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Volume 16 | Issue 09 | January 2017LET OUR VALUES EMERGE

Xpressions - January 2017 3

January 2017 Volume 16

Issue 09

INSIDE

09 Scribbles

10 News Clippings

13 HR Faccia

14 HR Awards

16 Travel Spots

18 Achievement

25

IN EVERY ISSUE

04 Editorial

05 Note from the MD

07 Financial News

08 Xpress Money

FEATURE

24 HEALTH TIPS

19 Updated News Bulletin

20 Laugh it Out

21 Life Style

22 Amazing Reality

23 Hues of India

26 Feedback

27 Picture Gallery

28 Thoughts for January

29 Delicious Flavours

30 Travel World

31 Wedding Bells

Cover photo - by Reshma P Zonal Office Karnataka

StrEtch aND release tension

Honestly, as we look back over the past year, don’t we notice patterns that need amendments,

habits that need rendering, and at times don’t we find ourselves defending our actions and attitudes? Are we yearning for something diverse this year? To move ahead, switch on, and experience a year of victory, not defeat. Maybe this New Year will help to inspire our self which may flow as a wave to others around us. The beginning of a New Year is a wonderful time for self introspection. Let us review the year that has just passed, and make plans for the one ahead.

Sometimes it can be helpful to take a pen and paper and shatter the areas of our life down into headings such as “family”, “friends”, “work”, etc. and then think about how we would like to observe each of these things develop in the coming year.

The New Year has just started and the path we are walking may be unknown to us. We may be walking alone without

EditorialEbby AbrahamEditor-in-Chief

CorrespondentDurai Raj R

January 2017 Volume 16

Issue 09

4 Xpressions -January 2017

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Reflections on New Year

hearing any other footsteps. We do not know whether we will rejoice in our life this year or will end in sorrow. But there is always a ‘hope’ that after the darkness there will always be sunshine.

Let us tread on each step one by one and take one day at a time and pray for the strength to do our daily tasks. Yester day’s are like ghosts haunting the past and will never be back but tomorrow’s load is yet to come; so, shall we welcome the dawn of each day that unfolds before us and look forward to to finish it properly thereby bringing joy to our mind and body.

Let us look beyond the chill of the winter to the smell of spring and do our best this year, whatever life may bring. Leave behind the storms and turbulence that had happened in our life and contain a fresh start this year as bright as the rainbow.

“The New Year has just started and the path we are walking may be unknown to us. We may be walking alone without hearing any other footsteps. We do not know whether we will rejoice in our life this year or will end in sorrow. But there is always a ‘hope’ that after the darkness there will always be sunshine”

Out with the old and in with the newan expression of life we need to review.For yesterdays gone, tomorrow is far awayToday’s the beginning of our brand new day.

5Xpressions - January 2017

Note from the MDV George AntonyManaging Director

Dear Colleagues,Year 2016 has come to an end and we

have begun our journey through 2017. All of us must be anxious about what is in store for us for the New Year.

The year which passed by had loads of ups and downs, but towards the end it has culminated two major things, Leap2020 conference at Kochi which was a realization in all respects. In the month of December we achieved our ever highest record in business in all products in the history of the company. That was a real eye opener for all of us on how we achieved it. Thanks to demonetization and our technological advancement, this enabled us to win over all our competitors acquiring many new customers.

Year 2017, we are beginning with few structural changes which have already started its balls rolling with change in the Management structure of the Company at HO, ZO, RO and branches. I seek the cooperation of each and everyone, irrespective of rank, to accept this change

of functioning instead of taking into consideration the negatives. Operations are split into four channels for better business focus.

Proposed steps for a better focus• Alternate Channel that is FSMart and Corporates has been given prime focus to reflect consistent business growth.• Wholesale Channel will deal with Banks, AD2, FFMC and Franchisee is a big area to focus through Forex and Ticketing. • Digital has to take giant steps to combat the tough competition of the industry and take the Company to the next level of digital growth. Put greatest efforts to develop XPay cash Wallet into a digital platform for the common man to pay and receive money at ease. Let’s take it as the dream project equipping each citizen for the higher aspiration of Digital India • Retail channel

Digitization and our timely nationwide

Press Meets & innovative approach through products and services have made us achieve ever highest record in most of the businesses verticals. It was a consoling approach to the masses by extending our financial amenities even to the remotest parts of the nation that are unaware about latest financial conveniences. Hence locally or regionally or nationally keep an eye and ear open on the pulse of market conditions to strike when the iron is hot.

I am sure with these changes, Company will double its business in the days to come and we all benefit out of it. I would like to end by thanking all my colleagues for their contributions to this success.

Wish you all a happy and prosperous 2017.

All that starts well, 2017

“The year which passed by had loads of ups and downs, but towards the end it has culminated two major things, Leap2020 conference at Kochi which was a realization in all respects”


The NBFC segment is a catalyst to the economic development of the country. The success of

NBFC’s can be clearly attributed to their better product lines, lower cost, wider and effective reach, strong risk management capabilities to check and control bad debts, and better understanding of their customer segments.

With the ongoing stress in the public sector banks due to mounting bad debt, their appetite to lend (especially in rural areas) is only going to deteriorate, thereby providing NBFCs with the opportunity to increase their presence.

WAY FORWARD……For a large and diverse country such as India, ensuring financial access to fuel growth and entrepreneurship is critical for the growth.

The introduction of specialised payments banks and Small Finance Banks, and focussed approach of the other industry bodies such as the National Payments Corporation of India (NPCI) to further strengthen and augment the payments ecosystem by launching the Unified Payment Interface (UPI), Unstructured Supplementary Service Data (USSD) and Bharat Bill Payments System will truly transform the banking value chain in its entirety. Adoption of these technologies and collaboration presents a strategic opportunity for NBFCs to ensure sustainable growth over a long term.

The reach of NBFCs, along with their strong understanding of the market help them position themselves as a better substitute to the traditional banking. Furthermore, the Indian consumer is increasingly adopting digital as a way of daily life.

NBFC’s need to rethink on their strategy to enhance product portfolio (positioning and pricing), processes (internal and

Chief’s Message

CA.Krishnan R, Director and Chief Financial Officer, India

customer facing) and end-to-end customer experience. Additionally need to leverage the vast digital customer data available to be able to serve customers better. The absence of income proofs or IT returns due to temporary/self-employment are some of the primary reasons for the half-hearted credit penetration in India. Digital and social data can often act as a substitute to such documents to help NBFCs make better credit decisions. To be competitive, NBFCs needs to find ways to serve the customers through digital means.

Alternative Credit Modelling is Future for NBFC’sThe burst of e-commerce, Internet and social media usage in India has led to the rise of a new type of online lending platforms that leverage social media and Internet data to assess the creditworthiness of customers

Alternative data sources are most useful in credit scoring if they demonstrate the following:Regulatory compliance: The data source must comply with all regulations governing consumer credit evaluationPredictive power: Different sources of data have varying levels of probability, a fact which must be considered while evaluating which type of data should be used. It is crucial that the data be able to provide futuristic insights into customer behaviour, particularly in relation to likelihood of repayment.Integration with traditional sources of data: Although alternative credit scoring methods offer immense opportunities for financial institutions to grow their lending portfolios while managing risk, such alternative data should be used to augment the credit score gathered from traditional means like obtaining data from Credit information companies (CIC) rather

than using it as a standalone means of credit underwriting.

In order to compete in this altering lending landscape, NBFCs need to realise the immense value of alternative data, technology and analytics to develop advanced credit scoring models that leverage both traditional and non-traditional data sources.

Customers who are qualified to obtain credit but are unable to do so because of their credit score will specifically benefit from the use of alternative credit scoring mechanisms that work alongside the NBFC’s traditional credit underwriting model. This will introduce healthy competition, spur product innovation, and ultimately help support the Indian government’s agenda of full financial inclusion.

nBFC segment

“The reach of NBFCs, along with their strong understanding of the market help them position themselves as a better substitute to the traditional banking”

FINaNcIaL NEWS

INDIa oFFErS SubSIDIES for digital payments

The Indian Government has announced plans to subsidize digital payments, waiving tax on

low-value online transactions and cutting 10% off insurance policies, rail tickets and highway toll fees made via the Internet.

The move comes as the country continues to bear the brunt of a cash shortage after the Government’s overnight ruling last month to remove Rs500 and Rs1000 banknotes from circulation. The action had led to huge queues at banks and cash machines as consumers sought to exchange the worthless notes, which comprised 86% of the country’s total currency.

Alongside the incentives for online payments, the Government is also


StaNDarD Qr coDE IN thE Works in india

The government of India is working on the concept of a standard QR code system that could be used by Indian

payment providers. This could make it possible for merchants to more easily offer a spectrum of transaction options to customers. QR codes are the technology of choice for the government, which is trying to reduce the use of cash.

