to do to be safe in a car - anda Volvo car values the safety of allindividuals and especially of kidssitting in the car."

Cate Blanchett has de-scribed the day she mether husband of 15 years

Andrew Upton for the first time,describing how it was "love at firstsight."

The Oscar-winning actress saidthat she fell almost instantly forUpton after meeting him on theAustralian production of Russianplay 'The Seagull' at the BelvoirTheatre in 1997.

"The most romantic moment inmy life was meeting my husband,"News.com.au quoted her as tell-ing the Sun. "Love at first sight?Yes, it was. He proposed twoweeks after we met. A straight, old-fashioned proposal," she said.

The couple - who have three

children Dashiell, 11, Roman, 8,and Ignatius, 4 - were married inDecember that year, just before shestarted filming her breakout rolein 'Elizabeth.'

"We didn't have time for a hon-eymoon because I had to leaveAustralia for England to film Eliza-beth," she said.

"It meant I was on my own (asa newlywed), in places likeNewcastle. So we thought we'dstretch it out over the next 50 yearsin installments.

"We have taken it when we can.I did the film The Talented Mr Ripleyin Italy and only worked about twodays a week during a Roman sum-mer, so that was a fantastic place tocatch up on romance," she added.

"She ruled the roostfor a while along withfellow actor Devika.She was known forher portrayal of so-phisticated, well-bred women," saidactor and historianMohan Raman.

www.indiapost.com32 India Post March 15, 2013

Health ScienceHealth Line

Health care overhaul rolls ondespite budget havoc

WASHINGTON: Airline sched-ules, food inspections, IRS tax-payer assistance and deploy-ments of Navy ships could all behampered by the government's au-tomatic spending cuts.

But President Barack Obama'shealth care law, a program Repub-licans have spent the last threeyears trying to kill, will roll out ontime, the administration says.

Only a small fraction of the $1.6trillion the Affordable Care Actspends to cover the uninsuredover the next decade is subject tothe so-called sequester.

``Consumers in every state willhave access (to coverage) whenopen enrollment begins on Oct. 1,2013,'' Health and Human Servicesspokeswoman Erin Shields Britt toldThe Associated Press, when askedwhether the budget cuts will delaythe implementation of Obama's sig-nature domestic program.

Dubbed ̀ Òbamacare'' by its foes,the Affordable Care Act - ACA forshort - has demonstrated stayingpower. It survived a Supreme Courtchallenge, last year's presidential elec-tion and more than 30 votes in theGOP-led House to eliminate, defundor otherwise scale it back.

Now it seems the program willlurch through a budget crisis thatcould disrupt other governmentfunctions and emerge largely un-scathed.

Health and Human Services, thegovernment department puttingthe law into place, says it doesn'thave final estimates of the effectthe budget cuts will have on its

employees. But the departmentsays it is working to prepare forthe reductions in a way that mini-mizes the impact on its mission.HHS already oversees Medicareand Medicaid, which provide cov-erage to about 100 million people.The new law will add another 30million people to the coverage rolls.

`Ìt's galling that Obamacare isnot being touched,'' said Rep. JoeBarton, R-Texas, a veteran of the1990s budget struggles that forceda partial government shutdown.Delaying the rollout of the healthcare law for two years could havesaved enough money to take theplace of the sequester, he said.

Some independent experts seeirony in the situation. Others saythe administration must be bluff-

ing, and surely the cuts will slowthe health law in some way.

`Ìt's so strange that the onething Republicans were so tickedoff at was the ACA, and now,when it comes time for reductionsin spending, for all practical pur-poses the ACA gets a pass,'' saidBill Hoagland, senior vice presi-

dent at the Bipartisan Policy Cen-ter, and formerly a long-servingGOP budget aide in Congress.

New York University professorPaul Light, an expert on the work-ings of the federal bureaucracy, saidhe suspects the Obama administra-tion is talking big when its officialsassert the health care law will keephumming along untouched.

`Ì would say it's the Obamaadministration's hubris and rhetori-

Health exchangebill runs intotrouble

SANTA FE, N.M.: A measure toestablish a state-operated healthinsurance exchange has stumbledin the House where critics objectthat the proposal would overlyregulate medical coverage plansoffered to consumers.

The bill initially failed in theHouse on a 39-30 vote, but wasquickly revived and set aside - giv-ing majority Democrats a chancefor another vote at a later date afterpossibly rounding up more votes.There's also separate health ex-change legislation in the Senate.

The exchange will be an onlinemarketplace for uninsured indi-viduals and small businesses tobuy health coverage tailored toNew Mexico.

Under federal law, the ex-change must be ready for enroll-ment in October.

Republicans and Gov. SusanaMartinez's administration objectedthat the exchange's proposed gov-erning board had too much regu-latory power. -AP

Mobile phonehealth apps toutedas lifesavers

BARCELONA, Spain: Health-re-lated applications for smartphonesand tablets are a booming business,but in Africa and Asia "mobilehealth" could actually be a lifesaverfor millions, industry leaders and aidorganizations say.

"It's so strange that the one thing Republicanswere so ticked off at was the ACA, andnow, when it comes time for reductions inspending, for all practical purposesthe ACA gets a pass"

Neb. lawmakersconsider Medicaidexpansion

LINCOLN, Neb.: Health careadvocates are urging Nebraskalawmakers to expand Medicaidcoverage as part of the federalhealth care law, while the state'sMedicaid chief says the programis too expensive.

The Legislature's Health andHuman Services Committee heardtestimony on a bill that would ex-tend coverage to thousands ofresidents.

The U.S. Supreme Court ruledin June that the Medicaid expan-sion required under the AffordableCare Act is optional for states. Gov.Dave Heineman stands opposedto the proposal, saying he worriesabout the program's costs.

The federal government hasagreed to pay 100 percent of thecost for newly insured Medicaidrecipients from 2014 to 2016, andthen ratchet down its contributionto 90 percent.

Heineman says lawmakersshould wait until the potentialcosts are better understood. -AP

Details on page 36

cal flourishes,'' Light said. ̀ Òn theone hand the administration isclaiming sequestration is the endof days, and on the other hand theysay it's not going to hurt implemen-tation of their favorite programs.''

Hoagland, the budget expert,said some of the explanation forthe ACA's apparent good fortunehas to do with the way automaticcuts have been structured in thepast, ever since the idea came intouse during the 1980s.

For example, tax credits havetraditionally been exempted fromautomatic cuts. The health carelaw's major subsidies to help un-insured people buy private healthcoverage are structured as taxcredits. So is the ACA's assistancefor small businesses. The tax cred-its for individuals and families willbe available next year, when newinsurance markets open up.

Traditionally, major safety-netprograms have also gotten a passfrom automatic cuts. And the otherbig chunk of ACA money is for ex-panding Medicaid, the health insur-ance program for low-income people.

One account in the health carelaw does appear to be in jeopardy.Starting next year, it would provideadded help for people strugglingwith insurance co-payments. It'sneither a tax credit nor a recognizedsafety net program.

Shai Akabas, a senior policyanalyst at the Bipartisan PolicyCenter, estimates the automatic cutswill claim $7 billion out $108 billionfor that cost-sharing assistance, ifsequestration stays in place.-AP

Cont’d on page 35

Calif. lawmakers moving on health insurance rulesSACRAMENTO, Calif.: Califor-

nia lawmakers took the first steptoward passing new consumerprotections, such as guaranteeingcoverage even with pre-existingconditions, under the federalhealth care overhaul.

Democrats in both houses ofthe Legislature passed bills deal-ing with individual insuranceregulations that would preventinsurers from discriminating andovercharging customers.

The bills, ABx1 2 by Assembly-man Richard Pan, D-Sacramento,

and SBx1 2 by Sen. Ed Hernandez,D-West Covina, also seek to en-sure quality health coverage.

The bills now switch houseswhile lawmakers work out the de-tails with Gov. Jerry Brown to even-tually pass and sign just one ofthem. One of the sticking pointsis how many geographic regionshealth insurers will be able to useto determine premiums.

``This is just one part of thepuzzle,'' Hernandez said.

The bills were introduced dur-ing a special legislative session

convened by Brown to implementhealth care reform in the state.

The governor wants lawmak-ers to tweak state laws as soon aspossible so officials can launch anew insurance marketplace andexpand the state's health insur-ance program for the poor.

The two regulatory bills passedon party-line votes prevent insur-ers from discriminating based onan individual's health status, medi-cal condition, plan experience andgenetic information. Instead, insur-ers will be limited to adjusting rates

on age, geography and family size.The measures essentially add

the Affordable Care Act to Cali-fornia law so state agencies havethe power to enforce and regulatenew individual insurance rules.

`Ìf you have a child who gets di-agnosed with autism or born prema-turely, you can get health insurance.''Pan told lawmakers in the Assembly.

Republicans opposed the bills,saying more restrictions will driveup health insurance costs ratherthan make it more affordable.

Cont’d on page 35

Sleepwalking maycause healthhazards'

WASHINGTON: Adult sleep-walking is potentially serious andmay induce violent behaviors andaffect health-related quality of life,a new study has found.

India Post 33Health Science Postwww.indiapost.com

March 15, 2013

Legislature could stop Scott's Medicaid expansion

MIAMI: Republican Gov. Rick Scott mayhave gotten ahead of himself when he re-cently dropped the bombshell that he nowsupports expanding Medicaid by an esti-mated 900,000 residents under PresidentBarack Obama's health care overhaul.

Minutes after Scott's announcement,House Speaker Will Weatherford pointedout that Medicaid expansion required leg-islative approval. That battle between theRepublican governor and the Republican-dominated Legislature could dominate theannual 60-day legislative session.

``I am personally skeptical that this in-flexible law will improve the quality of healthcare in our state and ensure our long-termfinancial stability,'' Weatherford said.

Health committees in the House and Sen-ate are still painstakingly making their waythrough presentations on the expansion andhaven't made any decisions, but behind thescenes maneuverings have been telling.

Former Gov. Jeb Bush recently visitedthe state Capitol while Scott was out of townand privately encouraged House Republi-cans to create an alternative proposal in-stead of expanding Medicaid, though heapparently did not offer a specific plan.

Rep. Richard Corcoran, who chairs a Housecommittee charged with implementing the Af-fordable Care Act, said ̀ `skeptical would be anice way to describe where I stand.'' But hestressed the committee is still weighting op-tions and won't make a decision until they'vecompleted the review process.

``There's a lot of skepticism about whetherthe federal government has the ability to dowhat they say they're going to do. I have alot of skepticism about a one-size-fits-all pro-gram that is generally not quality health care,''said Corcoran, R-Land O' Lakes.

Republican Sen. Joe Negron, R-Stuart, whochairs the Senate committee that overseeshealth care, said they are close to making arecommendation ̀ `but we're not there yet.'' Hehoped to have a recommendation in earlyMarch that focuses on making ̀ `sure that thestate of Florida lives within its means and wedon't commit ourselves to a course of action

that is unsustainable in the years ahead.''Scott only wants to expand Medicaid for

three years or as long as the federal gov-ernment foots 100 percent of the bill. Healso said it would be unfair for Florida tax-payers to pay for the expansion nationallybut get nothing in return.

But lawmakers worry it will be difficult tostop the program in three years if it is al-ready providing services.

``One of the fears that is often expressedon this committee is that would never hap-pen... that Florida would not be able to sortof scale back our commitment to the expan-sion population,'' said Rep. Jose JavierRodriguez, D-Miami.

Lawmakers and state agencies are alsoplaying a bit of catch-up in implementingthe federal health law after waiting nearlytwo years hoping the Supreme Court wouldoverturn it. Democrats have criticized stateagencies, particularly insurance regulators,for not working on a back-up plan in themeantime. State regulators are facing a floodof filings as health insurance companies startfiling for approvals needed to comply withthe federal law.

``There was a philosophy, an ideologythat this shouldn't be the law even thoughit was the law. We don't have a contingencyplan. We're reacting now at the 11th houressentially and we're flat-footed and com-pletely underprepared to implement that lawas it is,'' said Rep. Dwight Dudley, D-St. Pe-tersburg.

Some political experts predict Republi-can lawmakers will not toe the party line onScott's proposal.

``They are not facing a tight reelectionbattle, by and large, and as a result theydon't have to placate the middle,'' said DanSmith, a University of Florida political sci-ence professor.

The decision will have long-lasting re-percussions in a state with one of the high-est rates of uninsured residents in the coun-try and some of the most stringent eligibil-ity requirements. A family of three with in-come of $11,000 a year makes too much and

single residents are not covered. The bulkof residents getting coverage under theMedicaid expansion will be childless adults.

The federal government's offer to covermost of the cost of expansion is much moregenerous than the roughly 50 percent match-

ing rate that federal health officials currentlypay for Medicaid. The state spends about$21 billion a year to cover roughly 3 millionpatients _ about half are children.

Lawmakers have long complained Med-icaid is consuming the state budget andpassed sweeping legislation in 2011 to priva-tize the program statewide. The new Med-

Federal officials recentlysaid they plan to approvethe privatization request ifthe state beefs upaccountability measuresand uses real-time datathat evaluates whether theprogram is actuallyimproving patient carealong the way as promised

icaid population under the federal healthoverhaul will get coverage under theprivatization proposal that federal and statehealth officials are still hammering out. Theprogram would allow for-profit providers todetermine the health care for Medicaid re-cipients with the goal of saving money andimproving services

Federal officials recently said they planto approve the privatization request if thestate beefs up accountability measures anduses real-time data that evaluates whetherthe program is actually improving patientcare along the way as promised, not just atyearly benchmarks. The state must also holdregular meeting with health advocates, pa-tients and insurers and hire an ombudsmento oversee the portion of the program thatinvolves tens of thousands of elderly, long-term care patients.

