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NEW YORK • WASHINGTON D.C. • CHICAGO • ATLANTA • CALIFORNIA VOL 25, No. 1332 April 17, 2020 50¢ Periodical Postage

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This week’s question

Last week’s result

YES 56% NO 44%

Some say the virus startedin the lab-Do you believe?

Sunil Shah topsas businessman &community activist

COUNTRIES PRESSURED

CONTENTSBollywood -------------------------- 30Classifieds ------------------------ 28Community Post -------------- 17-23Edit Page --------------------------- 29Horoscope ------------------------- 26Immigration Post ---------------- 24Life Style ------------------------ 14-15Philosophy ------------------------- 25Punjab Post ----------------------- 31Info/Highlights ---------------------- 2Real Estate ----------------------- 8-9TechBiz Post ------------------ 10-11Travel & Hospitality Post -------- 16Wellness Post ---------------- 12-13

To loosen virus restrictions

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Lockdownextended inIndia till May 3

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TOKYO: South Korean officials warned that hard-earned progress fighting the coronavirus pandemiccould be upset by new infections at bars and leisurespots, highlighting global tensions between govern-ments desperate to maintain social distancing andcitizens eager to resume their lives as economic pres-sure mounts and infections slow in some places.

Some European nations have started tentativemoves to ease their shutdowns. Hard-hit Spain, whichreported its lowest daily growth in infections in threeweeks, will allow workers in some nonessential indus-tries to return to factories and construction sites.

South Korea's caseload has slowed from earlyMarch, when it was reporting around 500 new casesa day, but officials have warned of a broader quietspread, pointing to transmissions at locations such asbars that may indicate eased attitudes toward socialdistancing.

South Korean Prime Minster Chung Sye-kyun saidofficials were discussing new public guidelines thatwould allow for people to engage in certain levels ofeconomic and social activity while also maintainingdistance to slow the spread of the virus.

Prime Minister Narendra Modi

Will trump declare completelockdown across US?

Indian-origin MissEngland returnsto NHS duty

Stay where youare: Amb. Sandhuto Indian students

‘Please quarantinepoliticizingCOVID’: Tedros

Indian-originsurgeon dies ofCOVID-19 in UK

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30HIGHLIGHTS

Bollywood:Bhumi learns from mother"My mom and I always wanted to have a hy-droponics garden of our own where we growour own vegetables and can have a fully sus-tainable lifestyle." Says Bhumi Pednekar.

4Cover Story:Countries pressuredSouth Korean officials warned that hard-earned progress fighting the coronaviruspandemic could be upset by new infec-tions at bars and leisure spots.

17Community:Shah businessman & activistIndian community activist, Sunil Shah,has a good number of achievements buthis friends point out to two commend-able mile stones in his career.

24Immigration:Stranded Indian workersFollowing a distress call on Twitter, theConsulate General of India in Dubai pro-vided food supplies to a group of 22stranded Indian workers.

14Lifestyle:Never shake hands: FauciInfectious disease expert Anthony Faucisaid Americans should never shakehands again, the practice would preventthe spread of novel coronavirus.

10Techbiz:US pharma to donate HCQ tabsIndian-American owned pharma firmhas pledged to donate 3.4 million HCQtabs to the key COVID-19 battlegroundincluding statesNY and LA.

16Travel:Tranquil and glamorous TahitiCommonly referred to as The Islands ofTahiti, French Polynesia is a collection of118 islands and atolls scattered acrossan impressive nautical surface area.

12Wellness:Your child's mental healthChildren perceive changes in surround-ings as early as they come into thisworld. It's impossible to keep them inthe dark and also inadvisable.

India Post 3www.indiapost.com

April 17, 2020

India Post April 17, 20204

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Cover/Top Stories

COUNTRIES PRESSUREDTo loosen virus restrictions

TOKYO: South Korean officialswarned that hard-earned progressfighting the coronavirus pandemiccould be upset by new infections atbars and leisure spots, highlighting glo-bal tensions between governmentsdesperate to maintain social distancingand citizens eager to resume their livesas economic pressure mounts and in-fections slow in some places.

Some European nations have startedtentative moves to ease their shut-downs. Hard-hit Spain, which reportedits lowest daily growth in infections inthree weeks, will allow workers in somenonessential industries to return to fac-tories and construction sites.

South Korea's caseload has slowedfrom early March, when it was reportingaround 500 new cases a day, but officialshave warned of a broader quiet spread,pointing to transmissions at locationssuch as bars that may indicate eased at-titudes toward social distancing.

South Korean Prime Minster ChungSye-kyun said officials were discussingnew public guidelines that would allowfor people to engage in certain levelsof economic and social activity whilealso maintaining distance to slow thespread of the virus.

Social distancing was still on full dis-play for Easter Sunday celebrationsaround the globe, with many Christiansmarking the day isolated in their homeswhile pastors preached to empty pews.St. Peter's Square was barricaded tokeep out crowds, while one Floridachurch drew a large turnout for a drive-

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson,the first major world leader to test posi-tive for the virus, paid an emotional trib-ute to the country's National Health Ser-vice following his release from the hos-pital, saying its doctors and nurses hadsaved his life no question. He especiallythanked two nurses who stood by hisbedside for 48 hours when things couldhave gone either way.

Japan, the world's third-biggesteconomy, has seen its number of newcases climb rapidly in recent days andnow has 7,255 confirmed cases of thevirus. Japanese companies have beenslow to switch to remote-working andpeople are still commuting, even aftera state of emergency declaration forseven prefectures, including Tokyo.

In an effort to encourage citizens tostay at home, the government releaseda one-minute video showing Abe cud-dling his dog, reading a book, sippingfrom a cup and clicking a remote con-trol at home. Abe's message drew criti-cism that he didn't understand theplight of those who cannot rest athome. Many called him an aristocrat.

In China, where the first coronaviruscases were detected late last year, amask producer said it is rushing to fillorders from overseas while facingstricter quality inspections from Chi-nese regulators. Wuhan Zonsen, whichmakes masks and disinfection wipes,says 50 million in orders from Europeancountries and the United States willkeep them at full production capacityuntil June. AP/PTI

in service in a parking lot.President Donald Trump in his Easter

message paid tribute to the medicalprofessionals, first responders andother essential workers striving to com-bat the pandemic. Back on March 24,Trump had broached the possibilitythat the U.S. could emerge from wide-spread lockdowns by this weekend.

I would love to have the country

opened up and just raring to go by Eas-ter, he said.

Instead US is new epicenter of thepandemic, with more than half a millioncases and more than 22,000 deaths, theworld's highest. About half the U.S.deaths have been in the New York met-ropolitan area, but hospitalizations areslowing in the state and other indica-tors suggest that lockdowns and social

distancing are flattening the curve ofinfections.

Dr. Anthony Fauci, the top U.S. infec-tious disease expert, said the economyin parts of the country could graduallyreopen as early as next month.

The Italian government said weekendpolice patrols resulted in more than12,500 people being sanctioned and150 facing criminal charges of violating

lockdown measures. On the hopefulside, officials said Italy recorded the low-est number of virus deaths in threeweeks, with 431 people dying in thepast day to bring its total to over 19,800.

But while attention has focused onthe U.S. and Southern Europe, newcoronavirus hot spots have beenemerging in Japan, Turkey and Britain,where the death toll passed 10,000.

Lockdown extended till May 3: India's plan aheadNEW DELHI: Prime Minister

Narendra Modi announced thelockdown across the country will beextended till May 3 to fight thecoronavirus pandemic, saying themeasure has produced a significantoutcome in containing the infection.

In a nearly 25-minute televised ad-dress to the nation, Modi said imple-mentation of the lockdown will bestrictly ensured in its second phaseand detailed guidelines will be an-nounced soon to ensure that out-break does not spread to new areas.

Some relaxations may be allowedafter April 20 in places where thereare no hotspots, he said.

"Follow the rules of lockdown with

full devotion till May 3, stay where youare, stay safe," the prime minister toldcitizens.

Modi said In-dia has managedto contain thepandemic wellcompared tomany developedcountries due toits holistic ap-proach in deal-ing with the cri-sis and sacrificesmade by peopleof the country inthe fight produced tangible results.

The prime minister sought the sup-

port of the people in seven areas, in-cluding taking care of elderly people,

maintaining so-cial distancingand helping thepoor and down-trodden.

"If India wouldnot haveadopted a holis-tic approach, ifan integratedapproach wasnot initiated,India's situationwould have been

different (compared to many devel-oped countries). It is clear from the ex-

periences of the past few days thatthe path we have chosen is right,"the prime minister said.

India, he said, received huge ben-efits from the 21-day lockdown inchecking the pandemic, adding thatthe country has dealt with the situa-tion better with "limited resources".

The lockdown that came into ef-fect on March 25 was to expire atmidnight on April 14.

The prime minister said some re-laxation may be allowed in some ar-eas and the scope of coronavirus test-ing will be expanded significantly. PTI

Prime Minister Narendra Modi

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India PostApril 17, 2020 5

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Courage and Faith: 103-yearold, Italian's survival mix

India Post News Service

A centenarian Italian woman has survived thecoronavirus infection with a mix of courage

and faith, it has been reported by agencies. Thevery qualities that have served her for her 100+years of living.

Ada Zanusso spoke over a video call to say, "I'mwell, I'm well" speaking from the Maria Grazia resi-dence for the elderly in Lessona city, in North eastof Italy, a quality wine growing area of the Pied-mont region. She said, "I watch TV, read newspa-pers".

Her doctors said they had to hydrate her as shewasn't eating. "She was always drowsy and hadstopped reacting. We thought she she wasn't go-ing to make it" DrFurnoMarchese said. "Then oneday she opened her eyes and resumed doing what-ever she used to", he added.

When asked about her illness she was modest, "Ihad some fever". She had been in bed for a weekand says what helped her get well have been"Courage and faith".

This has worked for her and she advises otherswho fall ill to also "give yourself courage and faith".

Ada Zanusso

UAE-based Indian witnessedfather's funeral on FB Live

DUBAI: An Indian woman based in the United ArabEmirates (UAE) had to see her father's funeral onFacebook Live due to the coronavirus pandemic, amedia report said.

At the risk of not gaining closure personally, SusanThomas, a resident of Sharjah, chose not to attend thefuneral even though she had managed to fly to Kochifrom Dubai and had reached on March 20, a day be-fore her father died, said the Gulf news report.

Due to the coronavirus spread, Thomas was in a self-imposed isolation for 14-days along with her daughterand entrepreneur husband in her in-law's home. To makematters further complicated, there was an infected pas-senger on their flight, putting them in high-risk category.

"I saw my father's funeral on Facebook Live. But itwas a choice that I made on my own because I couldhave been a carrier of coronavirus since I had travelledfrom Dubai to Kochi the day before he died and thereare many old aunts and uncles who would have beenat the funeral. I had to be responsible," Thomas toldGulf News on the phone from Kochi. IANS

Indian-origin COVID-19 survivorin UK says lucky to be alive

LONDON: "I almost died," recalls Indian-origin RiaLakhani, still struggling to breath normally, days aftersurviving a severe case of coronavirus that has killedover 7,000 people in the UK.

"It (breathing) used to be such a natural action butnow I have to remember how to inhale and exhale,"the BBC quoted her as saying from her home in north-west London.

In self-isolation, she still cannot hug her husband, orsee her parents and siblings. She still wakes up at nightstruggling to breathe.

Lakhani, a sales executive, startedto show symptoms of Covid-19 whilein hospital, where she was admittedfor an operation. Seven years ago,she was diagnosed with a rare condi-tion which makes swallowing diffi-cult. The surgery was designed tohelp her manage this oesophagealdisease, called achalasia, the reportsaid.

Though her admission to hospitalwas supposed to be a routine visit,the situation became serious verysoon. She began to struggle with herbreathing and then developed a temperature. Whileeveryone hoped it was just a side-effect of her sur-gery, a Covid swab test was taken as a precaution. Butto the surprise of all, it turned positive for coronavirus.Soon her room was cordoned off and the rest of theward evacuated.

As her condition deteriorated, she required moreoxygen. She was then shifted to one of London's ma-jor Covid-19 treatment centres. "Things went from

bad to worse - taking a breath became as hard asclimbing a mountain," she wrote on Facebook.

"I almost didn't come out of there. There was a pointwhen I actually started to write difficult messages tomy family. I almost died now I'm alive. How can life goback to normal after that?"

Lakhani is still not clear whether she developedpneumonia but says even now, from her recovery bedat home in Harrow she can hear a "crackling sound" inher lungs".

According to the World HealthOrganisation, most people (about 80per cent) recover from the diseasewithout needing special treatment.Around 1 out of every 6 people whogets COVID-19 becomes seriously illand develops difficulty breathing.

Lakhani said her recovery has beenslow. In hospital she could barely moveat first and was given morphine on topof the oxygen because of the pain.

She praised the medical staff whotreated her. They are "true heroes,"she said.

"It was the small wins and thingslike the nurses making sure Iris had a constant supplyof hot tea and a sneaky extra slice of cake that mademe smile."

At home, she has to maintain a distance from her hus-band and continues to be besieged by coughing fits. Butshe's relieved that she was able to fight the virus, espe-cially considering how many people have died.

"I can't explain the moment I left the hospital, I'llnever take anything for granted again," she added. PTI

Lakhani, a sales

executive, started to

show symptoms of

Covid-19 while in

hospital, where she

was admitted for an

operation

UAE-based Indian in troubleover Islamophobic post

ABU DHABI: A United Arab Emirates-based Indiannational was in trouble over an Islamophobic post onsocial media and hurting the religious sentiments ofMuslims, a media report said.

Mitesh, a financial manager at anAbu Dhabi-based firm, could face le-gal action over his IslamophobicFacebook post which uses graphicimages to show how a "jihadicoronavirus suicide spitter" could"cause 2,000 deaths compared to 20by a jihadi bomber detonating a beltrigged with explosives", the GulfNews report said.

According to the Gulf News re-port, the post was in reference tovideos falsely claiming showingmembers of a Muslim missionarygroup in India spitting on police.

Mitesh's post has sparked outrage on social me-dia with many demanding his immediate dismissaland arrest.

Shortly after the Gulf News report was pub-

lished online, a legal representative for Mitesh'semployer said they have launched a probe into thematter. "We are examining the case. Strict legalaction pursuant to UAE laws will be taken against

the man if our investigation revealsthat it was he who put up that post.He will be sacked. We have a zero-tolerance policy," the representa-tive added.

In a similar incident recently, avisiting Indian job seeker was toldto go to Pakistan by a compatriot,who owns an event managementcompany in the UAE. ShamshadAlam, 42, from Maharashtra, India,told Gulf News he had barelyshared his resume with thecompany's owner, S. Bhandari onWhatsApp when he messaged back

saying "go back to Pakistan"."When I confronted him, he abused me and threat-

ened to report me to police," said Alam who has sincelodged a complaint with Dubai Police. IANS

According to the Gulf

News report, the post

was in reference to

videos falsely claiming

showing members of

a Muslim missionary

group in India spitting

on police

India Post April 17, 20206


Indian-origin Miss Englandreturns to NHS duty

Stay where you are:Ambassador Sandhuto Indian students in US

WASHINGTON: India's Ambassa-dor to the US Taranjit Singh Sandhuhas advised Indian students,stranded in America due to the sud-den closure of universities and theongoing lockdown back home be-cause of the coronavirus pandemic,to stay where they are and assuredthem help in this crisis situation.

Sandhu addressed the con-cerns of over 500 Indian studentswho attended the Instagram Livesession hosted by the Indian Em-bassy recently. The session was co-ordinated by India Student HubTeam.

There are an estimated 250,000Indian students in the US, a signifi-cantly large numbers of whom arestranded due to the sudden closerof the universities and asked to va-cate their hostels and follow stay-at-home order issued by the au-thorities to contain the spread ofthe pandemic in the country.

The Indian government im-posed a 21-day nationwidelockdown from March 24 to stemthe tide of the fast-spreading dis-ease and also suspended rail, roadand air services during the period.

At this time the most advisablething to do is stay where you are,Sandhu said in response to a ques-tion during the live session. Assur-ing the students that the Indianembassy is in constant communi-cation with the US Government onthe issue of their visa, Sandhu saidthat they can make travel plans toIndia once the situation improves.

My strong advice to you is to staywhere you are. We are in touch withyou . We will help you out, he said.PTI

‘Please quarantine politicizingCOVID’: WHO chief

LONDON: Indian-origin BhashaMukherjee, the reigning Miss England,has returned to the National HealthService (NHS) as a junior doctor, sayingit was "natural" that she continued herjob during the coronavirus pandemic,it was reported.

Respiratory specialist Mukherjee,24, was back home after her trip to In-dia, where she'd been carrying outcharity work and was due to start backat Boston Pilgrim Hospital,Lincolnshire.

"I could not be prouder to be bothMiss England and to serve somethingof great national pride like the NHS,"Bhasha tells the BBC Radio 1-Newsbeat.

She was in India as part of a humanitar-ian trip across Asia and was due to travelto countries including Pakistan.After see-ing the unfolding crisis in the UK, shewanted to "share the load".

"I felt unfair getting dressed up in aplace of safety while my colleagueswere laying their lives on the front-line," she said.

The NHS is adapting to risingcoronavirus cases in the UK throughstaff redeployment and asking re-cently retired doctors and nurses to

come back to work.Currently, the beauty queen was

sorting out the logistical issues of herreturn to work, including things likewhat shifts she would be be doing andwhere she would be living.