The Indian government has now asked some of the top mobile payment providers to adopt a standard QR code format. This includes MasterCard, Visa and RuPay, the country’s leaders in mobile payments. The goal is to use this standardized version of the quick response code in order to make it possible to process offline e-Payments.

If the barcode were to be standardized, it would also make it possible to allow merchants and consumers to easily use all participating mobile payment platforms. With one central standard, businesses and shoppers would not be forced to choose only one option. They could easily move among them. This move toward a standard QR code is the latest step in the government’s goal for a cashless society.

Recent demonetization of currencies created havoc among the Indian citizens and they suddenly found themselves without the cash they needed to pay for products and services they needed. As cash was the primary transaction method in the country, the impact of this move was not a small one.

Throughout this period of time when cash is in a serious shake-up, mobile payments have taken off in use. People needed a new way to pay for things and Smartphone based options were more accessible than credit cards, which are rare in the country among both consumers and businesses. The government hopes to use a standard QR code to encourage further easy use of mobile payments and to step away from cash.

UAE Exchange, India the leading financial institution is all set to swipe off the financial emergency

with its comprehensive XPay Cash Wallet which could surprise citizens with its personalised features like never before.

INDIaNS SkIppINg pLaStIc moNEy, leapfrogging to mobile Wallets

stipulating a 0.75% discount on card-based payments at petrol stations - a move which is expected to take two trillion rupees in physical cash payments annually out of the equation. The initiative will offer a further boost to the country’s competitive mobile payments market, which has experienced surging transactions since demonetisation.

The Indian experience should provide a few pointers to Venezuela’s Government, which has just announced it will replace the country’s highest-denomination banknotes with coins within 72 hours. The move, aimed at curbing use of the physical notes by local crime outfits, comes as the country experiences crippling levels of inflation, reducing the value of 100-bolivar notes to about two cents.

Why uSE caSh – Use digital Cash

Unlike the West, Japan and China, which slowly graduated from landline to cordless to cellular phone and from cash to plastic to mobile payments mode, India has virtually skipped the intermediate stages — cordless telephones and

plastic money — of this technological revolution and jumped into cellular telephony and digital banking transaction.

As many as the 23.3 crore unbanked people, out of the 38 crore Smartphone users, are skipping the plastic money stage altogether and embarking directly into digital transactional stage.

RBI data points out that in the first two weeks of demonetisation, one million new e-wallet users joined the bandwagon every day. From 2016 to 2020, the number of Internet users in India is estimated to grow from 37.5 crore to 65 crore and that of smart phones from 38 crore to 55 crore. So, even those without much literacy or having no computer or laptop are joining the digital transaction revolution in a big way. Seventy-two per cent of Internet consumed in India happens on a smartphone, one of the highest in the world, while the world’s average Internet consumption on mobile phones crossed 50 per cent, only last month.

Source: Business line

Cash saturation at ATMs, huge queues for bank deposit and exchange counters have created a catastrophic situation across the nation. To combat the urgent situation, UAE Exchange India has made arrangements to facilitate cashless digital transaction for all Indian Citizens with its improvised XPay Cash wallet with more user friendly features.

M-commerce has started its ball rolling

years back across the world and now India has to take such fast and logical strides to overcome the rest. Customers can download XPay Cash wallet from http://www.uaeexchangeindia.com/Xpay-Cash-Wallet to make all your payments and transfers instantly for free. Shop owners can register as Merchant and use XPay Cash Wallet to receive all their payments from customers.

8 Xpressions - January 2017

XPRESS moNEy

Xpress Money has partnered with ADCB to offer international remittance services to ADCB

customers through the bank’s existing mobile banking app.

The partnership provides exclusive benefits to ADCB customers to make hassle-free international money transfers through the app by simply tapping on ‘Transfer Money’ and selecting ‘Xpress Money Global Money Transfer’ as their preferred channel. Once the transfer has been requested by an ADCB customer through the mobile app, the Xpress Money platform takes over to deliver the transaction, and credits the target bank account.

Xpress money partners With adCbThe move extends ADCB’s international

money transfer reach to 14 countries to begin with, through Xpress Money’s existing network and partnerships in those territories. The first phase of the collaboration allows ADCB customers to make international bank account transfers to Bangladesh, Bhutan, Egypt, Ghana, Indonesia, Kenya, Morocco, Nepal, Nigeria, Pakistan, Philippines, Sri Lanka, Thailand and Vietnam. More countries will be added soon.

“We are delighted to have a renowned brand like ADCB as our partner. Our partnership with ADCB is centred on extending convenience and reach to their customers.”

Working towards the goal of making money transfers convenient to millions of expatriates residing away from their homes, Xpress Money has come to be known as the most dependable international money transfer brand.

Xpress Money UK Online a global money transfer company, allows instant money transfer through its 170, 000 agent locations worldwide, across 150 countries. Established in 1999 in the United Kingdom, the brand has grown by leaps and bounds and has spread its geographical presence across 160 countries over the last 16 years. The new app unveiled at the end of October is available to UK users, Mr Sudesh Giriyan said. “It is world’s first ever social mobile money transfer app,” he added.

The app, a venture between Xpress Money and fastacash, a payment solution provider, may also one day be available in the UAE, said Mr Giriyan, the chief operating officer of Xpress Money, in Abu Dhabi. The brand also has robust Anti Money Laundering (AML) and Anti Terrorist Activity (ATA) compliance processes in its backend to help provide comprehensive risk intelligence to keep Xpress Money’s network error-free and secure.

indians in gUlf Unable to send Cash for emergenCies

Indians living in UAE are facing difficulties in sending money to their homes in India for various emergencies.

The money is send using instant money transfer services which are collected from specified points in India. Currently, the collection points face difficulty in arranging valid currency notes to disburse the money in cash to the respective recipients.

The demonetization of currencies immediately impacted the expat Indian population in the Gulf. Currently, they have only limited legal options to send money to family members who are in urgent need of money due to some or the other emergency. The problem is all the more severe where the money is needed for hospital related emergencies, especially when the private hospitals are not allowed to accept the old currencies and are not accepting money through any other method to avoid tax obligations.

Since through the banks, only a limited sum is allowed to be withdrawn on a day from a single account, it is also not helping the expats. The currency ban has also hit the money transfer services, such as Xpress Money, who are unable to disburse cash in a big amount due to the current cash crunch situation. At present, transfer through cheques and online transfers have been facilitated by the various agencies and this situation is expected to improve as soon as cash situation in India improves.

Irrespective of the option of online and other modes of money transfer, the Indians in Gulf are facing endless difficulties since the withdrawal of cash is still under restrictions, and most of the emergency situations require advance payments including hospital expenses. Majority of the family members of the Indian expats in UAE lives in India and are dependent on the money send from abroad.

Uk online

Oman UAE Exchange has launched the scheme of Instant transfer of money to any of the Banks in India. Even on holidays money transferred could be credited in the respective bank accounts through Immediate Payment Service scheme (IMPS).

This system is now used in India among commercial banks for electronic fund transfer. According to the newly introduced method transfer of funds could be securely done from

any branch of Oman UAE Exchange to any Bank in India. The amount thus transferred will be directly credited to the bank account of the beneficiary and both the remitter and the beneficiary will receive an SMS message.

“Our prime aim is to provide fast, safe and novel method of transferring funds for our customers” said Mr M P Boban, chief executive officer of Oman UAE Exchange. “We are the first financial institution to use IMPS facility in Oman” he added.

Source: Gulf Today

instant money transfer from oman

to any of the indian banks


SCRIBBLES

2017 has begun; let’s make 2017 the best new year of our life. Start a new chapter in our lives.

It doesn’t matter what has happened in our past that is already history. Learn from the past and start making improvements instead of doing the same old things day after day and expecting different results. That’s called insanity. Our goal for the New Year should be to make small daily improvements and strive to make tomorrow better than it was yesterday. If we just make a 1% improvement each day, we will be 356% better in just one year.

We already know what we have to do; we just have to do it. It is easy to do, but it also easier not to do. It’s easier to sit on the couch and watch TV than go exercise. It’s easier to reach for the junk food instead of healthy food. It’s easier to stay in our comfort zone then try to experience new things. It’s easier to say we can’t do it than even give it a try. It’s easier to be negative than positive. It’s easier to be sad and down than happy

and cheerful. But what if we start doing what is right and what we need to do, rather than what’s easy.

Yes it might be challenging and seem so difficult at times but it will only make us stronger and better. We all have good days and we all have bad days. The good days are great and the bad days are horrible. When we have great days, we are grateful and celebrate. On bad days, we need to learn from the experience, shake it off and move on. A set back is a set up for a comeback. When I have bad days, the days I have self-limiting beliefs, I don’t dwell and tell everyone how bad my day was.

I try to change my thoughts as fast as I can. Now if I catch myself thinking negative, I hurry up and try to think positive. Where our emotions go is where our energy flows. We get what we focus on. We are what we think about all day long. What really helped me over the years get through the tough and hard times are my own optimistic inspirations i.e. Believing Myself.