For now, Florida will allow the federal gov-ernment to run the state health exchange, anonline marketplace where businesses andindividuals can shop for health plans andfind out if they qualify for subsidies.

But lawmakers have had lengthy discus-sions about partnering with the feds or run-ning the program themselves in the future.In an odd twist of party ideology, many con-servatives, who typically bristle at federalgovernment intervention, are urging statesto allow the feds to run their exchanges -AP

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March 15, 2013

House approves teen mentalhealth custody bill

Budget could have deliveredmore in healthcare

NEW DELHI: Healthcare andpharmaceutical industries havewelcomed steps announced in theBudget to increase allotment onhealth and medical education.

However, private players ex-pressed concern that FinanceMinister P Chidambaram couldhave provided support in the formof tax incentives as well.

Commenting on the Budget,Apollo Hospitals Group ChairmanPrathap C Reddy told PTI: "We arehappy about increase in allotmentof funds for healthcare and medicaleducation, training and research."

In the Budget 2013-14, Rs37,330 crore has been allocated tothe Ministry of Health and FamilyWelfare. Of this, the new NationalHealth Mission that combines therural mission and the proposedurban mission will get Rs 21,239crore, an increase of 24.3 per centover the revised estimate.

Moreover, another Rs 4,727crore has been provided towardsmedical education, training andresearch.

Organization of PharmaceuticalProducers of India (OPPI) Presi-dent and CMD Novartis IndiaRanjit Shahani said the increasedallocation for the health missionis a welcome step.

He, however, added: "We were

hoping the Budget would breathesome life into the economy. Theexpectations of a big bang an-nouncement to restart theeconomy were belied expectationswere high..."

Welcoming the overall stepstaken in the Budget, Jubilant LifeSciences Co-chairman & MD HariS Bhartia said: "A number of ini-tiatives specially on infrastructureincluding investment allowance,increased focus on social sector,

education, skills , financial sector,agriculture, rural economy wouldfuel growth."

Yet, the industry players feltthere could have been more sec-tor specific incentives.

"As private healthcare provid-ers, we were expecting support forbuilding capacity in the sector asthere is a huge shortage of bedsand education with increasing chal-lenges from the non communicablediseases (NCDs). There is also theneed for tax incentives for thehealthcare industry," Reddy said.

Expressing similar sentiments,Fortis Healthcare Executive Vice-Chairman Shivinder Mohan Singhsaid: "I think keeping in mind thisfiscal deficit there is nothing muchthat you could have expected, andreally healthcare is getting shortshift for a while and I think it'sgoing to continue for a while."

Similarly, SRL DiagnosticsManaging Director Sanjeev KChaudhry felt that private sectorwhich serves 75 per cent of thehealthcare diagnostics responsi-bility for the country has not beengiven its due in the Budget.

"The long standing industrydemands for providing fiscal relieffor consumables and tax incentivesfor accreditation have yet beengiven a miss," Chaudhry said. -PTI

BOISE, Idaho: Physicians andnurse practitioners soon may havethe authority to order juvenileswho are suicidal, severely mentallyill or pose a threat to others intotemporary custody at a hospital orsome other health care facility.

A bill approved by the HouseHealth and Welfare Committeesets out to fix a void in Idaho lawand streamline a process thatnow requires law enforcement in-volvement.

Idaho Medical Association lob-byist Ken McClure said the bill ismodeled after existing law that givesdoctors permission to hold severelymentally ill or dangerous adults forup to 24 hours. But state statutecurrently offers nothing specific fordetaining with dangerous juveniles,forcing doctors to default to rulesrequiring consent by law enforce-ment before juveniles can be placedinto short-term custody.

`Ìt seems curious that a doctorhas to call a policeman, get agree-ment and then detain a juvenile,''McClure told the committee. `Ìtseems an unnecessary step.''

The Idaho Medical Associationdoes not track how many juvenilesare assigned to temporary custodyeach year, but he said it occurs morefrequently in Idaho's bigger citiesand typically involves juvenilesdeemed suicidal or diagnosed withsevere mental illness.

Three Republicans on the com-mittee voted against the bill, citing

concerns about the lack of paren-tal consent at the time doctorswould make a custody decision.

Rep. Brandon Hixon, R-Nampa,said for families in rural Idaho ar-eas typically lacking in appropri-ate mental health or hospital hold-ing facilities the measure couldcreate economic distress if a childis transported hundreds of milesaway to the nearest safe spot.

``We have cost and parentalconcern issues here,'' said Hixon,who voted against the bill.

But McClure and thecommittee's two physicians triedto allay those worries, notingcustody decisions must often bemade quickly. The bill also re-quires health care professionalsto notify parents or guardianstheir child has been detained ̀ àssoon as possible'' and does noth-ing to alter the existing frame-work of mental health rules andparental rights that kick in afterjuveniles are detained. -AP

"As private healthcareproviders, we wereexpecting support forbuilding capacity inthe sector as there is ahuge shortage of bedsand education withincreasing challenges

Health sector gets a meagerrise in allocation

NEW DELHI: Amid strains onthe country's economy, India'sHealth sector was allocated Rs37,330 crore in budget estimatesfor 2013-14, a meager hike of 8.24per cent from budget estimates of2012-13.

The funds crunch had forcedthe Finance Ministry to reducethe budget estimates for the healthsector for the current financial yearby over 15 per cent during the year- down from the budget estimatesof Rs 34,488 crore to revised esti-mates of Rs 29,272.56 crore.

Presenting the budget for 2013-14 in Parliament, Finance MinisterP Chidambaram said "Health forAll" is a priority of the government.

In his budget speech,Chidambaram said, "I propose toallocate Rs 37,330 crore to theMinistry of Health and FamilyWelfare. Of this, the new NationalHealth Mission that combines therural mission and the proposedurban mission will get Rs 21,239crore, an increase of 24.3 percent

over the Revised Estimates."Of the total allocation for the

health sector for 2013-14, the De-partment of Health and FamilyWelfare got the majority share ofRs 33,278 crore, the Department ofAIDS Control Rs 1,785 crore, theDepartment of AYUSH a total ofRs 1,259 crore and the departmentof Health Research Rs 1,008 crore.

Next year's budget has a madea provision for the proposed ur-ban health mission and earmarkeda major amount for the medicaleducation and research sector.

Six medical colleges in AIIMS-like institutes that started in Sep-tember 2012 will have hospitalsattached to them in 2013-14 forwhich a provision of Rs 1,650crore has been made.

However, there has been noallocation for the Reproductiveand Child Health Project, PulsePolio Immunization and routine im-munization, National TB Controlprogram and National DiseaseControl Program. -PTI

"It seems curious thata doctor has to call apoliceman, getagreement and thendetain a juvenile,''McClure told thecommittee.

Pessimists may live longer and healthier livesWASHINGTON: Pessimists

have something to cheer about!Older people blighted by pes-

simism and fear for the future aremore likely to live longer andhealthier lives than those who seebrighter days ahead, according toscientists.

"Our findings revealed that be-ing overly optimistic in predict-ing a better future was associ-ated with a greater risk of disabil-ity and death within the follow-ing decade," said lead study au-thor Frieder R Lang of the Uni-versity of Erlangen-Nuremberg inGermany.

"Pessimism about the futuremay encourage people to livemore carefully, taking health andsafety precautions," said Lang inthe study published by the Ameri-can Psychological Association.

Lang and colleagues examineddata collected from 1993 to 2003for the national German Socio-Economic Panel, an annual surveyof private households consistingof approximately 40,000 people 18to 96 years old.

The researchers divided thedata according to age groups: 18to 39 years old, 40 to 64 years oldand 65 years old and above.

Through mostly in-person inter-views, respondents were askedto rate how satisfied they werewith their lives and how satisfiedthey thought they would be infive years.

Five years after the first inter-view, 43 per cent of the oldestgroup had underestimated theirfuture life satisfaction, 25 per centhad predicted accurately and 32per cent had overestimated, ac-cording to the study.

Based on the average level ofchange in life satisfaction overtime for this group, each increase

in overestimating future life sat-isfaction was related to a 9.5 percent increase in reporting dis-abilities and a 10 per cent in-creased risk of death, the analy-sis revealed.

Because a darker outlook onthe future is often more realistic,older adults' predictions of theirfuture satisfaction may be moreaccurate, according to the study.

In contrast, the youngestgroup had the sunniest outlookwhile the middle-aged adultsmade the most accurate predic-tions, but became more pessimis-tic over time.

"Unexpectedly, we also foundthat stable and good health andincome were associated with ex-pecting a greater decline com-pared with those in poor health orwith low incomes.

"Moreover, we found thathigher income was related to agreater risk of disability," Langsaid in the study published in thejournal Psychology and Aging.

"These findings shed new lighton how our perspectives can ei-ther help or hinder us in takingactions that can help improve ourchances of a long healthy life,"he said. -PTI

Five years after thefirst interview, 43 percent of the oldestgroup had underesti-mated their future lifesatisfaction, 25 percent had predictedaccurately and 32per cent had overes-timated, accordingto the study

India PostHealth Science Post 35

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March 15, 2013

They also say the state should recon-sider its decision to prevent health insur-ance companies from charging smokers upto 50 percent more on their policies.

Assemblyman Don Wagner, R-Irvine,worried that the insurance industry hasnever had to account for the cost of cover-ing people with pre-existing conditions.

``Put them in there and there's an inevi-table increase in price,'' Wagner said.

Assemblyman Jimmy Gomez, D-Los An-geles, said the insured are currently subsi-dizing the uninsured in the state.

As a child, he said, he developed pneu-monia and eventually had to spend a weekin the hospital because his family was un-able to afford health coverage and preven-tive care.

``This will actually prevent those situa-tions because it will allow people to takecare of their loved ones as soon as theyget sick and help drop the cost for all ofus,'' Gomez said of the new bills.

Brown, a Democrat, has committed toexpanding Medicaid, known as Medi-Calin California, for people who make up to138 percent of the federal poverty level, orabout $15,400 a year for an individual. Theexpansion is estimated to bring 1.2 millionnew enrollees by 2017.

The program already serves about 8 mil-lion adults and children, nearly one of ev-ery five California residents.

Calif. lawmakers moving onhealth insurance rules

Sen. Bill Emmerson, R-Redlands, andSen. Ted Gaines, R-Roseville, said they'reconcerned that expansion costs could soarout of control, particularly once the federalgovernment reduces support to states forMedicaid expansion.

The federal government will pay the fullcost of expanding the low-income health pro-

gram for the first three years then graduallyreduce payments to 90 percent starting in2020, putting the rest of the cost on the state.

Emmerson had urged the state Senate tohold off the vote until the state receivesmore direction from the federal governmenton insurance regulations.

``Let's not rush into this and pass some-thing today that we're going to be sorrythat we passed,'' he said. -AP

As a child, he said, hedeveloped pneumoniaand eventually had tospend a week in thehospital because hisfamily was unable to affordhealth coverage andpreventive care


Sleepwalking may cause health hazards'WASHINGTON: Adult sleepwalking is

potentially serious and may induce violentbehaviors and affect health-related qualityof life, a new study has found.

"We found a higher frequency of day-time sleepiness, fatigue, insomnia, depres-sive and anxiety symptoms and alteredquality of life in patients with sleepwalkingcompared to the control group," said YvesDauvilliers from Gui-de-Chauliac Hospitalin Montpellier, France, the study's princi-pal investigator and lead author.

"What would usually be considered abenign condition, adult sleepwalking is apotentially serious condition and the con-sequences of sleepwalking episodesshould not be ignored," Dauvilliers said ina statement.

Results show that 22.8 per cent of sleep-walkers presented with nightly episodesand 43.5 per cent presented with weeklyepisodes.

Additionally, a positive history of vio-lent sleep related behaviors was found in58 per cent, including 17 per cent who ex-perienced at least one episode involvinginjuries to the sleepwalker or bed partnerthat required medical care.

Reported injuries included bruises, nosebleeds and fractures, and one participanthad sustained multiple fractures and seri-ous head trauma after jumping out of athird-floor window.

Sleepwalking is a common parasomnia

affecting up to four per cent of adults. Itinvolves complex behaviors that occur dur-ing arousals from non-rapid eye movement(NREM) sleep.

During an episode of sleepwalking thebrain is partially awake, resulting in com-plex behaviors, and partially in NREM sleepwith no conscious awareness of actions.

According to the researchers, this isthe largest prospective cohort study onadult sleepwalkers seen in a clinic, usingface-to-face clinical interviews, standard-ized questionnaires, and objective assess-ment by polysomnography to investigatethe clinical characteristics, consequencesand co-morbidities of sleepwalking.

The study, appearing in the journalSLEEP, involved a prospective case-con-trol study of 100 adult patients in whom

primary sleepwalking was diagnosed fromJune 2007 to January 2011.

Exclusion criteria included a positiveclinical history of REM sleep behaviordisorder (RBD), a similar parasomnia thatinvolves violent dream-related behaviorsemerging during REM sleep.