She's currently self-isolating in her

home city of Derby, which is around 80miles from the hospital.

Mukherjee also knows the healthrisks of returning to the wards but isnot worried about contracting the dis-ease in the hospital.

"I could have caught it anytime oranywhere. I could have picked it up atany airport or while I was in India" shetold the BBC."My main concern is thepressure our NHS is under."

Bhasha was crowned Miss Englandin August 2019, shortly after gaining

two medical degrees from the Univer-sity of Nottingham.

She'd spent time training as a juniordoctor on a respiratory ward, at thesame time as modelling and taking partin pageants. IANS

Bhasha Mukherjee

GENEVA: "Please quarantine politiciz-ing COVID. If we want to win, weshouldn't waste time pointing fingers,"World Health Organization (WHO) Di-rector-General Tedros AdhanomGhebreyesus urgedhere, saying, "Unity isthe only option to de-feat this virus."

Answering a ques-tion from the pressabout US PresidentDonald Trump's threatto freeze US funding tothe WHO, Tedros saidhis message for theworld at this moment isunity and solidarity, instead of politiciz-ing the virus, Xinhua news agency re-ported.

"I will suggest two things to theworld," he told a virtual press confer-ence from Geneva. The first is nationalunity, and the second is global solidar-ity.

Tedros stressed that at the national

level, leaders should work across partylines.

"My message to political parties: donot politicize this virus. If you care foryour people, work across party lines

and ideologies ... With-out unity, we assure you,even any country thatmay have a better sys-tem will be in trouble,and more crises," Tedrosnoted.

"No need to useCOVID to score politicalpoints. You have manyother ways to proveyourselves. This is not the

one to use for politics, It's like playingwith fire," Tedros added.

"Now, the United States and China, allthe rest of G20 and the rest of the worldshould come together to fight the vi-rus," he said, adding that "When thereare cracks at the national level and glo-bal level, that's when the virus suc-ceeds." IANS

Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus

Indian-originsurgeon dies ofCOVID-19 in UK

LONDON: An "incredibly dedi-cated" Indian-origin surgeon hasdied in the UK after testing positivefor COVID-19, a media report said.

Jitendra Rathod was an associatespecialist in cardio-thoracic surgeryat the University Hospital of Wales inCardiff, said the Metro newspaperreport. He died in the hospital's gen-eral intensive care unit early onMonday morning (06 April), healthofficials confirmed.

A statement posted on theCardiff and Vale University HealthBoard website paid tribute toRathod. "He was an incredibly dedi-cated surgeon who cared deeply forhis patients," the statement said,adding that he was well liked andgreatly respected by one and all.

"He was a very compassionateand a wonderful human being. Hiscommitment to the specialty wasexemplary." IANS

Dr BK Behera, Chief Medical Officer & MrRajesh Sharma, Senior Executive of NTPCa leading India's PSU donating life saving

PPEs to Mr Jatinder Kumar, SHO, DELHIPOLICE along with Capt Krishan Sharma,

Secretary AVS and also MD & Jt EditorIndia Post Media Group who is

coordinating these effort in Delhi



Mayor Lightfoot thankedcompanies for helping

Results from first weekof Fremont's COVID-19Testing CenterIndia Post News Service

During the first week of its drive-thru op-eration, the City of Fremont tested 715people for the Coronavirus Disease 2019

(COVID-19) at the Fremont Fire COVID-19 TestingCenter. Lab results confirm of the 715 peopletested, a total of 37 people tested positive for thedisease. An additional 225 people were screened

out of the testing process, bringing the total num-ber of people served to 940.

Of the 715 people whose test samples havebeen processed, 348 essential service workers,

primarily first responders and healthcare person-nel, were able to be tested. The Fremont Fire

COVID-19 Testing Center has attracted peoplefrom throughout the Bay Area, requiring positive

test results to be reported to each appropriatecounty and added to the corresponding county's

daily positive case updates as the results are con-firmed.

The Fremont Fire Testing Center, located at7200 Stevenson Boulevard and utilizing a drive-

thru system, was created to take pressure off hos-pital emergency departments, provide quicker

answers for first responders and frontlinehealthcare workers with COVID-19 symptoms and

better inform individuals so they know to isolateand help slow the spread of the virus. The Center

is open daily from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. or until themaximum number of tests available for the day

have been depleted.Thanks to a partnership with the Tri-City Health

Center, anyone unable to participate in the drive-thru testing model can schedule a walk-up ap-

pointment by contacting the Health Center's ap-pointment line at (510) 252-6808. Available on a

limited basis, walk-up appointments at the Tri-CityHealth Center are open Monday through Friday

on a first come, first served basis, from 1 p.m. untilall afternoon appointment slots have been filled.

To receive a COVID-19 test at either location,an individual will be screened as part of a two-

part testing process and must have a fever (orhave had a fever) and be symptomatic for COVID-

19. Symptoms for COVID-19 include cough, short-ness of breath or difficulty breathing and/or other

respiratory symptoms. A referral from a medicaldoctor is not required to be screened. After the

initial screening process is completed, those indi-viduals who meet the testing criteria will be ad-

ministered the actual COVID-19 test which in-volves swabbing of the nasal cavities and back of

the throat.The COVID-19 tests are free to the public and

available to anyone regardless of where you liveor your immigration status. An information call-in

line was created to provide COVID-19 testing up-dates and may be reached at (510) 494-4292.

First responders and healthcare workers whoare symptomatic for the COVID-19 virus and have

(or have had) a fever can schedule a test in ad-vance by calling (510) 789-7231.

CHICAGO: Mayor Lori E. Lightfoot has thanked busi-nesses, organizations and individuals for stepping upto support the City in its fight against the COVID-19pandemic. To date, nearly 2 Million Pieces of PersonalProtective Equipment (PPE) has been donated tothe City and over 1,700 Chicagoans have joined theChicago Medical Reserve Corps.

"I am overwhelmed and inspired every day bythe selflessness, sacrifice and grace exhibited byour city throughout this crisis," said MayorLightfoot. "In ways both big and small, residents,leaders, businesses, and other organizations haveshown the true mettle of our city and the characterof our communities. Their actions have not only sup-ported countless Chicagoans working day andnight to fight this disease, but they have alsohelped lay the foundation for our strong recoveryfrom this crisis. We are truly all in this together, andon behalf of myself and a grateful city, I thank all ofthem from the bottom of my heart for their sup-port."

Through the City's emergency preparedness plan-ning, the Chicago Department of Public Health (CDPH)maintains a local stockpile of emergency equipmentto supplement regular hospital supply chains, includ-ing PPE and ventilators. CDPH is monitoring the avail-ability of PPE at hospitals, acute care facilities, long-term care facilities and safety net organizations suchas community health centers and homeless shelters.Given the disruption of supply chains and surge of pa-tients with COVID-19, CDPH has distributed significantamounts of PPE from its own stockpile to Chicago hos-pitals. While the City is delivering PPE to healthcarefacilities and has available supplies in its stockpile, thedemand for PPE continues to grow, making PPE dona-tions critical to the City's overall response to thisemergency.

"Our company has been doing business in Chicagofor 26 years. As part of the community, we applaudMayor Lightfoot's efforts to counter COVID-19, and we

will give the city 250,000 disposable protective masksand 30,000 face shields as part of that effort. We are con-fident that, with Mayor Lightfoot's leadership, and witheveryone working together, we are not far from thedawn," said Pin Ni, President of Wanxiang America Corp.

The City has nearly 2 million pieces of donated PPEin hand or pledged from numerous businesses,nonprofits, public organizations and individuals. Thedonated PPE includes N-95 respirators, surgical masks,face shields, gloves, gowns, hand sanitizer and sanitiz-ing wipes that will be distributed to hospitals,healthcare facilities and other facilities. CDPH expectsto receive hundreds of thousands of additional dona-

tions in the coming weeks, some on an ongoing basis,and will distribute accordingly.

"Making face shields with our UAW partners andbeing able to contribute them is an honor for us at

Ford. We'regrateful to helpsupport ourChicago medi-cal profession-als and first re-sponders onthe front linesin our commu-nities," saidAdrian Price,Director, GlobalCore Engineer-ing, Ford MotorCompany.

CDPH plansto utilize the

donated PPE to support health centers, homeless shel-ters and other organizations in urgent need of sup-plies. Many smaller organizations are not able to pro-cure large stockpiles of PPE, and these donations willhelp them continue to safely provide the essential ser-vices our residents rely on. CDPH has been partneringwith Rush University Medical Center, All Chicago, theIllinois Primary Health Care Association, the IllinoisPublic Health Institute, Health & Medicine Policy Re-search Group and others to coordinate PPE donationefforts and ensure delivery to the organizations thatneed it most.

Companies and organizations that have made orpledged donations include Wanxiang America Corpo-ration, Project HOPE, Americares, BMO, Ford MotorCompany, Facebook, McDonald's, a collaborative ledby DePaul University, the Goodman Theatre andLeague of Chicago Theatres, Chicago Park District,Koval Distillery, People's Gas, Project CURE, Stencil

Ease, Columbia College Chicago, Social Se-curity Administration, and numerous oth-ers.

"Supporting Chicago's frontline workers isa top priority. We are proud to have partneredwith Americares to donate over three tons ofcritically needed supplies, from surgical masksto isolation gowns, to support the city's COVID-19 response efforts," said Project HOPE Presi-dent and CEO Rabih Torbay.

Organizations that wish to donate cando so at chi.gov/donatePPE. The biggest needs in-clude N-95 masks, surgical masks, gowns, nitrilegloves, eye protection, hand sanitizer and disinfectantwipes. In many cases, CDPH will not be acceptingproducts that are homemade or not federally ap-proved, but exceptions may be made for products ona case-by-case basis. CDPH will be accepting donatedcloth face coverings. CDPH will be focused on process-ing large offers to maximize staff time spent manag-ing, reviewing and coordinating supplies.

Mayor office Press release

Mayor Lori E. Lightfoot

"In ways both big and small, residents, leaders,businesses, and other organizations haveshown the true mettle of our city and the

character of our communities. Their actionshave not only supported countless Chicagoans

working day and night to fight this disease”


Realty Tidbits

India Post April 17, 2020www.indiapost.com

Real Estate8 Details on page 33

Realty, restaurants, auto, will take years to revive

Kerala cementdealers in direstraits

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM: Ce-ment dealers in Kerala are nowin dire straits as over a millioncement bags are lying in shopsand godowns, as all sorts ofconstruction activities, on ac-count of coronavirus pan-demic, has come to a stand-still.

The cement dealers are nowtrying to appeal to the cementcompanies to come to theirhelp."The maximum time thata bag of cement remains inpowder form is a month andafter that it gets hardened andthen it becomes of no use. Wehave approached cementmanufacturers to come to ourhelp. If something is not doneimmediately, it would be ahuge loss for us," said a ce-ment dealer.

In Kerala, apart from tourismand IT, the other major sectoris the construction sector,which employs the highestnumber of workers. IANS

NEW DELHI: As thecoronavirus crisis and subse-quent nationwide lockdownseverely impact the Indianeconomy, a FICCI survey hassaid that few sectors like res-taurants, auto and real estatemay take around 12 to 24months to recover.

The other sectors also se-verely hit may require similarperiod to revive, includingtransportation and tourism, lo-gistics, entertainment and con-sumer durables.

The survey titled 'COVID-19India: Economic Impact & Miti-gation', however, said that re-covery is dependent on con-

sumption stimulus and survivalof businesses itself.

It said that sectors such asapparel and beauty product,beverages, alcoholic bever-ages, insurance, agriculture,

chemicals, metals and mining,services, industries, offlineretail, and healthcare arelikely to recover in 9-12months.

In its report, the industry

body has said that the Indianindustry requires an immedi-ate stimulus package of Rs 9-10 lakh crore, which wouldaccount for 4-5 per cent ofthe country's GDP.

The report noted thatother countries have alsotaken similar steps. The debt-to-GDP ratio of India is man-ageable, it added.

"This money to be injectedfor relief and rehabilitationacross all levels of theeconomy, including people atthe bottom of the pyramid, in-formal workers, micro, smalland medium enterprises, andlarge corporates," it said. IANS

NAREDCO seeks $200 bnrelief for the entire economy

MUMBAI: Real estate industry body NAREDCOhas requested the Center (Central Government),for $200 billion relief for the entire economy tomeet the impact of the Covid-19 outbreak.

NAREDCO said, real estate has been under con-sistent stress since the last few years and that mar-ket dynamics have changed rapidly which has re-sulted in rising unsold inventories in the country.

COVID-19: Property in IndiaWhile the most impor-

tant thing right nowis to prevent and

control community outbreak ina highly populated country likeIndia, buyers or a seller in thereal estate sector should bracefor some sluggishness evenwhen this is over.

What investors should knowIf you are in the process of

purchasing a new property orreal estate asset for invest-ment or end-use purpose, youshould make a wise choice be-

tween ready-to-move-in andunder-construction proper-ties. While project delays areimminent and unavoidable,you should have a realistic ap-proach towards it. If you arebuying a ready-to-move-inproperty, you have to knowthat renting it out may not bepossible in the near future. So,the monthly EMI on any homeloan, will go out of your sav-ings. Here are more pros andcons of ready-to-move-in andunder-construction propertiesthat you should know:

What sellers should knowDue to the prevailing mar-

ket conditions, sellers whohave put their property in the

market have to wait longer toliquidate their asset. Here arefew things that you can do forusing this period to marketyour property effectively:

Create videos of virtualproperty tour

To give a more detailedview of your property, you

can create a video tour ofyour property. This can bedone with a handheld cameraor your smartphone camera

with a decent picture quality.You can choose to upload thiswith your property listing or

send it to those who are po-

tential leads.

Use video conferencing formeetings

You can e-meet your poten-

tial client to discuss further

negotiate the deal. Reach out

to the people who might be

interested in the property

and discuss different pros-

pects of buying your prop-

erty now.

Rent it outYou can also rent out your

property for a short time if

keeping it vacant is a prob-

lem. You can also lend it to

people who are in need right

now and can use an accom-

modation till the situation is

back to normal.

Sellers should remember

this is not the time for panic

selling. You can choose to take

a break from the process and

start again once the market

improves.Story credit: Housing.com

9India PostApril 17, 2020

www.indiapost.comReal Estate Post

Lewis Land Developers, LLC announcesnew land purchase in Upland

Lewis Land Developers, LLCAcquires 412 Acres in Fairfield

Special Feature

UPLAND, CA: Lewis LandDevelopers, LLC, an affiliate ofthe Lewis Group of Compa-nies, Southern California Divi-sion ("Lewis"), has announcedits acquisition of 15.69 acres ofland located on Foothill Boule-vard in the city of Upland.

The property, which wassold by the Hafif family toLewis for approximately$12,000,000 in cash, marksthe developer's latest addi-tion to its diverse real estateportfolio and one of the firstamid a nationwide industryslow-down.

With plans to develop theparcel into a gated neighbor-hood, the land is slated forapproximately 250 homeswithin the planned commu-nity of The Enclave. Amenities

will include a central recre-ation hub, open space andtrails as well as convenientaccess to the 10 and 210freeways, San Antonio Re-gional Hospital and thegreater Inland Empire.

With a long-standing repu-tation as one of the nation'sleading real estate develop-ers, Lewis continues to assertits financial strength and com-mand in the industry, demon-strating its ability to buy anddrive real estate forward inthe midst of the COVID-19pandemic. The developer'sconfidence serves as an in-vestment in the continuedgrowth of the community andgreater San BernardinoCounty area as well as the fu-ture of the sector.

FAIRFIELD, CA: Lewis LandDevelopers, LLC, an affiliateof the Lewis Group of Com-panies, Northern CaliforniaDivision ("Lewis"), is pleasedto announce the closing ofCooper's Landing andHawthorne Mill, two futureresidential projects off ClayBank Road innorth Fairfield.

The properties, whichwere both purchased in cash,make up the latest acquisi-tions to join Lewis's diversereal estate portfolio as well assome of their first amid a na-tionwide slow-down.

Only an hour's drive to SanFrancisco, Cooper's Landingand Hawthorne Millencompassapproximately 412acres combined. Although theprojects retainpreviously ap-proved tentative tract maps,Lewis plans to modify eachproperty to improve commu-nity design, circulation andproduct differentiation as wellas increase the amount ofopen space and pedestrianconnectivity.

Cooper's Landing consistsof approximately 32 acres,with plans for approximately

280 single-family residentiallots in three product lines. Thelarger of the two, HawthorneMill features approximately379 acres and is slated tohouse approximately 300single-family residential lotsin four product lines as well asa large wetland preserve.

The projects will be incor-porated into Lewis'sThe Vil-lages at Fairfield master-planned community, locatedadjacent to the properties innorth Fairfield and regardedas one of the most successfulmaster-planned communitiescurrently selling in thegreater Bay Area. Moreover,the community is locatedwithin close proximity to hik-ing trails and wineries and of-fers quick access to CapitolCorridor and BART stations.

With a long-standing repu-tation as one of the nation'sleading real estate develop-ers, Lewis continues to assertits financial strength andcommand in the industry,demonstrating its ability tobuy and drive real estate for-ward in the midst of theCOVID-19 pandemic.