LENDErS & demonetisation

The term Black money, as it is widely used, means nothing but the earnings on which tax has not been

paid, without regard to whether it was earned through legitimate or illegitimate ways.

It is a well-known fact or an open secret that most of the documented transactions in India have a black component in it. Unaccounted liquid cash always form a part of the consideration paid.

The extent of the unaccounted portion varies across assets and geography. For example, an unlisted security gets traded with a value almost same as its face value across the nation and real estate gets traded at values which differs from metro cities to remote villages and is almost a quarter of the market price usually.

But for many lenders, this difference was a ‘blessing in disguise’, especially for Land Loans, Loan against Property, Loan against unlisted Securities, Housing Loans, etc.

The undervalued document actually makes the lending business safer. Let us see how. The Loan-To-Value LTV Ratio is always based on the documented value. When your banker says that he will finance you up to 80% of the transaction value, he means 80% of the documented value. Here, his buffer against price fluctuations of the underlying assets or margin of safety is 20%. But, in reality, as the actual value is much higher than the documented value, the actual margin of safety is also higher which makes the deal even safer. In case the actual value is double the documented value, the lenders margin of safety is increased to 60%. Thus we can see that an extra cushion is being provided to the lenders by the black money.

In cases where the customers don’t repay the loan, the lenders are confident that he can comfortably recover the due amount by selling the asset in the market where it easily fetches much higher price.

With the recent demonetisation, the ratio of the unaccounted portion may cease or reduce which may compel the lenders to do more analysis before approving a loan.

Ranjith Babu R Head-Concurrent Audit & AML

Aditya Kumar Regional Audit HeadPunjab I and Punjab II Regions

NEWS cLIppINgS


Dr B R Shetty honoured for his business achievements

Dr B.R. Shetty, founder and CEO of NMC Healthcare, was honoured by Rajnish Kumar, managing director of State Bank of India, at the SBI-CNBC Arabia Business

Excellence Awards ceremony held recently in Dubai. The award recognised his business achievements and contributions made to the community.

Excellence in the innovation of XPay Cash Wallet has moulded UAE Exchange India to pave it way towards the glory of numerous glittering awards. XPay Cash Wallet has recently

achieved India’s highest independent civilian honour, Skoch New Economy Award 2016, during the 46th Skoch Summit on 15th December 2016 at Constitution Club of India, New Delhi. The triumphant endeavour made by UAE Exchange India on its advanced initiative in XPay Cash Wallet, a mobile wallet with multiple user-friendly features has gained wide acceptance and massive appreciation.

Vice President and Chief Information Officer, Mr. Jos Babu has received “Skoch Order-of-Merit” for XPay Cash Wallet which was rated as the 3rd best among the top 100 nominated projects. Awards were given by the renowned panel of experts and was adorned by an array of dignitaries including several Union and State Ministers in addition to CEO’s, industry captions, economists, consultants and academia.

Mr V George Antony won VPN IBE Award 2016

UAE Exchange India, Managing Director, Mr. V George Antony won the VPN International Business Excellence (IBE) Award 2016 for Business Excellence in Customer

Focus. Chief Marketing Officer Mr R Sudhakar received the award on 15th December 2016 in a function held at Hotel Crowne plaza on behalf of UAE Exchange India. This is the business awards given to honour internationally acclaimed business personalities from Kerala.

Mr. V George Antony shared “We continue the endless service keeping the motto ‘Service is our Currency’ for catering the needs of customers from every nook and corner of the nation. Positive responses as well as good feedback from the customers always motivate and inspire the company to retain the reliable services in the upcoming years.”

Srilanka tour

Ms Reshma P, Corporate Head, Zonal Office Karnataka had organised a tour programme to Srilanka for 24 ladies of Tata Hitachi. The group visited places of

tourist attraction at Kandy, Singiriya, Dambulla, Nuwara waterfalls, Tea gardens, Colombo etc. Being a large group of adventurous and fun loving females everyone had their own suggestions and choices of interests. But with the aid of Travel &Tour Department Kochi all the requirements of the participants were met. Mr Mahesh K, Head Outbound tours accompanied the group and provided required help and support all through the travel.

An excellent feedback was given by the tour leader, who expressed their sincere gratitude for all the arrangements throughout their travel.

Skoch Award for XPay Cash Wallet

NEWS cLIppINgS


Completion of unbeaten 4 years of Adilabad

Adilabad branch of UAE Exchange India completed victorious 4 years on 22nd November 2016.

Celebrations of 4th anniversary were carried out by the Adilabad team along with their customers and well wishers. The special invitees for this occasion were Dr.Narotham Reddy, paediatrician and Dr.(Mrs)Shyamala Sathyanarayana, Gynaecologist .

Mr N Gopi Zonal head, Mr K Srinivas Regional head and staff were present in the celebration along with 25 loyal customers. The customers shared the experience they had with the branch and some of them commented on the efficient customer service rendered by the staff. Dance performance by a customer’s daughter added more colour to the function.

11 Successful years of Kurnool branch

Kurnool branch of UAE Exchange India has triumphantly completed 11 glorious years of its functioning.

The function was attended by 50 HNI customers, Regional head Mr Srinivas Reddy, Branch head Mr Praveen Kumar and the staff of the branch. The presence of Mr S V Mohan Reddy, MLA as the chief guest on this occasion added more vibrancy to the event.

Mr S V Mohan Reddy inaugurated the events by lighting the lamp and cutting the cake along with Regional head and a few customers. RH in his speech talked about the importance of XPay cash Wallet and its functions in the present scenario. The chief guest praised the branch team for their relentless work of 11 years. He also re-launched XPay cash wallet scheme. The customers also responded with their feedback on the services of the branch.

The meeting came to an end with Vote of thanks by BH Mr Praveen Kumar.

UAE Exchange India Awards Little Ones for Remarkable Academic Achievements

Spreading the joyful message of Christmas and wishing a very prosperous and successful years

ahead, UAE Exchange awards cash prize for the precious gems of St. Joseph’s GLP & UPS School Manacherry, Kerala with amazing academic results. A token of appreciation is the greatest gift for little masters to acquire excellence in academic and extracurricular activities.

UAE Exchange awarded scholarships and certificates to 21 promising students from classes 1st to 7th during the Annual Christmas celebration conducted on 23rd December 2016. Three Teachers who are the real strength of every successful student were also awarded cash prize.

Mr. Sudhakar (CMO, UAE Exchange India) and Mr. Hari Shankar (Head - Business Support) represented the company to adorn the eligible candidates of the school with the cash awards and certificates.

A meeting of customers and free eye check up camp were conducted at Bodhan branch in connection

with their 4th anniversary celebrations. The chief guests of the function were Mr.Manohar Rao, Retired Teacher and Mr Sailoo, Civil contractor.

RH spoke mainly about XPay cash wallet and its benefits to the public. MR.Manohar Rao talked on our services and the relationship he had with the branch from the beginning. Those who received eye check up were supplied with medicines which were sponsored by Lions Club.

Machilipatnam branch organized a meeting of their customers in the presence of Mr Ramesh

sriramoji, BH Mr Avinash and branch staff. Around 30 customers participated in the function. The event was inaugurated by the RH and Mrs.Bhavani, landlord of the branch building. RH spoke about various products of the company, especially DSF and XPay cash wallet.

Another attraction of the meeting was classes by Mrs Bhavani on Yoga and its significance in daily life.

Customer meet at MachilipatnamBodhan Customer meet at Machilipatnam


NEWS cLIppINgS

Carmel school activity

The marketing techniques of Mangalore Balmatta branch has resulted in conducting activities for Mount Carmel school. As requested by the school authorities Balmatta

branch could arrange work shop project on “International School Activity on Currencies of the world.” This programme was attended by 3 teachers and 15 students of class V. Branch collected data for sending whatsApp updates of the upcoming DSF tour packages. The students were curious to know about the currency of different countries.

New branch in Ooty

Taking a positive step towards financial inclusion and to reach the extreme corners of the country with the latest financial innovations, UAE Exchange India, the renowned

financial hub inaugurated its new branch at Ooty, Tamil Nadu to reach the customers with its proficient services.

Mr. V George Antony, MD UAE Exchange India said “Through broadening our branch network, we strive to deliver flexible, end-to-end and instant financial services, ensuring customer satisfaction to all echelons of the society with a strong support for Digital India.”

Mr. Juby Mamachan, Zonal Head inaugurated the new branch in Ooty on 18th November 2016.

Impressive achievement by Pattom branch

Pattom branch of UAE Exchange organised a ten day tour to Delhi, Agra, Simla, and Manali for 156 students of Trinvandrum Medical College. The branch performed

this feat with the support and co operation of IATA Trinvandrum, Travel Department Kochi, RH, and ZH.

Mananthavady branch shifted for better customer convenience

UAE Exchange India, Mananthavady branch was shifted to new premises for the expediency of the customers. The new office was inaugurated by Mr O R Kelu, MLA on 7th

December 2016. Mr Sunil P Babu, Regional Head gave awareness about the company and the importance of XPay Cash Wallet in the present scenario.