The age of the sleepwalkers rangedfrom 18 to 58 years with a median age of

30. Results were compared with 100healthy control subjects.

Triggering factors that increased boththe frequency and severity of episodeswere reported in 59 per cent, relatedmainly to stressful events, strong posi-tive emotions, sleep deprivation, and lessfrequently to drug or alcohol intake orintense evening physical activity. -PTI

A positive history of violentsleep related behaviorswas found in 58 per cent,including 17 per cent whoexperienced at least oneepisode involving injuriesto the sleepwalkeror bed partner

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March 15, 2013

Small cancer risk after Fukushima accident

For people beyond the most directly affected areas ofFukushima, Wakeford said the risk dropped dramatically.``The risks to everyone else were just infinitesimal.''Some experts said it was surprising that any increase incancer was even predicted and believe that the low-dose radiation people in Fukushima received hasn'tbeen proven to raise the chances of cancer

LONDON: People exposed to the high-est doses of radiation during the Fukushimanuclear plant disaster in 2011 may have aslightly higher risk of cancer that is so smallit probably won't be detectable, accordingto a new report from the World Health Or-ganization.

A group of experts convened by theagency assessed the risk of various can-cers based on estimates of how much radia-tion people at the epicenter of the nucleardisaster received, namely those directlyunder the plumes of radiation in the mostaffected communities in Fukushima, a ruralagricultural area about 150 miles (240 kilo-meters) north of Tokyo.

Some 110,000 people living around theFukushima Dai-ichi nuclear plant wereevacuated after the massive March 11, 2011earthquake and tsunami knocked out theplant's power and cooling systems, caus-ing meltdowns in three reactors and spew-ing radiation into the surrounding air, soiland water.

Experts calculated that people in the mostaffected regions had an additional 4 to 7percent overall risk of developing cancers

including leukemia and breast cancer. InJapan, men have about a 41 percent lifetimerisk of developing cancer of an organ whilea woman's lifetime risk is about 29 percent.For those most hit by the radiation afterFukushima, their chances of cancer wouldrise by about 1 percent.

``These are pretty small proportional in-creases,'' said Richard Wakeford of the Uni-versity of Manchester, one of the authorsof the report.

``The additional risk is quite small andwill probably be hidden by the noise of other(cancer) risks like people's lifestyle choicesand statistical fluctuations,'' he said. `Ìt'smore important not to start smoking than

having been in Fukushima.''Experts had been particularly worried

about a spike in thyroid cancer, since io-dine released in nuclear accidents is ab-sorbed by the thyroid, especially in chil-dren. After the Chernobyl disaster, about6,000 children exposed to radiation later

developed thyroid cancer, because manydrank contaminated milk after the accident.

In Japan, dairy radiation levels wereclosely monitored and children are not bigmilk drinkers anyway.

WHO estimated that women exposedas infants to the most radiation after theFukushima accident would have a 70 per-cent higher chance of getting thyroid can-

cer in their lifetimes. But thyroid cancer isextremely rare and the normal lifetime riskof developing it is about 0.75 percent. Thatwould rise to 0.5 percent for those womenwho got the highest radiation doses asbabies.

Wakeford said the increase in such can-cers may be so small they will probably notbe observable.

For people beyond the most directly af-fected areas of Fukushima, Wakeford saidthe risk dropped dramatically. ̀ `The risks toeveryone else were just infinitesimal.''

Some experts said it was surprising thatany increase in cancer was even predictedand believe that the low-dose radiationpeople in Fukushima received hasn't beenproven to raise the chances of cancer.

`Òn the basis of the radiation dosespeople have received, there is no reason tothink there would be an increase in cancerin the next 50 years,'' said Wade Allison, anemeritus professor of physics at OxfordUniversity, who was not connected to theWHO report. ``The very small increase incancers means that it's even less than therisk of crossing the road,'' he said. -AP

Mobile phone health appstouted as lifesavers

Texas lawmakers hear mentalhealth concerns

BARCELONA, Spain: Health-relatedapplications for smartphones and tabletsare a booming business, but in Africa andAsia "mobile health" could actually be alifesaver for millions, industry leaders andaid organizations say.

Mobile phones could save up to a mil-lion lives over the next five years in sub-Saharan Africa, according to a report bymobile industry association GSMA and glo-

bal consultants PwC released at the Febru-ary 25-28 Mobile World Congress inBarcelona.

Africa's population of one billion isamong the world's least "connected" yetmore than a third already own a mobilephone, often in the most isolated areas,added a study by Wireless Intelligence.

The same is true in other parts of theworld.

"In India, a lot of people have no accessto Internet, they sometimes can't read, butthey have a mobile phone," said Sara Cham-berlain, head of information and communi-cations technology for India for BBC Me-dia Action.

"It's often the only device they can ac-

cess," said Chamberlain, who works onmobile health campaigns.

An SMS text information campaign cansignificantly improve the impact and effi-ciency of organizations' disease preventionprograms, she said.

"In maternal, newborn and child health,we are witnessing the game-changing ef-fects that mobile technology has to offerthrough services such as pregnancy and

birth registries, immunization andnutrition tracking," said PatriciaMechael, executive director ofHealth Alliance.

These services could proveuseful in sub-Saharan Africa forinstance, where more than 1.2million newborns die each yearand one in nine children do notreach the age of five, accordingto the report by GSMA and PwC.

But the financing of mobilehealth in the developing world isstill uncertain.

"The question of financial sustainabilityand ultimately 'who pays?' poses persis-tent challenges," said a report by mHealthAlliance and Vital Wave Consulting, alsopublished at the World Mobile Congressin Spain.

In richer countries, meanwhile, moneyis pouring into "mobile health".

One of the main aims is to let people withchronic illnesses better manage their con-ditions day-to-day and reduce time spentin hospital.

According to PwC, by 2017 mobile healthservices could save USD 400 billion a yearout of a total annual health expenditure ofUSD 6 trillion in the leading industrializednations of the OECD. -PTI

AUSTIN, Texas: When treatment centercoordinator Amy Pierce thinks back to herdescent into mental illness, she recalls theattempts she made to take her own life. Butshe also remembers the counseling servicesthat saved her.

Pierce spoke at a rally at the Texas Capi-tol, where she and others pushed for moremental health treatment.

``Those services cost money up front,but now I was paying taxes, I was payingback,'' said Pierce, who works at a treatmentcenter near Austin. ̀ Ì was learning how tolive.''

After years of declining financial sup-port for mental health treatment, advocatesare hoping recent attention on the issuewill lead to improvements in the funding inTexas. Mental health has been gaining moreattention in the wake of a rampage that left20 children and six adults dead at aNewtown, Conn., elementary school andother shootings.

Pierce and others argue that more treat-ment will actually save Texas in the longrun by reducing crime, homelessness andunemployment. The Senate Finance Com-mittee accepted a recommendation for thestate to add another $195 million to the $2billion it currently spends for mental healthservices.

Texas spends $39 per capita on mentalhealth services every year, compared to anational average of $121, according to theKaiser Family Foundation. Only Idahospends less.

Sen. John Whitmire, a long-servingDemocrat from Houston, said schoolscould do more than take punitive measureswhen it comes to disciplining students withmental health issues.

Rep. Debbie Riddle, a Republican fromthe suburbs northwest of Houston, saidprograms need to be in place to help breakthe cycle of repeated incarceration for indi-viduals with mental health issues.

``The place for someone with a mentalhealth issue is not jail,'' she said.

About 200 people attended the rally.Some carried signs with slogans like `Ìt'sJust FundaMental Health'' on them.

`Ìt's the fiscally responsible, cost-effec-tive thing to do,'' Sharon DeBlanc, leaderof the Texas chapter of the advocacy groupNational Alliance on Mental Illness, saidof increasing treatment. ``Mental health isan issue whose time has come due to un-fortunate events that have placed it at theforefront of our nation's dialogue. Let'sdon't let the opportunity pass.'' -AP

After years of decliningfinancial support for mentalhealth treatment, advo-cates are hoping recentattention on the issue willlead to improvements inthe funding in Texas. Men-tal health has been gainingmore attention in the wakeof a rampage that left 20children and six adultsdead at a Newtown, Conn.,elementary school andother shootings

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A former princely state, Mandi in the state ofHimachal Pradesh is located on the banks of theBeas River. This historic city has retained much

of its past glory and elegance. Steeped in the grandeur ofits past, Mandi has made a flourishing changeover intoan effervescent and bustling city.

Famed for its stone temples, this city is popularly calledthe 'Varanasi of Hills'. The majestic palaces and finelycarved temples speak of the princely elegance of this pic-torial town. Elegant mansions of Victorian era add to thecharm of this beautiful picnic spot. Mandi is believed tobe the place where the great sage 'Mandav' had under-taken his penance and legends say that his reparationwas so severe that the rocks were turned black due to it.

A swiftly emerging tourist destination, Mandi is an ideallocation for shopping. The Tibetan handicrafts andhandlooms put for sale are really eye catching. Holiday-ing in Mandi provides an exclusive picture of a thrivingcity with numerous striking and blessed places to roam in,hot streams with curative powers and startling trekkinggrounds.

Apart from the glorious monuments and amazing natu-ral spectacles, Mandi is also renowned for its fairs andfestivals. Since most of the temples in this hilly terrain arein the name of Lord Shiva, Mahashivaratri is celebrated

here with much pomp and enthusiasm. The most attractivefair here is the Nalwar Mela. The herd of bullocks in color-ful makeup steals the show.

The gods have bestowed Mandi with awesome beauty.With the lustrous tea plantations, rambling pine and deo-dar forests, the rich variety of fauna swathed in the impos-ing peaks, Mandi is a delightful hill station to be explored.

A swiftly emerging tourist destination,Mandi is an ideal location for shop-ping. The Tibetan handicrafts andhandlooms put for sale are really eyecatching. Holidaying in Mandiprovides an exclusive picture of athriving city with numerous strikingand blessed places to roam in,hot streams with curative powersand startling trekking grounds Cont’d on page 42

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India Post March 15, 201340 Travel & Hospitality Postwww.indiapost.com

'Image change needed forIndian tourism sector'

NEW DELHI: India's tourismsector needs an urgent imagemakeover and higher investmentin infrastructure, includingthrough PPP mode to capitalize onopportunities provided by overallgrowth in world tourist arrivals,the Economic Survey has said.

Global tourist arrivals are ex-pected to increase by 43 millionevery year on an average from 2010to 2030.

The Survey for 2012-13 tabledin Parliament said there is also aneed to address issues like highluxury taxes on hotels by statesand ensure greater cleanlinessand safety for tourists, which canhelp in giving a big boost to thissector.

"With world tourist arrivals ex-pected to increase by 43 millionevery year on an average from 2010to 2030 and FTAs in emergingcountries expected to grow fasterthan in advanced economies, agoldmine of opportunity in tour-ism is waiting for India, which atpresent has a paltry share of 0.64per cent in world tourist arrivals,"the survey said.

It, however, said "an imagechange for Indian tourism isneeded with higher investment in

tourism infrastructure includingthrough PPP mode."

Calling for more private par-ticipation in the sector, it said:"Even user charges could be lev-ied if monuments or tourist sitesare developed by the privatesector or through PPP (publicprivate partnership)."

On the taxation issues, the sur-vey said refunding VAT as donein countries like Thailand andSingapore can also help the tour-ism sector.

Domestic tourism is also an im-portant contributor to the growthof this sector with a 14.34 per cent

CAGR of domestic tourist visitsfrom 1991 to 2011. During 2011,there were 851 million domestictourists, the Survey noted.

The hotels and restaurants sec-tor with a 1.5 per cent share inIndia's GDP in 2011-12 is an impor-tant sub-component of the tour-ism sector.

As per 12th Five Year Plan ap-proach paper, India's travel andtourism sector is estimated to cre-ate 78 jobs per million rupees ofinvestment compared to 45 jobs permillion rupees in the manufactur-ing sector, the Survey said.

"As per Tourism Satellite Ac-count (TSA) data 2009-10, thecontribution of tourism to India'sGDP was 6.8 per cent (3.7 per centdirect and 3.1 per cent indirect) andits contribution to total employ-ment generation was 10.2 per cent(direct 4.4 per cent and indirect 5.8per cent)," it added.

To promote tourism, the gov-ernment has taken many policy ini-tiatives including a five-year taxholiday for 2, 3, and 4 star hotelslocated around all UNESCO, WorldHeritage sites (except Delhi andMumbai) for hotels which start op-erating with effect from April 1, 2008to March 31, 2013. -PTI

India's travel andtourism sector is esti-mated to create 78jobs per million rupeesof investment com-pared to 45 jobs permillion rupees in themanufacturing sector,the Survey said

Tourism gets Rs 88 cr morethan last budget

NEW DELHI: Tourism sectorgot a fillip in the Union Budgetwith the allocation to the IndianTourism Ministry hiked by Rs87.66 crore.

The allocation for the Ministrythis year is Rs 1297.66 crore whileit was Rs 1210 crore in the UnionBudget 2012-13 and Rs 1110.96crore in 2011-12.

The budget allocation for planprojects/schemes for the benefit ofNorth East region and Sikkim hasbeen hiked from Rs 121 crore to Rs129 crore.

The allocation under tourist in-frastructure is for construction ofbudget hotels, wayside amenities,tourist reception centers, refur-bishment of monuments, specialtourism projects, adventure andsports facilities, sound and lightshows, illuminations of monu-

ments, providing for improvementin solid waste management andsewerage management, procure-ment of equipments directly relatedto tourism and rural tourismprojects etc.

This provision also relates tolarge revenue generating projects,generating revenue through levyof fees or user charges like tourist

trains, cruise vessels, cruise ter-minals, convention centre, golfcourses etc. and creation of landbank for hotels to provide hotelaccommodation by purchasingland and build hotels through pub-lic private partnerships.

The provision also includes Ex-ternally Aided Projects includingUNDP Endogenous TouristProjects and assistance to centralagencies for tourism infrastructuraldevelopment. -PTI

Hotel owners want service tax rolled backNEW DELHI: Hotels and restau-

rant owners have asked FinanceMinister P Chidambaram to rollbackthe service tax proposed on all air-conditioned restaurants.