For detailed stories visitwww.indiapost.com

Airbnb Experiences,from your home

NEW DELHI: Global travelcompany Airbnb has launched'Online Experiences', a newway for people to connect,travel virtually and earn in-come during the COVID-19 cri-sis - all throughout participat-ing from their individualhomes.

With communities aroundthe world staying home to pre-

vent the spread of COVID-19,people can't pursue routineactivities like going to work,exercising or pursuing a pas-sion.

Notably, the platform hassuspended its 'in-person' Expe-riences till the end of April toprotect the safety andwellbeing of hosts and guests,and is now leveraging its tech-

nology platform to help itshosts continue to earn, whilealso allowing our guests tolearn a new skill, safely connectwith others, or pursue an inter-est.

The new initiative will allowhosts to earn an income inthese uncertain times, andbring their transformative vir-tual experience to millions of

guests, who want to experi-ence a destination online.

It unlocks access to inspiringhosts from over 30 differentcountries, including Olympicmedalists Alistair Brownleeand Lauren Gibbs. Whether aHIIT workout, learning aboutnutrition with a Bobsledder ora virtual bike tour, guests cannow connect with some of the

most celebrated athletes inthe world from the comforts oftheir own living room.

"Human connection is at thecore of what we do. With somany people needing to stayindoors to protect their health,we want to provide an oppor-tunity for our hosts to connectwith our global community ofguests in the only way pos-sible right now, online," saidCatherine Powell, Head ofAirbnb Experiences.

These Online Experiencesinclude meditation with aJapanese Buddhist monk in Ja-pan, learning to cook MexicanSalsas, Irish dance masterclasses, virtual bike tours, ath-lete sessions and even drawingclasses. A

Online Experiences will behosted on Zoom, and Airbnb isproviding hosts access toZoom free of charge along withpersonalized support servicesfor curating, capturing andsharing their online content.

Booking opens immediatelywith more than 50 virtualAirbnb Experiences availableat airbnb.com/online-experi-ences, with more followingsoon. IANS

NAREDCO seeks $200 bn relieffor the entire economy

MUMBAI: Real estate indus-try body NAREDCO has re-quested the Center (CentralGovernment), for $200 billionrelief for the entire economy tomeet the impact of the Covid-19 outbreak.

NAREDCO said, real estatehas been under consistentstress since the last few yearsand that market dynamicshave changed rapidly whichhas resulted in rising unsold in-ventories in the country.

"The Covid-19 pandemic haspaused the real estate sectorwhile disrupting the busi-nesses across the nation. Whilethe RBI and the Finance Minis-ter have taken several mea-sures to ease the load on con-

sumers' shoulder, real estatecollectively grapples with theimpact of the pandemic,"NAREDCO said in a statement.

According to the real estateindustry body, in order to keepup with the world economy,the Center should suspend all

NCLT activities for next 6months considering the down-fall of the economy of India.

"The idea is to provide abreathing space to companieswho have faced huge losses

due to rapidly decreasingstock prices, which has madehigh net worth companiesprone to be taken over by for-eign investors, the results ofwhich can be devastating forIndia," the statement said.

"Since real estate accounts

for 6-7 per cent of India's GDPand employs nearly 10-11 percent of population, we urge thegovernment to focus on thedemand of the developers."IANS

‘The idea is to provide a breathing space to

companies who have faced huge losses due

to rapidly decreasing stock prices’

10 India Post April 17, 2020www.indiapost.com

Tech News TechBizDetails on page 11

Indian-American's US firm to donate3.4 M Hydroxychloroquine tabs

WASHINGTON: An Indian-American owned pharma firmhas pledged to donate 3.4 mil-lion Hydroxychloroquine Sul-phate tablets to some of thekey COVID-19 battlegroundstates, including New York andLouisiana, joining the waragainst the dreadedcoronavirus.

Owned by philanthropic bil-lionaires Chirag and ChintuPatel, New Jersey-basedAmneal Pharmaceuticals,which is one of the largest US-based manufacturers, has alsoannounced ramping up pro-duction of HydroxychloroquineSulphate at several of its manu-facturing sites and expects toproduce approximately 20 mil-lion tablets between now andmid-April.

Those tablets will be madeavailable nationwide throughAmneal's existing retail andwholesale customers, as wellas through direct sales tolarger institutions in need, thecompany said.

Amneal has donated twomillion tablets of 200mgHydroxychloroquine Sulphateto New York, and one million toTexas to be used in the treat-ment of COVID-19 patients. It isready to provide more as

needed. It is also donating andproviding products directly tohospitals across the country,the company said.

Amneal has also announceddonation of 400,000Hydroxychloroquine Sulphatetablets to Louisiana.

All of us at Amneal are com-mitted to supporting our com-munities in the global fightagainst COVID-19," said Chiragand Chintu Patel, Co-Chief Ex-ecutive Officers of Amneal.

"We are working with ur-

gency to assist the hardest hitstates and hospitals aroundthe country to benefit as manypatients as possible during thiscritical time," they said in ajoint statement, issued by theLouisiana Attorney General JeffLandry.

"It is important we all worktogether to help solve theCOVID-19 coronavirus crisis.We must come together asLouisianans and as Americans.This donation from Amnealdemonstrates their strong ef-fort to be a good corporatecitizen in our nation," Landrysaid.

According to Louisiana StateGovernment, Amneal'sHydroxychloroquine Sulphatetablets are approved by the USFood and Drug Administrationto treat malaria, rheumatoidarthritis, lupus, childhood ar-thritis, and other autoimmunediseases.

Hydroxychloroquine is notFDA-approved for the treat-ment of COVID-19; but it hasbeen identified as a possibletreatment for it, and the USgovernment has requested itsimmediate availability.

With an existing supply ofHydroxychloroquine Sulphateand our ability to quickly accel-erate production, we arehumbled to be able to assistthe hardest hit states and hos-pitals around the country tobenefit as many patients aspossible, the two brotherssaid.

Landry said that Amneal'sdonation is one step towardtrying to find treatments andcures for this epidemic. "Rightnow, there are no silver bullets.We must remain vigilantagainst the spread of this vi-rus," he said.

The Louisiana State Univer-sity School of Medicine is work-ing to launch two differentclinical trials usinghydroxychloroquine in relationto COVID-19.

One trial will utilizeHydroxychloroquine on thosewho have significant COVID-19disease. PTI

‘Urgent need forassistance tofishermen’

CHENNAI: With the annualfishing ban to enable breedingof fish to start from April 15,there is an urgent and immedi-ate need for assistance forIndia's marine fishermen, saidnoted agriculture scientist M.S.Swaminathan.

In a statement issued hereSwaminathan, founder of theM.S. Swaminathan ResearchFoundation (MSSRF) said, themarine fishers restricted bythe Covid-19 lockdown fromMarch 20, they are additionallyfacing the annual fishing banfrom April 15 until June 15along India's east coast.

This means they will poten-tially be unable to fish for asmany as 90 days and quick andeffective intervention is re-quired to supportfishermen.According to him,the fishing ban coinciding withthe biological breeding periodshould be safeguarded; other-wise the reproductive cycle ofthe fish will be interrupted withlong-term consequences. IANS

Goa tourism to resume only whensituation in control

Rs 300 crore pledgedfor tech-focusedGurugram biz school

NEW DELHI: A group of lead-ing business stalwarts, top aca-demics and senior bureaucratshave announced they will in-vest Rs 300 crore to build Mas-ters Union School of Business, anew age institution inGurugram with razor sharp fo-cus on technology to createthe next-gen of business pro-fessionals for the digitaleconomy.

The campus of Masters'Union School of Business willbe located in Cybercity,Gurugram and will tap itslocational advantage to builddeep industry connect withover 600 multinational corpo-rations based in the specialeconomic zone (SEZ).

The institution is a result ofthe collective vision of pre-eminent thought leaders andindustry veterans likeArunMaira (Former Chairman,Boston Consulting Group),MukundRajan (Former MD, TataTeleservices Limited and manymore. IANS

PANAJI: The Goa tourismindustry can resume only af-ter the lockdown is lifted andthe coronavirus situation iscompletely under control inthe country, state Ports Min-ister Michael Lobo has said.

Mass gatherings shouldbe discouraged in the statefor next few months to con-tain the spread of the deadlyviral infection, he told PTI.

Tourism is one of the ma-jor source of revenue for thecoastal state, which is popu-lar for its picturesquebeaches among both the do-

mestic and foreign tourists."Even after the lockdown is

lifted, we cannot immediatelythink of opening our borders.

We have to make sure the tour-ism industry resumes only af-ter health protocols are fol-lowed," Lobo said.

Once the Goa govern-ment allows the tourism in-dustry to resume, all thoseentering the state should bethoroughly checked at theairport, railway stations andall other entry points, theminister suggested.

"When they are certifiedas negative for coronavirus,only then they should be al-lowed to enter the state, hesaid.

Lobo said private labs canbe roped in to conduct testsof people at these points.PTI

Using technology to bridge gapin healthcare

NEW DELHI: As the world continues to grapple with the COVID-19 pandemic, Kota-based healthcare startup Aayu is helping In-dian patients consult with qualified doctors and to order neces-sary medicines, irrespective of their geographical limitations.

The startup's integrated healthcare solution aims to provideservices for dependents such as the elderly and people with dis-abilities whose movement is restricted during the government-imposed lockdown.

11India PostTechBiz PostApril 17, 2020www.indiapost.com

Tech BriefsGlobal trade will plunge

by up to a third: WTO

Oil companies to report biglosses, lockdown shrinks sales

Startups begin layoffs in Indiaas business comes to a halt

NEW DELHI: State-owned oilmarketing companies (OMCs)in India, including Indian Oil,BPCL, HPCL may see significanterosion in the earnings duringthe January-March quarter ofFY20 even though low crudeand product prices jacked uptheir margins on the saleof petrol and diesel.

According to a re-search report by ICICIDirect, the unusuallyhigh gross refining mar-gins reported by OMCshave already seen a fallin the Q4 period andcoupled with inventorylosses that the compa-nies would report during theperiod, would lead to a furtherdrop in GRMs and conse-quently impact their revenues.

Companies make inventorylosses in a falling market as thecost of the inventory in the formof crude and products is higherthat the prevailing prices.

The projection is that BPCL

may report a net loss of Rs556.2 crore in Q4, while IndianOil may report significantlyhigher losses at Rs 2376.3crore. ICICI Direct has pro-jected loss to the tune of Rs628.4 crore for HPCL in Janu-ary-March quarter of FY20.

"For Indian refiners, spreadsof gas oil, gasoline and jet fuelare more important and havedeclined in the current quar-ter. The spread for gas oil de-clined by $1.9/bbl. (per barrel)from $12.8/bbl. to $10.9/bbl.,which will negatively impactGRMs QoQ (quarter on quar-ter)," the report said. IANS

NEW DELHI: The VC fundingis drying up for startups inthe wake of the nationwidelockdown and the result isseen in several startups lay-ing off employees at theirvarious India offices.

According to data com-piled by career marketplaceBigJobs, VC-funded startupsare the ones doing most ofthe layoffs. The data revealedthat 32 per cent of the 640companies, which are VC-funded, are letting go of theirworkers, reports Inc42.com.

The result is that severalyoung and mid-level startupsare sacking their staff.

At least 300 employees ofUS-based travel platformFareportal in Gurugram havebeen asked to resign. App-based bus aggregator ser-vice Shuttl has also report-edly laid off employees.

Some other startups likeBounce, Zomato, Curefit andHealthifyMe have gone forsalary cuts which makessense in such grim situations

where there is no or littlebusiness.

"Online insurance firmAcko has reportedly laid offaround 50 employees acrosscustomer service, operationsales and marketing teams,"reports Inc42.com.

The layoffs are happeningeven as the government hasasked companies not to sackpeople.

"Seed funding has wit-nessed decline across cat-egories, mostly those intoconsumer facing sectors --travel, tourism, retail, restau-rants and events," ApoorvaRanjan Sharma, Co-Founderand President, Venture Cata-lysts, an incubator forstartups, told IANS.

"These are the sectors thatare likely to be hit the mostsince consumers are likely tohold onto their spends for atleast 2-3 months now on theback of a deteriorating globaleconomy that is likely to im-pact jobs and overallspends," Sharma said. IANS

GENEVA: Global tradegrowth is expected to plum-met by up to a third in 2020due to the coronavirus pan-demic, the World TradeOrganisation has said, warningthat numbers would be "ugly".

"World trade is expected tofall by between 13 percentand 32 percent in 2020 as theCOVID-19 pandemic disruptsnormal economic activity andlife around the world," theWTO said in a statement.

However, WTO chiefRoberto Azevedo warned thedownturn "may well be thedeepest economic recessionor downturn of our lifetimes".In its main annual forecast, the164-member WTO pointed out

that trade had already beenslowing in 2019, before theemergence of the novelcoronavirus.

More than half of humanityhas been asked to stay at homeand economic activity has

ground to a virtual standstill inmany places.

Global trade, already hit bytrade tensions and uncertain-ties around Brexit, is expectedto register "double-digit de-clines in trade volumes" innearly all regions this year, theWTO said.

"This crisis is first and fore-most a health crisis which hasforced governments to takeunprecedented measures toprotect people's lives,"Azevedo said in a statement.

Before the current crisis,trade tensions, uncertainty andslowing economic growthweighed on global merchan-dise trade, which registered aslight decline of 0.1 per cent in2019 after rising 2.9 per cent ayear earlier.

The dollar value of worldmerchandise exports fell bythree per cent to USD 8.89 tril-lion, the WTO said.

World commercial servicestrade fared better last year,with exports in dollar terms ris-ing by two percent to 6.03 tril-lion, but the expansion was farslower than in 2018, when ser-vices trade increased by ninepercent, said the WTO.

The WTO said that while theglobal shock might invite com-parisons to the financial crisisof 2008-2009, the situationnow was worse.

"Restrictions on movementand social distancing to slowthe spread of the diseasemean that labour supply, trans-port and travel are today di-rectly affected in ways theywere not during the financialcrisis," it said.

An optimistic outlook positsthat a sharp drop in trade willbe followed by a recoverystarting in the second half of2020, said the organisation.

But the more pessimisticview is that the initial declinewill be steeper and the recov-ery will be "prolonged and in-complete".

"Under both scenarios, allregions will suffer double-digitdeclines in exports and im-ports in 2020", it said, addingthat North America and Asiawould be hardest hit. AFP/PTI

Using technology to bridgegap in healthcare

NEW DELHI: As the worldcontinues to grapple with theCOVID-19 pandemic, Kota-based healthcare startupAayu is helping Indian pa-tients consult with qualifieddoctors and to order neces-sary medi-cines, irre-spective oftheir geo-g r a p h i c a llimitations.

T h es t a r t u p ' sintegratedhealthcaresolution aims to provide ser-vices for dependents such asthe elderly and people withdisabilities whose movementis restricted during the gov-ernment-imposed lockdown.

"The COVID-19 pandemicis indeed a testing time forthe country. The ban on pub-

lic transport due tolockdown has restrictedcommon people from ac-cessing medical help.

The pandemic has alsoled to shortage of doctorsin the rural areas and small

t o w n s ,adding tothe woesof mil-lions of In-dians. Ouri n t e -g r a t e ds o l u t i o nt h r o u g h

our two apps - Aayu andSehat Sathi, is an endeavorto bridge this gap and bringan effective healthcare eco-system for every citizen ofBharat, on their fingertips"says Shreyans Mehta, Co-founder and CEO ofMedcords. IANS

Health Line


One can be said to be perfectly healthy in body and mind only if no part of the body or mind makes itself felt. A partmakes itself felt only when there is something wrong with it. You know that you have a head only when it aches.

Sri Atmananda (1883 - 1959)

COVID-19:

Your child's mental healthduring self-isolation

NEW DELHI: Children andyoung adults account for 42percent of the world's popula-tion; this age group is very sus-ceptible to entering into anemotional crisis while theworld is busy containing thepandemic.

Children perceive changesin their surroundings as earlyas they come into this world. Itis almost impossible to keepthem in the dark about thepandemic, and also inadvis-able.

It's important to focus on

our littlest and youngest mem-bers of society. Meghna Yadav,Head, Training and Develop-ment, of a preschool and daycare, shares tips on how youcan make kids and teenagersmore aware.

PROVIDE AGE-APPROPRIATEINFORMATION

It is not advisable to share allpossible data and reportsabout the pandemic with chil-dren, but not sharing any infor-mation is not a wise decisioneither. So, the very first mea-sure that adults need to followis to provide age appropriateinformation to them. Providingfacts to avoid confusion/mis-conceptions and explaining

Picturecourtesy:Pixabay

safety measures taken by fam-ily will help children stay fo-cused on their contribution infighting this virus.

'Act like a soldier'Children might feel helpless

and anxious about thelockdown and the changes inroutine. The best way to keepthe positivity high in children isto provide them the feeling ofbeing little soldiers fighting abattle, rather than the oneswho are under threat. "To beatthe virus, we need to stay in-

doors" is a better explanationof social distancing than to say,"We cannot go out."

SOCIAL DISTANCINGDOES NOT MEAN SOCIALISOLATION

Socializing is the key forhappiness of children and chil-dren may be feeling discon-nected with their friends andpeers while maintaining socialdistancing. As adults, we haveto keep children socially con-nected with wise use of tech-nology. Video call with friendsand extended family membersis a wonderful solution formaintaining human connectionin the time of social distancing.