The function was attended by other dignitaries, Regional Head and branch heads. On the occasion of the inauguration ceremony, the branch conducted free eye test camp in association with Ahalya eye hospital.

New Year Celebration with MD.

It was quite a delightful day for the entire Kannur Region on 3rd January with the presence

of Mr George Antony MD. The newly set up regional office was inaugurated by him in the presence of Mr Shobi Jose, Regional Head and all the branch heads of Kannur region. In the meeting that followed MD addressed the gathering with his inspirational speech. He talked

about the pathway, changes and success scaled by the Company, revealing the plans for the future and expected growth in the days to come .


HR FaccIa

192. Curb your worldly desires and you will strengthen your will. He who is deeply bound to material things runs into difficulty and unhappiness when they are taken away. Happy people enjoy worldly objects but do not become bound or wedded to them. Live a simple, uncluttered and productive existence. To simplify your life today, consider selling your television, stopping the junk mail, spending less, learning yoga, selling your car, practising meditation every morning and unplugging your ringing phone once in a while.

193. If you have not laughed today, you have not lived today. Laugh hard and loud. As William James said: “we don’t laugh because we are happy, we are happy because we laugh.”

194. Read The Charisma Factor - How to Develop Your Natural Leadership Ability by Robert J. Richardson and S. Katharine Thayer. It is a superb book for any aspiring leader, or a current one, who seeks to advance to the next level.

195. Travel often. The perspective offered by visiting new lands is important and allows one to appreciate the existence that we generally take for granted.

196. Each month set a physical fitness goal for yourself. Start to swim in July or learn to ski in January. The key is to arrive at a goal for the month, write it down, consider how to execute it and then, as the NIKE ad says: “Just Do It!”.

197. Things are always created

twice. There is always the mental creation which precedes the physical creation. Just as plans for a house must first be set down on paper before the house is started, so too should your day be planned within your mind early in the morning before the day begins. Visualize the wonders you desire this life to bring and they will materialize as your subconscious mind starts to focus on the attainment of goals. This is a true law of Nature.

198. Walk to work and notice the wonderful beauty in Nature.

199. Sleep less, spend less, do more, live longer and be greater.

200. Read this book over and over and share it with others!

The Top 200 Secrets of Success and the Pillars of Self Masteryby Robin Sharma

Answers for HRPZL 44How many of the following ditloids can you answer?

12 S O T Z - 12 Signs of The Zodiac

26 L I T A - 26 Letters in the Alphabet

52 C I A D - 52 Cards In a Deck

24 H A D - 24 Hours A Day

64 O A C B -64 Squares On A Chess Board

Latest Corporate Mantras

Blue Mooning: The term blue mooning is defined as having an alternative for your job when you are working in the current organization.Eustress: Eustress can be defined as a pleasant or curative stress. Eustress is the amount of positive energy that motivates, excites and moves you to achieve something. It’s the opposite of distress.Flexi – Time working : Employees work during a common core time period each day but have discretion in forming their total workday from a flexible set of hours outside the core.

Hr Puzzle 451. The man who invented it doesn’t want it. The man who bought it doesn’t need it. The man who needs it doesn’t know it. What is it?2. What Word this Text Rebus say? XLR83. 100 people are standing in a circle. The person standing at number 1 is having a sword. He kills the person next to him with the sword and then gives the sword to the third person. This process is carried out till there is just one person left. Identify who has survived?

Please send in your answers to [email protected] with HRPZL 45 as subject line mentioning your employee code. From the first 50 answers one lucky employee will get a surprise gift from HR.

HURRY UP!

Winner oF HrPzl 44

HrPzl 44: ms. KritiKa sriVastaVa

emPloyee Code: 14482

BranCH: luCKnoW

HR aWarDS

Region Branch Stars of the Region Total StarsBANGALORE KAMMANAHALLI RANJITH S B 10

BIHAR I CHAPRA KHUSHBU KUMARI SINGH 12

CALICUT NADAPURAM SHEEJA M.P 15

CHENNAI KODAMBAKKAM R NARESH KUMAR 10

COIMBATORE ERODE S SATHASIVAM 9

ERNAKULAM ALUVA AJIN K SAJU 12

GOA KOLHAPUR SUSHANT PRABHAKAR HUCCHE 10

GUJARAT ANAND JAIMIN PATEL 12

HYDERABAD KURNOOL PHANI KUMAR C 14

KANNUR PAYYANNUR AMITH KUMAR 9

KOLKATA BAGUIATI MINAKHSI GOSWAMI 15

KOLLAM KOTTARAKKARA SREEMOL O S 11

LUCKNOW GORAKHPUR WASEEM RAZA 7

MADURAI ARANTHANGI SIVA G 12

MANGALORE PUTTUR AVINASH 9

MUMBAI MUMBAI - KALYAN SANDHYA P SHETTY 11

NAGERCOIL NAGERCOIL U G GLADWIN JEBA 11

NIZAMABAD YELLAREDDYPET V SHANKER 14

PALAKKAD MANNARKKAD KRISHNAPRIYA P 12

PUNJAB I ADAMPUR MANGAT RAM 9

PUNJAB II JAGRAON GURMEET SINGH GREWAL 13

RAJASTHAN JHUN JHUNU JITENDRA KUMAR SHARMA 6

TANJORE ORATHANADU SEETHALAKSHMI M 10

THRISSUR GURUVAYUR ANAND M V 12

TIRUVALLA THALAYOLAPARAMBU JENSON JOSEPH 9

TRICHY LABAIKUDIKADU S SIVAKUMAR 10

TRIVANDRUM KAZHAKOOTOM ARUN KUMAR V 9

UDUPPI BELGAUM FAYAZKHAN K PATHAN 10

VIJAYAWADA BHIMAVARAM GOPI SUDHAKAR KANUBOYINA 14

Regional Toppers star employees for the month of October 2016

National Topper star employee for the month of October 2016Region Branch National Star Total StarsTrichy Perambalur V Vinodhini 15


HR aWarDS

Region Branch Stars of the Region Total StarsBANGALORE BANGALORE - KORAMANGALA SUDHAKAR S SHETTI 10

BIHAR I MIRGANJ JYOTI PATHAK 9

CALICUT CALICUT NAJMUDDEEN C 9

CHENNAI CHENNAI - ADAYAR P BALA MURUGAN 10

COIMBATORE COIMBATORE P PREM KUMAR 14

DELHI NOIDA BHARAT SHARMA 7

ERNAKULAM ERNAKULAM - PT USHA ROAD VINEETHA JOSEPH 13

GOA KOLHAPUR SUSHANT PRABHAKAR HUCCHE 10

GUJARAT AHMEDABAD - MANINAGAR PRAJAPATI MUKESH S 17

HYDERABAD HYDERABAD - TOLICHOWKI B GANESH 16

KANNUR KANNUR - CITY CENTRE JYOTHISH KUMAR M V 15

KOLKATA JHAMSHEDPUR ANUP DUTTA 14

KOLLAM ANCHAL SYAMRAJ R 12

LUCKNOW LUCKNOW KAMAL SRIVASTAVA 15

MADURAI THENI KARTHICK M 12

MANGALORE MANGALORE - LIC GOVINDA P 10

MUMBAI MUMBAI - BORIVALI SHWETA VERMA 17

NAGERCOIL NAGERCOIL U G GLADWIN JEBA 16

NIZAMABAD ARMUR MAKURI RAKESH 11

PALAKKAD CHERPULASSERY ANSARALI A K 13

PUNJAB I ADAMPUR NANCY 9

PUNJAB II KAPURTHALA BALJEET SINGH 15

RAJASTHAN JHUN JHUNU SURENDRA KUMAR 12

TANJORE NAGAPATTINAM R NIROSHA 11

THRISSUR GURUVAYUR ANAND M V 14

TIRUVALLA MAVELIKKARA ANUP R 9

TRICHY ATTUR MALATHI M 18

TRIVANDRUM TRIVANDRUM - VAZHUTHACAUD GANESH R 11

UDUPPI HUBLI PRAKASH D HANJAGI 9

VIJAYAWADA RAJAMUNDRY VASAMSETTI RAJA 11

Regional Toppers Star Employees for the month of November 2016


National Topper star employee for the month of November 2016Region Branch National Star Total StarsGoa Panaji Dayanand Dattaram Sangare 22

Star of Kannur region in November

Jyothish Kumar, Kannur City centre

Xpressions -January 201716

TRAVEL SPOTS

such as their bacula and claws. These bears have been used as performing pets due to their tamable nature. The sloth bear is listed as Vulnerable by the IUCN due to habitat loss and poaching.