"The Finance Minister shouldreconsider it. This will have a verybad impact on the hospitality indus-try," Federation of Hotel & Restau-rant Associations of India (FHRAI)Secretary Vijai Pande said.

He said the move will mean anadditional burden on customers.

Expressing similar sentiments,McDonald's India (North & East)JV Partner & Managing DirectorVikram Bakshi said: "By introduc-ing service tax on AC restaurants,the discretionary spends of con-sumers which are already tight areexpected to come under furtherpressure."

Expressing concern over theproposal, Indian Association ofTour Operators President SubhashGoyal said: "It is unfortunate thatthe government is systematicallykilling the goose that lays the goldenegg. How long you can tax the samesector. This taxation part has madeIndia very cost prohibitive."

He also said the increase in im-port duty on high end motor ve-hicles from 75 per cent to 100 percent is also going to negativelyimpact the tourism industry as thesector uses a substantial amountof luxury vehicles.

While announcing the levy onall air-conditioned restaurants inthe Budget for 2013-14,Chidambaram said:" At present,service tax does not apply to airconditioned restaurants that donot serve liquor. The distinctionis artificial..."

As per Tourism Satellite Ac-count (TSA) data 2009-10, thecontribution of tourism to India'sGDP was 6.8 per cent (3.7 per centdirect and 3.1 per cent indirect)and its contribution to total em-ployment generation was 10.2 percent (4.4 per cent direct and indi-rect 5.8 per cent indirect), Eco-nomic Survey for 2012-13 tabledin Parliament had said. -PTI

Chiranjeevi seeks VoA facilityfor 16 more countries

NEW DELHI: Aiming at increas-ing the footfalls of foreign tourists,Ministry of Tourism has sought Visa-on- Arrival (VoA) facilities for 16 morecountries, including Germany,France, South Africa and Russia.

Tourism Minister K Chiranjeevimet Home Minister SushilkumarShinde and submitted a proposalseeking extension of VoA facilitiesfor 16 important countries.

"The extension VoA facilities fortourists to the countries is impor-tant as we feel that these are po-tential source markets to India,"said a senior ministry official.

Consistent with the look east

policy, Tourism Ministry has in-cluded Thailand, Malaysia andBrunei in the proposed VoA list.

Keeping an eye on the emergingmarket of CIS countries, the Minis-try has sought the extension of theVoA facility for Russia, Ukraine,Uzbekistan and Kazakhstan.

The other new countries pro-posed for the extension of the facil-ity are Spain, Poland, Sweden, Nor-way, Brazil, Trinidad and Tobago.

Currently the VoA facilities areavailable for tourists from 11 coun-tries including Singapore, NewZealand, Japan, Vietnam, Indone-sia, Myanmar and Philippines. -PTI

India PostMarch 15, 2013 41Travel & Hospitality Postwww.indiapost.com

Goa begins crack downon photographers

Tips for short escapes within IndiaGURGAON: Established as go-

to guidebooks for travelers acrossthe world, Lonely Planet is nowdigging deep into the India travelmarket by launching a new seriesof guides that offer domestic trav-elers tips for short escapes withinthe country.

The "Short Escape" series,aimed at city dwellers in Bengaluru,Delhi and Mumbai who are look-ing for a quick break from the city,was launched here at Kingdom ofDreams.

"In the present corporate sce-nario, working professionals in In-dia want to maximize their leisuretime. With this in mind LonelyPlanet designed the travel guidesto enable travelers to make most oftheir time by exploring destinationsclose to their city," says SeshSeshadri, general manager, LonelyPlanet India.

Also on the agenda are a set ofbooks that can take the cinema lov-ing tourist to places inside thecountry that have a Bollywoodconnection.

"We have also planned,'Shatabdi Escapes' which will in-clude the destinations that fall onthe route covered by Shatabdi Ex-press. Yet another 'Bollywood Es-cape' series will focus on placeswhich are known for someBollywood connection, be it ashooting spot for any movie orsomething else," says Seshadri.

Last year Lonely Planet hadbrought out a series of specificallydesigned guidebooks to enablecurious Indian travelers to experi-ence the world via outbound travel.

The domestic guides aim at ex-ploring the potential in the Indiandomestic tourism market.

According to the latest data bythe Ministry of Tourism, domestic

tourism grew at a rate of 13.8 percent in 2011, with the number oftravelers increasing to 851 millionfrom 748 million in 2010.

"The domestic travel market iscurrently thriving. Our own quan-titative and qualitative market re-search has equipped us to createup-to-date, relevant and inspira-tional content for domestic travel-ers," Seshadri told PTI.

Priced at Rs 395 each guide fea-tures 40-45 destinations dividedby themes such as hills, heritage,wildlife and resorts. The travelguides outline the best possibleroutes from the city to the desti-nation, along with distances andfares.

The content also includes traveltips and information on iconicsights, family activities, shopping,restaurants and local food recom-mendations.

Each of the short escape guideshave been compiled by a team oftravel writers who have personallyvisited each of the destinationsfeatured in the book and have tai-

lored the information keeping inmind the paucity of time that In-dian working professionals face intheir daily life.

"I have been a travel bloggersince long, I have done freelancing

too. But Lonely Planet guides werea challenge to work upon consid-ering their eye for details as well asthe rigorous research. I have beento every single restaurant person-ally about which I have mentionedin the guide book, "says

Puneetinder Kaur Sindhu, one ofthe authors of the Bengaluru andDelhi guides.

Quizzed about how travel guidesstill maintain their place in marketeven in the era of internet bombard-ment, Sheshadri says "The prob-

PANAJI: Goa tourism depart-ment has begun a crack down onphotographers who create nui-sance for tourists at the beaches.

A senior tourism departmentofficial said that they have startedbooking photographers creatingproblems for the visitors underTourism Trade Act.

The photographers are usuallyfound on the Goa beaches click-ing pictures of the tourists.

"There were lot of complaintsagainst these photographerscharging Rs 50-100 per picture. Butthe basic complaint against themwas that they were loitering on thebeaches without permission anddisturbing the tourists," a senior

tourism department official said.The department has begun im-

posing a fine of Rs 10,000 on thephotographers if they are foundillegally doing business on thebeaches.

"It is not just a nuisance but weperceive their presence as a threatto the belongings of the tourists,which they usually keep on theshore while going in the waters,"the official added.

Goa receives around 2.6 milliontourists every year.

The Parrikar-led governmenthas also taken up cleaning thebeaches from hawkers, illegal bedsand vendors by pressing specialpolice squads. -PTI

lem is that more than enough in-formation is available for the read-ers over the internet hence it be-comes difficult for them to decidewhich is authentic and which willbe more feasible for them."

"Our USP is the credibility of

our research and customization asper the customers budget and de-mands which Indian travelers lookforward to most," he says.

Next in the "Travel Guide ShortEscape" series are Rajasthan andGoa. -PTI

"We have also planned, 'Shatabdi Escapes'which will include the destinations that fall onthe route covered by Shatabdi Express. Yetanother 'Bollywood Escape' series will focuson places which are known for someBollywood connection, be it a shooting spotfor any movie or something else”


Mandi: Grand temples, curative streams and startling treks

Chauntra ValleyA small village close to Mandi,

the village lies en route to the fa-mous paragliding spot of Bir. Oflate, a small Tibetan settlement anda Tibetan University have come up,making this place a budding tour-ist attraction.

Rewalsar LakeA great pilgrim centre at an alti-

tude of 1,350 meters, where coexistthree different shrines of differentreligions, Rewalsar Lake at Mandiholds such a miracle. A Hindutemple, a Buddhist monastery anda Sikh gurdwara are situated herein wonderful harmony. This lake,which is famed for its hovering is-land, has an imposing shoreline of735 meters.

With great historical value, thisplace holds numerous legendsabout its sanctity. Hindus believethat it is closely associated withthe Pandavas and others feel thatthis was the abode ofPadmasambhava. Whatever be thetruth, this place is frequented bylarge number of Hindus, Buddhistsand Sikhs alike.

Sunken GardenA verdant green garden with a

Attractionsthriving shopping complex SunkenGarden in Mandi is a spectacle ofhill architecture. A pagoda-typestructure with a clock tower is themajor attraction. Behind this amaz-ing structure there lies the heinousstory of the erstwhile Mandi king,who killed his own son in law andburied him in the present daySunken garden.

A small lake in the earlier times,Sunken Garden was converted intoits present form by the last Raja ofMandi, Joginder Sen. This 500 yearold garden and its adjoining struc-tures retain their royal ambienceeven today. All cultural and otheractivities in and around the city areorganized in this garden.

Ardhnareshwar TempleLord Shiva in the composite

form of half man and half womanis the principal deity of this

unique temple. Such temples arevery rare in the India and the de-ity here signifies the beautifulideology of Ardhnareshwar.Apart from the feeling it gener-ates, this temple exhibits the rich-ness of traditional architecturewith elaborate carvings.

It is remarkable to notice thatthe female is depicted in the leftportion of the deity. The myth be-hind this fabulous shrine might be

the principle that womenare integral part of men'slife. A unique temple,which displays excep-tional architectural el-egance, is now a pro-tected monument underthe ASI. The holydarshan of this ancienttemple evokes greatemotion in the minds ofdevotees.

Bhima Kali TempleThe family deity of

the erstwhile Bushaharrulers, Bhima KaliTemple is located on thebanks of the Beas River.Dedicated to goddessBhimakali, this templepresents an architecturalmarvel. The temple also

houses a large museum. Mythol-ogy says that this was the placewhere Lord Krishna fought a ter-rific war with Banasura, the demonking. The myth further says thatthe head of the routed king wasburied in the earth.

The land was then ruled by thedescendants of the Yadava clanand they had constructed here amagnificent temple complex inwhich Bhima Kali adorns the mainsanctum. So many other shrines

dedicated to various gods andgoddess find their place in thiscomplex. Apart from its serenityand structural elegance, this shrinealso commands the stunning scen-ery of the majestic Shrikhandmountain peak.

Bir MonasteryBetween the villages of Bajinath

and Mandi is a small settlement ofTibetans. There are many monas-teries here which are an epitome ofthe great Buddhist influence in thisregion. The most popular amongthem is the Nyingma monastery,which is known for its interiors andvarious Thangka paintings whichadorn the walls.

Panchvaktra TempleThis small hilly area has more

than three hundred temples flank-ing the River Beas. Almost all thetemples display world-class archi-tecture and structural designs thatforced the Archaeological depart-ment to declare them as protected

monuments.One among these protected

monuments, Panchavaktra templehas been adjudged as a nationalheritage site by the ASI.Panchvaktra Temple is a perfectexample of Shikhara style architec-ture. Dedicated to Lord Shiva, thedeity here has five faces, whichdepict his five characteristics.Placed at the convergence ofSuketi and Beas rivers, the seren-ity of the temple is very appealing.

Triloknath TempleAmong the oldest temples in

Mandi, Triloknath Temple is situ-ated at Purani Mandi. Built in AD1520 by the then queen, SultanDevi, Trilok Nath temple featuresexcellence in architecture. Dedi-cated to Lord Shiva, the templepremises are enshrined with nu-

merous images of the destroyer ofthe universe.

The main deity is seen flankedwith his consort Parvati and theNandi Bull. The sanctum of thetemple is adorned by a three-faceimage of Lord Shiva, which is quitecaptivating. Besides the main de-ity, the temple also holds idols ofother gods like Sharda and Narada.

TrekkingNestled in the lap of the highest

mountain peaks of the Himalayas,Mandi offers great opportunitiesfor trekking. Its verdant valleys,

snowcapped mountains and thickjungles are the perfect spots of amemorable trek.

Trekking in Mandi needs greatstamina and courage. Exploringthe wilderness of this great Hima-layan region gives one a revitaliz-ing feeling. Summer is the bestseason to go for trekking since itprovides a salubrious climate. Butprofessional trekkers often takethe dangerous task of trekking inthe winter since the mountainsand their surroundings showbeauty at its peak.

How to ReachBy Air: The Bhuntar Airport is

the nearest air base to Mandi, lo-cated at a distance of about 59 kmfrom the town. The airport is con-nected to major Indian cities likeShimla, Delhi, and Mumbai with

regular flights. Taxi services areavailable from the airport to Mandi.

By Train: The Kiratpur RailwayStation is the nearest rail head lo-cated at a distance of about 125 kmfrom Mandi. This station is wellconnected with all major cities ofIndia via Chandigarh. Taxi servicesare available.

By Road: State owned buses,which connect Mandi to its neigh-boring cities, can be availed bytourists to reach the destination.Private deluxe bus services are alsoavailable.

Panchvaktra Templeis a perfect exampleof Shikhara stylearchitecture. Dedi-cated to Lord Shiva,the deity here hasfive faces, whichdepict his fivecharacteristics

Sunken

Garden

Bhima Kali Temple

Bir Monastery

Ardhnareshwar

Temple

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Real Estate44

Realty Tidbits

'Dumb' cuts hurt homeowners, buyersPOLYANA DA COSTA

Thousands of strugglinghomeowners and first-timehomebuyers could lose

access to free housing counsel-ing as the spending cuts thatPresident Barack Obama de-scribes as "dumb" and "arbitrary"go into effect.

The budget sequestration willresult in 75,000 fewer householdsreceiving counseling related toforeclosure prevention, pre-pur-chase and other types of housingcounseling, according to the De-partment of Housing and UrbanDevelopment.

The cuts come at a time whencounseling agencies already areoverwhelmed by the growingnumber of people seeking assis-tance at local housing agencies,counselors say.