SHARE THE LOADParents are found to be un-

der constant stress of not onlyprotecting the family againstthe pandemic but also main-taining a work life balance inthe crisis. Working for profes-sional commitments amidstfamily chores is not easy to sus-tain for long durations. Sharingthe load of household work is awin-win situation in this sce-nario. Asking children to helpin daily chores like cleaning,washing, or mopping will notonly reduce your burden butwill also keep children busyand physically active whilestaying indoors.

KNOW THE 3 ‘R’sThe mantra of Three Rs is

found to be of great help forparents to maintain emotional

stability of children in crisis.The three Rs

include:Reassurance, Routineand Regulation

Reassure: Provide age ap-propriate information and re-assure them about their safety.Talk about ways to stay safeand keep expressing that youare there for them.

Routine: Routine gives pre-dictability to children and thisultimately leads to a sense ofcontrol about the situation.Children might have a differentroutine than usual but provid-ing a new routine through timezones like activity time, screentime, family board game time,cooking time helps in reducingtheir anxiety.

Regulate: Parents need toregulate their own emotionsto teach children self-efficacyin tough times. Children keenlyobserve and absorb the wayparents respond to changinglandscapes. So, parents need

to be role models for chil-dren by staying strong andcalm in turmoil. IANS


LVPEI developsfull-faceprotective gear

Hyderabad: At a time whenthere are many reports onshortage of personal protec-tive equipment, the L.V. PrasadEye Institute's Centre for Inno-vation (LVPEI) said it has devel-oped a low-cost, easy to manu-facture, indigenous 'OpenSource Visor' (Full-face protec-tive gear) at Rs 50 for their cli-nicians and frontline staff.

The full-face protective gearis a transparent visor that isworn over the surgical mask toprotect the entire face. Theteam led by Sandeep Vempati,Project Lead at LVPEI Center forInnovation created a proto-type in four hours, made amanufacturable version of itthe same day, and contactedvendors the next day.

Barely 48 hours later, thedesign of the product that hasa production cost of approxi-mately Rs 50 was ready for use.However, according to theLVPEI, the unit costexcludes as-sembly and shipping costs.IANS

Why moneystill cannotbuy love

NEW YORK: Money can't buylove or friendship is an old ad-age and researchers now saythat individuals who base theirself-worth on their financialsuccess often feel lonely in ev-eryday life.

The findings, published inthe journal Personality and So-cial Psychology Bulletin, em-phasize the role of social net-works and personal relation-ships in maintaining goodmental health and why peopleshould preserve those connec-tions, even in the face of ob-stacles or pursuing challenginggoals.

"When people base theirself-worth on financial success,they experience feelings ofpressure and a lack of au-tonomy, which are associatedwith negative social out-comes," said study researcherLora Park, Associate Professor,University at Buffalo in the US.IANS

India PostWellness Post 13April 17, 2020

www.indiapost.com

The power of virgin coconut oilNEW DELHI: A common misconception is that one

must invest in exotic food to help boost your immu-nity levels and ensure good health.

One such super food is an old standing traditionknown to all Indian households, and commonly foundin every kitchen-- virgin coconut oil. While the crazefor super foods has evolved rather recently, Virgin Co-conut Oil is the oldest super food that is trusted byevery Indian.

Researchers have found that coconut oil is recom-mended for its myriad health benefits. Cold PressedVirgin Coconut Oil is extracted using natu-ral means or no heat process from thefresh and matured kernels of the co-conut. This extraction process pre-serves all the natural goodness of theoil that naturally helps to boost theimmune system in the long run.

Nutritionist Sheryl Salis underlines theincredible benefits of Virgin Coconut Oil:

The important MCFAs present in CoconutOil are lauric acid, caprylic acid and capricacid. The MCFAs in coconut oil principally destroy mi-crobial organisms by disturbing their membranes,thus interfering with virus assembly and maturation.

Lauric acid and its monoglyceride found in coconutoil are effective in obliterating a wide variety of lipid-

by dissolving the protective lipids surrounding it.Studies show that monolaurin markedly reduced

the viral count on patients with HIV, herpes, measles,and vesicular stomatitis, among other viruses

Cold Pressed Virgin Coconut Oils that contain MCTs(Medium Chain Triglyceride Fats) which is used by theliver as a cleanser. This fat is one of the healthiest satu-rated fats because the body is able to easily absorb it.

Food plays an important role in deciding ourhealth, which in turn affects the body's immune

system. A weaker immune system can be de-tected when a person falls sick easily andquite often. Virgin Coconut Oil can be in-cluded in the diet in several ways.

Cooking with VCNO: coconut oil canbe used in everyday cooking due

to its high smoke point. It canalso be used for sauteing andbaking desserts. It is recom-mended to consume 2 spoons

of virgin coconut oil every day toboost the immune system.

Virgin coconut oil is not a miraculous cure for anyillnesses and therefore eating a balanced diet thatcomprises of healthy fats, grains and leafy vegetablesadds to the process for a healthier body and mind.IANS

coated bacteria by disintegrating their lipid mem-branes.

The function of Monolaurin is that of an antivirus thattargets enveloped viruses (viruses encased in a protec-tive layer of lipids and phospholipids). It kills the virus

Non-medicalpersonnel at highest risk

SINGAPORE: The survey of healthcare workers

from two major tertiary institutions in Singaporewho were caring for patients with COVID-19 sug-

gests that non-medical healthcare personnel areat the highest risk for psychological distress re-

lated to the pandemic.According to the study, published in the jour-

nal Annals of Internal Medicine, understandingthe psychological impact of the COVID-19 out-

break among health care workers is crucial inguiding policies and interventions to maintain

their psychological well-being.For the findings, researchers from the National

University of Singapore used a self-administeredquestionnaire to examine the psychological dis-

tress, depression, anxiety, and stress experi-enced by healthcare workers in Singapore in the

midst of the COVID-19 pandemic and comparedthese outcomes between medically and non-

medically trained hospital personnel.They found that the medically trained workers

scored significantly lower on measures of de-pression and anxiety and the impact of the event.

Nonmedical health care workers had a higherprevalence of anxiety even after adjustment for

possible confounders.These findings are consistent with those of a

recent COVID-19 study demonstrating that front-line nurses had significantly lower vicarious trau-

matization scores than non-frontline nurses andthe general public. IANS

Sleep well to boost immunityNEW DELHI: Amid the lockdown, social distancing

and "work from home", we are increasingly spendingmore time within four walls. Our humble bed has be-come a permanent station for many to do office work,binging on our favorite series, news and spending theextra time on hand with family. Ironically, while westay longer in bed, at times our sleep cycle is compro-mised due to breaking away from regular work cycle,lack of physical activity, etc.

Health conscious consumers are worried about thesituation and are taking all possible precautions tokeep themselves safe. This is likely to affect the mostimportant part in a day's routine Sleep. Therefore,while the mattress becomes the heart and soul of ourbed, that takes the extra load at such times, we needto ensure we get to fulfill eight hours of essential sleepand take care of the hygiene of the bed.

While everyone is takingcare of their hygienethrough regular saniti-zation and usage ofmasks, it is also im-portant to ensurehygiene and cleanli-ness of the mat-tress. With years ofusage and absorptionof body sweat anddead skin cells, mat-tresses turn into a breed-ing ground for bacteria & al-lergens. Incorporating Indianmedicinal items like neem preventsbreeding of germs while the air mesh fabric

in certain models improves hygiene and air circula-tion in the mattress. This helps you stay away from al-lergies and keeps you healthy. In addition, as a regularhabit, consumers should vacuum clean their mattressonce in 3 months.

Research shows a good sound sleep is of prime im-portance to boost concentration and productivity,manage appetite and feel overall positive and ener-gized.

The attempt now, is to raise awareness about how8 hours of sound sleep can build up the body's de-fenses. Research shows that sleep triggers the body'snatural healing and helps absorb nutrients better. Justsome of the reasons why one should be making surethey get their 8 hours of sleep," says Sumit SehgalCMO, Sheela Foam Ltd. IANS

April 17, 2020India Post14 www.indiapost.com

WASHINGTON: US' top infec-tious disease expert AnthonyFauci has said that Americansshould never shake handsagain, underlining that thepractise would not only pre-vent the spread of the novelcoronavirus but also decreaseinstances of influenza dramati-cally in the country.

Fauci, who is the Director ofthe National Institute of Allergyand Infectious Diseases and alead member of the WhiteHouse Task Force onCoronavirus said that washinghands should be a must inpeople's daily routine.

"I don't think we should evershake hands ever again, to behonest with you, Fauci told Thewall Street Journal in a podcastinterview. Not only would it begood to prevent coronavirusdisease, it probably would de-crease instances of influenzadramatically in this country,"he said.

"As a society, just forget aboutshaking hands. We don't need toshake hands. We've got to break

that custom," he told SinclairBroadcast Group in another in-terview. "Because as a matter offact, that is one of the majorways you can transmit a respira-tory-borne illness," he said.

Responding to a questionon the possible measures tobe taken to contain the spreadof the virus, he said, "When you

gradually come back, you don'tjump into it with both feet. Yousay, what are the things youcould still do and still approachnormal? One of them is abso-lute compulsive hand-washing.The other is you don't evershake anybody's hands.

In the recent weeks, Presi-dent Donald Trump too has

been talking about doing awaywith the hand shake, which is apart and parcel of the Ameri-can culture.

"And, frankly, much of theguidelines like shaking handsmaybe people aren't going tobe shaking hands anymore. Youknow, Tony had mentioned tome, Tony Fauci, the other day

that I don't think he would betoo upset with the concept ofnot shaking hands", Trump toldreporters during a White Housenews conference last month.

He was saying that the fluwould cut down, the regular fluwould be cut down by quite abit if we didn't do that, if wedidn't shake hands," he said.

The Harvard Medical Ga-zette recently said that somehave begun to wonder if theuniversal form of greeting,acknowledgement or sealing adeal may become a thing ofthe past. PTI


“NOT ONLY WOULD

IT BE GOOD TO PREVENT

CORONAVIRUS DISEASE,

IT PROBABLY WOULD

DECREASE INSTANCES

OF INFLUENZA

DRAMATICALLY

IN THIS COUNTRY.

AS A SOCIETY, JUST

FORGET ABOUT

SHAKING HANDS.”

Anthony Fauci

Art sale to celebrate Southeast Asian women artistsNEW DELHI: An online-only

art sale, featuring paintings ofwomen across SoutheastAsia, is a rich window into di-verse cultures and distinctiverituals into the region includ-ing countries like Indonesia,Vietnam and Burma.

Live till April 22 atBonhams.com the sale titled'Ritual and Culture' featuresmore than thirty 20th centurypaintings. Among the high-lights is a curated group ofpaintings depicting the mes-

merizing beauty of women inSoutheast Asia, as well as the

crucial roles they play in soci-ety.

The group of works is ledby Hanoi, by French artist AlixAyme, who had travelled inand painted extensively inAsia. The painting features aclassic street scene with aVietnamese mother strollingalong a path, her babynestled by her hips, as the cityHanoi - depicted by Ayme asa verdant sub-tropical para-dise - comes into spring.IANSlife


April 17, 2020 India Post 15

www.indiapost.com

NEW DELHI: The country-wide lockdown in India due tothe COVID-19 pandemic isbringing in great financial un-certainty for everyone, andparticularly for the poorest ofpoor, the most vulnerable, themost marginalized.

One sector also greatly im-pacted by this is the eventssector.

Since live performances de-pend on people gathering, thelockdown has adversely im-

pacted the community ofartistes, performers, teachers ofthe arts, instrument-makers andother arts-related professionals.

There have been large-scalecancellations of performances;along with this pending pay-ments for previously com-pleted engagements havealso been delayed.

Workshops and teachingsessions have been cancelledand teaching institutes havebeen closed.

In these trying circum-stances, lakhs of freelanceartistes, who earned their live-lihood through performancesand regular engagements,face the uncertainty of whenand how they will be able toearn again. With meager re-sources and savings to supportthemselves and their depen-dents, the coming months anda potential recession present avery bleak future for them.

In order to counter this co-

lossal loss, a group of indepen-dent artistes and individualcultural practitioners - whichinclude Shubha Mudgal,Aneesh Pradhan, SameeraIyengar, Arundhati Ghosh,Rahul Vohra, and Mona Irani -have initiated ADAA (Assis-tance for Disaster AffectedArtistes), a crowd-funded cam-paign that will help provideprompt financial support formore than 100 artistes across10 states in India.

These individuals working inthe field of performing arts willbe provided a monthly assis-tance of Rs 5000 for 6 monthsbeginning from May 1, 2020.This amount is to cover costs ofbasic rations, provisions andmedicines for their families.Each artiste will therefore re-ceive a total of Rs 30,000spread over 6 months, the or-ganizers said.

Over a 100 beneficiaries willbe selected by 10 arts organi-zations working at grassrootslevel in 10 states of the country.The organizations includeYalgaar Sanskrutik Manch(Maharashtra), Samudaya(Karnataka), Jana Sanskriti (WestBengal), Imphal Talkies(Manipur), Assam CulturalAcademy (Assam), Chennai KalaiKuzhu (Tamil Nadu), Pehchaan(Rajasthan), Nrityanjali Academy(Telangana).

The criteria for selecting thebeneficiaries include averagemonthly income, age, gender,medical condition and numberof dependents, the organizerssaid.

The campaign can be sup-ported at www.ourdem-ocracy.in. IANS

Malayalam streaming service launches in USWASHINGTON: Neestream,

a new streaming platformthat caters to the Malayalam-speaking population acrossthe globe, has launched itspremium services which iscurrently only available inthe US and Canada.

While the premium ser-vice includes hundreds ofMalayalam movies and anumber of news channels,the basic service, containingoriginal Neestream pro-

grams, is available worldwidefor free, the American Bazaarreported.

"Per capita, Malayaleesconsume more news and en-tertainment content thanmost linguistic groups in thedeveloping world," said JavadK. Hassan, Chairman of the JKHHolding Co., a Virginia-basedglobal conglomerate of com-panies operating in a numberof technology and service ar-eas.

"Our objective withNeestream is to giveMalayalees in India and aroundthe world the best ofMalayalam entertainment andcurrent affairs."

While the US streaming gi-ants have an advantage in re-sources, Hassan saidNeestream intends to com-pete with them.

"As an operation focusedsolely on the Malayalam mar-ket, we hope we will be able tomake an impact by bringingthe finest and most informativecontent to the consumers."

The aim of coming up with a

dedicated platform inMalayalam, according toHassan, was to bridge an im-portant and much neededgap when it comes to mean-ingful content for Malayalam-speaking households aroundthe world, the American Ba-zaar reported.

Asif Ismail, CEO ofNeestream, said the streamingplatform will focus on unearth-ing talent and creators in Keralaand from within the globalMalayalee diaspora. IANS

"PER CAPITA, MALAYALEES

CONSUME MORE NEWS AND

ENTERTAINMENT CONTENT

THAN MOST LINGUISTIC

GROUPS IN THE

DEVELOPING WORLD”

Since live performances depend on peoplegathering, the lockdown has adversely impacted the

community of artistes, performers, teachersof the arts, instrument-makers and other

arts-related professionals

April 17, 2020www.indiapost.comIndia Post16

Commonly referred to asThe Islands of Tahiti,French Polynesia is a col-

lection of 118 islands and atollsscattered across an impressivenautical surface area the size ofWestern Europe. Still, these tinyislands-many of which remainuninhabited-make up a totallandmass of only 1,600 squaremiles (4,100 sq. km).The fourmain group of islands are - Aus-tral, Marquesas and Society Is-lands, and Tuamoto Atolls.

TAHITI QUEEN OF THE PACIFICThe heart and soul of the

South Pacific, Tahiti is the larg-est in a chain of islands thatmake up French Polynesia. Thename can either refer to the

main island or the entire desti-nation.

The Locale: You may bewondering, where is Tahiti? Theislands are situated halfway be-tween Los Angeles, Californiaand Sydney, Australia. They arein the same time zone as Hawaiiand located just as far south ofthe equator as Hawaii is north.Since the word often conjuresup visions of a distant, un-spoiled paradise, many assumethem to be far away; but in allreality, Tahiti is only eight hoursfrom Los Angeles.

The island of Tahiti is dividedinto two parts: The larger por-tion to the northwest is knownas Tahiti Nui, while the smaller,southeastern peninsula is

known as Tahiti Iti. TahitiNui is dominated bythree extinct volca-nic mountains includ-ing Mount Orohena,the tallest in FrenchPolynesia; Mount Aorai,known for its incredible views;and Le Diadème, which ap-pears to crown the island as therightful queen.

Home to the capital city ofPapeete, Tahiti is the economiccenter of French Polynesia.Since all flights arrive throughFaa'a International Airport, yourtailored Tahiti vacation will be-gin and end in Papeete. Whileyou may be tempted to jet offimmediately to the other is-lands, we recommend stayingat least a day or two.

The Allure: Papeete is avibrant and multicultural citywith busy boulevards and abustling harbor. The down-town municipal market, LeMarché, is an exciting place topurchase all things Tahiti

including vanilla beans,monoi oil and

colorful pareos.Just down thestreet at Le CentreVaima is the Robert WanPearl Museum, which is agreat place to start if you'rehoping to purchase a Tahitianblack pearl during your stay.The waterfront promenadecomes to life at night whengourmet food trucks, LesRoulottes, open their windowsto serve a range of affordablemeals from Chinese food topizza.