BEHAVIOURAL PATTERNSAdult sloth bears may travel in pairs, with the males being gentle with cubs. They may fight for food. They walk in a slow, shambling motion, with their feet being set down in a noisy, flapping motion. They are capable of galloping faster than running humans. Although they appear slow and clumsy, sloth bears are excellent climbers, including cubs. They climb to feed and rest, though not to escape enemies, as they prefer to stand their ground. Sloth bear mothers carry cubs up to 9 months old on their backs instead of sending their cubs up trees as the primary defence against attacks by predators, such as tigers, leopards, and other bears. They are capable of climbing on smooth surfaces and hanging upside down like sloths. They are good swimmers, and primarily enter water to play. To mark their territories, sloth bears scrape trees with their forepaws, and

rub against them with their flanks.

LEGENDRamayana’s mythical Kishkinda is believed to be located on the bank of the Tungabhadra River. In the war against Ravana, Kishkinda the monkey kingdom of Sugriva, was Rama’s ally. When Rama’s army crossed Hampi en route to Sri Lanka they met Jambavantha, the bear, who joined the army.

FLORA & FAUNAThe flora of this sanctuary is primarily dry deciduous scrub and Southern thorn forests. At the time of declaration of the sanctuary, it was a large area of barren hillocks. But persistent efforts from Karnataka Forest Department have transformed the area into lush green forest, filled with local species of flora.

The sanctuary’s flagship species is the Indian Sloth Bear . It has a very stable population of Sloth bears and they reside in the numerous caves found in the hillocks within the sanctuary. The Sanctuary has a rough terrain consisting of Tiger, Leopard, Spotted Deer, Monitor Lizard, Mongoose, Pangolins, and

Daroji Sloth Bear Sanctuary is the only place where one can spot these Sloth bears,

who are the honey-lovers endemic to India. The sanctuary is located in Ballari District. The Sanctuary has a rough terrain and during the visit, tourist can spot animals like jackals, wild boards, mongoose, black-naped hares, leopards etc.

The major attraction is the sloth bear that is abundantly seen in these scrub-covered topographies. The sanctuary maintains a good number of sloth bears who are hidden in the caves in the green-covered hillocks. Unlike brown and black bears, sloth bears have lankier builds, long, shaggy coats that form a mane around the face, long, sickle-shaped claws, and a specially adapted lower lip and palate used for sucking insects. Sloth bears breed during spring and early summer and give birth near the beginning of winter. They feed on termites, honeybee colonies, and fruits. Sloth bears sometimes attack humans who encroach on their territories. Historically, humans have drastically reduced their habitat and diminished their population by hunting them for food and products

Daroji SlothBear Sanctuary


Star Tortoise etc. The bears are threatened due to

illegal mining in fragmented areas of the adjoining forests. The forest department and NGOs have also rescued many domestic bears from Daroji and surrounding areas. The age old practice of capturing a bear cub (claws are pulled out and male cubs are castrated) and domestication by Kalandars has reduced to a great extent, due to laws declaring them illegal. The domesticated bears were taken from home to home across villages and made to dance according to the direction of the Kalandars.

An exclusive sanctuary created for the preservation of Indian Sloth Bear, located in the Ballari district of Karnataka and 15 kms from the world heritage site Hampi. In October 1994, Government of Karnataka declared 5587.30 hectares of the Bilikallu reserve forest as Daroji Bear Sanctuary. Subsequently, in October 2009, the government added 2685.50 hectares of the Bukkasagara Reserve Forest to the sanctuary. The sanctuary is open between 4 PM to 6 PM on all days. There is a watch tower within the sanctuary, opposite Karadikallu Gudda, that provides a vantage point

to view the bears descending from the adjacent hillocks during evening hours.

It is a spectacular watch to witness animals living in the natural habitat. The big black bears that come out the shady bushes and go hunting on their own to curb their sugar cravings are an ideal watch during the visit to the Sanctuary.

HAMPI WILDERNESS RESORT The Sloth bear resort located nearby gives you ample experience to enjoy the natural habitat of the sloth bears. The resort also exercises many workable plans for the tourists visiting Hampi. Tourists can enjoy bird watching and experience the enchanting flora and fauna of the Sanctuary. One can spot the rare species of birds in the forests.

How to Reach Daroji Sloth Bear Sanctuary

By RoadThe easiest way to reach the sanctuary is by road from Bangalore -Chitradurga which is around 199 km and then from there to

Hospet close to 135 km. From Hospet to Kamalapura and to the sanctuary takes almost 12 and 10 km respectively. The historic hamlet, Hampi is hardly 20 kms away from the sanctuary.

By RailNearest railway station to Daroji Sloth Bear Sanctuary is Hospet which is around 22 km away.

By Air Hubli is the nearest airport and it lies 143 km away from Hampi. Belgaum airport lies around 720 km away.

Motto - Building a Home for Sloth BearsThe Sanctuary is spread over 82.7 square km and is exclusively for the preservation of the giant sloth bear, which are now swept away from the face of earth. The Sanctuary comes under the governance of Kamalapura wildlife subdivision of the Karnataka Forest Department.

The area in Bellary, between the Daroji in the Taluk of Sandur and Ramasagar located in Hospet, contained many sloth bears. With lots of illegal mining coming up in the forest area, the continuous human appearances threatened the existence of the bears. Hence this Sanctuary was put up and the area where they were abundantly found was declared as the Sanctuary.

Website: http://www.bellary.nic.in/bearpark.htm

“the major attraction is the sloth bear that is abundantly seen in these scrub-covered topographies. The sanctuary maintains a good number of sloth bears who are hidden in the caves in the green-covered hillocks”

photo courtesy : Paul Williams, Wikipedia

Xpressions -January 201718

CHildren’s day CeleBra-tions – aS NarratED by mr.mD hamEED, rEgIoNaL auDIt IN chargE, VIjayaWaDa rEgIoN.

This is the picture of Master Abdul Rahman, my son who took part in the Fancy dress competition which was held in connection with Children’s Day Celebration at IAS International School Hyderabad. Abdul Rahman

was dressed as a Traffic Signal post. Children are God’s gift to their parents. They are innocent, admirable, and

pure, loved by everyone. Children are the key to success and development of a country. Jawaharlal Nehru rightly said, children are a country’s actual strength and they would make the nation in future.

ACHIEVEMENT

Ms Riya Mini Varma (Digital Marketing Dept) has become Google certified Adwords Professional and she is

enrolled in Google Partnership Program for doing Search Engine Marketing.

Google Adwords Certification is a professional accreditation that Google offers to individuals who demonstrate proficiency in basic and advanced aspects of AdWords. An AdWords certification allows individuals to demonstrate that Google recognizes them as an expert in online advertising.

google CertiFied proFESSIoNaL

Feel free to send us your feedback such as suggestions, criticism and appreciations on Xpressions magazine. You may also contribute articles, poems, travelogues, stories, achievements, talent & artworks etc to be published in the magazine.

Also send good, printable quality photographs that you have clicked to be selected as cover picture of the magazine. This will help us improve the quality of the magazine.

Literary and art contributions of your children and close family members will also be considered for publishing.

Editor

WRITE TO US


UPDATED NEWS buLLEtIN

The Union Government has launched Integrated Voice Response System (IVRS) system in a bid to tackle the

call drop menace. The system was launched at multiple

locations including Delhi and Mumbai to obtain direct feedback from subscribers on call quality on the issue of frequent call drops.

It is now available in Delhi, Mumbai, Punjab, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand,

Prime Minister launches UPI based mobile payment app called BHIM

PM launched UPI based mobile payment application called BHIM (Bharat Interface for Money) at the Digi Dhan Mela held in New Delhi. The app is rebranded version of UPI (Unified Payment Interface) and USSD (Unstructured Supplementary Service Data) for

simpler digital payments without cash.

KEY FACTSBHIM is Aadhaar-based payments app developed by the National Payment Corporation of India (NPCI). The app allows easily transferring money or making a payment from your bank account using only phone number. It can work even on basic phones as it supports USSD payments. It has mobile wallet facility in which money can be loaded. Using it anyone can directly connect their phone to bank account like a debit card. The app also allows user to scan a QR code. The merchant can also generate his QR code through the app. Payment can be done through scanning QR code. Merchants can also use the BHIM app to receive money from a smartphone or Aadhaar Pay if customer has linked a bank account and Aadhaar ID. Payments through this app are happening directly from and to bank accounts, so merchants don’t have to worry about transferring wallet earnings to the bank account. All major UPI connected Indian banks accepts money through BHIM app. Even banks not connected to UPI can receive money through BHIM through IFSC assigned to banks

Government launches IVRS platform to tackle call drops

Maharashtra and Goa and soon will be extended to the entire country.

HOW IT WORKS?Subscribers will receive an IVRS call from a short code 1955 and will be asked a few questions such as whether they are facing call drops in their area or not.

Mobile users can also send a toll-free SMS to the short code, containing their location where they are facing the problem.

The feedback received will be shared with operators so they can take corrective steps in the problem areas and address the issue of call drops.

Initially, it will be utilised obtaining feedback for call drops and subsequently it will extended to capture consumer feedback in other areas as well.