"For many smaller agenciesaround the country that are HUD-approved, the loss of fundingwould have a tremendous impactand could severely cut back theirability to meet the needs of thepublic," says Rick Harper, directorof housing and senior vice presi-dent at the Consumer Credit Coun-seling Service of San Francisco.

Harper says his agency alonecounsels about 2,500 families permonth. More than 65 percent ofthe families are getting foreclosureassistance.

"There are still thousands offamilies out there struggling, try-ing to make it through this linger-ing recession," he says. "If youpull away funding, you are goingto pull away resources from thosepeople who need it the most."

How soon will homeowners and potentialbuyers be affected? "It could be fairlyimmediate," Rodriguez says, but it will varyby counseling agency, depending on howtheir budgets are planned and how muchmoney they have left.

ketplace."Not the first time Congress hits

counseling fundsThis is not the first time law-

makers cut funding for housingcounseling. In 2011, Congresseliminated HUD's grants for hous-ing counseling services. Later, itreinstated $45 million in fundingto counseling in 2012. The federalbudget for the 2013 fiscal year -which started in October but hasyet to be approved by Congress -calls for $55 million to be allocatedto the counseling programs.

With the sequester, most ofHUD's housing service programswill be cut by about 8.4 percent,according to estimates in a reportprepared in September by the Of-fice of Management and Budget.

How soon will homeownersand potential buyers be affected?

"It could be fairly immediate,"Rodriguez says, but it will vary bycounseling agency, depending onhow their budgets are plannedand how much money they haveleft. Some agencies receive grantsand other sources of fundingthrough various partnerships, butothers rely mainly on HUD grantsto fund counseling programs.

The damage caused by the se-quester will continue to grow overtime if Congress doesn't consideran alternative to $85 billion inspending cuts concentrated into aseven-month period, says JasonFurman, principal deputy directorof the National Economic Council.

"It will keep growing," he says."It will get worse and worse."

-Courtesy Bankrate.com

Help doesn't go only tohomeowners in jeopardy

Counselors also are dealingwith an increasing number of first-time homebuyers seeking pre-pur-chase advice.

"People don't want to make thesame mistakes that they've beenreading about for all these peoplewho have gone through foreclo-sure," Harper says. "Before theypurchase, they want to make cer-tain that they are prepared so thatthey don't become a statistic."

Foreclosure and pre-purchasecounseling are key elements in thehousing and economic recovery,says Marietta Rodriguez, nationaldirector of homeownership and lend-ing at NeighborWorks, a network ofcommunity development and afford-able housing organizations.

"Both kinds of people benefitgreatly from working with a non-profit housing counselor,"Rodriguez says. "Taking that ac-cessibility away from them poten-tially could cause a gap in the mar-

Details on page 45

Housing prices rise by up to 9.6% in 18 major citiesNEW DELHI: Housing prices

have risen in 18 major cities, in-cluding Delhi and Mumbai, byup to 9.6 percent during Octo-ber-December period 2012 com-pared with the previous quarter,according to National HousingBank (NHB).

Mumbai and Delhi witnessedthe maximum increase in hous-ing price at 9.6 percent each.

Out of 20 cities tracked byNHB 'RESIDEX', prices have

dropped in only two cities -Faridabad and Indore.

"In majority of the cities pricesare witnessing upward trend,"NHB said in a statement.

"The movement in prices ofresidential properties has shownincreasing trend in 18 cities rang-ing from 0.6 percent in Chennaito 9.6 percent in Delhi & Mumbai,and fall in only two cities namelyIndore (-1.0 percent) andFaridabad (-5.1 percent) during

the quarter October-December2012 in comparison to the previ-ous quarter July-September2012," it added.

Prices have shot up by 9.4 per-cent each in Kolkata and Patna,followed by Kochi (8.8 percent),Surat (8.7 percent), Bengaluru (8.2percent) and Lucknow (8 percent).

Hyderabad saw an apprecia-tion in housing price by 7.1 per-cent, while in Ludhiana rates roseby 6.5 percent, Ahmedabad (6.1

percent), Guwahati (5.1 per-cent), Bhopal (4.9 percent),Bhubaneshwar and Jaipur (2.4percent), Vijayawada (2.2 per-cent), Pune (2 percent) andChennai (0.6 percent).

NHB RESIDEX tracks themovement in prices of residen-tial properties on a quarterly ba-sis since 2007. The index forDelhi includes property transac-tions of Gurgaon, Noida, GreaterNoida and Ghaziabad. -PTI

104 villas forretirementcommunity project

CHENNAI: Real estate devel-oper 'The Chennai Homes' hasannounced its first retirementcommunity project 'Aishwaryam'comprising 104 fully furnishedsingle bedroom independent vil-las.

The first phase comprising 54units with a size between 415square foot to 850 square footon six acres at Kottaikadu, atMarakkanam about 110 km fromhere, has been completed, Com-pany CEO Jayashree Menonsaid.

"Aishwaryam is not just a col-lection of homes or a conclave. Itis a community that offers its resi-dents an opportunity to enjoytheir golden years to the fullest",she told reporters here.

The Chennai-based company isinitially offering the villas at Rs4,250 per square foot priced be-tween Rs 26 and Rs 42 lakh (for850 square foot), she said.

The second phase is expected tocommence soon, The ChennaiHomes Consultant Joseph Ittiachensaid. -PTI

Centre givesRS 34.10 crorefor housing

SHIMLA: The Centre has sanc-tioned Rs 34.10 crore for the con-struction of housing colonies anda community centre in KrishnaNagar under the Rajiv Awas Yojna.

Disclosing this here, Housingand Urban Development MinisterSudhir Sharma said 300 housesand a community centre with mod-ern facilities like dispensary, old-age care, library, community halland solar lighting and heating sys-tem would be constructed.

He added that of these houses,224 would be for needy personswhile 76 would be rented out."Strict action will be taken againstbuilders who have started con-struction without seeking the es-sentiality certificate and requisitepermission," he said.

REIT has potential to addresshousing challenges

MUMBAI: Amid lack of funds for investmentin the real estate market and housing shortage be-ing major areas of concern, Real Estate InvestmentTrust (REIT) has the potential to address thesetwin challenges faced by the sector, according realestate consultancy firm Knight Frank.

Houses for poor tobe registered in thename of women

CHANDIGARH: Looking atwomen empowerment in the back-drop of rising crime against them,Haryana Chief Minister BhupinderSingh Hooda has said that 3.5 lakhaffordable houses would be reg-istered in name of women of ben-eficiary families.

Details on page 45

India Post 45March 15, 2013 Real Estatewww.indiapost.com

Who has to fix neighbor'sretaining wall?

STEVE MCLINDEN

Q: Dear Real Estate Adviser,My next-door neighbor has a

sloping driveway with an 8-foot-high retaining wall that's 1 footaway from my property. The walldesperately needs repair in sev-eral places. Who's responsible ifthe wall collapses and some ofmy property spills into his drive-way: him or me?

-NatDear Nat,That's a little hard to say with-

out more detail, but it is apparentthis is a mutually beneficial wallthat could use your collective at-tentions. In even a semi-perfectworld, such a safety objectshould be maintained and re-paired by both of you. However,while it holds back part of yourproperty, the wall is technicallyon your neighbor's property andthat makes this issue a littlemuddy, much like your neighbor'sdriveway will be if the thing fi-nally gives way.

Of course, you'd probably pre-fer that your neighbor shoulder allthose expenses. He just may bethinking the same about you. Sofor conversation's sake, let's pon-der the legalities. First off, do youknow who originally built the walland why? If it was the neighbor orthe previous owner, that certainlyimplies ownership and responsi-bility, particularly if the neighbormade a modification to his drive-way necessitating the wall. Some-

times, though, such walls are theproduct of a previous civil agree-ment between neighbors. Ideally,this would be noted on your deed,title document or survey. Othertimes, the responsibility for sucha "party wall" lies in the title docu-ments of a homeowners associa-tion or planned unit developmentif your neighborhood happens tofall under either structure.

I might add that if either of youhas done something to impact thewall's structural integrity since itwas first constructed, or if the rootsfrom your trees are pushing intothe wall, that would carry weight,too, in more ways than one.

One thing is for sure: It doesn'tbenefit either of you to keep play-ing this game of chicken for anaccident-in-waiting. Once you'velooked into the background of thestructure, I suggest an open dis-cussion with the neighbor, assum-ing you're on decent terms. Tellhim you're aware the wall is on hisproperty but that you would be

willing to help rectify the situationby footing a percentage of the re-pair costs. You might even volun-teer to line up bids on repairs orreconstruction of the wall if thatwill provide momentum.

If your neighbor can't or won'tpony up to at least split the cost,then you might look into optionsthat would force his hand, assum-ing you're not content to pay for itall yourself. First, though, talk withyour property insurer to get thelowdown on its coverage and li-ability guidelines in such situa-tions, given the constraints ofyour policy. They've seen suchscenarios before. You might sug-gest to your neighbor to do thesame with his insurer.

If he still doesn't budge, talkwith city code enforcement on thesly to see if the compromised wallwas properly permitted or if it'ssubject to any building ordinancesregarding dangerous propertyconditions. Oftentimes, however,the city will punt in such situationsand say it's a private matter thatyou'll need to resolve with yourneighbor or through an attorney.

Meanwhile, that wall is becom-ing increasingly unstable. Don'tlet it be a divider with your neigh-bor. Heed this old quote that someattribute to Sir Isaac Newton: "Webuild too many walls and notenough bridges." Here's hopingNewton's law of gravity doesn'ttake its course before you resolvethe situation! Good luck.

-Courtesy Bankrate.com

First, though, talk withyour property insurerto get the lowdownon its coverage andliability guidelines insuch situations,given the constraintsof your policy

Houses for poor to be registeredin the name of women

CHANDIGARH: Looking atwomen empowerment in the back-drop of rising crime against them,Haryana Chief Minister BhupinderSingh Hooda has said that 3.5 lakhaffordable houses would be reg-istered in name of women of ben-eficiary families. To providehouses to poor in urban and ruralareas, Haryana has launchedPriyadarshani Awaas Yojna tobuild 2 lakh houses for rural poorand 1.5 lakh units under Afford-able Urban Housing policy 2013in urban areas.

"A woman will seldom sell offher home. It will ensure that thesubsidized houses are not sold offby men," Haryana Chief MinisterBhupinder Singh Hooda said whileannouncing that the state govern-ment will register the house in nameof the women from the poor fami-lies. "Every individual should owna house," the minister said.

Under the Priyadarshini AwaasYojna, a scheme sponsored byHaryana government, each of thebeneficiaries will be allocated Rs81,000 as grant for construction ofa new house. An assistance of Rs9,100 will also be provided underthe Nirmal Bharat Abhiyaan. Thestate government has made bud-getary allocation of Rs 350 croreunder the scheme and HUDCO willfinance the Rs 1350 crore scheme.

For the urban poor 1.5 lakhhouses are to be build by 2014-15through Housing board Haryana,

Urban Local Bodies and Town andCountry Planning. A public privatepartnership model has been pro-posed to provide liberal conces-sions to private players in CLU,EDC, license fee and FAR. Finan-cial Institutions have been mobi-lized to provide loans underISHUP scheme and interest sub-sidy of 5% will be available up toloan of Rs one lakh. The benefi-ciaries will be provided a unit of

300 square feet at highly subsi-dized rates.

With rise in graph of crimeagainst women, especially fromscheduled castes, the state gov-ernment lately has been facing alot of flake. Around 19.335 per centof the population belong to sched-uled caste in the state. A majorityof beneficiaries under the hous-ing scheme will fall in the category.

Under thePriyadarshini AwaasYojna, a schemesponsored byHaryana govern-ment, each of thebeneficiaries will beallocated Rs 81,000as grant for construc-tion of a new house

REIT has potential to addresshousing challenges

MUMBAI: Amid lack of fundsfor investment in the real estatemarket and housing shortage be-ing major areas of concern, RealEstate Investment Trust (REIT)has the potential to address thesetwin challenges faced by the sec-tor, according real estateconsultancy firm Knight Frank.

A REIT is a company that di-rectly owns income producing realestate assets and provides a trad-ing mechanism to investors.

"REIT has the potential toemerge as an answer to these twinchallenges of the real estate sec-tor. One, it can address the hous-ing shortage and second it canenable an individual to participatein real estate investment," KnightFrank Director (Research)

Samantak Das said.Lack of sustained financial op-

tions has been the most criticalchallenge for the sector, which hascontributed to the shortage offresh supply of houses and alsoresponsible for high propertyprices.

At the same time, though realestate is amongst the largest main-stream asset classes for invest-ment, high value of the propertyprohibits an individual investorfrom participating in this assetclass, he said.

"On one hand an institutionalmarket of REITs can ensure steadysupply of capital to real estate de-velopment which shall aid in in-creasing the supply of houses andon the other it shall serve as an

investment vehicle for individu-als," he said.

Some of the REITs promoted byIndian real estate developers in-clude Unitech Corporate Park,Hirco and Ishaan Real Estatewhich are listed on the LondonStock Exchange.

While Indiabulls Properties In-vestment Trust is listed on theSingapore Stock Exchange.

"Going forward we expect stake-holders to take cognizance of theopportunities offered by the REITstructure of direct investment inreal estate. As a result, the REITmode of investing in real estateshould emerge as the most pre-ferred way of participating in thepromising real estate asset class,"Das said. -PTI

46 India Post March 15, 2013www.indiapost.com

In Brief ImmigrationCongress needs to create a StartupVisa to encourage entrepreneurs

CYRUS D. MEHTA

3D printing technology isabout to revolutionize theway we understand manu-

facturing, and the country thattakes the lead in this new technol-ogy will be the winner of what TheEconomist magazine has calledthe third industrial revolution. Astate of the art hearing aid or a hightech component for a military jetcan be designed through a com-puter and printed on an unat-tended 3D printer as a solid func-tioning object.