Celebration: Every July, the an-nual Heiva I Tahiti transformsthe island into a spectacularcelebration of Polynesian cul-

ture and dance.Year round, you can

a l s o catch an authentic Tahi-tian dance show at theInterContinental Resort everyFriday and Saturday night. Per-manent historical fixtures in-clude the house of JamesNorman Hall, Point Venus, theMuseum of Tahiti and Her Is-lands, the Paul Gauguin Mu-seum, and the Harrison SmithBotanical Gardens.


www.indiapost.com April 17, 2020

COMMUNITYACROSS AMERICA

India Post

Desi News

17

Details on page 20

Memories,Unplugged!

Details on page 21

Details on page 19

Sunil Shah tops as businessman& community activist

SURENDRA ULLAL

CHICAGO:A front ranking In-dian community activist, SunilShah, has a good number ofachievements to his creditover the past few years but hisfriends and community mem-bers at large could point out totwo commendable mile stonesin his cheered career - his as-sociation for 25 years with NewYork Life, easily among the big-gest insurance companies inthe world, and a steady growthin his career coupled with avery healthy and successfulmarried life.

Sunil Shah had announcedcelebrating both these milestones in his rich life thismonth but the spread of Co-

rona -19 virus torpedoed theplan. Beseeched by friendsand well wishers he stands

determined with huge supportfrom all quarters and an-nounced hosting the event incoming June

Graduating from Mumbai hecame to USA in June 1990 andwading his way through earlyturbulence in new environ-ment he felt that he is wellsuited to be on his own andplunged into the insurancefield. His intuition proved rightand his business acumenhelped him climbthe successladder slowly. Sunil Shah, aRegistered RepresentativeNYLIFE Securities LLC and Fi-nancial ServicesProfessionalhas completed 25successful years with New York

Life InsuranceCompany fromthe Greater Chi-cago General Of-fice.

He is also lifeand qualifyingmember of Mil-lion Dollar RoundTable. He has re-ceived severaltimes NationalQuality Award,National SalesA c h i e v e m e n tAward and LifeStar Award. Be-sides, he hasserved as aboard director

with New York Life InsuranceCompany in Downers Grove, anorth side suburb of Chicago.

Sunil Shah's success in busi-ness is equally matchedwithhis contribution to the so-ciety aroundhim. His work as acommunity leader is highly ap-

preciated and acknowledged.He is the Founder President ofFederation of Indian Associa-tions, an umbrella organizationof Indian associations. He notonly founded this body but hehas been successfully nurtur-ing it since, by hostingnumerouscommunity orientedactivitiesthatinclude India Daycelebrations, Health Carecamps, Holy Festivities andshow casing Indian culture atthe Bull Games

He is a Lifetime memberand Ambassador of AsianAmerican Hotel Owners Asso-ciation and also of SchaumburgBusiness Association. He is also

Lifetime member of the JainSociety of Metropolitan Chi-cago, Gujarati Samaj of Chicagoand Gujarati cultural Associa-tion. He had a stint in politics

too and was a Mayoral candi-date 2019for the Village ofSchaumburg andis currentlyserving as Zoning Commis-sioner with Village ofSchaumburg.

Residing in Schaumburg, aChicago suburb for the pastlast 20 years with his wife RitaShah, two son's Sahaj andSwapnil, and daughter in lawNiki Shah, Sunil Shah and hisfamily members have passionhelping the people around andneedy in the community atlarge . He can be reached at847-309-4462 and / or byemail [email protected].

FIA Sunil Shah and wife Ms. Rita Shah (L) with former IndianConsul General S Dalela

Sunil Shah with former President Barak Obama

Dr. Monika Chugh

Amazinghigh schoolstudentsIndia Post News Service

This COVID-19 outbreak affects all of us to varying de-

grees, but the group it affectsthe most is those in the at-riskgroups. Older individuals andthose with previous respira-tory conditions are exponen-tially more at risk of havingcomplications if infected withcoronavirus. Because of this,they are put at risk when do-ing everyday tasks like shop-ping. Our organization, FierceH e l p e r s( w w w. f i e r ce h e l p e r s . c o m ) ,aims to help alleviate them ofthis stress. We connect volun-teers with those who are inneed of delivered groceries orsupplies, reducing the risk ofcontracting COVID-19.

WHC of America'sinitiative: Food forthe Front linersIndia Post News Service

Volunteers from VishwaHindu Parishad (World HinduCouncil) of America contrib-uted to the fight against theCorona virus in their own way-by feeding the Fighters on thefrontlines of the fight. Called"Food for the Front Liners", thiseffort is raising funds to buyfood and deliver to the doctorsand nurses who are directlytreating the Covid-19 patientsin Emergency rooms and tentsoutside the hospitals acrossMassachusetts.

FIA acts as GoodSamaritan for 3Indian womenIndia Post news bureau

CHICAGO: The Federation ofIndian Associations Chicagocame to the rescue of three In-dian women thrown out byAirbnb.

Details on page 22

April 17, 2020India Post18 Community Across Americawww.indiapost.com

Millennium Bank among Top 100 bestperforming community banks

RAMESH SOPARAWALAIndia Post News Service

CHICAGO: Millennium Bank, a minor-ity owned community bank inChicagoland, has been ranked amongtop 100 best performing U.S. commu-nity banks, under $3 billion in asset size,by S&P Global Market Intelligence.

The bank is one of four Illinois banks tomake the ranking and one of 4,391 eli-gible banks to receive the Top 100honor."During these trying times, the fi-nancial strength of your bank is crucial andwe are thrilled to be ranked in the top100 U.S. community banks under $3 bil-lion in asset size," said NicholasDizonno.President & CEO of the Bank.

He further observed that "to beranked at this level nationally and beone of four Illinois community banks toreceive this honor is another excep-tional milestone for us as an institutionand a testament to the hard work, vi-sion and focus of our entire team."

S&P Global Market Intelligence calcu-lated six metrics to identify top-per-forming U.S. community banks under $3billion in asset size: pre-tax return ontangible common equity; net charge-offs as a percentage of average loans;efficiency ratio; adjusted Texas ratio; netinterest margin; and loan growth. Basedoff current regulatory standards andthe criteria listed above, 4,391 commer-cial banks, savings banks, and savings &loan associations were eligible to beranked in the top 100 best performingcommunity banks in the U.S.

Established in 2007, Millennium Bankis an independent, minority ownedcommunity bank with a focus on com-mercial lending, business banking andrelationship building. The five-star ratedbank is the only community bank in DesPlaines and has established itself as a

leader in the community, providinghundreds of small businesses the op-portunity to contribute to local eco-nomic development and business own-

ers the opportunity to launch prosper-ous businesses to help their communi-ties flourish. It is a Bauer Financial, Inc.

5-star rated, independent, minorityowned community bank with a focus oncommercial lending, business bankingand relationship building.

As the only true community bank inDes Plaines, Millennium Bank takesgreat pride in their efforts to encour-

age economic growth and provide op-portunities for the individuals and com-munities they serve to achieve eco-nomic stability. Committed to personalservice and relationship banking, what-ever your banking needs are, Millen-nium Bank is here to provide you withthe best possible banking experience.For more information on MillenniumBank, visit https://milbnk.com/.

S&P Global Market Intelligence is adivision of S&P Global (NYSE: SPGI) thatintegrates financial and industry data,research, and news into tools that helptrack performance, generate alpha,identify investment ideas, understandcompetitive and industry dynamics,perform valuations and assess creditrisk. Investment professionals, govern-ment agencies, corporations and uni-versities globally can gain the intelli-gence essential to making business andfinancial decisions with conviction.

Plea for legal entry to persecuted Afghan Sikhs & HindusNEELA PANDYA

WASHINGTON, DC: The Hindu Ameri-can Foundation (HAF) has made astrong pitch to the Indian governmentto grant asylum with an option to applyfor expedited citizenship to those cur-rently being targeted for their religiousbelief in Afghanistan.

In a letter written to the Indian PMNarendraModiji, HAF has urged to takeall possible actions to address the diresituation of religious minorities in Af-ghanistan who look to the secular Re-public of India a safe haven in the region.The HAF also suggested that the Govern-ment of India take the following steps:

Grant legal entry and political asylumto any Hindus, Sikhs, Christians, and

other persecuted religious minoritiescurrently fleeing Afghanistan with resi-dency visas that last no less than five (5)years and with the option of applyingfor expedited citizenship;

Ensure that these religious minori-ties are eligible for government ben-efits such as physical and mentalhealthcare, education, economic or

business loans, grants and other em-ployment opportunities; and Providetemporary housing to the refugees.

Furthermore, HAF's recommenda-tions to Prime Minister Modi is equallyconsistent with HAF's position that theCAA should be expanded to includeneutral language, specifically "Mem-bers of a religious or ethnic minoritycommunity who are unable to return totheir home countries of Afghanistan,Bangladesh, or Pakistan, and unable toobtain protection in those countriesdue to past or well-founded fear of fu-ture persecution on account of religionor ethnicity."

In a letter written to theIndian PM NarendraModiji,HAF has urged to take all

possible actions to addressthe dire situation For detailed story visit

www.indiapost.com

India Post 19April 17, 2020 Community Across Americawww.indiapost.com

Amazing high schoolstudents


This COVID-19 outbreak affects allof us to varying degrees, but thegroup it affects the most is those

in the at-risk groups. Older individualsand those with previous respiratoryconditions are exponentially more atrisk of having complications if infectedwith coronavirus. Because of this, theyare put at risk when doing everydaytasks like shopping.Our organization,Fierce Helpers(www.fiercehelpers.com),aims to help alleviatethem of this stress. Weconnect volunteerswith those who are inneed of delivered gro-ceries or supplies, re-ducing the risk of con-tracting COVID-19.

This organizationwas founded byRamana Kolady andAlexander Wang.Ramana had experi-ence working with seniors before he co-founded this platform with his nonprofitorganization Students and SeniorsUnited. SSU is a nonprofit organizationdedicated to helping the elderly andlearning more from them, through re-search and community service (ulti-mately aiming to solve the issue of so-cial isolation within the community). Af-ter seeing a prominent issue for theelderly and at-risk-groups, Alex andRamana could not simply stand andwatch and decided to start the organi-zation to really bring the community to-gether in this unforeseeable time.

If you know anyonewho could use ourservice, please askthem to place theirorders on ourwebsite! On the otherhand, if you would liketo help out as a volun-teer, please fill out ourregistration form onour website. Together,we can bring andkeep the communitytogether, even in atime like this!

FounderHello, my name is

Ramana Kolady and I am a current jun-ior at Cupertino High School. From ayoung age, I have always dreamed ofbecoming a doctor and developed apassion for helping the seniors around

me. With my career goal of becoming ageriatric physician identified, I aimed tohelp those in my community andstarted Students and Seniors United, anorganization aiming to bridge the gapbetween seniors and teenagers in thecommunity through research and com-munity service (meeting with seniorsand asking them various questions toobtain a collective data set, organizing

social events withteenagers and seniors,etc.). I also started do-ing research withmany geriatric profes-sionals in the field, totry to contribute tothe field of medicine Icare so dearly about.After observingCOVID-19 and its ef-fects on the people,more specifically, theproblems it causes forthe elderly, Alexanderand I constructedFierce Helpers, in or-

der to get groceries and essential itemsto those most vulnerable during thisunfortunate time. With seniors goingout to get groceries, they have an ex-tremely high chance of contracting thevirus and through Fierce Helpers, webelieve we can keep the communityclose together, while also keeping ourseniors and people at high-risk safe.

CofounderMy name is Alexander Wang and I am

currently a junior at Cupertino HighSchool. I am interested in finance andhope to one day pursue a career in

banking. In the lastcouple of weeks, as theconcern aroundCOVID-19 grew expo-nentially, I noticed thateveryone was out forthemselves andseemed to ignore thecommunity aroundthem. COVID-19 espe-cially affects thosewho are older or haveprevious health condi-tions, which is why it isparticularly risky forthem be in close prox-imity with others. After

we noticed this problem, Ramana and Ibegan working and thinking of ways wecould help the community during thispandemic, which is why we createdFierce Helpers.

Ramana Kolady

Alexander Wang

CG Amit Kumar interacts with Indian-American Covid-19 Task Force

KEERTHI KUMAR RAVOORI

CHICAGO: The Newly appointed Con-sul General of India Mr. Amit Kumar hitthe ground interacting with the IndianTask Force members for Covid-19 at anintroductory conference call convenedunder the aegis of National Council ofAsian Indian Associations [NCAIA] onApril 7, 2020 in Chicago with more than50 Midwest community Organizationrepresentatives virtually joining to-gether

They in extended a warm welcometo Ambassador rank Amit Kumar as hetakes charge as thenew Consul General ofIndia in Chicago.

The Task Force ap-praised AmbassadorAmit Kumar on thebroad range of effortsundertaken by themin the Midwesternstates Each memberof the task force en-lightened Consul Gen-eral about their roleand how their role im-pacted the lives of thepeople affected bythis pandemic andpledged help to flat-ten the curve.

This collective part-nership between theprominent communityleaders of major organizations and Con-sul General Amit Kumar clearly createda huge synergy, enabling a large-scalemobilization of medical help, counsel,aid, guidance to those affected by thepandemic outbreak.

Consul General Amit Kumar praisedthe initiatives, efforts and valuable con-tributions made by the members of theIndian task force and their organiza-tions in helping local authorities andcommunities in their fight against the

pandemic. He pledged cooperation ofhis office.

Consul General briefed membersabout the steps taken by the Embassy& Consulates to assist Indians. He as-sured that the Consulate will continueto work with all concerned in address-ing the evolving situation.

Harish Kolasani, President of NCAIAoutlined how the pandemic outbreakmotivated the creation of the task forceadding," we have continued this ongo-ing critical mission andcurrently NCAIA

is intensely workingon creating a Helplineand a dedicatedWebsite.

Among those whoparticipated in theconference call in-clude Dr. Bharat Baraiof Indiana, Dr. SureshReddy of AAPI, Dr.Sreenivas Reddy of Il-linois State MedicalBoard, Dr. AnujaGupta of WE group,Dr. Vemuri Murthy,Chicago Medical Soci-ety, Dr. Paul Nguyen,SCARF Helpline,Dr.NiranjanaShah, MA,MaliniVaidyanathan,Air-India, AmitJhingran, SBI, Santosh

Kumar of MAFS, Pradeep Kandimalla,UlkaNagarkar, Hanumanth Reddy of ATA,Herald Figuerdo, MuthuswamySelvaraj,Laddi Singh, Roopa Karri, Ramakrishna K,Himanshu Pathak from President ofIowa Indian Assn and others. Two activeparticipants from the office of the In-dian Consulate who are providingprompt and effective guidance in thegroup include Consul Ranjit Singh andConsul P.K.Misra with the full comple-ment of the Indian Consulate staff.

Consul General of IndiaMr Amit Kumar


World Hindu Council of America's initiative:Food for the Front Liners


Volunteers from Vishwa HinduParishad ( World Hindu Council) ofAmerica contributed to the fight againstthe Corona virus in their own way- byfeeding the Fighters on the frontlinesof the fight. Called "Food for the FrontLiners", this effort is raising funds to buyfood and deliver to the doctors andnurses who are directly treating theCovid-19 patients in Emergency roomsand tents outside the hospitals acrossMassachusetts.

The idea came from one of the volun-teers talking casually with one of herfriends, who was a doctor who was di-rectly involved. She said she got so hun-gry during the day, because the line ofpatients needing attention was so long;there was not even time during the dayto stop to get food. It was not only her,all the people in these "Covid Tents" asthey are called, do not have time to stopfor anything. As a result, they keepworking, sometimes late into the after-

noon, until someone stops and buysfood for them.

From this casual conversation wasborn this idea of buying food for thesebrave doctors and nurses and deliver-

ing it to them. A flyer was created andcirculated amongst the community.Various restaurants and sandwich shopswere approached, and sandwiches,chips were bought and delivered toarea hospitals, starting with UMass Me-morial Hospital in Worcester. ApekshaTripathi M.D, from UMass Worcestersays, "I was touched by their humilityand by the efforts they took to expresstheir gratitude and support for Healthcare workers."

Three days after this was started, weare already starting to see the results ofthis initiative. Food has been deliveredby dedicated volunteers to UMass Me-morial Hospital in Worcester, and LowellGeneral Hospital.Anit Gupta, one of thefirst volunteers to deliver the food, said,"it was a very satisfying feeling to thinkthat I could do something for our doc-tors and nurses, who are putting theirlives at risk for us during this Covid-19pandemic."

Katherine Fredette, R.N from UMassHospital Emergency room, expressed

her appreciation to the volunteers. Shesaid, "We can't express enough grati-tude to the organization and its mem-bers."

Abhishek Singh, volunteer, thought itwas "very rewarding to be able to helpsomeone who was helping so manypeople stay healthy during these toughtimes."

Sangeeta Singh also echoed othervolunteers. She said, "It was a great feel-ing knowing that I could help someonewho is doing so much for the commu-nity."

This is an ongoing effort to providemuch-needed nourishment to theweary healthcare workers who are risk-ing their own safety and health to keepthe public safe. Please donate gener-ously to this initiative, so that the workcan continue as long as it is needed. Thisis also an opportunity to do your partby volunteering to deliver the food tothe various area hospitals.