WHAT IS CALL DROP?Call drop occurs after voice call is interrupted or disconnected before it is completed after being successfully established. Thus, it can be said that it represents telecom operator’s inability to maintain a successfully established call prior to their normal completion. Reasons: Call drop may occur if signal strength of mobile tower of telecom operator goes below the minimum acceptable single to make a call. It may also even occur due to interference created by bad environmental conditions and because of improper hard handoff if user is moving from one cell to another cell.


LAUGH IT out

LEAVEAn employee goes to see his boss in the office.“Boss,” he says, “we’re doing some heavy house-cleaning at home tomorrow, and my wife needs me to help with cleaning the kitchen and the garage. Please allow me one day leave”.“Sorry, but we’re short-handed,” the boss replies. “I can’t give you the day off.”“Thanks, boss,” says the employee. “I knew I could count on you!”

MOVE YOUR CARBoss phoned his staff Arun.He asked, “Is everything okay at the office?”Arun: “Yes, it’s all under control. It’s been a very busy day; I am still in the office.”“Can you do me a favour?” boss asked.Arun: “Of course, sir what is it?”Boss: “Move your car forward, I’m behind you trying to park my car”

TALKING DOG

A salesman dropped into an office to see a business customer.Not a soul was in the office except a big dog emptying the waste baskets.

The salesman stared at the animal, wondering if his imagination could be playing tricks on him.The dog looked up and said, “Don’t be surprised. This is just part of my job.”“Incredible!” exclaimed the man. “I

can’t believe it! Does your boss know what a prize he has in you? An animal that can talk!”“Please don’t tell him!” said the dog. “If he finds out I can talk, he’ll make me answer the phone, too!”

SICK LEAVEEmployee –“Sir I am not feeling well” I may be sanctioned two days sick leave.Boss – “See, we are a small company. So here sick leave means, if you are sick you leave the company”.

THREE ENVELOPESA new manager spends a week at his new office with the manager he is replacing.On the last day, the departing manager tells him, “I’ve left three numbered envelopes in the desk drawer. Open an envelope if you encounter a crisis you can’t solve.”Three months down the road there is a major drama in the office and the manager feels very threatened by it all. He remembers the parting words of his predecessor and opens the first envelope.The message inside says “Blame your predecessor!”He does this and gets off the hook. About half a year later, the company is experiencing a dip in sales, combined with serious product problems. The manager quickly opens the second envelope.The message read, “Reorganize!”He starts to reorganize and the company quickly rebounds. Three months later, at his next crisis, he opens the third envelope.The message inside says, “Prepare three envelopes.”


LIFE StyLE(Continued from December edition)

What is health? If you ask a doctor, he can only tell you what the diseases are or

what the symptoms are. He may know the different technical terms for each and every disease and he may also be able to prescribe the cure. Thus,

we can only state that what remains when there is no disease is health. The truth is, health does not have to be created; it is either hidden by illness or it reveals itself when the illness is cured. Health is inside us. Health is our nature. We are the cause of our own suffering. Acupuncture healing helps to Calm the Anxiety in our mind and relieve tensions from the Body. We need to go to the root cause of the Disease and most of the time it’s our life style and our Vision towards Life.

We seek Quick Remedies for a problem. They are certainly quick to show result but they are definitely not the solution for that problem. A wrong action is often intervened immediately by our conscience but if we ignore the voice repeatedly, it will slowly fade away and we stop hearing it. The suppressed feelings are believed to get stored in some part of our body which will pilot to a disease in future.

Deep meditation help to decrease the feelings of jealousy, hatred, anger etc. In short, the control of mind over us decreases and we become the master of

Rajesh M CHead, Risk Monitoring (Mr Rajesh MC is the holder of Diploma in Acupuncture Science (DASc))

Health, Disease, Acupuncture healing and Meditation … .

our life for the first time. In healing all those hurtful feelings and emotions which we have suppressed in ourselves gets released and we feel very light enabling us to become younger and fresher. The release of suppressed feelings gives back our real nature and feelings of joy with a lively spirit and a young body like a child. Meditation is the thus an essential part of our life in relieving diseases and dealing with emotions.

Treatments can give us permanent change when we co-operate. Old patterns of life style and mindset often tend to return, as prevention, one need to be more meditative. All healing should be through meditation.

Nature is the Best healer. Early morning walk, fresh air, lush green garden, nutritious food prepared with Love, sound of rain drops and flowing water, all heals us. Anything that connects or brings us close to nature can act as a healer.

FUNCTIONS OF HEALER The healer reconnect us with nature; touches the body of the ill person and becomes a link between him and the source. The patient may not be connected directly with the source but becomes indirectly connected. Once the energy starts flowing, he is healed. Healing is one of the most delicate dimensions. The lesser the activity of the healer, the greater will be the healing. But if the healer is more active, the passage of healing will get blocked. With a little effort, we can regain our health naturally…

1. Trust your body which sustains life and obey its orders. 2. In case of any illness, it is our body which signals us. 3. Follow the instructions of your body 4. The biggest blunder in our life is to do anything that badly affects our body.It is more important to know how and when we take food rather than what we eat.1.Food is taken for hunger and not to fill the stomach2.Drink water if thirsty3.Never drink water with food4.Supper before sunset, if late, only uncooked food shall be taken.5.Sleep early, at least before ten pm6.Wake up between 3am and 5 am7.Take bath as early as possible8.Use only edibles for eating and all other purposes.


‘Aurora borealis’, the lights of the northern hemisphere, means ‘dawn of the north’.

‘Aurora australis’ means ‘dawn of the south’. The lights are seen above the magnetic poles of the northern and southern hemispheres. They are known as ‘Aurora borealis’ in the north and ‘Aurora australis’ in the south. The bright dancing lights of the aurora are actually collisions between electrically charged particles from the sun that enter the earth’s atmosphere.

Aurora’s displays appear in many colours although pale green and pink are the most common. Shades of red, yellow, green, blue, and violet have been reported. The lights appear in many forms from patches or scattered clouds of light to streamers, arcs, rippling curtains or shooting rays that light up the sky with an eerie glow. There are many legends among cultural groups and other aboriginal people even believed they were the spirits of their people.

ORIGIN OF THE NORTHERN LIGHTS

The Northern Lights are actually the result of collisions between gaseous particles in the Earth’s atmosphere with charged particles released from the sun’s atmosphere. Variations in colour are due to the type of gas particles that are colliding. The most common aurora colour, a pale yellowish-green, is produced by oxygen molecules located about 60 miles above the earth. Rare, all-red

AMAZING rEaLIty

auroras are produced by high-altitude oxygen, at heights of up to 200 miles. Nitrogen produces blue or purplish-red aurora.

The temperature above the surface of the sun is millions of degrees Celsius. At this temperature, collisions between gas molecules are frequent and explosive. Free electrons and protons are thrown from the sun’s atmosphere by the rotation of the sun and escape through holes in the magnetic field. Blown towards the earth by the solar wind, the charged particles are largely deflected by the earth’s magnetic field. However, the earth’s magnetic field is weaker at either pole and therefore some particles enter the earth’s atmosphere and collide with gas particles. These collisions emit light that we perceive as the dancing lights of the north (and the south).

The lights of the Aurora generally extend from 80 kilometres (50 miles) to as high as 640 kilometres (400 miles) above the earth’s surface.

Which is the best spot to view the northern lights?Northern Lights can be seen in the northern or southern hemisphere, in an irregularly shaped oval centred over each magnetic pole. Scientists have learned that in most instances northern and southern auroras are mirror-like images that occur at the same time, with similar shapes and colours.

Because the phenomena occur near

the magnetic poles, northern lights have been seen as far south as New Orleans in the western hemisphere, while similar locations in the east never experience the mysterious lights. However the best places to watch the lights (in North America) are in the north western parts of Canada, particularly the Yukon, Nunavut, Northwest Territories and Alaska. Aurora’s displays can also be seen over the southern tip of Greenland and Iceland, the northern coast of Norway and over the coastal waters north of Siberia. Southern auroras are not often seen as they are concentrated in a ring around Antarctica and the southern Indian Ocean.

Areas that are not subject to ‘light pollution’ are the best places to watch for the lights. Areas in the north, in smaller communities, tend to be best.

When is the best time to watch for Aurora Display?Researchers have also discovered that auroras activity is cyclic, peaking roughly every 11 years.