Yet, the US Customs and Bor-der Protection on the Canadianborder recently refused admis-sion to a dual national Canadian/British entrepreneur JS Brandonwho is part of a startup called DShape - which has developed alarge-scale 3D printer that willrevolutionize the way architec-tural design is planned, and build-ing constructions are executed.

By simply pressing the "en-ter" key on the keypad D Shapegives the architect the possibil-ity to make buildings directly,

without intermediaries who canadd interpretation and realiza-tion mistakes.

Although refused entry intothe United States, Mr. Brandonparticipated in a panel discussionon February 13, 2012 at BrooklynLaw School in New York entitledImmigration Policy and Entrepre-neurship: Challenges and Path-

ways for Startups.Thanks to technology that has

now become so routine, he couldparticipate through Skype fromoverseas, and told a riveted audi-ence that he had been refusedentry under a NAFTA TN visa towork for D Shape in New York,which is limited to certain occu-pational categories and applies to

Canadian and Mexican citizens.For an individual who wishes

to work in a business relatedfield, the only TN occupationalclassification is "ManagementConsultant," but the CBP officialdid not think Mr. Brandon wouldfall under this category as hewould be more of a "Manager,"which is not a TN classification.

Although he will try again for aTN visa, the H-1B visa categoryis more obvious, which allowsone to work in many more pro-fessional fields, but there are noH-1B visa numbers left for thisfiscal year.

If he applies for one, he willhave to wait until October 1, 2013to get in, and that too if he is lucky Cont’d on page 47

US releasedmore than 2,000immigrants

WASHINGTON: The Associ-ated Press has learned that theHomeland Security Departmentreleased more than 2,000 illegalimmigrants facing deportationfrom immigration jails in recentweeks because of looming budgetcuts. It also planned to release3,000 more during March.

The newly disclosed figures,cited in internal government bud-get documents reviewed by the AP,are significantly higher than whatthe Obama administration acknowl-edged as a ``few hundred'' illegalimmigrants who were released un-der the budget-savings process.

The budget documents showthat Immigrations and Customs En-forcement released roughly 1,000 il-legal immigrants from its jails aroundthe U.S. each week since at least Feb.15. The agency's field offices havereported more than 2,000 releasedbefore intense criticism led to a tem-porary shutdown of the plan. -AP

Thanks to technology that has now becomeso routine, he could participate through Skypefrom overseas, and told a riveted audiencethat he had been refused entry under a NAFTATN visa to work for D Shape in New York

enough to get selected in theevent that the USCIS receivesmore than the allotted 65,000 H-1B visas during the first weekApril 2013 - the first month whenemployers can file H-1B visas foran effective start date of October1, 2013. Other than the H-1B visa,there are few options for enter-prising foreign entrepreneurs.

The O-1 visa is limited to for-eign nationals who can demon-strate extraordinary ability in theirfields through sustained nationalor international acclaim.

The L-1 visa is available to in-tra-company executives, manag-ers or specialized knowledgeemployees who have been work-ing for an affiliated overseascompany for one year in thesame capacities.

The E-2 visa, applies to nation-als of a few countries that have astreaty with the US (and Canada isone of them), but it requires the en-trepreneur to make a substantialinvestment.

ACLU sues Nebraska County over man's jailingPAPILLION, Neb.: A Ne-

braska civil rights group is su-ing Sarpy County in eastern Ne-braska on behalf of a man whosays he was unjustly jailed forfour days because sheriff's depu-ties wrongly suspected he wasan illegal immigrant.

The Nebraska chapter of theAmerican Civil Liberties Unionfiled the lawsuit in Sarpy CountyDistrict Court. The group said ina news release that RamonMendoza, 48, of Papillion, wasjailed in March 2010 after he waspulled over by a sheriff's deputyfor an object obstructing hisview - his son's boxing medalhanging from the rear-view mir-ror. Deputies arrested him uponfinding he did not have a validdriver's license or proof of car in-surance, both misdemeanors.

Once at the jail, the lawsuitsays, he was not allowed to callhis family or a lawyer, and was

held while deputies sought infor-mation from federal immigrationofficials on whether Mendoza wasin the country illegally. Mendozawas not given an opportunity tobond out of jail, the lawsuit says.

Mendoza is a naturalized U.S.citizen from Mexico. The lawsuit

says he gave deputies his name,address and Social Security num-ber, and that law enforcement of-ficials repeatedly turned awayMendoza's wife and son whenthey tried to present Mendoza'snaturalization certificate, SocialSecurity card and other docu-ments to prove his citizenship.

The lawsuit also says jail staffrepeatedly addressed Mendozausing racial slurs and that one of-ficial showed him a picture of aswastika.

Mendoza was released only af-ter Sarpy County officials re-ceived a fax from federal immigra-

tion officials saying they had noreason to detain Mendoza fourdays after Mendoza was jailed,according to the lawsuit.

``Without any legal authoritywhatsoever, Sarpy County impris-oned our client for four days withno opportunity to seek counsel andno opportunity to post bail all be-

cause they thought he was an il-legal alien,'' said Omaha attorneyDenise Frost, who also is repre-senting Mendoza in the lawsuit.

``Our fundamental constitu-tional values prohibit deprivingany person of liberty without dueprocess of law.''

Upon his release, the lawsuitsays Mendoza's wife took him toa hospital, where he was treatedfor dehydration and emotionaldistress.

The lawsuit, which alsonames U.S. Immigration and Cus-toms Enforcement as a defen-dant, seeks $10,000 in specialdamages, as well as other dam-ages for an unspecified amount.

``Police officers and jailers arealways required to obey the con-stitution,'' said Amy Miller, legaldirector for ACLU Nebraska.``They simply cannot imprison aperson in this way, even if animmigration detainer exists.'' -AP

Once at the jail, the lawsuit says, he was notallowed to call his family or a lawyer, andwas held while deputies sought informationfrom federal immigration officials on whetherMendoza was in the country illegally

Arizona Housecalls for borderintelligence center

PHOENIX: Arizona lawmakerswant to erect a new border intelli-gence center in the state's latestforay into the national immigra-tion debate.

The House unanimously sentlegislation approving the center tothe Senate for approval.

The measure would establish ajoint operations intelligence unitto coordinate state and federal lawenforcement agencies workingalong the border.

The center would work closelywith U.S. Border Patrol agents andlocal law enforcement officials.

Proponents say they want tocreate a drug-free zone along theborder that would also target hu-man trafficking. -AP

NC farmers wanthelp on immigrationsolution

RALEIGH, N.C.: North Carolinafarmers want state legislators tolobby Congress to pass an immi-gration law overhaul so they canhire more people to work in fieldsand the state's agriculture indus-try can meet increasing food de-mands worldwide. -AP

Pima cuts tuition forthose in immigrationprogram

TUCSON, Ariz.: Pima Commu-nity College is reducing tuition forPima County residents enrolled ina new federal program for illegalimmigrants brought to the UnitedStates at a young age.

The College Board's 4-1 voteprovides resident tuition ratesto students in the program, withthe change expected to startnext fall.

Without the change, thosestudents would continue pay-ing higher non-resident tuitionrates. -AP

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India Post 47March 15, 2013 Immigration Postwww.indiapost.com

I was honored to be on the dis-tinguished panel along with Jer-emy Robbins who is Director ofthe Partnership for a New Ameri-can Economy and Special Advi-sor to Mayor Bloomberg,Michael Wildes, Partner ofWildes and Weinberg PC andOwen Davis, Venture Capitalist,Director of NYC Seed.

The moderator was ProfessorJonathan Askin, who is the Di-rector of the innovative BrooklynLaw Incubator Policy Clinic,which also sponsored the pro-gram along with New York LegalHackers.

Apart from the wonderful am-bience and engaging audience -and there was jazz at the begin-ning and end of the program - thepanelists generally painted a grimpicture of the visa options avail-able to foreign entrepreneurs whowish to develop startups in the US.

Indeed, Mr. Davis said that NYCSeed would be reluctant to fundforeign national entrepreneurs dueto the inherent risks and uncertain-ties caused by the immigrationsystem. Mr. Wildes described themany immigration options that ex-ist in the US immigration system,but then qualified that it would bevery difficult for an entrepreneurto take advantage of them.

Under the H-1B visa program,for example, the USCIS insists onthe need to show that the H-1Bworker's employment will be con-trolled by the employer, which will

Congress needs to create a Startup Visa to encourage entrepreneursCont’d from page 46 be difficult in the case of startup

owned by the foreign national.This obstacle is in addition to thefact that H-1B visa numbers runout even before the start of thefiscal year. Even the E-2 visa is lim-ited to nationals of treaty coun-tries, according to Wildes, whichdoes not include any of the dy-namic BRIC (Brazil, Russia, Indiaand China) countries.

I pointed out that there may benew hope, even amidst the bu-reaucratic "culture of no" mindset,in the USCIS's new Entrepreneursin Residence initiative, where im-migration officers have beentrained to recognize the uniquenature of startups, such as oper-ating in stealth mode or not hav-ing an established office space.

Control of employment mayalso be shown in other ways,through the need to maintain aseparate existence between thecorporation and the shareholder,as well as the possibility of mi-nority shareholders exercisingcontrol through shareholdingagreements or through their latentpower to seek dissolution basedon egregious conduct by the ma-jority shareholders.

Mr. Robbins highlighted thepolitical realities, which means thata new Startup Visa will only beenacted when Congress rolls outa Comprehensive Immigration Re-form bill. Despite the importanceof foreign entrepreneurs, and thefact that America knows best howto nurture entrepreneurship, thereis little chance of a Startup Visa

Act in the absence of Comprehen-sive Immigration Reform.

The take away from this pro-gram is that we clearly need Con-gress to create a Startup Visa ratherthan entrepreneurs using existingvisas that were not designed forthem, but those legislative pro-posals will flounder unless theyare included in a ComprehensiveImmigration Reform (CIR) bill.

One version of a Startup Visawould require the entrepreneur toinvest a minimum of $100,000 inorder to get a two year green card.

To keep the green card past twoyears, the founder would need tocreate five jobs and either raise atleast $500,000 in additional fund-ing or $500,000 in revenues.

Even if Congress enacted aStartup Visa, these requirementscould be rather burdensome for animble entrepreneur who could stilllaunch a successful business with-out an initial $100,000 investment.

Thus, a CIR proposal can alsotweak some of the existing visacategories to make it easier forfounders to remain in the US asnon-immigrants and provide alter-native pathways, such as by re-laxing the element of control in theH-1B visa and also allowing a ma-jority shareholder to be sponsoredfor a green card through the laborcertification program.

The well-intended guidance forentrepreneurs under existing visacategories should also be part ofreform legislation rather than re-main as mere guidelines that runthe risk of not being followed byan immigration officer. Otherwise,we will have initiatives likeBlueseed, which envisages a shipin international waters off SiliconValley that will serve as an incu-

* Cyrus D Mehta, may be contactedat 212-425-0555 or

[email protected]

bator for foreign entrepreneurs todevelop their startups withoutneeding to get a US visa.

They can visit shore briefly ona B-1 business visa for meetings,and then return to the ship to workat their startup. To add to theuniqueness of the entrepreneurand immigration program inBrooklyn, the founder ofBlueseed, Dario Mutabdzija, alsoparticipated through Skype.

I have a feeling that Blueseedwill succeed even if we have CIRas there will always be entrepre-neurs who may not be able to takeadvantage of onerous visa optionsin the early stages of the startup.

Finally, from my experience asa practitioner, I have seen that im-migrants from all backgrounds canbecome entrepreneurs, and it isnot necessary that only graduatesfrom STEM (Science, Technology,Engineering and Math) programs

will succeed with startups. A lessereducated immigrant with burningambition, such as a cook, can oneday start a restaurant chain justas a Ph.D in Engineering can de-velop the next generation 3Dprinter.

Both create more jobs - andAmerica could also enjoy morecultural diversity through the busi-nesses of foreign entrepreneurs.As I recently tweeted on Twitter,"We need both brilliant STEM anddelectable tandoori chicken inAmerica." Thus, if the political re-ality is to include startup visa op-tions in CIR, let's bring it on soonerthan later so that America will beable to benefit from the talents offoreign entrepreneurs of all back-grounds and stripes.

Mr. Robbins high-lighted the politicalrealities, whichmeans that a newStartup Visa will onlybe enacted whenCongress rolls out aComprehensiveImmigrationReform bill

NYC Council OKs bucking someimmigration detainers

NEW YORK: The New YorkCity Council has approved a planto make it tougher for immigrationofficials to detain people beingreleased from police custody.

A measure passed would some-times bar police from honoring im-migration detainers. They let fed-eral immigration officials get cus-tody of potentially deportable im-migrants after they're released bylocal authorities.

Police still would honordetainers for people with criminalor immigration violation histories,

among other circumstances. Butpolice wouldn't notify immigrationauthorities when releasing youth-ful offenders and people withoutsignificant criminal records.

Mayor Michael Bloomberg is ex-pected to sign the measure. A 2011law set a similar policy for city jails.

Supporters say the change willstop deportations of people whopose no threat.