To Donate please visit: https://www.vhp-america.org/donation/

Anit Gupta delivering food to UMass Memorial, WorcesterFood delivered to Lowell General Hospital


Memories,Unplugged!

DR.MONIKA CHUGH

Aah, THOSE DAYS! Growing up,memories unfold. Early morn-ing hush hush, I remembermom's hot sizzling chai, Parle

G biscuits ( not cookies as the new gencalls them now ), crisp and crusty toastsmeared with Amul butter, gettingready for school, backpack on the shoul-der and rushing out to the bus stop tocatch the school bus. How can I forgetmy big round chunky glasses with myeyeballs sticking out trying to capturethe world. My absolutely short boy cuthair which I thought made me look realchic. The long, perfectly creased fullycovered tunic lower than the knees withshining and polished black shoes. Well,that was the prim and proper dresscode, no escape. Chitter chatter in thebus, but I had my science text book inmy hands, precisely Organic Chemistry,trying to cram the equations which Inever got the hang of! Trying to naildown each step in my brain, after all Ihad to ace my test.

Back home and mom's fresh homemade lunch with roti, sabzi, daal, raitaand fruit, not forgetting achaar ( till dateI cannot eat without the spice elementin my food ). Finish up homework, pre-pare for any upcoming tests and off tospending some time outdoors. Chupanchupai, kho kho, pithoo all those unfor-gettable games we used to play andhow we used to cheat creating quarrelsas though we were on a battleground!Whoa, the electricity just cuts off, yay,more time to play now!

Dad coming back home on his Bajajscooter, helmet on his head, briefcase on

the side, which slowly progressed to thegray Ambassador, green Fiat and finallythe sleek and silky blue Maruti. Chai timeagain, with the maid in the kitchen help-ing mom getting the dinner ready. Be-ing a family of six we had a simple rule,all sit on the table and enjoy the simpleyet luxurious sumptuous meal.

Entertainment time on weekdays was

above. Sky scrapers touching the sky,funneled with highways, speeding carsyet tunneled and narrow thinking.Money in our pockets yet mind bogglesshoving out for charity. Meditative cen-ters to cleanse our disturbed soul yetmind is anguished and disquieted. Com-puters, internet, social media, automo-biles, jets, remotes yet at a sluggish pacecrawling towards an inconsequential life.Social element reaching it's peak yet noauthentic relationships to latch on.

Where did we go wrong? Did we forgetwhat this universe had gifted us? Did weget sidetracked? Did the wheels get off thetracks? What happened after all? Love,peace, harmony, passion, accord, devotion,empathy and tolerance seem to have beenforever lost in between the cracks.

COVID-19 strikes, lock down happensand we all are quarantined. Life takes adramatic and theatrical turn. We getdiscombobulated with baffled feelings.One week at home may become monthswith a divergent lifestyle which wenever imagined. The universe has re-minded us of our deep roots and hasgiven us a prodigious reminder to wakeup! Open you eyes!

Flash Back, I am reminded of my timegrowing up as an ideal family. Musingover, reminiscing the old days gives megoose bumps as I am faintly awarewhere I went wrong, what I ignored in a

blink, what I gave a cold shoulder to andwhat I was oblivious to with open eyes.

Cooking all day brings out the lost for-gotten worldly chef in me, cleaning themess, doing the extra pile of laundrymakes me value my cleaners a lot more,unable to get myself pampered for myskin, hair, nails makes me comfortable look-ing at myself in the mirror, watching oldtelevision shows reminds me of thegolden times enjoying with family, playingmonopoly with my kids tells me I am notthat old after all and taking long walks con-nects me with myself and the universe.

Is it worth it? Yes absolutely!Just watching the kids bond, listening

to their boisterous chats, resolving theirtantrums, getting those extra cuddly so-cial distance hugs, sipping the perfectDalgona hot coffee in my most treasuredcup made by my daughter, sending anangry late night text to my son like a lu-natic mom to lower his volume whileplaying video games in the middle of thenight and turning off the kitchen lightsafter the midnight snacks only makesme smile mutely! I am as silent and stillas a mouse but my heart has a surge ofpowerful and turbulent emotions.These are not normal times but I amnormal after the latent periods of meburying my head in the sand.

Dr. Monika Chugh

Where did we go wrong? Did we forget what

this universe had gifted us? Did we get sidetracked? Did

the wheels get off the tracks? What happened after all?

Love, peace, harmony, passion, accord, devotion,

empathy and tolerance seem to have been

forever lost in between the cracks

Doordarshan channel, Krishi Darshan,news and how much I used to wait forWednesday to watch my favoritebollywood music program Chitrahar.Sunday was a heavy brunch, mom mas-saging the head with coconut oil and theentire family flocked to see the episodeof Ramayana and Mahabharata. Therewas absolute pin drop silence in theneighborhood, not even the sabziwalascreaming on top of his lungs, as all wereglued to the remoteless television.

Dining out and shopping was a raretreat on the weekends, it never crossedthe mind as we were content in our cozyhomes. However, atrip to Nirula's fortheir mouth wa-tering toothy icecream, delectablepizzas and juicyburgers has surelyleft a strong markon my taste buds.Late night idletalks in our bal-cony, peeling oranges and munchingthem away under the stars used to bethe highlight for us siblings sharing ourmost hidden secrets like digging skel-etons in the closet.

Summer vacations were super longand boring but we never complained orwhined. Did we have options? Not really!Warm sultry days, getting up late, fillingup our bellies with all the fatty greasyparathas, mango milk shake, reading,crafting, filling up the cooler with bucketfull of water, spending weeks with cous-ins and grandparents and land up com-

ing back home with some cash in ourpockets secretly given by uncles andaunts. Those were some classic days thathave left durable imprints on our hearts.

Fast forward, life has become very fastpaced where we are racing against time.We have so much yet our platter is hol-low and barren. We have a brain chockfull of knowledge yet judge over and



FIA acts as Good Samaritan for3 Indian women evicted by local AirbnbIndia Post news bureau

CHICAGO: The Federation of IndianAssociations Chicago came to the res-cue of three Indian women thrown outby Airbnb - a mother and her twodaughters- with their luggage and be-longings on the street in Chicago.

The FIA Team helps them relocateand settle. Last month Mrs. ManjitKHURANA, Ms. Aanchal BATRA andMs, Arashdeep BATRA had travelledfrom Chandigarh India andhadchecked into the Airbnb home of aChicago landlord Mrs. AlejandraGonzales located on 2127 W GladysAve Chicago Illinois. Their plan was tostay there for about one month leav-ing on April 6th, and they paid morethan $ 16700 in total for 31 days res-ervation ending on April 6th.

But they were in shock when theyfound themselves being evicted onMarch 31st at around 7pm whentheir luggage and their personal be-

longings were thrown out of the houseonto the curb/ street while Chicago Po-lice Officer Kennedy Batch # 3206watched all this happening in front ofhim and his partner.

The family had still 6 days left of their

reservation and their money withAirbnb and the landlord. The family wasleft out on the street not because theywanted to, but because the host hadasked the family to cancel their reser-vation around March 17as they werebeing shifted from Room #2 to Room #1.

And the host never updated the reser-vation which that she was going to butinstead on March 31used this cancella-tion reason to throw the family of 3women out of the house while havingkept their money all this time.

This story is not about any one partybeing right or wrong. Instead, thatmeans, as it stands now, anyone has theright to kick you out of their house orapartment if they feel so inclined. That'sessentially what happened with thefamily using Airbnb to rent a home in

Chicago.Luckily to the rescue of the family

2-members of a Chicago non profitFederation of Indian Associations(FIA) Chicago Past President andFounding Member, Neil Khot and theCurrent President Mr. Gurmeet SinghDhalwan had come to visit them, atthe request of Indian Consulate inChicago as the family was strandeddue to their SwissAir flight LX9 todepart O'Hare on April 6 got can-celled with India closing its interna-tional borders for Corona virus.

With the help other Indian commu-nity members from Chicago in par-ticularly Sunil Shah FIA Founder,Kalpesh Joshi Midwest Ambassadorof AAHOA and Pritesh Gandhi ownerof Clarion Hotel and Waterford Ban-quet of Elmhurst opened their hotelroom to stay at no cost to the family.In addition, dailyfood shall be pro-vided by Sikh Temple of Palatine.

The family was left out on the street not because they

wanted to, but because the host had asked the family to

cancel their reservation around March 17as they were

being shifted from Room #2 to Room #1

Praise for "Mira, Royal DetectiveIndia Post News Service

Disney Junior's new animatedseries, "Mira, Royal Detective" has been well received,especially among the Asian

American community, who have praisedthe show for its depiction of Indian cul-ture and customs.

Featuring the voices of South Asianactors Freida Pinto ("Slumdog Million-aire"), Kal Penn ("Sunnyside"), JameelaJamil ("The Good Place"), Aasif Mandvi("Evil"), Utkarsh Ambudkar ("Pitch Per-fect") and newcomer Leela Ladnier, theshow premiered Friday, March 20 onDisney Junior and Disney Channel.

"We applaud Disney for the develop-ment of ["Mira, Royal Detective"] andhow it introduces and projects thebeauty and diversity of South Asian cul-ture, music, attire and religion to its au-dience. The show allows children ofSouth Asian heritage to see themselvesin the show and how their culture alsodeserves to be celebrated and shared."- Gujari Singh, Communications Directorof the Sikh American Legal Defense andEducation Fund (SALDEF)

"Mira, Royal Detective" is agroundbreaking new children's seriesset in a fictional kingdom but incorpo-rating authentic Indian customs andculture. It is the rare example of a se-ries that actually stars a South Asiancharacter who gets to tell her own sto-

ries, instead of just serving a support-ing role." - Daniel Mayeda, Chair of theAsian Pacific American Media Coalition(APAMC)

"Thirty years ago, when I was mydaughter's age, as a first generationSouth Asian American kid, I was neverable to see myself in my favorite TV

shows or movies. [...] Finally having ashow with a full South Asian cast set inIndia is tremendous. [...] My baby girlpointing at posters of Mira, a thought-ful problem solver who helps others as

a Royal Detective, exclaiming 'just likeIya!' This is why representation matters,and I couldn't be a more emotional andexcited mama!" - Irene Khan, SouthAsian digital beauty influencer andparent to a young daughter.

"Mira, Royal Detective" is a welcomeaddition to animated children's pro-

gramming that features a smart anddynamic heroine and captures the cus-toms, colors and music of South Asia.There is a veritable collection of thevoice talents of notable actors from

the South Asian diaspora. The storieshave characters with South Asiannames who hold a variety of careersand jobs (from queen to kulfi vendorto dance instructor to inventor) andexhibit traits such as creativity, com-passion and competitive-ness thatmake up a broad and detailed worldfor Mira and friends to have adven-tures. " - Shilpa Davé, author of "IndianAccents: Brown Voice and Racial Per-formance in American TV and Film" andprofessor of Media Studies at Univer-sity of Virginia

Excitement for the show also camefrom bloggers who posted theirthoughts on "Mira, Royal Detective:"Phil Yu of Angry Asian Man and mom-friendly social media influencers,Arushi Garg of The Snazzy Mom andVeena Crownholm.

New episodes of "Mira, Royal Detec-tive" will continue to premiere Fridaysat 11:00 a.m. ET/PT on Disney Channeland will also be available on Disney Jun-ior and DisneyNOW. Each episode willshowcase different elements of Indianculture, and feature guest roles from well-known South Asian stars such as DannyPudi ("Community", "DuckTales"), KunalNayyar ("The Big Bang Theory"), HariKondabolu ("Totally Biased with W. KamauBell"), Aarti Sequeira ("The Next Food Net-work Star") and Avantika Vandanapu ("Di-ary of a Future President)”.

Mira, Royal Detective


Australian firm removes 10 LordGanesh belly rings after protest

MADHU PATEL

CHICAGO: The protest; against LordGanesh Belly rings the Tweed Heads(NSW, Australia) based jewelry retailerThe Belly Ring Shop (Tummy Toys) apolo-gized and removed ten belly buttonrings carrying images of Lord Ganesh;that was dubbed highly inappropriate".

Helene Holtsbaum, owner of TheBelly Ring Shop ( Tummy Toys), in anemail to Rajan Zed, who spearheadedthe protest, wrote: "I would like to con-firm that all ten belly rings have nowbeen removed from our website andthe sale of these items has permanentlyceased...I profoundly apologize for myactions to all Hindus around the world.Thank you for giving me the opportu-nity to correct this matter and for rais-ing my awareness in this area for under-standing the concerns of Hindu com-munity, which thought image of LordGanesh on such a product, was insensi-tive.

Rajan Zed had pointed out that Lord

Ganesh was highly revered in Hinduismand was meant to be worshipped intemples or home shrines and not toadorn one's belly button or used as a

"navel toy" or, become a tool for "sexynavel fashion". Inappropriate usage ofsacred Hindu deities or concepts orsymbols or icons for commercial orother agenda was not okay as it hurt the

devotees.In Hinduism, Lord Ganesh is wor-

shipped as god of wisdom and removerof obstacles and is invoked before thebeginning of any major undertaking.According to 2016 Census, there were440,300 Hindus in Australia. Hinduism,second fastest-growing religion in Aus-tralia, is its fourth largest.

Ten objectionable belly-button/na-vel/belly-piercing rings and belly-but-ton/belly/navel bars on this retailer'swebsite were seemingly named onGanesh and carried the image of LordGanesh,price ranged between $5 to$14.90.

The Belly Ring Shop ( Tummy Toys),which calls itself "Australia's trusted""The MEGA Belly Bar Shop", was foundedin 2008. It describes its jewelry as "es-sential sexy navel fashion", states tohave 6,000+ belly bars and its Missionincludes "no belly button is left withoutsensational bling".

Lord Ganeshbelly rings

Choice for Indian MuslimsBe a Symbolic Muslim or just a'Muslim'

A.Q. SIDDIQUI

Long ago, Dr Muhammad Iqbal,Urdu poet and Pioneer of Parti-tion, commented that Muslimsin India are more like practicing

Hindus. He was popularly known asAllama Iqbal. Allama Iqbal's ancestorswere from a Kashmiri Brahman gotraSapru. They were converted fromShaivite Hinduism to Islam.

But the times of Allama Iqbal have longpassed. That was a time when you couldhardly distinguish between a Muslim andHindu. Both looked identical, both spokethe same language. Even Allama Iqbal didnot sport a beard. I remember in 1973when I entered in my Mumbai college forthe first day, everyone looked alike. Wewere just young Indians. Now go to anycollege and you can easily identify who isMuslim and who is Hindu. So much thatthe PM of India was quoted saying, "youcan identify them with their garments".

When did this transformation of agood Indian Muslim happen to be a"symbolic Muslim"? Is it mandated in Is-lam that a Muslim must wear a scull cap,KurtaPyjama and sport a beard? Thebeard is recommended by ProphetMuhammad (pbuh). But it is a recom-mendation, not mandated. An Islamicscholar has rightly said, "Beard is in Islam,

Islam is not in beard". When a companionof Prophet (pbuh), Hazrat Zaid came tohim with his friends and told to Prophetthat they were going to Syria for a tradepurpose. He asked for guidance fromProphet, "There are only Jews and Chris-tians. They will ask us who are we, whatshall we say?" Prophet gave them a shortadvice, "Tell them you are Muslim". TheProphet was asked further, "And if theyoffer us their food?". The Prophet, peace

be upon him told them, "Mention God'sname and eat of it."

The religion of Islam was simplifiedand completed by Prophet (pbuh) forthe followers in his lifetime.

The advice of Prophet given at that ismore relevant for the guidance of IndianMuslims today. Lack of leadership, am-biguous guidance from self-proclaimedscholars, rigidness in matter of faith, ex-tremism in Islamic symbolism, looking up

at Muslim world for support and nurtur-ing a perennial fear for survival, are someof the factors responsible for IndianMuslims' isolation from mainstream.

Much blame goes to leadership andscholars. When scholars and Moulvispreach a large gathering, the role model isnot 100 percent Sunnah but an adulter-ated Sunnah. A look at pictures of these so-called scholars, now celebrities onYouTube, reminds the famous

Shakespearean quote, "Physicians heal thy-self". Most of them have clean shavedmoustache and long beards. Even appear-ance of a scholar matters. The four rightlyguided Caliphs who ruled after the death ofProphet Muhammad (pbuh) were role mod-els for the believers and scholars as well.

All these Caliphs have trimmed mous-tache and trimmed beard. Caliph Omaribn Al Khattab, the 2nd in row was so keenfor his public appearance that every Fri-

day before going to mosque for sermon,he will ask his wife to hold a mirror andlook the length of his moustache. If hesees any hair coming over his lip, he willcut it. His wife would stitch his torn-outgown and ask him why he is so keen forhis appearance. Omar replied, "I stand infront of so many Muslims in Prophet'smosque. They will look up at me. I do notwant my appearance least different asdesired by Prophet." He reminded that,"Prophet asked to trim moustache so thatthe hair will not touch the drink in a cup."

The Prophet did not ask to clean shavethe moustache. These scholars appearingin public view with clean shaved mous-tache are not in tune with Sunnah. A ladyscholar on YouTube is preaching Islamand viewers can see her eyes only. She iscompletely covered. Her appearance willmislead many Muslim women. Face coverof women is not mandated in Islam. Onlyhead cover in public appearance and adecent covering up to bosom is advised.