Winter in the north is generally a good season to view lights. The long periods of darkness and the frequency of clear nights provide many good opportunities to watch the auroras displays. Usually the best time of night (on clear nights) to watch for auroras displays is local midnight (adjust for differences caused by daylight savings time).

tHeNorthern Lights

Courtesy:Kristian Pikner, Wikimedia commons


HUES OF INDIa

Lohri

Lohri is a popular Punjabi festival celebrated by people of the Punjab region of India

which has many origins. OriginAccording to folk lore, in ancient times Lohri was celebrated on winter solstice day, a cultural celebration of winter solstice, on the shortest day of the year.It is for this reason that people believe the Lohri night is meant to be the longest night of the year and on the day after Lohri, day light is meant to increase. People believe that nights gradually shorten “by the grain of one sesame seed” once the winter solstice passes. However, instead of celebrating Lohri on the day winter solstice occurs, Punjabis celebrate it on the last day of the month during which winter solstice takes place, linking Lohri to the Bikrami calendar and merging the festival with Makar Sankranti which is celebrated in the Punjab region as Maghi Sangrand. Therefore, Lohri commemorates the passing of the winter solstice. Scientifically, the shortest day of the year is around 21–22 December after which the days begin to get longer. Accordingly, winter solstice begins on 21 December or 22 December and Lohri ought to be celebrated on the day of winter solstice followed by Maghi (Makar) Sangrand the next day.

A key feature of Lohri is the bonfire. Lighting of the fire has been common in winter solstice festivals across the world: it signifies the return of longer days. In various places of Punjab, about 10 to 15 days before Lohri, groups of young and teenage boys and girls go around the neighbourhood collecting logs for the Lohri bonfire. Bonfire is an ancient as well as key part of Lohri traditions. Punjabis continue to practice their Punjabi folk religion, respect to the seasons and the natural elements of fire, wind, water and the earth is very significant. In the Punjab region, the year is divided into six seasons. The Punjabi months of Maghar and Poh represent the “hemant” season when winter is at its height. Lohri is celebrated on the last day of Poh and therefore, is a festival dedicated to the end of the Winter season, whereas Teej (known as Teeyan in Punjabi) is dedicated to the rain/Monsoon season and Basant Festival is dedicated to the Spring season. Lohri is a Punjabi festival celebrated by all faiths of the Punjab region. Lohri is traditionally associated with the harvest of the rabi crops (winter crops) such as sugarcane in January and therefore, Lohri is seen by some to be a harvest festival. Sugarcane products such as gurh and gachak are central to Lohri celebrations, as are nuts which are harvested in January.

It is also traditional to eat “til rice” which is made by mixing jaggery, sesame seeds and rice. The other important food item of Lohri is radish which can be harvested between October and January. Punjabi farmers see the day after Lohri (Maghi) as the financial New Year. Kite flying on Lohri is popular in some parts of Punjab. People get onto the roof tops and fly kites of various sizes and colours.

Dulla BhattiThe central theme of many Lohri songs is the legend of Dulla Bhatti, a hero,who lived in Punjab during the reign of Mughal Emperor Akbar. Besides robbing the rich, he rescued poor Punjabi girls, being forcibly taken to be sold in slave markets. He arranged their marriages to boys and provided them with dowries. Amongst them were two girls Sundri & Mundri(married in 1614) who gradually became theme of Punjab’ folklore. So some Lohri songs express gratitude to Dulla Bhatti. Apart from Punjab, people from other northern Indian states of the Punjab region, Haryana, Delhi, Himachal Pradesh, Chandigarh and Jammu become busy making preparations for Lohri. The festival is observed as Lal Loi in the Sindhi community.


HEALTH tIpS

Your body posture may be wreaking havoc on your bones, joints, and muscles as

you sit in office at your desk with a computer or a phone. “People who sit at their computers for hours every day -- they’re in for serious medical problems,” says Sharon Hame, MD, associate clinical professor at UCLA’s department of orthopaedic surgery. “We’re seeing more things than carpal tunnel; those pains go up the arm to the elbow and shoulder and then translate to the neck and back. It’s a huge problem.”

So what can you do to ward off pain and stiffness and boost your energy and alertness? Here are few simple stretching exercises at your desk that will release tension from head to toe. They take only a few minutes. Set the alarm on your cell phone or computer to go off every hour to remind you it’s time to get up and stretch.

1.Simply stand up and sit down without using your hands. It is a challenge. This could be done while talking over telephone.

2.Get rid of your desk and chair and substitute by sitting on an exercise ball while working enabling the movement of all the muscles which help to stay balanced.

3.Take deep breaths and shrug your shoulders at least thrice repeatedly.

4.Shake your head gently while answering ‘yes’ or ‘no’ or even ask silly questions to you facilitating the above movement.

5.Loosen your hands, stretch out and hold your fist and move it in the air making circular movements in different directions.

6.Point your fingers allowing movements of your hands, wrist and forearms to different sides.

7.Release the upper body with a torso twist, inhale air with a deep breath, turn to the right holding on to your chair, release the grip and repeat turning to the left.

8.Extend your legs by grabbing the seat of your chair, flex and point your toe fingers five times with legs straight in front of you so that they are parallel to the floor. Repeat it few times.

9.Stretch your back with a “big hug”. Hug your body, placing the right hand on your left shoulder and the left hand on your right shoulder. Breathe in and out, releasing the area between your shoulder blades.

10.Extend one arm out straight in front of you. With the other hand, grab the elbow of the outstretched arm and pull it across your chest, stretching

StrEtch aND release tension

your shoulder and upper back muscles. Hold. Release. Stretch out the other arm in front of you -- repeat.

11.Stretch your back and shoulders with a “leg hug” by sitting on the edge of your chair and putting your feet flat on the floor, lean over chest to knees, dangle your arms loosely and release your neck. Now bring your hands behind your legs, right hand grasping left wrist, left hand grasping the right. Feel the stretch in your back, shoulders and neck. Hold and release. Repeat it three times.

12.Sit up tall in your chair, or stand up. Stretch your arms overhead and interlock your fingers. Turn the palms to the ceiling as you lift your chin up, tilt your head back and gaze up at the ceiling, too. Inhale, exhale, release.

13.Substitute walks for email. 14.Don’t eat at your desk. Instead

of a lunch meeting at your desk, walk together to a neighbourhood sandwich shop.

15.Talk while you walk. A pleasant talk is more efficient and productive, getting more oxygen to the brain, with no distractions, and more likely to remember what was discussed.

Make work a pleasure and add joy to life.


FEATURE

Hugging Day was first celebrated on January 21, 1986 in USA, an annual

event dedicated to hugging, created by Kevin Zaborney and occurs annually on January 21. The idea of National Hug Day is to encourage everyone to hug family and friends more often. Zaborney cautions to ask first if one is unsure of the response. He chose January 21 as it fell between the Christmas and New Year’s Holidays and Valentine’s Day and birthdays when he found people are generally in low spirits. It has spread all over the world and is called by many names - Hug Day, World Hug Day; Send a Hug Day, and International Hug Day.

Scientific studies have demonstrated that hugs are incredibly good for us.

BENEFITS OF HUGGING!1) Hugs make us feel “happy”!

When we hug another person, our bodies release oxytocin, a hormone associated with “happiness,” according to scientific studies.

2) Hugs alleviate stress! Just as a good hug increases our oxytocin levels,

it decreases our cortisol or “stress” levels.

3) Babies need hugs as much as water and food! According to researchers at Harvard University, hugs help promote normal levels of cortisol necessary for child development.

4) Hugs make us better students! Students who receive a supportive touch from a teacher are twice as likely to volunteer in class.

5) Hugs improve our game! Scientists at University of California, Berkley discovered that the more affectionate members of a team are with each other, the more likely they are to win.

6) A hug a day keeps the doctor away! A hug stimulates the thymus gland, which in turn regulates the production of white blood cells that keep us healthy and disease-free.

7) A hug stops the bug! Researchers at Carnegie Mellon proved that individuals who were sick and received hugs had less severe symptoms and were able to get better quicker.

8) A hugging heart is a healthy heart! Research from University of North

Carolina showed that a good hug helps ease blood flow and lower cortisol levels, which in turn help lower our heart rates.

9) A hugging couple is a happy couple! Couples that experience their partners’ love through physical affection share higher oxytocin levels.

10) Hugs let someone know you care without having to say a word! According to Dacher Keltner, professor of psychology at University of California, Berkeley, we can identify love from simple human touch – imagine how much love a big hug can communicate!

This global ‘virtual’ Hug for Peace celebrating World Hug Day is your opportunity to show the world that ‘peace begins with me’. We want to reach millions of people in the simplest heartfelt way that is possible, a hug! Celebrate it in your own special way. Create a hug chain, initiate a group hug, or substitute hugging for handshakes in honour of the occasion!


FEEDBACK

Dear Shaini,Just want to say thank you for making our trip so wonderful. Trip to Thailand was a dream come true for us and it wouldn’t be any better without your service. Thank you for choosing the right package for me and my family. The information, recommendations and timely response is much appreciated. The whole trip me and my family felt so secured and had confidence in navigating and exploring.

The accommodation and food was so awesome and the whole trip was very well organised.

When I plan for our next trip it would be definitely with UAE Exchange, “Loved it” and thank you once again for making my trip so memorable.