Immigration and Customs En-forcement officials say honoringdetainers helps protect publicsafety. -AP

Sat Mar 16• International Women's Day

CelebrationVenue: North Brunswick Township HighSchool Auditorium, 98 Raider Road, NorthBrunswick, NJ 08902Time: 6:30 pmContact: 732-800-2273

Sat Mar 30• Rang Barsey 2013Venue: Deewan Banquet, 560 Stelton Road,Piscataway, NJ 08854Time: 10:00 amContact: 914-479-2596

Sun Apr 14• Varli Kids Food Festival 2013Venue: Hyatt at Headquarters Plaza, 3 Speed-well Ave, Morristown, NJ 07960Time: 12:00 pmContact: 612-220-3617

NEW JERSEYUpcoming

March 15, 201348 India Post

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DatebookNORTHERN CALIFORNIA

Upcoming

SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA

Upcoming

Thu Mar 21• Karsh Kale featuring

Alam KhanVenue: Herbst Theatre, 401 Van Ness Ave, SanFrancisco, CA 94102Time: 8:00 pmContact: 415-575-6175

Fri Mar 22• Holi Celebration at Bishop RanchVenue: Bishop Ranch 2, 2680 Bishop Dr, SanRamon, CA 94583Time: 4:30 pmContact: 925-866-0100

Sat April 27 to Fri May 3

Discourses by Swami

Mukundananda• Bhagavad Geeta for Everyday

LivingVenue: Sunnyvale Hindu Temple, 420-450Persian Drive, Sunnyvale CA 94089Time: 6:30 pm to 8:30 pm

• Essence of SpiritualityVenue: Fremont Hindu Temple, 3676 DelawareDrive, Fremont, CA 94538Time: Sat: 2:00 pm to 4:00 pm, Sun: 12:00 pmto 1:00 pm, Mon, Wed, Thu, Fri: 6:30 pm to8:00 pm, Tue: 8:15 pm to 9:15 pmPrasadam: Prasadam will be served after theprogram May 4th (Sat) to May 10

• Regular On-going Bal-

mukund ClassVenue: 3839, Heriatage Terrace #232, Fremont,CAContact: 510-794-3368,Email: [email protected]

• Regular On-going Satsang:Contact: 408-594-8197Email: [email protected],510-573-2288Email: [email protected]

ATLANTA

Upcoming

Sun Mar 24• My Shadi Bridal ExpoVenue: Renaissance Atlanta Waverly Hotel,2450 Galleria Pkwy, Atlanta, GA 30339Time: 12:00 pmContact: 9547848100

Sat Mar 30• Holi DhamakaVenue: Atlanta Event Hall, 3750 Venture Dr,Duluth, GA 30096Time: 9:00 amContact: 404-934-9991

Sat Mar 23• HOLI on the BeachVenue: Will Rogers State Beach (betweentowers 5&6), Pacific Coast Hwy, Los Ange-les, CA 90272

Time: 11:00AMContact: 843-503-2133

Sun Mar 15 to Tue 17• Songs of the Soul Poetry and

Sacred Music FestivalVenue: Embassy Suites, San Rafeal, CaliforniaContact: 415-472-6959Highlight: Exhibition of My paintings fromthe series "Turning Rumi: Singing Verses ofLove, Unity and Freedom" continues at Ex-pressions Gallery until 15th March, 2013.

Sun Mar 24• Pt Ajoy Chakrabarty Live

in ConcertVenue: Chinmaya Mission, 14451 FranklinAve, Tustin, CA 92780Time: 6:00 pmContact: 714-267-4023

• J K Yog, Chicago - Swami

MukundanandaChicago Satsang Information:J K Yog Satsang and Bal Mukund Hindi Classesare held every 2nd and 4rth Sunday of Month330pm-530pm @ Clarion Inn/Waterford Ban-quets, Board Room, 933 South Riverside Drive,Elmhurst, IL 60126Contact: Ajay & Arti Chandhok @ 630-561-4807 -Website: www.jkyog.org

Chicago Children's Bal Mukund CharacterBuilding Program and Hindi LiteracyClasses- Bal Mukund Classes are held every1st and 3rd Sunday of Month 11am-1pm @Vogelei Center, 650 W. Higgins Road,Hoffmann Estates, IL 60192 (Next to NissanDealership)Contact: Ajay & Arti Chandhok @ 630-561-4807 - Website: www.jkyog.org/bal-mukund

Two superhit Gujarati plays arecoming to Chicago1. Eak Bejane Nadta Rahiye Date March 22, 2013 Venue: Jain Center, Bartlett, IL2. GujjuBhai Ni Golmaal Date: March 29, 2013 Venue: Jain Center, Bartlett, IL

• Shreejidwar Community

EventsVenue: Vaishnav Samaj of Midwest, 440 WFullerton Ave., Addision, IL - 60101Time: Holi-Rasiya-Rangotsav: Sun Mar 24,Shree Mahaprabhuji Pragatyosav: Sun May 5,Haveli Patotsav: Thu/Fri/Sat/Sun/ Jul4/5/6/7Nandmahotsav: Sat Aug 31Sharad Poonam/Rasotsav Garba: Sat Oct 18Annakut Mahotsav: Sat Nov 9Tulsi Vivah: Sat Nov 16Tavasmi & Kirtan Classes every other Sun-d a y …Satsang Every Saturday & Sunday AfterSandhya DarshanSakha Mandal 3rd SundayContact: 630-543-38-71

ILLINOIS

Upcoming

NEW YORKUpcoming

Sat Mar 16• Rangholi 2013Venue: K-Lounge, 30 W 52nd St, New York,NY 10019Time: 10:00 pmContact: 724-777-8187

Sun Mar 31• Strings - Live in ConcertVenue: Roone Arledge Auditorium, 2920Broadway, New York, NY 10027Time: 8:30 pmContact: 717-317-0171

Sat Apr 13• Indian Speed Dating - Meet 15

Desi Dates In One NightVenue: K lounge, 30 W 52nd St, New York,NY 10019Time: 6:00 pmContact: 9173248022


www.indiapost.com

Astro Buzz50

MARCH 15TH - MARCH 21ST 2013

DR ASHIT JALUI

Here is an astrology column with a difference,giving you advice for the coming week by

Focus on family affairs and domestic

changes - and be sure to involve others

as fully as possible. The last thing you want

is a messy power struggle interfering in your

schemes. Sporting Ariens are now heading

for the top - let's hope you get there! Confi-

dence is the key: if you believe in yourself,

so will other people.

Do yourself a favour and turn your atten-

tion to underlying problems at home

which are little trouble at the moment but

could get out of hand later. It may only be a

question of repairs which will save money in

the long run. A romantic dalliance lifts your

morale in distinctly pleasant ways - even if

only in your imagination!

Secret financial deals could be profitable

in the long run, but only if you are in

charge. Be wary of others who may, perhaps

unintentionally, be the cause of hidden prob-

lems. Family fun will help lighten your load,

so bring relations together for a fun evening.

Keep it simple, and avoid unnecessary com-

plications.

Life won't necessarily go your way, but then

there's no reason why it always should.

Mars' lively influence over your sign creates

sufficient opportunities for you to assert your-

self, but other people need a look-in as well.

Family wounds will be healed with just a little

more effort, so go the extra mile to make sure

everyone is happy.

The general trend is helpful, although

some developments will be so subtle that

you might fail to notice what's happening. One

possibility is that someone will help you with-

out your being aware of their intervention.

That's going to make it difficult to thank them,

so repay the favour by doing someone else

a good turn.

For many reasons, the timescale on any

long-term travel plan or legal question is

about to change. If you play your cards right,

you'll both reinforce your current position and

avert future difficulties.

A shift at work takes you in a practical direc-

tion - one which could bring benefits over the

coming months.

The Moon's relationship with your long-

distance and travel sectors favours trips

away from home, which might act as a wel-

come distraction from more pressing matters.

Yet, work could pose minor difficulties, pos-

sibly because colleagues see the world

through different eyes, so please be toler-

ant.

Sometimes you have to be the person you

were born to be. As a Scorpio, you are

entitled to battle for what you believe to be

your due and to fight for your rights. Your

professional life will soon be subject to vol-

untary or enforced changes, so it is abso-

lutely essential that you stick up for yourself,

especially when nobody else does.

Your current stars pick out finances as the

main theatre of operations, so keep a

close eye on your cash flow. High-tech or un-

usual purchases are appropriate, but the ma-

jor indication shows that money could be slip-

ping through your fingers like water: if you're

in doubt, ask the experts.

There doesn't seem to be anything you

can do but listen to other people. The

moment you imagine that you can ignore their

wants and get your own way, events will re-

bound on you. Socially, look for anything out

of the ordinary, and make very sure indeed

that you go all out to meet new and unusual

individuals.

Romantic hopes are growing, yet it's one

of those times when work comes first.

Even in the most enjoyable of leisure pursuits,

you'll be happiest if you stay active, pursuing

worthwhile hobbies. Your decisions will be

charitable in the extreme, designed to spread

largesse and good fortune as wide as pos-

sible.

Your creative powers are strong, so any

of your artistic activities will benefit enor-

mously. You should now pursue your goals,

both personal and public, without a thought

for other people's narrow-minded disapproval.

You can use your colourful imagination to add

an extra dimension to your love life, by the

way.

Dr. Ashit Jalui, Masters in Astronomy also an expert in Numerology, Vastu and Vedic AstrologyNow get one free astro consultation from Dr. Ashit Jalui by e-mailing your question to [email protected]


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Horoscope52

Your Weekly FutureMARCH 15TH - MARCH 21ST 2013

by Pandit Parashar

(March 21 to April 20)

Running around will increase but the results will be satisfactory.

Do not go out of your way to help others. You may make some

money through stock. Mind will be relaxed and you will be planning

for the future. An old friend will be in touch and seek your advice. All

meetings and business trips will be fruitful.

(November 23 to December 22)

Life will become slight relaxing as pressure at work will reduce a

lot. Though you will still keep looking for another job or business

opportunity and may even discuss things with a close friend. Bank

balance will creep up slowly and children will do better in schools.

You may need to have your eye sight retested.

(December 22 to January 19)

You may be writing a small check to a government agency and

also send some paper work. Things will get more relaxing at

work. Those who are looking to have an addition in the family, plan-

ets are very favorable to make it happen. Spouse may end up buying

some unnecessary items for the house and for you.

(January 20 to February 18)

You will accomplish a lot with the help of favorable Venus and few

other planets. You will be very lucky with money this week. Ne-

gotiations will go well and final meeting will take place in few days.

Boss will appreciate your quick thinking and intelligence. You may

be spending some money towards an upcoming pleasure trip.

(February 19 to March 20)

Commitments you make this week could put you under financial

pressure in time to come so be careful. Boss will give additional

work and deadline too. You may seek help from a colleague in order

to finish work in hands. Do not ignore health issues and seek right

help. You will be going on an important trip soon.

(May 21 to June 20)

A long distance journey is in the air. You will be completely fo-

cused on important issues. There will be some positive develop-

ments in ongoing legal matters but you will need to submit some

more paper work. You will be working on a new and fresh idea that

can multiply your income. You will shed few pounds this week.

(July 23 to August 22)

Legal process can help you recover what was supposed to come

months ago. Planets are in perfect order to help you out with

almost everything in life. You will finally sign few more contracts this

week. Energy level will be on the peak and you will be able to shed

few more pounds. You will spend an evening with some important

people.

(September 23 to October 22)

Feeling tired of stale life, you will make fresh attempts to bring

changes in career and will be some what successful. You may

dispose off some profit making stocks and wait. People in business

will have better sales because of some new clients. Spouse will make

some serious changes in diet at home for every one.

(April 21 to May 20)

Your fears and worries are baseless. Things will definitely work-

out finally, so relax. Another favorable week for brokers. Money

will come but will not stay for long. People applying for another posi-

tion will be called for second interview. You will have a great opportu-

nity to learn some ropes from a successful person.

(June 21 to July 22)

Property related matters will get resolved. You may purchase an-

other luxury model vehicle for personal use. New friend will be

useful and give many important leads. Too much hot and spicy food

can upset your stomach. Some issue involving a close family mem-

ber will keep you very busy. New project will continue make progress.

(August 23 to September 22)

Investments made in the past will drain you out and you may use

your savings to fulfil your commitments. Exalted Venus in seventh

will help bachelors find some one who is not only intelligent but very

good looking too. Some one you always considered adversary, will

give you some very useful and practical tips.

(October 23 to November 22)

It is going to be an expensive week. You may need to cut corners

here and there in order to make important payments. Some one

from overseas will call and deliver the good news. You will have time

on hands to clean your table and take care of pending paper work.

Good piece of advice coming from another intelligent person.

Pandit Parashar, CEO & COO Astro Scan USA is also available for individualconsultations. He can be reached at: [email protected]

510-886-4370 website: www.parashar.com

India Post 53March 15, 2013

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Remembering a wrong

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Great knowledge is

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Philosophy

Do whatever makes you feelpassionately alive

SHRI ATMANANDA

(KRISHNA MENON)

As the world appears, toanyone, it is shown inseeming pictures - physi-

cal, sensual and mental. These arepictures that have been created bychanging acts of perception andconception, through our bodiesand our minds. As our minds andbodies differ, so too their acts ofpicturing get to be different aswell. The differences produce agreat variety of pictures - at dif-ferent times and places, and in dif-ferent cultures and personalities.

But in the end, each picturemust arise from the same completereality of physical and mentalworld - which includes all timesand places, together with all cul-tures and all personalities. What-ever picture may appear - of any-thing or to anyone - that completereality is always implied, in thebackground of the picturing.

Each apparent picture is por-trayed at the foreground of experi-ence, by some act of picturing. Thisvery act must express the realityfrom which it has arisen. That ex-pressed reality is quietly implied. Itstands utterly unpictured in thebackground, while changing pic-tures are portrayed on the seemingsurface of the mind's attention.