Being a Muslim is submission to the willof God. For that reason, Prophet (pbuh)advised his travelling companions that re-flect the character of a Muslim not thesymbol of being a Muslim. "Love every-thing created by God," said Prophet(pbuh). A Muslim by his acts is one lovedand desired by people around him. Hisneighbor should feel safe with him. Hisfriendship be desired. When Prophet wasoften asked for guidance for being a goodMuslim, he always said, "perform yourprayers in time, pay Zakat (charity) to poor".

Once a villager came to him and said,"O Prophet, I have full faith in Allah, Inever miss my 5-time prayers, I doRamadan fasting, I pay Zakat andInshallah I will perform Hajj. Do you thinkI am eligible for Jannat(paradise)?". TheProphet(pbuh) answered, "I guaranteeyou will enter Jannat". The chapter isclosed. Nothing more is required to be agood Muslim. The rigidness in being asymbolic Muslim, wearing a cap,KurtaPyjama, asking air hostesses forSahoor or Iftaar on board a flight and of-fering prayers in galleys, will not earn anextra reward from God Almighty.

Fasting in travel is not advised. Short-ening of prayers are desired through ajourney. Let not your, being a Muslim befrowned upon by Non-Muslim. By indulg-ing in Shab-e-barat celebration, not re-quired at all in Islam and scuffling with se-curity forces for Friday prayers duringlockdown period, Indian Muslims broughtfocus back on their rigid symbolic image.

"Unto you is your religion and untomine is my religion" is the unique advicein Holy Quran for Muslims.

That was a time when you could hardly distinguish

between a Muslim and Hindu. Both looked

identical, both spoke the same language.

Even Allama Iqbal did not sport a beard


In Brief Immigration

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"We are a group of

about 22 workers, and

most of us are from

Uttar Pradesh. When the

situation became

increasingly grave, we

hoped to go back

to India."

Food supplies given to 22 Indianworkers stranded in Sharjah

SHARJAH: Following a dis-tress call on Twitter, the Consu-late General of India in Dubaiprovided food supplies to agroup of 22 stranded Indianworkers, who were seekingemployment in Sharjah, it wasreported.

The men have valid visit vi-sas and were brought to theUnited Arab Emirates (UAE) byfraudulent employmentagents in early March, Consu-late officials told the KhaleejTimes.

The men, abandoned bytheir agents, could not findjobs due to the restrictions im-posed in the country due tothe ongoing coronavirus pan-demic and had very little ac-cess to food and other sup-plies.

Danish Ali, one of thestranded workers told the

Khaleej Times: "We are a groupof about 22 workers, and mostof us are from Uttar Pradesh.When the situation became in-creasingly grave, we hoped to

go back to India."Unfortunately, Ali said, most

of them men had booked theirair tickets were booked onMarch 22, when India had an-nounced the 'Janta curfew', a

daylong self-imposed quaran-tine.

"After the curfew, India hasbanned all international flightstill April 14. We have not been

able to go back since, and it hasbecome very difficult for us tosurvive here," he added.

Ali said the men havefacemasks and gloves withthem, which they got with

them from India. The men arepresently housed in bedspaces in Sharjah's Rolla area.

Consulate officials came for-ward to help the workers assoon as they were informed oftheir plight.

Jitendra Singh Negi, ConsulLabor, Consular and MADADsaid: "The men were broughthere on tourist visas in the firstweek of March. The agentshave been reprimanded andwe provided food and tempo-rary provisions to the strandedworkers."

Neeraj Agarwal, Consul(Press, Information, and Cul-ture) said: "We encourage allIndians who are in a crisis ordestitute situation to reach outto the Consulate for help. Foodand medical provisions will beprovided to those in need."IANS

UAE-based Indianexpat sacked,faces jail

DUBAI: An Indian expat inthe United Arab Emirates (UAE)was facing police action afterbeing fired for insulting Islamon social media, a media re-port said.

Rakesh B. Kitturmath, whoworked as a team leader atEmrill Services, an integratedfacilities management (FM)headquartered in Dubai, wassacked on Thursday 09 April,the company's CEO told GulfNews.

"Kitturmath's employmentstands terminated with imme-diate effect. He will be handedover to Dubai Police. We have azero-tolerance policy towardssuch hate crimes," said StuartHarrison, CEO of Emrill Ser-vices.

Kitturmath sparked outrageon social media after he ridi-culed Muslim worshippers inresponse to a Facebook poston the coronaviruspandemic.A screenshot ofKitturmath's response went vi-ral on social media with hun-dreds demanding his dismissaland arrest.

Harrison told Gulf News thatthey were trying to find out ifKitturmath was still in the UAE.

"We have over 8,500 em-ployees so this may take awhile. That said, we have firedhim. If he's still in the country,he will be handed over toDubai Police," he said.

Originally fromRanebennuri, Karnataka,Kitturmath joins a growing listof Indian expats who havelanded in trouble forIslamophobic messages in re-cent days. IANS

Indian-origin appointedhigh court judge

NZ enforces compulsoryquarantine for all arrivalsWELLINGTON: Starting

from Thursday 9 April, everyNew Zealander boarding aflight to return home will berequired to undergo quar-antine or "managed isola-tion" in an approved facilityfor a minimum of 14 days, aspart of the country's latestresponse to curb COVID-19.

"As an island nation wehave a distinct advantagein our ability to eliminatethe virus, but our bordersare also our biggest risk,"Xinhua news agencyquoted Prime MinisterJacinda Ardern as saying ata press conference, addingthe borders must be"tightly managed".

"The government hasgone harder earlier with

border measures com-pared to other countries,but even one person slip-ping through the cracksand bringing the virus incan see an explosion incases as we have observedwith some of our biggerclusters," Ardern said.

Foreign nationals wereprevented to enter NewZealand from midnightMarch 19. This latest mea-sure mainly targets return-ing New Zealanders.

"Nearly 40,000 NewZealanders have returnedhome since March 20. Thatis more than all of the hotelrooms across the countrythat we could have properlyhoused people in," she said.IANS

SINGAPORE: SingaporePresident has appointed Indian-origin Judicial CommissionerDedar Singh Gill as a judge ofthe High Court from August 1,the Prime Minister's Office said.

The Singapore SupremeCourt comprises the HighCourt and the Court of Appeal,reports the Straits Times.

Judge Gill, 61, was earlierappointed Judicial Commis-sioner of the Supreme Court inAugust 2018.Before that, hewas the managing director ofthe intellectual property de-partment at Drew andNapier.After assuming his Su-preme Court role, he was ap-pointed by Chief JusticeSundareshMenon to managethe intellectual property list ofthe High Court, and worked onreviewing the intellectualproperty dispute resolutionsystem in Singapore. In addi-tion to intellectual propertycases, he has experience withcases related to contract, tortand negligence matters. IANS

April 17, 2020 India Post 25www.indiapost.com

Philosophy

Available on AMAZON, FLIPKART

50 SPIRITUAL APPETIZERSVinod Dhawan

“It’s a lovely book. It feels en-

ergetically clear and light. It’s

easy to read, dip in and out and

most importantly it offers infor-

mation without fluff! Blessings

on this project.”Jac O’Keeffe

Spirituality teacher based inUSA.

NISARGADATTA MAHARAJ

Between the banks of pain andpleasure the river of life flows. It

is only when the mind refuses to flowwith life, and gets stuck at the banks,that it becomes a problem. By flowingwith life I mean acceptance - lettingcome what comes and go what goes.

Desire not, fear not, observe theactual, as and when it happens, foryou are not what happens, you are towhom it happens. Ultimately eventhe observer you are not. You are theultimate potentiality of which the all-embracing consciousness is themanifestation and expression.

The memory of an event cannotpass for the event itself. Nor can theanticipation. There is something excep-tional, unique, about the presentevent, which the previous, or the com-

ing do not have. There is a livingnessabout it, an actuality; it stands out as ifilluminated. There is the 'stamp of real-ity' on the actual, which the past andthe future do not have.

Q: What gives the present that'stamp of reality'?

There is nothing peculiar in thepresent event to make it differentfrom the past and future. For a mo-ment the past was actual and the fu-ture will become so. What makes thepresent so different? Obviously, mypresence. I am real for I am alwaysnow, in the present, and what is withme now shares in my reality.

The past is in memory, the future -in imagination. There is nothing in thepresent event itself that makes itstand out as real. It may be somesimple, periodical occurrence, likethe striking of the clock. In spite ofour knowing that the successivestrokes are identical, the presentstroke is quite different from theprevious one and the next - as re-membered, or expected. A thing fo-cused in the now is with me, for I amever present; it is my own reality thatI impart to the present event.

Q: But we deal with things re-membered as if they were real.

We consider memories only whenthey come into the present. The forgot-

ten is not counted until one is reminded- which implies, bringing into the now.

Q: Yes, I can see there is in the nowsome unknown factor that gives mo-mentary reality to the transient ac-tuality.

You need not say it is unknown, foryou see it in constant operation. Sinceyou were born, has it ever changed?Things and thoughts have beenchanging all the time. But the feelingthat what is now is real has neverchanged, even in dream.

Q: In deep sleep there is no experi-ence of the present reality.

The blankness of deep sleep is dueentirely to the lack of specific memo-ries. But a general memory of well-being is there. There is a difference infeeling when we say 'I was deeplyasleep' from 'I was absent'.

Desire is the memory of pleasure

and fear is the memory of pain. Bothmake the mind restless. Moments ofpleasure are merely gaps in thestream of pain.

Q: Is pain a cosmic fact, or purelymental?

The universe is complete andwhere there is completeness, wherenothing lacks, what can give pain? Apart of the whole seen in relation tothe whole is also complete. Only whenseen in isolation it becomes deficientand thus a seat of pain.

No thing in existence has a particu-lar cause; the entire universe contrib-utes to the existence of even thesmallest thing.

Excerpted from 'I Am That'. The123rd birth anniversary ofNisargadatta Maharaj is being ob-served on April 17

My presence makes thepresent significant

Nisargadatta Maharaj

There is the 'stamp of reality' onthe actual, which the past andthe future do not have

PerspectiveIndian National Safety Endangeredby Islamist Missionary Movement

PURNIMA NATH

National Security and safety iscompromised - India has beenhit with a lethal weapon, Chi-

nese coronavirus, primarily linked toorthodox Islamist Sunni missionarymovement Tablighi Jamaat (TJ), andwestern leftist media is taking full ad-vantage to defame India withIslamophobia

A terror plot when India isengulfed by coronavirus:

When the entire nation of India wasunexpectedly caught by the massivespread of lethal coronavirus attacklargely linked to a massive TablighiJamaat ( TJ) congregation held atNizamuddin Markaz (center) in Delhi,on the 1st of April Indian army spot-ted evidence of a group of infiltratedPakistani terrorists waiting to launchan attack along the line of control (loc)in Jammu and Kashmir (J&K). Army lo-cated and encountered the terrorists,but they managed to escape. Inclem-ent weather, 8-ft deep snow, low vis-ibility could not deter them from en-countering and eliminating theheavily-armed infiltrator terrorists.Unfortunately, bravehearts of the In-dian army were killed in action in in-tense combat as both sides openedfire from a point-blank range. A hugequantity of arms, ammunition andcommunication devices recovered.Did the world know anything aboutthis? Ask why?

It is not a Hindu-Muslim issue, it isabout justice. And India and Hindushad been targeted for the eons, andwhen the real victims start being de-fensive, the aggressors and the per-petrators play victim card. Conve-nient?

Over the last few weeks, many in-ternational media, such as BBC, Time,Washington Post have published vari-ous articles defaming India on diversetopics. The latest blame was for pub-lishing reports on new coronaviruscases that were linked to the TJ inDelhi. When the nation's capital wasattacked by anti-India CAA (Citizen-ship Amendment Act) protestsquickly-turned-violent riots that killedmany people, destroyed public prop-erties, leftist global media managedto push a nasty narrative that Hindugoons attacked Muslims. In reality, itwas the Muslim communities whowere causing inconvenience in

months-long anti-India-terror-group-funded protests and prepared to at-tack Hindus. Prominent AmericanDemocrats and communists and orga-nizations including the UN have spo-ken falsely about India, criticized itsgovernment in a coordinated effort topaint an evil picture of India, pushinganti-Hindu, anti-India agendas. We willnot accept these blatant lies any-more.

Coronavirus impact on the world:While the global economy is hit, the

stock market is crashing, the supplychain is weakened (at least tempo-rarily), the mother country China al-ready opened the wet markets. Indiashares a 3,488 km border with China,yet India was able to contain thecoronavirus spread thus far…well,UNTIL a large gathering caused asteep curve, that too suddenly.

Important information aboutIndia:

Before you go further into under-standing what Tablighi is, or its contri-bution to damages caused to Indianpeople, understand the following.Hindus are the minorities in everycountry in the world, except India andNepal. Hindus do not have any coun-try specifically, however, Hindus origi-nated in India - so, separation from In-dia is impossible, regardless of coun-try Hindus live in. Currently, India hasover 200 million Muslims, the third-largest Muslim community in the en-tire world with 10.9%, slightly behindPakistan and Indonesia with 11.1%AND 12.9% Respectively. On the con-trary, there are 51 Islamic State Mus-lim countries, and 1 Jew country, andthe rest are Christian and Buddhistcountries.

Although India has 79% Hindu ma-jority, Hindus and Hinduism are con-stantly threatened and shamed byspecifically Muslim community. Indiaaccepted all religions and has free-dom of expression and religious prac-tices, much like western Christiancountries. However, Hindu minoritiesin the neighboring Muslim countriesare religiously persecuted. Hindus areunable to practice their faith and ob-serve their religious rituals in any Is-lamic countries.


Disclaimer: Views expressed are personal to the author

India Post April 17, 2020www.indiapost.comHoroscope26

Kindly read the predictions from your ascendant sign. If you do not know your ascendant sign then read thesame from Moon sign. If Moon sign is also not known then read it from the Zodiac sign. The ascendant sign which is

calculated from the birth details viz. date, month, year, time & place of birth gives 85 % accurate predictions. Theaccuracy of predictions from Moon sign get limited to only 50 %. The predictions from Zodiac sign are only 25 %

accurate. In nutshell the predictions from ascendant sign are most accurate. In getting personality analysis the traitsgiven by ascendant sign are 100 % accurate and that is the essence of Vedic Astrology.

Your Weekly Futureby VANEET SHARMA

MAR 21 to APRIL 20 JUN 21 to JULY 22 SEP 23 to OCT 22 DEC 22 to JAN 19

MAY 21 to JUN 20 AUG 23 to SEP 22 NOV 23 to DEC 21 FEB 20 to MAR 20

APRIL 21 to MAY 20 JULY 23 to AUG 22 OCT 23 to NOV 22 JAN 20 to FEB 19

APR 17TH APR 23RD 2020

“Felicitated andhonored by then

President of India ShriPranab Mukherjee"

VANEETSHARMA

510-648-4899

The planetary tran-sit indicates

that you shall enjoyexcellent conjugalbliss, good harmony

with spouse and understanding withyour colleagues and seniors. Love life shallbe perfect. Your pleasure seeking activi-ties shall get multiplied. You shall be par-ticipating in the activities related to thecreation of strategies for enhancing yourincome and increasing your influence. Youshall be travelling extensively and yoursocial influence is likely to increase.

The planetary transit in this week

is excellent for yourhappiness and youshall engage yourself

in several pleasure seeking activities. In thebeginning of the week most of your timeshall get spent with friends and social ac-tivities and everything in this week is posi-tive for you. The planetary transit is excel-lent for your children. The last two days ofthe week are excellent for travelling, merrymaking etc and your expenses shall remaincontrolled throughout the week.

The beginning ofthe week is

giving big indicationof drainage of ener-gies. Anger issues shall

be troubling and expenses would go outof control. You might have to travel ex-tensively. There are indications oftroubled relations, arguments, injury,surgery and financial losses in this week.The biggest problem in this week shallbe the total reduction in patience, cour-age and energies. Avoid getting into ar-guments with people.

This week shallprove to be

excellent for all areasof life. You shall be en-joying continuous fa-

vor of destiny, betterment in professionallife as per expectations especially in themid of the week which shall bring in someimmediate gains. The support of spouse,children, father and partners shall be avail-able especially at the time of financial bur-den. You are advised to be cautious on lasttwo days of the week as it might spoil yourstate of mind and happiness.

The planetary tran-sit in the be-

ginning of the week isindicating restorationof peace and confi-

dence but you need to control your ag-gression. On 17th & 18th you can expectto earn more gains with the support offamily members. The first half of theweek is best for finance, family and so-cial activities whereas the second halfshall be good for domestic happiness &recreational activities. You shall see in-crease in income.

You are advised tobe cautious

about your health inthis week. You shallconcentrate more on

the practice of occult, Yoga and medita-tion etc. Hidden financial gains are prob-able. You can get into deliberations re-garding the settlement of paternalproperty. You might earn from specula-tion and lottery etc. too. Although youshall be facing obstacles in accomplish-ing your tasks however with the help offriends and partners.

This week shall befull of luxuries,

pleasure, travelling,conjugal bliss, domes-tic happiness and ex-

cellent love life. You would remain busyin settling some domestic issues andchildren related matters in the begin-ning of the week and if pursuing studiesthen this week shall be better as com-pared to the previous one. You are ad-vised to avoid getting into argumentswith family members. The health ofmother shall improve.