Regards, Ravisanker

apprEcIatIoN For amalapUram branCh

apprEcIatIoN For ColaChel branCh

Noorul Islam Centre For Higher Education

Noorul Islam Centre For Higher Education DEPARTMENTOFBIOMEDICALENGINEERING

Kumaracoil, Thuckalay - 629 180 Kanyakumari Dist, Tamil Nadu, India

Email:[email protected]

OFFICE: +91 04651 366136 Mobile: +91 9150235294

Dr. M. MURUGAN Head of The Department

This is a thank you note for our travel agent UAE - Colachel from India, we (Rotarians of District 3212) contacted UAE - Colachel with our interest to visit Malaysia and we have around 3 days, they organized a very detailed and nice tour tailored for us to see the beauty of Malaysia. Especially Genting Highlands, Pattu cave, KL tower

The Itinerary was perfect but the people who implemented it were even better. The manager, the representatives, the drivers and the guides were all professionals and worthy of saying thanks for a well done job. Specially I want thank Shajin and Sabeer for their extended patience in answer our queries and making us for the international Tour

Normally people are fond of creating complains for faults that happen to them from the tour agents but few will remember to thank who worked hard to make their vacation or trip a success.

UAE - Colachel did that to us and we are happy to have chosen them over others and we do highly recommend them to travelers who will thank us for that.

Prof. MURUGAN M

apprEcIatIoN For shaini m, travel head nilambUr


Click by Arun S R – Anchal

Click by Amritha Vinod – AO Recon Click by Jayaprakash G R - Nedumangad

Click by Shamna K V – ROC Kannur Click by Sobin Joseph – Kattapana

PICTURE gaLLEry

Gandhinathan S - Gobichettipalayam


THOUGHTS For jaNuary

Here is a touching story about a soldier who was returning home after fighting in the

world war. On his way back, he called his parents from a distant place. “Mummy and Daddy, I’m returning home, but I need a favour from you. My friend is with me and I would like to bring him home.”

“Why not son,” they replied, “bring him along, we also would love to meet him.”

“But there is a problem” the son continued, “he was wounded pretty badly in the war. He trod on a land mine and lost an arm and a leg. He is lonely and helpless, so I want him to stay with us”.

“We are sad to know that, son. Maybe he can live somewhere else and we will help him find a place.“ “No, I want him to live with us.” The son replied.

“My dear Son,” said the father, “Realize what you are asking. Don’t you realize that such a crippled person would be a permanent burden on us?

Our family life will be disturbed and it is going to be an everlasting hindrance to our lives. So you just come home and let your friend go elsewhere and find a living on his own”. Suddenly, the phone was disconnected and the parents did not hear from him anymore. A few days passed by and one day they received a call from the police informing that their son had fallen from a building and died. The police thought it was suicide.

The parents were broken hearted and they flew to that place where the body of their son was kept. They were accompanied to the city morgue to identify the body. They identified him, but they were shocked to notice something dreadful. They saw that their son had only one arm and one leg.

Many of us are like the parents in this story. Always ready to deliver words but very stingy with actions. Very easily we are able to love and accommodate with those who are good-looking or fun loving, but we

Home Coming

deliberately keep away from people who are creating nuisance for us or make us feel uncomfortable. We would often shun away from people who aren’t as healthy, beautiful, or smart as we are.

Friendship is God’s most precious gift and a miracle which dwells in the heart. We don’t know how it all happens or when such a feeling gets started but we identify and enjoy the special lift it always brings. Friends lend an ear, share a word of praise and always want to open their hearts to each other. Friends are very rare jewels who help us to smile and encourage us to scale greater heights.

Show your friends how you care by your little thoughts, a nod, a hug or a pat making them feel wanted and not lonesome.

Let us always pray for the strength to accept people as they are and understand them keeping in mind that all what we have are God’s gift and loving others should be unconditional.


DELICIOUSFLaVourS

Process Take a pan and heat it in a medium flame, Add little oil and heat it. Add finely sliced onion and red chilly and stir well. Add cut tomatoes and stir till it is half cooked. Finally add grated coconut and stir for two minutes and allow the mixture to cool. Grind the entire mixture adding salt to taste in a jar with required water for consistency and transfer the mixture to a bowl. Heat little oil, add black gram seeds & mustard till it starts to burst, add curry leaf and transfer the content of the mixture into a bowl. Chutney is ready for Iddali, Dosa, Appam, Paratha, Poori, Pongal , Masala Dosa etc.

Ingredients

Bread Slices (White) : 5 Nos Ghee : 100 grams Sugar syrup : Made from 100 grams of Sugar boiled and melted with very little water

Ingredients

Grated Coconut : One CupTomatoes of Medium size : TwoRed Chilly : 5 to 6 numbers, seed removedSliced onion : 1 Number medium sizeMustard Seeds : 1/2 tea spoonCurry leaves : A fewUrad dal (black gram) : 5 to 10 numbers Oil : 3 Tea spoon

Process Take 5 slices of white bread and remove sides to get white area

Add very little water and make it into balls of same sizes

Take a pan and melt ghee and cook the bread balls till it turns mild brown

Remove from ghee and dip it into the Sugar caramel (Syrup) and take out to dry hard

Bread Laddu is ready. If required Gilebi colour and little cardamom powder can be added to bread While making it into balls. (Optional).

Bread Laddu

Tomato Chutney

Kallada VinodHead, Investment Advisory Services


TRAVEL WorLD

Do you know the most peaceful countries in the world? Since 2007 each year, the Global

Peace Index has been issued by the Institute for Economics and Peace and is a measurement of nations’ and regions’ peacefulness based on external and internal measures. The following are some of such countries.

ICELANDIceland tops the list of the most peaceful countries in the world, staying out of the main conflicts in the world. Iceland seldom or never hits the headlines yet the country has remained as an amazing place of spectacular natural beauty.

Tourists from all parts of the world come to Iceland to view its huge glaciers and raging volcanoes, as well as numerous unique natural and cultural attractions in Reykjavik, the capital of Iceland.

DENMARK The second peaceful country on earth and it’s really a safe place to live in. Even while Copenhagen, the capital of Denmark, was under occupation by the Nazis during the World War II, it still did not fight.

The point is that people living in Denmark prefer to focus on economic matters, instead of involving themselves in various armed conflicts. Danish people are very friendly, open and helpful.

AUSTRIAAustria is a small landlocked South Central European country, gains a place on the list of the most peaceful countries in the world. Since World War I and World War II, Austria has

Peaceful Countries in the world

been content to embrace a life of peace and serenity.

With its world-famous resorts in the breathtaking Alps, and magnificent cultural centres like Vienna, it’s not surprising to see Austria on this list.

NEW ZEALANDEach year since 2007, the Institute for Economics and Peace has ranked New Zealand as one of the most peaceful countries in the world. With a small percentage of its population in prison, limited military capability, strong relations with Australia and down-to-earth hospitality, New Zealand is a wonderful country to live in.

This is a country of natural beauty, diverse scenery and quirky natives. Visitors from all over the world come to New Zealand to experience the rugged landscape, breathtaking alpine glaciers, awesome beaches and fantastic geothermal and volcanic activity. The country is also renowned for its fine wines and there are a great number of grape varieties planted throughout New Zealand.

JAPANOne of the most enchanting countries culturally, Japan has the third largest economy in the world. Since the World War II, Japan has been really peaceful, with little internal conflict and low crime. The country settles on an internal security force in order to maintain the peace. Japan is a peaceful as well as breathtakingly beautiful country worth visiting.

SLOVENIAA beautiful European country, Slovenia is another peaceful country. The country got its lowest marks

in funding for the United Nations peacekeeping missions, number of police and security officers, level of perceived criminality in society, number of organized internal conflicts, violent protests, and number of internal and external wars fought.

Slovenia deserves its place on the list of the most peaceful countries on Earth. Moreover, with its wonderful cities like Maribor and Ljubljana teeming with unique culture, Slovenia is a fantastic travel destination.

IRELANDWith its rich historical sites, amazing green pastures and friendly people, it’s not surprising that Ireland is among the most peaceful countries. Ireland is an overall fabulous country with a plethora of reasons for tourism. Its rich literary history, castle-topped hills, spectacular coastline and legendary hospitality make Ireland a wonderful place to visit any time of the year.

BHUTANAccording to the Global Peace Index, Bhutan is also among the 20 most peaceful countries on Earth. The report uses 22 indicators to measure internal peace, including a number of police per 100,000 people, levels of perceived criminality, the level of organized crime, and external peace indicators that include military expenditure as a percentage of gross domestic product and nuclear and heavy weapons capabilities Bhutanese people are peace loving and they are well cultured. Plus, Bhutan boasts plenty of spectacular attractions for everyone.

Source: Amerikanki travel


WEDDING bELLS

John V M & JincyPathanamthitta

Anuraj Krishnan & Vidhya VijayakumarAdoor

Surjith M & Sruthi - Colachel

Arjun Sarkar & Moumita DasBaguiati

Ravi Shankar Gupta & Parvathi KumariMuzaffarpur

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