Accordingly, reality can be ap-proached as a background screen,on which all pictures of the worldare drawn. The screen is in itself

JEFF FOSTER

What to do with this oneprecious, fleeting giftof life? That is the

question. To be, or not to be, or tobe but only half-heatedly, livingout of the 'shoulds' of others?

And the answer is simple, be-cause life is short. Do whatevermakes you feel passionately alive.Find a way - however much youhave to struggle at first - of mak-ing a living from truly living.Honor your unique talents andabilities. Do what moves you andconnects you to the deepest truthof yourself. Trust prosperity andpassion over profit and comfortand the approval of others, be-cause all the approval in the worldis empty if it is for something yourheart was never really in.

Breaking out of the known canbe terrifying, and you may losewhat you thought was yours, andyour trusted images of yourselfmay melt in the fire of newness,and you may face fear and trem-bling, uncertainty and doubt, re-jection and even ridicule.

You may have to learn the hardway to open yourself up to more painand life may become more uncom-fortable than ever… that is, until you

fall in love with the deep comfort ofinsecurity, and the security of doingwhat makes life worth living.

You will be swimming in theunknown, but you will be vast andalive. You will feel life runningthrough your veins once again -as it did when you were youngand you hadn't yet settled for alife of compromise and clockwatching and justifications foryour quiet desperation - and you

will channel this aliveness backinto creation, and the cycle of pros-perity will keep flowing, and yes,you may even make a good living,better than expected.

But however much money youmake, or don't make, you will bemaking a unique contribution tothe world, doing something that

nobody else can do, at least notin the same way as you, creatingsomething original and fresh, giv-ing something back to life, honor-ing your total uniqueness andyour own talents, and so you won'tfeel second hand, a slave to oth-ers, a piece of wood, and a deeptrust of life may replace your fearsof failure and poverty, and yourcynicism and jealousy of othersmay die completely.

Yes, it's a risk to donate yourlife to what you love and whatmoves you and brings you joy,but I can only speak from experi-ence and say that it's absolutelyworth it, because having a com-fortable and predictable life palesin comparison to feeling deeply,passionately alive and meeting

each new day with fresh eyesand an open heart.

If, many years ago, someonehad told me that one day I'd betraveling the world, holdingmeetings and retreats, speakingmy intimate truth in front ofpeople I'd never met before, hav-ing published several bookswhich had been translated intoseveral languages, I would havelaughed out loud - perhaps in

disbelief, or perhaps out of thefear of the overwhelming vast-ness of life's possibilities.

Honor this life that is tryingto express itself in and as andthrough you. You are not nearlyas limited as you may have beenled to believe by those who havenot yet come alive.

Jeff Foster

Reality can be approachedas a background screen

Shri Atmananda (Krishna Menon)

There is no way of distinguishing betweenthat background reality and the knowinglight of consciousness. The two cannot betold apart. They are in fact identical

Yes, it's a risk to donate your life to whatyou love and what moves you and bringsyou joy, but I can only speak from experi-ence and say that it's absolutely worth it

unpictured - remaining everywherethe same, never varying at all. Inthis sense, of standing changelessunderneath, that background iscalled 'sat' or 'existence'.

But that background is no ob-ject in the world. Each object is apictured element, appearing on thebackground screen. And eachsuch element is lit by conscious-ness. The knowing light of con-sciousness is present through allpieces of the picturing.

Throughout all varied pieces ofthe pictured show, that light stayspresent with the screen.

The pictured pieces change andvary; but their background andtheir knowing light stay present al-ways, throughout all the changesand the differences. There is noway of distinguishing between thatbackground reality and the know-ing light of consciousness. Thetwo cannot be told apart. They arein fact identical. The backgroundscreen is light itself, illuminating all

its pictures from behind.The pictures are all made of

light. As they show, they shine bythat light, which illuminates itself.In this sense, as self-illuminatinglight, the reality is called 'cit' or 'con-sciousness'.

As the pictures come and go,they all arise expressing conscious-ness, from which they come. Thatexpression is their life, which ani-mates their changing movement.

From it comes all their sense of

purpose and meaning and value.In the end, all pictured acts are

done for the sake of conscious-ness, which they express. As itknows itself, in identity, it shinesnon-dually - identical with the re-ality of each picture that it lights.By that non-dual shining, all ac-tions in our pictures are inspiredto take place, spontaneously andnaturally, of their own accord.

For that non-dual shining is thehappiness that is uncovered whendesire is fulfilled. The wanting mind

is dual, feeling need for somethingelse. When what's wanted is ob-tained, the self that knows is felt tobe at one with what has come about.

The wanting mind's duality hasthere been brought to rest, dis-solved into a non-duality that is itsreal motivation. In this sense, as thatwhich is ultimately valued, the real-ity is called 'ananda' or 'happiness'.

The background is thus 'sat-cit-ananda'. As 'sat', it is the backgroundof all objects and objective acts. As

'cit', it is the background of allthoughts and ideas. As 'ananda', itis the background of all feelings andall values. But then, how can it beinvestigated, beneath the picturesthat appear to cover it?

It can be found by looking care-fully at the gaps in our picturing ofthe apparent world. There, in thegaps, when they are properly ex-amined, the background may befound uncovered, shining by itself.

Based on commentary pro-vided by Ananda Wood

54 Edit Pagewww.indiapost.com

March 15, 2013India Post

Is Islamabad's strategyon the LoC changing?

J JEGANAATHAN

The recent tension on theLine of Control (LoC) between India and Pakistan

signal the resumption of dormanttension in Indo-Pak relations andthere is a growing concern that therelations are now back to squareone. What could be the rationalefor Pakistan for increasing the ten-sion? Is Pakistan attempting todeflect the current domestic ten-sions, or there is a new plan -Kargil 2.0 in progress? What is thePakistani army up to now?

A recent intelligence report,based on the interception of sat-ellite communication leaked to In-dian media, reveals a detailed ac-count of how the entire operationwas planned and executed meticu-lously. It claimed that the Inter-Ser-vice Intelligence (ISI) planned theoperation with the support ofLakshar-e-Toiba (LeT) cadres inorder to facilitate their intrusioninto Indian territory. Forthe first time, the namesof the perpetrators weredisclosed.

Trying to divertthe domesticopinion?

While Pakistan pre-pares for a transfer ofpower this year, its strate-gic direction remainsquite ambiguous. At thedomestic level, thestruggle for power is at anall time high in all institu-tions. The tenure of thePrime Minister, who wasordered to be put under arrest, endsby March as does the tenure of theChief Justice (ending in September2013) who ordered the arrest.

The traditional rivalry betweenmilitary and civilian authorities hasfurther blurred the strategic direc-tion in which Pakistan should beheading. Both the army chief andthe President are demitting theiroffice this year. Political struggle,not only across the parties rather,between the army, judiciary andlegislature, therefore, seems inevi-table. At the same time the Paki-stani army is in face-saving mode,in the aftermath of the Abbottabadincident.

It is obvious that the recentskirmishes at LoC were a reflec-tion of this domestic crisis thatcompelled the Pakistan establish-ment to revive its traditional hos-tility with India. Strategically, Pa-kistan is at a crossroads, confront-ing an unfavorable security envi-ronment. For instance, its conven-tional security policy of gaining

'strategic depth' towards the westhas been circumscribed by USpresence in Afghanistan.

And, its customary approach toseek a 'strategic superiority' to-wards the east through Kashmirhas been dormant since the 2003ceasefire agreement with India.Moreover, there is a growing real-ization within Pakistan today thatmost major challenges for its ex-istence are emanating from thewest in the form of Talibanisation.

A larger strategytowards J&K?

In order to assuage the domes-tic crisis and to restore the publicfaith in state machinery, Pakistanhas been left with no option butto revive the perennial hostilitywith India by rekindling the Kash-mir issue. The main reason, per-haps, could be the urge to retain

its strategic significance or rel-evance to the US owing to the di-minished scope of regaining stra-tegic depth in Afghanistan.

As part of this strategic shift,Pakistan raised the Kashmir issuein the last United Nations GeneralAssembly (UNGA) general debateheld in September 2012 after a gapof four years.

Since Pakistan has assumed theUnited Nations Security Council(UNSC) rotating presidency as anon-permanent member from Janu-ary 2013, it is set to use this op-portunity to bring back the Kash-mir issue to the UN list of priori-ties. As a matter of fact, India hadseconded Pakistan's candidaturefor this post, which is now prov-ing inimical to its own interest.

Nevertheless, Pakistan's inten-tions do not seem genuine in termsof finding a solution to the Kash-mir issue. Rather, its actions aresparked by new geostrategictwists. The Indian domination ofall the key heights of the Siachen

glacier including the Saltoro Ridgethreatens the 'old Silk Route' or theKarakoram Highway connectingGilgit-Baltistan region of Pakistanoccupied Kashmir to Kashgar, acity in the Xinjiang region of China.

China has promised Pakistan toconstruct the logistical route fromthe Gilgit-Baltistan to Gwadar. Itappears that Pakistan's objectivein Kashmir has been reduced to'only demilitarization of Siachen byIndia' because of these newgeostrategic compulsions as out-lined above and the China factor,which sought to revive the 'old SilkRoute' by building the KarakoramHighway.

On the other hand, an un-friendly Afghanistan has obscuredPakistan's trade and economic in-terests in Central Asia, which hasbeen then naturally pushed to-wards India. Although Indo-Paktrade relations, which have im-

proved dramatically since 2003, areseen as a potential area of mutualcooperation, Pakistan is cautiousas well as anxious about the grow-ing economic interdependencywith India. Thus, the geo-eco-nomic interests of Pakistan, drivenby the dynamics of the geopoliti-cal situation in the region, are in-ducing it to negotiate the demili-tarization of Siachen glacier withIndia, by hook or by crook.

Even the K.Subhramanyam re-port on Kargil War observes thatthe 'Kargil Plan' of the Pakistaniarmy was to force India to demili-tarize Siachen by cutting off itssupply routes. Lt.Gen. Paranaikhas also averred that Kargil hap-pened because of Siachen (note:India hardened its stand onSiachen in 1998). If that is true, thenthe recent incident at the LoC un-veils Pakistan's 'Kargil Plan 2.0' asa result of India's reluctance tonegotiate on Siachen.

The writer is Research Fellow,IPCS

Early contendersThere are many ifs and buts about the shape of government

to come after the 2014 elections but speculation about whowill head it continues to grow. It is not even certain if either

the Congress or the BJP would be able to emerge as the partieswith the highest number of seats. Narendra Modi of the BJP haslaunched a virulent attack on the Congress calling it "termite" andManmohan Singh as "night watchman" who has sacrificed thecountry for the sake of the one family. If listing the negatives ofothers were to win you leadership of the country then Modi is theleading contender. The Congress has countered by declaring thatModi lacks the stature of a national leader.

Meanwhile, there is build up in favor of P. Chidambaram as theprime ministerial candidate if the Congress comes back as the larg-est party and if, like his mother, Rahul Gandhi listens to his "voiceof conscience" and declines the top post. According to one as-sessment in the Hindu, "Chidambaram is everything that Indianeeds: suave in speech, modern in thought and outlook, efficientand diligent in work, clever in debate…And he has what the Familyneeds: No base from which he might challenge the Family."

In spite of the clamor among rank and file, it is not as if NarendraModi has no opposition within the BJP. Veteran LK Advani praisedthe record of Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Shivraj SinghChauhan but showered the highest praise on Sushma Swaraj, an-other prime ministerial hopeful. He put a spoke in Modi's wheelsby declaring that the NDA needed to expand to return to powerand for that it would have to take the minorities along. He called fora BJP initiative by including a charter of commitments to the mi-norities in its agenda for governance and development. Advani's"secular" pitch was read as less than encouraging for Modi's pros-pects. And in fact, by showing his hand too early, Modi mighthave given his opponents within the party enough time to sabo-tage his bid.

It is not certain that it will be a battle between Modi andChidambaram alone. The regional chieftains have grown powerfulon the basis of their strong bases in their states and they willdefinitely be the kingmakers. The sound and fury of Modi and thecampaign for Chidambaram would become mute by election timeand the regional chieftains would be wooed for alliance and sup-port. The two national parties will be in for a surprise as the re-gional chieftains might be harboring national ambitions of theirown.

The results of the recent elections in the Northeast show a trendtowards voter behavior. Incumbents have won in all three states ofTripura, Meghalaya and Nagaland proving that it is governancethat counts. According to one analysis, in earlier times, dissatisfiedvoters voted three quarters of incumbent governments out. But whenfast GDP growth of 8.5 percent arrived, suddenly three quarters ofincumbents gained re-election.

The recent budget by Finance Minister P. Chidambaram showsthat even the Congress is learning the lesson that freebies, subsi-dies and loan waivers do not win an election. They had been all thetime claiming that they won the 2009 election because of the hugesubsidies given to rural voters. The fact that emerged was that theCongress had won more seats in urban India than the rural sectorwhich was awash with subsidies. The urban voter had been hop-ing for growth. After presenting his latest budget, Chidambaramwas asked why he had not repeated his 2008 strategy of introduc-ing freebies. He replied that the 2009 election had been won byrapid economic growth and the accompanying poverty reduction,not freebies. This is perhaps the first time that a Congressman hasbeen so candid on this count.

The high voter turnouts indicate that the people are no longercynical and are voting with expectations. And they are giving hugemajorities belying the pundits' claim of split verdicts. Are we thenin for a clear verdict in 2014?

India Postwww.indiapost.com

March 15, 201356

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