You shall be suc-cessful in all

types of competitionsand educational activi-ties. You shall be get-

ting excellent favor of destiny. The be-ginning of the week shall be excellent foryour happiness from children. You shallbe engaged in entertainment related ac-tivities. Love life shall get improved. Yourconsultation work shall win outstandingappreciation for you. The last two days ofthe week are inauspicious for decisionmaking and starting any new task.

This week shallprove to be

excellent for all areasof life but you shall befacing some mental

tensions. Avoid getting into argumentwith people otherwise the domestic at-mosphere might get affected. The con-fidence and courage shall remain intact.The favor of destiny shall be availableespecially in the last days of the week.Marital happiness shall be at its peak. Theday of 18th, 19th & 20th April are notgood for decision making and happiness.

The beginning ofthe week shall

be good to earn sud-den financial gains butthe expenses and you

can expect restoration of peace in thelatter part of the week. In the mid of theweek you shall be attaining great suc-cess in activating your hidden potentialand resources. Occult powers shall in-crease which would eventually help tobring stability in professional life. You areadvised to take interest in researchwork.

The circumstancesand situations

in the beginning of theweek shall help you torestore your drained

energies and you are going to attain morerecognition in the area of work. This weekis good for earning more gains andstrengthen the income source. The day of19th & 20th March are indicating moretravel. The last two days of the week areexcellent for enjoying more luxury and hap-piness. The only problem in this week canbe that of some arguments with spouse.

Planetary transit indicates that you shall be

getting complete favorof destiny. You shall berising at your native

place. People shall support you for yourgood actions and intentions. The remain-ing part of the week indicates good luckand recognition in work area with tremen-dous public support. You shall do very wellin competitive examinations. Admissionin a reputed institute of higher educationis possible. Avoid getting into argumentswith your children and elder siblings.

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Disclaimer: Views expressed are personal to the author

Covid-19 may be turningpoint for India

ARUL LOUIS

The Covid-19 outbreakwill be a turning point inglobalisation's steady

march over the last 40 years,impacting India beyond its ef-forts to grapple with the currenteconomic slowdown.

The world is whipsawed bythe human toll of the diseaseand the economic meltdown ap-proaching recession proportionsleading to closing of economiesand frontiers to a degree thatthe extreme anti-globalisationforces or even President DonaldTrump could have foreseen.

Even if the extreme measurestaken by governments and theeconomic fallout end when thedisease abates, there will be areimagination of globalisationnow that its perceivedunassailability has beenbreached, exposing its weak-ness.

Its economic growth hadbeen scaled back to 4.9% for thecurrent fiscal year by the Inter-national Monetary Fund (IMF)before the Coronavirus crisis hit.That figure is likely to be re-duced even further as also theforecast of 5.8% for the next yearbecause of the disease's exter-nal impact.

India sailed placidly throughthe 2008 Great Recession com-pared to other countries, but inthe decade since, its exposureto the global economy has in-creased while the domesticeconomy was already wobbly.

In 2008 and in the years thatfollowed till as recently as 2018-19, India was buoyed by growingdomestic consumption. But thatis unlikely this time around as do-mestic consumption has fallen.

IMF's Managing DirectorKristalina Georgieve recently es-timated that global growthwould be 2.9%, a dip of 0.5%from previous estimates. A drop

of similar magnitude can be ex-pected for India from the 4.9%made for the current fiscal year.

The commercial and indus-trial headline from the crisis isthat coronavirus has hit theworld's factory, China, and thedisruption in the supply chainshas hit manufacturing aroundthe world and also the availabil-ity of goods made in that coun-try. This has exposed the weakpoint of globalisation that ben-efited China at the expense ofthe rest of the world.

The global trade disruptionpresents three possible sce-narios: A retrenchment fromglobalisation entrenchedthrough the World TradeOrganisation that is already un-der stress from Trump's tradewars; flowing from it as well as afuture insurance, a trend to-wards reinvigorating domestic

manufacture, and the reorienta-tion of the supply chains awayfrom China.

If the WTO structure isshaken, India could try to boostdomestic manufacture even ofsimple things like Deepavalifireworks or religious icons thatare increasingly outsourced toChina.

It could also try to vie for thedownstream of supply chainsthat multinationals want to relo-cate. (Lacking the capacity ofchip foundries, for example, thecell phone manufacturer thatmoved to India has been hit bythe China closures.) But for this tohappen, India will have to createthe physical and human infra-structures - the transportationand energy networks for manu-facture and the social and educa-tional development of people inthe populous inland areas.

There are, however, two bar-riers to this: Competition fromnot only other developing coun-

tries, but also from the devel-oped countries that would wantthe supply chains closer in, and acutback in corporate invest-ments.

UNCTAD has said that reelingfrom the effects of thecoronavirus, multinationals arecutting back on capital invest-ments and the flow of foreign di-rect investments (FDI) can dropby 5 to 15%. This will affect boththe expected regular FDI flow toIndia as well as the possible relo-cation of manufacturing.

While China may re-emergefrom the crisis slightly weak-ened, the consequences can bedevastating for countries like In-dia, which missed out on most ofthe benefits of rapidglobalisation and do not havethe capital accumulation, unlessthey can reinvent themselves.

The Italian lockdown is test-ing the concept of a Western Eu-rope without borders, alreadyshaken by Brexit and the Ger-man-engineered refugee influxbefore that. The SchengenAgreement of 1985, which grewto 26 members, is at risk fromItaly's restrictions, that couldcreep. Wholesale barring of Chi-nese citizens from entering cer-tain countries is another setbackto relaxed global travel.

An article of faith for globalistsand many economists and busi-ness leaders is that globalisationand the competition it engen-dered led to greater innovationand making products affordable,and the fast economic growthhelped millions out of poverty.

What would happen to theseif barriers began to show upagain?

The Covid-19 crisis has ex-posed the weak points ofglobalisation and it may be timeto re-evaluate it, if it had gone toofar too soon, and where nationssituate themselves ideologically,as much as economically.

(The writer is a New York-based journalist, Non-ResidentSenior Fellow of the SPS and canbe contacted at [email protected] followed on Twitter@arulouis)

India sailed placidly through the 2008 GreatRecession compared to other countries, but in

the decade since, its exposure to the globaleconomy has increased while the domestic

economy was already wobbly

Econovid Impact

For India which was already facing fiscal distress before theoutbreak of COVID-19, it will not be easy to sail through

for at least another couple of years if not more.We all know the virus is not going to go away very soon.

Experts believe that lockdown cannot eliminate the viruscompletely. It is not the cure; by isolating people who are af-fected from those who are not we can only contain the spreadof the virus. Several countries like Denmark, Japan, Singaporeand South Korea have done that. The need of the hour is alsoto have a balanced approach towards the economic impacton people and the country.

As a developing country, India has to take the middle pathand ensure the lockdown impact does not lead to starvationand famine, which can be more disastrous than trying to apeother countries. Modi has done the right thing with his quickdecision on lockdown and he should try to resume the eco-nomic activities where needed without compromising the lifeand safety of its citizens. Movements of essential goods andcrucial economic industries must be jump started before it istoo late.

More than 1.6 billion people are affected with this virusand over 70 plus countries are under lockdown as per WHO.

Before the outbreak of the coronavirus US unemploymentrate was lowest since the eighties. However, things havechanged drastically now with the outbreak. According to lat-est data more than 6.6 million people across US are unem-ployed and the figure may go up as the lockdown continues.The impact of the virus has been extremely severe on the US,mainly due to its delay in deciding and implementing the safeguards. On hindsight one can blame China or, our own advis-ers, but that will not help in any way to rebuild our economyand save people lives.

Trump is now doing the right thing by reaching other coun-tries for help, including India for the crucial HCQ drugs. UShasalways taken leadership in helping other parts of theworld in time of famine, fighting against any human disastersand protecting the world againstadversaries who try to de-stabilize their freedom.US leadership over the last centuryexists because of this and on the very principles on which thecountry is founded. If we fail to keep this "Dharma ", we canvery easily lose this space to any other country. It could leadto disaster or even worse as another nation may not have thesame principles. They may be motivated to arm-twist anycountry they want, as we would have become totally depen-dent on their products.

The world has become very small, earlier by way of mod-ern modes of travel and now with the advent of cyber space.We can communicate faster and more efficiently than everbefore. The future will witness even more such developmentswith the pace of development in aerospace and robotics. TheUS still has an edge over many nations and if we want to main-tain leadership we need to share our knowledge and continueallocating larger funds towards R&D so that we are not de-pendent on any one country for all our needs. By not puttingall eggs in one basket, the US must continue to develop newfrontiers and create new technologies that do not create un-employment.

1 Muqabla: Street Dancer 3D2 Malang Title Track: Malang3 Illegal Weapon 2.0:Street Dancer 3D4 Garmi: Street Dancer 3D5 Haan Mai Galat: Love Aaj Kal6 Shayad: Love Aaj Kal7 Sauda Khara Khara:Good Newwz8 Dheeme Dheeme: Pati PatniAur Who9 Pyaar Tenu Karde Gabru: ShubhMangal Zyaada Savdhan10 Don't Be Shy Again: Bala

www.indiapost.com30 India Post April 17, 2020

TOPTOPTOPTOPTOP TENTENTENTENTENHINDI SONGS

Actress Bhumi Pednekar has decided to

learn the science of hydroponics farming

from her mother Sumitra Pednekar dur-

ing the COVID-19 lockdown.

"My mom and I always wanted to have a

hydroponics garden of our own where we

grow our own vegetables and can have a

ful ly susta inable l i fest y le . We wanted to

have a garden to table lifestyle at home and

we are both happy with the progress," she

said.

The science of soil-less gardening is called hydropon-

ics. It involves growing healthy plants without the use of

a traditional soil medium by using a nutrient lik

e a min-

eral rich water solution instead.

Bhumi is also the brain behind her online and offline

initiative called "Climate Warrior" through which she is

raising awareness on how citizen of India can contribute

to protect the climate.

"I have been working closely with my mom during this

time. I'm proud that our garden can now produce food

for two days of the week!" IANS

Unhappy with the recreation of his song "Masakali", musicmaestro A R Rahman has asked his fans to listen to the original track,

saying his team put in a lot of hardwork and sleepless nights in composing it.The track, penned by Prasoon Joshi and sung by Mohit Chauhan, had

featured in Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra's 2009 feature "Delhi 6", star-ring Abhishek Bachchan and Sonam Kapoor.

Recently, Bhushan Kumar's T-series launched the remixed version ofthe song from composer Tanishq Bagchi and singers Tulsi Kumar andSachet Tandon. The track's music video features Sidharth Malhotra andTara Sutaria.

"No short cuts, properly commissioned, sleepless nights, writes andre-writes. Over 200 musicians, 365 days of creative brainstorming withthe aim to produce music that can last generations. PTI

Action star Tiger Shroff has alwaysbeen synonymous with fitness and

body flexibility. The actor keeps enter-taining fans by sharing videos of work-out and stunts. In his latest video posted,

Tiger flaunts his first doublelanding, and he sure

does it effortlessly!"Little pleasures

of life... my boysand I celebratingmy first double

l a n d i n g .@ k u l d e e p s h a s h i

@ s w a i n v i k r a m@ n a d e e m a k h t

arparkour88," he cap-tioned the video.

Fans are absolutely de-lighted to watch the video and theyexpressed awe and admiration inthe comments section.

One fan commented: "Excellentwork Tiger!"

Another fan wrote: "TigerShroff is a legend."

A female fan expressed:"My king, my love, my super-hero!"

Recently, Tiger Shroffshared a video where he canbe seen working out on hishome's terrace. The actor lefthis upper body bare toflaunt his perfect abs andmuscles. IANS

"LITTLEPLEASURES OF

LIFE... MY BOYSAND I CELEBRATING

MY FIRST DOUBLELANDING


www.indiapost.comPunjab Post

LPU Researchers innovate IoT device 'KAWACH'• Keeps on warning to maintain social distancing, wash hands frequently

• This device is easily wearable as a pendant.JASWANT SINGH GANDAM / RAMAN NEHRAIndia Post News Service

PHAGWARA: In the wake of thedeadly novel Covid-19 virus cases in In-dia and the world, research studentsand their professors of Electronics Com-munication and Engineering depart-ment at Lovely Professional University

(LPU), have designed an IoT devicenamed 'Kawach/Pendant'.

A varsity release said that this easilywearable pendant will keep warningwearers to maintain social distancing,wash hands frequently amid coronapandemic.

A person wearing the device breaksthe minimum 1-meter safe space, it au-tomatically glows and starts vibrating.In addition, the device also offers hand-wash reminders that beep every 30minutes to prompt the user to washtheir hands. It also has a temperaturesensor that alerts via SMS, if their bodytemperature breaks the agreed limit.

The team of researchers at LPU hassuccessfully conducted pilot test of thisdevice 'Kawach' among the staff mem-bers. The team is now looking for theright partners for its commercialization.

According to the Ministry of Healthand Family Welfare, "social distancing"

is an important non-pharmaceuticalstep for infection prevention and con-tain the spread. This device will greatlyhelp to prevent and slow down, rateand magnitude of the disease spread in

the global society.Congratulating the team of Univer-

sity researchers, LPU Chancellor MrAshok Mittal asked all members to com-

pletely control the corona virus in orderto protect entire global society fromthis pandemic. Mr Mittal also informedthat LPU researchers are continuouslysharing data with scientists from China

and England for their ongo-ing research. He also in-formed that a university stu-dent who is now an actressis also featuring in a govern-ment awareness advertise-ment on Corona!

The innovative pendant iseasy-to-wear, low cost de-vice that includes batteries,human body temperaturesensors, ultrasonic sensors,LEDs, vibrators, controllers,switches, and a storage card.

Apart from the hand-wash reminderthat it provides, it is also a very usefultool in these times in preventing thedeadly CoronaVirus.

15,000 ration bags being distributedto the needy in Phagwara

Sarbat Da Bhala Trustdonates 40 Lakhs toFight CoronavirusJASWANT SINGH GANDAM / RAMAN NEHRAIndia Post News Service

PHAGWARA: Renowned Dubai-based entrepreneur cum philanthro-pist Dr. SP Singh Oberoi, Chairman,Sarbat Da Bhala Charitable Trust, has an-nounced financial assistance to the tune

of Rs.40 lakhsto variousdistrict ad-ministrationsin Punjab tofight thed e a d l ycoronavirus.

In a recentrelease hesaid the virushas taken thestate in its

grip and difficult times are waitingahead for the people of the state thusthe financial help will go in long way todeal with the emergency situations.

Dr. Oberoi, who is known for his so-cial work, said the money was releasedto the Deputy Commissioners and po-lice heads of various districts in state.

``The demands were put forward bythe district administrations and the fi-nancial help extended accordingly",said Dr. Oberoi .


Dr. S P Singh Oberoi

JASWANT SINGH GANDAM / RAMAN NEHRAIndia Post News Service

PHAGWARA: With view to reachingout to the needy during the ongoingcurfew/lockdown in state to combatcoronavirus pandemic, Balwinder SinghDhaliwal, Phagwara MLA Thursdaylaunched Punjab government's helpingprogramme of providing 15,000 bagsof ration to the needy and the poor inPhagwara Block.

The programme was launched inpresence of Additional DeputyCommissioner(ADC) cum CommissionerPhagwara municipal corporation RajivVerma and Sub-divisionalmagistrate(SDM) Gurwinder SinghJohal.

The bags containing 10 kg of wheat,2kg of daal and 2 kg of sugar were beingdelivered to the poor families at theirdoorsteps.

The bureaucrat-turned politicianDhaliwal said on this occasion that Cap-tain Amarinder Singh governmentstood by the people of Punjab in thesetrying times.

Dhaliwal said,"I, for one, as represen-tative of the constituency, am always atthe beck and call of the people. I amwith them through thick and thin.Nonewill remain without essential commodi-ties. Since people cannot go out of their

homes due to curfew, we are going totheir homes for fulfilling their needs. Weare religiously observing the mandatedsocial distancing while distributing ra-tion."

Prior to it, Dhaliwal got a feedbackfrom councillors, sarpanches and otherpublic representatives about the needyfamilies.

Phagwara MLA Balwinder Singh Dhaliwal (extreme right), ADC cum Municipal Corporation Commis-sioner Rajiv Verma and SDM Gurwinder Singh Johal during launch of the programme of distributing

15,000 bags of ration to the needy and the poor


LPU sets up USD1 Million fund tocombat COVID-19JASWANT SINGH GANDAM /RAMAN NEHRA


PHAGWARA: Lovely ProfessionalUniversity (LPU) has announced set-ting-up of USD 1 million fund tocombat the outbreak of Covid.A var-sity release said the fund can be ac-cessed by a multi-disciplinary taskforce set up under the LPU Vice-Chancellor.

Researchers, faculty membersand student entrepreneurs are partof the task force who will work to-wards finding ways to flatten thecurve and reduce the spread of theepidemic over the course of nextfew months. The university will con-tinue to add to the fund in duecourse of time.

The task force aims to use the lat-est technologies such as AI, machinelearning, IoT and 3D printing to con-trol the spread of the coronavirus. Itwill also research the economic andsocial impact being caused by Covid.

It has been in action for the pasttwo weeks and the first productdeveloped by it is an IoT deviceknown as 'Kawach' to promote safesocial distancing. The device, whichcan be worn as a pendant, vibratesand glows in case someonebreaches the user's minimum safespace of 1-metre.

India Postwww.indiapost.com

April 17, 202032

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